Chapter 13: The Last Waltz
I left the inn and hurried down the path to the cargo ship. As soon as I arrived I noticed Steiner running towards the ship. I saw the others and ran over to meet them.
Zidane turned around and noticed me. "Michael, you made it just in time" he said, cheerfully.
I ran up next to him. "Yeah, what did I miss?" I asked.
"Steiner left to see if we could hitch a ride on this ship."
I asked Zidane, "Don't you find it a bit strange that Steiner is all of a sudden compliant with the idea of using this ship to go to Lindblum?"
Zidane nodded his head. "Yeah, I know. This ship will probably take us straight to Alexandria Castle."
This news shocked Dagger. "but why…? Didn't you just say that we should get on the ship?"
Zidane smiled at her. "Yeah, I know. Trust me!" he said.
I smiled. "Don't worry, Dagger. I have a feeling Zidane has something up his sleeve" I said, casting a knowing glance at Zidane.
That's when we heard the engine on the ship start up and the propellers began to turn. We all turned our attention to the cargo ship. Zidane spoke first. "It's moving. What the heck is Steiner up to?" He turned to address us. "Alright, we have to get on guys."
Dagger gave him a skeptical look. "On a ship that's NOT going to Lindblum?"
Zidane waved his hand dismissively. "I don't have time to explain. This way!" he said.
I ran up to the back of the ship and jumped up to the back deck, not even bothering with the ladder. I looked down from the deck and saw Vivi climbing up the ladder to join me. I saw Zidane trying to coax Dagger into getting on the ship.
"Hurry up!" he said to Dagger. Dagger shook her head in refusal. Zidane waved his hands dismissively again. "You have nothing to worry about. Hurry before she takes off!" he said.
Dagger still looked skeptical "but…" she paused.
Zidane was becoming impatient with her resistance. "I'll take you to Lindblum. I promise!" he said. Zidane walked over to Dagger, got behind her, grabbed her by her arms, and gently forced her to move.
Dagger shook free of his grip, and turned to him. "Fine, I'll get on" she said, annoyed at his rude behavior.
I could feel the ship begin to take off. Zidane, in his hurry, jumped onto the ladder before Dagger reached the platform. He reached up to grab one of the ladder rungs, and ended up grabbing Dagger's butt. Dagger yelled out in surprise and I could hear Zidane's comment "ooh, soft…" he said.
I smiled and shook my head slightly. 'Zidane…you pervert.' I thought as the ship began to take off.
I watched as we passed over the fields. I turned my attention to Dagger and Zidane as they finally reached the platform. Dagger was red in the face, though whether it was from embarrassment or anger I couldn't tell. It was possible that it was both. Zidane was scratching the back of his head trying his best not to seem like he enjoyed what he did.
"Come on, it's not like I did it on purpose." He said.
Dagger refused to look at him. "Please, enough." she said, in a tone of authority.
Zidane turned to look at her. "there's that royal tone in your voice again" he said, annoyed.
I smiled at their quarrelling and turned my attention to Vivi. He didn't look too good; he was holding the railing and looked like he might be sick.
I was concerned. "Vivi, you okay?" I asked.
He didn't turn to look at me, but responded never the less. "Feels like I'm going to get sucked into the sky like on the theater ship" he said, weakly.
I placed my hand on his shoulder. "Let's go inside, Vivi" I said, still concerned. Vivi nodded and we turned to the door.
Before we entered, however, I turned to Dagger. "Dagger…would you like to come into the ship as well?" I asked.
She turned to me not looking at Zidane. "Yeah, I will." she said, and walked over to join us. I opened the door and Vivi and I stepped inside followed closely by Dagger. Dagger hesitated at the door and turned to look at Zidane. "I trust you, Zidane" she said, and then closed the door in his face before he could follow.
I smiled at Dagger's action. 'Still angry with him, eh' I thought, slightly amused.
Vivi and I continued our way into the ship when we received another big shock. There were Black Mages in the engine room except they were alive and walking. Vivi immediately ran from my side and tried to talk with some of the mages.
I called to Dagger. "Dagger, come here, quick!"
Dagger came into the room, and her eyes grew wide at the sight. "Oh my, gosh." She said, in shock.
I spoke to her again. "Dagger, go get Zidane. He has to see this." I said. She nodded and went back to get Zidane. I turned around and noticed Vivi trying to talk with some of the other mages, but he wasn't successful.
I heard Zidane and Dagger enter the room. I turned to look at them. Zidane was shocked as well. "Wow, they're alive, and they're moving around! So, the mages built in the village bring back the new ones?" He said.
I noticed the look of concern on Dagger's face. "Oh Vivi…" she said, as she watched his attempts at conversation.
Zidane decided to get Vivi's attention "Vivi!" he said, Vivi didn't respond.
I tried. "Vivi!" I said a little louder then Zidane. I succeeded in getting his attention and he began to walk towards us.
As soon as he reached us he bent his head down in sadness. Zidane spoke up "were you able to talk to any of them?" he asked. Vivi just kept looking at the ground.
"No... It's like... ...they don't even... ...see me at all... I tried... ...again and again... ...but... ...they won't even turn around" he said in a defeated tone. I felt so sorry for him; we all did.
Zidane looked at Vivi in a sympathetic way before turning to Dagger and I. "I need to go upstairs for a little bit. I gotta turn the ship around before it reaches the castle. Keep an eye on Vivi, okay?" he asked. We both nodded in agreement and he took off to the ladder at the opposite end of the room. I watched him until he was out of sight.
I turned my attention back to Vivi. Dagger was already there at his side comforting him. I decided to let her do it. I didn't know what to say to Vivi about this. We waited for about five minutes when, suddenly, the ship began to turn.
I tried to keep my balance, and watched as Dagger and Vivi lost their balance and fell on top of each other. I walked over and helped them up "are you two alright?" I asked. They both nodded and I continued, "I guess Zidane was able to turn the ship around. Let's go up to the bridge, guys." They both nodded and we went over to the ladder. I went up first, followed by Dagger, and then Vivi.
I reached the top of the ladder, opened the hatch, and emerged out onto the bridge. I waited for Dagger and Vivi. Dagger soon emerged followed by Vivi. That was when I noticed the Black Mages on the bridge were heading toward us. 'I wonder what's going on' I thought as I watched this.
That was when I felt a dark presence behind me. My fears were confirmed when I heard Vivi's voice.
"No!"
I turned around and saw what it was that Vivi was facing.
He had on a midnight blue coat, as well as a steeple hat, a scythe like weapon, and narrow, red eyes. It was the final Waltz; Black Waltz No.3. He extended his left hand and gathered electric energy in his hand. He launched the attack at Vivi, knocking him to the ground. Seeing this, I immediately ran over to Vivi's side. I noticed Dagger did the same thing as me. We were both standing at Vivi's side. I immediately grabbed the hilt of my normal sword and prepared to attack the Waltz should he try anything.
The waltz spoke. "So, No.2 was defeated by children. Neither of you are a match for my power! Kwahahaha" he laughed and then pointed his scythe at Dagger. "Princess, stay here while I eliminate these children!" he said. That was when I noticed the other Black Mages moving up to form a living barrier around us. This surprised the Waltz "Are you protecting them?"
I decided to take advantage of the Waltzes distraction. "Dagger, get Vivi out of here now" I said, not letting the Waltz out of my sight. Dagger nodded and began to drag Vivi over to the bridge. I turned my attention back to the Waltz as he was yelling now.
"Get out of my way! Do you dare to fight a Black Waltz?" he asked. His eyes glowed an even brighter shade of red as he started to gather energy in his hand again. "I said get out of my way!" he yelled, extending his hand.
Then my memory returned and I knew what was going to happen. "NOOOOO!" I screamed as I jumped up to attack the Waltz…I was too late.
The Waltz blasted his attack and it hit me in the chest. The attack sent me flying into the bridge control room. I smashed through one of the windows and landed inside the control room, flat on my back. I could feel blood running down the back of my head and the side of my face; were the glass shards had cut me. I ignored my wounds and looked back out the window.
The sight that greeted me was horrific. Black Mages were flying everywhere. All of them were thrown off the ship by the Black Waltzes attack. I heard the sound of wood exploding and knew that the barrels on the side of the ship had been hit by the attack; spilling there contents into the mist below. It was over in a matter of seconds.
I was shocked; I had seen the movie in the game before, but to experience it in real life was completely different. I looked down at Vivi and I could feel his grief. Dagger went to his side to comfort him. I felt so bad for Vivi; at what he had just witnessed. My sorrow turned to anger as I stared back out the window at the symbol of my rage; Black Waltz No.3.
I could feel the fire behind my eyes as my anger swelled. Those mages tried to protect us. They didn't deserve this. For the first time in my life I really wanted to kill.
My thoughts were interrupted by Steiner's voice. "Wh-what cruelty!" he said, in shock. That was when I heard Vivi yell. It was all too much for him to take. He wanted revenge, and I didn't blame him. He ran out of the control room to confront the Waltz, Steiner followed close behind.
I quickly reached into my pocket and pulled out a potion. I uncorked it and drank it. I could feel my wounds closing up as the potion started to work. I brushed the glass out of my hair and clothes, unsheathed my normal sword, jumped out through the window I fell through, and ran to stand at Vivi's side.
As I reached my destination I looked over at Vivi. His body was shaking with righteous fury. He glowered at the Waltz "why…? Why would you do such a thing! Weren't they your friends!" he yelled.
The Waltz laughed at him. "You fool. Do I look like some lowly Black Mage soldier?" he said.
Steiner spoke. "even if they weren't your allies, what you did was reprehensible."
The Waltz laughed at him now. "Kwahahaha! Worry not about them: many more are being produced even now!" he said.
I felt Zidane's presence as he joined us "what are you?" he asked.
The Waltz seemed pleased. "Ah, the Princesses bodyguards have all gathered! How very convenient" he said.
Zidane wasn't amused. "Answer me!" he yelled.
The Waltz looked at him in amusement. "It wouldn't do you any good if I answered, since you're all going to die! Kwahaha-" I had heard enough.
"ENOUGH TALK, DIE MONSTER" I bellowed as I charged at him. It was time to fight.
I had managed to catch the Waltz off guard with my yell. I thrust my sword into his gut. The Waltz doubled over in pain as my sword penetrated deep into his gut. I saw The Waltz raise his scythe weapon and I immediately retracted my sword, and jumped back before he could strike me with it. I retreated back to the others.
That was when I noticed Vivi. His body was glowing, his hat was standing tall, his robes were a lighter shade of blue; he had Tranced. I was impressed by Vivi's transformation, unfortunately it cost me. The Waltz took advantage of my lack of concentration and fired a Thundara spell at me. I felt the hair on the back of my head stand on end as I felt the spell heading towards me. I quickly turned around; sword extended, and struck the spell…that was a mistake.
My sword blade conducted the electricity and it passed through my sword and up my arms. My arms went num and I was forced to let go of my sword. I saw the Waltz flying at me, scythe extended, ready to finish me off. Suddenly, two fireballs flew towards the Waltz and knocked it off course. I looked over at Vivi who had his staff extended. I nodded my thanks and he nodded back. I noticed that the Waltz was getting back up. I decided to take advantage of its slow recovery.
I ran up to him just as he got up and delivered a back-flip kick to his face. My kick connected with his face. It didn't send him up into the air like I hoped it would, but it did force him to take a few steps back.
As soon as my feet touched the ground I immediately balled up my left hand and grasped it with my right hand, positioned myself correctly, and thrust my elbow into his gut. My attack connected and the Waltz doubled over, completely winded. I balled up my right fist and delivered an uppercut to his face with all my strength. The attack connected and I succeeded in knocking him into the air. He fell to the ground, flat on his back.
I succeeded in hurting the Waltz, but I also succeeded in pissing him off. The Waltz unleashed a Thundara spell directly at me at point-blank range, while he was still on the ground. I was sent flying into the air and hit the deck of the ship hard. I slowly tried to get back up to my feet. I looked up and noticed that Zidane was attacking the Waltz with his daggers. The Waltz dodged most of his attacks, but, due to the wound I had given him at the beginning of the battle, he couldn't dodge all of them.
Steiner jumped at the Waltz and delivered a diving vertical slash. The Waltz avoided most of the attack, but Steiner did manage to cut into his chest slightly. Vivi went next unleashing a blizzard and thunder spell consecutively. The Waltz took both hits and fell to the ground.
The Waltz was furious. He flew up into the air and unleashed a Thundara spell on all of them. Steiner, Zidane, and Vivi were thrown to the ground by the attack. None of them were getting up. I got back to my feet and dove for my sword. I got back up on my feet, sword in hand, and prepared to fight.
The Waltz turned to look at me and his anger grew. He flew at me with his scythe extended and brought it down towards my neck. I blocked the blow with my sword, but now my sword was trapped in the Waltzes scythe. We were in a weapon deadlock and it didn't look like either of us was willing to give in. I had to come up with something fast, or else I would be leaving myself open for a perfect counterstrike from the Waltz.
I decided to take a risk. I kicked the Waltz in the gut and it forced him to loosen his grip. I quickly overpowered him and forced both weapons to my left side. I quickly let go of my sword with my right hand and quickly backhanded the Waltz in the face. He grabbed his face with his right hand and I was able to break the deadlock.
After it was broken I quickly thrust my right fist into his chest. The Waltz fell to the ground in pain, but I decided not to press my advantage. I knew that there was someone here who really wanted to hurt this guy. I jumped back from the Waltz and prepared to defend myself if need be.
I noticed that the others had gotten back up and were moving to join me. The Waltz recovered from my attack, retrieved his scythe, and flew into the sky. Before he could do anything, however, Vivi cast two thunder spells and knocked him from the sky. The Waltz crashed into the ground and slowly got back up to his feet. Then he began to shake slightly. He looked at us with pure hatred "you…you scum! …I exist only to kill!" he shouted and flew into the air; retreating. We had won the battle.
I sheathed my sword and looked at the others. Everyone was exhausted from the battle. Steiner spoke up first. "Just how many Black Waltzes do we have to fight? This is becoming ridiculous!" he yelled.
Zidane responded, "I think that was the last one."
Steiner looked at him "how do you know? Are you-" I cut him off.
"He said 'Waltz,' right? Don't you think No. 3 would be the last one?" I said. Zidane walked over to the bridge and Steiner soon followed.
I turned over to look at Vivi. He was starring at a burnt steeple hat hanging on the railing. I approached him and stood by his side. I rested my hand on his shoulder. I didn't say anything, there wasn't anything to say. 'The best thing to do for him is to keep silent and let him know that I'm here for him' I thought.
I could feel that Vivi was silently crying and I could feel my own tears as well. I let them fall; I cried for Vivi's pain, I cried for the mages that gave their lives for us, and…I also cried for the Black Waltz and his miserable existence.
All thoughts of sorrow were pushed aside; however, when I felt a familiar dark presence behind me. I knew who it was without even looking; the Waltz was back. It flew over us in an air boat and knocked the steeple hat off the ship. I looked up at him and noticed that he was gathering magic energy to unleash another Thunder spell. Vivi though has had enough of this monster and used a fire spell on the Waltzes ship before he could use his attack.
The Waltzes ship was knocked off course and it fell behind the cargo ship. I smiled at Vivi's accomplishment, but noticed that he had fallen over from exhaustion. Alarmed I quickly picked Vivi up and brought him over to the control room. Unfortunately, we had just passed into South Gate and the force of the wind blew me and Vivi over the railing. Thinking quickly, I reached out with my right hand and grasped the railing.
I was dangling from the railing with Vivi held in my left arm. I turned my head to the right and noticed that the Waltz had recovered from Vivi's attack, and was chasing us again. He raised his hand and gathered energy for his thunder spell again. I couldn't avoid it this time and Vivi couldn't save us.
The Waltz raised his hand and prepared to unleash the spell. Then, a miracle happened, a branch of lightning managed to set the Waltzes ship on fire. The Waltz looked behind him and realized his predicament. Then the Waltzes engine exploded and he crashed into South Gate. Our ship had barely made it through South Gate before it closed.
I pulled Vivi and myself up from the railing and stood on the deck. I walked over to the control room. I hadn't noticed when I was hanging on for my life, but Vivi was clutching me tightly. I placed my right hand on his back. "Its okay, Vivi. We're safe now" I said. Vivi let go of me and I placed him on the floor.
I turned to look at Zidane. He was looking at the engine. "I think we pushed it too hard" he said. He turned to look at us. "Why so silent people? We made it! Come on, cheer up!" he said, cheerfully.
Dagger spoke up "South Gate was badly damaged…it was my fault wasn't it?" she asked.
Zidane shrugged "don't worry about it! They'll fix it up in no time!"
Steiner spoke up "You idiot! The cargo ship was wrecked, we lost all the cargo, and South Gate was destroyed! I can't believe I played a part in this debacle!" he yelled.
Dagger spoke "Steiner, I didn't mean to get you involved…but you saved us. Thank you." she said.
Steiner was surprised at Dagger's words. "Such kind words! I am not worthy!" he paused for a moment. Finally, he spoke. "Well, now I've made up my mind! I vow to protect you, Princess, until we return to the castle!" he said.
Zidane spoke up "How do you feel about that, Dagger? He'll follow you to the end of the world." He said.
Dagger responded "its okay, Zidane…Hey, I can see the main gate of Lindblum!" she announced.
Steiner looked out at the castle. "That's Lindblum Castle? How gigantic…!" he said in awe.
I turned to look as well 'It is gigantic' I thought as I saw the castle. That was when my thoughts were interrupted by Zidane.
"Michael, Vivi, let's go out to the deck. You've gotta see Lindblum from above! It's the best! Look, the Falcon's Gate is right in front of us!" he said.
Vivi and I walked out onto the deck and watched as the Falcon's Gate opened. I was in awe; the city was spectacular. There were people and airships every where. The place was obviously technologically advanced. The houses were a great sight from above. I looked towards the castle; it was much bigger close up. Eventually, the cargo ship docked in Lindblums airship dock. 'We finally made it' I thought as we entered the hanger.
