Chapter 9: What Happened

Zylup

We realized that Raven lied to Leon about us going to Donau. Since Star and Raven figured out where Donau was, courtesy of Leon, I suggested that we walked the opposite way. From where ever direction, we could either end up in Handen, or back in Fetta. After walking for quite a long while, it turned out that we ended up in Handen. Unfortunately, for Star, it's near the ocean.

"Why m—" Star whined, but she soon covered her mouth. After a shudder, Star continued weakly, "Why me?"

"Because," I began, enjoying the torture, "you nearly unattached my leg."

"I said I was sor—" Star begged, but covered her mouth again. Before, when Star had finally removed the boulder off of my leg, Avrin used her Dragoon's specialty to cure my leg. Thankfully, it wasn't unattached. My leg continued to sting, but I was able to walk.

"Do you have any more herbs, Raven?" Avrin asked.

"Unfortunately, no," Raven answered. "They're all back at the Crusader."

"No Miracle potion!" Star whined.

I grinned, stating, "Yeah, that's what you get!"

"Hey, Enga," Avrin began, "you lived in the same town with Zylup and Star, right? Where was it?"

It was silent. Enga refused to answer her, as did I. However…

"Oh! We're from the Fo—"

With haste, I clamped my hand on Star's big mouth. She struggled for a moment before freeing herself, exclaiming, "Hey! What was that for?"

"Zylup…?" Avrin said questioningly. As I looked at her, I saw the most concerned, yet confused look on her face. By her side, Raven had a similar look.

Suddenly, Star gasped, asking, "You mean… she don't know?"

"Know what?" Avrin questioned me. Keeping my eyes to the ground, I went on ahead without them.

"You mean this whole time, she didn't know!" Star exclaimed in my face. Shortly after the previous event, we rented a night at the inn in Handen. Star wanted to have a chat with me, so we went to an alleyway in a part of town with the least amount of activity.

"Sorry," I muttered, "it just happened so fast. It only seemed like five minutes ago that I saved her from a man-eating weirdo, back in Serdio."

"That's still no excuse!" Star shouted. "Now we're not sure whether or not she'll be okay with the fact that we're…" She paused, looked around, then whispered, "Winglies." Yes, we're Winglies. The most populated race in Endiness. The most hated race to Humans.

Keeping my gaze away from her, I repeated under my breath, "Sorry…"

Star shook her head hesitantly, saying calmly, "I didn't mean… Look, maybe if it's okay with her, then—"

"It'd be best to not tell her at all," I suggested.

"Why?" Star argued. "Are you ashamed of what you are? Are you scared of being a Wingly?"

"No, nothing like that," I answered. "It's just the kind of Winglies that Humans think that we are is what keeps me down."

"And…?" Star continued.

"Do you remember what Ancestor Zarich said?" I stated. "That we, Winglies, are in hiding because of the Humans?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with Avrin?" she asked.

"Nothing, and I would like to keep it that way," I responded, my voice much more stern.

Star tried to speak, but no reply came to mind easily. "But… Well… erm… Quit making excuses! You're such a jerk, you know!" Right at that moment, she walked past me, presumably returning to the inn.

I felt a drop on my head. Looking up, I saw that the dawn sky was coated with heavy rainclouds. Another drop went into my eye. Individual raindrops kept falling on me slowly until, gradually, it really started pouring. After another couple of raindrops fell on my clothes and skin, I decided to go back to the inn as well.

Avrin

It was already evening, but five minutes ago, it felt like morning. It had been raining hard ever since yesterday, when we first arrived. If it would continue, a flood would be possible.

"Alright," Star said, determination in her voice, "first, we get some food. Then, we get out of this godforsaken town!" Thanks to the fact that it was raining so hard, the rain took over the sea salt-filled air. Star was planning on leaving before the rain begins to cease. That was why she was in such a positive mood.

While Zylup began to argue with Star, I entered into a deep thought. I hadn't forgotten the day before, when he had behaved strangely regarding where they were from. Knowing him, Zylup would avoid the topic from then onward.

I realized that Enga was trying to get my attention when he called my name for the second time. "Are you okay?"

Smiling, I gave a nod, replying, "Yeah."

"Come on, kid," Star said, grabbing Raven by the wrist. "We're getting some food!"

As the energetic girl began to drag him off, Raven pleaded, "B-but I don't have any money!"

While they disappeared into the crowd, Raven still pleading for help, something had popped into my mind.

"Oh yeah!" I exclaimed before I abruptly searched Zylup's pockets.

"What the hell are you doing!" Zylup demanded, unsure of what to do. Finally, with triumph displayed on my face, I pulled out what I was looking for; the Trilet. I had nearly forgotten about it, but a bond isn't something that you can forget easily.

"My turn to hold it," I declared.

"You still had that?" Enga muttered. If he was one to show off his emotions easily, he would have most likely laughed at Zylup. Our hot-tempered friend gagged, trying to find something to say, while I examined the Trilet.

"You know," I remarked, "it's a little flat. Probably from back at the canyons, maybe."

After a moment, Zylup asked, "Hey, uh, Avrin?" Looking up at him, giving him my attention, he continued, "Why do you travel… hang out with us?"

"I don't know," I admitted, turning around to look up at the raining sky. "Maybe, just like how you are with Star, you all are like my own little family. I thought that I would be alright after I left my foster family, but after meeting you two, I can't imagine how I could have made it otherwise."

"Why did you leave?" he continued to ask.

Looking back down at the Trilet, I explained, "I left to start my journey. After my parents died, I wanted to know why. My foster father gave me an excuse, but I wasn't satisfied with it. I was four at the time. I wanted to figure out the answers for myself."

"What did your foster father say?" Zylup questioned me.

"He said that it was a group of Winglies that was responsible," I answered, "but that explanation didn't seem right to me. I mean, what did my family do to deserve such a thing, right?" It was silent for a moment before I noticed that Zylup wasn't going to respond. "Zylup?"

"… New question," he said, having a different expression on his face. "Why the hell are you wearing a dress in the rain?"

Instantly, I blushed, having the sudden need to cover myself up. Putting the Trilet away, I stuttered, "W-why are you asking, you perv?"

Standing up for himself, Zylup blurted back, "What? It was just a question! Sheesh!"

"They're always attacking everything, everywhere we go!" Star's voice suddenly shouted. Breaking from our conversation, Zylup and I noticed a usual scene of citizens scattered about, screaming. Running towards us was Star and Raven, who seemed frantic.

"It's the Assailance!" Raven exclaimed. Behind them, showing up shortly afterward, we saw Has. He stood with a man that had some facial hair to compliment his calm stature.

"Is this them?" the unknown man asked.

"Yes," Has said. "You know what you must do."

The new person looked directly at us. However, in the blink of an eye, he vanished. We froze.

"I am Gerald the Teleporter," the man said, suddenly behind us, "and I have been assigned to test out your skills."

Zylup

Enga and I were the first ones to draw out our weapons. Instantly, the man hit us both back with his fists. I fell on Raven while Enga fell on Star. Avrin was the only one standing up to Gerald.

Looking down at her, Gerald stated, "Ah, so you're the one with the heart that Purifies the Monster. Yes, I can sense it of you."

"What?" Avrin said, keeping on her guard.

As I struggled to get up, Gerald disappeared again. Before I could recognize him, Gerald plummeted onto my back with his elbow. Pain struck through me, making me give up with getting up for a second. Gerald vanished, making Enga be on guard. With haste, he stood up and swung his sword behind him, since it would seem likely that Gerald would appear there. With luck, the teleporting bastard jumped back in time.

"I have been warned of your keen senses and speed," Gerald stated, "so I would most likely have to deal with you first." Enga lunged his sword at him, but the man disappeared again, only to appear behind him. Instantly, Gerald kicked Enga in the back before appearing in front of him, sweeping his legs. As Enga fell down, Gerald appeared in front of Star, kneeing her in the stomach. As a grunt of pain escaped from Star, Gerald was already at Raven, right-hooking the boy in the face. By the time I was able to get up on my feet, I froze. He was already behind me. I attempted to leg-sweep him, but Gerald easily dodged. Without warning, he grabbed me by the neck.

Before I was certain that I was going to die, I saw something glow. Struggling, I saw that all of the Dragoon crystals were shining. Despite being in pain, I grinned. I almost forgot that we were Dragoons.

"Watch your back, buddy," I weakly remarked. As Gerald looked back, Enga, already in Dragoon form, dashed towards him. Before he had a chance to attack, Gerald vanished, relieving me from his grasp. After I regained control of my breath, I changed into a Dragoon, along with Avrin and Star. Spotting Gerald on the roof, Star flew up and used her tonfas to push him off with very strong pressure. Avrin wrapped her kusari-gama around Gerald's leg before he had a chance to react. Before I could strike him with my dagger, Gerald teleported once again. When he reappeared, he stood next to Has. I was confused as to why he abruptly stopped fighting, until I noticed that a cut on his shoulder began to seep blood. It was probably from me.

"Analyzing is complete," Gerald reported to Has. Turning around, he addressed to us, "Improve for when we have our final showdown." Without a moment to think of what he said, the two men disappeared. We waited for a moment for any sneak attacks, but none came. They were gone.

After we all changed back, Star pouted, "Ooh! They always run off! Stupid, good-for-nothing—" However, she paused when Enga told her to stop. We all looked at Avrin, who seemed out of it.

"Heart that…" she began, "Purifies the Monster?" Looking up at us, she continued, "I've had enough of this. They continue to toy with us, as though they're stalling us. What about me? What do they want of me? I'm no different from any of you, so why me?" Clenching her fists, she added, "The next time we encounter them, I'm getting answers."