Author's note: I suck at writing major fight scenes, so I skipped most of the battle with Yeager in order to concentrate on (and save material for) the battles with Alexei and Van. I hope my readers won't mind. Let me know in the reviews if you're disappointed that I didn't write the battle with Yeager in full.
Extra-special thanks to Baby Kat Snophlake for giving me a bunch of insights into Flynn's character and worldview. I could never have written Flynn's side of this chapter without you, Kat. You rock! :) Readers, if you like Tales of Vesperia and/or Tales of the Abyss fics, you should definitely check out Kat's stories, especially "Fight or Flight," a Symphonia/Abyss crossover featuring Guy and Raine.
Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss, Tales of Vesperia, or any of the Tales characters or scenarios. Namco owns them.
Chapter 3: The Motives of Madmen
The fight against Yeager was long and grueling. Guy wasn't sure how Yuri and his friends had become enemies with this weirdo, or why Rita had asked whether Yeager would help them. Raven's words puzzled him as well. Had Yeager always been an enemy, or had he betrayed the group at some point?
Well, it didn't matter now.
Partway through the battle, Guy learned that both Yeager and Raven had blastia in their chests in place of their hearts. He was shocked by this revelation. Blastia seemed to be Terca Lumireis's equivalent of fontech, but he had never heard of a fon machine that could replace a person's heart.
At last, Yeager fell to Karol's axe, with a choked whisper of "You 'ave won..."
"So Alexei got to him, too..." said Raven.
"It's the same thing," Yuri agreed.
"What do you mean?" Guy asked, thoroughly confused.
"Alexei was the one who experimented with usin' blastia to replace dead men's hearts," Raven replied. "If ya don't mind, I'd rather ya didn't ask about why I've got one."
"Oh, uh...okay," said Guy. Experimenting with technology to raise the dead was exactly what Jade had done with fomicry. This enemy Alexei was starting to sound like some terrible hybrid of Van and Jade.
"I just feel...so bad for them..." Estelle whispered to no one in particular.
"Wunderbar..." Yeager said weakly.
Raven pointed his bow at their dying enemy. "You know, I'm not really one for vengeance and all, but...this is for the Don."
Guy wondered who the Don was. Someone who had died because of Yeager, evidently. He decided it would be wisest not to ask. It sounded like the Don had been important to Raven.
"Be careful," Rita warned. "He might still have something up his sleeve."
"No no no," Yeager replied faintly. "These sleeves are empty. Zis is...ja, zis is it."
"Your chest..." said Judith. "Did Alexei do that to you as well?"
"My...I wonder," Yeager murmured. "But what's done is done."
Estelle rushed to Yeager's side and knelt. "Why?" she asked tearfully. "Why did you fight alone? With nothing, and no one to help you..."
"Heh..." Yeager huffed. "...Goodbye." His eyes closed. The glowing blastia in his chest dimmed, and its light went out.
"...Why?" Raven demanded of the dead man.
"Leviathan's Claw... What a sad ending..." Patty mourned.
Karol turned around, apparently noticing something. "Hey..." he said.
Guy and the others turned to see what had caught Karol's attention. Two girls in identical dresses, who were almost mirror images of each other, stood in the doorway. Both girls had their hair tied up in pigtails, but one had frizzy green hair, and the other had curly red hair. Were they sisters?
Both girls were silently crying. Without saying a word, the pair ran away.
"What...?" said Rita. "What was that all about?"
"Who were they?" Guy asked hesitantly.
"Gauche and Droite," Yuri replied. "They were Yeager's subordinates...and adopted daughters, I guess."
"He was...an awful person," said Estelle, still kneeling next to Yeager's body. "But maybe he also..." She trailed off, apparently unable to put her thoughts into words.
Guy sighed, feeling depressed. "So that's why they were crying... I feel sorry for them, but Yeager didn't give us much of a choice."
"None at all," said Judith. "Yeager took Alexei's side, in the end. As he said, he was our enemy."
"Let's finish this," said Yuri. "Come on, everyone."
They moved on to the next room, and immediately encountered a huge black and green monster, shaped somewhat like a person with no head, directly in front of them.
"A Giganto monster!" exclaimed Karol.
"And he's guarding treasure!" Patty added.
"Let's not get distracted from Alexei," said Yuri.
"Too late, it's spotted us," said Guy. "This is not good."
"Aw, man..." Raven groaned as the monster lumbered toward them.
Estelle began casting. "O holy water, rain down your power on us..."
Rita whirled her scroll in a complex pattern around herself. "Come forth, o avaricious netherworld and crush the evil before me..."
Guy charged forward along with Yuri. Just as before, Judith was faster and landed the first hit.
"So Judy, how many does this one count as?" Yuri called after her. "Azure Storm!"
Flynn was relieved when he caught sight of Luke and Tear making their way downward on another walkway in the distance. If he squinted, he could just barely see a small blue-and-white blur on Luke's shoulder that was most likely Mieu. It was oddly comforting to know that the little creature had survived alongside Luke and Tear. Flynn would never have admitted it out loud, especially to Yuri or Lady Estellise, but he had a soft spot for cute, fluffy animals.
Natalia and Anise were also visible on a walkway up above. They looked like they were arguing about something, because instead of walking they were standing still, facing each other. Natalia had her hands on her hips and was leaning toward Anise; meanwhile, Anise's arms were crossed.
Jade, who had been walking behind Flynn, suddenly grabbed Flynn's uniform cape and pulled him to a halt, saying, "Flynn! Watch your step!"
Flynn froze in place and looked down. He was standing only a few centimeters away from the edge of the walkway, where the path made a sharp right turn. One more step forward, and he would have fallen over that edge. Hastily, he took a step backward, before the view into the empty space below could give him vertigo.
"Pay attention to your surroundings," Jade admonished. "I understand your concern about our companions, but I'm sure we'll be reunited with them at some point. Until we are, I suggest you ignore them."
"I'm sorry," replied Flynn, ashamed of himself. He was an Imperial Knight; falling off a walkway was no way for a Knight to die.
"If you get too close to an edge again, I won't bother to warn you," Jade continued sternly, as though Flynn hadn't spoken.
Flynn nodded. "Understood, sir."
"Let's move on, then."
A few minutes later, they arrived at another warp device that apparently continued downward. There was a path sloping up on the other side, closed off by a barrier of light, and another, wider path on the same level as the warp device, occupied by a group of strange Y-shaped monsters and, beyond them, a blockade of blue flames. Flynn could just barely see Luke, Tear, and Mieu on the other side of the fire.
"Looks like we got here first," Jade observed. "Let's wait for the others."
"What about those monsters?" Flynn asked, glancing at the Y-shaped enemies. For some reason, the enemies weren't moving to attack.
"They appear to be guarding the path. At a guess, defeating them will cause those flames to disappear, which will allow Luke and Tear to reach us. But before we charge in recklessly, we should wait for Anise and Natalia."
"...Very well," Flynn said reluctantly, suppressing his anxiety at the situation. Where was Yuri right now? Had he and his friends reached Alexei yet? And how much time was left before the Outer Lands of Auldrant collapsed? He glanced up at the maze of walkways, trying to spot Natalia and Anise. After a moment, he caught sight of them fighting a monster. They appeared to still be arguing.
The silence between Flynn and Jade stretched until Flynn could hardly bear the awkwardness. Finally, Flynn asked, "What are we going to do with Van, once we've captured him? Will he be tried as a criminal?"
Jade raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You believe we're here to arrest him?"
"Yes..." said Flynn, with a sudden feeling of foreboding. "Is that...not true?"
Jade remained silent.
"We're here to kill him..." Flynn realized. "Do we have the authority to do that?"
"Hmm," Jade said. "I suppose that depends on whether you believe in moral authority."
"Moral authority?" Flynn asked incredulously, thinking of Yuri's murders of Ragou and Cumore. "So, we're acting outside of the law right now?"
Jade shrugged. "One could argue that we are...since to the best of my knowledge, there is no law against tampering with the Sephiroth. Of course, there is also no law specifically against destroying the world. Do you think that Van should be allowed to destroy Auldrant simply because it isn't illegal?"
"Of course not!" Flynn exclaimed.
"Oh? And why not?"
"Well..." Flynn began, but he had to stop there. He couldn't think of any reason other than that destroying the world was just plain wrong.
"It would be mass murder, correct?" Jade suggested.
"Yes, absolutely," said Flynn, relieved to have an actual reason why it was wrong...but just to double-check, he asked, "Is plotting mass murder illegal here?"
"Certainly. And in fact, Van is already guilty of mass murder, since he caused most of the Rugnican continent to fall while the Kimlascan and Malkuthian armies were at war there. Many of those soldiers were killed as a direct result."
"...I see," said Flynn. "But Colonel, you didn't answer my question. Are we here to kill Van, rather than capturing him and taking him to trial?"
"Yes," Jade replied simply. At Flynn's appalled stare, Jade continued, "I assure you, Van will not allow himself to be taken prisoner, nor will he come along quietly. He will fight to the death for his ideals of overturning the Score. He truly believes in destroying this world and creating a new world of replicas."
"Why?!" Flynn burst out. It made no sense. What was the Score? What were replicas?
Jade gave a long, dramatic sigh. "Oh dear, such a bother. I hate giving explanations. If only Guy was here to explain instead... but if he was here, you wouldn't be, and there would be no need to explain anything." He adjusted his glasses rather pointedly.
Flynn looked away, abashed. Just then, the barrier of light blocking the path upward disappeared.
"Ah," said Jade. "Here come Anise and Natalia. Flynn, please keep your doubts to yourself until after we've eliminated Van and safely lowered the Outer Lands. We can't afford to waste time arguing with each other."
"Yes, sir," Flynn acknowledged, trying not to show how shaken he was. He didn't like the notion of killing someone on moral authority alone. It was too much like Yuri's vigilante justice. But what choice did he have right now?
He drew his sword and prepared to fight the monsters guarding the flames.
"That's far enough... We'll never let you through!" a red-clad knight snarled, readying his sword and shield. Three more knights blocked the way, all pointing their weapons at Guy, Yuri, and the rest of the group.
"The Royal Guard!" Estelle exclaimed. "Then, Alexei must be just up ahead."
"He's gotta be," said Yuri. "All right, guys! Let's do this!"
"Sorry, but you're goin' bye-bye!" Rita shouted at the guards. "O disturbing power now unleashed..."
"Shredding Palm! That's fifty-eight! I won't let you win!" Yuri declared.
"White Tiger Strike! Fifty-eight!" Guy returned.
"Sixty-seven!" Judith called from mid-air, having just dispatched a mage.
"Violent Pain!" Rita's arte wiped out the last enemy.
"Damn it, Rita," said Yuri. "That could have been the deciding one for second place."
"So you're conceding the win to me?" Judith asked sweetly.
"Like hell we are!" Guy retorted. "Alexei is worth one hundred, remember?"
"Then whoever strikes the final blow against Alexei wins, no matter what," said Estelle.
"What was the point of all that, then?!" Rita demanded.
Before Guy or Yuri could answer, a clatter of armor behind them announced the arrival of more knights. A violet-eyed young woman in a blue uniform, with strawberry-blond hair cut short and braided on one side, ran up to them. She was followed by a green-haired boy with glasses, dressed in oversized robes and carrying a fancy staff.
"More enemies? From behind?" Guy exclaimed, raising his sword and steeling himself for another fight.
"What?" said the young woman, stopping short.
"It's okay! They're on our side," Estelle said quickly. "This is Sodia, Flynn's lieutenant, and Witcher, a mage from Aspio."
Rita gave a sniff of disdain; she received a glare from Witcher in return. Apparently, they were rivals of some sort... but not enemies. Guy lowered his weapon with a sigh of relief.
Sodia stared at Guy. "Captain?" she asked uncertainly. "Are you all right?"
"Huh?" Guy said blankly, confused by her addressing him as Captain. Then he realized what she meant. "Oh. Sorry, but I'm not Flynn. My name is Guy Cecil. I'm, uh..." he trailed off, not sure how to explain how he had ended up in this crazy situation.
Sodia's violet eyes widened. "What? Captain, what are you talking about? And why are you wearing civilian clothes?"
"Weren't you listening? He's not Flynn," Yuri told her impatiently.
Sodia glared at Yuri. "What did you do to him?!"
"Me?!" Yuri exclaimed indignantly. "I didn't—!"
"Aw, hell, here we go again," Raven groaned.
"Do we really have time for this?" Karol asked plaintively.
"Woof!" Repede barked. Guy, now familiar with Repede's expressive barks, growls, and whines, automatically translated this as No.
"Yuri Lowell..." Sodia began menacingly, putting her hand to her sword hilt.
"I think we should cooperate," Rita interrupted, "but that's just me."
Guy nodded. "Yeah. Sorry for the confusion, Sodia. Once Alexei is down, I promise I'll help search for Flynn."
"But Captain...!" Sodia protested.
"For the last time, he's not Flynn," Yuri said, with an exasperated sigh.
"We'll explain later," Judith told Sodia. "For now, let's join forces."
Sodia looked uncertainly at Guy. "Sir...?"
Guy smiled at her in an attempt at reassurance, but Sodia stepped back a pace in response, her eyes widening in alarm. Witcher also looked surprised; his green eyebrows rose above his glasses into his bluntly-cut hair.
Guy's smile faded. He wondered whether Flynn ever smiled at anyone. Apparently not...?
"Okay then, let's all play nice and go pound Alexei," Yuri declared.
With Flynn's subordinates added to their forces, the group was now eleven strong. As they approached the final door between them and Alexei, Guy tried to anticipate how Sodia and Witcher's presence would change the battle formation he was now accustomed to. Witcher would most likely be casting artes from a distance, but would Sodia be fighting on the front line? If so, Guy would have to avoid getting too close to her. Despite the progress he had made in overcoming his phobia, there was something about the violet-eyed lieutenant that made him especially uneasy. Maybe it was her hostility toward Yuri. Hopefully she could be trusted as an ally...
On the other side of the door, a white walkway led to a gray square courtyard with a pale blue central platform, surrounded by a circular waterfall. Guy was reminded of the waterfalls in Grand Chokmah, the capital of Malkuth. It made him feel a little homesick, but he dismissed the thought from his mind, forcing himself to concentrate on the enemies ahead.
Two Royal Guards in their red uniforms stood ready to attack. One was armed with a lance; the other had a sword and shield. Beyond them, in the center of the platform, a man with white hair wearing an elaborate orange coat with a black cape was studying a glyph that hovered in the air. Alerted to the presence of Yuri and Guy's group, the man waved away the glyph and turned to face them. From this angle, Guy could see that the man's orange coat was incorporated into a set of armor that was similar in style to the armor the Royal Guards were wearing.
"Well, well. Everyone's here. Welcome to the very depths of the ocean," said the man, in a deep voice laced with irony.
"It's over, Alexei," Estelle told him. "Don't add to your crimes any further."
"Ah, Princess Estellise. How nice to see you up and about," replied Alexei, with an exaggerated bow.
Guy wasn't sure what Alexei meant by up and about. Had Estelle been ill? Or had Alexei harmed her somehow? If Alexei's sarcastic tone was any hint, it was probably the second. Guy clenched his jaw. What kind of monstrous person would hurt someone as sweet and innocent as Estelle?
"Which tells me Yeager was useless," Alexei continued, straightening up again. His amber eyes were narrowed with annoyance.
"He's dead," Yuri said flatly.
"I thought surely he'd come through in the end, but oh, how I was mistaken," Alexei went on.
"Is toying with the destinies of others how you have your fun?" Judith asked, her voice cold with anger. Alexei didn't answer.
Guy had been expecting Alexei to be like Van, but the more the ex-Commandant spoke, the more he sounded like an evil version of Jade. A cold chill went down Guy's spine. When he got back to Auldrant, he decided, he would never complain about Jade's sarcasm and occasional melodrama again.
"Why have you taken such a hurtful path?" Estelle asked Alexei. "Someone of your stature could have found another way..."
"Absolute power is all that can revive this rotting, stagnant empire. Indeed, the world," Alexei replied. "No true reformation could occur so long as I followed the means presented by the empire." He sighed theatrically and gazed up at the sky. "At times, dreamers must suffer being branded as criminals. But I'll suffer such burdens gladly. I promised to free this world from the Entelexeia, from the aer, and from this pitiful empire!" He smirked at his opponents and gestured grandly with one arm as he concluded, "This world shall be reborn!"
"I don't give a damn what you're doing this for," Yuri snarled, as he whipped his sword out of its sheath and tossed the sheath aside. "But you're making a lot of people cry. And that's enough of a reason to take you down!"
"How tedious..." Alexei huffed. "If you'll excuse me, I'm a very busy man." As Alexei turned away from the group, the platform he stood on began to rise.
"Ah, he's getting away!" Karol exclaimed.
"No, he isn't!" Patty snapped.
"Everyone! Jump!" Yuri shouted as he leaped up onto the rising platform. Guy and the rest of the group wasted no time following him.
As the last of the Y-shaped enemies fell, the blue flames separating Flynn, Jade, Natalia, and Anise from Luke, Tear, and Mieu disappeared. Flynn breathed a sigh of relief as Luke ran up to them.
"You're okay!" Luke exclaimed.
"Of course we are!" Natalia replied, crossing her arms. "What about you? You took so long, we were starting to get worried."
"I'm sorry," Tear apologized. Flynn wasn't sure why Tear thought an apology was in order, but he decided not to ask.
"We've been waiting for you," Jade said solemnly. "We have something important to talk about."
Luke gave Jade an apprehensive look. "What's up? You sound serious."
"The passage ring is just ahead of us," said Natalia.
"That means Master Van is there, too..." said Luke.
"Yes," said Jade. "Luke, we must lower the Outer Lands immediately after we defeat Van."
An expression of shock flashed across Luke's face. He recovered quickly, saying, "There's not enough time, huh?"
"Even in the Albiore, it would take too long to get to the Radiation Gate from here," Jade confirmed. "The Outer Lands would probably fall while we were in transit."
"But how do we lower the Outer Lands without activating the Radiation Gate?" Tear asked anxiously.
Flynn, who was barely following the conversation, was glad that other people were asking questions so that he didn't have to. He was afraid of delaying the group any further.
"We write, 'Redirect the Radiation Gate commands to the Absorption Gate.' It should be possible in theory since the passage rings are connected," Jade replied. "Though it is a rather clumsy method," he added in a voice of obvious dissatisfaction.
Tear nodded. "Yes, we haven't activated the Gate."
"What about after that? Is that it?" Luke asked.
"We'll send Seventh Fonons into the Absorption Gate Sephiroth. That's the sign to begin the descent," Jade said. "But the Seventh Fonons must come from the one who issued the command – you, Luke."
"Got it," said Luke. "I'll do it. I can't fail after coming this far."
Jade adjusted his glasses. "Well then, shall we be going? Is everyone ready?"
"I am," said Luke. "How about you all?"
"Of course," said Tear. "I'm going to stop my b...Van."
Flynn tensed at this reminder than Van was Tear's brother. Even though she sounded resolute, fighting her own family would be difficult for her. Flynn hoped that she wouldn't falter at the last minute.
"I'll stop Van's scheme," Natalia declared. "I'll save the world, no matter what."
Anise struck a dramatic pose. "I have to get the Commandant under control, or I'll never get to marry a rich husband," she said cheerfully.
Flynn was impressed by Natalia's determination, but he almost laughed at Anise. Was she serious?
Jade threw up his hands in an exaggerated shrug. "My, my, what passion! What fervor!"
Flynn stared at him. Did Jade have nothing at stake, in defeating Van?
Jade, seeing Flynn's expression, smirked. "I'm afraid those sort of lines don't fit me," he remarked, tucking his hands back into his pockets.
"True enough," Luke sighed, with a casual hand-wave of both amusement and resignation.
Anise turned to Flynn. "What about you? Aren't you going to say anything?" she asked.
"...No," Flynn replied. "We need to hurry."
"Okay, let's go!" Luke said decisively, and activated the warp device.
Flynn was almost used to disappearing and reappearing via the warp devices now, but it still felt very, very strange to exist, not exist, and then exist again. It always left him slightly dizzy for a moment. No one else seemed the least bit discomfited by the process, however. Did they just take it for granted because warp devices were a common technology on Auldrant?
As the group reappeared, everyone looked around. The beauty of the place took Flynn's breath away. The large, round platform they were standing on was a translucent pale lavender hue, with elegant white lines and curlicues embedded. All around the platform, descending fonons fell like glowing snowflakes, bathing the whole area in an ethereal light.
In front of them, a man with light brown hair tied up by a red ribbon, wearing gray robes and a white tabard embellished with fancy black-and-orange decorations, was sitting at a keyboard playing a menacing tune on what looked and sounded like a church organ. Flynn blinked in surprise. What was a church organ, or whatever the instrument was, doing here? How odd.
"Why are you here?" the man, still with his back to them, demanded in an angry tone. His emphasis on the word you seemed to imply that he was expecting someone else and was displeased by the person's – or people's? – absence. Was he talking about Guy? If so, what was Flynn supposed to say to that?
"It was Asch – the original – who was meant to come, to build a new order together with me," the man continued.
Oh, so he wasn't talking about Guy or Flynn. But who was Asch, and what did the man – Van? – mean by original?
The man stood up from the keyboard, turned half-toward the group, and glared at Luke. "Don't get in my way, replica!" he snarled. His narrowed eyes were the same blue as Tear's, and his hair was the same shade of brown. Yes, this was definitely Van.
"Then..." Luke began, and paused to take a deep breath. "Then why did you make me?!" he cried in a voice full of pain. "Who am I?! Why was I born?!"
"Can you not live unless you were born for some purpose?" Van asked scornfully. "That's why you're nothing more than a replica."
Flynn was baffled. He was definitely missing the first half of something. Luke was a replica? A copy? It was possible to make copies of people, here on Auldrant? Then, when Van had called Asch an original, did that mean Luke was a copy of Asch?
"Well then, you poor, pitiful replica," Van sneered. "You were born as a throwaway pawn, a substitute to overturn Yulia's Score. That is all."
"...Master. Is that really all I am?" Luke asked desperately. "My existence caused the Score to go off track, didn't it?"
"An insignificant deviation like you is as nothing before Yulia's Score," Van replied. "Though its leaves may change, the true essence of the tree does not."
There was that word again, Score. What was the Score? Who was Yulia? Flynn had no idea, but he had a feeling that he would find out more if he kept his mouth shut and listened.
"The Score is a drug," Van raved. "'If you walk to the east, you shall discover great riches.' If that reading came true, you would want to believe the next as well. Over the course of two thousand years, Yulia has caused mankind to become addicted to the Score." He turned away from Luke and slammed both hands down on the keyboard. A thoroughly unharmonious chord rang out from the organ. Flynn winced.
"A powerful medicine is needed to remedy two thousand years of distortion," Van continued ranting.
"And your replica world is that medicine?" Jade interrupted. "You have quite the imagination." His voice was level but ice-cold, and Flynn realized that Jade was extremely angry about something. So maybe the Colonel had a stake in stopping Van after all... but what was it?
"Heh..." Van chuckled. "Imagination... Yes, perhaps we can call it that."
Natalia pointed at Van and said imperiously, "A replica world is not imagination, it's delusion. Even though the Score has controlled Auldrant for two thousand years, destroying and replacing this world is wrong! If you don't cease this terrible undertaking, you'll force Tear to suffer."
"Yeah! Score or no Score, Tear is your sister!" Anise added, clenching both her hands into fists. "Are you really going to fight her?!"
"Mystearica," Van sighed. "It is indeed unfortunate. If only you'd stayed in Yulia City... I could have at least spared you."
"You're trying to make a world of replicas, aren't you? Then just kill me and make a replica," Tear retorted.
"You insist on fighting me?" Van asked her.
Tear held her staff ready. "Yes. That was the reason I originally came to the Outer Lands."
Flynn struggled to track all this new information. Where was Yulia City? Somewhere not in the Outer Lands, evidently. Was the name of the city referring to the same Yulia as in Yulia's Score, or a different Yulia?
Van shifted his gaze away from Tear and looked Flynn in the eye. "And what of you, Gailardia? You've been awfully quiet so far. Perhaps now you understand? I will give you one last chance: join me, or die."
Abruptly, Flynn's deepening frustration with Van, Alexei, and the entire doubly-absurd situation turned to outrage. He drew a deep breath to try to calm himself, but it was no use. He'd had enough of this nonsense.
"I am NOT Gailardia!" Flynn shouted, drawing his sword and pointing it at Van. "I am Flynn Scifo of the Imperial Knights, and I don't have time for you! I'm supposed to be at Zaude right now helping my friends defeat a different mad commandant – and I have a few questions that I want to ask before Yuri just kills him!"
Van's eyes widened. "What? Gailardia, have you lost your mind?!"
"I said, I'm not Guy!" Flynn repeated impatiently. "And you are the one out of your mind, if destroying this world is your idea of saving it!"
Van glared at him. "Weren't you listening? The Score—"
"I've heard enough!" Flynn snapped. He turned to Luke. "We're running out of time, right?"
"Right!" Luke agreed, focusing on Van. "Master..." he said hesitantly. Then his expression hardened as he said, "...No...Van! Even if you refuse to acknowledge me... I..." Luke drew his sword. "...I am me."
"Meaningless babble," Van sneered, drawing his own blade. "Die!" he snarled, and lunged at Luke.
As the platform at the center of Zaude rose above the surrounding shrine, Guy made a quick assessment of the situation. Everyone but the two Royal Guards had made the jump onto the platform; even Sodia and Witcher were still with the group. The glyph in the air at the center of the platform had somehow reappeared, and Alexei was focused on it.
"Hey boss, so you really want to go through with this?" Raven asked, readying his bow. The rest of the group drew their weapons and took fighting stances.
Guy's eyebrows rose in surprise. Alexei had been Raven's boss? Well, that explained why Raven had a blastia in place of his heart. What had made Raven change his mind and turn against Alexei? Guy decided he would ask later. Now was not the time.
"Must I put up with such questions even from you?" Alexei sighed, glancing over his shoulder briefly at Raven. "None of you — NONE — thinks the empire is in the right."
"The ends don't always justify the means, boss. These kids taught me that," Raven countered.
"I could never agree with your way of doing things, a way that is filled with pain," Estelle said fervently. "If you truly have no intention of changing your ways, then..." She raised her shield and sword.
"The guilds and the empire both have good points. You can't just wipe them out and start over," Karol protested, gripping the handle of his axe tightly.
"Using force will surely breed resentment and contempt," Judith stated. She gave Alexei a you're-an-idiot look. "You do know that, don't you?"
Rita had taken a casting stance. "There's no guarantee the world you'd make would be any better than this one," she pointed out.
"All the booty in the world couldn't make me sign on as part of your twisted dream!" Patty added.
Guy took a deep breath. "I don't know half of what's going on here," he began, "but it's obvious that you're insane. It's time to end this!"
Alexei frowned. "What are you talking about, Flynn Scifo? You, of all people, should understand. You too wish to reform the empire, do you not?"
"I'm not Flynn," Guy retorted. "Flynn is with my friends right now, putting a stop to another crazy commandant's plans."
"Captain!" Sodia protested.
Witcher glanced across at her. "I think he's telling the truth, Sodia. He really isn't the Captain."
"I'm honor-bound to fight in Flynn's place," Guy continued. He nodded to Yuri. "Let's get this over with."
Yuri nodded back, then turned to glare at Alexei. "Nobody's gonna buy what a bastard like you says," he snarled.
"I see my explanations are wasted on you," Alexei replied. "The small-minded always fear change. However," he said triumphantly, "all the aer in the world is now in my grasp. You have no hope of victory."
"Yeah, right," Rita scoffed. "You're still trying to figure out the formula for this place."
"What?" Estelle gasped. "Rita, what do you mean?"
"He still hasn't completely unlocked Zaude's controls," Rita explained.
"Is he just buying time?" Karol asked.
Alexei looked over his shoulder at Rita. "Ah yes, Rita Mordio. How very careless of me," he said with a smirk. With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the glyph again.
Guy wasn't sure what Alexei meant by that remark. How did Alexei know Rita? What did he mean by careless? And what was a formula?
"Are you serious?!" Yuri exclaimed indignantly. "And you think you can change the world? Don't make me laugh."
Alexei closed his eyes briefly. "How very right you are," he replied. Opening his eyes again, he said decisively, "Very well, then this will be one more trial along my path to my rightful place as ruler." He drew his sword, which had a pale blue blade with a glowing blue sphere between the blade and the hilt; instead of taking a fighting stance, he simply held the sword up in front of him, point-down.
The sword flashed with a bright light, and Guy felt something hit him with a powerful force. He was knocked on his back, along with all of his companions, who gave various groans and yelps of surprise and pain.
"You will be the first sacrifice made for the new world's dawn," Alexei crowed, beckoning. "Come!"
"Whoa, whoa whoa," Raven said, as everyone scrambled to their feet. "I thought he didn't have all of Zaude's power yet?"
"He doesn't," Rita said, "but he may have enough."
"Heh," Yuri huffed, "he's betting the world on this. He's gotta pull out all the stops. Let's go!"
Ten people and one dog attacked Alexei together.
A/N: Ugh, why do Tales villains always have such darn long spiels before battle?! I was going to put both battle scenes in this chapter, but it would have been too long, even if I could have somehow cut the pre-battle conversations or shortened them without taking away from the characters' personalities. Sorry, readers, but you'll have to wait until Chapter 4 for the actual fight scenes.