Of Lies and Fantasies
Chapter 6: In Another Place, At The Same Time
-Alyssa-
So a few hours ago…
At first I didn't know what was going on. All I was hearing was creaky floorboards echoing throughout the place, the sound of wind going past and a faint grinding of gears and other machinery. I didn't even know that I was on an airship on its way to its destination. Being on an airship was the last thing on my mind.
I woke up disoriented and almost nauseated. The room I was in was small and dark with the only source of light coming from the cracks and small openings from the door right in front of me. Dangling in front of me were musty old smelling clothes and right where my head was leaning onto the handle of a mop. I remember scrambling away from it because it looked so gross and the smell didn't help it either.
I stood up and tried to remember where I was. All I remember was that lightning strike and then being out. It was plainly obvious to me that I wasn't in a beach surrounded by sand and people anymore. The room I was in was an old closet, probably long forgotten by the owner of the place. Well, that was what I was thinking.
Then I realized that I wasn't wearing anything aside from my swimwear. Confusion turned to panic after I realized that I was somewhere else with barely anything covering me. God, I felt so embarrassed at the thought of the door opening to reveal a crowd of people who are probably not expecting someone like me with barely any clothes to pop out. At least the room I was in had some clothes I could borrow for a while. Most of them looked a bit too big for me and the only one I found that was appropriate for my size was this white shirt and overalls, though the overalls were a bit loose. Thankfully, there was a spare pair of pants right beside it.
Really, you didn't find anything for a girl? Maybe you didn't look hard enough.
I looked hard enough, Blake, thank you very much. Some of the clothes I saw were a black robe with a feathered collar, a black corset with thin violet stripes, a simple apron and a ceremonial robe.
Wait… So you think a corset is not for girls?
What was I going to wear it with, these pants? At least the overalls are kinda okay to look at, plus I believe I made the right choice when I stepped out of the room. I found myself in a narrow hallway with both ends leading to a staircase, one going up and the other going down. By my side was a small circular window that revealed to me, at the moment, that I wasn't anywhere near a beach.
The building I was in was flying, flying so high in the sky that it looked like we were riding the clouds like waves. I was amazed at first by the sight right before me and then puzzled as to how I got here. As I pondered on this, someone was walking towards me from upstairs. I panicked at first, thinking that it was the one who kidnapped and brought me here…
You thought you were kidnapped?
That was the first thought that popped into my head. Wouldn't you think you were kidnapped if you wake up in a place you didn't know?
A good argument to that is: Why would anyone want to kidnap me? It's not like I have anything valuable on me. My family is not that wealthy.
Anyway, moving on. I froze when someone arrived on the floor I was in. It was a guy also dressed in overalls – his was an orange color not like the blue one on me – with a similarly colored hat on his head. He had a thick head of light brown hair that covered his eyes from where I was standing and looked somewhat worried. When he saw me that look suddenly vanished and turned into delight.
"Hey, I finally found you." He said as he approached me. His voice sounded laid back and cool, so I thought he was rather harmless.
"F-Found me?" I stuttered, not knowing why. Must be because I still suspect someone took me here and I don't know whether this guy is innocent of co-plotting it or not. He may look harmless, but something tells me I should keep my guard up just in case.
"I was looking all over for you since the Prima Vista got into the air. You ran out like you were going to throw up or something, new girl." He rubbed the back of his head as he talked. "The other engineers and mechanics were worried that they were going to work with another airsick newbie. I hope you're alright."
I wasn't able to respond immediately when his words reach my ears. "Prima Vista?"
"Yeah, the Prima Vista. Don't tell me you already forgot the name of the airship we're on. I didn't think Tantalus would consider hiring someone who doesn't know the name of their airship."
That was it. Those three words: Prima Vista, airship and Tantalus. Nobody in their right mind would say those very words in three consecutive sentences unless they were discussing a videogame, Final Fantasy IX to be exact. This guy sounded so serious that he can't be talking about a videogame, unless if he's doing it intentionally. If not, then that only meant one thing, and I wanted to be sure before I head to such conclusions.
"Can you remind me again where we're headed?" I asked, trying my hardest to sound normal despite my anxious thoughts.
The guy in front of me put a finger to his forehead as he stepped towards another circular window. "Oh! We're going to Alexandria. The princess of the kingdom is having this HUGE birthday party and…"
And there you have it, the confirmation I was waiting for. He continued rattling off about the princess's birthday celebration and how it would be 'supremely awesome', but my mind was elsewhere. With that confirmation, I finally realized that I was inside the game of Final Fantasy IX.
Then I felt fear hit me.
"Hey, you look a bit pale there." I felt a hand land on my shoulder that made me jump. The guy was looking at my face as if the answer would appear on my face. I shouldn't say anything, but that would only make things a bit complicated. He won't leave me alone unless I provide an answer. An honest answer won't help me here.
"I'm fine." I turned away from him and tried to think of something else to say.
The orange overall wearing guy then exploded patted me on the back. "Well if that's what you say. C'mon, let's get you down to the engine room before you throw up." With that, he started guiding me downstairs to the engine room.
So that explains how I got this thing on right now. It isn't the best choices I've ever picked in my entire life, but it did distract him from the fact that I'm not supposed to be on this thing and it did provide a good disguise. Now that is a plus.
The only thing bothering me at that point was how I managed to arrive at this world. I mean, I'm not rocket scientist or something, but I'm pretty sure that creating a machine or device or gadget that can send its user or someone in particular to another dimension doesn't exist. Plus, it would take a lot of theoretical nonsense and actual research data to even have a grip on this particular subject matter. Inter-dimensional travel is not as simple as turning on a car and hope that nobody planted a bomb in it.
Please don't get theoretical…
So that brings me back to the lightning strike back at the beach. This sounds kinda crazy, but there is a chance that the lightning fried our brains and now we're in some coma buried deep in a shared lucid dream, just as your theory suggests, Blake. Well, except for the 'shared' part since you like to insist that you're the one dreaming this up.
That does sound crazy.
But there is also a chance that the lightning strike killed us and that we're on a purgatorial plane of existence, one that allowed us to dream up the world of Final Fantasy IX in such great detail that we think that we're in an alternate dimension.
Can we also avoid any philosophical rambling here? I do not have the patience for existentialism right now.
Fine. When the guy escorted me to where everything mechanical was placed, he introduced me to some of his friends and co-workers and told them to go easy on me since I was a bit airsick. From there, he showed me where my station was and told me what I was supposed to do. I was assigned to this large valve that apparently is a very important part of the engine and should be regulated and observed at all times. Right beside the valve was a thermometer-ish like meter that he told me to keep an eye on. If it gets too high, I should turn the valve counter-clockwise to release some pressure and if it goes to low I should add some by turning it clockwise. It was pretty simple stuff really.
He told me that I got off pretty lucky since it was just my first time operating such machinery and that I got a pretty simple job. He, on the other hand, was well across the room with a handful to worry about. Soon he left for his station and left my devices. And to think, I didn't catch the guy's name.
His name wasn't the most important thing in my thoughts right then. I was deep in thought about all of this. What were the odds of me being dead or still alive? I'm no mathematical genius, but that didn't mean I can't go up to someone and ask, right? I looked around that entire room with the intent of asking a 'hypothetical question' regarding my situation, only to see everyone busy at their own individual stations. Mechanics are geniuses with their hands and I doubt they would want someone distracting them with a curious inquiry regarding odds.
Someone soon entered the room carrying what looks like a sledgehammer carried around like a WW2 rifle on his shoulder, walking around with a big gut and an odd looking face on display. I recognized the guy as Cinna, one of the members of Tantalus and the often teased about his looks. That definitely confirmed that I was really in Final Fantasy IX. He told us that we were landing at Alexandria shortly, which got a lot of excited cheers from the workers. They were probably excited by the idea of waking around Alexandria with it being such a grand city and all. Besides, it was Princess Garnet's birthday if memory serves me right, everyone is bound to have a good time today.
Except for the Queen if the day's later events would follow canon.
The ship did land an hour later after the announcement. The head engineer proceeded to turn off the main engine and led the way to the outside with his co-workers. I joined a group that wanted to take a look at the great kingdom of Alexandria from a view. When we got to the top of the ship, we stood right where the group would place the stage. It's a great choice because I stood where it is and saw such a beautiful side of the castle with the cascading river below us occupied by three patrol boats, the small buildings of houses and various businesses surrounding the airship and the people walking on that side of the river.
I stayed on the Prima Vista all throughout the day, thinking about things alone. I even stayed inside that broom closet I woke up in so nobody could find me. There was a lot of thinking involved, like any other possible logical explanation on why I was here, some methods of escaping back to the real world and if there was anyone I know in here with me. I tried thinking of a possible excuse I could use to cover up my identity, because everyone knows that if they claim to be from another dimension or that the current dimension they are is a game would likely get a one-way ticket to an asylum. But then, there was a lingering thought in the back of my head that kept telling me that I wasn't very good at lying or any form of deception.
Now you need my help for something so trivial? Come on, Alyssa. I already have a cover story made up just from looking at fictional titles of plays and that didn't even take a lot of effort. Even a child could blatantly lie in front of a parent.
Lying is not something I can be proud of, Blake. I'm a good person and I don't deceive people.
Yeah, and you murdered a Goblin right in front of me. You know what those Goblins look like? Elves. You know what elves remind me of? Human beings. In a way, you murdered a human being, so don't play that 'pure-hearted girl' card.
It was self-defense! I felt horrible about it and... You know what, why am I arguing with you right now? I'm telling a story here and you should be listening, not exhausting yourself with details. Lie down and chill out. Now where was I?
Oh right! As I was thinking in that broom closet, I heard footsteps approaching the room outside. It came from a floor below and it was moving its way towards my direction. The footsteps sounded a bit heavy and made the creak with every step. They sounded like they were being made by a pair of big shoes or something, so I decided to check it out when it passed. I cracked open the door slowly after it was a few feet away from me and saw who it was. It was Baku, the leader of Tantalus and in charge of this whole charade of an acting troupe. And he was wearing the blue dragon headpiece. He even roared at one point as he made his way up the stairs.
That meant one thing: the meeting with the core members of Tantalus was about to begin and their kidnapping operation would soon follow. At that point, I decided to join them in their upcoming adventure.
I went back down to the engine room since I had nothing else to do but wait for everything to start happening. There was no use just hiding in a broom closet and doing nothing at the same time since that would just be a waste. I tried acting normally around the engine room for a while as some of the mechanics came back and my act went quite smoothly. That guy who found me struck a conversation with me and helped me pass the time.
He went on about how excited he was to see the play and how great it was to be a part of the celebration for Princess Garnet, honored that he's in the ship where the play will be held. Throughout his conversation with me, I could tell that he didn't know of Tantalus' ulterior motives. He and the other guys and girls were innocent bystanders in this kidnapping operation, making me feel sad for them.
At least you didn't know the guy's name. That would make things a lot more depressing. So, how did you get onto the stage when everyone was about to fight?
I was just getting to that. I was in the engine room, helping the other engineers as much as I can with their own things when suddenly a hatched opened on the roof. I didn't know what time it was back then, so seeing three people jump down from the ceiling temporarily surprised me. The play and the audience reactions can't be heard from where we were since the various engine noises, hissing valves and groaning gears dominated the room. The three people, being led by Cinna, ran past the engineers and mechanics in their way and slipped into a hallway in the far side. Soon, they were followed by a man in armor.
That made some of the workers curious and wanted to know why Tantalus was running around with a girl in tow around the Prima Vista. I volunteered to find out. They all looked at each other for a while perhaps considering that they should just get back to work, but their curiosity got the better of them agreed and let me go find out. Obviously, I already knew what was going to happen.
I walked into that hallway slowly, trying not to get the attention of the three protagonists who just came by with the addition of the fourth armored character as I saw them being confronted by another man in armor, Captain of the Pluto Knights, Adelbert Steiner.
Watching them fight in person was unbelievable. Compared to how this is shown in the game with the chivalry of turn-based combat, real life combat was just so hectic and active. All three members of Tantalus went at Steiner at the same time when they started fighting, all the while Garnet stayed in one corner to avoid being pulled into the fight.
I wondered how I'll manage in a fight as I watched the four clashed. The other workers at the other end of the hall called my attention and wanted a report on how everything was. I told them that they were fighting with actual swords. When they asked why, I told them I heard the knight say something about the princess, but I didn't want to cause a panic with them so I cut out the part about Tantalus having the princess in their custody.
Aha! I knew you were lying! You ARE capable of deception!
No I'm not! I didn't lie to them. Do you know how bad it would be if the workers suddenly realize they were working for a bunch of criminals?
What makes you think they did not know that? Maybe they were in on it the whole time. Perhaps they did not care as long as they got paid. Besides—
Please stop interrupting! I'm about to get to the point!
So, I head back down the hallway and see that Steiner was about to use one of his 'Sword Arts' where he tears Blank's armor apart, causing the oglops to scatter throughout the room. Amidst the oglop-induced chaos, Zidane and Garnet escape, right? Cinna reflexively screamed "THERE'S AN OGLOP IN MY PANTS!" when it happened, making some of the workers run in to see the sight.
They stood there laughing and pointing at the expense of the dancing Tantalus members plus Steiner. Cinna took out said oglop in his pants before continuing on to the next room before the captain managed to escape the plight of the wonderfully small creatures. The workers then helped Blank with the oglop problem while I snuck past them and followed the others.
When I got into the next room, one of the platforms that carried Zidane and Garnet had already risen while the other with Steiner is currently rising. Cinna was knocked unconscious by the side as I approached the control panel for the platforms. This was the only part I didn't think thoroughly. How was I going to introduce myself to the plot? How much information about myself was I willing to tell? Should I even tell them where I was from? And I know it's easy for you to answer these questions, Blake, because I can tell you already did.
Well, what happened next wasn't part of any plan I've managed to conjure up. I felt a sudden tingly sensation on my shoulder. I looked over and saw an oglop resting there, which I instinctively tried to remove, but moved from my shoulder to inside my shirt. Apparently, oglops like slipping into people's clothes because two more joined the mix, one in my overalls and the other jumped inside my pants from one of the pant legs. That resulted in panicked movement and a desperate attempt to remove the little creatures.
Due to this, I then found myself shuffling around as I tried grabbing first the one inside my shirt. The little thing kept wiggling and tickling me to no end until I caught it when it went to my chest. The next one that followed it was the one going around in my pants, which made me trip and fall on my butt. It was a good thing it didn't go anywhere near…well…you know. The last one was easy to capture since the overalls was a bit loose, so I just pulled and grabbed it as it rolled on my belly. I disposed all three by tossing them somewhere after glaring at each of them.
Unfortunately, that was where I should have been more cautious. I didn't notice that I was sitting on the last platform until it was too late. One of the oglops landed on the control panel and must've pressed something that made the mechanism of the platform, making it ascend as the hatch above me opened and introduced me to the cast of characters that were about to throw down in front of me.
"Uh oh…" I muttered.
-Blake-
"Then I notice you running towards the ship being chased by a soldier waving her sword like a maniac." Alyssa added once her story was over. "Seeing you there was the biggest moment of relief I got from that whole thing."
"Well, now I know how you got here." I let a yawn escape my lips. "We still have to make a cover story for you since you can't make one on your own. Well, I have to."
Alyssa gave me a look when she turned towards me. "You don't have to be so rude about it."
"Fine, but let me just say," I propped myself up on my right elbow as I faced the brown-haired teenager. "We're in a dangerous world right now and we know what's going to happen to it. We will be in serious danger if they find out about it."
"They?"
"Everyone in this planet. Zidane, Garnet, Steiner, Baku, Freya, Regent Cid, Queen Brahne, Kuja, Garland, anyone irrelevant and everyone we do or don't know." I said to her. "It's important that only the two of us know about this. No one else. Not even if we're desperate. Who knows what will occur if someone finds out. We'll be used to their advantage, like cheat books in an exam or, more appropriately, like Back to the Future 2. Do you want that?"
The girl beside me shifted in her seat. Maybe the thought of revealing the future has not gotten to her yet, but maybe now she knows that it will be dangerous doing so. Knowing the future is always a bad, whether it may be fictional or not. People tend to handle such revelations horribly, and I am sure that the same will happen to these people.
"No. We don't want that."
"Right. Now then," I went back to a relaxing position, my eyes looking at the dreary ceiling above me. "Your cover story, how to go about that? Hmm…" The information she has given to me are scarce. She 'worked' as a mechanic around the Prima Vista, but there's a slight problem with that. "Do you have any experience with mechanical stuff?"
She shook her head quickly. "No. I barely survived working in the engine room of this airship." So it's a no-go on that part. I'll have to go about this just like how I did mine.
"Okay, I think I have an idea. Would you object to a 'dead family' background?" She flinched at the mere suggestion I just gave. "What? Bad idea?"
Alyssa just shook her head quickly. She was looking away when she stopped. "No. It's nothing."
"Just listen to my idea, alright?" I told her, ignoring her earlier reaction. "If you have dead family, then nobody would be able to verify your background. Everyone would just take your word whether they like it or not." I let it sink in for a while before I continue speaking. "It's for the best."
"How about yours? Does your cover involve dead people?" She inquired, her eyebrows raised.
"What? No. I have a much cleverer cover. There's an earlier version of my cover story that I hatched up, but I improved it just as you were telling your story." Her head shook disapprovingly. Well, she was going on and on about irrelevant details and the idea just popped into my head, so I took the opportunity to revise my cover.
"Alright, here is mine," I began. "I come from a family of successful merchants and information brokers from a far continent." I gestured wide, as if I was drawing up a wonderful image of some faraway land. "We did decently when it comes to financial matters and we never suffered big losses. My parents thought it would be good for us to see other places aside from other towns near our home, so we took the family boat, a big one at that, and sailed towards another continent."
"That sounds believable." Alyssa commented in her seat.
"Here comes the great part. A day or so later, we were caught in a violent storm. It sent us on a wild ride of terrible waves and unbearable winds that broke our ship. Thankfully, we were soon picked up by a patrolling ship on its way to Lindblum in the Mist Continent. With only the clothes on our backs and the few resources we had on us, we stayed in Lindblum, where we would rebuild and replicate our success."
"Wow, that's kinda inspiring."
"I know. Anyway, when we were able to secure ourselves financially, my parents, now homesick for our homeland, decided that they were going back. Since I'm a lot older than the time we arrived here and capable of my own choices, I decided that I would stay in the Mist Continent with my sister and continue the family tradition of selling of commodities and brokering information. The end." I sat up and took a miniature bow to a nonexistent audience as Alyssa looked thoughtful with one finger resting on her lips.
"How about your 'sister'?" She asked, referring to the fictional sibling I mentioned. "How are you going to explain her?"
"Oh that's easy. I'll just say that we haven't seen each other for a long time and have yet to see each other in person since we took different roads in life, you know all that stuff."
We were silent for a bit after that. I was mostly silent because of my throat suddenly feeling a bit dry, but I didn't speak of it to her. She looks like she has other things to worry about.
"So, how about mine? Do you have an idea on mine?"
"A bit. But I want you to make it." I said to her with a turn of my head. "You at least need to know how to make up a story on your own. Just use the 'dead family' idea I suggested. If you can't, then I'll tell you what I have in mind."
The girl thought silently in her chair for a few minutes while I adjusted the pillow behind my head. Who would think that a beaten up bed like this would be so darn comfortable? I know I wouldn't have. Looking back at the girl beside me, I could see her mumbling some words to herself, especially the phrase 'dead family'. I guess none of her friends are negative influences on her.
She looked up and finally spoke. "I got it."
"Well, share it then."
"It's kinda…"
"Just say it. I'll help you revise it if it needs one."
"Okay," She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and then started laying it to me. "I've lived in Treno all my life." Oh, interesting choice there. "I had a happy life there. My family wasn't rich or poor, but just alright. We were happy then. But that all changed in one night when a group of robbers snuck into our house. My dad tried to fight and delay them until the police arrived while my mom hid me in the basement. They were killed that night, victims of greed and desperation."
Whoa, that is dark. I didn't know that she'd play the 'victim' card. She's telling me this as if it really happened to her. There were even some tears forming on the edges of her eyes.
"My grandparents took me in after that happened. It took a while to recover from something so traumatic. My grandparents were so supportive and encouraging that since then I told myself I would never be a victim ever again. I took up defense classes and fencing in case I need it. And that's true, by the way. So anyway, I've learned to look on the bright side of life, not on revenge for my family. I've been living a normal life ever since."
"And how would you explain being on the Prima Vista?"
Alyssa leaned towards the bed with her chin on her hands. "I'll say that I moved out of my grandparents' house and looked for work. I thought maybe I'll live in Alexandria for a nice change of scenery, plus I always wanted to go to Alexandria." She straightened back on her chair and looked thoughtful once again. "I think that's it. How was it?"
I was quiet for a few seconds, feeling a bit dismayed at her story. It was a good story even with her telling it to me sounded so credible that I would believe her if I didn't know her. But there was one thing she forgot. "How about the grandparents?"
She froze for a moment, and then I sat up and continued to speak. "How are you going to have an unverifiable story if you have grandparents?"
"You're right. How could I have missed that?"
"You weren't paying attention, haven't you?" I just shrugged and shook my head. "Don't worry. We'll handle it when we get there. I have an idea on how to remedy that problem. Right now, don't stress about it. Just remember your story's details."
The girl beside me nodded solemnly as I went back and lied down with a long yawn leaving my lips once again. "You tired?"
"Yeah. Must be the plant antidote." I replied sleepily.
She patted my arm as she stood up. "Go ahead and rest. We'll be here until Vivi is okay. Zidane's not going anywhere without his help."
"I know." I turned my back to her, shifting comfortably with my cast brushing against my forehead as I decided to let my eyes drop slowly into unconsciousness. Somewhere in between blinks, I heard Alyssa stand, mumble about talking to Blank and the door opening and closing shut. Before I could wonder about this, I fell into a deep sleep.
A/N: Alright, now that we've fixed the order of the story we can move on. Hopefully, this chapter is satisfactory. Some reviews and/or constructive criticism would be nice. Until then, I'll see you guys next time!
