I do not own Odin Sphere or any of the characters depicted in this story (with few exceptions). That should be self-explanatory.
Chapter Note: V.S.S. stands for Valentinian Sovereign Ship.
Chapter 9: Fairy Land Fiasco
King Valentine stood defiantly at the bow of his kingdom's largest warship, his hands resting against the hilt of his sword. Unable to find Virgil before the fleet was scheduled to depart, he was forced to board the ship on his own, wondering where his grandson had gone at this crucial time. The armies were approaching the border of Ragnanival, the luminous castle standing, almost floating, amongst the nation's clouds in the distance.
"We shall be landing shortly, your majesty," came the call of the fleet admiral. Valentine did not respond, but continued to gaze at Ragnanival's horizon. Within minutes, they had reached the shoreline, the Valentinian vessels bursting open and sending thousands upon thousands of shouting soldiers into combat. Valentine had grown used to ignoring the screams of pain that ensued, and watched closely from the safety of his flagship as his armies tore through the factions of Valkyries, castle guards, and Berserkers that attempted to hold them back. As he had foreseen, momentum was clearly on his side.
All that changed, however, the moment a brilliant blue tornado formed and began wreaking havoc on the Valentinian lines.
"What in Erion…?!" Valentine stammered, witnessing the sudden force of nature start to turn the tide. The Ragnan forces quickly regained ground, and pushed back their enemies with the unexpected help.
"That tornado, it was magically conjured!" shouted the flagship's captain. "Surely 'tis the work of the Demon Lord's sorcery!"
The panic grew tenfold when a fresh wave of airborne Valkyries soared in, easily passing over the grounded soldiers of Valentine's army and taking aim at the flagship. King Valentine stepped backwards, prepared to defend himself from the attackers, when a tremendous burst of light cleared away the king's would-be killers. Valentine, in shock, whirled around, his eyes now beholding a colossal floating vehicle. Shaped much like the Valentinian flagship, it beared a hull of cast iron and a set of six rotating propellers, three on each side of the craft. It hovered just above the sea, defying the very laws of gravity, and standing at the bow leading this new 'airship' was none other than Valentine's fashionably-late grandson.
"Virgil!" the king shouted as the prince's ship drew near his own. "What is this contraption?!"
"Didn't I tell you I had a few projects I was working on?" Virgil responded proudly. "Feast your eyes on the V.S.S. Valentine!"
As Virgil christened the newest addition to the Valentinian fleet, the Valentine opened fire, each of its several dozen cannons making their presence known with a tremendous bang. King Valentine could only watch in amazement as his grandson's technological marvel took Ragnanival's soldiers by storm. The sheer firepower that Virgil had packed into that single vessel was overwhelming to him – it outclassed anything that the blacksmiths had constructed for the Valentinian military before. If Virgil's other "projects" were as militarily-centered as this, Valentine considered, then Ragnanival would likely have been doomed the moment the war began.
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Ringford Forest was far more complex than Cornelius had anticipated.
Constantly looking down at his compass, he continued to lead Velvet westward, surprised that it was taking this long to reach the other side. The two travelers were led up, down, north, south, and every which way as the path they followed so carefully twisted and turned toward nowhere in particular. Cornelius was almost disappointed in himself for leading the delicate girl he was walking with on such a long and tiring journey – they had to stop and rest their feet several times already. Nonetheless, as much as he wished to find a way out of the maze-like forest, he secretly savored every moment he got to spend alone with her.
"Ringford is so much larger than I had thought…" Velvet remarked quietly as they continued on their way, stepping over the roots and mounds of moss that scattered the forest floor. "It's so beautiful."
Velvet was now walking ahead of Cornelius, her head tilted up as she gazed into the sky which was blanketed with the leafy green treetops of the towering oaks and willows Ringford boasted. Trees grew abnormally large here, primarily due to the overabundance of life energy – or so Velvet had read during her studies as a child.
"Yes, it is quite lovely," Cornelius agreed, smiling at her. "Velvet, please, stay near me, I don't want you to get lo-"
The peaceful moment the two shared was shattered when an arrow shot right past Velvet's face, eliciting a terrified scream from her. Cornelius rushed to her in an instant, praying to the gods that she was unharmed. Fortunately she was, the arrow had missed her by mere inches. He looked up and scanned the area, finally spotting the source of the attack. A fairy archer had her bow drawn on them, ready to release another arrow upon the intruders. Instinctively, Cornelius covered Velvet's body with his own, acting subconsciously. His mind was racing, he was willing to put his own life on the line to keep Velvet safe, and he could not imagine why.
The piercing pain that he expected did not come; the fairy archer did not fire. Instead, he noticed that he and Velvet were quickly being surrounded. Numerous archers and mages arrived at the scene, including a few hulking unicorn knights in full armor. Cornelius rose to his feet cautiously, taking Velvet by the hand and helping her up. Holding onto her tightly, they awaited what was to happen.
"You two!" squeaked a high voice in the distance. Cornelius and Velvet glanced in the direction of the voice to see a tiny fairy with flowers in her hair, fluttering toward them while carrying a crossbow that was almost as big as her entire body. She touched down upon the ground, her crossbow aimed at a rather steep angle at Cornelius's heart.
"What are you two doing in Ringford?" she interrogated them. Cornelius was about to answer, but Velvet chimed in first.
"We were on our way to Valentine," she explained calmly. "There's a fierce war going on between Valentine and Ragnanival... we didn't want to be caught in the middle on our way."
"My mother Elfaria already knows about the war," the fairy insisted. Cornelius and Velvet deduced at this point that she must be the princess of Ringford. "But what business do you have with those greedy nobles in Valentine?"
Velvet took a moment to think. If she revealed that she was in reality the princess of Valentine, then Ringford would surely capture her and use her as a prime bargaining chip against the Valentinians. Somehow she needed an excuse...
Without thinking, she grabbed onto Cornelius's hand.
"We... wanted to go there for our honeymoon," Velvet lied. "We were married in Titania just a few days ago."
Cornelius's head snapped toward Velvet's. Honeymoon? Married? What?
The story was effective in making the fairy princess blush, however.
"They... don't seem to mean any harm, Princess Mercedes," suggested one of the fairy archers, lowering her bow. "Besides, you know how Her Majesty dislikes unnecessary conflict..."
"Well..." thought Mercedes, "okay, fine. But you better be careful in Valentine. My mother says they're very unstable."
The fairy princess lowered her crossbow and took off through the air, disappearing into the depths of Ringford Forest. The remaining fairy soldiers did not expect such a sudden departure.
"Princess Mercedes! Your mother told you not to wander off!"
The crowd surrounding Velvet and Cornelius quickly dispersed as they chased after the erratic fairy princess, leaving the two to themselves once again. Cornelius's mind was still trying to piece together what had just happened.
"Our... honeymoon?" he questioned in puzzlement as they proceeded toward the western edge of the forest. "So... we... uh... that... ...what?"
A blush crept onto Velvet's cheeks, but she nonetheless had difficulty stifling her laughter as she squeezed onto Cornelius's hand.