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Final Fantasy VI: The Sands of Time

Book 1: The Begininng

Chapter 8 - Dream's End

Part 8.16 - Ascension

Dune pushed through the dense clouds of Merkabah with all the strength left in his body. Bahamut's wound still pained him with every surge of energy, and he could see a steady trickle of glistening blue blood dripping away from him as he rose through layer after layer. He knew exerting himself like this would worsen his condition, but he was set on this path. If he was going to die, he wanted to face this final tormentor and demand an explanation for the tragedy that had unfolded beneath this god's watchful presence.

The storm would not admit trespassers so easily, though. Dune could see the spiraling cyclones twisting through the variegated world of the storm all the way down to the helpless city below. Vast networks of lightning flashed threateningly in between the dark pillars of wind like cracks in the sky. Cannonball-sized hailstones filled the air where endless rain had fallen before. Throughout it all, the cacophonous call of destruction echoed across the horizon. This chaos was the storm's death knell for Narsille.

Between Dune's cold aura and Genju's powerful holy barrier, they were withstanding the murderous environment of the inner depths of Merkabah, but neither Esper knew how far the storm cloud ascended, or if there was any sanctuary to be found above the cloud cover. For all they knew, the storm rose forever, a never-ending column of death.

A massive hailstone the size of Dune's head slammed into their doubled barrier, and Dune watched in horror as the chunk of ice penetrated halfway through the wall of magic before disintegrating. It would not be long before their protection failed, and the storm claimed them.

Genju sensed the coming threat, and turned his bearded face to Dune. In the flickering whirlwind of light and darkness around them, his withered face looked like a death mask. But there was a glimmer of determination in his deep eyes that told Dune he had a plan.

"Dune, the Nacre, give it to me." Genju shouted, his voice sounding like it was a mile away in the wall of noise accompanying the inner storm.

Dune had almost forgotten the strange necklace of pearls around his neck. He knew it was capable of miraculous feats, but against something as almighty as Merkabah, what could a piece of jewelry do? Dune simply took the Nacre and passed it carefully to the elder Esper without a word.

Genju handled the artifact reverently, and began chanting in an unknown language. The six pearls that still glowed flared up like white torches as his words washed over them. The storm seemed to be aware of what was happening, and shrank back from the holy light pouring off the Nacre. It knew these ancient words well, and knew their power must be obeyed when spoken by a true holy priest of the Order in possession of the Nacre.

"In the name of Elia, I beseech you! Let us pass! Al-Aqualem!" Genju cried, finishing the incantation. The light from the pearls condensed into a single ray and shot upwards into the deepest levels of the endless storm.

Everything stopped as the light pierced the hidden heart of Merkabah. The cyclones stopped their mad rotation, the lightning froze in place, the hailstones hovered in midair. Time ceased to flow within the stricken storm, and Dune and Genju felt an oppressive presence awaken above them, begrudgingly allowing them safe passage through the remaining layers of the storm.

"Our call has been heard, and Merkabah opens its gates to us," Genju said softly, still entranced by his ritual. "Quickly, let us finish our ascent while the storm is at bay."

Dune, in awe of the power of both Genju and the Nacre, gulped and returned his gaze to the clouds above them. They remained still, but threatened to resume their gnashing and churning at any moment. The two solemnly resumed their rise, and after what could have been seconds or millennia, they broke through the walls of Merkabah.

Like a fish leaping out of water, Dune burst from the sea of dark clouds into the clear night sky, far, far above the earth. He relaxed his body and allowed himself to glide weightlessly on his own momentum before slowing to a stop. He hovered alone for a moment in the moonlight before Genju joined him in the quiet world above Merkabah.

It was a truly breathtaking sight above the clouds. The rage of the storm had resumed the moment they left the confines of the clouds, but none of the violence below reached the serene environment they now found themselves in. The twin moons hung full in the night sky, pale eyes watching over the world below. A field of glittering stars surrounded the bright moons, wrapping the heavens in their flow. Rows upon rows of undulating grey clouds covered the ceiling of the world, silently rising and falling like waves of grass in the wind. All was quiet.

Dune watched in amazement as a small shining sphere shot across the heavens almost too fast for the eye to follow. It was one of Narsille's orbiting satellites, now mindlessly traversing the planet with no hope of ever receiving another order. How long would these abandoned stars cross the sky before finally falling to earth, forgotten by their creators? It could be centuries, millennia. In Dune's mind, images flashed of a distant future people discovering one of these relics of a lost civilization crashed to earth, its vast reserves of power finally depleted. What would they think of the once great technology of Narsille? What future archeologists would pick up where Dune had left off, uncovering the strange history of this world?

"Who dares profane the sacred realm of Merkabah?"

Dune's fanciful daydreams were shattered by a voice as deep as the abyss resonating through the new realm. Its force sent vibrations thrumming through Dune's body, causing him to stiffen in nervous anticipation. Following Genju's gaze, Dune saw the source of this vast voice, its towering form filling the eastern skies.

Out of the flowing clouds there rose the shape of a giant head, the size of a mountain. The head was in the form of a man, with thick curls of cloud-spun hair surrounding a face full of anger. A close-cropped grey beard of clouds covered the giant's face, meeting the locks of hair to form a magnificent mane fit for a king. Two ghostly pale eyes shone like furious stars from within the darkening visage. The scowl stretching across the mountainous cloudshape filled Dune with dread. Had he made a mistake coming to this place after all?

"Is that Uranos?" Dune whispered to Genju as the billowing face seethed before them. The twin cores of light stared measuringly at the two trespassers, studying them intently.

"Nay, I know that face, and it is not the face of Uranos...," Genju said, as awestruck as Dune. "I never thought to see that face again, certainly not within the walls of Merkabah!"

When Genju spoke, the eyes snapped onto the Esper like cross-hairs, and a look of deep-seated wrath rippled across the bearded face. The mouth moved, and a voice like distant thunder rumbled across the heavens.

"Genju, the Eldest...why have you abandoned your exile? The time of your penance has not yet been decreed by the gods. Do you come again as the Warrior King? Speak, or I will hurl you from these hallowed halls into the deepest pits of Discordia!"

Genju suddenly appeared to shrink in size, once again taking on the penitent form of a weak old man. When he spoke, it was in a shamed voice Dune had never heard before.

"Adamastor, hear me! The Warrior King is dead, never to rise again. Before you is a humble servant of Altimus, and nothing more. The hand of Fate has decided to thrust this broken vessel into the world of men once again. I am a victim of Altimus's guiding touch, and nothing more."

The face shook in barely contained spasms of emotion. "The words of a traitor are meaningless. I have followed the faltering of the Balance across this world, and somehow I am not surprised to find you at its end, Genju!"

Genju threw himself forward, abasing himself to the mighty figure. "I know my words ring hollow after all these centuries, but please forgive me, Adamastor! Look past our quarrel and see the world as it is now! The Fallen Masters have returned, and have found new Heralds to wreak their havoc across the mortal realm. You were once the mightiest Esper among us, will you not raise your fist to the injustice below?"

The face of the Esper known as Adamastor churned and roiled, his ghostly features twisting and distorting in disgust. "You think the Herald of Uranos ignorant of the threat to the Balance! While you have been indolent in your exile, I alone have carried the burden of maintaining the Balance. I have followed the path of the Fallen every step of the way, intervening as much as I was permitted by my Master!" Adamastor's eyes burned with murderous intelligence as they passed from the wretched figure of Genju to the other intruder.

"You!" Adamastor's bellowing voice slammed into Dune like fist, and the weakening Esper almost collapsed at the hatred dripping from that one word. "Do not think you stand before me with your sins hidden in the guise of the Dreaming Awake! I know you, Dune Karn, and at Elia's request I have allowed you to continue your mindless blundering at the hands of the Master of Ice. But this trespass I cannot forgive! Why have you come here, and why have you brought the murderous Genju with you?"

Dune was petrified by the harsh words of Adamastor. Dune knew his own crimes all too well, but what had Genju done to deserve such treatment? His disdain for the venerable Esper was a shock to Dune, and he wondered just what dark sins the mysterious relic of the distant past carried on his angel's wings.

"Master of Merkabah," Dune spoke carefully, not wanting to offend the titanic Esper. "We have come only to seek refuge from the Fallen Masters below. Please, grant us asylum in your realm, if only for a short while! We are alone and defeated, and pose no threat to you. Please, help us!"

The Esper rumbled, but said nothing for a moment. Then, "I do not sense the power of Chemosh within you, Dune Karn. You have been as a child, stumbling through this world without a thought for the greater powers at work. But...I see you have freed yourself from the Fallen Masters. That is no small task for one as young as you." Adamastor turned his fierce gaze back to the withering Genju. "You could learn from this one, Eldest! I can see that the two of you are truly lost in the storm that rages beneath Merkabah. I will never forgive you for your betrayal, Genju, but it is not for me to decide your fate, or Dune's. I must converse with my Master, and see what is to be done. Remain where you are!"

The tumultuous face of Adamastor stilled, and his glowing eyes closed. He looked as if he were in a deep trance. Dune took this moment to try and understand what had happened between these two mythical Espers of yore.

"Genju, who is this Esper? Why does he bear such a grudge against you?"

Genju straightened himself out, still looking frail and truly old. He looked at Dune with eyes full of pain and guilt. "Adamastor is an ancient Esper, and the Herald of Uranos, just as you once were the Herald of Chemosh, and I was once the Herald of Altimus." Genju sighed at the thought of his glory days as the Warrior King of the great Phoenician Empire. All lost.

"How many more Espers are out there? If such powerful beings exist in the world, how was this catastrophe allowed to happen?" Dune said angrily, despite his precarious situation.

"Of the original Heralds, only Adamastor remains," Genju explained with a heavy heart. "Each Master had their own Herald to act as their voice and will in the mortal world. I was the first Herald, chosen by the Holy Master Altimus himself. The next Herald to be created was Phoenix, the Herald of Elia." Genju's face wrinkled in pain at the thought of his entombed love. "She...still lives, but cannot help us. She is a slave to her unending duty, bound in eternal fire."

Dune, unaware of the true identity of the Phoenix, did not understand Genju's enigmatic words. "Where is the Phoenix? Could we free her?"

Genju shrank further into himself. "It is not possible. She rests at the center of Phoenix Isle, keeping watch over our former homeland. It is her burden that she sacrifice herself every hundred years to prove to the gods that mankind is still worthy of their blessing. It was a cruel fate for my gentle Phoenix, but she bore it willingly, even gladly. If only I could have remained as faithful as she!"

Now Dune knew what Genju was saying. He knew of the strange rite of the Order from Indie, but did not know that there was an Esper at the heart of the ritual. He sensed there was something Genju was holding back about the imprisoned Esper, but he felt it was none of his business to pry further.

"What about the other Espers?" Dune asked, changing the subject.

"Adamastor was the next Herald, and for a time, we were steadfast allies. He was a mighty warrior, and acted as the arm of my Empire, protecting the peace throughout the realm while I ruled from my throne." Genju paused and looked at the silent face of his former friend, wondering how they could have strayed so far from each other.

"What happened? Why does he hate you?"

"You must understand, Dune," Genju continued. "Adamastor is filled with the fury of the Master of Storms himself. The temper of the Herald of Uranos is not to be tested, and I made the unforgivable mistake of insulting his honor with orders unbecoming of a noble Esper. Tiring of my increasingly bloodthirsty decrees, he was the first to see the warmonger I was becoming, and left my service in a great rage. When he stormed from my throne room in a whirlwind of disgust, that was the last time I ever saw him."

"But this storm, this Merkabah - what is it?" Dune asked, confused at how even an Esper as mighty as Adamastor could wield such god-like power.

"The storm is the chariot of Uranos" Genju replied, thinking out loud as he pieced together events. "It appeared many years after Adamastor left my side. I always wondered where my friend had gone, and was equally perplexed by the appearance of the great storm Merkabah that devastated the borders of my empire. Now it makes sense. After he abandoned his post, he must have spent an unfathomable amount of his own energy building up this storm on the farthest reaches of the planet, outside my ever expanding empire. But to create something so vast, he must have had direct access to his Master's divine plane." Genju paused and scanned the horizon.

"What are you looking for?" Dune asked, fascinated by the wealth of historical information he was being granted. This was any archeologist's dream, and it saddened Dune that he would probably never be able to share this knowledge with the human world. Genju alone could put all the greatest libraries of Doma to shame with his deep experiences.

Genju said nothing while his sharp eyes looked across the empty plains above Merkabah. Then he stopped and gasped in recognition of what he was seeking.

"Aha!" He shouted almost cheerfully. "Look there, Dune." Genju pointed one long finger off into the distance, behind where Adamastor still meditated on their fate. The huge shaggy head obscured most of their vision in that direction, but a dark speck could be seen rising from the clouds like an island in the sky. The straight, horn-like projection was jet black and looked smooth as ice and hard as metal, but shown with an unearthly intensity. Strangely, it reminded Dune of the Ultima Gate from inside Crescent Mountain.

"What is that?" Dune asked, more fascinated than ever.

"That is the entrance to Vimana, the plane of Uranos," Genju said, solemnly. "From that adamantine spire, Uranos fuels this sprawling creation of Adamastor." As if reading Dune's thoughts, Genju explained its connection to the Ultima Gate. "The Ultima Gate was not the only entrance to the Nexus, just the only one accessible to mortals. Each Master exists in a purely magical realm of their own fashioning, separate from this mortal world. The Nexus is the infinite expanse that connects the space between the various realms. Through that spire you see beyond Adamastor is Uranos's bridge through the Nexus and into his divine realm of Vimana."

Dune felt his head spinning as Genju dumped the flurry of terms into his brain. "Slow down!" Dune said exasperatedly. "Vimana, the Nexus, the Ultima Gate...these are all connected? What about that force I encountered in the Nexus? The Crystal Forge?"

"Everything is connected, everything is one," Genju intoned, staring at the Vimana Gate rising silently on the eastern horizon. While he spoke, the lonely Narsillian satellite made another streaking path across the sky. "The Crystal Forge is the pathway to the highest plane, the center of all the realms. Through its purifying flames you glimpsed the seat of Altimus himself, Concordia, and were reborn."

Dune took a moment to take all this in, sharing Genju's view of the Vimana Gate and contemplating the higher nature of reality. He felt so small and naive, looking back at the laughably limited perspective he once held of the universe. That truly was another lifetime ago.

"What of the other Espers?" Dune asked quietly as his mind wandered across the cosmos.

"There was only one other Esper during my reign," Genju said tensely, a grim look stealing across his face. He had been avoiding this final leg of their conversation, but he knew he must tell Dune everything, even if it cost him the simple man's trust.

"Who? Where is this Esper?" Dune said innocently, unaware of Genju's change in attitude.

"He is right here, always by my side," Genju said with an odd choking sound. Before Dune could say anything, Genju reached deep into his voluminous robes and revealed a large faceted gem, similar to the gravity crystal Dune had once owned. It was slightly larger and elongated, but translucent and crystalline in appearance, unlike the black, bottomless faces of the gravity crystal. At its center there was a ruby-colored orb, like a small heart encased in thick glass. The ruby heart beat with a warm pulse that radiated throughout the crystal in a rainbow of gentle colors.

"What is that? Is that an Esper?" Dune asked incredulously. After seeing the strange forms of Alexander and the others, he half-expected the crystal to be some exotically shaped Esper. With magic, anything was possible.

"It was, long ago." Genju continued, hesitant to explain further. "This is what happens to an Esper when their life force is extinguished."

It took a second for Dune to fully grasp Genju's words. "You mean we turn into...that...when we die?"

Genju hung his head in shame. "Yes. This is what is known as magicite. It is what is left of our mortal flesh when the magical portion of our being returns to the Nexus. Without the support of our magical life force, our Esper bodies collapse and condense into a fragment of highly concentrated adamantite. Magicite." When Genju finished, there were tears in his eyes.

Dune wasn't sure how to respond to Genju's revelation. The Esper was obviously bothered by this curious object. Was this his friend? "Genju, the last of your group of Espers...that's him?"

Genju swallowed hard, struggling to force the words he loathed to say. "This is my cross to bear, Dune. This was the fourth and final Herald. Titan, the Herald of Gaeus. He was my closest and most loyal ally." Genju stopped, unable to continue. With a sigh that echoed across the ages, he revealed his heaviest burden. "I killed him."

Dune was speechless at Genju's confession. The great pacifist, a murderer?

"What do you mean? How? Why?" Dune stuttered, not sure what to say to this.

Genju merely shook his head, unable to speak any further. He cradled the dead Titan's remains, then carefully tucked it back into his robes.

They both remained awkwardly silent, Dune unsure what to say next, and Genju unwilling to speak after admitting his greatest crime.

The silence was broken by the angry voice of Adamastor, now awake and glaring at the two tiny specks. His face had softened, but his eyes stilled burned with unquenched wrath.

"I shall tell you, little one," Adamastor said with deep disdain.

Genju looked up at the intimidating face of his former friend, but was too ashamed to argue. Adamastor told the sad story of Titan's death, not without a gloating air of satisfaction.

"In his growing madness, the Warrior King demanded increasingly insane tributes to his throne. I left before he reached this point, or I too might have shared our brother's fate. Even when all his subjects had turned against him and the other two Heralds had abandoned him, Titan remained by his side, as solid and stubborn as the earth itself. Had he been less loyal, he would still be here today, patrolling the land as I patrol the skies.

"In the end, Genju was consumed by the powers of the Fallen Masters just as the current Heralds are now. The three dark gods crept into his tainted soul and found his weaknesses, one by one. Titan saw what was happening, and tried to save his friend, but was too late. The Herald of Altimus was gone, and the Warrior King was all that remained. In a fit of rage at being defied, the Warrior King slew his closest friend, and claimed his magicite remains for himself. This was the final act of the Warrior King. For the grievous and unforgivable crime of espercide, he was stripped of his kingdom, his title as Herald, and the gifts of Altimus, and banished to the depths of Crescent Isle."

"No more!" Genju sobbed, unable to relive to the story of his own downfall yet again. He had replayed these events in his mind countless times during his thousand-year exile, but the pain never lessened. To hear the story now told from the accusing and merciless voice of Adamastor was too much.

"No more, you say?" Adamastor growled, lightning flashing across his massive face. "Ask Titan if you have suffered enough for his death! Has his voice ever reached out to you even once in all these years? I doubt it. You keep his remains on you at all times, but they are cold and silent to your touch, are they not? You may have taken his powers for you own, but you will never have his trust again!"

Dune was amazed at the terrible words of Adamastor, but his last explosive accusation left Dune confused, and at the risk of being struck down, he hazarded a question to slake his intense curiosity.

"What do you mean, Titan's voice? Can Esper's communicate beyond death?"

Adamastor's steely glare snapped to Dune, but his rage was still focused solely on Genju as he clarified his previous words.

"We Espers are beings of magic. Once the pact is made and we receive the blessing of the Masters, we are forever a part of their essence. The death of the flesh is a mortal death, and removes us from the mortal world only. Our magical essence, our soul, still exists beyond this world, although its exact nature and location is unknown, even to such as myself. Only the Masters themselves know what truly happens beyond death, for Espers and humans alike. But if a departed Esper strongly desires to communicate with the mortal world, they may still voice their thoughts through their magicite remains. Such is the power of magicite. Just as the adamantite Gates connect the Nexus to the mortal world, so too does the adamantite shard that houses the remnants of our power connect an individual Esper's soul to the mortal world.

"You speak the truth, Adamastor," Genju said weakly. "Titan does not call out to me, even now. When we meet again beyond the curtain of death, I will have much to answer for. Surely, my friend will be waiting for me at the doors to the afterlife, his accusing eyes following me for all eternity. I do not ask for forgiveness, only asylum." Genju bowed his head humbly and asked, "What has your Master decided?"

Dune looked on tensely, wondering what Adamastor would say. To his surprise, the mountainous face split into a wide grin. Dune did not know whether this was a good sign or bad.

"I have communed with my Master, and he has communed with the other Masters." Adamastor said sternly as he delivered his judgment. "They have watched your role in the events below with great interest, Genju. You have shown them a great change in your attitudes, and they believe your exile should be shortened in light of your recent behavior."

Genju's eyes lit up at the chance of being pardoned by his Master after all these lonesome centuries. He wondered if he was as worthy as they thought him to be, though. His old friend's magicite remained silent beside his heart still. Would he ever hear the voice of Titan again?

"However," Adamastor's voice continued. "It was not by the hand of the rightful Masters that your exile was ended prematurely. By the decree of Altimus himself, you are to carry out the remainder of your exile here, atop Merkabah. I shall be your jailer, and Uranos your warden for however long the gods deem necessary."

Genju's heart sunk, but he knew it was what he deserved, and nothing less. He had tasted freedom for a short while, but his crimes were too great to be forgiven just yet. "I understand and accept my punishment," Genju said as calmly as he could.

Now Dune was worried. Would he be forced to stay here among the clouds for the rest of his life, as well? Genju may be willing to give up his freedom, but Dune was not sure he could stand to remain here for much longer. The world below needed him. His friends needed him. And Mae, she was still down there, and perhaps there was still hope for the two of them yet...

"What of my fate?" Dune asked, afraid of what judgment the Esper might pass down.

Adamastor looked at Dune with what almost appeared to be kindness. "You have also committed grave crimes under the influence of the Fallen Masters, young one."

At these words, Dune felt faint. Was this to be his new home?

The Esper judge's face softened as he continued. "However, the Masters have decided that the blame lies more in the hands of their fallen brothers and sister than in yours. Rather than destroy, you have chosen to fight the instincts of your Esper blood. You overcame the power of Chemosh, and are now a free Esper, beholden to no Master. You are unique, Dune."

Dune wasn't sure where Adamastor was headed, but he remained silent and awaited his sentence.

"You may leave Merkabah in peace, and seek your destiny below," Adamastor said with a strange glint in his eye. He continued in a different tone, almost conspiratorially, as if between friends, or allies. "The Masters have taken a great interest in you, Dune. They wish to see what you choose to do with your newfound power and freedom. Your path is now your own, and the Balance is now in your hands. Do not let us down, Esper of No One." Adamastor chuckled softly, seemingly as curious to see what Dune would do as his Masters.

Dune was relieved that he would be allowed to return to the world below, but he didn't know what exactly the gods expected of him. Was he supposed to save the world from the Fallen Masters? Alone? He suddenly felt like he was being manipulated once again, only this time by a different caste of gods.

Adamastor watched Dune's reactions closely, and easily read his thoughts on his face. Laughing, he responded to Dune's fears. "Ah, do not concern yourself with the incomprehensible plans of the gods. They manipulate us all in their infinite designs within designs. But you are freer than most, and should enjoy such unprecedented range of movement. Go, do as your heart bids, and do not think of what the gods expect of you, child."

"So I'm alone, abandoned by everyone?" Dune snapped, realizing only now what true freedom really felt like.

"You are never alone, Dune." Genju said from his side. "I must remain here for now, but I will always be with you in spirit. Here, take this. Perhaps you can stir the hardened heart of the mighty Titan."

Genju took Titan's magicite from his robes once more, and slowly passed it to a shocked Dune.

"I...I can't accept this..." Dune stammered. "He was your friend, not mine!"

"And he died because if it. No, Titan has remained in my care long enough. I have clung to his remains in hopes of reconciling with him, but now I see I was wrong. As I have been in exile, so too have I forced that exile upon my friend for all these centuries. I may have to remain here, but my friend's punishment ends now. You will know what do with him. I trust you, as do we all."

"Alright. I am honored, Genju." Dune said nervously, taking the magicite as if he were accepting a newborn child. The stone felt warm to the touch.

"Enough. It is time you left this place," Adamastor said with finality. "My chariot will hound you no longer, Dune. If you ever see Merkabah in the future, consider it a sign of fellowship, not an ill omen. Now! Return to the world of man, and forge your own destiny!"

Adamastor rose up as he spoke these parting words, revealing his massive form down to the waist. He raised his hands and clapped them together with the sound of thunder. Genju rose up on his majestic wings and flew to Adamastor's side, waving farewell to both his friends.

The waves of clouds began to peel away, layer by layer beneath Dune. Taking one last glance at the setting moons and fading night, Dune descended through the submissive storm. Soon Dune could see the land below, still burning with the fire of Moloch. As he turned to look back at Merkabah, he found that that storm had vanished, slipping away into the night.

Dune was alone.