Author's note: In the game, Field Marshal is spelled with one L, not two. Hopefully I haven't messed that up anywhere. Also, since this chapter is Jade's POV, Elder McGovern is "Field Marshal McGovern" because that's how Jade is accustomed to thinking of him.

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss.

Chapter 6

Loreleiday, Gnome-Decan 29, ND 2019 – 9:30am local time (Saint Binah)

"That's impossible!" General McGovern snapped at Jade from his seat at the head of the briefing room table. "Tornadoes aren't real. They're a myth. A tall tale."

"Now, hang on just a minute, Glenn," the elderly Field Marshal McGovern interrupted. He was standing in the far corner of the room, shamelessly listening in on what should have been a top-secret conversation. Despite having retired from the Malkuth Imperial Forces more than a decade ago, Field Marshal McGovern could usually be found at the recently-rebuilt Saint Binah military base.

"Why are you so convinced that tornadoes are just a myth?" the Field Marshal continued. "Jade's description of the damage to Third Division's encampment matches everything I've read about what a tornado can do."

"I'm sure he's lying, Father," General McGovern insisted. "This tornado nonsense is just a cover story for whatever screwup he really committed. Now for the last time, Colonel Curtiss, what the hell happened to your troops and equipment?!"

Jade was used to being disliked by Glenn McGovern, but really, this was getting out of hand. How much longer is he going to leave me standing here, as if I were a wayward junior officer awaiting punishment? Jade thought irritably. He's not in my chain of command, and my back hurts. My entire body hurts.

"Well, Colonel?" the General demanded.

Jade suppressed a sigh and said levelly, "If you don't believe my account of the event, General, I suggest you go take a look at the damaged area personally. It is precisely as I described it." He turned his back on the General to address the Field Marshal. "You've been reading about tornadoes, sir?"

Field Marshal McGovern nodded. "Strange weather has been occurring all over Central Rugnica. A cloud in the shape of a funnel, stretching from sky to ground, was reported by a farmer just south of Engeve. And these areas of tree damage and torn-up grass have been observed throughout the region. Now you've seen a tornado and its results with your own eyes, Jade. Glenn, I consider it fully proven. Tornadoes do, in fact, exist and they're the cause of all this destruction!"

The General snorted. "Ridiculous. Jade the Necromancer, you expect me to believe that ninety-seven men were killed, one hundred and forty-two were severely injured, and ALL the rest of your division, including you, received minor injuries merely because of the weather?! Absolutely preposterous! Oh, and by the way, how convenient it must be for you that your weather officer is dead and cannot dispute your wild tale!"

"GLENN! THAT'S ENOUGH!" roared the Field Marshal.

"Father!"

"I won't have you insulting the best soldier in the Malkuth Imperial Forces! I believe what Jade has told us. This is our second eyewitness observation of a tornado, and I'm not going to wait for a third. We need to act, before one of these tornadoes hits Saint Binah, or worse, Engeve!"

Engeve, the Grocer's Village. A large percentage of the world's food is grown in and around Engeve. A worst-case scenario, indeed, Jade thought, concealing his alarm at the prospect. "A tornado in Engeve would be catastrophic for all of Auldrant," he said aloud.

"And just how do you propose to stop the weather from happening – IF the damage is being caused by these tornadoes you posit?" General McGovern asked his father pointedly.

The Field Marshal hesitated. "Well... I don't know yet. But we need to find the source of the tornadoes, at the very least. If we knew where they were coming from, perhaps we could stop them before they start to develop, or redirect them, or... I don't know, Glenn, but we can't just sit here on our asses, scoffing at the evidence!"

"Unbelievable," muttered the General. He rose from his chair and stalked out of the briefing room in a huff, slamming the door behind him.

Field Marshal McGovern sighed. He sat down at the table and motioned for Jade to sit across from him. Jade gratefully accepted the invitation. He seated himself carefully, rather than falling into the chair as any other exhausted man would have done.

"Don't take it too personally, Jade," said the Field Marshal. "Having most of a division's worth of injured soldiers arrive in the infirmary all at once has shaken him very badly. He's only angry because he's afraid."

"Yes, that much was obvious," Jade agreed.

"Glenn has a lot on his mind right now," the Field Marshal continued. "Saint Binah has been experiencing cloudy weather for almost three months – dark clouds blanketing the sky, day after day, but hardly any rain. Without enough sunlight, many of the herbs we grow here are wilting and dying."

Jade frowned. "Herbs from Saint Binah are used to make medicine which is distributed all over the world, correct? This isn't good."

"No, it's not. But the biggest problem isn't the impending shortage of gels, bottles, and so on, or the decline of Saint Binah's prosperity. It's the rumors circulating that worry me the most."

Jade kept his voice casual. "Rumors, sir?" he asked.

"There are rumors that this weather is a punishment from Yulia for abandoning the Score. Nonsense, of course, but people are afraid. These clouds... they seem almost unnatural."

"Unnatural... hmmm. Perhaps so, Field Marshal," Jade said with a shrug.

The old man squinted suspiciously at Jade with his one eye. "Now what are you thinking, Jade?"

"Oh nothing, nothing at all. In any case, I need to write a full report to send to Headquarters immediately."

"Hmpf," McGovern snorted. "Good luck, boy. You'll need it."

Jade smiled slightly. "Indeed I will, Field Marshal. Thank you."

"Ha. When you get back to Grand Chokmah, give His Majesty my regards, will you?"

"I doubt I'll be returning to the capital anytime soon, sir. I have an entire division of casualties to attend to."

"Yes, that's an impressive feat, Jade. I believe it may be a new world record."

"That sounds altogether too likely," Jade sighed.

"Well, you've always had the devil's own luck," said the Field Marshal, shaking his head as he stood up again. "Stay here. I'll fetch you some paper and something to write with. Get some rest after you finish your report. You may be able to fool your own troops by feigning that you're all right, but you can't fool me. You look terrible."

"Thank you, sir," Jade replied, smirking. McGovern just chuckled in response.