Relic-Verse: Champions of Hope

Chapter 28

-- Part 1 --

Leo stood in the center of a small wooden boat, the early morning sun reflecting off of his blue armor and silver boots. His long dark blue hair was tied into a ponytail and was flowing behind him in the wind, and his shining white blade rested firmly against his back. He had a set of silver boots on, which appeared to be creating the stream of air that was pushing his boat along. On the floor of the boat was a single large back holding nearly all of Leo's belongings, which was firmly strapped down so it didn't go flying. In front of the hero he could make out the distant shape of the coastline of this strange new city, Vilova.

The city seemed to take up the entire coastline, which was a feat Leo had never witnessed before. As he approached he was able to make out details of the ports, which were quiet and sparsely populated. Behind the ports, he could see the unbelievably tall towers that looked right out of a dream, their sheer size put everything but the mountains to shame.

The closer he got, the more fantastical the city seemed to become, before finally he made it to an empty dock and stopped his boat, causing his silver boots to dull slightly. Within seconds he cut the ropes around his bag and snatched it up, jumping onto the stone platform and steadying himself as he finally got a proper close up look to the city, and promptly noticed two figures standing on the mainland, both of them staring him down.

The figure on the left was dressed in a green trench coat, and had what appeared to be some kind of brown furred animal ears on top of his head, and a notepad in hand. The figure on the right was slightly taller, more visibly muscular, and was dressed in a suit and tie with a pair of black glasses on her face.

The three people stood in silence, with Leo unsure of what to do before the person on the right spoke, "Mind telling us who you are and why you've come here?"

He pondered it for a second before relenting, "I am the Legendary Hero of Talon, Slayer of Mirac, Leo, I've come to-"

"Hang on, you're from Talon?" The person in the trench coat tilted his head as his ears perked up. "And a hero?"

"Not necessarily from Talon, but that is where I just came from, yes. And yes, I am a hero, officially registered with the Hero's Guild, and wielder of the Sword of Seals." As Leo spoke the man jotted down several notes. "I am also a Champion of Hope, and have come to find my fellow Champions." The man stopped and sized up Leo before giving a toothy smile.

"The name's Faron Burr, member of the Neo World Defenders and mentor to some of the Champions of Hope."

Leo's eyes widened as he processed what the man- Faron- had said. "You're a mentor to some of the Champions?"

"Indeed. And as much as I would love to introduce them to you, we have several questions for you."

Leo went to retort, only for the woman on the right to cut him off, "Leo, my name is Meera, I am a Manager of SWAN, the Systematic Worldwide Association of Neutralization. We are in charge of handling any and all threats to the people of Vilova and the Laurion Alliance. As you are a native of Laurion, I have been sent here to bring you into the Alliance so we can learn more about our continental neighbors."

The hero eyed Meera for a moment, before glancing back to Faron. "If I answer these questions, will I be able to meet the Champions?"

"If you prove yourself to not be a threat, and truly who you say you are, then we can arrange a proper introduction." Meera turned on her heel and glanced back at him, "If you want to do so, then follow me." She began to walk away at a brisk pace, followed closely by Faron. With no other leads or knowledge of this strange new land, Leo did the best thing he could, and followed them.