Chapter 30
"So much for never falling…" Anise grumbled as she crawled out of the Albiore. "Are you alright Ion?" She asked as she helped the Fon Master down.
"I'm fine," Ion replied as he accepted her hand. "What about everyone else?"
Asch, Guy, Jade and Natalia had already gotten out and were waiting a few feet from the Albiore. Ion spotted Luke who had climbed up on the front and was helping Ginji out of a small door on the side of the cockpit. He let out a sigh of relief, everyone was fine.
"What happened?!" Anise exclaimed once they had all regrouped.
"I'm so sorry," Ginji mumbled ashamedly. "The headwinds were much stronger than I'd anticipated."
"Why didn't you say anything about that before we left?" Anise demanded.
"We weren't supposed to be heading this way," the pilot replied. "I took a bit of a detour to avoid a storm system. But I didn't expect the winds here to be quite so strong…I'm sorry, this is all my fault."
"You really shouldn't be so hard on yourself," Jade commented, eyeing the Albiore. "Considering our surroundings, you did a magnificent job of reducing the damage. We could have easily ended up dangling from one of those cliffs, or colliding into the valley walls."
"He's right," Ion agreed, "and no one's hurt. You did a wonderful job for someone who's never flown before."
"But you were in a hurry to save your friend, and now I messed it up and she might end up getting hurt," Ginji hung his head.
"It's alright," Asch said softly, "There's nothing you could have done otherwise. You couldn't have known. Besides, don't you worry about a thing; we're still going to save her."
"Thanks," Ginji gratefully smiled at the redhead.
"That's all well and said," Guy spoke up, "but how are we going to do that? I mean, we're stranded in the middle of the Meggiora Highlands from the looks of things, it could take us days to find our way out."
"Do you think there's any chance you could fix the Albiore?" Luke inquired.
"That's a good question," Ginji surveyed the machine, doing some quick calculations in his head. The frame sustained only minor damage, nothing that would prevent it from flying. The trouble would be with the engine, and the hover drive might have fallen out of place, but that wasn't something a little elbow grease couldn't temporarily repair. "I probably could, but given what I have to work with, it'll only be enough to get us back to Sheridan. They have the tools there to do further repairs. I could probably have it running by night fall."
"That's good news," Jade replied. "Please have it ready as soon as you can."
"I will!" Ginji stated determinately.
"Do you need any help?" Luke asked as Ginji immediately fetched some tools from the cockpit and put himself to work.
"No not reall-" Ginji was cut off by the rumbling of his stomach.
"But you could use something to eat?" Luke suggested with a chuckle.
"It would be nice." Ginji sheepishly admitted.
"Well there's bound to be something worth hunting around here," Asch provided.
"You want to go exploring?" Guy inquired sceptically.
"You want to starve?" Asch shot back.
"Well we don't have anything better to do," Anise shrugged. "I wouldn't mind a good meal rather than rationed supplies."
"A walk certainly wouldn't hurt," Natalia agreed.
"You're all hopeless," Guy sighed. "Well don't blame me if we get lost."
"Luke, you're staying here, right?" Natalia rather forcefully suggested with a cold look. "You can keep Ginji company."
"That's alright," Ginji shouted from under the Albiore. "I won't be very good company. You should all go."
"Yeah, I want to come exploring too," Luke protested.
"Fine," Natalia said with a defeated sigh as she took Asch's arm and forcefully dragged him away from the crash site.
"Man, how much longer is she going to keep up this whole 'leave Luke behind' bit? It's really getting old," Anise commented. "Asch is obviously not going to let it happen, so why doesn't she just drop it?"
"Frankly, I'll just be glad to see her drop her attitude towards Luke altogether," Guy added. "It isn't like her to be like that. Even given the circumstances, she's hardly been fair. Wouldn't you agree, Luke?"
"Yeah…" Luke trailed off.
"Well, we'd better go after them before she drags Asch into a pit of vipers," Anise stated, earning a chuckle from the rest of the group.
Jade smirked, "Oh it's far too late for that."
----------
"Damn!" Asch cursed as the boar fled, squealing down the valley and out of sight. Even with the injury Asch had managed to incur, it was still much faster than any of them. It would be completely pointless to try and chase it down, especially in the heat that was quickly escalating as the sun rose in the sky.
"It got away," Luke taunted.
"Well at least we know that there's something worth hunting in these parts," Jade commented as Asch shot his sibling a glare and re-sheathed his sword.
"Are you alright Natalia?" Asch asked as he offered a hand to the princess who had been knocked over by the animal's charge. The boar had caught them all off guard, attacking them when they had accidentally wandered too close to its den. Natalia had been the one to take the hit from the creature, but Asch's retaliating swing had injured the beast and caused it to retreat.
"I am, thank you," she replied with a smile as she accepted his help up. But rather than let go once she was on her feet, she pulled him into her embrace. Asch squirmed uncomfortably as she pulled him close and finally ducked out of her arms when she made her advance.
"A-Asch...what's the matter?" Natalia's face turned beet red at Asch's clear aversion to her attempt to give him a kiss. Asch bit his lip but didn't respond, refusing to look her in the eyes.
"Not feeling quite that impulsive yet, Luke?" Jade asked slyly, wearing nothing short of an evil grin. The redhead before them, dressed in Asch's attire, erupted into a fit of laughter.
"What?!" The entire group spun around to find Luke, or as the case turned out to be, Asch, almost on the ground he was laughing so hard, joining Luke who was now in an equal amount of hysterics. Asch felt a little bad for Natalia; it wasn't the first time their switch had been uncovered by something like this. Luke was always good about not letting Natalia misplace signs of affection; he respected the boundaries of the relationship Asch shared with her, a fact that made Asch feel better about it all. But she was still embarrassed, and he really did feel bad, but the looks on their faces were just so funny! Besides, unlike most of the time, he actually had a reason for making use of their trick.
Everyone could only watch the twins in varying degrees of surprise. For some reason, because Luke had lost his coat, they hadn't expected them to switch. A stupid thought really, it was just a simple trade of clothes and swords after all. If anything with everyone's guards down, it was easier to pull off.
"You two…" Guy marched over to where Luke had taken his place beside his sibling, both still stifling their laughter. The blonde took a swing at his best friend, who easily ducked out of the way. The blow went astray and was caught by the second redhead who twisted Guy's arm and sent him crashing into the dust. Both boys leant over him with matching mischievous grins.
"You of all people should know better," Asch taunted.
"The same trick won't work twice," Luke finished.
"I give up," Guy sat up with a defeated sigh.
"S-Since when?!" A rather panicked Natalia demanded. Her heart had stopped. Last night… it couldn't have been…
"What was that Natalia?" Both boys looked up.
"Since when?" She repeated with more authority this time. Of all the things to pull… Natalia absolutely loathed that trick of theirs. They were good at it, so good it was almost scary. Far too often had she been tricked by them as kids. Never anything serious of course, Asch would never allow it, but it still bothered her. Didn't Asch understand how frightening it was to so easily be able to mistake someone else for their future king? Especially when it had been years since either of them had gotten caught.
"Since this morning," the real Asch replied as he accepted his coat from Luke and tossed it over his shoulders. Natalia let out a sigh of relief, but quickly regained her composure.
"Why?" She demanded.
Both boys looked at each other.
------
"Hey Luke?" Asch spoke up as he and his sibling walked down the streets of Sheridan. They still had about ten minutes before the Albiore was supposed to be ready. "Can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
"Have the others been giving you a hard time lately?"
"No," Luke replied.
Asch suddenly stopped in the middle of the street and Luke almost tripped over himself to do the same. Luke could only confusedly look back as Asch stared him down.
"You're lying," Asch finally said.
"No I'm not!" Luke protested.
"Really?" Asch gave Luke a pointed look before taking off his coat and holding it out. "Then prove it."
Luke couldn't resist a grin as he snatched the coat out of Asch's grasp.
"Fine, I will."
------
Asch and Luke simultaneously shrugged. "We felt like it," Luke provided.
Natalia gave them both a disapproving look; for all that she knew it was pointless. It would take a lot more than that to get them to stop that ridiculous trick of theirs.
"What's so funny?" Ion finally asked Anise who was in fits of giggles.
"Yes, please do share." Natalia added sceptically, more than sure she was the source of the young girl's amusement.
"I just think it's hilarious. I mean, you can't even recognize your own fiancée?" Anise managed between giggles. "Well I guess if he ducks out at the wedding you know you've got the wrong one."
"Why I never-" Natalia sputtered before spinning around and storming off.
"Someone needs a sense of humour," Anise stated dryly.
"We should probably go after her," Asch commented.
"Well there certainly isn't any point in staying here indefinitely," Jade pointed out, still wearing a rather amused grin.
"That's true," Guy agreed. "We should try and catch something and head back before long, I have a feeling it's going to get really hot by the time that sun gets overhead."
"Then let's hurry along," Ion said with a smile.
"Yeah," Luke agreed, "let's go."
-------
The sun was high in the sky and the heat was quickly escalating as everyone continued down the endless twisting valleys. They hadn't come across anything worth hunting since the boar had escaped them and everyone's patience was quickly eroding as the temperature continued to creep up.
Asch watched Natalia who was walking next to and just slightly ahead of him. He had learnt a lot in the brief time he had spent pretending to be Luke, and what he had found concerning Natalia bothered him more than anything. Guy and Ion were supportive, always offering a reassuring smile or willing to engage in idle conversation. Out of the corner of his eye, he kept catching Jade who was constantly stealing glances in his direction, as if contemplating something. To Anise he simply didn't exist, but Natalia… Natalia was constantly making it known that his presence was unwanted.
That concerned him most of all because Natalia wasn't that kind of person. It was true that she and Luke had never gotten along, and Akzeriuth couldn't have helped matters much, but Natalia was a kind person at heart. She was strong, loyal and always open to others, it was what made her an amazing princess. She was loved dearly by her people for it, and it was why he loved her. So her sudden change in behaviour concerning Luke was really starting to worry him. Something to talk to her about later perhaps. He gently ran his fingers through her golden hair, softly laughing when she tensed up. She had done it again.
Natalia almost had to bite her lip to cut off what she was about to say. She was ready to snap at Luke again, but it was Asch running his fingers through her hair. At least he wasn't offended by it, or at least he didn't seem to be by the way he was softly chuckling. What did he expect still wearing Luke's top like that? She almost laughed at herself; did she really depend on their clothes to tell them apart that much? Maybe Anise was right in her taunting, what kind of wife would she make if she couldn't even recognize her own husband?
Anise snickered as she watched Natalia bite back yet another snide remark as she once again almost mistook her fiancée for his twin brother. Asch had only taken his jacket back after the two of them had been discovered earlier this morning and since it had gotten so hot, he had taken it off and was carrying it. It wasn't surprising Natalia kept mistaking him for Luke out of the corner of her eye like that.
Anise couldn't believe she couldn't tell them apart! But in the end it really wasn't all that funny. After all, Guy had grown up with both of them, and he couldn't tell them apart either. Neither could she for that matter, it really was a testament as to how good the two of them were at pulling off being each other.
There had to be something, Anise watched both twins as she walked behind them. After all, the Colonel could tell, so there had to be something different about them, even when they switched places, and she was determined to figure it out. Wait a second… Anise once again looked over the boys. They hadn't traded back clothes, but they hadn't traded back swords either. Luke still had Asch's sword at his side, Asch still wore Luke's sword behind him, but the way they were sheathed…
"No good," Guy cut in noticing the direction of Anise's gaze and guessing at her train of thought.
"What do you mean 'no good'?" Anise protested.
"We tried that already," Guy replied. "When they were younger we could tell them apart because Asch was right-handed and Luke was left-handed. But they figured that out real quick and they're pretty much ambidextrous now."
"They're what?"
"Ambidextrous," Asch answered. "It means I can use one hand as well as the other."
"Nice of you to join us," Guy shot at the eavesdropper.
"Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to have a conversation behind someone's back?" Asch shot back somewhat playfully.
"Nope, must have been too busy doting on a certain pair of demanding redheads," Guy shrugged eliciting a chuckle from Asch. Wow, Anise watched the two of them joke around; Luke being around really did make a difference. Either that or something had happened between them that she didn't know about.
"Isn't that an awful lot of effort to put into a prank?" Anise questioned sceptically.
"You're telling me," Guy answered. "They've gone out of their way to thwart every attempt we've made to distinguish them. Their hair, their swords, their habits, everything! It was like a mission for them or something."
"Or a game," Natalia casually added.
"Or a test," Jade mumbled to himself.
"What was that Colonel?" Anise inquired.
"Oh nothing important," Jade replied, pushing his glasses up his nose.
"By the way Colonel, I've been meaning to ask, how do you always tell them apart?"
"Yeah, she's got a point there, Jade," Guy cut in. "How do you tell them apart?"
"Why that's simple," Jade paused as everyone's attention, including the twins in question, became focused on the Colonel. They were as curious as the rest of the group as to how he always managed to distinguish them. "In a time frame of 53 seconds, Asch blinks two more times than Luke does."
"Really?" Anise asked incredulously as she and Natalia proceeded to fix their gaze on the redheads who could only blink in confusion before laughing outright.
"Sometimes I wonder if you're really kidding," Guy noted sceptically.
"I know how to tell them apart! I do! I do!" Mieu bounced as they continued along the trail through the valley.
"Really?" Natalia inquired with a smile, "and how do you tell them apart?"
"Master calls me 'thing' and Asch calls me 'it'!" The young cheagle proudly exclaimed.
"Thing," Asch taunted.
"It," Luke added.
"Mieuuuuuu," the cheagle's ears sank.
"That's alright Mieu," Natalia reassured the young creature as she offered him a place on her shoulder. "These two's horrid names for you aside," she punctuated her point with a disapproving look in the boy's direction, "we'll figure something out."
"Okay!" Mieu perked back up.
"Hey Ion, are you feeling tired?" Luke inquired noticing the Fon Master's quickly slowing pace and growing strain.
"I'll be fine," Ion replied with a smile, "besides we'll need to find something soon or we'll have to head back empty handed."
"Finding supper won't do us any good if you collapse on us," Luke argued.
"True," Asch added, "but at the same time it's getting really hot out here. Stopping and sitting in this sun won't do him any better than continuing to walk will."
Luke looked around, Asch was right about the sun, and with the sun directly overhead, even the valley walls didn't provide any sort or reprieve from the heat.
"What about over there?" Luke pointed in the direction of a cave not far off in the distance. "If we head in there a ways, it's bound to cool off."
"That might not be a bad idea," Guy agreed, "I think we could all use a bit of a rest. The last thing we need is someone passing out from the heat all the way out here. What do you think Ion?"
Ion looked ahead at the cave to which Luke had pointed. It looked very familiar, but it couldn't be… No it was probably his imagination playing tricks with him, after all many of the caves and rock formations in this area were very similar. It was part of what made this place so treacherous; it was very easy to get lost.
"If you don't mind, I would enjoy the opportunity to rest for a bit," he finally provided.
"Of course we don't mind! Ion if you're tired, say something! You know you have to take care of your health!" Anise stated disapprovingly.
"I know, thank you Anise. I just don't want to be a burden."
"It's no burden at all, Fon Master," Asch spoke up. "If you're feeling tired, chances are you aren't the only one who could use a bit of rest. Don't be afraid to say something, we won't mind."
"Yeah," Luke agreed. "That's what friends are for."
"Thank you," Ion smiled. He just hoped his suspicions weren't as correct as he was starting to think they might be.
---------
Luke's theory about the cave providing a suitable reprieve from the heat turned out to be a good one. The rush of cold air as they walked in was refreshing and restored a great deal of energy in itself. There was one thing however, that Luke hadn't been counting on, and it now had him, and the rest of the awestruck group frozen to their spots.
Luke's heart stopped, the fon machines, the dawn age technology, Luke knew all this… but it couldn't be…
"Fon Master?" Asch turned around to face Ion after several moments of tense silence, "Is this a passage ring?"
"I guess there's no point in hiding it now. Yes, this is the passage ring that supports Sheridan and the rest of the Meggiora Highlands."
"But the Daathic Seal was removed…" Asch began.
"I assume this was another one of the locations Arietta had you open?" Jade inquired.
"That's right," Ion replied.
"All the way out here?" Anise inquired incredulously.
"Well they were travelling on Arietta's birds," Guy pointed out.
"I guess you're right," Anise admitted. "Still, I find it hard to believe that they knew where to find a place like thing out in the middle of nowhere."
"I can't imagine the information is all that difficult to come by if one knows where to look," Jade stated.
'Wait a second…' a realization suddenly dawned on Luke, 'Ion is the only one that can open these Daathic Seals right?'
'That's right, what are you getting at?'
'If Van's plans really do have to do with the passage rings, then the only ones he can go to are the ones that Ion already opened, right?'
'That's right,' Asch replied catching on to Luke's train of thought. 'So we need to figure out if one of those is the passage ring that supports St. Binah.'
'Do you think there's anything we could do to protect it from here?' Luke inquired.
'I doubt it, but at the very least we can probably learn a lot more about how they work. Maybe even look for clues to see if Van's been here or not.'
'It's better than nothing.'
"Fon Master, what other passage rings did the God-Generals have you open?" Asch inquired.
"Why the sudden interest?" Jade asked suspiciously.
"I want to see about something," was the only response the Colonel got. Ion sighed as he thought on it a moment, debating whether or not he should continue to divulge such information. But they already knew a great deal, and even though Asch wouldn't say it, there was obviously something that was greatly concerning him.
"You already know of the passage ring in Akzeriuth, and the one here at the Meggiora Highlands," Ion began. "They also had me open the passage ring in the Zao Ruins that supports Chesedonia and a great deal of the surrounding area, and the passage ring at Shurrey Hill that supports St. Binah, Engeve and the Rugnica plains."
"Thank you Fon Master," Asch replied.
'Looks like St. Binah really might be in danger,' Asch commented.
'What are we going to do?!' a panicked Luke asked.
'First you're going to calm down,' Asch stated firmly. 'No matter what we do, we're not going anywhere until Ginji gets the Albiore fixed, so relax. Van can't use a hyperresonance to destroy the passage ring, so he has to operate the Sephiroth. I think we should try to figure out how the passage rings work. Once we know that, we may have a better idea of what kind of time frame we're working in.' Luke didn't reply, but Asch could feel him calming down.
"So what are you planning on doing now?" Jade inquired. "You obviously have something or another in mind."
"If it's alright with you Fon Master, I'd like to take a closer look at the passage ring." Asch replied.
"I don't see why not, there shouldn't be any sort of danger," Ion replied.
"As long as some people don't go stupid on us," Anise mumbled.
"What was that?" Ion inquired.
"I'm inclined to agree with Anise," Natalia stated, "I don't know if Luke coming along is such a good idea. Who's to say what happened last time won't repeat itself?"
Jade eyed the noble in question. Normally he would ere on the side of caution, and since he still didn't know what had transpired in Akzeriuth, keeping Luke away from a passage ring certainly seemed to be on the side of caution. But leaving him alone wasn't a much better option, and Jade had a sneaking suspicion that allowing Luke to come along may very well reap some of the answers he'd been looking for.
"Oh, I don't see a problem with it, so long as he promises to behave," Jade finally said and Luke only solemnly nodded.
'Are you going to be okay?' Asch asked.
'I'll have to be, we need to do this.'
'Are you sure?'
'Yeah.'
-----------
Everything was almost identical. The dancing lights, the swirling glyphs, the soft rush of fonons as they flew around the cavern…everything, and the rush of emotions that crashed down on Luke was almost enough to drive him back to insanity. It was only Asch's ever comforting presence in his mind that was keeping him from being completely overwhelmed. It reminded Luke of the days when they were young and Asch would hold his hand so he wouldn't get lost. Now he just had to find his way.
But with every step they took towards the passage ring, Luke managed to calm himself down. He refused to give in to the feelings that were tempting him back to that wonderful state of irrational denial. No matter how much of a reprieve such a state may be from the gazes and mistrust that were constantly fixed upon him.
By the time they had made it to the passage ring itself, Luke had managed to completely settle his feelings, temporary though that state may be; they were settled none-the-less. He was here, this wasn't Akzeriuth, and it would never be Akzeriuth. He wouldn't let it. There would never be any more Akzeriuths ever again.
"I don't know what you think you're going to find," Anise commented as everyone was taking a look around the passage ring. "I mean, you can't operate these things without breaking the Yulian Seal right?"
"That's right," Ion replied. "The way to open the Yulian Seals was lost long ago."
"Someone still knows," Asch stated quietly as he fingered a faded and broken glyph on the floor.
"What makes you say that?" Ion inquired.
"Because it looks like it's already been broken," he replied.
"What?" Anise squeaked.
"You just might be right," Jade agreed taking note of the remnants of the destroyed magic. "Someone knew what they were doing at the very least."
'Master Van?' Luke asked.
'More than likely.'
"There is of course of way to find out," Jade suggested.
"What's that?" Guy inquired.
"You're thinking of trying to operate the passage ring yourself?" Asch guessed.
"Oh, not me, you," Jade shot back at the redhead.
"Why me?"
"Because if I recall correctly," Jade answered almost tauntingly, "it requires a Seventh Fonist, am I right Fon Master?"
"Yes you are, but I'm not so sure about this," Ion protested. "It's one thing to come down here, but to tamper with the passage rings…"
"However, with the Yulian Seal broken, there's a very good chance they may already have been tampered with," Jade pointed out.
"But if that was the case, then how come we haven't felt any effects above ground?" Natalia inquired.
"That's because at the time we were above water," Jade stated. "Remember those rough waters a couple days ago? I'd wager they were caused by some sort of earthquake."
"You're right!" Asch suddenly realized what Jade was pointing out.
'But wait a second,' Luke protested. 'I thought they were going after St. Binah next…'
'They may have already been here by the time we overheard them,' Asch pointed out.
'But if they're moving that fast then-'
'Easy… Remember they only have access to a maximum of four of the Sephiroth because that's all Ion opened, and Ion is here with us so they can't open any more. Besides, if they tampered with this passage ring that long ago, and there still haven't been any obvious signs on the land then at least we know that it takes quite awhile for the land to fall, assuming that's Van's intention.'
'So St. Binah and all the other places will be safe?'
'For a little while at least.'
"I'm still not certain…" Ion cut in.
"Can we at least take a closer look, and see if the passage ring still works?" Asch suggested. "There may not be any problems at all and we could leave it at that. But if this land is going to fall, then we need to make sure that there's no one on it when it does."
"Alright," Ion reluctantly conceded. "But please-"
"Don't worry, I'll be careful," Asch replied as he made his to the passage ring. "The real question is how does this thing work?" He asked as he stared up at the huge device before him.
"I'm afraid even I don't know," Ion replied.
"Asch, over here," Luke called, drawing everyone's attention to a small pedestal that stood in front of the huge fon machine.
"What is it?" Anise asked.
"I don't know," Asch curiously placed his hand on the pedestal. He immediately saw why it had drawn Luke's attention. There wasn't a Seventh Fonon to be found anywhere around it, despite the abundance of them in the room. It was almost as if the material it was made of repelled the Seventh Fonons. But if that were the case, he wondered what would happen if…
'Be careful,' Luke prodded.
'Thank you Ion,' Asch teased and Luke smiled.
"Wow, amazing!" Natalia praised.
Asch had been right, as soon as he had forced Seventh Fonons into contact with the pedestal it opened up like a book before him. He passed a hand over the writing that was inscribed there.
"What is it?" Luke asked curiously peaking at the pedestal that stood between him and his older brother.
"It looks like instructions on how to operate the passage ring," Asch used his free hand to point upwards.
Everyone looked up at the ceiling upon which a huge glyph was now drawn. Upon the glyph there were ten circles, surrounded by many Ancient Ispanian inscriptions. Two of the circles had faded, and around three others there was a bright red line.
"Wow, so what does all that mean?" Natalia asked.
"I'd wager the two faded Sephiroth are Hod and Akzeriuth," Jade replied. "But I'm not certain about the rest."
"Warning…" Luke read the letters that appeared on the glyph. "Warning? Warning about what?" He wondered aloud.
"Do you think it means this land is in danger of falling into the Qliphoth?" Guy asked.
"We certainly can't deny the possibility," Jade replied.
"But who would do such a thing?" Natalia asked.
'Damn it!' Asch shouted so loud Luke flinched.
'What? What is it?'
'Van's definitely been here. He closed off the valve so that no one else can actually use the passage ring!'
'What? How?' Luke asked.
'You see that red ring up there? It's a code Van put there so it's impossible for me to do anything.'
'But there are three red rings. Does that means he's been to at least two other Sephiroth already?'
'Unfortunately, yes,' Asch replied. 'It looks like Shurrey Hill and Zao Ruins from what I can tell.'
"Is there anything more you can tell us over there Asch?" Jade inquired.
"Not much," the redhead replied. "The person who did this added a code to block me out. It also looks like the passage rings are starting to push their limits. That's where that warning message is coming from, but that's all I can really tell."
"What do you mean by 'pushing their limits'?" Ion inquired.
"With Hod, and now Akzeriuth's Sephiroth gone, the remaining Sephiroth have to put out more energy to keep the remaining lands afloat," Jade theorized. "The added stress would be hard on the passage rings. It's likely they can only handle so much before they break."
"But the Sephiroth themselves are also unstable," Asch commented, his gaze still fixed on the huge glyph above them.
"Then perhaps the unstable Sephiroth are putting excess stress on passage rings," Jade contemplated aloud. "It's possible that the need to support more land than usual is de-stabilizing the Sephiroth and causing the problem, not the other way around."
"So what will happen if things keep up this way?" Natalia asked.
"If things stay this way the Sephiroth could go out of control. If that were to happen, the passage rings would break and the land would fall." Jade provided.
"And once one breaks," Guy added. "Not only will the land fall, but there'll be even more stress on all the others. It'll be a chain effect."
"Guy's right, once one goes, the fall of the others will be greatly accelerated."
'So Master Van is trying to destabilize the Sephiroth?' Luke asked.
'Looks like it, but I'm not entirely sure about how accurate Jade's theory is.'
'Why's that?' Luke inquired.
'Both Hod and Akzeriuth's fall were predicted in the Score,' Asch pointed out. 'If that alone was enough to cause the fall of the Outer Lands, shouldn't the fall of the Outer Lands also be predicted in the Score? No, Van did something else to the Sephiroth to make it unstable. I just can't figure out what…'
'But why would Master Van want to drop all the Outer Lands?'
'I have no idea, but that's what we need to find out. That and a way to stop it,' Asch stated. 'We're not talking about a single town anymore, if the entire Outer Lands fall into the Qliphoth the death toll would be unreal.'
'Is there any way we could strengthen the Sephiroth, to reduce the stress on the passage ring and keep it from falling?'
"Ion," Luke asked without waiting for an answer from Asch, "Are any of the Sephiroth stronger than the others?"
"Where are you going with that, Luke?" Jade inquired.
"Well the Radiation Gate and the Absorption Gate are the two biggest Sephiroth, they support the Planet Storm," Ion replied after a moment. "Whether that makes them stronger or not, I'm not sure."
"Could we try and somehow use them to strengthen the others?" Luke inquired.
"An interesting theory," Jade pondered. "It might be possible. If you connect this Sephiroth to another, it may help stabilize them as well. Though it's only a short term solution, at the very least it will buy us some time.
'That would do us some good, but you're forgetting something,' Asch pointed out.
'What's that?'
'I can't actually do anything with the passage ring. Van blocked it, remember?'
'Is there anyway to operate it by force?' Luke inquired.
Asch stopped halfway through his retort, and actually thought on it for a bit. 'You know that just might work. If we can erase that code using a hyperresonance and physically carve in the commands, then we might be able to do this.'
'Really?'
'Yeah. Make sure you only erase the red code though.' Asch confirmed.
'Wait me?' Luke suddenly retorted. 'I thought you were going to do it.'
'I can't, it's taking everything I've got just to keep this open. You have to do it.' Asch replied. As he said it, Luke noticed the wave of exhaustion that had fallen over his sibling. It really was taking all his energy. But still…
'I...I can't! What if I screw up?' Luke protested.
'You won't screw up; I know you can do this.' Asch replied reassuringly.
'No, I can't! I'm just going to end up hurting people again! Let me switch places with you, I'll hold the passage ring open, you can carve the commands.'
'No.'
'Why not?'
'Because at some point you're going to have to grow a backbone and stop being afraid of your own abilities,' Asch stated harshly. 'What's past is past; believe what you want about it. But now there are thousands of people that are depending on you to save them. Are you going to let them all down?'
Luke was completely silent. 'But I…'
'Your choices are pretty clear to me. Either you stop doubting yourself over something that wasn't even your fault, or we can stand here arguing until I pass out, and you can have a couple more thousand lives on your shoulders. It's your choice.'
'You're mean, you know that?' Luke eyed Asch who replied with a mild grin.
'Only when you're being stupid,' he shot back.
'So what am I doing?' Luke asked.
'Well first you're going to erase the code,' Asch started.
'Will you be able to operate it from there if I do?'
'No, once we start doing it by force you'll have to finish it that way,' Asch replied. 'Don't forget that the commands will have to be written in Ancient Ispanian.'
'Oh great,' Luke rolled his eyes. 'Do you know the translations?'
What was up with those two? Natalia and the others could only watch on in amazement. Luke looked at Asch questioningly, and Asch took on a thoughtful look. Luke snickered. Asch scowled. Were they talking to each other somehow? She had heard stories of twins sharing some sort of special bond… but Luke and Asch weren't twins, not really.
Whatever was going on between Luke and Asch, it eventually stopped. Jade couldn't help but wonder if… no, now was not the time to be contemplating such things, there were far more pressing matters at hand. It would certainly make some food for thought later though. In the meantime, Luke now stood facing Asch, staring straight up at the glyph overhead, taking deep breaths. It was almost as if he was working up the courage to try something, but just what would the young noble do? There was nothing to be done so long as that code continued to block the functions of the passage ring, and Asch at the very least was aware of this fact.
With one last deep breath, and a nod from Asch, Luke raised his arms towards the ceiling and a soft golden glow emerged from the tips of his fingers. That golden glow quickly spread to encompass his entire being, and slowly but surely, the red circle was eliminated, and the code was gone.
A hyperresonance? Jade found himself stunned, able to do nothing but continue to watch as his mind raced, the gears turning unexpectedly quickly as this new piece of information filled in the last piece of the puzzle. Luke was creating a hyperresonance; without the presence of another Seventh Fonist. While Jade didn't understand how it was possible, he certainly couldn't deny what he was seeing. Luke also possessed an amazing degree of control over it. That became more and more obvious as Jade watched the youth carve out Ancient Ispanian commands directly onto the passage ring.
Akzeriuth suddenly made sense, as did Luke's sudden knowledge of fonic artes. In fact, a great deal of things about the so called 'twins' suddenly became very clear. Jade had no doubt that Asch shared this mysterious ability as well, and all the burdens that came along with it. It was no surprise they had kept their abilities secret. Jade wondered if even their parents or the King were aware of their ratherunique talent. After all, that kind of power would prove invaluable in war, especially when they had that kind of control over it.
However, if that were the case, then it was entirely possible that Luke had single-handedly caused Akzeriuth's destruction. Not something Jade wanted to consider, but a possibility he would now have to. At the very least he would let Luke speak in his own defence before passing any sort of judgement, but what could Luke have been thinking? He knew how dangerous a hyperresonance was, so why did he do it?
With one last breath, Luke slowly lowered his arms, and the soft golden glow faded away. "That should do it," he stated and earned himself a reassuring nod from Asch. He had done a good job.
"Just what did you do?!" Anise demanded.
"Relax Anise," Ion put a hand on her shoulder and she calmed down. "Nothing bad happened, it's alright."
"Ah, clever," Jade stated taking a look at the finished job. "You connected this Sephiroth to the Absorption Gate to try and help stabilize it. I must say you did a good job of it all things considered."
"Good," Asch let go of the passage ring and let out a huge sigh as the glyph faded and the pedestal slammed shut. "I don't know about everyone else, but I'm more than ready to get out of here."
"I agree, let's start heading back, it's going to be getting late soon," Ion pointed out.
'We're far from being done,' Luke stated.
'I know, it's only a fix for now. We need to find out why Van's doing this and find a way to stop it,' Asch agreed. 'But at least it's a start, and we know where we have to go next.'
'Yeah.'
-----------
"Before we get going," Jade cut in as they walked out of the cave. "There's something I want to discuss with you two," he said, a very serious look fixed on Luke and Asch.
"What is it now old man?" Asch rolled his eyes.
"That ability of yours, since when have you had it?" Jade demanded.
"Colonel what are you talking about?" Anise asked hesitantly.
"Yeah, what are you talking about, old man?" Asch inquired.
"You know what I mean," Jade stated curtly, making it clear he wasn't going to tolerate any dancing around his questions. "Since when have you two been able to create a hyperresonance like that?"
"What makes you think I have that kind of ability?" Asch asked, but he only earned himself a harsh glare from the Colonel. There was no getting out of that one. Then again, considering what Jade knew, it was more or less obvious anyways.
"Wait, that was a hyperresonance?" Anise asked curiously. "But I thought that only happened between two Seventh Fonists?"
"That's normally the case," Ion confirmed. "I admit, I've never seen a hyperresonance before either."
"It's something we were born with," Asch shrugged. The last thing he wanted was to play it up, if anything he'd have liked to dismiss it altogether. It wasn't the kind of information he wanted floating around.
"So wait a second, what happened in Akzeriuth was…" Anise began. Everyone's attention including Jade's turned to the other redhead.
"Luke?" Jade asked.
"That's right, it was my hyperresonance that destroyed Akzeriuth's passage ring," Luke stated meeting everyone's gazes with a determined one of his own.
"What were you thinking?!" Natalia demanded.
"I'm going to have to agree with the Princess in this case," Jade stated in an unusually cold tone, his voice slowly rising. "For someone like you, who is more than aware of the dangers such a power hold, to take that kind of ability-"
"Enough!" Asch yelled, cutting everyone off, and bringing a silence over the group. He then turned to face his brother.
"Luke, enough is enough. This has got to stop."
Listening to the force and conviction with which Luke had made his statement had intrigued Asch. It was so strange; it was almost as if Luke had been provoking… of course. Asch silently berated himself for letting things go on this long and for not catching on sooner. He knew Luke better than that.
"No," Luke replied, "They're right, everything they're saying, it's all true."
"No it's not!" Asch landed a blow across Luke's face, forcing Luke back several steps. "Stop saying crap like that when it wasn't even your fault!"
"Asch…what are you talking about?" Natalia tried asking, but she got no response. Both of them were caught up in their own little world.
"It is my fault." Luke replied, holding his face where Asch's hit had landed. "It's my fault because I realized what was going on… and I couldn't stop it."
"So then what? This is your punishment? You're just going to let everyone hate you forever? You think that's what you deserve? For something you didn't even do?!" Luke shot Asch an angry glare, but didn't retort. "Well guess what," Asch continued. "It's not your fault, so stop using it as an excuse to run away from your problems! You're just using this as a way to avoid having to deal with your own stupid feelings about everything. You feel guilty, and upset and sad, so you let people hate you for it, that way you don't actually have to deal with them."
"I'm not running away!" Luke protested.
"Yes you are! Why else won't you tell anyone the truth? You enjoy getting yelled at, because you feel like you're getting what you deserve, and it makes you feel better. Well guess what, making yourself miserable for the rest of your life won't bring a single one of those people back and it's an insult to their sacrifice! If you weren't running away then you'd face the truth, deal with it, and then do something about it! Don't punish yourself forever; make it up to them by rebuilding everything better than before."
"You're wrong! I still bear the responsibility for what happened. It was my power that killed them all!"
"Luke, for the last time it wasn't your fault! Van tricked you into it! There wasn't anything else you could have done! You tried to stop it!"
"It wouldn't have happened if it had been you down there," Luke quietly retorted.
To that Asch had no reply. He knew the truth in what Luke had said. He probably wouldn't have gotten as far as Luke had before noticing the trap, he would have had a better chance of stopping it. But that didn't make it Luke's fault!
Everyone stood in silence, the tension among them reaching an all-time high. That was quite the information that had just been revealed, unintentional as it may have been. It made sense to Jade then, the last player finally falling into place. Luke, always trying his best to help out, would have been an easy target for the Commandant, rather than his more suspicious and cautious counterpart. He could see why Luke had accepted the blame, since in the boy's mind, regardless of any external influences, the final act had still been his. It also made sense as to why Asch and Luke had suddenly gained a fascination with the passage rings, and were suspicious of Dorian General Grant's activities. Rightfully so, he was concerned himself, now that he knew the man had orchestrated Akzeriuth's demise. What else did he have in mind now that the Albertesque Seal had fallen?
"If you can't let go of that," Asch finally said quietly, "then don't spend the rest of your life looking to be punished for what you've done. Live for the lives you claim to have taken. Bear that burden and make their sacrifice worth it."
Luke looked away, refusing to acknowledge what Asch had said. He was mad. He knew Asch was right, but he was still furious. It wasn't Asch's place to just blurt everything out to everyone like that! But at the same time, what Asch said had hit the nail on the head. Maybe he really had been using the need to feel punished to avoid dealing with his own issues. Damn it, why was Asch always right?!
Asch knew Luke was angry with him, but he also knew that Luke would eventually get over it. Enough was enough, and unlike Guy, he knew better than to just let Luke have his way all the time. Hopefully things would turn out for the better, but in the meantime they all needed a good meal and some decent sleep. Working that passage ring had him far more exhausted than he wanted to admit.
"Shall we head back?" Jade finally suggested, breaking the tension that had settled over them all. "It's getting late and I think we could all use some rest."
"You're right," Guy said, "let's get going."
----------
Everyone silently made their way back down the valley in the direction from which they had come. Guy and Natalia were taking the lead, with Ion and Anise not far behind them. Mieu was sound asleep on Tokunaga's head, and behind them Asch, Luke and Jade were taking up the rear. Jade gently placed a hand on Asch's shoulder and nodded. Getting the message, and satisfied enough that Jade was unlikely to do anything stupid, Asch picked up his pace and joined Natalia at the front, leaving Luke and Jade to fall behind.
"I was quite surprised to see you knew Ancient Ispanian," Jade commented to the silent redhead.
"Yeah, but I'm not very good at it," Luke admitted. Most of the spelling and the commands he had carved earlier, Asch had helped him figure out. "I thought that Ancient Ispanian was something that everyone was taught…"
"Not entirely," Jade replied. "Usually only nobles, scholars and others of greater rank are taught Ancient Ispanian as children."
"Then why were you surprised to see I knew it?" Luke inquired.
"You're right, I apologize."
"You're weird."
"I was never good at idle chatter," Jade commented.
"So then what was it you wanted to ask me?" Luke asked.
"Quite clever, you must get that from Asch."
"Coming from you, I never know if that's a compliment or not…" Luke eyed Jade suspiciously.
"What Asch said earlier," Jade continued, brushing off Luke's scepticism. "About Dorian General Grants 'tricking' you into causing the disaster in Akzeriuth, what did he mean?"
Luke and Jade walked in silence for awhile, as Luke quietly contemplated the question. He didn't know if that was something he felt like divulging. Then again, it was bound to come out eventually, now that the bare facts of it all were out in the open. Then there was the fact that Jade had been patient with him, and hadn't really passed any sort of judgement before trying to figure out what had happened. Maybe he did deserve to hear the truth.
"When I ran into Master Van in Akzeriuth… he said he had found a way to get rid of the miasma," Luke began hesitantly. "I thought if I could get rid of it, then I could save Akzeriuth too, not just all the people, but the town itself. So Master Van brought me down to the passage ring. He must not have known I could control a hyperresonance, because he was giving me instructions one step at a time."
"Whendid you learn to control your hyperresonance?" Jade interrupted.
"A little bit after Tear and I got swept away from the manor, I guess."
"Ah, so that was why you and Asch kept sneaking off at night."
"Yeah…wait, you knew about that?"
"Please continue," Jade instructed.
"Well... Master Van was coaching me, and then I realized what he was trying to get me to do. I told him I wouldn't do it because it was too dangerous." Good, Jade noted when Luke paused; at least he had realized the danger before it would have otherwise been too late. "But then… then he said something and everything went out of control. Even though I tried to stop it, I couldn't. There were too many fonons for me to handle and then…" Luke trailed off.
"Your hyperresonance went off."
"Yeah."
"What did he say?" Jade inquired.
"I…I don't remember," Luke lied. That was the last thing he wanted to add to today's spectacular list of revelations. "But it was when he said it that all the fonons started gathering and going out of control."
"Luke…how did Dorian General Grants know of your ability to create a hyperresonance?" Jade asked after contemplating what he had been told. Luke thought about it for a moment, how had he known?
"It must have been on the ship to Chesedonia," Luke finally concluded. "I was practicing my hyperresonance and I almost lost control of it. Master Van helped me get it under control again."
"Did you lose consciousness at any point?"
"Yeah I guess I did for a little bit. Why?"
Ahh, so that was the case. Quite a devious ploy on Dorian General Grants' behalf; he was quickly proving to be an adversary that was not to be underestimated. He had obviously very carefully planned everything to have set up all the players as he had. Really, had it not been for such a terrible purpose, Jade would have applauded the man. "Luke, have you ever heard of the concept of hypnotism?"
"No," Luke replied confused. What was Jade getting at now? "What is it?"
"When falling asleep or, as in your case, losing consciousness, the mind is especially susceptible to ideas and suggestions," Jade explained. "Think of it like a trigger; a set of words that was implemented into your mind, and became tied to your memory of being overwhelmed by fonons when you lost control of them on the ship. In Akzeriuth, when those specific words were repeated, your mind recalled that state and brought it into existence. You were subconsciously calling to those fonons, whether you realized it or not. Of course, being in the Sephiroth where Seventh Fonons are especially concentrated, the effect would have been amplified. It's likely that this is what Dorian General Grants employed against you."
Luke silently contemplated what Jade had just said.
"What I said earlier still holds," Jade added after a moment's silence. "That's a dangerous power you two have. Because of that, you can't go rushing into situations without very carefully thinking them through, something for which you are thoroughly guilty."
"I'm sorry," Luke mumbled while staring at the ground.
"However," Jade continued, "in this case, Asch is probably right. There really wasn't much you could have done to stop it, so don't be so hard on yourself."
"Jade?"
"What is it, Luke?"
"Thank you," the young noble solemnly stated. Jade simply shrugged.
"Now hurry along, we won't have you falling behind and getting lost now."
"I'm coming," Luke replied with a soft smile, following his friends into the sunset.
He had found his way.