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Rebellion Against Fate
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Chapter Two: The End of the Beginning
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"Die!" Lloyd shouted in pure hatred as he charged toward Melbu Frahma, who hardly resembled a wingly at this point, and was definitely looking uglier than anything he had seen in a long while.
The four tentacles hissed and tried to strike him, but he avoided each attack with graceful movements. Bulky as the Divine Dragoon Armor was, it was also surprisingly light, allowing him to move with unaffected agility.
"Over here!" He taunted, succeeding in angering Melbu Frahma further, and the self-appointed God of Destruction focused his entire effort on Lloyd, completely ignoring Dart and the other dragoons.
Now would be a very time to join the fray! Lloyd thought as he spared a glance at the motionless group below in annoyance. Whatever the hell are they waiting for, written instructions?!
Ah well, he could just do the work himself. With a cry, Lloyd channeled all of his energy into the Dragon Buster and flew toward Melbu Frahma, intend on striking his head.
"Annoying dragonfly!" Melbu Frahma hissed, a strange glare in his slanted eyes.
Shit! Lloyd recognized the danger with great alarm. But he was seconds too late. As he dodged the tentacles, he was completely unaware of the greater dangers hidden behind. He could only continue his descend in horror as a laser beam shot from Melbu Frahma's hand and struck him directly in his chest, penetrating his armor.
Unbearable pain consumed his entire body, the impact threw him back and he crashed to the ground with a thud. The dragon buster slipped out of his hand and landed several feet away. Lloyd tried to move toward it, but only succeeded in coughing up blood.
Blackness swam on the edges of his vision, only his indomitable will prevented him from surrendering to the searing pain.
"Lloyd!" He heard Dart's voice as the blond man knelt beside him. Strangely, Melbu Frahma did not reach out to strike again. He probably didn't consider them a threat anyway, ascending into godhood as he was.
Wink... Even if I cannot do it myself, she must be spared... Melbu Frahma must die!
"Here, take this!" He plucked the divine dragon spirit out of his armor and thrust it into Dart's hand.
"What is it?"
If Lloyd had any energy left, he would have rolled his eyes Dart's painfully unnecessary question.
Am I really going to trust the fate of the world with them? Damn it all... No choice left, I suppose.
"It is the Dragoon Spirit of the Divine Dragon... And the Dragon Buster."
"Thank you, Lloyd." Dart obviously didn't know what to make of the turn of events, as he stared down at his former nemesis.
"Don't get conceited," Lloyd snorted out a reply, "I just ended up here while I was pursuing my own ideal. It's not as if I want to help you in particular. His birth means the death of the world. Hurry up... stop him."
Dart nodded solemnly. Strangely, his gaze was reassuring. Thinking back to how far the Red-eyed Dragoon had actually came on his journey, Lloyd nodded in satisfaction.
"Farewell... people who confront the fate of Soa... " Gathering the last bit of energy in his battered body, Lloyd managed to teleport himself away from the battle scene.
Lloyd hadn't managed to get far. With a strangled cry, he re-materialized and crashed to the ground, nearly fainting from the pain. His entire body was wrecked with spasms, but Lloyd forced his vision to focus and recognized his surroundings.
I'm still inside the moon...
Sensing that there were no monsters in the immediate area, Lloyd closed his eyes and willed his body to heal.
If the Dragoons fail, I must go back to aid them... And if they succeed, I must get out of here alive. Wink...She's waiting for me. I can't die!
Never before had Lloyd wanted so much to be alive. Firm in his purpose, he focused on the regeneration of his badly broken body. The magic in his Wingly blood rushed to answer his call, and gradually the pain inside his chest began to lose some of its sharp edges. Directing the magic to course through his body, he willed his bones and torn flash to mend.
Finally, Lloyd managed to climb to his feet shakily. But as soon as he'd done that, the ground shook violently, sending him flat on his back once again.
What's going on? Did they succeed?
As if answering his question, several comet-like light sped over his head with alarming speed. In their haste to escape, no one noticed the crumpled figure on the ground below. Huge rocks began to fall, everything was crashing down.
"We gotta hurry! Melbu Frahma and this whole place's gonna blow up!" As the dragoons flew overhead, Lloyd's superior hearing caught the voice of the happy-go-lucky Blue Sea Dragoon.
They killed him! Time to get out here!
Desperation alone gave him the energy to stand. Pale blue wings burst out from his back and he lifted himself off the splitting ground, trailing after the dragoons, swiftly dodging the flying boulders.
Almost there... He could see the light ahead, getting bigger and brighter...
Suddenly, a loud explosion resonated behind him and waves of heat rushed out toward him. The moon exploded into pieces, its force tossed Lloyd outward like a broken doll, knocked him unconscious and sent him plummeting into the waters below.
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Pain.
Darkness.
Freezing cold.
Sound of waves meeting the shore, a salty taste...
Where am I? Why can't I move? Why can't I see anything? Am I...
Dead?
"We must do something! Or he's going to die very soon!"
A voice, somehow familiar...
Rose?!
"But what can be done? Neither your Black-Burst Dragon nor my Red-Eyed Dragon possess any healing power!"
The Red Dragoon... Dart, no, Zieg!
"There is something we can try..."
"What?"
"Astral Drain."
"Draw energy from my dragon spirit and send it into his body?" A thoughtful pause, "Yeah, that's worth a try."
"Ready then?" Another pause, and then-
"Astral Drain!"
Life force washed over him and dissipated into his body, suddenly it was warmer, easier to breathe.
"There. It's not much, but it'll keep him alive."
With great difficulty, Lloyd lifted his heavy lids and looked up, his cracked lips forming words: "Rose... Zieg."
The two ancient Dragoons smiled down at him. But something was different about them. They seemed... eternal.
Lloyd managed to struggle to his feet, not really trusting his eyes: "You two are..."
"Dead. Yes." Zieg answered him, "You are lucky that we spotted you when we did. Any longer, and our souls would no longer be able to wield the power of the dragon spirits."
Lloyd regarded the two ghosts in front of him: "Why are you helping me?"
"Because you helped us. And because in your heart, you are a Dragoon too." Rose answered softly, smiling a bit, "When Dragoons meet, blood will flow."
"And when they leave, time will slow." Zieg finished and took Rose's hand in his, "A new journey awaits us. Farewell, wielder of the divine dragon spirit."
A bright light encased the ghostly figures of the two ancient dragoons, forcing Lloyd to close his eyes. When the light faded and he reopened his eyes, they were gone.
Only two orbs, one red and one dark, lay quietly in the sand. Beside them, an ornate sword handle lay half buried.
Lloyd picked it up and buckled it to his belt.
The Dragon Buster...
"Zieg, Rose... thank you." Lloyd whispered, and turned to drag himself away from the desolate beach. He didn't have the energy to fly yet, and every movement still made his body cry out in pain. But he was alive, and he was heading back to the one waiting for his return.
Wink... I hope you are all right.
As Lloyd made his way toward Mille Seseau, little did he suspect that trouble was brewing beyond the Kashua Glacier, about to unleash a chain of events which would shake the foundation of the entire planet.
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A/N:
Hmm, okay. The ghost thing is a bit stretched... But I figured, if all the dead dragoons can appear in Vellweb and attack with their dragon magic, then technically, Zieg and Rose could aid Lloyd before they passed on. Not to mention, the ghost of Shirley was the one who gave Dart her dragon spirit, so they must be able to control the orbs to a certain extent... At least that's my theory anyway.
This chapter concluded my recount of the events at the end of the game. I'm afraid I made Dart look like a moron in this chapter but uh... It was told from Lloyd's POV and I believe he did think Dart was a moron. In future chapters there will not be anymore Dart bashing, hopefully. I do adore the guy, although some of his dialogues are a bit stupid. I blame it on the writers though. As a playable character, he wasn't that bad at all.
Next chapter, new problems will arise and wrack havoc in Deningrad, the ancient birth city of Winglies.