Our Quest - Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - The Real One

Spectral atmosphere. Everyone, everything around Ekleipsis is surrounded by it, though it can’t be seen with the naked eye, just like the air we breath. Some life beings are even connected to it, which means they’re connected to the world itself. The art of understanding one’s surroundings and manipulate them at will. That is magic.

“Hey! Aren’t you going to answer me?”

Yuki, and the guy who I’m guessing it’s our hero, managed to lose their persecutors by entering Loregard’s south forest. It seems they got used to each other.

“I don’t remember what should I answer.”

Loregard’s trees are the tallest of all Ekleipsis.

“Back there, when the guards were blown away, were you the one who did it?, can you use magic?”

While it seems to be just a stroll in the park for Yume, somehow the girl is finding it difficult to walk over the trees’ roots, also she’s walking slower than usual. One can only think that Yuki doesn’t get out a lot.

“Yeah, I don’t know why are you so surprised about it, as far as I know every demon can use magic.”

Ekleipsis is populated mostly for humans. Then are the demons and finally the elves. Only the human beings lack a connection to the spectral atmosphere.

“Every demon, huh...”

A memory strikes our heroine’s mind, a memory about a man covered in black, a frightful look. She shakes her head trying to get rid of the remembrance. Yume notices the girl uneasy behavior.

“Let’s take a break little girl, I know you need it.”

Be it for empathy or just mercy, she feels grateful. While silently dedicating a smile to the demon, she sits, leaning against a tree.

“Thank you... it’ll be just... a minute...”

She suddenly falls asleep.

“So, no more questions for the rest of the night.”

Yume also sits and leans against the same tree. He lights a cigarette.

Let’s just leave them taking a peaceful rest. At least now you know a little about how magic works in this world. If you want to read something that might be more interesting let’s see how things are going back on Thorald. The bar’s open, its customers are mostly foreign people so nobody knows about the incident involving our heroes. Except of course for its workers.

“Look, Belle, there’s him again.”

The bartender points towards the bulky man who I’m sure you remember.

“He’s got some nerve to appear around here again.”

“I know, but to be honest I feel sorry for him.”

Hey, that guy was so scared he passed out, even I feel sorry for him.

“Let’s give him another chance.”

A kind smile shines on her face.

“Are you sure? I think we should take him out while we can.”

“Yes, I’m sure, after all he is a customer!”

Nowadays It’s hard to find such gentleness. Speaking of the false joel, that man can’t help but feel frustrated. He was humiliated, his sword of which he was so proud of was torn in half, and of course he hates the fact that his life was saved by a girl, the same girl that he was about to smash. Every time he closes his eyes he can still see the image of the demon who made fun of him.

“Here, sir!, it’s on the house.”

Belle gives same bottle of wine of that day, but seeing it enrages the man.

“What are you doing...”

I don’t think he liked the gesture.

“Don’t worry sir, you’ll always be welcomed to Thorald’s bar!”

When the wrong person listens to such compassionate words they could be easily interpreted as mockery.

“Fuck you bitch! I don’t need your pity!”

He stands up while flipping the table. The waitress falls and so does the bottle. Everyone stares at the man.

“What...”

He starts seeing Yume’s face on all the people around him. The sights are too heavy for him. His head is filled with the demon’s crushing words. The whispers pierce deeply in his ears. The last remnant of sanity in him fades away.

“I’m going to KILL YOU ALL!”

One second, one spark. Two seconds, a flare. Three seconds... the man’s covered by flames. A loud scream of horrendous suffering escapes from his mouth

“You are annoying as hell.”

A man wearing a headband walks towards the screaming, burning guy, with a glass of whiskey in his hand.

“When I heard what you were doing, I got really angry, fake one.”

No one runs away this time, neither one tries to help. The slow dance of the fire has hypnotized everyone.

“To think that there’s people stupid enough to believe your lies... No, I can believe that.”

He drinks all the whiskey and then throws the glass away, gazing upon the blazing fellow’s agony. His eyes, colored as blood, show both anger and delight. Belle snaps out and watches the horrible display. She quickly stands up.

“Please! Someone help him!”

“I’m afraid it’s too late for that, woman.”

The fire finally extinguishes and the cremated corpse falls down. Now the whole clientele realizes the situation, and still they can do nothing but observe. The tremendous terror prevents them from moving a muscle. The red-eyed man attempts to leave the place.

“I would help you cleaning this mess, but, in a way, I just did.”

Two incidents, one day after another. Of all the bars in Loregard, Thorald’s must be the unluckiest.

“Besides, I got a prey to catch.”

The payment for the drink is left on a table. The guy walks out. With tears in her eyes, Belle mouths some last words to him.

“Who... who are you?”

Without looking at her, without stopping, he answers her question.

“My name is Joel.”

Our Quest - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Strangers.

“Please!, you’ve got to let me see her!”

“I’m sorry lady, but until we know what’s behind those two, visits are not allowed.”

Looks like the waitress won’t be able to visit our heroine. Disappointed, she walks away.

“I... didn’t got the chance to tell her I’m the one she was looking for...”

Come on, of course you all already knew that. But what you don’t know it’s what happened to Yuki and the smoker. Well, it’s not really that hard to imagine, the Imperial Soldiers break in the bar and spot an unconscious man and two armed people, figure it out.

“I don’t know about you, little girl, but this is my first time on Thorald’s prison.”

The place isn’t so bad, it has individual cells, and each one has its own bed. Yuki is seated on hers, the smoker is laid down on his.

“This is my first time in any prison...”

You probably can tell that Yuki is not in a good mood at the moment.

“Argh! How did it turn like this? All I wanted was to find a library!”

Yeah, she is definitely in a bad mood, but in a funny way. Like a tantruming girl. The smoker on the other hand seems to enjoy being incarcerated.

“If you don’t like it just leave.”

“You mean like a prison break? I’m not a criminal.”

“Then why are you here.”

Because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The heroine starts thinking about what happened, how she tried to defend a girl and almost got in a fight, and how a man almost kills another right in front of her.

“Say... are you really... a demon?”

Things are about to get serious.

“Hell yeah!”

Probably not.

“But why do you ask?”

So here is the thing, I don’t know how demons are treated where you all come from, but on Ekleipsis they’re like the scum of society. Reason: Fear.

“Because... you see... I...”

“Aww, so the little swordsgirl is scared of this evil bastard.”

He is actually saying that with a smile on his face. Like i said, no shame.

“You’re right... I am scared of you... but it’s not because you’re a demon.”

Every word she says sends shivers down her spine. Nervous, she asks another question.

“Were you really going to kill that man?”

The girl trembled a little.

“Who knows?, you took away my chance.”

That was more a yes than a no, I guess.

“Of course! I don’t want to see someone die in front of me...!”

“... And yet you attacked me with your sword.”

He interrupted her, but point taken.

“That was...!”

“Easy little girl, it’s alright.”

He interrupted again. The silence remained for a while. Even if she did it out of instinct, she almost takes a life, and for what?, to save another. The question here is, would that be alright? Either way, she would see someone’s death. She probably needs to understand that not all whims can be satisfied.

“The name’s Yume by the way, just like that. No fancy second name, nor a birthplace.”

Nice try to cheer her up.

“Hehe, do you even remember my name?”

“I remember you are from Loregard.”

Oh well, seems like it’s working.

“I’m Yuki, Yuki Mornen.”

“Well, Yuki, i don’t know about you but i’m pleased to meet you. Now let’s get out of here!”

“Wait... What?!”

The guy stands up. That must mean he is serious about it.

“You see, I wanted to take a rest, but the fact is wolves hate cages.”

“Wolves?”

Yuki stands recklessly from her bed, she stumbles and falls

“You’re one clumsy little girl, aren’t you?”

“Anyway, what are you talking about?, you are trying to escape? And why do I have to go with you!”

“Oh, you don’t have to. But just so you know, I can get you into Algalord’s Royal Library.”

Algalord. The biggest and most important city on The Enchanted Lands, where the King of Kings resides. And there's also the Royal Library, the ultimate source of knowledge. And he is using it to tempt our heroine.

“You know, who cares, in one of two days you’ll be out of here and you can start your journey again.”

That’s true, after all a normal 16 years old girl has all her life ahead of her, one or two days aren’t that much. But...

“But listen little girl, freedom is the only thing that has a meaning for me, and that’s a goal that cannot wait. So the question is: what about yours.”

It doesn’t matter if it’s a day, an hour, a minute or a second, because for that which Yuki is traveling, she has waited long enough.

“I’m going.”

“Yeah! That’s the spirit, girl!, and don’t worry, I’m not going to ruin your reputation.”

“Wha-What do you mean?”

“You’ll see.”

It’s already night time. The Imperial soldiers are shifting their guarding turns. Everything seems to be normal outside the prison... and then an outrageous sounds, like that of an explosion, disturbs the calm.

“What the hell it’s going on?!”

One of the prison walls has crumbled. Out from the smoke comes Yume, oddly carrying our heroine.

“Eat my dust you imperial suckers!”

The guards immediately start chasing after the pair.

“Stop! Let me go!”

Yuki screams making a fuss.

“That’s great, keep playing your part.”

“No, seriously! Let me go!”

They’re almost out of the town. All they have to do is go across the town’s entrance, but there’s one last obstacle to overcome: the gatekeepers.

“Stop right there criminal!”

“Hell no! I dare you to come and get me while I hold this girl as a hostage!”

They hesitate a little, but decide to attack the demon. He then extends his arm towards them and all of a sudden they’re hit by a gust of wind. The girl is stunned to see it.

“Was that... magic?”

“Let’s go Yuki girl, Algalord is calling!”

And after an strangely easy prison break, the pair disappears into the darkness...

Our Quest - Chapter 1

A quest for Power.

“I'll show you, this curse... I’ll make it my bless.”

A quest for Knowledge.

“Every mystery over the world is waiting for me to unveil it.”

A quest for Freedom.

“Without any worries, I live my fucking life the way I want.”

All of them guided by a quest for Justice.

“I believe everyone deserves a chance to be saved.”

Strong desires. A will to fulfill them. This is OUR QUEST.

Chapter 1 - The Girl From Loregard.

Welcome to the ancient world of Ekleipsis. Lots of tales lie around this gorgeous place: magic and swords, good and evil, life and death. Everyone has an interesting story, and I'll start by telling you the one about a young girl named Yuki and her quest. What's so special about her? Well, I don’t even know, so let’s go through the story together!

Walking over the green fields of the Kingdom of Loregard we find our happy little heroine. A sheathed sword dangled from her belt, at hip level

“Oh god, I’m starting to get tired!"

Well, maybe not so happy at the moment. She’s been walking for a while now so you can understand her mood.

"No, no! Yuki, you must remain positive!"

She’s telling herself that since an hour ago.

"There! I can finally see the town's entrance!"

Indeed there is. The Merchant Town: Thorald. A peaceful place with vivid people, home of every kind of salesman. From clothes to weapons, food or tools, almost everything can be acquired there... almost.

"What?, a library?, there's no such thing in Thorald you know?"

"I-is that so..."

How disappointing. But truth to be told, a library isn't a bookstore so...

“Though if you want books maybe you could go and ask Belle.”

“Belle?”

“Yeah, she works in the bar, but her father owns a bookstore.”

Which is not a library, by the way.

“That’s great! And where can I find the bar?”

“Just go east from here, there’s another entrance to the town there. Go through it and you’ll see it.”

“Thank you so much! I’ll get going, bye!”

It didn’t took Yuki much time to get there since Thorald is really a small town. The bar, paradoxically, was a big place.

“Wow... I wonder why they need such a huge door.”

Our heroine walks inside, where she finds a crowd full of “happy” people, mostly men of course, and half of the few women working as waitresses. Some are playing cards while drinking, the others are just drinking. Alone in a table on the middle you can spot a man smoking.

“Um... Hi, I’m looking for a girl called Belle.”

Nobody seemed to hear Yuki.

“Hello there?, anyone?, a girl called Belle.”

Finally a young woman approaches to her.

“Hi!, welcome to Thorald’s bar, can I offer you a table?”

“Thank you, but no, I’m just looking for someone, her name is Belle.”

“Oh then you’re lucky! I...”

Suddenly, a man smashes a bottle on his table, probably demanding attention. He has not company, except for a big object wrapped up in bandages standing next to him.

“Hey you damn waitress! , I want another one right now!”

Now that was rude.

“Right away sir!. Sorry lady, I’ll be with you in a minute.”

“Eh?... o-ok, don’t worry.”

But Yuki is the only one worrying. It’s her first time being in a bar, and she’s not really used to people’s aggressive behavior.     

“There you go sir!”

A bottle of very good wine, and just as expensive.

“Listen hottie, why don’t you take a rest and sit by my side?”

The man’s breath reeks of alcohol.

“Sorry sir, I’m not allowed, now if you excuse me...”

“Sit down, you whore!”

He tries to pull the waitress, but she is quickly pulled away by Yuki. Our heroine’s blue eyes look with hostility towards the drunk man.

“La... lady.”

“She said she’s not allowed.”

The man stands up, though he finds it a little difficult to keep balance. Almost twice as tall as Yuki, which is not difficult since she’s kinda short.. Still, now we know why they need such a big door.

“Who the fuck are you?! Don’t mess with me, stupid brat!”

The alcoholic guy tries to hit the girl with the high priced bottle he just got. She evades it easily and gracefully, then she unsheathes her silver blade.

“My name is Yuki, daughter of the Mornen family from Loregard, and I command you to apologize.”

“Don’t fuck with me!”

Mad, the man smashes a table to shards, making the clients run away scared. The only ones remaining are Yuki, the big guy, the bar’s workers... and the smoking man in the middle, who seems to be undisturbed by the uproar. The waitress tries to stop them.

“Please lady, don’t make him anymore angry! He’s no ordinary man! He’s the demon-hunter Joel!”

A cynical laughter explodes.

“Oh really?! You expect us to believe you are that so-called demon-hunter?!

The smoking man finally stands up and puts away his cigarette. An evil glare and a pretentious grin, guess you can’t call that “friendly”.

“Move, little girl from whatever Loregard family you said you are, I’m taking your place in this fight.”

“Eh?”

He then stands between Yuki and the drunkard. She can’t help but feel confused, and also a little relieved. It’s not like she was afraid of fighting, just that she’s never fought before.

“Are you mocking the great Joel, stupid shrimp?!”

“Yeah, I am.”

There’s no shame at all in this guy.

“That, of course, if you were actually him.”

“You doubt me?!, fine, I’ll show you the ultimate proof!”

The big guy then grabs the bandaged object and unwraps it, revealing his weapon, a claymore.

“This is the mighty weapon of the demon-hunter Joel! I’ll crush you with a single hit!”

The huge blade is brandished, Yuki is petrified. She wants to do something, she wants to stop the attack, but she can’t, her body doesn’t respond. Death. The sole idea of seeing someone die before her eyes scares her. She doesn’t want to see that, not now, not ever... not again.

“Pathetic.”

A horrid noise arises. The sound of clashing steel. With a single-edged sword that appeared out of nowhere, the smoker blocked the claymore’s attack.

“Let me tell you two reasons why you can’t be Joel. First, his sword, the Punisher, is bigger and stronger than your piece of junk.”

He pushes away the long weapon and, faster than the eye can perceive, he cuts it in half.

“And second...”

All of a sudden, the drinker is knocked down with a powerful kick and the tip of his opponent's sword is pressed to his neck before he can even react or try to get up. A frightening look covers the smoker’s face.

“That bastard wouldn’t fail to spot his prey.”

A strong air current rages inside the bar. It is accompanied by a tortuous sound. The wind, literally, howls.

“You’re... a demon!”

His yellow eyes stare with pride at the one who has discovered his nature. He slowly raises his sword.

“Stop...”

Yuki’s voice barely makes a sound. The fear of death still burns her mind, and it increases with every passing second.

“Stop...!”

The now identified demon swings his weapon. Our heroine finally reacts, though instinctively. She attacks the smoker with her own sword, without even thinking, but he notices and blocks.

“I said... stop... please... stop.”

Feeling tired, she drops her blade and falls to her knees. The fake Joel has lost consciousness. A group of armored men breaks in the bar.