Chapter Two: The Mistaken Name

"Umm…Rey? Care to translate?" Adrian asked uncertainly. He did not like the fearful look of the three strangers.

Rey nodded. "They're telling us to hide with them. There's danger approaching. Something about dracoknight pirates" Rey replied, puzzled.

"Hiding huh? Sounds like a plan. We could use a little rest. Where do we hide?" Adrian asked. Rey translated and the three, led by the thief, gestured to a well hidden cavern. Rey nodded. "We'd do well to heed them, sire. Those specks in the sky are not birds" Adrian nodded, and the two followed the strangers into the cavern.

When they got inside, they saw that they were not alone. Many villagers were cooped up in the cavern, looking fearful and fatigued. Adiran slid to the floor, his face pale; his nerves were hyped up on adrenaline for a long time and his body was giving in to strain.

The thief who led them to the cavern rummaged through a bag he carried and drew out a flask. He tossed it at Adrian, who caught it with his forehead. He grunted irritably and picked up the flask, which had fallen into his lap. The thief said something gruffly and Adrian looked to Rey for translation. "Vulnerary. Drink it, sire. It will staunch your wounds and ease your mind"

Adrian opened the top of the flask and took a swig. Warmth spread throughout his body and he noticed that most of his discomfort was being worn away by the drink.

His head dropped to his chest a few minutes later, his eyes closed as sleep pounced upon him like a dark curtain enfolding his senses.

Rey looked at his friend, whose chest was rising and falling evenly; a good sign that he was fine. The sorcerer turned to the thief, his expression questioning. "Good sir, why do you hide? What are you talking about by dracoknight pirates? But first thing's first; I'd like to know your name"

The thief sat on a saddle that he brought over to Rey, setting it on the floor and using it as a chair. "Well, that's a long story, but I'll keep it short, since we may be short on time. You ask of my name as if my appearance does not jog a memory. Are you two truly foreigners? No matter, I'll start with my name, like you asked. My name is Elias. No, I am not one of the ones faking to be myself, I am truly me. I've been hired by Archanea to help these people out."

Rey leaned back against the cave wall, his arms folded across his chest. "Indeed we do come from a land that is not known to Archanea, Sir Elias. I am the Sorcerer known as Rey. I am a protector of my friend and prince, Adrian. We've come here to speak to a person referred to as 'Marth'. We have urgent need to talk to him."

Elias whistled. "Hmm…I suppose I could help you two with that, if you help me in return. Do not refer to your prince as a prince in this area. If anyone wishes it, they may attempt to ransom him. Speaking of Adrian, he looks like he went through a grinder. Do you wish to tell me to sate this old thief's curiosity?"

Rey smiled and inclined his head. "We had a bit of trouble arriving here, I'm afraid, but that is a story best left untold until we speak to Marth. Now tell me of your predicament, good sir. Please explain why we are hiding like cornered foxes in their dens"

Elias took a deep breath and began to speak.

"This village is an important place of commerce. Many, many rare items come and go through the place each day. Prosperous and wealthy, the villagers took it upon themselves to live simple lives. They greeted strangers as they would friends, and would provide food and board to those who have become homeless during a war that shook the continent a few years ago.

It was during that war when a group of dracoknights defected from Macedon during the reign of the iron fisted Michelis. At first, all they wished was asylum, which the villagers happily gave. They grew to love the area they were resting in and began to protect the village from ruffians and pirates. The village lived happily.

It began two months ago when the leader of the dracoknights, Kristoff, convinced the other dracoknights to raid an incoming supply ship. They found this pleasing, and swiftly became the pirates they defended the village against. They soon took over the village and began to disrupt the commerce, taking the items for themselves.

Emporer Marth sent me, the two men you saw earlier whose names are Flint and Ralph, and last of all, my own son, Lios. They sent us to free the village, but it was well guarded. In the end I had to send off my own son as a decoy, telling him to fake my identity so as to draw off the pirates so I could bring the others to safety. That worked and I was able to manage to get the villagers into this cave. I just hope my son is alright…he isn't a thief, mind you. He only took it up to be my decoy when the time came. His wish is to study magic in Khadein. Ever hear of it? Wait, you're foreign, you wouldn't have…You're a Sorcerer, so maybe you should visit someday…So what say you, Rey? Will you help this old man free these people?"

Rey took a deep breath and sighed heavily. "If it was my choice, my magic would be yours, but it is up to the pri—" He halted himself. "It is up to Adrian to decide. I am sure he will help in a heartbeat. He has never denied help to anyone, even if the person is just a mere penniless orphan…" He trailed off, closing his eyes as he drifted back into his memory, when he and Prince Adrian first met.

Rey was dressed in little else but rags and was surrounded by other orphans who were partaking in their favorite activity; beating up on the'rich' weaklings. Rey stood in front of a young girl, who was the target of the other's torment. The unfortunate girl looked frightened beyond words, her pale green hair curling around her wide brown eyes. She was wearing a little white dress, a color reserved only for nobles. He grabbed the hand of the girl and took off running. The girl followed and the bullies pursued, shouting angrily. Rey managed to bring the kid to one of the safe hiding spots and stood in the middle of the road, egging on the pursuers. He was only ten years old, and most of the bullies were three or more years older than himself. He ran without thinking, without knowing where he was going. Soon he was trapped in a corner, the bullies jeering at him, their eyes furious at Rey for hiding their prey. Rey gathered his hands into fists and took up a rather shaky stance with his fists held in front of him, still certain that what he had done was right, but uncertain of what was to be done to him.

The leader of the bullies had a sharpened stone in his hand. The others formed a ring around them, allowing for no escape. Rey looked at the lead bully with pleading eyes, but the kid's eyes showed no mercy. The kid grinned. "You know the penalty for spoiling our fun, runt!" He growled.

Rey gulped and tried to reason with the bully. "The one you were going to hurt was only seven! It's only fair I helped her!" He launched himself at the kid, only to be yanked back by his hair. A kid bear hugged him from behind to hold him still. No matter how much he struggled, he couldn't escape the kid's iron grasp. The head bully gripped hard on the sharpened rock in his hand and slashed at Rey. Rey felt pain blossom across his chest and cried out. The kid brought his hand back, and with the weight of the stone in his hand, punched Rey just under the ribs, knocking all of the breath Rey had out of his lungs. The kid behind Rey let him go and Rey fell to the ground, curling up futilely to defend himself. The kids surrounded him, kicking him from all sides.

"Stop!" A young voice called out angrily. The kids heard the voice and all save the leader backed off warily. The lead bully kicked Rey once more, and then turned to face the speaker. Rey opened one of his eyes, curious as to why the ebating stoped so abruptly and say a young boy, about Rey's own age, with a wooden sword in his hand, pointing the practice weapon at the bully. The boy had lavender hair and violet eyes, dressed in white clothing, the color of nobility. Behind the boy stood the girl Rey had rescued a few moments ago. She was looking at Rey with horrified eyes.

"And who do you think YOU are, punk?" The bully accosted, his eyes on the girl, seeing her as his prey from earlier. Rey found anger flowing through his body giving him new strength. Should the bully move, Rey would stop him.

The boy in white glared at the bully. "I am the crown prince of Verias, ragface!" He growled. The bully's eyes looked at the prince, then focused back on the girl. With malevolent intent, he took a step forward. Rey, who had reached a crouching position, leaped and tackled the bully. However much he caught the bully off guard, his weight was too little to do much more than stagger the bully. The bully glared at Rey. "Let go you little runt!" He raised his arm, stone gleaming red with Rey's blood. The prince did not hesitate to act. He jumped forward, swinging the wooded sword at the bully's hand, hitting him soundly across the knuckles. The bully yelped and dropped the rock. The bully broke free of Rey's grasp and bolted down the street like a dog with his tail between his legs.

The prince turned to look at Rey, who prepared himself to be beaten as well and shrank back, a hand over his heaving chest as he tried to regain his breath. "o…ou…urt..?" He tried to say while wheezing for air.

The prince crouched down next to Rey, looking him in the eyes with a quizzical expression. "Whaaaaat?" He asked.

The girl Rey had helped earlier tugged on the prince's coat. "Brover! 'e 'elped me!" She said, pointing at Rey.

Rey had somewhat caught his breath, and repeated what he had said, "So…you gone hurt me too?" His eyes narrowed to a distrustful glare. "It would be good practice for your stupid noble games, huh?"

The prince looked shocked. "What? I-I was just—"

Rey drew his lips back in a snarl "I was right, wasn't I? Too bad the orphans got too much of the fun huh? Go on, finish me!" He hissed.

The prince now looked quite cross. "Shut up! I'm trying to talk to you!"

Rey shrank further back. "Oh? Gonna throw me in the dungeons? Go on, do your worst, little prince!"

The prince sighed and shook his head. "I was just going to say thank you for saving my sister. She keeps wandering off, exploring the city"

Rey's expression changed from fury to downright awe. He was being thanked? By a…prince? He opened his mouth to speak, but he burst into a fit of coughing. His lungs felt like they were aflame.

The prince's face filled with concern and took off his white jacket, draping it over Rey's shoulders. "I'm going to bring you to the castle. The doctor will check you out. It's the least I can do…um?" He looked at Rey, silently inquiring him of his name.

Rey's coughing fit calmed down enough for him to reply. "I'm Rey, princeling."

The prince laughed and helped him to his feet, an arm around Rey's shoulders, helping him balance. "I'm Adrian! And my l'il sis is Ashel."

Ashel curtseyed to Rey, who tried to bow, and nearly got himself and Adrian off balance. "Thankee, Sai!"

"…It's Rey"

"Oh! Thankee, Sei!"

"…no problem, princess"

"Rey…? Rey?" Elias's voice brought Rey back to reality.

"Hmm?" Rey asked, shaking his head to rid himself of tiredness. Elias grinned. The old thief looked years younger when he smiled. Perhaps it was the situation he was thrown into that aged him so. "Rey, you're the first person I've seen fall asleep while standing! Well, you were leaning against the wall, but that still counts!"

Rey looked dignified and turned his head to the right, looking at Elias through the corner of his eye. "I did no such thing. I was merely resting my eyes!" He complained in the Veriasian language. Elias looked at Rey as if he had just sneezed, coughed, and hiccupped all at once.

"Oh, you were asleep alright" Adrian's voice called out. Rey turned to look at Adrian, who had lifted his head from its resting position on his chest and was staring at Rey with an insanely amused expression on his face.

"Fine. I was sleeping, but you were too, princeling!" Rey retorted, and then looked closer at Adrian's face. The blood had been cleaned off. There was stitching that closed the wound on his cheek. Rey looked at Elias. "Someone stitched him up?"

Elias nodded. "One of the village women did that. Adrian slept through the whole ordeal. His back got stitched as well"

When Rey translated, Adrian's eyes widened and his hand gently brushed the side of his cheek, feeling the stitches that were there. "Tell the woman that she has my profoundest gratitude"

"Tell her yourself. You know how to speak the language just fine!"

"But it's too much trouble!"

"You are a royal idiot, sire"

"And you are too polite with your insults, friend"

"Please, just take the effort and thank her yourself!"

Adrian sighed and relented, switching to the Archanean language. "Fine, any words false, I'll flay your hide!"

Rey grinned. "Of course, sire"

Elias glared at Adrian. "You speak our language? Conniving little…!"

Adrian held his hands in front of him appeasingly. "Speak unwell. Not well as Rey. My…regrets, Elias" He spoke haltingly, focusing on getting the words right. "Your speech very fast, hard to hear"

Elias nodded. "I can understand that. Your language sounds like utter gibberish"

Adrian shrugged. "As yours is"

Elias threw his head back and laughed. Adrian looked at Rey. "Did I say anything wrong?"

Rey shook his head with a grin. "No. Elias seems to be good natured, sire."

Elias called over the one who stitched closed Adrian's wounds. Adrian's hand moved suddenly to the hilt of his blade. A pirate?

She was about thirty years of age. She was a slender, but tall woman. She wore a blue bandana over her platinum blond hair. Her navy eyes glinted like sapphire. She wore a tan tank top with a blue vest open over it. The vest only reached to her midsection. She wore baggy brown pants that reached to her knees, where they were tucked into a pair of steel toed boots. Her skin was heavily bronzed, as if she spent her whole life out in the sun. She scowled at Adrian. "Make one move and I'll feed you to Verne!" She growled. Surprisingly, her voice was lower than one would have thought.

Adrian scowled back. "Who's Verne?"

The woman put her index and her little finger in her mouth and blew, whistling sharply. The villagers moved aside as a green scaly reptilian lurched forward. Adrian and Rey paled. "You're a dracoknight?" Rey gasped

The woman laughed. "Suppose you could call me that, but I left Macedon years ago. Joined Kristoff's pirates for a spell, but that were no fun. These here people are darned kind if ye ask me. Can't pillage to me's heart's content if me's heart be not in it, y'hear? B'sides, Verne don't like Kristoff, nor his scaly fat winged lizard of his."

Adrian nodded. "Good reasons. Um, you stitched me?"

The woman inclined her head. Verne's head rubbed against the woman, nearly knocking her over. "Watch it ye useless bag of scales!" The woman growled affectionately. The lizard grumbled what sounded like a purr as a reply.

Adrian gathered the words in his mind then spoke. "You have my heartfelt thanks, madam" He said, feeling rather proud that he did not mistake a single word. He was surprised again when the woman growled at him. "Madam? How old am I? Fifty? Call me by me's name, stupid manchild! The name's Shear!"

Adrian grimaced at the reprimand. "Shear, thank you."

The woman's voice softened. "That's better…then a noise could be heard at the entrance of the cave. She swiftly turned, her eyes narrowing. "Impossible! How could those stupid bunch o' idiots fine this place?"

A voice entered the cave, echoing off the walls. "Everyone, long time, no chat! Yes,'Tis I once more, Kristoff! Come on out and we'll try not to kill ALL of you. You've got until sundown to make your decision. Well, the Airborne Pirates will be waiting, and the sooner you come out, the less chance there is of becoming fodder for our pets!"

When the voice faded, the villagers sere in stunned silence. Elias cursed. "Sundown's too little time to plan anything…blast it all!"

Rey gasped. "Exactly! Blast it all!"

Elias and Adrian looked at Rey as if he were a madman, but Shear cackled appreciatively. "Oh, I see! Good thinking, spell slinger!" She crowed.

Rey sighed. "Are there any spellbooks here?" he called out to the villagers. The villager muttered to themselves, shaking their heads in negation.

Elias nodded. "I've got one…but I meant to give it to Lios once he entered Khadein…If the situation's rough enough, which it is, you can use it…" He rummaged through his bag and brought up a dust covered book, handing it to Rey.

Rey looked at the book appreciatively. "Thunder…? Perfect!"

Adrian caught on to the plan. "How many able fighters do we have at the moment?"

Elias grinned. "Let's see…Adrian, Rey, Shear, Flint, Ralph, and myself"

"And the pirates?"

Elias frowned. "I'm not quite sure. My son Lios was able to draw off four grounded pirates, so I'm going to estimate around seven"

Rey nodded. "I'll leave the cavern first, so I can blind the pirates with thunder. That should give enough time for the rest of us to get out of the cave to protect the villagers. Do any of us know how to use a bow?"

"Flint and Ralph were hunters. They wield blades now, but they still use their bows to hunt for food."

Adrain chuckled. "That will definitely give us an advantage. What kind of weapons do we have? I've an armorslayer, but none of the pirates wear much armor, right?"

Shear smirked. "Ye mey be right, manchild, but they're steeds have strong hides. Not as thick of skin as me Verne, though. I've a Javelin that should prove useful."

Rey leaned again against the wall, thoughtful. "Subterre is not useful against fliers, unfortunately, but if one somehow gets grounded, I'll make short work of them, I hope."

Elias looked delighted. "I've never heard of that spell? No matter, I've got a steel sword to use if a pirate gets too close. Flint! Ralph! Get over here!" The two strongly built men approached the others. "We need a weapon count. Got your bows?"

Flint had sandy brown hair and eyes. He nodded. "Yeah. It's an Iron bow, though. Will it be enough?"

Ralph was much older than Flint, and his hair was all grey. His eyes were blue, and he still looked like he was stronger than an ox. "I can finally use me heirloom bow, eh? My Killer bow will finish off what Flint hits!"

Elias looked grim. "Alright. Everyone ready?"

"The pirates shall be my blade's sheath."

"They'll think twice before facing me's Javelin!"

"I will do my best to be a good distraction. Spells can be as sharp as blades."

"If any get too close to the cave, they'll find that my blade's bite is worse than my bark!"

"I'll ground the lizards"

"And I'll put them out of their misery!"

Adrian looked at the group. A Myrmidon (himself), a Dracoknight, a Sorcerer, a reknowned Thief, and two rusty Hunters. How would they fare against battle hardened dracoknight-pirates? He took a deep breath and began to speak.

"From this day on we shall be known as the…what's the name of the village?"

"Stupid manchild! It's called the Crossway!"

"From this day on, we will be called the Militia of the Crossway"

"Good name, Manchild! Makes me feel as though I'm back in the past, bein' part of an army again!"

"Militia? Sire, aren't we a little few to be a Militia?"

"Nonsense! Elias the Thief being a part of a militia? Ha! This'll be fun!"

"I agree with Elias. We've got work to do that the villager's cannot. For the sake of the villagers, I will do my best"

"I'll prove there's still some youth left in these old bones of mine!"

With a sense of deliberate purpose, they began to prepare for what would be the first of many battles that they would face together as the Militia of the Crossroads.

But what of the young thief pretending to be the renowned Elias in the earlier parts of this tale? Of the Cavalier and his younger brother? Another battle was about to take place. The Samsooth Sires have been gathering their strength since their defeat by the hands of Marth years earlier. They have got into position to strike the heart of the Grust camp which the thief Elias, or rather, Lios, is being held at.

A series of events have begun to take hold of the destiny of many. It is what they do with their responsibility is what will make them known for generations to come…

Preview of the next chapter

"Adrian! Guard the Hunters! We cannot afford to have them injured!" Shear's voice called out from above. Adrian gritted his teeth and nodded. So far, their half baked plan was working, Rey was using Thunder to blind and distract the Airborne pirates.

They had miscalculated the number of foes, however. There were some normal ground pirates who had joined Kristoff's crew. The pirates were making their way to the Hunters, who were loosing their arrows at the Fliers above.

He sensed movement. A rather clever pirate had climbed down the wall of the cave and was about to attack Flint from the rear with a rusty looking Iron axe.

Adrian sprinted toward the pirate, armorslayer at the ready. "Rrrrragh!" with a shout, he slashed at the pirate, who sidestepped the slash with a laugh.

"You missed, idiot!" The pirate gloated, then his eyes widened when Adrian crouched low, the blade continuing its slash. The Myrmidon began to change direction of the blade, and began to bring it upwards.

"I'm not done!" Adrian growled, jumping up with a vertical slash. The pirate staggered backwards, his eyes wide with shock as his left arm separated from his body.

Adrian's eyes narrowed. "Just die already!" He shouted exhasperated. He clubbed the pirate's head with the pommel of his blade, causing the pirate to fall to the ground.

"Sire, unless you are an idiot, I'd consider saving your energy" Rey's voice called out through the clamor of battle.

Adrian turned to face the sorcerer, whose right hand crackled with sparks, and his left hand held a spellbook. "I can keep this pace up, Rey!"

Rey looked cross. "Um, sire? Remember you have stitches. If you're too vigorous, you could injure yourself even more!"

Adrian stretched his arms over his head, testing his flexibility that the stitches would give him. He felt a slight tightness, but should overall be fine, or so he thought. "I'm good!" he gave a thumb up with his free hand. He heard a roar and both he and Rey looked up in the sky to see one of the dracoknight pirates swooping down on them, claws outstretched. Rey jumped in front of Adrian, free hand outstretched.

"Rey, what are you do—"

Rey grinned. "Allow me to deal with this, sire. This is my job, after all" The ground in front of them began to heave, then sink.

Rey held his arm high in the air overhead. "Subterre!" He cried out, a pillar of stone forcing its way out of the ground.

The pirate's mount screeched and tried to alter its flight, but it was too late. Flying at full speed, the dracoknight slammed into the pillar of stone, breaking through it. Flight uncontrolled, it crashed into the stone wall above the cavern. The rider and mount fell to the ground, unmoving.

Adrian looked at Rey. Both of them were showered with debris of when the pillar exploded. "That was…" Adrian began to say, but was at a loss for words.

"Brilliant? Amazing? Incredible?" Rey suggested with a grin.

Adrian glared at Rey. "That was unbelievably STUPID! You could have gotten the both of us KILLED!"

A/N: To be continued in the next chapter…for that was just a preview. Now get that review in motion, and suggestions are accepted. Any characters you wish to make an appearance. Be it OC or canon, I shall abide to every comment. For that is what an author does, no? Take the advice of the readers and improve? Well, that's the end of the author's note. At least, I hope it is. You're probably not even reading this stupid authors note, are you? I can make all the spelling and grammatical errors I want in this note. Seeing as I'm half blind and am recovering from eye surgery, this isn't bad, yeah? Next Chapter will be called…um…I don't know. I'll let you know now. Much of it will be battle. Turn based battle! Naaah! XD Why did that comment sound so shallow?

THAT'S IT! A/N is OVER! It better be. You must be sick of my rambling. *flails*