The Greatest Gift

[rianna143]

Hi, all! I've recently started a series of stories to satisfy my craving and get these images out of my head. It's dedicated to some of my guildies in Cypion, and basically just your sappy romance, butt-kicking action, and Fiesta drama-filled fan fiction. I'm open to comments and suggestions.

P.S. I'm an amateur writer. D; I may make adjustments in the beginning. I'll be copying them from my tumblr page since it's where I've originally posted them.

Enjoy!

The Greatest Gift: A Fiesta Story by rianna143/you-are-the-dub-to-my-step.tumblr.com


Chapter I: Welcome to the Guild (http://outspark.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3825552&postcount=2)
Chapter II: Dragon's Tomb - First Sequence (http://outspark.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3825553&postcount=3)
Chapter III: Dragon's Tomb - Second Sequence & The Destruction of Elderine [1st POST] (http://outspark.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3825555&postcount=4)
Chapter III: Dragon's Tomb - Second Sequence & The Destruction of Elderine [2nd POST] (http://outspark.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3825556&postcount=5)

[rianna143]

((Author’s notes: I do not own Fiesta online. Names of other characters belong to the following: CptnRageQuit, LordRash, Ignatious, Yesterday, SakuraWhiteWolf, Pairadice, ClericDaxter09 and Malke. Love you guys. KINGDOM is my inspiration for this story. Thanks a ton. Fanfiction is by you-are-the-dub-to-my-step/rianna143 of the Outspark community. Do not steal.))

It feels like only yesterday when I last saw her. When everyone else last saw her. Black hair, blue eyes. She always carried that mace of her, always proud of letting everyone know she could finally wield a Holy Knight’s weapon. Always ready to buff and be of service to others…

She used to be just another face in the crowd. Just like everyone else, she wanted to be stronger so she could protect her loved ones. She was an ordinary cleric.

When our relationship finally crashed, she went off on a quest to find the mythical town of Bera. At least that’s what I’ve heard from our old friends. No one heard a word from her for two years. She came back all bruised and beaten, but a better person. Almost all our friends were gone, so it must have felt like restarting anew for her. I never got word of her return until the war.

She’d been through a lot of trials. But there was more to her than just a shield and mace. This is her story. The story of one of the greatest wars of Isya. The story of the greatest gift ever imagined.

It was on one sunny morning when she looked for a guild who would take her in. She loved making friends. That’s how I met her. She posted an announcement on the guild bulletin, saying she was looking for a friendly group, and seven days later, she received a letter from one of the guild masters. It read, “Rianna, I have seen your notice on the bulletin and I would like to inform you that KINGDOM has a spot for you. We currently have 45 members. We’re not as powerful as the other guilds, but I can assure you we get along just fine and are just as friendly! If you are interested, send me back a letter. Thank you! Signed, Captain - Guild Master of KINGDOM.” Other letters from various guild masters came a few days after, saying they would all like to recruit her. Though she’d read them, she somehow felt that KINGDOM was the guild for her.

She sent her response and waited for a few more days. On the last week of September, she finally received a notice from Captain. She’d been registered as a member and was to make her first appearance on the 5th of October at the Guild Federation building in Elderine. It felt like the longest wait of her life. She was excited and couldn’t sleep for days, up all night thinking of what she should wear, what she should say, and what kind of people she would meet.

When that day came, she wore a Neptune’s Abyss dress she’d bought specially for the occasion. She tried her best to look as presentable as she could. Feeling somehow anxious, she entered the grand building and went to the notice board to see which room Kingdom’s meetings took place. Once she’d found out, she made her way to the fifth floor and took the corridor to the left. It led to a row of doors, and on one door was a plate nailed on its oaken surface. The word ‘KINGDOM’ was engraved on it. This was it.

She knocked on the door twice and waited for a sign that someone was in the room. What if she came too early? A smile curved its way to her lips when she heard a few voices say, “Come in!”, “Enter!”, “Hey, it could be the new girl!” She opened the door slowly, peeking from the small opening before stepping in. She was greeted by grinning faces, all waving at her and beckoning for her to take a seat. The chairs were arranged in a circle, about 20 of them with more than a half left vacant. “Hold your horses, you crazy people!” spoke a boy with silver blonde hair. He looked just around her age, tall and had markings on his face. He was an elf. The wand he held gave away his class. He was a mage. Everyone quieted down. Rianna took a small gulp and stepped forward to the center of the circle.

The boy stood from his chair and went to her. He wore a Neptune’s Abyss outfit as well. “You must be Rianna,” he said.

“Yes,” she responded with a single nod and a smile. “Paladin at your service!”

“Welcome to KINGDOM!” he grinned and gave her a handshake. Rianna laughed with glee as the others cheered along with the boy. “I’m Captain, the guild master.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Captain.” She felt like she could actually do a curtsy, but her legs remained stiff. “Where are the others?” she asked, remembering he’d said in the letter that there were 45 of them. Captain chuckled. “Sadly, most of them couldn’t make it due to questing and training.”

The other guild members and administrators introduced themselves. There was a trickster named Rash, two mages Pairadice and Sakura, a cleric named Daxter, an archer named Yessy and Malke, a fighter. They had a good time sharing stories, ideas for the guild, and just laughing to some of Rash and Captain’s jokes and pick-up lines. Moments later, the door burst open after a series of quick knocks, and everyone turned their heads to see. Rianna’s eyes grew wide. “It can’t be…” she mumbled to herself. “Iggy?..”

A fighter stood before them, huffing and sweating slightly. He had his two-handed sword with him which he’d forgotten to store in his inventory before coming in. He grinned and placed his weapon in one corner of the room. “Nice entry there, man,” said Rash, raising a brow. But it seemed like he was left unheard. Rianna stood, still staring at him, mouth agape and entire body stiff. He was an old friend of hers, no doubt about it… Ignatious. “It’s been a while, Ria!” he laughed and gave her a hug. “Sorry I’m late. I tried to get here as fast as I can but the nixes weren’t giving me much of a choice.” She squealed and returned his embrace. Who knew they’d meet again after all these years? They’d lost contact for quite a while. “It’s so great to see you again!”

That afternoon, Rianna felt even more motivated to go back to questing and training. She’d done a few rounds of helping Tim with his problem with the jewel trees, explored Dragon’s Tomb with Captain, Rash and a few other strangers they’d met along the way, and went scouting around Burning Rock to collect artifacts for a quest. It all went well for the following days that came.

It was like she never disappeared.

[rianna143]

((Author’s notes: I do not own Fiesta online. Names of other characters belong to the following: CronatheWitch, Capt, CptnRageQuit, LordRash and _Mikan_. Alice, Imma have to get back at you since I can’t quite remember the numbers stuck to your name. ;_; I had to divide this story since it’ll be too long. My shenanigans… Sorry for the wait. I kinda had to mess with NPC identity here. LOL. I’ll be doing it again in the future. Fanfiction is by you-are-the-dub-to-my-step/rianna143 of the Outspark community. Do not steal.))

“Alice, Crona and Capt haven’t been around for a while…” sighed Rianna to herself, looking up at the clusters of leaves in the branches that shaded her. She let a few seconds pass by silently, before giving in to her irritation and rolling over to her stomach, face flat against the soft grass beneath her.

Alice was an enchanter. Crona was a renegade. Capt was a fighter. She’d met the three of them, along with another renegade named Trickie, during one of her party searches for runs in Dragon’s Tomb a week ago. The last time she saw Alice and Crona was in Uruga, which was three days ago, and ever since the Titanic Axe appeared before Capt for him to use, he disappeared without a single trace. Trickie was often in a different party, leaving her with no choice but to stick with killing Jewel Trees for their jewel boxes. It all turned dull and boring, and she felt like she was going to be stuck with her Giant Hammer for months to come.

She rolled over to her back again and eyed the view before her worriedly. “What am I going to do now? No one seems to organize a party when I’m not busy…”

Or so she thought.

She could hear the sound of hooves thumping against the earth, coming towards her, getting louder and faster by the moment. She sat up in a jolt and was greeted by a mountain ram, angry eyes staring directly at her. A short scream was all she could come up with before she stood up and called on her shield and hammer. “Stop, Ramy!” said the person whose head was being covered by the ram’s, and the creature obeyed. “Sorry. He can be a feisty guy.” Rianna lowered her shield. She recognized that voice. “Never knew you had a thing for wild rides, Captain.” The mage got down from his mount and waved at her, smiling. “Up to anything lately?” he asked. The paladin disarmed herself, both weapon and shield disappearing in wisps of light. “Eh… I don’t suppose you’re off to Dragon’s Tomb?”

Before Captain could say anything in response, a white tiger entered the clearing, ridden by a trickster. It was Rash. The two turned their heads at the roaring beast he was on. “Captain, come on!” he crowed excitedly. “We have dragon *** to kick!” He turned to look at Rianna. “Oh, hey there. Busy at the moment?”

“Dragon?”

“Yeah, we’re going to get Cornelius again. Wanna come?”

“Why didn’t you say so?” she said with a grin and looked at Captain as if her question was for him.

He shrugged.

“I have to get my pegasus at the stable first, though… My raccoon’s been sick. Can’t take him out for a ride right now,” said Rianna.

“Hop on then,” said Rash with a nod of his head. “There’s space for another passenger on this big guy.” Rianna felt as if the tiger rolled its eyes. “That’s nice, Rash. But I think my own pet needs a bit of exercise.”

“If you say so. Captain, we’ll catch up to you and Mikan by the dungeon gate.”

“Roger that, broski.” Captain got on his ram again and gave a final wave before heading off to the portal to Collapsed Prison.

When he disappeared, Rianna mounted the tiger just behind Rash and off it ran to the horse stables. The blacksmith who owned it had given her pegasus a vacant spot in exchange for a few silver. She had no other choice since she’d already asked Poring to take care of her raccoon for her. She didn’t want to leave the healer’s hands full, considering she ran a stone shop and all. “I’ll restone while you get that horse of yours,” said Rash as Rianna hopped off the tiger. “Thanks for the ride,” she said and bounded off to the blacksmith.

“Morning, Karl,” she chirped. “I’ll be taking Mesa out for now.” The old man was forging metal which obviously looked like a sword blade in process. He didn’t look up from the glowing material before him, but he did hear her. “Go ahead, lassy,” he spoke in a deep, grumbling voice. She could barely see his lips under that gray mustache. “Take her whenever you need to!”

“Thanks!” She ran off to the stable and behind it to where Mesa’s door was. “Come on, girl. You need to get some fresh air!.. As fresh as air in Burning Rock could get?” As if the creature understood, it huffed air from its nostrils and stood up, scratching on the door with a front hoof. She unlatched it and gave the pegasus a few pats on the head.

She went to Avon’s place to meet up with Rash afterwards. “I’m ready,” she said.

“Me too. Let’s go.”

With a last swing of hammer and claws, the kidmons that were chasing them finally rode away in their carts. “Blasted little things…” scowled Rianna as she put her gears away. “You can say that again,” huffed Rash. “Better get these two to a safe spot.” He gestured over to their mounts with his thumb. The paladin folded her arms. “Where do you suppose we can leave them?”

“Well, there’s an abandoned hut that’s big enough for two mounts around here. Not that far from Maxuter’s. Captain and I have been leaving our mounts there. If his and Mikan’s mounts are already settled, we have to find another spot.”

“You mean the mage with a cleric?”

They heard the voice of a young boy. They turned to see a young, pale elf and were immediately alarmed. “Woah, what are you doing here? Burning Rock’s no place for you!” exclaimed Rianna.

“I live here,” replied the boy with a chuckle.

They were both dumbfounded. There was someone who actually lived in Burning Rock?

“It sounds like he saw Captain and Mikan pass by,” remarked Rash.

“I used to see you around with the mage,” said the boy, pointing a finger at the trickster. “Leaving your pets in one of my hideouts!”

“Sorry to burst your bubble, but we never knew anyone lived here. If there were gargoyles here instead of kidmons, you’d probably be dead meat by now!” Rash exclaimed.

“There are others with me - older people - but they don’t live here. They just work here. And I have a secret weapon!”

“Really? Show us, then.”

Rianna just stood there, watching the two with a puzzled expression.

The boy took out a slingshot and a small pouch of stones. Rash was evidently trying hard not to laugh. “I hide and play in the small houses here,” said the boy. “By the way, I’m Franz.”

“He must be talking about Maxuter and the rest,” hummed Rianna. “Well, Franz. Do you know any other hideout for my pegasus and his tiger?”

“Yes. It’s really safe, I’m sure. I’ve been there. I can watch over them too, if you want me to.”

“That’ll be splendid.”

“Wait just a second. How can we be sure we can trust you?” asked Rash, eyes narrowed into suspicious slits.

“If I run away from here with your pets, we’ll get killed by the gargoyles for sure,” huffed Franz. “Besides… I don’t even know how to ride a horse… Let alone a tiger.”

The other two exchanged looks and shrugged. Franz took them to the hut which was only a few meters away from where the usual hiding spot for Rash’s tiger and Captain’s ram were. It had indeed been occupied. They thanked the boy for his assistance and headed off to Cornelius’ tomb.

Captain was waiting by the entrance with a cleric wearing an orange outfit. “What took you guys so long?” he asked. The corpse of a Guardian Master could be seen on the ground as it started to slowly dissipate. They’d just killed one not too long ago. “Sorry,” apologized Rianna. “Mounts issue. But we’re ready now.”

Just like in an ordinary run in the tomb, they all had to get rid of the Fire Shellas, Fire Spirits, Nerpas, Lava Gargoyles, and other mobs in the way. Mikan found one of the keys for the sub-bosses, and Rash found the other. There were still two more keys to find, not counting the golden one to unlock Cornelius’ chamber. The beginning of the journey came smoothly, and it just kept getting better.

“You know the plan,” said Captain to Rash.

Once Mikan had opened the door to the Giant Magmaton’s chamber, she and Captain distracted it and the monsters that came along, while Rash and Rianna passed by to head straight to the Big Mudman’s lair. Rash unlocked the door. As if it had expected a guest to arrive, the beast lifted its head and growled at the two. Rianna could feel the blood drumming in her ears. Rash, on the other hand, gave nothing short of a smirk and threw a few words of mockery at it. The Mudman straightened up, and so did the other monsters beside it. Rash and Rianna retreated with about four monsters on their tail, heading back to the room of the Magmaton. “Now!” Rash called out. Captain released the incantation to summon an inferno. The ring of fire caught the two sub-bosses’ attentions as the flames scorched their hides. The lower lever monsters collapsed finally when Rash sliced through them using his claws. Mikan and Rianna kept them both alive with heals.

After a couple more of Captain’s freezing novas and Rash’s soul stealing, both the Mudman and the Magmaton fell down and started dissipating into thin air.

Before all four of them appeared four pairs of old, worn-out and tattered shoes. An extra one appeared on the spot where the Mudman had died. “Impressive,” mumbled Mikan. “Usually, they’d give only enough… And if we’re unlucky, one or two of us has to move on without the first piece of the armory.”

“It must be because both of them died in the same room,” guessed Rianna.

“Guess we’ll do the same with Titan and Weasle,” said Captain.

[rianna143]

((Author’s notes: Here are a few details I’d like to clear before y’all continue. I should have clarified myself at the beginning, but I was too excited to start the project. xD

-When I say, “…called on her shield and hammer…” like in chapter 2, it’s my way of saying, “she took the shield and hammer from her inventory.” I needed a crafty way of making the inventory system exist in the fic, and it was all I could come up with. When the characters use ‘calling incantations’, it’s just to take something from his/her inventory. When an object “disappears in wisps of light”, that basically means it’s being put away in the inventory.

Ego and Eve belong to me. Other character names belong to their creators, and NPCs such as Shutian, Wishis and Marty belong to Outspark. Enjoy! Fanfiction is by you-are-the-dub-to-my-step/rianna143 of the Outspark community. Do not steal.))

“Stay still,” said Mikan as she tried to calm the panicking Rash down. “I won’t be able to heal you if you don’t stop squirming.”

“I don’t mean… To be a pain, but… Do you mind hurrying? I can’t really… Calm down while watching myself bleed!..” he groaned, digging his nails in the ground. He received a hard blow on the arm from a Kruger. The beast had successfully stunned him, and left him unable to evade its claws. Mikan had used the invisibility spell to shield him from further attacks while he tried to gain consciousness. Captain had taken it down with a final nova spell. Luckily, it had been the last monster they had to deal with before anyone could unlock the door to the Titan’s chamber.

Mikan placed her hands on the wound and closed her eyes. She focused on healing it, and in a few minutes, traces of the damage disappeared. “How are you feeling?” she asked. Rash tried to move his arm but recoiled instead. The reaction brought a frown of worry to the paladin’s face. Rianna and Captain watched him intently. “It looks good as new, but it still hurts,” he groaned in response.

“We can’t go on until Rash is completely healed,” sighed Mikan, sitting down on the ground and leaning against the wall. “I bet it’s already dark outside.”

No one could really tell what time it was once a party had entered the tomb. Ceilings and stone walls decorated with ancient drawings closed in around every monster and every traveler. The only lights that illuminated the place were the old torches. Tombs were to be sacred places where the dead could rest in peace. But the Dragon’s Tomb was nothing more than dark and lonely, inhabited by ferocious beings. Countless travelers have already attempted to turn it into a normal tomb by defeating Cornelius. Many have turned back in the middle of a journey, few have almost succeeded.

Every time Cornelius was near being beaten, he would turn and disappear into the darkness, leaving only pieces of the ancient hero’s armor behind as a reward. Still, he regenerates and prepares for the next batch of travelers that dared to test him. No one knew why exactly, but it went almost the same with the sub-bosses. Some believe Cornelius shared his strength with the Magmaton, the Mudman, the Weasle and the Titan, since they never disappeared completely after battle. They would all come back after a period of time. It would take a stroke of luck for a party to pass the tomb without having to face any of the four.

Or any of the monsters.

“I believe we deserve some rest,” said Captain as he picked up his staff from the ground. “Mikan, you stay with Rash in case any monster appears. I’ll scout the passages to make sure none of them are near our camping spot.”

“We should split,” said Rianna. “It would make the job easier.”

“Alright. Let’s go.” They took opposite directions and began their short patrol.

Rianna’s weapon and shield were lowered, but not her guard. She remained attentive from when she’d parted from the other three. Though, there didn’t seem to be anything around their area. No Nerpa arrows, no charcoal scent of lava gargoyles. Nothing. It wasn’t after a whole 45 minutes did she come back to the camping site to see that Captain had already returned.

“You’re pretty quick,” she said, raising a brow.

Captain slumped himself down on the ground and stretched his arms behind his head with a long yawn. “I came back just a while before you did.”

Rash had already fallen asleep before everyone else. Mikan, on the other hand, was obviously forcing herself to stay awake. Rianna gave her a pat on the shoulder, making her jerk up in a straight, sitting position. “It’s alright,” she giggled. “Get some rest, Mikan. We’ll be safe.”

Rianna settled herself across the three of them, staring into nothingness through bleary eyes for a couple of minutes before she let sleep tug her away.


Meanwhile that night, somewhere outside the walls of Elderine, a hooded figure stands at the top of a hill not that far from the city. Piercing, red eyes gleamed from beneath the ragged cloth that masked his identity as he stared into the distance. “The time has come,” he muttered to himself. “I will have my vengeance.”


“Don’t cry… We’ll get out of here, I promise…” he told her in a shaky voice, one that could be linked to the voice of someone crying. Though he wasn’t sure why… Why were his hands chained to the wall behind him? Why was she in front of him, in the same form of bondage he was in? Why were they in a dungeon?

Then the door opened, and before them stood… The devil?

Captain opened his eyes.

The sounds he made whilst shuffling about as he tried to wake himself fully caused the cleric across him to wake up as well. “Hnh…” Rianna mumbled something to herself inaudibly before opening an eye to stare at him. “You’re… Awake already?”

“Sorry… Did I interrupt your sleep?” he asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” she replied with a yawn, and gazed at him through the gaps created by the hair strands of her bangs. “I think I’ve slept enough anyway. What about you?”

By now, Captain could make out the shapes of Mikan and Rash’s bodies beside him, both fast asleep, and Rianna’s in front. He could also see shadows. Shadows cast by the light given away by the torches. They stretched out to a path that winded to the left. He sat up and looked back at her. “I think so,” he said.

“Since we’re awake…” Rianna mumbled in a low voice as to not wake Mikan and Rash, but loud enough for Captain to hear from her current position. At least the path they were on wasn’t too wide. She mumbled an incantation which was almost the same as the one she used to call on her hammer and shield, but this time to call on an inanimate object.

A brown backpack appeared before her and she caught it in her arms before it could fall. The small noise made Rash shuffle about in his sleep. Rianna bit her lip and tensed, but returned to a lax state once the trickster had resumed snoring. She shook her head and flashed a small grin at Captain, who gave a low chuckle. She searched the contents of the backpack for two, small, leaf-wrapped objects, and passed one to him.

“Can’t go through the day without some breakfast,” she said.

“What is this?” asked Captain curiously as he unwrapped it.

“Just an ordinary loaf of bread with honey. My mom used to teach me how to make them. Made them myself two days ago - still fresh for that kind of bread, actually! The added herbs prevent it from spoiling too soon. Lucky I still have some.”

“What about these two here?” He gestured over to Mikan and Rash.

“I have more,” hummed Rianna as she peered in the bag once more. “…I do eat a lot. Which is why I managed to pack in quite a number the other day.”

Captain couldn’t help but give a snicker.

“It’s nice,” he said as he took a bite out of the small loaf.

“Thanks… Hey, Captain.”

“Yeah?”

“…You’re a good mage.”

“Thanks, but how can you say that?”

“I’ve done a few runs with you in this dungeon. I think it’s awesome how you can handle two of the sub-bosses at once.” It made Rianna nostalgic. It reminded her of her old friend - Capt the fighter. “Other mages could be dying to do that.”

Literally dying, too.

[rianna143]

“Fall back! Fall back!” Shutian shouted his order as more of the soldiers were taken down by arrows. “What kind of abomination is this?!”

Demon-like figures were flying in the sky, quick and nimble, evading every attack thrown at them from below by archers. Their malicious cackles filled the air, and brought fear to the innocent citizens of Elderine. Some soldiers assisted with the evacuation while others fought against the unknown enemy. And some… have already died.

The town walls were being bombarded by huge boulders from outside. Half-man, half-horse beings equipped with spears entered from the doors, followed by hoards of incubus, ghosts, and zombies alike. It was a nightmare, nothing like Shutian or anyone had ever seen before. They had no choice but to flee, or he’d lose all of his men.

“Chief!” Marty called as he approached the other. “Where should we evacuate?”

“Inform Adrian immediately. We must seek her aid and shelter everyone in Uruga.” Chief Adrian’s town was one of the most protected towns in Isya, next to Elderine… But now that Elderine was on the verge of destruction, could Uruga stand against this army of darkness?

Soldiers were using scrolls and helping everyone warp out of town. Others took the portal to Collapsed Prison before it was too late. Mages used special incantations to create special warping zones while they fought off the enemies that dared to follow behind.

“Where is the leader of this army?” shouted Shutian in his rage.

As if his ‘prayers’ had been answered, a black pegasus seemed to have flown in from the clouds, mounted by a hooded figure. The rest of his body was covered by a long, black robe. In a feral snarl, he aimed his sword at the guard captain, and swiftly swung it towards him.

Shutian, with nothing short of a choking sound that bubbled from the back of his throat, fell backwards, impaled on the sword. He loosened his grip on his own sword and took his last breath.

Elderine’s guard captain has fallen.

Marty watched from afar with a look of horror, the mage master Wishis just behind him, both not believing what they’d just witnessed. The hooded figure pushed Shutian’s body against the ground with a foot and easily pulled off his weapon from the corpse. The two skill masters fled in panic and sped up their duties.

“Our captain has fallen!” screeched Wishis.

Sakura, who’d just helped the injured Daxter enter a warping zone another mage had created, heard the announcement above the noise made by fighting parties. “Malke!” she called out to her fellow guildie. “Hurry, we have to let the others know what’s happening! You have to alert Captain! I’m helping everyone out!”

The fighter agreed, and rushed through the crowd to find a suitable spot to send off his mini pet. He called on a small honeying about the size of his palm. “Alright, buddy. You know what to do. Go to Captain and tell him what’s been happening. Now!” With a nod of its head, the honeying disappeared in a puff of white smoke. Malke returned to where Sakura had been and helped her by fighting off skeleton warriors.

The battle had been going on for six whole hours since the strike of midnight, when everyone was fast asleep. Elderine’s backup army had already fallen at the second hour.

“Ego!” called a female voice. The hooded figure turned at the direction of the sound.

“Eve,” he growled. “What is it?”

“The girl is not here…” hissed the archer as she descended from her pegasus. She had red hair that flowed down to her hips, eyes as dark as tunnels, and wore an armor forged with skeletons, leather and metal. “You’ve destroyed the city for nothing!”

Ego couldn’t help but throw his head back in a shrill laugh. “Your mind is filled with cobwebs, my devil. The sooner we destroy the main cities, the sooner she will appear. This is our best bait. She will pay for her parents’ doing.”


With a final roar of defeat, the fires from the Titan’s paws faded, and the creature fell with a loud thud. It started to disappear just like the Weasle. “We did it!” cheered Mikan. “Now we just have to finish off Cornelius and we can go out!”

“Right on!” said Rash, who was fit as a fiddle and much like how he was before the Kruger attack.

“He’s not that far from here,” said Rianna as she took her share of the ancient hero’s armory and sent it off to her inventory, making it disappear in wisps of light via dismissing incantation. “We’ll be out of here today, hopefully.”

They ventured deeper into the tomb and saw the last batch of monsters from afar, who were obviously waiting for them - Nerpas already aiming their arrows at the passage ways , Krugers in their defensive stance, Fire Shelas’ horns glowing as they charged energy. The four of them were hiding behind a wall, observing the mob before them intently.

“Rash, Captain,” whispered Rianna. “Mikan and I will use invisibility to give you guys some shielding power. We’ll use our shields to protect ourselves.”

“Ready to… Quicken things up?” asked Mikan with a grin.

“Ready as ever."

The two clerics used Quicken to provide themselves enough energy to cast a spell immediately after another, and used the invisibility skill on the other two. Should their current shield disappear, they’ll be able to cast another in just a snap. Mikan and Rianna braced themselves. The four of them ran into the clearing with their battle cries echoing through the dungeon.

Lava gargoyles and Shelas charged at them. No one in the party was fazed by the enemies. Rash sliced through each of them wildly with his claws. He was like a marauding Tasmanian devil. Captain seemed to summon every spell he knew, from novas and infernos, to drain mind and magic burst. The transparent wings around their shoulders - a sign that the invisibility spell was protecting them - started to disappear from feather to feather. The two clerics created another shield, renewing Rash and Captain’s line of defense.

In one final slash of claws, wave of a wand, and raise of a hammer and a mace, the enemies were down. A chest could be seen just a few meters away from were Captain stood. “I call dibs!” laughed Rash as he headed for the box.

“This is where things get real!” said Captain as he took out a vial from his backpack. It contained a red, glowing liquid - a health potion. He flicked the cork off and consumed the concoction in a few gulps.

“Now that’s what I call a celebration drink!” said Mikan. She took out a vial filled with blue fluid - a mana potion - from her own backpack and drank with him.

“Enjoy yourself,” giggled Rianna. “We’ll be having dragon tonight.”

“Well, what are we waiting for? Christmas?” said Rash. He held up the golden key for everyone to see.

They ran off to Cornelius’ room.

Rash excitedly unlocked the great door. “He’s goin’ down now! Cornelius… Meet your—!”

They pushed the door open, but the room was empty. Void. There was nothing inside. Their jaws dropped. “But…” mumbled Mikan. “We defeated the four sub-bosses, right?..”

“This isn’t right…” said Rianna worriedly. “He should be here…”

The silence was broken by a small, squeaking sound. It was Malke’s honeying, flying in from the doors. “Hey… What’s this little guy doing here?” Rianna was quite startled to see it. It was the first time that happened.

The honeying flew around in circles, frantic and chirping uncontrollably. “Woah, calm down!” said Captain as he caught it in his hands. “I’m not going to let you go until you calm down.”

He cussed as the stinger pricked his palm, but refused to let it go. Only a few seconds later did he do so, and the honeying immediately flew down to the ground. It started scribbling words with its stinger in elven letters.

“What’s he saying?” asked Rianna. She knew a bit of the elven language, but not enough to actually crack a full code in its complicated alphabet.

Captain knelt down to have a closer look, his expression of suspicion slowly shifting to dread. His face went pale and he fell speechless for a while.

“…Bro? You alright?” Rash placed a hand on Captain’s shoulder and shook him gently.

“You’re… You’re sure about this?” the mage asked the little honeying. It nodded furiously, as if to protest against not being trusted.

“What’s wrong, Captain?” Mikan knelt down with him.

“…Elderine’s… Under attack…”