Chapter One
The continent of Ignas, in the northern hemisphere of our world. On this, the largest continent, a war has been raging between the two countries for hundreds of years. In the north of the continent lies the Kislev Empire, in the south lies the desert kingdom of Aveh. The war has gone on for so long that the people have forgotten the cause, knowing only the pointless circle of hostility and tragedy...
The chronic war obsession was soon to encounter a devastating change. This was due to the 'Ethos,' an institution that preserves our world's culture, repairing tools and weapons excavated from the ruins of an ancient civilization. At once both countries excavated these ruins, and had the 'Ethos' repair the discoveries, in order to increase their military power...
The various weapons excavated from the ruins greatly changed the form of warfare. The outcome of the battles between the two countries, Kislev and Aveh, was no longer determined by man-to-man combat, but by 'Gears' -giant humanoid fighting machines- that were obtained from deep within the ruins...
Eventually, after continuous swings in the state of the war, Kislev gained the upper hand. The major factor behind this lay in the enormous difference in the amount of resources buried within their ruins. But suddenly a mysterious military force appeared in the continent of Ignas. Called 'Gebler,' this force decided to make contact with Aveh...
With the assistance of this Gebler military force, Aveh was able to recover from being hopelessly outnumbered to being back on an even standing with Kislev. Then, taking further advantage of it's newly gained momentum, Aveh started to capture one territory after another from Kislev, showing no indication of slowing down in their invasion campaign...
Lahan Village, near the outskirts of Aveh, near the border of Kislev
A peaceful night has descended upon the small, dwindling village of Lahan. From the skies, it's easy to see the outlining trees and craggy rocks that frame the small village that has known nothing but peace for many years. The small stone and thatch huts form a circular-shaped design, signifying the unity and protection that the villagers have felt all their lives.
This night, however, would turn nightmarish and violent, stripping the villagers not only of the beauty of their village, but of their very lives. In essence, this is where it all begins.
Explosions rock the city streets as fire rages from house to house, singing the carefully laden stone and hand-carved wood that has been preserved her for centuries. The many villagers run for their lives, most of them not escaping the pain of the flames.
In the middle of it all, a tall and foreboding creature of metal stands in defense of Lahan, the fires licking it's immortal frame. The creature, a Gear, is colored in crimson and blue, etched with the dark stains of age and wear. Yet with all this strife, the Gear fights on, being guided by it's pilot who desperately wishes to save the village.
The pilot, a young tan-skinned man with attractive features, breathes heavily inside of the cockpit of the Gear. His hair is dark and pulled back into a sweaty ponytail, and he sits in rage at the controls.
His name is Fei Fong Wong, and Lahan is his home.
"Damn you!" cries Fei.
He moves his Gear into battle, his Weltall. Fei let's lose a voracious scream against the opponent Gears that have attacked his village. With a flurry of violent kicks and punches, Weltall brings the nameless Gear to the ground in an explosion.
Fei breathes through his nose, adrenaline pumping in his veins.
"That's one down!" He yells.
The fallen Gear stands up as if Fei's precise blows have not affected it in the slightest. Fei wonders how anything can withstand the force of his Gear, Weltall.
"What on earth are you? No matter how often I knock you down, you still get back up!"
At the foot of the battle, another figure makes himself known in the light of the flames. An older man, clad in a green kimono, his hair pulled back into a slight ponytail shorter than Fei's. Reading glasses are perched precariously at the bridge of his nose.
He is Fei's dear friend, Citan Uzuki.
"Fei! Stop! You must not fight here!" Citan cries out.
The enemy Gear fires off a number of shots from it's arm-mounted submachine gun, the bullets ricocheting off of Weltall's hide.
Fei curses. "Boy are you persistent!"
Weltall slams his fist into the Gear's chest, hearing the metal crush with a satisfying sound.
"Damn it! How come...? Why did it have to come to this?"
The fires burn on, and the battle rages as Lahan is razed around Fei's ears. The fire smolders and burns, as beautiful as it is deadly...
A picturesque scene of oranges and reds, a burning tribute to the purifying fire spread out among the canvas of a true artist.
Fei finds himself transfixed, not understanding where he is. Deja vu encumbers him slightly, and he lowers his brush.
"Whew! That about does it..." Fei mutters to himself, finishing his painting.
"Alright, now for a short break."
Fei moves away from his painting, leaving the bedroom that he has spent the last many years of his young life sleeping in. His room resides at the bottom of one of the village's stone houses, and it's spacious arrangement allows many other rooms besides just Fei's. He heads for the stairs, ready to leave his home and start the day anew.
The house Maid calls out to Fei as he is about to leave.
"Hello Fei! Why aren't you looking well today? My how time flies...has it really already been three years since you came to our village? When they first brought you in all bloody and soaked, to tell you the truth, none of us thought you would make it. That, and that strange masked man that carried you in that day...do you think...maybe he was your real father?"
Fei shrugged, staring at the large woman.
"Don't you remember anything? Why, they say you had nightmares and you constantly called out for your father."
Fei thinks of his nightmares, the recurring dreams he has of a dark, dreary day. Of being held by strong arms and carried through the biting cold and rain, of a house much like this one in a familiar village, of Lahan.
Of a masked figure, knocking steadily on a wooden door.
"Who is it?" calls a voice from inside.
The door opens easily and without warning, the kind of effect that years of living in a small village has on it's residents.
A weather-worn old man appears at the door, his eyes closed against the rain and wind. He announces himself to the masked traveler as the Chief of Lahan Village, Lee.
"Wh, who are you?...What? You want me to look after this boy?" Chief Lee says, staring down at the battered figure.
Fei shakes his head, the nightmares leaving him.
The maid continues talking, as if Fei's state of near-inebriation has no standing affect on her rambling.
"But now, you're so healthy and strong. It's all thanks to our village chief, Lee. My, should you be grateful!"
Fei nods, turns, and runs upstairs.
The upstairs is bustling with people, but Fei feels the need for fresh air and sunshine. He moves quickly to the front door, but before he can leave the house, the door opens for him. Standing in front of Fei is the small, ugly red-headed child, one of Fei's dear friends.
"So there you are! Fei, I have to talk to you about something!"
Fei nods. "Why, hello there Dan! You're lively today...as you are everyday!"
A well built young man turns toward the commotion, hearing Dan's lively voice springing forth.
"Dan!" Timothy says. "Don't be so rude. What's this barging in and all?"
Dan let's loose an exasperated sigh. "Timothy's here too? Butt out of this, Timothy! Until you marry my sister, you have nothing to do with me at all! I just have some business here with my friend Fei! So anyways, Fei, I, errh, I have something to talk to you about later..."
Fei shrugs. "What is it Dan? You make it sound serious!"
"Yeah, that's why I can't talk about it here...There's a certain person listening in who could cause us trouble! It's really important! We gotta talk, seriously, one-on-one, man-to-man! I'll be hanging around outside. So I'll see ya there later, okay?"
Dan turns to leave, but then addresses Timothy.
"Be seein' ya, Timothy! Take care of yourself until tomorrow..."
Dan makes a rude gesture to Timothy, then sprints out the open door.
"Huh? What's up with him?" Fei asked aloud.
Timothy smiled. "As of tomorrow, I'm going to be that kid's brother-in-law. That part isn't going to be no honeymoon, I'll tell you what."
Fei smiles inwardly, and goes outside, leaving Timothy and Chief Lee to discuss the wedding arrangements with the rest of the heads of household and village elders. The bright morning sun shines down brilliantly around Lahan, and Fei instantly hears the commotion of the days work, which is now peppered with wedding gossip. He makes his rounds through the village, checking on his neighbors and throwing out well meaning Hellos.
He pats one of the local bearcows, and exchanges pleasantries with one of the women. He then spies Dan lurking outside one of the homes that he is all to familiar with.
"Oh good, Fei! Ya ready to talk?" Dan clears his throat. "As you know, tomorrow's finally the day of my sister's wedding. So, what I want to talk to you about is exactly that...Alice's marriage! Fei, to be perfectly honest with you, I've always wished you could have been my brother. It's still not too late. You could go steal Alice and run off with her! If you need me to help, I'd be glad to!
"It may be odd for me to say this, but my sister's beautiful and a good cook...and this is just between you and me, but she's well endowed too! So c'mon, Go for it!"
Fei smiled hesitantly at Dan, wondering what to say to his young friend. He decided to let him down easy.
"What are you talking about, Dan? Timothy and Alice are both my best friends. You know I can't do that!"
"Yeah I know that. Well, if you're going to be like that...But if you change your mind, come and talk to me!" Dan laughed, and ran off to leave Fei with his thoughts.
Fei decided that visiting Alice may be a good idea, as he didn't know how busy she would be during and after the wedding. He walked down to her house, but was forcibly stopped by one of Alice's relatives.
"Fei, I really shouldn't let you in you know. No man is supposed to see her today, but I supposed I can make an exception for you," she said.
Fei smiled and muttered thanks, then pushed his way inside. Up the stairs he found Alice being fitted into her wedding dress by one of her handmaidens.
"Hello Alice. Is that your wedding dress?" Fei asked, feeling sheepish.
Alice stepped back slightly in shock, ruffling her dress which got her some scornful clicks of the tongue from her maid.
"Oh! Fei you startled me!"
Alice looked down at herself, and her face reddened. "Yes it is...I just finished it. It took more work than expected.
The maid left the two alone, and Alice turned back to the dress, continuing to sew.
"You did a great job there! It'll look wonderful on you Alice. Congratulations."
"Thank you."
They shared an uncomfortable silence that was broken by the two of them spilling out the same phrases, at the same time.
"So um, Fei..."
"Hey, um, Alice..."
"What is it?" Fei asked.
"Oh, nothing..." said Alice
"I see."
"Um...Oh yes. That's right. Fei, have you seen Dan?"
"Yeah, he's outside. Bragging as always."
"Ugh, that kid! I just told him that I had an errand for him to run!"
"Oh yeah? What errand?"
"It's for my wedding ceremony tomorrow...I was hoping he could go borrow a camera and some lights from Doctor Uzuki, up on the mountain peak."
"If that's all it is, I'll be glad to do it for you Alice."
"Could you? Oh, but I couldn't possibly..."
"Don't worry! It's no problem! Anyway, it doesn't exactly make me feel comfortable having Dan handle such delicate instruments. What's more, I might have a chance to eat some of Yui's cooking if I go to the Doc's place."
Alice giggled. "That's my Fei!"
"Well, I'll go up there now and get them for you!"
"Oh, Fei wait!"
"Huh? Is there something else you want me to get from Citan?"
Alice turned away, her face reddening. "No, it's not that..."
"Fei...have you ever thought about things this way? If...If, you had only been born in this village...and if we had only known each other earlier on..."
Fei sighed inwardly.
"Oh it's nothing, I'm sorry."
"Well, I think I had better get going now!" Fei announced.
"Oh, okay...be careful on that mountain path. And give my regards to Doctor Uzuki!"
Fei nodded, and made his way back down the stairs and outside.
"Is...is this fate?" Alice asked herself. "I feel so foolish. Who am I kidding?"
Fei left the village of Lahan, heading towards the mountain path and Doctor Citan Uzuki's home, determined to come back with Alice's requests, and maybe even a newfound understanding.