Hello everyone. Perhaps no one heard me when I said 'I'm back' and 'please review'… perhaps I'm just a failure (sob)
Seriously though, I'm beginning to think that there's no point in continuing this story. Very few people seem to care and I'd like to emphasise just how much effort I'm putting into this. Since I can't type very fast, it takes me about 4 hours to write each chapter. (5 for this one) and don't even get me started on the way my computer always freezes. You cant say I'm not putting the effort in because I've posted a chapter a day. (Apart from when I went on holiday)
Anyway I know that if you DID click here, it wasn't to listen to me bitch so here's my next instalment. This chapter had really built on the characters you don't know that well (especially Leo)
I don't own FFCC etc
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Chapter 5: The journey
The Caravan had been on the move for about two weeks now and everyone seemed to have gotten used to its way of life. They all had to stay within range of the chalice, which meant that they couldn't be more than ten meters away from each other when they were on the road. This had become a major irritation for all of them except Morgan, who as always showed no emotion whatsoever. They took it in turns to walk outside with the papaopamus and this also gave them a bit of room for the others.
However, the trip could have been a lot worse. Leo's smelly old clothes had been burnt (Mistie had made sure of that!) and he didn't smell nearly as bad as he could have. Unfortunately they all soon realised that this didn't make Leo any easier to live with. As Mistie had warned Sett at the ceremony, Leo kept doing horrible things, such as rolling onto his back so he could bite off his toenail, which he then spat onto the floor of the caravan. He farted and belched quite frequently and wiped his tongue on the caravan walls if he thought something was on it. To everyone's disappointment, the animal skins weren't the only odours that came from Leo. They were only the strongest. Leo very rarely showered or washed in any way, giving him a very strong body odour. It wasn't nearly as noticeable as the animal carcasses had been but in such a confined space it wasn't any better.
Ironically, although Leo caused most of the worst problems about living in the caravan, he also seemed to have the hardest time coping. Everyone, especially Mistie, was constantly nagging him. He often volunteered to walk outside so he could get away from then and always made out as though they were overreacting.
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When they had first set out, Sett and Tim had kept slightly apart from the others, as old friends do when they're forced into a new group. However they soon became a threesome as they got to know Mistie better. Mistie had become a good replacement for Lillian. She was mature, kind and was even quite skilled at casting the cure spells, which would have made Lillian useful. She often talked about her brothers and sisters who had inspired her to learn to fight.
"When you're the youngest of twenty one," she said, "you need to know how to make yourself heard."
"Twenty one?" Sett said, surprised, "I only counted seventeen."
"Some of them live in places other than Tipa." She said. "We might run into them sometime."
"If you were interested in learning to fight, you should have introduced yourself sooner." Tim said. "My dad taught us and he used to work for the Alfitarian army." Mistie looked thoughtful.
"I did actually wonder about asking if I could join you." She said. "I saw you two fighting all the time. But one of my older brothers told me you were troublemakers so I decided not to."
"Oh really?" Sett said, now interested "Who is your brother?"
"He goes around with his friends and likes to steal things. He said you," she nodded at Sett, "attacked them once." Sett snorted and Tim muttered something that sounded like 'Selkie gang.' Mistie smiled. "Is that what you call them then. I don't know why I believed him in the first place. I never liked him that much anyway."
Mistie was also having a hard time coping in the caravan. She was the only person that refused to let Leo go unpunished for some of the smaller things he did. Like the occasional burp. She always had one eye on him, waiting to hit the roof if he put one toe out of line, which he did very often. She had told Sett that if she kept doing this, then eventually he would stop. However Sett knew that this was having the opposite effect because Leo had told him that when it was just Mistie yelling at him, it made him feel like they were a married couple! Sett hadn't the heart to tell her this.
Morgan wasn't very good company but he had a lot of uses. He would normally sit at the side of the caravan and only talk if he were asked a question. You could say whatever you wanted about him and he wouldn't notice. Sett didn't know how useful in battle he'd be. He was very slow moving.
On the other hand though, Morgan seemed to be a fountain of knowledge. He seemed to know the answer to any question he was asked, no matter how trivial it was. He knew about places, dates and just about anyone ever written about. He seemed to have a map of the world carved into the back of his brain. It took great focus to use magic, which was why Sett and Tim had never bothered with it, but Sett was sure that Morgan could pull off any kind of spell with ease.
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One day on the road, Mistie had pointed outside and said, "What's that?" Sett stopped the papaopamus and they went to investigate. It was the small rodent creature Sett had told Tim about. Lilty patrols kept the highway free from monsters but this one must have made eluded them. It was the first creature they had come across.
"Wow," Mistie said, eyes wide "It's so cute."
"A Mu," Morgan said in his trademark, one-tone voice. "Not particularly dangerous but can be an irritation all the same. Able to burrow under ground. I would advise not getting too close." But Mistie either didn't hear him or didn't care.
"Come here little guy," she said sweetly. "We won't hurt you." The Mu looked at her outstretched hand and without warning, ran straight at her. Sett knew what was coming. The creature would sink its teeth into Mistie's hand and retreat back to its original position, ready for another charge. Sett had once made the same mistake Mistie was making. The creature was about to strike when suddenly Leo sprang into action. With surprising speed, he leapt forward and stamped on the creature with his bare foot. Killing it instantly. Mistie stared angrily at him. "What the hell did you do that for!?" she shouted.
"Your welcome!" Leo said sarcastically. "That thing was about to bite your hand off."
"You don't know that." Mistie said. Leo laughed
"I most certainly do. Those Mu's will bite anything if it stands still long enough." Leo told her. Mistie took a deep breath so she'd be ready to go into another shouting fit. Morgan stepped forward.
"If I might interrupt," he said. Mistie stared angrily at him. She hated people cutting in when she was about to start shouting at someone. Morgan continued regardless. "I am afraid that this is one of the few instances where Leo is correct." Leo grunted. "None of the creatures that reside in the Miasma can be tamed or domesticated. There have been many attempts to reach mutual understandings with some of the more intelligent species but there are no records of a successful one. I see no reason why you would be the first."
"But…" Mistie began
"The reason for this," Morgan continued, "is because while the Miasma would eventually kill us four, it has had a different affect on our worlds native animals. Many researchers believe that the Miasma drove these animals to insanity and while they recognise other infected creatures, they are driven to attack beings that aren't." There was a stunned silence. "Moogles are the exception to this. No one truly knows why but it is my guess that their superior intelligence allows their bodies natural defences to fight off the Miasma's effects." There was another long pause. Leo rubbed his forehead.
"How the bloody hell can you remember all that!" He said incredulously.
"Quite simply." Morgan answered, "Though I cannot say I am surprised by the fact that you cannot." He said this with no trace of arrogance. Mistie sighed.
"Fine," she said, "Monsters aren't pets. I get it. Can we get going now?" They all made their way back to the caravan. Sett overheard Leo mutter to Morgan.
"How do you get her to stop so quickly?" he whispered.
"I merely let the realisation of her own naivety dwell on her until she is overwhelmed by it." Morgan said, not bothering to speak quietly. Mistie heard and swung round angrily. Leo grinned innocently back at her.
"There is a fork in the road up ahead." Tim yelled to them from the caravan. He was looking at the map and was probably trying to diffuse the problem before it begun again. "Which way should we go? Left or right?" Without even glancing at the map, Morgan said,
"The Left path will eventually lead to a Miasma stream." Morgan said.
"What's a Miasma stream?" Sett asked.
"A good place to go if you want to throw up whatever you ate last." Leo grunted.
"An obstacle," Morgan answered. "We will need to cross it to gain access to the next land. However, I suggest we travel right as it leads to the River Belle Path. I believe there is a Myrrh tree located there."
"Lets get moving then." Tim said, rolling up the map. They set off again, Mistie walked with the papaopamus. Leo took a seat next to Sett. Something about the way Leo had tackled the Mu had reminded Sett of a question he wanted to ask him.
"Leo," he said, "why didn't you bring any weapons?" Leo stuck his finger up one of his nostrils and then blew out of his nose. A large glob of snot flew out of his open nostril and landed on Leo's lap. He didn't wipe it off.
"Don't believe in 'em." He answered.
"What!?" Tim exclaimed. "How can you not use weapons? What do you do if you have to take on something really big?"
"I kill it!" Leo said, as though it had been a stupid question. Sett laughed.
"You couldn't." he said.
"I can and have." Leo said proudly.
"You've never even used one of those rackets like Mistie's?"
"I wouldn't even spit on one!" he said. "Anything you hit at long range is just a cheap shot!" Sett had learnt a lot about Leo during the first few weeks travelling. He hated anything that lived in Miasma, except Moogles, apparently his whole family had been killed by monsters.
"Never liked them that much anyway." He said after telling them this. Hit didn't seem to bother him at all. "But its happened to much better people than my family so someone's got to do something."
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Sett also found out one day why Leo washed very rarely. They were very close to the fork when Leo, who was driving, took a turn down a dirt track off the side of the main road. Sett had been walking beside the caravan at the time.
"Oi," he yelled to Leo "what are you doing?"
"Taking a detour." Leo yelled back.
"We must continue and stay on the main track." Morgan told Leo. The rest of the caravanners had realised Leo had taken the turn.
"I know," Leo said. "I just need a shower, that's all." Tim Mistie and Sett stared at Leo.
"Be that as it may…" Morgan begun.
"MORGAN WOULD YOU JUST LET HIM DRIVE!!" Screeched Mistie. Everyone now started staring at her. Even Morgan looked surprised. They drove on until reaching a large cliff with many waterfalls pouring off it.
"Nice place," Tim said looking round.
"Yeah," Sett agreed "But where are the showers?" Leo grinned at him and got off the caravan. He made his way to the waterfalls and then started taking off his clothes. That was when Sett understood. "You've got to be kidding me!" he exclaimed.
"Fraid not." Leo said.
"It's got to be freezing!" Mistie said, horrified.
"It is," Leo said, "Now you know why I don't care to bathe very often." Leo stripped until he was bare, (Mistie went red and looked away) and jumped into one of the bigger waterfalls. Sett winced. He couldn't see Leo properly any more, just a blurred shape. From the noise of the waterfall, he heard Leo shout. "The waters lovely!" Leo stuck his head out of the wall of water so they could see him. "Come on babe, get yer kit off!" Mistie scowled at him as she had done so many times before. Then she took the drivers seat on the caravan. For a moment, Sett thought she was planning to drive off without him but then he realised that she was positioning the caravan to block the view of one of the waterfalls.
"You're not seriously going to take a shower here?" Tim asked her. Mistie shrugged.
"We may not get a chance to wash for a while." She said. She took off a band in her hair. "Now get your backsides on that side of the caravan and if I catch any of you anywhere near here, Ill take the caravan and leave you all for the miasma!" She sounded serious so Sett, Tim and Morgan headed to there side. Sett looked at one of the waterfalls.
"Well," he muttered, "while we're here." He began to get undressed too.
"You can't be serious!" Tim yelled when he saw what Sett was doing. Sett continued to take off his clothes. Tim cursed to himself and, not wanting to look weak, took off his visor for the first time since leaving. When he was ready, Sett tested the water with his toe.
"Here goes," he said. He dipped his toe in. The water was absolutely freezing. Sett yelped and jumped back. "How can you stand it!" he yelled to Leo.
"Don't be such a baby," he yelled back. Sett looked into the waterfall, then, as though he was attacking a fierce enemy, he let out a war cry and jumped into the water. The scream he issued after that was far louder.
"Oh lord, this is torture!" he whimpered.
"It certainly is." Leo yelled back "But you guys wanted me to take a shower so badly so you've only brought it in yourself!" Sett then heard a shriek. It sounded as though Mistie was in her shower too. "All right babe?" Leo called to her. Mistie shouted back something very foul. "That's my girl," Leo laughed. Sett then heard another person curse. Tim was in too.
"Bracing isn't it?" Sett called to him.
"Bloody murder more like!" Tim shouted back. "Do you have some personal law against hot water?" he yelled to Leo
"Nope, but the natural water's good enough for the animals of the world and I don't want any special treatment." Eventually they were all shivering in their towels, except for Morgan who hadn't joined them. "Lovely," Leo said.
"You're a bastard." They heard Mistie say from her side. Leo grinned and talked quietly so she couldn't hear.
"She likes me," he said, grinning, "They always play hard to get when they like me!"
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As weird as Leo's bathing habits were Sett actually discovered something weirder about him the following night. Everyone was sleeping except him. He was on guard duty. Tim would be taking over in a few hours. Sett was getting sleepy though.
Suddenly, Sett snapped to his senses. He had heard something in the bushes. He drew his sword.
"Who's there?" he shouted fiercely. "Show yourself or I'll cut you down where you stand."
"I'd like to see you try!" came a voice and Leo appeared. Sett sheathed his sword.
"You're a moron Leo," he said. "What if I hadn't given a warning and just attacked?"
"I would have had to kick your ass." Leo grinned. "But I doubt you would have gone as far into the Miasma as this." Sett looked at where Leo was standing.
"Where have you been?" he asked.
"Taking a stroll," Leo replied. Sett looked back as t caravan and again where Leo was standing.
"Leo…" he said slowly "Your… standing in the miasma!" Miasma gas would eventually kill anyone who stood in it for too long. Just putting a finger through a crystal's boundary, was nearly as painful as dipping it into scalding water. Leo smiled at Sett.
"Noooo!" he replied sarcastically "Ya think?" Sett could actually see that his skin had turned a nasty red colour.
"You do realise that you'll die if you stay there for much longer." Sett said, laughing slightly at him.
"I'll have you know that I have a good two and a half minutes before I start to lose consciousness!" Leo said, as though it was a good argument.
"Don't you think now would be a good time to come a little closer to the chalice then?"
"Gimmie a few minutes." Leo replied, as though he was reading a book he wanted to finish. Sett stared at him for a few seconds.
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me why you're standing there?" Leo sighed thoughtfully.
"You ever wonder why we can die from miasma?" he said. Sett shrugged. "Well, I'm damned if I know. You don't need to be Morgan to know how many people have tried to invent a potion to reverse the effects." He looked up at Sett "Course I have my own cure."
"Really?" Sett said, looking doubtfully at Leo's burning skin.
"Well it's more of a long term therapy treatment." Leo said. "Every week, I spend about fifteen minutes in the miasma, take it's blows and keep coming back for more. Eventually, I think I'll be able to walk through it freely." Sett burst out laughing.
"You're insane." He chuckled "You really think you can beat the miasma?"
"Why not?" Leo asked, looking a little offended. "It can be engaged, it can be defeated." Leo must have decided he'd been there for long enough because he came into the chalice's range.
"Uh huh?" Sett said, dubiously wiping a tear of laughter from his eye. "So how long have you been doing this?" Leo frowned, thinking hard.
"Well, I remember starting around November when I was fourteen so that's about five years now." Sett's jaw dropped.
"Have you made any progress?" he asked. Leo sighed again.
"Not really," he said, "It burns my skin as badly as it did when I started."
"Five years and no progress?" Sett said disbelievingly, "Have you ever heard of the phrase 'banging your head against a brick wall'?" Leo grinned at him.
"I have," he said, "But I once managed to break a brick wall with my head!" And with that, he went to bet to prepare for the next day's travelling.
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This is the longest, and my favourite chapter so far. I really wanted to rush to get to some battles but I decided to give the characters a bit more … well, character. I'll try and fit some fighting and action into the next chapter to satisfy all you action fans out there.
Please review, I know I'm being whiny and that FFCC doesn't have as many fans as Zelda but I really like hearing what people think of my fic's. It's all the reward we authors get.
Talk to ya next chapter
SSBM Masta (I think the 'a' looks cooler than the 'er')
Seriously though, I'm beginning to think that there's no point in continuing this story. Very few people seem to care and I'd like to emphasise just how much effort I'm putting into this. Since I can't type very fast, it takes me about 4 hours to write each chapter. (5 for this one) and don't even get me started on the way my computer always freezes. You cant say I'm not putting the effort in because I've posted a chapter a day. (Apart from when I went on holiday)
Anyway I know that if you DID click here, it wasn't to listen to me bitch so here's my next instalment. This chapter had really built on the characters you don't know that well (especially Leo)
I don't own FFCC etc
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Chapter 5: The journey
The Caravan had been on the move for about two weeks now and everyone seemed to have gotten used to its way of life. They all had to stay within range of the chalice, which meant that they couldn't be more than ten meters away from each other when they were on the road. This had become a major irritation for all of them except Morgan, who as always showed no emotion whatsoever. They took it in turns to walk outside with the papaopamus and this also gave them a bit of room for the others.
However, the trip could have been a lot worse. Leo's smelly old clothes had been burnt (Mistie had made sure of that!) and he didn't smell nearly as bad as he could have. Unfortunately they all soon realised that this didn't make Leo any easier to live with. As Mistie had warned Sett at the ceremony, Leo kept doing horrible things, such as rolling onto his back so he could bite off his toenail, which he then spat onto the floor of the caravan. He farted and belched quite frequently and wiped his tongue on the caravan walls if he thought something was on it. To everyone's disappointment, the animal skins weren't the only odours that came from Leo. They were only the strongest. Leo very rarely showered or washed in any way, giving him a very strong body odour. It wasn't nearly as noticeable as the animal carcasses had been but in such a confined space it wasn't any better.
Ironically, although Leo caused most of the worst problems about living in the caravan, he also seemed to have the hardest time coping. Everyone, especially Mistie, was constantly nagging him. He often volunteered to walk outside so he could get away from then and always made out as though they were overreacting.
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When they had first set out, Sett and Tim had kept slightly apart from the others, as old friends do when they're forced into a new group. However they soon became a threesome as they got to know Mistie better. Mistie had become a good replacement for Lillian. She was mature, kind and was even quite skilled at casting the cure spells, which would have made Lillian useful. She often talked about her brothers and sisters who had inspired her to learn to fight.
"When you're the youngest of twenty one," she said, "you need to know how to make yourself heard."
"Twenty one?" Sett said, surprised, "I only counted seventeen."
"Some of them live in places other than Tipa." She said. "We might run into them sometime."
"If you were interested in learning to fight, you should have introduced yourself sooner." Tim said. "My dad taught us and he used to work for the Alfitarian army." Mistie looked thoughtful.
"I did actually wonder about asking if I could join you." She said. "I saw you two fighting all the time. But one of my older brothers told me you were troublemakers so I decided not to."
"Oh really?" Sett said, now interested "Who is your brother?"
"He goes around with his friends and likes to steal things. He said you," she nodded at Sett, "attacked them once." Sett snorted and Tim muttered something that sounded like 'Selkie gang.' Mistie smiled. "Is that what you call them then. I don't know why I believed him in the first place. I never liked him that much anyway."
Mistie was also having a hard time coping in the caravan. She was the only person that refused to let Leo go unpunished for some of the smaller things he did. Like the occasional burp. She always had one eye on him, waiting to hit the roof if he put one toe out of line, which he did very often. She had told Sett that if she kept doing this, then eventually he would stop. However Sett knew that this was having the opposite effect because Leo had told him that when it was just Mistie yelling at him, it made him feel like they were a married couple! Sett hadn't the heart to tell her this.
Morgan wasn't very good company but he had a lot of uses. He would normally sit at the side of the caravan and only talk if he were asked a question. You could say whatever you wanted about him and he wouldn't notice. Sett didn't know how useful in battle he'd be. He was very slow moving.
On the other hand though, Morgan seemed to be a fountain of knowledge. He seemed to know the answer to any question he was asked, no matter how trivial it was. He knew about places, dates and just about anyone ever written about. He seemed to have a map of the world carved into the back of his brain. It took great focus to use magic, which was why Sett and Tim had never bothered with it, but Sett was sure that Morgan could pull off any kind of spell with ease.
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One day on the road, Mistie had pointed outside and said, "What's that?" Sett stopped the papaopamus and they went to investigate. It was the small rodent creature Sett had told Tim about. Lilty patrols kept the highway free from monsters but this one must have made eluded them. It was the first creature they had come across.
"Wow," Mistie said, eyes wide "It's so cute."
"A Mu," Morgan said in his trademark, one-tone voice. "Not particularly dangerous but can be an irritation all the same. Able to burrow under ground. I would advise not getting too close." But Mistie either didn't hear him or didn't care.
"Come here little guy," she said sweetly. "We won't hurt you." The Mu looked at her outstretched hand and without warning, ran straight at her. Sett knew what was coming. The creature would sink its teeth into Mistie's hand and retreat back to its original position, ready for another charge. Sett had once made the same mistake Mistie was making. The creature was about to strike when suddenly Leo sprang into action. With surprising speed, he leapt forward and stamped on the creature with his bare foot. Killing it instantly. Mistie stared angrily at him. "What the hell did you do that for!?" she shouted.
"Your welcome!" Leo said sarcastically. "That thing was about to bite your hand off."
"You don't know that." Mistie said. Leo laughed
"I most certainly do. Those Mu's will bite anything if it stands still long enough." Leo told her. Mistie took a deep breath so she'd be ready to go into another shouting fit. Morgan stepped forward.
"If I might interrupt," he said. Mistie stared angrily at him. She hated people cutting in when she was about to start shouting at someone. Morgan continued regardless. "I am afraid that this is one of the few instances where Leo is correct." Leo grunted. "None of the creatures that reside in the Miasma can be tamed or domesticated. There have been many attempts to reach mutual understandings with some of the more intelligent species but there are no records of a successful one. I see no reason why you would be the first."
"But…" Mistie began
"The reason for this," Morgan continued, "is because while the Miasma would eventually kill us four, it has had a different affect on our worlds native animals. Many researchers believe that the Miasma drove these animals to insanity and while they recognise other infected creatures, they are driven to attack beings that aren't." There was a stunned silence. "Moogles are the exception to this. No one truly knows why but it is my guess that their superior intelligence allows their bodies natural defences to fight off the Miasma's effects." There was another long pause. Leo rubbed his forehead.
"How the bloody hell can you remember all that!" He said incredulously.
"Quite simply." Morgan answered, "Though I cannot say I am surprised by the fact that you cannot." He said this with no trace of arrogance. Mistie sighed.
"Fine," she said, "Monsters aren't pets. I get it. Can we get going now?" They all made their way back to the caravan. Sett overheard Leo mutter to Morgan.
"How do you get her to stop so quickly?" he whispered.
"I merely let the realisation of her own naivety dwell on her until she is overwhelmed by it." Morgan said, not bothering to speak quietly. Mistie heard and swung round angrily. Leo grinned innocently back at her.
"There is a fork in the road up ahead." Tim yelled to them from the caravan. He was looking at the map and was probably trying to diffuse the problem before it begun again. "Which way should we go? Left or right?" Without even glancing at the map, Morgan said,
"The Left path will eventually lead to a Miasma stream." Morgan said.
"What's a Miasma stream?" Sett asked.
"A good place to go if you want to throw up whatever you ate last." Leo grunted.
"An obstacle," Morgan answered. "We will need to cross it to gain access to the next land. However, I suggest we travel right as it leads to the River Belle Path. I believe there is a Myrrh tree located there."
"Lets get moving then." Tim said, rolling up the map. They set off again, Mistie walked with the papaopamus. Leo took a seat next to Sett. Something about the way Leo had tackled the Mu had reminded Sett of a question he wanted to ask him.
"Leo," he said, "why didn't you bring any weapons?" Leo stuck his finger up one of his nostrils and then blew out of his nose. A large glob of snot flew out of his open nostril and landed on Leo's lap. He didn't wipe it off.
"Don't believe in 'em." He answered.
"What!?" Tim exclaimed. "How can you not use weapons? What do you do if you have to take on something really big?"
"I kill it!" Leo said, as though it had been a stupid question. Sett laughed.
"You couldn't." he said.
"I can and have." Leo said proudly.
"You've never even used one of those rackets like Mistie's?"
"I wouldn't even spit on one!" he said. "Anything you hit at long range is just a cheap shot!" Sett had learnt a lot about Leo during the first few weeks travelling. He hated anything that lived in Miasma, except Moogles, apparently his whole family had been killed by monsters.
"Never liked them that much anyway." He said after telling them this. Hit didn't seem to bother him at all. "But its happened to much better people than my family so someone's got to do something."
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Sett also found out one day why Leo washed very rarely. They were very close to the fork when Leo, who was driving, took a turn down a dirt track off the side of the main road. Sett had been walking beside the caravan at the time.
"Oi," he yelled to Leo "what are you doing?"
"Taking a detour." Leo yelled back.
"We must continue and stay on the main track." Morgan told Leo. The rest of the caravanners had realised Leo had taken the turn.
"I know," Leo said. "I just need a shower, that's all." Tim Mistie and Sett stared at Leo.
"Be that as it may…" Morgan begun.
"MORGAN WOULD YOU JUST LET HIM DRIVE!!" Screeched Mistie. Everyone now started staring at her. Even Morgan looked surprised. They drove on until reaching a large cliff with many waterfalls pouring off it.
"Nice place," Tim said looking round.
"Yeah," Sett agreed "But where are the showers?" Leo grinned at him and got off the caravan. He made his way to the waterfalls and then started taking off his clothes. That was when Sett understood. "You've got to be kidding me!" he exclaimed.
"Fraid not." Leo said.
"It's got to be freezing!" Mistie said, horrified.
"It is," Leo said, "Now you know why I don't care to bathe very often." Leo stripped until he was bare, (Mistie went red and looked away) and jumped into one of the bigger waterfalls. Sett winced. He couldn't see Leo properly any more, just a blurred shape. From the noise of the waterfall, he heard Leo shout. "The waters lovely!" Leo stuck his head out of the wall of water so they could see him. "Come on babe, get yer kit off!" Mistie scowled at him as she had done so many times before. Then she took the drivers seat on the caravan. For a moment, Sett thought she was planning to drive off without him but then he realised that she was positioning the caravan to block the view of one of the waterfalls.
"You're not seriously going to take a shower here?" Tim asked her. Mistie shrugged.
"We may not get a chance to wash for a while." She said. She took off a band in her hair. "Now get your backsides on that side of the caravan and if I catch any of you anywhere near here, Ill take the caravan and leave you all for the miasma!" She sounded serious so Sett, Tim and Morgan headed to there side. Sett looked at one of the waterfalls.
"Well," he muttered, "while we're here." He began to get undressed too.
"You can't be serious!" Tim yelled when he saw what Sett was doing. Sett continued to take off his clothes. Tim cursed to himself and, not wanting to look weak, took off his visor for the first time since leaving. When he was ready, Sett tested the water with his toe.
"Here goes," he said. He dipped his toe in. The water was absolutely freezing. Sett yelped and jumped back. "How can you stand it!" he yelled to Leo.
"Don't be such a baby," he yelled back. Sett looked into the waterfall, then, as though he was attacking a fierce enemy, he let out a war cry and jumped into the water. The scream he issued after that was far louder.
"Oh lord, this is torture!" he whimpered.
"It certainly is." Leo yelled back "But you guys wanted me to take a shower so badly so you've only brought it in yourself!" Sett then heard a shriek. It sounded as though Mistie was in her shower too. "All right babe?" Leo called to her. Mistie shouted back something very foul. "That's my girl," Leo laughed. Sett then heard another person curse. Tim was in too.
"Bracing isn't it?" Sett called to him.
"Bloody murder more like!" Tim shouted back. "Do you have some personal law against hot water?" he yelled to Leo
"Nope, but the natural water's good enough for the animals of the world and I don't want any special treatment." Eventually they were all shivering in their towels, except for Morgan who hadn't joined them. "Lovely," Leo said.
"You're a bastard." They heard Mistie say from her side. Leo grinned and talked quietly so she couldn't hear.
"She likes me," he said, grinning, "They always play hard to get when they like me!"
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As weird as Leo's bathing habits were Sett actually discovered something weirder about him the following night. Everyone was sleeping except him. He was on guard duty. Tim would be taking over in a few hours. Sett was getting sleepy though.
Suddenly, Sett snapped to his senses. He had heard something in the bushes. He drew his sword.
"Who's there?" he shouted fiercely. "Show yourself or I'll cut you down where you stand."
"I'd like to see you try!" came a voice and Leo appeared. Sett sheathed his sword.
"You're a moron Leo," he said. "What if I hadn't given a warning and just attacked?"
"I would have had to kick your ass." Leo grinned. "But I doubt you would have gone as far into the Miasma as this." Sett looked at where Leo was standing.
"Where have you been?" he asked.
"Taking a stroll," Leo replied. Sett looked back as t caravan and again where Leo was standing.
"Leo…" he said slowly "Your… standing in the miasma!" Miasma gas would eventually kill anyone who stood in it for too long. Just putting a finger through a crystal's boundary, was nearly as painful as dipping it into scalding water. Leo smiled at Sett.
"Noooo!" he replied sarcastically "Ya think?" Sett could actually see that his skin had turned a nasty red colour.
"You do realise that you'll die if you stay there for much longer." Sett said, laughing slightly at him.
"I'll have you know that I have a good two and a half minutes before I start to lose consciousness!" Leo said, as though it was a good argument.
"Don't you think now would be a good time to come a little closer to the chalice then?"
"Gimmie a few minutes." Leo replied, as though he was reading a book he wanted to finish. Sett stared at him for a few seconds.
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me why you're standing there?" Leo sighed thoughtfully.
"You ever wonder why we can die from miasma?" he said. Sett shrugged. "Well, I'm damned if I know. You don't need to be Morgan to know how many people have tried to invent a potion to reverse the effects." He looked up at Sett "Course I have my own cure."
"Really?" Sett said, looking doubtfully at Leo's burning skin.
"Well it's more of a long term therapy treatment." Leo said. "Every week, I spend about fifteen minutes in the miasma, take it's blows and keep coming back for more. Eventually, I think I'll be able to walk through it freely." Sett burst out laughing.
"You're insane." He chuckled "You really think you can beat the miasma?"
"Why not?" Leo asked, looking a little offended. "It can be engaged, it can be defeated." Leo must have decided he'd been there for long enough because he came into the chalice's range.
"Uh huh?" Sett said, dubiously wiping a tear of laughter from his eye. "So how long have you been doing this?" Leo frowned, thinking hard.
"Well, I remember starting around November when I was fourteen so that's about five years now." Sett's jaw dropped.
"Have you made any progress?" he asked. Leo sighed again.
"Not really," he said, "It burns my skin as badly as it did when I started."
"Five years and no progress?" Sett said disbelievingly, "Have you ever heard of the phrase 'banging your head against a brick wall'?" Leo grinned at him.
"I have," he said, "But I once managed to break a brick wall with my head!" And with that, he went to bet to prepare for the next day's travelling.
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This is the longest, and my favourite chapter so far. I really wanted to rush to get to some battles but I decided to give the characters a bit more … well, character. I'll try and fit some fighting and action into the next chapter to satisfy all you action fans out there.
Please review, I know I'm being whiny and that FFCC doesn't have as many fans as Zelda but I really like hearing what people think of my fic's. It's all the reward we authors get.
Talk to ya next chapter
SSBM Masta (I think the 'a' looks cooler than the 'er')