Disclaimer: Don't own it.
Another chapter! I'm on spring break, so I'm trying to get some solid writing done. Thanks for reviewing! Glad you guys still enjoy my work.
Chapter Twenty-one: Solitary II
She was tired; it'd been so long since she had picked up a sword. But she had to. The children needed her.
She struck, but the iron sword simply bounced harmlessly off. The blue scales along its shoulders and back was like steel, and she was too weak to puncture the thick leathery green hide. The burly demon's spiked tail thrashed about, threatening to impale her if she got too close. She swung her blade again, but still it was in vain.
The demon emitted a deep throaty chuckle at the green-haired woman's futile attempts. He batted away another attack, and the sword flew out of her hands. When he swept his massive clawed hand at her, she barely managed to duck out of the way. Catching her off guard, his muscular tail rammed into her chest, easily knocking her twenty feet through the air. After a hard landing, the woman tried to push herself up and utter an incantation, but she inevitably collapsed and didn't move.
With a satisfied rumble, the demon stomped towards her, his tongue eagerly licking his bared razor-sharp teeth. He stopped abruptly when a rock hit him in the head. Turning around, he snarled at the cloaked form that stood calmly a dozen paces away. The demon threw himself into a dead run, an awkward feat for so large a creature.
Even as the ground shook from the mass of the approaching giant, the figure only watched stoically from beneath the hood of her cloak. At the last possible second before the demon trampled her, the warrior lunged forward, her sword whistling forth from within her cloak and slicing through the bulky abdomen. Whirling around as the demon passed, the warrior struck a second time, cleaving through his upper torso.
The warrior, once again calm as she sheathed her sword, glanced over her shoulder at her foe. The woman lying prone on the ground stirred as the demon fell to the ground, cloven in three. Walking over to the green-haired woman and kneeling by her side, the warrior drew back her hood.
Terra looked up into familiar blue eyes. "Celes?" The blonde nodded. "Wha…where's Phunbaba?"
Celes looked in that direction. "There…and there…and…there."
The younger woman breathed a sigh of relief before she passed out. A young man no older than the two women ran out of one of the less damaged houses, worry etched across his ragged face.
"Terra!" He switched his gaze between the two women and the pieces of Phunbaba in confusion. Shaking his head, his eyes rested on the newcomer. "Is she all right?"
"You let her fight that thing alone?" Celes nearly growled.
The man was taken aback by the blonde's hostility. "I…I had to stay with Katrin and, and the children."
"And if that demon had gotten past Terra? Were you planning on fighting him by yourself?"
"I…I'm…I'm sor—"
"Save it. Help me get her inside."
Once Terra had been placed in her bed, Celes ran a hand down the side of the girl's head, letting her thumb stroke her now bruised cheek. Abruptly, the blonde turned on her heel and strode out of the room to meet the anxious gazes of Duane and Katrin.
"She'll be all right. She just needs to rest."
"I don't know how we can thank you," Katrin said.
The knight waved it off. "Don't worry about it."
"Not to be rude or anything," Duane began, "but who are you?"
"A friend of Terra's."
Katrin's eyes lit up. "You must be Celes." The blonde nodded. "Terra speaks of you often. She's quite fond of you."
Celes looked away, her actions on the Floating Isle still haunting her thoughts. The look of betrayal on Terra's face, the mage's screams of anger, and her own casual dismissal of it all rang clear in her mind.
"I'm going to go get some air," the blonde told them. "Will you come find me when she wakes up?"
"Of course," Katrin agreed.
Celes retreated upstairs. Just as she reached the door, she felt a tug on her cloak. Looking down, she noticed a young boy about Relm's age. The boy held out his hand, holding a gem with a yellowish glow.
"Found it by Phunbaba," he explained. "Thought you should have it 'cause you cut 'im to pieces."
Seeing the hopeful glint in the child's wide eyes, Celes forced herself to take the magicite. "Thank you."
His gift given, the boy darted back down the stairs. For a long moment, Celes stared at the stone. She sensed the spirit of a great wolf pacing restlessly within the jewel prison. Fenrir, she whispered. She'd have to give it to Terra later…
She walked out the door and made her way to the water's edge, which was now located in the middle of Mobliz. The two dogs that seemed to be standing guard woofed quietly as if in acknowledgment of her presence, but they otherwise ignored her. The clouds were thinner where Mobliz was, and the silhouette of the sun could be seen dipping low in the sky.
So Terra was alive, she thought to herself, and Sabin was alive. How many of the others were? Celes shook her head. What did it matter? It's not like she had any intention to seek them out…
Her thoughts were interrupted when she was hugged from behind. "Terra." She looked over her shoulder at the green-haired woman and quirked a small grin. "You're up sooner than I expected."
Terra shrugged as she let go of the blonde. "Lucky, I guess." She smiled warmly at her friend. "How are you, Celes?"
"Alive. You?"
"Pretty much the same. Love the hair, by the way."
"Popular opinion." Terra silently questioned with a raised brow. "I ran into Sabin," Celes clarified.
"Ah." Terra frowned. "But he's not with you?"
"We were headed in different directions." Celes sighed inwardly. It wasn't a complete lie. "I haven't seen anyone else, either."
The mage looked at the ground. "Oh."
A long silence ensued. Celes opened her mouth to speak, to apologize for the things she had done, but she stopped herself. Honestly, she was afraid of how Terra would react. A year may have passed, but she found it difficult to believe she could be forgiven so easily.
As if reading her thoughts, Terra answered the question for her.
"I missed you, Cel."
The blonde looked away and took a breath. Her response was quiet. "I missed you too, Ter."
The half-Esper looked up into the face of the taller woman, watching as Celes stared off at the horizon. The blonde appeared relaxed, but Terra could sense some inner turmoil that had yet to be resolved. Her almost serene smile faded.
"You're heading out soon." It wasn't a question.
Slowly, Celes met her friend's emerald gaze and nodded once. She then thought a moment. "Why don't you come with me?"
Terra quickly looked away in shame. "I…can't. The children, they…they lost their parents in the Ruin. All of them. Duane and Katrin are the only adults that survived, and they're barely eighteen. I…I can't just leave them. They need me." She shook her head. "I'm not sure I could fight anymore anyway…" She looked Celes in the eye. "I'm sorry, but I just can't."
Celes dropped her gaze. "If you're sure…"
"Yes, I am. But…will you stay for a while? At least a few days before you go?"
The blonde bit back her initial inclination to decline. Despite certain rough times, Terra was still the only living person Celes considered a true friend.
"…Sure."
And stay she did. There wasn't much to do, so to pass the time, Celes agreed to teach Duane how to handle a sword. Though neither a strong nor dexterous man, he had a determination that made up for what he lacked. When she wasn't busy with Duane, the former general was usually bombarded by the dozen or so orphans, ranging from age three to age eleven.
"Tell us a story about knights!" Adam insisted.
The ex-Imperial donned a look of near panic. "Knights…"
"And dragons!" Lisa added.
"And…dragons…?" the blonde repeated, unsure.
"AND CLOWNS!" Billy nearly shrieked.
Celes sent a questioning glance to Terra. "What have you been telling them?" The mage just shrugged, and Celes relented. "Um…okay. Well, once upon a time, there was…a slave girl, whose name was—"
"Celes?" Manda guessed.
The blonde blinked. "…Yes. Her name was Celes, and—"
"Is she pretty?" Mickey interrupted.
"Um…does that matter?"
"Of course it matters, silly!" Sarah exclaimed.
Celes stared at the children in disbelief. "Okay…yes, she was pretty, and she was forced to work for the evil King Edgar." The storyteller ignored Terra's snort. "King Edgar didn't allow Celes to have any friends at all, and Celes obeyed him without question. But there was a problem."
The orphans sat enthralled. "What?"
"The king's knight was in love with Celes."
Caitlin piped up. "Is he handsome?"
The blonde narrator held back a sigh. "Very. His name was Sir—"
Terra coughed a name sounding suspiciously like 'Locke.'
"—Leo," Celes corrected, sending a pointed glare in Terra's direction. The mage simply grinned, and the storyteller rolled her eyes.
Terra watched as Celes told the rest of the tale and later got roped into acting it out at the end. The mage chuckled quietly; her friend was truly awkward around them; trying to follow their logic and respond to their spirited enthusiasm was difficult for her. Perhaps it was because Celes never got to be a kid herself. Relm seemed to be the only exception to this, Goddesses only knew why. A bond between mages maybe.
Terra's smile faltered. She knew the blonde warrior was itching to get back on the road and was only staying because the half-Esper asked her to. It was disheartening to realize Celes had a hard time being around people, though Terra could relate. No home, no family, unnatural abilities, and a heinous past didn't exactly amount to a social personality.
The sixth night of Celes' stay, Terra pulled her aside. "You know, if you want to leave, you can just leave."
The blonde feigned shock. "Why would I want to do that?"
"Because I know you, Celes. You've only been here a week, and already you're going crazy. Even if you don't show it."
"Terra—"
"You stayed for a while because I asked you to, and I'm grateful, but don't stay just because of me. I'll be fine here. Really."
The knight waited a while to speak. "…It's not that I don't want to stay…"
"But you can't," the mage finished.
Celes nodded. "I'm just…restless."
"Well, you've always been restless," Terra reminded teasingly. She sighed. "I wish I could come with you…"
"But you can't. I know, Ter."
"Yeah… Do you know where you're going?"
"Nikeah, for now."
"…When?"
"Sunrise." The blonde noticed Terra's eyes brimming with tears. "I'll come back…"
"I know."
Celes allowed herself to be drawn into a hug by the other woman, only slightly surprised by the chaste kiss that followed. Wordlessly, Terra retreated to her room with a soft goodnight to her friend. The blonde watched her go, and only after the door was closed did she whisper her own goodnight.
((ooo))
Celes muttered bitter curses under her breath as she once again traversed the marshes of the eastern Serpent Trench. She tried to stay in the shallowest parts, but every once in a while her foot would stray into deeper murk, and the sludge would splash up into her face or spill into her boot. She kept her cloak up and around her neck so as to at least keep that dry. She toyed with the idea of freezing the bog and walking on top of it, but she knew she had to conserve her energy for the long passage to Nikeah.
Shortly after she reached the end of the marshes, she passed by the familiar junction between the Trench and the Southern Continent. She groaned. From what Sabin had said, she was looking at another week and a half of travel before she arrived in Nikeah.
The northern Serpent Trench had relatively more signs of life than anywhere else she had been. Mostly she saw small herds of mangy buffalax foraging the dry brittle grasslands, and a few colonies of skittish delta bugs popped up here and there. Traveling along the outskirts of a desert, she occasionally spotted living carcasses burrowing through the sand—the more elusive black dragons.
She was surprised when she came to a mountain range that stood in the middle of the narrow stretch of land. Though seemingly out of place, Celes couldn't see past the towering peaks to determine if something was nestled within the mountainous ring. Putting it out of mind, she continued on.
The port city of Nikeah was a welcome sight for the now worn traveler. With the money Sabin gave her, she was able to barter for a couple supplies and buy a ticket for the South Figaro bound ship. Upon reaching her cabin below deck, Celes carelessly threw her few belongings on the small table and fell face first into the pillow of her cot. Sleep overtook her in moments.
((ooo))
Stepping off the gangplank onto the dock, she had to suppress a shudder; it had been a long time since she was last in South Figaro.
Taking care to keep her distance from the mansion, Celes made her way to one of the decent cafes in the city. Sitting at the counter, she ordered a coffee. She grimaced at the bitter liquid as she took a sip; she never did like the stuff much.
A hand came down on her shoulder. "You want to keep that hand, I suggest you remove it before I do it for you," she warned automatically.
"End of the world hasn't changed you a bit," a voice noted in some amusement.
Celes recognized the muffled voice and looked over her shoulder. "Shadow."
"Not surprised?"
"Should I be?"
The assassin only grunted in response as he took the stool next to her. In afterthought, he gave her a second almost quizzical glance before turning to his drink.
"Haircut?"
The former general groaned. "I haven't gotten this much attention since I burned Maranda to the ground…"
The two sat in silence for some time. Finally, Celes' curiosity got the better of her.
"So, you just stopping by to say hello? Not really you're style…"
"Heard of the Striker?"
She suppressed a grin. "Not that I recall. Weapon?"
"Yes."
"Special?"
"Belonged to a…colleague…of mine."
"Sorry."
He shook his head. "Maybe the Coliseum," the mercenary murmured to himself. He rose from his seat. "Hope you find your way."
Celes raised an eyebrow, but didn't turn to him. "How'd you know I was searching?"
"Lucky guess. Until next we meet, Chere."
She chuckled and absently waved her hand towards him in farewell. After a while, she called to the attendant behind the counter. "Excuse me, do you know if Figaro Castle is up and running again?"
"Sure. Got fixed about almost two weeks ago. Won't surface on this side again for another couple days, though. Word is it gets stuck on something halfway to Kohlingen. Takes them a few extra hours to navigate around it."
"I see."
"There's a guide to the castle leaving tomorrow morning from the chocobo stables. I'd recommend it."
"Thank you."
Celes paid for her coffee and left the café, disappointed at having to stay the night in the city. Begrudgingly, she set out to find lodging.
((ooo))
Surprisingly, the sentries of Figaro didn't give her a second glance when she entered the castle. Still not wanting to risk recognition, though, she confined herself to her room, save for mealtime. During one such meal, rumors of a shifting wall in one of the prison cells happened to catch her attention. She ignored it at first, but when the castle finally submerged and began its shift west, Celes began to sense some kind of energy rising up from beneath the moving fortress.
As if drawn to the source of the sensation, she slinked down to the detention area when the castle started to shake from its forced immobilization. No prisoners being held meant no guards kept watch, and it wasn't hard for the knight to find the cell in question. The back wall was already cracked open, and Celes easily slipped through.
She entered what appeared to be an extensive catacomb leading further down into the earth. The glow of her pendant provided just enough light for her to make her way through the caves, and she moved quickly for fear of the castle moving on without her.
When the narrow tunnels opened into an vast cavern, Celes saw the impossible: an ancient castle, perfectly preserved for a thousand years under the earth's surface. Light somehow streamed in from an unknown source, illuminating the moss-covered stone. Walls were crumbled, watch towers were toppled, and large gaps were carved in the ground, but all damage had been caused during the War of the Magi a millennium before.
"Bet Locke would have a field day here," Celes mumbled in awe.
The entire cavern was bathed in a mystical aura, and the knight could swear she saw specters of the war fought so long ago: clashing swords of man and beast, raging flames from the Espers' power, collapsing foundations as the battles took their toll. Whispers of war drifted past Celes: a warrior's call, a commander's orders, a woman's cries.
She was drawn into the castle by the mystic current, walking ever forward as phantoms of the chancellor paced back and forth, the king's messenger dashed down the corridor, and the castle guards drew their swords to fend off an attack. Celes came into the Great Hall and swept her gaze across over the pure stone architecture of the magnificent hall. Her eyes fell on a statue standing before the throne.
FLASH
An Esper warrior stood, sword in hand, opposite a dark and powerful sorcerer. They clashed in battle, but neither would fall. The sorcerer grew impatient, and his hands wove symbols in the air as he chanted his incantation. The warrior crouched slightly in preparation to attack, but the curse was already upon him. His skin hardened and his movements slowed as he succumbed to the spreading stone.
FLASH
A shadow of realization passed over Celes' face as she stood dwarfed by the nine-foot tall stone-encased Esper. A godly warrior, intimidating in the heavy battle armor that covered him head to toe and the tattered black cloak hanging from his shoulders. A helmet with menacing curved horns two feet long sat on his head. His face was chiseled and strong, but his eyes were frighteningly hollow. In his hand, as if ready to strike at any moment, was a wicked-looking sword that Celes assumed to be the Gungnir. Slung across his back was a broad shield with the emblem of a six-legged horse: Sleipnir.
Her hand lifted into the air, reverent in its reach to touch the statue's face. Mere inches away, though, Celes stopped. Seconds ticked by as she hesitated. Finally, she folded her fingers and withdrew her hand. She couldn't touch him. It wasn't right. Maybe if she…
Celes shook her head to clear the thought. It wasn't time.
Turning from the stone warrior, the blonde knight walked back through the Great Hall and out of the castle. She would come back, but now wasn't the time.
Author's notes: Time for what? We're getting closer to the answer. In Norse mythology, the Gungnir is Odin's spear, but the game has him using a sword. Sleipnir is the name of Odin's horse. Teaser for next chapter:
Celes and Sabin watching Phoenix rise. "You may not be wanted, Celes, but you will be needed."