Another chapter coming right up. Thanks, The Legend of Rune Factory for reviewing.
Disclaimers: The Dragon Quest series, especially Sentinels of the Starry Skies, were created by Squaresoft.
Chapter XXII: Gittingham Palace
The corridors within the castle keep of King Godwyn's once-proud domain was dim, and purple carpeting laid under Arianna and her companions's feet. Though the area was dark, the group pressed onwards.
"Don't know about you, but this castle kinda gives me the creeps" remarked Conrad.
"Don't you want to be a hero with the rest of us?" teased Raymond.
Sasha sighed"Quit Dinking around, I sense the presence of powerful monsters in the palace. I recommend that we proceed with caution."
As the Paladin spoke, three Lethal Armors greeted them at the entrance. Trent and Arianna cut one down, while Sasha speared another. The final Lethal Armor attacked Conrad, who jumped backwards and shot an arrow at the plate of the monster's armor. This staggered the Lethal Armor long enough for Trent to put it out of it's misery.
"You had to jinx us, didn't you?" griped Conrad.
Arianna interjected"Those Lethal Armors happened to be here to intercept us. Anyway, our next opponent will probably be waiting for us in the throne room, we have to work together, that means no bickering."
The trek through the lower corridors of the palace was uneventful, save for the occasional skirmish with Lethal Armors and Dark Skeletons. Raymond dispatched the Skeletons with magic, while the Lethal Armors were whacked by Trent, Arianna and Sasha.
"Those guys are a joke, where's the challenge in that?" sighed Trent.
"The monsters will likely get stronger as we approach our next destination" responded Arianna, scanning ahead for the shadows of more monsters that they may encounter.
The second floor was more or less the same as they got there, but Alicia caught sight of a bookshelf with old books in them. The Priestess addressed the violet-haired Warrior"I need a bit of time to do some research, maybe there is a book about old sages that lived in the past."
Arianna nodded"We'll wait for you on the second floor. Raymond, will you wait with her?"
The Mage smirked"Count on me, I'll even check out these books myself."
As Arianna, Conrad, Sasha and Trent went on ahead, Raymond and Aisha started examining the old bookshelf. The priestess was in the middle of examining a book when a voice called"Who might you be?"
Alicia was startled"Who's there?"
The voice spoke"Do not be alarmed, I am the Supreme Sage. I am speaking from within the most central book on the shelf."
Raymond shrugged, then grabbed the book that the mysterious Sage requested. No sooner had he opened it, the voice said"I sense potential in you and your friend, if you wish, I can bestow upon you the power of a sage."
"Really?" inquired the Priestess.
The Sage replied"Yes, but to formally become a Sage, you must undergo the rite at Alltrades Abbey. The powers of the Sage will become known to you, then."
"We will accept your offer" said Raymond.
The mysterious sage unleashed a gentle tide of energy into the pair, Aisha and Raymond began to feel magic power coursing in their veins. When it was over, the sage spoke"That is all I can do for you now, I must rest. Good luck."
Aisha put back the book after the sage was done speaking, she addressed Raymond"It looks like we're another step closer to becoming potential Sages."
"No sweat, so now what?" said the Mage.
The Priestess replied"We have to catch up to the others. We'll have to change our Vocations later."
Arianna, Trent, Conrad, and Sasha had reached the terrace where they came across a Boss Troll and two Fright Knights. Trent drew his sword"This dosen't look easy."
"I hear you" said Arianna, drawing her own sword and unleashing Gigaslash. The attack wiped out the Fright Knights, but the monsterous Boss Troll was tougher. The monster clumsily swung it's club at Arianna, who dodged. Conrad shot the monster between the eyes, staggering it long enough for Sasha to spear it.
"Ha! That was nothing" said Trent.
The team crossed the terrace, making their way to a doorway at another part of the castle's exterior. Just when they arrived, Aisha and Raymond caught up. Conrad greeted them"How did it go?"
Alicia explained to Arianna about the mysterious Supreme Sage who had spoken out of the pages of a book. Arianna frowned"Might be worth checking out, but right now let's move on."
In the next room however, they ran into a Blastoad. Trent swung his blade, but the monster dodged and launched explosives from it's attatched rocket. The heroes dodged, after which Raymond countered with Ka-Crack. Blastoad unleashed another explosive attack, which Sasha and Trent countered with their blades.
After the monster fell, the six entered the next room and headed up another flight of stairs. Trent sighed"Those things are boring, would you think?"
Aisha replied"The monsters here are almost no challenge for the most part, but I sense a worthy adversary ahead."
The door on the third floor led once again to the castle terrace, up ahead were a flight of stairs leading up to a set of double doors. A voice greeted them"Gr, I sense more intruders. Purrchance that would be you?"
The group stood their ground as another humanoid walked towards them. The humanoid in question stood before them, in the form of a half-man, half-leopard dressed in a bluish outfit with a hat. A sword hung by it's waste in it's sheathe.
"Are you a Triumgorate Lieutenant?" inquired Trent, not letting his guard down.
The being replied, it's voice sounding a bit more like a cat then a man"Precisely, I am Goresby-Purrvis, a Master sswordsman of the Empire. I was the strongest swordsman in my time, I sssought to challenge worthy adversaries."
Trent drew his sword"I heard of you, now you mention it. I aim to be the best swordsman myself, but unlike you I have no intention of using my talents for evil."
Goresby-Purrvis was surprised at the Gladiator's words"Truly? Hmph, I'll have you know I serve King Godwyn, he is in the room behind me."
"Was it okay for you to tell us?" said Arianna, surprised.
The leopard-like Lieutenant drew his own sword, responding with a slight hiss in his voice"No, but before we face each other in battle, I must know your names."
The Gladiator shrugged"I'm Trent, son of Sir Matt, a former knight of Stornway. Goresby-Purrvis, I accept your challenge."
"To the death!" growled Goresby, the two swordsmen lunged at each other. Trent swing his sword first, but the feline-like Lieutenant dodged and slashed at the Gladiator's arm. Trent nearly yelled in pain, taking the time to quickly eat a heal herb before countering with a falcon slash.
Goresby-Purrvis let out a string of multiple slashes with his sword, Trent had to struggle to keep up with the Triumgorate Swordsman as they weaved around each other's blows.
"Trent won't last, let's get in the action" said Arianna, charging forward and launching a Gigaslash attack on Goresby-Purrvis. The Lieutenant saw that coming and countered by jumping over the wave and attacked with a with a thrust at her heart. Conrad shoved Arianna out of the way, taking the blow to the thigh.
Sasha used a basic heal spell on Conrad, before multi-striking Purrvis with her lance. The lieutenant expertly dodged before swinging horizontally at the Paladin and the Ranger. Alicia cast Multi-Heal on her allies, while Raymond attacked Goresby-Purrvis with Ka-Crack.
"This guy clearly has the agility and arrogance of some kind of persian cat" groaned Conrad, firing an arrow at his allies' opponent. The Triumgorate Lieutenant dodged and thrust at Conrad, who drew his dagger and parried the longer sword. Raymond cast a Boom spell, blasting the feline-like swordsman.
Purrvis survived with singed fur and thrust at the mage, Raymond barely dodged before getting nicked by the tip of the feline swordsman's blade. Arianna swung her sword at Purrvis, who parried and vertically slashed downward. The Celestrian blocked and jabbed at the lieutenant's thigh. Purrvis dodged and disarmed her with a sudden upward thrust.
Trent quickly got back into the action while Raymond and Conrad took a breather. Arianna went to retrieve her sword while Trent parried Purrvis's attacks and thrust his own sword at the monster. Purrvis dodged again to meet with another Boom spell from Raymond. Trent took the opprotunity to thrust his sword at the feline-like lieutenant.
The mortal blow brought Goresby-Purrvis to his knees"Impressive, though you are six, you fought as one. But beware, even if I should fall in battle, you cannot withstand the might of the king."
"Even though we are on different sides, it was kind of an honor to cross blades with a master swordsman from the past" said Trent.
Purrvis hissed, getting back onto his feet despite his injury"It was a well-fought battle, I give you that. Now, shall we determine the death-blow?"
With that, Purrvis charged at Trent with his sword. The movement was sloppy however due to the lieutenant's injury, as Trent dodged and finished Purrvis off with a thrust to the heart.
"Lost souls of the empire, may you rest in peace for good" whispered Arianna, as Goresby-Purrvis's body vanished in the same manner as his fellow Triumgorate members.
Alicia made sure her friends were healed from their injuries, while Trent wiped the tip of his sword. The Gladiator sighed"Didn't think he was so tough."
"He was a master swordsman, so I'm not surprised" said Sasha.
Arianna gazed at the double doors that Purrvis was guarding"Right, time to end this and put the last of the Empire back into the grave."
The throne room beyond was no different from the lower floors and chambers of the rest of Gittingham Palace. Arianna and her group entered to find a startling sight. Aquila was inside, and the older Celestrian was not alone. In front of the rest of the group was a man in blue and yellow robes. In his hand was a sceptor of the House of Gitt.
The man, who could only be King Godwyn, addressed Aquila"So you brought the Fyggs?"
The bald celestrian nodded, withdrawing seven yellow fruits from his pocket and laying them before the King of the Gittish Empire. The king sneered"You have done well."
"Master Aquila" Arianna approached the bald Celestrian.
Aquila turned and was none too surprised to see his apprentice alive and well"So you surived, I am glad."
Arianna nodded"Yes, but I have a question. What's going on here?"
"Is this not obvious? You should be able to sense whether there was power or not in the fruits I have presented to that man. Now, unfortunately, there is no time to talk" replied Aquila, turning back to King Godwyn.
The Gittish king raised an eyebrow"What treachery might this be? Hm, no matter, I shall simply erase you all."
Trent, Conrad, Sasha, Raymond and Alicia gathered around Aquila and Arianna. Alicia spoke coolly to King Godwyn"Now you have to deal with all of us."
"That's right, Loser!" added Trent.
Aquila drew his sword"Leave this to me."
"Oh? You really think you can defeat me?" growled King Godwyn, firing a Blast spell at the entire group. Alicia cast multi-heal on her allies, while Aquila launched himself at the king. The man saw that coming however, and flung a magical ball from his staff. The sphere collided into Aquila, knocking the older Celestrian down.
Raymond cast Boom on King Godwyn, who retaliated by flinging the sphere from his staff again and casting a high powered spell. Alicia cast another Multi-Heal on her allies, while Conrad shot an arrow at King Godwyn. While the vile king was distracted, Raymond cast Ka-Boom on him. Trent seized the moment to slam his sword into the dark being.
"That was too easy" remarked Conrad, watching King Godwyn as he seemingly fell dead on his throne.
Aquila addressed his apprentice"As you can see, I pretended to serve the empire so I could get close to King Godwyn and assassinate him. Arianna, I had not expected your timely assistance in my affair after our encounter on the Celestrial Carriage."
"Why couldn't you just ask us to help?" said Raymond.
Aquila replied"I had not much choice at the time, I couldn't blow my cover until I could defeat the king."
"It's not over yet" came King Godwyn's voice from the battered corpse of his body, which began to mutate in front of the heroes eyes. A flash of light covered the room for a second, as King Godwyn's body was replaced by a red, yellow and blue serpentine monster.
"Can't stay down, can you?" shouted Trent.
The King's new form fired a high-powered fireball at Arianna, which Aquila intercepted by standing in front of his apprentice. The impact of the spell sent the older Celestrian flying overhead and landing on the floor beneath the stairs.
Arianna had watched in horror as the spell blasted her teacher and turned to face King Godwyn"You Despicable Snake!"
"A snake am I! I'll show you snake-like I can be!" King Godwyn shot another spell at Arianna, who side stepped and thrusted her sword at the monster. The monster dodged and hit Arianna with a Boom spell.
Alicia healed the violet-haired Celestrian, while Trent and Conrad took to the field. The Ranger fired an arrow while Trent thrust at King Godwyn. The monster shrugged off the blows and fired a multi-hit Ka-Crack. Alicia cast another multi-heal on her allies, while Raymond cast Boom on the transformed king.
King Godwyn unleashed a Boom spell of his own, which Alicia healed with Multi-Heal. The Priestess then attempted to shield her allies with defensive spells, which were nullified by an enchanted wave of magic energy from the king.
"This guy's tough, our protective spells are useless here" gasped Raymond.
Trent falcon-slashed King Godwyn, only to be countered by a fireball. Alicia healed her brother while Conrad shot another arrow at the evil king. Godwyn sneered as he fired another Boom spell"Surrender now, you cannot best me."
"Not on your life" said Arianna quietly, lunging with an upward thrust. King Godwyn hissed in pain before countering with another high powered spell.
"Oh no it dosen't" Aquila had gotten back on his feet with a severe burn on his chest, he flew in and took the blow for his apprentice once more. This time, both Celestrians were sent flying backwards.
Trent attacked the monster with another falcon slash, while Sasha charged at King Godwyn with her lance. The piercing blow caused King Godwyn's monster form to howl in pain long enough for the Gladiator to finish him off with a final Falcon Slash.
The slain monster form of King Godwyn collapsed onto the ground, turned black and vanished into a blanket of dust and magic. Sasha closed her eyes for a brief moment"No matter how evil you may have been, may you rest in peace for eternity this time."
"Look, he left something" said Alicia, spotting King Godwyn's Scepter.
"I'll take that" said Raymond, picking up the stave and putting it into his bag.
Alicia, Trent and Conrad raced back downstairs to find Arianna tending to her mortally injured teacher. The younger Celestrian addressed the Priestess"Is it over then? Can you help me save Aquila?"
Alicia glanced to where Arianna had indicated. The Priestess grimaced at the sight of the injury of the now-visible man"This wound is fatal, there is nothing much I can do, except possibly-"
The Priestess stopped mid-sentence, channeled magic energy into the air and cast a high-powered heal spell on the injury that Aquila had recieved. The elder Celestrian grunted"Ugh... Arianna, everyone, I am relieved."
"Please don't talk, we have to heal you, my mom wanted to speak to you" pleaded Arianna softly.
Aquila sighed"You rescued Florianna, then? I am glad to hear of it. Arianna, no spell can undo this injury, I have taken far too much magical damage and expended the magic in my body. Everyone else, thank you for your aid. The remaining captive Celestrians are held in the dungeons beneath this room."
Trent glanced at a set of stairs near the throne"I see what you mean."
Aquila nodded"Then go and free everyone who is held down there. I know this because I stole the information from the king. Arianna, I will be with you in spirit. I couldn't have been more proud of my apprentice."
Before the heroes' eyes, Aquila closed his and disappeared in a flash of magic as his body faded into thin air. Arianna glanced down at the spot where her teacher died"Master... I swear, I will free the remaining captives. Rest in peace, Master Aquila." A tear ran down Arianna's cheeck as she spoke.
After a brief moment of silence, Trent spoke"Now might not be a good time to say this, but that was the first time I saw you so angry back there."
The violet haired Celestrian sighed as she took a moment to compose herself"As I said, Master Aquila was like a father to me. Harkin left and was never seen again shortly after my birth."
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's head down" said Conrad.
The group headed down two more flights of stairs to find themselves in a damp corridor beneath Gittingham Palace. As they explored the dungeons, they soon found a row of cells where Arianna sensed the prescence of more Celestrians. Arianna took out the key and opened each cell door to find the rest of the missing Celestrians.
"Thank your for your aid" said one of the captives.
"No problem" responded Conrad.
Arianna glanced at another set of stairs, then addressed the Priestess"Alicia, Sasha, Conrad, Raymond, would you escort the hostages to the blue tree where the Starflight Express is waiting? There is something I need to investigate."
"Will do, just be careful" replied Alicia.
The Gladiator and the Warrior trudged downstairs and down another corridor. At it's end, in the final room, they saw an astonishnig sight. Bound by chains, looking downward was a man with part-devil and part-angel wings, a contorted face, messy blond hair and a slightly less then musculer body. Arianna sensed great power emitting from the man.
"Who is that?" whispered Trent.
The man, despite chains holding him, stood up to greet the newcomers. Arianna could tell that this was one unhappy soul as he spoke"Hm, how long has it been since I stood before the prescence of another? A Celestrian no less."
"Aren't you a Celestrian?" said Trent, timidly.
The man coldly replied"It matters not anymore. Not to I, Corvus, who was once called 'Celestrian'".
Arianna was shocked to see Corvus as he came into the light, breaking his own chains with magic"The Gittish Empire fell once more, then? No matter, soon the world shall know my vengeance."
Trent was shocked as he put two and two together"So that light storm in Arianna's home, and the earthquake on the land, that was your doing?"
Corvus coolly replied"Both Celestrians and mortals matter not to me, I shall become the Almighty and destroy everything."
"Not if we can help it, you'll pay for causing the death of my father and so many others!" retorted Trent.
Corvus shot a thunder spell at Trent, knocking him down"Insolence gets you nowhere, I shall give you a taste of my power."
Arianna went for her sword, only for the mysterious force to freeze her in place. Corvus was not surprised"Celestrians can't act against superiors, if I recall correctly."
Trent stood in front of the violet-haired warrior"Why are you doing all this? Didn't you know that Serena was looking for you?"
Corvus snarled and launched a thunder spell on the pair. The Gladiator got back on his feet and feebly charged at the evil Celestrian. Corvus easily intercepted with another thunder spell"I tire of this, you two shall bear witness as I proceed with my bid to destroy everything!"
With that, the former Guardian of Wormwood Creek teleported away. As Trent struggled to get on his feet, Arianna rushed to support him"Sorry I was unable to help."
Serena's ghost entered the room"Huh, I was too late. I'll keep looking elsewhere."
As Serena left the room, Arianna healed Trent before the two teleported out of the dungeon with an Evac spell. Once outside, they were greeted by Alicia"Did something happen down there? You're out of shape, Trent."
The Gladiator sighed"We found the one responsible for the damage done to the Observatory and our planet. I'll tell you later, we have to go to the Observatory and report all this."
Arianna shook her head"She has to know now, our enemy was Corvus all along. The Gittish Empire's reincarnations were merely pawns in his attempt to destroy the Protectorate."
Alicia's eyes widened, she could hardly believe what she just heard. The Guardian of Wormwood Creek had become corrupt over the long years of his captivity.
Thought I'd end this in a cliffhanger. Oh, and about any mispellings in some of the dialogue, that's on purpose. In the game, each of the Triumgorate members had an accent, I believe. Well, Goreham-Hogg probably didn't, It's been a while since I played the storyline.
If any of the story characters were OOC, I apologize. I thought about having Aquila 'live' in this chapter, contary to the game. But then again, if Aquila survived the storyline, he probably wouldn't have been playable, because he would've joined the other Celestrians as a star in the skies of that game.
If it's still not that easy to read, sorry. Anyway, I need to think about whether or not all of my OCs should make it to the end of the storyline. I know I said I'd temporarily use them, but I thought they'd still play a minor role anyway.
Please feel free to review.