With a pleasant rumble, Frye opened his eyes and sat up. The young green dragon yawned deeply for several seconds and stretched his wings widely. Already hungry again, he glanced around for Alisia and the others.
He found them nearby. They stood surrounding Khalidah as she knelt next to a huge pile of gore. Her eyes were shut tightly as her head was pointed down to the ground. Frye crawled next to Alisia and looked up at the sorceress inquisitively.
"No..." Khalidah muttered.
Leo, trying to keep his left arm motionless, placed his right palm on the woman's shoulder. He could tell by Khali's personality that this event was severely undermining her confidence. She apparently took this responsibility very seriously.
"What could possibly have happened to it? There's no drag marks and almost all of the signs that the creature even existed are gone," Jean quested, looking to Alisia and the animals and then back to Leo.
That morning the group had awoken to find Khalidah in the same position she was currently in... and no dead Gnasher atop the plains. Only a few rancid puddles dotted the battleground.
"This does take care of the 'clean-up' problem, I suppose," Alisia spoke. Whisp sizzled over her left shoulder a sound similar to a sigh.
Leo glared at her for a moment and then looked to the blue skies above.
"If it wasn't dragged away, then something must have lifted it... but how could we not be awakened by such an effort. I'm sure that we would've heard something... and the wild beasts certainly did not come around and consume it completely in one short night."
Khalidah slowly stood up.
"My responsibility..."
"Do not be so hard on yourself," Alisia answered, "We were so weakened that we probably would have slept through the calls of the Screech Wyrm... had it not been killed twice..."
The dancer glanced at the red-haired girl.
"The what?"
"Never mind. It wasn't your fault, Khali. You were successful in immobilizing it forever... there's no way it can do any more harm, wherever it may be."
Khalidah opened her eyes and looked to her allies.
"That may be... but even a corpse can be dangerous in the right hands..."
Within her mind, Alisia realized that Khali's words were true... the Screech Wyrm that she mentioned was only one example of the dead coming back to life that she already seen. If the serpent had been revived, so theoretically could the Gnasher... but there was no chance of that happening. The Necromancer that she knew was definitely dead way back on Earth...
They grew quiet for a few minutes as Khalidah looked back down into the bloody puddle that her feet were positioned next to. Noticing a scythe-like 'lump' near the edge, she gingerly reached into the disgusting pile and pulled out the blood soaked tail-blade of the Gnasher. She looked at it sternly for a moment and then placed it in her belt.
"I suppose I now must continue my search of your world... what is your next destination?" she uttered.
Leo turned to face the northwest.
"We have a long hike to reach Nota, but it's the closest civilized location around and has ample healing facilities for us," the half-breed started. With a grin at Khali, he continued, "And with the power of that Star Mist you've provided, I think we should be able to make the journey in moderate shape."
The strange woman did not smile but her expression seemed a little less gloomy.
"In that case, let's get moving... hopefully we'll see one of the dragons along the way to explain the current situation more fully," Jean responded, carefully getting her things together.
Chirper began to sing a pleasant little tune as they packed up and proceeded along the path toward the city of Nota. They would hopefully reach it by the early afternoon, barring any further encounters...
Lemina's eyes slowly opened. She had no idea how long she had been unconscious but she ached all over her body.
"Mother... Borgan..." she whispered aloud to no one.
"Hm?"
With a slight gasp, the Junior Premier realized she wasn't alone in her bedroom. The sound of snoring was evident as she tried to sit up. Pained, she groaned and tightly shut her eyes before she even halfway up.
A voice whispered, "Ronfar... Ronfar!"
The snoring continued.
"RONFAR!"
Lemina lowered onto her back again as the female voice yelled. She heard a loud thump as someone apparently hit the floor. The blond-haired girl reopened her eyelids to find a familiar face looking down at her.
"M... Mauri?"
The half-beast nodded and then glanced to the floor beside the bed.
"Ouch... oh, the kid's awake? Guess I haven't lost my touch yet," another familiar voice uttered.
Ronfar's handsome visage came into view next to Mauri's face.
"Hiya Blondie. Feeling better?"
The girl gritted her teeth and muttered, "Not very much... my ribs feel horrible... can you help me sit up?"
She felt his rough hands carefully support her as she bent at the waist again. It hurt slightly less this time. Lemina focused on her chamber as the door slowly opened. A few seconds passed before she recognized the figure but the winged cat on her shoulder was unmistakable.
"Awake finally?" Ruby asked, her tail swaying side-to-side.
Ryko nodded and replied, "Certainly looks like it. Better tell her mother that she's awake."
Ruby spread her wings promptly and flew out of the room. The martial artist rubbed her shoulder where the feline's claws had dug in and grinned.
"Glad to see you finally woke up, Lemina... I guess you got the worst of it yesterday. Both of your parents are awake already," Ryko spoke.
Thundra quickly flew into the chamber and perched on the same shoulder. The girl wasn't happy feeling more claws in the same spot.
Lemina wasn't pleased either with the remark. She ignored her pain as she blurted out.
"Borgan is NOT my father."
Ronfar smirked and whispered to his love.
"Looks like she's better... let's get everyone together."
The Guild Mansion of Vane was bustling with activity by the time Lemina had revived. Workers had already started repairs on the ancient structure. Several guards had already gathered to protect the Premier in case another attack was on the way.
Lemina's bedroom became very crowded in a few moments... and that was BEFORE Borgan sauntered inside. Around the girl stood Ronfar, Mauri, Miria, Borgan, Randall, Ryko, Talm and Kara. Ryko looked even less comfortable as Thundra sat on one shoulder and Boomer crawled atop the other. The water drakes and Ruby sat at the foot of Lemina's bed.
Ruby blurted out suddenly.
"Okay, I think we're all around now... here's what I know..."
For the next few hours, the tiny dragon told the grouped heroes everything she knew about the current events of Lunar: the legends of the Dark Scimitar and Fifth Dragon, the appearance of Dragon Frye at the Star Dragon's tower and the subsequent monster attacks. Ronfar, Lemina and Ryko, in turn, contributed their sections of the tale: battles of Taben's Peak, Serak Palace, Meribia and Horam, the crater, the assassination attempt of the High Priest and the stealing of the crests.
By the time everything had been said and done, Kara had the only fitting response.
"My head is spinning... just what is behind all of this?"
Lemina, feeling a little dizzy herself, tried to answer.
"The pieces of this puzzle are many... but only a few are fitting together... and as time passes the fragments only split apart more..."
They became quiet for a few moments.
"So what do we do now?" Ronfar quested, chewing his weed as usual as he held the Red Dragon Crest.
Ruby shook her fuzzy head.
"I can't think of anything...unless Azuren or Shade find that wizard... or Nall comes back from wherever he flew off to... we have no leads on the source of all of this trouble..."
Mauri sighed, placing her face in her hands. Miria patted the shoulder of her daughter and looked into the face of Borgan. Even his expression displayed a feeling of helplessness... but at least he knew where his 'daughter' lay. Randall, on the other hand, glanced at Ryko and Talm and then back at the floor, wishing that the clue to the fate of his own child would appear in front of him.
"I can't just stand here and wait," Ryko mumbled. "Talm, Kara... let's go train at least. I want to be ready when the next piece of the puzzle drops."
Yawning, the redheaded girl followed her two friends out of the chamber and past a pacing Ronfar. Boomer was mimicking his motion at his heels.
"Chief, where are you when we need ya?"
"Hold up, will ya?! I really doubt we're being chased now!" Kuyo yelled as she panted heavily. She had far more stamina than an ordinary human but this creature they were following apparently wasn't just a human.
The shadowy figure skidded to a halt in a somewhat dark clearing somewhere in the lower forests surrounding Bandit Butte. It glanced in several directions (including straight up) checking that the area was clear and then waited patiently for the party to catch up.
Kuyo stumbled into the area and dropped to one knee, leaning on her sword and GlitterEdge. Nearly half a minute later Lucia darted into the clearing, her blue mane trailing behind her. She stopped as soon as she reached Kuyo's side and then also knelt on both knees. She placed Nall on her lap and examined the wounds that covered his little body.
"I certainly hope Hiro and Gwyn can find us... we may have run too fast-" the guardian of the Blue Star began to say.
"Lucia! Kuyo!"
Kuyo smirked and thought to herself, "Not fast enough for that handsome hero, apparently."
"Right here, Hiro!" she shouted.
It took a few minutes for the boy to follow their voices to this location. All during this time the shade remained mostly silent... mostly...
"Shall I let them rest for a few moments?" the figure's female voice whispered.
Hiro supported a very tired Gwyn as they entered the clearing. Althena's sword was unsheathed and sported several bloody stains upon its magnificent blade.
"Damn Banshee Fowls..." he muttered as he let Gwyn crouch and gain his breath. "Everyone okay?"
Lucia and Kuyo nodded simultaneously, the former shivering slightly at the general frigid temperature of the forest.
"And where is that girl who helped us?" he continued.
His companions shook their heads as they glanced around the area. It was too dark to see anyone other than the four of them and the dragon-cat.
Lucia, however, was still able to detect that familiar presence very close to her.
"Very well, I'll let them see me," the mystical voice spoke softly to no one in particular.
"Where are you?" Gwyn started to speak.
The figure emerged from the shadows behind Lucia. It seemed like the shade had somehow blended seamlessly into the darkness there.
"I'm here," the form spoke as it revealed itself in the dim light of the region.
Hiro now had the time to take in the strange creature's appearance. As he had observed before, it was a very slim female clad in a bizarre yet somewhat familiar red outfit with oddly 'transparent' pants. Her light-red hair was done up in a long ponytail about several notable features on her head: a pair of thin, pointed ears and a twisting horn right in the middle of her forehead. Strange markings crossed her face below the mysterious eyes. She had a bracer on each arm and a short sword held in each clawed palm. Below the odd pants she wore only a gold anklet on each leg.
The young hero would have taken her at first glance to be a half-beast like his grandfather and Leo's kind but there was something about her features that seemed to place the girl in a different race. The ears (besides the unusual earrings) were oddly long and fine. He just couldn't place what kind of creature she could be...
"My name is Midia... is there something about my appearance that fascinates you, Hiro?"
"Yes... and how'd you know my name?" Hiro quested.
Midia paused for a second... it seemed like she was waiting for something. She promptly continued.
"I know several things about most of you... even though I have not been here for long. And is it my clothes that bother you? I was a dancer back where I come from."
"I thought she reminded me slightly of Jean," Hiro thought to himself.
Lucia interrupted.
"Are you of an elven race? You seem similar to one I once met..."
The strange woman seemed taken back by this remark. She whispered to herself.
"That was fast..."
In response to Lucia's question, she answered louder.
"Yes... my kind was commonly known as dark elves to other creatures, but I doubt even you have ever met one of my race."
The guardian nodded slowly, trying to analyze this strange twist of events.
"How do you know about my grandson, Midia?" Gwyn asked.
The dark elf glanced at the beast-man as she sheathed her two swords. A brief smile revealed a set of small fangs within her mouth.
"I have my sources-"
"Such as?" Kuyo interrupted.
Midia paused again.
"Consider them a form of 'spiritual guidance'... please do not push further or I shall get confused," she replied. "I must get you out of here and to a village to rest before you are found."
"Such strange responses," Lucia whispered to herself.
"Why? Who's after us? Not the Dusk Blades for certain," Hiro answered.
Midia trotted quietly toward an opening to the west of the clearing, occasionally inaudibly murmuring to herself.
"No... they're things beyond my comprehension so far but behind many of the events that are plaguing this world apparently. Please follow me back to the main roads."
With that remark she waited silently at the exit of the area.
"Well, now I'm completely lost," Kuyo grumbled, passing GlitterEdge back to Hiro. "You'd better keep this sword... I'm much more familiar with Silav here."
"Interesting name for your blade," Nall softly muttered.
Hiro, Lucia and Gwyn huddled together at one edge of the clearing.
"Can we trust this Midia character? It seems like she's keeping something secret," Hiro spoke.
"I don't know, my boy. She did help us though... and she wants to make sure we're safe apparently," Gwyn responded.
Lucia stared off into space.
"An elf on Lunar... the race is supposedly ancient and mystical... but I'm not familiar with much about them..."
"Hrm?"
Kuyo had entered the gathering by now.
"Do we follow and hope to learn more... or not trust her?"
Nall sighed, "Considering she seems to be listening to all of this and NOT attacking... I think we probably should follow at least until we have the opportunity to rest and heal ourselves. Agreed?"
The quartet of humanoids slowly nodded after taking in their options.
"If I take you to the main road, can you lead us to a town?" Midia quested.
Hiro stepped forward and nodded.
"Certainly... Takkar should be very close once we escape the forest surrounding the buttes."
"Very well," the girl answered after another uneasy pause. She whispered to no one again as she proceeded to lead the group to the west.
"Why does she keep talking to herself?" Kuyo thought.
Simultaneously, Lucia's mind had another question.
"Why do I feel such a powerful and familiar presence around her?"
The sounds of a fight erupted from the grasslands behind her. She fled as fast as she could from her previous location somewhere far to the southwest of Nota.
The fairy Mistra smirked slightly as she scanned the area below her for further dangers.
"At least those travelers will keep the pursuers busy for awhile... now if only I could find one of those lazy dragons."
Almost as if she was listening, a tremendous black dragon approached the sprite from behind. It turned out that Shade had completely lost track of both Azuren and the vile wizard the previous night and was now searching for anything to report back at Vane.
"And what would a tiny pixie like you want with a lazy old reptile like me?" Shade thundered as she came up underneath Mistra. The surprised fairy 'crashed' on top of the dragon's head and grabbed on with her small arms.
"The name's Mistra and where have you drakes been?!" she yelled. "There's a bunch of creepy priests and knights crawling all over our garden and all the other fairies have been captured!"
"What? Tell me everything that you've seen there," Shade exclaimed as she soared back toward Vane. "This could be the break we've been waiting for!"