Here we go again, let's get this next chapter of Tales of Sauria going. Yeah, I retitled the story to something else because to me it felt appropriate. Though it might go back to the original, guess we'll see. Much like with Phantoms of the Past's original concept, I'm going to go for a high-fantasy setting strictly for this story and draw a lot of inspiration from Dungeons and Dragons as well as stuff from the Tales series of games. (Tend to go with "Tales of..." a lot in terms of titles because of my love for that series of games. (Example: Tales of Arise, Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Xillia)
Also because Krystal is going to be the main focus of this story, there are going to be a lot of OC's here, with some familiar faces.
Without any further delay, let's get this goin'.
Nineteen years later - Hulens, Cloudrunner Merchant City
Down below the mountainous regions of the Cloudrunner Palace lay a large city, embedded in within the mountain. Trees with brightly colored leaves decorated the archaic and elegant stoneworks, and did so without clashing with it's surrounding environment. Rivers and waterfalls surrounded the the city, whether in the form of natural waterways or aqueducts, thus the air always felt cool and humid. Many shops lined the city's centeral district, the trading hub was always bustling with people from all walks of life on Sauria, dealing in things from food to trinkets either hand-made or from far away lands. The trinkets ended up gaining the attention of many, much to the merchant's pleasure. They even gained the attention of a certain blue vixen.
The vixen in question stood-out amongst the sea of dinosaurs, while furry things were common on Sauria, they weren't often seen in places where there were many dinosaurs. She wore a soft blue, white, and purple cloth shirt that covered her torso, along with a white skirt decorated with elegantly braided tassels that revealed her left leg and wore shorts underneath. She was also wearing golden bracers around her wrists, and soft leather sandles. Her hair was a darker shade of blue, and cut down to shoulder length. She sported a hood that kept most of her head covered, as well as hiding her tail under her skirt, all to avoid standing out too much.
Krystal made her way over to one of the stalls, taking care not to draw the attention of one of the many city guards, all of whom were cloudrunners. She made her way over to one of the stalls that was showcasing all kinds of jewelry, golden tiaras with many colored gems in the center as well as a few gold necklaces. The vixen then sighed in disappointment upon the further inspection of the jewelry, they were all not in her size. All of what she saw seemed to be either far too big or too small to fit her in any way. She then walked away from the stall and then over to another, one that seemed to have simple jewelry as well but once again in sizes that could not conceivably fit her in any way.
One by one, Krystal perused each stall only to be met with the same disappointment as before. But one more caught her eye, one that was being manned and operated by a smaller dinosaur known as a lightfoot. She walked over to it and gave a pleasant wave of her hand before eyeing the jewelry before her. It was her lucky day, she thought gleefully. Everything looked as though it would fit her perfectly. As she eyed a necklace, one with a bright aqua colored gem in the center inlay, the vixen looked over at the lightfoot behind the counter. "How much for this?" she asked softly.
The lightfoot spoke up. "Fifteen golden scarabs." she said unpleasantly. "If you're gonna buy, then buy."
Not very friendly the vixen thought to herself as she quickly handed the lightfoot the needed scarabs before quickly putting the necklace around her neck. She gave the lightfoot a wave goodbye, only getting a huff in response. Without any hesitation, the vixen quickly ducked behind a set of boxes to avoid a cloudrunner patrol passing by. Once they cleared and were out of sight, the vixen stepped out and made her way down one of the many alleyways of the city, with even more shops that lay hidden within. Many of them were food vendors who offered all kinds of charred and salted meats, fruits, and vegetables.
As all these things were grabbing the vixen's attention, many of them being sights she had scarcely seen outside of the fortress, she failed to notice the towering figure walking into her, knocking her to the ground. Luckily it kept her hood over her head and her other features hidden. "S-sorry." she said as she climbed back to her feet, only to be pushed down again.
"Get out of the way, urchin." a venomus voice spoke.
Krystal lept back to her feet and backed away from the voice, making sure her footing was solid as she stood away from this figure.
The figure before her towered over the vixen, it was bi-pedal like herself only he was covered in dark red scales. His eyes were firey and glowed a erie green color, bits of embers could be seen in his breath. He wore very heavy plate armor, sporting a large warhammer and a shiled strapped to his back. While Krystal was very angry with this fiend, she knew better than to start picking fights, and definitely knew better than to pick fights with warriors. She reluctantly stood up straight and gave the man an apologetic bow. "Sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going."
"See to it that you take better care next time, runt." He said before giving her a very sadistic grin. "Or else I might have you taste the business end of my hammer." he said, drawing the hammer and striking the ground at the vixen's feet, shaking it rather violently beneath her. The shock of the attack startled the vixen, making her fall back in fright and let out a loud yelp, both of which making the figure laugh. "Don't get in the way of us drakes, urchin." he laughed before walking away, putting the hammer onto his back.
The nerve of him. Krystal thought as she stood back to her feet, the fright she had made her foundation rather shaky. After her fright subsided and her shakiness left her, she continued down the alleyway and to another stall that was held many kinds of trinkets that seemed very different than what she was used to seeing. They all seemed to glow faintly, and seemed much more angular than rounded. Much to her surprise, the stall was operated by a male cloudrunner who looked at Krystal with a coy smile on his beak. "Greetings, Lady Krystal."
Krystal felt her heart stop momentarily, unsure what to think or even say at this point, she was almost certain that he was going to call the guards and have her returned to the palace... at least until he started laughing.
"Krystal..." the cloudrunner laughed, doing his best to stifle it. "... do you not reconize your friend, Chol?" he asked.
Krystal immediately relaxed and sighed, soon letting out a laugh herself. "Chol, you jerk!" she said to him. "You almost made me jump!"
"What can I say?" Chol said, putting his wings up in defense. "Don't see you very often anymore, gotta mess with you somehow."
"Well, Mother ended up increasing the security around the palace. Other than trying to keep me from sneaking out, I don't really know why." Krystal responded, crossing her arms. "You have any ideas?"
Chol stood silently for a moment as he pondered what to say to his friend, he looked Krystal in the eye. "You know that drake you just met?"
"Ah, him." Krystal responded, rolling her eyes. "What about him?"
"I don't know how much news you get in the palace, but I've heard rumors that the Legion of Drakes are allied with the Sharpclaws. The city guard has been even more active lately, setting up checkpoints and inspecting citiczens coming and going from Hulens. That guy is one of them."
"Why would they do that?" Krystal inquired.
"Don't know. Maybe they see something in the sharpclaws we don't?" Chol shook his head. "But what? The sharpclaws aren't all that smart."
"No they aren't." Krystal chuckled before looking down at Chol's wares, changing the subject. "But aside from that, what have you brought this time?"
Chol's eyes lit up as he showed off all his wonderous wares, necklaces and earrings decorated the stall as well as a few items that sat next to it. Krystal eyed everything intently and something peculiar caught her eye, down on one of the boxes next to the stall sat what appeared to be a thick gold wand, one with a gem situated on each side, one end with a very thick gem and on the other sat a crystal that was long and thin. Krystal inspected it carefully as she looked over each feature, it was made of gold with all kinds of decorative designs along the wand. The handle was about as long as her forearm. "Chol, what's this?"
"Ah, you know, I'm not sure to be honest." he said, looking at the trinket in Krystal's hands. "I found it inside a giant metal bird in the desert a long while ago."
"A metal bird?" Krystal asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, looked valuable but I couldn't find anyone to buy it." He finished before looking to Krystal, getting an idea in his head. "Say... how about you?" he asked excitedly.
"It's beautiful, and I do want it." Krystal said before looking into the pouch at her hip, letting out a sigh of disappointment. "But I don't have any more scarabs."
Chol looked disappointed but then shook his head. "You know what... why don't you just keep it?"
Krystal tilted her head and looked at Chol in confusion. "I couldn't just take it from you."
"Call it a "Good Friend Discount", for you exclusively." the cloudrunner laughed. "Besides, I've had it for so long and no one ever wanted it anyway... well except you, of course."
Krystal smiled and gave the cloudrunner a big hug before attaching the wand to her belt, making sure it was fastened securely before looking over the stall once again. "Got anything else for said discount?" she asked with a coy smile.
"Sorry, Krys." he said with a chuckle. "I can't give everything to you for free."
As if to interrupt their friendly transaction, a loud scream could be heard coming from the central plaza and the sound of an overturned stall with many items smacking the ground rang out in the alley. Krystal and Chol broke off from their conversation as the two went to investigate. When they arrived in the plaza, they saw the same drake Krystal encountered earlier, holding the same lightfoot vendor Krystal also met not that long ago by her throat. Accompanied with him were also two more drakes, both wearing the same heavy plate armor as the leader but with their helmets on, hiding their identies from everyone else.
"What kind of scam are you running here?" the drake said loudly and angrily. "No way is any of this trash worth what you're demanding I pay! Do you take me for a fool?!"
Krystal ran out of the alleyway and hid behind a barrel as she watched the event unfold, not wanting to draw any attention to herself.
The lightfoot was thrown to the ground with a loud thud before being kicked into her overturned stall. The lightfoot scrambled to her feet in her dizzy haze in an attempt to run but was grabbed once more by the large red drake.
"Do you know what I do to swindlers and thieves?" the drake asked as he drew his hammer, holding it up to the face of the terrified lightfoot.
Krystal tried to move out of her hiding spot in an attempt to intervene, but she was stopped by Chol who blocked her with his wing.
"Don't!" he wispered harshly. "You can't fight him!"
Krystal turned to see the drake raising his hammer above his head, the lightfoot now petrified in horror. Without even thinking, she shoved her friend aside and ran out from behind the boxes, grabbing a metal rod on her way before leaping over another box. Gripping the rod with both of her hands, she jumped towards the drake and attempted to strike the hammer out of his hand.
The drake saw this out of the corner of his eye and smirked before throwing the lightfoot at Krystal, knocking her out of the air and forcing her to the ground. "Stupid urchin." he said as he slowly walked over to the two.
As the lightfoot once again sprang to her feet, she quickly ran away, leaving Krystal behind in her wake. Krystal, in a daze slowly stood up off the ground as her hood fell off her head, revealing herself to everyone in the plaza and getting a few looks and stares from other onlookers. Dammit! she cursed to herself as she struggled to put her hood back on, only to be forced to dodge the swing of a giant hammer. Without a moment of hesitation, she took a fighting stance. Her entire body trembled as her gaze remained fixated on the intimidating drake before her.
"Ah, you're an odd one." he said, grinning at her. "Regardless, you're gonna pay for getting in the way of justice."
"Justice?!" Krystal spat loudly, gripping the metal rod tighter. "You were about to kill an innocent merchant!"
Without a moment of hesitation, the drake ran forward with incredible speed. He bashed Krystal with his shield and threw her aside as if she were nothing more than a doll. The vixen landed into a pile of crates, shattering most of them with the force of the impact. "A lot of talk coming from someone who's defending a price gouger."
Krystal coughed as she tried to get air back into her lungs, the force of the blow knocking the wind right out of her. She stood to her feet and quickly regained her bearings before grabbing the rod once more, running as fast as she could in an effort to strike him. Her vision tunneled and all she saw was red, her face only showed one emotion, and that emotion was rage as evident by her bared fangs.
The drake smirked once more as he used his hammer to strike the ground. On contact, the earth shook and without any warning, stalagmites formed and penetrated out of the ground, striking Krystal in the abdomen and quickly ending her charge. The vixen fell to the ground and was unable to stand back up this time, her body beaten and battered so quickly by this thug. "I admire your spirit, girl." he said as he put his shield away. "But you honestly think you can withstand the might of a paladin like me?" he said, the only response he received was that of an angry glare. He brought his hammer above his head once more and began to bring it down on the vixen's head.
Krystal shut her eyes in horror, knowing full well that she bit off more than she could chew and was going to die as a result. But as luck would have it, she could hear the sound of a struggling drake as he was shoved away from her. Krystal looked up and saw one of the city guards standing over her while another pinned the drake to the ground, ensuring he couldn't pick up his hammer again.
"Lady Krystal, are you alright?" the guard asked as he helped the vixen to her feet, her body trembling from both her fear and adrenaline. "Why are you outside of the palace?"
Krystal couldn't answer, her body was beaten and her breath was strained as all her strength had left her. She leaned on the guard and sighed before trying her absolute best to give him some kind of excuse. "I was... j-just..." she stammered, feeling her body get weaker.
The cloudrunner guardsman turned to the other and shouted "Take the drake to the lockup while I return Lady Krystal to the palace." he ordered.
The other guardsman gave a nod as well as a "Yes sir" before dragging off the drake with another group of guards.
Krystal didn't bother to protest her being returned to the palace, she was far too weak to do so before being picked up by a set of talons. The guardsman flew away with Krystal firmly grasped in his talons as other guardsmen tried to quell the chaos that followed the incident, ordering citizens to go about their day as they restored order.
Queen Kyte paced about the throne room in a fit of anger as she scolded Krystal, who had bandages on her face and arms and also sat quietly in the center of the room, staring at the floor. "How many times have I told you, Krystal, to never leave the palace?! Do I have to turn the palace into an inescapable prison?!" the queen scolded. "The first time was forgivable, you were only a child who had gotten lost."
"I'm sorry, Mother I-" Krystal tried to respond but was cut off.
"Many times after that, you snuck out to go off on some "adventure", and wouldn't return unless a guard brought you back here." The queen continued as she paced back and forth, guards watching in genuine shock as this was the first time they've ever heard Queen Kyte even raise her voice. "Now I learn you got yourself into a fight, with a drake! Not just any drake, a paladin!"
"Mother I didn't have a choice, he was about to kill a merchant."
Queen Kyte shook her head in response. "And he almost killed you instead! The guards would've been able to handle the situation if you had let them!"
Krystal shot up, her fist shaking in anger as well. "And where were they when that drake started causing trouble?"
Queen Kyte stayed silent, unsure of how to respond. Deep down, the queen knew Krystal was right and had she not intervened; the drake would have killed the merchant before the city guards had gotten there. She shook her head and sighed, slowly trying to dissipate her anger towards her adopted daughter. "I will give you that." she admitted before looking up to Krystal once more. "But the fact still remains, you know you're not allowed to leave the palace."
"Why?" Krystal asked, standing to her feet. "Why can't I go out and explore? Why must you keep me cooped up in this palace?" She asked, her voice shaking. "I'm tired of seeing the same walls every day, the same gardens every day, I've read nearly every book and scroll in the library... I want to see what lies beyond the palace and the city below."
"Krystal..." the Queen interjected "... the world is an extremely dangerous place for you."
"Why me? Why just me?"
Kyte quickly thought of something to say, but could come up with nothing but the same old excuse over and over, and it was one Krystal had heard many times especially when she asked the same questions. The cloudrunner queen was at a loss for what to say, she bowed her head and sighed once more before looking at Krystal in the eye. "I am sorry, my daughter, but you are not ready to know why."
Krystal stood up and stared down her mother, anger radiating off of her like a raging fire. The twinge that Queen Kyte could feel in her head made her feel very warm and somewhat dizzy, as though she had stood out in the sun for far too long. "What do you mean "I am not ready", Mother?!" Krystal shouted as she stepped forward. "I have spent my whole life wondering what the world looks like..." Krystal continued, her body shaking. "... reading maps, scrolls, and books only paint a vague picture."
"Krystal..." Queen Kyte said somberly. "... I know how much you want to see the world. I really do." She walked towards the angry vixen, looking back at her angry gaze. "But the dangers on the outside of the walls-"
"If you're talking about the sharpclaws, I'm not afraid of them." said Krystal.
"The sharpclaws aren't the only thing you'd have to worry about, even more now with war just on the horizon."
Krystal huffed in response, crossing her arms as she looked down at the ground. "And what if the palace get's attacked?" she asked, raising her voice once more. "What am I to do then?"
Queen Kyte shook her head, her mind already made up and there was no getting her to budge. "I've said it once before and I'll say it again, I forbid you from leaving the palace."
"And for how long?" she asked, half serious and half sarcastic. "Until I grow old?"
The queen sighed and decided it was time to end the conversation. She knew Krystal would react this way and had no qualms making her frustrations known. The queen looked towards a few of the Royal Guards and motioned for them to walk over to her.
"Yes, milady, what do you need?" one of the guards asked.
"Escort Lady Krystal to her chambers, do not let her out of your sight." Kyte said in a serious tone. "Ramp up security around the palace, don't let her sneak out again."
"Yes milady." the guard said before he ordered his unit to surround Krystal. "Let's move, Lady Krystal."
Krystal shook her head in anger as she was forced to turn around, begrudgingly walking with the guards back to her chambers. Before she walked out the door, she looked at Queen Kyte once more, shooting her a very angry glare before walking out in silence.
The silence within the throne room filled the air once more, the sound of the queen's footsteps the only thing being heard as they echoed off the walls. Kyte perched herself on the thrown and hung her head in silence, letting out an exhausted sigh. A long day of dealing with envoys from other kingdoms and tribes, along with the added stress that was Krystal's escapades on the outside of the palace began to take a toll on her. She could empathize with Krystal on such a level, being rather adventurous in her youth and even asking her mother about the wonders and places that lay beyond the palace. The difference being that Kyte was able to come and go at her leisure while Krystal was confined to the palace. The queen sighed once more as the thought crossed her mind.
I don't want to keep Krystal confined here for all her days. the queen thought, staring at the ground. But everything the scribes told me about her and her gift... surely Scales and Drakhon would be hunting for her. A morose look formed around the queen's beak as she looked forward. I can't risk her safety nor the safety of the world. Queen Kyte looked out towards the window, flying over to it and perching herself on a tree branch outside as she gazed up at the moon. I am sorry, Krystal. Please... just wait a little longer.
Krystal paced about in her chambers, muttering angrily to herself as she began to ponder the day's events. There was no sense in trying to escape again, as there were guards everywhere in the palace and many of them were patrolling the area around her chambers. The vixen sat down on her soft bed and slumped her shoulders, she always hated being confined to the palace and her chambers didn't make it much better. On the shelves that lined the wall by her bed were an assortment of many kinds of books, many that told stories of battles that had taken place eons ago on Sauria, stories of encounters with the mysterious Krazoa and the Krazoa spirits, as well as books that went down the history of the Cloudrunner tribe and the royal family. Krystal wasn't suprised to see she wasn't part of the family tree, when she entered her late-teen years it dawned on her that she shared far too many differences with her mother to be related in any biological sense. But Krystal always took to calling the queen "Mother" as she was raised by her, in her mind it was suitable.
Along other parts of the wall sat one of the first bows she had ever made, the queen thought it was important to learn how to use a bow much like how the sharpclaw and lightfoots did. Krystal always recalled the time she almost accidentally shot one of the guards during a training exercise, frightening him enough to where he had to excuse himself for the rest of that day.
The vixen looked outside her bedroom window, gazing out at the night sky and the stars that kept it alight. Of one of the few things she did enjoy about the palace, it was the ability to look out at the sky at night and see all the stars unhindered and undisturbed. On nights like this, Krystal would often let her mind go adrift and get lost in her thoughts and imagination. Many of the things she wondered about were the strange lands on Sauria as described in her books, only fueling her desire to see what they were with her own eyes. But for whatever reason it would be, Queen Kyte would never venture beyond the palace, but it sure didn't stop her from trying.
Whenever Krystal snuck out, she would never go beyond the city gates. She always believed it was too risky, despite her hatred for being confined to the palace. But the temptation was always there, gnawing at her like an annoying itch under the skin. The view from the palace wasn't enough to sate her curiosity, she just had to know, she would just have to wait for her opportunity to see what lies beyond the cloudrunner domain.
Krystal soon let out a loud yawn before moving away from her window and then over to another side of her chambers, moving behind a folding screen to quickly change into her nighttime clothes. She decided that tomorrow was another day, and hopefully she would be able to convince her mother to let her out and about despite the futility of the thought. Without any hesitation, Krystal rolled into her bed and pulled the covers over herself, resting her head on her pillow and slowly drifting off into sleep.
On one end of the bed sat the strange rod she was given by her friend Chol, as the vixen slept the gems on both ends of it seemed to glow a light blue color before fading out entirely. The silence in the room was slowly filled with the soft sounds of garbled speech and chirps from an unknown entity. She is the one. the entity said just before fading out of the room, silence becoming the norm once more.
Krystal slept soundly, completely unaware of the journey that lay ahead of her and the day that would grant her the opportunity she so desperately craved, but at what cost?
In the business, we call this foreshadowing.
Well, I am going to end this chapter here as it was getting a little harder to continue and I didn't want to make it too long. Let me know how this turned out, leave your thoughts and ideas if you'd like, I'd greatly appreciate it.
See you all for the next chapter, peace out!