Chapter 8: "Expedition Emblem"
The Castle was still flooded, and that was an uncomfortable thing, even if Alina and Isadora had promised the contestants that they would find a good solution to fix it. However, that wasn't enough, for Karel, to stop him. He had a more important thing to deal with at that moment.
Slowly, he left the boys' room, and using a floating armchair that once was in the living room as a boat, he made his way to the girl's room. He switched the lights on, only to realize that the Castle hadn't electricity. Cursing himself -because he already knew that-, he left his improvised boat next to the door and started walking, looking for someone in particular. He started wandering through the floating beds, until he found what he was looking for.
He shook the familiar figure laying sleepy in her bed violently, until the poor black haired girl opened her sleepy eyes slowly.
"Karel, is that you?", Karla asked him, sound asleep. "What do you want? I'm sleeping"
"I don't care!", he said loudly, making Serra move in her bed in the opposite direction. "We have to talk!"
"Can't it wait?", his sister asked again, grabbing her pillow tightly.
"No! I can't talk about this in front of everybody else!", he cried, in haste. "Why are you here?"
"Hmm?", Karla mumbled, still lazily. "I had to see you. It's been ages since I have seen you for the last time"
"But you already know what will happen now, stupid! Couldn't you just forget me and go on with your life?", Karel asked her, mad at her. "I don't want to kill you, idiot!"
"Nor I want, stupid!", Karla shouted, sitting in her floating bed. Luckily, she hadn't awaken anybody else. "I miss you, brother, and I don't want to go on with that stupid law of ours!"
"As if it were so easy to do it! It's been in the family for ages, and no one has broken it before!"
"There has to be a first time!"
"But I won't be the one to do it!"
"Then, I'll be the one!", the black haired young woman exclaimed suddenly, determined to end everything at last. "Take it or leave it Karel, but now let me sleep!", she said, turning to the opposite side and picking the blanket as if her life depended on it.
Defeated, Karel mumbled a few things under his breath and left the room, back in his "boat".
Alina run through the corridor quickly, evading (or bumping into) all the people that were –casually- walking in the same place. She was trying to make it in time for the early Monday reunion, but she wouldn't make it, even if she were to sprint in the last meters… after all, she was half an hour late.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm millions of times sorry!", she apologized and greeted the others as she got into the office, where Lord Pent, Louise, Athos, the producers team and the cameramen were, as well as a red haired man she had never seen before. Without taking that in count, she sat down next to Isadora, leaving her jacket so carelessly in her chair that ended down in the floor, much to her disappointment.
"You always say the same, and yet you never arrive on time, especially on Monday morning", Pent complained, looking at his watch. "I'll have to give you the sack if you were to arrive late again".
"You could hire Uther as your lawyer to grab some more money from Pent, without counting your last month's payment", Wallace said, making it obviously that he was hiding something under his sleeve. "If you could face him without blushing, screaming and running, that is", he added, laughing at that.
Alina blushed and lowered her head first, but then she noticed that he wanted that (or so she thought), so she just glared at him, then.
"Well, I'll make things short for you, Alina", Pent said, ignoring that little joke. "As the Castle needs fixing, we have decided to move the party to another place, at least for this week, in which the Castle will be put as good as new"
"And let me guess: we'll do all the fixing, right?", the brownish-reddish reporter asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Nope, you aren't doing that", Pent said, rolling his eyes. "I never asked you to do something like that!", he cried, puzzled.
"Yes, you did!", Renault jumped in favor of the reporter. "We had to clean the disco after they were all gone"
"I have to agree", Lord Athos said, nodding. "I even had to help. Not that it matters much to me, but an Ancient figure like me deserves more respect"
"So you finally recognize that you are growing old, Archsage?", Wallace winked at him, touching him with his elbow continuously.
"I didn't say it in that aspect!", Athos protested. "However, I'm known as the Living Legend, so I guess I'm already in the mature age"
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry", Pent apologized, raising his hands in defeat. "Anyway, you won't be doing the fixing of the Castle, alright? Instead, we'll move the contestants to an island for this week. To the island of Valor, to be more exact", he said, using a darker tone of voice in his final sentence.
The whole room turned to Alina's side, in order to see her face. The girl, who couldn't understand why they were looking at her with strange faces, asked, astonished, "What's wrong with that?"
"Don't you know?", Wallace asked, puzzled.
"No. What?", Alina asked, shrugging. "Remember I'm not from here, guys", she reminded them, innocently.
"We can easily realize that", Renault said, arching his eyebrows.
"Valor is a really dangerous island", Isadora began explaining. "Most of the people that went there never came back. We are risking their lives and our careers in sending the cast there, but I wasn't the one who proposed that", she said, looking at Renault and Wallace by the corner of her eye, while they were whistling innocently, as if they never had anything to do with that topic.
"Great", Alina said, uninterested. "I guess you want to get rid of me and that's the best way you could find", she said, resigned.
"We also have to talk about that", Pent said, seriously. "From today on, you won't be alone anymore in your job. Geitz, the man over there, is going to be your co-reporter"
Alina blinked twice, sign that she didn't understand a part. "Sorry, what do you mean?", she asked, confused.
"He means that you are so stupid that you need someone else to help you in your hard work", Wallace explained her, a bit rudely.
"It's not like that!", Pent said, sighing. "Alina, your work has been declining since a some emissions before, but it has gotten worse since the day we transmitted from the disco. You don't put enough strength nor ideas into this, and you always seem lazy towards new activities. So, I'm forced to put someone else in the screen, because you aren't enough to inform the viewers"
Alina felt as if someone had dropped a cold, icy cube of water on her head. She was the only one who could enter the Castle and appear on TV from there… until now. Now, she had to share her screen time with… another person.
"But it's not fair!", Alina shouted, annoyed. "You should have warned me first, instead of putting that boy in my place!"
"He won't take your place entirely, you are just going to share functions", Pent tried to calm her down, without success.
"Of course you'll say that he won't take my place, but I know that in two weeks, I'll be sitting in my home watching some old, bad movie instead of being at the Castle, dealing with Karel's threatening looks and stupid-Kent's drooling eyes towards Lyn!", the brownish-reddish haired reporter yelled, extremely nervous.
"What? Do you have a crush on Kent?", Geitz asked, talking for the first time.
"No one talked to you!", Alina yelled at him, hysterically.
"My… what a personality", the red haired guy replied, arching his eyebrows. "Quite annoying and immature"
"Alina, calm down or I'll fire you!", Pent shouted, tired of her behavior. "You are an adult, for St. Elimine's sake! Go and take a bit of fresh air, then we'll cover the Valor thingy"
"What should I do until then, Pent?", Geitz asked, looking eager to learn.
"Come with me. We still have to tell you some other things before you appear on TV", he said, standing up. "Wallace, Renault, you also come with me. The others can do whatever hey still have to do", he said, leaving the room, followed by Geitz and the two producers.
"Nergal!", Marquess Laus's voice resounded in the entire Laus TV building.
"I have a message for Lord Nergal! I have a message for Lord Nergal!", a cloaked man, who looked too much like Denning chanted behind Lord Darin, following him at each step, like a shadow.
"What's all that noise!", Sonia complained, coming out from her dressing room. "And why don't you shut up your mouth?", she shouted to Denning's clone, who just told her that he "had a message for Lord Nergal"
"Stop with all that noise, I'm right here", Nergal showed up, making the finals arrange to his turban. "What's so important that both of you call my name like that and make all this fuss in the building"
"I have a message for Lord Nergal, I have a message for Lord Nergal…", Denning's clone went on chanting, driving Darin into a extreme state of nervousness.
"I'm right here, now talk", Nergal said, impatiently.
"I have a message for Lord Nergal, I have…", the clone went on, with his eyes fixed in nothing.
"Looks like he has gone haywire", Sonia said, examining him well, as he went on with his repetitive speech. "I'll take care of him", she said, grabbing him from his shoulders and pushing him out of the scene. Even so, his lines of speech could be heard from afar, and stopped right after a heavy sound, like something being pushed from a distance and landed on the ground.
"Well, what was that thing so important?", Nergal asked, before Darin could even ask him what was that sound, or what would Sonia do with that guy.
"Lycia TV is going to send its "Big Emblem" show to Valor, as their Castle is being mended this week. Isn't that important?", Darin said, worried. "Now, what are we going to do? How can we overcome that 'surely-rating-upraise'?"
"Valor? Are you sure they said Valor and not another island?", Nergal asked, irritated. As Darin nodded, he said, "Alright, leave that to me. They mustn't reach Valor by any means!"
"Alright, whatever you want, but what can we do to beat them up in the rating battle? I can't care less about that island…"
"But I don't!", Nergal yelled, but soon regained a calm behavior. "I mean, I'll take care of that, don't worry".
"Alright, I leave it in your hands", Darin said, not so satisfied. "Oh, by the way, we have just received a letter from that Uther from Ostia. He tells us to stop the emissions of "The Darkest Truth", or at least to stop treating the "Big Emblem" topic, especially if we use parts of their transmission. And he says that Lycia TV is planning in starting legal actions against us, as we got into their show illegally and without asking any permission", he said, reading the letter, before handing it over to Nergal.
"I'll also take care of that", Nergal said, picking the letter, leaving Darin behind, who went to think in other ways to win the rating battle.
"This is embarrassing", Alina mumbled, drinking her glass of water quickly, as if she had been drinking vodka –especially after a love trouble- instead. "They are gonna give me the sack in no time"
"Hey, calm down! You look way too depressed!", Fiora told her, looking at her with pity. She had been called urgently by Isadora, and now, the three friends were gathered in an urgent meeting, trying to cheer up the depressed reporter.
"You won't be sacked", Isadora said, sighing. "At least, not yet. Both you and Geitz are cheaper than professional reporters, and that's why Pent won't kick you out"
"Thanks for your support, and for calling me useless", Alina thanked the blue haired producer ironically, raising her head little from her folded arms before burying it in them again.
"You taking things too much at heart, girl", Isadora complained, drinking her coke. "You should relax. Geitz won't become a threat for your job"
"And how do you know that?", Fiora asked her, earning herself a glare from Alina.
"Because he won't last much in this environment", Isadora said, chuckling. "The thing's like this: he's the son of a wealthy man, and keeps on bothering rich daddy. So what does Daddy do?"
"Kick him out from his house?", Alina asked, without enthusiasm.
"Something like that. The problem is that Geitz shows enthusiasm at the beginning, but after a few weeks, he doesn't care about what he's doing at that moment. He prefers to think in new projects rather than finishing his current ones", Isadora explained, having another drink of her coke. "It won't be long enough before he returns with 'Daddy-rich-pockets'"
"I wish I could live like him", Fiora said, looking at her already empty glass. "Life's not fair"
Alina and Isadora looked at her, both of them puzzled.
"Excuse me, but you aren't doing much lately", Isadora objected, confused. "You are hanging around with us too much lately, and we don't know when do you work"
"I know", Fiora said, leaving he glass at ease. "I've took a couple of days off, so I can keep an eye on Florina, even if I'm not there. I've promised I would do extra patrols when I return to work, and I have resigned my wage of those days, so…", she explained, sighing at the end. Raising her head, and with an embarrassed look, she asked them, shyly, "I know it's embarrassing, but since I'm short of money, could you pay my drink?"
Isadora and Alina sighed, but accepted, nonetheless.
"Alright, I'm ready to go to the 'oh-so-scary' island", Alina said, meeting the cameramen and her new co-worker next to the van that would take them to the port, from where they would take a ship to Valor, if they could find any.
"You should take things more seriously, Alina", Heath warned her, as he closed the van, ready to embark in the only ship that accepted taking them to Valor. "That island gives me the creeps with only thinking about it"
"That's true", Rath agreed, breaking his silence.
"Nah, it can't be so bad", Geitz said, carrying his wares. "At least, this will be more interesting than interviewing them at the Castle"
"You haven't even done it once, and you are already disgusted about that", Alina pointed out, not interested in the chat. "But what's so strange about that island? I can't understand it"
"No one came back from that island, Alina!", Heath exclaimed, annoyed. "Nobody knows what lies in that island, but it can't be good"
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry", Alina apologized.
Just then, the van carrying the contestants showed up, and work began once again.
Soon, everyone was on the ground. Most of the "trapped ones" didn't look too good. Too many days without anything good to do…
"Alright, people, hi again", Alina greeted them, trying to act cheerfully, but the only presence of Geitz next to her, and with a microphone on hand, disturbed her.
"Yeah, hi", Geitz greeted them, smiling.
"Who's that one?", Hector asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm Geitz, the new co-reporter", the red haired guy said, proudly.
"No one gave you that title yet!", Alina protested, jealously. "They are just testing you!"
Geitz was about to reply something, but Rath made him some signals to stop talking. After all, those who had satellite TV by Lycia TV were watching the scene at that same moment.
"Alright, the thing is like this: as the Castle is falling down over your very heads, we have to mend it. So, you have to spend this week at Valor Island". Fortunately for Alina, no one made faces or screamed at that. Even Serra kept silent. "Well, you have nothing to say against that, I see", she said awkwardly, just to say something. "Well, then, let's get going. The ship that will take you is just ahead…"
"What, aren't you coming with us?", Lyn asked, surprised.
"I… err… we haven't discussed this yet, now that I think of it…", Alina mumbled, confused. "Hey, boys, who's going?", she asked to Heath and Rath, who were more confused than what she was.
"I go, I go!", Geitz started jumping, claiming victoriously.
"Well… he goes", the brown haired reporter shrugged, still puzzled. "Good luck, then"
And so, the 'Big Emblem' contestants and Geitz, the new reporter, got into Captain Fargus's ship and left to Valor…
"Alright, Nino, come here!", Sonia yelled, after her personal make-up artist left.
Shortly after that, the always smiling green haired girl came in, cheerfully. "What's up, mother?", she asked, politely.
"I have a work for you, and I hope you will do it well, without any flaws", Sonia said, paying more attention to her nails than to her "daughter".
"What's it, mother?", Nino asked again, excitedly.
"You have to get rid of all that Big Emblem crew. Lord Nergal ordered it, and as those Reed Brothers are busy somewhere else, and Ursula and Uhai aren't around, the job is for you… unfortunately", the black haired and pale skinned woman said, sighing. "You better do it well, understood?"
"But how I'm supposed to deal with all those people by myself?", the green haired girl whined, now worried about the magnitude of her task.
"I was expecting your whining", Sonia admitted, annoyed. "Jaffar will catch you later. He's… busy with another project"
"Okay…", Nino said, thoughtfully.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Get moving!", Sonia yelled, pushing Nino forwards. The girl understood well that message, and so she left, wondering how she would commit her task.
"Hmph! Humans! They are always so lazy and need everything to be ordered to them", Sonia mumbled, as she stared at the leaving Nino.
"Well, let's make ourselves comfortable here!", Geitz shouted, with his mini-camera on hand, recording everything for the show. "We are on a pirate ship, so let's plan our next attack to a civilian boat!", he went on shouting, while the ship's crew look at him weirdly.
On the other side, Wil wasn't pleased at all of being in that ship. There were a few known faces in that ship… And it seemed that he wasn't forgotten, either.
"Hey, look who's here!", one of the pirates yelled, after spending some times looking at a nervous Wil.
"Hey, if it's the bad jokes guy from that party!", another said, grabbing the poor guy by the neck, mockingly. "Guess we'll 've a great time teachin' him some jokes, don't ya' think so?"
"Yeah!", some other pirates joined him, laughing.
"If you are gonna play with him, don't spoil the floor, please", Captain Fargus joke, as the group of pirates walked past him, carrying Wil like a puppet. "We spent quite some time cleaning the blood marks last time", he said, bursting into laughter. With that statement, Wil was more nervous than ever.
"Ahoy! To the infinite, and beyond!", Geitz shouted, over-excited. "I'm the King of the Sea!", he went on, somewhat in a mystic state.
"He ain't serious, is he?", Dart asked Eliwood, the closest "client" he had around.
"Well... he is. He's the new reporter", the fire haired youth said, shrugging.
Dart didn't say anything, then he blinked twice and left, amazed.
"Ahoy! To the sea, and beyond!", Geitz went on yelling, much like a little boy in his favorite place.
"Should I do something about this?", Karel asked the rest of the contestants, his sword on hand.
"Keep that out... at least for now", Hector said, sighing.
"It's gonna be a long trip", Lyn said, resigned.
"Now I want to hear someone saying that I'm the most annoying person aboard", Serra said ironically.
The others leaned their heads down, like an apology.
And then, a tough journey began...
Nino rushed to the port, feelng as if her legs were to fall down from her body at any time. Beside her was Jaffar, not paying much attention to her.
She made it, finally, but she couldn't see any known face at the port. Breathing heavily, she walked to a fisherman, who was sitting there. "Excuse me, but... had the ship that was going to Valor already left?", she asked, wishing it hadn't leave.
"Yes", the man replied, while he throw a stne to the water. "You are safe now"
"It's not like that!", Nino whined, terrified at the only thought of Sonia. "Mum's going to be really mad at me now! I'm useless!"
Jaffar, who had heard the conversation silently, told her, "Let's get out from here, we can't reach them"
"But you don't understand... she'll be really pissed off at me, and with enough reasons!"
"Hey, calm down... Nergal sent some of his men to stop them at sea... so let's get out from here", the silent guy said, walking away.
Nino followed him with her eyes, as she tried to calm herself down. Then, she followed him, silently, biting her lips so she wouldn't whine about her situation.
Alina shut the door of the van quite hard, releasing some of her rage with that. She was starting to get sick of her once so exciting job... after all, Pent had already found a replacement for her.
The two cameramen and the reporter walked silently into the building, only to be received by a too-nervous Isadora, who looked eager to see them.
"Finally, you arrived!", she said, running to their meeting. "I couldn't contact any of you before. Is it that all of you had your handies off?", she asked, angrily, just to became worried at the next instant. "Leila's been hurt", she just said, saddened. "She's Uther's secretary... She left her workplace, when someone knocked her down, leaving her unconscious at the street. She's at the hospital right now... It all happened after Uther sent a legal letter to Laus TV for using our material without asking for it first... we don't know what can happen from now on..."
"Shess... pretty trouble we were thrown into...", Heath said, whistling.
"Yes, and that's not everything", the blue haired producer said, frowning. "Right now, there's a battle at Captain Fargus's ship... with all the contestants aboard", Isadora sighed, switching one of the TVs on. Right there, an army of morphs was attacking the ship, and everyone was fighting them, with the exception of Ninian and Nils, who couldn't be seen anywhere. The most excited over all that thing where Karel –for obvious reasons- and Geitz, who always got excited at something new.
"Wow... and I should be there", Alina complained, her mouth wide opened. "I hadn't spent three years of my High School life in the Tacticians Club for nothing... but well, it seems I did"
Heath chuckled at that. "You sure have bad luck"
"You bet", the brownish haired girl whined.
"Whatever!", Isadora said, sighing. "What should we do now? Pent went with Louise to the doctor, and Renault and Wallace aren't much help right now, as they are checking how the rating goes to the sky with all that non-planned violence"
"What? The rating's going up?", Alina asked, surprised.
"As it had never been before", the blue haired woman said, as surprised as her friend.
"Quite odd...", Rath said.
"'Violence rules' would be their leit motiv", Heath said, shrugging. "A rather violent society"
"Indeed, but now we must think what we should do", Isadora said, worried. "I'm trying to contact Geitz, but the guy is more excited at the battle rather than answering his handy".
"Well... let's wait until they defeat those guys", Alina proposed. "If things get more difficult... let's find a wyvern and go to their rescue"
Isadora blinked surprised. "And you spent three of your High-school years at the Tacticians Club for this suggestion?"
Alina shrugged, smiling innocently.
Nino walked along the Laus TV corridor with her head down, defeated. The only thought of facing her mother made her feel more miserable, as she woulnd't accept her defeat.
"So here you are! It was time", Sonia yelled as she saw the green haired girl. "Don't say anything. I already knew that you couldn't get them, you failure! But we already got what we really wanted, and not because of you. Now get out!"
Nino looked at her silently, her eyes filling up with tears.
"What are you looking at?", Sonia yelled at her once again. "Oh, you are about to cry, aren't you? Get out of here, I told you! No, if you are as stupid as your parents were... It was nice to get rid of them... No, go away"
Nino's eyes opened wide. "So... you are not my mother?", she asked, trembling.
Sonia laughed at her. "Hahaha... what an occurrence... No, I killed your parents! How would I have a child, especially a rather silly one, just like you! Hahaha... you, my child? How stupid!", she went on laughing maniacally, despicable.
Nino's fist tightened, as her sorrow turned into rage. "You evil... thing!", she shouted, as she rushed to Sonia, with the intention of hitting her. However, Sonia dodged her, and the green haired mage fall down, crying.
"Hahaha... see? You are useless... You can't do anything well", she said, as she walked next to the fallen girl. "Humans... nothing but a stupid race", she mumbled, as she got into her room and closed the door tightly, while Nino made her best to get up from the floor.
Back at Captain Fargus's vessel, the battle was over, with many corpses of morphs filling the floor.
"Yeah, we did it!", Geitz shouted at his video camera, wildly. "Now, I'm really am the King of the Sea!"
"Yeah, yeah, as you say it", Dart told him, as he walked past him.
"Hey, everyone is alright?", Eliwood asked, taking the role of boss, once again.
"Yeah, the kid is right", Captain Fargus said, rubbing Eliwood's red hair. "Are you alright? Should we go on with our journey without any complications?"
"Wait!", Lyn shouted, terrified. "Ninian and Nils aren't anywhere in this ship!"
"What?", the rest of the contestants shouted, astonished.
"It can't be! Are you sure?", Hector told her, disbelieving the Sacaen girl.
"I looked for them all around the ship, and there are no traces of them!", Lyn said, worried. "Those strange guys must have taken them prisoners!"
"Oh, St. Elimine, what should we do now?", Rebecca said, also worried.
"Hey, wait! We have to go back to Vadon!", Geitz shouted, annoyed. "I got instructions from the producers that things are quite bad lately, so we should return and spend these days in another Castle"
"So we're off to Vadon, right?", Fargus asked, raising an eyebrow. "Alright, we're going back"
"Had you told them that Ninian and Nils aren't here?", Lyn asked him.
"No, but they had already heard you saying it, so... now they know", Geitz said, shrugging.
"But it can't be! They should be somewhere on the ship", Farina exclaimed. "Well, let's go and look for them. And if I find them, I shall receive my reward!"
No one was at the mood to glare at the money-hungry pegasus rider.
Isadora went pale at the bad news.
"Isadora, are you alright?", Alina asked her, worried at her friend's change of skin tone.
"I won't be ok if things go on like this", she said, resting over the armchair. "Ninian and Nils aren't on the ship"
"What?", the rest of the people at the producers room –Alina, Heath, Rath, Wallace, Renault and Lord Athos- exclaimed, astonished.
"What you've heard. They must have been taken prisoners by those guys", Isadora said, tired. "I'm sick of this! This was supposed to be one of the most quiet, pacific, relaxing works I've ever had, and instead, I go from one disgust to the other!", she yelled, sick of the situation. "Now, what the Hell are we supposed to do now?"
"We should talk to Pent, of course!", Alina said, convinced of her idea. "Where are they?"
"Forget that idea, as reasonable as it is", the blue haired producer said, tired. "Louise is pregnant, and we shouldn't torture the merry couple with this kind of stuff"
"Is she pregnant?", the reporter and the two cameraman asked, surprised.
"Yes, she is", Isadora said. "They wanted to keep it secret, and that's why they put Erk into the show, as they didn't know how he would react"
"Aha... odd", Alina just said, confused. "So, what should we do?"
"Fight Nergal", Lord Athos simply said, seriously.
"What? We can't do that, Archsage", Isadora said, surprised. "Fighting classes have been abolished some years ago"
"But there's no other way out", Lord Athos said. "Talking is useless with Nergal, and, without any doubt, he will try to turn Ninian and Nils into their true form"
The remaining people at the room stared at Lord Athos puzzled.
"What do you mean about 'true form'?", Renault asked. "Do you mean that there's something wrong with them?"
Athos sighed. "I really hoped this time wouldn't came, but well... there's no other way out than telling you the truth", the old man said, resigned. "Ninian and Nils are dragons who fall into Elibe. I made them join this show in order to protect them, as I knew Nergal was behind them. I thought they would be safe here, but it didn't turn out as expected"
"So everyone made this show to get rid of someone else?", Alina asked ironically, thinking in Erk's situation. As everyone looked at her quite crossed, she apologized quickly.
"So Nergal was behind the ship's attack", Isadora said, annoyed. "Well, it was obvious, actually. That way he would also have some material for his show, too"
"You are right. He sent his morphs to distract the crew and kidnap the kids", Athos said, saddened.
"What are those morphs?", Heath asked.
"They are things that resemble humans, though most of them lack soul. Only a few ones resemble real human beings", the Archsage explained.
At that statement, Renault looked somewhere else, as if he wanted to hide something.
"How do you know so much about Nergal?", Alina asked, curious.
Lord Athos smiled lightly, yet annoyed. "He was once my disciple and friend"
"And why didn't you say it first! We could have taken advantage of that, somehow!", Wallace shouted, excited.
Now, everyone was crossed at the bald producer.
"Argh... sorry", he apologized, sweating.
"Well... there's no time to loose", Isadora said, clapping so she could cheer everyone up. "Hands at work, that we have to protect the rest and find a way to rescue the poor dragons... I mean, kids!"
"Hmm... I still have some questions about the entire thing...", Alina began saying, but was interrupted by Wallace.
"Later! Now, go and pick the others at Vadon's port", the bald man told er, quickly. "You two go with her", he said, pointing towards Rath and Heath, who were already in their way, before he could finish the phrase. And so, they were gone.
Isadora walked along the corridor, as she talked to Fiora, who had just arrived to hang up with her friends, and instead of that, she had to find several ways to cheer up a worried Isadora. Both girls were walking quietly when they heard heavy footsteps coming behind them. Quickly, the two young women turned back, and found Uther running in haste, and in a bad shape. He had bandages covering both his forehead and his nose, and he was followed by Oswin, his secretary, advisor and friend. Neither of them looked too friendly.
"What has happened to you?", Isadora nearly shouted, waiting for another disgrace to fall over the show. "What's with those bandages?"
"A minor problem", Uther replied annoyed.
"A man attacked him", Oswin explained. "It must have been the LBC people, after Lord Uther kept on sending the demands"
"Oh, just great! I hope nothing worse will happen from now on!", Isadora pleaded, depressed.
Uther coughed. "Well... there is more", he said, slowly. "Lord Elbert has been kidnapped"
Fiora had to grab Isadora as she fainted, product of all her worries and stress.
Hi there. Sorry for the lack of updates (it's been like a year or more). I want to thank to that last review I got, which just said "Update!". I found it funny (even if this isn't). Well... won't say more. Go on reading, that I've uploaded two chaptersthe entire storytogether, to make it up for the lack of chapters! ;)