28 Days Later
It was a time of great rejoicing for all of the world.
The heroes had returned victorious.
Cecil and his friends made it all the way to the heart of the moon, just in time to see FuSoYa and Golbez destroy Zemes. However, as Bahamut had feared, the evil within the man was too strong, and it actually took physical form as a hideous monstrosity of pure hate and evil. This form easily beat FuSoYa and Golbez, because the dark knight had no power over true evil. Only a hand of a Paladin could be risen against this creature, and that was exactly what Cecil did as he came up against the demon. He was able to focus his purity to reveal the true form of the horror, and then he and his friends attacked it mercilessly. None truly know how long they battled against the evil known as Zeromus, and just as no one would ever know how epic the fight against Chaos had been, the same was for this entity. According to Bahamut's estimates, Cecil and his company should have been annihilated. But by some act of fate, grace, or mercy...somehow the spirits of all those on Earth who still struggled for peace and justice were enfused into the five. That, combined with the powers they had gained battling through the moon, plus the weapons Ragnarok and Masamune, the creature of chaos was destroyed. With that, FuSoYa and Golbez agreed to leave the Blue Planet on the moon, holding true to the Lunarian's promise. They would return only when the people of Gaia were ready.
Now the broken world was settling down and being reborn anew. The group had managed to use a spell to exit the moon, and then rode the Big Whale back to the Blue Planet, where it was again sealed away...this time likely forever. The Crystals were recovered from the Tower of Bab-Il and restored to their proper places. The Tower itself was demolished via a remote detonation from space. The moon began to make its preparations to leave orbit and hurtle itself into the void of space for the next few thousand years. As for everyone else, they began to break up and return to their respective kingdoms. Edge was named as the new king of his realm of Elban. Kain the dragoon retreated to do penance for the evil in his own heart. Cecil and Rosa returned to Baron, where as they struggled to organize the people to rebuild their kingdom and wash away the filth of the fiends, they struggled to stave off a universal call for Cecil to be crowned king. Cecil held off for a long time, and eventually he managed to silence talk of it until the kingdom was stable. But already, as the only man of authority in Baron, he acted as Steward of the kingdom, and soon he would officially become its King. He was nervous about this, but he received encouragement from the world over. Indeed, even in the halls of Terratopolis, Odin could think of no greater man to end his thousand-year legacy and to lead the humans through the current age than Cecil. He had raised the youth as his son, and not even Palad had ever drawn so much affection and confidence from the esper. Lastly, Rydia returned to her own home in Terratopolis, to be with the only ones she truly considered her family.
As matters among espers also settled down, King Leviathan and Queen Starlet were overjoyed to see their foster child return. They welcomed her with such open arms and affection, and her return caused such a great celebration throughout the realm, that Rydia felt too fearful to tell them the news of what had become of Bahamut right away. Indeed, not since Palad had a human been met with such affection by all espers. Leviathan and Starlet both felt young again to see her face there, and despite her being human both wished that she would stay there forever to make their world brighter with her presence. All of the other espers loved her as well. Though some had been angry when she had brought her four friends with her to that world, many more had begged her with tears in their eyes not to leave again. She was truly a human after their own hearts, one that regarded them all as if they were equals, not inhuman beasts to be feared nor mythical gods to be revered.
Leviathan and Starlet both thought these things with tenderness in their heart as they saw Rydia out on the upper courtyard. This was the same grounds that had once been exposed underneath a natural sun, but were now enclosed and shone on by an artificial one. It did the job well, and no new person could arrive and notice that it wasn't the real thing. None of the younger espers seemed to realize that either. The celebration was still going on in the world. Much of the interior was still decorated and bright, and many espers were still running around playing. It was a great sight for all to see, and the King and Queen were pleased to see it. But their gazes remained on Rydia as she played down below on the grass. She was getting too old to be playing games, but she didn't mind running around a bit still. Right now, she was dashing around with Unicorn, showing her some of the new powers that she had obtained. Although the esper had never become one of her summons, she nevertheless was one of Rydia's best friends. She had lived with her in their own house in Terratopolis. Leviathan believed that was part of the reason she had healed so quickly from their own battle. But right now, he sensed her new strength, and there was little doubt that she was the greatest black wizard on the face of the Planet now. She made him proud, like a father is proud when he looks on a child succeeding at a task, knowing that he was the one who started the child on the path and taught him or her the basics.
And yet, in the end, he sighed. "...If only she wouldn't take a shine to that damn fool of a ninja..."
Starlet raised an eyebrow at this, and turned to him. "...So, you see it as well?"
"Of course I see it!" Leviathan responded quickly. "How could I not?"
"Perhaps because she is always yelling at him, smacking him, and calls him a name at every opportunity." Starlet simply answered. "Now, we women can see through that easily enough, but for all your wisdom, Leviathan, you're still clueless as ever when it comes to young women."
Leviathan blushed at this. However, he merely straightened up and spoke back. "Well, I've looked at her thoughts, and she daydreams about him a lot-"
Leviathan was cut off by a smack from his wife. He winced and turned and looked innocently at her, while she glared daggers back at him. "Ow! What was that for?"
"Shame on you!" Starlet immediately scolded. "Didn't I tell you not to go reading people's minds? Especially Rydia's mind? I have half a mind myself to tell her that..."
Leviathan paled and swallowed. He shook his head earnestly. "Oh, please don't! It was a careless mistake!"
Starlet frowned and crossed her arms. "I'll just bet..." She grumbled in reply. She turned and looked back out to Rydia after that. A few moments went by in silence, but the two of them seemed to calm down a little. Levaithan, sweating a little, turned his head back to Rydia. He frowned again and shook his head at her when he did.
"I don't see why she just can't find a nice quiet boy..." He went on. "Smart...pleasant...funny...real down to earth but decent..."
"You mean someone like you?" Starlet suddenly threw out. "Someone boring? Shy? An incorrigible bookworm? A stick in the mud at parties?"
Leviathan heard this, and his face turned into a hurt expression. He cringed a little bit and began to look rather pitiful and pathetic. However, he only moped a moment before he heard a small laugh from his left, and then Starlet leaned over and gave him a peck on the cheek.
"...And that's why I married you." She reassured. "And I love it when you make that sad little puppy dog face you're making right now."
Leviathan brightened up at this, and returned her look with a smile. The two of them were silent for a few moments longer, and went back to their old positions. But after a moment Starlet looked back to her husband. "So? Have we decided to accept the future king's invitation?"
The sea serpent frowned in response. "What for? Only five people there will recognize us for who we truly are. And if we tell them who, most will run in panic while the others will think we're mad."
Starlet shrugged. "I still felt Rydia could use an escort. Besides, we haven't been to any human parties for some time. And we did help, if you don't remember. I, for one, will never forget emerging from that portal and seeing that abomination before me."
Leviathan shuddered a bit at the memory of it as well. After a few moments, however, he shrugged. "Well, we'll see." He finally stated. "I've been feeling a bit uneasy lately. I think something might be coming soon that demands my attention here..."
It had taken nearly at thousand years...but at last they were ready.
By now, the last of their race had died. Only their caretaker and guardian was left. He continued their genomic research...still intent on finding a perfect combination of DNA that would allow for an optimal organism. But that didn't matter. That was only a matter of time. However...the time to set the rest of their plans into motion was nigh. Their world was at a content point, yet reeling from a world war. The Lunarian race had ceased all outward scanning, and would soon be departing. Now was the time for them to make their move against Gaia.
To that note, against the backdrop of the pale blue orb that was Gaia, or the Blue Planet, in the universe, a small object began to slowly draw forth from the depths of space. It too was blue, but a much darker and steely color. It had a strange shape to it. It was almost like a great cetacean being as well, much as the Big Whale had been. But it was crafted differently, made to look more smooth in the body but with sharper fins. There was no doubt it was a later model. However, the most distinctive thing about the ship was not its shape...but what was underneath it. A great burning red lens made up the underside of the ship. It was surrounded by descending rings and adjustment lenses that together made the bottom of the ship appear to be a great eye wreathed in flame. The ship appeared to be something great and terrible indeed. However, the ship itself was just as ship, and despite the apppearance it was capable of being used for good or ill without any preference for either.
It was the man who commanded it who truly had the black heart.
A great dark shape stood on the bow and gazed out coldly through the abyss of space to look on the Blue Planet, much as a bird of prey does when it has its eye on a target it intends to rend and devour. With his race dead, his sole obsession now was to carry out the eradication of all life on the world, and to bring it to the power of Terra. A thousand years ago, his research and methods had been thwarted and frustrated. But since then, he had made adjustments. He had taken new things into consideration. He had drawn far greater and more complete plans against that world. And now, at this time, he was at last ready to enact them.
He had aged considerably. His hair was turning gray now, and his beard was longer and thicker. He had lost the helmet entirely. But he still wore the black armor. It was now mechanically enhanced, feeding greater power into him through the great burning red jewel in front of it. It kept him alive and gave him unnaturally long life, in addition to his genetic makeup. Since the day he had left, he had pondered the power of the espers. His mind had not forgotten the strength and appearance of Bahamut the day he looked into his eyes. Now that he had returned, it was clear to him now that they had to be done away with. And this time...he knew exactly how to make it happen.
However, on coming back, there was something unexpected. Apparently, a new subspecies of human had arisen, the Summoners. They had the power to bend the espers to their will.The manrealized that, and was intrigued by it. He reminded himself to get a DNA sample, planning to incorporate it into a latest design. But now, he had a greater fear to worry about. So long as there were Summoners, they could yoke the strength of the espers and use them against him and his devices. Naturally, that meant only one possible choice. The Summoners must be destroyed.
Luckily, he had been watching the Blue Planet for some time. And he was able to see that the Summoners had recently suffered a bottleneck. Now, only one of them was left. Her death would mean the Summoners' extinction. Then he could continue unhindered.
Although he couldn't target her directly without exposing himself,he knew where she was right now. The lens on his ship allowed him to see all that he focused on, and he had not looked away from her since she left the Lunarian moon. She was in the esper's home right now, playing in its courtyard. And that afforded the perfect opportunity. One blast would be all that it took to shatter the crown of the mountain, and the resulting cave in would destroy her along with a few other meddlesome espers. And so, that became the first objective on this particular mission. Eradicate the Summoners first...
...And then begin Phase I of the Lifestream Replacement Plan.
No one even goes there anymore...
Ramuh thought this to himself as he walked down the hallways. A few lesser espers walked with him. As a resident constable and emergency contact, the lightning esper was responsible for maintaining order in some wings of Terratopolis. He didn't mind. It was a mostly do-nothing job. And because of that, he had a lot of time to research and develop his experiments and devices. However, it appeared that on this rare occasion he might actually have to do something.
An esper had reported to him that someone was banging on the original exit of the mountain. It had been sealed up years ago. There were larger entrances now on the overworld. However, this indicated that someone was trying to get in. No one knew what to make of this. Was it invaders? Was it mining humans? Was it a lost esper? At any rate, it was only a low-level alert. That was why only espers like Ramuh were called to respond. And now, he followed the other espers through the winding channels of the mountain cave and made their way to the exit.
"Do you sense anything?"
"No sir. But the mountain was reinforced to block smaller probes. Only one of the higher espers could see through."
"Any reports of any activity there today?"
"None."
Ramuh nodded to this, and continued onward. This was very peculiar. It intrigued him slightly to wonder who could be using it.
At last, however, he and his retinue arrived at the exit. It wasn't much. It was in a rougher area of the mountain, one that had never been touched up. A great block of stone essentially blocked a great tunnel, and that was it. Few espers even came down to this place anymore. Even the children thought it was boring and avoided it. In fact, save for the occasional security guard, no one ever came this way. But a guard had come earlier that day, and had noticed a slow, rhythmic knocking against the stone. It sounded tired and labored, but it continued to go without end as time went on. As Ramuh approached the great stone entrance, and other espers began to light torches and illuminate the area, Ramuh heard it for himself. It was slow and repetitive...but he instantly realized it was far too disjointed to be from a mechanical source. There were slight variations in tempo and power. He knew at once that it was a living thing. What, exactly, he could not tell. Even his power was too weak to scan through this. However, he could pick up a slight image as he stared on at the rock.
The other espers turned to him, awaiting a response. His deputy, a great wolf esper named Fenrir, inquired from him. "Well, so you see anything sir?"
"I can only see a shade of a living power." Ramuh slowly responded, as he squinted and stared at the stone, seeming to look through it. "Or two. I'm not sure if I'm right in seeing two separate powers... At any rate, they lack the violence of planned aggression. That would show up real nice."
"So shall we open it?" One of the espers spoke near the stone blockade.
Ramuh gave a nod and gestured to them in response.
In reply, two espers moved to either side of the great stone. They looked to each other as they did so, making sure that their moves were matching up. But then, they turned, and as one placed their opposite hands against a certain part of the great rock. However, no sooner had they done so than a light burst forth from the stone. A strange glowing glyphgleamed a soft light around their hands. It seemed to actually rise off of the stone for a moment as they held their hands there. But just as quickly, it faded back into the rock and vanished. At that, the whole stone began to creak and groan and shudder. The two gatekeeper espers stepped back and looked up to it, as did the others. Slowly, the rock in front of them began to fracture in two, right down the middle. But as it did, the rock began to shimmer. A light appeared to be glowing within both halves and all around it. It quickly went from a soft shine to a much stronger glow, and it only grew brighter and brighter afterward. The espers winced after a moment as the light turned to a glare, and became blinding for a short moment... But then, just as it did so, it toned back down and faded. And when it did, it took the rock with it. All that was left in its wake was a great tunnel and cave opening. Outside, a rocky mountain face stretched down to the ground, and a cool breeze wafted into the chamber.
Ramuh immediately drew himself up and began to walk outside. The other espers fell in behind quickly. But he had barely set foot out into the area where the rock had been when he sensed something...something great, powerful...and very familiar. It was odd, however. The presence wasn't as pure as it had once been. It felt corrupted...more passionate...darker. It made the normally warm and familiar presence turn bitter to the sensation. To Ramuh...it almost felt as if he was sensing two spirits, and not just one. However, for one reason or another, namely that he didn't realize the properties of magicite (as none but the original espers did), he didn't act upon it. Rather, he, like so many others, would soon succumb to a great illusion that would jeopardize the future of their entire race. For now, they saw none of this. Only the familiar and somewhat comforting presence, a feeling they had not felt in forty years, and had endured no peace since that had happened...
The feeling only grew stronger as Ramuh emerged past the mouth of the cave and into the sunlight. Even as he did, his eyes looked down just a little bit in front of him at his feet. The other espers soon fell in behind him, and they stared as well. Their eyes opened wide. Their mouths dropped with horror. Their stomachs turned at such a grotesque and mutilated sight. But over it all, they felt their hearts begin to rush as they saw who it was, and who it had to be...
Bahamut had returned.
He could barely move. One of his arms was withered to a cinder, yet still clutched some strange crystal in its crook. Another wing was useless and tattered. Many of his scales were gone, and his body was covered with horrible burns and damage. Worst of all was his head. To the disgust of all present, his crest and bone were cracked and damaged, and right down to the brains could be seen in the creature. Half of both eyes had been burned away, and he had to be almost blind. He looked like a half-rotten corpse...and smelled like one as well. His energy looked like it had been totally burned out returning here. Most of all, however, Ramuh noticed that his blue scales had been so burned and affected by, no doubt, reentry into the Planet's atmosphere that they had been stained blood red. Yet despite all of damage, he was still alive. Their king had returned at last. And that could only mean one thing...he was victorious in the end. The foe of the espers had been destroyed. And now, the king had come back to them, and would not be leaving again. It would be a time of celebration and great joy...if it wasn't for the fact that he was so horribly injured.
Ramuh stared in utter shock for a few moments. He couldn't believe it. His mind began to do loops in his head. How? Why? What had happened to his master? How was he still alive? And where had he come from so late? His mind filled with a million questions and fears. But then, his authority persona took control. He realized that if their master was going to live, he needed assistance quickly. In a flash, he turned to Fenrir. The wolf esper was still transfixed on the fallen esper. But he snapped him out of it with a sharp order.
"Bring a stretcher and every healing esper you can find. We must get him to the infirmary."
"So how did you do it anyway?"
Rydia turned in response to that. "What?"
"You know, killed Zeromus." Unicorn answered, prancing up to her and looking enthusiastic.
Rydia smiled and snickered a little at that. "Well...it really wasn't just me. It was my friends as well."
Unicorn leaned in closer in response. "Did you really learn Meteor?"
Rydia blushed a little at this. That was a real accomplishment. She raised her hand to her head and scratched slightly. "Well...it took me a lot of work. And it nearly drained me. If I was any older, I probably wouldn't have the vitality to cast it. And it took me a long time..."
The girl suddenly trailed off, however, and her blush turned to a sudden look of stunned surprise.
At that moment, the area was beginning to rumble and shake.
Unicorn looked at her a moment longer, but then saw what was going on. She began to look around as well. The other young espers who were outside likewise paused and began to examine the area. Lastly, Leviathan and Starlet stopped their own train of thought as they stood on the balcony around the rim. The rumbling, however, only continued to build up. It began to become tremors...and then a quake. Dust began to rain from the ceiling, and the area began to grow violent. At this, the young espers began to cry out, and ran out from the area. Unicorn began to prance about nervously. Rydia struggled to keep her balance, and looked up to the ceiling. Leviathan and Starlet followed soon after. As they looked up there, and more dust and now small rocks begin to fall down to the ground below. Most importantly, however, they saw that a great fracture was beginning to grow in the ceiling...and it was getting bigger.
Rydia's eyes instantly shot open, and her face turned white. Unicorn began to panic and sweat. The younger espers screamed as they cleared the floor. Leviathan reached out for his wife and immediately pushed her back into the opening. Finally, the Summoner turned and began to run for it as well, going back to the nearest opening. Unicorn quickly pitched around and followed. The ceiling continued to crack, and started to buckle under the strain. But nobody cared what the cause was. The only thing they cared about was getting out of there before it fell. Fear replaced their shock that this was actually happening, and they struggled to run. Leviathan began to pull into shelter as well after putting Starlet back, but then he realized people were still out. He ducked his head back out of the opening and looked down. By now, the young espers were safe...but Rydia and Unicorn were still struggling to escape. And just at that moment, the ceiling finally gave way. With a great rumbling crack sound, pillars of rock began to bend inward, and huge boulders began to rain down from the sky.
The esper king looked down to the floor in fear, and yelled out over the growing noise. "Rydia!"
But the Summoner was already out of his line of sight, and it was too late. The rest of the ceiling collapsed inward. And in a flash, a rain of stones and debris poured down into the mountain. Some of the pieces rolled down the side of the mountain, and some of the edges remained intact, but the rest of the rocks fell like an earth waterfall into the cave. A huge rush of stone, like a great wave or washout, fell down into the opening. Leviathan saw the huge pieces coming down for a moment, but then could bear it no longer. Clenching his teeth, he pulled back and away from it. Moments later, the rush of stone came past and struck the ground, smashing into bits and covering the area with huge debris. All of the trees were shattered, and the grass was covered with dirt and grime. A massive cloud of dust rose up in the wake of the disaster, and swarmed over the area. Soon, everything was enveloped in the rock, and a massive cloud of dust rose up from the newly-reopened crater.
For a moment, no one dared move. They all held back and waited to see if it was all over. But as they did, their bodies began to calm and their anxiety faded. Instead, bewilderment and astonishment replaced it. What in the world had that been? What had caused the ceiling to collapse? Not only had all of their architects made sure it was stable, but it had been reinforced with spells and charms. An earthquake shouldn't have made it fall, let alone that tremor from a few moments ago. They didn't know what to make of any of this. But when the shock began to fade as well, they were able to finally turn and survey the damage.
The courtyard was covered with large stone now. Many of the entrances that the espers had fled through were now blocked with huge boulders. About the only areas that were clear were the ones that had been under balconies built into the sides of the mountain rim. That was due simply to the fact that the huge rock pieces had fallen on them instead of below. Everywhere was fractured and chaotic, and dust slowly settled on everything. It was a mess. Within a few seconds, the interior of the esper's home was turned into a barren waste. All that could be seen was one broken rock after another as far as anyone could tell. Unfortunately, because of the dust...no one could tell that some of the rocks were still sizzling and smoldering, as if something had burned or blasted them. But that wasn't primary on anyone's mind either. The first and foremost thought was if anyone hadn't escaped.
Leviathan, on his part, felt his path blocked by a boulder. But it was a simple matter of him punching the stone to make it instantly shatter into fragments, and the way was clear. Immediately, the Master of the Seas walked out, followed closely behind by Starlet. He felt anxious. He had seen that all of the espers had gotten out of the way...but Rydia and Unicorn had still been down there. They could be in trouble still...or worse. Quickly, Leviathan walked over to the railing. Starlet followed close behind, and put her head over the railing as well. Both of them looked down and desperately scanned the area.
"Rydia! Rydia!" Starlet cried.
"Unicorn! Can you hear us?" Leviathan shouted.
There was a brief pause from below. Only the settling rocks and a few murmuring espers rang out. For a brief moment, they both feared the worst, and a cold wave gripped their hearts. But then, they heard a voice.
"We're down here!"
Leviathan and Starlet both perked up at that, and immediately turned their heads to the source. They looked over the rocks and debris for a few moments, until they came to the edge of the rim. There, just shy of one of the openings, were the two friends. Unicorn looked a little dirty, but was prancing around and undamaged. As for Rydia, she was conscious and moving...but they saw that a large boulder had fallen on one of her legs and one of her arms. They hated to imagine what kind of pain that had put her in. But somehow, she was enduring it.
The two wasted no time. Immediately, both jumped over the edge and sailed to the ground. Doing so was nothing for espers of their power. They landed quickly, and rushed over to the fallen Rydia. Leviathan went to work and immediately punched away both boulders, as if they were made of balsa wood and hollow. That gave them both a better idea of the damage. Rydia gave a cry as the boulders rolled off, and winced and clenched her teeth. However, Starlet was already scanning her. He could tell she was in terrible pain...but she was very calm. She wasn't in danger of going into shock right now. But her right arm and left leg were totally crushed. They were nothing more than bloody pieces of flesh now. That would have been enough for anyone to pass out. Yet somehow she endured it. Starlet gaped in fear for a moment. Unicorn began to whinny in a whine and stared at her in terror. Even Leviathan was taken aback. Immediately, the queen lowered to the ground, and gently began to scoop up Rydia in her arms. Though they looked small and petite, the esper easily had power beyond most creatures in them, and lifting her would be no problem. "You poor thing..." She slowly murmured.
Rydia, however, managed a smile despite the pain as Starlet raised her up. "Believe it or not...I've had a lot worse."
Starlet frowned disapprovingly at that. She could be very matriarchal at times. However, in the end, she merely smiled and shook her head. She was alive, and her body would be remedied easily enough by the espers there. Soon after, she focused, and began to chant over Rydia's body. Slowly, small, gentle, light sparkles began to descend over her a moment later. The summoner looked forward a moment longer, but then her pupils seemed to dialate and become large and blank, and with one sigh she closed her eyes and fell asleep. After that was done, Starlet turned to Leviathan with a frown.
"Worse?" She asked in fear.
Leviathan looked back at her for a moment, but then simply shrugged. "Well...she's been through a lot. You did a number on her yourself."
Starlet began to pout at that. "That is most certainly not true. They never would have won if I would have used my dispel technique to remove their reflection spell..."
Leviathan raised an eyebrow at that. "So you let them win?" He asked incredulously. With a smile, he shook his head. "I thought a lot of your reflected healing magic just 'happened' to hit Rydia. And don't think I didn't hear you yelling at me mentally to cut them some slack with my Tsunami."
Starlet merely frowned. "You men are far too brutal anyway. This doesn't matter right now. We need to take her to the infirmary so that I can start putting her limbs back together. And you need to find out why this roof just collapsed. I've half a mind to forbid you from rebuilding it."
Unicorn perked up her head at this. "Er...begging your pardon, your majesties...but do you mind if I come along?"
Starlet was snapped out of her tirade at this, and turned to Unicorn. Soon after, she smiled. "Of course, my child. I'll probably be needing your help anyway."
"Lord Leviathan! We... What in blazes happened here!"
The group turned at this, hearing a new voice coming up from behind them. As they did, they saw that a single lone esper was coming up the hall. Leviathan recognized it immediately to be Fenrir. However, she looked rather insistent and enthusiastic. She had been that way before she had even come here. Apparently, something else had been on her mind. But now that she was here, her errand seemed to be forgotten. She merely gaped at the devastation and destruction in front of her as she closed the distance. Her steps slowed, and in the end she could only slowly plod forward.
Leviathan frowned, and looked behind him with a gesture. "Oh, I'm not really sure, Fenrir...but I intend to find out. The ceiling seemed to collapse inward. I think everyone else is alright. But right now, we need to get Rydia to the medical wing and survey to see what caused this disaster."
Fenrir looked out a bit more at this, a bit stunned at the whole sight. She swallowed a bit. "Well...this is unusual..." She uttered aloud at last. "And it's too bad. I was hoping that we could have a celebration here because of the good news, but it looks like we'll have to be cleaning it out for a while."
At that, however, the esper king looked puzzled. "Good news?" He inquired.
Fenrir, at that, seemed to remember something. She quickly turned back to him. "Oh yes, my lord." She smiled soon after. "A very special guest has arrived..."
To be continued...
