The year was 1490, and today was an extremely important day. Prontera Sanctuary had finally sworn in a new High Priestess for the new Decade. Maria Caruso, a long line of worthy Priests and Bishops, vowed to watch over the sanctuary for the new decade. Leaving her daughter, Athena, ten years to prepare for her special day.
Bishop Paul strolled down the aisle seeing Athena at the entrance to the right wing. The young priestess was watching the group of twelve and thirteen-year-olds line up to be accepted to become acolytes. Sister Cecilia was laughing as the pre-teens were cheering as they got accepted, and Athena stifled her laughs as Bishop Paul entered the wing.
"Dear sister Cecilia, may I?" he said in the normal, soft tone of voice.
Sister Cecilia nodded and left the holy water, and joined Athena by the doorway.
"Those kids are always so happy when they get accepted," Athena smiled watching them hug their acolyte robes.
Cecilia looked over at Athena, "I still remember when you were accepted."
Athena rolled her eyes, "Ew, I was stupid back then."
They both laughed, and the children looked over. Stifling their laughs, they left the wing and began to leave the Cathedral, but an almost booming female voice caught them in their steps.
"Athena, would you come here please."
Cecilia, under her breathe, said, "Uh-oh! You in trouble, girl!"
Athena glared and began to stride up the aisle to her mother standing beneath the stain-glass window of a rose.
Her mother brushed off the dust off her new soft pink gown, showing off her new power over the sanctuary, "Athena, I know you're still young, but since you only have a decade left... I believe some major training is in order for you to be ready to inherit the role of high priest."
Athena looked at the red carpet, "Right now?"
"You will become high priest in 1500, this year is 1490, you must!"
Athena reluctantly agreed and began to head out of the sanctuary along with Cecilia. They opened the massive wooden doors to find out that it was snowing lightly and there was about an inch on the ground already. They closed the door again and went in search of winter clothes.
The fluffy white snow, was kicking up under the slightly unstable cart. A young knight with long purple hair stared out the window as the horse and wagon began to approach the sanctuary. Wrapped in a Manteau, to keep warm, she continued to watch like a drone at the approaching cathedral.
"Sorry miss, I keep forgettin' yer name!"
The knight looked up from her gaze, "Oh, my name is Sierra Ocadiz."
"Ah miss, you're DAME Sierra Ocadiz, 'member? You be a knight!"
Sierra smiled at the driver and got her stuff ready to get off.
Athena put on her earmuffs, scarf and mittens as she began to leave the sanctuary. A snowflake landed on her nose, causing her to giggle. Cecilia decided to stay in, because she misplaced her scarf. The young priestess noticed a movement in the storm, and smiled seeing the horse and driver.
"Good morning!" She said waving.
"Mornin' ma'am, I have a delivery today for ya!"
Surprised she approached the wagon, and saw someone move in the cabin. She backed off to let them out and Sierra jumped to the ground, taking her suitcase and massive sword with her. The driver smiled and waved them off and continued on his routes in the snow.
Athena smiled as Sierra moved part of the Manteau out of her face, and the two embraced in a huge hug. When they let go, Sierra set down her suitcase and sword and took out a small dagger from inside her Manteau.
"I'll give you 3 guesses as to who forged this and the first 2 don't count!" Sierra said, cheerfully.
"Oh my goodness! Did she-?"
Athena began to jump in excitement, along with Sierra. They stopped and Sierra showed the inscription on the hilt of the dagger.
"Pretty awesome huh? Michelle made it! The Blacksmith Guild accepted her right before Christmas!"
"That's so cool! Where is she right now?"
"Oh, she's back in Payon at the moment. Where it's NOT snowing!"
Athena gasped, "Not snowing?"
"It's too warm down there, it wouldn't."
Athena invited Sierra into the Sanctuary to get the two of them out of the cold wind. Inside of the sanctuary, the young Acolytes were running around very happy at their newfound powers and abilities. A nun began walking around with rods to explain to them what each of them did, and how much they were. All the new acolytes sighed in frustration and began to point to the cheapest.
"I remember when I was in their situation," Athena said smiling.
"I'm always in their situation," Sierra said glaring at the pouches of zeny around Athena's waist.
"Just because I earned my zeny doesn't mean you can't," Athena glared back at Sierra.
"I earn my damn zeny, I just spend it on YOU GUYS!" Sierra spat.
Athena glared, and in a sinister, quiet voice, "Quit your bitching."
The acolytes looked up at Athena in a state of shock, and she swore. Not only was she a priest but also she swore under the roof of the sanctuary. Sierra began to laugh and Athena glared at her. Athena snorted and stormed through the doors. Sierra shrugged and followed.
The night began to fall on the bustling city, and Sierra was busy visiting the Prontera Chivalry. Where she was knighted no longer than 2 years ago. Lady Amy, one of the knights that tested swordsmen into becoming knights of the chivalry, squealed as she saw Sierra enter the massive building.
"Lady Sierra! Lady Sierra! Welcome home!"
Sierra peered over to the furthest corner to the right to see a bunch of swordsmen on their rear ends on the floor scribbling something on a piece of parchment. Lady Amy signalled for Sierra to be quiet for a moment and then began to announce statements of proper behaviour to the swordsmen.
"I see you're still well, Sierra."
Sierra
turned to see the Captain of the Chivalry bowing, "Oh! Captain,
please don't bow."
"I'm honoured to
see one of our best knights again."
"Eheh..."
Sierra began to head up to the residential area in the Chivalry, where knights who had no home to go to, could stay. Her greaves were clanking against the ground as she moved against the marble flooring. A few other new knights were exploring the Chivalry as Sierra passed through. A few cried out to her being excited to see her because she was a veteran. Or at least, that's what they were allowed to think.
"Hey Sierra..."
Sierra looked up to the indoor balcony around where her room was, to see an old friend.
"Long time no talk, huh?"
She smiled, and began to head up to the room. Her friend turned to the entrance where Sierra would be coming through from the stairs.
Sierra laughed and met in a hug, "Hey Luirei... I've missed you."
"The Chivalry thought it'd be cool to surprise you, I suppose I was the cheapest idea," Luirei laughed.
Sierra smirked, "Probably."
The snow stopped falling and all that was left all over Prontera was a thin sheet of white fluffiness. The Daily Merchants kept their shops up, and Athena noticed a dancer and a bard performing off in an opening off the busiest street. She strolled between the merchants and passed by a Blacksmith who seemed to be refining irons. He looked up and smiled.
"Good day Misses, how are you?"
She smiled back, "I'm good and you?"
"I'm all right. These iron ores are being a pain, but just another day's work."
She waved her hand over the Blacksmith's head, and small, dim blue lights fell down over him. He smiled and bowed to her.
"Thank you so much for your blessing!" He said quite gratefully.
She smiled, "Anything for a fellow adventurer. If I may ask, what is your name?"
He looked up at her, "Of course you may ask! I am Kiriyama, Ryo Kiriyama."
"I better be off, I have to find my friends."
"Of course, thank you again." He sat back up and faced his furnace.
Athena began to continue her stroll through the huge city, searching for her friends. Suddenly, merchant shops began to fall over, and the entire southern street was frenzied. Athena stood near the central house district and watched as a massive monster began to rampage through the streets. Clinking and rattling, it was the Clock Tower Keeper. Gears and sprockets went flying as it crashed through the merchant's carts and stands.
"Get out of the way!"
The crowd was pushing and shoving around Athena, next to no adventurer's were around to take the keeper down. Athena sighed and began to run as fast as she could towards the rampant machine.
"Never take me away from the Clock Tower!"
As soon as she got close, she pulled out her Bone Wand and latched onto one of the chains hanging onto the massive lower gear, and held it in place. She struggled to keep it in place as it squirmed trying to kill everyone. She looked around to try and find some adventurers in the vicinity, but the only ones she could find were novices.
"I suppose I should handle this one myself, hmm?" Athena said struggling to keep it down.
It hit her hard on her side with the massive gear, cause her to lose her balance, but her wand was still latched on. She began to skid against the snow and the keeper began to move. It dragged her about 10 ft before someone grabbed onto her around the waist.
She turned to see her new Blacksmith friend, "Ryo!"
"Don't worry, he won't get the better of you!"
"Mammonite!"
Athena fell back as the Tower Keeper's Massive structure fell to the ground. The Gears were left smoking and shattered on the ground. Pieces of zeny were sprinkled around her body, but they were all split and broken from who knows what.
"Athena, are you all right?"
A
familiar female voice made her eyes open, "...Michelle?"
The female Blacksmith looking down smiled,
"Still getting into trouble, huh?"
"Heh, of course," Athena tried to sit up and then remembered the sharp pain in her side, "Hey wait, I thought you were back in Payon?"
Michelle shook her head, "I came here, and I decided to not wait to see you two again."
A pale green light emitted from Athena's hand over her sore rib, in her attempt to heal it. Suddenly, the shattered and broken gears in front of her began to stir. The Clock Tower Keeper came back to full power, as it began to repair its gears and chains. It was angrier than ever it knocked Michelle and Athena out of its way and into a fruit stand. It glowed green as it was building up power to take down everyone in Prontera.
"Crap, I can't move." Michelle said, noticing that they were both stuck under the stand.
Civilians ran in a panic trying to get away from the keeper. Suddenly, part of the keeper's main workings shattered at the back. The Keeper was looking around madder than hell, trying to figure out who sniped it. Suddenly a young girl in a purple outfit pounced onto the keeper. Athena watched in awe as the young girl kept her balance on the psychotic machine. The girl ripped out two daggers from a strap on her back, and jammed them into the keeper's main gears.
"Who's that kid?" Michelle asked as she tried to figure out a way to get the stand off of them.
"I have no idea."
The girl had latched herself on using the daggers and was basically controlling it now. It spun until finally it began to head towards Centre Square, and the sacred statue of Odin. Michelle had enough of the fruit stand and kicked it off, causing everything to fall out. Athena and Michelle got up and began to run to follow the girl on the keeper. The girl suddenly did a handstand on the keeper's head and used her legs to latch onto the bridge leading to the Centre Square.
"Oh my god, what's she doing?" Michelle panicked and sped up.
The Keeper continued to move, but the girl latched onto the bridge and her daggers as hard as she could. The force cause the Keeper to rip open its own head and begin to spiral towards the statue of Odin.
"KYRIE ELIESON!"
A massive barrier appeared around the statue, and shattered the remainder of the Keeper before it could destroy anything else.
Everyone was silent for a few moments, and then everyone jumped up in a great roar of excitement that the danger was over. Athena and Michelle noticed the mess they had left in the wake of the Keeper. Michelle rubbed her temples trying to figure out how they would pay for everything. A few Prontera Guards began to run to the centre to make sure that the Statue was still in tact. One guard approached Athena.
"Sister Athena, the King would like to thank you and your friends for helping keep control of the monster. He awards you with this."
A small package was put into Athena's hand, and she was told not to open it until she got home. Michelle turned to try and find the young girl who actually killed the Keeper, but she had disappeared.
It had gotten late and Athena and Michelle were visiting the Chivalry to meet up with Sierra. The Snow had turned to slush and the night was beginning to fall. A dim orange light fell over the city that was just recovering from the most recent attack. Suddenly, a fire arrow sped in front of them and landed right at Michelle's feet. A small note was strung around it; Michelle grabbed it before it went up in flames with the rest of the arrow.
"What does it say?" Athena said peering over Michelle's shoulder.
"It reads: You're both pretty pathetic, how you handled the Clock Tower Keeper this afternoon surprised us. I don't think you're ready to go on your little journey to become the next High Priest, Athena. Its signed Cordalis Culverts," Michelle said before looking up to where the arrow had been shot.
There was no one there, so they continued onto the Chivalry. As they entered, the swordsmen that were trying out for knights earlier that day left proud in full Knight regalia. Athena smiled, and began to scan the entrance corridor for Sierra. Michelle noted that she was going to wait by Lady Amy, who they had befriended when Sierra was changing into a Knight.
Athena realized that Sierra wasn't in the entrance corridor; she began to approach Sierra's room. She went up the stairs, and knocked on her door. A giggle was heard and then some rustling. Sierra came to the door; her hair slightly messed up, and in nothing but her nightgown.
"It's not that late Sierra, I thought you'd still be up right now," Athena tried to look in her room after noticing some movement.
Sierra blushed, "Shh, keep it down."
"What?" Athena continued to try to peer in the room.
"The Chivalry got Luirei in here..."
"...Oh, aha. I see, I'll leave then," Athena turned and began to go.
Sierra grabbed Athena by the shoulder, "No wait, give me a couple of minutes, I'll be down in a second."
Athena gave the thumbs up and continued back down to Michelle. They sat down to a cup of tea, and no more than five minutes later Sierra came with Luirei also in full Knight regalia, Helm and everything. They all sat around the table next to Lady Amy, who was sorting out books on etiquette and good behaviour. Sierra poured herself and Luirei a cup of tea, before entering in the conversation with everyone else. Athena looked up at the closed door of the Chivalry and took out the small package that she got from the guards earlier on.
"What's that?" Sierra wondered.
"It's something the Guards gave me today, for keeping that Clock Tower Machine under control," Athena replied.
She began to unwrap it, and saw the brilliant golden glow from a crystal. She looked at it more carefully and still didn't know what it was. Michelle gasped and piped up suddenly.
"It's Emperium! That thing is so rare it's not even funny!"
"Oh! I've heard of it!" Luirei said before taking another sip of tea.
"What does it do?"
"It gives you the power to make your own Guild! Do you know how much power that is?" Sierra exclaimed.
Athena stared at the Emperium for a moment before finally whispering at a barely audible tone...
"Azerian Chivalry..."