"So, shall we stop here for the night?" asked Hiro.

Davin thought about that - the mountains may have been ominous, but 
Seiryuu was only a few miles behind them.  That fact made up Davin's 
mind for him.

"We enter the mountains now," he said.  "We don't have to go far - is 
there are a good place to hide?"

"I know just the thing," said Hiro.

"For yer sake, I hope it be good," warned Jil.

A couple of hours later, Davin wasn't sure of the small, damp, and 
foul smelling cave Hiro had led them to.  But it had one great 
advantage - it was impossible to get to unless you knew where it was, 
and the various secret nooks and crannies you had to go through to get 
to it.  If someone did follow them, they'd never find the place; and 
large monsters would never be able to make it to the cave.  Here, 
they'd be safe, at least for the night.

There was still the threat of small monsters stumbling across them.  
Because of that, and as it was never wise to sleep completely 
unguarded, Davin took first watch, and Hiro was to take over in a few 
hours.  Hiro said that he could operate fully well on just a few short 
hours, and explained proudly how he had come first in his 
swordsmanship exams even though he'd barely slept the night before.  
The group was unsure, but agreed.

                               *  *  *

"What now, sir?" asked Martin.

Kyle looked at the midnight city around him, wondering what they could 
do next.  Even considering they had Cheney with them, charging off 
across the countryside of the unknown Ryukin Islands would be a bad 
idea.  There were sure to be patrols, and questions, and Cheney 
wouldn't be able to come with believable excuses forever.  He 
commented as much, and Cheney looked thoughtful.

"The Shogun is probably the first person to see," Cheney said at last.  
"As foreigners are rare here, they were probably taken to see him as 
soon as they arrived.  They may have told him where they're going 
next.  Even if not, he probably has spies that saw which way they 
went, and we might be able to get the information from him.  And 
finally, we'll need to obtain special dispensation to move around the 
Shogun's part of the country.  Ryukin Island society is extremely 
controlled, and most civilians need permission from their lords to 
even leave their villages."

"So we go and visit the Shogun, then," agreed Kyle.

"However," warned Cheney, in a low voice.  "There is one other thing.  
I've been listening to the people's comments, and it seems that the 
latest Shogun's xenophobia is extremely high.  It could be risky to 
see him.  He won't kill us on the spot, as that could have 
repercussions with the Church.  But he may not be helpful."

Kyle mulled that over.  Even if the Shogun didn't want to help, the 
advantages seemed to be too great to pass up.  And without help, he 
had no idea where to start looking for Marcine.  He made up his mind.  
"We see him," he announced.  "But Cheney, don't advertise that you can 
understand the language.  We may need that advantage."

Reill and Martin were staring at him.

"Captain, are you sure that's fair?"

Kyle felt a headache coming on.  "This is diplomacy, Reill," he 
explained with distaste.  He'd never liked diplomacy.  "And as 
underhanded as it is, in diplomacy, you never let the other side know 
what you know, right up to the last moment."  He sighed.

"Never thought you'd be a diplomat, did you, Kyle?" asked Cheney.  The 
old man had a twinkle in his eye and Kyle sighed once more.


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

                    Chapter 22: Mountains and Doubt

                       Begun by Brian Stricklin
                    This chapter by Steven Scougall
               ----------------------------------------


It was late morning, and the group's progress through the mountains 
could be tracked by Mika's incessant whining.

"How much farther?" Mika complained.  "We've been climbing this 
mountain for hours!"

"Oh, getting to Suzaku shouldn't be more than a couple of days, three 
at the outside," Hiro informed her.

"Two days!?"

"A day and a half, really, but if by really bad luck we run into a 
dragon, it'll slow us down."

"What if we run into two?" Davin asked.

"Oh, that shouldn't happen.  They're very territorial, you see, and 
most of the times you come across two they're fighting each other.  
About the only time you could run into two dragons working together 
would be..." he trailed off, his expression paling.  "Oh dear."

"Le' me guess," sighed Jil.  "Durin' matin' season, right?  And it be 
matin' season right now, right?"

"You're very clever, Captain Fallensand," said Hiro.  "But really, we 
shouldn't be running into dragons if we're careful.  Everyone be 
quiet."  He took another step and accidentally kicked a pebble off the 
path.  The pebble tumbled down the mountainside and hit a rock.  The 
rock lurched free and fell down the cliff face while the original 
pebble hit another rock.  In this way the chain reaction continued 
until there was a small avalanche sliding down the cliff face, and it 
could probably be heard as far away as the Shogun's palace in Seiryuu.

"Oh dear," said Hiro.  "This is very bad indeed.  That had to have 
attracted attention."

"Uh oh," said Davin.

"What is it, Davin?" asked Marcine, picking up on his worry.

"The spirits are panicking.  Something big and dangerous is coming 
this way!"

"Quick, we have to hide!" shouted Hiro.  "If it is one of the mountain 
dragons and it catches us in the open, we're in trouble!  This way, 
there's a cave!"  He started running to the east.

Knowing she'd never be able to keep up, Davin picked up Mika.  The 
group then ran after Hiro as he led them towards the nearby cave, 
keeping them under rocky overhangs and trees as much as he could.  The 
effort to keep them mostly hidden, at least from the air, paid off and 
they weren't attacked by huge winged lizards as they hurried on.

The group ran into the final stretch, and saw that there was no cover 
- it was just a flat expanse of rock and the cave mouth a couple of 
hundred feet away.  And, right in front of them, was a large and angry 
looking blue dragon.  The group ducked back around the corner as the 
creature breathed lightning at them, and there was a loud thump as 
another of the huge creatures landed beside the first.

"I knew it," sighed Jil.

                               *  *  *

"The Dragoons from Tienne," announced the attendant.  The man bowed 
deeply and then shuffled to the side, allowing the Shogun full view of 
the three Dragoons and Cheney.  Kyle saw that the man's eyes almost 
automatically slipped off the old tracker - obviously the man wasn't 
considering Cheney to be any sort of threat.

That was good, it gave his group an advantage.  And in the hostile 
Ryukin Islands, the four men needed as many advantages as they could.

The Shogun's eyes rested on him for much longer.  Kyle looked into the 
man's eyes and held his gaze unflinchingly.  The Shogun kept his gaze 
locked on Kyle's for but a moment, then continued scanning the group.  
But Kyle could tell a lot from that small exchange - he obviously 
wasn't that sharp or effective a ruler, and could only be at the top 
because of military backing.  But that could still be dangerous.

"So," the Shogun finally said.  "Dragoons from the Church Headquarters 
in Tienne.  Why are you here, Dragoons?"

Kyle swallowed.  He was no ambassador - he hoped he wouldn't strain 
ties between the Ryukin Islands and the Church further.  He stepped 
forwards and addressed the Shogun.  "We are chasing a group of four 
heretics, who recently made the crossing to the Ryukin Islands.  We 
shall capture them and be on our way."

The Shogun sat there, mulling things over.  The only sound was that of 
his rings clicking against his lacquered throne as he thought.  
Nervous, Kyle watched the man, wondering what he was thinking.

"As it happens," the Shogun finally mused aloud, "a group of five 
foreigners were brought before me yesterday.  They may have been these 
heretics of yours.  Unfortunately, they saw the need to steal a 
precious item from me and run away during the night."

They were here?  And the first thing they had done was steal from the 
Shogun...?

"Our interests may coincide, Shogun."

The Shogun glared at him.  "Did I say you could speak?"

"Sorry, I-"

The Shogun sighed.  "Never mind, you are not aware of our ways.  So.  
Our interests may coincide.  You wish to have free run of the 
countryside, to seek these heretics of yours, yes?"

Kyle nodded.  "If possible, it would be good."  But he wondered what 
he was supposed to do once he found them, and if he'd ever be able to 
take them out of the Ryukin Islands.

"Very well.  But as they have committed a crime against Seiryuu, they 
must be judged here.  You will bring them here when you have captured 
the criminals."

And he'd probably never see them again, he privately thought.  The 
Shogun seemed like the sort of man who would backstab him as soon as 
Marcine and the others were back in his clutches.

The Shogun was saying something to an aide, and everyone else in the 
room dutifully laughed.  Kyle glanced briefly at Cheney, who was 
staring ahead, giving no indication of understanding.  But he'd be 
sure to get the translation later.

                               *  *  *

Davin slumped backwards to the side of the pass.  Two blue dragons?  
He wondered if their group of six could ever fight two dragons at once 
and expect to win.

But they had to succeed, or at least get past the two creatures.  He 
sighed, knowing they had only minutes, if that, to come up with a 
strategy.  The two dragons, no matter, how stupid they were, had to 
come around the corner eventually.

In readiness for that, he touched a hand to the rockface and sought 
the spirits of the mountains.  They were easily found - they were 
nearby and scared by the presence of the two huge monsters.

"Spirits of stone and mountain," he chanted softly, more to himself 
than anything else, "honour the ancient covenant and grant me your 
power."  The spirits were only too glad to help, and his arm took on a 
rocky appearance as the spirits rushed to his aid.  As they bonded, 
their knowledge of the mountains merged with his, and he became aware 
of the dead end behind them.  So there was no escape that way... 
they'd have to fight.

Marcine saw his arm and looked nervously at him.  "Do you really think 
we should fight against them?" she asked.

"Well, it is possible to fight a blue dragon and win," said Syeira.  
"Or so I've heard."

"But this be two of 'em," said Jil.  "Ye need blind luck on ye side to 
win against two."

"We have to get past them anyway," Davin informed them.  He pointed 
out behind them.  "The spirits are saying there's no way out that 
way."  He pointed ahead, to where the dragons waited.  "This is the 
only other way."

"That's true," said Hiro.

"So why in the Depths of the Deep Blue Seas did ye go THIS way?" asked 
Jil.

Davin ignored Jil's tirade and turned to their guide.  "Hiro, can you 
fight?"

"Me?  Yeah, I can fight.  Top of the class and undisputed champion for 
a few years."

"Until you lost the award?" asked Syeira.

Hiro hung his head.  "How'd you guess?"

The conversation was cut short as one of the dragons stomped around 
the corner, screeching at the group.

"Jil!" shouted Davin.  "Get Mika and Marcine clear!  Syeira and Hiro, 
you're with me!"

Davin was startled when Hiro screamed an extremely loud and furious 
battle cry, leaping at the dragon.  His blade flashed in the noon 
sunlight as it struck a mighty blow - but clanged off the creature's 
scaled hide.  The dragon roared and flailed at the samurai.  Hiro 
fought back, but clearly the dragon would be too much for him alone.

"Powers of earth and stone, render to the depths!  Pitfall!" shouted 
Davin.  At his command, the earth underneath the dragon collapsed into 
a large pit, and the dragon fell into it.  It roared in anger and 
before the ground above it sealed once more, it flew up out of the 
pit.

Hiro was safely back with the group, keeping a wary eye on the dragon.  
"It didn't succumb to even the strongest blow!" he yelled, worry in 
his voice.

"Of course not!" snapped Syeira.  "It has those scales!"

Something blurred past the group and thudded into and seemingly 
*through* the dragon's hide.  Arching its back, it screeched in pain 
again.  Davin looked back, and saw Jil approaching, shuriken in hand.

"Well then, we have ta try and go *between* the scales!" shouted Jil.

"That was incredible aim, Miss Fallensand!" exclaimed Hiro.

"I won't be able ta do that again, though," said Jil.  "It ain't 
standin' still anymore."

Davin wondered about the other two.  "What about Mika and Marcine?" he 
asked.

"Behind some big boulders," replied Jil.  "Should be safe there while 
we fight these things."

"And we're right out in the open here," muttered Syeira.  "So if it's 
mainly their breath, then...  Guardian souls, grant us your defense!  
Shell!"  There were no fancy effects, except a slight play to the 
light around the thief, where there was now an invisible forcefield.  
She quickly cast the spell a few more times, creating the barriers 
around the rest of the group.

It wasn't a moment too soon - the other dragon finally stomped around 
the corner and let loose a huge blast of lightning breath.  The 
electrical discharge played over the magical barriers and died out, 
leaving the group unharmed.

The dragons reared up onto their hind legs and screamed in fury, and 
breathed in unison upon the party.  This time, part of the attack did 
get through the barriers and gave the four a series of powerful 
shocks.  Davin fell to his hands and knees, his breathing ragged.

"Dammit," he heard Syeira mutter.  "The spell wasn't enough..."

Hiro staggered to his feet and cocked his sword.  There was flash as 
he yelled something incomprehensible in the Ryukin language, and then 
the samurai was charging at the dragons.

"What did he say?"

"I think it was 'Flames, ta me!', said Jil."

Davin looked closer and saw that Hiro's sword did seem to be burning.  
So the man could use powerful sword techniques... there was clearly a 
bit more to him than the bumbling fool he seemed to be.

The samurai reached the dragons and stabbed several times.  One of the 
dragons gave a great screech of pain and staggered backwards, blood 
oozing from several holes in its hide.  The initial fervour of his 
attack over, Hiro continued to desperately attack, stabbing several 
more times, but there wasn't as much power behind his blows.

Davin ran towards the dragons, commanding another Pitfall.  The ground 
collapsed underneath the wounded dragon just as it was about to land a 
killing blow.

"Powers of stone and earth, restore what once was!  Landfill!"  With 
that, the pit started to close, threatening to crush the dragon in its 
deadly embrace, but the monster flew clear once again.

There was a yell of "Shadow Knives!" and two indistinct knife shapes 
flew through the air at the dragon.  Davin gaped as they passed 
through the dragon - and then they solidified at the base of the 
dragon's wings, slicing through the tough flesh and cutting them off.  
With an earsplitting howl of pain, the dragon fell to earth, half its 
body landing in what remained of the pit just before it closed shut.  
The dragon thrashed and screamed wildly, half its body crushed to a 
fine paste.  It gave one final screech, then collapsed.

A massive paw slammed into him as the other dragon took exception to 
its mate being messily killed.  Davin went flying forwards and slammed 
hard into the rockface.  He crumpled to the ground, every part of his 
body bathed in hot pain.  He wasn't sure he could move.

After what could have been hours or seconds, he heard Marcine shouting 
his name.  He cracked an eye open and saw her running towards him.

"No, don't come into the open-" he started.

She ignored his command and kneeled down.  "You're badly hurt..."  She 
bit her lip.  "It's not much, but..."  She closed her eyes and chanted 
softly.  "Soul of the living world, aid your fallen child.  Cure!"

There was a brilliant flash of light, and specks of green, and Davin 
felt a bit better than he had before.  He managed to get to his feet 
and looked back at the battle.

It wasn't going well.  The dragon did have various gouges and cuts in 
its body, and one of its wings was missing, but it was still mostly 
fine and fighting hard.  The others, for their part, were scattered 
around the battlefield, barely able to move.

As he watched, Jil threw several shuriken at the beast, all but one 
going between the scales and into the dragon's flesh beneath its tough 
hide.  But it could never be enough, the small weapons would never be 
able to penetrate to the vital organs buried deep in the beast's body.

She threw a couple more of the star shaped shuriken, this time aimed 
at the beast's head. It flinched, and the weapons clattered into its 
armoured snout and fell to the ground.  The dragon breathed back at 
her in response.  The magical barrier around the woman held out for a 
moment, and then died out.  She screamed and fell limp.

Davin wondered why she had stuck with the shuriken if she had a 
cutlass.  Then he realised that her sword would never be able to hurt 
the dragon.  His and Hiro's swords, being narrower, could go between 
the scales; but her cutlass was wide, even more curved, and would 
never penetrate the dragon's armoured hide.

He didn't feel confident enough of his abilities to go through the 
dragon's scales, though.  He sought the spirits of the mountain once 
more but he was too weak to hold a stable connection.

Down, and no way to fight back... what could he do?

Placing a hand on the ground, Davin sought the spirits again.  But the 
spirits remained maddeningly elusive.  Sometimes the connection was 
strong and clear, and the next moment the lingering pain ruined his 
concentration and will, and the connection with the spirits faded, 
almost to nonexistence.

Desperate, he probed harder and deeper-

And then there was something, but it wasn't any of the spirits of the 
mountain.

"What is it you wish, Geomancer?" it asked, its voice rich and 
sonorous.

"Please, help us!  We're going to die!"

There was a moment's pause as his desperation grew.  Then it spoke 
once more.  "To protect the Legacy and to honour the ancient covenant, 
Geomancer," it stated, "I lend my power to you."

Davin felt a new essence and a wave of energy, revitalising him.  He 
saw his sword in front of him, light glaring off its blade.  He traced 
the light back to his own forearm, which was glowing brightly, unlike 
anything he'd ever seen before.

Words instinctively came to his head, and he chanted them willingly.  
"Great spirits beyond, grant me the power to destroy those who stand 
in our way!  HOLY BLADE!"

Holy Blade...?  But hadn't the Academy said the Holy Blade was a lost 
art?

His sword flared brightly, and he could *feel* the power radiating 
from it.  He stopped worrying about lost arts and ran at the dragon, 
screaming a challenge to it.  It turned and breathed lightning at him.

The attack felt like nothing, like the merest scratch or lightest 
tickle.  And then he was upon the beast and thrusting deep into its 
body.  Blood flew, obscuring his vision, and he was almost deafened by 
the loudness of the dragon's death scream.

The power left him and he felt more exhausted than he'd ever been in 
his life.  He pulled his sword from the dragon and managed to stagger 
a few steps, and then collapsed into unconsciousness.

                               *  *  *

Siegvin marched stolidly through the Ryukin wilds towards the nearby 
mountains.  Darovan's Legacy was most likely heading towards Genji's 
tomb.  That meant they were heading towards Suzaku, the capital.  If 
Siegvin was any judge, they wanted to get there as quickly as 
possible, and would have gone through the mountains instead of around.  
And if they didn't, then he'd be able to surprise them when they 
finally arrived at the tomb.

He grinned nastily behind his mask.  It would be the last surprise of 
their lives...

"You there!  Identify yourself!"

Siegvin snarled.  This was the third time he'd encountered a patrol of 
samurai and just like the two before, they challenged him on sight.  
Each time he could talk his way through, but his patience was wearing 
thin.  The next time, he swore silently, he wasn't going to talk, but 
fight his way past.

"Well?" snapped the lead samurai.  "State your name and business!"

His patience snapped.  The hell with the next time, he'd start now.  
He drew his blood red sword and with a cry of "ZANTETSUKEN!" he 
charged.  Their eyes widened, recognising the name, and then he was 
upon them.

The patrol was clearly outclassed.  A couple of the samurai managed to 
strike at him, but he easily parried their blows.  A few short slashes 
later, the job was done.

"Elite warriors, indeed," mocked Siegvin, leaving their bloody bodies 
behind.

                               *  *  *

Suzaku was the nearest large city and was the capital of the Islands.  
Also, added Cheney, there was a shrine there that the group of 
heretics would probably want to visit.  It was the next logical place 
for Marcine and the others to go, so that was where the Dragoons were 
headed.

"Well, there's a road to Suzaku, or we can go through the mountains," 
said Cheney.

"Which way would they have gone?"

"Probably through the mountains," Cheney guessed.  "There's the risk 
of running into a blue dragon or two, but is quicker.  They're 
probably desperate enough."

True, Kyle thought grimly.  His sister wanted to get away from him.  
She was probably desperate enough to risk a couple of dragons.

They headed towards the nearby mountains.  A short distance from the 
capital they were challenged by a patrol of samurai.  Kyle fished 
around in his belongings and brought out the official letter from the 
Shogun of Seiryuu.  The lead samurai glanced over it, snorted, and 
handed it back.

"You can go ahead," the samurai said in a thick accent.

The official letter allowed them the run of the country, or at least 
this part of it, and was signed by the Shogun of Seiryuu himself.  
While the three Dragoons couldn't understand a word of it, it looked 
very impressive.  But their opinion of it dropped when Cheney 
translated it for them.

"'Let these fools go about their business', sir!?" asked Martin.

"It really says 'They'll probably get killed by dragons anyway', 
Cheney?" asked Reill.

"Yes and yes," said Cheney.

"They obviously don't think much of us, captain," commented Reill.

"Oh, and did you notice, sir?"

"What is it, Martin?"

"That Shogun guy never once specified who yesterday's foreigners are!  
We could be chasing someone completely different!"

Kyle looked at Martin, pleased.  The new recruit was becoming smarter.

Cheney chuckled.  "Not to worry, boy.  Remember how he made a joke to 
the aides?"

"I wanted to ask you about that when we had time," said Kyle.  "We 
have time now.  What did he say?"

"He said that once we brought those three women, girl, and wannabe 
Ryukin swordsman back, they could play Spot The Bigger Foreign Idiots.  
That sounds like the heretics, doesn't it?"

"Three?  There are only two women amongst the heretics," said Martin.

"One of them is probably Captain Fallensand," said Kyle, and sighed.  
That was another thing he was worrying about.  When they caught up, 
would they have to fight against their old comrade as well?  He wasn't 
looking forward to the prospect.

"Captain Fallensand?  But she-"

"I know, Reill," said Kyle.  "But if she's helping the heretics, then 
we'll have no choice."

The group trudged on along the country road, the two recruits 
digesting that last piece of news.  Judging from their souring 
expressions, they clearly weren't happy with the prospect.  Kyle 
wasn't, either.  And then there was that strange masked man he'd 
encountered in Ashgar, and the cult of the Manakyr were involved...  
He sighed.  The situation just went from bad to worse.

"That sucks, captain," observed Reill, wrenching Kyle back to the 
present.

"Yeah, sir," said Martin.  "We fought by Captain Jil against the 
Kraken and those nasty goblin creatures, and we survived.  Now we'll 
have to fight her instead?"

"Reill, Martin, that's enough!  Yes, it's unfair.  But if she's 
helping the heretics, then we have no choice!  Remember the code of 
the Dragoons and the laws of the Church!"

The two continued walking, muttering.  Kyle tuned them out, but 
couldn't help hearing Martin mutter "...even his own sister..."

He spun around, his face a mask of fury.  "How do you think *I* feel, 
Private Martin?  Do you think I'm *enjoying* this?  Let me tell you, 
private, I'm not!  But this is our duty as Dragoons of the Holy 
Church!  To seek out all heretics and those who help them-"

He caught sight of Cheney.  Cheney, who had helped the heretics.  
Cheney, who had helped him, a heretic himself.  He stopped, ashamed.

The old man patted him on the shoulder.  "I'm sure you'll do what's 
right when the time comes, Kyle," said the tracker, and walked on.

"Are you alright, captain?" asked Reill.

"You look nervous, sir," observed Martin.

"I'll be fine," gritted Kyle, not meaning it.  But anything to get the 
two off his back...

Before he'd managed to rationalise not telling them about Summoning a 
Sleeper, telling himself they hadn't asked.  But now they had, and 
he'd outright lied to them.  He looked down at the road, fists 
trembling in anger, and there was moistness on his cheeks.  It was all 
so unfair.  He was just trying to do his duty - and his family was 
torn apart, he'd become a heretic himself, and now he was even lying 
to his own men.  But what could he do?  Tell them the truth?  That 
would mean he'd never face his own sister, and find out why this had 
all happened...

He was turning into the sort of man he despised.  He clutched at his 
head, almost as if trying to rip the treacherous thoughts from his 
mind, to tear out the memories of the past few weeks and go back to 
the Kyle Cavanaugh he'd been before Marcine healed that boy.

That was another thing - it all started simply because Marcine 
*healed* someone...

But he couldn't think like that!  He couldn't allow himself to think 
that Marcine had been *right*...

He found himself kneeling on the road.  By the Three Gods... he 
couldn't let Reill and Martin see him like this.

"Captain?"

"Sir!?"

"Kyle?" asked Cheney.  The old man kneeled down by him, putting a kind 
hand on his shoulder, and looked directly into his eyes.  His eyes 
seemed to burn bright and clear.  "This is what we've all been warning 
you about," he murmured, too low for the others to hear.  "What 
Captain Fallensand said and what I said before that."

There he went again, saying the same old thing over and over...  "I 
KNOW!" he screamed into the old man's face.  "But there's nothing I 
can DO about it!"

"What's wrong with the captain, Cheney?"

Cheney stood up.  "I can't say, Reill.  The stress of chasing his own 
sister so she can be put in the Wall is probably finally getting to 
him."  He paused.  Kyle looked up and saw the old man looking around.  
Cheney nodded once and spoke.  "We should probably stop here and let 
the captain recover."

"We can't stop," said Kyle, managing to stand.  "We have to go on.  
Mar... That is, the heretics are probably a long way ahead of us 
already."

Reill and Martin exchanged a glance, but followed him without a 
further word.

                               *  *  *

Now that the battle was over and the group was continuing through the 
mountains, Davin had time to worry.

The Holy Blade was supposed to be a power only the strongest and 
greatest of spirits could grant, and was a legendary lost art of 
Geomancy.  Merely contacting the spirits required was supposed to take 
several hours of deep meditation, and another hour of fanciful 
preparations before that.  All of which was clearly ridiculous in a 
combat situation, and it hadn't been seen or used in centuries.

But all it had taken him was one moment of sheer desperation.  Had it 
just been luck?  Or had the spirit been watching, and waiting for him 
to call?  Either way was nerve-wracking.  Luck meant that the entire 
party had been too close to death; but if the spirit had been watching 
and waiting, how long had it been doing so?  Since when, and since 
where?

Perhaps the spirit had been here in the mountains all this time.  He 
asked Hiro.

"A magic spirit in the mountains?" Hiro responded.  "The mountain has 
many spirits."

"No..." said Davin.  "Not a normal spirit.  This one was..." he 
searched for words.  "Bigger.  More luminescent.  Shining brightly, 
yet more distant." 

Hiro looked puzzled.  "Almost like a god?"

A god?  "Maybe..." Davin responded.

Hiro thought about that for a minute.

"I don't know of any gods or major spirits in these mountains," he 
said at last.  "But then, these mountains have many mysteries, and 
something always happens when I pass through them."

"Not surprised," muttered Syeira, a few steps behind them.

Oblivious, Hiro chattered on.  "So it could be that there is a major 
spirit or god in these mountains.  But I advise that we do not stop 
here - the Emperor is waiting for you.  Well, probably.  He did seem 
excited about meeting you all.  But you can come back later.  Unless 
Seiryuu's troops are passing through, or something like that, of 
course."

"Let's just continue on," said Davin.  If he really wanted to, he 
could come back later.  For now, it would not be wise to annoy the 
Emperor of an entire country, even if he wasn't much more than the 
figurehead Jil had explained him to be.

He thought about the Holy Blade once more.  Perhaps most worrying of 
all, it had felt almost like magic.  He didn't have the proper frame 
of reference, having never used magic before, but somehow, he knew.

They rounded the corner of the pathway and got their first clear view 
of Suzaku, and stopped in amazement.

"Wow..." breathed Mika.

"It's the phoenix!" cried Syeira.

And she was right.  The Ryukin Island's capital city had been artfully 
laid out - instead of the usual circular shape the group was used to, 
the outline of the city was clearly that of the mythical bird rising 
from the depths of fire.  In the centre of the city there was a large 
castle, clearly visible even from this great distance.  A short 
distance to the north of the city, where the phoenix was 'looking', 
there was another building.  It wasn't as large as the castle, but 
just as bright.

"That's Suzaku, our capital," Hiro said proudly.  "The castle is the 
Emperor's Palace and the building to the north is Genji's Tomb.  
And..."  He noticed Marcine standing still, looking nervously at the 
city.  "Miss Marcine?  Is there something wrong?"

"The Phoenix..." she managed.  "Darovan used it to gain 
immortality..."

"Darovan?" asked the samurai.  "Who's that?"

"An... evil man who lived along ago," explained Marcine.  "He used the 
power of the Phoenix to revitalise his life whenever he was about to 
die, and terrorised the country for several hundred years."

"Oh," said Hiro.  "I doubt that this phoenix is the same as this 
Darovan's.  Instead, it's one of the Ryukin Island's four gods.  
You've got Suzaku, the phoenix.  Seiryuu is the blue dragon, Byakko is 
the white tiger, and Genbu is the dark warrior."

"'Dark Warrior'?" asked Syeira.  "Not some sort of animal?"

"Well, yes it is.  But Dark Turtle Mating With Snake isn't quite as 
snappy as the other names, is it?"

Everyone went green, trying not to think about what Hiro had just 
said.  They were largely unsuccessful.

"A turtle mating with a snake?" cried Mika.  "Eww!  YUCK!"

"It is a bit like that when you first hear it," said Hiro.  "But it's 
usually just portrayed as a turtle with a snake for a tail, and 
someone must have decided a long time ago to call it the Dark Warrior 
instead.  I don't blame him, Dark Turtle Mating With Snake is a 
mouthful to say."  Hiro looked confused for a moment.  "Where was I?  
Oh yes.  So they're our Four Gods, and the four largest cities of the 
Ryukin Islands are named after them."  Hiro gestured towards the 
capital of Suzaku again.  "And as you can see, they're also designed 
in the shape of the Four Gods."

Marcine was staring at the city outline again, trying not to think of 
Darovan.

"It doesn't have anything to do with him," Davin said quietly, walking 
up beside her.  "It's just an eerie coincidence."

She shuddered and turned away.  "I know... but still.  The only time I 
ever learnt about the Phoenix was how Darovan used it...  And whenever 
I look at this city..."

"It'll be alright," said Davin.  Much to his surprise, he gave her a 
reassuring hug.  He quickly pulled away, wondering what had come over 
him -

She looked at him, confusion clear on her face, and held a hand up to 
her chest - she was probably just as nervous as he was.  "Davin?  
That... um..."  She looked down.  "Thank you."

Davin didn't know what to say.

"Hey, come on!  We have to hurry to get out of the mountains by 
nightfall!" shouted Hiro, breaking the spell between them.  They 
looked over and saw he and the others were already a good distance 
ahead, and looking back at them.  Davin sighed - Mika had probably 
seen them, and would tease him mercilessly.

They hurried to catch up with the others, and the group continued on 
their way to Suzaku.

(To be continued)


Author's Notes
--------------
Hmm... lots of action with Davin's group and the Dragoons, but almost 
none with any of the other plot points.  I did consider writing some 
scenes with Stine, Pearl and the Goddess' flames back in Tienne, but 
didn't get around to it.  Bad me.  But still, this is halfway decent.  
I hope.  ^_^;

The credits section:  Kate Malloy and the Eternal Lost Lurker preread 
and made sure this chapter wasn't horrible.  There were a few bits 
that they didn't get to see because I wrote them at the last minute - 
the most notable being the Siegvin scene.  So you can exclusively 
blame me for that if you think it's bad or is too violent.

Credit also go to Platypus, who on the messageboard made the 
suggestion that Hiro have Gourry syndrome and be a skilled swordsman.  
I liked this idea too much to ignore.  ^_^

Thank you for reading.

Steven Scougall
8th July 2000
http://www.crosswinds.net/~sscougall/