Disclaimer- WAHAHAHA! a.k.a.- Check previous chapters.
MoonCannon- Thank you, again! ..yeah, the chapters look a lot shorter than they really are because of the formatting of the pages. Most of these chapters are at or over three pages.
"Now," Yuan started, picking a kirima off the table next to him and cutting it open. He chewed thoughtfully for a moment before continuing his sentence. "Linkite leaves supposedly have the ability to… bring back large pieces of important memories when burned. A friend did some research for me and he proved this correct. Maybe you'd like to try?"
Capricorn stared at the leaf in her hand before carefully holding it over a lit candle. A thin silver smoke rose from the leaf before curling around her wrist. Capricorn's eyes widened as a picture began to form inside her mind…
A younger Capricorn was sitting on the back of a young dragon, much like the one she had ridden into Triet. She was decked out in armor, and a rapier was hanging at her side. She turned as Yuan called her name.
"Capricorn! We're heading for the Holy Ground of Kharlan! Hurry up and get over here!" Capricorn trotted over to her friends; Kratos Aurion, the only human among them, Mithos Yggdrasill, their young "leader", Yuan, and then Martel. Yuan and Kratos were also wearing armor to some extent, but Mithos and Martel were just wearing their normal clothing. Capricorn shrugged as she fell into line next to Yuan.
"Capricorn," he started to say, turning to look at her, "You're like a little sister to me. I hope you know that we may not make it through this war." She nodded, and Yuan returned to his conversation with Martel.
A voice from her other side stirred her out of her thoughts.
"Excuse me… do you mind if I ride next to you?" She turned to see a teenager who looked a year or two older than her… maybe twenty at his oldest, sitting atop a dragon. She nodded.
"Sure, you're welcome to ride with us." Yuan replied from behind her. The boy smiled. He had shoulder length sea-green hair that cow licked out in some places in the back, and stunning red eyes. He fell into step beside her.
The two teens talked for the entire ride, and eventually Yuan had fallen asleep leaning across the gap between him and Martel, leaning on her shoulder. Capricorn looked ahead of them as their militia stopped. Yuan awoke and looked out across the land ahead of them.
It was a flat plain, with traps and other things for war set across it. They could see the faint outline of the opposing force on the far side of the battleground-to-be.
"I'm Capricorn." she said suddenly, turning to the boy next to her. She pulled a charm of Aionis off her necklace and handed it to him. He stared at her as he took it carefully in his hand.
"Keep this so that if I see you again, I'll know who you are." she said, smiling. He shook his head.
"I can't take this… it's yours." he replied. She pushed his hand away.
"I want you to have it. That way, I'll know that it's you. It's made of Aionis, so you don't have to worry about it breaking." He looked at it before clipping it to a chain around his neck and tucking it under his shirt.
"My name…" he said quietly, pondering whether he should respond, "Is Forcystus. Nice to meet you, Capricorn."
Capricorn jumped as Yuan laid a hand on her shoulder.
"You should read the note he left you in there. I must be going, I have an appointment somewhere. I'll see you tomorrow, Capricorn." He left, leaving Capricorn sitting in her room. Chrisanthy was lying on a bed on the other side of the room, sound asleep.
"Damn… it has to be pretty late now…" she mumbled, unfolding the piece of paper. She smiled as she recognized Forcystus' script, neatly written but pleasing to the eye.
Capricorn,
I know it'll be late when you get this, but please, just follow these directions as soon as possible. I'd like you to head to the Linkite tree in an enclosed place in the mountains. It isn't reachable unless you fly over the mountains, so take the dragon you left with.
Forcystus
Capricorn finished the note and picked up the small parcel underneath it. She began to unwrap it. Inside was a small charm, delicately carved out of Aonis. She put it on the table and took off out the door, sprinting to the dragon stables. She grabbed her bridle and didn't bother saddling up, but rather hopped on bareback and took off out the door.
Upon reaching the tree, she quickly dismounted. Capricorn walked over to it and laid a hand on the bark, before flopping down onto her back in a large patch of lush emerald grass and staring at the stars.
She laid there for what seemed like hours before she heard footsteps. She looked to her side as Yuan rode quietly up to the tree.
"Capricorn," he started, pulling on the reins, "Whatever you do down whatever path you choose in your lifetime, don't do anything that you'd ever regret doing later. I know numerous people that could never forgive me if I allowed you to do something like that. You're still like my little sister, remember, even though you've grown up. Don't you ever forget that, alright?" Capricorn nodded and Yuan left, as quickly and silently as he had come.
Capricorn heaved a sigh and looked to the stars again, only to be interrupted by the sound of someone approaching. This time, she looked up to see Forcystus standing above her.
"'Ello, there." she said. He smiled before sitting down next to her.
"Nice night for the middle of the desert." he commented lazily, leaning back onto his elbows. She noted that he must have left his arm cannon at home, because she could see the long scar running down his arm from his elbow to his wrist. She nodded and looked up yet again.
"I hadn't realized you still had that charm from the Great Kharlan War, Forcystus." she commented, eyes watching the lights above flicker every now and then. He shrugged.
"You said for me to keep it until we met again." he replied, now also looking up. She laughed.
"It took almost seven Chosens for you to realize that it was me, didn't it?"
"No, it's just that you wouldn't have gotten it until I discovered that the smoke of a Linkite tree helps bring back crucial memories." A small zephyr blew through for a moment, rattling the nuts on the tree. A huge golden bird soared past before disappearing over a mountaintop.
Forcystus heaved a deep sigh and let himself fall back onto the ground, arms folded carefully across his chest. Capricorn yawned and stretched before closing her eyes and dozing off.
The moon moved from behind a cloud, however, and managed to wake Capricorn up. Forcystus stifled a laugh for a moment before sniggering.
"I guess you can't sleep for more than five minutes when you're not home, eh?" he said, smiling. She cracked a grin and pushed her hair out of her eyes before rolling onto her side and sitting up.
"You… might be right, Forcystus." she replied, rubbing her eyes. Forcystus watched her quietly for a second before slowly reaching his hand up to her cheek. She looked down and slowly grasped his wrist with two of her fingers, looking at a long scar that ran down his arm from his wrist to just below his elbow.
Forcystus shrugged ever so slightly and pried Capricorn's fingers off his wrist before wrapping his arm around her neck.
The stars were beautiful that night.