The doors loomed forbiddingly in her view. An inscription in faded letters wound around the frames, hovering just beyond comprehension.
The short, pale-haired boy she accompanied traced one of the words with his finger. "It's like I can almost read it…" he said softly.
A powerfully built man walked up to the door, and mimicked Vaan's actions with another word. "And the words aren't even that faded," he said. "It is as if we are magicked against reading them."
"Probably; it isn't an edifice of much worth if there aren't mysterious magicks," her partner cracked. His hair was uncharacteristically mussed and dusty; she was certain he would be complaining loudly about the state of his shirt by the time they escaped this shrine.
She peered at the doors. The inscriptions did indeed seem to make sense until you looked closely at them. The other two girls in their party were looking silently at the monstrous portal. The lost princess mouthed silently, and the friend of Vaan was simply watching.
Fran closed her eyes. She knew something about piercing illusionary magicks.
Her ears swiveled on their own, picking up vibrations from around her. Her body vibrated ever so slightly as she became aware of the Mist around her.
She focused her senses on the door. It was indeed saturated with Mist. She called upon her magicks, and opened her eyes.
She raised her hands to the door. Her fingertips glowed with arcane green light the closer she got to the door. She didn't touch it, though.
The words flared brightly, with the same green color as her fingertips. The party gasped as they were suddenly able to read the door.
"Your wisdom proved…now assay your power…" Ashe read.
Fran let her magick die. Her fingertips lost their color.
But the door continued to shine. The green glow spread from the carved words to fill the entire door, which burst open, knocking Vaan and Basch on their backs. Ashe stumbled back, and Penelo threw her arm across her face. Fran was unmoved by the sudden movement; she had felt the Mist surge and had stepped back.
Cold rolled out of the doorway. Inside, a landscape of ice filled the massive chamber.
Fran walked inside, entranced by the thick Mist. It was so strong it actually distorted her vision. She heard Balthier call to her, and she heard faint footsteps behind her, but she was unable to pay much attention to it.
The ice drew up into a tower in the center of the room, holding a clouded figure within it. When she drew close to it, it shattered with a deafening crash.
The figure within the ice was released; it was batlike, with long, spindly limbs and extended fingers. There was a woman's body attached to it; her hair was coal black and her eyes were wide and unseeing.
Fran was snapped out of her trance. She bent her knees, lowering her center of gravity, and pulled the crossbow off of her pack, loading a bolt into it and firing it into the creature.
The bolt struck the woman's body, and dissolved into blueness. A wave of cold radiated from the creature, driving Fran back. Six swirling snowstorms appeared around her.
"Fran!" Balthier cried. He sprinted forward, pulling the long staff from his back. Basch followed him, unsheathing his katana. The two of them tore into the cloud of swirling ice around Fran.
Blue light flashed and flared around the three of them as Balthier ignited his Mist magick. He spun his staff back onto his back, and thrust his fists forward. Blue orbs of light danced around him, and a massive wave crashed down upon the monsters.
Basch followed Balthier. Twelve swords of fire appeared around him, swirling and dancing in strange patterns around him. They lanced forward, each one spearing one of the malicious snowstorms, and the remaining ones stabbing the large creature.
Basch roared wordlessly, spreading his arms wide. Another wave appeared, but this one was of molten rock and flame. It poured over the monsters, searing through them.
The Mist fever spread over Fran. She screamed, and lashed out. She landed fierce blows on the monsters around her. A malevolent red glow spread across her skin, and she let another shriek out. The glow erupted, and an explosion spread out from her.
The Mist in the area suddenly vanished, reappearing above them. A disc of searing light swirled above their head, and a third wave of fiery destruction poured from it onto the battlefield.
The Quickening of the Mist faded. The six ice creatures had faded, leaving small puddles on the ground. The huge beast recoiled, shuddering.
Fran collapsed to the ground. Balthier and Basch followed her; using Mist powers was incredibly exhausting. Ashe, Vaan, and Penelo charged past her, engaging the tall creature.
Ashe caught the creature's attention. It rose from its stupor, and swiped at the princess. She expertly caught the blow on her shield, and struck back with the huge Demonsbane sword. Vaan ran behind her with his ninja knife, striking the beast's legs. Penelo stayed back, firing rapid shots from her bow.
The battle was quick and fierce. The beast staggered back under the onslaught. Penelo stopped her attacks…which proved to be a huge mistake.
When the three let their offensive pressure lessen, the beast came back. Blue-white light shone around it, and massive blocks of ice appeared in the air above them, crashing down on Vaan and Ashe. They fell down, overcome by the magick blast.
Penelo grabbed another arrow and fired wildly. She managed to hit the woman half of the beast. It roared, and turned to face her. A cloud of white fog rolled over Penelo; when it disappeared, Penelo was covered with frost and was lying on the ground, motionless.
Fran looked up. The monster was hovering before her. Its arms shot out, impaling Basch and Balthier, dropping them to the ground.
Fran raised her crossbow. Her limbs shook, and her legs refused to lift her. From her sitting position, she took careful aim as the esper approached.
The Mist in her body had restored itself slightly. She imbued her bolt with every ounce of magick power she could control, and fired.
The arrow screamed through the air, slicing all the way through the goddess and impaling the creature of ice. Fran felt the Mist in the room concentrate, sucking all the magickal power into a single spot – within the creature.
Time seemed to slow. The creature let out a wild death knell, and exploded into flashes of blue light. The light swirled around, turning into a gigantic blue crystal. The crystal shattered, releasing a golden symbol that floated in the air.
Fran reached out, touching the symbol. Light flared as she connected with it, and she felt a rush of power fill her. Her senses blacked out for a moment as Mist invaded her body, but she quickly adjusted. She felt very cold, but the feeling became very natural as she thought about it.
A presence in her mind made itself known. I am Mateus, the Corrupt, it said.
Fran closed her eyes. She was able to contain much more Mist than ever before. She reached into this new store of power, and converted it into White Magick. Columns of white light shone over her fallen allies, bringing them back to conscious life. Ashe was the first to rise, her indomitable will once again giving her the strength to overcome her weakness. Penelo was the next to rise, and as the three men got to their feet, she released a Cura spell, restoring physical energy to everyone.
Ashe walked into the chamber, and found a second door. She opened it, hoping desperately that what they sought lay beyond…