"Stop fidgeting, Kefka!" Ultimecia snapped.
"I'm bored, Ulty. I can't help it. You pulled me away from some very important business, you know." Kefka craned his neck and smoothed out his cravat like the tie of a business suit. Ever the professional.
"Blowing up manikins in your tower is not 'important business'," she scoffed.
"I was testing the traps! Once I was done with that," he said, miming flipping open a book. He pretended to thumb through the pages until he pointed at the air. "After that, I was booked for tea with Chaos." He snapped the invisible book shut. "And what am I doing now? Nothing! Except sitting here alone with you, getting rained on, and waiting-"
"It's for the Emperor, remember? Last he mentioned it, you were all too eager to join-"
"Because I wanted to destroy something!"
Ultimecia rolled her eyes. "This is your chance. And a real warrior will be much more fun than a manikin, don't you think? The Emperor said that that girl is patrolling the Fens. As soon as she emerges into the clearing, we're going to snatch her." Ultimecia stood up and shook out her wings, dusting off her dress. She left their hiding place - a high set of plateaus that bottle-necked the pathway through the Fend - and walked out into the open area.
The clearing was no more than a long, wide strip of open land, completely clear except for a separate plateau that encumbered a small part of the left side. The rain fell hard in large drops, and there were puddles everywhere. At the clearing's very center, there was a patch of tall grass. The water surrounded either side of it, closing the warriors in unless someone decided to take a dip.
It was the perfect position. There was nothing for Rosa to hide behind, and there was nowhere to run once she entered. The path behind her would be narrow and dangerous in the middle of a scuffle. There was a teleport stone near the warriors' end of the clearing that somewhat bothered Ultimecia, but she was confident she'd be able to keep them away from it. Especially Rosa.
Ultimecia teleported back, next to Kefka. "Where is she, Ulty?" he asked without looking up. He was distracted with drawing patterns in the dirt.
"She's coming, Kefka!"
"But when?"
"I don't know. Soon."
"What's her name again?"
"Rosa. Rosa Farrell."
"Where's Exdeath?"
"Gods, it's like I'm baby-sitting a child!" she said, glaring at him. Kefka grumbled something under his breath, but Ultimecia didn't exactly care to pry. "Exdeath is waiting for us, after we take her," she said, answering his question.
"I could've waited for you. In my tower."
She took a deep breath. "If you want to leave," she started slowly, to keep her patience, "then go. I only invited you so that you could have some fun. After all, we are going to annihilate her completely once we take her. But fine. If you'd rather go and do . . . whatever it is that you do, I'll not force you to stay. You'll just miss all this fun," she purred smoothly.
He paused, clearly weighing his options. He shrugged his shoulders and reclined in the air, propping his head up with his elbow. She figured that was his decision to stay. Finally in silence, Ultimecia floated up and stood on the lower tier of the plateau to rest her elbows on the higher tier.
She pressed her fist into her cheek and wondered idly how much longer she could deal with Kefka before the urge to tear his head from his neck overtook her. She planned on saving that rage for Rosa when she arrived, but he was making it harder and harder to restrain herself. She could always verbally put him down in the meantime, she supposed. There were few who could match her in a sparring match of words, but Kefka was an entirely different beast, that needed dealt with in an entirely different way.
She didn't have to think long. Soon, the unmistakably sweet smell of Cosmos' warriors reached her, and she could feel their energy growing closer and closer. She lowered herself down, keeping her eyes on the spot at the corner of the mountains where she knew Rosa would emerge. She swatted at Kefka and pointed to the ground, to signal for him to get down as well. "There they are," she said, pointing to the base of the mountains.
Kefka's face lit up. He put his hands on the rocks in front of them and shrank down, immediately interested. The warriors' group emerged one-by-one. Out first from the narrow path was Laguna and Cloud on the point, followed by the summoner and the tall, brown-haired boy she sometimes saw with Squall. No Rosa. She thought perhaps the Emperor was mistaken, that she wasn't with this particular patrol group. But then, they emerged. At the back of the group and trailing behind was Cecil, Firion, and the girl Rosa, all together.
Ultimecia forgot how beautiful she was. Her golden-blonde hair spilled thickly over one shoulder. Her features were sharp and contoured, beautiful, but Rosa wore them softly, with an otherworldly grace. She had a genuine tilt to her head and an amiable light in her eyes that outshone everything around her. Her aura of White Magic was powerful, and Ultimecia no longer felt the need to laugh at the Emperor for losing to her. Ultimecia hated her, too. She needed to be destroyed.
Kefka tensed beside her, ready to strike and blow their cover. She reached out and held his arm. "Not yet," she said.
"Why not? You said-"
"I want to tire her out first. Watch this."
Ultimecia focused her power, and it manifested on the ground behind their cover. Two manikins appeared from the air, crystal weapons already in hand. She looked at who the world decided to send her: an orange copy of Jecht, and, ironically enough, a copy of Rosa. Even the manikin was beautiful in its off-kilter way, with the girl's bow and knife. Pink in color, or perhaps a rose gold, that shimmered even under the overcast above them. Ultimecia called three more manikins, figuring that would be enough. She could always add another wave later. She received Bartz, the Cloud of Darkness, and Golbez at her call.
She waved her hand and let them go, and they all dove for the entrance to the clearing at the same time, jostling off of each other to get through first. She heard that fool Laguna yell, "Hey! Hey, hey, hey! We got company!"
They watched the battle unfold.
"Hey! Hey, hey, hey! We got company!"
Rosa could only make out an indistinguishable mass of color at the opposite end of the clearing. Tangles of blue, orange, yellow, green, and black rolled and struggled and fought to squeeze themselves out of the narrowing in the path. The heap of orange managed to break free first, elbowing the others behind it, and when the rest followed and split up, Rosa realized they were meant to be people.
Manikins.
The ones that she recognized looked just like her friends. A giant Golbez manikin floated above all the others, crystal as black as the armor he wore. The blue she recognized to be Bartz. If they weren't so garish in color, she could've mistook them for the real things from a distance. They were nearly exact in shape, down to the beads hanging from Bartz's pauldron; but they lacked any fine details in the armor or the clothes. The sharp angles of their crystal bodies and their unnatural, jaunty movements reminded her that they were only meant to be mockeries of her friends. Three other manikins she didn't care to identify came forward as well and followed the orange manikin that led the charge.
From the back of the group, Rosa pulled an arrow from her hip and nocked it before her mind could catch up. "Laguna, with me!" she yelled. She lifted her bow high above her friends, aiming for the Golbez manikin, and the other manikins towards the back. If she didn't bring them down completely, she could at least wound some of them. The arrow flew and embedded in the arm of the Golbez manikin, punching through the crystal. She pulled three more arrows and loosed a Rapid Shot, sending all three towards the crowd. They hit their marks, staggering the different splashes of color. Laguna stepped forward and raised his weapon close to his face, staring down the length of it. He fired on the two manikins near the front, clipping the orange one's shoulder. Shards of orange crystal broke off and glittered in the air, but the manikin refused to fall. It continued its charge, half-running and half-stumbling, towards their group its bare crystal feet pattering on the ground.
Cloud lifted his sword from the holder on his back and took off towards it. The manikin looked strong. It sported a sword was almost as big as Cloud's Buster Sword, but more flat and with an oddly-shaped blade. Its heavily-muscled, heavily-scarred chest and arms looked formidable, and its tattered-looking appearance and dead eyes gave it an unnerving quality that left her uneasy. Rosa began a Protect spell, letting its warmth build in her heart before she cast. The blue shield wrapped around Cloud and she held it, just in time for the manikin's attack. They swung at each other, both of them throwing their entire weight into it. Their blades connected with a deep, metallic clang, and the manikin surged forward to throw its shoulder into him. Cloud side-stepped and pushed it away.
Rosa assumed the other manikins would break apart and choose one of the others to engage, but instead they drew straight to Cloud, the one closest to them. Rosa was about to drop the Protect spell and distract some of them from him, but Bartz joined the fight. He glanced to Firion and summoned a copy of his rope knives. He tossed them forward, aiming for his manikin, and when the blades chipped into the crystal, Bartz tugged as hard as he could. He pulled his copy towards him and dragged it to the right side of the clearing to put some distance between them and the other fights. All around Rosa, her patrol group chose an opponent - Firion squared off with a floating manikin that had two tendrils coming from somewhere on its body; Laguna fired upon the distant copy of Golbez, hanging towards the back of the clearing. Yuna lent her aeons to everyone, surveying the scene and helping where she was needed.
Rosa's Protect spell flickered with her waning attention, so she reinforced it and turned her attention back to Cloud and his manikin. She cast again on top of it and it glowed a brighter, more vibrant blue. The manikin threw a punch, but its fist bounced weakly off the barrier and it retreated. Cloud briefly nodded his thanks to Rosa before rushing it again. He landed a downward swing that crushed the manikin's injured shoulder, and it shattered in a shower of crystal. He followed through, jumping and turning in the air for an overhead swing next, landing on its back. He twisted the other way for a finishing move and tossed the manikin across the field.
Rosa released the Protect spell, and Cloud ran after his opponent. She meant to move closer to the battle, near the grassy patch in the middle where Firion and Laguna were fiercely holding their manikins back, but someone pushed into her and nudged her to the left instead. She recovered and faced Cecil. She was about to ask what he was doing, but he threw his arm up and blocked a flash of light aimed for the very spot she was. Rosa followed the object as it spun through the air and knew it was an arrow. It looked like one of her arrows. Rosa followed where it came from, near the rocks that blocked the right side of the area, and found a manikin copy of herself.
Despite Cecil's block, the manikin's head was turned in her direction. It stared directly at her. Rose-gold in color, its dead and empty eyes were a lighter shade of pink. Rosa felt it was like looking through a broken mirror. She saw her own features - her own nose, her own eye shape, her own face, her own hair as it fell down her shoulder. The manikin wore her pauldrons and the same bracer, it wore the same halter top and skirt. It had an exact copy of her bow in its hands, and she knew that's what she would look like if she could see herself in a low ready position.
She couldn't have said it looked threatening to her. Perhaps she herself didn't appear threatening. But it didn't look to be any type of compassionate, either. She knew it didn't have the capacity for empathy that a White Mage needed. Rosa hoped it was too mindless to realize what it could do for its allies.
She pulled an arrow from her hip and nocked it on her bow. "Let me-" she started, but Cecil shifted to Dark Knight and charged before she could draw. He crossed the center of the battlefield, slipping between Bartz and Cloud as their battles carried them around the field. Rosa's manikin moved to draw again, but Rosa sighted first. She aimed for where she knew its hand would be when it drew, and sure enough her arrow flew and shattered its draw hand in a shower of pink crystal. Cecil thrust his spear towards it, but the manikin dodged and twirled to the side. He chased after it, but when he was close enough to swing again, the manikin dodged again.
Rosa followed them both, running around the right side of the area to steer clear of the other battles. Her manikin snatched the knife at its hip with its left hand and slashed wildly every time Cecil made a move to get close to it. He instead lifted his spear high and shot a dark orb at it, but it ducked below the attack. He swapped back to Paladin, and Rosa tugged her own knife from the sheath. She ran forward right as Cecil swiped again at its abdomen-
Cecil and Kain circled each other, both with weapons at the ready. Cecil looked confident and relaxed while Kain looked threatening and fierce in the Dragoon's familiar fighting stance.
"It's only a sparring match!" Cecil said lightly. "No need to wear that frown, Kain."
"Don't taunt him, Cecil!" Rosa yelled from the wooden stands that circled the field. While the sparring match started amiably, as they always did, it already morphed into something more critical. They both always ended up angry, panting, and tired in what always became a real and violent fight.
"It's not a taunt, Rosa. Our sparring matches almost always-"
Kain Jumped straight into the air, taking advantage of Cecil's diverted attention. His eyes flew wide and he threw himself to the side, narrowly avoiding Kain's lance as it slammed into the ground where he had been.
"Easy!" Cecil yelled.
"It was not strong enough to kill you," Kain said simply. He stabbed his lance into the ground and hoisted himself up, swinging around to try and knock Cecil into the air. Cecil rolled backwards and popped up, thrusting at Kain with his sword. Kain wormed out of the way, but Cecil swiped at his abdomen and Kain took the blow against his armor. He slammed his sword down on Kain's lance and twirled, slinging it from his grip. He placed his blade to Kain's neck and applied pressure until Kain was forced to a knee.
Both men were breathing hard, close enough that their faces were only mere inches from each other as Cecil leaned down into his face.
'This is the fourth time, Kain. Do you yield?" Cecil asked. There was nothing in his tone, but Rosa knew immediately that Kain would find some smugness there. She sensed what would happen before it did.
"Wait-" she tried, but Kain swatted Cecil's sword away with his bare hand, leaving a long slice on the length of his palm. He lunged forward and barreled into Cecil's stomach, tackling him to the ground. Cecil cried out in pain as his head made contact with the ground. His sword clamored from his hand and landed in the dirt.
Rosa lifted her skirts and stepped down from the stands. "Stop it! Stop it, you two!"
Cecil freed his hands and pushed Kain's weight away from him. He rolled onto his stomach in an attempt to crawl towards his sword, throwing elbows behind him wildly to knock Kain off of him. Kain caught one of Cecil's arms in his and tugged backwards, wrenching his shoulder. Cecil yelped and rolled again, throwing Kain to the ground.
Rosa needed to get between them before someone got hurt. Kain stood up, already sprinting towards Cecil, and Cecil had just reached his sword, picking it up with his right arm while his left hung limp at his side. Rosa was only a fraction behind them, but she could tell she wouldn't reach them in time. She reached towards them.
"Stop!" she yelled.
Cecil whirled around and sliced upwards, dragging his blade from Kain's hip to his shoulder. The strike was so strong, it cracked and broke the armor, and within seconds red blood seeped through the crack. Kain gasped and fell back, hands clutched at the wound. The swing carried him around so far, the very tip of his blade brushed across Rosa's arm and sliced her as well.
She screamed, snatching her arm back.
"R-Rosa!" he startled. "Rosa, I'm sorry-"
"Cecil!" Rosa screamed. "What have you done?!"
Kain moaned from the ground, and Rosa pushed past Cecil to kneel beside him and peel apart the broken pieces of armor. The cut was not deep, but was long and jagged from the jarring in Cecil's swing. It looked painful, and Kain winced as it was exposed to the open air. Her own arm forgotten, Rosa pressed her hands to the wound to start healing him.
"I-I'm sorry," Cecil stammered. "He attacked me-"
"Well YOU taunted him! You know him better than that!" she yelled. "Just go!" She pointed violently towards the castle, and drops of blood flew from the cut in her arm.
"Kain, I'm so sorry-"
"Cecil, GO!" she yelled again, starting her healing spell.
Rosa blinked herself back into awareness to see Cecil use a Searchlight to distract her manikin. It dodged again, but as soon as it did Cecil landed two slashes in the shape of a cross to knock it back. It slammed into the rocks behind it and fell to the ground.
Rosa continued her pursuit to help, but towards the middle of the battlefield she heard someone cry out in pain. She turned and watched the Golbez manikin launch a flaming attack under Laguna. He was tossed into the air, and the manikin teleported directly in front of him. With magic, it hurled its hand to the side and threw Laguna to the left, far over the edge of the land and into the water on the other side of the area from her. Rosa chanced another glance at Cecil and saw him still playing tag with her manikin, but she assumed he would be alright on his own. She sprinted back the way she came, towards the back of the clearing and around the left side, staying as close to the side as she dared without risking falling in herself. She skirted around the Teleport Stone, dodged Cloud when his manikin drove him back, and stopped by where she saw Laguna's head poke out of the water.
"Man, that's cold!" he yelled. Rosa nocked an arrow and half-faced the battle in case a manikin decided to come after her. She kept her eye out for the Golbez that didn't have an opponent anymore, but luckily Yuna stepped forward and was battling him with her summons.
"Here!" Rosa said, kneeling by the edge. Laguna swam over to her and grabbed her hand, and Rosa helped to haul him over the side. "Are you injured?"
"I'm good!" he said, shaking the water out of his hair in a way that reminded Rosa of a dog. "Save your magic." Just in case, Rosa cast a Cure on him, watching the light envelop him.
"Oh! Thanks!" he said, rolling his shoulders. Another type of weapon appeared in his hand, and he ran past Rosa to keep fighting. She spun around as well, and took quick stock of everyone. Firion and Yuna were holding their own against their manikins. Cecil was blocking some shots from her manikin, and didn't look to be in any peril either.
Bartz, however, had taken a heavy hit. She heard him grunting in pain, limping away from his manikin on the other side of the clearing. He had one hand clamped over his leg, and a steady stream of red blood oozed between his fingers and ran in rivulets down to his knee, staining his blue tights. His face was twisted into a wide-eyed grimace. He called a copy of Warrior's shield to defend himself, and his manikin used Kain's lance to jab at him furiously. Unrelenting, with no sense of technique or reason. Just pure drive to kill. Bartz ducked behind the shield, deflecting right and left, barely fending it off. The manikin Jumped in an exact replica of what she saw in her memory, and when it descended down on him, it kicked the shield to the side before digging the lance into Bartz's side. It slammed him to the ground and stood over him, forcing the weapon as far into his flesh as it would go.
Panic stabbed into Rosa's spine, and the magic she needed began to build in her without her realizing it. She ran towards them while she charged her spell, and watched the manikin lift the lance again. Her heart dropped, she felt a scream pull from her throat.
She wouldn't reach him in time.
Rosa released the magic before it was ready, but luckily it still worked. One moment she was across the clearing, and the next, her feet landed behind the manikin in a perfect Teleport. Rosa dragged the knife from her belt and reached around, jabbing the knife into its chest where she assumed its heart would be. It disintegrated and crumbled into a pile of crystal shards.
Bartz's breath came in short, wet, ragged gasps, and he dropped Warrior's shield into the dirt beside him. He used his uninjured leg to push himself to a sitting position, but Rosa stopped him. "No, no, no! Don't aggravate the wound!" She pushed him back to the ground, flat on his back.
"Agh!" he gasped. "Oh, gods. Holy shhhh . . . " he trailed off, and Rosa thought he would mutter something offensive. At the last second he backed off. "Holy flip." His eyes flicked around wildly, and when she dropped to the ground beside him he clutched at her skirt in panic.
"Stop," she ordered. She knew she sounded cold, but she needed him relaxed. "Stay calm, okay? I've got you. You're going to be fine."
"O-okay," he sputtered weakly.
She had done this hundreds, if not thousands of times back in Baron, and on her journey with Cecil. She had healed countless men in wars, and healed her companions countless times as well. Their lives were in her hands many times, but she still felt a jittery type of nervousness as she started the spell. She couldn't stop a twinge of doubt from interrupting the fluidity of her experience, and had to forcibly remove it before she could let the warmth of the Curaga build in her heart, filling the space in her chest. She clasped her hands over her chest to concentrate it. She let it build and build, spreading down her arms and into her hands, before closing them over his stab wound.
She pressed down and he groaned in pain, but she felt the healing move from her body into his, leaving her chilled as the green light glowed around him. The deepest parts of the wound closed under her hands, but she could tell it was more serious than what she could do in that moment. It required more than White Magic alone. The wound would need to heal somewhat naturally, before White Magic would continue its improvement. She healed the slash on his leg next, and asked, "Can you stand?"
"Probably," he nodded.
"Get behind the mountains behind you," she told him. "You're done."
"What?" he tried, but she could tell in his eyes he was putting up a front. He was still in pain, she knew. "I can still-"
"You can't. Trust me. You'll only injure yourself further. The rest of us have it under control."
"Alright," he said. "Yup! Yup, yup!" She pulled him to his feet and saw him off, hunched over to protect the wound.
"Be careful on your way to Mist," she told Cecil as they walked through the castle corridor.
"I will," he said. "As I told you, there's no need to worry. Kain is with me. The two of us will be just fine."
"Did you pack enough food? Do you have supplies? Items and whet stones and whatever else you'll need?"
"Yes, Rosa," he chuckled. "And I'm sure," he added before she could ask. "You know how meticulous I am in my preparations. Almost as meticulous as you!" he joked. She nudged into him, and he smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "Kain and I can hunt in the Mist cave if worse comes to worst."
"And eat goblins?" she laughed.
"Yes. Goblin is a fine meal. Especially roasted on a fire," he said, laughing along with her. The guards opened the doors for them to the front antechamber, where Kain was waiting to meet him. He was leaned casually against the wall, and at the sounds of their steps he pushed off of the wall and faced them.
Rosa broke away from Cecil and hurried her pace. "Did you pack everything you need?"
"I did, Rosa," Kain said, nodding once.
"Are you sure?"
"I am, thank you."
"Be careful, okay?" she said, reaching out and taking both his hands. "Come back safe."
"I will," he said, giving her hands a slight squeeze. He leaned down towards her, and she stood up on her toes to kiss him once on each cheek. She turned back to Cecil and clasped his hands as well. He paused to stare softly into her eyes and face.
"You look tired, Rose. Get some rest," he said.
"It's what I get for staying up to see you off."
Cecil pulled her into a tight hug and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "We'll be back in a few days."
He released her, and he and Kain turned their back on her to leave the castle.
Left without an opponent, Rosa looked around again for Cecil. He couldn't seem to land a hit on her manikin. With its draw hand damaged, her strong hand, it could do little else but run. It had carried them back and towards the middle, where Firion battled with his manikin. No matter what attack he tried, or how fast it was, he couldn't catch it. Rosa prepared a Haste spell, and the tingling, snowy feeling pooled in her middle. She cast it on Cecil when it was ready. His back stiffened in surprise, and he looked around to see where the spell came from. When he saw it was from her, he attacked immediately. He used his Saint's Fall, and dashed forward so quickly Rosa lost sight of him. She only saw a flash of white. A second later the manikin crashed to the ground, defenseless.
Rosa prepared another arrow and aimed for its ponytail - the manikin's neck.
The string slipped through her fingers, but a rogue spell collided with her arm and knocked her bow down. The arrow tumbled away, and Rosa turned to see three more manikins spilling from the bottle-necked path. A copy of Cecil in its navy blue armor, another manikin she did not know that carried what looked to be magical orbs in its hands, and-
Rosa had to do a double-take. There, in all its gaudy yellow and orange hues, was the Emperor. From the horns on its head down to the heeled boots it looked exactly like him, though it lacked the finer details she had come to know well like the beads in his hair, the patterns on his armor, and the make up around his eyes. What gave her pause was the same haughty nothingness in its eyes that she remembered in the real Emperor's eyes. The manikin and the real man both looked at everything as though it meant nothing to them, just more to be destroyed. Rosa remembered him looking down at her the same way as he charged his Death spell.
She knew she needed more space. Rosa crossed the field again, careful to dodge Firion, Laguna, and Yuna near the grass patch in the middle of the clearing. She splashed through puddles and wet dirt, and the two manikins stalked after her despite their proximity to the other warriors around them. Rosa had half a mind to abandon them, simply to go after the Emperor. Though not as gratifying as the real thing, she could still find it in herself to enjoy destroying a lookalike. She recalled what she had told Firion before, how she would relish in the chance to strike him down the way he tried to strike her down. She nocked an arrow and drew her bow slowly, making sure to sight her shot perfectly. She wanted to bury it right between its eyes, and take it out quickly.
It seemed to know her plan. It stayed where it was and allowed its companions to inch closer to her, forcing her to take her eyes off of it in case they attacked. They spread out, cornering her on the left side of the clearing near the rocks of the bottle-neck. When they had her cornered, with the rocks blocking her escape to the left, and the water closing off her escape behind, it teleported to her right.
They took a step towards her in unison, closing her in.
Rosa felt a twinge of panic creeping up on her. She only knew two of the manikins out of three. She struggled between keeping her bow at such a close range, or using her knife and working her magic as much as possible. Her adrenaline surged and she shot at the unknown manikin, weakly hoping she could intimidate it or get it to move. It side-stepped and moved back into place.
She cast away her bow and drew her knife, holding it in front of her.
In the Emperor's own ironic version of a warning, he touched his staff to the ground and a group of mines appeared behind him, completely isolating her from the rest of the group.
All three of the manikins attacked at once.
The orbs in the unknown manikin's hands glowed bright, and he threw his arm out, launching them towards her. She ducked underneath them, but was unprepared for the next volley from his other hand. They clipped her shoulder, phasing through her, searing her skin and muscles, and she yelped in surprise. The ache that radiated down her arm was almost instantly debilitating. Caught in the cross-fire, she was unable to block as the manikin sent another wave of orbs after her. They shot into her stomach and sent her rolling backwards, straight into the Emperor's minefield.
They exploded at her back, the whiplash catching her breath in her chest, and she collapsed onto her hands and knees. Choking, disoriented and in pain, she raised her head to see the Cecil manikin throw its own dark attack at her. Four dark spheres spiraled towards her and wrapped around her, dragging her on the ground towards it. She meant to call her bow, if only to have something to put between her and it, but she couldn't concentrate well enough to try. The manikin slashed up with its spear, and Rosa felt the sharp pain of tearing skin as it slashed from her hip to her chest. The dark fire that cloaked its blade seeped into the cut, and burned her raw skin. Its next downward swing caught her injured shoulder, and though her pauldron saved her from another cut, she felt her arm pull painfully. It's last thrust jabbed into her stomach, and she flew backwards again, landing on her injured shoulder.
She screamed as her arm was wrenched again, throwing a hand to her stab wound, already trying to gauge how bad it was. She needed help.
"Cecil!" she screamed, as loudly as she could, hoping he would hear. "Cecil, help!"
"Cecil!" she yelled, as loud as she could over the crowd. "Cecil!"
He heard his name. He turned towards the sound of her voice, eyes scanning the crowd in confusion. Rosa pulled her token, a white handkerchief, from her sleeve and waved it in the air to catch his attention. When he saw it, his face lit up.
"Rosa!" he yelled. She beckoned him forward. He steered his chocobo away from the other champions and left his place in the parade to walk over to her place in the stands.
"Wear this!" She had to yell, even as close as he was. "Wear my token!"
"Of course, my lady!" he said, bowing his head. He drew his sword and offered her his hand so she could tie it around his wrist. She leaned down over the wooden rail to tie it, but he stopped her. "Wait."
He held out his hand and she pressed it into his palm. He lifted it high for those around her to see. He pressed it to his lips and kissed it, then untied the chain mail at his neck to tuck it into his chestplate. "I will wear it close to my heart!" he said. He placed his hand over it and bowed again. "I vow upon this favour to win this tournament for you, fair lady!"
Cecil turned his chocobo around and rode back to his position in the parade.
Later, before his round in the joust, Rosa saw him struggle to pull it from his chestplate again. Before the flag dropped he kissed it again and tucked it back in.
She was too dazed to try and look for him. She scrambled to her feet, wincing as every movement jarred her injuries. Wet blood was seeping from the cut on her middle, and each breath sent a wave of agony from the stab wound. Clutching her arm to her chest, she watched the unknown manikin float above her and drop its next attack on her from above. It let its magic loose, and as each sphere hit the ground it exploded in a large burst. Each one drew closer and closer, and she knew she would be stuck if she didn't find a way out.
She stepped to the left, closer to the edge of the water, contemplating her chances of escape if she jumped in the water. It would only slow her down. She looked past the Cecil manikin and saw a small patch of shallow water that she hadn't noticed before, to the left side of the rocks. She wasn't sure what it was like behind the rocks, but if there were shallows, there was probably beach. It could be a path of escape for her. She felt as though it was her only chance. Rosa dashed towards it, nearly dodging the blast radius of one of the manikin's attacks. The heat seared her face and bare arms, but she pushed through. She blew past the Cecil manikin, calling a Protect barrier to deflect its swing. Her wounds slowed her down, and after a few steps she was doubled over from them.
She leapt off the edge of the land and splashed into the shallows, and her knees buckled. She collapsed to her hands and knees and spared a glance to see if they were following her. The Emperor didn't follow, and instead planted three Thunder Crests at the edge of the shallows, blocking her again.
She realized that it was trying to corner her. A cold chill stabbed into her spine as she staggered to her feet, and when she circled around the rocks to the beach, she understood her mistake. She was completely closed in to a small inlet. There was no way back.
The two manikins splashed after her, and she sheathed her knife, calling her staff instead. She held it across her body with her left hand, her only good arm, and pushed the pain away to complete another Teleport spell before the manikins reached her. The crystal on top of the staff began to glow, but she didn't get the chance.
The Emperor manikin teleported in front of her and pushed her staff down with its own. It cast a blue Flare at her right side, and she was defenseless. It exploded and tossed her far over the water. She expected to hit the shallows and even braced for it, but someone caught her. Someone real, with warmth and skin. It snatched her arm so hard, its nails - no, claws - stabbed into her skin and drew blood, and it cackled in a way that sounded too deranged to be a warrior of Cosmos coming to her rescue.
The warrior used her momentum, already flying towards the water, and spun around again, hurling her further through the air.
Rosa's eyes were closed, but she heard a sound like a whoosh. The world spun again behind her eyes, there was a feeling of weightlessness, and all sound spiraled away from her ears. She had a moment of nothingness before she heard another sound. Cold air hit her face, she finally hit the hard, stone ground and rolled, and the pain nearly knocked her unconscious.
She moaned and breathed as well as she could, banishing the blackness away from her vision.
When she opened her eyes, she knew she wasn't in the Fens.