Chapter Six: Warriors of the Light
"Warriors, revive the power of the ORBS!"
Final Fantasy I
The vampire skillfully evaded any of the guards inside the Dream Castle, to do the job that should have been given to him in the first place by his Master. Impertinent fools! How could a simple cutthroat, pick up from the streets of this City of Fools, do the simple jobs of killing the Four Warriors, blessed with the Light! The man had failed miserably, paying with his own miserable life.
The vampire opened the door to one of the rooms. The white mage's. It was best to start with the blood of a female; the ambrosia was so much sweeter. The vamp felt a surge of an uncontrollable ecstasy. The morn was still early, and hardly everyone was still asleep.
But as he closed to the bed of the mage, he could see the bed was empty. He rushed to the others. All empty. Nothing was there. A growl shook his vocal cords, as his pointy teeth clicked. Another day of hunger. At least he knew that they had begun their journey. So, the four of the Light would try to save the whole of Gaia through destroying the Fiends. Chuckling silently in his mind, he thought how good pure blood would take...the vamp would meet them, sooner or later. He licked his lips. He would taste their blood. Sometime.
Lukahn nodded as the four bowed. It was early in the morning, so early that even the black mage, almost always alert and wary, looked as though bed was the best comfort for his soul. Jakk turned his head towards the tall windows. The sun had not risen from her vast bed.
"Your best hope is to go northeast, where the Temple of the Fiends lie, beyond the Black Forest. We have scouting reports that Garland is holding my daughter captive there." Lyr looked closely at the four. "It may sound strange that you four must rescue my daughter to save the world, but I can find none who are willing to do so. Except for you four." The king standing, suddenly bowed.
"Go with the grace of the Conerian Kingdom and of the love of Light, Warriors."
"...and so the four horses rode out from the Dream City, each rider carrying an orb, coal black...their journey was upon them."
Hearing those distant voices in his mind, Jakk shook his head violently, wanting them to stop. Those voices, or sometimes it was that voice, came into the thief's mind every time he reminisced, reminding him what he was here for.
"How far?" Jakk gasped on his horse, Basyi, or Trickster, as she galloped at her top pace, dun colored skin rippling brillantly as her muscles worked, and her breath panted. The white-washed stone walls that were joined by the Gate of Dreams began to fade in the distance, and the forest began to near, as they rode hard towards the Temple of Fiends, northeast of the city. Was it wrong for me to do this?
The four had decided to come before the sun was up, and before the vampire had time to use his fangs to bring them into the world of the undead, for Bane warned that whoever wanted them dead might not wait soon to try.
The thief had come for not just a few reasons. An urchin from the streets would not easily picked up from the streets, dressed as a lord, and told he was one that would save the world. And, of course, it would be better for me to be a Light Warrior than no warrior at all. At least I don't have to worry when my next meal will come from...and saving the world, cursed Warrior or not, is not a bad thing.
He shrugged again as his thoughts ran wildly through his brain, like Basyi was going. He leaned down, spoke a few soft words to the horse's ear, calming him and telling him to follow the lead with Klad's stallion. Basyi was the first thing he had stole...who knows what treasures he would find on this journey, as the black mage's horse neared his.
"How far, thief? A day's worth of hard journeying, along the paths seldom used before the shattering of the world. Beware of the Imps that lurks the Black Forest!" The black mage that came up to him cackled harshly, riding on his horse, almost as black as the orb they each carried.
Even as the horse galloped, the mage's clothes and hat did not bobble up and down to the horse, and it looked as though he was sitting still. Jakk managed a gasp before turning to his own thoughts: how is it I know when, where, and what the shattering of the world is?
Up ahead, Aki's delicate mare, Rose, was matching Klad's horse for speed. Aki, too, had decided to come, though not to seek treasure or glory. It was to protect her village, not far from the Temple of Fiends, and too far to go now.
Her dream had been vivid, with the Prophecies singing in her ears as she slept for the few hours they left after the attempted assassination. Her village, on fire. People massacred, children's bodies piled on top of each other.
Imps ran wild, looting, as ogres wielding stout clubs clubbed villagers down. Houses burnt, people dead...it was vivid, and all too real...and the song of the Light Warriors hummed in her mind...
they know they must fulfill the journey or succumb,
and all the world with them will come, in shadow and darkness,
of dearth and despair...
for that will be all, if fair Gaia falls into uncare.
She shivered. It was her duty to go with these Warriors and protect her village from evils. And she could feel the bonds between each, even the thief and mage. They were not evil, and she could sense nothing rotten in their hearts, only grim determination or confusion. If she did not come, those bonds that seemed to be forged long ago would fail, and the world would be turned over to the hands of the Fiends.
"Bad dreams?" Klad said, riding over to her. He was in his plated armor, breastplate forged from steel, with a longsword by his side. Underneath that was a leather jerkin with sleeves, with high boots and trousers fit for hard riding.
His cloak, with its delicate embroidery laced with stars and moon, and sword, was under a field of red and white, catching a strong wind, flowed with it like a massive scarlet bird.
Aki nodded her head at the knight's question. He looked thoughtful, as their horses slowed down, trying to conserve their energy. The other horses too, came to a gradual pace.
"My nightmares were bad too, like yours. I never dreamed that I would here, four warriors with orbs that are the saviors of this world." He laughed. "I, like you, mage Akian Arkya, am very young. We are all so: youthful yet aged with the wisdom of our creators."
"And how old are you, Klad?" She hesitated for a second before saying his real name, as he had said hers. But how did he know? "How did you know, that I am only a youth, spending only seventeen years in this world? Ryar?"
He glanced at her sharply. "We all know who we are. We are bonded to each other, whether we enjoy it or not, for we are...Warriors. But some secrets are still concealed." His hand went for his sword. He glanced slowly at the black mage, riding quietly behind them, glowing yellow eyes hiding beneath his robes of flowing blue. Aki glanced at the knight while he looked: his face seemed to be honed with a sword, tanned from endless fencing practices in the courtyards of Coneria, and it, like all other knights, mingled an aura of bravery, honor, dedication and pride. But this pride was unbreakable, and in his eyes she saw the blend of sadness and hope in the hazel orbs.
And she realized she was staring.
Cursing, she turned away and looked ahead, as the forest darkened and covered them from the sun, the foliage of dark leaves and branches hiding it from their view. The only path that lead out of it, made long ago by the elves who had first settled here, lead to the Temple.
And still, there was a shiver in her spine. The knight...if anything, she secretly thought, blushing, she had come to be with him.
"Be on your guard here," Klad warned, unsheathing his sword, decorated with the symbol of his House: a single gryfon, long flames spouting from its steel mouth. He held it in his gauntleted hands carefully, looking at the shadows of the forest. The thief did the same: a long rapier given to him by the king. Aki had her hammer, her trademark weapon, and three good throwing knives.
"Then let us stop. We cannot let the horses go on; they are already wearied." Bane leapt off lightly from his horse. "Ryar. We must stop for awhile. Haste is never prescribed for those wearied by the early sunrise."
Reluctantly, the knight stopped his stallion, and gently hopped down. Dead leaves crunched beneath his feet, as more leaves from a tall oak rustled.
Jakk jumped off Basyi, uncaring for the hidden dangers of the forest. His rapier was at his side, his eyes on Aki. He had a maddening sense that they both knew each other, in some way, though they were hundreds of leagues apart before they met. He watched her curiously, as she got off her horse awkwardly and dropped to the ground on her back, unnoticed by the wary knight and black mage.
He ran over to her, as she struggled to her feet, white cloak betraying her feet.
"Here," he said, lending her a hand.
The mage touched it, and the thief let out in inaudible gasp. Her hands were unlike anything he had ever felt, searing cold, making his tanned skin feel like it had been stung by those icicles that he used to buy in Tranmandkand's bazaar to lick on those burning days.
The young girl smiled as she rose to her feet, her soft leather boots cracking twigs. The noise, though barely audible, made giant echoes in the forest, alerting any creatures of intruders.
"A mage's touch is different from others," Aki said, smiling softly as Jakk let go of her hand. Jakk returned the smile.
Mages were not often liked, and often distrusted anywhere, because magical spells and incantations were not understood, for whatever good it did. Jakk didn't mind. This white mage, whatever magic she could do, was a woman, and since the journey was to be long, it was best to make...friends with her, Jakk thought.
"It's no different than any other woman...especially as lovely as you," Jakk cooed, puffing his expansive muscles. He grinned, handsomely, dimples noticeable. His tactics of luring women had worked with ladies of Tranmandkand before, and enrapturing this girl of a village wouldn't be so hard...
But Aki had seen this idiotic flattering before, meant to lure her to bed with some lonely woodcutter. Her smile, dimpled like Jakk, harden into a frown.
"If you think-"
Klad came up behind her and softly covered her mouth in desperation, to muffle the noise, but it was too late. Another rustle came from the woods that surrounded the party and their horses, and then a pack of wolves leapt out from the dense brush, from all sides.
One gauntlet still petrified on Aki's mouth, Klad's other gauntleted hand came to his sword, easily and smoothly off its sheath. He pushed Aki away from her, while neatly stopping a wolf's bite to his throat with a slash to the mouth.
His other hand balled into a fist, and crumpled the wolf completely with a blow.
All around him, other wolves were causing chaos, as the horses went wild with fear as wolves ran between them, biting at the hinds.
Klad swept the legs off of another wolf and called to Jakk.
"Jakk, get to those horses! We can't let them run off, not while we're in the middle of this forest." The thief nodded, ducking under a leaping wolf and pulling out his rapier.
In the middle of the confusion, the black mage calmly blasted holes and sizzled fur, as his palms glowed a bright red and expanded into fireballs, blasting the creatures down.
Aki wanted to go after the horses too, but she was in the middle of the melee, entrapped by wolves with Bane and Klad fighting them off.
The black mage, still calmly blasting wolves, looked at Aki with a semblance of a smile.
"If you wish to help us, milady, you can kindly get out that hammer of yours, or move out of the way," the mage said, startling Aki with a mock bow and dripping sarcasm.
But before she could do anything, the black mage had already ended it.
Fire shot from the mage's palms and into the surrounding brush, creating a firestorm that caressed the wolves. They stopped their attack and began leaping back into the forest, howling as their fur was scorched by the flame. But as the last wolf leapt off, the fire disappeared, magically leaping back into the hands of the mage and vanishing.
Klad nodded his thanks, his hair singed and face dirty with soot. The sword was stained with dark blood.
Bane, for once, looked exhausted, magic taking a toll on his energy. "Mage," he drawled, "you are supposed to be a healer. Let's see your healing powers now, since we are all drained of what strength we need."
Aki put his hand in hers, and closed her eyes, as their palms glowed. It was a trick her father taught her, when he was on the battlefields with Coneria's armies.
"Feel their spirit with yours," he had said, "and give them a boost of energy to rejuvenates them. More than one man has died at the sickles of an Imp because their spirit cannot continue."
She let go, intent on seeing Klad renewed as well, but he shook his head as he leaned on his sword. "Not now. The wolves will bring more of their kin to attack us next. Save your energy, Aki, for later. For now, we must ride." He turned to Jakk. "Skyaar, get those horses over here. We ride."
Obediently, he led the four, including Klad's war stallion, Strider, towards the four from a tree where they were tethered.
As they mounted, the black mage had a troubled eye looking towards the citadel they were about to face.
"Something is directing all of these forces-- wolves and assassins, to hinder our goal. Mayhaps it is one of the fiends," he murmured.
They rode, galloping forward and not wanting to expose any other traps laid on their way.
At the gates of Coneria, another lone horseman began riding northwest, to the newly built bridge to the northern world, to Tranmandkand and beyond. It was Luhkan, the lore-master. Not only was it time for the Light Warriors to go on their quest, it was time for him to go to his.
"To Pravoka, and then on to Crescent Lake," he murmured to his horse.
Author's Note: Keeping to the Final Fantasy storyline, I'll be adding some quotes and dialogue from the Final Fantasy I characters...old-time Final Fantasy I players will know all of these quotes. And yes, I intentionally named Klad's horse Strider after the ranger Strider of Lord of the Rings.