~x~
"The birth of magic..."
"Three goddesses were banished to this world. In time they began quarreling, which led to all-out war."
"Those unlucky humans who got in the way were transformed into Espers, and used as living war machines..."
~x~
Final Fantasy VI: The Sands of Time
Book 2: The Goddess War
Prologue
The deep time before the great War of the Magi has faded out of history almost completely, but a few remnants of that era of myth do survive to this day. We know of the ancient war of the three so-called "Goddesses" that gave birth to magic, thanks to the Thamasans. The nature and exact outcome of this war, however, is a mystery to us. What ultimately happened to the three Goddesses has become a well-known piece of gossip since the Fall, but how they came to such a sad state still eludes us.
We also have a name from that time that is repeated over and over in the ancient records that have been recently unearthed at the site of the Ancient Castle of Karnak. That name is Elphis. Who was this Elphis? From the texts, they were undoubtedly a great and revered presence after the Goddess War, but for good or ill, I cannot say. All texts agree on this, however - It was the mighty Elphis that ended the war and brought the Goddesses themselves low. And strangely, a vague prophecy from that time states that it shall be Elphis who will return to us someday, to restore Balance for all time.
I must continue my studies into this time...
- Excerpt from Chapter I of "The History of the World" by Cid del Norte Marguez, 43 AF
Chapter 9 - The Wanderer
Part 9.1 - Burying the Past
"This is where I died."
"Huh?"
The sun shone down on a small stone amidst an ocean of sand. Here, in this endless desert, three strange travelers paused on their journey to pay respect to the lost. The leader of the group, a dark giant with claws and horns, knelt before the unassuming pile of rubble in reverence. His deep voice resonated across the sand, full of sadness and shame.
"This rock. It was at this spot, what feels like an eternity ago, that I gave up my humanity. On that day, the man known as Dune Karn ceased to exist, and the monster known as Maduin was born."
"Aw, it's just a rock, and you're no monster Maydune! Are we almost across the desert? It's too hot here!"
This was the small voice of a child, no older than seven or eight. She was a vanishingly thin girl, with long brown hair that hung down to her feet, as if it had never been cut a day in her life. She held the massive hand of the brawny beast tightly, her glazed eyes staring straight ahead at nothing, but her face beaming with curiosity. Her feet were bare, and her face filthy. The only clothes she wore was a flimsy old one-piece slip made of rough cotton, like a peasant girl. She could have been one of any countless number of poor outcasts, abandoned in the unforgiving streets to die. But here she was, in the middle of an even more unforgiving wasteland, holding onto the hand of a monster many times her size as if her life depended on it.
"Kupo!" a squeaky voice chimed in alongside the girl.
The giant looked at his two much smaller companions, and smiled ruefully. Long, sharp fangs punctuated his grin, but there was a look of kindness in his cold-blue eyes that lessened the ferocity of his appearance considerably.
"You, too, Kumiro?" the giant rumbled.
The beast known as Maduin chuckled despite his somber mood, and gently ran his clawed fingers through the white fur of the small creature that had uttered the squeaky agreement. It was no larger than the child, and covered in fluffy white fur. It, too, had claws, but tiny ones, meant for digging. It fluttered around its two mismatched companions on tiny wings, its large eyes closed tight and its mouth turned in a wide grin, giving it a look of permanent glee. On its head bobbed a large red ball or fur, completing the picture of someone's cute lost pet. This creature, this "Kumiro", was a moogle, a rare and extremely intelligent animal that inhabited a clime much different and much colder than the one it found itself in now. What had brought such unusual bedfellows together, and here in such an inhospitable place?
"Very well, you win," Maduin said calmly, still kneeling at his own grave, one hand holding the little girl's hand, the other petting the happy moogle. "Just give me a moment, and we'll be off."
Still holding the girl's hand, Maduin reached with his free hand into the tattered backpack he had slung over his spiked shoulder. Out of the pack he pulled two much-abused objects. First, a weather-beaten wide-brimmed hat that looked like it was ready to crumble to dust any moment. The other object was a pair of spectacles, the lenses uselessly cracked and the frames bent beyond repair. Both articles were far too small and battered for the massive Maduin to make any use of now.
Placing the hat carefully on the tip of the rock, and laying the glasses at the foot of the outcropping, he slowly stood up and looked at his handiwork. With one long talon, he carved words into the face of the rock, then stepped back, softly pulling the girl with him. She obeyed his every movement without a care, her trust in him absolute.
"What are you doin'? Tell me, tell me!" The girl squealed, her face not looking at the rock at all. The glazed look still hung in her wide, unfocused eyes, but her face and body moved precisely, perfectly attentive to what was happening around her.
"I'm writing my epitaph."
"Eppy-taff? What's that?"
"Words for the dead. Sort of like a good-bye."
"But you're not dead, Maydune!"
Maduin said nothing to this simple truth, spoken by the voice of innocence. What could the girl know of the life he had lost here, the price he had paid for his arrogance? Dune Karn was dead for all intents and purposes. The body of the man was gone, the place it had called home reduced to ashes, and the love of family and friends ripped away forever, far beyond his gruesome reach. Yes, Maduin knew what it was to die.
"It's still a long way to the Karnak mountain range, and even farther to Zwill." Maduin replied, politely ignoring the girl's piercing words. "Are you thirsty?"
"Of course, it's so hot out here!"
"I'm sorry, sometimes I forget how hot or cold it is. My body's pretty tough. Here, drink."
Instead of pulling a container full of water from his pack, he simply snapped his fingers. A cold breeze swirled from nowhere, and in a moment a chunk of ice was slowly spinning at the tip of Maduin's finger. Without a word, the ice flung itself into the waiting hand of the girl, a perfect fit to her tiny palm. She gripped it without surprise and brought it to her mouth, savoring the life-giving water as it melted in her hand.
"Thanks!" The girl chirped happily, sucking on her ice shard. "Here you go, Kumiro! You drink too!" She held what was left of the ice in the direction of the orbiting moogle, letting it lick the ice out of her hand.
"Kupopo!"
"Alright, we better get going. I've done what I need to do. Let us be off, Elphis."
"Yay! Let's be off! No more sand. I'm sick of icky, dirty, sand."
Maduin reached around and held out his free hand to the girl, letting her climb up onto his stone-hard back with a push. She grabbed onto one of the spikes that protruded from his shoulders and held tight. The moogle shuffled its way next to her, gripping the spike on Maduin's opposite shoulder just as tightly.
"Ready?"
"Yeah! Blast off!"
"Kupoooo!"
In a flash of blue light, the three were gone, flying over the rippling dunes in leaps and bounds faster than any man or beast could hope to keep up with. At this speed it would be less than a day before they reached the other end of the desert, far to the west. The Karnak mountains wavered dimly in the distance, far out of reach for a normal band of travelers. But this was no ordinary band of wanderers, and sooner than might be believed, they would reach the next leg of their journey, the port town of Zwill on the other side of the rapidly approaching mountains.
Ultimately, they were headed west, and then deep into the south, to the twin cities of East and West Jidorik. It was there Maduin's destiny awaited him, for better or worse. He may be free to choose the path he took now, but the troubled region of Jidorik was calling out to him. He could not ignore the ominous rumors that were pouring out from that part of the world. Black things were afoot there, and he knew his newly gained Esper powers might be able to avert another disaster before it was too late. He was unsure of his place in the world now, but the tragedy of his homeland of Narsille could never be repeated, and of that Maduin was absolutely sure.
The lonely Esper glanced back at his makeshift tombstone, now only a tiny speck in the distance. The sun glinted off the glass of his old spectacles, a teardrop of light to bid him on his way, and to give him hope. The words that were etched into that stone were etched into Maduin's mind, words that should never be forgotten by the men of this world.
Here lies the hopes, dreams, and loves of a man. Ignorance and pride were his downfall, and forever shall he be parted from the light. Woe to those who would seek the power of the gods, for even gods may fall. Rest In Peace, Dune Karn - 2134-2166.
As the rock disappeared over the horizon, Maduin thought back to the strange series of events that had brought the light of hope back into his life, in the form of a blind orphan named Elphis. He had been ready to vanish into the pages of history, nothing more than a half-glimpsed legend in the frigid snowfields north of his ruined homeland. The story of the man Dune Karn may be over, but it seemed history was not quite done with the Esper Maduin...