Fading Espers, by Boyce
Chapter 2 : Banquet
/# Dining room, Figaro Castle #\
"There you go", whispered Serena to the last balloon, as she let it go near the ceiling of the dining room, the object tied to a blue streamer.
While the group was putting up the final decorations, the maids were busy preparing the table. A dozen of maids were assigned to the task, coming in and out of the room carrying plates, utensils and food.
As the heroes were busy congratulating themselves with the new look they gave the room, one of the maids came to address the king. "Edgar, the table is ready." she told him. The Scouts always thought the castle's staff talked to the king as if he was a normal peasant, calling him by his name instead of "Your Majesty". But they learned with time that this ruler is Edgar, a very kind, joyful ruler who hates titles. He treats his personnel with the utmost respect, and didn't hesitate to eliminate the barriers of society inside the walls of his castle. He still had social advantages as the king, but everyone is treated fair and equally. And everyone respected him for that.
Edgar turned to face his friends, and extended his right arm toward the table. The room was instantly filled with cheers and laughs as they all looked at the table.
Serena, Amy, Raye, Lita and Mina were in awe at what they saw. At least a dozen of massive wooden chairs were scattered around: one on the smallest sides of the table, and 6 on each of the sides. On each one, a puffy aquamarine cushion was laying, giving a very soft touch to a normally hard antiquity. The table was recovered with a beautiful white silk tablecloth, with gold symbols representing the kingdom of Figaro on its corners. All around the edge of the table, the silver plates and cutlery reflected the dying rays of the sun, surrounding the area with a deceptive, yet magnificent orange aura. Crystal-clear glasses already filled with champaign kept company to the plates. An endless sea of food filled the middle, putting the perfect touch on a grandiose feast.
Shinny stars in their eyes, all of the girls screamed, jumped and hugged each other, thinking a setup like this existed only in their wildest dreams.
"Please, have a seat", continued Edgar opening the march toward the table. The Scouts followed him, giggling and whispering like school girls. Locke ended the line, with Terra and Celes in front of him. He didn't miss the occasion to observe in depth the details of the girls walking in front of him, almost drooling on the floor.
After a couple of steps, Edgar reached the short edge of the table. He put his elbow on the back of the solitary chair and his hand under his chin, taking a very relaxing pose. "Ladies, you go and sit on my left while Terra, Celes and Locke will sit on my right." he told them. They quickly followed his instructions. The leader of the Sailor Scouts sat next to the king. She was flanked by Mina, Raye, Amy and Lita. Sitting in front of Serena was the lovely Terra. Celes was sitting next to her and Locke sat on the third chair.
"This is so beautiful." said Raye.
The king turned his gaze to her. "I'm glad you like the setup, Raye. But this luxury is nothing compared to the strong friendship that unites us now."
Riding his short but strong speech, Edgar got up from his chair, taking his glass of champaign high in the air. "May this meeting cement our bond even deeper. CHEERS!" These royal words made everyone jump out of their chairs. "CHEERS!" they all repeated. The sound of the crystal glass gently touching each other filled the dining room.
They all took a small slurp of champaign to finish their toast. As Terra finished swallowing, she coughed heavily, almost dropping her crystal recipient on the table. She wobbled and Celes quickly put her free arm around her waist, to hold her tight. Locke took Celes' glass out of her hand, so she could have a better grip on Terra.
"Are you okay?" she asked her friend. "I'm… I'm okay. I just swallowed too fast and choke…" concluding her sentence with more coughs.
Again, Edgar saw right through her lie. This wasn't a normal cough, not the kind you get from choking on a drink. And the fact he saw sweat coming down on her forehead just solidified his theory that something was wrong with his esper friend.
Terra started feeling sick the week before the party. She felt constantly tired and had trouble sleeping. She lost most of her appetite. The cough though was a new symptom, something that started just yesterday. A tough, heavy cough, ripping through her throat. She thought it was a flu, and wasn't really concerned about it. She didn't want to miss the party.
But for the second time, Edgar didn't say a word. He didn't want to make everyone worry about Terra, although he could clearly see that Terra's lie didn't fool anyone of his guests, not even Serena, standing besides her loyal friends, hands on her heart.
As Celes helped Terra sit on her chair, one of the maids entered the room, taking small but fast steps, her high heels echoing in the dining room. She was holding firmly to a glass of water, and scanning the area to see who made these awful coughs. She didn't have to search long, looking at Celes tending to her friend. "Here you go, Miss Branford."
Terra looked at her, and gladly took the water from the maid. "Thank you very much, miss." she replied softly.
The maid smiled warmly before turning back to exit the room. As she passed by the king, he nodded and smiled at her, approving her actions.
Terra emptied the glass of water in only a few seconds. "Careful girl… Don't want to choke again!" Celes told her while rubbing softly her back.
Terra's emerald eyes locked on Celes, and smiled. "Thank you, I feel better now." She looked at all her friends, taking a shining fork. "I'm sorry about this. Now how about we start eating!!" That last burst of energy comforted her friends, who all responded to her with a smile.
All except Edgar, who was lost deep in his thoughts, wondering what was going on with Terra. It was the blue-haired Amy who helped the king back to reality.
"Edgar, can I ask you something?"
His empty eyes quickly regained their colourful glow, and he looked at her, blinking and shaking nervously his head. "Amy, I'm sorry. What is it?" he finally said.
"Well, I was wondering how come there were 12 plates on the table, while we are only 9 here"
Amy was right, as always. There were three empty seats at the table, and nobody realized it. They were too amazed by the glamorous setup (Raye, Lita, Mina, Amy, Serena), concerned for Terra (all of them, especially Celes), craving over the food (Serena and Mina's plates were already full of food), or just busy looking at beautiful girls (Locke).
"Hey, you're right Amy!" said Lita looking at the empty seats. Lita thought she was a bit far from the group, but didn't want to complain since their friends put so much effort in preparing this anniversary.
Edgar grinned slightly. "A fine observation, my young friend…" replied the king.
As he was about to explain the situation, the maid who came minutes ago entered the room again. She walked to Edgar's chair, and whispered to him while covering her mouth.
"Finally!" he replied, like he was waiting for something. "Come in come in".
As he said that, the Scouts looked at each other, puzzled. Amy looked at her friends in front of her, seeking a reaction. But neither Locke, Celes nor Terra could give her an answer. They looked as confused as they were. The attention got back toward Edgar, now walking toward the exit of the room with his arms extended on each side, as if he was going to grab something gigantic.
A man appeared through the door. A tall man, with long black hair tied by a ponytail, and a mustach living under his nose. Wearing a bronze armour over his black suit, he was walking slowly in his leather boots toward Edgar, a hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword.
"Welcome my friend!" the king told the man.
"Edgar, it's been far too long." he replied. They exchanged a powerful handshake, while Edgar put a hand on his comrade's shoulder.
"Huh… Celes? Who is this man?" asked a puzzled Mina. They all turned their confused gazes toward the swordswoman, except for the heart-shaped eyes of Lita, still analysing the new guest.
"That is Cyan Guaramonde, king of Doma Castle." she calmly answered, her delicate fingers holding her cup of champaign.
"That's Cyan? So he's the man who lost his family to Kefka? How tragic" thought Amy. The girl clearly remembered the night at the Cherry Hill Temple where Celes told her about her world and her friends, and their fight against Kefka. The part about Doma Castle where Cyan lost his beloved Elayne and his son due to poison was the saddest moment of that evening. Amy looked at him again, saddened by the pain this man had to overcome.
Locke had joined Edgar and Cyan, to greet his comrade. They were now laughing, and Cyan loud laugh traveled throughout the entire castle. Celes got up from her chair. "Come, I'll introduce you to him."
Serena, Amy and Mina followed her lead, while Raye was busy trying to bring Lita back to her senses. "Come on Lita. Not another crush?!" Terra decided to stay seated, amused by the girls but still feeling the effects of her cough.
Raye finally succeeded in her mission, and the feminine group walked slowly toward the two kings and Locke, still busy chatting. The dark eyes of Cyan quickly shifted from Locke to Celes and the group of beautiful girls standing behind her. They looked at each other. "Hello Cyan, how are you doing?" she finally said, proposing a hand shake.
He took her hand gently and shook it. "I'm doing fine Celes, thank you." She still could feel in his eyes that he didn't trust her entirely. After all, she was once a general of the Empire, and it was that same Empire that attacked Doma Castle and killed his family and the king back then. By the time these terrible events happened, Celes was charged with treason and made a prisoner of the Empire, but still, Cyan always saw a glimpse of suspicion in her, no matter what she did to prove to him she wasn't a spy.
She sighted. "Cyan, these are the Sailor Scouts we spoke to you about. Serena, Amy, Mina, Raye and Lita, this is the mighty king of Doma castle, Cyan Guaramonde."
Cyan looked at Celes, a quick smirk appearing on his face, and turned his attention toward the five girls. "My Ladies, it's an honour to finally be able to meet you." he politely said, bowing his tall body in front of them.
They all blushed slightly… all except Lita who blushed intensely. "Wow, he's more king material than Edgar, don't you think?" whispered Mina to Raye. The priestess giggled at the remark of her blonde friend. Cyan shook all of their hands very gently.
"Hi everyone" said a high-pitch voice.
Everyone's attention turned to the little girl who just passed the door. Small but energetic, her red cheeks matched perfectly the color of the scarf on her head and her long puffy pants. The black garment she was wearing on her upper body stopped just below her shoulders, leaving her naked arms and shoulders exposed. Her skillful hand was manipulating two pencils, the items dancing smoothly with her fingers.
"Relm, you made it!" said a happy Edgar. "I thought Strago locked you at home to study magic."
"Yeah… well magic is not really my thing. I don't know why grandpa insists so much about it" replied the little girl.
"In other words, you snuck out" added Celes. Relm looked at her, and turned her eyes to the ground, swinging her right leg back and forth.
Relm turned her head toward Locke and Edgar, to plead her case. "But… but I had good reasons to come here! After you sent us the invitation, I wanted to meet your friends too!" she said, pointing her finger at the confused Scouts. "And there's one other reason: we…"
As she was about to explain her second argument to defend her cause, a strange voice cut her explanation short. "Kupo! Don't blame Relm for this. Although it was fairly easy, I'm the one who persuaded her to come here today, kupo!"
And one more time, the attention of everyone in the room switched to the newly arrived guest. A moogle, covered in its signature white fur, was leaning on the doorstep. The Scouts were blinking and looking at each other, stunned by the fact the creature talked. Edgar greeted the moogle in his domain.
Still in front of the Scouts, Cyan smiled and introduced his friend. "Ladies, this is Mog. Don't be surprise by his innocent look. He's one of the best fighters of…"
"Wow! He's soooooooo cute. It looks just like a living teddy bear!!!" screamed an impolite Serena.
"Serena! No! Don't…" Locke's advice came obviously late. Edgar took a couple of steps back, knowing the mistake Serena just did. Celes and Relm imitated him.
"KUPO!" replied the angry moogle. Mog sent a malicious look to Serena.
"Huh… what's wrong guys?" asked the pig-tailed girl.
"Mog is a moogle, not a teddy bear. He hates being compared to a stuffed animal." answered Cyan, taking a safe distance toward Serena. Amy, Raye and Lita also took a couple of steps back. Amy grabbed an innocent Mina by the arm, and pulled her back with them, leaving their leader exposed.
"Please Mog… She didn't know." Locke tried to reason him, but it was too little, too late. Mog closed his tiny eyes and started dancing very slowly. Each movement of his arms and tiny purple wings accompanied perfectly his graceful gestures. He started spinning slowly on himself, dazzling the crowd around him with the fluidity of his actions. He spun faster and faster for a couple of seconds, until he stopped his dance in the blink of an eye, his deep stare undressing Serena.
The castle structure slowly disappeared, and a plain covered in snow appeared. Heavy snow flakes were falling from the grey sky. The moogle lifted both his arms at the sky, still gazing at a completely lost Serena.
"W..w…. what's going on here?"
Before anyone could answer Serena, Mog put the final touch to his attack. "Snowman… JAZZ" he screamed. In less than a second, a giant snowball formed itself over Serena's head, and fell on her. Her blonde head popped on top of the snow, wiggling like a wet dog and spitting snow. The landscape disappeared, leaving the place to the castle walls. Mog bowed in front of the SnowSerena he just created, and exploded in laughs. Relm couldn't resist the funny scene, and started laughing with her furry friend.
The Scouts were stunned. "Amazing! Did you see that? It was some sort of illusion, but it seemed so real" expressed Amy.
"T-t-t-tell me about it", replied a shivering Serena, still stuck in the snow.
"That wasn't an illusion Amy, but the special power of Mog. He can control nature elements with his dances. He's a bit short-tempered as you can see." added Edgar while the moogle was rolling on the floor, still proud of his actions.
Witness to the whole scene, Celes walked angrily toward her furry friend : "Stop laughing Relm. And Mog, that was very rude toward our guest. Apologize to Serena right now."
While Relm had a hard time to contain her emotions, the moogle rapidly stopped laughing and jumped on his tiny legs. "No. She insulted me, kupo!" he said crossing his arms and turning his back to Celes.
"That's no reason to attack her like that. She couldn't know since this was the first time she saw a moogle in her life." she replied.
Celes lied a bit, but not entirely. Serena DID know about Mog since Celes told her about him when she was accidentally teleported. But she had never met a real moogle. What Celes didn't know was the shock of seeing a "walking, live teddy bear" would erase all trace of self-control in Serena.
While the rune knight and the small moogle were arguing, Mina and Raye were giving Serena a helping hand. "You've done it again, meatball head." said the priestess, shaking her head.
"S-s-stop lecturing m-me and help-p me out-t…" replied the young heroine. Mina and Raye were both pulling on Serena's arms to free her from her snow prison."H-harder guys!" whined Serena.
"What… do you think… we're doing???" said Mina, her tense voice indicating the force she was using.
Weakened by the warmth of the castlethe snow slowly started to melt, loosening its grip on the blonde girl. Serena felt her body move. "Guys, it's working! Keep…" In the middle of her cheering, the snow finally crumbled under the force used by Mina and Raye. The two girls fell on the floor, losing their grip on Serena and sending her flying across the room: "it uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup BOOM". She crashed a couple of meters further into a wall. All the efforts Relm made to stop laughing were annihilated in a flash, as her laugh invaded the room again.
"My God!" whispered a stunned Cyan. "Meh… that kind of stuff happens all the time with us." replied Lita who joined Cyan with Amy.
He looked at the tall brunette: "But the impact…"
"Don't worry, we are talking about Serena here. She'll be fine" she added, smiling.
Cyan aimed his concerned gaze at the crash site, and saw Serena sitting on the floor, scratching her head. She was looking at Mina and Raye. "Why did you throw me like that?"
"Oh no… OH NO!!! Don't blame us for what just happened!" yelled an impatient Raye. She jumped on her feet and ran toward Serena, who just got up herself. The two started arguing.
"Don't worry, that's also part of the routine…" said Amy before Cyan could even open his mouth.
He looked at Amy, and then at the gazing contest between Raye and Serena. "I see" he said, smiling. Mina was still on the floor, shaking her head slowly.
Everyone was looking at the scene, smiling, even laughing at what they just saw. Like the roar of a thunderstorm, a crisp sound of shattering crystal brought everyone back to reality. They all looked toward the dining table, where the sound came from. On a chair sat a heroine who once helped to save the world. Her head laid silently on the wooden table, her shining green hair falling on each side of her pale face. Her right arm hung above the ground, as her fingertips were bathing in a small pond of alcohol on the floor, the liquid coming from the broken glass.
"Oh no… Terra!!" screamed Edgar.
He rushed to the aid of her friend alongside Locke and Celes. She took her friend's hand and talked to her : "Terra, wake up. What's wrong?"
Locke took her hand gently and checked her pulse. "Edgar, her pulse is very week. She needs a doctor now!!".
The Scouts quickly stopped arguing, and looked very worried at the scene, holding each others hands very firmly. Cyan gazed at the scene like a statue, although inside he was worried for his comrade. Strongly holding Cyan's legs, Mog was hiding himself behind the warrior, trembling with fear. Beside him, small Relm held Cyan's other leg, her emotions quickly shifted from extreme joy to deep concern.
Edgar turned to his maid, who came in after hearing the horrible sound of shattering glass. "Prepare a bed, now!" ordered the king. The maid bowed, and ran as fast as she could out of the dining hall…
End Chapter 2
