Chapter Three

Remember by the Tragedy

A long walk... A long "walk" had been such an underestimate, such a silly thing to say. It became long week, then long months... Trying to relearn all that had been learned was a difficulty. Not many things revived the memory; not many things brought back what had been lost. For many things, it was relearning, not remembering. Many things slipped by and had to be relearned the next day because the memory was so bad. And when your teacher is a nine-year-old, it gets worse, as his impatience is evident, and you just get angry.

But it was done. The weeks spent, first in Dali. First I got to learn the way of the land. I learned that quickly enough. Then came the monsters, and the people, and the names... It was a whirlwind of confusion, and lots of times the two of us would finally have to separate before we killed each other for not understanding each other. But eventually we would be back to learning and listening to each other. It was a combined effort, and the one month spent in Dali was a good starting point, and I think I learned more than I would ever learn anywhere else.

Then came the traveling, a true attempt to try to get everything remembered. Many things were repeated, but never recalled. "Burmecia, Dragon Warrior, Fighting"... None of it could be remembered easily. On the road constantly, Puck couldn't think of anything that could help me remember. Things slowed down, and three months on the road were fruitless. So it was back to Treno this time. Nothing interesting there... So off on the road again. We were always on the road, always traveling somewhere, and I was barely remembering a thing...

Yes, eight months did eventually pass. That is the truly scary part. There's nothing fascinating to say about it; just wandering, lectures, Puck's screaming, aggravation, and ultimately a return to the mountains, for whatever reason. And of course came the ultimate happening that we both knew had to come eventually.

It was a quiet night. The black clouds covered the sky, but they shed no snow onto the ground. The air was extremely cold, so cold that not even snow could manage to fall. The ground was frozen, and it took quite some time to start a fire. I lied on my back, staring at the black clouds with a hope to see some stars.

"There's going to be a play."

"Hmmm?" I had not been paying attention to Puck, and his sudden, loud voice broke into my thoughts.

Puck sighed heavily, always aggravated at my inattentiveness. "In Alexandria. A play. There's going to be a play in Alexandria in four months."

"What about it?" I asked, continuing to stare at the clouds.

"I'm going to see it," Puck declared.

"We have no Gil to buy tickets," I reminded him casually. "And no way to get Gil in four months."

"You don't need money or tickets," Puck spat. "Just skill."

"In breaking the law."

"You are no fun. I assume you aren't going to see the play?"

"No. I'm not interested in it..."

"Good. I'm tired of babysitting you."

"Babysitting?" This comment caused me to rise into a sitting position, casting an annoyed glance upon Puck. "Please. I'm twenty, don't you forget that. You're ten."

"Wow, you learned our ages!" Puck's voice could not have been more sarcastic.

Silence followed as I lied back on the hard ground, staring at the clouds. Snow was slowly beginning to fall, and it was fascinating for me to just stare up at it and watch it come down in its individual flakes. I could feel Puck's gaze upon me, but I choose to ignore him and watch the snow come down from its dark prison. A sigh came from Puck, and I heard him rise.

"Well, whatever. The point is, I'm going to Alexandria first thing in the morning. You're not," Puck spat.

"Aye, I'm not," I agreed full-heartedly.

"Where are you going, then?" Puck asked.

"I know not my destination. Destiny can take me there."

"I hate it when you start talking like that."

A grin came slowly upon my face. "That I know."

"Well, Mr. Philosopher, how 'bout a suggestion?"

"Speak."

"Burmecia. Maybe Destiny can lead you there."

"Maybe so."

"So you don't care that I'm abandoning you?"

"We shall meet again..."

Puck's opinion was silence. The fire crackled steadily, sizzling each time a snowflake hit it. I sighed softly, slowly rising into a sitting position. I looked around at the silent night, then slowly rose to my feet. Puck watched me quietly, even as I padded a few steps in the direction of the higher mountains.

"No way. You can't survive if you can't even use your spear," Puck spat.

"Spear?"

"Dope, remember last time we went to Alexandria?"

"Yes..." How could I not? Puck had nearly gotten the guards on us.

"Well, the guards had a better reason to chase me than for vandalizing. Look! I assume this is yours? It was heavy enough."

I turned around, and was surprised to see Puck toss a lance at my feet. It had a blade that could easily be used to either pierce or to slash, and was red-rimmed. The handle was made of thick wood. It was very familiar, though the memories it brought were very faint, and quickly forgotten. I knelt down and carefully picked up the lance, as if it were pure gold. Puck grinned slightly, watching the way I handled it.

"Castles should be careful. I can fit in the sewers," Puck declared.

"Sewers?" I gawked at Puck with shock. "You found this in the sewers?"

"NO! Idiot. I found it in their armory. What? You wanna hear how I got into the armory?" Puck asked.

"Spare me."

"Ha! You should be thanking me. I didn't have to risk my tail getting that."

"How would you know it was mine?"

"It looked foreign. I know you left the Mist Continent; we would've found you if you hadn't. Once I saw that bloody thing, I knew it had to be yours. I also knew if you didn't want it, I could sell it for good cash. There goes that idea."

"I... See." Scarily enough, Puck seemed to know more of my past than I did. It haunted me plenty. "Well... Thank you. Maybe I can magically remember how to use it."

Puck burst out laughing. "Oh yeah, if you get real lucky, buddy! I suggest you head on home. You can relearn."

My opinion was a sneer, but no words. I was too busy observing the spear that Puck had somehow managed to drag through sewers. Puck was definitely amazing, and also a little insane, to drag a huge lance through the sewers. Perhaps it was his daring antics that helped us survive. Or perhaps we were just really lucky... Maybe both.

"Thank you, Puck. For everything."

"Don't mention it. You'll give me nightmares."

I rolled my eyes, sighing heavily as I leaned the lance against my shoulder. Puck was definitely one of the harder characters to deal with, and judging by his grin, which was illuminated by the fire and made to look plenty scary because of such, he knew how annoying he truly was. Still grinning, Puck lifted his hand and waved it in a frantic manner.

"Well, go on now! You'll have to learn to walk through out the night on your own," Puck declared.

"I already know that. Well then, Lord Puck, I shall see you again someday," I said, bowing lowly to the child. Puck's opinion was muttering annoyed phrases about how he wasn't a Lord. I seriously didn't care either way.

Instead, I dipped my brown hat toward the child, before turning around and heading up the mountain slopes. It was slippery -- that I could see, even in the darkness -- but I knew it could be managed. It seemed odd, heading off without Puck, but I knew I would get used to the peace.

"Hey, Fratley! Don't die out there. It'll make everything I did for the past eight months a waste of time."

I chose to ignore that comment.

Four months can be a long time, particularly if they are spent wasting your life away in small villages.

I did not end up getting back to Burmecia, when I left Puck. I was smart enough to know that was too long a walk. Instead, I spent a week traveling to Dali, to stock up on supplies... And the only way to pay for them was to help around the very strange village. It was a quiet place, and every week I was with them seemed to bring less outdoor work to do and more indoor work. It was a strange thing to do, particularly since the men always seemed to disappear during the day, and reappear at night, as if by magic. None of the women questioned it, and so I didn't either. I worked for one month on boring jobs, but got enough supplies to leave the village. From there, I decided to the massive mountains once more. And thus, for three months, the mountain villages became my home, as I worked much more interesting jobs there -- Jobs that included actual labor work, from fighting monsters to lifting heavy equipment and boxes. It wasn't exactly thrilling, but it was a lot more interesting than helping in village shops. It also got me a decent amount of money, so that I soon actually had money to spare, rather than having to spend it all on supplies.

But doing such for three months is incredibly boring work, and doing labor gets boring after a while. I still remembered Puck's words about the play in Alexandria, and I faintly remembered that the Princess's birthday was around this time. This was enough for me to decide to travel again, once again through the mountains. This time, with an old, sketchy map for help, I was able to know the way to the North Gate, to try and reach Burmecia, or perhaps just head to Alexandria... But I knew my goal, and so I was traveling again.

The winter was unforgiving. January wasn't a friendly month, particularly for travelers. The mountain slopes were icy from the constant icy rain, and black clouds were almost always in the air. On the plains and fields, I could see that the weather was impressively calm; already the mist was coming in swiftly in the lower altitudes (strangely enough, the mist was not as heavy higher up). Therefore, the mountains were most dangerous place to travel.

Yet it didn't matter, for everyone was traveling regardless. I met so many people, and so many questions, I was not able to travel as much. Everyone wanted to know where I was going, why, and why I wasn't going to Alexandria to see the play. They were surprised that I was going to Burmecia -- "Who would go there at a time like this?" was a common response -- and even more surprised that I wasn't interesting in the play -- "Burmecians just don't understand what's good" was often muttered.

I didn't notice how much prejudice seemed to be against Burmecians, even as I continued forward. It had to be my single-minded want to get to Burmecia.

And I was getting there, slowly but surely. It was near the middle of the month when I found myself actually getting to something that seemed remotely familiar -- A rare happening, but the familiarity of the mountains had to be enough to wake up something hidden within my mind. At this point, I noticed that no one was around... I did not see that it had been that way for quite some time. I was the only one climbing up the mountain at that time... It seemed strange to me that the traffic had so suddenly died...

Reaching the top of the mountain gave me a hint as to why the traffic had stopped. At the top of the massive mountain, plenty could be seen beyond to the basin... Through the heavy snow, green could be seen in the distance, and a town -- my mind said "Burmecia" -- could be seen. Yet there wasn't a massive amount of green to stare at. On the other hand, there was a moving horde of strange creatures... All heading in the direction of Burmecia.

My eyes widened, as my mind registered what was happening. It happened in a flash. The odd behavior of everyone clicked, and something within my memory came back in time for me to stumble with shock. Instinctively, without even realizing it, I clutched at my spear, while my eyes narrowed as I stared at the horde of monsters parading their way toward what I knew was my home.

There was no thought, no consideration for what to do. I only knew one thing that seemed proper, and that was to run straight downward, after the horde. There was a sudden anger, a want to protect what they were going after. I didn't even stop to consider that I wouldn't possibly get there in time, and that I was far too outnumbered to stand some type of chance.

I simply ran.

Destruction. All was gone. All I had run after had left. The place was destroyed.

Horror. It was the first thing to register in my mind as I came upon what I was far too late to come and protect.

Naturally, I had not run fast enough to reach the horde. I had gotten tired, had fallen asleep at the base of the mountain... When I woke up, the horde was gone, and something about Burmecia had looked different. It was then that I ran, not stopping for a rest until I had come upon the walls of a home I only faintly remembered.

There was nothing to return to, nothing to remind me. Stepping carefully through the fallen gates, I quietly viewed the destruction. Bodies of mages, humans, and Burmecians were strewn everywhere. All was in disarray, supplies knocked down, things torn apart, statues and houses collapsed. The air smelled of blood and death. Yet there, there was something living. Automatically, without thinking, I leapt, bouncing easily onto the roof, staring down at the streets. My spear was at ready as I slipped carefully onto my stomach, to try and hide myself. I expected a monster, though I barely had any idea what I was even doing in the first place.

"Gone."

My ears twitched, catching the female voice. My eyes narrowed, staring down at the streets. I quickly saw someone... They were a Burmecian, but they were alive. It was a female, stepping slowly through the streets with an air of both depression and anger. She wiped at a bloody cut slashed across her old face. Her purple eyes looked like they were on fire, and her army uniform was ripped, revealing burns of various kinds, of wounds of various kinds. She held in her right hand two small javelins, twin javelins. Running her bloodied fingers through her blonde hair, she looked behind her shoulders.

"It's all gone! All damn gone!"

"An' ya think I don' notice?"

The accent of the masculine voice seemed familiar, though when the male appeared, he did not seem familiar. He had orange eyes, and his fur seemed darker than his companion's. His brown hair was shoulder-length, and seemed to be in quite the wreck. His outfit, reddish in color, was also torn to reveal wounds. He spun about a simple sword, curved and sharp, before putting it into a leather sheath against his left side. Stretching, he viewed his companion sadly.

"So we, like all the others, 'ave failed. So now what? Sit 'round, starin' at somethin' that's not comin' back?" he asked his companion.

"Everyone's DEAD, Aireff!" the woman snapped.

"Ya like ta remind me o' the obvious," Aireff replied with a snort. He then sighed. "We can' stay 'ere. Those demons o' whatever they were 'ave 'eaded off, ta Cleyra probably, but the monsters are comin' in, and we're in no shape ta fight 'em."

"I'll fight anythin' that dares come in 'ere!" the woman roared ferociously, jumping about a bit with impressive energy.

Aireff muttered something, then cleared his throat. "Anyway, the point is, we 'ave ta get out. This place isn't goin' ta keep us safe anymore."

The woman sighed again, clearly turning her gaze on Aireff. "I... Don't want to leave. I've lived 'ere all my life!"

Aireff muttered something again, and whatever it was, it gained him a hard smack from his companion. He merely shook his head and looked toward the distance. I, in the mean time, was trying to sort through all the crazy memories, questions, and thoughts running through my mind.

"Let's go ta Lindblum," Aireff suddenly announced.

"What?! I--" the woman began.

"ROSE, face it! We're no match for the monsters. We're too old, damn it," Aireff spat suddenly, clearly exasperated. "Old... Hmph, so was this place. I guess it was too old too."

"Don't say that!" Rose spat.

Aireff shook his head. "Come on, let's go."

"Go? Aireff, what if someone is still alive, somewhere? Shouldn't we check?" Rose asked.

Aireff sighed heavily, looking over at Rose. "Ya said it yeself... Everyone's dead."

With that, Aireff began a slow walk toward the front gates. Rose watched him for a few seconds, then sighed, a choked sigh. She ran after Aireff with some type of desperation. Aireff merely waited for her. Soon, the two were walking off together.

"Sad."

I immediately turned around, and was stunned to find, out of all Burmecians, Puck on the roof with me.

"You don't even remember them, do you?" Puck asked in a voice that clearly said, 'Don't bother saying, I know the answer.'

"I only know I know them," I replied. "But I can't remember who they are."

"Oh yeah, they'll be happy to hear that one," Puck snorted, sliding off the roof and landing on his hands and knees in a rather pathetic stunt.

I followed, leaping off the roof and landing smoothly on my feet. Puck blinked with shock, staring at me, while he rose to his feet. I looked over at him quietly, then toward the gates, where Rose and Aireff had headed out.

"Uh-oh, you're thinking of something, I know it!" Puck declared.

"I'm going to Cleyra," I announced, rather randomly at that.

"Say WHAT?! Fratley, you--" Puck began, staring with wide eyes.

"I know where to go. I know what I have to do. I have to do what those two can't... They're veterans, who can't save their country. I must save it for them," I interrupted.

"Wha--? Okay, Fratley, you're nuts," Puck said truthfully.

"Puck..." I sighed. "You're not stopping me. I'm going!"

I spun my spear around, then headed off toward the gates at a top speed. Behind me, I could hear and feel Puck's attempts at following.

"Hey, Fratley! You idiot! I've only been hoping you'd make this decision for a damn YEAR!" Puck roared.

I didn't hear him. I was already through the gate and heading off, toward the tree in the distance...

---- Okay dokey, I had fun with this one. Don't ask why Rose and Aireff aren't dead, they're just lucky :P Maybe I'll have them explain themselves later. Oh, and if I got Aireff's description completely wrong, I apologize… Been a long time since I had to explain his appearance, and thus I completely forgot it (and I can't find it anywhere! O.o ). This chapter was tricky to construct, particularly in the beginning, but toward the end it got much easier. Sorry about delay in updates, I have Honor Classes in school... And no study halls O.o That equals no free time... That, and I think I developed FFIX writer's block . Poo. Oh well. See you all soon!

This story is copyright to me. Final Fantasy IX (and thus Gaia and all its properties and inhabitants) are of Square-Enix.