The sun climbed higher in its arc above La Verde, casting shining rays down through scattered, wispy clouds, gleamingly caressing the massive starsilver hulls of Manakyr airships on their way toward the sea... and a small ship, anchored in the harbour. "Are you sure?" Kyle asked grimly, brushing a bead of sweat out of his eyes. It was uncomfortably warm below decks in full battle gear, but definitely preferable to the Manakyr seeing armoured Church Dragoons topside. "Aye." Jil nodded. "They be searching for your sister, Marcine." Kyle bit back a curse. Was _everyone_ after Marcine? Siegvin was looking for her to kill her, the Manakyr wanted her for who knew what, and Kyle... ...still didn't know what he would say or do when he found her. If he found her. His eyes swept the faces of his men. Cheney's features were calm and unreadable as always, while Reill's betrayed a hint of nervousness. By contrast, Martin's expression was fixed with determination, as if ready to take on the entire Manakyr army himself. In any case, if the Manakyr were searching ships in the harbour for Marcine, it was a fair bet that she might be nearby. And as for the Manakyr army... if the Church was ever going to reclaim La Verde, the first step would have to be to gain information about the invaders. "I think it's time for a little reconaissance work," Kyle said aloud. "In broad daylight?" Reill protested. "If we're spotted..." Kyle turned to the oldest member of their party. "Cheney?" Cheney nodded slowly. "As I recall, La Verde has quite a number of secret passages. If we can get to them, we can probably observe a fair portion of the city undetected." "I be coming with ye, then," Jil spoke up. "We still be needin' supplies. And if I can reach me nest egg, 'twill make the rest of the journey go easier." "All right, then." Kyle stood. "Let's go." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- FINAL FANTASY LEGACY Knights of the Round Created by Brian Stricklin This chapter by Marcus Fong Chapter 28: Meetings and Partings -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Twenty-one steps. Davin counted silently to himself as he groped his way along the wall, one hand gripping Marcine's wrist tightly. The secret passage they were currently navigating was, unfortunately, entirely dark, so he was holding onto Marcine and she was holding onto Mika in an awkward human chain arrangement. Twenty-two steps. Five to go. "This one has observed something following us," Shizuka's voice said in his ear. Davin managed not to jump; the ninja denied being able to see in the dark any better than the rest of them, but somehow she moved in it as easily as any night creature. "Do you know what it is?" Davin whispered back. Twenty-three steps. Twenty- four. Almost there... A brief pause. "This one is not sure." Terrific. Davin tensed as a faint, furry rustle came from up the corridor behind them. He felt Marcine twitch; she must have heard it, too. "Davin..." she breathed. "Shh," he soothed. "It'll be okay. Remember, no magic." He turned his head to address the darkness where he estimated Mika was. "And _no explosions_," he hissed. "We can't afford to attract attention." Twenty-five steps. He readied himself, preparing to step back past Marcine and Mika, although he wasn't at all sure how well he could fight in darkness. "Shizuka?" No answer. "Shizuka?" he repeated, louder, feeling his stomach sink as he strained his ears, trying to listen past the sound of his and the others' breathing. He felt rather than heard it, the heavy snap of wings unfolding and a sudden rush of displaced air. Instinct took over and he yanked Marcine forward, ignoring her muffled cry of surprise-- --and something heavy swooped through the gap where Marcine had been, fanning them with the breeze of its passage. Davin whirled to face it. Or at least he would have, if Marcine hadn't flailed for balance and caught him in the side of the head with the Phoen Staff. Odd, how he'd never noticed how hard that thing really was, he noted dimly as a rainbow of lights exploded behind his eyes, temporarily banishing the blackness of the passage. Davin felt another faint, tickling breeze as something small and very fast sliced through the air overhead, followed by a high, whistling screech which echoed painfully... until it was cut off by a rather final-sounding thud. "That will trouble us no further," Shizuka's quiet voice floated down to him. "This one apologises for not disposing of it sooner." Davin blinked. He was on the floor? Strange, he felt... nice. Like he could just lie here for a while... "Uh, Davin? Could... you get off me now?" Marcine sounded faintly embarrassed. "Oh. Sorry." He scrambled to his feet, hoping that she couldn't feel the heat of his blush. And groaned. He'd completely lost track of where they were. "Everyone? Check the walls. There should be a button around here somewhere..." * "Strange," Cheney muttered. "What is it?" Kyle asked impatiently. It had taken quite a bit of time to sneak past the guards at the docks, only to plunge into a maze of passages which seemed to have taken them halfway around the city. Now the four of them were cramped uncomfortably into a narrow passageway, concealed between the inner and outer walls of an abandoned building. "They seem to have called off the hunt," Cheney said, turning away from the tiny gap he'd been peering through. "The search parties we've been seeing on the streets are suddenly all gone. I wonder what that means." _I hope they haven't found her,_ Kyle said to himself. "We should keep moving," he said aloud. "We've got a lot of ground to cover yet." * "That's odd. They don't look like Dragoons," Davin frowned, eyeing the two red-robed men standing across the street. One of them turned his way, and Davin ducked back hastily into the shadows. "Are we there yet?" Mika piped up. "Not yet. Just a few more passages, and we'll be on our way to the Mystic Academy." Davin watched the men carefully, waiting for them to turn their backs... "Everyone, go!" They made it to the other side without incident, and Davin was just breathing a sigh of relief, when the shout came. "FOUL HERETICS!" "What?" Davin's head snapped around, and he fought the impulse to groan. A familiar figure was charging at them, his rapier tracing gleaming arcs of sunlight as he waved it angrily. "Hold, heretics, and face the righteous wrath of the Citizens' Justice!" Stine bellowed. "Run!" Davin hissed to the others, scooping Mika up into his arms as cries rose from the robed soldiers out of view. As the group dashed around the next corner, Davin looked back to see a gout of flame momentarily obscure Stine from view, mingled with the Beastmaster's furious shouts. "Heretic, thou wouldst obstruct the Citizens' Justice? Beastmaster Stine shalt--argh!" Some distance up the street in the other direction, a pair of inhuman eyes flared eagerly as they settled on Marcine's fleeing figure. The prey was in sight. Now all it had to do was follow. * "What was that?" Kyle paused. Shouting, the roar and crackle of flames... "It sounds like a fight of some kind," Cheney answered, stopping. "It might be Marcine." Kyle threw a glance at Jil. "Captain Fallensand..." Jil merely shook her head with a wry smile. "Ye'll not be gettin' rid of me that easily, lad." "All right." Kyle nodded. "Keep to the shadows, everyone; we don't know what's actually happening over there." He nodded to Cheney, who slipped off in the direction of the sounds, taking point; the rest of them gripped their weapons and followed, trying to stay out of sight. * "Do you think we've lost him?" Marcine panted, as they rounded another corner into a wide alleyway. "I think so." Davin eased Mika down to the ground, looking around. "Hopefully, he'll draw their attention for a while." He thought for a moment, getting his bearings, and pointed to the other end of the alley. "The next passage is... that way." "But that's a dead end, Big Brother!" Davin grinned and winked. "It _looks_ like one, doesn't it? Just give me a minute to get it open..." "Halt, heretics, in the name of the Church!" Everyone's heads turned to see a slightly singed Stine advancing on them. "I don't believe it..." Davin groaned, but his sword was out in an instant as he stepped in front of Marcine and Mika. "Surrender! Thou canst not escape--AUGH!" Stine was suddenly cut off as something very large rounded the corner, powerful feet trampling him into the dust as it moved singlemindedly toward the group. Everyone looked up to see a blue-skinned nightmare standing over Stine's unconscious body, thickly muscled legs tensed to spring, clawed arms outstretched menacingly. And the eyes in its tigerish head were fixed directly on Marcine. It lunged. * "Sir!" The Initiate dashed up to Terrin as he stared out the window of the Manakyr headquarters. "The Atma Beasts have found something!" "Something?" Terrin's head whipped around. "The Legacy?" The initiate nodded rapidly. "Almost certainly, sir. Shall we send extra troops to the location?" Terrin thought for a moment. "No. The Atma Beasts should be able to handle her without interference." His expression sharpened. "But double the guard on the gates and docks. She must _not_ be allowed to escape us." "Yes, sir." * The creature lashed out again, the blow screeching harshly off Davin's shield as he brought it up to block. His sword flicked out, opening a shallow cut in the tough hide of its forearm, but he might as well have been tickling it with a feather for all the damage he'd done. Its speed and reach were simply too great for him to effectively counterattack. "Untamed ferocity, drawn from the limitless skies above..." Marcine chanted behind him, as Davin was forced back again by another lethal swipe. "DiBolt!" Lightning crackled brilliantly over his shoulder, striking the thing dead on... but it only stumbled for an instant before resuming its onslaught. "Rage that burns within the heart, reveal yourself and consume my foes! Flame!" Shizuka intoned calmly, and a hungry sheet of fire washed over the creature. When the flame cleared, it was shaking its head in apparent pain, but again it seemed to recover. Magic wasn't damaging it quickly enough, Davin noted as he parried another swing and leapt back, clearing a space between him and the enemy. "Mika!" he yelled, but a potion bottle was already sailing overhead; it burst with a sound like a thunderclap, staggering the beast. But it kept coming. Come on, Davin, he told himself. Think of something. Anything. Just maybe... the Holy Blade, if he could make it work. It would leave him exhausted, but he only needed to take out the one creature, and then they could escape. Taking a deep breath, he reached out to his sword, and the essence of Genji bound within... And stopped, staring in shock. Two more beasts, identical to the first, loped around the corner, bellowing twin roars of challenge. Grimly, Davin noted that the alleyway was wide enough for two of them at once, as they advanced to outflank him. And then he was far too busy staying alive to think about anything else. * "Howling breath of winter, freeze the blood! Di-Ice!" Ice crystals swirled and formed around the beast, rapidly solidifying as it roared with pain... ...and cracked, falling away almost instantly. Shimmering blue dust cascaded from its head--flakes of its skin?--but nothing more. Marcine bit her lip anxiously, feeling helpless. What could she use? Involuntarily, her hand went to her pouch and the Guardian Eggs within. Her fingers brushed over one of them, smooth and strangely warm... She shuddered, her memory darting back to the hooded figure that she'd seen inside that Egg, radiating insanity and menace. No. Not yet. Not unless things became so desperate that it wouldn't matter. The other Egg, the green one? Possible, but they were very close to the centre of the city; she remembered reading that Bahamut had leveled most of Tienne in Darovan's final battle with Clea... "_Marcine_!" Mika yelled, shocking Marcine out of her momentary distraction. She snapped her head around just in time to see the nearest beast clutching for her, its taloned hand filling her vision-- --and then a weight hit her hard in the side, sending her tumbling across the paved street, and she heard Davin's cry of pain. * They were nearing the sounds of the fight now, and Kyle was wondering just how they were going to get near it without showing themselves. The noises seemed to be coming from behind a broad, two-storey building nearby--maybe they could jump onto its rooftop... "_Marcine_!" the cry came, from the direction of the fight. Calculation blanked itself from his mind. "Follow me!" he roared, triggering his Boost Armour's jets with a fiery whoosh. Reill and Martin followed an instant later, riding fiery trails over the rooftops. * Marcine scrambled to her hands and knees, checking Davin over. He had several deep gashes across his back, courtesy of the creature's clawed fingers. Too deep. She looked up as one of Shizuka's shuriken flew with deadly accuracy, slicing into one of the nearest beast's eyes. It reeled back, bellowing in agony. Another bottle from Mika followed close behind, and when the smoke cleared the beast was staggering, obviously badly hurt... but there was another one, and another behind the first two. No options left. She felt for the Eggs in her pouch, and gasped in dismay. Looking wildly around, she spotted the pouch lying a metre or so away, knocked free by Davin's tackle. She looked from the pouch to Davin and back again, wondering frantically what she should do-- "GROUND ZERO!" A dark shape dove out of the midday sun, a long weapon leveled and extended at the wounded beast's head. A brilliant burst of light flared as it made contact. Marcine wasn't watching, though; whoever it was had just bought her time, and she couldn't waste any of it. "Soul of the world, lend merciful aid to the wounded and in need..." she said softly. "DiCure." Green light danced and sparkled, Davin's wounds knitting and closing as she watched. The flash died away, and the beast staggered and collapsed, shaking the stones of the alley. Davin stirred and started to rise, Marcine helping him up; miraculously, he'd managed to hold on to his sword. She glanced back at the alley and saw the newcomers--three figures in Church Dragoon armour--squaring off against the remaining monsters, who had backed off a few steps as they contemplated this new threat. "Marcie, get out of here!" one of them shouted, and she froze. _Kyle?_ For an instant, she contemplated doing just that, leaving him... but she couldn't. As the two beasts closed in, she estimated the distance between them and Kyle and his Dragoons. Just enough. "Fury of mother earth, tremble and explode! Quake!" Paving stones and earth erupted beneath clawed feet. The creatures wavered, stumbled and fell... but the spell would only buy time. Davin seemed to realise it, too; he hastily sheathed his sword and went to the dead end, placing his hands on the rough brick of the wall and closing his eyes. Marcine looked back in time to see Cheney and Jil Fallensand sprinting around the corner, past the sprawled beasts. "There be more of them!" Jil cried. "Comin' this way!" Davin opened his eyes, exhaling, and the bricks in front of him slid away, revealing a narrow passage into darkness. Marcine glanced back again. The downed monsters were getting back up... and two more were crowding into the alley entrance. She took a deep breath. "Kyle!" she yelled. "Cheney! Jil!" Then Davin dragged her into the passageway. There was a brief flurry of sound and several groans of discomfort as everyone piled in, then Davin murmured something and the brick opening snapped shut with unexpected force. The thwarted cries of the beasts followed them as they escaped into the darkness. * They stopped a short while later as the passage opened out, another deserted alley visible at its end as the sun peeked brightly in. Davin, Marcine and Mika eyed the Dragoons apprehensively; Kyle, Reill and Martin looked uncomfortable, Cheney impassive as always... but there was a faint twinkle in his eye, Marcine thought. Shizuka and Jil stood back, the one expressionless, the other with a slight smile on her face. Finally, Kyle turned to his men. "Martin, why don't you stay in La Verde? Hide your armour, see what you can find out. When the Church comes back to retake it, they'll need every bit of information they can get on the city and its defences." Martin looked at Kyle for an instant, then nodded. "Yes, sir." "Reill?" "It's all right, sir," Reill said, arching an eyebrow. "I'll stay with him." Kyle's voice became brisk. "All right, good luck, you two." The two Dragoons saluted and tramped away down the passage. "Good luck, Miss Marcine," Martin commented as he passed her. "I thought about asking you to stay," Kyle sighed, turning to Cheney. "But I knew the answer already." Cheney half-smiled. "Birds of a feather, eh, Kyle?" Marcine watched her brother's lips twitch; then he turned to her, letting out a long breath. As if steeling himself for something... She tensed. "Sis." Kyle's eyes came up to meet hers, and she was momentarily surprised by the conflict swirling behind them. "We have to talk..." He fumbled with something at his belt, and his hand came up, offering her back her dropped pouch and its precious Eggs. And then his next words made her breath catch in her throat. "...as one heretic to another." Author's Notes: Whew. That was an interesting week. Overlapping Impro deadlines are just _such_ fun. =P Immense gratitude and thanks go to Terence Fergusson and Brian Stricklin, for their patience in pre-reading at the absolute last minute and for preventing me from making several silly slip-ups. And thanks, Brian, for providing much-needed direction via a terrific setup job in #27.