Crimson Twilight: Dusk

Chapter 19: Moonlight

"Listen closely, Eddga!"

The sound of his ally's voice caused Eddgal to stop smoking his pipe long enough to pay attention. What surprised him was that when he looked up, instead of finding the humanoid cat-form of Moonlight Flower, he found himself staring at a young woman with short, golden hair and pinkish-red eyes. He grinned and continued smoking. "I thought you were male, Moonlight." He growled. Large puffs of black smoke rose from his pipe. Those who noticed from a distance would think that a campfire was burning where he was.

The blond girl stared viciously at Eddga; her lips drawn back in a feral snarl. "I am male, dolt!" She snapped. "Don't let my appearance fool you, Eddga. This is fox maiden, the Payonese nature spirit whose body I took."

Eddga held his pipe for a while and stared quizzically at his companion. It was rather odd that such vicious words were coming from the small, pinkish lips of a little girl who looked no older than thirteen. "You mean…you're not Moonlight?" He asked.

The fox maiden's eyes narrowed with impatience. Apparently, all the sharpness in Eddga's body can be found in his claws and teeth only. "In some ways, I am." He replied. "You might say that I am an aspect of Moonlight Flower. But enough of that. I've just learned that Osiris and the doppelganger have "purchased" an entrance to Prontera."

Eddga snarled upon the mention of the doppelganger. The fake swordsman had dealt him several blows before laughing at his face while the mortals swarmed at him like ants. If it was a fair fight, he was sure that he could tear the shadowy immortal apart! "I will get even, doppelganger, even if I have to tear Prontera apart to find you!" He roared out his frustration and then blew out a large plume of smoke from his pipe.

"Eddga!"

The sound of Moonlight's now-feminine voice caused Eddga to look at his ally. He growled in frustration. He did not have an alternate form like Moonlight's nor a human-like appearance like Osiris or the doppelganger. Even he could not hope to breach the veritable hornet's nest that was Prontera where hundreds of mortals stood ready to defend their homes.

"Stop drifting off and listen to me, Eddga!" Moonlight continued. "I have a plan to counter that of Osiris'"

Eddga watched his ally with interest. He had acknowledged from the start that Moonlight was the thinker in their alliance. While he did not consider himself an idiot, he was aware that there were other immortals that were craftier than he was. He was never the type to use elaborate plans. "I'm listening, Moonlight." He growled.

The fox maiden turned towards Prontera's direction. After their failed attempt to absorb Drake, the two Payonese immortals headed towards the capital in order to absorb a couple of minor immortals; Angeling and Ghostring. Once more, Osiris had beaten them to Angeling. They compensated by slaying Ghostring and sharing his essence. "My present form will allow me to infiltrate Prontera-" He started.

Eddga grinned slyly. "-and win you several admirers from its residents, no doubt."

The fox maiden glared at Eddga. "Don't be a fool!" He snapped. "As I was saying, I can enter Prontera with this form but I need another touch of disguise to turn the mortals against Osiris and the doppelganger."

Eddga looked at Moonlight's "fox maiden" form. He knew little of mortals but enough to know what mortal men found attractive in mortal women. "What, bigger breasts?" He asked. "I have heard that most mortals are fond of such things. They could be useful if you plan to-"

Moonlight walked over and rapped his fist against Eddga's skull. "Don't strain your dull-witted head trying to guess what I'm planning, Eddga!"

Eddga snarled at Moonlight's prodding before settling down. "Fine, tell me of your plan then, fox maiden."

Moonlight turned his attention back to Prontera. "I will allow another aspect of Moonlight Flower to take control…and yes, Eddga, it means another personality."

Eddga was about to ask another question when settled down and kept listening as his ally discussed their plans.

"I must admit that I am not Moonlight Flower's original persona." Moonlight continued. "The original Moonlight Flower was a shy, weak-minded fox maiden who easily gave way when I took over. I'm going to let her regain control for a while."

Eddga returned to smoking his pipe. He did not like complicated matters such as multiple personalities and infiltration plans. "And what am I supposed to do?" He asked. "Sit here and do nothing?"

Moonlight began to tear up some of the cloth that was wrapped around his female body; exposing smooth, pale skin. "You, my ponderous ally, are going to provide Moonlight Flower with some unpleasant memories." He answered.

Eddga grinned and clasped his claws together. He could at least understand that.

"A hundred thousand gold zenny coins for this hastily constructed stick?" Kreizen Xalascent roared. "It barely passes for an old man's cane! Your guild is comprised of thieves, blacksmith!" He banged his fist against another blacksmith's bargaining table. A moment ago he was buying several bars of oridecon and steel when he had spotted the guild blacksmith selling several elemental pikes at prices he considered robbery.

"Watch your mouth, Xalascent! I won't have you slandering my wares!" The bald guild blacksmith stood up with his fists clenched. He was about the same height as Kreizen although not as burly. The crowd watched in anticipation. Kreizen was already notorious for his frequent quarrels with the blacksmith guild; quarrels that always ended up with a street brawl in the end, that is.

"This pike's point is badly sharpened and its shaft is poorly joined to the rest of the weapon!" Kreizen continued; pointing at the weapon's point. "It will break after a few battles so how the hell can you sell it for that price? The quality is so poor, even you are too embarrassed to put your mark on it!" The only thing forged in a pike was its metal head while its long shaft, well over seven feet of handle, was made of wood.

The other blacksmith upturned the table, knocking over the pike stand and causing pikes to scatter to the ground. "That's it, Xalascent!" He shouted. "It looks like a month of duty in the colony hasn't cleaned that filthy mouth of yours!" He raised himself to full height and swung a fist towards Kreizen; who sidestepped the attack and countered by smashing his right fist straight into the other blacksmith's face. The other blacksmith fell back; blood streaming from his nose. Kreizen kicked the man in the midriff causing him to double over. An uppercut laid the man flat on his back.

"Stay there until you can put your craftsmanship before profit." Kreizen growled. "I won't let you cheapen the art of forging with such lousy, cheap, mass-produced wares." With that, Kreizen took his sack of oridecon and steel and walked away. He did not bother explaining to the crowd when they began to talk about him. His reasons were as plain as the poorly-made weapons that had scattered on the ground.

"That's Kreizen Xalascent right? No wonder he's got the guts to pick fights with the blacksmith guild! Look at the size of those arms! He could pound weapons into shape with his bare hands!"

"The man's insane. He'll lose his trade to the guild if he keeps making enemies out of them."

"I doubt that. Have you seen his works? A bit pricey but marvellous! I can see why shoddy workmanship riles him so much. These guild blacksmiths will sell you colored sticks and call them elemental pikes just to make a profit."

Kreizen made his way to a small workshop near the great fountain that marked the center of Prontera. Among the tall buildings that served as homes for the wealthier blacksmiths was his low-built, modest home. A handmade sign hung outside the front door. It read "Weapons and Armor, Kreizen Xalascent: Proprietor" in simple writing. The lettering was plain and the sign itself was mere polished wood without any decoration. Kreizen was in firm belief that a blacksmith needed no fancy signs, enormous foundries, beautiful "assistants" or other forms of advertisement except the quality of his weapons. "I'm back!" He shouted to no one in particular. "It's been two months but I'm back!"

Kreizen opened the door and entered his smithy. His anvil was still there; its surface reflecting the sunlight that poured from the open door. He ran his hand over it. Few material things ever meant as much to him than the anvil in his shop. Constructed from emperium; rarest of all metals, the anvil was a source of his pride and the envy of other blacksmiths. It had once belonged to his father, who had it passed down to him from several generations of Xalascent blacksmiths. When he left Prontera for the colony, he had asked Eliarainne to make sure that his home was free of any robbers and the First Knight Commander promised its safety. In this small shop near the center of Prontera, he forged weapons of masterful quality. Many knights, crusaders, swordsmen and even priests considered it an honor to wield a "Kreizen Xalascent" in battle. With good reason too; his weapons never broke in battle, they were perpetually sharp and their elemental enchantments were extremely powerful.

'Slander their wares indeed…all I need to do is to forge good weapons to put their cheaply-done ones to shame!' Kreizen thought to himself as he ignited his forge and put on his leather apron. It was already late afternoon but he wanted to forge at least one weapon to ease his worries. 'A fire-enchanted claymore I think…something to help against those nasty, orc archers.'

When he deemed the fire was hot enough, Kreizen plunged a bar of oridecon into the flames. He smiled to himself as the metal slowly grew white hot; like starlight as he liked to describe it. Instinctively, he withdrew the bar when he knew that it was hot enough and then began the slow process of hammering it into shape. He loved the sound of his hammer striking the metal, loved it more than the music of a troupe of bards. Each time the hammer sounded, he considered it yet another step to finishing another masterpiece. Several hours passed before he was satisfied with the blade's form. With an oridecon file, he gave the weapon its keen edge. He plunged the blade into the fire once again. Suddenly, he thought back to what Makaelthos said earlier.

'War eh?' He thought. 'This whole thing started when Prontera decided to expand towards orc territory. Now the tribes don't just want their land back, they want the humans to suffer in the same way they did.'

Kreizen ground the flame heart he had prepared earlier along with a couple of star crumbs. Laying the claymore's blade, which now glowed with heat "like the sunset" as he liked to describe it, on the anvil, he poured the mixture into the weapon and hammered at it. The star crumb absorbed the flame heart's fiery properties as it melded into the metal. The right process was slow, exacting work. He frowned at the thought of using only one standard unit of star crumb and scorned the idea of rushing the process. Such corner-cutting, he believed, was the reason why many guild blacksmiths forged inferior arms and armor. His thoughts focused on what his sister earlier said about their friend, Eliarainne. 'I think Rainne is a great person. There's no reason why that old fool, Cafilex, feels the need to make her feel bad about herself. Rainne needs to stop seeing him until he learns to accept her.'

Kreizen had to agree with his sister though. Rainne could use some support from her crusader partner. He plunged the claymore into the forge for the last time. He could tell that the battle-hardened Knight Commander had certain…fondness for Makaelthos. Why the man never noticed, he could not understand. He refused to believe that Makaelthos was as dense as the plate armor he wore. 'He'll come to grips with it. Rainne's too impatient to just leave things as it is. Besides, these things have ways of just working out so why bother worrying so much about them?'

Kreizen withdrew the blade from the flames and inspected his work briefly. The weapon possessed no flaws; no cracks or notches of any sort. He dipped it into the oil and sighed as he heard the familiar hissing. He looked upon the weapon once more. Red-glowing metal was replaced by pure, silvery-blue oridecon that was flawless and utterly strong. The blade was sharp enough to cleave through flesh and bone with ease. Its fiery enchantments manifested themselves as a ruby glow that did not dim with the setting sun. The weapon was complete save for the hilt; which he will do later. He had to buy some gems for the hilt and some expensive metal for the chasing. He grinned with deep satisfaction. The same pleasure he knew his sister and their friends felt.

'They have their own ways to gain this feeling.'

Kreizen imagined the same smile on his companions. On Seihanine, each time her arrow found its target from a distance that made your average archer cry. On Makaelthos each time he completed his duty despite all odds. On Eliarainne, whenever she rode back to her troop after single-handedly destroying another group of goblins, kobolds, orcs or some other enemy. On Trenzein, after completing a tide-turning spell just in time and on Silmeia, whenever she ensured the safety of Prontera's soldiers. Kreizen looked out his window. 'Sun's down, time for a drink!'

Kreizen placed the weapon on his anvil and prepared to lock up. As soon as he got out though he found the body of a girl, lying on his doorstep.

"What the hell-?"

Alarmed, Kreizen lifted the girl in his arms and examined her. Short, golden hair fell across her face. Her unmarred, pale skin felt smooth to touch. He looked around to see if the one responsible was still around. When he saw no one, he brought her into his home. He laid her on Seihanine's bed and inspected her closely. He spotted a nasty gash on the girl's side, like a huge claw had struck her. He sighed with relief as he noticed that she was still breathing. 'She's waking up.' He thought. 'That's good. I think I have some red potions stashed here somewhere. Better find some of Sei's clothes too; this girl is barely dressed.'

The girl opened her eyes; revealing pinkish-red irises that stared at Kreizen in fright and confusion. He smiled reassuringly and handed her a vial of red potion. "Relax, girl." He tried to make his voice sound reassuring by lowering it. "I'm not going to hurt you. My name's Kreizen, what's yours?"

After several moments of hesitation, the girl accepted the potion and drank it quickly. Slowly, she relaxed in Kreizen's presence. "M-Moonlight, I think…" She answered. She looked around, trying to find something familiar in her surroundings. Failing that, she looked to Kreizen again. "Where am I?"

Kreizen's eyes widened in surprise. Moonlight Flower was a horrid cat-demon he had encountered in the caves of Payon once. "Moonlight!" He exclaimed. "What a strange thing to name a beautiful girl like you after Payon's most malevolent monster!" The girl called Moonlight cringed at Kreizen's reaction although she blushed at the compliment. The blacksmith had to smile at her mixed reactions and reminded himself how easily he startled people with the way he spoke. "It's a lovely name despite the association. So, Moonlight, tell me what happened to you."

Moonlight thought hard to remember. A vision of a monstrous figure covered in orange and black fur; all muscle and fury, running forward and swiping at her with razor sharp claws suddenly flashed in her mind.

"I was attacked by…a man-tiger."

Kreizen's eyes narrowed in suspicion. A man-tiger only meant the other immortal that Payon was famous for. He had heard the stories of how the First Knight Division encountered the tiger immortal during a mission in Alberta. "Eddga!" He growled. "What a coward he is to attack you!"

Moonlight suddenly clutched her head as the strain of recollection came to her. No other memories came to her mind. Kreizen placed a hand on her shoulder. "You alright? Just relax and get better first."

Moonlight suddenly recoiled from Kreizen's touch until she huddled into one corner of the bed. He drew back his hand and stood up. "I'll get you some clothes." He said as he backed away.

Moonlight glanced underneath the blanket and blushed furiously. She was wearing next to nothing! "Thank you, Mister Kreizen." She whispered.

From outside the blacksmith's house, though. Another pair of red eyes watched the shop grimly. The figure wrapped its cloak around itself even tighter, to hide any exposed bandage, and walked away.

'What a fool you are, Moonlight Flower. You underestimate the strength that the beings you call "weak" can draw from others. You will regret this move for sure.'

World Notes

Star Crumb – A star crumb is solidified mass of star dust, a special powdered substance found in mines near areas of strong magic. Large sources of star dust include the mountains near Geffen and Juno. Star dust is known for its ability to absorb elemental energies in solid form such as heat, cold and electricity found in flame hearts as well as its ability to fuse into metal at high temperatures to add elemental properties to the metal. Star dust is collected in mines and then fused together into brittle units called star crumbs by simply boiling in water. The star crumbs are then sent to their dealers then sold to blacksmiths for elemental weapon forging. Once melded into metal, star dust loses its ability to absorb elemental energy.

Flame Heart – A flame heart is a mass of fire in an inert and solid form. Flame hearts are formed from Red Blood, which are clumps of naturally forming residue from creatures naturally affiliated with fire. Collectors scour areas populated by these creatures and bring the red blood together. A mass fused from ten red bloods creates one flame heart. A flame heart's inert fiery properties can be brought out by grinding it with a mass of star dust, which causes the star dust to immediately absorb the released fire. Flame hearts also have frost and electrical equivalents.

Pronteran Blacksmith Guild – the Pronteran Blacksmith Guild is a powerful organization of blacksmiths created to safeguard the interests of those in the trade. It provides members with protection, funds and opportunities. Detractors accuse the guild of trying to get all blacksmiths into the guild as to create a monopoly on forged weapons and armor and raise prices.