The voice pierced through the comfortable darkness. _Come to me._ Marcine opened her eyes. Twilight crept over a long sprawl of mountain range before her. A light wind moaned over the peaks, rushing toward the darkening horizon. She looked around, recognising her surroundings. She was in the mountains, somewhere west or southwest of Yahl Russa. Something struck her as wrong about that, but she couldn't quite pin down _what_... The voice hammered into her skull. _Obey me._ _No!_ Marcine wavered unsteadily on her feet, fighting down panic. She wouldn't let him force her under his spell again. Not again! Never! _Oh, but he can,_ something whispered darkly in her ear. Dark, with a black touch of madness. _You weren't strong enough for him when last you met. And the time before that, you bent to his will. So it shall be again._ Marcine shook her head in despairing denial. She hugged herself, shivering at the sudden inner chill she felt-- A grinding roar echoed from the peaks before her. Marcine stared, wide-eyed, as the mountains themselves seemed to burst in a hail of rock fragments and dust, eclipsing the sunset in smoky clouds. A deep hum cut through the air. The young mage felt the distant tingle of magic in her bones. Then, as the winds tore and scattered the last of the dust clouds, she saw it. Its bulk loomed over the towering peaks, a swarm of airships hovering around it like so many starsilver bees. And Darovan's exultant laughter rang through her head, turning awe into panicked flight. The mountains vanished behind her with impressive speed, giving way to snow-dusted plains. A broad swath of forest stood out darkly below her-- Below her? Marcine twisted around. Somehow she was in the air, tracing low over the northern landscape. The oddly shadowed moon behind her caught her eye, and she turned further to get a better look, noting that the shadow moved with her... And then she realised that she _was_ the shadow. _HADES!_ Darovan bellowed in her head. Marcine shrieked, jerking in midflight. Something struck her hard across the head, and the sky and the forest and Darovan's voice mercifully winked out. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- FINAL FANTASY LEGACY Knights of the Round Created by Brian Stricklin This chapter by Marcus Fong Chapter 48: Journeys and Interludes -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- "Aren't we going to stop for the night?" Pearl asked tiredly. "No time!" Lumina threw back over her shoulder. "We've still got a long way to go!" Muttering, Pearl followed after the Moon Knight, trying to ignore the sound of minotaurs crashing noisily through the forest behind her. Where _did_ that little girl get all her energy from? Pearl wondered. She glanced up, to see a full moon looking brightly back down on her. Well, that was one question answered... Night swallowed the moon utterly, then rushed on. Pearl blinked. "Did you see that--?" she began, turning to Lumina... who, she realised, was staring up at the moon fearfully. "Hades..." the young Knight whispered. "I can feel it, he's..." Her eyes met Pearl's, and for an instant she looked just like a lost, scared little girl. Then the moment passed, and Lumina's eyes narrowed firmly. "Everyone over here. Now." "What?" Pearl asked, confused, as Lumina grabbed her wrist. "What was--" "No time to explain!" the girl cut her off, waving Zarela towards them with her unbandaged arm. "We have to get out of here! Sacred, Minotaur! Move it!" "Comin', boss..." "Okay, everyone, hold on tight and _don't let go_..." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- In the midst of the Great Russa Forest, moogles blinked in confusion as the moon's rays shimmered and coalesced, shaping themselves into glowing likenesses of... a very odd assortment of people. The glowing figures waxed and waned, fading in and out... then flared brightly, and vanished. "...kupo?" The moogles exchanged glances, and shrugged. "Kupo." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- A stray beam of moonlight crept into the darkness of a cavern, playing along the floor inches away from a shadowed, resting form. Siegvin surged to his feet. The Fallen One's cursed blade leapt out, a hairsbreadth away from slicing through the flickering figures before him. An instant later, the dark Ashura sword cut through empty air. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- "You couldn't sleep either?" Shizuka turned to face Kyle as the Dragoon came up beside her. "This one did not feel particularly tired." Kyle leaned on the railing, looking out at the sea. "They'll certainly have a working radio in La Verde. Hopefully, we'll be able to get a transmission through to Marcine and the others from there." "This one is glad to hear that." Shizuka reached down to her belt, stroking Griever absently. "Don't worry," Kyle said unexpectedly. "They'll be fine." His voice was steady, but his face was turned away from her. It didn't take much for Shizuka to guess at the lines of concern etched across it. "This one is sure that they will be," the young ninja agreed, politely playing along with his transparent attempt to make her feel better. Oddly enough, however, it _did_ make her feel better. Somehow. Before she could ponder it any further, her attention was drawn by a flash from the direction of the sea. "Did you see that?" Kyle asked. Shizuka blinked. "This one saw what looked like people and creatures standing on the water." "You too?" Kyle peered out into the darkness, his eyes narrowed alertly. Nothing more happened, though. "Trick of the moonlight. Had to be." "This one is inclined to agree." Kyle took one last look, then turned away from the railing. "I think that means it's time for us to get some sleep. Come on." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- The moonlight played gently over a peaceful stretch of countryside, south of Achal and the mountains. It bent and twisted, shaping a series of figures who wavered and flickered and, suddenly, were there. The glow around them faded slowly as they let go of each other. Lumina looked around and opened her mouth to speak first... then slumped wearily, Pearl catching her before she could fall. "Are you okay?" Lumina's eyes fluttered. "Hard... to control... over distances like that. Not sure... exactly... where we are..." Her voice trailed off as the Moon Knight fell asleep. "This seems like a good time to stop and rest," Pearl said aloud, stifling a yawn herself. She looked at the minotaurs, who shrugged. "Who wants first watch?" "We'll take first watch!" Zarela beamed. "We?" Pearl queried, raising an eyebrow. "Alexandros and I, of course!" Zarela caressed her new sword lovingly. "We should get to know each other better, shouldn't we, Alexandros? Oh, you think so too? I _knew_ you would..." Pearl just sighed. This might be a long night... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- The woman on the infirmary bed twisted and jerked slightly, as if in the grip of nightmares. Darovan stood nearby, looking on. His face was expressionless... but his eyes were pools of dark fire. "Soon, Madonna," he told the unconscious Knight. They would have her Heartstone back, and soon. And as for whoever had stolen it... he would deal with them personally. He turned and strode out of the room. Behind him, the unconscious Knight's eyelids twitched, as if she was on the verge of waking... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- "Marcine? Marcine! Are you okay?" Marcine opened her eyes slowly, wincing at the sudden pain. "Davin? Wh--what happened?" For a brief instant she wondered where she was; then the low, reassuring hum of the spider-walker filled her ears. "I don't know." Davin's voice was concerned. "You were sleeping, and then suddenly you just screamed, sat up and hit your head against--oof!" he managed, as Marcine's arms wrapped around him with surprising force. "I'm sorry," she managed quietly, trying to calm her frantically swirling emotions. "I--" "Shh." Davin's fingers gently probed the sore spot on her head. "It's okay," he called over her, loud enough to carry the other side of the cabin. "She's fine. You guys can get back to sleep." Sounds of acknowledgement drifted back, and the young swordsman relaxed. "Bad dreams?" he whispered to Marcine. "More than just a dream," she told him softly. "I don't know how I know it was him, but... Darovan's on the move again." "Don't worry." Davin eased her back into her bedroll, then pulled a blanket over her. "We'll be in Tienne tomorrow." Marcine listened as Davin lay back down, his breathing eventually settling back into the even rhythm of sleep. She fell asleep again not long after that, and didn't dream at all. Author's Notes: Whew. Apologies for the incredibly short part; life just didn't want to cooperate, and my planning got thrown all out of whack this week. As usual, many thanks to Terence for ideas, plot advice and prereading. ^_^