Crimson Twilight: Dusk

Chapter 6: First Strike

'Quiet...simply too quiet.'

That was all Drake could think as he watched Alberta's harbor from his ship. A week had passed since he started terrorizing the harbor with his frequent raids. Most of Alberta's citizens now knew better than to come out of their homes at night for those who did were prey to his crew. There wasn't a night in the past week when a rusty cutlass and a seaweed-covered skeleton wasn't the last thing someone saw. Several squads of pronteran soldiers had already been sent to check what was happening but he was quick to deal with them. He knew it was only a matter of time until Prontera sends a larger force of men. 'Let them come.' he thought defiantly. 'I will destroy anyone who attempts to sink my ship again.'

Drake remembered his last living moments quite clearly as well as the non-living ones. He was aboard his ship, The Ravening Whore, a cutlass in hand and and a rope in the other. The Glastheimian ships had him flanked and knights were already boarding. The main mast was already broken and his crew was being overwhelmed but all that seemed to matter was killing the person in front of him. A crimson-garbed man with fists wrapped in gold. They fought and he had lost. His ship sank with him along with it. A great amount of time had passed. He wasn't sure of specifics. Someone had come and, once more, he was inside his dead body underneath the waves of the Albertan sea. He had been brought back and given a crew of skeletons and ghosts so that he could attack the man who once killed him. He had refused. He was a pirate and no one ordered him about. He brought his ship out of the sea floor and began a new career of terror. Glastheim was no more and the prison city he vowed never to inhabit, Morroc, had become an empire. The last thing he had been doing was evading the ships of Morroc sent and then there was blackness. As if he had fallen asleep.

Now, conscious and still undead, he had no idea why he had awakened. All he knew was that his being conscious gave him more power than before. He did not know or care about the other beings in Rune-Midgard. Perhaps they had also been granted consciousness or perhaps only he received the honor. It did not matter. Alberta was his territory now and no force on Rune-Midgard was going to drive him out.

"What do you think awaits us in Alberta?" Eliarainne asked as she rode beside her partner. He had been quiet for the duration of their journey. She did not mind it though. She was already used to his silence. She knew that her partner was already thinking of the possibilities of their mission. If any risks were involved or what exactly Grand Knight Commander Quai Hune was hoping they would accomplish. She did not bother with these details. What was important was they finished their mission.

Makaelthos looked back at the knight. Unlike her subdued appearance in Morroc a week ago, Eliarainne was geared to her liking. She wore her bone helm, a large, cumbersome piece of armor that covered almost her entire head save for her face and the front of her neck. It was crafted from a solid piece of elunium with a pair of horns attached to its sides that jutted outward. It included a visor to protect her eyes as well. Though polished to a sheen, the metal showed scratches and nicks from previous battles. The front part her breastplate had a removable extension attached to its collar, a piece of elunium that jutted upward to protect her neck and lower face. It also served to hide most of her facial features. Riding atop Bristle now, there was no mistake about it, she was indeed the commander of one of Prontera's finest knight divisions. "Since we've already lost two squads of knights just trying to investigate the matter, this means that we're dealing with something powerful here." he answered. "We've already suppressed the local criminal guilds in the area so I think it would probably have something to do with this whole "immortal" business. It may be that Drake is on a rampage, though I certainly hope I'm wrong."

Khaesilya walked beside Makaelthos and spoke up. Though most sohees preferred to float behind their masters, Khaesilya seemed to favor walking. She had once expressed that it was because she didn't like the impression she left on some people when they saw her floating about. "I'm afraid that you are mostly likely correct, Master Makaelthos." she said. "The awakening of the immortals will include Drake as well."

Makaelthos concentrated for a while before turning to face the sohee. "What about the other immortals, Khaesilya?" he asked. "How would they react to each other?"

Khaesilya grew more worried as she answered Makaelthos's question. "The immortals have always been striving to slay each other." she said. "They desire to feed on their essences, making them much stronger. The Lord of Death has already made mention of the coming war. I have heard of this war. The immortals will fight each other for one last time, slaying each other until only few are left."

Makaelthos suddenly remembered the cloaked figure with the bandages as well as the murderous grin on his swordsman companion. He also remembered the Lord of Death's visit and the abysmal knights that followed in its wake. A report came a few days ago when the sole survivor of a long range patrol returned to Prontera, along with all the soldiers occupying the pronteran outpost by the Sograt Desert. The Lord of Death had occupied the desert with a vast army of raydrics. One of its abysmal knights had destroyed the patrol, leaving warnings that the capital would be under attack. Realizing that they were going to be wiped out if they stayed, the entire outpost evacuated for the capital. The mind reeled at the thought of hundreds of coordinated raydrics attacking Prontera. War was on the horizon for sure. "So that's why Osiris is working with the doppelganger. They have forged some sort of alliance to slay the other immortals. But how do you know all this, Khaesilya?" he asked.

Khaesilya bowed her head when she replied. "I-I don't recall. It seems I knew this before the silver knife."

Makaelthos dropped the subject after that. There was no point in pursuing it. Sohees forgot most of their lives before they were bound by a silver knife of chastity that made them into slaves. Even after being freed, the memories did not come back.

Eliarainne's eyes widened in realization. "So this Drake also has some sort of ally?" she asked.

Makaelthos continue to think. "Perhaps, but we must slay Drake first. It's the only way we can prevent the other immortals from gaining from his strength." he answered.

Eliarainne nodded in agreement. She had defeated Drake before. Several times, in fact. She still remembered joining up with other parties to venture into the depths of the ruined pirate ship by the coasts of Alberta. She also remembered engaging the skeletal captain in a desperate battle. The immortal's skeletal nature belied the strength in his arms and his cunning fighting style did not show in the hollow sockets of where his eyes should be. Somehow she felt that this fight was going to be different.

"I must say that you're quite the clever one to catch up to the whole situation, crusader." someone said. "I would cast the blame on you having your sohee slave to fill in the blanks."

Makaelthos ordered their troops to stop. Behind them were several squads from Eliarainne's first knight division. "Who's there? Show yourself!" He called out.

Shrill laughter echoed among the trees of the forest just outside Alberta. The other knights looked nervously among the trees.

"Don't strain yourself, I'm here."

Makaelthos's gaze fell upon the figure that suddenly appeared in front of them. He easily recognized the figure's short stature, the bright, yellow fur and the stick that it always carried to make it look like some sort of runaway or a vagabond. Luminous eyes, slit in the middle and seemingly alight with malicious cunning stared back at Makaelthos. Bewhiskered upper lips parted to reveal a pair of fangs. Simply put, the figure looked like a cat that stood on two legs. Its hands were padded and furred like a cat's paw but its fingers were elongated and human-like, tipped with short, curved claws. Makaelthos knew its name almost instinctively. "Moonlight Flower." the named escaped from him.

Moonlight smirked at the troop of knights before him before answering. "And I'm sure you're also familiar with my friend here, crusader." he sneered.

An enormous creature emerged from the trees. While Moonlight resembled a humanoid cat, this one resembled a humanoid tiger. It stood at least twelve feet tall and was covered in striped, orange fur. Makaelthos took note of the creature's incredibly long claws and the smoking pipe that was held by its fang-filled mouth. Powerful muscles rippled across its arms and legs. Its enormous torso was wider than a pair of barrels. "You've allied with Eddga. What's your business here, Moonlight?" he asked.

The cat-creature's paws already sizzled with raw magical energy in the form of blue-white arcs. Moonlight had always been known for his spell casting capabilities. Makaelthos drew his sword, a signal for the rest of the knights to get ready as well.

"Quite simple, really." Moonlight answered. "I cannot allow you to slay Drake first because I'm planning to kill him for myself. So you're all going to have to die here!" He raised his paw and gestured towards the crusader.

The ground shook beneath Makaelthos's feet. As if in a spasm, it heaved and cracked as a portion of it burst upward. A single spike of stone, similar to a stalagmite rose towards him with the speed of a hurled spear. He brought his shield down just in time in response. Stone struck the white elunium plate with a loud bang. The metal was not dented but the force knocked him back a few steps.

With a shout, Eliarainne raise her lance and charged. The knights behind her echoed her war cry and followed suit. 'We'll have to neutralize Moonlight's spell casting first.' she thought. She waved her lance towards Eddga, signaling her men to attack him first while she rode towards Moonlight.

Makaelthos raised his sword and advanced towards Moonlight as well. The cat smiled and raised a paw for another spell. He raised his shield and continued to advance even as numerous bolts of fire streaked towards him. He could feel the heat of Moonlight's spell even as he slashed at the creature. Moonlight nimbly ducked his attack and gestured towards the charging Eliarainne. The ground suddenly heaved underneath the knight before several shards of earth struck her and her mount. Behind the two of them, Eddga was attacking the troop relentlessly. The tiger-creature's claws slashed past the guards of several knights at once. Some had already fallen to Eddga's strength as the creature trampled them. One knight charged in; piercing the creature's incredibly tough hide. Eddga turned to face the knight and swiped at him with his claws. The knight grunted as the claws tore through his armor, raking the flesh beneath. Through it all, the tiger-creature continued to smoke his pipe. Makaelthos raised his sword again, but the flames made it difficult for him to aim.

Eliarainne also continued charging from Moonlight's right, her lance managing to graze the cat's back. Annoyed, Moonlight cast another spell as he ducked another swing from Makaelthos. Several shards of ice followed her as she turned her mount about for another charge. The shards struck her squarely on the chest. She grit her teeth against the numbing pain. Her armor held on after the icy assault even as she charged again.

Moonlight was about to sidestep an attack from the crusader when he caught the familiar glint of a stiletto from the corner of his eye. A sohee suddenly attacked from behind him. The crusader took advantage of his surprise and thrust a saber towards his furred chest. He managed to evade the treacherous sohee's attack at the expense of catching the crusader's thrust to his right side. The knight rode past him, her lance swiping dangerously close to his head. "Enough!" he cried out and raised another paw.

Makaelthos felt a sudden rush of wind above him. Khaesilya looked up as well. Almost immediately, the two realized what was coming. It was too late, though, a powerful blast of icy wind surrounded Moonlight, flinging the two back several feet. Makaelthos was trying to stand against the massive assault of wind and ice when Moonlight cast another spell. Electricity began to build up on the cat's right paw. At first, the blue arcs formed a small sphere the size of a marble. As the electricity built up, the sphere grew hand-sized. The electrical surges grew larger and more violent. Makaelthos recognized a Jupitel Thunder when he saw one. He raised his shield when Moonlight hurled the ball at him. His shield arm shook as the white elunium of his shield met the spell head on. As swift, whispered prayer escaped his lips and a glow seeped out of his hands and into the shield. The spell stopped most of the electricity from surging past the shield, lessening the injuries he would have received.

Eddga grinned as his partner devastated the battlefield. More knights fell before him as he slashed his way through them. Still, he had to respect the power of these knights. They had wounded him several times already though he was far from beaten. Another knight slashed at him with a two-handed sword. He took the blow on his massive, furred chest and brought both his claws down on the knight. Eddga grinned fiercely as the knight fell. Suddenly he was faced with a broad sword-wielding swordsman. "Oh please, a swordsman?" he sneered. "Go home, kid, before I wrench your guts out!" Eddga turned to face the other knights. Out of the twenty knights that he attacked, only eight remained standing. The others were on their knees with injuries while two lay dead on the forest floor. He, on the other hand was barely injured.

It was something the swordsman failed to realize, though. The blond boy suddenly raised his sword in solemn manner. The other knights seemed as baffled as Eddga as the swordsman suddenly spoke in a ridiculously dramatic tone. "I will defeat you in the name of the mighty city of Prontera, Eddga!" he cried out. The swordsman charged; holding his broad sword in a one-handed grip. Before the tiger-beast could react, the blond swordsman slammed into him head on. Eddga swiped at the swordsman with a claw but his enemy was moving incredibly fast. The broadsword flickered from one side and, as Eddga moved to avoid it, it suddenly slashed from another. The blond swordsman suddenly locked his broad sword against Eddga's claws. As they struggled in that spot, the swordsman leaned closer to Eddga and spoke. "Looks like I've pushed you into a corner eh, Eddga? These fool knights will no doubt try to assist me!" he said. "While you and Moonlight will have a squad of angry knights and a crusader on your hands; my buddy and I will finish Drake off, get stronger, and then come back to eat you!"

As if on cue, a knight suddenly yelled. "We've got to help that swordsman!" The rest of the troop charged at Eddga with renewed fervor; perhaps inspired by the bravado of the "swordsman". Eddga's eyes narrowed in frustration.

"The doppelganger, how dare you rely on such cheap trickery!" he snarled. "Nonetheless, I'll deal with you and these knights at the same time if I have to. Moonlight can handle the crusader, the lead knight and that traitorous sohee!" The doppelganger grinned as he stepped back and let another knight charge in to strike at Eddga. The tiger-beast roared as a lance struck his right side. In a flash, the doppelganger was behind him. The broadsword fell; gashing Eddga viciously.

The blond swordsman suddenly grasped Eddga's neck in a headlock and whispered into the beast's ears. "I wouldn't rely on Moony that much, Eddga!" he taunted. "He has his own problems as you will soon see!" He chuckled, released his grip and looked back at Moonlight's battle.

Eliarainne jabbed at the cat-being relentlessly with her lance while Makaelthos was back into the fray. His arm was numbing from the last Jupitel Thunder. Even though his shield was partly mirrored to defend against spells and he had pulled off a shield reinforcement spell in time, the electricity was so powerful that some of it still slipped past his guard. Eliarainne swiftly rode next to him as he whispered another prayer, causing his hands to glow softly with white light. With a touch he sent the glow to his companions. Some of their wounds closed while some burns simply disappeared.

Moonlight's eyes narrowed into slits. The crusader was becoming a nuisance. He pointed a paw at him and began to cast another Jupitel Thunder.

Makaelthos saw the cat-being cast a spell and raised his shield. He did not hope to interrupt Moonlight's concentration before he cast his spell. The cat-being's casting speed was notorious. The spell was not cast however, a cloaked figure suddenly leaped from the trees. In a flash, a bandaged fist slammed into Moonlight's face, sending the cat-being careening into a nearby tree.

When he noticed the sudden presence of another immortal, Eddga checked on his ally. The distraction proved to be a mistake when the doppelganger quickly disappeared from his sight. A sudden pain across his left leg told him the price of losing the shadowy immortal.

Makaelthos and Eliarainne knew who the cloaked figure was. Red eyes glowed from the figure's hood, almost daring them to mention its name. Makaelthos looked back at the troop. A blond swordsman was helping the knights defeat Eddga! With Osiris around, he knew instinctively that it was the doppelganger. The "swordsman" grinned; eyes gleaming with cunning. He assessed the situation. Osiris and the doppelganger were using Eliarainne's troops as extra "help" to destroy Moonlight and Eddga. If he warned the men that the doppelganger was fighting among them, Osiris and the doppelganger would also turn on them. He doubted if the remaining knights could handle the doppelganger and Osiris after sustaining heavy casualties by fighting Eddga and Moonlight.

As Makaelthos was thinking, the cloaked figure suddenly spoke. It's voice rumbling menacingly from the depths of its hood. "You had better retreat, Moonlight." he said. "You're outnumbered and it's Drake we're after for now."

Moonlight's paws clenched. "You have the advantage now, Osiris, but I'll be the one to slay Drake and then I'll slay you next!" he spat.

The cloaked figure's eyes gleamed. "Osiris?" he asked. "You're mistaken; I'm just a monk trying to defeat the infamous Moonlight Flower while my swordsman friend busies himself with Eddga."

Moonlight glared balefully at the cloaked figure and gestured for Eddga. The tiger-beast broke free of his enemies and moved to his partner's side. Moonlight cast another spell and the two were gone.

With the threat one, the knights turned to face the blond swordsman and his cloaked companion. Makaelthos kept his sword drawn; the situation could quickly become violent. He remembered the incident in Morroc.

Suddenly the blond swordsman grinned and spoke. Breaking the tense silence around them. "Wow! You guys are from the Pronteran knights, right?" he asked. "That's great! Are you here to get rid of Drake? My pal and I could help!" The knights looked at their commanders. Eliarainne had no idea what to make of the two. Khaesilya returned to her master's side and glanced nervously at the cloaked figure. Makaelthos thought hard while the swordsman kept talking. "My name's Joe Buck and my monk companion here is Seiros. We're here to help defeat Drake."

Makaelthos listened as the doppelganger spun one lie after another. Then his own fists clenched. He didn't have much of a choice; it looked like he had to work with the doppelganger and Osiris this time.

The cloaked figure's eyes gleamed faintly. Makaelthos stared back at Osiris as a silent conversation seemed to pass between them. 'A pleasure working with you too, Osiris.' he thought.

Eliarainne ordered the rest of the troop to carry the wounded and move on. There were other battles to fight inside Alberta, battles they now had to share with two of the most unlikely battle companions they'll ever have.

World notes

White elunium - a rarer type of elunium known for its higher capacity for mirroring and its natural sheen. It is as strong as regular elunium.

Mirroring - a process during the crafting of a piece of armor. Mirroring adds a special alchemical substance to the metal to make it more resistant to magic. As a sideffect, mirroring slightly decreases the hardness of the metal. Fully processed pieces are called mirrors, the most common being mirror shields. They have been known to fully deflect spells and even reflect portions of them. Over-mirroring causes the metal to turn into a putty-like substance, unfit for forging. Partial mirroring allows for some significant defense against magic without sacrificing physical defense.

Shield reinforcement spell - a spell known to crusaders that allows them to channel some holy energy into their shields to increase its hardness and resistance to magic. Coupled with mirroring it allows them to actually reflect a larger portion of incoming spells.

In game explanation - this spell replaces the reflect shield spell known to crusaders.