Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Final Fantasy IX characters but my characters are my own creations and I do own the rights to them.



Chapter Nineteen: The Final Battle Begins

Using a telescope that had been lent to him, Zidane surveyed the area surrounding the castle walls. Every once in a while he would turn and observe another area. With a determined grunt he snapped the telescope shut and headed back inside. Hurrying, he made his way down to the courtyard of the castle where everyone was waiting. The entire force that had been protecting the castle was stationed inside the gates that led to the rest of the castle. The force had been pulled from the walls so that they could take the oncoming charge from the monsters waiting outside and allow the small task force to make their way through the city towards Xavier.

Outside the monsters stood inches from the barrier. They could feel the pulsating energy that was starting to weaken. Long ago they had finally gotten smart and stopped attacking the barrier. Now they waited with a patience that only a predator had. The silence was so thick that you could feel it weighing down on your shoulders. Everyone knew that this would be the final stand.

"Troops ready!" Steiner's brass voice called out, breaking the quiet. The sound of clanking armor could be heard as soldiers prepared themselves.

Zidane walked up to Phina. She was standing in a secluded corner where she was studying the piece of paper that she had stolen from Xavier's study. By now the corners were ripped and the entire thing was falling apart from being folded and unfolded so many times.

"Hey," Zidane said giving her a small smile. Phina gave him a tired one in return.

"Hey."

"So you know what you're going to do once we get out there?" he asked leaning against the stonewall next to her.

"Sorta. I'm just going to have to use some immense power from nowhere to bring down the first three barriers. The last one can only be destroyed by an eidolon. That makes it easy for me. I'll just summon Phi-I mean the golden phoenix to get rid of that one."

"So basically it's the first three barriers that are going to be the problem and not the last one?"

"Yep, that's about it," Phina said with a sigh. "Did you find out where he is?"

"Yeah. He's on the south side of town. It's completely empty of anything."

"Well, let's get going then. We have to stop this soon," Phina said pushing herself away from the wall. A hand that wrapped around her waist stopped her. She felt Zidane pull her to him so that she stood with his arms wrapped around her with her back to him. He put his chin on her shoulder and closed his eyes. He just wanted to hold her and never let go. What they were about to do was so dangerous that there was a very high probability that none of them would come out alive.

Phina sighed and leaned into Zidane. She didn't want to leave his warm embrace. There was so much that she wanted to do in this life. Before she might not have cared about whether she lived or died. But now she had friends, a family, and someone that she loved. Together they stood just holding each other and wanting nothing more until Freya spotted them.

"Come on you two. We're about to start," she said in a reassuring voice. Zidane looked up and dropped his arms from Phina's waist. Together the three friends headed to the gates knowing very well that this might be the last time that they saw each other alive.

At the gates Steiner's troops were finally ready to make their last stand. Near the back of the small army stood eleven friends anxiously awaiting the start of their mission. The crowd of people and angels grew quiet as a loud creaking could be heard. The large wooden gates slowly opened. Outside the monsters wailed. They could see their prey but could not yet reach them as the barrier was still in place.

And then it vanished and the battle began.

Metal clashed with tooth and claw as each side tried to gain the upper hand. The screams of men and monsters filled the air and blood pooled on the ground. Angels stood back to back in little clumps trying their hardest to help the fallen while the men doggedly tried to push the monsters back towards the city.

Phina and company had charged out of the gates roaring at the top of their lungs just like everybody else but they had cut right through. Slash and run was their motto as the friends formed a tight ring around Phina. They could not have her dying at the beginning of the battle. Phina felt a little claustrophobic from being pressed in on all sides but it could not be helped.

Pretty soon they had reached the edge of the city and the monsters in the area became fewer and fewer. The ring around Phina loosened and she was finally able to breathe a little easier. She had been right in thinking that everyone she had chosen would be right for the job. They had lost no one and only Steiner and Beatrix had sustained a few cuts because they had been in the lead. Vivi and Eiko were breathing hard but they were as cheerful as ever. They acted like this was every day thing.

"Okay, Phase One is complete. Now we just have to find unicorn man," Zidane growled.

"Since when has this attack been separated into stages?" Phina asked with a grin. Zidane just grinned right back and didn't answer her question.

"So were is this guy supposed to be anyway?" Amarant growled in Phina's ear. She jumped at the sound of his voice. Her nerves were already stretched to the limit and Amarant wasn't helping. Nevertheless she shook it off and closed her eyes. She could feel a tug coming from the west and guessed that was where Xavier was hiding.

"That way," she said pointing. They all followed her lead and headed down a side alley. After almost a half an hour of wandering around Phina finally stopped at the entrance to the city square. The place radiated with power that everyone could feel. Eiko stepped forward and started to make her way into the square. About halfway to the entrance she was knocked back onto her bottom.

"Ouch!" she cried rubbing her head.

"It's one of the shields," Gabriela said.

"Thank you Captain Obvious but you're a little late with the information," Amarant snorted. The angel just glared at him and received a glare in return. Phina sighed and stepped forward to where the fallen princess sat. She held out a hand and helped to pick her up. Then she turned to the shield.

"I must go on alone," Phina said. Zidane shuddered. She was using the voice that she had used back in the cave in the mountains. He could tell she was scared but determined.

"But we can help!" Eiko cried. Phina looked down at the girl and shook her head sadly. Eiko glanced around and noticed that everyone was in agreement with Phina. They knew that there was nothing they could do now. It was all up to her.

"I want you all to go back and help with the fighting. If I can't stop this then you need to help Garnet protect the people. They won't have a world where they can live in peace anymore so you have to make sure that the castle doesn't fall to the siege laid on it," Phina's voice echoed eerily.

"Come on guys. Let's go. There's nothing more we can do. We've completed our job and now it's up to Phina," Zidane said, heading away. Everybody else followed suit except for Eiko. She gave Phina one last hug.

"Be careful okay," Eiko whispered in Phina's ear. Letting go she followed everyone else back to where the battle was still in full force. Phina waved goodbye to the others as they left. Once they were out of sight she turned back to the barrier and tried hard to think. There must be some way that she could call up an immense power to break the shield. Xavier said that she could but how.

Shrugging her shoulders Phina decided to get a closer look. She walked over to the edge of the barrier and put her hands out. They came in contact with nothing but air. Frowning, she took a step forward. Still nothing. Cautiously she took a few more steps and came to the entrance of the square. Looking around Phina groped with her hands in confusion.

The barrier was gone.

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Very interesting. We have finally come to the final showdown. Yipee! Who will win? Who will lose? Why is the barrier gone? Well if you had been paying attention earlier in the story you would know now wouldn't you. Any guesses? Well the answer is. . . can't tell ya! That would just ruin the surprise now wouldn't it.

More reviews would be very nice. (NO! I'm not begging. I'm just SUGGESTING that they would be very nice. * hint hint *)