Here's the next chapter. Sorry it took so long. Lousy exams! Anyway, enjoy.
Chapter 6
"Your majesty! I beg for you to reconsider!"
The chancellor followed Edgar down into the lower parts of Figaro Castle. After having cleared out the monster, that had left the castle trapped underground for a year, the palace workers had been able to repair the castle's engines and had even managed to add a rather spacious workshop. It was here that they were currently piecing together their king's newest brainchild. The Sub-Mariner.
Edgar looked up proudly at the half-finished transport. At this rate, it'd only be another week before they'd be ready to go. He wondered among the workers checking their progress and offering advice, only half-listening to the chancellor's desperate council.
"There are plenty of diplomats who I'm sure would be willing to take this task in the name of Figaro."
"Now what sort of message would that send to these people if our nation's monarchs weren't willing to talk to them face to face?" Edgar replied, while watching a small crane move building materials.
"But do you both have to go!" The chancellor was practically pulling on his hat as he continued to try and reason with the young king.
"I already told you. I will not have my friends travel into the unknown alone." His blue eyes glinted as he smiled. "You know how lost they are without me."
"But surely your brother will be there with them." The chancellor replied.
"Yes, but you must understand. This is first and foremost a diplomatic mission. And, while I like to handle problems with a certain finece, my brother prefers a more… direct approach. Trust me, it'd be better if I was there."
The chancellor groaned. He wasn't that much older than Edgar, but he felt that he'd never understand this new generation. The most exciting thing the old King Figaro had ever done was have the carpet's colour scheme changed.
(Scene Change)
Terra stood on the rampart, pulling the cloak more tightly around her. She was often surprised at how cold the desert got at night. But the clear, cloudless sky helped her to forget that. She could see every star as bright as day. She couldn't help but wonder if any of those stars marked the realm of the espers. She was sure that they had gone to a new realm, or at least she hoped they had. She didn't want to think that they had simply vanished, or ceased to exist. She had felt such a bond with her father as she fought against Kefka with him. His strong spirit had helped her to stand her ground and fight, even when the battle seemed hopeless. She hated to think that that spirit might now be gone forever.
Suddenly, she was snapped out of her nostalgia. It'd been a year since she'd last done any magic. But that didn't mean she didn't still know what it felt like. She could feel it now, beneath her feet. It felt like a warp spell, but that was impossible!
Turning and hurrying to the stairs, Terra let her senses guide her. What worried her wasn't the fact that she was sensing magic, but that it didn't feel natural. You could usually tell who had cast a spell because their aura went into it. But the magic she had sensed just now, it's aura had been mixed. Like the magic didn't belong to the person who'd cast it.
(Scene Change)
Bazook threw the explosives up to Gorton. The bulky man then began laying the fuse line along the floor. Gorton meanwhile disappeared inside the Sub-Mariner, to set the explosives.
Bazook didn't see why Cerro didn't want these people finding their home. He, for one, was certain that they could easily destroy them all without a problem. Besides, if the stories about these particular people were true, there'd be plenty of magic to draw from them. But, he was the boss.
Terra peered round the doorway, into the workshop. She'd been in such a hurry to get down there that she'd forgotten she didn't even have a weapon. There was only one of them, but he looked pretty big, plus she could see a sword in his belt. He was knelt down, attaching a wire to a small box with a handle on it. Terra had a pretty good idea what that did.
He was nearly finished so there'd be no time to go get the others. Terra was just considering trying to sneak up on him, when her eyes wondered to a certain piece of equipment and a smile appeared on her face.
Bazook finished hooking up the fuse line. Now all he needed to do was wait for Gorton to finish up in the transport and they could – what was that sound? He looked up to see Terra standing on a control panel pulling down on a lever.
"Hey! What're you doing up there?" He yelled to the young woman.
Terra just smiled sweetly back at him and pointed to his right. Bazook turned to see what she was pointing at, just in time to get the back of a crane's hook smashed into his jaw! He sailed off his feet and landed flat on his back, eyes completely glazed over.
Terra hopped down off the panel. She cautiously made her way over to his prone form and waved her hand in front of his eyes. He was completely out of it. She took his sword out of his belt and used it to cut through the fuse line. She then headed over to the Sub-Mariner.
Jumping down through the top hatch, she spotted the explosive lying under what looked like the main controls. Just to be on the safe side, she figured it best that she take it out of the ship. She bent down to pick it up, but froze when she felt a blade against her throat!
"Hey there, fancy meeting you here."
Gorton pulled Terra's sword away from her and spun her around to face him, still with his sword at her throat. He grinned as he saw her face.
"Well, if it isn't the little esper? What a pleasant surprise." Gorton's beady eyes looked her up and down. "Cerro said you were young, but I still wasn't expecting this."
Terra was mentally kicking herself for assuming that the big guy had come alone. Now she was stuck with this slimy looking toadstool 'checking her out'. She needed to stall him until she could get clear of his sword.
"So, you're one of those mage warriors." She said. "I sensed your warp spell. How are you still able to use magic?"
Gorton grinned and brushed some hair out of Terra's face. She couldn't help but flinch in revulsion at his touch.
"Well, since you'll be coming along with me anyway, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to let you know. You see, we know about magic 'disappearing' from the world, what with that whole Kefka business. But, we also know that it is impossible for magic to simply disappear. It's just like matter. It can't be created or destroyed, just altered or perhaps sealed." His smile broadened as he began to lean closer to Terra. "Sealed in objects, or even people."
Terra was forced to step back as Gorton moved closer to her. His sword's blade pressed up dangerously against her skin. She soon found herself with her back against the Sub-mariner's wall. She was beginning to wish that she hadn't gotten this, clearly deranged, man started.
"Fortunately for us, we have developed the ability to draw magic from its' sources so that we may use it again."
A big part of Terra did not want to know the answer to the question she was about to ask, but it was too late to stop now.
"Draw? How do you do that?"
Gorton's hand suddenly grabbed the back of her head. His face twisted into a horrible smile.
"I'm glad you asked."
He then pulled his sword away but, before Terra could make a move, he leaned in and kissed her! Or, at least, it seemed at first like he was kissing her. His mouth was over hers. But within seconds Terra felt a numbing coldness spread throughout her body. Her legs felt weak and the only thing holding her up was Gorton's hand on her head.
Then, as suddenly as he had started, he stopped and pulled away. Terra slid down the wall to the floor, gasping for breath. Her chest was aching terribly and her vision was fuzzy. If she had been able to see clearly, she'd have noticed that the smile had disappeared from Gorton's face. It had been replaced by a look of surprise, which was then overtaken by anger.
"There's nothing there!" He snarled. He grabbed Terra by the hair and pulled her up to her knees. Gripping his sword, he spat at her,
"You're no esper; you're not even worth our time."
He made to run his sword right through her, but suddenly felt his own hair painfully yanked. His head was pulled back so that he was looking up. Right into the bright blue eyes of Edgar.
"Clearly sir, you do not know the proper way to treat a lady!"
Normally Edgar's face held a cheerful smile, but now it was darkened with anger. He turned and slammed Gorton's face into the wall then, with a strength an onlooker would've presumed he could not have, threw him up through the Sub-Mariner's top hatch. He then turned his attention to Terra.
"Are you alright, Terra?"
Terra managed to nod as she lent back against the wall.
"I'll be back shortly." Said Edgar. He bent down and picked up the sword Gorton had dropped. "Right after I give our guest a lesson in etiquette!"
He scaled the ladder out of the vehicle and leapt to the floor where Gorton was picking himself up. He tossed the sword so that it clattered by the mage's hand. Gorton looked up to see Edgar draw his own blade. The king stood in an en guarde position, with his sword pointed at an upward angle and his free arm behind his back.
"I'll have you know, it is considered very bad manners to enter another man's home without his prior consent."
Gorton couldn't believe his good luck. The fool was challenging him to a duel! What did he think this was? An opera scene? You had to love these royal types!
He grabbed his sword that the idiot had giving to him and charged in, swinging it madly. Gorton's sword attacks were both fast and powerful. His key to winning fights was his unpredictability. His opponents could never tell where he was going to strike. So imagine his surprise when, with one arm motion, Edgar sent his sword spinning across the room!
Gorton stood staring at the young monarch, who just nodded towards the weapon, indicating that he should go get it. Muttering something about a lucky swing, Gorton retrieved his sword and started his assault afresh.
Edgar did not possess his brother's amazing physical power, or Cyan's extensive knowledge of sword techniques, but he did have a talent that had helped him many times in and out of battle. Aside from being a genius inventor and irresistible to the female gender, he was also able to read people. Upon first meeting Kefka, he'd known the man was no good. When he'd first looked at Terra, he'd not only seen a beautiful woman, but a person with a tremendous inner strength. This gift served him well when he was fighting also. He was able to determine the person's frame of mind from their face. Right now, Gorton was angered, bordering on desperate. Add to that the fact that he had the glazed look of a clinically insane man, it was obvious he was going to try and catch Edgar off guard by coming at him from above, or from the side. And if you know where an attack is coming from, it's really a piece of cake blocking it.
Gorton kept swinging and slashing, but Edgar blocked every strike without problem. Suddenly, his free hand came from behind his back and he landed a left hook right across Gorton's jaw. The mage rolled across the floor, losing his sword yet again, and landed next to his unconscious partner, Bazook. Climbing to his feet, Edgar expected to see him reach for his sword again, but instead he clasped his hands together, index fingers up. Edgar's eyebrows rose. That looked like…
"Thundara!" Gorton thrust his hands forward and a bolt of lightning flew from his fingertips! Edgar just barely managed to move out of harm's way, but a big chunk of his cape got frazzled by the spell. Gorton started giggling and fired the lightning at Edgar again and again. Edgar was forced to take cover behind the crane. He pulled his crossbow out and held it ready. Unfortunately, the lightning was striking near his position so much he was pinned down.
Gorton was starting to feel dizzy. His magic power must've been running low. He decided to finish off that imbecile quick so he could use what he had left to warp back. He put his hands together like he had before, but this time his index and middle fingers were up.
"Thundag-arghh!" He screamed as his shoulder was pierced by the blade of a sword. He turned around to see Terra with Bazook's sword back in her hands. She was a little unsteady on her feet, but was gripping the handle firmly and she met Gorton's furious gaze with her own calm one.
Since Terra had a sword and Gorton didn't, plus Edgar was now back on his feet with his crossbow up, Gorton figured now was the time to make himself scarce. He quickly knelt down, placed his hand on Bazook's leg and performed the hand seal for warp. The two mages vanished, leaving Terra and Edgar alone in the workshop.
"Edgar, what were you doing in the Sub-Mariner anyway?" Edgar was helping Terra back to her room. She was still feeling woozy from what Gorton had done to her.
"Well my lady, you could call me somewhat of a perfectionist. I decided to see if there were any improvements that could be made to the interior of the vessel. However I ended up staying there later than I had intended, but your little confrontation with our 'guest' aroused me."
"Lucky for me." Said Terra. They arrived at her room and she stepped through the doorway.
"Y'know," She turned back to Edgar, who was standing in the hallway. "That was actually my first kiss. I'd always kind of hoped it would've been a more enjoyable experience."
"Oh, I beseech you my lady, please don't let it discourage you in the future. In fact, if you should ever wish to know how it is done properly, I would be more than happy to -"
"Goodnight, Edgar." Terra shut the door. She turned round, shaking her head but there was a smile on her face. Edgar really was a shameless flirt. But underneath that, he had a heart of pure gold. And frankly, Terra wouldn't want him any other way.