Another Side

The World has ended, the darkness has spread, that which I had so desperately tried to stop has betrayed me. We sought to wrest the power away from those above, we sought to control that which we did not know, we were gravely mistaken. I pray that the shadow does not come to overtake us all.

Present Arc

 * Nora - An Other Shadow.
 * Rizelin - An Other Shadow.
 * Falks - An Other Shadow.
 * Master Cresen - An Other Shadow, he helped Difor dispose of the Pureblood Revenants and was instrumental in her gaining control of the Realm of Shadow. He later regretted what he did when Difor engulfed The World in shadow.
 * Lenalin - A disciple of Master Cresen, she was sent to test Nora, Rizelin, and Falks.
 * Diva - A scientist and engineer who created Memento Mori.
 * Tubel - Diva's disciple and the one that completed the gearblade.
 * Memento Mori - An Artificial Intelligence created by Diva to combat the Dark Creatures by creating Automatons. M.M. later betrayed humanity by turning the remaining humans into machines.
 * - Betrayer of humanity, murdered Diva, his lover and colleague.
 * Shayna - Creator of the Reasoners, Resonators, and Replicants.
 * Gemini - Disciple of, the True Shadow of.
 * Arisa - Disciple of, the True Shadow of.
 * Enoch

Past Arc

 * Rolen - A Revenant Duke, he is the father of Levant and husband of Rosalin. He is killed by Gyurk's father, Rerick.
 * Rosalin - A human noble, she is the wife of Rolen and mother of Levant. She is killed by Gyurk's father, Rerick.
 * Levant - A Revenant / Human Half Blood, Levant is the son of Rolen and Rosalin. He at first harbors a desire to destroy all of humanity, but slowly learns to forgive them after meeting Lidell and befriending Gyurk.
 * Rerick - An ambitious human, he staged the overthrow of Rolen to put himself in power, he was working under orders of Tuzka.
 * Gyurk - The son of Rerick, he has an unhealthy obssession and adoration for his sister, Barumei and generally disagrees with his father, but reluctantly obeys him to keep Barumei safe.
 * Barumei - The younger sister of Gyurk, she has many bruises from being beaten by their father alot earlier in life, she adores her brother and wishes he wouldn't become corrupt by their father.
 * Tuzka - A bishop in the Church of Light, he secretly leads the Cult of the Shadow.
 * Sora - A mysterious being working with Tuzka, no one knows his real name, but everyone calls him Sora, he is an Exalted being in the Cult of the Shadow.
 * Lidell Lilty - The first human girl to have shown kindness to Levant, she eventually falls in love with him. Lidell is the former princess of Estellion before it was overtaken by Shadow.
 * Kakeru - A former convict, he was freed after he killed a few soldiers harassing Barumei, he eventually befriends both Gyurk and Levant.
 * Haito - A scholar, he is from the Church of Light, but holds no biases otherwise.
 * Kliele - Mostly referred to as the girl in a lab coat with a ponytail, she is Levant's guardian angel, though she knows of his tragic future, she cannot intefere with it, though she hopes that this time, the future won't be lost.

History
Five-thousand years ago, Difor rose to power in the Realm of Shadow, becoming the first Eidolon. After establishing her rule, Difor engulfed The World into shadow through her Shadow, Serin. Mankind was reduced to a mere 10% of it's original population, they struggled to fight back Difor, but because of the sky being engulfed, man's food source began to decay. Men began to turn on each other and Difor entered Midworld. It was in this midst of chaos that Diva, a scientist and engineer from the Forgotten Lands, created what was known as Memento Mori, an artificial intelligence program designed to create machines that would combat the dark creatures. Diva also designed a weapon she called the Gearblade, but she was murdered by, a jealous colleague, before it was completed. Tubel, a disciple of hers, took the plans for the blade and went into hiding. changed the programming of Memento Mori and forced it to create soldiers for him. army took control of the remaining human settlements and fought back Difor, but began to fear for his life and so commanded Memento Mori to find a way for him to have immortality. Memento Mori murdered in his sleep and turned him into a machine, the machine, known as Eriadonis AI. Under Memento Mori's rulership, humanity was destroyed and turned into machines. The war with Difor had reached a stalemate, but Memento Mori captured a shadow, known as Cavia and attempted to convert her into machine, the result made Cavia, into a hybrid machine-shadow that could communicate and be controlled wirelessly by the Memento Mori. The new soldiers dubbed Shadow AIs began to turn the war effort, it was during this time that a shadow sought to unite the other shadows against Difor and the machines.

Chapter 1 ~Rizelin and the Rise of Shadows~ : Summary
On a darkened river bank, three shadows the shape of humanoids were awaiting the arrival of someone. The sky was too dark but not yet bright enough to be considered daylight or moonlight. "He's late." One of the female shadows spoke out. She walked away from the group and stood at the edge of the water. One of the other shadows got up and put its hand on her shoulder, "Easy Nora," a female voice spoke out. Nora shook off the shadow's hand. "I can't shake this uneasy feeling, Rizelin, it's almost if--." "Nora, Rizelin!" The male shadow called out as the two responded. "Falks, what is it?" A rift opened beside Falks and out stepped a cloaked shadow. The three readied their incantations. Nora walked up to the shadow, "Who are you?" The shadow took off its hood and revealed a girl underneath, her hair was a worn green in color. "Name's Lenalin, I'm a messenger from Alregis." Nora thought for a second and then hardened her tone toward Lenalin. "Alregis? Don't joke around, that city only exists in myth." Lenalin didn't react. "Master Cresen sent me, I'm here to evaluate you three." "Cresen?" Rizelin said as she looked at Falks, he nodded at her, "That same one Rizelin." Rizelin pointed at Lenalin. "The same Cresen that banded with Difor to plunge the world into shadow? If so, I'm afraid you won't be leaving here intact my friend." "Hehe, I didn't like her anyway." Nora agreed as she pointed her finger at Lenalin, a set of chains appeared from the ground below and held onto Lenalin's arm and legs. Rizelin and Falks both positioned themselves at Lenalin's sides and pointed their own incantations at her, they both spoke out: "Dark Wave," as a dark energy began to accumulate on their fingertips before firing at Lenalin. The two dark waves ripped the air as they shot towards Lenalin. Before they could hit her, a darkness engulfed Lenalin. It destroyed the dark chains around her and shielded her from the blast. As the shadow cleared, a mechanical handle appeared in Lenalin's grasp. The blade's hilt was filled with gears and as the gears switched, a different letter appeared on the hand guard. As the letters changed, the weapon modified its shape mechanically. "I've never seen anything like that before," Nora brushed off her broken chains, which disappeared in a puff of smoke as they hit the ground. The three of them regrouped together and tried to put up a guard. As Lenalin was about to begin her counterattack, the four heard a sound in the distance. They all went silent for a few seconds to confirm the sound. "The Mori!" Falks raised his voice. "We need to get out of here before they find us." He looked at Lenalin. "We can deal with her later." Nora, Falks, and Rizelin decided to split up. They each went in a separate direction and agreed to meet up in the Realm of Shadow within the week. Rizelin stumbled in the darkness, hoping to make her way south towards the southern rift, Eclassia. Along the way, she crossed the ruins of battlefields and civilizations long passed, though not much had remained after the shadow and machines had had their way. When she was within a few days journey from Eclassia, she came upon the corpse of what she had thought was a machine, but it was unlike any she had seen before. The corpse resembled a young man, but she thought it was impossible for him to be human. So she let her curiosity get the better of her and attempted to prick the man with her knife. Before she could, however, he woke up. "Hey! hey!" The young man cried out as he knocked Rizelin's knife away. "What do you think you're doing with that dangerous thing?" Rizelin was surprised by his reaction, but tried not to show it on her face. "Where am I anyway?" The man asked in an easy going attitude. Rizelin didn't reply; she meerly went to fetch her knife. The man looked around and saw nothing but ruins and darkness all around for miles. "Holy shit! What happened to this place?!" Riz placed her palm on her forehead and shook it. "I don't have time to deal with this," she mumbled to herself as she picked up the knife and headed on her way. The young man saw her walking off and called out. "Hey wait up!" As he ran after her. "So what's your name?" the young man prodded Rizelin. She picked up an old scrap of metal and glanced at it before tossing it aside. "Shouldn't you tell me your name, before I tell you mine?" "Oh, right, right." The young man thought for a second and attempted to say something but stopped himself. "You know actually, it's strange, I can't recall my name." Rizelin placed her palm on her forehead and shook it again, "Great, amnesia--." "Enoch!" Rizelin turned to look at the young man. "Yea, Enoch, that's my name," Enoch looked at Rizelin's surprised face, "Something wrong?" "Oh! Nothing," Rizelin turned and tried to recall something in her memory. "The name's Rizelin by the way." The two traveled for almost a full day before Enoch decided they needed to rest. Rizelin had gained a particular interest in him. So she decided to follow him, even though shadows did not need sleep. She tried to deduce what Enoch was as he slept, but could come up with no definites. At first she thought he may have been a human, but the humans had been eradicated one-thousand years prior during the Great Rebellion of the Machines. She confirmed her position when she tried to drain his mana, a life-force only living creatures could have and failed to do so. Riz concluded that Enoch had to be either a machine or a shadow, but neither of those races needed sleep or ever did. The next morning, which was almost as dark as the night before it, the two began their journey once more. Enoch had been slowly recalling bits and pieces of his lost memory every now and then. The stories were of great interest to Rizelin, who had spent most of her eight-hundred year life in the Realm of Shadows. In his memory, Enoch was an engineer. He didn't recall what time period, but by the smaller details Rizelin guessed that he had lived or at least had the memory of someone that existed at least 300 years pior to her birth. Enoch mentioned the existence of Memento Mori, a mythical machine-being, said to lead the race of machines, the Mori. Rizelin had not participated in the frontlines, so she only heard rumors of Memento Mori's existence. She had thought it was all propaganda spread by the Shadowlords. As they arrived near Eclassia, Rizelin noticed the presence of machines in the area. This was strange, as the rift had always been guarded by a small regiment of capable Shadows. Not wanting to take any extra risks, she decided to head to underground entrance. The underground entrance was once a human shelter, but long since abandoned. The Shadows had overtaken it and used it as a secret supply route to ferry things in and out. Rizelin and Enoch crept through it carefully and quietly. There had been no signs of machines in the underground, but one could never be too careful. When they were about to reach the entrance, Rizelin pulled Enoch back towards here, they were not alone. "Shayna, the preparations are almost complete. We just need to rescue Master Tubel from the clutches of the Eidolons." "Tubel is in Imperium Down, that's a highly fortified area deep in Difor's territory." "Yes, but with the war against the Mori finally progressing past a stalemate, her attention will be focused on the western front, not with operations in the capital." Rizelin tried to creep in closer, but before she could, there was a feeling of steel upon her neck. "What do we have here?" A familiar voice asked, Rizelin saw that Lenalin had already subjugated Enoch and had called over other Shadows to assist her. Rizelin was dragged out in front of the meeting. She could recognize Master Cresen and a few other Shadows of name, though she could not recognize the female Shadow that seemed to be in charge. The members referred to her as Shayna. No one knew who she really was, but she had promised to lead the other Shadows away from the grasp of the Eidolons and allow them to have their own freedoms. For that, they often referred to her as Nier, Neer, or Near, depending on their chosen dialect. Regardless, the three words all meant the same in the shadow tongue: "Hope". "Master Cresen, this one of the Shadows that I met in Rivenbank almost a week ago." Lenalin reported, as she tossed a tied up Rizelin on the floor. Enoch was tossed beside her, which knocked him out of his unconscious-like state. "Whoa! What's going on here?" Lenalin spoke to Cresen. "The girl's an other Shadow, but I don't know what that is." She pointed at Enoch. "What do you mean that is? I'm a human, flesh and bone, just like you." Enoch yelled at her angrily. Lenalin ignored him and continued to speaking with Cresen. "Could be a new model." Shayna spoke to Enoch. "You there, what's your name?" Enoch, realizing Shayna was the leader, spoke in a proud voice, "Name's Enoch, I don't say it to people I don't like." He rolled his eyes at Lenalin while Rizelin whispered to herself, "Bullshit, didn't even know his name till three days ago." Cresen leaned forward. "Enoch you say? If I recall, that is the name of the Mori's new model. Some say it can travel through time. Others say it mimics what it sees." The shadows in the room gasped and spoke among themselves. Enoch tried to calm everyone and give reassurance. "Hey! You guys don't have to worry, I'm not a Mori or whatever you call it, I'm human, like you guys are." Rizelin spoke to him. "You really don't know anything, do you?" With a confused look on his face, Enoch replied. "Huh? What do you mean?" Cresen looked at Lenalin. "Lenalin, show him." Lenalin picked up a sword from the ground and cut off Rizelin's head with it. "What'd you do that for!?" Enoch yelled at her. "Just watch." Lenalin calmly said to him. Rizelin's headless body was dissipating shadowy smoke, but before long her head seemed to reform itself in a smokey form before regaining its features. "Well that was sudden," Rizelin said in a agitated voice. "What are you guys?" Enoch was confused and losing his sense of self. Shayna told him it was as he saw. They looked human, but shadows were merely a humanoid form of the dark creatures. They could not be harmed by traditional weapons. But this, Shayna pulled out a gear-encrusted hilt similar to what Lenalin had used at Rivenbank, could harm, even kill dark creatures. The gear-weapons she explained, were a product of Diva, a human scientist said to have created Memento Mori. In those days, the Dark Creatures had invaded the world and plunged it into darkness, so dark had the world become that the sun became forever known as the Shadow Sun. But after a futile nine-hundred year war, the Shadows under Difor had managed to wipe out 90% of the human population. The remaining 10% banded together and under guidance of an engineer named Diva, were able to create the Artificial Intelligence: Memento Mori. Memento Mori was created to prevent the extinction of the human race and did so by first creating automaton soldiers that could kill dark creatures. But humanity still suffered from its own weakness of greed and Diva was murdered. Memento Mori was forced to create weapons to fight against people and Dark Creatures. The machine realized that if this continued the human race would really become extinct and so in the last effort to preserve the human race, Memento Mori had his soldiers kill every human and converted them into machines. But the machines lacked the souls of their former human selves and thus were nothing more than a machine following the will of Memento Mori. After Diva's death, her apprentice and friend, a dwarf by the name of Tubel, escaped with the plans to create machine weapons. The war with the machines had become a stalemate for one-hundred years already. The machine weapon, also known as mechanical blades, gave the shadows to have an advantage and thus they began to fight back the machines. "This," Shayna held up the gear-hilt. " is a finalization of the mechanical blade, this is a Gear Blade." Shayna broke the binds on Rizelin and handed it to her. "Fenrir Rose, may it lead you on the correct path." Rizelin took it, though she was confused still. "Why are you giving this to me, I'm not even with you guys." Shayna headed to leave the room. "You and I will meet again." Lizelin escorted the two outside the tunnels. She told them that the rifts into the Realm of Shadow had been closed because of an unknown reason. They would need to find another way in. Enoch pondered to himself as he gazed deeply at Rizelin, "She looks like an ordinary girl to me." He thought to himself. A few hours walk later, Enoch began to recall things of his past, but he tried to let it pass by not dwelling on it. Rizelin was still trying to figure out a way to get to the Realm of Shadow, but could think of no other, but through the reinforcement tunnels on the Western Front. She did not like the thought of running into other dark creatures, albeit she was of higher ranking. She was not sure of how they would react to Enoch. Enoch on the other hand had stopped trying to figure out who he was. He was just happy to be with a cute girl through it all. Elsewhere in the distance, a girl in a lab coat, with a tied up short-pony tail, spoke to Enoch, though he could not hear. "The human heart is made up of time and memories, to remember your past is to know your present."

Chapter 2 ~ The Beginning of the Tragedy ~ : Summary
~Flashback~ A little girl is playing by the window, the door opens and an older woman scolds her. "Your Highness!" the woman, wearing nursemaid clothing, rushes to the little girl's side, "You must never be near the darkness, there is nothing good that will come of it." The nursemaid looks at the window and outside the world is covered in darkness. The nursemaid closes the curtains and leads the girl out of the room, on the sign of the room as the door closes reads" Lidell Lilty. In a council room, a group of revenants gather and discuss, they halt as someone enters the room. Ursulla, an Eidolon appears and sits in the center chair. The revenants remark how it is an honor to have an Eidolon appear at this meeting. Ursulla brushes them off and remark how he thinks it was a waste of time, but it was an order from Balai, so she couldn't refuse. A little boy is playing with his sister, his father enters the room calling for him, "Gyurk! Are you in here!?!" As his father enters the room, Gyurk, hides the doll he was playing with his sister, his father rushes towards him and grabs his hand making him drop the doll. "This!" Gyurk's father picks up the doll, "This is the reason you are so weak!" The father looks angrily at the little sister, "Are you trying to corrupt your brother!?!" The father smacks the girl toward the wall and prepares to beat her, but Gyurk steps in-front and pleads with him. "Father! Please stop this, it wasn't Barumei's fault, I just wanted to spend time with her, it won't happen again. Gyurk looks toward his father with a fiery fire in his eyes. His father remarks, "Good, those are the eyes, the eyes of someone great." He pulls Gyurk's arm and forces him to go with him. The father takes Gyurk into a town meeting, as they enter the citizens greet him as Sir Rerick, they discuss how the Shadows have ruled over the world for so long, but if they can start a revolution, kindle a fire all around the world. Some of the villagers raise concerns but Rerick declares his resolve, that at the very least they will crush the Duke of their domain. A man stands by a fireplace with his wife, the wife is letting her son rest on her lap. "So he's finally asleep, our Levant, he's growing up rather fast isn't he?" The wife responds to him, Rolen, when will you tell him, the fact that he is a half, that you're one of the Shadows, he speaks so ill of." "Rosalin, I will tell him soon, it's just that-" Rolen is interrupted by the sound of a mob outside, he looks out the window. Rosalin asks him who it is, he tells her that the villagers seem to be headed toward the keep and they are carrying weapons, Rosalin tells him that's absurd, because he has treated them better than most Revenants. He tells her that they both know that, but the people need to vent their anger, he tells her to stay put with Levant, he will drive them away and not to worry because he won't kill them. Rerick bursts through the keep door with a whole bunch of the villagers, armed with weapons. He yells out for the Duke to show himself, Rolen appears and tells him to save his breath. A few of the villages charge at him, but he uses a dark energy to knock them back, the other villagers are intimidated. Rolen tells them that if they back off, he will spare them and forget about this incident. Rerick laughs at Rolen and tells him he thinks not, Rolen looks behind him and sees that Rosalin and Levant have been apprehended by guards. Rolen, Rosalin, and Levant are brought to cliff overlooking the Sungrove, an artificial factory of light used to grow food for humans. Rerick begins to make a speech saying that this event will lead to the beginning of the revolution against the Shadow. Gyurk receives a telepathic message from Rolen telling him to push Levant off the cliff before the factory is on, he knows that he will surely die and that his wife will too, but his son has done no wrong and deserves a good life, perhaps in another life the two of them could have become the best of friends. Rerick finishes his speech and drags up Rosalin, telling everyone that she is a whore that consorted with a revenant. Rosalin looks up toward Rolen and tells him that she never regretted loving him. She is shortly killed off by Rerick with an axe to the neck. Rolen cries out calling her name, Gyurk looks at his blood-covered father, shocked. Rolen telepathically tells him not to let him and his wife die in vain. Gyurk pretends to stumble and knocks Levant off the cliff. Rerick grabs his son and yells at him, Gyurk apologizes for being clumsy. Rolen sighs a sigh of relief as the Sungrove turns on, burning him alive, he tells Gyurk, telepathically, "Thank You." Gyurk stares at the burning corpse of Rolen, regret begins to linger in his hear. Elsewhere, an image of an older Rolen with an older Rosalin, eating with their son, Levant who has brought home his wife in her hands as it burns to crisp as it floats in the wind.

Chapter 3 ~Far Away and Dreaming~ : Summary
Levant falls down the cliff, he tries to reach out and grab something, but is unsuccessful, just as he's about to give up hope, he feels a lightness surround him, he looks up to see, but cannot, he hears a soft female voice tell him to sleep and he sleeps. Levant awakes hours later in a cave, he looks outside and doesn't recognize his surroundings. Gyurk is with a few of his father's soldiers, they search around the area and are unable to find Levant's body. As they head back Gyurk sees someone staring at them from a cave, but he decides not to tell the others and continues home. When he gets home, Barumei goes to comfort him, but he tells her to keep her distance because he doesn't want the blood on his clothes to sully her. Gyurk begins to tear as the shower head washes the blood off of him, Barumei sits outside of the door and is pained to see Gyurk emotionally hurt. Rerick reports to Tuzka, a Bishop of the Church of Light, Tuzka uses the churches authority to appoint Rerick the new Duke and tells him to continue doing service in the name of The Light. Rerick makes his vow and is given a bag of gold from the treasure as he leaves. Tuzka goes into his study and remarks how the plan is going smoothly because Rerick is an easy pawn to manipulate. A being appears beside and startles him, but Tuzka regains his composure. "My Lord Exalted One, the plan is preceding smoothly, Rolen has been removed and cult members have been placed in all the important positions." The being tells him that it is good, but he must not rush things, before disappearing. Ralter, a priest, who was hiding steps out and asks Tuzka who it was, Tuzka tells him that they don't know his name or face, but everyone calls him Sora, a Shadowlord. Kliele, the girl in lab clothing with a ponytail sits in mid air, she stares at the night sky, while keeping an occasional glance at Levant's position. "Fine night isn't it?" the voice behind her asks, she glances behind and sees Sora next to her, she doesn't pay any special heed to him and continues looking at the night sky. "Well I didn't expect a response anyway, I know you "upper beings" have your own agenda for appearing here, but I'd like you not to reveal anything to them, for in the end it is not our place to change what is to be." Sora disappears just as he appears, Kliele thinks of Levant and Gyurk with pity. Later that night, Gyurk goes out to investigate the cave, inside he is knocked down by Levant. Levant tells him that he should die for being involved in his parent's murder, Gyurk doesn't deny it, he says that it's because of his powerlessness that everyone has to suffer. He offers his life to Levant to make amends, Levant hesitates and steps away telling Gyurk that killing him would mean nothing. Gyurk gets up and offers a handshake to Levant telling him that he wishes to be friends.. Levant reluctantly returns the handshake, Gyurk spends the rest of the night talking to Levant about his sister Barumei and how he wishes the two can meet. Rerick asks Levant where he was the night before, he tells his father that he was practicing the sword. Rerick pats him on the back and tells him that he's proud of him for taking initiative before leaving the room. Barumei enters with some refreshments and gives them to Gyurk, Gyurk thanks her and begins to tell her about his new friend, Levant. That night Gyurk brings Barumei out to the cave, he is looking for Gyurk but cannot find him. Levant returns from hunting animals to see Gyurk and Barumei, he is about to rush to them but realizes that their father, Rerick is watching in the shadow. Levant tells himself that Gyurk has betrayed him, like all humans have and flees. As Levant flees, he comes across some bandits and is beaten down, they tie him up and decide that they will sell him. Gyurk heads home with Barumei after waiting for an hour, they are stopped by Rerick, who confronts Gyurk and beats him for trying to hide things from him, Barumei tries to stop their father but is pushed down and breaks her leg. Gyurk pulls a knife out and tells Rerick to stop injuring Barumei, Rerick applauds Gyurk, but beats the knife out of his hands. Levant is sold to a traveling circus, he decides not to resist and is kept half starved. He is being toughted as a half-breed monster and lives in despair. One night, while he sits in the darkness a girl approaches his cage, she gives him a stuffed doll and tells him that though the people say he is a monster, she thinks he's just lonely. Levant tries to get closer to her, but is interrupted, "Lidell, get over here, why are you wandering around alone!" Levant takes the doll and smiles, thinking to himself, "So her name's Lidell?" He holds the doll close to himself and decides that he can trust her, the next day the circus masters find his cage broken and Levant gone. Up in the sky, during the Lidell and Levant's first meeting Kliele sits and watches. She smiles as a photo of five people appears in her hand. She remarks that the future is still so far away.

Chapter 4 ~From the Darkness~ : Summary
6 years have passed, Rerick has gone senile and is bedridden, his son Gyurk has been appointed Duke by the Church, with Bishop Tuzka personally overseeing his coornation. Out in the outskirts of the land, there is a village that is rumored to be the Village of Whispers, because there are often voices heard on quiet nights and passing travelers are often reported missing when entering close to the area. Levant lives in this area, he feeds on various travelers and bandits and stays in a deserted inn during the daylight hours to avoid any possible light as much as possible. Gyurk receives a report signed by Tuzka telling him that new troops will be arriving to fortify the area, he looks out of the window and states to himself, that still he is powerless. A knock is heard at the door and Gyurk answers, the attendant tells him that the troops have arrived. Barumei is waiting for the soldiers to pass before crossing into her home, she is grabbed by a soldier. She tries to get away, but he tries to molest her, remarking that girls in this area are different. Gyurk appears and asks him if harassing the Duke's sister is something all soldier captains do, the captain quickly backs away from Barumei and apologizes, saying he didn't know. Gyurk dismisses him, as they walk away the soldier casts a lustful gaze at Barumei's back, but notices the Duke's glare. An unarmored man kills guards left and right in an open air area of the prison. The Duke looks down and watches him as soldiers pour in. They aim their weapons at the man and asks for the Duke's order. Gyurk gazes at the man, as he shouts up asking if no one can beat him one on one. Gyurk asks him what was his crime, he tells them that he was framed for murder ten years ago, but it doesn't matter anymore. Gyurk asks if he'd like to be a soldier captain, at this remark the attendant next to him tells him that he can't let a criminal be such a position. Gyurk scolds the attendant telling him that he can choose those who serve him. Gyurk proposes to the unarmored man that if he can beat the current soldier-captain he will be pardoned and given the position. The soldier captain objects, but Gyurk tells him that if he can't subdue one prisoner, he doesn't deserve his position. The soldier captain enters the arena in a full armored suit with a claymore, the unarmored man asks if he can move, but the captain scoffs at him and charges. The unarmored man dodges the attack and stubs the captain through the neck. Gyurk goes down to see the result firsthand, he tells the attendant to get the man cleaned up and given soldier captain clothes. Gyurk rushes off and into his room. He throws up and tears saying that his hatred caused him to kill a man.' Tuzka receives a report about the prison incident and tosses it on the table. Ralter asks if it's wise to let Gyurk do anything he wants. Tuzka tells Ralter they must leave Gyurk alone, as he is important to the plan. Levant attacks a caravan at night, the caravan head tells him that they've been prepared to stop him. A few soldiers pop out of the woods around him, Levant smiles and kills the caravan head, telling everyone that there will be too much blood for him to drink tonight. The unarmored man enters Gyurk's office and reports for duty, Gyurk tells him that he looks better in a soldier's uniform than a prison outfit, he asks for the man's name. The unarmored man tells him that for as long as he can remember everyone has called him Kakeru, but he's not sure it's his own name. Gyurk assures him then that the name is his own. Kakeru asks Gyurk why he sent the previous soldier-captain to his death. Gyurk looks away, a sweat drop falls down his neck as he slowly reaches for his knife. Kakeru assures him that he won't tell anyone, he was merely curious. Gyurk eases up and sits down, sulking, he tells Kakeru that the man tried to molest his sister, whose life is more important than his own. A knock is heard at the door and the attendant enters in with a scholarly looking man, the attendant introduces the man as Haito, a church historian. Haito shakes Gyurk's hand and tells him that he will be recording Gyurk's life without bias for future generations. Gyurk looks at him embarrassed and tells him that he isn't anyone deserving of such. Haito tells him that as the son of a revolutionary hero, his life is important. Gyurk thanks him and accepts, though in his mind he is depressed for being compared to his father. The next day, Gyurk introduces Kakeru and Haito to Barumei, the two stay over for dinner and create much small talk, Barumei is relieved to see that Gyurk has befriended two great people. A report arrives on Gyurk's desk asking him and his troops to investigate an abandoned village, because many people have disappeared near it. Kakeru advices against it, while Haito stays neutral. Levant tells them that it is important for them, because even though the village is on the outskirts, it is still their domain and they have a responsibility to protect the people of their domain. Sora is masquerading as a fortune teller, a young girl enters and asks him for her fortune. He begins to try and read it, but is surprised when the girl's face and voice changes to that of Kliele. He tells her that he's not interested in getting involved with anymore girls, Kliele hits him. After patching up his bruise, Sora asks Kliele why she is here. She asks him if he's going to stop things, while they can be stopped. Sora tells her that, even if history is destiny to repeat itself, it is not for mankind to decide to do such things, he asks her the same question, why she doesn't change the future. KLiele tells him that she cannot go against her orders, but she was merely curious to what he would do. Sora is surprised and asks her, "Aren't you suppose to be the one to see the future?" Kliele tells him that she can't see what her master doesn't reveal to her, before disappearing. Gyurk rides on horseback with Kakeru, Haito, and a few soldiers. They arrive at the village and notice the stench of death around them. One of the soldiers remarks that they are surrounded, around them dregs appear and attack. Kakeru tells Gyurk that if they don't find the one controlling the dregs, it'll be endless. Haito spots someone on the branch and casts a light spell at it. Levant steps down toward them and tells Haito that it's dangerous to use such things. Kakeru remarks that they found the leader and attacks. As Kakeru pushes Levant back, Gyurk has a flashback about the execution incident with his father. Kakeru pushes Levant down and Haito binds him with a light spell, Kakeru raises his blade to finish Levant, but Gyurk stops them.

Chapter 5 ~This Sweet Surrender~ : Summary
Levant wakes up on a bed, he wonders where he is and how he's alive, before noticing bandages around his body. Gyurk abruptly enters the room and bids Levant a good morning, which startles him. Gyurk tells him that he's been asleep for nearly a week now, so he thought he might not recover. He tells Levant that he's in his home and that his clothes had to be thrown away, but he has new ones for him that should fit. This angers Levant and he threatens Gyurk but Gyurk holds up Levant's doll in-front of Levant's face. "You looking for this? Odd, but it seemed important so-," Levant snatches the doll from Gyurk's hand. Gyurk offers Levant some food, but Levant throws it on the ground and tells him to cut to the chase. Gyurk tells him that he seeks atonement, for the sins that his father committed against Levant's family years ago. Gyurk tells him that though he suffers much guilt, he can never truly understand Levant's pain. Levant scoffs at him for his hypocrisy and then realizes something. He mentions to Gyurk that since this is his home, his father must be here and rushes out of the room. Gyurk chases after him, but doesn't manage to catch him or get him to stop. As they head upstairs, Barumei greets them, surprised that the guest has finally woken up. Gyurk yells at Levant to stop, but Levant takes Barumei hostage, asking Gyurk if he really values her. Gyurk pleads with him telling him that Barumei isn't involved and that she has been the one taking care of him, Levant tells Gyurk that he will have to choose, the life of his sister or the location of his father. Gyurk angrily glares at Levant telling him that anyone who harms his sister, shall die by his hand. Levant threatens Gyurk and forces him to make a quick decision. Gyurk tells Levant that his father is located on the upper floor, which causes Levant to let go of Barumei and rush upstairs. Gyurk runs up and catches her, asking if she's alright. Levant rushes upstairs, thoughts of revenge on his mind, but when he enters the room, he sees Rerick, a shell of himself, playing with toddler toys. Gyurk enters the door behind him and tells him that Rerick has been in that state for 3 years now. Rerick asks Gyurk when is his snack time, Gyurk tells Rerick that he should go take a nap instead. Levant begins to laugh manically and states aloud that this was the man that destroyed his family. Levant turns away from Gyurk and jumps out the window, Gyurk calls after him but he is no where to be seen. Haito is walking home, Levant rushes past him, but he doesn't quite see him, and he turns to see who it was. Gyurk rushes out and sees Haito, he asks what's he doing out here and Haito tells him that he figures he should visit the patient, but he guesses that it was Levant who just passed him. Gyurk regrets not being able to stop him, but Haito tells him that it's not such a bad idea to let him go, he always thought it was a bad idea. Gyurk tells him that he knows it was, but he thought he could make amends, if only a little, but he was wrong. Haito begins to tell him a story about a hunter who had tamed a beast to prove he was a man. Despite warnings from his friends and family he kept the beast as a pet and one day when he went out hunting, he didn't return. His friends and family members found him with his throat torn out deep in the woods. Haito says that the moral of the story is some beasts cannot be tamed. Gyurk tells him that he'll keep that in mind, but he wasn't trying to tame Levant, he was merely extending a helping hand. Gyurk then mentions that his house is a mess and he needs helpers, but when he looks over next to him Haito has disappeared. On the road, some distance away, Haito waves back and tells him he'll get Kakeru. A month later, Gyurk is discussing business with Ralter, Kakeru and Haito are with him. Ralter tells Gyurk that he will be doing an escort mission, the daughter of an influential member of the Church of Light will be going to an arranged marriage. Gyurk questions if this will be necessary as most of the crime has been driven underground and the creatures of the dark aren't often seen. Ralter insists and tells him that the bishop, Tuzka, specifically requests that Gyurk's troops participate. Gyurk reluctantly agrees and Ralter wishes The Light be with him. When Ralter leaves, Gyurk begins to question the existence of the church, but Kakeru warns him not to say too much, because the church has eyes everywhere. He glares at Haito and tells him that all of this is off record, Haito nervously agrees. With that, Kakeru bids farewell, Gyurk questions if that means he won't go with the escort, Kakeru tells him that he has things to do, and besides, if he went, the girl wouldn't be able to forget his dashing face. Gyurk calls after Kakeru, but just sighs when he doesn't come back, he says to Haito that they might as well get it over with. Hiding nearby is Levant, who has heard the whole conversation. Lidell is told by her maids that her escort has arrived, one of the maids tells her that she is lucky because the leader is quite a dashing fellow. Lidell tells her that she should stop with the jokes before heading out to the carriage, a depressed look on her face.

Chapter 6 ~In this Craziness, Uncertainty~ : Summary
Gyurk and Haito, along with a few troops, are escorting Lidell's carriage. Gyurk rides up to her carriage and sees her reading, he warns her that though the journey is tiring, reading will only make her more nauseous. She thanks him for his concern, but says that she wasn't really reading anyways. In a depressing tone, Lidell tells him that she was just thinking. Worried, Gyurk questions the tone of her voice and Lidell tells him that she really doesn't like the purpose of this journey, but was rather forced by her father. Gyurk spots a doll in her carriage that he recognizes, he tells her that it's interesting for her to have that, because he knows a friend who has a similar doll. Lidell holds up the doll and tells him that it's something she's had for awhile, but she hasn't quite gotten to the point of throwing it away yet. She once had another, but she gave it to a lonely boy, long ago. Gyurk tells her that he can tell she is a kind person. Lidell chuckles at his response and tells him that he isn't quite what she thought soldiers were like. Gyurk assures her that most soldiers aren't like the ones in stories. Suddenly, a spike of dark energy gushes through Gyurk's shoulder and he falls off his stead. Haito rushes to him, in the distance a group of cultists block the road. Haito tells Gyurk that it must be the Cult of the Shadow, while trying to bandage his wounds. Lidell asks if Gyurk is okay, but he asks that she stay in the carriage, so she does. What seems to be the ring-leader of the cultists steps out infront and chants a few words. Around the carriage guards dark creatures spring up and attack, the soldiers try to fend off but most are being eaten alive. Holding his bandaged shoulder, Gyurk tells Lidell that he will try to get her out of here in this confusion. The ring-leader calls him out and questions if chivalry is really dead in this day and age. Gyurk asks him what he wants and is told that they just want Lidell, Gyurk's party need only die. A few dark creature's rush them and Haito and Gyurk try to fend them back to back. The ring-leader jumps on the carriage and drives it away. In a church cellar, Tuzka is wearing cultist robes. He hovers a knife above a tied up female, the girl begs him to let her go, but he merely laughs madly and stabs down at her multiple times. The blood from her drips onto the runes below and they begin to glow. The cultists members begin to chant and from the corpse's shadow, a being emerges. One of the dark creature rushes in to stab Gyurk's heart. Haito sees this and calls out to Gyurk, Gyurk thinks to dodge, but knows it won't do any good. Just as the blow is about kill him, a pool of shadows engulfs the creatures from below. Gyurk looks around and sees the pool emanating from Levant. Levant walks over to him and pats his shoulder, telling him that is one life, repaid. Lidell demands the ring-leader to let her go, but he tells her that unfortunately, the cult needs her for something important. The ring-leader remarks though that if she doesn't keep quiet, his cultists would be more than happy to give her some attention before the ceremony. Gyurk begs Levant to save Lidell, Levant brushes him off and tells him that he only saved Gyurk because he owed him, if Levant wants to save the princess, he should do it himself. Gyurk pleads at him, "You think I don't want to? Dammit! I wish I could Levant! Do you think I wanted to be born as a powerless human? I would give anything to be like you. I wish my skills were with the sword, but they lay elsewhere. That's why I have to rely on people who are. You can help Miss Lidell, it's within your ability to save her, it's within your ability to do this. I know you can do good, Levant."

Tease
Long ago there existed in the fifth layer of the sky a human kingdom known as Estellion. This kingdom represented the pinnacle of human achievement, but in a far off area of it's borderlands, on a skyisland known as Aerendria, a darkness was growing. Aerendria was ruled by the House of Fin and it's head Philandru the 3rd. Under the rule of Philandru, Aerendria prospered as a central trade area of the borderlands, rivaling that of even the old-imperial capital, Ashla.

Key Terms and Locations

 * Gear Blade - An evolution of the mechanical blade, it was developed by Diva and perfected by Tubel.
 * Artemis Eclipse - One of the first Gearblades, it was given to Lenalin by Tubel.
 * Fenrir Rose - Rizelin's Gear Blade, it was later passed to Arisa.
 * Abaddon - Also known as the Realm of Shadow, a plane where all shadows come from, it is vastly unexplored even by the dark creatures.
 * Alregis - A mythical town said to exist in the darkness of Abaddon.
 * Shadow - A type of dark creature with humanoid features, they can masquerade as humans.
 * Master (Shadow) - A title given to Shadows that have gained an Eidolon-like status
 * Mori - A species of machines created by Memento Mori.
 * Sungrove - A factory of Light that helps to grow plants for humans.
 * Church of Light - The central force of the human insurrection movement, they are advent believers of the Light and work to fight the Shadow.
 * Cult of the Shadow - An underground cult consisting of mostly humans, they are working to destroy the Church of Light and place all of humanity under the Shadow.