OK, here goes yet another chapter. I'm starting to dislike fan-
fiction.net because it doesn't really allow me to make any kind of
formatting changes to my stories, I have to manually double space and
center my stories, that's pretty annoying. That and the whole, 'I'm not
allowed to italicize or bold my font.' Other than that I think my stories
coming along quite nicely, don't you agree?
Also, a million thanks to those who reviewed my story, the last two finally gave me the emotion you humans call hope.
Chapter Four: That's What Rangers Do
It was in the forests surrounding the Scar River that the Conqueror of Chorden, the Betrayer at Brusten, and the most wanted man by the Rangers was walking along, chatting amiably with a member of the Ranger guild. Ryu had to admit that stealing Fenris' identity was one of the best ideas he ever had. Here he had an opportunity to make it with what was possibly the only female Windian outside of the Windia.
*She's a pretty smart girl, I would have thought she would have figured it out by now.* Ryu thought as he was laughing at an amusing anecdote she had told about Mezzryn. "That sounds like the Mezzryn I knew." Ryu laughed a little harder as he made conversation.
"You knew Mezzryn?" Nina asked, her face going from amusement to dead seriousness. Ryu immediately regretted having mentioned anything about knowing Mezzryn. *Looks like its time to lie again.* Ryu thought letting out an internal sigh.
"I was a mercenary at the Battle of Chorden, not assigned to the group that led the assault but a reserve battalion. I was the one who found Mezzryn outside the walls and I carried him to safety." Ryu explained, he wasn't lying completely, he did carry Mezzryn back to the medical tents but he was also the one who shoved him off. *Better some truth than no truth.* He thought as they had stopped walking. Nina's hand was gripping his arm with vice-like strength, forcing him to stop and answer even more questions that she no doubt had.
"Do you think that he and Aleric are OK?" Nina asked, tightening her already astounding grip on his arm.
Wincing slightly as he spoke, "They should be fine. Mezzryn's a good man to have in a fight and I'm sure Aleric's the same. They're probably already at the Ranger's Base by now." Ryu said kindly, gently disengaging her hand from his arm. Nina took in a deep breath and went back to her previous state of relative levity.
They walked on after the brief stop. Nina didn't talk anymore than a simply 'yes' or 'no' with the occasional 'I see' tossed in. Ryu wasn't going to go out of his way to make conversation with a woman who was emotionally distraught over what may have been a guy she was really emotionally attached to. Ryu was starting to think that this was going to be more trouble than it was worth, almost anyways. Ryu kept shooting glances down at her as the strolled in what was now silence. After an eternity of awkward, the two reached the small village that housed the Ranger base and Ryu came close to snorting, it toed the line of podunk very carefully. Nina looked up at him and smiled slightly.
"I'm sorry I wasn't much of a conversationalist." She apologized more demurely than Ryu thought possible for an acquaintance. Ryu smiled inwardly. *Now's my time to shine.* He thought lasciviously.
"Don't worry about Nina. I understand what you're going through." Ryu said placing his hand on her shoulder and squeezing it in a comforting manner. Nina broke into a much larger smile and Ryu cheered inwardly. *And Ryu scores!*
"Come on, let's go to the Headquarters, I'm sure that they'll all be interested in meeting you. We should also hear some news about Aleric and Mezzryn." Nina said cheerfully, pulling on Ryu to get him to hurry on. *Not too likely about the last part.* He thought cynically. He was mildly worried about the Rangers recognizing him but most of the ones who knew him were dead or not from this area, so it was with confidence that he strode in behind Nina into the Headquarters of the Rangers. It was nothing to be too impressed with.
The main building was fairly small, maybe a total of twenty sets of weapons were hung along the armory. A receptionist sat at a table that barred entry to some of the back rooms. The rooms were simply furnished wood, nothing like the last Headquarters he had been to. An older man with a strip of cloth tied around his eyes was leaning back in a comfortably upholstered chair and his sightless gaze immediately went to Nina and Ryu. "Good afternoon Nina." He said in one of those 'Kind Old Men' kind of voices.
"Good afternoon Ferzin." Nina returned the greeting with a big hug to the older man. Ryu quickly shot looks all over the room to check for any likenesses of him. He found one and quickly walked over to inspect the sketch. Part of it was done in color to show that he had blue hair. The rest was too out of date for anyone to put two and two together. *Shouldn't be too hard to fool any of these fellows.* Ryu thought smirking to his image. His image smirked back in black and white.
". . . I'd like to introduce a fellow Ranger from the town of Bellavurn: Fenris." Nina's introduction pulled Ryu back into the thick of things and he walked over, trying his best to look deferential and succeeding to a very good degree.
"It is a pleasure to meet you." Ryu said with impeccable gentility.
"The same, what brings you here my boy?" He asked, his tone changing to one of strict business. Ryu surmised that he only had a fondness for his adopted granddaughter. Ryu withdrew his hand and looked speculatively at the blind man. Nina was talking to the receptionist in low tones so Ryu was free to not look welcoming or friendly. His body remained very friendly in stance though.
"I'm merely a messenger from the Head at our Guild. I'm merely telling you of our existence." Ryu said with guarded words but an otherwise friendly disposition. Ferzin was mulling over these words when Nina let out a little gasp of surprise and sadness. Both Ryu and Ferzin looked toward the Windian as she put a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide in surprise. The receptionist patted her shoulder comfortingly and murmured some words of encouragement. Nina looked over at both Ryu and Ferzin.
"Excuse me for a moment." She said succinctly before walking hurriedly out of the room. Ryu looked from the door where Nina just left to the receptionist in mock astonishment.
"What just happened?" Ryu asked, concern coloring his words. *As if I already didn't know.* He thought smugly.
"We found both Mezzryn's and Aleric's bodies in the forest." The receptionist answered, her own voice heavy with sorrow. Ryu's face slowly going from shocked sorrow to out and out despondency.
"That's terrible! Who could have done that?" Ferzin asked leaning forward expectantly. Ryu followed his lead and looked questioningly over at the receptionist who was dabbing at her eyes with a kerchief. *Mezzryn must have been a real hit with the ladies.* Ryu thought darkly.
"We think it was that blackguard Ryu! Only he could have so easily slain both of them." The receptionist broke down and went out of the room the same way Nina went. Ryu was left in the company of Ferzin, a person which Ryu was starting to seriously consider killing. *The blind guy is too perceptive for his own good.* Ryu thought as he took a chair directly opposite the blind man.
"So why are you really here?" Ferzin asked suddenly as he stood up, he would have been a strong enemy in his youth but age had made him weaker.
"Make up some reason, I told you mine and that's the only one you're getting." Ryu said, leaning back in his chair. He put his arms behind his back and watched the old man with narrowed eyes. Ferzin chose not to act upon his suspicions of Ryu and simply began to walk slowly out of the room. As he passed Ryu he stopped and grabbed Ryu on the shoulder with surprising strength.
"You can never replace Mezzryn's place in her heart." Ferzin cautioned, his sightless eyes still peering forward. Ryu casually pulled the hand away from him. He was smirking at the blind man as he stood up and faced him eye to eye.
"I don't plan on replacing Mezzryn in her heart, I plan on replacing Mezzryn in her bed." Ryu informed the old man his manner reverting back into arrogance. Ryu opened the door and let Ferzin walk out, smirking at his back as he ambled on slowly. Ryu followed through hoping to find Nina's room and "console" her. Ryu began whistling the same tune again, he had never learned the words but it had such an infectious sound that he couldn't help but whistle it at most opportunities. He finally found Nina's room, it was marked with her name, making it a dead give away.
Ryu leaned in, listening through the door. He had always had pretty good hearing and today it proved itself again. Ryu could discern Nina crying, but it was muffled slightly, like she was crying into her pillow or perhaps a kerchief. Ryu brought up his left hand and rapped three times upon the door. "Are you all right Nina?" He asked solicitously. The crying stopped and Ryu could hear some shuffling within the room and the sound of some sniffling to get rid of any excess tears.
"I'm not really in the mood to talk right now Fenris. Would you please come back in a little while?" Nina asked through the door, her voice laden with sorrow. Ryu's mind carefully went over what he was about to say next. He didn't want to pass up this opportunity to further worm his way into Nina's heart, but he also didn't want to sound too forceful in his desire to speak with her.
Ryu's eyes squinted as he stared at the ceiling and thought up his response. "I understand that you may be upset, and crying is a perfectly acceptable outlet for your emotions, but it also helps to talk about the ones we cared for." Ryu waited expectantly for her response. He crossed his fingers in expectation as he heard footsteps heading towards the door. The door swung open and Nina appeared with a tear streaked face. She was presently wiping her eyes with a white kerchief, it had Mezzryn's crest on it.
"You're right Fenris. Please come in." Nina said, trying to mask the sorrow in her voice. Ryu put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly, mimicking his earlier attempt at comfort. He entered the room and closed the door behind him. He waited for her to sit down on her bed before sitting beside her on the right, about six inches away. The room was fairly spartan, it only had the bed and a chest filled with her belongings.
Ryu hunched forward, his elbows on his thighs and his hands dangling between his legs. He looked over at Nina who took one long sniff and looked despondently at the floor. "So how did you meet Mezzryn?" Ryu asked, finally breaking the silence. Nina looked back up at Ryu with a thoughtful look replacing her sad one.
"It was shortly after the Betrayal at Chorden, Mezzryn had been injured and was being transported back to here. I was on a mission from Windor and I came across Mezzryn and some of the other Rangers along the way." Nina paused for a moment and was going to wipe her eyes but noticed how damp hers already was. Ryu smiled comfortingly and handed her one he kept. She returned his smile slightly. "I originally helped with some of the healing but eventually became so interested in the work the Ranger's did that I joined up, Mezzryn was my first partner and we have been working together for over six months now." Nina finished her narrative looked over at Ryu who was still smiling that same comforting smile. "How did you meet him?"
"Like I said, I met him at Chorden, he was such a nice guy that he and I became fast friends. He even suggested that I join the Rangers which I did as soon as the war was over. I always wanted to meet him again, I'll say this for him: he was the nicest guy I ever met." Ryu did indeed feel some of those things about Mezzryn, but the expression of fond memories he had on his face was purely Machiavellian. Nina smiled at Ryu's narration and her eyes glossed over with memories of her own.
"That was what I always liked about Mezzryn. He was always so nice, caring and OH IT'S TERRIBLE THAT HE'S NEVER GOING TO BE THOSE THINGS AGAIN!" Nina broke back into tears as her sorrow gripped her again. She had sought support and she was now crying into Mezzryn's killer's shoulder. *What are the odds.* Ryu thought as he could feel her warm tears seep through his cloth and touch his skin. He took his left arm and placed in comfortingly upon her back. He didn't really know what to say at this moment, he wasn't ready for this kind of emotional outpour.
Ryu sat there in this awkward position, trying somewhat to soothe the emotions of this crying girl who must have loved Mezzryn with all her heart. Ryu almost felt sorry for killing the bastard but it was soon replaced as he remembered what his main objective was. After one final, rib cracking, lung straining, voice grating sob, Nina was finished. Her "good cry" had turned into a good flood upon Ryu's shirt. Nina was almost asleep by now, the events of the day finally pulling her down. Ryu slowly got out of the position and laid her down upon the bed, when she was looking so tired and innocent he felt a great need to have her right then and there but he stopped himself. He brought the cover of the bed up to cover her and patted her comfortingly upon the shoulder before leaving.
"Good night Nina."
* * *
There you have it. Sorry about the lateness but I was a little busy with other stuff. I have another Breath of Fire story running around somewhere and I'm mildly working on that. If you wanted action in this chapter you're out of luck, this was the only chapter I think I'll have without someone dying. Possibly. If you missed the action the next chapter should have that in spades. Please review, time is running short for those puppies and kitties.
Fact of the Chapter: Did you know that 30% of all left handers have languages parts of the brain in either the right or both parts of the brain. Amazin'.
Also, a million thanks to those who reviewed my story, the last two finally gave me the emotion you humans call hope.
Chapter Four: That's What Rangers Do
It was in the forests surrounding the Scar River that the Conqueror of Chorden, the Betrayer at Brusten, and the most wanted man by the Rangers was walking along, chatting amiably with a member of the Ranger guild. Ryu had to admit that stealing Fenris' identity was one of the best ideas he ever had. Here he had an opportunity to make it with what was possibly the only female Windian outside of the Windia.
*She's a pretty smart girl, I would have thought she would have figured it out by now.* Ryu thought as he was laughing at an amusing anecdote she had told about Mezzryn. "That sounds like the Mezzryn I knew." Ryu laughed a little harder as he made conversation.
"You knew Mezzryn?" Nina asked, her face going from amusement to dead seriousness. Ryu immediately regretted having mentioned anything about knowing Mezzryn. *Looks like its time to lie again.* Ryu thought letting out an internal sigh.
"I was a mercenary at the Battle of Chorden, not assigned to the group that led the assault but a reserve battalion. I was the one who found Mezzryn outside the walls and I carried him to safety." Ryu explained, he wasn't lying completely, he did carry Mezzryn back to the medical tents but he was also the one who shoved him off. *Better some truth than no truth.* He thought as they had stopped walking. Nina's hand was gripping his arm with vice-like strength, forcing him to stop and answer even more questions that she no doubt had.
"Do you think that he and Aleric are OK?" Nina asked, tightening her already astounding grip on his arm.
Wincing slightly as he spoke, "They should be fine. Mezzryn's a good man to have in a fight and I'm sure Aleric's the same. They're probably already at the Ranger's Base by now." Ryu said kindly, gently disengaging her hand from his arm. Nina took in a deep breath and went back to her previous state of relative levity.
They walked on after the brief stop. Nina didn't talk anymore than a simply 'yes' or 'no' with the occasional 'I see' tossed in. Ryu wasn't going to go out of his way to make conversation with a woman who was emotionally distraught over what may have been a guy she was really emotionally attached to. Ryu was starting to think that this was going to be more trouble than it was worth, almost anyways. Ryu kept shooting glances down at her as the strolled in what was now silence. After an eternity of awkward, the two reached the small village that housed the Ranger base and Ryu came close to snorting, it toed the line of podunk very carefully. Nina looked up at him and smiled slightly.
"I'm sorry I wasn't much of a conversationalist." She apologized more demurely than Ryu thought possible for an acquaintance. Ryu smiled inwardly. *Now's my time to shine.* He thought lasciviously.
"Don't worry about Nina. I understand what you're going through." Ryu said placing his hand on her shoulder and squeezing it in a comforting manner. Nina broke into a much larger smile and Ryu cheered inwardly. *And Ryu scores!*
"Come on, let's go to the Headquarters, I'm sure that they'll all be interested in meeting you. We should also hear some news about Aleric and Mezzryn." Nina said cheerfully, pulling on Ryu to get him to hurry on. *Not too likely about the last part.* He thought cynically. He was mildly worried about the Rangers recognizing him but most of the ones who knew him were dead or not from this area, so it was with confidence that he strode in behind Nina into the Headquarters of the Rangers. It was nothing to be too impressed with.
The main building was fairly small, maybe a total of twenty sets of weapons were hung along the armory. A receptionist sat at a table that barred entry to some of the back rooms. The rooms were simply furnished wood, nothing like the last Headquarters he had been to. An older man with a strip of cloth tied around his eyes was leaning back in a comfortably upholstered chair and his sightless gaze immediately went to Nina and Ryu. "Good afternoon Nina." He said in one of those 'Kind Old Men' kind of voices.
"Good afternoon Ferzin." Nina returned the greeting with a big hug to the older man. Ryu quickly shot looks all over the room to check for any likenesses of him. He found one and quickly walked over to inspect the sketch. Part of it was done in color to show that he had blue hair. The rest was too out of date for anyone to put two and two together. *Shouldn't be too hard to fool any of these fellows.* Ryu thought smirking to his image. His image smirked back in black and white.
". . . I'd like to introduce a fellow Ranger from the town of Bellavurn: Fenris." Nina's introduction pulled Ryu back into the thick of things and he walked over, trying his best to look deferential and succeeding to a very good degree.
"It is a pleasure to meet you." Ryu said with impeccable gentility.
"The same, what brings you here my boy?" He asked, his tone changing to one of strict business. Ryu surmised that he only had a fondness for his adopted granddaughter. Ryu withdrew his hand and looked speculatively at the blind man. Nina was talking to the receptionist in low tones so Ryu was free to not look welcoming or friendly. His body remained very friendly in stance though.
"I'm merely a messenger from the Head at our Guild. I'm merely telling you of our existence." Ryu said with guarded words but an otherwise friendly disposition. Ferzin was mulling over these words when Nina let out a little gasp of surprise and sadness. Both Ryu and Ferzin looked toward the Windian as she put a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide in surprise. The receptionist patted her shoulder comfortingly and murmured some words of encouragement. Nina looked over at both Ryu and Ferzin.
"Excuse me for a moment." She said succinctly before walking hurriedly out of the room. Ryu looked from the door where Nina just left to the receptionist in mock astonishment.
"What just happened?" Ryu asked, concern coloring his words. *As if I already didn't know.* He thought smugly.
"We found both Mezzryn's and Aleric's bodies in the forest." The receptionist answered, her own voice heavy with sorrow. Ryu's face slowly going from shocked sorrow to out and out despondency.
"That's terrible! Who could have done that?" Ferzin asked leaning forward expectantly. Ryu followed his lead and looked questioningly over at the receptionist who was dabbing at her eyes with a kerchief. *Mezzryn must have been a real hit with the ladies.* Ryu thought darkly.
"We think it was that blackguard Ryu! Only he could have so easily slain both of them." The receptionist broke down and went out of the room the same way Nina went. Ryu was left in the company of Ferzin, a person which Ryu was starting to seriously consider killing. *The blind guy is too perceptive for his own good.* Ryu thought as he took a chair directly opposite the blind man.
"So why are you really here?" Ferzin asked suddenly as he stood up, he would have been a strong enemy in his youth but age had made him weaker.
"Make up some reason, I told you mine and that's the only one you're getting." Ryu said, leaning back in his chair. He put his arms behind his back and watched the old man with narrowed eyes. Ferzin chose not to act upon his suspicions of Ryu and simply began to walk slowly out of the room. As he passed Ryu he stopped and grabbed Ryu on the shoulder with surprising strength.
"You can never replace Mezzryn's place in her heart." Ferzin cautioned, his sightless eyes still peering forward. Ryu casually pulled the hand away from him. He was smirking at the blind man as he stood up and faced him eye to eye.
"I don't plan on replacing Mezzryn in her heart, I plan on replacing Mezzryn in her bed." Ryu informed the old man his manner reverting back into arrogance. Ryu opened the door and let Ferzin walk out, smirking at his back as he ambled on slowly. Ryu followed through hoping to find Nina's room and "console" her. Ryu began whistling the same tune again, he had never learned the words but it had such an infectious sound that he couldn't help but whistle it at most opportunities. He finally found Nina's room, it was marked with her name, making it a dead give away.
Ryu leaned in, listening through the door. He had always had pretty good hearing and today it proved itself again. Ryu could discern Nina crying, but it was muffled slightly, like she was crying into her pillow or perhaps a kerchief. Ryu brought up his left hand and rapped three times upon the door. "Are you all right Nina?" He asked solicitously. The crying stopped and Ryu could hear some shuffling within the room and the sound of some sniffling to get rid of any excess tears.
"I'm not really in the mood to talk right now Fenris. Would you please come back in a little while?" Nina asked through the door, her voice laden with sorrow. Ryu's mind carefully went over what he was about to say next. He didn't want to pass up this opportunity to further worm his way into Nina's heart, but he also didn't want to sound too forceful in his desire to speak with her.
Ryu's eyes squinted as he stared at the ceiling and thought up his response. "I understand that you may be upset, and crying is a perfectly acceptable outlet for your emotions, but it also helps to talk about the ones we cared for." Ryu waited expectantly for her response. He crossed his fingers in expectation as he heard footsteps heading towards the door. The door swung open and Nina appeared with a tear streaked face. She was presently wiping her eyes with a white kerchief, it had Mezzryn's crest on it.
"You're right Fenris. Please come in." Nina said, trying to mask the sorrow in her voice. Ryu put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly, mimicking his earlier attempt at comfort. He entered the room and closed the door behind him. He waited for her to sit down on her bed before sitting beside her on the right, about six inches away. The room was fairly spartan, it only had the bed and a chest filled with her belongings.
Ryu hunched forward, his elbows on his thighs and his hands dangling between his legs. He looked over at Nina who took one long sniff and looked despondently at the floor. "So how did you meet Mezzryn?" Ryu asked, finally breaking the silence. Nina looked back up at Ryu with a thoughtful look replacing her sad one.
"It was shortly after the Betrayal at Chorden, Mezzryn had been injured and was being transported back to here. I was on a mission from Windor and I came across Mezzryn and some of the other Rangers along the way." Nina paused for a moment and was going to wipe her eyes but noticed how damp hers already was. Ryu smiled comfortingly and handed her one he kept. She returned his smile slightly. "I originally helped with some of the healing but eventually became so interested in the work the Ranger's did that I joined up, Mezzryn was my first partner and we have been working together for over six months now." Nina finished her narrative looked over at Ryu who was still smiling that same comforting smile. "How did you meet him?"
"Like I said, I met him at Chorden, he was such a nice guy that he and I became fast friends. He even suggested that I join the Rangers which I did as soon as the war was over. I always wanted to meet him again, I'll say this for him: he was the nicest guy I ever met." Ryu did indeed feel some of those things about Mezzryn, but the expression of fond memories he had on his face was purely Machiavellian. Nina smiled at Ryu's narration and her eyes glossed over with memories of her own.
"That was what I always liked about Mezzryn. He was always so nice, caring and OH IT'S TERRIBLE THAT HE'S NEVER GOING TO BE THOSE THINGS AGAIN!" Nina broke back into tears as her sorrow gripped her again. She had sought support and she was now crying into Mezzryn's killer's shoulder. *What are the odds.* Ryu thought as he could feel her warm tears seep through his cloth and touch his skin. He took his left arm and placed in comfortingly upon her back. He didn't really know what to say at this moment, he wasn't ready for this kind of emotional outpour.
Ryu sat there in this awkward position, trying somewhat to soothe the emotions of this crying girl who must have loved Mezzryn with all her heart. Ryu almost felt sorry for killing the bastard but it was soon replaced as he remembered what his main objective was. After one final, rib cracking, lung straining, voice grating sob, Nina was finished. Her "good cry" had turned into a good flood upon Ryu's shirt. Nina was almost asleep by now, the events of the day finally pulling her down. Ryu slowly got out of the position and laid her down upon the bed, when she was looking so tired and innocent he felt a great need to have her right then and there but he stopped himself. He brought the cover of the bed up to cover her and patted her comfortingly upon the shoulder before leaving.
"Good night Nina."
* * *
There you have it. Sorry about the lateness but I was a little busy with other stuff. I have another Breath of Fire story running around somewhere and I'm mildly working on that. If you wanted action in this chapter you're out of luck, this was the only chapter I think I'll have without someone dying. Possibly. If you missed the action the next chapter should have that in spades. Please review, time is running short for those puppies and kitties.
Fact of the Chapter: Did you know that 30% of all left handers have languages parts of the brain in either the right or both parts of the brain. Amazin'.