Chapter Ten- Lone Ninja Shadow
While Terra, Edgar, and Banon were resting safely in Narshe, and Locke and Celes were traveling there together...
"Ugh..."
Sabin moaned to himself and slowly opened his eyes, cringing when the bright sunlight hit him like a slap in the face. He felt wet, exhausted, and despite his little solo trip down the Lete River...
He was also strangely rejuvenated.
"Up we go!" Sabin exclaimed to himself, and climbed to his feet, stretching and looking about his surroundings. All he could see were rolling green hills, and a lone house a short distance away, with the beginnings of a forest behind it. Apparently, the Lete River had grown tired of him and spat him out in the middle of nowhere. Sabin ran his fingers through his hair to get it to spike up again, and proceeded to the house. Perhaps the owner knew where he had washed up, and also knew how he could get to Narshe as soon as possible. Despite the setbacks, Sabin knew that he still needed to be with his brother in Narshe's greatest time of need. He had promised, after all, and he knew that Edgar had faith in his return.
At the house, Sabin saw a small merchant on a chocobo, letting it drink from the well in the front yard. However, it was what was beside the merchant that caught Sabin's attentions. Standing there, seemingly cloaked in the night sky himself, his clothes were so black-- was a tall masked man with a huge black lab at his side. Sabin smiled when the man lifted his deep blue eyes to Sabin's sky blue ones, but the man didn't seem to smile back.
Now, Sabin was full of wisdom and sensibility, being that he was indeed a student of the great Duncan. However, it seemed that all of this had washed away in the Lete River, for instead of taking the man's glare as a warning, Sabin happily approached him and to be friendly, leaned down to pet the dog. The dog let out a menacing growl, and bared his fangs. The merchant blinked and suddenly scampered away, pulling his chocobo with him. Now it was just Sabin and the stranger.
Hmmm...this dog doesn't seem to care for strangers. Sabin thought, and turned to the man, not knowing that he shared the same feeling as his dog at the moment.
"You...on a journey?" Sabin questioned, and the man gave a slight nod. Sabin nodded back in comprehension and continued. "I got separated from my friends...say, could you tell me how to get to Narshe?" The man shifted his weight slightly and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Imperial Soldiers have built a base somewhere beyond this forest." He replied casually. Sabin gasped.
"Already?!"
"They seem to have their sights set on Doma Castle." Shadow said. Doma was a small kingdom on the eastern end of the same continent Narshe was on. But Sabin still did not have a good idea of how he was going to get to his destination. He did know however, that the Empire would just make it more difficult now.
"...So Doma is next, huh?" Sabin mused worriedly. "I need to get to Narshe as soon as possible!"
"Your only hope is through Doma." The stranger replied. So that was why he had shared the news of Doma's upcoming misfortune to Sabin. Sabin groaned and shook his head. He couldn't take on the Empire alone...especially since he was lost to begin with...
"I'll show you the way." The man suddenly offered. "Just know that I may take off at anytime...if I feel like it." He added the last sentence with a firm, almost threatening tone. However, all Sabin was worried about right now was having a guide, and he had found one!
"Thank you." Sabin said gratefully. "I'm Sabin Figaro, and you?" The man wrinkled his forehead in thought, trying to see if he recognized Sabin's name.
"Figaro? As in the royal family?"
"Something like that." Sabin said quickly. "I'm the Prince of Figaro but..."
"Don't worry, I won't treat you any differently." He grunted. "My name is Shadow. This..." He pointed to the dog, "Is Interceptor. We owe allegiance to no one."
"I understand." Sabin smiled some. "So Shadow...is this your home?"
"No." Shadow said, shaking his head. "But I could use some food for my dog...lets go in and see if they have anything..."
Sabin agreed, and the two walked up to the doorway, Sabin politely knocking. The door swung open a moment later, and Sabin and Shadow were faced with an elderly man with wild white hair stuffed under a green hat and a white beard. He was also wearing matching green robes. However...Sabin could sense that there was just something not right about this guy...it was the far away look in his eyes...
"Hey!" The old man exclaimed happily. "Are you the clock maker? I've been waiting for ages!!!" He squealed happily and did a little jig that even made Shadow almost snicker.
"Uh, no..." Sabin shook his head worriedly. "I'm not the clock maker..."
The old man acted as if he didn't hear poor Sabin. "There it is, on the wall!" He pointed to the clock behind him. "Ain't been tickin' for 1....5....shucks, maybe even 10 years!" Sabin widened his eyes and protested once again that he was not the clock maker. The old man finally seemed to understand, and calmed down, much to Sabin's relief. But before he could ask for some food, the old man smiled crazily.
"Got it! Lawnmower repairman, eh? Couldn't provide WORSE service!!" He cackled evilly. "Grass is 25 feet high out back!"
"Shadow..." Sabin muttered under his breath. "What should we..."
"No more lip, repairman!" The old man cried, and suddenly grabbed Sabin and pulled him into the one roomed home by the arm. "Fix that stove, on the double!" Sabin looked hopelessly back at Shadow, who mouthed "Just pretend you're doing something..." Sabin took this advice, and walked over to the stove, reaching out to touch a knob. However, as soon as he did, a sharp burning sensation shot through his fingertips!
"YEOOW!" Sabin cried, and leaped away, blowing on his burnt fingers. The old man glared at Sabin and shook his finger.
"Phew, no child could be this mischievous!" He suddenly burst out. When Sabin gave him a queer look, the old man changed his mind yet again. "Child...? Ain't no child around here! Bolderdash! I'm ready for you to leave! Go on, git! I'm tossin' ya onto the Veldt!" As the old man began to approach Sabin, Sabin let out a frightened squeal and bolted out the door, slamming it behind him. Shadow just stared as suddenly the small panel on the door slid open that was normally used to see who was at your doorstep before answering it, and the old man's beady eyes filled it. Sabin shouted and jumped 10 feet in the air as the old man spoke once more from behind him.
"You're here to fix my bed!" The old man exclaimed happily. "It's squeakin' like all git-out!"
"Ahhh!" Sabin cried, and took off running, Interceptor following and barking behind him before Shadow gave the man a look of doom and turned himself, calmly following his comrade. Shadow finally caught up with Sabin at the edge of a small woods, the one he was talking about earlier. The Imperial Base was on the other side...
"Well, that was an interesting encounter." Shadow commented coolly. "That man...was odd."
"Odd doesn't even begin to describe...oh, never mind that Shadow, we need to get down to Doma!" Sabin cried.
"Right." Shadow agreed. "And thus, we must infiltrate the Imperial Base...as long as we stay out of trouble, we should be able to slip through unnoticed."
Sabin, Shadow, and Interceptor made their short trek through the woods, which involved no encounters from any continent monsters. Sabin was relieved for this, as he was still recovering from the ugly battle with Ultros. He was hoping that when he got back to Edgar and the others, that they would not ask about the whereabouts of him, for he did not know himself. The slippery fiend had managed to escape Sabin's blitz.
"Sabin!" Shadow hissed.
"Oh!" Sabin cried, snapping out of his reminiscence. "Where are...!?" Sabin cut himself off when he spotted the Imperial Base in the distance, in the middle of a very dry patch of land, almost like desert. Even from where they were standing, it looked bustling with evil... Shadow, however, looked intrigued. Sabin began to wonder what side of the war Shadow was on, if he was even on one. But this wasn't the time for questions...
At Shadow's seemingly expertise lead, Sabin and Interceptor slowly crept towards the base until they reached it's entrance, which was shabbily set up with a small wooden gate that swung back and forth gently in the wind. The gate matched the small fence that wound over the boundaries of the base. The inside of the base held crates, tents, and assorted large pieces of indistinguishable machinery. The path inside seemed to be clear of any soldiers, so Shadow gestured for Sabin to come, but when Interceptor tried to join the group, Shadow shook his head and made a slight hand motion in Interceptor's direction. Interceptor must have known exactly what his master wanted, for within seconds, he disappeared in a blur of speed away from the base. Sabin found this to be a noble act for the ninja who appeared not to really care about anyone or anything except himself. Suddenly, voices came into earshot, and a pair of soldiers emerged from a tent.
"Hide!" Sabin hissed, and he and Shadow dived behind a pile of crates. The soldiers seemed to be beginning a patrol route right across the area Shadow and Sabin needed to pass... One of the soldiers stopped for a moment and gestured for the other one to come over. It then looked around quickly to make sure no one was coming, and began to speak.
"Hey, have you heard?" The soldier had a shaky female voice.
"Oh, you mean..." The other began to reply, who was a male, but the girl cut him off.
"Shhhhsh!" She squealed as she looked around. "If Kefka catches us, we're toast!"
"Kefka!" Sabin gasped. Didn't Edgar say Kefka had tried to kill them back in Figaro? That man was here?
"If Kefka drives General Leo out of our battalion, he'll probably become the next general!" She continued, and Shadow shook his head slowly.
"Kefka is already rumored to be a general, according to the cities I've been to." Shadow said bitterly.
"Don't make me laugh!" The boy soldier scoffed. "If someone like him becomes a general, I'll go home!"
"SHHHSSH!" The girl hissed, thwapping him. "What if he hears you? You'll be jailed!"
"Alright, ALRIGHT!" The boy moaned, rubbing his head. He blinked and suddenly pointed to their left. "Uh-oh, here he comes! Back to the waiting zone!"
The two soldiers quickly tried to regain themselves and act as if they had been both carefully pacing back and forth between two large tents. Kefka appeared a moment later, looking as flashy as ever, with even more colored feathers in his hair than when he met up with the other Figaro brother. However, Sabin had never seen this man before, and was immediately appalled at how clownish he appeared. This circus act was Narshe's enemy?
"Hey you!" Kefka shrieked to the girl. "You keeping a sharp lookout?"
"Yes sir!" The girl replied, saluting him with fake enthusiasm. "You're Kefka, correct? How are you Sir?"
"Puh-lease!" Kefka said dramatically, shaking his feathered head. "Save your petty small talk! Just do your job!" With that, Kefka sauntered away, and the soldiers almost immediately turned back to each other.
"Phweew!" The boy cried. "Someone needs to put that guy away! I'd like to tell him to his face that he's no General Leo!"
"Geeze, shut up!" The girl whined, and shook her head. "Do I always have to tell you to keep it down? You're hopeless!" But then, she sighed and took off her helmet for a moment, shaking her red-pony tailed hair to get it some oxygen. "But I do...hate that bastard, Kefka... I don't even think he's human, not like General Leo..." Instead of telling her to be quiet though, her comrade simply nodded.
"Agreed..."
Right then, the two were interrupted by yet another unwelcome visitor...their commander, a large soldier dressed in deep shades of blue with what appeared to be a tall battle-axe in his hand.
"You two!" The commander barked. "We are about to storm Doma Castle, and you two have been appointed to the assault team."
"Yes sir!" Both soldiers cried in unison. After the girl pulled her helmet back on, they both ran off together, much to Shadow and Sabin's relief. The commander also shortly left, leaving them alone to explore by their own free will. However, Sabin was deeply troubled.
"This is it..." He shook his head. "If Doma should be defeated, the whole territory will be swarming over with Imperial Soldiers, and they'll beat us to Narshe... And then it will be too late..." Shadow looked over to Sabin as he sighed and closed his eyes.
"Edgar...what are we to do now if Doma is under attack?"
While Terra, Edgar, and Banon were resting safely in Narshe, and Locke and Celes were traveling there together...
"Ugh..."
Sabin moaned to himself and slowly opened his eyes, cringing when the bright sunlight hit him like a slap in the face. He felt wet, exhausted, and despite his little solo trip down the Lete River...
He was also strangely rejuvenated.
"Up we go!" Sabin exclaimed to himself, and climbed to his feet, stretching and looking about his surroundings. All he could see were rolling green hills, and a lone house a short distance away, with the beginnings of a forest behind it. Apparently, the Lete River had grown tired of him and spat him out in the middle of nowhere. Sabin ran his fingers through his hair to get it to spike up again, and proceeded to the house. Perhaps the owner knew where he had washed up, and also knew how he could get to Narshe as soon as possible. Despite the setbacks, Sabin knew that he still needed to be with his brother in Narshe's greatest time of need. He had promised, after all, and he knew that Edgar had faith in his return.
At the house, Sabin saw a small merchant on a chocobo, letting it drink from the well in the front yard. However, it was what was beside the merchant that caught Sabin's attentions. Standing there, seemingly cloaked in the night sky himself, his clothes were so black-- was a tall masked man with a huge black lab at his side. Sabin smiled when the man lifted his deep blue eyes to Sabin's sky blue ones, but the man didn't seem to smile back.
Now, Sabin was full of wisdom and sensibility, being that he was indeed a student of the great Duncan. However, it seemed that all of this had washed away in the Lete River, for instead of taking the man's glare as a warning, Sabin happily approached him and to be friendly, leaned down to pet the dog. The dog let out a menacing growl, and bared his fangs. The merchant blinked and suddenly scampered away, pulling his chocobo with him. Now it was just Sabin and the stranger.
Hmmm...this dog doesn't seem to care for strangers. Sabin thought, and turned to the man, not knowing that he shared the same feeling as his dog at the moment.
"You...on a journey?" Sabin questioned, and the man gave a slight nod. Sabin nodded back in comprehension and continued. "I got separated from my friends...say, could you tell me how to get to Narshe?" The man shifted his weight slightly and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Imperial Soldiers have built a base somewhere beyond this forest." He replied casually. Sabin gasped.
"Already?!"
"They seem to have their sights set on Doma Castle." Shadow said. Doma was a small kingdom on the eastern end of the same continent Narshe was on. But Sabin still did not have a good idea of how he was going to get to his destination. He did know however, that the Empire would just make it more difficult now.
"...So Doma is next, huh?" Sabin mused worriedly. "I need to get to Narshe as soon as possible!"
"Your only hope is through Doma." The stranger replied. So that was why he had shared the news of Doma's upcoming misfortune to Sabin. Sabin groaned and shook his head. He couldn't take on the Empire alone...especially since he was lost to begin with...
"I'll show you the way." The man suddenly offered. "Just know that I may take off at anytime...if I feel like it." He added the last sentence with a firm, almost threatening tone. However, all Sabin was worried about right now was having a guide, and he had found one!
"Thank you." Sabin said gratefully. "I'm Sabin Figaro, and you?" The man wrinkled his forehead in thought, trying to see if he recognized Sabin's name.
"Figaro? As in the royal family?"
"Something like that." Sabin said quickly. "I'm the Prince of Figaro but..."
"Don't worry, I won't treat you any differently." He grunted. "My name is Shadow. This..." He pointed to the dog, "Is Interceptor. We owe allegiance to no one."
"I understand." Sabin smiled some. "So Shadow...is this your home?"
"No." Shadow said, shaking his head. "But I could use some food for my dog...lets go in and see if they have anything..."
Sabin agreed, and the two walked up to the doorway, Sabin politely knocking. The door swung open a moment later, and Sabin and Shadow were faced with an elderly man with wild white hair stuffed under a green hat and a white beard. He was also wearing matching green robes. However...Sabin could sense that there was just something not right about this guy...it was the far away look in his eyes...
"Hey!" The old man exclaimed happily. "Are you the clock maker? I've been waiting for ages!!!" He squealed happily and did a little jig that even made Shadow almost snicker.
"Uh, no..." Sabin shook his head worriedly. "I'm not the clock maker..."
The old man acted as if he didn't hear poor Sabin. "There it is, on the wall!" He pointed to the clock behind him. "Ain't been tickin' for 1....5....shucks, maybe even 10 years!" Sabin widened his eyes and protested once again that he was not the clock maker. The old man finally seemed to understand, and calmed down, much to Sabin's relief. But before he could ask for some food, the old man smiled crazily.
"Got it! Lawnmower repairman, eh? Couldn't provide WORSE service!!" He cackled evilly. "Grass is 25 feet high out back!"
"Shadow..." Sabin muttered under his breath. "What should we..."
"No more lip, repairman!" The old man cried, and suddenly grabbed Sabin and pulled him into the one roomed home by the arm. "Fix that stove, on the double!" Sabin looked hopelessly back at Shadow, who mouthed "Just pretend you're doing something..." Sabin took this advice, and walked over to the stove, reaching out to touch a knob. However, as soon as he did, a sharp burning sensation shot through his fingertips!
"YEOOW!" Sabin cried, and leaped away, blowing on his burnt fingers. The old man glared at Sabin and shook his finger.
"Phew, no child could be this mischievous!" He suddenly burst out. When Sabin gave him a queer look, the old man changed his mind yet again. "Child...? Ain't no child around here! Bolderdash! I'm ready for you to leave! Go on, git! I'm tossin' ya onto the Veldt!" As the old man began to approach Sabin, Sabin let out a frightened squeal and bolted out the door, slamming it behind him. Shadow just stared as suddenly the small panel on the door slid open that was normally used to see who was at your doorstep before answering it, and the old man's beady eyes filled it. Sabin shouted and jumped 10 feet in the air as the old man spoke once more from behind him.
"You're here to fix my bed!" The old man exclaimed happily. "It's squeakin' like all git-out!"
"Ahhh!" Sabin cried, and took off running, Interceptor following and barking behind him before Shadow gave the man a look of doom and turned himself, calmly following his comrade. Shadow finally caught up with Sabin at the edge of a small woods, the one he was talking about earlier. The Imperial Base was on the other side...
"Well, that was an interesting encounter." Shadow commented coolly. "That man...was odd."
"Odd doesn't even begin to describe...oh, never mind that Shadow, we need to get down to Doma!" Sabin cried.
"Right." Shadow agreed. "And thus, we must infiltrate the Imperial Base...as long as we stay out of trouble, we should be able to slip through unnoticed."
Sabin, Shadow, and Interceptor made their short trek through the woods, which involved no encounters from any continent monsters. Sabin was relieved for this, as he was still recovering from the ugly battle with Ultros. He was hoping that when he got back to Edgar and the others, that they would not ask about the whereabouts of him, for he did not know himself. The slippery fiend had managed to escape Sabin's blitz.
"Sabin!" Shadow hissed.
"Oh!" Sabin cried, snapping out of his reminiscence. "Where are...!?" Sabin cut himself off when he spotted the Imperial Base in the distance, in the middle of a very dry patch of land, almost like desert. Even from where they were standing, it looked bustling with evil... Shadow, however, looked intrigued. Sabin began to wonder what side of the war Shadow was on, if he was even on one. But this wasn't the time for questions...
At Shadow's seemingly expertise lead, Sabin and Interceptor slowly crept towards the base until they reached it's entrance, which was shabbily set up with a small wooden gate that swung back and forth gently in the wind. The gate matched the small fence that wound over the boundaries of the base. The inside of the base held crates, tents, and assorted large pieces of indistinguishable machinery. The path inside seemed to be clear of any soldiers, so Shadow gestured for Sabin to come, but when Interceptor tried to join the group, Shadow shook his head and made a slight hand motion in Interceptor's direction. Interceptor must have known exactly what his master wanted, for within seconds, he disappeared in a blur of speed away from the base. Sabin found this to be a noble act for the ninja who appeared not to really care about anyone or anything except himself. Suddenly, voices came into earshot, and a pair of soldiers emerged from a tent.
"Hide!" Sabin hissed, and he and Shadow dived behind a pile of crates. The soldiers seemed to be beginning a patrol route right across the area Shadow and Sabin needed to pass... One of the soldiers stopped for a moment and gestured for the other one to come over. It then looked around quickly to make sure no one was coming, and began to speak.
"Hey, have you heard?" The soldier had a shaky female voice.
"Oh, you mean..." The other began to reply, who was a male, but the girl cut him off.
"Shhhhsh!" She squealed as she looked around. "If Kefka catches us, we're toast!"
"Kefka!" Sabin gasped. Didn't Edgar say Kefka had tried to kill them back in Figaro? That man was here?
"If Kefka drives General Leo out of our battalion, he'll probably become the next general!" She continued, and Shadow shook his head slowly.
"Kefka is already rumored to be a general, according to the cities I've been to." Shadow said bitterly.
"Don't make me laugh!" The boy soldier scoffed. "If someone like him becomes a general, I'll go home!"
"SHHHSSH!" The girl hissed, thwapping him. "What if he hears you? You'll be jailed!"
"Alright, ALRIGHT!" The boy moaned, rubbing his head. He blinked and suddenly pointed to their left. "Uh-oh, here he comes! Back to the waiting zone!"
The two soldiers quickly tried to regain themselves and act as if they had been both carefully pacing back and forth between two large tents. Kefka appeared a moment later, looking as flashy as ever, with even more colored feathers in his hair than when he met up with the other Figaro brother. However, Sabin had never seen this man before, and was immediately appalled at how clownish he appeared. This circus act was Narshe's enemy?
"Hey you!" Kefka shrieked to the girl. "You keeping a sharp lookout?"
"Yes sir!" The girl replied, saluting him with fake enthusiasm. "You're Kefka, correct? How are you Sir?"
"Puh-lease!" Kefka said dramatically, shaking his feathered head. "Save your petty small talk! Just do your job!" With that, Kefka sauntered away, and the soldiers almost immediately turned back to each other.
"Phweew!" The boy cried. "Someone needs to put that guy away! I'd like to tell him to his face that he's no General Leo!"
"Geeze, shut up!" The girl whined, and shook her head. "Do I always have to tell you to keep it down? You're hopeless!" But then, she sighed and took off her helmet for a moment, shaking her red-pony tailed hair to get it some oxygen. "But I do...hate that bastard, Kefka... I don't even think he's human, not like General Leo..." Instead of telling her to be quiet though, her comrade simply nodded.
"Agreed..."
Right then, the two were interrupted by yet another unwelcome visitor...their commander, a large soldier dressed in deep shades of blue with what appeared to be a tall battle-axe in his hand.
"You two!" The commander barked. "We are about to storm Doma Castle, and you two have been appointed to the assault team."
"Yes sir!" Both soldiers cried in unison. After the girl pulled her helmet back on, they both ran off together, much to Shadow and Sabin's relief. The commander also shortly left, leaving them alone to explore by their own free will. However, Sabin was deeply troubled.
"This is it..." He shook his head. "If Doma should be defeated, the whole territory will be swarming over with Imperial Soldiers, and they'll beat us to Narshe... And then it will be too late..." Shadow looked over to Sabin as he sighed and closed his eyes.
"Edgar...what are we to do now if Doma is under attack?"
