"Kallian, how long until we get there?" Gadolt asked through the comm.
"I would guess maybe an hour?" Kallian replied. "I haven't really flown in with Pearl so I have no idea."
"Is it that huge pyre up ahead?" Shulk asked.
"Probably," Kallian said. "My night vision isn't as good as yours or Gadolt's, so I can't be sure."
"The sun'll be rising soon enough," Gadolt added, "we'll know for sure then."
"Be careful," Meyneth told them. "There is something ancient and angry in this mountain, and it is not Zanza."
"Reassuring," Gadolt muttered.
0o0
There was a dome of ice surrounding the base of the tower, making it impossible for them to land nearby. Gadolt, however, had another idea. He shot a hole through the ice, giving them a way to get to the entrance if the tower.
"I can't believe you just did that," Kallian said with a mix of amazement and horror.
"I would rather not be separated from Jade if I can avoid it," he shrugged in response.
"Same here," Shulk agreed. The idea of not being able to quickly run to their units was something none of them were comfortable with.
They landed in the snow, then walked around the tower, looking for an entrance. The door opened on its own when they approached, but there was no way they could enter if they stayed in their units.
"The dome of ice protects us," Kallian said. "If something comes, we'll be able to fight it off."
"It's what's inside the tower that worries me," Shulk muttered.
Though, according to Meyneth, whatever was angry wasn't Zanza, which was not reassuring in any way, shape or form.
When they entered the tower, the smell of rotting flesh hit them. There were bodies scattered around, some looked like they'd been trying to crawl out of the tower when they'd died.
"What happened here?" Gadolt wondered, horrified.
"How long have these people been here?" Kallian wondered.
"14 years," Shulk answered. "By Bionis, this is the monado expedition from 14 years ago. My parents almost went on that expedition."
Silence.
"We…" Gadolt recovered his composure. "We should return them to the Bionis."
"Yeah." Shulk felt numb. His parents had almost gone on that expedition. He had almost been brought along on that expedition. Shulk was pretty sure that if he still that ability to, he would've thrown up.
Without a word, they started returning the bodies. Gadolt and Kallian dragged them out, while Shulk started digging. He would've helped them with the bodies, but it was too much for him. He was digging with Ruby, using the swords to carve out the snow and reach the ground that was quite deep underneath it.
Being careful and making sure they followed customs, they returned the bodies to the Bionis, like they should have been 14 years earlier. They should have never died, but at least they could rest in peace now.
When they were done, they sat in the snow. No one wanted or had the energy to talk.
"Let's just…" Shulk eventually said, "let's just do what we came here to do."
When they walked back into the tower, they saw the red sword sitting on the pedestal.
The Monado was still there. Shulk and Gadolt saw it as the hope of the Homs, while Kallian saw it as the thing that could end the High Entia.
"Well, it's still here," Gadolt said, "now what?"
Shulk, almost as if in a trance, stepped forward and reached to grab the Monado.
He saw a group of people standing there, then the ether being sucked out of them and dying. That was what had happened. The Monado had sucked the ether out of them. The Monado, or rather, Zanza, had killed them. He also saw another group, one that looked oddly familiar and one of them grab the Monado and pick it up, releasing Zanza.
Shulk pulled back, gasping. The hand he'd used to touch the Monado was burning. Even Meyneth had recoiled, she was pushing against him, almost panicked.
"We must stop that from happening," she said. "Zanza cannot be allowed to be freed. He simply cannot."
Gadolt and Kallian shared a look. They'd never heard her sound so panicked. Whatever she'd seen, it had scared her.
"We can't let anyone get the Monado," Meyneth continued. "We cannot let anyone into this tower."
"How?" Gadolt asked.
"I have an idea," Kallian said. "But we should get some rest soon. Shulk, I know for a fact you've been awake for at least forty hours."
"Sleep does sound pretty great," he agreed.
"You two get some sleep; I'll take first watch," Gadolt said.
"Sounds great," Kallian replied, already scanning the tower for a comfortable place to sleep.
They curled up against each other, huddling for warmth though their bodies kept them warm even in the bitter cold of the mountain.
Shulk fell asleep almost instantly, leaning against Kallian. He leaned back against the wall, but was careful to not move too much so as to not disturb Shulk.
He was reminded of what was still his mission. "Protect him," Vanea had said. He still didn't quite see why Shulk needed protection, not only because his unit was Ruby Face, but also because he seemed perfectly capable of defending himself. Sure, he wasn't the best in battle, but he could handle himself. However, Shulk was also Meyneth's vessel, which Vanea had probably been aware of. It was probably because of that she'd wanted him protected.
He wondered if Vanea had also wanted to send him away, to save him from being a face unit in Egil's service.
He was glad she'd given him that order, and though he still didn't quite see the point, he would do just that. He'd protect Shulk (and Meyneth) until the bitter end.
Gadolt watched Kallian and Shulk sleep. There was no way to know just by looking at them that they were weapons of mass destruction. Ruby Face was well known for its agility and power, while Pearl Face was a mixed attacker that was part of the Vanguard of Egil's army.
They were supposed to be attacking the Bionis and its people, but here they were instead, sleeping in the floor of a tower in the middle of nowhere. Their units were mainly used for transport; in fact, they'd barely trained with their units at all, which, if he was being honest, worried Gadolt greatly.
They were ready to fight together and in unison out of their units, but certainly not in their units. He knew that if they were to be attacked now, their best bet would be for them to run. They might be able to pull something off, since Gadolt and Kallian had worked together briefly before while inside their units, but he would rather not test that theory.
He leaned back and sighed. He hadn't expected his life to go in this direction, but at least his life was still going somewhere. He wasn't being controlled anymore thanks to Meyneth, which he was eternally thankful for and he'd decided right then and there when she's saved him that he would die for her, that he would die for Shulk. He owed them a debt, and he doubted he would ever be able to repay it.
He'd initially only come with them because of that debt, but the familiarity of the hidden village and of both Shulk and Kallian had convinced him that he wasn't just staying for his debt. He felt at home there, he felt welcomed. He'd come to realise that he considered Shulk and Kallian as his family. He saw them as younger siblings, though he was pretty sure Kallian was old enough to be his great-grandfather.
Gadolt realised that night that he would gladly lay down his life if it meant that they would live.
They were his family now, and no one in his family got hurt.
Not on his watch.
0o0
The next morning, they decided that they would make it so no one could ever reach the Monado, since they couldn't utterly destroy it. After thinking about what could work, they decided on freezing the door shut. It would look natural and wouldn't raise suspicion, and if they did it right, only a ridiculous amount of heat could open the doors.
It took almost three hours to freeze the door. They'd used snow and Gadolt's guns to make the snow stick to the door and turn into a wall of ice.
"Here's hoping it holds," Gadolt said.
"It should," Kallian replied.
"Let's get out of here," Shulk said. "Meyneth said that there's something here scarier than Zanza, so let's leave before whatever it is shows its face."
"Right, I'd forgotten about that," Kallian added.
It was almost noon by the time they took off, heading back to the fallen arm.
0o0
Elsewhere on the mountain, a group of Homs could have sworn they saw streaks of light coming from the tower.
0o0
Elsewhere on the mountain, an ancient creature awoke.
There were mechon on her mountain.
That would not stand.