Chapter 13: Visit in Engeve

Engeve: A small, contemplativ farming village in Malkuth, amidst sap green meadows. The village´s income came, as you can imagine, from all the crop they produced every year and shipped over the whole world, even to the kingdom of Kimlasca. Especially fat rappigs grunted everywhere, chicken ran, clucking, through the city, and cow and horse mist lay on nearly all streets, making the village not very popular among tourists. The villagers didn´t bother this since they didn´t want overly loud tourists who may destroy their grain fields in their drunk states.

And Luke, Anise, Florian and Link, everyone´s stomachs growling wthout end, reached said town two days later after defeating Arietta. They wandered through the village, Link looking at all the rappigs and chicken with huge eyes.

"Food on feet!", he cheered, drooling, and had to be held back by Luke with all his might so that he didn´t jump at one of the chicken that now ran away in horror.

"You can´t just kill it!", he admonished the child.

"But... But...", Link whined and looked up with puppy dog eyes which made Luke´s heart melt.

"Let´s hurry and buy something to eat before he wreaks havoc upon the whole village!", Anise said after signing about the hundredst autograph for one of the villagers who had recognised her.

"Apples!!!", Link suddenly shouted, stormed towards a cart selling apples, took one apple and wanted to go away.

"Not so fast!", the vendor said, grabbed Link´s collar, raised him up to his face and said angrily: "What do you think you´re doing with my...!?" But he stopped, eyes huge, when he saw Link´s face. "YOU!!!"

"Uh-oh!", Luke who had recognised the vendor as well gasped. Said vendor was looking around at the moment, spotted Luke and threw Link against the red heads chest.

"You again!", the vendor yelled. "First you were trying to steal my apples, now your brat´s doing it! Honestly! That´s really...!"

"Wait, wait wait! That´s not my son!", Luke snapped back while Link tried to break free from Luke´s grasp and kick the back vendor who had grabbed him just now.

"Oh, reeeeeeaaaaally!? He´s got your face, your stupid hair cut and your impudent manor!", the vendor yelled back.

"Hey! My hair cut isn´t stupid!", both Luke and Link screamed in unison and wanted to jump at the vendor.

"Miracle Hammer!!!", Anise snarled in annoyance and punched bothred heads with a hammer of light to the side. "I apologize for everything, sir!" She gave him a few Gald coins.

"Tch! Just take better care of your clan!", the vendor grumbled and turned to return to his shop.

"CLAN!?!", Anise yelled, and her hair suddenly stood up. "That´s not my cl--!"

"Okay, kokay, we should go now!", Florian hurriedly said in a soothing manner and dragged Anise away with all his might, both red heads following.

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After eating inside a restaurant - Link alone had eaten for five people! - they resumed walking towards the mayor´s residence to ask them to deliver enough food to their cutter.

"I hope Rose is still in chare of Engeve. That would make things much easier.", Anise said. Link burped loudly and got whacked by Anise immediately.

"Ow! Hey, I´m the research project, damnit! Show me some respect!", the little boy snapped at her.

"They´re totally identical...", Anise sighed and shook her head, Luke glaring at her.

"I am not! I´m much cuter than that old man there!", Link protested.

"Old!?", Luke snarled.

"Old!", Link said and blew him a raspberry.

"You little...!"

"Quiet! Both of you!", Anise shouted and raised her staff. Luke and Link quietly backed off.

"Wow, Link really learned rule number one quite fast.", Florian said.

"Rule number one?", Anise repeated, confused.

"Never talk back to a bitching Anise."

"MIRACLE HAMMER!!!"

Florian was punched into a tree by the hammer.

"I feel really sorry for the poor Oracle Knights.", Luke said, Link nodding in agreement.

"MIRACLE HAMMER!!!"

Seconds later Luke and Link followed Florian.

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The last time Luke had seen her, Rose had been a burly, older woman with red hair. That was the case this time as well, although this time her once red hair was now slightly grey.

"Luke!", she shouted in her motherly voice when she spotted the red head, and nearly crushed him with a hug. "Fon Master Anise!" Anise was the next one to be crushed, followed by Florian. Finally she turned to Link who looked up at the woman who had, in his opinion, just tried to murder the other three, eyes huge, and backed away from her. "Ooooooooooooh! He´s so cuuuuuuuuuuute!", Rose shouted, thrilled, grabbed the escaping Link and hugged him really hard so that he made contact with her big breasts. "Luke! Tear and you have a realy cute son!" Luke turned as red as the setting sun.

"That´s not my son!", he protested.

"Oh? But he looks just like you, honey.", Rose said and sat down a crushed looking Link who now stared at one corner in shock.

"That´s a... um... long story.", Anise started, trying to change the subject. To explain t her that Luke and Link were really the same person since they were both Asch´s replicas would be a little too much for the older woman. Florian hadn´t taken it that well either when Anise had told him about him. And Link was now present as well, after all.

"So my little emergency call reached Daath?", Rose asked, suddenly businesslike.

"Little emergency call?", Anise repeated in confusion.

"So it didn´t?", Rose said. "Hmm... Yes, that makes sense. They wouldn´t send the Fon Master herself but a few Oracle Knights, after all."

"I´m sorry.", Anise apologized. "I haven´t been in Daath in a while, and I don´t have any means to contact my servants right now..."

"What happened?", Rose asked, only now realizing how dirty and ragged her friends looked.

"Well...", Luke started.

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"I can´t believe it!", Rose snarled after they had told her what had happened. "How dare this disgusting thing!?!", She looked at them worriedly. "Don´t worry! Engeve will immediately initiate nessecary arrangements and strengthen the security around the village as much as possible!"

"Yes, that would be best.", Florian agreed.

"And we will deliver food to the cutter as fast as possible so that Luke can get to Grand Chokmah quickly.", Rose continued.

"Why only Luke?", Anise asked.

"Because Engeve will protect the Fon Master.", Rose explained.

"No way! I´ll be traveling to Engeve as well!", Anise disagreed.

"But...", Rose started.

"No buts!", Anise interrupted her. "Luke will need as much help as he can get. And Emperor Peony will be more likely to believe him if I´m with him.

"Hmm... That may be true.", Rose sighed, still not comfortable about the idea of letting the Fon Master leave. "But perhaps some of my soldiers could..."

"No, Engeve needs every one of those soldiers.", Anise said.

"Yeah, she´s right. I´ll protect her.", Luke said to which Anise stared at him in disbelieve and Luke stuck out his tounge towards her.

"Oh my, young love!", Rose giggled.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!", Luke, Anise and even Florian - he in anger - shouted.

"With all due respect, mayor, I don´t love her!", Luke protested. "I love Tea..." But he stopped just in time.

"Yeah? Yeah? Who? Huh?", Anise asked, not letting it go.

"Nobody!", Luke snarled.

"Oh man! You really are uptight!", Anise sighed. "But I think it´s better this way. Tear´s one of our enemies now, after all." Luke looked to the ground in misery. Anise stared at him for a while in sympathy, then said to Rose: "What´s this problem you were talking about?"

"That´s not important right now.", Rose said.

"Yes, it is.", Luke disagreed. "Everything can be important at the moment. We have an assumption, but we´re not really sure yet what Dist is planning."

"Very well.", Rose said after a few moments. "It´s about the tree in which the Cheagles live."

"What about it?", Florian asked.

"It´s rotting more and more. And we haven´t seen a single Cheagle in days.", Rose explained.

"That doesn´t sound good.", Florian said. "The poor things!"

"Could something poisonous have been mixed with the wastewater which the Cheagle Tree absorbed?", Anise asked.

"No, out of the question.", Rose said and shook her head vehemently. "Engeve doesn´t produce any poisonous substances. We live in harmony with nature."

"That´s strange. If it´s not something poisounous, what else could it be...?", Anise mumbled.

"What´s a cheagle?", Link suddenly asked.

"It´s a really cute, really small creature.", Florian explained.

"`Annoying´ is a much better description.", Luke corrected him.

"That´s your, and only your opion.", Anise snapped at him and then said to Rose: "Don´t worry, Rose. We´re going to the Cheagle Woods and look into it."

"But Grand Chokmah...", Rose started.

"As Luke already said, we have to investigate everything that seems strange.", Anise said. "I already made the mistake of not wanting to search through the cave. I won´t make the same mistake again."

"And Grand Chokmah still has Jade as protection.", Florian added.

"Let´s hope you´re right.", Luke said. "He´s been chasing Dist for at leat two months now. It´s questionable if he´s even there right now."

"Anyway, let´s go and investigate in the Cheagle Woods.", Anise said and opened the door. "Don´t worry Rose. We´ll be back in a flash."

"And I will be sending food to the cutter, free charge.", Rose said.

"Thanks.", Anise thanked her and went together with the other three towards the Cheagle Woods.