The inspiration fairy (or rather, arrogant muse) has hit me, and resulted in this. Most of this has been pre-written, and so it won't have such long delays between chapters. I'll warn you now, it's AU, but set on Weyard. Enjoy. And review.
Disclaimer: I don't own Golden Sun!
"Once upon a time there was a handsome prince. He had travelled through lands no other man would dare to cross, and had seen more at age seventeen than any man twice his age had seen. The prince was due to become king at eighteen, but had wanted to see the world before he took up his position on the throne. And so he left the palace to explore in his final year of freedom."
"You forgot to say about the ice, mummy."
"Yes, quite right. The prince was to take over the throne of Imil, the City of Ice. The special thing about the City of Ice was that everybody there could use ice, and also water. The children loved it, because it snowed all year. And when anybody was thirsty, the people would always be on hand with some water."
"And then one day he walked into a strange town..."
The lady reciting the story laughed softly. "Do you wish to continue the story?"
"No, mummy, I like it when you say it, because you always remember bits I forget." Her daughter smiled up at her through dark eyes.
"One day, the prince was in need of rest, and he sought a bed in a city called Vale. This place also housed people who could use special powers, but there was something different about this particular town."
"The people could use two powers!"
"That is right. It was known as the City of Two, as the residents could control both earth and fire. Both elements had an affinity with each other, and so the city prospered and bloomed. The residents certainly weren't used to visitors. That is why they were so surprised when the Prince of Imil himself walked through the gate. Vale had forged an alliance with Imil many, many years ago, but Imilians rarely visited Vale. Thankfully for the prince, the Valeans were friendly people, and they granted him a room and some food."
"And then he met the princess!"
The woman laughed softly again. Her daughter knew this story very well, as she had told the young one the tale over and over again. "She wasn't a princess at the time, but yes, the prince met a girl. This girl caught his attention, and the prince stayed in Vale for a few more days to try to court her. Being a prince, he was used to getting his own way. The princess fell for his charms, and within a week, he had convinced her to return to Imil with him."
The young girl sitting next to her mother on the end of the bed smiled mischievously. "But the princess had a secret!"
Her mother smiled down at her. "She certainly did. What the prince didn't know, and what the girl was determined not to let him know, was that she could control fire. That was a rare thing, even in Vale, and everybody in the land knew that fire and water should never be mixed. The girl however was in love with the prince, and so she kept her power to herself, hoping that the prince would never find out. The two returned to Imil, where the prince's mother accepted her new daughter and future princess with open arms. This posed another reason for keeping her power secret – if Imil ever found she was the kin of fire, the girl would be exiled, and possibly killed if found."
"She was a brave girl," commented the young girl, looking up at her mother in awe. "I hope I'm like her someday."
Hopefully you'll never have to be... thought her mother anxiously. She pushed all negative thoughts to the back of her mind, and smiled at her daughter.
"The prince married the girl in a beautiful ceremony. Half of the kingdom watched the royal wedding in awe, and the girl was officially accepted as the princess of the City of Ice. Very soon after, the prince turned eighteen, and was crowned in a glorious ceremony. Imil celebrated the crowning of a just and fair king, and the princess, once a plain, ordinary girl, became queen."
The child's eyes gleamed with excitement as she eagerly looked to her mother for the next part of the story. Outside, the weather had taken a turn for the worse, and the frequent lightning bolts illuminated the pair as they sat on the bed.
"Not long after they had wed, the queen bore a child – the new princess of the City of Ice. She took after her mother in looks, and her father in strength. Everything was perfect for the royal family, and Imil prospered beyond expectance."
"It should end there," piped the girl. Her face was lit in the light of the storm for a brief moment, and her dark eyes looked eerily like her father's piercing blue ones. Her mother, who bore the same dark eyes and reddish hair, nodded in silent agreement. "I always like happy endings." She was an insightful child, thought the mother.
"All was not well, however," continued the woman. "When the princess had just turned three, something unexpected happened. It was known that the princess looked very much like the queen, but it was thought that the princess carried the same elemental power as her father. The couple was proven wrong, however, when the child accidentally set fire to one of the many curtains lining the castle windows." The woman's eyes darkened, though she hid them from her daughter's view. "The queen was heartbroken – her daughter carried the same element as she. The queen knew that if the king found out, he would exile the pair."
"And he did," the girl said in a sad tone. She felt sorry for the princess, even if it was just a story.
"He did indeed. Unbeknownst to the queen, one of the members of the guard had seen the incident, and had reported it to the king. The king stormed through the castle, and when he found his wife and daughter, he ordered the guards to lock them in the western tower." Her tone took on a bitter edge. "He couldn't risk exiling them – if Imil found out what his queen and princess were, they would banish him and appoint the next member in line to the throne. But he couldn't stay in contact with his family. Those guards that felt sorry for the queen and princess couldn't help, as they would be executed."
The girl was unusually silent. Her mother couldn't help smiling – every time she told her daughter the story, the girl would become emotionally involved. But then after the story she would bounce back to her usual self.
"Tell me how it ends, mummy."
"The queen decided one night that she would take the princess and escape. They would escape to the queen's hometown of Vale, and live life in freedom. The queen couldn't bear to see her daughter denied of any happiness, and so she plotted her escape. On one particularly dismal night, she packed some bare essentials, and woke her daughter. By now, the princess was nearing ten years of age, and was beginning to understand her circumstances. The two were careful to make sure the large northern window was sturdy enough for their weight, and they climbed down the tower. They quietly made their escape, travelling for days and nights on end. Whether the king found that his family was missing was never known, for the queen and princess made it safely to Vale."
"Good." The girl smiled.
"Yes. The queen located her family, and they welcomed her back with loving arms. They were delighted to discover they had a granddaughter, and they welcomed the two into their home. They lived for many, many years, and their family grew. Most importantly, the two had finally found freedom."
"Happy ending," the girl grinned at her mother, who smiled back.
"Yes, indeed," her mother agreed. "And I must say, that is the hundredth time I have told you that story. Why do you enjoy it so?"
"Because it's so much like our family," she responded innocently. The woman's heart lurched – it wasn't a lie.
The child's stomach suddenly gave a huge growl, and she burst into a fit of giggles. "I'm hungry! Can we eat something now, please?" She jumped from the bed she had been sitting on with her mother, and her foot connected with something hard. Curious, she looked to find she'd almost landed on a suitcase. The girl looked to her mother with questioning eyes. The woman chewed her lip for a second, delaying, before deciding she couldn't wait any longer.
"Jasmine," she said, keeling down and taking the child by the shoulders.
"Jenna," the girl stressed. "My name is Jenna. Jasmine's too long."
"Listen to me," the woman's tone became urgent. Jenna's eyes widened. "How would you like to...re-enact the story?" Jenna merely blinked at her mother, not understanding. Her mother smiled ruefully. "You aren't happy here, are you? The palace is no home to you, am I correct?"
Jenna fidgeted uncomfortably, unable to meet her mother's eyes. "Well...it's more like a prison than anything else..."
"I feel the same way," her mother said, and Jenna looked at her in shock. Her mother smiled reassuringly. "We should take a leaf from the queen of the City of Ice's book." She was speaking very quickly now. "Let us leave. Escape. This is no home to us. I have distant relatives in other parts of the world...how would you like to meet them?"
"You do?" Jenna looked at her mother in awe. "Outside the palace? Can I meet them?"
"Certainly, yes," and her mother smiled more openly. She was anxious, but glad that her daughter wanted to leave as much as she did.
"When?"
"...Tonight. I've packed some belongings, we should have enough with us to travel to my relatives' city."
"Wow!" Jenna's eyes lit in excitement.
"Unfortunately we are unable to take the window route, as the queen in the story did. However, mercifully, the doors to the rest of the palace are currently unlocked. Let us leave," and Jenna saw a mixture of frightened horror and excitement in her eyes. Jenna nodded, equally as excited. Her mother picked up the suitcase, and the two slowly made their way out of the tower.
The rain was very heavy by this point, and frequent thunderclaps pierced the deafening silence between mother and daughter. Neither dared to speak to the other. They took hurried footsteps, but were careful not to make a noise. The doors may have been unlocked, but the guards were still on duty, and the pair had to duck into the shadows every now and then to avoid being seen. The two reached the main palace – the largest obstacle. Jenna's father lived here, and if he caught the two trying to escape, he would probably kill them.
"The exit isn't far," said Jenna's mother, explaining, as Jenna hadn't seen enough of the palace to know where the exits were. "We shall go through the kitchen – it is late and we're less likely to be seen." Jenna nodded, her heart pounding in fright. They were so close now, but one wrong move would alert the whole palace to their presence. The pair carefully made their way through the corridors, and then down to the colder stone corridors, where the kitchens were situated. Jenna held her breath as they neared the kitchen door.
Before they could go through to the kitchen, however, they heard a loud bang upstairs, and a commotion started. Yells and cries could be heard, and Jenna's heart doubled its beat. Her mother looked to the ceiling in shock, her eyes wide with panic. "Quickly, we must hide!" She pulled her daughter back along the corridor, and located an alcove with a heavy curtain fixed over the entrance. Jenna and her mother quickly ducked behind the curtain, and yanked the material over so it hid them from view.
The commotion seemed to move on, but in different directions, so it sounded as though the whole palace was involved. Jenna's mother held her daughter, and stared at the ceiling, wide-eyed with anxiety. The noise upstairs was dotted with thunderclaps from the raging storm outside, and Jenna hid her face in her mother's skirts, frightened.
It wasn't long before the noise died down. Jenna's mother tentatively stood, gently pushing her daughter behind her, and peeked out of the curtain. A deathly silence greeted her, though she knew something was still wrong. "We must leave, right now," and with that she grasped Jenna's hand and began a hurried walk to the kitchen door. Across the corridor, footsteps could be heard running down the small spiral staircase that led to the corridor. Jenna's mother broke into a run, Jenna following, but they couldn't reach the kitchen door in time before somebody reached the corridor.
"Your Highness!" A young man of seventeen or eighteen stared at the two, relief etched across his face. He had long blue hair, and wore the uniform of the castle's researchers. "Princess!"
"Alex!" Jenna grinned in relief. Alex could be trusted – he was one of the studious researchers in the palace, who was teaching Jenna about the world. Her mother often had business in other parts of the tower, and so Jenna stayed with Alex for the majority of her days after her lessons. He was like a brother to her, and so she knew that he wouldn't run to the king with knowledge of their whereabouts. Alex had always seemed to silently understand the situation from the princess's point of view.
"Alex, you mustn't-" the queen began, but he interrupted her with wide, half-panicked eyes.
"You must return to the tower, your Highnesses! It's safer there; if you stay here you could-"
"Hold," Jenna's mother commanded. "Does the king know of my plans?"
"Plans?" Alex repeated, blinking. "Oh! That is why you're out of the tower!" He looked from the queen to Jenna, understanding in a heartbeat. "No, the palace is under attack!"
"Attack?" The queen's face paled. If the palace were indeed under attack, escaping would prove far too dangerous.
"Yes, your Majesty. The Mars Clan have invaded, and they're attacking everybody in sight. It isn't safe here, please, you must return to the tower!"
"I..." Jenna's mother faltered. The attack would mean a definite increase in security – making the palace almost like a fort. Escape would be impossible. "No. Alex, take Jasmine and hide. I shall secure an escape route, and a hiding space, should we need one."
"But...your Highness!"
"Mummy!" Jenna grasped onto her mother's arm, terrified. The queen knelt so she was eye level with her daughter.
"I shall return, I promise," she said softly. "But it is too dangerous for you to stay with me, for now. Go with Alex, he shall look after you until I come back."
"But-"
"Alex," the queen stood at her full height again, and addressed the young scholar. "Whatever happens, protect my daughter. If anything happens to her..." she couldn't finish her sentence. Instead, she gave a small smile to reassure the two, gently prised Jenna's hand from her own, and turned back to walk down the corridor leading to the main palace.
Jenna watched her mother disappear up another staircase, and fought hard to keep her tears and sobs inside. Alex took her hand and gently beckoned her to follow him. They quickly made their way up the spiral staircase Alex had come down, and found the corridor above to be empty, to their relief.
"We can hide in the library. There's a secret entrance through one of the bookcases that leads to the dormitories; we can sit in there until the commotion dies down." Alex explained as the two walked quickly. Jenna wasn't really paying attention; her feet seemed to follow automatically as she thought longingly of her mother.
They finally reached the library. Alex made sure to lock the door, and then, with a half smile to try to lighten the atmosphere, led Jenna over to a bookcase. "You have never seen this library, correct?" Jenna shook her head, and watched as Alex tapped a combination of coloured book spines. She watched in amazement as the bookcase gave way to a large stone corridor, lit with bracketed torches along the walls. "I'm afraid my room isn't as nice as yours," said Alex, to which Jenna scoffed – her room felt more like a prison, "but it's comfortable enough."
Sure enough, the corridor branched into a series of rooms. Alex's appeared to be the smallest, though it was easily the most comfortable. Jenna noticed that there was a stack of books from the library stacked in a neat pile on the floor. As Alex made sure the entrance was concealed, she read a couple of the spines, and found the subjects concerned the royal family. Alex breathed a large sigh of relief, which distracted the young princess.
"You're worried too, aren't you?" she asked of the young man. He smiled knowingly.
"You're a perceptive one, Princess. I've never been much of a fighter, except in the field of knowledge. And I hardly think those clan brutes..." he stopped himself for Jenna's sake.
From inside the dormitory, the noises were muffled and distant, and Jenna began to calm slightly. She perched on the end of Alex's bed and wriggled her toes in front of his small fire. Alex sat himself on the bed, and stared at the ceiling, wondering whether the commotion would ever die.
There was a silence while each contemplated their own thoughts. And then:
"If I may ask, your Highness, where exactly were you going?"
Jenna looked around in alarm, but Alex's eyes weren't reprimanding, on the contrary, they were sparkling with amusement. She laughed nervously.
"My mother was...showing me the palace," she wasn't quite sure why she was lying to her trusted friend, but she felt she couldn't tell the truth. Much as she loved Alex, she was frightened of her father's reaction if he ever found out that the two were escaping. "I only remember the tower, and I wondered what the rest looked like."
"Ah." He knew it was a lie, but didn't chase the matter.
Something large and heavy suddenly toppled close by, causing a loud bang. Alex jumped up in alarm, and the sudden reaction startled Jenna. She leapt off the bed and attempted to follow him, but he shook his head. "It is safer here, Princess."
Jenna frowned. "Why does everybody say that? I'm old enough to see for myself!"
Despite himself, Alex smiled. "I shall check and return, and when I do, you can follow me all you like."
Jenna nodded eagerly. Alex smiled again, and slipped out of the room down toward the library. His first thought was that the door to the library had been forced open, but it was still locked. The room was empty. Frowning, Alex surveyed the scene more carefully. He didn't know why, but the room felt...odd. Deciding it was no longer safe to stay in the area, he started walking back down the corridor to where the princess was waiting.
"Feel up to an adventure, your Highness?" Alex asked when he reached his room. Jenna grinned and took his hand. The two made their way back through the library, Alex constantly checking for intruders, and found their way back into the main palace. Jenna tensed, and her heart started racing from excitement and horror again.
They hadn't covered much area before they rounded a corner to find a couple of the intruders looming at the end of another corridor, apparently speaking to somebody. Alex and Jenna quickly hid in a nearby alcove, hoping that they hadn't been seen. When it was clear that they hadn't been detected, Alex carefully peeked around the heavy curtain. He pulled his head back inside, and knelt to the princess's eye level.
"Wait here," he mouthed. Jenna couldn't make much silent protest before he had quietly ducked around the curtain. Alex flattened himself against the wall, and very carefully edged along it, nearing the corridor containing the two intruders.
They were huge. Alex was tall by human standards, but these foreigners loomed at least a foot above his height. It was obvious from first glance that they weren't human – scales lined their skin, and these weren't peachy in colour. One of them was made of blue scales, and the other green. Alex frowned and inched closer in order to listen in to their conversation. His eyes widened when he realised who they were speaking to – it was the queen. Though she was a great deal shorter than the pair, she held her ground, and appeared to be speaking authoritatively.
"You shall not pass," Alex could finally make out her voice.
"I disagree, your Highness," sneered the green one. The blue one held up his hand, and started to speak.
"What defences have you? I doubt your husband would come running to your aid, especially now that he knows what you are."
"You will show some respect!" the queen snapped, glaring at the intruder.
"Did you at least tell him yourself? Or did you leave it to somebody else, traitor?"
"Enough!" The queen's eyes flashed dangerously. "You have no right to be here. These are not your lands, and therefore you haven't the right to accuse!"
"These may not be our lands," the green one continued, "but this concerns our very blood, which is far more important than feeble villagers!"
"I do not share your blood," said the queen quietly. "We may both be of Mars origin, but my blood differs greatly from yours. Mainly because my people aren't cold blooded killers."
She had touched a nerve. Alex could only watch in horror at what happened next. The blue one drew his sword, and quick as a flash, plunged it into the queen's chest. Amazingly, she managed to keep her steely, angered gaze, even as she collapsed onto the ground. And then her life left her. Alex closed his eyes in horror, and he leant against the wall, breathing more deeply than usual.
"It is done. Find the girl, she carries the same blood." The blue one sheathed his sword without bothering to wipe the blood from its surface. It was then that the two saw Alex, who realised it immediately. He opened his eyes slowly, and steeled himself. The Mars Clan members drew their weapons and headed straight for him.
They didn't get much further. Using all his strength and effort, Alex created a large, thick ice barrier. It stretched across the width of the corridor, effectively blocking their path to him. Angered, the green one sent a powerful jet of flames into the barrier, but it didn't give. The blue one held up his palm, and the green one stopped exhausting his energy.
"We have no business with you," said the blue one coldly.
"You leave, now," Alex said icily. "Or I shall create barriers like these throughout the entire palace. You would die a cold, drawn out death. And I am not easily depleted of energy."
The blue one stared at Alex through his crimson eyes. Something changed, and he beckoned to the green one. The green one glared at Alex, before the two changed direction and marched down the corridor toward the exit. "We leave!" the blue one commanded; his voice echoing through the palace.
Alex cut off his energy from the barrier, and it melted into a puddle on the floor. He slumped against the wall, exhausted both physically and mentally. His queen lay on the floor, eyes open, but mercifully there was little blood. Alex closed his eyes, and rubbed at his temples, not having the slightest clue of what to say to the young princess wondering where her mother was. He didn't have to explain, though, as Jenna turned the corner. Her relief at finding Alex was replaced by horror as she saw her mother's lifeless body lying on the cold floor. Her scream would go on to haunt Alex for years to come.
Chapter one done and dusted! Reviews are greatly appreciated!