Nevia/Stories
Alk, Claw, and the others visit Nevia, a sage who can see the future and called for peace before anyone else. Nevia agrees to help Claw, but warns that the peace they're experiencing now won't last. Seeing Nevia's disappointment in the weakness of others, Claw encourages her to go to Starview Village to work with Alk and co.
Concerned Feline: How DARE you speak of peace! After all we've been through!
Catfolk Woman: Cowardly witch! Get out of our sight!
Nimbus: Hey, we any closer to that something-something sage you keep raving about?
Claw: I told you, man, it's Nevia Tabbinth, the Sharp-Eyed Sage. And we should be there shortly.
Nimbus: You said she retired years ago, right? Why're you trying to get her on your side anyway? She doesn't sound like she'd be much help to your cause.
Claw: Oh yeah? Even if I tell you she was calling for peace waaay before any of us did?
Claw: Evidently she foretold the fall of the catfolk if the war continued. Pretty scary, right? If it's true, that is.
Claw: But we could really use someone who can see the future right about now. That's why we're here.
Nimbus: ...There trouble a-brewin'?
Claw: You could say that. but that's just all the more reason to get her on our side!
Claw: Now come on, let's recruit us a sage!
Retainer: We appreciate your patience. Lady Nevia is now-
???: So... the time has come.
Nevia: It is good to see you, Claw, the herald of peace... and Nimbus, son of Whitetail.
Nevia: It is also a pleasure to finally meet our visitors from another world.
Claw: Did you see all that in your visions of the future?
Nevia: My clairvoyance offers but a glimpse of what is to come... The rest must be discerned from what clues fate brings us.
Claw: So in other words... Our being here lines up with your vision, right?
Nevia: Hehe... That is correct. Although I will admit I am making assumptions.
Nevia: Ah, my apologies! After I glimpse into the future, I tend to forget small courtesies such as introductions...
Claw: Then... does that mean you know why we're here as well?
Nevia: Indeed I do. I hope to be of great assistance to your cause.
Claw: Well, at least we don't have to waste time explaining ourselves! And welcome aboard! We're happy to have you.
Nevia: It is a shame that I must put a damper on that happiness.
Nevia: I do not foresee this peace we experience now lasting long.
Nevia: The stars and crystals foretell the end, and what I saw, heard, and smelled in my own visions did nothing to ease my fears.
Nevia: I am sure you understand this as well. That is what brought you here, no?
Dogfolk Soldier: Halt! Claudius Navelle, you shall pay for your crimes with your life!
Claw: Why... Why don't any of you listen!
Claw: Why can't we just talk to one another?! Taking me down won't change anything!
Dogfolk Soldier: But it will. Both the catfolk and dogfolk are ready to bare their fangs!
Dogfolk Soldier: But in the end, WE will stand triumphant!
Nevia: I knew this was coming, but I've heard quite enough!
Nevia: Oh, how I pity you all...
Light: I hear movement outside. It seems we are surrounded.
Nevia: I am sure we are.
Nevia: Quickly, follow me.
Nimbus: Whoa, wait, what are you thinking? We're sitting ducks here!
Nevia: No, this is the perfect spot.
Dogfolk Soldier: Well, what do we have here? Trying to make it easier to capture you all?
Nevia: Not at all. I simply thought cleanup would be easiest here.
Nevia: Winds of Ancients, Bearers of the Seeds of Life! Extend thine arms and embrace those filled with hate!
Dogfolk Soldier: Ngh! Curse you and your wretched powers, witch!
Nevia: Unfortunately, I cannot claim this power as my own. I knew this day would come, so I have merely been placing enchantments on the trees for years in preparation.
Claw: Whoa... If I didn't believe in your visions before, I definitely do now...
Claw: Are you... sure there is nothing we can do to change the future you saw?
Nevia: Claudius, we are truly weak.
Nevia: Peace may have reduced the amount of bloodshed, but it also sheds light on the crookedness that was previously obscured by war.
Nevia: Poverty, disparity among the classes... Others will seek to place blame for these somewhere. As for the target of that brewing hatred...
Nevia: Surely it would fall to the bloodstained soldiers.
Claw: But that's wrong! If anybody is to blame, it's us- the government.
Claw: I want to change our world for the better. That's why I need your help.
Nevia: Why do you persist? The catfolk and dogfolk will seek a villain to blame. Just as they have done in the past.
Nevia: That weakness guides the stream of fate in this world. Even with my predictions, we will create but a ripple in those waters.
Claw: So... You've already given up...
Claw: But...
Claw: Hehe... You're still gonna help out, aren't you? You said you would.
Nevia: Indeed, I will do all I can to help. Even if this path ultimately leads to destruction.
Claw: Alright, then I think you should go to Starview Village first!
Stella: By all means. You are welcome to join us.
Alk: Yeah. Sounds good to me.
Nevia: Hehe, and what would you have me do in this otherworldly town?
Claw: I can't really say for sure what will happen, but I just want you to work with everyone there- especially Alk!
Light: Oh? I see...
Nimbus: Haha, yeah, a regular dose of Alk could be just what you need.
Alk: Huh? Wait, what do you mean by that?
Claw: Sorry, Alk, but just play along, okay?
Claw: I know you can do it!
Nevia: I look forward to our adventures together, Alk.
After observing Alk as Claw suggested, Nevia asks Alk if his resilience has to do with his anger at being ultimately powerless. However, Alk instead answers that his desire to improve is simply a desire to not have any regrets, which causes Nevia to reflect and realize she is the one upset at her own uselessness. With that, she heads to Claw to offer her aid once more.
Nevia: ...I was too late...
Follower: My Lady, we must retreat! It is not safe here!
Nevia: ...How unsightly...
Follower: Huh?
Nevia: I... cannot stand such depravity...
Stella: Welcome back.
Alk: It's good to be home! Especially after today...
Alk: What did you think of the Kingdom of Sand, Nevia?
Nevia: To think there was a world with no beastfolk- only humans... It was very interesting.
Nevia: ...Although from the state of their world, it seems conflict is inevitable no matter where you go.
Nimbus: Hmph... You say that, but that hellhole ain't exactly a good reference point.
Alk: Ah, sorry, guys, I gotta go! I have a practice match after this!
Nevia: That boy certainly is a strange one...
Stella: Alk is incredible.
--- Nevia: Has your practice match concluded?
Alk: Yeah... I got my butt kicked pretty hard, so I'm just sitting here trying to figure out how to not suck so much...
Alk: Th-thanks. Ow...
Nevia: Do you always practice like this?
Alk: Well, I'm a lot weaker than everyone else, so-
Nevia: You are a terrible liar, Alk.
Nevia: At Claw's request, I have observed you throughout our adventures in the Kaleidoscope and other worlds.
Nevia: You have witnessed the stream of fate many times over, yet your resolve never weakens...
Nevia: You are, in fact, incredibly strong, Alk.
Alk: I-I don't know about that... But I guess what I should be saying is... Thanks.
Nevia: Are you unable to forgive yourself?
Alk: Huh? What do you mean?
Nevia: Can you not stand the fact that you are powerless? That... you too are being carried along by a higher power?
Nevia: Surely that must be the reason you continue to fight.
Alk: Hmm... Well...
Alk: I don't know if I ever feel that angry about it...
Alk: Mainly, I just don't want to have any regrets. I never want to feel like I could or should have been able to do more.
Alk: So even if I do feel powerless or whatever, I don't know if I'd be that harsh on myself. I'd probably be too busy worrying about other stuff.
Nevia: I see. Well, being strict with oneself is different from anger.
Nevia: Anger is far more... unsightly...
Nevia: Heh... Hehe. Ah, I see now...
Nevia: What I was feeling back then was anger.
Nimbus: Heh, that's not something you expect to hear from a sage.
Nimbus: If you're looking for someone who feels the same as you, you're looking in the wrong place. Alk's not the raging type.
Nevia: So it seems. Perhaps I would do better in your company?
Alk: Huh? Wait, when did you two start getting along so well?
Nevia: Alk, if you had told me you couldn't forgive yourself, I would have advised you to let go of those fears and accept reality.
Nevia: But I now believe you have no need of such advice.
Nevia: Because it was I who was unable to let go... of my anger.
Alk: You? Angry?
Nevia: Yes... And now that I think about it, I have been for a very long time. Angry at the weak, the world, and most of all- myself.
Nevia: I feel so much rage towards it all.
Alk: You certainly don't look it... I'd hate to see how angry you'd have to be to show it...
Nevia: Oh, it is a fearsome sight. I can assure you of that.
Nevia: Well, now that I have come to terms with my true feelings, I suppose I must rejoin Claw and offer my support.
Nevia: But before that, I think it would befit a sage as myself to take a page from Alk's book.
Nimbus: Now that sounds interesting. Mind if I join you?
Alk: So wait... How exactly did I help here?
Upon discovering the location of various rebel groups, Nevia, Claw, Albert and the others work to provide a place in society for the people making up these groups, In doing so, Nevia reveals that while the future she sees has not changed, it has been delayed, which encourages Claw and the others to try harder. Afterward Nevia expresses her gratitude at having met Alk and the others.
Catfolk Mother: Oh my, looks like someone's getting big. I swear your child was only this tall last time I saw them.
Dogfolk Mother: We dogfolk tend to grow faster, that's all. But my, look at those whiskers! My little one isn't the only one growing, it seems.
Pup: Yeah! Your whiskers look so cool!
Kitten: Hehe, wanna feel them?
Dogfolk Youth: Hmph... Look at those mangy cats. Us soldiers are out here practically beggin' for scraps while they live in luxury.
Dogfolk Youth: Looks like hording money is the only thing those pests are good at...
Nevia: You two, do you have a moment?
Dogfolk Youth: What the- who are you?!
Nevia: Excuse us.
Claw: Nevia? Sis? What are you doing here with Alk and my bro Nimbus?
Albert: Oh so this is the sage I've heard so much about.
Nevia: I apologize for the intrusion, but I urgently need to speak with you, Sir Albert.
Albert: A map of the city, huh... What are these red and blue marks?
Nevia: These are groups of insurgents... Those who wish you two dead.
Albert: ...There are more than I expected.
Claw: Looks like it's about eighty percent red dots and twenty percent blue... Are the red dots for dogfolk groups and the blue for catfolk groups?
Nevia: Correct. I used divination to discern their approximate locations, after which we were able to confirm their whereabouts through interrogating memebers.
Nevia: We have Alk and Nimbus to thank for the latter. They were a great help.
Nimbus: Please. Grabbin' a few collars and scarin' a buncha cowards hardly counts as work.
Albert: Now... how do we approach this?
Albert: Should we rush in and arrest everyone, or simply put them under surveillance?
Claw: But if we use too much force, more groups will pop up. What do you think, Sis?
Nevia: Well...
Nevia: Perhaps we should try a kinder approach.
Nevia: Of the dogfolk with ill will towards the government, over half of them are former soldiers. With peace they have returned to their homes, only to be treated as a burden.
Nevia: A broken sword cannot return to battle, and their pride as former soldiers prevents them from seeking help.
Claw: Then we need to create a place in society for them. Obviously that means a home to live in, but also food, employment-
Albert: And honor.
Nevia: We cannot have them return to their stations as soldiers, though. The war has just ended, after all.
Claw: You know, this is something that Fiend fella mentioned, but...
Claw: What about creating a military group to help develop the lands near the borders?
Albert: I see... They could both protect the towns in the area and work to create farmlands and the like.
Nevia: So you seek reintegration over senseless fighting... Yes, I think that idea suits your regime quite nicely.
Albert: We'll have to be careful when devising roles and leaders, but we can handle that. I shall start recruiting soldiers immediately!
Albert: So this must be why Claw left to persuade you to join us, Sharp-Eyed Sage.
Albert: You have my thanks. I look forward to your continued cooperation.
Nevia: My future is intertwined with yours, so as do I.
Claw: Awww, Sis!
Nevia: Hehe, have you forgotten? I told you I would assist you.
Nevia: I would, however, like to ask you not to call me "Sis."
Claw: Aw, but you're my sis, Sis!
Nevia: That... does not explain anything. But I suppose it matters not...
Nevia: Please allow me to apologize for our first meeting. I had lost sight of who I was.
Claw: Whoa, come on, Sis! You don't need to bow to me!
Nevia: In the past, I was merely holding onto my anger at the world, others, and myself...
Nevia: But I was burdened by the weight of all that anger, which caused me to run away from it...
Nevia: The days where I hide behind the role of a wise sage end now.
Claw: Sis...
Claw: Does that mean you see a different future now?
Nevia: ...No.
Nevia: However, the future I saw has been delayed. Instead of being a year into the future, it is now... slightly more than a year off.
Claw: That's more than I could hope for.
Claw: I'm not giving up any time soon. We'll push that future back, little by little...
Claw: Until you don't see it happening for a hundred- no, a thousand years!
Nevia: ...Indeed.
Nevia: We must do all we can.
Nevia: Thank you. I cannot tell you how happy I am to have met you all.