Author's Notes:
What's up everyone! It's nice to be getting a chapter out every day for once. I've received a few pm's about the story. If you sent one, I'll do my best to answer it as quickly as possible. Anyway, here's chapter 34. Enjoy!
Chapter 34: The Heroes Depart
"I remember that place…" Shion repeated.
Both Saito and Alex looked very shocked. How could she possibly know about a place that no human had ever seen?
"What do you mean?" Saito asked.
"That's where my home is." She replied.
"But you're human…" Saito said. "How could you have known about that place if no human has ever been there."
"My mother is an Elf." She said.
"But your ears…" Alex said.
Saito thought about the possibility. He thought about his biology classes in high school. Sometimes, a genetic trait could be recessive, making the physical appearance of the offspring change. Maybe Elf ears could be recessive, which would explain why her ears were like a human's. Of course, Saito couldn't explain all of this to them.
"She might be right." Saito said. "In fact, you might be from that place too."
"Me?" Alex said.
"It would explain your long life span." Saito replied. "Besides, you don't remember much either right?"
Alex was quiet for a little while. "Even if that's true, there'd be no point going there now."
"Wouldn't you want to find your family?" Saito asked.
"I don't know." Alex said. "Besides, I've met people like me who've lived long, yet they don't remember where they're from. We all just live without those memories. We don't need them."
"I need those memories back." Shion said.
"Well, Alex. Looks like your hands are tied." Saito said.
"Fine." Alex sighed. "We can go once this war is over. But I'm going for Shion, not myself."
"Speaking of the war, how have you two been faring?" Saito asked.
"Luckily for us, when the war began, Albion wasn't over the continent. When news of the war reached Albion, we had a lot of time to prepare for attacks." Alex said. "Still, we never imagined they would be using such weapons, so it was a hard fight at first."
"It was made worse when we heard news that you were no where to be found." Shion said, quietly. "We thought you and Louise were killed. Alex was particularly-"
"No need to continue, Shion!" Alex interrupted, laughing nervously. "How about you, Saito. From the news we've gotten, it seems your military career has been successful."
"I don't know how successful a career in the military can be." Saito said, remembering the thousands of deaths he was responsible for. "But yeah, I guess it's been okay. Speaking of which, I'll be heading to Tristain soon."
"Tristain? By yourself?" Alex said. "Even you can't get through there alive."
"I took a few precautions." Saito said.
He opened the buttons on his shirt, revealing the runes for the Heart of God. Earlier in the month, he finally had Tiffa summon her familiar. Of course, Saito knew that it would be him, so he wasn't alarmed. He thought that the power of the Heart of God may come in handy at some point in the future.
"Still," Alex said. "You could easily die in there. You shouldn't go alone."
"Once I retake the magic academy, I will have Gallian and Romalian forces march through the border." Saito said. "If I'm right, they should be able to arrive at the academy before Germanian soldiers arrive there from Tristainia."
"All of that sounds like it's based on hope and chance. We can come with you, you know." Alex said.
"No. You two should go and help Wales." Saito said. "In fact, I think Shion should stop fighting for a little while."
"I can still fight." She said, stoically.
"Physically, yes. But mentally, you need to take a break. Especially after today." Saito replied.
"But-" Shion was about to argue, but Alex squeezed her face, stopping her from talking.
"He's right, Shion." He said. "I'm worried about you. I can do enough fighting for both of us, so just relax for a while."
He gave her a soft kiss, making her turn bright red. Her rather harsh personality seemed to melt away as Alex's lips touched hers. When he finally pulled away, she didn't say anything. She just crossed her arms in a futile attempt to look upset.
"Well, since that's settled, I should get going." Saito said.
"So soon?" Alex replied.
"I told you I was leaving soon, didn't I?" Saito asked.
"Well, yeah. But I didn't think you meant in a few minutes." Alex said.
"For every second that I'm not at the Academy, my friends are suffering." Saito replied. "I have to go immediately."
"Oh. Well, good luck." Alex said.
They gave each other a hug, both knowing that Saito may die in Tristain. Saito gave Shion a kiss on her hand, then disappeared from the Palace, appearing in Kirche's room. She was already awake and prepared to depart. Neither said a thing as Saito lifted her up and they departed for the border.
In Sasha's cabin
Louise woke up from her deep sleep. She felt drained of any sort of energy. She noticed that Sasha sat next to her, stroking her pink hair.
"You didn't have to wait for me to wake up." Louise said.
"She always does that." Mariel said. "She's always watch-"
Sasha threw a cup at her, making her stop.
"How do you feel?" She asked.
"I have no energy." Louise said. "I've never felt like this before."
"It's to be expected." Mariel said. "You were doing quite a bit of training for a woman who's expecting."
"I guess I was pushing myself a little hard, huh?" Louise said.
She was quiet for a little while, thinking about how long she would have to remain in bed.
"Hey, Mariel." She finally said. "You're Sasha's older sister, so do you have kids?"
Mariel's face became very grim. "Somewhere out there, yes I do." She replied.
"What do you mean?" Louise asked.
"Somewhere out there, my child is alive." Mariel said, making the air in the room seem to stagnate.
"I'm sorry." Louise said. "I never thought…"
"Don't worry about it!" Mariel said, looking happier. "As long as they're alive, I'm happy. Come on, let's get you out of bed!"
Louise was worried about Mariel, but decided not to delve any further. She attempted to stand on her feet, but her legs gave way beneath her. Sasha supported her and laid her back down in bed.
"It's rather strange that you're so weak." Mariel said.
"I felt like all of my strength was taken away yesterday." Louise said.
Sasha put her hand on Louise's forehead.
"Your core temperature is slightly higher." She said.
"Is that bad?" Louise asked.
"Considering you feel okay other than your slight weakness, it should be okay." Mariel said.
"What do you think is causing it?" Louise asked.
"It's probably your training coupled with the little monster you're carrying with you." Mariel said. "You should recover if you eat something."
"I do feel kind of hungry." Louise said.
Mariel smiled and went out into the woods to collect meat, leaving Sasha and Louise alone to discuss her.
"What happened to her child?" Louise asked.
"He was cast away long ago." Sasha said as she started to braid Louise's hair.
"Why?" Louise asked.
"He contained human blood." Sasha said. "When the people found out, they found his father and murdered him. To protect him, Mariel sent him to the human world. To keep him from hurting, she erased his memories of this place…and of his mother."
"That's terrible…" Louise said, sadly. "Do you think she'll ever find them?"
"Who knows?" Sasha said. "The only thing she cannot see with her eyes is her darling child."
"I never understood that." Louise said. "What do you mean she can see everything?"
"Has she ever told you why she goes into that mountain in particular?" Sasha asked.
"No." Louise replied. "She told me that that mountain was special for some reason, though."
"Deep within that mountain is a large reserve of magic." Sasha said. "We call it the heart of time. This is what Brimir used to experiment on her. He took a piece of this magic and implanted it within Mariel. It was very painful for her, but she survived. It left her with the power to see through time, although the distance she can see varies."
"So can she not see her child?" Louise asked.
"Unfortunately not." Sasha said. "I do not know if she refuses to see him, or if she truly cannot."
"That's very sad." Louise said as she looked outside at Mariel, who was no grilling some kind of meat.
"She copes with it, so do not worry." Sasha said.
Mariel walked into the room holding several large pieces of meat on some wooden platters. Louise's appetite immediately grew, and she began wolfing down the rather simplistic, but delicious meal. When she was finished, she didn't necessarily feel full, but she was satisfied.
Just as she finished, a messenger ran to the house's door.
"Report of the humans!" He said.
"Speak." Sasha replied.
"The Allied nations of Romalia, Albion, and Gallia have begun to push back the aggressor nation." The messenger said.
"Really?!" Louise said. "How is Saito?!"
The messenger was hesitant to reply, but complied once he saw the glare of Sasha and Mariel.
"The human with the orange tail is responsible for several victories in Gallia. He is currently travelling to Tristain. The aggressor nation has occupied Tristain with at least 100,000 soldiers. The boy goes there alone." He replied.
"Alone?!" Louise said. "He'll die!"
"Calm yourself." Mariel said.
"No! He told me he died before doing something like this!" Louise said.
She started getting dressed immediately. Sasha quietly sipped her tea, knowing that Louise's departure was inevitable. Louise grabbed her wand and in a haste, began opening a world door. Through the door, she saw the a coast line. She recognized the beach as the coast of her own country. She turned around and hugged Sasha and Mariel, with tears streaming down all of their faces.
"Thank you so much." Louise said.
Both Sasha and Mariel kissed her cheeks.
"Come back soon, little sister." Sasha and Mariel said.
"I will, older sisters." Louise said.
Soon, she departed, leaving Sasha and Mariel to worry about her well being while she went to find her lover.
Author's Notes:
Hey guys! Sorry for the short chapter. I planned for it to be longer, but the finished product would have been too long, so I cut it out. Sorry. I'll have the rest out tomorrow. See you next time!