-AUTNOR NOTES-
Okay, so Advent has managed to turn around to here, and it's for this occasion that I have a new fanfic ready to upload for the wait until Christmas!
First of all, I'll tell you a lil bit about it. The Manor of the Fallen Star is a Spargus related piece of fiction based in the Jak universe. Even though most of the scenery will be familiar to Jak 3 gamers (which I won't even get the chance to play until coming home for Christmas in two weeks time), the star himself isn't the one that's making a key appearance in this.
The tale follows two residents of Spargus - King Damus, a bold and determined ruler for his residence, and Crista Tasai, an ottsel that has resided within the city for a few years. Together, they follow into another mission relating to the Metal Heads - going into a ruined mansion on the far side of the city, where their attacks have been frequenting there recently for an unknown purpose.
It may not sound very Christmassy to begin with, but I can assure you that with the amount of emotion being bottled towards Crista's side, it will become more than just a tale of peace and goodwill to all men. o.O
So, I hope you can sit back and enjoy what I have done here!
Peace out,
-Rexy-
---
Spargus City was shown to be a pleasant settlement within the wastelands, a fair distance or so from the borders of its nearest neighbor Haven City. The crimson skies started to settle peacefully over the tall, sand-like buildings, camouflaged within the sands that blew underneath them.
The people that walked around the citizens were mainly male, bearing wastelander-like garb and walking around like no one's business. Some people were seen holding onto Metal Head trophies, proud of what they have managed to accomplish for the day.
Hidden within the crowd was a smaller shadowed figure, walking around with its long hair flowing behind its back. It soon managed to walk its way underneath one of the spotlights, showing herself to be a small blonde creature. She showed her green eyes towards the skies, revealing an expression of unease upon her.
"What the Hell do you want with me?" she asked in a bitter tone.
With a quick reaction, she then started to run further down the street, keeping herself within the shadows once more. It wasn't long until she dashed her way down one of the nearby back alleys, revealing herself underneath a stronger sense of spotlights around her.
Within the light, she was shown to be an ottsel figure with black tribal-like markings upon her face and a red curved crown, with its front cuff snapped off somehow. Her ears held metal cuffs as well as a few additional markings to match. A golden necklace went round her neck, bearing the crescent of the sun upon it. And to match, she had blue arm warmers with plates of armor attached to them as well as cyan gloves upon her arms.
-A FAN FICTON PRODUCTION-
She then started to run even faster, towards one of the higher ends of the city, as marked by a giant palace standing within the distance. Leaving small footprints within the ground, with the sand picking up under her feet, her determination to run seemed to end up greater as time managed to pass.
Eventually, she looked behind her, seeing closely into the skies around her. Again, her eyes started to shrink with panic, leaving her to turn off into a backstreet with fear upon her own two eyes. Her teeth were then placed together into a snapping motion upon them.
"You can tell I've been feeling isolated within the regions of Spargus before I even started out, so knock it off!"
Her shout echoed right across the back alley she was brought upon, almost belling out across the wastelands themselves as they managed to do so. With enough shock, she managed to run out of the backstreet and further towards the palace, her eyes showing more pain than before.
For now, no one knew where she was running from, or what she had to hide from the people around her. In fact, her bottled moods left her to feel even more angered over the period of time that slowly managed to pass between her furry fingers.
-A story by Rexy-
She then managed to run towards the right, leaving a deeper skid mark within the sands as she did so. She then brought up her head, looking closer into the sunset skies upon her; by that time, they slowly started to transform into a more starlit gesture around her.
One in particular started to reflect with a white and gold variation. And it was there that her eyes were almost mesmerized at the sight of it, leaving her to make a stop. Several seconds passed, before she brought her head down and brought her eyes towards you.
"You really want me to explain everything to you?" she asked with light panic.
She remained in silence, while raising an eyebrow during her posture. More silence managed to pass, before she eventually un-froze from her position, and started to walk her way among the path ahead of her. A small crossroad could be seen in front of her.
She looked on at the palace-like building, as shown at the left hand side of the crossroad. It stood majestically in the night sky, showing a long shadow trailing behind it, with the sands around it giving off a warm crimson glow around the foundations.
-THE MANOR OF THE FALLEN STAR-
She then walked carefully towards it, while keeping her eyes focused upon the glowing stars ahead of her at the same time. Her tail then started to drag itself on the floor, causing a light trail upon the ground as she walked further ahead of herself.
The stars were then shown to provide a radiant glow within her emerald green eyes. During that time, her hands started to shake at the sight of it, knowing that she would eventually have to speak again. She then looked towards you and managed to stand still.
"Okay", she sighed. "I'll sit down and explain everything to you."
And thus, she went towards a nearby rock on the other side of the footpath and sat down, with her back leaning against it. Her tail then wrapped itself hard against it, leaving her to show a more insecure expression as she managed to get herself in a comfortable position.
"Apparently, I never was an ottsel for all my life", she started. "I was once a real humanoid, just like my peers around Spargus."
She pointed ahead of her, seeing into a lot of humanoid creatures walking around the wastelands. They looked almost identical to human beings themselves, except that their ears were long and pointed outwards, as well as backwards for the cases of some of which.
"They often saw me for the invisible animal, often shunted by the others around me", she said with a lower toned voice. "If only if the Metal Heads didn't constantly poke their heads around them, things would have been so much more different."
She then sighed, and looked down at a nearby puddle drying off against the sands, showing a reflection of herself. The stars soon gave off a light glow above her, almost showing a reflection of her humanoid form as she did so; almost similar to her present form to match.
"They even changed my life too", she continued with a frown. "They were known for a fateful incident seven years ago, when they shunted me into a pool of dark eco. That cost me my career, my friends, and most importantly... the people I knew back home."
She sighed, before bringing out a foot and causing a ripple among the water. She then looked up, her face almost showing worry upon her own two eyes. Time soon passed, and she stood up once more, walking closer and closer towards the palace as she managed to do so.
It didn't take too long until she reached the doorways leading into the palace. Once there, she remained calm, and brought her back against the wall. Again, she brought her eyes towards you while maintaining her usual nostalgic expressions.
"Yes, before you ask, I did try to come back to my old home in this state. Trouble is, by the time I got there, things were already nasty as they are now."
She looked down onto the ground, with her ears drooping down the back of her head. At that point she gave out a long sigh, looking as if she had thoughts in her head that she couldn't extinguish. A small tear then started to run down her cheek, falling down upon the sands below.
---
A few years beforehand, the desert wastelands between Spargus and Haven were shown to be in a more frantic state. Lightning struck every few seconds, and chilling blue-indigo skies were shown everywhere, creating tension and unease towards anyone who would walk in it.
Outside the borders of Haven City itself, the yellow ottsel herself showed her head towards the city itself, seeing purple "firework" like lights shining out from above it. She then ran towards a crack in the wall, and squeezed herself inside as carefully as possible.
"Haven City was where I once lived before coming over here. From my time as a nurse at its hospital, I then grew strength to strength during the rule of Baron Praxis, one of my later patients. This was even more so when I first joined in his defense position as Krimzon Guard Captain, as gratitude for saving his life ona pastMetal Head ambush."
She brought herself out from the walls, looking on at the scenery ahead of her. The port was shown, with its waters reflecting the scenery above it at such a ferocious status. Once near the edge, she made her way onto a small raft and paddled her way towards the gravel on the other side.
"Problem was, this wasn't at all like a past Metal Head ambush. They were picking away at pipes like no tomorrow, chewing away on citizens and KG alike... almost terrorizing the place!"
She had her own fair problems with trying to fend off against sharks that tried to chew away on her own boat. For that, she used one of her hands to try and slap them senseless, while using the other to continue paddling onwards, her face almost showing frustration.
Time soon passed, and she managed to be able to reach the banks of the city. Once there, she dived underneath a Krimzon Guard's gunshot, striking a nearby Metal Head onto the ground seconds later. Seeing the action in mind, she started to run her way in the direction of the Industrial section.
"They even had me cornered too! I too often worried to myself on whether I would try to break out alive or not."
She then ran around a few corners... and even there, she noticed that some of the Metal Heads started to run towards her, desperate to pick against her skin. She gave out a scream, before she started to run on all fours, picking up a faster pace than the usual.
"And yet... there was a voice that I heard that made me think twice about what has happened."
"If the city must die", shouted a growled male voice from a distance, "then we all die!"
"My ears pricked up. I ran deep into the Industrial section, with Metal Heads scratching me being the last thing on my mind. The streets became darker and darker, and yet the rubble became more intense."
As soon as she made a turn towards a ramp into the higher ends of the section, some of the rubble started to crash down upon her, causing a few more ruins to show around her. One dead end was formed, causing her to dash back the way she came.
And yet, as soon as she got there, another set of rubble fell upon the ground, leaving her to be trapped within her own cramp space. That left her to run towards the only exit left - a wall. She brought out both hands, and tried to climb up... but it wasn't long until a few Metal Heads came to her and shot straight at a gutter hanging vertically near her, causing her to fall inside the walls for herself due to its force and impact.
"And thus, they had to corner me in the most impossible spot yet."
She landed hard on her back, seeing Metal Heads trying to attack her from the outside as she did so, whether it is their claws trying to reach her or their staff magic trying to shoot its way towards her. That left her to cower in the darkness, trying to keep far away from their attacks as possible.
She tried to keep cover by bringing out a torn blanket, wrapping it around her legs as she managed to do so. The sight of the raging Metal Heads were shown in front of her, creating a horrific image in front of her and providing a worrying thought to mind upon her.
"With the way they were trying to pick at me I thought I would never come out alive. This left me hopeless, knowing that Haven City has faced the worst. Whatever happened to the shield walls, I kept saying to myself. I really needed answers, even if it was from the smallest stranger."
At some instances, the blasts as granted by the Metal Heads' mystical staffs almost singed her tail, causing her to scream and bring herself even further back. By then, her expressions of fear continued to be maintained throughout her position within the darkness.
She looked on towards the spots where the gun was blasting towards, and yet, with every shot given off some light rubble started to fall from the top of the cramp space. And before long, the plaster from that section fell apart, showing a route back into the city once more.
"Alas, there was hope."
The falling of the walls from above left her to smile peacefully and advance to frantically bringing herself out from her position. The Metal Heads continued to shoot away at her, while she continued to make the climb out, wanting to escape from their never ending torture.
As soon as she got out, she brought herself outside under the moonlight, showing relief now that Metal Head attacks were far from her viewpoint. But yet... the first thing she saw upon escape was a blue blur lying upon a ruin that was once a construction site.
"Yet in reality, everything had to be turned into a nightmare."
"Oh my God", she quivered. "What happened to you?"
The ruins portrayed were almost beyond comprehension. Eco barrels were scattered everywhere, wooden planks were left around the floor, a useless bomb was shown in the middle, and towards the left of the wreckage was a familiar figure... one she failed to see for years beforehand.
She ran towards it, and looked on at the figure for herself as soon as she got there. Metal plating covered one side of his face, as did a brown moustache-and-goatee combo that ran near his mouth. His body was covered by a navy coat garment of sorts, covered with sashes and armor. And to match... he looked lifeless.
"Praxis", the ottsel started to shriek at a high pitched tone, "It's me, Crista!"
She took a hold of his metallic blue neck brace, and struggled with all of her might to lift his head towards her level. After five seconds, the force brought upon her caused her to give up, leaving her to bring her face above his. By then, she started to look very distraught.
"Listen to me! I know you can!" Her ears both pricked up with tension. "Tell me, what has happened upon our fallen city?"
Her eyes started to show a lot of pain upon her at that moment in time. That eventually left her to bring her ears closer towards his chest. And yet... the most horrific sight was brought upon her hearing range. No heartbeat. No motion. Nothing. Her eyes widened with shock.
"Baron... Praxis?"
She gave off a light blink, before she managed to stand upright on her position, looking closer onto the Baron's body as she managed to do so. A feeling of loss was soon brought around her face, leaving her to look down with disappointment showing upon her own eyes.
Several seconds later, she ended up bringing her arms around one portion of his chest, and buried her face deep within it. There, she managed to let her emotions loose, allowing a stream of tears to fall from her fur to match with the falling rain around her.
"It was then that I knew that Haven has faced a critical moment in its running, and it hasn't stopped since."
The clashing of the Krimzon Guard against the Metal Heads were still heard from her position, but even from there, all that her ears would bother to pick up was the empty feeling of silence that started to surround her from her current state of mind.
Moments started to fill her own mind; the final few stitches that kept her return to Haven City going were long gone. It felt as if she wanted to crumple up next to him and die herself, but even there... she had to realize that life had to go on, whatever the cost.
---
The time scale soon switched back to the present, where Crista managed to bring her head back up, trying her best to pull the memories of what has been brought past behind her. The star lit skies started to show a deeper reflection upon her ruined crown, eyes and pendant.
She then looked down, taking a hold of the pendant as she managed to do so. She held it up into the air, and opened it up, showing a few photos of herself and a few people she knew in the Krimzon Guard. She sighed, before closing it and looking down.
"So let's put it this way", she sighed. "Haven City has faced a lot of Hell since its storming. Even when I did find out that new management is slowly putting it back in its place I still can't help but feel broken by the loss of the one thing that kept me going."
She scraped her hands upon the sand, almost drawing a few stick figures of a small miniature army marching around a neighborhood. And to the right of them, she drew stick figures of herself, Praxis, and a smaller figure in a racing costume.
"The chance to see the old Krimzon Guard force together, one more time."
She sighed, while bringing a more worried expression upon her. During that moment in time, she managed to look down at her drawing in the sand, seeing into the stick-figured racer brought into the image. She gave off one last blink, before looking up towards the sky.
"Now that I think of it", she curiously spoke with an eyebrow raised, "wonder how Erol's been since I last saw him? One can hope he's grown into a rather sophisticated young gentleman. Or has he?"
"Crista, get over here!"
Her ears both pricked up at the sight of the male scream, leaving her to look on at the doors of the palace with her own eyes. The doors slightly opened up, allowing a stream of darkness to show from the inner hallways. She then gave out a brief nod, before looking ahead with a near grim expression.
"King Damus", she whispered to herself.
She took one step inside, with another foot soon following. And from then, she was walking through a long hallway covered by darkness. The lights as projected by Precursor artifacts hanging on the walls were the only sources of light granted to show the way through towards the main room ahead of her.
It wasn't long until she reached the end of the hallway, when her attention was brought over to a nearby throne room. Standing in the middle of it was a tanned figure, with white dreadlocks and wastelander clothing brought all around him. He twitched one of his supposedly pupil-less eyes, and looked on at the blonde ottsel that entered his den.
"Your highness!"
She took a step forward and gave out a gracious bow in front of him, trying to maintain a more cheerful expression as she managed to do so. During that time, Damus paid attention to her own eyes, looking beyond there and trying to see the truth as shown through them.
"You know, maybe I shouldn't have underestimated you during your time here", he said with a smirk on his face. "I can imagine how hard it could be to roam around this city, being the only ottsel and all."
"You understand me?" she asked.
Damus's face soon turned into a confident smile. While he was there, he steadily walked towards her, his boots causing light steps upon the marble floors that went underneath their feet. As soon as he got there, he managed to crouch down towards her level, looking on at her eyes.
With a gracious approach, he brought out one of his hands, causing Crista to reach out for it herself. He brought out another hand, causing her to be lifted off her feet and placed against his shoulder, creating a comfortable riding position for her.
"How are you feeling this fine evening?" the king asked her.
"Not as good as the previous few, I'm telling you."
"Hm", Damus pondered with a straight face. "I wish I could associate with you on that level, but as of now, we don't have the time to explain much."
He walked towards the door, and brought out one of his hands, pushing them open in an instant. A chilling outside wind surrounded them, as he soon started to walk down the hallways briskly... before jogging... before running! By that stage, Crista struggled to maintain her balance upon her position, leaving her to hold onto one of her partner's ears for balance.
"We really don't have time!" Damus said with panic. "I'll explain everything when I get there!"
Crista showed an expression of confusion. "So much for the sympathetic response call!"
Crista tried to say more, but it wasn't long until the bumpy ride almost caused her to almost slip down from her position, leaving her to hold onto her partner's ears at a stronger force while maintaining a more painful expression upon her. That left Damus to show a face full of care as he continued to walk further.
While they walked past the Precursor artifacts, most of them started to glow orange with a mysterious energy brought around them. That left Damus to look on at them with a light smile upon his face as he did so, knowing that his journey was to be a guided one.
And then, they both ended up out in the open air, looking on at the scenery around them. Even for his own eyes, Spargus was shown to be a beautiful city at night, strongly reflected by the buildings and emptiness on the streets. Bearing the scenery in mind, he started to sprint across from one side of the settlement to the other, his face showing a snarling gesture upon his teeth.
---
At a location on the opposite section of the city, a small ruined building stood firm, with its wooden doors on its hinges and its roofs almost crumbling into pieces. Windows were shown to be broken, and a few metal plates were seen all around the floor.
The building itself was almost as big as Damus's palace, but even here, size couldn't be determined due to the ruins that were brought around the area. What was more, a few golden sparks started to show on the walls, adding a more energetic feeling towards it for reasons unknown.
A small sign post was set up outside, carved in precursor writing "The Manor of the Fallen Star", which almost started to fall off from its own position. Near it, both Crista and Damus were seen walking towards the door that lead inside, focusing towards that structure as they did so.
"Over the past week or so, I've noticed Metal Head movements going around an old mansion on the outskirts of the city", he whispered. "No one has lived in that house since it was first built, but even there it's been riddled with supernatural life forces fairly recently."
"You mean ghosts?" Crista asked him in return.
"I wish I could say that, but... anything could go."
Damus gave off a light sigh, before walking closer towards the door. At that time, the radiance given off by its handle started to show within his eyes. During that stage, all that Crista could do was almost hide in position behind her partner's shoulders.
"I'm trying to figure out what made that house so special to the Metal Heads to begin with", he whispered. "It seems as if they really want anything to do with us, but what?"
"Knowing them it could be dark eco", she said back, "but the nearest eco well is about a few miles from here! How is that possible?"
"I don't know, but it's best to go in there and check it out. With dusk only just gone, I see now to be the best chance."
She brought up her head and gave off a light nod, leaving Damus to give off a sly smiling expression towards her as he managed to do so. Then, he soon managed to reach for the handle himself, almost destined to see what was waiting behind its ruined carving.
And then, he took a hard grasp around the handle for himself, showing a light smile as he did so. He then turned back towards Crista with a determined approach showing upon his own face. Yet she in return tried to pull off a brave face as he looked back.
"Are you ready?"
She gave off a light nod while trying to maintain a joyful expression. Yet what Damus didn't notice was that behind him, her tail was shaking like jelly, showing that Crista's emotions are developing a strong sense of fear upon her body. And thus... he took a step forward into the hallways.
Unlike the palace, there was no Precursor artifacts established upon the walls; the only sign of light was shown from a few Metal Head skull gems lying upon the ground. That left them both to hold onto one another as they went further and further ahead.
A meter inside it, and it was there that darkness almost totally covered them. All that can be seen are light reflections showing upon their bodies, as granted by the minimal lighting sources provided from the inside. While they went further on, Crista's ears twitched themselves to be at imbalanced levels.
"Wow, it looks a bit... dark, to say the least", she said with a quiver in her throat.
"I can understand what you mean", replied Damus as he brought his head towards hers.
She then soon managed to jump down from his shoulder, her eyes focusing towards the walls. The skull gems lighting the way made things feel a little bit on the obvious side, but... it was something else that soon managed to capture her attention... but what?
"Crista, where are you going?" asked Damus with a raised tone. "We could easily get lost in this place!"
She blushed to herself. "I'm sorry sir."
She turned back towards his direction, bringing her ears in a slightly pointing motion upon her. He then took a steady walk towards him, showing a more curious expression through her two eyes. Once she was two inches ahead of him, she came to a stop.
Once there she brought out her hands and pointed towards the scenery behind her. Showing there were a few objects, currently standing in darkness. She gave out a light smile before pointing further on towards them, Damus giving off an eye twitch towards them.
"It's just that..." she sighed, "I saw something strange back there."
She pointed on at the walls once more, causing Damus to start walking his way towards the scenery for himself. During that time, he managed to reach for a skull gem from the ground, using that as his light source for the walls that stood ahead of him.
And yet, right in front of him he noticed a few unusual objects that stood in front of him - a board of wood. And being placed upon it, several plaques with metallic monstrous faces were shown on them. They looked so familiar to the eyes of Damus, leaving him to come to a sudden conclusion.
"Metal Head trophies on the wall?"
Crista then ran up his shoulders, taking a hold of the skull gem as he looked on at the gems for himself. He brought out one of his hands, and knocked upon the surface; it felt so warm, yet at the same time it felt slimy and unwelcoming to the touch.
"They're... freshly hung?" Damus blinked.
"Does that mean... there's someone living here?"
She lifted the skull gem up towards her chin, leaving a warm light to show upon her face, almost to match with the same radiance as shown upon Damus's. Both of them looked at one another, exchanging grim looks with one another, uncertain about what has managed to happen.
And then, they both started to walk away from the trophies, keeping their attention locked onto it with their faces starting to twitch with fear every few seconds. They started exchanging glances with one another, curious over what has been granted out there.
"Might as well try to hold back while we keep progressing onwards", he said quietly.
"Yes sir."
She nodded, before she jumped her way off Damus's shoulder. Once on the ground, she held up the skull gem, leaving him to take a hold onto it. Thus, they had an instant flashlight guiding them straight down the hallway portrayed right in front of them.
During that time, a few golden sparks started to show upon the walls to the right, advancing from ruined portrait to ruined portrait. Eventually, they managed to focus upon one of which; that of a black haired woman holding onto a set of roses in her own hands.
The eyes of the portrait stealthily looked on at both Crista and Damus, steadily making their way across down the hallway with a lot of attention to keeping a close eye upon one another as time has managed to follow. The portrait then suddenly started to smirk from its own mouth, before speaking with a faint, whispery... masculine voice.
"A couple of visitors?"
The sparks advanced further ahead from that portrait before moving onto another; that for a daffodil standing in a plant pot, on a window sill, with broad daylight showing upon it. Two eyes started to form deep within the petals, continuing to focus upon both travelers.
The eyes then focused onto one person alone - Crista herself. Her blonde hair moved gracefully down her back as she walked, leaving the eyes on the flower to show curiosity. It then developed a small mouth to lightly whisper with the same tone it provided on the previous painting.
"I can sense something in her... something that I once knew of before I came here... but what?"
The sparks then vanished from the daffodil and soon focused on the other side of the wall. There, a darker hallway was seen, illuminated with nothing but the moonlight as shown by some light cracks on the plaster on the other side of the pathway.
A rodent-like shadow soon formed out from the sparks, and from there, it started to walk so that only the left hand side of its body can be seen. A small red eye was made out upon its face, looking upon a nearby shadowed image hung upon a nearby wall.
"Can that be her? How is that possible?"
It advanced closer towards the picture, and showed its full potential upon the left hand side of it, the only side to be covered in moonlight. The figure itself was shown to be Crista's humanoid form, taking a hold onto someone's shoulder that looked difficult to make out given the weak lighting conditions.
The figure's eye was then shown to be in a more curious state than before. He then gave out a deep breath in, almost confused of the situation around him. For that, he continued to hover further ahead in the path, hoping to take a closer focus towards the blonde ottsel herself.
Thus, it seemed as if the shadowed rodent was familiar with Crista before, yet how and where, as well as who he is, was yet to be known to herself. With considerations to the mission as granted by Damus, it seemed as if she may never think of knowing such questions.
-end of part 1-