"Hannah Jones, where in Haru's name do you think you're going?" Mrs. Jones demanded.
Somewhere in a small town known as Daisy, a mother and daughter were in the middle of having a small argument.
Hannah rolled her eyes and kept her hand on the door handle, about to head out. "I'm just going to go check up on Susie." The brown-haired girl huffed out.
"Not anymore, you're not." Her mother, Mrs. Jones, stood at the top of the stairs of their home and stared down at the railing toward her. "You know it's too dangerous to be going out at a time like this."
"I'll be fine." Hannah sighed. "You're just being worried over nothing."
"No daughter of mine is leaving the house at night, not when our town has a curfew!" Mrs. Jones hobbled down the stairs and moved to the entryway of the house, grabbing her daughter by the ear. "Captain Garon made it clear he doesn't want anyone going out once the sun sets! I won't have you getting me fined!"
"Let go of my ear!" Hannah slapped her mom's hand away and grunted. "I don't care about some stupid curfew. Susie needs me more. She's been getting worse lately. I'm sure Garon will understand; she's his daughter, after all."
Mrs. Jones felt her face soften a bit as she stared down at her daughter. Susie was Hannah's only friend and recently had been diagnosed by a doctor as having some sort of illness that left her bedridden. Hannah often went to go see her friend at every chance she got. At least until the curfew started.
Daisy Town wasn't like other places. Not anymore. For the past month, the town has been on its own, an Arcane Knight refusing to show and help them, leading to them all having to follow the orders of Garon, who was doing his best to keep them safe from the 'threat' that endangered their town.
"You really want to go see her?" Mrs. Jones asked quietly.
"I do." Hannah nodded eagerly.
"Fine, fine." Mrs. Jones tied the bathrobe she wore around herself and grunted. "But I'm coming with you."
"Mom—"
"No buts about it, missy!" Mrs. Jones shook her head. "If you want to go out during curfew, I'm walking you to Susie's house, and then we're walking back. It's too damn cold for us to even be doing this, so don't think you'll get to chat up your friend for long."
Hannah nodded and smiled softly. She reached for the handle, turning it. "Thanks. You're the best mom."
Not even a second later, the door exploded, something smashing into it from the outside the moment Hannah turned the handle. Hannah screamed as she was knocked down, and Mrs. Jones felt herself being flung back. The older woman crashed into her wall headfirst, and the world began to spin around her.
The world spun around her, and Mrs. Jones tried to focus, but it was impossible due to the head wound she now had. She looked up, her vision blurring, and her eyes widened by what she saw. Fire swirled through the entrance of their home, jutting forward as if it were alive. Hannah screamed as the fire twisted around her and actually managed to wrap fully around her ankle, and it began to drag her out the door. Mrs. Jones scrambled forward and lunged for her daughter's hand, but she wasn't fast enough, and the twisting fire yanked Hannah outside.
"No!" Mrs. Jones screamed so loud the entirety of Daisy Town heard it. "Hannah!"
***
'Why in Haru's name is it so cold?' Davi thought to himself, and he resisted the urge to shiver. 'I hate this.'
It had started off simple enough.
The walk from Gladiolus to Daisy didn't seem like it would be all that bad. Gladiolus was made up of vast farmlands that stretched out as far as the eye could see, going on and on. It was when the two of them had stepped out of Gladiolus's lands, though, that 'it' started.
Davi felt a slight chill crawl up his spine, and his scar started to ache. It started in the center of his eyes, and it rapidly worked its way through the side of his face around the nasty circle that clung to him. Olivia was in the same position as him, shivering more and more as they walked down the road.
Crops and apple trees had been on either side of them, but the longer they traveled, the grayer everything started to become. Trees became black and dead, and the grass started to wither and fade. Amongst the gray, the color white began to appear more than any other as a stream of snow poured from the sky, picking up speed the further they walked. Gone were the crops and the cozy warmth of Gladiolus. The closer they got to Daisy, the colder it became, until soon, they were trudging through ankle-deep snow.
There was just one issue.
It was the middle of summer.
"Why is it snowing?" Olivia felt her teeth clack together as shivers hit her repeatedly. "It was sunny and warm only a few miles back!"
Davi opened his Shadow Vault up and pulled out a coat, tossing it to Olivia, who eagerly caught it. "Likely a mage or something who is altering the weather just around this part of the land."
Olivia forced a nod, still shivering as she looked down at the coat Davi gave her. "That makes sense. Bruno would sometimes do something similar at Fri. He could make it snow whenever he wanted, even on blazing hot days. It was still never this cold, though! Also, this coat is really cute." It was made for women and felt like a mix of wool and cotton. It was cut off past the shoulders and wasn't exactly created for winter weather, but it was still warm enough. A black ribbon went through it near the top, forming a bow, and the rest of the coat was a snow white that matched her hair. She doubted Davi would ever wear something like this. "Where did you even get something like this?"
"A dungeon."
"Huh!" Olivia made a face as she slipped the jacket on over her school uniform. "Is this like a magic item or something? Those are always showing up in dungeons!"
"Nope." Davi shook his head. "Magic items are only in big dungeons and appear at the end as a reward for finishing it. I get all my stuff when I find it lying around after someone else failed to clear the dungeon."
"Failed to clear?" Olivia glanced down at the dress, then let out a squeak. "You mean dead people? Like people enter a dungeon and die in the middle of it! Is this a dead girl's dress?"
"I couldn't tell the gender of the skeleton." Davi gave a lazy shrug, which didn't help ease Olivia's nerves. "Most dungeons will be filled with all sorts of loot and remains of different people I can come along and snatch up."
"I guess that explains why all your gear is so old and hand-me-downs… I'm pretty sure that's graverobbing." She glanced back at Davi, who still wasn't wearing a coat. Now that she looked closer, she noticed he wasn't shivering either. "Did you only have one coat?" She asked, feeling a little bad since he gave it to her. He did have on a hoodie, but it was thin and more for style rather than warmth.
"No, I have others."
"So why aren't you wearing one?" Olivia questioned. Davi had a strange look on his face. The man's head was cocked up, staring at the black clouds above, letting the snowflakes fall onto his face. His lips were pursed together in a thin line. She was used to his blank look, but this was the closest he had ever looked to being mad. "Is something wrong?" She asked meekly.
Davi stayed silent for a moment and held his hand out. He watched the snow settle into it, and a lot of different emotions seemed to flash through his eyes. "I'm fine. I just don't like the cold." He finally said, though he still didn't pull out a jacket for himself. "Let's keep going. Maybe we'll find the source for this cold at Daisy."
"Okay."
Davi walked down the path, trudging through the snow. He could feel Olivia's gaze fixed on his back. The girl was staring at him now because, for a moment, he had let his mask slip. That was a mistake he'd have to not repeat again.
He still needed her after all.
The snow kept coming, getting thicker and colder, and soon it was less snow and just pure ice. That was when the town finally came into view. Daisy, unlike Gladiolus, had a massive stone wall that circled around it. The fields outside of the city were empty, and there were no crops or people plowing about. What really concerned Davi, though, was the fact that the gates were wide open. Normally, guards would be stationed about, yet as they approached closer, he saw nothing. No soldiers or officers of any kind to make sure the wrong sort of people didn't simply walk in.
"T-this is kind of creepy." Olivia felt her voice crack slightly as she and Davi stepped past the gate and entered Daisy. "It's like a ghost town or something."
Just like outside the wall, there wasn't anyone to greet them. No guards or villagers going about their day, nor any kids playing in the streets. The buildings were all made from stone, with slanted roofs, and the town itself was a lot bigger than Gladiolus was. It had twisting alleyways and narrow paths that stretched out in winding paths. None of the buildings looked damaged, and the snow past the gate had been cleared out and scooped away. If the entire town really did become some big ghost town, then it would have had to just happen.
And of course, when she pulled her phone out, it no longer responded, which meant either a dungeon was nearby or they were in a dungeon. Since the air didn't taste wrong, and she didn't feel the negative effects on her mana, she was willing to bet that meant a dungeon was nearby.
Davi crouched down and placed his hand on the ground. He closed his eyes for a moment and stayed still, not moving. Eventually, he removed his hand.
"Did you sense anything?" Olivia asked.
Davi shook his head. "No, I can't sense stuff; I never learned how to do that."
"Then why did you touch the ground?"
"Wanted to see how cold the stone felt."
"What?"
Davi began to walk once more, not bothering to explain himself. He did that a lot; Olivia was starting to realize. It was starting to get a little annoying. Either way, she followed after her companion. As they walked the winding streets of Daisy, it soon became apparent where everyone in the town was. Davi felt his ears twitch as he heard a commotion. He turned a corner, arriving at the town square. It was bustling with people. The town wasn't actually empty; everyone had all just been gathered in the middle for some odd reason.
All of Daisy seemed present, at least a thousand or so people crowding the area. Every citizen wore heavy coats and yelled at a figure standing up on a stage. The stage was directly in the middle of the town square and had several guards, all wielding spears or magic staffs, who stood behind the person the people were yelling at, who Davi assumed was the baron. He was an older man with wild gray hair and a bushy beard who leaned on an old walking stick. The old man looked like he was doing his best to address the crowd, but it wasn't going well for him, as the people just kept yelling in rage.
"They seem mad," Olivia noted, wincing slightly as the two of them arrived at the back of the crowd.
"What's going on?" Davi asked, turning someone around. It was an older woman who had an annoyed look on her face.
"What's going on is the baron and the guards aren't doing their job." The woman spat out. "He's trying to tell us to keep calm even though we've already lost nine people!"
Olivia felt her eyes go wide, and she gasped. "Nine people? What are you talking about?"
The woman's gaze shifted over to Olivia, and her look slightly softened. "You guys aren't from around here, are you?"
"Nope," Davi responded in a simple tone. "Just got here. What's going on exactly?"
The woman turned back to look at the baron, who still hadn't managed to get the crowd to settle down. Everyone was shouting, and with how many voices there were, it was nearly impossible to make out anything anyone was saying. "It started about four or five months ago." The woman said quietly. Her gaze dropped to the ground, and her lip quivered a bit. "Something started showing up randomly. A scaled beast that breathes fire—"
"A dragon?" Davi casually placed his hands on the woman's shoulder, and he began to shake her. He might have looked and sounded excited if not for the fact that he still had his typical blank expression and spoke in his quiet tone. "It's a Dragon, right? That's what is attacking you guys?"
"Davi!" Olivia grabbed her companion and forced his hands away. "Don't scare the poor woman."
"I need to know, though," Davi said flatly. "A scaled creature that breathes fire—it's gotta be a dragon, right?"
"It looks more like a giant snake than a dragon." The woman grunted, causing Davi's blank look to somehow become even more dead-looking. "Sorry? I guess that's not the answer you wanted to hear."
"A snake?" Davi seemed to literally deflate, and he sighed. "Damn, just like that stupid, derpy lizard that was attacking Fri." He sulked and kicked a rock. 'Why couldn't it be you, Dragon?' He thought to himself. 'I thought Lady Fate was finally on my side, but nope.'
Olivia patted him on the shoulder and frowned softly. "It seems similar to what was happening in my village. You said this thing was showing up and attacking you guys? I didn't notice any destroyed buildings. When my village was attacked, we lost buildings and had to extinguish the fire, but your town seems fine."
The woman shook her head. "We're hardly fine. Look at the damn sky; it's been snowing for weeks, even though it's the middle of the summer." The lady growled. "That snake has plunged our town into a blizzard. It doesn't harm any of the buildings because it doesn't need to. It simply barges in when it pleases, grabs one of us, and runs off." Olivia looked horrified at that. "At first, it would show up every few weeks, but now it's appearing constantly. Every week, one of us goes missing. We've already lost nine people."
"That's horrible! Why hasn't anything been done about that?" Olivia demanded.
"That's what we've been wondering." The woman gave a dry chuckle and glanced back at the baron.
"That's enough!" A loud voice declared, this one piercing past the crowd's yelling, and a bolt of fire blasted up into the air, getting everyone's attention. "This isn't the time for us to be fighting. We need to come together, now more than ever. Your baron is trying to speak. Please listen to him."
A younger man in his early forties or late thirties stood beside the baron now. He was dressed in the same mix of winter wear and armor as the guards, but his suit looked a lot more expensive and had a black cape that flowed behind it. His hand was on the hilt of his sword, and his eyes were narrowed as he scanned the crowd, which had finally stopped screaming. He was quite handsome with slicked-back brown hair and piercing eyes that made Olivia take note of how everyone seemed to ease up once the man appeared. Whoever he was, just by showing up, everyone became a lot more confident.
Fire trickled around the man, hugging him tightly, and it expanded out, burning away some of the snow and ice that clung to everyone. His flames started to softly wrap around each person but didn't burn them. Instead, it helped to warm them up and put them at ease.
The baron cleared his throat. "Thank you, Garon. As always, you're a great asset." The elder man stepped forward and took a moment to meet the eyes of his people. "Citizens of Daisy. I know that times are tough right now. We're all scared. With the recent attacks, it's only natural. I'm here to say, though, that hope is not lost. It is only a matter of time until an Arcane Knight arrives."
"That's what you said last time!" Someone in the crowd yelled.
"Yeah!" Another one called out. "How much longer before a Knight arrives! We've lost friends and family!"
"Garon." The elder sighed. "You speak to them. Please."
"Yes, sir." Garon stepped forward, and the yelling stopped. "People, please have faith for a little bit longer. I know that right now it seems like we're stuck in a hopeless situation, but you need to understand that despair has not won yet. All we have to do is hold out a little bit longer. As days pass, sooner or later, someone from the outside world is going to notice that Daisy hasn't responded, and that will lead to an Arcane Knight arriving. It's only a matter of time." Garon drew his sword, and more fire ran along the blade, superheating it. "Until then! I will keep you all safe! I'll fight the threat alone if I have to! So don't give up hope yet! We will survive this!"
Mutters went through the crowd, and a small kindling of hope seemed to bubble up. People seemed to believe in Garon despite everything that was going on.
Well, almost everyone… "Ha. Yeah, right." The older woman sneered and stomped her foot. "Help isn't showing up."
"Why not?" Olivia questioned. "Can't you guys just send a request in to the Knights? They have their own page on the internet, so it should be easy to reach them."
"Not for us." The woman shook her head sadly. "That isn't the first time the baron and Garon have put on this show. That's the fifth time Garon's given the speech. Because of the monster, all magitech has shut down, so we can't actually call for help or get ahold of the Knights, making it impossible to call one out here. We're stuck waiting for someone in the outside world to notice what's happening to us and call one in for us." The woman bit her lip hard enough to cause a trail of blood to run down her chin. "And because none of those bastards will show up, my daughter, Hannah, is…" The woman trailed off. "She was taken last week…"
"That's horrible." Olivia felt her voice crack a bit, and she had to fight back tears. Fri had been lucky. The dungeon that appeared near it had been up on the mountain and was a weak one, so the field that cut off magitech hadn't hit Fri. The dungeon here, though, was either really close or huge if it was able to shut off all magitech in Daisy, plunging the city back to the Elf Ages. "Your own daughter was taken…"
"She's about your age." The woman croaked out. "I don't even know if she's dead or alive. I couldn't do anything." The woman's voice quivered. "I was only able to watch it steal her away from me. A hellish flame that took on the form of a snake. It charged straight through our front door and grabbed her, ripping her out of my arms, then left the way it came." Tears were actively streaming down the woman's face now. "We're doomed. Doomed to all die out, unless an Arcane Knight arrives to save us."
Olivia looked to Davi, but he remained silent and instead watched Garon. The man was speaking to all his guards, no doubt trying to come up with a plan for tonight once the snake came back. There was only so much normal mages and town guards could do, though.
Davi wondered what Garon must have been going through. The man likely knew a Knight wasn't going to show up this time either, yet he was still trying to keep people's spirits up. That could only last for so long, though. Sooner or later, even Garon would be unable to keep people calm. If something wasn't done soon, then Daisy would collapse long before the snake took the last person.
A town couldn't survive like this.
Davi turned away after that and began to march off, leaving the woman and the other townsfolk behind. His hand absently rubbed at his scar. It was throbbing.
"Where are you going?" Olivia asked, running after him.
"We still have that package to deliver, remember?" Davi looked around, taking in the somber faces of the people as they walked the streets, and his eyes scanned the many buildings looking for a blacksmith shop.
"Right." Olivia bit her lip and glanced back at the sad woman. "Why didn't you say you were an Arcane Knight? You're going to do something about this, all right?"
"There's not much I can do right now." Davi glanced down at his hand and squeezed it into a fist. It was shaking a bit from the cold. He really hated the cold. "I can't sense things or track things with my magic. Still, I won't just sit by and do nothing. I'm going to learn as much as I can."
Olivia nodded her head eagerly. "Right! And I'll totally back you up! I'll be like your squire!"
"Olivia… I'm not a—" 'Not a Knight' was easy to say, yet he found the word getting caught in his throat. What happens after he says he isn't a Knight? Does the adventure come to an end? It was just starting, and the truth was, he was having fun. It had been a while since he traveled with anyone. "Never mind. I think that's the shop."
Just a little bit longer.
There was no harm in keeping the act up for a little bit longer. Right?