A/N: Hey, guys! In the previous chapter, after Shadow left, Sabin and Cyan jumped off the Baren Falls and woke up on the Veldt plain, where they met Gau, a wild boy who lives here, and earned his trust by giving him some dried meat. Now, they have taken a ferry to South Figaro to reach Narshe. Meanwhile, let's see what's going on with Terra, Edgar and Banon. Terra, Edgar and Banon's scenario is the shortest of the three, so this chapter will be a little shorter than the previous ones. That said, let's get started!

Chapter 10: An Unwanted Return

(Objective: Escort Banon to Narshe!)

Characters:

Terra

Mog

Edgar

Banon

(''Awakening- Final Fantasy VI OST'')

Meanwhile, Terra, Edgar and Banon had not yet reached the other side of the Lethe River, and what's worse, Sabin got separated from them. ''Sabin...'' Terra murmured.

''Terra? Are you OK?'' Edgar asked, noticing her expression.

''I was thinking about Sabin. I have the feeling that something terrible is going to happen to him, but I don't know how to describe it.'' the girl replied.

''It's as I thought. Arvis is well aware of the effects of the Slave Crown, and as a side effect of the memory loss it caused you, you have a hard time understanding your emotions. You're worried about Sabin.'' Banon said

''I suppose so. Is Sabin okay? What about Locke?'' Terra asked.

''Don't worry about my brother. I'm a little worried about him too, but he said it himself that his years of training under Master Duncan have made him stronger, and I know Locke well. I'm sure both of them are fine.'' Edgar replied.

''I hope so.'' the former Imperial soldier said.

The raft trip was hampered by no more than a couple of monsters the group can handle, and they reached a lake where the Lethe River emptied. By the time they took the road to the mountains, evening had fallen, and Edgar and Banon felt the strong chill wind, but not Terra and Mog.

''Here we are. Let's go to Arvis. He's an old friend of mine, and he could help not just you, Terra, but all of us.'' Banon said.

But as the four were about to enter the city, a few guards aimed their spears at them. ''You are that Imperial soldier from before!'' one of the guards cried out, referring to Terra, who raised her hands in fear.

''Hold on. We can explain.'' Banon replied.

''Go away, or you will regret it!'' another guard yelled, hitting the leader of the Returners with the handle of his spear at the level of the navel and another one hit him in the face with the bayonet of his pistol, causing him to fall to the ground in pain and leaving a small cut on his cheekbone.

Realizing that the situation was deteriorating, Edgar intervened. ''Let's not make hasty decisions. I am King Edgar of Figaro.'' he said.

''Liar!'' another guard yelled, hitting him in the groin with his spear.

Mog also wanted to have his say. ''Hey! What's the big idea?!'' he yelled. A speaking Moogle caught off guard the guards, who grabbed him by the tail, which he hated. ''I'm not a stuffed animal! Put me down, kupo!'' The guards released him, causing him to fall on the snow, and walked away to call for reinforcements.

''Oh, my goodness...'' Banon murmured, as the four retreated.

''How rude!'' Mog shouted, irritated by the treatment he received from the guards.

''This is why I prefer women! Do men ever listen to what others say? No! It's like they don't even have ears! I can't stand them sometimes!'' Edgar exclaimed, upsed by the attitude of the guards. He noticed that Terra had her head down. ''What's wrong, Terra?'' he asked in concern.

Terra sighed and looked up. Her eyes were filled with tears of guilt. ''I get it now. Me and two Imperial Soldiers, Biggs and Wedge, had besieged Narshe on a mission from Kefka to retrieve the frozen Esper. Since I was part of that failed siege, the guards wanted to arrest me, and if it hadn't been for Locke, I would have been captured and sentenced to death. I'm so sorry, it's all my fault...'' she murmured.

''No, Terra, it's not your fault. Kefka exploited you for his own shady purposes, and you weren't acting on your own free will.'' Banon said, trying to comfort her.

''Don't say that. Don't think we'll abandon you for this.'' Edgar said.

''Yes, it's all the Empire's fault, kupo!'' Mog added.

''I know, but... whether it's of my free will or not, nothing would have changed. And I dragged you guys in between that too. Mog, you and Locke also went through a lot of trouble defending me.'' she replied. ''Everyone, are you all right?''

''I think so. It seems that now Narshe has become very isolationist after what happened a couple of days ago. It doesn't even recognize allies from enemies anymore.'' the leader of the Returners replied.

Terra put one hand on Edgar's leg and the other on Banon's cheek and healed their wounds with the Cure spell, then they hid and found a wall of rock. ''When Locke rescued me, we escaped the mine by passing through here.'' he said.

''I know, he told me that. He interacted with a switch hidden here.'' Edgar said. He pressed a hidden switch and the wall opened, allowing them to enter the mine.

(''Awakening- Final Fantasy VI OST-s'')

(''The Gestahl Empire- Final Fantasy VI OST'')

Meanwhile, in the desert near Figaro Castle, Kefka was leading her army towards Narshe. He had gathered corporals, medium-level Imperial soldiers in red armor, their hounds, some Magitek armors and some Fidors, large armored hounds, and after the failed siege of Narshe, he wanted to get the frozen Esper there. ''I want the Esper at all costs!'' he said.

''Kefka, sir... How do we deal with the civilians?'' asked a soldier.

''Kill them all!'' Kefka replied.

Another soldier wasn't quite sure it was a good idea. ''But Narshe is a neutral city!'' he said.

Kefka was angry at that sentence. ''You idiot! Read my lips: mercy is for wimps. You all know that ''oppose'' rhymes with ''dispose''. So, if civilians are in the way, just kill them! Come on, march!'' he ordered.

The soldiers knew that Narshe, after the siege attempt, had strengthened their defenses, and winning the battle will not be so easy. They had other objections, finding Kefka a really unbearable pain in the neck, but they kept silent, knowing that he would punish them with death.

(''The Gestahl Empire- Final Fantasy VI OST-s'')

(Objective: Enter Narshe via the mines and meet up with Arvis.)

(''Cave Theme- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past OST'')

At the same time that Kefka was going through the desert, Terra and the others were going through the Narshe mines. There were no jolts, except that occasionally a few werewolf rats appeared. With the Fire spell, Terra lit a fireball in one hand, and remembering the way, she guided them through the mine. She was awfully quiet, and this worried her comrades. ''Are you all right, Terra? Are you worried about Arvis?'' Edgar asked.

'I'm not worried about that. It's about the people of Narshe.'' Terra replied. ''Did you see their reaction when they saw me with you?''

''Don't worry. Arvis knows Kefka used you as a puppet, and I'm sure he can help you.'' Banon assured her.

Suddenly, they reached a room with a light, which moved along some small crossroads and then disappeared. ''This is the security checkpoint. This is where the city guards are trained.'' Edgar said.

''What will we do now?'' the girl asked.

''It's a fairly complex security system. We have to use our memory and remember where the light has passed, and take that path. If we go wrong direction, we will be surrounded by several moving lights, and we can only continue if we go to the orange light or we will be teleported to the entrance.'' the king of Figaro explained.

''I lead the way. Follow me.'' Banon said. The light reappeared, took a path, and then disappeared again. The leader of the Returners memorized the path and led his comrades to the other side.

Soon after, Terra recognized where she was. ''I remember this place. When the guards chased me, part of the mine collapsed and I fell here, then I blacked out. This means that Arvis's house is up there, it won't be too long.'' she said.

''And this is where we saved you, kupo!'' Mog exclaimed, on her shoulder.

''I know. Thank you.'' Terra said, petting him.

(''Cave Theme- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past OST-s'')

(''Rebel Army- Final Fantasy II PSP OST'')

Banon remained in front of everyone, followed by Edgar, and when the four went out and crossed the bridge, he knocked on the door. Arvis opened the door and was surprised to see them, especially Banon, who was an old friend of his. ''Hi, Banon! King Edgar! What brings you guys here?'' he asked.

''We'll talk about it now. There is someone who wants to see you.'' Banon said.

The two stepped aside, revealing Terra. ''Hello, Arvis.'' the girl said.

Arvis greeted her joyfully. ''Hi, Terra! What a surprise! I see you're back!''

''Arvis, how are things going in Narshe?'' Banon asked.

The old man sighed. ''No progress, my old friend. The city remains neutral. I tried to get the citizens to join the Returners, but they still refuse.''

''What about the population? '' Edgar asked

''Ever since the Empire attacked Narshe, everyone is shaken, especially now that the Empire will arrive soon.'' Arvis replied.

''By the way, when we entered, the guards attacked us and prevented us from passing, and even recognized me. I think everyone is mad at me.'' Terra said in a very worried tone.

''Yes, they recognize you because they know you were part of that siege, and they wanted to arrest you because of that. When you escaped and the guards entered my house, they said that during the siege, you had killed at least half of their army, and they threatened to hand you over or they would report to the Elder, but as I promised after you awakened, I refused to do it so you could escape. I also heard that they wanted to sentence you to death, and they became more isolationist after the failed siege, especially after Locke confronted Narshe's guards to protect you, and because of that, they don't even allow the Returners to set foot in the city.'' Arvis said.

These words frightened the young woman even more. Because of what she had unknowingly done in the siege of Narshe, she had also cracked the relationship between the city and the Returners. She looked down in shame. ''What have I done... I'm so sorry, Arvis. I did the wrong thing and also dragged the Returners into it, especially Locke and Mog, who had to face Narshe's guards themselves to protect me while I was unconscious. If it wasn't for me, this wouldn't have happened, it was all my fault...'' she murmured in her soft, childlike voice. Tears appeared in her eyes again.

''Terra...'' Banon murmured sadly, putting a hand on her shoulder. He couldn't blame her, given all that happened, but he wondered if it was necessary for her to blame herself.

''It's not your fault, Terra. The Slave Crown interferes with the wearer's brain, depriving them of conscious thought: it prevents them from acting and even moving and speaking unless they're ordered to do so. Please don't blame yourself like that, especially for something you couldn't control, there was nothing you could do.'' Arvis said, putting a hand on her other shoulder, where Mog was.

''Arvis is right. It's all Kefka's fault.'' Edgar said.

''We believe that Terra can help us understand if that Esper will help us. She interacted with it before she passed out, and I'm sure by repeating the process, we can learn more.'' Banon said.

''I agree, Banon. The people of Narshe would also like to know more. If everything goes well, they might let you show the Esper. '' Arvis replied.

''That Esper is either gonna save us or dig us an early grave.'' Edgar added.

''Let's go talk to the Elder.'' said the old man.

Terra's panic increased a hundredfold. She backed up against the wall so abruptly that Mog fell off her shoulder. ''But they will kill me! Arvis, you said yourself that they threatened you that they would report to the Elder to sentence me to death!'' she cried out, trembling heavily.

''Terra! Stay calm, nothing will happen to you.'' Banon exclaimed, trying to calm her down.

''Is she always that shaken?'' Arvis asked, a little worried.

''It's just as Locke told me. Ever since she lost her memory because of the Slave Crown, she has been fearful and insecure. She was also reluctant to join the Returners both because she didn't want to get us involved in this mess, and because she didn't want to be used as a weapon of destruction, and she fears her own magical powers, so she doesn't want to be exploited because she can use magic, and she knows that the Empire, which also resorts to magic and experiments about it, is evil. Kefka had also tried to capture her when she was in my castle, and in order to make her escape, I had to trick him. To think that for ten years, I pretended to be an ally of the Empire, but now I have had enough of this lie, because I'm from the Returners.'' Edgar said.

''How do we explain everything to the Elder without making the people of Narshe even more exasperated? I've already done enough damage myself.'' Terra asked anxiously.

''Don't worry, Terra. We'll just have to explain how it all happened, the Elder will understand.'' Arvis said, trying to reassure her. Fortunately, she had calmed down, but she wasn't sure if that would be a good idea.

(''Rebel Army- Final Fantasy II PSP OST-s'')

A/N: We finished the Three Scenarios! Now Locke and Sabin are about to return with new allies, but Kefka is about to attack Narshe! How will it end? And will the people of Narshe ever forgive Terra for her role in the siege? Find out in the next chapter! See you soon!