"This one politely inquires as to whether we have arrived at our destination yet." "No...I don't think so." "This one politely inquires as to whether we have arrived at our destination yet." "I'm pretty sure we haven't." "This one politely inquires as to whether--" "SHIZUKA!" "This one apologizes, Mistress Gilchrist." "That's okay, Shizuka." "This one politely inquires--" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- FINAL FANTASY LEGACY Knights of the Round Created by Brian Stricklin This chapter by Lurker Chapter 51: Step and Fetch -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- The journey from Tienne had passed rather quickly and uneventfully, due to the fact that the group had been given a carriage drawn by a steam-powered engine. The engineer driving the carriage had been given a set of orders to deliver to Bolgan Valecrest, and the carriage itself was, if simple, comfortable and spacious, allowing the travellers plenty of leg room. The relative quiet of the trip had been broken only by the interplay between Shizuka and Mika, which had actually been quite amusing to those who had ever travelled with the young alchemist. Prior to their departure, Marcine had recalled the cache of dwarven supplies stashed in the spider-walker, and they'd been retrieved; Shizuka, Kyle, and Jil had all received new armor (as well as a brace of enchanted shuriken for Jil and a rune-etched kotetsu for Shizuka), while the more recent additions to the party had been outfitted with various dwarven trinkets and amulets that were guaranteed to come in handy during battle. "Davin," Marcine asked along the way, "do you think Piette's going to be okay back in Tienne?" "Safer for him to be there than with us," Davin replied, shrugging. "Besides, if anyone can figure out how to cure him, Mother Cecilina and the Awakened can." He glanced out one of the windows of the carriage. "We should be at La Verde soon." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- "I just don't get it," the generations-old teen mage said as she paced around the small room. "We've tried every Cure spell, Esuna, Dispel...every healing spell we could think of, and this poor man just won't wake up!" "Those spells cure physical wounds," a wizened old cleric said as he turned sorrowful eyes on the comatose form of Piette. "The affliction this man suffers is spiritual." "Are you quite sure?" one of the Awakened asked. "...yes, yes, you would be. So...is there any way to cure him?" "I wish I could consult my texts..." The cleric sighed. "I know there are some powerful Clairmancy spells that can leave you like this if you're not careful...it's also possible a demon did this to him, based on some of the stories I've heard about what happened at Dwarvenhome. Or..." He paused. "Or?" "No...surely he wouldn't have used *that* spell. Nobody in their right mind would use *that* spell..." The cleric began to pace and mutter, leaving the younger mage blinking. "What spell, sir?" "A very dangerous, very desperate spell...the kind of spell nobody would use unless they were prepared to sacrifice everything in the process. But...no, it couldn't be that spell. There were few copies of that spell to be found even in my day..." On the small cot, Piette continued to lie unmoving, living yet dead to the world. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- The carriage rumbled to a stop several feet from the gate of an enormous palisade upon which the Tri-Fan had been painted. A small troupe of Guardsmen approached the vehicle warily. "Who goes there?" the squad leader asked. The party tromped out of the carriage, and the driver emerged from the engine compartment. For a long moment, the Guardsmen blinked in befuddlement at the ragtag collection of swordsmen, women, children, and a dwarf. The engineer coughed, and presented a packet bearing an official seal to the lieutenant. "Orders from Tienne," he said. "We're here to see Engineer Valecrest." The guards groaned. "Not again," they chorused. "Fine," the leader said, giving the signal to open the gate. "You may pass." The somewhat confused group entered the palisade, gawking up in wonder at the grounded airship. Even with all the flying marvels they'd seen recently, the flagship of the Tienne fleet was still a marvel to behold. Engineering crews swarmed about the great silver hull of the ship, attaching and removing various odd combinations of starsilver strips and irregular stones to the titanic beast. Near the rear of the ship, the party found the chief engineer, Bolgan Valecrest, who was presently red in the face and bellowing at a young man who was hovering in midair. "--told you a thousand times," they heard him yell as they drew near. "If you think for even a minute I'm going to trust magic to put this ship in the air, you've got another think coming!" "And I keep telling YOU," the mage with the red hat said as he floated toward the ground, "there's no other way to get something this big in the air and make sure it stays there." He grinned. "Or do you really want to try blowing up your steam engines again with another Sun Stone?" The engineer seemed about ready to throttle the man, so it was to everyone's relief that the carriage driver stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Engineer Valecrest?" "WHAT?" the older man snapped. "Err...we're from Tienne," the young engineer replied hesitantly, handing Valecrest the packet with the Tri-Fan crest. "Orders from Mother Cecilina." As the master engineer accepted the folder, he eyed the group trailing its bearer warily. "Not this again," he groaned as he withdrew the papers. "Bad enough I had to put up with two heretics, for her to send me a whole platoon...of..." His eyes widened as he read the first page of the order, then the second, then the first again..."WHAT IN THE NAME OF THE THREE GODS!?" "What seems to be the problem?" the calm voice of Kalya Greenhill asked as she approached the small group. She and her ancestor peered over the engineer's shoulders. Valecrest looked up at the party. "Which one of you is Davin Highwater?" "That would be me," Davin replied. "Explain to me why in the name of all the Church stands for I should just hand my ship over to you and your group here, even on the orders of a High Priestess? What is this lunacy?" "Sir," the geomancer replied in a calm voice, "Are you aware of what has taken place in Tienne?" Without waiting for a reply, he launched into a summary of the recent events, including the destruction of the Cathedral and a particularly detailed account of the flying Manakyr mountain (which, he noted, seemed to captivate the two red-garbed people standing beside the engineer). As he completed his tale, Bolgan Valecrest simply stared at him in shock. "So," Davin summed up, "We need this ship to find the floating fortress of the last Knight of the Round. The Heartstones are an important key to putting everything right again, we're racing against both time and a man nobody seems to be able to kill, and we only have one shot at this." "Please, Mister Valecrest," Marcine added, "For the sake of everyone...please help us." The old engineer sighed. "It's all moot...right now, the Excelsior can't go anywhere." "Aye, we'd heard ye had a wee bit o' trouble with th' beastie," Tharlo spoke up, glancing up at the silver behemoth and scratching at his beard with his metal hand. "Could be tricky, gettin' that up in th' air." "If the wretched Manakyr couldst fly a mountain," Stine reasoned, "surely it is but a trifle for the Church to fly this vessel." "A *mountain*," Edrin said, shaking his head in fascination. "They actually flew a *mountain*! Incredible! And all with magic, to boot!" "Our main sticking point," Kalya explained to the new arrivals, "is Mister Valecrest's staunch refusal of our further assistance." Marcine blinked at the woman. "You two are Awakened, right?" The middle-aged mage nodded. "Yes. We're Float mages." The master engineer stared on in dismay as the three mages talked shop while the others began inspecting the ship from all angles. (All except Zarela, anyway, who appeared supremely bored and was singing to her sword.) "--might be possible--" "Air spirits? I dunno..." "--chemical propellant, maybe?" "--so the enchanted Float stones failed--" "That was more the Sun Stone blowing up--" "--power problem, eh? Hmmm..." "--would love t' helm this lass..." Bolgan Valecrest slumped his shoulders and sighed. *What sin did I ever commit to deserve this?* -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- After a meal and a bit of rest, a meeting was called to discuss options for making the Excelsior airborne again. Davin, Marcine, Mika, Tharlo, and Jil met with Valecrest, his assistant, and the Greenhills, while Kyle, Stine, Pearl, Zarela, and Shizuka, who all felt they had little to offer the discussion, wandered off to occupy themselves otherwise. "So far," the master engineer began, "we've tried powering this ship with the Crystal of Wisdom--" "Not very wise," Mika piped up, earning a nasty glare. "--and we've tried using a Sun Stone as the power source, with Float-enchanted stones strapped to the hull to take the stress off the steam engines." "Unfortunately, we ran into a snag when we found out that Sun Stone power and starsilver don't mix," Kalya said. "So now, we've lost two of the steam engines, the others aren't in very good shape, and aside from the notion of enchanting the very hull of the ship--which I am adamantly against--the prospect of the Excelsior getting airborne again is looking very grim." Tharlo snorted. "Enchanted stones, yet...ye'd be daft t' rely on an enchantment like that." For a moment, Bolgan seemed relieved that someone, at least, had sense, until the dwarf continued, "Now, if ye'd done it properly an' used *runes* instead, ye mightn't have as many problems..." Edrin looked mildly offended. "Well excuse me for not being a dwarf, or I might have thought of that." "Well, nobody's perfect, lad." "Hmm...runes could certainly make getting it in the air and keeping it there a lot easier," Kalya said. "That would still leave the power problem, though. The Sun Stone had the power, but..." "Steam engines alone just aren't enough to get something like that off the ground, though," Valecrest's assistant said. "Every configuration we've tried that doesn't have at least fifty percent of the power output of the crystal puts too much strain on the engines for a sustained flight." "Yes," the master engineer said. "Power is the real problem. I'd possibly even be agreeable to the dwarf's idea about runes to keep it in the sky, if only we could find a way to get it off the ground in the first place." Everyone was silent for a long moment as they tried to think of a solution. Finally, it was Mika who spoke up. "My launcher!" Davin looked pained. "This is hardly the time to be thinking about *that* thing, Mika," he chided. "No, Big Brother, listen!" Mika took the odd, rune-engraved tube from her satchel and laid it on the table. "Remember when I used this in Tienne?" "Yeah, it blew up at both ends," Davin reminded. The young alchemist blushed. "Well, yeah, but...it worked! You saw how it worked! I bet we could come up with something like it to move the airship!" "May I see that, young lady?" Valecrest asked, taking the tube and examining it. "Odd device...what purpose does it serve?" "It uses a force rune to launch bombs," Mika replied. "I made it while we were at Dwarvenhome. It's...not exactly perfected, but it works." Tharlo took the launcher next and studied it. "Blasts out th' back end, does it?" he chuckled. "Aye, I see where ye made yer mistake. Easily fixed." He handed the launcher back to Mika. "It's a good job, though." "An...alchemical propulsion system?" Edrin said, rubbing his chin. Valecrest shook his head. "No...no, it'd never work. We need a steady lifting force we can sustain, not a chain of explosions that would do little more than damage the ship." "Ye be lookin' at it wrong, tis all," Tharlo said. "I think th' lass's got somethin' with this idea." Mika nodded rapidly. "I wasn't thinking of a whole lot of bombs...I had something a lot bigger in mind." An odd gleam entered her eyes. "I was thinking, if we had a couple really big launchers, and maybe a really big supply of fire potion..." "Aye, it'd be noisy, smelly, an' hot as all hell, but it might just do th' job," the dwarf nodded. The engineer frowned, considering that. "I'll admit that it sounds good in theory. Still...the potion couldn't be launched in bottles, and creating a system that'd allow for the potion to be burned in the right amounts without blowing the entire supply and the ship with it..." "A modified version of the pressure system from the steam engines could do it," his assistant said. "We could refit the boilers to allow for a less stable fuel supply." "Then there's the problem of the potion itself. We can't power an engine on something that's going to explode at the slightest provocation." "That'll be my department," Mika said, already having pulled out a huge tome of formulas. "I'll be happy t' assist in designin' an' buildin' ye a new engine," Tharlo said. After a long moment of deliberation, Valecrest nodded. "Alright...I guess we don't have anything to lose, so let's give it a shot." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- The remainder of the day saw a flurry of activity as plans were made, materials were carried back and forth across the compound by harried soldiers, and a particular corner of the palisade, walled off by propped-up metal partitions, was a constant source of loud, fiery explosions. The guardsmen quickly learned to ignore these explosions, and anyone other than the engineering team who attempted to investigate found themselves repelled by the steadfast young Ryukin ninja. As day wore on toward evening, the mess officer signalled dinner, and Mika finally came out from behind her partitions, covered in soot and ash and with smoke curling slightly from her hair and clothes. Taking a cloth from a pocket, she cleaned her glasses, adjusted them on her face, and peered at Shizuka. "You didn't really have to stay out here all day, you know." "This one chose to ensure that Mistress Gilchrist's work was not disturbed," Shizuka replied simply. "Well, thanks," Mika said, somewhat embarassed. "I'm starved, and I've got something important to tell everyone, so let's go eat." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Davin's group, Bolgan, his assistant, and the two Greenhill mages gathered together during the evening meal to discuss the progress on refitting the Excelsior. As the conversation reached around to the fuel project, Mika adjusted her glasses. "The good news is, I think I found a way to make the potion mixture stable enough to burn off slowly instead of exploding all at once." She frowned. "The bad news is, I'm short a key ingredient that's fairly hard to come by." "What is it ye be needin'?" Jil asked. Mika consulted a battered notebook she carried in her satchel. "I'm going to need a rather large amount of whip grass pollen," she said. "It's got to be sealed in a pressurized container for several hours before I add it to the mixture...fortunately, I have the canister I need to collect it in, but getting it's gonna be tricky. Whip grass is really rare and only grows in one place." "The plains of Habarm," Stine spoke up. "Right," Mika nodded. "So we're going to need to make a little trip to get what I need to finish the fuel for the chemical engine." "Do we have the kind of time we need for this?" Pearl asked. Davin shrugged. "If it's our best shot, then we'll have to make the time...all we can hope is that we're fast enough." "You'll have plenty of time to get to Habarm and back," Bolgan said. "Using that carriage you came in, it's a good day's trip there and back, and it'll be at least two days before we have the new engine ready to test." "Then it is settled!" Stine said, rising from his chair and planting a boot on it. "As the sun rises in the morrow, the great Stine shall venture with the young chemist to the land of his birth, Habarm!" Mika blinked. "Hey! I didn't say I was gonna take you!" "It'd be best if Stine did go along, Mika," Marcine commented. "I mean, he *is* a native of Habarm..." "But...but..." "Relax," Davin said. "You, Stine, and two other people...that ought to be enough people to go to Habarm and get what you need. I'm sure it won't be a particularly long or dangerous trip." Mika sighed. "Okay, okay...but you're coming too, Big Brother." Davin shrugged. "Sure, don't see why not. I'm not doing anything important here, and I've never been to Habarm before. Might be kinda fun." "This one will accompany Mistress Gilchrist as well," Shizuka said. "Fear not, fair child, for with the Citizens' Champion at thy side, thou shalt certainly obtain thy canister of whip grass!" Stine struck a triumphant pose. Those seated at the table glanced around at each other, struggling not to groan, snicker, or burst out laughing. Mika fumed. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- After a relatively uneventful trip, the steam carriage rolled into a town full of low, wooden buildings with lots of open space and numerous corrals full of livestock. Men and women of strong build wandered the dusty roads, ambling to and fro in an easygoing, unhurried manner. As the transport came to a stop and the passengers strode out into the town, Stine climbed upon the wooden fence of an empty corral near the town entrance, and turned his head slowly to encompass all of Habarm. "FINALLY," he bellowed at the top of his lungs, "The legendary Stine...*HATH RETURNED* to Habarm!" Several people strode out into the main road, curious as to the commotion. A burly man with shaggy hair, a beard, and a suede jacket ambled over to the group; Davin could tell even from a distance that the man had difficulty walking, as his legs moved stiffly and unresponsively. As he approached, he grinned at Stine, showing several gaps where teeth had once been. "What is all this commotion?" he asked. Stine raised an eyebrow. "Thou wouldst disregard the return of Beastmaster Stine as an event unworthy of joyous proclamation?" In reply, the man pulled a hatchet from his pants and hurled it at Stine. When the beastmaster dodged, the burly man leapt at him and tackled him to the ground. They rolled around in the dirt for a few minutes, leaving Stine's travelling companions to stare in dismay and wince at some of the sounds coming from the fracas. At length, the two men stood, and the burly Habarmer laughed heartily. "Well met, Stine! Verily, tis good to see thee return to thy home! Shall thy companions and thee be staying long?" "Nay, friend, we have much to accomplish, and have sojourned hither to gather an important item to aid in a holy and noble cause. We must depart immediately upon completion of our task." "A shame," the bearded man said. "Still, tis good to see thee again." "As it is to see thee, Fohl," Stine replied. As Fohl wandered away, Stine smiled. "Verily, a kinder man never walked the earth than Fohl." Stine's companions were speechless. At length, Davin coughed. "Do you Habarmers...always greet each other so...robustly?" "Aye, tis local tradition," Stine replied. Mika groaned in frustration. "It figures." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- As the group made their way through town, it became apparent to Mika that some of the things Stine had said about his homeland had not been entirely truthful. While there were indeed carnivorous cattle in Habarm, they were not the wild, ravening beasts of the wilderness the beastmaster had once made them out to be. Rather, they were meek, mild-mannered creatures who milled about in wooden corrals and rarely so much as made a hostile move toward anyone. Each homestead in Habarm had several head of cattle, as well as a heavy wire cage full of odd, furry creatures with numerous legs. "What're those?" Mika asked as she leaned close to a cage to examine the contents. "Those are oglops," Stine replied. "A peculiar breed of insect-like creatures that live in the mountains. They are the favorite food of our livestock." "Ah, I see." Mika examined the corral of the nearest house. "So...these are your infamous carniverous cattle, hmm?" She glanced sidelong at the beastmaster. Stine coughed. "Ahem...indeed. Dangerous beasts, they are. At least, until made docile by strong warriors." Mika rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She paused. "So, where around here does the whip grass grow?" "In the western plain, where the wild cattle roam," Stine said. "They should brook us no harm; however, there is a gate barring the pass into the plain. We must beseech the Mayor of Habarm to receive the key that will unlock the gate and allow us passage." After several minutes of walking, the group approached a rather prominent residence at the south end of Habarm. There were many more cattle in the corral here, and the house itself was made of stone instead of wood, and the exterior bore more elaborate decoration. As they neared the entrance, a burly man in a black leather vest with no shirt and canvas trousers stepped forth to block their path. "State thy business with the esteemed Mayor of Habarm," he said. Stine stepped forward. "Stand aside, Rudy Pu, that the legendary Beastmaster, Stine, may speak with the Mayor." The guard, Rudy, stepped forward and thrust his face directly into Stine's. "What?" "Stine said remove thine confectionary posterior from the great Beastmaster's path, Rudy Pu!" Rudy repeated his challenge. "What?" Stine suddenly seemed to LOOM over the other man as his entire posture changed, every muscle in his body tensing. His right eyebrow arched nearly to his hairline. "Stine said...MOVE...THINE...ASS!" With that, he grabbed the other man and hurled him into the street with incredible force. Davin, Mika, and Shizuka merely blinked at the sudden, violent display of force. Rudy Pu stood up and dusted off his jacket, grinning. "Thou hast passed thine challenge, and thou hast earned the privelege to see the Mayor. Thy friends and thee mayest enter freely." Stine grinned and posed triumphantly, then turned to his companions. "Well? Hast thou grown roots?" With that, he turned on his heel and marched through the front door of the mayoral residence. After a moment of confused silence, the others followed. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Inside the rather opulent and spacious house, there were many trophies on shelves, and paintings of a number of men with similar features to their faces. The skulls and hides of numerous creatures from around the world were also mounted on the wall. "The Mayoral family has a long history of producing fierce, proud warriors...truly the cream of the Habarm crop," Stine said in a quiet voice. "Thou should feel honored to be welcomed into the home of such a noble lineage, as few outsiders are ever granted access to this abode." "It's okay, I guess," Mika said. "So, where's the mayor?" "Most likely, the esteemed Mayor is in the parlor, or perhaps inspecting his herd," Stine replied. After a brief journey through the house, they came upon a room in which a raised platform covered with canvas stood. Thick, sturdy ropes ringed the platform, tied to iron staves posted at each corner. In the center of the ring of ropes stood a tall, broad-shouldered man dressed in well-tailored clothes. The seams of his vest seemed ready to burst from the sheer muscle mass of his arms, and his neck was thick and corded. A stiff brush of iron grey hair in a military cut topped his head, and he peered out at the world with suspicious eyes. As the group entered, his mouth opened slightly in surprise, before his attention turned to the beastmaster. He relaxed slightly, and gave a small smile. "Steinne J'broni," he boomed. "Verily has it been a long time since thou hast come to pay homage to the glory of my ancestral home." "Thou seemest well of health and strong of body, Vin Mayor. Verily is it good to see thee after my lengthy travails in the world outside Habarm." Mika tugged on Davin's sleeve. "You mean this guy's family *name* is Mayor?" she whispered. Davin shrugged. "I've seen stranger things." Vin Mayor leapt gracefully from the platform, clearing the ropes by nearly a meter, and landed in front of the beastmaster. "Prithee thee, Steinne J'broni," he asked curiously, "Who art thine companions? They hail not from Habarm, that much is obvious. Pray, introduce thine friends." Stine nodded. "This is Davin Highwater, of origins unknown to Stine, adventurer, master swordsman, geomancer, and speaker of tales extraordinaire. Stine hast come to respect his skill with a blade through repeated combat as former adversaries. This child is Mika Gilchrist, also of origins unknown to Stine, a talented alchemist and possessed of a fiery spirit. This other young girl is Shizuka, of the Ryukin Islands, skilled in the secretive arts of stealth and assassinry." "Thou collectest unusual companions for thine travails, Steinne J'broni," Vin Mayor commented. "Nevertheless, I bid thee all welcome." He clapped his hands together. "Now, pray tell, what brings thee to visit me this day, Steinne J'broni?" "We seek to enter the plains past the west gate," Stine said. "There is a grass which grows there that is needed to produce a special potion." "Ah, of course. The whip grass." Vin Mayor nodded thoughtfully. "I wouldst give thee the key to the gate, but know this: the Habarm Bull has broken free of its confinement, and roams the plains. Thy lives would be endangered gravely if thou shouldst chance upon the Habarm Bull while it wanders free." "We can handle some old bull," Mika said. "Don't sweat it." The mayor chuckled. "I see what thou meanest about this child's spirit, Steinne J'broni. Very well, thou mayest pass into the plains. And if thou happenst to subdue the Habarm Bull whilst searching for thine grass, thou shalt be rewarded well." Stine bowed as Vin Mayor handed him the key. "Stine thanks thee, Vin Mayor." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- As the quartet approached the gate to the plains beyond, Mika piped up, "What was that the mayor called you? J'broni? Is that your family name?" Stine coughed. "Indeed, that is the name of the family from whence Stine cometh." "I've heard that name somewhere before...sounds like a word from an old tribal dialect I read about..." Davin mused. The beastmaster cleared his throat. "Be that as it may, let us proceed forth into the plains. Time wastes away, and we can ill afford to dally." With a quick turn of the key, the rusty old gate swung open with a loud squeal, and the party entered the plains... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- No author's notes. Sorry. ^_^