Chapter 4

Freedom

For thousands of years, we have slept,

Untouched by the eye of the world,

Our power grows strong with time,

Until one will awaken us,

The destroyer of worlds...

Ryu's eyes shot open and his body thrust upward into in a sitting position. Sweat beaded on his forehead and poured down his grimacing face, his long hair matting against his head. He grasped his forehead hard and shut his eyes. Was that a dream? What had happened to him? Who was he hearing? Destroyer of worlds...?

A sharp pain in his abdomen brought him back to reality. He winced, clutching his stomach and glanced around. He was in a small stone room, dungeon cell he figured. It was empty except for the small, broken cot he sat on and the occasional rat running from one of the many holes in the wall. The air was very damp and musty, making it difficult to breathe properly. He rubbed his grimy face into his sodden cloak and sat back on the slimy, moss-ridden wall. Reaching up he ran a hand through his hair, his fingers getting caught in the blue tangles. The last thing he remembered was that Shyong guy standing over him, smiling.

You parade around, as if you were...human or something...

Filthy creatures...

The cold, drawling voice invaded his mind. Growling, he balled his fists and slammed them hard on the cot, coughing as a cloud of dust rose up. The thought of that man's bitter tone made his blood feel as though it would boil right through his skin. He remembered the way Shyong had stared at him, like he was nothing, like he didn't deserve to walk on the same ground he did.

Ryu clenched his teeth and started to feel a prickling sensation in his arms and legs. Body trembling, his eyes started to widen and flicker red. The sensation spread to his shoulder blades and it caused them to pulse. A low growling noise escaped his throat, echoing along the walls and causing the soldiers outside the cell door to glance in.

"Hey," one called, "Keep it down in there!"

Ryu's ears pricked at the voice and his nostrils flared. Slowly, he reached up and grabbed his head, holding it tight and squeezed his eyes closed. After a second, the pulsing stopped and he leaned back, taking a long, deep breath. No, he couldn't get angry. It was getting harder and harder to control. He took another breath, trying to get what little good air in the cell into his lungs and tried to think of something else.

Come see me, traveler!

The Princess... He had almost forgotten about her. He wondered what she was doing now, if she knew he was here. Shaking his head, he dismissed the thought. She was a Princess, why would she worry about someone like him? The soldiers probably gave the bracelet back to her and that was that.

Still, he couldn't help thinking that maybe, there was a chance she did care. Something about her seemed strangely familiar, like he had known her all his life. He remembered his first sight of her, standing in the grass, looking up at him with those wide innocent eyes. She seemed like she was actually interested in his playing, telling him it was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard. Well of course she did...considering what it was...

His eyes moved up to a small window at the top of the cell. The moon was high and blue in the sky shining it's light on the many puddles of what he hoped was water on the floor. He wondered, if only for a second, if she was looking at it too.

Nina was a blur as she frantically moved about her room, shoving some belongings into a small backpack. A few pairs of clothes, a bag of zenny, and one large book later, she was lying on her bed, staring up through a window in her ceiling. The moon was full and bright, it's light splashing over her and the bed. She stared at it for a second and for some reason, felt guilty. Was she doing the right thing? She reached over and grasped a stuffed kitten toy. It was pink and quite worn with age, the seams bulging with stuffing in some places. Nina held it above her, staring into it's half connected black button eyes. All her life, this castle had been her home, there was nothing else she knew. On one hand, outside, was different; A world she wasn't familiar with at all. On the other hand, though, it meant complete freedom. Freedom to make her own decisions, be them good or bad. There would be no one to hold her back, no one to tell her the things she couldn't do. As much as she tried to tell herself that she wasn't scared, she knew she was lying. She stared at the animal, watching as the moonlight illuminated the outer edges of it.

"Am I a fool...?" she whispered to the cat. She waited for a second, half wishing the animal would answer her.

Nina smiled, feeling the edges of her eyes start to burn. No, she couldn't turn back now. She was going to see the outside world and she was going to enjoy it. Leaning over the bed, she opened the backpack and slid the stuffed kitten in. She felt like an idiot doing it, but for some reason, the sight of a childhood memory seemed to comfort her, even if it was just a little bit.

Slowly, she sat up on the bed, slipped the backpack on and positioned it between her wings. She grabbed a cloak from her bedpost and wrapped it around her, then hopped off and glided to the doorway. When she reached it, she stopped suddenly, and turned to gaze one last time at her room. Sniffling she wiped her face on her sleeve. The room still looked so inviting...

No, She thought with yet another determined face. I've made my decision.

Pulling the hood over her head, she ran out into the dark hallways of the castle.

Shyong winced as hot water stung his bare hands. Even though the blood had been on his gloves, he still felt the need to wash his hands. He rubbed soap on them over and over, until the sink was almost overflowing with bubbles.

"Sir Tsunaia, are you alright?" A soldier asked watching him furiously scrubbing. Shyong suddenly stopped and grabbed a hand towel hanging from the wall.

"I'm fine, go about your business." he hissed, drying his hands. The soldier backed away as his ice blue eyes peered at him. He nodded quickly and inched out into the hallway, flattening himself against a wall as Shyong stormed past him.

He slid a damp hand into his hair as he walked, his pace quickening with each passing moment. He would go see the Princess, yes, she could make him feel better. She would tell him everything was fine, that the blue-haired man was scum and she didn't care what happened to him. As he rounded the corner towards her quarters, he started to feel a bit better. He even began to smile as he reached her door.

"Princess, I would like to have a word with you." He called, rapping quietly on the door. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. She would come soon, it never took her long to answer.

After standing there for a second, he tapped the back of his foot against the wall impatiently, hitting it a little harder each time. What was taking her so long? Oh well, she won't mind if I come in. Shyong shook his head and reached for the handle of the door, turning it and walking in. "Princess, I apologize for the intrusion but..."

He glanced around the room. It was dark except for the moonlight shining through the window, illuminating a strangely empty bed. He walked further in, noticing the bed was also bit untidy. A few odds and ends were strewn across the floor and her closet sat open. Fists clenched, he turned sharply, his cloak billowing. She wouldn't dare leave him. Not when he needed her the most. He shut his eyes, tight. Of course she didn't leave him. She had always been there for him to talk to. His face contorted into a scowl. She must be looking for him, yes, he'll go find her. Glancing around the room once more, he walked out and slammed the door hard behind him.

Nina held her cloak tight around her as she stepped quietly down the empty corridors, ducking awkwardly into the shadows whenever a soldier came too near. Her heart pounded painfully against her chest so loud, she figured the whole castle could hear it. She inched against walls, and dove past openings, dodging soldiers left and right as she made her way through the castle. It was almost impossible to navigate the candle lit maze. She cursed herself for not sneaking out more and memorizing the layout. Figuring she didn't have time to worry about it though, she started to run faster.

Rounding a corner, she was suddenly bombarded by someone else running. She fell backwards and cryied out as she slammed against the hard stone floor. Hearing another thud like hers, she glanced nervously over to see a woman on her knees, head lowered. Nina's heart sunk as she realized who it was.

"Damn..." Lucia muttered, rubbing her face with a paw-like hand. She raised her head slowly in Nina's direction. The Princess froze, unable to think of what to say. She was caught for sure, Lucia would waste no time in turning her in. She watched, wide-eyed, as the Woren crawled closer, her gray eyes squinting. "Who...are you?" she asked, her hands feeling around on the ground. Nina remained silent, puzzled. As Lucia's head lowered again, her eyes frantically searching the floor, realization dawned. Her glasses must have fallen off when they came in contact. Wasting no time, Nina jumped up, backed away from Lucia as far as she could, and started to make her way down the hall again. She thought she heard her call after her, but she pushed the thought from her mind, starting to run even faster. She couldn't get caught, not now when she was so far.

She pulled the hood farther over her head as she reached the door to the courtyard. It wouldn't be long now. She smiled at the thought, her spirits starting to lift. Soon she would be outside. Soon, she would be free. Glancing cautiously around, she stole into the shadows, cloak flowing behind her.

Ryu's chest heaved as the musty air threatened to suffocate him. He rubbed his fingers over his eyes, and sighed deeply. There had to be some way out of here. He figured he could take the soldiers outside the door, but would he risk the Windians hating him even more than they did already? He brought his knees against his chest and wrapped his arms around them. If only he could...no, that was way too drastic. He was weak, he might not be able to control himself. It was hard enough anyways, even when he was rested. His stomach suddenly growled painfully, reminding him that he hadn't had a decent meal in over a day. He wondered if they fed prisoners here. Probably not, with that Shyong guy in charge. Closing his eyes, he started to think of all the good food he could be eating in Drogen.

Just as his mouth started to water, he heard a loud grunt from in front of his cell door. Standing up, he wiped his mouth on his cloak and peered closer. Eyes widening, he watched as one of the soldiers fell, making a small thud on the ground. He came even closer, hands darting to his belt as the door's handle began to turn. He grasped at air, remembering at the last minute that they had taken his sword. Still, he remained in that stance, eying the door as it slowly opened. In the opening, a person stood, small by the looks of it and wrapped in a hooded cloak that was many times too big for it.

"Who's there?" Ryu asked loudly, hands still trying to grasp at his swordless belt. The person's head turned both ways, then it stepped closer. "I'm warning you," Ryu growled, backing up, his hands wrapping around his belt and taking it off. If worse came to worse, he could use it. He swung it around a few times and then snapped it back, grasping it with both hands and holding it out.

The figure shook its head vigorously, and slowly removed its hood. Ryu immediately dropped his stance and the belt. "P-Princess...!" he stuttered, falling to his knees in respect. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't know it was you...!"

Nina stared at him wide-eyed. He was very dirty; mud was all over his once shiny armor. His long hair was matted and tangled, she guessed from the humidity and his cloak was grimy, along with his face which was now almost in the dirt. She turned around, glancing both ways as she did so. The soldiers were still on the ground, unconscious. Facing back towards him, she raised her hands in exasperation. "Get up! There's no time for that!" she hissed, still glancing worriedly around.

Ryu lifted his head, nodded, and got to his feet. "I...what are you doing here, Princess?"

She walked forward a bit, a small smile on her face. "I came to rescue you," she said softly. He remained silent, staring at her in disbelief. She quickly looked away and glanced down at the water-ridden floor. "I'm...really sorry about all of this. I didn't know you would get into trouble..." She added in a hushed voice.

Ryu smiled and shrugged, walking to her. "It's okay, Princess. All that matters to me is how lucky I am you cared enough to bust me out!" he said cheerfully.

Nina brought her gaze to him. Even though he was completely covered in grime, he still had an air of importance to him she couldn't quite put her finger on. She blushed as he smiled at her again, his hands rising to his mass of tangles. "I'm sorry I look the way I do, this humidity is such murder on my hair." He was pleased when this brought a small giggle to escape her lips.

Her smile quickly faded, though, as she glanced again out of the doorway. "I took care of the soldiers outside of the door," She said pointing to them, "But further out, I haven't gotten to them yet."

Ryu nodded. "I see, what did you do? A sleeping spell?"

Nina blushed and looked away. "Well, on one. The other I had to knock down. He came at me too fast to conjure a spell." She dug the front of her shoe into the dirt, still looking away from him.

He smiled and walked closer, placing a hand on the top of her head. Scarlet faced, her eyes met his. "Thank you, Princess," he said, rubbing her hair. Still blushing, she watched as he let go, and started to walk out of the door.

He stopped, and turned back towards her, giving her that same toothy smile he had the first time they met. "By the way, my name is Ryu. Ryu Dragoneye."

"I'm...Nina..." she said softly, still watching his bright smile. "Nina Wynlyn."

Ryu turned away from her. "I'm sure we'll meet again, Nina."

The blush on her cheeks was fiercer than ever now. No one had ever called her just Nina. As he began to disappear around the corner, she felt a sudden panic come over her. Her heart raced and her mouth became dry.

"Wait, Ryu!" she called, hand outstretched. He turned slowly to look at her.

She clutched her cloak tight to her chest and closed her eyes. It was now or never. If she didn't say anything now, she would regret it for the rest of her life. She opened her mouth to speak, but a lump in her throat caused nothing to come out. Ryu's abnormally green eyes gazed intently at her, making it even harder to speak. She swallowed hard, nervousness flowing over her. "I..." she began in almost a whisper.

Suddenly, tears began to flow from her eyes and down her face, dripping onto her cloak. She couldn't stop them, but she wasn't sure she even tried. "T-take me with you!" she blurted, starting to sob loudly.

Ryu's look softened. "Nina...I can't possibly..."

She shook her head hard before he had a chance to finish. "You don't understand!" she cried through tears, shutting her eyes tight. "There's nothing here for me! I'm a prisoner in this place!" she started to tremble, her hands moving to cover her wet cheeks. "The time I met you in the valley, was the only time I've ever been outside of these walls...the only time I've ever been able to be by myself..." she choked loudly through sobs, allowing her tears to continue to flow. "I just want to be able to live an actual life..."

She took a deep breath and managed to calm her sobbing. "You see these?" she asked, lifting the cloak from her back, and letting it fall to one side. Her wings appeared, spreading out to their full extent. "I want to be able to use them..." She raised her eyes to meet his, her face wet and flushed. "I want...to be free..." She raised her arms out, into the moonlight, wings fluttering slightly. "Please, Ryu..." She whispered. "I...want to be free like you..."

Ryu stared in awe at her standing before him. Even though she was so small, so alone, so lost, she was...possibly the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. The light from the moon cascaded over her body, illuminating every feather of her wings, giving him the impression of an angel. She gazed back at him through tear filled eyes, silently pleading him to say something, anything.

He walked slowly forward and reached out, taking one of her small hands into his. He smiled warmly, grasping the hand tight. "If that's what you really want, little Windian...I'll take you outside."

Her eyes again filled with tears and she started to shake excitedly. "You...really mean it...?" she asked, grasping his hand back.

He again smiled, as if to say yes, and turned around, pulling her along gently. She let the cloak fall back over her wings and followed him out of the cell, her heart beating furiously.

"Thank you." she whispered.