Final Fantasy IX:
Rise Of A New Evil
Chapter 1: Life After The Great WarA/N: Well I was thoroughly disappointed that my last FFIX fic didn't do well at all, and I hope this one does a lot better. The first chapter may not seem all that, but I assure you, the plot gets interesting.
Note: Line Breaks represent a P.O.V change, a time skip, or a location change.
"Peace is but a shadow of death…" –Kuja
A world, once cast into chaos and on the brink of destruction, because of one man…with only one intention…with only one reason to live…to bring death and destruction to those around him, is now peaceful. Alexandrian's, and many around the world now recognize Zidane Tribal, and Garnet till Alexandros the XVII as their leaders. Over the past seventeen years since the Great War, the world of Gaia has rested easy, any worries of war has completely diminished, and peace reigns supreme…
The familiar sounds of the busy city known as Treno were drowned out as the Invincible lowered to the ground, the incredibly powerful, incredibly loud, turbines of the large airship was the source of the noise. As the turbines died out to an almost inaudible hum, the gates of The Dark City opened, and a group of ten soldiers, five female soldiers, and five males, each clad in Alexandrian Armor, entered Treno, following the group was a young female dressed in an shapely, elegant white dress that showed off her perfectly shaped features. The dress had a V-Cut that ended at her chest, and was open in the back down to her tailbone. Her blonde shoulder-blade length hair was combed neatly, parted in the middle, hair falling to either side, a few loose strands falling over her bright, emerald eyes, and a single, noticeable, silvery strand hung down past her stub nose, and slightly below her glossy lips. Her complexion was that of a light, creamy tan.
In the front of the group of soldiers was a well-built, tall, male Knight clad in nicely polished armor, chain mail hung down his large biceps, crowning his head was a steel, faceless, helmet with a single feather inserted into the side of the helmet. Walking beside him, was another soldier, a female with a metal eye patch and long brown locks, like the male next to her; much of her body was clad armor, besides her legs that were covered by skin-tight pants. They were both around thirty years old. The two led the group onto the right path, to where the Nobles lived.
Two soldiers were stationed behind the blonde-haired female; the others encircled her, providing protection. As they walked, her mind wandered. The many buildings, the many Inn's and shops, all of them she wanted to explore. The people seemed interesting enough; all of them appeared to be, by all rights, fine people. Though her heart ached because she would not see home for nine months, another side of her was excited, ready to explore, and see things she never saw before. Her mind continued to wander. What excitement would await her in her first days in this place? What new people would she meet? What new things would she learn? Or what hard journeys may be in store for her?
The group came to a halt, the elegantly dressed female nearly bumped into the somewhat skimpily attired Alexandrian female soldier in front of her. There was a building in front of the group. Directly across from it, behind them, was another rather large building, to their right was a café, and down the road to their left was the woman known as Queen Stella.
"We have arrived," Said the large knight at the front of the group. "Doctor Tot is waiting." He held out his gloved hand in a motion for her to proceed into the building before them. She complied, and was ushered by the Knight to the front doors of the building.
Inside it wasn't something she wasn't used to seeing. There were no crystal chandeliers with candlelight sparkling proudly, no marble floors, no golden-framed portraits of people, any costly decorations, or furniture. It was just a simple building. The floors were polished wood, the walls were simple and white, the corridor had only two doors, one at the very end of the hall, and another to the left of that door. At the end of the corridor was a corner.
The two proceeded down the hall.
"Why are you always so tense?" The blonde-haired female queried.
"It is my job, I cannot let my mind wander, and I must keep myself focused on the task before me."
She laughed. "The task before you, huh? Odin, Adelbert! All you're doing is-" She stopped, catching him glaring at her. "Oh, sorry, I meant Steiner. Why are you so picky about which name I call you? It's all the same right?"
"Calling me by my last name sounds more formal." Steiner replied as the two turned the corner, a narrow staircase was revealed, and they began heading up the stairs.
At the top was another door at the end of the hall, to the left, and one last door almost straight across from the top of the stairs. The blonde haired girl brushed the silvery strand of hair from her angelic face, for about the hundredth time in the last few hours. Steiner moved too the door in front of the two, and knocked three times.
A sharp voice told them to come in from inside the room. They complied, Steiner moved into the room first, followed by the young woman. The door had opened into a simple room, a couch pushed to the left wall, a large window at the far end of the room. In front of the window was a desk, two chairs set up in front of it, and behind the desk was a person. Of course, it wasn't your…average, person. Like many other races, this man was not exactly human. He looked human in shape, humanoid if you will, but had a feathered body, a beak, and small beady black eyes tucked behind bifocals.
"Oh, oh! Great, Great! Steiner, you have finally arrived!" Doctor Tot walked around to the front of the desk, and shook Steiner's hand. His gaze then turned to the female. Tot adjusted his glasses with his feathery hands, and then moved closer to the girl. "Oh, what joy, you must be my niece, Garnet's daughter!"
The girl pushed the silvery strand of hair, which had fallen back into her face seconds before, behind her ear and smiled. "Hello, Doctor Tot."
"Oh, please, call me Tot. I am your uncle for Odin's sake!" The Doctor took a step back. "My, my, what a fine young lady you are. You've grown very much, I must say. The last time I saw you, you were only three, and so small, but still cute by all means. You have your fathers' eyes, and his hair. And Odin knows you have your mothers' beauty. How old are you now?"
She could feel her face becoming red; all of this praise was making her flush. She laughed, and looked to the floor. When she turned back to him, the silvery strand fell back into her face, and for the first time Doctor Tot noticed it, and only one name came to his mind…Ku- "I'm sixteen, sir."
The doctor's thoughts were broken as she replied and he nodded. "I see. You still have a lot of growing to do. By the time you're done growing, you will be the most gorgeous woman in all of Gaia! You may even surpass your mother." Doctor Tot winked, and if his beak could grin, he would be doing just that.
Steiner laid a hand on her shoulder and grinned. "Your mother and father are very proud of you. It'll be a shame not having you around the castle, but this should be a good experience for you, princess. For now, I wish you good luck, and goodbye, Princess."
The Princess' smile widened, and she embraced Steiner. Somehow she always saw him as being a second father, he was there when Zidane could not be at her side, and she knew it was someone that would protect her, someone she could rely on and trust.
"Before you go, Steiner, I want you to call me by my name, hmm? Or I will start calling you Bert!"
Steiner laughed. "As you wish, Terra. Once again, good luck, and goodbye." And then he left. As his footsteps' thumps disappeared she turned to Doctor Tot.
"Terra, I have a house for you to stay at. I would let you stay at my Tower but there's simply not enough room there. But anyways, it is getting late, so I should show you the way."
"Okay. Lets go."
"I wonder what she's doing now. Do you think she's sleeping? Eating? Do you think she's even there yet?" She was worried. And Odin knew she wouldn't stop babbling until she received some sort of message from her beloved daughter.
Slipping under the heavy blankets and sheets, Zidane settled next to his wife and sighed. "Stop worrying yourself. Terra's fine, and you know it. Ole' Rusty will look after her until they get there."
"But what if something happens to her in Treno?"
"Nah, Treno is a plenty good place."
"Plenty good? Bah! I was pick-pocketed the first day I went there!"
Zidane rolled onto his side, and stared into her coffee brown eyes. "Believe me, she'll be fine." Garnet gazed back at him. "Besides, she is my daughter." Zidane smirked, and wrapped his arms around her.
Garnet returned the embrace, giving up her worries, and their lips met. It was truly stimulating, their love for each other. Every moment seemed to last hours, every moment with one another felt as if a large portion of their destiny had been fulfilled. They loved each other greater then they could believe. What a match too, a mere thief, and a Queen, their love for each other seemed to never diminish.
Zidane enjoyed the moment as his lips met her own soft lips. He closed his eyes, taking in the moment. The Genome's hand slipped down to the small of her back, and further…
"Zidane!" Garnet giggled. "Stop it!" She pushed his hand away.
"Sorry babe. Couldn't help myself."
"I noticed." Garnet said with a bit of sarcasm in her voice. She laughed and scooted closer to him and buried her face into his chest after quickly saying goodnight.
It wasn't what she expected. It was far from what she expected. The two stood in front of a rundown home, the outside of the house had planks nailed over holes, the roof was boarded up too. But altogether, it was a sturdy home. The two moved inside, the old scholar first, and then Terra. Inside, the house was actually nice. The door had opened up into a straightforward living room, a couch, table, and a bungled fireplace, a flame burned brightly as the only source of light in the room. There were two door less doorways, one led to a simple kitchen, the other too a bedroom.
"I know it isn't exactly a grand Inn, but it's all I could find…in all of Treno! Weird isn't it? But anyways, Terra, I'm very sorry about this. I hope I can find something else for you."
"It's alright, Doctor." Terra smiled reassuringly at him.
"If you say so. Oh, and Terra, I left clothing in the bedroom for you to change into. And remember to make it to your class on time. You don't want to be late your first time in your uncles class do you?" That's right, she had a class tomorrow. That was the whole reason for coming all the way too Treno. Doctor Tot decided a few months ago to put his teaching skills to use. So he decided to construct a simple schoolhouse for teaching in. The fee: zero Gil.
"No, sir." Terra's smile widened as she joked with the old scholar. "It's eight in the morning, correct?"
Doctor Tot nodded his feathery head and adjusted his glasses. "Goodnight, Terra."
"Goodnight uncle." Terra replied, and for a moment, she wondered how these people would be able to tell the time without clocks? For Odin's sake it was always night here!
After he left, Terra quickly found out just how tired she was. She closed the door quietly behind him, and latched the lock on the door before heading to the bedroom. Once again, it was another simple room. A bed near the far wall, a dresser near the door, nightstand next to her bed, and the clock hanging above her bed were the only things in the room. It was hot too, very stuffy in the room. She moved over too the dresser, guessing that It was the large dress that was making her hot, and quickly found clothing to change into before sleeping. She stripped the heavy dress, feeling relieved to have it off of her body. The room still felt stifling.
It didn't take her long to spot the window next to her bed. Terra slipped on the long shirt and moved to the window. She quickly found the lock, releasing it; she lifted the window until there was a click. The air blew in, a gentle breeze that let her hair flow freely. She would have stood there longer letting the cool air relax her, but quite frankly there wasn't anything to look at but an empty alleyway. So she turned away from the window and set the clock to sound at six in the morning, and then plopped down on the bed.
The man stopped in a dark alley, gasping for breath, his eyes wide as he continued to watch the outside of the alley; the cobblestone streets of Alexandria were quiet. The only sound was that of the thump of his rapidly pumping heart. He could feel cold sweat on his face, his arms, and his palms. He was literally pouring sweat as he stood there.
"Why are you running…?" A voice whispered too him.
"Stop following me! I didn't do anything!" The man blurted out in between raspy breaths, and he snapped his head back and forth, looking for his pursuer in terror.
"…I know…" The voice laughed devilishly.
"But-" The man stopped as a figure appeared in front of him, towering over the man by at least six inches. The man was covered in shadows, and only the shimmer of a blade could be seen as the man unsheathed a long sword, and in one quick motion, thrust the sword into the mans abdomen, and quickly pulled it back out and stabbed again, and again, and again, and then with one arm he lifted the man by his throat, about half a foot so the mans was at the killer's head level. The dieing man muttered something, dark red liquid pouring from his wounds and mouth.
"Still alive? Not for long…" The killer lifted the blade, and drove the sword through the dieing man's chest, and instantly it erupted into flames, engulfing the man's body instantly. The killer soon after removed the sword, and the flames instantly died, the corpse falling to the ground. The murderer sheathed the sword and retrieved a small knife from his jacket, and crouched down next to the dead man…
BING! BING! BING…
Stop…
BING!
Shut up…
BING! BING!
I'm not a morning person…Definitely not…
BING!
I do have class…so maybe I should get up? Nah…ten more minutes won't hurt.
BING! BING! BING!
The clock continued to sound relentlessly, despite her pleads inside her head, it continued, spitefully reminding her that school was in only two hours, and she still needed to bathe, make breakfast, dress herself, fix her hair, and walk all the way too the schoolhouse-BING!
"Alright, alright! I give up! Odin!" Terra sat up, smacking her lips together a few times, one eye drooping, and the other closed. "Nope…not a morning person."
You failed to fulfill your destiny, but I am willing to give you a chance to redeem yourself, Dark Messenger. If, of course, you do something for me…Kill that brother of yours…he poses a threat. Not that I can't overcome the weakly Genome myself, it would be one less thing for me to worry about. So what do you say, Angel? One last shot at world domination?
Shut up…
I will not be denied. The preparation is almost complete. Your time is running out. Two chances left. Answer me!
"No!" The Genome shot up into a sitting position, icy blue eyes wide as if in terror, sweat rolled down his pale face in tiny rivulets. After catching his breath he combed a hand through his long silver hair and fell back onto the mattress.
Every night for the last two months, some unknown voice would question him. Telling him that his destiny was not fulfilled, saying he'd get a chance at redemption. What redemption was there? He promised too his brother that the past would never re-occur, never would blood not his own stain his hands. Never would he go back to his ways. Never would he be known as the Angel of Death any longer. But still, the haunting voice persisted to, on every night for the past two months, call him Angel, or Dark Messenger. The only explanation for the name 'Angel' was a shorter version of Angel of Death.
"I want to redeem myself…I want to live, I want to be a normal person. But my sins have imprisoned me in my own abode. It would mean death to even step foot into my own Auction House now. All of Gaia is against me. What can I do but wait until my final days come upon me?" Then the images from his dream flashed through his mind. The real reason he woke, frightened, in a sweat, angry. Images of those killed at his hand flashed before him. He watched in his sleep as hundreds of innocent Burmecian's fell at the hands of his creations. He watched as the Summoner's village was disintegrated by the Invincible, watched as Bahamut's Mega Flare washed over a helpless Queen Brahne, watched as he practically lost insanity, letting his thirst for power engulf him, he shook with anger at the thought of Zidane being better, stronger, perfect, with the young woman that he once felt should be his, and then he would wake.
"Why do I have to live?" Kuja hung his head low, silver hair falling around his face, just as young-looking as he had been almost two decades ago. It was a benefit of being a Genome; they never aged, in looks anyways. Looks always stayed the same, they grew, but as children were only miniature versions of what they were in their adult years, and then growing would come to a halt. "Death is the key out of my situation, but my conscious won't allow me to do it. It's almost as if I feel I'm needed by the world…but why?" Of course…his death was due soon…seeing as how he is the only Genome that wasn't guaranteed an everlasting life…maybe he just had to wait it out…
Terra took a deep breath, the warm liquid that caressed her body as she lye there was refreshing. It was quiet nice too, the only light was that of candlelight, since Treno was dark twenty-four seven. After waking up, Terra found a package and a bottle of milk outside her house. The package was sent by Doctor Tot, a note on it said that it was full of various meats and several blocks of ice to keep the meat preserved. She picked out a few strips of bacon within the package, and fried it for breakfast. Afterwards she decided to take a bath. With only one hour left, she had plenty of time to relax.
But the minutes ticked by hastily, and she was climbing out from the bathtub. Terra grabbed a towel from a shelf, and wrapped herself in it; she grabbed another and dried her hair with it. Terra moved quickly through the house and into her bedroom once her hair was dried, and picked out clothing to wear. What she picked was black, knee-high boots, and a white dress with thin straps. She then moved back into the bathroom and combed her hair properly. Just as it had been the day before, and still with the silvery, natural, strand of hair that hung down her face. Smiling into the mirror, she turned away from the mirror, and headed out the door.
"Chris! You're going to be late! Hurry up!"
"Late…but I'll be fashionably late!" The young male yelled back at the voice on the other side of the door.
"Just hurry up!" The voice snapped.
The young male, Chris, grinned a white-teethed grin, and quite egotistical grin, into the mirror before him. His attire consisted of a white t-shirt under a black thin-material button up shirt left unbuttoned, black jeans, and black boots. His hair was glossy, not greasy, but had a natural glossy shine to it, and was mid-neck length, and somewhat messy.
Chris exited the bathroom, and met the other male, much older, at the door. He was wearing a black sleeveless shirt, exposing what seemed to be endless tribal tattoos that lined his arms from his shoulders, and got thinner until they reached his wrists, blue jeans, brown gloves, and black boots. His hair was blonde, and much like Chris, was messy. Surprisingly the two were brothers. They always said they didn't look, or act, nothing alike, and it was true. One huge difference in their appearance was that Chris was slim, and only slightly muscular, while his brother, Matt, was taller, by about five inches, older then Chris by nine years, and had an impressive muscular build. As for their personality differences, Matt was quiet, and solemn, while Chris was talkative, jovial, and unquestionably witty.
The two walked out of the house, Matt shoving his hands into his pockets as they walked down the streets of the slums of Treno, as always he wore a serious face that seemed to be carved into his features…
"Did you have a dream last night?" Chris queried.
"No." Matt replied simply.
"I had one. You want to know what it was about?"
"…No."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes…"
"Because it was really interesting."
"…Spare me."
"Because, like, I dreamed, that you had a girlfriend." Chris bit his lower lip thoughtfully.
"And I dreamed that you were kidnapped, taken far away from here, into a land so far away that you couldn't possibly count how many miles away you were, and that was the happiest day of my life. But unfortunately, I woke up this morning to your horrible singing while you were taking a bath and I almost cried because it was a dream." Matt responded casually, slightly frowning.
"But I thought you said that you didn't dream? Or did you? Because, if you didn't you really couldn't have dreamed what you said you dreamed because you didn't." Chris continued chewing his lip as the two walked.
"Do you understand one thing you just said? Because I'm at a loss."
"Nope."
"I didn't think so…" Matt sighed, shaking his head at the same time.
"Me neither." Chris said, considerately.
"Er…?" Matt cocked an eyebrow at Chris.
"Whoa!" Chris slapped a hand on Matt's chest, as if to halt him, and at the same time knocked the breath from him. "Look!"
"Odin! Why'd you do that?" Matt shoved Chris, who quickly found his balance and returned too Matt's side.
"Look, brother! Behold!" Chris grabbed Matt's head, and directed his eyes toward a young girl that was climbing up newly established steps, where a ladder used to be. She was coming from the small store he and Matt shopped at weekly.
Matt shoved Chris' hands away, annoyed, and continued walking.
Chris caught up with him, and shook his head. "Dear brother Mathew, don't you know true beauty when you see it?"
"Matt. Not Mathew. And maybe I don't. And for Odin's sake she's probably your age!"
"Why, Mathew? Why? Why must you deny it?"
Sighing, 'Mathew', disregarded his nagging brother as he babbled on until they arrived at the schoolhouse. Apparently she was going to the same place because they had followed her all the way to the building. Hastily, Chris ran into the building after the girl, and immediately called after her.
"Hey, really cute girl!"
Terra wouldn't have turned to him if the halls had been packed with people, but since she was the only person in the hall she turned around. "Me?"
"Ya. What's your name?" Chris moved closer to her casually, taking a better look at her as he did so. Her complexion was that of a natural light tan, her lips had a glossy look to them, and her thick eyelashes emphasized her emerald colored eyes. The most noticeable thing that caught his attention, besides her angelic features, was the single silver strand of hair that fell down past her lips. Another thing was her clothing. She wasn't from the poor section of Treno; she must have been a noble, judging from her attire anyways.
"Who wants to know?" Terra asked, placing one hand on a hip that she swung out too the side, holding a arrogant look on her face.
"My name is Christopher, but of course, you can call me Chris, madam" Chris bowed.
Terra cocked an eyebrow at the young teen and crossed her arms over her chest. "Nice try." Terra chuckled and turned away from him, continuing down the hall to the first door at the end of the corridor as he straightened.
"H-Hey!" Chris jogged to keep up. "C'mon, just tell me! Please?"
"Your really lonely aren't you?" Terra replied without turning to him.
"Yes!" Chris stopped and scratched the back of his neck hesitantly. "Er…I mean no!"
Terra laughed and turned to him. "I'm Terra, nice to meet you, Chris."
"Wow! It's nice to meet you too! What a co-inky-dink!" Chris replied, almost as if he was really surprised, and if you knew Chris well enough, you'd probably think he was surprised.
The two continued down the hall, Chris babbling on about how cool it was that she was his first friend of the year, and how much fun they'd have, and that she could come over any time, and that she was really interesting (even though she hadn't actually said anything), and how that they could be, "best friend and or buddies and or good pals forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever."
Something tells me that he isn't that smart…or he's just really weird… Terra thought as they reached the door and couldn't help but giggle silently. She reached for the handle, but Chris insisted that he open it for her.
"Um…thanks." Terra looked at him thoughtfully. I wonder if he has any friends at all? He seems real excited that I talked to him. Terra thought. Or maybe he just wants in your pants! A small part of her mind screeched at her. Terra shook her head and went into the classroom after Chris had opened the door, and held it open for her. She took a seat, Chris next to her. The class was partially full, five of the twelve students sat in their seats, conversing with one another.
"So, Terra, you're a noble? I mean, Odin! Look at your clothes! You definitely aren't from the poor section of Treno are you? But I did see you on my way here. So what's the deal?" Chris turned side-saddled in his chair, as too turn toward her fully.
Terra started to speak, but hesitated. She was told not to tell of her heritage. She remembered vividly, about five days ago when she was starting to leave for Treno…
"Be careful, Terra." Garnet smiled at her daughter. "We're very proud of you."
Zidane's tail swished happily. "Remember what I told you?" It was more of a question, then a demand.
"Yes, dad. You said not to speak of my heritage, it'll attract a lot of unwanted, and unneeded, attention."
"That's my girl."
"It's inheritance from my mother. She was fairly rich. But she left no money behind. I live in the slums."
Chris nodded thoughtfully. "Wow. Lucky you." His usual bright features turned miserable. "I don't have a mother or father, never knew them, never saw them."
This took Terra by surprise and suddenly her throat felt dry and she was at a loss. "Oh, Chris, I'm so sorry. I didn't know."
Chris half-grinned. "It's okay."
Seeing that his mood had brightened once again, and that it would be a good idea to change the topic Terra spoke again. "Whom were you walking with?"
"That was Matt, my brother."
"Oh, I see."
"Alright class, quiet down." The high-pitched voice of Doctor Tot came from the front of the room, bringing an end to their conversation. The entire class quieted down, and settled. "Good morning, class. Since we're all fairly strangers, let's take turns telling each other our names. We'll start with you." Doctor Tot pointed at Terra who was in the front left corner.
"Terra."
"Okay, next, behind Terra." Doctor Tot said, pointing to the female behind Terra.
"Christina."
"Next."
"Chad."
"Next."
"Olivia."
This continued until all twelve students told their names. The students were as follows: Terra, Christina, Chadwick, Olivia, Mark, Pat, Chris, Nicole, Jonathon, Titus, Mika, and William. There were three rows each row contained four students.
Zidane crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against a wooden support beam as he waited by the Airship docks. His old friend, Rey, was coming from Lindblum to Alexandria in hopes of getting a job. Zidane of course was willing to give him a post as a Castle Guard.
Zidane bit his lower lip as he waited, kicking the tip of his shoe against the cobblestone road as his tail swished back and forth behind him.
At last, after countless moments of waiting, an Airship arrived, and the passengers began pouring out. The King scanned the crowd for his friend, but to no avail. Frowning, Zidane moved closer to the airship to watch the travelers file out of the doors, when finally, his friend, who he hadn't seen in well over twenty years, emerged from the airship, hauling two cases of luggage behind him.
Zidane smirked as the blonde-haired male dragged his belongings behind him, seemingly struggling with each step. The man continued walking, clearly missing his friend standing on the side of the ramp, but stopped when Zidane whistled for him. The Genome jogged up to his long ago comrade and they exchanged a handshake.
Rey removed a bandanna from his head and stuffed it into his back pocket, his hair falling down freely. Rey was about as tall as Zidane, and about the same size. Rey also had blonde hair, parted in the middle, but a lot short then Zidane's own.
"It's about time." Zidane said, grabbing one of the bags and slinging it over his shoulder as the two began down the road.
"Hey, not everyone has money. I had to save up for this trip." Rey said. "Now I'm flat out broke."
The Genome frowned. "Well, at least now you won't have to pay rent, and you get paid to walk around in a castle. It isn't all that bad…"
Rey nodded. "True." He said with a grin.
As the two entered the main street, Zidane motioned for Rey to follow him through the winding streets of Alexandria. Zidane, in the lead, waved to countless people as the two walked down the cobblestone street, toward Alexandria Castle.
Meanwhile Rey trailed slightly behind, looking at all the many people of Alexandria, and also gazing at the occasional really attractive woman for minutes on end. And in fact, once they reached the boat that would carry them across the moat, Zidane found Rey gawking at a female walking down the street and literally had to drag him into the boat.
The students filed out, one by one, through the single door entrance after Doctor Tot released them from class. Class had gone by quick, and he announced that the next day's class would be cancelled because he had been called to Dali to help a sickly person. Of course, as soon as class let out, Chris began talking to Terra happily; even as they walked out the door he continued talking.
Yup…he likes you. A voice inside of Terra whispered as the two walked down the south path, past the café and toward the Card Palace. Chris continued to rattle on, changing the subject to how he loved playing cards so much, and once won fourth place, once they began walking on the stone path that lead past the Card Palace.
"But this one guy, his name was Vivi, odd lookin' dude, had a big hat 'n stuff, and he beat me, putting me in fourth. It was kind of disappointing, but oh well. I still won a few Gil, enough for a few extra things here and there."
Terra found herself not paying attention to good as the two walked along the stone path that seemingly floated upon a small lake of clear water that encircled the entire area, the Card Palace too. Her eyes floated over toward the Card Palace, it was elegant, and from what she could see from the outside, the inside was very simple, with a few tables and chairs set up in an otherwise bare room.
"Hey, Terra, that's your name right?" A female voice interrupted her sightseeing. Terra and Chris turned to the owner of the voice, it was a girl from the class…now what was her name again…Christina, that was it.
"Yes, I'm Terra." The blonde-haired girl replied. The other girl, the same age as Terra and equally attractive, nodded briskly. Her hair was jet black, combed perfectly and ran down to her lower back, her eyes were that of a soft creamy chocolate color, her complexion was that of a dark tan. A black skirt that stopped at mid-thigh, exquisite high heels that resembled something like crystal, and a sleeveless shirt adorned her body.
"I wanted to invite you back to my house. I don't know if you noticed, but a few people were mocking your garments." Christina said as she moved within talking distance of the two.
"My clothing? Why?" Terra looked down at her white dress, there was certainly no stains on it; she had checked it before putting it on.
"Let's just say that those sort of dresses are for royal blood, it doesn't quite look right." Christina touched the material lightly. "I'm willing to take you shopping for new clothes if you'd like, I'll provide you with Gil if you need it."
Terra's face brightened. "Sure! It sounds great!"
"Great, let's go now so I can get the Gil."
"Oh I don't need-" Terra stopped herself, reminding herself of what Zidane had said.
"Don't need what, Terra?"
"Um…I forgot. Sorry, I tend to forget things easily." Terra said with an uneasy grin.
Christina chuckled, and nodded. "It's okay." Christina turned her attention to Chris. "Do you want to come?"
Chris frowned. "I can't. My brother wanted me to help him fix the roof. Sorry."
"Maybe another day then?" Christina asked.
Chris nodded. "Yeah."
"Alright then, Terra, lets get going." Christina linked arms with Terra and smiled to Chris. "Bye-bye Chris."
Terra smiled too. "Bye Chris, I'll come by later and see what you think."
Rey nearly vomited at the sight of the charred dead body of a man, maybe in his thirties. His arms were crisscrossed above his head; a single long spike had been driven through both of his wrists, hanging him on the wall of a small shop like some sort of wicked decoration…
A soldier that was accompanying Rey observed the body, and Rey quickly noted that this guy must have really had a strong stomach. The two were sent out to investigate as soon as Zidane and Rey arrived at the castle, seeing as most other soldiers were gone at the moment.
The soldier's observation revealed that the man had been stabbed numerous times in the abdomen and chest area, and he must have been set to fire after being stabbed. He quickly noted that there was also an encircled five-pointed star on his forehead, and eerily, it seemed as if the killer had carved the symbol into the man's flesh…
Rey, who was turned away from the body decided to speak after gagging multiple times, the stench of death and burned flesh haunted his nose. "…I think we should tell Zidane…" Rey gagged again, but this time not being able to hold back vomit…
"Yeah." The other man agreed and the two walked out of the alley to relay the information too the king.
Maybe this isn't a good job for me… Rey thought as he wiped a substance, that he'd much rather not know what it was, from his lips and stumbled after the other Soldier.
"Marvelous, Terra, marvelous. You were born to be a model. Why would you hide your body like that?" Christina asked as she gazed at Terra. They were both standing in a small room, Terra in the middle of the room, Christina standing near the door as Terra tried on multiple items of clothing.
Terra could feel herself blushing. "Thanks, Christina." She turned too the body-sized mirrors that reflected her image. She was currently wearing a skirt, a lot shorter then what she was used too, that showed off her legs to the fullest, knee high boots, and a sleeveless shirt; much like what Christina was wearing. She wondered what her mother would think, seeing her daughter wearing a skirt that didn't cover her knees.
Gods forbid! Terra thought as she smoothed out the soft material mid-thigh-length skirt.
"Hold on Terra, I'll go get some more clothes for you." Christina exited the room and Terra moved closer to the mirror. She brushed the silver strand of hair out of her face and smoothed out the mini-skirt and thought about how many guys she could attract.
Terra found another outfit, it was a one-piece skirt, a sleeveless, shapely shirt with a V-cut, and at the bottom it turned into a skirt, reaching mid thigh. She grinned at the outfit, finding it likeable, and stripped her shirt, throwing it to the side. As she bent to slide the skirt off, a form in the mirror caught her attention.
A pale-faced man was behind her, clad in a black robe. On his forehead was a gory tattoo, as if a knife had carved it right into his skin, and quite messily at that. The tattoo was that of a five-pointed star encircled with a thin line. His eyes were dull gray, he was bald, and had no eyebrows, nor did he have any color in his lips whatsoever. Dark rings were under his eyes, as if he was seriously intoxicated and hadn't slept in weeks. Terra screamed, turned around…but the person was gone. Carved into the wall where he was standing was the same symbol that was upon his forehead, then from out of the grooves that was the symbol, a dark red liquid oozed from it, blood.
Terra screamed again, and backed up against the wall as the red liquid formed a puddle on the floor, and from out of the puddle raised a liquid humanoid shaped creature. Practically burning on where its forehead should be was the same encircled star.
The door flew open, Christina stood in the doorway, Terra still against the wall. But the blood was no more. There was no star carved into the wall, no bald man, no liquidly creature, nothing.
"Terra! What's the matter?" Christina asked as she ran to her friend's aid, she placed a hand on her shoulder and frowned. "Are you okay? I heard you yell!"
Terra could feel her heart crashing against her ribcage with such intensity that her chest ached. It wasn't my imagination was it? It couldn't have been…besides, why would I imagine something like that? Terra could feel her breathing coming easier, and her heart was returning to a somewhat normal beat. "I-I thought I saw a man in here while I was changing."
"Where did he go?" Christina turned around, but there was no sign of anyone inside the room.
"I think it was just my imagination." Terra managed to get that much out before taking a deep breath and leaning back against the wall. The cold of the stone walls against her back made her realize that she was standing halfway naked before her friend.
Christina laughed. "Hey, I never noticed but you have great abs." Christina winked at Terra whose face was flushed. She turned away, and handed Terra a shirt.
A/N: Alright that's the first chapter. The next chapter, as I will point out, will begin two months later. Eventually all the characters show up, and all the characters get a role. Kuja does too for all you Kuja fans out there. I'm still debating whether or not to start the action in the next chapter. Well, tell me what you think so far, I hope you enjoyed it. Review o buddies of mine!
P.S: If you've been reading my Resident Evil fanfic, then you will probably realize that the female character from that story has the same name as Terra in this story, and may, in some ways, resemble Terra. It isn't that I'm obsessed with the name Terra/Tara, or like blonde-haired, blue-eyed, girls lol. The reason why Terra's name is 'Terra' in this story is because she is named after the planet Terra where Zidane was born…er…created. And the reason she was blonde hair is because Zidane had blonde hair. The reason her eyes are bluish green is because Zidanes are. >.>;
Review! .