PART VI

Zinkata watched the ground pass by under the gigantic airship. He was considering all they had learnt. A mysterious orb was in possession of Vivli's parents, and some dark force was hunting it. He didn't like it. The last orb he saw teleported him back to battle Chaos, the same orb Chaos himself had used to nearly destroy the world of past and present.

"Hey, where's her highness?" Bootus asked Zinkata as he recited events. Then there was that. Vivli. A princess. It seemed ridiculous. Luckily, she had no real power, or else Bootus would have been beheaded fairly quickly.

"Urm, down in the hold, I think." Zinkata answered. "She was reading something."

"Ah, we're probably not good enough for her anymore." Bootus said jokingly. "Probably wants to get away from us lowly peasants."

"You know, she can't hear you mock her right now." Zinkata pointed out.

"Oh come on, you've got to admit it, it's a little weird." Bootus laughed.

"Well, seemed the mithran royalty was entirely based off the line that would reincarnate the Light Warriors, so it makes perfect sense, really. It was just unexpected." Zinkata justified.

"Unexpected is one way of putting it." Bootus sighed. "I stand by weird."

"Well, at least she has no real power, so it won't change anything. It just means the odd mithra in Kazham might occasionally recognise her." Zinkata sighed. "So in fact, all she achieved is that now you can mock her more."

"Ya know, if I wasn't me, I'd feel sorry for her." Bootus laughed again.

Vivli ran up out of the hold over to the two heroes. She was still in her tight and fairly revealing top, having forgotten to get a new robe. It didn't feel natural to her to not be wearing one, but she didn't really have a choice.

"Ah, her highness emerges." Bootus said with an overly exaggerated bow.

"Shut up!" Vivli cried. "I've discovered something incredibly important.

"Please, tell us, Princess." Bootus sniggered as he spoke.

"Stop calling me that!" Vivli protested.
"What? Princess? Well, Princess, I'm only calling you by your official title, Princess." Bootus smiled as Vivli let out an angry groan.

"God, I hate you." She sighed.

"Well, excuuuuuuuuuuuse me, Princess." Bootus repeated. Vivli rolled her eyes.

"Okay. Fine. Zin? Can I have a word in private? Away from this moron?" She gestured to Bootus, and dragged Zinkata away by the arm.

"Sorry if I offended you, Princess!" He called after with a laugh.

Vivli dragged Zinkata over to the edge of the ship.

"I was reading this book the chieftainess gave me on the royal family." She explained.

"And?" Zinkata asked.

"Well, I found some stuff about the orb. Apparently it's a small orb that glows ever white." She paused. "I even found a drawing." She held open the book, a picture of a mithra king holding the orb and a mithra queen wearing the crystal shard. "I recognise it. I've seen it before."

"Where?" Zinkata quickly questioned.

"A million years ago. In the Temple of the Fiends."

Voldos was slumped against the edge of the airship, looking miserable.

"There are multiple females on this ship, yet you're silent." Bootus pointed out. "Has somebody learnt his lesson?"

"Hey!" Voldos protested. "I was in complete control! I was just about to pull out the ultimate charm. That guard would have fallen into my lap and I would have been free!"

"Do you believe the words coming out of your mouth or are you brighter than that?" Bootus inquired.

"A little of both." Voldos replied, smiling. Bootus sighed.

"That doesn't even make any sense." He groaned. "Now I know how Vivli feels when she talks to me."

Zinkata took the book from Vivli's hands.
"Explain." He stated in one word.

"You remember the crystal that was going to revive the four fiends?" She asked.

"Well, yes." Zinkata replied. Of course I do, what a stupid question he added mentally, deciding not to say it out loud.

"And how we told you about it being surrounded by four orbs." Vivli had explained to Zinkata afterwards, as he had been keeping Chaos busy at the time. "Each one would light up as the fiend's soul was reborn. And how we stopped it in time?"

"Yes." Zinkata said again, growing a little more impatient.

"Well," She admitted. "One lit up before I could stop it." She hadn't admitted this before. She hadn't thought it mattered. "I was overpowered by it." She started speaking quickly to justify herself. "I didn't know if it mattered. I couldn't stop it in time. I'm sorry."

"Whoa." Zinkata said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down. It wasn't your fault. Why does it matter?"

"Well, without all four lit, I theorised the fiends couldn't be reborn, so it didn't matter. But it means the brightly glowing orb does in fact contain the soul of one of the four fiends." She explained, gulping afterwards, expecting an angry reaction. She didn't get one.

"But the four fiends have to be four to be a threat, right?" Zinkata asked.

"Urm. No." She gulped again. "Together, they would destroy this world, but alone, they are a huge threat. Lich, fiend of the Earth, rots the ground and makes it impossible to grow food. Kary, fiend of the fire, burns everything and gives us blistering heat we cannot survive in. Kraken, fiend of the water, stops the ocean dead, no more waves, no more movement, no more fish. Tiamat, fiend of the wind, turns the air stale. Each trait in itself is pretty deadly."

"And which one is in the orb?" Zinkata inquired.

"I don't know." Vivli sighed. "But it seems this mystic artefact is in fact the soul of one of the most evil creatures ever created. Whoever is after it must want to resurrect the fiend."

"Easy then." Zinkata laughed. "We find the orb, and smash it." Zinkata put his arm around Vivli. "Come on, there's nothing to worry about. We took out Chaos, we can take out any fiend."

"We don't have the crystal shards this time." Vivli reminded him, breaking away. "I don't know." She sighed, looking out over the land moving below. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"It's all theory anyway." Zinkata reminded her. "For all we know, that orb might just glow because it was charged with power from Chaos's crystal."

"Don't patronise me. I'm not a little girl." Vivli shot at him. Zinkata paused. He looked confused. "What is it?" Vivli asked in concern.

"The temptation to say 'well excuuuuuuse me Princess' was strangely high." He explained.

"Oh, not you too." Vivli sighed.
"Well, guess we'll have to tell the others." Zinkata turned about towards Voldos and Bootus. "C'mon."

Elsewhere in the world, Olose Sampson was knelt before the king of San D'Oria.

"You got here quickly, my old friend." The King remarked.

"I can travel fast under the light of the moon." Olose told him. "At least across land."

"Ah yes, of course." The King let a smile cross his face. "The problem is unusual. Your knowledge is great. Perhaps it can assist."

"Tell me the problem and I'll see." Olose replied.

"The orc camp near San D'Oria has always been a problem. You know this." The King began. "But it is no longer. A strike team eliminated every last orc there."

"Congratulations." Olose said to the King.

"It was no force of San D'Oria." The King told the strange smuggler.

"Then what?" Olose inquired.

"I do not know." The King explained. "But I do know this: there were no bodies. There was blood, and definitely killing and combat, but no bodies."

"Hm." Olose remarked. "I'll need to take a closer look, but my first reaction would say a necromancer planning to resurrect the bodies as an army. I've never heard of one so powerful before though. And secondly, if he could wipe out the orc armies anyway, why would he need an army?"

"Questions I hope you can answer, my friend." The King said.

"So do I." Olose replied. "I'm certain it's related to other strange events of recent times, however."

"Certain?" The King repeated in confusion.

"When you're as old as me, you know these things don't happen in isolation." Olose took out a heavy sigh. "If we're lucky, it's some simple evil plot."

"And if we're unlucky?" The King sounded worried.

"Then this has something to do with Chaos." Olose explained. "It can't be coincidence it happens so shortly after the defeat of the Demon Lord."

"Chaos?" The King exclaimed. "He cannot return, can he?"

"Never count anything out." Olose said as he impatiently paced the throne room. "I'll check it out. If my gut instinct it correct, I know who we need."

"The Light Warriors." Remarked the King.

"I just left them. They'll be expecting me back soon anyway." He paused. "But not until this phase of the moons is over."

"They do not know your nature?" The King said surprised.

"How could I tell them?" He told the King. "Besides, the girl likes me. She's probably be freaked out by the age difference." The King laughed along with his old friend.

"You haven't changed in the slightest." The King said, beaming a smile and forgetting his worries.

The four tore across the plains on chocobos.

"Why do I always get the smelly one?" Vivli asked miserably.

"I think it's you your smelling." Bootus mocked. He quickly paused, before adding; "Princess" just to sufficiently annoy her.

"Or, more cleverly, it would be because you mithra have a stronger sense of smell than we do." Zinkata pointed out.
"Damn logic." Vivli muttered. "All I know is my new robe is going to be stinking of chocobo for days now." Vivli had managed to replace her robe in Jeuno, with a new fancy one. It didn't really offer much protection, but was comfortable, and looked better than most. It was light blue, almost like silk, and had little dark blue stitched patterns all over it.

"And the chocobo is going to be stinking of mithra, so I think it's equally unhappy." Bootus pointed out. This time he forgot to add 'princess' and Vivli definitely wasn't going to remind him.

"I still can't believe all this stuff you said about the orb." Voldos spoke up. "This means we have to save the world again. We only just finished clearing up."

"Ah, it's Vivli. She's probably wrong or overreacting." Bootus pointed out.

"W-w-well," Vivli was a little offended, "It is just a theory. I mean, even if they got the orb, I have no clue what they would do with it or how they would resurrect the fiend anyway."

"Or you might be completely wrong." Bootus suggested. "Or don't you Princesses ever make mistakes?" Dammit, he remembered, Vivli had enjoyed the few seconds away from that topic.

They rode late into the night. They didn't want to stop and set up camp because they didn't want to waste anytime. Despite the fact they mocked Vivli's theory, they knew she was usually right when it came to her research and so they were all slightly worried. Not that they'd admit it. They didn't have to worry about her finding out for much longer though, as she was falling asleep on her chocobo. She yawned, and put her head down on the chocobo's neck.

"Aw, is the wittle Princess tired?" Bootus taunted.

"Yes." Came a muffled reply. She was too tired to argue.

"You can't ride asleep." Zinkata pointed out.

"I'm willing to try." Vivli groaned.

"You have a serious stamina issue." Voldos laughed. Vivli didn't reply this time, just sleeping. Of course, had Voldos said it a few moments beforehand, she would have been woken up into an argument with the elvaan. Bootus and Voldos looked at Zinkata.

"Fine. I'll carry her." He sighed, lifting her carefully off the chocobo and letting it run loose into the wild. He put her on the back of his, where she slumped against him. She was light enough so that the chocobo didn't notice the weight difference.

The one great thing about sleeping, Vivli had found, was that it seemed to make journeys go quicker. She woke up, lying in a bed in Windurst. She blinked a few times, and yawned. The down side of sleeping when you're travelling is that for some bizarre reason, you never feel like you've actually slept. She rolled over, and decided to go back to sleep.

"Hey, you'rrrre awake." A voice came. She sat up. Dammit! she grumbled in her thoughts, why is there always somebody there to make sure I get up? "You'rrrrrre a heavy sleeper."

"I was tired." She rubbed her eyes, and looked over to the speaker. It was Dedji.

"How's it going, sis?" Dedji asked, pacing out each word as if it was a very confusing thing to say.

"Urm. Things have been a little odd, I guess." She replied. "Like discovering I have a sister among other things." Dedji laughed.

"I neverrrrrr thought I'd see you again after the monasterrrrrry took you away." She explained. "I was only five at the time, so I couldn't rrrrrreally rrrrrrremember you that well."

"I can't remember anything from back then." Vivli muttered, getting up. "Glad to see they found you, though."

"Found me? That bloody elvaan's been hitting on me all morrrrrrning." Sighed Dedji. Vivli chuckled to herself.

"I always got off lightly there." She explained. "I don't know if that's luck or whether it means I'm supposed to be offended." She had actually pondered that a few times before, and never come to an answer.

"So I guess you'rrrrrrre looking for Mum and Dad as well." Dedji asked. "Guessing from what they've told me." Vivli was a little taken back by hearing them be called 'Mum and Dad', she had never really considered it. All this time she'd been looking, she hadn't actually pondered what it would be like to find them.

"That's right." She finally stammered. "They're being chased-"

"-because of the orb. I know." Dedji paused. "Sorry I didn't tell you when we first met, I just didn't know if I could trrrrrrust you."

"I understand." Vivli replied. "Any idea where they are?" As if by some cosmic cue, Bootus stuck his head in the door.

"Hey, Princesses, we need you out here." He called. Vivli cursed to herself.

"What's wrrrrong?" Dedji asked as the two walked out.

"Him! Bootus! He's so annoying!" Vivli cried.

"Why?" Dedji seemed a little curious.

"Because everything he does he does to annoy me!" Vivli protested.

"Well, maybe if you didn't get so annoyed he wouldn't do it." Dedji pointed out. Vivli stammered while trying to think of a response.

The five gathered around a table outside in the streets of Windurst, as the party often found themselves doing.

"Found them." Bootus pointed to the two mithra.

"Right, I found out some information." Zinkata began. "And it isn't good."

"Uh oh." Vivli said aloud.

"I overheard a band of bandits talking in a bar. Apparently they've captured their 'targets' and are getting ready to head out to Mhaura. They have a camp in the desert." Zinakta explained.

"You overheard that?" Vivli asked in surprise.

"I overheard the first bit. The rest of the time the bandit was pinned to the wall via knives in his hands. It was what I made out between the gurgled screams." Vivli looked like she suddenly went several shades paler. "If it's any better, I made sure he was healed before I threw him in jail." The ex-thief added.

"So, what's the plan?" Dedji asked.

"We'll head to desert outside Mhaura, and attack!" Zinkata cried.

"Alrrrrright!" Dedji yelled. "This sounds like fun!"

"Fun?" Vivli repeated blankly.

"Come on sis, you're a warrior right? You have to love combat." Dedji said happily.

"I'm a white mage!" Vivli yelled.

"You arrrrre?" Dedji looked a little confused. "How can you be a mithran princess? We're all rrrrrraised to be warriors."

"I wasn't raised by mithra, or had you forgotten?" Vivli's comment came off as a little more venomous than she had intended.

"That and I doubt she could lift a sword." Bootus taunted.
"That's not true!" Vivli cried.

"I use a scythe anyway." Dedji remarked. "Prrrrrefer it." Dedji looked at Vivli a little oddly. "I can't believe you'rrrre a mage."

"There's nothing wrong with being a mage!" Vivli protested. "There isn't!" She repeated for emphasis.

"Sorrrrrry," Purred Dedji, "I guess I was just expecting you to be a strrrrrong warrrrrrior like most mithra." Vivli folded her arms and grumbled something.

"Every party needs a white mage!" She said in her defence.

"Aw, they even argue like siblings." Bootus laughed.

"Can we just go, please?" Voldos requested.

"Good idea." Dedji said in agreement. "I need to grrrrrrrrab my weapon and arrrrrmour first."

"Yeah, so do we." Zinkata told her.

"Vivli," Dedji said to her. "Guess you can just stay herrrre and be defenceless."

"That's not fair!" Vivli cried as the mithra left. "How did that break down so quickly?" Vivli asked in despair.

"Sounds like she has something against mages." Zinkata grumbled. "Don't worry, I'm sure it'll work out." He turned and left, as did the others, leaving Vivli slumped at the table in confusion.