A/N: Yo, I'm back and I'm revealin' plot! Yay! We're finally going to
learn all about "stuff" in this chapter ^_^ And I'm just gonna tell you
now, your brain will be overloaded by the time you're done reading this.
And it gets really complicated too. Some of the stuff from the previous
chapter will finally make sense but some of it will become even MORE
confusing! *Cackles with glee at the thought of torturing her readers* But
that's what makes this SOOOOO much fun! And this is now officially my NEW
longest chapter, beating the other by more than THREE whole pages! Booyah!
Anyhow, enjoy. And don't get a headache ;-)
Disclaimer: Not (adv.): In no way; to no degree. That is my extent of owning Final Fantasy. I DON'T!!!
P.S. I may reveal a LOT of plot in this chapter, but I certainly don't reveal ALL of it (if you can believe that after reading this).
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
- George Santayana
"And you say they just took off? Didn't try to finish the job they'd started or anything?"
Garnet nodded as Dr. Tot wound the last of the bandage around the queen's leg, looped it into a large knot to hold, and threw in a small spell to keep it from hurting too much. The bird-like man stood slowly, surveying his handiwork, and then went off to the side to wash his hands.
"Don't you find that a bit strange?" he queried, twisting the stubborn faucets to get the right temperature. Garnet shrugged.
"Maybe their initial intent wasn't to destroy Alexandria," she offered, rubbing at her sore appendage with disdain.
"Don't scratch at that - But yes, that's exactly what I was thinking. Perhaps that attack on Alexandria was nothing but a setup," Tot turned the water off and wiped his feathered hands on a towel. Garnet's eyes were boring into the back of his head.
"What do you mean, a setup? A setup for what?"
Dr. Tot looked thoughtful. "Perhaps . . . But then again that can't be right . . . Of course, maybe if the circumstances were - "
"Tot, you're rambling again,"
"Wha - ? Oh, dear me," the old scholar pulled off his glasses and wiped them on his handkerchief, blushing through his feathers. "Ah, how the aging mind wanders . . ."
Garnet was feeling rather nervous. Whenever her old teacher began talking to himself like that it usually meant he had stumbled upon an idea. And his ideas were usually right.
"What circumstances?" she asked, hands itching to scratch at her bandages again. "What are you talking about?"
Tot smiled warmly, holding out an arm to help her majesty out of the chair. She accepted, though her eyes were still impatient.
"I was just thinking," he said, shrugging. "But it's hard to say. I would've had to have been there,"
"But why?"
Tot laughed, helping Garnet balance on her one good leg. "Just ignore me. Don't worry yourself with the thoughts of a worn-out old geezer. Now hurry along, I've got some thinking to do,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Zidane!"
Ruby ran as fast as she could down the bustling Alexandrian street, waving her arms furiously as she tried to get the attention of the boy walking down the road ahead of her. She bumped into a traveling red mage who shouted "Watch where you're goin' bitch!" but didn't give him the satisfaction of a response.
"Zidane, ya ol' ragamuffin! Wait fer me!"
She skidded to a halt, leaning over to catch her breath as Zidane turned around, acting as if he'd just noticed the girl screaming his name from three feet away.
"Hey, Ruby," he greeted, smirking as the actress straightened her bonnet. "What's up?"
"Tha's what I'D like ta know!" Ruby snapped, poking Zidane in the arm. "What da heck was up widdat whole evacuation of Alexandria?! Who was shootin' at us?! I was in da middle of a gosh darn performance!"
Zidane allowed Ruby to blow off some steam before responding, arms folded over his chest until she relented.
"Ruby, we were under fire. Would you rather we'd left you to die?"
"No! But I wanna know who was attackin' us!"
Zidane raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you think I know?"
"Because yer engaged to da QUEEN! DUH!!!"
"Oh . . . Well . . ." the genome quickly searched his brain for some kind of excuse to give the ex-Tantalus thief.
"I THOUGHT da war was over!" Ruby continued to vent, nose crinkled as she ranted.
Zidane laughed. "Of course it's over!"
"Well, seein' as how yer gosh-darnit brother is back, seems anythin' could happen 'round here . . ."
Zidane stiffened immediately. "And what's THAT supposed to mean?"
Ruby quickly averted her eyes, blushing. "Honest, Zidane," she said. "I ain't got nothin' 'gainst yer brother . . . I mean, technically, he didn' personally do nothin' ta me . . . It's just . . ."
"Just what?"
"Well . . ." Ruby shifted uncomfortably, hands clasped behind her back. "It's just that yer brother seems ta 'tract a lotta trouble. Tha's all . . ."
Zidane's frown showed clearly that he wasn't satisfied with the response. Ruby sighed heavily and continued.
"I'm sure he's a nice guy!" she stated, nodding curtly. "But I don' wan' y'all ta get hurt er nothin' . . . I like you people!"
Zidane sighed, looking away from his friend. He knew what she meant. But at the same time, he didn't want his brother to get hurt. When Beatrix had first arrested Kuja, Zidane could tell immediately that the sorcerer wanted nothing more than to leave the castle. But after yesterday it had become fairly apparent that perhaps that was not the wisest path to choose.
"Zidane?"
The genome thought it was Ruby at first but when he turned around he saw Megan with a finger poised to tap him on the shoulder. Ruby was staring at the newcomer with intense curiosity.
"Oh, hey Megan," Zidane attempted a smile but it turned more into a grimace.
"The queen says she wants you back at the castle," Megan said simply, looking around the busy street as people wandered by. The chatter was starting to turn into a single buzzing drone.
"Why?"
"To discuss . . . you know . . ."
"Ah. I see," Zidane sighed heavily, patting Ruby on the shoulder. "Tell her I'll be there in a minute,"
Megan nodded and walked off, fingering her horse-necklace as she did so. She still seemed rather disturbed by the events of the previous day. She kept looking over her shoulder as if expecting someone to sneak up and stab her in the back.
"Well, see ya Ruby," Zidane mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. He would have given anything not to have to discuss the events of yesterday. Ruby looked rather peeved but said goodbye as well.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Zidane could hear muttering coming from the dining room.
/Guess that's where I should go, then . . ./
He began to round the corner when someone grabbed his wrist and tugged him back hard. Zidane was about to shout when Beatrix whipped the blonde around and gave him a glare of pure disgust.
"Oh. Beatrix. I-It's you . . ."
"Shh!" the general hissed, pressing a finger to her lip. "We've got to talk. Technically, we're not supposed to discuss this without her majesty, but . . ."
"No, no. That's okay," Zidane smiled nervously. "I understand . . . So . . . What's up?"
Beatrix exhaled heavily, shaking her head. "Listen," she whispered. "I think something is seriously wrong. I doubt it's going to come up in your little 'conversation' in the other room, but - "
"What makes you think it's not going to come up?"
Beatrix shuffled her feet, flipping a curl of hair over her shoulder. "Well, I don't really think the others care much about the welfare of your brother. And that's what I'm concerned about. Have you noticed anything strange about him?"
Zidane raised a curious eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Like . . . the lack of magic, or the extreme exhaustion all the time, or - "
"The red eyes? The split second disorientation he gets occasionally? How he collapsed when you tried to arrest him? The fact that he - "
"Yes, yes, all those things,"
"Of course I've noticed! He's my brother!"
"And?" Beatrix leaned forward, her single eye flashing in the dim lighting of the hallway. "Aren't you going to ask him about it?"
Zidane scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Well . . . I guess I could . . . But maybe I should ask that Megan girl about it first,"
Beatrix snorted. "Give me a break! If she hasn't noticed THAT then she REALLY needs to up the prescription of those glasses,"
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Zidane admitted. "Maybe I'll bring it up while I'm talking to the others,"
"Good idea. Now let's hurry or this will look suspicious,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The second Ummei opened the door to the boiler-room dungeon, Mikoto leapt up; forgetting that she was still shackled to the pipe. The blonde was yanked back down with such force that Ummei actually looked concerned.
"You all right?" he asked, chewing on one of his fingernails. Mikoto looked wild.
"Is he okay?!" she shouted, struggling against her bonds once more. "Please tell me they haven't done it yet!"
When Ummei cast her a sad look, her stomach dropped down into the floor. "Oh god . . . They didn't . . .! They couldn't have!"
"Actually, they didn't," Ummei admitted, scratching his head. Mikoto breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back against the warm pipe.
"Then why the face?" she queried. "You look like someone's died,"
Ummei said nothing as he backed up and slid down the side of the room, gritting his teeth. Mikoto blinked, and then let out a faint cry.
"Ummei, there's blood all over the wall!"
The green-eyed man groaned, raising his eyes to look up at the structure behind him. A long smear of crimson was splashed along the metal where he had slid. He shut his eyes tight in pain and muttered something. All Mikoto caught was ". . . whipped again . . ."
The genome gasped. "What?! Why?!"
Ummei let out an agonizing grimace. "Because the stupid idiot got his ass kicked, that's why!"
"But . . . how does that get you a whipping?"
Ummei wiped his mouth furiously on his sleeve. "I was supposed to be his backup . . ."
"Backup for what?"
"The Master fighting you're older brother!"
"He fought Kuja?!" Mikoto clapped her shackled hands over her mouth, horrified. "That's terrible!"
"Yeah, well, your brother beat the shit out of him,"
A chuckle escaped the genome's lips. "Naturally. Kuja is an expert at sorcery. He could kill you with one hand tied behind his back,"
Ummei smiled wryly. "Well, you obviously don't know Drakja, then. Let's just say he's got some tricks up his sleeve that don't require ANY hands,"
Mikoto snorted, rolling her eyes. "Sure . . . My brother's the first angel of death! You can't beat THAT except maybe Zidane!"
Ummei's pale green eyes lolled onto his prisoner, swirled with such heart- wrenching sadness that it made Mikoto's stomach melt like butter.
"There is more to The Master than meets the eye . . ." he whispered, eyes locked onto the genome's. "And though he and Kuja - by twist of fate - are evenly matched, the fight has proven something to Drakja's master that will completely change your brother's destiny in our hands,"
". . . And what is that . . .?" Mikoto asked tentatively, her voice so quiet she barely heard it herself.
Ummei pulled his knees into his chest, tail curling around his ankle.
"The first angel of death may harbor more than just his own. And that's exactly what will make our conquest worth twice as much . . ."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When Zidane entered the dining room, Beatrix was already there. Somehow, she had zipped around to another entrance before him.
/Impressive . . ./ Zidane thought, smiling inwardly.
"Hi, Zidane!" Eiko called cheerfully, kicking her legs as she sat in her seat. Lady Hilda gave her a warning look.
"Settle down, settle down," she crooned, though smiling. Garnet was resting her elbows on the table in a most un-queen-like fashion, her eyes dark and heavy. Everyone else was seated around the table, looking rather lost in thought.
As Zidane pulled up a seat across the table from Garnet, his eyes caught a lack of something in the room. "Hey, where's Megan?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder.
"We didn't think it appropriate that she be here," Garnet explained, gazing at the far wall. "After all, she really has nothing to do with this matter,"
Zidane didn't find that morally correct at all, seeing as how Megan nearly had her head blown off the day before. However, he kept his mouth shut. He also didn't mention that Kuja wasn't there. Somehow, it just didn't seem fitting to bring up.
"So . . ."
"Um, why are we here?" Vivi asked tentatively, glancing around the table. There was a moment of silence.
"To discuss yesterday, of course," Beatrix stated.
More silence.
"What about it?!" Lani blurted out, slamming her fists on the table. "We all saw it! A bunch of freaky look-alike people came out of a big freakin' ship and their stupid leader tried to kill us all! Then HIS - " Lani pointed a finger down the table at Zidane. " - brother beat the guy silly! There. Simple,"
"If only it were," Garnet muttered, looking exhausted. "But we must also bare in mind that we saw someone there who is supposed to be dead,"
All eyes whipped onto Zidane, making him feel as if he were being machine- gunned into the back of his chair. He glared at his companions furiously.
"What?! What are you all looking at ME for?!"
Freya sighed, looking sympathetically at the genome. "Well, he IS your creator, Zidane. I guess we just figured you would have known,"
Zidane felt a bubbling wrath in the back of his eyes and he shoved his chair back, jumping to his feet. "How in the name of Odin would I have known that jerk-off was back?! I have absolutely NOTHING to do with him and I NEVER WILL!!!"
"Please Zidane," Garnet whimpered, gazing sadly at her fiancé. "Settle down. We know you hate him - we all do! But please, let's just talk about this rationally. I'm sure there's a logical explanation for all of this. Sit,"
Zidane sat. He still felt angry but refrained from speaking as Garnet leaned back in her chair, fingers rubbing slightly at her injured leg.
"Now then," she continued. "I think it wise that we first figure out how all of this is possible,"
"Yeah!" Eiko piped in, shaking a tiny fist. "I thought Garland died! Remember, Kuja kicked him off the side of that balcony and then burned down the surface of the planet! How could Garland have survived THAT?!!" she stuck out a lip as if to show her great distaste that anyone could manage to do such a thing.
"But didn't he speak to Zidane during the journey through Memoria?" Beatrix queried curiously, having not been there herself.
That shut everyone up.
"Holy shit . . ." Zidane whispered, finding it hard to breathe. "This isn't happening . . . It can't be . . ."
"M-Maybe it's not what we think," Steiner said, looking like he didn't believe it himself. "I mean, he HELPED us in Memoria! Maybe . . ."
"You saw it, didn't you?" Amarant snapped, arms folded over his chest. His voice was so rarely heard that he immediately had the group's undivided attention. "That old bozo was clearly against us. You heard him. He loved the sight of Alexandria in ruins. What's more, he seemed to find nothing more wonderful than the sight of his first Angel of Death lying half-dead in the street. So YOU tell ME whose side he's on . . ."
/Speaking of Kuja . . ./ Zidane thought to himself. /Maybe I should bring up - / his thoughts were cut off abruptly by the very person in his mind entering the room. Kuja strode in, silvery hair flowing out behind him, deep blue eyes not making eye-contact with anybody nearby. Zidane couldn't explain what it was, but somehow he got the impression that Kuja may have either been lifted or dropped down a few notches in the eyes of the others.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," the sorcerer muttered, pulling up the only empty chair (placed between Vivi and Lady Hilda) and sitting down with his seemingly unlimited ethereal grace. As if to accentuate this, he flipped his long ivory locks over his shoulder and let out a small sigh.
Nobody spoke.
/So Kuja WAS allowed to come./ Zidane noted quietly. /Then Megan is the only one left out of this . . . That's kinda unfair . . ./
Vivi shifted uncomfortably. He still didn't seem too keen about being near his creator yet. Lady Hilda didn't even acknowledge that anything had changed.
"What did I miss?" Kuja queried, looking around for the first time. "Anything important?"
"Just discussing how Garland could still be alive . . ." Garnet said slowly, staring at the first angel of death rather bitterly. Kuja let out a "hmph" of disgust and shook his head.
"Pretty sick, isn't it?"
A glacier seemed to be forming over the table. No one dared to breathe. Suddenly . . .
"I CAN'T TAKE IT!" Freya screamed, slamming her fists down on the table and jumping up. "HOW CAN WE PUT UP WITH THIS?! WITH HIM?!" she rounded on Kuja who simply stared calmly back, perhaps even with a bit of determination. "YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS ALL ALONG! DIDN'T YOU?! DIDN'T YOU?!!!"
"Of course not . . ." Kuja murmured, looking down at the table. He seemed to be avoiding the Burmecian's glare now. But in a thoughtful way. Not as if he'd been defeated. Zidane felt a pang of guilt over the whole thing.
"DON'T - LIE!" Freya raged, pointing an accusing finger at the warlock. "IT WOULD BE SO LIKE YOU TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS!"
"I swear I never . . ."
"I KNEW WE COULDN'T TRUST HIM! I KNEW IT, I - "
"Freya, sit down," said Fratley calmly, eyes shut out of sheer weariness. Freya trembled for a moment, her eyes burning holes deep into Kuja's soul. Said Kuja kept his own eyes averted, a quiet, contemplating look on his face. Beatrix felt she should step in.
"Please, Freya. We'll get nothing accomplished if we're all pitted against one another,"
"SO YOU'RE CALLING HIM AN ALLY NOW?!" the dragoon knight shrieked, a wild look in her eyes as she whipped around on the general.
"Freya, I'm begging you," Fratley whispered, clasping one of her hands in his own. He was silently pleading. He didn't seem to know how to convey the message to the knight. Freya stared at their hands a moment, shaking with inexplicable rage.
"Please . . ."
Freya nodded slowly and sat back in her chair, hat falling down over her eyes. A mental sigh of relief ran across the group of people. Kuja remained perfectly stationary. Finally, he spoke.
"I don't know how Garland managed to survive, but . . ." his voice faded off, becoming so soft they had to lean in to hear it. ". . . I will help you defeat him if you wish . . ."
Zidane tried to hide his smile. /Thank Shiva . . ./
"But how can we trust him?!" Lani inquired, resting an elbow on the table. Kuja glanced at her quietly, eyes swirling with distaste. Zidane seized the opportunity.
"If Kuja were on our side," he said brightly. "We could beat Garland easily! We did it once with his help! Why not again?"
All the glares, thought meant for Zidane, seemed magnetically focused on Kuja. The silver-haired genome glanced around at them all as if to say "what're you lookin' at ME for?"
"Kuja IS powerful," Cid admitted, frowning. He ignored the "What am I? Dog-meat?" thrown at him from the sorcerer and continued on. "Perhaps if we can all learn to trust each other . . ."
Most eyes seemed to convey the message "never" but no one voiced their opinion.
"That WAS some powerful fighting he used," Garnet complied. "I mean," she turned to Kuja. "How did you melt off that strange shadow-attack that man threw at you?"
"What shadow-attack?"
Garnet raised an eyebrow. "That black orb. You were hit and then all the smoke evaporated right off your body. Remember?"
Kuja's eyes went completely blank. Garnet crinkled her brow nervously.
"You . . . You don't remember . . .?" Kuja just shook his head. Now it was everyone else's turn to look blank.
"Do you remember ANYTHING?" Lady Hilda queried, tilting her head inquiringly. Kuja chuckled.
"Of course!" he exclaimed. "Drakja and I fought. So?"
"But . . ." Garnet looked around as if trying to gather support. "What about . . ." understanding suddenly dawned in her eyes. She leaned forward, staring hard at the silver-haired man. "What about when you knocked Drakja - or whatever his name is - down into the street? Do you remember that?"
Kuja looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook his head. "No, actually. I guess I don't. I have some vague recollection of . . . but it's all kind of smoggy,"
Garnet seemed rather tense as if this were all confirming something in her mind. "What about when you blew the ring of people off their feet?"
"Er . . . I did . . .?"
"What about when you smashed Drakja into the building?"
Kuja scratched his head. "I . . . I know I must've, but . . ."
Beatrix's eye widened as she comprehended what Garnet was trying to say. "Kuja!" she gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth. "You can't remember anything that happened during the times when your eyes were - "
"Red," Amarant muttered, nodding.
"Hey, sh-she's right!" Vivi exclaimed in surprise.
Kuja looked around in confusion. "What do you mean 'when my eyes were red?'"
"Your eyes turned red sometimes," Zidane said. "It was really weird. You couldn't have been trancing, could you?"
"I-I don't think so . . ."
They all cast nervous looks at each other. Something fishy was definitely going on.
"Hey, Kuja," Zidane said suddenly. "How do you know those green-eyed people?"
Everyone leaned in excitedly. They'd all been wondering the exact same thing. Kuja felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.
/The last thing I wanted to discuss . . ./
He glanced up at the expectant eyes of the others. So hopeful . . . They HAD to know. It was life or death this time.
"I think we should be asking WHAT they are," Cid commented. The group nodded in agreement. Kuja sighed, leaning back in his chair.
/Where to start . . . where to start . . ./
"Actually," he said. "It's EXTREMELY important that you know what those people are. It could determine who lives and who dies in this war," Vivi gulped immediately and straightened his hat. Kuja continued. "What I'm about to tell you may come as a surprise," he said. "But I'm going to try and explain it as best as I can. I really don't know very much, actually," he paused and took a deep breath, shutting his eyes as he recalled as much of the detail as he could.
"Well," the warlock began. "This all begins on Terra, a long, long time before even I was born. As you know, Terra was once a thriving civilization. Their advances in technology were quite startling and they evolved at a distressing rate. Soon, however, cities began to 'specialize' in their technology. One city trained exclusively in cloning, another in nuclear weapons, and so on. Naturally, this led to mounting tensions between the Terrans. War broke out almost immediately. From some of the cities - I don't know which - great warriors stepped forth, standing out amongst the rest. Their magical abilities far outweighed that of any of the other soldiers and they became heroes to be revered or feared by all of Terra," Kuja paused, waiting for someone to blurt out what all this had to do with the events of the previous day. However, when no one spoke, he continued. "The people of Bran Bal, though small in number, were perhaps some of the wisest of all Terrans. They saw that the death of the planet was inevitable and immediately chose to prepare for it, rather than fight. You know most of the preparations already: the underground labs, the cryogenic chambers, and, of course, the creation of Garland . . . Garland was fascinated by these warriors who fought so valiantly for their beliefs on Terra, and he noted these people quite closely. But one day, whether by coincidence or fate, all the cities of Terra planned a nuclear bombing of their nearest enemy. Garland hid in the underground labs of Bran Bal and waited it out. All at once, every city detonated their bomb. All civilization on Terra was annihilated. Not a soul remained except Garland and a select few who had hid with him. Everyone above-ground died either from the blasts, the radiation, or the six-hundred year nuclear winter that followed. All that remained on Terra were a few stunted trees and a handful of monsters that emerged from the expulsion of Mist that followed. When Garland thought it safe to return of the surface of the planet, it was then that his brilliant plan to restore Terra came to life. His first attempts were by reviving the cryogenically frozen people below. Barely any even survived the shock. This left Garland in a nasty pickle. That was when the idea came to him to create beings to revive Terra. And that was when Garland created the first remakes of Terran civilization. But they weren't genomes. No, no, Garland hadn't figured that out yet. Instead, he tried to remake people after the most powerful beings he had ever met. First, he picked some of the greatest magicians he had witnessed and genetically altered them. Those became the four guardian of Terra. Then he chose the warrior he had thought was the most powerful and created a whole race of people to be just like him. But back then, Garland simply created bodies and then tampered with their DNA to make them more like the soldier. This meant that all the creations had similar traits but were still distinguishable in appearance. I don't know whether Garland gave them souls right away or not, but they eventually had varying personalities and strengths as well. Garland called these people geonomes. Once again, I don't know why. Garland never even woke them up before he realized the mistake he'd made. If the geonomes were more powerful than him, then they would be uncontrollable and thus useless. So Garland sealed them away and began his next great idea . . ."
"Genomes," Zidane muttered bitterly, eyes narrowed. "Of course . . . This is all starting to make sense,"
Garnet shushed him and nodded to Kuja. "Continue,"
Kuja cleared his throat and nodded, trying to remember where he'd left off. "Ah, right, well, like Zidane said, the genomes were made next, created to be like one of the other great soldiers, only one that was not nearly as powerful. And, as you are all aware, Garland didn't give them souls and he made each one practically identical save male and female. They were much more controllable and a lot easier to use. But their powers were nothing like that of the geonomes and, without the gift of thought, they too were practically worthless. So Garland turned to the - in his opinion - second most powerful warrior he had ever met. This man's name was Saishoja, and his name meant 'first devil' in ancient Terran. This is ironic because the man who would later "become" the geonomes had a name that meant 'dragon devil.' The recreation of Saishoja was nearly an exact replica and Garland gave it the same name. Garland also came up with the brilliant idea of giving it a soul. What an amazing concept . . ." Kuja added dryly. "Anyhow, the new Saishoja seemed a success until it was given the soul. His body rejected it and he died within a matter of hours. There followed eight more attempts: Dainija, Daisanja, Daiyonja, Daigoja, Dairokuja, Dainanaja, and Daihachija. Dainjia's name meant 'second devil,' Daisanja's name meant 'third devil' and so forth. Every single one perished,"
"But that's only seven other attempts," Fratley noted, cocking his head. Kuja nodded.
"That's right. Because the ninth survived. And his name meant 'ninth devil' or, as it sounds roughly translated in Terran: Kuja,"
Lani sputtered in surprise. "YOU'RE the ninth devil?!" she choked out, eyes wide. Kuja sighed and nodded, gazing up at the ceiling.
"Unfortunately . . ." he mumbled. "But, as you know, I was a complete and utter failure. My soul was much too rebellious for Garland's use and he didn't think I would ever develop my powers to the extent of the geonomes. There followed Zidane and Mikoto who were simply genetically altered versions of the genomes,"
"But does that mean . . ." Zidane whispered, looking strangely horrified. "That we're not really . . ."
"Brothers?" Kuja queried, raising an eyebrow. Zidane nodded, too numb to speak. The sorcerer shook his head, smiling slightly. "Actually, there's a catch there. We really are,"
"But how?"
"Well, you see," said Kuja, still smirking a little. "When I say that you and Mikoto are genetically altered, I mean that Garland used DNA code from the first eight failed attempts at a recreation of Saishoja. You and Mikoto have a nearly identical DNA structure to me, made from the same material. We are probably a lot closer than you even realized before. Haven't you ever noticed how your hair naturally layers like mine? Or how we have a similar nose? And," Kuja smiled warmly. "You and Mikoto both have my eyes . . ."
There followed a moment of silence as everyone tried to soak all this information in. But Eiko was still frowning.
"But what does this have to do with those green-eyed people?!" she shouted, lacking every bit of tact she could. Kuja leaned back in his chair, biting his lip.
"Well, this is where things start to get bad for us. The original inspiration for the geonomes, as you know, was the greatest warrior on the face of Terra. His name was Drakja: Dragon Devil,"
"THOSE are the geonomes?!" Lani gasped. "But then - "
Kuja nodded sadly. "That's right. Those green-eyed people are practically invincible. And, though I'm not sure, their leader - Drakja - may not be a genetic test-tube-baby but, in fact, the original Drakja himself reawakened from the cryogenics during the nuclear winter. But I have no idea. I'm very sketchy on those details," a scowl passed across his lips. "Actually, Drakja calls me second best for two reasons: because I was made after the second best warrior to him, and because Zidane may have been genetically altered more powerful than me. But once again, that is all a matter of Garland's opinion. We don't really know who is the strongest here,"
Eiko then said the very thing that was on everyone's mind.
"We . . . are doomed . . ."
Kuja snorted derisively. "All I know is that Garland has woken all his geonomes and unleashed them untrained and practically unsupervised on Gaia. And they are armed with some new 'toys' apparently. Guns, armor, airships . . . The fun just doesn't end, does it? I don't know whether their lack of experience is a good thing or not, but . . ."
"How do you know Drakja, then?" Zidane queried. "If they've been frozen all this time . . ."
Kuja shifted uncomfortably. That topic had been strictly taboo in his mind, but now he felt he owed them an explanation. He closed his eyes for a moment, and then tried to think of the best way to explain it.
"Basically," the warlock said. "I was a super rambunctious child. I enjoyed nothing more than wreaking havoc and creating mischief in Bran Bal. I probably managed to sneak my way into a hundred secret rooms by the age of twelve. And that's about when this happened. There had always been this one door that I couldn't get into. And it absolutely killed me that I couldn't. At this point I was feeling all high and mighty because I had just gotten rid of Zidane. I decided it was a good time to open that damn door. Needless to say, I did eventually. Inside, I found lots of creepy stuff I had never even imagined. But at the end of the lab I found pods. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of pods. I didn't know what they were back then, of course. But Garland had somehow known I was trying to break into that room and he headed me off at the pass. He went in there ahead of me and opened one of the pods, giving the thing inside some brief instructions and then leaving it there for me to deal with. That would be Drakja. The two of us had a little tiff because he was so convinced he was better than me. But Garland's plan backfired. Drakja revealed some information to me that I wasn't supposed to know," Kuja hesitated, unconsciously scratching his head.
/I REALLY don't want to talk about this . . ./ he thought miserably.
"What did you find out?" Vivi asked nervously.
"I found out about Mikoto, of course," Kuja said simply. "I had been feeling so great about getting rid of Zidane and what happens? I'm replaced AGAIN! So I attempted to get rid of her too,"
Zidane frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," Kuja snapped. "That I proceeded to destroy the area she was held in. She was still tanked at the time and I blew up nearly everything in the room. But I didn't kill her. I don't know if I couldn't or if something told me not to, but I let Mikoto live and fled the lab. Garland, though a tad peeved, sealed Drakja away once more. But then he had MY wrath to deal with . . . And I spent half my remaining time on Terra studying in on the geonomes as much as I could . . ." Kuja smiled smugly at the thought.
"So THAT'S why Drakja was teasing you," Lady Hilda said nodding.
/Flash/
This is a warning . . . Beware the Metsubo . . .
/Flash/
Kuja gasped suddenly. The dream! The dream he'd been having over and over again! He'd been seeing that scene! And now he'd run into Drakja again! The purple-eyed woman was trying to tell him something about Drakja!
Kuja leapt out of his seat, eyes wide.
"I've got to go!" he said suddenly, ignoring the confused looks he was getting.
And with that, the warlock turned tail and fled. . . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: "And with that, the warlock turned tail and fled . . ." Get it?! Get it?! Turned TAIL and fled? BWAHAHAHAHAHA. Anyhoo, *phew* that was a lot. Did anyone understand that? *Looks hopeful.* Also, just ignore what Ummei was saying for now. It's not going to make sense for a LOOOONG time. So just tuck it into the back of your mind and recall it later when necessary. Also, in case anyone was wondering . . .
TODAY'S ADDITION OF "WHY BMD USES THE WORDS SHE DOES."
1. Metsubo means downfall or ruin in Japanese (I might have mentioned that already).
2. Each of the "Kuja reign" names (Saishoja, Dainija, etc.) really do mean what I said. Saisho means "first" in Japanese, Daini means "second" and so on. Seriously, "Ku" means ninth in Japanese! But "Ja" is just a word I made up. And it's kind of funny how it happened. See, when I first named Drakja, I did it for a reason that I'll mention in a second. Then I noticed that both his name and Kuja's name end in "Ja." So I just said that it meant devil ^_^ Also, as I said I was going to say @_@, I named my villain Drakja because draco means dragon in Latin and, well, it's pretty self-explanatory. Dragon - Devil. Simple.
READ AND REVIEW!!!
******* Black Mage Dad *******
P.S. (boy do I have a lot of those) I'm just wondering, are character- deaths okay? I'm currently not planning any but just in case . . . I promise I wouldn't kill anyone we all like! Well, just let me know . . . Yo, thanks ^_^
Disclaimer: Not (adv.): In no way; to no degree. That is my extent of owning Final Fantasy. I DON'T!!!
P.S. I may reveal a LOT of plot in this chapter, but I certainly don't reveal ALL of it (if you can believe that after reading this).
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
- George Santayana
"And you say they just took off? Didn't try to finish the job they'd started or anything?"
Garnet nodded as Dr. Tot wound the last of the bandage around the queen's leg, looped it into a large knot to hold, and threw in a small spell to keep it from hurting too much. The bird-like man stood slowly, surveying his handiwork, and then went off to the side to wash his hands.
"Don't you find that a bit strange?" he queried, twisting the stubborn faucets to get the right temperature. Garnet shrugged.
"Maybe their initial intent wasn't to destroy Alexandria," she offered, rubbing at her sore appendage with disdain.
"Don't scratch at that - But yes, that's exactly what I was thinking. Perhaps that attack on Alexandria was nothing but a setup," Tot turned the water off and wiped his feathered hands on a towel. Garnet's eyes were boring into the back of his head.
"What do you mean, a setup? A setup for what?"
Dr. Tot looked thoughtful. "Perhaps . . . But then again that can't be right . . . Of course, maybe if the circumstances were - "
"Tot, you're rambling again,"
"Wha - ? Oh, dear me," the old scholar pulled off his glasses and wiped them on his handkerchief, blushing through his feathers. "Ah, how the aging mind wanders . . ."
Garnet was feeling rather nervous. Whenever her old teacher began talking to himself like that it usually meant he had stumbled upon an idea. And his ideas were usually right.
"What circumstances?" she asked, hands itching to scratch at her bandages again. "What are you talking about?"
Tot smiled warmly, holding out an arm to help her majesty out of the chair. She accepted, though her eyes were still impatient.
"I was just thinking," he said, shrugging. "But it's hard to say. I would've had to have been there,"
"But why?"
Tot laughed, helping Garnet balance on her one good leg. "Just ignore me. Don't worry yourself with the thoughts of a worn-out old geezer. Now hurry along, I've got some thinking to do,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Zidane!"
Ruby ran as fast as she could down the bustling Alexandrian street, waving her arms furiously as she tried to get the attention of the boy walking down the road ahead of her. She bumped into a traveling red mage who shouted "Watch where you're goin' bitch!" but didn't give him the satisfaction of a response.
"Zidane, ya ol' ragamuffin! Wait fer me!"
She skidded to a halt, leaning over to catch her breath as Zidane turned around, acting as if he'd just noticed the girl screaming his name from three feet away.
"Hey, Ruby," he greeted, smirking as the actress straightened her bonnet. "What's up?"
"Tha's what I'D like ta know!" Ruby snapped, poking Zidane in the arm. "What da heck was up widdat whole evacuation of Alexandria?! Who was shootin' at us?! I was in da middle of a gosh darn performance!"
Zidane allowed Ruby to blow off some steam before responding, arms folded over his chest until she relented.
"Ruby, we were under fire. Would you rather we'd left you to die?"
"No! But I wanna know who was attackin' us!"
Zidane raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you think I know?"
"Because yer engaged to da QUEEN! DUH!!!"
"Oh . . . Well . . ." the genome quickly searched his brain for some kind of excuse to give the ex-Tantalus thief.
"I THOUGHT da war was over!" Ruby continued to vent, nose crinkled as she ranted.
Zidane laughed. "Of course it's over!"
"Well, seein' as how yer gosh-darnit brother is back, seems anythin' could happen 'round here . . ."
Zidane stiffened immediately. "And what's THAT supposed to mean?"
Ruby quickly averted her eyes, blushing. "Honest, Zidane," she said. "I ain't got nothin' 'gainst yer brother . . . I mean, technically, he didn' personally do nothin' ta me . . . It's just . . ."
"Just what?"
"Well . . ." Ruby shifted uncomfortably, hands clasped behind her back. "It's just that yer brother seems ta 'tract a lotta trouble. Tha's all . . ."
Zidane's frown showed clearly that he wasn't satisfied with the response. Ruby sighed heavily and continued.
"I'm sure he's a nice guy!" she stated, nodding curtly. "But I don' wan' y'all ta get hurt er nothin' . . . I like you people!"
Zidane sighed, looking away from his friend. He knew what she meant. But at the same time, he didn't want his brother to get hurt. When Beatrix had first arrested Kuja, Zidane could tell immediately that the sorcerer wanted nothing more than to leave the castle. But after yesterday it had become fairly apparent that perhaps that was not the wisest path to choose.
"Zidane?"
The genome thought it was Ruby at first but when he turned around he saw Megan with a finger poised to tap him on the shoulder. Ruby was staring at the newcomer with intense curiosity.
"Oh, hey Megan," Zidane attempted a smile but it turned more into a grimace.
"The queen says she wants you back at the castle," Megan said simply, looking around the busy street as people wandered by. The chatter was starting to turn into a single buzzing drone.
"Why?"
"To discuss . . . you know . . ."
"Ah. I see," Zidane sighed heavily, patting Ruby on the shoulder. "Tell her I'll be there in a minute,"
Megan nodded and walked off, fingering her horse-necklace as she did so. She still seemed rather disturbed by the events of the previous day. She kept looking over her shoulder as if expecting someone to sneak up and stab her in the back.
"Well, see ya Ruby," Zidane mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. He would have given anything not to have to discuss the events of yesterday. Ruby looked rather peeved but said goodbye as well.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Zidane could hear muttering coming from the dining room.
/Guess that's where I should go, then . . ./
He began to round the corner when someone grabbed his wrist and tugged him back hard. Zidane was about to shout when Beatrix whipped the blonde around and gave him a glare of pure disgust.
"Oh. Beatrix. I-It's you . . ."
"Shh!" the general hissed, pressing a finger to her lip. "We've got to talk. Technically, we're not supposed to discuss this without her majesty, but . . ."
"No, no. That's okay," Zidane smiled nervously. "I understand . . . So . . . What's up?"
Beatrix exhaled heavily, shaking her head. "Listen," she whispered. "I think something is seriously wrong. I doubt it's going to come up in your little 'conversation' in the other room, but - "
"What makes you think it's not going to come up?"
Beatrix shuffled her feet, flipping a curl of hair over her shoulder. "Well, I don't really think the others care much about the welfare of your brother. And that's what I'm concerned about. Have you noticed anything strange about him?"
Zidane raised a curious eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Like . . . the lack of magic, or the extreme exhaustion all the time, or - "
"The red eyes? The split second disorientation he gets occasionally? How he collapsed when you tried to arrest him? The fact that he - "
"Yes, yes, all those things,"
"Of course I've noticed! He's my brother!"
"And?" Beatrix leaned forward, her single eye flashing in the dim lighting of the hallway. "Aren't you going to ask him about it?"
Zidane scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Well . . . I guess I could . . . But maybe I should ask that Megan girl about it first,"
Beatrix snorted. "Give me a break! If she hasn't noticed THAT then she REALLY needs to up the prescription of those glasses,"
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Zidane admitted. "Maybe I'll bring it up while I'm talking to the others,"
"Good idea. Now let's hurry or this will look suspicious,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The second Ummei opened the door to the boiler-room dungeon, Mikoto leapt up; forgetting that she was still shackled to the pipe. The blonde was yanked back down with such force that Ummei actually looked concerned.
"You all right?" he asked, chewing on one of his fingernails. Mikoto looked wild.
"Is he okay?!" she shouted, struggling against her bonds once more. "Please tell me they haven't done it yet!"
When Ummei cast her a sad look, her stomach dropped down into the floor. "Oh god . . . They didn't . . .! They couldn't have!"
"Actually, they didn't," Ummei admitted, scratching his head. Mikoto breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back against the warm pipe.
"Then why the face?" she queried. "You look like someone's died,"
Ummei said nothing as he backed up and slid down the side of the room, gritting his teeth. Mikoto blinked, and then let out a faint cry.
"Ummei, there's blood all over the wall!"
The green-eyed man groaned, raising his eyes to look up at the structure behind him. A long smear of crimson was splashed along the metal where he had slid. He shut his eyes tight in pain and muttered something. All Mikoto caught was ". . . whipped again . . ."
The genome gasped. "What?! Why?!"
Ummei let out an agonizing grimace. "Because the stupid idiot got his ass kicked, that's why!"
"But . . . how does that get you a whipping?"
Ummei wiped his mouth furiously on his sleeve. "I was supposed to be his backup . . ."
"Backup for what?"
"The Master fighting you're older brother!"
"He fought Kuja?!" Mikoto clapped her shackled hands over her mouth, horrified. "That's terrible!"
"Yeah, well, your brother beat the shit out of him,"
A chuckle escaped the genome's lips. "Naturally. Kuja is an expert at sorcery. He could kill you with one hand tied behind his back,"
Ummei smiled wryly. "Well, you obviously don't know Drakja, then. Let's just say he's got some tricks up his sleeve that don't require ANY hands,"
Mikoto snorted, rolling her eyes. "Sure . . . My brother's the first angel of death! You can't beat THAT except maybe Zidane!"
Ummei's pale green eyes lolled onto his prisoner, swirled with such heart- wrenching sadness that it made Mikoto's stomach melt like butter.
"There is more to The Master than meets the eye . . ." he whispered, eyes locked onto the genome's. "And though he and Kuja - by twist of fate - are evenly matched, the fight has proven something to Drakja's master that will completely change your brother's destiny in our hands,"
". . . And what is that . . .?" Mikoto asked tentatively, her voice so quiet she barely heard it herself.
Ummei pulled his knees into his chest, tail curling around his ankle.
"The first angel of death may harbor more than just his own. And that's exactly what will make our conquest worth twice as much . . ."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When Zidane entered the dining room, Beatrix was already there. Somehow, she had zipped around to another entrance before him.
/Impressive . . ./ Zidane thought, smiling inwardly.
"Hi, Zidane!" Eiko called cheerfully, kicking her legs as she sat in her seat. Lady Hilda gave her a warning look.
"Settle down, settle down," she crooned, though smiling. Garnet was resting her elbows on the table in a most un-queen-like fashion, her eyes dark and heavy. Everyone else was seated around the table, looking rather lost in thought.
As Zidane pulled up a seat across the table from Garnet, his eyes caught a lack of something in the room. "Hey, where's Megan?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder.
"We didn't think it appropriate that she be here," Garnet explained, gazing at the far wall. "After all, she really has nothing to do with this matter,"
Zidane didn't find that morally correct at all, seeing as how Megan nearly had her head blown off the day before. However, he kept his mouth shut. He also didn't mention that Kuja wasn't there. Somehow, it just didn't seem fitting to bring up.
"So . . ."
"Um, why are we here?" Vivi asked tentatively, glancing around the table. There was a moment of silence.
"To discuss yesterday, of course," Beatrix stated.
More silence.
"What about it?!" Lani blurted out, slamming her fists on the table. "We all saw it! A bunch of freaky look-alike people came out of a big freakin' ship and their stupid leader tried to kill us all! Then HIS - " Lani pointed a finger down the table at Zidane. " - brother beat the guy silly! There. Simple,"
"If only it were," Garnet muttered, looking exhausted. "But we must also bare in mind that we saw someone there who is supposed to be dead,"
All eyes whipped onto Zidane, making him feel as if he were being machine- gunned into the back of his chair. He glared at his companions furiously.
"What?! What are you all looking at ME for?!"
Freya sighed, looking sympathetically at the genome. "Well, he IS your creator, Zidane. I guess we just figured you would have known,"
Zidane felt a bubbling wrath in the back of his eyes and he shoved his chair back, jumping to his feet. "How in the name of Odin would I have known that jerk-off was back?! I have absolutely NOTHING to do with him and I NEVER WILL!!!"
"Please Zidane," Garnet whimpered, gazing sadly at her fiancé. "Settle down. We know you hate him - we all do! But please, let's just talk about this rationally. I'm sure there's a logical explanation for all of this. Sit,"
Zidane sat. He still felt angry but refrained from speaking as Garnet leaned back in her chair, fingers rubbing slightly at her injured leg.
"Now then," she continued. "I think it wise that we first figure out how all of this is possible,"
"Yeah!" Eiko piped in, shaking a tiny fist. "I thought Garland died! Remember, Kuja kicked him off the side of that balcony and then burned down the surface of the planet! How could Garland have survived THAT?!!" she stuck out a lip as if to show her great distaste that anyone could manage to do such a thing.
"But didn't he speak to Zidane during the journey through Memoria?" Beatrix queried curiously, having not been there herself.
That shut everyone up.
"Holy shit . . ." Zidane whispered, finding it hard to breathe. "This isn't happening . . . It can't be . . ."
"M-Maybe it's not what we think," Steiner said, looking like he didn't believe it himself. "I mean, he HELPED us in Memoria! Maybe . . ."
"You saw it, didn't you?" Amarant snapped, arms folded over his chest. His voice was so rarely heard that he immediately had the group's undivided attention. "That old bozo was clearly against us. You heard him. He loved the sight of Alexandria in ruins. What's more, he seemed to find nothing more wonderful than the sight of his first Angel of Death lying half-dead in the street. So YOU tell ME whose side he's on . . ."
/Speaking of Kuja . . ./ Zidane thought to himself. /Maybe I should bring up - / his thoughts were cut off abruptly by the very person in his mind entering the room. Kuja strode in, silvery hair flowing out behind him, deep blue eyes not making eye-contact with anybody nearby. Zidane couldn't explain what it was, but somehow he got the impression that Kuja may have either been lifted or dropped down a few notches in the eyes of the others.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," the sorcerer muttered, pulling up the only empty chair (placed between Vivi and Lady Hilda) and sitting down with his seemingly unlimited ethereal grace. As if to accentuate this, he flipped his long ivory locks over his shoulder and let out a small sigh.
Nobody spoke.
/So Kuja WAS allowed to come./ Zidane noted quietly. /Then Megan is the only one left out of this . . . That's kinda unfair . . ./
Vivi shifted uncomfortably. He still didn't seem too keen about being near his creator yet. Lady Hilda didn't even acknowledge that anything had changed.
"What did I miss?" Kuja queried, looking around for the first time. "Anything important?"
"Just discussing how Garland could still be alive . . ." Garnet said slowly, staring at the first angel of death rather bitterly. Kuja let out a "hmph" of disgust and shook his head.
"Pretty sick, isn't it?"
A glacier seemed to be forming over the table. No one dared to breathe. Suddenly . . .
"I CAN'T TAKE IT!" Freya screamed, slamming her fists down on the table and jumping up. "HOW CAN WE PUT UP WITH THIS?! WITH HIM?!" she rounded on Kuja who simply stared calmly back, perhaps even with a bit of determination. "YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS ALL ALONG! DIDN'T YOU?! DIDN'T YOU?!!!"
"Of course not . . ." Kuja murmured, looking down at the table. He seemed to be avoiding the Burmecian's glare now. But in a thoughtful way. Not as if he'd been defeated. Zidane felt a pang of guilt over the whole thing.
"DON'T - LIE!" Freya raged, pointing an accusing finger at the warlock. "IT WOULD BE SO LIKE YOU TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS!"
"I swear I never . . ."
"I KNEW WE COULDN'T TRUST HIM! I KNEW IT, I - "
"Freya, sit down," said Fratley calmly, eyes shut out of sheer weariness. Freya trembled for a moment, her eyes burning holes deep into Kuja's soul. Said Kuja kept his own eyes averted, a quiet, contemplating look on his face. Beatrix felt she should step in.
"Please, Freya. We'll get nothing accomplished if we're all pitted against one another,"
"SO YOU'RE CALLING HIM AN ALLY NOW?!" the dragoon knight shrieked, a wild look in her eyes as she whipped around on the general.
"Freya, I'm begging you," Fratley whispered, clasping one of her hands in his own. He was silently pleading. He didn't seem to know how to convey the message to the knight. Freya stared at their hands a moment, shaking with inexplicable rage.
"Please . . ."
Freya nodded slowly and sat back in her chair, hat falling down over her eyes. A mental sigh of relief ran across the group of people. Kuja remained perfectly stationary. Finally, he spoke.
"I don't know how Garland managed to survive, but . . ." his voice faded off, becoming so soft they had to lean in to hear it. ". . . I will help you defeat him if you wish . . ."
Zidane tried to hide his smile. /Thank Shiva . . ./
"But how can we trust him?!" Lani inquired, resting an elbow on the table. Kuja glanced at her quietly, eyes swirling with distaste. Zidane seized the opportunity.
"If Kuja were on our side," he said brightly. "We could beat Garland easily! We did it once with his help! Why not again?"
All the glares, thought meant for Zidane, seemed magnetically focused on Kuja. The silver-haired genome glanced around at them all as if to say "what're you lookin' at ME for?"
"Kuja IS powerful," Cid admitted, frowning. He ignored the "What am I? Dog-meat?" thrown at him from the sorcerer and continued on. "Perhaps if we can all learn to trust each other . . ."
Most eyes seemed to convey the message "never" but no one voiced their opinion.
"That WAS some powerful fighting he used," Garnet complied. "I mean," she turned to Kuja. "How did you melt off that strange shadow-attack that man threw at you?"
"What shadow-attack?"
Garnet raised an eyebrow. "That black orb. You were hit and then all the smoke evaporated right off your body. Remember?"
Kuja's eyes went completely blank. Garnet crinkled her brow nervously.
"You . . . You don't remember . . .?" Kuja just shook his head. Now it was everyone else's turn to look blank.
"Do you remember ANYTHING?" Lady Hilda queried, tilting her head inquiringly. Kuja chuckled.
"Of course!" he exclaimed. "Drakja and I fought. So?"
"But . . ." Garnet looked around as if trying to gather support. "What about . . ." understanding suddenly dawned in her eyes. She leaned forward, staring hard at the silver-haired man. "What about when you knocked Drakja - or whatever his name is - down into the street? Do you remember that?"
Kuja looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook his head. "No, actually. I guess I don't. I have some vague recollection of . . . but it's all kind of smoggy,"
Garnet seemed rather tense as if this were all confirming something in her mind. "What about when you blew the ring of people off their feet?"
"Er . . . I did . . .?"
"What about when you smashed Drakja into the building?"
Kuja scratched his head. "I . . . I know I must've, but . . ."
Beatrix's eye widened as she comprehended what Garnet was trying to say. "Kuja!" she gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth. "You can't remember anything that happened during the times when your eyes were - "
"Red," Amarant muttered, nodding.
"Hey, sh-she's right!" Vivi exclaimed in surprise.
Kuja looked around in confusion. "What do you mean 'when my eyes were red?'"
"Your eyes turned red sometimes," Zidane said. "It was really weird. You couldn't have been trancing, could you?"
"I-I don't think so . . ."
They all cast nervous looks at each other. Something fishy was definitely going on.
"Hey, Kuja," Zidane said suddenly. "How do you know those green-eyed people?"
Everyone leaned in excitedly. They'd all been wondering the exact same thing. Kuja felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.
/The last thing I wanted to discuss . . ./
He glanced up at the expectant eyes of the others. So hopeful . . . They HAD to know. It was life or death this time.
"I think we should be asking WHAT they are," Cid commented. The group nodded in agreement. Kuja sighed, leaning back in his chair.
/Where to start . . . where to start . . ./
"Actually," he said. "It's EXTREMELY important that you know what those people are. It could determine who lives and who dies in this war," Vivi gulped immediately and straightened his hat. Kuja continued. "What I'm about to tell you may come as a surprise," he said. "But I'm going to try and explain it as best as I can. I really don't know very much, actually," he paused and took a deep breath, shutting his eyes as he recalled as much of the detail as he could.
"Well," the warlock began. "This all begins on Terra, a long, long time before even I was born. As you know, Terra was once a thriving civilization. Their advances in technology were quite startling and they evolved at a distressing rate. Soon, however, cities began to 'specialize' in their technology. One city trained exclusively in cloning, another in nuclear weapons, and so on. Naturally, this led to mounting tensions between the Terrans. War broke out almost immediately. From some of the cities - I don't know which - great warriors stepped forth, standing out amongst the rest. Their magical abilities far outweighed that of any of the other soldiers and they became heroes to be revered or feared by all of Terra," Kuja paused, waiting for someone to blurt out what all this had to do with the events of the previous day. However, when no one spoke, he continued. "The people of Bran Bal, though small in number, were perhaps some of the wisest of all Terrans. They saw that the death of the planet was inevitable and immediately chose to prepare for it, rather than fight. You know most of the preparations already: the underground labs, the cryogenic chambers, and, of course, the creation of Garland . . . Garland was fascinated by these warriors who fought so valiantly for their beliefs on Terra, and he noted these people quite closely. But one day, whether by coincidence or fate, all the cities of Terra planned a nuclear bombing of their nearest enemy. Garland hid in the underground labs of Bran Bal and waited it out. All at once, every city detonated their bomb. All civilization on Terra was annihilated. Not a soul remained except Garland and a select few who had hid with him. Everyone above-ground died either from the blasts, the radiation, or the six-hundred year nuclear winter that followed. All that remained on Terra were a few stunted trees and a handful of monsters that emerged from the expulsion of Mist that followed. When Garland thought it safe to return of the surface of the planet, it was then that his brilliant plan to restore Terra came to life. His first attempts were by reviving the cryogenically frozen people below. Barely any even survived the shock. This left Garland in a nasty pickle. That was when the idea came to him to create beings to revive Terra. And that was when Garland created the first remakes of Terran civilization. But they weren't genomes. No, no, Garland hadn't figured that out yet. Instead, he tried to remake people after the most powerful beings he had ever met. First, he picked some of the greatest magicians he had witnessed and genetically altered them. Those became the four guardian of Terra. Then he chose the warrior he had thought was the most powerful and created a whole race of people to be just like him. But back then, Garland simply created bodies and then tampered with their DNA to make them more like the soldier. This meant that all the creations had similar traits but were still distinguishable in appearance. I don't know whether Garland gave them souls right away or not, but they eventually had varying personalities and strengths as well. Garland called these people geonomes. Once again, I don't know why. Garland never even woke them up before he realized the mistake he'd made. If the geonomes were more powerful than him, then they would be uncontrollable and thus useless. So Garland sealed them away and began his next great idea . . ."
"Genomes," Zidane muttered bitterly, eyes narrowed. "Of course . . . This is all starting to make sense,"
Garnet shushed him and nodded to Kuja. "Continue,"
Kuja cleared his throat and nodded, trying to remember where he'd left off. "Ah, right, well, like Zidane said, the genomes were made next, created to be like one of the other great soldiers, only one that was not nearly as powerful. And, as you are all aware, Garland didn't give them souls and he made each one practically identical save male and female. They were much more controllable and a lot easier to use. But their powers were nothing like that of the geonomes and, without the gift of thought, they too were practically worthless. So Garland turned to the - in his opinion - second most powerful warrior he had ever met. This man's name was Saishoja, and his name meant 'first devil' in ancient Terran. This is ironic because the man who would later "become" the geonomes had a name that meant 'dragon devil.' The recreation of Saishoja was nearly an exact replica and Garland gave it the same name. Garland also came up with the brilliant idea of giving it a soul. What an amazing concept . . ." Kuja added dryly. "Anyhow, the new Saishoja seemed a success until it was given the soul. His body rejected it and he died within a matter of hours. There followed eight more attempts: Dainija, Daisanja, Daiyonja, Daigoja, Dairokuja, Dainanaja, and Daihachija. Dainjia's name meant 'second devil,' Daisanja's name meant 'third devil' and so forth. Every single one perished,"
"But that's only seven other attempts," Fratley noted, cocking his head. Kuja nodded.
"That's right. Because the ninth survived. And his name meant 'ninth devil' or, as it sounds roughly translated in Terran: Kuja,"
Lani sputtered in surprise. "YOU'RE the ninth devil?!" she choked out, eyes wide. Kuja sighed and nodded, gazing up at the ceiling.
"Unfortunately . . ." he mumbled. "But, as you know, I was a complete and utter failure. My soul was much too rebellious for Garland's use and he didn't think I would ever develop my powers to the extent of the geonomes. There followed Zidane and Mikoto who were simply genetically altered versions of the genomes,"
"But does that mean . . ." Zidane whispered, looking strangely horrified. "That we're not really . . ."
"Brothers?" Kuja queried, raising an eyebrow. Zidane nodded, too numb to speak. The sorcerer shook his head, smiling slightly. "Actually, there's a catch there. We really are,"
"But how?"
"Well, you see," said Kuja, still smirking a little. "When I say that you and Mikoto are genetically altered, I mean that Garland used DNA code from the first eight failed attempts at a recreation of Saishoja. You and Mikoto have a nearly identical DNA structure to me, made from the same material. We are probably a lot closer than you even realized before. Haven't you ever noticed how your hair naturally layers like mine? Or how we have a similar nose? And," Kuja smiled warmly. "You and Mikoto both have my eyes . . ."
There followed a moment of silence as everyone tried to soak all this information in. But Eiko was still frowning.
"But what does this have to do with those green-eyed people?!" she shouted, lacking every bit of tact she could. Kuja leaned back in his chair, biting his lip.
"Well, this is where things start to get bad for us. The original inspiration for the geonomes, as you know, was the greatest warrior on the face of Terra. His name was Drakja: Dragon Devil,"
"THOSE are the geonomes?!" Lani gasped. "But then - "
Kuja nodded sadly. "That's right. Those green-eyed people are practically invincible. And, though I'm not sure, their leader - Drakja - may not be a genetic test-tube-baby but, in fact, the original Drakja himself reawakened from the cryogenics during the nuclear winter. But I have no idea. I'm very sketchy on those details," a scowl passed across his lips. "Actually, Drakja calls me second best for two reasons: because I was made after the second best warrior to him, and because Zidane may have been genetically altered more powerful than me. But once again, that is all a matter of Garland's opinion. We don't really know who is the strongest here,"
Eiko then said the very thing that was on everyone's mind.
"We . . . are doomed . . ."
Kuja snorted derisively. "All I know is that Garland has woken all his geonomes and unleashed them untrained and practically unsupervised on Gaia. And they are armed with some new 'toys' apparently. Guns, armor, airships . . . The fun just doesn't end, does it? I don't know whether their lack of experience is a good thing or not, but . . ."
"How do you know Drakja, then?" Zidane queried. "If they've been frozen all this time . . ."
Kuja shifted uncomfortably. That topic had been strictly taboo in his mind, but now he felt he owed them an explanation. He closed his eyes for a moment, and then tried to think of the best way to explain it.
"Basically," the warlock said. "I was a super rambunctious child. I enjoyed nothing more than wreaking havoc and creating mischief in Bran Bal. I probably managed to sneak my way into a hundred secret rooms by the age of twelve. And that's about when this happened. There had always been this one door that I couldn't get into. And it absolutely killed me that I couldn't. At this point I was feeling all high and mighty because I had just gotten rid of Zidane. I decided it was a good time to open that damn door. Needless to say, I did eventually. Inside, I found lots of creepy stuff I had never even imagined. But at the end of the lab I found pods. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of pods. I didn't know what they were back then, of course. But Garland had somehow known I was trying to break into that room and he headed me off at the pass. He went in there ahead of me and opened one of the pods, giving the thing inside some brief instructions and then leaving it there for me to deal with. That would be Drakja. The two of us had a little tiff because he was so convinced he was better than me. But Garland's plan backfired. Drakja revealed some information to me that I wasn't supposed to know," Kuja hesitated, unconsciously scratching his head.
/I REALLY don't want to talk about this . . ./ he thought miserably.
"What did you find out?" Vivi asked nervously.
"I found out about Mikoto, of course," Kuja said simply. "I had been feeling so great about getting rid of Zidane and what happens? I'm replaced AGAIN! So I attempted to get rid of her too,"
Zidane frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," Kuja snapped. "That I proceeded to destroy the area she was held in. She was still tanked at the time and I blew up nearly everything in the room. But I didn't kill her. I don't know if I couldn't or if something told me not to, but I let Mikoto live and fled the lab. Garland, though a tad peeved, sealed Drakja away once more. But then he had MY wrath to deal with . . . And I spent half my remaining time on Terra studying in on the geonomes as much as I could . . ." Kuja smiled smugly at the thought.
"So THAT'S why Drakja was teasing you," Lady Hilda said nodding.
/Flash/
This is a warning . . . Beware the Metsubo . . .
/Flash/
Kuja gasped suddenly. The dream! The dream he'd been having over and over again! He'd been seeing that scene! And now he'd run into Drakja again! The purple-eyed woman was trying to tell him something about Drakja!
Kuja leapt out of his seat, eyes wide.
"I've got to go!" he said suddenly, ignoring the confused looks he was getting.
And with that, the warlock turned tail and fled. . . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: "And with that, the warlock turned tail and fled . . ." Get it?! Get it?! Turned TAIL and fled? BWAHAHAHAHAHA. Anyhoo, *phew* that was a lot. Did anyone understand that? *Looks hopeful.* Also, just ignore what Ummei was saying for now. It's not going to make sense for a LOOOONG time. So just tuck it into the back of your mind and recall it later when necessary. Also, in case anyone was wondering . . .
TODAY'S ADDITION OF "WHY BMD USES THE WORDS SHE DOES."
1. Metsubo means downfall or ruin in Japanese (I might have mentioned that already).
2. Each of the "Kuja reign" names (Saishoja, Dainija, etc.) really do mean what I said. Saisho means "first" in Japanese, Daini means "second" and so on. Seriously, "Ku" means ninth in Japanese! But "Ja" is just a word I made up. And it's kind of funny how it happened. See, when I first named Drakja, I did it for a reason that I'll mention in a second. Then I noticed that both his name and Kuja's name end in "Ja." So I just said that it meant devil ^_^ Also, as I said I was going to say @_@, I named my villain Drakja because draco means dragon in Latin and, well, it's pretty self-explanatory. Dragon - Devil. Simple.
READ AND REVIEW!!!
******* Black Mage Dad *******
P.S. (boy do I have a lot of those) I'm just wondering, are character- deaths okay? I'm currently not planning any but just in case . . . I promise I wouldn't kill anyone we all like! Well, just let me know . . . Yo, thanks ^_^