Chapter Nineteen: Loss

"We made it!" Jessica let out a sigh of relief as she squeezed her way out of the cramped plane. The others were hot on her trail, the only person who was ahead of her was Sarah who rushed out into the dense forest.
"Wait up, Sarah! There are dangerous monsters on this island!" Harry called to the goat.
It wasn't long until the group came to a clearing in the middle of the forest. In the centre of the clearing stood a large grass hut.
"This is thuh Temple of thuh Aynshunts? Pretty small if y'ask meh," Ziggy commented.
Kevinda remained silent as she wandered closer to the hut, Florence was a few paces behind her. She had her eyes locked on the fortune teller.
"Jim!" Jessica called. "Jim, are you in there?"
Muffie was at the rear of the group and she looked around sadly. "Not a single spoon," she sighed. "Hey, wait a second."
As Jessica and Sarah, who were at the front of the group, drew closer to the hut, they heard a painful moan from within. Sarah bleated curiously as she cautiously stepped closer.
"You guys!" Muffie ran up to the others. She held a bent spoon in her hand. "He's here!"
"What are you spoony talking about?" Chazar demanded.
"This spoon, it's one of mine. Olaf must have gotten it caught in his boot or something and then dropped it. He has to be here."
Harry readied his sword. "We'll be ready for him." His eyes darted about and then he jumped at a sudden cry. It was Jessica.
The others ran up to Jessica and Sarah who were at the entrance of the hut. Inside, they saw the Clerk, Murry, drenched in whipped cream, laying near a large alter. Above the alter they saw Jim, hatless, tied upside down and suspended in the air.
"Olaf... He's here... He must be stopped..." Murry gasped as he tried to drag himself to his feet. "Helga... Parrot... Rusty... They're all in there... with him..." He finally gave up and collapsed. His eyes were shut and there was no breath left in him to bring him life. Florence gasped and stepped back, bumping into something as she did so. Jim started moving downwards toward the alter.
"Guys! It's great to see you but uh... Little help here?" Jim said as he struggled against his bindings.
Before Harry could cut Jim free, he began to go into the alter, at least, his hair did. The shape of the disastrous blonde mess on Jim's head fit perfectly into a set of grooves in the alter. The piece of stone holding Jim's head began to glow and quite suddenly the whole group found themselves in a dimly lit cave.
Harry looked around the dank surroundings and gasped. "This is our safe house... The safe house of all those that can speak to the planet. Only a few hold the key to get in... How can Jim..?" He looked at Jim in astonishment. He was sitting on the ground, suddenly freed from his bindings, rubbing his head.
"Here Jim," Florence said softly as she handed Jim his hat. "This fell off when the Clerks grabbed you." Jim smiled up at her as he accepted the hat and slid it carefully over his hair.
Sarah then let out a bleat and gleefully leapt on top of Jim. The goat affectionately nuzzled up to her owner.
"Heh, I missed you too, girl." Jim said happily as he fondly petted the animal.
"All right, everyone's back together. Now, let's get off our marmosets and figure out how to get out of this spoony cave!" Chazzy exclaimed.
"But where are we supposed to go?" Muffie inquired.
"I sense... Our path is in this direction," Kevinda stated and began walking.
Jessica looked at the fortune teller, then down at the path she had chosen. "What was your first clue? Perhaps the convenient trail of whipped cream?"

The group followed the trail of whipped cream for some time, until they came to the entrance of a room that was lit with a bright, golden light. From the room, came a female's scream followed by Helga running out of the room.
"..!"
"Stop talking so much and run, Parrot!" Rusty's voice exclaimed. Parrot and Rusty were the next two to escape the room. Whipped cream streamed across their suits.
"This hyar ain't lookin' too good..." Ziggy said worriedly, raising his shotgun.
Sarah fidgeted nervously as she gazed into the room, unable to see what it was that she feared so much. Jim lay a hand on the goat. "Don't worry, Sarah. All of us together can take care of him. You don't need to worry."
"Olaf! We're coming to get you!" Harry exclaimed and raced into the room, his sword raised high above his head. Muffie followed, letting out a battle cry, raising the single bent spoon she owned above her head. Ziggy and Chazzy were on her tail, leaving Kevinda, Florence, Sarah, Jessica and Jim still at the entrance.
"I guess this is it, huh? We're really going to face him head on?" Jessica asked.
Kevinda nodded. "I foresee success," she said, her eyes void of emotion.
"We can do this guys," Jim raised up the Bungle Sword.
"No one can stop us when we're together," Florence said, her voice slowly filling with confidence as she raised her rubber chocobos.
Sarah let out a nervous bleat but she was ready to charge in with all the others.
"Alalaorfaleed!"
The five burst into the room, the cry echoing off the walls. Though, the sound that followed was a complete surprise. Silence.
The others stood in the room, looking in all directions. They expected a grand battle, but instead what they found was emptiness.
"Whar did'e go?"
"There's something terribly wrong here, Jim," Jessica said softly. "Let's get out of here."
"Where in the spoony marmosetting smoot are you Olaf?" Chazzy yelled out into the room.
"Yeah, show yourself you big meanie! No one gets away with making me lose all of my spoons!" Muffie called out fiercely.
Sarah's ears twitched and she staggered away from the main group. She trembled and squatted down. Her eyes darted to all corners of the room as she let out a frightened bleat.
"Sarah, what's wrong? Sarah?" Jim looked at his poor goat and took a step towards her.
"Glee-hee-hoo..." a faint whisper echoed through the room, undetectable by the ears of the others, except for Sarah. She let out a goatish scream and tried to run, but she couldn't, for it was already too late. "Ha ha ha!!" a fierce, maniacal laugh thundered through the room as a figure flashed downwards. Locks of thinned, silver hair whipped through the air and the figure's back trench coat flew around it. It swung the massive purple-black fish with a mighty force and Sarah screeched. The fish connected with the goat and she as sent flying through the air. She bleated in pain as her body was knocked into the wall and her head collided an instant afterwards with a shuddering crack. The goat gasped as she fell to a lump on the ground. She moaned as she looked at Jim for one last time then her body went limp and her eyes closed forever.
"Sarah!" Jim screamed and he ran over to the goat. "Sarah... Sarah!" He bent over the poor creature, trembling.
"Well, Sarah... It seems I won't get to share the full story with you after all," Olaf said coldly, a thin smile on his lips.
"How could you? You... You killed her... She'll never go back home, never see Kalm again... She'll never be happy, or sad, or feel anything... ever..."
"Oh please, she was only a goat. What possible feelings could you have for such an animal?"
"She wasn't some animal! She was my friend! She was a sister to me!" Jim's eyes turned on Olaf with rage. "You..! You are the animal!" Jim leapt up and swung the Bungle Sword madly through the air at the despicable fiend that stood before him.
Olaf swung Jimbles around and her green eyes locked on Jim. They flicked and a great flash sent Jim crashing backwards into the wall. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have business to take care of. Farewell." Olaf jumped backwards, then turned and ran through the door. A moment later, a shout was heard. "Stupid walls!"
"Get back here you coward!" Harry shouted out of anger and despair as he began running after Olaf. Chazzy and Ziggy were right behind him. Florence had fallen to her knees and felt herself starting to sob. Jessica gazed at the goat with shocked, watery eyes. Muffie stepped backwards dazed by the events that had just unfolded while Kevinda stared at the doorway emotionlessly. Jim tried to force back the tears but he couldn't and he began to sob as he hugged the lifeless goat to him.
"We have to get out of here!" Kevinda shouted, no longer disguising her voice.
The three men that were chasing Olaf came to a sudden stop. Harry turned to the fortune teller. "Madame Kevinda, your voice!"
"I'm not Madame Kevinda!" she admitted. "My name is Kevin Devereux and I was hired to spy on you since the beginning."
"Why you little spoony lying... If there's anything I hate, it's a smootin' cowardly liar of a smootmarm!" Chazar exclaimed.
"Please, not now! I'm sorry for what I did, but there's no time to punish me. This entire place is going to collapse. We have to get out right now!"
"Collapse? What do you mean?" Jessica asked urgently.
"Olaf was here to get the Black Pebble. It holds the power to destroy the entire planet. He's going to remove it and once he does, the whole temple will collapse."
"A pebble? How is a pebble going to destroy the earth? Besides, what's the big deal if a grass hut falls over?" Jessica questioned further.
"There's no time to explain the Pebble," Kevinda said impatiently, "and more than just the hut is going to fall. The entire underbelly of the temple that we're in is going to cave in on itself. Now, let's get going! There should be a quicker exit this way." Kevinda began to race off and the others swiftly followed, all except Jim.
Jim looked at Sarah. "I'm sorry Sarah... I'm sorry I ever got you into this stupid quest."
Florence stopped when she noticed that Jim wasn't following. She turned to him and waved him towards her. "Jim, let's get out of here!" she called to him.
He nodded in response and carefully picked up Sarah. He ran and caught up with Florence. The two quickly ran to their escape as the Temple of the Ancients collapsed and became nothing more than a pile of rock and grass.