Author's Note: The following story is a fleshed out take of Different Course of Fate. Reading that one first is not necessary, however. In any case, I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 1 – The Unexpected Guest
The sun shone high over the continent of Elyos. Over at the Holy Land of Lythos, its soldiers kept ever vigilance around the island-nation's shores, always on the lookout for any unwanted visitors. Over at one of the outposts at the northeast, the assigned garrison's captain sat in his office, papers laid out before him atop the desk. He had been working through them since the morning, and was still far from being done as the day was now past the midday.
A sudden knock on the door would make him pause, glancing up from the papers towards the door.
"Come on in," he said.
The door would open up immediately after, and a soldier entered the room. He walked up to stand on the opposite side of the desk, before making a salute.
"Captain, I come bearing news!"
"Out with it, soldier," the captain said.
The soldier brought his arm back down, standing straight.
"Lone wyvern, sir, coming from northeast," he reported.
The captain rose an eyebrow, a bit skeptic.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, sir," the soldier nodded. "No signs of any others or a ship being nearby."
The captain narrowed his gaze. That certainly sounded odd.
"Have the griffons been dispatched?"
"Yes, sir, they're course-bound to intercept."
"Good," the captain nodded with satisfaction. "You're dismissed."
The soldier made another salute, before turning around and walking back out. The captain, alone once again, stood up and walked over to the window. He gazed out onto the ocean, pensive.
If there was no ship in sight… did the rider truly flew here from the mainland? He wondered. Then there's no other place they could've come from but Elusia. An Elusian, here in Lythos? That'd be the first.
He scoffed, but shortly after frowned.
Still, just what could possibly bring them here, seemingly alone…
Over the ocean not far from the shore the dispatched griffon knights, five in total, soon had the incoming wyvern rider in sight. Their weapons were drawn out, ready to act if needed. The lone rider, upon seeing them approach, ordered their mount to a halt. Seeing this, the griffon knights did the same, forming a horizontal line meters away. After this, the Lythians took a good look at the individual.
The rider was a young woman. At first glance it was clear she was no mere commoner. Her attire was certainly elegant-looking, if a bit… eccentric. Perhaps its most eye-catching detail was the fascinator atop her head, from which well-groomed long purple hair cascaded down her back and over her shoulders at the front. She rode the wyvern in side-saddle, which was adorned with roses all over to match her. She had a dour-looking expression on her face, but it did little to detract from her appearance. All in all, she made for a stunning sight, and even one of the griffon knights couldn't help but blush. She held no weapon, but this did not make the Lythians withdraw theirs. The flight leader ordered her griffon to get closer, until she was almost face to face with the girl.
"You're Elusian, are you not?" She asked.
"Yes, I am," The girl's reply was as stoic as her gaze.
The flight leader frowned.
"What business brings you to the Holy Land, Elusian?"
"I seek audience with the Divine Dragon Monarch."
The flight leader's eyes widened in surprise, as her squadron behind her began to murmur between them.
"An audience with Her Majesty?" She repeated, skeptical. "You flew all the way from Elusia for this reason?"
"Evidently," the girl said matter-of-factly.
The flight leader's gaze narrowed, but did not spoke further.
"Will this interrogation be long?" The girl now asked herself, a hint of irritation present in her voice. "If so, can we be allowed to land at least? I would rather let my wyvern rest her wings."
The flight leader knew she had a point. If they had indeed flown over from the mainland, then the mount had to be quite tired by now. Besides, that was a job best left to the captain anyway.
"Very well," the flight leader nodded.
With her free arm she then signaled her squadron behind her. The other griffon knights flew out, until they had the girl surrounded. The latter did not even glance away, likely already understanding the maneuver.
"Follow us," the flight leader told her.
Said that, she ordered her griffon to turn around. The now group of six flew back to land.
The garrison captain was back to sitting before his desk. However, it was not the papers where his attention lied. Rather, it was to the girl sitting across. Like the flight leader before him, hearing her intentions had left him… a bit perplexed.
"I must admit, Miss… Ivy, was it?"
The girl, Ivy, simply nodded.
"Right, as I was saying, I must admit this is certainly an odd occurrence."
"I am aware," Ivy said. "But I had to come here as soon as possible. Even if it meant doing it this way."
"To see Queen Lumera," the captain stated.
"That is correct," Ivy nodded.
The captain began to stroke his beard, pensive. Like with the preliminary report, the griffon knights had not reported any sign there was any other soul nearby. Just the girl and her wyvern.
To have come alone, with the intention of approaching Queen Lumera, he mused. Either this is some sort of ruse… or she's telling the truth.
The captain had to admit the latter sounded more likely, despite her being an Elusian. If she had indeed come with the intention of harming the Divine Dragon Monarch, she either had a death wish or had some kind of crazy trick up her sleeve to pull it off and escape alive. To the girl's credit, she had agreed to have her things searched, so the latter outcome was starting to seem unlikely.
Regardless, one can never be sure with these Fell Dragon worshippers.
"So, what kind of business do you seek with Her Majesty?" The captain asked next.
"I bring urgent news," Ivy answered, "that the Divine Dragon Monarch must be told about as soon as possible. There is no time to delay."
"What kind of news?"
"I would rather tell Her Majesty directly, if you do not mind."
The captain rose an eyebrow.
Is she that determined to see Queen Lumera with her own eyes? He wondered. I suppose it's not every day one has the opportunity. Much less so someone like her.
In the end, he nodded.
"Very well, so far you've given me no reason to doubt your intentions. I'll have word sent ahead of your arrival."
"Thank you," Ivy said.
"There are some things to handle before you can be allowed deeper into Lythos, however. They won't take long; you have my word."
"I see…"
Her tone was neutral, but it was clear the girl was displeased to be made to wait further.
"In the meantime, you must be famished after the long flight over the ocean. You're free to visit the mess hall," the captain suggested.
"I must admit I did not bring with me much in terms of provisions. I accept your offer."
"Good," the captain nodded.
He then glanced to the side and behind Ivy, towards the soldier posted by the door.
"Please escort the young lady to the mess hall," he ordered.
"At once, sir!" The soldier saluted. "Please follow me, Miss."
Ivy stood up.
"You'll be notified when you can depart," the captain told her.
"I will be waiting," she nodded.
With that she left the room, following after the soldier. Alone once again the captain stood as well, in order to stand by the window once more. His mind was going through what he learned just now.
Urgent news… Are they concerning Elusia's current conflict with Brodia?
It was not unknown to Elyos as a whole of King Morion's ambitions of conquest, befitting Brodia's label as the Kingdom of Might. With being convinced to sign a non-aggression treaty with Firene it only left them one venue of expansion: Elusia. Previous incidents between both countries had further justified the decision. Though many battles have been had, they've yet to have a breakthrough. King Morion was far from giving up, however.
Have things become so dire an Elusian would be desperate enough to seek Her Majesty's help?
The captain frowned. If the girl had not been here, the idea would've sounded ridiculous. Yet, was that the truth? He sighed. One thing seemed apparent, though. Whatever her intentions were, it may not be one shared by the rest of the country, as indicated by her method of arrival. It all pointed to being the act of a lone agent.
The captain withdrew from the window to sit back down. He began to work once more on the papers, though his mind wasn't fully set on the task anymore. Respecting the girl's wish he was not going to pry further about her intentions, but he knew it would nag him so to remain unknowing of them. He continued his work for a few minutes, before another soldier walked in.
"Captain!"
The captain glanced back up to see the soldier salute, before standing straight.
"We've finished the inspection, sir," the soldier said.
"And?"
"All clear, nothing suspicious was on her belongings."
"That's good to hear," the captain nodded.
"There was a magic tome, however."
The captain hummed, but was not surprised. It was understandable, after all, if the girl had brought something to defend herself with. He could trust so long she did not carry it on her person while in audience with Queen Lumera, there was nothing to fear.
"Is that all?" He asked.
"Well, there is one more thing, sir. Took us by surprise, it did."
"Oh?" The captain rose an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued.
"You see, also among her belongings was…"
The mess hall was not crowded, only a few soldiers were currently present. A small group was seated by one of the central tables. They've long finished their meals, and were now engaging in conversation.
"Look at her," one of them said, his face a sneer.
He had spared a brief glance towards one of the more remote tables of the room, by a corner. Sitting alone was Ivy, still eating her own meal. The way they were all seated, they were watching her from behind her back.
"An Elusian, here, in the Holy Land," the same man continued.
"Yeah, what was the captain thinking," another man scoffed.
"I don't buy her story," a third, a woman, added as she frowned. "She should not be allowed near Her Majesty."
"I get what you mean," the last of them said. "Just look at her. She must be a blue blood. I've heard the stories about the Elusian courts. You can't trust them."
"You can't trust those Fell Dragon worshippers, period," the first man added, tapping the surface of table with his finger with the last word. "Why have they been allowed to do so, I don't know. It should've been nipped in the bud once it was clear what was happening."
"Hah, that's true. Still, it's still not too late. I do hope King Morion gets to wipe them out," the second man said with glee. "Elyos would just be better off without them."
"Shhhh, pipe down," the woman glanced around, looking alarmed. "We mustn't voice such thoughts out loud."
"Bah, it's not as if we're the only ones thinking that on this outpost alone," the first man scoffed.
"She has a point, though," the last one said. "We can still get in trouble with the captain if word reaches him."
"Fine, we'll drop the matter for now," the second man said. "Not that it makes it any better, knowing the Elusian will be leaving for the castle."
"Quite," the woman crossed her arms, frowning. "Whatever she came here to do, she better not be wasting Her Majesty's time."
"Yeah, and the sooner she leaves, the better," the first man added.
A small chorus of agreements followed.
More than an hour later, Ivy stood outside next to her wyvern. Nearby was a group of griffon knights, having flown over from the castle. They had ordered their mounts to land, but had not dismounted themselves. Most of the garrison soldiers had gathered around upon their arrival, intending to watch things unfold. The captain currently stood in conversation with the flight leader. Before long their talk ceased, and he then walked over to the girl's side.
"It's all settled. They will escort you to the castle," he told her. "It should not take long to reach the castle."
Ivy nodded in understanding.
"I understand. Once again, you have my thanks."
"I just did my duty, Miss. Now go, Her Majesty awaits."
The girl wasted no time, mounting her wyvern. Upon seeing so, the other riders ordered their griffons to take off. The captain stepped back as the wyvern followed suit. As they gained altitude and began moving forward, the griffon knights surrounded Ivy in mid-air, weapons drawn. Everyone watched them leave, until they became dots in the sky.
No sooner the soldiers began to converse between themselves over what had transpired. Some took their leave as well while others stayed around still. The captain would do the former, making his way back to his office. Rather than heading for his desk right away, he went over to the bookshelf. He procured a specific book from it: A copy of the Dragon Scripture. He stared at it for a few seconds before sighing and placing it back in its place. He would then finally sit back down.
I suppose, it's never too late even for them…
With that thought in mind, he resumed his work.