Chapter 39: The Last Straw
Much like Engeve, it didn't seem as if Chesedonia had changed much since their previous visit. But that was at a distance, once everyone had gotten within the city's limits, it was easy to see that Chesedonia had gone nuts. If there was one good thing about war, it was that it did wonders for the economy, and from the looks of things, Chesedonia was in no slouch.
Luke didn't think Chesedonia's streets could have gotten any busier, but they most definitely had. Blue uniforms could be seen everywhere as Malkuth soldiers hurried about, keeping the city's regular inhabitants on their toes. It seemed like even more merchants had taken up along the streets in hopes of cashing in on the thriving opportunities. There was really only one word to describe this sort of situation: chaos.
'What is all this?' Luke vaguely inquired, not really expecting an answer.
'This is the darkest side of war,' Asch replied.
'And what's that?'
'The people who can profit from the misery of others.'
'But it's not like it's their fault, they still have to make a living,' Luke pointed out. Asch gave Luke a weak smile before ruffling his hair.
'I know, but I still don't like it.'
Once all of Engeve's citizens had reached the safety of the city's boundaries, it didn't take them long to disperse. Some of them had been lucky enough to have family or friends in Chesedonia, others knew merchants that could offer them shelter, but for the most of them, they now had the task of finding themselves a place to stay. Not an easy feat from the looks of just how much Chesedonia's population had swelled, especially after having made such a difficult journey.
All things considered, they had been really lucky. Not one person had been killed and only three had ended up with some minor injuries from an unexpected encounter with a pack of ligers. But while there hadn't been any physical injuries, not everyone had gotten through the journey unscathed. Luke eyed his older sibling and even from where he was, he could tell that Asch was half asleep on his feet. Whether it had been by design or not, somehow Asch had ended up stuck on night watch for the rest of the trip and allowed to sleep in the caravans during the day. No one could get any sort of sleep in those bumpy things and everyone knew it. It did however, serve as a good reminder not to cross Jade at any point in the near or distant future. But as dangerous an idea as that may be, Luke certainly had no intention of abandoning Asch, and if he knew his sibling as well as he thought he did, there would be some fun for both of them at some point in the future.
But that was the future, and they had a present to worry about if they ever wanted to get there. First things first, they had to catch up with the girls, Ion and Ginji. Hopefully everything had gone according to schedule on their end. Luke had been especially worried about the possibility of the God-Generals trying to interfere, and if they did, the team that had stayed behind in Engeve was sorely lacking in offensive strength. Of course this thought hadn't hit him until the second day, and he cursed himself for not thinking of it sooner. But Jade didn't seem overly concerned when Luke had approached him about it, so there couldn't be too much to worry about. At least, Luke hoped so; there really was no understanding what went through Jade's head at any given moment.
"So when are we going to meet up with the others?" Guy asked, his voice practically trembling. It hadn't even been ten minutes and he was already at his wits' end trying to avoid all the women mixed among the crowds. It looked about as easy as dodging water in a rain storm.
"Well, assuming they had no difficulties, they should be done by nightfall at the latest. I suggest we head to the inn and wait for them there. I highly doubt they'll spot us in this," Jade waved his arm to indicate the crowds. As if Guy didn't notice already.
"Hmmm…Not a bad plan," Luke stated, deciding to join in on Jade's game of prolonging their time in the crowd.
"Can we just go to the inn, please?" Guy pleaded after just having the ninth woman accidentally bumped into him. Any longer and he'd have a mental breakdown.
"Yeah," Luke gave in with a chuckle. "Let's head over there, you never know, they may already be waiting for us. You coming, Asch?" Luke peered over his shoulder but didn't find his brother there. No wonder something felt off; Luke was surprised he didn't notice sooner given the lack of sarcastic commentary on Guy's phobia.
"Asch?" Luke tried calling out but he was easily drowned out by the mass of people. Across from him, Luke could see Jade scanning the crowd, trying to see if perhaps he had just been shuffled off. "Asch!" Luke tried again, still to no avail.
'Asch!' Luke tried a third time, this time circumventing the interference of the crowds.
"What?" Asch answered aloud and startling the redhead he was standing behind.
"There you are! Where were you?"
"I was just right there," Asch pointed to the entrance to a nearby alley.
"What's that?" Luke inquired noticing the paper in Asch's hand.
"Just some information I was looking for."
"I take it you got the answer you wanted," Luke replied with a mischievous grin that slowly leaked onto his brother's face.
"What make you say that?"
"You look happy about it."
"I guess you could say it explains a lot, and puts a few things to rest at the very least," Asch provided.
"Oh?" Jade's interest was piqued. "And do you have any intention of sharing this information?"
"I will when it's needed," Asch said simply. Luke could sense the pure satisfaction Asch felt from being able to bait Jade. "Now, shall we head to the inn before Guy ends up in heart failure over there?"
"Sure, let's go wait for the others," Luke agreed.
"I guess that's fair," Jade shrugged. As fun as watching the blonde was, Asch raised a valid point. It wouldn't do any good to break him, now would it? After all… good entertainment was so hard to find these days.
--
It was almost sunset by the time Natalia and the others arrived at the inn. They had managed to get everyone to safety without any significant troubles, though Anise would disagree. Unfortunately for her, Asch was inclined to take Mieu's side, obviously the bucket of water had dumped itself on her and it was in no way the little cheagle's fault. Asch couldn't help but snicker, he really shouldn't be so quick to take sides against Anise, but she was one of those people that was so much fun to tease. But bucket of water aside, everyone was happy, and they could safely say that the evacuation was a success.
Even Natalia seemed to be in good spirits, a fact that helped to somewhat relieve Asch's nerves. Though it hadn't been what she wanted, she took too much pleasure in helping those in need to not be at least a little satisfied at accomplishing such a huge endeavour. Now if only he could get the whole war thing sorted out, maybe he could finally get a decent night's sleep. Not that Jade had helped in that regard, he'd get the bastard back one of these days.
"Have you been to see Astor yet?" Tear inquired once everyone was done chatting about recent events.
"No, we haven't," Luke answered. "Should we?"
"I think it would be courteous to inform him of the citizens we brought here," Ion said with a smile.
"Yeah, that's true," Luke replied. "Why not head out now and catch him before it gets too late?"
"That's a good plan," Jade agreed. "This way we can be off first thing in the morning."
"Yes," Natalia also interjected. "If we act quickly there's a chance we can save at least some of the soldiers. I know-" Natalia held her hands up before anyone could argue, "I know that we won't do much since the land's ready to fall any time, but if there's even a small chance that we can get the back lines out of there, we have to try."
"Then let's go see Astor," Tear stood up and was followed by everyone else. Natalia smiled at Tear, giving her silent gratitude that the melodist accepted with a smile of her own.
"Yeah let's go! Let's go!" Mieu bounced out the door after the girls.
"Well there's no stopping him now is there?" Luke chuckled.
"Nope, no stopping any of them," Guy agreed. "I gotta say though, I'm impressed with how well Tear's been handling Natalia. Say Asch, shouldn't that be your job?"
Asch shot Guy a dirty look. "Shall we assign you to handle Natalia?"
"Well then, let's go see Astor! Mieu! Wait up!" Guy took off to catch up with the girls who were several feet ahead of them. Luke couldn't help but laugh.
Some things just never changed.
--
"Hello everyone! Welcome!" Astor welcomed his newest guests. They were all seated in the same room as during their previous visit, and Astor's manor certainly hadn't become any less… colourful. "It's an honour to have you here again Fon Master! And you two!" The merchant turned towards Asch and Natalia. "There were all sorts of nasty rumours flying around that you'd been killed. I'm glad to see they were just rumours!"
"Thank you for seeing us on such sort notice," Ion said with gratitude.
"Why it's no problem at all! Anything for you Fon Master."
"I'm grateful for your support," Ion replied.
"What can I do for you today?" Astor asked, this time directing his comment to the entire group.
"I'd like to make a request, if I may?" Ion spoke on behalf of everyone.
"Like I said, anything I can do for you Fon Master!" Astor said with a laugh.
"We've brought with us the citizens from Engeve. They were forced to evacuate and there was nowhere else for them to go. Could we ask you to take them in for the time being?"
"Of course, that's no problem at all. I'm sure you probably noticed, but things have been going very well around here! As much as I hate the idea of war, I can't say I dislike what it does for the economy!" Astor finished with another laugh that was, if possible, even more sinister than his last one. A couple faint chuckles could be heard from their group, more as a courtesy rather than because anything Astor said was funny. Luke could feel Asch shift uncomfortably in his seat.
Astor was an interesting man to say the least, and Luke wasn't quite sure what to make of him. He didn't seem like a bad guy, but anyone who heard that laugh of his could easily be led to believe otherwise. It just sounded… so evil. It sounded like something you'd expect to hear from some maniacal villain in a storybook. Add that to the gleam in his eye and Luke almost wondered if it was really this man trying to annihilate the world. Luke suppressed a chuckle at how carried away his imagination had gotten. Perhaps Astor was simply living proof you can't judge people by their appearances.
"Thank you very much," Ion finally answered when Astor had finished laughing.
"Well, you just make sure to tell them to stay within the city's boundaries. It's far too dangerous to be wandering very far beyond them these days."
"I doubt any of them are particularly eager to go exploring," Jade pointed out. "But may I ask why the danger? I hadn't heard of any battles occurring close enough to pose a threat to Chesedonia."
"Oh, it isn't the war. It's becoming quite dangerous to go too far beyond Chesedonia's limits these days, what with the earthquakes and all."
"Earthquakes?" Luke stood up, failing to hide the panic in his voice.
"Yes, there have been quite a few recently. It's been to the point that several cracks have started to show up in the ground. I've been encouraging people not to leave since some of the roads have also been affected. Why if I didn't know better, I'd say Chesedonia was sinking!" Astor laughed, but this time everyone else was dead silent. "What's the matter?" The cheery merchant finally asked.
"You may not be that far from the truth," Jade explained, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "How long has it been since the earthquakes and changes in the land started?"
"Well the earthquakes have been going on for a couple months now, but the reports of cracks and changes in the land have only started within the past couple weeks."
"So what's the deal Colonel?" Anise prodded the silent Jade. "Do think Chesedonia's in danger of falling or what?"
"Falling?" Astor spoke up. "What do you mean by falling?"
"I'm sure you've heard about what happened to Akzeriuth," Asch said solemnly. His face had taken on a similar neutral expression to Jade's; something most of them had come to recognize as them thinking about something.
"Well, yes. You don't mean to say the same thing is going to happen here?"
"I'm afraid that's a distinct possibility," Ion provided.
"Is there anything we can do?" Astor inquired.
"I'm afraid this time around evacuation is out of the question," Jade finally spoke up. "With the war going on, there's nowhere for the people to go."
"But what can we do?" Luke asked, trying to keep the panic in his voice to a minimum. "We brought everyone this far, we can't let them die now!"
"We know." Tear put a comforting hand on Luke's shoulder. "We're going to do everything we can to protect them."
"Ion," Guy spoke up. "Where's the passage ring for this area?"
"Chesedonia is supported by the Sephiroth in the Zao Ruins," the young Fon Master provided.
"Let's head there," Guy suggested. "We're not going to get much done hanging around here. At the very least we can check it out and see if there's anything we can do about the situation from there."
"Guy's right," Luke agreed. "We should at least go look."
"Astor, is there any way of warning the people here without starting a panic?" Asch asked.
"It won't be easy, but I'll figure something out. Leave it to us."
"Alright, I guess we'll head out first thing in the morning then," Asch declared as he stood up. "We should head back to the inn and get some sleep."
"I'll remain here and give Astor some of the details about our current situation," Jade replied. "I'll return later."
"Thank you, Jade," Ion smiled.
"Shall we wait for you?" Tear inquired.
"No. You and Luke should rest up, we'll be needing your abilities, and this would be a terribly inconvenient time to have you pass out on us."
"He has a point," Asch taunted.
"Don't worry Astor, we'll be sure to protect Chesedonia," Luke reassured the man.
"You won't if you don't go get some sleep," Asch pointed out, as he ushered his brother and the melodist after the others.
"Yes I will," Luke solemnly replied. "I'll do whatever it takes."
I won't let anyone else die.
--
Anise hated the desert. She had always figured she would never really like it; a beach with no water wasn't any kind of fun, but she had no idea just how awful a place the desert really was. It was sickeningly hot, unbelievably dry, and there was sand everywhere! It was going to take forever to get it all out of her hair. The young Fon Master Guardian grumbled at the thought. The sand would be bad enough, but even with her pigtails, her raven locks were going to be an intangible mess with the wind throwing it around like this. She just wished they could get there already!
At least they didn't have to cross the entire desert on foot, Anise was grateful for that much. Poor Ginji had done his best to get them as close to the half-buried ruins as he could, but landing on the sand drifts was difficult at best, and they'd had to settle for landing a half-hour's walk away. Still… Anise would be willing to bet a month's wages that they had been walking for at least an hour! The stupid heat had a magical way of making everything look so much closer than it really was, and the distant reprieve seemed to be slowly crawling away from her. Maybe Zao Ruins was running away from them. It wouldn't surprise her.
After walking for what seemed like days, they finally made it to the ruins' makeshift entrance. Over the years, the hot desert winds had almost completely buried the entire thing in sand. The only way in was what looked like an old window that wasn't quite submerged in the burning hot gritty stuff. Into the mouth of the proverbial beast, huh? If it meant reprieve from the heat, Anise was ready to jump into the mouth of one of Gloomietta's ligers.
What none of them had known was that Zao Ruins was a bit of a misnomer. Yes, it was technically a set of ruins, and they were ruined, but for some reason, the name seemed to imply a building, maybe a couple old temples or something. This, this was an entire underground city! Stone houses, buildings, temples, you name it and you could find it somewhere among the endless maze of roads and bridges. It left Anise to wonder what had happened to the people who had lived here, and what sort of fate had befallen them. Was the rest of the world doomed to vanish just like these people had? No! No way was she going to sit back and watch as the Commandant disassembled their world. She may not be as passionate about it as Luke and Asch seemed to be, but she wasn't just going to let it happen either. There were too many important things in this world to just let it disappear into the Qliphoth.
"Wait," Tear held her arm out, blocking Luke and everyone behind them from proceeding forward.
"What is it Tear?" Luke whispered but was ignored by the melodist who was focused on something.
"Watch it!" Tear shoved Luke backwards and into Guy before jumping aside herself. The arte landed in the empty space where the two teenagers had just been standing.
"Impressive job Tear," a voice echoed in the cavern. "You've been practicing."
"Cantabile!" Guy yelled, his own voice rebounding off the stone walls. "Come out here!"
"Now, now, no need to be yelling," the violet haired God-General stepped out from behind the rock she had been using as cover. "I'd hate to bring that much sand down on our heads." Despite the joking tone that she was using, the threat Cantabile spoke of was very real. Everyone had noticed the sand that fell through the many cracks and holes in the ceiling, and it wouldn't take much to bury them all deep beneath the surface.
"I'll pass on being buried alive thanks," Anise said with a sneer. "What do you want?"
"I'm here for the boy and the Fon Master," Cantabile answered. "But I'm hoping I'll leave here with more company than just them."
"What do you mean by that?" Tear demanded.
"Come on Tear, you don't really think Van wants to see you die with this wretched world do you?"
"I…"
"The same thing goes for you Gailardia. Both of you are very important to him, and he would love nothing more than to share the new world with you. You're both more than welcome to join me. For Mr. Sacred Flame over there and the Fon Master, however, I'm going to have to insist."
"I'm sorry Cantabile," Guy replied. "I don't want to fight you, but I've made my choice. I can't side with you and Van, not with what you're trying to accomplish."
"You say that, but do you really know what we're trying to do?"
"You're right," Jade interjected. "We don't know what you're trying to do. Care to fill us in?"
"Sorry Necromancer, but I'm not Dist. You're going to have to do better than that if you want to trick information out of me."
"What about you, Tear?" Cantabile turned to the melodist. "Are you going to fight your own brother without at least finding out what he's trying to accomplish?"
"How did you know to find us here?!" Asch demanded, drawing the pressure from Tear who couldn't find the answer to her former mentor's question.
"You aren't the only ones with a convenient source of information," Cantabile shot, her expression turning venomous.
"Major Cantabile's squad specializes in information gathering," Tear provided.
"Don't think we don't know about your information raiding in Daath," Cantabile continued, oblivious to her student's interruption. "Rest assured, you won't be getting away with it again."
Asch made mental note of Cantabile's threat. He had no intentions of testing Noir's skills against Cantabile's will. But that was for later; right now he was the one that had to contend with the angry God-General. She was clearly after him, and they didn't have the time to deal with her. From the looks of the land, they had next to no time left. Chesedonia was due in the Qliphoth any time now.
"Well, Tear? Gailardia? Are you coming or not?"
"I've told you before Cantabile, I'm not coming with you," Guy repeated.
"Why not? Why are you siding with them?"
"What you're doing is wrong," Guy stated, drawing his sword. "What happened on Hod isn't their fault. Killing them won't accomplish a thing!"
"But that's where you're wrong," Cantabile answered, her eyes alight with fury as she drew her own sword. "It will accomplish everything."
Cantabile easily singled Asch out and the redhead barely got his sword out in time to block her strike. "Not bad," she said with a malicious grin. "I would expect no less, seeing as you're Van's student. But don't think that means you can beat me!"
Cantabile's strikes were relentless, and there was no stopping her once she had chosen a target. Everyone else's attempts at diverting her assault had failed, and though she could be temporarily distracted, she easily avoided everyone's attacks, and returned to her target.
"Asch!" Luke managed to get in between his sibling and the God-General, parrying her strike. His arms trembled under the weight of her blade. Even he could tell she was skilled.
"Get out of my way," Cantabile spun around and easily tossed Luke aside.
"Luke!" Asch tried to hurry to his brother's side, but was forced back by a renewed assault.
"Eyes on me," Cantabile taunted. "You know what I'm going to do?" She asked, her voice turning venemous as she continued her relentless assault. Asch was just barely managing to keep up with her strikes. "I'm going to kill your brother. Then I'm going to kill your father, and your mother, and every other fool who has ever so much as smiled and helped you along your way. And then, once Van is done with you, I'm going to kill you too. Then… this world that scum like you lives in can go. I'll get rid of it all with my own hands."
"And what do you think that will accomplish?!" This time it was Guy who intervened.
"All those that died needlessly that day will finally be able to rest in peace. I will see an end to all those who slaughtered my people, simply because the Score said so!" Cantabile said allowing herself to be drawn away by the blonde's assault. Natalia wasted no time healing the wounds Asch had compiled. Off to the side, Tear had managed to get Luke back on his feet, after treating a head injury among other things. Tear knew better than anyone that Cantabile was not someone to be trifled with.
"But why?" Tear called out, unable to let go of her former teacher's answer. "Why would you want such a thing?"
"I wouldn't expect you to understand Tear. You were too young; you didn't see the bloodshed, the murder that these people wrought upon the innocents of Hod. But I remember it, I remember it all. For my mother, my father, and for every other life that their family stole from this world, I will not rest until I see both of them dead!"
"But what does that have to do with destroying the Score?" Tear demanded. It was taking a great deal of energy to balance her conversation with Cantabile and her healing. She was grateful for Natalia's assistance with the latter, though it served simply as a reminder of how weak she had become. Why were her emotions so difficult to keep at bay? Was it because it was Cantabile? The woman she had always seen as a big sister now had no desire other than to destroy the people Tear now held dear. But why? How had everything come to this?
"The people of this world, all of us, we're nothing but pitiful puppets!" Cantabile shouted as she fended off attacks on several fronts. "We play according to the Score, bending to it's every will, and that will be our destruction."
"What are you talking about?" Anise shouted as she unleashed an arte from the safety of Tokunaga's back. "You guys are the ones who are going to kill everyone and destroy the world by making the land fall!"
"I suppose the Score won't matter much once everyone is dead," Jade pointed out, unleashing an arte of his own. Cantabile swiftly dodged both attempts and continued her assault on Guy and the two redheads.
"That's where you're wrong. The ones who will die are the fools who refuse to let go of a false prophesy. Then the Score itself will be destroyed along with its support, Lorelei."
"You're trying to destroy Lorelei?!" Luke cried in outrage, barely sidestepping Cantabile's answering swing. She used the same style as Guy did, making Luke somewhat familiar with the movements, but her added speed was proving to be quite the challenge.
"Of course, unless Lorelei is destroyed, unless the power to read the Score is gone, the people will never escape it. And even then, they won't let go. They'll still desperately cling to the Score… so they'll go too. We'll remove it all, every trace."
"What point is there in removing the Score, if there's no one left in the world?" Natalia demanded.
"But you're wrong; there will be people in the new world! The people can be replaced by replicas, just as the world will be; replicas that will know nothing of Yulia's poison, a pure world."
"How can you say that?!" Tear cried, clearly no longer in control of her emotions. Her voice trembled as she tried one last time to reach out to her former mentor. "Replicas are worthless, they don't mean a thing! They can't bring you any happiness!"
"I thought you of all people could understand this," Cantabile said disappointedly, halting her assault. "After all it was your homeland too. It was your brother they forced to destroy it!"
"What?" Tear took a step back in pure shock. "What are you talking about?"
"Didn't know that? Did these scum never tell you? Hod was abandoned after all, the Score said it was to fall, so anything and everything was fair game. Both countries moved right in like it was there own personal laboratory and all of us were their personal lab rats. Your brother was singled out because he was such a capable Seventh Fonist. It was the hyperresonance experiments they put him through that eventually cost Hod its life. Ironic isn't it? The very people who acted because of the Score made it come true. I'll never forgive them; I'll never forgive any of them! And I will live to see the day they're all dead!!"
"You would really do that?" Guy asked the girl who had once been his close friend, the girl he had once hoped would be part of his future. She couldn't seriously mean that… could she? "You don't seriously think that killing off the entire world and replacing it with a huge replica is the answer, do you?"
"I would do anything to have Hod back." Cantabile's voice was laced with venom and sheer determination. Not one of them doubted that she would see this plan of theirs through to the end, even if the rest of the world had to die for her to get it.
"Eyes on me!" Asch attacked from behind, landing a hit to the God-General's right leg. Though it certainly wasn't a mortal blow, it was deep enough that it should at the very least slow her down. Jade saw the advantage and landed a similar hit on what seemed to be her dominant arm. Cantabile may possess some healing skills, but a blow to the joint like that would take awhile to heal, even if a Seventh Fonist were doting on her.
Cantabile muffled her cry as the hits landed, refusing to show her enemy any signs of weakness, but even she knew this fight was over. If she didn't retreat now, it would cost her her life, and that was something she refused to give up right now. Not with the Fabres on this side of the ground, not with Van's plans still incomplete; she couldn't die yet.
"Don't think you've seen the last of me," the God-General declared, and with one last burst of speed, vanished into the ruins.
"That must have been painful," Asch commented as he sheathed his sword. "Those weren't grazing blows."
"Pity she hadn't stuck around," Jade said as he put his own weapon away.
"She's not stupid like you old man, if she had stayed she would have been killed."
"Like I said, pity."
"T-Tear?" Luke hesitantly approached the melodist. She hadn't said a word since Cantabile had told them all that stuff about Master Van. That couldn't have been easy on her, but at the same time, Luke was afraid of how she was going to react. She would never actually join Master Van though… right?
"I…" Tear said softly, her voice trembling.
"It's alright Tear," Luke put a comforting hand on her shoulder, even though he wasn't really in the condition to do much comforting. Tear had him petrified.
"I hate fomicry!" Tear yelled into the empty cavern, her voice bouncing back to them and repeating her frustration. "How many more people do I have to lose… to that wretched technology…" she trailed off. Luke stood frozen at her side for a moment, then hesitantly retreated. He just couldn't…
"I know how you feel Tear," Guy spoke up, seeing just how bothered Luke was. "But aren't you being just a bit unfair? I mean, it's not like fomicry has forced them to do what they're doing."
"But you can't deny that if fomicry didn't exist, all this wouldn't be happening. There wouldn't be any way to recreate the world, no reason to destroy it. There's no place for fomicry in this word."
Guy retreated, deciding that pushing the issue may be the more harmful of the options at the moment. But man, poor Luke; no wonder he had a complex about being a replica with Tear acting like this.
"I wonder if her being here has anything to do with Chesedonia falling," Ion wondered.
"That's hard to say," Anise replied. "I mean, she sure acted like she was here for you and her happy family over there," the Fon Master Guardian nodded towards Guy and Tear. "But there's no saying what she was really doing here."
"There's only one way we're going to find that out," Asch said as he began down the path. "Let's hurry ahead to the passage ring."
"As much as I'm enjoying the sights, I'm going to have to agree," Jade pitched in. "We'll have plenty of time to contemplate these matters later, for now let's ensure the safety of Chesedonia."
"You're right," Luke finally spoke up. "Let's go."
--
The passage ring was just like all the others, and it seemed that no matter how dire the circumstances were, they never failed to instil a sense of wonder in Luke. They just seemed so... peaceful and calming. Luke really wished he could have a chance to visit one when thousands of lives didn't hang in the balance, then maybe he could enjoy them properly, as he was sure Yulia had intended them to be.
The walk down here had been anything but peaceful though. No one had said a word since their encounter with Cantabile and the silence made Luke want to scratch his ears out. He just couldn't stand the tension! And yet, at the same time, he wasn't going to be the first one to say something. His emotions were still in disarray after Tear's statement. He had quietly hoped that as time went on, her hatred of fomicry would taper off a bit, but it was still very much alive and as strong as, if not stronger than that fateful day in Ortion Cavern. He just… he just didn't know what he would do if she found out. He didn't want to lose her, he just couldn't lose Tear.
"Tear, if you would." Jade was the first person to break the awkward silence once they had made it down to the passage ring itself. Tear obediently walked over and activated the ring, bringing up a myriad of glyphs on the ceiling.
"Well looks like Van's been a busy little boy," Guy commented noticing an additional two red rings above and beyond the ones he'd been told about. "Do we know where those ones are?"
"I can't tell," Asch replied. "How about you, old man?"
"No, I'm not sure either," Jade replied half-heartedly. Something was drawing his undivided attention. Just how bad had things gotten since Shurrey Hill?
"How do things look?" Ion inquired after several moments.
"Not good, I'm afraid," Jade replied, his eyes still glued to the ceiling.
"So we can't save Chesedonia?" Anise guessed.
"Oh, it's much worse than that. It seems as if the Sephiroth have reached some sort of critical point; their power is completely out of control. At this rate all of the passage rings will break and the outer lands will crash."
"So all of the Outer Lands will end up in the Qliphoth?" Tear asked.
"Worse than that," Asch spoke up. "If the passage rings break, any of the lands set to float on the miasma will sink. Without the passage rings, there won't be any Sephiroth at all, not even to keep the lands afloat."
"That's terrible! Isn't there anything we can do?!" Luke said in a panic.
"About the Sephiroth going out of control? Not much from here," Asch replied disappointedly. "I'd still like to try and do something about Chesedonia though."
"Asch is right," Guy agreed. "Even if it's a temporary fix, we need to try and do something for the people of Engeve and Chesedonia."
"Hmm," Jade silently pondered for a moment. "We may be able to lower the land slowly, like an elevator to minimize casualties and injuries, then stabilize it on the surface of the miasma like we did for St. Binah. Keeping it up in the Outer Lands is completely out of the question, I'm afraid. This Sephiroth is too far gone."
"Is it possible to do the same thing for the soldiers on the Rugnica Plains?" Luke asked.
"In theory, yes," Jade replied. "However, I doubt we'd make it back to Shurrey Hill in time."
"Then let's do it from here," Asch suggested.
"Is that even possible?" The younger sibling stared at his brother in something akin to awe. Just how did Asch get all this information?
"Yes, it is, and I can show you how," Asch replied with certainty.
"Wait a second!" Natalia interjected. "You're not seriously talking about putting these lands in the Qliphoth are you?"
"Of course we are," Luke answered.
"What's the matter with you?!"
"What's the matter with me? What's the matter with you?" Luke protested when Natalia verbally attacked him. "If we don't do anything the land is going to fall anyways. What's the big deal? It's the exact same as last time."
"No it's not the same as last time! Last time the land we were lowering was going to be evacuated. You don't honestly expect all those people to live in the Qliphoth? Without any sort of protection against the poison? You might as well go kill them yourself!"
"Natalia, stop it!" Asch cut in before Luke could come up with a retort. "You know there isn't any other option right now! Look," the redhead lowered his voice before continuing. "I know this isn't exactly the best situation, but try to look at the bright side. This way we can save the soldiers on the battlefield too."
"Why, so they can slowly suffocate from the poison?! I didn't want to save them like this! No one should have to live like that!"
"At least they'll live," Luke cut off Natalia's impending rant. In spite of her fury, to that statement, Natalia couldn't find a retort.
"Luke's right," Ion agreed, "and as long as you live, you can work towards a better tomorrow."
"Let's get going," Asch ushered Luke off towards the passage ring. "Even Tear's strength won't last forever." Tear gave him a grateful smile, well, as much of a smile as she could manage.
Asch began giving Luke instructions, explaining the finer points of what the younger sibling was going to have to do. Though she had been defeated, Natalia clearly had no intentions of conceding her emotions on the subject, and was making her feelings obvious with the dirty looks she sent in their direction. If only…
Natalia struggled to make sense of the thoughts that flew through her mind, as she watched Luke's hyperresonance. The script that imposed itself upon the complex glyph glowed softly and Natalia allowed her mind to follow it. She could pick out bits and pieces of the commands, but it was otherwise too complex for her to follow in Ancient Ispanian. Since when was Luke so fluent in Ancient Ispanian anyways? When had he become so stubborn, unwilling to listen to reason? It bothered her, it bothered her far more than she cared to admit.
Why was he destroying so many lives? First it was Akzeriuth, and heaven forbid should she ever say such a thing. After all, Luke was supposedly completely innocent in that regard; as if Luke couldn't make decisions for himself. Why should he alone not have to accept the consequences of his actions? Then of course there was the war, she could find cause ten times over to blame their lack of intervention on that front on the younger redhead.
It frustrated her so! Why did everyone dote on him like he was the center of the universe? Honestly, he was just a child! A seven-year old! He shouldn't even be accompanying them, much less be given the fate of the world as his plaything! He had absolutely no appreciation for the consequences of what he was doing. All he cared about was the here and now, and how he could make himself feel better; how he could force his way into a world in which he did not belong.
"Impressive work," Jade commented once Luke had finished.
"What now?" Luke asked. He didn't have to wait long for an answer, no sooner had he spoken than the entire cavern began to shake.
"The land is lowering at the moment; I suggest we wait here in case there are any unforeseen problems. You can let go over there Tear," the Colonel added, noticing how drained their companion seemed.
"Thank you." Tear let go of the pedestal and came over to join the others.
"So was that the product of your recent 'information raid' on Daath?" Jade's question was directed at Asch.
"That's right," the redhead confirmed. "I'm willing to bet that's how Van's been operating all the passage rings without the Sephiroth being open."
"Ah, I see. Not a bad theory. It would explain how he's accessed passage rings that haven't been opened yet. Though I wonder, there are still the Yulian Seals, how is he bypassing them?"
"Maybe you only need to break the seal to operate the passage ring?" Guy suggested. "Once it's broken at one passage ring, you can operate any of the Sephiroth from there. I don't know…it would be handy in an emergency, but it's quite the flaw in security."
"Wait a sec," Anise piped up. "If Van can access all the Sephiroth from one passage ring, why hasn't he dropped the Outer Lands already?"
Before anyone could formulate an answer, Tear began to cough. It seemed innocent enough at first, as if something had gone down the wrong way, but it quickly turned into a fit of hacking that brought the melodist to her knees.
"Tear! Are you alright?" Luke hurried to her side, his concern easily washing away any apprehension over recent events. Tear tried, but couldn't manage to bring up words between fits of coughing. Luke found himself unable to do anything but brace the melodist. Then suddenly, a wave of dizziness swept over him.
"Easy Luke," Asch rushed to steady his sibling who had knelt down beside Tear. Luke accepted Asch's support. "Are you okay?" Luke shook his head, as if to shake off whatever had just come over him.
"Yeah, I'm just kind of worn, that's all. That took a lot more out of me than the others did."
"There you are Anise, there's your answer," Jade replied.
"What are you talking about old man?" Asch asked as he helped his sibling and the melodist, who had managed to get her coughing under control, to their feet. Tear still didn't look very good. Had it really taken that much out of them?
"It may be a simple matter of effort," Jade explained. "From the looks of things, operating passage rings at a distance requires a great deal of energy. That could be what has been slowing Van's progress, especially if he needs time to recover between attempts."
"But what is he doing?" Guy inquired. "I mean I know he needs room for this replica world of his, but it just seems off to me. I mean, couldn't he have just ordered the lands to crash, or shut off the Sephiroth? It seems like there's more to this."
"Fomicry requires a large amount of Seventh Fonons," Jade speculated. "I wonder if he's been diverting the fonon flow to provide for his fomicry experiments. To pull off something on the scale he's been considering, I can't imagine any other suitable source, unless he was to harness the Planet Storm itself. Of course… this is all pure conjecture at this point. Until we've confirmed it, we should be cautious not to take it as factual information. We may be completely wrong. Do remember that we've only successfully connected Sephiroth that had already been activated."
"No matter what he's doing… we have… we have to stop my brother," Tear managed, still leaning on Luke for support. "We have to stop him and his fomicry... before it's too late."
"Tear's right," Luke agreed. "We can't let things go on like this."
"Yeah, but what do we do?" Anise inquired. "So far all we've been doing is reacting to everything. Exactly how are we supposed to go about stopping the Commandant?"
"Point taken," Guy said while pondering possible solutions. "What we really need is more information."
"Perhaps we should pay Belkend a visit and see what we can find out about the fomicry project Dorian General Grants has undertaken," Jade suggested. "We can also do some research on the miasma while we're there."
"Do I need to remind you that Belkend is one of Van's strongholds?" Asch brought up.
"Then I guess that means we'll have to walk a ways," Jade replied with the traces of a grin. "We'd hate for them to be alerted to our presence."
"Yeah, whatever old man." Asch rolled his eyes. "Hey Tear, are you okay?" Asch asked as he noticed the melodist swaying.
"Whoa," Luke caught Tear as she fell forward. "Tear, are you alright? Tear!"
"It seems she's just passed out." Jade did his best to appease Luke's worries. "Perhaps it would be for the best if we avoid operating multiple passage rings in the future."
"I'll agree with you there," Asch conceded. He could still sense the pure exhaustion that Luke was trying to hide. It had been a lot harder on both of them than anyone thought it would be. Then again, all things considered they had just lowered a good portion of the world safely into the Qliphoth. Asch was impressed with his sibling for managing such a feat. Silence fell over everyone as they patiently waited for the land to finish its descent.
"Hey Natalia," Guy eventually spoke up, noticing just how upset she seemed. She wasn't…crying was she? "Are you okay?"
"No! No I'm not okay! None of this is okay!!"
"Natalia…" Asch's attempts to comfort his fiancée were lost to Natalia's steadily climbing voice.
"How many people do you think we've just sentenced to death?! How many lives have we destroyed? People aren't supposed to live in the Qliphoth like that! Now what's next? We lower Kimlasca too? Then just sit back and watch as everyone slowly suffocates to death?! In a year most of those people will be dead. Dead! Those lives are on our hands!"
"Well until we find a suitable alternative, I'm afraid they'll just have to find a way to deal with it," Jade stated, making no attempts to hide his annoyance at the Princess' complaints.
"Natalia, look-" Asch began.
"No Asch! I will not look! I'm tired of being told everything will be okay, that everything will be fine. It won't! Can't you see that? What if there isn't a way to raise the land again? We'll have been the ones to destroy the world!"
"If we can't raise the land then we'll find a way to get rid of the miasma," Asch replied.
"Yulia couldn't do anything about the miasma! Just what do you think you'll be able to do?!"
"We'll figure something out. Just because we don't know now, doesn't mean there isn't a way," Asch said, his voice strained.
"No! I'm tired of always being dismissed and ignored! Look at what's happened! First the war and now this!! And don't tell me there was no other way! If you had so much as listened to me, we wouldn't even be in this mess! If you hadn't ignored your obligations to your country none of this would have ever happened!"
"You think I don't know that?!" Asch's eyes betrayed just how deeply Natalia's words had penetrated. "You think…" Asch continued, his voice now barely a whisper. "You think I don't know this is all my fault? That all this is my responsibility."
"If you knew, why didn't you do anything about-" The rest of Natalia's line was cut of by Luke who landed a sharp blow across Natalia's face.
"Luke!" Asch yelled, outraged at his brother's actions.
"I don't care Asch, enough is enough! We all know how hard you've been working, how worried you've been about everything going on, and it's about time Natalia realized that too!" Luke turned to Natalia whose hand rested over the cheek where Luke slapped her. She didn't have to say a word, she was positively livid. Luke, however, wasn't in the least bit deterred; it was one thing for her to be mad at Luke himself, but to attack Asch, after all that he'd done, after all those nights he lay awake worried about her… How dare she.
"No matter what we do, nothing is ever good enough for you! It's always has to be your way, as if you're completely infallible. Well guess what, if we had done thing your way then everyone would be dead right now." Luke continued before Natalia had the chance to retaliate. "You constantly criticize every move we make, well I don't see you doing anything about the situation going on!"
"Come on Luke," Guy attempted to intervene. "You're really not being fair. It's not Natalia's fault we've been dragging her around and keeping her from Baticul."
"I don't care," Luke replied. "And I won't take it back. Natalia is just being selfish."
"Selfish?" Natalia's outraged response finally came. "I'm being selfish? That's funny, last time I checked I wasn't the one being selfish here."
"What do you mean by that?" Luke demanded.
"Aren't you having fun?" Natalia continued in a mocking tone. "Enjoying being useful with these passage rings, enjoying the praise you always get every time you've sentenced another city full of people to death? You make me sick! You never look for any kind of alternative to lowering the land! Why? Because you want to feel useful, you want to feel important! You don't care about the consequences of what you're doing. People's lives are not your plaything! This world is not your toy to do with as you please, I don't care how much praise or satisfaction you may get out of it! Stop trying to force your way into a world where you don't belong. Asch and I have a country to look after. People who don't understand should just stay out of it."
To that, no one could come up with an answer.
"Well," Jade was the first to break the tense silence that had fallen over everyone. "Seeing as the land has descended without any problems, I suggest we take our leave, before the yelling brings the entire desert down on our heads."
"I think that's a fantastic idea," Guy agreed with all the fake cheer he could muster. With Asch's help, Luke managed to get Tear on his back, and both boys were ushered out of the passage ring with Anise and Ion in tow.
"Well Princess," Jade's voice seemed to echo in the silence. There was no hiding the fact that he was clearly displeased with her, even more so than before. "Now that you've done enough collateral damage, I suggest you get going." It clearly wasn't a suggestion. Natalia didn't care; she didn't care what any of them thought right now.
She didn't regret any of it.
Not a word.