Edonil: Ok, let's see if I am physically able to write anything to do with the plot… I wonder sometimes…

Disclaimer/Claimer: Nope, still don't own it. The lucky people at SquareSoft do, though. Of course, Crims, Sarah, and the third Angel are mine.

Advertisement: Come check out my personal website! Lots of fun stories (original, not fanfics), pictures, a Christmassy layout… It's awesome! I swear it is!

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To Change

Chapter Twenty-Five

There was nothing here that Kuja could see. He'd sort of hoped… It didn't matter. There was nothing down here but a few ruined temples. Interesting temples, ones that he would love to explore fully, but still just ruined temples.

There were no living things down here but the moss and themselves.

The storm would no doubt take at least a few days to blow away, so Kuja should have plenty of time to explore, if nothing else. So he did.

There were the remnants of books, soggy and disintegrating. A few mouldy bits of furniture. Lots of moss-covered rocks. Nothing exciting.

Then he came to the Teleport Room.

It was empty except for several large teleporters. The teleporters themselves looked completely broken. A magical scan confirmed it. Nothing here. But there was a door on the far side. Curious as to the rest of the complex, Kuja walked through it.

There were a lot of rooms. Rooms that looked very… odd. He'd gotten the impression that the temple had been deserted for perhaps a hundred years before the earthquake. Something about the Eidolons warning the folks inside. But judging by the placement of various odds and ends… The remains of a book, lying open beside a chair, as if someone had put it down for a moment, and never again picked it up. A cup with a dark solid inside- evaporated coffee- as if someone had put down the cup and forgotten to continue drinking it again. A pile of soggy papers on a desk, looking for all the world as if someone had been sorting through them just before the earthquake. Why? Someone must have been down here just before the earthquake. Either that, or this part of the complex hadn't been cleaned out; people had just dashed off, without taking their possessions.

Here was a bedroom. Several books were lying on the table, and another was lying open on the bed. There were clothes in the closet, and the laundry basket was half-full. Several pieces of paper, which looks like they might have once been written on, were scattered about. Hadn't the earthquake done any damage? Books should have fallen over, the coffee cup in the other room should have toppled, there should have been cracks in the walls… It didn't make sense.

"KUJA!" It was Zidane.

"Coming!" Kuja yelled back. There was something very odd about this place…

---

Baku looked around. What a weird place. It didn't look like it had been hit by an earthquake strong enough to sink it. But that Kuja was pretty smart. Even if he was psychotic.

"Hey Boss! Did ya hear that?" Blank asked.

"Hear what?"

"That noise. Sort of a crack sound, I guess."

"Nope."

"Should I go investigate?"

"Yeah, sure. Bring somebody with you; I don't trust this place."

"'K." Blank grabbed Zidane by the collar and dashed off.

---

"What was that for?" Zidane rubbed his neck.

"Th' Boss said to bring somebody."

"Did you have to strangle me?"

"Yup."

"I'll get you for that! Just you wait!"

"Sure you will."

"You don't believe me now, but when I tell Ruby that you've been-"

"Ok, ok, I get the picture!"

"So, why're we here?"

"Did ya hear that crack sound?"

"Yeah. What of it?"

"We're investigating."

"Why?"

"I dunno. Something to do. It could be something dangerous, you know."

"If you drag me into a dangerous situation and get me killed, Dagger'll kill you."

"So don't get killed!"

The two walked in silence for several more minutes.

"What's that?" That was Zidane.

"What's what?"

"That."

"What?" Zidane sighed.

"That!" He pointed at a lump of something.

"I dunno. Wanna poke it?"

"After you."

"Chicken."

"And proud of it."

"Sheesh!" Blank grabbed a nearby stick, and walked towards the thing. "AAH!"

"What?" Zidane said from a safe distance.

"It moved!"

"Did ya poke it?"

"Not yet."

"Then why did it move?"

"I dunno."

"Well, what is it?"

"I dunno. It's covered by something."

"Covered by what?"

"Some sort of blanket."

"Then take the blanket off."

"You do it!"

"Wimp!"

"And proud of it!" By this time, Blank was standing beside Zidane. "Go on!"

"Sheesh!" Zidane grabbed Blank's stick, and walked over to the thing. Using the stick, he carefully tried to move the 'blanket'.

"Well?"

"It ain't a blanket, bro."

"Then what is it?"

"I dunno. Looks like feathers."

"Well toss them off!"

"They're attached to the thing."

"Ugh!" Both Zidane and Blank jumped at the sound. "Ugh!" the thing said again.

"Uh… Zidane, I think it's alive."

"And how do you figure that?" Zidane asked sarcastically.

"Well, one, it moved, two, it made noise, and three, it's standing behind you."

"WHAT?!" Zidane dashed to stand beside Blank. Sure enough, the thing was standing right behind where Zidane had been standing. And now that the thing was standing, Zidane and Blank got a better look at it.

"Great Eidolons…" Zidane whispered. Then, "KUJA!"

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Edonil: Duh duh duh! I hope you've figured out what the thing is by this point… Please R&R!