Fall into Ecstacy

Prologue: Part 3

By Kaasan Faerlyte B.

Disclaimer: I don't own FFXII, I never will own it, so there you have it.

Thanks a million to all of you for reviewing--I really appreciate it and it has given me more confidence in writing this story. As long as I know everyone is satisfied, I earnestly plan to keep it up. Read and enjoy!

It began with the quiet groan of the earth, barely audible, and escalated into a roaring cascade of stones from above. Then, as we turned to grab the most important things from our disheveled camp, the un-dead arrived in brute force. I threw on my pack, scrambling, and left behind mostly everything but the food and the items. My crossbow was at the ready when I turned to face the approaching mob.

Basch met the first two warriors without so much as a blink of hesitation. I provided cover fire as best I could, but I was severely hampered by the sling and the effort was painful. I was just as likely to nail Basch in the back as I was an enemy if they were in close combat.

The quake showed no signs of abating and the intensity, not to mention the size, of falling stones was increasing. If it continued at this pace they would no longer be stones, but boulders, and the wave of un-dead would be the least of our worries. For the moment they remained the primary focus however.

It was like they'd conjugated together somewhere beforehand to make a joint march on us. They came as if driven by some unseen force, bound to its will and whim. I watched in grim fascination as their bones faded within transparent shades and formed into vague representations of the bodies they once had, now pale and twisted, as if in agony. Even their faces were reminiscent of the people they'd once been, but filled with pain.

I looked away, grimacing. We had to escape now or it would be too late.

Where Basch had been making short work of his opponents at the start he was now noticeably struggling against the overpowering numbers and the madness that stirred within them. I cast spells till I was nearly drained, but while effective at weakening, they failed to destroy and the mass of un-dead only seemed to swell.

"Basch!" I yelled from behind, edging towards the lake. "Get out of there!"

He wielded the broadsword in a powerful, sweeping arc, knocking back the front line enemies. I honed in on one enemy approaching from his unguarded left and managed to land a bolt into the warrior's hip. The bone exploded and the warrior stumbled. Basch finished him with a blow to the skull from the pommel of his sword and shade rose from the remains, sighing. With a nod of acknowledgment, Basch began a swift retreat back to my position.

The un-dead that had managed to get around the hoard were spread out thinly behind us, which was towards the water's edge. They were easily taken care of between the two of us, but the main army was advancing rapidly and would have us cornered if we didn't find a way out. That was where I came in. For once I knew something that no one else did.

"This way!" I shouted, laying down another warrior that was attempting to sneak in a blow to Basch from behind. I pivoted sharply on my heel and launched into a run across the sandy beach to where hard rock emerged from the water. I vaulted up onto the two foot ledge and turned to provide extra cover fire as Basch came up behind me.

My throat tightened. There had to be at least a hundred and more coming behind them. Where had they come from and so suddenly? Basch leaped up upon the stone platform beside me, caught my wrist without even a glance back, and promptly dragged me after him.

I noticed that the quake had stopped at that point as. Had it not, we never would have been able to traverse the narrow lip of stone that was our path around. It was as slimy as I remembered it being and difficult going enough on steady ground. I was impressed with how well my legs kept under me considering the circumstances. I had the added advantage of having been a dancer for a while and grace, being an important part of all dance, was definitely an asset right now.

An arrow grazed my ear, literally taking a chunk of the upper shell. Blood sprayed across the side of my face and leaked down my neck as I ran, ducking at random intervals as the pursuing force rained havoc on us from a distance. Basch had let go of me once we were on the narrowed portion of the path as it was not practical for either person.

Or it wasn't until the second quake hit, this one the most violent of all. The force literally threw me from the cavern wall and into the empty air above the water. For one split second I was suspended in time, staring up at the blackness high above as Basch shouted my name, and then I was plunging downward. As I hit the water something else was breaking the surface from the underside.

I closed my eyes as the water poured over my head. When I opened them to kick for the surface I very nearly inhaled water.

It was monstrous. That the portion I could see of the beast filled up almost my entire scope of sight was a testament of that, and its long, bulbous body only disappeared into the depths with no end in sight. The tentacles were all that I could see of it and they were everywhere. They were as big around as a chocobo, tapering off into an arm's width tip, and hundreds of feet long.

I kicked for all I was worth, but my rise to the surface was terribly slow. It didn't help that my right arm was useless. My hand broke the surface as I saw one long appendage darting towards me from the corner of my eye. I came up, sputtering water, and spotted Basch on the path straight ahead of me, his sword put away, and realized the I was just two swift strokes from him if I moved quickly. I kicked hard and reached for all I was worth.

Basch grasped my wrist at the very same moment I felt the slippery, rubber like surface of a tentacle seize up around my thigh and tighten almost to the point of crushing me. I let out a gasp of pain and dug my fingers into Basch's wrist, drawing blood. He didn't even flinch, but caught me with his other hand. A ruthless tug of war ensued with my body as the instrument. I thought I would be torn in half and I was more than just amazed at the sheer power possessed in Basch's body relative to that of the sea monster on the other end. That he could even contend was a feat beyond awe inspiring. But my body would sooner pull apart if this continued.

My cross bow was on my back. It was the only chance I had. Basch was exerting every last piece of himself into keeping me from submerging again, but he could only contend with the beast so long.

I lifted my right arm and caught the fabric of the sling in my teeth. Then I jerked my elbow back and wiggled fiercely against the binding, issuing a painful shock down the length of my arm, but it came free. Basch didn't have time to protest or question as I already had the crossbow in my hand.

All I needed was a bolt in the chamber.

"Load it!" I cried quickly, indicated the extra quiver of bolts suspended from his belt.

"I cannot hold you with one hand!" Basch responded, hesitating.

I gazed back at him determinedly, "Do it."

He did–a second's window of opportunity, one chance to succeed, and he was faultless. The bolt popped into place as I was slipping from his grasp. Basch gazed back at me solemnly and then I was rapidly descending into the depths.

I twisted desperately through the water as we plunged, my fingers going numb even as I aimed the crossbow and fired a point-blank shot at the tentacle around my leg. Blood spurted into the water and furled around me in a dark cloud. I was blinded, but I felt the tentacle let go and I knew which way was to the surface. I hitched my crossbow on my back and swam.

It seemed to go on forever. My heart thudded in my ears and my lungs began to burn. I could feel the thing writhing behind me in the water, fully expecting it to swallow me at any moment. I hadn't realized how far it had managed to dive before I'd gotten loose–I was much deeper than I thought.

Too far, I thought hopelessly. My body was slowing down, stiff from the cold and losing its strength.

I finally broke the water's surface and before my lips ever tasted air Basch was hauling me out. I collapsed in his arms, shivering uncontrollably, and half dead with exhaustion. I really had no idea how long I'd been under the water, but it seemed like forever had passed since I'd seen his face.

Basch held me so tight that I could barely breath in those few seconds that followed. That was all the repose we could afford ourselves for our plight was hardly over. That the beast had not reared its head already was surprising.

Fortunately, the rear pursuit had pulled off upon the sea monster's arrival. The skeleton warriors wanted as little to do with it as we did and opted to keep their distance; that creature did not distinguish between friend or foe.

"We must go." Basch urged. "Can you manage?"

I nodded stiffly. "I'm r-right b-behind you." My teeth were chattering and I could scarcely feel anything at all, but I willed myself to move, knowing that if I didn't I would die here. Adrenaline and fear did wonders for motivating the body into action.

My legs moved so sluggishly under me. I kept slipping and stumbling and losing ground. Then the third quake struck and I lost my footing entirely. I dug my fingertips into the cavern wall with a painful groan and slowly dragged my legs back under me. The last place I wanted to be was back in the water.

Basch came skidding back down the short incline ahead, even as the ground still shook, and halted beside me. "It's not far." He declared quickly and took my hand; my fingers were cut and bloodied from where the stone had bitten into them.

We scrambled along together, dodging stones and hurtling over gaps where the path had crumbled under the stress. It felt as if the entire place was coming down–the smaller pieces certainly were. The quake was gradually subsiding again though.

When we rounded the last bend and the far beach was finally in sight, our luck took another turn for the worst. I let out a disparaging moan as I peered around Basch's shoulder. Another horde of un-dead stood waiting at where the path widened out onto the beach, their soul candles flickering beneath the even more noticeable ghosts of their past lives.

"Stand back." Basch ordered as he reached for the hilt of his sword.

I gave him a wide birth as he pulled the broadsword from its scabbard and prepared to meet the un-dead warriors. They reacted to his action by charging, only that was in Basch's favor as it forced them into a bottleneck where only two abreast could face him. They were cut down instantly.

The third in line exploded from Holy. I allowed myself a small smile of satisfaction between gritted teeth.

Basch gained a couple steps towards the beach before he was face to face with three more. I tried to cover him with the crossbow, but they were in such close quarters that I didn't trust myself not to hit Basch by accident and my arm was not very responsive. I hovered behind, casting my spells instead and watching with trepidation as Basch fought them off primarily by himself. He was paving a way for us towards the door.

Water exploded from our left, drenching us, and an awful, ear splitting shriek pierced the air. Everyone, the un-dead included, shrank back from the ferocious beast that had emerged from the lake. The skeleton warriors began a hasty, but disorganized retreat. Several of them were struck down by the darting appendages of the squid-like creature. It was keyed on them for the moment while Basch and I remained relatively still so as not to draw its attention.

"Do you know of a way out?" Basch whispered.

"Those crystals." I pointed to the area where the ground was cast in a bright yellow light from the many crystals clustered together there. It was the path I'd seen the other day I was certain, but it was difficult to make out from our standpoint. The lights were the only indication I had of its location. "There's a path leading up from them. I saw it when I was getting water the other day."

Basch nodded, his eyes brooding. "It will be difficult."

"Yeah." I agreed somberly.

"We do have a distraction however." Basch indicated the chaos that was ensuing. He gave me a grim smile. "Are you ready?"

"As much as I'll ever be." I replied.

Basch jumped down from the ledge into the sand and I followed. Not two steps later one giant tentacle came crashing down upon us. I threw myself to one side, but Basch stood his ground until the last moment, pivoted to the side as it slammed against the sand beside him, and severed the beast's arm with one strike of his sword. I cringed and edged away as the severed piece writhed in the sand nearby.

We immediately made a bee line for the brightly lit opening of the path, but the chaos was so thick that before I knew it I'd lost Basch completely. If the undead had not been so occupied with avoiding the slaughter from the water they would've gutted me in an instant. Instead they trampled, shoved, and elbowed their way past me whilst the sea monster swept its tentacles across the line of retreating figures.

One blow caught an unfortunate who was stumbling behind me, who in turn was launched into me and I was knocked face down in the sand. Sharp, bony feet and steel boots scraped and prodded over my body as they marched. I covered my head with a moan and waited for it to end.

A gentle hand grasped my arm suddenly, sending a tingling jolt through my body, and I was hoisted carefully back to my feet. When I looked up no one was there. I blinked, startled, and turned looking for Basch, but there were only skeletal warriors.

Something tugged at my sleeve, urging me towards the path leading out of the cavern. I followed it dazedly, shouldering my way between skeletons. One eventually noticed me and took offense. A moment later he was a pile of smoldering green acid behind me and I had no idea how or why. All of a sudden the rest of the undead warriors shrank away, giving me a wide birth.

That's when I noticed a flicker of pale light in front of me. The light spread into the translucent silhouette of a tall, blunt nosed bangaa. He held a long staff of solid steel out before him, warding off the surrounding enemies as he headed slightly to the right of the doorway out. Then I saw where we were headed.

Basch was there fending off a halberd wielding skeleton and a spell caster. The bangaa came up behind the one with the halberd and split its skull with a blow from his staff. Basch glanced up in response and raised his brow, mildly surprised.

The banga finished the second warrior too and then altered his course back towards the pathway out of the cavern. Basch fell in step beside me and we followed in the bangaa's wake as he cleared the way of foes. He barreled through to the path that spiraled up and away from the cavern.

"The dead come to our aid." Basch murmured, amazed. "A rare happenstance that."

We followed the specter up and up, climbing for what seemed like forever. The undead warriors did not follow; something was barring their way, either the bangaa or another force at work. By the time we reached the top of the winding path, Basch and I were both panting.

The bangaa halted and turned to face us. His eyes glistened black under the light of many crystals and he emitted a funny sort of warmth. He inclined his head and stepped to the side, directing us towards two sets of stairs at the far end of the oval shaped cavern we had entered. They wove back and forth up either side of the chamber, disappearing into the blackness above.

My heart sank. "We have to climb that?" I exasperated.

Basch regarded it dubiously. "It will be a long journey." He leaned upon his sword and rubbed the back of his neck tiredly. "And we have no water."

The bangaa lifted his head at that and promptly marched off to the left. He halted, peering curiously at something. Then he looked back at me and shrugged his head at it.

"Is there a doorway?" I asked.

"Let's find out." Basch suggested and we approached the specter.

Sure enough, there was a hall there, but it was so dark that it was easily overlooked by someone who didn't already know of it. The bangaa leaned against the wall in silence, his head bowed towards the ground.

Basch and I looked at one another and continued down the hall. It quickly tapered off into a roughly hewn tunnel which lead gradually down. That was unpleasant to say the least–I wanted to get out of here, not go back– but the cheerful trickle of water was impossible to ignore.

"Do you hear it?"

Basch needn't have asked. I was already bounding down the path ahead of him. There was some light here, but not like the sun crystals. This light glowed overwhelmingly blue.

I sucked in a long, amazed breath. The tunnel had abruptly flattened out into a small cavern that was full of glowing, blue moss; Dragon root. More importantly there was a clear stream running through it, collecting in clear, glistening pools. I jogged to the bank and knelt on the stone, dipping my hands into the deliciously cool liquid, and drank thirstily from it.

Basch came up behind me, his gaze skimming curiously around the cavern. "One could make a fortune from this cache alone." He commented. "If it can be effectively harvested."

I paused thoughtfully. Much of the vegetation was concentrated at the edge of the water. I dug out my canteen from my pack and filled it, eyeing the moss with interest. Basch was busy filling his own canteen and getting a drink when I swiped a nearby chunk and stored it in an empty ration bag. There was still room so I grabbed a few more handsful.

"Good idea." Basch remarked.

I glanced up. "I think so. It might come in handy still."

Once we'd had our fill we headed back. Our silent friend was standing at the top of the path that descended into the cavern. He seemed despondent.

"I wonder what is name was." I mused curiously. "Why do you think he's helping us?"

Basch studied the specter with idle curiosity. "Perhaps he wishes a favor in return."

"Oh." I felt my heart sinking. The ghost seemed unaware of our presence. "He seems sad.'

"Likely his death was not well." Basch reflected quietly.

"Yeah." I trailed off unhappily. "I wish there was something we could do."

Basch sighed. "It is unfortunate, yes."

The bangaa inclined his head sharply to look at us, or rather at me. I felt his gaze prick my skin and send a shiver up my spin. His eyes flickered with what might have been curiosity, which was soon replaced with reservation.

My name is Jovan. Now you must go.

I looked at him, startled, and than at Basch, who was apparently oblivious to the voice. I averted my gaze back to the bangaa, confused.

Hurry!

The hairs on my neck stood on end and I stiffened. My gaze shifted inadvertently to the path beyond the specter.

"Penelo?"

I thought I could feel the thud of marching footsteps in the stone beneath my feet, but perhaps it was only my imagination. "I think we should go."

Basch eyes were suddenly very alert, "They come."

I pursed my lips, determined, "Yes."

Jovan turned towards us and made a half circle sweep with his hand. Archaic lettering arched through the air, burning. I felt a prickly coolness spread across my skin and through my veins, sparking a boost of energy and numbing all the aches in my body.

"Thank you." I murmured.

Basch nodded too, "I second that. Onward."

By now the sounds emitting from the path to the caverns were unmistakable. The undead were marching upon us again. How long would this go on?

We set off at a jog, making the best of Jovan's spell, and took the left staircase. Both the left and the right appeared to reach the same destination, and if they didn't...well then we might be in for a rough time. I trusted that Jovan would've given some sort of indication had we gone the wrong way.

My gaze followed up the endless flights of stairs above and nearly made me dizzy. I looked back at my feet, by stomach turning. How far up did it go? The fall we'd taken had lasted forever. Recovering all that ground might take days.

Our pace was blistering. How I managed to keep up with Basch I will never know, but I credited it to the spell Jovan had cast, although it was on both of us so there really shouldn't have been any disparity between us. Then again, this was Basch and I was beginning to seriously consider that he was inhumanly strong.

We'd been climbing for two hours at least. By now we could peak over the edge and see the swarm in pursuit a dozen flights down from us. Our friend had disappeared.

All we had to do was stay ahead of them...and not stop until we reached the top. Time and ground passed by in a blur. After five hours or so I was beginning to feel the affects of exhaustion as the spell had finally worn off. It came on rapidly–one minute there was a bound in each step, and the next I was starting to cramp up all over and my lungs were on the verge of bursting. We were affording ourselves only the briefest rest periods, which wasn't quite as difficult as it sounds when you've got three hundred undead soldiers breathing down your neck, but there's a point when the body simply stops.

I fear I was finally at the breaking point. I could barely move in a straight line anymore.

Yet it was another three hours of climbing before Jovan appeared again and I was still on my feet somehow. He stopped us mid-stride, or in my case mid-stagger, and held up his hand.

Rest now. I will keep them at bay for a short time.

"Thank the gods." I collapsed, curling up on my side with a shudder. "He says we can rest now."

Basch sagged to the floor, breathing heavily and wiping beads of sweat from his forehead. He lolled his head, more tired than I'd ever seen him. "He said that?"

"I'm assuming he's the voice I keep hearing." I fell asleep without another conscious thought.

Something was shaking me. I swatted at it irritably, my face squinched. The shaking persisted and with greater vigor. I moaned and parted one eye at the intruder.

Basch knelt above me. "Time to go." He said.

I made a whimpering sound and sat up, huffing. "I'm still tired!" I protested. Then I felt the full force of soreness and grimaced.

"As am I." Basch assured me, "but our friend demands we go and I have to concur."

Jovan stood behind Basch, his eyes focused on something below. I could venture to guess at what that might be, but it wasn't necessary; the army was on the move. The echo of their footsteps attested to that.

We were given a second helping of Jovan's strengthening spell before setting off. The effects didn't last near so long this time around. I was simply too tired to keep up the same pace as the day before. My feet were blistered and my muscles were a raging inferno of protest with each movement–not to speak of my right arm, which was a continuous source of pain.

"This is never going to end." I graoned.

Basch climbed ahead of me. He had spoken very little, probably to avoid coaxing the tension that hung so heavily in the air, or because he was simply too tired to spare energy for the effort. Both our water jugs were almost empty and we had been very restrictive with our rationing the day before.

My stomach began knotting with fear. What if these stairs just went on forever? Even assuming that they didn't, we would die before we ever reached the top if we had to endure much more of this.

The entire day, or night, or whatever it was for I'd long since lost track, was a battle to stay awake and on my feet, and not necessarily coinciding. The undead army was gaining on us, but the pace we kept was all I could do and still remain afoot.

My only comfort was that Basch was fairing little better than I and I'd managed to keep up with him this long. That had little value if ultimately we died anyway, but any comfort I could find was appreciated. I really didn't want to die here.

The stairs stopped. Or rather, they gave way to flat ground that extended into a long, wide hall, and then a door. Basch and I embraced in relief for a temporary reprieve.

"We made it." I croaked through dried and cracked lips.

"That we have." Basch agreed breathlessly.

Jovan appeared at the top of the steps, staring down with his staff in hand. I could hear the marching footsteps rising from below and felt a shiver roll up my spine. They had made up so much ground today.

Basch tipped my chin up. "Head up." He said with a tired smile. "Not much further now."

"You better be right." I retorted grumpily. I stood up on wobbly legs and unstrapped my crossbow. It must have been female intuition because as soon as I had an armored legion of warriors came through the door ahead of us, where we were supposed to be going.

I drew out a long, groaning breath that ended half way between a snarl and a scream. I jammed a bolt into position and aimed to fire.

Basch cast a sideways glance at me, his eyes twinkling. How he managed to stay upbeat under the circumstances was beyond me. I felt like I was going to fall over at any moment, but he just drew his sword and swept in like all his strength had suddenly been replenished.

Meanwhile my shot flew completely wild and bounced off the far wall of the hall. Fortunately Basch was much better prepared to do battle and didn't really need my help yet. He struck the first two down with a single blow and engaged the third without a hitch in swing.

How does he do it?!

I cast holy and watched as the third blew up before Basch could strike. He glanced back at me and nodded, "Many thanks."

"No problem." I said in return. Steel on steel rang behind me and I spun around, readying another bolt.

Jovan was in the midst of heated battle against four skeletons at the top of the stairs, blocking them off. His staff spun rapidly to and fro, connecting with whatever came within range. It was like a swarm of ants spewing up from the steps, converging on the pale swirling of smoke that was Jovan, only to be hurled shrieking back into the darkness. We wouldn't have a chance against the likes of it without the bangaa.

Keep running, he reminded me sternly.

Not that I needed any prompting. Basch was paving a way into the next room ahead of me. I hesitated a moment longer to see that Jovan did not fall. He couldn't of course, he was already dead, but some part of me feared for him. We owed him so much already and I had a feeling we were not beyond need of him yet.

"Penelo!" Basch called urgently.

I jerked around and ran to catch up. "Coming!" I charged through the door behind him and ducked a hairs breath from losing my head. My reflexes were evidently still working at full capacity.

I twisted towards the offending foe and recoiled in horror; zombies. I shivered and let the creature have it in the brain pan. The bolt buried into his skull and he fell over dead.

"Look out!"

I ducked my head blindly and felt a breeze pass through my hair as the blade missed by inches. This one was wielded by another skeleton warrior. Panic clenched my chest as more and more swarmed in around us. It was all too familiar with the dream, and the way out just too far away.

A pale blur sprang into the room, hurtling bodies in every direction. I backed against the wall to avoid getting caught in the fray and fell through a very old, very rotten wooden door. I glanced over my shoulder from where I sat, startled. It was a small, circular room, or rather an enclosed elevator undoubtedly for reaching the bottom swiftly and vice versa. If I hadn't been so preoccupied with staying alive I could've screamed bloody murder; truly, the Gods were harsh masters.

Basch was suddenly next to me, giving me a hand up, and then he was pulling me behind him in a mad dash down the hall. With Jovan guarding the rear, Basch and I cut down the fiends scattered in front of us. Most of the enemy forces were coming from behind fortunately so our job was relatively easy, if you excluded the fact that we were both physically and mentally spent.

Desperation was the only thing keeping me going. I couldn't feel anything anymore. My heart was lodged permanently in my throat and my hands were so tired they didn't even shake, but somehow there was always just enough strength left to pull the trigger or cast a spell, and take another step.

We came to an enormous door. It was solid steel, flat and unadorned. Nothing short of magic or an extensive system of mechanics would budge a contraption of that size and mass.

"Dead end." My shoulder's sagged hopelessly.

"Not yet." Basch said and promptly switched places at the rear with Jovan.

The specter charged past me determinedly and placed a hand on the door. I didn't have time to see what he did as Basch was being overwhelmed. I knocked down two more zombies with the crossbow and a third skeleton with holy, but more filled their place.

One undead warrior snuck in on Basch's left. My face blanched and I cried out a warning even as I readied to fire. The bolt pierced its head just a moment too late. Basch had turned to engage him at my warning, but he couldn't avoid the strike entirely–the skeleton's sword cut him in the thigh and brought him to his knees.

"Basch!" I felt my heart stop and I charged heedlessly into the flood of bodies. My hand closed around a potion vial.

Basch still fought, but he was surrounded. I gritted my teeth and felt a rush of energy course through my hands. A shockwave of magic erupted from my finger tips, throwing the nearest surrounding enemies back a circumference of twenty feet.

Go! Now!

I slipped Basch the vile and slung his arm over my shoulder, helping him to his feet. "Come on!" I didn't spare another glance at the impenetrable wave closing in on us. My eyes were set on the now shadowed silhouette of Jovan standing against the blinding sunlight that streamed through the opened gate. The undead remained wary of it.

Jovan met us half way and took up the rear guard once more until we were through, at which point he halted. An arrow grazed my leg and I pitched forward, but Basch kept me on my feet and together we staggered into the narrow canyon beyond the door. My legs buckled and I flopped into the sand with a grunt. Basch slowed to a halt beside me and together we looked back.

The undead did not pass through in pursuit–not that they could have had they wanted to. Jovan made a fierce display standing there upon the threshold of the gate, his staff twirling gracefully in his hands. His magic tore the ranks mercilessly until the undead were begging mercy.

Jovan seemed solid, almost...alive now. There was great power still within his ghost to create so strong an illusion. It was obvious the undead feared him as much as, if not more than, the light beyond, and began an immediate retreat when it was clear that their prey had escaped.

Jovan met our gazes from the shadow of the hall as the undead shrank from sight behind him. He offered a solemn salute as his outline began to fade into the darkness with them.

I grabbed Basch's arm and pulled myself up, waving a sorrowful goodbye. My stomach twisted with guilt as the metal doors groaned on their hinges and grinded to a close, sealing the bangaa and his eternal enemies within. I squeezed Basch's hand absently.

May you return one day...the voice requested softly.

I swallowed hard, "They need our help."

Basch sighed warily, his eyes downcast. "Would that I could, but our own task is still at hand."

I nodded ruefully. "I know." I swear I'll come back someday.

We turned away, falling into stride beside one another, and put the buried city behind us.

"What will we tell the others?" I asked after a while.

"That we fell into a cave." Basch replied. "A large and hostile cave."

Author's Note: Whew, chapter 3 out of the way. Next one will began roughly three years after these events. I'm still struggling with starting the rough draft for chapter 5, but hopefully I'll have that cleared up by the time chapter 4 is out. I have most of the story loosely planned out so I'm not stumbling in the dark, but I have kind of fallen off the initial writing spree that got me started. I'm hoping I find another one soon so that I can get this thing really going.

Your words of encouragement fuel my enthusiasm and make all the time and effort spent writing this worth it; please keep it coming. Take care everyone and thank you all again for reading and taking the time to let me know that you appreciate it.