Tales of the Abyss: Melody of Lorelai

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Tales of the Abyss: Melody of Lorelai

Chapter 1: Swords, Spells, and Hymns

“Look over there! They must be near!”

More than fifty soldiers, garbed in a foreign armor, ran through all streets of the small port of Keterburg. All townspeople that saw this immediately stop their activities to learn what’s going on. It wasn’t every day they saw bunch of armed men running around their beloved town after all. Also, they didn’t recognize their army’s symbol, thus made the people suspicious.

Meanwhile the townspeople’s attention was fixed to the foreign soldiers, two people, one tall and wore an armor under his dark cape while the other one was shorter and had long red hair, moved fast through small alleys, trying to leave the town unnoticed. However, just as they were about to pass the town’s gate, one of the soldiers saw them.

“There they are!”

“Damn…!” the caped one cursed under his breath. His hand reached for his friend’s wrist and held it tightly, intending to drag him so they can leave that place faster.

However, his effort was a futile one, because just some inches before they managed to escape from their pursuers, the town’s gate was shut close. Obviously, one of the soldiers managed to order the gatekeeper to close down the gate, effectively stopped and cornered the two.

“You can run away no more,” one of those soldiers exclaimed.

The armored guy stepped up, covered his friend behind him. The long haired one looked terrified, but he managed to gather the courage to speak up. However, it was neither words of exclamations nor plea that came from his mouth. Instead, he muttered something that sounds like a spell.

“Wee yant ga ks maya sos nyasri yor...”

As he finished his sentence, some lights shaped like glyphs surrounded his body and seconds later, every soldier that blocked their path collapsed on the ground, fast asleep. His armored friend blinked, couldn’t believe what he had just witnessed and glanced at him. The redheaded just stuck out his tongue and shrugged.

“Shouldn’t we leave?” he asked.

The taller male smirked and nodded. “Sure…” he lifted his head and looked up to the gray-colored sky, shouting, “ELMA!”

A sparks of lightning appeared above the Port of Keterburg’s sky. It descended slowly, approaching them. When the light faded away, it revealed a black, dog-like Fontech machines. It floated before the two and let out a menacing howl, which scared the townspeople that watched the occurring events.

“Thanks for coming,” the taller one muttered gratefully. He averted his gaze to his friend. “Ride on it. We’ll leave.”

The redheaded one nodded. He climbed to ride on the strange vehicle and took a comfortable sitting position, and soon his friend followed the suit. Once they settled themselves on top of the so-called ELMA, it floated up high once again and quickly flying away from Keterburg sea territory.

--

Meanwhile, in another part of the Central Sea, floated calmly on the water was Natalia Cruise, the royal cruise ship belonged to Kimlasca Royal Family. Today, Princess Natalia brought his dear cousins and their best friends to sail with it, enjoying several free days that King Ingobert gave to her along with them. They were going to have a party tonight, celebrating Luke and Tear’s engagement since they were officially accepted by both families a week ago.

Now, the mentioned Viscount was dozing off on the ship’s deck, feeling the sea breeze blow over his face. Despite the low temperature that would surely make your skin wrinkle, he enjoyed this moments of peace. After his return to Baticul along with his friends, Luke hardly had anytime to feel this peaceful. Sure, his father had told him that he had lots of things to do, like helping Natalia and study more, but it wasn’t a sin to have some refreshing time, was it?

“Luke.”

He glanced over his shoulder and saw Tear approached him. He smiled as she took place next to him, deciding to watch the calm sea along with him. After a momentary silence between them, she spoke up again.

“Does it feel like eternity?”

An eyebrow rose. “What?”

“This peaceful state... Does it feels like it’ll last for eternity to you?” the brunette repeated her out-of-the-blue inquiry.

“Oh,” he chuckled lightly. “Sure, it does feel like that. I mean…we’ve arranged some treaty to maintain this peace, haven’t we? Both countries vowed to stop fighting and continue their cooperation in both politic and economy. The Order of Lorelai also helped to recover some damages left by the incident two years ago. I’m sure we’ll have this peace for eternity.”

Tear smiled wider. “Yes, definitely... I’m glad you feel the same way as I do.”

“Hm…I’m sure everyone feels the same way as we do.”

The pair chuckled together, and only stopped when they heard a frustrated yell from Anise, who was busy cooking for the party in the kitchen. “Guy! I know you want to help me, but I don’t ask YOU to amplify the stove’s heat engine!”

Luke rolled his eyes. “I see that Guy can repair household wares now,” he commented.

“Yes, I heard that he spent most of his time going back and forth from Grand Chokmah to Sheridan after that incident, taking apprenticeship under Astor’s wings,” she explained. “Speak of Astor…did Guy tell you about Noelle?”

“Nope... What’s about Noelle?”

“He had proposed her, apparently.”

The couple turned around to see Jade emerged on to the deck. He approached them and, still with his unnatural calmness, said, “We will never be able to learn the truth if Ginji didn’t spoke of it when he paid us a visit in Grand Chokmah two months ago, so I suppose we all should thank him later.”

“So, Guy had overcome his gynophobia?” Luke asked, seemed amused to hear the pleasant news.

“Yes…though it made me a bit disappointed.” His comment made the two younger adults lifted their eyebrows before he finally explained, “I lost my entertainment from watching him tortured by Anise’s usual wails.”

Luke and Tear let out a brief laugh. They need to admit it, though. Now that Guy overcame his phobia, they couldn’t expect to see their usual view, which contain a scene where Guy ran away from Anise, who threatened him with her teasing hugs.

“You should stop making fun of him.”

Another person decided to join in, and it was none other than Princess Natalia Luzu, the owner of that very cruise ship. She approached them, looking gaudy in a royal party gown that consisted of the color blue and white. Apparently, she was just finished bathing and prepared for the party.

“We didn’t make fun of him, Princess,” Jade pointed out, shrugging, “We simply talking about the truthful, nostalgic events.”

Luke couldn’t help but to laugh at the older male’s witty comment. Tear simply giggle while Natalia sighed in defeat. The blonde noble put a hand on her hip and said, “Alright, enough talking about Guy. All of you should get ready for the party. Anise said she’ll finish cooking soon.”

“I’m okay wearing this,” the brunette muttered, looking down at her clothes. She was wearing her usual Oracle Knight uniform, her favorite outfit since she could move freely in here. “It’s not like we’re attending a formal party.”

Natalia pouted. “But you and Luke are the main topic here! Also, you’re a woman. You should dress up beautifully.”

“It is okay, Natalia. I prefer Tear wearing this. She looks more natural,” retorted Luke, causing his fiancé blushed lightly.

“Oh well…” again, his cousin sighed in defeat. She folded her arms and smiled, “I’m a bit envious. You two look so cute together.”

The couple blushed, and both Natalia and Jade laughed at this. Their conversation continued, though the topic had shifted from the engagement talks to nostalgic events, back when they traveled together. Unknown to them, something floated on the sky and headed toward the ship. It was those pursued couple. They were still riding on their vehicle, but they seemed a bit restless.

“They’re still coming for us!” the redheaded one informed as she looked behind them, noticing several airships chasing them.

“I can’t attack them in midair…” the silver haired one grunted as his hands were gripped on the hilt of his weapons. “We have to find a place to land!”

His friend looked down, searching for a suitable place like a small island so they could land. It was then when he noticed the presence of Natalia Cruise. He tugged on his friend’s cape, pointed at the ship. The caped male nodded and directed ELMA to land on the ship. They knew it was rude, but they have no choice.”

“Huh?” Luke, whose eyes happened to gaze at the sky, realized that ELMA was diving into them. “Wha—what the hell is that?!”

His three friends quickly looked at the sky and saw it too. They backed away, avoiding the point where they would crash with that strange vehicle. In seconds, ELMA had landed safely on the deck, surrounded by Luke and friends, who stared at it and its passenger in suspicion. Luke had gripped the hilt of his sword, Jade was taking a battle stance, while Natalia scurried behind Tear who had pulled out her knives, because she didn’t bring her quiver and bow right now. They remained still, cautious if by any chance they would be attacked.

The caped man got off from his stead first. He unsheathed his dual swords, eyes glancing dangerously at his surroundings. His gaze fell upon the two women, then to the Fonist, and lastly to the Viscount. Luke noticed that stranger was looking at him as if he had just saw a ghost, before he shook his head lightly and glanced upward, toward the sky.

“Here they come!”

At that, sounds of airships engine overwhelmed them. The four friends forced to look up and saw three airships, which size was smaller than Albiore, floated above them. Soldiers grabbed in unknown coat in arms came out and jumped down, landing on Natalia Cruise’s deck. It seemed that they were after the dual-swordsman and his companion.

“Surrender, before we kill you!” one of the soldiers shouted.

The silver haired guy simply grinned deviously. “Over my dead body,” he muttered under his breath, before charging at them.

Luke was stunned as they watched him slashing and stabbing the enemies. He avoided each attacks launched at him, while at the same time sending a counterattack at them. It was then when Jade started casting a spell; he regained his composure and started attacking the soldiers as well. This action surprised the stranger, but needless to say, he was grateful for this unexpected aid.

“Howl, o wicked winds! Turbulence!”

Following the suit, Tear began casting her Hymns, while Natalia aided with her supportive spells. They completely forgotten the presence of the redheaded, who was still sitting on ELMA, watched the fight commenced. Strangely, he smiled while his emerald eyes followed the movements of Luke, who keep swinging his swords around, defeating the enemies. His full attention was directed to the young noble that he didn’t realize one of the soldiers lunged at him.

Noticing this, his silver haired companion shouted in panic. “ELMA! Protect him!”

The dog-like robot howled. The ignorant redheaded startled and got off from its back, thus allowing ELMA to bite down the soldiers. Seeing that he was a bit troubled, Natalia approached him. “Are you okay? You shouldn’t keep your guard down!”

“Oh yes, I’m sorry…I’m fine, though,” he beamed; made the blonde Princess sighed in relief.

“Natalia, go to the cabin along with him and tell Guy to help us out!” Luke commanded, finishing off a row of enemy with his Devil’s Maw.

“Understood... Let’s go!” Natalia grabbed the redheaded’s hand, intended to drag him away from the battlefield, but he forced himself to stay. Noticing this, she frowned. “You can’t battle, can you? Then you should get away from the battlefield!”

He shook his head, keeping his smile. “I can fight.”

He pulled away from the noble lady and turned toward the three airships that floated still above them. Three Fonists emerged, but instead jumped down onto the deck, they casted their spells while trying to keep their balance on the airship’s exterior. He smiled naughtily and stretched out his arms, singing.

“Ma num ra nha diviega papana sos kil jenge mea...”

Sparks of light erupted from the sky, and moments later, several large swords rained down. They struck the airships and the Fonists, killing them in instant. Luke and the others gasped in awe from seeing the unusual magic. Meanwhile, the silver haired swordsman simply finished off remaining soldiers on the deck. Once he done with the foes, he returned to face his redheaded companion.

“So it wasn’t a coincidence that you can use Song Magic here,” he sighed, rubbed his temple. “It saves me the trouble though, now that I know you can protect yourself with it.”

“Hey, hey…even without it, I can still cast some Sixth Fonon spells,” the weird magician pouted.

The dual-swordsman simply chuckled and petted his friend’s head. “Yeah, I know. Now, let’s leave this place,” he announced, commanding ELMA to approach them.

However, before they could ride on the black dog-like vehicle, Luke grabbed the silver haired one’s shoulder and turned him around to face him. His expression was a mix of confusion, enthusiasm, and anger.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but you can’t leave so easily like that. At least not until you tells us who those dangerous people that attacked us are,” he said, sounding more like a demand rather than a question.

The silver-haired guy frowned. He glared at the young Viscount as he let go of his grab. “I have nothing to tell to humans like you.”

“Why you—!”

“Now, now, Ayatane…you shouldn’t act all mean like that. After all, they had helped us,” his companion chided. He smiled to Luke and friends as he continued, “I’m sorry for causing troubles, and also ruining your ship. I would like to thank you for aiding us in our battle earlier.”

“It’s alright. We can’t ignore those who are in need,” Natalia said, thought she was a bit shocked that her ship’s deck wrecked a lot, suffering the damages from the sudden battle.

“Who are they actually?” Tear inquired, thought her eyes fixed on the dead bodies that were scattered all over the deck. Jade was examining them, trying to find clues about their identities.

Ayatane, the silver haired swordsman, looked away. Knowing that his friend would remain silent, the redheaded magician spoke up for him. “They are soldiers from a newly-formed, secret, dark organization that planning to attack Daath and taking over the Order of Lorelai. Apparently, they were trying to recover Score and once again let people know their future.”

At that, the four Saviors of Auldrant gasped in surprise. They looked at each other. Someone was trying to revive the Score, again? Apparently, people like Mohs will always exist as long as the Score exist. Luke felt very disgusted now. Why all problems that happened always about Score, Score, and Score? Can’t people forget about its existence, so they wouldn’t fight over it? He didn’t want people to fight against each other anymore just because the Score!

While Luke, Tear, and Natalia were still in state of shock, Jade had finished examining the corpses. He approached the youths, hands in his pocket. He stopped next to them, and his eyes gazed at the redheaded stranger. Ayatane, who saw the Necromancer staring at his companion, immediately, stepped up in front of him.

“Would you mind to stop staring at my friend? It was a bit rude and intrigues me.”

Jade had his usual fox-like smile as he shifted his glance at the young swordsman. “I beg your pardon, but in my opinion, your friend didn’t mind me staring, so I suppose it is perfectly fine.”

The magician giggled and grabbed Ayatane’s arms before he could pull out his swords. She grinned at the Fonist, and winked lightly. “Sure, I don’t mind you stare at me, sir. However, may I ask you why you did it?”

“Well, it’s just that, you are—”

“Hey! So you’re all gathering here!”

They turned around and saw Anise and Guy, both had dressed neatly for the party. The two approached their friends, ignoring Ayatane and his friend, looking a bit annoyed.

“We were waiting for you! Luke, Tear, and Colonel! Why the three of you haven’t changed into your party clothes yet?” the black haired teen fumed, pouting cutely.

Luke scratched the back of his head. “Uh…sorry, Anise... We were caught in a trouble just now, so we didn’t have any chance to change,” he reasoned.

Anise folded her arms, still pouting. “Boooo!! Lame excuses!” She turned to look at Guy, who had been silent since they got into the deck. She frowned when she noticed that the blonde swordsman had his eyes fixed at one point and his jaws dropped. “Guy? What’s wrong with you?”

The young nobleman lifted his hand, his index finger pointed at the redheaded magician. “Anise, maybe it was just me…but, didn’t that person looks like Luke?”

Everyone turned their attention to the stranger. He backed away a bit, feeling slightly nervous all of sudden now. He glanced at Ayatane, seeking his help to get him out of this awkward situation. The dual-swordsman smirked and shrugged, practically saying ‘you asked for it, so you deal with it yourself’.

Knowing that he wasn’t feeling good with all the stares and attention, Natalia smiled and broke the tension. “Oh sorry for that,” she said cheerily. “I’m sure both of you are pretty tired after the fight. Why don’t you join our party?”

“Sounds fine to me,” Luke added. He hoped those two would accept the invitation. He wanted to know the details as to why those soldiers were after them. And also, he didn’t want his friends teased him in the party. Hopefully, their presence will spare the young Viscount from all the teases his friends had for him.

An enthusiastic smile stole on the magician’s lips. He looked up to Ayatane, eyes begging at him so he would let them stay for the party. The silver-haired guy sighed and nodded, approving his silent request. His companion’s smiled widened visibly. He turned to face the group and nodded frantically.

“We would love to accept your kind offering! Thank you very much!” she bowed respectfully at the Princess.

Natalia and Tear laughed at his naivety. “Oh, by the way…we didn’t know your names yet,” the brunette Melodist said.

“Ah yes…how foolish of us,” he beamed. “This friend of mine is Ayatane Michitaka, a talented dual-swordsman and also ex-bodyguard of a…landlady from our homeland. As for me, you may call me…Yulia, Yulia Togasaki. I’m an enchantress, or known as Melodist nowadays. We are pleased to be your acquaintance.”