"Perhaps the greatest mystery of antiquity lies in the matter of the Sindarin. What was it that prompted their sudden global migration from north to south? What secrets lie in the ruins they left, which even today survive to mark their passing -- some still sealed? What lay at the end of their journey, and why have they not returned? "That they existed is perhaps the only thing which may be said about them with any certainty. The Sindar ruins attract scholars and treasure-hunters alike, hungry for the knowledge and the riches of the ancients, but little of substance has been wrested from the grasp of the departed Sindarin... and many of those who go to seek their prizes do not return. "Some even say that the Sindar artifacts are tainted by their very nature, but this does little to discourage those adventurers in their pursuits." -- From "Twilight of an Empire: Speculations on the Sindarin," by T. Harral ----------- Ravenspire Studios presents a Rocketarian Pictures production in association with Improfanfic Suikoden: Distant Shores created by Todd Harper and Illyria Part Six: Embers in the Twilight by Scott Schimmel ---------- Kyrina looked up as the door to the village inn swung open. Despite the warmth of the evening, the part-elf had drawn up the cowl of her travelers' cloak, to hide the telling sharpness of her ears. "Any luck?" she halfheartedly asked as her three companions joined her at the table. Tavia shook her head glumly. "Nobody." "I don't know what you expected. There's no reason even a desperate Heimdall cadet would bring themselves to this backwater." "Li, keep your voice down," Tavia hissed. "Oh, yes, because we've been so inconspicuous so far, walking into a village smaller than our old quarters at the Academy and asking about after fellow students while wearing the Heimdall uniforms. And," she added, against Tavia's sigh, "it's Lierni." Reid's lips quirked into the shadow of a smirk. "I seem to recall offering you another set of clothing. You refused to wear them." "Those rags? You're joking." Lierni waved a hand dismissively. "Besides, we're safe enough here. The old woman is at least half deaf to begin with," she said, nodding toward the innkeeper, who sat dozing in a chair in the corner. "And there's nobody else around." Her gaze swept over the bare floor, rough wooden walls, and battered furniture with a sneer. "Not that I blame them. We're only wasting our time trying to visit these... these hamlets." She folded her hands together emphatically. "We should have gone straight to Bristow." "Opinion noted," Kyrina remarked wryly. Tavia rested her chin on one fist. "Still... you'd think at least one of them would have ended up around here. I mean, we didn't see anyone else, so the cadets must've been scattered pretty well, and we're not that far from the city..." "Maybe they went north into the Erisan," Reid suggested. "It's what I'd have done if I thought I'd been ambushed and badly outnumbered at Heimdall." "Not into the city?" Tavia sounded skeptical. "No... once you're in there, you've got a siege situation, and probably very few supplies. In the forest, you could retreat, regroup, and counterattack from a completely different location." "Siege?" Lierni asked incredulously. "By attacking bandits?" Reid shrugged. "Well, I guess it does help to know the nature of the attacking army. Point taken." "They might have gone inland, toward the capital," Kyrina pointed out. The young knight nodded. "If they were on their own... maybe." "But that would mean we couldn't reach them and get back to Bristow in time!" As the other three turned to look at her, Tavia flushed slightly and lowered her voice. "Not on foot, anyway," she finished stubbornly. "You're right," Kyrina acknowledged. "But, as you've said, they were scattered during the attack. Our hope is that some of them remained in or near Bristow." "A hope as yet unfulfilled." "Yes, thank you, Lierni." "Well," Tavia interjected, electing herself peacemaker, "at least in the morning we'll see--" The door flew open with a bang. Tavia nearly toppled out of her chair at the sudden noise behind her, and Reid was halfway to his feet before she even caught a glimpse of the new arrival. It appeared to be a large pile of clothing, weaponry, saddlebags, and various loose travel necessities. With legs. A moment later, a young woman entered. With one hand, she half-guided, half-propelled the first visitor toward the empty table -- in a village this size, the inn only had two tables -- and took in the room with a slow, sweeping gaze. Apparently decided, she casually approached them. Meanwhile, the pile of belongings was being none too gently distributed on the other table, revealing the young man who had labored beneath their weight. Tavia couldn't help but stare. The two were almost identical -- the same shoulder-length blonde hair, with the slightest wave to it; the same jade eyes; high foreheads, high cheekbones, narrow, vaguely upturned noses; slender, athletic builds, long limbs, but graceful rather than awkward. Even their dress was similar: Scarlet tunics with loose sleeves, similarly loose black pants, and bright blue sashes around their waists. Something about that struck her as familiar, but she couldn't quite place it... "Yes, we're twins," the woman said bluntly, rolling her eyes. Tavia startled and turned her eyes away, cheeks burning, and the young woman returned her attention to Lierni. "How much to stay for the night?" "Pardon?" Lierni cocked her head to one side. "Do I look like an innkeeper to you?" "Well, yes," the woman replied. "These other three are warriors, so...?" Eyes narrowed dangerously, to no apparent effect. Finally, Lierni deigned to answer. "The woman in the corner is an innkeeper. I," she stressed, "am a magician." "Ah, I see." The woman glanced at the corner, then back. "So, how much to stay for the night?" Lierni's mouth pressed into a thin, hard line, but the young man interjected before a scathing reply could issue forth. "She seems to be asleep," he said, his voice, to Tavia's mind, surprisingly soft in tone. "No need to interrupt her rest." "Twenty each," Reid said, shrugging. "Highway robbery, for a place like this." "Be nice, Li," Tavia said automatically. Looking up at the twins, she gestured to the empty section of bench at their table, earning another glare from Lierni. "That's quite a load you're carrying. What happened?" The man sat beside her, smiling ruefully. "Well, we used to have horses," he explained, as his sister sat across from him, next to Reid. "Until today, when a group of hawk men decided they'd make a tasty lunch." "Hawk men?" Tavia frowned; the vaguely humanoid avian monsters didn't often venture far from the mountains where they laired. "I know," the woman agreed. "They were really far afield. We think they'd probably been driven from their territory by a stronger flock. There were only half a dozen of them, and some of them looked hurt to start with." "Still put up a hell of a fight, though," her twin muttered. "Anyway, we managed to save ourselves, but they'd killed one horse and crippled the other, so we had to put that one down, too." He sighed. "And this job started off so well..." "Job?" Tavia asked. She was ignored. "Maybe it's a blessing in disguise," the woman said. "These people look pretty capable." "Alyssa..." "What? You were the one saying we might need help on this one." Smiling, she looked at Tavia. "How about it? Feel like joining our little expedition?" Lierni scowled. "Who are you people?" she demanded. "And more to the point, why are you wasting our time?" The man nodded, exactly as though she had given a polite reply. "You're right, we should introduce ourselves first. Sorry; my sister tends to be a little impulsive like that." "Look who's talking." "Whatever. Anyway, my name's Alaric Mytelene, and this is my sister Alyssa." Tavia quickly made introductions in turn, and he continued, "Charmed. The two of us are... I guess you'd say treasure hunters." "We usually look for lost antiques, or these," his sister said, producing a small round purple orb from a belt pouch. Its interior sparkled with a faint trace of gold. Now Lierni took an interest. "A rune crystal... those are pretty rare, even the weak ones. They can't be easy to find." Alyssa nodded. "They fetch a pretty good price, though, so we don't need to find too many. This one contains a Killer Rune. Get a runemaster to attach it to your hand, and any weapon you hold becomes twice as deadly." "We *know* what Runes do." She sighed, ignoring Lierni's interruption. "I suppose we'll have to sell it in Bristow, to replace our horses." The orb slipped back into the pouch. "Probably," Alaric agreed sorrowfully. "That's the last one left, isn't it?" She nodded. "Unless you want to detach your own." "I'm not that desperate, and neither are you." The adventurer looked back toward Tavia. "But we're getting away from the point, aren't we? Here's the deal: There's a Sindar ruin in the forest north of here. It's still sealed, but we know the key." "You want to search a Sindar ruin?" Lierni scoffed. "You're insane." Kyrina leaned forward over the table, drawing everyone's attention. "I know of that ruin. Quite a few people have tried to get in, but nobody ever has." "But we know the way," Alyssa insisted. "And it's a *sealed* ruin -- nobody's been inside since the Sindarin left. Imagine what they might have left behind!" Alaric nodded. "Everything will still be there. Just a couple of artifacts, and we could be set for life. So how about it? You help us out, and we all split whatever we find equally." "If you really want to deal fairly," Reid observed, breaking his long, silent contemplation, "you should tell us about the dangers. You wouldn't need or want help if there weren't any." The twins exchanged a long glance, and Alyssa nodded. "Well, it's true that the Sindarin sometimes left traps or guardians." "Yeah, and there's also..." Alaric paused. "Have any of you seen a man dressed all in red?" The four companions looked at each other blankly. "Guess not," Reid said with a shrug. "We ran into a man like that a while ago," Alyssa said. "Before we knew the key. He sort of..." "Threatened us." "Warned us," she corrected. Alaric glanced at his sister. "Threatened. I know a threat when I see one, and his eyes qualify." "One man scared a couple of experienced treasure hunters like you?" Lierni smirked. "His eyes were completely cold and empty. I think he'd kill a person as soon as look at him." He shrugged. "If you ever meet him, you'll understand." "Fascinating as this may be," Lierni said sarcastically, "I'm afraid we won't be joining your little excursion. We've got more important work to do." Alyssa chuckled. "I was wondering what a Heimdall cadet was doing out here." "I thought the same about Leirstam nobility," the magician casually replied. "I didn't realize they went in for treasure hunting these days." Tavia snapped her fingers. "I knew the sashes looked familiar. But isn't Leirstam nobles' military garb blue, with a yellow sash?" Alaric nodded. "We're not exactly nobility... or soldiers, for that matter. But we did train under one of the masters in Mardeis, so we earned the right to wear his colors." He gazed at Lierni, his expression unreadable. "I'm surprised you know enough to connect them with the nobility. Not too many Hereshans do." "It's part of our business to know such things." "So you're warriors, are you?" "Tavia," Lierni protested, "you can't be thinking--" But Kyrina nodded in agreement. "We could use all the help we can get." The magician turned away, obviously less than thrilled by the suggestion. "Logically, you are correct," she acknowledged, a touch of venom in her voice. "However, I mistrust hired mercenaries." Especially ones like these, her eyes silently added. "Mercenaries?" Alaric looked at his sister, feigning bewilderment. "Have I ever been a sellsword, Lys?" "Probably not, seeing how you don't even own a sword." He pursed his lips thoughtfully. "True, but 'sellstaff' is lacking something, I think." "You see? Would you rely on these two?" Lierni, vindicated, asked rhetorically. Reid shook his head, a touch of a smile on his face. "Sorry to hear it, then. Don't mind her; she's always like this." "You've only known me for three days." He grinned. "That's at least one day longer than I needed..." He cut himself off as Kyrina met and held his gaze. "I didn't say no," Alaric pointed out. "What?" "I'm a bit curious myself," Alyssa said, leaning toward Tavia expectantly. "Just what is it that could outweigh the chance to visit an untouched Sindar ruin?" Releasing her breath in a long, slow sigh, Tavia met Alyssa's intent gaze steadily. "War," she said simply. ---------- "I see," Alaric said, when they had explained further. Or, rather, when Tavia had, with occasional interjections from Reid and Lierni, and questions from the twins. "And you've got how long to prepare?" "A week at most," Reid answered firmly. "And that's assuming very bad weather and loose discipline on the Wind Children's part, neither of which seems likely." Alyssa perked up. "What about this Senrou?" "He was supposed to leave a day after us. Tomorrow," Kyrina clarified. "But I wouldn't be surprised if he got delayed a day. We've been plagued with little problems recently." "We move more slowly than the Wind Children," Reid said. "It will probably take one full day and part of a second for Commander Senrou's army to reach the Bristow area." Alyssa nodded. "He might make it in one, if I understand the distances involved, but the men wouldn't be very effective right after a forced march." "We'll have to trust him to get it right." "Li's right," said Tavia. "We can't do anything about it now. We just have to trust him." "He's a good commander," Reid assured her. "They'll reach Bristow in time." "We're in," Alyssa decided. "You're--?" She smiled grimly. "We do some business in Bristow occasionally, you know." "We can't really pay you..." Tavia began. "No need for that." Alaric winked at her, grinning. "There are other compensations." "That's my brother. Circumspect as a tauros at a royal wedding." Alyssa eyed Tavia intently, much to the younger woman's discomfort. "But I guess he at least has decent taste." The young man in question rolled his eyes. "Not quite what I had in mind, sister dear." He turned back toward Tavia. "Although... er, never mind that. We'll help out. If you decide you'd like to pay us back, you can come with us to that ruin, after we're done with the barbarians." Taken aback, Tavia stalled. "Well..." "I can't promise anything without talking to Commander Senrou. But if he can spare me..." Reid shrugged. "It sounds like a fair enough 'price', and we could always use the help. I don't think there's been a war band this size in half a century." "I have no objection," Kyrina noted quietly, amusement in her voice. "Though I have to say, you two seem very confident in your abilities." Alaric shrugged. "We get by. In any case, you don't have to decide yet. After the fight is fine." "I still think this is foolish." At that, Alyssa smiled sardonically at Reid. "I see what you mean." "We're all going to Bristow anyway. We might as well go together," Tavia decided. "Safer that way," Alaric agreed, smiling. ---------- "Safer, hmm?" Reid mused, almost absently parrying a wild sword thrust with an infinitesimal motion of his own blade. Alaric twirled his staff, warily keeping at bay two bandits who had decided to try to flank him. "Well, they haven't hurt us yet. And twenty against six is better than twenty against four or two." "They really should have run while they had the chance." Alyssa and Tavia were on opposite sides of Lierni, their respective paired jo sticks and sai protecting the magician against attack while she gathered her power. A moment later, a gesture sent a bolt of white lightning through the bandits' ranks, knocking over a group of four of them. Two didn't rise. "They've got a rune user," one of the bandits -- apparently, the band's leader -- growled. "Take her out!" "*A* rune user?" Alaric chuckled. "I think you picked the wrong victims." "I was feeling a bit overlooked myself." Kyrina had put aside her bow, once their ambushers had closed the range. Now she raised her hand, the Wind Rune blazoned on its back glowing a bright blue-white as magical power was focused through it. A rain of rose petals fluttered from the sky above the thieves, and several of them toppled where they stood, cast into a mystical sleep. A sai struck home, and Alaric stepped back into the opening Tavia had created. "My turn." He pointed dramatically at a small group of men and intoned, "Fire Rune, show your power..." Bolts of flame streaked from his outstretched hand, unerringly hitting their targets... and exploding on impact into tiny, self-contained infernos. As with Lierni's earlier attack, only half withstood the spell. Meanwhile, the other three had not been idle. Between the combined work of the three runes and the combat skills of Tavia, Alyssa, and Reid, sixteen of the twenty attackers had fallen in seconds. The survivors stared in shock for the briefest of moments. Then their leader bellowed another order. "Run! Run for your lives!" He spun, following his own advice, and the others quickly followed suit. The first fell before he'd gone two steps, a single arrow protruding from his back. Lierni's familiar struck the second in the small of the back, toppling him. Reid's sword finished him as he rose. Tavia sprinted after the former leader. Sensing her approach, he turned, aiming a vicious cut at her in a desperate effort. Training took over as, with barely a thought, she neatly caught the blade with her right sai and twisted, wrenching the sword from his grasp. A moment later, the left sai flicked across his throat as he lunged forward at her. The last man found himself facing the twins. Eyes wide, he charged, snarling. Alyssa nodded to her brother. "Now." At the word, both leapt forward and to opposite sides of the would-be robber. Staff and sticks flashed in quick succession, striking half a dozen hard blows from both sides as the siblings attacked in unison. He crumpled without a sound. All was quiet for a moment, as the adrenaline rush wore down in the aftermath of overkill. Alyssa was the first to speak. "Is anyone hurt?" "I guess not," Tavia answered after taking stock of the others. Her expression was one of awe. "Did we really just fight twenty men and win?" Reid chuckled in response. "It's not that much of a surprise. They weren't trained, and we are. Not to mention having three rune users." "Four," Alaric called back. "Four?" "I've got a Water Rune." Strangely, Alyssa seemed slightly embarrassed. "One of the perks of being a rune hunter. Occasionally you find something you want to keep." Lierni nodded in contemplation. "A useful choice." "It's dangerous work," she said dismissively. "Never hurts to be able to heal." "I wonder..." Kyrina's voice diverted the conversation. "I've never seen this many bandits in this area before. Then there's the Wind Children, and the hawk men you two encountered yesterday..." "When it rains, it pours," Reid murmured. Alaric made his way back to the group. "No markings or anything, as far as I can tell... maybe they're just common thieves. This's interesting, though..." He tossed a small, battered leather pouch to Tavia, who caught it mostly by reflex. Curious, she peered inside. "...Money? And..." She pulled out a small, tarnished silver pin, worked into the shape of a fish. "That's rune-worked," the adventurer said, confirming her suspicions. "I once saw another one like it. Though in better condition, to be sure..." "What's it good for?" Lierni fielded the question, subconsciously lecturing once again. "It has protective properties. Occasionally, it will harmlessly deflect a Rune spell cast at its wearer... unfortunately, it will not work for many people, and even then, not often. It was a flawed attempt by an ancient magician to produce protection for his private army. But the Runes are simply too powerful for mere mortal craft to circumvent their effects." She cast a long sideways glance toward Tavia. "You would already be aware of most of this, if you had studied your ancient history properly." "You know it's not as central a subject for the warriors," Tavia protested with a weak chuckle. And promptly changed the subject. "Anyway, I'm not sure I like this. It seems a bit close to grave-robbing for my tastes..." Alaric offered a lopsided smile. "In a sense, but, rest assured, they would have had no such reservations." A brief shrug, and he continued, "It's pretty certain that it's all stolen anyway, and we can't exactly give it back to its rightful owners..." With a curt nod, Lierni contributed, "Surprisingly, he's right. We'll need to buy medicine and perhaps armor for the battle." Tavia frowned. "I guess so." She didn't sound entirely convinced, though. "How far to Bristow?" Alyssa asked. Kyrina glanced outward at the horizon. "Two hours, conservatively," she estimated. "Then let's get going," suggested the other twin. "We've got a lot of work to do." "It's 'we' now, is it?" Lierni muttered. "Be nice, Li." "...Stop that." ========== Author's notes: Thanks to Kate Malloy, Todd Harper, Marcus Fong, and Jeff "New Nickname Every Week" Petersen for prereading and general help. Oh, this story is fun. ^_^ A couple of notes, mostly for the benefit of those who haven't played the games. There are a couple of things that happen in the games that were reflected in this chapter. * Some characters from previous games show up in the sequels. We've already had this with Leknaat, but not all recurring characters are "background" in the same way she is. In particular, characters who were once Stars often show up again. That doesn't mean they're members of the new set of Stars; it's possible, but they can also show up as non-Stars, and even as antagonists. Anyone familiar with Suikoden 2 might recognize one of that game's characters in a cameo here... * Some characters can, when they're all in the party, "team up" in a Unite attack, which can cause them to do more damage, target all enemies instead of just one, add special status effects, and so forth. This usually happens between characters who are related to each other, either literally (husband/wife) or by some theme (all knights). It can involve more than two characters in some cases. Alaric and Alyssa have such an attack. * In case it wasn't clear from earlier chapters, Runes aren't all used for "magic". Many of them are for spellcasting, like Lierni's. But there are also some that have "physical" effects, like the Killer Rune mentioned in this chapter. Anyway, I had a great time writing this, and I'll definitely sign up again. (So you're stuck with me. Mwahaha.) Good luck to Lauren; hope you enjoy it as much as I did. ---------- New Stars introduced: Alaric Mytelene (Tenyu Star - "Heavenly Courage") Alyssa Mytelene (Chiyu Star - "Earthly Courage") ---------- Omake! ========================= CHARACTER STATUS ========================= ALARIC LEVEL 4 STR 24 EXP 395 TECH 22 PROT 21 MAGIC 35 M DEF 25 SPEED 38 LUCK 20 H ----------- RH Fire Rune LH ----------- 2/0/0/0 ATT 33 DEF 28 Ash Staff LEVEL 3 ATT 9 (M) RUNE ----------- ========================= ALYSSA LEVEL 4 STR 31 EXP 395 TECH 39 PROT 24 MAGIC 22 M DEF 28 SPEED 26 LUCK 24 H ----------- RH Water Rune LH ----------- 2/0/0/0 ATT 41 DEF 31 Storm Staves LEVEL 3 ATT 10 (M) RUNE ----------- Scott Schimmel Ex ignorantia ad sapientium; Ex luce ad tenebras "You really aren't normal, are you?" - Miki Koishikawa