Vieraslayer

I have made a few decisions on where to take this story. Some of them are pretty depressing. The evil Reena will leave Rabanastre and hide out in the Wood, where Alvyne finds them, and she tells them if they so much as harm another Viera, she'll kill them. Carraka injures somebody like Atlas hurt Krjn, and Alvyne is unable to stop them. But there still is hope… Anyhow, the idea for Myko's plan to draw all over her cousin is based on a true story. My little brother never wears a shirt to bed, so sometimes my other brother and I draw on him with washable markers. About the tails… never mind. I know Viera don't have tails, but I think they need them.

Viera Kits and Reena Pups

Myko was watching Alvyne practice her healing abilities. She didn't want to be away from the dog for very long, considering the tension. Marl had found Jote and brought her back to the village. She and her child were fine, much to Marl's relief. The other Viera were all fussing over Jote right now, even though she didn't like it at all. She didn't like being the center of attention when she was tired and just wanted some rest.

"Sis, you'll make a great healer. I know it! You'll be the best healer we've ever had!" Myko exclaimed. She was looking to do something mischievous, but couldn't decide what. Maybe she'd draw all over Vinka while the little Viera was asleep? She had done that before, but now Jote couldn't do much of anything. And nobody punished Myko unless Jote said so.

"Myko, Alvyne know you up to something!" Alvyne said. She was making some progress with her speech as well. Reena very rarely could talk well. Carraka and Atlas could, but not very many Reena had mastered speech.

"If I had a little sister, I wouldn't need to be naughty all the time. I need somebody to play with who wouldn't either drag her brother into everything we'd do or cry to her mommy if I didn't do everything she wanted!"

"Myko, Fran cannot have another child right now! It wouldn't be a good idea. And besides, she was under the effects of feral madness when she conceived you. And you had better behave! I'm not feeling so well myself, and I don't want to be chasing you across the village." Mjrn told her niece. She was watching Alvyne and Myko to make sure neither of them did anything bad.

Alvyne was staring skyward. She couldn't see the sky, but she knew what was going on.

"It snowing." The Reena said. It was, but only a little. Mjrn knew something was very wrong. It never snowed in the Wood!

"Really? I've never seen real snow before! Aunt Mjrn! This is so cool!" Myko exclaimed excitedly. The snow wasn't bothering her.

"No it isn't. Myko, Alvyne, I fear this greatly. I've never seen it snow here. I have heard it snows in the Paramina Rift, but never here. I have never even seen snow before. Now that you think about it, it is far colder than usual, and I've been here as long as I've been alive, except for a few days I'd rather forget. You'd think I would've seen this before, but I haven't." Mjrn muttered. Alvyne ran to her side. She could sense Mjrn's trouble. She knew there was something wrong with the Viera woman. And she knew that Mjrn was pregnant, since she was at that dinner party too. Myko should've known, but she had been too busy trying to get her hands on the wine with Slya to pay attention.

"Should Alvyne find Lord Janzyn? Mjrn okay?" Alvyne asked.

"I should be. This snow is really bothering me though. This is not supposed to happen. It isn't supposed to be this cold!"

"Please, if Mjrn need someone, tell Alvyne! Alvyne care about Mjrn and little Viera inside Mjrn!"

"We'll be fine, Alvyne. I won't let myself get too cold. I wonder what Jote thinks of this snow, but I know it can't be good!"

"A little Viera? Aunt Mjrn, you're going to have a kit?" Myko asked.

"You should know. You were at the dinner party with Jan and Lena."

"I wasn't paying attention to the grown-up Viera. I was trying to help Slya get the grape juice we kits weren't allowed to drink."

"I don't want Jote to know for a while. She's not doing so well and she needs the attention. I'll tell her myself."

"Sheesh. Janson and Slya get a little brother or sister, and I can't even get one little sister."

"Let's not have that conversation again. Do you realize how hard it was for Fran to give you up?"

"Very?"

"Are you serious or just being cute? I really hope you aren't playing with me right now. It is so not the time for your jokes!"

Alvyne picked Myko up and ran to find Jote. Mjrn ran alongside her. Reena were predators, and were very fast. Even Alvyne was faster than most Viera, but Myko did slow her down considerably. Viera were fast, being part rabbit, but not as fast as Reena.

"Mjrn think Jote know what happening?" Alvyne asked.

"I think so, but we need her help regardless!" Mjrn cried.

"I think she notices the snow too! It's impossible not to!" Myko exclaimed.

"This bad news. Alvyne feel it in every part of her. Even in curly tail!"

"Viera are born with rabbit tails. We almost always have them ritually removed when we're kits. I did. I never understood why exactly, but nearly every Viera I know has had his or her tail removed. Even Janzyn had his cut off. Hjen still has his, but he's probably the only pure Viera I know who has a tail still! I had Jote take Janson and Slya's tails off, and I will have her remove my new child's tail too."

"Mjrn, that isn't a nice ritual. I still have my tail. Mom and Dad are the only ones who say if I lose my tail!" Myko yelled.

"You hide your tail, so nobody else knows you have it!"

"My tail is a puff, like a bunny's tail!"

"Reena tail curly like Paramina Husky!"

"So, why are we talking about tails now?" Mjrn asked.

"You brought it up Aunt Mjrn. It does keep our mind off the snow though."

"I don't like this at all. I'm with Alvyne. I feel something bad too. And if there are going to be little Viera… I want it to be safe for them."

Even Viera who had left the Wood seemed to be uneasy. But Fran wasn't just uneasy, she was being ravaged. She had a terrible fever. Balthier was very worried about her. Viera did not get sick easily. Fran had nearly made them crash because she had passed out at the controls. Balthier had been able to stop the Strahl from crashing, but Fran was very sick. She had regained consciousness, but was in no condition to do much of anything. She had only remembered one time she felt so sick, and then she wasn't ill, she was pregnant with Myko. This time she was definitely sick.

Her temperature was a hundred and two, and Balthier had to find some way to break her fever soon, or she'd probably die.

"The Wood… she suffers, so all Viera suffer as well." Fran was saying. Balthier did not like the way his partner was talking.

"This cannot be about the Wood! You've been away from Golmore Jungle so long you're hardly a Viera anymore! You must've literally worried yourself sick. I hope that's all that happened. You aren't supposed to die for a few hundred more years!" Balthier exclaimed. He had landed the ship and was going to tend to Fran for a while. She needed medicine, but Balthier didn't know exactly what to give the poor Viera. He was worried about giving her the wrong thing and making her worse. She had never been this sick, and even she didn't know what she needed.

"I do not hear the Wood anymore, but if I could, I know I would be hearing her cries of pain." Fran continued.

"Are you delirious, dear Fran? The forest is fine. We would've heard if there was something going on. Reporters from The Sand would've been dispatched to Kerwon if something that major was happening, and we would've heard by now!"

Fran screamed as loud as she could. Her body ached, and she couldn't eat anything, but there was no reason to scream like that. Balthier was surprised his ears weren't bleeding after that. The Viera was sick, but there was no excuse for that screech.

"Viera are suffering… the dark Reena presence is hurting the Wood…" Fran whimpered.

"Don't ever scream like that again. That scared me half to death! Are you saying Alvyne is the issue?"

"No. Not Alvyne. The Wood loves her. There are evil Reena who are killing Viera, and that is hurting the Wood. This happened once before… the Viera nearly died out. We are part of the Wood. Killing a Viera is hurting the Wood. Killing a few won't do anything… many must be dying. Far more than… just the three they found. Some Reena would… kill any Viera they saw… just for sport."

"The Viera are symbiotic with the Wood?"

"You did not know? Why else would most of us dedicate our lives to her? She cannot live without us anymore. We take care of her, and protect her, and she does the same for us. We can survive outside of the Wood… but we would not do well if she ceased to exist. We'd probably die too."

"If it's affecting you this much, the Wood must be in terrible danger. You've never been this sick before, and Viera are always getting themselves in trouble. I wonder how many other Viera are sick like this."

"Only those… who are not tied enough to the Wood anymore to hear her pain. I cannot explain it."

"Don't let go. The Reena will be stopped, and the Viera will be saved. Just hold on. I will try and find a Viera doctor somewhere. I know some Humes have knowledge of Viera, although there are very few doctors who can treat them."

Alja wasn't so well herself, but she wasn't sick because of the Wood, she was sick because of the little life growing inside of her. She felt the tension in the air, but it wasn't as bad for her as it was for Fran and some of the other Viera.

"Alja! Vaan! Watch this! Jarl, sit!" Penelo commanded. The mini coeurl finally listened. Penelo was so excited she had finally taught the cat a trick.

"She certainly likes my cat." Alja told Vaan.

"She was bugging me to get a dog for a while."

"Vaan, I don't feel good."

"Yeah, Fran said you'd probably have this problem. She did."

"I remember when Rael was going to have Dana. She was violently sick all the time, almost like Jote was in the fall. I hope Jote feels better now."

Vaan knelt down and began kissing Alja's middle. He liked her a lot, but it wasn't love. He felt bad that a few hours of recklessness on both their parts had changed everything. Viera didn't usually fall in love even. Alja seemed to love Vaan though, and he felt even sorrier for her. He would love their child though. Alja was probably just a temporary companion. She'd probably take off on her own as soon as the world was once again safe for Viera and Vaan would only see her every so often.

Alja pushed Vaan away. She did not like how he was touching her. She was not in a good mood, and he wasn't helping her. She knew it was her fault she was like this. She should've listened to Jote and the Wood and stayed away from Vaan. Viera did not belong with Humes, but with other Viera in the Wood.

The young Viera ran off to her room and began crying. She still didn't know what to do with herself, and it would probably only get harder.