Fire Emblem Hearts
Chapter 5
Alryne
Alryne was a quaint little town not far from Ylisstol. It was located southeast of the Ylissian capital. It wasn't a very big town, in fact it consisted of about 40 buildings, most of them being small residential homes. The roads were paved in cobblestone, meeting the natural dirt paths that divided the capital from the town. It looked like a typical retreat, the buildings being mostly brick and mortar. The issue of course was the fact that the town was in shambles.
Kazuki could see some broken carts leading into the town, wares most likely en-route to Ylisstol. One of the houses had burned down, a plume of black smoke towering into the skies. It was one that Sumia had noticed once they had been about a mile out.
Kazuki could hear the sounds of battle nearby as well, the towns people were fighting against some Heartless. Types he hadn't seen before. He had been expecting Shadows and Soldiers, maybe some of the Hooked Bats from before. This time though he spotted a few that were new. Small violet dogs, growling and barking at people. He noticed one of them chasing after a little girl, though thankfully an adult managed to kill it before it got to her. He didn't see a heart rising to the sky, like he had when he had fought them with Chrom and Robin. He tried not to focus on the screams of the people, seeing some hearts rising and disappearing into the sky.
"This is awful." he said softly.
"We have to make sure the injured are taken care of, however these creatures need to be destroyed. Can you identify any of them?" Maribelle asked, making Kazuki sit up a bit.
"I recognize some of the Soldier Heartless. They're the armored ones, blue and silver. They like to claw at you, and its best to avoid them in groups. The Rabid Dogs though, those are new...it's the first time I've seen them." he said. Before the blonde could say something, three Pegasus Knights landed before them, their Pegasi neighing loudly. One of them strode forward, holding a spear tightly in her grasp.
"Lady Maribelle, Lady Sumia, it's good of you to join us. Are you the reinforcements Lord Chrom sent out?" the woman asked.
She was rather young, being around twenty years old, it seemed. She had long pink hair tied tightly into a bun. She was wearing polished silver armor, with various markings on it. At the very center, the crest of Ylisse could be seen, painted carefully onto the armor. She had a stern look on her face, as she looked at the two ladies. Kazuki swiftly got off off Vera, groaning a bit due to his new saddle sore. He stood up straight, giving the woman a smile.
"Hello there, my name is Kazuki. Lord Chrom sent all three of us to help you with the Heartless, he also gave me command of the mission." he said. The woman scoffed, tightening her grip on her lance.
"You? But you are nothing but a boy, you hardly look like a soldier."
"He may not look it, but he has experience against these foul beasts. It's best you listen to what he has to say, Captain." Maribelle said sternly. The woman looked like she wanted to protest, but instead said nothing, turning to the young man.
"Alright then, you are our Commander for this mission. What are your orders?"
"Ah...right. I'm certain you've been dealing with these Heartless for awhile now. However they are particular with how they have to be defeated. If you use regular weapons, their bodies are destroyed but they return just as quickly. However, if you use magic against them, they'll be destroyed permanently. Tell me, have you noticed any odd looking Heartless?"
"There's a shadowy blob near town hall. It's just there on the ground, glowing ominously. The shadowy things seem to be attracted to it, some of the townspeople saw a black clad man placing it there." one of the other knights said.
"Okay, take me to it. Maribelle, I'd like for you to care for the injured. Captain if you could keep an eye on her so she doesn't get hurt, I'd appreciate it. Sumia, you and...pardon me, may I have your name?" he said, turning to the lone male Pegasus Knight.
He didn't look like much, a rather skinny looking boy wearing armor that looked 3 sizes too big for him. His armor was a light teal in color, and looked rather plane. He had fair colored skin, and soft green hair, that fell down to the nape of his neck. He was holding a Silver Bow in his hands, a quiver filled with arrows strapped to his back.
"My name is Pierre, nice to meet ya!" he said happily.
"Right, Pierre you and Sumia take care of the bigger threats. If you could bring any injured to Maribelle, that would be great." Kazuki said.
"What about you sir? What will you do?" the Captain asked. He held his hand out, summoning his keyblade to his hand. All three knights gasped in surprise, not expecting the weapon to materialize from thin air.
"I'll be fighting the Heartless head on. See if I can make a dent in them, I theorize that getting rid of the lead Heartless, will drive the others off. If that's it, I'd like to get started." the boy said. The captain nodded, giving nods to the others.
"You've gotten your orders, I expect the two of you to follow them to the letter."
"Yes ma'am!" both of them cried out.
"Maribelle, Sumia stay safe. If something happens, just call out, I'm sure I'll be able to hear you." Kazuki said, gesturing to his ears.
"Good luck dear, try not to get yourself killed." Maribelle said, handing him an extra Vulnerary. He gave her a thankful smile, placing it in his pocket.
A nearby scream caused him to jolt. He spotted a young woman being chased by some Dog Heartless. Without missing a beat, he ran straight toward them, his grip tightening on his keyblade. He swung it at the first one, destroying it with ease. He spun around, striking a second on quickly jabbing it and ending it with a slash. One dog barked loudly at him, aiming to bite his arm. He ducked to the side, taking aim at the creature, his keyblade sparking with electricity.
"Elthunder!" he chanted, launching the orb at the Rabid Dog. It burst into wisps of darkness, its captive heart flying into the air. The took a breath, hoping that was the end of it, only for several more portals to open up around him.
"Uh...this wasn't in the training video." he said jokingly, glancing at the new Heartless.
"Commander, what are your orders?" the girl beside him said. She had been swinging her sword at some of the flying Heartless, holding onto her reins tightly.
"Take to the sky, see if you can funnel the flying ones down here. I'll handle the ground enemies as best as I can. Be careful, if you get hit in the chest you'll die." he called out.
"Aye sir! I'll take care of it. Let's go Gretchen!" she cried out, urging her Pegasus forward. It gave a loud neigh, spreading its wings and shooting into the air. Now that he had space, Kazuki began to work.
The Heartless became more erratic, hissing whenever they could. One of them lunged for the boy, and he quickly guarded the attack. He pushed the creature back, rapidly jabbing it in the chest before slashing it apart. An armored knight Heartless moved forward, aiming its bladed hand at Kazuki, slashing his arm. He groaned in pain, clutching the cut.
"That stings like shit. I better take care of them quickly." he thought, as he backed away from the Armored Knight. He held his keyblade up, a swirling orb of lightning crackling at its tip.
"Elthunder!" he chanted once more, willing several bolts to rain down around him. Several pops filled his ears as the heartless around him were destroyed. Only one had remained, a rather strong looking one at that.
It was far different from the other heartless. In fact to him it looked almost human. It had dark, decaying skin, revealing a bit of its skeleton, its gnawing teeth clenched into an angry scowl. It was wearing crimson armor, covering most of its vital areas, though there were parts that were separated from the main chest plate. It was holding a large sword in its hands. Kazuki could see the crest of the Heartless emblazoned on the center of the armor, almost like some sick representation of what it was.
It looked like a Risen...one of the undead that Chrom had talked about. But it also bore the insignia of the Heartless. It rose it sword, as if to challenge Kazuki to a duel. He took a deep breath, narrowing his eyes.
"This must be the commander, the one leading the heartless here. If that's the case then I gotta be careful. One badly placed strike and I could be heading back to the Realm of Darkness." he thought, as he rose his keyblade, taking his stance.
With unnatural speed, the Risen moved forward, jabbing at the boy with his sword. Kazuki barely had a chance to react, ducking out of the way in the nick of time. He swung his keyblade as hard as he could, striking the Risen in the chest, hardly doing any damage. He was quick to move in for a second strike, remembering what Stahl had taught him.
"Keep low to the ground, don't get too cocky with my strikes. Find a weak point and then drive it home." he recited, taking practiced strikes at the creature. He spun his keyblade above his head, light swirling at its tip.
"Elruin!" he chanted, driving the tip of his weapon into the Risen's chest. It exploded into a searing light, that sent the Heartless reeling, hissing in apparent pain. Kazuki moved forward, continuing his onslaught.
He let out a cry, hacking and slashing at the Risen. He spun around, delivering a horizontal slash, destroying a bit of the creature's armor. The Risen counterattacked, throwing a jab at Kazuki, who rose his blade in time to parry it. Sparks rained around him from the strike, arms buckling a bit as it pushed him back. The kitsune tried and failed to hold his ground, and ended up falling to the ground, losing his grip on his weapon.
"Ugh...shit!" he hissed. The Risen let out a screech, raising its sword above its head to finish him off.
"Hyah!"
The Risen growled in pain as a javelin stuck in its chest, causing him to stumble back. Kazuki glanced up, seeing the Pegasus Knight from before, flying above him. He rapidly stood up, running for his discarded blade, grabbing it in his grasp. With one final swing, Kazuki sliced its head clean off its shoulders. It stumbled back, bursting into a thick dark mist. A glowing pink heart burst from the mist, floating into the sky before it disappeared. Kazuki dropped to his knees, panting a bit from the fight.
"Are you alright?" the knight asked, quickly dismounting her steed. She knelt before the boy, looking him over. She cringed a bit, noticing all of the cuts on his skin.
"I'll be fine. I wasn't expecting that Risen though." he mumbled, reaching into his pocket for the Vulnerary that Maribelle had given him.
"Those Risen have been spotted around town. They seem to be leading these shadowy creatures." she said, helping the boy up.
"I see...it might be for the best that we take them out. All of the Heartless have vanished from this area. Let's check out that blob you mentioned, the faster we take care of it the better."
"As you command!" the cried out, giving the boy a salute.
"Okay...I think this one takes her job way too seriously." Kazuki thought, scratching at her cheek.
xxx
The Rabid Dogs were the most annoying kinds of Heartless. They were small, violet colored creatures, about the size of a medium dog. They had red collars with spikes on them, and also had coiled tails. Their maws were covered in dark slobber, and they barked and growled loudly as a regular dog would. They also had an odd symbol on the side of their body. A crimson heart, the inside being black, with a Fleur-de-lis at the bottom, bearing red spiked markings on the inside, in an odd X shape. It was the symbol that most heartless seemed to bear, one that he would make a note of for the future.
Kazuki swung his keyblade at the Dog, sending it flying into a nearby wall. A second one came at him and he quickly jumped back, angling his blade for a counter attack. The dog barked loudly, a wave of dark energy flew at the kitsune, stunning him briefly. The dog jumped at him, aiming a paw right at his chest. Before he could counter, the head of a lance pierce it's body, destroying it with ease. He glanced at the Pegasus Knight beside him, giving her a nod.
"Thanks miss, you saved my life."
"It's no problem Commander, we should be careful. There are more of these dogs running around." she said firmly.
A few more Elthunder spells took care of the herd of dogs that had appeared. Kazuki continued moving down the street, taking out some Soldier Heartless that came running at him. He destroyed them with ease, their captive hearts sailing high into the air. Seeing the area was clear, he relaxed a bit, falling into pace with the knight beside him.
"So uh...may I get your name? I forgot to ask you before." he said. The girl nodded, giving him a smile.
"My name is Veronica. First Private of the Ylissian Pegasus Knights. I was promoted last week." she said happily, a proud smile on her face.
She looked younger than Kazuki, perhaps by a year. He was surprised that someone as young as her was able to become a Pegasus Knight. Then again he didn't know what the qualifications for that were. Much like her fellow knights, she was wearing a set of polished armor, the chest plate having been made to accommodate her large chest. She wore silver gauntlets, along with matching greaves. Her Pegasus was wearing matching armor, emblazoned with the crest of Ylisse. The girl looked at him, frowning slightly.
"Is something wrong sir? You seem to be looking at me as if I did something wrong."
"Huh? No no...you've done nothing wrong Veronica. Your armor is just...very shiny."
"Ah okay...kitsune do like shiny things, so I understand why." she replied with a smile.
"Ugh...just because I'm part fox doesn't mean I like shiny things!" he groaned, brushing some hair out of his face.
"S-sorry sir...I didn't mean anything by that." she said sheepishly. He shook his head.
"None of this sir crap, just call me Kazuki okay? We're about the same age, so you can address me by name."
"But that's impolite! You're a Shepherd! I should address you properly."
"Hey kiddo, I'm pretty green, joined up yesterday in fact. Chrom gave me command of this mission because I know how to deal with the Heartless. I'm still kind of nervous about it." he said. Veronica sighed, straightening up on her mount.
"I see...well it's still impolite."
"Eh...maybe. But I'm not royalty, I'm just your everyday neighborhood kitsune!" he said. Before she could reply, another horde of heartless appeared before them. He looked around, taking note of the types that had appeared.
"Armored Knights, Soldiers, Shadows and Rabid Dogs. No Risen Heartless...that's good...the last thing I need is to deal with that."
"Orders?"
"Take care of the ones in the air, push them down to me and I'll finish them off! I'll handle the ground!" he cried, dashing forward.
He lead off with an Elblizzard, freezing a few enemies in place. He swept his keyblade around, breaking the ice and finishing the Dog off. He spun around, slashing to and fro, clearing the area around him. He jumped back a few paces, pulling his blade behind his back.
"This is it! Strike Raid!" Kazuki chanted, launching his blade forward. He spun around, using the momentum to throw the blade a second time. He finished the group off with a third throw, unable to finish his Judgment attack.
"Kazuki, heads up!" Veronica shouted from above. She slashed three Aerial Pirates downward with her javelin, the three of them slamming into the ground hard. He ran forward, angling his keyblade, a swirling gale enveloping his weapon.
"Take this! Elwind!" the kitsune chanted, launching a blade of wind magic at the Pirates. It struck the three head on, destroying them with ease. He let out a sigh, wiping some sweat from his brow.
"Whelp...that's that." he said, allowing his weapon to disappear. He glanced around the area, noticing the destruction. Not a lot of people could be seen, all of them probably in hiding.
"Wow, that was awesome! I didn't know your weapon was magic."
"Uh yeah...it's a special one alright. I'm still learning proper sword fighting, but I think I'm doing alright." the boy happily replied. The flapping of wings caught his ear, and he quickly turned around, in time to see Sumia land in front of him.
"We have trouble Kazuki. Heartless have gathered around the injured villagers! The Captain and Pierre are holding them off but they can't do it forever. We need your help!" she cried. Without missing a beat, Kazuki got onto Francheska, wrapping an arm around Sumia's waist.
"Let's go!"
Riding a Pegasus was nothing like being on horseback. He could feel the slight upward jolt of every flap. The wind in his hair was rather pleasant, and due to his heightened sense of smell, Sumia's perfume was hitting him in the face. He tried his hardest to keep focused, but his cheeks were still glowing red. They flew over the main area of Alryne, seeing the gathering of Heartless, Shadows, Rabid Dogs and Soldiers. Regular fodder, he mused. Maribelle was sitting atop Vera, holding her staff tightly in her grasp. Whenever a soldier jumped at her she swung it with all her strength, knocking it back. She stood firmly before some wounded children, not letting them get anywhere near her.
Pierre was atop his own mount, on a flat roofed building nearby. His bow was raised and he was spraying the creatures with arrows. He shot one and knocked another in the same second, his the snap of his string was the only sign of his ongoing barrage. The Captain was swinging her sword to and fro, keeping the heartless clear of the villagers.
"Back you foul beasts! I will not let you continue destroying this village!" she shouted, cleaving a Shadow in half.
"Alright Sumia swoop in and drop me off, I want you and Veronica to deal with the aerial units. Be careful, you know what happens when they get a good strike in." he said, earning a nod from the woman.
"Okay, Francheska, sweep!" she commanded, earning a neigh from her mount. They started doing down in a nose dive, preparing for Kazuki to dismount. The boy stood up, jumping off the Pegasus, rolling into his feet. He flicked his wrist, summoning Divewing into his hand.
"Kazuki!" Maribelle cried in surprise. He gave her a smirk, before running into the fray.
He lead off with wind magic, clearing back some of the shadows that were getting close to the Captain. He jumped into the air, swinging his keyblade taking care of the shadows. Landing a bit roughly, me moved toward some Soldiers, destroying them as well. A Rabid dog aimed a tackle at him and he instinctively dodged it, using a handspring to get some distance. He spun around his hand, simultaneously taking aim with his blade.
"Elblizzard!" he chanted, flinging the ice ball, freezing the dog in place. He landed upright, finishing it off with a jab.
"Hot damn, you aren't half bad kid." the Captain said, earning a nod from the kitsune.
"Just following my instincts ma'am. Let's hurry up and get rid of these bastards." he said with a grin.
It didn't take long to clear the area of their heartless. Kazuki was spent, having taken some hits from the tougher heartless that had appeared. Even a few Risen had joined their ranks. When the last heartless was taken care of, the boy let out a sigh. The townspeople clapped happily, now that the danger was taken care of.
"Excellent job Kazuki, and here I thought you'd end up expiring on me." Maribelle said, having ridden up to the boy.
"Ha ha ha, I'm not that hopeless...ow...though that last Soldier did get me pretty good." he said, clasping his shoulder. He had a nasty gash on it, which was bleeding profusely. The noblewoman held her staff up, a swirling energy gathering around the orb.
"Cura." she chanted. Kazuki felt all of his cuts slowly sealing up. The pain he felt from his fighting slowly melted away, as if he hadn't taken down a hundred heartless. He gave her a thankful smile.
"Thanks Belle, I appreciate it."
"Excuse me, what did you just address me as?" she snapped, making him cringe.
"S-sorry...I thought...since we're friends now, that I could give you a nickname...maybe?" he said sheepishly. Her lips twitched slightly but she said nothing.
"Very well, I suppose it would help us become better acquainted."
The boy sighed, a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. He thought he had offended the woman. Sumia and Veronica were taking care of the injured, making sure none of them had gotten and grievous injuries.
"Well isn't this a surprise! I was expecting to see some loses here, but it seems the villagers pulled through! Only 10 casualties to the darkness, not bad if I say so myself." a voice said, causing everyone to stop what they were doing. Kazuki stiffened a bit, ears standing straight when he heard it.
"Where are you! Show yourself!" he exclaimed, spinning on his heel, keyblade already in hand. Several feet before him, a shadowy portal appeared. From the swirling darkness walked out a familiar cloaked man, hood covering his head.
"Now now, let's not start making demands boy."
"Pardon me, but are you responsible for this? Do you know the consequences of attacking the Halidom? It is a crime punishable by death!" Maribelle said firmly.
"I'm not scared of you sweetheart. I'm just doing my job, making sure the boy is ready for the darkness."
"Eh? Ready...so you are behind this! Wasn't it bad enough you sent those things at me in the Dark Realm? Now you're bringing them here?" the kitsune cried. The hooded man laughed, shaking his head.
"You blame me for the Dark Realm? Sorry buddy but that's now how it works. It wasn't my fault that your awakening broke that hologram. Thanks to you, your so called "Best Friend" is lost to the darkness. Not to mention you brought the Heartless to yourself. The keyblade doesn't just destroy them and set captive hearts free. No, it also attracts them, like a beacon." he said, pointing to the weapon in his hand.
"A beacon?" Sumia said, confused by what the man was saying.
"That's right sweetheart. As long as you hang around your new friend, your lives will be in danger. Ah, but you are her apprentice, I'm sure she taught you ways of dealing with it." the hooded man said, causing Kazuki to grit his teeth.
"I don't know who you are talking about, now if you are done taunting me, take a hike. If not get ready for me to end you!" Kazuki said angrily. The hooded man chuckled, crossing his arms.
"That's the fiery boy I remember. Prancing around Daybreak Town whenever the Heartless showed up. Always rearing to go, always doing what was right for his Union. Guess I can't say much, you are the best fighter to come out Vulpes."
"Kazuki dear, what is he talking about?" Maribelle asked, earning a shrug from the kitsune.
"Your guess is as good as mine. I got no idea what the hell this man is talking about. All I know is that he's responsible for the attack on Alryne. He's probably the one controlling the Risen too, and that means if we beat him here, we might solve both of those issues!" Kazuki replied. The pink clad noble nodded, tightening her hold on Vera's reigns.
"I see...then allow me to watch your wounds, I shall keep you in top shape. Sumia, you lend him a hand."
"Sure thing Maribelle!" the Pegasus Knight replied, grasping onto her lance. The hooded man started chuckling.
"You think I'm going to fight you? No no no...I don't do the fighting I'm afraid. But...I do know of something that does." he said, snapping his fingers. The ground started rumbling, causing everyone to stumble a bit.
"What...did you do?" Kazuki hissed, glaring at the man.
"Me? I did nothing, you on the other hand did...after all, you never destroyed the orb at the center of town. Ta-ta." the hooded man said, disappearing from sight.
Before anyone could say anything, a thick stream of darkness shot into the air. Kazuki's eyes followed it, seeing the wave heading towards him. It looked like a mass of heartless. Shadow heartless, all of them zooming directly at him.
"Everybody move!" he shouted, diving out of the way. Maribelle and Sumia were quick to move, however the Captain wasn't able to. Her mount neighed loudly in fear, bucking her clean off.
"Captain!" Pierre and Veronica cried out in unison. Kazuki grit his teeth, running straight at the woman. He stood before her, using his keyblade to block the stream.
"Get...back!" he shouted, deflecting the heartless back. He glanced over his shoulder at the woman, who had a pained look on her face.
"Thanks...I underestimated your strength. I'm glad you're helping us." she said.
"It's alright, get your comrades and the injured out of here. I'll take care of this." he said, turning back to the heartless. They were swirling enmasse, unlike anything he had ever seen. Sumia and Maribelle took their places beside him, both ready for the grueling fight ahead.
"So Kazuki, have you faced anything like this before?"
"Nope...can't say that I have, but we'll have to be careful. A few Shadow Heartless are bad enough, this Twister is most likely going to end us. Let's just see what we can do about it!" Kazuki said, angling his keyblade as he took off.
"The Demon Tide is a dangerous foe. Hundreds of Shadow Heartless begin swirling around a core of darkness. This core is what keeps them together, within it lies a heart. Though Shadows are pureblood heartless, born from the darkness of human hearts, the Demon Tide is different. Be careful, or you may be swallowed completely by it." the voice said, cutting through Kazuki's mind. He steeled his nerves, jumping at the wave.
He swung his keyblade at it, destroying a few of the shadows. He continued his combo, doing a flip in mid air before throwing his blade at it. He landed roughly on the ground, avoiding a few creatures aiming at his side.
"There has to be a way to beat them!" Sumia cried, using her lance to destroy the ones that flew at her.
The swirling funnel moved back, launching several balls of shadows at them. Kazuki jumped into the air, slashing all of them apart. He cried in pain, taking several attacks from all sides, one large ball slammed into his back, sending him sprawling to the ground. He groaned, clutching his bleeding head. He heard Vera neighing loudly, seeing the heartless moving toward Maribelle. He rapidly stood up, grabbing his blade from the ground as he ran. He felt an indescribable heat swirling within him. He held up his keyblade, watching with amazement as its tip sparked to life. Swirling blue flames forming an orb of fire magic.
"Elfire!" the boy cried, the flames at the heartless. It made contact, incinerating the heartless near the blonde noble.
"Are you okay Maribelle?" he asked, panting a bit. The girl shook her head, pursing her lips.
"Nevermind me, look at yourself. You really should watch yourself." she said, using Cura on him. His injuries sealed up, his stamina slowly recovering.
"I don't even know where that fire spell came from, if I'm being honest. Regardless, there's only one way to beat this thing. We have to aim for the core." he said, pointing at the swirling red mass at the center of the funnel.
"Easier said than done dear, I'm not that well versed in magic yet. All I can do is support you and watch for your injuries."
"I can get you close, we'll have to team up and take it down." Sumia said firmly, earning a nod from the boy.
"Then let's go." he cried, jumping into Francheska's back. The Pegasus neighed loudly as they took off, heading toward the swirling funnel of heartless.
He held out his keyblade, firing ice magic at the incoming projectiles. They froze in mid air, allowing Sumia to take them out with a slash of her lance. The swirling tide became more erratic as they approached. The Pegasus Knight jerked slightly causing her mount to start flying upward.
"Drop me in, I'll take care of the rest!" Kazuki cried.
"Understood, good luck Kazuki." she said softly, a confident smile on her face. He nodded, tightening his grip on his blade.
As they passed over the top, Kazuki jumped off Francheska, diving straight into the center. He gave out a cry as he pierced the core with his blade. The Demon Tide let out a collective groan, as if in pain from the attack. He recovered quickly, delivering several strikes at the center, creating deep gashes with each one. He flipped around, a swirling flames at the end of his weapon.
"This is it! Elfire!" he chanted, shooting a ball of fire directly at the core. It swelled as it made contact, exploding a second later. The shockwave sent the boy tumbling down. Thankfully, he was caught by Sumia before he hit the ground.
The Demon Tide slowed down considerably, a collective hiss before breaking apart. All of the shadows disappeared through portals, the small town returning to the relative quiet of before. Kazuki sighed, panting a bit from the spent energy. He groaned as he leaned against Sumia, lazily wrapping his arm around her waist.
"Good job." he said softly, earning a giggle from the knight.
"I think I should be saying that. You're the one that took care of the Heartless." she said, bringing Francheska in for a landing. He jumped off, stretching his tired limbs, hissing in pain.
"Ow." he mumbled, rubbing his cut. Maribelle sighed, shaking her head.
"What did I tell you about watching your injuries?" she cried out.
"Sorry, heat of the moment." Kazuki replied. She shook her head, using another Cura spell to heal him up.
"Be sure to watch your injuries. I may not always be there to treat your wounds. This is why I advised you to purchase more vulneraries."
"I'll keep that in mind, and the townspeople?"
"Safe, the Captain took them out of the area. It seems the Heartless have left Alryne. Despite that, ten people succumbed to the darkness, thanks to those foul creatures." she said. Kazuki bowed his head slightly, ears flattening against his head.
"Dammit...I thought we got here in time. I wasn't expecting that Demon Tide to appear like that. We'll have to take out those Dark Orbs whenever we see them. The last thing we need is a repeat of what just happened." he said.
"I must admit, you handled yourself nicely, Kazuki." a familiar voice said, causing the boy to whirl around. He glared at a nearby building, seeing the hooded man from before standing atop it.
"Come here to gloat? I still got enough energy to kick your ass!" he cried angrily. The man reached into his pocket for something, before tossing it at him. He was quick to catch it, a confused look on his face.
"Believe it or not kid, I'm not here to make your life a living hell. Suffice it to say, the others pulling the strings, the real enemies, won't be so easy going. Like I said, I owe her a favor...it was kind of our fault all of that went down." he said. Kazuki ignored him, holding the item out in his hand.
It was an orb...a glittering blue orb. It was the size of a golf ball, and seemed to be glowing with power. Holding it up to the sun, he could see something else in it. An etching of a weapon, a round bladed like weapon. He lowered his hand, glaring at the hooded man.
"What's the meaning of this then?"
"That, is a gift if you will. A summon orb, lets you summon a mighty warrior to your side when you need it. They'll be held here by your magic alone, so if you waste it and they disappear, that's on you. Fit it into your keyblade and chant their name. Then just watch the magic happen, I look forward to when we next meet, Apprentice." he said, the shadows quickly consuming him.
"Tch...ingrate. Don't listen to him dear, that's probably a trap." Maribelle said, turning to Kazuki who was looking at the orb curiously.
"Somehow, I don't think so. I don't feel any darkness coming from this orb. Regardless, I think I'll worry about it later. For now let's help out the townspeople. The darkness is gone, we should at least help with the clean up."
"Yes of course...let us hurry, we have quite the report to give once we return to Ylisse." the blonde woman said, turning back toward the injured. Kazuki glanced over his shoulder with a frown.
"Just who the hell are you, and why are you doing this? Who is this person you keep talking about? And why is she important?"
xxx
"That's it. Despite us getting there in time to stop the influx of Heartless, there were still casualties." Kazuki said, a frown on his face as he stood before Chrom and Emmeryn. Maribelle and Sumia stood by him as well, having recounted the events that took place in Alryne.
"We got the same report from Captain Brianna. You did an excellent job for your first mission." Chrom said firmly.
"It is a shame that we lost ten villagers, but you were able to save the rest and heal their injuries. However, something must be done about this Hooded Fellow. We cannot have him running around bringing more Heartless to Ylisse. Did you ascertain his identity?"
"My apologies your grace, we were not able to see his face. He was shrouded in shadow by the hood he wore. All we know is that he seems to know Kazuki from somewhere. However, Kazuki himself doesn't seem to recall him." Maribelle said, glancing at Kazuki who was lost in thought.
"Are you faring well friend? You seem to be spacing out a lot."
"Huh? Sorry Chrom, I just have a lot on my mind. That Demon Tide took a lot out of me, and so did the heartless. May I be excused?" he asked.
"Of course, thanks for your help today Kazuki. You're dismissed." Emmeryn said, giving him a smile. He bowed politely, before leaving the Throne Room.
"Your grace, if I may...I believe Kazuki might be pondering on what that man had said. He mentioned something about him being an apprentice. He seemed to be talking about some other things as well."
"He also said something about a beacon...the keyblade, it attracts the heartless. I think Kazuki might be blaming himself for what's going on." Sumia added.
"I see...I think I'll go talk to him. Perhaps asking him to join the Shepherd's wasn't the best idea. He's most likely struggling with all of this." Chrom said, glancing at his sister. She gave him a silent nod, allowing him to be excused.
"Poor thing...he's so far away from home, being thrust into the military life might have been too much for him."
"Indeed, ah yes...Maribelle, your parents told me that they're heading off early. It seems something came up in Themis that requires both of them to be there immediately."
"I see...I thank you for the news, your grace. I shall finish my duties here and leave posthaste. I'd rather not leave them alone for long, especially with these mooks running about." she said, politely excusing herself. That left Sumia by herself, who was standing there awkwardly.
"Um...Kazuki told me a funny joke earlier, would you like to hear it?"
"Sure dear, after all of this, I could use a laugh." Emmeryn said, humoring the young knight.
xxx
Kazuki sighed as he glanced at the sky. He was sitting on a crate, glancing at the orb he had been given. He didn't know why it was, but the orb felt familiar. As if he had used something like it in the past. He had been wondering about the Hooded Man as well, wondering who exactly he was and why he was so interested in him. He frowned as he rested his head in his hand.
"A beacon huh? The keyblade attracts more heartless...it's my fault this is happening to Ylisse. If I wasn't here...the heartless probably wouldn't be attacking." he mumbled, closing his eyes for a moment. What the hooded man had said also lingered in his mind.
"That's the fiery boy I remember. Prancing around Daybreak Town whenever the Heartless showed up. Always rearing to go, always doing what was right for his Union. Guess I can't say much, you are the best fighter to come out Vulpes."
Daybreak Town was a name he had heard before. The voices he vaguely heard, one mentioned Daybreak Town at one point. He wondered where that place was, but whenever he tried to think about it, nothing came up. Whatever the case was, the Hooded Man knew him, that was for certain. He closed his eyes, pursing his lips a bit as he ran his fingers over the orb.
"Could it be that everything I've lived up until now was a dream? That man did say the world shattered when I woke up. Was it just that...a hologram? Was Sabishii real? Was Akira real? Was my life...just a dream?"
"Hey there Kazuki, got a minute?" the voice of Chrom said, pulling the boy from his thoughts. He sat up a bit, turning to look at the Prince.
"Oh...hey Chief, something the matter?" he asked.
"Just wanted to have a quick chat. Maribelle noticed you seemed a bit down. That hooded guy said something to you didn't he?"
"Yeah...he was just trying to confuse me. I'm not gonna listen to anything he said. But...one thing did stick out to me. He said the keyblade was a beacon for the Heartless. If that's true then no matter where I go, they'll be following me around. I don't want to be the cause of so many people's suffering." he admitted, glancing away from the prince. Chrom shook his head, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"You aren't. Fate brought you here for a reason, we were dealing with the Heartless before you showed up. That goes the same for the Risen, by two days in fact. There is no correlation between your arrival and the heartless showing up. Besides, you've lived in Hoshido until now right? There are no reports of Heartless there."
"I mean...I guess," he said. He was surprised Chrom knew about his lie already. He figured Maribelle had informed him of it earlier that day.
"Keep your head up, you're going through a rough time." He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "You uh...didn't travel here by boat did you?"
"No. You could say, I'm quite familiar with the Dark Realm. I was brought here by a dark portal, the same ones the Hooded Man uses. I was just walking home, minding my own business. Next thing I know, I wake up in a tree, break all my ribs and then have a very beautiful man asking me if I'm alright." Kazuki said, smirking at Chrom. He let out a hearty laugh, clapping the boy's shoulder.
"That's a good one, I'm glad you think I'm beautiful. Here I thought you'd be hitting on my sister."
"If I flirt with Lissa, you'll bury Falchion in my stomach. I'm allergic to death so I'm not even gonna bother," he kitsune said, ears twitching slightly.
"Not really, I only do that to men who have bad intentions with my sister. You're an alright guy...just be careful how you treat her. Do anything to make her cry and I will cut your tail off."
"Duly noted, doubt I'll be hitting on her any time soon. She's more of an annoying little sister than a girlfriend anyway." he admitted, shifting his gaze back to the sky.
"Ah...so that means you have been looking around, any girls catch your eye? Maybe a fellow Shepherd?"
"What? No! I don't have time to date casually Chrom. Besides, I only know like 5 girls. 2 of them being related to you. I'd rather not die any time soon." he reiterated.
"I'm pulling your leg. Anyway, we'll be marching to Ragna Ferox in 3 days time. This is the perfect time for you to prepare for the journey, we'll be away from Ylisstol for a few weeks."
"Okay...I've gotta head into town anyway. I wanna get some Vulneraries for the road, as well as some spare changes of clothes. Can't be walking around in the same thing all the time. Maybe I'll get some matching sets, I do like this style." he admitted, grinning happily.
"If you're heading into town, go and speak with Robin. She mentioned heading into town herself. Perhaps you could give her some company, she's been busy planning our march. She's taking her job far too seriously."
"Ah...a busybody. Gotcha, I'll go speak with our resident tactician then. Hey, thanks for the chat. I was feeling really down earlier but now I feel a lot better." Kazuki said happily, he felt his tail wagging slightly but was quick to control it.
"No problem, it's my duty to make sure my friends are in top shape. Good work out there today, don't let it get to you. They'll be times when we'll lose people. I'll make sure we make it alive out of every battle we're in, but sometimes you can't bring everyone home."
"I know...you know...I know I said I was okay with being a soldier...but if I'm being honest, I don't think I have it in me to kill. Something in my heart is telling me to protect people. Be they good or bad...they're not inherently evil. They just fall victim to the darkness in their hearts. I'll try to limit casualties if I can. But if there's a time I can't kill someone...would you mind doing it for me?" Kazuki asked.
"Of course my friend, I'll be there to lend a hand whenever you need it. Now you better find Robin before you get left behind." Chrom advised, earning a sheepish nod from the boy.
"You're right, thanks Chief, see ya around!" he said happily, jogging back toward the barracks in search of the Shepherd's Tactician.
A/N; Well guys, here's chapter 5. Things are finally starting to pick up a bit! And you also get to see and or hear stuff alluding to Kazuki's past. Who is he really? Of course if you read the latest update for Hyperdimension Neptunia Hearts, you would already know, but eh...it's fine. You'll get to see a lot more of his past being uncovered along with the truth of what happened to him and his friends.
Who is this hooded man? Why does he claim to know Kazuki? Why are you buying clothes at the Soup store? All these questions will be answered eventually. I will say though, characters from HDN Hearts will make an appearance in this story soon, so I do recommend you read up on that story for some informaton. You only need to know who Akira is and what he looks like, nothing more. I'll do my best to make sure his inclusion feel natural.
One final thing, the spells that Kazuki knows. I know it feels weird that he knows all of the magic spells, when characters like Sora learn them through the story, but eh...I'm using Fire Emblem logic. You can use any spell book provided your rank his high enough. But I've also expanded nhis repertoire a bit. So they are as follows..
Elfire
Elthunder
Elwind
Elblizzard (Fire Emblem version of Blizzard)
Elruin (A spell from Final Fantasy 13. Ruin is a neutral magic spell, but in this story it will be "Light Magic"
That's it for now. For Kazuki, these are your basic spells. Then you'll get your Ga spells, I'm skipping tier two and making the Ga spells tier two. That way, when he moves on to Arc Spells, those will be tier 3 spells with Grand Magic being tier 4, if that makes sense. So as an example Elfire will be Elfiraga and then Elfiraza (This being Grand Magic) then it will evolve into ArcFire, ArcFiraga, ArcFiraza, basically. So yeah, magic will be uber strong in this story, just like in the game lol. Spam Thunder was my basic strat for Kingdom Hearts 3 lol. Anyway, I'm ranting, see you all later!