Disclaimer: The Final Fantasy series belongs to Square Enix. Big Time Rush belongs to Nickelodeon TV and Music Corp.


::Big Time Final Fantasy::

-Ep.7: Big Time Ivalice (part 1)-


xXx

"Penelo?" Vaan called out his best friend from inside the Cache of Glabados but he couldn't hear her nor find her.

"Where ARE you?" he yelled out again, his voice echoed through the grotto, "You better not sneak up on me, girlfriend!"

He turned down one corner, and saw a golden monkey statue sitting on a pedestal, holding a red ruby stone at plain sight.

"Whoaaa..." his eyes rolled back like a slot machine, seeing Gil signs all over. He rushed to the monkey and grabbed the stone.

"It's beautiful..." he drooled. He turned around and saw Penelo standing there. "Whoa!" He jumped.

"Who're you calling girlfriend?" Penelo said angrily, "I'm your sister!"

"Not exactly, girlfriend." he replied, "We're like sisters." He then paused uncomfortably, "Well, not exactly sisters, since I'm a guy…"

"Would you just—!" Penelo stopped, composing herself to a smile and said calmly, "Enough with the dawdling. We're gonna be late for supper."

"Supper?" Vaan sounded whiny, "But we haven't reached our second treasure yet!"

"That stone is perfect. Now let's go!" Penelo ordered, and she and Vaan took off from the Cache of Glabados. But just as they got outside, they saw a bunch of skypirates—about six of them—laughing maniacally and cornering them at swordpoint. The leader was a Seeq with a mustache.

"I believe you have what I'm looking for." the mustached peddler offered his hand.

Vaan and Penelo looked at each other from eye corner. Vaan then smiled; "Actually..." he then faced the mustached pirate again, "You don't."

Vaan kicked the sword away from a skypirate, before landing another kick on his chest, knocking him back. He then unsheathed his sword, ready for combat. The other skypirates retaliated and swung their blades at Vaan, clashing swords with him.

"GET HIM! WHAT'CHU ALL WAITIN' FOR? GET HIM!" the mustached skypirate growled at his comrades who put out their best effort in trying to run Vaan down with their blades, but Vaan kept on dodging, blocking, countering, and veering enough for the skypirates to kill each other off instead.

He jumped behind the mustached skypirate, grabbed him on chokehold and was about to run his sword down his back when something cold and metallic touched his neck, forcing him to stop.

"You kill him, you die." another skypirate—a chubby tan-skinned Hume—threatened with his Vega Gun.

Penelo gasped, trapped at that sudden turn of event. But Vaan appeared calm.

"Ohh-kay." he said, before landing a kick in the skypirate's crotch. The skypirate fired his Vega Gun on cue and Penelo screamed. The bullet shattered the stone into pieces and left out a burst of flame in the air before it vanished into smokes.

"My masterpiece!" the mustached skypirate cried out.

"RUN!" Vaan grabbed Penelo's arm and dragged her out of harm's way. The two boarded their airship and took off before the skypirates had the chance to reach them.

"Sorry, Donga!" Vaan provocatively waved the Seeq goodbye, "Love to sit and chat, but don't wanna be late for supper!"

"Get them!" The mustached skypirate Donga was screaming from a distance, "Get those destroyers of antics! I SAID GET THEM!" The airship took off into the skies and was already distant from the Cache of Glabados.

xXx

The Royal City of Rabanastre, grand capital city of Dalmasca, which was one of the many kingdoms of Ivalice, was a splendid site to chill in and to hang out. This was the place where the Four Warriors of Light–Big Time Rush—found themselves in, following their recent endurances through the Labyrinth of Time and the Phantom Train.

They were crossing its busy streets where they saw lots of new faces: different faces in fact, compared to the ones they saw earlier. Women with rabbit ears and genetic stilettos on their feet (Vieras)… Pork-faced large lads with either friendly or rude personalities (Seeq)… short stuffed individuals who looked like elephants, but without the long snout (Nu Mou)… and Moogles, fluffy floating creatures with pompom as their antennas amongst the populace.

They noticed multiple story buildings covering the cityscape. They even saw flying cabs, airships zooming by, and little children riding on their skybandits—engine-powered skateboards that can hover in the air and could go at faster distance than regular skateboards; which got even Carlos impressed and wanting to try one out himself.

This specific city in Ivalice was pretty much kinda like a mix of New York City and London. And the gang has been in both cities in the past. But the city's technology was very much different from typical 21st Century cityspace and European lands. And its culture was kinda between ancient-like and medieval with a dash of futuristic feel.

"Can't believe we're actually in a city." Kendall exclaimed.

"Makes us wonder what else the Final Fantasy has up its sleeves." James noted.

"Man! This place is fantastic!" Carlos said, staring marvelously at his newest environment.

"And so busy too!" Logan commented, noticing the square they were in was filling with people by the minute. "Looks like they're getting ready for something."

They stopped to watch the populace going about their festivities.

"Wonder what the occasion is." Kendall thought.

"Greetings!"

"Whoaa!" The guys jumped, startled by a jolly-looking blue Seeq with a cowboy hat and a bandana standing right in front of them.

"Bonga Bugle Head Editor here, reporting live on this marvelous splendid Saturday of the 15th Skyfrost, which celebrates our month-long festive Ivalice Sky Tourneys season! This is the best news ever! As Dalmasca is receiving a regal visit from both Emperor Larsa of Archadia and Emperor Artemis of the Garlean Empire and their Royal Legislates, to partake of our 12th Annual Sky Tourneys!"

"Sky Tourneys, huh?" replied James with a smile, "Sounds excited."

"It sure is!" the head editor responded, "And there's sure to be a grand prize for the winner at the Grand Finale of the Tourneys. You gotta check out this month's article for more details! And to do that, just subscribe. Here are the pamphlets," he gave them each a pamphlet, "with all the snippets on the latest Bonga Bugle reports, and a subscription card. So you BETTER subscribe! 'Kay? Thank you!"

The editor scampered off. The guys checked out the pamphlets, reading a little preview about the Sky Tourneys. The opening ceremony was to take place in the Royal Palace tonight, with a parade down to its courtyard followed by an Official Dinner from hers truly, the Queen Ashelia B'Nargin Dalmasca. Invitation required. The remainder of the tourneys was to take place on board the cruiser airship the Leviathan, now under the property of Dalmasca, and hovering right above the Royal City.

"We should totally participate!" Carlos pointed out, "Who knows. Maybe we'll have a better chance to be celebrities here again. And we could meet Tina and the girls again!"

"You know, you could be right!" Kendall said before shaking his head, "But I'm not really into tourneys."

"Dude!" James exclaimed, "It's a Sky Tourneys! It's like Hockey, except with our fists!" He formed a fist on cue.

"Wow. Glad to see your fighting spirit lighting up again." Kendall said derisorily, "Just make sure you don't hit me again."

"Well, I'm not into that either." Logan added, "I'm more interested in…" something caught Logan's attention in the pamphlet, "…no way!"

"What?" the guys said.

"Daswai!"

"You mean that made-up scholar that Emperor cooked up when he was trying to get us?" Carlos asked.

"No duh!" Logan replied, "His name is right there… AND his picture too! See?" Logan showed the guys the picture of a Nu Mou scholar, and the name 'Dais'Wai' was written under the photo. He then read the paragraph, "Nu Mou Scholar Daiswai once again attempting to understand the rifts of time and the…"

"…endless cycle of battle?" the guys read the last sentence together, and they suddenly felt stunned and a bit scared.

"Every day," Logan kept reading, "we question ourselves: could we be chosen by the gods at any second? Our lives could change forever… up until the end of time. Read more on his interview in this month's issue."

He closed the pamphlet, "You don't think we were send here to Ivalice for a reason, do you?" Logan asked.

"I know we were send here in the Final Fantasy for a reason." Kendall shook his head, "And we just don't like that reason."

"…but maybe this could mean something more!" Logan folded the pamphlet and stuffed it into his back pocket, "Okay. My mind's made up. I'm meeting this scholar. I got a bunch of questions to ask him."

"Whoa, by yourself?" Carlos asked.

"But what about the tourneys?" James asked.

"But we need to find Tina first!" Kendall pointed out.

"And the girls!" Carlos finished.

There was a brief pause. Logan briefly studied their surroundings and read a nearby direction sign. Right now they were at the Southern Plaza.

"How about we split?" He proposed, "Once we're done with our little mission, we can meet back here at this very spot. And don't worry about me guys, I'll be fine. Got it?"

"Got it." The guys said together and they took off, once again going about their separate ways.

xXx

Vaan was entering the North End part of Rabanastre, flipping in the air a large shiny stone emitting an enchanted-like fire.

"Everburn. The rarest Firewind Crystal one can find." He grinned, gently caressing the stone.

He then saw Donga and his skypirates again. But Donga didn't see him. He and his crew were still looking and pacing around trying to find him. Vaan quickly seized that chance to slip into hiding behind a wall and quietly watched.

"We can't find him anywhere!" a chubby skypirate declared.

"Well then KEEP SEARCHING!" the mustached Seeq cried out, "We didn't track down his footprints all this way down here for NOTHIN'! Split up! ONDALAY!"

The pirates split up. Vaan curiously looked under his shoes. They were filled with soggy muds. "Darn it. I shoulda never cross the dang Giza Plains after the rain." he muttered, before removing his shoes and scrapping the mud off the heels.

He finally got out of his hiding place and something else caught his attention. He saw Kain, staring by the bridge overlooking the city and watching the people minding their own business. He turned his head around so that his one eye corner could catch a glimpse of Vaan. Vaan suddenly felt a sudden urge to flee at his sight. He turned around and started walking fast when he bumped into Lightning. Lightning's green eyes stared back into Vaan's in severity. The two stood there for almost ten seconds and Vaan slowly took a step back. He slowly went around Lightning and started walking away, his gaze still upon her, "Excuse me. Sorry. Gotta go." He finally took off running as his feet could, and Lightning watched him leave.

Kain rejoined Lightning, and also coming in were Tifa and Laguna.

"So he was one of us too huh?" Laguna inquired.

"Alive and kicking." Kain replied.

"Let's go." Lightning said.

xXx

Migelo's Sundries was a very busy store in Rabanastre. But on that particular time of year it was filled with people.

"Thank you for shopping with us. Please come again." Penelo said to her customers before seeing them take off. At that moment she saw Vaan bursting through the front door. Vaan froze at her sight. Penelo narrowed her eyes. Vaan quickly turned to his right and slipped past a crowd of customers toward the back of the counter and into another room. It took Vaan at least ten seconds before he busted out of the room and joined Penelo with a liquid bottle in his hand as if nothing happened.

"Phew." he was short of breath, "Got the Potion right there."

Penelo examined the bottle."That's an Eye Drop."

Vaan snatched the Eye Drop from Penelo's hand, drank a gulp of it, and wheezily said, "So?"

He winced in disgust to the medicine aftertaste and spat the liquid on the floor. Penelo frowned in disgust.

"Vaan, where have you been?" Penelo asked.

"Duh! I was looking for the potions!" he said, grabbing a mop to wipe off his spill.

"It took you an hour and a half to search for a carton of potions? And all you came out with was an Eye Drop?"

"It has a bitter aftertaste, okay?" he argued, "And let's face it, I'm not a great seeker of things."

On cue, the Everstone that Vaan had earlier fell on the ground in a klink. Penelo saw the stone, picked it up, and stared down at Vaan as if peering into his soul.

"Okay, fine! I went skypirating, all right? So get off my back!" Vaan barked.

Penelo examined the stone, "So, you got another one of these? What is that, anyway?"

"Everburn." Vaan said with a smile, "Powerful Firewind Crystal bursting with magical energy. But don't hold it much longer, cuz it's-!"

"HAWT! HOT! HOT! HOT!" Penelo suddenly juggled the magicite and let go of it. It fell again but this time it shattered into pieces and burst of flames shot out again from the broken shards.

"...hot." Vaan finished.

Kytes and Filo entered the Sundries, looking all excited.

"Hey guys! Are you all going to the Sky Tourneys Official Dinner this evening?" Kytes asked.

"You'll need to get an invitation of course." Filo waved to them her invitation. It was a golden ticket with the Seal of Dalmasca on it and Ashe's signature.

Penelo looked confused, "Wait, we don't need an invitation to—" she then gasped in realization, "Oh, you mean the dinner!"

Kytes and Filo nodded.

"I thought you meant the actual tourneys."

"Nah." Kytes shook his head, "The tourneys are free."

"IF you register early of course." Filo added, "And registration's full."

"Glad I registered." Vaan replied, "But as for the Official Dinner, I am SO going."

Kytes, Filo and Penelo stared at Vaan surprisingly.

"But Vaan… you don't have a ticket." Kytes said to him.

"No." Vaan pulled out another Everburn from his pocket. "I got MY invite right here."

"Another Everburn?" Penelo said to him, her attention on the new stone he carried, "To bribe the Queen?"

"Pssh… YEAAAH!" Vaan said gleefully.

"Vaan, how many of these did you get?"

Vaan's attention shifted to the front door just as he saw Lightning, Kain, Tifa, and Laguna entering the Sundries. The four warriors also spotted Vaan.

"Hello… Earth to Vaan?" Filo called out to him.

"Huh?…oh!" Vaan quickly shifted his focus back to Penelo and friends, and replied, "Enough to make a fortune. And yes. It's bribery. And Queen Ashe and I are tight. Remember?" He stared back again at the four warriors of Cosmos who glared back at him.

"Well… yeah, but…" Penelo tried to speak but Vaan quickly interrupted with a quick, "Be right back." and slipped back into the backroom. Penelo and friends looked at each other, bewildered.

Vaan finally in the backroom took slow steps back and still had his eyes focused on the front doors. He didn't see the four warriors anymore.

He turned on his heels to run when he felt a hard armor in front of him. It was Kain!

He gasped shallowly and turned again back outside, but Kain grabbed him by his vest moments before he could escape, "Not so fast, boy."

"Damn it. Let me go!" Vaan shouted, struggling from Kain's grasp.

"Glad you're still can put up a fight." Lightning spoke. Kain released Vaan from his grasp. Vaan saw her blocking his entry. He then watched Laguna and Tifa entering as well. Now Vaan felt completely surrounded, with no way out and at their complete mercy.

"What do you want from me, man?" Vaan snapped at his enemies; though he was completely clueless that they were actually his old allies. "Look, if you want the Everburn, I can give them back to you!"

"Keep your stones." Lightning said, "We just want you."

"Me?" Vaan exclaimed, "What for? You want to kill me or something?"

Laguna and Tifa stifled. Kain shook his head, almost disappointedly, "You sure are still clueless, are you boy?"

"Clueless?"

"Oh, cut the crap." Laguna said. All eyes turned to him. Laguna choked back his words, "S-sorry. But you know what I mean. You know me, I know you. We all fought together against Chaos…"

Vaan cocked his head on one side, "Huh?"

"We were all part of the 12th cycle of war." Tifa added, "You, me," she then introduced, "Laguna, Kain, Lightning," she then added, "…and Yuna, who we still are trying to find."

"Look. I don't know what the hell you guys are talking about." Vaan said, "All I know is that I have a Sky Tourneys to enter and win. I heard they're giving a great prize to the winner, and I intend to win it. Now, if you'll excuse me," Vaan proceeded to head back to the store, "you should just leave the same way you came in."

And with that, Vaan was gone.

"…the Sky Tourneys huh?" Lightning rubbed her chin.

"I know what you're thinking Lightning." Kain said to her, "You're easy to read like a book."

"Sweet!" Laguna cheered, "We should partake on that Sky Tourneys!"

"I agree." Tifa pounded her fists together, "I can't wait till I pummel some faces!"

"Make sure you keep the pounding to yourself till you face that boy again." Lightning advised, "He needs a good dose of it just to get his senses back."

xXx

James and Carlos left a pub with sadness on their faces.

"The Sky Tourneys registration is full?" James sighed, "How can it be full? I thought we came early."

"Apparently not early enough." Carlos added.

"Well, there's gotta be a way we can get into the Tourneys." James said, "If it was back in Hollywood, we would have so used our star power as Big Time Rush to get easy access, easy."

Carlos briefly looked around, chuckled and said to James, "Y'know, if Logan was here, he would have told you that you said easy twice."

"You bet I did."

Carlos then noticed James stepping on a piece of parchment paper, unaware of its value. It had a Seal on it, probably the seal of the royal country they were in, and a signature, forged perhaps by someone of importance.

"James, look at this!" Carlos pointed James the ticket. James moved out of the way and Carlos picked it up.

"What is that?" James asked curiously. Carlos brushed off the dusts from the paper, restoring its glowing form. The friends examined the item.

"It's a ticket."

"A concert ticket?"

Carlos shook his head, "I wish… it's an invitation." His eyes widened, "A royal invitation..." Both friends briefly exchanged glances, "...to the Official Dinner."

"Wait, from the Royal Court?" James took the ticket and examined it closer, "It is from the Royal Court!"

"You guys also got a golden ticket from Queen Ashe?" a young voice startled the two guys. It was Kytes, along with Filo. Of course they didn't know James and Carlos. They were passing by when they heard the two friends.

"Uh…" the guys hesitated, "…yeah…"

"This is so cool!" Filo said excitedly, "Now you get to be in the Sky Tourneys like all of us!"

"Come again?" Carlos said.

"Anyone who gets a special invite to the Official Dinner this evening at the Royal Palace of Rabanastre gets to be in the Sky Tourneys like all those who registered." Kytes said, "IF they want to of course."

"I hope we get to battle in the ring sometimes!" Filo brought a fully-determined smile and formed fists. "Can't wait!"

And the two kids scurried off, leaving Carlos and James full of smiles as well, like they just hit the motherload.

"No way…" James breathed.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Carlos pulled out a scheming grin at his friend. James knew that grin and he grinned similarly.

"Ohhh yes buddy. It's time to crash a party!"

They took off in haste down the street before them. It was right when they left the North End that Logan entered it from the East End. He let out a sigh.

"I hope I can find my way." He then glanced back at the pamphlet, examining Daiswai's picture, "I hope you're as real as you are in the picture, Sir Daiswai."

He turned around and felt someone ramming up on him. He tumbled backward and to his back, the pamphlet flew from his hand and his Crystal necklace escaped his neck. "Aaggh…" He looked up, grunting in pain to see another young man on the ground as well. He was blonde and shirtless, wearing only steel trousers and boots. It was Vaan. And of course, Logan didn't know him.

"Oh geez… excuse me. I'm sorry." Vaan quickly got up, brushed himself and went to him, "Totally my fault. You're okay?" he offered his hand.

"Y-yeah…" Logan reached out, and Vaan pulled him up. As Logan was busy brushing the dusts off him, Vaan sneakily slipped behind his back his right hand, clutching tightly on Logan's Wind Crystal. He slipped it hidden into the red fabric of his trousers.

"I'm fine…" Logan said to Vaan.

"Good. Name's Vaan. Nice to meet you. Sorry don't have time. Gotta go." Vaan took off past Logan, "Enjoy the sunshine!"

"Yeah w… h-hey!" Logan shouted out, but Vaan was long gone.

"I didn't get to…!" he paused, staring hopelessly at Vaan, disappearing into the crowd, "…I didn't get to get directions."

Logan hesitantly took off, unaware that by a corner of the town, dark figures were watching. The two were hiding behind an alley.

"You saw them, right?" a dark voice from one dark figure spoke to another dark figure watching.

"Oh, I saw them, all right." The other dark figure chuckled under his eerie breath, "I saw them goood."

"Great... just what I want to hear." A third dark figure muttered.

The three figures finally emerged out of the alley and into the busy streets. Balthier, Fran, and someone who looks a lot like someone—especially Kendall—would know and hate: Jett Stetson!

…but of course, this was the Final Fantasy, so it wasn't really him.

Two skypirates—a Moogle gunner and a Bangaa cannoneer—approached the trio.

"Kupo, we've seen them, sir." The Moogle informed.

"Didn't we already say that, gentlemen?" the Jett-look alike complained to Balthier and Fran.

"You guys are hopeless." Balthier said to the sky pirates, "Now off you go."

The two skypirates left.

"So what do we do now?" Fran asked, "We follow them to the Official Dinner and watch their every move is that it?"

"That's the plan." The Jett look-alike sky pirate said, "These guys are after all valuable. Which is why, I, Sir Teej of Jylland, the leading man, will see to it that our mission goes fruitful."

Balthier glowered jealously at the sky pirate, Teej, "Did you just say the leading man?"

"You bet I did."

xXx

Kendall entered the Muthru Bazaar section of the Royal City. It was twice as busy as the main streets he recently was in. Muthru Bazaar was like LA Saturday Market… except without the high skyscrapers and technology of Los Angeles. There were lots of tents carrying fresh produces and the air had the aroma scent of grilled spicy fishes, beefs and corn. Kendall felt like he was once again in Europe, at a European marketplace.

He was so busy sightseeing that he failed to look where he was going.

Bump!

"Hey watch it!"

Kendall turned to face a dark-green Bangaa he just bumped into, along with his comrades Bangaas, "Oh, dude! I'm sorr—WHOA!" he couldn't stop staring.

"Whoa what, puny? What's your problem?" the Bangaa hissed.

Kendall pointed, "Aren't… you…"

"Ohh!" the Bangaa hissed again, "Damn right we are! We're BTR! Name's Ba'Gamnan! Yaah! Remember it boy!"

Kendall frowned. How could he not remember that name? It was obviously the same name of his band with his pals! Not the name of a group of lizards!

"And I'm Gijuk!" a green Bangaa hissed.

"Bwagi!" a violet Bangaa hissed.

"Rinok!" the last Bangaa who was also violet with white hair sounded female. She snapped her finger and moved them in sync, sassy-like, "And nobody means business like…!"

"BTR!" the four Bangaas hissed together, rolling the R-accent in a crescendo.

Kendall frowned, eyes wide open.

"…YOU GUYS ARE LIZARD!" He barked.

The lizard-faced group gasped. Now Kendall moved his finger, sassy-style, "…and NOBODY can sass or sing better than the real BTR."

"GAAAASSSP!" the whole bazaar gasped. The insulted Bangaas glared at Kendall, jaws hanged open.

"No! You didn't!" Rinok gasped.

Kendall stood still, noticing the Bangaas' faces turning fury red. He started backing away as the menacing Bangaas angrily approached Kendall who alertly started walking back, "Oh yeah he did!" Ba'Gamnan growled, "You did NOT just called me—a Bangaa—a lizard, you chauvinistic RUNT!"

"Whoa-whoa-whoa!" Kendall exclaimed, "Before we get—!" The event was starting to drag attention. Soon Kendall felt all eyes on him and the menacing Bangaas, all expecting a fight to happen, "Dude, wait! I… I'm sorry!" he panicked, "I… I didn't mean to upset—! It's just that… you're kinda using a name that I know and came up with—!"

"Ooooh!" the crowd exclaimed provocatively.

"What? It's true!" Kendall protested.

"Oh so NOW you're taking credit of the name Ba'Gamnan T'Roubles? The BTR?" Bwagi yelped.

"Wait… Ba'Gamnan T'Roubles?" Kendall repeated, "That's the name of you people?"

GAAAAAASSSSP! The whole bazaar suddenly turned silent to Kendall's remark. Kendall looked around. All eyes were staring worryingly at him, like an innocent guy about to get hanged.

"You… people?" Gijuk screamed, evil began to sear his eyes. "YOU PEOPLE?"

Bwagi and Rinok had their jaws dropped, exchanging shocked mutters. Ba'Gamnan himself was as silent as a stone.

"I said something wrong again, didn't I?" Kendall nervously grinned.

Ba'Gamnan dropped his bag that he was carrying and pulled up his sleeves, "You bet you did…" he sneered, "…it's on, pal! It's ON!" He grabbed Kendall by the colon and lifted him off the ground. "Whoa hey! Take it easy!" Kendall yelled.

The Bangaa formed a fist and was ready to pound him "I am gonna connect my FIST down your throat!"

"HEY!" A Moogle's voice caught the Bangaa's ears. He looked over his shoulder to see a Moogle wearing a green jacket and brown baggy trousers. His hair was blond and his pompom had the same color. Kendall noticed the Moogle and was stunned by its tiny appearance.

"Drop him, Kupo." the Moogle ordered, "This guy is obviously new here in town, so cut him some slack and stop picking on people that aren't your size." The Moogle kept talking at Kendall's attacker, "Or else."

"Or else what?" the Bangaa sneered menacingly, before closing his face onto Kendall and provoked him with a baby-like voice, "You gonna cry home to your momma?" His siblings laughed on cue, and the whole bazaar started booing at the group, tossing tomatoes and other junks at them. "Wh…HEEY!"

"How about I tell the Sandsea owner on how you cheated him at Tetra Master last night to get a free drink." He said to the Bangaa with a smile.

The Bangaa's eyes stretched out wide open at this revelation. He reluctantly dropped Kendall down, briefly faced Montblanc, and then faced Kendall again, "You're lucky that pompom's here."

Ba'Gamnan and his siblings left the scene and everyone who was watching briefly jeered and booed at their exit before going back to their usual stuffs.

The Moogle approached Kendall. "Kupo, you're okay?"

"Phew…" Kendall sighed, "Yeah… I'm-I'm fine." He smiled, "Thanks for your help."

"Sure. Anytime." The Moogle said, "Name's Montblanc."

"Kendall. Nice to meet you."

"Word of advice: don't call a Bangaa a lizard again, alright? It's discrimination. And you don't wanna get your butt kicked for that."

"I'll remember that." Kendall smiled, "But uh… quick question. Why are they called BTR?"

"Oh that's the name of their clan: Ba'Gamnan T'Roubles." Montblanc explained, "Led by that ruthless sky pirate bounty hunter Ba'Gamnan and his siblings' posse. To think that by seeing them join a clan, they'd put aside their criminal ways, but boy were we wrong." He shook his head, "Plus, it should be called BGTR. Not… BTR."

"I know, right? It's because it's the name of a band?"

Montblanc shook his head, "Nah. It's the whole apostrophe on the names."

"Kendall!"

Kendall heard a very familiar voice. He turned around and saw Tina and Chocolate nearby. A smile beamed on his face.

"Looks like you got company." Montblanc noticed Tina and Chocolate approaching in haste. He sauntered off, "I'll leave you two alone for now. But don't forget to visit my clan hall once a while."

"Tina! Chocolate!" Kendall cheered and the two hugged. Tina hugged tightly on Kendall, almost as if not letting go.

"Ohmygosh. I'm so happy to see you here again! Where are the others? James? Carlos? Logan?" Tina then called on Chocolate, "Chocolate! Group hug! GROUP HUG!"

"KWEEEH!" Chocolate joined in the hug.

"Ow, Ow, Ow! You're hurting me!" Kendall groaned. Tina and Chocolate both pulled back, "Sorry." Tina said apologetically.

"I thought I had lost you all!" Tina lamented, "You wouldn't believe how freaked out I was!" Tina then began examining Kendall's skin from head to toe, frantically searching for the Mark of the l'Cie on him. She pulled out the sleeves to examine the arms; then the long pants, then peeked behind the hair, the forehead…

"Well you don't have to worry anymore, we're okay!" Kendall replied, "We all ended up in a Phantom Train! We escaped! We ended up here! Now James and Carlos are out on their own trying to take part on this Sky Tourneys and Logan is out searching for Daiswai and here I was, searching for you and the others… and why are you giving me a body inspection?"

Tina jumped back off Kendall, gasping, "Oh!" she hesitated, "S…so sorry… that's… my bad." She then let out a huge sigh of relief, knowing she hadn't found any Mark of the l'Cie anywhere from his body. That Prophecy was not coming true. "At least you all in good shape." She quickly changed subjects, "Been working out?" she patted him on the biceps.

Kendall blinked at her puzzlingly.

"Is something wrong, Tina?"

Tina didn't respond. Heck, she didn't feel like she had anything else to say anymore. The guys left the Phantom Train, safe and sound, and best news yet, no Mark of the l'Cie. The parade noise caught their attention down below them. Tina stepped toward the bazaar fence to spot the parade crossing the Rabanastre Main Street and watched nearby attendees cheering. Kendall followed.

"Oh my gosh, Kendall. This is the splendid Royal City of Rabanastre, capital of the Kingdom of Dalmasca in the Mideastland of Ivalice, right?"

Kendall paused for a second, "Okay… you know way too much."

"We should find the others!" Tina exclaimed excitedly. Chocolate quickly replied, "THE OKWERS!" she then added, "They could be at the parade too! We should search for them together!" She then faced her Chocobo, "What do you say to that, Chocolate?"

WAAARK! Chocolate waved its feathered hands in the air in cheers.

"Beautiful!" Tina exclaimed, pumping her fists in the air.

Kendall simply grinned, "Err… Tina?"

"Come on. The others are at the Sandsea with Tomaj." She instructed, "We should meet with them and then we start searching for the others." She then pulled Kendall again and they ran together. "Come on!"

xXx

Logan reached the Southgate of the Royal City, still wandering about the place. He stopped.

"Why do I feel like I'm missing something?"

He reached a hand near where his Crystal Necklace used to be, still unaware that it has gone missing. He quickly moved his hand away to snap a finger, "Yes! I got it! I knew I was missing something! I'm supposed to be asking directions!"

He spotted a judge. See, Judges here are officers of law and authoritative figures in Ivalice. A judge could very well be compared to a police officer or higher than that. They are usually clad in dark silver armor and sported fancy horned helm that shielded their faces from the public. They also bore large capes with their countries' insignia on it. Most judges used to reside in Archadia, an empire once enemy of Dalmasca. But that all changed years after their warring conflict.

"Excuse me, sir?" Logan approached the judge. The judge, mounted on his iron-clad Chocobo turned to face Logan.

"I'm looking for this guy." Logan pointed Daiswai's picture on the pamphlet. "Have you—!"

"Ah, yes." The judge spoke, his voice sounding ancient English and muffling through the helmet, "The famed Nu Mou scholar from Bhujerba. You usually would find him there."

"Bhujerba?" Logan repeated, "Where is that at?"

"It is East from Dalmasca." The Judge replied, "You'd need to travel on the Sky Ferry to reach it as it is suspended in the sky. A skycity. Could take you about five hours just to get there."

"Bhujerba? A Skycity? Five hours?"

"Although." The judge rubbed his clad-armored chin, "I did hear from the populace that he was to visit the Royal City for the Sky Tourneys, like the Archadian and the Garlean Emperors. But rumor has it that he's now residing in a secluded cave below the Garasmythe waterway to continue on his debatable research."

"Please, tell me where can I find it?"

"The waterway?" the judge mumbled, "It's right below Lowtown. You sure you want to take this risk young man? The waterway is forbidden to most citizens."

"I'll take on any challenge." Logan said, "I just need to find that guy is all. He and I have business to deal with."

The judge was briefly silent. He descended off the Chocobo, "Very well. I shall open the gate to Lowtown for you. Oh. And be careful not to talk to anyone while you're there."

"Got it."

The judge approached the gate to Lowtown and shifted it open before Logan. Logan could see the stairways leading down a dark corridor. He gulped, "…what is that?"

Curiously, yet nervously, he stepped down into the stairways. The judge closed the gate behind him. Logan looked back at the crashing sound of the closed gate, paused briefly, then turned around and was once again on his way.

He reached Lowtown. Although the history of how Lowtown came to be had something to do with the Archadian Empire conflict with Dalmasca in the past, it was still a prosperous street than upper town was. It was filled with citizens just as much. Logan was expecting all wary eyes on him the moment he reached the Lowtown. He saw none of that. In fact, people were minding their own business. And some who spotted him were rather quite welcoming to the stranger. Heck, they even helped him to the way to the waterway to find Daiswai, and all wished him good luck on his search.

Logan was finally in the waterway, all alone. Walls surrounded every corner of the waterway. Though it was a dark cave with no light from the outside, there were light inside, powered by electricity from the city and hanging inches from each other on every wall, pillar, and even on the ground, spread out to give even the unwelcome visitors a way to explore. Waters were gushing out everywhere, flooding large gaps, creating waterfalls between thin walls. The waterway wasn't that bad, though it was kinda chilly like a fall breeze.

"Well." Logan sighed, "I guess this is it. Time to find Daiswai."

He proceeded. But farther off behind him, a shadowy figure was looming.

xXx

The Royal Palace Rabanastre

The night of the Official Dinner was on, and the Royal Palace Rabanastre was alive and humming with party fillers. The castle Outer Gardens leading to the interior of the Palace was full of people from all over; royal and citizens alike, all came by invitation just to enjoy the authentic foods and drinks, imported and local by various markets, and to meet the Royal Ruler of Dalmasca, the Queen Ashe. Additionally most of the invitees were immediately eligible to take part of the Sky Tourneys, kicking off the following day… that is if they want to of course. If they did not, they would let the Royal Officials know of their decision not to partake on the tourneys.

A trail of judges, followed by a series of carriages carrying various countries flags stopped in front of the Outer Gardens and out came out their respective royal figures: there were Kings and Queens from the westernmost part of Ivalice like Ordalia and Rozarria, Dukes and Duchesses from various houses like Lesalia, Gallione and Limberry. Even the Order of the Northern Sky and the Southern Sky, legendary order of knights from the age-old Ivalice kingdom were invited. Most of these royal figures chose not to partake on the tourneys, but to at least watch the event. But warriors and mercenaries invited took no such decision.

Two of the carriages made their entrance. One bore the flag of Archadia, Dalmasca's former enemy, and one bore the flag of the Garlean Empire, a foreign empire outside Ivalice. Out of the Archadian carriage came out the youthful emperor Larsa. Now a teenager, he still appeared small in size but still was well-respected for his country's love. But out of the Garlean carriage came out its Emperor. The mysterious Emperor Artemis. He bore long and wavy red hair, had piercing crimson eyes, was scruffy-looking, and sported a red tunic that reached down his ankles, a golden sashes attached to the shoulders, slim pants and boots to match, and an open collar cloak over the tunic with gold streak on the colon edges.

Larsa and Artemis exchanged smiles and nodded at each other as the Royal Palace Rabanastre's majordomo, a Moogle named Hurdy, welcomed them into the palace.

"Kupo! Your Eminence!" Hurdy greeted, "It is such a great grand pleasure to finally welcome you to our Royal Official Dinner, and look, you're just in time for the festivities to commence." He then faced Larsa, "Emperor Larsa, welcome back again. Great to see you as always, Kupo." He then faced Artemis, "And Emperor Artemis. Coming from so far away, the Garlean Empire. Let me just say this as a proper greeting." He then bowed, "Welcome to Ivalice, Kupo."

"Thank you. Thank you." Artemis said. "Great to be here."

"We appreciate the proper welcome Hurdy." Larsa said to the Moogle, "Always warms the heart."

"Happy to do so. Please, right this way."

And the royals entered the castle.

The Royal Palace Upper Halls was structured of exquisite European walls, altars and ceilings. The floors were made of fine upholstered carpet, there were golden statues, unopened treasure chests lying around and ancient roman furniture were there as well. Plus it was filled with people, the number greater inside than in the Royal Gardens. Ivalice music filled the air with its soothing orchestrated tunes, mixing with the cheerful noises of the people talking amongst themselves.

Carlos and James were also in the upper halls. They didn't try to sneak into the Palace or anything since they had their golden ticket with them. So entering was a breeze.

"Okay. So we broke into the Palace… well, technically we didn't break in. But now what are we supposed to do?" James wondered.

"James." Carlos's worried voice caught his attention. Carlos had on hand a Bonga Bugle issue, "Read this article on the Bonga Bugle Mistleaf Edition." He pointed him the article, " 'Clan BTR Results: 'Wimpy to the Extreme'."

"What?" James snatched the article from Carlos and read, "They were wimpy with weapons?" he blinked, "Wimpy with magicks too?"

He turned to another page, "They were wimpy, just wimpy? W-I-M-P—!"

He tore off the page and ripped it to shred, "They're just wrong! We are NOT wimpy!"

Kytes and Filo found the two guys. "Hey guys!" Kytes greeted, "Glad you finally made it."

Filo noticed the Bonga Bugle Mistleaf Edition and suddenly burst out laughing, "Oh! You guys were reading about the whole… BTR are wimpy thing? Ah! That's hilarious!"

James and Carlos glowered at Filo. "And what's it to you?" Carlos bitterly asked.

Filo shook her head, "No. It's just that BTR. The Ba'Gamman T'Roubles. Y'know them right?"

The guys glanced at each other than back at Filo, "Ba'Gamman T'Roubles?" they repeated.

"That's the name Ba'Gamman and his Bangaa posse came up with just to get some clan credits these days. BTR. Short for Ba'Gamman T'Roubles." Kytes explained then Filo added, "I mean it should have been BGTR, but why drop the G to make it BTR? Anyway, they may know how to pick fights with innocent bystanders and other clans but boy do they SUCK at fighting!"

"Big Time." Kytes said.

"Ohhh." James and Carlos laughed, relieved. At least the article didn't say anything about the other BTR, Big Time Rush.

"Gentlemen." A voice caught the group. It was Balthier and Fran, spiffy looking in formalwear.

"Balthier and Fran!" Kytes cheered.

"Great to see you again, kids." Balthier said to Kytes and Filo before facing James and Carlos, "Why I believe we haven't met. I'm Balthier. I'm the leading man."

"Name's Fran." Fran introduced.

James and Carlos greeted the new group. But their eyes were fixated on Fran. They couldn't keep their eyes off her as they've never seen a Viera before.

"I see you aren't from this world, since you're staring at me like you've never seen a Viera before." Fran said, already guessing that fact.

"Right!" James quickly said, "We're not really… from around here."

"What's a Viera?" Carlos blinked.

"So where're you from exactly?" Balthier smirked.

Before they could answer, Filo noticed their necklaces and gasped, "Are these, Crystal necklaces?"

The guys felt their necklaces, hesitating. Kytes's face lit up in amazement.

"Oh my gosh, you must be Warriors of Light!" Kytes jumped to conclusion.

Balthier and Fran raised eyebrow in surprise, briefly exchanged glances. James and Carlos had no choice but to confirm just as another party group came into the conversation. "Yeah, guess we are."

"Wait…" Vaan said, "Warriors of Light? As in from the Prophecy?"

"As Darkness veils the World, Four Warriors of Light shall come…?" spoke Ashe in the party group. All eyes at the party turned to Ashe as she gracefully approached James and Carlos.

"I can sense great power from these Crystals." She said, "You really are the Four Warriors of Light. But wait…" she looked around, "…there's only two of you. Where are the others?"

"Well, let's just say we got separated again." Carlos concluded.

"Oh wow." Kytes grinned, "To actually see two of the four legends here in Ivalice is epic!"

"Way epic." Filo added, "Epic than Vaan."

"What?" Vaan frowned, "I'm not less epic!" Penelo couldn't help but laugh.

Pretty soon the entire party spread out, no longer speaking of other pointless things, as their news got shifted to the Warriors of Light's presence in Ivalice; with two of them showing up at the Official Dinner as proof. Vaan quickly stepped away, taking that chance to search through his pocket to pull out the Wind Crystal necklace, which he stole from Logan. He stared at it in awe, remembering his encounter with him.

"Could that guy I met earlier be one of these Warriors as well?" he grinned, "Man, what luck? Such Crystal like this could be worth a fortune." He stuffed the necklace back into his pocket.

Dinner was finally served later that night. There were multitudes of great tressel tables in the wide dining hall. Each table's chandeliers came to light, enveloping the place with its soft golden glow. The middle table was where the Queen Ashe and her royal guests were. Her friends were also at the table and so were James and Carlos. The dining guests were all enjoying all sorts of foods and drinks, laughing and cheerfully sharing all kind of tales with the newest guests of Ivalice. The Emperor Artemis who was on the same table as the Royal Queen couldn't stop staring at them. He looked rather curious, suspicious of their presence.

"Gentlemen." Ashe said to the group at her table, "I would like you to meet Archadia's Imperial ruler, the Emperor Larsa Ferrinas Solidor. And also hailing from the Garlean Empire, Emperor Artemis of Garlea. They are our royal guests who would assist the kingdom on the Sky Tourneys event."

Everyone at the table greeted the two royal guests. The guests nodded with smiles.

"No way, you're an Emperor?" Carlos exclaimed at Larsa, "Wow! You're so tiny!"

GAAAASSSP! The dining hall almost went silent at Carlos's crude remark. Carlos stopped laughing, "Did I say something wrong?"

Larsa smiled, "Being small has nothing to do with the destiny bare on one's shoulders." He said, "I think you all should know that, since you guys have been chosen by grand destiny."

"He speaks the truth." Basch, Imperial bodyguard to both the Queen and Emperor Larsa added, "One should not bound himself to illusions but must face the harsh reality leading to life-changing event. The Emperor recently took the throne following the death of his brother Vayne Solidor."

"He was a heartless bastard." Penelo added.

The guys were surprised. "I can imagine." James replied.

Artemis stood up from his chair, "I believe I haven't properly introduced myself either." He once again faced the two warriors, "Name's Artemis. From the Garlean Empire."

"Uhh… didn't the Queen already introduce you?" Vaan asked the Emperor. The Emperor shot him a dark stare.

"Shh." Penelo said to Vaan, "Vaan, please. The Emperor is speaking."

"Thank you, young lady." The Emperor said, "And yes, the Queen has formally introduced myself and our young Archadian Emperor. But I thought it will seem fitting to introduce myself to two of Destiny's Warriors." He faced them again, "It is such great honor to meet at least two of you. I cannot wait till I meet the rest of the group as well."

"But…!" he went on, raising his glass of wine, "I just wanted to toast on this day, where royals and heroes can finally come together on one table to share a meal, as it is happening now."

He glanced around the dining hall to see everyone raising their glasses up in toast.

"And also," he went on, "Just wanted to speak briefly about tomorrow's event. Let us take part, all together on these tables, on this joyous festivity that is the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys of Ivalice. Whoever wins the grand tournament aboard the Leviathan will earn a well-deserved abundance of riches from ours truly."

He then faced the Queen, "And by ours, I mean our Royal Majesty, the Queen Ashe of Dalmasca." He then faced the young emperor, "Our fine Archadian Emperor Larsa Ferrinas Solidor," he then faced the entire table, "and myself. Hear-hear!"

Everyone cheered on the toast. As the lively tables of royalties and guests continued holding cheerful converse together, there came of a sudden a thunderous crash of the double doors, swinging violently open; and there strutted a knight to the congregation.

The knight donned the silver apparel of a Dalmascan knights and its shield carried the Seal of Dalmasca. Alarmingly, the shield bore millions of scratched and bruises and his outfit was stained in fresh blood from the lower abdomen down his torso. He was gravely bleeding.

The guests stopped conversing and stared in utter horror, alarmed by his appearance.

"Oh my god, sir knight." Ashe gasped, already about to leap off from her chair when Basch held her position out of caution and stepped in instead.

"Y-your Majesty…" The knight's voice quivered, all watched the ever-lively life quickly draining from his eyes.

"What happened?" Basch cautiously asked.

The knight tried to speak, his lips vibrated as if making a bare effort to utter a word, when his eyes finally stared blankly into space and his body crashed to the upholstered carpet. Everyone shot up to their feet, crying alarmingly. There was a spear impaled on the soldier's back!

Basch rushed to the soldier's side and placed his fingers by the soldier's neck to check his pulse. Soldiers on watch came to the soldier's aid as well.

"No pulse." He concluded, shaking his head at the dining congregation, "He's dead."

All started clamoring, fear and anxiety quickly replaced the cheerful scenery from before to a more solemn situation.

"Look." Penelo pointed and the congregation noticed a sealed envelope attached to the spear's end.

"It's a letter." Carlos noted.

One of the soldiers snapped the letter from the spear and gave it to Basch who quickly handed it over to Ashe. "Must be a threat." Larsa added, "Who could do such a thing?"

Ashe ripped the envelope open. The congregation was still clamoring amongst themselves. The Emperor once again stood up, raised his hands midair and moved them down in a calming gesture, easing the crowd's tension, "Everyone, please." He said, "Let us not panic. This situation may not be worse than we think."

"Actually, it is." Ashe whispered as she deciphered the letter.

"What? What is it?" Vaan asked.

"It's a threatening letter." She disclosed in disbelief, "Someone's to get assassinated at the Tourneys Finale."

The hall once again got filled with panic.

"Who?" James exclaimed, "That better not be me!"

Ashe shook her head, deciphering the letter further, "…it's us three." She faced the congregation again, "Larsa, Artemis… and myself."

xXx Break xXx

So it seems that Big Time Rush and Final Fantasy also have something in common in reality. If that's so the case, then here's a little BTFF Trivia for y'all.

- This Big Time Rush actor apparently also has a Final Fantasy character (no, THREE Final Fantasy characters in the World of Ivalice. At least…) Hmm…

…what is the name of his characters, and which BTR role is he famous for?

The answer after the next break.

xXx Break xXx

The Official Dinner at the Royal Palace has turned into something out of a CSI show: a murder investigation. Medical units were tending to the dead soldier and other injured bodies who got affected. Apparently from what the investigative judges have deciphered, the lower halls of the Royal Palace as well as the Palace Cellars and the Outer Gardens were raided earlier this evening by a mysterious ruthless band of criminals. No one knew who they were, but all they knew was that they initially planned to crash the Dinner party; instead they chose to leave a threatening letter deducing their plan to cause mass assassinate on the three royals. Why? Power and greed, some would say. Dalmascan soldiers were taken by surprise, even some of the guests at the Outer Gardens as well. Many were injured. Few were dead, including the soldier who died in front of everyone at the Dining hall. He was actually used as the messenger boy. Hence the letter attached to the spear.

People who were still at the Royal Palace were talking, still traumatized by the event and all trying to make sense on who would do such things… even if it were sky pirates.

"We need to do something." James asserted, "As a Warrior of Light, we gotta stop these criminals."

"You can't do that." Penelo begged, "As Warrior of Light it's your duty to stop the ultimate evil, and that is Chaos." She paused, "…at least that's what we've heard from old histories. And besides, what if you get hurt? Who will salvage the world in your place?"

"Penelo's got a point there." Balthier added, "Dealing with these criminals should be the country's top priority, not world saviors. So for your safety, I would suggest to butt out."

"Heyy!" Carlos snapped.

"Now now, not trying to pick up a fight here." Balthier quickly said. "Just trying to prove a point."

"Well can we at least work with the judges?" Carlos added, "My dad's a cop. And solving crimes like this runs deep in my blood."

"True that." James agreed.

"I don't think you should meddle in royal affairs at all!" The Emperor snapped at the duo as he joined into the conversation. "As a matter fact," he then bellowed to the congregation, "no one in this congregation should be dealing with this matter! We do not want to start another war between countries just because of a planned assassination, no?"

"But Your Eminence, aren't you scared?" Kytes asked.

Artemis scoffed, "Please. Scared. I, Emperor of the Garlean Empire, have a kingdom that is as impenetrable as the Walls of Jericho or Troy. Do not underestimate the power of the Garlean Empire. In fact, just to ease everyone's tension, Ashe, Larsa and myself have summoned the best high-skilled squadron from our arsenal. We will put the lockdown on Rabanastre and everyone within the city will be under close watch."

Upon hearing this, the tension from the congregation slowly got lifted off.

Ashe sighed, "I truly appreciate your offer, James and Carlos." She said to the two friends, "But unfortunately we cannot risk having two of the four Warriors of Light go under the radar of the enemies. Let alone, enemies of three high authority figures in Ivalice. You'll just have to stay put."

Artemis then added, "But we cannot stop the Sky Tourneys from going on right?"

"It is an Ivalice's Royal Holiday." The Queen replied, "It must go on no matter what happens."

The investigation went on. Most of the guests were dismissed early, and the injured were still under care. James and Carlos seized that chance to pull away from the crowd for a while. Finally alone, Carlos spoke.

"We've gotta figure out what's going on."

"I know." James replied, "But how are we going to do that if no one is giving us the okay to help them out?"

Carlos smirked, "Simple. We create our own investigation." He secretly pulled out the bloodied letter, "starting with this letter."

James blinked, "err… Carlos?"

"Yeah?"

"Aren't you supposed to put the letter in some sort of biohazard plastic bag to avoid contaminating the evidence?"

"… … good point."

The guys took off.

xXx

The morning of the Sky Tourneys and the Sandsea, just like most of the city, was busy with people. The Sandsea was a popular tavern in Rabanastre, owned by Tomaj, a friend of Vaan. It was also the place where hunt requests were posted and was always booming with business.

Today's talk in the tavern was quite intense actually, giving the facts that there was a raid at the Royal Palace late last night and also learned of a planned assassination at the Tourneys' Finale. The citizens couldn't stop talking about it. They were expressing their fear and their concern on what went down.

Kendall, Tina, Aria, Fate, Valerie, Jack and Ryuji were at a table on the top floor of the Sandsea enjoying a delicious breakfast when they heard the commotion.

"Hey what's going on?" Kendall wondered.

"Oh, you guys haven't heard." Tomaj who was just sneaking in, updated the group, "There's been a raid at the Royal Palace last night. The Official Dinner rudely got interrupted. No one knows of the details but it was bad."

"But what do you know?" Ryuji asked.

"All I know is that the Royals are in trouble." Tomaj added, "The Queen and the two visiting Emperors. No one got hurt though. Thank God." And Tomaj was off.

Tina quickly looked up in utter shock and realization, "Oh no. We haven't heard from James, Carlos and Logan since yesterday."

"Oh my gosh, what if they got in trouble?" Valerie exclaimed.

"Guys! Relax." Kendall said with a reassuring smile then shook his head, "I wouldn't worry about those guys. They're tough. We're tough."

"Really?" Fate gave him a questionable look, "Because last I heard, you were in a Phantom Train, literally panicking for your life."

Kendall briefly paused.

"…Yeah, you know, maybe we need to find them."

"Glad you finally came to your senses." Aria commented just as Tina quickly jumped off her chair and said, "Good! 'Cause we need to get into the Leviathan and find out if the others are okay. They could very well be up there."

"Whoa…! Wait a second." Jack briefly stopped the duo, "Didn't you guys heard? The whole city is now under lockdown because of what happened last night. There's a chance that no one will let us into the airship arena at the last minute. Not even those watching!"

It was then that Kendall pulled out his scheming smile. The table quickly sensed his vindictive mind concocting a plan, all except Jack who looked dumbfounded.

"What? What is it?" he looked around, desperate for answers.

"Uh-oh. Looks like Kendall is up to someth'n." Ryuji commented with a smirk.

"Oh, I'm up to someth'n." Kendall smirked, "Someth'n gooooood."

xXx

The moment that all Ivalice have been waiting for finally kicked off: the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys. The Leviathan, a massive battle airship, flying under the flagship of Dalmasca hovered before the country's Royal City of Rabanastre, little further from the Westgate and clouding up the skies like an airship ready to descend onto the people.

A huge gathering of people assembled together to witness that noble contest of fit and valor between all warriors of all classes: heroes, mercenaries, royals, one can name it. If one was to count the number of people who assembled on board the airship, the total would have been over ten thousand. And these people sat so close together, there were little to no space for legs and arms to move freely. It was as if the entire world of Ivalice has descended upon this airship.

And there in the middle of the crowding court were the three royals Larsa, Artemis and Ashe, sitting together. Ashe sat upon a high throne of red velvet fabric in the middle of the court. And besides them and every corner of the Leviathan were dozens of Dalmascan Soldiers, Archadian Judges, and Galtean Knights Templar. And they appeared to have surrounded the court like a large human shield. The Emperor was not kidding when he said that security was going to be tight around the place.

Right below the court was the arena: spanning 360 by 160 feet of fine golden concrete bricks and hardwood floor waiting to be soil by the sweat, tears, and blood of the tourneys' fine contestants. Further down the arena wall below the court of Royals and spectators was the commentators' box, secured by an invisible wall, and sat by two eccentric commentators a Moogle and a Black Mage, both letting out their enthusiasms of the tourneys as the mass crowd's cheering filled the air.

"WHOA! Kupo! Well-a-come everybody to the Ivalice 12th Annual Sky Tourneys! I'm Mog and this is my good pal, Vivian!" The Mog said.

"uhh… it's Vivi." The Black Mage corrected listlessly.

"Well, enough of that! Let's get this show on the road!" Mog enthusiastically cried out, and so did the crowd, "Let us introduce to you all, the contenders of the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys!"

Before them, the gates at the corner of the ship's arena shifted open and out poured in the contenders of the tourneys, lining up like a parade of human souls and waving at their fans. James and Carlos were first in line; and before them was someone they never thought they'd meet again: Axel. Besides Axel, there was another young man known as Matt Salazar. Axel saw him and was shocked to see him, but Matt has yet to notice him. He and Matt seemed to have a special connection.

Then there was Vaan and Penelo, who were excited to partake on the tournament but bummed out to learn that Kytes and Filo will not attend, but will watch and support them in battle. But then there was Balthier and Fran, who almost always never let this opportunity to put down their opponents pass by. And they were with their little sky pirate comrade Sir Teej of Jylland, whom when James and Carlos saw him, could recognize him in an instant as Kendall's rival Jett Stetson!

Little further behind Vaan were a couple more sky pirates besides Teej, Balthier, and Fran. Those bands include Donga, the Seeq who was after Vaan earlier. And right besides Donga was the 012 Warriors: Lightning, Kain, Tifa and Laguna. Vaan was not happy to see Donga on the field and was suspicious of his presence in the tourneys, with the whole assassination threat and all. But when he saw Donga and these 012 warriors together, that made him twice as nervous and twice as suspicious.

Finally there were the famed Knights of the Northern Sky from the Kingdom of Lesalia, Gallione and Limberry yonder. And finally there were two enigmatic soldiers who also looked like sky pirates: Luso Clements and his pal who calls herself Lil', hiding herself in a red hood.

Thus was the roster of contenders to the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys. And it was large, but not as large as the cheering crowd.

"Give it up for your contenders ladies and gentlemen! Big round of applause and cheers!" Mog cried out and the crowd once again let out shouts of praises for their favorite.

xXx

"STOP! STOP! STOOOOOOPPH!"

All heads turned to the source of the screaming noises back at the Royal City's Southern Plaza. The crowd suddenly watched Kendall darting off like a ninja, carrying with him a bag of jewels. Of course the jewels were nothing but fake accessories the Magick Sisters have conjured up for Kendall as part of the plan. Even Kendall's Earth Crystal necklace was in the bag. Kendall zoomed right past soldiers on watch, catching their attentions.

Tina and Chocolate frantically ran after him, shaking their fists in the air and screaming, "STOP THAT THIEF! STOP THAT THIEEEEEEF!"

"KWWOK THAT KWWWEEEP!" Chocolate croaked.

Kendall crashed through the Westgate of the Royal City. The Leviathan was seen hovering not far from the Westersand. Couple of soldiers jumped in front of Kendall, blocking his path.

"Okay, buddy! What is going on?" A soldier asked.

Kendall looked back to watch Tina reaching him. "Officers!" she said to the soldiers, "Oh, thank goodness!" She then shot a dark glare at Kendall, "That guy just STOLE from me and many of my friends and I demand to—!"

"Oh look!" Kendall pointed up. The Soldiers looked up. Kendall landed crushing knee blows at the soldiers' crotches. "OOOOHHH!" The soldiers went down in pain. Kendall and Tina seized their chance.

"There!" she pointed Kendall the way he's supposed to go: the Aerodrome! He went for it, and Tina followed behind with her Chocobo, still screaming dramatically, "STOP THE THIEF! STOP THE DANG THIEEEEFF!"

"KWWOK THAT KWWWEEEP!" Chocolate croaked.

"GET 'EM!" the soldiers in pain barked at the arriving reinforcements and they went after the duo. The soldier quickly went through an intercom and spoke on it, "We have an emergency breach! I repeat we HAVE an emergency BREACH! They're heading straight for the Leviathan! Stop them, NOW!"

xXx

Back at the Leviathan,

"Before we get started!" Mog went on with his commentary, "Our imperial guest, His Eminence Artemis of Garlea, has a message for all of citizens and contenders of this festivity."

A wave of applause from the mass audience revered the Leviathan as the Emperor stood up from his throne and stepped down to the ship's balcony. The Queen and the Archadian Emperor quietly watched. Artemis briefly glanced at the audience.

"Ladies." He looked to his left, "Gentlemen" he looked to his right, "…and contenders of this Sky Tourneys." He then looked down at the parade of contenders on the arena field, "…welcome." His eyes fixed directly on Axel, James and Carlos, who were in front and genuinely smiled.

He looked at the audience again, "…to this great celebration of fit, and valor."

He paused, "As you may have all heard, last night, a great disturbance recently occurred at the Royal Palace during the Official Dinner, threatening the lives of our great Royals sitting with me this morning, as well as myself. People were hurt in the process, but the enemies did not proceed with their callous missions. No doubt they will try it again."

Another pause from the Emperor allowed the crowd to speak mutters of worry.

"But rest assured, people of Ivalice; that the Royal Queen of Dalmasca, the Emperor of Archadia and myself have hired the best military judges, soldiers and knights templar from our arsenal to ensure the utmost safety to all. We are also making sure that all entries and exits from this Royal Capital Rabanastre of Dalmasca be blocked from all kind of intrusion. That means no one is allowed to get in OR out of this place until the tourneys end, and until we catch these assassins and brought them to justice. Once again we are doing this for your utmost safety. Safety to all Ivalice."

A brief pause and vehemently he said, "So let us enjoy this festivity that is the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys of Ivalice, with eased minds and untroubled hearts."

And the mass audience roared into applause and cheering.

"Wow." Axel leaned in close to James and Carlos and muttered, "That Emperor guy is such a showoff. Boasting about the safety of Ivalice as if he owes the place."

"Really?" James and Carlos said together.

"I think he's nice." Carlos said.

Axel shook his head, "I don't think so."

Vaan briefly looked over his shoulder and caught eye contact with both Lightning and Donga. He quickly looked away.

"So without any further ado," Mog took the stage again, "let us dismiss our contenders and get ready for the 12th Annual Sky Tourneys!"

And so the contenders were dismissed to their prepping chambers and the arena was getting all set up for the first set of match-ups. It took about five to ten minutes to have everything ready for the first match to kick off the tourneys.

xXx

Vaan was in his prepping chamber, staring at the Wind Crystal necklace he stole from Logan. He looked as if he was in deep thought. A hand felt his shoulder and he jumped. He turned around, hand clutched on the crystal behind his back. He stared right into Donga's eyes.

"There you are you little nasty." Donga grinned.

"Donga." Vaan narrowed his eyes.

"Listen pal! You owe me a little some—!"

Donga's head suddenly turned to one side and the sky pirate landed on the ground like a dead body. Vaan saw Kain behind the sky pirate.

"You again!" he snapped at Kain, before pointing at the knocked-out Seeq, "What did you do to him?"

"Relax. I only put him to sleep." Kain said, "And I'm not here to persuade you to remember. Nor we are expecting you to do so."

Vaan squinted, "Remember what?"

Kain glanced at Vaan's hands behind his back, still clutching on Logan's Crystal. "…you seem to be holding onto a precious artifact huh?"

Vaan stepped back cautiously. Kain went on, "…like it has deep-rooted meaning to you? If you were a true sky pirate, you would have sold it a long time ago. No questions asked."

Vaan frowned again. Kain turned on his heels and stepped out the chamber, leaving Vaan bewildered.

"…how did he know I'm a sky pirate?" he muttered.

xXx

Mog cried out on his microphone.

[KICKING OFF THIS FIRST ROUND! HE'S LEAN, HE'S MEAN, HE'S A PUNCHING CUTE MACHINE, AND THE LADIES CAN'T STAND NOT BEING WITH HIM, HE IS ONE OF THE FOUR WARRIORS OF LIGHT, ATTRIBUTE WATER, GIVE IT UP FOR JAMES "THE FACE" DIAMOND!]

James sauntered into the ring and waved at the cheering crowd, most of them who were screaming their throats away were girls. He spotted a group of them and did a couple of flirt, couple of flashy smiles and did his signature pose: 'the face'; and half of these girls squealed so much they fainted.

WE LOVE YOU, JAMES! MARRY ME, JAMES! JAMES YOU'RE MY SOUL MATE! They were screaming.

[AND HIS OPPONENT WHO SO HAPPENS TO BE HIS BELOVED BEST FRIEND: THE NINJA, THE STEALTHY, THE ALL-HIGH-AND-MIGHTY WITH A SOFT HEART BUT PACKS A FLURRY OF SKILLS! HE IS THE SECOND OF THE FOUR WARRIORS OF LIGHT, ATTRIBUTE FIRE, GIVE IT UP FOR CARLOS 'EL FUEGO' GARCIA!]

And the mass crowd went wild again as an explosion detonated in front of James, startling him. The smoke cleared up to reveal Carlos on one knee, with a sly smile. The girls got crazier than when James entered. They squealed and dramatically flapped their hands over their faces.

Carlos jumped to his feet, glaring at James, "Why hello there, the face."

James grinned, "Good to see you again… El fuego."

[Let this battle… COMMENCE!] Vivi barked, sending out an explosive Fire attack in the air, signaling the start of battle. The crowd cheered on.

Carlos took a mad dash at James, but then vanished before he could even reach him. The crowd gasped.

[KUPO! WHERE DID HE GO?]

James turned around and got surprised with a flurry of punches and kicks from Carlos. The crowd cheered on. Carlos then delivered a strong kick that sent James flying.

[WHOA! THAT WAS FAST! DIDN'T SEE THAT COMING!]

Carlos followed in a chase and threw another punch. James dodged the punch then threw a counter punch, but Carlos dodged it again, and then counterattacked again, but James dodged again. They quickly got into a DBZ-style combat of punches and kicks, dodges and misses, and teleportation at every corner of the arena.

[WHOA! LOOKS LIKE WE ARE CAUGHT IN A TANGLE WEB OF PUNCHES AND KICKS! WILL WE SEE AN END TO THAT, KUPO?]

[We better. Here it comes now!]

James then charged-up his punch, surprising his opponent into an early dodge. James quickly caught an opening and struck his charged punch at his opponent, sending him flying. The crowd and the announcers cheered on. Carlos recovered midair.

[AND WHAT A QUICK RECOVERY]

James landed on the ground and with his nunchuks, "Didn't expect that from you, Carlos, huh! But I'M THE ONE WHO'S GONNA WIN!" He then fired a flurry of energy bullets from his nunchuks similar to Zidane's Scoop Art attack. Carlos charged at James, straight toward the bullets, knocking them out of the way with his arms. The crowd cheered on.

"What?"

Carlos reached James, "Too bad buddy!" he grinned then rolled downward with his twin blades, slashing his opponent then spun and stomped him into the ground similar to Kain's Crashing Dive attack. The crowd cheered on wildly. He then charged with multi-strike attack of his blades similar to Onion Knight Extra-Slice attack. But James quickly blocked the final blow, grabbed him by the arm and flipped him midair. The crowd jumped on their feet just as James finished with a palm thrust, sending Carlos flying. The crowd went wild.

[OH MY POMPOM! VIVIAN, DID YOU SEE THAT KUPO?]

[THE NAME'S VIVI! AND YES I SAW IT! I'M NOT BLIND!]

xXx

It's been a long trek down the Waterway for Logan, but he had finally reached his goal.

He spotted a cave nearby: a well-lit cave with torches still burning despite the chilly atmosphere of the waterway. He could also catch a glimpse of a bookshelf inside.

"That must be Daswai's Place." he said and immediately ran toward the cave. He got inside, but then without taking another step, stopped. There were books and papers, scattered everywhere.

"Okay, the guy may be a scholar but BOY is he really messy." He wondered.

He slowly stepped inside, quickly picking up the papers and at the same time trying not to step on something important to the scholar. He placed some of the scattered papers and books he had gathered onto the table when he saw a candle glass that was knocked over the table and left some hot wax on it to dry. The glass appeared broken. But then he noticed the table's edge. There was blood stain.

His eyes tracked down the blood from the table down a wall. He quickly noticed other broken artifacts, a shattered chair… he even saw an actual copy of the Bonga Bugle newsletter on the floor. The Daswai article page was in front and was half torn. His heart started beating.

"Okay…" he gulped, "…this place's not just ransacked. It's been ransacked on purpose. Daswai got attacked!"

He stood there, staring at the place. But what he failed to notice was the shadowy figure that was following him, perched up at a wall corner like a spying ninja.

xXx

Back at the Leviathan Sky Tourneys, Carlos recovered again in midair, landing on his feet. Before he knew it he saw James charging at him with a flying punch. "HOLY STRIKE!" He struck him once then delivered with a flurry of flying punches combos and then airborne raised his fist in the air. A bright light overwhelmed the fist to everyone's amazement. He then swung down, drilling Carlos right through the ground till he was no more. The crowd got up, excited and anticipating what has happened to the contender.

[DID YOU SEE THAT? KUPO, DID YOU SEE THAT?]

[… …]

[WHAT JUST HAPPENED, KUPO?]

[Who knows? Looks like James just defeated—!]

[WAIT A MINUTE! WHAT IS THIS?]

The crowd gasped as they noticed a dark shadow hovering underneath James. James looked down and saw two hands coming out of the shadow, grabbed his legs, and pulled him in.

"AAAAH!" James screamed as he quickly disappeared into the shadow, and the shadow vanished, causing the entire crowd of people to jump off their feet to see what has happened to James.

[WHAT THE-? WHAT HAPPENED TO THE FACE? WHAT HAPPENED TO JAMES?]

[I dunno! But girls aren't gonna like that!]

And the girls whined on cue.

James reappeared into a cabin underneath the arena and landed hard on the ground. Carlos was with him also. He grinned guiltily.

"Whoops. My bad."

James jumped back on his feet, brushed off the dusts and glared at his friend, "Next time, can you put in some pillows or something soft?"

"It's time." Carlos informed, "So pick out your best costumes."

He pulled out two ninja garbs by magic. James shook his head, "Too ninja."

Carlos then pulled out two red jumpsuits with flashy yellow trims. James shook his head, "Too daredevil."

Carlos then pulled out two overalls with matching hats: red and green color. James shook his head again, "Too Mario and Luigi."

"Actually it's Cario and Juigi"

James rolled his eyes, "Whatever."

Carlos then pulled out two baggy priests' robes. James smiled, "Perfect."

"Okay, now it's time for Operation: Stop the Assassins."

The two friends high-fived and took off in haste.

xXx

The crowd continued to cheer on wildly on board the Leviathan arena.

[SHOULD WE MOVE ON TO THE NEXT FIGHT, KUPO?]

[Guess so! The show must go on! This next match-up is up between the multi-weapon mercenary Axel Joedo and the Bangaa group BTR!]

Axel sauntered into the ring as the mass crowd cheered once more. He paused in the middle of the ring, "…wait? BTR? Bangaa?" he blinked, "The Warriors of Light aren't Bangaas? What…!"

"Whatchu talkin' 'bout, weenie?" hissed the voice of Ba'Gamnan. Axel turned to face him and his posse approaching. The crowd's cheering and applause quickly got replaced by the sound of jeering and insults at the clan's presence.

"Ahh… so YOU'RE the BTR dudes people's been raving ab—I'm sorry, booing about." Axel joked.

"Uhh… ahem." Rinok cleared her throat, "Sweetie. First of all, it's dudes and dudette. And second of all, they're not booing. They're cheering… if you listen carefully."

Axel raised an eyebrow.

Ba'Gamnan spat on ground, and his brothers wiped snot off their muzzles. "Ya think ya so tough? Huh? Ya think ya so tough?" Ba'Gamnan insulted, posing for combat, "Bring it on!"

"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa… Four against one?" Axel complained, "That's cheatin'!"

"Are you chickin'?" Bwagi squawked, and the group started clucking and moving about like chicken. The crowd continued to boo. Axel narrowed his eyes.

[OH MY KUPO! LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GETTING TAUNTED BY THE BA'GAMNAN T'ROUBLES HERE!]

[My magic is sensing a hot combat waiting to happen!]

Axel summoned two blades, then summoned two of his Dessert Eagles, then telepathically brought out multitudes of lances and a large scythe behind him. He smirked at the Bangaa siblings who immediately stopped their clucking to stare at the arsenal of weapons.

"Bring it on."

And the crowd went wild. Ba'Gamnan turned red, roared a battle cry while drumming on his chest and the group dashed at Axel. Axel dashed at the group as well, his weapons telepathically followed.

xXx

Dalmascan Soldiers, along with Archadian Judges and Garlean Knights Templar reached the Leviathan's interior via the Aerodrome, arriving at the ship's Great Hall with many hallways. They were about 12 of them. The army looked around anxiously for Kendall and Tina, who have entered the Leviathan. But no luck. The hall appeared to be hollow, since many of its residents have relocated to the arena above to watch the Sky Tourneys.

"Okay. They're nowhere to be found." A knight Templar said to his group, "Now are you SURE you saw them enter the ship?"

"YES!" one of the Dalmascan soldiers barked, "With my own eyes! A guy, a girl, and a Chocobo. They went via the Aerodrome!"

"Well then, where are they?" shouted one of the judges. The army looked around.

Another soldier pointed to his right, "I thought I heard footsteps from over there!"

"Then let's go!" the judge said, but then quickly changed tunes, "Or better yet, let's split. I'll inform the other army on-watch of the situation. These guys must NOT go into the arena!"

"Got it!" and the army split up, half of them going left, while the other half went right. But Kendall was hiding southwest from where they ran off to. Tina and Chocolate quickly reached him, appearing heavily tired and gasping for air.

"Uff… Puff… Are they… gone?" Tina wheezed.

"I think so." Kendall said, "But uh… Tina?"

"Yeah?"

"Should it be easier for you next time to mount on Chocolate instead of just running?"

Tina looked at Chocolate who stared back. She stared back at Kendall again, angrily grimacing, "Good to know."

"Come on." The trio left their hiding place, and just as they were running, heard footsteps and two shadows growing before them. The duo froze up, unable to find a place to hide from the approaching figures. The figures appeared before them: it was two priests. Two very familiar priests. Kendall smiled broadly at them.

"James?" he exclaimed, "Carlos?"

The two priests—or the priest-disguised guys—froze up at Kendall and Tina's presence.

"It IS you guys!" Kendall said, laughing at their goofy costumes, "My gosh, what are you wearing?"

"Where have you guys been?" Tina barked at them angrily, "You know I've been worried sick about you all, right?"

James and Carlos glanced at each other, then back at Kendall and Tina. Then with a fake Roman accent James first spoke. "Uhh… we don't-a know what thou art speaking of, my child."

"Then perhaps," Carlos added with a fake Roman accent, "thou art in need of a confession. For shall we banish all that is evil in thy rightful minds."

"Oh, cut the Shakespearean acts guys." Kendall grinned, "We know it's you."

James and Carlos ripped the beards off their noses and the white fluffy wigs off their heads. James snapped, "Well, you just like to ruin my dreams, don't you Kendall? I was just getting into character!"

"James." Carlos sighed, "Just be honest. We suck at it."

"Okay guys, what's going on?" Tina said, "What are you all doing here? Where's Logan? Why are you all dressed up in those ridiculous outfits anyway? Am I asking too much questions here?"

"Uhh… yeah?" the guys all replied.

"And nice to see you again Tina." James said.

"Okay, now that we've all reunited… except Logan that is…" Carlos began, "We have to stop a group of assassins from committing a mass murder."

Kendall and Tina raised eyebrows.

Carlos pulled out the incriminating letter and handed it to the duo, "Take a look at this."

Kendall took the letter and read. So did Tina. They both looked stunned.

"Oh my god, this is serious." Kendall said.

"You wanna know serious?" James said, "Someone got killed last night. A soldier it looks like. Sadly he wasn't the only ones. Lots of people got hurt too. But the attack that happened last night was only a warning."

"Things are looking very grim for the Royals. The Queen and the Emperors." Carlos added, "Everyone fears for their safeties, if not just their own."

"Wait…" Kendall said, "Someone's trying to kill the Queen and the two visiting Emperors? Who?"

James and Carlos only shrugged, "Only the person who wrote the letter." Carlos said.

"W…we gotta stop the criminals somehow." Tina said.

"Do you know who wrote this?" Kendall asked.

"Dude, we're still searching." James said.

"It could be anyone." Carlos added.

"Anyone with that handwriting…?" Tina examined the letter. She blinked a couple of times, suddenly recognizing its penmanship, "…wait a minute."

"What?" the guys said together.

She looked up, her face almost colorless, "I have a feeling I know who wrote this!"

They suddenly heard a scuffing on the ground. Their heads whizzed around and they jumped. Before them were two gunners, camouflaged in red, enough to cover their faces and only exposing their stern slanted eyes. Strands of their hairs were hanging loose however, showing their distinct appearances. The first gunner had strand of dark hair, while the second gunner had strand of sandy-blond hair.

The two gunners held the heroes at gunpoint. "Whoa…" Carlos gasped.

"You're not getting away with this, meddling kids." The black-haired gunner threatened.

"Just hand over the letter," the second gunner said, "and nobody will get hurt."

"…okay." Kendall gulped, "…we won't. But if you could just please, put your weapons down—!"

The light-haired gunner fired his weapon. Right on cue, James' Crystal necklace shone and a force field wrapped around the heroes. The bullet suddenly slowed its pace, as if time affected it. The bullet then stopped its movement altogether, inches from the large force field, and uselessly clattered to the ground. The two gunners stared, bewildered.

"Oh my god!" the light-haired gunner exclaimed, finally noticing the glowing crystal, and glanced around Kendall and Carlos to see that they got Crystals too, "Crystals!" he glared frighteningly at his comrade, "They're the Warriors! The Warriors of Light!"

"Like that Vaan guy we saw?" the black-haired gunner mumbled. The guys and Tina frowned. "Let's beat it!" the gunner yelled out and the duo took off running. The heroes then stared at each other.

"What just happened?" James blinked.

"Your Crystal!" Tina said, "It casted a Slowga Time Magic Spell!"

"Slowga?" Kendall blinked.

"This is no time to explain magic!" Carlos exclaimed, "They're getting away!"

The gang gave chase. The gunners skidded around a corner, darted through an empty chamber and out the balcony toward yet another empty chamber and circled back to the Great Halls.

"Why are we running?" muttered the black-haired gunner, "We got a frigging gun for crying out loud!"

"Did YOU see the gun hit them?" the light-haired gunner yelled, "And besides, I panic under pressure!"

"Well is it the TIME to panic now?"

"Oh boy," the light-haired gunner quivered, "His Eminence ain't gonna like this…"

The gunners bumped right onto approaching Soldiers and Knights Templar. The heroes then reached both groups, cornering the criminals.

"What's going on here?" the leader Templar—an aged Bangaa—barked.

The two panicky gunners looked at the Imperial guards then at the heroes who have cornered them.

"Go ahead, criminals." James said to them with his arms crossed, "Tell them what you're really up to."

"Or what you almost did to us." Kendall snapped.

"Yeah!" Carlos shouted.

"What they said." Tina added.

The gunners glared back at the soldiers and knights templar before forging a smile on their faces.

"We were hired by the Royal Court of Dalmasca, as the entertaining acts for the Sky Tourneys Grand Finale." The black-haired gunner lied, "…we're ninjas and acrobats at best."

"We were of course, on our way to the Leviathan Grand Arena when…" the light-haired gunner then pointed a finger at the heroes, "…these meddlin' kids tried to hurt us!"

"What?" The heroes gasped.

"It's… it's… IT'S AN OUTRRRAAAGE!"

"It's true!" the black-haired gunner nodded, almost innocently, "You should lock them up before they could hurt someone. They got a gun."

The guys and Tina frowned at that lie.

"Who knows?" the light-haired gunner went on, "Maybe it's the same fellas who are…" he then whispered, "…trying to hurt the Lady Ashe and the two Emperors."

The heroes laughed out loud. "Whaaat?"

"That's ridiculous. We don't even have a gun." Tina said, "Heck, we don't even LIKE guns. Search us and see."

The Templars were searching the heroes and also the gunners, while the soldiers had surrounded the groups. Then the Bangaa Templar spoke, "Don't have a gun eh? Well then, what do you call this?"

The Templars pulled out not one, not two, but THREE guns from the guys' pockets!

"AAAAAHHH!" the guys screamed, shocked at that sudden twist. It was the same gun they saw the gunners carrying. Except, it came in three forms and from their own pockets! The alerted soldiers pulled out their lances and pointed at the heroes.

"Wha…wh… wh… this is… THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!" James screamed.

"That's not my gun! I don't even OWN a gun!" Carlos exclaimed, "Why would I even own a gun?"

The Templar mirthlessly chuckled, "You tell me." He coldly stared.

"Okay…" Kendall stammered, "…but would you believe us if we told you that magic had something to do with this sick trick?" he glowered at the two gunners who simply shrugged.

"No." The Templar replied, "Because too bad for you, we don't believe in liars." He then glared at James and Carlos, "And you two priests aren't doing a really good job at it." He said upon noticing the guys' priest outfits.

Tina pointed at the criminals, "But these guys were the ones who—!" she stopped talking when she saw the gunners were no longer carrying their weapons. Her eyes boggled, "…okay, that… that is so… THAT IS SO…"

"…busted?" The leader Templar said as the other Templars came behind them and prepared their handcuffs, "Yeah… you're all under arrest for the attempted assassination of Emperors Artemis of Galtea, Larsa Ferrinas Solidor of Archadia, and Her Royal Majesty the Queen Ashelia B'nargin Dalmasca."

"WHAAAT?" the heroes screamed.

"—AND threatened to kill these two innocent bystanders to cover up your acts!" the Templar finished and the handcuffs clicked on the guys and Tina's wrists.

"But we didn't do anything!" screamed Carlos as the heroes started screaming, arguing and complaining for their rights with the Templars as they were being escorted away, "You can't arrest us! I demand a lawyer!" "Lemmego dang it!" "What are you doing? STOP!"

With the guards and the meddling heroes out of the way, the gunners let out a sigh of relief.

"See, you can't be an Illusionist for nothing." said the black-haired gunner before his comrade waved his hand over his and his companion's pockets to reveal their guns again. "Three guns! Now that's pure genius!"

"Man, I love my powers." The light-haired gunner smiled, "Now that these insects are gone, we can resume our task."

The gunners said their tasks together in one keyword: "Murder."

The gunners left to carry out their mission, unaware that Chocolate, who had narrowly escaped this whole ordeal, was watching them.

"Ooooh… Kwuuudeeer…" Chocolate trembled at that word 'Murder', before he took off running.


The three part event Big Time Ivalice is just getting started!

Next time

-The guys and Tina have been arrested for a crime they were wrongfully accused of committing… meanwhile; the real culprits are still on the loose, ready to set their dark deed in motion. Will the kingdom be able to catch these real culprits in time? Will our heroes ever escape their prisons just in time to stop the criminals before it's too late for the Queen and the two Emperors?

And Logan has found Daswai's place, only to find it ransacked. Even worse, he has no idea he's been followed. Where will this mystery lead him to next? And could Logan be the only key to rescue his buddies and stop the criminals?

And where does young skypirate Vaan fits into this mess? One thing for sure, he has Logan's Crystal. But will he ever come accept his fate as a Hero of Light? And how will the Sky Tourneys end?

So much unanswered questions to be revealed next time

~Big Time Ivalice (part 2)~


Break

Think you know the answer?

- This Big Time Rush actor apparently also has a Final Fantasy character (no, THREE Final Fantasy characters in the World of Ivalice) Hmm…

…what is the name of his characters, and which BTR role is he famous for?

It's Phil LaMarr. Most famous for his Big Time Rush role as the notorious Hawk from Hawk Records!

In Final Fantasy XII, he plays Reddas, a sky pirate and an ally to the Lady Ashe and her party; and in Final Fantasy Tactics – War of Lions, he plays Ramza Beoulve, the main character! Oh, and he plays one of the Ba'Gamnan's brothers.

Interesting fact now, huh?