Revelation: What REALLY happened

[Quamosthy]

After another (fortunately uneventful) boat ride, Eve and company arrived in Port Dia, probably the only town on the pitifully small island that was dominated by the towering mountain that rose behind the town. It was a nice place, really, and well set up defensively for an assault from the sea, what with the ballistae and flame orb set up to deter any potential intruders. However, for once Eve was on a somewhat peaceful mission. At least, peaceful for the time being. The Vallite princess had little doubt that the Rainbow Sage would refuse to grant her any kind of power, but that was a hurdle to overcome later.

On her way out of the small town, an unexpected encounter with a Nohrian royal gave Eve an opportunity to further her ultimate goal. All she had to do was...

Well, that was easy. Eve didn't even have to say anything to convince the youngest of the Nohrian royals. Having heard that Camilla was with Eve, Elise just declared herself part of the group right then and there. Eve was almost disappointed with how little effort she had to put in on that front. All well. With royalty comes retainers, and before long Elise's retainers Arthur and Effie caught up to their liege. Now that would be the challenge, or so Eve thought.

While she had been talking with Elise, yet more of the Nohrian army had approached from the sea and were now moving to attack. For the briefest of moments, Eve thought that Elise might have been responsible, but a second thought and a good look at the army was all she needed to know that there was no way the childish princess could have orchestrated something like this. Used as bait? Maybe. Actually involved? No way.

Although, Eve had to admit she was somewhat relieved to see the army. After the disappointment that was convincing Elise to join a false cause, Eve was ready for a proper challenge. Stretching her lance arm, she called her companions to battle once more. With all the commotion, Elise, Effie and Arthur were not going to be able to be called away from the battle in time... so Eve resorted to a simpler means of removing Elise's retainers from the fight. While Azura hurried the little princess away, Eve took the opportunity to slay Effie... and would have killed Arthur too if the unlucky man hadn't already met his demise at the blade of one of the Nohrian soldiers.

With them out of the way, Eve was free to push forward and drive back (or preferably kill) those that would get in her way. After crushing the opposing army, and killing a couple of unfortunate border guards, Eve was finally face to face with the enemy commander.

He seemed to recognise Eve, but the Vallite princess was having none of the cavalier's sad looks. Before ending his life, she decided to lecture him on proper battlefield etiquette. "If you are there to kill someone, don't stand there feeling sad, just go and actually kill them! Like so!" Eve punctuated the last word with a fierce stab from her lance, a death blow to Silas. All well. That's what you get for not wanting to kill someone who is more than happy to kill you.

With that surprise battle out of the way, it was finally time to start climbing the mountain and go and pay a surprise visit to the Rainbow Sage. What lay ahead would no doubt be challenging, but Eve was certain that she was more than equal to whatever trial would be put before her.

[mysticalEnchanter]

That last one's actually kinda sad. It hurts to see Silas die by the hand of who used to be his best friend. Press f to pay respects to the paladin in black.

f

[Quamosthy]

If the Eternal Staircase was a problem for a woman in armour, than Mount Sagesse was a trial in and of itself for Eve. With a shield heavier than the one he had when last she did any climbing and no true stairs anywhere in sight, the ascent to the Sevenfold Sanctuary was slow and full of sweat and mumbled profanities. When the peak of the mountain finally came into view, Eve was about ready to drop. Not that she'd admit it. She smiled as she saw buildings perched atop the mountain, sitting there like a grey crown of stone.

No wonder the Rainbow Sage resided there. The view of the rest of the island and then the ocean beyond from the top of Mount Sagesse was breathtaking. Granted, the climb was agony, but the view alone was almost worth it. However, Eve did not have time to admire the scenic vista laid out before her. It was time to storm the sanctuary and take what power the Rainbow Sage would give her, by force if necessary.

The first building Eve and her loyal allies entered was empty, but echoes from the staircases on either side of the room spoke of enemies to face. Though exhausted from the climb, Eve was not about to let anyone stand between her and her goal. After a moments respite to properly catch her breath and ease the aches in her muscles, she was ready to move on to the next room, Kaze and Saizo having already proceeded down the stairs on the opposite side of the room.

Her advance was halted when a young woman entered the sanctuary, coming to a stop right beside the armour-clad princess. At first annoyed, but then curious when she regonised the garb of a Nohrian dark mage, Eve decided to offer Nyx a position in her party. The mage's response was... troubling. Granted, there was no need for Eve to fear anything from Nyx, especially having mastered dodging spells, but that keen intellect of hers was going to be troublesome. She would need to be watched carefully, and at the first sign of suspicion, silenced. With introductions out the way, it was time to proceed once more...

Now that was an ally. Desperate enough to do anything, but moral enough to know that it's wrong. Perfect. Someone like him would make an ideal addition to what was slowly becoming a force to be reckoned with. Eve wasted no time in greeting the white-haired thief, and was surprised to learn that his motives were more than just plundering the Sanctuary. He too sought power from the Rainbow Sage, in order to restore his destroyed homeland. Eve could use that desperation and conviction. It was a simple matter to get Shura to fight at her side. With the same immediate goal, Shura saw the sense in working together. Casting aside his thief's cloak and weapons, he drew a sword and fought as well as any of Eve's other allies.

With the Sage's glorified guard dogs defeated, there was one thing left to do. Go through the door at the back of the last room and see what the Rainbow Sage had in store. However...

The devious dragon had one last trick up his sleeve. The moment Eve stepped through that door, she was transported back to Port Dia, and the Sage was nowhere in sight. It must have been to prevent those of ill intent from seeing the sage, and now that she had climbed the mountain and defeated the guards, there was nothing else to try. The Rainbow Sage had outsmarted the Vallite princess, and was likely at that moment chuckling to himself at her screams of rage. Given time to calm down, Eve eventually realised that the trip hadn't been a complete loss after all. She had acquired at least one valuable new ally, and in that sense she had already received what she came to visit the Sage for anyway. Not to mention that now she didn't have to bother with an exhausting return trip down the mountain. Now all she had to do was wait for everyone else to catch up.

[Quamosthy]

Love is a strange thing. Love amongst Eve's allies perhaps something even stranger. That was why Eve did a double take when Keaton and Mozu approached her and said that they had decided to get married. The pair had been fighting side by side a lot, and enjoying each other's company off the battlefield too. Apparently while Eve wasn't paying attention this companionship has blossomed into love.

Once the initial shock of the news had subsided, Eve was more than happy to help arrange a wedding ceremony for Keaton and Mozu. Everyone needed a happy event to help boost morale (and convince those suspicious of Eve that there was really nothing wrong). The event was small, due to the fact that while there was a brief lull in action, they were still prone to attack at any given time. There was cake and wine and laughter. Eve hadn't felt this truly happy in a long time. Perhaps one day she would find someone to marry, but so far her mission from Anankos had consumed her thoughts.

Not long after the wedding, Eve got a message from Anankos himself. He had been keeping a watchful eye on Eve and her band, and decided that perhaps it was time to reward loyalty. The Silent Dragon had arranged a challenge for the newlyweds, and the prize was a glimpse into the future. With a mind crafted from the dreams and memories of a Wolfskin who was yet to be born, Anankos had filled an empty vessel with this mind. While not truly Keaton and Mozu's daughter, this Velouria knew no different and her parents would have time to get to know and love their daughter in advance. Perhaps Anankos' motives were more to do with giving Eve's party a strong new fighter without the need for persuasion and lies, but whatever the case it was a reward nonetheless.

The challenge was difficult to say the least, a mountain pass teeming with swarms of Vallite dark mages and Faceless separated the army from Velouria, but time and patience were all that was needed to win the battle. A greeting involving lots of sniffing and tail-wagging, Velouria recognising the scent of her parents even though they might not quite be who they were in her hazy stolen memories. The test complete and the reward claimed, it was time to press on. The date that Eve had set as a deadline to join her band was fast approaching, and it wouldn't do if everyone else was at the Bottomless Canyon while she herself was absent. Putting the lighthearted events of the past few days behind them, Eve's army began making their way to what might mark the start of their mission's end.

[Quamosthy]

Today was the day. The moment of truth. The gaping scar in the land that was the Bottomless Canyon lay before Eve, like a hungry mouth ready to devour those foolish enough to get close. There was nothing to do now but wait. It was the chosen day that Eve had set as a deadline for the royals to join her and 'defeat the true enemy'. And so Eve waited. And waited. And waited. And then at long last, she heard the sound of approaching footfalls, even over the roar of the fire rising from the ground. Whoever it was sure had a lot of people with them. Perhaps too many. These fears were confirmed when a familiar berserker leading a small army strode into view, the flickering firelight making his normally unpleasant face seem completely demonic. Hans. Hans was never a nice man, and Eve would relish the opportunity to kill him.

Ever the voice of reason, Azura made sure to warn Eve that these foes were stronger than the ones they had faced before. One wrong move and someone could die. Someone that they didn't want to die. With those words of caution out the way, it was time to fight. Moments later, the sound of steel meeting steel almost drowned out the roar of the flames, cries of pain and death gurgles and the beat of two pairs of wings were lost to the sound of battle. It wasn't until Hinoka and a familiar wyvern rider landed practically in front of the Vallite princess that she noticed them and the others on their mounts... including Ryoma.

Time restraints worked wonders on the indecisive mind. Now Eve had all of the Hoshidan royals walking right into her trap. This gave Eve hope that perhaps the Nohrian royalty would do the same, although time was in short supply. The battle would have to be won quickly if there was going to be any chance of catching Xander and Leo before the self-set deadline. As much as she hated to admit it, having Ryoma's strength would be vital for ending the battle as soon as possible.

Heading the charge herself, with Ryoma in tow, Eve was not disappointed by the prince's performance. Few enemies could land a hit on the elusive swordmaster, and fewer still survived when his blade cut through their flesh. Perhaps it would be wise to keep the wielder of Raijinto on the battlefield in future fights, even if he was not allowed to be made aware of Eve's true motives. The battle was soon over, and Eve was almost sad that it was. Mostly because it was Ryoma that dealt the death blow to Hans rather than her, but she was more than happy to see the berserker die even if it wasn't at her hands.

Moving away from the fields of fire to a hopefully quieter place to wait for Nohr's princes, Eve was met with yet another familiar face. Well, half a face. It seemed that Hans only lead half of the force as the Bottomless Canyon, with Iago leading what seemed to be a far more elite band. Already worn down from the previous battle, Eve was not in the mood to deal with more of this nonsense. At this rate she'd have to settle for the royalty she'd already deceived, leaving Leo and Xander alive. Eve had the feeling that Anankos wouldn't take too kindly to failure. Stupid meddling Nohrians.

Exhausted and not willing to risk failure by fleeing, Eve once more called her allies to her side, ready to fight once more. Before she could even heft her lance, the sound of hooves on dirt caught her attention. More enemies, come from behind to take her by surprise? Turning to face the source of the sound, Eve was certainly surprised, but it was a good sort of surprise. Her mission was all but complete now. Xander and Leo rode along the edge of the canyon, coming to a stop a little way before they met up with her army. They had finally arrived to help with her false cause. Breathing a sigh of relief, Eve felt lighter than she had in months. Her goal was nearly complete. All she had to do now was get everyone to Valla and bring them before Lord Anankos. But first, there was some unfinished business...

[mysticalEnchanter]

Oooooh boy. Ending on a cliffhanger now are we? Can't wait to see how they handle Iago :P

[Michelaar]

Ooh this is gonna be fun