A/N: Grr . . . This chapter's way too short. But that's 'cause it's sort
of like a bridge between scenes. The next chapter's probably going to be
EXTREMELY long and it introduces a new character/concept. It's not a big
deal sort of thing, but it's going to take a lengthy amount of text to do
it. I need to hurry up with this fic a little more since I've got my web-
comic; but I assure you finishing this story comes first. After all,
though the idea for it was not, this fanfic was here before the web-comic.
So it gets first-rights ^_^ Besides, you guys would probably kill me. I
have some info on the web-comic at the bottom (and it ain't good news yet
*sigh*).
Disclaimer: I cannot own Final Fantasy IX, so I must make those who DO become intimately familiar with stabbity-death. Or an armoire-y prison . . . Heh. I've been readin' too much 8-Bit Theater . . . Heehee, sword- chucks, yo!
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". . . So I granted him sleep eternal."
– Seymour Guado, Final Fantasy X
"This isn't going to work!" Beatrix stormed, clenching a fist and glaring out the window and into the setting sun. Gaia's survival was setting right alongside it. "We don't have enough TIME!"
"Or people," Steiner nodded, sitting calmly at a large, stone table.
"Or power," Beatrix added.
"Or enough of a chance of returning home alive,"
"Okay, you can shut up now," Beatrix grumbled. Steiner did so, smiling meekly.
Freya and Fratley were present in the room as well, both having experience in the military. It was Freya who spoke next.
"The problem is," she said. "If we all leave for the Fire Shrine now, we're also leaving our cities incredibly vulnerable. With us gone and no leaders to order the defense of Alexandria – or even Burmecia or the Black Mage Village for that matter – Garland could take it as an opportunity to strike and wipe them all out,"
"So what do you propose we do?!" Beatrix rounded on the Burmecian.
"Well, we could – "
"General Beatrix, I have an urgent report!" A guard stood in the doorway, one hand stiff near her forehead in salute, the other clutching a crisp, important-looking letter.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Here," the guard handed the general the envelope which she promptly tore open. As she read, her one eye widened with surprise. Then a grin began to spread across her face.
"Guys . . . I think we just might have an answer to our problems . . ."
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"Are you sure you want to go?" Zidane was eyeing Megan suspiciously. The Summoner stood in the doorway to Zidane and Garnet's bedroom, her head bowed in mysterious shame.
"Positive,"
"Why the sudden change of heart?" Garnet queried. Megan shifted uncomfortably.
"Does it matter?" There was an unmistakable edge to her tone.
Garnet smiled hesitantly. "I guess not . . ."
Zidane still looked suspicious. "If you go with us, saving Kuja is going to be a part of your journey. Is that what you want?"
Megan's eyes flashed. ". . . I want to see Garland suffer . . ." was all she said.
"'scuse me, Megan," a strong arm brushed the Summoner aside as Beatrix stepped into the room.
"Eh? Beatrix, are you guys done?" Zidane looked up hopefully.
"Even better," Beatrix grinned. "Zidane, read this," She handed him the envelope. Zidane took the letter, frowning, and read aloud:
"This is an official treaty of aid to the royal family of Alexandria. It has come to our attention that the queen and her future husband will be heading out with important members of various cities to spare Gaia from an imminent doom. Alexandria sought the aid of several Gaian nations about a week ago, calling in a meeting of spokespersons and leaders. As the newly appointed Congressional of Gaia, we request that Alexandria not only join us in the ranks of unity, but that they allow us in this time of need to fulfill our oaths and promises and come to the royal family in this urgent situation. If you would allow it, the following cities will post selected soldiers within Alexandria's territory along with high ranking recruits. If you would join our ranks and aid us in this peril as well, Gaia will unite under the congressional to destroy these evil times – Jesus," Zidane whispered. "There's a page long list of nations, cities, and towns and a list of the weapons they're arming themselves with!"
"So what does that mean?" Megan inquired.
"What does that mean?" Beatrix echoed gleefully. "It means we just received an entire planet's worth of backup . . . And we can safely head to the Fire Shrine,"
"And when are we going to do that?" Zidane raised an eyebrow.
"Now!" Beatrix laughed. "Gather everyone! We leave in an hour!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Everyone was preparing and gathering their weapons. The mages on the team were packing ethers, the fighters polishing swords. Zidane didn't feel like doing any of that.
/I don't need my weapons to be polished . . ./ he thought bitterly. /They just need to be sharp, so I can cut Garland into little tiny sirloin steaks . . ./.
So while the others worked, Zidane dozed by the warm window. He didn't even realize he was drifting into sleep until the nightmare began . . .
/Flash/
". . . Zidane . . ."
". . . What . . .?"
". . . You didn't make it to me in time,"
"Who are you?"
The darkness dissipated and Zidane squinted into the void. There was someone standing there. Someone rather small and delicate with . . . a tail.
"Oh my god . . ." Zidane whispered in awe. "Mikoto, is that you . . .?!"
The young genome's eyes were big and sad. "You betrayed me . . ." she whimpered softly. "Like you betrayed our brother . . ."
"What?! No! No, I never betrayed anyone! I'm going to save you both!"
"They're all here . . ." Mikoto whispered sadly. "The genomes . . . They're all dead . . . You're dead . . ."
"No! I won't let that happen!" Zidane rushed forward to grasp Mikoto's arms. He slipped and fell through her ghostly form before tumbling into the darkness . . . Falling . . . Falling . . . Until he was one of them: forgotten and alone . . . Betrayed.
"Ahhh!" Zidane sat up in horror, sliding off the windowsill and onto the floor with a thud. "God, mother fu – "
"Zidane, you alright?" Garnet opened the door a crack, smirking slightly.
"Fine, fine . . . Are you guys ready to leave?"
"I think so. But, um . . . You still have two more things to do,"
"Oh, is that so?" Zidane stood up haughtily, folding his arms across his chest. "What's the first one?"
Garnet grinned, stepping into the room. "Kiss me,"
The genome chuckled. "That I can do, Your Majesty," he bent forward slightly and planted a small kiss next to the young queen's mouth.
"Oh, you can do better than that!" Garnet complained.
"True. C'mere," Zidane suddenly hoisted Garnet up into his arms and the two sunk into a passionate, butter-hot kiss. When they were through and Zidane had put his fiancé down, Garnet's typically perfect hair was slightly more unkempt and she was blushing profusely. She giggled as Zidane beamed at his bride-to-be.
"Better?"
"Better," Garnet smiled.
"And what's the second thing?" Zidane inquired. He knew this one was something serious. Garnet's smile faded and she sighed heavily.
". . . Don't you know . . .?"
"Not really,"
Another sigh. "Remember what Demeter said? We have to take Kuja with us. And I know you're not going to let anyone else carry him. So . . ."
"I've got to go retrieve his body?"
"Pretty much, yeah,"
Zidane's face darkened. "Fine . . . But . . . Don't come with me, okay? I just want to share some . . . some thoughts with him . . ."
Garnet lowered her lashes, thoughts swirling in those chocolate-brown eyes, mingling with sadness. "Okay, Zidane . . . But please try to hurry,"
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Fratley, standing calmly in one of the sun-baked roads, raised the brim of his hat and peered into the orange orb of the sun rising above Alexandria. The sky was painted in shimmering yellows and pinks, the morning fresh and crisp with the scent of renewal. The sun's warm rays were already reflecting off the castle's crystal, shooting mystical rainbow patterns of light across the buildings that would not be there in another hour.
"My, how beautiful Alexandria is in the morning . . ." he thought aloud. "Quite a change from the perpetual rain of Burmecia,"
"Fratley, what are you doing out here?" Freya suddenly emerged from a weapon's shop, her spear gleaming unusually bright. "I thought you were with the others,"
"I was, Freya, dear," Fratley responded heavily. "But I just wanted some sunshine. Go on back to the castle; I'll be there in a few minutes . . ."
Freya reluctantly turned to go, still watching Fratley out of the corner of her eye. When she was out of sight, Fratley growled.
"Who's there?! Come out!" he whipped around, his lips pulled into a snarl as he glared into the shadows of an empty alleyway. Silence. Fratley slid his claws down the side of his spear, holding it out in preparation.
"I know you're in there . . ." he hissed menacingly.
"Very perceptive," came a voice from behind. Fratley whirled around but there was no one there.
"Burmecians do have amazing noses, don't they?" Fratley spun in the opposite direction towards the new voice but still found no face to match it with.
"Show yourselves, you cowards!" Fratley shouted.
There was a sudden flash of color before something vanished in the Burmecian's face.
"Just did," someone giggled. "Satisfied?"
/Oh . . . no . . ./ Realization began to dawn on the Burmecian rat. /Geonomes . . . What are they still doing here?!/
"If Garland sent you to kill us – "
"Oh no, we don't want to KILL any of you . . ." Fratley felt the breath on the back of his neck but didn't move. "After all . . . You're powerful people and your souls can only be taken while you're alive . . . by the Metsubo . . ."
"Then what do you want . . .?" Fratley's tail thrashed the ground with agitation.
"Answers,"
Then Fratley felt an explosion of pain. It seemed to fill his entire body, burning him from the inside out. He struggled, but the agony overtook him . . . He fell limply into the awaiting arms of his aggressors . . .
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Zidane couldn't take his eyes off Kuja's pale face. It was so ghostly . . . Like he was made of tissue paper. Every second that he stood there brought Kuja closer to the brink of death.
"But at least it's just you . . ." Zidane whispered, kneeling down beside the bed. "Your body is no longer corrupted by those souls . . ."
The room was so quiet . . . Zidane couldn't even hear his brother's breath, which made sense since Kuja was barely breathing. Zidane laughed softly.
"When we destroy Garland . . . We're gonna throw a HUGE party . . ." The genome smiled shakily, his lip trembling. "And I'm probably going to eat so much South Gate Bundt Cake that I'm gonna throw up EVERYWHERE. And you . . . Psh, you'll probably down six glasses of champagne and then get yourself laid somewhere out on the street," Zidane glanced up at Kuja's lifeless form and gently took his hand. It was even colder than before.
"Kuja . . . You . . . You always pulled out of these things," said Zidane. "When you were just a kid, Garland hurt you. But you lived. I thought I'd lost you in the Iifa Tree, but you saved my life. You've saved me lots of times. You stopped Drakja during that first attack in Alexandria, and you forced him away in that bar . . . You even took a god damn bullet for me on the Forgotten Continent. And you were so sick . . . You even lost what was most dear to you then . . . Your eyesight. You gave up the ability to see the beauty in the world for me. And then STILL you came back to save us. It's my turn now. I'm going to save you. And, hell, maybe you'll live in the castle with us. And we'll be just like brothers again; laughing, talking, throwing muffins at Steiner . . . At least, for another year. Before the limit . . . catches up to you . . . Again," That did it. Zidane dissolved into tears against the bed, burying his face in his arms and sobbing pitifully like he was four years old again.
There was a knock at the door. Zidane hurriedly brushed his tears away and tried to make a straight face.
"Yeah?!"
"Zidane, it's Garnet!" came a desperate voice from the other side. "I . . . I think we might have a problem!"
Zidane's brow furrowed in confusion and he quickly scrambled up and opened the door. Garnet was standing there looking frightened.
"Zidane, it's Fratley! He – he went outside for awhile and . . . Zidane, he hasn't come back yet and they searched the entire city! It's like he's gone!"
"Dagger, Dagger, whoa!" Zidane grasped Garnet's shoulders to quiet the frantic queen. "Slow down! I mean, Fratley could be ANYWHERE!"
"No! It's not that!" Garnet sobbed. "They found a pool of blood in the street where Freya reported seeing Fratley! Zidane . . . Zidane, I think Garland has him!"
"Well, shit," Zidane blinked, staring down at his fiancé at a loss for words. Garnet desperately clutched Zidane around the waist, burying her face into his chest. She couldn't seem to stop crying.
"Zidane, we're going to die, I know it!" She gripped his shirt as if trying to hold onto him for dear life. "We're so outnumbered! The geonomes are just going to slaughter us and then the planets will assimilate and everyone on Gaia's going to DIE!"
"Not if I can help it," Zidane crooned softly, gently running his fingers through Garnet's hair. "You know I would never let that happen . . ."
"But what if you can't STOP it from happening?!" Garnet looked up at Zidane hysterically, streaks of black makeup running down her face. "Zidane, I don't want to die!"
"Now you listen to me!" Zidane grasped Garnet's arms and stared down at her fiercely. "You are NOT going to die. Not while there's a breath in my body! So you just calm down, okay? We're going to go to the Fire Shrine with Kuja, and we're going to save Gaia, just like last time, alright?"
"Zidane . . ."
"Alright?!"
"A-alright,"
Beatrix stormed into the room, looking furious. "C'mon, let's go!" she shouted. "If they really did take Fratley, then he's going to be at our destination anyways!"
"True, true," Zidane sighed, releasing Garnet gently. He glanced over at Kuja and felt a knot forming in his stomach. ". . . I'm going to carry him, huh . . .?"
"Unless you'd rather someone else do it," Beatrix's face softened to see Zidane looking so miserable. "Here, I'll help you carry him to the ship. We can lay him down in there . . ."
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"Are they coming or not?!"
"I don't know!"
"How many Summoners are gonna be with them?!"
"Why does it matter?!"
"You sniveling little RAT! They revived Kuja, didn't they?! Huh?! HUH?!!"
"How many times do I have to tell you?!" Fratley snarled, struggling against the bonds that held him down. "I don't know anything!"
At least six geonomes were circling around the poor Burmecian, hissing questions and accusations. Fratley wasn't totally sure, but he suspected they'd actually taken him to the Fire Shrine (this thought mostly given value by the atrocious HEAT of the place).
/I guess that makes it easy for Zidane and the others . . ./ Fratley thought crossly. /If they just continue the quest on without me and succeed, they'll find me by a fluke./.
"This guy is USELESS!" one of the geonomes growled, folding his arms angrily across his chest.
"No shit!" another shouted. They were glaring down at Fratley with those menacing green eyes.
The room was like a cave; dark with rocky, slimy walls. Fratley was unceremoniously thrown on the ground with his arms and legs bound to keep him from using a spear or jumping abilities. /Bastards . . ./ the Burmecian thought bitterly.
"Should we kill him, then?" a female geonome asked, glancing innocently at her comrades.
"Nah. Just chuck him in the dungeons. Maybe if he's chatty enough he can get the OTHER prisoners to start talkin',"
"Can do," One of the geonomes snagged Fratley by the collar and dragged him up. He started to struggle, but immediately the other geonomes leapt at him and held down his arms and legs to keep him immobile. They started to drag the knight out of the room and into the increasing intensity of the heat outside.
Fratley was only given a brief impression of bodies and other wandering geonomes before he was thrown violently into another cave-like cell. Surprisingly, they untied his arms and legs. But when the geonomes stepped back and closed the cell-bars with a clank he saw that there was a magical barrier shimmering in between the metal cubes.
"BASTARDS!!!" Fratley shrieked. One of the female geonomes grinned and blew him a kiss over her shoulder as Fratley's captors trailed, snickering, out of the room. This left the Burmecian with nothing but himself and his anger to keep him company.
Or so he thought . . .
At the time that Fratley believed himself to be alone, his eyes had not yet adjusted to the light (or lack thereof). But slowly, like a candle being lit in front of his nose, the scenery began to flicker and take shape . . .
It was a dungeon. Or more likely, it was an enormous, quarter-mile-long cave dug under the earth. And carved into both sides of the narrow walls were prison-cells not unlike Fratley's. At least a hundred cells lined the rocky walls; fifty on each side of the narrow passageway.
And almost every single one was filled. Fratley squinted into the darkness, sure his eyes were deceiving him. No . . . it was true. At least half the cells were filled with creatures that . . . looked like Zidane.
/Could this be . . . the genomes?! My god, there must be at least two- hundred in here, if not more!/
"Did you come to try and rescue us?" came a soft voice from somewhere in the shadows. Fratley moved up inquisitively towards his cell-bars (careful to keep a safe distance from the barrier) and realized the voice was coming from the cell right across from him. It was a female voice, sad but familiar.
"I . . . not really. The geonomes jumped me in the street,"
"You're one of Zidane's friends . . ." the young girl said suddenly. Fratley could see her better now, sitting on the dirty cave floor and looking at him from across the passageway with those electrifying blue eyes. There was only one other person in the cell with her (which was odd because most of the genomes were sharing a cell with four, five, or even six of their own kind). Yet for some reason, no matter how hard Fratley squinted into the cell, the Burmecian could not make out who was in the cell with the genome.
"You seem familiar," Fratley murmured, gazing into the young girl's piercing eyes. She smiled faintly.
"Then you have probably heard of me at least. My name's Mikoto,"
Fratley gasped. "You're Zidane's younger sister!"
"Correct,"
"Er . . . pleased to meet you, I guess . . ." Fratley couldn't take his eyes off the person next to Mikoto. Why couldn't he focus on it . . .?! Mikoto seemed to notice the knight's inner struggle and smirked lightly.
"Don't even try to make him out. He's not much more that an image right now,"
"He? Who is he?"
Mikoto grinned. "Take a closer look . . ."
Fratley shimmied up dangerously close to the bars. Then he gasped and clapped his claws over his muzzle.
Now this was definitely too much! If he hadn't known he was "dead," he would have said it was Kuja in the cell with Mikoto. But . . . but it WAS Kuja! He was even wearing the same clothes! Yet Kuja was see-through like a ghost made of water-vapor. His image flickered as if it were a broken hologram. The form the phantom had taken on was of Kuja slumped against the cave-wall as if he were unconscious or asleep. A strange, shimmering aura surrounded him.
"That couldn't be . . ."
"His soul," Mikoto whispered. "Trapped in imprisonment. It's dying pretty quickly outside of a body. Garland's worried. He needs his plan to be initiated quickly or else he's going to lose the soul. Either that or it will find a way to return to the cycle without him. Every hour the image gets a little stronger as Garland's hold increases, yet within the last forty-five minutes it's been fading out more and more. If Master Garland doesn't hurry, his plan will be in ruins,"
Fratley's eyes gleamed. "Then we'll just have to hold him up, won't we?"
"Indeed,"
"Zidane and the others will come," Fratley assured the young genome. "Zidane's really . . . er . . ."
"Pissed?" Mikoto offered.
"Beyond pissed. They're coming right now,"
Mikoto frowned. "I hope they can get through quickly. Garland has some new allies . . . They're formidable,"
"Zidane would do anything for his family,"
Mikoto lowered her gaze. ". . . I know . . . That's what worries me,"
"We still have time," Fratley continued, trying his best to comfort the genome. The others prisoners were watching tiredly. They seemed unable to speak as if stricken with some grief.
". . . Perhaps you do . . ." Mikoto whispered. "But I don't . . ."
"What? Why not?"
"Because," the child said slowly, looking up at Fratley with sharp, keen eyes. "Within a couple hours . . . that . . ." she pointed at Kuja's flickering, ebbing form. "Will be me . . ."
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A/N: Ooh, ya think Mikoto's up to something? Well, she wishes she was, at least. The real hero in the plight of the genomes is going to be someone . . . rather unexpected. Then things are going to get dirty again. Here's another progress-check on this story (here I go with the speech again): Out of 172 scenes including the epilogue, the next chapter starts with scene #158. So that means there is only . . . fourteen scenes left? Whoa, we're closer than I realized. But don't worry, the scenes are LONG. Some of them could possibly take up more than one chapter. I mean, the finale itself is going to take more than one chapter for sure. Actually . . . Now that I think about it, a lot still has to happen. Keep in mind, Kuja's not out of this plot yet. I have some things . . . planned for him *evil grin*. Blah, web-comic info. Due to some, er . . . technical . . . difficulties, I do not have a link to give you guys yet (well, I do, but there's nothing there right now). First of all, I don't have Paint Shop Pro 8 yet. I have 7, but for some reason it keeps anti-aliasing my lines and making them ugly (damn them all to hell!). Also, my dad was out of town briefly and didn't have a chance to help me set up the site (curses!). So let's shoot for next chapter, kay? I'll have some more info on it when I've got the link. Also, I just wanna comment on something a reviewer said (and I know another reviewer made the point I'm about to make). Um, someone said in the last chapter that Kuja and Zidane never aged, however the other reviewer said exactly what I was thinking when I wrote the last chapter ^_^. It's very unlikely that Zidane never aged because it can be inferred in that boat-scene when Zidane's talking about the time he ran away from home that when Baku and Tantalus took him in he was a child. After all, wouldn't they get suspicious if they took somebody in and they NEVER aged? Also, they never specifically said Mikoto was created a year before Final Fantasy IX. If she was, then Zidane would have been in Tantalus for less than a year and they wouldn't be calling him "Bro" and giving him hard-core tasks like kidnapping national royalty (lol). It just wouldn't make sense to have him ageless. Besides, according to THIS story, Zidane and Kuja (I never really talked about Mikoto) were created different from the other genomes. Keep in mind, Kuja is a replication of Saishoja, not a full-blooded genome. It's very likely he and Zidane "grew up" from childhood to adulthood. Also, in the game Kuja looks VERY different from the genomes. If he didn't age, his hair wouldn't be that long (for example). I mean, even his features are different. Of course, a lot of it's just inferred, but still . . . It's just plain arguable ^_^
Give me reviews or give me . . . something other than death. How 'bout more reviews?
Disclaimer: I cannot own Final Fantasy IX, so I must make those who DO become intimately familiar with stabbity-death. Or an armoire-y prison . . . Heh. I've been readin' too much 8-Bit Theater . . . Heehee, sword- chucks, yo!
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". . . So I granted him sleep eternal."
– Seymour Guado, Final Fantasy X
"This isn't going to work!" Beatrix stormed, clenching a fist and glaring out the window and into the setting sun. Gaia's survival was setting right alongside it. "We don't have enough TIME!"
"Or people," Steiner nodded, sitting calmly at a large, stone table.
"Or power," Beatrix added.
"Or enough of a chance of returning home alive,"
"Okay, you can shut up now," Beatrix grumbled. Steiner did so, smiling meekly.
Freya and Fratley were present in the room as well, both having experience in the military. It was Freya who spoke next.
"The problem is," she said. "If we all leave for the Fire Shrine now, we're also leaving our cities incredibly vulnerable. With us gone and no leaders to order the defense of Alexandria – or even Burmecia or the Black Mage Village for that matter – Garland could take it as an opportunity to strike and wipe them all out,"
"So what do you propose we do?!" Beatrix rounded on the Burmecian.
"Well, we could – "
"General Beatrix, I have an urgent report!" A guard stood in the doorway, one hand stiff near her forehead in salute, the other clutching a crisp, important-looking letter.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Here," the guard handed the general the envelope which she promptly tore open. As she read, her one eye widened with surprise. Then a grin began to spread across her face.
"Guys . . . I think we just might have an answer to our problems . . ."
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"Are you sure you want to go?" Zidane was eyeing Megan suspiciously. The Summoner stood in the doorway to Zidane and Garnet's bedroom, her head bowed in mysterious shame.
"Positive,"
"Why the sudden change of heart?" Garnet queried. Megan shifted uncomfortably.
"Does it matter?" There was an unmistakable edge to her tone.
Garnet smiled hesitantly. "I guess not . . ."
Zidane still looked suspicious. "If you go with us, saving Kuja is going to be a part of your journey. Is that what you want?"
Megan's eyes flashed. ". . . I want to see Garland suffer . . ." was all she said.
"'scuse me, Megan," a strong arm brushed the Summoner aside as Beatrix stepped into the room.
"Eh? Beatrix, are you guys done?" Zidane looked up hopefully.
"Even better," Beatrix grinned. "Zidane, read this," She handed him the envelope. Zidane took the letter, frowning, and read aloud:
"This is an official treaty of aid to the royal family of Alexandria. It has come to our attention that the queen and her future husband will be heading out with important members of various cities to spare Gaia from an imminent doom. Alexandria sought the aid of several Gaian nations about a week ago, calling in a meeting of spokespersons and leaders. As the newly appointed Congressional of Gaia, we request that Alexandria not only join us in the ranks of unity, but that they allow us in this time of need to fulfill our oaths and promises and come to the royal family in this urgent situation. If you would allow it, the following cities will post selected soldiers within Alexandria's territory along with high ranking recruits. If you would join our ranks and aid us in this peril as well, Gaia will unite under the congressional to destroy these evil times – Jesus," Zidane whispered. "There's a page long list of nations, cities, and towns and a list of the weapons they're arming themselves with!"
"So what does that mean?" Megan inquired.
"What does that mean?" Beatrix echoed gleefully. "It means we just received an entire planet's worth of backup . . . And we can safely head to the Fire Shrine,"
"And when are we going to do that?" Zidane raised an eyebrow.
"Now!" Beatrix laughed. "Gather everyone! We leave in an hour!"
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Everyone was preparing and gathering their weapons. The mages on the team were packing ethers, the fighters polishing swords. Zidane didn't feel like doing any of that.
/I don't need my weapons to be polished . . ./ he thought bitterly. /They just need to be sharp, so I can cut Garland into little tiny sirloin steaks . . ./.
So while the others worked, Zidane dozed by the warm window. He didn't even realize he was drifting into sleep until the nightmare began . . .
/Flash/
". . . Zidane . . ."
". . . What . . .?"
". . . You didn't make it to me in time,"
"Who are you?"
The darkness dissipated and Zidane squinted into the void. There was someone standing there. Someone rather small and delicate with . . . a tail.
"Oh my god . . ." Zidane whispered in awe. "Mikoto, is that you . . .?!"
The young genome's eyes were big and sad. "You betrayed me . . ." she whimpered softly. "Like you betrayed our brother . . ."
"What?! No! No, I never betrayed anyone! I'm going to save you both!"
"They're all here . . ." Mikoto whispered sadly. "The genomes . . . They're all dead . . . You're dead . . ."
"No! I won't let that happen!" Zidane rushed forward to grasp Mikoto's arms. He slipped and fell through her ghostly form before tumbling into the darkness . . . Falling . . . Falling . . . Until he was one of them: forgotten and alone . . . Betrayed.
"Ahhh!" Zidane sat up in horror, sliding off the windowsill and onto the floor with a thud. "God, mother fu – "
"Zidane, you alright?" Garnet opened the door a crack, smirking slightly.
"Fine, fine . . . Are you guys ready to leave?"
"I think so. But, um . . . You still have two more things to do,"
"Oh, is that so?" Zidane stood up haughtily, folding his arms across his chest. "What's the first one?"
Garnet grinned, stepping into the room. "Kiss me,"
The genome chuckled. "That I can do, Your Majesty," he bent forward slightly and planted a small kiss next to the young queen's mouth.
"Oh, you can do better than that!" Garnet complained.
"True. C'mere," Zidane suddenly hoisted Garnet up into his arms and the two sunk into a passionate, butter-hot kiss. When they were through and Zidane had put his fiancé down, Garnet's typically perfect hair was slightly more unkempt and she was blushing profusely. She giggled as Zidane beamed at his bride-to-be.
"Better?"
"Better," Garnet smiled.
"And what's the second thing?" Zidane inquired. He knew this one was something serious. Garnet's smile faded and she sighed heavily.
". . . Don't you know . . .?"
"Not really,"
Another sigh. "Remember what Demeter said? We have to take Kuja with us. And I know you're not going to let anyone else carry him. So . . ."
"I've got to go retrieve his body?"
"Pretty much, yeah,"
Zidane's face darkened. "Fine . . . But . . . Don't come with me, okay? I just want to share some . . . some thoughts with him . . ."
Garnet lowered her lashes, thoughts swirling in those chocolate-brown eyes, mingling with sadness. "Okay, Zidane . . . But please try to hurry,"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Fratley, standing calmly in one of the sun-baked roads, raised the brim of his hat and peered into the orange orb of the sun rising above Alexandria. The sky was painted in shimmering yellows and pinks, the morning fresh and crisp with the scent of renewal. The sun's warm rays were already reflecting off the castle's crystal, shooting mystical rainbow patterns of light across the buildings that would not be there in another hour.
"My, how beautiful Alexandria is in the morning . . ." he thought aloud. "Quite a change from the perpetual rain of Burmecia,"
"Fratley, what are you doing out here?" Freya suddenly emerged from a weapon's shop, her spear gleaming unusually bright. "I thought you were with the others,"
"I was, Freya, dear," Fratley responded heavily. "But I just wanted some sunshine. Go on back to the castle; I'll be there in a few minutes . . ."
Freya reluctantly turned to go, still watching Fratley out of the corner of her eye. When she was out of sight, Fratley growled.
"Who's there?! Come out!" he whipped around, his lips pulled into a snarl as he glared into the shadows of an empty alleyway. Silence. Fratley slid his claws down the side of his spear, holding it out in preparation.
"I know you're in there . . ." he hissed menacingly.
"Very perceptive," came a voice from behind. Fratley whirled around but there was no one there.
"Burmecians do have amazing noses, don't they?" Fratley spun in the opposite direction towards the new voice but still found no face to match it with.
"Show yourselves, you cowards!" Fratley shouted.
There was a sudden flash of color before something vanished in the Burmecian's face.
"Just did," someone giggled. "Satisfied?"
/Oh . . . no . . ./ Realization began to dawn on the Burmecian rat. /Geonomes . . . What are they still doing here?!/
"If Garland sent you to kill us – "
"Oh no, we don't want to KILL any of you . . ." Fratley felt the breath on the back of his neck but didn't move. "After all . . . You're powerful people and your souls can only be taken while you're alive . . . by the Metsubo . . ."
"Then what do you want . . .?" Fratley's tail thrashed the ground with agitation.
"Answers,"
Then Fratley felt an explosion of pain. It seemed to fill his entire body, burning him from the inside out. He struggled, but the agony overtook him . . . He fell limply into the awaiting arms of his aggressors . . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Zidane couldn't take his eyes off Kuja's pale face. It was so ghostly . . . Like he was made of tissue paper. Every second that he stood there brought Kuja closer to the brink of death.
"But at least it's just you . . ." Zidane whispered, kneeling down beside the bed. "Your body is no longer corrupted by those souls . . ."
The room was so quiet . . . Zidane couldn't even hear his brother's breath, which made sense since Kuja was barely breathing. Zidane laughed softly.
"When we destroy Garland . . . We're gonna throw a HUGE party . . ." The genome smiled shakily, his lip trembling. "And I'm probably going to eat so much South Gate Bundt Cake that I'm gonna throw up EVERYWHERE. And you . . . Psh, you'll probably down six glasses of champagne and then get yourself laid somewhere out on the street," Zidane glanced up at Kuja's lifeless form and gently took his hand. It was even colder than before.
"Kuja . . . You . . . You always pulled out of these things," said Zidane. "When you were just a kid, Garland hurt you. But you lived. I thought I'd lost you in the Iifa Tree, but you saved my life. You've saved me lots of times. You stopped Drakja during that first attack in Alexandria, and you forced him away in that bar . . . You even took a god damn bullet for me on the Forgotten Continent. And you were so sick . . . You even lost what was most dear to you then . . . Your eyesight. You gave up the ability to see the beauty in the world for me. And then STILL you came back to save us. It's my turn now. I'm going to save you. And, hell, maybe you'll live in the castle with us. And we'll be just like brothers again; laughing, talking, throwing muffins at Steiner . . . At least, for another year. Before the limit . . . catches up to you . . . Again," That did it. Zidane dissolved into tears against the bed, burying his face in his arms and sobbing pitifully like he was four years old again.
There was a knock at the door. Zidane hurriedly brushed his tears away and tried to make a straight face.
"Yeah?!"
"Zidane, it's Garnet!" came a desperate voice from the other side. "I . . . I think we might have a problem!"
Zidane's brow furrowed in confusion and he quickly scrambled up and opened the door. Garnet was standing there looking frightened.
"Zidane, it's Fratley! He – he went outside for awhile and . . . Zidane, he hasn't come back yet and they searched the entire city! It's like he's gone!"
"Dagger, Dagger, whoa!" Zidane grasped Garnet's shoulders to quiet the frantic queen. "Slow down! I mean, Fratley could be ANYWHERE!"
"No! It's not that!" Garnet sobbed. "They found a pool of blood in the street where Freya reported seeing Fratley! Zidane . . . Zidane, I think Garland has him!"
"Well, shit," Zidane blinked, staring down at his fiancé at a loss for words. Garnet desperately clutched Zidane around the waist, burying her face into his chest. She couldn't seem to stop crying.
"Zidane, we're going to die, I know it!" She gripped his shirt as if trying to hold onto him for dear life. "We're so outnumbered! The geonomes are just going to slaughter us and then the planets will assimilate and everyone on Gaia's going to DIE!"
"Not if I can help it," Zidane crooned softly, gently running his fingers through Garnet's hair. "You know I would never let that happen . . ."
"But what if you can't STOP it from happening?!" Garnet looked up at Zidane hysterically, streaks of black makeup running down her face. "Zidane, I don't want to die!"
"Now you listen to me!" Zidane grasped Garnet's arms and stared down at her fiercely. "You are NOT going to die. Not while there's a breath in my body! So you just calm down, okay? We're going to go to the Fire Shrine with Kuja, and we're going to save Gaia, just like last time, alright?"
"Zidane . . ."
"Alright?!"
"A-alright,"
Beatrix stormed into the room, looking furious. "C'mon, let's go!" she shouted. "If they really did take Fratley, then he's going to be at our destination anyways!"
"True, true," Zidane sighed, releasing Garnet gently. He glanced over at Kuja and felt a knot forming in his stomach. ". . . I'm going to carry him, huh . . .?"
"Unless you'd rather someone else do it," Beatrix's face softened to see Zidane looking so miserable. "Here, I'll help you carry him to the ship. We can lay him down in there . . ."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Are they coming or not?!"
"I don't know!"
"How many Summoners are gonna be with them?!"
"Why does it matter?!"
"You sniveling little RAT! They revived Kuja, didn't they?! Huh?! HUH?!!"
"How many times do I have to tell you?!" Fratley snarled, struggling against the bonds that held him down. "I don't know anything!"
At least six geonomes were circling around the poor Burmecian, hissing questions and accusations. Fratley wasn't totally sure, but he suspected they'd actually taken him to the Fire Shrine (this thought mostly given value by the atrocious HEAT of the place).
/I guess that makes it easy for Zidane and the others . . ./ Fratley thought crossly. /If they just continue the quest on without me and succeed, they'll find me by a fluke./.
"This guy is USELESS!" one of the geonomes growled, folding his arms angrily across his chest.
"No shit!" another shouted. They were glaring down at Fratley with those menacing green eyes.
The room was like a cave; dark with rocky, slimy walls. Fratley was unceremoniously thrown on the ground with his arms and legs bound to keep him from using a spear or jumping abilities. /Bastards . . ./ the Burmecian thought bitterly.
"Should we kill him, then?" a female geonome asked, glancing innocently at her comrades.
"Nah. Just chuck him in the dungeons. Maybe if he's chatty enough he can get the OTHER prisoners to start talkin',"
"Can do," One of the geonomes snagged Fratley by the collar and dragged him up. He started to struggle, but immediately the other geonomes leapt at him and held down his arms and legs to keep him immobile. They started to drag the knight out of the room and into the increasing intensity of the heat outside.
Fratley was only given a brief impression of bodies and other wandering geonomes before he was thrown violently into another cave-like cell. Surprisingly, they untied his arms and legs. But when the geonomes stepped back and closed the cell-bars with a clank he saw that there was a magical barrier shimmering in between the metal cubes.
"BASTARDS!!!" Fratley shrieked. One of the female geonomes grinned and blew him a kiss over her shoulder as Fratley's captors trailed, snickering, out of the room. This left the Burmecian with nothing but himself and his anger to keep him company.
Or so he thought . . .
At the time that Fratley believed himself to be alone, his eyes had not yet adjusted to the light (or lack thereof). But slowly, like a candle being lit in front of his nose, the scenery began to flicker and take shape . . .
It was a dungeon. Or more likely, it was an enormous, quarter-mile-long cave dug under the earth. And carved into both sides of the narrow walls were prison-cells not unlike Fratley's. At least a hundred cells lined the rocky walls; fifty on each side of the narrow passageway.
And almost every single one was filled. Fratley squinted into the darkness, sure his eyes were deceiving him. No . . . it was true. At least half the cells were filled with creatures that . . . looked like Zidane.
/Could this be . . . the genomes?! My god, there must be at least two- hundred in here, if not more!/
"Did you come to try and rescue us?" came a soft voice from somewhere in the shadows. Fratley moved up inquisitively towards his cell-bars (careful to keep a safe distance from the barrier) and realized the voice was coming from the cell right across from him. It was a female voice, sad but familiar.
"I . . . not really. The geonomes jumped me in the street,"
"You're one of Zidane's friends . . ." the young girl said suddenly. Fratley could see her better now, sitting on the dirty cave floor and looking at him from across the passageway with those electrifying blue eyes. There was only one other person in the cell with her (which was odd because most of the genomes were sharing a cell with four, five, or even six of their own kind). Yet for some reason, no matter how hard Fratley squinted into the cell, the Burmecian could not make out who was in the cell with the genome.
"You seem familiar," Fratley murmured, gazing into the young girl's piercing eyes. She smiled faintly.
"Then you have probably heard of me at least. My name's Mikoto,"
Fratley gasped. "You're Zidane's younger sister!"
"Correct,"
"Er . . . pleased to meet you, I guess . . ." Fratley couldn't take his eyes off the person next to Mikoto. Why couldn't he focus on it . . .?! Mikoto seemed to notice the knight's inner struggle and smirked lightly.
"Don't even try to make him out. He's not much more that an image right now,"
"He? Who is he?"
Mikoto grinned. "Take a closer look . . ."
Fratley shimmied up dangerously close to the bars. Then he gasped and clapped his claws over his muzzle.
Now this was definitely too much! If he hadn't known he was "dead," he would have said it was Kuja in the cell with Mikoto. But . . . but it WAS Kuja! He was even wearing the same clothes! Yet Kuja was see-through like a ghost made of water-vapor. His image flickered as if it were a broken hologram. The form the phantom had taken on was of Kuja slumped against the cave-wall as if he were unconscious or asleep. A strange, shimmering aura surrounded him.
"That couldn't be . . ."
"His soul," Mikoto whispered. "Trapped in imprisonment. It's dying pretty quickly outside of a body. Garland's worried. He needs his plan to be initiated quickly or else he's going to lose the soul. Either that or it will find a way to return to the cycle without him. Every hour the image gets a little stronger as Garland's hold increases, yet within the last forty-five minutes it's been fading out more and more. If Master Garland doesn't hurry, his plan will be in ruins,"
Fratley's eyes gleamed. "Then we'll just have to hold him up, won't we?"
"Indeed,"
"Zidane and the others will come," Fratley assured the young genome. "Zidane's really . . . er . . ."
"Pissed?" Mikoto offered.
"Beyond pissed. They're coming right now,"
Mikoto frowned. "I hope they can get through quickly. Garland has some new allies . . . They're formidable,"
"Zidane would do anything for his family,"
Mikoto lowered her gaze. ". . . I know . . . That's what worries me,"
"We still have time," Fratley continued, trying his best to comfort the genome. The others prisoners were watching tiredly. They seemed unable to speak as if stricken with some grief.
". . . Perhaps you do . . ." Mikoto whispered. "But I don't . . ."
"What? Why not?"
"Because," the child said slowly, looking up at Fratley with sharp, keen eyes. "Within a couple hours . . . that . . ." she pointed at Kuja's flickering, ebbing form. "Will be me . . ."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Ooh, ya think Mikoto's up to something? Well, she wishes she was, at least. The real hero in the plight of the genomes is going to be someone . . . rather unexpected. Then things are going to get dirty again. Here's another progress-check on this story (here I go with the speech again): Out of 172 scenes including the epilogue, the next chapter starts with scene #158. So that means there is only . . . fourteen scenes left? Whoa, we're closer than I realized. But don't worry, the scenes are LONG. Some of them could possibly take up more than one chapter. I mean, the finale itself is going to take more than one chapter for sure. Actually . . . Now that I think about it, a lot still has to happen. Keep in mind, Kuja's not out of this plot yet. I have some things . . . planned for him *evil grin*. Blah, web-comic info. Due to some, er . . . technical . . . difficulties, I do not have a link to give you guys yet (well, I do, but there's nothing there right now). First of all, I don't have Paint Shop Pro 8 yet. I have 7, but for some reason it keeps anti-aliasing my lines and making them ugly (damn them all to hell!). Also, my dad was out of town briefly and didn't have a chance to help me set up the site (curses!). So let's shoot for next chapter, kay? I'll have some more info on it when I've got the link. Also, I just wanna comment on something a reviewer said (and I know another reviewer made the point I'm about to make). Um, someone said in the last chapter that Kuja and Zidane never aged, however the other reviewer said exactly what I was thinking when I wrote the last chapter ^_^. It's very unlikely that Zidane never aged because it can be inferred in that boat-scene when Zidane's talking about the time he ran away from home that when Baku and Tantalus took him in he was a child. After all, wouldn't they get suspicious if they took somebody in and they NEVER aged? Also, they never specifically said Mikoto was created a year before Final Fantasy IX. If she was, then Zidane would have been in Tantalus for less than a year and they wouldn't be calling him "Bro" and giving him hard-core tasks like kidnapping national royalty (lol). It just wouldn't make sense to have him ageless. Besides, according to THIS story, Zidane and Kuja (I never really talked about Mikoto) were created different from the other genomes. Keep in mind, Kuja is a replication of Saishoja, not a full-blooded genome. It's very likely he and Zidane "grew up" from childhood to adulthood. Also, in the game Kuja looks VERY different from the genomes. If he didn't age, his hair wouldn't be that long (for example). I mean, even his features are different. Of course, a lot of it's just inferred, but still . . . It's just plain arguable ^_^
Give me reviews or give me . . . something other than death. How 'bout more reviews?