AIC created it, Pioneer distributes it, and now I'm mauling it without
their permission-- it being El Hazard of course.
Feel free to C&C, MST or even Heavy D this (you try finding a
better rhyme if you think you're so hot! ^_^).
Just in case you weren't sure, yes, I am hinting here....
What has gone before: Hayashi was the president of the Science
Fiction club at Shinanome High. Cleaning up after an after-school
meeting of the club, he got transported to El Hazard. Hayashi appeared
two years before the rest of the earthlings in a forest. After some
time, he made his way to the palace, visions of the future sporadically
occurring during the trip. At the palace in Florestica, he met the two
princesses, where Lune Venus has appointed him the Royal Jester, but she
knows that there is more to Hayashi than meets the eye.
The Coming of Gallus
For one month after I entered the palace, I was the Jester. My
duties basically consisted of keeping Fatora happy; an unhappy Fatora
was bad for servants. In other words, I had the same goal as Alielle,
but vastly different means.
Most in the palace liked me. I had sympathy from the servants
since I had to deal with Fatora. Needless to say the person who kept
Fatora from her worst moods was well-liked. Alielle was a friend too,
but how could she not be? Everyone likes Alielle. Her eternal
cheerfulness and good nature rub off on people. Even Londs (who is often
called "Stoneface" behind his back, _very_ behind his back) has
occasionally broken into a smile when Alielle was around, and he doesn't
smile at anything.
Alielle was sort of like the adorable little sister you never had:
she had a peculiar sort of innocence which seemed totally at odds with
what she did with Fatora. She brightened all of our lives.
I'm not going to say I was universally loved, that would not be
true. For instance, Fatora didn't like me; I didn't like her though, so
it works out I suppose. That's why I spent so much time around her-- at
her insistence, of course. She liked seeing me make a fool out of myself
for her own amusement. Nothing got a laugh out of her like watching me
slip and fall, or try to juggle and have some of the balls hit the top
of my head. I saw a lot of her that month. I was technically the court
jester, but the reality was Fatora's Fool.
If I was Fatora's Fool, then I must have been Lune Venus' Friend.
My first impression of Lune was right, she needed someone to talk to.
Most of the people she came into contact with saw her as a princess: her
position above them was always in their heads, even if they tried not to
show it. Fatora was an exception to that of course, but Fatora was
Fatora. Oh, don't get me wrong, Lune Venus loved her sister, but they
had little in common. Lune Venus was quiet, mild (but strong, don't let
her mildness fool you), and filled with duty.
Fatora-- was not.
Fatora was loud, abrasive, brassy-- the opposite of her sister.
Passionate though, and not afraid to show it; Fatora lived every little
second of her life, I give her that. She was more alive in every single
second than some people ever are.
I was talking about Lune Venus though, wasn't I? I became a
confidante for her. Someone who she could talk to without feeling the
gap between ruler and subject. I treated her like a normal person, and
she opened up to me. We talked about many things, the state of affairs
of the country, the people around us, growing up... whatever struck our
fancy. We never talked about my past though, or about the words I spoke
to her a month ago.
In Gulistan and Bostan we talked; in the perfumed gardens of the
palace we whiled away many hours. I could have fallen for her so easily
there, among the willows and orchids at sunset. Easy to give my heart to
the woman underneath the role: a strange and enticing paradox of
fragility and endurance, need and strength.
I didn't fall for her though-- at least not fully. We were
friends, good friends, maybe even best of friends, but nothing more than
that. It was enough for us.
We talked about the history of El Hazard, spurred on by questions
I had from reading in the library (where I spent a lot of my free-time,
learning about the world). I found the Book of the Apocalypse most
intriguing; I had access to it probably because Lune thought I had
already read it.
There was one evening in Gulistan, the lanterns shining all around
us dispelling the night, when I asked her about someone in the Book.
"Lune," I began, for I always called her that in private, "who is
Ifurita?"
Lune was... ...surprised, to say the least.
"Ifurita...," she trailed off, taking a moment to compose her
thoughts, "Ifurita was the most powerful, and the most evil of the demon
gods from the days of the Ancients."
The Ancients. The reverence in her voice when she mentions them is
almost like ancestor worship. The priestesses of Mount Muldoon, I had
heard a bit about them by this time, and I knew their connection to the
elements. Reminds me of Shintoism in a way, only more vague; no actual
names for the spirits, as far as I can tell. I'm not even really sure I
should say spirits actually: I don't think these people pray to anything
in particular. A combination of me (I was raised a strict Buddhist), and
of most of Japan (Shinto, with nods to other religions, especially Zen
Buddhism).
Lune continued. "Ifurita's powers are said to be unparalleled. She
destroyed cities with a thought, companies of soldiers with a look. She
laid waste to nations until she was finally sealed away, but not
permanently. They could not do that, not even the Ancients were powerful
enough to do that. Not forever. She sleeps now. Where, only the
priestesses know."
She broke into a smile, clearing away the gloom in her voice.
"Parents use her to frighten their kids into being good. 'Eat your
vegetables, or Ifurita will get you!'"
I smiled at that; rather I smiled more, because her smile was
always infectious.
"Why do you ask?" she said.
"Oh, I just read a passage from the Book," we both knew which one
I was talking about, "and I came across her name. I just thought it was
important."
"I thought you had read the Book before. You quoted from it."
"That? When I first came here you mean?"
She nodded.
I glanced around, and leaned in closer to her, talking in a
conspiratorial whisper. "I had never even heard of the Book until I
came to the palace that day. The words-- I dreamt them."
"Dreamt them?"
"Sometimes, when I close my eyes," I closed them slowly, and
opened them again, "I see things. Visions of the future. Sometimes they
aren't clear, and other times they are. I saw those words."
"Have you had any other 'visions' since you've been here?"
"Not at the palace, no. That was the last one. Maybe it burnt
itself out, or maybe it was something in my diet, or something, I don't
know. I just know that I haven't had any since that day I first came to
the palace."
Lune thought about it for a bit-- I could almost see her thought
processes at work. On one hand, my story of visions must have looked
delusional, but on the other hand we had come to know each other rather
well during the last month, and it was plain to see that I was not
insane. Coupled with my curious lack of knowledge of many aspects of the
country, and that there were people who had powers which others did not
(the three priestesses of Mount Muldoon were reputed to possess power
beyond that of common folk), and the story became all the more
believable.
"Perhaps," she began, "perhaps there was no reason for you to look
into the future during the last month. I think that maybe I should put
your talent to good use. You will now be one of my advisors."
"Lune... princess, what if I don't--? What if--? I mean, it is
entirely possible that I won't have any more of these dreams, what
then?"
"Hayashi," again, a warm, comforting smile to allay my protests.
"Your advice to me has always been sound. I was thinking of making you
my advisor anyway. Besides, your talents are being wasted entertaining
my sister.
"You don't like her very much, do you?"
"Well, it's not that, it's just that I...."
She laughed lightly, musical notes breaking the silence. "My
sister can be a handful at times, I admit. I love her still though."
"She is rather... unrestrained, isn't she?" I grinned, agreeing
with Lune.
Ifurita. She would be important, I could almost taste it I was so
sure. I wondered whether I should tell Lune, but I decided not to ruin
her mood right now. I would tell her another time.
***
I became part of her privy council, which consisted of Stoneface
and the Old Man (Londs and Doctor Schtalubaugh), and now me. Rest
assured, there were some questions about that among the court, after
all, I was a nobody who appeared out of nowhere one month ago, and
became a jester. At first, it was great, because the rest of the court
left me alone.
Then, they started to think: "Why?"
Why would the princess do something like that? There must be a
reason. Maybe, just possibly, I was a plant. No history, no past.
Nothing known about me, and yet, after a couple of words, I am put in
the palace, performing. Just another face, nothing special. Performed in
front of many of them, as they talked, and gossiped, and did other
things while I, I heard and saw it all. A spy for the princess? I was in
the perfect position to do so. That could also explain why I was
summoned by Fatora so often: a cover I could use to give reports, and
our known dislike of each other another part of the cover.
Treacherous, that's a good word to define the court. Very
precarious, and the alliances against the Bugrom even more so. My
position high in the confidences of the princess gave me a lot of
attention from the sycophants who infested the court, trying to curry
favour. Because I would not accept, would not "play the game," and
perhaps also because they were still unsure as to why I was an advisor,
they would not accept me. I was the ugly duckling, as it were.
Two exceptions were Londs and Schtalubaugh; to them, the rejection
made me look loyal to the princess, and they knew I had been a friend to
her during the past month. What Stoneface and the Old Man were worried
about was my ability to be an effective advisor, and so they took me
under their respective wings, giving me a crash course in El Hazard
history, culture, politics, and everything else.
Every waking moment away from court, or official meetings with the
princess, was filled with learning. Facts and figures danced on the
edges of my vision, and my mind was filled with people and place I had
never met, or had ever been to. Their tutelage was much more intense
than the learning I was doing on my own; they gave the juku I used to go
to a good run for their money.
***
Another month passed by while I became acclimated to my new
position. Another month without my dreams of the future. I virtually
lived in the library, going back to my quarters only for a change of
clothes (and even that all too infrequently). At the end of that month I
was tired, exhausted, and bleary-eyed, but I knew El Hazard.
I staggered away from the library with eyes that felt like they
were encased in latex, finally finished with the studies when I stumbled
into Alielle.
"Hello Alielle," I managed to yawn out. "What are you doing here?"
"Wow Hayashi, you look tired. Princess Lune Venus asked me if I
could get you."
"Hunh? Whuh-- why?"
"Nobody told you? We're getting a delegation from a faraway land!
This is _so_ exciting!" she bubbled out.
Her energy was infectious-- it made someone as tired as me sick.
When someone is as tired as I was (so tired even your bones are tired;
so tired you have to rest to get enough energy before you can go to
sleep), there are few things worse than a person full of energy. It was
like meeting a morning person in the morning when you're not a morning
person, only more so.
"Anyway, princess Lune Venus wants you to be there. You have," she
paused, giving my rumpled clothes and dishevelled hair a critical look,
"just enough time to get ready before we receive them in the main
audience chamber."
"Okay, okay. I don't suppose you could help me with some coffee,
could you? It would mean a lot to me Alielle, I feel like death warmed
over, and then only barely." I was swaying on my feet like a drunk;
either that or we were undergoing a very neat and quiet earthquake.
"For you Hayashi, in your condition, okay. There'll be a pot of
Bleached Bones special in you room when you get back from the bath."
I grabbed her hands in mine and pumped them up and down furiously.
"Thank you Alielle, thank you! You're a lifesaver and a true friend. If
ever you need a favour, you just ask me, okay? Anything. Just ask."
Bleached Bones coffee was the strongest coffee around. One pot of
it, and you usually don't blink for a week. I would need something that
strong to make it through the audience.
The baths helped out a great deal; normally I (along with everyone
else) use the heated ones, but this time I thought a little bit of cold
might help me stay awake. I was right, although that was an experience I
did not want to repeat. On the upside, in addition to waking me up, the
cold water gave me great incentive to hurry up; I think I shaved my
bathing time down by one third.
Upon returning to my room, I found the wonderful, conscious-giving
aroma of Bleached Bones coffee pervading the room, and the pot on a
night-stand with a mug and a large cup of sugar. I also found a set of
clothes laid out on my bed. Alielle must have told the servant who
brought the coffee what I should wear. How thoughtful; I definitely had
to do something nice for her.
I didn't realise I had said those last words out loud until I
heard a voice from the balcony say, "Don't worry, I'll think of
something." Alielle walked in from the balcony, and gestured towards the
clothes and the coffee.
"You don't have that much time Hayashi. Better drink and get
dressed quick."
"Why... how come you're still here?" I asked, my brain still tired
and stunned, no matter how awake I felt from the cold bath.
"Because this is important, you have to look presentable, and you
don't know how to do that. Besides," she said, answering my next
question before I could speak it, "all the servants are busy getting
everyone and everything else ready for the reception."
I nodded dumbly and picked up my clothes. I looked at Alielle, who
made no move to leave. "Um...," I trailed off, nodding towards the
balcony.
"Oh, right. I guess you don't want me to see you change, right?
I'll just go on the balcony."
That over with, I pulled off my rumpled greyish robe, and put on
the ones laid out for me. They were a copy of Schtalubaugh's official
robes, but with the colour scheme reversed.
"It's safe now Alielle," I called out to her.
She came back in with a bounce in her step. "It's not like I would
have looked you know. You know how my tastes run Hayashi." Alielle's
orientation was common knowledge.
"Yeah, I know. We both like girls. Just one more thing we have in
common. That's not the point though, and you know it."
I took that moment to pour myself some of the coffee, adding in
what would normally be an obscene amount of sugar to it. Alielle thought
so too.
"Ugh. How can you drink that with that much sugar in it? Actually,
how can you drink Bleached Bones coffee in the first place?"
"The sugar will give me some energy to stay awake, and any coffee
less strong wouldn't do me any good," I said after I gulped down one
cup, and proceeded to make another.
"Put that down for a second. You're not quite ready yet. Sit," she
commanded, pointing to a stool in front of her. I obeyed, my mind too
fuzzy to think of anything else.
Alielle reached for a comb and a brush from a drawer in the
nightstand, and proceeded to use them on my hair.
"If your hair gets much longer, I think you'll have to wear a
turban like Stoneface," she giggled.
"It has been getting a bit shaggy, hasn't it?" In Japan I had
always kept my hair just shy of breaking uniform codes, a fraction above
my collar. Since I normally combed it back, some of it was rather long,
and I had not cut it after my arrival in El Hazard.
She made a non-committal grunt, and went on, all the while trying
to make me look presentable. "You should take care of it Hayashi. You
have a nice, thick head of hair. Even Fatora has said you have nice
hair."
Fatora? She'd rather walk over hot coals than give me a
compliment.
"I'm done. Now, stand up and let me take a look."
I stood and gave Alielle a really goofy grin. She broke out
laughing, and straightened my robe a bit.
"There, that should do. Finish your coffee, and don't spill it on
the robe. We don't want a stain!"
"Hah. This is Bleached Bones coffee. It won't stain, it'll eat a
whole through these," I said in between cups. I knew I had enough coffee
when I started bouncing up and down for no apparent reason.
"Ah Alielle, if you should ever change your mind about men...."
She smiled. "You'll be the first one I call Hayashi, promise.
Ready?"
"Let's go." I offered her my arm with great exaggeration. She took
it with equal exuberance, and we marched down to the reception, laughing
and giggling all the way.
***
The whole court was there waiting, but not for me. Alielle took
her place by Fatora, on the dais. Fatora looked like Alielle would have
some explaining to do. I took my spot with Schtalubaugh and Londs,
before the dais, in front of princess Lune. The doors on the other side
of the chamber opened. The sound of trumpets filled the hall.
The delegation we had been waiting for had arrived.
Two beautiful women entered first, strewing the floor with petals
that reminded me of cherry blossoms. A boy, maybe ten, maybe twelve,
with angelic features and an overly solemn expression on his face. He
was followed by twenty gigantic men with pikes in their hands and large
scimitars belted to their waists, ten to the left and ten to the right.
His honour guard, I guessed.
The boy approached the dais, stepping on the trail of flowers left
by the two women who had since disappeared.
The child knelt on one knee, then looked up at princess Lune,
still on his knee. "I come to see you at the request of my most
honourable lord Gallus, whose name shines in the sun, and whose smile
gives joy to his people. I come to see you from lands far away, princess
Lune Venus of Roshtaria."
"Why have you come to see us," an aide appeared beside princess
Lune to whisper a name in her ear, "Nahato?"
"I come both seeking a boon from my lord, and bearing an important
message."
"What is this message, and what is this boon?"
"They are one and the same, princess Lune Venus. These are the
words I have been told to speak:
'The beauty and wisdom of princess Lune Venus has reached
even unto the lands of my lord Gallus, as has the strength of Roshtaria.
My nation is also strong, filled with people working harmoniously
towards the greater good, yet we look to the lands across the River of
God, and we know something akin to fear.
'Thus it came to my lord Gallus that he should seek alliance with
others who oppose the Bugrom. It is also the plight of lord Gallus that
he is without a wife, without an heir.'
"I have been sent to you princess Lune Venus in an attempt to
resolve these two problems. I have been sent as Intercedent to the
honourable lord Gallus, to ask for your hand in marriage, and to ally
ourselves with you."
A pin could have dropped on the cushions we were sitting on, and
you could have heard it at the far end of the cavernous chamber. The
crowd was shocked. Princess Lune looked at Nahato, still kneeling,
trying to compose her thoughts. I blinked, trying to gather my wits, for
a second I shut my eyes.
In that second I dreamt for an eternity. I dreamt of a snake
entering into paradise. I dreamt a ghost in Gulistan. I dreamt of
deceit; a hidden knife through the heart. I dreamt the world consumed by
a hungering darkness, and a raging laughter echoing. I dreamt an
unblinking eye, watching us, judging our worth. The eye reached a
verdict, sentence was about to be passed, when--
--my eyes opened again. I staggered from the
vision. The first I had in over a month.
A vision-- I had to tell her about it, as soon as possible.
As soon as possible turned out to be sooner than I expected, since
princess Lune quickly dismissed the court, saying: "Your words are fair,
and your intentions agreeable. You must be tired from your long journey
however. You need to rest before we continue our negotiations, and I
must consult my council. My sister Fatora will see that your needs are
taken care of."
Fatora looked like she was going to say something, but a look from
her older sister silenced her. People sometimes forget the strength that
lies underneath in Lune, even Fatora sometimes forgets it.
Fatora nodded.
Nahato stood up and gave a wide, pleasant smile. "You honour us,
princess Lune Venus. I merely hope we can be given the chance to repay
your kindness." He bowed, and left with Fatora, followed by his guard.
The rest of the chamber left afterwards, until only four were
left: the princess, Londs, Schtalubaugh, and myself. We looked at each
other, and nodded in unison. We retreated to a smaller room used for
conferences.
"I have something to tell you," I blurted out as soon as the door
to the conference room was shut. I had to tell her about what I saw.
"I had a dream again, there, in the chamber. Remember what I said
when I first arrived?" Lune nodded while the other two wondered what I
was saying.
"Well, it's going to happen. Soon. The time of the prophecies are
coming, and we have to gather our strength or else. This could be a
chance to strengthen the alliance, we need all the help we can get."
Londs spoke next. "Princess, what is he talking about?"
"I... have an ability. Not all the time, mind you. In fact, not in
the past month, but just then, at the reception, I had one. Sometimes I
have visions of the future. Usually vague, usually some images that
flash by accompanied by a feeling, but I see it. She knows," I nodded
towards the princess, "I told her about it before."
Lune Venus nodded and then asked Londs, "What do you think?"
"I'm not sure. The alliance is a fractious group, and we can
always use help. This could help us greatly. Still, we do not know much
about this Gallus. If what he says is true, then...." Londs trailed off,
leaving the obvious unsaid.
"I agree," began Schtalubaugh. "It does not do us harm to enter
into negotiations with them. If they prove false, we can break off the
talks. If they prove true, all the better."
The princess nodded. "I was thinking along similar lines myself.
We will begin talks tomorrow."
***
For the next six months, we went through negotiations. Talks about
the balance of power once the marriage was completed, who would command
the forces in times of battle; all aspects of the alliance and the
marriage, including the matters of inheritance for any children the
marriage might have.
After the first month, I was put in charge of the negotiations;
Lune having made her position clear to me, and herself having to deal
with other matters of state. I found I had a knack for the negotiations;
I was able to get what I wanted without giving away too much.
During the six months, the talks dominated my thoughts, always
lurking in the background even during my free time. Visions? I had some,
usually the same though.
A snake in paradise, betrayal, a hungry darkness, and a whisper
like a caress saying: "soon" over and over again.
We finished negotiations at the end of the six months; it was
official now. Princess Lune Venus and lord Gallus were now betrothed.
Gallus was on his way to the palace to present the engagement ring, and
to sign the treaty.
I was with Lune in one of the gardens when he arrived. Lord Gallus
entered Gulistan, effeminate ankle bracelets which drew even more
attention to his lean legs than the midnight black stockings he wore.
With his mild words and enigmatic smile he greeted the princess. We
welcomed the snake in our midst.
End The Coming of Gallus
Part 3: The Advent of the Oracle
in which bad things happen to Hayashi, and the
true extent of his power is revealed. Watch out for the kumquats
Hayashi! You know it's bad when Fatora wants to cook for you! (well, the
title for part 3 is going to be true at least)
Author's notes: Well, this is a revised version. Made a few corrections
in spelling, added just a tad (maybe a paragraph), and changed some
punctuation and a word here or there. Nothing major really. I'm still
not sure if I'm satisfied with it, but I can ignore that if you can. ^_-
This was primarily filler, used to set up the last part I think.
Any questions are welcomed, and I will try and answer as promptly
as possible.
C&C-- I like it. Give me some and I'll be a happy man. Be as harsh
as you want, I don't mind, I'm easy-going about that. Well, on to
chapter 3 I suppose.