His eyes watered as they hurtled down the tunnel, pulled along at great speed by the gargant. It was going faster than ever before; the monster behind them had scared the wits out of it, and it was all Zidane, Vivi and Dagger could do to hold on tight and hope for the best. They saw the Treno stop come and go in the blink of an eye; one moment they could see it approaching, the next they had gone far past it. "That was Treno, I guess!" Shouted Zidane, against the noise of the wind. "I wonder where this goes now…?" He turned to look at the Princess, but pulled away sharply as the wind sent a lock of her hair into his eye. "Oww!" He shouted, barely audible over the rush of air and screaming from the gargant above. Jagged rocks sped past, narrowly missing the sides of the unsafe contraption they were riding in. One of them clipped it slightly, but at that speed it was enough to sent it flying across into the other wall. The jolt threw them all to the floor, and the last thing Zidane saw was an opening speeding towards them.

…

Zidane was the first to regain consciousness. He looked around, and saw Vivi and Dagger close by. He stood slowly, and walked over to the young Black Mage. He was just returning to consciousness too, so he said: "I'm just off to look around the area. Look after Dagger when she wakes up for me, okay?" Vivi nodded briefly.

He had only gone a short way when he stopped. The terrain was very different here, trees intertwining and plants seemingly out of control, completely taking over the area. After looking about for a short while, he returned to find Dagger awake, too. "Hey everyone, I'm back!" He said, jumping down to them. I think we should head for Tre-…" He trailed off as everyone looked out across to the waterfall in awe, for an old man had just appeared in mid-air. "Are you an enemy?" Said Zidane stupidly, lost for anything else to say.

"That depends," Said the old man, "On what you choose to make me. I am Ramuh."

"I know about you…hang on…yes, I read about you in a book about summoned magic." Said Dagger. "You're the God of Lightning, aren't you?"

"Yes, that is true, although I have not had a master now for many centuries…the last one was also a girl of similar age to you…except she had rather striking green hair." Replied Ramuh.

"The devastation at Cleyra was caused by a summoned creature. We are all powerful…" He continued. "Do you want to use me for more destruction?"

"No! Of course not! I want you to help us put an end to these atrocities caused by my mother, Queen Brahne." Said Dagger.

"Very well, but first a little test, to prove you are worthy of summoning me. Throughout the forest are parts of a story; I wish you to collect them, and should you re-tell it to my satisfaction, I will grant your wish to summon me." He commanded.

"Very well." She replied, and they walked off into the forest.

…

Several hours later, they returned with an idea of what the story was about. Dagger sat down and began to recite it.

"Once upon a time 33 small countries had united in a war against an empire….."

She continued for a while, and afterwards Ramuh was pleased. "You may now summon me whenever you wish." Dagger ran off, but Zidane stayed.

"Why did you make her play such a silly game?" He asked of him.

"She needed to convince herself she could summon me. The meaning in the story helped her to do that." Ramuh replied.

"Why make a hidden meaning in a story about a hero?" muttered Zidane, and ran after Dagger and Vivi.

They jumped down from a ledge, and Zidane looked up into the sky. "Uh-oh…isn't that the Queen's airship?" He asked. It and the fleet were all headed to Lindblum. The three ran across the plains to try and get there, make a difference, but it was no use. They stopped to view the destruction.

Windows smashed, shattered by fireballs. "Look, those lights…Black Mages are going directly into the castle…" Said Zidane. Towers fell, houses crumbled, lives vanished. "Oh no…she's using a summoned creature again!" He shouted, fear and awe sending a horrible chill though his spine. They stood and watched as a grotesque, giant skull rose up, as large as the city itself. Opening its enormous mouth, it sucked in, engulfing rubble and people alike. Massive destruction ensued, only halted by the surrender of the city, such as it was. Zidane felt a massive sadness and the destruction caused throughout the noble city, annihilated on a whim. Glancing at Dagger, he saw her sink to her knees, tears slowly streaming down her face. Subdued by what he had witnessed, he could not find the words to comfort her. He simply knelt and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

…