User:Some Color Mage/Rebuild of Echoes of Strife/Chapter 3

"So what, we have to invade the Empire to find out who Nelo truly is?" Saldo asked, somewhat shocked.

"Actually, I don't think we should worry about this at all right now," Darren said. "Think about it; has Nelo proved a real threat to any of us so far? The most important thing for us is to get to safety. Solving the great mysteries of the world and getting revenge on Tesendar can wait until we've got a new home, for starters."

"I agree," Magnus added. "Continue on to Frux, we can sort Nelo out later. Ser Aeon, you've proven trustworthy enough, so come along, and bring... what did you call him, the maggot? Bring him with you."

The Emperor had just finished some paperwork. 8 had already told him everything, of how the Order had been destroyed, but five still lived, and all traces of the maggot and the traitor Aeon had gone cold. It was dark, and now time to address the commanders that had just returned from Kolona. As he entered the hall, and looked at the group, he could not help but notice that someone was missing.

"8, where is Adam?"

"He filed for a vacation as soon as he got back to the castle. He'll be back in a week."

"Hmph, he could have at least waited until after my speech." Diala cleared his throat and turned to the rest of the group. "My officers, you have done a great thing this week. The Twilight Order was refusing to let us have the city of Kolona, land which was rightfully ours. However, thanks to your efforts, only five of them survive!" Cheering could be heard among the officers. "And while the end is still far, I hear progress has been made thanks to you, 8?"

"Oh, please don't thank just me." 8 sounded somewhat humbled. "It was because of Dr. Duncen that we were able to reverse engineer that bomb and present you this Wraith's Tear." He handed the Emperor a small box. "You really must let us work together more often, think how many more works of beauty we could make."

Diala opened the case and examined the Wraith's Tear inside. "It is beautiful, isn't it? Look at how the darkness warps around it... I know you have other things to do tonight, so you are dismissed."

As soon as 8 left the room, Diala collapsed. As his officers were about to help him back up, he stood up again of his own power, a wicked smirk on his face.

"But like I said, WE ARE NOT DONE! This FIGHT has just BEGUN! The Order shall be CRUSHED, once and for all, AND WE SHALL DO IT!"

A louder bout of cheering came from the officers. A messenger entered the room, and Diala immediately assumed his normal face and voice.

"Your Highness, Lady De'Rad is here to see you now."

"Excellent. Just give me a minute." He turned back to the crowd. "Now go! Make the Empire proud!"

With more cheers, the officers left, leaving Diala to his other duties.

The Order, and their two extra travellers had reached the entrance to Frux.

"Ah, Frux." Hevorhend had a nostalgic look on his face. "The last time I was here, the Empire was invading. Seemed nice enough, so I decided I was going to start my new life here. Although, the Empire is strong here. Is this really a good place for six fugitives?"

"We'll be fine." Magnus was sounding more relaxed than he had on the journey here. "Any town where the Empire is strong is bound to have resistance groups. We have allies here, and they'll likely already know that we were on the way here, and that you've defected."

"Well then, let's go. I'll take care of the lodgings." Yuan started into the town.

"I'll catch up with the rest of you later," Telluri said, rummaging through her bags. "I need to restock on some things. Usual place, right?"

"Oh, I'll go with you!" Saldo started to follow Telluri. "I want to see the town."

"Well then, maggot," Darren said, jokingly. "How about we find you some clothes and a bath?" The maggot had since regained consciousness and was clearly unhappy with the ongoing events.

"Let's just go," Hevorhend said, dragging the maggot behind him.

Diala was walking through the halls, glancing out the windows. The starry sky was matched by the lights of the city below, as citizens worked tirelessly to continue building. "Ah, my subjects are so dedicated to this city," he muttered to himself, a smile appearing on his face.

There was one stop he desired to make on the way to his appointment, to Faina's quarters. She beat him to opening the door, dragging a pile of clothes into the hallway with her.

"Daddy, can I please wear these?" she asked, gesturing at the clothes behind her. Diala took a closer look at the pile, noticing that most of the clothes looked to be dark reds and blacks. For a second he thought she had plundered his own closet. "I'm getting sick of wearing white."

"Faina, you're so beautiful when you wear white," Diala said, in a voice so gentle none of his commanders would have believed it came from him. "Why would you want to wear these? They look horrid, and you don't even like these colours."

"But everyone else does," Faina started to pout, "and all the tall men around you wear dark colours, and Rudis is making fun of me for wearing too much white, and you almost always dress in black, Daddy. So why can't I?"

Diala retained his tone. "Faina, why do you ask these things? When you wear this nightgown, you're the prettiest girl in the world! Now please, be a good girl and go to bed, else I'll be late for my meeting."

Faina had always taken to compliments. "Okay." She returned to her room as her father watched, after which he continued to the meeting room.

A salty breeze wafted through the air as Magnus strolled down the port's boardwalk. Yuan had bought a significant amount of a nearby inn for the night, and had recently caught up with him. The two approached a boat in an old, splintered dock, and the 40-something-year old man on the deck immediately noticed the two.

"Well, if it ain't that arrogant swordsman who has spent way too much time already on my ships." The man's tanned face broke into a smile.

"It's good to see you, Nauk," Hexed replied, returning the smile. "Of all the things I miss when I'm not here, the greatest is adventuring with you."

"You're acquainted with this sailor?" Yuan asked.

"Yeah, we go... a long way back. Oh, where are my manners? Nauk, this is Lady Yuan. Yuan, Nauk."

"Nice to meet ya, lass. So, Hexed, how do ya like the new boat?"

Hexed looked at the vessel. This was certainly different from what he was used to seeing from Nauk. The hulls looked brand new, painted a shade of blue that blended seamlessly with the water below.

"It's certainly prettier than your last piece of junk," Magnus said. "What's she called?"

Nauk swelled with pride. "TheCerulean Fin."

"And how do I know this one won't end like all your other creations?"

Nauk continued to be confident. "Made from the best materials money can buy!"

"The best materials your money can buy."

"Eh, details. So, what do you need it for?"

"We need to get off the continent." All the joy in Magnus' voice had vanished. "The Order's been destroyed, we need to get far enough away from Tesendarian land so that we may regroup and train before returning. Perhaps there's some nearby islands?"

"How about asking Labradia?"

Magnus started sputtering. "A-are you MAD? Labradia's fallen as well, the king's a puppet to Emperor Diablo!"

"Ha, yer a fool," Nauk replied calmly. "Labradia's been funding the Order. Everyone here knows. How do ya think ya got all that money in the first place?"

"I-I don't know... Drazure must have been hiding that."

"It makes sense, though," Yuan interjected. "Nobody else had the funds to raise a military that was our size aside from Tesendar themselves. Unless we had fundraising drives. I don't think we had any?"

"Anywho, ya look battered. Ya need to rest up an-"

"We can only stay here for one night," Magnus interrupted.

Nauk sighed. "With yer sea legs? Fine, suit yerself. But she's not ready to sail yet, there's a few more things we need to get first."

"Alright, what do you need me to do?"

"Show up tomorrow with yer jolly comrades."

Beyond the plains, Nelo was forming his own plans.

"If I was the empire, where would I hide that thing?" he asked himself.

"No, not the castle, too obvious."

"Wait, of course! How idiotic! I traded the blade in Labradia so I could smuggle myself in pretending to be a native. How could I forget..."

With his next goal set, he headed west, on the long trek to Labradia.

"What do we need?" Telluri loudly asked as soon as she stepped onto the Fin. Magnus and Saldo soon followed.

"Well, nice to meet ya too," Nauk replied, then sniffed the air. "What tha hell is that smell?"

Darren joined the rest of the group, looking ready to retch, pulling the maggot along with him. "Seriously guys, we needed to give him more than two baths."

Nauk looked incredibly disturbed. "Er, okay, I need ya to get some supplies and-"

Darren leapt up, the looks of nausea gone. "Yes sir! We'll go to the ends of the earth to get what you need!" Everyone, even the maggot, seemed annoyed at the impromptu burst of enthusiasm. "So what do you need?"

Nauk chuckled. "Knew I could count on ya. Here's a list." He handed it to Saldo.

Darren immediately violated all known concepts of personal space, trying to grab the list. "What is it? What is it? Do we still need the sails? Or the rudder? Ooh, how about some legendary crystals, those are always good for an epic quest."

Saldo started reading the list. "Five kegs of water, three tons of - um, you appear to have misspelt 'meat' - of any kind, gentlemen's magazines... a lot of gentlemen's magazines... some very specific tastes in here..."

"WHAT? This sounds like a shopping list!"

"Of course it is, you idiot!" Telluri had only been awake for an hour at this point and she was already prepared to choke the life out of Darren if he didn't shut up. "Let's get going." The group started to leave, the sounds of Nauk's chuckling and Darren's grumbling accompanying them on their return to town.

"So, how was meeting Lady De'Rad?" 8 was supposed to be giving a status report to the Emperor, but with no change in their situation since yesterday, all he had was gossip.

Diala looked up from his table, the tired expression saying more than he ever could. "Odd."

"She is rather... Dramatic, I think is the right word?"

"Dramatic's an understatement," Diala sighed, as he returned to the notes he was writing. "She should be in the courtyard, in case you want to experience her for yourself."

8 laughed. Diala wasn't fazed by much any more, but that laugh could still spook him. "I don't think so. But, I believe Netherith should be on his where there as part of his morning routine."

The tired look on Diala's face faded, replaced with a devious smile. "Oh, this will be fun." He turned to look out the window overlooking the courtyard.

Sure enough, Netherith was in the courtyard, practising his gunblade skills in front of a crowd of soldiers. The newer recruits were staring in awe, as he effortlessly sliced the air in a perfect arc, a rare sight due to the blade's unique shape. Many whispered to each other, making up theories of how he could have become so skilled with the blade.

One person, however, stood out from the crowd. A woman, who looked to be in her early 30s, with long, black, silky hair and an interesting choice of dress for military personnel, was enraptured by the display. Each swing of the blade was met by loud gasps and frantic writing on her notepad. Once Netherith had finished, she started clapping. "Bravo! Bravo! What an exquisite performance!"

Netherith was baffled. "Erm, thank you, ma'am?"

The woman started approaching "No, no, no! 'Ma'am'? You're making me sound so old!" Ever closer. "I'm Padma! And when watching you perform, I was so, how would you say it, aroused!" Padma was now right in Netherith's face, his helmet almost buried in her cleavage. He could only really think of two things, wondering why his helmet can't have sound dampening, and thanking it for hiding how red his face was. "In fact, I was so aroused, I just had to write this poem!"

She started reading from the notepad.

"Swinging blade, how you thrust through the air so grandly! You penetrate the air, like a grand stallion! I shall -"

"I'm flattered, really, ma- er, Padma." Netherith gently pushed her aside, not being able to stand another line of 'poetry'. "But this is private property, what are you doing here?"

Padma giggled. "Oh, you silly boy. I'm one of your comrades!" She give a dramatic twirl, her dress spinning fluidly. "Commander Padma De'Rad, of the 34th Battalion!"

Netherith was at a loss for words. "34th..." Then everything clicked. "Wait. You're Hevorhend Aeon's replacement!?"

Padma's giggling intensified. "Indeed! But not only that..." She was now shifting between dramatic, and overly impractical, fighting stances every few seconds "I am to be his judge, jury and executioner! It shall be by my hand that he will pay for his actions!" She brought out the notepad again. "I've detailed my plans in this poem."

"That's quite alright ma'am, but I think I should leave you to your work." Netherith was slowly backing up. He then turned to face his troops, who were just as scared as he was. "Men, let's go practice squad formations!" He flailed his arm. "Somewhere over that way!"

"Yes, Ser Netherith!"

As they assembled what future war strategists would call the Get-Me-The-Hell-Out-Of-Here formation, Padma started waving. "Good bye, Nethy-Rethy!"

Netherith grimaced. "Nethy... Rethy...?" He quickly silenced the soldiers who started chuckling with a cold glare, although he swore he could still hear the Emperor of all people laughing at him.

After everyone left, Padma only had herself left to talk to. "Right! Time to find that mean old Aeon!"

Magnus had brought Yuan and Hevorhend to the the ship for one last check to see if it was seaworthy. It seemed fine, but Hevorhend couldn't stop thinking why. ''Why a boat? We can surely get to Vellaten of all places by land or air, what makes the sea so special?''

Yuan noticed Hevorhend's puzzled expression and went over to him. "What's bothering you?"

"What?" Hevorhend was somewhat dazed. "Oh, it's you... that annoying white mage who-" he started muttering before Yuan started talking again.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"Um, nothing, nothing! Just, why are we going by sea? The air, or even land would be faster."

"Faster into a fight with the Empire, sure."

"What?"

"We know they're looking for us. They'll be watching the roads, examining airships, but the sea..."

"Of course, the Empire's weak navy! It was always one of our flaws."

"Our?" Magnus overheard the two. "You're not one of them any more!"

"I know, I know, I'm sorry!" Hevorhend started muttering again. "Asshole."

The other members of the Order were on the shopping trip. Darren had been selected to buy the gentlemen's magazines. Telluri refused to do it, and Saldo convinced her that it would be funnier if Darren bought them.

Why me? Darren thought as he picked out the magazines. Plus, the clerk here's cute, how am I going to bring these to her?

"Darren, are you still in there?" Saldo yelled from outside. "We don't have all day. Hurry up and buy your porn already!" Darren could also hear Telluri snickering from outside.

Darren hurriedly grabbed a stack of magazines, dropped more money than was probably needed on the counter, and ran outside before the clerk could see the shade of crimson rapidly covering his face.

"Ah good, you're out!" Saldo continued as if he hadn't just deliberately tried to embarrass the Prince of Labradia in front of a whole city. "Now, let's get going. Telluri?"

Telluri had been distracted, noticing a rather flamboyant woman teleport into the street and start walking around with a drawing of what appeared to be Hevorhend, yelling "Have you seen this man?"

"I know her," Telluri said. "We need to get back to the ship, now!" The three ran away, as Padma started to wave down bystanders.

"Why did you need these?" Darren asked, handing the stack of magazines to Nauk. "Wait, don't answer that."

"Aeon!" Telluri yelled. "I saw a woman, it looked like De'Rad."

Hevorhend immediately jumped up from the floor he had been examining and rushed to the deck. "Shit! Nauk, we need to leave, now!" He turned to Telluri. "Wait, how do you know her?"

"Family connections."

"How do you know her, Hevorhend?" Darren asked. "Wait, don't answer that."

"Too bad, you're going to find out!" Hevorhend looked out to the town, and spotted Padma, who had successfully caught the attention of a random citizen, pointing her towards the Fin. "But it can wait until we're at sea! And if we don't hurry, she's going to see us!"

"Ha, no worries there!" Nauk grabbed the wheel. "We'll go faster than ya can imagine! FULL SPEED, MEN!"

The ship left at a blazing speed, and soon, all that could be seen of Frux was a line on the horizon. The Order descended below deck.

"Everyone's here, right?" Magnus quickly counted. Himself, Yuan, Saldo, Telluri, Darren, Hevorhend, and the maggot was also chained up in the corner. "Yep, that's all seven of us."

"Let's just hope Nelo doesn't decide it's time to join us and set the ship on fire in the process," Telluri added.

"Anyway, you were about to tell us how you know that woman, Ser Aeon?" Yuan asked.

Hevorhend started to turn red. "Well, you see, Padma is, er, was under my command. Highly capable, but very... Well... Extravagant would be putting it lightly..."

"Is she dangerous?" Saldo asked. "So far all we've seen of her would only be of use if we challenged her to a fashion contest."

"Hmm, well, if it was just her and her sword, we would be fine, but she will likely overwhelm us with reinforcements and her magic." Hevorhend started to look nervous "I'm more afraid of her personality though..."

"I think we're getting a bit off topic." Magnus cut to the point. "We saw your face earlier, this is more than just a former lackey. How did you know her?"

Hevorhend's eyes started darting frantically. "The truth is... She and I... It ended badly, and, uh..."

"You didn't date her, did you?" Yuan asked.

"Oh gods no, she's ten years younger than me! It's just that she's an absolutely terrible subordinate, obsessed with acting overdramatically and being disproportionate in her actions, and hates anyone telling her what to do! She's a damned monster! Now, can we please leave it there? I'd rather focus on fleeing now, as if she catches us, she'll kill me! Or worse, recite her poetry!"

Padma was watching the sea from a restaurant by the shore. It was time for lunch, and today she was enjoying an arrangement of squid, pineapple and pasta. The restaurant owners had insisted that they were a simple fish shop and couldn't serve either pineapple or pasta, but after about five minutes of yelling interspersed with poetry, they had come around. People often start agreeing with Padma's views once she breaks out the argumentative poetry.

"Um, e-excuse me," stammered the man sitting across the table from her, "why did you call me here?"

Padma couldn't even bother to look up from her meal. "Well, common man, -"

"Kiefcha."

"Common man, I need your assistance."

Kiefcha squirmed. "I, I told you before, I don't do that kind of work any more..."

Padma laughed, and finally looked up from her plate. "My, what a confused common man! I have no need for you. I require your boat."

"My boat?"

"YOUR BOAT!!!" The sudden scream caused Kiefcha to fall over, while passers by on the dock winced in pain.

Keifcha slowly returned to his chair, then paused for a few seconds until the pain in his ears subsided before asking, "And what do I get in return?"

Padma pulled out her notepad and began to recite her latest work. "Pirate man, how you sail your boat. Raiding and pillaging is your thing. Then bad Imperial man threatened you with lock up. So pirate man no longer pirate man. However, when the pirate man gives a ride to the damsel in distress, the damsel will overlook the pirate man's piratry."

Kiefcha had a blank expression on his face "Um... Don't poems rhyme? Or at least have some sort of rhythm? And 'piratry' isn't a word..."

His train of thought was interrupted by Padma tackling him out of his chair.

"DO NOT MOCK MY WORKS OF BRILLIANCE!"

"Y-You're right, how silly of this c-c-common man! A p-peasant like myself could n-never understand the n-nuances and b-brilliance of your work!" A pool of sweat, and possibly other fluids, formed under Kiefcha. "S-so, if I help you, with the boat, I mean, the Empire will o-o-overlook my piracy charges?"

Padma got up, smiling. "I guess the pirate man isn't so stupid after all." She picked Keifcha back up then hugged him, in a rather uncomfortable manner. "Meet me at the docks in an hour." She then started to leave, but at the last second, turned around. "And learn to lie better!"

Keifcha was reluctant to surrender the Rosemary. It was a beautiful ship, named after his lost love, and he couldn't bear to part with it. However, he did need to get out of piracy. As he mulled over the options available to him, he eventually called over his crew, and detailed his new plan.

"Where is the pirate man?" Padma was yelling from the dock. "If he's not here, then I'll -"

"I'm here." Kiefcha disembarked from the Rosemary. "You may have the ship. But, instead of the original agreement, I want a large sum of money instead."

"You don't want your filthy past to be wiped clean? My, of course the pirate man's gluttony would take away his goal."

"No. Once you give me the money, I won't need your help for that. I'm already a free man, after all."

"Ah, freedom, the common lofty goal," Padma's tone had started to turn malicious. "For a peasant."

Several crew members were incensed, and started to grab their weaponry, only for Kiefcha to order their halt.

"I will sell you the Rosemary for nine million gil. And I want it now."

"Impossible! I don't have that kind of money here right now! How about a poem?"

Kiefcha signalled his crew to continue what they were doing, and shortly, an arrangement of swords, guns, and a few other weapons were pointed straight at Padma.

"I don't wish for bloodshed here," Kiefcha said, a wide smile on his face. "I am a very understanding man, after all. But, how do I know you would fulfil your promise?"

Padma fell into a deep thought, finally pointing at Kiefcha and saying, "Out, damn spot."

"What?"

Padma then clasped her hands together. "Spot, come out."

The Rosemary became blanketed in a heavy smoke. When it cleared, Kiefcha looked around to see every one of his men dead, Blackguard standing behind each corpse. Turning back to look at Padma, he instead saw Netherith.

"You should have listened to the lady." Netherith had made sure his mic was on, so any bystander would notice and would know what would happen to those who defy them.

Keifcha went for his pistol, but Netherith was faster. Drawing his gunblade, he quickly sliced the pistol in two, and then his next slash cleaved Kiefcha's head from his shoulders. As the head slowly rolled away, Padma retuned to the deck.

"Good Spot!"

"These deaths were unnecessary. And stop giving me new nicknames."

Padma smirked. "Many things are unnecessary, Nethy-Rethy. Listening to the dead pirate man's ramblings while I had a real man right here to help me was one such unnecessary... necessity." She had to pause before she even further tripped over her own words. "Anyway, we go, for the glory of the empire! You there!" She pointed at a random Blackguard. "Make the boat move!"

Netherith sighed, then silently thanked his helmet for not letting Padma see the faces he had been pulling at her. This was going to be a long voyage.

Yuan and Magnus were on the deck discussing their plans, while also watching over the maggot, who was tied up next to them.

Yuan finished a calculation she had been making based on the Fin's speed and bearing. "I think we've out-sailed anything the Empire could throw at us," she finally stated cheerfully.

"Yes, Holy, soon they will die, soon I can come back to you..." the maggot suddenly said, seemingly to himself.

"What now?" Magnus glared at the maggot.

"Holy asked when I'll save her from Master. I said I'll come as soon as the lady in the pretty clothes kills you dead." He shot back his own glare.

Yuan was trying to hold back laughter. "And how will she do that?"

"I see her taking a boat with the black warriors. I see her bringing the water monster from their lab, the one I saw when Doctor Duncen let me out of my cage to see how I walked after the Pains! A huge water monster! I saw her eat a doggie in one bite! They say, her seal breaks when she touches the sea, she grows even bigger..." he continued rambling but at this point both Yuan and Hexed had stopped listening.

"This is the strangest thing I've ever heard," Yuan whispered to Magnus.

"Well, he is insane, we should probably just not listen too much to..."

Magnus was cut off by a violent quake, and a glowing light, coming from roughly the direction of Frux. As the light subsided, the two could see a mass of green tentacles headed straight for them.

"How did you know that..." Yuan turned to the maggot, as Magnus called everyone to deck.

"I can see whatever I need to see. I needed to see your doom. This is what I saw."

The rest of the Order arrived on deck, weaponry in tow, to witness the tentacles approaching them at blinding speed. The group were lost for words.

"Oh gods," Darren finally opened his mouth, "who made one of the gentlemen's magazines a reality?"

The maggot was rapidly shifting and turning, attempting to dance while still bound. "Kill them! Oh, kill them all!"

"You filthy idiot!" Telluri screamed back, quickly preparing some bombs, "If it sinks the boat, you'll die too!"

"Land ho!" Nauk yelled, "There's an island coming up, we'll be safe there! Keep it busy!"

The majority of the beast had now surfaced. About 20 tentacles, with what should have been a head replaced with some sort of glowing protuberance, with a wide, toothy grin. Tentacles started rushing at the Order, which Darren and Magnus quickly intercepted, and cut to shreds.

The monster screeched in pain and dove under the waves. Yuan created barriers to ward off more tentacle attacks, while Saldo rose the waves and froze them, showering the nearby sea in icy daggers. By now, however, the monster had managed to effectively hide. The party looked over the edge of the boat, trying to find a shadow.

Maggot started singing. Or at least tried to. "Feed them all to the fishies, kill them, bring Holy back to m-"

The sound of a gunshot filled the air. The monster erupted out of the water, soaring far beyond the top of the Fin's masts. The tentacles unfurled in the wind, revealing a small mass of bloodshot eyes, rotating and blinking.

"Time to aim for the face, then!" Telluri threw a bomb towards the eyeballs. Saldo summoned a rapier, skewered the bomb, and sent it into the core, the resulting explosion destroying the eyes and felling the beast. Pieces of flesh and eye tissue started to fall everywhere.

"Um, Saldo, Telluri?" Yuan said in a small voice, "It's falling."

Despite the damage done, most of the monster was still in one piece, and the heavy mass dropped back into the ocean. A tidal wave rose as high as the beast had leapt, and crashed right onto the Fin. The people on deck were quickly swept off, and the sea accepted them without remorse.

Darren awoke on familiar sands.

"This is... Labradia?"

"Yep," Darren turned around to see Telluri behind him, with Saldo a bit further away from shore desperately trying to get the sea salt out of his hat. "Looks like we washed up in the right place. You were out for quite a while."

"What about Yuan and Magnus?"

"No clue," Saldo replied. "I think they're safe for now, though."

"How do you know that?"

"Just this feeling."

"Me too," Telluri continued, "it's kind of awkward knowing your friends are some place you don't know yet thinking they're completely fine, but it's what we're feeling right now."

Darren pondered for a moment. "I think my awkward feeling is knowing I'm back home after such a long time."

Yuan opened her eyes. She quickly checked if the spells she had cast to bind her jian and other belongings to her had been effective. She then looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. She had also cast similar spells on the other members of the Order, but none of them were here with her.

"You there, are you well?" This new voice was unfamiliar to Yuan. "Ah, it appears the sea has delivered to our island a lost White Mage." Yuan turned to see the a man clad in a silver chest plate with a yellow and white hair. His voice was proud and confident, and upon being seen he arrogantly tossed his blond hair. "And so beautiful! Clearly, the light has blessed you."

Yuan blushed. "Um, excuse me, who are you, and where am I?" she asked nervously. Behind the man she could see a grand cathedral, perched on a cliff overlooking the beach they were on.

The man smiled. "I am Kayin, and I welcome you to Oreko, the Island of the Divine Knights."