Disclaimer: Star Ocean: Till the End of Time belongs to the wonderful people at Tri-Ace. I am making no money off of this story. Furbies are a creepy toy that belongs to…someone. (Hasbro? Mattel? The Monopoly Man?)
Warning: This chapter is RATED R! It's very BLOODY!Albel is NOT A NICE GUY!The scene with the cook will have some importance later, so you shouldn't skip it.
AN: Sorry this chapter took soooo looooooonnnnnngggg. I'm still not completely satisfied with it. This chapter is 'The Divine Spirit of Language' and 'Into the Undiscovered Ocean.' Fayt AND Albel in one!
Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 3.1 - The Divine Spirit of Language
part1
Lick the Blood Off of Your
Fingers
Albel's boots kicked up huge clouds of dust as he dragged his feet along. He supposed he could have just lifted his feet up a little bit, but that would deprive him of the pleasure of hearing the soldiers behind him cough and choke as they marched. Some of them had even started falling behind to avoid the miniature dust storm up ahead.
"Hurry up!" Albel hissed. The men who were breaking the lines quickly ran to fix them before the captain pushed his sword through their guts. "Fools," Albel murmured under his breath.
They were marching from the Kirlsa Camp to the Bequerel Mine Path. It wasn't a long walk, and they had only been marching for several hours, but the men were already complaining of exhaustion. Albel supposed he would have to intensify their training.
As they neared the road that led to Arias Albel heard voices up ahead. Deciding that the best course of action would be to send in a scout, he waved the lines to a halt and snuck toward the corner with a younger recruit.
Whoever it was would be in for a surprise if they rounded the corner and found around 20 soldiers from the Black Brigade standing there ready for battle. Albel smirked at the thought.
Albel and the younger man, a soldier by the name of Arvaik, crouched behind a large boulder and peered around the edge. They must have made a comical sight, because a few of the soldiers behind them chuckled softly beneath their helmets.
Albel spotted the people speaking almost immediately. It was two young women, one in Aquaria colors. He had seen the first woman before. It was the fool cook that had accosted him in the kitchen a few weeks ago. The second, the one in Aquarian armor, was someone he had never seen before. She had short red hair and a disapproving face. She seemed to be scolding the cook about something.
Albel decided that he disliked this Aquarian immensely. Despite what people thought of him, he generally gave people several chances before he gave up completely. There were very few who would never get the chance to prove themselves to him. This woman was one of them.
She had a very strict voice. It reminded him of his mother when she reprimanded him. And she was very haughty and sure of herself. Albel liked confident people, but she seemed a bit overconfident.
'She grew up in a country where everything was handed to her on a silver platter. Of course she's a bitch.' Albel said to himself. Albel and Arvaik waited for several more minutes before the Aquarian woman left toward Arias.
After watching the Aquarian walk away, the cook started walking toward them. As she neared the rocks where they were hidden, Albel stood and pointed towards her. The girl might not be able to see his soldiers, and vice-versa, but that they could see his him.
Startled by the Captain's sudden appearance, the girl screamed. This was all the prompting the soldiers needed. They rushed around the corner and grabbed her. Several grabbed her hands. Another pulled her hair. The girl was pushed to the ground and bound. She started crying.
When his subordinates were finished tying her up, Albel walked over to her. "Well, well. A spy," Albel spat, and kicked her leg. "Passing information on to the Aquarians? That woman didn't seem particularly pleased with you. Did you get in trouble?" Albel said this last bit with mock sympathy. When the girl only whimpered, he continued.
"Poor girl, first getting into trouble with the Aquarian, now getting into trouble with us. I'm sure my men will know just what to do with a treacherous bitch like you." At this, many of his men's mouths stretched into lecherous grins. The girl shrunk away from them.
"Some day, people like you won't have all the power. Then you'll see what we really think of you!" The girl started out strong, but by the end was mumbling. Her threat did nothing but start a bout of laughter in the men.
"What you really think of me?" Albel said, crouching down in front of her. Then he stood and said, "Have fun with her," and walked away to sit on a rock and sharpen his claw.
As the soldiers fell upon her, the girls screams reached a fervent pitch. Albel hoped she would shut up before he had to deal with her again.
As he sat in the shade beneath the cliff-face he looked around at his men. The majority of them were standing around trying to ignore the sounds of anguish coming from the small crowd in the middle of the crossroads.
One of the men finished with the cook and walked away from the crowd. Albel watched without interest as the man straightened his armor and wiped a bit of blood off of his knee.
After the men had gotten bored with her and left her there, Albel knelt down in front of her. She was still crying, but softly. With his good hand he grasped her by the hair and pulled her up until she was sitting. Her sobs grew a bit louder. "Traitor," Albel whispered.
She whimpered and he pulled her hair harder, till she was kneeling. She began screaming at him. "You sick twisted-" She didn't have a chance to finish before Albel wrapped his claw around her throat and began to squeeze.
Her sobs turned into chokes as her flesh was sliced and crushed beneath Albel's hand. The men around them winced when they heard the wet crunching sound of her bone's breaking. The chokes turned into bloody slurping, but Albel continued squeezing.
Eventually his claws sliced through the tendons and crushed bones in her neck, and Albel dropped her to the ground. Then he stood and called his men back into formation. As they walked down the road toward Bequerel flies began to gather on the nearly severed neck of the girl.
"Halt!" Albel called back to his men. They stopped in front of the entrance to the Bequerel mine. "We should proceed with caution. Although we have a pact with the dragons, I don't exactly trust them. I'd rather not have any serious injuries this time around."
Arzaik lit his lantern and led the others into the mine. Albel followed behind.
Albel stumbled down the hallway toward his room. The operation at Bequerel had been a success. They had secured enough copper ore for a new ballistics device, and captured several air dragon eggs in the process. It had taken nearly a week's time, total. Now he was back in Airyglyph, under orders of the king, to be a bodyguard.
Another assassination attempt had been made while he was away, so rather than letting him stay in Kirlsa for the winter, Arzei had commanded him to stay in Airyglyph.
Unfortunately, this also meant that Arzei would have ample time for his little 'talks.' Albel cringed at the thought.
As he rounded the corner, he nearly ran into a soldier from his own brigade. "Oh Sir! Umm…my apologies! I was just looking for you, because I needed to speak to you, and I, well…" The soldier floundered for a few moments.
"So…A-" Albel searched for the young man's name. "Arzaik. What do you want?"
"I was wondering if perhaps you would want to go out to the tavern with me and some of the others tonight?" Arzaik shifted around nervously.
Albel ground his teeth together. "No. I'm afraid I cannot." Which isn't exactly true, but he doesn't need to know that. "I have business with the King."
"Oh…well, the invitation is always open!" Arzaik smiled sadly, then walked out toward the entrance hall. Albel was left wondering why he had looked so disappointed.
Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 3.5- Into the Undiscovered Ocean
Part2
Fall off the Edge of the Earth
Fayt woke up and pulled the safety harness over his head. "Computer, where did we land? Can you give me any information on the life forms or geography of this area?"
"We are currently in a desert not unlike those found on pre-industrialized Earth. My scanners detect a small town of about 100 to 200 humanoids seven kilometers east of here. There are no geographical features in between our current location and the village that would hinder travel."
"Right. Computer, shut down primary power of the ship."
"Right away."
Fayt stood up and stretched. Then he opened the door to the Evacuation Pod and stepped out outside. He looked around at the desert. Man, I wish I was still on Hyda. Speaking of which… He took his Com2 and flipped it open. "Damn! Still no signal!" He slammed the device closed in frustration.
"Well, I guess I'll go to that town." He turned to the pod and opened the sliding panel to the Synth-Device. A sword would match this planet's level of development. Fayt took his newly made sword and headed east toward the town. As he walked he thought back on the events that led to his arrival.
"Please proceed to the nearest evacuation facility. Please remain calm."
"Fayt! Oh good! There are enough escape pods!"
"Not for all of the civilians AND the crew!"
"Bye Fayt! See you soon, okay?"
"Of course!"
"Computer! Activate primary thrusters! Take us out of the blast zone!"
"Computer, where are we. Search for the nearest friendly ship."
"We are currently in the Elicoor system. Habitable planets are Elicoor II, Elicoor III, and the moon of Elicoor IV. There are no Federation or allied ships in the vicinity."
"What are the levels of civilization in this system?"
"Elicoor III and satellite of Elicoor IV are uninhabited by any humanoid or Psuedo-humanoid peoples. We have no information on them at this time. Elicoor II is rated as a UP by the Federation. It has a civilization level roughly equivalent to 17th century Earth on the southern continent, and early 19th century Earth on the Northern continent. There is also a small eastern continent which is nearly uninhabited."
"Computer, land the ship on Elicoor II."
"We will arrive in two hours."
"So the name of the town I'm going to is…Kirssla…Kisslar…ki…Kirlsa. Right. And I'm an engineer from the Northern Continent. Which is why I have that interesting…flying device. Okay, but why am I here?" He talked to himself as he walked. "Got keep my story straight."
Fayt walked around a bend in the road. A little ways ahead he saw a large stone wall with a crude metal gate.
"Finally. That must be Kirlsa." Fayt resisted the urge to run into the city. As he neared the gate an older man in heavy armor walked out to greet him.
"You there!" the gruff man said. "What business do you have here?" old man eyed him suspiciously.
"I'm a traveler from the northern continent. I'm just looking for a place to stay until I can repair my transport vessel, or one of my friends notices I'm missing and comes to get me."
"What sort of transport vessel?" Fayt swallowed nervously.
"It's a…flying…ship."
"And you said you were from Greeton?" The old man asked, glaring at Fayt.
"Greeton?"
"That northern continent."
"Oh, yes." Fayt smiled weakly at the shrewd old man.
"An' how does your flying ship fly?"
"It's…difficult…to explain."
"I see." The old man glared a bit more from underneath his bushy eyebrows then said, "I'll have to take you to see our Lord, I'm'fraid. If you'd follow me." The old man turned and went through the gate and into the town.
"This is Kirlsa, if'n you didn't know. Just a humble mining town. Not much compared to your place with flyin' machines and whatnot."
"Oh, well, it's very homey." Fayt said enthusiastically. The old man glared some more.
Fayt was beginning to wonder of his face just looked like that naturally.
As they walked, Fayt looked around. The town had a tired, lazy quality about it which he found very appealing. It was also covered in dust.
"If'n you're here for a while, you might want to look into getting' yourself a better sword. That things not better than a kitchen' knife thar. Well, looks like we've arrived."
Fayt realized that they were standing at the base of the stairs leading to a very opulent mansion. "Lord Woltar's in Airyglyph, so you'll be speakin' with Lord Albel. He got in just yesterday. He's harsh, but ye ain't goin' to find a better swordsman. Just head on in and tell the guard the gate-keeper sent ya'. Then you're going to tell Lord Albel the same thing you told me."
"Alright. Thank you, Sir…"
"Clydus. Now then. Good luck!" Still glaring, the old man slapped Fayt on the back and headed back toward the western gate.
Fayt looked up at the imposing door, then climbed the stairs. He hesitated when he reached the top, pulled the door open gently, then slipped inside.
At the base of huge staircase stood another guard, this time with a helmet. He spoke to Fayt as the frightened boy closed the door behind himself.
"What business do you have here?"
"The gate-keeper, Sir Clydus, sent me to speak to Lord Albel."
"Why?"
"I'm an engineer, from…Greeton."
"I see. Leave your sword on the table there. Right up the stairs. Middle door." Fayt set his sword down on the polished wood table in the sitting room. The guard stepped to the side, and he walked up the stairs to Lord Albel's office.
He paused before the door, unsure of whether to knock or just enter. Oh, screw it. He pushed open the door.
part3
Live By the Sword, Die
By Your Eyes
Albel looked up sharply as the door opened and glared at the boy who entered. And what the hell was he wearing anyway? "What is it worm?" he ground out. He smirked when he saw the boy fidget with the hem of his shirt.
"The-gate-keeper-Clydus-told-me-to-come-here-because-I'm-an-engineer-from-Greeton-and-he-said-you'd-want-to-talk-to-me." The boy said in a rush. Albel raised and eyebrow as he watched him inch closer to the doorway.
"Sit down. What's your name?" Albel waved his good hand at the chair in front of the desk. 'That would explain the clothes and the…blue hair,' he thought. "And how exactly did you get here?" he asked, leaning back but keeping his claw well out of sight.
"Well, I was going to rescue a friend of mine, but my flying ship broke, and it crashed not far from this town. My name's Fayt Leingod."
"Lord Albel Nox. Your flying ship broke?" Albel asked incredulously. "And you expect me to believe such nonsense? How do I know you're not a spy from Aquaria?" He received a blank stare. "Do you have any proof to support your claims?"
Fayt shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Well, my ship isn't that far away. If you want proof you can go see for yourself."
"And how do I know you're not trying to lure my men into a trap?" Albel was getting bored with this conversation already. These Greeton people were horribly dull. And what horrible fashion sense.
"Why would I lure your men into a trap? I'm sorry Sir, but I'm not very familiar with the politics of this continent." Fayt was beginning to regret coming to this town. He could be in a lot of trouble if they thought he was some sort of spy. He might get thrown in jail.
"We're at war with Aquaria." Fayt just stared blankly. "There's a map on the desk right in front of you." He snapped. He didn't have time for this idiot.
"Oh," Fayt mumbled and leaned over the desk to look at the map. Then he sat straight again. "But I can't read your language."
Albel snarled in disapproval. In one smooth motion he stood up and pointed his claw at the map violently. "That's Kirlsa! And this is Airyglyph." He made a circle showing the perimeters of the kingdom. "And that is Aquaria." He hissed, stabbing at the land north of Airyglyph.
"Oh…" Fayt said vaguely. He was staring rather intently at Albel's claw.
"Since you obviously have no concept of the current political affairs of this continent I'll take your word that you're from Greeton. Once the soldiers I sent out return with the report on your flying ship, I'll decide what to do with you. Until then you will stay here, in this mansion, and you will not leave the grounds without me."
"When did you send soldiers out?" Fayt asked, alarmed.
"Before you arrived. You must have passed them on your way through town."
"You mean you already knew about my ship?" Fayt was horrified. This was a major violation of the UP3.
"Don't be ridiculous. Of course we knew. We have scouts." Albel suddenly realized what Fayt was looking at and drew his clawed-hand away from the map sharply. "Your room is out the door and to the left of this one."
"Oh," Fayt paused, "thank you." He stood and, sensing the meeting was over, turned and left the room.
AN: The Com2 is my techie abbreviation of Compact Communicator. This story is going in a completely different direction than I had hope…Summary update!
The next chapter is in the works, so I'll try and have it up by the end of the month…Sorry for the delay with this chapter!
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