Tales of Vesperia: Royal Engagement
Chapter 5: Will You Marry Me? - Part 2
The once peaceful and love filled chapel was now turned into a battlefield as the villains of Yuri's past returned to ambush everyone in sight. Yuri groaned, dodging and ducking Zagi's attacks.
"Oh man! This can't be happening! It's gotta be a dream!" Yuri thought. Zagi laughed as he lunged at Yuri again. But Yuri quickly flipped over and sprung back at Zagi, kicking him in the jaw. Suddenly, Barbos clutched a giant wooden cabinet over his head. He sneered, eyeing the crowd.
"Everyone remain calm! Follow the knights out to safety! You must evacuate before you get caught in the crossfire!" Flynn cried. Barbos laughed.
"Not fast enough KID!" Barbos yelled. He chucked the cabinet towards Flynn and Yuri at the front. But Judith quickly intervened and smashed the cabinet with a powerful kick. Inside were the weapons of everyone checked into the wedding, scattering across the room.
"Our stuff!" Raven cried.
"Hurry!" Karol exclaimed. Nan quickly dived for her boomerang blade and grabbed it, springing at Barbos. Yuri grabbed his blade and shielded himself just as Zagi attacked again.
"What's going on here? Where are you slimeballs coming from? You should all be dead!" Yuri exclaimed. Zagi laughed.
"We won't die Yuri. Not until YOU do! And this time...we will FINALLY get our revenge for you sending us to the gates of hell!" Zagi laughed. Yuri groaned and knocked Zagi's attack combo out of sync before kicking him away. But Alexei lunged over Zagi and struck at Yuri, their swords quickly meeting.
"Alexei! I knew everyone else had to be dead...but YOU I'm surprised to see. Guess not even a giant blastia falling on you could kill a sick person like you!" Yuri sneered between his teeth. Alexei chuckled.
"Yes. All you ever truly did was slow me down Yuri. But now...on the day of your "glorious" wedding with the princess...not only will everyone see you die...but they'll learn the true criminal and murderous instincts you're hiding!" Alexei cried. Yuri gasped.
"What?" Yuri thought. Meanwhile, Yeager laughed as he was firing a barrage of attacks around the entire room. Patty was trying to counter with shots from her pistols, missing Yeager at every possible moment.
"Oh...too bad little girl. Not fast enough, ja?" Yeager asked. But suddenly, he saw Gauche and Droite lung at him. Their weapons met as Yeager shielded himself from their attack.
"Yeager! What's the meaning of this? Why are you attacking them? Including US?" Gauche asked.
"Y...Yeah Yeager! This isn't like you at all! In fact...you...you should be dead." Droite asked. Yeager groaned, struggling to shield himself. But then, the girls noticed a strange look in Yeager's eyes.
"P...Please girls. H...Hurry and...set me...free from my shackles." Yeager muttered. Gauche and Droite gasped, seeing the collar around Yeager's neck. Nearby, Karol came charging for Barbos as he struck Nan down and quickly grabbed her neck.
"Let her GO!" Karol cried. But suddenly, Karol was rammed into by Cumore with his shield, skidding through the seatings.
"Outta my way!" Karol yelled. He quickly pushed away and slammed his hammer straight down on Cumore's foot, making him scream in pain.
"DAGH! D'oh! My foot! My foot!" Cumore exclaimed. During all the commotion, Ragou was not seen drawing a dagger and coming for Estelle. Yuri had seen, still struggling with Alexei.
"No! Estelle! Behind you!" Yuri exclaimed. Estelle turned and gasped, seeing Ragou about to attack.
"Goodbye you worthless princess!" Ragou cried. But from out of nowhere, a large fireball blasted Ragou and slammed him into the wall. Estelle looked to see an angry Rita.
"No one DARES draw a sword against her life! This I SWEAR!" Rita exclaimed. She quickly begun another spell and fired a barrage of fireballs at Ragou.
"R...Rita!" Estelle cried.
~ Tales of Vesperia ~
Nan escaped Barbos' grip and launched her boomerang at him, tearing his clothes as he tried to dodge. Barbos growled.
"Hmph! I knew the Hunting Blades were annoying! They can never compare to the might of the Blood Alliance! Take THIS!" Barbos yelled. He came on the charge and was about to ram into Nan. But during the charge, he was tackled over by an attacking Repede, slammed to the floor.
"What the...? DAH!" Barbos yelled, soon feeling the dog bite down on his leg. Zagi was on the attack again, charging through the crowds towards Yuri as he pushed Alexei aside. Yuri saw him and gasped.
"Now I got you!" Zagi exclaimed. Yuri jumped away, but Zagi's blade still struck a part of his arm, tearing the sleeve on his suit. Zagi laughed a she turned to Yuri.
"How does it feel Yuri? I finally managed to cut you. So...since you did me the favor of making me lose my arms...I think it's time YOU felt what its like too!" Zagi laughed. Yuri groaned, clutching his arm in pain. Zagi drew both blades and prepared to attack. But he felt a tap on his shoulder and looked back, struck blindly in the face by LeBlanc slamming his shield in Zagi's face.
"Tell me how THAT felt!" LeBlanc cried "No one takes the life of the princess' fiance without MY approval!" Yuri looked at LeBlanc, quickly giving a smirk. He looked and saw Adecor and Boccos struggling to restrain Alexei. Raven fired waves of arrows at Yeager and Cumore.
"All right you two. I think its about time ya went back to whatever filthy hole ya crawled out of. Your time in our world is over." Raven said. Yeager chuckled.
"How funny coming from someone whose heart isn't real, ja? Why not join us old man?" Yeager asked, drawing his gun. Raven smirked.
"One thing about that. See, this old man's got a reason to live...to see this wedding through to the end and make sure my pals have a future to look forward to." Raven said. He then super charged an arrow, firing it towards them. But they both ducked away as the arrow was now zooming towards Ragou. He had Gauche and Droite in a corner, drawing a knife.
"You can't touch us old man." Gauche said.
"Yeah! Don't think you've got us trapped!" Droite exclaimed. Ragou chuckled and looked ready to strike. But suddenly, Raven's super charged arrow struck at an empty hole in the collar around Ragou's neck. He gasped as he felt the arrow smash clean through the collar, splitting it in two. The girls suddenly saw Ragou's body beginning to age at incredible rates.
"No! NO!" Ragou exclaimed. His skin turned to gray and he evaporated into dust, leaving his clothes behind on the ground. Rita saw the events happening before her eyes and gasped.
"Wait. The...The aer the old man used in that attack. It smashed that strange collar on Ragou's neck and...caused him to disintegrate?" Rita asked. She suddenly saw Cumore charging. But acting quickly, Rita elbowed Cumore and tripped him with a swift swing of her leg, head locking him in the process. Cumore groaned.
"L...Let go of me!" Cumore exclaimed. Rita quickly observed the same hole shape mark on the back of Cumore's collar. She could see faint traces of aer leaking from his collar.
"These collars...they're running on aer! So...when Raven's arte struck Ragou in the same opening, it was like the Sorceror's Ring effect on other aer infused devices. So that means...these collars are controlling everyone like they're re-animated puppets!" Rita thought. She quickly looked towards the roof, seeing someone in a Leviathan's Claw cloak in the rafters above the chapel with his hands exposed. He gasped when Rita spotted him.
"Hey! You! You're the puppeteer of these corpses, aren't you?" Rita cried.
~ Tales of Vesperia ~
Estelle aided Yuri in attacking Zagi and Alexei, tag teaming against him in a barrage of attacks. Yuri quickly broke the two apart with an attack, leaving Zagi to charge for him and Alexei coming at Estelle.
"I'm...I'm not afraid of you Alexei! I am not your tool!" Estelle cried. Alexei yelled as he lunged for her. But suddenly, Rita shoved Cumore aside and quickly chanted a spell, catching Alexei within a Violent Pain.
"Geh!" Alexei gasped.
"Estelle! Yuri! Look out!" Rita cried. The two jumped away as the pounding from Rita's spell crashed down on Alexei, slamming him face down to the floor and smashing the collar on his neck. He screamed as his body turned to dust in the same manner, leaving Yuri and Estelle in shock.
"Everyone! These AREN'T the real deal! There's somebody up in the roof controlling everything! The collars these guys are wearing run on aer! They're just aer fueled puppets! And HE'S the puppeteer!" Rita exclaimed. The man in the roof gasped, quickly spotted by everyone.
"Dagh! No!" the man gasped. Judith quickly drew her spear and chucked it up towards him. He gasped and veered to avoid it, but Judith's spear punctured his robe and tore it clean off. The commotion caused him to come falling down from the rafters and crash into the seats nearby. In the commotion, Zagi lunged for Estelle with his blades drawn back.
"I'm gonna KILL you! I gotta kill something!" Zagi cried. But as Estelle tried to avoid it, she found herself knocked away by Repede, pushed to the floor as Zagi tripped over Repede and down to Yuri's feet. Yuri groaned as he drew his blade. Zagi looked up at Yuri.
"Hmph. You're not even real. You're just Zagi's corpse...playing the role of someone else's puppet. The Zagi I knew would never let himself be someone else's pawn." Yuri said. He aimed at Zagi's collar and slammed down on it with all his might, shattering it to pieces. Zagi gasped as he started to gasp for air, clutching his throat.
"Damn it Yuri. I...I wanted so badly to kill you. B...But...I'll get my chance...when I see you in hell." Zagi gasped with his last breath, evaporating to dust. Outside the chapel, Duke was standing with all the others as he watched the fighting going on inside. Without a word, he slowly stepped towards the doorway and grasped Dein Nomos in his hands, having hidden it earlier.
"So...there are still those who would seek to disturb the peace of this world. This has gone on long enough." Duke muttered. Dein Nomos began to glow as the same aura surrounded him and was casted through the chapel, cancelling the effects of the villain's collars and deactivating them. Those still wearing them started to suffocate.
"F...Finally. I can...rest...in peace." Yeager gasped. He lightly glanced at Gauche and Droite.
"G...Girls...don't forget...uncle Yeager...j...ja?" Yeager muttered, turning to dust before their eyes. Gauche and Droite shed tears from their eyes at the sight of Yeager's corpse reduced to dust.
"Yeager...rest in peace." they muttered.
~ Tales of Vesperia ~
With the calamity caused by the mysterious intruder over, the knights quickly arrested him and had him cuffed with his hands behind his back. Everyone stood together outside the castle as the criminal was restrained before Yuri and the others. Rita held one of the strange gloves he wore, showing miniature holes in the tips.
"Amazing. These gloves...have an aer network running through them. He could send invisible threads, completely made of aer, to the collars of the puppets he had below. This would be able to make him control them however he pleased." Rita muttered. Raven glanced on.
"So when the collars were destroyed..." he said. Rita nodded.
"They didn't have anywhere to go and the aer ran amok...eventually aging the controlled corpses until they turned to dust. I never thought I would see anyone use aer in such a way." Rita said. Yuri approached the captured culprit, looking on at his face. He wore red goggles over his eyes, wearing a suit similar to that of a member of Leviathan's Claw.
"So...what drove you to do this punk? Why try and stop this wedding?" Yuri asked. The man groaned.
"What did it? I blaim both the empire...and the guilds. I was a veteran, a survivor of the Great War...a war in which took my family from me. I didn't want to go...but those FOOLS on the council dragged me away from my family to fight. I never saw them again after I returned." he said. Karol and Nan looked on.
"But then...what do you have against the guilds?" Karol asked. The man sneered, glaring over at Karol.
"I turned my back to the empire and came to the guilds in Dahngrest. But they...they only laughed at me. I knew why I was dragged out to fight in that war. I have the ability...to manipulate aer to do my bidding...making it as thick and dense as I wanted. But I couldn't do much else...making me a laughing stock in Dahngrest. I chose to leave both paths...showing the world just what I could truly do." he said. Yuri's eyes narrowed as he grasped him by the collar.
"That still doesn't answer one thing. What the hell is your deal with attacking me and my friends with the corpses of those we knew? How did THEY play into your little plan?" Yuri asked.
"Because Yuri...before I had a chance to show the world...just what I could truly do...you stole my thunder. Turning the blastia to spirits...setting the world free from their influence. I did some research...and found all sorts of delicious secrets in which I could use...to get even with all of you." he said. Yuri groaned.
"I went around to every place you had been, digging up the corpses of your fallen enemies and...using my talents to manipulate aer...bended them to my will. I thought that...if I could show the world how much of a criminal you were...murdering Ragou and Cumore...then they'd hate you too...just like...they all did to me." he continued. Estelle gasped.
"Yuri..." Estelle muttered.
"Men? Take this man away. I will NOT have him slandering my friend's name in such a manner." Flynn said. The knights nodded and started dragging the strange man away. Yuri quietly watched as everyone soon turned eyes to him.
"It's true. I really did kill Cumore and Ragou. But those monsters deserved it. I only did what I thought was right. The empire could never truly punish them, only hold them back until they were free again." Yuri said. Flynn glanced at him.
"Yuri..." Flynn muttered. The crowd around them started to mutter in worry, shocked by everything that had happened. Estelle lightly approached Yuri and held his hand. But he quickly turned away and broke her grip.
"Sorry Estelle. But a criminal like me doesn't deserve to marry someone like you." Yuri muttered. The others looked on at Yuri.
"So...that's why you were hesitant at first. You didn't want her to have to walk the same path as you...tainted by the lives you took." Flynn said. Yuri nodded. But then, he felt someone lightly holding his hand. Yuri turned to see Estelle.
"Yuri...it's...it's all right. The truth is...the idea of our marriage being able to repair the bonds between Zaphias and Dahngrest...wasn't important to me." Estelle said. Yuri lightly gasped.
"What really made me decide to go through with this...was because I love you Yuri. From the bottom of my heart, I truly love you. You're not a criminal. You're kind, you're loyal to your friends and to the cause you believe in. You always were there for me..." Estelle said. She started to shed tears as she hugged Yuri. Rita and the others watched.
"If...If you're afraid of passing on...to the same place that people like Cumore, Barbos or even Zagi went...it's okay. I'll...I'll always be with you...protecting you from ever going to hell. You have a good heart Yuri...a heart that never belongs in hell to begin with." Estelle said. Yuri looked on quietly at Estelle.
"Estelle..." Yuri muttered. Nearby, Sodia started to sniffle, wiping a tear from her eye. She then saw Yuri putting his arms around Estelle and smiling.
"Heh. Thanks Estelle. I knew I could believe in you." Yuri said. Estelle sniffled, shedding a smile in Yuri's arms. Suddenly, Sodia step forward.
"If...If Yuri's secrets are exposed to everyone, then...I have something to say as well. Back on Zaude, when Yuri defeated Alexei as the Adephagos appeared...I...I acted out of line and tried to asassinate him." Sodia cried. Everyone, including Flynn, gasped.
"S...Sodia?" Flynn asked. Sodia turned to Flynn.
"Captain Flynn! I...I didn't want someone like Yuri to share the same stage as you. I could never have imagined you as friends. That's why...That's why...I tried to protect you from the crimes he commited!" Sodia exclaimed. Witcher gasped.
"Wait. THAT'S what happened?" Witcher asked. Sodia nodded, starting to cry. All she wanted to hear was Flynn scold her for her actions. But she felt Flynn pat her shoulder.
"Sodia...it's all right. I have my own fair share of secrets that I was forced to keep as well. You were very brave in admitting your wrongs. And now...it's my turn." Flynn said. Yuri and Estelle glanced at Flynn.
"Everyone? I'm afraid the empire has been keeping secrets from you. The actions I was awarded for, such as saving the capital when Alexei took over and for everything else that involved the likes of Brave Vesperia, I was given the credit for. In fact, the REAL hero who saved you all...was truly Yuri Lowell." Flynn said. Yuri sighed.
"Flynn..." he muttered. Flynn walked over to Yuri's side, looking on as Estelle was in Yuri's arms.
"Sorry pal. I just felt it was right...that everyone truly saw how more of a brave, heroic man you are...rather than the criminal that everyone thought you were." Flynn said. Yuri quietly glanced on at Flynn as everyone else watched as well. A gentle breeze blew as Yuri slipped his arm off Estelle and faced Flynn. Flynn watched to see Yuri hold his hand up before him. He looked to Yuri and saw him smirk.
"Always had to be the goody two shoes, didn't you?" Yuri asked. Flynn smiled.
"When it comes to making sure people know the truth? Hmph. Yeah. I guess so." Flynn said. The two boys high fived each other as the others smiled.
"Heh. You've got a good childhood friend Yuri. You're two peas in a pod...I'll tell ya what." Raven thought. In the middle of the crowd, Ioder stepped forward.
"Well everyone, I know that some crazy things have just happened and I'm sure that you are all unsure of the things that truly happened. But I hope you realized one thing...seeing how those from both the empire and the guilds worked together to protect the two lovers before you now." Ioder said, knowing he spoke of Yuri and friends' teamwork. Yuri smirked.
"So...how about it? What say we get this wedding back on track and see to it that they are wed?" Ioder asked. The crowd was silent, but soon after, they heard Teagle's son starting to clap his hands. Soon following was his family, then the people of Halure and Aspio. Before they knew it, everyone nearby was applauding for Yuri and Estelle. Flynn glanced at his friend.
"Yuri? Take good care of her highness. Okay?" Flynn asked. Yuri smirked.
"Sure. But you don't have to call her that anymore." Yuri said, turning his gaze to Estelle "You can call her...Ms. Estelle Lowell." Estelle gasped, but she smiled and started to shed a tear from her eye.
"Then...I can call you...Mr. Yuri Sidos Heurassein. Okay?" Estelle asked. Yur smirked.
"That's...kind of a mouthful, ain't it?" Yuri asked. Estelle lightly giggled, saying she was just kidding. Yuri's friends looked on with smiles on their faces as the two leaned in close, with their eyes slowly closing, and kissed. The crowds around them cheered loudly.
"Then...by the power within me...I pronounce you...husband and wife." the Kritan elder muttered.
~ The End ~