Disclaimer: All non-oc characters belong to Artix Entertainment

Chapter 2

"...So you see? It wasn't a date! Just two friends hanging out...then the hanging out went terribly wrong!"

Kimm nodded her head in agreement.

"...So then why did you call it a 'date?'"

"To mess with you," replied Green Warrior bluntly.

I facepalmed. We had been traveling for at least a week now, the summer sun beating down on us as we made our way to Shadowfall. The road we traveled on was empty save for us and the woodland creatures going about their regular business. The trees shook lightly as the cool breeze blew by them and us, giving us all a nice refreshing reprieve from the heat.

"So wait, why didn't you tell me what happened?" I asked my beloved younger sister who sat on a rock by the lake we decided to rest at. There was a fire near us. It was blue. Obviously magical.

"Tell you 'bout what?" She asked, looking up to me from the lake she was staring at.

I cringed. "You and Green's uhm... 'friendly outing,'"

"Oh that," she replied, irritation in her voice, "What about it?"

My face immediately fell. I swear she only listens when she wants to. "Why didn't you tell me about it?" I inquired with my head hanging low.

"I forgot," Her simple, honest reply worried me more than Kaiban's unknown fate.

"You forgot?"

"Yeah," came her nonchalant reply as she continued to playfully touch the fish in the lake.

"Oh Lord have mercy on us all..." I said as I walked away rubbing my temples. If she forgot something as big as that, who knows what else she's forgotten? Ugh she was in charge of the packing for the trip too...

We had decided to head for Shadowfall after hearing Green's news about Kaiban.

"I heard he had died..." he almost whispered back. Although the inn was still as loud and bustling as it was earlier, we heard nothing but silence.

"D...Died?" I asked, unknowingly shaking. Kimm put her arm around me to tr to comfort me, but also to comfort herself.

"Two years ago," he continued, "the ship Gravelyn had commisioned him to was found wrecked off the coast of one of the Yokai Isles...Most of the crew was found dead, but his body was missing. They said he must have sank to the bottom of the sea, but i thought differently. You know him. You know he wouldn't let himself die without us watching, afterall he always had a flair for dramatics. After that I cntinued my travels, but continued to search clues for him at the same time."

"Did you find any?" I interrupted frantically.

"A few," he said while shaking his head,"He's very well known in Doomwood. They treat him like a hero there,"

A hero?

"A lot of people claimed to see him not too long before I arrived there,"

"How long ago?"

"I was there months ago, but he left two days before me,"

"You didn't ask which direction he was headed in?"

"I did, they said he snuck out while everyone rested,"

"They don't know where he could have gone?"

"He didn't say..."

"He could be in anywhere in Lore right now..." Kimm added somberly.

A moment of silence had passed...

"Ugh...so why are you here in Battleon?" I asked, attempting to break the silence.

He seemed to hesitate before finally explaining to us.

"A war..."

I stared at him, that wasn't possible.

"But we-"

"Are already in a war? I know, but that doesn't mean that things like this don't happen."

"But...how?"

"It's a war between two of Lore's greatest evils. Dage the Evil, commander of the Undead Legion, and Nulgath, Archfiend of the Underworld."

"Them?" Kimm asked, surprising both of us as to how she knew them.

"You know them?" I asked, disbelief clearly evident on my face.

"The were in Battleon sometime ago, selling armor and promising unlimited power,"

"Yeah, I heard about that. I was going to come to Battleon right away, but I was sidetracked,"

I felt completely out of the loop.

"So...why exactly are you going to this war?" I ventured to ask Green Warrior.

He got quiet aain for a moment, probably thinking whether or not he should tell us.

"Simple. To find Kaiban,"

"How so?" Kimm asked.

"I don't know!" he replied. Honestly, I'm not too shocked he hadn't thought this through. "I just have this gut feeling he's there..."

"Actually his plan is rather solid," I inserted into the conversation after thinking for a while. "It's a war, so it will attract a multitude of people, plus if both sides are promising unlimited power, then it's a guarantee people will at least be curious. Also, there's a chance Kaiban's already joined a side."

"Hey, yeah! That's true!" said Green finally realizing how good his "gut feeling" actually was.

"It's stupid..." Kimm said, shocking us both.

"What is?" Green asked after a brief moment of shocked silence.

"Joining a war zone just to find one person. You're not even certain if he's going to be there!"

"But there is a chance!" I rebutted, "And to increase the chance of finding our friend, I'll go along with you!"

Kimm and Green stared at me in disbelief.

"You sure, bro?" Green asked, surprise still evident in his voice.

"I'm very sure. I havn't seen that idiot in years! I need to make sure he hasn't done anything stupid."

"Well what if someone did get the 'unlimited power' they were promised?! Huh?! What would you two do then?! You've been hiding away in an inn for God knows how long! You won't survive!" Kimm yelled, storming up to me, pounding her fists into my chest, "and you!" she looked at Green, "What will you do?! I know you're defintely not powerful enough to fight half the people joining this war!"

"And how do you know that?" Green challenged, annoyance evident in his voice because of the direct challenge to his fighting prowess.

"I saw both of those Generals recruiting people! I saw all the power hungry adventuers, willing to kill for the at the drop of a coin! You will die..." she replied grimly, glaring at Green.

"All the more reason for me to go!" I exclaimed, "he'll need someone to watch his back and heal him on that battlefield!"

"You havn't healed a single scratch in three years! Even if yu remember how to heal, it won'tdo much to help! I should go!"

"No!" I immediately replied," Although you can heal better than me, you're still weaker, I have more of a fighting chance!"

"Guys, stop!" Green interrupted, "If you both come our chances will be better! Kimm, you can teach Conn more about healing on the way to Shadowall, and I could teach you both about combat!" He concluded, surprising me as he suddenly became our voice of reason. Maybe he has changed after all this time afterall...

"Fine..." Kimm said as she got up, and stormed to our room.

"You're packing!" I yelled after her, only hearing the door slam and lock in a response...

"What the hell..." I calmly stated afterwards.

"What?" Green asked worriedly.

"She locked us out..."

"...Damn,"

I didn't notice as we traveled, but now that we have stopped and rested I notice the lack of adventurers on the road we were on. Green told me he took us by Chiral Valley, where Mobius, town where the first vitory over Chaos was claimed. He said that although the road was longer and would take more time for us to get to Shadowfall, it was safer since it was less traveled, and it gave us more time to train. I was able to pick up easily what Kimm had decided to teach me. Turns out she hadn't learned much from Twilly either. Green was a terrible teacher, but just by watching him I was able to figure out the right way to wield the simple warrior claymore he handed me. He handed Kimm a couple of curved daggers and said she should always strike for the ribs if theres an opening. Finally, after a few more days of traveling, arguments, and training, we had reached Shadowfall.

A/N: R&R :D have a nice day :D