The three second warp delay was horrible. The scent of blood and rotting flesh wafted around their noses. Then the swirl of colors brought by the effect of the warp disappeared.
Before them, a scene of aristocratic mansion unfolded. There was no hint of blood nor of rotting flesh. Only red velvet carpets, beautifully carved wooden tables and chairs and a mixture of culture and nature on the walls.
The boy with no name pushed back his eyeglasses and looked around. He was sitting on the floor beside his cart. He looked at his group mates who were already examining the area. He stood up and joined the examination.
His group mates seem to pay no attention to anyone or anything but the area. He worried for the well-being of their group for the hardships to come.
"E-" his voice cracked. He coughed. It has been a while since he last spoke. The two ignored him.
"Excuse me." he said in a second attempt. The two still ignored him.
"For Odin's sake, look at me!" He said, now louder. The two finally noticed him.
Baine snapped. "What?"
"Uh... umm..." the boy with no name pondered at what he what he was going to say.
"Introductions?" Lidea asked. She walked closer and sat down. Then she threw Baine an intense glance.
Baine felt a cold chill run up his spine. He immediately sat beside Lidea. The three of them formed a triangle.
"I'm… Baine of the Central Church, stationed in Lutie." Baine said.
"I'm Lidea from the outskirts of Payon."
"My name…" the boy paused to think.
Baine's eyebrows furrowed. Lidea laughed.
"So… do you want me to name you? It'll be hard to call you if you have no name." Lidea said as she smiled.
The boy nodded. It didn't really matter what name he would be called.
"Saul. I really like that name. Saul." Lidea said.
The boy nodded. "I'm Saul of Alberta."
"Oh, so you're a blacksmith… are you a good forger?" Lidea asked.
Saul shrugged.
Baine stood up. "We have no time for this. We need to collect those papers before others do." He turned around and walked off. Lidea and Saul followed.
Then Baine stopped walking. A figure was in front of him. It was a merchant.
"A merchant?" Saul asked. Baine held up a hand for silence. He walked closer to the merchant, who had her back faced to them.
Baine stopped in his tracks when he took a good look on the merchant. The merchant was different. Her colors were darker than usual and more faded. Sparks of lightning surrounded her body. Baine raised his scythe.
A large war axe swung towards him. He jumped backwards, ending with a rip on his priest coat.
The merchant dashed towards him, war axe raised. Baine quickly stood up and muttered a chant.
The merchant fell instantly. Saul felt like he was watching a movie. Baine threw his scythe on the floor with such force that the sound echoed.
"What was that for?" He shouted. "That was supposed to be my prey!" He glared at Lidea.
Saul, confused, stared blankly.
"You're too slow, besides, we're a team." Lidea said with a grin. A silver arrow was on the merchant's chest.
"I could've handled it myself!"
"Well you were getting owned by the thing!"
"I wasn't, just so your little brain knows."
"Little? You couldn't even dodge the thing's attack! Maybe because your stone brain won't work."
"Stone? How about your egg-sized brain?"
"At least it's alive, unlike your candy sized one."
Saul ignored their random squeals and examined the body. The merchant's body was already dissolving. It was gross to watch but Saul needed to research paper. He searched the merchant's pockets.
"Who said they sold ice cream in Geffen, they're sold in Morocc!"
"Oh really? Where's your-"
"Shut up!" Saul shouted. He quickly searched the merchant's body.
Lidea sighed. There was something about the priest that annoyed her. She looked at the priest. He was certainly handsome, yet his manners were not of a priest's. She looked at the rip on his clothes. Her eyes widened. There were abs, six pack abs. Though she didn't care. Sweat trickled down her forehead. A mark was branded on his skin.
A snake with heads on both ends was curled into a ball. It was the sign of heresy, a sign that marks a man as a sinner.
Lidea knew it was impossible that such man would be walking around unharmed. At that moment Baine noticed Lidea and followed her eyes.
Baine smiled. He was impressed that someone still knew of the mark. "You have knowledge."
"I don't understand." Lidea said, shaking her head.
"You don't have to."
"But-"
"I found them!" Saul shouted. He had a paper in hand. Several unreadable writings were on the paper. The ink was smudged and the paper crumpled with age.
Lidea shrugged off her assumptions on Baine. They were only going to be together until the exploration ends. She could protect herself anyway.
"Follow me to the passageway." Baine said. He headed towards the right. Lidea and Saul followed without questions.
They walked through empty corridors and reached a flight of stairs. The stairs was quite crowded. Not with people but with the things that inhabited the lab. A gypsy was in the middle, warding off the things.
Lidea quickly raised her bow and fired mystical silver arrows.
"The deviling!" Baine cursed. "My scythe!" He ran away, leaving the two and the gypsy against several enemies.
Saul pushed back his glasses and took out his Sabbath. He swung the axe on his enemies. Knowing he hit nothing, he spun like a lunatic. The gypsy giggled.
"let my dance server as your aim." She said. The floor beneath her shone as she moved her hips gracefully without melody.
Saul pushed back his glasses again and raised his Sabbath. He hit an archer looking thing. The archer's body was cut in half. Saul gagged and dropped his Sabbath. His knees weakened. He covered his mouth to suppress his trembling.
Lidea rolled her eyes. She took down three of the things already. The gypsy stopped dancing and took out her whip. She hit a thing with her Rapture Rose so quickly that the thing seem to get hurt from nothing.
"My apologies, sniper, I've been fighting here for so long that it seems my strength has diminished." The gypsy said. She sat on the floor.
Lidea shrugged and fired more arrows. But the things seem to come closer and closer to her. She backed away, knowing close combat was a sniper's weakness.
They came closer. Even though Lidea could see right through their translucent bodies, they felt real, sending the aura of something living.
"Phantoms…" Lidea murmured. She raised her bow and fired, her aim far out,
One of the phantoms, an archer, raised his bow in level with hers. Lidea's hand trambled. She had trained for something like this, yet she couldn't move.
The rest of the phantoms made way for the archer, as if making way for their leader. It couldn't be… a mini boss?
Lidea feared for her life. By herself, she couldn't handle one. She looked past the archer.
Both the gypsy and Saul were fighting. The archer seem to have summoned more.
"You of the outside shall receive punishment, trespassers!" It was the archer.
Lidea dropped her bow. Her trembling stopped. She knew that voice. The voice was real, too real. Why had she come on this journey? The answer was right before her eyes.
"Takith…" she mumbled. Though her trembling stopped, she couldn't move. She fell on the ground.
The archer put down his bow, a read light was showing beneath the hair that covered his eyes. "You dare say his name, intruder!"
The archer loaded an arrow and aimed directly on Lidea's head. Lidea, her eyes wide open, was staring at the archer.
"Lidea, get away from him!" Saul shouted. He was out of energy. It was already an effort to walk. He didn't expect a mini boss this early, but he wasn't going to let anyone die. He just couldn't, there was no one else dying from his father's lab.
The archer pulled and released the arrow.
disclaimer: i do not own ragnarok. no really, it's the inevitable truth.
omg I finished it? it's so damn long and I'm too lazy to type it, though I finished writing the chapter on a notebook a month ago. BUT COMMON, gimme a break. Even if there are only two people who read this crap D sorry, please continue reading this and drop a comment! even hi would do fine.
so... the blood has yet to come, but no worries, it will be evident in the next chapter. I wish I could put chains here D