I'm SOOOOOOO sorry for making you people wait so long for this chapter! This is the climax of the story and it took forever to write (I'm still not completely satisfied with it). I hope that it's worth the wait! Special thanks to XZO for his story suggestion--it inspired part of this chapter.
Disclaimer: For the 11th time, I don't own Golden Sun (cripes, this is getting old). This chapter is also a little violent, but I'm pretty sure that it's still PG safe.
*Chapter 11*
Once the skies were dark and all the lights in the village had faded, Isaac cautiously entered Tartarus. He stuck to the shadows as best he could, since the streets were being patrolled by several guards. Remembering Ivan's directions, he found the prison house. It certainly didn't look inviting, and two guards were pacing in front of the lone entrance. He studied them a moment, and spotted a set of keys on one of their belts. Bingo! he thought. Now I won't have to break any doors. He reached for a pair of Sleep Bombs and tossed them towards the guards. A thin veil of smoke settled around them then quickly cleared away.
"What was that?" the first guard asked.
"I don't know," said the second guard. He yawned. "Probably just the wind or something…" Now both of them yawned. They slowly sank to the ground and Isaac could hear them snoring. So far, so good.
He sneaked over to the sleeping guards and took the set of keys, then headed into the building. It was even worse than he'd pictured from Ivan's story, and considerably colder than it was outside. If this weren't a village of powerful Adepts, he'd lay siege to the whole place for imprisoning Mia in such a horrid abode. But since that would be foolhardy, he would gladly settle for just getting her back. He found the single locked door and started trying the various keys.
"I'm here for you, Mia," he whispered.
She'd know his voice anywhere, but thought that she must be dreaming. That is, until she heard the jingling on the other side of the door. "Isaac!?" she exclaimed in quiet disbelief. The lock clicked and the door creaked open. Instantly, Isaac rushed in and they held onto each other like they'd never let go, feeling as if time had suddenly screeched to a halt. Neither of them said a word, but it didn't matter, as the embrace and the kiss that accompanied it said it all.
When time finally started again, they both relaxed their grips a little and looked at each other, their eyes shimmering with happy tears. Though Mia's broad smile looked the same as always, she was clearly ghostly pale, even in the poor light. Her eyes seemed a little duller too, but they still shone brightly with love and kindness. Isaac returned her smile. How could he not? They were together again, and that was all he'd wanted.
Mia squeezed him again and rested her head on his shoulder. "This is exactly the way I imagined our reunion. Oh, Isaac, I've missed you so much!"
"I know. The thought of this moment is all that kept me going. I'm so sorry, Mia! I should've found a way to prevent this from happening to you."
"Don't blame yourself," she said. "You found me, and we're together now and that's all that matters." She coughed quite heavily, which made Isaac feel even guiltier not to mention concerned.
"Ivan was right--that is a nasty cough. I ought to rip those guys apart for doing this to you!"
"No, I'm OK, really. I just need a chance to recover someplace more…homey."
"Right." He kissed her again and cast Potent Cure. A warm, golden glow passed from him to her. "I know it's not much, but I hope it helps."
"I feel better already," she said happily, and she really did feel slightly strengthened. "Now let's get out of here."
Together, they went back to the door, but Isaac could now here voices outside. Quickly, they both ducked into the shadows to stay out of sight. A very unhappy superior had discovered the two snoozing guards.
"You idiots! How dare you fall asleep on guard duty!"
"It's all right, Captain," said the first guard. "It's not like the prisoner can go anywhere."
"Who could get past the street guards anyway?" the second added.
The Captain glowered. "Go check and make sure she's still locked in her cell while I figure out what your punishment shall be."
"Isaac!" Mia whispered. "They're coming this way!"
Isaac drew his sword. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this." He looked to Mia. "Stick close to me. I'll get us out of here somehow."
She nodded nervously. Those guards were strong. Even someone as powerful as Isaac wouldn't be able to handle all of them on his own. And she didn't have much power to help him thanks to her stint in prison. He knew this of course, and shoved all thoughts of vengeance aside. Getting Mia out of here took top priority.
With the Gaia Blade at the ready, Isaac's heart raced as the two guards approached. There was no way around it--he would have to kill them to eliminate their threat. The longer he could postpone revealing himself the better. As soon as the two guards stepped through the doorway, he thrust his sword forward and stabbed both of them. They crumpled to the floor with barely a noise and a pool of blood began to collect around their bodies. Isaac ripped off one of their capes and placed it around Mia's shoulders, since he'd noticed that she was shivering. She thanked him silently and gripped his left hand.
Outside, the Captain tapped his foot impatiently. He was a tall and imposing figure, bearing a stunning resemblance to Saturos. The only big difference was that the Captain looked older and had longer hair. But his skin was the same shade of indigo and his eyes the same dark red as Isaac's deceased adversary. He wouldn't be as easy to get past as his lackeys.
"You two are so incompetent!" he scowled. He marched towards the door. "I'll have you two drenched in water for this!"
"Here he comes," Isaac whispered. He reached for a Smoke Bomb. "Get ready."
The Captain, still scowling audibly, reached the doorway and received a nasty blast of black smoke in his face. With Mia in tow, Isaac dashed past him and made a b-line for the village gates.
"STOP THEM!" the Captain sputtered at the top of his lungs.
The exit was in sight. But upon hearing their leader's command, all of the guards in the streets had gathered by the gates. It was difficult to tell how many there were in all--somewhere between thirty and forty and all them appeared quite strong. Isaac sized them up as he slowly backed away from them, keeping Mia shielded with his body. This was bad.
"Hey, it's just a kid," one of them said. "How'd he manage to steal our Mercury Adept?"
"Now what?" Mia whispered, her voice trembling in fear.
"Don't worry," Isaac whispered back with all the confidence he could muster. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve." He reached for some Crystal Powder.
The Captain appeared from the back streets, now free of the choking smoke. "You've made a grave error, boy," he said. "No one messes with the Fire Clan of the North!"
"Well, you shouldn't have messed the woman I love," Isaac retorted. He threw the Crystal Powder and it turned into shards of ice that rained down on most of the Fire Clan. Isaac and Mia quickly retreated back into the allies and out of sight.
"You little rat!" the Captain shouted. "Fan out and find them! They must not escape!"
"Yes sir!" the guards replied.
From their hiding place behind a cluster of barrels, Mia and Isaac heard the many footsteps fade away and quietly sighed in relief. They were safe for the moment and now the guards had split up. Taking on all of them at once would've been a death sentence, but now Isaac could deal with each one individually as he worked his way towards the gates. He held Mia tightly to help keep her warm and cast Potent Cure again.
"Save your Psynergy," she whispered. "You might need it."
"I have a Psy Crystal with me," he whispered back, kissing her forehead to reassure her. "It'll be OK, I promise."
Even though she trusted him more than anyone, she was still full of fear. They were severely outnumbered and his bag of tricks would run out eventually. He was frightened too, but he was doing his best to swallow it and put on his bravest face. He had to get her out of here no matter what the cost.
One of the guards stepped into the alley. He peered over the barrels and spotted them, but before he could give a shout to his comrades, Isaac slit his throat. The two of them carefully crept around the buildings, inching closer to the gates. They ducked behind a set of crates to wait for another opportunity to move. A pair of guards walked by the crates but didn't stop to investigate. Just as they breathed a sigh of relief, another single guard sneaked up behind them and grabbed Mia by her wrist.
"Let me go!" she cried, struggling with all her might.
"Here they are, Captain!" the guard called.
Swiftly, Isaac took the Gaia Blade and sliced off the arm gripping Mia. The guard gave a yowl of pain and surprise and couldn't stop the pair as they disappeared again. The Captain arrived a moment later.
"Well, where are they?" he demanded.
The injured guard gripped what remained of his arm. "That's no ordinary kid, Captain," he managed to say. "He knows what he's doing."
"That was a little too close," Isaac panted. Mia nodded in agreement, trying hard to suppress her coughs so that they wouldn't be heard. They hadn't found any new cover and were just standing in the shadows. Isaac could see the town gates not far away. The coast appeared to be clear--they had to chance it. He grabbed Mia's hand and bolted for the exit, but the strain of running and hiding had worn hard on her and she stumbled. That was when the guards found them.
"I'm sorry, Isaac," Mia said through her coughs.
Isaac stood over her, brandishing his sword. The remaining guards formed a circle around them, closing them in and negating any hope of escape. The Captain approached them, smirking.
"Your luck has run out, boy. Now you will pay for embarrassing the Fire Clan of the North." He unsheathed his own sword. "You're mine!"
He lunged forward, clashing his sword against the Gaia Blade and slowly pushing Isaac backwards. The rest of the guards charged in with their weapons. With his back up against the proverbial wall, Isaac wasn't going to give up without a fight. His sword glowed gold and unleashed its mighty Titan Blade attack, knocking the Captain away. Immediately, Isaac hurled the last of his attack items at the incoming soldiers. While the Crystal Powder, Weasel's Claw, Bramble Seed and Oil Drops weren't much on their own, when combined they struck a mighty blow and blasted most of the incoming enemies far away. The rest of them got a taste of Isaac's Stone Spire.
"So, you're an Adept," the Captain said, rising. "Well that explains why you've been a bit of a challenge. But you cannot hope to stop me with weak attacks like that. Do you have any idea of whom you're dealing with?" His sword pulsed with flame. "I am Valerdo, leader of the armies and the mightiest warrior in the Fire Clan. Only our clan leader can match my strength!"
"Is that supposed to scare me?" Isaac implored. "I heard one of your clan members make a similar claim once, and I managed to defeat him." He narrowed his eyes. "You'll pay for what you've done, one way or the other."
Valerdo snickered. "Your confidence means nothing unless you can back it up." He charged again. Isaac leaped into the air, bringing his sword above his head, and brought it down hard against Valerdo's. Once again, the Gaia Blade flashed and prepared to unleash its attack, but this time Valerdo saw it and retaliated with a burst of fire, which Isaac only barely dodged. He cast Ragnarok and managed to knock the sword from his opponent's hand, but Valerdo countered with another inferno and didn't miss this time. Isaac flew a few feet and lost his grip on the Gaia Blade, which swished through the air and planted itself in the ground not far from Mia. Valerdo quickly grabbed his sword and went to keep Isaac pinned by stepping on his chest.
"It ends now, boy," he said, pointing his blade at Isaac's neck. "This was all too easy." He lifted his weapon high to deliver the finishing blow, but a sudden blast of ice caught him off guard and sent him flying. Isaac looked over to Mia, who still had her palms forward from casting her attack. She was breathing hard and beads of sweat were dripping down her face, but she forced a smile and threw the Gaia Blade to him. He jumped to his feet and caught it, not taking his eyes off of her. She clearly couldn't afford to spare whatever energy she had left yet she'd dug into her reserves to help him. He had to make sure that she wouldn't have to do that again.
He started to go to her when several of the other guards rushed towards him with their weapons blazing. Isaac quickly cast Stone Spire again, knocking three of them down, and dispatched the other two with his strongest sword swipes. A few more had been thinking of jumping in, but cautiously backed away when they saw their comrades fall. Truly, this boy commanded astonishing power for his age, and the rest of the guards didn't dare to take him. That left only Valerdo, who managed to snatch Mia before Isaac reached her.
"I should've killed you earlier," he said to Mia, holding his sword to her throat. "You and your entire race shall never be allowed to threaten my Clan again."
"Your clan should burn in the flames you command!" Mia exclaimed. With the last ounce of her power, she cast Ice Missile and freed herself from his grip. Panting heavily, she stumbled back and fell over--right into Isaac's arms.
Valerdo slowly rose, badly injured from the two water-based attacks he'd suffered. Isaac could feel the rage radiating off of him and how that rage was increasing his power. He had to end this battle now before Valerdo's rage made him too powerful to defeat. Mia struggled to catch her breath but just couldn't, so Isaac pressed his lone Psy Crystal into her hand to help her recover some of her strength. As much as he could use that quick relief, she needed it more. He got to his feet and rushed towards his enemy, running on pure adrenaline and determination alone. Valerdo's hands ignited and he cast another fiery blast, but Isaac leaped over the flames and came at him sword first. The Gaia Blade glowed again, but this time it wasn't in preparation for the Titan Blade--it was only his own power. He brought his sword down with such force that he actually sliced Valerdo's blade right in half. Looking at his broken weapon in stunned disbelief, Valerdo backed away a few steps and Isaac's shining blade went right through his torso. He fell on his back, clutching his wound, and laughed up at the one who'd defeated him.
"I underestimated you," he said, gasping for air as the blood bubbled up from underneath his hand. "Go ahead and finish me, kid. You've fought well."
Isaac placed the Gaia Blade back in his scabbard. "You don't deserve such a merciful death. I think I'd rather leave you here to die slowly and painfully--just as you intended to do to Mia." He wiped the sweat from his forehead with his arm and turned to leave. Valerdo growled audibly. How dare a mere boy mock him this way and deny him an honorable death? He lifted his hand and cast one last attack--a blazing flame shaped like an arrow. With his back turned to it, Isaac didn't see the projectile and it hit him just above his waist near his right side. He fell over and Valerdo laughed evilly before he finally died.
"NO!" Mia screamed. She ran to Isaac but he was already getting to his feet, holding his right side with his left hand. He forced a smile.
"Come on," he said. "Let's get out of here while we still can."
Mia tentatively nodded through her tears and together they left Tartarus and vanished into the woods. They'd gone a fair distance before Isaac succumbed to his injury and slumped to the ground, leaning his back against a tree. Mia crouched beside him and tried to cast Ply, but even after absorbing the power of the Psy Crystal, she still didn't have the strength to do it. Her hands wouldn't even glow with a trace of her Psynergy.
"Isaac," she said urgently. "You have to heal yourself! My Psynergy is still too weak!"
Isaac laughed slightly at the irony of the situation. He'd gone through all of that to save Mia, and now he was the one who needed saving. He was such a fool sometimes. "I can't, Mia. I used up the last of my power to defeat Valerdo."
"What?" she asked. "No, you have to try! You can't give up now! You just can't!"
He took a deep breath and tried to cast one of his healing techniques, but like Mia, all of his Psynergy was gone without a trace. The tears streamed down her face faster and faster as she realized that he was right. Neither of them could heal his wound.
"Why?!" she sobbed hysterically. "We're finally together again--everything's supposed to be all right now!" She held her head in her hands. "This is all my fault! I should've helped you get out of there!"
"No, Mia," he said gently. He pulled her close with his free right arm. "You can't help it that you got sick. These things just happen, I guess."
"But why you? Why us? This isn't right! You never should've come for me at all--not if it has to end like this!"
"Mia, listen to me and believe me when I say this; you're the single greatest thing that's ever happened to me. I would rather die a thousand deaths than live one day, one moment, without you. Nothing in the world could've stopped me from finding you, not Felix, not the Fire Clan, not a hundred copies of Deadbeard's ghost." He smiled again, his eyes watering. "And just getting one more opportunity to see you has made this whole fiasco worth it."
They kissed. Mia was so happy to hear him say those things and yet so impossibly sad knowing that this was the last time they'd be together. She buried her head in his shoulder and tried to hold back her tears, to little avail. Isaac hated seeing her so sad, and it honestly hurt him more than the pain caused by the slow ebbing of his life. He squeezed her tightly and rested his head on top of hers, fighting the sorrow he felt for her. The nearly five days they'd spent apart had seemed like an eternity. He couldn't allow them to be separated again
"You can't die, Isaac!" Mia sobbed. "You can't leave me all alone after everything we've been through to be together!"
"It'll be OK," he said, his own tears cleaning some of the grime from her hair. "I'm not going to abandon you this time."
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*Sniff!* And you thought the cliffhanger for Chapter 10 was bad! Well, I'm already working on the next (and last) chapter, so please don't call the lynch mob just yet, OK?