Blaze

The trip to the mountain required nothing more than a rather uneventful Chocobo ride, but that proved to be the only easy part of their mission. The mountain was heavily wooded, with a clear trail up the southern face, but the Light Warriors had gone less than five minutes' distance up it when they heard strange roaring noises from the trees nearby, on either side of them.

"What was that?" asked Laguna.

Cecil tensed. "Some monsters. Large ones."

The roars came again, closer this time, and they realized that the sound was not coming from the forest to either side of them, but from above it! They heard the sounds a third time, almost directly on top of them, and a flight of dragons flew into view over the treetops! There were nine of them, each with an armored warrior mounted on its back, carrying a heavy-looking spear. Cecil had heard Kain speak of the great Dragon Knights of old, but in their land the tame mounts no longer existed for the Dragoons. Here, they clearly still did!

One of them called out to the hindmost dragoon. "This is the worst group yet! Go get the boss, quickly!" The dragoon saluted with his spear, wheeled his dragon around, and flew back up the mountainside as quickly as his mount could go. After he departed, the dragoon who had spoken before called down to them. "This mountain is closed to all comers!"

Relm responded by painting a replica of one of the dragon knights, which flew into their ranks and engaged the speaker with its spear. The other seven dragoons turned on it, slicing the illusion apart before it could wound their comrade, then turned and pointed their spears at the enemy. Ghostly apparitions that looked like dragon spirits flew outward, converging upon Relm and making her cry out in anguish. A trickle of blood began to run from her nose, and she fell to one knee. Celes raised her hands and threw a powerful chain-lightning spell to cause havoc among them, but the disciplined warriors hid behind their large shields until it had passed, then began to cast regenerative and healing spells on each other while one, who had not been injured by the magic, jumped skyward, aiming for Celes. His spear came down directly towards the former general's head, and her twin swords left her without a shield to protect herself. Cecil dashed forward and shoved her out of the way, bracing himself and holding the Lunar Crystal shield over his head. It managed to turn the blow, but just barely, and the Paladin was almost thrown to the ground by the force of the impact. Before he could recover his equilibrium, the dragoon jumped back up to its draconic mount, safely beyond Cecil's reach.

Quistis was the next to engage them. Raising her hands, she conjured an Aero bolt that blew one of the flying dragons into a tree. It fell to the ground, stunned and probably badly injured, its rider barely managing to jump to safety. The other seven knights crouched down, holding their spears in a style that Cecil knew all too well: they were all going to jump-attack at once!

"Scatter!" he called, but it was too late. Eight dragoons leapt downward, and six spears found their marks, smiting all but Cecil and Celes to the ground. Celes and Cecil both brought up thier shields and managed to divert the blows, but they were almost thrown off their feet by the numbing blows. In desperation they took fighting stances, ready to hold off these eight knights to the last if necessary. The dragoons did not jump back to the safety of their mounts, but signaled to them, and the dragons began to fly low towards the two heroes, preparing to roast them with several sets of flaming breath.

At that moment another voice rang out through the air. "STAND DOWN!" The voice caused Cecil to look skyward in disbelief. How could this be? "The boss" had arrived, mounted on a dragon-steed like the others, but he carried a gleaming ivory spear and his armor was made of glittering, nearly impervious lunar crystal much like Cecil's, except it was a deep blue in color instead of white. The dragoons pulled back, obedient to their leader's order, and he called out to the warriors on the ground. "Cecil? Rosa? Did the Light Spirits send you here too?" He brought his dragon down to land on the trail before them and dismounted. "Revive them," he ordered, and the bewildered Dragoons obediently administered Phoenix Down healing feathers to their fallen foes.

"Kain?" Cecil asked hesitantly. How had he been brought here?

The dragoon stepped towards them quickly and removed his helmet, and Cecil suddenly found himself enfolded in the arms of his old friend. He returned Kain's embrace for a moment, then stepped back. Kain took a step towards Rosa, as if to hug her, but she did not move. "Hello, Kain. It's... good to see you again," she said slowly.

Behind them, Eiko spoke up. "Umm... guys? What's going on? Isn't he the leader of the bad guys we're here to fight?"

Cecil hesitated. How to respond to that question? Kain had demonstrated a terrible weakness in the past, a tendency to be dominated by dark powers. Had he revived them simply to gloat? Or to use them to further the aims of his dark master, whoever that may be now?

Seeing the indecision on his former comrade's face, the blond dragoon smiled benignly. "Relax, Cecil. I'm free of all that now. I'm on your side for good this time."

"I've been led to believe that before..."

Kain sighed. "Yes, you have, haven't you? And considering the situation, I can't blame you for not trusting me entirely. Here." He threw his white spear on the ground at Cecil's feet. "I'm unarmed now. It's a long explanation, but you have nothing to fear from me anymore. I'll tell you all about it, but first we should go speak with Blaze."

Eiko spoke up again. "Blaze? Isn't he the--" Zidane placed a hand on her shoulder and she stopped speaking.

Kain's eyes widened. "Have you been talking to the wizards at Mysidia?" Cecil nodded. "That explains it. I suppose it would look to them like we had his home under attack. On the contrary; we're guarding this mountain from assassins; most of the Light Warriors have been killed since the monsters returned. Blaze is one of the only ones left, and we can't trust anybody to come near him, even if they do claim to be from the Council at Mysidia. Come up and we can explain everything."

Somewhat reluctantly, Cecil agreed. He picked up Kain's spear and began to walk up the trail. Kain mounted his dragon and began to fly on ahead of them slowly, leaving the rest of the Dragoon squad behind to continue their vigil. As they walked, Cecil and Rosa explained to the rest of their companions who Kain was and why it was difficult for them to trust him. The others took this new news mostly in silence; it made about as much sense as anything else that had happened to them. The only question was from Eiko, who wondered who else had come with Kain, as it always seemed to happen in pairs. Nobody had an answer for that question, and Kain was too far ahead to have heard it.

After about an hour's hike up the rugged trail, the forest began to clear somewhat and soon after they reached a plateau where the trees had been cleared away. Standing in the middle was a small wooden house, and Kain alighted near the entrance. He led them inside, and they saw a young man asleep on a bed at the far end of the room. He was rather short and powerfully built, wearing a black ninja robe which contrasted sharply with the unhealthily pale color of his skin. Two large katanas lay crossed over each other on the floor at the side of the bed. Kain walked to his side and gently shook his shoulder. "Blaze," he said in a low voice.

The ninja awoke and sat up slowly. "Who are all these people, Kain?" he asked wearily. It was clear that all was not quite well with him.

"I'm not quite certain, but those two are old friends of mine. Remember I told you about my story?" The ninja nodded slowly. "These are Cecil and Rosa."

"Rosa?" He asked. "The White Mage? Could she..." he hesitated, looking at her pleadingly.

Rosa gave Kain a questioning look. "He's in a lot of pain," Kain explained. "The assassins got to him yesterday. Some sort of poison that we can't do anything for, and it makes it difficult for him to concentrate." Before he had finished speaking, the healer was at his side and had placed her hands delicately on Blaze's arms, letting her magic flow into him, both soothing his pain and probing gently to discover the nature of the poison. Sweat broke out on her brow as she continued to work, minute after agonizingly slow minute. After an initial sigh of relief as the magic first numbed his awareness of pain, Blaze bore the whole treatment in silence. When Rosa finally stepped back, she was a bit unsteady on her feet. Cecil recognized the signs of fatigue in his wife; she had overexerted herself and needed to sleep.

"Thank you," Blaze said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

Rosa shook her head. "I wasn't able to cure you. Whoever created the poison used magic beyond my skills; I was only able to slow its spread somewhat and ease its effects on your body."

"Thank you still. That's a lot more than these Dragoons were able to do," he said with a weak laugh. "So, Kain knows these two; who are the rest of you?"

The various companions introduced themselves yet again, wondering how many times they would have to do this before the "reunion" was completed. When they were done, Cecil spoke up. "We still haven't heard your story, Kain. How did you get here?

Kain hung his head slightly. "I suppose you've been wondering where I was ever since the wedding. I couldn't come because I was on Mount Ordeals at the time, trying to overcome the darkness within me, searching for some way to atone for the evil I had been a part of. When I reached the shrine at the top, though, the Light wouldn't accept me. I was told that my purification was not yet complete, and commanded to climb down the mountain and make my way to another high mountain to the west, and never attempt to return to Mount Ordeals until my fate led me back. You can imagine how confused I was; there's no such mountain. But I left, and halfway down I realized I wasn't on Mount Ordeals anymore. At least, not the one I had climbed up; I was in a different world entirely!

"When I reached the bottom I headed west, and after a few days' journey I arrived here. I met a veteran dragoon named Jek, a Light Warrior who was training a platoon of young dragoons. They took me in and taught me the skills that are lost in our world, how to fly a dragon and draw upon inner strength. And I've been up here for three years now, waiting for fate to lead me somewhere else. Then a few days ago we woke up in the morning and Jek was dead. The men chose me as the new Captain, and the next day Blaze showed up looking for refuge. There were assassins after him the whole way, and he helped us fight them off until yesterday, when this happened to him."

Cecil frowned slightly. "That would explain our reception."

"Exactly. They thought you were the ninth attempt."

Blaze looked at Cecil. "So why did you come?"

"The Elder of Mysidia sent us to talk to you. You're the only Light Warrior he knows where to find, and he doesn't know what's going on. But there's a prophecy that says that the forces of evil will return and the Chosen of the Light must reunite to fight against it, or something to that effect. We're all here, and he thinks that it would help things along if a Light Warrior of this land were to join us."

Blaze thought for a moment. "The evil will return? I certainly hope not; the foe we faced came much too close to ruining this world entirely. We fought a powerful Demon Lord, Laukabi, who was bent on finding and consuming the Crystal that regulates and balances our world."

Eiko gave a little start. "What would that have done?"

"Laukabi would have become all-powerful for one. We're not certain what it would have done to the world, but it would not have been--" The door opened, cutting Blaze off as a dragoon stepped inside.

Kain turned. "Yes?"

The dragon knight did not answer; he simply leapt into the air on a low trajectory that would bring him--and his spear--directly onto the bed where Blaze lay.

"NO!" yelled Kain as he leapt into the air as well. He tackled the man in the air with a loud crash of armor, then another crash as they fell to the floor. Kain began to wrestle with the other man, grappling at him and trying to hold him down, but the dragoon fought back with superhuman strength and almost got free of his Captain's grip twice before Nanaki stepped over and pinned one of his arms to the floor with two massive paws. This was enough for Kain to hold the man down while he reached down the front of his armor and pulled out a white, heart-shaped pendant that he wore concealed underneath it on a chain about his neck.

The dragoon's eyes went wide, and he struggled even harder as Kain brought the pendant towards him, thrashing back and forth, but Kain managed to touch it to the man's forehead. Instantly the knight went limp, and Kain stood up, gesturing to Nanaki to free him. The dragoon looked up at his Captain in shock. "Spirits! What did I do?"

"It's all right, Timothy. You didn't manage to do anything. We're all safe."

Timothy breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank the Light Spirits!"

Anticipating the next question, Kain explained. "Whoever's behind the monsters this time, it can dominate people just like Zemus did, but it's even stronger and more skilled at it. The Light gave me this pendant to protect me from domination, and this is the third time I've had to use it to break the spell on one of my own men. I--"

"HEY!" yelled Eiko suddenly.

Zidane looked at her. "What is it?"

"We've gotta leave here. Now!"

There was something in the urgency of her voice that forestalled any questions. Rosa raised her hands and cast EXIT, and they found themselves back on the trail, near the house. Blaze was laying on the ground, with the rest of the company in a circle around him. A loud roar brought everyone's heads up, as a massive gray dragon descended towards the cabin.

"Bahamut?" said Blaze in disbelief, scrambling to his feet. The dragon opened its mouth and breathed forth a wave of energy that obliterated the entire cabin and many of the trees behind it, then flew away. "Oh, spirits!" whispered Blaze, trembling with fear. "If they've managed to bind Bahamut, then what chance do we have?"

Nanaki, Zidane and Eiko made a quick search of the area, but whatever Summoner had almost killed them all was gone, most likely teleporting away as soon as the summon was finished.

When they returned, Laguna suggested that they all head to Mysidia. "It's not as if you can stay here, afterall."

Cecil nodded. "Kain, why don't you and your men come with us. It looks as if your fate has brought you something to do away from this mountain."

"Very well," Kain acquiesced. "They've been training three years under Jek and I, and there's nobody else I'd rather have at my side in difficult times like this. Present company excluded, of course." Cecil thought he saw Kain's eyes focus on Rosa for just a moment as he said that, but it was too quick for him to be certain. "In fact, we should leave right away, and go as quickly as we can. Laukabi--or whatever's in charge now--has found us and he seems to want us all dead." He called his dragon to him, which had flown off in search of food, and gathered the rest of the dragoon squad. "Everyone mount up; these Hiryus can fly a lot faster than even the best chocobos run."

Tom: The terms "final, ultimate confrontation", "coming soon", and "Final Fantasy: Reunion" do not belong together. At least notanytime in the near future. :P This is still the introduction, actually. The game won't begin in earnest for a few more chapters, and even then we'll only be about 1/3 of the way through Disc 1, so to speak.
More to in a few days. Keep the reviews coming!

Mason Wheeler