ChibiMyu
Aug 10, 2003, 10:12 PM
I guess I should note that this is actually a revision of a fic I posted a link to a long time ago. Not very many people noticed it, at least that I know of. Duke is currently posting his new K&D story, so check that out too. Enjoy! ^_~
K&D: Future History
Prologue: Dungeon of Dreams
The pale moon rarely touched the dark and lonely world as Krayana trudged along the dirt path beneath the trees of Ehb's great forest. She was still clad in armor, but the moist air of the dead night seemed to pierce through it more than the rain of arrows she had seen in the battles of the Great War. Fortunately, the Great War was over, and Krayana was returning home to bring tidings – and sorrows of the events that had occurred in the distant lands. Krayana continued to think about her recent adventures until a fairly large house appeared in front of her. The second floor was entirely dark except for one lone candle accompanied by one lone shadow watching from the window overlooking the dark road into the forest. In a few seconds the candle disappeared and in a few more seconds, the front door opened, letting a flood of bright yellow light escape from the living room.
"Who's there?" a voice called softly from the door.
"It is your sister Krayana returning from the Great War!" Krayana answered in a dramatic tone as she threw off her helmet, revealing her midnight black hair, and raced up the wooden steps of the porch to meet her sister with a grin.
"Kray! You're back!" Dianna cried and threw her arms around her sister. "I was so worried about you and Cyrus! How is everything? Where is Uncle Polonius?"
A look of deep sadness quickly replaced the smile on Krayana's face as she entered the well-lit room.
Dianna realized that not all was well by Krayana's quick change of expressions at the mention of those names. "Kray? What happened? They are ok, right?"
"Let's go sit by the fireplace." Krayana motioned for her sister to take a seat as she took her own.
"Ok. Now tell me the bad news!" Dianna begged after she took her seat.
Krayana took a deep breath and gazed into the burning fire before speaking. "Cyrus... is dead. He was killed in battle almost five weeks ago."
Dianna gasped, burying her face in her hands and was silent for a few minutes. "What about Polonius?"
"Our Uncle should be returning later tonight after repaying some money for a lost bet." Krayana answered glumly, looking at the clock over the mantle.
Dianna managed to give a look of disgust through her tears. "He hasn't changed in his ways, has he?"
"No."
"They always say that war changes people... I was hoping it would change him."
Krayana rose from her chair and sighed. "Speaking of changing, I better go upstairs to change before our uncle returns and finds me in clothes of war."
Dianna nodded. "Good idea. No one ever found out who you were?"
"Nope."
"Not even Uncle Polonius or Cyrus?"
"Not even Uncle Polonius or Cyrus."
"Heh, that's Krayana, always going undercover and not changed at all."
Krayana gave a solemn smile from the stairs before walking down the hallway of the second floor. After she passed out of her sister's sight, she let her second and more exhausted smile fade into another gloom. “Times do change… and people change with them."
Uncle Polonius came home a few drinks and a few hours later, and went straight to bed. It was no big surprise, but it was a relief when he didn't asking any questions. Krayana lay in bed trying to fall asleep, but she could not. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the dark nights spent out doors and pale campfires guarded by solemn soldiers. She did not regret going to war to defend the country she loved so much, but how she wished that there could be another way to defend her people. Why did it have to be through fighting? If people thought about their actions first, so many things would turn out better.
Krayana sat up and looked out the window. The stars flickered faintly through the hazy sky and a low fog hung over the ground, but she could still see the barn. There was a dark shadowy area by the barn. Krayana squinted in an attempt to see what was there, but she couldn't. As she was about to give up, something small and dark appeared to dart quickly into the barn. Krayana blinked and stared again, but it was gone. A fox? Something else? If it was a fox, it was a large one, but there had to be large foxes around. Dianne had told her about the recent events in the hen house. Maybe it would be a good idea to check out the barn.
Krayana stood up, grabbed her night robe, opened her trunk to get her trusted sword, and glided down the stairs again. Slipping silently through the front door, she could feel the cold air of the night again, but it did not seem to bother her now. The barn door was partly open, but there was no wind that made it creak as it did sometimes. Being as careful as possible, Krayana slipped into the warmer barn air. Why she was being so cautious, she could not explain, but it felt like a good idea to her. Maybe she just wanted to give the fox the surprise of his life.
The barn animals barely stirred as she walked past the stalls, pausing every few moments to stop and listen for other noises. She tried to relax, placing her lantern on the hook to free her other hand. She would head back to bed as soon as she reached the other end of the barn and saw that all was well everywhere but in her imagination, or after chasing away a fox. As she reached the end of the barn she let out a small chuckle and turned around to head back, but a shuffling noise in the loft above stopped her in mid-turn. In a flash she darted up the ladder and was running across the loft.
"I've got you now, fox!" she cried, stomping across the wooden boards in an attempt to scare it away, but nothing moved. Krayan stopped as she reached the front of the loft and looked through the window out over the grounds below. The rope she and her friends used to slide down from the top as children had been cut a few years ago and was never replaced because no one ever used it anymore. She would have to walk across the loft and go down the ladder again.
"Bah," she mumbled. "I knew we should have replaced that, but Polonius spent all the summer savings that year."
Snap! The sound of splintering wood followed by a thud came from the side of the loft with the only ladder. Krayana ran over too see what happened, but she had already formed the idea in her head before she reached the place where the ladder had been. The ladder lay broken of the floor far below, split into two pieces. The sound of shattering glass also echoed from somewhere below, but Krayana could not see from where. Instead, she could see a golden light flickering on the other end of the barn, faint at first, but it soon raged across the floor below and danced between the floorboards and stale hay of the loft, consuming everything in it's path. Fire! Run! Krayana ran back to the front of the loft again, aiming for the window. Jump! To high! Ground below! Too late!
K&D: Future History
Prologue: Dungeon of Dreams
The pale moon rarely touched the dark and lonely world as Krayana trudged along the dirt path beneath the trees of Ehb's great forest. She was still clad in armor, but the moist air of the dead night seemed to pierce through it more than the rain of arrows she had seen in the battles of the Great War. Fortunately, the Great War was over, and Krayana was returning home to bring tidings – and sorrows of the events that had occurred in the distant lands. Krayana continued to think about her recent adventures until a fairly large house appeared in front of her. The second floor was entirely dark except for one lone candle accompanied by one lone shadow watching from the window overlooking the dark road into the forest. In a few seconds the candle disappeared and in a few more seconds, the front door opened, letting a flood of bright yellow light escape from the living room.
"Who's there?" a voice called softly from the door.
"It is your sister Krayana returning from the Great War!" Krayana answered in a dramatic tone as she threw off her helmet, revealing her midnight black hair, and raced up the wooden steps of the porch to meet her sister with a grin.
"Kray! You're back!" Dianna cried and threw her arms around her sister. "I was so worried about you and Cyrus! How is everything? Where is Uncle Polonius?"
A look of deep sadness quickly replaced the smile on Krayana's face as she entered the well-lit room.
Dianna realized that not all was well by Krayana's quick change of expressions at the mention of those names. "Kray? What happened? They are ok, right?"
"Let's go sit by the fireplace." Krayana motioned for her sister to take a seat as she took her own.
"Ok. Now tell me the bad news!" Dianna begged after she took her seat.
Krayana took a deep breath and gazed into the burning fire before speaking. "Cyrus... is dead. He was killed in battle almost five weeks ago."
Dianna gasped, burying her face in her hands and was silent for a few minutes. "What about Polonius?"
"Our Uncle should be returning later tonight after repaying some money for a lost bet." Krayana answered glumly, looking at the clock over the mantle.
Dianna managed to give a look of disgust through her tears. "He hasn't changed in his ways, has he?"
"No."
"They always say that war changes people... I was hoping it would change him."
Krayana rose from her chair and sighed. "Speaking of changing, I better go upstairs to change before our uncle returns and finds me in clothes of war."
Dianna nodded. "Good idea. No one ever found out who you were?"
"Nope."
"Not even Uncle Polonius or Cyrus?"
"Not even Uncle Polonius or Cyrus."
"Heh, that's Krayana, always going undercover and not changed at all."
Krayana gave a solemn smile from the stairs before walking down the hallway of the second floor. After she passed out of her sister's sight, she let her second and more exhausted smile fade into another gloom. “Times do change… and people change with them."
Uncle Polonius came home a few drinks and a few hours later, and went straight to bed. It was no big surprise, but it was a relief when he didn't asking any questions. Krayana lay in bed trying to fall asleep, but she could not. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the dark nights spent out doors and pale campfires guarded by solemn soldiers. She did not regret going to war to defend the country she loved so much, but how she wished that there could be another way to defend her people. Why did it have to be through fighting? If people thought about their actions first, so many things would turn out better.
Krayana sat up and looked out the window. The stars flickered faintly through the hazy sky and a low fog hung over the ground, but she could still see the barn. There was a dark shadowy area by the barn. Krayana squinted in an attempt to see what was there, but she couldn't. As she was about to give up, something small and dark appeared to dart quickly into the barn. Krayana blinked and stared again, but it was gone. A fox? Something else? If it was a fox, it was a large one, but there had to be large foxes around. Dianne had told her about the recent events in the hen house. Maybe it would be a good idea to check out the barn.
Krayana stood up, grabbed her night robe, opened her trunk to get her trusted sword, and glided down the stairs again. Slipping silently through the front door, she could feel the cold air of the night again, but it did not seem to bother her now. The barn door was partly open, but there was no wind that made it creak as it did sometimes. Being as careful as possible, Krayana slipped into the warmer barn air. Why she was being so cautious, she could not explain, but it felt like a good idea to her. Maybe she just wanted to give the fox the surprise of his life.
The barn animals barely stirred as she walked past the stalls, pausing every few moments to stop and listen for other noises. She tried to relax, placing her lantern on the hook to free her other hand. She would head back to bed as soon as she reached the other end of the barn and saw that all was well everywhere but in her imagination, or after chasing away a fox. As she reached the end of the barn she let out a small chuckle and turned around to head back, but a shuffling noise in the loft above stopped her in mid-turn. In a flash she darted up the ladder and was running across the loft.
"I've got you now, fox!" she cried, stomping across the wooden boards in an attempt to scare it away, but nothing moved. Krayan stopped as she reached the front of the loft and looked through the window out over the grounds below. The rope she and her friends used to slide down from the top as children had been cut a few years ago and was never replaced because no one ever used it anymore. She would have to walk across the loft and go down the ladder again.
"Bah," she mumbled. "I knew we should have replaced that, but Polonius spent all the summer savings that year."
Snap! The sound of splintering wood followed by a thud came from the side of the loft with the only ladder. Krayana ran over too see what happened, but she had already formed the idea in her head before she reached the place where the ladder had been. The ladder lay broken of the floor far below, split into two pieces. The sound of shattering glass also echoed from somewhere below, but Krayana could not see from where. Instead, she could see a golden light flickering on the other end of the barn, faint at first, but it soon raged across the floor below and danced between the floorboards and stale hay of the loft, consuming everything in it's path. Fire! Run! Krayana ran back to the front of the loft again, aiming for the window. Jump! To high! Ground below! Too late!