Chapter Fifteen- A Soul Trapped in Time, Rachel of Kohlingen

"It's pretty dark in here, Locke!"

"Yeah, but don't worry, I have a lantern right here!"

"Well of course! You are the world's best treasure hunter, hee hee!"

"I love it when you say that babe!"

"Aha, but soon you'll be known for it around the world...I bet you'll have lots of fans! Pretty young girls too, I'm sure..."

"Well, that may be...but I'm already counted for, wouldn't you think?"

"Hmmm? What do you mean by that, dear?"

".....What I mean is...Rachel...uh...Well, I want you to marry me!"

"What?! Are you serious?! Oh Locke....I will, I will marry you!"

"Ah, this is great, Rach!!! I must be the happiest man in the world right now!!!"

"Oh Locke Cole, I love you..."

"...I love you too Rachel....Cole....heh heh!"

**********

"So Locke, what are we off to find today?"

"Oh, soon you'll see! It's a surprise!"

"How wonderful!!"

"You are not gonna believe what awaits up here! Come on, it's worth a fortune!"

"Come on Locke, I'll race you across the bridge!"

"Ha, you've never been able to beat me in a race Rachel!"

*Thump....Thump...Thump...*

(Oh Gods no...please don't make me hear this again.)

".....WAIT! LOCKE, STOP! THE BRIDGE...!"

"Ahhh...!!!!"

(Why didn't she let me fall?)

"Hold on, Locke, I'm coming!"

(No....!)

"No, Rachel, you'll fa--"

"Aiiiiieeeeeee!"

*Thump*

"RACHEL!!!!!!!!"

(Oh Gods, let me wake up!)

**********

"Locke!"

"Uhhh...."

Locke moaned and slowly opened his eyes. When they finally managed to focus themselves properly, he found himself in Arvis' guest bedroom, lying in bed. He felt an unfamiliar presence on his forehead, and when he reached up, he could feel thick bandages in the place of his bandana.

"Oh man...." Locke moaned, and let his head hit the pillow again.

"Are you awake?" He suddenly heard from beside him. Startled, Locke looked a little to his left and saw Celes sitting on the end of the bed, her hands in her lap.

"Celes?" Locke said dumbly. "Oh...you're the voice that called my name...I thought you were..." He shook his head and tried to sit up, but pain shot through his body straight to his head, threatening him with more pain if he tried that again.

"You shouldn't move so fast after you've just woken up." Celes said. "You've been resting for quite a few days Locke...and whimpering the whole time. Are you in terrible pain?"

"No, I'm ok..." Locke sighed, and tried to look at her. "It was some bad dreams, is all. Thank you for finally waking me up...."

"I tried and tried ever since we came here, but I guess you couldn't hear me." Celes frowned some.

"You've been with me this whole time?"

"Well...yeah..." Celes looked away, and Locke felt his heartbeat speed up just a little. He felt embarrassed though, so he quickly changed the subject.

"Where's Terra?"

"Terra..." Celes lowered her head and stared at her lap. "She...changed into a something...and took off."

"WHAT?!" Locke cried. The last thing he had remembered was the shining light Terra and the esper had been emitting in unison before fear and fatigue had taken over his senses and put him to sleep back on the cliff.

"I'm telling the truth." Celes said coldly. "But Locke...she looked...She looked like an esper..."

"Celes, who are you talking to?" Edgar suddenly demanded as he threw open the door and walked into the bedroom. He saw Locke and suddenly brightened up, seeing that his best friend was awake again.

"Locke, are you alright?!" Edgar asked, and Locke nodded.

"Celes was right..." Edgar began, and Celes glared at him.

"Listening in on a private conversation?" She demanded, and Edgar laughed a little.

"Fear not M'lady, I won't reveal any tender moments to the rest of the Returners!" Edgar cackled, and Locke and Celes both turned red and looked away from each other.

"Good Lord..." Celes muttered between clenched teeth. Edgar sighed, turning serious again, and looked to Locke.

"Something happened to Terra...There seems to be some sort of a connection between Espers and herself."

"A connection?" Locke questioned.

"It's already been discussed between the rest of us." said Edgar. "But anyway, we need to find her. Witnesses in town saw her...screaming across the sky towards the west..."

"Let's go then!" Locke cried hurriedly. "I promised her I'd..."

"Locke..." Celes looked to him with a slight glint of worry in her eyes. "Just calm down, I'll help you up."

"Oh, thanks..." Locke looked down, and Edgar left the bedroom to tell the others the news of Locke's awakening. Celes got up off the bed and went to Locke's side, offering him a hand. He took it and very slowly swung both legs out of the bed, and then stood up shakily, still holding onto Celes.

"Come on." Celes said, and began to gently tug him towards the door, however, he stopped her.

"Wait! My bandana!" Locke cried frantically.

"It's in your pocket." Celes smiled some. "You can put it back on AFTER we check for any more bleeding."

"Oh, alright." Locke pretended to pout and then smiled. "Thanks Celes. I guess I owe you one."

"Forget it." Celes said, and smiled back. "I promised, remember?" Locke didn't say anymore as she took him out of the bedroom and into Arvis' common room. All of the Returners were pacing about frantically, and Gau was jumping from piece of furniture to piece of furniture. Edgar saw Locke and Celes enter, and gave them a short nod before looking to everyone else. Banon and Arvis were sitting on a couch. They both looked exhausted.

"Think people!" Edgar said, as he paced about the room. "The Empire STILL wants that esper!"

"And now Terra has come up missing..." Sabin shook his head. "This is very bad. I am afraid we cannot leave Narshe, because the esper and Banon needs protected."

"But we cannot leave Terra!" Cyan suddenly cried, and everyone looked at him, surprised. Cyan put his hands on his hips. "She is a former imperial soldier...but we've no choice. We MUST help recover her!"

"Gau miss Terra." Gau sniffled from on top of a grandfather clock.

"I've got it!" Edgar said. "We'll split up. Those who aren't searching for Terra will stay here and guard Narshe. Figaro Castle has the ability to shuttle us underground and under the western mountain range to the western province. Then we'll make for Kohlingen or Jidoor--They are the two closest cities. I think only about four of us should go though...any more would make us much more noticeable to the Empire."

"I'll be coming." Celes suddenly spoke up. "I am positive you will need magic to get you though some of the western regions. There are dangerous monsters there."

"I'm coming too." Locke interjected immediately. "I've gotta protect Terra and Celes..."

"You should stay in bed." Celes snapped. "Terra will be fine with me!"

"I'm coming." Locke said firmly, and Celes gave up, turning her back to him.

"If we are going through Figaro, I would like to come as well." Sabin said, and stood up. "I know this isn't exactly the appropriate time for any reunions...but I would like to visit home for a while. It's been years."

"Then I will join you, brother." Edgar said. "Unless you wanted to go, Cyan or Gau."

"Gau want to stay and protect esper!" Gau exclaimed. "Big job!"

"I will watch over Sir Gau and the esper as well." Cyan said. "Please, by all means, leave your worries here with us and go seek out Lady Terra."

"Thank you, guys." Sabin said, and looked up at Gau on the grandfather clock. "Now, you be sure to behave yourself Gau! Don't cause any trouble!"

"Gau be good for Mr. Thou!" Gau exclaimed happily, and Sabin turned red.

"Why you little...!"

"Oh-ho-ho, I am sure we will get along fine here." Arvis said, and smiled at Gau. "I shall prepare for you a breakfast fit for the warrior you are!"

"BREAKFAST!" Gau squealed, and nearly fell off the clock.

"I am afraid we will have to make hasty farewells." Edgar said. "Take care, everyone."

"Yes, if you run into any trouble, come back to Narshe!" Banon cried.

"We'll be waiting here." Cyan offered.

"We'll be fine." Celes said, and Arvis smiled at her.

"Make sure you take care of our little thief!" He chuckled, and Locke growled.

"Hey, that's Treasure---"

"We will!" Sabin laughed. "Come on guys, lets head for Figaro!! We're gonna find Terra for sure!"

With that, the newly formed team consisting of Locke, Edgar, Sabin, and Celes departed Arvis' house and made their way out of Narshe and south to Figaro castle. They reached it in no time, around noon to be exact, and as soon as they reached the steps, Sabin began to jump up and down excitedly.

"Oh man oh man oh man!" He yelled, and the guard at the castle entrance made a face.

"King Edgar, I graciously welcome you home, but I'm afraid your choices for company become more and more radical each time you bring someone new to the palace." The guard said.

"But good sir, it is my brother Sabin who has returned to us at long last!" Edgar exclaimed, and the guard gasped as he looked Sabin up and down.

"Prince Sabin, you ARE home!" He cried happily, and bowed. "Everyone has missed you so! It's been...how many years??"

"Ten, I believe!" Sabin exclaimed.

"Ten years...Prince Sabin, you've grown up quite a bit."

"I know, I know." Sabin grinned, and looked around more. "Sheesh...this is like old times...I'm gonna have to wander around for a while!"

"Sure, brother!" Edgar smiled. "I'll go and have the Chancellor prepare us all some lunch...Locke, you know where the engine room is, right?"

"Of course." Locke nodded.

"Ok, you can go down there and inform Lucas that we need to make way for the west. Just tell him I sent you if he asks!" Edgar turned to Celes and smiled sweetly. "You, my dear, may do whatever you please. Make yourself comfortable! Oh, just so you know, you can find me in my own quarters, which is..."

"Thank you Edgar." Celes said quickly, and the guard chuckled.

"Be careful of our king's wily ways, M'lady." He said, and Celes smirked some.

"Don't worry, I am not that quite easily charmed." She said, and Edgar pouted.

"At least Terra pretended she liked it." He argued.

"No she didn't!" Locke protested, and they all had a good laugh at that, as if Terra were already with them again. Locke smiled and waved good-bye as Sabin took off for some exploring. There was nothing to be melancholy about today! It was a beautiful summer day, the sun was shining, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Locke was 100% positive that they would find Terra too! Today, the world didn't seem like such a large and dangerous place. He had even begun to forget about that awful nightmare...

"Locke." Celes said, bursting his thought bubble.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Lets go tell this Lucas guy about getting us to the western province." Celes said. "I want to get there as soon as possible!"

"Heh heh, why?" Locke asked as he began to lead her inside the palace.

"I don't know." Celes replied thoughtfully. "Maybe it's because I've never been there before!"

"You haven't? A seasoned warrior like you?" Locke joked.

"I've never traveled because I wanted to." Celes said, with a tone of sadness in her voice. "It was never like that for me."

"....But you want to now, right?" Locke asked, and Celes smiled happily.

"Oh yes, very much so!"

She's got Rachel's sense of adventure...

Ugh, Locke, don't think about that now.

Finally, Locke went down the flight of stairs that led to the Figaro engine room, and met up with the old, white-haired engineer that worked down there, Lucas. Locke had known him ever since he had first met Edgar, which had been a while ago. Lucas looked up from some sort of book he was reading, and waved. Locke noticed his robes were spotted with oil in various places today.

"Locke Cole, it's been a while!" Lucas exclaimed. "I can assume King Edgar has arrived home with you?"

"Yes, both the King and his brother have returned." said Locke, and Lucas widened his eyes.

"Prince Sabin?! Goodness, I must greet him soon!"

"He'd like that." Locke smiled and leaned against the wall. "At any rate Lucas, we want to depart for the western province shortly." Lucas frowned some and wiped his hands, which were also oily, on the front of his robes.

"I'm afraid we are having some engine troubles right now, actually." Lucas said, and nodded his head towards the steep stairway that was behind him. "I'm afraid we won't be able to depart until tomorrow morning, at the earliest."

"Oh...well can we help?" Locke asked, and proceeded towards the stairs.

"Oh no sir, it's dangerous down there!" Lucas cried, and Celes raised her eyebrows. "Please, it's best that you stay up here and leave the work to the professionals. Please tell his highness I am sorry for the trouble."

"Alright." Locke said, and waved. "See you tomorrow morning then!"

"Good bye!" Lucas said, and Locke and Celes left the room. After climbing all of the steps, Celes continued to walk on ahead of Locke.

"Hey, where are you going?" Locke asked, and Celes turned around.

"I'm just going to explore on my own for a little bit." Celes said slowly, making Locke actually stop and try to analyze her tone.

"What are you looking at me like that for?" Celes asked, and put on her trademark glare.

"Oh, uh, nothing!" Locke said, and laughed a little. "I'm just really tired."

"Oooook...see you at lunch then." Celes said, and with that, made her exit. Locke leaned back against the wall and tried to act as if he hadn't of just been ditched by his entire group. One of the Figaro maids walked through right then, and gave Locke a flirtatious wave as she passed by. Locke coolly waved back and grinned, proud of himself. The maid suddenly stopped and smiled, flashing her bright white teeth.

"You're a friend of Edgar's, aren't you?" She asked in a squeaky voice.

"Yep!" Locke replied, and was about to go on, when the maid interrupted him.

"Now hold on...lets see if my memory serves me well...you're....you're that thief....Cole, was it? Locke Cole?!" Locke blinked and felt as if he were about to snap.

"I'm right!" The girl exclaimed happily. "So Locke, what happened to all your friends? Did they catch you picking their pockets?? Tee-hee! Just joking, of course..." Locke balled his hands into fists at his side and turned scarlet.

"THAT'S TREASURE HUNTER!!!!!!!"

**********

"Hmm...so no leaving until tomorrow morning, eh?" Edgar questioned over a steaming bowl of his favorite lunch dish-- cactuar drop soup.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so." Locke said, taking another spoonful of his own. "Engine complications."

"Well, it won't pose a terrible problem!" Edgar exclaimed. "We'll just have to spend the night! There's plenty of room for everyone! I'll have bedrooms fixed up for everyone by tonight."

"Actually Edgar, you don't need to for me." Celes said quickly.

"Why not?" Edgar blinked. "Are you one of those people who can't sleep alone? In that case..." He grinned and Celes made a disgusted face.

"As a matter of fact, I just didn't want you to go through the trouble, because I would much rather just stay in your Inn tonight." She replied icily. Edgar blushed a little and laughed nervously.

"Well, if that's how you want it, then that's what you'll get!" Edgar said.

"I'm thinking about sleeping under the stars tonight." Locke added thoughtfully. "You wouldn't mind, right Edgar?"

"Nah, just grab a tent from somewhere and have at it!" Edgar smiled, and then leaned over the table to speak in Locke's ear. "Something...on your mind?"

"The usual..." Locke sighed, and looked down into his soup. His wavering reflection stared back at him, and Locke was not surprised at how depressed he looked at that moment. Since he had been left alone, he had gotten to thinking about Rachel again. All of his positive energy depleted away to empty nothingness. Now he was glad they didn't have to go to Kohlingen until tomorrow. He couldn't imagine what he might find there...He wondered if anything had changed since...

"Cheer up Locke." Sabin spoke up, and Locke looked up to him.

Oh yeah...the only person who knows about Rachel is Edgar...

"You're worried about Terra, aren't ya?" Sabin asked, and Locke put on a small smile and nodded, hating to lie to his friend.

"She's probably trying to find us right now!" Sabin said, trying to be somewhat encouraging.

"....Right!" Locke smiled more. "I know you've got to be right Sabin...thanks." Right then, Celes let out a soft sigh and pushed back her soup bowl, still half full.

"I'm not hungry anymore." She said, and stood up. "Thank you for lunch Edgar, but I'm afraid I'm going to be retiring for the day."

"But it's only the afternoon!" protested Edgar.

"I'm tired." Celes snapped, and with that, left the dining room as fast as she could manage without running into any furniture. The guys looked to the doorway for a moment, expecting her to come back, but indeed she did not.

"What's wrong with her?" Sabin asked as he slurped down some soup.

"I don't know, maybe she really is tired." Locke suggested. "We've all had a hard past few days. She's probably worried about Terra too. I don't think she would admit it though."

"Oh...maybe." Edgar said.

"What?" Locke demanded, beginning to feel a little edgy himself now.

"I don't know." Edgar replied quickly. "Uhhh..."

"Are you suspicious of her too, Edgar?" Locke asked, and Edgar turned red.

"Well, uhhh...Not as badly as Cyan..." Locke made a face at that and turned to Sabin for help.

"She does act odd." Sabin pointed out gently.

"She doesn't know any of us." Locke retaliated. "Unless someone else said something to her. She wasn't as shy when she was just with me."

"Locke...I might of told her not to try to get involved with you." Edgar suddenly admitted. Locke blinked and looked at Edgar strangely.

"What did you tell her?"

"Uhh...I just said you had a complicated past and stuff...uhhh."

"EDGAR!" Locke cried, and stood up. "Why do you have to go around and tell people that stuff??? I mean, Rachel, everything, its ALL IN THE PAST!"

"You don't act like it is!" Edgar cried back, and stood up also. "I was trying to protect you, Locke! I didn't want you to get hurt again!" Sabin looked away for a moment, and took a deep breath. He didn't know what this was about, but...

"Edgar, Locke!" Sabin began, but was cut off by Locke's storming out of the dining room in a rage, slamming the door behind him. Edgar moaned and sunk back in his chair.

"I had good intentions, brother." Edgar began, and Sabin nodded.

"I understand." He said. "These are trying times for all of us right now. I'm sure this will all be over soon though."

"I hope so..." Edgar sighed and looked up at the beautifully painted ceiling that had been done decades ago, when the Figaro family had first built the castle and began to gain control over the desert realm. It was a mural of what looked like hundreds of warriors battling across the desert with all sorts of different monsters, some Edgar had really seen and some he believed to be imaginary, like the great dragons that were in the mural. There were even a few Moogles flying about in the sky, aiding the warriors on their side.

"The War of the Magi..." Sabin trailed off, looking up at the ceiling as well.

"Supposedly." Edgar corrected, and smiled. "I'm sure it was not nearly as magnificent as that painting makes it out to be."

"Hee hee, me too." Sabin said, and let out a small chuckle.

**********

That evening, Sabin found that he couldn't sleep very well. Although it felt wonderfully welcoming to be back in his old bedroom and old bed again, Sabin also couldn't help but remember about the last night he had spent in that bed, when he was 17. He remembered how that night, he had been thinking about what to get his father for his birthday, which had been approaching rapidly. He had no idea what would end up unfolding the next night...

"I think I need a drink." Sabin muttered to himself, and crawled out of bed, making his way to the throne room, where he had remembered abandoning a water bottle of his from earlier in the day. The entire palace was dark, and for once, quiet. The only people Sabin saw on his way to the throne room were a few guards, who all either nodded or waved to him before looking back to their posts. Sabin finally reached the throne room and pushed the giant doors open quite easily. He laughed, remembering how when he was younger he couldn't ever get them open without his father's help...now he could do it on his own with one finger!!

"There you are!" Sabin exclaimed, spotting the water bottle on the left throne. He swiftly walked over to pick it up, and took a deep swig after popping off the cork top.

"Mmmm, nothing beats Figaro's Healing Spring Water." Sabin smiled, and sat down on the throne, looking about. "Actually...the castle hasn't changed much either..." He sighed and looked down in his lap. "And yet...it's all different... Now Mom and Dad are gone...everyone is gone...ever since that day..." Sabin closed his eyes, and suddenly...he could picture that night...all over again...

"Tonight...has taken a turn for the worse..." There was hushed whispering outside the King and Queen's bedroom. Five of the world's best doctors were gathered there in the corridor, all exchanging worried glances and wiping their sweaty palms on their jackets. Was there nothing they could do? Matron, a younger woman at the time, was standing there also, wringing her hands together nervously. Her pale white hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and tumbling over her shoulders. Little did the group know, a younger Sabin had been watching them from a corner, his heart beating wildly in his chest. His father had been doing so well yesterday, they said! What had happened so quickly?!

At that moment, another doctor entered the corridor from the bedroom, a disappointed expression on his face. He immediately looked to Matron, and shook his head.

"Matron...the King...he's..."

"NO!" Sabin suddenly cried, and stumbled out of his hiding place. The doctors and Matron all gasped in surprise to see the prince, who had tears building in his eyes. He began to choke as he struggled to speak again. "Father....he can't be...DEAD!"

"Sabin!" Edgar suddenly cried, as he barreled down the corridor from his room, hearing his brother's screams. "What's wrong?!"

"Nooooooo!" Sabin howled, and with that, took off down the corridor and upstairs to the front balcony of Figaro's palace. It was dark outside...well past midnight, it seemed. The moon had been full that night...it's pale silver light was shining upon Sabin as he burst outside into the cool nighttime air, making him narrow his eyes as he sobbed harder and leaned on the balcony to catch his breath. A few moments later, Edgar emerged as well, a cloak pulled on over his pajamas to keep warm with matching slippers on his feet.

"Brother!" Sabin sniffled. "Waaah...whaaa..waaaa...." He moaned and tried to keep himself from sobbing any harder.

"So...they went and told you..." Edgar said somewhat calmly, although inside, he was screaming at just hearing the news of his father's death as well. He had to stay strong though, for his beloved little brother! At that moment, Matron arrived on the balcony too, out of breath from running so fast to keep up with the brothers.

"Edgar! Sabin! There you are." She began. "Your father...he just uttered that his last wish be that...Figaro be divided between you..." Sabin blinked away his tears and turned to Matron angrily.

"This is NONSENSE!" He screamed. "Everyone here is saying the Empire poisoned Dad...and the only thing on your minds is "Who's going to be the next King?" You're all PATHETIC!" Sabin rubbed at his eyes and heaved another sob. "No one cared when Mom passed away, either..."

"That's not true..." Matron tried, but Sabin swung his hand to silence her.

"You were as bad as any of 'em!" He sobbed.

"Sabin..." Edgar trailed off, and rested his hand on Sabin's shoulder. Sabin just sobbed louder and harder, so hard that his entire body began to shake.

"Empire of Murderers...They WON'T get away with this!" Sabin cried, and Edgar turned to Matron, who suddenly looked as if she had aged a thousand years.

"Matron...please leave us." Edgar said gently, and she nodded, leaving the balcony at once. Edgar then looked back to Sabin, who he found gazing out at the desert, which had turned a pale white from the moonlight.

"I'm outta here!" Sabin suddenly exclaimed, and Edgar blinked. "I'm forsaking this war-sick realm for my dignity and freedom! You said you were sick of it too, right?!" Edgar sighed and gazed out at the desert also.

"Freedom..." He murmured. He suddenly shook his head and turned his back to the desert. "But Sabin, what will happen to this realm if we BOTH leave...? And...what would Dad say?" Sabin blinked and turned to Edgar, who had made a good point.

"Edgar..." He began, but Edgar silenced him by reaching in his pocket and pulling out a coin. It was made of a beautiful gold, and sparkled in the moonlight. It was a common Figaro coin, just one of the many varieties of GP there were in the world. On one side was a portrait of the first King of Figaro, and the other side had a picture of the official realm's bird, the chocobo, taking a long stride across the desert.

"Sabin." He said, holding up the coin so that the head's side faced Sabin. "Let's settle this with the toss of a coin...If it's heads...you win. We'll chose whatever path in life we want, without any regrets. Okay?" Sabin didn't look like he wanted to, but he nodded in agreement.

"This is for Dad!" Edgar cried, and with that, flipped the coin up from his hand by his thumb and pointer finger. The coin did several flips in the air before landing back in Edgar's hand...

"And it was then, you opted for your freedom." Edgar suddenly said, making Sabin jump in his chair. He opened his eyes and smiled, surprised to see Edgar walking into the throne room, in his royal silk pajamas that matched Sabin's exactly. "It's been 10 years...and the little shrimp has grown into a whopping lobster!!!"

"And you're a King Crab!" Sabin chuckled, and Edgar sat in the throne beside him, laughing.

"Sabin..." Edgar's smile faded a little as he looked to his brother. "I wonder...if Dad would be proud of me today...?"

"Don't you ever doubt that!" Sabin cried. Edgar smiled in appreciation and sat back in the chair, crossing his legs.

"10 years..." He murmured, and Sabin shook his head.

"Where has the time gone..?" He replied, and took another swig of his drink. Edgar chuckled at this and pretended to hold up a goblet.

"Here's to a couple of confused grown-ups!" He exclaimed, and Sabin held up his bottle also, pretending to clink it against Edgar's goblet.

"And here's to Dad...!"

"And to Mom...and...To Figaro..."

**********

The next morning, the 4 Returners reunited in the dining room for breakfast. While Edgar and Sabin looked positively content, Locke looked as if he had had about 2 hours of sleep, and well, Celes looked like Celes.

"Everyone eat well!" Edgar exclaimed as he passed around some tender Nibbler patties for breakfast. "Because let me tell you now, Kohlingen has about as much food variety as a dry bone, and Jidoor will wring out our money pouches with just one drink! I don't know if we will get any farther then Jidoor...I mean...what else is there beyond that? Locke, do you know?"

"Wha? Oh, um..." Locke looked as if he had been in a daze. "The Jidoor Opera House...and..." He bit his lower lip in thought for a moment. "Oh yeah, Zozo!"

"Zozo?" Celes said, and made a face. "I only pray we don't have to set a foot in there."

"Thought you'd never been to these parts?" Locke questioned idly, and Celes narrowed her eyes.

"I haven't, but I've heard some pretty bad things about Zozo." She said.

"WELL anyway!" Sabin suddenly shouted, making everyone at the table jump. "I'll just go down and ask Lucas how things are coming along, eh? Make sure you hold on tight to something if we start moving all of a sudden!!" With that, Sabin jumped from his chair and ran off to talk to Lucas.

"How was your evening?" Edgar asked Locke, and Locke moaned, burying his face in his hands.

"Don't ask..."

"Celes?"

"Your maids are awfully chatty at night, Edgar."

"Oh, sorry about that...I imagine they must have been talking about how I had come home...hee hee."

"Something like that." Celes said, and tried to hold back a snicker. Suddenly, there was a loud rumbling within the dining room, the walls began to shake slightly around them, and the dishes clattered against the table.

"Ack, we're moving!" Edgar exclaimed, and held onto his own chair.

"WHOA!" Celes cried, not expecting this, and toppled out of her chair, face first.

"Celes!" Locke laughed, and reached down to help her up. She swatted at his hand angrily and shook her head, deciding it was safer to stay on the floor for now. The rumbling and shaking continued for a few more minutes after that, but when it finally stopped, Sabin came back into the room, grinning.

"Guess where we are?!" He exclaimed, and everyone, with the exception of Locke, jumped up excitedly. It took him a few moments before he finally decided to get out of his chair and stand up with the rest of the group.

"So, um, do we have to actually go to Kohlingen?" Locke questioned as they stepped out of the Figaro Palace...only to find themselves in the desert on the other side of the world. However, it was very small.

"Yes, of course." Celes said, eyeing him strangely. "We have to look for Terra everywhere...besides, people might know about her there."

"Oh, right!" Locke looked away and felt himself begin to sweat even though he wasn't warm at all.

The Returners crossed the small desert and immediately came upon a very small village, one even smaller than Narshe. It had a single main stone path running down the center, only stopping at the narrow river that flowed through the middle of the down, where a tiny bridge took it's place so that villagers could cross and go to the other side of town. Beautiful wildflower beds were scattered everywhere though, and every once in a while a group of children would pop up from them, laughing, and then run off to hide somewhere new. Many bird songs emitted from the small grove of trees Kohlingen had too...it seemed like a very peaceful and happy place.

"So this is Kohlingen..." Celes trailed off and looked around. "It's so small...I wonder if anyone has seen her..."

"Boo!" A little girl suddenly shrieked, making the group all leap 10 feet into the air as she leapt from some flowers. Edgar laughed and messed up her hair.

"Cute!" He exclaimed, and the girl giggled.

"I'm playing ghost-lady!" She exclaimed, and Edgar blinked.

"Ghost-whaaa?"

"A ghost came into our town the other day!" The girl exclaimed. "Everyone else was frightened...but I thought she was beautiful! She had the prettiest red eyes I had ever seen..."

"Oh my Gods..." Sabin murmured to himself.

"Do you know where she went?!" Edgar cried, and the girl shook her head.

"No...she only stopped in front of me for a few seconds...then she disappeared from sight. I thought I was daydreaming at first, but it turns out other people saw her too!"

"Thanks kid!" Edgar exclaimed, and turned to the rest of the group as she ran off to play with her friends. "Terra MUST have been here!"

"No doubt." Sabin said. "But we'll have to gather a bit more information. Looks like we're hot on her trail though!"

"I wonder why Terra would come here though...?" Celes questioned thoughtfully, and turned to Locke for an answer. However...Locke was missing.

"Locke?!" Celes cried, and Sabin and Edgar turned to her, surprised that they hadn't of noticed he was gone themselves.

"Locke!" Edgar called. "Locke!!!"

"Hey, over there!" Sabin said, and pointed a little bit west of them. There was Locke, who was standing in front of a small one story house that looked very untidy and unkept. A shutter was falling off near a front window, the wood it was made of was rotting badly in several places, and chunks of the roof were missing as well. The plants and bushes in front of the house were dying, too. Before anyone could call to him, Locke sighed deeply and pushed open the door, walking inside.

"Come on." Celes said, and grabbed Edgar and Sabin, dragging them over to the house.

"Aha, wait a moment Celes..." Edgar began, and Celes glared at him.

"What!?????!?!"

"I don't think we should just barge in there..."

"Well why would Locke just ditch us like that?" Celes demanded, and Edgar suddenly stopped, staring straight into Celes' eyes.

"...That's Rachel's house." He said flatly, and Celes suddenly felt apt to loosen the grip she had on his arm. Her face slightly flushed over as well as her heartbeat began to speed up dramatically.

"...Rachel?" She asked softly. "Who's that...?"

"...I wasn't able to save her...when she needed me..."

Celes gasped in surprise and turned around, only to see Locke take a step out of the house, his gaze fixed intently on her own. Edgar lowered his head, and Sabin raised his eyebrows in curiosity. Locke sniffled a little and turned his back on them again, facing the home. From her view of the doorway, Celes now understood that it was so unkept because...it was abandoned. There wasn't a person inside. All she could see was a falling apart bookshelf, weighed down with damp, moldy books, and the corner of a bed.

"We...had been treasure hunting...in an old cave..." Locke began. "I pressured her to go with me that day...I was just dying to show her this beautiful relic I had heard rumors about..." With that, he explained his story to the team, starting off with a condensed recollection of the nightmare he had had the other night.

**********

"Locke!" Rachel exclaimed, in her bright, cheery voice that was slightly touched with a country accent. She laughed as she struggled to climb through the entrance of the cave they were in while wearing her long, fancy green gown. "Tell me, what are we off to find today!?" She blew her purple bangs out of her eyes and grinned.

"Soon, you'll...!" Locke exclaimed, and turned to her, winking. Rachel laughed and ran to catch up to him, her footsteps echoing off the walls of the cave. Locke led her further within, carrying a small torch for light. As they were walking, Rachel happily slipped her hand in his, and he squeezed it in reply.

"You're not gonna believe what is up here!" Locke continued, to build the suspense. "Come on, it's worth a fortune!!" With that, Locke released her hand and ran ahead, thumping across a rope bridge that connected one side of the cave to the other, for there was a very deep gorge that came between the two parts. However, as Locke stepped closer and closer to the middle of the bridge, it began to shake violently, and Rachel could hear the sounds of the old ropes breaking and snapping!

"Locke! Look out!" Rachel cried, alarmed as a board from the bridge suddenly fell from underneath Locke's feet, and fell down, down, down into the gorge below. Locke couldn't even hear when the board hit the bottom. He had become totally numb and paralyzed with fear. This was it...he was going to die...

Suddenly, in a flash of purple and green, Rachel dashed out onto the bridge, and before Locke could stop her, gave him a hard shove so that he stumbled back and fell--onto the safety of land on the other side of the gorge. Rachel, however, had done the bridge in--before she could attempt to escape herself, the bridge buckled and collapsed underneath her, sending her flying to the bottom of the gorge.

"LOCKE!!!" She cried, as she fell further and further down.

"RACHEL!" Locke screamed, and with that, jumped into the gorge after her.

********** Back in Kohlingen...

Locke had recovered Rachel's body and ran as fast as he could back to Kohlingen. This was the part of his dream he had always managed to blur out because it had just been so painful...

Rachel was lying in bed, her eyes closed, as if she were sleeping peacefully. Her hair was fanned over her pillow, not concealing some of the bruises she had on her forehead and face. Suddenly, her eyes fluttered open, and Locke smiled happily, leaning in to kiss her nose gently.

"Rachel!! Oh, you're awake...I..."

"Ahhh!" Rachel cried, and jerked away, totally shocked out of the daze she had been in. Locke blinked and peered at her, hoping he had not hurt her.

"Rachel...?" he questioned, and she looked to him, slowly bringing a hand to her forehead.

"......? I...I can't remember...anything..."

********** "AND STAY OUT!"

"Ahhh!" Locke cried as a large man grabbed him by the collar and literally threw him out of Rachel's house, making him roll into the dusty path in front of the house. Locke moaned in pain and looked up, tears in his eyes that threatened to spill at any moment.

"Get the HELL outta here!" The man bellowed so loud, Locke just knew the entire village could hear. "It's your fault Rachel lost her memory!!!!" The man was Rachel's father.

"Wait!" Locke cried, and struggled to get to his feet. "She said "Yes!" We were gonna..." Suddenly, Rachel appeared behind her father, glaring hatefully at him.

"GO! I don't know who you are, but ever since you've came here, you've made my parents upset!" Rachel let out a little cry of disgust and slammed the door in Locke's face as he ran up to try to talk to her. Locke cringed, his ears ringing from the slamming door, and suddenly just gave in to himself. Sobbing softly, he leaned back against the door of the house and slowly slid down it until he had hit the ground, reaching up to hide his face with his hands. He stayed that way for a few moments until an acquaintance of his came up to him, keeping his distance but making his words loud and clear over Locke's crying.

"You'd best leave Rachel alone...she's gonna have to make a new start of everything." He said, and Locke looked up at him. His tears had made clean paths through his dirt-stained cheeks.

"Locke...I don't think your being here is gonna help..."

********** Locke sighed, and kicked at the filthy welcome mat on Rachel's steps. "I left town...a year had passed. When I returned, I learned that Rachel had perished in an Imperial attack." Celes felt her breath get caught in her throat at that particular line of Locke's story. "Rachel's memory returned just before she passed away," Locke continued sadly, "The last thing she uttered was...my name. I never should have left her side... I-I failed her."

"....." Celes bit her lip, not knowing quite what to say. Edgar, who had heard this before, could only hang his head sadly, and Sabin felt tears sting in his eyes. Everyone remained silent for the next few moments, until Locke stepped away from the house and took in a deep breath.

"Sorry you guys." He apologized. "But I didn't really want to hide it from you. It just still hurts...I think about it every once in a while, and I get depressed. Coming here didn't really help matters but..."

"But it was for Terra." Edgar noted, and Locke nodded.

"Yeah, exactly. It was for Terra. Someone else I failed..."

"That's not true!" Sabin said. "None of us could do anything about what happened, and right now, we're doing all we can to fix what's wrong. We're doing our best!"

"I suppose you're right." Locke said, and shoved his hands in his pockets. "But...before we continue on our search...there's one more thing I gotta check up on."

"Can we come?" Edgar questioned, and Locke nodded.

"Yeah...you all know about Rachel now, so I guess it doesn't matter..." With that, Locke turned, and began to lead the group to their new destination. Celes remained behind everyone else, staring down at the ground. A complicated past?? Edgar had made it sound like a joke, but...She wasn't expecting to hear anything like this. Celes felt her insides twinge with slight bitterness.

Oh Locke...Did you only rescue me to make up for your past?? Was that your true reason that you wouldn't tell me??

The Returners crossed the small river bridge and walked to a nice- sized house with a small vegetable garden out front and a small cobblestone path leading up to the door. Instead of knocking, Locke opened the door and walked right in, gesturing for the others to follow him.

"Where is this?" Sabin questioned.

"This is my house." Locke said, and everyone looked about, surprised. It was a perfectly normal home...no hordes or stashes anywhere to be seen, just a few crates that were sitting at the table in the place of chairs, and one locked chest in the corner of the room by the back door. A narrow set of stairs could also be seen.

"Where's all your stuff?" Edgar asked, and Locke laughed a little.

"Well I don't live here right now...I'm renting it out to someone. All my GOOD stuff is in Narshe, of course! It's under Arvis' care."

"Oh, I see!" Sabin exclaimed. "Clever."

"So who lives here?" Celes questioned.

"An old, old, old herbalist." Locke replied. "He uh...isn't really popular here in town...people think he's a little crazy..."

"So what is he doing at your place?" Edgar asked, raising an eyebrow. Locke sighed and leaned in, lowering his voice.

"Well....he..."

"Oh, Locke, is that you!?" A screechy voice suddenly erupted from downstairs. Locke jumped up and cut off his own conversation, running over to the stairway.

"Yeah, I'm home!" Locke called down, and the rest of the Returners looked to each other worriedly. With that, Locke pounded down the stairs, and disappeared from sight.

"Well come on!" Celes cried, and stood up to go after him. Edgar and Sabin nodded, following her down the stairs. The further Celes descended, the more she could detect some sort of a scent. It was like...roses. Soon, they had emerged into the basement of Locke's house, but Celes was shocked at what she saw.

All around the room were many, many bouquets of roses, surrounding a full-sized bed. Hanging from the rafters on the ceiling were dried bouquets of different flowers, and on the wooden shelves nailed to the walls were all sorts of different sized jars and bowls, each probably containing different flowers and herbs as well. Celes imagined that this must had been once Locke's bedroom before he moved away because of the bed. But, when she realized that someone was on it...

"Rachel..." Locke sighed, and walked over to the bed, kneeling beside it. Celes stepped in a little closer to get a better look, but Edgar and Sabin pounded ahead of her and got in her way. She grumbled angrily and crossed her arms over her chest, when suddenly a freezing cold hand grasped at her shoulder.

"YIKES!" Celes screamed, and whirled around, only to peer into the inkish, beady eyes of a short old man wearing bright red silk robes and a matching hat that flopped over his eyes. His white mustache and wild hair seemed to be going everywhere. The man suddenly burst out into hysterical laughter and scampered over to Locke, who was resting his arms and head on the bed. His eyes were locked on the person lying on it, a young woman with long, purple hair and a tan complexion, who looked to be sleeping peacefully by the smile on her face. Celes felt a chill run down her spine, and hugged herself to make it go away. What was going on?

"It's been a while!" The old man squealed, and Locke looked to him, sadness overrunning his features once more.

"Oh, her!?" The man exclaimed, and hopped up and down excitedly. "Worry not! Your treasure is quite safe! Wheee-hee-hee! Uwa-ha-ha-ha!"

"What's with this guy!?" Sabin whispered, and Edgar shook his head. The old man sensed their confusion and looked over to them, making Celes want to duck behind either Edgar or Sabin's tall forms.

"I used some herbs to put her into suspended animation!" The man exclaimed happily. "She won't age a day! Uwaaaa!" He turned to Locke and hopped up and down again. "That's what you wanted, right?! Had to use my herbs, I did!" Celes felt as if her heart had dropped into her stomach. That meant that really WAS Rachel...

"I thought Rachel had passed on..." Sabin murmured.

"Well Locke never said that..." Edgar commented lightly. "He only said he had HEARD she passed away..."

"More secrets!" Celes snapped, and suddenly raised her tone. "Locke, what is going on?!" Locke turned away from Rachel's still form and peered at Celes. He could feel more bad memories coming on...How could he explain himself?

**********

"Oh Rachel..." Locke moaned at the sight of his beloved lying there, on his bed, as if she were dead...He couldn't believe that he had found her like this right when he came back home after hearing about the Empire's attack on Kohlingen. Then he had met the old man... The old man crept up behind him and smiled evilly. Locke turned to him and gave him a suspicious glare.

"You mean those herbs have actually SAVED her...?" He demanded, and the old man nodded.

"Of course!" The old man explained. "The love of your life will sleep here like this forever! Kwa-ha-ha!!!" Locke cursed under his breath and slammed his fist on the bed.

"What if there were a way...to call her back?!" Locke cried, and the old man giggled at this, as if he were playing along with some sort of joke.

"If you could call her back...she'd come back! Kwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!!! But I'm sure you'll find something to bring her around!!!! Hee hee hee hee hee!!!!!"

**********

Locke lowered his head after explaining the best he could, and the man went over to a counter to search for a jar of some sort. Celes was about to say something, when she heard Locke stifle a sob in the mattress of the bed.

"I-I failed her..." Celes felt herself choke up, and Edgar gently rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Lets leave him be..." He whispered, but right then, Locke looked up and shook his head.

"Wait, I'm coming." He said quickly, and rubbed at his eyes so that no signs of tears were evident. "Thanks for waiting...I just had to...you know." Edgar nodded, and with that, gestured the entire group up and out of Locke's basement, including Locke himself. Once they were back upstairs and out of the house, everyone turned to each other.

"We have to check the rest of the town to get more information about Terra." Locke said firmly, although his voice still wavered a bit from crying.

"Why don't we just split up?" Edgar suggested. "Sabin, you get the travelers at the Inn. Locke, you know the neighborhood, so try going to some people's houses. Celes, you ask the kids and parents outside playing, and I'll check out the shops."

"Alright." Celes agreed.

"I'll be back!" Sabin exclaimed, and hurriedly ran off to the Inn near the front of the town's entrance.

"I'll try to learn everything I can." Locke said, and with that, departed as well. Edgar looked up to Celes, and frowned a little.

"Are you ok Celes?" He asked, and Celes nodded quickly.

"Yes...I'm just a bit surprised, is all. It all has to sink in, if you know what I mean."

"I see..." Edgar sighed a little. "Listen, I'm sorry about all this..."

"Please, say no more." Celes said firmly. "It's not Rachel I'm upset about."

"Oh?" questioned Edgar, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm just worried for Locke." Celes replied, and looked back to Locke's house. Edgar noticed the aversion of her gaze and decided not to carry out the conversation any further.

"Alright...but don't let Locke know you are worried." Edgar added in quickly. "Then he'll start worrying about you and...Well, I don't know what will happen after that. I'll see you a little later." Edgar turned and walked away, heading for the nearest general store. Celes looked over to him to make sure he was out of sight, and with that, turned right back around and walked into Locke's house.

**********

Meanwhile, Sabin had entered the Inn and walked about, trying to find the commons room where he could question any of the travelers about Terra. As he walked down the long hall from the counter, he could hear soft moaning coming from one of the bedrooms.

"Oh man..." Sabin thought, and squeezed his eyes shut, not even wanting to imagine what was going on in there. But as he walked on, he realized that they were moans of pain, and stopped in front of the door. It was just one person...male, apparently, from what he could tell. The door was slightly ajar, but he didn't want to barge in on them or anything...

".....Open your eyes!! You're gonna be ok..."

"WHAT?!"

"No, I can't!!! I can't do that to you..."

"I'm sorry..."

"Sounds like a nightmare!" Sabin murmured to himself, and being the kind-natured person he was, he decided to snap them out of it before their suffering went on any further. He gently pushed open the ajar door, and let out a small gasp when he saw who was lying there on the bed.

"No way!" He cried a little louder then he intended, and suddenly, the person gasped and sat up in bed, staring straight at Sabin. Sabin gulped and nervously raised a hand in greeting, but they did not wave back...

**********

Celes pulled her cape closer over her shoulders as she went back down into the basement and looked about to see who was around. The old man was no where to be seen, although she wasn't quite sure where he could of disappeared off to so fast. She nearly jumped at the sound of her own boots clicking on the stone floor as she slowly made her way back over to the bed surrounded in roses. All of a sudden, the basement felt so cold and so...empty. Celes took a deep breath, inhaling some of the rose scent as she looked down at Rachel, Locke's fiancé.

She really was a pretty girl, in a simple and charming way. Her pink lips were parted ever so slightly, and Celes could actually hear the soft whistling of her breathing in and breathing out. Her chest, however, did not move at all, so it was very difficult for anyone who was not observing her closely enough. Her hands were folded over her stomach, but Celes found it odd that there was no rings on any of her fingers. Her cheeks even had a slight rosy glow to them...as if she really were just sleeping, and at any moment now, she would sit up, stretch, and ask Celes where her husband-to-be was so that she could kiss him good afternoon.

Finally, Celes couldn't take anymore. She bitterly wished she had not come back to get a better look at the poor girl she couldn't see very well before because of Edgar, Sabin, and Locke being in her way. She didn't know what she was hoping to actually see, but what she saw now did not make her feel any better about herself, or about anyone else or anything that was wrapped up in this tragic mess.

Why do I even care?! Celes thought, and with that, stomped away to go back up the stairs. Before reaching the last step, she turned once more to look at the sleeping Rachel, and felt as if her heart had been frozen over with one of her own Ice spells. She sighed and brought a hand to her chest, almost expecting to feel coldness emitting from where her heart was.

"Oh Locke..."