The Summon Stone

After the train arrived in Westwood, the team quickly headed for the village of Claiborne. Jessica was thoroughly convinced that time was of the essence. Something inside of her was shouting warnings of some sort. But she couldn't quite understand what it was all about. The girl wanted to chalk it up to the sushi Emily had made; then she remembered that was months ago. It was most likely nothing at all.

Once there, they listened to the rumors in town. First was about a trio of Drifter teams heading for Serpent's Coils. Then the same three teams had gone to Ka Dingel. Both were ruins in the fields that were in the Claiborne area. One team, the Cascade team, was rumored to have vanished into thin air. A second team, which was relatively new and not recognized by any specific name yet, had purchased a pack of horses and headed for Little Twister. The final group, the Schroedinger team, was still in the area looking for treasure. After learning about those little mysteries, they heard about a cave west of the train tunnel. It apparently gave off a strange glow at night and was scarring the villagers. It looked promising.

"I wonder if the rumored Ka Dingel disappearance is what caused Janus to learn to teleport like that," mused Vincent, "After all, no human could possibly have done what he did. Perhaps he was given some new powers from Leehalt following whatever happened. He didn't quite feel right when I saw him."

"You have a natural ability to see what normal eyes cannot. It's almost like you were from Baskar or Doria. Well, nobody in Baskar is named Maxwell and Doria isn't big on last names. They like to stick to simple terms. However, they do address people by rank if they want to be formal," Lyla told her friend.

Jessica added, "Yes. Mom is High Priestess Jessica; she and I share the same name but she uses the name Jess in regular context. I am simply Priestess Jessica since I haven't gained rank like she has. Aunt Victoria, a respected midwife who took care of mom when I was born as well as other high ranking members of the Dorian society, is Lady Victoria. The late princess was Princess Ekatrina, and her daughter Virginia is still considered Princess Virginia. Or, when her friends joked around with her, Princess Ginny. I don't know any of their last names. But if no leads turn up I can take you to Doria."

Vincent smiled at the girls. "Thank you. You're my true friends. I know if I keep on looking I'll find a clue to my past somewhere. All I know is that I have a twin sister in addition to my parents. I wonder what she'll say when she learns that she has a brother. Probably the same thing Jessica's older brother is going to say when he learns he has a sister. Life is just full of surprises sometimes, right?"

S...S

They headed to the cave and went inside. Frisky instantly darted ahead of the rest of the team. Jessica, worried for her pet, ran after her. She could sense the strange emanations inside of this grotto. It was almost enough for her head to burst. Great power was lying deep inside and she was sure that Lyla could feel it too. The girl was relieved to hear the sound of her partners' feet running close behind.

At the end of the cave, they beheld a magnificent sight. It was a large violet colored stone. The young priestess stepped forward to touch it. Suddenly, her Medium began to glow. Then, it turned a shiny bronze color. It was the sign that the artificial Medium was powered up; just like real ones turned to gold. Seeing her success, the other three did the same thing. Five more Mediums transformed into their stronger forms. Now, not only could the non sorcerer's use Arcana, but they could Summon to help them.

"Well, well, well," a cocky female voice called from behind, "You kids think that just because you got here first that you can take this gem. But you're no longer playing Little League now. With my team here you've instantly been thrown into the Majors. So you can either give up now or be pummeled by the hands of Maya Schroedinger. I'd suggest that you leave the gem behind if you don't want to get hurt."

The four humans and one tiger turned around to see a group of people standing in the doorway. One appeared to be an orange cat with wings. The second was a man with a big black afro who looked like he was stuck in the era of disco. Third was a timid looking blond boy who had a panda backpack. And finally, the apparent leader and only girl in the group, was a woman with similar blond hair and an orange dress. She looked like she was carrying a whole lot of ammo around just to cause a little trouble.

"Never heard of ya. The name yes but the reputation no. And this isn't a gem you can sell. It is a magical artifact that is sacred to the Guardians. As a priestess, I will not allow this sacred relic to be tainted by anyone. So I'd suggest you be the ones to turn tail and run. Unless you want to end up fodder for the point of my sword," threatened Jessica. Not like it did anything; this is Maya we're talking about.

The female Drifter retorted, "You think you can defeat me. I swear that Virginia girl has more sense than you. And she's pretty darn crazy; diving for that Cascade jerk and nearly getting herself and her teammate crushed by a rock, then fighting Janus when he was going insane on top of the tower. But nobody scares me off. I will possess all of the powerful gems on Filgaia. Don't worry, I'll make it quick."

The young boy began tugging on her sleeves. "Sis, there's something about this group. I think we should just let it be. After all, the last relic we found turned out to be a soul devouring spear. Such things are best left up to temples to care for. That's what the people of Baskar do; keep holy relics from causing trouble for the rest of Filgaia. I'll bet they're here to take it back there; we should let them go."

"Are you that much of a coward Alfred!" screamed Maya, "It's a gem. This one is clearly a gem. I'd be a fool to let it go. If these four twerps won't move out of my way then I'll have to make them move. Todd! Shady! Get ready to battle. Alfred, if you want to chicken out then you can. But don't come crying to me later on. I'll show these punks what happens to those who mess with the Schroedinger Family."

"As you wish, M'lady," Todd, the afro man, replied. The cat, Shady, simply shrugged. They were both ready to fight; they just took a calmer approach than their mistress. Well, that was a good thing. I think they'd be in real trouble if everyone on the team was just like her. Jessica readied her sword to fight.

Teefa's Last Words...

Well, the new magic is getting a test run next chapter. I know you know the Arcana for Lyla's three Mediums, since she uses ones already in the game, but I have to tell you the skills for the others.

With Oodoryuk, Jessica can cast the healing spell Refresh, revial spell Raise, defensive spell Barrier, and magic defensive spell Wall. Her Summon heals the entire party.

With Ge Ramtos, Laura can cast the dark attack Doom Circle, the instant death spell Armageddon, the Divide Shot in spell form named Divide (yes I can be lazy if I want), and the instant death barrier Guarder. Her Summon may cause instant death for all enemies.

With Equitess, Vincent can cast the normal attack Just Sword, the elemental addition spell Imbed (it doesn't need other elements equipped like Attachment though, since he has no other elements), the critical hit spell Sword of Truth, and the countering spell Sword of Defense. His Summon attacks a single enemy for neutral damage.

This chapter makes it clearer that the story is going on during the actual game; with the mention of the Ka Dingel showdown and all. The Maxwell Gang is probably just fighting in and around Little Twister about this time. They will comein after the timeframe of WA3 just cuz I don't want to change the game's plot. I just wanted to add a twist for them to find later on.