Chapter 8: Peace
Time has passed, and she has united the Theobaldian empire with the empire she grew up in. She led the empire for many years and had a son with a husband of her choice. She kept the name Theobald, however, since it was her heritage. Royal blood does flow within her veins.
She passed away after some time and was buried next to my wife, Vatroya. The gravestone said: “Here lies Erina Theobald. The hero of the Theobaldian Empire.” I hope Erina finds peace after death. I stayed true to my word. I didn't let the shard go near her son, Jonathan. I, however, shall emerge within time, and when I do, I will stay true to the duty I must fulfill and remain on the path I set out in the beginning.
Part 3: Ascension
Chapter 1: What happened?
Stories always have a beginning, middle, climax, and resolution. To kids, resolutions always tend to be happy endings. To some people with hope, resolutions are bitter sweet. To me, it’s disgusting. Just when you think you have a happy ending, something just pops up out of nowhere and gives you a wake up call. That is exactly what happened to me.
Years ago, I traveled across many cities to take down a low-level thug calling himself a ruler for the sake of my Ancestry. I met many friends, married the one I love, and took my place in the throne of the Theobaldian Empire. The people cheered, the guards saluted, and my friends smiled. To me, this was the perfect ending to go by.
I ruled trying to please the citizens as much as I can. My closest ally, Zephyr, managed to maintain the peace for as much as he can. Everything went smoothly. The two of us fixed up the empire. We managed to at least to make it as great as before this idiot managed to take rule. It was a success as far as we knew.
One day, Zephyr came to the throne room to report an urgent matter. Theobaldian citizens were kidnapped across the border and are being held hostage. Zephyr wanted to send troops to exterminate the kidnappers, but I refused. Sending troops to that location would more than likely get our citizens killed. I offered to go in their stead. He hesitated, but trusted my decision.
I request I go alone, to not arise any suspicion. Once I arrive, I find the small town made up of tiny huts of straw with campfires all around. Bowmen are situated all around the campus, making normal stealth much more of a challenge. The men within the village are armed to the teeth, which means that confrontation through conventional means are almost impossible. I have no choice. I have to use the power.
I manage to take hold of the bowmen’s consciousness and stun them long enough to finish this quest. I walk into the village and manage to cloak myself using shards of mirrors all over me, these shards make me almost see through. I take each knight out one by one, then find the villagers in one of the huts. I give the signal for the soldiers to help them.
I sit with Zephyr and he commends me for a successful rescue: “You’ve done well, Galterius. I didn’t think you’d use the shard again though.” “I asses the situation in case I need to use it, and in my case I did. It’s only fair.” “Well, considering your training after that mess with the foul tyrant, you’d just lift a finger and everyone would fall on their knees.” “I will never use it to kill. If I will ever kill, it would be by my own hand. Who knows what would happen if I fell in a fit of rage?” “Good Point. Anyways, let’s pack up and head home.”
We set off back to Calderone, the City of Kings, with the soldiers celebrating along the way. Soon enough, however, disaster struck. One of the civilians took out a miniature contraption that exploded near us. Zephyr immediately shielded me from the blast, but both of us were knocked out. That is all I remember from before. Now, I wake up within my own Memory Realm within the presence of the other Guardians. The Guardian of All begins to say: “It’s time for you to wake up.”
Chapter 2: Where am I?
I get back to the real world to find myself within the confines of my own castle. However, it looks like it aged so much. Moss was within the walls and the bricks were of different color. I look to my left to see a new face. He tells me to get up slowly. I get up and get off the bed I’m in. The man asks me to escort him and tells me: “Hello old man, sorry to disturb your sleep. You’ve been sleeping for a long time. I didn’t want you to miss dinner. How was your sleep? Pretty good I assume considering that you refused to wake up for a bit. Let me get you up to speed!”
“20 years ago, Erina Theobald took over an empire near the Theobaldian Empire, after your son abandoned it shortly after your sleep. She had a son named Jonathan, after she united the two empires under her rule. Today, Jonathan is crowned a ruler, but you woke up. Before we deal with that situation, we need to go back to New Troy.” “New Troy..?!”
“Yes, where you and Zephyr met. That’s where you’ll meet a valuable ally. Trust me on this one.” And so we leave to New Troy. We walked for many days and passed by many things. Soon enough, we arrive to New Troy and the town isn’t what it used to be.
What used to be a small town with rundown houses now turned into a city of stone houses. Guards patrol the city and shops surround the streets. The old city of despair finally has a future. No more is it plagued by the past. It has moved forward and developed itself even further. The man tells me this: “Sorry I haven’t introduced myself, my name is Lawrence. You met me before, Galterius. You don’t seem to remember that well though so I will introduce myself once more. I was a soldier under the regiment that used to belong to Zephyr. I was young and foolish, until the attack happened. Then I decided to drop out of the military to protect you and Zephyr along with other soldiers, since civilians were not to be trusted. Zephyr managed to recover, but you fell into never ending sleep. Until today that is. Anyways, Zephyr also managed to have a family. His descendant lives here, in memory of his most famous ancestor. This way!”
Lawrence led me to a shack on the outskirts of the city. It looked ragged and dirty, just like the houses used to be in New Troy. When we enter, we find a man sitting on a chair, hunched over a table with a chess board on it. It seems as though he was playing a game of chess with himself. As we approach, he tells us to sit down. I sit directly in front of him and offer my hand to greet the fellow. He doesn’t accept it, but nods accordingly. He then introduces himself: “I am Edsworth, the planner. The most brilliant mind in the Empire. Would you fancy a game?” I agree and he sets up the chess game.
As we play, he begins to talk: “You know, I never thought that I’d be speaking to my Great Grandfather’s Partner, but here you are. How lucky am I?” “What do you mean? It’s been only a few years.” “Haven’t you been listening to Lawrence over there? After all the descendants you had, you still think that it’s been only a few years? According to my calculations, it’s been 80 years.” “80 years?! You’re most definitely joking!” “Not in the slightest, you see, you’re a man out of time. No one knows how you managed to sleep for this long. Let alone survive. Besides, your family managed to fix your empire. There’s just one more problem.” “What is it?!” “They’re about to destroy it!”
Chapter 3: How can this be?
Listening to these words instilled fear upon my heart. Who is he talking about? Why would my family destroy the empire? Who in their right mind would do such a thing? I didn’t have the answers, but he elaborated further: “Lawrence told you about Jonathan, correct? You see, he’s the new heir. The problem is, he has got strange magic on his side. He freely threatens anyone who opposes him. Also, now that you’re awake, he’ll be furious. Powerful forces are coming to play here. There’s a reason why my Great Grandfather took a liking to you and your abilities. Tell me, what’s so special about you?”
I knew what he was talking about, the Shard. The only problem is if I have the Shard, how come Jonathan has powers? I need to know, but first, I need to gain their trust. “I have peak physical strength, Intelligence, and Tactical Knowledge. Zephyr was among the few who recognized my talents, so he took me along quests for the nations as a back up plan. In the end, I became a resort plan for every quest and the only plan
for some situations. So you can say that I’m the Ultimate Soldier.” I look down to see that I beat Edsworth in the game. He yells in frustration and says: “I finally meet someone as smart as I am! Great! Now let’s go back to Calderone to deal with this mess.”
We head back to Calderone, only to be met by resistance. The guards surround us and take us to the current ruler, Jonathan, my descendant. I have to be careful, since he might have powers beyond my control. I did sleep for a long time, I might be out of practice. I step forward unto Jonathan and Kneel since he deserves courtesy as he is the current leader of the Theobaldian Empire. He tells me to get up and begins to speak:
“Ah great grandfather, how good to see you. Still young as ever. You know, many things changed over this period of time. For instance, the empire is a lot larger thanks to my mother. Now, I’m willing to make our Empire the largest to ever exist. However, you must be curious about some of my abilities. Let us have some privacy first. Guards!” The guards leave and escort Edsworth and Lawrence outside the room. Silence soon falls upon the room and his voice begins to fill the void.
“Before the Golden Age of this land, a tyrant still ruled the people. This man forced you out of exile and unto the victory road as you remember it. You were not alone in your quest, and I don’t mean that worthless soldier, Zephyr. Such bizarre names. No, I meant the powers you controlled. They were all controlled through a shard that you possessed. Long after you succumbed to a long sleep, My mother acquired the same power, but she abandoned it and forbid it to ever be used by anyone except you. She deemed it necessary.” “Harsh, didn’t think that the powers were that bad. You just need self-control to-” “QUIET!!”
“Soon after my birth, she kept you in the old castle that you called home, while we lived in this new Valhalla. You see, that shard was my birthright, but another took it’s place.” He then held up a smooth ruby ring that he wore on his finger. It was shining in the oddest way, as though the air around it was warping. “This Jewel right here will make me all-powerful. It basically can let me time travel to specific points in people’s lives. I don’t know which points, but I can manipulate them to some extent. Murder is included. So I can go into your past and ruin the future. I have a mission for you. A very important one. There is a boy I want you to escort to the closest border of this Empire. If you win this, I will grant you this Jewel and this throne as well as surrendering my life to your bidding. Do you understand?” “Clearly, now where is this boy?” “You already met him. He’s the descendant of your friend Zephyr.” “He’s not a boy, but a ma-” “Boy, Man, I don’t care. Just get him to the border. Good luck, Great Grandfather.”
I leave with a smirk on my face. This challenge seems interesting. The border is only a month or two away from this city. However, I must be prepared. I cannot carelessly take Edsworth to the border while my guard is down, but these are problems for tomorrow. Today, I need to rest up some more. How ironic, since I just woke up from my long sleep. Anyways, in New Troy I’ll let them know of the news.
Chapter 4: The Journey Begins Once More
I wake up in Lawrence’s home, rested up after a good night sleep. I head out to Edsworth’s home only to find him sulking in his chair, looking at the chess board. It was in the same formation as when I beat him. I felt nothing of it, but it seems that he is either enraged or impressed, or maybe both. I sit down on the opposite chair, the same chair as the last time. Without looking up, he acknowledges my presence and says: “I know of the mission. It seems that you must keep me alive. The guards briefed me on this sort of thing. I need to reach the border, only then will I be granted normal access to the city. I haven’t told you this, but...” I tune in to what he was about to say.
“After Jonathan gained power, he forbid me access to any city. He kept me within the Empire but nothing more. He sees this as justice for not getting the keys of success that you and my ancestor had. He was obsessed with that sort of thing, but he managed to stumble upon the gym you saw before on one of his trips. He found it on the side of the road, like it was nothing. It felt monstrous just like him. The perfect item to match a cynical man such as him. I don’t mind this sort of thing nowadays though. Lawrence, bless his heart, brings me the things I need from the city, but before, I was completely isolated. I had to look in the wilderness for food, and you know as well as I do that it’s just wild grass.”
I can see the look of weariness in his eyes. He didn’t ask for any of this. He just wanted a normal life just like any other citizen, but why would Jonathan target him? Revenge for his birthright isn’t enough of a motivation, since he got a gem seemingly more powerful than the shard. I can’t recollect anything of what happened between the attack and when I woke up, but I’m sure he fits in somewhere with those events.
“Don’t worry, Edsworth. Your Ancestor was a noble man, he is not at fault with what has happened here. Jonathan is to blame. As for now, we need to focus on a route to the border of the Empire. I still remember the path I took to the Haven I once lived in while exiled. That path is just outside of New Troy, so we won’t have to worry about getting you into any city. Once we are ready, I will inform you.” He nods and I leave to join Lawrence.
I find Lawrence in the marketplace gathering food and water for our upcoming journey. It seems that he too was briefed on the mission. He then leads me to a weapon smith and asks me to get a sword. I kindly refuse, I need to use the shard to its extent. I will grab a dagger, nothing more. I need to be reacquainted with its power as well as develop new techniques to suit this age of battle. He also asks me to buy a device called a pistol. He explains what it is, but I was briefed on most technology and how to use them by the Guardians, so I have no problem in using one. Which reminds me, the Guardians have been silent this whole time, even when I meditate in the realm, they seem to hide within their quarters and denying me access. In due time, I will find out why this is so.
The next day comes, and the three of us are prepared for the journey. Before we leave, I give them instructions to follow: “Now begins our journey outside the Empire. We will face many dangers on the road to the border. I will need your full cooperation on this mission. Now that we’re ready, let’s head off.” Now we take our first steps to our destination, but I sense an evil looming over us. I need to be aware of any tricks sent by Jonathan. As long as I have my wits, he won’t get past me.
Chapter 5: Memories of years past
We go on the road with grass lands on its sides stretching as far as our eyes can see. The wind is as fair as it was when I first went on this road. Flowers beneath the grass are as beautiful as ever. As we travel, I see Lawrence witness Nature in its most beautiful form, meanwhile Edsworth sulks while he walks. A burden haunts him, but I do not intend to snoop around his memories. Reminding him further of them might break him as well. I must make sure Lawrence does the same.
While we travel, I find an injured man in the distance. Shards surround him, almost like a display of horror. My companions fail to notice him. Even with my eyesight, he looks faded, almost like a phantom. When we reach him, Edsworth and Lawrence act like he wasn’t there. I greet him, then he lifts his head up. It was me. A bearded injured face I could never forget. I suddenly remember my first encounter with Erina, how she helped me and took me by her side, not knowing what was in store. However, that was all I remembered.
Lawrence asked if I was ok, I nodded and went along. Other memories will soon appear. I can sense it. We camped out at night and Lawrence volunteered to take watch of the area. As I slept, I entered the realm once more, but this time, I was alone. I appreciate the silence every now and then to focus my thoughts, but these moments have repeated far too often. I fear of what the Guardians are planning.
We wake up and head toward the forest where the secret tunnel I travelled through. At the time, only I had knowledge of it, and that remains true until I showed Lawrence and Edsworth the entrance as well. The outside of it has the exterior of a cave with a few lime bricks coveri
ng it. Spider webs are in every corner, tangling the insects that dare fly into it. We tear through the web and head inside, with torches ready at our disposal.
We arrive inside the main entrance to the building this tunnel hides. A temple hidden away by time, ignored by everyone who passes by. It almost gives off the impression that it does not want to be found. We delve deeper to find the main hall, as vast as the torch can light. It is gigantic in size, giving us a sense of awe as we pass through. Truly mighty craftsmanship right here.
As we walk through, I find a young wanderer in the distance walking into a room. He was barely visible, but I was able to see him. It seems that my companions did not. I tell them to follow me as I follow his trail. The stone that the walls are made of a material as black as night, making it harder to see what is ahead, but the man is still able to guide us.
As we get closer to the wanderer, we approach a gigantic door with very foreign and alien like design. The design consists of shards on the right, Gems on the left, and on top is a mask. Edsworth notices something and begins to explain: “Look over there, on the crest bearing the haunting mask. There seems to be some sort of shadow moving about. Right in the corner of our eyes, shadows move all over this chamber.” I see it too and tell my companions: “Stay calm and stay close to me.”
Shadow of Memory Page 4
