Freita, Capital of Reinburg. The grandest cities of the Western Continent. It's well-regarded as one of the most ornate cities on the Western Continent. Many people across the continent venture out to tour the spectacular. Even some cross the spacious continental sea from the Eastern Continent just to set foot on Freita. It harbors a moderate climate, appropriate for almost everyone. Freitas houses are finely built with a stone base and finished with an elaborate wooden structure spanning multiple stories high. The roofing varies in shades of gray. Parks with lush trees and grass span throughout the city. The cobblestone streets and pavements are lined with more diminutive trees and coppices, making it one of the most recognizable points of Freita. The light posts accompany the roads and provide one of the first magical street lighting in the world. An architect's dream city.
Any traveler passing through Freita will first see how packed the streets are. The lines of horses with carriages heading into the city extend way far from the first stone walls of the city. Even with a packed city, it still maintains a strong defense against invaders. Throughout the years, it has endured time and time, proving to the world that Freita will not fall. To this day, it still hasn't been done.
And that's for the greater good.
The Port of Freita maintains one of the busiest ports in all of the world. It hosts the largest fleet of the Kingdom of Reinburg and handles thousands of ships per day, unloading, and loading cargo, and passengers alike. The sight of the wonderous shore is filled with ships of various sizes, rowboats, schooners, and ships-of-the-line. The big ships with massive sails. If anyone were to do business and learn as their first thing here, Freita is the distribution center of the Western Continent. The beaches are also frequently visited by people.
Freita is home to one of the most profitable industries, fishing. The high infrastructure of Freita and the close proximity to a massive sea made fishing a profitable job for long-lasting life in Freita.
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Back then, Parker is still a young adult and still has a lot of things to learn about fishing. When he was a kid, his parents who were of high nobility, died due to natural causes and were sent to a state-run orphanage. His inheritance was pocketed by the scheming nobles back in the time. Eventually, a man entered the orphanage with the summer blazing into the hallway and talked with the social worker, and showed some papers. He finds Parker and offers food consisting of various fried fish and freshly harvested juices.
"I will be your guardian, Parker. I will teach you to take care on your own."
He begrudgingly looks up to see the man. "Okay..."
That was the first word he have ever spoken in the orphanage.
Years later, he's now the apprentice of Plydth, and that fisherman haunts him in how deadly his skill is in fishing. His Master can sense a pull on the reel, down to a feather. Plydth is a relatively old man, with a gray beard, and looks like someone's balding grandpa. That's why Plydth wears a fishing hat. But, Parker knows that Master is a one to be reckoned with. Especially on the seas. Though, Parker has a lingering thought in his mind.
"Father? How can you earn so much?"
"Son... you do it for yourself, and for others."
His father spoke, and Parker can listen to him for hours during fishing trips. They soon have competition in who can catch the biggest fish, and obviously, Master wins.
It was autumn. The red and yellow-dyed trees of Freita could be seen from the fishing boat. Both Parker and Plydth are on a fishing trip once more to stock for the upcoming winter. This time, Master told Parker to manage the lever for the magical engine and to haul the cart. He thought nothing of it and assumes that he was getting more responsibilities lately.
"I have to admit, you're getting better."
"You're too good," Parker chuckles. "But I wouldn't be here if you adopted me."
"Don't flatter me, I'm here to teach you what I have."
His master pause for a bit, "Son, have you heard about the tale of the steel birds with windmills?"
"N—No... I faintly remember it from my orphanage."
"Well, one of the fishermen here reported a sighting of a steel bird with wide wings. Four windmills spin at a fast speed, plowing through the clouds in the sky. When confronted with our wyverns, a hail of magical pellets rains down from smaller steel birds, demolishing our wyverns. The King has no choice but to let them pass through Reinburg's airspace."
"Oh..."
"It's a folk tale, and you shouldn't be worried about it, especially when I made it."
They continued on their fishing trip until something was off. Parker sees that his feather-like sense of his Master's fishing wasn't what he had remembered.
——I'm probably just getting better. He thought to himself.
They finished their trip and went back home, hauling the fish and selling the rest for rent and heating. During the night, he faintly hears coughing coming from his father's room.
The next week, after Parker has finished his school year, Master has tasked Parker with his final test. Although it's a bit earlier, a couple months before his sixteenth birthday, he doesn't mind. But Parker is concerned about his test. Thoughts pour into his head about how he would complete the test but remain upbeat. He has to fill six water-tight boxes full of fish in a day! Limited magical energy to the engine, and no canopy! But this time, Master isn't accompanying him. While on the voyage, a snarky little note on the engine informs him that it will explode if more magical energy is being exerted.
Eventually, he passed the test. He rushed home with his test results and saw his father sitting at a table. Parker placed the six boxes of fish on the table, and he sees Father smiling.
"Son," he slams his clenched fists on the table. "No one wants to buy rotten fish!"
Parker stood in shock. "A—Alright!"
He sold the fish and rushed back home again. Plydth eventually told him that he passed, giving Parker the recognition he finally needs. He's being taught how to cut the fish, ways of cooking it, and many other things about fish. When asked why he's being taught about this now, Master insists that it's more of mastery and experience.
The next week arrives, and the trees of Freita are starting to hibernate. The red and yellow-dyed leaves are now getting scarcer to spot. The magic heating in the house is now starting to ramp up. Residents are now wearing more layers of clothing.
During a normal conversation at the table, Father suddenly coughs out blood onto the wooden table. Parker quickly rushes his father to the medical facility to get treated there. Various doctors cast healing spells on his father, but to no avail. Parker is informed that Plydth doesn't have much time left.
It felt like Parker had lost his core. He doesn't feel any anger, but suffering and resentment.
"Why didn't you tell me of this?!"
"It would be detrimental to your learning."
"But... you could've at least mentioned it..."
"I'm sorry, son."
The two then hug. Parker has never felt this emotion. Not even the passing of his parents had done it. Sadness. Grief. And a realization that his father couldn't be there all the time. For the first time, he cried in front of his father but calmed down as Plydth reassured him. Father has prepared such warm meals for Parker, who has eaten basic foods in the orphanage. He cannot see the future without his father.
From then on, there had been a touch of peace. Easygoing days. Parker laughs with his father for the first time in a while. Their remaining few days of happiness went on as Parker visits the facility frequently to see his Father as well as his friends.
Looking outside the window, the snow is melting, and the weather had been wonderful as days ago, his father has passed away. As he was cleaning his father's room for the upcoming burial, he found an interesting item. A large wooden box said, "Open this!"
He opens the box, he finds bags of coins in high denominations of Reinburg's currency. At first, he's astounded by seeing such amounts.
He sees a small piece of paper shown on the top of the bag of coins and Parker opens it up.
Happy 16th birthday, Parker. Many sad things had happened recently. Although there are many tough obstacles lying ahead of you, don't fear them. You have passed the hardest test that a fisherman could've ever achieved. You would get through these life barriers in no time. It's time to reveal some things I've hesitated to tell you about. If you're wondering why I've been working hard all day to earn income, but see no recognizable improvement in your quality of living, I've been saving for your future. Below the base of this box is a fishing rod infused with magical properties. It has been passed down for many generations, and I want you to be the new user of it.
Son, I wish for you to have the happiest life that you could possibly ever have. Hm... I also want you to have a great family and a wife. Maybe have a great-grandson. Your Grandpa.
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Parker now married a great wife and has a family of a son and daughter. If it weren't for fishing, he knows he wouldn't be able to afford their kid's education, food, and happy life. His wife is a captivating one, even impressing his lower-nobility friends by somehow getting her. She features a slim body and the glistening blonde waves of her long hair. Of course, Parker is a very well-defined and very masculine fisherman, has brown short hair that appears to be well-groomed, and has a caring attitude toward others. His children, a son and a daughter, and his wife, mean everything to him.
Parker has heard some news about two steel dragons passing by over the city, emitting magical energy that can break windows in their vicinity. Parker felt a surge in his heart, a chill down his spine. The sound of those steel dragons, he will never forget. At that time, a loud booming sound shook the entire house and broke two windows. His children cried throughout the ordeal. A couple of seconds of that is enough to get his heart pounding. He calmed his family the best as he can. After the event, Parker got several cuts from picking up the glass from his windows and had to get treatment at times. The windows at the house are now boarded up with wooden planks and draped with an embroidered curtain.
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——Just... what is that?
He wakes up and realizes that he's dreaming in thoughts. As his wife finishes up the breakfast, the family eats and sets off in their daily routine.
As he opened the doors to the outside world, the morning colors hit inside his house with glittering vibrancy. He said his goodbyes to his wife, who was leaving. For now, he has to take his beloved kids to school. Even though they've grown, he still feels like they are constantly in danger.
——I remember now...
He recalls a steel dragon making a similar booming sound during his fishing a week ago.
——The sound controlled the world around it. It has characteristics similar to magic, but it feels different.
After dropping off his kids, he decided that it would be time to rush to the markets of Freita. Walking through the streets of Freita isn't always the same. In fact, he's very curious about what could be different in the city. It couldn't be said the same for the other cities on the Western Continent.
——I hope that the ice vendor is still in stock!
On the journey to the port, Parker sees yet again, different things happening. He happened to come across a weird acrobatics showcase in the city square. Of course, the usual traffic jam of people and wagons in the center of Freita felt surreal to him once more. The familiar sight of the tall wooden houses with multiple floors. If Parker were to be respectful of his surroundings, he would be a slug in the middle of downtown.
The smells emanating from the street vendors entice him to try out the trademark foods, but he had already eaten a luxurious meal. The aroma of saltwater coming from the sea in front of him tempted him to hurry up. He hurriedly makes it to the ice vendor just in time to grab his ice. Parker is a regular at the stall, and the owner knows him very well. He had some humor and nicknamed the fisherman, "Cool Parker."
At the Port of Freita, Parker calls up his usual friend to set up his small boat with a small canopy tent for today's fishing. The magical engine has been fitted, and the water-tight box and inspections look good. And so, he hopped down onto the boat, gave his friend adieu, and merrily sails off to the sea. After going through some traffic at the port, his grimaced mouth turns into a smile as he finally gets to welcome the ocean. His eyes are reflecting with miniature tears, scarce amounts to not roll off.
——This is it... the ocean!
The sight of the lush green coastline is down the horizon, and Parker can now fish in peace in the shade. No boats with large sails are disturbing the view of the horizon. He breathes in the air and gets to work. This work involves waiting by the fishing hook, to settle, and relax. All he can see is the endless ocean, the sun breaking the horizon, and the cirrocumulus clouds up in the skies.
Hours pass by, and the small waves rock the small boat slightly. The best weather that a fisherman could ask for. He has caught some earnings into his box. But, something feels off to him. Even though there are some times when nothing happens, this particular moment feels a bit more, drawn out.
——Will the steel dragon arrive once again? Will it be docile... or not?
Parker has heard of a tale from his fishermen friends and his children, where steel birds with two or four windmills once roam the skies of Reinburg. In fact, his father was the one who made the folk tale.
——That tale can't be real. I don't believe it. But... how could father truly lie?
Parker tries his best to not connect the tale with the steel dragon but felt like it's related.
——Last week happened... then yesterday...
He furiously scratches his head in frustration. Parker leans back onto his wooden chair and stares off into the blue emptiness of the ocean. Thoughts rush into his head once more, just like when he woke up.
——Oh god. What would be of my family if I were to die here?
He takes a quick breath before finishing up his fishing.
The skies of Freita are now of a sky-blue hue. The puffed clouds up in the atmosphere seemingly reduce in numbers. The tall stone and wooden towers of Freita cast hardly any shadow, as the sun was overhead.
Parker docks within the port, and tosses the rope to his friend, who was awaiting his arrival. The two shared a brief exchange before Parker hauls his fishing box to the market.
As he walks up the Port's steps to the city, he sees a commotion up ahead. There are knights in full metal armor and weird green people with dark weapons up ahead. Dozens of onlookers view the unrest as if it's something uncommon. Amid this chaos, Parker also sees his family entering the market. Atlas, the calm serenity is coming to him. They have never really visited what he's doing at his job that often.
——School is probably over.
"Fuck you!"
Parker hears a guy heavily outfitted with robes to cover as much of his body as possible. This is probably the perpetrator. His breath is audible from the loud mumbling of the audience.
"S̷̮̩̄e̷̻̚l̶̡̫̿͑͝f̶̧͇̈-̶̡̬̆͆̍m̶̹̓͗a̸͈̒͐ͅǵ̵͕̠͈ņ̸̮̻̎̈͛i̵̡̜͠ů̵̹͗s̵̳͛̽." the robed guy chants.
The air surrounding him becomes warmer, and it's rushing toward the robed man. A huge orange-hue magic circle with indecipherable letters appears below him as it gives off a luminance. Parker immediately knows that something wrong is going to happen.
"Get back!" one of the green people shouted in a foreign accent.
As Parker finally realizes what's going to happen, he shouts at his family to take cover. The incantation is complete, and a tremendous blast of blinding light from the sun engulfs the surrounding space as his ears ring.
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Parker manages to get up from the ground and saw the result of the explosion. The first thing he notices, are the body parts of his neighbors strewn around the area. An arm there, and an arm hanging on the light post. One person has their intestines oozing out of their torso. Another has their face split in half by the stone edge of the bushes' base. Some knights and green people are in terrible condition and he isn't sure that they're going to make it. Too much to see, and he doesn't even know how to react to this.
——Wait... where's my family?!
His thoughts rage throughout his head. He looks around for his family, but he only hears children screaming and crying, and people shouting for their loved ones. He can't imagine that those screams were to be from his children.
He looked through the rubble and finds his family stuck under large debris of wood and cobblestone. He struggles to get it off of them, but two green people showed up to help. With teamwork, the three have done it.
As the debris is off of his family, he saw that the left leg of his wife is splattered with blood all over. He's glad that his children are fine, and they all hugged together in both distress, and contentment that they're alive. Parker cannot imagine his wife being in this state.
——Thank goodness...
One of the green men told him that they will be administering "first-aid" to the butchered-up leg of his wife. Parker steps back with his two children, seeing the green men perform medical aid. What Parker feels off about those two green men is that they aren't doing medical incantations, but with physical medicines and some other things. It looks remarkably sterile.
"What are you doing?! Help the others! We'll keep your family company!" one of the green people shouted at him.
He was taken aback. There are more families in need of help. Parker cannot regret not saving another one just because he's standing around.
Trusting the green people, he left his two children to help the others.
That event. It was hell for him. Groans, cries, wails, and people shouting for help. Then he heard something. A whooping sound, and he felt the ground vibrate a little.
Looking at the coast, he sees two weird steel dragons with windmills on top of it.
——How the hell can it possibly fly? There are no wings on it! Wyverns can't fly without wings, but this can?
As it gets closer, the dragons' sounds are getting louder, and it shook the world. Some people stopped what they were doing, and looked up in wonder. At a closer look, Parker can see that there are more green men in the steel dragon. They kicked some rope, and it landed down below. The green men with irregular black tools simultaneously reel down the rope and onto the ground, before the steel dragons leave to the horizon once more.
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Even though he has sworn to protect his family, his wife is still in a critical condition. After getting helping his neighbors out of the rubble, he checked to see how his wife is doing.
It doesn't look good. Her leg still bleeds, and it looks like someone sliced a knife down her leg, but scrambled it up like a soup.
The green person told him to apply pressure on the "gauze", as he will be informing others about her condition. Parker obliges and immediately rushes to her aid. Parker and his wife talked momentarily, with Parker trying to keep her awake as long as possible. But, she dozes off in her words, and her pupils slowly closed in.
——God, no... I can't let this happen!
Parker shouted at her to wake up, but to no avail. The children that his wife have birthed were also wailing at her. The green person who was left behind to assist his wife placed his fingers against her neck, and looks up at Parker.
"Sir, she's still alive."
"Th—Thank goodness," Parker mutters, barely able to finish what he's saying.
Parker felt like god has lifted a great burden off his back.
Two green soldiers arrived with a stretcher and placed his wife onto it. Her pain is immeasurable as they moved her. They then rushed away immediately, not before being stopped by Parker who was yelling at them, trying to figure out where they were taking his wife.
"Hey! Where the hell are you taking her?!" He grabs a hold of one of their soldiers.
"Sir, we don't have space on the helicopter. You'll be able to see her in a couple hours."
"No..." Parker grits his teeth, until the green person who was there beside him, spoke up.
"Let the family on board. I will be taking responsibility for this."
The green man who's leading the stretcher sighs, "Alright. Fine. Don't expect me to cover your actions." It felt like he hesitated in saying those words.
"Thank you!"
Just as he bows to the two green men, they already dashed away towards this "helicopter."
The family was impressed at the sight of the "helicopter." It's the weird steel dragon that he has saw earlier. It has no wings, and there is a big hole in its stomach, with curved windows in front of it. There are also multiple green people in its stomach.
——Just how the hell can this fly without food?
One of the green men on the stretcher told his family to wear these weird-colored mushy things and wear them in their ears. Without thinking much they did, anyways.
They were rushed onto this steel dragon, and the whole creature roars in strength. The sound of it is not that deafening, but it's blowing the leaves on the trees, grass, and even the bushes from a distance away! Then, Parker sees below that the dragon is rising, the small pluck of grass is now indistinct.
——I don't remember this kind of steel dragon. Are these the friendly ones?
They went over the glistening beach of Freita, now abandoned with strewn beach gear, and above the ocean. The steel dragon rises throughout the air and maintains a steady pace soon after. Parker tries to calm his kids down as it's a surreal experience for them. A scary one, and a comforting one.
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A couple minutes have passed, and Parker sees multiple gray ships on the horizon. There are no sails, and his understanding of sailing is thrown out of the window.
——A steel dragon with wings, and weird boats without sails?!
Parker cannot really understand what's going on. He also sees a big ship, but with a flat deck. There are also the steel dragons that he has seen earlier. But his wife has coughed blood. It brought out painful memories that he tried to bury within his brain. He can barely witness the sight of blood dripping down from his wife's lips.
The family was rushed down to what the green soldiers call, "Sick Bay." Inside, the multiple magical devices are astonishing within this small room. One device has a screen, and it's emitting light! He also sees other civilians and familiar neighbors in the "Sick Bay."Now, the view of seeing his unwell wife on the bed is agonizing to him.
——I lost my father... but I will not give her away to death.
Father simply wants him to have a great family, but he didn't wish for Parker to live in despair.
Hours later, the green men are reporting to Parker about the current situation with his wife. Right now, it's going as expected. This, "Emergency Operation" is being performed and she will be recovering on short notice. Parker will also have to be filling out some form of documentation, and he noticed that the ink quality and their papers are immaculate.
Parker is starting to feel a bit drowsy, with his kids dozing beside him. The sounds of his neighbors crying in pain, green men with weird blue attire running around, and the almost cramped space in his room is too much for his endurance. Just as he was about to close his eyes, a green person with a blue uniform steps in front of him.
"Sir, your wife is in a stable condition, but she will have to require the use of a wheelchair. We will have to discharge you around tomorrow due to the high amount of patients. Anyways, please contact one of us in Freita if you require help as we will also be sending you the required supplies for her care."
With this sudden news, Parker jolts from a melancholy state into an energized one, "Thank you!" he said, with gratitude and respect from his heart. With millions of wishes that he has uttered within those hours, she has finally survived.
The man simply acknowledges it by smiling. Parker knows that the man has to take care of many others, but this will be good enough for him.
Parker looks up to the green man, "Where are you guys from?"
He chuckles, "The United States of America. I'm just here as a Hospital Corpsman of their navy." Just as he said that, he immediately bolts out of the room.
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Even without his father, Parker can still feel his presence.