Age of Kings 1066

POV Rio

It had been a few years since I met Ralts, and we had been best friends ever since then. I was even allowed to play outside while Mom was away, as long as Ralts was with me. In fact, it allowed me to get the first look at myself. We didn't have any mirrors as that was something for richer people, and Mom never bothered to buy one. And I was never given a chance to find a reflective surface that could provide me a good picture of what I looked like.

'I look a bit different than my last life, that is for sure.'

I had pitch black hair and deep blue eyes. If there was one major difference, it was that I was far better-looking in this life.

'I mean, I wasn't ugly in my last life, but I wouldn't call myself handsome. But this life seems like I look much better.'

I wasn't supernaturally handsome, but still looked much better than I had anticipated for this era.

'All that matters is that I don't look like an inbred Habsburg.'

With my looks dealt with, I moved on to what Ratls and I were doing today. Cloudwatching. 

"That one looks like a bird."

I look at it and agree with her. Her next observation gives me a slight panic attack.

"That one looks like a mushroom," Ralts says with innocence.

"WHAT?!"

I look at it and sure enough, it looks like a mushroom. But thankfully, it wasn't the kind I was scared about.

"Don't scare me, Ralts. You nearly gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry... I don't know why you were scared, though."

She mumbled that last part, but I didn't hear all of it.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Ralts said all too quickly.

"Uh, okay then."

We go back to cloud watching.

"You ever wonder what is up there?"

She just looks at me.

"What do you mean? Up where?" Ralts said with confusion.

"There."

I point to the sky.

"Past the sky. Up where all the stars are."

"Uh, no, I don't think I ever really thought about it," Ralts says while looking up.

"Too often, I would look above and know where I was drawn. But I know that I will never get up there again."

"Again?" Ralts asks.

"Never mind, it's a dumb dream anyway."

"I don't think it's dumb," Ralts defends.

"Really?"

"Yeah. You have something you want. I don't really have anything. I just want to keep spending time like this. It's so peaceful," Ralts says with a calm expression.

"Up there, it's even more peaceful. Up there, it's silent. You can see everything from up above. In the infinite blackness of space. There's no trouble up there. No war. No death. No struggles. Just silence."

We just lay there for a while and just exist. After a while, she responds.

"It sounds lonely up there," Ralts says with an almost somber tone.

"Hmm, I guess it might be a little lonely up there." 

"Well then, we can go up there together someday. Then it can be peaceful, but you won't be alone," Ralts responds with a cheerful tone.

I smiled at her innocent answer.

"Hahaha!"

She pouts and punches my arm.

"Stop laughing, you bully!"

"Hahaha, sorry, it's just your answer was so innocent. But sadly, I will never get up there."

She frowns before responding.

"Why not?"

"Because I won't live long enough to see the day when humanity reaches the stars. It will take another 900 or so years before they reach there. And even though I inherited my Mom's Restoration Affinity, it will only allow me to live to at most 400."

"Then why don't you do it yourself?" Ralts asks a simple question.

I just give a sad smile and don't respond. But she seems dead set on hearing an answer.

"Well?"

"Sigh. It's not that simple. Even if I started right now, the work needed to get into space would take centuries just to gather the supplies. Then you would have to test the ship. Do a truly massive amount of calculations. And that doesn't even include the gathering of funds to afford it. And all of this assumes that no one tries to stop me, which they would undoubtedly try. It's just not possible. But that's okay. I may not see it in my lifetime, but I can still live a happy life. Some dreams are just not meant to be."

I don't know why, but that last statement made Ralts quite upset.

"Well then, I will take you to space!" Ralts proudly states.

I just smile at her.

"Is that so? Well then, if that happens, I will grant you anything you desire, no matter how hard I have to work to do so."

"When."

"When can I grant it?"

"Shut up, Rio! You know I mean. It's when! Not IF!"

"Sure sure."

"You're going to eat those words when I prove to you I can do it," Ralts says with a smug smile.

"Is that so? Well then, I will wait for the day you make me eat my words."

"Hmph."

I get up and dust myself off, then put my hand out for her to take. She takes it but pulls me down.

"Ha! Not so tough now, are you?" Ralts says while kneeling over me.

"Please, if I tried, I could get out of this."

She had pinned me to the ground, but I was not very confident in getting out of this. I was taller than her, but she was still quite a bit physically stronger than I.

'Stupid Pokémon physique.'

Even though I was good at hiding my thoughts, it seemed like Ralts picked up on that last thought. Because she gave me a wicked grin. I knew what was going to happen, so I used all my skills to get away.

"Pocket Sand!"

"AHHHH! No fair! That was a dirty trick," Ralts screamed while rubbing her eyes.

While she was blinded, I made a run for it.

"Run, run, as fast as you can, you can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread man!"

"AHHHHHHHH! GET BACK HERE YOU JERK!" Ralts screams in rage.

I could tell she was very mad, so I didn't even hesitate and ran as fast and far as I could. I could hear her chasing me, but the one thing that humans had over Pokémon, or at least I did over Ralts, was that I had better stamina. Humans are endurance hunters. We can run for long periods of time. Eventually, I lost her, and I hid in my secret hideout I built a year ago. It wasn't much, but it got the job done. It was a small hollow under a tree that I used as a place to hide.

'She still hasn't found this place.'

I kept a few things that I didn't want anyone else to see here. Specifically, I had been trying to create a few inventions from my past life. It was my own mini lab. I picked up one of the pieces of copper I had and started to work on molding it into the piece I needed.

"I hate having to work with such primitive devices, but I can't complain, given no one else has anything much better than this."

I was trying to make a battery. A vastly superior version than the one eventually made in 1800. I had managed to salvage some supplies. Most of them were during our adventures in the forest. I knew Hatterene watched us every so often, and I knew she had told the wildlife of the forest to treat me and Ralts as friends, and so far this had been true.

"I still don't know why I can speak with the animals of the forest," I murmured to myself.

It was something that baffled everyone. The only guess we could come up with was that I had a Nature Affinity, but I wasn't so sure.

'I don't notice any close ties with nature or anything like that. But I suppose I do often find what I am looking for. But that could be arguably because I know what to look for.'

I wasn't sure what to think, but my gut told me there was something I was missing. And my gut had rarely ever steered me wrong. Besides the battery, I was working on a few other things. A makeshift magnifying glass. Some samples of what I believe is Penicillium chrysogenum. A probably working Compass. And a small section where I am trying to make Potassium Nitrate. 

'Hmm, it seems the Nitrate is almost ready for harvesting. Which is good as I am tired of smelling it.'

I had no doubt my chemistry was right, but with the very limited resources, I was not very confident that it would produce a usable product. As for my other inventions, I was making them so I could eventually sell them to the Duchy. My Mom told me that the Draconis family always bought technology when it was proven to be working. Which is one of the main ways they had kept up and surpassed most of Europe when it came to technology.

'That and the strong advantages a Multi-Species Nation has.'

It was something that Mom mentioned that drew my attention. Concordia didn't just protect all the creatures of the world; it employed them. And many creatures have unique or special abilities. Even the most mundane, such as Increased Strength, made a huge difference.

'A human can forge armor of impressive quality, but a Vampire with Super Strength can not only forge more but also higher quality armors.'

It was the most important advantage that Concodia had over its neighbors. The products and materials made in Concordia were of vastly higher quality, which meant a massive difference on the battlefield. Combined with the fact that Concordia was always on the defensive and is mostly a mountainous country and you get a fortress nation that is too difficult to breach.

'I won't deny that if even half the stories Mom has told me are true, then this country is a very impressive start for me. But that won't last.'

A small country like Concordia was doomed to destruction, of history followed the same path as my history.

'But maybe it will be fine. We have the one advantage the rest of Europe seems dead set on exterminating.'

Magic. Magic was a very capable tool that was used in many ways. While War was one of them. It was far from the only application. I even used magic myself to improve my research. I had four affinities that were known for certain. Master Level Restoration, High Level Alchemy, Moderate Level Illusion, and Low Level Fire. Which, from what I am told, is beyond rare.

'I mean, if Mom is right, then I perfectly inherited both her and my Fathers Affinities. And only the Fire Affinity is weaker than his original.'

I was told that was basically unheard of. Inheriting an Affinity was not unheard of, but it being the same or very close level is very rare. And even more rare is to inherit more than one. But to do both is something neither my Mom nor Hatterene had heard of happening before. 

'I should head back. Ralts will have calmed down now, and Mom will be home soon.'

I close up the lab and start heading home...