I am so terribly sorry that it has taken me so long to update! A very long chapter and massive writer's block are the primary villains, although work and night classes played a part as well. This is it, all that is left is a small epilogue, which I will try to do this week. Thank you to all of my loyal readers who have contributed their comments to this work. I appreciate every single review. For now, read and enjoy, and THANK YOU!
The entire mountain shuddered as though an earthquake had begun at its very foundations. The Returners all dove for whatever cover they could find, all them afraid that the mountain itself would collapse. But after several frightening moments, everything returned to normal.
Privately, some of them began to wonder what new trap Detrek was concocting at this moment. But Terra's thoughts turned to Sabin, and she whispered a prayer for his safety.
Locke and his team; Celes, Edgar, Cyan, Setzer, and Strago moved deeper into the heart of the mountain. The old mage had felt an unusual concentration of energy, as they approached, Celes began to feel this nexus of power as well. Both of them were at a loss to explain it.
Cautiously, the six of them approached a set of massive doors. They were made of strong oak, inlaid with marble and ivory and studded with gold and gems. Cyan and Locke moved to either door, while the others prepared themselves with spells, autocrossbow, and darts.
The two men threw open the doors and they rushed in, weapons at the ready. The ceilings here were at least twenty-five feet above their heads, and the floor was black and white marble. The walls were draped with gauzy curtains of red and gold. On the far side of the room, seated in a high-backed throne of ironwood and gold, was Detrek. The villain chuckled as the six heroes approached, and they saw as dark energy crackled across his body like small bolts of lightning.
"Welcome to my parlor," said Detrek, his voice full of ironic humor, "feast your eyes on the future of the world as I have envisioned it. Doesn't it put Kefka's Tower and Vector Fortress to shame?"
"I've seen better," commented Locke.
Detrek laughed. "You've done well in all of our previous meetings. Your persistence surprises even me. I would have thought that perhaps with the scattering of all my agents and the clear ruin of my power base that you would have been satisfied with your work and departed with your lives. But in truth, I am glad that all of you elected to pursue me. I am eager to face you face-to-face and succeed where my mentor Kefka failed."
"Thou art no match for us, villain!" spat Cyan.
"You've hidden behind armies and your Dark Espers for all this time, you don't have the power to face us!" agreed Edgar.
"You've gravely mistaken our abilities, and our intentions," added Celes.
"Oh no, my friends," said Detrek, his grin widening as he leaned forward, "I think you find that you are the ones mistaken, about a great many things."
The villain rose from his throne and came down the few steps in front of him. Suddenly, Celes and Strago felt strange, as though their magic wanted to leave their body. Stretching out with mystical senses granted by seventy years of magical power, Strago looked at Detrek with new eyes. The villain seemed to be a supernatural black hole, sucking in the world around him.
"By the Ancients," he whispered, "A Taker, I thought they were myths."
Detrek laughed. "No, old man. By magically combining me with the remnants of a long-dead Taker, I became one. Not only was I a disciple of Kefka, but I was also one of his unwilling test subjects. Like most of his experiments, I was considered a failure. The Takers existed during the War of the Magi, designed to absorb the powers of the Espers and make them harmless. You cannot imagine the pain as Kefka tried to develop a process to allow my body to absorb and control the flow of immense magical energy. While I could not absorb magic consciously, I found that I came to act as a life sponge. By focusing my concentration, I can gain the strength, knowledge, and powers of those who die around me. Not only did I gain the strength of all who died in the battles at Figaro Castle, but all four of the Dark Espers were gracious enough to die, allowing me to take on all of their power!"
The Returners all took several steps back as Detrek approached them. His words were spoken with clear truth, there was no deception behind his eyes this time. He indeed had the powers of all the Dark Espers.
"Now that you pitiful weaklings know of my greater powers, you now understand my eagerness to do battle with you. You were all blessed with extraordinary luck in your fight against Kefka. Let's find out if your luck can continue to hold out when pitted against the darkest powers of this world!" cackled Detrek.
"Ancients be merciful," whispered Strago.
Cyan's eyes beheld his wife and son as he whispered, "Doma eterna."
"To Figaro," commented Edgar.
"Lady Luck please let the dice stay hot," added Setzer.
"The Empire dies for good today," growled Celes.
Locke sighed. "Oh crap."
Detrek flew forward, almost faster than anyone could follow him. His hand wrapped around Locke's face, then he spun on his heel and threw the young treasure hunter into one of the marble pillars.
A black, life-draining cloud flew from Strago's outstretched hands, but as it tried to engulf Detrek, the villain swung his arm in an arc, sending the spell right back at the old mage, who screamed and his skin turned ashen.
Edgar and Cyan rushed in, the former with his drill, but Detrek sidestepped and was only grazed, then landed a powerful knife chop to Edgar's shoulders. Cyan leapt in, slicing across the villain's back, but as he tried to swing around for the next part of his Quadra-Slice technique, Detrek's hand already sparked with lightning, the blast sent Cyan hurtling backwards, his chest smoking.
Darts peppered his back, but Detrek paid them little heed, then found himself momentarily hindered by being encased in a pillar of ice from Celes. The spell only slowed him down for a moment, for as soon as the ice dissipated Detrek flung out one hand, freezing Celes in mid-step. He rushed at the blond woman, and a sword of pure energy formed in his hand as he cut deeply into her chest.
Locke was still woozy from his impact into the pillar, but he reached into one of his small belt pouches and pulled out a shard of Magicite. He called upon the Esper known as Carbunkle, whose Ruby Power shone on all of the Returners, protecting them from magical attacks.
Detrek turned to look at Locke and chuckled. "Really, thief, do you honestly believe that the feeble protection of a dead Esper will save you?"
"Umm… yeah?"
Detrek's laugh grew louder as the villain flew through the air with terrific speed, and plunged his energy blade through Locke's chest.
"Loooooocke!" screamed Celes.
Edgar pulled himself back to his feet and rushed again, trying to thrust his drill into Detrek's back, but again he spun out of the way and cut across the young king's back with his blade of energy.
Cyan impaled the villain with his sword while Detrek had his back turned, and as he turned, the two men engaged in several moments of elegant but deadly swordplay. But then the elder knight stepped back for some breathing room, and in those precious seconds, was encased by a powerful ice spell.
Detrek's laughter was interrupted as Celes screamed out a spell, and meteor came crashing through the mountain and struck Detrek. The detonation threw the villain across the room and singed his clothing. Detrek then rose to his feet, brushing off the dust and burning clothing. A lightning bolt arced through the air towards him, but Detrek reflected it back on the caster, Setzer.
He then turned his violet eyes on Celes, but before he could take a single step, a massive fireball exploded against his back, sending him flying forward. Looking back, five more people entered the room.
"Hey there, Detrek, did you forget about us?" asked Terra.
"I will kill you all, witch!" roared Detrek, "If it is the last thing I ever do!"
"Bahamut, help us!" cried Relm, drawing the shard of Magicite.
The form of the might dragon appeared before them, its scales glinting like crystals, its eyes sparkling like gems. Bahamut opened his mouth and breathed a stream of burning golden sunlight at Detrek, an attack to which there was no defense.
The dragon began to dissipate and Gau leapt forward. But Detrek raised a hand and suddenly the young wild boy hung frozen in mid-air, unmoving. With another wave of his hand, Detrek opened up numerous wounds on the boy simultaneously, and Gau screamed in pain as he fell straight to the ground.
Shadow reached behind him for another thunder blade and hurled it with all his might. The blade plunged into the villain's shoulder, who let out a cry of pain himself, and was forced a few steps back as a bolt of lightning passed through the opening in the mountain caused by the meteor attack.
Detrek's eyes burned with hatred, and as he screamed, waves of fire poured out in every direction, burning the Returners with the fires of hatred.
Terra knew that several of the others were badly wounded and close to death, and so she focused her energies on the life that surrounded the mountain, bringing that power to her allies and taking them away from the brink of death. Locke, Cyan, and Edgar came back from the precipice and reached for their weapons again.
Her next move was to reach into her sack for a shard of Magicite.
"Come Alexander!"
The form of the massive Esper broke through the floor and crashed through the ceiling, and as its glowing eyes found Detrek, beams of immense energy lanced across the room.
A bolt of solar fire flew from Relm's hands, hitting Detrek from behind, and Edgar leapt into the fray, his chainsaw buzzing. The young king spun around for momentum and tore a chunk out of Detrek's chest.
But Detrek only laughed at them. "You fools really think you can win? The powers of the Dark Espers are mine! Death comes for you all!"
A cold and deadly wind filled the throne room, forcing the Returners and Detrek to their knees, as the wind sucked the life from them, weakening them almost to death. But Detrek's hands were already glowing with healing energies as his skin returned from the pallor that now shaded the others.
Despite their injuries, spells hit Detrek from four angles, and others used their powers to heal the others.
"You are pathetic!" screamed Detrek, and in his hands glowed a sphere of blue energy. The ball suddenly grew from the villain's palms until its light filled the throne room, and then it detonated. The Returners were thrown in all directions, slamming into pillars and walls, then slumping to the ground, several close to the death.
Terra tried struggling to her feet, using the wall for support. But Detrek's Ultima spell had left her arm broken, and possibly a few ribs as well. She couldn't breathe enough to focus. Through the carnage of the throne room, she watched as Detrek strode closer to her, hatred in his violet eyes.
"You filthy little witch," he hissed, "You have done more to thwart my plans than I could have imagined. My plans would have come to fruition if not for you. Sabin would have been my right hand and heir, and along with Vargas and the power of the Dark Espers would have annihilated Figaro Castle and all within it. With Sabin as my prince and advisor, I would have led this world to a new age of grandeur and order. But you, my green-haired witch, had to release Sabin from my power, so I think it is only fitting that you be the first to die."
Lightning crackled across his palm as Detrek aimed for Terra's heart. His malice was overpowering, and Terra had to close her eyes.
Sabin, I love you.
"DETREK!"
The villain spun on his heel, he knew that voice, it was the voice of his doom. He turned just in time for the massive kick to land squarely in his chest. Sabin landed and continued his attack, lunging in with punches and kicks to a point just below his ribs on the right side. Detrek could not understand how much pain those blows caused, nor how he seemed unable to defend that one spot effectively.
Quickly the blows spread out more from that spot, and Detrek could not follow the attacks, for Sabin was so swift and graceful that it was impossible to tell one technique from the next. All Detrek was able to do was continue to fall back as he felt ribs cracking and teeth shattering. Sabin then leapt into the air, spinning around and delivering a ferocious back kick that threw the villain across the room, his nose crushed.
Sabin landed, bringing his palms together as he began to chant. He sought the power of life, the ki energy that resided in the world and in every living being. For one brief instant, his consciousness expanded beyond his body as his mind touched life from every corner of the world, and through him he gave that power to his friends and companions, the people that he loved.
The Returners felt their wounds healing and the cold embrace of death leaving their bodies, and they began to rise to their feet.
Detrek spat blood and shards of teeth from his mouth, watching as his hated enemies rose and turned to face him.
"You cannot win!" he screamed, "The dream of an empire will never die! This is your curse, you shall never have peace in your lifetimes! NEVER!"
Sabin turned his golden eyes on Detrek. "I warned you once, quite some time ago, that you underestimated the Returners. I told you that weakness would be your doom. It's over, you will never again threaten the world."
Between the warrior's palms, a pure white light grew brighter, and the other Returners drew from their packs the Magicite of the Espers of the Magi. Alexander, Bahamut, Tritock, Bismark, Maduin, Rayden, Terrato, Ifrit, Shiva, and other Espers materialized from the power of the greatest heroes of the world.
As one, the Espers and the Returners unleashed their greatest powers upon this villain, who screamed as he tried to absorb the energy. But the power that had been released was too much, and the screams died away Detrek was obliterated from this world.
The energy died away, and left the Returners with a view of the outside, the mountain rock before them vaporized by their power. Terra ran into Sabin's arms.
"You're alive," she cried, as she wrapped her arms around him, determined to never again let him go.
"Of course I'm alive," Sabin whispered to her, "You think a little thing like the end of the world was gonna do me in?"
Terra couldn't help but chuckle, even as the tears of joy ran down her cheeks. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Locke and Celes in a tight embrace, and Shadow held Relm in his arms as Strago rested a hand on the ninja's shoulder.
Suddenly, the mountain shuddered and sent them all reeling.
"Kupo!" yelled Mog.
"What the heck is going on?" cried Setzer.
"The mountain is unbalanced, it's gonna collapse!" retorted Strago.
"Remind me next time to wait on destroying mountains until we're outside, please!" quipped Edgar, as he ran closer to the edge of the precipice with Sabin, Shadow, Cyan, and Terra.
The five of them looked down, and were greeted by nearly a mile of sharp, jagged rocks to the floor of the valley.
"I vote for another exit," deadpanned Shadow.
"There art no other escape, Sir Shadow," said Cyan, "thou entrance to the mountain is too distant. There is not enough time."
"We're going to die here?" whimpered Relm.
Shadow immediately scooped her up in his arms and held her tightly. "We're not going to die, honey. There's got to be some way out."
"Hey guys!" yelled Locke, "Why don't we just take this secret escape tunnel behind the throne? I'm pretty sure Detrek won't mind!"
The others ran over in a rush and ducked into the escape tunnel.
Locke shook his head. "How do you guys manage to survive without me around?" he wondered.
"Talk later, thief," said Shadow as he ran past.
"Hey, that's treasure – "
Locke didn't finish as Sabin threw him into the tunnel.
The twelve Returners ran through the narrow tunnel, lighted by magic that still managed to survive after Detrek. The tunnel's exit led them back onto the mountain path that they had ascended only a few hours earlier.
Suddenly, a massive boulder rolled past them and continued down. Turning to look to the mountain summit, they could see that it was already beginning to collapse. Below them, they could see Detrek's personal airship.
"We'll never get down there in time or in one piece," growled Strago.
Sabin looked over the edge, and saw that it was a nearly straight drop to the airship. "Yes we can. We jump."
"Jump?" echoed Edgar, "Brother, how hard did you hit your head?"
Sabin sighed. "Jump off the ledge, it's a straight drop. When you get close, use a Float spell to save yourself and then just glide to the ground. We can do this. Now move!"
Setzer, Gau, Locke and Celes immediately jumped off, while the rest watched, and sure enough, with plenty of time to spare, the four of them cast the spell in time, and they landed gently on the ground, running for the airship.
"You guys believe me now? Get going!" ordered Sabin.
Mog, Relm, and Strago were next off, but Cyan stood warily at the edge of the cliff. The mountain shook violently again, and the remaining Returners were hurled back against the mountain wall.
"No time, come on!" yelled Edgar as he leapt off.
"Sir Sabin!" called Cyan, "I need to tell thee something, something I hath never spoken of to a soul before."
"Better make it quick buddy," warned the martial artist.
Cyan took one more look over the cliff, then turned to his friend. "I am greatly terrified of heights!"
Sabin almost laughed, but held it in. "Look, just remember to cast the spell and you'll be fine."
"I cannot do this, Sir Sabin, I am sorry," Cyan told him with a shake of his head.
Sabin nodded, then came up to the elder knight and firmly grasped his hand. "I can't force you to go, my friend. You will meet your wife and son in the heavens, I promise you that. But I must also apologize."
"For what?"
"For this," said Sabin, grabbing Cyan's shoulder with his other hand, and then he threw the king of Doma off the ledge.
"Happy landings, old boy!" he called, then turned to Terra, who had an exasperated smile on her face.
"You're mean," she said, "Now I have to go save him."
Shifting into her Esper form, Terra took off from the ledge, flying down and grabbing a hold of Cyan.
This left Sabin and Shadow up on the path. The two men looked at each other.
"You're not thinking of staying behind this time, are you buddy?" asked Sabin, "Because I'd hate to have to throw you off, too."
Shadow reached for his mask and pulled it away from his face, giving Sabin a clear view of who he was.
"Not this time, Sabin," he replied, "This time, I have something to live for. A young daughter, who I need to get to know. I have a lot to learn about being a father."
Sabin shrugged. "Can't be too hard. After all, if Cyan could do it, why couldn't we?"
Shadow laughed, and the two men took one more glance up at the falling boulders. Shadow grandly waved his arm for Sabin to proceed.
"After you, Sir Sabin."
The martial arts master grinned and leapt off the ledge, followed seconds later by the ninja. The two men fell quickly, until Shadow cast his spell and Sabin focused his Sky Slam blitz to slow his fall. They quickly landed on the ground and hurried for the airship.
"Hurry up!" yelled Setzer, already at the controls. The two of them jumped aboard just as Edgar and Cyan finished cutting the mooring ropes, and the airship lifted off the ground.
"Waroo! Mountain falling!"
They gathered together at the railing and watched nervously as the mountain indeed was collapsing, and looked as if it sought to do so right on top of them.
"Ohh, this can't be good," mumbled Edgar.
Setzer spared a glance at the falling mountain, then put the throttle to full. "All right gang, here we go. Hang on to your butts!"
Boulders began falling on either side of the airship as Setzer weaved in and out of the collapsing debris. After several terrifying moments, the airship emerged above the catastrophe, unscathed.
The Returners watched as the remainder of the mountain collapsed in on itself. Strangely, all of them were silent as they caught their breath. Not even Locke had a snide comment, as he held Celes close to him. Terra and Sabin also held each other, and Shadow held Relm in his arms once again.
"Ahoy, skipper!"
The call broke the Returners out of their reverie, as they turned to see the Lucky Lady draw up alongside them, the First Mate at the railing.
"Follow us, skipper," he called, "We'll lead you guys home."