They say that the darkest house is the worst house; the darkness that lurks in the pitch black abyss swallows you up, breaks you down and once you come out, nothing is the same! However, that is never the case, isn't it? Sometimes all it takes to illuminate the darkness is a little light. Vivian had memorized that saying like it was second nature. As she walked down a flight of stairs, the lights of a jewelry shop brightened her view and cast a shadow upon the land. From the day she obtained glasses to the first time she fired a gun, darkness had loomed over her, following her even when she had found the tiniest glimpse of light.
"I see the light from the restaurant has returned; do you think we'll have time to catch up on some reading before we go off to fight monsters? Oh! Maybe we can find a world with pictures; I hope they'd have something scary to take the edge away." Vivian let out as the black-haired girl opened up her backpack, unleashing a floating doll dawned in a wedding dress, offering the doll a smile as the sounds of footsteps echoed in the distance.
"I doubt this place has any good movies, unless your father gave us the wrong information? If I recall, it was to find a man with a large sword and a ninja and then try to find a way to another world and stop Miranda, and something else that I'm blanking on. However, I'm betting we'll have plenty of time to read more of "Be Strong, Love You!"" Angie declared, scratching her wooden face, as the doll wondered what they were going to do or how it could be done. All they had were two guns and too much information on future events that, sadly, spoiling her father's friends would break the timeline harder than Lady Alcina's ass.
"That sounds lovely, so the man with the sword should be easy to find; the ninja probably not. The other world thing sounds tricky in theory, but Father did mention something about a ship; I'd bet Mother would allow us to go sailing, even though we've never even escaped the grounds of House Beneviento, let alone dare the idea of swimming without proper training. What if we drown? Mother and Father wouldn't like that at all." Vivian let out, feeling her heart rate rise, as a quick slap from Angie brought her back to reality.
"Hey, one thing at a time, let's try one of these shops and see if the locals know anybody who owns a massive sword; surely they can't be that hard to find?" Angie declared, pointing over a shop that had two stories, a chimney with a fireplace, and a blond man. Vivian smiled, taking a breath, opening the door, hoping that this would be a good conversation and not something leading to drama and a fight. Oh? How Vivian wished she didn't have her mother's anxiety and lack of social awareness. She wished to be more like her father; he was kind and good with people, ready to fight and smile in order to make people feel good. Maybe if she smiled things would go well; at least it was a hopeful idea, as the black-haired girl pressed her fingers against her cheeks, forming a smile, proceeding to enter the shop.
—--
The first thing Vivian felt when she entered the shop was the feeling of warmth. It wasn't as warm as her house, but it had a soothing vibe that welcomed people inside and made her feel welcomed. At the counter was a blond man smoking a cigarette. Silently, she approached him, hoping that he could point her to the man with the sword. Vivian really wished her father had she had written names down, or at the very least gotten a better grasp of the memories that had faded from his mind. It would have been easier to deal with the people her father described as his friends. Although she couldn't blame her father, he had been a victim of time travel one too many times, enough for fate to steal everything from him except the ability to love and a few pieces of his past life, her current life. It was all the more reason to find people to help her defeat that bitch Miranda; she just needed to know how to get it done; the might of Lord Heisenberg would not be enough to vanquish Miranda.
"Hey, little girl, are you in there? Would you stop spacing out like that? It's creepier than the doll you're holding." Cid said, snapping his fingers, snapping Vivian from her thoughts. As the young girl looked at the blond-haired man, he looked worried about her, and now she had to respond to him in the best manner possible.
"I'm in here; I just don't know what to say, that's all! Wait a second, did you call Angie creepy? How dare you? I'll have you know that she is the prized possession of House Beneviento, and you shouldn't treat a Lady as herself like that." Vivian declared, feeling anger towards the shopkeeper, How dare he insult her beloved friend so cruelly? However, the anger didn't last, as the next thing she knew, she was being grabbed by the shopkeeper and tossed outside like a piece of trash.
"How dare you? Do you do this with all your customers or just the ones that have a grasp on the idea of friends, you short-tempered bastard?" Vivian shouted, walking away from the bright lights of the shop and its asshole. She could feel it; she had messed up and now had to find a new plan. All she had was that little shop and its owner being tied to her father in some capacity. Now all she had was the shadows, the darkness that birthed her, comforted her in the family's estate, and offered her the safety she needed until that fateful day Miranda came calling to demand her life. Vivian let go of Angie for a moment. As she pulled out her favorite book, she needed to take her mind off of things as she wandered into an abandoned house that looked quite enough to read and brainstorm ideas when she felt better.
"If only this book held the answer to our problems—how simple it would be to have a pair of hunters fighting alongside us—that would be the best thing to happen to us. Well, outside that time, Mother made us the flower garden. Sadly, I don't think fairytales are in our future, oh wondrous doll of mayhem and sinister smiles." Vivian whispered, holding the book closely to Angie, unaware of the footsteps approaching her empty house. Suddenly, a knock on the door boomed throughout the house as Vivian and Angie jumped at the noise. Vivian quickly put away her book, curious at who would be at the door and disappointed that she couldn't keep reading. The four maidens were about to venture forth into an underwater kingdom of fish and treasure.
"Hello, who is it?" Vivian whispered, quickly grabbing a small handgun from her backpack, peeping through the keyhole of the door, only to find a man wearing a bandanna, hauling an oversized backpack, and looking like a traveling salesman.
"Well, hello there, stranger! You look a little lost; care for a hand, stranger. I've got a selection of good things on sale, plus little information if you want it, mate." The Merchant declared, opening his jacket to reveal a selection of guns, knives, and an ammo pack. Vivian looked in awe at the man, but still felt nervous. What a trap it was to lure her out into the open and kill her. She didn't want to die, not until her parents were free of Miranda's rule.
"Oh, I see. Still scared, are we? Well, don't you worry, mate, the Duke, told me you needed some help from a stranger! Why don't you come out and chat for a bit? Don't worry, I'm a man of my work." The merchant said, taking his backpack off, and slowly began to set up a small pop-up table to make Vivian feel more comfortable and to set up shop.
Vivian took a look at the man once more; he seemed honest with her, and Angie did have her magnum loaded and ready to strike if things went wrong. Maybe it would be safe to see what the man had and, if not, hide in her empty house until he left.
"Ok, I'm coming out; you better not be lying to me; I'd rather not die today." Vivian shouted nervously, unlocking the door and stepping outside to see the merchant giving her a hearty laugh as he was rubbing his fingerless gloves together in delight.
"Oh, you don't have to worry about me, mate; as I told you, I'm a friend of the Duke! So why not take a second to calm down and look at my goods? I'm sure you'll find something you like, I promise." The Merchant exclaimed, handing Vivian a small used catalog that contained a set of prices for guns, gunpowder, normal bullets and the works. Vivian and Angie gazed in delight at the information in front of them; judging by their rough math, they could walk away with the pump action shotgun and a few shells, or be stocked with handgun bullets and a couple of magnum rounds.
"It's really hard to decide what to buy; you truly have tempting options. Also, this begs the question, What kind of information do you have, and how much would it be to learn where I can find the ninja and the swordsman?" Vivian whispered, taking a second to clean her glasses and gaze over the prices once more.
"Oh, the first round of information is free, Stranger! Consider it a gift for doing business and the willingness to buy something to kill that which is in the shadows, heh, heh! To start with, the sword you're looking for is in the first district; however, it is in our best interest to find the ninja; find that one, and the swordsman will quickly follow. However, one piece of news that was entrusted to me by your father was that the last piece of the puzzle you're needing. A key to saving your village is in the third district! Not much was mentioned beyond the fact that some kind of key was necessary to do battle against the evils along your journey that a simple gun couldn't solve, although in my opinion a gun seems to save everything." The Merchant exclaimed, tapping his fingers against the table, eying a sniper rifle that was in need of repair and the scope needing to be adjusted to sell to Vivian down the line if their partnership was to be fruitful.
"That's quite the plan, and I guess it will be worth a shot; what else do I have to lose beyond a few hours of my life? The ceremony is in a week anyway, so as long as I don't stress myself, everything sounds good in theory. So another question, if I may, how do you know the Duke and my family? I don't recall hearing about you or anything beyond the village, for that matter, unless it's from the rare books and pictures that the Duke would sell to my mother and me." Vivian said, smiling for a minute, watching Angie as the doll began to dance across the table like the old days of them playing in the snow when father and mother cooked soup and then resting by the fire on the last winter night.
"Ah, Yes, it was due to the adventure and the thrill of watching battles. Tales of power, potential and money. I met the Duke and your old man on a trip to that dark, snowy village long ago, before my grand adventures in Spain. It was a simple business meeting; it was for a birthday party, I believe, something about a rare fruit that was from a paradise-like world. It was my only time in the village, but it was a memorable journey to say the least, now that I think it's time for you to go, not necessarily chit-chatting. So care to make a purchase, but don't worry, I'm always around strangers if you need more good things!" The Merchant said, waving his hands over the shotgun. As Vivian looked at the man for a moment, she was silent, taking in the story and debate of the boomstick.
"Wait, you were at one of my birthday parties if that was the case, because my parents never leave the grounds, and I don't remember you ever coming after I turned four! Angie, why didn't you tell me that we had a guest over that day, and why the Duke never mentioned you?" Vivian shouted, looking deeply at Angie, wondering what the big reason was for her now knowing about the Merchant knowing her father and mother, even though in all honesty it was a minor thing.
"Well, we technically didn't speak; he just happened to appear by the gate to our land, talked to your father for a minute, and left, giving us a star-shaped fruit, that's all." Angie said, floating over the shotgun, attempting to pick it up with no chance of holding the weapon.
"I see, guess it's the shotgun, and I see your point, but next time we have some crazy information that you are aware of, please let me know, ok?" Vivian whispered, looking at Angie, as she pulled out a bag of lei from her pockets, pulling out six thousand lei, handing the Merchant enough money for the gun and some ammo.
"Well, I guess it's time to move on; see you later, Merchant; my name is Vivian, by the way; don't be a stranger. Also, Angie, how much money did we bring, as I swear we had more than one bag of money?" Vivian said, flashing a half-full sack to the floating dollar, the pair headed inside to the next district, now starting the search for the ninja. Unaware of the footsteps of a man heading over in the direction of the Merchant.
"I see you've gotten the kid, and with that, our business is over. Maybe next time you won't be as cryptic; you made me sound like an asshole to that little girl for no reason. Anywho, I'd better get back to my shop; tell the Duke to visit sometime; it gets lonely around here." Cid let out, walking back to his shop, as the Merchant chuckled.
"Thanks again, Mate; without you, I'd not meet the girl so easily. Now then, I must get a move on; I've got to find a way to make sure my customer has the best service possible." The Merchant declared, looking over at the third district, knowing that another abandoned building was available and perfect to set up shop for the next battle of this world. He let out a hearty laugh, walking away from Cid into the second district behind Vivian, as the sounds of battle would soon roar from within.