Chapter 4: The Desperate Knight
Sarah struggled to stay awake in the darkness of the old shrine. Sarah watched as Garland took a seat on a broken column by the only door out of the chamber. Even the knight was not immune to the allure of slumber. The princess waited in silence, scratching the backs of her hands with her nails in an attempt to stave off sleep, until Garland's head slumped and his arm dropped to his side. "Good," she whispered to herself as she watched the knight's vigilance fail in the face to fatigue. "Now about these ropes..." The princess struggled to bring her hands out from behind her back and stood to her feet. "Maybe if I slip away, I can find some way to save Garland from my father." She turned back to grab her lute and began her escape.
"...Hmm..." Garland shuffled slightly, but seemed to stay asleep. Sarah crept slowly past the knight and opened the door to the outer room. "...Grr..." the knight continued to stir, as if something began to ail him. His shuffling escalated until his helmet slid off his head and crashed onto the ground. "Hah!" Garland awoke with a fright, sweating profusely under his armor. "Again with that accursed nightmare..." He glanced around the room for a moment. "Wh-Where's the princess?"
"It's a good thing Gordon taught me how to sneak around without getting caught," the princess thought as she started her escape. Sarah could only take a few steps before she heard the clatter from Garland's helmet. "Uh-oh," She sped up her escape until a large, purple worm blocked her path. "A Gigas Worm?" she thought to herself. "It hasn't noticed me yet. I'll have to find some other route out of here." She turned around and ran to the western opening that led to the hall.
"Hsss." A strange noise kept the princess in a defensive stance. She hid behind a pillar just as a skeleton ambled by. "Hsss..." the creature creaked as it moved, gripping its weapon, an old and chipped sword, with both hands. If Sarah had a weapon, it would make escaping that much easier.
Sarah began to weigh the odds. After a short time, she decided to take the risk. "Hey!" she said aloud, hoping to attract only the attention of the skeleton. Almost immediately, the monster swung in the direction of the voice, smacking the sword against the pillar. In that moment of confusion, Sarah dropped her lute and swung her hands at the skeleton's arms, knocking the sword out of its hands. She dropped to the floor, swiped the dropped weapon, and struck its skull, severing it from the rest of its body. "Yes! It worked." She paused to cut her ropes and returned to fleeing the shrine, with the sword in one hand and the lute in the other.
Sarah had made it to the stairs leading out of the shrine and sighed in relief. "Gwuuuh..." A horrid groan cut off her rejoicing as she saw the voice's owner, a Zombie, jump out of the darkness and catch her off guard. She turned to run, but the undead foe slashed at her back.
"Ah!" As the Zombie's nails dug into her flesh, a sense of unnatural dread overcame her. "I-I can't!" She tried to flee, but collapsed as her body failed to move. She found herself paralyzed; by fear? Or something else? "Stay away..." the Zombie shuffled closer to her, one of his claws wet with her blood. Before the creature could swipe at her again, a large blade cleaved it in two pieces. Standing over her was a man in dark armor. "Garland!"
"There's a reason I picked this shrine, princess," Garland said as he dragged Sarah to her feet. "I figured you might think of escape at one point. After all, Gordon has influenced you quite a bit." The knight walked the still stunned princess back to the center of the shrine. "But this place is more than you can handle on your own. For your own safety, I advise against trying this stunt again."
"I...can't move. Why?" Sarah asked, trying and failing to regain control of her own body.
"Some undead creatures have the power to turn their victims fears upon themselves," Garland explained. "In this state, they are effectively paralyzed. It is not permanent, and a trained warrior can resist the effect, but an untrained woman like you won't be able to move for nearly a day." Garland set Sarah down before a large, black orb in the center of the shrine.
"Am I...going to die?" Sarah started to weep as she spoke. Her predicament fueled her fear, making the crippling effect even more powerful.
"So long as your father agrees to my terms, no," Garland answered. "You might even learn to accept the end result." The knight stooped down and grabbed his helmet and placed it back on his head. "Try to get some sleep, if it's possible." The knight started to fall asleep again, the only creatures able to reach them being the harmless bats.
"Wake up, Air! We gotta hurry," Gordan shouted as he poked around the remnants of the campfire. The white mage stumbled out of his tent, straightening his wrinkled robe. "Did you sleep in that thing?"
"I have to wear it over anything else, at all times. We discussed this last night," Arin answered, half-asleep.
"Oh, right," Gordon said, wincing at his thoughtless remark. "Your condition. Anyway, we should leave really soon if we want to get to the shrine and return to this campsite before nightfall."
"That is a good plan," Arin added. "We will encounter less of those living dead while the sun is shining."
"Okay, pack up and change," Gordon ordered. "Er, if you do change clothes, that is. I'll get rations for four people for the return trip."
The two men quickly ran through the forest, taking care to avoid marauding goblins and roaming wolf packs, though in some instances, they were forced to fight. Gordon stabbed at the leader of a group of goblins, while Arin's Protect and Blink rendered their enemies' attacks useless. The creatures eventually all fell to the two warriors, who gasped for breath and blinked in astonishment. "That magic is certainly something," Gordon said between breaths as he searched the goblins' pockets , finding a paltry sum of gil and a perfectly usable flask filled with a healing potion. "If I fought a group like that on my own, I would have more than just a few cuts to worry about."
"It is a blessing, this magic," Arin answered in a similar fashion. "But you sell your own abilities short. While you might not be as strong as most, you are most certainly more agile. You managed to slay four goblins in the time it took me to kill one and wound another."
"I don't think comparing our fighting capabilities is really fair," Gordon admitted. "You did say that getup is making you weaker. All that means is I fight better than a severely handicapped man."
"Look, Gordon!" Arin shouted as his eyes fell on a white building. "Is that the place?"
"That's it! The old shrine. We're coming, Sarah." Gordon's pace increased wildly, causing the white mage to fall behind. In his haste, he neglected to notice a shadow lying in wait. He paused at the door of the shrine.
"Gwuuuuuh..." A Zombie crept up behind Gordon and raised its claw. Gordon spun in surprise and blocked the claw with his arm.
"A Zombie?" Gordon gasped. "Then the rumors are true. Well...Gah!" The thief's body began to lock up, freezing him in place. "I... can't... move!"
"Gordon!" Arin ran up behind the undead creature and swatted it away with his hammer. "Are you okay?"
"Don't stop! Finish it off!" Gordon screamed.
"I see," The white mage tightened his grip on his weapon and slammed it into the Zombie's chest, halting its movements permanently. "It must have infected your mind." Arin noted the creatures claws. "Let me see if I can help you. Cure!" With a wave of Arin's hand, the wound on Gordon's arm began to mend at a rapid pace.
"I feel... a bit better." Gordon twitched a little as he started to regain control over his faculties. "Now then, let's get going." Gordon pushed open the door, and jumped at the sight of a Zombie lying on the ground. "This one, it's been cut in half!"
"Why would this Garland be so bold? If a Zombie or Ghoul managed to slip past his armor... Why wait here, of all places?"
"He probably found a way to hide from them," Gordon guessed. "My brother's not the type to do something without planning all the details." The pair crossed the hall and stopped in front of the center of the shrine.
"This place is full of evil. I have a sense of foreboding," Arin said as the noises of various monsters echoed in the halls.
"Yeah, no kidding. Most soldiers are frightened of this place, for good reason," Gordon agreed. "Well, here goes. Garland!" Gordon threw open the door and saw his brother standing over an unconscious Sarah.
"G-Gordon?" Garland recoiled at the presence of his brother. "How did you get here?"
"I had some help from a traveling white mage," Gordon said angrily. "What are you doing? This isn't like you."
"Please, Sir Garland," Arin added. "What do you hope to gain from this act?"
"It's hardly for me," Garland answered. "True, I will take the throne, but I have no intention of remaining king."
"What? You just want to be the king for a moment?" Gordon spat. "Then what?"
"Then I abdicate the throne to you," Garland continued. "And at that point, there will be no reason for Sarah to marry the prince of Elfheim."
"Wha-" Gordon was shocked at Garland's line of thinking.
"Think about it, brother. You will have the woman of your dreams and the kingdom of Cornelia in the palm of your hand. You have everything to gain from this."
"Everything?" Gordon didn't know how to respond to his brother's explanation.
"Do not be fooled, Gordon!" Arin shouted. "Garland's tale is merely fantasy."
"You call me a liar?" Garland snarled, shaking his fist at the white mage.
"I do not know you well enough to deny your intentions, but I do know you aim to do the impossible," The white mage reasoned. "Even if the king gives in to your demand, do you think the citizens of Cornelia will want a criminal to decide who rules them? Once you take the crown, it will lead to chaos that could very well destroy the land."
"You can't be sure!" Garland argued. He periodically shifted his gaze to Sarah and the orb as he spoke. "I-I'm doing the right thing!"
"No. No, this is wrong," Gordon finally answered. "I may be a thief, but I'm not a monster. The king gave us everything we have. To do this, to steal everything away from him after he gave us a home, would be beyond evil. I won't let you continue this farce."
"Bah! I thought you at least would see what I was trying to give you, but it seems that you are just another one of the king's lapdogs." Garland pointed his sword at the two men. "I'll not be swayed, Gordon. I'll make you king, whether you want it or not!"
"You are mad!" Arin claimed. "If you keep this up, the entire army will be on your heels in the Blink of an eye!"
"Let them come!" Garland shouted, desperate to maintain control. "Whether you are a soldier, an army, the Four Fiends themselves, or even my own kin, I, Garland, will knock you all down!" The knight raised his sword against the white mage, only to strike at the air. "What?"
"Now, Gordon! While his guard is down!" Arin advised. "Protect!"
"Right." Gordon, bathed in a golden light, jumped forward and stabbed at the narrow gaps in Garland's armor with his rapier. His strikes were swift, but all aimed at the knight's arms and legs, hoping to put a stop to his brother without having to mortally wound him. "This is the last warning, Garland. Let Sarah go."
"No, this is your last warning," Garland retorted as he slashed at the thief, who barely had the time to block the blade with his sword. "If you don't cooperate, I will have no choice but to..." Garland groaned in pain and toppled backwards. "No choice... but to KILL you!" The chaotic tone in his voice made his threat all the more jarring, as Gordon shrank back in fear. "No! I mean- I-"
"Garland? What's gotten into you?" Gordon shouted.
"I don't- the dark-" Garland glanced back at the black orb on the shrine's pedestal one more time, and when he turned to face the crystal bearers once again, his eyes began to glow bright yellow. "Time's up. I'll kill you where you stand!"
"So, this is Corneria?" Agura said in awe at the sight of the castle. He and Pierre led the pirate crew towards the castle while constantly watching the captain, despite his broken spine.
"Er, it's Cornelia, Agura," Pierre answered, "and yes, this is the land I am proud to serve." Pierre stopped in front of the castle guard and saluted. "I have returned victorious over Bikke's crew. The man in the back was a large part of my success, and he has a matter that must be settled by the king."
"Pierre! Wait a moment. Hey! Get these lowlifes to the dungeon. Move it!" the guard shouted to a nearby group of soldiers, who proceeded to take the pirates away. "While you were gone, a traveler appeared with a crystal. That means that three of the four Warriors of Light have been found!"
"Actually, pal," Agura coughed as he reached for his crystal, "I have one of those things, too."
"All... four... G-Go see the king immediately!"
"I am already here," the king's voice interjected. At once, all the knights bowed in respect of the king, leaving only Agura standing tall, slightly confused. "You may rise."
"My king, where is this traveler?" Pierre asked, slowly standing to his feet.
"I, hah..." the king heaved a heavy sigh. "I believe I have done something very foolish. I requested that he and the other crystal holder, Gordon, go to the northern shrine to rescue my daughter from Garland."
"Garland? The princess? What happened to the kingdom while I was away?" Pierre gasped.
"It is a long story, perhaps too long right now. I had hoped that Garland's own brother could bring him to his senses, but I fear that there is no peaceful end to this trial. Please, can you and the last crystal bearer follow them and, if needed, fight against that man?"
"But they have gone so far ahead! How will we catch up to them?" Pierre asked.
"Uh, I got the answer for that," Agura interrupted. "Pierre, do you remember those wild Crazy Horses we found in the plains outside Pravoka?"
"Those demon beasts?" Pierre groaned, holding his gut, as if remembering past battles. "All too well."
"Well, I kinda, sorta... snuck one onto the ship. I thought it would come in handy."
"So that was the foul odor on the ship!" Pierre balked. "But can you trust that thing to safely take us to the shrine?"
"It's possible," Agura shrugged. "It's been cooped up so long, I bet it's ready to run laps around the world."
"Please, help them," the king requested. "I asked far too much of them, and now I fear for their lives."
"I shall, my king," Pierre answered sincerely.
"Don't sweat it, guy," Agura added, his informal manner of speech startling all but the king himself. "If those two guys got crystals, then they must be tougher than most. We'll get them all back safely."
"I see, In any case, I wish you both luck in your pursuit." With the king's blessing, Pierre and Agura sped away for their horse. "Gordon, white mage; be strong. Help is coming."