There was a drastic shift in the scenery a half-hour after the two departed from the fire station. No longer were they persevering through the desolate desert, or the plague-ridden station where danger lurked in every corner. Instead, the two found themselves in a breathtaking flowery vista blessed by Mother Nature. The abundance and variety of colorful flowers and lush tall grass made their surroundings quite heavenly to behold. The direct contrast with the natural field they strolled through and their previously explored locations made METIS appear tolerable for living conditions.
A side-sweeping breeze came through the fields, brushing against Lyn's hair as flower petals and pulled grass tickled her skin mid-flight. Flocks of seagulls soared through the skies seeking warmer shelter elsewhere. Lyn parted the side of her hair to resist the wind. The lush tower was still miles away, but they had shown great progress with the pace they were traveling at.
"Down for some jokes?" Alfaic asked Lyn.
"I do not know what a joke is," Lyn replied.
"Just answer this, what did the pickle say to the cucumber?" Alfaic attempted.
"I do not know,"
"You mean a great dill to me!"
"And why is that important?" Lyn asked.
"Well, it's not, but... it's supposed to make you laugh," Alfaic said. "Got any jokes for me?"
Lyn stopped moving and slanted her eyebrows. She looked down at her palms and gently closed her eyes. Ten seconds passed, and Alfaic was getting worried about what was happening inside her head.
"Lyn? You good?" Alfaic asked.
"I'm thinking." She said.
"Okay, okay..."
"I have one," Lyn said, reopening her eyes and brandishing Alfaic. She held it up to her face. "What... did the pickle... say to the cucumber?"
Alfaic, who noticed her lack of originality, wanted to say the correct answer to the joke. Knowing Lyn, she would have preferred having the stage to herself in success rather than being cut short. "Gee, I don't know. What?" Alfaic asked.
"I... I want a great dill from you!" Lyn shouted.
"Huh," Alfaic voiced out. "Good try, but it was exactly the same as mine... only not as clever or funny. But I'll give you props for trying."
"Blade, wait," Lyn commanded, placing Alfaic on her back holster. Stretched beyond the grassy horizon was an unobtrusive set of stone and wooden houses along the path, only several meters away from where they stood. She hastened her footsteps, dashing along the stone path to examine the village closely. She had hoped there were no signs of the Rots to taint the heavenly environment they stood in.
"Leave me alone! I want to see her myself!" A rather childish and squeamish voice of a male child stopped Lyn in her tracks. A boy wearing a white knitted cotton shirt with light brown chinos sprinted through the flowery field, seemingly fleeing from something hostile that was chasing him. The boy did not look back, nor did he notice Lyn's presence around his peripheral view.
Alfaic detached itself from Lyn's back and hovered around her, primed to attack. Lyn grabbed the extendable assault rifle from behind, aiming it behind the child's back ready to fire the moment the hostile came running. Contrary to their expectations, a short female wearing a white ruffled dress followed the boy, chasing him at half the speed he was exerting.
"D...Damian...!" The female's cry failed to stop the boy from running. She pressed her palms against her knees and bent down, inhaling and exhaling copious amounts of oxygen to withstand her loss of stamina. She had bright pale skin and short feathery blonde hair that was at neck-length. A violet-colored hairclip parted her hair near her temple. "Damn you... and your fast legs..." She whispered.
Lyn approached the female, placing her rifle away. She stared down at her as Alfaic circulated around the girl, examining her for any possible dangers.
The girl lifted her head and gasped in surprise at Lyn's presence. After a swift examination of Lyn's weapons and tactical gear, she pointed in the direction of where Damian, the little boy, had sprinted off. "Hey! Hey! Excuse me! You look like someone who could help me! Could you help me catch my brother? He's just run off and I have no idea where the hell he's going!" She breathed.
Lyn turned her head towards the path where Damian ventured off to. She turned back to the girl and nodded. "Stay." She commanded, before leaping into action. Her precise and calculated swiftness shredded through the fields as she stormed off in a matter of seconds, catching up to Damian before he could hide in the shaded woods on the far side of the village.
Lyn snatched Damian's white shirt by the neck and leaped towards an oak tree's branch to frighten him with the fear of heights, hoping to stop his movement. Damian kicked and screamed at the top of his lungs, his prepubescent voice making him sound like an ear-piercingly shrill horn. Lyn disregarded his feelings and leaped off of the tree with Damian in her arms. She landed on both feet in front of Alfaic and the girl.
Damian sniffed the mucus in his nose, letting it slide down his throat. He wiped his brown eyes with his fingers, ridding the tears to make him appear more manly. "This isn't fair," He sulked as Lyn released him in front of his sister. "I want to see Elaina. I want to see her now!" He wailed.
"It's not safe in the tower," The sister stated, kneeling in front of Damian to rub his light brown hair. "You already know that. She's fulfilling her purpose as we speak. It's for the greater good of the villagers."
"It's not fair! She doesn't deserve that! She didn't do anything wrong!" Damian cried. "Why won't you listen to me, Cethe? Why won't the others listen?!"
"I am listening to you... and we are telling you, no," The sister named Cethe voiced out in a sisterly manner; her tone fluctuated between both highs and lows, indicating her sisterly position in their family. "You wouldn't want to join the other dead there now, would you?"
"N-No..." Damian croaked.
"Exactly," Cethe said. "Alright, enough said. Get back home before Mom gets mad at us. You've also got to help out the blacksmith's family moving all those materials and finding a replacement warrior. You told them yesterday you would do it, and-"
"Okay, okay!" Damian groaned, skipping back to the village to stop his sister from bickering his tasks even further. He disappeared in a matter of seconds, highlighting his fast feet.
Cethe sighed, placing both of her hands on the back of her neck for relaxation purposes. "Man, what a bother he can be..." She whispered, before turning toward Lyn and Alfaic. "Thank you so much. He's been causing a lot of trouble around the village because... well, of some things I can't really say."
"There are more of you?" Lyn asked.
"Oh, yeah," Cethe replied, nodding. She took her time to examine Lyn's body from head to toe, witnessing an otherworldly being in her presence. Her futuristic attire, slender body, and mature complexion were too peculiar to be a denizen of her current village. Her eyebrows perked up, and her mouth widened in astonishment. "Whoa! You're not from here, huh?!" She was taken aback.
"No," Lyn said. "The tower. What is in there?"
Cethe sighed, dropping her shoulders down. "Well, I guess you heard it already... but one of our family members is there," She said. "Elaina's been stuck there for a long time, and Damian's one of the only ones who know about her being there. It's like the others are ignoring her. Even mother and father..."
"Why is she there?" Lyn asked.
"She... it's hard to talk about it right now." Cethe mentioned.
Alfaic burst out in pure enthusiasm and ecstatic glowing in luminous gold. "Wonder if that tower's any important. Maybe one of your so called lords is there, Lyn."
"AHH!" Cethe leaped back and toppled on the grass beneath her. Her face swelled up in discomfort at Alfaic's presence. "Is that... a talking sword?! Oh my god, it really is, isn't it? I'm not just imagining things?!"
Lyn shook her head, placing her hands on her hips. "It is your imagination." She said, even though Alfaic had already unveiled itself.
"Sorry," Alfaic intervened. It flew next to Cethe's face. "Got a little carried away. Forgot most people aren't accustomed to talking swords."
"The sword's talking... the sword is talking," Cethe repeated, sweat dripping from her anxious forehead.
"Relax," Lyn forcefully commanded, copying what Alfaic would say to her to ease down. "I'm looking for the Lords of METIS. Do you know what that is?"
"I... I don't know what you're talking about." Cethe replied. "Maybe my family knows?"
"Then take us to your family, Cethe," Alfaic requested. "We need to speak to them."
"Uh, they're not exactly keen on talking with a flying sword..." Cethe replied, sweating profusely.
Lyn snatched Alfaic from the air and placed it in her back holster. "Then I will ask," She requested. "But I will not return the blade until I have finished my mission."
"I have so many questions..." Cethe whispered to herself. She stood up and dusted the dirt and grass from her white dress. "Look, I don't trust you. So if you could just answer a few questions for me..."
"What?" Lyn asked.
"Are you... in allegiance with the Rot Mother?"
The name didn't ring a bell at all to Lyn, considering her birth was a few hours ago. "I do not know what that is."
"You... don't seem like you're lying," Cethe said, examining her eyes. "And what about you?" She asked Alfaic.
"No," Alfaic coldly said. "Never heard of her."
Cethe smirked with a bright expression, placing her hands behind her back as she fidgeted them. She teetered on her toes and examined Alfaic by nudging her head to the side, beaming with excitement. "Well, I think you'll do just right then," She said. "Today's a special occasion. Our village is having a ceremony to determine the next warriors that will defend our territory. We really want someone who's a master of swordsmanship to put on a show for them that'll really lift their spirits. And... well, after seeing you save my brother so fast, I think I've chosen you for the job. I do owe you a little bit, after all."
"What do you want me to do?" Lyn asked.
"I'll let you speak to my family, only if you do this one thing for me. During the night of the ceremony, I need you to perform for the villagers," Cethe explained. "Give them a great show that'll knock their socks off! And who knows, maybe if they find out that I recruited you and the sword, then maybe they'll finally approve me of being a warrior myself."
"If that's what we have to do," Alfaic said. "Then we'll do it."
"Alright! Good!" She turned back to Lyn and gazed up at her face with her hand held forward; their height difference was beyond comparison. "Oh, speaking of... I'm Cethe of Stravia, our village flagship. What's yours?"
Gazing down at Cethe's hand, Lyn could not help but remember Krin's offering hand before they had journeyed to the fire station's cabin. Their handshake had signaled partnership, but it was only a few hours later that he had betrayed her. The bitterness and uneasiness of Lyn's reaction to Krin's betrayal made her reject Cethe's friendly form of partnership. "I will not." She muttered.
"Huh?" Cethe asked.
"I will not-"
"Lyn!" Alfaic hastily introduced for her, reducing the gilded tether of their hostility to a halt by offering partnership in her stead. "Her name is Lyn. And I am Alfaic! It's a pleasure to meet you, Cethe."
"Lyn... Alfaic..." Cethe voiced out, lowering her hand. Her eyes traced themselves toward Lyn's black tattoo on her left arm, reading out the LYNBG52 in her mind. She smiled at the both of them, blushing in embarrassment and utter joy. "Okay. It's settled then. Lyn and Alfaic, you two can head to Stravia with me. It's a safe place. Food, water, shelter... everything you need these days to survive. And don't worry about the monsters. Our warriors will take care of any that try to fight us Stravians!"
"Cethe," Lyn called out. "When I have fulfilled your request, you will take me to the family, and then to the tower."
"Don't worry," Cethe said. "I'll keep my end of the bargain, just so as you help our villagers. We really could use it."
"Then let us go," Lyn said, paving the way toward Stravia with Cethe.
"Wait," Alfaic called out. "Cethe, you can move on ahead. I need to speak with Lyn for a moment."
"Oh, okay," Cethe agreed. "Then, you can meet me near the big windmill after you two talk it out. I'll be waiting for you two there, so come soon!" Without another word, Cethe sprinted off toward the village.
Lyn grabbed Alfaic and held it in front of her, with a sour expression of doubt riddled on her face. The breeze blew against her face, but it did not stop her from concentrating on her doubt. "Why are you so quick to trust her?" She asked. "And why do you speak for me?"
"Because I know you're upset about Krin," Alfaic said. "I know you are. You're angry, right? After he lied to you?"
"I am." Lyn annoyingly brushed aside.
"That's why you didn't shake Cethe's hand, even when you did for Krin," Alfaic continued. "But you need to know that she's completely different from him. She's different. She trusts us. And for once, you can be closer to achieving your goal of finding a lord of METIS. Isn't that what you wanted?"
"That is my mission." Lyn repeated as a broken record usually would. "But why must we do this? We must go to the tower. Enough of these trivialities. We do not need the girl's help."
"No, no!" Alfaic said. "We can't break someone's promise like this. You shook her hand. You have to honor it like a code."
"Honor... like a code?" Lyn asked.
"Yeah, that's it. I'm pretty knowledgeable when it comes to this stuff. Besides, we might just find out what's in that tower."
Lyn held Alfaic out and examined him closer. "You..." She begun. "You know something. Tell me. A talking blade is not natural to humanity. What do you know?"
"I'm as lost as you are," Alfaic's voice lowered itself. "Are you calling me a liar?"
"No, I..." Lyn's voice was cut off from the accusation. She despised the idea of liars and deception, and chose not to move in that direction. "Let us hope you are correct," Lyn said, placing Alfaic on her back holster. "Let us move to Stravia."
As soon as they departed, Alfaic kept completely quiet. Lyn could not read minds, but a certain uneasiness played back in her mind from their final interaction.
He was taken away from his resting site; why all of a sudden would he change his mind about staying?