Act Two: You Can't Turn Back
Baron was a lively town that was perched just on the outskirts of Baron Castle and extended outward to a northwestern forest where its natural border had been established. Most of Baron's citizens lived in the safety of the well-kept brick walls that had been erected around the main commerce hubs, but some farmers and those with occupations less reliant on daily trade lived at the edge of the forests, many of them descendants of the settlements that had once been independent of Baron before the extensive efforts to annex their lands by the current king.
Although formally called Baron Village, it had long-outgrown true "village" status, and was on the path to rapidly becoming one of the largest cities in the world, Troia being its only considerable competition. Due to the expansion of Baron's military and its increased interest in the art of white and black magic (perhaps in part due to the (former?) sister-city of Mysidia), it always seemed that every time Cecil did make his way into town, he was running into new, unfamiliar faces – fortune-hunters who had come strike it rich in a new market, families who had followed their fathers and brothers when they pledged their swords to the military, or up-and-coming mages that had been lured to serve Baron with promises of luxury accommodations for the best of the best in the castle.
Despite neither Cecil or Kain having grown up in the village proper, it had always been a place of fond memories for them. As boys, they would often spend their summers with Rosa at her house (in the days where she wasn't quite so anxious to get away from her mother on a daily basis) or at Cid's house where they enjoyed the thrill being bossed around by his beautiful daughter Amelia. Since the advent of travel by airship just over twenty years prior, the once-nothing town became deeply immersed in commerce and trade, resulting in a place nearly as exciting to hang out as the castle, if you were lucky enough to be able to cross between the two freely. Plus, if Cecil were being honest, he very much enjoyed the anonymity that came with a jaunt to the village – in the castle, everyone recognized the azure-eyed, enigmatic orphan that the king had seen fit to bestow his mercy upon and raise as his own, both for his enviable achievements by such a young age and just plain envy. Cecil had Kain to thank for being his shield while navigating the life of a nobility he had never quite believed he really belonged to, and once upon a time, Rosa for never wavering in her affections even as he made transformation upon transformation.
But, now…
"It's the perfect day – I wish we could just hide out here," Kain pouted as they walked down the main drag, looking longingly at the darkened pub attached to the town's one and only inn. Kain knew if you were in your military best, you could walk in any time of the day and procure a drink, even if they were closed – and usually for a steep discount as a "thank you" for your service. "We gotta start going to the pub more often Cecil – you don't get out that much. It's not healthy to drink alone in the castle every night."
"Um, I think you're talking about yourself," Cecil replied drily. "But as luck would have it, I proposed that very notion to Cid for when we return tonight. I guess you can come along, if you want."
"I don't know…" Kain pretended to stroke his chin in thought. "Crashing a hot date with you and Cid…would I feel like a third wheel?" Cecil elbowed him roughly, and Kain gave him a shove back, snorting.
"I really hope King Baron reconsiders his pronouncement after we come back…" Cecil stumbled from Kain's roughhousing, but quickly regained his balance in one elegant stride forward, as if nothing had happened. "I have to admit, he permeated my nightmares last night."
"Yes, Rosa told me you seemed stressed," Kain mused half-heartedly as they stepped into the apothecary to fetch their order. Cecil couldn't bring himself to say acknowledge the remark other than asking Kain to add a few Fire, Thunder and White Fangs to their stash, which resulted in his friend shooting him a strange look before announcing his arrival at the counter. This sent the apprentice shop boy scurrying to serve him from the back room. Cecil hung back, pretending that a cradle full of glistening, amber-liquid Golden Needles on the shelf in front of him was the most fascinating thing he had ever seen.
Ugh…I was stupid to think Rosa wouldn't come up once the entire time we were gone, wasn't I? I wonder when she talked to him…was it after she ran into me the first time, or did she go crying to him after I sent her away?
His stomach churned unpleasantly at that second thought, although he couldn't quite understand why. Wasn't it easier if she were the one to explain his idiocy to Kain so that he didn't have to keep reliving it?
"Hello?" Kain knocked on the side of Cecil's helmet, the loud "clang" rattling him out of his stupor. Cecil whirled around as Kain shoved a sack of glass-vialed goodies into his arms.
"Ah, thanks," Cecil muttered, proceeding to pack them away in the travel bag slung around his waist. The shop boy had retreated back to his business in the rear of the store, and Kain started to organize his own supplies.
"Are you two okay?" Kain, as usual, was never one to dance around the obvious, and Cecil looked up at him, hesitatingly lifting his visor.
"Uh…well…I'm not really sure what is going on right now…" Cecil said quietly. He must not have talked to her after we parted ways, or else he would have never posed the question quite like that. "I tried explaining to her last night about everything that had happened…tried to tell her that things were just going to get worse from here on out. She doesn't need an unstable, rogue presence in her life like me. She's on the cusp of achieving everything she has ever set out to accomplish – how could I willingly taint her position in the castle now that I've fallen out of favor with His Highness?"
There was no way he could bring himself to tell Kain – best friend or not – that what he feared most was that he was wholly capable of hurting more than just Rosa's reputation.
But much to Cecil's surprise, instead of laughing in his face and telling him to get over himself and to get under someone else, Kain pressed his lips together, crossing his arms over his chest in thought. After a few agonizing moments, he finally shook his head, tapping his finger against his bicep.
"Cecil…don't be so quick to dismiss her."
"Huh?" the dark knight blinked. Kain had never exactly been an advocate for the fairer sex. If anything, he thought women were needy and annoying – Rosa seemed to be the only exception to his rules, but even so, like the good friend he was, he was never afraid to tell her off when he thought she was being stupid – whether it was about Cecil or something else. How many times had he told both Cecil and Rosa to either put up or shut up with their relationship troubles and their constant dancing around Cecil's indecisiveness and her stubbornness? Cecil raised his eyebrows when he saw that Kain looked deadly serious.
"She wants to be with you…and you want to be with her. Why fight it?"
"I do want to be with her, but I am more rational than she is," Cecil protested. "More than wanting to be by her side, I want her to be happy. Isn't that what's most important?"
Kain smiled some.
"Yes, my friend. And guess what? That means you're in lo-"
"Don't," Cecil said quickly, clenching his jaw. The memory of Rosa's tearful plea flooded his heart.
"Cecil of the Red Wings is many things. But he is no coward. Not the Cecil who I love..."
He turned away, glaring at the floor. "Please Kain…not now."
Kain shrugged, holding his hands in the air in surrender. After double-checking that they had everything, the two of them walked back outside, divvying out investigational duties to get more information about the phantom creature they were to hunt – the king had called it an Eidolon. What exactly did that mean? There were many adventurers that passed through the town every day – hopefully at least one of them had traveled to Mist or made their way to Baron from that area.
Kain decided he would investigate the shops that were the usual hotspots for those passing through town – since the apothecary had been empty, that left the weapon smith, armory and the Adventurer's Guild, a run-down house on the edge of town that had been left abandoned when its sole owner, an eccentric fellow called Namingway, passed away and left it to the village as a place for respite for explorers of the world. School children jokingly called it Adventurer's School, because at any given time one felt like cutting class, they could usually find a salty traveler there desperate for some gil (after all, if they had any, they would have most definitely chosen to stay at the inn instead) that would teach them much more interesting fare instead of their school curriculum – things like knife-throwing, legends about hidden treasure, or how to make potions that would make their friends throw up. But adults understood it to be mostly a home for vagrants, although some did volunteer to run it, bless their hearts, in attempt to actually transform it into a place worthy of its true name.
Cecil wasn't one to doubt his capabilities against someone who might be staying at the Adventurer's Guild, but he was still glad when Kain volunteered to check it out for them, and decided to try his luck at the inn and visit Amelia Pollendina. She was rumored to have a boyfriend from the Kaipo region, so maybe that meant he traversed the Misty Valley whenever he came to visit her. (Allegedly.)
In the time they had picked up their order at the apothecary, the lights had come on in the pub, which meant whoever was on duty for the day's cooking had finally roused out of bed. A couple of people were already sitting at the bar and a few of the four-top tables, eager for a home-cooked breakfast that they didn't have to make themselves. The scent of frying chocobo egg and wild boar bacon assaulted Cecil's senses as he stepped inside, the half-tarnished silver bell that hung over the entryway jingling a cheerful welcome.
Maybe a small plate wouldn't hurt, Cecil thought, his mouth watering. He slipped up to the counter next to a woman hunched over a steaming mug of coffee, watching as the waitress walked out to one of the tables to take an order.
"Excuse me," Cecil said, leaning in toward the her. It was probably a long-shot that she knew anything about the phantom creature or Eidolons, but he had to start somewhere. The woman lifted her head from her mug, letting out a little gasp and scooting back on her stool as the sleepiness instantly fled her drooping eyelids.
"A d-dark k-knight! Sir…I've paid all my taxes, I swear!" Before Cecil could ask her what the hell she was talking about, she reached into an apron pocket, slamming some gil on the counter and scurrying off, leaving her coffee three-quarters full and still piping-hot.
Cecil's jaw dropped as he watched her retreat through the window opposite of the bar and turn a corner toward a cluster of houses. He had absolutely nothing to do with the taxing of Baron – what was she going on about?
She sounded so scared… Cecil turned away from the window, trying not to draw any more attention to himself than was necessary. Some of his fellow diners were staring, but lost interest as soon as a plate of food was shoved in front of their faces. However, it was impossible to not notice the sudden pall that had fallen over the room, and even the waitress didn't seem to be in such a big hurry anymore to return to the counter.
This isn't going to work, Cecil thought. Time for Plan B.
He took his leave from the counter, crossing to the stairs that would take him upstairs to the inn. A few men were chatting amicably in over-stuffed, bare-threaded easy chairs stationed in a corner by the fireplace, which was not lit, and paid no attention to Cecil – that told him they were out-of-towners. Before quizzing them, he swept past and entered the first bedchamber to the left, which he knew was a shared room with multiple beds and some particularly neglected floorboards – and it was positioned precisely over the pub.
How many times have Kain and I come in here to spy on girlfriends he thought were running around on him, and cadets that were trying to overthrow us for the top ranks in our class? Cecil sighed nostalgically, never believing that he would look so happily back at those days as he was now. It felt like he was living an entirely different existence.
Pushing all of that into the back of his mind to mourn later, Cecil got down to his hands and knees, first removing his helmet and setting it aside, and then purposefully crawling underneath the base of one of the beds on the southernmost wall that he knew had a rotting knot in the wood beneath. Whether the innkeeper chose to hide it with the bed or didn't realize it was there, no one with the true understanding of what this shabby housekeeping secret held ever bothered to bring it to the inn's attention. Cecil was pleased to see it was still there, emitting a pale beam of light from the sunlight and plethora of candles downstairs like a beacon waiting just for him.
Very carefully as to not make the boards creak under his weight, Cecil pressed his cheek against the floor, some of his hair drifting in his eyes as he positioned his ear just so over the exposed hole. The acoustics of the pub below acted as the perfect echo chamber, elevating the now much-more animated conversation toward him. If he concentrated hard enough, he could quite nearly hear everything going on.
The outburst of the woman who had run away from Cecil had sparked a discussion about Baron's current state of affairs. A group of people at one of the tables were moaning about how lately, it seemed the king just hadn't been himself: Little rituals that Cecil had become so accustomed to that he didn't pay attention to them anymore, like the king's daily strolls in the castle gardens that rose above the village waterways and gave some of the townspeople an opportunity to shout well-wishes, had apparently slowed to every few days and then finally stopped cold. Others were remarking that their taxes had suddenly shot up for construction of more airships – Cecil thought back to Cid's remark about the king's orders to build an airship with advanced weaponry, and shivered involuntarily. The taxes were being collected door-to-door – Cecil wondered if Baigan had recruited the royal guard for this exercise – certainly he would have heard about it otherwise if the Red Wings or Dragoons had been roped into it. One person was upset because their wife had been suddenly jailed for her failure to pay – he had been out of town and only discovered where she had gone thanks to a neighbor who had witnessed the entire ordeal.
Cecil couldn't believe the things he was hearing, having enough and slowly edging his way back out from under the bed. Were they really all true? Cid said he had heard stories…was it all news like this? It certainly didn't sound like anyone was trying to out-do each other with tall tales – even from the inn, he could detect the vibrato of fear in their voices.
No wonder they didn't want to talk while I was around, Cecil thought as he pulled his helmet back on. They think I'm complicit in this cruelty. He decided he wouldn't bother any of those people for info about the Eidolon – they wouldn't talk to him anyway.
On his way out, he pumped the two adventurers in the other room for information, but while both had traveled through the Misty Valley and Mist Cave long ago, they had frustratingly encountered no such monster that they would have considered a phantom, and had no idea what an Eidolon was. Apparently, they had avoided Mist Village altogether their last pass through, nothing their dislike of outsiders.
"Watch out for those Eyewing Moths in the cave though," one of the men warned. "Those are nasty little buggers – will blind you without warning and have you stumbling over a bridge."
"Thank you," Cecil smiled slightly, unwittingly placing his hand over the pouch loaded down with the eye drops Kain had bought them. Of course Kain would have researched everything that might be waiting in the depths.
Declaring the inn a bust, he decided to make his way across to the northern end of town to see if Amelia was home. He knew Cid would already be at the shipyard, even this early in the morning – it had been a surprise to Cecil that Cid had even bothered to go home last night, but he also knew that Amelia could be scary when she was mad. She was ruthless when it came to demanding Cid maintained more of a work-life balance, but so far, he seemed fairly successful at doing just the bare minimum to keep her from having a meltdown.
He came upon her working in their small, but tidy garden in their postage stamp of a front yard, and called her name as he began to climb the long flight of steps that lead to their hilltop home. She lifted her head, and much to his relief, greeted him with her usual dimpled smile. It was fortunate for her that she got the majority of her facial features from her late mother, and had only inherited Cid's inquisitive stare and ruby-red hair, which she kept pulled back in a plaited bun.
"Cecil," Amelia sat up on her haunches, waving a cucumber at him sternly. "Have you talked with my father lately about not staying around the castle so late at night? He blamed you for getting home late last night, you know."
"Of course he did," Cecil smirked, resting his hands on his hips. "Never mind that I was minding my own business when he came down to talk to me."
"Mmm, he left out that part," Amelia mused, tossing the cucumber in a basket. "Well, I suppose all is forgiven, then. What are you up to, strolling around the village like you own the place?"
Cecil tried not to let the smile on his face falter as he told her his story and explained that he was in fact here on a job – giving a quick rundown on the phantom he and Kain was attempting to hunt on their way to Mist. When he was finished, Amelia nonchalantly dug another cucumber out of the ground, whistling under her breath.
"Sweet Cecil, I can't tell you the last time I've left this village – as pathetic as it sounds. I've never been to Misty Valley to give you any helpful information. And I've certainly never heard of an Eidolon."
"Oh?" Cecil arched a brow. Now it was time to redeem himself for years of being enslaved by her teenage beauty when he was just an innocent kid-turned-errand boy. "Because I happen to have it on good authority that you have a boyfriend from Kaipo, and that he sneaks down here all the time. He'd have to pass through Mist to do that, eh?"
Amelia's nostrils flared (Oh gods, she really looks like her father when she does that, Cecil grimaced), and she suddenly shot up, grabbing him by his chest plate and yanking him so that they were inches apart. If they hadn't been hidden away behind the garden walls, he would have panicked about looking like they were doing something indecent in broad daylight.
"What did you say?" Amelia hissed, her eyes flashing. "Who told you such a thing!?"
"As a knight, I'm sworn to secrecy for my source's sake," Cecil demurred.
Thank you, gossiping castle pastry chef that lives next door to the Pollendinas!
"As a knight, you shouldn't be exploiting a lady!" Amelia shrieked, glancing around before shoving him away and snorting. "What would Rosa say?"
"Rosa?" Cecil tried to hide his nervous laugh behind a cough. "Rosa Farrell, the most romantic woman in Baron? She would want you to be happy and flaunt your love for all to see. She would throw you a parade if you actually had a betrothed."
"Oh, shut it, that's not what I meant," Amelia glared, crossing her arms. "Listen, I have no idea what you are talking about. But if I DID know something, I would say that as of late, there have been stretches of days and nights where Mist is covered in a thicker than usual fog – so obscuring that you could get lost and never be found again, even if you have the route memorized by heart. So if one was smart – they would find an alternative way, maybe by sea with some of the experimental charter ships Kaipo has been dabbling in."
"Any idea what's causing the fog?" Cecil blinked, and Amelia shook her head.
"None…it could very well be your phantom though, wouldn't you say? The timing is too coincidental…"
"Could be," Cecil frowned. "Well…for a…um…hypothesis…that's pretty helpful. Thanks, Amelia."
"Oh, no, thank you," Amelia smiled sweetly, reaching through Cecil's visor and violently flicking the tip of his nose with her dirt-caked nails. "For your discretion, that is."
"You have my word," Cecil winced, wrinkling his nose. Was that going to leave a scratch?
"Bye, for now," Amelia cooed, slamming his visor shut and retreating to the garden.
An hour later, the two knights met back up in front of the apothecary where they had started. Cecil had gotten nothing further except for an attempted lap dance from a scantily-clad girl by the tiny river that ran through the north side of the town who bragged that she was practicing to be a "special occasion" dancer.
"Ah yes, she was cheeky, wasn't she?" Kain grinned. "Not very informative though."
"Cheeky…" Cecil blanched. Before he could let himself think too hard about if Kain was talking about her attitude or her assets, he delved into what he had learned about the king at the pub and the news Amelia had shared about the mist's strange behavior as of late in the valley.
As it turned out, Kain hadn't done much better – he had heard similar mutterings about the king, but from people who were willing to complain to his face – Cecil supposed a majestic Dragoon like Kain appeared more trustworthy than a man like himself who hid behind a demon's mask. Kain kicked at a stray rock as they made their way out of the village, folding his hands behind his head. "No one here knows what an Eidolon is. The "Phantom Creature" could just be a legend. Isn't it possible somebody just made it up to keep travelers away from Mist?"
"Yeah…" Cecil trailed off, half-listening. But the king was very specific in his request. Would he fall for such a ruse and send his two best men after a false lead? He could feel his chest tightening as he thought back to Cid's ominous words last night in front of the tower, and found himself anxiously resting his fingers over the ring:
"Everyone's worried about where Baron's headed. And now the king's sending you away from us!"
No...there…there must be an explanation…
The walk to the Mist Cave was mercifully short in length; they were guided by a well-traveled dirt trail that wound aimlessly through Baron's emerald wildlands, a favorite spot for the local children to catch bugs and play tag – that was until the monster population had started to tick upward. It would still be too early for the grunts from the cadet ranks of the Dragoons and Red Wings to be sent out for morning patrol, but Cecil secretly prayed that he and Kain would be long-gone by the time they appeared. As cowardly as it was, he was dreading the next confrontation he would have with his ex-comrades – it would all just be a matter of time before they had learned what happened.
Would any of them defect from their posts? Cecil frowned. Those two soldiers that confronted me on the airship...Biggs and Wedge…they were the most out-spoken about the king's behavior, and I foolishly dismissed their objections. But if they were to complain to the wrong people…only the gods know what might happen…
The path twisted northward in the direction of the Baronian mountain range that played the role as the border between Baron's lands and those beyond. Situated on the central portion of the largest continent in the world, speaking in terms of landmass, Baron was hardly the largest territory of those it shared the continent with. The kingdom was eclipsed many times over by both Troia in the northwest, which was spread over hundreds of miles of lush forest (thanks to the bounty of the Crystal of Earth), and Damcyan of the northeast, which held sway over a desert pass even larger than Troia's forests. It fascinated Cecil that he and Kain were soon going to pierce the illusive veil that Mist, the village in the crossroads of these world powers, had managed to keep such staunch control over after all these years. He pulled out the ring, narrowing his eyes as he held it up against the pink-streaked morning sun to reveal the Baronian crest once more.
Of course the one to make strides with those from Mist would be King Baron. As their closest neighbors, it only makes sense…he said that when they received the ring, they would know what it meant.
Could he be trying to secure another ally in the wake of the incident at Mysidia…?
"Cecil, are you listening to me?"
"Huh?"
"I said, we're here," Kain paused, and Cecil nearly smashed into his backside, stopping himself just in time. Kain sighed, tilting his head. "Stay with me, Captain. I know you've got much on your mind, but you don't cooperate with me here, we'll just be wandering around in circles." Cecil blinked and looked over Kain's shoulder. He spoke truthfully: They had made it into a sloping valley where their steady path suddenly stopped, ahead of them was the entrance to the Mist Cave. Tendrils of mist were rolling out of the cavern's mouth, the contents within were seeped in darkness. Kain retrieved his lance from the holster on his back, running his finger over the bladed tip. As Cecil reached for the shadowblade, a whiff of salt-soaked air drifted near, and he turned, peering at the scenery he had completely blanked out while he had been lost in thought. Had they turned south at the path's junction, they would have found themselves on a tiny enclave of shoreland that made up Baron's one semi-remarkable beach.
Long ago, it had once been dotted with tiny villas maintained by fisherman and villagers who had refused to move to Baron Village once they were annexed, but even from where he was standing, Cecil could see that most of the homes – although the more generous term would be shacks – were falling apart and had been long-neglected in the past decade. The army had eventually issued an order that civilians were forbidden to enter any of the villas due to their derelict state, but Cecil had always carried in his heart an absurd fantasy that on a star-drunk night, he would take one knee before Rosa on moonlight-drenched sands and ask her to be only his for the rest of their days. And then, for their honeymoon, he would return with her again to surprise her with a restored villa of their very own. He couldn't imagine a better start to his new life than one where he could be lulled to sleep by the ocean's timbre in the arms of the woman he loved, and a sequester – however brief – from a world where he had never gone unnoticed.
Cecil turned back to Kain, warily withdrawing his blade, and both men offered each other a curt nod. Kain could tell by the flicker of sorrow that had flashed through Cecil's visor that something more was on his mind other than King Baron's punishment, but he also knew well enough to let it go – whatever it was – just for now.
When this is all over, I'll get Cecil to tell me what's really going on…
With Kain leading the way, the two slipped inside the cavern's mouth. The mist seemed to rush forward to greet them, enveloping Kain in a blanket of white that Cecil had to narrow his eyes to see through as he caught up to match the dragoon's stride.
"It doesn't seem much different from when we used to hunt Larvae for training," Cecil murmured. "Do you still remember the path?"
"Like the back of my hand," Kain nodded. "But…I really don't remember this much mist. Maybe Amelia's boyfriend was on to something?"
As they ventured across a footbridge reinforced with sailor's rope that had seen better days, salt and lime-laced precipitation was dripping from the ceiling and into clusters of puddles and time-hewn ponds that were each dressed with a skin of white foam. The heaviest fog was rising from these spots, and that was where Cecil and Kain knew the monsters of Mist Cave had a tendency to sleep and stalk their prey. The monsters Cecil and Kain were most familiar with, and could see sleeping in layered folds of quivering slime, were giant, slippery purple worms called Larvae. Their main hobbies were percolating and gurgling on their own mucus as they slept the day away – if you were lucky, every once in a while you could spy a Larvae getting startled awake by its own snot bubble blowing up in its face and then quickly passing back out.
They were relatively harmless, except for when they decided to stay awake for good and slime their predators, which usually resulted in them choking to death or drowning. And once the little guys grew up into Eyewing Moths, that was when you had to worry about the random bouts of blinding.
Deciding not to take any chances, once Cecil and Kain put enough distance between themselves and the monsters, Cecil retrieved a Fire Fang and casually tossed it behind him, igniting the pond beneath the footbridge into a volley of flames.
"I'm going to use you as a bridge if you destroy our way back!" Kain grimaced. "What's wrong with making a quick Larvae skewer with my lance?"
"I've started to become rather fond of this "magic in a bottle" they're selling everywhere now," Cecil shrugged. "These saved my life two-fold on our way back to Baron when monsters attacked our ship."
"They're make-believe for us unworthy louts that don't have a drop of magical blood running through our veins," Kain snorted, while at the same time holding out his hand to inspect one of the mysterious items for his own. "Just don't quit your day job to run off and become a black mage."
"Can't quit when I was dismissed," Cecil muttered under his breath, fetching both a Thunder Fang White Fang and handing them over.
Kain suddenly halted in place, his jaw clenched as he lifted his head. Cecil paused behind him, wondering if Kain had heard him being a malcontent, and was about to apologize when Kain held up his finger, cutting him a glare.
A wet, bellowing snort suddenly erupted in the air like a firework, and Cecil swallowed his gasp, pivoting on his heel so that he could place his back to Kain's. A dismal baritone drifted over them, and Cecil could swear he saw the mist before him pulse with each raspy utterance.
"Leave this place."
"Who's there!?" Cecil demanded, lifting his sword.
"Return whence you came."
Kain clutched his lance across his chest, backing into Cecil as he surveyed the darkness that enveloped them. Cecil swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat, sliding open his visor and hesitantly waving the mist away from his eyes. It momentarily dissipated, leaving his gauntlet-shielded fingers with a delicate spray of condensation for his efforts, but gathered into yet another gray-white cloud a minute later, hanging over him tauntingly.
"That voice – could it be the Eidolon…?"
After several silent moments and no sign of someone else having joined them in the cave, Kain reluctantly lowered his lance, laughing nervously.
"…Perhaps some sort of trick of the wind."
Cecil wanted to remind him that there was no wind, as they were in the middle of a cave, but thought better of it. They continued onward, and after crossing a final footbridge, came to the last stretch of the cave. Ahead, at the end of an elevated, twisting path bestrewn with stray rocks and razor-sharp gravel, Cecil could see a stream of sunlight, feeling as if he could practically taste the earthen goodness awaiting them. Kain was muttering obscenities to himself as he turned the borrowed Thunder Fang over in his fingers, the crackling purple rays transforming his narrowed eyes into two icy orbs. It was a second too late that Cecil realized Kain wasn't paying attention to where he was walking, and the dragoon went staggering over a jutting rock, sending the Thunder Fang flying into the air. Cecil grimaced, shielding his eyes with his arm as the Thunder Fang landed near their exit and exploded, sparks and orbitals of ultraviolet light flying everywhere and carrying with them a massive dispersal of dust from the decimated granite.
"Damnation!" Kain coughed, fanning the wind erratically. "See, I told you these have no good use!"
"Just cover your face and dash through!" Cecil groaned, rushing toward the exit and the bounteous clean air that was only a few teasing yards away. But as soon as he attempted to cross through the opening, an invisible force threw him back like he had smacked into a brick wall, a shout escaping his throat as he smashed directly into Kain. They tumbled down the path in a mess of limbs and weapons into the smoldering remains of the Thunder Fang, their ears ringing inside their helmets as the voice from before suddenly returned with an unsettling closeness that made Cecil feel as if someone was shouting in his face – yet still none had materialized before them.
"Men of Baron…"
Cecil and Kain's heads shot up as they scrambled to pull themselves off the ground, twin distraught stares falling upon one another before Cecil finally found his footing and jumped up, his hand hovering over the hilt of his sword.
"You know who we are?"
"Leave at once, and no harm will befall you. I will abide no further trespass."
"Show yourself!" Kain yelled, his voice bouncing in the depths of the cavern over and over again until it transmuted itself into a prattling screech and faded into nothingness.
"You mean to ignore my warning?" the voice seethed, and Cecil shivered, hardly able to contain the chattering of his teeth as he wrapped his arms around himself. When it had it suddenly gotten so cold?
"We have no other choice," Cecil protested, craning his neck to shout at the ceiling. "We must deliver this ring to the village of Mist beyond!"
"So be it," the voice hissed, a roar of static shattering the air as the swirls of glittering white and gray precipitation surrounding them began to pour into a makeshift pool at Cecil and Kain's feet, sending them both scrambling backward and smashing into the invisible barrier erected over the exit as the mist quickly spilled forward in rising waves and lapped at their boots.
"The mist is gathering!" Kain gasped, his breath escaping in puffy clouds. The temperature of the cave suddenly plunged another ten degrees, and Cecil could feel his eyes stinging as he watched the pool of mist rise into a towering whirlwind, transforming before their eyes as rocks went sailing over their heads and the wind shrieked in their ears. A pair of translucent white wyvern wings emerged from the whirlwind first, followed by an elongated, slender neck, a narrow snout with liquid mist pouring from its nostrils, and piercing blue eyes that paralyzed Cecil in place. Within the creature's unblinking stare, Cecil could make out his full reflection – a specter of a knight clad in blood-soaked ebony armor, clutching to a fading Crystal of Water with gnarled hands, blackened flesh ravaged by flame rotting off of his very bones.
What…what the hell…? Cecil almost shrieked aloud. What is this!? He held his shaking hands before his face, flexing them anxiously beneath the safety of his gauntlets.
With an authoritative snap of its wings, the whirlwind dissipated, unveiling the fully-formed beast in all its glory – a dragon with pearl-flecked scales that shimmered enticingly as it shook beads of water off its back, a glass-spiked tail the length of two grown men swishing back and forth angrily and working the dying mist around it into a final frenzied storm. With a warning shriek, the dragon tossed its head back, unleashing a spray of tumbling mist over the twisting path. Cecil and Kain broke free from their self-induced paralysis just in time, throwing themselves over the ledge of the incline and watching in horror as the mist-soaked rocks hardened to solid ice.
"This must be the phantom we were sent to hunt…the Eidolon that prevents passage to Mist!" Cecil hissed, and Kain nodded, suddenly yanking Cecil down with him as the dragon glared in their direction and sent another stream of mist spewing forth. Cecil's eyes trailed the ceiling as he watched the shimmering spray sail over them, his blood roaring in his ears. He had slain far too many monsters to count in his lifetime, but never something quite as terrifying as this.
"What's the plan?" Kain muttered, and Cecil dared to peer over the ledge. The dragon was snorting angrily as it drifted toward the exit, each snore rolling through the cavern like the echo of a death knell.
"It's trying to block the exit," Cecil whispered. "Let's take it by surprise."
Crawling down the remainder of the ledge that took them back onto the path, Cecil slowly withdrew his blade, quietly stalking the Eidolon as it rapidly whipped its head from the left to the right, and then back again. Inhaling deeply, Cecil lifted his blade, preparing to plunge it into the dragon's back. Without warning, the dragon suddenly reared its head, snarling grotesquely at Cecil as he froze, his sword mid-air.
The specter's reflection had returned to the unblinking Eidolon's eyes, but now the Crystal of Water was shattered at Cecil's feet, rivers of blood soaking through the fragments. His helmet had been cut in twain, its remains joining the crystal, each smoking half causing crackling bubbles of blood to give rise and pop with a series of delicate "snaps". His soaked hair was matted to his face and neck, his normally cerulean gaze stained a blistering crimson with inky shadows seeping under his eyes and in the hollows of his cheeks. Rust-kissed shackles were hanging from each of his wrists, the chains dragging behind him tied around an assemblage of still bodies in blue and ivory robes – the traditional attire of the black and white mages, respectively, that studied their craft in Mysidia.
Don't…don't show this to me! Cecil silently screamed, his heart twisting torturously. That's not me…it cannot be!
Kain glanced over his shoulder from their hiding place, wondering why he hadn't heard the much-anticipated death throes of the beast. He was stunned to see Cecil just standing there, wide-eyed and shaking, his sword raised but taking no quarter.
"Cecil, look out!"
Cecil's head snapped up, but Kain's warning had come too late. He stumbled forward, broken free from his trance, but instead of the sickening clench of pierced flesh, Cecil felt the sword fall through air instead, and let out a scream of surprise as the shadowblade crashed into the half-frozen rock below and sent waves of pain reverberating down his arms and spine. In a fraction of a second, the dragon had dissolved into a shapeless pool of mist that no weapon in the world could penetrate. The mist swirled around his ankles and raced up his legs and core, transforming Cecil into a human icicle. Another wisp of mist wrapped around his neck, and he started to gag for air as he felt himself get lifted from the ground, his numbed fingers releasing his sword and sending it clattering to the ground.
No, no! Cecil winced, his eyes rolling back as black spots began to spread across his vision the way flame consumed a slip of paper. I can't fail here…!
"Hey!" Kain shouted, and Cecil closed his eyes, his lids suddenly feeling as if they weighed a million pounds apiece. "If you're hungry, try chewing on this!"
Cecil heard the sound of shattering glass at his feet. As he struggled to open his eyes, he swore he saw an ivory fang piercing the mist below, surrounded by the pieces of a broken vial, and felt the grip on his neck grow more frigid, yet somehow looser. Moments later, he was roughly tossed aside, his fall broken by a frozen Larvae nest as the pool of mist once again rose forth and took the form of a twitching, half-frozen dragon.
"How…?" Cecil moaned to himself dizzily, his eyes slamming shut once again.
"And now I have you," Kain smirked, sliding down the ramp of ice the Eidolon had created and spinning his lance above his head. With one graceful pirouette, he launched himself in the air, thrusting his lance through the dragon's chest and retreating with a somersault before the beast could manage a counter-attack. The dragon's icy breath faltered as it unleashed an ear-splitting wail that ripped Cecil away from the brink of unconsciousness. He forced his broken body to its feet, retrieving a dagger from its holster on his hip and plunging it into the dragon's back, dead-center between its spasming wings. With a final, almost mournful cry as the dagger sank through its scales, the ice-encased Eidolon melted into a puddle of milky, opalescent water that rushed past Cecil's ankles and down the twisting path like a river. Losing his leverage on the dagger, the dark knight fell to his hands and knees, his head sinking in utter relief as his and Kain's freed weapons crashed to the floor.
Kain slid down the path, scooping up his lance and kicking Cecil's dagger and sword over to him with a worried frown. "What happened out there? Did you get sprayed with mist before he pulled his disappearing act?"
Lie to him, a trembling voice whispered from deep within. He'll think you've gone mad if you tell him what you really saw. Cecil could barely force himself to nod, fumbling in his supplies for a potion. When the blessed medicine was found, Kain snatched it out of Cecil's shaking hand, quickly popping the cork out and tipping it to his friend's lips to spare the use of any further strength.
"But I have you to thank for saving my life," Cecil finally choked, the light blooming again in his eyes as the potion warmed his core and began to spread throughout his rebelling ligaments. He took the empty bottle from Kain, half-smiling in an effort to mask the roar of his quickening pulse. "…It was clever of you, using the White Fang to freeze the mist so that we had something solid to hit."
"It doesn't mean we couldn't have fought the entire battle with our weapons," Kain snorted. "I just had to do some quick thinking since you were trying to get yourself killed and all."
"Sure, sure," Cecil shook his head, feeling sick to his stomach at the relief he felt from Kain buying into his deception. "You're not going to let me forget this for a long time, are you?"
"Nope," Kain grinned, grabbing hold of Cecil's hand and pulling him up. "Now, let's deliver the ring and go back home! This is the easiest mission we've had yet, eh?"
The Eidolon's barrier now shattered, Cecil followed Kain out of the cave, never so happy in his life to see the sun again. If he hadn't just thoroughly embarrassed himself in front of his friend thanks to his pathetic showing in battle, he would have thrown himself down in the meadowlands right then and there and rolled around like a cat in a sunbeam to chase the chill form his bones. Even as his strength restored itself with each step forward, Cecil couldn't get the terrifying vision out of his mind of what he had seen reflected in the Eidolon's gaze.
And the dragon's eyes…they were the same color as the Crystal of Water we stole from Mysidia…
More and more strange things have been happening to me that simply cannot be a coincidence…
…Have I been cursed by the crystals themselves? Or is something more sinister…already inside of me?
Crossing the idyllic, eerily empty fields, the two men soon came to the edge of Mist, the village whose border accounted as nothing more than a dilapidated wooden fence, most of which had been turned into makeshift stakes to prop up sprawling vines of cucumbers and tomatoes.
"There's no monsters here like there are by Baron," Cecil frowned.
"That was how Baron used to be until late," Kain shrugged. "It's probably only a matter of time before this place gets invaded too…no wonder they needed people like us to take care of that dragon. That was the craziest beast I've ever fought – it's almost like it wasn't a monster at all."
"Yeah…" Cecil trailed off. He had been thinking the same as he had been walking the tightrope to death. "…The way it held sway over the mists itself… It was almost like…a deity."
A single dust-packed path cut through the village proper and appeared to be its only road. It continued onward beyond the eastern end, disappearing into staggering mountain range that would eventually open into the Kaipo Desert, if Cecil was remembering his geography correctly. From their distance, they could see that each side of the road was filled with closely-spaced together cottages, trees so heavy with apples that their branches were practically drooping to the ground, goldfish ponds, and a lush community garden filled with vegetables and big heads of lettuce. An elderly man and a young boy were outside, sitting against the back of a tree and idly depositing fallen apples into a basket. A mom came to her front stoop, calling for her kids across the lane to come in and get their lunch.
"I suppose our best bet is to find the village elder," Cecil frowned. "It's odd…now that I think about it, the king didn't mention who to actually deliver the ring to. Is someone expecting us?"
"AHHHHHHHH!"
The hairs on the back of Cecil's neck rose to full attention as a piercing scream ripped through the storybook tranquility of the village, the people who had been outside all turning at once toward the northeast. Whoever it had come from had not screamed because the admittedly out-of-place pair of knights – in fact, Cecil didn't think any of the villagers had actually noticed their lingering outside the village gates.
"What happened?" they heard a distant voice cry, and one of the children that had been called in for lunch paused in the threshold of his front door, craning his neck to see as the other villagers ran toward the disturbance.
"It sounded like it was coming from the Motherly Summoner's favorite pond…!"
"Let's go see what happened," Cecil said quickly, and Kain nodded, sheathing his lance. As they both broke into a run to follow the other villagers, Cecil felt something scalding burning in his pocket against his thigh – moments later, it had become near-unbearable, and he screeched to a halt, dust flying in the air as he fished around for the culprit. Had one of his Fire Fangs shattered?
But the only item in his grasp when he opened his hand was the ruby ring – and it was quickly eating its way through his gauntlet, igniting the calluses on his palm into blistering stretches of pink and white.
"Damnation!" He cried, dropping it on the ground and clutching his burned hand against the soothing cool of his chest plate. Kain bent down, tilting his head as he extended a nightshade-polished fingernail toward the ring and jerking his hand back seconds later.
"OW! What the hell? It feels like that thing is on fire!" He glared at it closer, his eyes narrowing. "And now it's…glowing?"
Another shriek filled the air, the echo ringing in Cecil's ears as smoke began to trickle out of the ruby. They watched helplessly as it began to quiver and crack, pitch-black wafts of exhaust suddenly pluming in their faces and sending them staggering back for air.
With a final convulsion that made it flip upside-down, the ring suddenly burst open, ruby shards rocketing into the air like a loaded slingshot. The sunny, cloudless skies above the valley began to bleed a deep red, and trails of glittering smoke shot into the air like fireworks, each explosion resulting in the birth of a seizing, glowing ball of sentient flame with glaring fangs and orange, glassy eyes. Cecil was shocked to recognize them as Bombs, fearsome monsters that were born and bred in unusually hot areas, like deserts or volcanos, and were known to cause massive destruction when agitated – a state of being that was not difficult for one to put a Bomb in, as they could become offended by something as simple as breathing in their direction. Get a Bomb too riled up, and they would quickly reveal their trademark battle tactic for which they were named – a self-destruction sequence powerful enough to take themselves out and anyone else within a distant radius.
As Cecil and Kain watched on in horror, the Bombs quickly multiplied beyond anyone's control – some by slamming into each other and giving birth to four more monsters in the resulting explosion, others by the curls of smoke that were still gushing from the ring. The villagers that had gone on to investigate the earlier scream broke out into a panic, running for their lives as the Bombs began to take notice of them and rammed their way into buildings and trees, instantly setting them on fire in an effort to corral their prey.
"My God…!" Kain gasped, covering his mouth and shuddering as one of the monsters body-slammed a mother dragging two screaming children just yards away, her screams dissipating into nothingness as the little family became enveloped in a cloak of flame when the Bomb self-destructed.
Cecil's bones felt as if they had been yanked out of his flesh, and no matter how fiercely he commanded his body to move, to fight, to do anything – it was like his nerve endings had gone numb, ceasing to fire off the orders from his smoke-logged brain. He knew that if he had managed to break his fast that morning, it would now be on the ground in a puddle at his feet. Even though everything around him seemed to be churning in agonizing slow motion, it was only in under a minute that the entire village had gone up in flames, and everyone who had had the bad luck to be outside when it happened was already strewn across the dirt road as a fresh layer of ash.
"…This is it…? This is what we were sent to do?" He whimpered, closing his eyes. Another chorus of screams drifted by him on the scalding wind from one of the burning houses, and the sickening smell of burning flesh permeated his nostrils.
King Baron sent us to destroy the Mist Village, just like Mysidia… It was another trap, another snare triggered by His Majesty's growing madness!
I've been made murderer all over again…in less than one day…!
"He wished this village torched," Kain growled, as if he could read Cecil's mind. The confirmation of his fearful assumptions gave him no comfort.
Gazing down at his hands, Cecil could have sworn that they were now slick with glossy, fresh blood, oozing between his clenched fingers and falling into pools at his feet. This is what the Eidolon wished to show me…this was his warning about my fate! His strength failing him at long last, he collapsed to his knees, clutching the sides of his helmet and screaming at the top of his lungs, his cries echoing maddeningly in his self-made prison of armor.
"But why!? WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?"
"Cecil!" Kain swallowed the block of lead forming in his throat and knelt down, throwing his arms around his friend and muttering a violent string of obscenities and curses under his breath. Suddenly, a frightened cry miraculously emerged the curtain of dancing flames – clear and pure as a church bell.
The voice cut through Cecil's jellied senses like a knife, causing him to open his eyes and look to his left over Kain's shoulder. That sounded like the scream we heard when we arrived at the village…!
Kneeling in front of a pond that had been previously hidden by a now thoroughly-torched home was a little girl, with bright green curly hair and swollen emerald eyes spilling over with tears. Dressed in black leotard with a sheer yellow wrap fastened around her waist by a pink bow, she was clutching onto the crumpled figure of a middle-aged woman with silky green locks of hair spilling in the girl's lap, her eyes closed and her ruby lips pressed in a secret smile. Not comprehending how the child could have possibly survived the Bombs' onslaught, Cecil wordlessly forced himself to his feet and ran to her, a stunned Kain following. The little girl looked up at Cecil, ash-flecked snot running down the sides of her mouth before turning her attention back to the still figure in her arms.
"Mommy, you can't die! Just because your dragon did..." She choked mightily before she could finish, clutching her mother's pale head to her lap and releasing another unearthly wail. Cecil and Kain looked at each other, their hearts plummeting to their stomachs.
There was no mistaking it – she had said very clearly said "dragon". Kain lowered his voice, turning away from the girl.
"I…I think I understand now. It's rumored that the villagers here can conjure monsters, right? Think about it… Men who can summon phantoms from another world like that dragon – what might those phantoms be called?"
"…Eidolons," Cecil gasped, and Kain nodded.
But why did the summoners of Mist have to die alongside the Mysidians defending their crystal? Cecil drew in a sharp breath, closing his eyes. What could possibly be the end purpose of all this hatred?
He could feel himself starting to get sick as all the revolting clues the Eidolon had bestowed upon Cecil in exchange for his life – and the life of this woman – started to form a complete picture of the utter madness they had their hands in. "…Then the dragon we slew was her mother's?"
The little girl suddenly seized up mid-sob, the haunches of her shoulder blades clenching violently as she spun around and stared up at Cecil, dead-eyed.
"You – you're the ones who killed her dragon?"
Cecil fell to one knee so that he could at least do her the dignity of meeting her accusing glare straight-on, despite his heart pounding so wildly in his chest that the feared it might burst right then and there. There was no way he could possibly lie to her – he knew right then and there that he would rather die before he ever uttered another falsehood in the king's name again.
"Forgive us," Cecil choked. "We'd no idea this would happen to your mother – we could have never imagined that this is what we were being sent here to do."
The girl clenched her eyes shut, bleating out a terrified howl before hauling her palm back and slamming it into the side of Cecil's face. Of course, with his armor, the blow hadn't registered, but the girl's hand was now pulsing red with the pain of smashing it into forged iron, and she yanked it back against her chest, hissing at him like a wounded animal as another round of tears spilled down her scarlet-streaked cheeks.
Shaking his head at the attempted assault, Kain knelt next to Cecil as the girl tended to her hurt hand, whispering in his ear.
"It's become obvious that His Majesty sent us to eliminate every last one of these people."
"No…" Cecil lowered his head. Don't say it out loud…don't breathe life into those wretched words!
"Foul work, to be sure," Kain frowned. "But it means we'll need to kill the girl as well."
Kain may as well have finished off the little girl's efforts with a blow of his own – Cecil suddenly felt as if his head were occupied by spinning tops.
"Kain!" Gods, he cannot be serious…right…?
"It's her or us, Cecil," Kain hissed, and Cecil couldn't help but cut his glance to the girl, who was staring daggers at them both. "I know that it's terrible, but it is the His Highness's orders."
"She's a child!" Cecil protested. "What has she ever done to anyone?"
"You'd betray your king for a little stranger?" Kain raised his eyebrows, and Cecil turned away, the threat of tears stinging his eyes. Never in his life had he ever dreamed he would reach the capacity of what he would tolerate from one he had thought he had loved unconditionally…from one he thought had felt the same about him, even if these last few days had been a trial. His eyes never left the child's as he felt the knot of treason tie its noose ever-tighter around his throat.
"Betray him?" Cecil seethed, clenching his burned fist. "Any man who'd wish for this is no king of mine."
"Heh. I thought you might say that," Kain sighed, and Cecil heard the grind of metal as Kain reached over his shoulder to retrieve his lance. Cecil turned around and gasped, ducking down as Kain suddenly swung the weapon right for his head. As Cecil threw himself to the stretch of ground between himself and the stunned girl, he heard an explosion from above. Looking up, he saw that Kain had just barely managed to skewer a Bomb that had been sneaking up behind them, staring stupefied as flecks of ash rained upon them. Kain rose to his feet, twirling the lance between his fingers. "I owe His Majesty much, but not so much I'd soil the Dragoons' name in his."
Oh gods…for a moment, I thought Kain was going to… Cecil sheepishly pushed himself off of the ground and lowered his head. Kain smirked and replaced the lance in his holster with a flourish.
"Come on Cecil, did you really think I was going to turn against my best friend?"
"Then you're with me?" Cecil gasped. "You…you do realize what this means, right? That we'll both be branded traitors for the rest of our days…" Some of the structure fires had begun to already burn out, but in their place, yet more were rising and licking at the sky above from the towering greenery. The smoke was also becoming an impenetrable blanket that hung over the valley, making each breath harder to draw in than the last. He knew that they couldn't stay much longer and expect to survive.
Kain nodded, a tinge of disappointment dulling his gaze.
"Baron's army is the mightiest in the world – the Dragoons, the Red Wings, Baigan's Kingsguard…they'll all be our enemies from this day forth. Our fight means nothing if we remain alone. We must treat with other nations, share what we've seen." Kain crossed his arms, closing his eyes. "…And Rosa – she must share our fight. Somehow, we've got to find a way to help her escape. If we become enemies of the state, who do you think the army is going to chase down for answers of our whereabouts?"
Rosa…! Cecil clenched his jaw, his heart aching deeply at the memory of their last meeting. How could he have been so selfish and foolish as to totally forget about how all of this would impact her? Kain had spoken no lies – it was not a secret in Baron that the three of them were as close as one could possibly be, save for blood ties. All he could do was pray that for the time being, Rosa would keep herself safe until they could send someone for her. The only consolation he could manage to dredge up to keep himself from running back to Baron right that very moment was that he knew better than anyone else that Rosa wasn't naïve to Baron's politics. She would realize what way the wind was blowing in good time and wasn't the type to wait for a prince to rescue her.
Which is a good thing, Cecil thought dismally. Being that I'm nothing to her now…
Inhaling deeply and lifting his gaze, he offered his hand. "You're right, Kain – we'll do everything possible to bring her under our protection. Thank you, my friend…"
Kain opened one eye, a slight smile forming at Cecil's attempt to seal their covenant. He paused for a moment, and instead of shaking Cecil's hand, rather forcefully knocked it away.
"Save your breath. I'm not doing this for you."
Cecil blinked and lowered his hand, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment beneath his helmet. After a few beats of uncomfortable silence, Kain peered past him, and Cecil spun around. The girl was still standing there next to her mother's corpse – and if looks could kill, the two of them would be smoldering blights at her feet by now.
"Quickly, we mustn't linger here!" Kain frowned, gesturing toward the child. "What of the girl?"
"Well, we're not going to leave her," Cecil reasoned, and turned to her, bending down on one knee and holding out his hand. "Come, it's not safe here. Take my hand." The girl snorted and slapped Cecil's hand away. He grimaced as he flexed his fingers, wondering if he should start taking this string of rejections personally. The girl stood up straight as a rod, hesitantly backing a few steps away from the body.
"No!"
"We're wasting time," Kain hissed. "Use force if you must." Cecil tried to steel himself, finding it strange that he was suddenly experiencing anxiety over what was effectively a kidnapping after all of the other terrible deeds he had committed in the last day. Kain ended up making the decision for him, diving in to grab the child.
She screamed "STAY AWAY!" at the top of her lungs and pivoted on her heel, smashing her foot into Kain's chest as he leaned in. The kick knocked him back just enough for her to make her escape, and she started running toward the community garden, pushing through the smoldering vegetables and weaving her way to the eastern mountain range.
"Wait!" Cecil cried, giving chase. The girl paused at an apple tree turned towering inferno and spun around, fresh tears in her eyes as she raised her hand in the air.
"L-Leave me alone! I hate you!"
Her body began to glow with a faint yellow aura, crystalline bubbles bursting from her outstretched hand. Kain caught up to a stunned Cecil and yanked him away just in time from being crushed by the hulking form that had magically materialized in front of the girl, smothering the fires in the garden with his girth and with one flippant hand gesture, knocking the flaming apple tree out of her way and sending it careening across the valley the way one might flick away a used toothpick. The shadow of a huge, hulking man with biceps the size of Cecil and Kain's bodies fell upon them, rising to a full height that rivaled that of some of Baron Village's tallest structures. The girl proceeded to take a running leap and clung to the goliath's arm, shimmying up like she would a tree. Once she had perched herself on his shoulder, he reached up, gently petting her with one finger before lifting his foot and slamming it to the ground with a grunt. A snapping sound ripped across the valley, and the ground beneath his feet suddenly began to splinter and crack into a gaping chasm, the whole village shuddering as the tremors tore their way through. Cecil and Kain both were knocked off their feet, and with another stomp, the quakes began to reverberate harder, bouncing them up in the air painfully as the land beneath their feet mutated, earthen plates tearing though the land like a broken bone through flesh.
"Is this another Eidolon!?" Kain cried, and Cecil rolled over onto his back, struggling to reach for his sword.
"If we don't stop it…everything will get swallowed into the earthquake!" Cecil's fingers found his knife instead, and figuring it was good enough for now, used the chaotic tremors to help propel himself forward so he could crawl on his hands and knees. As he cried out to the girl to stop the Eidolon, Kain noticed lurking shadow out of the corner of his eye, gasping and extending his hand for Cecil's retreating form as he was tossed about helplessly.
"Cecil! Look out!"
But by the time Kain's cries registered in Cecil's mind, it was all over. A piece of the stone chimney on the burned-out house beside them had been shaken loose, and it had gone flying, striking Cecil square in the head as other pieces collided with the garden like a miniature meteor shower. His ears ringing as the obnoxious clanging overtook his helmet, Cecil collapsed to the ground, feeling his head get lighter and lighter as his world became swallowed in darkness. In the dying echo that swam in his ears, he swore he could hear Kain calling his name, but it sounded as if he were drifting further and further away with each harried breath.
"Cecil…"
"Rosa? Is that you?"
He could feel something silky and warm brush over his cheek, but couldn't bring himself to open his eyes. Then, her voice was right beside him…her mouth pressing against his ear, her essence breathing life itself back into his twisted, broken form.
"You have to get up Cecil…you must wake up."
"I…I can't…" Cecil whimpered, realizing that he could feel nothing beneath her lips on his skin. It felt as if his eyes were wide-open, yet all he could see was permeating darkness. He blinked a few times, but nothing changed. "Rosa…help me…!" There had to be a white magic spell…something she could do…
He could hear her shift, could envision in his mind's eye the way the fabric of her gown would twist around her hip as she moved and the way her hair would tumble over her shoulder, the tresses curling just short of the delicate valley pressed against collar of her gown. In a fleeting flash of light, there she was, hovering over him – her eyes dark with despair and her cheeks streaked with tears.
"Cecil… Is this justice?"
"Rosa!" Cecil gasped, feeling as if his spine had suddenly become a lightning rod. He shot up, eyes wide and sweat pouring down the back of his neck as he waited for his muscles to stop spasming and for the stars to fade from his eyes. As his vision cleared, he saw that he was now in a little grove, with a few sparse trees surrounding them and soft green grass that was embedded with dirt and…was that…sand? He lifted his hand, rubbing together a few grains that had stuck to his palm and frowning.
If there was sand in a place like this…then where in the world had he been taken?
Twisting around, he saw to the west through a break in the skinny, rather malnourished trees a mountain range, and could further make out that the sun was setting in the horizon. As he gingerly climbed to his feet, he noticed beads of dew sliding down his armor.
Does this mean I've been here for a while?
He thought back to his strange dream about Rosa, his heart sinking. And…am I alone?
The answer to the second question came in a heap a few feet away from him. Curled up on the grass and mumbling incoherently in her sleep was the little girl from Mist, her curls a tangled mess and her skin riddled with cuts and bruises. Cecil was mostly unharmed thanks to his armor, but the girl looked lucky to be alive. Cecil gently shook her shoulder, ignoring the nagging fear in the back of his mind that she might call upon her "friend" again to finish him off, but she didn't move an inch.
"Thank goodness…at least she's alive," Cecil said aloud as a test to see if anyone would respond. When nothing happened, he backed away from the girl, keeping one wary eye on her as he took a short jaunt around the grove to see if anyone else was with them – namely Kain. At a final break of trees, Cecil paused, the somewhat cool air of the grove suddenly giving way to an unpleasant heat that stung his eyes as it broke through the fluttering branches. It was hard to tell in the failing sunlight, but it seemed as if the lands beyond were completely void of anything green, and that the rolling slopes before him were nothing but arid desert. There were no footsteps traipsing either to the grove or away from it, although Cecil supposed the wind could have made short work of any, had they ever been there.
It seems impossible…but have we somehow made it to Kaipo? It's the closest place to Mist you would find sand dunes like these…
Placing his hands around his mouth, he started to call out for his best friend, at first softly out of fear of waking the girl, but then louder and louder as he grew more and more desperate for a response.
"Kain? Kain!"
After fifteen minutes of dead air greeting him, he lowered his hands, lowering his head.
I cannot stay here. I need to take this girl someplace safe. Forgive me, Kain! I'll be back for you as soon as I've seen to her being settled.
If they really had made it to the other side of the mountain path that divided Mist and Kaipo, then perhaps Kain had already found an oasis, and was making his recovery there.
Cecil could simply not bring himself to accept – or even entertain – the idea that Kain was dead.
Maybe when the child wakes up, she can tell me what happened…she might have seen something after I was knocked out…
Coming back over to the girl, he gently picked her up in his arms, cradling her against his chest. Up close, with the pale of her sunken cheek contrasted against the black of his armor, he could see she was truly in dire straits – her breathing was raspy, and her lips cracked with dried blood – she obviously dehydrated on top of all her other injuries. Feeling around his hip for his supply pouch to procure a potion to get her through the next hour or so, Cecil's stomach flip-flopped when he realized all of his supplies were gone – miraculously, he had only been left with his sword.
Once they had left the grove, Cecil allowed himself to take a better survey of his surroundings. With the sunset and the moonrise becoming easier to navigate now that there was nothing to obscure his view, Cecil was able to talk himself through some basic navigation that while he was more apt to using in the air where he could see the world at a bird's eye-view, he could still manage with on the ground now that his brain didn't feel as if it were short-circuiting.
Think… Cecil frowned, gazing toward the mountain range he had spotted in the grove, now spread before him in all its glory as a frame to the sinking sun. The sun sets in the west, and the moon rises in the east… He turned toward the moon, but could see nothing but endless expanses of white gold granules glimmering under the waning twin moons. Unless someone managed to cast a Teleport spell upon us, there is no other conclusion I can draw – we have surely crossed the mountain path between Mist and Kaipo Desert.
It was harder than Cecil wanted to admit for him to recall the region in great detail, but he quickly talked himself into proceeding north, noting the position of Polaris to be his guide. If he was in the Kaipo desert as he suspected, going east would only eventually take them to an impassable mountain range strung along the shore. Proceeding west would get them back to Mist – and to certain death, with no one to help the girl and no supplies to scavenge.
Our best bet is to find Kaipo Village, the desert oasis, Cecil mused. If we keep going north, we should run into it…eventually. He looked down at the child, who seemed to be waning by the minute – as if to remind Cecil how precious little time he had left, she suddenly shook with a rattling cough, her head slumping against his chest.
Hold on…! Cecil silently plead, clutching the girl tighter. I won't let another person die because of my fealty to a war-hungry king… Never again!
It was two harrowing hours later that Cecil eventually stumbled upon signs of life that told him he was on the right path to the oasis. A cluster of tall, willowy palm trees were the first to greet them once they had crested a particularly steep dune, and as he stumbled down the other side of the slope, his intense concentration on not tripping and crushing the girl with his body the only thing keeping his muscle-weary legs from collapsing in a knot of limbs, he was able to make out the glimmer of standing water in the blessed moonlight. To the east of the water, draped in the shadows of more palm trees, was Kaipo Village – an eccentric collection of sand-blasted brick buildings and colorfully woven market stalls that dotted the desert like precious jewels on a necklace.
The village gates were lined with rows of blooming cacti and an exquisite congregation of tropical blooms – blood orange stems of amaryllis, pink chrysanthemum with blooms the size of a baby's head, and pure white plumeria among them. With the sky now completely perforated with stars and the streets nearly empty, Cecil ran unimpeded through town to find the inn he had made use of a few occasions prior when in Kaipo on business with the Red Wings. Bursting through the doors, he startled the innkeeper, who had appeared to be struggling keeping his eyes open at the counter and snapped right to attention when he saw a real, live customer had materialized before him. Ninety-nine percent of the year, business was dead as a doornail, unless a member of the royal family of Damcyan, the kingdom under whose jurisdiction Kaipo fell, was visiting town, or the annual Flower Festival was going on. If there wasn't a well-loved watering hole occupying the second floor, it wouldn't be worth it to open the place up every day.
"Hail, traveler!" Before Cecil could say anything in reply, or even lift his visor, the innkeeper's eyes drifted to Rydia, the enthusiasm draining from his face like a pulled plug in the bath. "Oh, my! I've not seen a child so pale! Please, get her to a bed. You needn't worry about payment."
"My pardons," Cecil breathed thankfully, it only now just occurring to him that he didn't have any money to pay the man anyway. The innkeeper lead them to the closest room, just down the hall. After unlocking the door, the innkeeper gestured for Cecil to come in, pointing toward the basin and an accompanying pitcher of water in a corner, along with two waiting glasses.
"If you need anything, just let me know," the man hovered in the threshold worriedly. "The shops are all closed, but I can find someone if it's an emergency…"
"If we had even a potion, it could help," Cecil frowned. "Unless you know any white magic?"
"I don't, sir," the man bowed apologetically. "But I'll run to see what I can find for medicine – here, take this key. I'll knock before I enter – I have another." He pressed the key in Cecil's hand, nodding one last time before closing the door behind him. Cecil tossed the key aside on a scuffed, water ring-stained palmwood table that sat one, and walked the girl over to the only bed in the room, pulling the covers back with one hand as he gently set her upon it with the other. After smoothing the blankets over her petite frame, he turned to the basin, preparing her water.
"Uhhh… Mommy…?"
Cecil froze, water spilling over the rim of the glass and collecting in the basin. He looked in the mirror positioned behind the basin, only to see the girl sitting up in bed. She had twisted herself around and was gazing out the window next to her, palms pressed to the glass. Cecil's attention returned to the water, and he winced when he saw the spillage, quickly withdrawing the pitcher. He turned back to the mirror; if the girl had heard him fumbling around, then she was pointedly ignoring his presence. Deciding it might be best to not look like a demon out of her nightmares before he approached her again, he lifted off his helmet, shaking his hair loose and splashing the wasted water in the basin over his face to wash away the dirt and blood that had accumulated from the incident in Mist.
When he approached the girl's bedside and set the glass down, she didn't even look at him. He could see the reflection of her stare in the moonlight-illuminated windows – her emerald gaze was burning with the same rage he had seen in Mist before everything had gone black, but the puffy pink swells beneath her eyes and the way her tiny fingers tremored against the windowpane just hard enough to make it rattle in place told Cecil that she was more fearful than anything else. The rattling in her throat was still there – he prayed she would at least relent and take a sip of water soon.
"You've woken," Cecil said softly by way of greeting, nudging the glass closer. Her eyes darted to it, and without turning around, her hand snatched out like a snake striking its prey, grabbing the glass and tossing it back without saying a word. Once it had been drained, she pushed it away, and Cecil had to dive down to stop it from crashing into the floor. He blinked, flustered at what to do next. He wasn't exactly good with kids, and the situation in Mist made this encounter twice as awkward. He decided the best thing he could do for now was get her more water, so he went back to the pitcher to refill her glass, watching her in the mirror.
"You still haven't told me your name."
She continued to say nothing as he brought her the second glass. This time, she flopped back around in the bed – he suspected that her temporary adrenaline from jolting awake was starting to fail her like it had him. She crossed her arms as if to make it clear she wouldn't take a damn thing offered from his filthy hands, and turned away. Cecil sighed, putting the glass down on the nightstand. "I won't ask you to forgive me. It's my fault you lost your mother. But, please...at least allow me to take you someplace safe. It may be hard to understand, but I fear war is on the horizon. I can protect you – make sure you're tucked away where no one bad can find you."
She shook her head, cautiously extending her hand for the glass. Cecil made it a point to back off, turning away and surveying the rest of the room. There was a worn rug at the foot of the bed – the gods only knew what horrors it had seen, but it was better than sleeping on a freezing cold floor. Cecil slumped down, his eyes closing before his head could hit his makeshift pillow consisting of his hands. He heard the glass get deposited back upon the nightstand and the bed above him shift, imagining that the little girl was laying down herself. As he tried to give some order to the chaotic thoughts racing through his brain and think about what he should do tomorrow to find Kain, he let his exhausted body give way to sleep.
"Lord Cecil! We've finally found you!"
Cecil moaned confusedly, his eyes fluttering open. For a moment, he couldn't remember where he was – why was he sleeping on a floor, and why the hell was the door open, letting in a flood of candlelight? He sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as his memory slowly drifted back to him.
That's right…I'm in the inn at the Kaipo Oasis…and the girl… He turned toward the bed, relieved to see a tiny lump under the covers that was steadily rising and falling with breath. Next to her was the empty water glass and a collection of potions – had Cecil been so dead in his sleep that the innkeeper had made it back and entered their room without him noticing? He turned toward the door, his vision adjusting against the glaring light. "Kain…?"
"No, you fool; it's me, General Ashby!"
Cecil blinked, his heart pounding as a tall man in a familiar crimson uniform stormed in, three other men behind him in what he recognized as standard navy uniforms of the royal guard – Baigan's men. Cecil scrambled to his feet, and General Ashby extended his gloved hand. Cecil recognized the man from around the castle, but honestly couldn't say that he had spoken to him on many occasions. As a general for Baron's non-specialist ground troops, he interacted more with Baigan and the Kingsguard than with Red Wings or Dragoons. Regardless, Cecil shook his hand, wondering what was going on – at least it wasn't going to be hard to play dumb.
"General Ashby…what brings you to Kaipo?"
"You!" The general exclaimed, flabbergasted. "You and Kain Highwind have been missing for nearly two days, do you realize that?" Cecil heard the bed creak behind him, and bit his lip. Please, please…don't bring any attention to yourself right now, girl!
Ashby took Cecil's silence and confused reaction as confirmation that he indeed had not realized how long he had been gone. And while that was true, Cecil was desperate to make sure their attention stayed on him, and not his guest – he decided to try to pry further into where Ashby's allegiances might lie.
"You mean, Kain hasn't made it home?" Cecil frowned. Of course Kain wouldn't have tried to return to Baron – not if he valued his life – but they don't know that yet… "There was an accident, and…"
"Highwind is MIA, as were you, until now," Ashby snorted. "Do you have amnesia or something?"
"N-No," Cecil gulped. I can't tell if Ashby has been briefed about Mist or not…! "Please, you must listen! His Majesty…"
"Our orders come directly from His Majesty's own mouth," Ashby interrupted. "All Summoners of Mist must be annihilated." He glanced over at the bed, and Cecil couldn't help but follow suit. The little girl was sitting up, wide-eyed, watching the lot of them spar back and forth. "Surrender the girl, and he will pardon all you've done – including restoring your rank to in the Red Wings."
"A-All I've done!?" Cecil snapped. That was it – his normally polite disposition would do them no good now. Ashby had most surely bought into King Baron's poisonous propaganda. "You mean, having followed His Majesty's sadistic orders for the mass extermination of innocents?"
Ashby shook his head. "The inhabitants of Mist represent a threat to us all. They must not be allowed to live! Had you understood the full scope of your orders, this girl would not be with you now." Cecil widened his eyes, and the little girl whimpered softly, pulling the blankets over her mouth.
"What?" Cecil gasped. "Y-You're insane." Ashby looked surprised at Cecil's pushback, as did his men.
"Stand aside," Ashby growled, and the chorus of three swords singing, released from their scabbards, rose from behind him. Cecil eyed his former countrymen warily, his fingers hovering over his own blade. He straightened his spine, clenching his jaw.
"I think I'd rather not!"
Ashby grunted and turned to his men, who seemed confused that a fight was actually going to go down. With a shrug, Ashby withdrew his sword and pointed it at the curve of Cecil's jaw.
"Kill him, then take the girl. His highness will only be placated when he witnesses the death of the last of the Summoners for himself."
"Wait!" Cecil cried, taking a step back as Ashby and his men began to approach him. "I don't…I don't want to fight you…" Unrelenting, they pressed forward, two men sweeping his left and right in an attempt to surround him. Cecil looked back at the girl, and saw that she had curled up against the corner of her bed and the nightstand, shivering in fear. Whatever she had managed to pull off in Mist to defend herself wasn't happening again – of that much, he could be sure.
I…I have no choice…
Cecil withdrew the shadowblade and held it taut between his right fist and his left index fingertip, the blade beginning to glow a sinister violet. He closed his eyes, whispering under his breath as he summoned every last drop of his strength to his sword.
"Dark Wave!"
He felt a powerful surge jerk up from his legs and core to his fingers, the sword discharging sharp, black, blue, and violet projectiles that flew toward his enemies – one specially crafted for each. The shadowy blades hit each of their marks with divine precision, the soldiers screeching as lacerations tore open from their arms, chests, and stomachs, the wounds laced with violet-black light. Cecil felt as if all the blood were rushing to his head at once, his energy dropping even more drastically than he had anticipated, but his initial attack was enough of a taste of what was to come for the intruders.
They bid a hasty retreat at Ashby's command, whimpering and clutching their wounds as Ashby turned one last time to curse Cecil's name. His lips twisted in a knowing smile when he saw Cecil's weakened form stagger against the basin, his smirk the last thing Cecil saw before Ashby turned tail and disappeared down the corridor. He heard the door of the inn slam shut so hard that it rattled the furniture all around them. Taking that as a sign that they were gone for good, Cecil allowed himself to collapse at the foot of the basin, the pitcher of water crashing just inches from his head as he desperately gasped for air. The girl leapt out of bed, first scrambling to close their own door, drenching the room in darkness. She then grabbed a potion from the nightstand, nearly tripping over her own feet to get it to Cecil.
"Be…careful of the pitcher glass…" Cecil moaned, and the girl ignored him, popping the cork to the potion and shoving it into Cecil's hands. He took it gratefully, offering her a small smile as he pressed the bottle to his lips.
"I'm sorry, it's all my fault," the girl whimpered, tilting her head so that she could see Cecil's face. It didn't escape him that this was the first time she was actually making an effort to look at him, and tried to control the way the pain contorted his features so that he looked somewhat normal.
"You've nothing to apologize for. It is I who've wronged you, and apologies cannot right the things I've done."
"But...you protected me at the risk of your own life," the girl sniffled. "What was that attack? Why did it hurt you?"
Cecil shook his head, setting down the empty potion. "I'll be all right. I'm a dark knight – do you know what that is?"
She gave him a blank stare, and he smiled more. The pain was starting to recede…a little.
"A dark knight's power comes from the ability to harness his own life energy and use it offensively. It's something I can control with more precision than even my own sword – therefore, I knew it was the only thing I could do that wouldn't kill them, but would still keep them away. But you mustn't fear…if they ever come back, I won't let them harm you."
The girl sat up, touching her fingertips together shyly. "My name's Rydia. Hold still, please." She closed her eyes, softly chanting a spell under her breath – one that even Cecil recognized from hearing Rosa practice it and practice it over and over while they were kids.
"Cure!"
A gentle white light sparkled over Cecil's body, and moments later, he felt his energy return, nearly good as new except for a few protesting twinges. He sat up more, extending his hand to Rydia, who took it gingerly, her tiny fingers swallowed in his.
"Rydia...that's a pretty name. So, you know white magic? It's impressive you can cast a spell like that at your age."
"I know a little," Rydia flushed, all of a sudden quite shy from being complimented. "That man called you 'Lord Cecil', right?"
"Just 'Cecil' is enough," Cecil forced a dry laugh, thinking about how that would probably be the last time anyone ever called him 'Lord Cecil' again in his lifetime. There came more silence as he once again came to realize the consequences of his actions far too late – it had seemed the rumor mill had already been churning if Cecil and Kain were being considered deserters – when Ashby touched back down in Baron, he would have irrefutable proof that Cecil had indeed turned traitor – and it would then only be a matter of time before Baron struck back. He had to find Kain as soon as possible and figure out how to extract Rosa. Rydia twisted a curl around her finger anxiously, fascinated by the way Cecil's eyes had suddenly darkened – it was as if someone had turned out the lights. She pointed toward the basin.
"How do you see in that thing in the dark?"
"Hmm?" Cecil asked, following her finger. He realized she was pointing to his helmet, and reached up to get it, plopping it in her lap.
"Same as any other armor," Cecil shrugged. "There are eye holes here…see? I suppose I've gotten used to it – I've been training to be a dark knight for a long time." Rydia investigated the helmet, handing it back to him when she grew bored. In Mist, he had looked like a demon straight from the hellscapes in the ghost stories she and her friends would tell at night. When it wasn't on someone, it wasn't scary at all.
"You look much better without it," Rydia said, her eyes trailing over Cecil's face and hair. "People can see your eyes this way." Cecil blushed.
"Well, I'll tell you a secret – I've never really liked my eyes."
"No?" Rydia blinked incredulously. "But they're so…blue."
"I know," Cecil smiled sadly. "People always stare – I've been told I look intimidating, even when I'm just being myself. When I was younger…sometimes…" he trailed off, not sure how much he should really be unloading on this poor child.
"Sometimes what?" Rydia demanded, and Cecil pushed his hands through his hair.
"…I would hear things that I don't think I was meant to hear from the adults around me…about how I never looked like I belonged with my family or my friends. I don't look like your typical Baronian. It wasn't very fun to hear that from people who pretended to be nice to me otherwise."
"Oh…" Rydia looked down, shaking her head. "Grown-ups…are really awful sometimes."
"…Yeah, they are," Cecil frowned, wondering if she was thinking about the grown-up sitting before her that had destroyed life as she knew it. "But, I think that's enough chatting for tonight. You really need to get your rest. I promise we can talk more tomorrow." There were some questions he had wanted to ask her as well – but they had to do with what happened at Mist, and he wasn't sure if making her relive that tragedy was really such a good idea…
After climbing back into bed, Rydia flopped on her side, gazing up at Cecil. "…So, what ARE we going to do tomorrow? You're really going to find a safe place for me to stay? Someplace where those bad guys won't come?"
Cecil nodded, resting his hands on his hips as he gazed out the window. The moon had disappeared behind a curtain of clouds, and he couldn't tell what time it was – he wondered how much sleep either of them would manage to get after tonight's drama.
"We need to find Kain first – that was the man with me in Mist. After we find him, we can figure out where to go to find allies who will join us in our fight against Baron. Meanwhile, we still need to rescue Rosa, and…" He was interrupted by gentle snoring, and glanced back down at Rydia. She was snuggled against her pillows, already fast asleep. Cecil smiled, adjusting her blankets before taking his own place back on the floor. After getting as comfortable as one can get on a rug, Cecil closed his eyes, whispering against his arm.
"Good-night, Rydia."
The following morning, Rydia woke up bright and early, washing her face and cuts with the remaining potions the innkeeper had dropped off. She then stood over Cecil, wriggling his shoulder with the toe of her sandal as she tilted her head.
"Good morning Cecil! Good morning!"
Cecil groaned and rolled over, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "Morning…" Already?
"Come on! We have to find Kain, right?"
"Alright… I'm coming."
What a remarkable change her personality from last night…what in the world could she possibly be thinking right now?
After Cecil had situated himself, he went to settle up with the innkeeper for the broken pitcher – if he came across any gil or treasure while seeking out Kain, he figured he could pay the man back then. But the innkeeper was so relieved that Cecil had chased off the "hooligans" that had broken in and had threatened the innkeeper until he had given up his key to their room, that he didn't want Cecil to pay him back a single gil, ever.
"Those men weren't really from Baron, right?" the innkeeper scoffed. "They need to come up with a better disguise the next time they try to rob someone! Still, that was the most action I've seen in this place in a long time. It was kind of exciting!"
The weather was extra hot and dry, all trace of cloud cover from the night before banished by the sun, which hung high enough in the sky for Cecil to silently chide himself for sleeping in later than he had intended. If Rydia hadn't gotten him up, he wondered if he would have slept for two more days, with the way he body was still reeling after that Dark Wave attack. Normally, a night of sleep and a potion and Cure magic would have done more than enough to recover, but… Well, he supposed surviving the earthquake had done a number on him as well.
At least, that's what he was hoping.
A gentle wind accompanied them that morning, brushing sand over Cecil's boots and Rydia's sandals. As they passed people on the busy market street, they took turns inquiring if anyone had seen a man in Dragoon armor, but no one seemed to know what they were talking about. Rydia ran up to a teenage girl sitting at the edge of the oasis as Cecil stepped into a shop to make some inquiries.
"Excuse me. Has a Baronian Dragoon been in town?" The girl looked up at Rydia and shook her head.
"Not from what I've seen. Awfully weird that you ask though. It seems that all sorts of people have been going missing since last week in Kaipo."
"What do you mean?" Rydia blinked, sitting down beside the girl. The girl flipped her hair back and sighed.
"Well, you know about Prince Edward, right?"
"Sure I do," Rydia nodded enthusiastically. "He's from the royal family that rules over this village, right? He's so handsome, and I hear he sings as beautifully as a bard!"
"Well, rumor has it that the prince has disappeared!" The girl exclaimed, secretly thrilled that she had an outsider to gossip with. "And so has his fiancée, Miss Anna. I know, 'cause Miss Anna's father, Tellah, turned the village upside down looking for the two of them."
"Oh no…" Rydia paled. "How terrible…I hope they find him soon."
"Me too," the girl sighed. "We all miss Prince Edward. He would always come to town and sing for me and my friends…"
Rydia climbed to her feet, coughing and gazing at the oasis thirstily. She decided it was time for a drink. As she walked back where Cecil had told her to wait for him, she saw him stepping outside, barreling over to him instead.
"Did you find out anything?"
"Hardly…" Cecil shook his head. "Everyone here is in an uproar because Prince Edward has disappeared."
"I just talked to someone about that," Rydia said. "Do you know Prince Edward?"
"No, can't say I know any royals outside of Baron," Cecil said, and started to continue down the street. Rydia tugged on his arm.
"Hold on Cecil, let's go back into the inn. I'm thirsty."
"I don't have any money…sorry," Cecil said, turning back to her. "We're indebted to that establishment enough." Rydia squirmed and rubbed her throat, and he crossed his arms. "I really don't have any money…Kain had all our gil on him…" He nodded toward the oasis. "Just drink from there."
"That's stealing, and knights don't steal," Rydia said exasperatedly, and Cecil gritted his teeth, grateful she couldn't see his reaction now that his helmet was back on. She paused as they passed a house, causing him to stop again before he accidentally left her behind. "Can't we just ask someone for a free drink? I mean, we're in the desert!"
"I don't know about asking strangers for a free drink," Cecil began, already not liking the fact that they had hit up so many people for information – if anyone from Baron were to return, it would be easy for them to figure out what Cecil had been up to. Just as he had resolved to drag Rydia back to the oasis, Rydia had already run over to the house, pounding on the door. Cecil groaned and turned to catch up to her, just as the door opened. A woman dressed in a long, light blue dress appeared, her brown hair wrapped up in a messy bun. Wiping her hands on her apron, she smiled and bent down to Rydia's level.
"Hi dear, what can I do for you?"
"I'm really thirsty," Rydia said in a sickeningly sweet tone. Cecil could feel his teeth grinding to dust, now. Rydia could be a little manipulator when she wanted to be… "Could I have a drink?"
"Rydia," Cecil protested. "What did I tell you?"
"Oh sir, your daughter is just too adorable," the woman laughed, and stood up. "Please come in, both of you. I have tea on the stove." Rydia looked back at Cecil, winking, and hurried inside. Cecil raised his eyebrows and followed, the woman pulling out two chairs for them before returning to her stove.
A d-daughter her age? How vulgar – I'm only twenty!
"Honey, who was at the door?" A male voice called from upstairs.
"Just some travelers who need a drink, dear!" The woman called back, and reached up on a shelf to pull down two mugs. As she poured the tea, a man came down the steps, pushing his flaxen hair back and smiling.
"Hello," he said, taking the empty seat next to Rydia. "What are your names?"
"I'm Rydia, and this is Cecil, my daddy."
Cecil blanched, and Rydia smiled up at him, pleased that he was going along with her story. Well, whatever makes her happy, I suppose, Cecil resigned. Cecil and the man shook hands, and the woman came over, setting down a mug of steaming tea in front of each table setting.
"Cecil, did you say? Must be a popular name."
"How so?" Cecil blinked, pulling off his helmet so he could sip on the tea. Just because Rydia had manipulated everyone into getting her way didn't mean he wasn't going to enjoy it for himself.
"Oh dear, it's terrible," the man's wife said, sitting across from Cecil and resting her cheek against her hand. "This morning, a young woman collapsed in the street right in front of our house. As my husband took her inside to recover, all she could do was moan and cry. The only word we could make out was the name 'Cecil'."
"…What…?" Cecil trailed off, nearly dropping his mug. Was this…some kind of a sick ruse? "…Where is she now?"
"She's still upstairs," the woman replied, and Cecil jumped up, his hip hitting the table and causing the dishes on it to rattle as he bolted out of the kitchen and ran up the staircase.
"Cecil!" Rydia cried, instantly forgetting that he was supposed to be 'daddy' instead, leaping from her seat and running behind him.
Please, please gods…let me be wrong… Cecil silently pleaded, turning down the corridor and going through the first open door he stumbled across. It was a beautifully decorated room, decked out in shelves lined impressive treasures from the world over – souvenirs and gifts from friends, it seemed – with the lace-curtained window wide open, filling it with a pleasant summer breeze. In the corner was a single bed, a coughing form balled up under the covers. Cecil approached the bedside slowly, his heart pounding, and slowly pulled back the covers. Rydia appeared in the doorway, panting for breath.
"…Cecil?"
"Oh God…" Cecil moaned, dropping the blankets and sinking to his knees. "No…" He closed his eyes, burying his face in his hands. Rydia slowly approached the bed and peered over Cecil's shoulder, blinking.
"Cecil…do you know this girl?"
A few moments later, the man and his wife cautiously made their approach upstairs, the wife waiting in the doorway as the man came over, carrying a fresh compress and placing it on the girl's forehead in bed. Cecil looked up, reaching over and gently pushing back the golden locks that had fallen in her face.
"Rosa!" Cecil winced, still hardly able to believe what was happening before his eyes. "This is…my…" He moaned and bit down on his lip. "Oh, Rosa…"
As things were, he could hardly recognize her. Her face was ashen and sallow, with dark pink, sunken circles around her eyes. Her hair was matted and pulled up in a tangled ponytail, and someone had taken off her favorite crystal tiara and placed it on the table next to her. Her lips were covered in dead, yellow skin and chapped, her breath escaping in shallow whistles. Her compress slipped off as she suddenly burst into a violent cough that shook her entire body, and when Cecil reached up to replace it, he involuntarily flinched. Her forehead was on fire!
Why…why!? Cecil shook his head, pressing his forehead to hers. After all of the horrible things I said…!
"Cecil…?" Rydia sighed, holding onto his arm and turning towards their hosts. "Why is she sick?"
"Well…" the man sighed, going over to the bookcase on the opposite side of the room and pulling down a book. Flipping through a few pages, he gently showed it to Cecil, who glanced at it, not bothering to read anything, and then quickly turned back to Rosa, grasping both her hands in his. Rydia took the book and narrowed her eyes, sounding the words out loud slowly.
"Des…ert…Fe…ver…" She looked back up for approval. "Desert fever?"
"It is quite an ailment…" the man said gently, taking the book back from her and reading down the page. "It's only a guess, but I believe this is the proper diagnosis…she has all the symptoms, and then some…Violent shivers…coughing up blood…constantly dehydrated despite a near-constant supply of water, high fever…" He shut the book and looked down at Cecil. "She's been out of it ever since we found her, so we couldn't ask her much…but you think she was looking for you?"
"I am positive she was," Cecil sighed. "She hails from Baron…our homeland." That last word tasted like bile on his tongue, but it was the simplest explanation he could bring himself to offer.
"Her trip must have been difficult," the woman frowned. "The passage to here from Mist was ravaged by some geological incident a few days ago…I can't imagine how she managed to get through to Kaipo. People were calling it an earthquake." Cecil closed his eyes, squeezing Rosa's hands tighter. She coughed again and slowly opened her eyes, her lips forming a tiny smile.
"Cecil…"
Cecil opened his eyes and gasped, leaning in and gently touching his nose to hers as he whispered. "Rosa…how are you feeling?"
Rosa sighed and closed her eyes again, mumbling a spell of gibberish. "Please, Cecil... Be alive!"
Cecil bit his lip and sat back, clearing his throat. She can't tell reality from dream…this is really bad. "…So…what can we do?"
"Well, there is a cure," the man replied, tapping the book's cover. "She needs something called the Sand Pearl. It is a substance that is created when an Antlion lays its eggs."
"Where can we find it?" Rydia cried.
"Well, the nearest Antlion nest is far northeast, near Damcyan Castle," the wife said, stepping inside and pushing her hair back. "The only problem is you will need a member of the royal family to take you to the nest. They are the only ones who have the ability to tame the Antlions and obtain the Sand Pearl." She paused, pressing her fingers to her lips. "Prince Edward is missing, but he has several cousins who live there that would be glad to assist, I am sure…especially since this is an emergency."
"You'll have to go through the underground waterway to the north," the man added. "But rumors have been going around town that the exit leading to Damcyan is being blocked by horrible sea snakes… You might have to wait a few days before they decide to move on."
"I cannot afford to wait. I'm going to Damcyan right now," Cecil said gruffly, standing up and pushing past the man and his wife. "Please look after Rosa and Rydia for me until I return."
Kain…forgive me again…I can only pray that you are not in harm's way…if I don't go soon, Rosa might…!
"Cecil, wait!" Rydia cried, following him. "Please, take me with you!" Cecil whirled around angrily, holding out his hand.
"Absolutely not. This is MY concern, not yours."
"You HAVE to take me with you!" Rydia gasped. "Did you hear him? There are going to be monsters! You don't have any magic, and you won't be any good to Rosa dead!" She pouted and grabbed his hand. "And…you promised you would protect me. What if those men…" she trailed off, wrapping her arms around herself. Cecil sighed, closing his eyes and trying to expel the negativity that had suddenly flooded his mind.
Of course Rydia is right. Whatever she did in Mist…there's great power inside of her – I'd be lucky to have her as an ally. And if something happened to her here in Kaipo while I was gone…no, I could never forgive myself. And if Baron were to hurt this innocent family too that has been trying to save Rosa's life…?
His face flooded with shame at taking his anger out on Rydia when she was just trying to help, and he wondered when he had suddenly become so easily agitated.
"Alright…I'm sorry Rydia," Cecil said softly. "You're right. We should go together."
"Oh dear…" The woman fanned herself. "Come downstairs with me dear, I'll pack some things for yourself and your…erm, daughter. It could take days to get through the waterway – you need to be prepared." She rushed downstairs, Rydia following her. The man looked up at Cecil and nodded, exiting the room – Cecil could hear him clomping down the stairs, too. He turned and faced Rosa, who had started coughing again, reaching to adjust her compress. She whimpered as she clung to her sweat-soaked pillow, closing her eyes tighter and gasping.
"Cecil…! Don't leave me…!"
"I-I'm sorry, Rosa… Please…wait for me!" His fingers hesitated to leave the compress – he could feel her overflowing warmth through the ice-dampened rag, the contrasting hot and cold almost making it seem as if she were perfectly normal. He slid the compress away, pressing his lips to her forehead for as long as it took to brand the incessant burn of her suffering into his lips, fervently moaning her name against her skin.
He finally stood up, adjusted her compress once last time, and started toward the door, her loud coughing causing his stomach to clench with each step. He drifted down the stairs like a ghost, feeling numb all over save for the blaze now set upon his lips.
I'll save you Rosa… I swear on my life!