Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss.
Chapter 40
Undineday, Gnome-Decan 55, ND2019 – 11:45am local time (Zao Ruins)
Brigadier General Jozette Cecille was appalled at the situation she was in.
It was her own fault, she reflected, for suggesting that the Zao Ruins were the source of the earthquakes. If she had just kept her mouth shut in that meeting with His Majesty King Ingobert, she would never have been sent to investigate, her troops wouldn't have been turned to stone, and she would not, now, be following Princess Natalia – the only heir to Kimlasca's throne, eep! – into the depths of a secret structure full of ancient fontech and monsters.
Not to mention the fact that among the Princess's companions was Jade the Necromancer, double eep! Four years ago, when she had been a lieutenant colonel, Cecille had fought against Captain Jade Curtiss and his elite company of fonists as part of the Battle of Northern Chesedonia. The battle had gone very badly for the Kimlascan Royal Forces, partially due to the Necromancer's powerful fonic artes devastating Cecille's battalion. Her troops had been almost completely wiped out; only Cecille, one of her officers, and three enlisted men had survived. The rest of the Kimlascan army had fared somewhat better, but the main reason Kimlasca had won the battle was that the Oracle Knights had intervened on Kimlasca's behalf.
She still had nightmares about that battle.
Watching the Necromancer blast a fonon sentience to particles with a single arte was probably going to give her even more nightmares.
Gnome had earned it, she had to admit. Still, she felt a little sorry for the annoying, obstinate creature. It – or he? – had learned the hard way that Jade Curtiss was not someone to cross, a lesson Cecille had taken to heart after the Kimlascan Royal Forces' near-defeat... which was why she had been surprised, last year, when the Necromancer had told her, You taught me a painful lesson in our battle in northern Chesedonia, General Cecille. Had he been serious, or had that merely been diplomatic courtesy?
And how had her crybaby, scaredy-cat little cousin Gailardia grown up to become someone who could laugh at the Necromancer for losing his temper? That was the most inexplicable of all. Was it courage, or insanity? Or was Gailardia just accustomed to seeing the Necromancer obliterate enemies? Now there was a terrifying thought. Just how many people had her cousin seen the Necromancer kill? Hundreds, probably, and she didn't even want to think about what else Gailardia might have seen. Was it true that the Necromancer experimented with corpses? Could he really bring the dead back to life? And if so—
"Watch out, Jozette!" Gailardia's voice, sharp with alarm, interrupted her thoughts.
Cecille forced herself back into focus, just in time to intercept a Phantom that was trying to attack her. She blocked the monster with her saber and retaliated with six waves of energy in quick succession. "Demonic Chaos!"
The Phantom retreated from Cecille, into Gailardia's range, where he made short work of the creature with a few slashes, followed up with a "Nihil Blade Tempest!" As the Phantom fell, defeated, Gailardia gave Cecille a concerned look. His blue eyes, the same shade of blue that Aunt Eugenie's eyes had been, silently asked her, Are you okay?
"I'm sorry," she apologized aloud. "I wasn't paying attention."
They continued their helter-skelter dash down a series of ramps. Gailardia, glancing sidelong at Cecille, asked in an undertone, "What's wrong, Jozette?"
Too many things, Cecille thought. Princess Natalia was in danger, the Kimlascan soldiers under her command had all been petrified, the Necromancer was involved in the whole mess, and sooner or later they were bound to encounter Gnome again – a very, very angry Gnome. She shook her head, and said only, "I can't believe this!"
Gailardia nodded in understanding. "Yeah, it's a lot to take in," he admitted. "Just stick with us for now, all right?"
"All right..." Cecille agreed hesitantly.
Crossing over a bridge, Cecille glanced down. Far below them, golden fonons rose from a tall object shaped somewhat like the symbol of the Order of Lorelei, surrounded by a glowing circular walkway.
"What is that strange device?" Cecille murmured to her cousin, pointing at the unknown object.
"That's the passage ring," Gailardia murmured back.
"Is that what's keeping Gnome imprisoned here?" she asked, recalling her argument with the sentience.
"Well, actually," Gailardia replied, "imprisoning Gnome was just a side effect. Before we lowered the Outer Lands, the passage rings were what controlled the Sephiroth, to hold the planet's crust up above the Qliphoth and the miasma."
"A side effect?" Cecille echoed, puzzled.
"Yeah. It's... pretty complicated," Gailardia said reluctantly. "I'd rather not explain."
"Well, someone had better tell me what is going on here, and soon!" Cecille snapped at him.
"Uh...yeah," was Gailardia's only response.
On the other side of the bridge, more ramps descended. The group kept running, with the Necromancer at the front and Princess Natalia immediately behind him. Following the Princess were the three Oracle Knights – at least two of whom were underage by Kimlascan army regulations, and why did the Order of Lorelei allow children to fight? It was immoral, in Cecille's opinion, for an army to employ – or worse, enslave – child soldiers. The Order's choice of a child as Fon Master didn't sit well with her, either... Wait a minute! Her eyes widened in shock. That green-haired boy in the black and gray uniform, he couldn't possibly be—!
"Gailardia! Is that Fon Master Ion?!" Cecille gasped.
"Nope!" Gailardia replied cheerfully, as he slashed at a Fonic Goyle. "Sword Rain Alpha! That's Florian, he's a completely different person from Ion. Tiger Blade! He's...Ion's brother, I guess."
"You guess?!" Cecille exclaimed in disbelief. "What in the – Demon Fist! – name of Yulia – Sonic Thrust! – is that supposed to mean?! Lightning Blade!"
"Well..." Gailardia stalled. "It's complicated. Final Cross!"
"Is he a replica?! Tiger Rage!"
"Yes, but there were seven replicas – Crescent Strike! – and one of them was substituted as Fon Master – Moonlight Demon! – when the original Ion died. Long story – Soaring Light Spear! – I'll tell you later. Void Tempest!"
The Fonic Goyle shattered under the two cousins' onslaught. Cecille and Gailardia sprinted to catch up with the rest of the group. They were almost to the bottom of the ramps. Ahead of them, the Necromancer and the Princess had stopped in front of a doorway to wait for them. The three Oracle Knights slowed to a halt at the doorway as well.
As Cecille and Gailardia arrived, the Necromancer glanced around at the group. His expression was unreadable, but after a moment, Cecille realized in shock that he was checking to make sure everyone was all right.
The Necromancer actually cares about these 'rowdy youngsters' he says he's 'just tagging along' with?! Cecille wondered. Impossible! The very idea seemed absurd to her – but on second thought, the Necromancer was a military commander, responsible for the well-being of his troops. Perhaps he thought of his young companions the same way he thought of his soldiers: people who had been entrusted to him in one way or another.
After a moment, the Necromancer silently ushered the group through the doorway. On the other side, a translucent walkway glowing with intricate blue patterns curved toward the passage ring. As the group approached the device, Cecille felt a surge of Second Fonons, and a moment later, Gnome appeared in midair in front of them, blocking their way. The sentience was much larger now, more than three times its former height, towering over the group and glaring down at them all, its animal face twisted with rage.
YOU! Gnome snarled, raising its golden shovel as though preparing to swing it like a club. YOU'VE GOT SOME NERVE, COMING DOWN HERE AFTER WHAT YOU DID TO ME!
Florian stepped forward and held up a hand. "Gnome, wait. Hear us out," he said firmly. "We've come to help you. Please, if you won't listen to me, at least listen to Sylph, Ifrit, and Undine."
WHY SHOULD I GIVE A DAMN WHAT THEY—?!
A blustery swirl of Third Fonons took on the shape of a glowing green girl with butterfly wings. At the same time, a fireball of Fifth Fonons exploded to reveal a demonic-looking red creature with feathery golden wings, and a whirlpool of Fourth Fonons gave rise to a mermaid-like woman in shades of blue. All three sentiences hovered in the air between Gnome and Florian.
Calm yourself, Gnome, the blue woman – obviously Undine – said levelly. The Innocent One intends no harm. He has vowed to set us free – all of us.
The red demon, Ifrit, crossed its burly arms and added, Give him a chance, brother. He has not disappointed me...so far.
Stubborn old rockhead, the green butterfly girl, Sylph, chimed in. Don't hold the rest of us back!
You must learn to let go of your grudges, brother, Undine admonished. Let the mistakes of the past wash away. We must be united in our support of the Innocent One. Our freedom depends upon our cooperation. Do not be selfish, in this.
Selfish?! Gnome exclaimed. Humans are the ones who are selfish! All those stupid wars, before and after they messed with our Sephiroth and raised the planet's crust! And don't forget about the Planet Storm! They destroyed us, just for their convenience! Why should we trust them?!
Ifrit shrugged. Perhaps we should not. Humans are idiots. But some humans, at least, are able to learn from experience. Some are willing to correct their own mistakes. A rare few are even courageous enough to attempt to correct others' mistakes from the distant past. The Light of the Sacred Flame was one such human. The Innocent One is another. Give him a chance. If he succeeds, the world will return to its proper balance.
And if he fails? What happens then? Gnome demanded.
If he fails, we will be no worse off than we are now, Undine replied calmly. But if he fails, it will not be for lack of trying. Nor will it be for the lack of my support, she added pointedly.
He won't fail, Sylph insisted. We believe in him!
I do not think he will fail, if we Six put our full trust in him, Ifrit said in a measured tone. However, if he is missing the support of even one of us, it will be much more difficult for him to succeed.
Precisely, said Undine. We must give him the best possible chance at success. Lend him your power, Gnome, if you do not wish for him to fail.
Bah! Gnome scoffed. If he wants my power, he'll have to earn it. Raising his shovel higher, the sentience continued, And as for that damn Necromancer—!
"Gnome, don't hurt Colonel Jade," Florian warned, stepping sideways to stand between Gnome and the Necromancer.
Outta my way, kid, growled Gnome. I'm gonna kill that bastard!
"No," Florian said sternly. "I won't let you."
Gnome gave a sigh of irritation, letting his shovel sink back to its former position. Look, kid. You aren't too bad for a human, but you gotta understand, the Necromancer is just plain evil.
I agree, Cecille thought, suppressing a shiver.
"He's my friend," Florian argued.
He's a jerk! Gnome snapped.
"I can't save you without help from my friends," Florian pleaded, clasping his hands together in front of his chest. "I need him. Please, don't hurt him!"
Hmph, Gnome snorted, lowering his shovel. Fine, have it your way, Innocent One.
"Thank you, Gnome," said Florian, relief softening his voice. "So... how can I earn your power? What must I do?"
Uhhhhh... said Gnome. I dunno, kid. You figure it out.
Undine gave Gnome a reproachful look, and Ifrit let out a smokey sigh. Sylph crossed her arms and glared at Gnome.
"Okay, I'll think of something," Florian replied. "Meanwhile, would you please let us look at the passage ring? Colonel Jade said he has a few ideas."
Ideas about what? Gnome asked, scowling.
"How to fix the passage ring to set you free," Florian explained.
"Yes," said the Necromancer, with a small nod of affirmation. "We can either modify or dismantle the passage rings, to stop the fonic interference. I suspect that the central fonstone of the device is a key component in suppressing the flow of fonons through each Sephiroth. By altering or removing the central fonstone in each passage ring, we should be able to return the flow of fonons to normal. However—"
Blah blah blah, Gnome interrupted. I didn't understand any of that technobabble.
Neither did I, Cecille refrained from saying. She felt as though she was missing the first half of something. As soon as we get out of these ruins, she resolved, I'm going to make Gailardia explain what this is all about!
"My apologies," the Necromancer replied, adjusting his glasses. "In any case, we need to examine this passage ring. May we?"
"Please, Gnome?" Florian wheedled. "Please?"
Give the Innocent One a chance, Ifrit repeated. At this point, we have very little to lose, and much to gain.
Set aside your anger, Undine advised. Be an ally, not an obstacle.
C'mon, if you don't trust humans, at least trust us! Sylph suggested. We want to be free just as much as you do!
All right, Gnome said grudgingly to his fellow sentiences. Glaring at the humans, he added, But if y'all screw that thing up any worse, I'll kill y'all! Understand?
Florian nodded. "I understand. Thank you so much, Gnome!"
Gnome stepped aside – walking on, as far as Cecille could tell, thin air – and the other three sentiences moved with him. The Necromancer strode forward, closely followed by Florian. Princess Natalia, the other two Oracle Knights, Gailardia, and Cecille cautiously trailed after them.
"Tear," the Necromancer instructed, "stay away from the pedestal. Until we can discern whether the passage rings are still contaminated with miasma, I would prefer not to have you attempt anything using the standard controls."
"Understood," the female Oracle Knight with long brown hair acknowledged.
"I thought you said at Mount Zaleho that the normal controls were useless anyway," said the black-haired girl in the pink Oracle uniform. "'Buggered all to hell,' you said."
Was that a direct quote? Cecille wondered. It didn't seem to fit with the Necromancer's formal mannerisms, but this day had been full shocking revelations already, so what difference did one more surprise make? She felt overwhelmed, as though she was drowning in new information. It was too much to process all at once. Gailardia's earlier remark, It's a lot to take in, was a major understatement.
"So I did, Anise," the Necromancer replied serenely. "However, despite the damage from last year, they may still react to Tear's presence."
"Because Tear is a descendent of Yulia, right?" Florian asked.
"Correct. Now then... Guy, I'd like your assistance, if you don't mind," the Necromancer continued.
Gailardia's blue eyes lit up with excitement. "Sure, Jade! What can I do?"
"The central fonstone has fonic glyphs inscribed on it. None of the resources Teodoro lent us include any diagrams of the glyphs, so I intend to use paper and charcoal to make a copy of them. If you would be so kind as to hold the paper in place, I'll do the rest."
"Oh, is that all?" Gailardia sighed with disappointment.
"No, it's merely the first step," the Necromancer said levelly. "Once I've copied the glyphs and deciphered them, I'll have some notion of which method is likely to work best. From what I've read, it would appear that modifying the center fonstone is safer than removing it. Removing the fonstone would almost certainly eliminate the interference, but it would leave the rest of the passage ring unbalanced. If the other components were to collapse after removing the fonstone, there could be unpredictable effects on the flow of fonons – not to mention the fact that we would probably all be killed. But if we can alter the pattern of the glyphs, it might be possible to leave the fonstone in place."
"Ah, I get it now," said Gailardia. "Are you thinking of making the center fonstone disperse fonons the way the Jewel of Lorelei did?"
"Something like that," the Necromancer replied. "Shall we begin, then?"
"Yeah!" Gailardia cheered.
"Very well. The paper and charcoal are in the item bag. Tear, would you please return the item bag to Guy for the moment?"
"All right," Tear replied, handing Gailardia the knapsack she had been carrying. Gailardia carried the knapsack over to the Necromancer, who opened it. After a few moments of digging in the bag, the Necromancer removed a sheaf of blank papers and a small box of charcoal sticks.
Cecille watched in fascination as Gailardia held the papers firmly against the fonstone, one after another, and the Necromancer rubbed the charcoal carefully over the surface of each paper. A pattern of blank areas slowly emerged amidst the dark smears. Once each rubbing was finished, the Necromancer carefully filled in the blanks with a red pencil, revealing shapes of the fonic glyphs.
"I see," the Necromancer murmured as he traced the glyphs. "Yes, I think we can work with this..."
Really? Gnome asked dubiously, watching Gailardia and the Necromancer. Y'all really think you can fix that damn device? Are y'all serious?
"Yes," Florian said, with no sign of hesitation.
Heh heh heh, Gnome chuckled. You humans sure are a stubborn bunch. All right, kid. I'll make you a deal. If you and your pals can fix the passage ring so that I can reach the fon belt again, I'll make a pact with you. Fair?
Florian smiled. "Okay, Gnome. It's a deal."
Fine, said Gnome. Deal.
"But if you won't make a pact until the passage ring is fixed, how can we stabilize this Sephiroth until then?" Princess Natalia objected. "The earthquakes must be stopped as soon as possible!"
"Yeah, and what about the messed-up gravity?" Anise asked.
"Oh...oops," said Florian. His face reddened with embarrassment. "Sorry, I didn't think it through! Gnome, is there anything we can do about those?"
Well, if I quit struggling to bust outta here and wait for y'all to fix the passage ring, that'll stop most of the earthquakes, Gnome said reluctantly. I can't do a damn thing about the unstable gravity, though. You better hurry, kid.
"I will," Florian said fervently. "Sylph? Ifrit? Undine? Do any of you have ideas about how to stabilize this Sephiroth without a pact?"
Not really, Sylph replied, frowning.
Unfortunately, no, Ifrit rumbled.
I have nothing to suggest, either, said Undine. Carry on, Innocent One. I have faith in you and your friends. She dissolved into a pool of blue fonons and flowed into Florian. Sylph followed Undine, swirling into Florian in a green whirlwind. Ifrit vanished in red flames that surrounded Florian and slowly flickered away to nothing.
Tense silence fell as Gailardia and the Necromancer continued copying the fonic glyphs. Cecille glanced aside at Princess Natalia. The Princess had faint worry lines between her eyebrows, and her eyes held an anxious expression as she glanced back and forth between Gnome and the work in progress. Cecille almost smiled; Princess Natalia's concern and care for the people of Kimlasca was truly heartwarming. The fact that the Princess was willing to put herself in danger to protect her country, however, was terrifying. She's the only heir to Kimlasca's throne, Cecille fretted.
Well... actually, that wasn't quite true. If, heaven forbid, Princess Natalia were to die before having any children, the King's sister was next in line for the throne. Cecille suppressed a shudder at the idea of Susanne fon Fabre as Queen. She had nothing against Duchess Fabre personally, but as for Susanne's husband...! The mere thought of Duke Fabre as King sent shivers down Cecille's spine.
Field Marshal Duke Fabre was one of the few Kimlascan military officers who outranked General Cecille. He had a history of abusing his power, especially in his dealings with her, forcing an unwanted intimate relationship between them. When Cecille had announced her engagement to General Aslan Frings, a Malkuth military commander, Duke Fabre had been absolutely livid; the insults he had thrown at her in their final confrontation still echoed in her memory. After Frings' death, Duke Fabre had attempted to resume his abuses, but Cecille had – so far – successfully blocked his advances.
"There," said the Necromancer, interrupting Cecille's thoughts. "That should be all of it." He held out the remaining blank papers and the box of charcoal sticks to Gailardia to put away in the knapsack. Gailardia raised his chin, held the knapsack out, and gave the Necromancer a pointed look, as if to say, Put away your own stuff. With a small shrug, the Necromancer accepted the knapsack and tucked the unused materials into it. Then he shuffled through the papers onto which he had copied and outlined the glyphs.
"Hmmm..." murmured the Necromancer, with an abstracted expression.
Well? Gnome demanded. Can y'all fix it?
"Yes, certainly," the Necromancer replied, not looking up from the papers. "Would someone please take the item bag?"
"I will," Princess Natalia volunteered, stepping forward to receive the knapsack.
Cecille blinked in surprise. Surely it was improper for the Princess to carry the group's luggage! That was a servant's task... but the Princess hadn't brought any servants – or royal guards, for that matter – on her trip to Chesedonia with Cecille and the Kimlascan soldiers. In fact, Princess Natalia had apparently been traveling all over Auldrant with no entourage, just a handful of friends.
How long was I out of action from being petrified by Gnome? Cecille wondered. Days? Weeks? Hopefully not months...
Gnome tapped his paw impatiently on the handle of his shovel. So how are y'all gonna get me outta here?
"If we erase this part," the Necromancer said, tracing his finger along the copied figure, "and modify this part, we can change the way the center fonstone directs the flow of fonons. This glyph, up here, suppresses the flow and forces the fonons back toward the core... but without the Planet Storm to draw away those suppressed fonons, they simply build up, like water behind a dam. Eventually the pressure of fonons against the passage ring becomes too strong for the glyph to fully control. Hence, as Undine explained, the outbursts of fonons and the corresponding disasters of each element."
Yeah? And?
"As Guy suggested, we can make the fonstone disperse fonons," the Necromancer went on, ignoring Gnome's impatient tone. "In fact, if we draw a new glyph here, and another one here, the dispersion of fonons at each passage ring will be strong enough to allow us to use fontech and fonic artes almost as easily as we could when the Planet Storm was still active. Or at least, we would be able to do that with the First through Sixth Fonons. The level of Seventh Fonons will continue to decline, however."
Good, Gnome muttered. I hate the Mutant Fonon.
"The next step is to build a device for inscribing the new glyphs," the Necromancer concluded. "We also need to build a calibration device, because the passage rings are all at different depths relative to ground level and relative to each other – especially this passage ring. In order to evenly disperse the fonons, we will need to take those differences into account. The new glyphs may need to be adjusted for size at each passage ring, possibly in proportion to the depth below ground. Some passage rings may even need an additional fonstone to strengthen the dispersion."
"How do we build those devices?" Florian asked eagerly.
"With help from fontech engineers, of course," the Necromancer replied, sounding almost cheerful. He handed the sheaf of papers to Princess Natalia for her to stow in the knapsack. "Let's go to Belkend. Spinoza may have some ideas to add to my own."
Princess Natalia, Gailardia, Florian, Anise, and Tear all nodded. The group turned away from the passage ring, but they had only gone a few steps when Cecille sensed something moving behind her. She froze in place and looked back, just in time to see Gnome rushing toward them with his shovel raised. Before she could even draw breath to shout a warning, there was a resounding CLANG! as Gnome hit the Necromancer over the head with the shovel.
That's what you get for disintegrating me, you bastard! Hahahahaha! Gnome cackled.
As the Necromancer fell flat on his face, unconscious before he hit the walkway, General Cecille felt a strange sense of triumph.
So, Jade Curtiss, she thought. You aren't invincible after all.