Klyde and James stood back to back, preparing for the inevitable. Wolves had a tendency to circle their prey, sizing up the situation before attacking. James was practically dripping with sweat as he waited for the attack. Why did it have to be wolves?… Man… anything but wolves…

There was a low murmur from the wolves, and then a tension broke in the air. As one, the pack lunged, fangs bared as they assaulted their potential meal. Klyde reacted first, leaping into the air with the Aeolus drawn, his blade nothing more than a blur as he began to cut through the creatures.

James gulped, his fears getting the best of him. One wolf got too close for comfort, and the black belt lashed out with a poorly aimed punch. Another wolf jumped out behind him, raking its claws into his back. James let out a whimper as he rolled to the side, avoiding the whirlwind of fangs and paws. He realized his breathing was a little too fast and he closed his eyes. Using a quick meditation trick he had learned from Thaddeus, he focused his soul and calmed his spirit.

As he concentrated, all the wolves surrounded him, jumping at him in unison from all sides. His eyes shot open, and a small aura of ki built up around his hands. "Spin fist!" He yelled as he spun around with his arms extended, his fists smashing into several snouts at the same time. There were a few scattered whimpers as the wolves backed up, now cautious of what appeared to be easy prey.

James turned to see how his partner was doing. Klyde had a big grin on his face as he smacked the hindquarters of the last wolf, sending the monster running off with a yelp. The pack of lupines disappeared into the night, and the two heroes continued their journey.

The walled town of Provoca. Ironically, the same walls that once protected their city, now kept them hostage. The entranceway at the front of the city was guarded by two pirates, and from what could be seen, there were several patrols walking around the interior of the city. Klyde shook his head from his vantage point behind some heavy brush.

"This place is locked up tight. What are we gonna do? There's gotta be a way in…"

Klyde stroked his chin for a moment, and then turned to James. "I have a great idea." He put his hand on James' shoulder and smiled. "If you don't hear from me in… say… an hour… you just rush the place, alright?"

James stared at Klyde, his mouth hanging out. "You're not serious, are you?"

Klyde flashed James a cheesy grin. "I'm always serious, aren't I?" He waved to him as he ran off towards the wall. James shook his head as he watched him run off. "That idiot is gonna get himself killed…"

Klyde approached the wall, craning his neck to view the top of the structure. He let out a whistle, shook his head, and laughed at himself. "I hope this works…" he mused to himself as he pulled out his sword. He closed his eyes, and the crystal in the hilt glowed softly.

He steeled his nerves, muttered a quick prayer, and swung the sword downward. The young fighter jumped into the air, a gust of wind boosting him enough to reach the lip of the wall. He reached out and grabbed the edge, hoisting himself over.

Klyde landed in a crouch, attempting to make as little noise as possible. He checked around quickly for any more guards, and ran into an alley.

The citizens of Provoca had all been squeezed into the main building of the town. Even in the larger halls of the inn, most of the people were cramped in the three different guest rooms. Downstairs, a lone pirate dozed lightly with his feet up on the innkeeper's desk.

"Argh! I can't stand this!" A beautiful young girl in a white robe smashed her fist into a desk, shattering any illusions of this being the typical "virtuous, mild, flower of a woman" stereotype.

"The nerve of these pirates…" She growled under her breath, standing up suddenly. The other inhabitants of the room looked at her in shock. One of the older women dropped to her knees in front of the younger girl.

"Please, Amber… don't cause a fuss! You may be a gifted… but who knows what these pirates may do! What if they hurt the children?"

The girl known as Amber tried to put on her most reassuring smile. It wasn't very good. "Don't worry, ma'am. I have the power of white magic on my side. These stupid pirates won't know what hit them!"

The older woman shook her head in worry as the young white mage, Amber, stormed down the stairs.

The sleeping pirate jumped up as he heard the sounds of heavy footsteps. He scooped up his rapier and put it into between himself and the fiery young woman.

"What are you doing out of your room? We aren't done looting yet!"

The threat didn't even slow Amber down as she slipped her mace out from her sleeve, walked directly up to the pirate, and slammed it down onto his head. The unfortunate pirate slumped to the ground without a sound.

"Right." She said to herself, opening the door a fraction, looking for any more pirates. Seeing none immediately, she crept through the doorway and set off to find their leader.

Biggs chuckled to himself as he suppressed a yawn, comfortably seated on a plush chair in the mayor's house. Being a pirate was a good job, he decided. Leave the risk to the lackeys, free treasure, and great booze. I could really get used to this, he decided.

Suddenly, his lieutenant busted into the room, breathing heavily. "Um, sir… I mean, captain… we have a situation outside. You should come out here…"

Biggs raised an eyebrow at his subordinate. "I should go out there?… " he let the pause hang in the air for a moment. Suddenly he let his anger explode, frightening the other pirate. "Then why the hell do I have lackeys! Get the fuck back out there and deal with it!"

The lieutenant scrambled backwards out of the door, muttering apologies as he fled. The angry look instantly melted of Biggs face and he treated himself to a big grin. "You're getting better at this, old boy." He congratulated himself as he put his head back and closed his eyes.

Klyde crawled along the rooftops with the skill of a cat burglar, keeping low to avoid detection. Fighters were not only known for the strength, but thankfully for their agility as well. Klyde felt at home among the rafters and roofs of the higher altitude, and the wind in his hair was definitely pleasant.

"It was really a good idea to leave James behind on this one…" Klyde muttered to himself. "He would have pooped himself if he had to come up here." He had no proof, but James certainly seemed like the type to hate heights.

He looked down at the pirates patrolling the area, and counted under his breath. Nine pirates total… Klyde grinned inwardly, taking back what he said about leaving James behind. Even for a gifted, nine was a bit much.

Maybe if I catch them at specific intervals… that way I only have to take one or two at a time…

"Hey! Assholes! Its time you all got the hell out of here!"

Klyde's ears perked up, and he swung his head toward the source of the sound. A young girl in white robes had elbowed her way past a patrol, and had come up to a taller looking man that seemed to be in charge.

"You heard me, didn't you!"

The tall pirate shook his head. "I heard. But I don't believe. You mean to tell me that you plan on taking us all down alone?"

Amber finally took in her surroundings. She frowned slightly, tightening her grip on her mace. Maybe this wasn't the best idea…well, too late for regrets…

Just as Amber went to swing, a loud voice boomed out from among the rooftops.

"You guys would beat up on a poor, defenseless hottie? What kind of jerks are you guys?"

A figure dropped down from a roof, performing a cool-looking flip as he came down. As he landed, however, he slipped on a bit of garbage and smashed into the pavement. He quickly hopped up and grinned, however. Amber gave her would-be rescuer with a heavy glare.

"Great. Of all the people who could have saved me, it had to be the dumbest one." She declared with her hands on her hips.

Klyde went to mouth off a retort, and stopped as he met her eyes. Damn she's hot… "Umm.. well… uh… you're… the… dumbest…" he stumbled through his insult, certain features of the female anatomy stealing away his attention.

Amber let out an impatient sigh. "Really good comeback. Now, are you gonna help me or not? We have to save these people!"

Klyde nodded, pulling himself back into reality. Unfortunately, reality consisted of nine people with rapiers.

"Alright!" He pulled out his Aeolus and put on his best hero smile. "You pirates are going down!" Amber rolled her eyes at his attempt at heroics. She had heard better lines in comic books.

What happened next, however, definitely surprised. Klyde dashed at the group of pirates with a speed no one had expected. As rapiers came up to attack, his great sword cut through them as if they were butter. Several of the pirates dropped to the ground as well, limbs being caught up in the hero's lightning quick progress. Soon, all that stood were Klyde and the taller pirate. The pirate growled, pulling out a strange devise from a sheath of some sort on his hip.

"It's obvious swordplay isn't the way to go with you… eat lead!" The pirate pulled a lever on the strange contraption, which Klyde noticed was shaped almost like a sort of crossbow. Instead of an arrow, however, there was a long tube at the end that ejected some sort of strange… metal… pellet…

"Ah!" Klyde screamed out as the pellet ripped into his arm, sending blood out from either side. He dropped his sword, clutching at the wound, as the pirate came up to him, sneering down at the wounded fighter.

"This is called a 'gun'. A buddy of mine is heavy into mechanics and made this for me. It beats out both magic and weapons with no trouble whatsoever… Soon, you stupid 'gifteds' will be nothing more than a thing of the past!" Klyde gulped as the barrel of the 'gun' was pressed up in between his eyes. All of his vision seemed to center around the meal tube against his head, and he felt a slight tingle where it was pressed.

"And just so you know the name of your killer, dear gifted, my name is Wedge."

Everything in the universe seemed to melt away for Klyde, except for the looming presence of the strange weapon. Time seemed to slow to a halt as he waited for the loud explosion sound that preceded an attack from the weapon.

There was a loud crashing sound, and the gun slipped away from his head. His whole body cringed, preparing itself for death. When nothing terribly interesting happened, he risked opening his eyes. Wedge was lying, crumpled on the ground. Behind him, Amber pulled back her mace with a contented smile on her face. She gave Klyde a wry grin.

"Boom." She said softly. Despite himself, Klyde flinched. Then he remembered the searing pain in his arm. Amber walked up, put her hand over the wound, and concentrated. A soft glow emanated from the hands, and she whispered the word, "Cure."

When the light faded, there was no marking to show the gunshot had even happened. Klyde sat up with a grin, flexing his arm. He turned to Amber and gave a half hearted bow.

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship."

Amber rolled her eyes yet again.

Meanwhile, James looked up at the position of the sun. "Do you think it's been an hour yet?" he mused to himself.

AN- Another chapter in the bank. Sweet! Hopefully these will keep flowing as well as they have lately. Stay tuned, and review, people! I want some more feedback! Hope everyone likes all the stupid little Final Fantasy series refrences!