The Kingdom of Dalmacia was a large, prosperous, and mighty one. King Uther Pendragon, a wise and just king, was respected by everyone throughout the realm. That included the other kingdoms on the Western Continent. There was, of course, one small exception: The Kingdom of Moriah.
There was a rather daunting rumor going around in the land. Some believed that a powerful nation from the East was getting ready to invade the Western Continent. However, these rumors were difficult to corroborate since every spy that was ever sent to the East never returned.
The king couldn't just ignore the possibility. Because of the fear of a looming invasion, the Kingdom was undergoing preparations in order to be ready to defend itself from any future attacks. While this air of uncertainty polluted the usual cheer in Dalmacia, Legend and Meg arrived and sought an audience with the king.
Five days had passed since the party had split up. Richard and Rachel would continue the search for the Arsenal of Light while Legend was charged with learning sword tech so he could better handle the Sword of Light.
The king received the letter written by his son, Richard. Legend and Meg were granted an audience with King Uther, and he read the letter that Richard had sent him in front of them.
King Uther: This is a rather unusual request... despite the fact that it comes from a son of mine... Are you not too young to be involved in battles and endangering yourself in such a manner?
Legend: No, Sir... I mean... Your majesty! - Legend said in a sort of shaky voice.
Legend looked unusually nervous. He was sweating as if he had been running a marathon, and he kind of looked like he was trembling a little. It seemed as though he was suffering from social anxiety. He had obviously never been in the presence of a king before, and the whole protocol they went through to go see the king was a little overwhelming for him. Meg decided to speak in his stead.
Meg: Pardon me, your majesty. Allow me to explain.
King Uther: What is this? Your bird talks?! What sorcery is this?!
Meg: Respectfully, your majesty... please call me by my name. It's Meg. And it's not in any way an unusual request...
King Uther: You must forgive me... Meg... It is the first time that I see something like this. You may speak.
Meg: Ahem! Very well...
The thing is, your majesty, our world is currently in grave danger. A sinister cult that operates from the shadows has been very active recently. They were the ones behind the abduction of your daughter, Princess Rachel. Sadly, she was only one of many White wizards who were abducted in order to steal their essence of divinity. With that essence of divinity, this cult has been making preparations in order to bring a powerful demon that was sealed away in another dimension for thousands of years. They intend to release it in our world... the Arkana, so that he may destroy all life within it.
But we know of a way to fight back. If we can find all the weapons of the Arsenal of Light, we will be able to stand a chance against the monsters that hope to see humanity gone. I know that Legend here may seem like he's only a child... but the truth is that he's a formidable martial artist, and the only person in this era capable of wielding the Holy Sword of Light, one of the weapons of the Arsenal of Light.
We have seen what we're up against. A Dark Wizard named Merlin and others that we are yet to discover... they may even not be human at all. If we do not prepare ourselves, I fear that there won't be a kingdom left for you to protect.
The king remained silent for a few moments after hearing everything Meg had to say. He was paying careful attention during his speech.
Legend then whispered to Meg
Legend: Thanks, Meg... I don't know what happened... I guess I was a little flustered all of a sudden...
King Uther: We have been making preparations to defend the kingdom against the possibility of invaders from the East... but this... this is far more frightening than what I could have imagined. I thank you for sharing this valuable information with me. You shall have everything you need from here on. Please, accept our most humble hospitality while you are in the capital.
Both Legend and Meg were happy when they realized that the king was taking them seriously. They both thanked him while bowing respectfully in his presence.
The King was pretty impressed with Meg. He sent Legend with his seal of approval to Cid, so they could begin training immediately, just as how Richard had asked in his letter.
~Four days ago~
Andred the wise had turned out to be a Djinn that was after Rachel's essence of divinity. He cast a slow spell and had our heroes cornered (Nimrod, Rachel, and the baby from the basket).
Andred: Guess I had the last laugh, didn't I?
Both Rachel and Nimrod were trying to turn around and run away, but due to the effects of the Slow spell, their movements were over three times slower than normal.
Andred walked slowly toward them and effortlessly caught up with them. But there was something strange about the baby. Something that looked like the flash you see when a bolt of lightning illuminates the sky was emanating from him; it made him shine, and then he began to grow... going from an infant to a fully developed and grown human male, right out of Rachel's arms. But he didn't stop growing there. He grew up to about a quarter of the height of the trees in the forest, and those trees were truly gigantic pine trees... estimated to be about 80 meters tall. The baby was now a giant.
Andred: Wh--what the... - Andred was confused. He had seen the baby in Rachel's arms, which he naturally found odd (since she wasn't carrying a baby when he first saw her). The baby (now a fully grown giant) looked at Andred. Made a fist. And with frightening speed slammed the ground so hard that the trees around the area were all cut down. It looked like a giant bomb had gone off in the area. A huge crater was left in the spot where Andred was standing and the earth rumbled for a radius of about one hundred square kilometers. The people from the town near the forest felt the quake and thought nothing of it.
Child: Mommy! Everything's shaking! I'm scared...
Woman: Don't worry, child. Lord Og just took a tumble... He'll straighten up and everything will be fine! - (some people believed that the Arkana was a flat mass of land that was held by the first giant on his back. Each time there was a quake, those who believed this would say "lord Og stumbled").
After the quake passed, there was no sign of the djinn…
Richard felt the earthquake while running toward the location Sven's device was indicating. He couldn't help but be afraid for Rachel. He was very close to the point where the tracker on the device Sven had given him was indicating. So he kept on running. And running. Until he made it to the spot.
As he surveyed all the wreckage, he was in shock, wondering what could have caused such destruction. Richard looked everywhere he could. The only thing he saw was a huge crater. Tumbled down trees, branches, and leaves. There was no sign of Nimrod or Rachel. After a few moments of searching, he saw the pebble he gave Rachel among the wreckage. His sister was nowhere to be found. The only thing he saw were signs of a massive object crashing into the ground… but there was no object of such scale to be found either.
Richard: {My sister... Where could she be?! What happened to her?! Did I fail you again... Rachel?}
̴ Present-day ̴
Some time had passed since Legend and Meg arrived at Dalmacia. Cid got a letter from the king, instructing him to pass on his sword tech knowledge to Legend. Cid wasn't very happy about that...
One day in training:
Cid: You're useless! Fix your posture!
Legend: Y-yes, sir!
Cid: And what kind of a grip is that? My dead grandma has a better grip than that!
Legend: ... {If there were drill sergeants in this dimension, this guy would totally be one of them…} – Legend thought with a bit of discouragement on his face.
Cid: What's with your face? Are you ready to quit??!! {Please, quit! I can't drink all day if I have to teach this runt...}
Cid used to be the general of the Dalmacian army many years ago. He also was Richard's teacher in the art of the sword. At this point, he was an older man in his 60s who still looked vigorous and strong. White long hair, which he always kept tied, and it looked both ragged and neat. Cid spent most of his days in the tavern drinking ale. He was rarely ever sober, but he had to sober up to be able to teach Legend his skills. He was always grumpy because he wasn't drunk.
~ Sometime afterward ~
Meg: How's training going?
Legend was sitting on a rooftop gazing at the clouds in the sky. He was covered in bruises and bandages, and he looked like a war veteran with PTSD. He turned his head to look at Meg with a spooky face.
Meg: That bad, huh?
Legend: It's terrible! Richard should have warned me about that madman. But ... In a way... It's actually awesome! I think he's being hard on me because he understands we don't have time to waste... I have already learned a lot... And I'm not a quitter! - he said with determination.
~ The next day~
Legend: I want to quit!
Meg: What the...?
Legend: He's way too mean! There's no way he needs to be like that all the time... He probably hates me for some reason!
Meg: Come on… He just doesn't know you all that well. I believe he will learn to respect you once you show him who you are, just like we have learned to respect you, Legend.
Hearing that got Legend thinking...
The day after, when Legend went to meet Cid at their training grounds, he found him passed out with a bottle of booze.
Legend: {Great! So he's a crazy person and a drunk. No wonder I always smelled something like a distillery every time he opened his mouth around me...} Are you ok, Cid?
Cid: I'm-- tired of fighting, kid. I'm-- nothing but... a piece of... worthless... – he didn't manage to finish the sentence. He was out cold again.
Later that day Legend went walking around the city. He saw a man covered from head to toe in some pretty rad armor leaving a house.
Legend: Wow... You're a Dark Knight, aren't you?
Dragoon: Not at all, kid. I'm a Dragoon. You can tell the difference by the shape of our helmets: Dragoons wear dragon-shaped helmets. Dark knights wear bull-horn helmets. Well, that's the usual, at least.
Legend: Oh... I see... I get it now. That's so cool!
Dragoon: I know, right? What's your name, kid?
Legend: It's Legend. Nice to meet you...
Dragoon: Gregg. Nice to meet you too! So you're the one training under Cid! How's that been going?
Legend: I've learned a lot... but... to be honest... it's pretty tough. I don't know how much longer I can take it... - Gregg could sense the air of discouragement in Legend's voice. And just by looking at the kid, it was quite obvious that he was having a hard time.
Gregg: Look, Legend. Don't tell anyone I told you this, but Cid is grieving. He lost someone that was very important to him some time ago, which is why he retired from our army. The thing is, he never figured out how to move on with his life... Grief is all he has. Whatever he throws at you, just don't take it personally.
Legend: Do you know who it was? I mean... the person that he lost... Who was it?
Gregg: Alright... Don't tell him it was me who told you this... Cid had a daughter. It isn't common for women to join the military as knights, but she was one of our few exceptions. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with. But in an expedition to survey the East, she was chosen to lead a small group of soldiers to collect intel from that dangerous land. None of them ever made it back. The thing you need to understand is that Cid never wanted that life for her. He always tried to make her quit because he was afraid for her safety. But she was stubborn, just like her dad. She had to prove to him that she could make it through the ranks of our military without him. Her goal was to become general. I think she would have pulled it off had she not gone on that expedition...
Legend: Oh... I guess I understand... I'm sorry that happened to his daughter, though. That's awful...
Gregg: It most certainly is... Well, Legend... I've got an expedition of my own to go to.
Legend: You're going to the East?
Gregg: That's right. Wish me luck so I can be the first ever to return with my crew!
Legend: You got this, Dragoon Gregg... You guys will make history for sure!
Gregg: Thanks, Legend. I appreciate the vote of confidence! See you around. And stay strong! You've got this!
Legend: I will. And good luck!
Legend endured the hard training. One entire year had passed.