Garuda/Stories
Quotes
- When Entering Dragon's Roost
- Hmph. You again.
- Make yourself at home.
- We can chat if you want.
- After Receiving a Gift
- Take this. It should be of use to you.
- I suppose I could offer you some encouragement.
- After Bond Level Increase
- I suppose I'll stay and help you. You should be grateful.
- I have seen into your heart and deemed you worthy of my wind's power!
- Idle After Bond Level 1
- The wind here is...not unpleasant. ...Do not take that as a compliment.
- As I am no longer in solitude, I likewise no longer require sacrifices.
- I never tire of watching your efforts. Please, continue to entertain me.
- Idle After Bond Level 10
- I admit, sometimes I think it might be nice to have friends...
- Ugh... I put on airs so reflexively. I wish I could show how I truly feel...
- It sure is noisy in this castle... Not that I mind horribly.
- Idle After Bond Level 20
- If anyone has the power to change this world, it's you.
- Of course I'm grateful to you. You did save me, after all.
- Wh-what? No, I am not lonely! It's just...a bit boring when you aren't around, is all.
Dragon Story Episodes
A New Wind
A New Wind: Part One
One day, the dragon Garuda was
awakened by the sound of a young
boy's voice. Though she scowled at
him most fiercely, the cheerful lad
merely asked to know her name.
Garuda was flummoxed, and
remained silent for some time—
for it turned out she could not
even remember her own name.
She had lived all alone atop the bluff
for ages, with only the ever-howling
wind for company.
At length, she recalled her name and
managed to summon forth her voice.
"I am called Garuda," she rasped.
"And who are you?"
"You're Garuda, huh? I'm Hiram!
I live in the village under the cliff."
Garuda had not left the bluff in many
a year, so it would not have been
strange for a village or two to have
cropped up beneath it in that period.
"I was following the wind," continued
Hiram, "and it led to you. I just
wanted to thank you for always
giving us such nice breezes!"
As the boy's words sank in, a new
wind softly blew over Garuda's heart.
She had been acknowledged by
another; this was a first for Garuda.
The way she felt at that moment
would be eternally engraved upon
her soul.
The boy continued to visit Garuda,
and they soon became fast friends.
Finally, Hiram invited her to visit the
village where he lived.
So Garuda went down to the village
with him, for she believed winds of
hope were blowing there.
A New Wind: Part Two
Garuda had gone down to the
village at Hiram's invitation. And
though her heart was filled with
expectation, she was at a loss
once she actually arrived.
It was little more than a few rows of
shabby, dilapidated shacks—and
what villagers were there scuttled
about with downcast eyes.
"Fiends attacked us," explained
Hiram, as his constant smile dimmed.
"And the people who left the village
to fight them never came back."
The new wind in Garuda's heart
had healed her deep isolation, and
she suddenly felt a similar need to
lift the cloud which so clearly hung
over Hiram's people.
"I will save your village," she said.
"I will bring forth a new wind of
protection upon this land."
Time passed. And small though the
village was, it soon began to grow.
Hiram became the chief, unified the
villagers, and eventually came to
the end of a long and happy life.
Garuda was heartbroken. And after
losing her friend, all she had left was
the village they had protected and
the people who lived in it.
She no longer heard her name
spoken by a familiar voice; instead,
she was surrounded by trembling
voices who called her "Lord Garuda."
Nonetheless, she still protected them.
One day, a young boy came to visit
Garuda's home. It was a moment of
happiness she had not known since
those days with Hiram, but it passed
with the setting of the sun.
Left alone once more, she thought
fondly on the warmth of humans
and came face-to-face with her
present isolation.
It was incredibly painful to return to
solitude after having known the joy
of existing for the sake of another.
Loneliness descended upon Garuda
like a squall.
Amidst her sadness, she knew only
one truth: No matter how lonely or
painful it might have been, it was
still better to have met Hiram than
to never have known him at all.
A tempest raged over the village
that night, and the next day,
Garuda demanded that the
villagers bring her a sacrifice.
And with that one word, a brother
and sister will see their fates tossed
about by the indifferent winds.
Ah, but that is a tale for another time.