On the roof of the Tower of Zot, Golbez nudged the corpse with the tip of his boot, rolling the body to its back. The Elder of Mist stared blankly up at the overcast sky, his mouth twisted grimly in a frozen moment of horror, his eyes wide open, several tears still dripping down the sides of his cheeks.
"We did not gain Leviathan's boon," Golbez announced, although he did not sound terse, only matter of fact. "But instead found something…" he paused, looking aside to Shadow, who drifted aimlessly and effortlessly around the roof top, "…more effective," Golbez finished, sounding pleased with himself. "Despite his allies, Cecil will find himself outmatched."
Kain still felt numb; the wound of losing Val too fresh to even feel yet. "Yes, my lord," Kain said automatically, his mouth seeming to find the words on its own.
"Lord Golbez!" Dr. Lugae looked like he might burst with excitement, as he danced back and forth between his feet. "Allow me to expand my Reverse Gas research at the Tower of Babil?" Lugae spoke quickly, gesturing enthusiastically. "The implications for its use are endless! I could reverse other spells and items to see what other transformative effects they might have. What is the opposite of Toad, or Pig? Of Beserk or Reflect?" Lugae gasped suddenly. "What if I combined spells? What then? What sort of chimera could I create?"
"Go and ready a ship for departure," Golbez said with a nod, dismissing both the Red Wings marine and Lugae, who practically skipped away gleefully, chattering ideas and possibilities to himself.
Kain pitied Lugae's next test subject and was unexpectedly relieved it was not Rydia. He was surprised at the depth of his feeling of protectiveness toward her. Kain should want her dead, her unstable power removed from the worldwide game of strategy Golbez played, but instead Kain felt a strange sense of obligation.
Cecil, Kain reminded himself – Cecil would want Rydia protected, would expect it of Kain, whether Kain was bewitched by Golbez or not. Kain felt relieved he would not disappoint Cecil with this at least, and the girl remained safe. Kain had failed Cecil in so many other ways, and the thought of more disappointment was gutting. It was a good thing Cecil would be dead soon, Kain comforted himself, knowing it was the only way to be freed from torturing himself over Cecil's lofty expectations.
Golbez extended his arm out toward Shadow, and she drifted back toward him, coiling around his arm. "Go," Golbez said, and Shadow blinked out of existence at the command. "Wonderful," Golbez murmured, staring at his hand; his apparent awe was unnerving.
"Barbariccia," Golbez next called to the open sky. But it did not answer him with the same prompt obedience, remaining silent except for the roar of the winds overhead. Golbez looked at Kain. "Go and find Barbariccia," he said, sounding annoyed. "Tell her to come here to report."
Kain started to turn, then hesitated. "Why do you not go into her mind, like you do mine? You would know where she is and why she's not answering." Kain was desperate to avoid Barbariccia, having no words to explain what happened to Val.
Golbez said nothing for a long moment, the empty eyes of his helmet wordlessly watching Kain. Then, he spoke quietly, "I cannot reach everyone as I do you."
Kain had always assumed Golbez could exercise his power over anyone, and the admission that this magic was somehow limited stunned Kain. He swallowed hard, then asked, "Why me?"
"Because you let me," Golbez admitted. "You want to be unaccountable for your actions, so you squirm and protest but still you do those terrible things I command. You cannot make decisions, so you follow me instead and pretend you have no choice. You belong to me, Kain, because you want to belong to me."
"Yes," Kain agreed, not just because it was true but because Kain realized that Golbez knew him better than anyone else in the world – even Rosa, his oldest friend. Golbez saw past the bravado and knew Kain for the insecure and indecisive coward he truly was. The act of being seen so intimately made Kain feel horribly vulnerable.
"Now go and find Barbariccia," Golbez said with a dismissive gesture.
Reluctantly, Kain went to the edge of the tower. He peered down and saw a myriad of ledges and outcroppings he could land on. Kain looked back at Golbez, wanting to say something to prove Golbez wrong, but found no words adequate words that weren't lies.
Instead, Kain stepped off the edge, and into the waiting arms of the wind.
"Barbariccia, where are you?" Kain asked the wind as he landed on a small balcony. He perched carefully, looking around for any sign of her, but she was everywhere: perfuming the breeze that drifted around the tower, the color of her hair flashing in the glints of sun off the sea below; her fierce satisfaction and pride echoed in a large bird's cry as it dived toward the water's surface, then effortlessly plucked out a wriggling fish with its talons. Barbariccia was everywhere, and therefore nowhere. Why wasn't she answering? Kain wondered, and then his worry began to mount.
Kain made his way around the outside of the tower, leaping from ledge to ledge, carefully looking for any sign or hint of Barbariccia's physical presence. As he approached the airship docks, he finally spotted her, pacing back and forth, speaking animatedly. Her audience was a strange new statue of a person, but Kain could not make out the details yet, only that its body was stone gray, and the top of its head oddly painted, made to look like blonde hair. Like Rosa, he corrected, his fear growing.
Kain landed on the docks, some distance from Barbariccia and the statue.
"Do you know what sort of beasts lurk in that cave?" Barbariccia was asking, her voice a hiss in the wind. "There are hordes of vicious, blood sucking bats; powerful naga who could crush your sternum with one blow; sorcerers from the deep with a wriggling mess of tentacles where their mouths should be, who can drive a person to madness with one spell—"
Barbariccia stopped abruptly, hearing the rattle of Kain's armor as he approached. She looked over her shoulder at Kain and smiled. "Your precious Cecil won't survive the journey, especially not without his armor and sword." But her words were for the statue behind her.
Rosa, Kain realized with dismay, recognizing the features of the statue now that he was close. Kain had seen gradual petrification before, watching as it crept slowly up a person's body until they were fully stone. But what had happened to Rosa? Kain wondered. Her petrification had halted precisely between her mouth and nose, leaving her eyes and the forehead untouched. Rosa watched, unable to move or speak, only able to breathe frantically through her nose as tears streamed down her cheeks.
"What are you doing, Barbariccia?" Kain asked gruffly.
Barbariccia laughed, whirling back to Rosa, hair swirling protectively around Rosa's stone form. "Rosa told me Cecil will fight his way to the tower to rescue her. So, I brought her to watch and wait while I tell her all the ways Cecil could die before he gets here."
"Undo this," Kain said, trying to sound commanding.
"No," Barbariccia pouted, exaggerating the expression. "I'm stuck in this tower and there's nothing to do but wait and listen. I want to have some fun too."
"Barbariccia," Kain said her name as a warning, his deep voice nearly a growl. "Undo it."
"Wait, where's Val?" Barbariccia asked abruptly, looking up to the sky, the flirty pretense forgotten.
"She…" Kain fumbled for words, unsure of how to explain. "She was lost in the battle," he finished, hoping his vagueness could make it not a lie. "I'm sorry."
"Oh." Barbariccia visibly deflated, her hair falling flat against her arms and back, no longer dancing in the wind or tugging at Rosa. Her response surprised Kain, who thought she might have viewed the dragon the same as her monster troops – just another creature in servitude. But as Barbariccia looked aside, he saw the sparkle of tears on her lashes as she quickly blinked.
"Please release Rosa," Kain asked, hoping this vulnerable Barbariccia might be more sympathetic.
Barbariccia gestured absently, and a rainbow of colors cascaded around Rosa, purging the stone from her skin. Feet freed last, Rosa stumbled, and Kain caught her by the elbow and held her up; she clung to his arm tightly and her sudden nearness made Kain's heart beat faster, hammering hard against his ribs.
"Our Master calls for me," Barbariccia said, her voice oddly detached. "I should go. Take her back to her cell before he realizes she's missing."
"I will," Kain said, and was relieved when Barbariccia disappeared in a whirl of yellow hair. "Are you okay?" he asked Rosa, still holding her up. "How long were you petrified?"
Rosa found her feet and steadied, although she still clutched at his arm. "Long enough," she said, sounding small. "I need to rest."
"I'll take you back," Kain said, trying to sound reassuring. He wondered why she did not try and convince him to leave, while Golbez and Barbariccia were both distracted or why he didn't suggest it himself. Instead, neither said anything, only walked in silence back into the tower.
Kain guided her through the twisting tunnels, up several floors until they came to the strange windless prison wing. The Delta Sisters stood outside, watching with amusement as Kain helped Rosa through.
"Isn't that precious!" exclaimed Mindy, her voice sickly sweet. "You've brought Rosa to her room! Are you going to tuck her in, too?"
Kain said nothing, only held Rosa tighter, as they walked down the hallway, to the open prison door.
Rosa went in without protest, letting Kain help her sit on the cot. It wasn't until she was settled that she looked up and asked, "Will you stay?"
"Stay?" Kain asked, unsure.
"I cannot sleep knowing they linger outside, ready to pounce on me, to use me as a prop or plaything in some new game of theirs. They poke and prod at me like a doll." She leaned forward, head in her hands, and began to noisily weep. "I just want to sleep."
"Sleep," Kain said, his heart aching at the sight and sounds of her crying. "I'll stand guard."
"You'll stay right here?" Rosa asked, sounding like a scared child. It was so unlike her usual self that it unnerved Kain to hear it.
"Right here," Kain repeated. He knelt beside the cot, taking Rosa's hand in his. "I won't move from this spot."
Rosa said nothing as she laid down on the narrow cot. Kain sat on the ground with his back to the cot's edge and watched the cell door, wishing it to stay empty, so Rosa would get the peace she so desperately needed. He could hear her breathing even out and then deepen, and knew she slept.
Kain was not sure how long Rosa slept, having no sky to track the passing time, and too caught up in his own chaotic thoughts to realize when hours had passed. At some point, uncomfortable in his armor, he removed each piece, neatly arranging it in a corner of the cell room. Sometimes he sat beside the cot, sometimes he paced or watched the door, somehow convinced that his thoughts alone could keep the tower's monsters at bay.
But what will protect Rosa from you? a hidden part of himself asked, and this thought was so jarring Kain stopped midstride and looked around, like someone else was in the room with them. But there was no Barbariccia in this windless room; Golbez, too, was quiet, likely distracted in scheming some new and terrible task for Kain.
What would Rosa do upon waking? Kain wondered, half hoping she'd have a new escape plan, half dreading it. Ler her try Libra, a thought suggested, small but determined. She could find me. But the thought was so uncomfortable, Kain pushed it aside, determined to ignore it.
When Rosa finally did wake, her eyelids fluttering open like a sleeping princess of their childhood stories—
"But I don't want to be the princess!" Rosa protested. "I want to use the sword."
Kain considered the wooden sword he held, then frowned at her. "But if you can rescue yourself, then what's the point of the fearless hero? What will I do?"
— and then she sat up, blinking curiously at Kain.
"How are you feeling?" Kain asked, awkward in the silence between them when he had so much he wanted to say to her.
"I'm…" Rosa paused to genuinely consider it, "I'm all right."
"Yeah?" Kain queried, peering closer at her – the rest had eased some of the tension around her forehead and mouth, but she still bore dark smudges under her eyes. "Do you want to sleep more?" Do you want to escape with me? Kain wanted to ask, but his tongue refused, instead saying, "I don't mind standing watch."
"No," Rosa said; she watched him cautiously. "What about you? What happened in the Feymarch?"
Golbez must have discussed his plans in front of Rosa, Kain realized. "I lost Val," he said, looking aside, not having the words to explain what had happened. "But Golbez got what he wanted, in the end." He blinked hard and felt tears threaten the corners of his vision; he clenched his jaw, willing them away.
"I'm sorry," Rosa whispered, full of sympathy, as he knew she would be.
Get out of here, cautioned the hidden piece of Kain.
"Why aren't you trying to convince me to escape?" Kain asked, ignoring the voice.
"Because Cecil's coming for us," Rosa said, sounding so damn determined and certain. How could she still believe, after all that had happened? Kain resented her optimism and faith; the feeling evolved into anger as she continued, "He's going to rescue both of us from this awful place." She stood from the cot and crossed the small room to Kain, her hand lightly on his arm, oblivious to his growing outrage. "I need you to believe that."
"Do you think he'd really go through all of that for us?" Kain asked bitterly, knowing it for a lie even as he said it, but unable to help it. "You think yourself worth so much trouble?"
"Cecil loves me," Rosa said, withdrawing her hand from Kain. "He loves me and will go to hell itself if it means rescuing me."
"Such devotion," Kain remarked sarcastically, hating himself as he spoke next, "What inspired this affection in Cecil? You were keeping him at arm's length before he left Baron."
"I…" Rosa hesitated, her cheeks going red. "It's none of your concern. You set me aside, Kain, you don't get to question me on my love life," she paused again, looking anywhere except up at Kain. "Or Cecil's," she added, quietly.
What was really pushing his desire to know, Kain was forced to ask himself, fearful of the possible implications. "Did you?" he asked, the question tight in his throat. "The night before the Siege of Fabul. You both think you might die the next day and he's asking you to marry him. Did you sleep with him?"
As he spoke, Kain stepped forward, and Rosa stepped back in response. He came forward another step, and again she stepped back, but now her legs hit the edge of the cot behind her. She looked back behind her, then quickly looked back, eyes wide. Was it fear or excitement? Kain was not certain, only knew that it made his heart suddenly beat faster.
"Tell me," Kain said tightly, his jaw clenched.
"Yes," Rosa said, her chin at a defiant angle. "If you want to torture yourself, then yes, we did. Are you happy now?"
Kain closed the distance between them with another step. Rosa froze at his nearness, though she did not drop her eyes, but watched Kain with a mix of caution and curiosity. He picked up her hand, turning it over carefully, like he was seeing her for the first time. He traced a line in her palm, marveling at the fine lines within, wondering what parts of Cecil she'd touched. He let go of her hand and looked up at her; her face was suddenly fascinating. He cupped her cheek with his palm, his thumb brushing across her lower lip, curious if she'd kissed Cecil as eagerly as she had kissed him.
Somewhere on the surface of Rosa was a piece of Cecil that no one else would ever have, like a living relic of Cecil's lost innocence. The idea both captivated Kain and filled him with a dark jealousy and his old childhood possessiveness. Rosa was another victory Cecil had thought he had claimed over Kain, but Kain and Rosa knew otherwise. Kain smirked at the thought.
"Why do you do this to me?" Rosa asked, color high in her cheeks, looking up at him, barely moving her lips as she spoke.
"Because you let me," Kain said, repeating Golbez's words, too engrossed with her mouth to realize. "Tell me something, Rosa," he said, lightly running the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip. "When you were with Cecil, were you thinking of me?"
Rosa's breath hitched in her chest. "That's not a fair question."
"Nothing in this tower is fair," Kain needlessly reminded her, knowing she knew it more than anyone else; she'd been mistreated the worst of all. Startled by the thought, he dropped his hands from her and started to run away but was stopped by Rosa's hand on his shoulder.
"Yes," Rosa said, her face upturned toward him. "I thought of you – is that what you want to hear?" she asked, and the question was in earnest. "We both believed you died in the Mist earthquake, and I couldn't stop picturing you buried alive under the rubble, unable to fill your lungs." She looked aside, eyes distant as she remembered. "And how I'd never see you again."
"That's not what I meant," Kain said pointedly, carefully turning her face back to him.
"I know," Rosa admitted quietly. "If you want to continue tormenting both of us, then yes, when I was with Cecil I thought of you. Of our time together at Mount Ordeals. I doubt I'll ever be touched again without thinking of you. You've made me a selfish and cruel lover, and I hate you for it. And Cecil deserves better than either of us can offer."
"Perhaps he does, but he won't have it," Kain countered. "Cecil won't survive climbing the tower. And everything that Cecil had will be mine. His rank, his inheritance, his crown, and you."
Rosa searched his face for something and Kain wondered if she would find it. "Do you only want me now because I belong to Cecil?" she asked quietly. He saw the sudden worry in her eyes and wondered if she feared the answer.
"Do you?" Kain asked as he circled his hand around her neck, drawing her closer; Rosa did not fight the embrace, but instead stepped into it. "With all that's happened between us, can you really say you're truly Cecil's?"
Rosa, with her brow furrowed, opened her mouth to respond, then hesitated. Her inability to be decisively certain only reinforced the rightness of following his dark impulses. After all, why shouldn't he have whatever he wanted? Cecil would be dead soon, so why shouldn't Kain have Cecil's things? Golbez had promised, after all.
Kain leaned down and kissed her, suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to show her how much better than Cecil he was. He was not surprised to find her yielding, tugging him closer, sighing her mouth open against his. It was further proof of how much she wanted him to do this, Kain told himself, refusing to acknowledge the truth of his coercion.
Later, freed from his bewitchment and given time to reflect, Kain would look upon this moment with deep shame. Imprisoned and as powerless as she was, what else could Rosa have done? Did she fear for her life if she rebuffed him? And worse, would she have been right?
But those thoughts were far away, and Rosa seemed willing, her hands eagerly tugging at his clothing, dragging him to the cot. "Please," she murmured against his jaw, drawing him on top of her, and that was enough for Kain.
It became a frenzy of hard kisses and gripping hands. There was no moonlit magic in this, as there was their first time together. No softness or gentleness, only taking what each wanted without apology. When Kain first thrust into her, he heard Rosa's sharp inhale of breath, but her hips bucked up, meeting his anyway. With her hands tangled in his hair, she pulled him closer, kissing him deeply. It was confirmation of Rosa's authentic feelings, Kain convinced himself, and it was his last coherent thought.
After that, it was a blur of sensations, leaving no room for troublesome thoughts or invasive voices. It was not curious and cautious lovemaking, as it had been before, but explosive and inelegant, exacting more from Kain than he thought he could give. Kain indulged every urge he had, feeling entitled to his desires, deserving of everything he had ever wanted.
Rosa seemed to do the same, making her demands known in hot panting breaths against his neck. Kain obliged her and was rewarded for his efforts when she suddenly cried out, clutching him tighter, pulling him in closer.
Kain was lost, adrift in the overwhelming feeling of Rosa; she was his, and they both knew it. He would prove it soon to Cecil, and riding that high of superiority, Kain shuddered almost violently, then abruptly spent himself, his orgasm fierce and forceful. Throughout it, Rosa clung to his shoulders, like he was a rock in the fast-moving tide of a river and her only salvation from the rushing waters. Kain slowed, then stopped, and began to disentangle himself from her.
"Wait," Rosa said, still holding on to him. "Let's pretend, a little longer, that nothing exists outside of this room. Like the night at Mount Ordeals. Can we stay like this, for a short while?"
Kain hesitated but Rosa did not, pulling him back down to her. His head rested on her chest, and he could hear the wild thump of her heart's beat beneath his ear. She stroked his hair, running her fingers through the long strands, the gesture surprisingly soothing.
"Stay," she said again, like her words were magic and she could command him. It worked – Kain relaxed against her, feeling his eyelids flutter close. "Be safe with me, even if it's a pretty lie. Believe it, please, for me."
"We're safe," Kain said in a sleepy murmur. The day had been full of physical and emotional trials, from the battle against the Eidolons to this moment with Rosa. Lulled into a feeling of safety by Rosa's gentle strokes of his hair, Kain promptly fell asleep.
When Kain awoke, he was alone, the small cot empty where Rosa had been. He sat up abruptly, looking around the cell and finding no sign of her, only the open cell door, idly swinging back and forth.
"Damn it," Kain muttered as he stood. How long had she been gone? he wondered. Had this been Rosa's last resort effort at escape, finally playing the card she'd kept so close to her chest? Rosa, clever and resourceful, as always, using any advantage she could.
Kain had to find her, and fast, before Golbez realized she was missing. As he finished buckling on the last piece of armor, Kain felt a needle prick sink into his mind.
Come, Golbez commanded. I have a task for you.
Yes, Master, Kain responded promptly, blanking out his mind, thinking of nothing but obedience.
Cecil has retrieved the Earth Crystal and is making his way back to Troia. Tomorrow morning, you'll depart to meet him there. Guide his ship to the tower and Cecil will finally meet his end. Golbez sunk another needle in, probing deeply. And then you'll finally be better at him in all things, not just bedding his woman.
Kain froze, his stomach lurching with the wrongness of it all, how his private thoughts could be so exposed and the unfairness of it all. Nothing in this tower is fair, Kain reminded himself, echoing his earlier words to Rosa.
Find her quickly, before the Delta Sisters do, Golbez warned Kain, offering a brief mental image of Rosa's limp body dangling from Sandy's long spear. Then prepare for tomorrow's mission.
"Yes, Master," Kain said out loud this time, knowing Golbez heard him anyway. Golbez heard everything, after all, knew everything and controlled everything.
Why had Kain ever tried to keep any corner of himself private? Golbez already knew the depth of Kain's depravity and was not surprised by Kain's terrible actions; perhaps Golbez had been expecting it and only wondered what had taken Kain so long.
"Rosa?" Kain called down the corridor past the cell. Where would she go? What was the clever thing to do? Would she go down to the docks, or up to the roof?
A distant giggle answered his query instead.
"Damn it all," Kain hissed as he drew his lance from his shoulder. He had to find Rosa before the Delta Sisters did, not knowing what might happen to her if he could not, or what might happen if he did.