by Adam Wan
The night continued, the story of Spica's past was about to be told to us. She might be nervous or even scared.
Spica's Story
25th Lya 2363
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I was afraid to talk about my past and I was sure was everyone would like to know my story, my past.
"Alright then, Spica!"
When Ayla shouted my name out loud, I jolted slightly.
"What's your story?" Ayla asked.
"I never knew what your past was like... I never asked anyway. It's fine if you don't want to talk about it" said Cel.
"Yea" Sora agreed.
"I want to talk about my past. I want you to... know..."
"Are you sure?" asked Cel.
"Yes..."
I took a deep breath in order to stop shaking. I did not know why I was so scared, it might be because it was related to my parents and the... Sylus cult.
"Here I go. Back when Ayrus was a world of darkness, I lived in a small home near the forest"
"Oh, that home" Cel said quietly.
I gulped and continued to tell my story.
"I was around 5 at the time. My parents took me on a walk in the forest to find ingredients to cook some food. We were rebels to the Sylus cult, we could not be caught. And if we did, it would be over for us.
During the walk, my father heard something weird in the trees. He said 'It might be an animal. Those damn Sylus cultists would be here, right?' quietly. The sound stopped when he finished his sentence.
The Sylus cultists were in the middle of a ritual that everyone was suppose to attend. We used this time to go and get stuff when everyone was away. We never thought... that it would happen"
"What 'it' would happen?" Ayla asked.
"Something... Fell from the trees. It was a person in dark clothes, the world was dark, making it impossible to see who it was.
My mother ran away with me in front. I was holding a basket of ingredients, but they fell out...
My mother was attacked too. I was scared, I ran for my life. I even left that basket. I ran as far as I could, I ended up hiding in the thick forest plants and leaves.
I heard footsteps, they got closer and closer. There were two people, on their shoulders were my parents, I... think... Then, they said something that wasn't clear to me.
'These two... Sylus... Let's take them back to the castle and...' I don't know anymore.
They eventually left and I ran further away. I got to the edge of the forest, it was a place that I did not know back then. There was a nearby village, I went there to ask for directions and then... I don't remember"
"It's fine. I feel sorry for you Spica" said Sora.
"I know where your hate for the Sylus cult came from now" said Cel.
"I hate them... Thank you, Cel..." I said.
"Huh? Why?"
"For stopping the Sylus cultists. Like Arsceil and Kohaya. And for killing Sylus too"
I was sure that I was blushing really hard. I always did, and I knew that Cel noticed it.
"Oh, you're welcome... Spica"
I used to have feelings for Cel but I had kept them to myself. I had stopped them from showing too.
The reason I fell for him was that he was... my only friend I had, the only person I ever liked. No one was like me back then, hater of the Sylus cult. He was all I had as a friend. He took me to places I have never been, made me do things I have never done and ate with me every time.
He was the only one I had. I felt lonely again when it was time for him to leave, but he took me with him. I did not need to live in fear anymore, I did not need to go on quests just to eat, he gave me the live I had.
But Sora was the person that he likes and I never had enough time to talk to him and when I do, he was with Sora. I just had to accept it and move on.
I do not know if I would ever move on from him. I was only a 20 year old, I was two years younger than him, Sora was a year younger. And they were getting married anyway, I had no chance. I was the one organizing the wedding too.
"Umm, Spica?" Sora asked.
"Huh? Huh?! What?"
"You spaced out"
"Oh..."
We slept peacefully that starry night. The stars filled the dark sky with twinkling lights. The moon was full too. I got to sleep with something off of my chest, I finally told them.
Callias
"What is that?"
I asked the question to the king, my father-in-law. The king had a dusty old book in his left hand. He flipped the pages one by one with his right.
The book had a brown cover. The cover was a hard cover, it seemed to be made of some really old leather. The pages were slight yellow and brown on the edges.
"This is a book from my great ancestor, or should I say, the first king of Cielo, Cielo Ryea" he replied.
I was interested in reading it. The book should be 300 years old, or even more. The contents were written by the first king of the kingdom, ever.
"He was the greatest rebel of all time. He rebelled against the Continia leader and stole the throne, for the good of the world" said the king.
I have heard of him before, he was a legend and was considered a hero. He was not written as a rebel in many of the books that were about him.
The room we were in was a room that only royal family members were allowed to enter. It was a room filled with the family's history. The room was like a museum.
The red carpet had golden colored outlines. The room was lit by a golden chandelier in the middle of the room. Talking about family members, the surname was Ryea.
"I am the first heir to the throne whose surname is Alt-Ryea" said Sora.
I was slightly surprised because it was like Sora read my mind. Sora simply smiled when she looked at me, creeping me out a little. It might be magic though.
"Yea, true. The family name would be different this time"
Sora's surname could not be changed completely because she was a royal. When a royal woman marries a commoner, the surname would be joined with the husband's surname.
My surname did not change, it was still Alt. But my full name changed instead, my full name was Prince Cel Alt of Cielo. I prefer to be called Cel but people call me Sir Alt.
"Cel, I have a favor to ask you" said the king.
"What is it?"
"I want you to retrieve King Cielo Ryea of the First Throne's ancient sword, Callias"
"That's a long name" I commented.
"It's his full name. It's most respectful to call him that" said Sora.
Callias was the sword made by the Firaga race. It was said to be a sword that was completely black like burnt metal. It was actually made with burnt metal.
"How am I supposed to find it? Isn't it hidden away?" I asked.
"Use this book as your guide" the king replied.
The king handed me the book, I held on to it carefully and looked at its contents. The first page was signed by Cielo himself. I touched the sign in admiration.
I flipped to the next page and saw a map on the second and third pages. The map had a circle in the middle that was marked "Continia" in the center of the circle. The outside of the circle was split into four. The top was marked "Intalia", the right was marked "Diminia", the left was " Firaga and last one was "Cies". All of the races.
The races lived separately back then, 300 years ago to be exact. The races lived in their own provinces that had different terrains and biomes.
There was a mark on the Cies part of the map. It was marked near Rouden Village in the Rouden Province, once home of the Cies. The mark was an X, it had the writing "Callias" next to it. Well, it was a guess because the writing was not clear.
"Over here. Callias should be here" I said as I pointed at the mark.
"X marks the spot" said Sora.
There was some paper that stood out, I flipped to the page with that piece of paper. It was a note. There was something written on it, it wrote "This shalt beest thee testeth to earneth Callias" was written
there.
I looked under the note and and saw the page underneath it. It was a stone knight that was three times bigger than a normal human. I could tell because a picture of a human was placed next to the drawing of the knight.
"So... We have to fight this?" I asked.
"If so, I'm coming!" said Sora.
"Well, I can't stop you anyway"
"I'll be lending you the book for help" said the king.
"We'll get the sword, father" I said.
"Very well, you can go now" he replied.
Sora and I left the room and walked down the hallway. I was going through the pages of the old book. I read the stories he wrote, the notes he made and the list of people he knew.
"Hey! Sora! Cel!"
I looked up from the book and saw Spica running towards us with her right hand waving at us. Ayla was behind her, walking slowly towards us.
"Huh? What book are you reading, Cel?" Spica asked.
"It's the book written by the first king"
"Dad wants us to retrieve the first king's legendary sword" said Sora.
"Oh, cool! I want to go with you!" said Spica.
"Don't you have work to do?" I asked.
"I'm on holiday because I don't have any events to manage"
"I might as well follow you. I'm bored" said Ayla as she shrugged her shoulders.
"Let's go!" said Sora.
A few more hands could be useful. I do not prefer to have more than two people on my team though. My preferred teammate was of course Sora, like how it was back then.
We exited the castle's main entrance. We were on the way to the stables to ask for a ride to Rouden Province.
The sun was shining brightly in the afternoon. We were walking on the road next to the field, I was able to smell the grassy smell from the green field. The sighing sound of the wind was heard.
I saw Vergus and Mia taking a break on the reclining chairs next to the field. Cylius city was not fully restored as of then. Mia's home was still under repairment, so they were staying at the castle until the home was restored.
"Oh, hey! If it isn't Cel and his friends" said Vergus when he turned around and looked at us.
"Hi, Vergus"
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"We're going a quest to find some kind of legendary sword" said Ayla.
Vergus jumped out of his chair and stood next to it. Mia seemed to be startled by his sudden movement. Spica was surprised too. My eyes simply widened.
"Wow! Let me join in!" said Vergus.
"Umm... What about your girl?" Spica asked.
"Oh..."
He turned around and faced Mia. Mia tilted her head and smiled. She knew what Vergus was about to ask. She placed her head on her left hand that was on the hand rest.
"Mia... Can I go with them?"
She smiled as she nodded her head. "You can. Come back soon" she said after nodding her head.
"Thank you, Mia" said Vergus as he walked our way.
"We have 5 members now. I need to think about their roles during the fight... Wait... Did anyone talk about the fight?" I thought.
I stopped my feet and turned my body around. Everyone stopped their walking.
"Did anyone know about the thing we had to fight to get the sword?" I asked.
"Yes" was Sora's answer while the others had the same answer. And that answer was a simple "No"
"Let me go and get my stuff" said Spica as she walked away.
"I have all I need here" said Ayla.
Ayla was a knight, which meant that she had a minimum amount of protection almost all the time. I always had my gloves on to protect Sora and myself.
"I'll get my sword" said Vergus as he walked away to get his Rosemary.
"We'll be waiting over here" said Sora.
There was a short silence as we watch them leave to get their stuff.
"Umm... Dear, did you tell them about the fight back in the castle?"
"Haha... I forgot" replied Sora scratching her head with an embarrassed smile.
I wrapped my left arm around her and whispered "It's alright. Even I forgot" to her right ear. "Thank you" was her reply, she said it in a quiet voice.
"You sure are sweet" commented Ayla.
...
We waited for a while, Vergus arrived with a silver chestplate and shoulder pads. He had with sword on his back.
"I'm back" he said as he arrived.
Not long after, Spica came running our way. Her arms swung at chest level, her elbows were bent and her hands were curled in a fist.
She wore a metal chestplate and red clothes. She had her sword glove on her right hand. Her left hand had a black leather glove.
The sword glove was given a facelift. The blue rectangle on the back of the glove was removed. The glove looked like a black leather glove now.
Our swords were transferred to this new version. My Oblivion's design was upgraded. The slight transparency was removed and it looked more solid.
"Let's go, we should get there by 3 on the evening. It's 12 and a half currently..." I said.
"Let's hurry then!" shouted Vergus.
We walked on the road to the stables, step by step, we got at least 2 or 3 meters closer than before. The clop clop sound of our footsteps were made every time our shoes met the stone pavement.
The pavement was made of foot-sized grey and white stones and smaller pebble-sized stones that were of a darker color. The stones were shiny and reflected some of the light that came from the sun.
The light blue sky had puffy white clouds that made many random and cool looking shapes for us to look at. Sora and Spica commented about them too, they said that they saw a sheep and an elephant up in the big blue. The product of imagination.
We eventually arrived at the stables. The scent of dried grass, dust and even the weird smell that was of, horse waste, or colloquially said, horse poop.
The sounds of horses naying, tapping their feet on the ground and breathing out loudly were present. There were also the sounds of carriages moving on the ground.
We saw horses poking their heads out of some of the stables, eating some hay and drinking some water. The caretakers were working hard to take care of the large amount of horses. They move from one place to another, taking stuff like food, water cans and such in and out of the stables.
A man approached us and bowed at me and Sora. Sora bowed her body slightly in respect, I followed shortly after seeing her do that. We raised our bodies at fairly the same time.
"Your Highness, Sir Alt, what business do you have with these fine people?" said the man respectfully.
"We want to get a ride to an area in Rouden Province. Do you have any carriages for us to get on?" said Sora.
"Oh, yes we do Your Highness. Please follow me"
"Thank you, Gallian" thanked Sora as she started to move her feet.
Oh, Gallian. He was the head of the royal stables. He was the head for a long time, that was what Sora said. She said that he was the head of the stables for at least 10 years, when I was 12 years old at least.
He wore a brown colored waistcoat. He had a black colored bowtie and a white long sleeved buttoned shirt. His pants were black like his bowtie. His head was nearly bald, he wore round glasses too.
We approached a white carriage that had golden decorations and a red roof. The doors had the kingdom's coat of arms placed on it, it had a golden colored outline for it too.
The horses that would pull the carriage were fine white horses. Their manes were long and flowing. Their hooves had golden horse shoes placed there.
"You should reach there by 4 o' clock in the evening, Your Highness" said Gallian politely.
He turned his back to us, revealing a large sweat stain on his back. I could see his hard work and dedication from the sweat that was pouring out of his body.
"Hullanic! Get your carriage ready! The princess awaits!" he shouted with his hand placed near his mouth.
"Will do!" Hullanic replied as he hurrie
d his movement.