Disc: Nope, don't own Soul Calibur, but MAN I wish I did. lD

Notes: Oooh, first Soul Calibur fic. Now, just to tell you, I don't know too much about histories and whatnot; I'm getting most of my information from SC Wiki and SC3 profiles.

Warning!: It's a very AU-ish version to Talim's storyline. I mean, completely AU. So, please, before you get all up on my case about the butchered-ness of it, remember: AU. Thank you!

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:Prologue-Upon the Breeze:

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Water Mill Valley--Villiage of the Forgotten Children

It was a warm wind, with the barest hints of the scents of summer and springtime traveling along the invisable currents, that told her things were were very, very wrong. Talim stared at the pink and orange rays of the fading sun, her brow furrowed and her bottom lip aching from where her teeth had scored it countless times. She took a deep breath, inhaling the air into her lungs and heart. Since her time here, treating the ill boy in the village, she had been denied access to the wind she loved dearly, and as such, had been denied the knowledge of the world. Now that the evil energy within herself and the boy had been eradicated, hundreds of age old whispers flooded her ears, making it difficult to sort it all out.

Then, to her horror, whispers of the cursed sword Soul Edge began to flutter in the currents of wind. She shot to her feet, red, silk ribbons dancing in the air in tune with the breeze's unheard melody.

"...What a foul wind," Talim muttered, narrowing her gaze as she looked upon the horizon. Her fingers twitched. Her duty as a priestess was urging her onward; find the malformation in the world and purify it. She looked up, spotted black birds circling in the air. One of their loose feathers drifted down and near her face; the very tip of it carressed her cheek, as if there was someone longing for the chance to meet her.

"Hey, Talim! Come on inside already!" Yun-seong called from one of the children's huts. "Dinner's ready!"

"I'll be there in a moment," Talim called back. She turned and hopped down from the roof to the wooden staircase that led up to it, following the winding path to the ground. She let out a sigh, letting her hand trail across the stones of the building, her ears still ringing from the malicious whispers upon the wind. Her cheek still tingled from the black bird's feather; her fingers lifted up and stroked the invisable mark made by the soft, black feather absentmidedly. As she made it down to the soft grass, she took a look at the warm light that spilled from beneath the crack of the doorway Yun-seong had been. The tinkling laughter of children made her heart ache, as a desicion formed in her mind. Instead of heading towards the hut, she dashed to her own abode, her footsteps soundless as she bounded up the staircase to the door. She worked quickly, gathering at least a week's worth of food, a change of clothes, and, of course, her dear weapons Syi Salika and Loka Luha. She put the clothes and food into a worn pack, and slung it over her shoulder.

She then wrote a quick note to Yun-seong; begging him to stay and protect the children, to keep them safe, and to continue giving the boy the neccesary herbs for the rest of his recovery. After attaching her elbos blades to a harness slung around her waist, she slipped from the window and dropped to the ground, her legs absorbing the impact. Talim his her grimace, but stood tall nonetheless.

"And here, it begins," she whispered very softly. She turned her head to the sky and gave a low whistle, one the echoed along the wind. She waited patiently, until a dark shape descended from the sky to land on her outstretched arm. The bird let out an appreciative coo as Talim stroked his head.

"Please, wait for me here, Alun," the girl said. "Watch over Yun-seong and the children; I can trust you with this task, can I not?"

The bird cocked his head to the side, and Talim received the impression that it reagrded her with offended eyes. She chuckled.

"Of course I can; forgive me." She leaned forward and pecked the bird atop his feathered head, whispering a low "Until I return, my friend." Then she raised her arm to the sky and the bird took off, alighting upon her roof as his newest perch. He let out a keen, which Talim took as a goodbye.

She turned on her heel and left the village, guided by the echoes of death and darkness that had once resided in her very own heart.

--to be continued--