This story belongs to me and my creative mind. However, most of the characters, names, and places all belong to their respective companies, so don't yell at me for copyright infringements! Remember, Italics represent a person's thoughts or the telling of past events.
Enjoy...
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:Faraway Dreams:
Part Two: The Hunter And The Prey
Chapter One:
The sun burned brighter and hotter against the walls and streets of Lindblum in the summer season, the higher temperature drawing the hordes of people to seek the cover of a shady awning and the cool interior of the shops. Children ran about the streets with a greater enthusiasm, many of them seeking employment as normal workers went on their much anticipated vacations. The number of Airships entering the city increased as people across the Mist Continent traveled to Lindblum to see the sights offered by the massive grand castle. Luckily, the populations of monsters remained low, and attacks remained below normal despite the increased level of ground travel by merchants and others. The Regulators, although having been through a stressing time two months ago due to the Fire Bandit, kept up their efforts and managed to even improve their efforts as the summer season wore on into it's latter half.
Gerick himself had fully recovered from his battle inflicted wound, but the damage left him with a minor limp that pestered him to no ends, especially on the battlefield he still stubbornly attended. Illis, too, made a full recovery from the burns across her body, remaining active in battle as well as in being sarcastic of her friends actions. Ruthy was able to rid herself of the fears and worries that plagued her mind, changing back into the cheery and carefree youth that was her trademark. Gordan, now free of his responsibility to protect Illis throughout the day and nighttime hours, resumed his studies and involved himself back into some of the social circles that he once attended, his image slowly becoming restored. Macky finally arranged the Security Council meetings to a more reasonable hour, ironically losing many nights of sleep in pointless arguments to achieve his goal.
Fedrich, after a week of contemplation and thought, was also able to shake off the funk that soured his mood, returning back to the eager and confidant mindset that brought him to Lindblum. His training continued with Gordan and the others, his goal shifting back to attaining greater strength and skill for the ever-present Festival of the Hunt. After almost two months passed since the incident with the Fire Bandit passed, the Burman could visibly see the vast improvements he made in his strict regime of work and practice.
* * *
Dear Mum and Father, how are things back home? Life's been interesting to say the least since I left, hazardous to my health if you want something truthful.
I'm not sure if news has gotten to you over there, but there was a rash of violent robberies in Lindblum by a man known as the Fire Bandit about two months ago. My connection with him? Not but a day after I came here, I ran into a group of warriors known as the Regulators fighting monsters in the fields. I stumbled into the fight by sheer luck, and they accepted me as a member once I proved that I was strong enough to fight. Normally my duties consist of fighting monsters outside the city and patrolling the travel lanes on the Plateau, but we were ordered to help catch the Bandit before he did any more harm. I haven't been hurt badly, so don't worry! The worst I've got was some singed fur because of the fire spells he uses, so my chest was nearly bare because of that. It's grown back completely since then, but I've decided to wear that thick shirt father gave me to stop that.
The Regulators themselves are all nice people, very different from one another as well. Gerick, the leader, is a friendly guy who always tries to keep the spirits up around here, but still works us hard each day. Gordan is of noble heritage, but his family was disgraced and he's working with us to help get his honor back, yet he still acts very well mannered despite that. Illis looks like your typical member of a gothic cult, but she's more caring of her friends than you'd think, although her tongue is sharper than any sword I've seen! Macky is the liaison between us and the Castle Security Council, so I don't see much of him since he's busy all day long. Ruthy is Illis' younger, redheaded and carefree sister, and she's probably the one who I connect with most out of everyone here.
I'm doing well in the group, and I think that I'm going to be able to make a good living here as a Regulator. Getting the Master Hunter title in the Festival is going to be easy if I keep on working as hard as I've been. Gerick let me take up residence in a spare room at their meeting Hall, so I've been keeping rather small confines as of late, but I don't have to pay much except half of my earnings as a Regulator for rent. Considering we can get almost three hundred Gil a day in selling monster hides, that's close to a thousand Gil a week that I earn, even with the deductions!
Lindblum itself is huge, words alone really can't give it justice! The city has many districts to separate places, like business shops and factories, theaters and museums, plus the Royal Castle itself. The food is good, and there's a lot more variety that what there is at the Daines Market. I haven't even been able to go to all the places I want to see, despite being here for so long. If you ever want to take a vacation from home, this place could keep you both busy for a year with the views and performances alone!
Oh bother, I'm already late for our morning patrol. Give aunt Mirideth a hug for me, tell Galt and the guys that I miss them dearly, and give Eliza a knock on the head if she hasn't fessed her feelings up to him!
Thinking of you always, Fedrich.
"Fedrich! I'm gonna tap a hole in my floor if ya don't get here!" Gerick shouted from down the hallway.
"Just hold on a second, I'm almost done!" Fedrich begged, dropping the ink quiver once done.
Fedrich folded the parchment in half before rolling it into a small scroll, securing it with a piece of string. The Burman tied the knot securely, then grabbed his short sword and rushed out of his bedroom and into the front room, being looked at sternly by the collection of Regulator's present. He bowed lightly to them in an apology, then lifted his letter up for them to see.
"Sorry I didn't come right away, I just wanted to finish my letter so I can send it back home."
"That is alright, Fedrich, I just do not want you to make a habit of being late to the patrols." Gordan insisted.
"Right."
"Come on, we can drop your letter off at a mailing office before going." Illis suggested.
"Thanks." Fedrich nodded, following the Regulators outside the Hall's doors.
The warriors proceeded down the meandering streets of the Theater District with an easy gait, taking a detour so Fedrich could properly address and pay for his letter before boarded an Aircab destined for Hunter's Gate. After passing through the massive tunnel, they proceeded down the large collection of stairs and finally stepped off the worn paths and took to their patrol of the city walls. For a few hours they marched through the thinning grass without encountering any monsters, and they even found themselves alone when moving through the city shadow. However, after they were within eyesight of the stairs leading to the Hunter's Gate, Fedrich's keen hearing picked up the not so subtle sound of monsters swarming towards them.
"Dammit!" Illis swore, hacking away at the multitude of limbs harassing her. "Ruthy! I need some support over here!"
"Right!" Her younger sister replied.
She aimed her longbow carefully, stringing an arrow and letting it fly into the side of a Carve Spider with deadly accuracy. The monstrous arachnid reared up in pain, and Illis used the opening to attack its head, dispatching the monster with a quick stroke. She quickly charged at another spider monster, her sword a blur as it cut through the leading appendages of the beast. A second flashing of a sword pierced the spider's side, and its wounds overcame its ability to remain standing, causing it to fall over and slowly die. Illis looked and saw Gordan again at her side, his broadsword up and aiming for another of the monsters swarming through their positions.
"How's things going!?" Illis questioned.
"In our favor, despite the odds!" He returned, attacking. "Gerick and Fedrich have managed to blunt the efforts of the remaining monsters. This should be over quite soon!"
The two warriors ended their conversation and resumed battling, the monster's forces thinning out quickly as the Regulator's kept up their furious pace. An Iron Beak came storming across the grassy plains, its beak open wide and howling with primal rage at it's opponents. Before either could respond to it's charge, Fedrich dropped down from the sky and struck the beast down with a mighty crash, short sword driven through it's thick skull, ending it's life. The Iron Beak ground up a small path of dirt as it slowed to a halt, and both the warriors below took a moment to witness their comrades overly dramatic entrance.
"Good show!" Illis complemented.
"And now it's time for the final act!" Fedrich replied with a large grin.
Pulling his sword loose, he again took to the winds and leapt towards another monster with intent to kill. He aimed his sword down and let gravity do the work, the energy of the fall piercing an arachnid's body and shocking it into death. Looking up from his kill, he witnessed Gerick using his battle hammer to knock aside an iron beak, reversing his grip to use the pointed end to crack through the beast's head in a finishing strike. The few other monsters present all began to retreat, their limited intellect knowing enough to abandon a losing fight.
Fedrich jumped down from the corpse of the spider, walking towards the others as they assessed the scene.
"How's everyone?" Gerick bellowed from his location.
"A bruise or two, but still good!" Illis replied for herself and Gordan.
"Alive! Sore, but alive!" Ruthy added.
"Up and able!" Fedrich answered. "And yourself?"
"Cuts 'n scratches, little else!" He chuckled. "Let's get this cleaned up!"
They all dispersed from one another and began dismembering the monsters for any valued materials. Gordan took to using his hammer to knock apart the shell of an Iron Beak while the others all used their blades to cut loose the fangs from the Carve Spiders present. After gathering the fangs, they helped to clean and pack the beak pieces Gerick's hammer worked loose. They all shoulders their packs, Fedrich looking over the battlefield with a weary expression.
"Good grief, it looks like there's enough beak leftover to require two more trips like this!"
"Yep, an' we'll be making good use of this opportunity to get it all in by sundown." Gerick replied.
"Seriously!?" Fedrich balked.
"Seriously," The bearded man laughed. "There's gotta be another few thousand Gils worth of beak here, and I'm not gonna let it go 'ta waste when we're this close to the Hunter's Gate. Let's get movin', ladies!"
Fedrich and the others sighed, marching alongside their leader who kept his smile alive despite the work.
The sun traveled across the afternoon and evening sky without much occurring under it's watch, and Gerick set down the final bag of beak shards just as it touched the ocean horizon.
"Good Gods, man 'ya really did a number on those monsters!" Corban swore, wiping his brow. "That's almost a hundred 'n thirty kilo's of the stuff!"
"We gave 'em hell, alright! They'll be keepin' to the shadows fer weeks after smelling so many of their friends dead!"
"Feck it all, you already got 630 Gil fer the fangs alone, I'll run dry 'o cash at this rate!"
"Speakin' of which, what's the goin' rate for beak in the markets?" Gerick asked with a smirk.
"It's doin' about average, so it'll be about twenty eight Gil a kilo." He answered, balancing the last pile of beak on his scale. "That's another thirteen kilos...so you got yerself in a hundred forty kilos in total."
Corban stepped over to the table he worked at, picking up an inked quill and scribbling down the numbers into his thick recording book. Doing some math to work the total, he blew a whistle through his thick lips as he looked at the total.
"Damn, I think you broke 'ta records this time! You got yourself 3920 Gil for the beak, plus the 630 from the fangs, so it's a grand sum of 4550 Gil!"
The Regulators all broke into wide grins at the news, Gerick looking pleased the most of them all. Corban reached under his table and picked up a large chest, unlocking it with a key at his neck to reveal a stash of coins glittering in the artificial light of the Hide Shop. He fished out a number of coins, piling them on the surface of the table until the total was reached.
"Gordan? How much is it between us?" Gerick asked.
"Let me see..." He muttered, doing the math in his head. "It should be...910 Gil for each of us, so after the deduction, we each get 455 Gil."
"That's a helluva paycheck for ya! I'm sure you're all glad we went through all this, eh?" Gerick questioned.
"More than glad, this is better than I'd thought!" Fedrich admitted with a smile.
"Alright then, let's be gettin' back to the Hall." The elder man suggested, heading for the door. "Thanks for yer services, Corban!"
"No problem, jest don't make a habit of this, or I'll go broke!" He shot back.
The Regulators all gave their farewells, then stepped into the alley and left for the main street and the Aircab station. Ruthy giggled as she tossed her pouch of Gil from hand to hand, the leather bulging with coins, something Fedrich took note of.
"You seem happy." He observed.
"I've got reason to be, I can finally pay for the last of my summer trip!"
"Summer trip, huh? Sounds like something you've been waiting for."
"Oh it is, I just have to find someone who would want to share it with me." She smiled.
"Well, care to tell us what it is?"
"I've been saving up a lot of Gil so I can afford two ticket to a performance by the Tantalus performance group in Treno, traveling costs included. They're going to be doing 'I Want To Be Your Canary' By Lord Avon, the first time in almost two years!"
"Sounds like quite an event."
"Yeah, I've been a fan of reading his works, although the Lindblum Libraries don't have much on him." She said in a milder tone. "Have you ever read his plays?"
Fedrich shook his head. "Nope, we don't get much outside literature in Burmecia."
"That's a shame, you'd probably like some of his more adventurous works."
"Probably..."
"Say..." She began. "Maybe you'd like to go along with me!"
"Me?" Fedrich repeated.
"Yeah! I was going to ask my sister if she wanted to, but she's read his books too, so I think it would be better if you came in her place. I'm sure you'd love it!"
"Well, when is it happening?"
"They're gonna be having two performances, one tomorrow night and the other the following night. I've held two ticket for the latter one, so we would leave that morning by Airship and land at South Gate, take the cable cars to Alexandria proper, then go by Chocobo caravan the rest of the way to Treno. We'd have enough time to get something to eat before the play, and maybe do some sight seeing afterwards. After a night's stay at an Inn, we'd follow our steps back home in time for dinner."
"You've got the whole thing planned out already?"
"Well yeah, I had to worry about reservations and everything, plus making sure I had the right tickets and border passes, too." She explained.
"That's a lot of work, just for a simple trip."
"Ah, it's not as much a hassle as it seems. So what do you think, do you want to come with me?"
Fedrich hesitated a moment. "What about the patrols? Is Gerick okay with us missing those two days?"
"He wouldn't mind. We did just earn two days worth of Gil after all, so I'm sure he'd let us go."
"If you can get him to agree, then I'd be glad to accompany you."
"That's great!" She exclaimed. "You'll have the time of your life, believe me!"
The two followed the other Regulators through the thick crowds of people in the Aircab terminal, not bothering to speak above the din of other's voices. Boarding an Aircab, they sat idly as the craft lurched through the evening air and progressed through the skies to the Theater District. The evening was pressing onto the city, all of the flying craft lighting their electric lamps to show their positions in the sky, filling the airspace with a swarm of dancing lights. The Aircab soared up towards the highest points of the city, following a strip of lights to land evenly into the Theater District terminal. Once departing from the taxi and leaving the busy terminal, Ruthy again struck up the conversation with an eager expression.
"Have you heard anything about Lord Avon's plays?"
"Not a thing, except that he was considered the greatest of all writers in his time and ours." Fedrich replied.
"Yep, even after five hundred some odd years his plays are still better than anything else other writers have come up with. It's like he set the standard for a play, so no one else could rival him."
"I wonder what it must've been like during his time to see those plays. I wonder if they appreciated them as much as we do now?"
"Who knows? It's something that I'm sure scholars will argue about for another five hundred years." She snickered.
Fedrich looked up at the end of the stairs they walked on, recognizing the buildings. "We're almost at the Hall, so you might as well ask Gerick if we can go before you go home."
"Good idea." She agreed, skipping ahead to the elder man's side.
Gerick glanced over at the redhead. "Somethin' you'd like to say?"
"Well, me 'n Fedrich were wondering if you would give us two days off from patrols to go see the 'I Want To Be Your Canary' play in Treno the day after tomorrow."
"I dunno, that's a bit of a short term warnin' you gave me."
"Aw, don't say that. We've done good work for these few months without a break, and we even made a big kill today! Don't tell me that we haven't earned some time for a rest."
"I'm still not sure..." He continued, rubbing his beard idly.
"Please?" She pleaded, batting her eyes with a smile.
"Ach, enough 'o the cute stuff, kiddo, you can go." He chuckled.
"Thanks a lot, Gerick!" She thanked, giving the man a quick hug. "I owe you one."
She looked back to Fedrich and gave him a thumbs up, and the Burman smiled back and nodded.
