Chapter 2: The Great Escape
A/N: We get to meet fan favorite characters this chapter!
One thing I want to note about my writing style (which some have described charitably as "loosey-goosey" or "incomprehensible") is that I like to write both the first person thoughts and third person descriptions from a certain point of view. Biggs, for example, was written as a frustrated soldier. Terra will be written a little more formal and confused. Arvis is pissed. Kefka is Kefka. Etc., etc., etc.
Synopsis: The mysterious girl finds out her name and escapes with a help of a resourceful thief and a chatty moogle.
Her head was pounding. A thrumming pain coursed through her skull as the darkness slowly receded from her mind. Her arms were stiff and heavy, struggling to respond to even the slightest of movement. A cold numbness washed over her and, for a moment, she wondered if something had been taken from her.
She cracked her eyes open slightly, and took a moment to gather her bearings. A large white comforter was draped over her, nearly overwhelming her small frame, and she realized that she must have been lying in a bed of some sort. The room she found herself in was small, and dimly lit by two small lamps mounted on the wall to her right. There was a small side table next to her bed and a tall wooden dresser was pressed against the wall across from her, sitting next to an old wooden door.
She froze when she heard a loud click. The door across from the foot of her bed groaned as it slowly eased open, revealing a figure standing in the entryway. He was an older man dressed in long sleeved blue shirt and light brown work pants. She could tell that his hair was blond, but it had lost much of its color and now appeared so pale that it was almost white. His eyes looked worn and tired, as evidenced by the prominent crows feet that sat at the edge of each eye. The old man's eyes grew wide as his gaze met hers.
"Where…where am I…?" she asked the man, her voice sounding weaker than she had intended it. As she spoke, the pounding sensation in her skull flared and she gasped in pain. Her head aching, she tried to ask for help, but all that came out was a strained "…head...hurts…"
"Easy!" the man exclaimed quickly. His voice was gruff, sounding as tired as he looked. He walked over to the side table and picked up a ring shaped object, before turning towards her. "This here a slave crown. Those other guys who came into town with you were controlling ya. They had complete control over you while you were wearing it." He appeared pensive, and his brows furrowed as he shifted his gaze back down towards the crown in his hands. "I'm surprised that you were able to wake up so quickly, I only just removed your crown a moment ago."
As the pain receded, she tried to process this new information. She struggled to recall if she had ever heard or seen anything like this before, but she could find nothing. It was as if her mind was enveloped in a deep fog, one that kept her from envisioning anything other than that which presently lay before her. An icy feeling came over her, and she stiffened. Something should be there, she reasoned, there has to be something there? Why is nothing there?
She grew tense, almost to the point of shaking, and in a small voice forced out "I…I can't remember anything…"
The man's gaze softened. "Don't worry. It should come back to you…eventually." His response seemed confident, but she could hear that confidence bleed into uncertainty as he finished his statement.
The end of his statement hit her hard, and she came to an unsettling conclusion. He's not sure. If he's not sure, does that mean I'll never remember anything about myself?
She held herself tightly and closed her eyes tight as she tried frantically to think of something, anything, that could tell her about her past. Friends? Family? Nothing. Favorite foods? Favorite color? Nothing. Her heart raced, and it felt like walls were closing in around her. Age? Still nothing. There was a wetness under her eyes, and she realized she was crying.
Please let there be something, please!, she pleaded to her broken mind, I need to know who I am! I don't even know what my name is!
In that moment, she finally felt something familiar. It was faint, but there was definitely something there. She could feel it become clear in her minds eye, as if the fog and darkness that clouded her memories were suddenly swept away from this one, specific thing.
Her eyes grew wide, and the tears stopped falling. My name. D…do I know my name?
Her voice was tentative as she murmured, "My name…is…Terra." That name, Terra, felt warm and familiar. "My name is Terra!" she repeated confidently. There was no doubt in her mind now that this was her name. She may not have remembered much, but she at least remembered something.
The old man's eyes were wide and he looked almost as if he had swallowed a shoe. "I...incredible. That's incredible!" he exclaimed, beaming with excitement, "I've never heard of anyone recovering that fast!"
Before he could say anything else, however, a loud knocking sound broke him out of his reverie. The old man instantly tensed, and he turned towards the room he entered from. There was another knock, and the girl thought she could hear the sound of something barking. A man's voice, deep and authoritative, boomed from outside, "Arvis, open up! We know you have the girl and the Empire's Magitek Armor!"
Another man followed after the first one, "Open the damn door, Arvis! We want that girl! She's an officer of the Empire! You saw what she did to our home!" His tone was more aggressive, and Terra could tell that he was angry.
Are they angry at me?
She looked at the old man – Arvis, if she recalled the name the other voices yelled through the door – and asked "Empire…? Magitek Armor…? What are they talking about?" She sounded as confused as she felt.
Arvis' expression hardened and he looked her directly in the eyes. "Look, I have to get you out of here. I don't have any time to explain, so you're just going to have to get moving." He gestured for her to get up and follow him, before walking over to the other side of the room.
Terra got up quickly and nearly tripped as she stumbled out of the bed. Her legs felt heavy as she forced them to move. The grim look on the old man's face told her that she could not afford to get caught, so she pushed onwards towards the other side of the room. This side of the room was dimly lit, being further away from the lamps that lit up the area near the bed.
As she approached Arvis, she noticed second door tucked in that corner. He opened the door, its old hinges creaking loudly as it moved, and turned back to her. "Make your way out through the mines!" he instructed as he pointed towards the open doorway, "I'll stay here and keep those guards occupied!" She hesitated for a moment, before rushing outside.
Immediately upon leaving the building, her face was hit by a cold sensation. The air outside was freezing, and she wrapped her arms around herself to stay warm as she gathered her bearings. It was dark, and she could see little speckles of white snow falling. Around her was a small town made up of buildings that, although they varied in size and shape, were all built out of a similar type of wood. The town was surrounded on all sides by walls of rock that likely belonged to some kind of mountain or valley. She looked down, and realized that she was standing on a narrow wooden bridge, a walkway of some sort, that stood high above the ground below her. Terra could hear movement below her, and she realized that she needed to get moving.
She had only taken a few tentative steps across the bridge before she heard a voice from below yell out, "She's up there!" She nearly tumbled over in surprise, barely catching herself on the railing on the edge of the bridge. As she pulled herself up, she heard another voice shout out, "We got her now!" She took this as a sign that she needed to get moving, and ran as fast as her weakened body could carry her. Her heart was racing as she propelled herself forward, and the tired heat she felt wash over her helped alleviate bitter cold that surrounded her.
As she neared the end of the bridge, she came close to the edge of the mountain. There was a small opening in the side of the rock-face, roughly the size in width of three people of Arvis' size. The entryway seemed old, the wood support beams that framed the entryway appearing rotted and worn. This must be the entrance to the mine Arvis was talking about, she thought, I hope I don't run into anything too dangerous in there… She ignored the feelings of dread that bubbled up in her heart, and hurried into the mine.
The mine was dark, and dingy. It was cold, although not nearly as cold as the snowstorm that lay outside. There were a few old lights strung up across the narrow passageway, but they were unable to vanquish the darkness that threatened to overwhelm them. Rusty old tools and shovels lay near the entrance, looking as though they hadn't been touched in years.
This must be an abandoned mine, Terra speculated, it doesn't look like they work in here anymore. Hopefully that will make it harder for them to find me.
She nearly tripped as she made her way across the rocky and uneven floor of the passageway and, now that she seemed to have a moment to think, she considered the frustrating reason why she had nearly taken a tumble so many times since waking up. I am not dressed for this kind of terrain, let alone the weather outside! Her outfit consisted of a regal looking wine colored dress, decorated with light red flowers, white tights adorned with gold polka dots, and pair of red and gold boots with a mid-length heel. She noticed something behind her boot, and it was then that she realized that she was wearing a cape of some sort! It was mostly pink, covered in a similar floral pattern as her dress, and it transitioned into a deep purple as it reached the ground behind her feet. It was obviously ceremonial and, in her opinion, not very practical for the cold and snow. If I was on some kind of mission, why would I be so…unprepared? What kind of person was I?
She took some solace with the fact that at least she had at least brought something with her that she could use to defend herself. With that thought, Terra looked down at the light sword that was hanging over her left hip. It was a long silver sword with a slim, curved blade. The sword's handle was asymmetrical, with the side closer to the wielder possessing a decorative point on the side of the guard closer to the blade and an orange orb on the side of the guard closer to the sharp side of the blade. It had another orange jewel at the tip of the pommel. She pulled it out of its sheath and inspected it for a moment, It's light, and it feels alright in my hands…maybe I was skilled with swords? She looked down at a smaller object that was hanging over her right hip, a small dagger whose short blade and similar handle made it look like a miniature version of her sword. Or…maybe the sword is decorative and I used this dagger to defend myself?
Terra shook her head and sighed, I don't have time to think about this. Those guards are probably right behind me. I need to get moving. With that thought, she put her sword away and starting moving forward.
After roughly 10 minutes of walking, Terra came upon a passageway that contained a stone staircase that appeared to lead to a higher level of the mine. The angled ceiling that hung above staircase was tall, but the rough rock walls that framed the narrow corridor were tight. It also lacked any artificial lights, and was quite dark. She wasn't sure if this was the way she needed to go, and the limited space may make it difficult to defend herself, but...If I'm stuck in an abandoned mine, I'd rather go up higher than down lower. There may be an exit up there somewhere.
She had made it roughly halfway up the staircase when she heard something skittered behind her. She pivoted around to see what was there, and was confronted by a pair of glowing yellow orbs that floated in the blackness near the bottom of the staircase. Before she had a chance to question what she was seeing, she heard a loud hiss and watched in horror, as the eyes started moving rapidly towards her.
She gasped, and yanked at her sword in panic. "No!" she cried, as the longer blade got caught on the rough rock wall to her left and fell from her hand. In a rush, she grasped for the dagger with her right hand and thrust it forward at the figure lunging at her. The creature cried out in pain as the blade left a long slash across its face. It fell back a few steps hissed at her, looking angry.
Now that it was closer, Terra was able to get a better look at the creature. It was large - almost the size of a dog - and it had a gaping maw of razor sharp teeth. It had a small pink nose and a mean looking face, framed by two large floppy ears. Its yellow eyes glared at her and, to her disgust, she saw a fat blue rat tail flop out from behind it. Surprisingly, for something that looked so much like a rat, the monster stood on its two hind legs.
The rat creature took to the attack again, and lunged at her arm. It sunk its thick teeth into the wrist holding the dagger, causing her to drop it in pain. She yanked her arm back and, when she failed to break free from the creature's grasp, she curled her left hand into a fist and hit it in the nose. The creature shrieked in pain as it let go of her arm and fell back down the stairs.
Taking advantage of the brief reprieve, Terra took a moment to inspect her right arm. Her arm was bleeding where the monster had attacked her, and she could see two angry looking wounds through torn holes in her sleeve. "Urgh..." she groaned in pain, there's a lot of blood…not good. She tried to look for her dagger, but it had fallen further down the stairs closer to the monster. I…I need to get away from this thing. It will hurt me if I don't get away! She turned back around and ran up the stairs as fast as she could.
When Terra reached the top of the stairs and found herself in a large catacomb. To her horror, the only escape route appeared to be an old, narrow, wooden bridge that covered a deep and dark pit. She heard something growl behind her and found that the monster had already caught up to her. She turned back to the bridge, its rotted wood giving her the impression that it could fall into the darkness below, and weighed her options. If I try to run across the bridge…I might trip and fall into that pit…or it might fall from the force of my footsteps. Suddenly feeling trapped, the only thing she could think was I…I might not be able to escape…and that thing might kill me… As her thought's traveled to this dark place, she could feel something well up inside her. It felt hot and scary…but also familiar.
That "thing" seemed to detect her indecision and decided to act on it. It lunged at her again and, thinking quickly, Terra tumbled out of the way and barely missed the creature's attack. That hot feeling emanating from her chest suddenly began to expand, spreading a sweltering heat through her body. She cried out in pain as the heat spread to her hands, which now felt like they were on fire. For a moment, they almost looked as though they were glowing a dull orange.
The oversized rat decided to press its advantage and lunged at her again. Terra held her arms out, hands splayed out, in an attempt to protect herself from the assault. Time seemed to slow down. The creature coming closer to her; her hands burning hotter. She could feel herself losing control.
And then, there was fire.
Terra's eyes widened as she saw a fireball, large and hot, materialized in front of her and launched towards the rat creature. The creature was enveloped by fire and screeched out in pain as it was quickly roasted. When the smoke cleared and the dust had settled, the miserable creature lay as a blackened crisp several feet away from her.
What!? What was that!? She was about as amazed as she was confused. I…did I do that? I had to. So…I can...create fire? For a brief moment, she considered that she might have been too hard on her pre-amnesia self, before banishing that thought as quickly as it came. I don't think can really say what I think about who I was...or what I was…
Now that she knew she could create fire, Terra wondered what other things she might be able to do. She looked at the wound on her right arm, still bleeding from the earlier attack. If I am able to destroy...maybe I am also able to heal… She held her left hand out over the wound on her right hand and watched as…nothing happened.
Maybe I need to say something, or think something, in order to get it to work? Or…what about that feeling in my chest? Can I find that feeling again?
Terra focused her thoughts on the phrase heal while trying to find that same energy. After a moment of concentration, she felt something. It was faint and warm – not nearly as hot or as painful as the heat she had felt earlier – and she tried to lean into that warmth. She could feel this warmth well up inside her and tried to focus it like she did with the fire earlier.
Then, after a moment, a warm green glow took over her left hand and she watched as it flowed out into the wound on her right arm. She watched with amazement as the bleeding slowly stopped and, after a few seconds, the wound started to knit itself back together. Soon, the wound was closed and her arm felt almost as good as new.
Maybe I will be able to survive this cave after all!
Feeling more confident than earlier, Terra ran to grab her discarded sword and dagger before continuing her journey through the mine.
It had taken what seemed like an hour, but Terra felt like she had finally stumbled onto some good luck in this depressing mine. She had just rounded a corner when she found herself at what appeared to be a 'fork in the road.' To her relief, however, the area to her right was a dead end. The passageway to her left was even better, however, as it contained an old door. A door! I seem to finally be making progress! She smiled and took a step towards what appeared to be her salvation.
That was when she heard the ominous sound of footsteps. Multiple footsteps. She looked back the way she came and saw two of the town guards from earlier walking up towards her. When the first guard saw her, he yelled out "There she is!" She was about to bolt down this new corridor towards that door when, to her abject horror, the door creaked open. Two more guards burst through and began quickly advancing in her direction.
Boxed in, and with nowhere else to go, Terra quickly backed her way into the dead end she had witnessed earlier. She soon found her back against the cold and rough rock wall. Before her were four angry looking guards, each advancing towards her with hostile intent. It took all of her self-control to not call forth the destructive fire power she had used earlier. I…I don't want to use that on them if I don't have to… The angry looks in their eyes showed that they did mean her harm, though, and in a moment of desperation, she began to call on that power again.
That was when she heard a cracking sound. It sounded like rock fracturing under the weight of something. She stopped drawing on the energy and frantically looked around her to see what was making that sound. The guards looked just as confused as she felt.
Suddenly, she felt the ground give way beneath her feet. Everything felt weightless for moment, before she roughly hit solid ground.
The world around her went black, and Terra passed out.
'Old Man' Arvis was pissed.
He had sent word to the Returners of the situation almost immediately after bringing the girl back from the mine and they had informed him that help would be there as soon as possible. In their own words, 'One of our best is in the area! He'll be there to help you right away!" Right away my ass, it's been nearly 6 hours and I've seen neither hide nor hair of this guy. It had been nearly an hour since the girl, Terra, had run off into the mine. He had stayed behind to distract the guards and had been rewarded for his kindness with a 'gentle' beating. As he nursed his black eye, he considered who the Returner's might have sent to help. Any help would be nice…I just hope its not…
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the lock to his front door clicking. The door swung open to reveal a young man with grey-blonde hair. A distinctive blue, white, and yellow bandanna with a decorative pattern on it covered most of his hair. He wore a black short-sleeved jacket over a white shirt, and wore black pants. He had a large black belt and a piece of blue and white clothe wrapped around his waist and he had multiple daggers, at least 4 in total, attached to either the belt or the clothe. He was also wearing a pair of white hiking boots that were accented with blue. The man displayed a self-satisfied grin as he slowly closed the door behind him.
Now Arvis was really pissed.
Arvis sighed loudly and gave a look as he addressed the man, "Locke Cole…well, it took ya long enough!" The other man, Locke, at least had the decency to look sheepish at that barb. Arvis wore a wry grin as he added, "How goes the robbing and plundering business, mister 'Master Thief'?"
Locke's eyes widened and his brows furrowed in annoyance as he responded quickly, "I prefer the term 'Treasure Hunter', old man!"
"Ha! Semantic nonsense!" Arvis replied.
"There's a huge difference!" Locke answered, frustrated at getting caught in this silly back and forth with the old man. I can't let this guy bait me like this, I have more important things to attend to. Locke took on a serious expression and spoke in a tone that indicated that it was time to get down to business, "Anyway, you sent for me? You contacted the Returners, so I'm assuming its something important, right?"
"Yeah," Arvis confirmed, "I met the girl."
Locke's eyes were wide and his voice, which was normally deep and confident, gave away his anxiety, "You don't mean…?"
"This city guard is out there looking for her as we speak," Arvis replied. He sighed, shifting his gaze towards the fireplace that sat in the middle of this room, "This city has the strength to stand up to the Empire, but it doesn't have the guts to use it. The people here are too stubbornly independent to join an underground resistance group like the Returners, and they don't have to courage to make a stand on their own." He looked back towards Locke. "I tried to explain that the Empire was controlling the girl, but…", he pointed a finger at his left eye, still swollen from his encounter with the town guard earlier, before continuing, "they wouldn't even listen…"
"All right…so, you want me to get her out of Narshe?" Locke responded, the confidence in his voice restored and his tone serious. He had a determined look on his face.
"That would be the idea. Make your way to Figaro for the time being…"
Locke nodded and took this as his cue to leave. He left through the same entrance the girl had escaped through earlier that night.
Terra felt weightless. Her vision was fuzzy and indistinct, and the scene she saw before her was confusing and unclear. Some details appeared crystal clear, such as the metal braces secured around her wrists, but other details, such as the rest of the room, blurred together.
She found herself strapped to a metallic chair. The metal braces that restricted her wrists were joined by another pair wrapped tightly around her ankles. She panicked, realizing that she was trapped, and attempted to move her arms so that she could try to break free from the restraints. To her horror, however, her arms failed to move. No matter how hard she willed it, her arms continued to lay limp. It suddenly occurred to her, I…I can't feel anything.
Terra looked around the room again, and it looked even less clear than before. The scene before her also looked…familiar, like a photo she hadn't seen in many years. It suddenly occurred to her, I've seen this before. I've lived this before.
This must be a memory! Or maybe a dream about a memory!
She was startled from her thoughts by the sound of someone's voice. "My sweet little magic user…" someone called from behind her, his voice somehow straddling the line between saccharine and sadistic. There was a brief pause, before the owner of the voice broke into a hideous cackle, "Uwee-hee-hee-hee!" The man's intonation was light when he continued, "With this slave crown," but it quickly shifted into a dark and cruel tone as it finished, "you'll be all mine!"
The man walked around the chair and came into her view. Unlike the rest of the room around her, he was clear and detailed. He wore a hideously mismatched outfit, with entire sections being colored seemingly at random. One leg of his outfit was red, the other was blue, one boot was black, and the other was white. There were various patterns haphazardly placed around his elaborate shirt, and a collection of torn and damaged scarves popped out from behind his left shoulder, almost like the plumage of a peacock. His blonde hair was tightly pulled into a large and decorative ponytail that faded into a royal blue. His face was covered in white face paint, with red paint splotched randomly around the corners of his eyes. The only thing that seemed to have been prepared with any degree of thought was the messy purple lipstick he wore, which was crudely shaped into an upturned 'smile'. The man's outfit had a jester-like quality to it, and it left Terra feeling unsettled.
Terra watched in horror as the man, with a cruel grin plastered on his face, lifted the slave crown and placed it over her head.
Her vision turned red and everything went dark.
When Terra's vision cleared, she found herself at the helm of some kind of cockpit. A platoon of heavily armed soldiers stood before her, standing in defensive positions. She watched as her body, of its own accord, moved the machine closer to the soldiers. As she approached, she could see a mixture of confusion and fear on their faces.
Her thumb lifted up and pressed down on a button situated on her control yolk. The machine shuddered and began to generate a buzzing noise. The soldiers tensed up and began to back up slowly, holding up shields to defend themselves. A field of energy grew in front of the machine, distorting the light around it. The energy suddenly disappeared, sparks of electricity and heat crackling the air around where it had been, and a large fireball launched forward. Terra watched in horror as the three closet soldiers were enveloped by fire, their shields doing nothing to defend them from the heat and flame. When the fire and smoke dissipated, all that remained was a heap of charred bone and molten slag.
"Uwee-hee-hee-hee!" she heard that same hideous cackle come from her left. She watched as a second machine, identical to the one she was piloting, strode up next to her. "Good! Good!" cheered the wretched clown-man, "Burn them all! Burn them to a crisp! I'm in the mood for something extra crispy tonight! How about some deep fried soldier!"
The scene before her blurred and her vision went dark again.
As the world around her became clear again, she realized that she was now sitting on the floor of a small, dark room. Her back was against a cold concrete wall. The only light came from a small barred window that was built into the door on the opposite end of the room. She had no motor control, much like the visions she had experienced earlier, and she noticed that her body was stiff and unmoving. It seemed almost as if she was a robotic doll that had been set down, left to sit until its owner came to play with it again later. She was disturbed by that thought.
After collecting her thoughts, she took a look around the room and noticed a small glow emanating from her right. It was then that she noticed him. He was a young man, with unkempt spikey blonde hair that shot out in seemingly random directions. Even in this dimly lit room she could tell that he was unnaturally pale, and his frame, composed of strong muscles on a seemingly malnourished body, appeared to somehow straddle the line between appearing strong and frail. He wore an odd uniform, composed of a dark colored and tight fitting sleeveless turtleneck sweater, a pair of thick baggy pants secured to his form by a large leather belt and thick leather suspenders, and a beaten looking shoulder pauldron over his left shoulder. It was his glazed over eyes, however, that stood out the most to her. They were different colors, with his left eye colored an intense sky blue and his right eye colored an equally intense green-blue. There was an unnatural, almost ethereal, green glow that emanated from his eyes' and, oddly, his right eye had a different shaped pupil than his left eye – it was long and narrow – and it almost reminded her of a cat's eye. He was also sitting against a wall but, in contrast to her rigid form, he was limp like a puppet that had been cut from its strings.
He looks like some kind of experiment…nothing about him seems natural. What…sort of things did they do to you? What sort of things did they do to me?
She saw a slight movement come from the man and watched as his head shifted dully towards her. His left eye appeared more focused as he gazed at her and she could swear that, for a moment, it appeared sad. That moment passed as quickly as it came, however, and he fell back into the position it had been in when she had found him.
Before she could think about the sad state of this man any further, she once again was surrounded by darkness.
Terra now found herself standing at attention on top of a large dais. It appeared to be located on top of some kind of tall building, and she could see the tops of other large buildings in the distance. The sun was low, and it colored the sky with a melancholy mix of orange and red. She could hear cheering below her and, to her amazement, she watched as a crowd of thousands packed into a large staging area.
To her left stood the large and imposing form of the machine she had piloted earlier. At the front of the platform stood a man who adorned in decorative red and white robes and, although he appeared to be slight in stature, he came across as imposing. Three people, a woman and two men, stood directly behind him. The woman was similar in height to Terra herself, and had long golden blonde hair that fell past her waist. She was adorned in a decorative yellow outfit that appeared to be some kind of uniform. The first man, who stood to her right, appeared to be the tallest person amongst this group. He had bright blonde hair trimmed into a short flat-top style, and he wore a green uniform that was more elaborate than the uniform worn by the woman. To the right of the taller man stood the wretched clown man that Terra had seen earlier. His mere presence sent chills down her spine.
The man in red grabbed a decorative looking microphone and addressed the crowd in a booming voice, "Soldiers of the Gestahlian Empire! We stand at the dawn of a new age!" He swept his hand up in a flourish. "The lost power of magic has returned to us, and now we are the chosen ones!" The three soldiers standing behind him stood at rapt attention and saluted the man in red as he spoke, with the soldiers in the crowd following their lead and doing the same. "The time has come for us to claim our rightful dominion over this world!"
The man raised his voice and declared, "Nothing shall stand in our way!"
The crowd erupted in rapturous cheers, yelling, "Long live Emperor Gestahl!"
Darkness clouded her vision once more and, exhausted at what she had seen, Terra welcomed the kind embrace of sleep.
Locke was having one of those days.
First, he got called off of a very important treasure hunt to handle some dull Returner business. Then, that supposedly 'dull' Returner business turned into saving a girl, that girl, from the clutches of the town guard. This triggered Locke's protective instinct and he immediately went on the hunt to save this girl. That, alone, would have made for a memorable day for Locke Cole.
It was when he beat back the guard with the help of a talking moogle and his moogle buddies that Locke accepted that this day was just going to be a weird one.
I don't want to complain about all the help, but who would have thought I'd ever meet a talking moogle? I'll probably never see him again, too. No one will ever believe a word of this, will they?
He had just opened a hidden exit to the mine, secretly installed by the Returners just in case they ever had business in Narshe, when the girl began to wake up.
"Eh? You back with us now?" he announced, startling the girl.
She looked at him, confusion evident in her eyes, and responded, "You…saved me?"
Amused, he replied "Hey, don't thank me! You can save your thanks for the moogles, they did all the hard work!" He finished with a wink, although her look of confusion gave away that she didn't really understand what that meant.
She looked down for a moment, her eyebrows furrowed. It looked like she was trying to think about something and then, as if the mere action hurt her, she clutched her head and gasped out in pain. Before Locke had a chance to head over and check on her, the girl began to speak in a labored voice, "Ugh…I…I can't remember anything…it's like my mind is trapped in a fog…"
Locke froze in place, his eyes wide. "You lost your memory!?"
The shock in his voice broke through the pain her head and, for a moment, the girl looked broken. A sad look painted on her face as she looked down at the ground. Locke suddenly felt like an ass for how he'd responded. She's in a vulnerable place right now; I need to consider that before I respond next time.
She took a moment to gather herself, before responding in a quiet voice, "A man told me that it would come back…eventually…"
"So, you've got amnesia." Locke responded matter-of-factly. He put on a confident voice and continued, "Don't worry! I won't leave your side until your memory returns!"
The girl was startled, her eyes wide and confusion evident on her face. She looked like she wanted to respond, but whatever response she might have had died in her throat.
Sensing her surprise, Locke continued, "I'm not gonna up and abandon someone just because they lost their memory! I'll keep you safe!" He winked at her one more time before finishing with, "I promise!"
The girl stared at him for a moment, and soon Locke watched as her lips curved up into a small smile. It was a tentative smile, but it was a smile nonetheless, and Locke considered that a win. Locke considered the promise he made to her – it was a big promise. But…it was a promise that he was going to keep.
I won't fail this time…
Locke extended his hand to her and, after she grabbed it with her smaller hand, he helped pull her back on her feet. She dusted herself off, and got behind him as he led her out of the mine.
Yes, today was definitely a weird day for Locke Cole. He watched the girl maneuver around a rock formation behind him, and acknowledged to himself that it was not a 'bad' weird. This kind of weird might actually be good for him.
But…something told him that this was only the tip of the 'weird iceberg' when it came to this girl.
Just what did I get myself into?
He was bored. SO BORED.
Just who does the Emperor think he is, sending ME, the great Kefka Palazzo, to this crusty wasteland!?
Oh right, he was the Emperor. That was who he thought he was. And 'why' he was sent to this miserable place was just as obvious.
The girl.
Yes, the girl. The errant Magitek Knight who had somehow broken free from the slave crown and allegedly betrayed the empire with the help of those disdainful returners.
After what she did, maybe I should ground her. Wait, is she too old to ground? Or too young? Eh, who cares. Who says I even have to ground her? I mean, beating her to the ground sounds fun, but there are so many other options available! Maybe it's time to get creative.
Kefka was torn from his thoughts by a miserable sound. It was one of his soldiers, standing pathetically before him. Had the wretch said something? It couldn't have been important, but Kefka figured he might as well entertain the poor man.
He cast a disinterested glance to the soldier standing before him. "What was that? Did you say something?"
Shaking slightly and clearly nervous, the solider took a moment to respond. "Uh...w-well, Commander Palazzo, sir, we have unloaded the Magitek Armor and the two pack chocobo from the boat, a-as per your orders, sir!"
Oh. That. Right.
He sighed dramatically, before responding in an annoyed tone, "So, now that 'that' is done, what should you be doing now?"
"Uh...I...I don't know, sir?" responded the sad excuse for a solider.
Wait, is he sweating? In fear?! How miserable. How pathetic!
Kefka glowered at the man. "You and your buddy over there," he said dangerously, "should be in your Armor and marching to Figaro castle."
"B-but sir, aren't Fig...", the soldier tried to respond, but...
"NOW" Kefka interrupted.
The soldier quickly saluted, before running over to the two Magitek Armor units and the pack chocobo. The other soldier, who had just finished using ropes to secure one chocobo to each Armor unit, immediately stopped what he was doing upon the other soldier's return. They spoke for a moment, before both men jumped into their respective Armor.
Kefka was satisfied with himself. At least until he realized that he was missing someone.
He turned to the boat and dramatically cleared his throat. "Ahem!"
Nothing happened.
He tried again. "Ahhhhhheeeeeeemmm!"
Still nothing.
"Get out of the boat you worthless, dumb, miserable, cat-eyed, helmet headed BRAT!"
The final member of his troupe exited the boat, two heavy combat boots stepping on to course sand. He was taller than Kefka, and wore a bulky metallic helmet with a decorative piece that stuck out on the front. The decorative piece was pointed at the top, and had three small holes on each side. He wore a dark turtleneck sweater with no sleeves and a pair of baggy black pants. The pants were held up by a ridiculous looking combination 'belt/suspender' setup. There was a junky looking shoulder pauldron on his left shoulder.
What struck out to Kefka, however, was the man's gigantic sword. It was mounted to the soldier's back by a large magnet. It was almost as tall as the soldier himself, and was wide and straight. The only variation was the tip of the sharp side of the blade, which terminated in an obtuse angle that eventually met with the dull side of the blade.
You'd have to be obtuse to drag around that big hunk of junk. Thing looks like a big kitchen knife.
The soldier walked up to Kefka and saluted. When he spoke, it was in a dull monotone, "Commander Kefka, you called for me, sir?"
He sounds more robotic than the girl, Kefka thought blandly. Why do I surround myself with dolls and puppets? Oh right...they're fun to control.
"You were ignoring my very clear calls! I was starting to think you were ignoring me!" He cast an annoyed glance at the soldier as he finished.
"I apologize, sir." the soldier responded, his voice as dull and monotone as it had been before.
He sure doesn't sound sorry. Eh, no matter! We have bigger fish to fry...or should I say, castles to sink?
"Uwee-hee-hee-hee!" Kefka almost doubled over laughing, finding his sense of humor to be as hilarious as always. He was on a roll! And after he'd cowed those idiot soldiers earlier!
Recovering quickly, Kefka's demeanor shifted and he gave a serious look to the soldier. "Get in position behind the Magitek Armor units and get ready to march to Figaro Castle."
"I do not see any Magitek Armor, sir," soldier responded emotionlessly.
What.
Kefka turned his head and looked where the soldiers had been stationed. They were gone. Large tracks were present in the sand, evidence of what direction the Magitek Armors were traveling.
Wait, WHAT.
"They left without us!? I told them to go, not go without me! How literal can you get!?" an enraged Kefka bellowed. He pointed towards the tracks and yelled at his last remaining soldier, "You, sword for brains, go catch up to them!"
The soldier saluted mechanically, before running after the tracks in the sand. Kefka ran after the tin-head, trying to catch up to his 'elite troops.'