Tales of Xalthia

Chapter 38: Separated

Tsuki, Cesela and the unnamed man that was initially fighting the Flynn were knocked off the edge of Sky Tower and were sent plummeting into the sea at the base of the cliff. A fall like that would certainly kill someone. If not by the fall, then from the rough sea as waves crashed up against the cliffside. However, they managed to survive with little to no injuries. The man had been knocked unconscious when the shockwave from Flynn's attack knocked him off with in combination of his previous weariness of having to endure his attacks relentlessly. Tsuki soon also fell unconscious not long after impacting the water. Cesela, somehow, managed to stay conscious through the whole ordeal though.

Several hours had passed since the trio were sent crashing into the sea. It was already passed dusk as darkness slowly started to fill the sky. Tsuki, Cesela and the unnamed man were seeking refuge in a small cave along a nearby beach. The crashing waves along the shoreline can be heard echoing through the empty, small cave. The three were around a fire as the temperature had significantly dropped due to where they ended up washing up at. Accompanied by cold waters with the colder weather and lack of warm clothes, the risk of hypothermia was high. Tsuki remained unconscious but was kept warm by the fire and Cesela who was laying down beside him to share some of her body heat. The unnamed man was now awake and did everything he could to keep the fire blazing strong as it was their only source of warmth for the time being.

Soon, Tsuki started to regain consciousness as he slowly opened his eyes. His vision was slightly blurry and it took a couple of seconds to get his eyes to readjust and focus again. When they did, he rubbed his eyes. "Ugh...my head. I feel like I got hit by a caravan" he said.

The man looked over at Tsuki as he woke up. "Welcome back to the world of the living. I would assume so. After what you pulled off, it's no wonder you've been out for a couple hours" he said.

Tsuki looked over at the man, tilting his head. "Huh? What do you mean? Where are we?" he asked as he started to look around the cave. He could hear the sounds of the waves crashing against the shore reverberating along the cave walls.

The man shrugged. "I'm not too familiar with the land of Ersheath but given the significant temperature drop and cold waters, we're probably close to the northern snow region. If it weren't for this fire and the girl keeping you warm, we'd all be freezing right about now" he said.

Tsuki slowly started to sit up as he rolled his head around his shoulders. "Huh?" he said. He was still in the process of recovering his senses that he hadn't notice the fact that Cesela was laying down next him, holding onto him as she appeared to have drifted to sleep.

When Tsuki had sat up, it caused Cesela to be woken up as she rubbed her eyes gently, groaning. Then, she looked up and saw that Tsuki was awake. "You're awake! How are you feeling? Are you okay?" she asked

Tsuki sat up straight and looked down at Cesela. "I'm okay. Thank you for keeping me warm" he said.

Cesela pulled herself off of him a bit, scratching her cheek. "Well...I couldn't let you freeze. Not after all you've done for me already. It wouldn't be right" she said.

Tsuki smiled a bit and patted her on the head gently. "I appreciate it" he said. He then looked over towards the unnamed man, realizing that with all that has happened, they never made any sort of introductions. "I never caught your name" he said.

The man nodded. "The name is Rein Rivers. I'm a Captain of the Dragon Riders" he said. He then fell silent for a moment, falling into thought. "Your friends call you Tsuki, right? I blacked out when Flynn's attack blew us off the tower. What happened afterwards and how did we escape from that unscathed?" he asked.

Tsyki took a deep breath as he had to figure out how to explain everything that happened after they were blown off the tower. "Well..." he said as he started to explain.

Time rewinds back several hours. Flynn's attack had blown the trio off over the edge of the tower and were sent plummeting down towards the sea with the voice of Cheria screaming out Tsuki and Cesela's name echoing through the air. Their descent towards the sea was rapid.

Tsuki quickly adjusted his body so he was facing down at the fast approaching sea. Cesela was falling next to him while Rein was a bit further down. He then reached out to Cesela. "Cesela, grab onto me and hold on tight!" he shouted.

Cesela looked over at Tsuki and nodded. "O-okay!" she said. She reached her arm out and grabbed onto Tsuki. She then pulled herself onto his back as if she were climbing on him. Once she pulled herself over his back, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held onto him tightly.

Once Cesela had latched herself onto him, Tsuki angled himself down as if he was a missile to propel himself down faster to catch up to Rein. Once he was within arm's reach, he grabbed onto his arm and pulled him upwards, throwing his arm over his shoulder. By this time, they had already fallen past the tip of the cliff at the base of the tower so time was short. Then, the greatsword in his other hand disappeared and scattered into numerous balls of of visible Aer which typically isn't visible unless it was extremely dense. Moments later, he brought his free arm close to his chest and then threw it out in front of him. As he did, his eyes shifted from blood red to a golden yellow. The balls of Aer around him immediately expanded all around him, forming a barrier that enclosed him. Three symbols made of Aer formed in the shape of shields and appeared and revolved around the barrier before disappearing. Seconds later, they crashed into the choppy sea below along the cliff. The barrier remained intact and kept the water our. It was then that Tsuki slipped into a meditation-like state though he was no longer conscious. It was almost like someone else took over his body in his place. They flowed along with the currents for what seemed to be an eternity before they soon ended up on a beach, It was then that the barrier disappeared and Tsuki's eye color turned back to normal. He then collapsed onto the shoreline along with the unconscious body of Rein, leaving Cesela standing on the shores as waves crashed on top of them.

Time skips back forward to the present when Tsuki had finished explaining things with the help of Cesela chipping in at the parts where he was rendered unconscious in a way that would make sense. Unfortunately, there was no easy way to do so. No matter how he tried to make it sound, it sounded pretty far-fetched to begin with. It was pretty difficult for him accept such an outrageous story. "I'll tell you, it's pretty hard to believe at face value. However, you don't seem like you're making this up so I'll have to accept it for now" he said. He then looked over at Cesela. "Anyway, thanks to Cesela dragging us in here, we should be able to relax and gather our thoughts" he said.

Tsuki nodded. "True. We'd be in a bind if it weren't for her" he said.

Cesela's fox ears twitched a bit as her tail swayed back and forth as she scratched her cheek. "Like I said, I couldn't just do nothing. You two were unconscious, it's cold out here and we were soaking wet. I noticed that this cave was here so I brought you guys in here and started a fire to keep us warm" she said.

Tsuki smiled a bit, patting her on the head again. "Regardless, we appreciate it. Thank you" he said.

Cesela's ears twitched more as he patted her head once more as she giggled a bit. "You don't need to thank me. I have a debt too pay back after all" she said.

Tsuki tilted his head a bit when she mentioned something about a debt. "Debt? What do you mean?" he asked.

Cesela realized that she had said that out loud accidentally. She quickly covered her mouth, shaking her head. "Oh, it's nothing. Nevermind" she said.

Tsuki tilted his head a bit and shrugged it off. He then looked over at Rein. "Well with all that out of the way, allow me to formally introduce ourselves. As you know, my name is Tsuki Himura. I serve the royal family of Eresseas as one of the Royal Eight. This here is Cesela..." he said, stopping himself. He didn't actually know her family name nor could she remember herself. "Come to think of it, not having a family name might make things difficult down the road" he said.

Rein tilted his head with a confused look on his face. "Huh? She doesn't have a family name? That's a bit weird. Why?" he asked.

Tsuki rubbed the back of his head. "It's a little complicated. As you probably have noticed, she's a Demi-Human. Half human, half fox if that weren't obvious. She was enslaved most of her life due to the slave trade around the world ran by the Sirione government. There was an incident in Chesberry the other day that resulted in her freedom among others. Some sort of assassin had infiltrated their hideout and killed all who were involved before Chesberry authorities arrived. When we went to investigate, she approached us and we took her in and gave her the name Cesela since she couldn't remember her own" he explained. There wasn't much for him to explain clearly as he was as much as in the dark about the whole slave trade issue as Rein was.

Rein listened to his explanation as he kept his gaze on Cesela. She was clinging onto his shirt tightly with her eyes closed, ears lowered a bit and trembling slightly. "I see. So, the Demi-Human slave trade rumors were true after all. As far as Dolothlond is concerned, there isn't any knowledge or evidence of such despicable acts taking place" he said. He then stroked his chin a bit as he examined Cesela briefly. The fact that she was once an enslaved Demi-Human under Sirione authority who had escaped will most likely cause problems at some point. "I foresee a lot of problems with this down the road if the other rumors I've heard are true as well" he said.

Tsuki tilted his head, scratching the back of his head. "What do you mean? If you have any information at all about the slave trade, I would like to know" he said.

Rein pointed at Tsuki. "The slave trade, as you may know of by now, originated and is governed in Sirione. By the laws of those dictators that still rule with an iron fist to this day, any Demi-Human who has escaped from the slave traders are viciously hunted down, recaptured and subjected to even worse punishment than the usual. Some even have bounties for their capture. Young kids especially have a high price on their heads and an additional bonus is added if they capture anyone who might of assisted in their escape. Since she's with you, bounty hunters, slave traders, or even Sirione officials will assume you helped her escape. They will chase you down like a hawk" he said, giving him an ominous warning.

Tsuki shook his head. "Let them. I won't let Cesela be subjected to that kind of life again. Besides, we'll have to deal with Sirione at some point in the future anyway. It's not like we'll be opposing the royal family of Sirione anyway, if they're still alive" he said.

Rein sighed heavily, shaking his head. "I don't think you quite grasp the truth of the reality. It won't be as simple as you make it out to be. If it was any ordinary Demi-Human that had escaped, sure. However, it's quite different in this case. You said that this assassin killed all of the slave traders and all of the people that were involved in the slave trade in Chesberry and freed all the Demi-Humans. Word of that has most likely already reached Sirione. The others that had escaped are one thing but with Cesela near you, that will put you, her and everyone else in grave danger. They will assume that you were the assassin that killed their officials and free their property and will put a high bounty on your head" he said. The gravity of the consequences were steep and while Sirione is ruled by a harsh dictator instead of its delegated ruling house, they still command a legion of troops and bounty hunters.

Tsuki shrugged. He wasn't fazed by what Rein said. He pretty much suspected that would be the case. Regardless, he didn't care. "Be that as it may, the slavery of Demi-Humans is a plague in this world. One that needs to be eradicated. One way or another, I will travel to Sirione and personally deal with this dictatorship and restore its rightful ruling house. The fate of all the kingdoms depends on it" he said. One of the Relic Keys needed to dispel the black shroud hanging over Eresseas is somewhere in Sirione. Even if there was a chance that someone from the royal family was still alive and gave them the Relic Key, he couldn't leave Sirione in its current state.

Rein gave him a long, hard look after he reassured that his thoughts on the matter were unchanged. Silence filled the cave until he eventually sighed and shook his head. "Well, you certainly have the conviction in your eyes if nothing else. It's clear that your mind is made up so I'll drop the matter. However, you mentioned that this was for the sake of all the kingdoms. What did you mean?" he asked.

Tsuki took the time to explain what's been going on around the their corner of the world to fill in the missing details for Rein. About Honegroth's invasion, their plans, the fall of Eresseas, how they ended up on Ersheath and their current mission to retrieve the Relic Keys. It was quite a long story as whatever light that was left in the sky turned completely dark as owls and various other night creatures could be heard with their howls echoing along the cave walls.

Rein stroked his chin as he tried his best to take in all of the informatino at once. He had a similar reaction as Flynn did which was to be expected. It was hard to believe a story like that at face value. He leaned back against the cave wall as he looked out towards the cave's entrance. "Unbelievable. All of that is happening and yet, here we are destroying each other in this conflict" he said.

Tsuki nodded. "The conflict between Esseand and Dolothlond is our primary concern right now. Sirione and its dictatorship along with the slave trade is a future problem" he said. Just then, he's reminded of their current environment as a cold breeze shot through the cave. Due to having damp clothing and lack of suitable warm clothes, it was freezing. "Man, that's cold" he said, slightly shivering.

Rein tossed some extra pieces of wood he had gathered while Tsuki was still unconscious onto the fire to strengthen the blaze. They will be in trouble if they can't keep the fire going. "It's just our bad luck that we ended up washing up so close to the colder regions of Ersheath. We aren't exactly dressed for the occasion and our situation really doesn't help either. We should make for the nearest town and see if we can find ourselves some suitable clothing. If my geography is correct, the closest place is a small, secluded village in the middle of a forest not too far from here. Supposedly, it's a village of Demi-Humans that's secretly funded by Esseand. Not many people know of it" he said.

Tsuki tilted his head a bit. It seemed a bit strange that if this place was so secret and secluded, how could someone from Dolothlond possibly know about it? "A village of Demi-Humans, huh? I guess I shouldn't be surprised since King Raiku has expressed a need to help the Demi-Humans. It would only make sense that there's some sort of sanctuary that was made for them to live out in peace" he said.

Cesela scratched her head a bit as she was quite interested in this village of Demi-Humans. It would be nice if she were to see some of her own kind again in a peaceful environment. "Wouldn't that cause a big issue between Esseand and Sirione though?" she asked.

Rein nodded. "Yes, it would. If Sirione knew about this, they would send their elite hunting forces to track them down. That's why the location of the village and it's very existence is only known among Esseand officials" he said.

Tsuki looked over at Rein. "If that's the case, then how do you know about it?" he asked.

Rein chuckled a bit. "Esseand isn't the only place that has a good scouting network. The Dragon Riders do more than just fly around and rain death from the skies, you know" he said.

Tsuki soon fell into thought for a moment. He decided to leave the matter of how he knows about Demi-Human village for another time. They had other things to worry about right now. He was worried about the others who were left back on Sky Tower but there was nothing he could do about that. For now, they had to improve their situation. "I think me and Cesela are going to go out and locate this village and figure things out from there. What are you going to do? You're more than welcome to join us" he said.

Rein was a bit surprised when Tsuki offered if he wanted to tag along with them. "You'd trust an enemy so much that you'd travel with them?" he asked.

Tsuki shook his head. "Enemy? I've not once considered you an enemy. As a matter of fact, neither did that General, Flynn for that matter" he said

Rein wasn't sure of how to react. They both represented Dolothlond, enemies of Esseand. Then again, they weren't originally from Esseand to begin with so he shouldn't have been so surprised on their stance of indifference. "Why do you say that?" he asked.

Tsuki looked down at the fire in reflection as he thought back to their fight. Flashbacks of the fight played through his head. His movements and gestures as well as the look in his eyes. "The way he fought lacked the intent to kill. It was more like I was being tested. He was also former companions with King Taichi and Queen Emma so he has much more battle experience than me. Someone like him could of easily killed me but he didn't" he said. He then reached into his pocket and took out the crystal he snatched from the tower. It shined brightly in his hand as he felt the energy within the crystal swirl around. "It's hard to explain" he said. As the flashbacks ending, he remembered what Flynn had whispered to him as well.

Cesela listened to what they had to say about Flynn as she sat in front of the fire in silence. She thought back to the encounter and remembered how she felt that something was off about the whole setup. "Flynn didn't smell like a bad person to me" she said. She may be young but she's quite intuitive while also having a very strong sense of smell. "I might be grasping at straws but there seems to be more that we're missing. As if someone else was pulling the strings from behind the scenes" she said.

Rein glanced over at Cesela for a moment, making a connection to what she had to say. "You wouldn't be too far off the mark if what you're feeling really is the case" he said. He then stared at the fire for a moment, tossing a piece of wood into the blaze.

Tsuki looked back up at Rein. "What do you mean?" he asked. He recalled him saying that the Courts of Dolothlond were filled with corruption or at least something along those lines.

Rein fell silent for several moments to gather his thoughts. The sound of the fire crackling and the distant waves crashing against the shoreline filled the cave. After a while, he was finally ready to speak. "Dolothlond has changed. We used to never involve ourselves with Esseand before. We always kept to our borders. We abided by the treaty we signed with Esseand to co-exist and share borders. Life was peaceful...until something changed. Dolothlond suddenly broke the treaty by attacking and seizing the northern snow fields where many ruins of old lie buried and encased with snow and ice. To this day, they still have total control of that area. Apparently, they've built several strongholds around the snow fields to keep Esseand soldiers away" he said. He was still unsure of why they initially broke the treaty in the first place. It was one of the things he's wanted to find out for a while now but has been unable to without causing suspicion.

Tsuki crossed his arms and fell into thought. Seizing control of the northern snow fields might be good if you were planning on attacking a target from both directions as a pincer tactic but it didn't seem to be the most ideal strategy for a long-term occupation. From what he's heard about the northern snow fields, the environment is pretty harsh. Due to the frigid temperatures, it's hard to grow crops. It's also almost impossible to send reinforcements to a region they wouldn't be able to have free access to. According to the map of Ersheath, there was only one town that lies in the center of the snow field which has most likely been occupied by Dolothlond.

After a long silence, Tsukie sighed heavily. "I don't get it. If a pincer tactic was their plan, why seize a harsh environment where resources are limited?" he asked himself. He rubbed his chin a bit before he thought of something else. "Wait, maybe a pincer tactic isn't what they're going for. Maybe they're after the Ancients' technology and secrets that are still supposedly buried there." he said. He then looked over at Rein, who also appeared to be in thought. "Who proposed the idea to seize the snow fields?" he asked.

Rein thought back to when he first heard about the orders to invade. It didn't require much thought though. He was pretty quick to come up with an answer. "It was the Grand Master of the Courts. A close consultant and trusted adviser to the king. He received approval from the king to invade. Although, there are many that question those supposed orders because the king wouldn't sign off on such order but they don't dare act on their suspicions" he said.

Tsuki kept his gaze on Rein as he thought of some possibilities. "What do you think what really happened" he asked. It would seem that there's a lot of tension and strife within the Dolothlond government.

Rein looked at Tsuki, shaking his head. "My king would never authorize such a thing unless he had a good reason to and Esseand has never given us problems before or showed signs of aggression towards us" he said. He fell silent for a moment, staring back down into the fire and closed his eyes for a moment. "I've mentioned the corruption within the Courts, right? I think the Courts have been manipulating the king with the Grand Master pulling the strings" he said. He then shook his head and opened his eyes. Of course, he couldn't prove his opinions as of yet. "I refuse to abide by the orders of the corrupt but I can't take them on by myself" he said.

Tsuki listened to what he had to say and nodded after he finished. With an encouraging smile, he extended his hand towards him. "If you feel that way and want the lift that cloud of deception, then come with us. We'll find a way to expose the truth. That way, I can gain the people's trust and you can save your kingdom from the Courts' deception" he said.

Rein looked at his extended hand for a moment, briefly confused before looking up at Tsuki. "You really wouldn't mind me tagging along? Despite knowing where I come from?" he asked. He was surprised of how trusting Tsuki was. To welcome someone he barely knows into his entourage.

Tsuki gave him a firm nod. "Your help would be greatly appreciated. Besides, where you come from doesn't matter to us in the slightest. As long as you fight for the truth, that's all that matters" he said. He was adamant about getting him to join up with them. While their goals are different, they'll both end up wanting to same thing. He wants to save his kingdom from corruption and they need to gain the people's trust as well as the king's approval.

Rein thought about his proposal for a bit. The idea did appeal to him to some degree. He could definitely use the help later on down the road. Plus, he didn't have anywhere else to turn to in his current situation. He then took a deep breath and then extended his own hand to his, grabbing a hold of it as he soon nodded. "Well, when you put it that way, how can I refuse? You've got guts, you know. Your ragtag band of misfits going up against entire kingdoms. I don't know if I should call you people brave or reckless but you have a fierce determination despite the huge odds stacked against you. I'd like to see where your actions lead you to if you can put up with me" he said, shaking his hand.

Tsuki gave him a firm handshake back. "Having someone serving another kingdom will definitely help us in the future. There will be no shortage of surprises, that's for sure" he said. He then turned around and stared out towards the cave exit. It has gotten pretty late so it would be ideal to take the rest of the time they had to rest up and wait till morning to move out. "With that sorted out, let's get some rest. We'll head out tomorrow once it's light out" he said.

Rein nodded, stretching a bit.. "Alright. Sounds like a plan" he said. They didn't have much in terms of camp supplies so he picked a spot close to the fire, tossed some more wood onto the fire to keep it going and laid down on a flat surface.

Tsuki walked up to one of the cave walls and sat down with his back against the wall. "I say that but I'm not sure how much sleep I'm going to get since I only just woke up recently. Since we don't have any Camping Sets, I'll keep watch for a while" he said. Since Camping Sets come with something to keep monsters away, they wouldn't have to worry about monsters attacking them in their sleep. However, they didn't have any on them.

Cesela crawled up to Tsuki after he had sat down, tugging at his sleeve. She had a bit of a shy expression on her as her face turned slightly red from embarrassment. "U-umm...is it alright if I...sleep in your lap?" she asked shyly.

Tsuki looked down at her and nodded a bit, not sure on how to react to her question. It was definitely a first for him. It had been a long time since someone had used his lap to sleep on. Last time it happened was back when him and Cheria were still pretty young. With a gentle smile, he pet her head. "Sure. You deserve the reset after dragging both of us into this cave to get out from the cold" he said.

Cesela nodded, her shyness still pretty apparent but trying her best to hide it with a smile as she blushed lightly, her tail swaying back and forth. Without another word, she laid down next to him and rested her head on top of his lap. With a soft yawn, she quickly fell asleep.

Tsuki watched over her as she fell asleep not long after resting her head down on his lap. He gently ran his hand across her head as his gaze shifted back out towards the ocean. His thoughts then went towards Cheria and the others. "I hope the others are doing okay..." he thought.

Tsuki kept watch of the makeshift camp and at some point during the night, he soon fell asleep himself. The fire continued to fill the cave with a faint light and warmth as the night went on. The ambiance of the ocean helped ease their minds so that they could sleep pretty easily. A much needed rest for what's to come soon enough.

To be continued...