A/N: Yay, I finally finished the next part! And thanks to all my reviewers so far!

Part 4 (Note: Beware of major spoilers in this chapter. If you have not beaten the game, read on at your own risk.)

"Are you sure she would know?" I asked Kalas as we landed in Mira and made our way towards Balancoire and Duke Calbren's manor.

"Trust me, Lyude, she would know. I worked for her once, remember? I learned a great deal about her during that time."

As we stood waiting for someone to answer the door, I looked out towards the surrounding sky and noted that the shadow had fallen here, too, though Mira was still floating in space, caught between two dimensions, unable to fall to earth with the rest of the islands.

"Why, Kalas! It's you!" came Melodia's voice, snapping me back to reality.

Kalas greeted her with a hug. "It's good to see you again, too, Melodia," he replied. "But we'll have to skip the formalities and cut right to the chase. You've seen the darkness that covers the lands below, right?"

Melodia nodded solemnly. "It is an evil more wicked than Malpercio: the Nameless Darkness. Its power is ten times the might of Malpercio. You could not hope to defeat it."

You could not hope to defeat it. I felt my spirit sink lower at those words. "But there must be a way!" I protested. "There is no such thing as an evil that cannot be defeated!"

Stunned for a moment at my words, Melodia turned her eyes upon me and hesitated to speak. Her gaze was piercing and I felt as if she were weighing me, judging me. As she held me in her stare, I trembled—so powerful it was.

At last she spoke, saying, "There is a way, but…" she paused, turning her head back towards Kalas, her gaze lingering for a moment on me before it set on Kalas once more, "…only the one responsible for awakening the god can do it, and he requires a certain magnus to do so."

I noticed her deliberate emphasis if the word "he." Did she know that I was the one who awoke the god?

"W-what magnus would that be?" I asked. "Where can we find it?"

"It is called 'Risoluto.'" Her eyes snapped back on me, her gaze locking with mine so that I could not look away. "It can be found, Lyude, on an island hidden deep beneath the ocean. But unless you can find some help, you cannot get to it."

"I can help him," said Xelha. "I was, after all, the Ice Queen."

"So you were. Perhaps you can help him."

"I would be honored to."

Those words made me smile. I was glad to have friends who would help me even when I was the reason that such a great wickedness was released on the world. "And I am honored to have you join me, Xelha," I said, bowing graciously.

"You always were the classy one," Kalas snorted. "Even when you're down, you have to behave so properly."

"I think I will take that as a compliment."

"Of course you would. You need all the compliments you can get," he muttered under his breath.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Nothing, just that I guess I'm coming, too. You need all the help you can get."

"Then I am honored to have you join me as well," I replied again, bowing.

Kalas rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Don't mention it."

"Good," said Melodia, "but I do not think the three of you alone will be enough. There is a guardian that watches over this magnus whom you will have to defeat, and he is not one to go down easily."

"Then we'll just ask the others to help us, right? We can get the whole gang back together again!" Kalas said.

Melodia raised a skeptical eyebrow. "They would help, but even so, they may not be enough. Besides, Lyude has to be the one to deliver the final blow."

Kalas laughed. "That'll be easy enough, won't it? We just let him attack when the guardian looks weak."

As soon as he asked this question, I dreaded the answer.

"Yes…providing of course that you can all survive for that long."

Kalas' smile faded.

"Bring plenty of healing magnus, you will need it." As she said this, there was a foreboding look in her eyes, an omen of what was to come.

Suddenly, I wished that it were someone else that had to go on this quest, not me.

"We'll be sure to do that, Melodia," said Kalas. "Alright, you two, let's go."


"So where are we going first?" asked Xelha as we all climbed up onto the White Dragon.

"I would go to Anuenue—to find Savyna. It is the nearest, after all," I answered, finding a secure place to sit.

"Anuenue it is, then," agreed Kalas. "Let's get this show on the road."


What we saw when we landed at the port wasn't the Anuenue we had always known. Gone were the deep greens and bright reds of the flowers, and gone was light from this land. Everything seemed dull and faded, colored with shades of grey. In the sky, the sun had all but vanished behind a dark cloud.

"My…" said Xelha. "Look at this place."

"It seems all cheer has fled from it," I said as we walked towards Opu.

"I think we can see that, Lyude," said Kalas bitterly. He turned and glared at me.

"Kalas!" said Xelha. "What is with you lately? First, you were being impatient with him back in Azha, you weren't being too nice to him in Balancoire, and now you're being rude to him here. Why do you have a problem with him all of the sudden?"

"Because he's the reason we're in this mess!"

Shocked, Xelha and I could say nothing. That remark wounded me deeply. All I could do was gape at him. What caused him to say such a thing? "Kalas…" I said quietly. "I…I'm…"

"Kalas, what's gotten into you?" asked Xelha.

Kalas glared at the two of us for a moment before his demeanor inexplicably shifted again, and his gaze softened. "I'm sorry, Lyude," he sighed resignedly, turning and heading into Opu.

"That's better," Xelha replied, the two of us following him down the path.

I couldn't stop wondering why Kalas was behaving so strangely. I dearly hoped he wasn't going to betray us as he had when we were searching for the end magnus.

Once inside the village I noticed that aside from the dullness of the colors and the darkness of the sky that something was amiss. It was too silent. No birds chirped from hidden places in the foliage. No children ran about playing games. No dogs barked and no one stood outside and conversed. Even the thundering waterfall seemed oddly muted. Just like Azha, it seemed the place had been deserted.

"I wonder where everyone has gone," said Xelha as we crossed the bridge and made our way towards Savyna's house.

"I just hope that Savyna's still here," Kalas said, walking up to the door.

He knocked on it and we heard a voice answer, "Come in."

We stepped inside to see Savyna sitting near the window, gazing outside as if thinking deeply about something.

"Hey, Savyna," Kalas greeted.

"I'm afraid, Kalas, that this isn't a good time for me to talk."

"But we need you, Savyna," I implored. "A wicked god more powerful than Malpercio has arisen and dwells now in Mintaka. We must bring him down."

"You forgot to mention that you were the one responsible for that," Kalas snapped.

I flinched, feeling guilt bite at my spirit. He was right. It was my fault, all my fault. Why had I sung that loathsome song? Why?

"Kalas!" Xelha shouted scornfully. "I've about had it with those remarks! Try to show him some compassion."

Savyna turned and looked hard at me as if she could not quite accept what she had just heard. "You're the reason for all of this? You're the one responsible?"

The way she asked the question made it sound more like an accusation and it stung me. I hung my head low. "Yes," I admitted quietly. "I am indeed the one who awoke the god. My brother and sister forced me to sing the song that would awaken it and I did, though now I wonder why."

"Hmm…" Savyna replied. I could feel her scrutinizing gaze upon me.

"It's not all your fault, Lyude," Xelha tried to console. "Stop being so hard on yourself."

"You're wrong, Xelha. I didn't have to sing. I could have kept silent and the Nameless Darkness would have remained in its slumber."

"Lyude…" she sighed, shaking her head.

"So why do you need my help?" asked Savyna, getting up and walking towards us. "Are we to face this god?"

"Eventually, yes," I answered sadly. "But first, I need to retrieve a certain magnus. There is a guardian there, so Melodia has told us, that keeps watch over it, and we need you, as well as Mizuti and Gibari, to help us."

Savyna stood there and thought for a moment, just staring hard at me as if she suspected me of something. What she suspected me of, I do not know. At length, she replied, "I will go with you. Something has to be done to get rid of the wicked god and I wish to help you."

"I knew you couldn't resist," said Kalas, smiling. "Now let's go find the others."

As I walked past Savyna towards the door, I saw a dark look in her eyes and I heard her mutter, "You'll pay for dragging me into this, Lyude."

End Part 4

A/N: Ah, alas! For I have come to the end of another chapter. What's up with Savyna and that last remark? The answer I shall reveal to you in coming chapters.

I'm afraid there was a bit more dialogue in this chapter than I would have liked, but meh…I think it was needed. Anyway, I will work on the next chapter when I can. Until then¡adios!