[IC] Time Stops For Fire(Altered Tundra and Hero)

[AlteredTundra]

“It’s actually Lannit.”

“I wouldn’t bother.”

Jaakuna shook his head at Lannit with an annoyed expression on his face. Lannit would catch the hint, and now would follow Lorenzo, who had assumed the position of leader as he would take charge forth.

There was probably just fifty paces separating the three blonde men from the Hall of the Wroth God. Surprisingly, there didn’t seem to be any sign of monsters within the area. Jaakuna found that odd. First off, Sochen Cave Palace was crawling with monsters of all sorts, so it was definitely intriguing, if not just slightly off putting, that there seemed to be none in sight. Furthermore, what was this uncertain feeling that Jaakuna got in the pit of his stomach? It felt like dread, but at the same time, it was something entirely different.

As they came to a waystone, Jaakuna would see Lorenzo gesture him and Lannit to surround the pedistal. Jaakuna sighed, walking behind Lannit as they all surrounded it. A field of crimson mist surrounded them as they were warped into time-space. In the span of three moments, they were in a large hall that had candles that burned iridescent red, seeming almost crimson. The entire room had two waystones: one where the three blonde men were at and one five hundred paces opposite of them. From a vertical standpoint, it was five hundred paces from waystone to waystone. From a horizontal standpoint, it was three hundred to three hundred. The ground was seeming made of some kind of maroon concrete.

“Well isn’t this cheery.” Lannit quipped.

“They don’t call it the Hall of the Wroth God for nothing, huh?” JAakuna quipped along with Lannit.

As they observed the hall, they both came to a mutual glance, nodding at each other.

“There’s nothing here,” Lannit remarked, gesturing to all angles of the hall. There was nothing in sight. “We could probably skip this fight.” Lannit stepped forward five paces with a big grin on his face, then suddenly a field of hot, dense, fiery mist engulfed fifty paces wide and fifty paces high. Quickly, Lannit jumped back, barely escaping the inferno that had suddenly just appeared.

Jaakuna shook his head at Lannit. He was going to say something, but then Jaakuna heard such a ear-screeching roar that his attention immediately went to that. It seemed to have originated from the fiery mist. Only in moments would Jaakuna, as well as Lorenzo and Lannit, see that it was indeed the Hell Wyrm. It looked like its poster: tall, eight magick glyphs hovering over its large body, and a face not even a mother could love. Above all, however, its entire body was as if the pits of the underworld came up, and took physical form.

“So what was that you were saying about nothing being here?” Jaakuna snickered.

“Oh shut up,” Lannit scowled at Jaakuna, “let’s just beat this big fucker.”

Lannit had reloaded his Needle Rifle, aiming it at the Hell Wyrm. JAakuna chuckled, and poised himself to strike. However they were going to do this would have to be figured out sooner rather than later because the Hell Wyrm came charging at them, surrounded in hellfire.

---

When those final four slugs entered Levi’s motionless corpse, Savayna found it odd that she didn’t feel anything. She didn’t feel satisfaction nor did she have feelings of sadness; it was just emptiness. Even the sounds of the four bullets being fired didn’t produce a reaction. All it did was remind Savayna that life was short. It was given just as fast as it was given away. Savayna knew that.

Savayna took her sword, and sheathed it, not saying anything to Grant after he had done the deed. She simply started walking away, not even wanting to wait for her new fiance.

---

Nadeline Lenore Roselia presented herself to him. Old Dalan would take a swig of his Bangaa Ale in one hand and a draft of his pipe in the other. As her request would be laid out in front of him, he hummed quite obviously, almost zany-like. Her eyes made her intention clear to him, still the elderly man couldn’t help but contemplate this request, taking long moments before arriving to a conclusion of sorts.

“The Princess of Rozarria wishes to find her soon-to-be husband’s dead brother,” Old Dalan was testing her. But no, one look into her eyes, and he knew she knew about the late prince’s sudden reappearance from the dead. “No, this princess is not a fool like many would be inclined to believe.” The old man mused a half-grin.

Old Dalan set down both his pipe and jug of ale. He would lean forward, taking Nadeline’s chin in the grasp of his wrinkily hand. He brought her face close to his. Her examined her eyes, seeing the truth within the truth, possibly looking for a doubt of some kind. After a minute of keeping her face so close to his that the stench of smoke and alcohol was all she would smell, he released her, curing a smile.

“Before I give the Princess of Rozarria this highly valuable information, tell Old Dalan why it is you wish to find him?” Old Dalan had leaned back, old, fading hazelnut eyes gazing upon Nadeline.

---

[Hero]

Lorenzo let out a low whistle, his hand over his eyes as he examined the Hell Wyrm with a curiosity that could only match that of a cat's. He had certainly never dreamed he would come face to face with a wyrm of this magnitude, though he had to admit, this wouldn't exactly be the walk in the park he had hoped for. Wyrms of this classification were all over the world, although each one had its own element and its own dangers to them. But now wasn't the time to inquire, nor was it the time for any doubt; they had no time to waste, after all. Cracking his knuckles once more, he eyed the flames spewing from the monster. No doubt the fire breathing thing had a few tricks up its sleeve, but he wasn't about to die here. Karolina was waiting, and his little girl was going to get married--it'd take more than this to kill him.

Taking in a deep breath, he would nod in acknowledgement to Jaakuna and Lannit. Lannit definitely had the right idea, but as always, it was easier said than done. With that in mind, Lorenzo would make sure to be the first to strike--he ran forward, his gloves glowing with his magicks, and he would land a hit on the Wyrm. It didn't take kindly to the hit, nor did Lorenzo's hand when it felt like he had just punched a wall. He leapt backwards as the wyrm would swing its tail at him, though it was much too large and bulky to attack effectively that way.

Wringing out his hand, Lorenzo frowned. "Yeowch! Think I better step my game up," He said as the Hell Wyrm would spew flames at them, the man leaping backwards to avoid getting fried alive.

---

And so the deed was done.

Grant would turn on his heel and follow suit, having nothing to say.

---

Of course she wasn't a fool, she was raised better than that! She had to admit though, Dalan reminded her much of her late grandfather, specifically his taste in tobaccos. The smoke almost brought with it nostalgia, though she couldn't say she missed it terribly, as she often disliked the idea of smoking. Still, as Dalan would question her goals, Nadeline felt that he just wanted her to voice what he already knew. Deciding to indulge him, she would put a hand to her chest. "To lay my king's demons to rest," She stated. "If Wesley is the sword to pierce through the darkness, then I must become his shield. I will go in his stead...and see to it that once and for all his nightmares are vanquished. Before he can take the throne, he mustn't waver, and to that I must know what Sylvester is planning. Were his intentions true, he would have presented himself to his family, but he does not. Thus I must know and confirm what he wants."

[AlteredTundra]

To Lorenzo’s backstep from the searing black and crismon flames that had came flowing from the Hell Wyrm’s mouth, Lannit and Jaakuna jumped to the left and right respectively. The flames spread across ten paces and extended twice as much. Of course, from what the two blonde men who had jumped to the sky could see, Lorenzo was able to get out of dodge just a fraction of a second before it would turn the maroon ground into charred bits.

But of course, that didn’t stop the Hell Wyrm from trying to have a go again.

For an odd reason, the giant beast simply eyed all three of them. Safe to say that both Lannit and Jaakuna were unsure what was going on. Over the time span of a minute, the two exchanged confused looks with each other and Lorenzo, to which they would see something similar to their own expression.

“How peculiar..” The Hell Wyrm rasped.

Jaakuna and Lannit looked at each other, blinking to one another, baffled. They looked to Lorenzo with the same glance, then back to each other, then to the Hell Wyrm.

“These walls speak many things. They hear many things from the surface world.” The Hell Wyrm coiled its voice to where its head was facing the trio of men. “But nothing has been mused more than you three.” It had a voice that was deep. Echoed.

“Jaakie..”

“Yeah?”

“You’re hearing this too, aren’t you?”

“Yup.”

“[Okay. i just wanted to make sure.” Jaakuna and Lannit were shaking. Who knew the Hell Wyrm could speak? Surely not Jaakuna nor his friend, Lannit. “So, now what?” Lannit asked.

“Well, maybe converse with it.” Jaakuna suggested.

Lannit shrugged. He pondered for a moment, then said, “So, nice weather we’re having, huh?”

Jaakuna groaned, hitting his face with his fist as he couldn’t believe what Lannit decided to go with.

“Archadian named Lannit. You have her eyes.”

“Her?” JAakuna mused, raising an eyebrow.

“What’cha talkin about, Willis?”

“Lana Ward. Her eyes were orchid and silver, laced with natural magicite essence. A rare specimen.”

Wait, did he say.. “Lannit, don’t —”

Too late. Lannit was already changed into his mist-infused appearance, but a bit darker than when they fought the Wendigos. And before JAakuna could stop him, Lannit went charging full speed. There was a moment where Jaakuna thought Lannit was going to make it. The Hell Wyrm had yet to catch sight of Lannit, as the now pink and purple Archadian was going so fast that he was in the beast’s blindspot. If that wasn’t enough, Lannit had just called out his quickening. He even started firing, which caused the Hell Wyrm to finally take notice. Of course, that didn’t help because it..actually was working. After the first couple of dozen of needles, it actually caused the beast to flinch.

“Keep going, Lannit!” Jaakuna shouted as he gestured Lorenzo to follow him.

As Lannit kept his assault, spewing some words tha tJaakuna had not been able to make out, Jaakuna took to a leap and landed on the Hell Wyrm’s back. At this point, he stabbed both swords into the back of the beast. It didn’t even crack the skin, but Jaakuna had hoped that he distracted the beast’s mist field enough for Lorenzo to penetrate it.

---

“Very good, Princess of Rozarria. That was the correct answer,” Old Dalan clapped a few times, grinning widely. “My rats have told me that a rather peculiar, silver-haired male has been frequenting The Muthru Bazaar.” Old Dalan told Nadeline, “I do not know if that’s where you will find him. This information came from my rats two fortnights ago. But, should you find yourself in need of answers, gil is the way to many poor man’s lips. Give him gil and secrets shall be yours.” Old Dalan brought Nadeline in for a hug, but making sure to keep her close to him. “Trek carefully, Nadeline. There are those who wish to keep Sylvester’s presence a secret. I do not know who you heard it from, but if they mean you no harm, then they must not know the truth, but I do.” Dalan’s voice was less zany. It was of dread and urgency. “The truth is that there is a shadow within the shadow of Rabanastre’s previous hierarchy. Be vigilant, Nadeline. Wesley will not forgive his crazy grandfather if he let his future wife to her death, nor could I forgive myself if I let my future granddaughter-in-law to meet the gods before her time on this world has had a lengthy run.”

Old Dalan released Nadeline from his embrace, giving her a smile before gesturing her off.

[Hero]

Lana Ward? Wait, wasn't that the chick they had just met up with? Had she been here? Before Lorenzo could think about the situation any further, Lannit would literally power up and begin an onslaught on the Wyrm. Wishing he could ask what was going on, Lorenzo instead chose to focus on the matter at hand. His physical strikes weren't doing him much good, though he wasn't the sort of man to rely on pure strength. What he didn't like, however, was how time consuming this had become. They didn't have time to mess around with no talking monster! They had a country to save, damn it!

Taking in a deep breath, Lorenzo would go into a miniature medative state. He could hear the heartbeats of every living thing pulsing, the rush of battle running adrenaline through his veins. He had to go back, to go to a time where he was at his best, some time ago when the battlefield was once his second home. Deeper and deeper he went, until he entered an almost trance-like state. He was aware of every detail now, and as he closed his eyes, he would poise himself, waiting. And waiting...

Until opportunity would strike, and thus would he.

Opening his eyes, a burst of speed left dust behind Lorenzo's trail. Rather than jumping, he simply ran up and around the Hell Wyrm, looking almost like gravity was simply a theory. Spotting the tiny crack in the Hell Wyrm's defenses, Lorenzo's fist would shine brightly, though instead of a punch, he would jump and hold out his hand to the spot. Mist gathered in, forming a visible ball, and more and more it grew, until finally, it fired directly onto the Hell Wyrm's skin. The blast would send Lorenzo flying backwards, and while he tumbled to the ground, he'd manage to roll into a standing position.

---

In a show of respect, Nadeline would bow her head deeply. It was a foreign move, something she had never done considering she was always the higher status, but one of respect. Dalan's words rang in her ears, and as she would take her leave, she would feel her rapier bouncing off her legs as her pace quickened. There wasn't any time to waste, although she secretly admitted that whoever was behind Sylvester's reappearance was certainly doing a job well done keeping it under wraps. But Old Dalan had a point--gil was the way to the heart and pockets, luckily for her, she became prepared for something along the lines of this.

Eyes roamed on her as she reached the Muthru Bazaar. This should be expected; she was a woman of a higher class, someone of her stature wouldn't be caught dead running her own errands. With her head held high, she would let them watch--if she needed to bring attention to herself to draw out Sylvester, so be it. They stared her down, though she wouldn't so much as flinch, though her eyes scanned the area. While there was the usual bustle of everyday services and sales, there was also an underlying business running about. But where should she start? Which one had the best chance to give her exactly what she wanted?

Nadeline came to a halt, the streets around her continuing to move, people simply walking past. She eyed an empty stall--a rare sight, considering nearly every merchant had their hands full with customers, and she chose to approach them. [i][color=coral]Straight and to the point, no need for anything else,[color][/i] She would remind herself as she would exhale slowly in an attempt to calm her nerves a bit. Clearing her throat, she paused for a moment. Looking to make sure no one else was listening, she would lean over, placing both her hands on the table.

"I am looking for Sylvester Alexander," She stated quietly, yet firmly."Where do I find him?"

[AlteredTundra]

What was first thought as a preposterous notion seemed to finally shaping into a possible reality. Of all the Wyrms on Ivalice supernatural soils, the Hell Wyrm was only second to yiazmat. It was as large as it was gruesome, yet as the trio worked together, attacking the beast from three different angles, it was becoming clearer to all three of them that their strategy, though seeming random, was working. Lannit’s explosive Needle Storm from the right provided the distraction that Jaakuna needed to utilize his not-as-threatening powers he obtained from Zodiark and unleash non-elemental flames into the hardened skin of the beast. At the same time, Lorenzo shot forth a rather impressive orb of powerful mist-empowered magick at the beast.

And with that tirfecta, the beast cried out in agony. The attacks forced it to come closer tot he ground, a gust of inferno released as a crater the size of the beast itself formed underneath its large form. The gust sent all three men flying in their respective directions. Jaakuna was shot upwards all the way to the wall where his back made a large thud, and sent the blonde male free-falling to the ground. Thankfully, however, Belias would summon himself and catch Jaakuna, making sure to pyro-teleport himself twenty paces away from the raging inferno swirling around the Hell Wyrm.

Meanwhile, Lannit was sent the same distance as Jaakuna was, only he remained on the ground, but did he ever make a large thud against the wall. Unlike Jaakuna, however, he didn’t have the assistance of an esper to help him, so he was forced to take it like a man. But it hurt like a bitch. Lannhit would look over and see that Lorenzo too had a unwelcomed greeting with the wall. Thankfully, by the looks of it, he came out of it better than Lannit did.

“You’re an idiot, you know that, right?” Belias reprimanded Jaakuna. “What did you hope to accomplish with that reckless action? Of all things, you use Zodiark’s influence?!” Amid the roars from the Hell Wyrm, Belias’ voice was heard.

“Belias —”

“You couldn’t use a scathe or maybe Flaraja?” Belias continued his scolding of Jaakuna.

“If you would —”

“Given your mistakes before, I thought you would’ve learned by —”

“Would you just shut up and let me talk!” Jaakuna shouted.

Belias looked at him, beast arms crossed over his chest.

“I know what I was doing. And I know what risks I took, but when I was digging into the remnants of Zodiark, I came across something rather interesting.” Jaakuna had a look on his face that he never thought he would. It was an expression that hinted at a revelation, and Belias mused an intrigued sound.

“Well, I’m waiting.”

“I can’t explain it; it’s just this feeling I got.”

“You’re hopeless.” Belias shook his head.

About twenty paces to the right, Lannit stumbled to his feet, and approached Jaakuna and Belias. His eyes were widened as he saw the tall esper. His run slowed into an awkward, slow jog, eyes never leaving the gaze of Belias’ towering form.

“You look better than I thought you would.” Jaakuna quipped.

Lannit nodded slowly.

“Lannit, I am sure my appearance pales in comparison to the Hell Wyrm.” Belias remarked, seeming annoyed by Lannit’s foolish wariness.

Jaakuna agreed with Belias, which made him look over to the goliath of a beast. The inferno was raging on, but something seemed..off. Or, at least, it gave Jaakuna this sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. “Come on! We need to get Lorenzo away from that.”

“Jaakuna?”

“I can’t tell exactly what it is, but something about that inferno is unsettling. And Lorenzo is too close for comfort.”

Jaakuna didn't’ wait for Lannit or Belias to reply. He took off to a sprint, casting Haste so it would speed up his movements. Belias followed, using the same spell. Lannit would scratch his head and also cast haste as he wouldn’t be far behind the two.

By when they reached Lorenzo, Jaakuna’s feeling was right. As a large glyph appeared above the large beast, the inferno storm would compact around its form. This glyph started to rotate as alarming speeds. And from each line of the glyph came the same fiery winds from before, only this time it increased twice as much in the intensity. From that, a homing flurry of inferno orbs shot at the trio of blonde men. They were coming so fast that they would only have moments to react.

But would it be enough? It would have to because it was coming straight at them.

---

“So that’s her, right?”

“Yeah. She’s been asking a lot of questions. And none of them good, not if we wish to keep our plan secret.”

“What does The Boss say? Kill her or kidnap?”

“Against council, The Boss wants to see her alive. Apparently she’s interesting.”

“How so?”

“She has unlocked the seal.”

“Who, that dainty girl? No way!”

“It’s true; though, I don’t think she’s not fully realized what she’s capable of. If she had, then she wouldn’t have failed in purifying her friend from the Darkness.”

“Oh well. Let’s nab her, then.”

---

“I’m sorry, girl, I don't think I know who you’re talking about?” A merchant said. The blonde girl in front of him wanted to know about Sylvester Alexander. As if he would know where the recently-revived prince was at. What kind of fool did she take him for? “Listen girl, I’m sorry, but there’s nothing you can —”

Suddenly, the Merchant went silent, a terrified expression on his Bangaa face as he saw two familiar faces. One was Caeruleum, the Azure Wright, and Sanguine, the Blood Wright. Two terrifyingly dangerous Humes that were part of the Dark Dagger Guild, a branch of the Brotherhood. “Nadeline Lenore?” Caeruleum asked, his gold eyes looking on the princess, “we hear you’ve been asking about Sylvester.”

Sanguine looked at Nadeline, smiling softly. In the next moment, tendrils of blood ran through both shoulder-blades of the princess, then they coiled around her body as they would lift her up onto Sanguine’s shoulders. He, as well as Caeruleum, disappeared into the ground through a bloody, tar-like liquid. Only in thirty minutes would they resurface somewhere grimy, and stinking of death.

“Boss, here is the girl you requested,” Caeruleum gestured to Sanguine who removed the girl from his shoulders as well as the coiled tendrils that bound her. Oddly enough, there was no wound from where the tendrils had originally struck.

As a figure in a dark cloak would turn around, the hood came down, and a mane of silverish-blonde hair flowed. It wasn’t that long in the back, but the sides and front had interesting bangs. When he would look at Nadeline, he waited for her gaze to meet his. “Nadeline of the House Roselia, Princess of Rozarria, daughter of Lorenzo and Karolina Roselia, and third to the crown. And if I’m not mistaken, future queen of Dalmasca.” The male said with an empowered voice. “You hear that, my brothers? We are in the presence of royalty. Bow, my men! Bow!” The male bowed, showing Nadeline the respect she obviously deserved. “So, tell me my dearest princess, why do you seek Sylvester Alexander? What is it you wish to know about the recently revived prince of Dalmasca? Do you wish to ask his permission to marry his brother? Or do you, oh I don’t know, want to make sure he isn’t going to stand in the way of his younger brother’s claim to the throne?” The male waited, looking at Nadleine, observing her face as he would gesture her to answer. She indeed had the floor.

[Hero]

Ah, this wasn’t looking too good, and that was really saying something, considering that it took a lot for Lorenzo to admit that maybe they could possibly have the slightest chance of perhaps being in trouble. Maybe. Before he would call it quits, however, the man watched as Jaakuna and Lannit would regroup with him, and he would flash a grin, though it would fade as he would see the Hell Wyrm begin to charge its attack. He distinctly recalled Karolina attempting to teach him a spell to protect himself from magicks such as this, but deemed it much too unmanly and he’d much rather prefer to punch his way to victory.

Oh, how he regretted that one.

While he wanted to linger on the thought a little longer, amidst the red, he could have sworn he spotted a blue color somewhere in there. Sure, Mist changing colors wasn’t anything new, but it was odd considering that the Hell Wyrm’s magicks were fire based, and thus its Mist would be along the red-colored spectrum. He squinted, completely disregarding the situation as the attack would get charged up. Yeah, his eyes weren’t deceiving him, there was a spot of blue getting closer and closer to the wyrm.

“It would seem I have arrived on time,” A very stern, cold voice reached his ears amid the magicks.

Before he could question it, the spell had gone off. Crap! He hadn’t been paying attention! There was no time to defend himself, and as he would step forward to try to shield the younger men, the attack would halt. A shimmering blue wrapped itself around the Hell Wyrm’s magicks, slowly drawing it away from the men. Lorenzo’s eyes widened as the flames of the wyrm would be drawn into a blade held high above the woman’s head, the katana glowing white as she would complete it. Whipping it to the side, she would make a single horizontal slash, and would simply drop the sword, letting it fade away into the light.

What the hell? Before Lorenzo would be able to even think about what happened, the Hell Wyrm let out a ferocious roar as it was quite literally sliced in half. His jaw dropped—what kind of sword was that?! Who was this woman?! Why the hell did she wait so long to bail them out?! As she approached them, he couldn’t help but examine her blue hair, her stern, amber eyes, and a kimono somehow managing to hold her very large breasts in place.

Shion stopped before them, a bandaged hand on her waist. “I’ve been looking for you, Sky Pirate.”

---

Had she not been on her adventure, Nadeline perhaps would have questioned her kidnapping. Still, considering that she had asked the right question, she assumed that she would be led to the very person she had been searching for. She certainly didn’t appreciate the way she was being handled, and almost had half a man to complain, but she knew better. An entire half an hour passed before something, anything would happen, though she didn’t dare speak a word. She should have maybe been worried, but she did have a slight element of surprise with her Esper.

They know. Ultima quickly dissuaded her claim, almost smugly. Quite the bind you have gotten yourself into, princess.

Before Nadeline could retort, they had arrived. Apparently, her arrival was to be expected—but how? No, they must have had some way to communicate, though she didn’t hide her relief once her heels hit the ground.

Finally, she was before the ‘boss’, though she admitted she had expected a little more. She narrowed her eyes as he would greet her, not finding his boasting comical at all. When he bowed, she highly considered kicking him right then and there. The nerve of that man, how dare he mock her! But her fury would only simmer beneath the surface, and she knew that at the moment, letting her temper run wild would do her more harm than good. Something about this, however, bothered her. Revived? So he had been brought back from death? How?

“Quite the company you keep,” She commented rather dryly. “Though I fear you’ve missed the mark entirely on my purpose in finding him. I need no one’s permission to do as I please, nor am I concerned with Wesley’s ascension. However, a dead man should remain just that: dead. There is much wrong in going against the will of the gods, and consequences to be had for those who would be foolish enough to disturb the dead’s slumber.” Her speech was strong, nor did she have any doubt in her mind. “If you’re one to show your respect, then you will take me to him.”

That mouth of yours is going to get yourself killed. Ultima chided her.

[AlteredTundra]

As the Three Blonde Men faced certain death, they did it with much valor. Lorenzo had his arms raised high, preparing to go down fighting. Lannit had the Needle Rifle charged and ready, finger poised on the trigger. And as for Jaakuna, he had began gathering as much deep red mist as he possibly could. While they probably would’ve died, Jaakuna was going to make sure that he did so with a fight. Lannit felt the same way, too.

And yet, as it would reveal itself to the men, that was not going to be the case. The color in the air meant that they were going to live for another day.

When the Hell Wyrm fell, disappearing into crumbling particles of black and red and white, Jaakuna couldn’t help but look in awe. The mighty beast had fallen. And it was thanks entirely to Shion, the Blue Rose, who apparently had been looking for him. As thankful as he was, Jaakuna couldn’t help but grimace as she still referred to him as ‘Sky Pirate’.

“Nice seeing you too, Shion.” Jaakuna half-grinned as he focused his eyes on her.

Meanwhile, Lannit couldn’t help but take his eyes off of her. Taking aside how she killed a beast that The Blonde Men couldn’t defeat together, he was drawn to her huge knockers and how they were barely contained in her outfit. Of course he had heard of Shion, the Blue Rose, but he’d only heard whispers of her legendary twin roses.

Jaakuna heard Lannit beginning to breathe heavily. He raised a brow. It was then he realized where Lannit had been looking at. Shaking his head, Jaakuna whacked Lannit over the top of his melon. “Lannit for god’s sake, you have a wife at home who is carrying your baby,” Jaakuna chided him, “even if Shion has impressive tits, this is no time to gawk at them like some weird pervert.” Jaakuna told Lannit.

As he sulked, Lannit said, “fine, carry on.”

---

“Oh she’s got moxy,” The cloaked man said, “I like that.”

He let her finish, seeing the fire in her eyes. Truly an offspring of that fool, Lorenzo.

“Girl, do you know who you’re speaking to?” Caeruleum asked the girl, as if offended by her lack of respect for his Boss.

“Caeru, it’s fine,” Boss said, approaching Nadeline, “I can tell that this girl isn’t afraid to speak her mind. And while I find her tone lacking a certain tact, I cannot punish someone for standing up for what they believe in. We, of the Dark Dagger Hunter’s Guild, have to appreciate that. We also have to appreciate that our future queen isn’t going to take any form of disrespect for —” he paused, looking to his men, “what was it that she said? ‘There’s much wrong going on defying the will of the gods?”

“I believe it was something along those lines.” Caeru mused.

“Yes, I believe it was too.” The Cloaked Man chuckled, eyes once more on Nadeline, “girl, tell me, what is it you know about our guild?” He asked her. “Did you know that Queen Ashelia herself founded our first branch? I believe it was to ensure that other guilds did not get out of hand. And because of this, we became what is known of as The Brotherhood of the First Order.” The Man spoke with a spark in his eyes, tone passionate. “It may be true that, in the decades that followed, our original allegiance has been wavering. We went from serving under your ancestors of Rozarria, then to the last reign of the Solidors, and only recently, we served as bodyguards for your fiance’s late father. In fact, it was mere weeks before the invasion from Archadia of our country of Dalmasca did his late majesty disband us from being his guards. He cited it was ‘time to move past from the barbaric ways.” there was a hint of anger in his voice. “And so, we were back to what we were before Queen Ashelia officiated us: hunters who live day-to-day based off of the gil we receive from hunts.”

The Cloaked figure turned around, going to a desk. He reached into the third drawer from the left, and pulled out a scroll. It wasn’t large. It had some kind of seal on it. He would then unseal it, a glow of orange could be seen as the scroll would unroll itself. He held it in both hands, and said, “Princess of Rozarria, you want me to take you to Sylvester, right?” The Man said, not even bothering to look up. He kept reading the scroll he had in his hands. “How about instead I take you to see him, he comes to you?” He smirked suspiciously.

It was as if in that moment, there was an unspoken command from the man, because one of the Dark Dagger Guild members would come through a door just thirty paces to the left of everyone. The guild member himself wasn’t out of the ordinary. He had short brown hair, wore leather and hide armor. He was Hume with dark skin. He came out tugging along some frail man. Despite a withered state, he had silverish-blonde hair, eyes of gold, and a scar going from the eyes to the nose on both sides.

“Princess of Rozarria, I present to you the Prince Sylvester of Dalmasca,” The Cloaked Man gestured to Sylvester who bared exact hair color and style of the Cloaked Man. "And Sylvester, please thank the princess here. Because of her actions, she is the reason you defied the will of the gods."

[Hero]

“The one usefulness they have is to distract people. Considering I have no intention of bearing children, either, they play their part well,” Shion admitted outright, lightly tossing her hair behind her.

Lorenzo raised an eyebrow at her, his eyes briefly wandering, though he did a better job of controlling his gaze. He put on a grin, placing both his hands on his hips as he would let out a laugh. “You went and saved our asses, and you’re a friend of Jaakie’s! I’m Lorenzo, pleased to meet you, Sharon!”

Shion remained quietly, briefly distracted by Lorenzo, but she would instead turn her attention to Jaakuna once more, her amber eyes curious. “I admit, I did not expect to find you here of all places. Why go through the Palace when you’re welcome to walk through your own doors?” She mused out loud, though her questions seemed entirely rhetorical as she seemed to know the answer. “I suppose there’s no point in asking. Let us carry on, then.”

Lorenzo peered at the woman, cleaning out his ear. “I’m sorry, ‘we’?”

She let out a sigh. “It can’t be helped. Jaakuna clearly has something to do here, and it wouldn’t do if I whisked him away now, would it?” She lamented quietly, a finger on her cheek as she looked at Lorenzo.

“And what do you want with Jaakie?”

“That’s none of your business unless he wishes to indulge you.”

“And how do I know we can trust you?”

A rather seductive smile traced Shion’s pink lips, and she would approach Lorenzo. The man was asking too many questions for her liking, and he needed to be punished. The blonde’s eyes widened as she would bring him into an embrace, her clearly large rack pressing up against him. Despite probably earning the jealousy of millions of men everywhere, he was clearly uncomfortable with the physical contact, especially when she would lay down her head on his shoulder. He let out a yelp of pain, immediately backing away as tiny scratches appeared on his neck, where her rose had touched him. It glowed rather guiltily, and she would bear her usual, serious expression.

“Let’s get moving.” She ordered, continuing onwards without waiting for anyone’s acceptance.

---

He was calling her tactless?!The nerve of this man was getting quite far from Nadeline’s usual tolerance of ignorance. He was mocking her, that much was clear, although she wasn’t quite sure where all his confidence came from. As he spoke, there was something quite familiar about his mannerisms, his passion, the way his eyes lit up. Had they met somewhere? Never in her life would she ever forget someone so insulting who made light of her words, but she couldn’t quite shake off the familiarity. She did recognize the name of the guild; the news of their disbandment from Dalmasca had come quite suddenly, though no reason had been given.

And then, he would bring Sylvester to him.

Or at least, bring someone to him. Sylvester could not have been that much older than Wesley, but the man in front of her indeed looked as if he was on death’s door. But there was something off about the entire situation, something that wasn’t completely adding up. Why did they share so many similarities? Better yet, she had been looking for Sylvester, but she had yet to ask exactly who the man in front of her was. Ultima made a sound, but offered no counsel. Nadeline silently cursed the Esper, who clearly knew something she did not, but wouldn’t say a word. So the usual, though Nadeline admitted she hadn’t expected the Esper to be so bratty. Why wouldn’t she just help her out and not throw a fit anytime Nadeline needed her?

For the first time in her life, Nadeline hesitated. No, now wasn’t the time for doubt. Taking in a deep breath, she would compose herself properly, staring straight at the man. “I fear an apology is due,” She spoke lowly. “You would have me believe this man to be who I look for? And how exactly am I to blame? Sylvester and I have never had the chance to meet, let alone would I be the reason for his murder. Even so…despite all this, what I want to know now is the truth. Who are you? Why would you show me this man with no explanation? Why would you bring me here already knowing what I wanted?”

[AlteredTundra]

How much time had actually passed since he had seen the rays of the natural sun? It seemed like it was just yesterday that those beautiful, golden rays touched his skin. He could still remember how it felt when he got his last sunburn. It was excruciating pain, sure, but at least he was free, not put in captivity simply because of one little thing he might’ve did.

The man sighed, looking out his cell, and seeing the same three guards walk up and down the rows, armed with top-of-the-line guns. Archadian make. Okay, so maybe they weren’t top of the line. They were hammy downs. They were second-grade weapons that didn’t even work half the time. But, when you have an entire dungeon of prisoners, it didn’t matter. If the maigck wasn't nullified for those inside the the cells, those weak humes would be nothing, even with their second-rate guns.

And yet, that didn’t kill their hope.

It might be true that they were all locked up, but you can’t kill the hope of a man who has so much to live for. Or at least, convinces himself that there’s so much to live for. The simple rays of the sun, drinking crappy ale, eating even crappier food, and seeing your little sister again. All of those things were among his to-do list when he got out. Yes, you heard right. It’s when he gets out, not if. By hell or high water, Crimson Arcwas going to get himself free.

“Wait, what are you?!” Shouted a guard as he flew several paces past Crimson Arc’s cell, crashing into the wall just ten paces to the right of the cell.

As he looked on, a gaze of bewilderment, he saw several more guards fly to the same direction. They all said similar things to whoever had sent them crashing into their fellow man. The Crimson Arc saw fire and pink magicite needles and orange energy--mist? But how? -- and-and--blue flowers? No, it couldn’t be.

In about a moment or two, the sight of four people startled Crimson Arc. He jumped back as their forms were simply shadows. He didn’t know who they were. It wasn’t until one spoke that he became relieved.

“This is the one, right?”

“Yeah. The guard outside told us he’s in this one.”

“Wait a moment,” Crimson Arc spoke lowly, “Jaakie? And Lannit..” He stepped into the light, and saw his two friends’ faces, albeit Jaakie looked to be a little banged up. And Lannit cut his hair. He used to have it right down to his shoulders like Jaakie did. “WELL FUCK MY ASS AND CALL ME A SLUT, IT IS YOU GUYS! MY HOMIE-G’S ARE HERE TO RESCUE ME!”

“Oh right, I forgot he was loud.” Jaakuna scowled, using his fire magick to burn down the cage door, and kicked it through, giving his friend no warning. The bars had crashed into him, pinning him against the wall. “Oh, sorry Dom, I meant to say stand back.” JAakuna snickered.

“It’s all good, J-Dawg!” Dominic gave a thumbs up, pushing the bars to the side, and running out of the cell with youthful vigor. “I’M FREEEEE—” Dominic shouted, but stopped as he came to the sight of the other two who were with his friends. “Wait a minute..” He squinted his eyes, “blue hair, amber eyes, luscious breasts,” Dominic couldn’t believe it, nodding his head as his shock increased, “SHION I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S YOU!” He lept forward, arms out, “MY HONEY BUNNY HAS COME TO RESCUE MEEEEEE~”

Jaakuna stood there, eyes widened, shaking his head. “Oh jeez…”

Everyone knew what was going to happen next…

---

The Cloaked Man would not respond to Nadeline. He acknowledged her with a small smirk, but he would not respond. Instead he would observe as he saw the withered Sylvester look to him to walk towards Nadeline. There wasn’t so much as a verbal request, but it was the way that The Cloaked Man caught the eyes of Sylvester. Though he was barely alive, on the sight of Nadeline, there was something in those eyes of his that came alive.

“Very well. I shall let you two have a moment. However,” The Cloaked Man gestured to Sanguine, “he’ll stay just so you aren’t unsupervised.”

“Boss?”

“Do not fret, Caeru, nothing’s going to happen.” The Cloaked Man assured Caeru as he gestured his underling to follow the rest of his brethren, giving Sanguine a nod of some sort.

After he said that, one of the Dark Dagger Guild members that held him dropped him semi-gently on the ground, just half of a pace from where Nadeline was knealed at. As the former prince would find himself grabbing for anything to help his frail form upright, he had grasped at Nadeline’s arms to just give himself some support. As he did, the words “I’m sorry,” were weakly muttered. After a moment, more words were said. “Nabudis..My fault..”

That was all Sylvester could mutter. Afterwards, the feeble prince went to a muffled sob, his voice barely emoting what could be best described as regretful sorrow.

[Hero]

Shion physically cringed, taking a few steps backwards as the all-too-familiar voice brought the stranger's identity to light. The gods had a cruel sense of irony, this much she knew. Ah, how that voice brought back memories of a time when she was young and foolish, of a time when she was still sorting her garden, but in all honesty, she was an entirely different person back then. He, on the other hand, hadn't changed much at all, which for some would be a comfort and an testament to nostalgia. However, while perhaps she had hoped he wouldn't recognize her, he did. Immediately. Well...immediately for him, anyway.

Letting out a sigh as he would screech her name (she had forgotten how loud he was) she knew what was coming next. She shook her head, simply sidestepping his leap and watched him crash onto the floor. "'...'Honey Bunny'...still ongoing with the nicknames, are we?" She muttered, crossing her arms. "Though I'm not surprised to see you in a jail cell. Whose skirt were you caught looking under this time? A noble's?" Her words were as icy as ever, though one couldn't help but notice the grimace on her face.

Lorenzo blinked slowly, watching the scene unfold before him. Jaakuna did tell him that they were getting reinforcements, but never in his life did he imagine seeing this old bastard here. Walking past both the other men and Shion, he knelt down, his grin wide as he perched his chin on his hand. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Domingo himself!" He smirked, a malicious look in his eye. "And once again, I win this one, considering it's in my good graces that we've come to rescue your sorry ass!" He let out a rather haughty laugh, though the race of evil could definitely be heard underneath.

"The fact that you know him doesn't surprise me in the slightest," Shion stated rather dryly. "Birds of a feather often fly together..."

"OI! DON'T GO COMPARING ME TO THIS DUNCE!" Lorenzo jumped up, hollering. "He's just jealous of me and my brilliant mind! It ain't my fault that I outclass him!"

---

Nabudis? Of all the things she had been trying to understand, Sylvester would throw yet another wrench into things. She didn't understand, why was he like this? And why mention Nabudis? Biting her lip, she tried to calm herself down, though out of the corner of her eye she could see Sanguine watching them closely. Could she be able to take him on? Even so, she wasn't entirely sure that she could fight him and protect the frail man, not to mention she'd end up with the rest of the guild on her at a moment's call.

Taking a breath to rest her nerves, she would instead focus on the man before her. A pang of guilt hit her, though she pushed it aside--clearly he was tormented, and he needed help. "What happened?" She asked him gently, trying to sound as understanding as possible. "Your brother...your whole family thinks you've passed. How did you end up here?"

Can I do anything for him? Nadeline prodded Ultima mentally, trying not to alert Sanguine of her intention.

Ultima was silent, though for once, it wasn't out of ignoring the princess. That...depends entirely. The frailty is not due to age, no...it is as if his Lifestream was pulled from him, or...I cannot say for sure.

What do you mean?

There is some dark magicks here...the Shard...

The Shard? The Midlight Shard that had destroyed Nabudis? Or so they said...but she needed to hear the truth straight from the horse's mouth.

[AlteredTundra]

Okay, so not what Jaakuna thought was going to happen. Still, he couldn’t help but be a bystander as the scene lost control of itself.

“Honey Bunny, why would you say something like that? Is that honestly what you think of me? That I’m just some hip, delinquent who can’t keep it in his pants?” Dominic felt insulted by her insinuation.

Shion opened her mouth, though closed it a little too quickly, her lips pursed together rather disapprovingly. “Yes.” She replied bluntly.

And, as Dominic would look around, he had just noticed the King of the Doofuses, Lorenzo Jeremiah Roselia. The bane of Dominic’s livelihood. To think, of all places, that he would see this cheat, this no good, dirty thief, in the Archades Dungeons. Either this was the mighty gods playing a cruel joke on The Crimson Arc, or it was just bad luck. Regardless, Dominic felt his eye twitch.

“OI! DON’T GO COMPARING ME TO THIS DUNCE!” Dominic and Lorenzo had said at the same time. “Hey, so not only you copy my inventions, but now you have to copy my words? Why don’t you go get your own ideas, you no good hack!” Dominic hissed at Lorenzo, crimson sparks flying as he got closer to Lorenzo’s face.

Lorenzo wouldn’t so much as flinch, though his anger seemed to match Dominic’s, his own orange Mist slowly collecting around him. “Copy?! Me?! You’re just angry you didn’t have the brains to finish your own job! You should be thanking me!” The blonde haired man’s golden eyes burned with passion, though his grin had rather quickly faded away.

“I would say I’d hate to ruin that pretty face of yours, but let’s face it, Lorrie,” Dominic cocked a grin, “you’re about as pretty as a Malboro King, just you stink way more.”

“My Karolina finds me gorgeous! Anyone else who says otherwise can go jump off a cliff for all I care!” The man paused, as if realizing something. “HEY! I bathe every day!”

Letting out a sigh, Shion scratched her cheek. “This...should probably be saved for later. Or would you wish to see the insides of these cells once more?”

“WAIT!” Dominic shouted, halting everyone, “there’s one more person we need to free.” Dominic announced.

“You’re kidding me.” Jaakuna professed his annoyance, “the guards are bound to catch us. We don’t have time —”

“Jaakie, because you’re my boy, I won’t knock you out, but I never leave a man behind. And Shinto is my partner-in-crime. Never have I done anything without him. You know this.”

Jaakuna realized it was a moot point. When Dominic got motivated, there was no stopping him, especially when it involved Shinto. Though, he had a point. Shinto had a unique skillset that would make things a lot easier for what they had to do.

“Very well, guess we should get him too.”

“One problem.”

“What?”

“He may or may not be in a high security wing.”

Lorenzo narrowed his eyes, and couldn’t help but scoff. “So what, you wanna rescue your drinking buddy? Can’t it wait until afterwards?” Lorenzo pressed, looking to Jaakuna. “You know what I’m talking about. This isn’t the time for your crap, Dom! Who knows what those bastards are gonna end up doing to Reia?!”

The Empress? Shion raised an eyebrow, though she remained silent. Lorenzo threw her a look: he wanted her to pick a side, not just sit on a fence!

Without warning, Dominic tugged at Lorenzo’s shirt, forcing the Rozarrian to be pulled close to his face. “You can steal my ideas, take credit for them, but if you think I’m going to let you reduce my best mate as just a ‘drinking buddy’, you’re sorely mistaken.” Dominic made sure Lorenzo heard every word as loud and clearly as he said them. “I understand what is at state for you, Lorenzo. These guards have been bragging about Reia, but I will not abandon my brother. By my honor as a Ward, I will not let him rot in these cells.” Dominic’s tone was different. It had fire, it had passion, and maybe, a crack of urgency rooted in love.

Wrenching himself from Dominic’s grip, his eyes remained dangerous. “It better be worth it, not even the gods will help you if it isn’t,” Lorenzo warned him.

Clapping her hands rather sarcastically, Shion decided to end the conversation. “Wonderful. Now that we’re on the same page, it’s time to go.” She reminded the pair, though she threw a look at Jaakuna. “I do hope your bloodline is useful for something around here, will you lead the way or will you continue to stand around silently?”

---

News spread to Hamut rather quickly about a few things. First thing’s first, he heard about the crash of airships above the Dalmascan Sands. As tragic as they were, he would not allow that news to distract him much from his gaze towards Reia, who happened to be sitting across from. Of course, as someone of her stature would, she did not show any weakness or intimidation that she was in the predicament that she was in. Hamut respected that.

“You know, I’ve heard some interesting tidbits of information that you might find interesting. Care to hear them?” Hamut didn’t wait for an answer. “Airships above Dalmasca were blown up. I think your niece was on them. But fret not, Empress Reia, for she is safe. My sources in Rabanastre inform me she arrived safely with her fiance.” Hamut smiled, seeming to be pleased by that news himself. “And far southeast in Mt. Bur-Omisace, your dearest brother apparently went there with Savayna. The Brotherhood of the First Order was there occupying the Temple of Omisace. Your brother and the former general liberated it, and seem to be going home.” Hamut recited as it he was reading it out of a scroll, “and lastly..”

Hamut mused a thoughtful sound, curling his lips into a smile. He brought a small scroll that was to his left. He opened it. It wasn’t even unsealed. There was the symbol of two snakes coiling around a dagger on it. He broke the seal. As he read the scroll, he found himself having a mixture of amusement and annoyance, gripping the scroll with his large hands, almost ripping the parchment. He would regain control not long after.

“Well, isn’t this very interesting. Your other brother - the idiot - and my grandson seemed to have broken out two inmates. One of no importance, but another, I fear will make it troublesome.” Hamut tried to feign calmness, but it was evident in his tone that this truly bothered him. “Tell me, Empress Reia, what does your brother hope to accomplish?”

---

Sylvester looked up at Nadeline. Her name was Nadeline. That much he knew. And she was Princess of Rozarria. She’s Wesley’s fiance. Wesley. I have failed you. My brother, when we were younger, I never gave you what you deserved.

And when Sylvester kept his eyes on Nadeline, a moment of nothingness passed through him. Her worried expression did nothing to him. It didn’t quell the sorrow he felt. “Nabudis..Where it all started. I failed. I couldn’t save him. All was lost.” Sylvester froze up. His expression withered into dread, eyes flashed white. His hair froze up, tensing outward. Then it would relax as he gripped his head, alarming screeches emitted from his weak mouth as he rolled around in front of Nadeline. “No..I can’t. Don’t make me. Please Lord.. I..Can’t do that. No, I won’t! Not again..Don’t make me do it again..”

[Hero]

Hamut seemed well informed. Something about that scroll, however, looked oddly familiar. It reminded her very much of Lola, especially with the way it seemed to spill unrelated information. The crash in Dalmasca was one thing, but that didn’t correlate with neither Grant nor Lorenzo. It was curious, although Reia had to admit that it wasn’t what caught her attention. While this had been the first time they had met, she admitted that Hamut put the rumors to shame. He was easily twice her height, more powerful than the rumors, and very commanding. Still, if things weren’t going his way, he made it much too obvious. A leader of a country must always keep their emotions in check—no matter what.

Her idiot of a brother being mentioned didn’t surprise her at all. Letting out a sigh, Reia gave Hamut a half shrug. “I usually don’t care too much about the happenings of anything that isn’t my country…though I’m not surprised Nadeline is safe. That Dalmascan prince would rather lose his own life then have her injured in any way,” Her voice was light and airy, directly constrasting Hamut’s voice. “The liberation of Mt. Bur-Omisace…good to see Grant doing something useful.”

She paused for a moment, feigning a thoughtful expression. “Lorenzo never was a thinker. Despite his idiotic tendencies, the man is a genius when it comes to machines…anything else is beyond hope, I’m afraid. As to his goals, I thought it obvious,” She mused, raising an eyebrow at him. “I imagined stepping into Archadia had a chance at being a death sentence. I had hoped I could meet with Roman and speak, but you decided otherwise. That would be the tidbit I would be most interested in—Roman’s whereabouts, and your intentions.” She admitted, lightly smoothing out a crease in her dress.

---

“Get a hold of yourself!”

She didn’t mean to shout, honestly she didn’t, but everything he said was only serving to confuse her further. Who was he talking about? Who couldn’t he save? The people? What Lord? Make him do what? What happened at Nabudis? And do what again? She had half a mind to slap him, though she restrained herself if only because she felt a single hit could make the man crumble to pieces.

[AlteredTundra]

He had her in exactly the position he wanted her. She had nowhere to go, but he still needed her. The information she had was vital for his plans. Specifically, he wanted to know her reasons for being in Archadia in the first place. He had his theories, but best to get the details from the person herself than just off of half-informed theories.

“Tell me, Empress Reia, what was it that you wanted to speak to my grandson about? I know he is an important man, to come here with your foolish, little brother, and Roman’s own fool brother was risky.” Hamut was playing the field right now.

---

Jaakuna didn’t mind leading, but he did prefer to do it on his own terms, or at the very least, be it his own decision. He was able to get them past the gullible guards just by stating his name, telling them that the others were prisoners of war, and that they were going to be moved to the high security wing as opposed to the default wing. It amazed him how naive they were, but it was just as well.

A few more rounds of inexperienced guards would get them into the deepest reaches of the dungeons. It seemed as though wherever they kept Shinto, it was in the most secure region of this high security wing. Throughout the time that the group of five spent traversing through each turn and hallway of the wing, Jaakuna kept questioning Dominic about what exactly Shinto had done. Dominic claimed it was on a need to know basis, and when they found him, they would know. Of course this frustrated him, but he didn’t press on about it. Knowing how Dom got, he wouldn't let up.

And in just three yards, they would take one final turn. When Jaakuna would turn, he immediately jerked his body back. “Shit.” Jaakuna’s heart skipped a beat. not realizing what was waiting for them on the other side.

“Jaakie?”

“Isaiah is here.”

“You’re shtting me.”

“Go look for yourself.”

And so Lannit did, then Dom, and then the other two did as well. “What is he doing here?” Lannit asked.

“Hell if I know. But if he’s here, then we’ve got trouble.” Jaakuna cursed under his breath. “Wait..” Jaakuna heard Isaiah say something, but he couldn’t hear. “Belias, can you help me out here?”

Belias scoffed. Jaakuna heard it. A moment would pass as not only Jaakuna, but everyone else would have their sense of hearing enhanced so that they heard what Isaiah was saying to a few guards and a general.

“First Judge Hamut wants what?!” A guard asked.

“He wants to move him into this wing.”

“But this is —”

“Yes, I know who he is. And I understand the position I’m putting you in General Night, but my grandfather — and Interim Emperor of our country demands it.”

“I just don’t like it. This isn’t right. Archadia has been ran by the Darcone for years, I get that. Under Vincent’s role, it was shoddy at times, but he was fair to his citizens. Roman proved himself as a suitable replacement as he ruled Bhujerba as the Marquis. But this?” General Night sighed heavily. “I fear the worst.”

“General, just do this for me. I persuaded my grandfather to place him here as opposed to the alternate, grim location that Hamut was going to inprison him in.”

“Very well, Isaiah. I will keep him here.”

Isaiah said nothing. Jaakuna heard footsteps come their way. He cursed silently, then , “vanishja” Dominic would cast, surrounding them in a veil of mist, hindering them from Isaiah’s sight. It would be evident as the Judge Magister would walk past them, stopping briefly. Jaakuna caught the hint of a smile, looking directly at Jaakuna. He knew they were there. Shit. But he didn’t comment about it. He nodded, mouthing something. Jaakuna knew what he said. “You have under a minute. Night will be rotating his patrol. It’s now or never, Jackson.”

And as Isaiah would walk away, the vanishja spell would wither away as soon as he was out of sight. Jaakuna did not know what just happened, but one thing was for sure. They now had two prisoners to free: Shinto and whoever this new one was. “All right, so whatever just happened, Isaiah wants us to free that new prisoner. So, here’s what I propose: Dom, you go with Shion and Lorenzo to get Shinto, and Lannit and myself will get this new guy. Deal?”

“Sounds like a plan, J-Dawg!” Dominic grinned, “come my honey and Lorrie, my best mate awaits~” Dominic, regardless if they were willing or not, pulled both of them by the hands, crimson lightning surrounding them, and they were gone in a second, leaving Jaakuna and Lannit as it always was.

As the two blonde men peered their two heads out from the walls, what Isaiah was true. General Night was doing his rotations, though he left three of the Night Guard, who bore similar armor to their general, but it was significantly lighter and less heavy-made. They all had the same kind of sword, but again not as heavy in appearance. Odds are the swords had been molded in Night Steel, a special steel that could be found in Archadia’s Nocturne Mines.

“]So, there are just three. We can take them out, but we have to be quick about it.”

“You thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Yup.”

Both of them nodded, grinning like total idiots, and then they came out from behind the wall, and turned the left corner. “HELP! MY FRIEND! HE’S HURT!”

The three guards turned, looked at Lannit as he held Jaakuna, the latter holding his midsection, feigning pain. “What seems to be the problem? One asked as the others approached cautiously.

“He’s in pain.”

“Um, well what’s the matter with him.”

“Well..”

“I hate gullible idiots such as yourself.” Jaakuna surprised them with a wave of fire magic that hit all three of them, and sent the trio of Night Guards to the ceiling. They hit their heads hard, and would fall on top of each other, all of them falling into unconsciousness. “Works every time.” Jaakuna snickered.

“Reminds me of the golden days when we used to pull that shit to get into your grandfather’s secret storage.”

“Yeah, those were the days.” Walking past Lannit and towards the cell, Jaakuna would finally see who it was that Isaiah wanted to get free. To his absolute astonishment, Jaakuna couldn’t believe it. “Of all people..”

“What?”

“Fucking hells.” Jaakuna shook his head once, more as he came to the sight of the man in the dim light.

Lannit joined Jaakuna as he saw. “Wait, isn’t that —”

“Roman man, what are you doing here?”

---

“Hey, maybe we should stop.” Savayna said to Grant as they seemed to have just passed the Mosphoran Highwaste, and were a few hundred paces away from the entrance to Rozarrian territory.

They had been driving for what seemed like hours. Savayna had stayed quiet for the majority of the trip. With all that happened from the Brotherhood, then her father, then her nearly dying, and then leviathan being slain , which still made her feel uneasy about, but c’est la vie. She couldn’t do anything to quell that. Only thing Savayna could do was try to focus on the positives that came out of everything. She was now betrothed to Grant. She had his mother’s ring on her right ring finger, and it was looking up. Despite the bad happening in Ivalice, at least her own life was looking up.

“We’ve been on the road non-stop. I need to stretch my legs.”

---

When it was all said and done, the trio of Dominic, his honey, and Princess Lorrie had made it to the msot secure section of the wing where about several dozen guards were outside one cell, all with top of the line weaponry. Some of them had armor that rivaled the late Judge Magister, Robumaal Volentas. Dominic would curse himself as he thought of that big bastard and how powerful he was. Why did they have to have powerful armor and weapons like that? And why were they equipped with top of the line weaponry?

Dominic came to the conclusion that this was going to take a lot longer than he had originally thought. And he wasn’t entirely confident that he could take all of them out without at least one getting a good shot on him. There was no choice. “Okay, my sweet, sweet rose and Lorrie, I’ll leave this into your capable hands. Take care of those guys and whistle me over when it’s done.” Dominic rest his hands on Shion and Lorenzo’s shoulders, trying not to let his hand slip lower on Shion(the urge was strong, though). “I believe in you two!”

---

_{Goodbye Madness, Hello Life}
As he continued to screech, his eyes widened, his iris rotating, and he was looking off into nowhere it seemed. His hands gripping his head so tight that hairs of silver. His mind was racing, something pushing him towards a grim act. His voice was deafening, neck movements erratic. The voice in his head that was coercing him was beginning to be too much. It was as if he had cement blocks tied to his ankles and was being pushed down into the ocean. Despite his desperate struggle to remain above sea level, they were pulling him deeper and deeper and deeper..

Until he heard his salvation all out ot him. A white light to the black void that was consuming him. It was the sound of silence, rendering the visions that remained from that terrible time - the oh, so terrible time - from when he committed the worst of sins. It was the veil that hindered him from The Voice. It was a glimpse of order amid his inward chaos. It was harmonious notes amid the cacophonous symphony. They were words that created a path from the light.

And as his eyes would open, Sylvester Alexander did not see black forms, he didn’t hear whispers of madness. He heard nothing but the sweet serenity of natural hymns from where they were. He felt like as if it were before when he was alive. He felt strength where decaying strength had been. He tasted the aftermath of death, and most of all, he smelt the relief in the air as he was no longer a husk. Sylvester Alexander was back. And had found his first order of business.

Arm extended out, he charged white magicks so fast, so powerful, at Sanguine. Before the red-haired warrior could react, he had been impaled by a spear of holy light. It didn’t end there, however, for the light would turn blood red. Not only that, but Sanguine’s form started to become transparent, showing the dark olive walls. As he ceased, the light came back to Sylvester’s palm, then his body flashed deep red, and his eyes became a mixture of crimson red and gold, becoming iridescent in nature. His body also became glistening with mist, an aura of pure red mist surrounding him. It would cease when he snapped his fingers. When he did that, the aura would be replaced by a pair of deep brown pants that has the symbol of the Alexander House, and a red and gold tunic with the same design on the front and the back. He also had a large greatsword that looked just like the Sword of Kings, but where the original Sword of Kings had a gap throughout the entire blade, this one didn’t. It had the bearings of purified nethicite, iridescent like Sylvester’s eyes.

Sylvester would look at Nadeline, a smile forming on his face. “Nadeline Lenore Roselia, I do apologize for that. But you do not know how bothersome it is to have a voice inside your head always chide and scold you, or maybe you do,” Sylvester chuckled, “Ultima does that to you all of the time, doesn’t she?” Sylvester inquired with a rhetorical undertone. He looked around, not sure what to make of this. He shrugged. “So, I suppose I owe you an explanation. I mean, from what I have been told, you sought me out. Truth be told, I fear I may disappoint you, Nadeline of Rozarria. These...barbarians dug me from my resting place at Raithwall, and did something to me.” Sylvester looked at his hands. “They have done things to me that I couldn’t tell you, not because they are unbelievable, but because they’re unforgivable.” Sylvester grimaced, eyes now turning dark grey, swirls of green and red. “I do not know how I can possibly say this, my queen,” Sylvester took the knee, “but from the bottom of my heart, I am sorry. In Nabudis, I was...forced into doing acts. Nothing I say can ever make up for the travesties I have done. I can only admit that I was wrong and ask for pardon from her majesty.” Sylvester would lower his head, feeling as though he could not look at her directly.

[Hero]

“Was it?” Reia’s response was on the shorter side, but there wasn’t any doubt that Hamut wanted to know something that he didn’t know. It was…actually odd. While she realized that Jaakuna’s offer was rather on the spot, it didn’t really explain why Hamut was the one before her and not Roman. Had he known that she was to visit? No doubt the whispers had reached him the moment they had stepped foot…though essentially being taken prisoner was a rather brash move, even for Hamut. “Why would it be foolish to arrive in the company of one of Archadia’s princes? My brother was merely occupying me, but Jackson is an heir to the throne. His involvement with Duke Andre’s daughter took him to Rozarria, though I suppose you never expected that I would show up in person.”

It was all conjecture, really, but something was up. She wasn’t about to spill everything she knew—not until she got his own intentions. It was almost like a game now, though who would profit was still in the air.

---

Savayna wanted to stop, and so Grant would stop. There wasn’t much to be said, though he couldn’t deny that any time he looked behind his shoulder to look at Savayna, he was half expecting Levi to appear out of nowhere. Though as he pulled the bike to a stop, he could feel a familiar air of magick. It was a Fire spell, and as he spotted the small puff of smoke rising in the air, he would pull the bike to a complete stop. He chuckled to himself as he jumped off, finding the scene of Vlyn poking a small fire to be outright comical. The male Viera was a sight for sore eyes, that much was for sure.

Vlyn’s ear twitched, showing that he heard the prince approaching, though he was busy cooking some meat over the fire. It was a lot for one person, though, and it was then Grant realized that Vlyn knew they were coming this way. The male viera finally tore his gaze away from the food, offering Grant and Savayna a grin. “Care for a meal?” He asked the pair.

Grant definitely wanted some of that food, though he was curious. “Did you really come and meet us, or is this coincidence?” He could help but ask as he would take a seat opposite of Vlyn.

“As Aloa says, there’s no such thing as coincidence—remember that,” Vlyn said cheerfully as he would begin to separate the food onto three plates. “Of course I was waiting for you, there’s something we—that is, Aloa, Karolina, and myself—felt that you needed to know right away.”

---

There was no denying that the people before them were not to be taken lightly. Still, Dom’s stupid buddy was in there, so the idiot had to be someone important, though Lorenzo still thought it was a waste of his time, especially with the crazy chick with the sword could probably slice them all in half in the blink of an eye. Lorenzo studied the scene carefully; they were undetected. Still, while they lacked in numbers, they definitely weren’t lacking in strength. Even Dom the Moron could pull his weight.

So of course, when Dominic would inform the two that he would hang back, Lorenzo almost turned around to strangle the man.

“You’re useless,” Shion voiced Lorenzo’s thoughts perfectly, pushing his hand off her shoulder.

As her palm would glow and she pulled out her weapon, Lorenzo couldn’t help but eye her bandaged hand. “You’ll be alright?” He asked her quietly.

“Your concern is appreciated, but not needed,” She replied, gripping her blade. “I will take the ten on the left, you can have the two on the right.”

Lorenzo opened his mouth to protest, though Shion ran off. Wasn’t he supposed to be the hotheaded one charging in? Though he could see why she went first—her footsteps were quick and unheard, and before any of them could react, her sword pierced through the armor of the leftmost guard. Her sword cut right through him, and while the other guard was fortunate enough to at least see Shion coming, it sure didn’t stop him from meeting the same fate. As the rest would open fire, she grabbed the man before he fell, using his corpse as a shield.

At that point, Lorenzo was off, his gloves already collecting Mist as he ran, trying to get there while Shion occupied their attention. As his fist shined, it would collide with the rightmost guard’s head, sending him crashing into the wall. The other guard was prepared, and as a bullet whizzed past Lorenzo’s face, he ducked low, kicking the guard towards the rest. Some were prepared, others weren’t, and the unfortunate would meet their end by Shion’s sword. Her work was, quite frankly, amazing, though it was clear her sword was no ordinary one. Lorenzo’s knuckles ached where they met with the guard’s headpiece, though Shion was cutting through them as if they were unarmored all the same.

Six, seven, eight…and only two remained on Shion’s side, though it was clear that one of them was hesitant. Her amber eyes studied them both carefully, waiting for the first fool to run at her, both guns cocked at her. She showed no fear, only a tranquility, and she felt that rush she loved so much. The battlefield was her home, where she belonged, and she was much more adept at it then the two armored men before her. Raising her blade, she would not wait any longer, and charged—one bullet, another, and before the third shot the man’s head flew from his body as her sword pierced through it. The other man froze, and she shook her head at him, and in the next moment, his lifeless body would fall as well.

“Poor creature,” Shion lamented, though she would then let out a short whistle, signaling to Dominic. “Not all feel the calling of the thrill of battle. Alas, he chose his path…and I chose to end it.”

Lorenzo didn’t reply, though he mentally made a note to never, ever cross the woman’s path.

---

Had Nadeline not had a better upbringing, she may have quoted Jaakuna and asked what the fuck had happened. Though she did take pleasure in being right, Wesley’s description was much more accurate now. Ultima didn’t quite appreciate Sylvester’s comment, though Nadeline figured she’d just ignore her in a time of crisis, so business as usual. Taking in a breath, Nadeline calmed her nerves once more. Maybe it was the Mist, but Sylvester was truly a sight to behold. “It is not I who you should ask for a pardon,” She told him, shaking her head. “But…perhaps now is not the time, I’m sure the others will come at any second. Return with me to Rabanastre, to Wesley.” She pleaded.

---

"If it isn't Jackson! What a pleasure to see you back in Archadia!" Roman sat in his cell rather calmly all things considered. It was a very pleasant surprise, and it had been some time since the two had met. Though, last time he had more company, though he figured he would ask about that some other time. He would rise, meeting Jaakuna at the bars. He was unharmed, though as always, he acted very much like they had met at a place where the situation was better then it really was. "Ah, as to your question...it would seem Grandfather had his own plans at hand. I do wonder what he's thinking this time, considering he was the one that wanted me here, but alas, not much to do about that now...but what are you doing here?"

[AlteredTundra]

He tried not to show it, but when Reia said that Jackson was the true heir, there was a grimace on the patriarch of the Darcone family. Though it was only for a brief moment, no doubt the ever-observant Reia Alexandria Roselia caught it. In fact, the thought of her questioning him about it brought an amused smile to the face of Bahamut. But to the matter of her question, he mused a thoughtful hmm.

“True heir you say?” Hamut mused aloud, “well, pray tell, what constitutes a “rightful” heir? Your brother — Roland was it? — was the rightful heir before he was hung, wasn’t he? I mean, correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t he caught murdering your father. And it was Grant who caught him. Tragic. To think your older brother, through no fault of his own, had to lose his rightful place as Emperor of Rozarria because he simply was at the wrong place and wrong time.” Hamut had a grin on his face as he spoke. “The same with my grandson. He had been wrongly convicted for the heinous act of killing his own father, which in fact he didn’t. Not the same, but you can probably see where I’m going with this, can’t you Empress?”

---

When they stopped and Grant caught the notice of a fire, Savayna did as well. As a dominant ice magick-user, there was an uncommon trait she shared; it was a sixth sense. To her, fire magick has this strong presence. It’s not that it weakens her or anything, but if it’s in a general distance of three miles, she can detect it.

And at the fire was Vlyn, the male Viera. Savayna still wasn’t used to that no matter how much time she spent around him. Given what had just transpired at Omisace, she was going to spend a lot of time at Stigma, so she would have to get used to it one way or the other.

As they would take a seat around the fire, Vlyn offering a meal to them, there was a thought that crossed her mind: how did he know where we were at the exact moment we chose to stop? It was peculiar, and it made her raise her eyebrow at the Viera. “So, this thing you need to tell us,” Savayna said, “you mind being a little more specific?”

---

That hurt him like a sword to his back, it really did. It was like she didn’t think he was a man or anything. Well, not a real man. That wasn’t true. He was definitely a man. Come on, just look at his bulky muscles! Only a real man would have those kind of muscles. But nope, guess that didn’t matter. Her cold tone was evidence enough of how she truly felt about him. Still, Dominic would not lose faith in their future together. He had faith that he and his honey would be together at long last.

But until then, he watched as she and Lorrie would dominate. Only, he noticed something off. “Wait, there was…” DOminic was sure there was more than just twelve of those guards. Based on how he counted before, there was one missing.

And as Shion whistled, he saw one uncloaking themselves from a vanish spell. Shion didn’t see him. Lorenzo didn’t see him. He had a poisonous dart aimed - and shot - towards Shion. Dominic didn’t think. He just acted, and used his incredible speed, to burst forth. He placed a protect spell in front of Shion, and crimson sparks would surround his fist as he punched the last guard out with such force that it broke the metal door of Shinto’s cell.

“Whew, that was a close one.” Dominic mused aloud.

“Jesus, Dominic,” the Arc would hear a voice say, walking from the wreckage of the door, dust in his sandy blonde hair, and sunglasses, though they were vastly slimmer than Dominic’s aviator-styled ones. “You overdid it again.”

“Shin, my best friend!” Dominic brought Shinto into a big, bearhug. The blonde protesting but giving in due to Dominic’s overwhelming size.

“Okay, that’s enough,” Shinto let out a huff as he saw who were responsible for his release. “]Shion how good to see you again. I have heard through the grapevine that you’re doing well for yourself. And if i’m not mistaken, during the attack on Archadia by Zodiark, you were caught dining with Francis von Sicarius.” Shinto recalled.

“Wait what?!”

“What what?”

“That bastard Francis was with my honey!?”

Shinto whacked Dominic across the head. “You delinquent, you and shion had one night together. One. I’ve told you plenty of times that it wasn’t serious, but nope, you don’t listen to me, do you? Maybe now you’ll realize this one is far above your league.” Shinto let out a heavy sigh, “my apologies Shion. I forget how hard-headed he can get. For any stupidity you have suffered through because of him, know that it will not happen again.” Shinto said as if swearing it to Shion. “Now then, mind telling me why you broke me out of prison? Not that I’m not grateful , but you have me at a loss here.”

“It’s quite simply really.”

“Oh?”

“Lorrie here(Lorenzo Of Rozarria) wants us to help him rescue his sister who is currently the prisoner of Hamut —”

“Lorenzo Roselia?” Shinto chuckled, “you’re Grant’s older brother. The same Grant that’s taking a fancy to my sister.” He said, chuckling again. “To think Savayna found herself a proper prince that loved her the same.” Shinto walked up to Lorenzo, smiling at him. “A brother of my sister’s love is a friend of mine. So, I’ll help in any way I can, but allow myself to formally introduce myself,” Shinto held his hand out to Lorenzo, “Shinto Glacie, older brother of Savayna Glacie.”

---

When Nadeline spoke, suggesting that Sylvester go back to Rabanastre with her, back to Wesley, a thought came across his mind, momentarily halting any outward facial expression. It was as if his mind went blank. Then, like switch, he turned back on, smiling gracefully at the future queen. “I cannot. At least, not yet.” Sylvester informed Nadeline, holding his tone at a low, hushed, yet completely audible, level. “But, I will escort you out of these god-forsaken tunnels.” Sylvester took the lead.

Sylvester extended his hand outward. A brilliant white light shone in front of him, bright with hints of gold. Magick would take the form of an oval-shaped portal three paces wide and five tall. As he would put his hand into that portal, he gripped something, and pulled it out. From portal came an elegant sword with a pure gold hilt that curved into the blade in the form of a claw of some sort. The blade itself flashed white, particles of holy floating around it. An inscription of some sort could be seen on it.

Whipping it to his side, the portal ceased, and he looked at Nadeline with a guile smirk. As he did, he took Nadeline’s hand. The warmth of her skin brought confidence to him. The halls of wherever they were were dank and smelled like rotting flesh. They were poorly lit, but they felt familiar. Sylvester knew which way to go. He knew that taking a left where it would seem like a dead end would lead them to a secret staircase that went up. He knew not to take them because that would lead to a trap. If Nadeline questioned, he would explain to her to trust him. When they would head down a series of flights of stairs that went up, down, spiraled and contorted to mess with one’s equilibrium, they came to a door. It was locked. It wouldn’t budge no matter what either of them tried. Then Sylvester scoffed at the door, pressing his free palm against it. Pulses of red and white and gold and black went through the metal door, and completely dematerialized it.

When they came into what the door hid, it was three passageways, each having a different colored light: the left had a red, almost crimson light at the end of its route, the center was azure, and the right had jade. “It seems we are at a crossroads of sorts,” Sylvester ironically remarked. “All three look cheery, don’t they? But I fear that we can’t leave it up to chance. So,” Sylvester placed a hand on Nadeine’s shoulder.“Ultima, why don’t you make yourself useful and decide which is the safest route. I mean, that is what you Scions like to do, right? You like to make decisions for us mortals.” Though not blatant, a hint of loathing for the espers was present in Sylvester’s tone.

---

For the love of the Scions, why was he so fucking positive? Did he not realize what kind of situation he was in? Or rather, did he not realize where he was? He acted as though he was in his office, sipping his evening tea and enjoying the sunset view from his office. There is no black tea with saffron, cinnamon, and a dash of some fancy rose. There was no sunset view. He was in a prison cell, yet he acted like he had nothing to worry about.

Jaakuna shook his head, finding his brother’s optimism sickening. “Well, I’m here to break your happy ass out. Unless, of course, you would prefer to stay here?” Jaakuna was more asking for his own sarcastic self. He wasn’t going to leave it to ROman, because in a matter of moments, his two short swords would slice cleanly through the bars in a diagonal motion. “Now, let’s go. General night is going to be back, and I’d rather not be here when he does. Unless you want to face his wrath.”

“I personally do not.” Lannit chimed in, feeling left out.

“See, you’re outnumbered, so let’s go.” Jaakuna tugged his brother by the arm, and hurled him over his shoulder.

A haste spell was cast from Lannit, and they sped away from the dungeon, away from where General Night’s men would be present, and to a safe location about one-hundred paces away. Still not close to where Dominic had been, but it was far enough.

“I think we’re far enough,” Jaakuna said, setting Roman down on his ass as gently as he could. Getting a haste spell done on him throughout the day really took its toll on JAakuna. He needed to catch a breather.

[Hero]

Ah, he was trying to get under her skin. Considering all the shit the Council had put her through, Hamut was going to have to do better than that. How many times had she been deemed worthless and nothing more than a spare until Grant or Nadeline would decide to take the throne? His words meant nothing, although he unintentionally alerted her to something as a thought crossed his mind. Did he not want Jaakuna to ascend the throne? He was responsible for doing…something to take Roman out of the picture, but why put Roman there in the first place?

“Dead as he may be, he was an heir. Those born of royalty all have their chances at the throne…and Roland chose to murder his way, though as you said, he was caught, put to death, and the only thing he left behind was a bitter memory and a brief mention in the history books as a power-hungry idiot,” Reia replied cooly, showing Hamut she didn’t care for Roland. Not anymore. “The only one who truly suffered was Grant, who is young and did not understand his brother’s lust for power. He hadn’t the chance to see the world for what it truly was…until your grandson, Vincent, showed him just how cruel people were.”

“That being said, I don’t think I could compare Roland to Jackson. He may be hotheaded, but he has good intentions, even if they go astray,” Reia’s expression was stony—it was clear that she had enough of the game. “I don’t understand what your intentions are, nor do I know what you want with me. Do you wish to end the Roselia bloodline? Incite war? Or a show of power now that the great Bahamut is rumored to have weakened? What is it that you want from me, Hamut?”

---

As if reading Savayna’s thoughts, Vlyn couldn’t help but chuckle as he would eat. He chewed rather thoughtfully, as if trying to choose his words carefully. “Lady Karolina is handling things in Stigma well, but something happened that was out of her control. The Blue Rose had come to meet with Aloa to discuss Zodiark, but then…no, it’s best to start from the top.” His words weren’t too muffled as he chewed rather quickly, though he would stop eating long enough to let out a sigh. “Andre…he was on the brink of death. I think Emiri knew it too, somehow, though I have no idea how she got past the guards. She healed him completely, and Karolina was too late to stop her.

“However, once Shion had arrived, Aloa requested her assistance in completing the seal Nadeline had attempted to put on Emiri—to block out the dark influence that had a grip on her. But…that boy…Some kid got to her first, and they were about to leave Stigma when we managed to catch up,” Vlyn said, frowning.

Grant’s eyes widened, though he contained himself. What boy? How would a mere boy get to Emiri? No, he needed to hear the whole story first, although… “That boy…did you take care of him?” Grant asked.

It was then Vlyn’s expression turned into a rather serious one. “We don’t know who or what that boy is, but when we caught Emiri, Shion engaged her in battle.”

What?! “Are you telling me Shion killed her?!” He didn’t mean to sound so alarmed, nor to jump to conclusions, but Vlyn was far too serious, and he couldn’t read his expression.

“Actually…it was the other way around. I remember fighting Emiri, and I had no idea she was capable of such power. But that power…her Mist was drenched in dark magicks as she attacked, and whatever power it was, it enabled her to go toe-to-toe with Shion. Aloa and I could do nothing…if it wasn’t for Lady Karolina’s interference, we would have perished.”

Grant narrowed his eyes, trying to think. What in the world was going on?

---

“Honestly, if you were going to do that in the first place, there was no point in you hanging back, you lazy crap,” She couldn’t help but snap at Dominic’s rather clumsy rescue. Her entire demeanor changed, however, when she spotted Shinto. “Ah, Shinto…how do you do?” Shion greeted him back rather politely, completely throwing Lorenzo off and outright ignoring Dominic’s outburst. It was almost as if the two were on good terms! He made a mental note to ask the man how to stay on Shion’s good side, though the one thing Lorenzo was sure of was that her expression soured anytime Dominic so much as spoke.

He missed a majority of the conversation, but perked up as Shinto addressed him. Ohhhh, so this guy was Savanna’s older brother! No wonder he looked familiar. No, Lorenzo was lying to himself, he didn’t remind him of Savanna at all. Though they shared light hair, that was where the similarities ended. This guy was a lot nicer and tanned, while Savanna was ruder and pale. Not that he minded, he liked her spunk, but it was kinda weird to find him here of all places.

“The idiot’s right!” Lorenzo proclaimed, gladly taking Shinto’s hand. “I’d rather find my baby sister alive then dead, though I sure am glad you’re on our side!”

“How quick you change your tone,” Shion rolled her eyes, her sword on her shoulder. “Onwards, then, Shinto can make up for some of Dominic’s uselessness.”

---

Nadeline couldn’t quite hide her disappointment, but she would take Sylvester’s offer gladly. She followed him willingly, glad that she wasn’t traversing the halls alone. Still, the twists and turns made her uneasy, and it felt like an eternity would pass before they would come to a stop. Before she could question it, she realized that there were multiple passageways to take. It was then Sylvester would kindly suggest that Ultima help, though she got his bitterness. She could already feel Ultima’s annoyance hanging over her, though direct help was not what the Esper of Light offered.

Please cooperate, it wouldn’t do if I died here, would it? Nadeline pleaded.

I suppose it would be troublesome…though which way you choose to define ‘safest’. Ultima replied dryly.

Then show me the path which you consider safest!

As you wish, Ultima chided, and Nadeline hated to admit that she didn’t like how she said that at all.

“She says ‘center’,” Nadeline said, clearly annoyed at Ultima.

---

“My word, that was…exhilarating,” Roman replied, showing some of the Darcone sarcasm as he would fix his hair. Once every hair was in place, he would adjust his collar, and once that was done, he would dust his clothes. Honestly, the dungeons were much too filthy for his likening, though it would give him second thoughts next time he would sentence someone. He actually frowned as he looked at Jaakuna. “I fear you didn’t quite answer my question, my brother. How did you know I was here? I understand Isaiah tipped you off for my location, but what are you doing in Archadia once more?”

---

Emiri struggled to slide herself through the bars of the cage she was in. She had somehow managed to squeeze her bust through, but was having more trouble at her hips. How long had she been trying this? How much time had passed? Her prison had no concept of either thing, but all she knew was that she needed to get out before Keiran came back. With a final pop, she let out a gasp as she fell to the ground. She did it? Holy shit she did it! Letting out a sigh of relief, she rubbed her sore thighs as she looked around. The cavern looked so sad, so devoid of life now. It was her own fault for giving in to her darker thoughts, but there wasn’t any time to mope around. She picked a direction and began to run, though she felt something calling her. It was not of Zodiark, nor was it something of her own mind, it was definitely foreign. And yet, as she headed in that very direction, she knew exactly what it was.

The hallway led to another open, though this time, it was a room literally filled with chains, and her eyes widened as she would see Chaos as a prisoner in the center. The once mighty Esper was bound, his eyes closed as she approached him. Her hand reached out, though she hesitated as he would open his eyes. “So you’ve escaped. For how long, I wonder, until the Seed notices?” He spoke, as condescending as ever. “Your weakness has cost us our free will, your body controlled by the Dark Esper’s minion. I gave you power, and yet you wasted it.”

“I didn’t ask for any of this!” Emiri burst out. “I didn’t know any of this was going to happen! You call me weak, yet I am not the one in chains! You’re as foolish as ever, Chaos!”

“Perhaps,” He replied thoughtfully. “I reset you in an attempt to save your existence…and now, you doom us all to an eternity of darkness. It may indeed have been a mercy were the Blue Rose to have slain you…” How she hated him. Of course it was his fault! He was the one who had given her the power in the first place! Why? Why was all this happening? And yet, as much as she wanted to, she could not blame him. It really was her fault, wasn’t it? She was weak…as the thought crossed her mind, the chains around Chaos loosened somewhat. She was surprised—had Keiran used Emiri’s own power to seal him? “And now…I will take responsibility.”

One of Chaos’ swords ripped through its bindings, and before she could react, he sent it right through her. Her violet eyes widened, though not even a cry of pain would escape her. Not before his other blades would strike.

Emiri let out a scream of pain, writhing in her bed. The pain was completely unbearable, but as she opened her eyes, she was no longer in her mind, but back in Zodiark’s castle. She sat up, gasping desperately for air as she clutched her chest. It seared through her chest, every sword’s wound burning through her, and she let out a cry of frustration and anger. She dragged herself out of her bed, using the wall to support herself as she would make her way to the door. This could be the work of none other than Chaos, that damned Esper! As she reached her door, she practically shoved it open, still breathing heavily, though she could hear a melody not far off.

The sigh of the shifting sea…The kiss of the salt-sweet breeze…The white of her silken dress, stained in red…

The voice was so beautiful, so pure, yet so melancholy. It felt…strangely familiar to her, too.

A memory fading fast…Her mother sits, eyes downcast…A torn uniform in hand, farewells unsaid…

That once a certainty, lost in grief…A daughter’s desperate cries, unheard pleas…Forsaken, beaten, tried, on her knees….A prayer passes from her lips—Into her soul the Goddess whispers…

Emiri hadn’t even noticed she had began to walk towards the source, completely entranced by the song. It was tragic, now that she was really listening to it, though she was shocked further to see a woman sitting by what looked like a waterfall. The water itself was clear, though the scene looked entirely out of place. She recognized the flowers around the woman—mountain laurels, though she was also aware that they were poisonous, but she would then look at the woman before her.

She was unlike any other person Emiri had ever seen. Her skin was painted entirely a shade of dark gray and had something of a shine to it. Her long, white locks easily touched the bench she sat on, a tousle of a ponytail managing to hold them all up. A crown sat on her head, adorned with rubies and colored gold, her clothing leaving very little to the imagination. But Emiri couldn’t deny that she was an otherworldly beauty, though she admitted she was surprised to find herself completely enamored by this woman, this creature.

She opened her eyes, her dark-colored gaze never leaving Emiri’s. “I hope I did not wake you with my little song, I beg your forgiveness if I did.”

“No…forgive my intrusion,” She apologized, embarrassed to be caught off guard. “Your song…it’s beautiful.”

The woman smiled very gently, motioning for Emiri to sit before her. She sat in front of the woman, her eyes wide. “Would you like to hear the rest?”She asked, chuckling when Emiri nodded enthusiastically. “A heartbeat without harmony is moonlight without dark. The heart seeketh equilibrium—with Balance will your worry part…So still this broken melody and therewith shoulder thee. One last step only leaving—an empty hearth down by the sea…An empty hearth down by the sea.” She looked pleased when Emiri would clap. “Did you like it? Truly?”

“Yes!” Emiri paused. “It did seem a little sad, though…and it sounds like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”

She smiled once more. “Of course it did. It was about you, my child,” She told her, her voice sweet. “I have seen your heart…your sorrow…but know that only you can bring equilibrium.”

Emiri’s eyes widened, though she practically scrambled to her feet as the woman would speak. “Oh, I…I’m sorry, I haven’t introduced myself—but…you know who I am,” She couldn’t quite hide her blush—why was a woman getting her so flustered? She wasn’t even attracted to women! But she was so beautiful… “May I ask your name?”

The woman looked at her curiously. “You want to know my name? Truly?” She paused for a moment. “Sophia Chintamani. Shall I sing you another tune?”

[AlteredTundra]

Jaakuna sighed, then he laughed. “Well, my brother, I actually came here to see you.” Jaakuna said, “you see, I had this rather revolutionary idea that I wanted to help our wonderful world for the great war with Zodiark that is definitely on its way. All of the squabbling that we seem to be doing with Dalmasca and Rozarria is childish. So, when we — my friends and myself, that is — were in Stigma, I had the idea to come here with Reia(Lorenzo came along as a bodyguard) to potentially sign a treaty between our two countries.” Jaakuna would continue, “but apparently grandfather had other ideas.” Jaakuna grimaced, “I don’t know how, but through some stroke of bad luck, he somehow caught wind of what I was planning.”

“But how?”

“I just said I don’t know.” Jaakuna retorted back to Lannit, then turned his attention back to Roman. “But what I am sure of is that, while Hamut has Reia, he has control of Archadia. And what’s even worse, that means Roman is in danger. I just don't know what the next course of action is: do we join the others in the rescue mission or do we take Roman to safety?” Jaakuna mused aloud as he seemed perplexed on the situation.

“Well, Roman isn’t deaf, or incapable of making a decision,” Lannit stated rather obviously, “so what say you former-Emperor! Do you want to fight - assuming you can - or do you want to flee? As they say: the choice is yours.”

---

“War? Murder? Come now, Reia, you honestly don’t take me for a monster, do you?” There was no feigning here. Hamut had a genuine expression of bewilderment on his aged face as he couldn’t help but laugh afterwards, realizing the situation that he was in. The situation that Reia had just put him in and it only hit him like a ton of bricks to the fact at the very moment he heard her speak. “The rumors about you just don’t do you justice, Reia. Your beauty is only matched by that tendency to speak your mind. Yet another trait that allures a lot to you. If not romantically, then simply presenting their mutual respect for you.”

As Hamut would open his palm, sienna-colored magick flared into his hand, taking the form of an orb. It was a rotating orb of mist that looked like a meteor, emitting sounds that only the one holding it could know what it was. To Hamut, it was the sound of a comet coming from the skies and crashing into the ground. It was the sound upon impact that he heard — and it calmed all nerves that might’ve agitated. For him to hear it was like a soothing melody that quelled even the worst of pains, physical or otherwise.

And when Hamut looked at Reia, seeing the obvious intrigue on her face, he curved his lips into a smirk. “Exodus did me a huge favor. He saw that I possessed an innate ability to tell whether someone was being deceitful or not. As such I unlocked what was known as The Truth-Seeking Seal. Do you know what that means, Reia?” Hamut knew that she knew his question was rhetorical. “It means, anyone that I engage in any conversation with, I can tell if they’re lying. Let’s take you for example. I know that underneath this front you have put up is simply that. A front. You are frightened by what I could do. And frankly, that is justified.”

Hamut judged her expression. He couldn’t get a read on it, despite what he just claimed. “Still not convinced? Fine, allow me to mention another.” Hamut kept his curved smile, “my grandson, Jackson. He spoke to me before arriving here. Did you know that? He was calling Roman, but couldn’t reach him because - well, I think you know why. He didn’t tell me why he had to speak to him, only that it was urgent. Truth is, I know why. This Seal allowed me to know. And do you know what it is I figured out? It was that he made some agreement with you about to sign a nonaggression treaty with our countries.” Hamut said, dropping the bombshell on Reia. “yes, I am well aware of that. And while I commend my grandson for having the gall to actually attempt something like that, I just could not let it happen, not when Archadia is in the perfect position carpe diem Ivalice.” Hamut crossed his legs, humming sinisterly.

“So yes, to answer your question, I aim to incite war. But you asked me if I wanted to end the Roselia bloodline. Why stop there? Why should I limit myself to just one? Empress Reia, what I aim to achieve - what I am going to achieve - is to not only end your bloodline, but the Alexanders and any who will oppose my reign. And you walking into my hands has made a third of that easy for me. All I must do is —”

---

Okay, so this was certainly a development. Or so Savayna thought so as she dug into the rabbit leg that had been cooked over the open fire. Delicious as always, it had been sprinkled with a bit of cinnamon and some other spices she wasn’t knowledgeable of. This region wasn’t exactly familar to her.

But that wasn’t the only thing that had happened. Apparently Emiri got a new friend too, and not a very nice friend. Someone worse than Jaakuna. Well, Savayna couldn’t really dismiss what Jaakuna had done for the girl. To her knowledge, Emiri was a runner. Obviously she was because she ran away from home, and now she’s with the new bad boy in town.

“Fuck me,” Savayna muttered. That was really all she had to say about it. “What is it with that bitch running off with someone interesting? First it was Jaakie, now it’s whoever this fuckboy is. On top of it all, she has turned to the dark side? Just like Jaakuna did that one time.” Savayna took another bite of her rabbit, swallowing before continuing. “Quite frankly, I’m disappointed, ya male bunny. You and Aloa, despite what most might think, are actually quite strong. And Shion is too. Lord knows she gave us a few rounds for our gil. Yet, somehow, you couldn’t defeat the selfish, little brat who —” Savayna would have continued speaking, but she felt the nudgings from Mateus, begging her to shut up. Not only that, but she might’ve caught the look on Grant’s face. “Well, you know what I mean. She’s strong, but she’s still just a girl who I could wipe the floor with without the use of my magick.”

Cocky aren’t you. Mateus sassed her. She scowled.

“So, tell me, Vlyn, how was it that two of the most-skilled Viera and one of the strongest, bit-tittied bitches I have ever seen fight, couldn’t defeat our little Emiri and her new friend?”

During Savayna’s rant, Vlyn would answer her question with the mention of dark magicks. Savayna raised her eyebrow in a suspicious way, huffing as if knowing that she shouldn’t have welcomed silence before speaking, because she looked at Grant. She could only guess what was going through his mind. She wanted to say something, but no words came out when she opened her mouth.

---

ALong the way, Dominic spent his time divided between pouting about how he has yet to prove himself worthy of Shion’s love, scowling at Shinto for what he said about not being worthy of Shion’s love, and Shion nonverbally telling him for certain that he wasn’t worthy of her. Or rather, because she found one that was, who apparently was the Golden Wolf of Archadia. Dominic couldn’t believe he lost out ot Francis. Of call people, he lost out to the one person he never thought would love again after what happened to his wife - and mother of Michel - passed away years ago. There was nothing Dominic could do aside from shoving the thought of them two out from his mind, and focus on the mission.

And with Shino with them, there was no way that they could lose.

As they would make their way through the dungeons, dodging and evading any signs of guards as they came. Some they surpirsed and fought, some they avoided fighting with altogether, but eventually, through several turns, a few flight of stairs going up and down, they were able to make it to the surface. Not only were they out of the dungeons, but the band of a prince, a famed assassin, and two criminals were in the Emperor’s Tower. Though, unlucky for them they were on the first floor.

“So, now that we’re here, what’s the next course of action?” DOminic asked the group as lowly as he possibly could due to the simple fact that there were soldiers at all possible corners.

“Isn’t it obvious? We get to the top floor where the Emperor’s Office is, and rescue the Empress Reia. Though,” Shinto bit his thumb thoughtfully, “we are wanted criminals, Dominic. Then, there's the matter of Lorenzo.” Shinto turned his gaze onto the prince, “apologies Lorenzo, but the rumors of your reputation don’t do any justice for the actual man.” Shinto coughed, going back to what he was saying. “If we are to have any chance of blending in and not alerting any soldier, a visit to the armory, or —” Just as Shinto was going to finish what he was going to say, he caught sight of four Archadian soldiers coming down the hallway. One was female with admirable bust, two were lean and of similar height, and one was a bit bulky. “How convenient.” Shinto curved a smirk, then looked to the others. “It seems as though the armory has come to us.” He chuckled, “Shion, when I give the signal, can you used a sleeping spell on them.”

“How will she know what the signal is?” Asked Dominic.

Shinto grinned, then he held one arm up, the other near his legs. Both were jerking to the opposite wall, then suddenly the four archadian soldiers were jerked that way as well effortlessly. And when they would pass the group, Shinto said, “Shion now!”

---

Just as Hamut had finished speaking, he heard a series of frantic knocks on the door to the Emperor’s Office, followed by “First Judge Magister Darcone! First Judge Magister Darcone!”

“You may enter,” Hamut said.

The door would open and a man named Wyatt would enter. He was the apprentice of Hamut. A general of equal respect of Savayna. He had olive-colored skin and kinky dark hair. Eyes were of light jade. He bore a deep green and dark yellow armor. He took the knee, head bowed. “First Judge Magister, I come bearing horrible news!”

“Yes, Wyatt, what is it?”

“It seems as though Shinto Glacie, Master of Technicks, has been broken out of his high security cell.”

“Is that all? Simply you do not think a lowly Glacie is worth interrupting my very important meeting with our esteemed guest, do you?” Hamut said, clearly irritated and a little insulted.

“N-no, but there is something else.” He hesitated.

“Speak or forever remain silent.”

“It’s about Emperor—I mean, Former Emperor Roman.”

Hamut arched his eyebrow curiously.

“It seems he too was broken out of his cell in the same wing.”

Upon hearing that, Hamut’s face twitched. His eyebrows scrunched, fists tightened, and he grimaced. It lasted for over two moments, then he regained control. “Very well. I thank you for telling me, Wyatt. Please leave us.”

Wyatt left, and closed the door behind him. As he would, Hamut looked to Reia. She must’ve been enjoying this immensely.

---

When Nadeline said what Ultima told her, Sylvester would nod, and move towards the center pathway. The walls looked smooth, almost like granite or mable. The entire length of the passageway was overflowing with hues of blue: cyan, cornflower, sky, azure, sapphire, cerulean - all shades of the monotonous spectrum of blue flew around, dancing in sparks of mist. It was riveting. There was a certain order that one felt as they would walk through it.

It would last all the way until Sylvester and Nadeline got to a door with blue gemstones engraved into its steel foundation. When Sylvester pushed on it, the door lit up with the strongest light blue glow that one could ever dream of. It danced through the lines of the pattern of the door. Each time it passed a gemstone, the glow would coincide with that specific stone: default blue, azure, navy, midnight, icy blue, light blue, cornflower, sky, deep sky, and then back to azure. Once it came back to azure, the door would show signs of it fracturing, then it crystallized. Crumbling into thin air, sucked into a vacuum of time-space, and thus revealing the end of the pathway to them: a flight of stairs leading up.

“I guess Ultima does know what she’s doing after all. Do tell her a lowly Hume give her his thanks.” Sylvester feigned appreciation, scoffing towards Ultima herself.

And then he stepped forward, gesturing Nadeline to follow him after she had time to talk to Ultima. The stairs would seem endless, but eventually they came to an end. When they reached the last step, and would get off the flight of stairs, they came to yet another fork in the road with the same choice of three options with the same colors, only the left was jade, the center was crimson, and the right was azure.

“Again?!” Sylvester groaned, seemingly displeased with it. He turned to Nadeline, gripping her by the shoulders. “Hey, Ultima! I thought you said this was the way to go, huh? Don’t tell me this is your way of a practical joke!” As he spoke, Sylvester’s tone got loud and his expression seemed twisted, based in a deep-rooted anger.

[Hero]

Roman seemed to be in thought, an odd occurrence considering his all-too-sunny desposition. Unfortunately, it had been many years since he so much as picked up a sword—the comfort of guards combined with the overall peace in Bhujerba had done him a favor in that sense—yet, the idea of hiding wasn’t quite as attractive. He looked at Jaakuna, and let out a sigh as he would loosen his collar slightly. No, even if he was just a placeholder, it simply wouldn’t do to leave everything in Jaakuna’s hands. Not yet, anyway. At the very least, Isaiah was on their side, so at least some of the guards knew that Hamut was in the wrong.

“I can’t say I’m much of a fighter, but there is little point in fleeing when the entire army is probably out searching for me as we speak,” Roman pointed out, immediately returning to his cheerful self. “I fear I must leave myself in your very capable hands, my brother. Do your best!” He cheered Jaakuna on, a shit-eating grin on his face like no other.

---

Frightened? Her? As if. Reia couldn’t help but scoff, and had half a mind to correct Hamut. If she was afraid of anything, it would be the fear of dying from boredom from his rather tenacious speech. The man did love to go on, although for once, he actually went into a direction she desired. Just as she had suspected, Hamut managed to catch Jaakuna’s message to Roman. And just as she thought, Hamut really did intend to spread war across Ivalice. At that point, Reia found herself lamenting the damage from the mines—she would have gladly stood right then and there, letting herself get struck if it meant that Rozarria finally had its reason to war with Archadia, but as things were, her armies were crippled.

But this was not the end. No, Hamut chose to continue, revealing his intentions to, put simply, take over the world. Before he could continue, the pair were interrupted. Hamut had the gall to keep Roman prisoner, though it seemed Jaakuna had liberated him. Raising both her eyebrows in fascination, she looked at Hamut as he would look to her.

“Speaking of those opposing your reign…” Reia lifted a shoulder, her expression almost innocent. “While I admit I had my own troubles with my Council, I can’t say I’ve had the same opposition with my family. Would you slay your own grandchildren, Hamut? They clearly do not seem to be on the same page as you.” It was more than obvious who it was liberating Roman and the other person, and it gave Reia a newfound determination. “Even you must recognize that your grandson won’t let this foolishness of yours continue. Tell me, Great Dragon of Darcone, would you slay your own family if it meant no one would oppose your reign?”

---

As much as Grant hated to admit it, Savayna definitely had a point. Not that he doubted Emiri’s abilities to Savayna’s extent, but none of them had been a match for Shion, the only instance being that of Jaakuna’s possession—and even then, Shion had bested him there as well. What kind of power did Emiri have? The thought alone was frightening, though he scowled at Vlyn’s chuckle.

“I failed to mention that it was Emiri alone who defeated us. That boy…he didn’t even lift a finger. Shion figured that perhaps he was the source of her newfound power, but she quickly disposed of him, and if anything, it made Emiri stronger. What I found peculiar was that when the boy was decapacitated, the girl showed signs of being hurt, almost as if Shion had struck her instead,” Vlyn continued, frowning. “Whoever that boy is—whatever he is—it is clear that he is a real threat, but Aloa only had theories on how to truly kill him.”

“And what theory is this?” Grant pressed on the subject.

Vlyn hesitated. Grant didn’t like that at all. “There was a story passed down through our village once about demons who liked to possess people. The thing is, anytime the townspeople knew, they’d kill anyone who was possessed, and while the person died, it was a true way to kill the demon—”

Grant immediately cut him off at that point. “We are not murdering an innocent person.”

“Of course. I expect no less, my prince,” Vlyn chuckled, though he would continue, “But stories, no matter how old, always have a grain of truth to them. Aloa thought it best if she would find out the truth, and so sent Shion and myself to retrieve you all, so as to notify and warn you. Emiri is dangerous, there’s no telling what she will do. I understood her aggression towards Shion, even towards Aloa and I—at one point we were enemies—but I could not understand her aggression to Karolina, who had done nothing but help her.”

Grant released a breath he had no idea he had been holding. What a story, indeed. No wonder Vlyn found it so urgent that they had to meet once more. Staring at the fire, Grant scratched the back of his head, his hand resting there for a moment. In all honesty, if it came to it, could he strike Emiri down? No, there had to be another way, besides, there’d be no way in hell Jaakuna would allow that to happen. Wait a minute…

“Wait, if you’re here, where is Shion?” Grant asked.

“Archades, I imagine. She has her own way of getting around, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she found Jaakuna already,” Vlyn shrugged. “Though, with Hamut at the helm of Archadia once more, I fear his plans for peace may be more difficult to pull off than he would have intended.”

---

Shion had half a mind to whack Dominic upside the head. Her rose glowed softly as Shinto would start. Taking in a deep breath, she would take it from her hand, and as the soldiers moved, she would gently blow on her flower. Its petals would scatter, dissolving into what looked like dust, though in the next moment, they quickly spread and scattered around the soldiers, and each one would slump to the ground.

Lorenzo made yet another mental note, though he slapped Shinto’s back. “Would you look at that! How the hell are you friends with this idiot?” Lorenzo laughed, clearly referring to Dominic.

As the petals would gather in her hair once more, she raised an eyebrow at the prince. “He isn’t the only idiot here,” She reminded him, immediately kneeling down to the soldier as she would begin to remove the soldier’s armor.

“You wound me, my lady,” Lorenzo whined, though he figured he may as well get started as well. He hesitated as he went to take off his shirt, looking at Shion. “Do you, uh, want some privacy?” He asked her.

“Your concern is appreciated, but unneeded,” She repeated herself, though at least this time she smiled at him. “We haven’t the time to waste on such a luxury.” She rubbed her bandaged hand, letting out a sigh. “…No time indeed.”

---

Nadeline didn’t quite understand what had happened either, but she was more surprised by Sylvester’s reaction. Her body tensed up immediately, a fearful expression on her face. She understood that he had something against the Espers, but that had nothing to do with her! The very thought lit a fire in her, and she regained her composure, wriggling out of Sylvester’s grip.

As she opened her mouth to scold him for yelled at her, she heard Ultima chuckle. Pay him no mind. Go right. She told the princess.

Sylvester has a point. We mustn’t lose any more time. Nadeline chided her.

Tell me, have I steered you wrong yet?

Silence was all the response Ultima needed. Taking in a deep breath, Nadeline looked at Sylvester. “Give her the benefit of the doubt, Sylvester. Let us follow suit…and see to it that she won’t lead us astray.” She wasn’t exactly confident about her choice of words, but there was little choice. “This time, she says to go right.”

[AlteredTundra]

Now that it was settled, the next thing that needed to be decided was how were they going to go about it? No doubt they had to reunite with Shion and the others, that much Jaakuna knew for sure. But the Emperor’s Tower wasn’t necessarily a place you could walk right up and ring the doorbell. One does not simply do that - one has to use strategy. The thing was which strategy to take?

He went over the possibilities in his head, then he did it a few more times. Each scenario he ran, there were equal positives and negatives. One Jaakuna considered was going the way he knew Dominic and the others went, which was a hundred or so paces in the direction they were going, followed by three rights and lefts, each skipping a turn of each one. That would lead them to a secret stairwell. At the top of that was a secret entrance to the Emperor’s Tower.

Jaakuna knew if they went that route, there would be a welcoming party waiting for them. Then, of course, there was the matter that Roman was with him and Lannit. So Jaakuna had to take that into account as well.

There was another route he was considering, but there were risks involved. What he had to decide was whether or not the end results would outweigh the risks.

When he looked at Lannit, Jaakuna smiled, giving his friend an affirming nod. “Alright, so here is what we’re going to do.”

And so Jaakuna would explain the plan he had cooked up. First he would explain what they were going to in regards of getting to Hamut. Jaakuna explained that the best he could. He told them that there was a secret route through the dungeons that Jaakuna himself built. It was a sure fire way to the tower. But what was perfect was that it should get them on the same floor as where Hamut was. The only downside to it was that it involved using some experimental technology, something that was the prototype of what the Ifrit’s Waystone Warping System utilizes.

As soon as Jaakuna explained it to them, he let out a low sigh. “Let’s get going then.”

And so Jaakuna led them down a series of turns and twists through the dungeons. It was rather lengthy, took them about an hour’s worth of walking time. It would have taken them longer if Jaakuna hadn’t taken the shortcut he remembered taking years ago. But, when they reached their destination, they came to the sight of a worn out waystone. It was like those in the Tomb of Raithwall, but it had inscriptions of ancient Archadian, and the shape was more rounded than usual waystones. Regardless, when they each would get around it, they had been warped; though there was the side-effect of nose-bleeding and upset stomachs. The upside? They warped onto the roof of the Emperor’s tower.

“We all good?” Jaakuna was asking for good measure because he felt like throwing up.

“Just a little dizzy, nothing to —” Lannit spoke too soon. He was hurling over, practically swimming in his own vomit. “— nevermind.”

Just perfect.

---

“Wouldn’t you?” Hamut asked, “we’re similar, Reia. We both have that innate desire to keep our power no matter what the costs. I mean, you can correct me if I’m mistaken, but isn’t that why you not only took advantage of Grant’s weakened state, but in doing so, you sent him after Emir??” Hamut strolled closer to Reia, looking down at her with a smile. “You can say what you want about how I treat my grandson, but don’t try and paint yourself to be the innocent victim here, Empress. You are as much to blame for the rash actions I have taken in recent weeks as my foolish grandson is.” Hamut said, “because you felt the need to ‘turn yourself around’, you have not only doomed your life, but by today’s end, your entire bloodline will meet its end by hands and my hands alone.”

---

So once again they were at an impasse? Terrific. Just when Savayna was getting used to the idea of maybe - just maybe - getting the chance to relax, Vlyn drops the bombshells of all bombshells on her and Grant. She kept scowling, gritting her teeth which resulted in low musings from Mateus, sarcastically scolding her about how that wasn’t good for her, to which she kindly told him to shove it.

Taking the last bite of the third rabbit leg that Savayna had not-so-subtley helped herself to, she kept on angrily thinking what she was going to say. This conversation had less to do with her specifically, so it wasn’t like she could offer up any insights about what they could do. All the newly-engaged, former general could do was simply eat her food, take in all that she could, and possibly find something useful to say at the end of it.

“Wait, WHAT?!” She nearly gagged on the rabbit. She especially would nearly choke when she heard Vlyn say that he was at the helm. Though she took that at face value, even she knew what that meant. She knew that Hamut, through some stroke of luck, or devious planning(probably the latter), he had gained control of Archadia. The only time in history that Savayna had recalled that happened was when he actually had been Emperor in his youth. But, of course, he wasn’t so young, so obviously something happened.

Savayna thought about it for a moment. How would he be able to do it? Sure Roman wasn’t always the most keen person. In fact, due to his happy-golucky disposition, Savayna recalled many times in her reports about him that, while he was a terrific ruler, he was often too trusting. So maybe that’s how Hamut did it. No, that doesn’t sound right. Even if Hamut did somehow find a way to dethrown Roman - and that was a strong if - that still left the door open for when Jaakuna and company got there.

“Argh!” Savayna rubbed her hair with both hands in frustration, leaning back as she lay on the sand, gazing upon the stars. Through all that happened, it dawned on her that it was night out. Not only that, but it was beautiful. The way the sparking stars danced with the odd clouds and the constellations. “Wait, constellations.” Savayna murmured, hardly audible.

Something on your mind, Ice Queen? The Corrupt One asked, Savayna’s roaming thoughts seeming to pique his curiosity..

Mateus, more or less, was baiting Savayna with the mention of her famed alias. She didn’t seem to mind, though. “There might be,” Savayna muttered to Mateus, propping herself up. “Say, Vlyn, I had a thought.” Savayna hummed thoughtfully, trying to find the right way to phrase it, “this might be out of the blue, but I was wondering what you could tell me about The Esper Seals.”

As Savayna asked that, Mateus made a sound that suggested he was pleased with Savayna. One could say it was a verbal smirk.

---

She may not have wanted privacy, but Shinto wasn’t about to let the peering eyes of two idiots desecrate the honor of Shion, so with a wave of his hand, he used his telekenisis spell to carefully shut the eyes of Lorenzo and Dominic while effortlessly floating all three sets of armor, dismantling them, and putting them on the two of them as Shion would put her own on. Impressive, as Dom would note with a low whistle, though he scowled when he found himself getting whacked by his own helm thanks to Shinto. Whoops.

By when three minutes passed, the group of four were in their respective sets of armor. The unfortunate fact of them using these disguises was that they had to carry the weapons the soldiers were carrying. It didn’t seem to be so bad for Shion and Lorenzo. Based on what the two soldiers had for weapons, it easily accommodated them. Shion’s had a sword and Lorenzo’s had a pair of gauntlets. However, much to Shinto’s faint scoffing and DOminic’s complaining, they were met with less-satisfactory weapons. Shinto had a dual Koga Blades and Dominic had two Phantom Daggers. It wasn’t so much the weapon itself, but the size of them. They were puny in comparison to Dominic’s bulky muscles.

“Guess we’ll just have to make due.” Dominic moped about his weapon.

“It’s part of the disguise, Dominic.” Shinto reminded him.

“I suppose.”

Shinto sighed. He made sure that his armor was aligned correctly before letting Shion take the lead. Since they were on the same floor, it was only a matter of them maintaining their cover until they reached the Emperor’s Office. Of course, the plan of what they were going to do had to be decided, assuming there was a viable plan that wouldn’t get them killed…

---

Time after time they went and time after time Ultima chose for them: right, left, center; left, right, center; center, left, right; center, right, left; left, center, right, yet through all of those decisions, they still weren’t any closer of getting out of this maze than they were when it started.

And after a while, it began to get to them. Sylvester was growing wary, Naadeline apparently liked to complain. Still, that didn’t help them get out of the maze they were in any faster, nor did it help morale.

When they were heading down the final pathway that Ultima set them towards, Sylvester stopped, prompting Nadeline to bump into his armored back. He turned around, scowling at what seemed to be at Nadeline. “We’ve been at this for hours. And we’re no closer to getting out of here, so obviously something is wrong.” Sylvester said, trying to contain an obvious need to scream. “Get Ultima out here now.” Sylvester demanded, nostrils flaring, and tone taking a dark turn. “Do you hear me, High Seraph!? Get. Out. Here. NOW!!” for a moment, a small display of sickly green and white mist, laced with black, pulsed around Sylvester.

[Hero]

Roman carefully stepped to the side as Lannit would hurl his own guts out, wrinkling his nose, though he would give Lannit an empathetic look as he would repress the urge to chuckle. He wasn’t all that surprised that one of Jaakuna’s inventions had a few kinks to iron out, though as before, he repressed the thought, instead smiling at the two men before him. Despite his own insides feeling rather turned, on the outside he was as peachy as ever.

“What a rush!” He exclaimed, letting out a small sigh. “I haven’t had this much fun in ages!”

---

Reia managed to match Hamut’s smile, raising a single eyebrow at him. “Innocent? Certainly not I. No one in this room is a victim, nor would I ever dream of claiming to be one. Even so, even if everything you say is nothing more than fact, you have yet to answer my question,” She wasn’t about to back down, her fear all but gone at this point. “I may be weak, but I highly doubt you could ever hope to match my family in power. Your fame proceeds you, but your age shows. And despite all this…Time ticks with or without you and I, and as the moments pass, your grandson comes closer and closer to us. Will you strike him where he stands as he dares to burst forth to disrupt your plans? As you mentioned, it was his own idea to bring me here in the first place. He is the one who will rise time and time again, continuously gaining allies, but do you have what it takes to strike down your own flesh and blood?”

---

“It’s a Mark, so to speak, a kind an Esper bestows on us lowly mortals as proof that they have deemed us worthy. It takes a lot to impress an Esper, though the details include Mist compatibility, ancient magicks, a strong will…it is the same magicks the Espers used to rise against the gods to challenge their will, channeled through the mortal bodies to inflict pain upon their enemies and show their power to remind Ivalice who is in charge,” Vlyn answered quite cheerfully all things considered. “There’s two stages—the manner of unlocking, which shows the worthiness between host and Esper, and then there’s the Inner Seal, formed from a bond of trust between the two in which the Esper’s will manifests through the host.”

Grant had a rather blank expression on his face, one Vlyn couldn’t help but note was his confused-but-trying-not-to-show-face. “And…that Inner Seals manifests…how?” He asked.

“Depends on the host and Esper. Although…that Time power Emiri has is an example of the Inner Seal Chaos wields. So imagine something along those lines.”

---

Shion ignored the many complaints as she would lead the way. She had visited this place exactly once, a long time ago, though the mission had been thievery and not entirely infiltration. While it wasn’t clear that she was unsure, her rather confident stride made sure no one would so much as take a second glance at her nor doubt her position. She knew the way they needed to go, though whether they would get through without a hitch or leaving behind a mountain of corpses was anyone’s guess.

Lorenzo had to remind himself not to look around so often. The castle was actually fascinating, with several paintings and exhibits around that he would have liked to stop and see, but he wasn’t quite as good at hiding his foreignness. He tried to at least keep his gaze at the back of Shion’s armored head, impressed that she somehow managed to tuck all her hair into it. When she would come to a halt before a hallway, he nearly walked into her.

“What’s up?” He asked her.

“This is it,” She informed them simply, watching a nearby clock. As the long hand would strike 12, signaling the start of a new hour, Shion let out a breath, walking up to one of the guards outside the door and giving him a salute. “Shift change. You’re relieved.” She informed the man.

Lorenzo would’ve screamed if he had known better. This was the plan!? Walking up and hoping the guards would change with them?! He had expected so much more that he was truly in shock.

---

Her feet were sore.

Nadeline managed to keep her complaints under a low grumble, though she had to admit that the trip was getting rather weary. There was no way this should have been taking as long as it had. She had followed Ultima’s instructions to the letter, only to no avail. She started to wonder if they were in some kind of trap, something disrupting the Mists around them and messing with her senses. But Ultima seemed so confident that Nadeline felt that she was right, or at the very least, had no reason to mislead them.

Sylvester, unfortunately, had enough. She had walked right into him, though before she could apologize, she couldn’t help but wince at his scathing glare. He was frustrated—this was too obvious—though it seemed his patience ran thin. He seemed to outright ignore her, speaking directly to Ultima, though the Esper was as silent as ever. And yet, this silence was not the usual stand-offish silence she offered, but one silence that was almost bitter. It was strange, but Nadeline didn’t understand. What was wrong?

“Please, calm yourself—” Her words were interrupted by his demand, though she let out a gasp as she caught a glimpse of that dark colored Mist. She took a step back, hitting the wall behind her.

I have lead you through the safest path. You are almost out. And yet… Ultima almost seemed regretful as she spoke.

And yet?

You are not safe with him.

What in the world was she talking about? Though she admitted that she was clearly unnerved. No, this was just a misunderstanding. Taking a breath, Nadeline would try once more to reason with Sylvester. “We’re almost out, we need only to press on.” She urged him, though it was clear that she was cautious with her words.