Chapter Twelve
Dark Fury
Dreadnought Leviathan
The group of travelers were brought onto the dreadnought vessel and escorted to the bridge where Judge Ghis was waiting for them. He stood gazing out of the large window that gave a view of the vastness of the Sandsea. As soon as they were brought on board the warship had begun to fly away from the Tomb of Raithwall along with the other ships that made up the 8th Fleet. Ashe was pushed forward by the Elite causing her hand to clasp tighter around the Dawn Shard.
It felt so warm in her hand and it seemed to be pulsing with inner power. Balthier, Basch, Fran and Vaan were grouped together while Vossler remained standing alongside the princess he swore to protect. Vaan glared harshly at the interfering Judge. He should have killed the man when he had the chance, now the bastard had two of the Shards. But this time he wouldn't leave without the stone. He needed to find the next location and soon. Ghis had removed his helmet to talk to the princess as she held onto the stone valiantly.
"So it seems that you yet again bring me the prize." Ghis chuckled silkily.
"You have me in your custody Ghis. Let the others go." Ashe pleaded with the man.
"Ahh but we can always receive more praise when I bring not only the Dawn Shard in but the 'dead' Captain Rosenberg and two Sky Pirates." The Judge smirked at her.
"So you're fishing for a higher position?" Balthier frowned.
"Oh, this is much more than just getting a promotion." Ghis shook his head. "When I send this back Doctor Cid will be very impressed."
"What did you say?" Balthier hissed.
"Until then you shall remain on the Shiva until we reach Arcadia." Ghis stood before the princess. "Now hand over the stone."
"Is this what you're really after?" Basch broke in. "You're gathering up the stones?"
"Lord Vayne is most interested in the power contained within Raithwall's Legacy." The Judge answered. "Now hand over the Nethicite."
"Nethicite?" Ashe murmured.
"The one Lord Larsa had was merely a cheap imitation. Raithwall possessed the true power." Ghis extended his hand again.
"And once you have the stone I have nothing!" Ashe growled.
"That is untrue." Ghis smirked at her. "You shall be restored to your throne and the kingdom of Dalmasca will be yours again."
"What?" Ashe stared at the older man.
"Why don't you fill in the blanks Vossler?" Ghis smiled at the knight.
"Vossler?" Basch stared in shock at his friend. "What have you done?"
"I have made a choice that will end this conflict. I will not fight a profitless war any longer." The man spat out.
"So you made a deal." Balthier murmured.
"The stone for the kingdom and its queen." Fran finished for him. Vaan remained eerily silent throughout the exchange.
"Are you insane?" Ashe yelled in blind fury.
"Oh do not blame him entirely Lady Ashe. Unlike you he is tired of fighting." The Judge cocked his head. "The stone if you would."
"No!" Vaan yelled as he lurched forward and grabbed the artefact.
"Vaan what are you doing?" Basch yelled when the guards surrounded the boy.
"I'm ending this!" Vaan scowled then he inserted the stone into his chest. The nearby Imperials took a step back out of shock and fear while Ghis could only stare open mouthed.
"What magick is this?" Ghis' eyes widened.
"He is something not entirely human. He possesses powers no mortal has." Vossler supplied with a heavy heart.
"So you weren't lying about having a connection to the stone." Ghis whispered. He examined the seething blond then turned to Vossler. "He shall make a fine trophy for Lord Vayne."
"I'll cut his heart from his chest before he touches me." Vaan snarled.
"Oh this one has spirit." Ghis laughed.
"Leave him out of this." Balthier warned the Judge.
"So this boy is your friend pirate?" Ghis looked impressed. "Doctor Cid will indeed be intrigued. Another plaything for him to use."
"Let them go or you'll never get the stone." Vaan said with narrowed eyes that flashed.
"You would risk your own life for them? Now that is noble." The Judge applauded him. "I was planning on testing the stone but you shall have to do.
"Don't!" Basch cried but he was hit in the back by a guard.
"Take them to the Shiva immediately." Ghis ordered then he turned back to Vaan. "When I give the order to attack even you won't be able to save them all."
"They have nothing to do with this." Vaan hissed harshly. Ghis only smirked then motioned for the guards to remove them.
"As for you…" Ghis circled him. "You shall co-operate or your friends will have an appointment with the gallows. Now that we have two of the stones we have no use for Lady Ashe anymore. A look-a-like will do quite nicely."
"Another puppet?" Vaan spat.
"Hmmm." Ghis glanced at the Elites. "Take him to the testing chamber. I want to see if he is a special as he claims."
Shiva
Docking Bay
After they were taken from the warship the solemn group was escorted onto a small vessel with more guards surrounding them this time. Ashe was walking behind the others with Vossler at her side. Although she did not speak her eyes and manner betrayed her true feelings. She had never felt such hatred for one person since the Empire took everything from her.
She thought she could only hate Vayne but when Vossler threw all her hard work aside just to claim a puppet throne she could feel nothing but contempt for him. Balthier and Fran were also silent but they were busy trying to find a way out of the docking bay they were taken to. Once they were taken to the cells there was no way out until the ship landed at its destination.
Basch couldn't believe what Vossler had done; he couldn't grasp the knowledge that Vossler had been broken by this endless fight. Basch had spent two years rotting away in a hell hole only to be betrayed yet again. Even through those two years of hell he never gave up on believing that the Empire could be beaten back and Dalmasca claimed once again.
But even now all his thoughts were centered on Vaan and what was happening to him. The blond ex-knight didn't think for a moment that Vaan would reveal his secret to the Imperials but he did it to save them. He didn't even try to attack the guards on the dreadnought. Ghis would be more than thrilled when he took Vaan back to the Imperial City to be experimented on.
Basch was knocked from his thoughts when the group stopped at the other end of the bay in front of a large door leading into the main section of the ship. Ashe now stood next to her companions while Vossler conversed with the guards. The arrangement was that Ashe would be taken back to Rabanastre where she would reclaim her throne after proving her bloodline.
The others were to be taken to a prison to be interrogated. Balthier already had a huge bounty on his head so the hunters would have him. As the Imperials talked Fran felt her skin beginning to heat up. Her ears flicked and her nose twitched when she could the scent of something very old and very angry. Her eyes widened when she realized what was happening.
"Ahhh!" she screamed when she collapsed on her knees. Her skin was boiling up now.
"Fran! What's wrong?" Ashe called to the viera.
"The Mist! It burns!" she howled in agony. Her nails extended and scraped along the floor. "Such power and rage!"
"Hold her!" Vossler ordered the guards. As the men tried to subdue the now enraged viera no one noticed when Basch fell to the floor.
"My skin is burning!" she screamed as she slashed at the man with her nails. She kicked another then attacked Vossler.
"Dammit…" Balthier hissed. He needed something to snap her out of her berserk state. Until her mind was clear she would not listen to reason.
Basch couldn't hear anything around him. His vision was tinged with red and his breathing was beginning ragged. His arm was throbbing so badly now. His body felt like it was on fire but he couldn't find the strength to scream out his agony. He was burning up and he couldn't do anything to stop it.
He heard footsteps but they were so distant, so very far away from his bubble of red hot pain. He felt hands briefly grab his body then they were extracted, no doubt they too could feel his burning flesh. Just when he couldn't take it anymore he felt his right arm jerk and twitch then he finally screamed when it felt as if his arm had burst open.
The Testing Chamber
Ghis watched in fascination when Vaan was placed within the circular chamber at the Judge's behest. He would not return to Vayne with a stone whose power was yet unproven. But this boy was indeed something else entirely. A few moments after the test chamber had been closed the readings were off the chart on the power outing.
This was unlike anything they had ever seen before. Vayne had long sought the prize of the Dynast-King's legacy but this desert boy would prove to be a bigger prize. Ghis could hardly wait to see the battle Vayne and Cid would surely have overt the right to experiment on the blond. The end result would still be the same. The Nethicite was now in Imperial hands and Dalmasca's puppet would serve them faithfully. Suddenly the chamber began to shake violently.
"What's going on?" Ghis demanded.
"There's something wrong within the chamber sir!" a scientist yelled back. "The Nethicite is becoming unstable."
"Find a solution and fix it!" Ghis ordered.
"The power levels are continuing to climb sir! It's feeding off the energy within the ship." Someone cried out.
"Sir, the Dusk Shard is beginning to react! Both of them are spiking!" another researcher yelled. Ghis had ordered the Dusk Shard to be brought back for experimentation on board the Leviathan but this was never supposed to happen.
"We can't slow it down!" people were running in all directions as the chamber started to heat up and crack apart.
"That boy…" Ghis whispered as the heat spread out into the room. What had that boy done?"
Shiva
Docking Bay
"What's wrong with him?" Ashe cried when Basch screamed out in agony.
"The Mist, it gathers, it's power and rage will consume this fleet." Fran gasped out.
"We need to get off this ship." Balthier stated firmly. When Fran attacked the guards they dropped the keys to the shackles.
"You will not steal Dalmasca's future!" Vossler stood before the group, his sword held out.
"Step aside now Vossler." Ashe warned him.
"Release me…" Basch whispered in a voice that was not quite his own anymore. "Release me…"
"Basch?" Balthier said as he slowly knelt down next to the man. "Basch, talk to me."
"Stupid mortals…can't understand us…they want power…then they will have it." Basch snarled with malicious intent laced in his tone.
"Basch?" Ashe muttered then she was thrown back when the former knight lashed out.
He stood at his full height, his breathing was even more labored now but his head was lowered so that they couldn't see his face. His right arm was no longer a normal appendage. Instead what looked like black armour plating covered his arm from the elbow down. His fingers had extended and looked like sharp black talons.
The arm itself had an intricate design to it but when Basch raised his head the stunned group noticed that his red eye was now blood red in colour. He flexed that demon arm for a moment then stared at the Imperials around him.
"What happened to you?" Vossler whispered in disbelief.
"Stupid mortals…can't stop to think…just like last time…so silly." Basch giggled but his eyes especially the red one glowed with a madness none of them had seen before.
"The Mist…it gathers within him." Fran gasped out. "All that power is building within his body. It is like something within him is drawing all the Mist into that arm."
"That needle piece…" Balthier whispered when he remembered. "Vaan saved his life when he gave him a piece of the Dusk Shard."
"He has become a magnet." Fran cried out when her body heated up again.
"Release me!" Basch screamed. He charged at the nearest guard and drove his right arm through the man's torso.
"Ashe, your magick!" Balthier called when the fighting began. The princes cast an Immobilize spell on the guards but Vossler was using something to render him immune.
"Vossler…" Basch hissed in rage. His hand dripped with gore, blood and bone. The guards were all dead, torn to pieces in the wake of his fury.
"What have you become Basch?" Vossler held up his sword ready for an attack.
"Get out of the way mortal." Basch snarled. That red eye glowed dangerously.
"I just want this war to end Basch! Why can't you see that?" the older man challenged.
"We need to get off this ship now." Balthier was helping Fran to walk along the docking bay platform. Ashe ran alongside them.
"Don't make me do this Basch." Vossler pleaded with him. Before he could do anything Basch ran forward and slammed his right hand into Vossler's stomach. The man fell to his knees in pain.
"Please move away Vossler." Basch started to look like himself again, even his voice sounded normal. "You have to get off this ship."
"What would be the point anymore?" the older man cried. "I only wanted this battle to end. Lady Ashe wasn't the only one to lose so much."
"I know…" Basch murmured. His bi-coloured eyes narrowed in sadness. "But would you just throw your life away like this? You're giving up."
"Basch…whatever you've become," he stared openly at the black arm. "You need to protect the princess now."
"No..." Basch shook his head. "Something...is different...I'm different." The former knight murmured. "I have to find Vaan."
"Vaan? Why is he so special to you?" Vossler suddenly looked enraged. "Ever since I joined with you your eyes have been glued to that boy. Why do you see only him instead of your duty?!"
"You can't understand." Basch looked at the man with pity in his eyes. "But...since this happened," he held up his right arm. "I know that protecting Lady Ashe is no longer my duty."
"How can you say that?!" Vossler yelled. "How can you just give up?" Basch countered. Stepping forward he grabbed Vossler's armour. "Will you try to atone for your mistake?"
"Basch, please you have to carry on my duty." Vossler whispered pleadingly.
"I don't have time for this..." Basch scowled. Before Vossler could do anything Basch punched him squarely in the face knocking him out cold. Picking the man up Basch dashed out of the hanger towards the only skiff there.
"You brought that treacherous bastard with you?!" Ashe glared at the unconscious Vossler.
"The Mist is building. We must depart here at once." Fran fired up the engines.
Balthier flew the ship out of the exploding hanger bay and out into the air space above the Sandsea. He flew the vessel away and as far as he could when the sound of something exploding reached them, the deafening noise was accompanied by a forceful shockwave.
The skiff was pushed forward by the blast and the crew were thrown harshly against the metal walls. Flashes of red light flew past the glass; they almost looked like small dragons as they clawed through the air and out into the open sky.
"The Mist has manifested." Fran explained.
"That's what this is?" Ashe whispered in horror.
"Vaan..." Balthier closed his eyes. He didn't even have time to go back for the boy and he knew that but it didn't stop an inexplicable pain from coursing through his heart. "Dammit..."
"Wait!" Basch called. "I can see something."
"So can I." Ashe stared out of the glass.
The shape within the fireball was human sized and curled into a foetal position. Balthier flew the skiff towards the shape. He slowed the vessel down when he got a better look and he felt his heart skip a beat when he saw familiar blond hair and black clothing. Vaan was floating within the fireball and the two Shards were floating on either side of him.
Vaan raised his face from between his arms to stare at the ship coming towards him. His once blue eyes were glowing bright red leaving no black irises or the whites. Those blood red orbs stared at the skiff for a few moments before Vaan reached out and grasped the two Shards.
"Fran, keep the ship steady." Balthier left the seat. "I'll bring him in."
"Vaan!" the pirate called when he reached the cargo section of the skiff. The hatch had opened allowing Vaan to access the ship. "What was that? What did you do?"
"Balthier?" Vaan whispered when the pirate pulled him into the ship. The boy's flesh was hot to the touch and he looked like he was struggling to stay awake.
"It's me Vaan." The brunet nodded. "What happened out there?"
"I couldn't let them have the stones…I had to show them." Vaan whispered as he slumped against the wall. "It's too dangerous for them to have."
"Vaan, look at me." Balthier grabbed the boy's face when his eyes began to flutter shut.
"Ashe…she can't use the stones." Vaan whispered. His blood red eyes were slowly turning back into the pretty blue colour Balthier had first seen. "She'll…hate herself if she uses them."
"Is he alright?" Basch came into the cargo section. Vaan's eyes widened when he saw the right arm of his companion.
"Basch…" the blond murmured painfully. The arm, that was where he implanted the needle piece…but that was impossible…a reaction this server shouldn't occur within a hume.
"We need to get away from here." Balthier glanced at the cockpit. "Fran set in a course for Rabanastre."
"Basch…I'm sorry." Vaan looked up at the former knight and both Balthier and Basch were shocked into silence when Vaan cried a single tear. "I'm so sorry."
Vaan heard they call his name but he welcomed the darkness that claimed him.
And the plot thickens. By popular vote Vossler shall remain alive but it won't be easy on him.
Next up the Ozmone Plains and the location to the third Shard.
Oh, I saw Transformers 2 on the opening night. Awesome movie! I just adore Bumblebee :)
And to get a better image of Basch's new arm have any of you seen the Witchblade comics? That's what it looks like. Picture that or the arm from a Ridley Scott Alien.
Review my wonderful readers.
