Mike AZ 2 here, sorry if some chapters were too violent, but action fics tend to have a lot happening as far as I know.
Also, I have no good excuse for my lack of updating. And just as a reminder, all Final Fantasy games, characters, locations etc. were created and copyrighted by Squaresoft.
Anyway, here's the next chapter.
Chapter 9: The Battle of Ordalia
The heroes woke up the day following their recent victory at the shrine and soon congregated at the command tent to discuss their move.
" We managed to acquire the Sol Sphere, but since when did Rozarria use nethecite?" spoke Vaan.
Larsa shrugged" I knew little about Rozarria's mines and other such industries. Though it wouldn't surprise me if we're in for some larger challenges in Ordalia."
Penelo piped up" if the forces occupying Loar were this easy, what are we in for at Ordalia?".
" I am familiar with my country's forces to some degree, though there could be factions in Ordalia that might be opposed to my father's recent decline in sanity" said Al-Cid.
" Come to think of it, how come Dorek never tried to confront us directly now that we know how to counter the Dark Grimoire?" inquired Adelle.
" He probably has his reasons, but I am more concerned about how he is acting lately" replied Luso.
" If there is nothing else to discuss, we should talk about our strategy" said Ashe.
" Not really, so what do we need to do now?" inquired Cid.
Al-Cid spoke" I scouted ahead to Ordalia to find out about what we should expect from our opposition while some of us were hunting down that Sun Sphere. Rozarria's 5th aero brigade is patrolling the skies of Ordalia, while its 3rd and 9th battalions are occupying Ordalia itself."
" Is there any resistance besides us facing the Rozarrian Imperials?" Ashe inquired.
" There might be, but we don't know" replied Al-Cid.
" It may be too dangerous for our ground forces alone, we'll have to send in a part of Archadia's air fleet" said Larsa.
Basch shrugged" I agree, and I recommend that our forces on the Alexander and the Galbana lead the assault on the enemy airships. When the coast is clear, we'll land on Ordalia some to try and exploit any factions opposed to Emperor Rozarria and invite them to our army."
" A well conceived plan, but I heard that one of Rozarria's strongest airship, the Tritoch, is heading that air squadron" said Al-Cid.
" Is it that dangerous?" asked Vaan.
Al-Cid replied" It may be intimidating, but large ships tend to have flaws in the design that can be exploited. But the commander of that air squad is cunning, we may have to be cautious."
Ashe piped up " all right then, we will need to embark at dawn, every moment counts if we are to drive Rozarria out of Jylland entirely."
The group then filed from the tent to make preparations for their next mission.
At Ordalia, near the good Witch of the Fens' hut, a small force of Rozarrians were grouped there with the witch herself. Leading them was a woman with brown hair and a regal outfit.
The ornately dressed woman spoke with the witch" I again want to apologize for interrupting your peace like this, Lady Brenda."
" You need not apologize, Empress Priscilla. I do not like what your country's main forces are doing any more then you" responded the viera witch.
" What of Al-Cid? Should we not at least ask him to join us? I did give him crucial information after all" interjected a younger woman.
" I'm sure your brother is fine, Blair, but I cannot deny that I am worried myself" said Priscilla.
Brenda piped" Well anyway, we should get some sleep. If you do not mind Priscilla, you should observe the upcoming battle tomorrow and inform the liberation force about our situation if they win."
" No problem, my private airship should be inconspicuous yet not too suspicious so that the liberation army won't attack me by accident" said the princess.
Priscilla shrugged" It may be dangerous, but I can trust our loyalists to help restore sanity and peace to Rozarria."
At dawn the next day after a rousing breakfast and a quick briefing about their mission, Cid, Al-Cid, Basch and the rest of their assigned group went onboard their airships which were backed up by Dalmascan and Archadian battleships.
On the Alexander, Larsa and Baschmet up with Judge Zargabaath. Samantha, Ryan, Mewt, Llyud and Filo, along with several Aegyl warriors, boarded the Galbana.
Not far from them, an unmarked airship was preparing to take off. Princess Priscilla, two Rozarrian officers and another Rozarrian Prince were on board. The prince spoke with Priscilla" I know the airship is inconspicuous, but will you be all right Blair?".
" Of course Xander, the Empress and I will not stand by and let our brother battle alone" replied the princess.
" If you say so" sighed Xander.
At the battlefield above the Fens, the Alexander and the Galbana spearheaded the battle squad preparing to attack the Tritoch.
Larsa first attempted to negotiate with the commander of the Tritoch via an open communication channel" I would surrender if I were you, the elite pilots of the Dalmascan and Archadian air forces have you covered."
The enemy commander sneered" I will not give in that easily." The enemy commander then ordered his squad to attack the Alexander and the Galbana.
Larsa sighed" If that is how you feel."
The young emperor addressed Judge Zargabaath" have some of our forces protect the Galbana and the Alexander. But we should try to help fight off the Rozarrian fleet ourselves, I will not let myself be a coward."
Zargabaath shrugged" As you wish."
Both fleets launched their air forces. Rozarria and the Dalmascan/Archadian fleet were equally matched however.
On board the unmarked airship, Blair addressed her allies" I can't bring myself to just watch, does this ship have weapons General Biggs?".
Biggs shrugged" Its smaller laser canons can take on small vessels, but it also has a tri-beam canon to combat larger battleships, but we should not fight for long since this is a small ship."
" All right then, attack that rogue Dreadnought" commanded the princess.
On board the Alexander, one of Judge Zargabaath's soldiers addressed Larsa" Radar detected a unknown airship charging the Tritoch, should we intervene?".
" Who is commanding that Vessel? Is it one of ours?" inquired Basch.
" Hold on, I just spotted Rozarrian colours on it" said another Archadian officer.
" What? I will contact Al-Cid" said Larsa.
On the Galbana, Al-Cid received a transmission from the young Archadian emperor" Whats happening?" he inquired.
" That is what I want to know myself. But a small ship flying Rozarrian colours is on the move against the Rozarrian Dreadnought" said Larsa.
" I see, allied or no, I will do what I can" said Al-Cid.
Larsa acknowledged his ally" Please do your best to ensure that the unknown ship survives" and he ended the transmission.
Vaanspoke with Al-Cid" So what was that about?".
" I fear the worst for the passengers of that unknown ship. I will have our escorts protect us while we engage that enemy dreadnought" said Al-Cid.
" All right, we'll drag the enemy commander down" said Vaan.
The Galbana raced towards the unknown ship to protect it. When the Galbana was close enough, Luso, Adelle, Vaan, Penelo, Samantha, Filo and Llyud carefully went onto one of their airship' wings, accompanied by several aegyl warriors.
Seeing this, the enemy commander launched some paratroopers on them.
Undaunted, Vaan's group defeated the paratroopers and faced the Tritoch.
Adelle smirked" That old piece of junk is nothing but a scrap of metal, our special powers should scratch its paint job, right?".
" All right, but we should focus our powers into smaller bursts so that we don't destroy the unknown vessel by mistake" said Llyud.
Undaunted by the firepower raging around them, Vaan, Luso and Adelle cast their strongest spells/quickenings " Pyroclasm!" "Lennart!" "Flare!".
The blasts of energy blew a hole in the Tritoch, exposing its circuits.
Seeing this, Blair thought 'Ivalice's eastern forces must have been gaining a special power to do that much damage'.
On the enemy dreadnought, the enemy commander shouted orders to his men" Raise the Shield! I don't want anything to get through!".
The other Rozarriancommanderon the unknown ship spoke with Blair" We have an opportunity, we must finish off the Tritoch!".
" The commander won't surrender" piped Xander.
Blair shrugged" Okay then, Destroy the Dreadnought Tritoch!".
Penelo gasped at the weapon coming from the unknown ship" What is that?".
" Rozarrian technology is equal to Archadia's, I'm withdrawing the Galbana so come back to the bridge" commanded Al-Cid.
The weapon from the unknown airship fired a gigantic energy beam at the exposed circuits of the Tritoch, causing a chain reaction from the dreadnought.
The enemy commander groaned" My emperor! I Failed!".
Some of the Tritoch's officers escaped before the large airship exploded into nothing.
On the Alexander, one of the Archadian soldiersspoke with his superiors" Lord Larsa! Judge Zargabaath! Judge Gabranth! The Dreadnought Tritoch has been destroyed."
" Acknowledged. Don't bother pursuing the fleeing soldiers" said Basch.
On the unknown airship, Xander breathed" It looks like we won, I just hope that the queen mother will overlook your reckless antics Blair."
" Never mind that, I will briefly establish a communication channel with our allies" said Blair.
On the Galbana, Penelospoke with Al-Cid" The unknown ship is trying to contact us, should we respond?".
" Go ahead" said Al-Cid.
" Al-Cid, you're safe! Who is commanding this army aside from you?" inquired Blair.
" The liberation forces consist of Archadia, Dalmasca and Jylland and Lemures' remnants. Emperor Larsa Solidor and Queen Ashellia Dalmasca are in charge" replied Al-Cid.
" I see, well, there is something we have to discuss. The empress is waiting at the Fens" said Blair.
" Is Rozarria divided into factions then?" inquired Al-Cid.
" There are those who are not willing participants in the war with the rest of Ivalice, Empress Priscilla is the leader of a group of Rozarrian Rebels who are trying to restore peace" said Blair.
" We'll let Lord Larsa and Queen Ashelia know" said Al-Cid.
An hour later, the liberation forces met up with the Rozarrian Empress' group. The empress acknowledged the leaders of the liberation army" Queen Ashelia and Emperor Larsa Solidor I presume?".
" Yes, are you part of a group that's opposing Rozarria's threat?" asked Ashe.
Priscilla replied" Yes, I suppose you could say that. I am Empress Priscilla Margrace."
" So whats happened in Rozarria lately?" inquired Larsa.
" My husband, Emperor Luther Margrace, is not himself, a mysterious figure wielding a powerful tome has twisted the minds of most of Rozarria's military" said Priscilla.
Al-Cid spoke" Clan Gully's members have the information regarding that."
" Clan Gully has always been reliable despite their lack of notoriety, let us hear what their leader has to say" said Priscilla.
Cid spoke up" one of my members, Luso, could tell you more" he indicated towards said brunette to explain.
Lusohesitated, then proceeded to explain what was happening in both his world and Ivalice" An old and former friend of mine is currently using the Dark Grimoire to open a large rift in Ivalice."
" I suspected this 'Dorek' individual, but I had no proof" said Blair.
" The Rozarrian 9th battalion is marching toward us!" shouted a nearby sentinel.
" What? Sorry but we have an emergency" said Priscilla.
" We'll help stop them" said Cid.
Soon, Clan Gully and the Rozarrian Rebels confronted the 9th battalion. Leading the group was one of the enemy officers who escaped the Tritoch's destruction" You'll pay for destroying the Dreadnought."
" You're in for a big disappointment" said Luso.
The fight was brief, but fierce. Eventually the enemy group was defeated.
" You've a lot of nerve to think you can defeat Clan Gully" remarked Cid.
With his dying breath, the Rozarrian officer spoke" You may have bested the 9th battalion, but the 3rd battalion has the path to the Mirror Castle guarded, the Dark Knight Dorek has predicted your next move."
" Not if we have anything to say about it" quiped Luso.
" Lets get back to camp for now and discuss what to do next" said Priscilla.
At the camp, the groups discussed their current situation.
" I have a plan, but we should rest tonight first since this has been a long day" said Ashe.
Samantha sighed" Man, why did Dorek have to go berserk on us?".
" We may find out eventually, but we should try to get some rest right now" said Mewt.
" I agree" said Ryan.
The heroes and their new allies set up camp for the night.
That has to be my longest chapter in this action-pack fic yet, but again I'm not complaining.
I hope you readers enjoyed this chapter. Maybe I'll include another intermission chapter somewhere in the story, but I'll have to see.
I know the Witch of the Fens didn't exactly have a name in Grimoire of the Rift, but for the sake of this fic I included one.
Mike AZ 2 signing out. Oh, and please feel free to review if you'd like.