Davin stood at the railing of the Lucky Star, staring out at the ocean.  Evening 
was approaching, and a cool wind blew against his face.  He didn't notice.  At 
this moment, a sea serpent could jump out of the ocean and start addressing him 
in fluent Runic, and he wouldn't notice.

In his mind, he kept replaying his conversation with Captain Fallensand.  There 
had been no way he could have avoided it.  But still...he wondered it there had 
been some more graceful way to tell her...

*****

He'd followed the Captain to her quarters belowdecks, growing more and more 
uncomfortable by the moment.  Most of it, he assumed, was from the news he was 
about to tell her, but there was still that feeling of being closed in.  Wasn't 
the air growing heavier?  Was it just his imagination?

Captain Fallensand paused at the entrance to her quarters.  "Davin?" she asked.  
"Ye well?"

Startled, he shook his head slightly in an attempt to clear his thoughts.  "I'm 
fine," he said hesitantly.  "Just a bit...cramped, I suppose."

She grinned a little.  "Don't like bein' in close quarters, do ye?  Well, 'tis 
fine by me.  I'm sure we can rig ye somethin' up on th' deck."  She pushed open 
the door and walked in.

Davin followed her.  She sat behind a table covered in maps, and motioned that 
he should take the chair opposite her.  Slowly, he sat down.

A few silent moments passed before Jil said, "And now, about Biggs?"

He swallowed.  "Captain, I'm sorry.  He's dead."

Her face paled.  "No..." she said quietly.

Davin opened his mouth to continue, but she waved a hand to silence him.  "No, 
no, I believe ye," she stated.  "Considerin' th' way he lived...every moment 
like a whirlwind.  Always inta some crazy adventure or another.  'Tis almost a 
surprise that he lasted fer so long..."

But Davin could see the tears starting to glint in her eyes.  "I...well, I'm..." 
he began, but couldn't finish.  What could he say that would sound sincere?  All 
the words of comfort that ran through his head sounded empty and meaningless.

Finally, he stood up.  "He was a good friend to me," he said quietly.  "I plan 
to make sure that his death is not in vain."  With that, he turned and left.

*****

So now, there he was, standing alone on the deck of a ship that was swiftly 
carrying him away from the only place he'd ever known.  Away to a strange land.  
Away from his old quest to find his and Mika's families.

He meant what he'd said to Captain Fallensand, though.  Biggs and Wedge's deaths 
would not be in vain.  He'd find a way to keep Marcine safe.  Somehow, he'd find 
it.

He hoped.

               ----------------------------------------
                         FINAL FANTASY LEGACY
                         Knights of the Round

                       Chapter 19: Near and Far
                       Begun by Brian Stricklin
                     This chapter by Kate Malloy
               ----------------------------------------


In the three young ladies' quarters belowdecks, Syeira lay on her cot, groaning.  
"Urgh...my stomach...I don't think I was meant to take this," she complained.

"You're seasick, huh?" Mika observed.  "I think I can mix something up that 
might help, if..."

"If?  If?!" Syeira cried.  "What do you mean by that?  Don't leave me in agony 
here!"

"If you were a bit nicer to me," Mika finished.

Marcine couldn't help but giggle a little.

Syeira turned to face her.  "Look, just because I seem to be the only one who's 
sick around here, does that give you the right to laugh at me?"

Marcine looked started.  "I'm sorry," she said.  "I didn't mean to offend you."

"Oh, she's just cranky because she's feeling bad, that's all," Mika said, almost 
cheerfully. She glared at Syeira.  "You have to be nice to Marcine too, if you 
want me to give you a remedy."

"Oh, all right, all right..." Syeira moaned.  "Whatever you say.  Just hurry up 
and fix it, would you?"

"It'll take me a little while," Mika informed her, while beginning to search her 
pack for the various ingredients.

"I don't know if I can last that long..." Syeira muttered.

"I'm going to go check on Davin," Marcine stated.  "I'll be back in a little 
while."

Davin's cabin was just across the corridor from theirs, but knocking on the door 
produced no response.  She started up towards the deck, almost bumping into 
Captain Fallensand.

"Oh, Captain!  I'm sorry," Marcine apologized.

"No, 'tis all right," Jil said, before quickly passing her by.

Marcine wasn't sure, but it looked like she'd been crying.  Sighing, she walked 
up to the deck.  It only took her a few moments to spot Davin.

She went over and stood next to him.  "Davin?" she asked quietly.

"Marcine," he acknowledged, without even looking at her.

"I'm sorry.  I won't disturb you." She turned to go.

"No."  Davin put a hand on her arm.  "It's all right, honestly.  Captain 
Fallensand...she knew Biggs.  That's why she agreed to take us."

"Ohhh..." Marcine let out a soft breath.  "I see."

Davin nodded.

Marcine turned her attention to the waves.  "I wonder what the Ryukins are 
like," she mused. "Up until a few days ago, I'd barely even heard of them.  And 
now we're on our way..."

"Wish I'd thought to ask Piette a bit more about them," Davin answered.  "Of 
course, we were rather busy back there, and I can't say as I was expecting to be 
heading there so soon."

"How long does it take to reach them?" Marcine asked.

"Nine days," said the voice of Captain Fallensand.  Marcine and Davin both 
turned around.  She'd walked up behind them without making a sound.  "A week if 
we're lucky and th' winds are on our side."

Davin studied her face for a moment.  Aside from a slight redness in her eyes, 
there were absolutely no signs that she'd been upset.  Her confident, poised 
captain's persona was back in place.

"We'll be puttin' in at Seiryu," Jil continued.  "That's the biggest port of th' 
Ryukins, where all tradin' ships go."

"Seiryu..." Marcine repeated softly.

"I know next to nothing about them," Davin admitted.  "I know that they speak 
the language of the continent, but they have their own language as well, right?"

"Aye," Jil answered.  "Perhaps I'd be willin' to teach ye a little of the 
basics...fer a small fee." She managed a tiny grin at that.

Inwardly, Davin groaned, but he nodded.

"We'd be extremely grateful for anything you could tell us about the islands," 
Marcine stated.

"Well, a week's not much fer learnin' the language, but I'll see what I kin do," 
Jil informed her.  "There's all sorts of myths an' legends surroundin' the 
islands - ye might be interested in hearin' those as well, I'm guessin'."

Davin couldn't help but feel his spirits lift a little.  He'd always loved 
hearing new stories.

"Big brother!" Mika called.  He, Marcine, and Jil looked over to where she was 
leading a still queasy-looking Syeira to the deck.  "Are we there yet?"

Davin and Marcine exchanged glances.  This was going to be quite a trip.

*****

Pearl Lassenkirche had made the trip from Voden to Tienne many times without 
incident.  But this journey had been very different.  The closer she got to 
Tienne, the more patrols of Holy Guardsmen she seemed to run into.  All of them 
had questioned her, as well.  What was her business in Tienne?  Why was she 
carrying those particular weapons?  Had she seen the heretics?

Always she managed to work her way around the complete truth, but the answers 
she gave seemed to satisfy them.  She hadn't yet mentioned that she was the 
granddaughter of the late Father Onias; she had a feeling that the soldiers most 
likely wouldn't believe her.

With all the interruptions, it took her a good two days longer than usual to 
reach Tienne.  She quickly found lodgings at a small inn, took a few minutes to 
get her belongings in order, then headed for the Church headquarters as quickly 
as she possibly could.

She knew that the Mourning had ended over a week ago, but surely it was not too 
late to pay her respects to the old man who'd always loved and cared for her.  
She wondered how much he'd known about her association with Master Cid, though.  
She wouldn't be surprised if he'd known everything.  He'd always had a way of 
finding out things that no one else had suspected.  But he had been kind, and 
wise, and just...

She blinked back tears as she approached the main building of the Church 
headquarters.  It wouldn't do for her to break down now.  Not here.

The guards at the door halted her approach, of course, and asked her name and 
her business.

"I am Pearl Lassenkirche," she stated firmly.  "I am Father Onias' 
granddaughter, and I have come to pay my respects."

The two guards exchanged looks, then nodded.  One of them immediately went into 
the building, presumably to fetch a priest, while the other kept an eye on her.

A few moments later, the guard returned with a man in white robes.  He gave a 
nod towards Pearl, and the priest approached her.

"I am Father Lambert," the priest said.  "How may I help you, child?"

Pearl blinked once in surprise.  She remembered his name - Father Lambert was 
one of the higher-ranking priests of the Church.  Possibly a candidate for High 
Priest, now that her grandfather was dead.  It was highly unlikely that he was 
just passing by.  Had the guards been instructed to specifically fetch him for 
some reason?

No, no, she was just upset.  That was all.  Saddened and upset and seeing 
problems where there were none.

"I'm Father Onias' granddaughter, Pearl," she answered.  "I've traveled from 
Voden to come and say goodbye."

Father Lambert nodded.  "Ah, yes, I remember you.  You used to come and visit 
your grandfather quite often when you were young, didn't you?  Indeed, we have 
not yet recovered from his loss.  Please, follow me.  I will take you to the 
crypt, and let you have some time alone to pray."

Wordlessly, she followed him inside.

*****

The Mother Superior of the Priestesses of Purity, Cecilina, was in the midst of 
meditation when one of the novices burst into her chambers.

"Mother!  Oh, Mother, I'm so sorry to interrupt you, but there's something 
strange about the Sanctuary Flame!" the novice cried.

Mother Cecilina opened her eyes and regarded the young one.  "Calm yourself, 
daughter," she stated.  "What is the problem?"

"The Flame...it's...well, it's getting really bright, then really dark, then 
bright again," the novice said.

"Indeed?  I shall look into this at once.  Thank you, daughter." She made the 
sign of the Three Gods in blessing.

The novice curtsied and scurried off.

Mother Cecilina sighed.  Always the young priestesses were in such a hurry...but 
what could possibly be wrong with the Sanctuary Flame?  Sighing, she got up and 
headed towards the chapel.

The convent where the Priestesses of Purity were trained was near the central 
Church headquarters, near the seminaries of the Priests of Courage and Wisdom.  
Each place of study had its own central chapel dedicated to the member of the 
Three Gods that particular order served, and each chapel had a Sanctuary Flame 
that burned at all times to honor Him or Her. If the Flames were ever to go 
out...well, such a thing had never even been considered before.

The Mother Superior walked the hallways of the convent, pausing to greet fellow 
priestesses and chide several novices who were neglecting their chores.  
Finally, she reached the chapel, pushed open the great doors, and walked in.

She looked up at the altar, with the great symbol of the Tri-Fan in stained 
glass above it, then over at the Sanctuary Flame.  Nothing appeared to be wrong 
with it; it burned a steady blue, as always.

Shaking her head, she sighed again.  No doubt that particular novice had been 
falling asleep at her prayers, and had probably dreamed it, or imagined it in 
her half-awake state.

She walked toward the altar, intending to say a few quick prayers now that she 
was here, and stopped.  Had the Flame flickered oddly just for a second?  No, it 
was probably just a stray gust of wind.  She would have to scold that particular 
novice when she returned.

The Flame flickered again.  With a start, Mother Cecilina realized that here 
*was* no wind in here.  In confusion and fear, she dropped to her knees.

"I do not...I do not understand," she murmured.  "What is this?"

And then...it began.  The Flame grew so bright that it hurt her eyes, then faded 
to the merest ember.  Glow and fade.  Glow and fade.

"Three Gods preserve us!" she cried.  "What has happened?"

The pulsing of the Flame was her only answer.

*****

"Hello, Grandfather," Pearl said quietly.

She knelt before his coffin, in one of the underground crypts of the Church.  
Father Onias' mortal remains had yet to be placed with those of the past High 
Priests; for a few weeks more, he would stay here so that travelers from far 
cities, such as Pearl, could come and keep vigil.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to see you more often," she began.  "I missed you.  I 
don't think I ever told you that."

She paused, and listened to her words echo throughout the chamber for a few 
minutes before starting again.

"I'm still seeing Stine.  He's a good man, Grandfather.  True, he has his 
ego...and he does blunder a bit.  All right, more than just a bit.  But he has a 
good heart.  He always tries to do what he believes is right."

Hiding silently outside of the door, Father Lambert raised an eyebrow.  So, this 
woman was involved with Beastmaster Stine?  Interesting.

"So do I, Grandfather," she continued.  "So do I.  But...I... I did something 
you might not have approved of, Grandfather. I'm sorry... but it was the right 
thing to do.  You always told me to be loyal to my friends, that they were the 
most precious of all things.  And so...I helped them.  I had to deceive Stine, 
and it hurt...but this was what I had to do.  What I promised.  Although...I 
wish you were still here, Grandfather."

For a moment, Father Lambert felt almost a pang of guilt.  Almost.  But this 
woman...he wondered exactly who the friends she was referring to actually were.  
Could it be that she was involved with the heretics?  Perhaps there was some way 
to keep her here in Tienne for a few more days.  This definitely warranted 
further investigation.

*****

Author's Notes:

(or, in which Kate begs, "Please don't kill me! ^^;)

Eeep.  This chapter comprises about a third of the things that I wanted to get 
done.  But real life (work, school, and other things) kinda sapped my will to 
write.

But hey!  It's a chapter!  The horrible string of skipping is over!  Wai!

Anyway, thanks go to Brian and Phoebe for prereading, Terence for helping me 
work some things out (notable travel time to Ryukin), and Lurker for agreeing to 
preread, even though this stupid author here didn't have time to send it too 
him. ^_^;

Now gimme back Exeter, Illy. ^_~