Chapter 3: A Dragon by Any Other Name
The city of Rubicant, in the province of South Cape, of the Country of Valvalis, the brthplace of the modern-day Urkan religion. It had always been a place where crime was higher than most, but not in terms of mugging or violent crimes. Rather, it was smuggling and drug trafficking where Rubicant made its mark in the world. It was a port city and thus could make its illegal goods cross oceans and even transported them to the Manillo people deep beneath the ocean's surface. An ocean apart from Winlan of the Rhapala region of Windia and yet, there were things in that city which connected it to people and events yet to take place in Winlan.
In a section of the city of Rubicant, colourfully nicknamed 'Suicide Slum', there were many warehouses, most dedicated to the trade of illegal materials. One part, closest to the docks, had been used for cocaine shipments to the Manillo, was heavily guarded due to attacks against the traffickers of late. With an army of thugs inside and outside the building, they were absolutely confident that no one would be foolish enough to attack.
"So all a this is going to tha' fishes?" One thug asked another.
"Yep"
"How the hell can you snort coke under water, anyway?"
"Yer new ain't ya?"
"What's that got to do with anything?"
"If ya weren't new, you'd know not to ask stupid questions. Yer asking the wrong guy anyways, go ask the fishes when they come for the goods"
"Whatever... hey, isn't it kinda quiet all of a sudden?"
It had gotten quiet, once there were small conversations coming from outside the warehouse, but now nothing. Everyone within began to tense up, expecting the police or some crazy vigilante to burst in any moment. Instead the lights shut off and the warehouse became dark, nothing was visible. Suddenly, the sounds of fighting broke out and shots were fired, but it was impossible to tell who was attacking and from where. Suddenly it grew quiet again and the two thugs who had been speaking earlier looked around, trying to see, trying to determine if there had been a victor or if they were now in greater danger.
"What the fuck happened?" One thug asked nervously.
"If I were you, I would not wonder what had happen, but rather what was going to happen." A voice said from behind them.
The two thugs turned, but could not see who it was who spoke (1). Whatever it was, it towered above them and all they could really see of it was two glowing bleu lights high above them. The two thugs turned and ran, hoping to get away from the assailant. They heard a whooshing noise above them and the ground shook a bit as something large and heavy landed before them.
"Frost Strike!" The assailant called out as metal impacted with the floor.
A chill wind blew from a point before the figure, enveloping the two thugs and not only were they chilled to the bone, but their bodies grew lethargic and they fell unconscious. The figure turned and left through the roof, the place where he had entered. He looked at all the bodies, none of them dead, all this wrought by his hand. The authorities would soon arrive to take these thugs away, so beyond what he had already done, it was not his concern. He looked up at the stars, it was a clear night, and he felt something had changed in the world, something elusive and yet familiar.
"I wonder..." The figure mused. "Is it time once more for the dragon to awaken?"
***********************
Nina dreamed again and this was a dream she had before, a dream that increased in frequency as the New Year approached. She stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking a cloudy valley, the bottom of which could not be seen through the clouds. Two immense serpentine dragons rose from the clouds below, intertwined about each other. They looked like the eastern dragons she sometimes painted, one was black and the other was white. They vied for dominance over each other, each trying to climb higher than the other and both snapping at each other with their massive jaws as they rose. It was impossible to tell if this was a sort of good-natured rivalry or open hostility. As they now towered over Nina, the white one's jaws clamped down hard on the black's neck and red blood spurted from the wounds, but the white would not let go. In response the black bit down upon the white, drawing blood and it would not let go either. She wanted to call out, to stop them, but she could say nothing. She saw, on an opposing cliff, a beautiful man with long blond hair, he wore black armour laced with white bones, had black feathered wings and even from this distance she could see his eyes, which were the colour of crimson flame. This 'angel' leapt into the air, flying towards the dragons, taking out a large, black scythe as he did. Using that weapon he beheaded the black dragon and then the white, watching as the huge bodies fell into the milky, white mist below. He turned his gaze upon Nina and she could see the calm, malevolent look on his face. He threw his scythe at her and she could not move away from the spinning weapon. Just as it approached her, she woke up with a start.
She was breathing hard and was bathed in a cold sweat, she really hated that dream and she always remembered every detail of it, right down to the look in the 'angel's' eyes as he threw the scythe at her. She clutched at her amulet, holding it always comforted her and then she got up and went to get dressed. Today she had to wear something a bit more fancy as she was having a meeting at a art house. She selected her clothes carefully and while she now had a definite professional appearance about her, she still managed to look casual. As she left her room she heard the T.V., apparently her guest was up early.
"...Another murder occurred in a Brotherhood of Saint Evans church, in what the media has dubbed the St Evans murders. The church interior was covered in black, oily sludge-like substance and the body was discovered nude, but no sign of rape has been found. The body has one stab wound to the chest identical to the other St. Evans murders. Doctors have yet to perform an autopsy so we are unsure if the stab wound is the cause of death. Previous autopsies have revealed that the victims had not died of the sole stab wound to the chest and were in fact dead long before the wound had been inflicted upon them." The reporter said on the newscast.
The stranger sat on the couch watching the screen. He held his sword, still in its sheath, in both hands. In truth it looked more like he was gazing at the pommel of his sword rather than the news.
"Have you been there all night?" Nina asked, for it looked like he hadn't moved an inch.
She moved to touch him, her hand going for his. He turned to her, suddenly, as her hand approached his and it almost looked like he was glaring at her.
"Don't. Touch. The. Sword." He stated and she pulled her hand away quickly.
"Um... ahhh... Wou-would you like to come with me today. I... There's a painting I have to bring to a gallery." She said nervously.
She had no idea how to react around him, let alone any idea what to call him. He said very little and seemed, not unconcerned, but more or less emotionless. He shrugged, pretty much an indication that he would indeed go with her.
"Ahh... Would you like something to eat?" She asked.
"I do not require any sustenance." He replied tonelessly.
"O-kay then... Right... I'll just have breakfast and we'll leave then." She said going into the kitchen.
~SOL Nina~
The stranger... Honestly I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into or the things it would change. I'm not sure that if I knew then what I know now that I would do things differently. What I never understood is why he never seemed to feel anything; even when he got hurt, it was like he barely noticed it... of course he never got hurt all that often. If he truly didn't have emotions, I feel sorry for him and maybe that's why I took him in, because I felt sorry for him. I'm still not sure about that...
~End SOL~
The two left, heading downtown where the gallery was. It was the neither largest nor most popular gallery in town, but it had a variety of art, a place where beginners had the best chance of showing off their art and maybe even hitting the big time. At this time of year many people would visit the gallery, even a few critics among them. Nina and the stranger paid for entrance and worked their way through the small crowd.
"Nina, babe, good to see you again." The manager greeted them. "If you've got the painting, we can discuss business in my office."
"Yes of course I have it." Nina said, indicating the suitcase she had, containing a painting she had done. "Umm... If you could stay here, look around, I'll be back in a moment." She said to the Stranger.
The manager and Nina went off, leaving the stranger to look at the paintings. He seemed drawn to the ones Nina had done. All of them had a dragon and angel motif as they all had depictions of dragons or winged people or both. They were done with an expert hand, not often seen even by masters' standards. In those instances where there were more people in the picture, the faces were blurred. One particular piece drew his attention; the title was simply 'Ryu' and it was an ink drawing of a dragon (2). There were no details to it; it was really just a silhouette of a dragon done on white paper, however, it seemed to be rather popular as there was a large crowd around it. Nina, after making a rather lucrative agreement with the manager, joined the Stranger.
"Where did you see this?" He asked.
"Nowhere... I paint what I dream and this one... well, I dunno, I just drew this one day, off the top of my head. Although, since you seem to like it how about I call you 'Ryu'?"
"Why 'Ryu'?" He asked.
"Well... You like this picture and its title is 'Ryu'. Ryu is the word for 'dragon' in another language, dragons have great strength and power, or at least they do in the stories and you seem to have that kind of unfathomable strength." Nina said. "Do I really need a reason? 'Sides I don't know what else to call you."
The newly named Ryu shrugged, what he was called wasn't important to him.
"You are very infuriating, you know that?" Nina grumbled.
************************************************************************
"We always look upon our first creations as masterpieces, no matter how awful they are." Hanna, Weatherlight navigator (Jangling Automaton, Magic: The Gathering)
Music: "Certain Victory Lotus Sutra Tune" (Hellsing RAID CD)
1)- I haven't described this guy for a reason. I will eventually, but not yet. Some people might be able to guess who it is or maybe not.
2)- This looks like someone drew the silhouette of the Dragon Tear jewel from Breath of Fire 2 with ink.
Sorry this chapter is shorter than the others, but I couldn't write anymore for these scenes. The next one will be longer, I think, as we begin to glimpse at the true evil that exists in the modern BoF world.
The city of Rubicant, in the province of South Cape, of the Country of Valvalis, the brthplace of the modern-day Urkan religion. It had always been a place where crime was higher than most, but not in terms of mugging or violent crimes. Rather, it was smuggling and drug trafficking where Rubicant made its mark in the world. It was a port city and thus could make its illegal goods cross oceans and even transported them to the Manillo people deep beneath the ocean's surface. An ocean apart from Winlan of the Rhapala region of Windia and yet, there were things in that city which connected it to people and events yet to take place in Winlan.
In a section of the city of Rubicant, colourfully nicknamed 'Suicide Slum', there were many warehouses, most dedicated to the trade of illegal materials. One part, closest to the docks, had been used for cocaine shipments to the Manillo, was heavily guarded due to attacks against the traffickers of late. With an army of thugs inside and outside the building, they were absolutely confident that no one would be foolish enough to attack.
"So all a this is going to tha' fishes?" One thug asked another.
"Yep"
"How the hell can you snort coke under water, anyway?"
"Yer new ain't ya?"
"What's that got to do with anything?"
"If ya weren't new, you'd know not to ask stupid questions. Yer asking the wrong guy anyways, go ask the fishes when they come for the goods"
"Whatever... hey, isn't it kinda quiet all of a sudden?"
It had gotten quiet, once there were small conversations coming from outside the warehouse, but now nothing. Everyone within began to tense up, expecting the police or some crazy vigilante to burst in any moment. Instead the lights shut off and the warehouse became dark, nothing was visible. Suddenly, the sounds of fighting broke out and shots were fired, but it was impossible to tell who was attacking and from where. Suddenly it grew quiet again and the two thugs who had been speaking earlier looked around, trying to see, trying to determine if there had been a victor or if they were now in greater danger.
"What the fuck happened?" One thug asked nervously.
"If I were you, I would not wonder what had happen, but rather what was going to happen." A voice said from behind them.
The two thugs turned, but could not see who it was who spoke (1). Whatever it was, it towered above them and all they could really see of it was two glowing bleu lights high above them. The two thugs turned and ran, hoping to get away from the assailant. They heard a whooshing noise above them and the ground shook a bit as something large and heavy landed before them.
"Frost Strike!" The assailant called out as metal impacted with the floor.
A chill wind blew from a point before the figure, enveloping the two thugs and not only were they chilled to the bone, but their bodies grew lethargic and they fell unconscious. The figure turned and left through the roof, the place where he had entered. He looked at all the bodies, none of them dead, all this wrought by his hand. The authorities would soon arrive to take these thugs away, so beyond what he had already done, it was not his concern. He looked up at the stars, it was a clear night, and he felt something had changed in the world, something elusive and yet familiar.
"I wonder..." The figure mused. "Is it time once more for the dragon to awaken?"
***********************
Nina dreamed again and this was a dream she had before, a dream that increased in frequency as the New Year approached. She stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking a cloudy valley, the bottom of which could not be seen through the clouds. Two immense serpentine dragons rose from the clouds below, intertwined about each other. They looked like the eastern dragons she sometimes painted, one was black and the other was white. They vied for dominance over each other, each trying to climb higher than the other and both snapping at each other with their massive jaws as they rose. It was impossible to tell if this was a sort of good-natured rivalry or open hostility. As they now towered over Nina, the white one's jaws clamped down hard on the black's neck and red blood spurted from the wounds, but the white would not let go. In response the black bit down upon the white, drawing blood and it would not let go either. She wanted to call out, to stop them, but she could say nothing. She saw, on an opposing cliff, a beautiful man with long blond hair, he wore black armour laced with white bones, had black feathered wings and even from this distance she could see his eyes, which were the colour of crimson flame. This 'angel' leapt into the air, flying towards the dragons, taking out a large, black scythe as he did. Using that weapon he beheaded the black dragon and then the white, watching as the huge bodies fell into the milky, white mist below. He turned his gaze upon Nina and she could see the calm, malevolent look on his face. He threw his scythe at her and she could not move away from the spinning weapon. Just as it approached her, she woke up with a start.
She was breathing hard and was bathed in a cold sweat, she really hated that dream and she always remembered every detail of it, right down to the look in the 'angel's' eyes as he threw the scythe at her. She clutched at her amulet, holding it always comforted her and then she got up and went to get dressed. Today she had to wear something a bit more fancy as she was having a meeting at a art house. She selected her clothes carefully and while she now had a definite professional appearance about her, she still managed to look casual. As she left her room she heard the T.V., apparently her guest was up early.
"...Another murder occurred in a Brotherhood of Saint Evans church, in what the media has dubbed the St Evans murders. The church interior was covered in black, oily sludge-like substance and the body was discovered nude, but no sign of rape has been found. The body has one stab wound to the chest identical to the other St. Evans murders. Doctors have yet to perform an autopsy so we are unsure if the stab wound is the cause of death. Previous autopsies have revealed that the victims had not died of the sole stab wound to the chest and were in fact dead long before the wound had been inflicted upon them." The reporter said on the newscast.
The stranger sat on the couch watching the screen. He held his sword, still in its sheath, in both hands. In truth it looked more like he was gazing at the pommel of his sword rather than the news.
"Have you been there all night?" Nina asked, for it looked like he hadn't moved an inch.
She moved to touch him, her hand going for his. He turned to her, suddenly, as her hand approached his and it almost looked like he was glaring at her.
"Don't. Touch. The. Sword." He stated and she pulled her hand away quickly.
"Um... ahhh... Wou-would you like to come with me today. I... There's a painting I have to bring to a gallery." She said nervously.
She had no idea how to react around him, let alone any idea what to call him. He said very little and seemed, not unconcerned, but more or less emotionless. He shrugged, pretty much an indication that he would indeed go with her.
"Ahh... Would you like something to eat?" She asked.
"I do not require any sustenance." He replied tonelessly.
"O-kay then... Right... I'll just have breakfast and we'll leave then." She said going into the kitchen.
~SOL Nina~
The stranger... Honestly I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into or the things it would change. I'm not sure that if I knew then what I know now that I would do things differently. What I never understood is why he never seemed to feel anything; even when he got hurt, it was like he barely noticed it... of course he never got hurt all that often. If he truly didn't have emotions, I feel sorry for him and maybe that's why I took him in, because I felt sorry for him. I'm still not sure about that...
~End SOL~
The two left, heading downtown where the gallery was. It was the neither largest nor most popular gallery in town, but it had a variety of art, a place where beginners had the best chance of showing off their art and maybe even hitting the big time. At this time of year many people would visit the gallery, even a few critics among them. Nina and the stranger paid for entrance and worked their way through the small crowd.
"Nina, babe, good to see you again." The manager greeted them. "If you've got the painting, we can discuss business in my office."
"Yes of course I have it." Nina said, indicating the suitcase she had, containing a painting she had done. "Umm... If you could stay here, look around, I'll be back in a moment." She said to the Stranger.
The manager and Nina went off, leaving the stranger to look at the paintings. He seemed drawn to the ones Nina had done. All of them had a dragon and angel motif as they all had depictions of dragons or winged people or both. They were done with an expert hand, not often seen even by masters' standards. In those instances where there were more people in the picture, the faces were blurred. One particular piece drew his attention; the title was simply 'Ryu' and it was an ink drawing of a dragon (2). There were no details to it; it was really just a silhouette of a dragon done on white paper, however, it seemed to be rather popular as there was a large crowd around it. Nina, after making a rather lucrative agreement with the manager, joined the Stranger.
"Where did you see this?" He asked.
"Nowhere... I paint what I dream and this one... well, I dunno, I just drew this one day, off the top of my head. Although, since you seem to like it how about I call you 'Ryu'?"
"Why 'Ryu'?" He asked.
"Well... You like this picture and its title is 'Ryu'. Ryu is the word for 'dragon' in another language, dragons have great strength and power, or at least they do in the stories and you seem to have that kind of unfathomable strength." Nina said. "Do I really need a reason? 'Sides I don't know what else to call you."
The newly named Ryu shrugged, what he was called wasn't important to him.
"You are very infuriating, you know that?" Nina grumbled.
************************************************************************
"We always look upon our first creations as masterpieces, no matter how awful they are." Hanna, Weatherlight navigator (Jangling Automaton, Magic: The Gathering)
Music: "Certain Victory Lotus Sutra Tune" (Hellsing RAID CD)
1)- I haven't described this guy for a reason. I will eventually, but not yet. Some people might be able to guess who it is or maybe not.
2)- This looks like someone drew the silhouette of the Dragon Tear jewel from Breath of Fire 2 with ink.
Sorry this chapter is shorter than the others, but I couldn't write anymore for these scenes. The next one will be longer, I think, as we begin to glimpse at the true evil that exists in the modern BoF world.