Chapter Twenty-Eight- The Magical Artist of Questionable Origin, Relm
"That little boy that had been hanging around the house before..." Locke murmured to himself as he watched the mansion smoke and burn before his very eyes. "It must of been his Fire spell..."
"THIS is the place?" Locke heard Terra cry as he rushed up to her and Strago.
"Yes!" Strago whimpered. "Relm's inside that house!" Suddenly, a large portion of the roof collapsed in a burst of new flames, causing Strago to cry out again and reach out towards the house.
"RELM!!!!!!"
He shook his head and pressed his hands together, closing his eyes as he began to murmur underneath his breath. Terra widened her eyes, and Locke bit his lip. He sort of knew what was coming.
"What...are you...doing...?" He trailed off, and with that, Strago spread his arms wide and tilted his head back, opening his eyes.
"Flames BE GONE! Aqua Rake!"
Suddenly a blue aura began to glow around Strago's hands, and a colorful, sparkling spray of bubbles began to appear from thin air, crashing into the house and struggling to drown the flames. However, it did not have much of an impact, and therefore, Strago returned to casting stance to try again. Locke and Terra turned to each other, eyes wide and mouths gaping open. At that moment, an elderly man in deep red robes ran over to Strago and the Returners, shaking his fist at Strago threateningly.
"You fool! You know that using MAGIC is forbidden!"
"Magic...?!" Terra cried, and looked over at Strago. Despite it being a spell she had never heard of or seen before, there was no doubt about it that it was truly some form of magic! She was terribly confused as to why Strago, the young mother, and the little boy in the village all wielded the same powers that she herself had been born with, but she knew now was not the time to ask questions. A young girl's life was at stake...
"I don't care!" Strago cried. "Relm is inside! I have got to save her!" He turned away from him at that moment, and cast another spell.
"Flames BE GONE!"
"Mayor!" Another citizen cried, and the Returners whirled around, seeing that it was the woman who was about the cure her injured son from earlier in the day. "Please! What good is this wretched power if we cannot even use it to save an innocent life?"
"Wretched power..." Locke trailed off.
The mayor sighed and nodded, lowering his head a bit.
"You're right...we really have no choice!" He looked to Locke and Celes. "Stand back!" The two did as they were instructed, and the mayor raised his hands, crying out:
"Flames BE GONE!"
"Flames BE GONE!" Strago followed, and even the young woman helped out.
"Flames BE GONE!"
More citizens from the town came scrambling over, all chanting out various spells, desperate to help as well. Sparkling bubbles and soft blue light struck the flames of the house, however...
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
The whole town let out an uproar as a large portion of the house suddenly collapsed in on itself, causing even more flames to leap up from the smoldering mess and lick at the black sky above them. Strago let out a defeated moan, and clutched his rod so tightly, his gnarled knuckles turned white.
"It's no use! The fire is far too strong!" He said, and the mayor nodded.
"I think it's because that family kept so many fire rods in there..."
"What are we going to do!?" Terra cried, and Strago sighed, pushing his cape back over his shoulder.
"I'm going in!"
"Wait!" Terra cried, and Strago looked to her. "I'm going too!"
"Count me in." Locke volunteered, and patted Strago on the shoulder. "You'd better stay here, Gramps! It's far too dangerous. We'll be sure to find Relm!"
"Fool!" Strago cried, and slapped at Locke's hand bitterly. "I may be old, but I'm not powerless!" Locke was about to open his mouth to protest again, but another sickening crash of collapsing wood and roaring flame taking it's place interrupted him.
"This is not a time to argue!" Terra cried. "Quickly!" Locke and Strago nodded, and with that, the three ran inside the house, the door collapsing in behind them...
"Ugh..!" Locke moaned, his eyes immediately watering due to the bright light being cast from the dancing flames around them, and the heavy smoke that was coming up from holes in the floors in billowing waves. Ever worse, the house had become infested with a type of monster called a Bomb, a fire-red creature that was attracted to open flames and often basked in them for a replacement in energy like a human would in a Recovery Spring. The Bombs were flying all about, letting out low hisses of laughter as they rolled about in the flames that crawled up the walls and the wooden floor panels.
"Try...to avoid the flames..." Locke coughed, and Terra looked to him concernedly.
"That is easier said than done..."
"We must hurry! We have to find Relm!" Strago cried, and with that, charged ahead of the group, the small sapphire at the top of his rod shining brightly with a delicate blue light as he effortlessly slashed through the flames and Bombs that were in his path with it. Locke and Terra blinked, and ran after him, amazed at the power this old man had harbored within him.
However, several paths that the team could of had the option of taking were blocked by either gaping holes or flames too strong to be vanquished by Strago's ice rod, so the Returners and their companion were forced to pretty much go in one direction the whole time-- up. The team climbed staircase after staircase, shouting out Relm's name as loudly as they could and listening to see if she called back. The higher the team went, the more blistering the heat and more blinding the smoke became, and soon Locke, Terra, and Strago could hardly breathe without coughing or choking deeply. Throwing open a door in front of him, Strago rushed in and lowered his head, coughing loudly as he struggled to wave the smoke away from him with his weapon. Terra looked around the room and let out a frightened gasp when she saw what was looming in front of them...a large, fiery ball of flames that was sizzling and boiling in it's own gasses, surrounded by six rather large Bombs.
"What is that?!" Terra cried, and Strago looked up.
"This must be the ultimate source of our blaze!" Strago exclaimed. "It is called a Flame Eater...think of it as a rather evolved form of the Bomb. It too, is attracted to large flames and lives off of them for as long as it can manage, often expelling flammable gasses and toxins so that the fire will grow bigger, therefore providing it with more energy..."
"Skip the lesson Grandpa, we're in deep shit!" Locke cried, looking around and realizing that the Bombs had slowly managed to surround the team.
"We must defeat the Flame Eater, or else we'll be trapped!" Terra cried, and pulled out a shard of Magicite, tossing it into the air. "SHIVA! Please, Goddess of Ice, come to our aid!" At that moment, the area surrounding the Returners washed over in a frosty blue color, and Shiva flew in like a phantom, raising a sparkling wand that was clasped in her hand and crying out foreign words, causing the sapphires and other gems that adorned the top of her wand to burst into thousands of little pieces. The gem dust sparkled about the Bombs and Flame Eater, causing them all to let out roars of rage as the dust neutralized their defenses. It was so effective against the Bombs, that their bodies completely froze over and collapsed to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces as they died and faded away, along with Shiva herself. Now just left with facing the Flame Eater, Locke, Terra, and Strago all turned to it and let out a full-frontal assault.
"Blizzara!" Locke exclaimed, and watched as large, glimmering icicles flew out from the ceiling and struck themselves down upon the enemy, causing it to howl in pain as more of it's flames became neutralized. The ball of fire began to shrink a bit, trying desperately to recover itself but not succeeding.
"Locke!" Terra exclaimed happily. "Did you learn that from Shiva?!"
"She's a good teacher." Locke winked, and with that, cast another brutal Blizzara spell. Strago raised his ice rod and struck at the Flame Eater repeatedly as he channeled more Aqua Rake spells, and Terra summoned up Bismark, the lord of seas, washing the Flame Eater over in decimating waves of water and bubble spray. However, before anyone else could conjure up a new spell, the Flame Eater let out a struggled cry and began to disintegrate into little bits of blackened ash and smoke. With a loud crack and a flash of light, it burst from the inside, completely destroyed. Letting out a little cheer, Terra leapt into the air.
"We did it!" She exclaimed, but cut herself off when her gaze caught on something that was cowering in the back of the room. There was Interceptor, Shadow's dog! It let out a low whimper and frantically pushed his nose into something too small for Terra to make out, so with that, she proceeded ahead to investigate. Strago whirled about and began to call out again:
"RELM! WHERE ARE YOU!?"
"Strago!" Terra suddenly cried, and gestured for the others to join her. Locke and Strago ran over, ignoring the flames that licked at their clothing as the looked down and saw what Interceptor was poking and licking at. It was Relm's delicate frame, and the girl was out cold, her eyes closed and her cheeks smudged with ash.
"Relm!" Strago cried, and bent down to scoop her into his arms. "Lets hurry out of..." Suddenly, another chunk of the roof collapsed, the large and flame-ridden pieces of wood pouring down upon the unsuspecting Returners, and Strago...
"Ugh...!!!!" Locke moaned as a piece of roof struck the back of his head, causing him to fall to the floor, unconscious and un-moving.
"Uwa...too late..." Terra moaned out, collapsing on top of him as Strago cried out and also met their fate, dropping Relm back onto the floor next to Interceptor. Interceptor let out a loud bark and began scurrying about the fallen heroes, pushing his cold nose into every face he could manage to make them wake up. However, his tactic was not working, and things were beginning to look helpless. A swarm of Bombs came upon the party, causing Interceptor to bark out loudly and leap at them, desperately trying to keep them from feasting upon the unconscious bodies behind him. But more Bombs were moving in, and Interceptor couldn't hold them all back...
Suddenly, a lone figure, draped in black, dropped into the burning mansion from a hole in the roof, landing on the near-collapsing floor with the impact of a feather. Looking at the pitiful scene before him, he drew a dagger and in one swift charge, sliced through every flaming foe in his path. The Bombs cried out, decimated in one blow, and disappeared in little poofs of smoke. Interceptor looked up curiously at the man and let out a soft whine, nudging at Relm's lifeless body. The man nodded and reached in a hidden pocket, revealing a small glass bottle filled with a cloudy liquid.
"Time to get the hell out of here." He muttered, and tossed down the bottle, surrounding himself and the fallen group in a curtain of misty white smoke. Moments later, they were gone.
**********
The Next Morning...
"Are you ok, dear?" Strago asked soothingly, pushing back little curls behind Relm's ears as she nodded and sat up in bed a bit.
"Yes. Thank you Grandpa...!" She coughed and covered her mouth, wincing a little. She had been the last to wake up, only moments ago, in her own bed. How she had gotten there, she had no idea. Last she remembered, someone had taken her into their strong arms, a rough but familiar voice mumbling out her name.
"You should save your thanks for these people." Strago said, and gestured towards Terra and Locke. A bit battered, but otherwise fine, Terra and Locke both walked closer to Relm's bedside and smiled warmly. Relm looked up at them and smiled back a bit. Shadow was sitting idly in the back corner of the room by the staircase leading downstairs with Interceptor, remaining absolutely silent. He did not desire credit for what he had done last night in the fire.
"Thank you..."
Strago sighed and began to pace around again, shaking his head. Terra and Locke both looked up at him worriedly, and he stared back at them.
"I guess...our town's little secret is out now..."
"Oh..." Terra trailed off, remembering the whole scene with the mayor from the previous night.
"Can everyone here use magic?" Locke asked blankly. "I mean, now that I think of it, you didn't seem too surprised when Terra and I used Esper power last night...so you must of already been exposed to something like that before..." Strago nodded a bit and looked at the floor. Relm remained silent as she watched the tension build between the strangers and her Grandfather. Surely, he could not hide the truth any longer. He had no right, after all that they had done for them!!! She decided that if Strago did not open his mouth and confess, she would do it for him.
"What's going on here?" Locke pressed on, and Strago sighed again.
"This is...the village...of the Mage Warriors."
Terra and Locke both raised their eyebrows, and Relm sat up in bed more, only knowing the story that was to come next too well.
"Long ago, humans would use Magicite...much like you two do now...to gain magical powers. They came to be known as "Mage Warriors". In a sense, you yourselves, are the Mage Warriors of today..."
"But I thought Mage Warriors perished long ago..." Locke trailed off.
"Not only that..." Terra interrupted. "When I watched you cast your spells, Strago, the aura around you seemed...drastically different from the aura Locke and I carry...Are our magics the same?"
"I am surprised you can sense something like that." Strago blinked. "But no, they are not the same, as I will explain to you shortly. "After the War of the Magi, the Espers fled to their new world behind the Sealed Gate. They wished to live peacefully, without fear of being used by humans, and they also left the Mage Warriors here to fend for themselves. But they were despised by normal people. Everyone felt they had begun that war... They sent people to hunt them down like animals. There weren't even trials..." Terra gasped and walked over to Strago, resting her hands on his shoulders. He was nearly a foot shorter than her, but she still looked him straight in the eye, her heart aching with sympathy.
"Even though the only difference between Mage Warriors and normal humans was them being able to use magic...?" Strago nodded, and Terra bit her lower lip.
"A few Mage Warriors escaped and found their way here at Crescent Island. They founded Thamasa, and they are the ones Relm and I, as well as the rest of the village, call our ancestors. Our powers have weakened over time, for many reasons. For one, we could not gain any more abilities, for we had no access to any more Magicite except for what the Espers left us with, which wasn't much. Also, despite not having too much contact with the outside world, many generations of Mage Warriors ended up getting married to outsiders, thus thinning the magical blood that was carried by their offspring. However, today, some of that power still remains, although it has taken on different forms. The citizens of Thamasa today can only use the basics, such as Cure, Fire, and Ice, but then there are others, like me, who cannot at all, but have another form of magic. It is called Blue Magic, or Lore, and it is the art of learning the powerful magic certain monsters on the continent use. I have to hunt the monsters, but when they attack me with certain techniques, I can apply them to my memory instantly and use them as my own from that moment on."
"That's incredible!" Terra exclaimed. "I had no idea that sort of power ever existed! Then I suppose Relm can use Lore too, since she is your grandchild?" Strago blinked and Locke widened his eyes, remembering what the shop keeper had told him about Relm the other night.
"Well, no, she can not." Strago said, gesturing towards the little girl. "I'm afraid she didn't inherit any of my powers...in fact, she has barely any magical ability at all. Her father was a common man, and her mother had very weak magical ability."
"How...odd...that your daughter, whom I can only presume was her mother, did not inherit any of your abilities as well..." Locke trailed off suspiciously, and Strago nodded, keeping a straight face, although he could not help but think that Locke somehow knew the truth...
"Aha, her mother WAS my daughter. But I'm afraid I am a master of Blue Magic, and not of genetics. It was unfortunate that Relm did not inherit any magic, but I am also grateful for her. She will someday be able to grow up and leave this village to venture out into the rest of the world, and become whatever her heart longs to become, never having to fear persecution or racism from anyone because of her ancestry."
"That's a good point...but it is also slightly disturbing." Terra mused. "For I too, have suffered much from the persecution of others for being different...but I had the mild hope growing up that the children of the next generation would never have to feel what I felt, regardless of who or what they were. It breaks my heart knowing that there are still people out there that would prey on the spirit of an innocent child, just because of their abilities." She looked to Relm, who was staring right back at her, wide-eyed.
This young woman is full of insight and wisdom beyond her years... Relm thought curiously. Who is she...? Who are these people?!
Terra turned away from Relm a few moments later, looking back to Strago.
"Listen...if you're up to it, we could use your help." Terra offered. "Your powers would make an incredible asset to our team. We're called the Returners, and we are a resistance movement against the Empire. I am sure you have heard of them..."
"We've heard disturbing stories." Strago nodded. "Luckily though, our village seems to be the least of their concerns at the moment."
"At any rate, right now Locke and I...oh, and Shadow too, are trying to find the Espers that escaped from the Sealed Gate. They have been wrecking havoc, but all we want to do is tell them that the Empire desires peace with them. They completely leveled the Imperial Capital, Vector, and the Emperor supposedly wants to make a truce. Many innocent people were killed in the attack."
"Emperor Gestahl desires peace..." Strago trailed off, and Terra nodded.
"Either way, we still want to reach the Espers and tell them that no one wishes harm to any of them. The lives of more innocent people will be at stake if they continue their rampage, and what we wish to do more than anything else right now is prevent more bloodshed."
"So...you're after Espers, eh?" Strago mumbled, and brought his hand to his chin in thought. "Well, I owe you for saving Relm. I shall help you find your Espers."
"Oh, me too!" Relm exclaimed, bouncing up and down in the bed excitedly, but Strago glared at her and shook his head.
"I don't think so, young lady!"
"Grrrr...what a fuddy-duddy..." Relm muttered, and began to curse underneath her breath.
"But where would we start looking?" Locke questioned worriedly. "We haven't had much luck since we've arrived here."
"Hmm...well if they're here, they are sure to be hiding in the mountains to the west." Strago determined.
"Why there?" Locke asked.
"Those mountains have very powerful magical properties." Strago said. "They say...our ancestors, that is, that the first Espers were actually created there."
"Maybe they are drawn to that place!" Terra exclaimed, and with that, Shadow and Interceptor took their leave, going downstairs.
"I think it's worth a look." Locke said, and with that, he, Terra, and Strago went downstairs also, leaving poor little Relm in bed, scowling at her being left behind.
Outside of Strago's house, the team encountered Shadow and Interceptor waiting for them on the main street of town. Strago opened his mouth to thank Shadow for his rescue last night, but Shadow anticipated this and shook his head.
"Don't misunderstand me. I just wanted my dog back."
"Are you going somewhere?" Locke asked concernedly.
"I'll search for the Espers my own way." Shadow said. "I work better alone, you know." Right then Relm appeared outside and ran over to Interceptor, huggling onto the dog tightly. Interceptor jumped up happily and began to lick at her face.
"Interceptor! Come!" Shadow cried, and with that, Interceptor pulled away from Relm, looking back at her once more before trotting off with his master, soon disappearing from everyone's sight. Relm let out a disappointed sigh and immediately ran back inside, slamming the door behind her.
"Never mind him." Terra said gently when she looked at the shocked expression on Strago's face. "He's always like that."
"I know..."
"What?!"
"Uh, sorry, just mumbling to myself." Strago laughed a little and tapped his ice rod on the ground. "So, shall we get going? The day is young, and today, ho ho ho, I feel as if I am tooooooo!"
"Oh man..." Locke moaned, slapping his forehead. "Just lead the way already...!"
**********
"What happened here last night?" Celes blinked as she looked around.
"There must of been a huge fire." Leo said, pressing his lips together. "Can't imagine what could of caused it..."
"Hello, can I help you?" A young man asked, tapping Leo on the shoulder. Leo and Celes whirled around, and Celes pointed to the mansion, now burnt to the ground in a smoldering pile of ash.
"What the hell happened?!" Celes shrieked, and the man blinked.
"Oh goodness, it was the biggest blaze ya ever did see last night! Some kid supposedly started the fire, but it got so bad that flame-dwelling monsters swarmed into the mansion itself to feed on the fire! Unfortunately also, there was a young girl trapped inside. Her grandfather, Strago Magus, and a green-haired woman and a man with a bandana tied around his forehead ran inside to rescue her, but no one saw any of them come back out. After they were in there for about an hour, the remaining roof on the house collapsed, and the whole building literally went down with it moments later. The weird thing is though, just this morning, I saw Strago in the Item Shop while I was there, and he was asking about potions that would help relieve fatigue for his granddaughter. But I didn't see the two young people that went in with him...I think they didn't make it. It's a damn shame though, that someone should die like that..." Celes widened her eyes and looked to Leo, who was staring at her, not being able to imagine how she would react to that.
"A green-haired woman...and...a man...with a bandana..." Celes mumbled, and suddenly felt as if she were about to collapse. Closing her eyes, she bit down on her lower lip and suddenly swayed backwards, Leo gasping out as he caught her falling body.
"Celes!" Leo cried, and Celes closed her eyes tighter, her voice cracking as she clung onto her friend.
"Terra...! Locke...!!"
"Celes, please, let's get you somewhere to lay down." Leo offered worriedly, glaring at the young man as he stared at Celes and quickly ran off to go back to his business. Celes opened her eyes, on the brink of tears as she dug her fingernails into Leo's flesh and screamed out, her voice cutting through the peaceful air of the town like a sharpened dagger:
"LOCKE!!!!!!"
**********
The caves that the Returners had been navigating through all afternoon reminded Terra strangely of the little caves back on Mt. Kolts so long ago, but there was just something refreshing and invigorating about the air surrounding these magical mountains. Unfortunately, also much like the caves of Mt. Kolts, Terra got the inkling that they were being followed by someone. And when she looked back to spot their not-so-experienced stalker, she often saw flashes bouncy curls and a familiar red hat...
However, she simply smiled to herself and kept her mouth shut. Things would get interesting later, she was sure.
"I see a bit of light coming from in here." Strago motioned to a open entryway in front of the group as Terra whirled back around, and Locke stood up from investigating a shiny rock that for a moment, he almost thought was treasure.
"I hope we haven't reached the exit of this cave already." Terra said worriedly as she stepped ahead. "We're running out of places we can search...!" Strago nodded and went through the doorway, however, he immediately gasped out, causing Locke and Terra to run in after him.
"What?!" Locke cried, and Strago jumped up and down, pointing to a raised portion of the floor across from them.
"Look! I can't believe it! It's THE STATUES!"
Standing straight up on the raised floor were three glimmering gold statuettes, each one in the shape of a beautiful, shapely woman. Strago began to run across the bridges that stretched over the gaps in the cave so that he could reached the raised land and the statuettes. Locke widened his eyes and ran after him, nearly bolting ahead of the old man as he squealed.
"TREASURE!"
Terra blinked and crossed her arms over her chest as she slowly followed after the both of them.
"'The' Statues?"
Locke dove down to the base of each statuette and peered carefully, gently brushing his fingers over each base to remove the dirt and dust that had gathered over it.
"Some faint letters are carved on the back of these stone figures..." He stood up and brushed his hands on his pants, wiping off the dirt on his fingers. "Say, Old Man, what else can you tell us about these beauuuuuuuuutiful goddesses?"
"Oh goodness!" Terra cried, rolling her eyes and not noticing as a little head popped in through the doorway and quickly popped back out.
"They quite literally created magic, as we know it." Strago explained, and Locke blinked.
"So they're the goddesses of magic, then?" Locke confirmed, and Strago nodded.
"You could say that."
The small figure appeared back in through the doorway and began to slowly creep towards the Returners.
"I can feel their power...!" Terra cried, looking over them with wonder.
"The Statues are the source of all magic. It's said the Espers made these images, and put them in a very special place. These represent power beyond all comprehension..."
"Our Espers no doubt came here to bask in all this magical power!" Terra determined, closing her eyes a bit. Although she resisted easily, she could still feel the Esper side of her that longed to morph through and bask completely in the warm energy surrounding her feeble human form...energy that a human body had no use for...could not fully appreciate...
"Say, Old Timer!" Locke suddenly chimed, forcing Terra out of her semi-trance. "What happened to the stone goddesses?"
"Must you always refer to my age as my name!?" Strago shrieked, and gave Locke a good whack on the head with his ice rod. "Young people these days...they have no respect!" He cleared his throat and looked back over at the statues. "Legend has it that they're hidden somewhere beyond the reach of humans. I'd say they're beyond the Sealed Gate..."
"It makes sense." Terra said. "I bet the barrier that protects the Sealed Gate is the work of The Statues..."
"Whew...what a story." Locke commented, rubbing at the back of his head where Strago had struck him.
"If the Espers were attracted to Crescent Island by these statues...then they must be around here somewhere!!!" Terra exclaimed.
"It's worth a look." Locke said, and with that, began to walk back down to the bridges so that he could explore the rest of the room. Strago followed, but Terra remained behind for a moment, leaning down to read at the inscriptions that Locke had been dusting off. There was a small inscription on each statuette:
"The birth of magic...three goddesses were banished here. In time, they began quarreling, which led to all-out war. Those unlucky humans who got in the way were transformed to Espers, and used as living war machines..."
"The goddesses finally realized that they were being laughed at by those who had banished them here. In a rare moment of mutual clarity, they agreed to seal themselves away from the world. With their last ounce of energy they gave the Espers back their own free will, and then transformed themselves...into stone. Their only request was that the Espers keep them sealed away for all eternity."
Terra took a deep breath and slipped over to the middle statuette, having to squint her eyes a little more than before to read the final inscription. It was only two sentences long, and carved in very tiny writing:
"The Espers created these statues as a symbol of their vow to let the goddesses sleep in peace. The Espers have sworn to keep the goddesses' power from being abused."
"That little boy that had been hanging around the house before..." Locke murmured to himself as he watched the mansion smoke and burn before his very eyes. "It must of been his Fire spell..."
"THIS is the place?" Locke heard Terra cry as he rushed up to her and Strago.
"Yes!" Strago whimpered. "Relm's inside that house!" Suddenly, a large portion of the roof collapsed in a burst of new flames, causing Strago to cry out again and reach out towards the house.
"RELM!!!!!!"
He shook his head and pressed his hands together, closing his eyes as he began to murmur underneath his breath. Terra widened her eyes, and Locke bit his lip. He sort of knew what was coming.
"What...are you...doing...?" He trailed off, and with that, Strago spread his arms wide and tilted his head back, opening his eyes.
"Flames BE GONE! Aqua Rake!"
Suddenly a blue aura began to glow around Strago's hands, and a colorful, sparkling spray of bubbles began to appear from thin air, crashing into the house and struggling to drown the flames. However, it did not have much of an impact, and therefore, Strago returned to casting stance to try again. Locke and Terra turned to each other, eyes wide and mouths gaping open. At that moment, an elderly man in deep red robes ran over to Strago and the Returners, shaking his fist at Strago threateningly.
"You fool! You know that using MAGIC is forbidden!"
"Magic...?!" Terra cried, and looked over at Strago. Despite it being a spell she had never heard of or seen before, there was no doubt about it that it was truly some form of magic! She was terribly confused as to why Strago, the young mother, and the little boy in the village all wielded the same powers that she herself had been born with, but she knew now was not the time to ask questions. A young girl's life was at stake...
"I don't care!" Strago cried. "Relm is inside! I have got to save her!" He turned away from him at that moment, and cast another spell.
"Flames BE GONE!"
"Mayor!" Another citizen cried, and the Returners whirled around, seeing that it was the woman who was about the cure her injured son from earlier in the day. "Please! What good is this wretched power if we cannot even use it to save an innocent life?"
"Wretched power..." Locke trailed off.
The mayor sighed and nodded, lowering his head a bit.
"You're right...we really have no choice!" He looked to Locke and Celes. "Stand back!" The two did as they were instructed, and the mayor raised his hands, crying out:
"Flames BE GONE!"
"Flames BE GONE!" Strago followed, and even the young woman helped out.
"Flames BE GONE!"
More citizens from the town came scrambling over, all chanting out various spells, desperate to help as well. Sparkling bubbles and soft blue light struck the flames of the house, however...
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
The whole town let out an uproar as a large portion of the house suddenly collapsed in on itself, causing even more flames to leap up from the smoldering mess and lick at the black sky above them. Strago let out a defeated moan, and clutched his rod so tightly, his gnarled knuckles turned white.
"It's no use! The fire is far too strong!" He said, and the mayor nodded.
"I think it's because that family kept so many fire rods in there..."
"What are we going to do!?" Terra cried, and Strago sighed, pushing his cape back over his shoulder.
"I'm going in!"
"Wait!" Terra cried, and Strago looked to her. "I'm going too!"
"Count me in." Locke volunteered, and patted Strago on the shoulder. "You'd better stay here, Gramps! It's far too dangerous. We'll be sure to find Relm!"
"Fool!" Strago cried, and slapped at Locke's hand bitterly. "I may be old, but I'm not powerless!" Locke was about to open his mouth to protest again, but another sickening crash of collapsing wood and roaring flame taking it's place interrupted him.
"This is not a time to argue!" Terra cried. "Quickly!" Locke and Strago nodded, and with that, the three ran inside the house, the door collapsing in behind them...
"Ugh..!" Locke moaned, his eyes immediately watering due to the bright light being cast from the dancing flames around them, and the heavy smoke that was coming up from holes in the floors in billowing waves. Ever worse, the house had become infested with a type of monster called a Bomb, a fire-red creature that was attracted to open flames and often basked in them for a replacement in energy like a human would in a Recovery Spring. The Bombs were flying all about, letting out low hisses of laughter as they rolled about in the flames that crawled up the walls and the wooden floor panels.
"Try...to avoid the flames..." Locke coughed, and Terra looked to him concernedly.
"That is easier said than done..."
"We must hurry! We have to find Relm!" Strago cried, and with that, charged ahead of the group, the small sapphire at the top of his rod shining brightly with a delicate blue light as he effortlessly slashed through the flames and Bombs that were in his path with it. Locke and Terra blinked, and ran after him, amazed at the power this old man had harbored within him.
However, several paths that the team could of had the option of taking were blocked by either gaping holes or flames too strong to be vanquished by Strago's ice rod, so the Returners and their companion were forced to pretty much go in one direction the whole time-- up. The team climbed staircase after staircase, shouting out Relm's name as loudly as they could and listening to see if she called back. The higher the team went, the more blistering the heat and more blinding the smoke became, and soon Locke, Terra, and Strago could hardly breathe without coughing or choking deeply. Throwing open a door in front of him, Strago rushed in and lowered his head, coughing loudly as he struggled to wave the smoke away from him with his weapon. Terra looked around the room and let out a frightened gasp when she saw what was looming in front of them...a large, fiery ball of flames that was sizzling and boiling in it's own gasses, surrounded by six rather large Bombs.
"What is that?!" Terra cried, and Strago looked up.
"This must be the ultimate source of our blaze!" Strago exclaimed. "It is called a Flame Eater...think of it as a rather evolved form of the Bomb. It too, is attracted to large flames and lives off of them for as long as it can manage, often expelling flammable gasses and toxins so that the fire will grow bigger, therefore providing it with more energy..."
"Skip the lesson Grandpa, we're in deep shit!" Locke cried, looking around and realizing that the Bombs had slowly managed to surround the team.
"We must defeat the Flame Eater, or else we'll be trapped!" Terra cried, and pulled out a shard of Magicite, tossing it into the air. "SHIVA! Please, Goddess of Ice, come to our aid!" At that moment, the area surrounding the Returners washed over in a frosty blue color, and Shiva flew in like a phantom, raising a sparkling wand that was clasped in her hand and crying out foreign words, causing the sapphires and other gems that adorned the top of her wand to burst into thousands of little pieces. The gem dust sparkled about the Bombs and Flame Eater, causing them all to let out roars of rage as the dust neutralized their defenses. It was so effective against the Bombs, that their bodies completely froze over and collapsed to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces as they died and faded away, along with Shiva herself. Now just left with facing the Flame Eater, Locke, Terra, and Strago all turned to it and let out a full-frontal assault.
"Blizzara!" Locke exclaimed, and watched as large, glimmering icicles flew out from the ceiling and struck themselves down upon the enemy, causing it to howl in pain as more of it's flames became neutralized. The ball of fire began to shrink a bit, trying desperately to recover itself but not succeeding.
"Locke!" Terra exclaimed happily. "Did you learn that from Shiva?!"
"She's a good teacher." Locke winked, and with that, cast another brutal Blizzara spell. Strago raised his ice rod and struck at the Flame Eater repeatedly as he channeled more Aqua Rake spells, and Terra summoned up Bismark, the lord of seas, washing the Flame Eater over in decimating waves of water and bubble spray. However, before anyone else could conjure up a new spell, the Flame Eater let out a struggled cry and began to disintegrate into little bits of blackened ash and smoke. With a loud crack and a flash of light, it burst from the inside, completely destroyed. Letting out a little cheer, Terra leapt into the air.
"We did it!" She exclaimed, but cut herself off when her gaze caught on something that was cowering in the back of the room. There was Interceptor, Shadow's dog! It let out a low whimper and frantically pushed his nose into something too small for Terra to make out, so with that, she proceeded ahead to investigate. Strago whirled about and began to call out again:
"RELM! WHERE ARE YOU!?"
"Strago!" Terra suddenly cried, and gestured for the others to join her. Locke and Strago ran over, ignoring the flames that licked at their clothing as the looked down and saw what Interceptor was poking and licking at. It was Relm's delicate frame, and the girl was out cold, her eyes closed and her cheeks smudged with ash.
"Relm!" Strago cried, and bent down to scoop her into his arms. "Lets hurry out of..." Suddenly, another chunk of the roof collapsed, the large and flame-ridden pieces of wood pouring down upon the unsuspecting Returners, and Strago...
"Ugh...!!!!" Locke moaned as a piece of roof struck the back of his head, causing him to fall to the floor, unconscious and un-moving.
"Uwa...too late..." Terra moaned out, collapsing on top of him as Strago cried out and also met their fate, dropping Relm back onto the floor next to Interceptor. Interceptor let out a loud bark and began scurrying about the fallen heroes, pushing his cold nose into every face he could manage to make them wake up. However, his tactic was not working, and things were beginning to look helpless. A swarm of Bombs came upon the party, causing Interceptor to bark out loudly and leap at them, desperately trying to keep them from feasting upon the unconscious bodies behind him. But more Bombs were moving in, and Interceptor couldn't hold them all back...
Suddenly, a lone figure, draped in black, dropped into the burning mansion from a hole in the roof, landing on the near-collapsing floor with the impact of a feather. Looking at the pitiful scene before him, he drew a dagger and in one swift charge, sliced through every flaming foe in his path. The Bombs cried out, decimated in one blow, and disappeared in little poofs of smoke. Interceptor looked up curiously at the man and let out a soft whine, nudging at Relm's lifeless body. The man nodded and reached in a hidden pocket, revealing a small glass bottle filled with a cloudy liquid.
"Time to get the hell out of here." He muttered, and tossed down the bottle, surrounding himself and the fallen group in a curtain of misty white smoke. Moments later, they were gone.
**********
The Next Morning...
"Are you ok, dear?" Strago asked soothingly, pushing back little curls behind Relm's ears as she nodded and sat up in bed a bit.
"Yes. Thank you Grandpa...!" She coughed and covered her mouth, wincing a little. She had been the last to wake up, only moments ago, in her own bed. How she had gotten there, she had no idea. Last she remembered, someone had taken her into their strong arms, a rough but familiar voice mumbling out her name.
"You should save your thanks for these people." Strago said, and gestured towards Terra and Locke. A bit battered, but otherwise fine, Terra and Locke both walked closer to Relm's bedside and smiled warmly. Relm looked up at them and smiled back a bit. Shadow was sitting idly in the back corner of the room by the staircase leading downstairs with Interceptor, remaining absolutely silent. He did not desire credit for what he had done last night in the fire.
"Thank you..."
Strago sighed and began to pace around again, shaking his head. Terra and Locke both looked up at him worriedly, and he stared back at them.
"I guess...our town's little secret is out now..."
"Oh..." Terra trailed off, remembering the whole scene with the mayor from the previous night.
"Can everyone here use magic?" Locke asked blankly. "I mean, now that I think of it, you didn't seem too surprised when Terra and I used Esper power last night...so you must of already been exposed to something like that before..." Strago nodded a bit and looked at the floor. Relm remained silent as she watched the tension build between the strangers and her Grandfather. Surely, he could not hide the truth any longer. He had no right, after all that they had done for them!!! She decided that if Strago did not open his mouth and confess, she would do it for him.
"What's going on here?" Locke pressed on, and Strago sighed again.
"This is...the village...of the Mage Warriors."
Terra and Locke both raised their eyebrows, and Relm sat up in bed more, only knowing the story that was to come next too well.
"Long ago, humans would use Magicite...much like you two do now...to gain magical powers. They came to be known as "Mage Warriors". In a sense, you yourselves, are the Mage Warriors of today..."
"But I thought Mage Warriors perished long ago..." Locke trailed off.
"Not only that..." Terra interrupted. "When I watched you cast your spells, Strago, the aura around you seemed...drastically different from the aura Locke and I carry...Are our magics the same?"
"I am surprised you can sense something like that." Strago blinked. "But no, they are not the same, as I will explain to you shortly. "After the War of the Magi, the Espers fled to their new world behind the Sealed Gate. They wished to live peacefully, without fear of being used by humans, and they also left the Mage Warriors here to fend for themselves. But they were despised by normal people. Everyone felt they had begun that war... They sent people to hunt them down like animals. There weren't even trials..." Terra gasped and walked over to Strago, resting her hands on his shoulders. He was nearly a foot shorter than her, but she still looked him straight in the eye, her heart aching with sympathy.
"Even though the only difference between Mage Warriors and normal humans was them being able to use magic...?" Strago nodded, and Terra bit her lower lip.
"A few Mage Warriors escaped and found their way here at Crescent Island. They founded Thamasa, and they are the ones Relm and I, as well as the rest of the village, call our ancestors. Our powers have weakened over time, for many reasons. For one, we could not gain any more abilities, for we had no access to any more Magicite except for what the Espers left us with, which wasn't much. Also, despite not having too much contact with the outside world, many generations of Mage Warriors ended up getting married to outsiders, thus thinning the magical blood that was carried by their offspring. However, today, some of that power still remains, although it has taken on different forms. The citizens of Thamasa today can only use the basics, such as Cure, Fire, and Ice, but then there are others, like me, who cannot at all, but have another form of magic. It is called Blue Magic, or Lore, and it is the art of learning the powerful magic certain monsters on the continent use. I have to hunt the monsters, but when they attack me with certain techniques, I can apply them to my memory instantly and use them as my own from that moment on."
"That's incredible!" Terra exclaimed. "I had no idea that sort of power ever existed! Then I suppose Relm can use Lore too, since she is your grandchild?" Strago blinked and Locke widened his eyes, remembering what the shop keeper had told him about Relm the other night.
"Well, no, she can not." Strago said, gesturing towards the little girl. "I'm afraid she didn't inherit any of my powers...in fact, she has barely any magical ability at all. Her father was a common man, and her mother had very weak magical ability."
"How...odd...that your daughter, whom I can only presume was her mother, did not inherit any of your abilities as well..." Locke trailed off suspiciously, and Strago nodded, keeping a straight face, although he could not help but think that Locke somehow knew the truth...
"Aha, her mother WAS my daughter. But I'm afraid I am a master of Blue Magic, and not of genetics. It was unfortunate that Relm did not inherit any magic, but I am also grateful for her. She will someday be able to grow up and leave this village to venture out into the rest of the world, and become whatever her heart longs to become, never having to fear persecution or racism from anyone because of her ancestry."
"That's a good point...but it is also slightly disturbing." Terra mused. "For I too, have suffered much from the persecution of others for being different...but I had the mild hope growing up that the children of the next generation would never have to feel what I felt, regardless of who or what they were. It breaks my heart knowing that there are still people out there that would prey on the spirit of an innocent child, just because of their abilities." She looked to Relm, who was staring right back at her, wide-eyed.
This young woman is full of insight and wisdom beyond her years... Relm thought curiously. Who is she...? Who are these people?!
Terra turned away from Relm a few moments later, looking back to Strago.
"Listen...if you're up to it, we could use your help." Terra offered. "Your powers would make an incredible asset to our team. We're called the Returners, and we are a resistance movement against the Empire. I am sure you have heard of them..."
"We've heard disturbing stories." Strago nodded. "Luckily though, our village seems to be the least of their concerns at the moment."
"At any rate, right now Locke and I...oh, and Shadow too, are trying to find the Espers that escaped from the Sealed Gate. They have been wrecking havoc, but all we want to do is tell them that the Empire desires peace with them. They completely leveled the Imperial Capital, Vector, and the Emperor supposedly wants to make a truce. Many innocent people were killed in the attack."
"Emperor Gestahl desires peace..." Strago trailed off, and Terra nodded.
"Either way, we still want to reach the Espers and tell them that no one wishes harm to any of them. The lives of more innocent people will be at stake if they continue their rampage, and what we wish to do more than anything else right now is prevent more bloodshed."
"So...you're after Espers, eh?" Strago mumbled, and brought his hand to his chin in thought. "Well, I owe you for saving Relm. I shall help you find your Espers."
"Oh, me too!" Relm exclaimed, bouncing up and down in the bed excitedly, but Strago glared at her and shook his head.
"I don't think so, young lady!"
"Grrrr...what a fuddy-duddy..." Relm muttered, and began to curse underneath her breath.
"But where would we start looking?" Locke questioned worriedly. "We haven't had much luck since we've arrived here."
"Hmm...well if they're here, they are sure to be hiding in the mountains to the west." Strago determined.
"Why there?" Locke asked.
"Those mountains have very powerful magical properties." Strago said. "They say...our ancestors, that is, that the first Espers were actually created there."
"Maybe they are drawn to that place!" Terra exclaimed, and with that, Shadow and Interceptor took their leave, going downstairs.
"I think it's worth a look." Locke said, and with that, he, Terra, and Strago went downstairs also, leaving poor little Relm in bed, scowling at her being left behind.
Outside of Strago's house, the team encountered Shadow and Interceptor waiting for them on the main street of town. Strago opened his mouth to thank Shadow for his rescue last night, but Shadow anticipated this and shook his head.
"Don't misunderstand me. I just wanted my dog back."
"Are you going somewhere?" Locke asked concernedly.
"I'll search for the Espers my own way." Shadow said. "I work better alone, you know." Right then Relm appeared outside and ran over to Interceptor, huggling onto the dog tightly. Interceptor jumped up happily and began to lick at her face.
"Interceptor! Come!" Shadow cried, and with that, Interceptor pulled away from Relm, looking back at her once more before trotting off with his master, soon disappearing from everyone's sight. Relm let out a disappointed sigh and immediately ran back inside, slamming the door behind her.
"Never mind him." Terra said gently when she looked at the shocked expression on Strago's face. "He's always like that."
"I know..."
"What?!"
"Uh, sorry, just mumbling to myself." Strago laughed a little and tapped his ice rod on the ground. "So, shall we get going? The day is young, and today, ho ho ho, I feel as if I am tooooooo!"
"Oh man..." Locke moaned, slapping his forehead. "Just lead the way already...!"
**********
"What happened here last night?" Celes blinked as she looked around.
"There must of been a huge fire." Leo said, pressing his lips together. "Can't imagine what could of caused it..."
"Hello, can I help you?" A young man asked, tapping Leo on the shoulder. Leo and Celes whirled around, and Celes pointed to the mansion, now burnt to the ground in a smoldering pile of ash.
"What the hell happened?!" Celes shrieked, and the man blinked.
"Oh goodness, it was the biggest blaze ya ever did see last night! Some kid supposedly started the fire, but it got so bad that flame-dwelling monsters swarmed into the mansion itself to feed on the fire! Unfortunately also, there was a young girl trapped inside. Her grandfather, Strago Magus, and a green-haired woman and a man with a bandana tied around his forehead ran inside to rescue her, but no one saw any of them come back out. After they were in there for about an hour, the remaining roof on the house collapsed, and the whole building literally went down with it moments later. The weird thing is though, just this morning, I saw Strago in the Item Shop while I was there, and he was asking about potions that would help relieve fatigue for his granddaughter. But I didn't see the two young people that went in with him...I think they didn't make it. It's a damn shame though, that someone should die like that..." Celes widened her eyes and looked to Leo, who was staring at her, not being able to imagine how she would react to that.
"A green-haired woman...and...a man...with a bandana..." Celes mumbled, and suddenly felt as if she were about to collapse. Closing her eyes, she bit down on her lower lip and suddenly swayed backwards, Leo gasping out as he caught her falling body.
"Celes!" Leo cried, and Celes closed her eyes tighter, her voice cracking as she clung onto her friend.
"Terra...! Locke...!!"
"Celes, please, let's get you somewhere to lay down." Leo offered worriedly, glaring at the young man as he stared at Celes and quickly ran off to go back to his business. Celes opened her eyes, on the brink of tears as she dug her fingernails into Leo's flesh and screamed out, her voice cutting through the peaceful air of the town like a sharpened dagger:
"LOCKE!!!!!!"
**********
The caves that the Returners had been navigating through all afternoon reminded Terra strangely of the little caves back on Mt. Kolts so long ago, but there was just something refreshing and invigorating about the air surrounding these magical mountains. Unfortunately, also much like the caves of Mt. Kolts, Terra got the inkling that they were being followed by someone. And when she looked back to spot their not-so-experienced stalker, she often saw flashes bouncy curls and a familiar red hat...
However, she simply smiled to herself and kept her mouth shut. Things would get interesting later, she was sure.
"I see a bit of light coming from in here." Strago motioned to a open entryway in front of the group as Terra whirled back around, and Locke stood up from investigating a shiny rock that for a moment, he almost thought was treasure.
"I hope we haven't reached the exit of this cave already." Terra said worriedly as she stepped ahead. "We're running out of places we can search...!" Strago nodded and went through the doorway, however, he immediately gasped out, causing Locke and Terra to run in after him.
"What?!" Locke cried, and Strago jumped up and down, pointing to a raised portion of the floor across from them.
"Look! I can't believe it! It's THE STATUES!"
Standing straight up on the raised floor were three glimmering gold statuettes, each one in the shape of a beautiful, shapely woman. Strago began to run across the bridges that stretched over the gaps in the cave so that he could reached the raised land and the statuettes. Locke widened his eyes and ran after him, nearly bolting ahead of the old man as he squealed.
"TREASURE!"
Terra blinked and crossed her arms over her chest as she slowly followed after the both of them.
"'The' Statues?"
Locke dove down to the base of each statuette and peered carefully, gently brushing his fingers over each base to remove the dirt and dust that had gathered over it.
"Some faint letters are carved on the back of these stone figures..." He stood up and brushed his hands on his pants, wiping off the dirt on his fingers. "Say, Old Man, what else can you tell us about these beauuuuuuuuutiful goddesses?"
"Oh goodness!" Terra cried, rolling her eyes and not noticing as a little head popped in through the doorway and quickly popped back out.
"They quite literally created magic, as we know it." Strago explained, and Locke blinked.
"So they're the goddesses of magic, then?" Locke confirmed, and Strago nodded.
"You could say that."
The small figure appeared back in through the doorway and began to slowly creep towards the Returners.
"I can feel their power...!" Terra cried, looking over them with wonder.
"The Statues are the source of all magic. It's said the Espers made these images, and put them in a very special place. These represent power beyond all comprehension..."
"Our Espers no doubt came here to bask in all this magical power!" Terra determined, closing her eyes a bit. Although she resisted easily, she could still feel the Esper side of her that longed to morph through and bask completely in the warm energy surrounding her feeble human form...energy that a human body had no use for...could not fully appreciate...
"Say, Old Timer!" Locke suddenly chimed, forcing Terra out of her semi-trance. "What happened to the stone goddesses?"
"Must you always refer to my age as my name!?" Strago shrieked, and gave Locke a good whack on the head with his ice rod. "Young people these days...they have no respect!" He cleared his throat and looked back over at the statues. "Legend has it that they're hidden somewhere beyond the reach of humans. I'd say they're beyond the Sealed Gate..."
"It makes sense." Terra said. "I bet the barrier that protects the Sealed Gate is the work of The Statues..."
"Whew...what a story." Locke commented, rubbing at the back of his head where Strago had struck him.
"If the Espers were attracted to Crescent Island by these statues...then they must be around here somewhere!!!" Terra exclaimed.
"It's worth a look." Locke said, and with that, began to walk back down to the bridges so that he could explore the rest of the room. Strago followed, but Terra remained behind for a moment, leaning down to read at the inscriptions that Locke had been dusting off. There was a small inscription on each statuette:
"The birth of magic...three goddesses were banished here. In time, they began quarreling, which led to all-out war. Those unlucky humans who got in the way were transformed to Espers, and used as living war machines..."
"The goddesses finally realized that they were being laughed at by those who had banished them here. In a rare moment of mutual clarity, they agreed to seal themselves away from the world. With their last ounce of energy they gave the Espers back their own free will, and then transformed themselves...into stone. Their only request was that the Espers keep them sealed away for all eternity."
Terra took a deep breath and slipped over to the middle statuette, having to squint her eyes a little more than before to read the final inscription. It was only two sentences long, and carved in very tiny writing:
"The Espers created these statues as a symbol of their vow to let the goddesses sleep in peace. The Espers have sworn to keep the goddesses' power from being abused."
