C2 - Age of Splendor - Aria 3

**Chronicle 2: Age of Splendor - Aria (3)**

The crescent moon smiled radiantly. From the wharf, a horn signaled a boat's departure. Heine's lighthouse, the most beautiful of its kind, sent out a bluish beam that illuminated the night sky. To most citizens of Heine, the day was just like any other. However, a few of the more sensitive types felt that the atmosphere on the street was slightly askew.

The Dark Elven Guild usually appeared vacant, since few people passed through its doors. It was locked as soon as the moon arrived. Even the few adventurers who usually hang out at the stores had not shown up since earlier that morning. On the wharf and around the castle gates, an unusually large number of Dark Elves milled about.

"It seems like everybody is expecting a party to begin," said Flauen, Gatekeeper of Heine, looking at the moon, curved like a Shamshir's blade. As her gaze lowered, she noticed the backs of two Dark Elves walking away from her. One of them seemed badly injured, walking with difficulty. The other Dark Elf helped his companion, carrying an impressive bow, a black quiver, and arrows with black flags tied around them.

"Are they good people, or be they villains?" Flauen mumbled to herself, gesturing at the two Dark Elves. "When I see those who are struggling in their lonely fight called life, I feel the urge to lend a hand."

"I can't believe I get to fight FirstMatter!" Master Brikus mumbled, slowly tightening his belt.

After adjusting his clothes carefully, he rubbed the blood on his armor from previous combat with his thumb to remove it. To Xenovia's eyes, he was charged with tension like a trainee about to be tested by his master.

"Have you ever met her?"

With a gloomy face, Master Brikus counted with his fingers and said, "It was 15… or maybe 18 years ago, when I was working as a Sentry. She was invited over as a special instructor."

"What kind of person was she?"

Master Brikus pursed his lips and looked up in the air. Noticing the deep wrinkle that formed between his eyes, Xenovia guessed that perhaps he was remembering some very bad memory.

"The only thing I remember is that, throughout the training session, she looked very tired. Initially, we thought she wasn't interested in teaching us. For my part, I simply didn't like her."

Xenovia gathered several spellbooks and potions and put them in a pouch attached to her belt. She fastened her sword to her side, hoping she wouldn't need to use it. She could not make up her mind whether she should wear her armor.

"Leave that behind!" Master Brikus told her, and she gave up the heavy armor that would only hinder her from casting magic. "I will always be there between FirstMatter and you."

"If I were an Elf," Magister Xenovia smiled, "I would have said something like 'I will always protect you, no matter what.'"

"What a strange thing to say," Master Brikus clucked. When his eyes met those of the Magister, he laughed aloud. After recovering from his amusement, he placed his arm around the Magister's neck and gently pulled her toward him. Xenovia received his kiss.

"Even when you get old, don't ever become like that woman." Master Brikus told her, held her face gently in his hands.

"A tiresome woman?"

"A woman who is preoccupied with herself and treats herself harshly."

Master Brikus felt discomfort between his shoulder blades and adjusted the position of his armor. He carefully wrapped a long strip of cloth around his torso to minimize potential bleeding. He wore two swords on his side, hiding two daggers in his boots. A small bow hung from his back and its quiver hung from his hip. He donned a pair of gauntlets and then his coat, which adequately hid most of his weapons.

"We didn't leave anything behind, did we?"

When Xenovia shook her head, he locked the door of the guild. While he put his key back to its usual hiding place underneath the stairs, she hung a sign on the door that read "Closed Today" in burnt letters.

About two hundred guards were divided into four units, each consisting of around fifty men, lined up in a lattice formation. They awaited their leader's commands. When Captain Gosta appeared, at the direction of Duphis, a higher ranking guard, everyone saluted him in unison. They marched through the western castle gate of Heine and moved toward the Field of Reeds.

"Oh oh, they are on the move. They're going!"

Inside a wagon, Iason Heine watched this procession with great interest. His wagon was pulled over to the western side of the road, blocked to civilian traffic so the army could pass through. When Innadril was constructed, the Heine family donated a large sum of money to the lord. For this, their name was bestowed upon the city. They also contributed to the large-scale construction project of the Floating City. PrEsenntly, Iason Heine held the position of twelfth lord of the Heine clan, the wealthiest in Innadril.

"You'd better pull down the curtain, Sir. If they recognize your face, you may be in danger."

Iason Heine guffawed loudly at his secretary's concerned urging and replied, "What kind of trouble can befall me? They are willing to fight for me, risking their own lives against the Tasaba clan, my enemy who stole my goods. Don't you think I should at least see them off? After all, in order to mobilize the guards for this mission, I had to bribe the new lord with a great deal of money!"

The secretary's face darkened as he tried to warn his employer. "Sir! If someone overhears you!"

Iason Heine closed the window and sat back in his seat. It was nearing time for them to leave. Tapping the window separating his compartment from that of the coachman, he yelled loudly, "Let's get out of here!" The beasts were urged forward and the coach moved ahead slowly.

From outside the wagon, the restling sound of the Field of Reeds seemed to soothe their minds. While closing his eyes, the great merchant imagined the reeds as they danced. He also imagined the pale-faced assassins trampling the dancing reeds in their march towards the Floating City. His imagination was not far from reality.

"It's slow…"

After taking the sign that read in big letters "Just Arrived! New Products!" back into the store, Verona put her hand on her waist and straightened her back. She heard her bones crack. "Ouch!" She rubbed her lower back with her fist and went into the store. Closing the door, she locked the bolt and hung up a sign that read "Closed Today."

"What? You're still here?"

"Well, now what should I do?" Verona looked around the store.

The Elf Espen put both his feet on the counter, leaned back in his chair and flipped through a magazine. Two customers still remained in the store.

"Didn't you say you would be leaving today?"

"No!" Piriel Aurura, a Scavenger, sat on the floor and rolled dice with a sulky look. "I don't even want to see the shadow of a Dark Elf. I'll just stay here today."

"You're upset about something, I can tell." Verona gently patted the head of the Dwarf, who had lived several times longer than herself.

"I can't stand it, really!"

Piriel could not get over her frustration. After playing alone with her dice for a while longer, she finally determined the source of her foul mood, although it didn't make her feel any better. She looked at the iron hammer, her favorite tool. She imagined herself striking the head of an old female Dark Elf. Somehow, this thought greatly improved her mood.

"Piriel Aurura." The shop owner was surprised to see the Dwarf laughing to herself. She looked at him as if she had just awakened from a dream. "Do you happened to know anything about Dreviant Wine?

Piriel replied that it is the wine produced in small amounts by hand in the Cursed Forest. Its ingredients are the Pino Rouge grapes only grown in Gludio. The poison is extracted from a spider, fermented using secret methods taught by demons. She also mentioned that the taste has a silky texture and a unique, unforgettable fragrance. The Elf merchant nodded his head and smiled.

"What if I tell you that one out of the twelve cases of wine that were made twenty-nine years ago at a winery called Astaron is now hidden underneath this counter?"

The Scavenger's jaw dropped and her eyes opened wide. Espen asked Verona to bring wine glasses. The three sat on the floor of the store and poured the legendary wine into glasses.

"Hey, Tushku!" Espen called to the Orc High Prefect. The burly Orc was still feeling guilty that half the store was destroyed as a result of his actions earlier that day. To make amends, he had been working on repairing the store. But, proving the common adage that you cannot expect Orcs to do a good job that requires manual dexterity, he only managed to increase the scale of the damage.

"Unless you are trying to develop a new combat technique with that hammer, please put it down. Come over here and have a drink with us!"

The Orc silently sat down with the others.

"It seems like we have one extra glass."

"No, we are just about right."

Espen poured wine for the group, then filled the remaining glass to the brim.
"She should show up by daybreak. Why don't we get started drinking while we wait for her?"

With nightfall, the temperature dropped and the wind blew out to the sea. One by one, the townspeople and the guards disappeared. The only creatures loitering among the streets were the Dark Elves with their moonlight-colored skin.

About a dozen Dark Elves rushed out of the alley near Brikus. In secret, they reported the results of their search. Brikus was aware that one of the units dispatched to the city had not returned. It was the unit that left to search the area near the wharf.

Brikus felt his chest tightening. Three hours had passed since beginning their search, still without a glimpse of FirstMatter. During the course of the night, many of the them were disabled from from the fight. The searchers were overcome with tension and frustration. Soon, their sentiments would turn to fear.

In the canal, a fish jumped into the air, twisting its body, reflected by moonlight in sparkling, silvery colors. When the moment passed, the fish disappeared into the depths of the canal.

Brikus gnashed his teeth in a curse. Suddenly, he realized what FirstMatter's tactics were. "Everyone, we will refine the search area!" He divided the canal into different sections and assigned each one to a search unit.

"Make your movements as discreet as possible. No units are to make contact with any other. Bear in mind, we are the hunters!"

Brikus couldn't shake the feeling that he was the target. Along with Magister Xenovia, he boarded a gondola and searched the area between the eastern and southern sections of the canal. The Dark Elves had acute vision, even under moonlight. FirstMatter may have turned herself into a slippery fish, for all Brikus knew, but he still felt he could catch her. He watched a small school of fish quickly dart away as the gondola approached.

"FirstMatter is unpredictable. Maybe she wants to slay all 99 of us with her bare hands."

A young Elf asked with both admiration and disbelief, "Why do you say that, Sir?"

"Because she doesn't want to run away. She wants to impress Tetrarch Thifiell, to prove that she is right. There are many other reasons, but she has only one real motivation. Because she can."

From a distance, Aria watched the gondola carry her pursuers. Two of them were conversing, while the female attentively searched the bottom of the canal.

Aria tensed when she noticed the woman suddenly lift her head and look in her direction. However, she could not see through the veil of deception Aria had created around herself in the darkness. When the boat approached, Aria could identify two of the three on the boat. She knew well the face of Master Brikus and could guess who the woman was that accompanied him.

When the gondola finally passed under the bridge, Aria removed her veil of deception, swooped down and stabbed the young Dark Elf as he held the pole. She was about to attack Magister Xenovia, but Master Brikus blocked her path, brandishing his sword. Since he wore heavy armor, the gondola shook wildly. Aria wavered, trying to regain her balance, as Brikus laughed triumphantly.

Having lost its gondolier, the vessel drifted aimlessly, following the flow of the current. While Master Brikus protected her front, the Magister chanted a spell. Aria abandoned them, escaping up the bank. When the spell of the Magister was completed, an ear-splitting roar issued forth, like thousands of arrows shot at once.

The buildings made of white marble were defaced with ugly scratches. The paving stones that once boasted beautiful patterns were marred by large gashes, as though a giant had jumped up and down on them on one leg.

"Why did you blow her away like that?"

The air pocket of tremendous pressure inflicted enormous damage to the appearance of the city, and pushed at FirstMatter's back with great force. Like a scarecrow engulfed in a tornado, she was blown across the canal, smashing through the second story of a building.

Brikus jumped up on the bank after FirstMatter, signaling to the nearby Dark Elves. Magister Xenovia followed Brikus up the bank. The streets connecting many corridors and stairs in a convoluted maze. The two pursuers jumped across the canal, climbed the walls and walked atop buildings that separated them from their prey.

Brikus found shattered glass and a pool of blood on the floor. As he touched the blood, an arrow flew through the broken window and lodged into his shoulder. With his thick armor, no serious damage was inflicted.

"What a cheap move!" Brikus yelled. "FirstMatter, you must be getting old, too!"

"You don't need to remind me of that, you bastard!"

For several hours now, Aria had been playing hide and seek against numerous top-notch soldiers. How exhausted must she be? Was her sheer bravado a disguise to ensnare him?

In the attic in an old abandoned building, the ceiling was so low that it was hard to maneuver. The smell of decayed paper was overpowering. A door suddenly slammed shut as soon as Brikus entered, enveloping him in utter darkness.

Brikus was thankful Xenovia still lingered behind. As she had never trained as an Assassin, to be thrown into a situation like this would be walking naked into combat. However, Aria was injured, and the scent of blood is stronger than any other body odor.

"It's no use!"

Brikus was confused, because the direction of her scent was apart from where her voice emanated. He walked sideways, to discover another pool of blood on the floor.

"You can deceive, but you can't hide."

With some effort, he undid the buckle of his shoulder armor, which made a loud noise as it fell to the floor. His opponent did not attack. He removed his skirt and thigh protectors, also putting aside his alternate weapons.

"You must have learned something from the training I gave you on that day."

Again, her voice came from a new direction. Some sixteen years ago, he and his platoon refused to receive FirstMatter's instructions. The elders took this as an act of rebellion and imposed what they considered suitable discipline. The captain of the sentries suggested a punishment that could potentially save their lives, but it also inflicted a permanent scar on their pride. As it happened, the captain later lost his life in combat with marsh zombies, attempting to seize an underground fortress.

"All members of the platoon will be locked in the underground fighting complex while fully armed for thirty-eight minutes. Enjoy your punishment."

Locked in pitch-black darkness, they met with Aria FirstMatter. Completely unarmed, she gave them the most painful and humiliating thirty-eight minutes they would never forget.

"Thank you for your compliment."

An arrow whistled toward Brikus, interrupting his reverie. At first, Brikus thought it was some sort of a joke or deception, but more arrows continued to fly towards him with deadly accuracy. She obviously knew his exact location. Brikus haphazardly brought down his sword, causing chips of old paint and wood fragments to fly up and generate much dust in the air.

"Well, if you do that, you will hide the smell."

As soon as Brikus heard her voice, another arrow came towards him. He rolled his body to escape the hit.

"But smell is not the only thing you need to disguise. One can get a hint from the flow of air or one's body heat."

"What nonsense!" Brikus couldn't believe anyone could possess such abilities.

"The objective is…!" The sound of a bow string being pulled back several times successively could be heard in an instant. Five shots? Six shots? Brikus was hit in his left arm and leg. His left ear was also injured. "... if you are focusing on only one sense..." Suddenly the voice was very close. "…you can never catch me, you fool!" The next moment, Brikus received a shocking impact and flew backward. He fell to the floor, gathered himself and readied himself for the next attack.

Meeting and evading the sword Brikus swung at her, FirstMatter's dagger almost split his jaw in half. He stepped back and thrust his sword directly forward. At that moment, his opponent's dagger stuck into his wrist. FirstMatter twisted it with full force, digging between the bones and tendons with a sickening, cracking sound. Crying aloud in pain, Brikus swung his fist, surprising Aria with a blow squarely on the face.

She spit out blood with a grin at the notion her opponent still had the will to fight.

"Yes." Brikus mumbled as though he were spitting the words through his teeth. What fell to the floor was not his weapon. "This was the problem."

He kicked small capsule-like objects across on the floor. The capsules broke for a moment, illuminating the room in bluish aura from the spirits.

"Yes, although it is certainly a great invention, nowadays, young assassins seem to rely excessively on it."

Aria pulled out a large glass fragment stuck in her thigh and tossed it aside. From the wound flowed another gush of blood. She did not want her opponent to realize that she had already bled too much. She maintained her composure and turned in the direction of the door. "Among them, at least you were the one with the most potential, Sentry Brikus."

"I will gratefully accept your teaching, FirstMatter." The Master's face was smeared with blood and sweat. He unwrapped the strip of cloth from his waist. He roughly wrapped it around his tattered wrist and tied it with his teeth. "However, I still have the use of my left arm."

Attempting to finish the fight before the light of the spirits disappeared, Brikus picked up his sword with his left hand and while limping on his wounded left leg, he charged at Aria.

At that moment, a black flame flickered and the door turned into ashes in the blink of an eye. A spell-induced tornado flew in, blowing away the walls and the ceiling. Untold moments passed as the mass of detritus settled. Slowly, Brikus extracted himself from the collapsed attic.

"Xenovia! What about FirstMatter?"

Brikus faced a scene that he never wanted to witness. Aria held the Magister from behind, and several pursuers lay dead around her. More soldiers floated on the water, the canal scarlet with blood. Aria's dagger caressed the Magister's neck.

"You know that taking a hostage won't do you any good."

Brikus was going to continue his talk but Xenovia slightly lifted her hand to stop him. "You know what, I don't think I'm a hostage."

"You're right." Aria whispered something into the Magister's ear.

The Magister opened her eyes wide as blood gushed out of her mouth. Pulling the dagger out of the Magister's back, Aria pushed her limp body into the canal. The water splashed ungracefully and the Magister's body was carried away by the current. Brikus cried out and charged toward Aria with an expression of hopeless abandon and deepest hatred.

"Calm down, Brikus. She is alive." Aria attempted to wipe away the animosity her opponent was harboring.

Aria clucked her tongue because the owner of the voice was the person she never wanted to see again. A familiar face came out of the shadows of the shattered building where this latest tumult had occurred.

"Knight of Pavel…"

"I'm Scryde."

"I'll remember you as that from now on."

"Yes, do that."

Brikus, Scryde, and Aria. The three Dark Elves maintained a peculiar stand-off. It was Brikus who made the first move. Masking his intention to attack, he took a step towards the canal. Aria reacted instinctively, positioning herself closer to him. She was aware how dangerous it was to confront multiple enemies so completely exposed. She found herself especially wary of Crow Feather, the other Dark Elf who came from the north.

Scryde informed Brikus, "Her dagger is under a spell of bleeding. You'd better hurry and finish this."

"I don't know who you are, but I already know that without you telling me."

What Aria could not understand was Scryde's rapid recovery. She was confident that she had inflicted enough damage on him to hospitalize him for a month or two.

"Must be some kind of potion that's aided your recuperation."

Some potions had the effect of letting one forget pain temporarily, or greatly enhanced their physical capabilities. But most would turn their users into addicts, with serious side-effects that cause permanent brain damage.

The Master and Bladedancer surrounded Aria from both sides. They were both originally users of Dual Swords, so they could use swords with both hands. However, neither of them could use both of their hands. Aria wondered briefly if maiming and destroying male bodies had become a strange hobby of hers.

The two Dark Elves attacked. Arrows tied with black flags flew toward her continuously from across the canal. Rolling her body to barely escape the arrows, she looked across the canal where the archers might be hiding. The blue light from the lighthouse sharply passed overhead.

Aria attacked Brikus first. Turning backward, she kicked Scryde's leg. With a graceful leap, she plunged into the canal, arrows penetrating the water, several of which struck her. Crawling on the bottom of the canal, she headed for the lighthouse.

Esenn picked up his bow, but had lost sight of his enemy. When he leaned his upper body out of the lighthouse window, he came face-to-face with a profusely bleeding female Dark Elf. She smiled and grabbed his right hand. She reached her other hand toward him, but Esenn struck her several times with his bow. Her head bled profusely, her arms were blackened with bruises, and her face was disfigured with ugly swelling. She desperately grabbed with both hands. With a snap, the finger that guided the string of Esenn's bow could no longer move according to his will. His hunt had failed.

Aria walked out of the lighthouse and flopped down on the ground.

"Oh my love, my dearly beloved!"

She wanted to hear the voice of her lover. Not the hollow shell currently locked up in the temple, repeating the same words over and over, but that of the greatest and most fearsome man she ever met, in the way she still remembered him.

"Only a little more to go. Just a little longer." She buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking.

She lifted her dazed eyes up to the sky. The light of the lighthouse had faded as the sky brightened. She could hear footsteps, heavy and strong. She could tell who it was. With the palm of her hand, she wiped away the tears from her face.

"Did you leave the woman to die?" Aria said to Master Brikus. "That wasn't very nice of you."

To Scryde, who had a concerned look - at least that's how she interpreted his expressionless face - she said, "Just like I dealt with her, soon I will deal with you."

She stood up, but staggered, lost her balance and fell down into a wet gulley. Her vision blurry, she could still see much fear and hatred on the two men's faces, but not much sympathy. Their hands were coming after her - not to offer goodwill, but to apply their weapons.

"All these things are too tiresome for me." She raised up her dagger. "Let's finish this quickly and rest."

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Source : http://legacy.lineage2.com/background/chronicle2/chapter9\_aria3.html

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