Chapter 47 Leo And Kefka's Face Off
The next morning, they packed up and headed back to Thamasa. It only took a few
hours to reach, but they were still tired and very well hungry, since they ran out of food
portions last night. Terra found a berry bush and filled her bag to feed her friends. They
ripe and juicy, perfect to eat. After their short breakfast, they continued swiftly.
Finally they made in into town and stopped at the inn's entrance. Terra turned and
smiled at them."Okay, Leo's real nice, so don't be afraid of him. He's sweet and
understanding..." She looked behind her and searched for the biggest building.
Standing at the far end of town, was the mayor's house. In front of it, was Celes an Leo.
"Like Leo said, in two days, we meet at the biggest building! So to the mayors house!"
She cheered hopefully. The team started off, but Edgar held Locke back. "She
seems...Different. Don't you think, Cole?" He was talking about Terra, pointing at her
when she wasn't looking. Locke nodded and laughed. "Yep, sure does. Maybe its
cause she found some Espers. She probably feels like they can help her understand
herself more..." Locke added to the assumptions with a grin. After Edgar nodded,
Locke ran after Terra. Edgar cleared the way between them.
Leo turned and smiled at the group that came into view. A happy Terra with a smile
from ear to ear, A king whose face seemed clouded and a thief, who looked as if he
needed a lot of sleep, two strangers next to them and many strange creatures behind
them. Leo elbowed Celes, who was turned and whispered. "Their here." Celes
turned swiftly and smiled.
Terra spotted Celes and ran over, her pony-tail swaying as she ran toward her. She
stopped short breathed in front of the ice general. "Hi..Celes..." Terra managed to say,
holding her chest in her arms. The female general smiled fondly at Terra.
"Hello, Terra."
The hybrid looked up and smiled. "We found them! The Espers!" She spat in a hurry,
ready to share their discovery. Celes gasped, looking pass her friend to see the Espers.
Leo smiled and walked pass them toward the Espers and said, bowing his head
gratefully. "Ah, Espers! I have waited dearly to speak with you." Leo mentioned.
Yuri walked up to him and frowned. "We are sorry for destroying your towns- We
couldn't control it!" Yuri added swiftly.
Leo sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Aye, we all lose ourselves in it..All is well, the Emperor
wishes to see you. Said he had to apologize for the grief he has caused you." Leo
bowed again. Yuri smiled and turned to hi9s fellow Esper friends and nodded, looking
back at the general. "I see..But we wish to say sorry for hurting and killing so many..."
Yuri and Zaraki asked if they were going to be able to head back to the Esper realm,
but Leo couldn't say. "I have no idea, Sir Yuri, if it is even possible anymore. But we
will surely try though." Leo insured quickly and knowingly as he filled through some
list of ideas to Yuri, who seemed to be listening quite well. Terra listened as well,
making sure she heard everything...Probably so she could back with them. Locke had
walked from Strago and Relm's side and besides the king, a wry grin on his rough face.
"..So, king? What will do when this ends?" Asked the thief, as if he actually cared.
Edgar, a frown still on his young face said, crossing his arms and watching Terra.
"I'll...Go back to Figaro with my brother...Why, Cole?"
Locke laughed at that and put his hands in his pocket. "Eh, you know me- Back to
treasure hunting." Edgar didn't believe what he said and sighed. "With Celes, I
assume?" The king asked, like it would happen and he was right. Locke blushed.
"No-No! I'll be my self! Jeez, king, you know how to ruin a talk, don't ya?"
Edgar rolled his eyes and walked away. The bandit frowned. "Fine! Be that way, mate!"
Edgar was now standing besides Relm and the old Mage, Strago. As Leo hands met
Yuri's for a hand shake, the air filled with a sense with a sick feeling, a cloud of hatred
and pure evil. Suddenly, Edgar heard Terra screamed and turned to see Soldiers running
in with Magitek armor, Kefka Palazzo in front of them, laughing sadistically as he
counted the Espers. His tall, gawky figure seemed to straightened with joy as he
counted over thirty-five Espers he could kill. Kefka's face was lit with glee as he
screamed for his soldiers to kill every Esper in town. Terra turned to the Espers.
"Run! Get out of here!" The creatures shot off in different directions, only to be shot
down and beaten to a bloody pulp. Terra unsheathed Ultima to cut a man's arm off for
striking down a Esper. Edgar turned to Locke and threw a sword to him, the thief
caught it and started to defend some Espers, as did the king. Relm ran away and hid
behind a house with her grandfather. Strago took her little hand and ran into the forest
to protect her, saying to Relm calmly. "Don't worry about them, Relm. They'll be fine.."
Edgar noted during his battle with two men, that Celes had run to a group of men an
had taken them all down with a superb speed. He turned and saw Terra facing three
men, she used sleep on them quickly.
"Uehehe-he-he!" Kefka told a Magitek armor pilot to aim for the biggest group of
Espers. The man piloting the beast pulled a lever down and pushed a black button, the
front of the armor monster exploding a beam of black fire. A large group of Espers
were engulfed in his fury of fire, screaming as they turned to Magicit. Terra's eyes
beamed over with tears. "NO!" She turned to Kefka and ran toward him, screaming.
Kefka smirked as he grabbed her arm when she swung and missed. He threw her to the
ground and kicked her in the ribs, sending her to the floor with a cry. Edgar gasped,
killing the men that had taken him on. "Cole, get Terra!" He turned around and saw
Celes holding off her own battle. She was losing. Which would he save? Terra, or
Celes? He ran toward the woman with three men, killing one by stabbing him in his
back. Celes swung around and kicked a man in the face, casting him to the ground.
The last man died by his neck being cut. He turned and saw Locke pinned, he never
made it to Terra. Edgar's eyes went toward the hybrid. Her fight with Kefka was getting
worse.
Terra gripped his boot when he came in for another kick and pulled him to the ground.
Kefka growled and elbowed her in the back, getting up to glare down at her body.
"Your as weak as ever, little freak!" He walked around to her other side and peered
down at her face. Tears were forming. Kefka laughed. He knelt down an pulled her
head up by her hair, chuckling when she cried. He seemed to glow with satisfaction.
"You seem like you care about them, Terra. How could you get those emotions?"
He asked, letting her face drop to the dirt. She gripped the dirt below her and wished
that Kefka would be killed right now. She felt his hand smooth down her hair, as if he
was petting her- Like an Animal! She heard him walk away and tried to get up, but his
foot pushed her back down. "Stay in the dirt, where you belong!" Kefka felt a strange
feeling an turned in time to see Edgar running toward them, but he stopped, his eyes
wide. Kefka looked behind him slowly and saw a white, furry cat-like woman standing
in there, her chest puffing air out angrily. Her hands were clenched into a ball. Kefka
fell backwards when a curled fist impaled his face. Terra walked over and waited for
him to stand. He came up and screamed, shoving her backwards as he chanted.
"Disable!" Terra fell to her knees and couldn't move. Edgar felt the same, as did Celes
and Locke. Kefka laughed and turned to see all the Espers being killed. Terra's eyes
started to water when she saw Yuri fall and stabbed in the chest by a soldier. "Yuri!"
He turned to her and saw soldier about to stab her, he busted from the man's grip and
flew over.
His hands folded around the man's head and snapped it left, then right, killing him
instantly. Terra saw Kefka starting to power up a fire spell in his hands, throwing it at
Yuri, who screamed when he vanquished and turned to Magicit. Terra started to cry
and thrash about. Edgar watched as Leo ran over to Kefka and turned him around to
face him clearly. "Kefka! What do you think you're doing!?" Asked the angered
general. Kefka jeered at him. "How pathetic!" Kefka laughed, grabbing a shard of
magic off the ground, smiling when he realized that it was that Yuri Esper. Leo
gripped his hands together. "Kefka, no!" He yelled when he started collecting the
Magicit. Leo smacked the shards out of his hands and howled. "How could you ever
think you could kill them!? They are living souls like us!"
Kefka smiled gleefully as he picked the shards up. "Oh, little Leo! Your pure heart is
sooo weak!" He pointed his hands toward Celes and Terra. "What would you do for
them? Hmm?" Leo turned to see what he was looking at. His face paled. "You
wouldn't..." He stepped in front of him. "The Emperor would never forgive you!"
"Gastra? Gastra!? Ha, that old fool sent me here to do this!" Kefka bellowed. Leo
shook his head wildly. "Emperor Gastra would never!"
"Oh? He did!" Said Kefka, " 'you bring me those magical shards! Kill anyone who
interferes!'..Ah, what a joy I have had today!" Kefka said, reading his spell.
Leo's royalty ended there, that second, he had to make sure Celes and Terra were safe.
As a wave of lighting flew from his hands, flying toward the fallen women, Leo drew
his blade and absorbed the energy, shooting it back out toward the sky. Kefka laughed.
"Very good, Leo!" He drew his staff and looked back at the Returner's still bodies.
"I wouldn't kill Celes..She's..Special." His mouth formed to a smile. "And the little
bitch...Hmm, I'd make good use of her powers...A slave would do for me...What about
you!" Kefka threw a bolt at Leo, who ducked and ran toward the clown general, and
slashed at his chest, getting a hit to the chest. "I guess your a traitor now!"
Leo slid his sword threw the sky and hit the staff, and growled. "I'll never let you hurt
them! Or anyone else!" He sword lightly cut Kefka's cheek. The clown unsheathed his
sword, sending through Leo's chest. The old general fell down to his knees, facing Terra
and Celes. His breathing was hard and painful, his vision blurred as he noticed that
Terra's eyes were filled with tears, and Celes' face pale. His heart ached for them both.
He loved them like children..But it hurt the most for Terra. He had helped raise her
from a baby, she was so sweet to him, to every one.
To see her crying, was like taking her heart out and stabbing it himself. He remembered
holding her as a baby girl, helping to feed her, clothe her and even train her. His life was
ending now, soon to be a lifeless corpse on the ground. His blood poured from him
faster and faster till he felt hollow, soulless. He heard Terra calling him and calling,
but his mouth only opened to say one thing, she would never hear. "I'm..Sorry..."
The last image he saw was Terra crying when he pulled her off that boy when she was
only nine. What pain he most have caused her. Leo's body fell to ground, laying in a
puddle of blood and dirt. Terra's voice rang through the death filled air.
"Leo!" Kefka simply pass his fallen body and the Returner's, along with his soldiers.
He had gotten what he wanted and needed, now it was time for his leave.
