The Day the Moon Shines
By: deep.Indigo
Chapter 14: Kotoba ni Suru Hodo Kuzurete Yuku
(Enough to Put It Into Words, I am Crumbling)
"It...it's
not true," Vyse whispered, still frozen to the spot, staring with
anguished
eyes at the man he thought was his friend. "Ramirez..."
Ramirez did
not turn aside his silvery blade. "In respect of the time we spent
together,
I'll give you at least the chance to draw your weapons," he said
curtly, eyes
hard and unrelenting.
Only
Fina
and Vyse didn't need prompting; Aika indeed had already had her weapon
out,
starting to form a defensive circle with Enrique against the jeering
Valuan
soldiers closing in on them. Gilder, having spotted trouble as soon as
he saw
it, was away from the group, helping the crew members who were still
left out
in the open get inside to the dock area and fighting off any soldiers
that
attempted to interfere, but Enrique, Aika, Fina and Vyse were all
trapped by
their former ally.
"Ramirez, stop!"
Fina cried, stepping forward quickly to join Vyse and clasping her
hands over
her chest. "Why are you doing this?!"
"Fina, don't
even bother talking to him!" Aika yelled, the heat from the flaming
buildings
causing beads of sweat to form on her brow. "He's been the enemy all
along!"
"At
least one
of you understands," the Silvite Admiral commented, expression
unchanging. Yes,
as the enemy, he could face them without any heartache... "Vyse!" he
called. "I
am not your friend. I have never been your friend. I told you that
again and
again, but you never did listen." His smile was cold and empty. "After
a while,
it simply became easier to pretend to let you have your way. It even
worked to
my advantage; no matter how suspiciously I acted, you either let it
slide or
forced yourself not to notice. If you had been paying
attention, you
wouldn't be as shocked as you are now, would you?"
"It's not
true..." the Blue Rogue repeated in a whisper, motionless.
Enrique
stepped forward, his rapier at guard position against the soldiers,
still
waiting for the order to attack. "You obviously had this planned for a
while,
Ramirez," he said with a quiet frown. "Since Yafutoma, perhaps? When
Belleza
and Vigoro arrived to 'convince' King Mikado to join Valua."
"Very
astute," the Admiral remarked coolly. "Yes, while we were there, I
managed to
contact Belleza and form this plan with Lord Galcian through her."
Reflecting
on it, he was surprised no one had caught on to this, least of all
Vyse. In his
weakness, he had been dropping hints left and right of his imminent
betrayal,
yet he heeded them... Well, as he told Vyse just now, one only hears
the things
one wants to hear when someone one likes is involved.
"So...so
everything you've been doing since then..." Fina whispered, her green
eyes
filling with tears, "was it just to fool us? Did you mean any of the
kind
things you said? Ramirez..."
The
Admiral
would have loved to have told her the truth about everything, about the
Elders,
about their mission, about the Crystals and the Rains of Destruction,
and about
her so-called love for him. He did not gloat often, but it was
always so
satisfying when he did. However, he chose, this time, to be succinct.
"Fina..."
Ramirez said quietly, his emerald eyes boring into hers. "I have always
hated
you."
She
took a
step backwards, looking for all the world as if he had just backhanded
her out
of the blue. "Ramirez..." the pale blonde young lady squeaked, on the
verge of
bursting into tears. "It's not—"
"IT'S NOT
TRUE!!" the brunet rogue interrupted with a scream, finally breaking
out of his
trance-like state of shock. Throwing his arms out and looking at the
silver-haired young man pleadingly, Vyse beseeched, "Ramirez, it's not
true,
right?! You weren't deceiving me all this time, right?!"
Ramirez's
laugh was hollow and scornful, and the Valuan soldiers around him
snickered as
well at the pirate's denial. "Vyse, take a good, long look around you,"
he
commanded, "and ask me that again."
"How..." he
whispered, then took a step forward and demanded, tortured, "How could
you? How
could you lie to me like that?! I believed in you!!"
How...how
could you lie to me like that?!
The
Silvite's eyes widened slightly as the familiarity of those words
struck home.
This was...this was just like that time...
/No!
It's
not!!/ he scolded himself, shaking his head once. /This is
different
from when Admiral Mendosa betrayed me. He was wrong, forcing
the
Ixa'takans to longer hours simply to make a personal profit; I'm doing
this for
Lord Galcian, for the good of this world. I'm not the same as that man!!/
He
closed a
mental door on the nagging doubt that perhaps, in spite of his
loyalties and
vows, this wasn't the right thing to do, that he was doing the
wrong
thing not just by betraying Vyse but by returning to one who demanded
that he
destroy someone who was not a bad or—naïveté aside—weak
person. Turning back
was not an option; it never had been.
"Enough of
this," he growled, glaring at the brunet pirate. Pointing his blade
outwards to
aim directly at Vyse, Ramirez commanded, "Attack!"
Everyone
reacted at once—the Valuan soldiers stormed in to obey the order,
Enrique and
Aika moved to engage them, Fina quickly followed suit in spite of her
emotional
distress, and Vyse swiftly drew his cutlasses to block Ramirez's
charge. It
really was like a nightmare—he hadn't seen that hateful mask of an
expression
on the silver-haired swordsman's face in a long time.
"Why
did you
betray me?!" Vyse wanted to shout as he barely blocked another vicious
attack,
but he merely gritted his teeth and slashed at the Silvite. He didn't
want to
hurt Ramirez, but he was no fool—the Silvite was definitely aiming to
kill him.
Hadn't he said so yesterday? 'My instinct is to kill, Vyse, and when
I draw
my sword, that intent is never far from my mind.' Yeah, that blade
was
definitely naked, and Ramirez sure as hell didn't look like he was
playing
around.
The
sixth
Admiral of the Armada dodged the thrust, hitting the cutlass with
Ilazki and
sending it wide, then lunging forward. The tip of his blade met the
flat of
Vyse's other cutlass, and metal sang on metal as Ramirez forced his
opponent
back.
Vyse, who
managed to avoid getting stabbed through the chest, fell back and
sliced the
air as he brought his cutlasses into a guard position before him,
intending to
counterattack when Ramirez next struck. Instead of egging him on,
though, as he
normally did when he used that technique, the captain of the Delphinus
yelled,
less a question than a confirmation of something they both already
knew,
"You're really trying to kill me!!"
Ramirez
didn't answer, instead choosing to narrow his eyes in brief
contemplation of
his next move. As he stood there, Vyse continued, "Were you really
manipulating
me all this time?! Did you really take advantage of me?!"
Silence was
the Silvite's only reply, lowering Ilazki slightly to glare at the
pirate.
"Were you
laughing at me all along?!" the brown-haired Blue Rogue yelled,
perspiration
beading on his face, hoping in spite of recent experience that Ramirez
would
say that he did care about him, that he would not have done
this if it
weren't for Galcian, for whatever, as long as he said something
to let
him know he hadn't been completely mistaken! "Thinking, 'Vyse, it's a
good
thing you're such a trusting idiot, or else my job would be a lot
harder'?!"
"You're
quite perceptive all of a sudden," Ramirez remarked in a neutral tone,
and
Vyse's heart shattered. The Admiral then leaned back slightly, his
sword
hanging back behind him a little with its point to the ground, and
waves of
magic began to swell around him. Half-clutching his left hand at his
side, he
raised that hand to his right shoulder, his elbow even with his left
shoulder,
as he chanted, "Moons, give me strength." Ramirez then thrust his palm
forward
and straightened his posture, shouting, "Drilnos!!"
The
golden
light of the Yellow Moon surged through the battlefield, and the Air
Pirate
didn't have to turn around to see that his friends had been affected
just as he
had been by the spell, which weakened his defensive stance.
The
young
Admiral quickly advanced and thrust, and Vyse, whose concentration for
his
counterattack had been broken by the spell, only barely managed to
force the
attack aside enough to make it only score a slash across the side of
his ribs
rather than through them. As he stumbled back, desperately blocking
Ramirez's
expert swings and only managing to deflect the strikes that would have
meant
certain death, he was reminded of their match yesterday. The Silvite's
fighting
style now was both like and unlike how he had fought then, and were he
not
distracted, he might have been able to pinpoint exactly what the
differences
were. As it were, he was too busy with keeping out the death strikes,
even as
his strength trickled out bead by bead from the wounds multiplying
across his
body.
The
crack of
falling wood diverted his attention for a split-second, one that cost
him. With
a snarl, Ramirez charged and slashed, sending the rogue flying back and
crashing in the dirt with a cry of pain.
Knowing his
life depended on it, Vyse flipped back up onto his feet to move into a
guard
position, but he didn't know how much more he could take without a
Sacres
crystal or spell; right now, he was sweating, bleeding and breathing
heavily.
If he tried to heal himself, Ramirez would use the opportunity while he
wasn't
defending himself to take him out. He didn't know how Enrique and the
others
were doing, but he had to assume that they were busy fighting those
soldiers
and couldn't spare the time to heal him.
/Shit,/
Vyse swore mentally. Ramirez's next attack might be his last one,
especially if
he used a special move...
/Wait.
A
special move?/ He narrowed his brown eyes slightly. /Right! If I
can get
a good Pirate's Wrath in, then maybe I might have a chance.../ That
was, of
course, assuming that Ramirez didn't finish him off first, but he had
to be
optimistic. The brunet rogue defended himself as best he could as the
Silvite
approached unhurriedly, gritting his teeth as he glared up at the image
of
Death with wavering eyes, praying to the Moons that something, somehow,
distracted or delayed his next attack.
And
somehow,
his prayers were answered. Ramirez lifted his silvery blade, but
hesitated as
he looked upon the rogue, a troubled emotion Vyse couldn't identify
clouding
his face. It broke with shock, and the Silvite took a step backwards,
as if he
had just seen something frightening. The Air Pirate furrowed his brows
in
confusion, but he wasn't one to pass up an opportunity, and he prepared
his
S-move.
Before he
could attack, though, three things happened at once. Not too far to his
right,
he heard Aika and Fina yell out spells at the same time—and then felt
the
effects of the healing Sacrum and power-boosting Incremus course
through his
body. Almost immediately afterwards, a Valuan soldier also chanted the
incantation for an Incremus, and Ramirez, too, glowed red as his power
increased. He glanced at the girls with a grin of thanks, seeing the
green and
red lights surround them and Enrique as well as they moved back into
position
to defend themselves against the soldiers—who numbered fewer than he
last
remembered, he saw.
Turning with
a grim frown at his former friend, Vyse raised his right cutlass with a
fierce
battle cry, lightning bolts gathering at the tip. Ramirez began to cast
another
spell, but the spiral of wind that coursed out from Vyse interrupted
his
concentration, and with a snarl of, "Pirate's Wrath!!" the Air
Pirate
released his sword chi at the Admiral. It hit him full in front,
knocking him
back but not down, hurting him badly but not so much that he was out of
the
fight—far from it. Ramirez paused only to briefly touch a bleeding head
wound
before narrowing his eyes at Vyse and advancing forward.
Seeing a
chance to seize the offensive advantage, Vyse charged with a battle
yell,
thrusting with both cutlasses. Ramirez blocked them both, but the
ferocity of
the pirate's attack surprised him, and even he with his skill had to
place his
left hand on Ilazki's handle to keep his ground.
Now
standing
nearly face-to-face with the silver-haired swordsman, the Blue Rogue
growled as
he poured all his strength into pushing his blades forward and forcing
the
Silvite Admiral back, "So none of it really meant anything to you? Any
of the
time we spent together? You told me I was the closest friend you'd ever
had!
Was that just a lie to get me to put my guard down?!"
"What you're
essentially asking is why I chose to betray you," Ramirez stated
flatly, green
eyes as cold and flat as the silvery metal of his blade. "I'll tell
you, then.
In comparison to Lord Galcian, Vyse, you are..." he threw his weight
into his
attack and forced Vyse back with a sweep of his blade,
"...insignificant!"
So
said the
façade of ice. Pulsing beneath it was a hot palpitation
screaming to be
released, to stop this madness before Ramirez did something he would
always
regret, to give up, to accept his punishment...
Ramirez
knew, though, that no matter what he did, it was too late.
Vyse
stumbled back and moved into a guard position; behind him, Aika and
Fina ran up
to join him.
"Vyse, we're
here to back you up!" the orange-haired girl yelled, stepping up with
her
boomerang ready to fly. "We got rid of those other Valuan guys, no
problem, so
we thought you could use a hand!"
"Thanks,"
the brunet rogue smiled, however grimly. "Where're the others?"
"Enrique
went to help Gilder get everyone else to safety," Fina told him, Cupil
orbiting
her head. She turned her gaze to Ramirez sorrowfully, but said nothing
to him.
The
captain
of the Delphinus faced the Silvite Admiral once again. "You're
outnumbered," he
stated, "and you're running out of soldiers to help you. Do you still
want to
fight us?"
Ramirez
merely narrowed his eyes without a word, holding his sword guardedly.
"Ramirez,
it's still not too late," Fina pleaded, stepping out into the open.
"You can't
possibly have meant what you said just now!"
The
Silvite
swordsman's blood curdled with rage at her point-blank refusal to
accept the
truth. "What if I killed you, Fina?" he inquired, his tone glacial.
"Would you
believe I meant it then?"
"I—"
she
began, but it was too late. With a short sigh, he had covered his eyes
with his
left hand.
"Where there
is light..." he began, sliding that hand down his murderous face,
"...there is
darkness."
He
stepped
forward, and the trio tensed, but he hadn't taken three steps before
his form
shimmered and disappeared.
"What the
hell?!" Vyse shouted, twisting around to search for his vanished enemy.
"Where
did he go?!"
Around them,
though they could not see him anywhere, they heard Ramirez call out, "Sword
of the Dark Moon!"
Fina
gave
out a strangled gasp, covering her mouth in terror.
"What?! What
is it?!" Aika demanded, alarmed both by her reaction and the shnking
noises slicing past them, though they still saw and felt nothing.
"This
technique—!" the young Silvite lady choked. "It's one of Ramirez's
strongest
attacks, known as the Silver Eclipse!!" Turning to her friends, she
cried,
"Aika, Vyse, be careful!!"
Her
warning
was too little, too late, however, as Ramirez reappeared in a silvery
shimmer
and swung his sword one last time.
Silver light
like a sword slash surrounded the three and tore through their bodies,
sending
blood spraying from their gashing wounds. With screams of pain, Vyse,
Aika and
Fina collapsed, completely at the Admiral's mercy...of which, of
course, he had
none.
Ramirez remained
where he stood for a moment, gazing out at the night sky beyond the
flames,
letting heat waves run through his hair like the wind. "Vyse," he said
quietly
after a moment, as a pair of Valuan reinforcements climbed down from
the
Monoceros, hovering overhead, via rope ladder. "Last night, I had a
nightmare."
The Silvite glanced behind him at the brunet pirate, who was struggling
to lift
himself from the ground. "You were in it."
"Glad to
hear it," Vyse hissed through gritted teeth, managing by way of
propping
himself up with his cutlasses to get to his feet, however unsteadily.
The
Admiral
ignored the comment as his men landed around the trio. There was no way
they
would be able to survive this, he knew... He would kill them all, just
as he
was meant to do. No matter how heartlessly he tried to treat the
pirate,
though, in facing the end, he felt he had to say something...
"In
that
nightmare," Ramirez continued, "...you died. And you died, and then you
died."
He glanced back over his shoulder. "And then you overpowered me.
However..."
The Silvite then turned to face the Blue Rogue, and finished, "that was
just a
dream." He lifted Ilazki and tilted the blade to reflect the firelight
and
crimson moonlight, which mixed with the blood dripping from its razor
edges to
create a premonition realized. "This...is reality."
With
a
snarl, Vyse leapt forward and attacked Ramirez out of desperation—he
couldn't
afford to lose here, now! He had to at least protect Fina and Aika!
With those
sentiments surging and strengthening his willpower, he struck the first
time,
slashed the second, was blocked the third and fourth. Leaping up, both
cutlasses poised to tear into Ramirez's flesh, the captain of the
Delphinus
screamed, "CUTLASS FURY!!"
Having had
two out of four attacks score a hit, Ramirez was not about to allow the
attack
without a fight back. It was more out of reaction than any preconceived
tactic,
however, that he glanced up with gritted teeth at the bloodied rogue
hurtling
down to assail and raised Ilazki to greet him on his way.
"VYSE,
NOOOOO!!" Aika and Fina shrieked, the former, having forced herself to
her
feet, running two steps before she collapsed.
The
Blue
Rogue sank onto the blade with a sickening tearing noise up until his
torso met
the hilt. The pain, both physical and emotional, was unspeakable, and
the
expression of horror he knew was on his face could only be matched by
the one
he saw through hazy vision on Ramirez's.
Ramirez
buckled slightly, having to take a step backwards to steady himself, as
the Air
Pirate nearly landed on him, neatly run through. He stared at the
brunet, who
miraculously landed on his feet, as he stumbled backward, letting the
silver
blade slide gently out from his guts. The hit, through sheer luck, had
pierced
low on Vyse's left side, which meant that it hadn't punctured any major
organs,
but panic suffused itself through Ramirez anyway. Having been run
through with
that amount of force, it was likely that Vyse would die anyway unless
he found
immediate medical attention.
But—that was
what he wanted! That was what Lord Galcian wanted—Vyse's death, so that
the
troublesome Air Pirate couldn't meddle in their plots any longer!
Jade
eyes
wide and trembling, Ramirez realized, the reformed ice on his heart
cracking
into three pieces, that he deeply wanted Vyse to live.
He
stepped
forward quickly, wrapping an arm around the Blue Rogue's shoulders and
steadying him as he tilted dangerously. The young ship captain glanced
up at
the Silvite with eyes sliding in and out of focus, and choked out,
"Ra...mi..."
The
last of
his consciousness slipping away from him, Vyse collapsed and sagged
against the
one who had aimed for his life, his cutlasses slipping out of his grip.
Ramirez's
tormented affection for Vyse won over common sense and his better
judgment for
the moment; he knew he had to act quickly if he wanted to save the
dying rogue.
Striking lightning-quick on a reasonable excuse, the Silvite glanced
sharply at
the Valuan soldiers advancing on Aika and Fina to finish them off.
"You
two,"
he called with the force of a command, grabbing their attentions
immediately. "Forget
the girls. Take Vyse aboard the Monoceros and see that someone attends
to his
wounds properly. Be quick about it—he won't last for long in this
condition,
and be careful. He has enough holes in him already."
"Sir?" one
soldier queried, confused.
"We
are
taking him alive, as my prisoner," Ramirez explained flatly, narrowing
his
eyes. "So do not make me repeat myself."
If
the
assassin soldiers had any other questions, they wisely held their
tongues. They
simply took the rogue's body and, prompted by a sharp glance from their
superior, the dropped cutlasses, and began to drag them all up the
still
hanging ladders.
The
redheaded pirate girl stood again, her knees quavering, tears streaming
down
her bloodstained cheeks. "What the hell do you think you're doing,
Ramirez?!"
she sobbed, her brown eyes twisted with fury and fear. Behind her, with
the
looming threat of the soldiers gone, Fina began to chant a Sacrum spell.
"Careful,"
Ramirez replied coldly. "I have no reason to take you prisoner.
Executing you here and now indeed would probably be the best course of
action."
"Then kill
me!!" the boomerang-user snapped, her health beginning to return as the
green
magic surrounded her. "But don't you dare take Vyse away from us!!"
"Unfortunately, I'm not asking your opinion in the matter," the Admiral
stated
callously. He glanced at Ilazki; there wasn't a cloth handy to wipe off
the
blood, so he slashed the air and let the crimson liquid fly off before
returning the blade to its silver-colored sheath. "Your lives are not
worth the
time it would take to extinguish them."
Aika
gritted
her teeth, joined by Fina, who stood by her side. "You...you bastard,"
she hissed, her fists clenched as tightly as rock oysters.
Unfazed by
the redhead's insult, Ramirez instead focused his attention on the
sound of
cannon-fire issuing not from the Serpens or the Monoceros, but from the
Delphinus. Enrique and Gilder must have boarded it and set sail to
drive them
off... His ship was hit, and Lord Galcian's warship moved to intercept
it.
Cursing
silently to himself, he flexed his left hand. He didn't have the time
to claim
Fina's Silver Crystal, much less reveal to her the truth of which she
was so
nauseatingly uninformed. No matter; he still had his Silvite ship, and
it would
be far more satisfyingly ironic to murder one of the Elders for his
Crystal
shard, anyway.
He
smirked
mirthlessly at his childhood friend. "Fina," he said quietly, yet
powerfully.
"I find the very continuation of your existence detestable. However, if
I can
make you suffer, I'm willing to let you live a little while longer."
Grabbing
hold of the remaining rope ladder and signaling for the Monoceros to
take off,
he called down as he rose into the air, "Wait for it, Fina! You'll wish
I had
killed you just now!!"
"Shrivel up
and die, you BASTARD!!" Aika snarled as Fina collapsed to her
knees in
tears, hurling her projectile towards him. Though it moved swiftly,
Ramirez
still struck out with Ilazki, sheathed, and sent the boomerang
careening back
down to the island like a bird with its neck broken, to land impotently
in the
spring.
Eyes
glittering with malice, Ramirez shouted, "You should feel thankful that
I'm in
such a merciful mood tonight!!"
Unable to do
anything and knowing it, Aika released the air in her lungs in the
loudest
shriek of hatred she could manage, then fell to her knees, sobbing and
pounding
the scorched earth with her fist. "Vyse!!" she yelled through her
tears,
already worried sick about her best friend. Reaching for the Monoceros,
as if
she could somehow reach it in spite of everything, the redhead screamed
in
grief and rage, "VYYYYYYYYSE!!!"
Her
only
answer was her own voice echoing through the night, as the two Valuan
warships
briefly fought with the Delphinus, and then retreated toward the
horizon.
Aika
had
only just begun to recover through the sheer power of her stubbornness,
though
Fina was still a wreck, when Gilder and Enrique came running twenty
minutes
later, after the Delphinus had stood watch in case the warships
returned,
docked and unloaded.
"Aika, what
the hell happened here?!" the older Blue Rogue demanded, concerned and
alarmed
by the state the girls were in as well as the liberal amounts of blood
on the
ground. "Where's the kid?!"
The
orange-haired girl stood shakily, her cheeks bright red and blotchy
with tears.
"Ramirez," she spat, despising the man with all her being.
"That...that... He took... Gildeeer!!" She sobbed anew as she ran
forward and
flung herself into the stunned Air Pirate's arms. "Gilder, he took
Vyse!!"
Enrique, who
was helping Fina to her feet, glanced sharply at the traumatized pirate
girl,
blue eyes wide with bewilderment. "Ramirez kidnapped Vyse?" he
repeated,
astonished. "But...why? Why didn't he just kill him?"
Aika
merely
shook her head to indicate that she didn't know any better than he did,
her
face buried in the dirty-blond pirate's ruffled shirt.
"I
think,"
Gilder said, his voice and expression both uncharacteristically but
appropriately grim as he comforted the distraught redhead, "that we'd
better
get everyone fixed up and sort out what the hell just happened, and
then figure
out what we're doing next, because even if Vyse isn't dead now, once
they get
him inside Valua, he will be."
There was
not a word or motion of dissent among the other three.
When
Ramirez
reached the deck of the Monoceros, his concern for the Air Pirate
jumped; there
was a good deal of blood slopped haphazardly about. He bit back a
snarl;
clearly, in spite of his express orders, those two soldiers had not
been
especially gentle with his injured body. The silver-haired swordsman
strode
inside the battleship, muttering a Sacres spell as he walked and
letting it
heal some of his injuries. Reaching the bridge, he was greeted by his
Vice-Captain, Lucreze, a man of only decent skill and intelligence but
excellent propensity for fulfilling orders precisely and without
question or
argument.
"Lord
Ramirez, sir!" he said sharply, saluting and falling in line behind the
Silvite
as he marched up to the Captain's position of the bridge. "You're
injured?"
"It's
nothing," the Admiral snapped in reply. "I have had the leader of the
Air
Pirates, Vyse, taken prisoner. I commanded those who took him on board
to seek
proper treatment for his wounds, but if they were too incompetent to
follow my
instructions not to aggravate his injuries, then I doubt they
were
competent enough to have him healed."
"Sir, I have
actually already received word from the soldiers in question," Lucreze
replied
respectfully. "The Air Pirate should be in the medical ward on the
third level,
but I will send someone to confirm his condition immediately."
"Once you
have done so, send a request for open communications to the Serpens,"
Ramirez
commanded curtly.
"Yes, sir!"
Lucreze saluted before faithfully and speedily fulfilling his orders.
As he
went, the Admiral turned to the crew below.
"Prepare
defensive and evasive maneuvers against the Delphinus," he addressed
his men
without emotion. "I have no intentions of getting in a drawn-out battle
with
them."
With
a
chorus of assenting voices, the crew of the Monoceros prepared to make
Ramirez's instructions a reality. The Silvite Admiral stood above them,
gazing
out at the Delphinus and Serpens exchanging fire as he quickly
formulated the
best, most believable story to present Lord Galcian. It would have to
be a damn
good one to convince the Grand Admiral why he captured the Blue Rogue
rather
than killed him...
Like
a
battle plan, the tactical genius mapped out his words, drawing upon his
knowledge of and experience with Vyse and his crewmates and twisting it
when
necessary to create a perfectly reasonable strategy worthy of if he had
had it
in mind the entire time. By the time communications had been opened, he
had a
full, if not completely detailed, stratagem planned out, and prepared
to speak
with his lord.
"Lord
Galcian, this is Ramirez," the Silvite spoke in the radio transmitter
before
the captain's seat. "I respectfully request that we leave Crescent Isle
and
return to Valua."
The
radio
crackled and came alive, and Galcian's surprisingly clear voice
sounded. "Well
met, Ramirez. I assume you have a good explanation for this request."
"Of
course,"
the Silvite replied neutrally. Very calm, very calm, no need to be
suspicious... "I have taken Vyse, the leader of the Air Pirate rebels,
captive.
He is, as I have observed during my time among them, a sort of pillar
to the
rest of the pirates—they look to him for leadership, guidance and
support.
Without him, they would not be able to function." It's not a lie, it's
not a
lie, every reason to believe... "As opposed to giving them a swift,
merciful
end now, I thought it appropriate to separate them from their leader
and send
them down a spiral of despair before they meet their end along with any
others
that oppose us, as punishment for daring to rise against us in the
first
place."
"This is
your own personal revenge as well, isn't it, Ramirez?" Galcian
surmised, but
since he sounded amused rather than stern, the sixth Admiral decided to
let him
think so.
"If
I may be
so bold, my lord, for acting so selfishly without your permission,"
Ramirez
stated politely, being completely honest for the first time.
"No,
I
approve. You have performed admirably in face of being surrounded by
the enemy
and apart from me," Galcian replied, his tone indicating he had never
expected
anything less. "Excellent work, Ramirez."
The
white-haired youth acknowledged this undeserved praise with an intense
feeling
of anxiety and guilt that sank from his gullet to his guts. "You are
too kind,
my lord."
"Order your
ship to withdraw," the Grand Admiral said then, after a shell struck
the
Serpens. "We will continue this conversation shortly, once we are a
respectable
distance away."
"Yes, my
lord," Ramirez murmured. As he did so, the true weight of what he had
done
began to press on him. Certainly, he had saved Vyse's life by lending
him the
superior medical aid available on the Monoceros—magic alone wouldn't be
able to
save him, not with wounds that bad, and Ramirez knew there was no one
on
Crescent Isle with the ability to treat him—but at the same time, he
had
condemned him to certain death by execution. There was no possible way
Ramirez
could release him—doing so purposely would mean breaking his vows to
Lord
Galcian, and that was simply not an option. ...Yet hadn't he done that
just
now, by blurring the truth? Yes, Vyse was like a pillar to the others,
but they
would not give up or lose hope simply because he was gone. They would
do
anything in their power to try to save him, just as he would do in
return. He
had essentially lied to Lord Galcian. Hadn't he already broken his vow?
No,
not
broken, merely cracked—a crack that could be easily repaired, with Lord
Galcian
never knowing the difference. He would know, though, Ramirez
fretted,
and he would always have that hanging over him...
In
addition,
even now that the moment had passed, the Silvite still did not want the
Blue
Rogue to die whatsoever. Just as he couldn't break his oath, he
couldn't let
Vyse get killed. Ramirez could see no way to reconcile the two
contradictory
desires...
You
know
deep down inside that you're just as dirty as the Arcadians you
despise. What's
wrong with getting dirtier, then? Take what you want, Ramirez! Be it
gold,
power, justice, destruction, or even Vyse himself!
The
words
from his dream last night returned to haunt his thoughts. Ramirez
understood
that dreams were a reflection of the subconscious, a way for hidden
feelings to
emerge... Was it possible that his mind was telling him that dallying
with the handsome
rogue was a certain way to become, as the King of Diamonds had said,
dirty? But
he had spoken of collecting strength and power in the same manner as
collecting
gold and wealth...
The
Silvite
bit back a frustrated sigh; it wouldn't do to show any weakness in
front of his
inferiors.
"Ramirez,"
the radio crackled again; in his musings, Ramirez hadn't noticed how
far they
had gone already.
"Yes, Lord
Galcian?" he responded.
"What do you
intend to do with the Air Pirate?"
That
was a
difficult question to answer, since the Silvite had yet to plot out
that
part. He
decided again to twist truthfulness, and answered, "I am not entirely
sure yet,
my lord; I have had a few different thoughts. Currently, he is in the
medical
ward; either way, he will only be of use to us alive."
"Tell me
some of your ideas."
"Yes, sir,"
Ramirez replied, thinking quickly. "The Empire wishes for his head; I
had
thought that perhaps it would make a suitable farewell gift."
Galcian
chuckled. "That it would," he agreed, "but I doubt you would glean any
personal
satisfaction from that."
"It
is not a
solution I find tasteful," Ramirez replied, amazed at how truthful he
continued
to be. "Another thought I had was to simply hold him hostage, in case
the Air
Pirates manage, on some off-chance, to pull themselves together long
enough to
attempt a rescue."
"In
that
case, it would be simpler merely to kill him and ensure that he can
never
escape again," Galcian reflected, causing Ramirez to stiffen. "He is,
as he has
proved in the past, far too skilled at that."
"That he
is," the Silvite agreed in a controlled voice.
"What else
do you have?"
Ramirez
hesitated. "There is..." he said with some difficulty, because he had
no other
ideas, "...one more. I do not know if it is worth mentioning,
however..."
"I
shall be
the judge of that. I respect all of your suggestions, Ramirez, so
speak."
"Thank you,
my lord," he murmured. He thought fleetingly of his duel yesterday with
Vyse,
and seizing upon that, the young Admiral began, "Vyse is...not weak."
"Go
on,"
Galcian prompted.
"He
shows
potential for rivaling even my strength, one day," Ramirez continued,
not
wanting to insult his superior by putting the Air Pirate on his
level.
"I have confirmed this personally and through careful observation,
m'lord.
Because of that, I had thought it a shame to waste such promise..."
"Should he
work against us, then that promise will only be a threat to us," the
senior
Admiral promptly replied. "If even you will acknowledge his power,
though—you,
Ramirez, who were humiliated by him—then his capability must indeed be
great.
Tell me, what is the likelihood of him swearing himself to me in
exchange for
his life, or perhaps the safety of his crew...and then the probability
of
keeping himself bound to that oath?"
That
was the
problem; Vyse would never, under any circumstances, ally himself with
the Grand
Admiral, and Ramirez knew it all too well. "Vyse is loyal," he chose to
respond
first, "fiercely so, sometimes. If it were for a friend, I believe
there is
nothing he would not do. However, even he has his limits. I..." He
hesitated.
If he told Lord Galcian that Vyse would never join him, it would be the
same as
piercing the rogue's chest by his own hand. But...he couldn't lie
directly, not
to the man who had been his mentor. He just couldn't. "I do not
believe
he would ever willingly swear himself to you, my lord."
"He
is
useless, then," Galcian said dismissively, confirming Ramirez's
greatest fears.
"I have no use for anyone who may betray me."
The
Silvite
tried to answer that, but found he couldn't. The comment had struck far
too
close to his heart.
"We will,
as you
first suggested, present him to Empress Teodora for execution," the
powerful
swordsman continued.
"Yes,
m'lord," Ramirez murmured.
There was a
pause. "However," Galcian added slyly.
"Yes,
m'lord?" the young swordsman queried, knowing better than to hope.
"As
we
discussed earlier, the Air Pirate Vyse has proved extremely apt at
escaping
from even the most heavily guarded of prisons," the Grand Admiral said
smoothly. "I know you are not happy with handing him over to the
Empire,
especially now that we are this close to the fruition of my plans, and
have no
real reason to cater to the Empress' desires any longer. If the Air
Pirate
attempts to break out before you reach Valua, well..." He chuckled.
"You can
hardly be faulted with having to executing him personally to prevent
his
flight, can you?"
It
was quite
a convenient loophole, and the thought of how it very neatly cut off
all of his
options made Ramirez's blood freeze. He truly was trapped... There was
no
decision forthwith he could make that would not damn him in some way.
/What...what
can I do...?/ he wondered despairingly, even as he neutrally
answered,
"Understood, Lord Galcian."
"I
will
return to the Grand Fortress to speak with the other Admiral about what
will
occur from here on," the Grand Admiral continued. "Your presence,
though
desired, is not required; I understand that you will have several
issues of
your own to sort through. From there, I will be heading from here on to
Dangral
Island for a thorough inspection," he continued. "At your earliest
convenience,
sail to the Grand Fortress and meet me there, where I will brief you on
what
has happened in your absence. I assume you still recall what we are
searching
for in Deep Sky, so I will not pursue that subject. I leave the matter
of the
Air Pirate in your hands, so do whatever you deem appropriate."
"Understood,
m'lord. I'll do so."
Communications cut out, leaving Ramirez feeling empty and drained.
Lucreze, who
had rejoined him by then, looked expectantly at him for his next
orders.
Restraining his growing depression, the Silvite obliged him with, "Set
course
for Valua."
"There is a
particularly violent storm to the north currently, which blew in as we
first
sailed here," the vice-captain calmly informed him. "We will have to
take the
long way around the mountains. Is that all right, sir?"
Ramirez
replied frigidly, "Is there any other choice? We can take our time. I
am in no
hurry, after all." He stepped past Lucreze and continued, "I'm retiring
for the
night to take care of personal business. Find an inconspicuous place to
drop
anchor, and allow the soldiers to rest and recover; we will set sail in
thirty-six hours. As for the Air Pirate Vyse, once he is healed, set up
sleeping arrangements for him in a high security cell and lock him up
there. Make
sure a warm meal is ready for him when he awakens, and that he actually
eats
what he is served; it won't do for him to starve before he can be
brought to
Valua. Post guards both inside and outside the room. Have them
understand that
they are not to interact with the prisoner beyond what is
strictly
necessary. Have his weapons and anything that was found on his person
during
treatment delivered to my quarters. Anyone who attempts to pilfer
anything will
answer personally to me."
"Yes, sir,"
the helmeted vice-captain saluted.
Pressing a
hand to his left temple, which was now flaked with dried blood, Ramirez
left
the bridge, making a few more healing spells and a shower his first
priorities.
Vyse would still be unconscious for a while more, and aside from that,
he
needed time to recover; there wasn't yet a need to check up on him.
Thirty-six
hours until they set sail, and then the trip back to Valua would take
at least
two days from here, now that the shortest route was blocked. That gave
him
three nights and four days to think of something before they
reached the
Grand Fortress.
First things
first, though. With a sigh, he made his way to his personal quarters.
A
dull ache
pounded at the back of his head as his eyelids twitched and began to
flutter
open. Somebody was talking, arguing?, with someone else not too far
away to his
right. He didn't recognize either voice. With a small moan, Vyse let
his head
fall in that direction, wondering what the hell was going on, and saw
through
bleary eyes two fitted Valuan soldiers conversing in front of a thick
steel
door.
"—bullshit,
it is!" the one on the left was saying heatedly. "That damn Air
Pirate's a
menace! Why is Lord Ramirez wasting good food on him?!"
"Don't let
him hear you say that," the second one said warningly. "I agree with
you, it's
a waste, but it's Lord Ramirez's orders, so we don't have any place to
question
them, unless you want to lose your life. Besides, the Blue
Rogue will be
taken to Valua in four or five days, and then he'll be executed shortly
after.
Even if he is a threat to the Empire, he's still human. He
deserves a
few good meals before he dies."
That
woke up
Vyse very well; there weren't many other Blue Rogues they could
be
discussing. Letting the covers fall from his bandaged chest as he
pulled
himself from his cot, the chocolate brown-haired youth threw his bare
feet out
onto the cold metal floor. He attempted to stand, but his wounds were
still
fresh, and with an aggravated wince, he fell back onto the cot.
The
actions
did not go unnoticed. Both guards were now watching him with pointed
silence.
The right-hand guard grabbed a standing tray next to him and carried it
to the
Blue Rogue, setting it before him. On it was a glass of milk—well,
water and
powdered milk, Vyse assumed—a large chunk of grain bread, and a covered
bowl
with a soup spoon over a napkin beside it.
When
Vyse
glanced up at the soldier warily, the soldier stated simply, "Eat."
"If
I
refuse?" the Blue Rogue ventured.
"Lord
Ramirez has ordered us to make sure you eat," he replied stiffly. "So eat."
/Well,
if
I'm being brought to Valua for execution, he's probably not going to
poison me
in the meantime,/ Vyse reasoned grimly, and submitted, removing the
tin
covering from the bowl to reveal steaming tomato soup. The soldier
returned to
his post at the door while the rogue kept his eyes on the two
suspiciously and
grudgingly dug in, resolving to question the Valuans after he finished
eating.
Although the
meal was filling, his attempts at conversation didn't leave him nearly
so
satisfied, and after it was made very clear that the guards had weapons
and
armor, and he—wearing his usual black pants, chest and arm bandages,
and
nothing else—definitely did not, Vyse laid himself down on his
cot and
folded his arms behind his head, ignoring the twinges of pain that
resulted,
with a scowl at the ceiling.
All
in all,
it looked as if he'd made a huge judgment error, and he was going to
pay for it
with his life. He was especially frustrated to know that what Ramirez
had said
before was right: he should have seen this coming. Aika, his
father, and
even the Silvite himself had all warned him that Ramirez's allegiances
were
with Galcian alone. There had been so many clues he should have pieced
together, and that he did piece together now with the power of
hindsight. All those little comments, those things he did, that would
have
raised alarms in the heads of anyone who wasn't so determined to
believe in
someone who was plotting to betray them...
/How
could I have been so damn stupid?!/ Vyse swore, clenching a fist.
His only
hope was that Aika and the others would come to save him, because in
this
situation, there wasn't a thing he could do except wait.
That
hurt.
It all hurt... The sword wounds on his body, the fact that his
so-called friend
had inflicted them on him, the fact that he'd been duped so completely,
the
fact that Ramirez still did this even after Vyse had offered to trust
him
without reserve, the fact that all his efforts had amounted to nothing,
the
fact that he had had his wings not just clipped but effectively sheared
off...
/Ramirez.../
the Blue Rogue mentally whispered, shutting his eyelids tightly.
He
didn't
know how much time had passed, much less when he dozed off again, but
the next
thing he knew, the sound of heavy steel locks being undone and the cell
door
creaking open jolted him into consciousness. His head swimming, but at
least
not aching as it had been when he'd first awakened, the captive stared
at the
guards huddled at the door and murmuring something he couldn't clearly
hear
from here.
/Looks
like they're just getting the food tray from before out of here,/
Vyse
observed glumly, but he thought too soon. The guards indeed were
performing
that exchange, but when they glanced back at him and parted, the Blue
Rogue sat
up bolt-straight—
Walking in
at an even pace between the guards was Ramirez.
He
looked
more or less the same as usual, the distinct differences being the
wicked-looking sword at his left hip and the dark expression on his
face. His
emerald eyes were fixed on Vyse, but when he had taken four long
strides into
the room, he glanced back at the guards.
"Leave us,"
he commanded, his voice like a plume of ice.
"Sir,
but..." one startled soldier began.
Ramirez
narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Do you think," he said even more
frigidly than
before, "that I cannot defend myself against one unarmed man? One whom
I've
already defeated?"
"My
apologies, Lord Ramirez," the soldier amended hastily, quick to scurry
out.
The
Silvite
Admiral returned his gaze to his captive. "Shut the door, but leave it
unlocked," he added curtly to the remaining soldier. "The Air Pirate
cannot get
past me and he knows it."
Vyse, who
had been glaring with doleful brown eyes at the apparently heartless
swordsman,
averted his gaze to the side.
This
soldier
knew enough not to say anything. "Yes, Lord Ramirez," he saluted, and
left,
following the sixth Admiral's orders as he went.
Vyse
kept his
eyes on the floor as he waited for Ramirez to say the first word. He
didn't
trust himself not to start yelling, and considering his position, that
definitely wasn't something he wanted to do. The Blue Rogue noticed
belatedly
that the rest of his clothes were folded neatly at the foot of his bed
with his
goggle on top, next to his boots; he wondered if they'd always been
there, or
if they'd been put there after he'd fallen asleep.
He
glanced,
sweating slightly, up at the intimidating Silvite. It was especially
worse when
Ramirez was standing and he was sitting, because then he lost his
height
advantage... Why was he just standing there? What the hell did he want?
With an irritated sigh, Vyse sat up straight again and, glaring back at
him,
asked brusquely, "What?"
The
silver-haired Admiral still didn't reply at first, although his eyes
did
flicker with some emotion—melancholy? /But that couldn't be it,/
Vyse
knew; /it doesn't make sense. All his plans have gone just the way
he wanted;
what's he have to be sad about?/
Vyse
had no
way of knowing that that was precisely why Ramirez was tumbling down a
spiral
of despair not unlike the one he had claimed the Air Pirate's friends
would
travel. Looking at the injured rogue now only served to remind him of
what he
was doing, and how, even though it was, according to Lord Galcian, the
right
thing to do, he felt utterly miserable about it. And no matter how much
he
tried to deny it, the entire situation had a feel similar to back
then...
He
had
slammed his hands down on the table, facing Admiral Mendosa, who sat
opposite
him with a politely bewildered stare. The guards surrounding him also
stared at
Ramirez, as if wondering what in the Moons had gotten into the usually
quiet
and polite young man.
"M'lord!"
the recently inducted soldier had cried. "Is...is it true? Is it true
about the
Moonstones?! And the Ixa'takan slaves?!"
Mendosa's
smirk was rueful, but it nonetheless did nothing to assuage his fears.
"I won't
lie to you," he began, and the Silvite youth's hopes raised a little
before
they crashed and burned as the Admiral continued, "Yes, it is true." He
shrugged slightly, still smirking. "But, what's the problem? Is there
something
wrong with making money? With desiring wealth and power?"
"You are
forcing the Ixa'takans to work grueling hours in inhumane conditions!"
Ramirez
argued hotly, scandalized by the man's flippant attitude—an attitude he
had
never shown before now. Was this what Admiral Mendosa was really
like?
Had the Elders truly been correct? Had he been taking advantage of his
trust
this entire time?! Admiral Galcian's words returned to him then, and
with them
burning in his mind, the Silvite youth continued, "M'lord, you promised
me...
You told me that you would speak to Her Majesty in regards to the way
the
Ixa'takans were being treated!"
Mendosa
laughed quietly, his smirk increasing. "You truly are naïve,
aren't you? And
what exactly do you think would have happened if I did that? Her
Majesty would
find out about my little scheme, and I would basically be signing my
own death
warrant."
The
idealistic Silvite was rendered speechless for several seconds, staring
as if
mortally wounded at the man who had offered to be like a father to him.
"How..." he whispered, "how could you lie to me like that?!"
Another
small shrug. The Admiral no longer looked repentant in the least as he
spoke,
"It is quite unfortunate that things had to turn out this way, Ramirez.
And to
think I thought of you as a son..." He shook his head and continued,
"Regardless, you have uncovered my plans and have left me with no
choice."
Waving a hand sharply, Mendosa commanded, "Guards! Seize him!"
"Everything..."
Ramirez, whose world of ideals had shattered around him like a delicate
orb of
spun glass, whispered as Mendosa's men moved to do as they were told,
none of
them showing any hint that they had been surprised by this confession.
"All
that I have believed in..." Grabbing the handle of Ilazki and drawing
the
deadly silver blade, the broken-hearted young man raised his voice to
the
heavens, wrathfully, wretchedly, in a piercing scream.
"What did
you take me captive for?" the Blue Rogue's voice sounded, cutting
through his
memories.
Ramirez's
eyes narrowed as he regarded the scowling pirate. "If I hadn't, you
would have
bled to death, and I would have been forced to murder your friends as
well."
"Ohhh, you
would have been FORCED, eh?" Vyse snapped, narrowing his eyes, his
barely
controlled anger getting the better of him. "So you're saying that you
didn't
have a choice in giving Galcian the Crystals and stabbing us
all in the
back?"
"You
don't
understand," Ramirez began, but the Air Pirate wouldn't hear it.
"I
don't understand?"
he said incredulously. "You're still saying that after all this? Don't
give me
that! I finally understand perfectly!"
"No,
you
don't," the Silvite Admiral snapped.
"You
had
this planned since Yafutoma!" Vyse yelled. "You must have had plenty of
choices
since then to quit!"
"It's not as
simple as that!" Ramirez replied, his voice rising. "I have my duties.
I can't
just shirk them for someone I haven't known for even two lunar cycles!"
What
the
white-haired young man said made so much sense that the Blue Rogue
couldn't
refute a word of it, and instead he glared hatefully at the floor. "So
now
what, then?" he muttered.
The
Silvite
Admiral hesitated, but he dully told Vyse the truth. "You'll be taken
to Valua
and most likely face a prompt execution for your crimes against the
Empire."
"So
you
spared my life only to see me killed in public?" the Blue Rogue cried,
eyes
wide in outrage. "Ramirez, you're sick!"
Ramirez shut
his eyes as he ground his teeth slightly. He hadn't meant it like
that...but in
the end, he knew that that was to what it amounted regardless. Perhaps
it would
have been kinder to let him die on his own terms, on the battlefield...
At
least there was some amount of dignity in such a death. But he had let
his
emotions get in the way, and Vyse would die before a roaring crowd,
like his
father almost had... "It...was...a mistake," the Silvite finally stated
with
some difficulty.
Vyse
rolled
his eyes. "So you accidentally brought me aboard your ship and
had me
patched up so I'd be all healthy for execution?"
"That's
not—" the shorter swordsman began, but he hesitated, and turned his
troubled
gaze down to the metal floor. "I didn't want you to die," he murmured.
"WHAT THE
HELL KIND OF SENSE DOES THAT MAKE?" Vyse bellowed, rising to his feet.
His
jade
eyes flashing with anger as he glared back up at the rogue, Ramirez
repeated
with a snarl, "You don't understand!!"
"Then
enlighten me! What in the name of the six Moons don't I understand?!"
the Air
Pirate challenged the Admiral, spreading his arms.
Clenching his
teeth, the silver-haired swordsman shot his hands up and grabbed Vyse
by the
locks of hair behind his ears, prompting a sound wince. "You idiot,"
he
hissed, green eyes trembling with fury and emotional torment. "I love
you!!"
A
wide-eyed,
open-mouthed gape met this sudden, completely unexpected confession.
The pain
caused by the Admiral pulling on his hair was forgotten, and when he
remembered
to breathe several seconds later, he stuttered, "Wh, what?"
Realizing
that he was again allowing his tumultuous feelings to get the better of
him but
not caring one damn bit, Ramirez pulled harder as he tilted his chin
upwards,
forcing Vyse's face to meet his in a forceful, reckless kiss.
The
double
whammy made Vyse's brain freeze up as effectively as if Ramirez had
cast
Crystali on it, and as such, he stood there, numb, as his mind
repeated, Oh
shit, oh shit, he's kissing me, he's really serious, he's kissing me,
oh shit,
over and over again. At length, Ramirez broke away, releasing his hold
on
Vyse's locks gently and stepping away, his cheeks scratched with red,
unable to
meet the Blue Rogue's incredulous stare.
Vyse
teetered on his feet, and then fell roughly back onto his cot, his arms
hanging
limply at his side. "You...you kissed me," he breathed, unable to take
his wide
eyes off of the Silvite.
"Yes," the
young Admiral mumbled, his blush deepening as he raised a hand to cover
his
lips. "Yes, I did."
His
mind
still firmly anchored in the moment, the Air Pirate continued to gawk.
"You—kissed
me," he repeated, like a broken record.
"Yes,"
Ramirez muttered, his irritation growing.
"But—but why?"
Vyse sputtered, still unable to grasp what had just happened.
Wearily,
finally glancing down at the object of his affections, he replied, "I told
you why."
Dazed, the
captive stared off into the distance for a moment, then breathed, "Moons."
He shook his head, as if to clear away the fog in which he had found
himself,
and gaining some mental traction, he shouted, "...What in the MOONS?"
The young
ship captain stood again, his anger returning to him. "You love me, yet
you're
sending me to die in Valua?! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Ramirez
turned his back to him and walked away several steps. "More than you
can
imagine," he muttered.
Throwing up
his arms in frustration, Vyse demanded, "So then what?! What was the
point of
doing that now?!" Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, he inquired, "Are
you saying
that you'll let me live if I, I submit to you?!"
"I'm
not
like that!" Ramirez yelled, his back tensing visibly.
"You've been
lying to me practically since the day I met you!" the usually cheerful
youth
snapped. "How am I supposed to know what you're like?!"
There was a
moment of silence as Vyse glowered, seething, at Ramirez's back,
waiting for
his retort, but there came none, aside from his shoulders sagging
slightly.
"Well?" the
Blue Rogue finally sharply said. "What do you have to say for yourself?"
Ramirez
straightened again, and this time he spoke, his voice slightly stiff.
"Do
you...hate me?"
Vyse
laughed, but it was a reaction of pure surprise, not amusement. "Do I hate
you?" he repeated. "Of course I hate you!! I gave you my
sincere trust,
and you took it, wadded it into a ball, and shoved it in my face! Do
you think
I can forgive you for what you've done?!" His words were too harsh, he
knew, and
somewhere in his mind, the incensed Blue Rogue realized he'd end up
regretting
them for sure, but at the moment he didn't care about the repercussions.
"Right...right," the Admiral mumbled, raising his left hand to his
forehead,
reminded all of a sudden of Belleza's words from when he originally
shared with
her the plan that brought him to this point in the first place:
"He'll
hate you forever, you know—Vyse, I mean. There's no way a guy like him
can ever
forgive the type of betrayal you're planning."
"You
lose,
Ramirez," the Silvite whispered to himself through clenched teeth,
hiding his
face with one gloved hand. "And you thought you were so clever..."
"What
are you talking about?" the Air Pirate almost yelled, roughly grabbing
the
Admiral's shoulder.
Ramirez spun
about and smacked away Vyse's hand, his long bangs veiling his eyes.
"Don't...get...too...familiar," he enunciated clearly, his head bowed
slightly.
"You seem to have forgotten that you're my prisoner."
"Trust me, I
haven't forgotten," the Blue Rogue growled, but he did back away,
having been
reminded of his position.
"Then, since
you still remember, you will quietly sit down and behave yourself,"
Ramirez said
tightly. "I don't want to kill you, but if you cause too much of a
fuss, or try
to escape, I will have no other choice."
"I'm
going
to Valua to get executed in a few days anyway, what's the difference?"
Vyse
protested, but the headstrong young pirate sat down regardless. In
spite of his
nihilistic words, he still valued his life and didn't care to see it
extinguished, and after his battle with the stronger swordsman, he
didn't doubt
that he would do as he said.
The
action
did not escape the Admiral's notice. Glowering down at him through the
pale
strands of his hair, he said in a low voice, "I thought that would
convince
you. He turned his gaze to the folded pile of Vyse's things. "Put your
clothes
on."
The
captive
bit back an insult or refusal; he had managed to sober his temper a
bit, and
besides, he'd meant to do that anyway. Without a word, he grabbed his
undershirt, blue jacket—it had been cleaned and repaired very well,
Vyse
noted—scarf, goggle, belts and boots and began to don them one by one.
As he
did so, he finally got a good look around the room; even though Ramirez
told
him he shouldn't escape, and escape was pretty bleak whether he was
told so or
not, Vyse was an eternal optimist, and he had to check out his avenues
anyway.
They
weren't
promising. It was not a small room, about the size of his room back at
Crescent
Isle, but it was utterly devoid of furniture other than the cot on
which he'd
been sleeping. The wall, floor and ceiling were all bare, gleaming,
polished
steel, but for an air vent that was far too narrow for him to try to
squeeze
into. The only exit and entrance was the door through which Ramirez had
arrived. There were no windows; illumination was provided by electric
lights hanging
from the ceiling in long tubes. Vyse wondered what the lights were made
of—if
they were glass, he could try breaking them and using the broken edges
as a
weapon... It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing, and if he
caught one
of the guards by surprise, maybe he could take his sword...
As
he pulled
on his leather boots, he scowled at Ramirez, then crossed his arms
silently,
staring up defiantly at his former friend. The young Admiral returned
the
stare, but his gaze was weary, and after a moment without words, he
shook his
head slowly and walked to the door.
There, he
stopped, his hand on the door handle, and turned back to look directly
at Vyse.
"I told you not to trust me," he said quietly, face set grimly, his
green eyes
reflecting the chaos in his heart. "I told you, over and over.
Why
didn't you listen to me?"
Vyse
furrowed his brows, his lips parting slightly. Though still wishing to
throttle
the silver-haired swordsman, he was beginning to calm down, and
Ramirez's words
couldn't help but bother him.
The
Silvite
swordsman glanced away to the floor, his expression of brooding,
regretful
sorrow. "Nothing gets accomplished if all you do is believe," he
muttered.
"There are no such things as miracles..." he faced his back to the
pirate once
again, turning the handle, "...and wishes don't come true."
The
Blue Rogue didn't know what to say, so he said nothing. He heard the
Admiral
murmur to the guards, "Remain where you are now. There's no need to be
in the
room with him; however, be sure to lock the door." He bleakly stared as
the
heavy door—at least three inches thick, he noted—slammed shut
after the
Admiral, leaving him alone.
With
a
frustrated sigh, Vyse stretched himself out on his cot, his eyes shut
as he
gave himself up to contemplation.
/...He
kissed me,/ he mentally murmured, lifting one hand and dropping it
to his
lips as he blushed. /Moons, I still can't believe it.../ Vyse
parted his
eyelids, his anger waning into anxiety, now that he was left to ponder
that
part of his confrontation with Ramirez. /How long? How long has he
been in
love with me? I don't get it.../
He
thought
back to the day before yesterday, the clues that Ramirez had dropped.
Like his
betrayal, his confession shouldn't have been something that had shocked
Vyse as
much as it had.
/Moons!/
the brunet rogue swore, clenching his teeth. /Am I really this
oblivious? Or
was I just fooling myself, telling myself it was friendship and nothing
more?/ He
raised
his hand, the one that Ramirez had clasped two nights ago, and
consternation
filled his eyes. /...No,/ he thought, /wasn't I wondering
what it
would be like to...be with Ramirez? And Ramirez as much as
asked me if I
was gay... Was I unintentionally stringing him along? Was he hoping I
was in
love with him, too? Shit!/ The Air Pirate sat up to hunch over his
knees. /Was
him asking me that his way of trying to get my attention?/
He
stood and
began to pace nervously. "Am I really so clueless that I need to get
stabbed
and kissed before I can see what should've been obvious the entire
time?" he
muttered, running a hand through his brown bangs. "I'd figured it out
without
realizing it, too!" he added, thinking back to that night during the
installation of the Delphinus' new engine. "He had to insult me in the
meantime, but he told me he liked me, and I thought to myself, 'Was it
a love
confession? But no, he's not like that!' Well, six Moons above, he was
like that!!" Vyse stomped a foot, aggravated, and sighed.
/...I
wonder,/ he thought, raising his brown eyes to the lights, /would
things
have turned out differently if I hadn't been so damn thick? Maybe
Ramirez
couldn't take it anymore... And shit, he even told me I'd been
saying
suggestive things! It must have hurt!/ Vyse groaned mentally,
gritting his
teeth and slapping his forehead in self-disgust. /Shit. Shit, shit,
shit,
shit, shit! I'm such an idiot!!/
With
a
groan, he walked over to his cot and collapsed on top of it, kicking
off his
boots before resting his feet. Vyse remembered clearly how he'd
pondered the
other night what it would be like to get together with Ramirez... Well,
fat
chance of that happening now; he couldn't love someone he
didn't trust,
and after all this, there was no way he could trust the
Silvite,
possibly ever again. He had to wonder, though, if things had taken a
different
turn, if something, somehow, had gone differently. Would he have
eventually
fallen for Ramirez, like Ramirez had fallen for him? How had
Ramirez
fallen in love with him, anyway—and when?
"I
need to
talk to him again," he murmured anxiously, eyes on the ceiling. The
captain of
the Delphinus also well remembered his hasty words from just now, and
as was
expected, he regretted them. "Maybe, if we talk, we can work something
out..."
He
was still
hurt and angered by the Silvite's betrayal; that was something Vyse
continued
to believe that Ramirez hadn't had to do. His trust in the
white-haired
young man had also been wrecked, and it would take a heck of a lot for
it to be
restored. Vyse wasn't sure it could be restored. But after
going over
their conversation, the brunet Air Pirate realized that things were
hard on
Ramirez, too—especially considering his depressing closing comments.
Maybe they
could come to some agreement if they managed to talk. Vyse
wasn't about
to apologize for anything; considering what Ramirez had done to him,
the
captive felt vindicated in allowing himself that! But there were plenty
of
other things that could be said...
That
was, of
course, assuming that he would get a chance to say them. The handsome
Blue
Rogue glanced at the door nervously; there was no guarantee that
Ramirez would
come to talk to him again, especially after how badly their
conversation had
gone. Vyse wondered if the guards would tell their superior if the
prisoner
wanted to talk to him... Probably not, but it was worth a shot. He had
to at
least try. The brown-eyed rogue needed to settle things clearly
with
Ramirez, anyway—there was just too much left hanging in the air as it
was.
Hell, even if he ended up dying anyway, at least he'd be able to have
finished
up business with one person.
With
a sigh,
Vyse began to do the only thing he could do at the moment: wait.
Ramirez was
not faring as well as the Blue Rogue. The desolation he felt was
overpowering,
and he went through the motions of his day emptily, only waiting for
time to
pass until night and the futile chase of sleep came once again.
In
spite of
his best efforts, his thoughts continued to return to his failed
attempt to
speak with Vyse. It was natural that it would be a failure; it would
have been
strange if Vyse hadn't been angry with him. But he had told him
his true
feelings, and then kissed him... And the handsome rogue may as well
have spat
in his face. Again, not that Ramirez blamed him, but it still hurt,
though he
knew he deserved it.
/That
conversation couldn't have gone any worse,/ he thought
bleakly that
night as he prepared for night, setting Ilazki down on his bed as he
changed
out of his uniform. /Although I suppose it's for the best... If Vyse
hates
me, it will be easier to watch him die.../ Ramirez shut his eyes
and shook
his head. /Who do I think I'm fooling? I'll be just as miserable no
matter
what I do. What a wonderful catch-22 I've created for myself.../
He
wondered
briefly if he should bother trying to talk to Vyse again. The Blue
Rogue had
made his feelings on the matter quite clear that morning, however, and
to
Ramirez, it hardly seemed necessary. The worst was likely what would
happen,
and the worst was that he'd humiliate himself again, or be forced to
kill Vyse
for one reason or another. If he couldn't slay the blue-clad Air Pirate
in the
heat of battle, he'd never be able to do it with a cool mind.
There was
also the matter of his friends; he did not doubt they'd try to come
rescue him.
If they fought at a distance, using their airships, the Delphinus was
nearly
certain to win; it could fly and sink to heights the Monoceros couldn't
hope to
reach, and there was also the Moon Stone Cannon. However, if they
boarded the
Monoceros in an attempt to break Vyse out personally, as Ramirez
thought they
were likely to do, they were dead. He would have no choice but to fight
them
face-to-face again, and he would slaughter them; doing
otherwise would
be to fail Lord Galcian.
Ramirez
could see no escape from the abysmally poor choices he had made. With a
soft
groan, he let his head sink into his raised hands. He had always prided
himself
on his careful tactics, his brilliant stratagems...yet even with all
the skill
he possessed, he was on the verge of crumbling, all for a love
unrequited.
He
dropped
his hands and shook his head. There was still a little time; perhaps if
he
considered the matter a little longer, he would be able to conceive
something... Ramirez was not the unflagging optimist that Vyse was,
though, and
his belief in himself was at an all-time low besides. Despair inflected
in his
every movement, the deeply wounded Silvite very gently turned off the
lights
and climbed into bed, his right hand on his sword, as he had grown
accustomed
to sleeping shortly after falling under Lord Galcian's command.
"Of
all
people, why did I have to fall in love with that one...?" the
silver-haired swordsman murmured to himself. "Why... Why can't things
ever be
simple?" He closed his eyes tightly, futilely attempting sleep.
As
it
happened, Ramirez's predictions on the actions Aika and company would
take were
precise. That morning, the four had assembled in the meeting room, the
rest of
the crew busy at beginning the rebuilding of the island for their
kidnapped
leader, to discuss what should be done.
"Vyse cannot
be left on the Monoceros," Enrique began the conversation, his fingers
crossed.
"If, as Gilder said yesterday, he is taken all the way to Valua, it's
certain
that his execution will shortly follow."
"I'm
all for
a rescue," the dirty-blond Air Pirate smirked, glancing at the girls.
"I assume
you ladies are, too?"
Fina
and
Aika nodded, their faces set with seriousness. "Vyse risked his life to
save
me," the former said. "I couldn't call myself his friend if I wouldn't
do the
same."
"Even if it
means fighting against Ramirez?" Enrique inquired, his expression
sympathetic
in spite of his less than tactful words.
The
white-clad Silvite girl averted her eyes. "...Even if it
means...fighting
against Ramirez," she agreed sadly.
"Ramirez has
already said that he was using us from the beginning," Aika added,
narrowing
her brown eyes. "There's no reason for us to show any mercy."
"Not
to put
a damper on things, but considering how easily he beat you, Fina and
Vyse up, I
wouldn't be the one thinking about showing mercy," Gilder pointed out.
Aika
gritted
her teeth. "I know," she said. "Ramirez could've killed us
easily. I
think he only let us live because he wanted us to suffer. He and I were
never
crazy about each other, but I don't understand why he'd be that cruel
to Fina,
too." She glanced worriedly at her delicate friend.
Fina
shook
her head. "I don't understand either..." she murmured.
"Not
like
we'll ever find out," Gilder said sensibly. "What we're after is Vyse!"
"Right!" the
redheaded girl nodded fiercely. "We'll set sail in the Delphinus to
chase
after, find and engage the Monoceros before the day is out! We can't
afford to
waste a single minute!"
The
others
all nodded, smiling. "And as long as Vyse is incapacitated, Aika,
perhaps you
should act as standing captain?" Enrique suggested.
Vyse's
childhood friend started, surprised. "What? Me?"
"You've
known Vyse the longest," Fina pointed out, smiling as well. "You'd know
best
what he'd do, so you'd be best to emulate his leadership skills."
"What Fina
said," Gilder added, his smile easygoing. "Besides, you're the girl
with the
plan, Aika, not to mention the drive. We all want to save Vyse, believe
me, but
nobody here wants to save him as much as you."
The
Blue
Rogue girl blushed crimson, but she grinned regardless. "Thanks,
everyone," she
said warmly. "Now...let's move out!"
The
next
morning, the Delphinus had taken to high sky at top speed, assuming
that the
Monoceros had gone straight to Valua and hoping to overtake them. As
such, when
the Monoceros really unanchored from the mountain range separating the
lands
under the Red and Yellow Moons and set sail southbound, the mighty
battleship
was nowhere to be seen, and the two simply passed each other by without
realizing it. Ramirez commanded his men to keep a watch out for the
Delphinus,
not knowing that it wasn't necessary, but occupying his mind with ship
battle
strategies at least distracted him temporarily from the misery that
would
otherwise consume him. The journey was a smooth one, with good winds
and clear
skies, the only upsets being the occasional monster attacks, but that
was a
given if you were sailing. It looked as if they might reach Valua on
schedule,
a mere two nights from now; perhaps not even that.
The
thought
did not bring Ramirez any comfort.
He
stood
above the others on the captain's platform, silently brooding. No one
asked him
what the matter was; the fact of the matter was that Ramirez did not
care about
the personal wellbeing of the men in his crew beyond the fact that they
were
whole and able to fight when called upon, and so in return they did not
care
about him, either. There were few in the Armada who cared about the
dangerous,
deceptively powerful man. It would be like worrying about a roc; there
just
isn't any need to spare it those kinds of thoughts. All that mattered
is that
they followed his orders; as long as they did that and did it well and
promptly, all was well.
It
was early
in the afternoon that there was a disturbance in the day, though
nothing that
impeded the flight to Valua. One of the guards stationed outside of
Vyse's cell
arrived on the bridge and politely called for his captain's attention.
Ramirez
gave it to him, and the guard was not entirely thrilled to receive it,
considering his reaction.
"Why
are you
here?" the white-haired swordsman demanded, eyes narrowed as he
regarded the
soldier. "I do not recall giving orders for you to leave your
post."
Knowing very
well what would happen if the conversation continued down this thread,
the
guard worriedly saluted and said, "Lord Ramirez, sir! I'm terribly
sorry to
disturb you, but the prisoner has requested to speak with you."
The
Silvite
narrowed his eyes, not revealing his simultaneous dread and curiosity.
"Explain
yourself," he commanded coldly.
"This
morning, when given his breakfast, the Air Pirate expressed a desire to
speak
with you, Lord Ramirez," the guard restated. "He was ignored, as you
commanded,
but he was insistent, going so far as to attempt to escape. Of course,
his
efforts were thwarted, and he is currently still locked securely in his
cell."
"Why
are you
telling me this now, several hours after the incident?" Ramirez
queried,
his tone dropping several degrees.
In
spite of
the frigidity, the soldier broke out into a sweat under his armor.
"It...er..."
he fumbled. "Well, to bother you with such a thing simply because a prisoner
asks for it..."
"Then why
tell me at all?" the Silvite Admiral inquired, his voice and expression
not
changing.
The
soldier
guard almost quailed under Ramirez's accusatory scrutiny, but he
managed to
stay his ground and reply, "You...we remembered recently that you had
gone out
of your way to speak with him yesterday, so we thought that perhaps you
would
be interested that the...Air Pirate made the request to begin with...
Not that
you are obliged to do as the prisoner asks, of course," he added
hastily. "We
simply thought that it may have been of interest to you..."
The
green-eyed swordsman glowered at the soldier for a moment more, then
turned his
stare out to the sky beyond the ship's windshield. "You were right
about one
thing," he said curtly. "I am not at the Air Pirate's beck and call. If
I speak
with him again, it would be for my own reasons, not because he desired
it." He
shut his eyes. "Return to your post immediately. Considering the
situation, I
will overlook your discrepancy this once."
The
soldier
couldn't obey quickly enough, and he left Ramirez with much to
consider. Vyse
wanted to speak with him so badly he had attempted escape, unarmed,
against
four armed guards? That in itself piqued his interest, but he doubted
that
there was anything they had to say to each other...
/No,/
he corrected himself, /there is much we have to discuss. It's just
that it
will change nothing.../
Ramirez had
been awake most of the night pondering his next courses of actions, but
he
could think of no way to spare Vyse's life without suffering severe
repercussions. He prided himself on having been able to earn Lord
Galcian's
trust and respect; releasing the rogue would cost him all the work he
had put
into seven years of faithful service. The Grand Admiral's philosophy
was to
trust no one, after all; that he, Ramirez, would be able to have earned
even a
small measure of it was not something to be taken, or thrown away,
lightly.
/I
will
probably have to end up killing Vyse after all,/ he thought
bleakly. There
was nothing he could do about that. Lord Galcian came before everyone
else,
even the handsome rogue he loved, after all; that was Ramirez's truth,
his
reality, the dogma from which he could not, would not, deviate
his life.
Even if he wanted the young ship captain to continue to live, there was
nothing
he could conceivably do to prevent his impending, certain death...
He
continued to
consider the situation with a grave mind and a fixed face, and in the
end, he
decided that after dinner, when Vyse would be given his second meal, he
would
go to speak with him. Ramirez truly didn't think anything would come of
it, but
if he was going to let Vyse die after all, the least he could do was
grant what
was likely to be the rogue's final request...
The
heavyhearted swordsman's timing was precise; he arrived just as the
guards were
about to shut and lock the cell door for the night, having just
escorted Vyse
back from the bathroom after his dinner. A sharp glance and a cool
re-invocation of yesterday's procedure was all that was necessary, and
Ramirez
was shortly gazing across the prison cell at Vyse, who was standing and
staring
at him with sad eyes. There was a large bruise on the rogue's jaw, to
the right
of his chin, but the Admiral chose to ignore it for now.
"You
wished
to speak with me," the Silvite stated, rather than asked.
The
abnormally reserved rogue offered a half-hearted smile. "I started to
think you
wouldn't come," he commented.
Ramirez
flicked his eyes to the side. "...I thought it only proper to honor a
last
request."
Vyse
frowned, his brown eyes troubled, at that. "Can we talk about that?"
"That is why
I came," the silver-haired swordsman pointed out.
"Ramirez,"
the Blue Rogue began, taking a step forward, "you told me that you
don't want
me to die. Trust me, I don't want to die either. Couldn't we try to
work
something out?"
The
Silvite
shook his head slowly, the white strands of his hair brushing against
his
slender face.
"But
why
not?" Vyse argued, taking another step forward. "I remember—Enrique
mentioned
that you're a tactical genius. It's got to be a cakewalk for you to
think up a
solution for this! I mean," and he painfully swallowed his pride, "look
at what
you did on the Delphinus, even though I was practically always with
you! You
had barely any resources, and look how well that succeeded!"
"Only
because you're utterly blind," Ramirez muttered.
The
Blue
Rogue flinched at that; that was a sore spot for him. "I wanted
to
believe in you," he murmured by way of defense.
They
were
both silent for several long, awkward moments, neither of them able to
look
properly at the other. They both knew they had made several mistakes in
dealing
with the other; they were both wondering if they were the one at fault.
Finally,
Ramirez sighed. "I...cannot release you."
"Why
not?"
Vyse queried, glancing up. "You love me, right?"
"...You
already know the answer to that," the Silvite said in a low, angry
voice, his
furrowed eyes hard.
"Well...that's what I'm saying, then!" the rogue said, frustrated, his
cheeks
pink. "How can you send someone you love to the executioner's block?
Aren't I
too important to you for you to allow that?"
"Your
attempts at emotional manipulation are ham-handed," Ramirez said
coldly,
although in reality they were sawing through his heartstrings.
Again, Vyse
flinched. "I wasn't trying to manipulate you," he protested guiltily;
perhaps
he was, a little. "And even if I were, you manipulated me, so fair's fair."
"...Regardless," the Silvite murmured, eyes now reflecting his gloom,
"I still
cannot release you."
"...Because
of Galcian, right?" Vyse queried, although they both knew it was a
statement in
spite of the upward inflection. When Ramirez did not answer, the rogue
pushed
on, "Don't you think there's something wrong with that? I know
Galcian's like a
father to you, but nobody should have to make anyone kill their loved
ones! Or
watch them die!"
Ramirez
slowly
raised his left hand and covered half his face with it, grimacing
sorrowfully.
"I have made oaths, vows, to Lord Galcian," he stated softly. "I am
certain I
have told you this before..."
"But
still—"
"You
are not
listening!" the white-haired young man snapped, shutting his
eyelids in
anger. "There is one way you can live, Vyse. Lord Galcian is impressed
with
your strength. If you were to swear allegiance to him and him alone—in
other
words, if you give up being an Air Pirate to join me in fighting for
him—then
he would have me spare your life. I discussed this with him earlier; it
is the
truth."
"You've got
to be kidding!" the brunet rogue protested angrily. "There's no way I'd
ever
work for Galcian—especially if it meant I'd have to give up the skies!"
The
Admiral
nodded curtly. "In your own way, you have your own oaths—to your
friends, to
your family, to yourself," he said, equally curtly. "You just now said
that you
would not break them for me. Why should I do the same?"
Vyse
remained unhappily silent. Ramirez had an irrefutable point.
The
Silvite
sighed again. "It's not that I want to do this," he said, his
misery
creeping into his voice. "But I don't have any other choice."
The
brown-haired rogue still said nothing; he only watched Ramirez sadly.
"I
barely
know you, too," the pale swordsman went on, "and I have been under Lord
Galcian's service for several years. He has come through for me several
times
in several ways, like no one else ever has. I...depend upon him."
"Yeah," Vyse
said quietly. He offered a small quirk of a smile and added, "He's like
your
dad, huh..."
Ramirez
nodded once. "I don't have a proper family," he murmured.
"Although...Lord
Galcian and I are not equals—he is the teacher and I the student, and
as such
there is a line that cannot be crossed separating us—he is my only
'family'."
"What about
Fina?"
The
Silvite's eyes clouded as he furrowed his eyebrows, beginning to scowl.
"I hate
her."
"What?" Vyse
gaped, astonished. "Why? That's not what you told me before!"
Ramirez
looked at him witheringly.
"Well..."
the headstrong Air Pirate hesitated, "still!"
The
Admiral
glowered at the steel floor. "Imagine this, Vyse," he said softly.
"Imagine you
and Aika are the only children on your birth island, that everyone else
is an
adult or an elder. Imagine that, all throughout your life, you were
given books
and tools and toy swords, whereas your female counterpart is given
dolls and
flowers, though fake since there are no natural flowers. No," he cut in
when
Vyse opened his mouth, "wait for it. Imagine that, while nothing is
ever
expected of Aika—as long as she is healthy and happy, that is fine for
everyone
else—you are expected to study, train, become a sort of champion
for the
rest of your people...
"You
are
never allowed any leeway to be what you want to be, and any deviance is
punished without fail. It is made very clear throughout your life that
your
personal feelings are of no consequence, even as you watch all the
adults fawn
on your female friend, give her anything she could want without reserve
or
expectation—meanwhile, you are laden with expectations, and if you do
not meet
them, you are a disappointment, and informed of this unambiguously.
"Now
imagine
that in spite of this unfair treatment, Aika dotes on you, always
assuming that
you are her equal, never noticing that you two are treated very
unequally."
Ramirez's eyes, which had become like unyielding shards of emerald,
narrowed.
"Imagine again that you two are separated for several years after you
have been
given a mission, and along with that mission, a great deal of
information that
severely damages your view on what and who you are, as well as your
purpose in
living. You two meet again, and she has been given the same mission,
but the
adults have decided to edit out of her briefing the information you
were forced
to accept immediately. She knows nothing of how you've suffered over
and over
while on this mission, and since time has still been frozen to her
since the
last time you saw each other, she acts as if everything is the same,
barely
noticing you have sustained scar after scar—scars that are nowhere to
be found
on her pretty white skin.
"Wouldn't you
hate her, too?" Ramirez hissed, teeth grinding together, eyebrows
twitching
with poorly concealed resentment.
His
brown
eyes sympathetic and moved, Vyse murmured, "Ramirez..."
The
Admiral
glanced down and away. "...Perhaps I've said too much."
"No... It
makes sense, though," he added softly. "Back when we'd just defeated
Gregorio
on the Auriga, Fina sang for me, and later, you accused me of liking
her better
than you... It never used to make sense to me, and I'd always thought
you'd
been jealous of me and how close I was to her—but you were really
jealous of her,
weren't you?"
The
Silvite
swordsman kept his face obscured by his hair.
"Ramirez...hey...I've gotta know..." Vyse began. "Why...why are you in
love
with me? And for how long have you been...?"
"Why? Ha..."
The Admiral gave a hollow little laugh. "If I could tell you that, I
would. As
for how long? I'm not sure of that, either. I realized it that night I
spent
conversing with Arianne, but I was attracted to you before that, too,
and for a
long while, I thought I was simply mistaken. It was only recently that
I
realized..." He breathed a ragged sigh. "...that there can be no
mistake."
After a
moment of ellipses, Ramirez glanced again at the bruise on Vyse's face.
"I
assume you received that when you tried to break out this morning," he
commented.
"Oh,
this?"
The rogue rubbed the sore mark gingerly. "Yeah. I get the feeling those
guards
would've beaten me up a lot more if they weren't afraid of what you'd
do to
them. They seem terrified of you, you know."
"I
don't
suggest you try that again," the Silvite said without feeling, ignoring
the
comment. "I'm supposed to take you to Valua for formal execution, but
Lord
Galcian as much as said that I would not be punished if, while you were
trying
to escape, I killed you to prevent your flight."
Vyse
didn't
speak for a moment; then, he said, "So, if I try to run, you'll kill
me."
Ramirez
nodded.
"And
if I
just sit here, then I'll be taken to Valua and get killed anyway."
Ramirez
nodded.
"What about
if Aika and the others come to save me?"
"That's the
same as if you attempt escape," Ramirez said dully, "except at least
you won't
die alone."
The
Blue
Rogue smiled hopelessly and sat heavily down on his cot, pulling off
his
Skyseer Goggle to rub at his eyes, then fold his hands over them as he
leaned
his elbows on his knees and in turn rest his head on those folded hands.
"What about
when we're in the Grand Fortress?" he inquired quietly. "Any chance of
me
slipping off then and getting out somehow?"
"You
escaped
from the Grand Fortress twice," Ramirez replied just as quietly. "Lord
Galcian
will never permit a third time."
"You
couldn't even happen to—"
"I can't,"
the Silvite interrupted him tersely. "...I'm sorry. But I can't." He
shut his
eyes. "...Perhaps you could have managed something in the Grand
Fortress; perhaps.
But you shouldn't have said anything to me about it. Now I'm duty-bound
to
prevent it."
There was a
pause before Vyse raised his head and smiled wistfully, looking tired.
"Oh,
yeah," he said, "your duty."
"Please
don't say it like that," the Admiral quietly requested.
"Can
I ask
you just one more thing?" the captain of the Delphinus inquired.
The
Silvite
Admiral hesitated, then nodded.
"Does
anybody matter to you besides Galcian?" he questioned, gazing directly
at the
white-haired young man. "Anyone at all?"
Ramirez
started slightly, as if he'd been pricked by a pin, and he shut his
eyes in
pain. "It's unfair of you to ask that..." he murmured. "You know...how
I feel
about you."
"It's just
that..." the Blue Rogue frowned, his brown eyes now focused on some
distant
point, "it seems terrible to me that you'd give up love or even
friendship for
duty."
"Why
shouldn't I?" Ramirez said, still quietly, opening his eyes to peer at
his
feet. "Since you hate me."
"...I went
overboard yesterday," Vyse amended, though there wasn't much feeling in
it. He
ached inside terribly, knowing that his ex-friend, who claimed to love
him,
wouldn't so much as lift a finger to help him. The heavy reality of his
situation was pressing down on him as well—he was trapped, and he
himself had
set the bait for it. Vyse could blame no one but himself for opening
himself to
Ramirez when even the Silvite said he shouldn't depend on him. The
black beast
called despair was crouching, eyeing the Blue Rogue, ready to pounce
and feast
on his weakened flesh... Vyse bit his lip unhappily and continued,
"You're
right, though. It'd be stupid for me to trust someone who's hurt me as
much as
you have again, and you can't have love or friendship without
trust."
A
knife of
guilt stabbed the Silvite again as he weakly began, "I..."
He
didn't
finish. The Air Pirate had lowered his face back onto his folded hands.
Ramirez
watched silently, anxiety scrabbling at the corners of his mind, for a
moment;
every once in a while, the once cheerful youth's shoulders shook as
occasional
sharp, shuddering gasps issued from his mouth. Though the Admiral knew
exactly
what his captive was doing, he didn't want to register or even
recognize it.
Ramirez knew the pain of betrayal too well to want to acknowledge
it...he knew
he wouldn't be able to do what had to be done if he did.
When
a drop
of something slid swiftly across the young captain's left hand from
under his
eyes and leisurely dropped to the floor, though, the guilt-ridden
Silvite
finally ventured, "...Vyse?"
"...even
though I believed in you..." was the barely audible, whispered reply.
Feeling like
the scum of the world, Ramirez almost took a step forward, raising a
hand as if
to try to comfort Vyse, but he hesitated, and slowly let his hand and
gaze
fall. He had done this—he had been the one who had dragged Vyse down to
his
level. Their increased similarities had not made him any more satisfied
than he
had thought he would have been weeks earlier; rather, it made him
miserable
that the Blue Rogue's once sunny disposition, to which Ramirez had been
attracted in the first place, had been reduced to this dismal shower of
tears.
Wordlessly,
the silver-haired Admiral turned to the door and grasped the handle. He
stiffened slightly as he heard his once-friend repeat something twice
under his
breath—surely not meaning to be heard, but being overheard anyway—and,
fighting
the urge to break down completely, Ramirez opened the door and shut it
quietly
behind him.
The
heavy,
final sound of metal closing on metal, however subdued, was a
discordant
screech to Vyse, who was as naturally inclined to the open skies as a
wild
bird. His heart aching, he allowed himself to weep for several moments
longer
to relieve his building stress before he pulled himself together,
wiping away
his tears on his sleeve. The Blue Rogue took a few deep breaths to calm
himself, and then, because after all his philosophy was that
'impossible
is a word people use to make themselves feel better about giving up',
once
again began to assess the situation.
/It
looks
grim,/ he thought, his face set, /and I don't know if I can get
out of
this alive... But at least it's only me captured, and not everyone,
too.
They'll come to help me for sure—I know it! I just have to worry about
getting
out of this ship. The problem is getting past those guards, getting my
weapons
and stuff, not getting caught by Ramirez, and finding where they keep
the
lifeboats.../
He
didn't
add the fact that all five Crystals were now in Galcian's possession to
his
list of worries. He had enough hurdles to cross at the moment.
Vyse
stood
and once again looked around his cell, this time forcing himself to
have a more
positive mindset. The air duct was too small for him to crawl through,
but he
was practically an escape artist legend among the Valuans; if he could
pry it
off, then find someway to hide himself from sight, they might think
he'd used
that to run away and leave their posts. Then he could sneak out, find
his
weapons...
The
Air
Pirate frowned worriedly at that. He had no idea where his weapons
were. Maybe
it would be better under the circumstances to give up on them; he could
buy new
weapons, armor and equipment, after all, but he couldn't buy a second
chance at
life. If he found them while searching for the lifeboats, then great,
but if he
didn't see them, then he'd just leave them, he reasoned.
Encouraged
and not nearly as upset as he had been just before Ramirez left, Vyse
continued
to make his plans. He couldn't rely on his former friend for anything,
much
less to have a change of heart and decide to help him get away, so he
had to do
this on his own. It was a lesson bitterly learned, but one he wouldn't
soon
forget. And so what if he said he'd kill him if he tried to escape? The
captain
of the Delphinus was a goner either way, so at least he could take a
risk and
make a break for it. The worst that would happen was the same thing
that would
happen if he obediently stayed here, anyway, and the best was that he'd
get out
of here alive and return to Crescent Isle and Aika and the others in
one piece.
That, in Vyse's opinion, was worth risking his life.
The
tortured
Silvite was not faring nearly as well as the Blue Rogue emotionally.
Barely
able to keep up a decent front for his underlings, he agonized about
what
needed to be done and what should be done.
/Killing
Vyse or letting him die... Is it really the right thing to do?/ he
asked
himself repeatedly. /What Lord Galcian is doing is supposed to
balance the
evils of this world...but Vyse is not evil. Aside from opposing Lord
Galcian
and the Valuan Empire, he has done nothing wrong. Indeed, in his mind,
Lord
Galcian must be the same as the Valuan Empire; Vyse knows nothing of
his true
plans, after all. And the Valuan Empire is undeniably, disgustingly
corrupt;
the fact that he opposes it speaks well of Vyse's character...
Why,
then, should he be made to suffer so much?/
Although he
had begun to become set in his decision that Vyse would die despite
that he had
no desire to see him killed, Ramirez's choice had been heavily upset by
the two
things Vyse had whispered to himself while weeping in despair: "I
don't want
to die... I don't want to die."
Those words
followed Ramirez throughout the rest of the day, until late at night,
when the
Monoceros had set anchor and everyone was sleeping or about to go to
sleep.
Rather than resting, which he wasn't likely to have been able to do
even under
ideal conditions, he paced nervously, contemplating everything up until
then.
The strategic genius had dissected what he knew of Vyse, of the Grand
Admiral,
of the people of Arcadia, of his experiences both old and recent, and
the
conclusion that he was beginning to form was nothing short of blasphemy.
/Is
it
possible that Lord Galcian...is mistaken?/ he wondered, his brow
creased.
/It can't be... I have been shown again and again through
personal
experience that humans are disgusting creatures, unworthy of pity or
mercy...
But still, Vyse is... And the people around Vyse, too... Yet I cannot
betray Lord Galcian,/ the Silvite added helplessly. /He has done
so much
for me... If I were to turn my back on him for mere personal desires,
then I
would have no right to continue to live.../
He
hesitated
suddenly, and let his gaze fall to his hip, on the silver sword he'd
wielded
since childhood. He had sworn to lay down his sword and his life for
Lord
Galcian, in precisely those words... Ramirez furrowed his brows
slightly and
averted his jaded eyes from Ilazki.
"Perhaps,"
he murmured to himself, distressed. He didn't want Vyse to die, and he
didn't
want to fail Lord Galcian. It was the only solution he could see that
would allow
him to spare the one he loved and stay true to the one he
served.
Was
that
what it came down to, though? Was he really so out of options that he
would
resort to something that desperate...? He was supposed to be strong,
yet he was
fully willing to do something like that...
He
glanced
out a window at the star-strewn night sky, and after a few moments of
effort,
picked out the Fallen Angel, Vyse's favorite constellation. Looking
upon it
reminded him of that night when the two of them had stargazed together,
along
with their conversations... He had shed tears that night, he recalled.
Not
many—just a few—but tears were tears. Thinking too long of his
surrogate mother
tended to do that to him... The lonesome Silvite sighed mournfully. He
was not
emotional often, tending to keep them well under wrap, but when they
slipped
out, they were often violent, powerful, sometimes threatening to
overtake
him...
He
wondered
if he wasn't letting his unhappiness triumph over him.
He
then
wondered if he cared, or indeed if it mattered.
The
Silvite
Admiral again recalled that night under the stars with Vyse, and
something
occurred to him. It had been that night when he had thought he had
conquered
his chaotic feelings for the dashing rogue, though in reality it had
simply
grown stronger than him, and in his foolishness, he had thought to
himself that
he had defeated himself.
The
young
man laughed. It was a laugh that would make small children weep, and he
laughed
it softly and for a long time, shedding a nihilistic, melancholy smile
like
pale moonlight. Oh, yes. He certainly had defeated
himself...fatally so.
It
wasn't
something he wanted to do, but he hated all of his present options as
powerfully
as he currently hated himself. This conclusion was the best he could
manage.
Soon, it
would all end. His conflict, his loyalty, his love...everything.
At
four in
the morning, when the sky was an endless cloak of darkness illuminated
by the
stars and the Moons, the entire Monoceros was still but for one man.
Ramirez,
who carried with him his sword as well as Vyse's things, walked
purposefully
first to the area where the lifeboats were kept, in one of which he
carefully placed
the Blue Rogue's possessions, and then to the high security cell where
Vyse was
kept. Four guards were keeping watch even now, though they were of
course not
the same men as before.
It
was easy
to get rid of them for Ramirez. He merely told them he needed to check
on the
prisoner, and while he did so, all four were to head back to the ship
barracks
and send in their replacements. When the replacements came, he said, he
would
be finished and the door would be locked, so they needed only stand
guard.
Ramirez's
underlings did not question him; it sounded reasonable enough to them,
and even though it was odd that the captain of the Monoceros would come
himself, well, it was reasonable that if he was checking on the
prisoner, he'd
kill two birds with one stone and have them change things. They were
tired,
anyway, and they were glad to receive these orders. And so, the Silvite
Admiral
was free to enter the cell without witness.
Vyse
was not
inside—or so first glance told him. The grate to the air duct had been
forced
off, and the covers to the cot were conveniently placed so that they
hid
whatever might be under it. After briefly checking that the Blue Rogue
was not
behind the steel door, Ramirez walked over to the cot, and with the tip
of his
sheathed sword, lifted the sheets.
The
Air
Pirate stared up at Ramirez with the look of a fox that has been caught
sneaking meat from a storehouse.
"You
were
planning on escaping," the white-haired young man stated.
"Errr..."
went Vyse. He could hardly deny it, after all, when it was so obvious.
"Even though
I told you if you were caught, I would have to kill you?"
The
captain
of the Delphinus crawled out from under the cot and stood, shrugging
slightly.
"If I'm going to die anyway, I have to bet on the one percent chance
that I can
break out of this ship alive," he replied with a small smile.
The
Silvite
youth returned the smile, and it worried Vyse how heartrendingly lonely
it was.
"Fortunately, you no longer need to worry about it." He turned to the
doorway
and began to walk. "Come with me, quickly."
The
Air
Pirate didn't move; he just stared at the Admiral. "What's going on?"
Ramirez
stopped, keeping his back to the one he loved. "...I'm letting you go."
Vyse's
reaction was expected: "......What?"
"Hurry up,"
the Admiral urged. "I sent the guards away, but the relief will be
coming
shortly to replace them. You have to be out of here before they arrive."
Fully
expecting a trap of some kind but not knowing what else he could do,
Vyse
obeyed and followed Ramirez out, the only pause being when his
silver-haired
companion shut and locked the door behind them.
After they
were several hallways away, the brunet warily spoke again. "Ramirez,
what are
you trying to pull?"
The
jade-eyed Silvite sighed. "I'm letting you go," he repeated himself.
"Or do you
want to stay?"
"No,
but..."
Vyse protested, still apprehensive. "What brings this on?"
"What does
it matter?" the captain of the Monoceros replied unemotionally.
The
Blue
Rogue narrowed his brown eyes. "It matters a lot," he argued. "You
nearly
killed me, kidnapped me, kissed me, and told me you couldn't release me
when I
tried to cut a deal with you. Now I want to know why you're letting me
go free
all of a sudden."
Ramirez was
silent for a moment as he continued to lead the handsome rogue through
his
flagship; Vyse had the impression that he was trying to decide on his
words. "I
thought about many things for a long time," he said finally, "and after
a
while, I managed to think of a way to let you go and not break my vows
to Lord
Galcian."
"Yeah?" Vyse
said interestedly, though half the interest was borne from his
misgivings.
"How?"
"You
will be
free," Ramirez said simply. "That is the only part you need to know."
The
Blue
Rogue frowned deeply as he eyed the Admiral exasperatedly. "Ramirez,
are you
aware of how much you contradict yourself?"
The
uniformed Silvite ignored the slight. It wouldn't matter how he was
insulted in
a short while, after all.
"This all is
pretty hard to swallow," Vyse continued, "after what you pulled. I have
no
reason to trust you—not anymore."
Ramirez
flinched slightly, but thought, /It's as much as I deserve.../
"How
do I
know this isn't a trap?" he inquired when he received no reply.
"What would
be the point of a trap when I could simply draw my sword and bury its
point in
your chest?" the Admiral inquired morosely.
After several seconds of silence. Vyse
swallowed, hesitated, then began, "Uh, by the way, about my
equipment..."
Ramirez led
him down a staircase, and with his eyes cast downward, the Silvite
replied, "I
already put your things in a lifeboat. We're almost there, by the way.
The boat
you're to take will have one of the doors opened partially. I placed
your
cutlasses and other things under the front-most left-side seat."
Furrowing
his brow, his misgivings growing the more and more he got the feeling
that
something was amiss, the captain of the Delphinus queried charily, "You
said
that you sent the guards outside my cell away before you got me... Does
your
crew know you're doing this?"
"No."
The
Blue
Rogue fell silent, wondering what in the Moons was the other part of
Ramirez's
plan. He didn't see anything special in the circumstances into which he
was
being lead; how was what Ramirez was doing this going to make sure that
he
didn't break his vows to Galcian?
After a
moment, Ramirez halted and pointed down the corridor they were in at a
hallway
branching to the right. "Keep going down here and take that right down
there,"
he instructed his companion. "It leads to a staircase; take that
straight down.
There will be a doorway, and past it will be the lifeboats. Yours is
the one
almost in front of you, to your left." He stepped back to allow Vyse to
pass.
"Now go. If you head southwest, you should be able to reach Sailor's
Isle."
Confused and
still feeling that something was not quite right, Vyse hesitated, then
said the
first thing on his mind. "What's going to happen to you?"
Ramirez
glanced away, his eyes empty. "...Does it matter? I'm a traitor."
Apprehension
gnawing voraciously at the Blue Rogue's senses, he murmured, "...Yes,
but..."
The
Admiral
shut those hopeless eyes. "You should leave. If you dawdle, I can't
guarantee
that you won't be seen."
Vyse
stood
poised between staying and fleeing for a few brief seconds, nodded,
hesitated
again, and then ran to where Ramirez had indicated. The silver-haired
Admiral
watched him go, listening to his rapid footsteps sink down into a lower
level
of the Monoceros and fade away.
With
a
wistful smile, not surprised that he had not received so much as a word
of
gratitude but wounded by it nonetheless, the Silvite wandered to the
wall to
his right and leaned his back against it heavily.
"......Why?"
he whispered, turning his pain-filled emerald eyes to the cold gray
ceiling.
"If this is the right thing to do, why does it still hurt so much? Is
there any
way I could have avoided this suffering? Is this my divine punishment
for
falling in love with Vyse...?" Ramirez drew Ilazki from its sheath, its
emergence not heralded by as much as a whisper of metal on metal. He
held the
blade aloft, its silvery surface glinting from the artificial lights,
and the
reflection of his eyes flickered with melancholy.
"But
soon,"
he murmured, gazing at himself on the deadly blade, "it won't matter.
Nothing
will matter anymore. All that I've endured throughout my life will soon
end..."
His throat tightened involuntarily as he drew the sword to his neck,
and
Ramirez shut his eyes tightly to stave off the tears that fought to
burst free.
"I don't want to feel anything anymore......"
/Lord
Galcian.../ he thought miserably. /I didn't leave behind even a
letter
explaining myself. All you will have are my pathetic remains, and the
final
piece to unlocking the power of Soltis and Zelos. I know I cannot be
forgiven,
but please allow me to beg for your forgiveness regardless.../
He
wavered.
Though he knew he was a self-centered traitor, Ramirez still feared the
oblivion of death, and could not slice his own neck as he had intended
right
away. It struck him idly that even in death, he would continue to favor
Galcian
over Vyse, and appropriately so; he had, after all, sworn to lay down
his sword
and life for the Grand Admiral. And that was he was going to do...for
eternity.
At
least in
slaying himself, Ramirez thought morosely, he would be of some use to
the Grand
Admiral, even as broken as he was now...
/Vyse.../
he mentally murmured, steeling himself. /Even though I've spared
your life
now, with Lord Galcian soon to be in control of Soltis and the Silver
Gigas,
there is no way you will be able to see your next birthday. I am
sorry... You
are right not to trust me.../
Shutting his
eyes tightly, he began to tip the edge of Ilazki forward.
A
moment
before, Vyse had reached the doorway leading to the lifeboats—to his
freedom—but though the miniature iron ships waited patiently for him in
a neat
line, he didn't pick out the vessel Ramirez had prepared. He didn't
pick out
any vessel at all. He simply stood where he was, peering at the floor
with a
troubled expression. His former friend's behavior had been nothing
short of
peculiar, and although perhaps the rogue would have been better off
wondering
if Ramirez was leading him into a trap, he was instead worrying about
the pale
swordsman. He had seemed so...desolate. Vyse also knew that Ramirez was
a
tactical genius, but he couldn't understand how doing this was supposed
to not
betray Galcian, as he'd said it would.
/There's
something not right about this,/ he insisted to himself, on the
verge of
running back to where the Admiral was, just to make sure everything was
all
right. /I should go back... He as much as told me not to come back,
though.../
He
hesitated, not wanting to return without a reason to offer to the
Silvite. With
a sudden smile, he thought, /Wait, but I never thanked him! Even if
he has a
plan, he must be risking a lot to let me go like this. Even though he
betrayed
me, he didn't have to do that. I should at least show some
gratitude!/
Glad
to have
an excuse both to confirm what was happening and to see Ramirez one
last time,
Vyse sprinted back, jumping up the stairs two at a time, hoping there
weren't
any soldiers to hear the clinking of his boots on the metal floors. It
occurred
to him that if Ramirez had left the area, he was almost certainly out
of luck,
because he didn't know how to navigate through the Monoceros, and if he
got
lost, then he would have thrown away his chance. That took the
backseat,
though, as he rounded the corner and saw the Admiral leaning against
the wall
down the hallway, holding his sword to his neck.
"RAMIREZ!!" Vyse
screamed, launching himself forward, the Silvite's so-called plan all
of a
sudden becoming clear. The green-eyed swordsman stared at him in
surprise,
thankfully frozen long enough for Vyse to reach him and wrench his
hands away
from his body.
"Vy...se..."
he whispered, wide-eyed, his fist still tightly closed around Ilazki's
handle,
though the Blue Rogue held it firmly away from his neck.
"Why?!" the
deeply upset rogue demanded. "Why were you trying to kill yourself?!"
Ramirez
blinked rapidly, then murmured, "Why shouldn't I?"
"It
doesn't
solve anything!!" Vyse yelled.
"On the
contrary,"
the Silvite rebutted with an empty smile. "It solves everything. Lord
Galcian
has no use for traitors, and by releasing you, that is what I've
become.
However, if I die, I can at least perform one last service for him. By
sacrificing
myself for him, I will have properly protected my oaths."
Vyse
shook
his head in disbelief. "Don't do this," he urged desperately.
"Why
not?"
Ramirez inquired impassively. "I am a traitor. I've betrayed you. I've
betrayed
Lord Galcian. I am undeserving of the trust of the two men for whom I
care. I
have no reason to continue to live."
"You
can't
be serious," Vyse croaked. "There's gotta be something else you can
live
for..."
"There
isn't," the young Admiral replied. "I have nothing and no one aside
from Lord
Galcian and what he has given me. Losing his trust means losing
everything." He
tried to shake the Blue Rogue away, but failed. "I'll be executed in
your
place, anyway; soon Lord Galcian will unfurl his plans, and he has no
use for
those who are not unwaveringly loyal to him. At least this way, I can
die on my
own terms."
"How
could
he execute you in my place?!" Vyse cried, horrified by how blasé
his ex-friend
was. "Aren't you overreacting, to try to kill yourself over this?!"
"It's not
your concern anymore," the silver-haired young man argued without
emotion. "If
I die, you won't have to fight against me. That will be good for you,
right?"
"Don't TALK
like that!!" the Blue Rogue nearly screamed. "Suicide is never a good
solution!
I know there's another way!"
Vyse's
eternal optimism slicing deeper into Ramirez's heart than any barb, he
snapped,
struggling again, "What is this other way of yours, then?! You can't
answer,
can you! There is no other way!!"
The
Air
Pirate scuffled with the Admiral for a moment, Ilazki glittering
dangerously
above them. "There is another way!" he stated firmly as they
fought. It
was a way about which he was highly reluctant, but he couldn't leave
Ramirez to
get executed, and he couldn't let him kill himself. The solution, then,
was
clear, and managing to force Ramirez's wrists against the wall, he
looked the
Admiral in the face and said quietly, "You can come with me."
The
Admiral's eyebrows rose as his lips parted in shock; then his
expression
changed to one of hurt, and he glanced away. "You must be joking."
"I
wouldn't
joke about something like this," Vyse assured him, his face set with
determination. "Come with me. Please."
"But..."
Ramirez began to weakly protest, "I betrayed you... You're just asking
me so my
suicide won't weigh on your conscience, aren't you?"
The
Blue
Rogue was silent for a few seconds before he quietly replied, "...I
can't stand
suicide. I can't believe that people will just give up when things look
bad."
Ramirez relaxed slightly, and Vyse stepped back to allow him some room
as he
continued, "...Besides, you were once my friend. And I still owe you
for saving
my life in Glacia."
"I
almost
killed you a few days ago," Ramirez murmured.
"But
you
didn't, and even though you kidnapped me, now you're letting me go,"
the
brown-eyed rogue said firmly. "I still owe you."
The
Admiral
shook his head vehemently. "How far could you travel with me?" he
demanded.
"You intend to return to Crescent Isle, don't you? Do you really think
I could
return with you to there?"
"It'll be
all right!" the Blue Rogue insisted. "Look, if you won't come with me,
then I'm
going to stand right here until you change your mind, and if your men
find us,
then you're going to have a hell of a lot of explaining to do!"
"If
my men
find us, I'll be forced to kill you," the Admiral snapped. "Don't be
foolish!
Get out of here!"
"Not
without
you!"
"I'm
not worth
anything to you!! I betrayed you!"
"I
don't
care! I won't let you kill yourself!"
There were
several tense seconds of silence as the two men glared at each other.
"You're
just not going to listen to reason, are you?" the white-haired
swordsman said
angrily.
"Reason!"
Vyse repeated incredulously. "So says the man who thinks committing
suicide
will make it all better!"
Ramirez
sighed, irritated, and said quietly, attempting to calm down, "I don't.
Have. Anything.
Even if I were not executed, I would lose all of Lord Galcian's favor,
and you
yourself told me you hated me."
The
Air
Pirate regarded the Silvite reflectively. "Do you want me to say I
forgive
you?" he queried softly. "If so, then fine. I forgive you. So
please..." He
stepped in closer, still holding Ramirez's left wrist, and rested his
left hand
on the Silvite's shoulder. "...come with me."
A
look of
panic flitted across the Admiral's face as his cheeks turned red, and
he froze
for a split-second before panic was shoved aside by fury. "It's
dirty to
manipulate other people's feelings!" Ramirez snarled, pushing away.
Vyse
was not
swayed. "If I'm dirty," he said seriously, still holding onto the
Silvite's
wrist, "then so are you."
That
silenced the white-haired swordsman effectively. You know
deep down
inside that you're just as dirty as the Arcadians you despise. What's
wrong
with getting dirtier, then?—so the King of Diamonds had told him in
his
dream. But...
"I
don't
want to be dirty," he whispered, breaking down in spite of his
continued
protests. "I don't want to be the same as you..."
Yet
he knew
he was already tainted. He was in love with another man, wasn't he? And
a
would-be hated enemy, no less. That was unclean in itself, Ramirez
knew...
"Ramirez,"
Vyse said softly. "Despite what you might say, you're still human. No
human is
perfect, and nobody's better than everyone else. And...you shouldn't
feel
ashamed of how you feel, either. I might not love you back, but still,
I'm not
a judge of your emotions. No one is. Whatever you feel is right for
you."
/Stop
talking
like that!!/ the torn Silvite thought fiercely. /Don't you know
you're
killing me with hope?!/
But
it was
precisely because of hope, with her talon-like claws and poisoned kiss
and the
sneaking of her thorny tendrils around his neck with a mocking laugh,
that his
will was buckling and his desire to live was once again surging.
"Please,"
Vyse repeated, pleading. "Come with me."
"I..."
Ramirez said faintly. He still held Ilazki loosely in his free right
hand, and
as he gazed up into the Air Pirate's concerned face, he entertained a
brief
thought of slaying him then and there, with Galcian never being the
wiser of
his wavering... But the thought faded as quickly as it had come, struck
down
both by Ramirez's love for Vyse and his knowledge that even if the
Grand
Admiral never knew, he would. And so, he slowly returned the
silver
blade to its jagged sheath.
"All
right,"
he submitted wearily.
The
Blue
Rogue's smile shone, and the sound of their footsteps the only herald
of their
departure, the two made their way to the lifeboats and flew from the
iron womb
of the Monoceros.
NOTES: We own nothing except our ideas. Don't take our ideas. All
properties of Skies of Arcadia/Eternal Arcadia [Legends]
belong to everyone it is to whom they belong.
Ayu: In many 26-episode anime, from typically episode 14 on, all
hell
starts breaking loose. Isn't it appropriate that TDtMS, with a
projected
26 chapters, fits that as well? ^^;
Ianthe: If you saw this coming, your name is probably Kanzaki
Hitomi.
And put those tarot cards away, missy, you're only going to land
yourself in a
lot of pain and misfortune.
Ayu: Speaking of the tarot, the playing card/tarot card match-up
last
episode, yes, was done on purpose. Not too difficult, seeing as current
card
decks are derived from tarot card decks...just minus the Major Arcana.
Ianthe: Huzzah for Lloyd Alexander. If you catch the reference,
you have
my undying love.
Ayu: Thanks to Siren-chan for the hope imagery, by the same
token,
incidentally. Not that it's really something for which I should be
thanking
you...
Kinzoku: If any of you want to give them crap about Ramirez
trying to
kill himself, I remind you that he did commit suicide in the name of
Galcian in
the game.
Ayu: Gave up his Silver Crystal, and thus his life, to give
Zelos free
reign over its actions, all to avenge Galcian's death. (*sagenods*)
Ayu: This one was a little over 34 pages... I fear I've created
a new
chapter length standard for myself... In the past, if chapters got this
long,
we'd break them in half—that's what we did with the Yafutoma stories...
But
this is really a new record. Ianthe wrote some, but most of it
was me,
and I wrote this in one week. My. o_o;
Ayu: We finally have fanart! Yaay! Kinzoku drew it for us,
saying, "I
figured if you two can spend so much time on making a quality fanfic, I
can
spend a couple hours on fanart to show my appreciation. So
yeah... it's
in COLOR. Feel speshul." And we do. Thank you, Kinny! Here's the
URL: members.lycos.co.uk/stonefurwolf/ramivyse.jpg
There's also an adorable piece of fanart from Eeveelover, which can be
found
here: e, Campus
Lyrics!,
the link to which you can (indirectly) find below.
Contact deep.Indigo: deep.Indigo@negativenergy.zzn.com
Contact Ianthe of d.I: ianthefira@rangersgrove.zzn.com
(URL: Ranger's Grove (rangersgrove.tripod.com))
Contact Ayu of d.I: ensoph@goddess.zzn.com
(URL: ~ T H E : E T E R N A L : M I N D ~ (theeternalmind.sterlingsylver.net))
