The Vana'diel War: Book I

by Deyon

The Dark Lord Devon has come. Deyon, the one who would end the horror, along with friends Hvon, Ellen, Fado, Satav, Ryorn, and Liovn would guide him in this time of death and war. Chapter 02: Deyon 50 percent done! R and R... please!

- Final Fantasy XI -

Hello people... this is my first Final Fantasy XI story, or, in truth, first story on ever. This is the story of one man's journey to try and save a world that had been sentenced to death and war since before his birth. Filled with adventure, mystery, fantasy, romance, action, terror, death, and war, this is truly (if you will excuse me for my lack of modesty) going to turn into one of the greatest and longest stories of Final Fantasy XI. It will take me many months (no more I hope), to finish all 3 books in the series. In the end, I hope that all of you will be as satisfied as ever. And, as most authors will know, reviews are most helpful, so please leave your reviews to me, so I can continue on. Enjoy the book!

(All updates will be shown on this page by the chapter section)

The Vana'diel War

- Book I -

"Your decision, Deyon, will be fatal to the Dark Lord... or to us"

In the dark days long past, the Dark Lord Devonic had cast a thick cloud of horror, death and war on the people of Vana'diel. No where could you hide from him and his beast-men, no where were you safe. It was when the 4 Great Capitals were about to fall, that the man died... just like that. Vana'diel was safe, the people went on with their lives, and time had forgotten Devonic and the terror he brought.It was 600 years later, when a new yet familiar horror came back to Vana'diel. People were being found dead all over, beast-men were being seen in greater numbers, and Devon, the new Dark Lord, cast fear and the threat of war into all the people in the land. The only chance that Vana'diel has to survive this next war and end the terror of the Dark Lord was in the mind and blood of the young Hume, Deyon. He alone would be the one to undo it all, to end a curse that had begun 600 years ago... but he would not do it alone. No, alone he would fail, but united he would stand.Hvon, a 600-year-old Hume warrior, who had seen Devonic fall, has been waiting all these years for the time he would guide Deyon. Fado, a small Tarutaru from the east, would be Deyon's friend and wisdom on the road when others had fallen. Ellen, the beautiful and elusive Hume from the Grand Duchy, the daughter of the duke, would be the one Deyon would fall for, and, near the end, fight for. Satav, the shady and cruel rival Deyon had always hated, would be the sword of the guide, as they moved deep into dangerous lands. Ryorn and Lionv, a Galka warrior and Elvaan ranger, would help Deyon in dark times and fight to the death to guide him on the path to war.Dark and deadly times were sure to fall on Deyon, but with the help of his friends and allies, he was sure to succeed. But there were things he did not count on happening, things that could cause his defeat: betrayal, lies, secrets, and a lost blood-line that could, in the end, make Deyon the Dark Lord's final weapon. The 4 Great Capitals will once again go to war as the others find themselves stuck in the middle of politics and battle. Adventure, mystery, war, romance, betrayal, fantasy, and death is all that can be found in this book, the only tale on what had happened in the Vana'diel War. Who wrote it, and who survived, you will soon find out. Chapters

Chapter 01 - The Great War (New - R and R People!)

Chapter 02 - Deyon (Not Done)

Chapter 03 - The Dark Secret (Not Done)

Chapter 04 - Ellen (Not Done)

Chapter 05 - The Path to the Grand Duchy (Not Done)

Chapter 06 - Gustaberg (Not Done)

Chapter 07 - The Dark Lords (Not Done)

Chapter 08 - The Pass (Not Done)

Chapter 09 - A Dark Horror (Not Done)

Chapter 10 - Hvon's Path (Not Done)

Chapter 11 - The Grand Duchy (Not Done)

Chapter 12 - Devon (Not Done)

Chapter 13 - The Path to San d'Oria (Not Done)

Chapter 14 - The Dark Forest (Not Done)

Chapter 15 - La Theine Plateau (Not Done)

Chapter 16 - Hvon's Secret (Not Done)

Chapter 17 - The Death (Not Done)

Chapter 18 - Satav (Not Done)

Chapter 01

- The Great War -

In the year 594, in the dark days past of Vana'diel, when the 4 Great Capitals had been made, the Great War had been fought. Thousands of beast-men had come and united to kill the people of the lands. The 4 Great Capitals had just been established, and with that all their plans were a mess. In the far west and north of Vana'diel was the Kingdom of San d'Oria, the home of the wise and talented Elvaan (as well as all other people and creatures that lived in the kingdom). In the far south of the lands, was the Republic of Bastok, the home of the ever-changing Humes and the iron-strong Galka. In the far east and south was the Federation of Windurst, home of the clever and elusive Mithra and the small but strong-willed Tarutaru. And in the center of Vana'diel, on the center of Heaven's Bridge, was the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, where all different kinds of people lived.

For each of the 4 Great Capitals was a Vana'diel Master, who had control over the entire area, and great influence over all of Vana'diel. There were a total of 4 Vana'diel Masters, and in the end there were only 3. For San d'Oria there was King Hiin Rol'lan, an Elvaan who had taken on the role of Vana'diel Master and king after the death of the late king before him. In Bastok was President Jif-Dir Rirch, a young Hume fresh on the job at the start of the war. In Windurst was the old and wise Kinon-Holo. And for Jeuno was the young Hume male, Duke Siv-Din Devonic. These 4 Vana'diel Masters were the ones to lead the free people of the lands... but it would be one of the masters that brought horror and war to Vana'diel.

Duke Siv-Din Devonic of the Grand Duchy, had been thought to be corrupt. In the days before the beast-men had united, Siv-Din had went to Great Hall of Vana'diel to discuss a strong matter with the other 3 Vana'diel Masters. When the others had met with him, they found that he wanted to change the way Vana'diel was run. Siv-Din had believed that only 1 should rule the lands, that there were no Vana'diel Masters, and that all the capitals be united. Siv-Din wanted to end the roles of the Vana'diel Masters, and create a single leader... Siv-Din wanted to be that leader. But he would never achieve his dream, for he had been removed from office, and his title had been taken from him. He was no longer the Duke of the Grand Duchy.The other Vana'diel Masters had taken all else from him, and a Hume by the name of Ilv d'Von had taken the title as Duke. Siv-Din was no longer a voice in the Grand Duchy or Vana'diel, but a single idealist who had been thrown out for his beliefs. But that would not be the last time the people of Vana'diel heard his name. He had not been seen for 13 years after he had been removed from office. Vana'diel had gone on with life. The 4 Great Capitals had spread their control over the vast lands of Vana'diel, and armies had been built up to fight the beast-men that lived beyond the walls of each capital. Small towns and villages had been built over the lands, where people would stay during long journeys from capital to capital. It was in the year 607 that it had all began.

People had been found dead, all over Vana'diel. Small towns had been destroyed, and all that would be found was blood and bones. As each day died, the sky would become darker. A cold had come to Vana'diel, one that could only be found in the worst of winters. These were all signs... dark times were coming to the world. For the 4 Vana'diel Masters, this was very bad news indeed. By the time they had met in the Grand Duchy at the Great Hall of Vana'diel, the Federation of Windurst had been attacked. Without the guidance of Kinon-Holo, the battle did not go well. Many Tarutaru and Mithra had lost their lives at the hands of the beast-men, but in the end the beast-men had lost the battle.

It was there, in the Great Hall of Vana'diel, in the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, that the force behind the attacks had been revealed. Siv-Din Devonic had come out of hiding, and with dark, horribly strong new powers he had found on his search for the secrets to control the darkness of the world. He had told the masters that he would get what he wanted, and that this would be their last chance to step down from their titles and allow him full-control of Vana'diel... the masters would never let that happen. But before the warriors of Jeuno could catch him, he had gone (but not for good). By 609 more and more beast-men were being found all over the lands, and more and more towns were found dead of all life. Bastok had been attacked twice, and the Grand Duchy had been holding back attacks from the beast-men for 2 years. By the year 610, president Jif-Dir Rirch had been found dead in his office, and all that was found was a death note (he had killed himself).

Vana'diel was falling apart, piece by piece. By now thousands of beast-men were being found all over the world. Places like and Fei'Yin and North Gustaberg had been completely taken, and as time went on, more areas were falling in the hands of the Siv-Din (he would soon be known only as the Dark Lord Devonic, for death and blood would come to the ones who spoke ill of his name). The masters knew his plan, since he had already spoken of in his days in office, and knew what had to be done. Siv-Din would want to take over all of Vana'diel, but knew he would not be able to do so with the 4 Capitals under the control and power of the masters. Even with the masters' dead, Siv-Din knew the capitals would fight back. This meant one thing to him, the 4 Great Capitals would have to be destroyed.

By the year 612, Siv-Din sent hundreds of thousands of beast-men to the walls of the Kingdom of San d'Oia, where the brute force of the 4 Great Capitals would be found. If San d'Oria fell, Bastok and Windurst would fall, and with the Grand Duchy really just the political power in the war, it would surrender to his will. But King Hiin Rol'lan would not give up without a fight, and Siv-Din knew this, so he sent his entire force to the gates of San d'Oria, to fight a battle that would decide the entire war. It was there, on that dark and bloody night in San d'Oria, that the fate of Vana'diel was about to be decided.

Year 612 (The Great War) - 02:19 AM

The Kingdom of San d'Oria - Southern San d'Oria

"He is dead! C'mon Ilv! There is no time!" shouted the deep voice of the young Hume, Hvon d'Nivon. In his late 30's, his dark hair seemed to die under the thin streaks of gray that went through his hair. With a tired look on his face, he looked twice his age, for the only sign of youth that could be found in him was in the deep blue pools of his eyes. An elite warrior of the San d'Oria South Guard, Head of the Guard of the East Gate (which had now been lost). Hvon was simply one of the best, even if he did not look it.

"There is no time Ilv! The demons have come! The East Gate is lost! We must now hurry and help with the defense at the West Gate!" Hvon shouted once more to the young Ilv d'Von II, son of the Duke of the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, Captain of the San d'Oria South Guard, a strong warrior in the last days of his teen years. The look of strength, which had once been found in his dark green eyes, was now gone, and a look of horror had come to fill its place. Short black hair that had been put back in a knot, clad in silver blood-and-dirt-stained armor, Ilv could do no more then stare at the dead eyes of the broken boy before him.

"He... he can't be d-dead... just let me u-use C-C-Cure!" cried the horror-struck Ilv.

A boy clad in broken armor, who had the look of no more than 18, with short-length brown hair and blood-shot green eyes, was on the ground, dead. Blood all over, the look of death on the boy's face, killed by a Demon Knight. This was the dead face of fallen warrior, the second son of the Duke of the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, Vin d'Von."No spell can bring back the dead, Ilv! There will be time to cry for his fall, but for now we must be strong and fight! San d'Oria, as well as all of Vana'diel needs us!" Hvon shouted, pulling at Ilv.It had taken much time, but at last Ilv had come out of his deep shock, and was once again alert as ever, only now with a sick look on his pale face. It had been more than 4 days since the beast-men had come to the Kingdom of San d'Oria to bring its fall. Port San d'Oria had been lost on the 2nd day of attack, and now Southern San d'Oria was next. With the East Gate now lost, the beast-men were now filling the stone streets of the Great Capital of the Kingdom of San d'Oria.

"We must head to the West Gate! Should we lose that and all of Southern San d'Oria will be lost!" shouted Hvon.

The battle was a most horrible scene to watch. Death, blood and bones filled most of San d'Oria. The stone walls were both blood and dust-stained, as well as broken and fallen (one of Siv-Din's weapons were dark machines that would throw blood-red flame-covered balls of rock and stone, which caused much damage to houses, walls, buildings, and even the deaths of many people). The sound of steel clashing, fire burning, stone and rock falling, people screaming, and the pure cry of war filled all of San d'Oria. The sky was dark as ever, for night had fallen, and the uplift of thick black smoke and dust made the night ever darker. Glass was breaking, wood was burning, blood was being spilled, this was what war was, and this was what had been happening for the past few years.

The Dark Lord Devonic had sent just about every dark creature in Vana'diel to attack the kingdom. Thousands of beasts, demons, vermin, and the dead stood at the walls of San d'Oria, and for miles and miles the beast-men would be all you could see. Last night they had taken Port San d'Oria, and with that the enemy was now in. As the men of San d'Oria fought on against the endless tide of beast-men, more and more rocks of fire fell down upon the kingdom, destroying and killing.

Hvon and Ilv had just made it away from the fallen East Gate when there was a large explosion (a close-by one for that matter). The noise was so loud that Hvon and Ilv fell to the ground, as smoke and ash fell upon them. Hvon, getting back to his feet and helping Ilv up with him, then noticed what had happened. A Blood Demon, as well as hundreds of beast-men, had broken through the east wall (with the help of a few fire-rocks). The enemy had broken through once more, and with that, warriors from the South Guard went to the defense, to block the way into the streets, to fight back the dark creatures. The Blood Demon made slice after slice, blood spilling all over, and before 10 seconds had passed, 10 men were dead, the beast-men now running over the dead bodies.

"We can't lose Victory Square... its our only way back to the castle, and their only way in! Attack!" shouted Hvon, as he and Ilv ran to the broken east wall to the beast-men."Be gone you beasts!" Hvon shouted, and with that, sunk his silver blade into the Orc's chest. He and Ilv cut their way through the beast-men, with the help of more warriors. Now and then he would take a hit from one of the beast-men, but would think nothing of it and strike down the enemies before him. He would turn once after every kill to check on Ilv, and to see if he or any other guards needed assistance. Before long, the first wave of beast-men that had broken through the east wall was dead, the Blood Demon was still alive. It made it's way forward, killing those in its path, towards the center ally of Southern San d'Oria.

"Blood Demon!" Hvon shouted to the Elvaan warriors in the demon's path. Some of the warriors had heard, and made well out of its way to attack it from behind (those who had not heard were dead). 3 of the warriors went and slashed the demon with their swords and axes, while 6 shot at the beast with black magic. 2 of the ones that went head-on in combat with the demon were dead, and 4 of the ones that shot magic at it were killed by other beast-men. That demon had to be killed, now.

Calling for Ilv, the 2 of them ran to the site of the Blood Demon by Victory Square, the circle-like ally-street at the base of the gates into Northern San d'Oria. A fire-ball crashed right before them, bursting into flames and smoke and ash fell upon them. Another one fell at hit a stone house, large sections of stone and rock falling down towards them. Hvon and Ilv just got out of the way of the rubble, and Ilv had used a Water spell on the fire before them as to continue on to the demon. A few beast-men would get in the way, but they were no match for the skill of Hvon d'Nivon and Ilv d'Von. By the time they got to end of the street and Victory Square they saw the Blood Demon cut down a line of Humes and Elvaan in 1 slash with its black bloody arms.

Hvon had gone on the offense, and ran at the beast. Feeling Ilv cast a Protect on him as he went, he pulled out his blade once more. Just as he sunk it deep into the demon's back, Ilv sent a Fire II at the beast-men. The demon cried out, and then turned to see where the fire had come from, just as Hvon sliced it again. Hot blood dripped down his silver blade, as he went to make a third attack. The demon kicked him to the ground, and slashed at him with its claws. He felt a white-hot pain come to him as a long red line appeared across his now-broken arm-plate and blood began to fall from his now-cut arm. But the power of the Cure III spell was on him (thanks to Ilv) and he was once again on his feet.

This time he used his shield to break one of the demon's attacks, and then did a quick turn and sliced at the demon's right leg. Then he saw as the blade of Ilv came out from behind him and cut the demon's left leg. The legs were severed, the beast fell back, and Hvon sunk his blade into the demon's head. The beast was no more.

"Do you need another Cure?" Ilv asked Hvon, his face even paler, that same sick look on his face.

"No, thank you Ilv. We need to get to the West Gate... look!" Hvon pointed to the west wall, which was being hit by endless fire-balls from the enemy. The left tower of the West Gate was hit, a dark smoke rose into the air as a large portion of the tower fell to the ground. Some warriors and many Orcs were killed, and the ruin site vanished behind a thick cloud of smoke and dust.

"Curse you Devonic! All of this death, all of this hurt, for what!" shouted Hvon in anger, as he wiped the blood and dust off his face and made his way to the West Gate with Ilv at his tail.

They had made it to the gate, only to see it was not doing so good. Not only was it now missing most of its upper left tower, but also he could see a large section of the right inner wall cracked, and beast-men were pouring in. The large iron gate was the only thing that had not been damaged, but from the sounds of things coming from behind it, it would not be long before it fell too. Near the back of the gate was a group of about 50-or-so warriors (both Hume and Elvaan) all in the same dirty and bloody armor. Fear was on most of their faces, and some looked almost as bad (if not worse) as Ilv.

"Captain d'Von!" shouted a voice. Clad in only a breastplate, was a tall male Elvaan of about 60 (which was young for a Elvaan). A dark black blade in one hand, deep silver-blue eyes as the moon, hair shoulder-length and silver, face alert and wary, this Elvaan had the look of deep strain and stress. His arm and leg-plates missing, and helmet-less, this was Leon Hidiov, Head of the Guard of the West Gate. "Captain d'Von! Beast-men have taken the south and west front! Captain Hi'mon is dead, and I do not know where Fall-Dir or Vin have gone, sir!" said Leon, his voice hard to hear over the strong noise.

"Vin is dead... and F-Fall-Dir has been sent to Great Hall in Chateau d'Oraguille" said Ilv, his eyes once again filled with the dead-look that were in them when he found his brother dead. Leon did not speak for a moment, but then said "I am sorry for your loss"."Leon, what can we do to help?" asked Hvon. Another fire-ball hit the West Gate, Hvon felt the hot ashes fall from the top of the gate fall onto them "Our Guard has fallen, as well as the East Gate. The south wall is broken, and this one looks like it has the same fate"."We need some men in the right tower, and I need foot-ones to go and clear that section in front of the gate, on the outer wall. Also, Count d'Trit's manor has fallen, and he is with some of his own guards, but they won't last long, and it is under my list as a duty to make sure he gets back to the castle" Leon said, reading from a half-burned scroll of parchment he had in his pocket.

There was another explosion, the Chocobo Stables had been hit, and 2 Demon Knights and a Blood Demon moved towards it from the south wall, as well as more waves of beast-men.

"Ilv can man the tower, send him there with a few of your men, he's the better one with spells, he can keep it up for a little longer" spoke Hvon, looking at Ilv, who did not seem to know what was going on "and I can go cleanse your front gate with some of these men. I can only promise you around 10 minutes, and from there I'll try and head back up with a few others to d'Trit's manor".Some warriors ran past them, to the front gate, into the outer section. The east street was taken, a long line of guards on the defense of Victory Square and the Auction House. A dark shadow had just passed above them, a dragon of some kind, but Hvon did not look up to see what type (and with the smoke above and the falling fire-balls looking up was not safe).

"Captain d'Von... what say you?" asked Leon, a fire-ball hitting the east wall.

"Ilv!" Hvon shouted, for Ilv did not answer. He could tell that he did not really hear what Leon had said.

"Yes... I'll go in the right tower. Head Leon, give me about 15 or so well-crafted spell-users, any red or black mages if possible. When Hvon has cleared the area, I will join him on his run to the manor. If we are lucky, Count Irin d'Trit will not be dead yet, and we can proceed to taking him to the castle" said Hvon, and for the first time he looked and sounded like he used to, before his brother's death.

"Very good Captain d'Von. Head d'Nivon, take about 20 of my men, and keep the front section of the West Gate open. 2 of them, Fidi and Jinco, have Cure I and Cure II. I would keep them in the back, and use them to heal any injured men, make sure you keep as many as you can, if you can't see were running short of men, and the warriors that Bastok and Windurst said they would send have not yet come. And make sure you keep yourself alive, I'll have to do a lot of paperwork if you die, so save me the trouble" said Leon with a grin. Hvon took his 20, and sent Ilv to the tower with the others. He then made his way through the gates, and waited until it was clear, and then Leon and 5 others opened them.

They made their way across the dead field, and once they got about 20 feet from the gate, it shut. This was indeed a site. Thousands of dead bodies, both good and evil, were scattered for miles and miles. Blood and rubble covered large portions of the fields of West Ronfaure. The shadows of thousands of other beast-men could be seen still making their way towards the walls of San d'Oria. Beast-men of all kinds could be seen, and Hvon could swear he even saw a Shadow Dragon (a dark beast with dark powers, one in which was still unknown to the people of Vana'diel, but well-known to Siv-Din).

"Ok! I want the 2 of you called Fidi and Jinco to head back by the gate, and wait there until I call for you to aid use in battle! I want about 10 or so well-trained men with swords in the front, and any spell-users in the back! On my command attack, do not move or attack until I tell you to do so!" Hvon shouted as all the men shouted in reply, as 7 Elvaan and 3 Hume made their way to the front, the 2 white mages made their way to the gate, and the rest stayed by him.He then looked around and up to the top tower of the West Gate. Sure enough, he could make out the small figure of Ilv and a few of the men he had with him. But he had no time to wave, he had to get his full thoughts on the task ahead: defend the West Gate. He had said to Leon that he could hold it for 10 minutes, but now that he saw what was before them he did not know if he could even do that. There was a loud noise; a fire-ball had hit the west wall, stone and rock falling. About 200 or more beast-men had began to run to the broken wall, and about half of them turned and made their way to the gate.

"Sorcerers! Open fire!" Hvon shouted, ad he flung up his hand, and sent it down once more. With that, about 20-or-so different spells, from the Fire II to the Flare, had been sent into the dark cold night sky, and onto the on-coming horde of beast-men. About 13 of them had stopped, and fell to the ground dead, as the rest ran on.

"Warriors! Attack!" he shouted once more, as the line in front of him went on the run, and attacked the beast-men before them. "Sorcerers! Send a second wave, any Shell or Protect spells from you 2 white mages would be great!" as another line of spells shot down upon both the beast-men and the warriors.

Some of the Protect spells had missed the warriors, and for the worse hit some of the beast-men. One of the Protect III spells hit a dragon, which was very bad, and to make things worse, the dragon was a Shadow Dragon. The beast took the spell in as if it was a hit, but then shook it off as if nothing had happened, but Hvon knew the effect of the spell would stay on.

He looked back at his front line; about 4 of them were dead. He knew he could not hold them all back, and he knew he could not wait and tell all of them what to do.

"Attack at will! White mages, get here and help! Full-on attack warriors! Sorcerers, send your spells down now!" Hvon shouted. A fire-ball hit the west wall again, a large blaze of fire and smoke shot up. A Blood Demon had made it through the broken wall; he would hope that Leon would be able to take care of it (though he did not have much faith in him, since he had never seen him fight). It was a full-on hard attack as he and his man ran at the beast-men. He cut his way into the Orcs and Goblins, and had to make sure to dodge any offensive spells shot by his men, or any fire-balls that went at them. He sliced down about 13 of the beast-men, when he felt a dull blade slice his back as he fell to the ground. An Ancient Quadav (ancient warrior-like creatures he had seen in Gustaberg) had hit him hard with a dark steel blade. He rolled to the left as the beast went to slice him once more, and did another roll to the right when it went to hit him once more, He rolled under the beast when it went to stab him, and took out a small silver knife and stabbed the beast in the leg.

A fire-ball had hit the West Gate, though he did not see which part of it. The Ancient Quadav had back-paced a few feet from him, and he went to the attack, only to see as a Thunder II spell hit the beast-men in the chest. The Quadav hit the ground as the electric waves cracked through its body. He then sent some of his own black magic at the beast, and sent a Stone spell at the Ancient Quadav. He then kicked the stone body until he cracked off the head, and went back to white mages to get his health back. There were no white mages by the gate. He saw one of them, Jinco, dead, about 7 feet from the West Gate, and he was sure the other, Fidi, was dead too. He then saw that only about 8 of his men were left (this was both the spell-users and the warriors). There was no way to stop the horror that was still coming at them; he had to get his men out of there.

"Men! Fall back to the West Gate! Retreat!" he shouted, as he ran to the front of the gate and waited for it to open. About 6 of the men came to him; the other was killed on the way back. 2 more fire-balls hit the West Gate. One of them hit the tower Ilv was in. By the looks of things, the tower had been hit before; there was no sign of life in it. Ilv could be hurt, or worse, dead. He had to get in the tower; he would not leave his best friend to die.

"Leon! Open the gates!" shouted Hvon, and a moment later the iron bars lifted, and he and his men went in as the gate closed behind them. He went right to Leon, who looked the same as before, only was now covered head-to-foot in dark red blood.

"The front is lost! I could only hold them for about 8 minutes, but by the looks of things you have had to do some work too" said Hvon to the blood-covered Elvaan.

"Blood Demons, about 4 of them came from the south wall, I just killed one of them, and I left Sid-taru to go deal with the other 3, he's one of the king's elite, Captain of the Guard of Chateau d'Oraguille. One of the best Black Knights I have ever seen, and Rigini has gone to help with the defense at the Auction House, or at least what's left of it," said Leon, pointing to what once was the Auction House. 2 Blood Demons, as well as a Shadow Dragon, could be seen tossing warriors into the air.

"Tell him that dragon's got a Protect spell on it, a III by my guess! But listen, I need to get in the tower and get Ilv! It was one of the Duke's wishes that I protect and look after his sons while they went with me to San d'Oria! I have let my eyes wander from Vin too much, and for that he is dead and the blame must fall on me! I could never go back to the Grand Duchy and tell the Duke I let both his sons die!" Hvon shouted over the noise, as he saw another fire-ball his the south wall.

"He is not there! He went to the castle on the king's orders. You have to go to the Count's manor, I just heard that there are only 2 men there now, and the west wall by there has been broken!" said Leon as 3 of his men ran past them, about 40 beast-men had broken through the gate.

"Ilv has been called to Chateau d'Oraguille? Why?" Hvon asked as a huge gust of smoke blew in their face. The last tower of the West Gate was hit by another fire-ball.

"King Rol'lan needs to keep him alive, I presume he too has been given orders to keep at least one of the d'Von brothers alive!" Leon shouted over the blast of fire-balls and explosions. Half of the men who had gone to the West Gate were dead.

"I see... well, I have about 7 men left with me! I will leave 4 of them with you to man the gate, and I will take the other 3 to the Count d'Trit's manor!" shouted Hvon.

"Very good Head d'Nivon! I will see you soon!" Leon shouted. With that he took 3 men and made his way north, down the broken street, to the burning manor of Count d'Trit. There were beast-men, many of them, on the way there. 1 of his men died at the hands of a Quadav, and the other 2 had been injured. Luckily, a few of Hvon's last potions did the trick, and helped keep the other 2 men with him. They made a left, down the street, only to see the Guild completely destroyed, buried behind flames and smoke. There were very few warriors in this section of Southern San d'Oria. Most of them had gone to the others in Northern San d'Oria, to keep hold of the center of the kingdom, Chateau d'Oraguille, the home of the king. Up north they went once more, and then a quick turn west, and up the stairs of stone, on the path to the doors of the manor.

Count d'Trit's home looked terrible. The doors were down, on fire, the windows had been cracked; blood-stained glass was all over. Portions of the large house were missing, stone and rock lie at the base, and by the looks of things the house had taken a beating, from both the beast-men and fire-balls. There were 30 beast-men in front of the house, and all of them were in a state of attack with a man. A dark-faced blond-haired man of about 40, the green in his eyes only made the count's look of greed increase. Dirt and blood on his dark-red robes, there was a staff in the man's right hand, his other had held in it a small knife the color of Leon's eyes. In the man's eyes was not fear like more others, but anger and a look that made him look as if he were (if it was even possible), bored. Count d'Trit was no idiot in the field of battle, he was skilled with both the spell and the blade, and this made Hvon wonder why he even needed protection.

By the time he and the 2 men got to him the beast-men were dead. Count d'Trit put aside his staff and knife, and looked around the area, a look that told them all he was mad that his house was ruined.

"That Dark Lord just doesn't give up does he? Do you know how much it cost to get this entire section of the city for my home! And I bet you both my legs the state won't cover the damage. Them politics... to think I had... " Hvon cut off the count, who looked like the type to go on and on, and when in the middle of war, that was not the best of things to do.

"Count d'Trit, I am Hvon d'Nivon, Head of the Guard of the East Gate. I have come take you to Northern San d'Oria, where you will... " for the first time in his life, Hvon had been interrupted.

"Nonsense! I can look after my own flesh! I would thank it of you if you would come and help me get rid of the Goblins now, they're in the mail hall and... " it was Hvon's turn to cut in again."I must tell you, Count d'Trit, that one of my men has died on the path to your home, and that it is my duty to make sure you get to safer grounds. If you have not noticed, most of Southern San d'Oria is lost to the beast-men. What is left of our forces is heading into Northern San d'Oria any moment, and once that happened, the North Gate shall be closed, and people like you who are left here will die" Hvon spoke this time with true authority. He was mad, however, to see that d'Trit was not listening to his words, but rather kicking at a dead Quadav body.

"Count d'Trit! These are your options! Stay here and die, or come with me back to the castle! But should you plan to stay here, I will tell my captain you were killed in action, and that I could have done nothing to save your life!" shouted Hvon in anger. 2 of the men looked scared, the count looked bored. He then waved off his hand and said "Fine, fine, let us go then"

With that he, the count, and his 2 men made run back the way they came. This time was much harder, for the street was covered in stone, rock, more dead bodies, and fire-balls that had hit other houses and walls. There were no guards left in the streets, not a single warrior. Most of the street was empty, but by the time they got near the West Gate he could see the lines of hundreds of beast-men. There was a short line of warriors and sorcerers in battle, and they were all losing. Leon was not by the gate, for it had fallen, and the enemy was coming in, fast. Just as he got to the front of Victory Square, a few beast-men attacked them. Before Hvon could pull out his blade, the count was on the offense, and cast Haste on himself. With the speed of the wind, he cut down 2 Orcs and a Goblin, and then sent an Aero II spell at one of the demons, which knocked the beast of its feet.

Before the count could finish the demon off, Hvon pushed him past the beast, to the North Gate, the entrance to Northern San d'Oria. When the 4 of them got to the gate, they saw as the line of men were cut down to pieces by a beast called a Wyvern (a dark creature that he had never fought before in his life. He had heard that they had a very vicious temper). Hvon pushed the count to the gate, and once they were there they waited for the gate to open. It did not.

"Hey! Open the gates!" Hvon shouted as he kicked the iron bars into the safe zone. He went to look for some person on the wall to shout to, but over the noise and in this dark of night, there was no way he could either spot a man nor shout to him. He looked back, to see more than a thousand beast-men in the streets. There was no way he, or even the count, could hold back this storm.

"What the hell is going on! Why do they not open the gates!" d'Trit in anger as he put his knife back in his robes.

"The gate has been closed for good, if they open for us then the beast-men will storm in. They will not open for us" said Hvon. His 2 men had looks of horror on their faces, the count just looked mad.

"They better open the gates! I am Count Irin d'Trit! Once I tell the king in person what is... " Hvon cut off the idiot man."Shut up please count, and take out that knife again, you will need it if you want to make it into the safe zone. You 2, I want one in front and one behind the count. The one in front with follow me, and the rest shall follow him. We will need to run back up the street, up to Lion Square. There, before I left to head for duty at the West Gate, I had seen a fire-ball destroy a small upper section of the inner east wall. We can climb on top of Armor Shop, and then climb through the crack in the wall. Should I die count, follow these 2. Should we all die, then take down as many as you can before you to fall" Hvon said.For the first time the count looked scared, but at the same time he also looked angry.

"There is no way we can make it through the east street! That place had fallen hours ago! The street is full of beast-men! Hundreds, if not thousands by now! We will all be dead before we make it to Lion Square!" d'Trit shouted. Hvon did not seem to hear him.

With a nod, he began to make his way away from the gate, and towards the east wall and street. 1 of the men went with him, and the other did not go until the count went. With that they all pulled out their weapon and made their way to the Armor Shop. The count cast a Protect II on the others, and then a Protect IV on himself, along with a Shell spell too. Hvon did not know for sure, but he could tell that the count was a red mage, which would explain why he had both a staff and a knife. He had not met many in his life.

The beast-men did not notice them at first, since just about all of them were on their way to the North Gate. Some of them, though, did notice, and went to attack. By the time the count had sent a Water II spell out at one of the Orcs, Hvon had cut down 3 Goblins and a Quadav. He saw, just as a blade cut his leg, as one of his men were killed by an Orc. He did not stop, he cut down the Goblin that had cut him, and used a Fire spell on the Quadav that was about to attack his other man from behind. He did not bother to protect the count. A small green creature, clad in torn and old brown robes, with a small lantern, sent a Thunder III spell at the other guard. He was dead.

Though he had never seen one before, he knew it was not wise to fight one. A Tonberry, especially a Tonberry Stabber, were very strong beast-men, and had vast fields of skill in both the sword and the spell. Even Ilv never went and taken one on. The small beast sent another Thunder III spell at the count, but his Shell spell on his kept him from death. He went to attack the beast, just as an Orc got in his way.

"Take that, you stupid creature!" d'Trit shouted, as he sent some of his own spells at the beast, just as Hvon cut down the Orc. A fire-ball killed the last 13 beast-men between him and the count, and with that Hvon dodged a Blood Demon, which had just gone by, and stabbed the Tonberry Stabber in the back. For a moment he thought he had killed it, but a second later the beast had sent him back was a Aero spell. Before he could get up he felt a strange dark, poison-like feeling come into him. He had been hit by a Poison II spell.

He fell to the ground, as he felt his health start to drain out of him. He could not call for one of the count's Cure spells, for the noise was now so bad that he could feel some blood drip down from his left ear. There was an explosion, the count was dead. He tried to get up, but fell back to the ground. The heat of the fire-ball that had just hit the Tonberry and the count was causing him to sweat. Was this his end? Would he really die now?

None of the enemy knew he was alive, for all of them ran on past him. The sky was so dark, so much smoke filled the air, alit by the glow of many fires. It was cold, and with the poison in his veins, it was even colder. Then it hit him, a dull blade had sank into his chest. A Quadav had seen him move, and had stuck its dull rusty war sword into him. Blood began to stain the rest of his chest. His armor had now been broken for some time. This was the end.

There was a rush sound, and the beast fell back. A bow had been shot, and hit the Quadav right in the head. He looked up, and took the hand of Leon as he was pulled to his feet.

"You don't know how happy I am to see you Leon" said Hvon with pain, the blade must have hit one of his lungs. It would not be long now, even with a Cure spell, before he would die.

"Your not dead I see" said Leon (and with poor effort tried to smile, but in the end was only able to pull up a bad grin).

"No, but I will be. Count d'Trit is dead, as well as all the others. The only way I can think of getting into Northern San d'Oria is through a crack in the wall above the Armor Shop up this street" said Hvon.

"Don't worry about it. The king won't care, not after the death of his wife. They just found her body, sliced by an Orc in her room. Looks like there really is no safe place, even in the keep" said Leon.

"Go on then, Leon! Go the way I told you, that is really the only way out of this hell. Tell Ilv to get out of here, this whole place is going to fall. God... I never thought I would live to see proud Chateau d'Oraguille fall" said Hvon as he began to pull one of those (goodbye) smiles at him. Leon did not take in what he did.

"You need to see a white mage... Eir-Hin, a monk, he is one of the beat with white magic, I believe he is in the Cathedral, up in Northern San d'Oria, praying with people and healing. I need to get you to him, I'm sure he can restore you to your full health" said Leon, as another fire-ball hit the ground. It just missed the 2 of them.

"No... you need to go there and... " Leon cut him off.

"Before Ilv left, he gave me an order, to make sure you came back. Now as we are of the same level of authority, I really can't make you go. But since I am the stronger one here, and you are dying, I can make you come with me. Now move on!" shouted Leon as some 20-or-so beast-men made their way at them.

With a small grin, he nodded. Leon took out his silk-wood bow, and shot at the on-coming beast-men. Hvon, now unable to use his sword, sent a Stone spell at the enemies. They had to keep moving, or else they would be over-taken by the beast-men. The smoke was very thick up the street, and it was hard to see where they were headed. But once they came to Lion Square, Hvon pointed to a wood sign on a building that had a sword and shield on it in a cross. They had come to the Armor Shop. Just as Leon went to climb one of the barrels aside the shop, a Blood Demon had come, along with 200 beast-men of all kinds. Leon and Hvon knew they did not have the time or strength to fight, so they both began to climb the barrels fasted. A fire-ball hit the roof of the building. Smoke and flames shot up, ashes hit Hvon and Leon on their faces.

The Blood Demon was one of the few that spotted them (which was worse that 20 beast-men). Just as Hvon got his hands of the roof of the building, a black arm with dark claws had grabbed him by the left leg. He felt a white-hot pain, a crack, and then felt the blood drip down his leg. The Blood Demon had broken his leg, which caused Hvon to let go of the roof and fall on his broken leg. He could not hold back the scream of pain that now burned in him.

"No!" shouted Leon, as he jumped from the roof and to the ground. The Blood Demon went for him, just as Leon sent a few arrows into the beast's head. The creature stepped back a few paces, but pulled out the arrows, and went for a second attack. 3 Aero II spells, a Fire III spell and a Stone spell had hit the demon. The beast fell back and died. 5 Tarutaru had come on the spot from the hole in the upper wall, each one in their home-land every-day clothes. A staff in most of their hands, the Tarutaru made there was down to Hvon and Leon. One of them cast a Cure II spell on Leon and Hvon, and the other cast Protect on all of them.

"The warriors of Windurst have come?" Leon asked one of them, the one with the short silver-blue hair.

"Hello-wello! 200 of us have come! The rest of us will be here soon! The trouble-rubble is that we have had many deaths on the way here, and have been attacked on the way here many times!" said the small sorcerer Tarutaru.

"At least some help is coming! Listen, I need to get my friend here to the Cathedral, can you help us?" asked Leon.

"No, that won't happen now. My leg's broken, my chest is cut deep, and the poison that one beast set on me has left me weak" said Hvon is a heavy voice. It was clear to them all that this was true.

"No-wo! You will come with us you-who! We can help you-who! We will take you-who to the Cathedral!" said another Tarutaru, this one with short blond hair and very deep blue eyes (it was so weird for both Leon and Hvon to see all of them smile, even in the mist of all this war and death. Which was not as weird as them being able to look at them and not regard them as children... they were all so small).

"Yes! We will not leave any to die! Now let us move on!" shouted Leon, as Hvon felt 4 of the Tarutaru lift him up (which was amazing) and then carry him onto the top of the roof (which was even more amazing). When they all got to the top, they made their way around the fire where the fire-ball had hit the center of the roof, and went to the large not-so-easily visible hole in the wall. It was a good thing there was so much smoke, for if there was not the beast-men would be able to see the crack in the wall, and use it as a way to get into Northern San d'Oria.

They made their way through the hole into the new area. Unlike Southern San d'Oria, there were no beast-men on the streets, but there were many rocks, stones, fire-balls, and even blood all over the place. There were many warriors, most of which were by the North Gate (and by the looks of things, they were fighting to keep the gate closed). There were many people in this part of the kingdom. All who had managed to escape Port San d'Oria and Southern San d'Oria were now in Northern San d'Oria. If this part of the kingdom fell, Hvon knew that most of the people would die, and battle would be most-likely lost to the Dark Lord (and possibly the war, for Hvon knew that most of the physical power of Vana'diel lied in the walls of San d'Oria.

They made their way to the Parade Ground, the center of the area, and then made a sharp turn left away from the path to the castle, and up the road that led to the Cathedral. Before the battle had begun, the Cathedral was a grand site to see. It was a most gorgeous site, beautiful and well-crafted in detail to the very last stone. Proud, tall, and full of the song of the bells, the Cathedral was now a broken building that looked just like all the others. Some of the roof was on fire (which Hvon could tell had been started by fire-balls). Just about all of the stain-glass windows were broken, glass all over. The white stone of the building were smoke-and-dust-stained, which made the Cathedral and horrible thing to look at. To Hvon, and possibly all the people of San d'Oria, it was a mark that showed there was true evil in the world, and that there was not much that could be done about it.

"Is Ilv in the Cathedral?" Hvon asked Leon, as they made their way up the road. He could not really shout, for he was to weak, and he knew it would be hard for them to hear him over the loud noise of battle, death and war.

"No. He should be in the castle! Look! There is Captain Sid-Taru! He looks rather mad, I guess that can only help him in battle! Once your better you should see him! Tell him about d'Trit's death, and ask him for you next orders! I'll most likely be sent to the North Gate, but I think you might be sent to go with Ilv!" shouted Leon as a fire-ball hit the castle.

The Tarutaru carried Hvon to the open doors of the dead Cathedral. Inside were many people, most crying, others were praying. They made their way down the candle-lit hall, to an old man in a dark set of robes. This man, by the looks of things, had to be a monk. He had not much hair (what was left was white and dirty). He had a bible in his hands (which Hvon could swear have spots of blood in the pages), and behind him, stuck on a belt, was a small cross and knife. Hvon could tell this was the type of monk that would fight in the end.

"Father! Do you know where monk Eir-Hin is? I need him to heal Captain d'Nivon! He has been stabbed, poisoned, and his leg is broken!" said Leon in a rush, as if Hvon could die any second.

"Seth Eir-Hin has gone to meet the Gods. He was in the port when the Dark Lord took it days ago. Here... let me cure your friend here with the spells I have learned as a monk in my days of youth" said the old man, as he placed his hand over Hvon's chest, and began to mutter the words for the holy Curaga IV spell. A warm feeling had begun to sink into Hvon's chest. He could feel the wound close, and the flow of blood stop. He then felt the monk place his hand over his leg, and that same thing had happened (only with a small pop sound).

Hvon got to his feet. He could walk, he could breath! He was back to full health, but when he went to step on his left leg, he felt a dark pain, one that caused him to fall back to the floor.

"You leg son... you will need to keep off it until it fully heals" said that monk, but Hvon stood back up.

"No. Thank you for your Cure spells father, but I need to get back out there. My duty is to San d'Oria, and I have to protect her in these dark times" said Hvon as he got up. The pain in his leg was so strong, but he went on none the less.

"Well... you... I need to... d'Oraguille should be... " Leon said, but Hvon did not hear most of what he said.

"Hvon! Did you hear me!" Leon shouted just as a fire-ball hit the roof of San d'Oria Cathedral.

"What!" Hvon asked. He had just though that Leon had not spoken properly.

"Wait... oh dear, it looks as if your left ear... " Leon cut off the monk, as he went to look at his ears. His left ear had dried blood down it, as if it had blow in the noise of battle.

"Your ear!" Leon shouted in horror.

"I see... well, not that big of a problem. I mean, you'll just have to speak in my right ear from now on. Good lord, it looks like my entire left side of my body, besides the arm, in useless to me" said Hvon with a small laugh, which did not ease Leon up at all.

"Right! So what were did you say before, Leon?" Hvon asked.

"Uh... you need to go to the Parade Ground, I believe that Sid-Taru is there, and you must report to him and ask for your next mission. Me, I need to go see Captain Lin Helder, who might send me to the North Gate to hold up the defense. Sid-taru might send you to the castle, so once you get in there, find Ilv" Leon said.

"Ok then, let us move!" Hvon shouted, as he made his way down the stone altar and through the doors. He made his way down the stone path to the center of the area, where hundreds of people and warriors were. Many of the warriors did not know what they should have been doing, and the others looked ready to panic just like the people. Before he could find Captain Sid-Taru, a small white creature with small wings and a small nose came up to him.

"Hello, kupo! I am one of the safe of the Safe-Panic Group! You should not panic, kupo! The enemy might take hold of the gate, kupo, and should that happen you must find a weapon and... " Hvon cut the poor little Moogle off.

"Nice to hear, but I am the Head of the Guard of the East Gate, and I need you to tell people about this, and not soldiers of San d'Oria" Hvon said to Safe-Panic Moogle.

"Yes master, kupo! I will tell the rest of the staff of your idea, kupo! Should the whole place fall, what should I tell them, kupo?" the Safe-Panic Moogle asked.

"Uh... tell them to get out of San d'Oria, and tell them to head to the Grand Duchy if they can. I believe that will be the only Great Capital that the Dark Lord will not destroy. It will fall, but all those who stay in Jeuno will not die, for the Dark Lord will want people to serve him" Hvon said, looking past the Moogle for Sid-Taru.

"Oh! Yes master, kupo! I shall tell others, kupo!" the Safe-Panic Moogle said, as it then made a turn and went away.

Hvon once more began to look for Sid-Taru. Leon had seen him on the way in, and Hvon had met him once before when he first arrived in San d'Oria from both the Grand Duchy. He was a tall, fit, strong man. He wore black armor, had dark black hair, and a dark-red old scar that cut across his lip and left eye. He was a Black Knight, and was one of the few that Hvon had ever met. Black Knights were horribly strong; who used both black magic and dark sword attacks to kill their enemy.

"Captain d'Nivon! Where have you been!" shouted a deep voice. Hvon turned to see the battle-scared face of Captain Sid-Taru. On his dark black armor was blood, dirt, and even flesh.

"Captain Sid-Taru! I have news to report of from Southern San d'Oria before it fell!" Hvon shouted, just as one of the towers of the North Gate burst into flames and vanished behind a fan of smoke.

"Report then!" Sid-Taru shouted.

"Sir, Captain Vin d'Von is dead, as is Count Irin d'Trit. Since I am Head of the Guard of the East Gate, and since the East Gate has been lost for more than 4 hours, I must ask for my next mission" Hvon said.

"I have been told of Vin's death, but the count as well? And I was sure to have been told that you had been sent to keep the count alive. Oh well, in times like these it is not wise to point a finger. It just might get cut off" Sid-Taru said. There was another explosion. The Cathedral had been hit once more, this time the wood-arc above the door had fallen. He knew it would not be long before the monk would meet the Gods.

"What am I to do next?" asked Hvon.

"These next orders have been given by the King Rol'lan himself, so make sure you do not let him down!" Sid-Taru shouted.

"Yes, Captain Sid-Taru!" Hvon shouted once again fully alert. The king of San d'Oria has given him a mission? What could it be? Could it be to find and protect Ilv in the castle?

"The king wants you to go into Chateau d'Oraguille and take his son, Prince Evin Rol'lan, and the son of the duke of the Grand Duchy of Jeuno, Ilv d'Von. Find them, and take them to the Great Hall, where the king has said he will show them a way out of the castle, why he holds up the defense. Once they are out, we will let back on the North Gate, and fall back to the castle. There we will make a last stand, for all of San d'Oria" said Sid-Taru from a short official scroll.

Hvon knew that he would have to protect Ilv, but the son of the king too? This was all too much, since he could not even think about what would happen if he let the son of the king die.

"Yes, Captain Sid-Taru! I will do what I can!" Hvon shouted.

"Good! Then I wish you good luck, I have a bad feeling, not about the king's plan, but about what will happen next. From what we know, the Dark Lord is not in the Hall of the Gods as he has been for the past 3 months, and no one knows where he went. Some say, which I must say brings fear even to me, that he plans to kill the king himself, which I must say is too horrible to think of. Should he die, I would not know what any of us would do. This battle would be over before we know it, and we would all be dead" Sid-Taru said as a faint look of terror came to his face (which he had never seen before).

"I will do what I must. Good luck with the North Gate, may San d'Oria stand tall in your defense for as long as the Gods allow" said Hvon. More and more fire-balls hit the walls, houses, and streets. The trees which were on the grass were all dead and burned.

With that he shook Sid-Taru's hand and left. He made his way north, down the front stone path, to the doors of the castle. At first the warriors at the door would not let him in, but once he let them see the scroll that the king had given him, they let him pass. He went on into the castle. The still-beautiful Great Hall was filled with a number of people (Elvaan, Hume, Tarutaru) and they were all in a panic. He began to make his way through the now candle-lit hall, until he found him. Ilv was by one of the walls, his face as horror-filled and pale as ever. Next to him was a small Elvaan of about 12 years of age. This Elvaan, unlike Leon, had long blond hair, which was cut off a little past the shoulders. His eyes were as the color of his hair, and he was in a red and gold suit. Hvon could see small rings of gold and jewels on the boy's hands, and a small silver and gold sword at the side of his belt. This was indeed the son of the king, Evin Rol'lan.

"Ilv!" Hvon shouted as he made his way over to them through the crowd of people.

"Hvon! You're still alive! And you... your leg! What happened to you? Did you get the count? Is Leon ok? Is it true, that all of Southern San d'Oria has been lost? I have not heard much since I was sent from the tower!" Ilv shouted, over the mess of voices and yells in the hall. Evin did not seem to be listening, but looking at his fingers.

"Yes, all of the south has been lost. The count is dead, he fell just before Leon and some Tarutaru sorcerers came and got me out of Lion Square. I broke my leg, but I am better than I was before. I have been through a lot Ilv, and now I must take you and Prince Evin to see the king. Do you know where he is?" Hvon asked the 2 of them.

"Dad is in the gardens. He went there with Fall-Dir, but told me and him to wait here for you" said Evin. There was some kind of tone in his voice that told Hvon he did not really care what was going on.

"Then we must go now. The North Gate will not be able to hold up much longer, the battle is near its end. I need him to help me get you 2 out of here, we head of the Grand Duchy I believe" said Hvon.

"What! Were going to leave the walls of my home! There is no safe place out there! Jeuno has no army like ours! It will fall in a day! And how should we get there? We all know the airship was stolen last year! There is no way I am going to walk to Jeuno!" yelled Prince Evin in anger (Hvon really was not in the mood to listen to him, so he just went on for the gardens, as the 2 of them went with him).

There were 5 explosions, and then a loud yell of voices from Northern San d'Oria. Hvon and Leon both knew what it meant: the beast-men had broken through the North Gate. There was not much time left before the enemy would come into the castle. Hvon began to run, as the 3 of them went down the hall and to the gardens. There, in the center of the untouched-by-war gardens, was an Elvaan man in dark red robes (just like the count). A gold crown was set on his head, above his thin gray hair. Gorgeous ever-more designs were on his robes, gold and all. A large gold and silver sword (much like the prince's, was set at his side). The king had a thin gray beard, and a set of cool blue eyes. The king looked troubled, a sad look on his face on set in his eyes. Next to him was an Elvaan in silver armor. Fall-Dir looked just like a cross between Leon and Evin. He had blood on his armor, and dirt on his face, and had no look in his eyes, but a scroll of paper in his right hand and a sword in the other.

"Your grace... I come with the 2 you have sent me to bring and protect. Your son, Prince Evin, and the son of the late Duke Ilv d'Von, Ilv d'Von II. I, Hvon d'Nivon, Head of the Guard of the fallen East Gate, now wait for your instructions on where to take them... if that is what you wish my lord" said Hvon and he and Ilv went into a slow but deep bow. Evin did no more than look at the king and then turn.

"Ah, Hvon, much I have heard of you over the past 2 years. That rescue of Kinon-Holo back in 611, the night Jif-Dir took his life. How you were able to hold back 2000 beast-men of all kinds, with a small band of only 50 Hume and Galka back in Bastok. And did you not save Ilv d'Von here not once, but more than 5 times in the last year, as well as his brother before he met his fall?" asked the king. Hvon could feel his war-tired and scared face grow hot.

"Yes, King Rol'lan. It was 4 times in tell you the truth... that time in the Grand Duchy does not count. I was the one that made the bad call" said Hvon, as Ilv made a small noise (which he could not make out).

"But still, with what you have done, I now know that you are the right choice to get my son and the son of my old friend out of the fallen San d'Oria" said the king. At one Fall-Dir went up and gave Hvon a small old scroll, which had a map on it.

"A map on the road that the king believes you should take them. You should make it to the Grand Duchy in about 2 weeks, that is if our guess is correct, and we are indeed facing all the beast-men in Vana'diel" said Fall-Dir.

"But dad! This is San d'Oria! No beast-men or dark lord can make her fall! And you want me to go all the way to Jeuno! They will fall all the same, and we will all die!" the small Elvaan prince shouted.

King Rol'lan did not wince as Fall-Dir and Ilv, but let up a small smile and put his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Do not worry Evin. This is Hvon d'Nivon, one of the best warriors I have ever seen. Jeuno will not fall like you say. The men of Bastok and Windurst have sent 5000 warriors and sorcerers of all kind each to the Grand Duchy. They will not let it fall like us" said the kind as a fire-ball hit the left roof of the gardens. There were more yells. Hvon knew that Northern San d'Oria was about to fall.

"I will do all I can, my lord, to get these 2 to the Grand Duchy of Jeuno. I will die for them, and should that happen, Ilv will be able to take your son to the Great Capital. He is one of the best at black and white magic, and I would bet my life he would do all in his power to save your one and only son" said Hvon with another small bow.

Just as Evin went to protest there was a vast explosion, and fire and smoke, as well and blood and flesh, burst through the hall door where Hvon, Ilv and Evin had come through. There was the sound of bells... broken bells. The Cathedral was about to or had fallen. There was an explosion of screams (both of fear and death), and then all had gone silent. Out of the smoke, 40 people came into the gardens. Captain Sid-Taru, who led them, as well as Leon and 2 of the Tarutaru that had saved him before. The Elvaan and Hume warriors ran to the king, and at one Sid-Taru went to him.

"King Rol'lan! The beast-men have broken all of our north forces! We still do not know where the Tarutaru warriors are, but I think they are all dead!" said Sid-Taru. Ilv looked like he was about to vomit, and Evin for the first time looked scared.

"Have the rest of our men go into the center of the square and hold them back! I need some more time Divic!" the king yelled at Sid-Taru, who now had the same look on his face as Evin.

"This... this is the rest of our m-men, sir" he said.

For a second that could have lasted an hour, all the gardens went silent. Evin began to cry, and Ilv had a look in his eyes that told Hvon he was fighting not to do the same.

Then, another 5 people ran into the gardens. Just as they got 20 feet next to the group, arrows and spells hit their backs, killing them. Blood began to spill on the grass as the other 2 went on.

"He is here! The... " the one other had been cut off as a bow hit him in the head. He fell, and the other fell to, not out of horror, but because a dull blade had been thrown at his back.

Then, out of the black, thick smoke, came a dark shape. Clad in black robes as dark as death, a black hood over a dead white face. With a thick, blood-stained black blade at his side, with designs of dead people and hell, and eyes filled with death and evil. Red as blood, his eyes set on the king, and then the others. A demon-like smile set on his torn lips. Hands as white and dark as his face, he had 2 shoulder-pads of black on him, and each had a dark horn on it that stuck out. A blood-red scar line went across his right eye. Teeth sharp, nose dull, chin pointed. This was how all had pictured him, but no one, not even Hvon, could have guessed the Dark Lord Devonic in person would kill them. This was the man, the one who would end the lives of all the people in Vana'diel. He spoke in an ever-dark, torn voice of evil, which made even Hvon wince.

"Well... the king of San d'Oria, one of the now-3 Vana'diel Masters, it had been some time. The last time I saw you, you were in the Great Hall of Vana'diel, with the other masters. What have you been up to all this time?" said the Dark Lord.

"Y-y-you... you will p-pay for this D-D-Devonic!" said the king in the utter-most voice of terror.

"Really? Why? I really don't think that I will pay at all. I believe it is you that will die, Rol'lan" said the Dark Lord with a dark smile.

At once Sid-Taru went up, and pulled out his own black sword. The others in the garden let out small cries of terror, and the king had said out of the corner of his lips "Divic... no!"

The Dark Lord did no more than look at Sid-Taru, and did not make any move for his sword, but kept his eyes on the man before him, the same dark smile still on his face, a look of interest in his eyes (Hvon knew he would enjoy killing the man before him).

"You dark demon! You have done enough to harm the people of Vana'diel! The hour of your doom has come!" and with that, Sid-Taru went for the attack. The moment the blade hit the Dark Lord, it burst into blood and fell to the ground. A second later the Dark Lord's hand was on Sid-Taru's neck, and then (to all their horror) all the veins in Sid-Taru had come to the surface of his skin. Then a second later, the veins burst. Blood went all over, and the Dark Lord dropped him to the ground. Sid-Taru died a second later, drained of all his blood.

There was a scream, and some of the men in the room began to run the other way, out of the garden. The Dark Lord did not try to stop them, but the moment the king began to move, he vanished, and appeared before the door out of the garden. Smoke had come on the spot where he just appeared, and left the room as other people began to go the other way now. The king did not leave this time.

"I see you now know why I am here, Rol'lan" said the Dark Lord. Hvon had his hand at his side, he would fight to the death to save the king from the horror before them.

"To kill me?" asked the king.

"Yes" said the Dark Lord.

A second before Hvon could act, the Dark Lord was in front of the king, his dark blade stuck in the king's heart. There was a spill of blood, and the man's head was on the ground. The Vana'diel Master, and King of San d'Oria, was dead.

"No!" shouted Hvon, as he drew his blade and went for the attack. The Dark Lord looked at him, his eyes set, his blade back at his side, now stained with the blood of the dead king.

"Did you not see what I did to the other? Do you not know of the powers of hell that I have?" asked the Dark Lord. Hvon did not move, he just looked at the man before him.

"You will die by those words, and for what you have done! I am Hvon d'Nivon! And I will be the last man you ever see!" he shouted.

Before Hvon could attack, with the speed of the worst of wind, the Dark Lord was an inch from him, his hand on his neck, holding him in the air. Ilv went to attack, but Hvon held out his hand, a sign that had told Ilv to stop. The Dark Lord let out a chuckle.

Hvon could not speak. He felt a hell-hot pain in his blood, he could feel his vein about to burst. His skin had become white, his veins were now visible and blood-red. He was about to die like Sid-Taru had, and he knew there was no stopping it.

And a second later, the Dark Lord let go of him, and the pain had gone. He was not dead. Hvon got up and turned to see what had just happened. A man, one in a dark black robe as him, had come into the room. This person was about a foot smaller than the Dark Lord, but had the same suit of robes and armor on. His face, though, was hidden behind shadow. This person looked at though it was a smaller version of the Dark Lord, but where he came from and who he was, Hvon did not know. The person in black came up, a dark red stone in his one hand and a scroll in the other. The Dark Lord did not move.

"So... you choose to come now? You think you can do it, then?" asked the Dark Lord to the person in black. Hvon did not know what to think. Was this person good or bad?

"You will find that the door is open... death is no longer a problem. The stone is mine, and I have the secrets of death with me. The time has come, Siv-Din, to open you up to the true horror, the one you only got a look of" said the person in black, as he began to read from the scroll. The Dark Lord, took his blade and went to attack the person. The blade, just like he did to Sid-Taru, had burst into blood and fell to the ground. The Dark Lord, for the first time, had a look of horror on his face.

"N-no... wait, this will not work! No!" but a second later, before the Dark Lord could send a spell at the person, the person had finished reading from the scroll, and the words on the sheet began to burn red. Then the stone did the same, and a dark blood-red light shot from the stone at the Dark Lord. There was a cry of death.

The Dark Lord began to face, to die, to vanish. Red blood began to drip from both the stone and the Dark Lord. There was a final cry, and the Dark Lord was gone... dead. Hvon did not move, Ilv did not either, neither of them spoke. The person put the scroll and stone in his pocket.

"The war has just begun... the Dark Lord is back, and this time with the power of all hell. Vana'diel is will die, and will be a God of Death. The other one will die, and with his death I will be one. Hvon is dead, and the Grand Duchy will fall... Vana'diel is mine" and with that the person is black vanished in a cloud of black smoke. For no less than 5 minutes, Hvon and Ilv stood there, both with a blank look on their faces. The Dark Lord... was dead? Who was that person in black? Why did they kill him? What did he mean when he said the Dark Lord was back and with the power of hell? And what did he mean... Hvon was dead? He was not dead; he was in the room, alive!

"Hvon... what... did he... " but Ilv did not know what to say. The Dark Lord was dead... the war... the war was over? The Dark Lord was dead and the Great War was over!

"Ilv! The... the Dark Lord... is d-dead! The war is over!" Hvon shouted as he went over to Ilv. Ilv still had the same dead look on his face, but his eyes were full of life.

"The k-king! King R-Rol'lan is dead!" Ilv shouted, as Hvon looked at the dead slaughtered body that was once the king. This was a very dark day indeed, but also a great day for all of Vana'diel.

Before Hvon could say a word, Leon and Fall-Dir, along with 8 other warriors, came into the garden. They all stopped dead when they saw the body of the king. No one said a word...

The Dark Lord was dead. Hvon and Ilv had been taken all over Vana'diel, to tell the story to all the people of the land. They had gone to the Great Hall of Vana'diel too, where they told what had happened in the gardens of Chateau d'Oraguille to the last 2 Vana'diel Masters. Peace had once more come back to the land. When the Dark Lord had died, the beast-men fled in a hurry out of the broken walls of what was left of San d'Oria. They had gone as far from people as possible, to all the dark places in the world. It would take 80 years for San d'Oria to rebuild itself. 3 months after the war was over, Ilv d'Von had passed on, and Ilv d'Von II had left Hvon to go to the Grand Duchy of Jeuno to take on the title of Duke Ilv d'Von II and Vana'diel Master.

Hvon had said his goodbyes to Leon and Ilv, and had set out for his home in Bastok, where he had lived his life in peace before the war. But still... he worried. Even though the Dark Lord was dead, and the cloud of black smoke and cold had lifted from the land, he felt a new dark power, but for some reason... it felt distant, and as time had gone on, that dark power grew. This is what kept Hvon from being able to enjoy his life like all the others. He just had to know, he had to find out what it was that made him feel so... sick.

He had gone to the Grand Duchy of Jeuno the next month, to see his old friend, now the duke of Jeuno, to tell him what he was about to do. Ilv did not try to stop him, for he knew it was no good. Hvon asked Ilv for some supplies for his trip out into the world, and what he got was 20,000 Gil and as much armor and weapons as 10 men would carry. With that, he said goodbye once more, and set off to the Hall of the Gods. He knew that he would find the answers there, but he knew he would not like what he found.

He spent 2 years searching for the path to the Hall of the Gods, the place that the Dark Lord had spent the last of his days before the attack on San d'Oria. When he got there he found scrolls... plans. He spent a month reading, learning. What he found was... terrible. All of what the Dark Lord did, and all that would and had happened to him was written down. Did this mean... the Dark Lord had made plans to die? But why would he do that? The more he read, the more he found out, and the stronger his sense of horror became. The Dark Lord was dead... but in the scrolls, he would rise again?

5 years had gone by since he last set foot in one of the 4 Great Capitals. He had gone back to the Grand Duchy to tell Ilv the dark news, but when he got there he found only his heir, Ilv d'Von III. His old friend had died from a dark poison that was put on him when he had gone to find Hvon.

With a sad and heavy heart he left once more, and made his way on a 4-month journey on the path to San d'Oria. Once there he met with Leon, who had become the Captain of the South Guard. He told Leon of what he would do, and what would happen once he did it. His friend (which came as a surprise to Hvon) did not object, but said he would come along. The 2 left the kingdom, and made their way to a place called Fei'Yin, a vicious and cold area far to the north. Once there they found a dark cell, deep under the snow. It was secret dungeon, where the Dark Lord had spent so many years in before he came out of his 13-year period of hiding. It was in that dungeon, deep in one of the worst places in Vana'diel, that Hvon found the power to go with his life, the power that would allow him to live till the time of the new Dark Lord, the power the Dark Lord had used himself. Leon did not wish to have that power. He decided to head back to Vana'diel, and to wait for Hvon to come back.

Hvon had told Leon that he would spend his time in an old cave by Bastok, and wait for the time until the dark power finally came in the open. Leon had told Hvon that he was in his debt, and that he would tell his children, who would tell their children (and so forth) to help him if he called. With that, Leon left, and that was the last time Hvon had ever seen him. Hvon decided to spend much time in battle, so he went to places such as the Batillia Downs and the Gustaberg regions, but soon after, about 40 years later, went to stay in a dark empty cave by the roots of Bastok. There he would wait until the time he would have to act came... but he never knew he it would be in 1266, more than 600 years in the future.