Chapter 3

The kings of Figaro, Edgar and Sabin Figaro, were seated on the two thrones in the main hall of Figaro Castle. They were going over future development plans with their head chancellor. They were interrupted by a knocking on the door.

"Come in." Said Edgar.

The door opened and in walked the captain of the guard, Cyan Garamonde. Being one of the few survivors of the lost kingdom of Doma, Cyan hadn't had anywhere to return to after Kefkas' defeat. Edgar had offered him the position of captain in their kingdom and Cyan had accepted, partly because being a knight was all he knew, but mostly because, over the course of their battles against the Empire and Kefka, he had formed a great friendship with the twin kings and it made him happy to be able to serve them.

Cyan gave a low bow, on one knee (Edgar and Sabin had told him a hundred times, he didn't have to do that, but old habits die hard).

"Your Highnesses…esses, the lookouts have spotted yonder Falcon coming from the north. It appears master Setzer is returning with a new treasure."

"Oh, great!" Sabin sprang up from his throne. "And Locke and Celes are bound to be with him. It'll be wonderful to see them."

Edgar noticed the slightly disheartened look on their chancellors' face.

"Oh, don't look so worried!" He said to the man, cheerfully. "This is a perfectly innocent meeting between friends. There's nothing to be suspicious about."

'Of course.' The chancellor thought to himself. 'The kings of Figaro having affiliations with a thief, a gambler and a former general of the Empire. Who could see anything wrong with that?'

Only five minutes later, the Falcon had touched down in Figaro Castles' courtyard. Edgar and Sabin sat by the fireplace in their personal living area of the castle. They both rose as Locke, Celes and Setzer walked in, followed by Cyan. Edgar gave them all a warm greeting, especially Celes.

"Ah, my dear. It is so wonderful to see you again. It's been too long since you graced this castle with your beauty."

"Why thank you, Edgar." Locke said, jokingly. "Your guards are unloading the treasure we've found. You can check it out later, but here's a sample." He reached into his pocket and took out the gemstone he and Celes had found.

"Wow! You could choke a behemoth with this thing!" Sabin rolled the precious gem over in his hand. "But, what's with the hole?"

"That brings us to the bad news." Said Celes.

They were suddenly interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway, very fast. The double doors were flung open and the newest member of the Figaro family bounded into the room.

"Friends!" The youth leapt towards Celes, who quickly sidestepped and let him collide with Locke instead, knocking him to the ground.

"Master Gau! Wouldst thou please try to control thyself!" Exclaimed Cyan.

Setzer laughed and pulled the boy off of Locke, giving the treasure hunter some air.

"He's just excited. I'll bet he doesn't get to have much fun cooped up in this castle. Right, Gau?" Setzer patted him on the back.

Gau's appearance had certainly changed since Sabin and Cyan had run into him in the Veldt. His long blond hair was clean and tidy, and tied back in a ponytail like Edgar's and Sabin's. He also wore the same kind of silk robes as the brothers. He no longer walked around on all fours and could even produce sentences with pronouns (but only when Edgar told him they were talking to someone important). Now fifteen, many of the castle maids were commenting on what a handsome young man he was, much to Edgar's chagrin.

"Anyway, as we were saying." Said Celes. "Not long after Locke and I found that gem, we were attacked by a group of men. And get this, they knew about the infusion process I went through as an infant!"

Everyone turned to stare at her, except Locke and Setzer. Edgar walked quickly to the double doors of the room and told the guard outside that they were not to be disturbed.

Ten minutes later, they were all seated around the table.

"Surely it shouldn't be too surprising that they knew you were able to perform magic?" Said Cyan. "Back in the days of the Empire, everyone knew there was something special about you and I'm sure a lot of people saw you use magic during your travels around the world."

"It's not just that." Answered Celes. They knew the magic was a part of me. And the only way they could know that is if they were involved in the infusion."

"Alright, let's go through the names of everyone who was involved in it." Said Setzer. "Emperor Gesthal…"

"Dead." Said Celes.

"Kefka…" Said Edgar.

"Dead."

"Cid…" added Locke.

"Dead." Celes sighed. "And those are just the people we know. There could be any number who were around at the time – Oh no!" Celes suddenly stood up.

"What's wrong?" Asked Sabin.

"I just had a terrible thought. If whoever sent those men was around at the time of my infusion, then there's a chance they might also know about -"

Everyone else joined her as realization dawned.

"Terra!"

(Scene change)

Will climbed along the branch, reaching out for the apple at the far end. Below him, on the ground, his sister Elsie was standing with a worried look on her face.

"Will! That branch is starting to bend. Maybe you should let Mama's tall friend get that one?"

"No, I can do it. I'm nearly there!" The little boy stubbornly called back. He edged along closer, his fingers just touching the surface of the apple…

CRACK!

The branch toppled down towards the ground, taking Will with it! Elsie screamed and covered her eyes. After a few seconds, she dared to open them again. The branch was lying on the ground before her, but Will was not. Surprised, Elsie raised her eyes a little higher.

"Mama!"

Will found himself being held in Terra's strong arms. She put him down gently and placed a hand on her hip.

"Now Will, what did I tell you before you went outside?" She asked him in a slightly stern voice.

"You said I could gather some apples." The boy replied rather defensively.

"But what else did I say?" Terra struggled to keep a straight face as Will started to go red with embarrassment. Elsie ran up and tugged on Terra's dress.

"You said not to climb on any of the really tall branches." She piped up.

"It wasn't that high up!" Will said hotly to his sister.

"Well it certainly isn't anymore." Terra nodded towards where the branch now lay. Will crossed his arms and snorted, and it was all Terra could do not to laugh out loud. He reminded her of Relm. "Come on Will. Let's get these apples back home. Maybe then, I'll be able to get started on those pies."

That instantly snapped Will out of his mood. He ran over to where he'd left the basket of apples he'd collected. But when he got there, the basket was empty and surrounded by apple cores. A belch sounded out from the tree branches above him and he looked up to see five strange men sitting in the tree. They all wore dark clothing and were holding a variety of weapons. One of them grinned at Will and he did not like the look in his eyes one bit. He turned around and ran back towards Terra, his ears telling him the strangers had leapt from the tree and landed on the ground.

Upon seeing them, Terra instantly put herself between the children and the men. She'd had enough experience to know trouble when she saw it. The dark quintet stood just a few feet from her, with their weapons at hand.

"Will, Elsie, get back inside and tell Katrin to keep everyone indoors. Go!"

After a moment's hesitation, the children didn't really want to leave Terra to face the scary men alone, they did as they were told and ran back towards their house.

Terra stood facing the intruders. She had no weapon, no armor and was outnumbered five to one.

'This may prove a bit tricky.' She thought to herself.