The air was cold as the airship landed near Vector. Vector was once something more than a closed-in, foggy field surrounded by mountains. But when Kefka took over, he created his personal tower here, destroying what was once a small, peaceful village. When we thought we killed Kefka, his tower collapsed on itself, crumbling all the way back to the ground. Now, only the ruins of the old town and tower remained, scattered around Vector. Setzer landed the Falcon around the corner of the mountain range because he hoped that if we had to fight Kefka, his ship wouldn't be damaged. As we got closer to the ruins where the tower once stood, Relm huddled closer to Shadow. We tried to get her to stay at the airship, but she wouldn't stay there, she wanted to come with us. We entered the circle of ruins, but couldn't see a thing, as a deep fog suddenly covered the surface all around us.
"So...you actually came?" A haunting voice echoed out. Everyone look around frantically, searching for whoever made that voice. But I kept my focus in front of us...I knew it was coming from up ahead, and I knew from who. All of sudden, the fog rolled away and revealed Kefka, sitting about ten feet away from us, on the ground. His gaze was on us all and he did not move; he sat motionless as the fog around us created a fogless circle. He then stood up, like a ghost rising up from the ground, and walked up to five feet away. When he spook, he no longer had that ghostly tone; his voice was back to his normal, frantic-like tone, but it still had a sense of dread in it. "I'm glad you all came, really. This is going to be a fun night I have planned for you."
"What are you up to Kefka? Why are you doing this to Relm?" Shadow commanded for an answer, anger raging in his voice. Kefka laughed, making Relm hide behind Shadow and Strago.
"Oh, you don't know? Didn't I already tell you? I did that..."
"I don't care if you wanted us here or not, that doesn't give you reason to do that!" Shadow roared, making me jump back to the side a bit. Kefka glared at him, anger in his eyes.
"Look...it's obvious that I don't care what I do to you all. I just did it that way because I have more enjoyment in hurting children, is all." Kefka insulted. Shadow grabbed his knife and was about to lunge at him, but Relm grabbed his wrist to stop him. As Shadow was about to put it back in its sheath, Kefka laughed. "Oh, let him come at me, really. He was the first I was going to fight anyways."
"What? What are you talking about, Kefka?"
"Well, I decided that I wanted to fight you each one by one...so I am."
"I meant why me first, you idiot."
"Oh...well, wait! Idiot?!" Kefka screamed out as Shadow snickered to himself. "Yeah, you're definitely first. It's because you saved them when that all land changing thing happen..."
"Yes, we're aware." Locke sarcastically pointed it out.
"Anyways, Shadow...you're first!" Kefka pointed to Shadow, and then suddenly, Shadow started floating in the air, until he flew forward and into the ground. Relm tried to run after him, but Strago and Edgar stopped her. "Girl...I said one at a time. If we can't do it that way, I'll go hard on your precious father here." Kefka threatened Relm, unsheathing his sword and putting the tip of it to Shadow's neck.
"No, don't!" Relm cried out, still trying to get to Shadow.
"Then stay back there and I'll give him a chance..." Relm calmed down and held Strago's arm, but then Kefka raised his sword over Shadow. "...A chance to die, that is!" He struck towards Shadow but he rolled away and the sword stuck into the ground. Shadow hopped onto his feet and as he twirled around to the other side of Kefka, he stabbed him in the back with his knife.
"Looks like I still know my moves." Shadow boasted as Interceptor slid to his side, growling at Kefka.
"Hey, no tag-teaming!" Kefka notified, grabbing his sword from the ground and facing Shadow, acting like he didn't get stabbed at all.
"I'm not...I always have Interceptor fight with me, and I can't tell him no, because..." Shadow started, but he stopped for a second as Kefka swung his sword vertically towards him. Shadow dodged it by hopping to the right, then he hop-scotched around him once again, stabbing his leg while Interceptor went the other way, slicing Kefka's other way with his front paw. "...he follows and helps me anyways." Shadow finished, smiling after Interceptor. Kefka slowly turned to them, a smile forming on his face.
"Well...let me help you with that then!" He fired Fire 3 at Interceptor, flinging him back about five feet, almost into the fog.
"Interceptor!" Shadow called out to his dog, but turned his attention back to Kefka when he heard the sound of rocks moving, as in Kefka was moving towards him. He fired Fire at Shadow, but before it reached him, Shadow ducked, falling onto the ground. And even though he avoided the fire and it roared into the fog behind him, Kefka was able to instantly jump to him, pull his sword out and swing. But Shadow blocked it with his knife; Kefka was on top of him and their weapons were in a sword hold, each one trying to push his weapons into the other.
"You think your knife will defeat my sword, you old assassin?" Kefka taunted Shadow, smirking at him as his sword got closer to his neck.
"Dad!" Relm called out from the group. Shadow glanced over but quickly repositioned his eyes onto Kefka.
"Your daughter is next..." Kefka further taunted, but Shadow scowled him and began pushing his knife up, making Kefka struggle to keep his balance.
"You will not touch my daughter, you crazy...old...manic!" Shadow vowed as he flew Kefka's sword to the left with his knife, but as Kefka almost fell backwards, he managed to strike across Shadow's forehead at which he instantly kicked Kefka back in the face. Shadow jumped to his feet holding his forehead with his left hand, looking at Interceptor as he started to get back up. Kefka got up slowly like he was hurt, but as I looked at him I didn't see much damage done. As Shadow looked back around Kefka prepared Fire 3, and Shadow tried to dodge, but it came too quickly, hitting Shadow in the chest and making him fly into the mist, dropping his knife, and vanish from within the fog.
"Dad!" Relm cried out in panic.
"Shadow!" Strago called out, but no answer came back. Interceptor ran towards Kefka and jumped onto his arm, biting into his flesh, making Kefka scream horribly. But as Interceptor bit Kefka, Relm ran out of the group, grabbing her paintbrush out and making her way to Kefka. Strago tried to grab her but was to slow. "Relm!"
"Get back here, Relm!" Celes demanded, concerned for Relm. But she didn't listen as she stood before Kefka, waiting for her chance to fight. Kefka suddenly grabbed Interceptor by the tail with his bitten hand and stabbed into his back leg with his sword. This made Interceptor yelp and jump back from Kefka; he ran to us and laid down, licking his wounds. Kefka saw Relm and smiled at her paintbrush.
"Oh, what are you going to do with that, little girl? You going to paint me a picture?" Kefka snorted, but Relm glared at him and began waving her paintbrush around in front of her. Kefka laughed some more, swinging his sword around carelessly. "Oh, so you are, huh? Ha, ha!" Relm looked at Kefka one last time before closing her eyes. As she waved her paintbrush around gracefully, the paint from the brush stood in midair and started to form a picture. As she drew more and more, the picture became clear that she was drawing a dog. "Why are you drawing a dog?" Kefka coughed out, smiling still. Relm didn't reply as she continued to paint. As she did, it was obvious that she was painting Interceptor, which was such a realistic painting, I could tell Kefka thought he imagined it at first, but then he figured out it was real...the drawing of Interceptor began moving and as the final paint flew into him, he barked at Kefka, growling beside Relm. "What is that?"
"It's my painting for you." Relm sarcastically agreed, petting the now real dog, who continued his gaze on Kefka. Kefka shook his head; he no longer was satisfied, he actually looked quite petrified.
"That's not a painting." Kefka admitted, but Relm only smiled at Kefka. She pointed her paintbrush to Kefka, at which the dog instantly rushed forward and knocked Kefka down, but Kefka swung his sword at him and he flew to the side about three feet away. Once Kefka got back onto his feet, the dog jumped onto his back, biting into his neck. As Kefka smacked the dog with his sword to get him off, Relm giggled, watching Kefka twirl around and around to no avail. Once the dog finally jumped off, Kefka grabbed his neck and looked at his hand; his hand was almost covered completely in blood. He glared at the dog but then backed up in surprise; the dog, even though Kefka has been hitting him, had absolutely no damage. The dog then tried to bit him again, but Kefka smacked him against the head and smiled. But he instantly gasped as the dog was healed by paint that flew past him and into the dog. Kefka looked to Relm who had her paintbrush out still, but once she noticed that Kefka was watching, she tried to hide it. "What are you doing?!"
"Nothing..." Relm lied, trying to hide the fact that she's been healing the dog. Kefka smacked the dog to the side, toke out a knife, and flung it at Relm. As she ducked, Strago leaped in front and stopped the knife by blocking it with his staff, which cut into it.
"You want to fight...then fight me." Strago stepped forward, ready to defend Relm, who smiled heartily. Kefka laughed, stepping forward as well, smacking the dog once again to side as his tried to bite him again.
"Alright then...I'll take you out now!" Kefka skipped closer to Strago and swung at him, but Strago blocked it with his staff, but as it began cutting through it, Strago looked around and saw Shadow's knife lying nearby. Relm saw this and grabbed it, and as she made her way back to Strago, Kefka's sword cut straight through Strago's staff, but before it hit him, Strago jumped to the side. Kefka kept swinging his sword at Strago which made it so Relm couldn't get near to give him the knife. But then the paint-formed Interceptor grabbed Kefka's right leg and the real Interceptor grabbed his left one, both biting into his legs, bringing him to the ground, but as Relm gave the knife to Strago, Kefka managed to twirled around and use Fire 3 on the paint Interceptor, flinging him about six feet away. Once he hit the ground, he dissolved into paint that swirled around in the air and vanished. Interceptor let go and was about to leave I believe, but Kefka hit him with his sword on the back then smacked him to the side.
"Interceptor!" I called out as he slid to us. Celes and I ran to him to try and heal him and kept him from dying while the others continued to watch, unable to move. Kefka got up and ran to Strago, surprising him and hitting him on the arm.
"Grandfather!" Relm screamed, tears falling to the ground, as Strago let the knife go and fell down.
"You stupid, old man! I'm..."
"I'm not too old to keep you from harming my granddaughter!" Strago interrupted Kefka, swigging his legs and tripping him over. Strago limped upward as Kefka ghostly hovered back up...his face was pale and his eyes showed death; he was ticked and was going to give it his all now. Kefka unsheathed another sword and swung them both precisely at the same time, hitting Strago on both his arms, and then he smacked him with both swords, making him fly to the side over to the rest of us. As Locke and Edgar went to him, Kefka made his way to Relm, but Sabin jumped in front.
"You'll have to go through me first, hot-head." Sabin teased as he put on his metal knuckles, but Kefka snorted angrily and as he raised one of his swords, Setzer grabbed it and chuckled.
"Don't forget me."
"I guess the 'one on one' rule no longer applies!" Kefka twirled around and sliced Setzer's hand so he'd let go. As Sabin grabbed Kefka's neck and started pounded on his head, Setzer ignored his bleeding hand and grabbed Shadow's knife from the ground. Gau also decided to join as he jumped out of the group and beside Sabin, using Rage and coping Sabin's moves. They were able to turn Kefka around to Setzer and as Setzer was about to stab him with the knife, Kefka unleashed a powerful fire spell that hit all three of them; they all flew to the sides and the blast was even powerful enough to hit the rest of us, including Relm who flew down onto the ground, near the fog. Kefka was stronger than before and much, much more angry.