Note: Title reference is apparent.

I will be touching on one of Duran's serious flaws, though this eventually leads to him and Angela getting closer. It also is one of the beginning steps for Duran himself to grow into a more mature person.

Also, sort of combining the moves of both the golems and Secret of Mana's Killroy boss. Though traits from that will be more evident in the second set of golems that the characters fight.

I've had someone say that the original game is "vanilla" and that they like the expansions and details I'm adding. That's one of the biggest compliments I could receive, so thank you!

Battle on the Big Bridge

"Soooo... rerun by me why you went to Wendel again."

Duran sighed. "I went to see if I could find out how to become stronger."

"That's it?" Angela questioned Duran, turning to face her.

"What do you mean 'hat's it?" he asked in turn. "I'm dead serious."

"No, I don't doubt that." the young, violet-haired woman answered. "But...just how do you, you know, do that? I mean, if I have to be honest," she held her wand tightly in her hands. "Mine is a little more...tangible, you know?"

"But you were seeking the same thing," Duran told her. "How to improve and strengthen your...magic." he put an unimpressed sounding emphasis, seeing as he had yet to see much of any from her. True, she had displayed some feats of it, yet they were far and far between. And even more, they were somewhat unpredictable. "Though, didn't you say you were already a 'skilled magician'?"

"And I am." Angela huffed. "I just want to get stronger, that's all. Same as you. And, as you've seen, I CAN do it." she attested. "I just...need some more practice. In testing my skills and broadening my horizons, that's all."

Duran wasn't buying it, but still, whatever she had traveled to Wendel for was her own business. For now, the only thing he had control of was the matter of becoming stronger himself.

Of which, thus far, had been unsuccessful. And if not for his current situation, he wouldn't have even considered returning to Valsena until he had completed his task. He heard Faerie sigh from inside him, he sighing in turn. They were still in conflict, yet the others' minds were not changing.

And for Duran, he had little incentive to turn back, yet also to move forward. For once, they stepped through the cavern's exit; there it lay: a large, wooden bridge that allowed those who wished to safely travel back and forth between the various points in the kingdom. At least, it used to, given the group of Chobin Hoods the two humans escaped from. The canyon was massive and so deep that looking into its depths was known to trigger dizzy spells, while the surrounding rock was colored a deep red. Given the clear land division and abundance of stone, this place was aptly known as the Stonesplit Gap.

"All right." the young soldier began. "We cross this, and we'll be right at the kingdom's doorstep after a little more."

"Good." Angela groaned. "My whole body hurts…."

Really, how did she manage to keep that shape of hers? Well, whatever. There were other matters at hand. Approaching the bridge, the two stepped on, yet it was then that a twinge came to them, hair rising on the back of their necks and nerves on high alert. Something was amiss. Drawing out his sword and Angela holding out her wand, the two looked around, only to see nothing-

"My, my." a familiar voice suddenly spoke, the two's eyes widening upon seeing him emerge in a veil of red light. "What's this? A roving pair of children?" the crimson-cloaked wizard folded his arms, centering his gaze on Duran. "Still as ready and eager as ever, I see. A little more muscle mass, perhaps, yet not much else," he smirked. "Far from the appearance that I'd think of when I hear of a 'mighty warrior.'"

Duran gritted his teeth. "A fine time to show yourself, you bastard." he snarled.

"Indeed." then, several Altenan mages emerged from behind the large rocks that lined the path to and from the bridge, each with their staves at the ready.

"Lord Koren!" one amongst the mages shouted. "Shall we apprehend the Princess?"

Princess? Duran and Faerie focused on Angela, whose eyes widened in horror. "Not at the moment." the wizard, Koren, answered, waving his hand to signal them to lower their wands. He then allowed his violet eyes to fall onto the daughter of his "darling" Queen. "Not until we give the dear a big congratulations for playing her part in this small but important point of this operation."

Astoria

"What do you mean that they were taken?!" Hawkeye demanded, the bearded man before them recounting what he had previously said.

"Exactly that! Those birds just came down and swooped both of them up!" the Mayor huffed and heaved.

Elisa's hands came to her face, falling to her knees as she wailed. "Oh, my baby! My Ralphie! Oh Goddess, my Ralphie!"

Charlotte was no better, seemingly unable to process what she was being told. Just then, she sprinted off through the exit of the once-thriving village. "Charlotte! Wait!" Kevin called out, yet she was long gone. "Charlotte!" Despite Hawkeye's and Riesz's protests to wait, the beastman took off after her, both now gone from sight.

Lovely. Riesz thought. A potential source of information was gone to who knew where, and it was clear that after news like this, no one was willing to go outside Astoria's borders.

"Let go of me!" save for one woman. Looking in the direction of the voice, both the Princess and thief could see Elisa being restrained by several townsfolk, though even with multiple people holding her, it was clear they were having a difficult time.

"Are you crazy?!" a man among those holding her said. "You're bound to get yourself caught, or even worse out there!"

"Then that's a chance I'm willing to take!" she argued, struggling to get out of their grip. "Get off! I-I'll stomp on you if I have to!"

"All right, all right, calm yourselves!" Riesz suddenly commanded, sensing that this was getting out of hand. "There's no need to get frantic!"

"And who are you, lady?" one of the men asked. "I don't see any badge or symbol of authority on you!"

"At least that guy says he's the Mayor!" another said, gesturing to the bearded man still on the ground. "Who are you?!"

It was perhaps unbecoming of her, yet even then, Riesz had to admit that there was only such much someone could take. "Enough!" she shouted, slamming her lance on the ground. "If you're so curious, then I shall tell you who I am!" what was called next sent shockwaves throughout the crowd, everyone going silent and still. "Before you stands Riesz, Crown Princess of the Kingdom of Laurent and Captain of the Amazon Guard!"

Hawkeye's breath nearly caught in his throat, amber eyes wide in shock. A captain? And even more, a Princess no less?! Yet, nothing he had seen from her indicated such a thing! True, if he had to admit, she did seem like she had a broom stuck up her ass at times, yet besides that, from what he had seen from her, her behavior and demeanor...such bravery and stalwartness...it was nothing like all those upper-class fat cats and rich folks that he had gleefully swiped from. He was just as shocked as everyone else. Sure, she had mentioned being here on behalf of Laurent, yet that didn't exactly translate to being, "Oh yeah, I'm the Princess of the said country!"

"L-Laurent?" Elisa questioned, her struggles lessening. "Then...why are you here?"

Riesz tightened her lips. "I'm here on...official business." She stated matter of factly, though Hawkeye could see the discomfort and shame in her features upon saying that.

"Please!" a man said, practically throwing himself at her feet. "Save us!"

"Yes! Save us!" another cried out.

"If anyone can, then the Amazons can!"

Soon, everyone began crowding around her, and Riesz began to regret speaking up. True, she had something in mind that would help everyone out of this predicament, but ultimately, she had not even started planning such a thing out. And with all these voices and pleadings, she found herself instead swarmed. They were nothing like the soldiers under her command at all.

"Ok, ok, break it up!" she suddenly heard a male voice say, seeing, to her surprise, Hawkeye urging people to back away. "Give the lady some room to breathe!" to her surprise, while it was slow at first, some did begin to back away, though one woman came forward.

"Is it true?" Elisa asked, steadily approaching the young woman. "You...you are who you say you are?"

Riesz averted her gaze for a moment, the intensity of the mother's eyes a little too much to bear. "Yes. I have no reason to lie to you."

"Then...then please!" the woman fell to her knees, clutching the ends of the blonde's dress. "Please, help. Help my son," she begged, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Help us."

Riesz was silent, looking at all the villagers who had their eyes on her. And, to her shock, she looked upon the violet-haired thief, who, seemingly surprised at the revelation of her identity, looked upon her with a sense of reassurance. Blind reassurance, perhaps, but still, the support was evident. And despite her stance on him, she reciprocated it nonetheless.

Stonesplit Gap

Duran found the grip on his sword loosening a bit, directing his attention to Angela, who continued to look upon the wizard, apparently named Koren, with shocked eyes. "Wh-What are you talking about?" she asked.

"Oh, come now." Koren continued. "Don't you remember? I told you of our future conquest of Valsena and the other world kingdoms," he smirked, reveling in the fury that flared up in Duran's eyes. "And how you eagerly wished to accept the request to weed out any potential adversaries, great or small."

The young soldier centered his gaze on Angela. "No! No, he's lying!"

"The hell are you saying?!" Duran shouted at Koren, who folded his arms over his chest.

"I'm saying that she's been playing you for a fool, little boy." the wizard chuckled. "She traveled to Wendel to find the Light Stone and the Elemental to secure it for our cause."

"Hey!" Lumina suddenly emerged. "I'm not up for grabs of that kind!"

"Which she seems to have succeeded in doing so," Koren observed. "And now, she's led you right into our clutches. Rather fortunate that you two happened to run into each other, isn't it?"

Duran only looked to Angela. "You...you…" he stammered, steadily growing furious. "You dirty liar!"

"What?!" the young woman shouted, yet was cut off from continuing further.

"You dirty, good for nothing liar!" he continued. "I knew it! I KNEW that something was up with you the moment I saw you! How you beat around the bush whenever I asked you what you were doing in Jadd!"

"Hey, I have nothing to do with this-"

"It'd only make sense that you would be friends with that bastard there!" the soldier pointed to Koren, who had a satisfied smile.

"Hey, he and I are NOT friends!" Angela retorted. "He's the one who-"

"Oh, save it! No use trying to save face now! You're all scum! Every single one of you, scum!"

It was then that Duran noticed something in the young woman's eyes. The beginning of tears. But no, he said. She was just acting. After all, that wizard, Koren, outright said it. Then why are you having doubts about it? Faerie asked from inside him, though he brushed her question aside. He had heard it himself; Angela had helped set this whole thing up! She was a liar and a damned fiend just like all these other Altenan mages! Look again. Despite his mind being made up, he saw Lumina wiping a tear from the young woman's eye. How could such an act fool him of all beings? He's not omniscient. Faerie agreed. But I think being born near the beginning of time allows someone to be a relatively good judge of character.

But… Duran protested, unable to argue against such statements, but what he had come to believe in remained. But she...he said…

"Now then, dear Princess," Koren said, both Angela and Duran hearing the sound of far heavier footsteps from either side of the bridge. Then, a stout figure of chrome metal made its way in front of the wizard, its arms defined by thin but strong iron bars with rounded joints and what appeared to be golden boxing gloves. Its head was composed of a coned head with horns on both sides, this serving as something of a 'hat' for it as its actual head was a darker shade with large, white eyes. "It's time to come home."

Rabite Forest

"Charlotte! Charlotte, wait!" Kevin called out, tailing the girl that, despite her size, was surprisingly fast.

"Mik!" she shouted, looking all around desperately. "Walph!"

"Charlotte!" Finally, he caught up to her, taking her in his hold and keeping her from running anywhere else. "Charlotte, don't."

"Wet go! I gotta-"

"Dangerous out here," Kevin told her. "You could be snatched up too."

"I don't cawe!" the half-elf proclaimed, distraught and not thinking straight. "Wet me go! I...I gotta…" she struggled, kicked, and hit at the beastman's tanned, muscular arms. Yet ultimately, she realized that it was pointless, both trying to fight him and going after the two boys. Besides, what direction would she even go anyway? Those birds could've been anywhere at this point. She freely let moisture fall from her eyes with little else she could do. Kevin was somewhat taken aback; he now had a wailing young girl in his hands. He averted his eyes from her, pondering what to do.

"Um...it-it's ok." he uneasily said. True, he had seen to comfort her before, yet she wasn't exactly exploding with tears then.

"No!" she shouted. "No, it's not!"

"...you...you're right." Kevin sighed. "It's not. It's not ok." she continued to weep audibly. "But…" he wished to say 'it will be.' to her, yet honestly, he found himself unable to display so with any certainty. Thus, he found himself unable to say anything, Charlotte having taken from fighting him to clinging to him, burying her face in his chest.

So much for trying to do any good. She thought to herself. Not only did you get Heath captured by that Jester, but Mik and Ralph are now in trouble. Good job, pipsqueak.

Unknown to them; however, a small pair of eyes saw the two, his form concealed in the bushes. This has gone on long enough. he thought. He would still need to get some things together, yet as far as he was concerned, he couldn't stand by and let things go the way they had been.

Stonesplit Gap

The golem extended its arms and blasted the ends right towards them, boxing gloves glowing and flying rapidly. Both Duran and Angela moved out of the way, yet they were then forced to duck as the gloves flew over their heads in an attempt to strike them before returning to their owner.

Wait. Duran thought. Why are they attacking her?

Indeed, why? Faerie responded. Do you get it now?

His error dawned on him, yet before he could say anything, the bridge creaked as a relatively large amount of weight was suddenly placed on it, the golems having made their way onto it and inching ever closer towards them.

"Make sure the Princess is taken alive," Koren told one of the mages. "I have business with His dear Majesty."

Dear majesty?! The young, Valsenan soldier rushed towards the wizard. "Don't you dare lay a hand on the king-" Duran got no chance to finish as he received a punch to the face by the golem in front of them, sending him flying back several feet and landing, quite literally, against the other golem on the other side. He then felt a blow meet the back of his head, sending him face-first into the boards composing the bridge. Angela began to run towards him, yet, to her shock, a small missile came and blew a rather large hole in a few boards, separating the two, yet the bridge remained standing. Looking up, Duran became aware that Koren was long gone. "Damn!" he shouted, slamming his fist on the boards beneath him.

"Take your hands...gloves off me!" he suddenly heard someone shout. "Let me go! Help!" Duran looked to see Angela in the grip of one of the golems, desperately struggling to get out of its grasp. "Let go, let go, LET GO!" she demanded, raising her wand and banging it over the automaton's head, yet all it did was bounce off; she mentally kicked herself for being so stupid. But, of course, wood would have no chance against metal!

Now's your chance! Lumina communicated to her. Call me! Use my power! Angela held her wand and tried to concentrate; she was slowly carried to the other side of the bridge to the mages waiting for her arrival. She held hard onto the crafted wand, clutching and gripping to where she could've sworn that her knuckles would burst through her skin, yet still, nothing happened. You're trying too hard again, hun! the Light Elemental told her. Let it come to you naturally.

"I-I'm trying!" Angela shouted aloud; despite it having no effect, she began to bang her wand on the golem's cone-shaped head again. "I can't do it!"

Yes, you can! Lumina assured. I feel it! You have the power to do so!

A lot of good that was doing her right now! Just then, she saw Duran lunge forward and strike the backside of the golem, though his swings proved to be just as effective as her strikes with her wand.

BZZT!

At least, until he hit one particular spot.

A panel was positioned in the upper back of the automaton, and when the young soldier struck it, it seemed that its movements seized up and began to spasm and shake. I think that might be a spot of interest. Faerie remarked, Duran agreed, and he went to strike it again.

WHAP!

Only to be sent back by the golem spinning around, its upper portion whirling around at a near blindingly fast pace while its lower part remained still, the two sections separate from each other with the upper half able to perform actions independent of the other.

SNAP!

Despite her nausea and whiplash from the rapid spending, Angela heard something coming apart, and in the brief intervals she passed by, she saw that some of the ropes that held the bridge up had been severed. Of course, they were in the relative middle of the bridge, so it only felt like a little bit of a dip, but it just took a few cut ropes to make such a difference meant trouble for all of them, golems included.

"What are they doing?!" one of the mages shouted, clearly bewildered by what they saw. "Don't they realize that they're destroying the bridge?!"

"Their sole objective is to seize the Princess and take out any potential threats regardless of the danger they faced!" another declared, steadily realizing that there were notable flaws not accounted for in the construction of these machines. "They're going to bring down the entire bridge at this rate!"

Duran's head was sent for a spin as he watched the golem whirl around and around, trying to strike that particular area again. But then, he heard some buzzing from behind him, looking back to see the other golem shoot its gloves out, yet they were spinning around to where they resembled drills heading right towards him. Ducking down, the rapidly spinning fists missed their target. Instead, they struck its fellow automaton, the golem being flung back with its still turning arms, slicing through several other ropes and dislodging several boards from their places. The bridge began to dip more downwards, a precise amount of support more evident on the side nearest the cavern entrance than the other.

Rabite Forest

"Well, what should we do?" one of the hidden figures asked.

"You heard the boss!" another said. "We bring them here!"

"But...but we can't let outsiders inside! You know that-"

"I know that!" Another shouted. "But I also know this is bigger than a bunch of furry freaks taking over a city! Boss feels that way too. And not to mention, you heard what that one girl said about being from Laurent." the other with him was silent, contemplating what he had just said.

"Well...I guess you're right. But how do we get their attention?"

The former puffed out his chest and put on a showman's smile. "Leave that to me!" He hopped out of their hiding place, ready to implement their plan.

Nearby

Though still sniffling, Charlotte had begun to finally calm down, much to Kevin's relief, as frankly, Charlotte being out here with a bunch of noise was a recipe for trouble. But it was then that he had seen something in the corner of his eye.

"H-Hey." the blonde girl began, having seen it too. "What's that?" she gestured to a small shape on the ground. It was somewhat difficult to see at first, but after a few moments, both of them realized that what lay before them was what appeared to be a tiny humanoid creature seemingly waving at them and hopping up and down. As if it wished to gain their attention. "Hey...I know what that is," she said, still upset, a new sense of surprise was consuming that. "It's a...a…" she stammered, trying to remember what exactly the creature was called. "It's a Kowopokkurw"

"Kowo...what?" Kevin asked, the word practically twisting his tongue.

"Kowopokkuw!" Charlotte repeated.

"Oh, you mean a...Koropokkur?"

"That's what I said. Kowopokkuw." she affirmed.

Ok. Let her have it her own way, Kevin thought. Still, the main question on his mind was, "What IS it?"

"It's a tiny wittwe pewson." Charlotte explained. "Kinda." she then thought a bit. "It's a wittwe more wike a faewie or pixie. Kinda?" she thought again. "Weww...it's more wike a tiny pewson with magic powews. At weast, that's what I heawd."

"What you heard?"

"Yeah. Evewybody awound hewe knows about Kowopokkuw. I heawd that they sometimes visit good boys and giwls and weave pwesents undew theiw piwwows."

"Oh please!" the small humanoid then shouted, clearly offended. "What do you take us for?! Some sort of off-brand Tooth Faerie!?"

"Um...sorry?" Kevin apologized, though it was then that it appeared the tiny creature had a realization and then began to run off.

"What the-" Kevin began, yet Charlotte leaped out of his arms and gave chase to the tiny creature.

"Hey, don't wun off!"

"Charlotte! Wait!" The beastman took off after the more petite girl, both completely unaware of the several eyes watching them as they made their way after the lone Koropokkur, the one that had orchestrated this entire operation among them and watching with satisfaction.

Indeed, after all these generations, humans (or human-like beings) displayed some of the most curious behaviors, regardless of age.

Stonesplit Gap

"They're out of control!" one of the mages cried out, horrified at what she was witnessing.

"Lord Koren will murder us for this!" another replied, falling to her knees as she watched the spectacle. "He wants her back alive and intact!"

"By this rate, the Princess will be killed by sheer accident!"

"Hell with that!" another then said. "I'm not going to end up as a sacrifice to the stone!" Just then, she and several others on either side began to move onto the bridge.

"W-Wait! What are you doing?! Stop!" their comrades begged, yet their pleas fell on deaf ears like those on the bridge charged forward. Then, unfortunately, the mages that had gone for the automatons were blown off their feet by the whirling motions of one of them, sending several off the bridge, and those that managed to avoid its spinning immediately went back to more steady ground.

Duran waited for the automaton to stop spinning so that perhaps he could strike that particular place of weakness he had gotten a lucky strike on before. Slowly but steadily, the golem stopped whirling around, Angela limp on its shoulder, looking as if she were mere seconds away from vomiting. Seizing his chance, the soldier lunged forward and struck the panel, the golem spasming and seizing up again; Duran kept hitting the area, seeing that this metal portion was far thinner than the rest of its body. But then, he heard something tearing through the air behind him. Ducking under one of the other golem's fists sent it unintentionally smashing the back of its twin, sending it falling to the bridge and tearing through the board, yet was held up by one near its head and the other by its lower half. Duran went forward and saw that the panel had been wholly smashed; he worked at prying it off and, once he succeeded, saw several winding gears and mechanics spinning and whirling around inside. He didn't even entirely think it through; all that was in his mind was getting Angela out of her current predicament. He had to make this right.

'Who, hey! What are you doing?!' Faerie proclaimed, yet it was too late. He rammed his sword into the helical gears and components, the golem rearing back and releasing its grip on Angela, flinging her behind him; she landed on her stomach, groaning in nausea and pain. Duran was about to turn to aid her, yet he found his sword stuck. 'See? I told you!' Faerie told him, Duran realizing his mistake in acting so rashly. The grip on his sword was challenging to maintain, said sword being turned this way and that. The sword's wielder struggled with all his might to pull the weapon from inside the android, yet, to his horror, he heard a telltale, heart-stopping CRACK! And when he finally could pull the sword out, he fell on his back; when he did so, he saw that a good chunk of the upper half had been completely torn off.

His father's sword... wholly ruined! And because of his idiot self! Could this get any worse?!

Angela looked up to see the other golem approaching her, its weight causing the bridge to dip downward; she felt the boards below her accommodate for the added mass is applied. She knew by now that it'd be useless, yet from her position on the ground, she got to her knees and held out her wand, feeling, once again, nothing. Just what was she doing wrong?! Lumina's advice wasn't helping her! Just what was she supposed to do?! Just then, however, a beeping was heard from the fallen golem, its armor seemingly glowing red.

"Its self-destruct feature is being activated!" one of the mages shouted in terror. "Run for it!"

Self-destruct?! Duran rushed forward and took Angela by the wrist with the intent to make it off the bridge, yet the other golem was still there, inching its way towards them, completely oblivious to what its twin was about to do. Trying to maneuver to the side of it, Duran held onto one of the ropes holding up the bridge and ducked to the side; he and Angela were able to move past it and make it to the other side of it.

Not that, as they found out, it would do any good.

BOOM!

The explosion was ear-shattering and near-deafening, the impact and force jostling everyone off their feet. The bridge was split in two, the halves falling apart and only hanging by the pillars that kept the entire bridge together. Duran and Angela were sent swinging wildly until they hit the side of the canyon that which half of the bridge was attached. Duran held onto the rope that held the boards up for dear life, Angela having no support save the firm grip of the soldier's hand on her wrist. She was left practically dangling, her legs kicking and swinging, vainly trying to move them to one of the boards to squeeze in between so at least she would have something semi-under her feet. Duran had little balance, only able to have one foot upon the side of a board, yet nonetheless, he tried to pull her up. His compromising position only allowed him to use one arm, so he couldn't travel upwards toward solid ground.

"You're going to have to find something to support yourself!" he shouted to Angela, the young woman panicking and lost in fear. "Grab the side of the bridge! Get a rope!"

"I can't!" she responded. "I…" she then remembered the wand in her hand. Of course! Reaching it, she could snag onto a rope and draw it closer to her. Just nearly there...closer, closer, closer… "AH!"

To both of their horror, Duran's grip was overpowered, he and Angela seeing that the remaining golem had seized the Princess by the ankle, and the added weight proved too much for the soldier's grip. So the young woman and her captor plummeted, falling, down, down until a resounding splash echoed throughout the canyon, she and her captor disappearing in the ever-going current of the expansive river below.

Note: I mainly added the portion with Koren saying Angela was with them as he wanted to mess with Duran and having rather intense hostility towards Angela that'll be expanded on later.

Also, the whole section with Domperi will be put in sooner as there's no point in having the characters go all the way somewhere to turn around then and go back for one thing to pad out the game.

With that, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope to see you later!