CHAPTER 3:
HIJACK THE INVINCIBLE!
There were many strange things to get used to on Terra, Harry soon realised, not least of all the landscape. For example, the Genomes, including Mikoto, slept in tanks of the same sort as he had woken up in. Because it 'compressed' the restful nature of sleep using drugs and a certain magical energy, it meant you only had to spend a few hours in there to be rested. It took him some time to get used to sleeping in the same manner, but it was surprisingly restful, though all but drowning and choking every time he went to 'bed' each 'night', so to speak, he could have done without.
Which was another weird thing about Terra. There wasn't really a night here, or even a day, let alone a sun. Just an all-pervasive blue light that waxed and waned. An eerie thing to live on a world without a proper night or day.
There were the inhabitants, of course, but he had already noted how strange they were. Given that he was told they were soulless drones, they continued to evoke a strong sense of disquiet. They were like living robots. If living robots had tails.
Then, there was the fact that the ruler of Terra was a sort of robot with organic parts, and looked like a bearded old man in dark armour and a cape. A week ago, Garland returned, looking angry. Mikoto had left to speak with him, and had returned, telling Harry that Garland had stopped Kuja from obtaining a powerful weapon with which he intended to usurp Garland.
And then, there was Mikoto herself. The truth was, Harry was grateful to Mikoto for offering to be his friend. In retrospect, he couldn't help but shake the feeling that there was an ulterior purpose (maybe Mad-Eye Moody's paranoia was rubbing off on him, or maybe he remembered Malfoy's offer cum demand to become a friend at the beginning of his first year), but Mikoto certainly would be starved for any affection in a world like this. He felt sorry for her. And to be fair, it wasn't like there was anyone else to speak to here. Garland only marched around Pandemonium, as far as he knew (though Harry hoped that Garland would work on that Portkey), so there was only really Mikoto to speak to.
Most of their days were spent exploring Bran Bal and its surrounds, with Mikoto telling him something about Terra's history, and him regaling her with tales of his life, mostly about his time at Hogwarts. He could tell she was fascinated by his stories. Then again, he guessed he was something new, something novel on Terra.
Even so, he couldn't forget his friends, and he made it a point to contact Garland every couple of days regarding the Portkey. Garland said he was working on it, in a tone that brooked no arguments. And as time went by, Harry's unease began to grow. Given what had happened to him during his fourth year at Hogwarts, never mind the last few years, he found himself developing an instinct of some sort. Especially when people (Dumbledore in particular) were hiding things from him. And his instincts were telling him that Garland was definitely hiding something from him.
And frankly, so too was Mikoto.
Still, she was pleasant to be around. She was intelligent and inquisitive like Hermione, albeit without the bossiness. And she was certainly quieter and more reserved, and as much as he treasured Hermione's friendship, she had also shown herself to be very opinionated and quixotic, which the SPEW fiasco highlighted. Harry reckoned that she had embarrassed herself with that little crusade.
Thinking of Hermione caused another pang of homesickness in his heart. Harry knew that she would be champing at the bit at the chance to experience a whole new world, especially one as relatively alien and strange as Terra. He'd even mentioned this to Mikoto, who had smiled ever-so-slightly.
Today, he was being given a treat. Mikoto was letting him onto the Invincible, albeit as just a look around. As he looked around the sleekly-decorated interior of the massive airship in awe, Mikoto said, "The Invincible is the culmination of many centuries of research and development, long before Terra's fall. The first prototype was something of a farcical failure: it imploded shortly upon takeoff. The experimental gravity drive failed catastrophically, and a singularity was briefly formed(1)."
Harry winced at the thought. "That must have been a spectacular sight."
"From a distance, yes. I would not imagine it was enjoyable to any nearby witnesses. Even if they avoided being consumed by the temporary singularity, they would have found themselves pulled into the air, only to fall back to the ground when the singularity faded," Mikoto remarked. "Several more successful prototypes were created over a period of time. The final version of the Invincible, the last created airship on Terra, was entrusted to Garland."
"Why? I mean, does he use it often?"
"When he needs to cross into Gaia, yes. Gaia is not aware of our existence, any more than your world is. I am sure you can appreciate the need for discretion. Kuja also used to be an agent of ours on Gaia, until he went rogue, and he sometimes required the use of the Invincible. He used a remote control. However, his remote access has been revoked. Indeed, all remote access has been revoked. He removed remote access in case Kuja attempted to take control of it again. I believe he is working on a way to safeguard the remote access for emergencies."
Harry nodded. But then, he heard something. Like a whisper tugging at his ears. He wandered through the ship, finding himself in a massive space, with a giant, glowing red light down below. The whispering, if anything, grew even louder. Mikoto followed him, a frown on her face. "Harry, what are you doing?"
"Can't you hear that?" Harry asked as he approached a platform over the crimson light. "The voices?"
The red light seemed to reach out towards him. Something in it touched him, touched his mind.
Suddenly, something roared through his mind, and just as everything dissolved into a sanguine darkness, the last thing he heard was Mikoto yelling his name…
He was alone in the strange crimson tinted darkness. And yet, not alone. Whispers flitted around him, like words on the wind.
"Who are you? What are you?"
A woman's voice emerged from the darkness, resonant and imperious. "We are the ranks of the dead, stolen from our bodies by the vile powers of this vessel. Whenever the Invincible uses its powers on Gaia, the souls of those touched by its power will be drawn into it when they die."
Another voice, that of a man, solemn and pensive, came through. "Madain Sari, the Iifa Tree, Alexandria, whatever the Invincible touches, it steals souls, and uses them to power it. You are not of Gaia or Terra, but your power allows you to speak with us, to commune with us, the ranks of the unquiet dead."
Harry blinked. "I don't understand, why does the Invincible have this capacity?"
"Because the Terrans are obsessed with their survival. What Garland told you was the truth, but they committed lies of omission," the man's voice continued. "The Terrans seek to revive themselves by emptying Gaia of its souls, and substituting their own once Gaia is empty of its native life. It is a slow process, but one they accelerate through war and bloodshed. And anyone they consider a credible threat to their plan, they exterminate. I, Johan(2), was once a summoner of Madain Sari, a group of mages capable of summoning powerful magical creatures, Eidolons, to assist us in battle. But Garland wiped us out."
"I was Queen Brahne Raza Alexandros XVI," came the imperious female voice. "Kuja manipulated me to wage war on the continent I ruled a kingdom on, exciting my greed, turning me against even my own adopted daughter, the daughter by blood of Johan, and a summoner herself. In my greed for conquest, I fell into Kuja's trap. Part of his intention was to accelerate the process, but he also whispered in my ears about the ultimate Eidolon, Alexander, that I could use to destroy my enemies. But he wanted Alexander all for himself, to use against Garland. Garland wiped out my city, and many, too many, of my people."
Harry looked around at the darkness, before saying, "So…what do you want me to do about it? How the hell can I stop this? You just said it, that Terra is trying to take over Gaia. How can I stop that?"
"Leave Terra. You're in the Invincible, aren't you? We can show you how to work the controls. We watched as Garland manipulated them," Johan said. "And then, go to my daughter."
"His daughter by blood, mine by adoption. Princess Garnet til Alexandros XVII of Alexandria, aka Sarah of Madain Sari, aka Dagger," Brahne added.
"And what of Mikoto? What do I do with her?" Harry demanded. "Does she know?"
"Yes," Johan said. "But unlike Garland, she lacks perspective. She is far from a villain. Her life is all she has known, and she truly wants you as a friend. This, I can see."
"And yet, she didn't tell me about this crap," Harry said bitterly.
"If she had, she would have lost your friendship. Garland may even have punished her. As it is, she is in danger if you leave her here. Her brothers are waiting for her in Gaia. Kuja is as much a villain as Garland, if not more so: for all Garland's willingness to hasten the end of a world so that he could take it over, he did so for his people. Kuja merely seeks power to defy his fate, and he cares not for who gets in the way. But Zidane is another matter. Zidane, Kuja, and Mikoto were made to be Garland's Angels of Death. Kuja embraces his role, even as he seeks to break free from Garland's control. Zidane doesn't know about his purpose, or even his origins: he is as valorous as you are. And Mikoto…she has the potential to walk down a different path to that determined for her. Take her with you. Show her the path she walks down is wrong. Terra's time has passed long ago. It is merely a vampire planet supping on the lifeforce of other worlds. Go now, Harry, and save Gaia."
Mikoto watched as Harry collapsed in horror. What had happened to him? Had the souls entombed in the Invincible reached out to him? Were they attacking him? Telling him the truth? She didn't know what was worse. She dithered, panicking despite her usually cool demeanour. She was afraid to even approach him, lest the souls attacking him turned their attention to her.
After what seemed like an eternity, the red tendril of light withdrew, and Harry stirred back into consciousness. And when his green eyes turned onto her own, she realised something.
He knew.
She didn't know exactly how he knew, except the souls in the Invincible were probably involved, but there was no denying the hurt and betrayal in his eyes, emotions she was far from familiar with, but were all the more acutely noticeable for it.
He stood, took his wand out, and said, coldly, "Petrificus Totalus." Mikoto felt her arms snap to her sides, her legs snap together, her body frozen into near-absolute immobility, save for her heart and her breath. As she toppled, he caught her almost tenderly, and looked at her. "We're leaving Terra. I'm going to show you that you're wrong!"
Then, he pulled her with him, laying her down on a recliner chair (side on, to avoid harming her now petrified tail), before rushing to the cockpit. Mikoto watched him go in dismay. He had no chance to get the Invincible working. No chance at all. And even if he did, Garland wouldn't let him go…
Harry went to the control panels, and began stabbing buttons, seemingly at random, but actually activating the take-off procedures. The floor began to quake and shake, and then, on the massive viewscreen in front of him, the ground began to drop away slowly.
Harry looked around the bridge. The elegant lines of the construction made it look like a work of art. A shame it was such a destructive machine. Then, suddenly, there was a crackle from what must have been the radio. "Mikoto? Mikoto, are you there? This isn't the time to go joyriding in the Invincible. Mikoto? Respond!"
Harry debated whether to answer the radio, only to realise that the longer Garland was kept in the dark about what was happening, the longer he had to get away.
"Mikoto, respond! Answer me!" Garland yelled from the radio. "Mikoto, where are you? Are you gallivanting with Potter? Get to the damned radio now!" Then, after a while, he heard Garland mutter, "Ah. So that's how it is. Listen to me, Harry Potter. I can see you on surveillance camera feeds from the Invincible. And judging by the expression on your face, as well as the fact that Mikoto is currently paralysed in the lounge, you know."
Harry, realising the jig was up, stabbed down on a button. "Damn straight I know, Garland. The souls in here were very chatty. You were going to commit genocide."
"To save my people. All life must destroy other life in order to survive. It is a concrete fact of life, Harry Potter."
"And that makes what you're doing okay?" Harry snarled.
"I do not have to justify myself to an interloper," Garland said.
"You could have just sent me back and left me none the wiser."
"And risk you giving any information about Terra to your world, who might be our next target? I think not. If you do not return the Invincible to its berth, I will shoot it out of the sky."
"And what about Mikoto? Does she hold any value to you?" Harry asked. It was a long shot, holding her hostage, but he had to try.
"She holds value, but in the end, she is replaceable, just like her brothers. It is better this way. I saw her increasing attachment to you, and knew that I may have to do something about this. Your hijacking the Invincible merely makes things a little easier."
Harry jabbed at the controls, accelerating the ascent of the Invincible. "Then I'm actually glad I'm taking her away from you. You're the nearest thing she has to a father. And you're treating her as disposable."
"So be it." Suddenly, the Invincible rocked, an explosion erupting from the side of the ship. "It is regretful that I am forced to destroy the pinnacle of our people's work, but in the end, it is replaceable. And you and Mikoto are disposable."
Harry began punching buttons like an insane pianist at a concert, even as the Invincible rocked and shuddered from blasts hitting it. Just as the massive ship began to falter, the viewscreen suddenly began showing a vortex of light and energy, a thing of beauty that Harry would have appreciated more if the Invincible wasn't rocking and shaking, the engines making a very unhealthy noise.
Suddenly, the vortex cleared, and Harry saw that they had emerged flying in what looked to be an arctic area of the world, seemingly spat out from an icy island shimmering with light. The ship was heading towards nearby land, a snowy landscape, and Harry knew that the Invincible was about to crash.
Running to where Mikoto was, he removed the Body-Bind. "We're going to crash! How do we survive it?"
Mikoto looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights, before pushing him down onto another couch. "Press that button!" she instructed, showing a button on the armrest of the chair, before sitting down on her own, and pressing the button, promptly being encased in a globe of blue energy.
Harry did the same, and the last thing he saw before everything went to hell was a haze of blue…
CHAPTER 3 ANNOTATIONS:
So, there you have it. Harry's learned the truth, and has fled Terra into Gaia, with Mikoto in tow. I actually had a lot of trouble figuring out what to do with the story for this chapter. I wanted Harry to learn the truth sooner rather than later, but struggled to find out how, and how he could escape meaningfully. In case you're wondering, Harry's crash-landed at Esto Gaza, just as Kuja (having kidnapped Eiko), along with Zidane's party, make their way there.
Review-answering time! Heika: Yes and no. The Invincible is the only airship of its kind, but the airship fleet was also disassembled and salvaged (being a waste of resources). And those scenes? Not gonna happen.
1. I was thinking of why the original Invincible is stated (in Oeilvert) to be a failure. I thought of a darkly-humorous combination of the fate of the Starship Titanic from Douglas Adams' writing and the Jagaroth warship at the beginning of Doctor Who: City of Death. In the recent novelisation by James Goss, the warship is given a name that refers to the original name of the Jagaroth in the original scripts, and has a resonance for any Final Fantasy fan: The Sephiroth. That's right: Doctor Who nearly had villains called the Sephiroth.
2. Johan was the name I gave Garnet's birth father in my female Harry crossover Amethyst and Garnet.