Rust Never Sleeps Remix:
Alternate and Deleted Content
Chapters Two Through Seven

Notes: I'm a huge fan of deleted scenes, cut content, early concepts, etc. in movies and video games. Literature is no exception. So, I've put this out there for the like-minded. Nothing here is really considered canon for Rust Never Sleeps, but some of it may shed some insight on why some things are the way they are.

Table of Contents

Chapter Two:
Out in the Cold (Awakening Earliest Version)
1) Notes
2) Straight into Narshe
3) Entering the Cave
4) Terra's Transformation

Chapter Three:
Displaced Loyalties (Dancing in the Firelight Earliest Version)
1) Notes
2) Chapter

Chapter Four:
When Fire Met Ice (Straight into Darkness Earliest Version)
1) Notes
2) Chapter

Chapter Five:
MagiTek Solid - Escape From South Figaro
1) Terra Heals Locke

Chapter Six:
The Monster in the Mirror
1) Celes and Terra Discuss their Escape from South Figaro
2) Terra Meets Sabin
3) "I was not expecting such a strong reaction from an amnesiac."
4) Alternate Ending (A Guard Warns of Kefka's Approach)

Chapter Seven:
Octopus' Garden: Tentacle Assault Squad
1) Battle with Ultros (Script Version)

Chapter Two:
Out in the Cold (Awakening Earliest Version)
Notes: Going through my notes and files, I came across this buried in a zip file with a heap of other things. It's incredibly barebones and lacks a few things that had become world-building lore and recurring jokes, such as the first mention of Pruert Durmoch (an anagram of Rupert Murdoch for those unaware) and Narshe's economy dependant soley on pet rocks. It's awful and I can barely read it, but I figured someone would get a kick out of it.

Straight into Narshe

All was peaceful in the quiet mountain town of Narshe. At least, it had been until the ground in front of the tavern erupted in a shower of frozen chunks of dirt, ice, and a thunderous boom that reverberated off the canyon walls. When the dust cleared, the three Imperials stood rooted in place as if waiting to see what would happen. Wedge turned to his comrade and openly berated, "God dammit, Biggs! We're here to verify that there's an esper here! Not to blow up the town!"

"Sorry, sir," came a tiny and meek reply. "My, uh, trigger hand slipped. It won't happen again, sir."

"See that it doesn't! There's a difference between reconnaissance and all out-" Wedge found himself cut off when a Magi-Tek laser singed past his ear. He ducked down into the cockpit of his bipedal metal monster as several more flew overhead.

"The Imperials sent Magi-Tek armor?!" Wedge heard exclaimed over the fire fight, "Not even Narshe's safe anymore!" He heard Biggs shouting swear words as his machine geared to life. But before either of the two men could take action the girl flooded the area with a bile colored gas that immediately choked out their opposition. The three of them remained down in their machines until the gaseous toxin dissipated.

"All clear," she said with an emotionless and stilted monotone. Wedge noted that it was almost as if her tongue was attempting to be uncooperative. Very strange.

Biggs brought his machine up to a lifeless body and nudged it on to its back. "Narshean night watch," he observed, "Complete with outdated Magi-Tek."

"How outdated?"

"Several years at least, sir."

Wedge nodded and scrunched his face into a frown. "Right," he ordered, "They know we're here and they have tech. It may be old, but it can still bite. Be on your guard."

As they made their way into the town, they were accosted by the night watch several more times. Each time ended the same way as the initial battle, the girl saved their asses with poison gas. Each time Biggs complained about not having access to the same weapon. Each time Wedge pointed out that her Magi-Tek armor was experimental. By the fifth time Wedge was tired of repeating himself and just let his subordinate complain to the wind. Eventually, they arrived at a gated cave at the back of the town.

"According to our informant, the Narsheans unearthed the esper in a new mine shaft," Wedge informed the others. He regarded the bars closing off the cave from the rest of the world and reached out to touch one. "This must be it."

Biggs snorted, "What tells you that, sir? The bars? Or the many cries of 'Defend the mines!' from the Narshean night watch?"

"Your smart mouth is telling me that you volunteered to smash open this gate," Wedge replied with a hint of a smug grin.

Biggs slumped in his pilot's chair and grumbled the entire time it took him to rip the bars out of solid rock. Considering that he was riding a huge two ton mechanical monster powered by magic that feat didn't take too long at all. The thick metal bars crumpled like a cat bursting out of a wet paper bag. He turned to look back at Wedge and, with a thumbs up, grinned rogue-ishly. "I think that got it."

Entering the Cave

Wedge ordered the group on into the dark, dank cave. The girl turned on a floodlight mounted at the front of her armor and led them inside. Aside from their Magi-Tek armors' footsteps, there was not a noise to be heard. Not even the stereotypical dripping or running of water. Not even the scurrying of tiny rodents or creepy crawlies that live in the darkness. It was so quiet Wedge could hear his own heart beat in his ears. Biggs, on the other hand, seemed to be jumping at every little noise he heard or, rather, thought he heard.

"Hey, Wedge," he whispered, "Do you feel like someone's watching us?"

Wedge laughed in an attempt to calm his own nerves. Something about this cave certainly was creepy. "I think you're jumping at shadows," he said as he quickly looked about. Because the girl's light only pointed forward it was hard to see in any other direction. Not that it mattered anyway. Their one-two formation stretched the entire width of the cavern and so far there had only been one shaft offshoot near the entrance. Had any of them looked directly behind they would have seen a shadow duck through the semi-lit entrance and quietly disappear into said lead-off tunnel.

The girl suddenly stopped without warning causing Biggs and Wedge to nearly run into her. "Enemies," she explained in her stilted way of speaking. They had reached an open cavern that had a few lit lanterns strewn about. At the far end was a large multicolored feathered beast encased in a solid block of ice. In front of it was the largest snail creature Wedge had ever seen along with two of its keepers.

"We're not handing over the esper, Imperials," one of them stated as he shook a fist.

"You can either leave the easy way or the hard way," demanded the other, completely stone faced.

"The easy way I can guess," Biggs chimed. "What's the hard way?"

"We destroy you and send your heads back to your Emperor."

Biggs shared a frown with Wedge and shrugged his shoulders. "Sounds like the hard way will be more fun," he said. "I always wanted to fight a welk."

"You know what this thing is?"

Biggs nodded, "It's a large snail that absorbs magical energy through its shell, sir."

"What's your path, Imperials?" came a question from the opposite side of the cavern.

Wedge regarded the large creature as it struggled against its keepers to attack them. He shouted, "Let's see what you got!"

"Ymir! Get them!" The keepers released the hold on the creature, allowing it to leap (or at least as well as a giant snail could leap) toward its new playthings. Before anyone could react, it spit slime at them. Wedge was narrowly missed, but Biggs was completely covered head to toe. The slime was so thick that it seeped into his armor's joints and gears completely stalling his mobility.

"Don't attack the shell!" Wedge called out to his female companion. Fortunately, or unfortunately (Wedge still was uncertain which), his warning came too late. The girl had already fired off a missile. The resulting fiery explosion upon connecting to the welk's slimy body completely obliterated it and covered them all in the same slime that initially stalled Biggs. Wedge fought with his machine, but the welk goo was just too thick. It would not budge and eventually started to smoke. He popped his cockpit and jumped out to survey their surroundings. All that was left of the creature was a partial burnt husk of its shell, parts of which were still alight with fire, and whatever goo covered the area. The welk's keepers had been blown clear from the blast and were nowhere to be found. Wedge felt that it was safe to assume that they had been killed.

"Aw, gross," Biggs commented from behind.

Wedge turned to regard Biggs and the girl as they dropped to the ground. "C'mon," he said, "We'll continue on foot." The other two nodded and the girl took the lead.

They sidestepped through the mess and quickly made it to where the esper rested. It seemed to give off a radiance of its own despite the low ambient light and the smoke hanging in the air like dirty laundry. "So..." Biggs began nervously as he looked around, "This is an esper?"

Terra's Transformation

Wedge nodded an affirmative and regarded the frozen creature warily. "I'm assuming so. I've never seen one before. It...gives me the creeps." He paused for a moment before turning to the others. "Alright, so while stealth wasn't our strong point on this mission I can't say that it wasn't a success. So let's double back and let..." He trailed off when he noticed the girl staring slack jawed at the esper. "Hey, you okay?"

Biggs, having noticed it as well, reached out to touch her shoulder. A flash of light from both her tiara and the frozen beast caused both soldiers to recoil and cover their eyes. The girl's eyes suddenly went wide as she screamed out in pure agony. Wedge tackled Biggs to the ground with a shout of "Get down!" and pulled the both of them as far away as he could. They both narrowly missed being hit by a bolt of lightning that shot out of the esper and into the girl causing her screams to double in intensity. "What the hell is going on?!" Wedge shouted over the noise.

They both watched as the girl was surrounded entirely by crackling blue energy strong enough to lift her several inches off the ground. "You expect me to-" Biggs' words died in his throat as the girl before them began to transform. First, colors changed; emerald hair to a shimmering color somewhere between the spectrum of pink, lavender, and white. Green eyes went to a brilliant glowing ember red. Short lavender hued fur began sprouting up wherever bare skin could be seen. Nails, hair, ears, and fangs elongated and sharpened where applicable. Other parts of her body filled out to become more rounded and less angular. To the casual observer, this transformation occurred in the space a few seconds and left the screaming girl looking like some sort of glowing pink cat. To the transformee, this process was painful and never ending.

As the electricity quickly faded from the esper, the newly transformed girl screamed yet again as waves of unseen magic radiated from her core to shred what remained of her clothing and shake the entire cave system. She literally flew around the cave at breakneck speed, not unlike a caged animal seeking an exit. When she finally found the way out, she shot through the cave system like a bullet, knocking over the person who had been lurking in the shadows in the process.

Once she reached the cold air surrounding Narshe, her body became engulfed in bright flames. Her departure from the cave system was like an explosion that shook the entire mountain. If the Imperials hadn't made themselves known in town, most of the Narsheans would have assumed that miners were clearing tunnels with dynamite. This, however, wasn't the case as the newly transformed beast girl flew madly through the small mountain town and startled what brave stragglers had ventured out of their homes to investigate the initial ruckus. After passing through the front gates of the town, she angled her trajectory straight upwards before shooting off over the mountains to the south of the town. The flames of the pink cat-girl could have been seen for miles around if anyone had been observing; from Kohlingen to the west to as far east as the port town of Nikeah.

Back in the caves, a confused Biggs and Wedge limped their way into the main exit tunnel. They stopped in surprise when they stumbled over the unconscious body of a young man sporting a bandanna. "Who the hell is this guy?" Biggs wondered as he lifted the limp guy up by his jacket.

"Bring him with us," Wedge ordered. "We'll find out once we get into the light and out of town."

"Without our armor and this guy slowing us down we'll be slaughtered by the night watch...sir."

"There's a side tunnel down near the cave entrance. I'd be willing to bet that it leads somewhere outside town. C'mon. Lord Kefka will want to know about this."

Chapter Three:

Displaced Loyalties (Dancing in the Firelight Earliest Version)
Notes: Not much to say on this one. Also barebones. No exposition intro about Doma. Terra remains awake at the end.

Imperial General Celes Chere found herself staring straight into the crazy eyes of Royal Court Mage Kefka Palazzo. Of course, having her hands bound to a tree branch above her head while in the middle of a clearing in the South Figaroan forest didn't help matters either. Nor did having several of her own soldiers stripping her of her armor and outer uniform before placing her in binds. The crazed jester cackled psychotically and danced a prancing dance in an imaginary circle. Anyone who willingly dressed like a jester and painted their entire face in white with red tears was not normal. Yes, Celes thought, Kefka was crazy. She had always suspected and accusing her of treason because she disagreed with his methods sealed the deal. But then again, one could argue that she was the crazy one for thinking she could go against the Emperor's right hand.

"A thousand voices... All screaming in agony." Kefka cackled crazily before regarding the bound girl with his head cocked to the side. "Why, I know what you're thinking, GENERAL." He sneered her title so much that it came across as a greasy insult. She could feel it slide through her ears and into her mind where it stuck like a sticky cancerous lump. She shook her head with a shudder as he brought his face suddenly within touching distance. "But I had a rebellion to put down! They were just getting incredibly rabid and, why, had to be put down like the dogs they were!" He cackled once more as Celes seethed behind her clenched teeth. "Oh, don't give me that look, Celes!" he mockingly pleaded. "I did what any good soldier would do to win a war." He grinned widely at her before licking his lips and uttering in a guttural tone, "Anything." He cackled once more and began to dance excitedly in place.

Of course he would, Celes thought with a frown. No sane person in their right mind would think to poison women and children and then gloat and laugh about it. "You poisoned women and children, Kefka!" she attempted to reason with him. "That's not fighting a war! That's cold blooded murder!"

Kefka again cackled and caressed Celes' cheek before she roughly turned her head. His touch made her queasy to her stomach. "So says the Ice Queen!" He giggled uncontrollably. "The sacker of Maranda! She who freezes the hearts of men! Alas, the tragedy of Doma! Those poor fools became something more as they perished! They became art! They sang to me of their woes! They sang to me of their pains! They sang to me of their frustrations! It was the greatest of the greatest operas!" He uncharacteristically fell into silence as he regarded the raging fire nearby. "Perhaps..." He slowly turned enough to stare at her from the corner of his eye as a slow grin spread across his lips. With the way the shadows fell on his face as he eyed her, Celes had a feeling she was going to like where this was going to go even less than a normal conversation with this man. "Perhaps you'd like to sing for me, dear." It wasn't a request. It was a demand. Yes. This certainly was going south. He cackled and rubbed his grimy little hands together. "Sing of your woes. Your pains. Your frustrations. Sing as I choke your veins with the very poison you detest!" He cackled psychotically once again as he pulled a vial of purple liquid from his belt.

Celes struggled against her binds and spat at Kefka. "Do what you will!" she shouted. "But what will the Emperor say when he finds out that I'm dead? What excuse could you possibly feed him?"

Kefka's grin became even wider as he pulled the cork off the vial. "'I'm sorry, my liege, but I uncovered a nefarious plot against you! Your dear General Celes Chere, dead!' I'd say!" he shouted in an almost sing-song manner. "'Why, oh, why, dear sweet Kefka?!' he'd exclaim quite concerned!" Kefka cackled again as he swung his arms wide. Drops of poison spilled out of the vial and, to Celes' horror, immediately killed the patches of grass they landed on. "'A vile nasty nefarious plot, sir! Alas! Poor Celes! Betrayed us for the Returners! Betrayed you, my liege! Betrayed you for a gaggle of ragtag ruffians! Alas, poor sweet Celes! Talk sense into her I tried, but... Wo unto me! Killed her I had to! She threatened everything this Empire stands for! Everything you stand for!' And believe me he would because unlike you, General, unlike that goody-two shoes Leo, I am his most trusted advisor!"

Kefka, using his free hand, abruptly backhanded Celes across the face. She cried out as her head snapped to one side. He brought his mouth close to her ear and whispered, "I, as a good and loyal servent, merely saw that the Emperor's will be done. Besides, how do you think it would have looked on my part if I, a lowly jester, had refused the order for their untimely demises? Hmm?" Celes was lost for words. She truly had no idea how to respond to this tirade or even to the accusation of the Emperor being behind something as heinous as the deaths of helpless women and children. Also, her jaw now hurt. Kefka turned his back to her with a laugh and a wave of his hand. "Boys, show the girl what the Emperor does to traitors."

Celes managed to spit out "You sick bastard!" before suddenly finding her stomach being used as a punching bag for Kefka's two body guards. Every hit, every burst of pain hurt not only at the point of contact, but also in her heart. These had been her men, her company. She had led them through hell and back in defending Vector from several surprise Returner attacks, the raid on Maranda. She attempted to choke out the word "Why?" but the sharp haze of pain and lack of air in her lungs prevented that from happening.

After the barrage was finally over, her legs gave out on her leaving her supported completely by the tree branch she was tied to. There was one more swift punch to her stomach that caused her to go into a coughing fit as she swung back and forth like a pendulum. Now she understood why they had removed her armor before hand. A green tank-top doesn't offer much in the way of protection. After the coughing spell ended, she spat excess fluid from her mouth. It was tinged red. Fantastic.

As Celes hung from her branch and struggled to breathe without pain, she became vaguely aware of a scout speaking low to Kefka. She was certain she wasn't hallucinating this particular event especially after hearing the words "Returner Scum", "captive", and "South Figaro", but it was hard to tell through the haze.

All of a sudden Kefka burst into laughter and dance. "Well!" he exclaimed, "It would seem that our secret mission into Narshe was a success!" He rushed up to Celes, grabbed her by the shoulders, and attempted to dance with her. The bewildered girl noted, as she swung back and forth by her arms, that the act was fruitless since she was tied to a tree. He cackled psychotically and rubbed his hands together. "And my little pet! Who would have known that she harbored such power!" Once again he cackled leaving Celes swinging and confused. Little pet? "Oooh! So exciting!" he cooed. "And a bonus! A Returner spy for me to interrogate!" He grabbed Celes by her long golden hair, causing her to cry out in pain. "Today is your lucky day, my dear! Be happy! I'll only allow the men to do to you as they please! This poison..." He licked his lips hungrily. "I think I'll keep for my new friend who will be waiting for me in South Figaro." He giggled quietly to himself before walking away with his entourage towards the camp's kenneled chocobos. "Ta ta!"

The once great Imperial General Celes hung limp from her tree; sore, humiliated, angry, and losing her track of time. Kefka had been gone for some time when she decided she needed a plan of action. Being free from those ropes would be a start. Her stomach no longer smarting was a fantastic idea as well. Then perhaps...possibly making good graces with the Returners by rescuing their operative? It was no secret in the Empire that King Edgar Figaro was "secretly" a Returner. He was as bad a liar as he was a womanizer. The only reason the Emperor let him run free was because of the technology he developed and shared. She did know enough Imperial trade secrets that she could possibly be an asset to them.

Kefka was right. She had turned traitor. Ironically, it only took his accusations to push her in that direction. His crimes against humanity helped as well. On the plus side, she'd never have to serve with that crazy clown ever again. No more tyrannical tirades. No more invasion of private space. The downside was that, at the moment, she had no way of breaking those pesky ropes. She could possibly freeze the branch with her ice magic and snap it with her weight, but with her hands bound that still left her vulnerable to recapture. What she needed was a rescue.

Celes painfully sighed with a hitch and resigned herself to whatever they deemed her fate to be. At least she did, until a powerful energy presence made itself known to her. It was a like a low frequency hum that started in the back of her head and became louder with every passing moment. Her eyesight locked on the nearby camp fire as it suddenly tripled in size causing the soldiers relaxing around it to scramble back in surprise. Then there was the screaming. It was piercing, it was loud, and it was coming from the sky. She looked skyward just in time to see what looked like a flaming pink cat dive towards their location like a meteor. Several soldiers cried out warnings a split second before the entire clearing was engulfed in a fiery explosion that was powerful enough to snap Celes free of the branch and toss her against the trunk.

"What the hell was that?!" exclaimed one soldier. There were sounds of swords drawn.

"Some kind of flaming pink cat thing?" queried another. More swords were drawn.

Celes, now in a sitting position on the ground, shook her head to clear it as the dust in the air dissipated. Not too far from her vantage point she witnessed something the likes she had never seen before. An unarmed humanoid beast raised itself from its crouching position and stared down an entire company of confused Imperial soldiers. Celes watched as this creature took a moment to flip its wild pink hair from its face before casting a sidelong glance in her direction. She found the sight to be quite beautiful.

"All right. Who ordered me the fuzzy hooker for my birthday?" one of the soldiers asked nonchalantly with a shrug. There was stifled laughter from the back of the group.

In response, the fem-creature (Celes was certain that it was female.) raised a slender arm and, a split second later, magically set a good portion of the chuckling Imperials on fire with an explosion. The ones that were spared fell back to what they thought was a safe distance. Except one. Brave Dave took a swing with his sword and suddenly found himself being flung towards his comrades. The creature had somersaulted over his head, grabbed his shoulders in the process, and used the momentum to send him flying. Once the first group went down, the scene became an all out madhouse as more groups entered the battle.

Celes watched in awe as the lithe figure did nothing but dodge attacks with rolls, hair-width sidesteps, and even flying. She was using the chaos and confusion of the situation to trick Imperial into striking Imperial. Her movements were fluid, almost like a dance of some kind. The only way to explain her movement was powerful magic and very rarely was that magic used to set her opponents on fire. Celes could feel the energy emanating in pulses so substantial that no matter how much she wanted to she couldn't pull her gaze away.

And then, like a snap of the finger, the battle was over. Celes stared at the fem-creature wide-eyed as she stopped to catch her breath. Fifty soldiers dead in less time than it takes to skip a rock across a pond. Blood coated the ground like spilled paint. The bodies of soldiers laid gutted, burnt, or soiled with their own excrement throughout the entire clearing. The only space that seemed to have been spared the carnage was Celes' own. She just sat there with her mouth agape in shock.

The cat girl licked one of her wrists for a moment before finally catching notice of the bound and stunned girl nearby. Or maybe she had known she had been there all along and was toying with Celes psychologically. The blonde took that moment to catch a good look at the beast girl's face. If it hadn't been for her non-human features, like the pointed ears, fangs, and full body fur, Celes would have sworn that she looked like someone she knew. The little girl in the back of her mind wanted to swoon, but the general was having none of that.

As the creature sauntered towards her, Celes struggled to her feet and placed her back flush against the tree. "Stay back!" she shakily warned. "I'm not like the others! I can use magic!" The creature stopped just within arm's reach and cocked her head to one side as if puzzled. Despite the battle that just had taken place, Celes couldn't help but find the expression adorable. That thought didn't last long before she suddenly found the beast pinning her to the tree with its body. Her body, Celes corrected herself; one that she was becoming all too aware of. Her fur was surprisingly soft, almost like down, and smelled very faintly of strawberries, which was an odd thing to be reminded of considering the predicament.

Celes found herself staring into the beast's glowing red eyes, which not moments before blazed like an inferno but now had the kind of warmth one would find in a loving home by a cozy fire. Before she knew what was happening, the cat creature took her mouth into hers for a kiss. Not knowing what to do, Celes closed her eyes and froze in hopes that it would be over quickly. Yet, the little girl in the back of her head was enjoying every second of it. The strong buzzing magic in the air wasn't helping things, either. The general silently wondered if the creature had charmed her with magic.

When the split second eternity ended, Celes opened her eyes to find that she hadn't been kissed by some unknown long lost mythological creature, but rather someone she knew all too well. Someone who wasn't a nonhuman. Someone she had thought the creature resembled. It took her quite by surprise to a point she could scarcely believe it. There was no mistaking that emerald colored hair. She had to work her jaw several times before she could shakily ask, "Terra?"

The emaciated green haired girl wobbled slightly on her feet before nodding tiredly. She attempted to keep her balance, but ultimately ending up falling forward into Celes' bound arms. "I'm tired..." she slurred.

Celes flushed red at the other girl's brazen nudity and attempted to ease her down to the ground. They had to get out this place. A thousand questions were bouncing around her head like mad, but now wasn't the time for talking. She made haste to the nearest abandoned sword and hurriedly cut through the rope on her wrists. If she had been able to feel Terra's magical field, then chances were Kefka felt it as well. She did not want to be here when or if he returned. She quickly scanned the camp for any undamaged supplies worth taking and was rewarded with a sleeping bag and a canteen of water. She shoved those items into a nearby pack as she looked to the empty chocobo kennels. The fighting must have scared the birds off. Disappointing, but it looked like foot travel was the way to go.

As she passed through the site of Terra's impact, Celes's foot struck something metallic half embedded in the ground. After gingerly picking the ring like object up and studying it for a moment, realization dawned on her. Even though it was slightly twisted, half melted, and missing its decorative gemstones, there was no mistaking Terra's tiara. Celes hadn't seen the girl without it once in the last two years. She shoved it in her pack and made a hasty return to Terra.

Celes knelt down to lift the other girl into her arms but paused before doing so. Aside from having the ability to change into some kind of magical beast, she seemed different somehow. What the difference was escaped her grasp teasingly, almost like a cat that wanted attention, but remained just out of reach. Something she'd have to look into once they reached safety. Terra weakly opened her eyes and asked in a whisper, "Where am I?"

Ignoring the sting in her stomach, Celes lifted the other girl and quickly disappeared into the forest. It was a good thing the poor girl was underweight, otherwise Celes would never have been able to carry her. Although when they reached civilization she was going to make her eat a damn sandwich...or ten. "We'll talk after we get somewhere safe," she shushed her.

Terra nodded weakly and buried her face into Celes' arm. "Promise?"

"Promise."

Chapter Four:
Unnamed (Straight into Darkness Earliest Version)
Notes: Also rediscovered amongst my notes. This was my first attempt at chapter four, Straight into Darkness, back when I was still figuring out what I was wanting to do with this project. It's drastically different from the finished product and a small insight into what I've got planned for later chapters.

"Terra, wake up."

Young Terra Branford was fully aware of the person standing over her bed. She was always aware and never slept because of it. The hard as a rock bed and its thin tattered sheets didn't help either. Neither did the doctors and scientists poking and prodding her all hours of the day. The only thing that brought her comfort and warmth was the stuffed moogle she was strangling under the covers. Day in, day out it was the same random routine all to find out how and why she could conjure fire. There were no niceties. No hey how are yous. Really, no concern about her wellbeing as a human. Always subject this, subject that. Needles. She couldn't even remember the last time they had given her food.

Her friend Leo was the only one who seemed to take an interest in who she was. He was the reason why she had her moogle in the first place. Not only was it a gift, but when a scientist man tried taking it away, Leo just whispered something in his ear and Mr. Oogly-Moogly was never hurt again. Terra wished that Leo would visit more often. He would tell these guys to leave her alone and let her sleep. She pulled the sheets over her head in the hopes that the scientist man would go away, but like every other time, it didn't work. The sheets were ripped off her before she found herself being forced to stand at the side of the bed.

Terra groggily rubbed the sleep from her eyes and wondered what it was going to be today. Were they going to take more blood? Were they going to inject more strange chemicals into her to make her sick? Or were they going to have her set more things on fire? The whole thing was getting to the point of being predictable and monotonous. She wanted Leo to take her away and show her the outside world that he often talked to her about. She wanted to feel the sun, see the trees, run through the grass. When they wheeled in a blonde girl on a bed with wheels, Terra realized that this day was going to be different. This other girl was sleeping in her bed, which instantly made Terra envious. She didn't bother asking what was going on because they wouldn't tell her. They never told her anything.

When the bed was in place and all the tubes attached to the blonde girl were fixed to where they needed to be, everyone left and locked the door behind them. They were watching though. They were always watching. Terra squeezed Mr. Oogly-Moogly and considered what to do. The girl in the bed did not look well at all; red-faced, sweating buckets, erratic breathing. Terra was half-tempted to just go back to bed, but if this girl was suffering... She slowly stalked to the bedside to get a closer look. The blonde was not much older than her and also looked like she hadn't eaten or bathed in a long time. Was she another "subject" like her?

The bedridden girl suddenly whispered "It's cold..." before thrashing about and grunting, almost like in pain. Terra watched wide eyed as the poor girl's thrashing intensified in front of her, contorting the girl's body into strange angles. She could hear scientists behind the door whispering something about rejection, but realized that nothing would come of it when the door didn't immediately open. She bit her bottom lip and made up her mind.

She let Mr. Oogly-Moogly snuggle with the pain stricken girl before taking a hand in hers. Blondie was freezing, like ice. No person Terra had ever touched was ever this cold. People were supposed to be warm. Terra didn't quite know what she was doing, but felt that it was the right thing to do. She tried to imagine the other girl lying in her bed comfortable and warm. A bright blue light formed where they were holding hands and spread out throughout the girl's body before disappearing. The last thing Terra remembered before passing out was the other's thrashing coming to a complete stop.

When Terra had come to, she had discovered that she was once again all alone. She did have Mr. Oogly-Moogly, but as a stuffed moogle he didn't really count. As the days passed by at a snail's pace with no doctors, no scientists, and, most importantly, no food, Terra was getting a suspicion that they had forgotten about her. She had a feeling that it was all about the other girl now as she could occasionally hear the other girl's screams of pain faintly through the walls. Then when they were done with whatever it was they were doing to her an eerie silence would befall the room. Every time Terra would huddle on her bed and squeeze Mr. Oogly-Moogly as hard as she could. She was scared. She was so scared that they'd come back and hurt her more that she couldn't stop trembling. If only someone would rescue her from this scary place.

Chapter Five:
MagiTek Solid - Escape From South Figaro

Terra Heals Locke

Terra's hands glowed green as she imagined herself pulling the poison out of the Returner's mouth as if it were a long purple snake. When it attempted to snap at her hand, the version of her in her mind threw it hard to the floor and stomped on its head. Purple chunks of gore splattered over the floor and on the girls' leggings and boots.

When she returned to reality, she discovered that the poor man had thrown up on the floor. Splatter covered the girls' leggings and boots. It wasn't normal chunder, it was the poison that had been in his system. His color was no longer ashen, but now flushed a slight red.

Terra wobbled on her feet as she attempted to stay upright. Her head now felt like a herd of chocobos were stampeding in circles within it.

Chapter Six:
The Monster in the Mirror

Celes and Terra Discuss their Escape from South Figaro

She hadn't wanted to ruin the moment, but her curiosity had gotten the better of her. She asked how they had gotten where they were, wherever that was. Celes merely smiled and, with another squeeze of Terra's shoulders, recounted a tale of close calls, high speed chocobo chases, and massive explosions.

Terra learned that not long after being surprised by Edgar King of Figaro of all people, she had healed the Returner operative, and passed out from exhaustion in Celes' arms. Edgar, being since he was the monarch of the land, managed to procure chocobos for the two of them to escape on while the former general stayed behind to watch over her unconscious charges. Upon returning, Edgar not only had several of the large birds of burden in tow, but his martial artist brother as well, who, as luck would have it, happened to have been procuring his own bird for travel to the castle. The way to Figaro Cave yielded no hardships until at the cave itself, when a Tunnel Armor unit, a large subterranean drill tank armed with MagiTek lasers, burst out of the ground. Celes, knowing the weakness of the Empire's technological marvel, used her lesser known Runic ability to redirect the mechanical monstrosity's MagiTek lasers back on to itself.

Celes smiled weakly before looking away at nothing in another direction. "The explosion was massive," she said with a sigh. "But I knew the men piloting that thing. The only comfort I have in taking their lives is that they would have went instantly." She rubbed her upper arm and seemed to focus on the balcony's railing. "...I hope," she added with a whisper.

The emeralda enveloped her friend in a hug and, resting her forehead on the other's, encouragingly said, "It's us or them. Right?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't make it easier to swallow when they're people you served with."

Terra had nothing to say as a rebuttal.

Terra Meets Sabin

"Beautiful, isn't it?" came a soft male voice from behind her. Terra jumped and whirled around with fire in her hands. The man standing behind her wasn't so much of a man as he was a collection of bulging muscles in the shape of a man wearing dark red pajama pants. He warmly laughed and leaned on the stone railing, completely unfazed by the fact that her hands were now tiny fireballs. "Sorry," he apologized, "That's a bad habit I forget about."

Terra let her fire fizzle out into thin wisps of smoke. Obviously, he meant no harm, but where did he come from? Before she could ask, he jerked a thumb back towards the second door on the balcony and laughed once again. "Our rooms are connected by the balcony," he said in amusement. "I saw you out here and thought I'd say good morning!" He returned to his full height, at least a head taller than her, and extended his hand. "Name's Sabin, by the way."

Terra extended her own and felt her tiny hand become dwarfed by his. At first she thought she going to be crushed by his immense size and strength, but she soon found that he was as gentle as a stuffed moogle. "Your name's Sabin?" she asked. "At first glance I thought you were some kind of giant teddy bear."

This prompted laughter from the large man. "I like you," he said with a smile. "I also came out to tell you that breakfast should be soon and not to be offended too much if my brother says something stupid."

Terra raised an eyebrow. "Your brother?"

This prompted more laughter. "Sorry," Sabin apologized. "I forgot that Celes mentioned that you had issues with your memory. I guess you'll meet him at breakfast."

"I was not expecting such a strong reaction from an amnesiac."

Edgar returned with a twisted silver tiara in his hands. The two girls shot up straight in their chairs. They both knew what it was, but both knew it in different lights.

Terra tried to make herself small in her chair with a whimper. This piece of metal scared her nearly as much as Kefka, although the exact reason escaped her. She vacated her seat and attempted to buy herself into Celes' arms. "Don't put it on me!" she screamed multiple times. "Don't let him put it on me!"

Celes' chair fell back to the floor as she stood to better cradle the other girl in her arms. She made several attempts to reassure the girl that no one was going to force her to wear anything which finally turned wailing into soft hiccups and teary bloodshot eyes.

The perplexed Edgar's expression dropped as his gaze traveled from the tiara to Terra, back to the tiara, and finally settling on Celes. "Fascinating," he muttered. "I was not expecting such a strong reaction from an amnesiac."

"What were you expecting?" Celes countered dryly. "Terra to run up to you with wide open arms?"

Edgar laughed mockingly and set the tiara down on the table. "I had my best engineers study this per your request."

The blonde woman raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "And I take it you found something?"

"Indeed," the monarch stated excitedly as he nodded. "This innocent looking piece of women's headgear contains slave crown technology."

Celes' expression dropped before she looked down at the girl that had a face buried in her chest. So that was it. That was why Terra had been aloof for all the time. Kefka had been controlling her.

Alternate Ending (A Guard Warns of Kefka's Approach)

A royal guard burst into the room looking like he had been chased by a ghost all the way from South Figaro. He stopped just inside the door and used his spear to help maintain his uprightedness. Edgar and Celes shared a look of confusion after waiting for a vocalized outburst that never happened. "Well, out with, man!" exclaimed the monarch, "Surely you must have something dire to say after bursting into a room like that."

The young guard breathlessly nodded his head. "My apologies, milord!" he wheezed. "It's the Empire, milord! A small group has been spotted coming this way!"

Edgar clapped his hands together with a grin the size of the desert his castle stood in. "I do say, my dear," he said as he pulled out a comb to run through his hair, "Kefka seems to be right on time as I expected."

Celes's face dropped into one of pure anger as her balled fists became sold ice. "I'm gonna fucking-"

"No, no. Not here and not with your emotions on high. Both you and Terra still must meet our leader, Banon." Her angry gaze slowly locked onto his excited eyes. "You can't do that if you're dead, yes?"

Celes sighed and conceded that Edgar was possibly correct. "So, I take it you have a plan?"

There was another excited grin with an equally excited response. "A good king always has the perfect escape plan," he boasted. "So... Shall we escape to Narshe with a daring good show?"

Chapter Seven:
Octopus' Garden: Tentacle Assault Squad

Battle with Ultros (Script Version)

ULTROS enters the scene from the forest with a frightened TERRA in his tentacle clutches.

ULTROS:
Hiya, kids! Welcome to my humble kingdom!

CELES, EDGAR, and LOCKE look to each other, confused out of their minds.

CELES:
*low*
What the hell is that?

ULTROS:
*cont'd*
And since you're in the presence of octopus royalty, I suggest paying respects by kneeling to your non-bony overlord!

LOCKE:
*raises an eyebrow*
Who're you again?

ULTROS:
I'm Ultros, boyo, and don't you forget it! And as my first decree as Octopus Royal on High, I declare that all the pretty ladies belong to me!

CELES detaches her broadsword from the magnet on her back and adopts a fighting stance-

CELES:
*pissed*
Oh, hell no! Edgar, man the long range.

EDGAR:
Aye!

CELES:
Locke, use your thieving skills to sneak up on this asshole.

LOCKE:
Um, I'm actually a treasure hunter...

-before she takes off in a sprint towards the giant octopus.

CELES:
*pissed*
Now's not the time to argue semantics, retard!

EDGAR and LOCKE follow suit by brandishing their weapons as well, a monster mechanical crossbow and dual daggers respectively. As CELES leaps in the air with her sword over her head in position for a vertical strike, EDGAR pulls the release on his crossbow and a shower of arrows rain on the battlefield. LOCKE seems to melt into the shadows of the trees. ULTROS deflects several arrows easily with the tentacle that CELES had been targeting-

ULTROS:
*laughs*
What does that thing fire? Spitwads?

-which causes her to miss with the blade. She hits the ground with a cloud of dust before she bolts straight up, bringing the sword back around her shoulder. She swings it back around the front sending a deadly spinning buzz saw ring of ice from the blade. It connects to the octopus causing some serious damage before splintering off into smaller ice shards that cause minor damage to the surrounding mass of tentacles.

ULTROS:
Yeowwwch! Didn't your mother ever tell you not to throw ice at people, Boobs?

ULTROS slaps CELES' sword with a tentacle. Now stuck to his suckers, CELES is swung around the battlefield as she hangs on for dear life. Inadvertently, she knocks LOCKE off his feet before he can sneak up on the mollusk.

TERRA:
Celes!

CELES:
*exasperated*
I'm not a god damn yo-yo, you freaking over-grown snack!

EDGAR readies another volley of arrows in his crossbow. ULTROS stops swinging CELES around long enough to wrap another tentacle around her mouth and nose. Her face turns red as she, in a panic, uses her hands to attempt to leverage enough of a space to breathe. He holds her in front of his face-

ULTROS:
Now that's just rude, lady! I'm at the very least a full-fledged entree!

EDGAR:
Unhand them, you fiend!

-before EDGAR lets loose another shower of arrows. ULTROS uses CELES' sword, which is still suctioned to his tentacle, to deflect the arrows in a multitude of directions. EDGAR takes cover behind his crossbow, while LOCKE dives and rolls across the ground.

ULTROS:
*to CELES*
You are a lady, right? I mean, you look like one, but, geez, those are some serious man-hands.

LOCKE comes up beside EDGAR. TERRA can be heard calling for CELES in a panicked manner in the background.

LOCKE:
Any ideas?

EDGAR:
None, I am afraid. My arrows are ineffective and we cannot get close.

LOCKE:
*scoffs*
Typical RPG boss battle.

One of ULTROS' tentacles slithers across CELES' chest and squeezes what it finds there. CELES' struggles becomes less and less violent as she turns from red to blue.

ULTROS:
*to CELES*
Woo-oow! That's a great rack you got there!

TERRA's eyes suddenly turn red with anger as her entire body becomes engulfed in flames.

TERRA:
*screaming*
Let her go!

This causes ULTROS to scream like a girl and fling both real girls in opposite directions. CELES' sword embeds itself at an angle in the ground between LOCKE's legs.

EDGAR:
*with a grin*
Well, aren't we lucky!

ULTROS:
Jesus Christ! I didn't order the fried calamari!

TERRA lands in a brush filled area. She winces as she sits up.

SABIN:
*unseen*
Wow! You can use fire like that?

ULTROS:
*in the distance*
Where the hell are you, you green haired bitch?! I'm gonna make you feel so much pain you'll get off on it!
*softly*
Preferably in my mouth.

TERRA is startled around and finds SABIN.

TERRA:
Who are-
*grossed out*
Ewww!

SABIN:
*laughs*
We'll save the introductions for later, but it seems you and I have a mutual enemy. Think you can distract him with your fire?

Back in the field, EDGAR readies another volley of arrows, while LOCKE attempts to defend him using his twin daggers.

LOCKE:
Any day now, Edgar!

EDGAR:
Figaro was not built in a day, Mr. Cole. Last thing I want is this exploding in my face.

Suddenly, CELES comes careening out of the brush where she had landed, wielding a makeshift ice bludgeoning device. She makes it halfway to the octopus before he shrieks, hits her with a blast of oily ink, and sends her flying into LOCKE and EDGAR.

CELES:
*pained*
That's it! I'm done being tossed around!

She gets up and blindly trips over EDGAR only to land on top of LOCKE. ULTROS laughs.

ULTROS:
I hafta say, Boobs, you look hot all covered in my ink. How's about givin' me a kiss now?

CELES struggles against LOCKE and EDGAR as they hold her back.

CELES:
*pissed*
Lemme at him!

EDGAR:
Not a wise idea, Celes!

CELES:
*pissed*
I don't care if I can't see! I'm gonna rip off every single one of his tentacles and-

A wild TERRA suddenly appears spewing a sea of fire from both hands.

TERRA:
*low*
The only thing you're kissing is fire.

ULTROS:
*screams*
Look! Look! There's no need to make a seafood soup outta me! This has just been a major misunderstanding! How about I go rule my kingdom elsewhere?

SABIN leaps from the fire and pummels ULTROS several times with punches and kicks.

SABIN:
You can rule it from the stars, buddy!

SABIN uppercuts ULTROS sending the octopus into the sky.

ULTROS:
*fading*
Damn you, muscle-head! You haven't seen the last of me!

He disappears as a glint of light.