Author's Note: Thank you so much for all the reviews, for believing in me and this story. You made it possible. You. This is the ending and I must say, it feels amazing posting it. Two hours after I post this chapter (and have given a brief pause for applause, I shall post the curtain call).
Act 10
In which the darkness cometh
The airship touched down like oil over water, skimming the ruined waste of land before coming to a rest under a storm torn sky. The silence here was heavy and forbidding. Promises of pain and death carried on wind that smelled of decay. The weak sunlight was avoiding this area, like a startled chocobo it seemed all it would take was a loud noise and the light would run from this land, never to return.
The bay door opened with a 'click' followed by the hiss of pressurized air escaping and two figures stepped out in to the gloom.
"Yeah, I really wanted to come back here." The young captain Vaan muttered, tucking his hands behind his head. "I mean, look at this place. It's even creepier than last time. If that's even possible."
His Viera companion nodded, her eyes scanning the craggy and broken landscape. "Time will not undo what has been done here. This land is a scar that has festered with mist. Even the dead cannot rest on its tainted soil."
"We're here because…?"
Shaking her head, Fran motioned towards the distance. At first, Vaan didn't know what he was meant to see. The entire place was a rubble, twisted metal and debris. Any of the giant wastes of the city could have been what she was pointing out. "And I'm looking at what?"
"There, in the distance."
"That?" He asked, incredulous. "That mountain, way over there?"
Nodding, as if it was perfectly obvious, Fran said. "The cave on the southern side of its face. That is where Penelo and Balthier will come."
Glancing from Fran to the cave and back again, Vaan moaned. "That's like a quarter mile away! We'll have to cross right through this place to get there!"
"I dare not land closer to it. It poses too great a danger."
"A cave? That cave?" He asked, deadpan. "What am I missing here?" It was a cave, unremarkable in its appearance. There was no thick mist looming around it, no undead lumbering outside it. In fact, there was some sunlight hitting it and if anything, that would be the exact place he would have hidden to get away from everything around it.
"The physical cave is not the danger;" Fran clarified as if sensing his uncertainty, "it is what took place inside that threatens us and our companions. To others, it would probably be the safe haven you must think it to be. But not to us, memories have been awaken there and been given form."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Vaan conceded with a meritless laugh. "I wish Penelo was here, she's a lot better at seeing danger where I can't. But I believe you. If you say that place is dangerous, than it is and if you say that's where Penelo and Balthier are, I believe that too. So let's go get them."
Fran looked over to the young man, a rare and bemused smile on her face. "These years apart have seen you grow."
"Ha, not really." Vaan answered, hopping off the docking stairs and towards the mountain side. The truth was he missed his navigator and it wasn't just her uncanny perception that left a dull ache in his chest. She was his best friend and his time away from her had only increased his understanding of how much he had come to depend on her companionship. It wasn't like they hadn't been apart before. Penelo often made trips for Ashe or would spend months visiting her once boyfriend Larsa. Vann himself had spent several weeks away when he had fallen (briefly) for the merchant's daughter in Bervenia but the constant in both their lives was each other. No matter what happened, who they were with or where they ended up, they always came back together to share stories and seek out adventure.
The truth was, he missed her.
~.~
Another pair, a few hours behind the others, walked through the fog like it had weight to it past the insubstantial mist. The young woman leading looked careworn and exhausted. The man behind her looked almost as transparent as the fog he was walking through, a thickening of shadows and movement, little more. The rich clothing he prided himself on a thin memory covering a ghost. And did he ever feel it. Every inch of his non-existence.
A step closer to Penelo and Balthier might feel the slightest of pressures, the wavering of his chest that marked his inhales, the brush of his shoes against the earth. A step closer than that and he could cast a shadow. Maybe smell the dark stink of rot and sweet decay in the air. If he was to fall a step further behind her, he could literally feel himself start slipping in to the black void, stumbling like he was on the edge of a cliff. In the darkness, the place where the mist and Penelo's mind junction together, he could float like a memory, waiting to be called upon. A house that no one visited, a broken toy discarded. Or worse, a tool waiting to be used. So Balthier settled for an in between. He didn't want to be close to her but he wasn't foolish enough to court his destruction so carelessly. Though after the memories he had shared with her, the embarrassment and shame he felt made it a mighty tempting thought. What a lovely impasse I find myself at. Clinging to this existence by the whim of a woman and if that wasn't enough of an identity crisis…
It wasn't like Penelo and the others didn't already know, he told himself. It had been ages ago when the sky pirate's true identity had been uncovered to them. The key difference was that had been on his terms. He was the one that got to dole out little scoops of his history, tastes of the man he had been but nothing more than a flavor to try and to forget. If anything, it had added to that romantic air all sky pirates loved – he was no exception. A noble fallen from grace, taking up a life of crime and adventure, off to save the world – what was his small history but another twist in a vast plot?
Things were different now. Someone had switched out the scripts. He was supposed to ride off in to the burning Dalamstican sunset, plunder in one hand, his arm around a fine woman. Those that were dead were meant to stay in the mists, not hand out curses. All this was supposed to be behind him now.
A fat of good wishful thinking will do. And oh the embarrassment, damn good thing myself preservation outweighs my shame or I'd free fall in to the void with gusto. Over and over again, Balthier looked over to the cave that was fast approaching. Over and over again he told himself he was going to win against this thing, had to really. Cause losing wasn't an option. He couldn't even try to foresee his future otherwise. Couldn't make his mind go there even in theory. Because being trapped in a cryst for all eternity… no, either way… he was going to win his freedom. The ground under his feet was a slow even incline, free of debris and wreckage. But he still felt like he was dangerously off balance and about to have a head on collision with a cliff.
Penelo didn't bother to look to see if the sky captain was still following her. She could feel him in her mind, that bond between them as strong as ever even if he was a shadow of the man he had been. Inside, she felt how he looked. Shaken. Off keel. A lie. The woman felt like a vital piece of her had shattered away in to the wind. What exactly had broke inside her she couldn't pin point but whatever it was sure hurt. Had it been her trust in Balthier that had gone?
No.
Those vile acts of a lifetime ago hadn't been a betrayal of her. What he had been forced to commit and witness had taken place years before they had even met. So why then, did Penelo feel like she had when she had gone home for the first time after her parents died? The house had looked the same, a place for everything, everything in its place kind of perfect. A lie promising that any second her parents would walk in and life would pick up where it had suddenly and unfairly left off.
Glancing at the man behind her, even in his ghostly form, he still had the same perfect hair, the long fingered hands, steel gray eyes, designer clothing… but that was the lie, wasn't it? To her he was this untouchable ideal, the man capable of calling down any enemy with his devil-may-care attitude and cold eyes unshakeable as he challenged the gods. But that wasn't who he was. He was… empty… like-
"Like a suit of armor." Balthier's voice offered humorlessly from behind her. "A valiant knight that came riding in to snatch you from the jaws of defeat - ah but once the visor was pulled back, it was naught but mirrors and a trick of the light." Out of nowhere, he laughed softly. "The gods aren't very creative when it comes to the creation of their Espers, are they?"
Penelo did a mental wince and quickly threw back up the shields to block him from catching her thoughts and emotions. Before they slammed in to place like the jaws of a trap, she sensed the mild panic radiating off him. That didn't shock her but the shame mixed with it did. Drawing up on reserves of resolve she had thought long exhausted, Penelo forced her feet on, ever moving, ever travelling towards the cave that couldn't be more than a couple hundred paces ahead.
"Look, you're upset." She called over her shoulder. "I get it, I would be too." Leaving out the little fact that she was upset, Penelo continued. "We need a plan right now. Anything and everything else can wait."
"How do you plan on fighting it?" He returned, his voice calm, almost detached. "Shouldn't be overly hard, I would imagine – half formed thing that it is."
"I'm more concerned about it not destroying you when we destroy it."
"It will be worth it." He answered back without pause. "I would rather die than become that empty drone. Better that I should meet death with grace than face a mindless eternity trapped inside it."
"That's not going to happen. We won't let it. It's possible that once we destroy it, all the energy it's taken from you will be returned."
Balthier nodded his consent. "Perhaps." Out of habit, he placed a hand on her shoulder to halt her. He didn't expect her shoulder to feel so solid, the heat of her clothing warmed by the weak sunlight. It was akin to touching a hot pan over a fire compared to the numbness he had began to accept as his 'normal'. That's extremely distracting, he noted as he pulled his hand back with a little reluctance. He had forgotten how strong he felt when he was close to her.
"Movement, up there on the ridge," Balthier pointed out. A heartbeat later, he added - "I believe you might not be alone in this fight."
~.~
It had been a few weeks since Penelo had seen Vann. It felt longer and all at once, seeing his face again, it felt like maybe this had all been a dream and she had only been gone a moment.
"Penelo!" He shouted, the second he noticed their slow ascent to the cave's mouth. She had hardly cleared the edge before he was on her, pulling her up in to a tight hug.
"Are you ok?" Holding her arm's length away, he looked at her with concern.
"Yeah." Penelo answered, drawing back and feeling a little awkward. Guilt at having left him quickly replaced her elation. "The ship's ok too. Actually, probably better than ever, Balthier offered a help fix a few things while we were flying."
Vann made a noise of disgust and draw away from her, his anger taking the form of a quick pace. "Where is he?" He demanded.
"Be easy, Vann." Coming from near the cave mouth, Fran walked over to Penelo, a smile on her face. "It is good to see you again Penelo."
Unnoticed, having even been forgotten by Penelo for the moment, Balthier uncrossed his arms and walked towards the cave entrance, ignoring the fact that no one greeted him. Ignoring that it caused his chest to tighten even though he knew the reason was no one could see him or even knew he was there.
"Penelo," He called, interrupting the conversation going on behind him, "It's in here. We have to go now. It's growing stronger by the second."
"Yes of course!" Penelo answered quickly, moving to the sky pirate's side. "Balthier says we have to go now."
"He's here?" Vann answered, looking around expectantly. "I'm going to give him a piece of my mind."
"Tell him he shouldn't be so quick to offer what he so obviously can't spare." Balthier retorted.
Rolling her eyes, she didn't relay the message. "He's up here by the cave. We don't really have time to explain right now but there's an Esper inside that's draining away Balthier's life force. We have to stop it before it kills him."
Fran nodded, taking her bow up in slender hands, almost eagerly. "Let us go."
~.~
It wasn't that the cave was vast. Having travelled through miles of underground terrain for weeks on end, his standards for 'vast' was considerably high. And it wasn't as if Balthier could feel the cold or breathe the stale air that he knew his companions were surely experiencing. However, he honestly could not remember a place that felt this full of dread and foreboding.
And honestly, he thought they would have to go much deeper and wait much longer for what happened next.
In a flash, moving disturbingly fast, the armor, a good eight feet high and nearly as wide, lumbered from the depths of the cave.
"Incoming!" Vann yelled, drawing out his firearm. Fran notched her bow, letting one arrow after another loose, their feathered ends vanishing in to the cave like tiny birds being swallowed in the darkness. Most hit their mark, breaking and bouncing off to litter the ground in tiny heaps. It did nothing to slow the armor's approach. Likewise, Vann's gun was quickly emptied, the shots ringing loud and long, causing a few startled bats to flee out the cave entrance.
"Fall back!" Balthier ordered, moving to the front of the group without thinking. It wasn't until one of Fran's lower aiming arrows passed right through him did he remember he wasn't really going to be much help.
"Balthier says to fall back!" Penelo yelled through the gunshots, her dagger gripped loosely in her hand. "We have to get it out in the light so we can see where we're aiming."
A few paces back and the armor was nearly on them, racing towards the cave entrance with hunger. It moved with grace. It wasn't the empty vessel anymore – it had purpose now. Each step towards Balthier caused the man to fade, tendrils of light streaming off him towards his attacker. The sky pirate was being absorbed.
Penelo drew her hands up before her, calling down the mist and the fire inside her. A reflective shield flashed around her, throwing shadows against the cave walls. Not losing a breath, fingers spun out a rapid barrage of spells, a symphony of fire and ice, spinning and growing. It slammed against the armor, forcing it back, slowing it.
"Balthier, stay by me!" She dropped her hands and raced to where the sky pirate had collapsed to his knees. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his fading body, willing strength in to him, wishing him solid.
That was when it happened. The wind began to pick up.
Balthier realized it first, Fran's protest following right behind his own. "Penelo, no! You have to stop! The armor and I are one! You cannot offer me strength without it giving it access to the mist inside you! You're calling a Quickening!"
Screaming, the wind whipped around the cave, growing more intense every second until the air was being sucked from their lungs. On the ground, laminated with brilliant lights, the runes of summoning flared with blinding intensity, forming a protective circle around Penelo.
Yes… Came a familiar voice, filling her head. Summon me. Call me forward and I shall devour that lie of a man you hold.
"No!" Cried Penelo, struggling to hold on to Balthier. Behind her, Vann and Fran had been forced back from the cave by the strong gusts of wind. She hoped they had managed to keep themselves from being blown off the cliff face.
Closing her eyes, Penelo tried to block the Quickening, tried to cut off that part of her that was feeding the armor and giving it strength. In her mind's eye, she could see the tendril of energy, flowing out of her and in to it from the Mist. Under it, a second tendril was connected to the man she clung to so tightly in her arms. With rising horror, she realized that the energy was one and the same. If she cut it off completely, they would both die. Even though Penelo remember Balthier's request, that he would rather die than be encased in the armor, she pushed such thoughts away.
A hand, surprisingly soft and warm brushed against her cheek. The touch cleared her head more than anything else Balthier could have done. Opening her eyes, her gaze locked to his.
"Trust me." Was all he said.
"I do." She answered, the truth of it absolute. It didn't matter that almost everything she knew about him had been started by a man under a false identity. It didn't matter that she called him by a name that wasn't his or had followed a man she hardly knew to the ends of the earth. The truth of him was in his actions. It was in the way he lead his friends against impossible odds, against his own past. It was in the way he had rushed to his father as he lie dying, whispering softly, 'was there no other way?'
"Do you remember what my gun looks like?" He asked, lips pressed close to her ears. "Think hard on it. The way I held it, the way it must have felt, cold and heavy in my hands. Remember what it sounded like and how, oh so very good, I was with it."
Smiling, he rose up to his feet, letting her go and walked towards the edge of the circle. Outside of its protection, the maelstrom was raging, the armor at its center, lashing against the summoning circle, screaming it's fury at the man within.
"You're a fool to mistake change for emptiness." Balthier stated calmly, looking at the Esper with eyes so fierce, it rivaled the storm before him.
"I chose to become better than I was. I chose the path I walked and I regret nothing. Do you hear me? Not you, not my father, not running away to start a new. Do you understand me? My past doesn't make me what I am now. My truth is right here, right now. The last shreds of self doubt were destroyed the second you went up against my friends. Enjoy knowing you were your own undoing."
He rose his hand up and as he did, conjured from Penelo's memory, his shotgun formed from the mist, streaming with light and power. When he had first considered that he might lose to this, he had seen only his own life ending. That had proved to be short sighted and selfish. If he didn't find the strength to fight for his right to exist, it would hurt others - hurt her more than he could stand for.
Balthier's gun thundered a deafening crack of lightening in to the cave. His shot, aimed true, found the weakness in the armor, the slightest fold between the neck and the chest line.
And then the world seemed to stop.
The wind died away so quickly, there was a full three heartbeats of absolute silence. The armor didn't scream as much as it exploded in to streams of light and energy that slammed in to Balthier like a prayer. Life, blessed, wonderful life filled his limbs to bursting. He took a deep breath, breathing in the light, regaining all that had been lost to him.
With a last shuddering sigh, the sky pirate fell to his knees laughing.
Seconds later, he felt arms encircle him, laughter joining his own. "We did it!" Penelo said with a whisper, holding him tightly.
~.~
Looking slightly worse for wear, Vann came limping in to the cave, finding the two still embracing. With a lift of his eyebrow, he ran a hand through his hair and turned uncomfortably back out of the cave.
"I wouldn't go in there just now." He offered to Fran, plopping himself down on a rock. "That was almost as bad as that time I walked in on her and Larsa- ugh, nevermind." He stopped himself quickly, rubbing his shoulder where he had banged against a rock on the way out.
Fran simply nodded. "I am sure it has been a trying experience for them both. I cannot imagine what they must have faced. Giving them time to recollect themselves is a good idea. Tell the sky pirate I shall meet him at the ship."
Without waiting for an answer, Fran walked off.
"It's over now, right?" Vann asked a few minutes later as Penelo and Balthier came out of the cave, walking a little closer than they usually did.
"I believe it is." Balthier said, tilting his head back as if enjoying the breeze against it. "I am eager to be gone from here, all the same. I trust my ship is nearby?"
"Yeah, Fran said she'll meet you there. Now where's my ship." He asked with a faint glare. "And it better not be damaged."
"Come, I'll show you. It's none too far and I could use a walk." Balthier added. "The feel of the ground has never felt so welcoming to me. Ah but how I long for the sky." Taking a few steps forward, he stopped suddenly, wrapping his arm around Penelo in a quick hug before heading down the cliff face.
Smiling, Penelo, and shortly after her, Vann followed.
End.
Please come back in two hours for the curtain call, in which the finale is given.