*Sirin Short-story filler name*
Mission start 2/2/21
Chapter 2: 2/13/21
Chapter 3,4,5: 5/28/22
Solstice
The day she arrived - the cold breeze whipped the city.
Celine
Her mother who left - a solace resolution.
Celestine
A hope in the dark - encased in stone, the gems that sparkled.
Calisto
The fallen soul - their sacrifice not in vain.
Serenity
What won her her fate - talent worthy of the Gods.
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Chapter 1
Wine By the Fire
The night was young, a woman sat on her sofa and bobbed her head to the sweet melody her son played across from her on the love-seat. She had a glass of wine in her hand, every so often spinning the contents inside. It was cozy, a small fire lit in the harth gave the room a comforting warmth. The hearth had a large polearm above it, and under that a small sword. The polearm was a naginata, a glorious and wondrous sight to behold, and a wakizashi under it, whose blade glowed from inside its shethe. Wooden masks hung around the room, all with different symbols and patterns across their faces. Various magical lights twinkled on the mantle and on top of the unlit candles. Opening her eyes, she looked at the young boy, who looked to be about eight.
“Calsito,” the women called, “where are your brothers and sisters?” The boy without wavering with his stringed instrument replied.
“Oh? I can go get them if you want! Here you wait here.”
“W-wait be careful with that!” The boy ran off down the hall. When he was young, her mother bought her a custom gauntlet. The gauntlet wrapped around his hand and clasped his wrist. The top of the gauntlet was laid with various strings that could be tuned or plucked. The sound was metallic, but had its charm with an alcoholic buzz or a calm campfire. The boy didn’t respond, instead he strummed his way down and around the hall. The women sighed into the quiet air. She leaned back to the window behind her and knocked on it with her empty hand. A moment passed and the air on the window crystalized, ice spread along the surface. Then a large silver eye peered into the house.
“Yesss, my massster?” A Great Wyrm, a Silver Dragon, spoke telepathically to the women.
“Come take a seat, it must be boring out there all by yourself.” A pause, then he closed his eyes for a moment.
“If that isss what you wisssh.” The head disappeared from out of view from the window and a moment later the door opened. “You know I prefer to be out in the ssstarss’s light, SSSirrin.” A man, with a large fur collar, silver hair and eyes glanced around the room. Spines along his coat and with large horns erupting from his head, he sauntered over to the love-seat and sat down with a thud. Sirin put her chin and her hand and smiled at the man, leaning over the arm of the sofa.
“Oh Eksi, you must learn to enjoy the pleasantries of life. Plus I want you to be around the kids more. They can’t speak to their father anymore so that’s where you come in. I can’t always be the bad guy.” Sirin sat back up and glanced at the noisy hallway. Eksi hummed in response and quietly closed his eyes, waiting for the impending mess that was soon to come. The child returned, still playing his tunes with his gauntlet.
“Would you stop playing with that glove, it's annoying.” A girl with long hair tied up into a bow who looked about twelve called out from the back of a group of approaching children.
“What do you know? Celestine, blah.” Calisto replied, turning around and sticking out his tongue.
“I’m Celine, idiot.”
“Yeah, idiot.” Another girl, Celine’s twin replied. Unlike her sister, she never cared for acting womanly, always keeping her hair short and messy. Sometimes even stealing her brother’s clothes in exchange for her gowns and skirts.
“Enough. Calisto your music is better than the silence so keep playing.” The eldest child barked from behind the group. He was taller than the others, still young at around sixteen, but he was looking more like a man everyday.
“Hah! Solstice said I can play so I shall!” With that the boy began to play again, the two sisters scoffed with disgust.
Sirin looked at her wondrous children bickering and smiled. Then after a moment she looked concerned.
“Oi, where’s your sister?” The children unaware of her question kept bickering. “Hey I’m talking to you, Solstice.”
The eldest son jolted and looked over.
“Y-yes what is it? Uh, I don’t k- hey could you keep it down. You’re too loud.”
Sirin sighed and looked over at Eksi, who sat there with his eyes shut. She cleared her throat to get his attention. Slowly, one eye opened to witness Sirin leaning over the arm of the sofa once more with a smug grin, and gesturing to the kids. He sighed and closed his eyes once more. Sirin whispered something to herself and touched the side of her house. Eksi’s horns began to glow, frost crept along the walls and windows painting the interior a dim white. He put one finger out, and slowly pointed it up. As the children argued, Celestine’s hair began to rise. Solstice after noticing the strange sight looked around at his own clothes, which began to rise on their own. His eyes darted at Sirin, who just gave a satisfied wave. The children were jolted upward, floating through the air and landing on the ceiling with a bang. Collectively they all yelped in pain, fidgeting as they crawled off of each other. After a moment, Eksi pointed back down at the ground and made a fist with his hand. The kids plummeted to the ground into a mess of arms and legs.
“You done?” Sirin asked them. They nodded in unison, and sat on the floor waiting for what their mother had to say. “I don’t know where your sister is but I’m in a good mood. So I w-”
“You’re always in a good mood when you drink wine.”
“Yeah, like an alcoholic or something.” The two twins piped up. Sirin flinched and continued.
“So… I wanted to share with you a story.” Sirin smiled to herself, and as she was about to begin Solstice raised his voice.
“Mom, we’ve heard this a thousand times. You went to the city in the center of the world, fought your way to the center, won, kinda, and now we’re here.”
Sirin sat and stared blankly at her son.
“Oh ho, well then you're in for a treat. Don’t you wonder why your names the way they are? Who is my brother-in-arms here?”
““““No.””””
“Well I’ll tell you. It began in the bustling city of Magnimar. As any adventure should…”
✧❆✧
Chapter 2
Celine
The night was quiet, cheerful voices filled the room. Jokes clashed with the clanking of pots and pans as a well-built man ladled soup out from a pot and poured it into a small bowl. They sat around a small table on the second floor of an inn. The man slid the bowl over to a taller woman with brunette hair in a fancy blouse. The woman nodded and enjoyed the smell of her meal. Scoop, slide. This time to a young man, with brown curly hair, he nodded and picked up the bowl as well. Behind the man, a creature of metal polished its weapon, taking its time and enjoying the atmosphere. Finally the man scooped some more soup and slid it to a woman at the end of the table with white hair.
“Dig in.” The man smiled, his scruff tickling his cheeks as he began to enjoy the soup he made minutes earlier. With that the people around the table began to enjoy their soup. The girl in white, lost in thought, stared down at her bowl.
“It’s going to get cold, you know.” The man said without taking his eyes off his meal. The woman sighed and stood up, grabbing her bowl.
“Easy, Sirin” the woman said while the man with short hair opened one eye at her encouraging words and continued to eat. Sirin only sighed and grabbed a small spoon.
“Save me some, be back shortly.” She suggested as she stood up and left the room.
She walked down the hall to a smaller room. She knocked with one finger and slowly opened the door. She peered in as it creaked to see a woman in old garb in a bed gazing out the window.
“Fate’s a fickle thing yeah?” The woman sighed as she pushed her head against the window, the moonlight giving her face a pale glow. Sirin only squinted and placed the bowl at the bedside. She spun on her heel and began to make her way out.
“W-wait, please.” The lady called out, her head turning looking towards her. Sirin tilted her head slightly and looked at her, her white eyes glowing. She saw something for the first time in who knows how many years: a worried look from her mother. She paused and pondered, listening to the laughs and clanking down the hall from the room she came from. She clenched her fist, closed the door and sat down at the end of the bed, her back towards her mother.
“Sirin, I…” The lady stambered. “Uh shit, I suck at this, I wanna say…”
“Don’t, Celine,” her daughter spit, she grit her teeth. “That is the last thing I want to hear from you.” A few seconds passed, awkwardness creeped back into the room as the hot soup gave the room a pleasant smell.
“You still have them, eh?” the woman laughed to herself, and as she chuckled she began to cough. Sirin turned to her, pivoting her legs to the long side of the bed. She stared into her face and almost didn’t recognize her. The women had deep purple hair with violet eyes. Black markings spireled up her torso and coiled up her neck. The markings went up under her eyes and then coiled up her unusually long ears. A black horn even jutted out above her left eye. She smiled at her daughter’s gaze.
“Hey, wanna see something gnarly?” with a grunt she sat up and lifted up her tank top revealing her back. Two massive scars looked like fissures along her shoulder blades. “Apparently I had wings,” she laughed to herself as she leaned her head back against the wall. Sirin just stared at her. Like how someone would stare at a dying dog. Celine smiled and tapped her ears. Sirin blushed a bit and put her hand to her head. Her fingers pressed against the cold metallic ear. She put her hands up to her ears and slid off the metal pieces, revealing small pointy ears.
“I was always jealous,” Sirin smiled, “I remember riding on your shoulders, using them like handlebars.” A warm smile washed over Cygnus’ face. Sirin fiddled with the metallic ears, the intricate design reflecting the moonlight leaking into the room. The metallic ears were around the size of her palms, she rubbed her thumb against them, polishing the smudges away. With a sigh, Sirin pushed her hair away and slipped the metal ears back on. They strutted out, piercing her white hair and shining.
“What’s next?” Sirin piped up.
“Revenge of course.” Cygnus’ reply was cold.
“For what? No one died.” Cygnus looked out the window once more, this time staring at the moon.
“I can’t go home now.” Sirin tilted her head in confusion. “I mean look at me, I look like a Twilight Devil.” Sirin still stared at her in silence. “Back in Dwi Luni… sorry, the Village Under the Moon,” she said trying to sound dramatic, “the Twilight Devils are hunted and persecuted.” Cygnus turned to Sirin again. “I look like a drow, Sirin. I won’t even get near the mountain without hostility.”
“What if I-” Sirin looked at her mom with hopeful eyes.
“There’s nothing you can do, I could never take you.” She sighed, “well perhaps I could have then, with Shingo but…” she gestured to her body.
“I want to see it. I want to see my home before I go to Absolom.” Sirin looked at her sternly.
“Oh yeah? I miss it, you know. The castles, the smell of the crisp cold air and elven food. Even the moon that peers into your soul. There’s some more things but that’s a surprise.” Cygnus said, winking. Sirin leaned in close.
“Tell me how to get there.” She said, peering into Crygus’s purple eyes. She smiled and took a breath.
Time passed, the soup was ice cold. Sirin stood and made her way towards the door.
“One more thing,” Cygnus called out, “when you get there seek out Simon, my brother, and most importantly,” she paused for a moment and a devilish smug grew across her face, “when you get there, introduce yourself as boldly as possible, it’s a sign of respect. Oh! Tell Uncle Fommie I said ‘hi,’ ok?” She smiled to herself, satisfied, pointed at her and said, “see you, Moon Samurai.”
Sirin grinned and nodded, pushing open the door and shutting it behind her. Tears welled in her eyes as she slouched against the door. She exhaled deeply, her hands shaking with various emotions. She put her hand to her metal ear, then to a small pouch. She pulled out a weirdly looking coin, and gripped it in her fist and stomped off back to her room.
✧❆✧
Chapter 3
Dwi Luni
The journey was long. Carriage ride after carriage ride, Sirin drew closer to her ancestral home. Eventually she arrived at the foot of a large mountain range, Wind whipped her red-tipped nose and she pulled her scarf over her face.
“So this is it huh?” She gazed up the mountain, to a peak obscured with a heavy overcast. Time went by, and she began trekking up the mountain. The trees and foliage were bleached white, like the snow itself. Her white dragonscale armor clinked with every step, keeping the worst of the snow’s cold at bay.
A massive tree stood strong, its lifeless white branches clacking against one another. She approached it, and around her seemed to be multiple paths. Foliage was cut clean from the ground revealing snow buried trails. She took a breath, remembering Celine’s words, and placed her hand against the tree. Whispers filled her mind as she grit her teeth in pain. She fell to her knee with a grunt but kept her hand against the trunk. The palm of her hand felt as if it was against an open flame. Mustering her strength she raised her white glowing eyes at the tree and began to stand. Her hand and the base of her wrist were slowly turning white. This bleaching began to crawl up her wrist as she pushed her hand harder against the tree.
“I am Sirin Veil of the Village under the Moon, Dragonslayer and daughter of Celine Veil.”
A moment went by, her hand now numb with pain. As she tried to pull her hand away she noticed it was stuck. She placed one boot on the tree and began to pull but to no avail. Then with a sudden jolt of relief, her hand came loose and she fell backwards into the snow. She rubbed her back in pain, but was then distracted by a bright light. The pain subsided as the light enveloped her.
Her whole body was numb, groaning. She leaned up and placed her hand to her head. Her hands were bright red and beginning to turn blue at the ends of her finger tips. Then she saw it. Her legs stood on their own as she gazed down at the massive city below her. A bleached white castle stood tall in the center, with various walls with slits and watchtowers all equil-distant. The roaring of various waterfalls with massive waterwheels and turbines spun slowly, smoke stacks pumped black plumes into the sky.
By the time she blinked she noticed she was crying. She whipped her eyes and looked up. A massive Moon hovered just above the city. As if a massive eye of some god was watching intently. The visage was colored by blues and greens of beautiful auras that made the sky itself shine. Countless stars sprinkled across the sky twinkled.
Dwi Luni, the Village under the Moon. Sirin wasted no time running towards the outermost walls.
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Chapter 4
The Council of Veils
Sirin huffed as she made it finally to the edge of the city. Various guards in watchtowers watched her intently, all double checking their loaded crossbows and ballistas. As she made it to the gate, a guard posted outside raised his hand.
“Halt! Who goes there? What is your purpose here?” The man was coated in silver armor with a white tunic and a sigil of a black moon eclipsed by a white star.
“I am Sirin Veil, I demand an audience with Simon Veil.”
The guard squinted at her as he looked her up and down.
“Remove your mask,” The guard demanded, “I need to see your face, especially if you want to see the Council.”
Sirin sighed and lifted off her black wooden mask. Her cold white eyes stared daggers into the guard as her bleach white hair flowed in the wind. At the sight of her visage the guard gasped and called out.
“Open the gates! She’s a Lunarian.”
Sirin placed the mask back on her face and began to brush by. The guard swallowed hard when he noticed that her white armor was not just scalemail, but made of dragonscales. Dragonscales didn’t shine like metal did, their luster was almost non-existent. Their nature is too rough and this allowed for dragons to hide out of sight for centuries.
The gates slowly creaked open, and with that a gust of smells came tumbling out. Sweets, food, bitter smells of fuel and the forage, the smells of salt and misty mountain air bellowed into Sirin’s face. She looked around and saw countless people. Almost every person in her sight had white hair and white eyes, Lunarians. Descendants of Dwi Luni and bleached by the Moon. Some didn’t however, some had black hair, some stormy gray, even a few were blonde. Some had black eyes, and even a select few with bright yellow eyes glanced over in her direction before continuing on with their day.
Banners whipped in the wind, some of that same black moon and white star that the guard before wore. But others of a black moon with stripes of white and smaller stars sprinkled about. Some flew an oval with rays expanding out from the center.
She looked up and saw the center of Dwi Luni. A massive castle that looked as if it reached the Moon itself. Smaller towers intercepted the cityscape, some with small blue beams shining into the sky. Sirin clacked the snow off her boots and began making her way towards the main castle.
Tired and weary, she finally made it to the main castle. More guards were around the entrance.
“I seek an audience with Simon, I-”
“Oh, I know who you are, come in.” A voice from a window above cut her off. The guards nodded and opened the gates. Inside was a shorter lady with a frilly black dress and white hair tied tight.
“This way, Lady Sirin.” Sirin nodded and followed her,
“Is Simon around?” She asked the maid, who made small silent steps in front of her.
“Yes, yes he is. But first you need some rest and to clean up before you show yourself in front of the Council.”
“I need to see him now, I don’t have time for games.” The maid stopped and sighed. She turned around and looked Sirin in the eyes.
“Lady Sirin, I can tell you’re new around here. This place has rules, you best become accustomed to them as soon as possible.”
“If you don’t show me where he is I’ll find him myself.” Sirin brushed past the maid, bumping her shoulder. She took a step back, knocked off balance and tried to compose herself.
“Lady Sirin, please, this way-”
Sirin marched around the manor for a time until she found the biggest door she could find.
“Lady Sirin, wait!” With a thump Sirin slammed open the massive doors. Multiple heads turned in annoyance and shock. A large table stretched across the whole room, each seat with a sigil behind it. And at the very end was an old man who sat quietly, undisturbed by this sudden entrance. Some people were in robes, some in armor, some with fancy hats and expensive looking garb. Other maids carried around trays of small thin glasses of bubbly drinks. One maid gasped and dropped a glass, the shattering filled the sudden empty room.
Everyone waited in silence. Sirin stepped up, her armor clinking, the sound of her boots echoed across the hall. She clicked out her arm and yelled out.
“I am Sirin Veil, of the Village under the Moon!”
A moment went by and to her displeasure, the room erupted in laughter.
✧❆✧
Chapter 5
Fomalhaut
Sirin’s face grew flushed in a deep red. People around the room laughed, some of the maids tried to contain their laughter, while some looked over in fear at the man at the head of the table. One woman in particular, who stood to the right of the old man, grit her teeth in anger. The old man stroked his beard and raised his hand. At that moment everyone around the room composed themselves in an instant.
“Who ever told you that has a sick sense of humor.” The old man said with a smile. Sirin took a step back, but composed herself.
“So, Sirin Veil, what brings you here?”
“I seek Si-”
“Wui, wui.” As Sirin raised her voice to speak, the woman next to the old man cut her off.
“You said that before, we all heard you. So speak. The man you seek is here.” She took one hand off of her large wavy greatsword and gestured to a man sitting at the table to the right side of the old man. Sirin glanced over at the man, who just stared at her in awe. The man swallowed and spoke softly.
“You said… you said you’re the daughter of Celine Veil…?” Sirin nodded, crossing her arms.
“My god, she survived?” The man placed his hands to his forehead and sighed deeply.
“Mr. Simon, sir…?” A maid reached for his trembling shoulders.
“It’s alright, Wani. I’m ok.” The man looked up, his eyes moist with tears. Sirin cocked her head in confusion but shook it off.
“Yes Celine showed me the way here, she also said to say hello to ‘Uncle Fommie’ for her.”
At that the old man’s eyes widened and some of the councilmen snickered. The woman behind the old man shouted out.
“The nerve! Do you know who you are in the presence of? This is Fomalhaut the Lone Star! Savior of Dwi Luni and head of The Council.” The girl lost her temper and began to draw her massive sword. Fomalhaut raised his hand once more.
“VV, that’s enough. She is much more powerful than you, and even some of the people in this room. Take a look at that armor.” The woman scoffed and let her sword slip back into its sheath. Then after a moment she squinted at Sirin until she realized what she was wearing.
“Duvikiil…” She gulped and tightened a fist. The councilmen begin to murmur to one another.
“What is this? A bunch of gossiping children? I came to see my home and this is what I got?” Sirin sighed and began to turn around. “An old fart, a whiny girl and a sniveling knight. I have business to take care of, I’ll be making my leave.”
The old man began to laugh, people stopped and stared.
“An old fart eh?” Sirin stopped and smiled, she always followed her fate and enjoyed pushing her luck.
“Yes, ‘the savior’ is an old man who waves his hand around and orders all these maids to probably do whatever bidding.”
“Sirin! Wait-” Simon chirped as he saw a smile crawling across Fomalhaut’s face.
“Say, Duvikiil, do you care for a duel?” The tension in the room began to rise.
“Grandfather, you can’t be serious? You’re much too important to waste your time with-” Fomalhaut turned back at the girl behind her.
“Oh? Do you doubt me, Visivia?” He cackled as he stood up.
“I accept.” Sirin turned with a smug grin,
“Oh this is going to be a mess…” Wani sighed as she pinched her brow.