CHAPTER 14
CONCORDIA PLAINS
After a good night's sleep, the group awoke and began to prepare for the day.
"(YAWN) Boy, that was nice," Seifer said as he emerged from his cabin on the Cassiopeia and looked around. He walked into the main room. Ramza was sitting at the table with Ovelia and Alma. The three of them looked apprehensive and worried. "Hey, what's up?" Seifer asked. "You all look bummed out."
"Worker No.8 hasn't come back yet," Ovelia said. "Everhart hasn't shown up either."
"Maybe Delita's forces captured them?..." Alma asked.
"No," Ramza said. "They'd have one heck of a time trying to capture Worker No.8, and Delita doesn't know about Everhart. That theory just doesn't work, Alma."
Just then, there was a knock at the door. "I'll get it," Ovelia said as she got up and walked over to the hatch that led outside of the airship.
"Good morning, masters and mistresses," Worker No.8 said as he stepped into the room.
"Worker!" Alma exclaimed. "Where have you been all this time?"
"Standing," Worker No.8 reported.
"Well, why didn't you come back to the ship?" Ramza asked.
"Nobody ordered me to do so," Worker No.8 replied.
"This robot's gettin' to be a pain in the ass," Seifer muttered.
"Why did you come back to the ship now, Worker No.8?" Ramza asked.
"I found him in the street and he followed me back," Everhart said as he stepped in behind the robot. "I was just on my way back from an errand..."
"An errand?" Alma asked. "What kind of errand takes all night to run?"
"Hiring some extra hands and going through the legal paperwork," Everhart responded.
"Oh, yeah!" Ramza exclaimed. "Everhart told me that he was hiring some more people to help us get the stones back!"
"What kind of people?..." Ovelia asked.
"The best kind of people for this job," Everhart said as he stepped aside and revealed two other people.
Two devastatingly beautiful girls stood behind Everhart. The first one wore all black dancing clothes and had two scimitars attached to her belt. The second was dressed all in pink dancing clothes and had two sets of nunchukus in her hands.
"Hi!" the black-clad girl said.
"Nice to see you again, Ramza honey," the pink-clad girl flirted.
"No way!..." Ramza cried out.
"Celia and Lede?!" Alma gasped. "Everhart, how could you hire them?! They've tried to kill us twice!"
"Hey, that's harsh," Celia said. "We were just earning our pay."
"Yeah, we've changed a lot," Lede said. "We don't work for Ajora any more. We're freelance assassins!"
"I hired them to help reclaim the Zodiac Stones," Everhart said. "They'll be working alongside you. I didn't know that you'd met..."
"Oh, we've met," Lede said as she sashayed up to Ramza. She grabbed his right hand and looked at his fingers. "Hmmm... Still unattached, I see," she mused sweetly as she put his arm over her shoulder. Ramza quickly pulled away from the voluptuous broad and scowled at her.
"Good morning, everyone," Orlandu said as he walked through the room, totally oblivious to what was going on. "Where's some coffee?"
"Here, Uncle," Ovelia said as she poured orlandu a mug of steaming hot coffee.
"Thank you," Orlandu said as he gulped down the burning mixture. After about five seconds, his eyes became aware and he looked around. "Eyaaa! Celia and Lede!" he shouted as he drew Excalibur and held it in front of him.
"Chill, gramps," Celia said. "We're not out to get you this time."
After about half an hour, everyone had woken up and Everhart explained why two former enemies were on board the ship. The newcomers that hadn't had any experience with Celia and Lede seemed to take it better than the ones who had.
"Those two aren't trustworthy!" Orlandu argued. "They'll stab us in the back the minute that they have the chance!"
"They can't be all that bad," Celes said. "They haven't killed anyone yet. Besides, if Everhart hired them, they're not going to do anything he hasn't approved, are they?"
"Yeah, Everhart can fire 'em for killing us," Amarant added. "And I'm assuming that they need money. Am I right?"
Celia and Lede nodded.
"I assure you that I will keep them under control for as long as I'm employing them," Everhart said.
"Scouts honor!" Celia said.
"We'll be good girls!" Lede added.
"It's up to Ramza," Rad said. "What do you think Ramza?"
Ramza stroked his chin for a moment. "I don't know..." Ramza said.
"Oh, come on!" Celia protested.
"Tell you what," Lede proposed. "We'll come with you the next time you have to get one of the Zodiac Stones back, and we'll prove that we're trustworthy. Fair?"
"Hmmm..." Ramza said.
"I will accompany them," Everhart said.
"Well, I trust you, Everhart," Ramza said. "So... I guess we'll give it a try."
"I don't know," Orlandu growled. "I don't trust them AT ALL."
"Thank you, Ramza!" Celia said happily.
"You won't regret it..." Lede said softly as she seductively moved her hips around.
"Geez, that chick's a loose cannon, isn't she?" Tifa asked Seifer.
"Yeah," Seifer said. "I wonder if she'd be interested in me?"
Celes smacked him in response.
"So, where go next, Ramza?" Ayla asked.
"We go in volcano again?" Gau asked.
"I overheard from someone in the bar that the group that demolished Porta Vista is hanging out on the Concordia Plains," Ramza said as he pulled out a map of Zeratul and pointed to the familiar grassland. "The person also said that it was a gang of three women, one of which could cast the Holy Explosion spell."
"That has to be Agrias," Ovelia said. "And I'll bet that the other two are Alicia and Lavian!"
"How fitting that Delita would put them together," Rad sighed. "We've gotta help 'em! Ramza, I'm coming on this one!"
"I guess the party will be Celia, Lede, Everhart, Rad and myself," Ramza said. "All right. I'll fly the ship to the Concordia Plains and we'll check it out."
"We'll all just sit and twiddle our thumbs, like usual," Cloud said as he sat down.
"Don't worry, Cloud," Orlandu said. "You'll get your chance to fight again. I'm sure that there'll be a few fights where we're all involved."
Seifer was standing next to Lede. "So, uh, you're an assassin for hire, huh?" he asked.
"Yep," Lede answered.
"So, in a way, you're for rent, aren't you?" Seifer asked.
"I guess you could say that," Lede said as she turned around and looked at Seifer. "What're you getting at?"
"Do you, uh, rent yourself out for anything besides assassinations?" Seifer asked.
Lede seemed to understand what Seifer was trying to say. "Yessss," Lede said, effectively making her 's' sound draw out as long as possible. "But it'll cost extra."
"D'oh!" Seifer huffed when he remembered that he didn't have any cash.
"Oh, too bad," Lede said as she shrugged.
"Give it up, Seifer," Amarant said. He had been listening in.
"Oh, shut up!" Seifer snarled.
"You are starting to sound a lot like Delita," Alma suggested.
"Oh, and that's bad," Seifer reminded himself. "Right! No more of that! I'm gonna be straight as an arrow from now on!"
"...Or until I offer freebies," Lede whispered in his ear.
"Gyeeeehhhh..." Seifer gagged as he blushed wildly.
"This is just sad," Amarant muttered.
"Don't let this happen to you, kids," Celes said. "Be Cool. Stay in SeeD."
"That didn't even rhyme," Orlandu grumbled.
"I'm a soldier, not a bard!" Celes retorted.
"This tangent's just too long," Ovelia muttered.
"Get on with it!" the man from Scene 24 huffed.
"Yes, get on with it!" Tim the Enchanter shouted.
"GET ON WITH IT!!!" a legion of people yelled.
"Gau enjoying tangent," Gau piped up.
"Get ON with it!!!" an animated God shouted.
"Fine! Fine!" Ayla huffed as she waved her hand at the audience. "No blow your blood vessels!"
The flight to Concordia Plains was short, but there was some time during the flight for the group to relax and prepare for the coming battles. Amarant and Ayla sparred on the flight deck, Celes and Tifa argued over whether Espers or Materia produced the best magic, Cloud and Seifer sharpened their swords, Ramza flew the airship, Orlandu watched and Gau ate the stuff between his toes. Ovelia read the newspaper that she had purchased in Fello while Alma, Celia, Lede and Everhart listened.
"The Kingdom of Ivalice somehow stole the entire Zeratulian airship fleet and used it to attack Berkana. President Maclus surrendered after being beaten down by King Delita and thrown in one of his airship dungeons. Now Zeratul is run by Grand Duke, Lord of Nightfall, Son of the Shadows, Penultimate Dictator Law," Ovelia summarized as she read the article.
"That's a mouthful," Alma said.
Everhart frowned. He remembered Law from when he had traveled back in time to meet Ramza. "I assume that Delita put him in power," he grumbled.
"Probably," Ovelia sighed. "Law is an expert swordsman and he has two assassins: a man named Silas and a woman named Adela."
"Never heard of 'em," Celia said. "They must be from a different area."
"They never worked for Ajora," Lede pipe up. "I read his roster of Lucavi and non-Lucavi assassins before, and the names Silas and Adela never showed up."
"They are from the future," Everhart said.
"'Zat so?..." Celia asked.
"This is getting pretty interesting..." Lede said as she raised her left eyebrow in interest.
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that!" Ovelia exclaimed. "Everhart said that this Law guy and his assassins came here from the future along with some fanatical priest, and they're all the reason why Delita's back in power."
"Oh," Celia and Lede said at the same time.
"They're trying to change history..." Alma sighed sadly. "I'm afraid of what they'll do to us when we finally meet them."
"...You will be all right," Everhart said. "You shall not perish, Alma. I will see to it."
A slight blush went over Alma's face. "Thank you, Everhart," she said.
"We're landing!" Ramza called from the control room. After five seconds, the Cassiopeia came to rest on the Concordia Plains. The immense golden-green fields stretched out as far as the eye could see. Far, far off to the east, a small bit of the ocean could be seen. The wind blew with a relaxing, moderate speed, and the bluer-than-blue sky hung overhead. The early afternoon sunlight cast dim shadows on many things.
"What a beautiful place..." Celes said as everyone walked outside.
"...If you're Laura Ingels Wilder," Amarant muttered. "I can't stand grasslands."
"So, where do you think Agrias could be?" Alma asked.
"I'm not sure," Ramza said. "This is a tremendous plain. They could be anywhere..."
"...Or they could be over where that smoke is coming from," Tifa said as she pointed off to the left. Tiny, whispy smoke was curling up from a part of the grassland.
"It could be a campfire," Orlandu suggested. "Agrias, Alicia and Lavian may be under Delita's influence, but they've still got to eat."
"We'd better check it out," Ramza said.
"We'll all come with you in case you need help," Cloud answered.
"Oh, we won't need help," Celia protested.
"We're big girls. We can handle ourselves..." Lede said softly.
"It would be wise to have everyone come along," Everhart said.
"All right," Ramza said. "Everybody, follow us! Worker No.8, come along!"
"Yes, master," Worker No.8 said as he began clunking along behind everyone. The party dashed across the grasslands towards the suspected campsite.
When the group reached the campsite, it was deserted. A small tent was positioned nearby, but no one was in it. "Where Ramza friend go?" Ayla asked.
"I don't know," Ramza said as he looked around.
"Maybe vanish into thin air?" Gau suggested.
"No, I don't think so," Ramza said as he dug around in his pack and pulled out one of the Chinese Zodiac Stones. "We have the Monkey Stone. Agrias can't become invisible."
"This is a bit eerie," Ovelia admitted. "What if this is a trap?"
"If it is, we'll just break the trap!" Seifer chuckled. "It's as simple as that!"
"Awfully confident, aren't you?" Celes muttered.
Suddenly, Celia and Lede looked up. "Someone's coming," Celia hissed.
"Rad, Everhart, Celia, Lede, let's get ready," Ramza said as he drew his Chaos Blade. Everyone else moved away.
Without a sound, Agrias, Alicia and Lavian appeared from behind a grassy hill. They were dressed as they usually were, but their expressions were twisted into glowers of hatred.
"...Agrias?" Ramza asked.
"Hello, Ramza," Agrias sneered. "Still fighting the 'good fight,' eh?..." She then noticed Celia and Lede. "You've joined up with those vermin?! I'm disappointed in you, Ramza."
"Who're you calling 'vermin?!'" Celia snapped.
"Come on, Alicia, Lavian," Rad said as he looked at them. "We're friends, remember? We made that crazy band together and made lots of money on the record sales..."
Alicia and Lavian just bared their Rune Blades and readied themselves for attack.
"Agrias, please!" Ovelia pleaded from the side. "Don't you remember me? I'm Ovelia, the person that you serve as a bodyguard! Have you forgotten your friendship for me and everyone else?"
"It sure sounds like it," Agrias sneered.
"Well, I can see that talking isn't going to solve anything," Ramza said. "Who are you, really?"
"I am Gaia, the Earth Cativo," Agrias said.
"I am Volt, the Thunder Cativo," Alicia continued.
"I am Cryo, the Ice Cativo," Lavian finished.
"All right," Everhart said as he readied his spear. "We must remove them from the Chrono Stones."
"Just try us!" the three women laughed as they each held up different colored stones. A huge blast of light rocked the entire plain.
"Whaaa! So bright!" Ovelia cried as she covered her eyes.
When the light subsided, three creatures stood before Ramza and the other fighting party members. The one on the right was a floating being that was glowing bright yellow and had sparks shooting out of it in every direction. Its eyes were pitch black, and it didn't seem to have a face. The creature on the left was a sleek and slender woman made entirely out of ice. Her long, blue hair reached down to her knees and she scowled hatefully at the group. The beast in the center was a large, earthen golem that towered above the party. It had titanic fists and mammoth feel, and its face was hidden by a stone helmet.
"We, loyal servants of St. Ajora, will send you to your end!..." Gaia roared.
"This is gonna suck," Rad gulped.
"We barely survived when we faced Magma," Ramza gulped. "How do we fend off three of them?"
"Relax, sweetie," Lede said. "You've got us to help, don't you?"
"We must stop the Cativo while not harming the humans trapped inside of them," Everhart ordered.
"Got it, boss," Celia said as she charged up to Volt and drew her scimitars.
"This is gonna be fun!" Lede said as she swung her nunchucks around and leaped at Cryo.
"Please assist me in attacking Gaia, Ramza," Everhart said as he leaped into the air and drove his spear into Gaia. The hulking menace reeled back, but it still fought back. With one blow of its arm, Everhart was knocked to the ground. He recovered quickly, but he wasn't ready to launch another attack.
"Rad, let's help Everhart out," Ramza said as his Chaos Blade appeared and he charged Gaia.
"You got it, Ramza!" Rad replied as he yanked out a Rune Blade and ran after his mentor. Everhart leaped towards Gaia again.
"Such a fool you are," Volt huffed as it exchanged blows with Celia. "You fight the master of electricity with metal weapons?..."
"So?" Celia asked. "What's it to you?"
"STATIC CLING!!!" Volt shouted as it thrust out its arms. Celia was surprised when her scimitars flew out of her hands and landed in Volt's. The electric creep threw the weapons aside and floated towards the black-adorned assassin. It swung its charged appendages as Celia, but she rolled out of the way and avoided the onslaught.
"If I can knock down Ramza Beoulve, what makes you think that you have a chance?" Celia taunted. "SHADOW STITCH!!!"
Celia pointed her fingers at Volt, and suddenly it ceased moving. "Curse you, woman! I cannot move!!!" Volt howled in frustration.
"That's not all, bubba," Celia said as she held her right hand up to her head and made her thumb and forefinger look like an 'L.' "This'll knock you outta what's-her-face's body once and for all! LOSER PIERCE!!!"
Celia's 'L' arranged fingers flew into Volt's stomach. The electric entity screamed and fizzled out. A beat-up and tired-looking Alicia fell to the grass and a yellow, spherical stone landed nearby. Celia spun around and stuck the pose again. "Ha! In the name of the moon, consider yourself punished!" she laughed.
"We're gonna get letters," Cloud muttered.
"You've been hanging around that network censor too long," Tifa scolded.
While Celia was fighting Volt, Lede was mixing it up with Cryo. "I am the mistress of the frozen north," Cryo said as she faced down the pink-clad assassin. "What can you do against me?"
"Plenty, toots!" Lede said as she somersaulted over Cryo and kicked her in the back. The ice woman fell forward, but steadied herself and turned around on a dime.
"You haven't the strength to defeat me, human," Cryo said as she held her hands out. They began to glow with blue light. "Find respite in a frozen demise! ARCTIC BLASTER!!!"
"Whaaa!" Lede exclaimed as she just barely dodged a huge beam of ice that shot past her at lightning speed. She then looked back at Cryo and struck a dangerous-looking pose as she whipped out her nunchucks.
"I've got a talent for carving ice, you know," Lede mused as she leaped at Cryo and began swinging her flails to and fro.
"AAAAHHHH!!!" Cryo wailed as huge globs of ice flew off in every direction. "Cease your attack! Please!!!"
When Lede stepped back, Cryo was reshaped into a swan.
"Wow... Nice," Amarant said.
"And now to finish this," Lede said as she sauntered over to Cryo and put her arms around her. "It's time for my ultimate attack... the Heat Lick!"
"Heat Lick?" Gau asked.
Lede closed her eyes, stuck out her pink tongue and seductively let it slither over Cryo's cheek. The ice swan shrieked horribly and melted away into nothingness, leaving a very worn out Lavian and a light blue stone where she had stood.
"...Woah," Celes gulped.
"I wouldn't mind being on the receiving end of THAT attack," Seifer chuckled.
While Celia and Lede were wowing the crowd and vanquishing two Cativo, Ramza, Everhart and Rad were battling Gaia fiercely.
"You will not win," Gaia growled. "I am much stronger than you!"
"We'll see about that," Ramza said as he swung his Chaos Blade into Gaia's midsection. Large chunks of earth flew out and landed in the grass, but more just appeared to heal the wound.
"You haven't the tools to defeat me," Gaia laughed as it kicked Ramza and Rad down.
"You have something that I want..." Everhart growled as he stabbed Gaia again and again with his spear. The onslaught of thrusts didn't seem to hurt Gaia at all.
"So!" Gaia laughed. "Even you cannot damage me. How powerful I am!" It swung its fist and Everhart went flying.
"Everhart!!!" Alma cried as the black-armored Lancer hit the ground.
"This big oaf's got to have a weak spot..." Rad grumbled as he forced himself into a sitting position.
"Our weapons aren't of much use," Ramza said as he sheathed his Chaos Blade. "What about magic?..."
"Hey, magic might work!" Rad exclaimed. "I equipped my Black Magic skill before the fight started. We can use magic!"
"What do you think Gaia'd be weak against?" Ramza asked.
"You won't live long enough to cast spells upon me!" Gaia laughed as it stomped towards Ramza and Rad.
"Earth monsters are weak against water and ice..." Rad said. "Hey, that's it!"
Rad stood up, clasped his hands together and began charging a spell. Gaia sensed what was happening and ran towards Rad to crush him.
"Oh, no you don't!" Ramza huffed as he landed in front of Rad and began parrying the beast's attacks.
"Now that's teamwork!" Celes cheered.
"If it works, it works," Amarant muttered.
"Your attacks are useless," Gaia growled at Ramza. "Why do you persist?"
"To buy time for THIS!" Ramza said as he noticed that Rad's spell was finished.
Rad glared up at Gaia and pointed at it with both of his hands. "This ends here, Gaia! ICE 4!!!"
"NO!!!" Gaia roared as it backed away, but it was too late. A huge chunk of ice descended from the heavens and encased Gaia within it. After a few moments, the chunk faded and Gaia was freed.
"It didn't work?" Everhart asked.
Everyone waited for a minute, but Gaia didn't move. Ramza walked up to the titan and kicked it in the shin. The leg crumbled away, and then the entire body shattered. All that remained was a brown, spherical stone and a beat-up Agrias.
"Nice thinking, Rad!" Ayla shouted. "Ice harden earth, make it all crumbly!"
"Well, we beat three more Cativo," Ramza said. "Thanks, everyone. Celia, Lede, I'm sorry. I guess I was wrong."
"Apology accepted, cutie pie," Lede cooed.
"Arrrrgh..." Agrias groaned as she tried to stand up. "What happened?..."
"Agrias, are you all right?" Ramza asked as he knelt down before his friend. Rad and Everhart were helping Alicia and Lavian up as well.
"Ramza?..." Agrias asked as she looked up at him. Ramza was very surprised when Agrias grabbed him and hugged him tightly. "You're all right! Thank God! I was afraid that I'd hurt you! You're all right! I'm so freakin' happy! Can't you tell?!"
"(GAAAAACKKK,)" Ramza managed to choke out. Agrias was famous for her bear hugs. She often showered them upon her lover Mustadio, and she almost broke his ribs a few times.
Agrias took the hint and let Ramza go. She then got up and dusted herself off. "Man, what a trip," she said. "I can't remember a thing after that slimebag Delita pulled the Sheep Stone on me..."
"The Sheep Stone?..." Ramza asked. "Hmm... Agrias, I think we've got a lot to talk about."
"Boy, you sure have a way with women, Beoulve," Celia mused as Lede and she came up behind them.
"What the... Hey, what're they doing here?!" Agrias asked angrily.
"Come back to the airship and I'll explain everything," Ramza said as everyone started walking back towards the Cassiopeia.
"Yeah, you'd better," Agrias muttered as she looked around. "This looks like a regular freaks n' geeks convention."
"I resent that," Amarant grumbled. "Just because I have green skin and red hair, people think I'm a freak. I've been called 'Christmas Color Man' so many times that I could puke."
Still chatting happily, the party boarded the Cassiopeia to discuss the current events.
WRITER'S NOTE: The campfire that Agrias lit to lure the group to her eventually started a massive prairie fire. Remember, only you can prevent forest fires. Oh, wait. That didn't make any sense... Oh, hell. Just go on to the next chapter.
