Disclaimer: I own nothing in Final Fantasy.
Edgar smiled to himself as he placed the Fire Crystal on the pedestal in the middle of the room. Almost as soon as he did this, the room itself seemed to light up. There were a few torches on the wall that provided light, but the crystal's light made the room even brighter than it did before.
The king remembered the stories he had heard from his parents when he was a young child. About the crystals and how their kingdom once held onto one of the Elemental Crystals, known as the Fire Crystal. It was up to them to protect it from anyone who would even dare try to steal it. It had always been that way.
And then, one day, the Fire Crystal was stolen. They tried desperately to get it back, along with the other Elemental Crystals. The details of the story always got messed up around there though, as no one could remember what had happened after that. All anyone knew for sure is that the Elemental Crystals vanished, along with the rest of the crystals. Well, except for the Crystal Core.
"Your Majesty?" the chancellor's voice asked, taking the young king out of his thoughts.
"Hm?" he murmured as he looked over his shoulder. "Oh, don't mind me, I was just thinking of something is all." He stared at the crystal for a moment, before turning his attention to the chancellor. "Anyway, we need to get them out of here as quickly as possible."
"So, you think they are not safe here," the chancellor said thoughtfully with a nod of his head.
"That's right," the king replied. "That dragoon… I'm not sure if he believed me or not. We can't take chances in case he didn't."
"What is the plan then?"
Edgar paused for a moment, looking both ways, before he continued. "I expect that they will show up and will have us surrounded or under arrest. I'm sure they will not expect us to use one of the bridges and escape on the backs of chocobos."
"Are you leaving, Your Majesty?" the chancellor inquired.
"You know what they will do once they knew that I lied," Edgar replied. He looked angry for a moment, before he wiped the expression from his face. "I trust I can leave Figaro to you while I am away?"
"Of course," the chancellor told the young king with a reassuring smile. "You can depend on me."
The Crystal Core seemed to float above the pond as it shed a gentle light. Chrysta stared at it for what felt like the hundredth time even though she knew this wasn't the case. She shook her head and then crossed her arms, a thoughtful expression crossing her face.
"Chrysta?" asked a familiar voice behind her.
The brunette looked up and turned slightly to look at the man who had come up behind her. He had a brown beard and moustache, and his eyes were hazel in color. He wasn't wearing a White Mage or a Black Mage cloak. Instead, he wore a black robe that seemed to drag on the ground a little as he walked, and while there was a hood attached to the robe, it was lowered now, allowing the girl to see the kindness in his eyes.
"Elder?" Chrysta whispered as she watched the man come closer.
The elder seemed to chuckle lightly as he came to step beside the girl. "So, you are here to look at the Crystal Core again?"
"Well, that is partly it," the girl answered as she turned her gaze back to the large crystal once more. She seemed slightly confused as she looked at it for more than one reason. If the Crystal Core was here, then where are the Lilties, Selkies and Yukes? How was the village of Mist here, allowing her to meet with Rydia and her mother? How was she able to hear about the Gestahlian Empire?
"I sense there is a lot on your mind, child," the elder said, giving the girl a look of concern. "You still don't understand this world, do you?"
"Yeah," Chrysta murmured with a nod of her head. "It's like this world is a combination of a few that I…" She trailed off trying to figure out the right way to say what she wanted. She was sure that if she said what it was originally, she would just get a weird look from the older man. And not that she could blame him. Nothing like that existed in this world!
"Go on," the elder urged, wondering what the girl was about to say.
Chrysta sighed a little and lowered her head. "Well, it's like this world is a combination of a few that I know from stories back home," she said at last. That was the best way she could think of describe it: a story.
The elder rubbed his beard for a moment before he turned to look at the girl. As she was still facing the Crystal Core, he saw the brunette from the side. "I can tell that isn't how you wanted to say that, but I can accept that answer."
"Thank you," Chrysta said politely, smiling a little. She raised her head once more. "That isn't the only thing I don't understand though." She turned her head to look at the Elder standing next to her. "I also want to know why I'm here. I mean, I'm not the only one to know these stories from my world. There are many others in my world that know of them, some maybe even loving them more than I do."
Now it was the Elder's turn to pause. He closed his hazel eyes for a moment, before opening them once more. "These stories you know… they are not even the reason you are here at all." He watched as the girl turned to face him. "It's even possible you could have ended up here without even knowing them. I'm sure we told you before how it is up to you to restore the balance in our world."
"I don't quite understand though," Chrysta replied in a quiet tone. "I mean, wouldn't someone from your world be more suited to save it?"
The Elder shook his head. "That is a question I don't have an answer for. All I know is that you possess a certain quality that allows the Crystal Core to be fused with you. And once it does, it will be up to you to restore the balance." He gazed at the girl sadly before he turned his head away, as though he could no longer look her in the eye. "I know this is difficult for you. To be pulled away from your world and being asked to do something like this."
Chrysta went silent after that. She would have been lying if she said that this had been an easy transition for her. The idea of being on a world like this did make her feel excited, but she knew the dangers that awaited her here. Which wasn't a good thing because she couldn't fend for herself, at least currently. And she knew that she was also homesick.
"I'll do what I can," she said at last, feeling as though she didn't have much choice in the matter. "But this quality you say that I have. What is it?"
The Elder shook his head a little, yet returned his gaze to the girl. "We call it Crystal Power. We don't exactly know how one gets such an ability, especially where you come from. But only someone who has that inner ability can fuse with the Crystal Core."
"Crystal Power?" Chrysta echoed and for a brief moment wondered why that term came from what she called Crystal Chronicles, until she remembered where she was.
"Yes. And it was that power that allowed you to be summoned here…"
Chrysta slowly opened up her brown eyes and stared at the ceiling. It was still dark in the room and while there was no window, she assumed that it was still nighttime. The dream was fresh in her mind, even more so than the previous ones.
"Crystal Power," she whispered to herself. "What does that mean exactly? And I come from another world?"
She almost expected the Crystal Core to respond to what she said, but the voice in her head was silent. It made her wonder for the briefest instant if it needed its own rest too. But did such a crystal even need sleep? It sounded a little strange to her. She was about to repeat herself, to see if she would get an answer this time, when a familiar voice interrupted her.
"And just why should I trust you?" Mint's voice demanded loudly.
"Lower your voice," Cecil told the Black Mage in a tone that was softer. "You'll wake up Chrysta."
The brunette slowly pushed herself from her bed and approached the door. As she did, she could hear the other girl respond, "I'm sure she is still asleep. But again, why should I even trust you?" Despite what she said, she did lower her voice a bit.
"After what I have done, I don't ever expect forgiveness," the dark knight responded, giving the black mage an answer that sounded very familiar to Chrysta. "And yet, even Chrysta couldn't bring herself to hate me."
"How is that possible?" Mint demanded as though she couldn't believe it. "You killed Rue right in front of her eyes, kidnapped her as well as taking the Crystal Core! How could she say she didn't hate you?"
Before the dark knight could respond, Chrysta opened the door, startling the black mage. "It's a strange answer, but I think I know why."
"Ah, Chrysta! Did we wake you? I'm so sorry!" Mint said quickly and apologetically.
Chrysta held up her hands and shook her head. "No, it's okay. I was up a little before then," she told the worrying girl.
Cecil looked toward the girl his visor already raised. "You said before that you sensed something from me, and just couldn't hate me."
"Yeah, I remember you saying that before," she replied. "I think the reason I worded it that way was because at the time I didn't know how to say it. Even now I'm not completely sure."
Mint suddenly giggled as though she understood what the brunette was trying to say. "Oh, your stories, huh?"
"Stories?" Cecil repeated.
"That is how she would say it," Mint replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "She would always say that she was reminded of these many stories she knew back in her world."
"Her world?" the dark knight echoed, sounded confused.
"Oh, I guess I missed that part earlier," Mint said slowly. "I didn't think Chrysta wanted me to say that part, especially since she didn't remember anything before her capture." Before either one could explain anything, the Black Mage added, "I'll talk about this more tomorrow. Do try and get some rest, Chrysta."
Chrysta stared at the red haired girl, wondering why she couldn't just say anything now. But even she had to admit that she was still tired. But could she even rest after all of this? She looked over her shoulder to see that both Tina and Locke were still resting. At least, if they were awake, neither of them showed it.
A commotion outside of the room woke Chrysta once more, causing her to almost leap right out of her bed. Before she could even do anything, Mint rushed into the room and quickly put her finger to her lips. "Don't say anything and be quiet!"
"But…" Chrysta started to say, but Mint placed a hand over her mouth.
"That dragoon is back," the Black Mage whispered urgently. "He isn't alone either."
The brunette's eyes widened when she heard what the girl with the pigtails was saying. She would have removed the girl's hand from her mouth in order to question further, but she wasn't given the chance to.
"Why are you all here?" the voice of Edgar demanded. "If anything, I would have expected the Red Wings, or your own dragoons."
"You don't have any problem with the Empire's soldiers here, do you?" Kain questioned. Since she couldn't see him, she didn't know if the dragoon was holding his lance or not. "We are allies after all."
In her heart, Chrysta knew that things had gone from bad to worse.
