A/N: Now we'll introduce our lovely other character. Enjoy.
Darilsheid (Chapter 2) – Leon
Leon Magnus pushed his way through the busy, gray streets of Darilsheid. Hundreds of people were moving around, many peddlers attempting to sell their worthless items, and all of this because of the upcoming promotion and ceremony. The promotion was for the new Master Swordsman of Seinegald, and the ceremony was for Darilsheid Army's hundred and fiftieth anniversary, an event that had been long waited for.
Leon didn't really think it was a big deal. He'd been in the Darilsheid Army since he was about eight, and he knew exactly who was going to get the promotion. It wasn't a huge thing to him; it would just put him where he should be-- as Master Swordsman. He was only just sixteen, and he could use a sword like one of the Seven Generals. Better, really. It was an exceptional quality, and he used it to his advantage as much as possible. It got him places, ranks, things, and a to-be respectable name. Master Swordsman Lieutenant Leon Emilio Katrea-Gilchrist Magnus. There's a mouthful.
He only had one competition, and that was Sergeant Langer, but he posed a very small threat. Leon remembered how in the pub that last night he'd heard Langer announce how sure he was getting the promotion. He'd made sure Leon had heard him, as it was almost a shout. Leon considered Sergeant Major Dyre Langer a moron for an adult. He acted purely on emotion, making silly coercive threats and personal affairs with people. The young swordsman knew Langer had only joined Darilsheid's Army as a way to prove to his friends and family that he could hold out in the military.
The young swordsman walked quickly through the streets of the big city, and as he turned the block on which his home located, he felt someone grab his shoulder.
He pushed the hand off, and turned to see Anatola Jostlyn, standing there grinning. "Hi!" She exclaimed, still overjoyed. He looked at her for a second, and then turned to leave, irritated—he wasn't in the mood to deal with her.
Anatola was an ex-maid at his mansion, which loomed in front of him, and she was one of the people in this town that Leon found most irritating. Infatuated with him, she had worked at the mansion constantly…often visiting him, (giving him inane reasons to be in the same room with him) bothering him, and eventually spilling out her feelings. He supposed he could have been flattered by this obsession—she was very pretty, with long, dark blonde hair and friendly brown eyes—and he was, at first. But after her constant presence, her talking turning into love letters, and finally her confronting him one day in an illicit manner, she'd grown into a general annoyance. He did not share her feelings—it was a one sided craze.
He knew she was from the poor side of town, and he didn't think much of her. After he'd complained to Hugo about her routing through his possessions—a reason still unknown to him—she had gotten fired. Leon had hoped that would get rid of her, that she would be angry with him, or anything. But she continued to approach him on the streets, or in the castle (she worked there now) and he'd continued to be just as mean to her as he had been in the mansion. Still, she wouldn't leave.
"You can go now." He shot back to Anatola's greeting as he stepped up to his house.
He heard her pursue him, and he hurried closer to the gate surrounding his home. "No, Leon wait—I need to talk to you!"
In response, he pushed open the gate and slammed it into her face. "Go away." He turned and stepped inside the large house's courtyard. It was a beautiful sight, the grass neatly kept and cut with several apple trees planted around the edges of the house, giving the yard a cozy look. However, Leon knew it was far from cozy. The mansion itself loomed above all the other nearby houses and was a smaller version of the castle, really. It had two huge front doors, like Darilsheid Castle with the city's crest engraved on each.
As the teenager opened the doors of the mansion he was greeted by a few decent maids who went about their own business. The inside was extraordinary; the design beautifully crafted and made out of only the best material. As he entered, he was brought in front of a large painting, the portrait of lady Chris Katrea...
Leon looked away and continued through the mansion to his room. Along the way, he passed by an open door, which led to where Hugo Gilchrist stood, dressed in his regular black/gray/white outfit. Hugo was the president of Oberol Corporation, the manufacturers of lens that sold out products, and generating a source of energy for the world. Since this was the largest corporation in the world, Hugo lived in the largest city in the world, and in the largest house. Leon never referred to Hugo as his father; their father/son relationship was limited to business. Leon hated him.
"Leon, you must get in your uniform. The practice for tomorrow's ceremony will begin in a few hours. We will go to the castle as soon as you are done." Hugo ordered. Leon nodded and continued to his room.
He found his uniform there, pressed and cleaned from the maids and ready to wear. Chaltier was lying beside it...Leon had felt nervous without his Swordian, so as soon as he saw his only companion he picked him up and put Chaltier in his sheath, at the youth's waist.
Welcome back, young master.
In a way, Leon was glad only he could hear the Swordian's voice. That way, he could confide in the sword and not worry about anything. He often wondered what it had been like, while Chaltier was alive...but that way before his time.
"Hello, Chal," Leon replied as he got dressed for the practice. "I've got to do something about that Anatola girl. I could talk to Hugo about it, but he'd probably just tell me to deal with it, or have her killed." Leon stopped for a moment, wondering if that would be a good thing. "Well, anyway it will be an advantage to become Master Swordsman. I don't see why they are making a big fuss out of this occasion anyway. It's not like I've never been promoted before."
Chaltier listened to his master in silence. "I guess Hugo will be fine with it. I imagine he made it positively sure I get the promotion. Not because he cares. Just so that I can be more useful in his work." Leon finished buttoning up the uniform and tucked his raven black hair into the beret.
He sighed. It was true, Hugo was going to make sure Leon got this promotion only so that he could be in on the meeting with the other Seven Generals. So that whatever he was planning, he could use Leon to do that dirty work.
Walking to the Castle with Hugo was very uneventful. He got many stares and hellos, but he ignored them both. They went north from the mansion to Darilsheid Castle, and entered the huge building. They continued up the stairs and into the Throne Room. In there, Hugo had a brief conversation with the King of Darilsheid and Leon was formally presented to the King of Seinegald, in which he acted just as Hugo had commanded he did.
After he was presented, Hugo told Leon that he could go "talk to the other Generals and knights," which was another way of saying, "Go away." So, Leon left the Throne Room and wandered around the Castle. He had no intention on talking to the other competition, since they were all morons anyway. And he did not feel like getting in another pointless fight with Langer.
So he left the Room, and headed to the left of the Castle. There, he went even further left and found himself on the edge connecting the East Tower to the main Castle. He stayed on the little bridge-type connection and looked out at the city. It was busier then usual, and all he could see was moving people over the bright sun. He was glad for the wind; it cooled him down from the heat of the thick green uniform.
Leon glanced down at Chaltier. The Swordian had been quiet for the past while, but the kid didn't feel like speaking to him. He felt himself fall into his memories as he looked out at the city of Darilsheid, recalling what it was like back when he was a happy kid...the summer days with his mother, father, and sister. Before his father had turned into Hugo Gilchrist, while his mother was still alive...and before his sister left. Then he felt a horrible slash of pain inside of him as he remembered that night...when everything was lost. His mother, in a pool of blood. His sister, screaming. His father, and that dark sword...he was so young then. After that night, things had turned into the way they are now. His sister had left with a Swordian, and he never saw his mother again. Hugo had been ridiculously mean and terrible to Leon, until he saw that Chaltier had chosen his son. After that, he'd been indifferent to Leon, but the young child had figured it was better than being mean to him, so he went along with what Hugo told him to do.
Now that he was older, he realized that he was just a tool in Hugo's plan...which he had yet to figure out. He didn't care much, though. Leon valued his life but only to a certain extent. And Hugo, in truth, was all he had left, even if he was evil and corrupted.
The young Swordian Master sighed, and looked back out the city. It was way different now; full of Oberol shops and strange people he was not familiar with. He wondered where his sister was, and how she grew up. Perhaps that was the reason why he stayed conscious in this world.
"Lieutenant Magnus!" The teenager turned his head to the left and glanced with his cold lavender eyes at who called him. It was General Ashley, his battle tutor. Leon arose from leaning against the stone wall and came to attention as the General approached.
"Sir." He responded, staring straight ahead.
General Ashley nodded and stood in front of him. "You're a good soldier, kid. We're going to go through the final practice in a few minutes. You had better get into the Throne Room and join the others."
Leon nodded and replied, "Yes, sir." He waited for the General to give him an okay sign, and he exited toward the Throne Room.
As he entered, he saw that he was not the last one there. Langer was missing from his spot. I should have figured, Leon thought. He's probably off bragging about how he's going to get my promotion. Leon took his spot and saw Hugo give him disapproved look at his tardiness.
As he blended in with the rest of the corps, the King started on a speech about the true meaning of the promotion, and how it was not only the promotion of a brave and respected warrior, but also for the country Seinegald, and other sugar-coated meanings of giving a child more authority than a room full of people ten years older than him. While he was in the middle of this speech from the heart, the door opened and Sergeant Langer marched in.
"Sergeant Major Langer..." The King addressed him with a subtle warning in his voice.
Langer marched quickly to his spot, which was ironically, just to the left of Leon and spoke in a voice that seemed to be hiding his panic, "Your Majesty, please excuse me, I was in a difficult situation. Please understand!"
The king looked down at the reckless Sergeant and sighed. "Do not let it happen again."
And from there, he continued with his speech. Leon felt like rolling his eyes at the older Sergeant, wondering how he had ever became a Sergeant at all. How could he even expect to be thought of getting that promotion? He is a fool.
The King finished the explanation and stood in front of his somewhat large Army. "And now to begin the Final Practice of the Ceremonial Promotion!"
Darilsheid (Chapter 2) – Leon
Leon Magnus pushed his way through the busy, gray streets of Darilsheid. Hundreds of people were moving around, many peddlers attempting to sell their worthless items, and all of this because of the upcoming promotion and ceremony. The promotion was for the new Master Swordsman of Seinegald, and the ceremony was for Darilsheid Army's hundred and fiftieth anniversary, an event that had been long waited for.
Leon didn't really think it was a big deal. He'd been in the Darilsheid Army since he was about eight, and he knew exactly who was going to get the promotion. It wasn't a huge thing to him; it would just put him where he should be-- as Master Swordsman. He was only just sixteen, and he could use a sword like one of the Seven Generals. Better, really. It was an exceptional quality, and he used it to his advantage as much as possible. It got him places, ranks, things, and a to-be respectable name. Master Swordsman Lieutenant Leon Emilio Katrea-Gilchrist Magnus. There's a mouthful.
He only had one competition, and that was Sergeant Langer, but he posed a very small threat. Leon remembered how in the pub that last night he'd heard Langer announce how sure he was getting the promotion. He'd made sure Leon had heard him, as it was almost a shout. Leon considered Sergeant Major Dyre Langer a moron for an adult. He acted purely on emotion, making silly coercive threats and personal affairs with people. The young swordsman knew Langer had only joined Darilsheid's Army as a way to prove to his friends and family that he could hold out in the military.
The young swordsman walked quickly through the streets of the big city, and as he turned the block on which his home located, he felt someone grab his shoulder.
He pushed the hand off, and turned to see Anatola Jostlyn, standing there grinning. "Hi!" She exclaimed, still overjoyed. He looked at her for a second, and then turned to leave, irritated—he wasn't in the mood to deal with her.
Anatola was an ex-maid at his mansion, which loomed in front of him, and she was one of the people in this town that Leon found most irritating. Infatuated with him, she had worked at the mansion constantly…often visiting him, (giving him inane reasons to be in the same room with him) bothering him, and eventually spilling out her feelings. He supposed he could have been flattered by this obsession—she was very pretty, with long, dark blonde hair and friendly brown eyes—and he was, at first. But after her constant presence, her talking turning into love letters, and finally her confronting him one day in an illicit manner, she'd grown into a general annoyance. He did not share her feelings—it was a one sided craze.
He knew she was from the poor side of town, and he didn't think much of her. After he'd complained to Hugo about her routing through his possessions—a reason still unknown to him—she had gotten fired. Leon had hoped that would get rid of her, that she would be angry with him, or anything. But she continued to approach him on the streets, or in the castle (she worked there now) and he'd continued to be just as mean to her as he had been in the mansion. Still, she wouldn't leave.
"You can go now." He shot back to Anatola's greeting as he stepped up to his house.
He heard her pursue him, and he hurried closer to the gate surrounding his home. "No, Leon wait—I need to talk to you!"
In response, he pushed open the gate and slammed it into her face. "Go away." He turned and stepped inside the large house's courtyard. It was a beautiful sight, the grass neatly kept and cut with several apple trees planted around the edges of the house, giving the yard a cozy look. However, Leon knew it was far from cozy. The mansion itself loomed above all the other nearby houses and was a smaller version of the castle, really. It had two huge front doors, like Darilsheid Castle with the city's crest engraved on each.
As the teenager opened the doors of the mansion he was greeted by a few decent maids who went about their own business. The inside was extraordinary; the design beautifully crafted and made out of only the best material. As he entered, he was brought in front of a large painting, the portrait of lady Chris Katrea...
Leon looked away and continued through the mansion to his room. Along the way, he passed by an open door, which led to where Hugo Gilchrist stood, dressed in his regular black/gray/white outfit. Hugo was the president of Oberol Corporation, the manufacturers of lens that sold out products, and generating a source of energy for the world. Since this was the largest corporation in the world, Hugo lived in the largest city in the world, and in the largest house. Leon never referred to Hugo as his father; their father/son relationship was limited to business. Leon hated him.
"Leon, you must get in your uniform. The practice for tomorrow's ceremony will begin in a few hours. We will go to the castle as soon as you are done." Hugo ordered. Leon nodded and continued to his room.
He found his uniform there, pressed and cleaned from the maids and ready to wear. Chaltier was lying beside it...Leon had felt nervous without his Swordian, so as soon as he saw his only companion he picked him up and put Chaltier in his sheath, at the youth's waist.
Welcome back, young master.
In a way, Leon was glad only he could hear the Swordian's voice. That way, he could confide in the sword and not worry about anything. He often wondered what it had been like, while Chaltier was alive...but that way before his time.
"Hello, Chal," Leon replied as he got dressed for the practice. "I've got to do something about that Anatola girl. I could talk to Hugo about it, but he'd probably just tell me to deal with it, or have her killed." Leon stopped for a moment, wondering if that would be a good thing. "Well, anyway it will be an advantage to become Master Swordsman. I don't see why they are making a big fuss out of this occasion anyway. It's not like I've never been promoted before."
Chaltier listened to his master in silence. "I guess Hugo will be fine with it. I imagine he made it positively sure I get the promotion. Not because he cares. Just so that I can be more useful in his work." Leon finished buttoning up the uniform and tucked his raven black hair into the beret.
He sighed. It was true, Hugo was going to make sure Leon got this promotion only so that he could be in on the meeting with the other Seven Generals. So that whatever he was planning, he could use Leon to do that dirty work.
Walking to the Castle with Hugo was very uneventful. He got many stares and hellos, but he ignored them both. They went north from the mansion to Darilsheid Castle, and entered the huge building. They continued up the stairs and into the Throne Room. In there, Hugo had a brief conversation with the King of Darilsheid and Leon was formally presented to the King of Seinegald, in which he acted just as Hugo had commanded he did.
After he was presented, Hugo told Leon that he could go "talk to the other Generals and knights," which was another way of saying, "Go away." So, Leon left the Throne Room and wandered around the Castle. He had no intention on talking to the other competition, since they were all morons anyway. And he did not feel like getting in another pointless fight with Langer.
So he left the Room, and headed to the left of the Castle. There, he went even further left and found himself on the edge connecting the East Tower to the main Castle. He stayed on the little bridge-type connection and looked out at the city. It was busier then usual, and all he could see was moving people over the bright sun. He was glad for the wind; it cooled him down from the heat of the thick green uniform.
Leon glanced down at Chaltier. The Swordian had been quiet for the past while, but the kid didn't feel like speaking to him. He felt himself fall into his memories as he looked out at the city of Darilsheid, recalling what it was like back when he was a happy kid...the summer days with his mother, father, and sister. Before his father had turned into Hugo Gilchrist, while his mother was still alive...and before his sister left. Then he felt a horrible slash of pain inside of him as he remembered that night...when everything was lost. His mother, in a pool of blood. His sister, screaming. His father, and that dark sword...he was so young then. After that night, things had turned into the way they are now. His sister had left with a Swordian, and he never saw his mother again. Hugo had been ridiculously mean and terrible to Leon, until he saw that Chaltier had chosen his son. After that, he'd been indifferent to Leon, but the young child had figured it was better than being mean to him, so he went along with what Hugo told him to do.
Now that he was older, he realized that he was just a tool in Hugo's plan...which he had yet to figure out. He didn't care much, though. Leon valued his life but only to a certain extent. And Hugo, in truth, was all he had left, even if he was evil and corrupted.
The young Swordian Master sighed, and looked back out the city. It was way different now; full of Oberol shops and strange people he was not familiar with. He wondered where his sister was, and how she grew up. Perhaps that was the reason why he stayed conscious in this world.
"Lieutenant Magnus!" The teenager turned his head to the left and glanced with his cold lavender eyes at who called him. It was General Ashley, his battle tutor. Leon arose from leaning against the stone wall and came to attention as the General approached.
"Sir." He responded, staring straight ahead.
General Ashley nodded and stood in front of him. "You're a good soldier, kid. We're going to go through the final practice in a few minutes. You had better get into the Throne Room and join the others."
Leon nodded and replied, "Yes, sir." He waited for the General to give him an okay sign, and he exited toward the Throne Room.
As he entered, he saw that he was not the last one there. Langer was missing from his spot. I should have figured, Leon thought. He's probably off bragging about how he's going to get my promotion. Leon took his spot and saw Hugo give him disapproved look at his tardiness.
As he blended in with the rest of the corps, the King started on a speech about the true meaning of the promotion, and how it was not only the promotion of a brave and respected warrior, but also for the country Seinegald, and other sugar-coated meanings of giving a child more authority than a room full of people ten years older than him. While he was in the middle of this speech from the heart, the door opened and Sergeant Langer marched in.
"Sergeant Major Langer..." The King addressed him with a subtle warning in his voice.
Langer marched quickly to his spot, which was ironically, just to the left of Leon and spoke in a voice that seemed to be hiding his panic, "Your Majesty, please excuse me, I was in a difficult situation. Please understand!"
The king looked down at the reckless Sergeant and sighed. "Do not let it happen again."
And from there, he continued with his speech. Leon felt like rolling his eyes at the older Sergeant, wondering how he had ever became a Sergeant at all. How could he even expect to be thought of getting that promotion? He is a fool.
The King finished the explanation and stood in front of his somewhat large Army. "And now to begin the Final Practice of the Ceremonial Promotion!"