Different Paths

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Adelbert Steiner, Captain of the Knights of Pluto, could not believe his ears. He could not believe it when Master Vivi informed him that his Queen, the honorable and illustrious Queen Brahne, intended to execute Princess Garnet, her beloved and only daughter. And now the proof was before him: his Princess, lying motionless on a pedestal in the depths of the dungeon, incapacitated by the villainous Zorn and Thorn. He had been so overcome by shame that he could not think of anything else except how miserably he had failed in his duty. Fortunately, Freya was level-headed enough to point out that the Princess was still alive. All was not lost...yet.

He was so numb with shock that he did not even stop the monkey-boy Zidane from carrying the Princess in his arms. The thief was an impertinent scoundrel and even the sight of him sharing a smile with Garnet was enough to make Steiner's blood boil. But now, none of that seemed to matter. What mattered was keeping Princess Garnet alive. Who helped her or how made no difference.

The battle-weary companions climbed the stairs leading out of the dungeons, Vivi leading the way. The steady clomp-clomp of their boots on rough stone filled Steiner's ears, bringing to mind the unpleasant image of prisoners marching to their doom. No...I cannot think like that. The Queen surely would not commit such an atrocity! Zorn and Thorn—they are the culprits! They must be using the Queen and the Princess for their own agenda. Master Vivi must have misheard. He looked up and saw the Princess's head resting securely in the crook of Zidane's arm, her face the color of paste. Her arm dangled limply, swaying gently with the rhythm of Zidane's steps. Steiner quickly glanced away. Yes, Master Vivi...you must have misheard.

The stairs opened up into Queen Brahne's royal chambers. Fortunately for them, the Queen was nowhere in sight. Steiner treaded lightly on the richly hued carpets, fearful of leaving even the slightest imprint. It was strange for him to be standing in the middle of the Queen's bedroom, uninvited and clad in battle-armor. Everything that had happened in the past few days was strange to him. Steiner was a man of order and principle, and nothing about his current situation fit his preconceived ideas of How Things Should Be. He felt the way he did on the Princess's sixteenth birthday, when he found himself unexpectedly playing the part of Prince Schneider before all of Alexandria, an accidental actor tromping about on a fictitious set, confused and out of place.

But when Zidane, carrying the unconscious Garnet, entered the room, Steiner's bewilderment fled as he was forced to confront what he longed to, but could not, deny. "My Queen," he said in a choked voice, "why have you done this? I have devoted my whole life to serving you and the princess!" He dropped heavily to his knees and slammed a gauntleted fist on the carpeted floor, all notions of propriety and respect forgotten. "Why have you harmed the Princess? WHY?!"

"Steiner..." Zidane began, but was at a loss to comfort the grief-stricken knight. After all, how could he comfort anyone when he himself felt no hope?

"Zidane," Vivi said. "Do you think she'll ever wake up?"

It was easier to give people hope when all Zidane had to do was answer a question. "Of course. She's asleep because she's tired. That's all." Vivi nodded uncertainly, but whether it was in agreement or to reassure himself, Zidane could not tell.

"I wanna let Dagger rest for a while. Do you guys mind?" Zidane looked around at his companions. No one moved or said a word.

I'll take that as a yes. "Thanks," he said to no one in particular, and carefully laid Dagger on the divan. He knelt beside her and could not take his eyes off her face. Had she grown even paler? Did he see her mouth move, just a little? Why was she breathing so slowly?

"If only I had gotten here sooner," he said woodenly. Now how would I have done that? And left the Cleyrans at the mercy of the black mages? "I'm sorry."

"What happened to you? You are not your usual self." The Pluto Knight had recovered from his self-reproach, at least enough to notice that Zidane was not acting as cocky or insolent as he usually did. For some reason, that irritated him. "Go on...blame my incompetence! Tell me it is my fault!"

To his surprise, Zidane did not. "No! I can't!" Zidane retorted, frustrated. It would be easy to blame Steiner—he had never met such a narrow-minded, bumbling fool in his life—but that would solve nothing. Though he had lived a life of adventure and high jinks, Zidane had never witnessed the death of anyone he cared about. And now, Dagger was dying. And there was nothing he could do to stop it. He was not used to feeling helpless. "I...I don't know what I feel right now. I can't even shed a tear."

Steiner, taken aback by Zidane's unexpected display of uncertainty, was speechless. Zidane, apologetic, admitting he was wrong? The boy was normally arrogant and self-assured and had a witty remark for everything. But this...this was different. A side of the young thief he had never seen before. A side he would like to see more often. What—what am I thinking? This is the scoundrel who kidnapped the Princess in the first place! He is the one to blame for all this! He deserves to... He is the one who... He... Steiner could not go on. I cannot blame him. As much I hate to admit it, I cannot. He is only trying to save the Princess, just as I am. Though we live by different rules, we are both trying to do the right thing. Whatever that may be.

From outside the room, they heard the light footfalls of small feet and the muffled whispering of high-pitched voices. Zidane's head snapped up, and he was suddenly all alertness and attention. "Zorn—" he growled, his expression grim.

"—and Thorn," Steiner agreed, drawing his greatsword. "Let us finish what we have begun."

Their eyes met briefly. "Steiner...you know that there is only one way this can end."

"I know," he replied. Openly fighting his Queen's people was treason, and treason was punishable by death. If he survived the battle. "It is my duty to protect the Princess at all costs." Steiner understood, now, how two people could walk vastly different paths with the same goal in mind. And sometimes, he realized, he had to take a different way if he wanted to reach his destination.

The wide double doors burst open and the two jesters bounced into the room. "There they are!" Zorn cried gleefully, his small black eyes twinkling madly.

"There is no escape!" Thorn cried, just as madly and gleefully as his brother.

The twins hopped to the either side to make way for a woman with flowing chestnut hair, a white knight wearing a silver headband that covered her right eye.

"Welcome back, Steiner," said Beatrix, the General of the Queen's army. Her face was anything but welcoming and her tone was cool and clipped. "Where have you been all this time?"

Do you really want to know? You would not believe it even if you heard it from my own lips.

Beatrix gestured at his companions with a disdainful flick of her sword. "Don't tell me you have been enjoying the company of these scoundrels."

I have chosen my path, General. There is no turning back.

~~~

The End

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* Except for the conversation between Zidane and Steiner near the end, the dialogue was taken from the FFIX online game script at Final Fantasy: Worlds Apart.