Meanwhile...in the World of Balance Forest
It was on the middle of the mourning, when Pit and Sabin encountered the first enemies as they were randomly walking. There seem to be Lobos that blocked Pit's and Sabin's path, just after they exited the cabin. Pit didn't have a real fight for over 3.5 years. The last real fight was with Phosphora, the Lightning Flash. And who knows if Pit can still fight on his own.
Pit took notice of the new situation, as he turned to Sabin. He gave Sabin a yes with a head nod. Pit then began his rally cry. "Enemies along the way?! It's time to whip some ass. I am Pit, former servant of the Goddess of Light. I fight for right, anything that is wrong must be made right. And you all, are HISTORY!" With that, Pit then began to engage combat with the Lobos, a wolf-like creature.
Meanwhile, Sabin stood back from behind Pit, as he observed the combat between Pit and the Lobos. "Engage them Pit! Remember what I taught you all these years, and make sure you get the most out of it. I'll see how you handle your first enemies out on the wild."
One of the Lobos tried to lunged at Pit, where Pit dodge it easily. He then sidestepped and used Phantom Rush against the Lobo, in which the enemy was defeated in one hit. Pit then stepped back right next to Sabin, who was having his fists up in the meantime, ready for battle. His fighting face then turned to Sabin.
Pit then turned to Sabin, telling him by shouting. "Sabin! Do what must be done to these monsters. I am counting on you to finish the job."
Sabin then followed Pit's advice and flipped the Lobos upside down, with it limping and eventually falling over on its side. Both Pit and Sabin did their victory poses, and then proceeded on through the forest, heading closer to Triangle Island. First though, they made their way South towards Figaro Cave, where they stopped for the night, as it was getting dark already. Both Pit and Sabin unpacked their gear, which included some food and a camp fire with a sleeping bag as shelter. Pit got out a chunk of meat and Sabin grabbed the can of beans that was included in the pack. Pit put the meat on the fire while Sabin prepared the beans for eating by opening the can. After that, they ate the steak and beans in silence. Pit was the first to finish his meal, as usual. Sabin then followed. Each of them ate half of the beans and steak. Pit then turned and looked into the sky filled with stars, with the moon in full phase. Sabin turned towards Pit and looked at him mysteriously.
Sabin talked to Pit, worried about his emotions. "Is there anything wrong Pit? You seem to be quieter this time compared to the previous night." Pit simply replied: "Sabin, these past few days have been somewhat have a curiosity to it. This world that you live in seems to be much more peaceful. There is no wars, no battles, just friendly people that you can get to know. All of them, kind-hearted. Like this what I would like it to be as a dream. Sabin, don't you agree?" Sabin started on in silence until he can form his thoughts. When he did, Sabin replied intelligently,
"For the most part, there hasn't been any major battles, but there is a certain empire that is threatening the world right now. It is called the Gestahlian Empire." Pit didn't know what empire was it, so he replied back in confusion: "Gestahlian Empire? What is that Sabin? Why do we need to be concerned about them?" Sabin then gave Pit a lesson in what the Gestahlian Empire was. Sabin spoke, "Long ago, humans and espers lived alongside peacefully, until the War of the Magi occurred about one thousand years ago. This terrible war then set the humans and the espers apart.
Technology was sent back, and over time, the Gestahlian Empire rose. Their ultimate goal is to drain the life from the espers and use their magic for destructive purposes." Pit then just stared at Sabin in silence, "What's an esper anyway?" Sabin quickly replied, "Espers are beings that possess magic. One by one, they are captured by that empire." Pit was apparently shocked, "That is not right at all! Those people should not do that to other live forms. I now begin to understand on how Viridi said some of the humans are destroying the earth. They are doing more than that, they are harming life! Sabin, what do you think we should do in the meantime?" Sabin said, "Pit, I think it is in our best interests to rest for now, tomorrow is going to be a long day. We are going to make the journey from Figaro Cave to Figaro Castle, where my other twin brother lives." Pit replied, "You have a twin? I never knew that." Sabin replies, "Yeah Pit. Anyway, I am going to say goodnight. The camp fire is still blazing, which should provide warmth for both of us." Eventually, Pit and Sabin went to sleep under the crystal clear sky, with the stars shining their brightness upon them. Meanwhile, the campfire is still blazing, keeping them warm in the meantime.
At around 7:30 PM, the sun rose above the horizon and its light pierced the sky. Pit slowly opened his eyes, his vision clearing. The first thing that he can hear is the chirping of birds and the sounds of wildlife. The campfire that was right next to them was now a little more than a pile of smoking coals. Pit slowly turned to his side to see that Sabin was still sleeping. Is it that Pit slowly walked over and looked up at the sky, as it was now orange-red. Pit then shock Sabin on his shoulders. "Sabin, it is time to wake up. We will have to begin our journey to Figaro Castle." Sabin replied back to Pit. "Ughh...Good mourning Pit. I am going to wipe of the sleepiness from my eyes. Then, we can eat our breakfast together. For breakfast, we are going to have some sausage." Pit was excited about the fact that he was going to have one of his favourite foods for breakfast. Pit said, "You know what Sabin? This time, I am going to go back for seconds and thirds." Sabin was walking around now, checking their supplies for the main journey ahead of them. He got out a pack of sausages and made a new campfire by striking flint and steel together. It worked really well, as the spark landed on top of the wood, making it flame up for the first time. The flame went up to the sky and Sabin put the sausages on the grill. The sausages made a sizzling sound as it cooked, making both Pit and Sabin more hungry. Pit comments on the smell, "Man, that sound of the meat cooking and the smell makes me want to dig in. It is surprising on how hungry you can get from just sleeping overnight."
Sabin then sat down and turned towards Pit, "This is just one of my meals that I normally eat in the morning." One of the sausages was ready to be taken out of the fire, as it was done cooking." Sabin took that one out with a stick and ate with his bare hands. He began chewing it with his left hand, never stopping to say anything until the entire sausage was gone from him. "Oh Yeah! That tasted so good to my taste buds! Come on Pit, give it a try, you will love it." Pit then grabbed two of the sausages and began eating them as well. "Man, that flavor just exploded in my mouth! Oh man, this is the best thing that I have ever tasted." In a span of a few moments, the entire two sausages was completely gone from Pit's hands.
Pit then licked the rest of the excess from his mouth. "Sabin, now that the sun is completely up, we should start packing up by now." Sabin then replied to Pit, "Correct, I am going to starting packing up our supplies. For your job Pit, you should prepare our weapons just in case we encounter any monsters in the Figaro Cave. The last thing that we want is to get caught off guard." Pit then started to turn around and sharpen the bow and both of the extra swords that they brought. "Good idea, we don't want our weapons to be dulled out any time soon." Pit then soon finished sharpening the weapons with flint. Sabin also finished with his packing up the supplies that they had. With everything packed up, Sabin and Pit continued towards the looming mountain with a cave. Pit then turned over to Sabin, his face gleaming with sweat on his face. "Whew, Sabin! This is going to be some fun trying to get into that cave. It also looks damp, which might not be good for us at all." Sabin replied back to Pit with confidence, "No problem Pit. I have journeyed through here multiple times already. We shouldn't encounter any dangerous monsters along the way."
Both of them slowly made their way into the cave and looked about around them for any monsters that might have jumped right on them. Pit was surprised that they weren't any monsters. "Hmm, there seems to be no threat. Maybe we are just lucky today." But just as Pit said that, three monsters popped out from the depths of the cave. One of them seems like it has it looks like it was three hornets heading their way, getting ready to attack. One of them launched their stingers at Sabin. If the stinger contacted a person, it would inflict poison on the victim. Pit saw this and warned Sabin, "Sabin, look out!" He then pushed Sabin out of the way. Pit then turned his face to Sabin, preparing for their next battle against the monsters. Sabin had almost no time and grabbed his sword, he now is turned towards the hornets. Pit said, "Sabin, look out for those stingers. Attack them when you see a opening." Sabin was willing to fight, as his emotions can get a little bit out of hand. "No one messes with my friends! I will punch all of you out!" Sabin then jumped and dodged the barrage of stingers that was aimed towards him. He then pulled off a double flip and kicked on one of the hornets. It was smashed to pieces. Sabin then turn to is right to see Pit rolling to the right and then pulling out the bow from which he aimed at another hornet. Before the hornet could fire a stinger shot right at Pit, he had already fired at the hornet. The arrow hit the hornet directly, making it explode in a matter of seconds. Pit then talked to Sabin, "Sabin, two of the hornets are taken out. Who is going to take out the last one?" Sabin replied directly to Pit, "I am going to take the role here. You should stand back while I finish the job." Pit simply watched as Sabin executed his Phantom Rush move around the last hornet. A bright light ensued around both Sabin and the last hornet, along with a bright flash of light. The bright flash of light soon died out, leaving nothing left behind but a burning aurora around Sabin. With all of the enemies defeated, Pit said his victory quote: "All right victory is ours!" Sabin also did the same thing as well, but this time, he said "Mission has been completed, all enemies have been defeated." With that out of the way, they both continued to make their way through the dark and damp Figaro Cave with nothing more than a flaming torch.
As they both walked along the way, Pit looked around in a little bit of anxiety. Sabin on the other hand kept on going, talking to Pit for a moment. "Anything on your mind Pit?" Sabin asked. "I always want to know what is on the other side of this cave. What surprises will be uncovered on the other side", replied Pit. "You will have to wait and see for yourself my friend. Our journey is not even halfway yet", Sabin replied in a neutral voice. About two hours later, they came across a recovery spring. Pit was in awe at that, as he didn't jump in a hot spring in a long time, nevertheless soaked in one. "Don't tell me, is that a hot spring?! Excuse me while I dip myself into it". Sabin chuckled at this, as he himself has taken a few dips into hot spring himself. "Go ahead Pit, enjoy yourself. I am going to stay dry for now." Pit slowly turned to the blueish water and dipped himself, feet first. Right away, Pit could feel the warmth of the water surge up his body like a raging wave. He immediately let out a sigh of relief. "Ahhhhh, I'm feeling the healing Sabin. This is what I always want to be in all the time. It lets you escape from reality and concentrate on yourself. For the record, I am going to spend about ten minutes in here." Sabin said nothing but turned to his right to see the other side of Figaro Cave. The sun was already dropping to the horizon, as the sky went from blue to now yellowish-blue. Its light pierced the exit of Figaro Cave. Sabin then turned away from the exit and headed towards Pit. "Pit, I think we have reached the other side of Figaro Cave. I think you should get out now. We need some time to get prepared for the night that we are going spend. Tomorrow will be the final trek to Figaro Castle. We will need all the strength that is possible."
Pit didn't want to get out of the hot spring, as it felt too good for him, "I think I am going to get out now and follow you, since you know the way out." He then slowly climbed out while Sabin was waiting for him. Once Pit got up and out from the recovery spring, both he and Sabin stepped out into the sunlight. From what Pit can tell, the sun is about to set in a little bit more than a hour from now. "Sabin, that beauty of the sky. Makes you want to relax more don't you think? I am thinking of making a suitable camp in a place that we can easily relax on."
Sabin looked around and see that they was a flat grass like area that have several trees scattered around the area. To the far south, there was the sea that stretched on to the other continent. To the west however, there was the desert that lies ahead, the largest in The World of Balance. That is where Sabin and Pit intended to go. Sabin turn towards Pit and pointed towards the desert in the distance, "Pit, our final trek to the castle will require for us to travel through the desert." Pit was a little bit concerned, so he replied: "Couldn't we just go around it or not?" It didn't take along for Sabin to reply back to Pit. "The only way to reach Figaro Castle is by travelling into the desert. Our castle is located in the middle of it." Pit then turned towards the desert, then looked back at Sabin. "The first task should be setting up camp. I think that tree not far from us is the best place for us to call a night." Sabin then walked around, making sure that no one else was around. A day like this is peaceful, the fighting is low, battles are only fought if necessary. Pit unpacked the supplies under the tree while Sabin sat down and relax. After Pit unpacked all of the supplies, Pit sat down right next to Sabin. Both of them started at the partly cloudy sky in silence as the light wind pushes the clouds as if they are feathers. Pit slowly looked down, feeling a little bit lonely. It seemed obvious to Sabin that Pit was thinking of something else, rather than the trip itself. Sabin talked quietly to Pit, "Is there something on your mind Pit? Maybe is there something that I need to know right away?" Pit continued to stare down and up for a long time before saying something to Sabin, "There is this one person that is on my mind all the time. I keep thinking about that person." Sabin could relate to this, as he himself though of his twin brother Edgar ruling at Figaro Castle while he was gone for a long time. "Pit, who is this person you are talking about? I am a little bit curious." Pit immediately replied, "Sabin, now is not the time for this. Later on, you will soon find out who it is." All of a sudden, Pit's stomach started to grumble, and Sabin could here that. Sabin was that kind of person who like is a fighter who takes orders directly from others. In this case, Sabin tells Pit the following, "You seem like the kind of guy who is hungry all the time. I heard that you are a picky eater." Pit turned to the right to face Sabin face to face and said, "Yep, that is true. I remember that I always dislike anything with vegetables. Lady Palutena sometimes cooks dishes like that. I tend not to like it as much. I am more of a carnivore type of person." Sabin looked at Pit with a nod and turned back up to look at the sky that was now beginning to turn red. Pit then told Sabin the following, "Sabin, are you getting hungry? I am absolutely starving to death."
Sabin then took some of the cooking tools out of the pack, getting ready to cook for dinner. Sabin then took out the flint stick and settled it down between him and Pit. "Go and get some twigs and branches to start the fire", Sabin told Pit in a calm voice. Pit agreed to this and got up from where he sat and began to gather some twigs and sticks not far from where they are camping. About 15 minutes later, Pit returned to the camp and placed the sticks where Sabin could reach it. Sabin then reached over and grabbed his flint striker and put it right over the pile of sticks. For the first time, Pit was looking forward to meeting Sabin's twin brother at Figaro Castle.
As Sabin struck the flint, the sparks went down to the sticks and set it on fire. In the time after that, Sabin grabbed a skillet out from the pack and set that on the fire. Pit turned around to see Sabin put two eggs into the pan. A sizzling sound can be heard emitting from the pan itself. Pit went back down and sat next to Sabin, where there was bare ground for him to sit on. "Eggs huh? Those things are the best." Sabin continued to look at the food that was cooking, as he wants to make sure that the food does not overcook. Once the eggs were cooking, Sabin then took another piece of meat from the backpack and put that along the the two eggs. Pit simply watched as the food was cooking, his mouth watering up from the smell that the meat is giving off. By now, the sky was dark red, with the darkness arriving. He then turned up, watching the sky slowly turn black. There was a long moment of silence before Sabin broke it. "Looks like our dinner is just about done cooking. I'll put some salt and pepper to spice it up a bit," Sabin said in a normal voice. Pit said, "That's a good thing, adding some spices never hurts." Soon, the meat and eggs were cooked and Sabin divided the food into two pieces. One egg for each and half of the ham for each. Pit was the first take a bite into the ham. Almost immediately, his face began to shape into a grin. It was clear that Pit enjoyed the taste. "Holy...that is so good!" Pit said in excitement. Sabin replied, "No problem Pit, I may not be the best cook, but I know what I am doing. Now, I am going to dig in." Pit was already the first one to eat the ham, along with the eggs. "So how big is the desert?" Sabin replied to Pit, "Figaro Desert is probably one of the largest deserts out there. When we make the journey tomorrow, we would be lucky to make it in a half a day." Pit nodded to this and finished off his dinner for the night. Sabin also did the same thing as well, leaving nothing but pure bone left on the ham. Once their meal was finished, Pit and Sabin both continued to talk to each other. Pit was the first one to talk. "Every time I look into the sky, I always see Lady Palutena. I know that all of them are waiting for me to make my return. I know that somewhere out there, they are all looking at me right now. I can see it in the stars." Sabin put his hand on his cheek, then slowly stroked it. He was puzzled at how Pit can see things in the stars. "Pit, do you always believe that they are looking down on you?" replied Sabin in interest. Pit thought about this for a moment before answering back to Sabin. "Must I look at the stars above? I will never forget them, they all live in my heart."
Sabin then gave Pit a pat in the back before getting the sleeping bags out. The call of the nature never dies out, a force that never sleeps. Sabin then gave one sleeping bag to Pit while they both look outside at the darkness ahead. The campfire meanwhile still providing a source of light. Pit then got in his bed and looked at the stars, with Sabin, the space above them moving at a snail's pace. Pit then felt himself yawing, as he is starting to get a little bit sleepy. Judging by the position of the moonlight, it was about 10:30 PM. Pit then told Sabin the following: "Looks like I am going to sleep now. Tomorrow is a long day ahead of us. Getting to Figaro Castle is no easy task through that desert. I am feeling tired. We need a good night's rest if we want to make it through. Good night Sabin, see you tomorrow." With that being said, Pit got into the sleeping bag to get some rest. Sabin on the other hand continued to make sure the fire was still going. Ten minutes late, Sabin got in his sleeping bag. "He is a good kid. Pit could be like my younger brother", Sabin thought. He then went to sleep. The night was soon flying by with both of them sleeping, undisturbed by nature and the animals that roam around. They were sleeping under the tree, with the campfire keeping them warm.
The next day soon arrived, with the sun rising. Pit was still sleeping, but about 15 minutes later he slowly opened his eyes. The birds can be heard chirping. Meanwhile, the sky was a blue-orange hue. Pit slowly sat up from his sleeping bag and rubbed his eyes, his energy fully restored from yesterday. He then proceeded to stretch his arms to make them warm up, as his arms are still a little bit sleepy. He slowly got out from his sleeping bag and put some new dry branches in it, to make sure the flame doesn't burn out. Just then, he saw a fox jump around and chase another bunny. Pit chuckled at this, as nature was at work here. He was greeted by a light breeze in the air, under the tree, next to the raging river. Pit continued to stare at the river until Sabin got up and tapped Pit on the back with his finger. "Hey, Pit. I am going to make this breakfast fast. We are only going to have one egg and two bacon each. Our journey must get started ASAP." Sabin said with excitement. He then went to get the pan with its greasiness from cooking the day before. Pit slowly looked towards the sky, as the sun rose higher and higher in the sky. He let out a sigh. "What happened? To Lady Palutena...and Viridi. Are they still fighting? What's the point? No one wins. One person's gain is another person's loss. Phosphora...is she still alive? I wonder if she is dead for good. Forgive me...I...I...I'm, I'm sorry that I had to defeat you. Perhaps someday, we can move on from that Lighting Battle in Chapter 14 and find happiness together. One day...I promise!" Pit muttered under his mind so that Sabin couldn't hear. He then got up to help Sabin finish the over easy eggs and bacon. Another 20 minutes fly by and it was ready. Sabin said to Pit in his casual talking voice, "Pit! Let's enjoy this for ourselves. No more time must be wasted. Ahhhhh...I may need to get a cup of joe to wake me up."
Sabin then turned to eat his breakfast without a sound. Turns out, Pit did the same thing as well, eating his one egg and two bacon in silence until his plate was completely gone. "So Pit, you're ready for the journey? I am going to get packing now." said Sabin. He then went to clean the cooking pan and put it back in his pack. Pit on the other hand, went to put out the fire and cleaned up the camp site with nearby water from the stream. Some ash gathered on Pit's hands, so he just washed his hands in the water. "This feels really good, I feel refreshed!" said Pit in relief. The sun was rising higher than now, so Pit went back to gather all the things that they needed, including a map. "Let's get going now." Pit said. With that, both of them set out for the journey ahead, right into the desert. Sabin told Pit: "Finally, I'm going to see my brother Edgar once again."
Gradually, the ground slowly gave way to desert. Grass transitioned into sand, and Pit, along with Sabin, moved deeper and deeper into the desert. "Boy, I hope we don't encounter enemies here." Pit said to Sabin. "Don't get your hopes up, the trek from here to Figaro Castle is very high in activity. Monsters can pop out any time now. Who knows, they might come out." Sabin said in caution. Pit said almost immediately, "No problem, when they show up, we will be ready for them." Ten minutes fly by, and it seems that Pit and Sabin were thinking that the journey will be a piece of cake.
All of a sudden, two monsters popped out of nowhere, ready to attack them. The first monster looked like a massive black scorpion with red eyes and a stinger. The other monster looked like a sting ray with blue eyes and a tail. "What is THAT?!" Pit said in confusion. "One is called the Sand Ray, the other is called Alacran." Sabin informed Pit. Just then, two more Alacrans joined the battle. Pit said in annoyance, "Oh COME ON! There are three of these guys, why can't we have a break! Dammit!" The Sandray made his first move, trying to use it's Tail attack on Pit. It misses, while on the other hand, the two Alacrans fired at Sabin. "It's time to show whos boss!" Sabin said. He dodged both of the attacks like it was nothing and used Metal Knuckle on one of the Alacrans. It was crushed by Sabin's fist. The other tried to use Stop on Sabin, but he sidestepped and did a 360 before punch the Alacran in the face, killing it. Pit was unaware that the last Alacran that was still alive is charging up its Stop attack. It then fired it's stinger at Pit's leg. Sabin gasped, "Pit! Watch out!" However, it was too late, as the stinger hit Pit already. "OUCH! That hurts!" Pit said in pain.
Just then, Pit tried to move his body to fight the Sand Ray. However, as he tried, every part of his body refused to move. He was stuck in a fixed position. "Wha-,WHAT?! I...I can't move. What happened to me!" Pit said in a worried fashion. Sabin replied to Pit, "Oh, I almost forgot...the Alacran can inflict a stinger that can make you go into Stop, also known as the Numb attack. In other words, you are stuck until its effect wears off of you." Pit groaned at this. Sabin then turned his face towards the monsters to finish them of. The Sand Ray tried to attack Sabin with it's tail, but Sabin counter attacked with a Suplex, lifting it up into the air and completely destroying it in one blow. He then proceeded to clench both of his fists together, as flames built up on both of his fists. Finally, Sabin delivers the Fire Dance to the remaining two Alacrans.
Both of them were lit up on fire by Sabin's attack and was completely reduced to a mere nothing but ash on the ground. "Victory has been achieved. Monsters, defeated! Let the peace spread all across this world!" Sabin shouted. Noticing that Pit was still stuck in time, he waited until it's effects were gone. Then, Pit could finally move his entire body once again. "Sabin, that was NOT fun getting stung by that Alacran. Man, I really need to be more careful next time!" Pit finally said. Sabin laughed at this, "Ah well... this is your first time encountering these enemies, so let's keep an eye out for them as we head closer to the castle." Over the next couple of hours, the duo make there way across mound after mound of dunes and dunes over and over again. Pit was starting to get a little bit dehydrated. "Need..water Sabin. My tongue is parched." Sabin then handed Pit a bottle of water, which he happily drank from, as it was cool. He and Pit were also sweating like crazy. Droplets are forming out of Sabin and Pit's head, trying to make them cooler, but it had little effect. "We must be getting closer to Figaro Castle. There is nothing but endless sand and dunes. I don't even see a single person except for us." Pit stated out in desperation.
One hour passed and still, no building in sight. "Where are we now?! We must be getting somewhere." Pit said in confusion. Once again, two Sand Rays appeared and launched a surprise attack on both Pit and Sabin. "Ow...Looks like we never get a break anyways." Pit said to Sabin. Pit then did a jump in the air and performed the Fire Dance. Both of the Sand Rays were lit up on fire and reduced to a mere crisp. Pit then celebrated his victory, "You just got pwned FTW! This is so badass, something I can finally do for myself. I don't have to rely on Lady Palutena as much as I used to." Sabin looked at Pit for a little while before finally replying: "Yeah, growing up feels good...know what I mean? You gain independence and are freer to roam the planet." Pit nodded at this and turned back towards the dunes.
After another grueling 7 hours passed by, something catches Pit's attention in the distance. It looked like it was a castle with greyish walls, "Is that Figaro Castle? Sabin...I think that we finally reached our destination at last! Well...my feet is really hurting right now, we have to get there as fast as possible. If I have to walk any longer, I think my feet will give way on me." Sabin was just as happy as Pit right now, he was going to see his brother for the first time now. "Now Pit, let's finish off this journey before the sun goes down. Perhaps my brother can join us for the search to that legendary scarf."Sabin said to Pit in encouragement.
They slowly made their way closer and closer to the castle until they were like 100 feet away from Pit. Sabin said in relief, "Edgar, I missed you! I must tour around the castle as soon as I enter it. I haven't been here in about 10 years." Pit said: "Ten years huh? That is quite a long time. I remember that I had to wait about 25 years before Medusa attacked again. Lady Palutena was the one who sent me out once again." Sabin turns to Pit and gives him a handshake, "Let's go! There is no time to lose! This desert heat is killing me." With that, they walked to the castle entrance, the desert castle sanctuary within sight.