Nightshade's Legaia 3 Fan-Fic (a sequel to LoL 1)

[Nightshade]

Note: Please do not post in this thread. Please post questions, suggestions, and comments in the accompanying thread.

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the Second Age (Part 1)

"It's been quite an eventful last few days, hasn't it... First, that light. What a strange light that was; I've never seen anything quite like it. Nothing even remotely close. It was warm, soothing, and yet distant and... supernatural at the same time. It seems that things haven't quite been the same since then. It's been, what, nine days since that light flared from the depths of the tower? I can't help but feel that that light is an omen, of something or another. I just hope that it's not going to end badly. Though given my luck... And then, there was that strange creature. I don't know quite how to describe it. It wasn't quite as big as a human... maybe 4 feet, 6 inches from head to tail, if you could make heads or tails of whatever that was. Big head, almost-metallic beak shaped a bit like a chicken's, with a real thin body that looked rather like beads on a string. And it seemed that its tail was on fire or something or other. I don't know. Never seen anything that weird in my life, and I've seen a lot of things. I suppose I should..."
"Ah, there you are, Kresh. We've been looking for you for quite some time. Apparently, something important has happened, and your grandfather - erm, the elder - wants you to get down to 'Warrior's Square' posthaste."
"Thank you. I'll be there in a couple of minutes," replied Kresh. A rather stout young adult of 18 years, Kresh stood on the edge of Sol Tower's roof, his neck-length red-orange hair blowing in an uncharacteristically cool breeze for the mid-autumn evening. Standing about 6'2", his silvery eyes peered into the distance. The sun had set maybe 10 minutes beforehand, though the faint red-orange glow was still visible in the distance, peering out just above the western mountains. It was Kresh's favorite place in the entire city. No one bothered him much here, and he could slip away to gaze out into the distance, something that calmed him considerably. On top of the tower, the visibility was incredible, and to the southeast, he could easily see the Great Bridge spanning into the horizon.
"These past weeks just keep getting stranger and stranger. Ah well, better not keep the old man waiting. If he's that desperate for me, it must be important." Kresh let out a sigh of uneasiness, then walked toward the stairs leading down off the roof. "Blast! Elevator's busted. Don't think they're doing repairs on it. Well, I guess they will be soon. Ugh, this can't be good. Can't be good at all; I suspect that something big is going to happen, and it's not going to end pleasantly." Kresh quickened his steps, then looked down and saw an iron bar laying on the ground. He looked at it for a moment, then picked it up. "Never know when I might need to use this. I certainly hope I don't have to, but at the rate this night is going, I'm not going to take chances." Kresh was practically running down the stairs toward the basement of this massive structure, built over 500 years ago, though still in remarkably good condition despite showing a few signs of age, no doubt thanks to strong materials and quality maintenance. It certainly was unusual that there were so few people here at this time. Yes, it was evening, but the sun had only just gone down not twenty minutes ago, and there would normally be quite a few people at the local shops or talking with neighbors, or eating dinner somewhere. Kresh certainly noticed the quietude, and was more than a little uneasy because of it.


*Note: Yes, the creature being described is a Gimard. Or rather, something in the shape of a Gimard.

[Nightshade]

Chapter 1, Part 2:

He got to the first floor of the tower in record time, not that the spiraling staircase of the tower made it easy to distinguish between one floor and another - probably built that way because of some quirk by one of the builders. When he passed by the exit to the tower, he witnessed something that horrified him - a young child being attacked by a monster. "What's the deal with these monsters? Yeah, there are all sorts of creatures that inhabit the surrounding the area, and yes, some of them can be hostile. But I've never seen them attack human settlements. They wouldn't dare come near Sol Tower unless there's something very wrong here." While Kresh's mind pondered these strange circumstances - ones getting ever stranger all the time - his body sprang into action, attacking the monster with vicious slashes from the iron bar he picked up on the way. He severely weakened the monster when it let out a cry Kresh had never heard. A blast of electricity shot out from its tail, and Kresh let out a harsh scream of agony. Angered, Kresh's body again acted on instinct, picking up the iron bar once more and stabbed it through the monster's chest - if the strange thing could be said to have one. The monster let out one last weakened cry before dying.
Kresh sat down for a minute to catch his breath. The child sat down next to him. "Thanks," he said.
"It's not a problem. Now I need to get going - get back upstairs, now! You'll be safer up there."
The child nodded at Kresh, then started heading up the stairs toward the top of the tower, where most of the women and children had taken shelter in preparation of what appeared to be a long and savage night. Kresh, however, had a mission and a destination. Having caught his breath, and with the pain of his injuries subsided, Kresh stood up and looked around. He saw no sign of any other monsters, but worried that his noticing this wasn't going to jinx his already precarious luck (or lack thereof, as the case was) further.
Thankfully for Kresh, he managed to get down to Warrior's Square without running into too much more trouble, where he saw something that he'd never seen before. The tree at the bottom of the tower was glowing with a soft, warm light, comforting Kresh's weary and battered body greatly. He saw his grandfather standing there at the base of the tree, immersed in the tree's new-found radiance.
"Come here, Kresh. You are well aware of the legends surrounding the Genesis Tree, as I'm sure I've told you many times."
"It was no doubt a lovely bedtime story, Grandfather, but legends are just myths. We live in reality. What's happening outside is something I can't turn my back on - I need to go now - my friends are in danger!"
"You can't save them. Not as you are. It's time you learned the whole truth. About the guardian tree, the monsters that are surrounding the town, and the other world."

[Nightshade]

Chapter 1, Part 3:

"The other world? I've never heard anything about that. You've never mentioned that part of your legend. If you haven't noticed, this isn't the time for stories and old legends. I've got to go save everyone - or, at least die try..."
"Why don't you wait one minute and listen to me? I don't need to see my only grandchild go throw his life away in a fight he can't win! These monsters are far stronger than we humans. We can't hope to stop them alone. That's why I've brought you here, to this spot. The Genesis Tree is linked to the other world, to the world of the Seru."
"But they died off almost a hundred years ago! Are you suggesting that these beings are them? And even if they were, what good would the Genesis Tree be? There's no Mist, no sign of what happened a century past! The Seru world died, or did Great-Grandmother lie to us?"
"I don't believe she had any reason to. The Seru world did die off, and the Seru here in the human world died as well shortly thereafter at the end of the Wars of the Mist. My mother wouldn't lie about something like that. However, regardless of what happened back then, the Seru are present in the here and now. I'm sure even you can appreciate that much. As for what to do, I can't do anything else. The Genesis Tree has chosen you, Grandson. If you choose to go out there, you might be able to help your friends and comrades, but you will be putting your life in peril. Our legends state 'The Genesis Tree is a tree from another world. In times of grave peril, it will flower to save the human race.' The Genesis Trees flowered 100 years ago to save the world from the Mist, and I believe they will save us again."
Kresh gripped his chest, still hurting from his fight with the monster. He knew that what his grandfather said was correct, and he was not happy to admit it. "Darn it!" he thought to himself. "I can't fight these forever. If it were just one or two of these monsters, I'm sure we could kill them without too much trouble. But how many are there? Dozens? Hundreds? In any case, too many for me or any of us to deal with."
Kresh gritted his teeth in anger. He thought about punching the wall, and almost did until he realized that hurting himself wasn't going to make the precarious situation any better. He took a deep breath, then let out a sigh mixed of equal parts anger and acceptance. "Alright Grandfather, I'll trust our legends. It's the only chance we have of stopping these fiends."
"Then go up to the tree and put your hand on it. It's very warm. And remember, the Tree has chosen you, just as you have chosen it. Your destiny and that of the world are now forever intertwined."
Kresh walked up to the tree and put his hand on it. It let out a great flash of light that startled him. His grandfather watched with eagerness masked by the stoicism and wisdom that comes of being Elder and leader of Sol Tower, letting out a subdued smile of pride and contentment at the events transpiring before him. The light shone upward, illuminating the entirety of the basement and surrounding both Kresh and his grandfather.

*Note: If it wasn't blatantly obvious, Noa is Kresh's great-grandmother.

[Nightshade]

Chapter 1, Part 4:

The two men could hear the howl of a monster approaching as the light started to fade. "I guess this is the end for us. Me, grandfather, and everyone. Whatever that is, Seru, demon, monster - it's far more powerful than any of the creatures I've seen or fought so far, and those are bad enough as they are. Well, I might be throwing my life away, but it's better to die fighting than just to sit around and let that fell demon have its way with everyone." As his grandfather sought shelter, resigned to his fate and knowing his own powerlessness in the face of such a monster, Kresh picked up the iron bar and got ready to charge, but was stopped by a voice in his head.
"So, your name is Kresh, I see," the voice spoke. "I'm glad to have met you. An evil presence is underfoot, and I know that you are determined to stop it, and so I have chosen to lend my strength to you."
"You... You're a Seru, aren't you? If you are the same as these demons, why should I trust you? I've heard what happened 100 years ago, about how the Mist made the Seru go berserk and drive humanity to the brink of extinction. If the Seru are going crazy again, what's to say that the same thing isn't going to happen to you, or me, or any of us?"
As he spoke, the giant monster grew closer. It resembled the chimerae of legend, with three heads in the facsimile of a lion, serpent, and goat. Its tail alternated between flaming and exuding lightning, and its huge falcon-like wings flapped aggressively toward the tree, and toward Kresh, who had the unfortunate condition of standing right between the two. He coughed at the foul stench of the beast, and came close to passing out on account of the noxious breath coming out its three huge heads, each as large as his torso. The beast was easily 8 feet tall, and must've been close to 30 feet long from head to tail. It lunged at Kresh, determined to kill him and destroy the Genesis Tree once and for all. Kresh knew he was done for, but readied himself for the inevitable, determined not to be dinner, or at least, to be the toughest meat that demon had ever known. Despite his resolve, however, he was quickly battered aside by the chimera. Filled with determination, Kresh jumped up and charged at the chimera twice more, but was effortlessly cast aside just the same. Kresh bit his lip in rage, but found that he was unable to launch another attack. Overcome with despair, he turned the the Seru that had come out of the Genesis Tree. "To save everyone whose life is in peril, to stop these evil forces at work here, and to protect my home from those who would threaten it, I have no choice," he thought to himself. "So be it."

[Nightshade]

The Seru, hearing Kresh's thoughts, came forward to Kresh. On instinct, Kresh held out his left arm, and the off-white, crystal-like being attached itself to him. In that instant, Kresh felt an overwhelming surge of energy flowing through him. "To be the first human in nearly 100 years to wear a Seru. It..."
The chimera cut his thought short as it attempted to step on Kresh's battered body. The giant beast's foot rose up and attempted to smash him. He instinctively put his hand out, attempting to defend himself from the massive paw. Kresh winced, and feared that his life was over, but when the moment came, he was completely unharmed, the beast screaming in agony, it's foot caught in Kresh's hand. Kresh squeezed tightly and stood up, and the beast flew backwards, more than a bit scared at the new turn of events. Kresh smiled at this, recognizing that the Seru had made him much stronger than he ever imagined, and began thinking about how much different the world must have been during the Age of Seru, which ended a century earlier. While his mind thought, his body fought. He picked up the iron bar once more, and both he and the beast knew that the fourth attempt would end differently than the first three. Kresh charged at the beast, easily moving three times faster than he had previously. Kresh looked into the beast's eyes and saw the fear that he knew he had just five minutes earlier. He jumped up, lunged forward, and stabbed the iron bar into its chest. In an instant, it was over. The beast let out a vicious cry and fell down, vanishing in a burst of unholy light. Kresh caught his breath and sat down, exhausted yet exhilarated from the battlefield. As he sat, the Genesis Tree glowed with that same light it produced when the Seru awoke from it. The faint cry of monsters could be heard briefly, but then they just as quickly subsided, having been somehow been placated, or annihilated, by the tree's light.
"I think I'm going to go to sleep now," Kresh told his grandfather, who was standing right next to him. "I think you can help everyone deal with this. I'd help, but I'm just too tired to do anything else right now."
"I understand. It's almost dawn. We can talk about what's to come when you wake up."
"Thanks."
"Don't worry about it. Now go and rest - you've got a long journey ahead of you, I feel. Great things await you." Kresh, as tired as he was, was already outside Warrior's Square and halfway asleep by this point. His grandfather looked at the tree. "Mother, watch over him. Help him, for his journey appears to be as perilous as yours was. I know you're watching us from the next world..." The elder turned around and walked away, headed upstairs to aid the survivors of the vicious attacks. 44 people perished that night at the hands of those fiends, and the winds carried an ill omen of things to come.

Note: This is a light-elemental Ra-Seru, if it wasn't clear by it's color and origin. It is NOT the Ra-Seru Horn. None of the Ra-Seru in the previous game will make an appearance. They all died at the end of the game.

[Nightshade]

Chapter 2: A Battle and an Omen

Kresh went to go lie down. His body was bruised in several places, and he had a few cuts on his face and hands from his fierce battle. He quickly took his shirt off and lay on his bed. As he lay down, he felt the pain from his wounds swell up. He let out a gasp and tried with some success to keep himself from screaming in pain. However, his body and mind decided that sleep was more important than thinking about the pain. It was less than a minute later that Kresh had drifted off to sleep, his scraped chest gently expanding and contracting in peaceable slumber. For several hours, Kresh slept quietly and contentedly.
"I apologize. It is not my right to interrupt your dream, but I must speak with you." It was the Seru from the previous night, speaking to Kresh's mind through his dream. "I must tell you about the Seru, about myself, and about the past. My name is Rana. As I'm sure you are aware, our home world, the Seru-kai, was destroyed by humans possessed by the evil Rogue a hundred years ago by your calendar. However, our world has come back to life, and our conflicts with them. War is on the horizon, both in your world and in mine, and I need your help. Monsters like the one you fought are growing in strength and number, created by an evil presence that wishes to destroy both our worlds. Just as humans were able to save our worlds from annihilation then, I have no doubt that the human spirit will endure once more.." The Seru Rana drifted off to sleep after leaving these words behind.
Kresh slept clear through the day, and through the next night as well, drained of body and spirit at both the inconceivable happenings of the previous two days, as well as his fight to protect his friends and family. He woke up the following morning exceedingly hungry, and began to scour the house for something - anything, really - that could quench his thirst and satisfy his hunger. In the back of his mind, he was thinking about the dream he had a few hours earlier. "Something about a war, the Seru-kai, monsters, or something. Obviously, I've got to do something, but how in the world am I going to fight a war in two worlds by myself. I'm one fighter, not one miracle worker. Ah well, something's bound to work itself out sooner or later. I'm sure Grandpa's got some idea of what to do." While these thoughts went through his mind, Kresh grabbed some eggs, put a few pieces of wood on the fireplace, and made himself some breakfast. As he sat down, he saw his grandfather, who had just walked in from some meeting or another. "I guess he's bound to be busy with all this stuff going on - monsters roaming the outskirts, several people having perished in the attack from the other day. He is the elder after all - I suppose he does need to carry out his responsibilities and stuff. Seems like quite the hassle though."
"Ah, it's good to see you awake and eating. I was worried that your injuries might have been more serious than you were letting on. Even so, I'd prefer that you take it easy for at least a few days. I know that you have things that you need to do, but don't try and do more than you're capable of. I don't need my only grandson running off to die so soon, especially when the world needs him most."
Kresh was only half focused on what his grandfather was saying, his own mind preoccupied with his dream to some extent, but mostly with his stomach. He quickly ate four eggs and several pieces of toast, downing a glass of milk and three glasses of water in the process. "What do you suppose I should do now? I mean, after I get finished eating - food comes first."
His grandfather smiled at the remark. "As you're no doubt aware, monsters have been seen outside town. Certainly there have always been the various creatures that live among us, but beasts have been increasingly hostile as of late, and more than willing to attack people without provocation. I know not what the cause of all these happenings are, but I can tell by the Seru on your arm that your destiny is one of great importance to the world. I would ask you to head to meet an old friend of mine - a rather eccentric man who lives over near the town of Buma. I would accompany you, but you must understand that my health is not as great as I would like given my old age, and besides, I have to manage affairs here. I won't ask that you leave imediately. Please, rest for a couple of days, and let your body and mind recover before you head off.
Kresh nodded in approval and finished his breakfast. "I'm going to go for a walk around town - get some supplies and food. It might only be a few miles' journey, but given the circumstances, I'd prefer to be overprepared than not." His grandfather agreed, and Kresh grabbed some money and headed out, toward the top of the tower.

[Nightshade]

Chapter 2, Part 2:

Kresh nodded in approval and finished his breakfast. "I'm going to go for a walk around town - get some supplies and food. It might only be a few miles' journey, but given the circumstances, I'd prefer to be overprepared than not." His grandfather agreed, and Kresh grabbed some money and headed out, toward the top of the tower.
He walked up to the rooftop monestary, and walked over to the edge of the tower and gently leaned on the railing. "It's been a real unusual last few days. I suppose that's almost nice in a way - don't want to live a boring life, after all. I suppose when you wish for something like that, destiny'll throw a wrench in your life real quick. But it never does seem to matter when I'm standing up here, looking out at the horizon." It was just after noon, and the sun was high in the sky, with not even the slightest trace of a cloud to be seen. Kresh's looked outward, and saw miles of peace and tranquility, free of the vicious attackers that had plagued the city just the other day. It was calming, almost eerily so, when compared to the events of the past week. But Kresh was well aware that such tranquility did not stretch far beyond the mountains encircling Sol Tower. "What can I hope to accomplish alone? I might be chosen by Rana and the other Seru to save our worlds, but it's not like I really have a chance. I mean, I don't have the slightest idea what's going on. I suppose Great-Grandmother had it easy in that regard - blow up a few Mist Generators, knock off some idiot henchmen, and save the world. I don't even have the slightest idea where to begin. Oh well, at least I can look for a few leads. I'm sure that someone has some idea about some strange incident or something. Blast it already. Better get packing in any case - I've got an impossible task to start tomorrow, so I better get finished quick so I can wake up at a reasonable hour. Can't have the fate of the world resting in the hands of a sleepyhead, after all." Kresh chuckled to himself as he thought that, then walked down toward the shopping district. He grabbed some food, a map of the surrounding region, a compass, and a few other supplies, then darted out of there about as fast as he could - he did, after all, utterly hate shopping, though he realized it was a small price to pay for what may well be his life, given the overall state of things. Nonetheless, Kresh had to get a lot of things, and it was fairly late in the afternoon by the time that he finished his errands and headed back.
Kresh walked back inside his home, to see his grandpa sitting down at the table with a solemn expression on his face. Kresh set his things down and calmly sat down across from him, not showing the fear he felt that something terrible had happened. His grandfather looked up at him and handed him a small case. Kresh opened it to find a sword inside. It was nothing too fancy - a standard sword, about 28 inches long, not extremely broad. Kresh's grandfather looked up. "Kresh, you're about ready to embark on a long journey. I can't go with you, and I can't hope to protect you either - I'm too old, and my body too frail. But I want you to have this sword. The least I can do is make sure that you're able to defend yourself out in a dangerous world." He looked at the Seru Rana on Kresh's arm and sighed. "I can't say that I want you to go. You are my only grandson, and ever since your mom died and your father left, you've been the only living family left for me. But I know that it would be wrong of me to stop you. So promise me that you'll come back alive, and tell me of the world that you've seen and the people that you've saved." At this point, he cried a single tear. Kresh nodded in silent understanding and acceptance. He picked up the sword and sheathed it, then walked back toward his bedroom. He turned around and faced his grandfather, nodding, and letting out a quiet 'Thank you' before heading to bed. Despite it still being fairly early, Kresh had exhausted his still-recovering body just running around all day, despite his Seru. He fell asleep not five minutes after lying down, his chest rising and falling in tandem with his deep, tranquil breaths, his mind exhausted and shutting down from thinking about everything that had happened.

The next morning, Kresh woke up rather early. The sun wasn't quite up yet, but the faint glimmer of light that preceeds sunrise could be faintly seen to the east, despite the mountains surrounding the tower. Kresh picked up his things, packed his supplies, and sighed. "I suppose this is what it means to be an adult. I guess I've had it fairly easy up until now, at least in comparison with having to be off on my own, saving the world from some unknown threat that's bound to come knocking any second." He started cooking his breakfast, well aware that it was likely the last homecooked meal he'd get a chance to eat for many months. As the food sizzled over the fire, his grandfathed walked in the kitchen and sat down at the table. "I couldn't let you head off without saying good bye, now could I?" Kresh sat down and ate - the two hardly spoke, in realization that the grandson was about to leave for a very long time. He finished his meal quickly, rinsed the plate off, and thanked his grandfather for everything. "I have to go now." he said. "And you know that I'm no good with this mushy good-bye stuff either. So I'm going to go on now. Kresh gave his grandfather a good-bye hug, picked up his supplies and his sword, turned around, and left. The sun's first rays began to shine as he closed the door and started heading to the tower's exit. He turned around to see his home one more time, then turned back around and walked downstairs, knowing that no matter how much he wanted to stay with his grandfather in the city, the world needed him now.
Kresh headed outside to the tower bridge, hoping to leave before people started heading outside and off to work. It wasn't that he didn't want to say his good-byes, but rather that Kresh knew that it would only be more painful for him to see everyone just as he was about to leave them all and head off on his journey. As he walked onto the mainland for the first time in more than seven months, he turned around one last time to see the tower in all its glory, standing there majestically, a marker of a civilization half a millennium old. He forced himself to turn around and walk off into the distance, heading for the town of Tarza, right near the Karisto side of the Great Bridge.

[Nightshade]

It was a full day's walk by foot for the average person. Despite the mountains surrounding Sol Tower, a path had been carved through the region several centuries ago, and the terrain was fairly flat and easy to traverse. Most of the morning's walk was easy going, and Kresh stopped a bit after noon to eat some lunch. There was a stream nearby, and light foliage provided him with some shelter and shade from the warm but not atrociously hot late-spring weather. He sat down at the base of a tree and began to unpack his stuff to find a bite to eat. However, just as he got ready to take his first bite, he was startled by the sound of someone screaming in the distance. He initially decided against doing anything about it, figuring it was either a domestic dispute or a figment of his imagination. However, when he heard what could only be described as an explosion in that same direction, he decided that he had to go and at least try to help, or at least make sure that no one was in any danger. He jumped up and started running in that direction at speeds he wasn’t even aware were possible, and certainly weren’t possible for normal humans.
Kresh ran half a mile in little more than a minute and was caught off-guard when he saw what caused that deafening sound. A girl was standing there, with glasses and light brown, shoulder-length hair. She wasn’t nearly as tall as Kresh, a standing less than 5 feet in height. Her light green-blue eyes still trembled with fear, and Kresh followed her gaze to see the corpse of a monster not fifty feet from where she was standing, its flesh charred and smoking slightly. Kresh had his sword drawn as a precaution, but put it away just as quickly when he realized that there was no longer an immediate threat. He turned to the girl, and asked her what happened.
‘Well, as you can see, there was a huge beast chasing me. Some sort of nasty new monster or something! I’ve heard rumors that there’ve been these really evil new animals wandering around, and I just had to see one. I mean, it’s so exciting that all this is going on, right? Right?”
Kresh nodded apathetically, taken a bit aback by just how energetic this girl was, but more so by who – or rather, what – could have killed that monster. It was at least as big as the chimera that attacked Sol Tower three days earlier – Kresh couldn’t make out the exact height, but it looked to be perhaps 14 feet tall and shaped not-unlike a giant boar. Its tusks were each as big as Kresh’s arm, and it had more teeth than Kresh could count – at least a hundred and thirty, in three rows, each at least the size of his hand, and as sharp as a razor. Kresh turned at the girl and asked ‘Do you have any idea what happened to this… thing?’
The girl nodded and started speaking. “Well, like I said, I got too close to this animal and it started chasing me and I got really scared for a minute. So I reached into my pocket and pulled out one of these new things my daddy made and I threw it at the monster and it went into its mouth. I kept running, and then I heard this really loud ‘BOOM!’ and I turned around and saw that it was just standing there. And then it fell over.”
Kresh stood there, bewildered at the story and at the unparalleled, unrivaled energy exuding from this girl. He was exhausted just standing there near her and sat down. She walked over and sat down next to him. “So, what’s going on? How are you? Where do you live? I want to know!”
Kresh looked at her and tried to form some coherent sentences. “Well, my name is Kresh, I’m from Sol Tower, and I’m on a journey. And you?”
“Oh, that’s right, I got so caught up in the excitement that I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Relia! I live with my parents in a really cool building not too far from here. And they are sooooo smart! And they have lots of fun toys and stuff, but I’m not supposed to play with them. Sometimes I do anyway though.” Relia smiled gently.
Kresh smiled back. He thought to himself. “Well, that would explain the explosion. I’ve heard that there’s some odd scientists living somewhere around these parts, working on some crazy inventions or other techno-gadgets, but I guess I’ve never really been too far outside the city – Grandpa’s always been too busy with helping everyone else out, and my parents aren’t with us, so I’ve been living in the tower for most of my life and haven’t really seen too much of the world except from what I could see from the rooftop.”

[Nightshade]

“So, want to come back with me? I’m sure my parents will welcome you over for a snack or something. Please?” Kresh was bewildered by the invitation, but he was hungry, and he didn’t really pack a lot of food, so he decided to accept the offer.
“Let me get some of my stuff first. When I heard that explosion, I didn’t really have time to get any of my stuff. You can come with me if you want, but all my stuff is way over there.” Kresh pointed to a tree in the distance. He didn’t necessarily want to have Relia come with him, as he did need to get used to all that excitement and energy, but at the same time, he didn’t want to leave her behind if there were more monsters in the vicinity. She nodded quickly and started running off toward that tree. Kresh shrugged his shoulders a bit. “Ah well, at least it won’t be boring.” He calmly walked back toward where he set his bags, a bit worried that everything would be gone by the time he got there from some curious animal looking for a quick meal, but not so much so that he was in a hurry to get there. It was only a little past noon anyway, and even heading back to get his stuff, he figured there would be no problem getting Relia home by dark.
It took about 10 minutes to get back, and another 10 minutes to get his stuff back together. Relia sat down to catch her breath. She turned to Kresh, who was busy putting his things back together, and asked him “What’s that thing on your arm? Is that something you built? Can I play with it?”
Kresh sighed, having known that he’d have to explain about his unbelievable story, about Rana and the Seru world, and how the fairy-tales she’d probably heard as a kid were not only true, but unfolding once again right in front of them. He turned to Relia and asked her, “What do you know about the War of the Mist?”
“Well…” Relia thought for a minute. “I don’t know that much. It was 100 years ago, and humans used to have these things called Seru and they rebelled and turned on humans and there was a lot of fighting. So eventually, humans and good Seru fought back and killed all the bad Seru and then all the Seru had to go away.”
Kresh looked at her and thought “Hmm. A simplistic account, no doubt, but it’s not entirely wrong. A half-truth, I’ll admit, but she clearly knows enough to make this fairly easy to explain.” He turned to Relia. “You know that when the war was over, there were no more Seru anymore?” Relia nodded. “Well, until last week, that’s what I thought too. But when a monster attacked my home three days ago, this Seru came before me. I don’t know much, but apparently, their world is in trouble, and I’m supposed to help them.”
Relia’s eyes lit up in awe and excitement. “Wow! That is amazing! I’m jealous. I want to come too! Can I please please please?”
“I can’t let you come with me. It’s dangerous, and I don’t want you getting hurt. I don’t know if I can protect you. And besides, I’ve still got to get you home to your parents. I’m sure they’re worried enough as it is with you gone this long.”
Relia frowned in disappointment. “Well, alright. But I still really want to join you. It’ll be so much fun and we’ll meet new people and see the world… and… and… and.”
“I know how you feel, but there’ll be a lot of danger and monsters and stuff. I can’t let you come with me. I’m sorry.”
They had been walking for about half an hour. Relia looked around, but didn’t see anyone. “Good. I thought I heard someone. Or something, I’m really not quite sure what it was.” The two of them walked up to a fairly large building – nothing remotely on the scale of Sol Tower, of course, but still fairly large for something that was built after the Age of Seru. Kresh was more than a bit stunned – he wondered how who could have built such a structure, and how it could have been done without the Seru or a technology that could rival them. But Kresh wasn’t too worried about the specifics of who or why or how at the moment. He was escorting a young woman home, and his curiosity could wait until that task was taken care of.

[Nightshade]

“Mom, Dad, I’m back!” Relia yelled with her signature enthusiasm and excitement. No one immediately answered, so the two of them walked in. The building seemed huge on the inside. It was easily 50 feet in each direction, with a lot of rooms and hallways branching out from the sides and back of the entryway. It was painted a neutral shade of white, and seemed to carry on forever. Kresh was initially hesitant about sitting down, but Relia gave her permission, and he accepted the invitation. “I’m going to go look for my parents. They’re probably busy working on some experiment or gadget or contraption or something. Why don’t you wait here for a few minutes, and I’ll go see if they’re not too busy to come down and introduce themselves.” Kresh agreed, and Relia went off looking for her parents.
Kresh’s curiosity was starting to get the better of him. “So, Relia’s parents are inventors, or some sort of scientists or something. I doubt they’re the type that would be causing all of this chaos and pandemonium though – they wouldn’t willingly endanger their own daughter like that. At least I’m not going to think about that. But still, I don’t think that all these strange activities would go unnoticed. I feel that they might know something about what’s going on, or at the very least, have some leads – some research they’ve done, a name, a place. Anything would be helpful. I wish my journey were like those books I used to read – it always seemed like the hero always knew what was going on, who the enemy was, and at least some idea on how to get there. I don’t have the slightest clue of what to do. It’d be nice to have something more to go on than simply ‘save the world’ or the like. I guess fictional heroes have it easy. But, I’m sure something will happen.”
Kresh sat there for what seemed to him to be an hour, but was actually closer to ten minutes. Relia walked back into the foyer. “My parents seem to be busy working on their latest gadget or whatever, but they said that you’re welcome to stay with us for the time being. They insist that you stay the night at the very least.”
Kresh was a bit worried about the fate of the world and other grandiose matters, but it didn’t appear that the fate of the world was going to be tipped by staying one night with Relia’s parents. “Alright, I’ll stay. But I’d like to get something to eat in the meantime. I didn’t get a chance to eat lunch, and I’ve been out for most of the morning walking toward Tarza. I figured I’d get there today, but since your parents have extended the invitation, it would be rude of me to pass on their offer.”
Relia’s eyes lit up when she heard him say those words. “This is going to be so great. I’m finally going to have someone my own age to talk to. It’s so boring living out here so far away from everyone – there’s no one to talk to and my parents get caught up in their research a lot of the time, so I’m usually just exploring the area around the house or playing with some of my parents’ stuff.” She ran up to Kresh and hugged him. Kresh was a bit uneasy with it, but he knew she didn’t mean any ill by it, and gently patted her back. “Say, I’ve been meaning to ask – how old are you, anyway?”
“Well, I’m 18 right now. I’ll be 19 at the end of the summer, but that won’t be for a few months.”
“Hmm. I figured you’d be around that age. At least, you look old enough to be an adult, but I don’t see you being that much older than me. As for me, I’m only 15, but I’ll be turning 16 next week. So, anyway, what would you like to eat? I may not look like it, but I do know my way around a kitchen? Sandwiches, hamburgers, fish? Just tell me what you’d like and I’m sure I can throw something together.”
“Ah, don’t worry about it. I’d rather make my own food, if it’s not too much to ask. You wouldn’t happen to know how to make deep fried Charger, now would you? Been dying to have some, but it’s the sort of thing that we only get a chance to eat a few times a year. It’s kind of expensive, after all, since the ocean is quite the walk and the only freshwater pond is at least two and a half days away.”