Chapter 24
"Asch?" Luke tugged at the 12 year old's sleeve.
"What is it Luke?" Asch did his best not to look annoyed at being distracted from the book he had been reading. Luke looked upset.
"What's a replica?"
"Why do you ask that all of a sudden?"
"Well...you said that I'm a replica, and everyone else calls me a replica and I don't understand. Does it mean that I'm fake?" Luke asked, tears welling up in his eyes.
"What are you talking about? Of course you're real, you're standing right here."
"But then why-" Luke let out a sob.
Asch stood up and pulled him in to a soft embrace.
"It just means you were born different than other people." Asch told him gently as Luke continued to sob in his arms. "No matter what anyone else tells you, you're still my little brother - and that's the only thing that matters."
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Asch sat down on the bed overlooking his unconscious sibling. He gently brushed a few stray hairs out of Luke's eyes and frowned as his hand came upon the dry blood that stained the side of Luke's face. He had been so tired the night before that he had hauled the cot up from the storage room and promptly fallen asleep. He regretted not having taken the time to at least properly bandage Luke up.
"Will Master be okay?" Mieu hesitantly hopped up on the bed and looked up at Asch.
"He'll be fine after he gets some rest. He's had a hard time lately." Asch quietly replied as he examined the extent of Luke's injuries.
"That's true." Mieu replied. "Everyone was really mad at him too."
"They were…" Asch trailed off as he fought against his growing anger. It wouldn't do to wake Luke, whose consciousness was quietly resting in the back of his mind. He had gotten the full account on recent events from Luke the night before, from Van's manipulations, to what everyone had said on the Tartarus. Asch got the impression that Luke hadn't intended to tell him that last part, but as he had told the story, everything had just come out, and despite Asch's best attempts to comfort him, he had cried himself to sleep. "Hey Mieu," Asch distracted himself from that train of thought; "do you think you could do me a favour?"
"Sure!" The little cheagle's ears flapped in excitement. The little creature certainly did love to help out.
"Do you think you could go get me a cloth soaked in warm water?"
"I think that might be a bit too big for me to carry, mieu."
"You don't need to bring the water," Asch chuckled, "Just the wet cloth."
"Oh okay!" The little cheagle promptly bounced down the stairs.
Asch could hear the soft mumble of everyone else as they talked downstairs. So everyone else was up too. Asch quietly listened but couldn't make out what anyone was saying. Then eventually, over the soft mumble of their discussions, Asch heard a scuffling noise, followed by slop, as a wet cloth hit the ground. Then came the scuffling, and another slop, and the cycle continued until Asch's curiosity got the best of him and he stood up to investigate.
The source of the sound was the little cheagle as he fought to get the cloth up the stairs. He had soaked the cloth with water and it was too heavy for him to bounce back up the stairs with, so instead he would toss the cloth up to the next step, then jump up himself and repeat the process. Asch hopped down the first few steps to where the cheagle had made it and picked up the cloth, allowing Mieu to hop up onto his shoulder. Asch stole a glance into the living room where everyone was, but took off back up the stairs when he was noticed.
'What's that for?' Luke's sleepy presence inquired.
'Nothing important.' Asch replied as he took he place on the bed again. 'I'm just going to clean you up a bit. We can't leave you like this.' Luke didn't know what to say, so instead he watched as Asch removed the bloodstained pieces of fabric that had once been his jacket and threw them in the garbage. Once that was gone, the number of bruises and cuts became all the more obvious. None of them were major injuries, but there were so many…
Luke could feel the guilt build up in his older brother as he began to wash the dried blood and dirt off Luke's face.
'Asch...'
'I'm sorry.' Asch pre-empted whatever Luke was going to say
'No, don't apologize.' Luke replied softly. 'I'm glad you did it. I don't think you would have gotten through to me any other way.'
'I don't care. It's still no excuse for having hurt you like that.'
'Okay,' Luke replied with an exasperated sigh, 'how about we make a deal. I won't feel guilty about what you showed me last night if you stop feeling guilty about having hurt me. We'll call it even.'
'But that wasn't your-'
'I don't care.' Luke cut Asch off. 'Do we have a deal?'
Asch couldn't help but smile. 'Fine. It's a deal.'
Out of the corner of his eye, Asch noticed Mieu curl up on the bed near Luke's feet and promptly fall asleep. He chuckled. All that effort must have worn the poor little thing out.
'Why didn't you just go get the cloth yourself?' Luke inquired curiously. Asch didn't answer, simply continuing the process of cleaning Luke's wounds as best he could. That's when it dawned on Luke.
He was avoiding the others.
Of course, it made sense now that Luke thought about it. He could only imagine what it must have looked like to everyone else. Asch mysteriously comes back from the dead, or miraculously survived Akzeriuth's fall, depending on how you looked at it; either way he then proceeds to attack his twin brother and successfully cut him into ribbons. Yeah…they would have a lot of explaining to do.
'So then why did you come to Tear's house?' Luke tried.
'I wouldn't have if I had known it was Tear's house.' He replied. 'I just asked the first person I came across where we could stay and he directed me here saying that the regular occupant was out of town. He told me I was welcome to use the bed upstairs and that I could grab an extra cot from the storage room. It wasn't until they all showed up later that I realized it belonged to Tear.'
'What did they say?'
'Nothing, they thought I was asleep.'
'You're going to have to go downstairs eventually. I somehow doubt the secrets to Van's plans can be found in Tear's bedroom.'
'You never know…' Asch jokingly replied.
Luke chuckled at the joke and simply watched as Asch finished with the cloth and proceeded to bandage Luke's wounds as best he could with what few supplies he had. Asch worked slowly, putting off the inevitable. Luke could sense just how much he was loathing trying to explain everything. And he wouldn't have Luke to back him up.
Luke could only hope it would go over better than his attempts at explaining Akzeriuth had.
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A flash of red caught her eye as Asch darted back up into Tear's room. Natalia still couldn't believe it. It was Asch. Asch had actually come back to her. She had almost given in to the fact that she had lost him forever this time. But he had come back.
She had been so happy to see him. At first she didn't believe her eyes, but there he was. She had wanted nothing more than to run up to him, hold him, and never let him go. But before she had made it two steps, he had drawn his sword, on Luke of all people. Certainly after Akzeriuth Luke more than deserved it, but Asch wasn't typically inclined to agree with her on those points. And despite the fact she was always trying to get Asch to scold him when necessary, something about this had seemed off, and it had frightened her.
"Asch! What the hell are you doing?"
She hadn't been the only one. Guy's outraged cry had fallen on deaf ears as the two boys had fought, completely oblivious to the rest of the world. Jade had forbidden any of them to try and get between the two. There was no saying who was on what side anymore, and Jade wouldn't risk anyone else getting hurt. But it was Asch; surely he of all people would have a reason for acting as he did, no matter how it appeared to the rest of them. So they could only watch on as two of the closest people they knew, chased after each other's life.
Then there had been that laugh. That horridly sad and insane laughter that escaped Luke; it had made her hair stand on end. If she closed her eyes, she could still hear it, and it gave her the shivers even now. But it was the only thing that had come out of either of them. There was never any attempt to talk, any effort made to discuss; they had simply gone straight for each other's throats. Just what had happened between them?
Things just went on and on, getting worse by the second. Natalia found herself cringing every time she heard Luke crash into the stone leaving trails of blood behind him. Just when she though she couldn't take it any more, Asch clearly won, and Luke's sword went skidding across the ground. He placed his sword in Luke's face and watched him until he lost consciousness. No one had dared say a word. She so desperately wanted to talk to him, to ask him what was going on,anything, but the words froze in her throat, and she didn't know what to say.
Once Luke had lost consciousness, Asch sheathed his sword. He picked up Luke's, sheathed it, then removed it from Luke and hung it over his shoulder. Then much to their surprise, he pulled out some bandages from one of his pockets and quickly tied up the most severe of Luke's injuries. He then knelt down, managed to get his unconscious brother onto his back and proceeded to brush right past the rest of them as if they didn't even exist.
"What do you suppose that was all about?" Tear had inquired once the boys were out of sight.
"Who knows?" Anise shrugged. "Asch isn't making any more sense than Luke did."
"It's strange though." Ion had added, "Why would Asch provoke Luke, go through the trouble of overwhelming him, injuring him, and then turn around and take care of him like that. It doesn't make any sense."
"Not when you put it like that." Jade had simply replied.
Natalia felt inclined to agree with Ion. Asch's action just simply didn't make any sense. They hadn't had the chance to speak with him since then either. Everyone had been incredibly surprised to find them both asleep in Tear's room when they got there. Admittedly they'd had some forewarning. A man on the street had stopped Tear and apologized for sending a couple of guests to her house since she wasn't expected back for a couple months yet. Tear reassured the man that it was fine, and they had proceeded to find the boys sound asleep in her room.
She had so desperately wanted to speak with Asch, to ask him what was going on. But she didn't have the heart to wake him, and they all decided that it could wait until everyone had a good night's rest. None of them had had any real sleep since before Akzeriuth.
So now they were here, patiently waiting for Asch to come downstairs. Discussing what they thought was the reason behind yesterday's… events. The possibility also existed that Asch also knew what happened in Akzeriuth, a fact that greatly seemed to interest Jade. But what else was there to know? Luke had clearly admitted to being at fault. It was obvious, just what more could there be?
Jade noted the frequent looks he got from the Kimlascan princess and wondered if she was going to ask the question he knew was on her mind. But she averted her gaze and instead began speaking with Tear.
He himself had quite a few questions for the young noble, whenever he decided to grace them with his presence, which, judging by how quickly he had bolted back upstairs, may yet be awhile. He wasn't stupid; he knew the interrogation he was due to face as soon as he came down.
But Jade wasn't so much interested in the reasoning behind Asch's rash actions towards Luke the previous day, rather if Asch felt the need to assault Luke for whatever reason he deemed necessary, far be it from him to stand in his way. What he wanted was another vital piece of information that Asch potentially held: what had really happened in Akzeriuth.
While the others had been content to blame Luke and have that be the end of it, something with that reasoning didn't sit right with Jade. It left the question as to how the young noble could have done it, unanswered. Even after speaking with Ion to get more details on the passage rings themselves, all the possibilities he could come up with didn't make sense.
First there was the possibility that Luke had unknowingly tampered with the passage ring somehow. But that could easily be ruled out by a simple fact: The passage ring hadn't been tampered with, it had been outright disintegrated.
So then it boiled down to one thing: what exactly could disintegrate a passage ring like that? Passage rings were Dawn Age technology, and not even the Order of Lorelei had the slightest clue how, or out of what, they were made. There was really only one thing Jade could think of with that kind of destructive potential. A hyperresonance.
But that theory too had its flaws. While Luke was indeed a Seventh Fonist, and an untrained one at that, when they had found him, he had been alone. It took two Seventh Fonists to cause a hyperresonance. That implied that there had to have been someone else, another Seventh Fonist, in the passage ring with Luke.
Perhaps Tear's suspicions about her brother's hand in the matter weren't completely unfounded. Commandant Grants was a Seventh Fonist, but his lack of presence in Akzeriuth bothered Jade. Rather than put him in the passage ring with Luke, it seemed more likely he had known what would happen and was already long gone.
The only remaining candidate was Asch. Asch and Luke causing a hyperresonance made far more sense, and was much more likely considering just how similar the two were, but that didn't work either. Asch wasn't the type of person who would run away and leave Luke to take all the blame. If anything, he was more likely to have shouldered all the blame himself. Jade didn't doubt that if he had ever been in the passage ring with Luke, he had been forcefully removed. That of course introduced the question of who… and Jade was right back at square one. There was a critical piece of the puzzle missing, and Jade knew that as soon as he found that piece, everything else would fall into place. The question remained, was that piece in the hands of the young Kimlascan noble?
The room fell silent as Asch made his way down the stairs. He watched them apprehensively, as he suddenly became the focus of everyone's attention. No sooner had he stepped off the last step, had Guy grabbed him by the collar and pinned him up against the wall. Everyone in the room held their breath, but no one came to Asch's defence.
"What the hell did you do to Luke?!" Guy demanded, practically lifting the young noble off the ground. Guy's anger towards Asch had reached an all time high, and that was saying something. He was so completely and utterly disgusted with him. Luke trusted Asch more than he trusted anyone else! How could Asch have done that? How could he have just beaten him up, without giving any sort of rhyme or reason for it?! And after everything Luke had just been through!
Asch looked Guy straight in the eye, with the most venomous look any of them had ever seen.
'What did I do?" Asch seethed, his voice getting louder with every word, "I gave him something to hold onto! Even if that something was hatred, I gave him something to live for! It was a hell of a lot more than any of you did!"
An awkward and guilt-ridden silence filled the room and Guy released his hold on the red head, retreating to a far corner of the room, his own venomous looks never leaving the boy he had just let go.
"Asch?" Natalia finally spoke up.
"What is it?"
"It is really you… isn't it?" She hesitantly asked.
"It's me." He replied with a soft smile. Before he could say anything else, he found the princess in his arms and he held her in return.
"How did you escape Akzeriuth? We all thought you had died." Natalia inquired, still holding onto him as if he would vanish should she let go, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Yes, I'm certain our young princess isn't the only one who would like to know." Jade added as Asch gently separated himself from Natalia.
"Van got me out." Asch eventually replied.
Her brother did? Tear watched Asch as he faced the rest of them, a mix of emotions on his face. Tear couldn't quite pick out what Asch was feeling. It had sounded like resentment in his voice. Did he not want to be saved? Or was her brother more involved in Akzeriuth's collapse than the others seemed led to believe? But no, Luke had admitted to it. Though his intentions may not have been malicious, he had still admitted fault. It just didn't make sense.
"See Tear!" Anise piped up, "The Commandant didn't have anything to do with it! He's the one that saved Asch!"
"Didn't have anything to do with it?!" Asch yelled in outrage, "Van-"
'Asch don't!' Luke's cry stopped Asch mid sentence. 'Don't…'
'Why shouldn't I? After all this, why should we hide the truth?! Why let them believe it was all your fault?'
'It doesn't matter anymore. Whether I was at fault or not, it doesn't change the fact that it still happened.'
The rest of the group watched Asch, waiting to find out what had caused his sudden fury. But his anger seemed to appease before he spoke again.
"Van isn't to be trusted. I found out that much." He spat, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.
"But he saved you from Akzeriuth didn't he?" Anise inquired.
"I get the feeling there's more going on here than we realize." Ion intervened, earning him a grateful smile from Asch. "Would it be best we not inquire for the time being?"
"Thank you Fon Master." Asch replied, "I still have quite a bit to sort out."
"No kidding, I mean his twin brother just annihilated a town." Anise mumbled, earning her a glare from Asch. "Hey!" she protested, "Don't look at me like that! You're the one who showed up and beat him up! Isn't that why you did it?"
"What would you know?"
"I could ask you the same thing. You haven't been around since Akzeriuth. You didn't see how he acted or hear what he said! What do you thinkyou know?"
"I know that I showed up in Yulia City and found my brother half insane. How about you tell me the rest?"
"Oh you're going to lecture me after what you did yesterday? Admit it! You know full well that he's the low, good for nothing brat that he is, and you're just trying to defend him!" Anise glared back at Asch. "Well I don't care. You weren't there, the things he said made me sick. I don't think I've ever hated anyone that much in my life!"
Luke was taken aback as he watched the scene play out before him. He knew Anise had been mad, but she really hated him. As cruel as the things she said were, they felt genuine. She wasn't putting up a front, it was how she really felt. Luke fought to keep his emotions under control since he could tell Asch was already struggling to do the same. He didn't need to have to deal with Luke's overwhelming sense of disappointment and guilt on top of his own growing anger.
"I don't have time for this." Asch forcefully replied letting out a frustrated sigh before he tore the child before him to pieces. "Tear, where can I find the mayor?"
"The mayor? Why?"
"I want to see about going back up to the surface as soon as possible."
"And you're just going to leave Luke?"
"Yeah." Asch replied without a second thought. He and Luke had already discussed it and had decided to leave as soon as possible, rather than wait the few days it would take for Luke to fully recover. As it stood, Luke wasn't physically well enough to do the heavy travelling that was likely going to be necessary, so he had decided to tag along with Asch until his body healed rather then remain aimlessly in Yulia City. But it's not like they could explain that to the others.
"I can't believe you! You're just going to abandon him? Just like that?!"
"Look at the pot calling the kettle black." Asch shot back.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
'Asch…' Luke's warning tone helped settle some of the anger that had been building up inside of him .
'Fine.' He replied to Luke before saying anything aloud. "Nothing. Do you know where I can find him or not?"
"My grandfather is usually in the conference center next door." Tear curtly replied.
"What are you doing that's so urgent?" Jade demanded as Asch began towards the door.
"There's something important I have to look into." He replied, turning to face his newest inquisitor. Jade simply stared at him for a moment. Asch had no idea what he was looking for, but he met the Colonel's unnerving gaze, and after a moment, he seemed satisfied, as if he'd decided something for himself.
"You realize you'll probably have to take the Tartarus correct?"
"The thought had crossed my mind." Asch replied.
"Good. With Akzeriuth's sudden disappearance, I doubt there will any ferries running. It wouldn't do you any good to wind up stranded now would it?"
"No, not especially. But where do you plan to get the manpower to run that thing? Since I assume you're planning on tagging along."
"Well staying here indefinitely doesn't seem especially productive, and I do have a few things I would like to look into myself. As for manpower, that depends on whether staying here indefinitely appeals to our young Fon Master Guardian here." Jade replied with a smirk in Anise's direction.
"Of course we'll help." Ion offered. "But are you really determined to leave so soon? I'm certain Luke will recover quickly."
"I'm certain." Asch replied, much to Ion's disappointment.
"It's your decision to make, I won't say any more on the matter." He replied.
'See, I told you they care about you.' Asch stated as Ion took a seat on one of the couches.
'You don't have to keep this up. This isn't fair to you. I can stay here for a few days.' Luke protested, noting the animosity towards his sibling.
'It's okay, I don't mind. As long as you don't feel like I'm abandoning you here.'
'I don't, I know it's important we figure out what Master Van is up to as soon as possible, before more people get hurt. Besides I want to try and help however I can.'
'You just know you'd go crazy from the boredom if you stayed.' Asch taunted.
'Shut up.' Luke jokingly shot back.
"I can't believe you. I don't even want to have anything to do with you." Asch heard Guy mumble as he left the room out a back door. Asch sighed, he hadn't realized a smile had crept onto his face as he joked around with Luke. It had successfully antagonized Guy, and from the looks of things Tear wasn't all that impressed either. Well not much point in hanging around now.
"I'm going to find the mayor, I'll be back sometime later." Asch stated as he closed the door behind him.
"Asch wait!" Natalia said once he had left and quickly slipped out the door after him.
"Are you going to come along too Tear?" Anise asked the melodist.
"No. I have no reason to return to the Outer Lands for the time being." She replied. "Guy what are you doing?" She inquired as the blonde popped back in the room and made his way towards the stairs.
"Sorry I know we said we'd let him sleep, but I'm waking Luke up, there's something I have to talk to him about."
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"Asch wait!" Asch stopped and turned around to see Natalia chasing after him.
"What is it Natalia?"
"I just…I wanted to talk with you." Natalia hesitantly answered as she caught her breath.
"What's the matter?"
"Asch…why? Why did you really attack Luke like that?"
"Do you trust me?" was Asch's simple response.
"What?" Natalia was caught off guard by his retort.
"Do you trust me?"
"Of course I do! I'd trust you with my life!"
"Then trust me that I had my own reasons for doing what I did, and leave it at that."
"Are you really leaving Luke here alone?"
"From the sounds of things he won't be completely alone. Tear isn't coming along, she's staying here, and I doubt Guy's going to come along either."
"But still…it's not like you to leave him behind like that."
"Everything will be fine. It's not like I'm leaving him behind forever, I'll be back for him by the time he's back on his feet." Luke chuckled, Natalia was the last person in the world he expected to be worried about him. Though she was more worried about Asch's behaviour concerning him, still coming from Natalia that was pretty unusual.
"Please don't do that again." Natalia said softly as she walked up to him and held him gently. "I thought I'd lost you again. After what happened seven years ago, I just can't- I can't lose you."
"Hey," Asch softly answered as he rested his cheek comfortingly on her head, "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You're coming with us when we head back up to the Outer Lands right?"
"Of course. I wouldn't dream of letting you go on your own."
"Good, because we may have some problems to deal with, and I'm going to need your help."
"What sort of problems?" Natalia took a step back so she could look into Asch's eyes.
"War problems," Asch replied as he pulled her closer again. "Akzeriuth disappeared, and I imagine we're both presumed dead, and not only us, but Luke too who's in line for the throne after you and me. I doubt things will stay peaceful much longer." There was a long silence where Natalia happily allowed herself to get lost in Asch's embrace, her presence gently helping appease his growing worries, if only just for that moment. "I'm sorry." Asch finally said.
"My goodness, whatever for?"
"It looks like that something special I promised you is going to have to wait a bit longer."
"That's okay, I don't mind waiting. It's our country after all."
"That it is." Asch replied letting Natalia go. He gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. "I'm going to go talk with the mayor. I'll see you back at Tear's house okay?"
"Alright." She replied softly and began making her way back.
'What are you so happy about?' Asch prodded his sibling who was just overflowing with mischievous amusement.
'Oh nothing.'
'Uh huh. I'll believe that the day you voluntarily clean your room.'
'It'sorganized chaos! If I clean it up I won't be able to find anything.'
'Whatever lets you sleep at night.' Asch taunted as has made his way up to the conference room.
'Hey you-'
'Shush for a bit.' Asch cut off Luke's retort.
"Are you the mayor of Yulia City?" Asch questioned the only person in the room. He was seated at the far end of a long conference table and looked up at the visitor.
"Yes, I am Teodoro."
"My name is Asch."
"Ah yes, the young heir to Kimlasca's throne."
"That's right…"
"Don't look so surprised young man. Very few people know of us, but we stay informed on matters concerning the Outer Lands."
"I see. I was wondering of you could help me with something."
"You seek a way back to the Outer Lands, don't you?"
"How-"
"Is it really that hard to believe that you would want to leave? This Qliphoth is no place for humans to live."
'I wonder why they all live here then.' Asch repeated Luke's question.
"We are the watchers. We cannot leave this land," Teodoro replied, "but if you are looking for a way to the Outer Lands, you are welcome to utilize the Yulia Road."
"The Yulia Road is used to transport people up to the Outer Lands from here?"
"That is correct."
"Is there any way that it would be possible to raise the Tartarus as well?"
"It would be difficult, but possible. We may be able to attach a fonon activator to the ship that will allow you to use the last of the power Akzeriuth's Sephiroth possesses to push you up. It would be dangerous; do you need the ship that badly?"
"I'm afraid we do."
"Alright then, I'll arrange to have preparations done as soon as possible. You should be prepared to leave within a few hours."
"Thank you very much. But before you go, may I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"Is it true that Akzeriuth's fall was predicted in the Score?" Teodoro looked at the boy, almost surprised at the nature of the question.
'Wait a second! You think it might be true?' Luke was also surprised by the question. He had come to believe that it had been a lie Master Van had used to trick him.
"Yes, Akzeriuth's fall was foretold in the Score." Teodoro replied before leaving to make preparations.
'No way that's impossible! If it was in the Score, why didn't anyone do anything about it?!' Luke yelled in outrage.
'Easy there…' Asch cringed as if Luke had yelled in his ear. 'It's probably part of the Closed Score that the Order of Lorelei keeps secret.'
'But someone had to have known about it! Why didn't anyone do anything! Why did all those people have to die?!'
'Luke, try to calm down. I understand how you feel, and to be honest I agree with you, but think about it from a different standpoint. The Score promises prosperity, and if the Score isn't followed then we lose that prosperity.'
'There's no point to prosperity if you're dead before you reach it.'
'I agree with you there.'
'That's not what's bothering you, is it?' Luke inquired sensing Asch's unsettled thoughts.
'No it isn't. It's Uncle and the others, they knew too. It would explain why he refused to let me and Natalia come, and why he kept trying to talk Ion out of it.'
'What?' Luke suddenly remembered the conversation he had overheard in the drawing room. 'Wait you're right. Father too. I overheard him talking about it but at the time I didn't know what it was.'
'Father knew too?' Asch sounded disgusted.
'What's the matter all of a sudden?'
'That's just so like Father.'
'What is?'
'Not to give a damn about whether his son is about to go die.'
'Come on Asch, that's not it.'
'Oh come on! Since when has he ever given a damn about either of us?!'
'Sure he's distant and doesn't really spend time with us but he's not that bad of a person.'
'How can you be so calm about it?! Don't you care at all?'
'I don't know…he's our father. I'm sure he has his reasons.'
'You're a naïve fool.'
'Yeah well, I'm seven. Deal with it.' Luke shot back and Asch just burst out laughing. Leave it to Luke to turn it all around like that. Now all that was left was to go get the others and they could finally be on their way.
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"Come on Jade!" Guy was yelling at the necromancer when Asch walked in the door. "Don't give me that crap about him being fine! I can't wake him up!"
"I've already told you," Jade repeated in a surprisingly calm voice considering he had a blonde in his face, "Luke's pulse is normal, his breathing is regular and his heart rate isn't out of the ordinary. If it wasn't for the fact that you can't wake him up, I would say he is simply sleeping." Asch quietly made his way up the stairs while Guy continued to yell at the Colonel.
"Lay off Guy." Anise pitched in after a moment. "What else do you want him to tell you? He can't make Luke magically wake up any more than you can."
Guy let out a frustrated sigh. "I know that but, I can't just do nothing. I'm going to check on him again."
"You realize nothing will have changed from when you checked on him 5 minutes ago right?" Anise pointed out. Guy simply waved his hand dismissing her taunt as he made his way up the stairs.
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"You're back!" Mieu hopped up when he saw Asch come upstairs.
"Shhh." Asch quieted the young cheagle, Guy's yelling was clearly audible all the way upstairs.
"Are you really going to leave Master all alone, mieu?"
"Just until he gets better, I wouldn't leave him for good. There's just something I have to take care of first."
"But why not wait for Master to wake up?"
"Because it's something really important, and Luke wouldn't forgive me if I waited. Besides, even if he did wake up, he's still not all better. If he came with us as he is now, he would probably end up getting hurt again. I wasn't able to protect him in Akzeriuth, so I'm going to make sure he stays safe this time." Asch replied.
"I'm going to stay with Master." Mieu replied.
Asch smiled as he ruffled the fur on the little cheagle's head. "Okay... you watch over him for me."
"I will. What should I tell him if he wakes up?" Mieu inquired.
"Don't worry, I'll be back by the time he's up."
"But what if he wakes up before then? He'll be all confused and sad and mieuuuu."
Asch had to bite his lip, Luke was already dying of laughter at the back of his mind at just how complex Asch's web of lies was growing, and at the level of concern the little creature possessed.
"Then tell him I'll be back for him, or that if he's feeling better, he can come find me." Asch managed.
"But how will he know where you are?" The young cheagle insisted. Asch let out a snort before managing to compose himself.
"If he doesn't know, tell him to wait for me."
Mieu looked at him strangely for a moment, but decided against inquiring for the reason behind the strange sounds and faces Asch was making. "Okay!"
"Alright, I'd better go, take good care of him." Asch stood up from where he had taken a seat on the bed.
"I will. Good luck!"
'You are so dead later' Asch shot at Luke who was still stifling his laughter.
'I know, that's why I figured I'd best enjoy myself while I can.'
'Yeah well-' Asch stopped dead in his tracks when he turned to head down the stairs. He found himself looking into a pair of blue eyes. "Guy." The blonde didn't answer. "What do you want?" Asch tried, deciding he probably wasn't interested in idle chatter.
"You need another person to help with the Tartarus right?" The blonde finally said.
Asch simply shrugged. "No idea, ask Jade. Besides I thought you didn't want to have anything to do with me."
"I'm not going because of you. I want to see just what you think is so important you're leaving Luke behind." He replied, turning around and heading back down the stairs.
'He overheard us.' Asch stated as he followed Guy down the stairs.
'You really think that's why he changed his mind? Maybe he just wanted to help you.' Luke offered.
'He's not doing this for me; he's doing it for you.'
"Ahh there you are," Jade spoke up once Asch made it downstairs. "A messenger just arrived from the mayor; the preparations for the Tartarus are complete."
"Good," Asch replied, "Then let's go."
--------
"Wow, the Tartarus is in pretty good condition considering what it's been through." Asch commented as he ran his hand along the relatively straight railing of the deck.
"Indeed, it's held up rather nicely." Jade commented as he gave the deck a quick glance. He had done a far more thorough inspection of the Tartarus after it had fallen from Akzeriuth. While the hull had sustained some damage, all the engines and operating systems were still intact, and there was little compromise to the ship's maneuvering capability.
"What the hell is this?" Anise yelled from the other end of the deck. Asch made his way over to where Anise was standing. At her feet was a giant pile of what looked like crimson feathers.
As soon as Asch got closer, a head poked up out of the red mess and Asch found himself under assault by the huge creature. Everyone had their weapons drawn and ready to fight when they realized that Asch was laughing as the creature nuzzled him. Asch eventually managed to calm the bird down but couldn't convince it to move aside. Instead he absentmindedly stroked the bird's plumage while under the confused gaze of everyone else.
"Care to explain?" Jade offered.
"I have no idea, it was the bird Van used to get me out of Akzeriuth, and it was how I got to Yulia City after that. I have no idea what it's still doing here though." Asch offered. The bird just responded by nuzzling him.
"Awww he likes you." Ion spoke up, "I bet he waited here for you since the citizens wouldn't let him in city."
"Well if it likes Mr. Temper over here it must like anyone." Anise reached out to pet the bird. Rather than indulgently allow the handling like it did for Asch, it turned vicious and snapped at the young girl causing her to shriek and retreat behind the Fon Master. "Hey! That stupid bird almost bit my hand off! Stupid thing…"Anise mumbled, "I bet Gloomietta raised it."
Asch stifled his own laughter, and grinned as he continued to pet the creature. Luke too was in fits of laughter at the back of Asch's mind.
"My, my," Jade pushed his glasses back up his nose, "the Fabres do seem to have a strange affinity for befriending monsters. How does the saying go? Birds of a feather?"
"Well that would explain why it's so comfortable on your ship." Asch shot back. Jade simply shrugged off the insult and made his way to the bridge where Guy had already installed himself and was keeping himself entertained by examining the various devices and switches on the panels.
"So what are you going to do with him?" Ion inquired with Anise still sending the thing death glares from behind him.
'Uh oh' Luke spoke up.
'What is it?'
'Your pet bird is going to eat my pet cheagle isn't it?' At Luke's comment Asch couldn't help it and burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?" Ion inquired.
"Somehow I don't imagine he'll get along very well with Mieu. I'll let him go once we've reached the Outer Lands."
"He certainly is majestic." Natalia commented, keeping her hands clear out of the bird's reach.
"Are you four coming?" Guy called impatiently from the bridge.
"Come on guys," Asch said as he managed to detach himself from the crimson bird that insisted on following him to the bridge. Thankfully the bridge was spacious enough and it was content to sit in one of the empty corners.
"So where are we heading?" Jade inquired.
'That's a good question, where are we going?' Asch questioned Luke.
'Well we wanted to know why Van destroyed the Sephiroth in Akzeriuth, right? So we should try and find some information about the Sephiroth. The best place for that would probably be Daath.'
'True,' Asch countered 'but Daath is where Van and the God-Generals have their base. I'd like to save that as a last resort. We could always try Baticul.'
'Baticul? Why would there be anything in Baticul?'
'Well after you were born we gathered a lot of books and papers on fomicry. It's possible something about the Sephiroth and Dawn Age technology got mixed in-'
'No.' Luke abruptly cut off Asch's thought.
'Why not?'
'Please Asch. No.' Luke pleaded.
'Alright,' Asch conceded easily guessing the reason behind Luke's plea, 'I guess we could try Belkend then. They have a huge research lab there, they might have something.'
'Thanks.'
"We'll head for the research labs in Belkend." Asch stated. He looked around at all the empty seats. "Are you sure we can handle the Tartarus with this few people?"
"Yes, we'll be limited in mobility and attacking is out of the question, but it is operable." Jade replied.
"Alright then. Everyone ready? Let's depart."
'Back to the Outer Lands.' Asch added.
'Yeah, where we'll hopefully find some answers.'