6)---------- In Which, recoveries are made.


"But this is treason!!!" Uriat sputtered, spitting in all directions.
Rosa snapped her hand to fend off the incoming saliva.
"Treason has nothing to do with it," she snapped.
"Nothing to do with it?! But - but - but the Dragoon disobeyed a direct order from the King! That's high treason, Your Majesty!!"
Not wanting to consider it, Rosa waved her hand at him.
"Take it up with Cecil, Uriat, not me."
"King Cecil isn't here, Your Highness."
"Nor will he be until Kain manages to bring him back."
Uriat sulked and ran off.
Cid, who been watching the ordeal, shook his head.
"I can't believe you're still putting up with that guy," he admitted to Rosa.
"I know." She sighed. "When Cecil gets back, he is so fired."
A light knock came at the door.
"Yes, now what?" Rosa called wearily.
The door to the Throne Room opened tentatively, and Cami entered in full training armor.
"Your Majesty," he greeted with a low bow in a low voice.
"Cami," she greeted, confused, getting to her feet and walking to him. "What are you doing here? You should be with your family!"
He bowed his head.
"Kain - Sir Kain - told me to go to the Castle and help protect you in his absence."
Rosa expression tensed for a moment, suddenly reminded of the terms they'd parted on, then softened as she placed her hands on the boy's shoulders.
"Did he now. Well, then, Cami, the first thing to know is that my name is Rosa. This is Cid," and she pointed to Cid.
"Hey, kid," he greeted.
Cami nodded.
"The second thing you need to know is," and a cruel grin crossed her features, "that I do not wish to be disturbed by people without proper clearance. Those people include Cid, yourself, Marion, euh . . . and anyone with an emergency. Or something. Those people do not include Chancellors named Uriat. Do you understand, Cami?"
He blinked, not understanding.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Rosa."
"Yes, Rosa."
"Let's try this again. Do you understand, Cami?"
"No, Rosa, I haven't the faintest clue what you're talking about."
She laughed.
"That's better. Okay, Cami, let me just tell you exactly why Chancellors named Uriat are not to be admitted to my presence . . . "
"He's an idiot, and he's getting on her nerves," Cid interjected.
"Oh," Cami said, suddenly catching on.
Rosa grinned.
"Thank you, Cid."
"Anytime." He paused. "Rosa . . . the room's spinning."
She caught her breath, but before she could take a step toward him, the Engineer collapsed into an unconscious heap on the floor.

"And here we are," Rydia finished, shoving a whole muffin into her mouth and chewing contentedly.
Edward turned to Timothy.
"Clever," he complimented.
Timothy snickered.
"I know."
A young girl then, about Timothy's age, bounded into the room and jumped onto Edward's lap, nearly knocking him out of his chair.
"Yaach! How many times do I have to tell you, you're getting too big to do that?!" Edward groaned.
The girl just giggled.
Rydia swallowed her muffin.
"Hey, Chia," she greeted the little one. "This is Timothy." She gestured to her companion. "Timothy, this is Chia, my student in Damcyan."
"I'm gonna learn to call Leviathan!" Timothy declared.
Rydia broke up laughing.
"Oh yeah?" Chia replied. "You have to defeat him first. Can you defeat Leviathan?"
Timothy squared his ten-year-old shoulders.
"Sure I can!"
"Then you should be able to defeat me!" she retorted and jumped off Edward's lap, knocking Timothy to the floor.
"OW!" he yelled.
Chia giggled and ran from the room, Timothy in hot pursuit.
"Kids," Rydia muttered. Edward caught her gaze, and they both broke up laughing.
"What are you going to do now?" he asked her a moment later.
She sighed.
"I don't know for sure. Just that I'm heading back to the Land of Summoned Monsters. I think they know something about Masamune that they haven't told me."
"What makes you say that?"
So Rydia told him about the inscription on the sword, and how she'd recognized it from her studies in the Land of Summoned Monsters, at the library.
"I see. And you think they'll know what may have happened to him?"
"I hope so. I just - I - well, I just really hope he's not . . . you know."
"Yes, I know."
She nodded, and noticed for the first time that she was still covered in grime from the dungeon.
"Say, Edward, do you mind if I get cleaned up before I go?"
"No problem."

About an hour later, she was finally ready to depart from Damcyan, full, clean, and with a fresh set of clothing.
"Thanks for everything, Edward," she said as she prepared to mount Chocobo. "I hope Timothy doesn't cause too many problems for you . . . "
"I think Chia will keep him occupied," he assured her. "There're enough kids around here anyway. He'll be fine."
She nodded.
"And thanks for the dress. My clothes were just filthy . . . "
"I know."
"Where'd you get this, anyway? No offense, Edward, but you're not exactly the dress type. I hope."
He had to laugh at that.
"No, it was supposed to be for Anna . . . but I have no need of it now. You keep it."
Her hand flew to her mouth.
"Oh, Edward, I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, upset to have raised Anna's memory. "Really, I shouldn't take it - "
"No, you should. In fact, wait here a moment," and he left her standing there and rushed back into the Castle.
"I feel horrible now," she whined to Chocobo.
He ruffled his feathers at her.
"Why? He let you have it, and you look . . . well, to tell you the truth, you remind me a lot of my cousin - "
"All I want right now is to find out what's happened to Edge!"
Edward's speedy return startled her. He pushed an item into her hands.
"The Twinharp?!" she exclaimed, identifying it at a glance. "I don't get it."
"Rydia, I'm sure I'm not the only one to have noticed that you're constantly getting captured or beat up by somebody these days. This is for added security. Just in case something happens, help can be reached."
She had to admit that he was right - she was almost constantly getting captured or beaten up. Ah, she was growing predictable. Something had to be done.
"Thanks, Edward," she said again, throwing her arms tightly around him.
"Just be careful," he told her.
"I'll try."
And she got up on Chocobo.
"Okay, Chocobo, let's go home."
"'Bout time."

"He's at Mt. Ordeals," Edge told Kain, startling the Dragoon who hadn't noticed his arrival.
"Hey! Don't startle me like that!"
"Sorry."
"Mt. Ordeals? What's he doin' there?"
"Bleeding."
"Oh."
"I think you should hurry, Kain. He's defeated Masters, but didn't get more than a few steps away before he collapsed from the looks of things. Masters' blood has entered Cecil's bloodstream."
"Oh, @#$%!!"
"Exactly. But I couldn't get close. There're some strange little animals there, and for some reason, I can't get near them. It's like they have some kind of barrier up."
"Okay. I'll deal with them when I get there."
Already, Kain and his chocobo were taking off at the poor bird's top speed, which was beginning to dwindle after the hard night of travel.
Edge floated alongside them for a time. On the Chocobo, they should reach Mt. Ordeals within a few hours from their present location.
"Kain, I've gotta go."
"Huh? Where're you going?"
"I - I have to check on things at my Kingdom."
Kain nodded.
"I understand."
And Edge vanished from beside him.
Hang in there, Cecil.

Cecil lay where he'd fallen, all sense of consciousness long since gone from him. The two strange little animals Bahamut had termed "Mogs" continued to dance around him.
"Kupo kupo!" one said.
"Kupi kupi!" the other replied.
"Kupo!"
"Kupi!"
"Kupo?"
"Kupi Kupoppo!!"
"Kupo!"
But their chatter meant nothing to the half-Lunarian who lay at their feet. As Marion had found, when the victim fell unconscious, his entire life began to replay through his mind, until it would come to the present, at which time he would cease to exist.

)---------- Cecil ----------(
(The Beginning)

A very young boy, a very small boy, sat on a log by a small pond, crying as if his heart were breaking. He was oblivious to the forest around him, oblivious to the water before him. The only thing he cared about was the cause of his tears.
At length, the forest parted to give way to another young boy, just as small, with thick blond hair, who stood just in the trees, watching the other with interest. Finally, after watching for as long as childhood patience would allow, he stepped into the small clearing and made his presence known.
"Why are you crying?" he asked the little boy on the log.
The boy who was crying lifted his face out of his hands and regarded the newcomer.
"Because my mother just died," he replied, and began crying again.
The second boy considered that with a frown, then brightened up.
"Then she's in heaven!"
"Huh?" asked the first. "What's that?"
"My momma says, she says that when someone dies, they go to heaven! So that must be where your momma is!" He clapped his hands, overjoyed with this revelation.
The first boy, the one who was crying, just looked at him.
"What's heaven?" he asked, sniffling.
"Oh," said the blond boy, "it's a real nice place! Everyone's happy there, and they can do whatever they want, and play all day if they feel like it, and no one's ever sad there!"
"Really?" The first boy wiped away some of his tears. "And my mother's there?"
"Well, was she nice?" asked the second.
"Yeah, she was nice."
"Then she's in heaven!"
"So she's happy?"
"Course! I told you, no one's ever sad there!"
The first boy thought for a long time.
"Okay," he said, brightening up a bit, but looking a little suspicious. "Then I guess I should be happy too."
"Yep!" sang the second. "Let's go play!"
"But . . . " and the first looked like he was going to burst back into tears. "But I miss her!"
The second boy got a thoughtful look on his face.
"Then I guess you should talk to my momma. She'll tell you what to do. Come with me."
The first boy watched as the second turned to go, feeling torn between his sadness at his mother's absence, and curiosity at what this strange boy's mother would say to him that would make everything all right. Finally, he decided to follow the second boy.
"My name's Cecil," he said, catching up with the other boy, "and I'm three!" he added, holding up four fingers.
The other boy pointed at each finger and counted out loud.
"One, two, three . . . four! That's one finger too many!"
"Oh." Little Cecil looked crestfallen, unable to believe he'd made such a mistake.
"I'm Kain," said his new friend, "and I'm four!" He held up three fingers.
Cecil, still very shaky with his numbers, counted slowly.
"One . . . t-two . . . f-thr . . . fo . . . three. Three. That's one finger too few!"
Kain laughed, but it wasn't a mean laugh, Cecil thought. Not like his father's. It was a friendly laugh. So he laughed too, and followed Kain to his house.

"This is my house!" Kain said, pointing at the house in front of them.
Cecil looked up at it.
"Wow!" he exclaimed in awe. "Two floors!!"
"My Daddy's a member of the Royal Guard, so we get a big house," Kain explained.
Cecil followed the other boy into the house.
"This is Momma!" Kain exclaimed, running and throwing his arms around a tall woman who was cooking something.
Cecil started sniffling. His mother used to cook. She'd cook everyday.
"Momma, this is Cecil," Kain said, pulling Momma over to him.
"Pleased to meet you, Cecil," Momma said, extending her hand. Cecil shyly took it and was startled when she shook it warmly.
"His mother died," Kain told her.
A strange look crossed Momma's face.
"Oh . . . I see."
"So I told 'im that she was in heaven so he didn't have to be sad, but he says he's still sad! What should he do?"
Momma examined Cecil carefully, and he felt nervous under the searching gaze of her deep red eyes.
"What was your mother's name, Cecil?" she asked in a gentle voice.
He blinked at her.
"Mother," he replied.
She laughed softly.
"Of course. Well, Cecil, of course you're still sad. It's always sad when someone we love leaves us, because we miss them. Do you miss your Mother, Cecil?"
He nodded, sniffling.
"Oh, there, there. That's all right. It's good to miss her. It helps you remember her. Do you remember her? Her face? Her voice?"
He nodded again.
"She was pretty . . . and she'd sing to me."
Kain popped up next to him.
"Just like Momma! She's pretty, and she sings to me!"
"Now, Kain," Momma laughed, blushing.
"Sing to us, Momma!" Kain begged. "Please?"
"Later, Darling, later. Now, Cecil," she said, turning her attention back to the three-year-old in front of her, "as long as you remember her, a part of her will always be with you."
Cecil felt confused.
"But I thought she was in heaven."
"Oh, she is. But she's watching you from up there. And while she's watching, she's with you."
"Oh. I get it."
"Do you feel better?"
"I still miss her."
"That's okay, Cecil." She looked over her shoulder at Kain, then back. "Are you hungry, Dear?"
It took Cecil a moment to realize she was talking to him.
"Me?"
"Yes, you! You look like you haven't eaten all day! A growing boy like you needs good meals, right, Kain?"
"I'm hungry, Momma!" he promptly exclaimed. He tried to climb up into a chair, but ended up falling head-over-heels back on the floor. "I'm okay!" he assured them.
Momma set him back on his feet.
"But I'm still hungry!"
"You always are. What about you, Cecil? Are you hungry?"
He stared at his feet and nodded slowly.
"Fine then," Momma told him. "You follow Kain, he'll show you where to wash up, and you can eat lunch with us. Is that okay with you?"
He nodded gratefully, and ran off after his new friend.
"Isn't Momma nice?" Kain asked as he washed his hands.
"Yeah! Momma's real nice! She's a lot like Mother . . . only . . . not."
"That's okay! You can come over all the time so we can play!"
Cecil looked at him in confusion.
"Like . . . a friend?"
"Of course, you silly goose!"
"Oh! I've never had a friend before!"
"Really? Well that's okay! Have you ever had a sister before?"
"A sister? No."
"Well then, you're lucky. I have a sister. A half-sister. That means we have the same Momma, but different Daddy's. She's nine!"
"Why do you have different Daddy's?"
"Because one of them was eaten by a dragon!"
"Really?"
"Yeah!"
"Cool!"
"That is not cool, you little kid!" objected a loud voice.
Cecil turned in shock and stared at the girl behind them. She was tall - taller than he was, but nowhere as near as Momma, or as his Father. She had deep red eyes just like Kain and Momma, but had black hair that made her look really spooky.
"MOMMA!" she yelled. "Kain's telling people about Dad!"
Momma bustled into the room.
"Veronica, leave the boys alone. Kain, don't go spreading stories. Now poor Cecil must feel like he's entered a madhouse."
"What's a madhouse?" Kain asked.
"Where you're going!" Veronica snapped.
"I am not!! Momma, what's a madhouse?"
"Veronica, go out to the kitchen and eat. Kain, Cecil, why don't you both go outside? I'll bring out your lunch."
And Momma and Veronica left them alone.
Cecil started giggling.
"What's so funny?" Kain demanded.
"I like having a friend!" he explained, and started giggling some more.
Kain started giggling too, although it didn't seem like he quite knew why, and he flung an arm around Cecil's shoulder and showed him the front yard.

* * *

Kain drew up into an area he knew was near Mt. Ordeals, and that he also knew was teeming with monsters. It always was. Therefore, he was more than a little surprised when he crossed the area without incident. Then he heard a voice.
"Kupo, kupo?"
Looking around, he finally looked down and saw a tiny white animal on the ground, looking up at him.
"Kupo!" it said, "Kupo kupo!"
And it took off into the overgrowth.
Without knowing exactly why, Kain directed his chocobo to follow the little creature.
He followed for a little over an hour, and then they suddenly burst into a clearing.
In the clearing lay Cecil, unconscious, bleeding, and with skin purple enough to match his hair perfectly in shade.
He slid off his chocobo and knelt on the ground beside him, whipping off his left glove and placing it against Cecil's neck to check for a pulse. Slight relief filled him to feel the faint thud of blood coursing through his veins - at least he was still alive.
Somehow, Masters had managed to claw right through Cecil's Armor, leaving terrible gashes all over his chest and shoulder. Kain, glad to have come prepared, began cracking open the HiPotions he'd brought, using all five of them on Cecil. The wounds glowed and healed, but Cecil made no signs of consciousness.
Kain had expected as much. Edge was right, it looked like Masters' blood had mixed with Cecil's. He was already reliving his life in his subconscious, and it was only a matter of time before he ceased to be . . .
Feeling oddly helpless kneeling there, Kain pushed Cecil's hair away from his face and put his hand on his forehead. No fever, normal temperature, but sweating up a storm. Just like Cami had. Just like all the others had.
"Kupo kupo!" exclaimed one of the little animals.
Looking up, Kain saw a large monster charging right at him. Even as he ripped out his Lance to fight the creature, though, it slammed against an invisible barrier and fell back. Then it shook its head and scampered off, tail between its legs.
"Kupi kupi!" snapped the other little animal.
"You did that, didn't you?" Kain realized, breathless. "You're the little animals Edge said he couldn't come near! You've been . . . protecting Cecil?"
"Kupo kupo!"
Kain shook his head.
"I don't know what you two are . . . but thank you."
He heaved Cecil up on one shoulder and slung his limp body over the back of his chocobo for the ride back to Baron.

)---------- Cid ----------(
(KluYa)

A young man, about fifteen, sat on a grassy hillside near Baron, engulfed fully with the diagrams he was studying. Such was his concentration that he didn't notice the approach of the stranger on the chocobo until he was upon him.
Looking up with a start as a shadow fell across the diagram, he held up a hand to shield his gaze from the sun and stared at the newcomer. Not many outsiders traveled to Baron anymore, not with all the recent attacks on the Kingdom.
"Excuse me," said the newcomer in a smooth voice, "I'm a little lost. Can you tell me where I am?"
"You're just outside the City of Baron," the student replied.
"Ah yes . . . Baron . . . "
The man on the chocobo seemed to, for a moment, forget the boy sitting on the ground.
Realizing this, the boy pulled himself to his feet to get a better look at this stranger. He seemed normal enough looking, fairly tall, well built, but his appearance seemed strange, somehow. After a moment of consideration, the boy realized why as the man returned his attention to him.
His eyes blazed like bright green fire, suddenly making the rest of the world seem . . . dark, somehow.
"What's your name, young man?" he inquired lightly.
Stepping aside so as not to trample his diagrams, the boy staunchly replied, "My name's Cid. My father is the Head Engineer for the Kingdom."
"Really?" The man seemed intrigued by that. "Perhaps I should speak with him. I am . . . an engineer of sorts, myself."
"Are you?" Cid replied, politely. "I am too . . . or I will be. Soon. Very soon."
The stranger seemed to find that funny.
"What are you studying?"
Cid swept up the diagram with one wild flourish.
"We found this in the ancient records - the King wants us to try and make sense of the diagram, and reproduce this . . . this thing."
The man slid down off his chocobo and looked over the diagram with interest.
"Amazing . . . they once had Airship technology . . . " Cid heard him muse under his breath.
"Pardon?"
"Euh . . . " the man shook himself slightly. "Nothing."
Cid pressed the point.
"Are you familiar with this?"
The man frowned thoughtfully.
"In theory . . . I suppose . . . I've dealt with something similar." He again examined the diagram closely. "Do you know what you're looking at, Cid?"
"A diagram."
"Yes, but for what?"
"A . . . a flying thing, we think. Whatever it is, it's supposed to have had great offensive abilities . . . "
"Offensive abilities. So that's what it's all about."
"Well, we are at war."
"Are you really?"
Cid glanced up at him, startled by his surprise.
"Um, yeah. Where've you been?"
The man grinned.
"You'd never believe me." He extended his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Cid. My name is KluYa."

* * *

Leviathan was still pacing back and forth nervously, and Asura was still nagging him. When the door flew open with a burst of antagonized force, they both jumped, and Leviathan whacked his head against the roof of the cavern.
"Hello, Rydia," he said, rubbing his head, as she strode into the room. "Where've you been?"
"The Eblanian dungeon!" she snapped, plopping herself down in the middle of the floor. "I need you to tell me what you know about Masamune."
"Masamune?!" he echoed, throwing a frantic glance to Asura, who shrugged. "W-well, what's to know? It's a sword . . . one of the Crystal Weapons fashioned by the Lunarians . . . "
"Oh, shove it!!" she yelled, storming to her feet and into his face with one gesture. Her very vehemence knocked him off guard. "Masamune's not a Crystal Weapon, and it wasn't fashioned by Lunarians! And it's not stupid, and it's angry! And it's done something to Edge, and I intend to get him back, so you'd better 'fess up!!!!"
Any other human would have never dared use such a tone to Leviathan, and if someone had been foolish enough to do so, they would have been vaporized on sight. In this case, however, Leviathan just stood in frozen shock, staring at her.
"Masamune's none of our concern, Rydia," Asura said, coming to her husband's rescue. "If, by chance, it's not of the origin that's recorded, than there's little we can - "
"Stop playing me for a fool!!" Rydia screamed. "I don't care how deep your secrets go, I don't care if there're things that, as a human, I shouldn't know! You know something about that Sword! You know, and I will find out, because I'm going to do whatever it takes to figure out what happened to Edge, and save him, unless it's already too late, and if it's not, the longer you keep trying to avoid the subject, the more likely it becomes that it will be too late! Maybe you don't care about the affairs of mortals, but I do!!"
"Now, now, Rydia, don't go saying that we don't care - "
"Then why won't you tell me?! Eh?!" And, on a sudden burst of inspiration, she ran from the room. They followed on her heels.
"Rydia, won't you just calm down and - "
"I've been calm enough, Leviathan! All the years I've been here, I've been calm! And I've never had a problem with it! But right now, I am not calm, and I will not be until I have the answers I need!"
The streets of the Town of Monsters parted as she stormed through, followed closely by the King and Queen. She pivoted and stormed into the Library, instantly heading for the shelf and book where she remembered coming across the ancient script she'd read on Masamune.
"This!" she snarled, pulling out the book and opening it to the script inside, unreadable by any human for thousands of years. (After much work, she thought once that she'd translated it correctly, but what ensued was the phrase "Windows for Dummies", and she'd given up) "This language is inscribed on the Sword, showing that it is not only of Earth origin, but . . . " she checked the date, "dating back to before the time of the first Light Warriors! And you go pulling some crap about Lunarian Fashioned whatever . . . don't you see?! I have to figure out how to defeat it! It threw me across the room and tried to kill me, it possessed Edge into its power, and it made him vanish into thin air! I have to find him!! I have to!!!"
Leviathan placed his clawed hands firmly on her shoulders.
"Rydia, calm down. Don't say anything," he snapped as she started to object. "Calm down and be quiet." He looked over at Asura, who again shrugged. "Masamune . . . Masamune is more than we can handle. It's powerful - more so than any of us. We can't defeat it when it's angry. So we leave it alone. That's the way it's always been."
"How did it end up on the Moon?" she inquired.
"It, along with all the others, are of Earth origin," he continued in a tense voice, as if it pained him to say any of this. "When the Lunarians first came to Earth and found that the people of the time wouldn't be able to handle their presence, they took the weapons with them, because they were needed, and the Lunarians found them powerful enough for their purposes. After the battle, they were hidden on the Moon beneath the Lunarian Palace. They were so powerful . . . " and his breath trailed off for a moment, "that they didn't dare allow them back into the hands of humanity."
Rydia, now sufficiently calm, regarded him with wide eyes.
"They don't seem that powerful."
"They don't want to."
She broke away from his hold and wandered in a loose circle.
"So what can I do? How can I defeat it, or at least make it listen to me?"
Leviathan shook his head.
"I'm obliged to say you can't."
Rydia wasn't willing to take that as an answer.
"If you can't," and she turned to include Asura in her biting remark, "then I have to call someone who can."
And she swiftly brushed past them, outside the library.
Somewhat in a daze, the two watched her go.
"That's not her dress," Asura heard herself remark.
"No. She looks strange. What's so strange about how she looks?" Leviathan observed, blinking.
"She's wearing white," Asura snapped. "That, along with the green hair, gives her a startling resemblance to my cousin's nephew's - "
"It's not just that. Is it?"
"Yes. She looks like Shmoo."
"Shmoo? There is no resemblance between Rydia and Shmoo."
"The green hair? The color white?"
Leviathan snapped his claws.
"A bricklayer! She looks like a bricklayer!"
"A bricklayer?! Come off it, Leviathan. She looks like Shmoo. Deal with it."
"Leave Shmoo out of this."
"What do you have against my family?!"
Leviathan opted for a strategic subject change.
"I wonder where she's going?"
Then it dawned on them both, and they frantically bolted for the door, hitting it at the same time and getting stuck.
"Rydia!!" Asura yelled. "Don't! You'll bring more wrath down on us than - "
But the sudden flash of green light showed that the young Caller had already completed her summons.

The monsters who had been milling around on their daily business stopped and turned in shock as King Bahamut appeared, barely fitting in the cavern with his wings outstretched.
Ignoring them, he landed lightly on the ground beside Rydia.
"You Called?" he inquired tensely, reminding her with his tone that he was not to be Summoned for trivial matters.
"I need your help," Rydia informed him in a tight voice. "Masamune took Edge. I need to get him back."
Bahamut frowned, although Rydia couldn't tell from his draconic features.
"Come with me," he ordered after a moment, scooping her up with one wing and depositing her on his back.
On-looking monsters widened their eyes with shock. Bahamut was letting a human ride him?
Continuing to ignore them, Bahamut, without waiting to see if she was secure, spread his great wings and took them up, out of the Town, out of the cave, and into the huge cavern of the underworld.
"Masamune is not to be trifled with lightly," he stated.
"So Leviathan and Asura told me," she replied. "But I have to get Edge back."
Bahamut's frown deepened, but still, she couldn't tell. He altered his flight and took them soaring up through the portal to the Overworld.
The bright burst of sunlight as they emerged in the blue sky startled Rydia so she almost fell, but she kept her grip on Bahamut and maintained her balance.
"What can I do?" she demanded. "There must be some way."
She felt his snort even as the wind stole his voice away.
"Of course there's a way," he admonished, turning his head over his shoulder so she could hear his words. "For you, there is. Very few others have the ability . . . I can't even say for sure that you do."
"I'll take the chance," she replied. "Masamune took him while he was trying to protect me."
"I see."
They flew on in silence for a time, and she figured that he must be trying to decide what to say to her next. Letting her attention wander for a bit, she looked down beneath them as the world flew by below. She could only guess the reactions of the people in the towns below as the great dragon flew by . . .
"There is one spell in all of history that has been able to subdue Masamune," he finally told her in a grim tone. "Many times, people believe they have mastered the dark sword, but in fact, it has a habit of playing with its users . . . lets them feel powerful, when in truth, it laughs at their attempts. Masamune's power is very great. It's survived well over ten thousand years of recorded history . . . and quite possibly longer than that.
"Our earliest official record of Masamune if from approximately twelve thousand years ago - back when humanity was rather an ultramodern society, rather than the primitive cave-people today's humans tend to believe. Masamune helped to bring down that society . . . was wielded by the madman who summoned the black force that nearly obliterated the world."
"What good would that do for it?" Rydia inquired.
"I will not speak for Masamune's motives. It vanished after the Great Meteor crashed, some claimed that it had been destroyed, others that it had vanished into nothing. It appeared later, though, many times, more than any history could ever recount."
"Edge . . . Edge may know. He told me that Masamune spoke to him through dreams, making him live through other times where Masamune was in power . . . "
Bahamut nodded.
"Quite likely." He sighed. "Magic was very different in those days, Rydia. Materia Orbs, they called it. Simpler than modern spells . . . the Orbs were the source of magic. It saved studying for years and years to learn the basics . . . but for us, the Summoned Monsters and the Espers, it was a prison. We were held within the Orbs like genies in bottles."
"Like what?"
"Never mind. Asura told you of how we once lived out among the world, among humans?"
"Yes."
"That came later. After the Materia, but before the Land of Summoned Monsters. During the millennia after the Meteor crashed, the Materia were thrown into disuse due to . . . complications. As time went on, their power drained, and then they would shatter, allowing the power that fueled them to return to what the humans had termed the 'Lifestream'." Again he sighed. "They misinterpreted . . . but anyway, as the Summon Materia shattered, we were set free, and most of us chose to live, hidden, in various places all over the Earth. These places changed, from time to time, as was necessary, and eventually, the Land of Summoned Monsters was built as a resting place, an escape for our kind. Later, when it became mandatory for us to remain away from the humans, most moved there, except for myself and a few others . . . "
"Like Odin? He lived beneath Castle Baron?"
"Odin is a geek. Just let that be."
"Yes, sir."
"Three thousand years later, only four of these Materia Orbs remained, the ultra-powerful Orbs known as Huge Materia. By this time, however, knowledge of their usage and abilities were long since lost. Known only as ORBS, they were used as power sources by the first of the Light Warriors in our history. Nothing is known of them after that, although rumors are told of how they each shattered, and the pieces formed the original crystals of power. That, we'll never know.
"But Masamune was there. As a Dark Sword, it prevailed for thousands of years, building up power, waiting, striking at various points in history."
He dived suddenly, making Rydia catch her breath.
"Now is one of those points."
"How can I stop it?" she asked, repeating her initial question.
"There is one spell, a Black spell, which can subdue Masamune."
"A DRAIN spell?" she speculated.
He nodded.
"DRAIN9."
"Nine?! That's . . . that's impossible!!!"
"No, just very dangerous. Few humans ever possess the stamina for such a spell. Characters such as the Sage Tellah were killed from the strain of a spell like Meteo . . . this is easily three times as powerful.
"With it, you can drain the power from Masamune, and force it to submit to your will."
"But," she exclaimed, "I thought it already had to submit to my will! Mine, and Edge's, Kain's, Cecil's, and Rosa's! We defeated it!"
"When Masamune's power is great enough, it tends to forget about the powers that bind it."
She was silent for a long time, watching the world fly by beneath them, thinking.
"I'll take the risk," she finally said. "Maybe I'm not exactly sure why . . . but I'll do it. What's the spell?"
He soared upward again.
"I will teach you."

)---------- Cecil ----------(
(Lunar Encounter)

Cecil lay in his bed, trying not to breathe. It had been about half a year since Mother had died, and his life at home had been . . . well . . . not the best.
He heard the door to their little house outside of Baron open and slam against the wall, and heard it slam closed again.
"Cecil!" came the drunken shout. "Cecil, get out here!"
Suddenly feeling like crying, the little boy pulled himself from the security of his blankets and into the main room of the house.
Dad was swaggering around the room, as he did every night.
"What did you do today, Cecil?" he snapped.
"I - "
"I said what did you do today?!"
"Nothing!" he cried, knowing what was coming next.
Dad cuffed him over the head.
"You did somethin'!" he snarled. "You always do somethin' . . . half the time with your loser friend in the City . . . "
"Dad!" Cecil objected, rubbing his head.
"Don't you be talkin' back, ya hear!!" Dad yelled, raising his hand at the boy.
Cecil panicked. His four-year-old mind couldn't process fast enough to keep up with his legs, and before he knew what has happening, he was running.
"You get back here!!!" he heard Dad yell as he flew through the door and out into the night. "Useless no good . . . "
And the sound trailed off as he kept running.
He ran and ran, letting the memories of the past six months fly in front of his eyes. At first, he started to cry, but then turned the energy to his legs, so he could keep running. Where he was going, he wasn't sure.
The road split, and he turned left. He knew left. He knew where it took him. It was something familiar, something safe in this terrible night.
Darkness was all around. Finally, thoroughly exhausted, he collapsed in the middle of the road, a huddled mass, shaking. It was dark. It was cold. He didn't know what to do now.
He couldn't go home. Dad would hit him. So he got up and continued on.
As he approached the Kingdom, though, his journey reached a dead end.
"You there!" called one of the Sentries as he approached the City Walls. "Out in the open!"
Swallowing nervously, he walked up to the gate, protected by two Guards who were, in his child's eyes, the two biggest and meanest looking men he'd ever seen.
The one who had called to him now looked him over with surprise.
"What're you doing out this late, kid?" he asked.
"I . . . . today's my birthday."
The two Guards looked at each other.
"Euh . . . what're you doin' here, kid?" asked the second. "Why aren't you home?"
"Today's my birthday!"
"Yeah . . . that's real nice. Where do you live, boy?"
Cecil had begun to shake all over again.
"I live with my Dad! But not anymore! It's my birthday!"
The first Guard, a compassionate look crossing his face, stepped forward and put his hands on the little boy's shoulders.
"Listen, kid," he said in a gentle tone, "I don't think you'd be wandering the roads in the middle of the night unless something was wrong. Is something wrong?"
Cecil looked at him for a long moment, deciding that maybe he didn't look so mean after all.
He opened his mouth to speak, but found that no sound could come out.
"What's your name?"
"Cecil." That much he could say.
"And where do you live, Cecil? It's late, your parents are probably worried," the second Guard interjected.
He shook his head.
"No . . . not worried." He sniffled. "Today's my birthday."
"Who's your daddy?" asked the first.
Cecil opened his mouth to reply, but a strange feeling crossed over him. A strange, tingling sensation. His knees buckled beneath him. The last thing he remembered seeing was the image of the two moons in eclipse as he fell to the ground . . .

When he opened his eyes again, it was into brightness. The sun - it shone so bright it hurt his eyes. Raising his hands to block the light, he sat up.
He was sitting in a bed, a nice, soft one. The room was little, but it was nice. In fact, he knew this room. He knew it well.
Kain was sitting on a stool near him, watching him curiously.
"Wow!" he exclaimed at Cecil's movement. "I thought you were going to sleep all day!"
Cecil shook his head.
"Wha - "
"Cecil!" He turned to the door. It was Momma. She came bustling in with a large glass full of a funny-looking liquid, and sat next to him on the bed. "Oh, I'm so glad you're awake! How's your head feeling?"
He put a hand to his head.
"Fine," he replied politely, although it was really throbbing terribly. He couldn't remember coming here . . . how had he come here?
"Drink this," Momma was telling him, holding the glass to his lips. "It's a deluded Potion . . . it'll make you feel better."
He winced at the taste of the bitter liquid.
"Yuck!" he spattered.
Kain laughed.
"I told you he was all right, Momma!"
"Yes, that you did, Kain."
Cecil shook his head.
"Why'm I here?" he asked, still feeling a little woozy.
Momma turned a concerned gaze on him.
"You were wandering around the City Walls at two in the morning last night, Cecil. Before the Guards could figure out who you were, you passed out, and they brought you in. Abraham recognized you and brought you here."
Abraham was Kain's Daddy, Cecil remembered. He'd only met him once or twice . . .
"Cecil?"
"Yes?"
"What were you doing wandering around in the middle of the night?"
All at once, the memory hit him.
"Today's my birthday," he said, sadly.
"Woah!" Kain exclaimed. "You mean you're four, now?"
Cecil nodded, Kain's enthusiasm lightening his mood.
"Cool!" Kain almost yelled. "Now we're the same age!!!"
"Kain, hush," Momma scolded. "Yes, Cecil, happy birthday. But what were you doing at that hour? And why do you have that bump on your head?"
Again, Cecil put his hands to his head.
"The Guards say you didn't hit it when you collapsed. What happened?"
Cecil looked down at the floor.
"Today's my birthday," was all he could say.
"Momma!" Kain brightly informed her, "You need to make Cecil a birthday cake!"
"Kain, stay quiet," she ordered in a firm voice.
Kain looked dejected and sulked on his stool.
Cecil also looked dejected. He felt dejected.
Momma made him look up at her, seeing his dejection.
"Cecil . . . did your Daddy hit you?"
"Dad . . . he misses Mother."
Momma closed her eyes and put her arms around Cecil, shaking. Cecil wasn't sure why she did either - what did it mean to her that his Dad missed Mother?
Kain watched, also looking confused.
After a moment, Momma let go of him and pushed him back against the bed.
"You get your rest, Cecil. When you wake up, we'll all be ready to celebrate your birthday."
"YES!!!" Kain yelled, jumping up off his stool, miscalculating, and landing with a crash on the floor. "I'm okay!" he assured everyone, upside down.
Momma picked him up and set him back on his feet.
"Kain, you let Cecil rest."
Kain shook his head.
"No way! I'm stayin' here!" To emphasize his point, he climbed back up on his stool and crossed his arms.
"You'll bother him, Kain. Leave him alone."
"I don't bother Cecil! Do I, Cecil?"
"No!" Cecil answered, although he felt very, very tired, and his head ached terribly, despite the deluded Potion he'd drunk.
"See, Momma, Cecil hurt his head, so I've gotta take care of him," Kain explained with his four-year-old logic. "It's what best friends do!"
Momma shook her head.
"All right. I suppose . . . just let him know if you need anything, Cecil, and he'll yell loud enough to rouse the entire Kingdom."
Cecil giggled, although he wasn't exactly sure why.
"Happy birthday, Cecil!" Kain stage-whispered.
And then he was asleep.

* * *

Kain didn't know how long he'd been riding. He wasn't sure of the time of day, or the date, or how many days it had been since he'd left to recover Cecil from his hunt for Masters. He just knew that he was dead tired, but didn't dare stop.
Too much was at stake to give into something silly like sleep.
Cecil hadn't so much as twitched the whole way. Every now and then, Kain would turn and check his pulse, make sure he was still breathing, and then continue on. There was nothing he could do, and that bothered him. He didn't like being helpless.
How long it had been, he wasn't sure, but suddenly the monotony of the weary journey was shattered.
The ground lurched beneath him.
Clutching at the chocobo, he was amazed the lurch hadn't thrown him to the ground. Looking around, though, he realized that the ground hadn't moved at all.
He just felt a little dizzy . . .
The world began to spin. Violently.
Looking ahead, he was glad beyond belief to see the towers of Castle Baron in the distance. He was almost there.
The world continued spinning, getting faster and faster. Kain buried his face in the chocobo's neck and kept his eyes shut to block out as much of the motion as he could.
"Go," he murmured to the bird. "Keep going . . . "
The chocobo, seeing the sign of civilization, thought of a warm stable and food, lots of food. It picked up its pace.
While the increase of speed was reassuring to Kain, it said they'd get back even faster, it knocked him off his balance even more. Grinding his teeth hard and keeping one hand on Cecil to keep him from falling, he kept his face buried in the chocobo's bright feathers, and fought to remain conscious.
"Keep going . . . keep going . . . "
It became a chant, more to encourage himself than the chocobo, who was going on without his incentive. He had to keep going. Just long enough to get back to Baron . . . to bring back Cecil and the blood of Masters . . . to save everyone . . .
His mind drowsed. He felt like he was floating, very warm, very still, as if everything was okay . . .
"Kain!!" came the urgent cry which startled him back to his senses.
" . . . who - "
"Stay awake, you stupid Dragoon! Everyone's depending on you!!!"
Kain looked up just enough to see Edge floating by his side, his expression concerned and frantic all at once. Then the motion caught up with him and he jammed his face back into the chocobo. It offered no sanctuary this time, though. The spinning reached him even through the sunny feathers.
"I feel so dizzy . . . " he muttered.
"Stay awake, you idiot!!!" Edge shouted. "You're almost there!! Don't give in now!!"
" . . . not . . . giving in, you freak . . . just . . . "
"Just what? Kain, talk to me! Keep talking! Just what? Just what?"
"Everything's spinning - I can't . . . "
"Yes you can! Just a few more minutes!"
"Just . . . "
"Hang in there, Kain! Hang in there!"
The Ninja's voice slowly began to fade, and a very numb spark of fear welled up within him.
Then he was jolted hard as the chocobo slammed to a halt.
"Wha . . . "
"Take it easy, sir," drifted a voice he felt he should know. "You're home free . . . "
He felt someone gently pry his fingers loose from where he'd been holding Cecil secure to the chocobo, and felt hands reaching up to him, lifting him, laying him down on the ground.
"Kain?" Edge inquired, kneeling over him. "Can you hear me?"
"Is he still conscious?" someone asked.
"Yes." Kain forced his eyes open and identified Cami. "He's conscious." Seeing that he'd opened his eyes, the Trainee also knelt beside him. "Sir? Are you okay?"
He tried to nod, but couldn't tell which way he was moving his head.
"Is Cecil . . . "
"We're taking care of him, sir, and we're rushing the blood straight to the pots. The antidote'll be ready as soon as possible."
All these reassurances. It felt like he was floating in them . . .
"Kain?" inquired a new voice.
"Rosa?" he sputtered, opening one eye and realizing for the first time that they'd been shut again. There she was, one hand on his forehead, apology written all over her features.
"Kain . . . " she said in a low voice, "about what happened before you left . . . I'm sorry about that . . . it's no fault of yours, either. I don't know what came over me."
He blinked heavily.
"Rosa . . . "
She gripped his hand.
"Yes?"
"This is so embarrassing . . . "
Her grip on his fingers tightened.
"Embarrassing, Kain? How so? It can't be embarrassing, there's no one here to embarrass you. Almost everyone in the Kingdom's fallen, Kain. There's only a handful of us left. No one's laughing, my friend. And for all those fallen, you've just brought back for us the only chance of a cure. Oh, believe me, no one's laughing, my friend."
"Is . . . "
She looked at him, concerned, but his vision went blank.
"Kain?"
" . . . "
"Kain?"