A/N: First off, I'd like to say a few things. Firstly, having given a great deal of thought and planning into this story, I realized that it would deviate from the canon of FFI, it is now to be considered an AU story. If this doesn't appeal to you then I apologize, but the only future changes I will make will be updating the story with better quality writing as I grow as an author and adding short bios for any of the important characters or creatures in a chapter. Secondly, this chapter will probably be much longer than I planned it to be. That could be a good or bad thing, seeing how I have rewritten the beginning of this chapter several times and am currently doing so... Anyways, if the chapter is longer than 4-6K(Barring the Author notes, chapter preview or questions and Bios) I exceeded what I wanted to write.

Bios:

King Elvis Ceodore Cornelius- The King of Cornelia. He is a kind and caring man who prefers to be spoken to as if he is the equal of the person addressing him. He has eight daughters, who he tries to instruct in the way of benevolent ruling with mixed results. He is calm, even when under a great deal of pressure or stress, but he may be slowly cracking under pressure from a recent issue regarding his missing daughter, Serah... Class: King(Unique. Geomancer/Lord). Special Ability: Tame, Calm, Command

Lord of the Skies, Stratoavis- A legendary bird said to be the bestial incarnation and messenger of a god... It is massive and vicious, yet emits majesty and awe that can support its given title. An encounter with the Stratoavis is surely a sign of a greater calling... or imminent death. Starting Class: -. Special Ability: Havoc Wing, Sonic Boom, Wind Shear

From the Previous Chapter:

Hikari(Light) Light- The father of Ikari, husband of Ai, and a high ranking paladin. He is considered to be one of the strongest beings alive due to many of his previous exploits. Generally seen as stoic, Hikari rarely shows emotion due to an accident ten years before the story. He appears to be younger than he actually is and has many connections around the world. Class: Dark Slayer(Paladin Highlord/Hades' Arm) Special Ability: Unknown, Paladin Techs(Mastered), Unknown

Ai(Love) Light- The mother of Ikari and wife of Hikari. She is consider to be one of the strongest practitioners of White Magic because of her attainment of the titles White Sage and Cosmos' Emissary, but she prefers to study all forms of magic and science as opposed to acting as a healer. However, this is not to say that she is selfish, rather she uses what she discovers to benefit the world as best she can. When testing inventions on a personal level, she calls upon her two "volunteers," Ikari and Hikari, for various interesting results. She is the one Ikari takes the most after, especially habit wise, idea wise and the presence of a rather dark second persona... Class: Master of Elements(Unique. White Sage/Chemist/Unknown). Special Ability: Mix, Unknown, Unknown


Node Two: The Knight, The Princess and The Time Bomb

The ones chosen to bear the Crystals are not neccessarily the strongest, wisest or most intelligent nor the most moral or honest. They are chosen because of their potential and talents that will enable them to throw a kink in the revival of Chaos. With each repeated Cycle, Chaos grows stronger, having absorbed the power of the previous Cycle's Warriors of Light. This only increases the difficulty of the trial facing the next bearers of the Crystals, should they reach the lost god.

To counter this, the Crystals bequeath more of their power to their chosen heroes, giving them a greater chance of meeting the lost god. Ultimately, it comes down to the teamwork and resolve of the four chosen in their final encounter with Chaos. Only with the power imparted by their bonds can they hope to succeed in their endeavor. However, Chaos does not wait idly for his opponents to reach him. He watches and manipulates what he can through his medium in the world, bringing trial after trial to those who wish to end the Cycles...


"This is all your fault," we shouted simultaneously. Ikari and I were pissed at each other. Why? To make a long story short, we were lost. To elaborate, after Ikari gave me the map we managed to not only not reach Cornelia, but somehow end up near the coast.

"You're the one using the map," yelled Ikari.

"You're the one who knows the landmarks around Cornelia," I retaliated, "You could've told me when you realized we hadn't passed by one!"

"I would've if I hadn't thought you knew how to read a map!"

"I CAN read a map, unlike SOMEONE."

"Really? Doesn't look like it." The argument was getting us nowhere, but that didn't stop us from continuing.

"That's because your eyes equate to a ornaments placed on your face," I spat.

"If my eyes are as bad as you say, why'd you ask me about landmarks, princess," he said, his annoying voice practically drowning in sarcasm.

"Maybe I wanted to believe otherwise. Maybe I was starting to think you were far more than an incompetent pervert," I sighed, far past yelling.

"Says the illiterate map reader."

"... You're an ass, Ikari. Dealing with you is like dealing with a spoiled child," I huffed.

"You'd know all about that, princess. Unlike you, I had to work for everything I have. You just showed up out of the blue with a letter requesting that you be given everything," he said icily, before realizing that he was treading on a sensitive topic for me. Sensitive enough for me to snap.

"You don't know anything," I exploded, the fires of indignation and rage rekindled. "You have a family, not a slip of paper to remind you of who you used to have! You didn't have your childhood ripped away from you by a group of men who believed you had a better purpose in life than to follow in your parents' footsteps. The only problem YOU ever had was a father that couldn't emulate the slightest notion of any feeling towards you!" Now it was my turn to trample on a sensitive topic, but I didn't stop when I saw the pained expression on Ikari's face: He had brought out the worst in me, so it was only fair if he suffered for it. "You pretend to get along with him, but you secretly loathe his lack of emotion when it comes to anything you do."

"Shut up," responded Ikari, "You know that isn't true..."

"Really," I asked mockingly, "Then why do act as if I struck a nervem Do you really not hate the lack of empathy he shows you or your mother? He puts up a good act and emulates the facial expressions, but he's missing the key component: the heart. It must be saddening, having such an emotionless parental figure."

"That's a lie... Father does care, despite his condition," he snapped, "All that matters is the thought. Nothing more, nothing less." He seemed to be shaken despite his words. He couldn't lie due to his honor code as a Paladin, but he could twist the truth. Unfortunately for him, he was a terrible twister of the truth, especially so since I had known him for nearly a decade.

"Then why do you always seem upset when you only get a 'good work Ikari' or a 'you tried your best' despite how much effort you put into your training? I never see any genuine joy when he complements you, only anger or melancholy."

"That's not aimed at him," shouted the paladin in training, "I owe more to my father than I do anyone else!"

"Then why do you look so conflicted? Don't lie to yourself Ikari: you know that he cares nothing for you. You can tell that all he wants is for an incompetent brat like you to vanish," I retorted, regretting it almost instantly. Ikari closed the distance between us in an instant, a dark aura emanating from him.

"You talk too much about things you know nothing about. Be silent," he said, his voice cold and distant as he pointed his sword at me. I got a brief glimpse into his eyes, a frigid blue compared to their normal mellow green, and his now slate colored hair. "Be careful what you say about Hikari, you may regret insulting him." He left the rest of his threat unsaid as he sheathed his blade. His eyes returned to their usual green and the aura about him vanished. "Are we clear?" I nodded, having felt something unnatural about the paladin in training. "Good, I'll be going. Ikari's back." What are you-

"Don't try to define me, Ezra," stated Ikari, now back to normal and quite upset, judging by the tears in his eyes and his pained expression. "You obviously don't understand me as much as either of us thought." With that said, Ikari took off further down the coast and vanished from my sight within moments. I stood confused as I tried and failed to make sense of what had just happened, ultimately stopping and hitting myself in the forehead.

"Dammit, why did I even say that," I snapped at myself, "I should've known better, but I couldn't just let him get away with saying that about my life... I'm such a fool." I continued to berate myself, mentally and aloud, for going too far in my anger until I felt a chill. The sun was going down and I had little to no knowledge of the area and no means of sheltering myself because Ikari had taken the bag with all of the supplies in it when he stormed off. I sighed and looked at the map I had been left with before changing direction and heading to what was hopefully Cornelia after realising I had been reading it in reverse.


I had made it to Cornelia. It had only taken two and a half days of constant walking from the coast- barring the time in which I had collapsed into an exhausted, hungry heap outside of the inn, which added another day and a half to my two and a half days. I had seen no sign of Ikari during my trek nor had I heard anything about an unusual or new Paladin in the area, something that worried me greatly as I stayed in the inn. I may not have liked Ikari, but wouldn't have wished (much) ill will towards him. I sighed glumly at the situation at hand, keeping solely to myself until I felt a hand on my right shoulder. I looked up and saw someone lacking the formal attire of the knights around the city and castle gates and the casual, yet refined clothing worn by the citizens around the kingdom.

Instead, he wore a yellow pea coat with coattails, black pantaloons with silver plate armor up to the knees on both sides, a gauntlet over his right hand and a fingerless glove on his left hand. A large broadsword was strapped across his back by two leather clasps attached to the back of his pea coat and several throwing knives were strapped to his left leg. His face was handsome, minus a puffy pink scar across the bridge of his nose, and held a pair of soft hazel eyes along with cocky half smile. His hair was a messy blonde mane that barely passed his shoulders.

"Are you free little lady," he asked suavely, "You look like you need something to cheer you up." I growled in response, not feeling up to talking to another person, and prepared to leave my seat when he pleaded. "At least give me a chance to talk!"

"What do you want," I hissed as I began to grow irritated by the man's presence. "I'm not in the mood to talk."

"Easy there, little lady. I'm just here to help," he said, taking a seat next to me, "Besides, don't you want an audience with the king?" My eyes narrowed in reaction to his last statement.

"Who are you and what do you want," I growled as I reached for the short sword sheathed on my side.

"Someone with the same interest as you. Your attire gives you away as a traveler and almost every traveler that comes to Cornelia wants an audience with the king for one reason or another."

"I don't see how that makes you important in this process."

"Well, as of late, the king does not accept lone visitors," replied the man, his smile not leaving his face, "He'll only see groups of two or more. Now, if I've done my math correctly, you're one person and I'm one person so..." He left his sentence unfinished to let me gather my thoughts. This had better not be an elaborate scheme to woo me, I'll wring his neck if it is... Or worse.

"I see what you're implying," I sighed, removing my hand from my unnoticed blade, "I'll go with you, but for my own reasons."

"Heh, I knew you'd understand, little lad-"

"Stop calling me that."

"Give me your name and maybe I will, little missus." Cheeky bastard...

"Fine. I'm Ezra Nachtrosen," I said with a scowl. I really didn't want to work with him, but at least he was proactive. "And you are?"

"The name's Alvis, Alvis Rein. It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Nachtrosen," he replied with a slight bow. "Now, should we head to the castle or do you want a few moments to prepare yourself?"

"Why would I need to prepare myself? The king may be... a king, but he is still a person nonetheless. How does a title and wealth make him worthy of more respect than a normal person?" Alvis stared at me blankly for a moment before answering, albeit in a surprising manner.

"Tell that to his chancellor. King Elvis is a man for the people and, as such, asks to be treated the same as the rest of Cornelia's citizens, but his chancellor believes otherwise," sighed Alvis, "He only means to help, but his actions often distance the king from the people."

"You know quite a bit about the king, Alvis. Aren't you a traveler as well," I asked, giving the man a quizzical look.

"Nah, I used to be a knight here, a damned good one at that," he laughed, "Then I got bored and resigned from my post to try my hand as a mercenary under contract by the kingdom. Since then, I've been all over the world and learned a few things. Made a bit of Gil as well."

"I see... Alright, let us seek out an audience with the king," I responded, returning Alvis' blank stare. People are very strange in their preferences.

Without another word, Alvis led me out of the inn and through the pristine city of Cornelia, which, now that I could properly admire it, stood out compared to Pravoka and Crescent Lake. The buildings were made of brick and the streets were paved smoothly. The atmosphere was almost jovial, as if the crisis facing the world meant nothing here, and it almost seemed as if light shone brighter on the city. This would've been a good place to live had I not been tasked with helping save the world.

"Hey, Lady, is that a smile I see on your face," asked Alvis, breaking me out of my thoughts and making me somewhat self conscious. I felt a faint upwards curl on the edges of my lips and quickly changed it to an impassive expression.

"No you do not, your eyes played a trick on you," I said monotonously.

"Whatever you say," replied Alvis, not believing me in the slightest, "Anyhow, we're here."

"I could tell," I responded dryly as I looked at the great stone gate and pair of knights in front of us. "So now what?" One of the knights apparently heard me because he answered my question.

"State your names an' business wit the king," boomed the rather stout knight carrying an equally large battle axe. "Can't allow any unsavory folk int' the castle." The second, much slimmer knight, carrying both a sword and a shield, nodded in agree.

"We're here to seek an audience with King Elvis," answered Alvis, "I am Sir Alvis Rein, former knight of Cornelia, and this is Lady Ezra Nachtrosen." The stout knight scoffed at Alvis before speaking.

"Sir Alvis, eh? The name rings a bell o' two, but, from what I recall, he's a Mage Knight..."

"Mystic Knight," corrected the second knight without looking up. This must happen often. I wonder if "Alvis" is the first to claim that title...

"... An' you look more like a simple ruffian tryin' a woo a lady." I chuckled softly at that. Alvis certainly looked nothing like what he claimed to be and he didn't give off a "knightly" impression in the slightest. Unless you counted his weapon. Most knights carried extremely large weapons or a small aresenal. Anywho, how was he going to prove that he really was a former knight for the kingdom. This will be interesting to watch...

"If you would like a demonstration of my skills, I'll gladly show them to you Sir Perimedes," answered Alvis, a cocky grin spreading across his face as the stout knight reeled back in surprise, most likely because he had yet to introduce himself. "I'll validate my statement as long as you don't regret challenging it." That was a challenge, a thinly veiled one at that, but Sir Perimedes didn't seem to care.

"A'right, les see whatcha can do laddie... o' should I call ya 'Alvis'," responded the knight, hefting his battle axe onto his shoulder with a single hand. The slimmer, more diplomatic knight attempted to suggest otherwise, but Perimedes ignored him. Alvis unstrapped his sword from his back using one hand and, in a similar fashion to Perimedes, hefted his weapon onto his shoulder before turning to me.

"Does the lovely lady have anything to tell me," he asked, his grin still present.

"Don't die," I replied in a way that made his smile falter for a second. He then shrugged and turned to face Perimedes.

"Are ya ready, lad," asked the stout knight, confidence evident in his tone, "I'll show ya the strength of a real knight." Alvis shrugged in response and moved his left foot forward before gesturing for Perimedes to come to him with his free hand. Perimedes obliged.

The stout knight charged at the slimmer man, releasing a loud battle cry, and swung his battle axe at him in a wild arc. Alvis dodged to the side with little trouble and ducked under the following swing fluidly. Perimedes took another, horizontal, swing at Alvis, but was evaded for a third time.

"Stop movin', shouted Perimedes, clearly frustrated by Alvis' speed.

"Whatever you say," he replied cheekily before bringing his sword to his side and running around Perimedes. He quickly flipped his sword into a reverse grip and sprinted towards Perimedes' exposed back, then jumped above the stout knight and struck him with the flat of his blade. Perimedes lost his balance from the heavy blow, giving Alvis the chance to rush him and deliver several fast and powerful blows with his armored hand, having swiftly switched exchanged his weapon between both hands, before kicking the knight over and swinging his unarmored hand downward, calling down a small bolt of lightning on the fallen Perimedes, shocking the already staggered man. Continuing, Alvis ignited his broadsword with a slide of his free hand and slammed it onto the ground, generating a small fiery explosion that knocked out the stunned Perimedes, before spinning the weapon several times and sheathing it.

He's a showoff, but his skill and proficiency with his weapon and that strange form of magic he used is rather great.

"Color me impressed," said the slim knight, "Perimedes didn't stand a chance against you and he was one of our kingdom's elite knights. I guess you are the Sir Alvis. Go on ahead, I'll tell Perimedes what happened when he awakens, but, knowing him, that may take hours." The slim knight chuckled sheepishly before knocking on the gate several times. A moment later the gate opened revealing the beautiful courtyard of castle Cornelia. I could have taken in the sight of the flora in front of me for hours, but Alvis called me out of my daze.

"Come on, we don't want to keep Elvis waiting," he said, pulling me through the courtyard and into the castle. A knight stationed inside castle asked if we wanted directions, but Alvis shook his head and pulled me through the castle until we reached a room with a long red carpet. In the room sat several girls and young women in dresses with various adornments and a man, who looked to be no older than thirty, wearing a crown and several other fancy, ornate articles of clothing. Said man had a bemused expression on his face as Alvis and I entered the room.

"So you're the ones who defeated Sir Perimedes," said the man as he looked over the two of us, a smile forming on his face once he recognized my companion. "It's been awhile Alvis. To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing Cornelia's former greatest knight? Is it about a raise in pay for your contracts? If so, I've already prepared one." To this day, I believe I saw Alvis' eyes light up when King Elvis mentioned increasing his pay.

"We can discuss that later my liege," Alvis replied in a hushed, businesslike tone. "I'm here because I've heard a few rumors about Princess Serah going missing. I'd like to see if those rumors are true or not." The king frowned, gaining a few deep wrinkles that could have only been from stress.

"Yes, the rumors are true," sighed the king, "A few weeks ago, Serah was kidnapped by a former knight who occupied your position as Cornelia's strongest, Garland." Alvis' eyes narrowed.

"Then why didn't you send me a message telling me this," growled Alvis, genuinely angry with the king, "I would've finished up my job overseas and immediately returned to Cornelia!"

"Alvis... I do not recall you having such a scar across your face when I contracted you to quell a group of pirates scourging Melmond," replied King Elvis, his voice calm. Alvis stiffened, but gave no explanation to the King, who continued without hurry. "I'd imagine you received it from a surprise attack you detected- Rather one that your men walked into and required your assistance escaping." Alvis prepared to counter, but the king silenced him with a simple glance. "If I had sent you a message telling you about Serah's plight, you would've rushed the task and, as a consequence, may have returned with worse than a scar... or not at all." The king stared into Alvis' eyes for several moments before continuing. "And as much as I care for all of my daughters, losing a dear friend, one whom I consider to be a brother of sorts, would be just as bad as letting harm come to one of them." Alvis and I stood in silence. Elvis cared deeply for both his friends and family, but did not let his feelings get in the way of ruling Cornelia. It was then that I spoke.

"Did Garland have any reason for abducting Serah? Any motive that may have come into play recently," I questioned. The king shook his head, so I asked another, more important question. "Have you sent anyone after the princess and her abductor?" King Elvis prepared to answer, but one of his elder daughters answered in his stead.

"Of course he has! Father immediately took action upon learning of that traitor's actions," she yelled while her sisters nodded on. "Day after day, we've seen warriors pledge to save Serah, but none ever return!"

"I see," responded Alvis emotionlessly, his eyes had become cloudy.

"What if we go after Garland and the princess," I volunteered, "I believe Alvis and I have a much better chance than the standard group of warriors." Alvis looked surprised for a moment, but a kurt, approving nod was enough to tell me that he agreed with me. The princess, however, balked at me.

"You,"she asked incredulously, "I can understand Sir Alvis, but you? You look as if you've never seen battle!" Little bitch... I ground my teeth and gave my coldest glare.

"Says the sheltered brat," I said aloofly, inciting a furious response from the princess.

"H-how dare you," she sputtered before trying to pounce on me. Fortunately(For her), the king stopped her.

"Fran," he chided, "You must control your temper in front of visitors. You must also stop judging people based on their appearance, it is both rude and implies that you do not make in depth assessments." He then looked at me. "I apologize for Fran's outburst, she is quite upset by Serah's predicament, as are the rest of her sisters." Princess Fran tried to protest, but a sharp look from her father stilled her tongue.

"I understand," I reply, "I understand the pain of losing someone dear..." I lowered my head in remembrance of my parents. Alvis and King Elvis noticed this, but made no remarks about it, which didn't bother me. The less anyone pried, the easier it was on my heart.

"I see... Well then, if you truly wish to go after Garland, you must go to the Chaos Shrine," said the king after a long silence, "It is a decrepit temple lying in the northeast portion of the continent. Scouts sent after Garland reported that this is where he has taken residence and I have since asked everyone that has tried to save the princess to go there."

"Elvis, is there any other place Garland could have escaped to," asked Alvis, "I remember a rumor or two about a witch living in a cave near the kingdom. Is there any-"

"No, the woman you speak of, Matoya, is a former archmage of the kingdom and will seldom interact with anyone that does not pique her interest. The chance of Garland meeting with her is quite slim, especially since she still maintains a good reputation the kingdom and wishes to keep that relationship up."

"Are you certain?"

"Very much so," answered King Elvis, tiredly. "Now, please... Please save Serah." Alvis and I nodded and left the throne room, then the castle.

"So, why didn't you mention your business," asked the mercenary after we had gotten a fair distance from the castle. "I'm sure that you didn't seek an audience with the king just to ask about the princess' situation."

"My business is of somewhat irrelevant at this moment," I replied without looking up, "Unless I find a specific someone, I cannot complete my business. Let us leave things at that." Alvis shrugged.

"Just don't let it get you killed. It would be a damnable shame to see one as beautiful and independent as you die." I felt a slight reddening in my cheeks, but ignored it as we got closer to the town's exit.

Then the unthinkable happened.

"Look out, Ez,"cried a familiar voice before I was knocked to the ground by the owner of said voice. Alvis chuckled despite the glare I gave him before I turned my attention to the one who knocked me over.

"Damn it, Ikari! Watch where you're go-" I yelled before I realized that standing before me and Alvis was Ikari Light. The same overly cheerful, caramel haired, smartass that had stormed off after our argument. I felt a mixture of relief, joy, bitterness, confusion and self-anger and because of that I remained silent for a few moments before I finally regained the ability to speak. "I-Ikari? You're safe? Thank goodness!" Without thinking, I hugged the Holy Squire.

"Ez... I can't breathe," coughed Ikari and I realized that I had given him a crushing hug rather than a- Wait, why had I hugged him to begin with and why was he so cheerful? I'm sure he was past enraged when we last saw each other.

"So the lady can show more than a faint smile or two," commented Alvis, his sly grin having returned. "This must be the 'specific someone' you mentioned-" Alvis suddenly paused as if something important had just registered to him. "Don't tell me... He's your boyfrien-"

"She's not my girlfriend," exclaimed Ikari, interrupting Alvis, who sighed with relief.

"Thank goodness," he whispered a bit too loudly, then addressed Ikari. "I'm Alvis Rein, an acquaintance of miss Ezra. And you are?"

"Ikari Light," responded Ikari before he gestured to a person behind him that I had barely noticed. "And this is Sabrina Serena Ashlyni Mercuria. I met her after a Sand Worm and a band of Goblins tried to attack her." Sabrina only nodded in response. I could barely make out any facial features beside curly cobalt hair and large rosy eyes because of the hooded cerulean cloak she wore. For some reason, it caused shadows to bend and contort to cover the majority of her face.

"She's certainly shy," noted the mercenary, "It's a pleasure on meet you both, now shall we go?"

"Go? We're going somewhere," asked Ikari.

"Well, you see," began Alvis...

One long explanation later, Ikari and Sabrina were up to date on the situation regarding the princess and our destination.

"I see... I'll help you out," said Ikari, a determined expression having formed on his face. "I've always thought about saving a princess." For some reason Sabrina looked down when Ikari said that. He seemed to notice and quickly added to his statement. "It's one of the things I'm obligated to do as a Paladin in training... Sis'd kill me if I didn't try to save a princess if a chance came." He shuddered before clearing his throat... Sis? He has a sister? One that scares him at that? I guess knowing a person for seven years doesn't mean you know everything about them... I felt bitter again, having dredged up memories of my argument with Ikari. I tried to define his relationship with his father despite knowing only so much about it... Really understanding nothing at all. Worse was the fact that I had ignored how much he looks up to Hikari just like I had looked up to my fathe-

"...Ez... Ez... Ezra?" I was jolted from my thoughts by Ikari's calling. I looked up and saw he had a worried look on his face. "You alright? We're about to go, but we can delay our departure if you need a moment to... finish gathering your thoughts." I shook my head in response. It would've been pointless to waste time to lament on the past. The thing was Ikari. He never allowed himself to stagnate... Never let anything get to him for a long period of time. Some part of me hated that about him and that disgusted me. I could accept that we had incompatible personalities(My seriousness and general aloofness compared to his easy and outgoing nature.), but not my unjustified hatred for that aspect of hi-

"Are you sure you don't need a moment or two to gather your thoughts, Ez?" I looked up again and saw Alvis and Ikari watching me with somewhat worried expressions. I shook my head once more then proceeded to walk towards Cornelia's entrance, unaware of the odd look Ikari was giving me.


I watched Ezra walk out of Cornelia in a somber fashion, which confused me. Was she still upset about what I had said to her in my anger a few days ago? I hoped not, stuff like that had a roundabout way of coming back on me at the worst times.

I studied Ezra for a moment before following her and Alvis, with Sabrina trailing a little ways behind me. I really hope I didn't offend her... I can't tell because of how quiet she is right now, which makes reading her mood a bit more difficult than others. I grumbled to myself about filtering what I said around others before holding out my hand to Sabrina.

"C'mon, let's catch up to those two," I said with a light smile. The strange girl stared at me for a moment before nodding ever so slightly and taking my hand. I found a bashful grin forming on my face and, with Sabrina, picked up my pace. It took a minute or two, but we caught up with Alvis and Ezra, both of whom were discussing the best way to reach the Chaos Shrine... Ugh, that name left a bad taste in my mouth. Mind. Narrative Space. It doesn't matter what you call it, the Chaos Shrine's name just left this disgusting feeling like an ominous or sinister premonition of something to come. I would soon learn that I had been right about the vibe I felt just by mentioning the place.

Night fell rather quickly, far faster than anyone expected. Personally, I was content with how quickly the sun went down because I could rest earlier, but I understood that it also meant less ground could be covered today.

"Everyone, prepare to set up camp," ordered Alvis, "We'll eat, then split up the nightly vigil between ourselves." Without another word, Alvis began looking around the hilly plains within a close distance of the group while I rifled through the bag my parents had prepared. It took a bit of time, but I finally pulled out a cylindrical object with a spell that housed a fully prepared and operational tent, a rather useful import from Elfheim. I wasted no time setting up the tent, clearing the ground of any stray rocks and sticks then placing the cylinder in the center of the cleared space, which glowed briefly before a large tent materialized in the area.

"The tent is set," I chirped just as Sabrina used her Fire magic to ignite some of the wood Alvis had been gathering. Normally, seeing Black Magic would've mystified me to an extent, but, after nearly having my face catch on fire and having been ignited on several occasions by some of my mother's inventions, I was closer to being impassive as I took a seat near the burning wood. Sabrina acknowledged my presence with a slight nod before taking a seat near me. Several minutes later Alvis arrived with more firewood and Ezra returned with a hare that was quickly skinned and sat over the fire to roast.

"So, who wants to take the first watch," asked Alvis with a yawn, "It doesn't matter which order we go in, so long as each of us is vigilant during our watch." I nodded and prepared to volunteer, but I was beat to the punch.

"... ... wat... ch," said Sabrina so quietly that I could barely make out one word she said. Alvis looked puzzled, having expected either himself or me to handle the first shift and having barely heard Sabrina in the first place.

"Are you sure," I asked calmly. She nodded in response and drew a pistol with two vertical barrels, the top barrel longer than the bottom barrel, made of a bronze colored metal and sat it on her lap. She's a Gun Mage... Well isn't that a surprise. I thought only Elves could become Gun Mages. I drifted into my thoughts about Gun Mages, barely keeping up with the conversation around me, until someone nudged my shoulder. I looked down and felt Sabrina lightly push me again before pointing to Alvis.

"I was asking what made you leave your home and go to Cornelia," he said with a slight grin. I sighed in response, while Ezra looked at me uncomfortably.

"That's a... personal matter," I said, yet asked sheepishly. Ezra sighed in annoyance and shook her head, while Alvis shrugged and Sabrina stared at me.

"Eh, didn't mean to pry too much," responded the mercenary, "Just wanted to get to know the people I'm traveling with a little better."

"That makes sense," I replied with a nervous chuckle, "I could tell you a little about myself..." For the next few minutes, I recounted some of my misadventures as a child who grew up in Pravoka. Alvis got a real laugh out of a few of my antics when I was younger and Sabrina smiled with her eyes while Ezra put a hand to her forehead and slowly shook her head at me.

"So, you managed to get cornered by the lady..." Ezra cringed. " ...and the group of kids who wanted your cake. What happened next," asked Alvis with stars in his eyes. Yes, stars. He was that interested in the story.

"They- "

"We knocked his cake to the ground by accident," said Ezra before shuddering and mumbling to herself. "Worst mistake of my life..."

"Why's that," asked Alvis. I faltered and smiled sheepishly again. This part was a bit hard to explain, mainly because I had blacked out the moment my cake hit the ground... Wait! Ezra had been there, so she knew what happened! Ezra must've known what I was thinking because she forcefully applied her palm to her forehead and grumbled something before speaking.

"Ikari got angry and started an all out brawl," she said emotionlessly, "He won in less time than it took for the adults to arrive. I was sore all over for two weeks because he threw a barrel of fish at me and Ignatius." So that's what happened... I threw a barrel? When I was thirteen and more of twig than I am now? Well that does explain mother's stern reprimanding and father's more intense training sessions for me after that day... Still, a barrel... with fish no less...

"I don't know what's more interesting," said Alvis, "The fact that Ikari could throw a barrel six years ago or the fact that he doesn't remember it." I scratched the back of my head.

"Mother did always say I was a strong child," I chuckled, "Though, I'm kind of surprised myself."

"You mention your family a lot,"said Alvis, changing the subject.

"Yeah, my family is really important to me," I said with a melancholy smile,remembering a little ofwhat Ezra said before I hit a memory blank. "What about you? What was your childhood like?" Alvis narrowed his eyes at me and smiled slyly.

"I don't have much to talk about really," he replied, trying to avoid the subject. I, however, didn't want to let the subject drop because, having shared the good highlights of my youth with him, I wanted to know a bit about him.

"It couldn't be that bad, but, if you don't want to talk about it, I won't delve any further," I said, trying to respect the former knight's privacy.

"I think it would be interesting to hear," said Ezra, "It'll help us get to know you better, more understanding and lenient."

"Whatever you say," shrugged Alvis before clearing his throat. "Years ago, there was a child born as the son of a woman exiled from Cornelia. He lived with his father, a former knight of Cornelia, until he staged a coup d'etat against the previous king, Illias. For two months a battle raged across Cornelia, then the Highlord of Ruin appeared." I gagged on the air. Wasn't that-

"In less than five hours, the Highlord of Ruin quelled the rebellion and captured every insurgent involved in it, his father included," Alvis continued, ignoring my reaction. "King Illias, being a benevolent king, gave all of the insurgents a chance to redeem themselves by having them rebuild the ruined portions of the kingdom without complaint or monetary compensation. All of the insurgents agreed to Illias' terms, but, upon being loosed from their chains, one of the insurgents rushed the king and attempted to take his life with a hidden dagger. Fortunately for King Illias, the insurgent was quickly dispatched by a vigilant knight.

"Unfortunately, his son was left with no family and many of the citizens wanted to see him hanged for being related to the man who wanted to harm the king. Fortunately for the boy, now in his early teens, the king felt sympathy for him and took him in. The rest is boring, so I'll stop there." Alvis sighed and closed his eyes for a moment before looking at Ezra and Sabrina. "What about you? Anything you want to share? If not, let's eat and rest for the night." I nodded in response, as did Ezra and Sabrina. The four of us divided the hare, with me and Sabrina getting the smallest portions because meat wasn't our favorite thing to eat and because we just weren't that hungry. I stretched before walking to the tent, only to be stopped by Ezra, who pulled me off to the side.

"Weren't you being a little too defensive around Alvis?"

"No," I answered, "He was prying into sensitive matters. Its the same reason you didn't tell him about the crystals and you being a Warrior of Light."

"Just how do you know that?"

"I'm dense, not stupid. You didn't want him to know unless it was really necessary, the same reason I haven't told Sabrina."

"From the way she was clinging to you and the shine in her eyes, I couldn't tell," retorted Ezra.

"She wasn't clinging."

"She was, don't argue with me. Anyways, there's more to your reason for not telling Alvis about yourself. You don't entirely trust him."

"And he doesn't trust me, so its mutual. For all I know he made up that story of his."

"Just like you might've made up the story about you saving 'Sabrina' from a Sand Worm, which isn't native to this part of the world."

"Hey, hey. I was surprised myself," I countered, "The damned thing tried- No, SUCCEEDED in eating me, then spat me into a rock! Gods, that hurt!"

"My point is, try to be more open," said Ezra in a level voice, "he may be one of the two we're looking for."

"I will, but... I'd rather not discuss my family with a complete stranger," I sighed.

"He told you about his."

"His father isn't cursed to not feel anything and- Never mind," I said, catching myself before I said something that would've brought up bad memories for Ezra.

"What were you about to say."

"Nothing important."

"I wasn't asking. Talk."

"Sorry, but that's something for a later, less volatile day." With that, I turned away from Ezra, walked into the tent and went to sleep almost immediately, paying no heed to Alvis.


"I..." I felt a slight nudge on my shoulder, but ignored it. Another, harder nudge, came, but I barely stirred. "Ik..i."

"Another... minte," I garbled before I felt a slight jolt throughout my body. I snapped awake and accidentally slammed my head into the head of someone above me. I cursed lightly and floundered in the dark for a moment before casting a weakened version of Dia to illuminate the tent. I recognized the sleeping figure of Ezra, who looked so sweet as she dreamt, and Alvis, who had managed to loop one of his arms around Ezra's sleeping form. That'll end well... Without a doubt.

I continued to look around tent tent until I saw Sabrina rubbing her forehead, despite fact I couldn't actually see her forehead because of the black haze that covered the majority of her face. I prepared to ask her if it was my turn to take watch, but she silenced me by putting her hand over my mouth.

"There's a pack of wolves outside," she whispered urgently. I nodded and slowly made my way to the tent's entrance, gathering mana as I did so. I gingerly poked my head out of the entrance and met the gaze of a large wolf. Okay, Ikari. Don't use your trump card yet. Try to get it to back off. I took a deep breath and gave my most venomous glare to the wolf, which continued to stare at me almost reprimandingly.

I slowly rose, keeping my eyes locked on the wolf and intensifying my glare until the wolf backed away from the tent and into the shadows where at least twelve pairs of glowing eyes rested. I sighed out of annoyance then yawned before I brought my hands forward.

"Please..." The wolves narrowed their eyes. "Go..." They tensed up and snarled, a furious gleam visible in the amber orbs that seemingly floated in the darkness. "AWAY!" The wolves sprang forward as my voice echoed with the authority of a greater beast and I released the mana I had gathered in a brilliant, multicolored flare of damaging light. I was met with several yelps of surprise and pain as the wolves ran head first into the light, then turned tail and ran.

"...Much better," I said with satisfaction.

"They'll be back," said Sabrina, surprising me with her sudden comment and the fact that she was no longer acting like a near mute. "Probably within the hour."

"And I'll be ready. Can't let anyone get mauled or maimed if I can prevent it," I replied calmly as I sat down in front of the tent, "My pride won't allow it... nor will a certain somebody with a greater deal of authority and power than I."

"And I'll make sure you remain in one piece. I am honor bound to that," she said, sitting down near me. Thanks to what Ezra said, I paid more attention to how close Sabrina was to me and found that she was a bit closer to me than I would've wanted. However, she wasn't overly close to me so, I blew it off as an idiosyncratic custom from wherever she was from.

"I'll take your word for it... Rina," I answered after a minute of thinking up a nickname for Sabrina.

"...Rina?"

"Yeah, I need a nickname for everyone for convenience. It may sound lazy, but it helps me out and makes it easier to remember people."

"...Which is why Ezra is Ez and Alvis will probably be Al or something similar. If that's the case... m-may I call y-you... Kai?"

"Why not? Ocean is better than anchor," I shrugged, somewhat confused by Sabrina's shift from calm to timid. I received no response from Sabrina so I turned and saw that she was out cold. "Liar." I chuckled lightly and trussed Sabrina's hood before propping her against my shoulder.

An hour or so and no wolves later, a ray of light peeked over the horizon of the rapidly lightening sky, which made me realize something rather important: Sabrina had stayed up for the majority of the night without sleep to watch over the camp. Part of me wanted to reprimand the mysterious girl for doing something so reckless(Even I knew you weren't supposed stay up for a day or more and willingly deny yourself sleep. It was detrimental for your awareness and made you ill prepared for the coming day or days) or commend her for her bravery and perseverance. I continued thinking over my course of action until I heard something that had me rolling on the ground laughing.

"Huh...? What the hell are you doing you!? Haken!" That was definitely Ezra and...

"Muny-Agh!?" Alvis. It sounded like she used her infamous left cross on him and- I was hit in mid thought by an airborne and thankfully unarmored Alvis, completing my thought in a somewhat painful fashion. I was the first respond to the situation, after shaking off the mercenary and my daze.

"Morning sunshine. The weather today is cloudy with a chance of falling objects," I joked.

"... Surprisingly accurate prediction," groaned Alvis, rubbing his jaw, "Anything else?"

"Well, Sabrina did everyone's watch, wolves attacked and Ezra will probably want to wring your neck," I answered a bit too cheerfully.

"Then today will be very long... Or very short if the lady succeeds," he responded as he stretched his arms and legs. "What was that about wolves attacking?" I explained the appearance of the wolves, omitting the part about Sabrina telling me that there were wolves, how one had nearly entered the tent and how I repelled all of them using an overcharged version of Spark. I then had to explain why I hadn't woken up the others after the fact and why Sabrina and I were outside rather than in the tent. Alvis took the information well, but asked for clarification for a few things.

"That sums the night up," I said with a small yawn. I prepared to look for a place to change out of my armor when Alvis grabbed my shoulder. He put on a false smile.

"Why don't we go for a quick stroll? You know, to wake up a little and give the ladies time to get ready for today," he asked with sickly sweetness.

"Sure, why not," I responded with an equal amount of sickly sweetness. With that said, the two of us walked a fair distance away from the campsite before stopping.

"So, you know why I called you out here" Alvis asked.

"To... confess your fe-" I began before ducking under a hooking kick from the mercenary.

"Please be serious, this issue is very important," he responded as he entered a neutral position.

"Fine," I sighed before growing serious myself, "You want to know more about my reasons for going on a journey and my motives for helping you despite only knowing Ezra."

"Close. I wanted to know is Ezra was tak-" it was Alvis' turn to avoid an attack, specifically a chop from my armored hand. "Hey, just returning the favor!"

"Same here," I replied before taking a seat on the grassy stretch of land. "So, what do you want to know?"

"Why a traveler such as yourself has this," answered Alvis, pulling a crystal out of his back pocket. My wind crystal to be exact. My eyes hardened instantly and, with near inhuman speed, I got up and closed the distance between myself and Alvis, Light Seeker drawn and trained on the mercenary.

"Explain how and when you got that off of my person," I snarled when I felt the mana around me go into a frenzy. I immediately jumped back, narrowly avoiding a bolt of electricity called down by Alvis. I quickly rolled to my right, then forward, avoiding an explosive fireball and a large rock that suddenly jutted out of the ground. To say the least, I was confused. Normal magic did not cause all of the mana in the area to go crazy, not even tier four black magic, which could utterly decimate areas even when weakened considerably. Alvis must've noticed my confusion because he capitalized on it and hit me with a pressurized burst of water that knocked me to my feet.

"Relax, Ikari, I'm just trying to see if this is what I think it is," said Alvis, glancing at the wind crystal.

"And if it is," asked a voice I hadn't expected and neither had Alvis. He turned around just in time to be struck dead on by a compressed blast of air, one that caused the crystal in his hand to light up briefly, fired by Sabrina. The normally quiet girl rushed to my side and prepared to help me up when another unexpected voice was heard.

"Haken," shouted Ezra as she launched her infamous left cross at Sabrina. Unfortunately for her, Sabrina avoided the punch and forced her back with a quick casting of Fire. The two glared daggers at each other and prepared to attack each other when I finally registered what was happening and fired an Aura Burst in between them.

"Let's calm down and talk this out," I said sternly, just as Alvis got up. He groaned, but agreed with me.

"Yeah, what he said. We can't be trying to kill each other, at least not before we save Princess Serah," he commented. I nodded and he sat down across from me. Ezra and Sabrina glared at each other for a moment longer, but finally sat down. Alvis used the peace to continue from earlier. He drew the wind crystal as well as the earth, fire and water crystals, all four of which seeming to gleam to me. Ezra gasped in surprise and turned to me for answers, but I directed her back to Alvis. She glowered at the mercenary, but said nothing. It was Sabrina who broke the silence.

"So I did sense the power of the four," she said, "It seems that you're more interesting than I thought, Kai." It took me several minutes to register who I was looking at and what she had just said. I slowly nodded before I responded.

"A-as are you," I stammered. Sabrina only smiled in response. It was then that Alvis spoke.

"Well, I'll be, didn't think you would talk Sabrina," chuckled Alvis, one of his actual grins forming, "And to think that I'd encounter a bearer of the four crystals. it seems like you have some interesting things about you Ikari."

"Indeed," said Ezra as she narrowed her eyes at me and Sabrina. She then returned her attention to Alvis. "How did you acquire the four crystals?" Alvis chuckled nervously before he gave her an answer, knowing that she wasn't in the best of moods.

"It's a funny story. You see I was preparing to go to sleep when Ikari entered the tent and I heard an odd voice call out to me," he said as he scratched the back of his head. "At first I thought Ikari was messing with me, but, when he fell asleep and the voice continued to call out to me, I decided to look for its source. I checked that bag, expecting to find some Whisper Weed or Echo Herbs left improperly stored, but instead I found an ornate box that seemed to be glowing from the inside out. I opened the box and found three crystals, one of which was glowing faintly." Alvis picked up the earth crystal and I saw a small spark of light emanate from the crystal on contact with his hand.

"So, you rummaged through our supplies when no one was paying attention and happened to find the crystals, bar the wind crystal which was on Ikari's person," Ezra said icily, crossing her arms. It looked like she was about to do something, but she only sighed. "How did you manage to get Ikari's crystal without him noticing?" I was wondering that too. The only times he would've been able to take the wind crystal would have been directly after he found the other crystals or when-

"You knocked me out of the tent and I landed on Ikari," Alvis answered. Of freaking course. "The crystal rolled away from him and I just happened see it." Someone has sticky fingers...

"Anyways, will you return those," I asked, "We still need to figure out who will bear the fire crystal and who will bear water crystal and whether or not they are with us at this time." Alvis shrugged in compliance, but, instead of giving me the crystals, he handed me the wind crystal, gave Ezra the water crystal and gave the fire crystal to Sabrina.

"I think it's safer to have everyone hold one crystal," he explained, "Who knows, I might have given everyone the right crystal." Contrary to his statement, I did not see the fire crystal or water crystal glow so, I shook my head.

"Wrong people," I said, "The crystals respond to their bearers in some way. They would notice." I didn't add that I would also notice a faint glow in the crystals, something I was still trying to understand.

"What suddenly makes you an expert on the crystals," asked Ezra. Luckily, I had a response planned for this question.

"There are four crystals and four bearers. Alvis heard the earth crystal while I was instantly drawn to the wind crystal. Following that logic, it makes sense that each crystal responds to the proper bearer."

"That does make sense," Ezra said, "But we lack evidence to support that theory." Sabrina nodded in agreement with Ezra, but didn't give her full opinion on the matter.

"I have to agree with Ikari," said Alvis, "If this guy..." he held up the earth crystal, which seemed to hum faintly in response. "hadn't called out to me, I wouldn't have known about the crystals being here in the first place. Anyways, we're wasting time. We need to reach the Chaos Shrine before any harm can befall Princess Serah." Almost forgot about that... We still have to save her from the rogue knight- And the nagging is back and stronger than before. I slowly stood up and drew Light Seeker and readied Minerva's Defender, alerting the others.

"Ikari, what are you doing? Is something wrong," asked Ezra, her hand moving toward her short sword. Alvis stood up and Sabrina loaded her gun.

"Something's... wrong," I said, closing my eyes and concentrating. "The mana doesn't feel natural." I wasn't being paranoid, the mana around us felt... tainted and unnatural. Normally mana was calm and flowed like a mixture of water and air around everyone and everything and, unless disturbed, tended to remain that way. At that moment, the mana felt sluggish, frenzied and disturbingly malevolent, as if something with ill-intent was slowly creeping towards us, thirsting for bloodshed and carnage. "Alvis, go get your equipment and our supplies. We need to start moving now." Alvis nodded and ran towards our encampment with great haste.

"Kai," questioned Sabrina, "Is something wrong?" I nodded, something was very wrong, but I couldn't explain why without giving too much away about myself. I could tell that nodding wouldn't suffice for her, so I decided to give her a vague answer when I heard a shout from Alvis. My feeling of dread only intensified when I recognized the fear in his voice.

"Run you idiots, run," shouted Alvis, fully clad in his attire from the previous day. He yelled something else, but it was drowned out by the deafening cry of a monstrous silhouette right behind him and the sheer malicious intent infused with the surrounding mana. I wasted no time grabbing the hands of Sabrina and Ezra and sprinting away from Alvis and the silhouette. Both of the women were confused for a moment, but quickly adjusted to the situation and began running with me, albeit slower. The creature released a second, murderous cry and over took all four of us.

"The hell is that thing," yelled Alvis as soon as we could see or pursuer. The first thing that stood out to me was the size of monster in front of us. It was easily the size of a large castle, not including its wingspan that seemed to blot out the sun. It was an avian, but far more dangerous than any of the ones I had heard of. It had four talons on both of its feet, each at least thrice the size of a person and looked sharp enough to slice through solid rock with little to no difficulty. Its eyes were the same jet black as its body and held intelligence that was not to be underestimated as well as arrogance befitting the predatory bird's. Its beak was off-white in color, wickedly sharp and hooked downward. Covering the avian's body was an oily sheen that projected a multitude of violets, blues, greens and reds across its body and several dark green runes that pulsed with dark light. Lastly was the mana around the beast, wild and vicious beyond nearly anything I had experienced before.

"The... Stratoavis... Lord of the Skies," breathed Sabrina, entranced by the majestic, yet vile bird of prey. "We... have no chance! We need to escape, quickly!" How're we supposed to do that without-Oh! It looks like I may be able to pull another overcharged Dia and create an escape route... if the bird doesn't realize what I'm trying to do.

"I figured," said Alvis, drawing his sword and recreating the frenzied mana sensation from earlier. "Ikari, cover me!" Wait wha!? I didn't have time to protest before Alvis sprinted towards the gigantic predatory bird and fired an ice spear at its head. The spear shattered on impact, but the Stratoavis barely acknowledged the attack and merely beat its wings slightly to send Alvis skidding backwards. The damned thing was toying with us. I growled before sprinting past Alvis and firing an Aura Burst at the monster, jumping directly afterward. My attack did nothing and, again, the bird flapped its wings to send me flying. Contrary to the bird's choice action, I'd wanted that to happen. You see, I'd noticed the wind crystal glow the moment Sabrina hit Alvis with her pressurized air blast and that made me wonder if the crystals reacted to their own element in large quantities. There was only one way to find out.

The moment the strong gust of wind hit me, the wind crystal lowed green and absorbed the wall of air before blasting me high into the sky. The Lord of the Skies, as well as my companions, looked up just as I ascended above and over its head and plunged Light Seeker into the down of its back- or at least tried to. The feathers on the Avian's back were easily as hard as steel and as slippery as refined glass because of the oily layer on the feathers, something I figured out when my father's sword uselessly bounced off the coat of feathers and I slid down the the bird's back landing on the ground with a loud and painful thud. So this thing's defense is no joke, I thought to myself as I scrambled onto my feet. That only makes things more... Eu. Re. Ka. Oil and fire don't mix well... Actually they do, all too well.

"Alvis, think you can use that fire spell from earlier," I called, a devilish grin forming, "I think we can drive this guy off." Alvis, having gotten back onto his feet, gave me a blank look, but nodded. He most likely hadn't realized that oil created a colorful sheen when applied to water or partially reflective surfaces or wasn't thinking about the situation in the way I was. It was then that Ezra shouted a warning.

"Get down," she yelled a second too late. The Stratoavis drew back its wings then flapped them with enough force to create a cutting gale of wind that would've cut everyone to pieces had the wind crystal not absorbed a fair chunk of the attack's power. The four of us were blown back considerably, but everyone managed to stand after the attack, albeit with some difficulty. The avian looked down at us with contempt and cawed harshly, signifying its annoyance with us. I guess it's ready to end this... luckily, so am I. I tightened my grip on Light Seeker, channeling my own mana into the blade, before charging at the monstrous bird. The bird flapped its wings, trying to blow me back, but the wind crystal absorbed the wall of air and propelled me forward just as I jumped. Again, I was catapulted high into the sky, but this time I had a trick up my sleeve.

"Alvis, use the spell now," I shouted as my descent began and I readied the holy sword.

"Gotcha," returned the mercenary as he began drawing symbols in the air and chanting:

"Raging Flame, I summon thee. Devour the fiend before me with thine unending fury and heat.

Erase the entity that dares to stand before thy infernal blaze.

Ninjutsu: Flame!"

I felt the mana around me go insane as it coalesced into a large ball of roaring fire in front of Alvis. He grinned before batting the ball into the surprised avian just as I released all of the power I had stored in Light Seeker in a sphere of holy light infused with my spirit.

"Aura Burst!" The sphere exploded, blinding the Stratoavis at the exact moment that Alvis' fireball made contact with it. Immediately afterwards the world went red with flame. The Stratoavis released a shrill shriek as flames engulfed its flammable oil coat and, soon after, its entire body. The Lord of the Skies shrieked again, louder and harsher as the fire around it intensified... but it remained airborne. My eyes widened and I cursed just before a harsh screech, much closer to a roar, erupted from the fireball. I felt the mana go from insane to otterly chaotic, which gave me more than a splitting headache, as the flames around the monstrous bird turned black.

"Ikari, I think it's safe to say we only pissed it off," said Alvis dryly.

"You don't say," I snarled, the throbbing in my head making me more than a little frustrated, "Scatter!" The others needed no other prompting; they ran as if the god of chaos and despair, Pandaemonium, was after them and, at this point, I wasn't sure that he wasn't after us.

Yet another warped screech erupted from the fireball before it exploded and revealed the Stratoavis, then in what I assumed to be its true form. The bird was the same shape and size as it had been before, but now licks of flames were coming from all parts of its body and its wings had feathers of various colors and hues, black remaining the central theme. The sigils on its wings were no longer duly glowing, rather they radiated emerald light that only grew in intensity as time passed. Finally there were the eyes which were no longer as black as void, instead they now shone a vehement shade of violet and were composed of running flames that "escaped" the avian beast's eye sockets.

"... You're a god damned Phoenix... Of course you would be one," I growled, again tightening my grip on my father's sword. The dark phoenix cawed in response before releasing a garbled, distorted sound that assaulted my ears. I ground my teeth as I attempted a futile charge at the avian, only to find myself stuck in place by an unseen force. The phoenix emitted the mangled sound again, expecting a response, but when it got none, mainly because I couldn't understand what it was trying to communicate, the bird changed its approach.

"Why did you not flee, mortal? You surely knew you could not hope to defeat me."

"Heh, I needed to give those three some time to escape. A Paladin will throw down his life to protect his comrades... Even if he dislikes a few of them," I retorted, irritated past the point of caring about my skull's wish to bash itself in.

"You speak as if you are a Son of Crusader, but you smell of Pandaemonium... How Peculiar. Still, you waste your life. I could easily tear you to pieces and go after the three who fled."

"You're right, but if that were your plan, I would be in ribbons and you would be gone from this spot."

"You remind me of your mother, you have her pride and arrogance." The bird seemed to smile when I reeled back as far as I could with my movement sealed, which, needless to say, was not far at all.

"You knew my mo-"

"Silence! You lack the right to question one as mighty as I! I shall pass judgment on you, but before I do I have a single question for you: What is the thing you hold most dear, mortal?" That surprised me more than the fact that the Stratoavis had met my mother. I tried to think of an answer that could potentially impress the bird, but nothing would come to mind.

"I see that you cannot come up with an answer mortal. You are not ready yet... Survive this trial and you will find the answer to that question." With that, the Lord of the Skies began gathering an obscene amount of mana into itself, causing the sigils on its wing to glow intensely. My head felt as if it would split itself open and I nearly cried out when the avian batted its wings, generating what could only bedescribed as a cyclone of chaotic mana- no elemental conversion or gerenation, just pure, unfiltered and unbridled mana let loose into the world.

To say the very least, I was in a lot of pain when the attack hit me. To be more specific, I felt as if my very soul was being torn to ribbons by Anima herself while my body felt as if were being charboiled by the sun. Then, I felt nothing. Everything faded to black then to grey as I felt darkness overtake me...


When Ikari told us to run, we did because we had no other choice: The Stratowhatever would've killed all us had we remained. Since then, none of us had seen him or the giant bird. Ezra tried to put on a brave face, but anyone could tell that she was worried about the kid. Sabrina was in a similar state, she constantly scanned the horizon for any sign of the Holy Squire. I just sighed and took the lead.

It wasn't that I didn't feel anything, I was just so tired of all of the bullshit that had happened around me recently that I couldn't even try to show any emotions without getting depressed. I hated being depressed, everything around me always felt gloomy and foreboding, as if the world was trying to tell me that everything bad that happened around me was my fault. That was the reason I always tried to smile, to make others laugh and be true to themselves, even when everything seemed to be working against me.

To tell you the truth, I was angry. Angry at myself for not being around when Serah was kidnapped, for not being able to cheer up either of my companions, for not being able to face that monster like Ikari did. That's what the kid did, he told us to escape while he tried to buy us time and he managed to succeed, but at what cost? His absence demoralized everyone, myself included and I barely knew him. He reminded me of Elvis when he was younger, so full of life and carefree, but reliable when you needed him to be. I had always been in his- their- shadow when I was around them, but now it was my turn to take the lead. I couldn't just give up because There was no longer a shining beacon to guide me and the others.

"C'mon, we have to go," I said briskly, masking everything I felt, "We still have a job to do." Ezra, who had finally discarded her facade and began sobbing, snapped at me.

"Shut up! All you care about is your damned princess and nothing else," she shouted, "We left Ikari to die, for what?! To save your princess and act as if he never existed!?" I did my best to remain calm. I was just as affected as her, more likely less so because I hadn't known Ikari for nearly as long as Ezra had. Still, that didn't mean I didn't care about the ally I had lost.

"Ezra, I'm not saying Ikari was unimportant. While we didn't have the best relationship, it doesn't mean mean that I'm happy or glad in any way because he's gone," I responded slowly. "I'm rather shaken myself, but I'm not going to let that stop me from keeping a promise. You can sit here and cry all you want, but that won't bring back Ikari nor will it ease your sadness. It's up to you whether or not you follow me, but I'm going with or without your help!" I accidentally snapped at that last part, my words having become sharper than I intended for them to be. Ezra stared at me, her face red and streaked with tears as more began to well up, but she did not respond with words. Instead, she got up, dried her eyes and checked the bag I had retrieved for any supplies before hoisting it on to her back.

"Let's go," she said with a bitter tone. "I want to end this quickly and give Ikari a proper burial so, let's not waste time." With that, she walked off in the direction we had previously been heading, Sabrina following her without a word. I sighed scornfully at myself before heading after the two women. Ikari, I won't let your sacrifice be in vain...


Chapter Three Preview:

"How're you still standing!?"

"Is that truly all of the power you can muster? You disapoint me."

"Dread Blaze!"

"Alvis, look out!"

"No, You are NOT dead, in a dream or at home! Just let me talk, dammit!"

"It seems that many possibilities are in your future... Very interesting..."

Continued in Node Three: Garland, Knight of Black.

A/N: Finally finished this Chapter! This took much longer than I anticiapated and turned out to be longer than I expected. t was interesting to write, especially since I learned about my characters as I wrote it(I started out with the characters being semi-blank slates and I slowly added bits and pieces to to their personalities and pasts as I wrote. Now, I have much about their characters established.), especially Sabrina and Alvis. It was rather fun to write, but also somewhat depressing when I wrote Alvis' Point of View.

Now, I'm probably going to get a ton of outrage or outcries about Ikari so, I'm going to pose a question: Do you really think Ikari is dead? Do I seem like the type of person to kill off one of the main characte- Actually, don't answer that question, I still have a Chapter of Star Ocean to write that'll contradict some answers to that question and make others more correct. But seriously, do you think I'd kill off a character this early on?

Other than that, I thank you for reading this chapter. Drop a review if you want, all comments, critiques, compliments and questions will be accepted and answered if I have time or the freedom to do so, which I should have seeing as school is almost out for me. Thank you again for reading and if you take your time to review.

-Haos Serpent Blade/Azure Blade of Chaos.