Suikoden: Zwischen der Sonne und dem Mond
Disclaimer: You should know the drill by now. Original characters of Suikoden, as well as the Suikoden story itself are copyright Konami. All of MY original characters are copyright 2005 of Freiheit Productions.
Chapter One: Stuck in the Middle
The city that Ted had taken Selena to to recover was the imperial city of Rusmil. Rusmil was a city that was established, like every other imperial city, by the Holy Kingdom of Harmonia. The emperor was once a member of the Harmonian clergy, Remus Krall. He was given the city because he had served so many years for Harmonia. He once had an empress with him, Rani, who disappeared after his daughter, Aveline, was born. To make matters worse for him is that his kingdom is currently at war with the neighboring country, Danica, whose emperor was Vincent Danica II. The emblem of Danica itself is a black dragon circling around the sun. Seeing it made Selena a little uncomfortable.
Ted and Selena seemed to be doing well in keeping the Sun Rune hidden from the public. Ted had bought her a pair of white gloves, and he also paid for the repairing of her red cloak so that it didn't look ratty and decomposing. To show that he cared about her well being even more was that he paid for her spear to be sharpened up a bit by the blacksmith. This had to have been the first time in ages that Ted had actually felt comfortable around a woman, let alone anyone in particular. Selena felt like she was taken advantage of him, but every time she had asked him if he ever felt uncomfortable doing things for her, he would always reply with an honest smile on his face, "No. It doesn't bother me."
Rusmil was filled with many different shops, historic buildings, and had many interesting people. Seeing everyone walk away happy with not a care in the world made Selena happy. She had been practicing to keep the Sun Rune from hurting her by always keeping her feelings intact. Ted looked back at her and started to remember a conversation they had one night while she was recovering.
Selena was still sick in bed but had enough energy to actually sit up and eat something. Her hand would still hurt whenever she saw Ted unhappy. She was able to control the pain, the rune itself, when she heard Ted say to her, "An old friend of mine told me never to disclose yourself from people, always give them a chance to see whether or not they want to be close to you. I've been working on that since."
Ted sighed as he remembered that night. Selena looked back at him to see whether or not he was uncomfortable being in her presence. In fact, it was the complete opposite. He was actually smiling instead of having his usual frown. She too smiled and giggled a bit. For the first time in two months, Selena was once again discovering the true joy of living. To her, that feeling felt great, as though she was experiencing it for the first time ever.
"Hey, head's up!" shouted a young man. Ted looked up and his eyes widened. He was about to shout to Selena, but it was too late. She got hit right in the head with a discus-like object. She moaned in pain and fell to the ground hard. Ted got to his knees, checking on her. That's when he saw the "attacker." He was a young man, about Selena's age, had short brown hair and a few silver streaks. His eyes were blue and he wore what looked like knight armor. Selena moaned in pain again and the Sun Rune started to glow a bit. She put her hand over the rune, trying to shield the light. Ted glared at the young man, who picked up the discus.
"Sorry about that, ma'am, sir. I... I didn't mean for that to hit anyone. Are you two okay?" the man asked. Ted glared right at the young man while trying to hide the Sun Rune from him. "I said I was sorry."
"She's fine! Now go back to playing with your little toy someplace else!" Ted snapped.
"Ted... it's okay... it was an accident..." Selena moaned. The Sun Rune stopped glowing after a while. Ted looked back at Selena, who was started to get back to her feet. She looked at the young man, who looked straight at her. "I'm sure you didn't mean for your... whatever that is to hit me. I accept your apology." Selena, what are you doing? Don't bother associating with this schmuck. Ted thought to himself.
The young man's face seemed to turn red a bit. This wasn't happening because of the warm weather, nor was it that he was angry. He was feeling a strange sensation while looking into Selena's brown eyes. There was something about her form that was making him feel weird. Ted noticed this and rolled his eyes, sighing. Oh boy, I've seen this before. he thought. The young man held his hand to Selena.
"I... I'm Keir. Keir Delaney. I'm sure you've heard of my father Gunther Delaney." the young man said. Selena giggled a bit and shook Keir, the young man's hand.
"I'm Selena. Unfortunately, I've never heard of your father. I'm sorry." Selena said.
"I see. Well, have you at least heard of the strategist who taught him, Mary Silverberg?" Keir asked. Another Silverberg? Gimme a break. How many of those guys are there? Ted thought to himself. Selena shook her head. Keir sighed. "Wow. I guess the Kingdom of Rusmil isn't really that famous yet."
"It's not that. It's just that, well, I came from the Beaumont area and I rarely left the village. Do not feel offended about my lack of knowledge."
Ted could not believe what he was hearing. The first day he met with Selena she barely spoke to him, and now that she's in front of this Keir guy she's an open book! What was wrong with the world? Ted shrugged his shoulders, rolled his eyes again, and sighed. Keir noticed this.
"You getting bored or something, sir? I'd be glad to take you inside the castle, show you around a bit." he said.
"Say what now?" Ted asked, arching an eyebrow.
"You would take two strangers such as us into the castle?" Selena asked.
"Hey, you guys don't seem to be a threat. I'm sure the emperor wouldn't mind seeing you either. So, if you want to, follow me." Keir started to walk away. Selena looked at Ted, looking for a face of approval. Ted didn't want to see Selena unhappy. Oh well. He gave a half smile and nodded. With that, they followed Keir into the castle walls.
The grounds outside the castle were as beautiful as the city outside. Many knights were training, some in which were actually still scouts. Ted looked at this scene and smiled. It seemed to remind him of a past event. Selena was admiring the sights as well, looking at the beautiful roses that grew outside of the castle itself. Ted knew as long as Selena was happy the Sun Rune wouldn't hurt her. However, Keir was oblivious to this fact. It was better off if he didn't know about the rune. Ted didn't want to have Selena feel like an outcast again. Once Selena stopped looking at the roses, she noticed a shadow was looming over her. She smiled a bit, thinking it was Ted, and looked to face the person. It wasn't Ted at all. Instead it was another young man with short black hair and brown eyes, he wore the same armor as Keir.
"Ma'am, may I ask what you're doing in here? Have you come to sign up for the army?" the man asked. Ted noticed the knight pestering Selena and walked up to him with a stern look on his face. He turned the knight around and grabbed him by the shoulder. The knight looked freaked out to witness this, Keir was too.
"Stay away from her!" Ted shouted, pushing the knight away. Keir ran up to Selena, who was standing up slowly. She was shaken up a bit with the knight standing over her like a sick, demented pervert. Keir looked at him.
"Ted! It's okay! He's harmless!" he said.
"Oh, thanks, Keir, that's a great way of introducing your best friend." the knight said, walking up to meet with him and Selena. He bowed his head to Ted and Selena.
"My name is Gaelin. Gaelin Bronson. I am the son of the general of the Rusmil army, Vladimir Bronson. I apologize for being so rude." the knight said.
"It's okay, sir. You didn't mean it. Accidents do happen." Selena said. She held out her hand to Gaelin, obviously for him to shake it. "I'm Selena, and this is my friend, Ted." Friend? I would've thought I'd be more than just a friend. Ted thought.
It was kind of hard for Ted to trust Keir and Gaelin. After all, they were knights of a kingdom that was handed over to a member of the Harmonian clergy. Harmonia was hardly ever trusted by most of the countries, nothing more than a bunch of power hungry bishops following a corrupt religion and faith. That's just how Ted felt about that kingdom. Not only that, but he did have a problem with knights for a while now. However, he felt like he should follow his own advice about opening up to people more and letting them get a chance to trust him. Then again, he made that mistake a few times already. Oh well, time to face the music. Ted thought. He bowed his head to Gaelin.
"I also would like to apologize for my rudeness to you, sir Bronson." Ted said, raising his head.
"Don't apologize. It's okay. I understand if you wanted to defend your girlfriend there." Gaelin snickered.
"Girlfriend!" Selena and Ted asked. They looked at each other, then turned away. "It's nothing like that."
"Right..." Gaelin said, his voice full of doubt. He then turned his attention to Keir. "Keir, I almost forgot to tell you. Emperor Remus has an important message for you and I. We are to report to the throne room for further instructions of our next mission."
"Huh? The emperor wants to see me - us? Well, that's pretty cool! I knew that our fathers wouldn't let us down in getting us a mission! Here's hoping it's not clean up duty again..." Keir said. He looked to Selena and Ted. "Would you two like to meet the emperor?"
"I'd rather -"
"Sure!" Selena said, interrupting Ted. Once again, he's trying to impress her by using his position of power. Typical. Ted thought. Gaelin sighed and shook his head.
"Very well, just stay close to us and you guys shouldn't get hurt, understand?" he asked. Ted and Selena nodded. "Good. Follow us."
The inside of the castle of even more beautiful than the outside. The floors itself were so clean that Selena and Ted could see themselves on the reflection of its smooth, marble surface. A water fountain was in the center of the castle. The fountain itself had a golden statue of a dragon with a small statue of a female child pouring water out of a golden goblet. Water was also pouring from the dragon's open mouth. Selena found the design beautiful and clever. Many servants were running all over the place trying to keep rooms clean and acceptable. After walking down a long hallway, Selena, Ted, Gaelin, and Keir stopped before a huge door with two guards standing before it. As they saw Gaelin and Keir, they stood aside and opened the doors. Before Ted and Selena could get in, the guards put their spears together, blocking their path.
"I'm sorry, you two will have to wait. This is important knight business that concerns only sir Delaney and sir Bronson. Wait out in the waiting room." one of the guards said.
"Guys, it's okay, they're with us." Keir said. "Selena, Ted, meet the guards of Emperor Remus. Guards, meet Ted and Selena. There, now we know each other. Let them pass." The two guards sighed and shook their heads.
"What is with you two and bringing people from the village into the castle? You have to be careful with whom you pick up. You never know when you might allow a spy from the Kingdom of Danica in." the other guard said.
"We know what we're getting ourselves into, okay? Now let us through." Gaelin said. The guards separated their spears and let the four go in. Before Selena went in, she bowed her head to the two guards, then followed her comrades inside. After all, dainty is as dainty does.
The throne room was a lot bigger than that of the castle halls themselves. Sitting on a golden throne was a tall man with long black hair, it being tied in a ponytail that was sticking upwards. The man also had a traditional black shogun beard and black eyes. He wore black armor with a black cape. The man looked at Gaelin and Keir, who bowed to him. Selena and Ted decided to do the same, not knowing whom they were bowing to.
"Raise." the man said, the four doing so. "Gaelin, Keir, I see you have brought two other people with you to this audience. You do know I only asked for you two, correct?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. We know. But... But..." Keir stammered.
"No excuses, Sir Keir. It's okay. I shall allow these two to attend. But first, they must state their names." the emperor, Remus, said. Selena bowed her head.
"I'm... I'm Selena Mirabelle Delacroix of the Beaumont region. This is my friend, Ted. We're sorry for getting involved in your affairs, sir." she said, her voice full of fear.
"Do not fear, child. You say you're from the Beaumont region? Well then, you might be of some help to us then." Remus said with a grin. Ted had a look of confusion on his face.
"What do you mean?" he asked. Remus stood from his throne and walked toward Selena, who rose her head to meet his eye level. The emperor put his hand under her delicate chin.
"You resemble my wife a lot, Ms. Delacroix." he whispered to her. Ted heard what the emperor had said to her. Is trying to hook up with Selena? God! This is like the THIRD person now! he thought. "I would like you to accompany Keir and Gaelin to the Beaumont territory."
"Wh-What for, Your Grace?" Remus let go of Selena's chin and walked back to his throne.
"For the last four years, our kingdom was not only threatened by the Danica Kingdom and King Vincent. We were also threatened by the Black Knight of the Eclipse, Yurai." As soon as he said that name, Ted started to look worried. He was afraid of a certain black knight following him during his youth. The name of the knight was similar to the one he feared.
Ted bowed his head, hoping to speak openly. He didn't want to act rude in front of the emperor of Rusmil while trying to explain an important mission to his knights. Surely enough, Remus noticed and knew that the vagabond wanted to speak. Ted rose his head.
"When you have mentioned this knight, this Yurai, could you please describe him?" Ted asked. Remus grinned a bit, which made Ted even more confused. Even Keir and Gaelin were confused at what Ted just asked.
"I'm sorry, newcomer, but Yurai is not a man. Yurai is a woman." With that said, Ted sighed in relief. Good, it's not him. he thought. "Yurai is nothing more than a demon from beyond the Eclipse Rune. She hungers for its power. She once possessed the Moon Rune, one of the two halves of the rune. When she came here as a servant to my kingdom, I forced her to give up her Moon Rune to my daughter Aveline so that she may live from an illness. Since then, Yurai has threatened to bring the Moon and Sun Runes together."
"But that doesn't really explain why you want Selena to go to the Beaumont region." Keir said.
"Yurai is heading to the Temple of the Sun."
As Remus said that, the Sun Rune started to glow a faint golden color. Selena was trying to hide the light by covering her hand with her cloak, Ted also trying to hide the light. Too late. Keir and Remus had already noticed her. Selena was now frightened more than anything in the world right now. She had just got done listening to Remus talk about the Moon and Sun Runes and about this Yurai person. She was scared, so scared that the rune started to burn her hand again. She winched in pain and fell to her knees. Gaelin was confused as to what was going on with Selena. Remus walked closer to Selena, Ted trying his best protecting her from him.
"Move, child!" Remus shouted. Ted glared at Remus.
"Watch who you call child! Stay away from her!" Ted shouted. Keir ran over to Selena, Ted glaring at him. Before Keir could touch Selena or get anywhere near her, Ted shoved Keir to the ground. Selena gasped as she saw that. Remus glared at Ted. "I won't let you touch her!"
"Ted... please, stop... please..." Selena moaned. She gasped in pain. She looked at her hand. The pain got so bad that her hand literally started to bleed. Her red blood fell to the marble floor, staining it. Gaelin thought his eyes were deceiving him at first, but he could've swore he saw the blood sizzle on the floor. Keir got to this feet and walked over to Selena. He gently grasped her hand, she gasped. Her blood fell onto his hand slowly. Ted and Gaelin looked in shock as Keir pulled his hand back and screaming in pain.
Keir couldn't believe what he felt. Selena's blood, it felt as though it was boiled over a thousand times over fire. Her blood burned his hand with just one touch. Remus shook his head.
"I should've known. You have the Sun Rune, my dear. But how?" he asked. "Unless you were the one who burned Beaumont and its residence to the ground."
"Emperor, stop this! Can't you see you shouting at her is hurting her!" Gaelin said.
"I know. I do not mean any harm to Ms. Delacroix here. But she is too much a danger to this kingdom now if Yurai becomes aware that the Sun Rune is no longer in Beaumont." Remus said. He looked at Keir. "I want you and Gaelin to find Ms. Delacroix and her guardian a room in the castle. I shall have a messenger arrange a boat for you tomorrow to Beaumont. Hopefully, with her power, we can rid ourselves of Yurai."
Selena started to cry at this moment, the pain was too much. Too much that she collapsed on the floor. Ted gasped and held her head high. He then looked at Remus, then at Keir, then at Gaelin. He didn't trust them one bit. Not at all. He knew that Remus was only going to use Selena's power to rid him of his own problems. Who cares about a black knight that wanted to destroy his kingdom? That's when Ted thought of his solution. Tomorrow when we reach Beaumont, we leave these fools behind.
Stated in the last chapter, not exactly word for word. What do you guys think of Ted and his over protectiveness for Selena? Didn't expect that either, huh? Next chapter, you will see more of Yurai and Aveline. Stay tuned and keep those reviews coming. No flaming.