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Standard Disclaimer: Uh, I don’t own the series.
AN: Yup, the chapter that explains who Ryu actually is and why Demus is after him. There’s a lot of talking and explaining and stuff. But hey, this IS what this chapter is about after all. They need a break every once in a while.
Oh, the chapter title is taking from the quote “Be true to thine own self.” Hence, why it sounds so weird.
Now, for the review(s):
Anime Monkey: I thought you might hate me. lol But, I made it all right with this chapter. (smiley) I do love my cliffhangers. Well, sometimes. I try not to have them too often. Yeah, that was a funny line. Originally, I wanted to have Yuki say “We’re f’cked.” Or something along those lines, but then I remember she’s still only 12, and this was a lot funnier. Hee. Sari does seem like a mystery girl, huh?
Have fun people!
“Everything…” Ryu muttered to himself. Garr said it was time that Ryu stop lying and tell them all the truth. Standing face to face with the legendary Guardian was a bit unnerving, but nothing compared to how Yuki had reacted to him.
Dear Ladon, she must have saw him transform. But Ryu couldn’t figure out for the life of him how.
“Let’s go,” Garr said as he turned towards the door that Yuki had just ran out of.
This was not going to be easy. Garr knew he was a dragon. That was bad enough. Sari knowing he was a dragon didn’t bother him so much, other than the fact she knew that he had Cymosion. What else did she know? He had thought it wasn’t all that well known.
After all, only hybrids were affected in such a way that they turned to crystal when infected with the disease. Ryu looked down. His mother had died because of the disease and now he was going to die as well.
…
“I understand. Listen, I am going to… help you. Yes, that’s the word for it. I don’t know what put you in this state, but… no ones deserves to die in this state…”
Ryu looked up at the ceiling. He remembered faintly what that man had said to him that night. The man had helped him, all right. He just prolonged his life. Ryu felt like a walking death sentence. The powers or whatever the man gave him or did for him were starting to wear off.
His body was already starting to crystallize. And when it got to the point where it didn’t work anymore, then…
“Ryu…?”
Ryu turned towards the bed that Nina was lying on and smiled slightly. Nina was sitting up in the bed and looking around. Nina’s eyes rested on Ryu after roaming the room for a moment.
“What… happened? Where are we?” Nina asked. “Oh! Are you okay?” Nina jumped up and quickly ran over to Ryu and grabbed his hand with hers.
“Um…” Ryu blushed slightly. “Y-yeah! I’m okay!” Ryu gave her a cheery grin. “I’m fine. Are you okay?”
Nina gave Ryu a confused look. “Um… yeah… huh?” Nina looked at the front of her white dress. “Why…are there blood stains on my dress… Ryu?”
Nina staggered back slightly as Ryu engulfed her in a giant bear hug. Ryu’s shoulders shook as he started to sob. Nina slowly laced her arms around Ryu’s waist and just held him. Nina was really confused. Ryu never acted this emotionally. Ever.
After a moment, Ryu’s sobs quieted down and he slowly released Nina. He took a step back and rubbed his eyes with his arm.
“I’m…” Ryu stuttered as he looked down at the floor. “Sorry about that…”
Nina smiled. “It’s okay.”
Ryu shook his head furiously. “No it’s not okay!” Ryu shouted.
Nina took a step back and Ryu checked himself. “I’m sorry…” Ryu muttered. “It’s just that… I thought you were…dead… and…”
Nina gasped and shook her head. “What…? No! I mean… how could I be?”
Ryu shook his head. “I thought that Demus killed you and Yuki…”
“Uh…?”
Ryu sighed. ‘Um…. C’mon. Garr wants us to go meet with him and the others.”
Ryu walked towards the door and exited with Nina close behind him.
Dragnier was the ancient name for the home of the Dragon Clan. In the ancient scripts, Dragnier was translated as Drogen or Dologany. The original location of the town was forgotten a long time ago. Some theorize that the original location was somewhere located near modern Gate in the Yraall Region.
Some historians say this because Gate was the name of the town where the entrance to the gates of Infinity once stood. Where the Dauna Mines is located. Now, the city only shares the name of the town for traditional purpose.
During what the Brood coined as the Third Cycle, Dragnier was located out near the entrance to the Desert of Death. They had been forced to flee from the devil’s Guardians. After the final fall of the evil goddess, they were free to once again emerge from desolation and reclaim their birthright as protectors of the world.
Now, Dragnier is located on a large island that sits in the middle of the main lands that they have allied with. The name of the region is called Laurante, after the name of the royal family, the original descendants of the Brood Prince, Ryu.
On the middle of the island houses a giant, magnificent multi-tiered castle made of white marble and silver stones. Around the castle is a massive city with many modern buildings made of steel and tall skyscrapers protected by a massive stone wall that fortifies the city.
The road that leads to the city is referred to as the Via Victoria. The road starts at the seaport on the western side of the island and leads right up to the city gates.
The military power of Dragnier is a force to be dealt with. Dragnier’s most elite of the elite are called Dragoons, their leader being Captain Salla Treiba. They have no equal in all the world.
Most of the citizens of Dragnier are Dragon Clan, but others are of different clans, including, but not limited to, humans, Grassrunners, and Forest Clansmen.
Right now, however, that was the last on Salla Treiba’s mind.
Salla slid the door open and walked into the main office of the infirmary. The main room’s walls were painted a pale green and white with several pictures hanging on the wall. Several light-colored chairs were up against the furthest wall from the door. A couch of the same color was up against the opposite wall.
Salla turned left and walked down the hall to the patients’ wing. Salla walked cautiously as she made her way through the narrow hallway. Closed doorways were aligning either side of the wall that lead to different patient rooms. Salla sighed and walked right on past them and stopped outside of one of the rooms. She took a deep breath and braced herself, placing her hand on her belt. She opened the door and walked into the room.
The room was nothing fancy. In fact it was just a simple white room with a window over on the left wall, that was opened half way. There were a couple of pictures hanging on the walls and a table over in the corner with some medical equipment on the table. A bed was over next to the opened window.
Salla watched with a passive face as the doctor, a middle aged man with graying blond hair, dressed in a white coat, placed the stethoscope on Demus’ chest. The doctor moved the stethoscope around on Demus’ chest, then frowned.
Demus was currently lying on the bed, tubes running throughout his arms and body. He had an oxygen mask covering his nose and mouth. The heart monitor beeped at an irregular pace.
Salla walked over to the doctor and gave him a questioning look.
“It’s as I said. He is still in critical condition. He has major tissue damage around the left chamber of his heart. Not to mention the broken ribs and a collapsed lung. Whatever happened to him, it was major.”
Salla merely stared at the doctor. “What happened is in my report. Or, do you not believe me?”
“Many saw his Highness Ascend on national television. After that, however, feed was lost. Only you know what happened and you say that an indestructible foe did this to Prince Demus?”
Salla’s eyes narrowed. “Yes. His majesty, King Gideon does not question my report. Why do you?”
The doctor shook his head. “I am not. But… there is nothing more I can do, so I call in a specialist. He should be here about… now.”
On cue, the door opened and in walked an elegant young man with long blonde hair dressed in fine robes of gold and white and a pair of silk pants. What impressed Salla was the pair of massive white wings protruding from his back.
“A… Wyndian with wings…?” Salla asked.
“Nay, Captain Treiba,” the man said with an elegant accent not native to Wyndia or Dragnier. “I am not a Wing Clansman,” the man said as he bowed at the waist. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Sir Legence and I am here to take care of his highness, Prince Demus.”
Salla shuttered slightly. There was something… odd about the young man. Something not quite right…
“We are currently at an abandoned house near Tantar,” Garr explained as Ryu and Nina entered the small living quarters of the log cabin. He was currently leaning up against the far wall, arms crossed.
Yuki stood on the other side of the room not really looking at anything. At the table in the middle of the room sat Sari and a woman that Ryu didn’t recognize, expect from ancient texts. Nina made a face. Apparently she recognized the woman, too. A legend was staring them right in the face with almond-shaped violet eyes.
“What happened?” Ryu asked. “How did we get here, and who’s she?”
The woman grinned. “I am Deis Indigo, Destined Child.”
Ryu flinched at the title and Yuki scowled.
Garr looked over at Ryu. “It’s like I said, no more games. Ryu, who are you really?”
Nina and Yuki turned to the blue-haired child in question. Sari merely watched them from the table. Ryu shrugged his shoulders and took a seat next to Sari. Nina merely stood in place.
Ryu took a breath and started. “I am…”
“You are a liar!” Yuki suddenly shouted. “You lied to us about not knowing who you were! How could you do that?!”
“Miyuki, enough!” Garr snapped. Yuki pouted and crossed her arms.
Ryu gave them a grave look. “Yeah, I lied about what I knew and who I was. Demus wanted me dead. I had to.”
Deis smiled slightly. “We know that,” Deis said. “Tell us what we don’t know.”
“I am actually Prince Ryu Laurante of Dragnier. I am the second born prince to King Gideon and his second wife Queen Valerie. My day of birth coincides with the prophecy of the Destined Cycles. In other words, by people, the Dragon Clan, believed me to be the Prince Kaiser, their Destined Child. So… at the time my brother… Prince Demus, was the heir to the throne, but after I was born… they thought that it would be better if I became the heir…
“Uh… Demus… I learned all this from Salla. She was my royal bodyguard during the first seven years of my life. I could never understand why Demus hated me so much. Then after she told me, it all made sense. I stole his birthright. Our father had favored me over him, all because of some prophecy.”
Nina looked over at Ryu and closed her eyes. Yuki looked pissed. Ryu continued.
“When I was six or so, my mother came down with some illness. I later found out it was called Cymosion.”
Nina opened her eyes and stared at Ryu. Wasn’t that was the Seeker had infected those kids with…?
“Sari… she knows what it is…” Ryu said. Sari nodded. “She has it too. I don’t know about her, but with Dragon Clansmen, it crystallizes them… that’s why my legs got all weird during the contest. It doesn’t affect full-blooded Brood, though… only hybrids. My mother was half human, half dragon. I am the second generation of that line. I am one-forth human. It will only affect up to three generations, for some reason. My mother died because of it. My father… he didn’t want me to die… so…he took me to Lahan because there was a scientist there that was researching a cure for it.”
Yuki shook her head. “You… you were at Lahan?”
Ryu nodded his head. “I… started to get worse after I got there. I don’t remember much about my stay there… but…”
“Lahan was attacked by your people,” Yuki said venomously. “They couldn’t find a cure… and…”
“NO!” Ryu snapped. “I mean… I don’t know! All I know is that someone healed me! And… and I was given some kind of resistance to the disease!”
“They should have let you die,” Yuki said quietly.
“MIYUKI!” Garr growled. “Stop jumping to conclusions and let him talk!”
“…fine…” Yuki muttered.
“Um… I don’t know what happened but the guy handed me off to Demus and then he tried to kill me. I managed to get away, but he followed me and then… I don’t know. I ended up at Cedar Woods and was found by Father… Bunyan… and I stayed with him until Demus finally found me again. Then, I ran again and that’s when Yuki found me.”
Ryu looked over at Yuki. “That’s the truth. I hid it because I didn’t want Demus to hurt all of you.”
Nina nodded. “What about now? What happened at the contest and why did Ryu say that Yuki and I died?”
“You did…” Ryu said quietly. “I saw you…”
Yuki shook her head and pointed to her necklace, minus stone. “The stone on this was a soul gem. They are said to save the wearer from death once. I just thought Jin was joking when he gave it to me, but I guess he was serious.”
“I healed Nina,” Sari said quietly.
Nina, Yuki, and Ryu turned to Sari. “You did what?” Nina asked. “How?”
Sari shook her head. “I… I’m not sure.”
“What about you?” Yuki said, finally addressing Deis. “What’s your story?”
Deis smirked and glanced over at Garr. “Isn’t it obvious?”
Garr’s eyes flashed a pale blue. “She is my goddess…” everyone stared at Garr in confusion.
“I thought that…” Yuki started, but Garr held his hand up to silence her.
“She is my goddess by choice. Not the one that revived me, but the one that is now currently issuing my orders. Including the orders to protect all of you and to take you to Angel Tower.”
“Didn’t Jin tell you to protect us?” Yuki asked.
“Yes, he did. But Deis told me to protect you first… 500 years ago.”
“You knew this would happen that long ago?” Nina asked.
“Yes,” Garr said.
Deis tented her hands over her face. “There is a great darkness starting to envelop the world once again, but we cannot pinpoint the source. Many scholars think this is another Destined Cycle, including Prince Demus. Demus thinks that Ryu is the darkness, while others, like Gideon think he’s the Destined Child.”
“And?” Ryu asked. “What do you think?”
“Gideon got it right,” Deis said as she turned to Ryu. “You are the Destined Child. Ladon’s Avatar and the Prince Kaiser.”
Ryu tensed. “Is that why you are here now?”
“Yes,” Deis said. “If you remember your scripture correctly, the rebirth of the goddess Myria usually signals the rebirth of the Destined Child. I am afraid that my sister has been reborn and her followers will reap destruction upon this world once more… they have already been at work. Like the Seeker…”
Nina shook her head.
“It is paramount that we get Ryu to Angel Tower as soon as possible. If Demus actually manages to kill Ryu, then there will be no one to stop Myria’s minions from plunging the world into darkness.”
“But… isn’t Angel Tower in the heart of the Urkan Region?” Nina asked. “I mean, they are followers of Myria. Won’t that be just like handing Ryu right on over to her?”
“But Urkan Region is not allied with Dragnier,” Deis explained. “They won’t know who Ryu is, if we don’t tell them. He can ask for sanctuary and we can plan the rest of it as we go.
“But the problem is actually getting there. Angel Tower is Warp-blocked. I cannot warp us in there without setting off some serious alarms. We will have to find another way.”
“Can you get us anywhere near Rhalpha?” Yuki asked. Ryu looked over at Yuki. “I mean, there’s a port there, right? They could take us to the Urkan Region, and we can bypass the issue with having to get a passport to use the Wyndian Bridge.”
Deis smirked. “Are you saying that you are stilling coming along? Even after…”
“I don’t forgive Ryu for lying to us,” Yuki said coolly. “But I made a promise to help them… and I don’t break my promises.”
Nina nodded. “I want to help Ryu, too!”
Sari nodded quietly. “I as well.”
Deis nodded. “Then it’s decided. Next stop… eh… somewhere near Rhalpha…”
To be continued…