Tempest watched his daughter take out another trio of Grats. Although he was somewhat concerned about her safety, he knew that she had the potential to surpass her mother in terms of sheer power.
"You love your daughter."
The voice belonged to Shiva. Marrin had decided to un-Junction her for today, so the Ice Guardian had just kind of hung around Garden. She had been with Tempest for a while now, not that he minded. It was nice to know that this world's Summon Creatures cared about their masters.
"Of course I love my
daughter," he replied. "She was kidnapped as a child and placed here, on this
world. I'm just glad that we've finally found her… But now, we have to find her
two sisters on other worlds."
"Yes."
"Are you going to tell her?"
"Not yet, no."
"…"
"What's wrong?"
"It's Marrin. Her powers are
growing at a frightening rate. If they continue to climb like this, she'll be a
threat to SeeD, and they might have to fight her."
"…"
--------------------------
With her long black hair and
even darker brown eyes, Corana Ghask could have been just another traveller
resting in Alexandria and visiting the castle. With her slender figure and
two-handed sword, she was both attractive and menacing, especially in her
jet-black travelling clothes and even blacker hooded cape and boots. She was
surprised that none of the local law enforcers had tried to arrest her, or stop
to ask who she was.
"Then again, I'm not much of
a threat unless I feel threatened," she thought. "But why did
Tempest send me here?"
She knew the answer to that, of course. It was because she blended in perfectly with the people of this world. The way she walked, talked and acted were all-medieval in nature. Even her style of fighting and choice of magic could be considered medieval.
"But that doesn't mean that
I have to like it."
She had seen Celythia's little skirmish with General Beatrix, and was mildly impressed with the young girls' fighting skills. She smiled to herself; if only Celythia knew just where her skills originated, or how she knew the spell to summon the Dragon Fang daggers into her hands during combat.
"She believes that she found that
spell book by accident. She has no idea what kind of power that spell book has.
If it falls into the wrong hands, this world is doomed."
Corana sighed heavily and shifted her position slightly. Taking on the form of a statue to blend into the surroundings wasn't an easy task. She was beginning to feel hungry and tired, two things she hated to feel separately, and here she was feeling them at once!
"I'm beginning to hate my powers."
-----------------
"Tell me, where did you get those daggers that you used?"
Celythia looked over to Beatrix as they walked towards her new quarters.
"I've been able to summon them for as long as I can remember," she said. "It's as if they chose me to be their master."
"Interesting."
Celythia laughed. "Yes," she said. "It is rather interesting, isn't it?"
"Here's your room."
Beatrix unlocked the door and gave Celythia the key. They entered the room, and Celythia was awestruck by its sheer beauty. The room, while small, made Celythia think that it was at one point inhabited by somebody of noble birth who had a lot of Gil. The carpets were made from some kind of soft, lovable material and the room was furnished with furniture made from oak. The furniture included a dining table (complete with six oaken chairs), two large chairs for visitors and a small table in the middle of what was obviously the sitting room. The kitchen, too, was small but was equipped with what Celythia needed to make herself breakfast, lunch and supper. The bedroom contained a single bed (Celythia's love life was almost non-existent anyway) with soft cotton coverings, and a mirrored table for Celythia to make herself up in front of in the mornings. The windows were small, but they looked out into the streets and were barred so that no intruders could get inside (like any sane thief would try and break into the home of a Knight anyway). There was also a small bathroom with a toilet and a small bath. All in all, it was a lovely home, and Celythia loved it.
"Wow…"
Beatrix smiled. "Yes, it is quite impressive. Well, get yourself comfortable with your new home and then you can come and get your equipment from our armoury later. Have a nice day."
Beatrix walked out, politely closing the door behind her. Celythia sighed and jumped onto her bed. It was so comfortable! She would have napped, if it weren't for the loud explosion that rocked the halls of Alexandria castle…
----------------
Balamb Garden
Rebecca woke up with a start. Something was going to happen here in Garden, she could feel it. She got up and dressed quickly before rushing out to find Tempest.
-----------------
Alexandria Castle
Corana almost fell from her place on top of Alexandria castle as the explosion shook the newly rebuilt castle.
"What was that?!" she thought. "Is somebody attacking Alexandria?"
She quickly changed back to her original human form and jumped from the roof, landing safely on the streets below. The guards were scrambling about the castle grounds and took no notice of her.
"This is bad!" she thought. "What if somebody's found out about Celythia? She
could be in danger! I have to find her fast!"
Corana ran into the castle to find Celythia before anything bad happened to her.
----------------------------
Celythia was out in the hallway mere seconds after the explosion. Was the castle under attack?
"That explosion…it came from the West Wing! That's where the Royal Chambers are!" she thought. Without a second thought, she started run as fast as she could towards the west wing. When she eventually did get there, Zidane and Garnet were safe, but dirty from the dust.
"At least they're safe!" she thought. "Were they the target?"
"My Queen!"
Steiner came running into the room, his armour making his presence known before he even entered the room. Zidane looked at him.
"Dagger's fine," he said. "Oh, and so am I. Thanks for asking."
"Dagger?" Celythia
thought. "Is he referring to the Queen?"
"My apologies," Steiner was saying. "I am glad that you are both safe."
Zidane just grunted and Dagger sighed. "We're lucky to be alive," she said. "What caused that explosion?"
"I wish I knew…" Zidane said. "We'll have to increase security around the castle. Steiner, I'm leaving that up to you."
Steiner saluted. "At once!" he said. He ran off, his armour clanking as he did so. Then Zidane noticed Celythia.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"Well the answer to that should be obvious," Celythia thought. "I came to see if you two were all right."
Garnet walked over to her. "Thank you for your concern," she said. "As you can see, we're fine. You should really be looking after your fellow knights."
Celythia nodded and bowed. "Of course," she said. She ran off.
"She seems loyal," Zidane said.
"Yes," said Garnet.
------------
In the shadows, Corana watched and smiled grimly. That bomb wasn't meant for Zidane and Dagger, it was meant for Celythia. Somebody wanted the young knight dead, and Corana was going to make sure that that did not happen. She slid off silently without being noticed to see if anybody in the town knew anything about this.