(All right, I skipped out the whole journey thingy.....A trip through Fossil Roo is nothing, trust me. This fic's a lot more that that, so please forgive me for the whole skipping the journet part. The first three paragraphs are before he goes to the Outer continent, and the rest is the present time....you know, when the fic first started out? It's back to that....anyway....)
(Lizzie, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to take so long, and I'm sorry this chapter is so short....I have very little time now...I'll keep trying, though! *smile*)
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He had to admit that he was relieved. Cora had escaped, obviously, and he was free. Free as an exiled man could get, that was...How could he be free, when Zidane didn't even trust him any longer? Of course, in these cases, he would simply shrug it of and return to Treno until things settled down again. It wasn't cowardice, it was logic. But even so, he had nothing to return to but the threat of the entire realm looking for him, and every last bounty hunter after his hide.
If he was caught, he was worse than dead. He was dead, and dead in front of the two people he'd rather not be executed in front of. Zidane was the worst, and Dagger's accusing stare wouldn't help matters either. The fact was clear -- he had to flee Alexandria, go to Madain Sari, and find Lani. If she wasn't with him, she was there, and if she wasn't there, she was dead. Simple as that.
The journey was long....
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...and boring. Amarant shook himself from the ugly memories, and slowly unclenched his fist. He couldn't remember much of his little 'adventure', nor had he cared to take any needy notes about the weather -- no matter how terrible it had become. He had to travel through Burmecia's realm, and get get soaked thoroughly while he was at it. The only thing he regretted more than the damned rain that vexed him, was the fact that he'd left the others behind for Zidane and Dagger to explain matters to. And their explaination wasn't exactly the more truthful side of the entire story.
Amarant knew it. Anger -- it was undoubtedly that one emotion that had gotten him into this mess in the first place. The entire trip through Fossil Roo, the long, hot days of travelling the Outer Continent's edge had been hard enough without potions or ethers, let alone self pity. Acussing himself was the last thing on his 'to do' list.
The bandit shrugged the emotions from his shoulders as if they were made of stale air, and pulled himself to his feet, cursing the remaining half of his pending trip. He'd passed the overhanging village of Conde Petie already, and was glad of it. He rather despised their way of disposing of sewage in that place. If not up, then down, he supposed. It was the only thing that kept him from scaling the cliff walls and wringing every lousy dwarf within.
Amarant travelled on, ignoring the wind, the sun, and the blistering heat that never gave in. He hated it, and cursed at every ticking second that passed for having to bear it. But the only time to act upon something, is when you had something to act upon. He had nothing to get angry over besides mother nature and her ugly ways of tending her second-most deserted continent. What was he to do? Yell at her?
The night came on. In one day, he'd managed to make it as far as the other end of the Mountain Path. It still felt awkward to pass the place and not see the towering tree hovering above all else...Now it was but a giant pile of withering roots. Within the next decade or so, it would be nothing but a mound of eroded dirt, and then, another forest of one kind or nother. Did he care? Of course not. But the absence of the tree was unnerving....
The next morning was nothing but more annoyances. He woke up to the snarling face of some hairy, six-eyed creature trying to rob him in his sleep. He took care of it easily, and continued his little expedition, crossing the large plain before him. Finally, for what seemed to him like hours, Madain Sari loomed before him. The crushed temples, the weathered buildings, and the dusty air was not as unfamiliar as he'd expected. It was almost....homey.
Amarant passed through the pillars that had once stood as a gate, lifting his head to peer at the circular indentation he knew as the Wall Of Eidolons. If anywhere, Lani would be there, unless she was out hunting...or fishing. The bandit crossed his arms, listening to the defeaning silence with uncertainty. He snorted. No, even if Lani were gone....where were the moogles? There was no noise. None at all.
Warily, he turned a full 180 degrees, to look behind him, and then faced the path again. There was something wrong....very wrong.
"KUPO!!!!"
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"Kupo!"
"Hullo, Kupo," greeted Cora, absently. She crossed the yard and slumped herself onto a broken bit of rubble. "G'morning Stiltzkin."
"Good morning, kupo!" said Kupo, almost too cheerfully. Stiltzkin shot him an uncertain glance. "What's wrong?" he inquired, turning to the girl. "You don't look so happy, Cora."
"What's wrong?" the girl echoed, with a defaeted note in her voice. She threw her hands into the air. "Why, everything's wrong! He escaped from prison, and now there's legions of men after him! What have I done???"
Stiltzkin blinked, "Don't talk so loud!" he insisted, waddling closer. "Do you want everyone to know what you did?"
"I don't care..." Cor pouted, burying her face into her hands. "I didn't expect them to go this far with trying to find him. Why can't they just leave him alone? He's out of the realm!"
"They don't know that for sure," said Stiltzkin. "They just want to find him, and make sure that he's not going to come back."
"But that's awful!" the girl insisted. "It's like what they do to those stupid monsters that appear around town! Cage 'im up, fly him away and release him somewhere where they know they can't survive!"
"That man can survive anything," came a voice from the steeple entrance.
Startled, Cora squeaked, and leapt to her feet. She spun to face the intruder, only to meet a friendly, familiar face. Amses smiled, "Good morning, Cora. I'm so glad to see you're still here, and not tailing that fugitive of a man you seem so attached to."
Cora sighed, helplessly extending her palms towards the heavens, "Why, Amses....why must you always show up without warning?"
"Oh, you're secret's safe with me, girl," grumbled the old man, wringing his hands. "I just don't think that it's right proper for a noble lady like yourself to be fussin' over such a silly thing..."
"Amses!" the girl snapped. "You KNOW that he's innocent. He's-"
"I do not," snapped the old man, an unusual firmness and tranquility flooding his voice. Shocked, Cora took a step back, too dazed to say anything. Amses glowered at her for what seemed to be hours. Finally, and to her surprise, he quickly cast his eyes to the cobblestones. "But I do...I do believe that he is innocent, Cora. No one can know these things unless you have true proof. And that is why I'm letting you go."
Cora stared, her jaw trembling, "Wh-what? B-but, go where?"
"There," said Amses, shrugging. "Wherever. Travelling, Cora. To warn him."
But Cora was all the more baffled, "But...warn him...? Stiltzkin said-"
"The Alexandrians are not what that man has to fear," said the old man, moving forward, like a ghost. "Cora, I've known you for too long. You were planning on going after him after all, and you know it. Amarant Coral is safe as long as Her Majesty's troops are all that follows him. But the...the other man on his trail is dangerous, Cora, and you have to tell him."
"Wha..." Cora shook her head feverishly. "What? Amses, you're not talking sense! What man on his trail?"
Amses shrugged, as if he'd no notion of what he'd just said, "Probably just drunk talk, Cora, but there's a mighty rumour spreadin' that tells about a black-caped man tryin' for Coral's death."
Cora's eyes widened. "He...she...they want to kill Amarant?"
"Sadly," affirmed the old man. "I know that I'm your guardian, Cora, and I should have more sense than te jus-"
The girl smirked, "Oh, really, Amses," she said, mockingly. "When was the last time you acted at guardianly towards me? Geez, you'd think you were my younger brother or something."
"Older brother," the man argued, his throat cracking in a cheery laugh. "If it's not brains or brawn I got to lose compared to the almight Cora, it's nonsense. I'm far wiser than you, and don't forget it!"
"Right," scoffed the girl, moving forward to pass him by, just barely brushing his shoulder. "That's why you go drinking every single night of your life."
Amses shook his head, and didn't watch the girl leave. He turned his eyes on the two moogles, who were both staring at him as if he'd produced rotten kupo nuts from his pockets, "Don't look at me that way," he said gruffly, waving his hands towards them dismissively. The old man turned on his heel to follow the girl out of the steeple, but an angry 'kupo' made him freeze in his tracks.
"Ooooh, you're a coward, kupo!" Kupo cried, moving towards him with ungraceful flaps of his wings. "Kupo! You can't let her go alone, kupo!"
"For once, he's right," said Stiltzkin, shaking his head. "You have to go after her."
Amses laughed, looking between the two moogles, "My fighting days are long over, you two. Now c'mon, stop pestering me, and I'll get you both a snack or somethin'..."
The old man turned again, shaking his head. But the next words the moogle cried out were too mind-racking to ignore, "What if she gets in trouble, kupo! What if she needs your help?"
Slowly, Amses turned to stare at both moogles, one hovering, the other standing with an expectant look twisting his face. The guardian sighed. How did his life end up this way? "Oh, poor feet, forgive me for what I'm about to do..." he muttered under his breath. Then, clearing his throat, he made solemn eye contact with the oddly-dressed moogle, who was returning his stare just as wisely. "Now you've done it..." he growled. Suddenly, he sighed. "Well, paint me black and call my an interior decorator...you've convinced me. Kupo, get me a new weapon from the shops....anything will do. Stiltzkin, I hate to ask of it, but you need to find me some new armour. I know it's hard to find around here, but....dang blast it, I gotta go with her."
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(Lizzie, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to take so long, and I'm sorry this chapter is so short....I have very little time now...I'll keep trying, though! *smile*)
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He had to admit that he was relieved. Cora had escaped, obviously, and he was free. Free as an exiled man could get, that was...How could he be free, when Zidane didn't even trust him any longer? Of course, in these cases, he would simply shrug it of and return to Treno until things settled down again. It wasn't cowardice, it was logic. But even so, he had nothing to return to but the threat of the entire realm looking for him, and every last bounty hunter after his hide.
If he was caught, he was worse than dead. He was dead, and dead in front of the two people he'd rather not be executed in front of. Zidane was the worst, and Dagger's accusing stare wouldn't help matters either. The fact was clear -- he had to flee Alexandria, go to Madain Sari, and find Lani. If she wasn't with him, she was there, and if she wasn't there, she was dead. Simple as that.
The journey was long....
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...and boring. Amarant shook himself from the ugly memories, and slowly unclenched his fist. He couldn't remember much of his little 'adventure', nor had he cared to take any needy notes about the weather -- no matter how terrible it had become. He had to travel through Burmecia's realm, and get get soaked thoroughly while he was at it. The only thing he regretted more than the damned rain that vexed him, was the fact that he'd left the others behind for Zidane and Dagger to explain matters to. And their explaination wasn't exactly the more truthful side of the entire story.
Amarant knew it. Anger -- it was undoubtedly that one emotion that had gotten him into this mess in the first place. The entire trip through Fossil Roo, the long, hot days of travelling the Outer Continent's edge had been hard enough without potions or ethers, let alone self pity. Acussing himself was the last thing on his 'to do' list.
The bandit shrugged the emotions from his shoulders as if they were made of stale air, and pulled himself to his feet, cursing the remaining half of his pending trip. He'd passed the overhanging village of Conde Petie already, and was glad of it. He rather despised their way of disposing of sewage in that place. If not up, then down, he supposed. It was the only thing that kept him from scaling the cliff walls and wringing every lousy dwarf within.
Amarant travelled on, ignoring the wind, the sun, and the blistering heat that never gave in. He hated it, and cursed at every ticking second that passed for having to bear it. But the only time to act upon something, is when you had something to act upon. He had nothing to get angry over besides mother nature and her ugly ways of tending her second-most deserted continent. What was he to do? Yell at her?
The night came on. In one day, he'd managed to make it as far as the other end of the Mountain Path. It still felt awkward to pass the place and not see the towering tree hovering above all else...Now it was but a giant pile of withering roots. Within the next decade or so, it would be nothing but a mound of eroded dirt, and then, another forest of one kind or nother. Did he care? Of course not. But the absence of the tree was unnerving....
The next morning was nothing but more annoyances. He woke up to the snarling face of some hairy, six-eyed creature trying to rob him in his sleep. He took care of it easily, and continued his little expedition, crossing the large plain before him. Finally, for what seemed to him like hours, Madain Sari loomed before him. The crushed temples, the weathered buildings, and the dusty air was not as unfamiliar as he'd expected. It was almost....homey.
Amarant passed through the pillars that had once stood as a gate, lifting his head to peer at the circular indentation he knew as the Wall Of Eidolons. If anywhere, Lani would be there, unless she was out hunting...or fishing. The bandit crossed his arms, listening to the defeaning silence with uncertainty. He snorted. No, even if Lani were gone....where were the moogles? There was no noise. None at all.
Warily, he turned a full 180 degrees, to look behind him, and then faced the path again. There was something wrong....very wrong.
"KUPO!!!!"
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"Kupo!"
"Hullo, Kupo," greeted Cora, absently. She crossed the yard and slumped herself onto a broken bit of rubble. "G'morning Stiltzkin."
"Good morning, kupo!" said Kupo, almost too cheerfully. Stiltzkin shot him an uncertain glance. "What's wrong?" he inquired, turning to the girl. "You don't look so happy, Cora."
"What's wrong?" the girl echoed, with a defaeted note in her voice. She threw her hands into the air. "Why, everything's wrong! He escaped from prison, and now there's legions of men after him! What have I done???"
Stiltzkin blinked, "Don't talk so loud!" he insisted, waddling closer. "Do you want everyone to know what you did?"
"I don't care..." Cor pouted, burying her face into her hands. "I didn't expect them to go this far with trying to find him. Why can't they just leave him alone? He's out of the realm!"
"They don't know that for sure," said Stiltzkin. "They just want to find him, and make sure that he's not going to come back."
"But that's awful!" the girl insisted. "It's like what they do to those stupid monsters that appear around town! Cage 'im up, fly him away and release him somewhere where they know they can't survive!"
"That man can survive anything," came a voice from the steeple entrance.
Startled, Cora squeaked, and leapt to her feet. She spun to face the intruder, only to meet a friendly, familiar face. Amses smiled, "Good morning, Cora. I'm so glad to see you're still here, and not tailing that fugitive of a man you seem so attached to."
Cora sighed, helplessly extending her palms towards the heavens, "Why, Amses....why must you always show up without warning?"
"Oh, you're secret's safe with me, girl," grumbled the old man, wringing his hands. "I just don't think that it's right proper for a noble lady like yourself to be fussin' over such a silly thing..."
"Amses!" the girl snapped. "You KNOW that he's innocent. He's-"
"I do not," snapped the old man, an unusual firmness and tranquility flooding his voice. Shocked, Cora took a step back, too dazed to say anything. Amses glowered at her for what seemed to be hours. Finally, and to her surprise, he quickly cast his eyes to the cobblestones. "But I do...I do believe that he is innocent, Cora. No one can know these things unless you have true proof. And that is why I'm letting you go."
Cora stared, her jaw trembling, "Wh-what? B-but, go where?"
"There," said Amses, shrugging. "Wherever. Travelling, Cora. To warn him."
But Cora was all the more baffled, "But...warn him...? Stiltzkin said-"
"The Alexandrians are not what that man has to fear," said the old man, moving forward, like a ghost. "Cora, I've known you for too long. You were planning on going after him after all, and you know it. Amarant Coral is safe as long as Her Majesty's troops are all that follows him. But the...the other man on his trail is dangerous, Cora, and you have to tell him."
"Wha..." Cora shook her head feverishly. "What? Amses, you're not talking sense! What man on his trail?"
Amses shrugged, as if he'd no notion of what he'd just said, "Probably just drunk talk, Cora, but there's a mighty rumour spreadin' that tells about a black-caped man tryin' for Coral's death."
Cora's eyes widened. "He...she...they want to kill Amarant?"
"Sadly," affirmed the old man. "I know that I'm your guardian, Cora, and I should have more sense than te jus-"
The girl smirked, "Oh, really, Amses," she said, mockingly. "When was the last time you acted at guardianly towards me? Geez, you'd think you were my younger brother or something."
"Older brother," the man argued, his throat cracking in a cheery laugh. "If it's not brains or brawn I got to lose compared to the almight Cora, it's nonsense. I'm far wiser than you, and don't forget it!"
"Right," scoffed the girl, moving forward to pass him by, just barely brushing his shoulder. "That's why you go drinking every single night of your life."
Amses shook his head, and didn't watch the girl leave. He turned his eyes on the two moogles, who were both staring at him as if he'd produced rotten kupo nuts from his pockets, "Don't look at me that way," he said gruffly, waving his hands towards them dismissively. The old man turned on his heel to follow the girl out of the steeple, but an angry 'kupo' made him freeze in his tracks.
"Ooooh, you're a coward, kupo!" Kupo cried, moving towards him with ungraceful flaps of his wings. "Kupo! You can't let her go alone, kupo!"
"For once, he's right," said Stiltzkin, shaking his head. "You have to go after her."
Amses laughed, looking between the two moogles, "My fighting days are long over, you two. Now c'mon, stop pestering me, and I'll get you both a snack or somethin'..."
The old man turned again, shaking his head. But the next words the moogle cried out were too mind-racking to ignore, "What if she gets in trouble, kupo! What if she needs your help?"
Slowly, Amses turned to stare at both moogles, one hovering, the other standing with an expectant look twisting his face. The guardian sighed. How did his life end up this way? "Oh, poor feet, forgive me for what I'm about to do..." he muttered under his breath. Then, clearing his throat, he made solemn eye contact with the oddly-dressed moogle, who was returning his stare just as wisely. "Now you've done it..." he growled. Suddenly, he sighed. "Well, paint me black and call my an interior decorator...you've convinced me. Kupo, get me a new weapon from the shops....anything will do. Stiltzkin, I hate to ask of it, but you need to find me some new armour. I know it's hard to find around here, but....dang blast it, I gotta go with her."
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