Chapter 3: This Is NOT Resident Evil, Dammit!
It was approaching sunset on the fourth day since Ryu had left Camlon. He had passed the ruins of Nanai on his second day, and was now well into the kingdom of the Wing Clan. Looking around for shelter, Ryu's eye picked up a cavern in the side of some nearby mountains. Walking towards it, he entered, then stopped as a pair of soldiers blocked his way. They were wearing standard millitary armor, but a pair of feathered wings rising from their backs proclaimed their Clan and kept them hovering in the air.
"Halt! Who goes there?"
"Just a traveler from the west." Ryu raised his hands. "I mean you no harm." The guards relaxed.
"Ah, good. The west, eh? You must be from Camlon. I'm Sir Avos, and this is my brother, Sir Valos. You are?"
"My name's Ryu... and I'm actually from the town of Drogen, south of Camlon." Ryu smiled. Valos frowned.
"Drogen? Never heard of it..."
"I have." Avos shook his head. "You don't look much like a backwoods fellow. What are you doing out here, Ryu?" Ryu hesitated for a moment, then decided to trust them.
"I'm here to see your King... King Firdan sent me. I'm fighting the Dark Dragons." He braced himself for laughter, but none came; the two guards were looking him over more carefully.
"Hm... yes, you've done some fighting in your time. It shows." Valos snapped his fingers. "Would you by any chance be the one responsible for what went down at Nanai a few days ago?"
"Does that show too?" Ryu asked ruefully. Avos laughed.
"Not at all... but they probably heard that town exploding all the way down in Arad, and your showing up is too much of a coincidence." He frowned, suddenly dead serious. "Does this mean you have... it?" Ryu nodded grimly.
"Yeah... I do. I wanted to give it to King Firdan, but he insisted I hold on to it."
"Smart move..." Valos grunted. "All right, you need to get to the capital pronto, kid. Luckily, it's nearby. Just head north around this mountain range, and you'll be there in less than an hour. You can make that, right?" Ryu nodded. "Good. Get going. The sooner you-and that thing-get into the city, the better."
"Right. Um..." Ryu hesitated. "What's in this cave, anyways?"
"Aura Cave here connects to the northlands." Avos explained. "Up there is the town of Romero... and, more importantly, the Towers of Karma. An evil necromancer, the Wizard Manson, lives up there. We're stationed in this cave to sound the alarm if he sends his zombies through." Ryu shuddered.
"Ugh... zombies? I can see why you'd want guards. Well, see you around, guys. Thanks for the directions." True enough, he entered the town of Winlan before the sun was down. Winlan was a mountain city, and the buildings were situated on several levels, leading upwards to the castle at the peak. Like Nanai, a single river ran down the west side of the city, through each level forming beautiful waterfalls. More than half the buildings had a windmill propeller added to the front of their second story as a sort of decoration, even including the highest tower of the castle. The Dragon Temple was near the entrance, and Ryu realized he hadn't prayed in quite some time. He immediately entered, not seeing the soldier watching him. Kneeling before the statue, he whispered the traditional ritual. About half an hour later, he turned to go, only to find the soldier standing in the entrance of the Temple.
"All right, buddy. Mind telling me who you are? It's customary to check in with us BEFORE you go wandering around..."
"Sorry, sir." Ryu apologized. "I've been getting behind on my prayers, and I completely forgot." He told the soldier the same story as he had to Avos and Valos. This guard, however, was more skeptical.
"King Firdan sent you, huh? Heh... I don't suppose you've got any proof of that?"
"Actually, I do." Reaching into his pack, Ryu took out the letter and handed it to the guard, who read it, eyes slowly widening. When he was done, he handed the letter back and saluted sharply.
"Apologies, Sir Ryu! I was unaware of who you were! Please accept my apology for suspecting you!"
"Uh... that's quite all right." Ryu muttered, wondering just what exactly Firdan had said in that letter. "If it's okay, I think I should be going to the castle before it gets any later..."
"Of course, sir! Follow me!" Saluting again, the guard turned, let his wings lift him up a foot or so and led the way up to the castle, with Ryu amusedly following. A nod from the soldier to the two standing near the front door was enough to get them entry. As he entered, Ryu realized that this was his frst time among such splendor. The castle in Camlon had been ancient and monster-infested, and he had entered the caverns before exploring the one in Nanai. Thus, the beautiful decor, carefully tiled floors and marble pillars were completely new to him. He also realized that his gawking probably made him look exactly like an unlettered country oaf, but he was unable to stop. Before he knew it, they were at the end of the hall, and the soldier escorting him was talking to another in low tones, who left a moment later. Ryu's guide turned back to him and saluted again. "Sir Ryu, the Queen will be along shortly."
"Ah... very well." Ryu nodded. "Um... the Queen? Is the King occupied?"
"I'm afraid he is not feeling well, young man." A voice behind him said. Turning, Ryu saw an older soldier in elaborate armor. His wings were a dark blue. Ryu realized the guide was saluting, and he promptly followed suit. The older soldier laughed. "No need for that, young man! I'm guessing you're the one who took care of that mess at Nanai. It's good to meet the man who struck such a blow against the Dark Dragons. I'm General Cornus, commander of the armies." He frowned. "We're fighting the Dark Dragons too, and the King turned down an offer to join them from Zog himself. There's no telling what that madman might do in retaliation, and things have been growing more hectic. The King needs a lot of rest these days." Ryu nodded.
"I understand. My sister was the same way; we had to force her to get some rest when things were really hectic, or she'd kill herself working. She was the Priestess of our village." General Cornus nodded back, hiding his surprise.
"I see... oh! Your highness!" He saluted, and again, Ryu followed the example even as he turned. Two ladies with golden circlets caught in their blonde hair were approaching. One appeared to be in her late fifties, but she still bore traces of what must have been a striking beauty, and she was clad in a regal white dress. The other seemed a year younger than Ryu, and though she was quite pretty, her face was twisted in annoyance and worry. She wore a much briefer pink leotard, and both of them had wings of the same color. The older lady, apparently, the queen, smiled at him.
"Young sir Ryu from Drogen?" Ryu nodded. "We are honored to recieve you here. You came to see my husband?" Another nod.
"The King cannot be disturbed. You will have to be on your way, I'm afraid." The young girl said shortly. The Queen turned to stare at her, then smiled apologetically at Ryu.
"My daughter, Princess Nina. Please, excuse us for a moment..." They flew a short distance away and engaged in a heated, though whispered conversation.
"Nina! That was unnecessarily rude!" Nina's mother chided.
"So? Would you have preferred we tell him the truth, that father is dreadfully ill?" Nina snapped back. Her mother frowned.
"Well, Firdan trusted him..."
"Ha!" Nina snorted. "Did you read the letter? A great and mighty warrior, indeed! Look at him. He probably doesn't even know which end of a sword to hold. If he's a Light Dragon who blew up Nanai, I'll eat my rapier."
"Even if that is so, we have to be diplomatic." Nina's mother pressed. "We can't show any signs of weakness, and that means being respectful to guests!"
"We can't let word get out that father's been... poisoned... either, mother!" Nina insisted. "If the people find out, it'll start a panic! His condition HAS to remain a secret! We must keep it quiet until we can get the remedy. If the people panic, we'll open the door to the Dark Dragons, and then everything will be lost!" Nina's mother slowly nodded.
"You're right... but the remedy still hasn't been found..." She fretted. "The only one who might know it is-"
"I know!" Nina interrupted. "But-" She stopped and looked at Ryu, who was peering at them with interest. "Enough. We can continue this later, mother. For now, our guest..." She rolled her eyes. "Is waiting." They walked back. The queen cleared her throat.
"Sir Ryu, I'm afraid the King is asleep right now, and even when he awakens, he will likely be busy for quite some time." Ryu raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment. "Until he is available, we extend the hospitality of the castle to you. You may have the guest room on the left, over there, as long as you need." She pointed, and Ryu nodded.
"Thank you, your highness. Um... is there some place where I might have something to eat?"
"I'm afraid dinner has already been served to us, Sir Ryu." Nina said sweetly. "However, I believe the soldiers are still eating their rations." Ryu smiled back.
"That will do just fine, your highness. I'll probably be more at ease among them anyways. If you'll excuse me, then..."
"I'll show you the way." General Cornus said, hiding a smile of his own beneath his mustache. "You can return to your post, soldier." The guard who had shown Ryu in nodded and left. Ryu waited until he and the General were safely away from the royalty before speaking again.
"Is she always like that? The princess, I mean?"
"Oh, not at all." Cornus assured him. "But recent events have had her strung very tight, and she seems particularly distrustful of strangers as of late, for some reason. She's normally a very nice and polite girl. Ah, here we are..." He opened the door to the mess hall and led the way through the crowd of curious soldiers to the head of a table, where Ryu took a seat next to him. A cook brought over a pair of plates. "I'm afraid it's nothing special... just some beef, beans and bread."
"The three Bs, eh?" Ryu joked. "No problem, sir. I'm not a picky eater, and it's sure to be better than roast monster. That's what I had on my first night after I left home." The soldiers around laughed.
"Is it true you wasted an entire Dark Dragon company by yourself?" One of them blurted out. Ryu nodded.
"Yeah, but it wasn't with my sword. Nanai was on unstable ground, as it turns out. The only soldier I really fought was their leader, a Knight named Terrack. Our scuffle in the caverns under the city was sufficiently noisy to disrupt the foundation, and I just barely made it out before the whole place exploded."
"Hey, a dead company's a dead company." Another soldier grinned. "The less for us to have to fight."
"That going on a lot here? Dark Dragons, I mean?" Ryu asked. Cornus frowned.
"It used to... but it's been slacking off recently. Something's up, and I don't like that..." Ryu didn't respond.
"They've been concentrating on the Forest Clan east of here lately, I think." A soldier reported. "They've had to flee their forest homes... went to a town called Tantar. They're still fighting, though, and the Dark Dragons are losing a lot of people in the area. That could explain why there aren't many around here..."
"He's got a point." Ryu nodded. Cornus sighed.
"I suppose. Blast it... the Dragon Clan are nothing but trouble..."
"Well, I don't know." A soldier disagreed. "I once heard a legend about a hero who could turn into a giant flying lizard... that's a dragon, right? They say he saved the world... pretty cool, huh?"
"Yeah..." Ryu stood up. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll hit the hay. 'Night!"
"Goodnight then, Ryu." Cornus smiled cheerfully, but his eyes didn't leave Ryu until after the young man had closed the door.
"..." Nina looked out the window of her bedroom. The moon, approaching full, was rising high. "Just about midnight... everybody should be asleep by now." She slipped out of her bedroom, crossed the throne room, and entered her parents' room on the other side of it. Her mother was standing at the side of the bed, watching over her father. "How is he doing, mother?"
"Not good, Nina..." She whispered. "He's been going steadily downhill ever since he opened Zog's letter with the poison on it..."
"He should have known..." Nina shut her eyes tightly, but tears still leaked out. "That's one of Manson's favorite tricks, always has been!"
"She's right..." Both their eyes were drawn to the King as he coughed, a horrible, retching sound. "I should have known... it's my own foolishness that's done this to me..."
"No, it's not!" Nina's mother insisted. "You couldn't have known, you..."
"No..." The King shook his head weakly. "I failed you both... but you've... since my illness, you've done your duties well... made up for my mistakes... please, don't stop... keep our land safe even after I've..." He started coughing again repeatedly, and Nina's mother took his hand.
"Don't talk... just keep your strength up... we'll find that remedy, just hold on..." Neither of them noticed as Nina quietly slipped out. Returning to her room, she took a slim rapier from behind the door, then creeped down the stairs. The castle was dark and silent, so nobody noticed as she went into the kitchens and assembled a pack of rations, adding in a few healing herbs, then headed for the front door. As she passed by the bumpkin from the west's room, a sudden impulse struck her, and she quietly eased his door open. He was lying in his bed, snoring. Nina crept closer and examined him. He really wasn't too bad looking, and she realized she had never seen anybody with blue hair before. He was mumbling something in his sleep.
"Hey, Sara... don't do that, give me it back... come on, don't throw it up there..."
"Sara... somebody's name?" She frowned. "A girlfriend, probably... hmph." Shrugging, she left the room and then the castle. The rest of the city was as deserted as the castle had been, but Nina stuck to the shadows anyways. Before leaving, she made a point of saying a few prayers at the statue in the Dragon Temple. Something caught her eye as she turned to leave; it looked almost as if the statue winked at her, but when she turned back nothing was amiss. Once she was out of the city, Nina let out a deep sigh. "Well, I haven't been caught. That's good. I just hope I'm into Romero before they find my note tomorrow..." Unknowingly, it took her the same amount of time to reach the mountain tunnel as Ryu had taken to go the other way, an hour. "Now, I just have to sneak past the guards here and I'm home free..."
"Don't bother, your highness." Sir Avos said as he and Sir Valos walked out of the cave. "My brother and I saw you coming five minutes ago. What are you doing here?" Nina set her jaw firmly.
"I'm going to Karma."
"Well, we figured that much." Valos agreed. "The question is, why? Manson is out enemy, true, but why have you suddenly decided it's a personal affair?"
"It became personal the day my father was poisoned!" Nina blurted out before she could stop herself. Both soldiers' eyes went wide, and she continued quickly. "The Wizard Manson knows the antidote to the poison... he's the one who gave it to my father! I'll find him and-"
"And beat the antidote out of him?" Valos smiled. "I'm afraid it won't be that easy, your highness. That Wizard's not just a poisoner, he's got an army of zombies powered by his magic. How do you suppose you're going to get past them?" Nina smiled back and showed him her rapier.
"General Cornus himself has been training me ever since I was a little girl. Don't worry about that... I can take care of myself in a fight!" Avos shook his head.
"I suppose so... but you still can't go alone. We'll have to bring you back to Winlan, unless..."
"Unless?" Nina prompted.
"Unless we come with you." Valos said firmly. "By yourself, there's little chance of victory, but if we come along, the probability of getting that remedy increases a great deal. Either the three of us go there together, or we go back to Winlan together. It's that simple, your highness."
"...All right." Nina nodded after a moment. "You're right... but we need to hurry. Nobody back there knows I'm gone, so if we're not in Romero by tomorrow, we'll all be back in Winlan with a VERY unhappy queen."
"Point made." Avos nodded. "Let's get going, then." Taking up positions flanking her, they walked forward into the cavern. There was a great deal of moisture in the Aura Cave, and it collected into large masses that almost made the sections of dry land seem like islands. A roving flock of Beaks swooped out of the shadows at the top of the cave, and the soldiers covered Nina with their shields while jabbing out with their long spears at the enemies. Several were felled quickly, but one backed off for a headlong charge. Before either of the soldiers could react, they saw a flicker of motion between them, and the next thing they knew, Nina was hovering above the unlucky Beak. She skewered it with one strong thrust, then landed on the ground and shook it off her blade.
"I told you boys... I'm not helpless. I can handle myself in a fight-ACK!" She fell to the ground as a lightning bolt lashed her wings. An ethereal Gloom cackled and prepared another shot, but Avos was upon it, and the bolt went wild, smashing into the ceiling. Valos flew over to Nina.
"Are you all right, your majesty?"
"Fine... just fine." Nina struggled back into the air. "Just surprised me, is all." She flashed them a sheepish grin. "Guess I'm not as good as I thought I was after all..."
"Nonsense!" Avos said cheerfully as he flew back to them. "You took care of that Beak, didn't you? You just need to be more careful. Eh?" He frowned as he noticed a trickle of dust and pebbles above his head, then dived out of the way just before a heavy rock fell out of the tunnel ceiling where he had been. "Whew... looks like I need to look out more, too. That rock would have brained me."
"Hey, it's not a rock..." Nina frowned, examining it. "It's some kind of metal... iron?" Valos examined it as well, and whistled.
"Yeah, it's iron all right... grade-a iron ore! This lump here is Builder Clan quality!" Nina blinked. The Builder Clan in the south were notorious for their fine craftsmanship, partially because they only worked in the finest, purest materials.
"Wow... any chance we could take it with us?" The soldiers exchanged a look.
"It'll be heavy..."
"I'll carry it, then." Nina offered. "It'll be no imposition on you two at all." They both sighed.
"Very well then, princess." Avos surrendered. "Pack it up and let's go. The night's getting later." They made it through the rest of the Aura Cave without much hassle, and emerged in the northlands just as dawn was starting to break. Nina stifled a yawn as they approached the village of Romero.
"So... we catch some sleep here, then head for Karma around sundown?"
"Not a good idea at all, princess." Valos shook his head. "Karma's going to be bad enough without it being night. We'll spend a good twenty-four hours here, then go towards Karma this time tomorrow."
"But... oh, all right." Nina agreed as they entered the town. For some reason, the entry street went right through the graveyard. Nina shuddered. "Creepy."
"Yes, I suppose so..." Avos agreed. He frowned at one old man who was stomping up and down on a grave. "And disrespectful. Hey, you! What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"Trying to keep the zombies down!" The man yelled back. Nina flew over to him quickly.
"Zombies? What about zombies?"
"They've been rising every night ever since that damned Wizard came down here..." The man growled. "It was bad enough when he was just messing around in his towers with the ancient corpses, but now..." The three of them shared a glance.
"Why don't you come with us?" Nina suggested. "We'll have some drinks, and you can tell us the whole story." The man hesitated. "We're buying."
"Well... all right." The old fellow agreed, and showed them the way to the local tavern. Avos and Valos carefully looked over the menu and selected some relatively weak wine for Nina, and ale for the rest of them.
"All right... how long has the Wizard been causing trouble?" Valos asked after a few minutes. The old man frowned into his mug.
"Shoot, as long as I can remember. He used to just stick to himself... he experiments with the dead, you know. For years, his results weren't too pretty to look at; animated corpses was all, most of 'em not even having legs anymore. But then, about a year back, things changed... lot of strangers were hanging around Karma, and none of us liked the looks of them. Millitary-looking, almost. Their boss was a bald guy, and get this-he had blue skin! Wasn't dead or nothing either. Just wierd. Looked like some kind of scientest like the Wizard claims to be, but he was bossing around those soldier-looking guys." Avos frowned darkly.
"A bald scientest with blue skin, you say? Did he have a monocle-a thing like glasses, but only one eye-that was red?" The old man nodded.
"That's the fella, sure enough. Anyways, then about a month ago, the Wizard came down here at night while we were all asleep and poured some kind of chemical all over the graveyard. You can look at the ground there, it's still a funny color. Since then, every night all the dead folks there pull themselves outta the ground. The old, decayed ones, they went over to Karma. But the folks who've only been dead for a short time, they're still here. They come out and talk with us like nothing's wrong, like they're still alive, but you can tell..." He shuddered. "And then, just to top it all off, three of the girls in town vanished! Poof, just like that one night a few days back! Some of them are pretending they went by themselves, that they got bored with country life, but we all know what really happened. It's just no good business up here anymore, but nobody's brave enough to go up to Karma and give that Wizard what he deserves."
"Well, we should be going now... we've been walking all night." Nina smiled. "Oops, flying. But you know what I mean, and wings get tired just as much as feet do. Here..." She handed the serving wench a coin. "Get our friend another round of whatever he wants."
"Why thank you, missy." The old man grinned. "Go on up to the Inn near the front of the town, next to the Temple, and tell 'em Mergo sent you." Avos nodded.
"We will. Thank you as well for the information." The three of them flew down to the Inn. The innkeeper was a stout fellow, and he beamed at them as they entered, sipping from a mug of hot tea.
"Ah, welcome! Will you be needing rooms, by any chance?"
"Two, please." Nina nodded. "A man named Mergo recommended this place to us." The innkeeper smiled even brighter.
"Mergo, you say? All right, then. One room with two beds, and one with one?" She nodded. "Very well... that'll be sixty Zenny."
"You're generous, noble innkeeper." Avos complimented him as Nina doled out the money.
"Any friend of Mergo's is a friend of mine, and you three look as if you deserve the best. Follow me, please." The innkeeper showed them to their rooms. "If you require anything, I'll be downstairs." He left.
"Well, this is great." Valos grumbled once he was out of earshot. "Manson's influence over the area is even greater than we thought... and we have proof that he's been collaborating with the Dark Dragons now too."
"Proof?" Nina frowned.
"That man Mergo described." Avos explained. "He matches the description of Cort, the Blue Alchemist... one of the Tiamat Unit, Zog's most trusted. And soldiers... there's no other explanation except the Dark Dragons."
"I see..." Nina sighed. "Well, even so, it's too late to turn back now. We've come here, and we're not leaving without the remedy. Let's rest up, then head for Karma once the sun rises tomorrow." The soldiers nodded, and all three retired to their beds.
"Aaah... morning." Manson, the Wizard of Karma, greeted the sunrise from the top of the west tower. "How I despise it." Manson was a tall, gaunt man dressed in pale green robes and a gold circle around his head that stopped just short of being a crown. His blue skin gave off the stench of rot, echoed by his face; lips, nose and eyes were all gone, making it obvious to anybody that he was no longer among the truly living, though his eye sockets burned with tiny red flames. "I suppose eternal darkness is the price I must pay for eternal life..." Ever since his death, Manson had been unable to stand the light of day, a side effect of his more advanced zombification potions. One would think that would make him active during the night, but Manson loved to sleep on the roof of his tower with the wind whistling through his hair. So he slept up there during the night, with the only light being from the moon, and he stayed inside the towers to work during the day, where the sun could not reach him. A bit of a complicated approach, but it worked just fine. Descending the staircase to the top floor of the tower, he bowed perfunctorily at the new Statue of Ladon installed there next to the Spring of Life, the waters of which were a valuable ingredient in his experiments. One of the conditions of his new alliance was that he resume worship of the Dragon God he had not partaken in for more than a century. Manson shrugged. It was a minor inconvenience for a much more major alliance. Descending another floor, he walked up to a barred cell. Inside, three young ladies slept fitfully.
"Ahem... good morning, ladies." They stirred at the sound of his voice, and one of them sat upright, eyes blazing.
"Manson. What do you want now?"
"Now that is quite rude, miss." The Wizard of Karma chided her. "I was simply wishing you a good morning."
"And how are we supposed to know anything about that?" Another one of them demanded. "We haven't seen the sun ever since you dragged us here!"
"Yes... most unfortunate..." Manson shook his head. "Sadly, it can't be helped. I see you have yet to touch your food and water."
"That's right." The third lady growled. "We know it's all filled with your foul potions, Manson. We won't touch it!" The Wizard slammed his fist against the wall suddenly, causing all three to jump.
"Foul potions! How dare you! We'll see how picky you are after a few more days. A week more of thirst and you'll be begging to help me!" He stalked off down to the bottom of the west tower, where his workshop was located. As he was about to begin work, however, a hovering spectre entered as well. Covered in a hood, it appeared skeletal underneath, and carried a large scythe.
"Master... visitors."
"Visitors?" Manson inquired sharply, turning to look at his servant. "What visitors? Where are they, Morte?"
"On top. The Dark Dragons and Blue Alchemist Cort..." Morte intoned. Manson frowned. He had heard something like huge, leathery wings a few seconds ago.
"Very well. Mortea!" He yelled, and another spectre much like the first joined them. "You and your brother go up and greet our guest. Show him down here." The twin spectres nodded and left, and Manson began leafing through his notes. A few minutes later, a new figure joined him, followed by the guards.
"Ah, there you are, Manson." Cort, the Blue Alchemist of the Dark Dragon empire, greeted the Wizard of Karma. "I was afraid for a moment I'd gotten the wrong place and ended up in Arad." Manson rolled his eyes; Arad was a small town in a desert in the southeast.
"Har. Har. Har." The Blue Alchemist was a tall, slim man dressed in robes much like Manson's, although his were sky blue. His skin was a much darker shade, like Manson's, although he did not have the same smell of death. Manson severely doubted the color was natural, but he didn't know what would cause it and didn't much care either. His head was as round and smooth as an egg, and he wore a monocle carved out of pure ruby over one eye. They shook hands firmly; each had enormous respect for the other in the field of science.
"How's that new formula of yours working out with the girls, old boy?" Cort inquired.
"Haven't been able to find out, I'm afraid." Manson said glumly. "They absolutely refuse to eat or drink anything."
"Have you tried having your assistants pin them and forcing them to take it?" Cort suggested, but the Wizard shook his head.
"No, I already know that agitating the body will screw up the potion... at least with humans. If I had a Wing Clanner, things would be different... but I don't. That option's not available."
"Shame." Cort sighed sympathetically. "Some people just have no scientific spirit. Listen, old boy, we've got ourselves a bit of a situation here. Emperor Zog is in quite the foul mood."
"What happened? Did he wake up on the wrong side of the cave?" Manson joked. Cort smirked.
"Cute. No, far worse, I'm afraid. We were on the verge of acquiring a second Goddess Key."
"Were?" Manson raised an eyebrow. The Blue Alchemist nodded.
"Yes, were. It was at Nanai to the southwest. I'm sure you know the place; bustling seaport, ancient palace, reduced to a smoldering pile of rubble, that one. Jade went off and left a Knight named Terrack there to finish up. A mistake, as it turned out. Terrack was a total incompetent, and he apparently blew everything to hell. The Goddess Key's under that rubble."
"Just great." Manson groaned. "I assume this will affect my funding?" Cort winked slyly.
"Actually, there's a fair chance you may be coming into a great deal of luck, old boy. Your zombies are very good at digging, right?"
"What, the early types?" Manson grunted. "Yes, that's about all they're good for..." The Wizard of Karma's voice trailed off. "So if I were to have them dig up that Goddess Key..."
"You could present it to Emperor Zog, and he would be VERY pleased with you." Cort finished. "At least double your current funding, and an official rank quite high up. How would you fancy being a General?"
"I'm not much good at commanding troops, I'm afraid." Manson admitted. "Zombies, you just point and grunt. Your Dark Dragon soldiers are a little more sophisticated than that."
"Actually, there might be even more." Cort's eyes narrowed. "You realize there are seven Goddess Keys, and only six of the positions have been filled." Manson's eye sockets seemed to somehow widen.
"You mean..."
"Just speculation, of course." The Blue Alchemist said quickly. "That choice would, of course, have to come down from Emperor Zog. But I think it's fair to say he would be VERY happy with you."
"You've given me something to think about, Cort." Manson admitted. "The only problem would be getting the zombies to Nanai, but if they all rushed the Aura Cave en masse..." Cort nodded.
"That could very well work, yes. I'll leave you to your planning then, old boy. Oh, here..." He dropped a large wallet on Manson's desk. "That's the current rate for the month. Let's hope it picks up, shall we?"
"Indeed. I'll see you later, my friend." The Magician of Karma politely waved as the Blue Alchemist left, then returned to his work.
"Are you ready to go, princess?" Sir Avos asked some time after midnight. Nina looked up from a book she was reading, surprised.
"What? But the sun hasn't risen yet."
"It'll take us an hour or two to get to the Ramui Woods around Karma." Valos informed her. "By the time we're there, the sun'll be up."
"All right, let's go." Nina nodded. The three of them left their rooms and walked down the stairs, where they were greeted by the sleepy inkeeper.
"Leaving at this time, friends?"
"Yes..." Nina nodded. "We've got some business elsewhere soon."
"But the zombies are out right now." The innkeeper objected.
"We'll chance it." Valos said firmly. "You run a very nice inn, friend. We'll recommend you to our friends... if we ever see any again. Let's go." Outside, several people were wandering around as if nothing was going on. The only thing that betrayed their nature was the pale greenish cast to their skin. Nina glanced into the graveyard and saw an old man and woman, the woman alive and the man not, standing together, holding hands.
"Perhaps not all uses of zombification are bad..."
"I wonder if she'll still feel that way about him once his face rots off." Avos commented. Nina glared at him.
"You're a horrible cynic, Sir Avos."
"No, he's a realist." Valos disagreed. "Most soldiers are. Optimistic soldiers tend to wind up dead early on. Let's try not to wind up the same way... dying at Karma is not my idea of a good time." Just as the soldiers had predicted, by the time they neared the Ramui Woods, the sun was rising. As they were about to enter, Nina looked over a lake to the north and gasped.
"What in the world?" In the middle of the lake, a slim white pier ran from the west side, deep in the forest. And above the end of it, a gigantic clump of earth... floated. On top of the land was a white palace. The whole thing was completely impossible, but it was still there, hovering in the sky in complete defiance of physical law.
"It's called Agua." Avos said quietly. "It's been there for centuries... maybe even millenia. Nobody knows what it's for, who built it, or even how it does that. It just... does. Rumor has it that the people of Romero know a way inside, but nobody really believes that; even we haven't been able to fly in. Some kind of force field. It's just... there."
"Wow..." Nina stared at the floating monolith.
"We should keep going, princess." Valos reminded her. Reluctantly, Nina tore her eyes away, and they entered the Ramui Woods.
"Are we going to find zombies in here?" She asked a bit nervously.
"Doubtful." Avos disagreed. "It's possible, I suppose, but reports say that Manson usually has them patrolling Karma itself. Don't let your guard down, though..." He turned and stabbed a huge spider. "These woods ARE crawling with poisonous bugs and spiders. One bite and you'll be seeing dancing pink Maniros."
"Speaking of which, look out!" Valos shoved his brother aside as a bug launched itself at him, then killed it. Nina shuddered.
"How long will we have to walk through here?"
"Only about an hour. It's not too far to Karma." Avos assured her. Once again, his assesment turned out to be correct. An hour later, Nina saw daylight shining through some trees up ahead.
"There! Karma's up ahead!"
"Look out, princess!" Avos yelled, charging and knocking her out of the way. The spider about to bite her fell on him instead. Nina angrily skewered it several times even as the knight crumpled.
"Sir Avos! Where were you bitten? Quick!"
"Back..." He groaned. Nina pulled a syringe out of her pack and injected it into the bite mark, then held her hands over it and mumbled a few words. Sparkles of light gathered around it, and the wound faded, as if it had never been there. Avos slowly got to his feet and smiled at her.
"You're gifted, princess. You never told us you were skilled in white magic."
"I pick up a few things now and then." She smiled modestly.
"And you carry antidotes to common poisons too. Not bad at all." Valos smiled as well. "You were better prepared for this than we thought, princess. Apologies for thinking less of you."
"Accepted." Nina flew ahead. "Now then, Karma's waiting for us!"
Another lake was situated between the Ramui woods and a mountain range to the south. From the east, as they exited the woods, a strip of land extended out into the water. At the end, in the precise center of the lake, two grey stone towers rose towards the sky. Unlike the floating palace of Aqua, the towers of Karma held no grace or beauty; they were a pair of tall, dull stumps that were vaguely rounded off near the top. Windows dotted them irregularly, and there were even great masses of algae here and there. The east tower was the only one with an entrance, but high above, a bridge could be seen connecting it to the taller west tower near the top.
"It looks like a pair of ossified stumps." Nina commented, causing the soliders to laugh for a moment. "Okay, enough joking. We all agree that we're not coming out of there without the remedy?" Both nodded. "All right. Let's go." Side by side, they walked into the east tower.
"Who's there?" A hollow voice yelled from the darkness. The three backed up as a floating, skeletal spectre in a blue robe floated out, holding a scythe. "Intruders? Nobody is here now! Go back home!"
"What about you?" Nina pointed out. "If nobody's home, what are you doing here?"
"I'm Morte, the door guard!" The spectre answered angrily. "Now leave before I add you to the stock for the master's experiments!"
"I don't suppose you'd let us through to see the Wizard?" Avos asked drily.
"I don't suppose you'd go jump in the lake if I asked you to?" Morte returned just as drily. Valos sighed sadly.
"That's a negotiations breakdown if I ever heard one... shame." Without warning, he lunged at Morte with his spear. The spectre howled with rage and brought his scythe down on the soldier's back, but Avos deflected it. Nina hovered out of its range and started chanting again. Red light covered Avos, and with a grin, he jerked his spear and sent Morte's scythe flying. Skull now covered in chagrin, Morte dived at his weapon, but recieved Valos' spear between his ribs instead. Amazingly, this did not kill him... instead, Morte fell to the ground, and to the shock of all three, began crying.
"I'm sorry... please don't hurt me any more..." He bawled. Suddenly, he grabbed at his scythe and prepared to hack Valos in half-even as Avos' spear smashed through his skull, and he fell apart, a useless pile of bones.
"That wasn't too hard." Nina observed.
"Don't get cocky, princess." Avos told her as he flew past Morte's remains. "That was just the first one. Still a lot of ground to cover." The two soldiers again took up positions on either side of Nina, and they went in. Straight ahead were a pair of Springs of Life on either side of steps leading to a basement. Avos glanced down them and averted his eyes. "Don't look, princess. It's not the kind of thing you'd want to see."
"What is it?" She frowned.
"Shall we say, raw material for his zombification experiments. Lots of them."
"Oh." Nina turned a little pale, but looked around anyways. "There's some steps leading up instead. Let's go!" They cautiously creeped up the staircase and looked around for zombies. There were none. "Looks clear, but be careful anyways." They continued slinking around the tower very slowly, being careful to look around every corner for the undead. There were none. The east tower was dark, dank and creepy, but deserted. When they reached the third floor and found no zombies there either, Nina began to get suspicious.
"No zombies at all here... but if they're not here, where CAN they be? It's not like they're heading down to Romero to pick up booze and girlfriends..."
"Actually, that could very well be it." Valos said seriously. "Remember, that old man said Manson's been kidnapping young women. Maybe the zombies are getting refills."
"Would Manson be with them?" Nina wondered. "If so, we could look through his laboratory for the remedy, take it, and be gone before he even knew we were here! Dad's recovery would seem nothing short of a miracle. I'll bet THAT would put a crimp in Zog's tail."
"It's a tempting possibility..." Valos smiled, then frowned. "Unfortunately, we're still not entirely alone here." He pointed ahead to the staircase leading to the fourth floor. Another spectre, identical to Morte, guarded it. Its eye sockets narrowed somehow as it saw them as well.
"Intruders? How did you get past my brother on the first floor?"
"Your brother? Is his name Morte?" Avos challenged. The spectre nodded.
"Yes, he was guarding the door. I'm Mortea, his sister. Now, what happened to him?"
"I'm afraid he came down with a bad case of dead, madame." Valos shook his head. "Those things happen in fights, regretfully."
"Then you shall join him!" Mortea snarled, raising her scythe and charging. Valos raised his spear, but she slipped past it and viciously slammed him into the floor. Bellowing, Avos sunk his own blade into her back, but Mortea turned around and slashed at him as well, forcing him to retreat. Poking at her, Avos lured Mortea away from Valos while Nina bent over him and used a healing spell.
"Are you all right, Sir Valos?" Valos nodded.
"Uh... fine now. Thanks, princess... huh?" She was casting a different spell now, and his spear had red light on it.
"It's the same spell I used on Avos with Morte... it'll increase your strength for a short time."
"All right then, time to skewer some ghoul!" Leaping into the air, Valos waited for an opening, then dived at Mortea. She spun around and tried to dodge, but too late; Valos' spear went straight into her skull. Even this, however, did not stop her. Seemingly fine, Mortea smashed him away, then turned to Avos. She did not notice Nina dart above her. She did, however, notice when the princess' rapier crunched into the back of her skull. Mortea tried to attack again, then collapsed into a pile of bones like her brother.
"Nifty little trick with our weapons there, your highness." Avos complimented her. "Think those two were the only housekeepers left behind?"
"Let's hope so." Nina sighed and led the way up the stairs. They emerged on the roof of the east tower. There was no visible way over to the west one. Nina blinked in consternation. "Now hold on! We saw it up here before! You can't just make a bridge disappear!" Angrily, she slammed her foot down on a protruding floortile, and as it sunk down with a click, the bridge extended out to the west tower as if by magic. All three stared, wide-eyed.
"A retracting freaking bridge..." Avos shook his head. "What will they think of next... Manson's a brain, all right."
"He's still our enemy." Nina reminded him. "Come on, let's get going before he comes back." They crossed over and entered an opening in the wall of the taller west tower.
"Hey! Who's there? Help!" A young woman's voice called from a barred cell. The three of them looked inside to see three ladies locked up. "You... you're not friends of the Wizard, are you?"
"Not even close." Nina smiled reassuringly. "Hold on. We'll have you out in just a moment." She fiddled with the lock for a few moments, then grunted and rammed her rapier through it.
"And they say princesses are supposed to be delicate and gentle creatures." Avos commented to his brother. Nina ignored that.
"Oh... thank you so much!" The ladies ran out. "You're from the Wing Clan? Are you here for the remedy of the poison he sent your king?"
"How did you know about that?" Valos asked, startled. One of the ladies smiled coldly.
"Manson told us a lot. We were better conversation than the zombies, I suppose, even if he was planning to use us as guinea pigs for his new formula."
"Speaking of zombies, I think he's taken them all to Romero, so you can slip out now." Valos told them. Another one of them shook her head.
"No, he hasn't... the zombies are going to the Aura Cave!" All three of the Wing Clanners were thunderstruck by this news.
"Is he... invading?" Nina whispered in horror. Again, the woman shook her head.
"No..." All three let out sighs of relief. "They're going to the ruins of Nanai. Apparently, there's a Goddess Key buried underneath it, and Manson wants to present it to Zog."
"Somebody's got their information wrong, then." Avos shook his head. "The Key's not under the ruins... the man who destroyed Nanai, Ryu, has it." Nina jumped almost ten feet in the air.
"Ryu! You mean that bumpkin at the palace?"
"Bumpkin?" Valos gave her a look. "Princess, that man's a warrior. I hope you weren't rude to him. Yes, that man took down a company of enemy soldiers single-handedly, and yes, he has the Earth Key." Nina bit her lip. "Well, we can sort all that out later. So the Wizard's gone, anyways?"
"No!" The third woman blurted. "He's just sleeping late! He's on the roof of this tower!" All three Wing Clanners froze.
"You'd better get out of here right away, then." Nina said grimly after a moment. "If he wakes up, you three will be in a LOT of trouble. Go! Go!" Like frightened rabbits, the three young women scurried across the bridge. Nina sighed. "Well, great. So, what do we do? Go up and fight, or try and ransack his lab before he comes to?"
"The lab, I think." Valos advised. "No use fighting his magic if we don't have to." Avos nodded in agreement.
"All right, the lab it is then." Nina led the way. While the west tower was taller, it was also narrower, and the way through was simple and uncomplicated. Before long, they emerged on the bottom floor. All three frowned; there was some kind of fog that made it hard to see. It smelled wierd, too, but there was no time to think about it; even as they stepped off the staircase, a howl of rage echoed through the tower.
"Crap!" Avos cursed. "He's awake, and he must have found the cell! So much for plan A... get ready, everybody!" The three of them took positions around the stairs, and a few moments later, Manson, the Wizard of Karma, entered.
"So you're the ones who let my specimens go..." He hissed.
"Got it in one, buddy." Valos growled. "Unlike some people, we frown on using intelligents as experiments." The Wizard didn't respond; he simply scrutinized them, and his eye sockets came alight.
"Ah... you are Wing Clanners! How timely a visit! Tell me, what brings you here?"
"We're here for the remedy of the poison you gave my father, slime!" Nina shouted. Manson's gaze focused on her.
"Your father, you say... so, you would be Princess Nina! Royalty... my, my. I pray you'll forgive me, but I wasn't really expecting you, so I haven't had time to... tidy up. I'm guessing you killed my guards?" She nodded. "What a bother. That formula was a pain to whip up; a deviation from my normal course. Now I'll have to bother digging it out and using it on two more. How annoying." Avos' eyes narrowed.
"If you don't give us the remedy we're looking for, you'll get a lot more than annoyance, buddy."
"I'm afraid that's not what we'll be doing at all." Manson disagreed. "You three lost me three specimens. It's only fair that you replace them... and it's fortuitous, since my newest formula should work much better on Wing Clanners that it does on humans." Suddenly, all three of them began choking; the fog around them was burning in their lungs! Manson walked forward, lipless mouth bared in an eternal grin. "I assume you're familiar with the gas of the xeon plant. It's my favorite smell, actually, and their juice is quite useful to me, so I keep a great many of them growing here. There's only one downside to the plant, and that is that it produces a gas that, while harmless to most creatures, is quite fatal when inhaled by birds. I'd always wondered if that included bird-mammal hybrids like yourself. It seems that it does indeed."
"You... you won't take us that easily!" Nina shouted. "Come on, guys... get him!" Struggling to their feet, the three of them charged, howling battle cries. The Wizard of Karma simply continued smiling and watched them approach. Their blades sunk into his flesh, and he didn't even flinch.
"I'm afraid that won't quite cut it with me... pardon the phrasing." Again, they slashed at him, and again it was completely ineffective, not even drawing blood. "Fools, look at yourselves. You can barely hold up your weapons, let alone use them! Give up now and spare yourselves the effort!"
"NEVER!" Screeching, Nina stabbed at his face, and with a sigh, Manson smashed her away with a mere slap like he was swatting a fly. The princess skidded across the floor before smashing into a wall and lying still.
"Hopefully you two will show more common sense..." The Wizard told the weakened soldiers. "You'll be in better shape without wear and tear..."
"Huh..." Avos stood still, then looked at his brother. "Looks like... this it then, bro."
"Should have known..." Valos smiled back wanly. "At least we got to go on... one last adventure."
"So we go down fighting? Never give up, death before dishonor?" Avos suggested. Valos shook his head.
"No... that's what he wants. Zombie experiments... remember? No... we have to... save the princess. Only one... you know who. Xeon gas affects... birds."
"I... see." Avos nodded after a moment. "You're... the faster flier. You go. Bro... tell them... I died doing my duty." And then, Sir Avos of Windia threw himself on the Wizard of Karma, not with his blade, but with his body. Yelling, he tackled his foe to the ground, and Valos ran for the stairs. Even as he moved, he knew that the xeon gas had already taken its effect on him, but he continued going, forcing all of his energy into his wings. There was a shimmering around his form, and then where the soldier had been, a huge bird with sky-blue feathers was instead. As he took off, forcing his already-stiffening wings to move, he heard a startlingly loud explosion, accompanied by a single scream that cut off suddenly and horribly, and he knew what had happened.
"Bro... I'll see you soon... but I have to tell him first... he's the only one who can save the princess now."
Outside the palace in Winlan, two guards were stationed. It was a bright, sunny, afternoon with nothing to do but stand there and look impressive. One of them frowned as he saw a dark shape in the sky.
"Hey, Tom... what's that?" The other one looked and scoffed.
"It's a bird, you idiot. Big one, though..."
"And there's something chasing it..." The first one narrowed his eyes. "Some kind of flying reptiles... four of them..." In sudden realization, he jumped to his feet, spitting oaths. "Shit! Those are Dark Dragons, and they're chasing a Wing Clanner! Tom, get some others in the air, NOW!" The second guard ran off, and the first one watched with bated breath as the bird in the sky grew closer. The Dark Dragons were catching up to him, but just as they were about to bring him down, there was a mighty screech, and four more huge birds engaged them, leaving the loner to plummet towards Winlan.
"What's going on here, soldier?" General Cornus demanded as he walked out. "Who is that?"
"No clue, sir..." They both jumped as the bird plowed into the street like a beached whale. It shimmered, and returned to the form of Sir Valos.
"Valos from the Aura Cave?" Cornus recognized him. "What the hell is going ON here?" It was then that he noticed the man's sickly look and dead-white complexion.
"Sir..." Valos wheezed out. "Pay attention, please... I don't think I'll have time to say it twice. My brother, me, and the Princess went to Karma..."
"Whatever for!" Cornus thundered.
"For the remedy... to the poison that the Wizard Manson gave our king!" Valos gritted out from between his teeth. "We almost had it... but the Wizard's lab was filled with... xeon plants..." Cornus whistled; he knew of the deadly plant. "We all inhaled too much... Avos is dead, and so am I... the princess, I don't know, but..."
"But we have to try." Cornus nodded. "Thank you, Sir Valos... I know who to go to. You may rest now... you've done all you can."
"Then... I am content." Valos released one last rasping sigh, and was still. Cornus bowed his head for a moment, then turned to the guard. "Get an attack party together! The best fighters in bird form! MOVE, man!" Thundering past him, Cornus kicked open the door to Ryu's room.
"General?" The young man turned, startled, from the desk he had been sitting at. "What's going on? Have you found the princess?"
"Oh, we've found her, all right..." Cornus growled. "Ryu, we need your help. She's been taken captive by the Wizard of Karma, an ally of the Dark Dragons!" Ryu's eyes widened.
"She went there to get the antidote for the poison?"
"How did you-" The General sputtered. Ryu just smiled.
"Sharp ears. Heard the queen and princess talking. What do you need me for? You guys are trained soldiers..."
"The Wizard's laboratory is filled with xeon plants." Cornus explained. "Their gas is fatal to all birds, including us. You're the only non-Windian who stands a chance of fighting him... you're a Light Dragon!" Now it was Ryu's turn to jump.
"How did you-"
"Sharp eyes." The General smiled briefly. "I saw the letter from King Firdan. But that's in the past. Ryu... you're the only one who can save our princess. Will you help us?"
"...Yes, I will." Ryu nodded. "I'll do it. Let's go."
"All right. The attack party's outside." Cornus led the way. Six humongous blue birds were perched there, each one as big as Ryu's house.
"What in the..."
"The power of the Great Bird. Every member of the Wing Clan can transform into one." Cornus explained. "Get on my back after I transform as well; no time to walk. To Karma at top speed, men!" Becoming the seventh bird, Cornus waited until Ryu was well seated, then took off. They flew over the mountains to the northwest at a fast clip. It was when they neared Romero that the attack came; four more huge purple flying reptiles were blocking the sky.
"Go! Go! Don't let them through!" One screeched, and the three others thundered forward. With an avian screech, the Great Birds streaked forward, two of them zeroing in on each dragon while Ryu and Cornus slipped past. The Dark Dragon leader was so intent on watching the fight that he didn't notice until they had already slipped past. Howling, he turned after them, but three of the Great Birds broke off their fights to swoop around and block him off.
The sun was just about finished rising as Cornus made a perfect landing on the roof of Karma's west tower, and the orange sky was turning blue. Ryu dismounted, and the bird shrunk to become the General again. "Whoo... not as young as I used to be. Let's go-I'll come along as far as I can before the gas kicks in!" With no time for subtlety, the two of them charged down the stairs screaming like banshees. Several lizard-like bipeds with shields and swords attempted to block their path, but they all fell to Ryu's sword and Cornus' spear.
"Zard Clanners... looks like Manson's been hiring himself some mercenary bodyguards." Ryu grunted as he hacked one's head off. "Or maybe the Dark Dragons brought them down to give him protection... didn't all his zombies go for Nanai last night?"
"Yeah." Cornus shrugged, impaling one and kicking him off within a few seconds. "Does it matter where he got them?"
"Not really." Ryu stopped in front of a staircase and sniffed. "That smell... is it?" Cornus took a whiff as well and nodded grimly.
"It is. Xeon gas. Manson's lab has to be down here."
"All right. Stay up here and keep any more of those newts from following me."
"You won't get any interference." Cornus promised. "Just take care of the Wizard."
"Count on it." Saluting, Ryu walked down the stairs. Purplish-grey mist was everywhere, and he coughed involuntarily, even though it wasn't really thick. Looking cloesly, he saw that there was a paved stone path running through a garden of peculiar purple vines that covered most of the room. "So these are xeon plants..." He walked along the path, made a couple right turns, and found himself facing the Wizard of Karma. Atop a rise in the floor, a collection of desks, shelves and laboratory tables was set, each covered with obscure notes, potions and devices. Lying on the table in the center was Princess Nina of Windia, and a man who could only be the Wizard Manson was standing in front of her. Behind them, the platform ended over a huge, bubbling pit of molten lava. Ryu slowly walked up, and the Wizard spoke without turning.
"The xeon plant is truly marvelous. No insect, mammal, fish, reptile or amphibian in the world is harmed in the least by any exposure to it, but with birds, simply breathing it is fatal. The juice of the plant will also eventually prove fatal; that is what I used on the King, after all. Keeping gas in an envelope is impossible, unfortunately, but in the long run, a pin smeared with the juice works just as well. A pity I won't be able to put his body to a better use, but I do have the princess..."
"She's dead, then?" Ryu demanded, a lump rising in his throat.
"Oh, no. Not yet." Manson assured him, still keeping his back turned. "My newest formula requires some preparation with the body before it expires, so I gave her some of the remedy for xeon exposure, which I discovered about ten years ago. It removed all effects of the gas from her and will keep her safe from them for roughly an hour, by which time I'll be ready to kill her. She's still conscious, I think, but very weak; I don't even need to bother to strap her down. She can't move a single feather."
"How convenient." Ryu smiled. "That means all I need to do is whup YOUR sorry ass and get her out of here before that hour's up."
"Easier said than done, I'm afraid." The Wizard laughed, starting to turn. "You must be very good to come here alone, but no matter how good you are, the gas will still-huh?" He stared-at least Ryu thought he did. It was hard to tell, since he only had empty eye sockets. "You're not a Wing Clanner! Human? No... blue hair... you're a Light Dragon!"
"Correct-a-mundo." Ryu advanced grimly. "And that means your gas doesn't do squat."
"I still have my magic, fool." The Wizard snarled, recovering from his surprise. "A Light Dragon... I don't believe I've ever tested on your kind before. You'll be the first."
"I tend to doubt it." Ryu was about to attack, but stopped at a sudden thought. "Hey... if you're that confident... why don't we raise the stakes a little? You have more xeon remedy, right?"
"Yes, I do..." Manson nodded. "But you'll never find it on your own. Why should I tell you where it is?" Ryu smiled.
"Because if you do... I'll tell you where the Earth Key is. It's not in Nanai."
"What!" Manson stopped cold. "The... Earth Key?"
"Yeah. You're allied with the Dark Dragons, right? They really want that. Basically, you put up the remedy, I put up the Key, and the winner of our fight takes all. So, do we have a deal?"
"Hmm... very well." Manson crossed over to a desk, opened a drawer, and pulled out a purple bottle. "This is the remedy to the xeon plant." Crossing over to Nina, he unstoppered the bottle and poured a single drop into her mouth. She immediately coughed, and some of the pallor went out of her skin. "Good enough?"
"Indeed." Ryu reached into his pocket and pulled out the Earth Key. "And this is my end of the deal." He concentrated on it, and all around them, the ground began shaking. He waited until a bookshelf fell over, making Manson wince, then stopped it. "Also good enough?"
"Very well." Manson put the bottle next to Nina, and Ryu put the Key there as well. The two of them walked out to the back of the lab, over the lava. "Winner takes all... begin!" Instantly, Manson fired a bolt of electricity from his hand. Ryu charged, taking the bolt head on and continuing to slash at Manson. The Wizard jumped back in surprise. "You're resilient!" He fired several more, but Ryu took them all in stride and continued to hack at the Wizard.
"Already seen that one." Ryu smirked as he gashed open the Wizard's side. "A Dark Dragon Knight by the name of Terrack used that exact same spell. I killed him."
"Terrack was the Knight who you took the Earth Key from, wasn't he?" Manson remembered. "So it wasn't his own incompetence... YOU were responsible for what happened at Nanai!"
"Got it in one." Ryu swung, but only cut the Wizard's robes. "And I'm going to do the exact same thing here rather easily, if that Thunderbolt spell is all you have."
"Oh, it's not, believe me!" Manson pointed at Ryu, and a puff of white gas flew out, smashing into Ryu and instantly covering him with ice. "Freeze, fool! Now then, how to finish you..."
"It's not... over yet!" Ryu gritted his teeth and forced himself forward again, ignoring the icy splinters that opened his skin as he shattered them. Manson's jaw fell open in astonishment as Ryu's sword plunged into his chest. "Got you!"
"Oh, really?" Manson suddenly brought his hand forward and smashed Ryu away.
"Hey, what gives?" The Light Dragon warrior yelled as he got back up. "How the hell do you survive... you're not even bleeding!" As a matter of fact, he now noticed that there was not a single speck of blood dotting Manson's robes, despite multiple wounds. The Wizard of Karma threw his head back and laughed.
"Pathetic idiot, zombies have no blood!"
"You zombified yourself?" Ryu gasped, suddenly realizing it. The skull-like face, the charnelhouse reek... it all fit. The Wizard of Karma was already dead as a doornail.
"It was a few decades ago, I believe..." Manson mused. "I was working one day when I felt my body start to give out. But I knew I couldn't die yet... my work was unfinished, and I had no students to pass it on to. In desperation, I took everything I knew about the zombification process and a lot I didn't and threw it all together before drinking it. When I came to, I was as I am now. I had done it... created the perfect zombie formula. This body will never wear out, never deteriorate any further. I shall remain for all eternity." He sighed bitterly. "And I didn't know how! In my dying delirium, I hadn't been able to remember what combination of unknown elements I had added to my desperate attempt. My work continues... and YOU will NOT disrupt it!" Grinning fearlessly, he moved his hands again and shimmered like water. Before Ryu's stunned eyes, four more Wizards, absolutely identical, took up places around the first. "Ha ha... what will you do know, Light Dragon?"
"The name's Ryu... and as for your question... the same as before!" Yelling, Ryu charged at the first one and slashed. His blade went right through it. "Ha! They're illusions!"
"True... but how do you know which one's real?" The Wizards all sneered. "You can only hurt one... but the converse isn't true!" All five extended their hands, and five clouds of ice flew into Ryu. He buckled, but again, smashed through the ice.
"Yeah, right... four of those are as illusionary as four of you are!" Turning left, he swung his sword through a second Wizard and kicked a third in the same swing. Both were illusions. "Down to two!" He charged at the remaing ones. All five fired thunderbolts, but Ryu jumped at the last moment, and they collided below him as he delivered a mighty overhand midair swing, turning himself into a whirling buzzsaw. The fourth Wizard stared up at him as he descended... then screamed as Ryu's sword spun through where his shoulder started and cleaved off his right arm and leg. The four illusions vanished, and there was a horrendous screech as the sword cut into the stone floor.
"Damn you..." Manson stumbled back, still not shedding a drop of blood, for he had none. "I was so close to perfecting my zombification process... so close..."
"Nobody's perfect." Ryu smiled and pulled on his sword. It didn't move. Grunting, he pulled again, harder. Again, it remained still. It was stuck in the stone, jammed there by the force of his slice. It took a moment for Manson to realize this.
"Ha... ha ha ha! Close, but no cigar, Ryu!" He raised his remaining hand. "You almost got me... but almost isn't good enough! Goodbye-URK!" His words cut off with a grunt, and Ryu looked up from his sword to see a rapier embedded in the Wizard's forehead. Both turned to see Princess Nina of Windia half-sitting on the table, smiling weakly.
"Shouldn't have given me... more remedy, Manson... shouldn't have left the bottle near me, either... and you REALLY should have... taken my sword away from me. So much for being... a genius scientest."
"No... way..." Croaking, Manson teetered backwards, on the edge of his laboratory above the lava. Nina snatched up the Earth Key and concentrated, and the earth shook. With a final, despairing wail, the Wizard of Karma fell off into the lava. Ryu groaned and walked over to her.
"So that drop he gave you as a demonstration was enough that you could move your hand... and you took more remedy. How are you?"
"I'll live." Her smile disappeared. "Ryu... thank you. And I'm sorry I doubted you... I thought you were-"
"A bumpkin?" Ryu took up the smile that she had discarded. "Forget it, princess. Important thing is, you're alive, the Wizard's dead, and there's enough remedy left for your father... isn't there?" She nodded. "Good. Can you fly?"
"I think so..." She tested her wings. "Yeah, I can... enough to get out of here, at least."
"Good. I'd offer to carry you, but I think there's somebody else." He walked down to the xeon garden and picked up the body of Sir Avos. Nina nodded, rubbing her eyes to hide the tears.
"Is Valos..."
"Dead as well. I'm sorry, but he inhaled too much gas... he was able to make it back to Winlan, though. If it hadn't been for him, I never would have known to come here in time. I'm sure General Cornus will have them given a decent burial back in Winlan."
"Yes..." Nina nodded and carefully put the remedy in her pocket. "I'm afraid our swords are both staying here..."
"We can get new ones in Winlan too, I think." Ryu shrugged. "Shall we go, then?" Nina nodded fervently, a small smile coming back on her face.
"Yes, please. For some reason, this place really smells bad to me. Odd, isn't it?"
Ryu broke out laughing.
