Hiya all. Sorry it took so long for me to come back. No matter what you say, I've been lazy writing this as I was off on a 'no computers' vacation. Geez…parents seem to oppose the idea of writing fanfiction, but here I am, back again after a long hiatus to present to you…Chapter 6!
Enjoy!
Breath of Fire 2: Chapter 6-Awaken once more, Ryu! The Reptile vs. Reptile contest
He stood there, as silent as the night.
How long had it been? Five, six years? He had not counted, nor had he bothered to. All that matters now to him was that he was back in his hometown, the only place he could truly find peace throughout his twenty-five years of life.
Yet, there was no nostalgic feeling, no bittersweet memories appearing in his mind to welcome him back with open arms. The familiarity was gone, as was the warmth he had felt before, replaced by a cold, brooding silence. It was as if the Darkness had taken over everything, destroying any benevolence left in this town and in its place, false memories.
What had happened? How long had it been like this? He did not know. But one thing was clear to him, and that was to find the culprit who did this to his hometown and pay him back tenfold-no, hundredfold.
There was also a mission for him to complete and he struggled for a while between duty and honor. It only took a brief second before he chose his path. Blending and merging with the shadows, he was invisible to the naked eye. Moving swiftly, silently, he weaved his way through the maze of streets and alleys and finally caught sight of his target. Without any hesitation, he made quick work of the target's lackeys, lightning movements so fluid that no normal person can see how his body moved, the blurs of movement deadly and yet majestic.
Turning around to finish what he would call an 'easy catch', his target surprisingly parried his slash, sending a thrust with intent similar to his. He was forced to dodge repeatedly as the rapier attacked successively, intending to rupture his throat, eyes and head. Cursing himself for being too arrogant, he grabbed the rapier with his gloved hand and sent a disemboweling slash towards the neck of his opponent. Instead of seeing that satisfying spray of blood, he was greeted by a fist in his face, sending him reeling.
"Shit." He cursed under his breath, recovering quickly and deftly evading the expertly timed fists and thrusts of the now free rapier. This was not good. If someone did pass by, the secrecy of his mission would well be exposed like camera film under the sunlight. He had to end this quickly.
Doing an acrobatic back flip, he sheathed his sword and as his feet touched the wall behind him, he did an explosive mid-air charge at his opponent, who was shocked by the feat.
That was the last mistake the target ever made.
Deftly cleaning his blade, he searched the dead man's body and came upon what he needed to complete his objective. Not taking another glance at the corpse's bulging wallet and exquisite rapier, he stole off into the night. Performing actions of thievery on people he had to assassinate was against his principles. Besides, one of these days, the stolen items would bring him misfortune indefinitely, as evidence of his guilt.
He ran as though he was being chased by the legendary Cerberus from Hell, speedily making his way through the streets before the deed he had done was made known. Having the knack of memorizing his way in, he traveled quickly and in no time at all, he was out into the cool desert, feeling the pleasant cold wind upon his clothes. There was no time to enjoy the cool eddy for him, though, as he mumbled a few words and sped off at such a pace that he was invisible to the naked eye. Soon enough, he reached his destination, neither sweating nor panting much. A feat, considering the fact that he had ran more than ten miles. His two companions turned and grinned at him, both looking like men in their late thirties.
"You've made it again in time for dinner, Karn," The first man spoke, his face surprisingly radiant and full of youth as he walked towards the assassin, his smooth azure hair seemed to glow in the moonlight. "Though I do sense that you seem to be losing your touch…"
"Shut up, bastard." Karn grinned, knowing that his friend would take that insult lightly. "If you are trying to say I'm old, then you are no better." He wiped the sweat off his eyebrow and strolled towards the campfire site his two other companions had set up. "So, what's for dinner?"
"I got a little something different this time, friend. Finally caught some ostriches running along earlier on." His other friend, one of the last surviving Forest People, smiled, his canine features eerily resembling that of a demon. A friendly demon, that is.
"Ostriches? Geez….I know I wanted something different, Gilliam, but ostriches? It's just so weird." Karn took a sip from the laden he used to scoop up the stew. "Though I gotta admit, it doesn't taste as weird as it sounds."
"Maybe it's just because of the fact that my cooking skills have improved again." The man who had greeted him first grinned, his dark blue hair seeming to glow with help from the moonlight. His two other companions laughed and all sat down for their late dinner, talking and laughing about the 'good old times' and the adventures they had when they were younger.
After they had finished with the meal, the man with the azure hair stopped his jokes and began to talk about serious matters.
"Hey Karn, how did your business go about? Was it a success?"
"Feh, it was I guess, though the target gave me a harder time than I imagine he could. I just don't understand one thing. How can killing Cillard Banster impact the decisions of the people?"
"You will know in time to come, friend. As long as my source is right, we will be able to take the town back from those damned aristocrats."
"You mean that Gramps? Goddamnit, you never tell us how and what exactly you get and use to contact Ladon, although I could imagine that the old bugger wasn't happy about having to do this kind of favors for us."
"You worry too much, Karn. Knowing Ladon, he will always intervene in the affairs of humans. Speaking of which, how do you think our disciple is doing now, Ryu?"
The blue-haired man turned back from gazing at the moon with a solemn expression coupled with a sad smile. "Oh, him? I'm sure he's doing just fine." He smiled again and gazed back at the now starlit sky, the faraway look in his eyes present once again. Smiling softly, he left his own friends to their devices, who had sensed that he needed some time alone. He gazed at the stars, searching for the brightest one to represent Her.
"Yes…He will be just fine. Isn't that right, Nina?"
"Ahhh! Don't hurt me! Please! I swear I won't do it again! I'll turn over a new leaf! I'll-"
You will what, monkey man?" Katt stood menacingly, looming over the stuttering Highlander Sten Legacy, who seemed to have woken up from a nightmare. He shielded his eyes from the seemingly intense sunlight and stared at Katt in amazement and fear. "What? Stop staring and tell me what the heck you will do!" Katt roared, out of curiosity and anger at the "magician" that was lying on 'her' extra sleeping bag.
The Highlander cowered again and apologized profusely. "Alright, alright! I'm sorry I stared at you, but I'm quite amazed and relieved that you haven't tried to clobber me yet, considering the fact that your anger was enough to kill people. By the way, I don't know what I will do since that is only a nightmare." Sten laughed nervously, hoping that the Woren will not question him further and find out he was actually having the nightmare of Katt torturing him, tickling his feet with dozens of feathers.
"Hey Katt, the both of you seem to be getting along well, considering the fact that your anger-" Ryu walked towards them and away from the campfire they had set up a while ago, greeting the both of them cheerfully before being grabbed by Katt and shaken for good measure.
"WHO'S GETTING ALONG WELL WITH HIM? THAT BASTARD TRICKED US, TOOK MY EXTRA SLEEPING BAG AND INSULTED ME! AND DON'T BRING UP THE MATTER OF MY ANGER BEING ABLE TO KILL AGAIN YOU HEAR!"
Ryu laughed nervously at Katt's livid facial expression and reaction. Being grabbed by the collar and shaken by an extremely furious Woren was the mildest thing that could happen to him when he dealt with one. Despite that, he was told that female Worens are generally quite submissive until provoked. He felt lucky at having escaped the dangerous fists and claws of Katt currently and mentally breathed a sigh of relief when Katt "Hmmphed" and let him go. He backed away and looked at Sten, who was unconscious, a new pretty bruise added to his collection on his head. Ryu sighed. When will Katt ever learn to control her temper? He never really understood Katt's fury at the matter of Sten burying him. In fact, he thought it was rather funny and amusing that Sten was acting as a fake magician when he could actually conjure some half-decent spells at the very least. Well…At least that was what Nina told him, since she was several times more sensitive to magic than Ryu or Katt.
"Ryu, Katt, Mr. Legacy, the food is ready!" Nina called out to them. Ryu smiled and walked over while Katt stomped her way past him to the cooking pot. The ranger shook his head in amusement at Katt's actions and proceeded to sit down between the girls for his breakfast consisting mostly of stew…again.
"When are we going to reach Capitan anyway? It seems so long ago that we had started traveling. Sheesh!" Katt's usual complaints started again. Nina giggled at that while Ryu sighed, finishing the rest of his stew off wordlessly. The party had only set off from Winidia to Capitan for only a day and yet Katt was already complaining. Ryu felt an urge to throw a sarcastic comment into Katt's face and get her mad again. He did not know why, but he seemed to enjoy getting on Katt's nerves and getting her all worked up about anything of late. However, he just felt too tired and confused now due to the revelation that he was probably the sole surviving member of the Berserker Dragon Clan. Adding to this assumption was his bewilderment about his emotions towards Nina. Although he did feel something there for the exiled princess, he wasn't sure what it was and did not want to explore it as of yet.
They were traveling to Capitan as they had heard gossip of how a black-winged girl wearing strange clothing was seen heading towards Capitan. Despite the possibility of this being a false lead, Ryu decided firmly to believe the bartender and travel to Capitan for further information about the thief. After that, he would be able to clear up the misunderstanding about Bow Doggie and they would have to get back to work as Rangers.
But what of his two lovely companions, Katt Chuan and Nina Wyndia? A champion fighter and an exiled princess were not really ideal for the roles of Rangers, even if he did wanted them to join him (plus the fact that Bow might be a bit more enthusiastic in doing his jobs). After those little adventures and run-ins with Ryu, he had a feeling that his life will never be the same again. He will never go back to being a Ranger, at least for a long time. Somehow, he wished he was able to get more answers out of the eccentric Dragon God…
"What are you thinking about, Ryu?" Nina asked curiously and uncertainly. She had moved away a little from Ryu when he had sat down partly due to her shyness and partly because of what had happened between them on the balcony. Perhaps it was due to her own sadness that she had acted that way. Perhaps it was just a spur of impulsiveness on both of their parts. Perhaps…
Ryu sighed. "This is getting nowhere…" He thought. He smiled at Nina while averting her eyes and said "Nothing much…" before rising and went to pack up their equipment. Everything was just too weird now.
"By the way, where's Ray? His things are still with us, aren't they? Wonder where he went off to…" Katt pondered aloud, prompting her two companions to turn their heads towards her simultaneously.
"I went to meditate and pray for a while, Miss Chuan." Katt jumped three feet into the air as Ray stepped out from the forest of trees behind her. Ryu and Nina smiled at him in greeting while he nodded his head amiably in return.
"S-Stop doing this kind of things to me, cleric! It scares the cat outta me, geez! Seriously, you people act like ghosts nowadays…Wonder how people are still able to see all of you…" Katt rambled, flustered by the fact that she had been surprised for the third time in a week, a highly unusual occurrence for a Woren, considering that they had senses which were better than a normal human by two times. Ray just laughed good-naturedly and proceeded to help Ryu.
"I suppose this is part of the deal if I want to join you people." Sten shouted in the midst of fighting a few dozen irritating K.Goblins. His Zip daggers shone wickedly as the Highlander satisfied the thirst for blood of his weapons. Despite Katt's protests, Ryu decided to take Sten along, mostly because he had declared himself to be a "poor and hungry man, alone and unwanted, thus having to resort to trickery to earn him a meager wage to live on". Ryu wanted a payment from him, and that was to help them fight any enemies they encounter on their journey and give them aid whenever the need arises. Furthermore, Ray had taken the gold he had swindled from the Winidians and returned it to them. Besides, if things get out of hand, there was always his 'master' or rather, 'mistress' in the form of Katt Chuan, ready to throw him off a cliff into a sea of sharks without batting an eyelid. Thus, it came to be that Sten Legacy had became an obedient servant to the Woren, doing everything she says and staying close to her, literally becoming her shadow. Ray found it amusing and said so, almost earning him a black eye from the fighter herself.
"Is it just me, or are the numbers of monsters increasing ever since we traveled from Winidia?" Ryu exclaimed in an exasperated voice while nonchalantly stabbing a Deathpede in the abdomen. Although no one was really having a tough time fighting, the number of monsters swarming over them was ridiculous, especially since the timid K.Goblins came in such large groups to attack them.
"There is something unnatural about this. I can feel it too, my friend." Ray said as he knocked a Devilkid unconscious and ended its life swiftly with a sweeping slash. "I've sensed a faint evil force following us since we have left the kingdom of wings. He is able to hide his powers well."
"My, good old Ray Braddock. You actually knew I was nearby!" The voice drawled. A giant flare came from the sky above and landed on the group of creatures who were not battling. As the party opened their eyes once more, there was nothing left at the spot. The ones who were fighting with the adventurers soon scattered, fleeing madly in pure terror.
"Weaklings. All good-for-nothings. Do I have to do everything myself?" The man floated down, a twisted smile evident on his beautiful face.
"You!" Katt shouted while Nina stared in amazement and mild anger. It was the well-dressed man whom they had met earlier in Winidia. He grinned cheekily and blew a kiss to Katt, who trembled in anger and disgust.
"Ahh, such a vision of beauty. Anger does not suit you, dear Katt. Even Bob tells me that. You know, the three of you had hurt him terribly and that saddens me. Why couldn't you play with him instead of fighting him? He's just a baby after all-"
"Shut up, you bastard! You almost killed us with that damned canine and yet have the cheek to show up here. I'm gonna-"
Katt suddenly felt all stiff and unable to move, her bow staff raised in the mid-air. The man laughed a deep throaty laugh and motioning with his fingers, dragged Katt towards him. "I take back what I say, Katt. Perhaps feistiness suits a lovely girl like you instead. I wouldn't like my women without a decent fight." The man grinned maliciously, although his beauty was not lost through the evil expression on his face. Cupping Katt's chin, he proceeded to stare into her eyes. "Such exquisite emeralds. Befitting for a charming kitten."
Without warning, Ryu let his emotions take over and circled the man, viciously cleaving at him. He did not hear the satisfying ripping of muscles or a scream of pain. Instead, he opened a slit in the ground the man had previously stood on.
"Tsk, tsk. Youths nowadays are so impetuous and rude to their elders. Are you that jealous that I'll be taking your friend away, Ryu Bateson?"
Ryu's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Let her go now, pretty boy, or I'll be forced to make you more 'beautiful' than you already are."
He spoke with such great hatred that even Nina was taken aback. She was naturally worried about her Woren friend, especially when she was in such a dire situation, but what was the pain in her chest about? Surely she wasn't that worried about Katt. Then what could it be about? Could it actually be that she was…jealous?
The man smiled at Ryu recklessly and kissed Katt on her lips before breaking the spell on her and leaping away to a safe distance. "Hope you remember the memento, my dear Katt!" He winked and dodged the Spark spell thrown by Nina before floating upwards.
"You bastard! Come down and fight like a man!" Ryu hollered, seething with great anger. His grip on his sword tightened considerably, so much that it hurt even him. Why was he so angry in the first place anyway?
For once, Ryu did not care about that. All he wanted now was to teach that infidel a lesson he will never forget. He retreated ten steps, sprinted forward and used Sten's shoulders as a lever to jump higher, so that he could reach the accursed man. Using the best technique he was taught, he readied his sword and attacked the man with eight multiple lightning-quick slashes…
…Only to have his adversary smile sinisterly and dodge the first seven of them. After that he seemed to draw…something and a loud sound of clashing metals were heard. Ryu felt as though an almighty fist had hit him at point-blank range and he was sent flying through the air. He landed clumsily in front of Katt, who seemed extremely stunned at this whole turn of events.
"Ryu! Are you alright?" The Ranger sat up groggily and stared at his green-eyed friend. Her worry threatened to overwhelm him as Katt helped him up, held his face steady and she stared into his eyes to see if Ryu was still conscious or not.
Wow…Lovely emerald eyes. I'll agree that much with him…
The man chuckled humorlessly at the scene before him and he floated to the ground. "It seems that Katt is rather worried about you, friend and I simply can't see such a beautiful girl showing such distress. It simply tears my heart to pieces." The statement was said in such a melodramatic way that Ryu's anger returned and he forced himself to come to his senses.
Damned! Where was his sword? Ryu looked about until he saw it in the left hand of his adversary-both parts of it. Apparently, it had been broken into two by the force of his enemy while he drew his sword, the one with the crimson runes in his right. His grin widened and his gauntleted left hand crushed the two parts of the sword simply by clenching his fist. The adventurers watched in disbelief as metallic powder dropped to the ground, the only remnants of what was left of the sword.
"You are still too weak, Lord Bateson," Ryu's head snapped up at the comment. "There are questions, many questions in your mind. They will be answered in due time, and that will be when we meet the next time. Till then, I hope you can become much stronger and give me a real fight, one without the use of such worthless…toothpicks" He eyed the pile of metallic powder with distaste "and real, raw power and skills."
"However," He continued while flying in the air now, two red devilish wings visible on his back. "I will tell you my name. It is Andaroy Darksoul. Remember it, and remember your humiliation well, Ryu Bateson. Till we meet again!" He quickly flew off into the night, his laughter filled with insanity no human could encompass.
"Wait!-" Ryu shouted in frustration and anger, but his brain protested and he fell to the ground in a kneeling position, trying to catch his breath and clear his head. He struggled to his feet and shrugged off Katt's hand on his shoulder to look at the dreary night sky, filled with depressing dark clouds. Ryu clenched his fists and looked down. "Damn it…"
Katt and Nina were at his side in the blink of an eye, both looking extremely concerned while Ray slowly walked towards the blue-haired teen. "Are you okay?" Katt exclaimed first, her face lined with concern that Nina thought she might as well have aged ten years.
Only silence and the cold harsh wind blowing from the south greeted her.
That night, Ryu literally became a mute. He either nodded his reply to Nina when she asked him whether he wanted her to cook tonight or just stare at the ground as though he wanted to bear a hole in it with his eyes alone. He slept alone, away from the group as most of them shrugged their shoulders and gave up talking to him. Ray prayed for him to St.Evrai, sighed deeply and went to sleep.
"Ryu…" Katt thought about the events which took place earlier on. Why had he seemed so angry? Was it because Andaroy had forcefully stolen her first kiss? If so, then was the way he reacted an act of jealousy? She didn't know, but at least she could identify the fact that it was her in particular that should not disturb him. Sighing deeply, she turned over and went to sleep, her dreams chaotic and confusing. "Ryu…Please be alright…"
Little did she know that the other female in the group was up, unable to get a wink of sleep at all. Nina Eraine Wyndia lay wide awake on her sleeping bag and despite the warmth of her wings she shivered, though because of an entirely different reason.
Although she had known Ryu for no more than two months, she always thought of Ryu as a kind-hearted, cheerful and strong (and a bit klutzy at times) person who would always help the weak and those in trouble. She had never seen him so angry before. Worse still, she could feel the radiation of anger from him; it was wild, uncontrolled and so great that she thought it was directed to everyone else other than Andaroy Darksoul. Determined to find out what was wrong with her Ranger friend, she brushed away the shyness towards Ryu that had consumed her and floated silently over to the unmoving, sleeping form.
"…Yes, Nina? Is there anything wrong?" A voice, devoid of cheerfulness and filled with fatigue whispered. Nina thought her heart had jumped out from her mouth.
"…N-No…There's nothing wrong with the place we are resting at." She played with her fingers, unsure of what she should say despite her resolution to finally talk to Ryu properly. "Ehh…Erm…Are you…"
"Don't worry, Nina. I'm fine now."
"Eh?"
"I'm fine, I said."
Nina gave a small smile and squatted beside him. "But you don't sound like you are, Ryu."
Silence.
"…Not especially when you are acting so strangely. You would always be the one to call us all to sleep together, near each other. Even Sten is afraid of you now, you know."
More silence.
Nina sighed. Since when was Ryu so difficult? "Ryu, we are all very worried about you. You don't have to talk to us that much, really. But do show us that you are okay and please don't isolate yourself. I…We are all extremely concerned that this kind of attitude-"
"-Will invoke the berserker in me again?" Ryu blurted out of the blue. He silently cursed himself. That was rude, alright and Nina deserved the least of his uncouthness. "Seriously, I'm alright, Nina. Stop worrying yourself like that…"
"That's precisely why I'm-We're worried! You suddenly shut out all of us and give us such a vague answer! If I wasn't your friend then I wouldn't have gotten so worked up about this!"
Ryu winced slightly and was surprised that the Winidian princess had actually got so agitated over such an insignificant matter to him. He turned, trying hard not to show that surprised expression on his face, only to see Nina's ocean blue eyes shimmering with hidden tears, refusing to flow down her smooth cheeks. The ranger's heart softened. Maybe he had hit a nerve there. Nina was an exiled princess after all and only could show that much care for her family. Now he was denying her concern as one of the first friends she has and pushing her away.
Nina turned away slightly, and rubbed her eyes furiously, lest the droplets did fall. Why had it always come to this? Nobody seemed to understand her feelings. All she wanted was the best for her friend here, who stubbornly refused her concern and even-
"I'm sorry…"
"Eh?" She turned back, a look of confusion on her face. An apology was the least she expected from the brooding teen before her.
Ryu stifled a smile at her cute expression of surprise and turned away for reasons unknown even to him. "I'm sorry for not being strong enough. I've felt that despair of being defeated a few times, but this time is different."
"I wasn't able to protect Katt from that bastard. I couldn't do a thing to him at all. All it took was one blow from him to blow me away. For the first time, I felt a new desperation of not being able to help my friends when they are in need. I was powerless." He sat up suddenly, clenching his fist tightly with an expression on his face that is enough to make demons sympathize with him. "I felt so weak and helpless and thought maybe I'm fit for this kind of traveling, fighting such immensely powerful characters in the world. Maybe I should have stayed as a 2nd class Ranger in Hometown…"
"That's not true and you know it, Ryu! Everyone knows you have been doing your very best trying to protect us, but…" Nina twirled her silky blonde hair in her fingers. "…But you can't fight a battle on your own! You can only do so much, and as your friends, we will help to fill in whatever you left out! Isn't that better than bearing such a heavy burden on your mind?" Nina smiled cheerfully at him. "Therefore, I hope you can revert to your old self again and do something about what you feel you lack in…"
"Thanks, Nina."
"Eh?"
Ryu laughed. "That's the third time you said "Eh?" already." He laughed softly at the faint blush on Nina's cheeks. "Thank you very much. You've just enlightened me about what I should do instead of moping around. Let's go sleep. We've got a long day ah-achoo!"
Now it was Nina's turn to giggle while Ryu mock-glared at her. "Sorry, Ryu. I couldn't help it. But aren't you going to move back near the campfire with us?"
"Why don't you move over here with me instead?" Ryu said mischievously, although in truth he still did not want to sleep as a group with the rest. 'The cold must have gotten to my head. Why am I teasing her now?' Surprisingly, Nina nodded shyly and grabbing her sleeping bad, floated over and placed it next to Ryu's, who was quite astonished. He blushed at the thought of having a gorgeous princess sleeping next to him and turned away from her quickly. "G-Goodnight."
"Goodnight…" Came the reply. Ryu fidgeted even more when he realized he was indeed quite cold, thanks to the accursed cold wind. He shivered violently and sneezed. 'Damned, should've brought the warmer sleeping bag along..."
As his thoughts strayed, he suddenly felt something warm covering him. He reached out and touched his substitute blanket and it shied away a little. 'It feels just like…a bird's feathery wing…'
"Don't touch my wings at the tip, please. It's rather sensitive there…" Nina spoke so shyly that Ryu could hardly hear her at all. It was then he realized the 'blanket' was black in color and plucking up his courage, he looked to his left.
Nina Eraine Wyndia was sleeping right next to him, her sleeping bag joined with his while her two wings covered both of them like a smooth satin cover of dreams.
"W-Wh-Wha…" Ryu was at a loss for words. Had there been a little bit of light, the Ranger was sure that the hue of red on their faces was enough to put the ripest tomatoes to shame. He mentally kicked himself again for not having more interaction with the opposite sex beforehand. Catching himself stammering, Ryu quickly stuttered a "T-Th-Thank Y-You" before flipping over to the other side and trying to count as many sheep as possible.
One hour later, Ryu found out yet another thing about the Winidian princess and her sleeping habits, something far worse than merely sleeping beside him.
Mumbling incoherently, Nina suddenly hugged Ryu from behind and smiled contently. "Mmmm…" She gave a sigh of pleasure as she cuddled Ryu.
"Oh, the torture! Someone control my sanity please!" Ryu mentally cried out, feeling the soft feeling of Nina's breasts against his back. "Help!" The mental plea was only to be greeted by sadistic laughter from a friendly reptilian voice. Cursing Ladon, Ryu prayed hard for the morning to come swiftly…
"What's wrong, Ryu? You look like you haven't slept a wink." Sten commented somewhat cautiously. Although Ryu had claimed he was back to normal, the bloodshot eyes indicated otherwise.
"Hah?" A bleary-eyed Ranger answered him, not at all paying any attention to anything except the mental image of Nina smothering him literally with her tight embrace. He was walking in such a daze that his companions started to doubt the validity of Nina's and his words.
"He asked if there was anything wrong with you, Mr. Ranger!" Katt's face suddenly loomed up in front of him.
"Oouuuah!" Ryu stumbled back like an idiot, this time wide awake. A close encounter with a member of the opposite sex was enough. He did not need another one butting into his thoughts. Nuh-uh.
Ray chuckled. He had more or less guessed that there was some embarrassing 'secret' between Nina and Ryu the night before, though he would prefer not to think along 'that' line. Respecting their wishes to keep mum on that issue, Ray just quietly traveled with them.
It wasn't long before they had finally reached Capitan, the town of great workmanship and art & craft. Although it was not a developed city nor was it large in size, most of the exquisite pottery and antiques were shipped into this town and designed here. In fact, the Capitan builders were famous for the construction of the Temple of St.Evrai and their ancestors were responsible for carving the ornate shapes of statues of gods.
Expecting a huge group of people in the market square and near its entrance, Ray was rather surprised to find that the streets were relatively quiet and deserted. Only a few people roamed the place and cast furtive glances at the newcomers before looking away and darting into their homes or somewhere safe.
"Isn't this weird? There're so little people around…Wasn't Capitan suppose to be a bustling city of activity? What's going on?" Even as Sten spoke, the silence that ensued was deafening and the streets began to empty itself of people, leaving the five travelers alone in the streets.
"In case you haven't notice, I only see women and children around. The men are all missing. Other than that, not one shop is open and from the looks of it, even the tavern is about to close." Ryu mused. "Come on, guys! Let's get to the tavern to find out what has happened to Capitan." With that, he strided quickly towards the inn with his companions hot on his heels.
The tavern was literally empty, save for a young female bartender. She was cleaning the wine glasses when the party entered, causing her to look up. At first glance, the woman gave them a look of caution but as her eyes wandered to the bow staff and Zip daggers, she smiled a relieved smile and beckoned to them to come closer.
"I believe you want to know some things about this town, am I right?" all of them nodded. "Well, it is said that something is down below our city, hiding and producing monsters which come out at night to take away our men for reasons unknown. About a month ago, at least six men disappeared every night. Eventually some of our male folk decided enough was enough and they traced the monster's hideout to be our sewers. They went down to look for the men but never came back. Now even children are disappearing. All the townsfolk fear for their lives, you see, but none of us women dared to travel out far due to an abnormal increase in monsters outside our town. Two women have traveled in the night only to be found dead the next day!"
"How about the boats? Surely you can take that and travel to safer places…"
"That's the problem, master cleric. Even the boats have mysteriously broken down and we found most of the boatmen drowned or dead, apparently scared to death. We hardly trust any foreigners who venture into our city and usually chased them out. Now we don't even have the strength or the numbers to do that."
Ray Braddock's facial features hardened. He was very sure this was the work of demons he had been told to hunt down and exterminate. According to his knowledge, many demons usually plague their victims with countless problems and later instill terror into them, feeding on their fears and grow stronger. In the end, these abominations would feast upon the defenseless and the weak left to die. He had to do something, whether Ryu and his friends wanted to involve themselves in this or not.
Ryu seemed a little agitated as he stared at nothing in particular, thinking about the possibilities of a demon causing such havoc in the peaceful, innocent town of Capitan. It was likely that demons had wanted to feed on such easy targets, but why was he getting the vibe that he was involved in all of this?
Why did he feel that the demons were challenging him rather than merely feeding on human souls?
He shook the thoughts aside and asked about the girl with bat wings. To his dismay, the female bartender shook her head sadly but asked whether they were going to help save the town since "it has been a long while since adventurers pass by…"
Without second thought, Ryu smiled and agreed to it, despite the protests of Sten, who was quickly silenced by a deadly glare from Katt. Despite not having his sword, Ryu knew he had to improvise if he was to help solve the mystery of the missing townsfolk.
After taking a room for the day (which was free of charge since the bartender had said this was part of a payment in return for their services), the adventurers sat down on their beds and began to discuss the matter.
"Well, what do you think, Ray?" Katt asked curiously, breaking the uneventful hush that had covered them. She could not think up of any ideas as of yet and only knew that she could prove more helpful in the search for the men and children.
"Hmm…" Ray's brows were furrowed and his eyes had lost the jovial glitter in them. He was dead serious. "It could possibly be the work of demons that my Church had requested me to destroy. Causing mayhem, creating trouble, killing and kidnapping people and forcing them to live in constant fear…All this seems just like what the demons would do."
Nina nodded her approval, but Ryu kept on frowning. "Is there something wrong with my thesis, my friend?" Ray asked, providing a cue for Ryu to voice his opinions.
"There's nothing wrong, Ray, but don't you find it strange?"
"Strange?" Came the echoed reply.
"Yes." Ryu stood up and paced about the room slowly. "Had the demons been ravenous, they wouldn't take several weeks for the townsfolk to vanish off the face of the earth if they willed it. True, that would seem suspicious to advocates and Demon-Slayers from St.Evrai, but if that is so, the demons could have chosen a more remote and quiet town instead of Capitan. It is a small town alright, but it is not inconspicuous. This place is frequented by people wanting to build new structures and such. Surely they don't want people to know of the possibility of them being around, would they?"
Sten shifted uncomfortably. "So what are you trying to say, Ryu? That the demons want to be famous or something?"
"No," Ray cut in, realization apparent in his voice. "It seems that they are challenging someone to go down there and fight them."
"But why?" Nina was puzzled. She had read of demons and their insatiable appetite for souls. It was hard to imagine that their pride would precede their diabolical cravings.
Ryu stopped pacing and faced the rest of his friends. "I've been thinking about it, Nina. Remember Joker? And Katt, I don't believe you had forgotten Augus the two-headed freak either."
"What are you getting at, Ryu?" Katt's ears twitched nervously, partly because of her eagerness for answers which she could bear to spend the time to think up of and partly due to the memory of fighting the two-headed wolf-demon.
"Those fiends were and are still waiting for us. They were targeting us all along. By threatening to kill off the townsfolk in a way, we will be left with little choice but to fight and defeat them or die trying." Ryu left out the part about his assumptions that the demons were in fact marking him, since they had spoken to him on several occasions.
And there was the Andaroy incident…What had he meant by "Lord Bateson"?
Ray rose to his feet, the spirit of battle clear in his eyes. "Well, that said, let's go down and free the people from the clutches of those detestable beings." He reached for the door but suddenly leapt back, crashing into Katt who had followed him. "My friends! We have been surrounded! We have to fight our way out!"
No sooner had he spoken did dozens of demons and huge insects crashed in through the windows, walls and door. The demons had two horns on their foreheads and were thoroughly naked except for a loin cloth around their groins. It seems that they had not much use for weapons as the razor-sharp claws from their arms proved that fact well. Ryu hardly had time to draw his short sword from his leg and parried several frenzied blows from the demons. Shouting a battle cry, Ryu took a few claw slashes to his chest and decapitated three demons. Ray himself was having little difficulty as his powerful two-handed mace flared with holy energies, batting demons aside like pests.
Nina was having an extremely difficult time as she had no melee weapon to use and her destructive magic could destroy the whole building. Furthermore, her wings were an obstruction to her movements as she could neither fly nor dodge quickly. She desperately used the energies generated from her magic ring to fend off attacks from the insects. One of the bugs managed to breach her defenses…
…Only to be repelled by a bow staff out for demonic blood. Katt Chuan jumped in front of Nina, who was slightly panting from the exercise the demons had given her.
"Are you alright, Nina?"
"Ah…U-Un! Don't worry about me. Look out in front!" Following Nina's warning, the insect leapt at Katt with a bloodlust. She dodged it for the first time but the creepy-crawly suddenly seemed to lengthened and hit her square on her stomach.
"Ahh!" Katt cried out in pain as blood dribbled out from her mouth due to the attack. She was about to get up and face the thing again when a certain Highlander stepped in front of her.
"Leave this to me, Mistress!" Sten exclaimed. To her amazement, he began summoning energies from his hairy hands. Without pausing, Sten placed his hands together as though he was meditating and closed his eyes. He opened his eyes as the spell fell into place and a yellowish-indigo ball of power launched from his hands and into the midst of the remaining six insects.
Without warning, the ball exploded and so did the insects in a rain of greenish blood. A survivor tried to skitter away but Ryu impaled it with his short sword. Pulling out the sword with a sickening sound, Ryu walked over to the others, helping them up or taking a look at their wounds.
"Let me do the healing, my friend." Ray told the ranger, who nodded wordlessly and looked on as Ray cast a powerful healing spell over the whole party. Ryu felt an indescribable comfort descend onto him as his wounds healed, all fatigue lost from his body.
"Katt! Hey, Katt! What's wrong?" Ryu heard the panic in Sten's voice and whipped his head in the Woren's direction. The wound on her stomach had healed, but her complexion was a pale contrast to her original tanned one.
"Poison. Step away, Sten. I don't know what medium this poison spreads through. Everyone please try to hold your breath for as long as possible." Ray exclaimed in a commandeering voice and everyone obeyed. Ryu watched as Ray conjured up a Remedy spell and concentrated the energies at the abdomen of Katt. She cried out before vomiting black blood and fainted in Ray's arms.
"Katt!" Ryu rushed to her side and watched her worriedly, to which Ray gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. He carried her onto an intact bed which had, surprisingly, not suffer any damage during the ambush. He smiled softly and placed a soothing hand on her forehead and Katt's eyebrows stopped creasing and she slept like a baby.
Breathing an audible sigh of relief, Ryu turned to Nina and tended to her, who gave him a shaky smile to indicate that she was what her smile had indicated but not injured. He nodded his response and sat down on the floor promptly. "Looks like they've just thrown the gauntlet in our faces. We have two choices: Either fight it out with them in their little makeshift lair or wait here for them to get us and die outnumbered."
"Ever the optimist, eh?" Ray replied as he returned from taking care of the Woren. "I agree with Ryu, but someone has to stay behind to look after Katt. If what Ryu said is true, Perhaps they will only chase after us instead of going after our friends."
"Up to the point of 'friends', Ray, you are right. But those demons could use her as a hostage when Sten gets overwhelmed. I've heard from the bartender about some 'shelters' they have built to house people who were afraid of being attacked in their abodes. Maybe we can place her there and challenge those bastards."
"Very well. The shelter it is." Ray replied and quickly led the way down the tavern, which was by now a sorry sight to see. Tables and chairs were strewn all over the place, most broken and damaged beyond repair. The bartender was nowhere in sight, presumably escaped on sighting the demons or probably dead or kidnapped. Ryu muttered a silent and quick prayer before moving on with his friends. As he opened the door of the tavern, he was greeted by alien voices speaking in a strange language and the sight of demons and those revolting insects which had attacked them earlier. Ryu sighed. It was going to be another long battle ahead of them.
"What's that smell?" Sten complained as Ray held their pursuers at bay for the time being while Ryu, Nina and Sten decided to explore the sewers, find the missing people and slay the demon behind the whole mess. They were informed by Ray that the insects were called Creons and were extremely dangerous due to the fact that the upper half of their bodies can lengthen to attack their enemies for a second time. There was no certainty that they would get away easily even if they fled from a Creon.
Except that there was nothing in the sewers so far besides a pungent smell and murky waters. Their alert alarms were still set on a high and made sure to watch their backs as well as their companions'.
Coming to a crossroad junction, Ryu gasped at what he saw. There was a gigantic hole in the center of the junction, so large that it could fit in a dragon. He could see that there were many men transporting heavy slabs of concrete while several others sat down to work on the concrete. At least the mystery of the missing men was solved. It was then Nina noticed something weird about these people.
"Their eyes…They are have no pupils. It looks like they're not doing these things of their own will." No sooner had she finished speaking, the men whirled about viciously and picking up whatever tool they could find, charged towards the three of them.
"Darn it, we can't hurt them!" Ryu shouted as he dodged several scything blows to his head, each with murderous intent and determination to take down the unexpected guest.
"We can't, but we can hurt the things on the back of their heads." Came Sten's unusually serious reply. Ryu turned to look at Sten, who held up a smaller version of the Creons with a dagger. Smiling grimly, he proceeded to dispose of more of the critters. Ryu recovered form his small shock and continued to move with a new vigor of plucking the pests off the back of the men's heads.
It did not take long for all three adventurers to finish off the defenseless insects and they paused to catch a breath. One of the men groaned as he tried to stand, holding his head as though it was in pain. "Ooohhh…My head…What a bad dream…"
Ryu rushed forward to help him up. The man, who sported a flashy beard and mustache, wore a simple tunic and pants. The only thing that was different about him was the utility belt he wore around his waist. It was full of tools and gadgets, mostly used for helping him do measurements and build things. "Who are you people? What the hell am I doing in this sorry excuse of a sewer? Whoa…Who created that goddamned hole?" His questions filled the otherwise silent sewers other than the sound of running water.
"Slow down, good man. Tell us what happened before you lost consciousness." Ryu asked, hoping to get some answers from the confused man in front of him.
"Oh, hey. You people are adventurers huh? Judging from your clothing and apparel…Anyway, my friends and I were looking for the some missing people about two weeks ago when we chanced upon this place. There was no hole at all, and all I heard were chittering sounds made by some crazy bug before flying into Lala-Land. Now could you tell me what's going on with this depthless hole?"
"I wish I could, sir, but could you please keep running straight and find the second exit to the left. You will meet a cleric there who can help you-"
"-And who has already left that place." The familiar and warm voice rang out from behind them. Ray Braddock walked towards them, his light blue clerical garb tainted by greenish and reddish splats of blood. He looked slightly tired, but seemed fine otherwise. "Go on, good sir, I've cleared the way. St.Evrai's blessings be with you."
"And they with you too, cleric. Thank you very much. I'll help you in any way I can in the future if the need arises." The man bowed and ran towards the exit. Ryu turned to Ray with a bemused yet apprehensive expression on his face that needed no further explanations of what he wanted to ask.
"Oh, I'm fine, my friend. Got a bit careless and took a few hits to my arms and chests. Nothing my healing magic can't cure."
"Except that you have no Mana left for healing, priest." Sten muttered as Ray looked at him, surprised and with a 'how-do-you-know-about-that-when-you-are-only-a-trickster' look. "What's that supposed to mean? I can cast magic, but my forte lies in detecting magic more than casting it since I've much less mana than the Princess and you. Considering that you can conjure such a powerful barrier to hold up against hundreds of monsters, I'm thoroughly impressed."
Ray recovered and smiled disarmingly. "Thank you, Sten. I suppose my training paid off."
"That's good to hear, but perhaps all of you would be more interested in the immensely overwhelming amount of dark power radiating from the hole. Or at least that's what I can sense now. Let's go in and see what we can find out, my friends." Without another word, Sten jumped into the bottomless darkness of the hole.
"Sten! Are you crazy? Geez…" Ryu shouted as he followed suit. Ray grinned and leapt into the hole eagerly while Nina floated in slowly. The descent was surprisingly short and as Nina came down last, they saw a horde of Devilkids moving concrete and bricks to and fro, which were probably going to be used to build something. But what is that 'something'?
Ryu wasted no time trying to figure out and rushed towards them, stopping before the vast lake of water in the nick of time. He tried to make out whatever was out there in the dark until Nina lighted the place with a spell. "Thanks."
Nothing could mask the surprise on the faces of the four people as they saw a half-completed arch at the centre-most island of a miniature archipelago of isles. The pillars holding it up seemed as ancient as Time itself and the arch dwarfed even the largest giants on earth. The statues, although incomplete, towered over the whole party of adventurers and looked awe-inspiring enough to strike fear and respect in a warrior. The design was unfamiliar to Ryu however. It just seemed so…out of the world.
"What…is that thing?" Nina's voice could barely be heard as it came out a little more than a whisper. There was no answer for her query as the others were equally bewildered and awestruck by the majestic grandeur of the structure before them.
Besides the incomplete building, there are an unusually large number of turtles swimming about in the waters before them. These animals were exceptionally large and Ryu managed to pull his eyes away from the building to identify them as the Itiagos Turtles. Their shells were remarkably flat and enough to hold two people on its back. Named after their founder Andrew Itiagos (1), a renowned explorer in the region, they were supposed to be found near the shores of the Southern region. What was it doing here?
Ray was the first one to snap out of it. "No matter the size or origin of this thing, we must concentrate on our mission at hand and that is to find the demon causing trouble and put an end to it!" He was about to weave a spell to create a bridge across to the structure when the tremors started. "What? What's going on?"
Ryu smiled grimly, drawing his short sword from the scabbard. "I'd say it's found us." He got into an offensive pose as the turtles scattered in all directions. A disemboweled sound which was akin to a roar of ferocity rocked the large underground caverns. Ray, Ryu, Nina and Sten tensed, waiting for the owner of the terrifying sound to appear.
It came through the makeshift entrance under the arch, swimming its way towards the adventurers. Its body was larger than several T.Lizards put together. The shell was flat but the orbs on its back made it such that it was presented as a disfigured oval. On a closer look, these orbs seemed to contain something within them. The four legs were enough to crush a grown man easily, considering the fact that its breadth was the length of a horse. It had a snake-like head, thick and probably hard and its eyes, glowing an unearthly red, stared at the four puny beings before it, like a cat would stare at a trapped mouse. Ryu immediately knew what they had to do unless they wanted to end up like 'trapped giant turtle fodder'.
"Dodge it!" He warned as the four of them split into different directions to avoid the attack from one of its front legs. Summoning some energy in his hands, Ray fired a ray of light at the monstrosity, who seemed to grunt and flick off the effects of the attack. Ray was rewarded with a lightning-quick strike by the turtle's head and only his fine reflexes saved him from being the first course of it.
"Watch out, Nina, Sten! That thing seems to have a strong resistance against spells!" Ryu shouted desperately while dodging. Although he seemed calm on the outside, he was cursing himself for losing his weapon to Darksoul. Considering the fact that the monster had a hard shell, what chance did he have of scratching it, let alone kill it?
Sten was not so lucky. Although he had managed to dodge the turtle's attacks, it seemed that the turtle was incensed at it for some unknown reason and had increased its speed and number of attacks against him. As he retreated from a peck from the turtle, its neck suddenly lengthened and came for an unavoidable second strike. Hitting the Highlander square in his chest, he crashed into the cavern wall and slumped to the ground, his eyes rolled up such that his pupils cannot be seen.
"Sten! Damn you, you bastard!" Ryu felt his anger build up slowly, but it did not have the explosive effect he had experienced before when he got mad. It was as if his anger was waiting for something. Without thinking of the consequences, he struck at the right leg of the creature and it rewarded him with a terrible moan of pain and a sound of breaking metal.
His short sword broke in two upon impact.
Unable to dodge the swing of the turtle's leg, he was thrown by the force towards another cavern wall, only to be caught by Sten, who had apparently came back to life. "Wha-How did you come back alive?" Ryu asked, perplexed that his hairy friend was the one who had rescued him.
He grinned and winked. "That was one of my best skills: Playing dead and when the enemy least expects it, I'll strike them from where I lay. It still hurt that this stupid reptile has the same technique as those Creons from before."
"That's because the Creons came from it." Ray pointed to one of the orbs, which had begun shaking and out burst a Creon, hungry for food. Its hunger was short-lived as Nina dissected it with a Tornado blade spell. The four of them had no time to rest as they began their 'exercise' with the giant reptile, which had started smashing the land away from them.
"At this rate…At this rate we are going to fall into the damned lake and get eaten!" Sten said in a panicky tone, making clear his fear of water and (possibly) turtles. Ryu cursed silently and thought hard. There has to be a way to stop it. Even if it had a hard shell, is practically impervious to magical and physical attacks, and is fast in water, it couldn't be that swift on land, just like a normal turtle. If only they could stop it in the water…
Then, it hit him.
"Nina! Can you freeze the portion of the lake with your Cold spell? Just that portion…"
"I'm sorry Ryu, but I can't. I can't utilize much power in a Cold spell." Nina apologized as she burned another Creon to a crisp. Her spell-casting had become erratic and random. Nina was starting to panic and lose hope.
"Damned! If only…If only I had the power…!" Ryu thought desperately as his friends tried in vain to put even a bruise on the monster. "If only someone could give it to me…!"
"Do you want it?" The voice rang out in his mind. Ryu was momentarily shocked and could have been killed had Nina not drag him up into the air.
"That was dangerous, wasn't it, Ryu?" Nina told him, panting heavily. The Ranger did not hear her as he listened closely to the inner voice speaking to him. It was so warm, so familiar, as though he had heard it from a long time ago. A voice in his past…Who could it be?
"If you want it, you have to sacrifice your consciousness and put yourself in grave danger. Are you willing, child?" The voice spoke, blotting out the ruckus created by the battle. He hesitated, but his instinct told him to trust the voice. After struggling internally, he finally gave in.
"Yes, give me the power to defeat the monster-No," Ryu turned to look at Nina, who was still carrying him and Ray and Sten, both dancing about and avoiding the attacks. "Give me the power to protect everyone I care for. I want that power. Not the power to destroy, but the power to protect!"
He could almost see the invisible speaker smile to him as it rang out, resounding yet soothing to him. "Very well, Ryu Bateson, child of the Dragon, stand before the monstrosity, unarmed and ready to sacrifice yourself. You can even try to battle it with whatever you have left."
He nodded and shrugging out of Nina's tight and surprisingly strong grasp, he leapt in front of the turtle, which promptly rewarded his suicidal effort with a swipe from its left leg. The blue-haired teen smashed into the wall, staining it with blood from a deep gash on his chest and vomited out of his mouth.
"RYU!" Nina screamed as she flew as fast as possible, trying to rescue him before the abomination got to him. She was going to be too late and even Ray and Sten who had sprinted towards their friend's body knew the conclusion of the turtle's attack.
Suddenly, a blue light flashed from Ryu's body and he stood up robotically. The turtle, which had been so intent on destroying the fool that had obstructed its path, hesitated as though it was scared of something. It backed away quickly as Ryu took a step towards it, screeching a howl of undisguised terror.
Then, it happened once again.
Great wings of an unknown ancient creature materialized from Ryu's back and unfurled themselves to their full glory. The wings were of a brilliant whitish-blue and seemed to sparkle and shine even in the darkness. The reptilian wings soon covered Ryu and another light of the same color of the wings enveloped the ranger. As the party opened their eyes, they saw a colossal creature of magnificence, standing majestically like a king in the cavern. Its skin radiated like bluish diamonds. Two rows of silvery razor-sharp jaws lined its mouth while the beast's breath seem to freeze the surroundings of the whole place and its eyes just seemed just as cold as it glared at the cowering monster-turtle. It stood up to its full height and gave an almighty bellow, one so powerful that it was probably enough to strike terror in the hearts of fearless heroes and demons.
"What is that thing?" Sten whispered in awe and fear as he stared at the magnificent creature before him. Despite being known to have traveled to all kinds of places and seen all kinds of phenomenons and strange creatures, they were all nothing compared to the dragon that had somehow burst out from Ryu. Ray seemed equally shocked, but also had an expression which stated his realization of something he had assumed but had not told anyone present yet.
Is that…Ryu? Nina thought, her mind jumbled up with feeling of worry, sadness and confusion. She had vaguely remembered seeing something similar to this when they were in the forest near Winidia. That was probably the thing that had rescued both Katt and her from the dark being that had threatened to take away their souls, although all she could see were red wings and green eyes….
Just like those of the dragon in front of her.
Just like Ryu's.
The turtle roared back in response and somehow the three onlookers did not feel the chill of fear down their backs the turtle had sent earlier on. It seemed so minute compared to the roar of challenge sounded by the whitish-blue dragon. All the dragon did in response was to make a growl in such a way that everyone else thought he/it was laughing mockingly.
The turtle suddenly charged towards it without warning, swimming towards it at a great speed and swiped at it, only to have to fly into the air and use its tail to whip the reptile across its face. It howled in pain and scrambled back for good measure. The turtle then fired most of its orbs at the floating beast, which froze the orbs and the Creons that had came out of it with a derisive snort, the wintry breath coming out of its nose. Without breaking eye contact with the amphibious monster, the dragon let out the breath that it had held within itself, freezing the lake wondrously and the legs of the turtle. Without pausing, the dragon, or Ryu swooped down and sent a beam of ice from its mouth to the neck of the turtle, stopping its thrashing for good.
The battle was over in a few seconds. Grinning triumphantly, like a predator which had trapped its prey, the dragon broke the ice around the neck of the turtle and tore it out. There was not even a scream of pain or horror as the creature went down silently, greenish bile flowing out freely of its wound and it lay there, dying. The orbs on its back instantaneously lost their unearthly purplish glow and faded to black. As Ray, Nina and Sten looked on, the orbs surprisingly began to fall onto the bed of ice and each of them cracked open like eggs, revealing unconscious children to be in them.
"…I see. So the Creons were created from these children. Nina! Sten! We have to carry these children back up before they die of hunger and-" Ray stopped as he suddenly felt the sudden tremors. "What was that?"
A roar of pure delight was heard and expecting the worst, Ray turned to see the dragon demolishing the arch and pulverizing every single Devilkid it could get its claws on. The results of its little 'game' caused the walls and some parts of the cavern's roof to start caving in. Furthermore, the titanic battle between the two behemoths probably caused more than just a crack in the cavern floors. Ray began to feel a small stab of panic. Judging from Nina's condition, she couldn't possibly bring up the survivors by herself and Sten might not even survive despite his seemingly elastic arms. As for himself…Well, he had used up most of his magic and definitely could only use what little he had left to float himself up. How was he going to rescue all of them?
The answer came from where he least expected. The dragon, which had turned to look at the children, roared and scooped all of them in his left claw and grab Ray and Sten unceremoniously in his right. Using his ice breath and tail, it smashed the falling pieces to smaller sizes and giving a grunt to Nina as though telling her to escape as well, it flapped its great wings and crashed out of the hole. Landing loudly on the sewer floor, it let his two male companions, one bemused and one complaining down and smiled at Nina (although the effect of warmth was lost as it looked scarier instead) before the same bright light which appeared earlier shrouded it again and as Nina unshielded her eyes, there stood Ryu Bateson, bruised, battered, dazed and looking worse for wear, but smiling and otherwise looking fine.
"Hey," He said nonchalantly and waved, walking casually towards his friends who had their mouths agape with amazement. "Are you guys hurt badly?"
"Thank you all so much for rescuing the men and children of our town! We will never forget this great act of valor and we are prepared to repay this debt anytime you wish us to." The mayor bowed to the five adventurers, the males mostly so wrapped up in bandages that few would not mistake them for mummies-to-be. They bowed back as a sign of courtesy rather than accepting the offer of repaying them.
"There's no need to pay us for what we did, sir. Anyone who has the power to banish those demons would have done the same thing." Katt smiled as she replied with impeccable graciousness. It amazed Ryu and even Ray that the street fighter would actually know how to reply so politely and seriously, although they had kept their thoughts where they belong lest they wanted a date with "The Deadly Bow Staff".
Ryu suddenly thought of Niro's house and interrupted the conversation. "Erm…Actually, we do need a little bit of help. A friend of mine lives in a house that is in complete disrepair and I fear for the safety of my two other friends repairing it," He laughed nervously at the thought of having an entire roof collapsing on Rand and Bow. "So I thought maybe you might be able to spare us a carpenter or two to help rebuild his home."
"But of course, Mr. Bateson! It would be a pleasure. Rather than one, I will send three of the best carpenters and architects to build your friend a new and wonderful home, free of charge!" The mayor gave a chubby grin, his roly-poly figure giving him a look of a fatherly figure somehow. Calling two other men, one of them the person they had saved earlier and another they did not recognize, the mayor himself followed the party, much to the surprise of the adventurers. "What? Don't belittle me now, my friends. This is a city of carpenters and designers after all, and I'm not mayor just because of the elections." The mayor smiled. Nina giggled and nodded her agreement enthusiastically.
"Hey kid! Have you forgotten all about me, huh?" A familiar drawl sounded. Ryu almost jumped and immediately began looking around. That voice…Only that old coot would try to scare him like that. Spotting a suspicious-looking statue covered with vines, Ryu sprinted towards it, cleared the vines and glared at the stupid grinning face of Ladon.
"What the hell? What are you doing here?"
"Hey hey hey! That ain't the way to greet your god, least of all your elder ya know." The visage "tsked" and shook his finger at him while the other members of the party looked on in wonder and amusement. "Where's your manners, kid? Who are those two lovely ladies behind you?"
Ray raised an eyebrow. If such a respected ancient god acted like this, he then what of St.Evrai? Still, this god was an amusing one to say the least.
"Geez, now you're sounding like some old geezer with a penchant for younger girls. Spit it out, man. What exactly do you want?"
The image had the grace to look offended by the statement. "Why, I'm trying to help you, little Ryu. How would knowing your friends do any harm to them, hmm?" The god blinked so innocently that Ryu was certain this god had been a prankster or a cheat in his previous life. "Now, do you want my help or not?"
The teenager sighed, indicating that he would listen to what the Dragon God had to offer. The visage gave them a reptilian smile and continued: "You see, Ryu, because you've restored another one of my statues in this world, you've unlocked the power to be able to teleport to one specific destination of where my statue lies, and that is in Hometown. There is another statue just next to Niro's house, but it seems that he doesn't care for gods and the like." The deity frowned but kept on talking. "This power allows no more than twelve people to teleport to and fro, since I'm unable to utilize more power in one statue. Remember: No more than twelve and no, you don't have to tell me the names of Katt Chuan, Nina Eraine Wyndia, Ray Braddock and Sten Legacy. I already know all of them." With an imperious wave of his claw, the countenance began to fade. "Keep safe, adventurers!"
Ryu sighed as the last of the animated façade faded away, leaving a contrasting stony expression on the statue. At least he had found a way to teleport all of them without wasting time. That was the least he expected from the god.
Hometown…It has been quite a while since he had last seen it, hasn't he? Maybe once they returned, they could take a break from all that fighting and traveling. Bow…It will be good to see him again, Ryu mused. He stretched his arms and suddenly feeling a jolt of pain, groaned loudly.
"What's the matter, Ryu? Oh, its your injuries." Sten said and couldn't resist poking fun at him. "Geez, and who was the one who tried to act cool and say "Are you guys hurt badly?" You immediately fainted right after walking two steps!"
"S-Shut up, Sten! I was just concerned for all of you, sheesh! Talk about ingratitude…" He muttered something incoherently while Katt laughed heartily and Nina giggled at the twisted description of Ryu.
"Are you ready, guys?" Ray asked. The rest of the group nodded. No sooner had he spoken, a bright yellow beam engulfed them and they vanished, leaving that trail of pure laughter and joy behind for quite a while.
Phew! Finished finally! Sorry I took so long, but I thought a long vacation from the computer would be in order. Hope you people like it and please review! Gladly accept all comments and suggestions to improve. Try not to flame please. R&R!
(1) Andrew Itiagos will appear later in the story as another character who helps them. Stay tuned!