A/N: So this here is the first chapter of my noelisation attempt for the first two Golden Sun games. My goal here is to create a story that tells a personal and relatable version of the games' events. Some liberties will be taken with what happens, like certain parts that have no relation to the plot will be skipped, so this will not be a 100% faithful translation.

I have a 50 chapter outline, with 25 chapters devoted to each game, and I'm estimating it to total somewhere between 200-300k words. I've already written two 250k novels: a crossover fanfic, The Persistence of Loss (which some of you may have read), and my original book, Bacorium Legacy. Thus I'm fairy confident I can finish it so long as I keep motivated (that's always what I struggle with).

This is the first chapter, which ends at the point where the first Golden Sun begins. Enjoy :)

Chapter I

The Calm Before the Storm

Isaac glanced at his father, who stood beside a pile of chopped lumber, and was resting for a moment. Kyle had in his arms a heavy axe, which he had brought down on more wooden logs in the past hour or so than Isaac could have counted. Sweat glistened from Kyle's brow, and an attempt at wiping it away with his wrist cleared little.

Isaac's chore was different, and while he was not enjoying it much, he wouldn't have wanted to trade with his father. In his hand was a machete, which he was using to clear away weeds outside their home. It wasn't particularly difficult work, but the sun was hot, and Isaac was eager to be done, as he had plans with his friends.

He looked again to his dad, who was already done with his very brief rest and was busy chopping wood again. Kyle swung the large axe smoothly and with power, making the work look easy. Isaac himself could barely lift that axe. Still, despite how easy it looked, the hot sun was still taking its toll on Kyle. Sweat dripped down from his brow, and his brown hair was slick from it.

In contrast to his dark-haired father, Isaac took after his mother, Dora. He was a handsome young man of fourteen, with golden hair and striking blue eyes. Isaac was sweating, too, but he wasn't quite putting the same effort into his weeding as Kyle was into chopping wood.

It was too hot for such work, Isaac thought. Why had his father insisted he come out and work today of all days? The heat was oppressive, and the weeds weren't even really that high.

"Why not just use Psynergy?" Isaac asked. "I mean, you're a Venus Adept, right? You could have these logs chopped up in just a few seconds. Why waste so much time and energy hacking at them with an axe?"

Kyle was one of the more skilled villagers in Vale when it came to Psynergy. Isaac had seen him do some impressive things with the mental power - moving rocks without touching them, making plants grow in mere seconds, and even once making the earth below their feet shake for a moment. Everyone in Vale was an Adept to some degree - even the children and elderly had weak powers. Venus Adepts could control the earth, and Mars Adepts could manipulate fire. According to the mayor, there were also people in other lands who were Jupiter and Mercury Adepts, who had powers of wind and water, respectively.

"A waste, huh?" Kyle muttered in response, half to himself. "I can understand why you would see it that way. I was young once, myself. Always somewhere to go, something to do."

Well, Isaac did have plans… he just couldn't tell his father or mother about them. "I just don't see what the value is in doing it the hard way."

Kyle looked to Isaac, scratching at his chin. "Well, as a parent I need to decide what sort of man my son is going to grow up to be. A man who knows what it is to do a hard day's work, to sweat and labour under a burden, and to finally know the pride of seeing a completed work before him? Or a man who choses to take the quick, easy route to spare himself some effort?

Kyle looked then to the chopped lumber at his feet. "It's true that I could just use my Psynergy to break these logs into perfect little blocks. The job would be done in an instant, and even probably be much better. But would it mean anything? What kind of man would I be?"

Isaac frowned. "Is this really the sort of thing you debate? Whether using Psynergy to finish a chore makes you a man or not?"

"Perhaps there are greater issues in the world," Kyle said with a laugh. "But let greater men ponder those. We're just simple townspeople, living an easy life. Still, we must set goals for ourselves. Don't think of chopping the wood by hand as the hard 'way'. Think of it as a challenge to overcome, and by passing it you will become a stronger man."

Kyle took the axe back in his hand and swung it down, cleaving the block in two. "That's the kind of man I want my son to be."

So he wanted Isaac to work hard for the sake of knowing the value of hard work? Garet might have found the idea strange, but Isaac understood. He was impatient and eager to go see his friends, but he valued his father's respect, and he wanted him to be proud. If he worked harder, then he would be done sooner.

Isaac smiled, and swung his machete with renewed vigour.

Some time later, once his chores were finished and he was dismissed, Isaac made his way down the rolling hills of Vale towards the home of his friends Felix and Jenna. There house was built at the very edge of the clear river that ran through Vale, flowing down from the mountains and gathering at the pool in the town square. The river ran strong as Isaac raced past, and though the water was crystal clear, he could not see the bottom.

He made his way down one of the many stairways carved into the high hills, and was at Felix and Jenna's home. He found them right where he expected them, at the small dock beside their house.

Felix sat at the edge of the river, wearing shorts with his feet dipped in the water. A fishing rod rested in his hands, and he watched the surface of the water, his eyes unmoving from the bobber that flowed with the current.

Jenna sat beside him, her attention fixed on the red gem that had been given to her on her last birthday a week ago by the mayor of Vale. A travelling merchant had been carrying it, and the mayor had thought of Jenna and purchased it for her. His grandson, Garet, was another close friend of theirs, and the kindly old mayor has always liked Isaac, Jenna, and Felix.

Jenna was Isaac's age, with only a few months between them. She took after her mother, and had her fiery red hair. Felix was a little more than a year older than them, and had the dark brown hair of their dad.

Isaac jumped from the ground to the dock, clearing a short distance of river. Felix and Jenna's mother, Jasmine, had scolded all of them for that a few times, but none of them had the patience to go through the house to get to the dock. They just made sure never to do it when she was around.

Jenna gave a slight start when Isaac's feet hit the dock, but she grinned when she saw it was him. Felix, always the serious and determined one, never looked away from his fishing bobber.

"Finally done with my chores," Isaac said.

"Took you long enough," Jenna said, standing up and shoving her ruby in her pocket. "Where's Garet?"

Isaac shrugged. "Dunno. I stopped by his house, but his parents said he wasn't there."

"He might still be at Kraden's," Felix said, still not turning his gaze away from the river. "I remember Kraden saying something about him not paying attention during the last lesson. A make-up day, or something like that."

"Hmm… I guess we still have time to go get him."

It was only a bit after midday yet. The sun was still high in the sky. The event that they were all so eager to witness wasn't happening until dusk.

Ignoring both Isaac and her brother, Jenna took her ruby back out of her pocket, and started to overturn it in her hands, looking at it from every angle. She held it up in the air and let the sun shine behind it, marvelling at the amazing way it broke up light as it passed through.

"What's so fascinating about that?" Isaac asked her.

"It's pretty. I just like looking at it."

"Are you going to do anything with it? Like have it turned into a necklace or something?"

Jenna shook her head. "No way. It's too large for something like that. If it were a smaller gem, I would be okay with having it cut down to be a piece of jewellery. But such a large gem is valuable on its own."

Suddenly, there was a slight splashing sound, and Felix cried out, "Ah!"

Isaac and Jenna turned back to the river, and saw Felix's bobber underwater, and the rod bent as something beneath the surface pulled strong against it.

"It's strong!" Felix shouted. "This is the one I've been waiting for!"

Felix was up on his feet, and he pulled hard against the strength of the fish. He groaned and strained against his foe, and Isaac and Jenna watched his struggle with amusement.

Finally, however, there was a snapping sound, and Felix stumbled and fell backwards, suddenly free of the resistance. His rear end hit the wooden dock.

"Damn, it got away…"

The remnants of Felix's line disappeared under the water.

"That's too bad," Felix muttered. "I would have loved to have a snack before we head off."

Jenna wrinkled her nose. She wasn't very fond of fish.

Isaac was indifferent. He'd had a quick bite after finishing his chores.

"We do have a few hours before it starts, but we should go get Garet as soon as possible. He's the one who's planned out this whole crazy thing."

"Yeah, let's go," Jenna insisted. "I'm bored just sitting here watching you fish."

Felix frowned, but had no objections. The three of them went to the edge of the dock and irresponsibly jumped and landed on the grass on the other side. Felix was last, and he momentarily lost his balance and nearly fell in the river, but Isaac grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him away.

They laughed, and started off in the direction of Kraden's cottage.

Isaac and his friends' home, Vale, stood in the shadow of a great mountain known as Mt. Aleph. Within the mountain was an ancient temple called Sol Sanctum. Both the mountain and the temple within it have existed since the creation of the world, according to legend. Nobody knew for certain what was within Sol Sanctum, but it was forbidden for anyone to enter. Only the Adepts of Vale's sanctum, like the Great Healer, were even allowed to climb Mt. Aleph.

The only other person that they knew of that had been within Sol Sanctum was Kraden, the old Alchemy sage who had come to Vale some years ago. What was unusual about that was that Kraden was not even an Adept, and thus could not use the Psynergetic powers that one would need to even get inside. Still, he had come to Vale already knowing much about Psynergy and Alchemy, even some things the Great Healer and his students had not even known, and they had been kind enough to take him into Sol Sanctum so that he might conduct research.

Kraden was the town's teacher, and Isaac, Garet, Jenna, and Felix, as well as a few other of Vale's youths would go to his cottage a few days each week and learn from him. He did speak of Sol Sanctum from time to time, but there was never anything in those tales that held any interest for fifteen-year-olds. Statues and carvings and remnants of ages gone by. For Kraden, whose life was devoted to the study of the past, such things were fascinating. For Isaac and his friends, those stories only helped them fall asleep. Garet was the one who was prone to passing out in class, but they had all succumbed to boredom once or twice when Kraden had gone off on a tangent and forgotten himself.

Still, despite his sometimes irritating flaws, they were all fond of the old man. Kraden had an excitement about his studies that gave him energy that only the children he taught were able to match. Indeed, sometimes when he took them out of his house to instruct them on something outside, they actually had trouble keeping up with him, as he ran from here to there in excitement.

Kraden's cottage was tucked away at the western edge of the town, at the beginning of a dense forest that trailed off into the mountains. Isaac and the two siblings made their way up to the small building and went right inside - they never knocked, as they were all so used to going there.

As expected, they found the old codger pacing back and forth, lecturing with vigour to a red-haired young man, who was trying his very hardest to look interested. Garet sat upright, likely not even aware he had been slouching, when he saw them burst through the door.

"Ah, Felix and Isaac and Jenna!" Kraden said as he noticed them. "And what could I do for you three? Ah wait, I'll bet you're here to collect Garet."

"Y-yes," Jenna said.

Kraden frowned, and looked down at Garet at his desk. "Well, Mr. Garet here still has yet to finish the assignment I gave him yesterday. Perhaps if he had put a little more effort into his studies, he would be able to enjoy the weekend as you three are now, don't you think?"

"I can finish it later…" Garet moaned.

"Perhaps," Kraden said. "But what guarantee do I have?"

"I promise I'll get it done tomorrow!" Garet vowed. "I'll get up really early and have it done before lunch time!"

Isaac and Jenna exchanged glances. They both knew there was no way that was happening. Garet liked to sleep in.

Kraden didn't look very convinced, either. "And what is it that you all are up to that just can't wait?"

All four of them shifted uncomfortably.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with those foreigners that the villagers are meeting with tonight, would it?"

Though they were silent, their expressions told no lies for them.

"Ah. That's what I thought." Kraden let out a sigh, and pushed his glasses back up his nose. "I'm sure you're all aware that children won't be permitted at this meeting. It's grown-up business."

"You're not going either," Felix pointed out.

"Indeed," said Kraden. "Though I have lived here for quite some time, I am no Adept, and I am still technically an outsider. The townspeople welcome me as one of their own, and I even tutor their children, but I have no say in the village meetings, and am not even invited when matters like this one are discussed." There was just the faintest hint of bitterness in Kraden's voice. "Ah, you kids. I'm sure you four have some wild scheme planned. You're all going to get in trouble."

They were all silent once more, as they knew he was right.

Nonetheless, Kraden smiled fondly. "To be so young again… Doing foolish things and getting in trouble is part of growing up, I suppose. Who am I to keep you from that?"

To Garet, he said, "Go on, then. But I expect that paper done and in my hands before noon tomorrow. Else I will give you twice as much work next week!"

Garet gulped, knowing Kraden's threat was not an idle one.

A few minutes later, the four youths were free of Kraden's dusty cottage and were up on a hill overlooking the town square. Though Vale was a quiet, sleepy town, the town square was always full of energy. People coming and going, stopping at the shops to make their daily purchases, or just to stop and socialise with one another. In the very centre of the square was a small pond, in the middle of which there was a small island. A large violet crystal sat there, the largest Psynergy Stone from Mt. Aleph. Villagers who had used up all their Psynergy for whatever reason could go to that stone and meditate by it, and restore their energy reserves in just a few minutes.

"So has your grandpa said anything about the travellers?" Jenna asked.

"Not much," Garet answered. "He and my parents have been talking about them since they arrived, but always behind closed doors. I've eavesdropped a couple times, but they always catch me…"

Felix chuckled quietly. Isaac met his gaze and smirked. They all knew that Garet was rather clumsy and loud, and not exactly the ideal person to do recon work.

"I've heard a little, though," Garet continued. "Apparently, they're from somewhere really far north, and they've come here because they need something from us."

"How far north?" Jenna asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

Garet shrugged. "Really far. My dad said he checked the map, and the town they said they were from wasn't even on it!"

"Wow…" said Jenna.

"What could they possibly want here in Vale?" Felix asked. "Something out of Sol Sanctum?"

"If that's the case, they're out of luck," Isaac said. "The Great Healer won't even let villagers into Sol Sanctum. He'll never allow outsiders to enter."

"That would make sense," Garet said. "My grandpa didn't sound too pleased with them. He said they were being 'really pushy', and the things they said were 'impossible' and they had 'no proof'."

"Proof?" Jenna asked.

Garet shrugged again. "Like I said, I have no idea. They're from really far north, and they've come here because they want something. That's all I've learnt."

"But they're meeting again tonight," Felix said. "All the adults are going to meet with these foreigners, and they're going to talk and come to a final decision on whatever this issue is."

"Yup," Garet said. He grinned. "And I have a plan to get us inside that meeting."

"Oh boy," Isaac said, half-sarcastically. "Another of your crazy plans."

"This one will definitely work, trust me!" Garet said. "The adults and the foreigners are gonna be meeting in the inn, right? So all we have to do is sneak inside the inn and listen in to the conversation from upstairs!"

"The door will be locked," Felix pointed out. "They'll check to make sure we're not around before they begin."

"I've already planned for that," Garet said, his grin growing. "Yesterday I snuck into the inn while the innkeeper was busy. I went to one of the rooms and broke the lock on one of the back windows. There's no way he's noticed it yet. All we have to do is climb a tree and open the window."

"Wow, Garet," Isaac said. "If you put as much effort into your studies as you do in getting into trouble, you would be Kraden's favourite pupil."

They roamed around Vale for a few hours, going over the details of Garet's master plan, until the sun began to set, and the adults told them to head home, as they made their way over to the inn. The four of them started away from the town square, making their way up the stone steps that climbed the steep hills. On the way, they passed Garet's older sister, Kay.

"You'd better come home, Garet," she said. "You know Mom and Dad get mad when you stay out after dark."

"Pfft, I can do what I want," he responded.

"Well, when they're yelling at you, don't say I didn't warn you."

Kay shrugged and walked away, and Isaac noticed Felix's gaze locked on the redhead. He turned his head, lest Felix see his smirk. They were all aware that Felix had a bit of a thing for Garet's sister.

Of course, Isaac could never tease him for that, because he himself had a bit of a thing for Felix's sister…

Once they were sure no one was around, they doubled back to their hiding place from before - the hill overlooking the town square.

"The lights are on," Garet said. "All the adults are at the inn. And so are the travellers."

"No sense in wasting any time, then," Felix said. "Let's go."

They crept down the hill, keeping behind trees whenever they could. Their efforts at stealth were probably unwarranted, as there weren't any sentries out that could spot them, but one of the villagers could have still looked out the window and seen them. A small chance, for sure, but if they were caught trying to sneak into a village meeting, there would be hell to pay.

Garet lead them around to the back of the inn, and to a large tree whose branches reached up to the inn's roof.

"This is it. That's the window there." Garet pointed up at one of the windows, where the faintest echoes of the orange glow from downstairs could be seen.

"Well, let's head on up," Isaac said, taking the lead as he often did.

The four of them climbed their way up the tree all at once, the thought of going one at a time somehow not occurring to any of them. Isaac was the first up at the top, where he balanced precariously on a branch that he wasn't sure could hold his weight. He reached out and tried to push open the window, finding it difficult to muster up enough force to push it up with his arms outstretched so much. He struggled for a short while, while the others complained of the discomfort of the situation. He climbed out a bit farther on the branch, knowing that he was putting too much weight on it, and that it could snap at any moment. He lifted the window with more strength, but still it refused to budge.

"Garet the window won't open."

"Uh…"

"What…?" Isaac demanded, already knowing the answer.

"This is… not the right window."

"GARET!"

A few minutes later, the four of them were back on the ground and Garet was rubbing the lump on his head.

Felix asked, "Are you absolutely certain this is the right one?"

"Y-yeah," Garet muttered, looking ashamed. "Like… eighty percent sure."

"Well, I'll go first this time," Isaac said. "A twenty percent chance of being wrong for Garet is probably more like forty."

Thankfully, the second window also had a tree beside it, which was easily climbable. Isaac didn't think much on how convenient that was - when he needed to get somewhere, there always seemed to be some kind of path he could take.

He reached the window and pushed up on it. This one opened with no resistance. Once he'd pushed the window all the way up, he balanced himself on the branch and moved over to the threshold, and then climbed inside. He landed on the floor of the inn's room with a muffled thud.

"Phew."

Isaac climbed to his feet so he could help the others inside. He saw Jenna begin to climb up, while Felix and Garet waited impatiently.

He heard footsteps approaching the room. Several pairs of feet, and moving quickly.

Isaac nearly panicked.

They would reach the room in just a few seconds. He knew he didn't have enough time to climb back out the window.

Isaac looked right down at the others and shook his head furiously, the only way he could communicate what was happening, and then he grabbed the window and slammed it shut. He spotted a bed just a pace away, and he dropped down on the floor and rolled under it, just as the door swung open.

He heard the sound of at least half a dozen people coming into the room. The last to enter slammed the door hard behind them. Just from the way they were moving, Isaac could tell they were all furious. The sound of one of them punching the wall confirmed it.

"They certainly didn't waste any time coming to a decision." The first voice to speak was that of a man, with a low growl. From where the voice came from, Isaac guessed this was the man who had punched the wall.

Whoever he was, he was answered by a woman, equally as angry. "Was there any doubt that it would go this way? These villagers are damned fools blinded by centuries of tradition. They cast aside logic and reason in favour of their values."

A third voice, also that of a man, said, "Really, are our people any different? If someone came to Prox with such a story would you believe them? Were it not for the fact that we've actually seen the-"

"I would listen! I am no fool, not like that old healer! If we could just take one of them back to Prox, and show them, they would have the proof they continuously demand!"

"You know as well as I do that we don't have the time for that."

Isaac's heart was pounding so loud he was worried one of them would hear it. However, his hand covered his mouth, for he knew his breathing just might be audible.

"So… what do we do now?"

There was a long pause. One of them, silent so far, shifted uncomfortably.

"We go. Vale has made its decision. We have nothing left to do here."

"Are you… sure about this?"

"We have no other choice at this point. Come. The night will only grow darker."

The unseen guests made their way around the room, apparently gathering their belongings. Several minutes passed, and none of them spoke. There was an atmosphere of nervous tension among them. Isaac dared to turn his head, and he saw several sets of boots. He half-expected one of them to kneel down on the floor for some reason and spot him.

Finally, Isaac heard the sound of the door opening, and the unseen people made their exit. The door closed after the last one.

Isaac waited for what felt like an eternity, not believing there was anyone left in the room, but too afraid to climb out from under the bed until he was absolutely certain. Eventually he did, and he let out a sigh of relief when nobody was there waiting for him.

He dusted himself off and went back over to the window, opening it and carefully climbing out back onto the tree.

"Isaac!" He immediately heard Jenna's voice.

All three of them immediately began to ask him questions, but he was silent until he had climbed back down to the ground, and had a moment to calm his nerves.

"As soon as I was in the room, I heard people coming," he told them. "It was the outsiders… the travellers. Whatever it was they wanted, the villagers had refused it, and they were furious about that."

"They didn't know you were there?" Jenna asked.

"I hid under a bed."

"We saw all the grownups leaving the inn," Garet said. "We were expecting to see your mother dragging you out by your ear."

"I would have rather my parents caught me," Isaac said. "Those people were terrifying. Even though I couldn't see them, I could just tell there was something… wrong with them. They felt like monsters, like savages."

Garet, Jenna, and Felix exchanged glances, none of them sure what to make of that.

"Where did they go?" Felix asked.

"I don't know. I think they're leaving Vale."

Garet frowned. "That's a bummer. I wanted to see what they looked like. My grandpa said they had strange tattoos or something."

"They sound unpleasant to me," Jenna said. "I'm glad they're leaving."

"Well if they are going, then so should we," Felix said. "There's nothing more to see here. It's late, and our parents will be wondering where we are."

Everyone agreed on that, and they made their way back up the hills to the upper part of the town where their homes were. They reached the point where their paths separated, and said some quick goodbyes. Garet went off towards his home, and Felix started off, but Jenna lingered with Isaac.

"Are you sure you're alright?" she asked gently.

He thought for a moment, and then nodded for her sake. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just more than I was expecting."

She touched his arm, and smiled. "We'll talk tomorrow, alright? Garet might get stuck redoing his assignment, but we'll have the whole day for play."

He managed a smile in return, and then Jenna turned away and ran to rejoin her brother.

Isaac returned home that night with an uneasy feeling in his gut. His parents had already turned in, so there was no one downstairs to greet him. He stepped inside and went upstairs to his bedroom, where he took off his boots and hanged them beneath his cloak, and then he tossed himself onto his bed. He tried to get comfortable and relax, but sleep did not come easily.

A few minutes later, he began to hear the first raindrops falling. At first it was nothing, so he paid it no mind. But the falling rain quickly grew into a loud downpour, and what little light there was left was obscured by dark butts in the sky. The winds grew strong, until Isaac finally had to climb up out of bed and pull closed the shutters of his window and lock them to silence the rattling.

The noises of the storm outside were not pleasant, and it did nothing to aid Isaac's transition to sleep. He found himself tossing and turning, too tired to stay awake, but too restless to get comfortable. The minutes went by and passed into hours, and he found himself lying in his bed, staring straight up at the ceiling.

Finally, by some miracle, he managed to close his eyes and drift off. He slept lightly, and he dreamed dreams that were not the nightmares that one woke from screaming, but the ones that disturbed in some abstract way and then were forgotten. He heard shouting voices that sounded too far away to be heard, as though from another world, but were nonetheless unmistakable, and then he heard the sound of a door bursting open. He didn't realise it was real, or even what the sound actually was, until his mother had taken his shoulders and was shaking him awake.

"Isaac, wake up!" Dora said with a desperate urgency. "Please dear, wake up! A boulder is about to fall from Mt. Aleph!"