This is actually a semi-long chapter. I wrote it at 3:00 this morning because I couldn't sleep from the painkiller medication. Well, thanks to ElTangoDeRoxanne, fallacies, and emeraldonyxdragon. Tango-chan, you wanted to know why summoning Espers is a bad thing— and you will find out. Next chapter. As for the comments from Dragon-san and fallacies-san, yes, the famous Saint Balthy is very interesting, isn't it? We will get around to that, too. Not in the next chapter, though, sorry.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Balthier's Log, page 4
Since when are Espers able to physically affect the environment around them without being summoned? I swear that Mateus is enjoying freezing me half-to-death every time that I am injured now. Those two… they must be hiding something. They have started to affect me, as well. Mateus clamors for cold food and Zodiark wants sweets. I have managed to tame both for now with a promise of Ice Cream or something of the like, and thus, I am left to my own sweet machinations.
The auracite— why does the church horde it so? I suspect that they are attempting to fill a power vacuum, that or they or going to deify the stuff. All hail the auracite Gods… would the old man have liked that, I wonder? I have begun to hear rumors of rebellious creatures called Lucavi who sound a damn sight like Espers. They take over the bodies of Humes. I asked Mateus and Zodiark about it, and if they were Lucavi.
They said, in this time…
Yes. They were.
-B
Balthier slammed his log shut with shaking hands, replacing the cap on the pen.
"What am I? Your slave?" he asked wretchedly, leaning against his seated Chocobo.
Ffamran, please! I don't have any intention to take over your body! Zodiark whimpered, bobbing in the turbulent sea of rage and horror churning inside Balthier's mind. Mateus calmly weathered the storm.
You are behaving like the silly little child you are. Stop it, Ffamran, he said. Balthier pressed his hands together, struggling for composure. Start thinking. Why were we sent to this time? What did that idiot lord say?
"He wanted to separate us. He thought you would make good business partners with someone in the future." Balthier remembered that particular lord very clearly. He spoke the same way as the Espers— correction— Lucavi did.
Clearly he thinks that we will join the Lucavi rebellion. Well thought, little boy. Mateus nodded approvingly.
Are we going to join? Zodiark fluttered his weak little wings nervously, and Balthier shivered as he felt their feather light touch brush against his consciousness.
No, you dolt. The venom dripping off Mateus's voice made Zodiark recoil. Balthier felt the "young" Lucavi's surprise, and could not stop his own from rising to the surface. Who do you think I am? I am Mateus the Corrupt, Ruler of darkness. I will not be joining any rebellions unless I myself will become the emperor, which, in this case, I highly doubt, so stop your fretting!
"So your own greed is to my advantage, is it? In that case, thank you for staying, Mateus." Balthier closed his eyes. "Now, I believe I promised you something?"
Don't think I'm some pet that can be placated with a treat. Mateus growled.
"The thought never crossed my mind."
An hour later found the sky pirate crouched in an alley watching several thieves and pirates running around, preparing a "trap". He checked the information hastily jotted down on a spare scrap of paper, tongue curling around a chunk of sweet ice in his mouth as he realized that once again, he'd found a false lead, and these men were actually after the now considerable bounty on his head. Balthier fiddled with the catch on his rifle, listening to the comforting click as he primed it for battle. He swallowed the chunk of ice, feeling the thing freezing all the way to his stomach.
The hunters quickly scurried to their positions when a lone figure in red and brown armor strode down the empty street, deep in thought. Balthier recognized him as Ramza, the mercenary who had fled upon discovering he was a heretic. The hunters tensed as he strolled into their midst, his mind clearly miles away.
"Come on, boy, wake up!" Balthier muttered as one of the thieves pulled a knife. Ramza had to be given some credit— as soon as the first bounty hunter attacked, his long sword was up and ready. However, the battle would easily go to the thieves. They had the advantage of numbers, even if they weren't particularly skilled. It was three against one, after all.
"Wait, he's not the thief!" one of the bounty hunters yelled as Ramza fended off another attack.
"But he's still a heretic!" another retorted. Balthier's eyes narrowed. A heretic, just like him! Quickly aiming his rifle one handedly, he shot the first thief to stagger by his hiding spot in the arm, the report of the gun almost deafening him. The stricken thief clutched his arm, falling to his knees in shock.
"Your mistakes were twofold, I'm afraid. You sprung your trap without looking to see if the game you hunted was the one you'd snare. And you sold me short. I'm no thief," Balthier pulled his gun back, resting it on his shoulder idly. "I'm a sky pirate."
He took a moment to savor the looks of awe and terror dancing over the hunter's faces. "Now that we've dispensed with the pleasantries, tell me where I'll find the Cache of Glabados, and, mind you, not one of those paltry auracite trinkets." Ramza seemed to perk up at his remark, watching the pirate intently. So the little knight knew something of the Cache, did he?
"Two heretics instead of one? Rum luck, I say. We'll claim the bounty for them both!" the brigand he had shot in the arm was rising shakily to his feet. Clearly, these men did not know anything about Balthier's quarry. They were simply after his bounty. Balthier sighed. Well, if nothing else, he was the leading man, and the leading man always had to give a show.
"You'll have your reward for finding me. And don't think about running off without collecting; you worked so hard, after all. My shot is faster, or my name is not Balthier." He smirked, raising an eyebrow, as the hunters converged upon them. Somehow during the tumult of battle, he found himself back to back with Ramza, who was panting slightly with exertion.
"Well, they have numbers, if only one brain between them. Perhaps a brief alliance is in order? One hand washes the other and all that…"
Ramza nodded fervently. "I'll certainly not object!" he grasped Balthier's hand before whirling off to cut down a bounty hunter that came screaming at them with a ridiculously huge scimitar. Balthier quickly ducked under the arm of the other hunter, hamstringing him with a dagger and filching the man's gil bag.
"You really should try to hang on to these things, friend," Balthier said, tossing the bag up and catching it in one hand.
"Ugh, give it back, you thief!" the hunter groaned from where he lay on the ground. The pirate snorted.
"I think you need to get your priorities straight. Money is about to be the least of your worries." He hissed into the man's ear, tracing a sleep rune on his forehead. The bounty hunter instantly began to snore. "Such a warm welcome. I see my reputation precedes me."
"You are branded a heretic as well?" Ramza asked, wiping his sword off on his victim's shirt. Balthier sighed, pulling his own shirt open slightly so that Ramza could see the black and red mark over his heart. The Knight winced in sympathy.
"Religion and I don't mix, I'm afraid. Another false lead in two days; Fran's Gods conspire against me." Balthier tucked his rifle on his back strap, noticing that Ramza's eyes seemed glued to the weapon.
"Why do you seek this… Cache of Glabados?" the young knight asked. Balthier fumbled with the red auracite pendant he wore around his throat to hide the burn scar from the original jewel the lord placed there, then shrugged nonchalantly.
"Women, treasure— does a man need reason to pursue beauty?" he asked.
"It is the Church's treasure, at the end of a road fraught with danger. It is not the prize you think it." Ramza replied. Balthier bared his teeth in a savage smile.
"It is not the treasure you think I think it. But, it seems you know of it."
"No, I… you're better off not searching. You cannot know the danger you are getting into with your petty thieveries, if you are merely looking to fill your pockets." Ramza said glumly.
"Who do you think you're talking to? The leading man never balks at a little danger. I have my reasons for seeking this treasure. I found it, laid my hands on it, and brought it back to my employer. And now look where I am; no, if I can find it again, I can put things back as they were. And since you seem to know something of it, you've gained yourself another traveling companion." Balthier said smugly.
"Oh? What makes you think I definitely know anything about it?" Ramza asked.
"Well, you're rather reluctant to say what you do know, for one. Don't worry, I've some experience in the chaperoning of children." Balthier said, forgetting for a moment that he looked twenty-two, not forty-two as he did before coming to the future. Ramza clearly took objection to being called a child by someone (apparently) his own age.
"I'm no child!" he said, turning his back and leaving.
"They all say that, don't they?"
"You say you are a sky pirate. Would you have me believe you can fly? I see no wings." Ramza, satisfied by his retort, marched away. Balthier shrugged.
"I once again I find myself a pirate without a sky. At this rate, I'm like to forget how to fly all together." He sauntered after the knight lazily toward the outskirts of town, where several other men and women and (Balthier blinked, then looked again to make sure his eyes did not deceive him) a dragon sat.
"Ramza, have you picked up another mouth to feed?" A female knight in armor identical to Ramza's spoke up from her spot next to the fire.
"No, he followed me!" Ramza spat, taking a seat next to her.
"Oh, aye?" The burly man sitting with the dragon chuckled. "He looks like he's going to need a lot of feeding, a skinny fellow like him."
Balthier accepted a bowl of stringy vegetable soup from the female knight, only realizing how hungry he was as his stomach chose that moment to roar like an enraged saurian. He forced himself to eat slowly, lest he made himself sick.
"Since when have you just trusted young men off the streets, Ramza? You shouldn't dole out your trust so easily." A woman in green armor said scathingly. "How do you know he's not from the Church?"
"He showed me his brand, Meliadoul." Ramza sighed. Meliadoul seemed unconvinced.
"So? Anyone can carry a brand and say they are a heretic. Even a member of the Church."
"True, but he is also the Godless Thief we have heard so much about. The Church's bounty would not have been so high if they did not actually mean to do away with him." Ramza pointed out, and the group let out a collective oh.
"Well then, Mr. Thief, I'm Mustadio Bunansa, Ramza's party Machinist." A young boy who made Balthier wonder if he was looking into a mirror for a moment jumped to his feet, shaking his hand.
"The Sky Pirate Balthier at your service." Balthier said calmly, not even batting an eye to show his inner surprise at the name. Mateus chuckled grimly.
So, who'd you spread the wealth with? the Lucavi asked. If it had a face, it would have been grinning wickedly, he was sure. Balthier had to stop himself from automatically opening his mouth in reply. If they found out he housed not one but two Lucavi within his body, this group would kill him for sure, that much he figured. If they hated the Lucavi, they did not need to know his secret.
"Can I see your gun?" Mustadio asked immediately, seeing his chance and pouncing. Balthier shrugged, handing over the Arcturus rifle. "Incredible! I have never seen such a big gun! What mix of powder do you use? Are you a machinist, too? You said you're a sky pirate; can you really fly? How?"
The female knight clad in white and blue laughed, placing another bowl of soup in Balthier's hands. The pirate quickly set about eating it, using it as a dam for the young machinist's questions and answering only when his mouth was empty.
"I use a combination of Black powder and Dark Magicite. Yes, I fancy myself a machinist, and a damn good one, too. I fly in an airship, but it has run off on me. Or rather, I've run off on it against my will," he said. Mustadio's eyes had a disturbing glint, and Balthier found himself wondering if this was not a younger version of himself, but of Vaan. "You have a father, Mustadio?"
"Yeah, my Dad is Besrudio! Have you heard of him?" Mustadio looked eager.
"No, I'm afraid not. Then again, I've not heard of a lot of things." Good. At least the boy seemed happy. Balthier supposed he did not mind the fact that he must have had children somewhere down the line if the kid was happy. His worst nightmare was that his descendants would follow in his footsteps and live an unhappy life. That was why he had avoided having children at all costs.
You know, you're not really that selfish. Zodiark said meditatively, rocking in his ornate cradle. I have found that you can actually be quite nice when you want to be. And I like you for it.
Balthier groaned inwardly. So the little dragon saw him as a surrogate father now, did it?
"Where are we going now, Ramza?" Beowulf, the man with the dragon, called his leader's attention.
"I think it is time I returned home. The stench of Lucavi plots lie thick upon the Beoulve estate," he replied. "I would investigate."
Ramza led them to the gate, where a lone Chocobo was tied. Upon seeing Reis, the dragon, it squarked and shuffled away from them, eyeing the dragon with fear.
"No guards…" the knight muttered, tying his own bird next to the one at the gate. "Passing strange." Balthier agreed, a haunting memory of Draklor laboratory drifting to the surface. No doubt, something nasty lurked within the walls of this manse. Ramza cautiously pushed the front door open, and was confronted with the sight of his two brothers arguing, swords in their hands. Balthier whistled quietly.
"Some argument," he muttered.
"After what you've done, do you think you are fit to lead this house?" Zalbaag, the brother standing on the stairs, shouted. Dycedarg pushed himself off the ground, spitting a tooth to the floor.
"If it is to the business with Duke Larg you refer, I would say in my defense that he was long dead ere my dagger found its mark. He was weak, and relied on others to fight where he could not. A fool he was, for starting a war he could not stomach." Dycedarg said tiredly.
"It is not the duke that bothers me half as much as our father's murder. What manner of son are you to sully your hands with his blood?" Zalbaag snarled.
"Zalbaag, what manner of madness has taken you? I am my father's son, I know naught of his murder!" Instantly, Dycedarg's eyes were filled with rage, but Balthier recognized the look in his eye, the same one he himself had. It was the look brought by killing one's father. Lies did nothing to erase guilt as deep as that. Zalbaag saw it too, smiling grimly and bringing forth the condemning evidence.
"I heard Duke Larg's dying words. There was no mistaking what he said."
"Guards, to arms! Zalbaag is taken with madness!" Dycedarg screamed shrilly. Instantly, the guards that had been absent filled the hall, weapons clanking, surrounding the younger brother. "Sieze him!"
"Lord Brother, stop!" Zalbaag shrieked.
Ramza chose that moment to step forward. "Stand your ground, Zalbaag!"
"Ramza!" The older knight looked weak with relief. "It is all as you said, and I've been a fool not to believe you. Dycedarg started this war, and slew the duke to feed his own ambition. Our name has been dirtied and scorned by his actions; he must pay!"
"So he shall," Ramza stepped forward, drawing his sword. "Stay out of it, friends. This is a battle between Dycedarg, Zalbaag, and myself." Balthier leaned back against the wall next to Mustadio, folding his arms against his chest.
The scent of another Esper is heavy upon the air. Mateus hissed. One of our enemies.
"Where?" Balthier asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Hm?" Mustadio turned toward him. Balthier realized he had spoken aloud.
I cannot yet discern his location. I need more time. The Lucavi's tail beat the ether, and the air cooled as Mateus extended his power, searching for the other demon.
Ramza and Zalbaag wove a web of steel about Dycedarg, forcing him back down the stairs.
"Why will you not follow where I lead? The powerful must rule the weak: it is our duty! The Crown has been brought low by fate, so why should we not rule in its stead? We will sieze the reins of Ivalice!" the eldest brother panted as he retreated step by step.
"Your table is filled with a feast of power, but there is no place for justice. You are no Beoulve!" Zalbaag replied.
"Justice, ha! A farce! I would die of shame before the word fell from my own lips as homage. Lofty ideals do not rule the common people. I have dirtied my hands to keep yours clean, I have given you the right to swing your sword of justice. One hand washes the other, and it is time to wash mine."
Ramza paused, his eyes darting to Balthier, and at that moment, Dycedarg lunged for him. Zalbaag took the opportunity to run his elder brother through, ramming his blade home to the hilt. Dycedarg staggered, slumping to his knees.
By now, the air around Balthier was freezing, and Mustadio shivered in his thin shirt.
I have almost found it, almost! Mateus shrieked, and Balthier placed a hand against his forehead as the Esper strained every sense available.
There! That stone!
A stone bearing the sigil for Capricorn glowed with green light in Dycedarg's hands.
"You've ruined… everything… you fools, what have you done?" he began to change, morphing into something very different from the dying man that had been lying there before. Adrammelech the Wroth climbed to his feet, a hulking, disgusting mixture of god and Hume. Though he still had patches of human skin, green fur bristled from his shoulders, and his goat's head leered at them. Balthier stared in horror; the Adrammelech he remembered had at least the shadow of kingly glory with his savage golden markings, but this version was like an overstuffed puppet.
"So this is what it is to be a god." Dycedarg's voice was no longer his own, and turning his eyes toward his guards, he obliterated them with bursts of lightning. "Heed these words, little brothers, for they shall be the last you hear. I slew our father, who would have watched as hist'ry passed us by, even as the war gave us the chance to rule. I granted him his due, and no sword yet can parry poison's fatal kiss." Another bolt of lightning felled Zalbaag where he stood. The air was thick with the stench of burning flesh. "And so on you, Ramza, my gaze alights. And now regret, a traitor's recompense!" Adrammelech extended a clawed, green hand, and lightning once more burst forward to bring instant death upon the young knight, but a thick pillar of ice stopped it as Mateus began to assert his power.
Ffamran, let me come forth to do battle with the Wroth god, he hissed. Ancient enemies are we, dating long before even the first rebellion of the Espers. Lightning and Ice have ne'er mixed, and it is time once again for us to see who is stronger.
Balthier began to protest, but Adrammelech already was turning toward them.
"Another Lucavi scents the breeze… Mateus, mine ancient foe, is that you?" he grinned his goat's grin, and Mustadio squeaked and attempted to hide behind Agrias and Meliadoul as the monster advanced upon them.
Ffamran, Mateus's voice was gentle. You cannot come between this battle, though I realize the danger this poses to us. To you, my host, for if I lose you will certainly die with me, and for me, for we shall surely be executed for being Lucavi. But this battle was written from the dawn of time. You must not stop it.
"I am going to regret this." Balthier muttered as he focused on the summoning. The blue and purple circle sprang into existence, spinning around his feet, the air temperature plummeting even further.
We all have regrets. Mateus replied.
What followed, Balthier could only put the sensation into two words: very strange.