CHAPTER 31

DISASTER

Taken From Arcadia's Diary:

We've departed to try and find Olose, although I have no idea just how we are planning to cross the gap to the plateau. We have left the camp gear behind, taking with us only what we need (and Suse's frog, she will not leave it behind it would appear). Of that I am glad, the journey is tough. We have stopped for a rest, due to my insistence, I have found myself unable to keep up with these other more experienced adventurers, and feel this will not be our only rest on the trip to the plateau. I never realised just how hard life must consistently be for Olose.

Oh, Altana, I pray that he is unharmed.

Olose wondered through the undergrowth, pushing a gigantic leaf out of his way. It sprang back in Nadia's face, causing her to emit an angry grunt.

"Captain? Where are we going?" She inquired. Olose turned around.
"This way." He answered, pointing. "No purpose just hanging around at the edge. We're still on a rescue mission, remember?"

"So, where are we going to look?" Nadia casually asked.

"I think once we get out of the thickness of these trees, we might be able to find something." Olose decided.
"And if we run into any non-vegetarian monsters?" Nadia asked, her hand instinctively gripping her sword hilt.

"We run away." Olose answered with a shrug. "Simple, really."

"Yeah, as easy as that." Nadia grumbled pessimistically. "I knew I should have stayed with the camp."

The two heard a rustling noise up ahead and instantly sprang into action. Nadia drew her sword while Olose fiddled with his belt, trying to find where he had put his. It took mere moments for him to remember he had actually lost it and leap into a ready stance anyway, hands raised. Out of the trees thundered the form of a gigantic galka, who looked confused, and a little lost.

"Eh?" Olose muttered, his hands dropping. Nadia lowered her weapon.

"Who the hell are you guys?" The galka called in shock. Olose paused, blinking surprise.

"Sotobu?" He repeated. The galka lifted a mighty eyebrow.

"How do you know who I am?" He asked.

"It's me! Olose! Olose Sampson!" Olose cried, before pausing. "We met a few years ago. You were ranting about Bastok. Sure, I had a different face then. Different body too. But we met."
"Great. I finally find somebody on this godforsaken plateau and it turns out to be a crazy man." Sotobu grumbled.

"No. I'm serious!" Olose cried, craning his neck up to look at Sobotu's face.

"Is this true?" The galka asked Nadia sceptically.

"Sadly, yes." Nadia gave in response.

"So what are you doing here?" Olose asked. Sotobu laughed.

"You know how I'm from Bastok, right?" He grinned.

"Oh goddess yes." Olose sighed.

"Well, I'm one of our best mercenaries." Sotobu explained. "I was hired by Lord Roxton to help him on his expedition up here. Smart move that was." He sighed.

"Roxton?" Olose repeated.

"Saria's father." Nadia guessed.

"Well, we're the rescue party." Olose grinned. "Who's still alive?"

"Only me and Lord Roxton." Sotobu answered. "A gigantic beast marched by and attacked. It destroyed our constructed bridge and killed everybody else. You mentioned Saria?"

"Yeah. She contacted us." Olose explained.

"She must have survived then. That's good news." Sotobu decided.

"Blimey!" Came an exclamation from behind, and everybody spun around. "Jolly good! You found some rescuers!" A fairly old gentlemen with a trimmed grey beard and a tan shirt, complete with explorer's helmet and blue scarf, stood before them.

"Lord Roxton, I presume." Olose smiled. "My name's Captain Sampson. Part of the rescue operation your daughter sent."

"Saria? Is she here?" Roxton inquired.

"Safely back at the campsite." Olose told him.

"Excellent! Then let us return there, post haste!" Roxton demanded.

"Not so easy, I'm afraid." Nadia explained.

"A huge monster knocked our makeshift bridge away, we're as stranded as you are." Olose enhanced Nadia's point.

"Well darn." Spat Roxton. "You have support at the camp?"

"Yeah, but no way of getting in contact, and your daughter is there, would be dangerous for them to get involved." Olose explained.

"Well, if you cannot contact them, then you cannot stop them." Roxton smiled. A sudden roar echoed between the trees. "Hm. We must retreat. Come. I shall show you to our abode."

"I hate it when he speaks like that." Sotobu grumbled.

Arcadia was lagging quite far being the others as they ascended the steep slope leading up to the top of the plateau.

"Please. Wait." She panted, becoming quite frightened at the concept of knowing she was alone and could face any monster coming from the plateau as they had before. The others turned around and stopped, seeming somewhat irritated. Arcadia reached them and stopped, gasping for breath. "This is some climb." She remarked.

"We can rrrrest." Trevia suggested. "And decide just how we arrrre planning to crrrross the gap, since that is ourrrr biggest prrrroblem."

"We could jump." Saria joked.
"Let us send that frog across first as a scout." Arcadia chipped in.

"No!" Suse protested, hugging her pet to her chest.

"Apparently erecting a bridge was not the best path to follow, so we may need to come up with an alternative." Arcadia stated, deciding to get back on track.

"Like?" Trevia shrugged. Arcadia fell silent.

"What if we waited on the other side, ready to slide something across to the others as soon as they fall into view?" Saria suggested. "That way the bridge should hold so that they can safely get across."

"What if they're in trouble on the other side?" Suse pointed out, before folding her arms proudly at the fact she had made a point.

"Try the linkshell." Arcadia suggested. Trevia nodded, and held the tiny pearl in her hand, willing the appropriate thoughts to send a message.

Olose never received the message due to his smashed link pearl, but he would have been far too distracted to answer. He was dodging the stamping steps of a gigantic bipedal monster, its huge mouth full of sharp looking teeth and its leathery green hide impenetrable by swords.

"I hope this home of yours is close!" Olose cried,

"It's just up ahead!" Roxton yelled. Olose saw a small cave in the distance and bolted for it. All four ran inside, and the creature stuck its head in, roaring in anger. It took a few moments before it realised its prey had eluded it, and it turned away.

"What the hell was that?" Nadia screamed. Sotobu sat down with a thud.

"They're all over the plateau." He told Nadia. "Some kind of gigantic monster."

"I have a theory." Roxton began. "That they are creatures from before the fall of Gaia. I theorise that somehow this plateau survived the destruction of that land when it became Vana'diel."

"What are you talking about?" Nadia laughed. "Gaia? Nothing became Vana'diel. Vana'diel was a land formed of the crystals and of the Goddess."

"A mere religion, my good lady." Roxton smiled. "There is increasing scientific evidence that suggests there was a land before Vana'diel, and that a cataclysmic event destroyed it. The continents shifted over time and it soon became Vana'diel." Olose laughed.

"Science?" He joked. "It's all just myth."

"Captain? Since when did you know anything about history?" Nadia laughed. Olose paused, suddenly remembering how he knew. A fairy tale he had been read when he was younger, living with his foster parents in the village he had destroyed. He shook off the memories painfully.

"Just an old fairy tale was set in Gaia, that's all." He explained. Roxton chuckled.

"Ah, the Legend of the Light Warriors." He smiled. "No. Obviously that one is just myth. There were no time travelling heroes of legend, that is certain."

"Good thing too." Grumbled Sotobu. "Light Warriors! What a sissy name for a band of heroes! If I ever ran into them, I'd show them a thing or two!"

"Gaia existed almost a million years ago, if we are correct, Sotobu. You have no need to worry about running into any of its inhabitants." He paused. "Obviously false fairy tales aside, I do feel that Gaia did exist, and these creatures we see now roamed it."

"So this is the last little slice of Gaia in the whole of Vana'diel?" Olose inquired.

"Yes." Roxton answered. "And do you realise what that means?"

"That we charge people for access and become rich?" Sotobu suggested.

"Urm, no." Roxton stated. "That this is the final piece of evidence to disprove the crystal theory."

"Whoa." Nadia held up her hands as a sign to stop talking. "Is that a good idea? Doesn't pretty much the entire existence and harmony of Vana'diel hinge on the fact that it was born of the crystals. I mean, if Gaia exists, does that mean Altana doesn't?" Olose was slightly surprised by the logical point Nadia had risen.

"I've never seen any evidence to suggest that Altana doesn't exist, even if Gaia does." Roxton explained. "Well, except Sotobu there." He added with a grin.

"Yeah, I love you too." Sotobu grumbled.

"But surely the theory that this whole world was constructed by the crystals is fundamental to how people think of the world." Nadia argued. "If we disprove that theory for certain, then Altana knows what'll happen."

"We have more major concerns now anyway." Olose stated. "Like getting off of this plateau."

"It should be a simple case of erecting another bridge, and with the extra manpower now here, it should be a simple enough task." Roxton explained.

"Provided we don't get eaten." Sotobu pointed out. "I hear that can be a bit awkward."

"Staying safe from the beasts will be a major priority." Roxton confessed. The ground suddenly rumbled very loudly, and an explosion could be heard.

"What the hell was that?" Cried Olose.

Arcadia was sat on a rock elegantly, enjoying her rest while Trevia paced, frustrated at her failure to contact Olose and Nadia. Suse was distracted trying to keep her frog from escaping and Saria was looking over at the island wishfully. She was peering at the huge mountain that rose from the plateau and hung high in the sky. She leapt out of her skin in pure horror when it suddenly exploded, sending lava and plumes of black smoke soaring from the top.

"Sweet Altana!" Saria exclaimed.

"Oh my goddess!" Arcadia cried, covering up her mouth.
"AHHHH!" Suse screamed. It isn't appropriate to repeat what Trevia yelled. Even Fred the frog jumped from Suse's hands, hiding behind a rock. Arcadia thought even she could feel the wash of heat from the lava, but didn't know if it was her imagination or not.

"Olose!" Arcadia called. "We have to get over there!"

"It's too dangerous!" Trevia snapped. "Olose can take care of himself."

Olose, Roxton, Sotobu and Nadia stared upwards at the plumes of black smoke.

"Oh. It was a volcano." Remarked Sotobu casually. Shocked faces turned to him. "Well it was."

"I've never seen an eruption like that in all my years exploring." Roxton commented. "We have to run. This jungle will be reduced to lava in mere minutes. And at the rate that volcano Is erupting it will cover the entire plateau! It must have been building up for years."

"I've always said you're a master of bad timing, Captain." Nadia shot.

"We need to run, and find a way across, now." Olose decided. The four began to run when suddenly there was a roar.

"Sotobu, for our sake, I hope that was you." Roxton spoke slowly as the ground began to shake with monstrous footsteps.

It was now Arcadia who was pacing desperately.

"We cannot just sit here." She snapped.

"We have to." Saria sighed. "Even if we could find a way across, it's so dangerous over there it we wouldn't return. We can only rely on Olose and Nadia to find my father and get out of there."

"That lava surrrre is spewing fast." Suse remarked.

"It's going to engulf the whole plateau." Trevia explained.

"I cannot just wait while the love of my life burns!" Arcadia sobbed.

"If you go over there you'll just die." Saria cried. "Just sit down. Stay calm. Write in your diary." Arcadia shot her an angry look.

"We can't do anything." Trevia shrugged. "We just need to wait." Arcadia sat down, her fists tightened. Another mighty roar came from the volcano. She slumped, and began to cry. Trevia looked over at her and then glanced back to the view of the plateau. Saria didn't pay her any attention. Suse went up to her and hugged her.

"He'll be okay!" She explained with a childish smile. "He's always okay!" Arcadia forced a smile, looking over at the plateau. She let out a silent prayer that Suse was correct.

Author's Note: Well, that was much easier to get done (being done over two days). Once again, I apologise for the slower updates, but they are much much easier for me. This chapter was still fairly short, but at least I got it done without losing excessive sleep.

I do feel I should apologise for the volcano cop out though, just to throw some non-monster related action in and keep things tense. But it's a huge coincidence something like that would happen, and basically is just a cop out to let things happen, so sorry about that.

And on another note altogether, I referenced my original idea for this coming from the Lost World in Saria's father being named 'Roxton', which is the name of the hunter that goes with the band in that story (at least in the silent movie version I watched). I figured it was a better name than 'Challenger', which I was originally going to use and also a reference to The Lost World.

Anyway, sorry about the slower updates, but I am finding them easier, which means I should easily be able to keep up a chapter every two days. But I am sorry for letting people down by doing less than normal. I hope you guys reading don't mind too much! Sorry!