The Day the Moon Shines
By: deep.Indigo
Chapter 11: Ikoku no Sora Mitsumete Kodoku wo Dakishimeta
(I Gazed at the Foreign Sky and Embraced Solitude)
*Warning: R-rated language in this
chapter.
The next day, Vyse was in a particularly good mood. It was to be expected, considering how much farther he had gotten in his friendship with Ramirez, and how long they'd talked about the stars and other things—Vyse had recounted several stories about his childhood adventures with Aika to his companion—but the entire experience had left him with a buoyant feeling. He had truly enjoyed the time he'd spent with Ramirez, and he was sure Ramirez had felt the same way in return—and knowing that made Vyse happy in a way he couldn't describe. Sure, the two of them had had some rough spots between the two of them, like when Ramirez had threatened to kill him, or when he kept picking fights with him, or when he used his jacket as a blood-cleaning rag...okay, those were really rough spots...but now that Ramirez had calmed down and decided that he wouldn't kill Vyse after all, the brown-eyed young man found him to be a great friend, one who he'd love to get to know better. There was still the matter of Ramirez's conflicting loyalties to Galcian, though...
Vyse narrowed his eyes as he shouted his orders to his crew, setting sail north to Sailor's Island. It was Valua and Galcian that had tainted Ramirez, wasn't it? According to Fina, Ramirez used to be a much nicer guy, and the Blue Rogue trusted her words. Vyse had no idea what had happened to Ramirez to turn him into the bitter, cynical man he was now; all he could see that the pale swordsman was slowly starting to improve his attitude, getting more laidback and talkative. And, as far as Vyse could tell, it was Valua and Galcian's fault that Ramirez had become such a dark person—and that it was through Vyse's efforts that Ramirez was recovering from that darkness.
/That's it, then!/ Vyse thought with a resolute smile, facing forward to his destination. /I'll help Ramirez, no matter what. I'll help him get over his past and learn that there's more to this world than just collecting power!/
To Vyse, the solution was simple: remove the bad influence from Galcian and Valua, and Ramirez would slowly begin to recover his old self. That was already starting to happen, and with results like that, why wouldn't the Blue Rogue think it would work? He'd been discouraged before, but discouragement never stuck with Vyse; there wasn't a single person in the world that he really hated, and he was convinced that anyone could change their ways and become a better person. So to him, erasing Galcian's corruption didn't sound as ludicrous as it would to someone less idealistic.
After all, Vyse only knew how to face forward.
The temperature was warm, the breeze cool and the sky beautifully clear
when they arrived at Sailor's Island. When the crew of the Delphinus
left the giant ship to purchase the supplies necessary for the trip
back to Crescent Isle and beyond, Ramirez couldn't help but turn his
eyes toward the skies. He had been contentedly gazing at that sky with
Vyse just yesterday...but that was under the cover of the dreamlike
night. Now it was the harsh reality of daylight, when, ironically
enough, the darkness in Ramirez's heart surged again.
Yes, last night had been a good night, and he could even go so far as to say he had been happy. Ramirez knew too well the evanescence of happiness, though, that one could not rely upon it. Furthermore, though it was faint, the Admiral couldn't help but feel jealous. Why was Vyse so successful both at life and maintaining his innocence and joie de vivre, when he had had to surrender the latter? True, Ramirez liked the silly little fool, and didn't want to physically hurt him...but emotional pain was a different matter. He smirked slightly. If he and Vyse were so alike as certain others liked to claim, they should be alike a little more...
Yes, he knew, he would still betray Vyse and impart unto him the pain of living. Maybe then he would understand what it meant to suffer alone, even when surrounded by people...
Once they had entered the port town, Vyse stopped, and his friends followed suit. He turned to the others, and smiling, he said, "All right, we have a schedule to follow, so let's split up." Turning to each person as he addressed them, Vyse went on, "Enrique and Aika, you go to the items shop and stock up on crystals and other things we'll need. Fina, you and I'll go to the ship parts dealer and get some upgraded weapons and armor for the Delphinus. Ramirez, you go to the weapons shop and see if they haven't got any new shipments of weapons and armor to replace our old stuff." Smiling and placing his fists on his hips, the brunet rogue finished, "We'll meet back here in front of the Sailor's Guild in half an hour, all right?"
Enrique, Aika and Fina cheerfully gave their aye-ayes, whereas Ramirez merely nodded acknowledgement and went on his way. He was surprised, to say the least, that Vyse was sending him on an errand at all, let alone without company... Perhaps he was trying to show he trusted him? Well, that would be his downfall someday soon...
As Ramirez walked briskly, his military training demanding that he complete the task as quickly and efficiently as possible though he had time enough, he passed by a few people. One of those people hesitated, stopped, and looked back at him.
"Ramirez?" she called.
He turned reflexively to see who was hailing him, to see that female musician from the last time they had been at Sailor's Island, Arianne.
Her usual bright smile in place, she approached him. "I thought it was you!" she said cheerfully. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
He blinked. She was the last person he had expected to run into here. Composing himself, he nodded in acknowledgment, and said politely, "I suppose it has. Are you performing here again?"
She nodded and said, "I was asked to perform at Polly's again, and, well...it was a good crowd last time. I don't mind doing it again so soon. Besides...they've offered a decent fee." Arianne sighed a bit before continuing, "I'd love to play for free, but you need at least some money in your pocket to keep going, so..."
The young Admiral regarded her. "Why would you rather play for free?"
"Well," the pianist began, furrowing her eyebrows, "I'd rather people didn't have to pay money to listen to music..." With a sigh, she added, "But Miran says it's not realistic."
"One of your crewmates, I assume?" Ramirez said. "He has a point."
Shaking her head, Arianne murmured, "Maybe..."
Sensing that no good could come from pursuing this subject, Ramirez changed it quickly and smoothly with the most relevant question available. "When will you be performing? Vyse and the others would probably want to hear you again."
The gray-eyed woman smiled. "That would be nice. It will begin at the same time as last—when the sun sets."
/That's good—we won't have time to see it, so I don't have to spend more time with her,/ he mused, his expression never changing. He had no desire to spend more time with her than necessary. The only reason, he told himself, he was talking to her now was because there was no reason to brush her off yet, and he had a bit of time to spare. "In that case," he spoke aloud, "I don't know that we have the time to see. We are running on a schedule, after all."
The yellow-haired maiden shrugged, her smile considerate. "It's okay," she said. "I wouldn't want you to change your plans on my account."
"We have important things to do, besides," Ramirez added, hoping that she would catch the hint and leave.
"I understand," she replied. Growing more serious, probably from remembering the last time they met, Arianne continued, "Speaking of important things, have you...spoken with Vyse about that?"
"I have no reason to," he said evenly, hoping to avoid going down this path of conversation altogether.
The taller woman didn't reply at first. Instead, Arianne's gray eyes flickered as she looked him over before she smiled slightly and nodded. "And how has traveling with him been?"
"Fine," he replied, simply. Why did she have to concern herself with things that were not her business? Perhaps if he showed enough disinterest, she'd go away...
"Hmmm..." Scrutinizing him for a moment, she half-queried, half-stated, "You would rather I left you be?"
"...." He had forgotten about that ability of hers. Well, he figured he might as well be straightforward about it. "Yes."
Her expression changed slightly into an emotion Ramirez couldn't identify. "Do you dislike me?" she inquired quietly.
"...I don't really like anyone," he said, his tone neutral.
Her eyelids lowered. "Not even Vyse?"
He regarded her a moment, then replied, "...He's a decent person, but I can't say I like him."
She smiled, closing her eyes. "Ramirez," she said in a deceptively light voice, "perhaps we should move to a more secluded place, since I would very much so like to hear why you are lying."
He stared at her. "Excuse me?" he said, somewhat taken aback by her accusation, however true it was.
She opened her eyes again, her gray eyes on him. "I do not think you're being truthful with me," Arianne rephrased herself. "And I can't help but be curious as to why."
"...I have things to do," he said, definitely not wanting to talk with Arianne alone, especially not about this. "And I am on a time budget."
"You can spare a few minutes," she said, rather than asked.
"I don't want to talk to you," Ramirez stated plainly, throwing any regard for diplomacy to the wind. "Leave me alone."
Arianne smiled. "No."
Ramirez glared at her. "Do you understand me? I don't want to talk to you."
"You're just running away," she countered calmly.
Narrowing his eyes, his lips pulling back in a grimace, he demanded, "How can you say something like that? You don't know anything about me."
"If we were to talk more, we would get to know each other better," she replied. "We spoke of many things last time, but I'm sure you recall as well as I do that we avoided discussing ourselves."
"...." He was silent for a long moment before finally replying, "...Fine." It was becoming obvious that she was not going to leave him alone, and he wasn't about to resort to violence over something this petty. It was best to just talk to her for a moment and get it over with. "I do have other things I need to do, so make it quick," he added, lest she think she could have a long, involved talk again.
"We should move to some place more private," she replies, nodding toward the tower and turning that way, smiling. "I'll try to keep this brief. I'm only glad you'll listen."
Ramirez shrugged slightly, and followed her to the place she indicated.
There, Arianne lifted herself onto one of the crates and sat, folding her hands in her lap, before regarding Ramirez kindly. "So," she began, "if you would tell me why you feel the need to lie to me? You can talk to me; whatever we discuss, I promise I will keep confidential. We've already spoken at length about other things."
He did not sit, but stood somewhat stiffly. Staring directly at her, he stated what he had said before. "I can't trust you."
"Is this a personal thing, or do are you merely unable to trust anyone?" she inquired.
He closed his eyes. "I told you, I don't trust anyone," he said coolly.
Her eyes fluttered nearly shut as she moved her hands to fold together. "I wonder how deeply you were hurt to make you that way," she murmured, more to herself than to Ramirez. Opening her gray eyes more widely, she then inquired, "Do you or do you not still...love Vyse? I don't want to force you into stating a mistruth...but neither do I want you to lie, either to me or to yourself." Raising her hands to her chest, she added, "To be happy, you must be true to yourself and your feelings, your desires."
He was silent a long moment. "...I don't know why you care so much about me. You barely know me." He shook his head slightly, then continued, "And as for your question, no, I do not. Respect him, perhaps, but love? Hardly."
Arianne listened attentively, watching him closely, and when he finished talking, she smiled warmly.
"I see," she said. "I understand. Thank you." Slipping down from her perch, she fluffed out her skirt and walked by Ramirez. "Even if you don't love him, Vyse can be your friend. I'm happy for you at least for that." With a small sigh, she glanced at the silver-haired swordsman, her smile saddening. "I may not know you, Ramirez...but I want you to be happy. I can't stand to see anyone suffer." She cast her eyes away to gaze at the floor. "I have my reasons for it...but you probably don't care to hear them, do you?"
He wasn't particularly interested in hearing whatever reason she thought she had for sticking her nose in other people's business, so he didn't reply. He suspected she didn't expect him to reply, anyway...
"Anyway," she added, looking up at him, "it was good to see you again, Ramirez, even if you don't return that opinion. Sorry to have delayed you. I'll see you again sometime, perhaps."
"...Perhaps," he repeated. Of course, he knew it was likely that he'd never see her again. In less than a lunar cycle, he would be back in Valua and... But no. Now wasn't the time to think of such things.
Nodding, Arianne hesitated, as if she wanted to say something
more—then, looking away, her expression certain, she turned to the exit
to face her crewmate, Miran, who was leaning against the frame,
watching the two with an easygoing smile and hardened eyes.
She was late.
It was by just ten minutes, but it was enough to make Miran start to worry anyway. Arianne didn't like to be late, after all. She always made it a point to be punctual whenever possible.
Staring up at the ceiling, lying on a bed at the inn, the brown-haired musician pondered going out to search for her when his companion, Fidel entered.
"Huh?" he uttered, looking around. "So she's not in here, either?"
"Why would any of the girls be in here, Fidel?" Miran asked, looking over at the blond-haired young man. "This is our room, after all."
"Oh! Well, right," Fidel laughed nervously. "Well, I've been looking for Arianne, and it seems she's not anywhere else in the inn. She said she'd be back at noon, and you know how she's always on time."
"Yeah, I know," Miran muttered, casting his eyes to the side.
"Tierra and Rosalind just came back, too," Fidel added, "and they said they hadn't seen her out in town while returning from buying items, either."
The tall man sighed, and rose from the bed. "I'd better go look for her. She's probably okay, but..." He trailed off, not finishing the sentence, and crossed the room. Turning to face his fellow musician, he added, "I should be back in a half-hour, at most," with the implied message, of course, that if he didn't return, something probably had happened to both Arianne and himself.
Fidel blinked, not missing the insinuation, and nodded. "Rosalind and Tierra and I—maybe we should all go," he began to say, but Miran just shook his head.
"It won't be necessary—or at least, it shouldn't be," he replied. "Besides, if trouble arose, there wouldn't be anything you could do to help me."
The blond musician bowed his head. It was very true; he was an Upper Valuan and thus completely inexperienced with combat—but Miran was a Lower Valuan, and he had already collected a lifetime of battle experience... "I understand," he replied at length. "I hope you find Arianne soon, Miran."
The brunet man smiled faintly. "I will. Thanks," he replied, and exited the room.
Miran searched quickly and efficiently—but speed and efficiency don't help much when one looks in the wrong places. As such, when he finally did find Arianne, she had already finished talking with her silver-haired companion.
It was that same person she had spent so long with the last time they had been at Sailor's Island. He felt a slight twinge of resentment, but pushed it aside. After all, such things were her choice to make, and besides, she really hadn't shown that much interest in relationships ever since then... Leo was dead, after all, and Arianne was not. Arianne didn't deserve to cling to the past and be haunted by its shadows; he would carry that burden. But still, this stranger...
"You were late, Arianne," he told her.
Ramirez glanced over at the man in the doorway, vaguely remembering his face. Clearly one of Arianne's crewmates...
Well, he would just wait for the two of them to leave, and then he'd go and finish the task Vyse had given him.
"I'm sorry, Miran," Arianne replied, sounding startled; "I'd completely forgotten about the time! I saw Ramirez and I greeted him, and we simply started talking... I must have made you worry."
Miran blinked in surprise at the mention of that name. Ramirez? This man's name is Ramirez? He hadn't caught it before—he focused his gaze back on the other man. White hair, a distinctive military uniform, a sword at his side—
It was him.
It had to be him: Galcian's right-hand man, Ramirez.
He killed Leo.
Arianne blinked, and looked up at Miran, confused. "...Miran?" she asked, almost hesitant upon seeing the look on his face.
"Arianne..." he replied quietly, his expression dark and his smile murderous, "you certainly know how to pick your friends, don't you?"
Arianne stared at him. She hadn't seen that expression on his face in years. "What.... what do you mean?" she asked.
Ignoring her question, Miran directed his gaze at Ramirez, who glared back. "Hey, Ramirez," he said, leaning against the door frame, clearly not intending to go anywhere. "I have a story to tell you."
The Silvite turned, facing the taller man. "Yes?" he asked, deciding to hear him out for the moment.
Miran's smile increased, and he crossed his arms as he began his tale. "Around...oh, fifteen years ago, I'd say, there were three boys in Lower Valua. The first boy was the oldest and strongest, and the other two boys were his best friend and his younger brother, respectively."
Arianne blinked worriedly, her expression registering understanding as Miran spoke. Ramirez noticed, but didn't bother to comment, and merely matched Miran's dark expression with one of his own as he continued, "Their parents did what pretty much all adults in Lower Valua do—which is to say, work for next to nothing an hour for eighteen hours a day, every day, so the Upper Valuans could get fat and do nothing all day."
With an exaggerated shrug, smirk, and wave of his right arm, Miran said, "Those three boys didn't want to be dragged into that kind of lifestyle, so they decided to go try to do something with themselves. Their base was the sewers under Valua, 'cause nobody would ever think to look in there, and since it was filled with monsters, they got into fights a lot and got stronger. Well, the first boy did, mostly, and then his younger brother; the best friend could barely see ten feet in front of himself and wasn't that good at handling weapons anyway. But the three managed, and in the sewers, they'd fight off monsters together and secretly work on trying to figure out a way how to get out of Lower Valua with their respective families without, you know, getting killed and all.
Ramirez raised an eyebrow, as if to ask if there was a point to this story.
Catching the look, Miran went on, "Fast forward to six years ago, after lots of plotting and hard work and camaraderie and all those things that you wouldn't be interested in. The same three boys are now grown men, and quite annoyed by Valuan society. They're smart enough by now to realize that, as things are, nothing's ever going to change, so they've got to do something about it.
"So they decide to form a group to work against and try to overthrow the Empress. Fast forward some more to two years ago, once again skipping the details that you aren't interested in hearing. The group is pretty big now, and those three guys are getting a lot of support even from people not directly involved with them. The Empress of course calls them terrorists, but when you've got people trying to change your cushy corrupt system, of course you'll call them anything to make the people hate them.
"Anyway, the Armada hates these guys because they're sneaky bastards and they can never find them. However, apparently one of the various members of that group decides that he doesn't want equality for all people and just wants to be able to laze around and be rich and fat all day like the Upper Valuans. So what he does is he finds the Armada, and in return for leading them to the group's base, he gets a big reward and a place in Upper Valua and whatnot. Does this sound familiar yet, Ramirez?"
Ramirez furrowed his brow slightly. It seemed like it should be... but he just couldn't quite put his finger on it. "No, it doesn't," he replied matter-of-factly, and added, "Why are you telling me this?"
Miran scowled, his eyebrows furrowing. /You can't fucking tell me he really doesn't remember, that—/ Shutting his eyes, the dark-haired man took a few seconds to recompose himself, and surfaced with the same bitter smile as before. "Let's finish it up, then. The leader of the group, who was the grown-up version of that first boy from before, was out when the Armada came calling—you don't need to know the reason why, and I doubt you care anyway. Basically, what the Armada did with this group is they rounded everybody up for public execution, killing anyone who tried to fight back on the spot.
"So while the leader was out, everything he and his brother and best friend had worked so hard for was wiped out in a day, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it, since he was alone, nobody had the guts to help him up because of the Armada's show of power, and the Armada had posted a wanted poster all over Valua featuring his handsome mug so he couldn't so much as walk out in public without getting accosted by soldiers.
"And in closing, the leader's brother, best friend, and followers in their belief that Valua should be an equal society were all killed. The leader was chased for quite a while, but he managed to get away when he faked his own death.
"See, what happened there was he was being chased by Valuan soldiers, and he managed to hide in a house in Lower Valua. Them being the geniuses that they are, those soldiers decided to get the building on fire to flush him out. The leader was a smart guy, though, and he knew his way around Valua, so he managed to jump from the window of the burning building into the window of the building next door and escape that way, although he suffered a number of pretty serious cuts and burns from doing that. The soldiers let the place burn to the ground; basically, all they did was at least prevent the fire from spreading to any of the other surrounding houses. The leader's body was never recovered, but everyone just figured he'd been burnt to ashes. Is this sounding familiar yet?"
It did. As if he had found a light switch after fumbling in the darkness, Ramirez remembered an incident involving some dissenting Lower Valuans who had finally worried the higher levels of the monarchy enough to warrant their destruction. He had been the head of the force that had arrested the rebels, as he had been Lord Galcian's Vice Captain at the time. He did indeed remember the incident with the fire... That man, the leader—what was his name?—had been presumed dead. He looked Miran over again, and suddenly recalled it... This man, Miran... he was the missing rebel leader!
He narrowed his eyes slightly. "Yes, I believe it now has," he said icily.
Miran smirked back frigidly. "It's about fucking time," he snapped, dipping his hands into his coat and drawing six throwing knifes, one between each finger.
"Miran!!" Arianne gasped, her eyes wide. "What are you doing!? What are you talking about?!"
"You haven't figured it out yet?!" the brown-eyed man snarled, now switching his glare at the blonde woman. "Arianne, weren't you paying attention?!" Now facing and pointing his blades at the silver-haired swordsman, he snarled, "This is Ramirez, Galcian's right-hand man!!" Jerking his head back to look at Arianne, he continued, "Don't you remember?! He was in charge of that assault!! HE'S the prick who killed Juan and Leo!!"
Arianne visibly paled, and slowly turned her head to stare at Ramirez, an expression of pure horror etched on her face. "You...." she managed to gasp, right before her eyes fluttered shut and she swayed, then collapsed to the floor.
This startled Ramirez, to say the least, although he didn't allow his mask to be compromised.
"What was that all about?" he demanded, slowly drawing his sword. He didn't want a fight, but Miran already had weapons out, and Ramirez certainly wasn't going to be killed by a vengeful ex-rebel.
"Oh, nothing much," he replied scornfully, his eyes hard. "Jake was my best friend, and Leo was my brother. Leo was also incidentally," and Miran jerked his head again to the fallen Upper Valuan, "her lover."
Ramirez blinked, taken aback. A Lower Valuan and an Upper Valuan in love? But here she was, and her reaction, more than anything, showed that what this man was saying was true. He regarded Miran coldly, trying judge his abilities as a fighter, and asked, "What do you want, then? Revenge?"
"Revenge? Hah," Miran laughed coldly, moving into a fighting position. "If it were revenge, I'd make you suffer like I did back then. But seeing as you're Galcian's lapdog, I can't do that—so I'll settle for just killing you!!"
Ramirez didn't show any reaction to the threat. "I don't have the time to waste on something like this. If you're smart, you'll leave now, and forget about this." His tone was emotionless, as if he were stating a simple fact.
"Do you think I can forget about you KILLING EVERYONE I CARED ABOUT?!?" Miran snarled viciously, his brown eyes ablaze with animosity. "Are you really so fucking naïve to think that I'd just give up after what you did?!" The former rebel leader slashed the air with one of his daggers in one fluid, gale-like motion, and Ramirez, his eyes widening slightly, felt a slight wind brush the strands of his hair as that dagger rushed past his head, missing him only narrowly.
"I," Miran said then, his face a mask of glacial antipathy, "will never forgive you. And I'd never forgive myself if I didn't seize this chance, either."
"So be it," the Admiral replied, his Yafutoman blade bared. "Just realize that you will not leave this place alive."
He laughed a soft, hateful laugh. "I know I won't survive this
fight," Miran replied with a voice that matched his show of mirth.
"You're too strong. But if I can drag you down to Hell with me..." He
threw three daggers simultaneously, one missing, one blocked by
Ramirez's sword, and one scoring a slash on Ramirez's left thigh.
"That'll be enough!!"
"Hrrrrmph," Aika grumbled as she glared at the door to the Sailor's
Guild, her arms crossed over her chest, tapping her right foot on the
stone roads. Enrique and Vyse were both standing next to the Guild,
with the former standing straight, his expression concerned, and the
latter leaning against the building behind him, his arms folded behind
his head. Fina was standing between them and Aika with Cupil hovering
around her head, nervously glancing between her redheaded friend and
the end of the street past the bridge, waiting for any signs of
Ramirez. Nearby was a pair of merchants mumbling between themselves,
glancing furtively around.
"He's LATE!" Aika finally burst out, uncrossing her arms and planting her hands on her hips. "Really late!" She turned to her male companions, adding, "I don't like this at all!"
"...Do you think something might have happened?" Fina asked, looking once more down the street. "...I mean..." she trailed off, not finishing whatever she had been about to say.
"Let's give him five more minutes, then go looking for him," Vyse said. "He wouldn't pick fights, but he might be held up somewhere, and we don't have a lot of time to spend hanging around here. I want to have enough time to stop by Doc's ship to give Maria's bird more Moonfish... We forgot to stop by the last time we were here, and I'm a little worried about it."
Enrique stepped forward, his expression serious, and said, "I think we should look for him now." Flashing a look at Vyse, he continued, "I agree that Ramirez would not pick fights. However, he's an Admiral of the Armada and he's by himself. There are people who might be foolish enough to try to challenge him, either for glory or for a personal vendetta against Valua or even Ramirez himself... I'm not saying that that is what has happened, but if provoked, I don't doubt that Ramirez will kill," the young Prince added, "and I think that's something we'd all like to avoid."
A tall male sailor paused then as he passed by the group to leave Sailor's Island. "Hey, I saw a couple of men fighting near the tower a little while ago," he commented. "They were vicious! I wanted to buy a new sword, but I didn't dare go near the weapon shop with them that close!"
Everyone's attention was instantly on him. "Two men?" Aika repeated. "Was one of them kinda short, with white hair and a foreign sword?"
"Yeah!" the sailor replied with a nod to the female rogue. "He's damn good, too. I'm getting out of here before it gets too out of hand."
As the sailor left through the doors leading to the docks, Aika, Vyse, Enrique, and Fina all shared a look that carried the same basic emotion:
Well, shit.
"C'mon!" Vyse yelled, already starting to run. "Maybe it's not too late to break it up!"
The group didn't need to be told twice; they were on Vyse's heels,
hoping to the Moons that there wasn't too much carnage already.
Elsewhere, Ramirez narrowly dodged another dagger thrown by Miran. The
man was fast, and was good at keeping his distance, making this fight a
little more challenging than he had thought it would be...but no
matter. It would be over before too long. Miran had, after all, already
sustained several cuts to the torso and one on the shoulder from when
Ramirez had failed a decapitation strike—the ex-terrorist had struck his
shoulder with a dagger at that moment, throwing off his aim.
He rushed at Miran then, hoping to catch him off guard, and end the combat. The thought occurred to him, not for the first time, it was a pity he didn't have his usual sword...
"Ramirez!!" a voice cried behind him then—Arianne's voice, he recognized, and it startled him into slowing down long enough to allow Miran to dance away; this time, though, he didn't take the opportunity to grab any new daggers. Perhaps he was almost out? With that thought, he drove towards Miran once more.
"Ramirez, Miran, please stop!!" Arianne pleaded, but this time Ramirez didn't hesitate, slashing at Miran's legs. Miran almost evaded that strike, but the blade caught him on his left leg, and he stumbled in pain, falling in the direction he had attempted to escape to.
"PLEASE, stop!!" Arianne wailed, and Ramirez could hear her collapse to her knees, but he didn't care. Just one more strike, and—
"RAMIREZ!!"
The Silvite flinched and drew back to turn and face Vyse, flanked to his left by Aika and Fina and to his right by Enrique, all of them looking less than pleased.
He glared at the Air Pirate and his friends, but at the same time let go of the blade in his hand, letting it fall to the ground with a clatter. "What?" he snapped, as Vyse stared at him. "This is what you want me to do, isn't it?"
"Ramirez, I—" the captain of the Delphinus began, but his words were cut off by a snarl from Miran as he took that opportunity to whip a dagger back and throw it sharply at Ramirez's now unprotected stomach.
The quick action caught the male Silvite off-guard, and it was only after the small blade plunged into his abdomen that he realized what had happened. Staring down at the wound, he couldn't help but think how stupid he had just been. It was his fault... Vyse's fault. If he hadn't shown up, he wouldn't have made this mistake just now...
"What the hell are you DOING?!" Vyse yelled then, running up and getting in between Ramirez and Miran, his cutlasses brought to bear before him. Miran had already scampered away and was holding his remaining daggers in front of himself. Aika quickly joined Vyse, while Fina ran to tend to Ramirez's wound, and Enrique quickly walked over to Arianne, who had buried her face into her hands and was sobbing hysterically.
"I don't want to fight you," Miran said to Vyse, "so just get out of the way. This isn't your problem."
"Like hell this isn't my problem!!" Vyse snapped. "You're trying to kill my friend!! You mess with him, you mess with me!"
Miran stared at him incredulously. "Your friend? HIM? What kind of person are you?"
Vyse blinked in surprise and frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You don't know anything about him, do you?" the tall man replied, his eyes narrowing. "He's a murderer."
"Of course he's a murderer, he's a soldier," Vyse said evenly, still keeping his cutlasses ready. "Soldiers kill people. That's the way things are. I'm not saying I like it or even agree with it, though—just that it doesn't mean he's a bad person."
"...." Ramirez gazed with a sort of detached amazement at Vyse as Fina began to cast a Sacrulen spell on his wound. How was it that he could be that big of a contradiction...?
Miran growled in frustration. "You don't understand! It's because of him that everything failed!"
"Huh?" Vyse uttered, pausing in confusion. /What the hell is he talking about?/ he wondered.
"...I, no, we were rebels... In Valua. But because of him... Don't you understand? He's the reason I lost everything!" Miran's tone became almost desperate, and he took a step forward. "So get out of my way!"
"No way," Vyse stated firmly. "I don't care what your situation is; you don't start a fight in the middle of a crowded town!"
Vyse's words fell on deaf ears. "I told you," Miran said as he tried to push past him, "to get out of my way!"
"And I told you no way!" Vyse yelled, pushing him away, moving back into a battle position. "Give up or get ready to fight!"
Aika also moved into battle position herself, watching Vyse. She was desperately curious what this guy's deal was—he was a friend of Arianne's, she remembered seeing him with her—but, well... He was attacking Ramirez, and in the middle of Sailor's Isle, too. As much as she wasn't fond of the Admiral, that was going too far.
Miran fell into a defensive stance. "Then I've got no choice! Prepare yourself!" he yelled.
"Miran, please, stop!!" Arianne begged, now appearing by Aika's side with Enrique, her hair mussed and her panicked eyes filled with tears. "Please!!"
Miran looked over at her, and almost seemed to waver for a moment, but shook his head. "I'm sorry...but I have to get revenge, for Leo's sake!" he said.
"Do you think this would make Leo happy?!" the golden-haired pianist cried, taking a step forward. "You'll get yourself killed at this rate! You're already badly injured! Do you think Leo would have wanted you to die for his sake?!"
"..." Miran was silent for a moment, as if pondering something, and then shook his head. "Arianne, stay out of this."
"You're tearing up the city, and you expect your companions to stay out of it?!" a demanding woman's voice sounded. The crowd turned to see the two women from Arianne's crew, one blonde, the other with dark brown hair; the blonde woman had spoken, and was glaring, her arms akimbo, at Miran with murderous cerulean eyes. "Miran, who do you think we are?!"
"Stay out of it, Rosa!" he snapped in reply. "You have even less reason to get involved, you painted upper-class bitch!!"
"Miran!!" the brown-haired woman gasped as her companion looked utterly scandalized. "How can you talk to Rosalind that way?!"
"It's surprisingly easy, Tierra," Miran replied icily. "It's not your business, so stay the hell out of it."
"But..." the small brunette started, only to be silenced with a cold glare from Miran.
"You..." Rosalind began, trembling in fury, "...you...YOU!! How dare you speak to me that way, you, you ruffian?!"
"Learn to fucking curse right before you try to bitch me out," Miran sneered in reply.
The blonde violinist just stared at him, mouth working wordlessly.
"Stop it!" Arianne cried suddenly, burying her face in her hands. "Please...just stop it!"
Glancing over at the pianist, Tierra glared at Miran, her face stricken. "Are you really going to make Arianne cry like this?" she queried quietly.
Miran silently shook his head, a grim look on his face.
"You're going to keep going?" the petite brunette queried, her voice trembling slightly. "Even though you know you're hurting Arianne, even after what she's done for you?"
The tall rebel stared at Tierra, and time seemed to slow as his gaze fell upon each person in turn, lingering upon Arianne. Then...he slowly released his grip on his daggers and let them fall to the ground.
"...This isn't over," he said after they finished clattering. "Ramirez, I swear to you this isn't over. I will get revenge, one day..."
As Miran and his companions were verbally battling, Ramirez had paused, his hand on the hilt of the dagger, and took a breath before starting to remove it. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he couldn't help but tense up as he pulled the weapon out. As the dagger came free from his abdomen, the wound began to bleed rather copiously, and he pressed his hand against it in response. A slight burning sensation followed a few breaths later, as internal organs and tissues began to mend due to the healing spell Fina had cast, followed by skin as the wound closed completely. It would be a while before they were all healed completely, as was the norm for the Sacres line of spells, but it would be all right before long. Even without the healing, this was nothing compared to another wound he'd sustained in the same area...
At Miran's words, he glared up at the ex-terrorist. "Get over yourself," Ramirez replied tersely before shifting his eyes to Fina. She glanced at him briefly, then sadly lowered her eyes.
"I'll be fine," he told her firmly, but her eyes remained downcast.
He sighed, slightly irritated, before glancing over at Arianne. She was still crying, but she looked up back at him. Her expression was...angry, and hurt. He supposed he didn't blame her, after finding out he'd arrested her lover...
She averted her gaze, then turned back to her knife-wielding companion. "Miran," she said quietly, wiping at her eyes, "you're injured. Let's go back to the inn so you can get healed up..."
Miran nodded mutely, but glared over at Ramirez before heading off with Arianne. The group watched the two go, followed by their crewmates, who glanced back at the crowd but said nothing either to them or to each other. When they had entered the inn, greeted by a brown-haired young man with a worried expression, and left sight, Vyse and company all turned to face the green-eyed Admiral.
"What exactly was going on, Ramirez?" Enrique inquired calmly.
Ramirez sighed. "He wants me dead, isn't it obvious?" he said, unenthused. The day had not gone well at all.
"But why does he want you dead?" Aika asked dryly, leaning on her boomerang. "'Cause I'm sure people attack you randomly all the time!"
The sixth Admiral glared at her. "Apparently I arrested his brother, who was later executed," he explained.
"Woah," Vyse uttered, his eyes going wide with surprise. "No wonder he hates you so much!"
Ramirez decided not to mention that said brother was also Arianne's lover. "It happened a long time ago," he said with a slight shrug.
Aika just shook her head. "He's crazier than you, attacking you in the middle of the city like that," she remarked.
Ramirez gave her a look, then stood. "I don't want to stay here any longer," he stated.
"Are you all right otherwise?" Vyse queried, frowning slightly as he checked the white-haired swordsman over.
"I'm fine," Ramirez said flatly.
The brunet rogue shared glances with his other companions, then shrugged. "Okay, let's go then," he said firmly. "We've got to get going as soon as possible." Continuing on mostly to himself, as if reciting a mental checklist, he murmured, "Got to get those weapons, then stop by Doc's to drop off those Moonfish, then..."
Ramirez stiffened suddenly at the mention of the name of Doc, the rest of Vyse's words going unheard, but he quickly relaxed. It couldn't possibly be the same person, he told himself.
At least, he hoped it wasn't...
The young Admiral sat on the floor of Vyse's cabin, working on
repairing the tears in his uniform. He had told the others that he did
not want to go along with them, that he 'was not in a good mood'. Well,
it was true. Moreover, if the 'Doc' they were stopping to visit was the
same person... well, he really didn't want to see him. Not after what
had happened... He shook his head, as if to shake the memories from his
head. But of course, it didn't work, and as he sewed, he brooded over
the first and greatest betrayal he had suffered in his life on
Arcadia...
He paused when he had finished with his pants, holding them up and inspecting them. Washing the blood out hadn't been a fun task, but fortunately, there hadn't been much. It could be ignored. In addition, although he hadn't had much experience with it, Ramirez was dexterous, and that helped in his clothing repair. It wasn't obvious if you didn't look closely, and that was as good as it was going to get, so Ramirez allowed himself to accept that. He could get it properly fixed when he went back to Valua...
As he worked, his thoughts turned to Vyse and what would happen if the Doc he had mentioned was the Doc he knew. If his name never came up in conversation, he would be safe, for neither would know to talk about him—but if it did, then he could say goodbye to the privacy of his past. Doc knew far too much about it, and what he didn't know, Vyse already did. The thought of Vyse learning so much about him unsettled Ramirez... That wasn't including all the unnecessary things Fina had been saying about him behind his back, either.
The Silvite swordsman frowned deeply. That Vyse... He kept going around prying into his business. It was likely he'd never stop until his curiosity was satisfied, either; children never want to stop learning, after all, Ramirez thought dryly. But at the least, his curiosity could be curbed. If he were somehow to control what he learned... But that would be impossible—he couldn't keep Vyse from talking to either Fina or Doc—unless...
/If I could cut a deal with him,/ Ramirez mused, pausing in his work, /then I could keep him from learning anything unnecessary. Vyse, if anything, is at least honorable enough to keep a promise.../
He began to work again as he planned, and when he had mended his clothes as well as he could, he dressed, and went over to the window. It wouldn't be too much longer until he could return to Valua; perhaps only a week or two. He sighed, gazing out the window, as he thought over the events of the day. Why was it that his past always came back to haunt him? Even little things... Even things he hadn't thought of as consequential at the time...even things that he's tried his damnedest to bury.
The door opened and in walked Vyse. Though Ramirez wasn't facing the door, he could tell from the clopping of his boots and his cheerful humming.
"Hey, Ramirez!" he called. The Silvite swordsman didn't react, so he went on, "You feeling any better now?"
/Of course I'm not,/ he thought to himself, but replied, "A little." It would keep him from worrying, in any case.
"That's good to hear." Ramirez could picture perfectly the easygoing grin that Vyse surely wore. A creaking of springs as the Blue Rogue sat down on his bed, and then, "You should have come with us, Ramirez."
"...Really," he replied, his tone its usual neutral.
"It turns out Doc's an old friend of yours," Vyse went on. "I was pretty surprised when he mentioned you. Weird coincidence, huh?"
Ramirez stiffened.
"...Uh, Ramirez?" Vyse ventured after his companion didn't respond for a few minutes.
"....Vyse, leave me alone." He knew it was trite, but... there was no way he was going to talk about that with anyone. Not even him.
There were several seconds of silence. Perhaps Vyse was stunned, or surprised...perhaps he was confused. Ramirez wasn't sure until the younger man spoke next.
"This is another one of those things you don't think I'll understand, huh."
Ramirez looked at Vyse over his shoulder. "It's none of your business."
Vyse was watching him, frowning unhappily. "You're still saying that," he said, disappointed.
"But it doesn't involve you. Therefore, it's not your problem," the silver-haired man replied.
"How is it a problem?" Vyse protested, standing up and gesturing with his arms to make his point. "Doc said nothing but good things about you."
"I don't care what he said,"Ramirez replied, gazing out the window once more, "I don't want to talk about this with you."
Vyse pursed his lips for a moment, then walked over to him and stopped by his side to view the same sky. It wasn't long, though, before he glanced over at Ramirez and quietly asked, "Does this have anything to do with Admiral Mendosa?"
Ramirez did not reply, his face a blank mask.
There was a moment more of silence before Vyse tried a different tactic, regaining a friendly smile. "Say, I've been wondering," he began, "how did you and Galcian meet? Doc didn't mention that."
Ramirez closed his eyes. "Vyse, leave me alone," he said, a hint of anger behind his words.
Vyse rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "...Sorry," he said quietly, still trying to smile.
Opening his eyes again, Ramirez silently gazed out the window. He did not acknowledge Vyse's comment in any way.
/...Shit,/ Vyse swore, sweating. It looked like he'd made Ramirez's bad day worse, and now the Silvite was snubbing him. Wonderful. "Look, I'm sorry, okay?" he tried again. "I didn't mean to get you upset or anything."
Ramirez momentarily glanced over at Vyse, before looking back out the window again. "...Please, just leave me alone."
There was another awkward moment of silence before Vyse turned to the door. "I guess we'd better get going, then," he said. "It looks like you've got your clothes fixed up, so back to work, all right?"
Ramirez nodded once, then turned away from the window to follow him.
The rest of the day passed normally, with much sailing and fighting monsters off of the deck. The trip back to Crescent Isle didn't take very long at all, although it was dark by the time they returned.
Vyse glanced over at Ramirez. The male Silvite had been quiet again, and this time he knew why. It was because of what he had said to him earlier. Though part of him still burned to know why it upset Ramirez so much, he knew that he would have to apologize and forget about.
So, as they were debarking and walking into the internal port in Crescent Isle, he walked up alongside Ramirez and said, "Ramirez, I—"
"Please don't apologize," the other replied before he could even finish. "There's no need for it."
Vyse sighed. "Look, I know I upset you, so I just wanted to apologize," he replied.
"I notice you spend a lot of time apologizing for one thing or another as far as I'm concerned," Ramirez noted. "Does that tell you anything?"
"...What do you mean?" Vyse asked, "I mean, I'm not very good at saying the right things, so..."
"I have to disagree with you there, but that's another story. In any case," Ramirez said with remarkable patience, stopping and pulling Vyse aside once they had completely disembarked, "what I mean is that perhaps you should just stop trying. We are not and cannot be friends. You can't possibly expect something like that from me."
Shaking his head, Vyse replied, looking the Silvite right in the eyes, "Hey... look, maybe I said too much before... I know you don't want me to say we're friends—conflicting loyalties and all... But Ramirez, I don't care if you're working for Galcian. I want to be your friend anyway." He smiled slightly before finishing, "Okay?"
Ramirez, unsure of what to say to that, continued to gaze up at the taller young man without a word.
There was a brief moment of silence before Vyse spoke again, "I know, I know, I'm pushing it. Again. But damn it, Ramirez... Sometimes I really get sick of seeing you like this. I want to help you. But you make it so hard!"
The pale young man's face hardened slightly but perceptively, and he inquired evenly, "What if I don't want to be helped?"
The Blue Rogue shrugged slightly. "I'll have to figure out another way, then." He smiled. "Even if I have to do it against your will."
"And how will you do that?" Ramirez queried, his expression not changing.
"...I guess I'll just have find that out," Vyse replied.
The powerful swordsman shut his eyes and exhaled a small breath, then opened his eyes again to gaze at Vyse piercingly. "You can't help me," he stated flatly.
"Do you know that, or are you just telling yourself that?" Vyse asked, his expression neutral.
Ramirez honestly didn't know the answer. There were times when he felt as if he could let Vyse close—closer than anyone—and then there were times when reality politely knocked on the door of his mind and courteously informed him that duty came before emotion after slapping him across the face. He felt almost as if he could trust Vyse, as Ramirez now believed that he was sincere...but in one or two weeks, that would be a moot point. He would betray Vyse, Vyse would hate him forever, he would return back to Lord Galcian's side and all things would return to the way they should be.
...But did he really want it to be that way...
Vyse regarded him as he stood there, as silent as he had been earlier. Realizing a reply was not forthcoming, he said, "...Well... I'll leave you alone for now, okay? I guess you need some time to yourself. Most people wouldn't be in a good mood after a day like this."
Ramirez nodded mutely, and the brown-eyed pirate turned to leave.
"Wait." Vyse hadn't even taken three steps before he heard his companion speak up. He turned, blinking, and Ramirez continued, his expression unreadable, "What...did Doc tell you?"
"...I thought you didn't care what he had to say about you," Vyse said, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't," Ramirez lied tersely. "I only care about what you know."
Vyse shrugged. "He just told us that he knew you from when you both worked under Mendosa. And..." Vyse paused before continuing, "...that you were a kind and honest man."
"...Heh," Ramirez chuckled. "And how does that match up with what you think you know about me?"
"Hmm..." Vyse looked over Ramirez once before continuing, "Well, sometimes I see the person he described, and sometimes, well, I don't."
The jade-eyed swordsman glanced away, reflecting on the other's words. It was a fair enough evaluation...
"Well," Vyse said with a small sigh, "Unless you have something else you want to say, I'll leave you be."
A small smile, and a slight shaking of the head. "Vyse, I'll make you a deal," he began quietly, recalling his thoughts earlier. "I don't want you to talk to Doc about me anymore...or Fina, for that matter. However, I can't force you from doing so. So what I'm propositioning is that if you want to know something about me, come to me and ask. If it means keeping you from talking about me behind my back, I'm willing to answer honestly." He looked up, his expression cool. "However, there's one condition. You can only ask about my life before I came down to Arcadia. Since I've been here for nearly eight years, let's call it the eight-year rule. If the answer to a given question refers to that period of time in my life, I will invoke the eight-year rule and you will drop your inquiry without complaint or needling. Does this sound fair?"
Vyse blinked, a little taken aback by the suddenness. "...All right, then. I agree," he replied.
"Don't misunderstand," Ramirez added, shutting his eyes. "Your tendency to speak with other people about me has bothered me for a long time. If I have you talk to strictly me, then at least I can control what you learn to some extent."
"Well, you do seem to like your privacy..." Vyse mused aloud.
"I value privacy very highly," Ramirez stressed.
The Blue Rogue sweated a little. "Yeah..." he said in a sort of non-reply before continuing, "In any case, I'm fine with what you suggested. Besides, you'll tell me one of these days, right?"
A wan, but sincere, smile. /The silly little fool will never learn... But I'm willing to play along for the little bit of time we have left together. At the very least, I could treasure the illusion that we were once "friends". It might not be so bad.../
"One of these days," he agreed, his smile and expression growing
warmer just a bit.
NOTES: We own nothing except our ideas. Don't take our ideas.
All properties of Skies of Arcadia/Eternal Arcadia [Legends]
belong to everyone it is to whom they belong.
Ayu: If you're re-reading this chapter, you'll notice that some of the OCs' names have been changed. This is because Valuans are supposed to have Spanish names, but I didn't think of that when I named them, because I'm an idiot. Fidel used to be Arthur, Tierra used to be Noelle, Rosalind used to be Catalina, Leo is now short for Leonardo instead of Leonidas, and Juan used to be Jake/Jacob. Arianne and Miran keep their names because they've already had rather major scenes, and changing their names now would be rather awkward. The others haven't been bequeathed nearly so much attention, so I'm more willing to go back and change them than I am our more feature OCs.
Ayu: The lyric-title this time is taken from the X Japan song, Tears. Full lyrics can be found, as always, at my lyrics site, Campus Lyrics!, the link to which you can find below.
Contact deep.Indigo: deep.Indigo@negativenergy.zzn.com
Contact Ianthe of d.I: ianthefira@rangersgrove.zzn.com
(URL: Ranger's Grove (rangersgrove.tripod.com))
Contact Ayu of d.I: ensoph@goddess.zzn.com
(URL: ~ T H E : E T E R N A L : M I N D ~ (theeternalmind.sterlingsylver.net))
