Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ JOURNEY ❯ Apocalypse ( Chapter 9 )

Part Nine: Apocalypse

Technically, it was still a peaceful time in Alexandria, and probably the rest of the world as well. After all, there were no wars or natural disasters to worry about, and nobody was suffering greatly, either. But there was so much going on in this large and fair kingdom alone that peace was but a joke. It seemed as if everybody was busy, whether they were preparing for something or else attending to someone--and the people who had the latter job were probably the most beleaguered.

In reality, there were really only four major things going on at the moment, but they all had the same connection. First of all, there was the business of a possible future invasion to worry about. Ever since Alexandria had suffered through the attack from Kyahar Ignus, it had been on high alert for another assault. The kingdom had been prepared for this most recent invasion, and got through it with almost no suffering (despite how tyrannical their enemy had been). With such overall positive results, with a little common sense thrown in for good measure, the brunt of everyone's workday was spent beefing up the kingdom's defenses.

The second matter was actually better divided up into three smaller ones (though anyone with enough brains in their head would've classified all of these issues as major). Initially, there was the introduction of the name Iudicium to consider. It seemed as if a certain redheaded messenger and his sensitive mentor were about the only ones around who really knew that name, though in the future, there would not be a man or a woman alive who would ever forget. Said messenger, a semi-reliable mercenary named Amarant Coral, would not divulge too much information about this strange name, which led up to the next issue.

Third, Amarant's own loyalty was now in question, but more so than usual. Previously, the masterless wanderer had zigzagged between both sides of the law, but he always served himself over everything else. He had been a bouncer for Treno, a hired assassin for Brahne, a traveling companion for Zidane and Garnet, a messenger for Cid Falbool, and everything else in between--but he could also be considered a traitor. It was not natural for one man to have so much information about so many enemy forces, and as statistics showed, every time Amarant had visited Alexandria (after the fight with Kuja), it always seemed as if he bore bad news with him. He had warned the kingdom about Mognet Central, as well as Ignus, and a few other uprisings here and there, so of course everyone was more suspicious of him than usual.

The fourth matter was perhaps strangest of them all. Zidane never recalled Amarant having a friend, with the possible exception of Lani, and the tall drifter was a stickler for working alone (with few exceptions), so the question as to why he was wandering around with a young lady was a mysterious one. This young lady certainly seemed normal, except she was blind, yet Amarant and his mentor had apparently gone out of their way to bring her there. Zidane could've sworn that the two had been out hunting for her, yet there she was, a bounty uncollected on her head. Why they felt the need to bring her on their most recent trip to the kingdom was unknown; the young lady hadn't spoken yet, and she hardly even moved.

It would've taken years to completely figure out all these problems, but unfortunately for Zidane and Garnet, they didn't exactly have all that precious time to waste. Apparently, there was yet another invasion afoot.

The time--A few hours after the arrival of Amarant, the Hunter, and the mysterious girl.

The place--Alexandria Kingdom.

The players--Queen Garnet, co-ruler of the kingdom, and a silent young lady who had yet to be identified.

The status--Uncertainty.

Beatrix and Steiner had been given the oh-so important task of organizing troops and bolstering defenses, along with every other major commanding officer in the kingdom. Freya, who had recently been added to the growing list of Royal Guards, was with them as they tried to beef up the kingdom's security. It was unknown how much time they had before the forces of darkness would arrive, so all the soldiers of the castle had already went through their training.

Bosh, Gash, and Mash, Garnet's oldest and most trusted strategists, were forever busy conceiving every possible plan that the enemy would make. When questioned about the person known only as Iudicium, they had very little to say except that the whole kingdom should be prepared. Garnet had a feeling that these three old men knew who this new threat was, but were not giving anything away out of some strange, unknown fear. They had seen lots of trouble and turmoil in their years, and to see the trio worry was most unsettling.

Eiko, the Vivi army, Quina, Quban, and Mikoto did what they could to help around, but most of the time they were free to wander around and socialize with the locals. Eiko, who had been carrying a big load of responsibility ever since she became the representative of Madain Sari, was now taking some much-needed time off, along with the Vivis, who deserved vacation time themselves. Mikoto tried to squeeze in some time with Zidane, but her "brother" was almost always busy with one thing or another, so she ended up working alongside Freya and the other knights. The Qus, needless to say, were both busy making piece'a for everyone.

Amarant and his mentor, a man only known as the Hunter, were under close scrutiny by anyone who was not too busy with their work. As of that very moment, almost nobody trusted the two of them, especially the elder man, since his record was even foggier than Amarant's. At least a few people had been around the taller man long enough to know a bit about him, but nobody knew much about the Hunter, except for Zidane.

Zidane himself held the bulk of responsibility in his young arms, and while everyone else was busy with one thing or another, Garnet decided to visit the mysterious young girl that Amarant and the Hunter had brought with them. The Queen had a lot of questions on her mind, and it seemed as if even the two wanderers would do little to help clear her mind. It was the girl that drew her the most--a girl who seemed no younger than Garnet herself.

While most everybody was preparing for the inevitable, Queen Garnet managed to find some time to spend with the unidentified blind young woman that had been brought in recently. The girl was sitting outside at a table, staring emptily at the large castle before her. She had been given a cup of warm tea by a servant, but by the time Garnet came around to visit, the drink was perhaps too cold to drink. The Queen of Alexandria noticed that this young girl was clasping a finely-made walking stick in her hands, and was actually very pretty, but she had never smiled since arriving. A definite look of concern and worry was on her face, even though at first glance her emotions were unreadable.

"…Hello," said Garnet as she approached the girl. She didn't even move. "…Well, as confusing as the past few hours have been, it is nice to find some time to relax, yes?" The girl only nodded her head, resulting in a sigh coming from the Queen's mouth.

"Listen," she said, "I have a lot of questions that I want to ask you, but I can't very well learn anything if you can't talk. Now, I'm assuming that you can hear me but you can't see me, correct?" A nod of the head. "Good. And you can--"

"Excuse me, highness…" At that moment, a soldier had came by to deliver a message to the Queen. Garnet paid a little bit of attention to the soldier as she listened to what she had to say, and dismissed the woman with a wave, and later, a sigh.

"It seems we're having problems," she muttered. "Young lady, please forgive the interruption, as there are some things I just cannot prevent. Now, where were we?" A pause. The girl fidgeted in her seat a little, casting her face towards her cup.

"I don't mean to be a problem," she whispered.

"Hm?"

"I don't mean to be a problem," she said again. Garnet's face grew gentle as the girl spoke for the first time since arriving, and she even let out a smile.

"No, dear, you're not a problem."

"That's not how I see things," replied the girl--using an odd choice of words in the process. "From what I know, all of this trouble seemed to start up once I came here. Think about it--the maddening increase of the castle's defenses, the rushed training sessions, the strategists coming up with plans… It's been chaos ever since I came."

"And you think it's all because of you?" whispered Garnet in extreme disbelief. The girl shrugged. "No, dear, not at all! It's just a coincidence, really! I… we… that is, uh… Alexandria has suffered greatly in the past two years, what with all these wars and invasions we've been having, so I guess our suspicion is justified. But rest assured, miss, none of these issues are due to your appearance." This assurance did little to ease the young girl's worry, though she did look a fraction better.

"……I see…" The young woman then took her tea and finally began to drink it, as if Garnet's audience had been the ignition she needed to start talking and moving. But sadly, after the teacup was empty, the young woman returned to her motionless and emotionless state. Garnet swallowed a bit of her own drink before prodding further into the lady's mind.

"…So… explain to me," she began. "How is it that you came here with Amarant? I heard that he was hunting a young lady down. Could that be you?"

"It was," replied the blonde girl. "Yes, it seems as if there was a bounty unjustly placed on my head, and Mr. Coral and Mr. Hunter were after me. I even think I know why."

"And why's that?" A pause.

"…Forgive me for saying this, but it's not really your concern," said the girl with a wave of her hand. "Let's just say that… well, it was quite a misinterpreted message they received. In any case, I managed to convince them to take me here, and… well, you know the rest."

"Indeed…" muttered Garnet emptily. The Queen finished off her drink, and decided to interview the young lady a little more. "Well, I would really like to get to know you better. There's something… peculiar about you, something that I have not seen in any other human I met. Oh, it's nothing derogatory! Actually, I'm sensing a kind of… gentleness about you, and a spirit that defies my own broad imagination. There's definitely something special about you, something that…… well, I can't quite explain it."

"You may soon find your answers," replied the girl enigmatically. "For now, though, I'll keep my identity a secret. Just consider me a friend."

"And your name?" The girl paused just long enough to pour herself some tea.

"Sorry… I trust you, but I can never be too careful. There are people after me, people who won't listen to reason like Mr. Coral and Mr. Hunter did, and I'm sorry to say that I cannot even reveal my name. But, if you must call me anything, just call me Milady."

"All right," agreed Garnet. "So… would you be inclined to answer any more questions of mine?"

"I suppose," said the girl gently. Her voice was a gentle one, like Garnet's, but it had just a sliver of an edge to it. It was a small fraction deeper than the Queen's, though not as deep as Beatrix's, and the accent was indefinable. It was a very soft voice, the kind that usually suggested comfort, though now it was filled with anxiety and a deep uncertainty. She was indeed mysterious, and had Garnet owned the day's hours all to herself, she would've cleared up such an enigma. Sadly, the Queen only got a few more questions by before she was pulled back into her work.

"I regret leaving you," she said as she stood. "I feel like…… like I can really trust you. I don't know how else to describe it, but something tells me that I'm going to benefit from having you around."

"Yes," replied the girl suddenly, "you will. I can assure you, Highness, you will most definitely benefit from having me around." A pause.

"What to you mean?"

"Huh? Oh! Ahhh…" The young lady actually cracked a smile, blushed just faintly, and waved an embarrassed hand at the Queen. "Oh, haha, it's nothing, really… I just have a bad habit of rambling sometimes. It's really nothing, really!!" The Queen gazed back at the flustered young woman with a good dose of confusion on her face, but she decided to prod no further and shrugged.

"All right. I suppose you might be correct, in that you could be helpful. I have work to do, Milady, but please feel free to explore our kingdom and acquaint yourself with the locals. I am only disappointed that you must see Alexandria in such a wretched condition."

"It's okay," assured the blonde. "I've been through worse than this. Believe me you, Highness, I have definitely seen worse. Oh, and Highness?"

"Yes?" The girl slowly stood up, performed a curtsy, and gave the Queen her best smile.

"Thank you for speaking with me. I hardly ever get the chance to hold a meaningful conversation with another person. I'm usually a reclusive type, not by choice, so you really made my day."

"Well, thank you!" sang Garnet cheerfully. With her face still beaming, the Queen performed a curtsy of her own, and excused herself so she could attend to the day's duties. She was unable to hear the last sentiment from her blind guest.

"Sarah… please, be careful in the future. I sense great danger is about to fall upon this kingdom, and most of it, I fear, shall be directed upon you…"

--------------------

In a room covered with darkness, there sat a man on a throne drenched with gold and splashed with the blood of those who had cried out for a savior, and found none. On his finger was a ring made out of brass, and on his wrist was an armband made out of copper. He wore a suit made of the purest white material, and on one side of the throne rested an ever-eternal pair of measuring scales. The man had dark raven hair, and narrow black eyes, and an aura hovering through him that no other man has.

A person approaches the throne, and kneels down on both knees. The man sitting on the throne waits, then bids the kneeler to stand.

"Your report?" he asks, even though he does not have to. The man who had kneeled swallows and stammers a little.

"Y-yes, Lord. Yes… We, ah… well…"

"What… is your… report?" asked the seated man again, this time emphasizing all his words. The stuttering man swallowed and muttered out the news.

"…A… a complete defeat, milord. I… I alone survived, I believe, but there might be others."

"Then it was not a complete defeat," said the seated man in a calm, objective voice. "A survivor or two means that there was still a chance."

"But milord! Not only were we outnumbered and outclassed, but I do believe that they had knowledge of our attack!!"

"And how do you suppose that happened?" said the man--although it was more of a demand than a question. The stammering person paused, reluctant to share his dreaded news.

"I… I have no idea…"

"Exactly what I had been thinking," sighed the seated man. "Tell me, soldier--what of my… more barbaric ally?" A thick, long pause hovered in the air.

"Dead," moaned the soldier. "Killed…… Ran through, by two knights…"

"I see…" It was noticeable that never once did this seated man ever allow much of a pause in-between his words and his servant's words. It was almost as if he had anticipated every response, or else he had been so fast and smart that he could think up of everything well beforehand. In any case, this left the lesser man to forcibly tell his master everything else.

"…Milord? Your orders?"

"First, you shall be tried for cowardice," muttered the superior man, half of his thoughts still wandering around his defeated accomplice. The lesser man, however, was not quite so calm.

"But… but milord! I… I came all this way to tell you news of the recent attack!"

"And a fine job you did, soldier," agreed the superior. "But… surely you must also know the punishments that accompany cowards. Do you know what I do to cowards, soldier?"

"………I--"

"I feed cowards to my dogs, soldier. Usually they are alive when they receive their punishment. Do you want to be fed to my dogs, soldier?"

"NO!!!" screamed the frightened soldier. "No, please!! Anything but that! PLEASE!!!!!"

"You should have thought of that before you turned tail and ran," muttered the superior man quietly. It sounded like he had dealt with turncoats and cowards… before. "You know, soldier, I would not be who I am if I did not live up to my name."

"But… please!!!" begged the soldier. "Please reconsider, master! PLEASE!!!!" For the first time since the conversation started, there was a break in speeches, and it was plain that the soldier actually thought his master was considering things. But no--the dark-haired man merely stood out of his throne drenched in gold and blood, clapped his hands twice, and proclaimed Judgment.

"And may Justice be swift in her retribution…" he whispered. The frightened soldier stammered and screamed, and the very last thing he heard was the sound of half a dozen starving mongrels ripping at his living flesh. He only screamed one more thing before being silenced forever.

"Please…!!! Master Iudicium…! Have mercy!!!!!!!" But the dark-haired man, still standing straight and tall, folded his hands behind his back and watched as his soldier became food for dogs. He barely even moved, except to pick some lint off his clothes.

"Mercy…" muttered the man, "…and Justice… These are… two very, very different concepts. Mercy and Justice… ah yes, perhaps they are even enemies." The dark-haired man then let a smile crease his stoic face, and let his dogs carry off whatever they wished as he dismissed them. He then turned towards the emptiness of space, and spoke one final phrase.

"The blood of my family, the blood of the Iudicium clan, shall indeed be avenged; aye, it shall be washed away by the blood of those that dare destroy such a legacy. Beware, Alexandria, for your eradication draws close."

Suddenly, a golden-haired girl snapped out of her nightmare, her breath heaving in great gasps and her entire face drenched in her own perspiration. She slowly sat up, still heaving terribly, and let out a shuddering sigh as she realized that she was back in the world of lights--in theory. The dawn was still a few hours away--the chiming grandfather clock rang five times just after she woke--but indeed, the young woman was awake, and freed from her nightmares.

For now.

They had been a nightly occurrence for many a week now; indeed, perhaps they had been invading her sleep even before the figures in the dream knew of their own doings. Every dream more or less ended with the dark-haired man declaring vengeance for a crime unknown, and every dream allowed the blonde to share in the brief torture of the poor cowardly soldier. His screams became her screams, his convulsions became hers, and the sweat on her brow would have certainly blinded her--that is, if she wasn't already.

With her dead eyes forever useless, the young girl covered them with her hand, and took several deep breaths. She had a lot of thinking to do, and she would never be able to do anything in her distressed state. Nobody in this realm she was in knew of the oncoming attack, except for herself, and this knowledge alone was devouring away at the girl's frail spirit. Yet for all her inner troubles, this young blind blonde could never tell of such horrors, for though this kingdom desperately needed to know what was coming, the future was indeed uncertain and pliable.

Yet… at least now they had some type of warning. One word--Iudicium--had been enough to stir them all into a sudden frenzy. Almost everybody was busy preparing the kingdom for the most dreadful invasion she would receive, and although even this might not have been enough, it was something at least.

And so, feeling the desire to sleep vanishing from her, thanks to her nightly vision, the golden-haired girl slipped out of the bed she had been given, and decided to go on a thoughtful walk to clear her head. As terrible as her vision had been, there was really nothing she could do unless she was in top condition, mentally and physically. And physically, the girl was very hungry.

The mood in Alexandria now was one of massive uncertainty. Gone were the squealing children, the carefree citizens, and the happy merchants. Now, it was as if the city were occupied by an unknown enemy--yet this enigmatic force hardly had no name. It was known as dread and uncertainty, and although it was not as terrible as a garrison of enemy soldiers milling around, the mere psychological and social damage it did was perhaps worse. Even Zidane rarely smiled, but for good reason. He was, after all, the joint ruler of this kingdom, and he of all people had a right to worry.

Ever since Mognet Central had been attacked, Alexandria had more or less been on its toes. The kingdom had suffered in the past, from more than one enemy, and according to the sketchy but serious information brought by Amarant and the Hunter, it would definitely face hard times in the future--perhaps worse than all the previous attacks combined. Personally, Garnet couldn't even begin to imagine a force any worse than Kuja or Garland, but there was always a possibility.

"It's Murphy's Law," pointed the Hunter to a gathering of citizens. "If something has the possibility of going wrong, then it will. Take it from me; I've been in these kinds of situations before. It's not all wine and roses."

"You can't always have such a pessimistic attitude!" stated Eiko in rebuttal. "Look on the bright side! Maybe we're just doing all this for nothing! Maybe there IS no enemy!"

"HA!!!" snarled the Hunter. "Get real, kid!!! No enemies??! Absurd! If I say there's gonna be an attack, then there's gonna be an attack! I don't have these powerful senses for nothing, ya know!"

"Humph!" snorted the child. "Well, I'm going to look on the bright side!"

"You just keep living in that fantasy world of yours, kid," muttered the Hunter with a sarcastic wave. "If I were you, and I thank God I'm not, I would be either preparing myself for the Apocalypse, or else running away as fast as my feet could carry me. I don't suppose there are many cowards in this kingdom, so I guess we're just gonna have to fight."

"It is a possibility," agreed Mikoto as she placed her hand on Eiko's shoulder. "I question the validity of these claims just as much as everyone else does, but would you not agree that it'd be better to be safe than sorry?"

"…Well…" Eiko couldn't give a solid response to that question even if she tried, so the little summoner grudgingly nodded her head and agreed with the female Genome. The two ladies, along with a few other volunteers, had the slightly difficult task of watching over the two mercenaries, making sure that neither one of them did anything suspicious. As Mikoto had stated, nearly everyone in Alexandria suspected Amarant of foul play, for who on all of Gaia could ever possess so much information about so many nasty occurrences?

It was true that a few of these might have come from Mognet Central (except for the very earliest), and maybe this most recent one had came from the unidentified blonde girl who came in with Amarant a few days earlier, but surely not every single bit of news came from the Moogles or the girl. Something was amiss, and until there came proof saying otherwise, Amarant and his dark-haired mentor were to be considered guilty until proven innocent.

Garnet, who was transfixed on the blue skies above her, suddenly spotted an extremely familiar-looking airship in the distance. The mere sight of such a vessel was so unbelievable that she actually rubbed her eyes in disbelief, yet for all her doubts, nothing could disprove the flying machine. She even called her husband to affirm the presence of the vessel, and he too had to rub his eyes in order to fully believe.

"Tell me I'm not crazy!" said the Queen. "Tell me that's really the Prima Vista up there!"

"Either that, or a really good facsimile!" exclaimed Zidane in amazement. "Jeez Louise, Boss must've asked Cid to make a new model, cuz' the old one crashed and burned around Evil Forest!" Garnet nodded her head and was helpless to do anything except watch the familiar airship land just outside of Alexandria's border. The guards standing by the gate were suspicious of the craft, for they had received no conformation of such a vehicle ever coming within the border, yet friends of the people on board the airship assured the guards that everything was okay.

Zidane, Garnet, Beatrix, Freya--literally everybody came out to greet their new guests, even Amarant, the Hunter (along with their squad of "guardians") and the unidentified young girl. The crowd waiting outside the vessel, which was so much like the old Prima Vista that even Zidane couldn't tell the difference, were a group of people who pretty much knew who was going to emerge from such a ship. Sure enough, to nobody's surprise, every last member of Tantalus came out and waved at the crowd, including the newest member, Lani.

"Hey! Boss!!" exclaimed Zidane. The loveable Genome nearly tackled the furry man in a hug, but Baku warded him off with a wave of his paw.

"Hey, runt! You don't need to be callin' me Boss now that yer a King!" Zidane grinned at the large man anyway, and performed his same usual Tantalus greeting along with Blank, Marcus, Cinna, Ruby--and Lani.

"It's been a long time since I've seen any of you!" leered the dark-skinned girl. "I've almost missed seeing you! Oh, hey red! I guess you wanna know why we're here, eh?"

"Not really," muttered Amarant as he crossed his arms. Lani sneered at her one-time partner and gave him an unenthusiastic wave.

"Hmph… well, anyway, I guess we should tell you why we're here…"

"No rush!" assured Quina. "Stay for a while! Eat much food, yes-yes?"

"Gwahahahaha!! Sounds like a good idea!" bellowed Baku. "Hey, Lani!!"

"Yeah, Boss?"

"Why don't'cha stop jabberin' to everybody and pick up yer skirts? This Qu here is treatin' us all to a fine meal, and I know I taught you better than to skip a free meal!!"

"(You didn't teach me anything, you big fat tub of hairy lard…)" muttered the former bounty hunter. Baku leaned forward annoyingly and placed his paw on his ear.

"Eh? What's that?"

"I said nothing, okay!!" spat Lani. "Now if you don't mind……" The loudmouthed and narcissistic bounty hunter smiled impishly and grabbed hold of poor Blank's arm, which was unfortunately attached to poor Blank. He gave Zidane a look of silent dread as the redheaded woman led him away, and everyone else more or less suppressed a laugh. Freya, who was one of the few people there with almost no ties to Tantalus, merely hid a faint smile.

"…I see… they are in good spirits as always…"

"Good spirits," muttered Steiner. "That is a…… delicate way to put things!" The ironclad knight marched his way towards the biggest dining room that Alexandria boasted, with everyone else that had assembled following him. Zidane and Garnet remained behind with Baku, along with Amarant and the Hunter.

"It certainly has been awhile, eh Baku?" said the oldest mercenary among them. Baku swallowed and performed a bow that Zidane never though he had in him.

"…Ehh… sure has, Boss! Hey, does… uh… Zidane know about you an' me?"

"I guess so," shrugged the Hunter. "He's not the brightest fire out there, but he's definitely one of the hottest. He'll definitely go down in history as the first member of Tantalus to be crowned a King."

"Gwahahahaha! Definitely!!" Baku's belly rolled as he laughed, and the large catlike man strolled on ahead with his mentor more or less bringing up the rear. Amarant, who stayed behind as per normal, gave the young King an empty glance in an attempt to answer his questions.

"That old man's been around some," he said. "He definitely knows his stuff. …Hey, you didn't hear this from me, but he's probably the only guy out there I really feel comfortable teaming up with."

"What about your former girlfriend?" grinned the foolish King. Amarant snarled just faintly.

"Who, Lani? She's too loud. I couldn't sneak up on a deaf sloth with her around. Well, I'm not one to pass up a free meal, so… see ya." And with his usual salute, Amarant left Zidane and Garnet to wonder.

"Strange," said the Queen with a shrug. Zidane, as usual, gave her his most proud smirk.

"Eh, it happened to me all the time when I was with Boss and the others. Course', I never knew about Amarant until we met in Madain Sari, and I had no idea that that Hunter guy was Boss' Boss until recently. So……" The Genome King trailed off for awhile, then decided that it was best if he, too got something to eat.

During the meal, which thankfully did not consist of piece'a, most of the conversation hovered around how Tantalus had been faring since their last appearance in the kingdom (which would have been Zidane and Garnet's wedding). Baku had not recruited anybody major ever since Lani showed up, although dozens of potential bandits swarmed in all the time due to the fame of Tantalus' former golden-haired member. The big guy himself was keeping relatively busy with some new wacky, farfetched scheme, and all his subordinates were unfortunately on the ride with him.

It was perhaps a humorous pity that the "relationship" Blank and Lani had was getting nowhere. The redheaded bounty hunter was somehow smitten by the thief, whereas he was never in the mood to positively respond to her advances. Perhaps, had the lady been more of… well, a lady, then Blank would have no problems with her presence. But with an unpredictable and sometimes uncontrollable woman like Lani, only a few people had the resolve to withstand her.

Marcus and Cinna, while lacking in their own individual love interests, made up for the "loss" by helping their Boss in his business. Baku was starting to lean towards legitimacy (God forbid), and although the proposition sounded even more audacious than kidnapping Garnet, it was actually faring pretty well. Cid and Hilda Falbool helped their furry friend whenever possible, of course, and the members of Tantalus soon discovered that having "respect" was not that bad of a deal.

Ruby and her theater were both faring well, though they both lacked company. Ruby needed friends to hang out with and the stage needed actors to perform on, and while the Vivi army had helped out whenever they could, the project seemed to be going nowhere fast. The other members of Tantalus swore that whenever they had the time they would help Ruby out, but for "some" reason, they never really seemed available.

"I wonder why," muttered Zidane to his wife. She gave him a gentle slap on the arm, but her hidden giggle told him that she agreed.

"Excuse me," said Steiner once all members of Tantalus had told about their recent past. "If I may be so bold as to ask, why have you come here? I am sure that this is not just a social call."

"The blockhead is right," pointed Baku rudely. "There's actually a good reason why we came here. Well… there's actually two, but one of them has something to do with Lani." Most everyone turned towards the dark-skinned woman, half of them expecting her to say something reasonably vulgar, or at least senseless. But what she truly said was perhaps the biggest shock of the day.

"Yeah… I got something to say…" With a dramatic pause, Lani the bounty hunter stood out of her chair, saluted boldly, and pointed her arm at Amarant. "Listen, your royal highnesses! I know that sometimes you doubt Amarant's sources, and perhaps you might even consider him a traitor, but take it from me, the only person outside of the Hunter who knows him best! Please, everyone, please trust Amarant!!"

"Huh?" Across the rectangular dining table, most everyone wore a look of confusion on their faces. They had a tough time believing that Lani would stick up for her flaming former partner like that, especially after what he did to her in Madain Sari, but even more puzzling was how she knew of everyone's doubt. Amarant had just came to the kingdom yesterday, and no Moogles had been told of the news.

"Lani, how do you know about all this?" asked Garnet. The Queen's would-be captor looked at the liege and gave her a shockingly civil look.

"You underestimate my sources!" she squealed. "But seriously, let's just say that I have a lot of friends nobody else knows about. The point is, though, you should really trust him. He's not doing this to harm the kingdom or anything! Believe me!!" Lani smiled politely, for once, but she could get nobody to heed her words--not even Amarant himself.

"Hey," he muttered, "sit down before you fall down."

"Stuff it up your anus, Red!!!" screeched the hunter. "I'm here to help you!! Jeez! I came all this way to stick up for you, even though you don't deserve it, and this is--"

"Enough!!!" barked the Hunter, forcing even loudmouthed Lani to shut up. The dark-haired man of 55 years usually had a very calm, slick, and heavily-accented voice, but when he shouted, it was like a lion roaring. Silence dominated the whole dining room for a few good seconds before the man in a green cloak continued.

"Madame, I appreciate your testimony," he said to the silenced Lani. "And Coral, I really expected you to be a whole lot more grateful. Now before I start sounding like some cajoling parent, I'd like to ask my pupil the true reason he came here. It's heartwarming to hear such loyalty, especially from one who has good reason to be anything but, but you could've sent that in a Moogle letter. I smell something more than this testimony of loyalty and faith, and you all know how sensitive my nose is."

A pause. The Hunter sniffed and silently excused himself as he sat back down.

"Strong words from a man so revered!" exclaimed Baku. "And he's right; there is more to our visit than just Lani's little declaration!"

"Then for the love of all things good and sacred, get on with it, man!" barked Steiner. Baku grumbled and waved at the armored man lazily.

"Bah, be patient, numbskull! I'm getting to it!"

"Numbskull!?!?!?!?"

"Gwahahahahahahaaaa!!! Anyway…… Well, I guess it's easier to see it than to tell about it…" And without another word, Baku and all of Tantalus stood to their feet, and walked over to Zidane and Garnet. To the amazement of everyone present, every last member of Tantalus knelt down on the ground and hung their heads in abject humility.

"Your excellencies," began Baku, "if it pleases you, on behalf of all of Tantalus and everyone affiliated with it… I, Baku, wish to declare a never-ending oath of loyalty, devotion, and honor to the throne of Alexandria, and all who are seated on it!"

"We're right with you, bro--I mean, sire!" stated Marcus.

"Command us as you would command your most devoted knights!" begged Blank.

"Our skills are yours to use!" declared Cinna.

"We pledge loyalty to you, O sovereign!!" sang Genero and Benero.

"Y'all are gonna have us as yer allies from this day forward!!" exclaimed Ruby. Lani was last.

"Your most graceful majesties, I was once your enemy! I was once a hired thug who wanted to kidnap Garnet and to kill Zidane! Yet now, please allow me to humbly serve you as an eternal guardian and friend! Allow me the privilege of being one of your closest and most trusted guards, and I swear on my own blood that I shall serve you to the end of my days!!!" Lani, Baku, and everyone else that belonged to Tantalus each pledged their eternal loyalty to the speechless monarchs, who were so puzzled and enraptured with the sudden declaration that they really couldn't do a thing--except smile along with the thieves.

"……Uh… jeez!" sang Zidane weakly. "I… wow! This is… wow, really… too much! Gosh…" The King blushed bashfully, and his wife (who was a little more used to such declarations of loyalty) smiled gently as she proclaimed each of them a permanent member of the Alexandrian elite guard. Meanwhile, Beatrix, Steiner, and Freya all took in the heartwarming scene with several grains of salt.

"Looks like it's going to get much more crowded around here!" said the dragoon. Steiner shrugged.

"I suppose the more, the merrier, eh!!"

--------------------

Now with a host of powerful allies at its disposal, the kingdom of Alexandria was now completely prepared to face the invading force that would inevitably come. However, even as forces gathered in the kingdom, hundreds of Moogles came swarming in with news of other invasions from every corner of the globe. This new threat was eerily reminiscent of when Ignus had attacked, for the fiery General had used very similar tactics when invading Alexandria--and so had another defeated enemy before him, the Foe. It seemed, according to Zidane, that their basic enemy was a one-trick pony.

"He's either incredibly stupid or else he's got some really big plan going on," muttered the King. "I mean, sure those other invasions are a threat, but… jeez! Does this guy take us for a fool or what?"

"He knows that Alexandria will split up their forces in order to take care of the minor threats," mentioned Gash. "No matter how little these dangers may be, one force or another will go and quell them, leaving the kingdom defenseless. It's a strategy that's been proven time and again, so why should this unknown enemy change such a surefire tactic, despite the number of times it's been used?"

"Yeah, you're right," grumbled Zidane sourly. "We can't just let the whole world suffer while we're waiting for some bad guy to show up! But… with all this recent news of an even worse attack, I don't think we have a soldier to spare. We're stuck here!" Frantic and searching for answers, Zidane turned to the three wisest councilors in the whole kingdom, and begged them with eyes of shimmering blue to figure out some method of attack--as well as a method of defense.

It was true that both the Foe and Kyahar Ignus had used these very same tactics in their own invasion, and both forces had been met with relative success. However, the Foe's attack had also disabled the world's communication briefly, rendering any calls to neighboring countries useless, and Ignus' scheme had involved attacking every major country outside of the Mist Continent. This new diversion, while basically a carbon copy of the previous two, was all the more dangerous, as the forces now seemed spread over the entire globe.

"What're we gonna do?!" cursed the King, pounding his fist on the table. He let out a scorching-hot breath of irritation and anxiety, but perhaps the worst blow to his self-esteem was the fact that he was going to be faced with a tough decision no matter what. News had came that Mognet Central was among the many places that had been hit, so communication to other countries was out of the question once again, and unless they had received the call, nobody else would be available to help.

Besides, with the entire world now under attack, every country, city, and town in the world was suffering, so it was literally impossible for Alexandria to receive any help. With the possibility of a near-apocalyptic invasion growing closer on the horizon, the fair kingdom had not a man nor a woman to spare; everyone had to stay behind to defend the kingdom. But if the forces remained, then what could stop the enemy from destroying and/or occupying all the towns and cities of the world?

A council of some of the finest minds and soldiers of the kingdom took place immediately, with the Three Wise Strategists, the King and Queen, Beatrix, and Steiner at the forefront, along with a few others mixed in as well. They had to devise some way of both defending and assaulting on two different fronts, and a few ideas were already coming to mind.

It was first suggested that Alexandria split her forces in half, with part staying behind and part going out in the world, but that was quickly rejected. A second option was to send out the seven-fastest airships in the whole kingdom (with a legion of troops on each) that could dispel the threats quickly and return home before the invaders came. That also was rejected.

Some recommended that a tiny force be sent out to Mognet Central to liberate the place, then communications would be up again and the other countries of the world could act accordingly. However, since every place on the planet was now being attacked by this persistent enemy, it seemed a useless gesture. Others proclaimed that there could be a force of specialists that would take a single airship, and use it to travel from one city to another, liberating the locations and gaining allies as they leaped around--but this was also dismissed as there were too many places to save, and not enough time to reach all of them.

"This is hopeless!!" shouted Zidane as he banged his fists on the table. "I can't believe that we can't even figure out a good strategy! We can't just let the whole world suffer like this!"

"You people are thinking too much with your muscles, and not enough with your hearts," said the Hunter with a hint of bitterness. The council turned their focus towards he who dared say such words, yet the dark-haired old man didn't back down in the least--in fact, he flaunted his words proudly.

"That's right," he spat, "you're all a bunch of stiff-necked morons! If any of you had any heart left, then you would've solved this little puzzle already!"

"Then pray, tell us what your brilliant idea is," said Bosh. The Hunter grumbled grudgingly and crossed his sinewy arms.

"Morons…" he muttered again, "absolute morons… Here, here, listen to what I have to say! Alexandria does not need an army to protect it--just a large team of expert warriors and mages. My suggestion is simple, and since we don't have all the time in the world, it'll be brief.

"I say we send out all the soldiers but a skeleton force, and keep that small number--say, a thousand or so--right here to defend Alexandria."

"But that's preposterous!!!" spat Mash. "This kingdom would be turned into dust if such a small company were to guard it!"

"Ya didn't even let me finish…" grumbled the dark-haired man. Mash leered at the Hunter but kept his tongue, and Garnet goaded the older mercenary on. "…Right. Anyway, you don't need more than a thousand or so soldiers. I may be thinking naively, but if you keep all your archers and mages, then they can wipe out the peanut galleries while the rest of us take out the leader of the group."

"This is a most unsound strategy, Mr. Hunter!!" barked Bosh. "Using archers and mages might be good at picking off a few soldiers, but wouldn't you think that most of them will be able to spill into our gates?"

"Not if you hand-pick the absolute best shots and wizards you've got," muttered the cloaked man. "I once read a document that told of a legendary man named Gilgamesh, who gathered together ninety-nine of the most powerful, skilled, and sharpest minds and fighters the world has ever known: the Century Warriors. He used this force of one-hundred to wipe out an army ten times larger, and not a one of the warriors suffered death!"

"That was in the day of Master Atma!" retaliated Gash. "…As well as the Four Great Generals of the world! But all the Century Warriors are either dead, vanished, or too old to fight! And this upcoming force will be even more devastating than the one Gilgamesh fought!"

"Morons…" muttered the Hunter again. He sighed, and reasoned that only bluntness would suit these Wise Masters best. "All right, I'll make this plain and simple. If you gather together myself and the absolute best warriors this kingdom has to offer--and I mean the absolute best--and if you take all of us and use our combined might to take out the leader of the pack, then wouldn't you think that his subordinate soldiers would lose their nerve? After all, we would have destroyed their leader, right in front of their face!

"And if I'm not mistaken," he said in a low, dark voice, "we have two summoners here with us." The three strategists--indeed, most of the council itself--began mumbling and murmuring amongst themselves, many of them still in doubt over the unorthodox and highly-dangerous strategy.

"Mr. Hunter, we do not think that--"

"That's right, ya didn't think at all!"

"HOW DARE YOU!!!"

"You wouldn't know how to think your way out of a one-way maze!!!!"

"Enough of this nonsense!!"

"By God, you're dense!!!"

"You dare have the nerve…"

"Only if…"

"We should…"

"I oughta…"

"Enough of this!!!!!" All voices, every last screaming one of them, ceased and were silenced by Lady Freya's shout, and Steiner's subsequent slamming of the flat end of his sword on the table. Both noises succeeded in stopping the heated and immature argument, and Freya's evergreen eyes coldly bored into anyone else who had anything to say.

"Children," she hissed, "you are all acting like children!"

"That's only because--"

"I did not allow you the honor of speaking!!" she snapped. The Hunter growled and curled his lip in a nasty snarl, but otherwise remained silent.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Got carried away. I apologize."

"Apology accepted," sniffed Freya darkly. "…But this bickering is useless. Hunter, I don't know you--I can't boast of anybody here that really does--but I do know a bit about battle tactics, and I believe that your idea may work."

"But… Lady Freya…"

"I also believe that we'll need to change the situation a little," she stated, glaring coolly at the three old men. "The Hunter was correct when he suggested using our finest forces to attack the root of the problem. But I also believe that we need to send our skeleton forces out there, while keeping the brunt of our army here, where it belongs. We may be able to afford losing a few dozen soldiers for each area being attacked, but I suppose that if we're going to attack the leader first, then we can make such sacrifices.

"Therefore," she continued, "I suggest keeping the majority of our army behind, and to send…… well, perhaps a few dozen would be best. Yes, maybe we need to send about fifty or so soldiers to each area in question, and hope that they can turn the tides a little. If I'm not mistaken, the enemy in question has divided his forces as well--after all, are not the ones attacking every country in the world also a part of the enemy's army??"

A pause. Beatrix smiled.

"Your words and thoughts are sound and true, Lady Freya," admitted Mash. "We ourselves have considered different possibilities of your strategy, though we could never agree on such a conclusion. I think, however, when you combine your notion with the Hunter's, then we may very well pull out a victory!" Freya smiled humbly and nodded her head in thanks; however, Zidane would not allow his friend such a lack of praise.

"All right, Freya! You rule!" The Burmecian-turned-Alexandrian grinned and even blushed a tad, but an announcement from Steiner washed her pride away.

"Whatever our strategy may be, I suggest we execute it, and fast. Who knows when the enemy may show up, so we need to be prepared!"

"Excuse me…" came a sudden but soft voice. Everyone in the council room paused and turned around to see who had spoke. Standing in the doorway of the room, with her walking stick in her hands and her dark glasses over her eyes, was the unidentified golden-haired young lady that Amarant had brought in. A few people stood up in respect for her.

"Yes, Milady?" said Garnet. The girl paused darkly, and Zidane could've sworn that she was shivering.

"I don't mean to sound questionable, but… I know when the enemy will arrive."

"Impossible!!" choked Gash. "How could you know such a thing?!?!" Another dark pause hung in the air before the girl answered his question.

"…Just let me speak, please." Gash sighed heavily, but silently granted her request. "Thank you. Yes, I know when the enemy will arrive, and if you're still intent on facing him, then you had better send your forces out as quickly as possible."

"Why's that?" asked Beatrix.

"Because," answered the girl, "the enemy will arrive in this kingdom in a week's time."

--------------------

It was a dark and dreary day that ushered in the last moments of the great invasion. The sky was red, literally red, as red as the blood in a man's veins. Thunder rumbled across the heavens, as if the Creator Himself was dreading this day. The trees shivered in the sick breeze, and the earth groaned as it anticipated the massacre that would happen that day. Birds screeched in horror, dogs yipped wildly, and even the babies were wailing. The dark day of the invasion had come: up until now, the citizens of Alexandria had experienced nothing more than mere birth pains, but now the dreaded day had finally come, at long last. A single week had indeed passed, and the "child" was ready to come.

The weather alone portended a day filled with doom and destruction, and if it were possible, all of creation would have moaned in agony because of such horrible anticipation. The Foe, Kyahar Ignus, Kuja, Garland, Necros…… each of these despicable enemies had already caused the kingdom massive grievances, yet as unbelievable as it sounded, the eras of horror that all these previous villains had ushered in were nothing more than slight contractions in comparison to what was truly coming. The enemy, the one feared even by Amarant, was approaching Alexandria on a black horse as maniacal as the Reaper himself.

In the earliest hours of the bloody day, a dark-haired nobleman named Vikar Iudicium led his entire army to the castle of Alexandria. What was most surprising was that there were very few human soldiers in such a brigade; instead, legions upon legions of soulless golems marched down the fields of green, every one of them as empty and void of life as a suit of armor. They would literally march into the jaws of Hell itself and think nothing of it; Death was not a concept to them, nor was there a concept of mercy or surrender. These beasts knew nothing except devastation, and Iudicium commanded no less than 8,000 of them.

The castle of Alexandria stood mightily between a ground that would soon be soaked with blood, and a sky as vermilion as the Rider of Slaughter. Iudicium wore a pure-white coat and white leggings--in fact, only his naked face was not such a pure color, and it gave off an aura of pride, and confidence, and patience, and most lethal of them all, revenge. Only his crimson eyes matched the hues of nature perfectly, and the empty eyes of the beasts amassed behind him glowed just as brightly. It was as if all of creation was begging for one last, great, glorious massacre, and the forces of darkness were only too willing to deliver.

Vikar Iudicium slowly led his forces through the plains and up to the clearing that led to the castle. It was here where he paused, just slightly, to stare at the castle in quiet thought. Nobody knew what sort of diabolical schemes that this man would be hatching, though they would all probably lead to chaos. Here was a man who punished cowards by feeding them to his starving dogs, or else throwing them naked on a grill and letting them slowly burn to their death on the steel platform. Iudicum held control over the golems behind him, and though he only carried a single weapon, all of nature feared his very presence.

The air would soon fill with the black smoke of flames and ashes, and the blood that would soon splatter on the ground would only give way to even more thirst. The dull golems held no emotion as they marched across the green fields of soon-to-be-burned grass, and kept marching until they were close to the castle. Iudicium kept all his nerves in check, even though anyone could tell that this was a day that he had been anticipating for many years now. His smile was barely contained, and the adrenaline in his body throbbed with an aching sensation, begging to be let loose and soil the ground with blood.

"NOW!!!" Suddenly, a hailstorm of arrows belched out of the turrets and windows of the castle, raining heavily upon the unsuspecting creatures. For this surprise attack there was no defense, and many creatures were killed or wounded because of Alexandria's preemptive strike. Iudicium's own horse was mauled by the arrows, but the man himself escaped unscathed. In fact, he even caught an errant arrow with his bare hand, just before it struck his chest.

"It seems as if somebody in there knew we were coming," he noted blandly. "Hmm… I wonder who it could have been…?"

"Probably the girl, sir," suggested the nearest commander to him. Iudicium sniffled up something and quietly agreed.

"Most likely. It would be logical to assume that she has already made it inside this facility, and that her person is either being protected or else hidden. Well, I can take care of her at my own leisure; until then, I do suggest that you and your fellow subordinates go in and slaughter those archers who struck my golem army. You really do have no idea how expensive those things are."

"I obey, sir!" barked the commander, and he led the first charge in the greatest invasion that Alexandria had ever been through. Iudicium, however, stayed behind briefly, rubbing his lips with his finger and mulling to himself.

"…Brahne… the injuries you may inflict on me today will be but scratches compared to the agonizing torture I will send you through. Grilling your fat flabby body on my ovens is too merciful a punishment for you. Perhaps I shall think of some proper device of execution later, as I wade my way through your pitiful kingdom. Though I do guarantee, Brahne, that there will be nothing left of Alexandria except for ashes and bad memories." Taking in a deep breath, Iudicium quietly followed the charging golems inside the castle gates, and was only mildly surprised to catch them and his human subordinates locked in ferocious battle with the "enemy" forces.

As far as the eye could see, there was carnage and devastation everywhere. Iudicium's plan of forcing Alexandria's army to split apart seemed to have worked: there were considerably less people there than usual. Well, the numbers were hardly important to him--he would have disposed of them all eventually. The one thing he really wanted to do was to reach the Queen, and execute her in a most proper style, and then declare judgment on the rest of the kingdom. For the time being, he would simply ignore his warring forces, and the army they fought against. They were but pawns in this game. Disposable. Insignificant. Almost rubbish.

"Not so fast there, mister!!"

Iudicium let out a slight groan as the voice called out to him, and as he turned around, he saw a small force consisting of a boy with a tail, and two mismatched hoodlums who seemed no more skilled at fighting than a platypus. They were all carrying impressive-looking weapons, though not a one of them seemed to match the power staring back at them. With a single uninterested sigh, Iudicium asked in no excited terms what their business was.

"Hm, and what do we have here?"

"Trust me, pal!" called out the boy with the tail. "You don't wanna know!!" A pause.

"…I see," muttered the man in white. "Just a small gang of riffraff, not even worth coughing at. Boy, I suggest that if you want to live, you should attend to your own duties."

"This is my duty, bucko!" shouted the kid, brandishing his weapon. "I'm gonna make sure that scum like you don't ever attack nice kingdoms like this again!"

"And eloquent too, I see," muttered Iudicium. "Well, if an urchin such as yourself is defending this kingdom, then Alexandria should have been reduced to dust long before my own birth! But, since you look to be but half my age, then I shall humor you and allow you one last chance to leave."

"I don't think you heard me!!" growled the boy with a tail. "I said that you're not gonna get past me! If you wanna get anywhere in this kingdom, you're gonna have to go through me!!!"

"Typical hotheaded youth," sneered Iudicium sourly. "I do not believe that you know who you are dealing with, child. However, as per instructions gathered from your ultimatum, I shall have contest with you and your, eh, affiliates."

"Blank," said one, hefting a sword.

"Marcus," said the other. Iudicium didn't even bother to crack a smile.

"Quite. And you, young man?"

"I'm Zidane!" he cried, wielding his blade fiercely. Iudicium gave him a dull look and crossed his arms.

"Hm. I don't believe this calls for excessive force on my part, just a bit of finesse. Boy, I am ready to brush you aside any time the fates spurn you."

"Oh, I've had it up to here with you!!" screamed Zidane, and the seasoned Genome ran towards the man in white with all the ferocity and power that he had summoned in the fights with Kuja. His blade crashed through the burning atmosphere and sailed down towards Iudicium's shoulder, yet was promptly stopped by the man, with little more than his two index fingers holding the blade! A sudden freeze in action caused Zidane to grimace with rage as he saw his weapon being blocked with almost no effort from his foe's part; Iudicium looked bored out of his mind.

"Like I said," he spoke, "you should have left when you had the chance. But now, you shall pay the price for standing in my way!!!" And with a sudden thrust, the white-clothed man buried his knee in Zidane's gut, knocking the poor boy's breath out fast and hard. Zidane bowled over in unimaginable pain, causing him to loosen his grip on his weapon, thus allowing Iudicium's fingers the freedom they needed to curl into fists and slam into the boy's block. In just two titanic hits, the Genome who had defeated Kuja and Garland was on the floor, not moving a muscle.

"Next?" said the only man standing, catching a glimpse at Marcus and Blank. The two stared at him in horror, having barely followed the brief fracas, yet their amazement soon turned into ferocity, and the two seasoned thieves ran forth to test their fate. Both of their blades crashed down on the terrifying invader, yet both were caught with his bare hands, and both thieves received a powerful kick in each of their midsections. Iudicium actually ripped their weapons from out of their hands, and literally shattered them to pieces as he broke them over his knee.

"Are you quite done?" he asked, dusting his hands off. The two thieves remained on the floor, very much defeated, yet stubborn Zidane was not down by a longshot. He slowly stood to his feet yet again, throwing his dagger to the side and reaching into a bag for a weapon he had hoped he would never use again. Out came one of the great legendary weapons of the world, the Ultimate Weapon, and the Genome twirled it like fans of a windmill as he glowered back at his foe.

"Try blocking this with your fingers!" he shouted--and without any more threats, the boy raced forward with his weapon spinning in the air. Iudicium remained completely petrified, content to merely watch the young man dash at him, but at the very last second, his own sword came out of its sheath, and easily blocked the Ultimate Weapon.

"I admit that your tool is not one I could deflect using my own body," he muttered calmly. "However, as you'll realize, you might soon wish that I had." Iudicium gave Zidane a rare smile, and the boy's eyes grew to the size of moons as he beheld the dark-haired man's weapon. It was easily as big as his own!

"Holy crap!" he sputtered. "That's one big sword!"

"Tis' not the size of the sword that counts, boy!" snarled Iudicium as he pushed the Genome backwards. "…But the skills of the warrior who wields it! Observe, boy, as I prove every power that you once had now useless!!" With a sudden fierce shove, Iudicium pushed his opponent backwards and ran forward with his own blade, hacking and slashing at such an indescribable speed that not even the twin blades of Ultima Weapon could compete.

With almost no effort at all, Iudicium slapped the tool from Zidane's hands, then slashed at the defenseless boy with his own powerful blade. The cut barely nicked Zidane's skin, but every slice after that came in direct contact, slowly whittling away at Zidane's flesh like a tongue. A powerful punch to the face sent the boy to the ground, wherein Iudicium mercilessly hacked at the boy's exposed body with his sword, opening up dozens of scars yet leaving him alive enough to feel every little slash he gave. A final powerful kick to the ribs sent Zidane flying, and a sword completely devoid of any blood found its way into Iudicium's sheath.

Too easy.

The flames of war continued to dance out of control as a single man in white calmly walked through the kingdom. Sounds of suffering were just barely tickling his insensitive ears, but even the loudest of them went unheard as he continued his journey towards the throne room. He could honestly care less that there were people dying everywhere he walked; these lives meant nothing to him at all, not even the lives of his men. If they died, fine. If they lived, fine. If they won, fine. If they lost……

Well, he thought to himself, they will not lose, because I will not lose.

Amidst the fires and the flames, Iudicium ran into yet another obstacle in his path, though this one seemed to bear more of a challenge than the last. It contained a young female that bore a powerful resemblance to the Zidane chap he had beaten before--in fact, she even had the tail--and two others who were also from a questionable source: one a bloated Qu, the other a fierce-looking female Burmecian. Iudicium knew enough of the world to have his eye set on the Burmecian, but the others were of no threat to him at all. At all.

"Good morrow," he greeted like the nobleman he was. "I must ask that if you are on my side, you should kindly relocate yourself, and that if you are against me, you should run straight into the flames. T'would be better to kill your own self than to face me in a fight."

"Please," moaned the Burmecian. "Don't underestimate us. If you've gotten this far, then Zidane and the others have already done some significant damage. I'm sure you won't be able to get past me, and if you do, there are still others waiting for you."

"Is that a fact?" asked Iudicium. "Well, now, why in the world are so many people lining up to destroy me? Surely they know better!"

"You would be surprised at how often logic escapes these people," said the female Genome blankly. "…Yet, it is oftentimes through their lack of common sense that they are victorious. However, in this group, I shall be the voice of reason, and Quina the voice of recklessness, and Freya the strength that supports us, so in truth, you have no prayer."

A pause.

"…Quina… Freya… and you, Miss?"

"Mikoto."

"Quite," sniffed Iudicium. "Listen, eh, Miss Mikoto, I do not know where you came from or why you are here, so let me be blunt and say that I have dealt with the, eh, 'guardians' of this kingdom, and not a one of them could lay a blow on me. I cannot boast the same for any of them."

"What you say?!" boomed the Qu. "You hurt Zidane? You hurt my friends?"

"…Why, yes!" chimed Iudicium. "As a matter of fact, I do believe that I did! What are you going to do about it?"

"We fight you!!" shouted Quina, brandishing a powerful fork. Iudicium regarded the eating utensil with feigned interest.

"I can imagine the battles you must go through with a tool like that," he said. "But, still, if it is my head you seek, then you may have it if you can best me." His powerful and large sword emerged from his sheath yet again (probably reserved for Freya alone), and in the midst of the flames and smoke and the red sky above, it glistened like a devil's eye.

"Fine!" shouted Freya, producing her own weapon. "Have at you!!" The snarl on the Burmecian's face would have been fierce enough to deter any opponent, but Iudicium personally found it quite beautiful. However, he would have to savor her skills later, as Mikoto and Quina were first up in the fight. The large Qu bounced forward with its powerful fork, whilst the more graceful Genome slithered forward with her glaive. Quina jabbed first, yet Iudicium only had to sidestep it once. He quickly grabbed the utensil with his bare hands, and with a single chop, shattered it in two. Quina nearly screamed as the beloved weapon broke to pieces, and would have smothered Iudicium with its own bulk had not the man grabbed such a bulk and twirled it around until it was launched straight at Mikoto. Such a large missile like Quina was unavoidable, even for a Genome, but Mikoto was able to leap up without taking too heavy of a hit. With Quina grounded and weaponless, it was up to her to finish the job.

However, just as Mikoto glared at the man in white and Freya stepped forward to test her own skills, three more characters came in from the left side of the town, parting the sea of flames and fighters in their wake. They would have been an unstoppable force if they had ever actually gotten along, but up until that very moment, their alliance was completely nonexistent. They were Amarant, the Hunter, and Lani, and now that they were cornering Iudicium in a pincer trap, it seemed that the invasion was going to come to an extremely quick end.

"Oh? And what's this?" he asked, spying the three newcomers. The Hunter crossed his arms in a surly manner and smirked at the younger man.

"Ha! Do ye really think that you can face five of the world's best warriors all at once? I don't think even I could."

"Yeah!" screamed Lani. "You're going down! I, Lani, the world's most beautiful and powerful ex-bounty hunter will make sure that you meet an extremely grisly end!!" A pause. Iudicium regarded the dark-skinned woman with a smile so fake, even the unidentified blonde girl could have seen it (wherever she was).

"(Note to self: torture the girl when you have the chance)," he muttered.

"Eh? What was that?"

"Nothing, dear," he replied coolly, making sure all his nails were filed properly. "Nothing, nothing at all." Lani snarled and stepped forth to reply with a nasty phrase, but Amarant stopped her.

"Enough talk," he growled. "I gotta score to settle with this guy. The rest of you do whatever." Only Lani seemed truly confused about what he had just said; the Hunter nodded as if he understood, and allowed his pupil the space he needed. Alone, Amarant stood his ground against Iudicium, his hands waving slightly as he watched for an opening. The slightly-older man in white simply crossed his arms and smiled, all the while keeping his back to Mikoto and Freya……

"Foolish move!!" screamed the Genome suddenly, and Mikoto lunged forth with her powerful glaive. Yet Iudicium span around so blindingly fast that he was not only able to protect himself, but he was even able to make a preemptive strike on the girl. Before Mikoto had even realized that her opponent had bolted around, he had already chopped at both sides of her neck with both of his hands--then while she was still in a brief daze, he finished her off with a scissor-chop, nearly shattering her throat with such powerful blows. Mikoto fell to the floor, thankfully gasping for air (albeit in very long and hoarse draws), leaving only four left who had a chance to stop the maniacal man.

Amarant had spied his opportunity the very second Mikoto had screamed out. Bosh and Gash had previously illustrated the strategy of trapping the leader of the invasion in a pincer move, just like when Beatrix and Freya had surrounded Ignus, and it became a plan of theirs to place Freya's team and Amarant's team not too far apart from each other (indeed, every team had been placed in integral parts, so as to surround Iudicium and hopefully snuff him out). If worse came to worse, Mikoto would volunteer to distract the terrible man, leaving his back exposed for any or all attackers.

Now, as Iudicium struck the Genome down, Amarant saw his chance and quickly locked his supposed enemy in a fierce hug. His arms clamped over Iudicium's stomach, his sheer mass keeping him from being flipped. Yet this man was no spring chicken when it came to getting out of such maneuvers, and a simple snap of the head to Amarant's face caused the mercenary to yell out in pain and release his prey.

Quickly, Iudicim grabbed his sword again and hastily parried the Hunter's advances. He and Lani were already quick to join the battle, and with the speed of the Hunter and the power of Lani, it would probably be over quickly. Yet no matter how fast or strong they seemed, Iudicium successfully blocked every blow--in fact, he even took offensive several times--and slowly, little by little, he forced them back.

Obviously, the Hunter would prove more of a foe than Lani, what with his senses, speed, and decades of experience, so Iudicium would have to be fast if he wanted to get rid of this man. He resolved to engage Lani first, and with a single and powerful shattering blow, he completely broke her large axe apart, sending splinters to the floor as its shaft cracked into a hundred pieces. Lani actually let out a scream as her weapon was broken, yet even her piercing wail was muffled as a merciless sword slashed at her body a hundred times.

Of course, no human being would allow such a terrifying mode of torture to continue, no matter how annoying the recipient was. Indeed, the Hunter and a recovered Amarant leaped in to save their comrade, but Iudicium was already in the middle of a battle, and his momentum carried him into these next two fights. Amarant slammed his claws onto the older man first, and though it seemed the flaming one had an advantage because of his strength, he was actually using both his hands, while Iudicium gripped his sword with only one.

The Hunter speedily dashed in on the other side, swinging both blades like a maniac. Iudicium really had to move if he wanted to parry blows from two sides, especially if these sides had a man with two weapons each. Flashes of lightning, sparks, flames, and mighty crashes of thunder and steel slamming onto steel shook the land with an unprecedented roar as these three mighty warriors did battle, and such a fracas was so terrifying that Freya, who was carefully observing Iudicium's movement, could barely submit herself to watching.

She did cover her eyes when Iudicium slashed at Amarant's legs, making great scars and sending the man to the floor, and she did cringe considerably as he rammed the butt end of his blade right into the Hunter's abdomen. Spittle and a hint of blood squirted out of the older man's mouth, and the same sword-butt was used as a merciless club to smash at the older man's defenseless face. Both the Hunter and Amarant were down, and just to make sure, Iudicium hacked at their bodies without ever getting a drop of blood on his sword.

"Are you not fighting me?" he asked of Freya. She merely glared at him, her spear silently positioned in a defensive spot.

"I'm watching," she emphasized. "I didn't want to stand by here and do nothing as my friends and allies were butchered by you, but at least I learned your moves. Now that I know what to expect, all I really have to do is keep up with you and it'll be over."

"Do you really think I will be that simple to conquer?" he asked, holding his great sword in both of his hands. Freya took a single step forward and smirked.

"I've faced worse than you."

"Really."

"Of course. I've seen things that would give you nightmares, Iudicium."

"You don't know what nightmares are, Burmecian!" hissed the invader. "You might have experienced a few bad turns in your life, but to truly know what horror is… to live with it every waking moment of your life… to have it hanging over your head, like the Grim Reaper ready to thresh…… It is indeed a very indescribable feeling!"

"…I think I know what you mean," she hissed quietly. "But no matter what sort of grudge you hold against this kingdom, it does not excuse your actions here."

"You are just as clueless as everyone else who has come in my way!" spat Iudicium. "And, like they have, you shall meet a very gruesome fate! Be thankful I hold not a grudge against Burmecia, woman, or else I would certainly show you just what a nightmare can really become!!!" With that declaration said, the maniacal man ran forth and attacked first, slamming his large blade onto Freya's spear. She wielded a legendary weapon, so it would not shatter like so many before it, but the sheer power of Iudicium's blade nearly overcame her.

"You… are strong!" she muttered, her teeth clenched fiercely. Every last fiber of her energy had been dedicated to holding the blade back, yet for all her strength, Iudicium still looked like he had been fighting with half a heart. Only the smallest trace of strain was on his face; Freya looked like she was trying to push an elephant.

"I've worked quite hard to get to this position," said Iudicium in a ghastly calm voice. "I should be worlds stronger than your everyday soldier, and probably mightier than your best."

"I wouldn't put money on that," managed Freya. She suddenly leaped back with her powerful legs, and caught her breath for awhile as she emphasized. "…There are those who have the power to slay hundreds, even thousands. One of them is a certain woman that is as close to me as a sister!"

"Do not attempt to threaten me with your sentimentality, Burmecian," said Iudicium coldly. "You may think there are those that have power over me, but in reality, they that Judge others shall always emerge on top!!" Iudicium ran forward again, the time for talk now long since past for him, and attacked Freya with all his might. The speed at which he swung that monstrous sword of his was completely impossible, yet it was as if the thing weighed no more than a mere twig.

Freya, on the other hand, had to use every ounce of skill in her soul to defend against such an agonizing foe. Her spear oftentimes weaved in ways that she never thought possible, or else her body twirled and danced in positions foreign to her. Her legs were slightly stronger than the rest of her body, so she was easily able to run and to keep up with Iudicium, but as for sheer strength…

The invader and the former Burmecian fought and battled for what seemed like hours, their weapons crashing together like two thunders. Not even the rumbling skies above, nor the blazing inferno of battle around them, could quite measure up to such intensity and ferocity that was expressed then. They were not two warriors--it was more like watching an angel and a demon do war than anything else. To be able to even watch a battle such as this would be terrifying enough; being in it would have been a true nightmare.

After an unknown amount of time, battle fatigue finally reached Freya's body, and though her spirit and soul were strong, the flesh was weak, and could succumb to mightier powers than its own. Iudicium suddenly slapped the Dragon's Whisker spear away for a period, gaining him the open space he needed to ram the butt of his sword back at his opponent. Then, with the momentum of his swinging blade, he cut a terrible gash on Freya's body, ripping apart her traditional dragoon's costume, her hair, and quite a bit of her flesh as well. The wound was not deep, but it stung like acid, and the dragoon let out a single piercing scream before tumbling to the ground.

Her shriek was amplified and lengthened as Iudicium let his sword plummet towards her neck, but just before he could decapitate her, he paused and let the blade stop, mere whiskers away from slicing Freya's throat. Perspiring heavily, breathing heavily, and trembling heavily from exhaustion and fear, Freya could only quiver as her attacker smiled down on her.

"Like I said," he spoke, "I have no quarrel with you, Burmecian. I'll leave you alive, as I left everyone else alive, but not without suffering." And then, without mercy, he kicked at Freya's defenseless body and began to shred it with his blade. This butchering did not continue for long, but the sheer pain of having a blade kiss one's own body several dozen times was an experience Freya never wanted to repeat again. Iudicium did in fact leave her alive, though horribly scarred, and bleeding just enough to be considered out of the fight.

Vikar Iudicium just had to wonder who would be next to stop him.

The final few foes that stood between Iudicium and the throne were not exactly the warriors he had expected. Of course, two of Alexandria's greatest knights were there, plus a young black mage, but that was the only real threat out there. There was a short unshaven man who wielded a hammer, a blue-haired flute-bearing girl with a horn, and a pretty young lady with long black hair, and that was all.

"You dare come to Alexandria in war?!" boomed the male knight. "You dare declare war on a peace-loving country?! How do you have the nerve to even show yourself?!"

"Peace-loving?" parroted Iudicium. "Peace-loving? My dear knight, how mistaken you are! You are a fool!!!" The knight, Captain A. Steiner, snorted and held his blade tighter still.

"Bah! I may not be a genius, but I know that this country is one who embraces serenity and tranquility! How you have the nerve to think otherwise is beyond my comprehension!"

"You are but a fool!" repeated Iudicium. "Was not your Queen, that fat oaf Brahne, an enormous fan of mass-slaughter and widespread destruction? Did she not sponsor the near-genocidal attacks of Burmecia and Cleyra? Was she not responsible for nearly leveling Lindblum? And was she not almost close enough to burn Madain Sari to the ground, and most assuredly the Iifa Tree with it??!! EH?! Tell me, knight, is this your definition of peace?!"

"You be silent!!" barked the female knight, Beatrix. "Yes, it is true that Brahne has caused much sorrow in the past! But she has already paid for her crimes! Why then do you come to us and make these accusations?!"

"What do you mean?!" demanded the nobleman. "Where is that greasy tub, anyway? Or has her cowardice also become bloated?!?!"

"You dare speak of the Queen that way--!"

"Enough of this!!" shouted the young girl suddenly. Steiner and Beatrix froze and stood off a bit to the side to allow her to speak. The girl, who was the new Queen of the kingdom, paused briefly to gather her words together. She would definitely need them most at this stage.

"…Queen Brahne… perished in the battle over Madain Sari," she began slowly. "…She has paid for her crimes with her demise. I am now Alexandria, Mr. Iudicium, so if you have any problems, you should take them to me!" A pause. Iudicium rubbed his chin in thought and considered what the young girl had said.

"…Brahne has died?"

"Yes." Another pause. Iudicium took in a deep breath and briefly reconsidered his actions.

"…That makes little difference," he muttered. "It is true that my heart gladdens to hear of the Queen's death, but that alone does not satisfy my needs. Alexandria is the cause of my strife; Brahne was merely the figurehead behind it all. If the Queen Bee dies, the whole hive does not die as well; yea, in fact, it may strengthen even more!"

"But I don't understand!" replied Garnet. "Why are you so mad at us in the first place? What have we ever done to you? What's the point behind all this suffering?!" The Queen's voice was pleading and just a bit whiny, yet the melody in her tone was darkened by the ominous skies, and by the insane laughter of Vikar Iudicium.

"Hahahahaha… HAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!! O, ye foolish woman, art thou so blinded to the truth?!?!"

"What are you laughing at?!" demanded Steiner. "Speak, villain!!" Iudicium glared at the armored knight with a sickening grin, and bared his sword for the whole world to see.

"I see, so you all have been left in the dark! Well then, let me explain it to you! Many months ago, perhaps a year or two ago around this very time, your precious Queen Brahne waged a greed-powered war on the world, correct?"

"…Well…"

"She destroyed anything that got in her way, correct?!"

"…I, uh…"

"And that included the entire Iudicium family legacy!!!" By now, Iudicium had turned from a calm, gentlemanly noble into a ferocious, screaming demon, and was even frothing at the mouth a bit. The look on his face was that of twisted rage and unbridled insanity, and not even the blade he carried was so sharp.

"…Are you saying…?"

"YES!!!!" he hissed. "Your precious Queen Brahne and her precious army of soulless black mages came to my family's estate in order to reap its riches! She was not content with just passing by; no, she wanted it all! We Iudiciums have been an important figurehead in the economy for most of the world, but not even we could have repelled her attacks! Brahne sacked and looted what she could, and then turned our fertile lands into lifeless wastes! I survived only through the means of foreign affairs, so you can imagine my grief upon returning home!!!

"After that day, I swore righteous vengeance on the scourge that annihilated everything I had ever known, and thus set about my slow and silent campaign of destroying your unholy kingdom! Little by little, I orchestrated the invasions that you have survived over the months, until the time came when I myself would invade, and avenge my people! After all, our family motto stands as thus: 'Take vengeance for what is unjust, and execute Judgment upon all those who commit unreasonable wrong'!"

"Savage!!" hissed Garnet--but what Iudicium said made sense, to a degree. It all really boiled down to an old act of terrorism and destruction from the previous Queen, one that had leveled the home and lifestyle of a once-important family name. In a way, Iudicium had the right to seek out justice, and to see that Brahne--and maybe even all of Alexandria--was punished for such a crime. But as Garnet had stated before, her mother already paid the penalty for such crimes……

"You are insane!" continued the Queen. "Alexandria is no longer the barbaric country it once was! It has changed! It has changed dramatically, for the better! Here, here! Call off your men, cease this pointless war, and I will do everything in my power to see that your woes are cared for and your losses compensated!"

"My losses will be compensated with your blood, Alexandros!" snarled Iudicium. "And I shall annihilate everything until I get what is rightfully due to me! Prepare thyself, Alexandria, for thy merciless Judgment!!!!!" The deranged man in white ran forth, his blade screaming for pools of blood, and was stopped only by the combined weapons of Beatrix and Steiner.

"You want blood?" questioned the female General. "Spill ours first! I would lay my life down for her majesty!"

"And I would never think to do otherwise!" agreed Steiner. "You shall just have to get through us instead!!!" The two noble knights actually pushed Iudicium back with their combined blades, yet the enraged man was not one to give up so easily.

"…So be it," he spat darkly. "You have sealed your fate. The gavel declares all!" With a sudden thrust, Iudicium slashed at his attackers, sending them jumping backwards briefly. Before he could take on the more powerful knights, however, he had to get through a group of less-experienced guardians.

Of Cinna he disposed easily, having only to give the bearded man a ferocious kick right in the guts. Vivi proved to be much more of a threat, and his magic actually singed Iudicium's pure-white clothes a little. But the enraged man had not gotten this far only to be beaten by a mere mage, and as soon as Vivi prepared his next attack, Iudicium held his blade in a defensive position and actually reflected the damage back onto the mage!

"Pathetic!" he spat. "My sword Gavel has been inscribed with magic runes, thus making it the perfect tool to repulse magic attacks! Do not think that I shall submit to the same attack a second time!!" The maniacal man grinned with glee, and turned around to see who dared strike him next. Both of the younger girls had terrible glares on their faces, but the looks on the knights' were as steel as the blades they wielded.

"Come get some!" bellowed Steiner. "You'll find that we're on a completely different level than the others you've fought!"

"Probably," shrugged Iudicium. "I met a Burmecian who claimed she had a powerful friend, and I hope that this beautiful woman here is it. Otherwise, the scars she's received so far will multiply and deepen."

"What have you done to Freya?!" roared Beatrix, her weapon pointed directly at Iudicium. The man smiled and shrugged, as if his barbaric methods were hardly worth mentioning.

"Nothing, really. I don't talk about my fighting styles, so maybe you'll just have to feel it yourself." Beatrix, who could assume the worst concerning her close friend, let out an animalistic howl as she sprinted towards Iudicium. His blade met hers, and the first true hope of vanquishing this persistent invader dove into a ferocious battle, with the very future of Alexandria at stake.

Beatrix actually succeeded in forcing the older man back a step, but with a single swipe, Iudicium tossed the woman away. She did not plummet and fall like a lesser soldier would; she merely leaped to her feet and continued the assault. Steiner, not liking the fact that Beatrix was hogging all the fun (again), boldly joined her and slammed his own blade against Iudicium's sword. Save the Queen and Ragnarok throbbed together in harmony, forcing the deranged man in white back a few steps more.

Iudicium leaped off to the side, and an insane war was waged between the three of them. Swords flew at terrifying speeds, sparks belched out when steel met steel, lightning flashed and fires erupted, and the whole earth trembled as the combined forces of Beatrix and Steiner launched an all-out attack on Iudicium. Their fight was considerably fiercer than the one waged between the invader and Freya, and perhaps even deadlier as well.

But even with the speed of Beatrix and the strength of Steiner, Iudicium managed to hold his own, even though his was but one blade and theirs were two. His immense sword would have to travel at insane speeds to be able to protect against both, yet for all their skill, he was slowly gaining the upper hand. At one point, Steiner's sword had slipped a little and scarred Iudicium's nose a bit, and all of Alexandria quickly realized that even this man could bleed.

He merely paused, wiped the vermilion off, examined it, and smiled.

Without a word, the vicious man ran forth at an even faster speed, and went into a completely berserk fury, lashing out with his blade at a quickness unknown to nature. It seemed like the blade moved in a blur, and was so absolutely fast that not even the knights could see it--and thus, were slowly losing.

Steiner, though armored, fell first as Iudicium slammed his blade directly on the armor. A great gashing slice had been cut in the steel, though no skin had broken at all. However, Steiner was not even allowed the time to examine such a mark, as his entire armored body was being pummeled by Iudicium's blade. Scars upon scars were being shredded into the pure steel, until at last a piece was punctured. The invader slapped the flat of his blade in Steiner's face to finish the deal, and the poor armored knight, though not badly injured, screamed most of the way down as he fell to the floor.

"You animal!" screamed Beatrix. "Come then, and see what I have in store for you!!" Alexandria's champion and the last member of the Iudicium family squared off in what would probably be recorded as a legendary battle, and this one-on-one fight was perhaps even more savage than the last. Every single skill that Beatrix had learned under the tutelage of her master was put to use--everything, except her three forbidden skills.

Unfortunately, I can't use those now, she thought to herself. They're so devastating that they would rearrange the architecture of this entire kingdom, not to mention destroy any innocent bystander in its path! No, better to take things safely. Can't use them unless I have no choice…

Beatrix was beginning to lose what choices she had in the fight.

Having only one eye to see out of, the holy knight quickly found herself outclassed by the madman. She was starting to become fatigued, and a few cuts had already been made on her own body. Aside from the scratch on his nose, Iudicium was unharmed, though it seemed as if he was looking a little weary as well. If Beatrix could only stall him for a few seconds more…

Suddenly, the unthinkable happened. Iudicium lashed out with an earth-shattering blow, specifically aimed at Beatrix's face. The General froze in horror as the blade careened towards her, and not even a fast dive away could completely stop it. The very tip of the blade completely cut through the patch on her eye, slicing it in two and sending the pieces falling to the ground.

The Garnet's surprise, Beatrix let out a scream as her patch was lost forever. She suddenly lost all will to fight, and crumbled to the floor to retrieve what was once so common to her. Everyone within visual distance was slightly surprised to see that the side of Beatrix's face that had been covered by the patch was unadulterated (save for two very tiny cuts on her forehead and cheekbone), but more surprising still was the way she mourned over such a simple object.

Crying tears of horrified grief, Beatrix plucked the torn patch up off the ground, and feebly attempted to piece it back together. But the object was lost forever; it had been shredded beyond help, and would forever remain useless. Nobody, not even Freya, knew why the General wept over such a silly object… but that didn't matter.

Only four words escaped her mouth as she wept there:

Luke…… I'm so sorry…

"…What an intriguing scene," muttered Iudicium, who was more perplexed than anything else. He sniffled something up, and turned away from his defeated foe. Only Eiko stood in his way, and even though she put on her fiercest growl, it had no affect whatsoever--in fact, in response to her pathetic attempt, Iudicium smashed his foot against her small body, and nearly crushed the poor girl under his boot.

"Eiko!!!!!" Garnet screamed out in horror, and out of recklessness, she dashed towards the terror with her most powerful weapon, the Tiger Racket. Iudicium finally saw his chance as the young Queen stormed towards him, and raised his weapon high in the air. He brought it down like a true gavel-wielding Judge, and with but one single stroke, completely cleaved off the left arm of Queen Garnet.

Immediately, there came a scream from Garnet's mouth, one so loud and piercing that the heavens actually trembled. The Queen's eyes flashed with lightning and blinding white light, as an indescribable pain and agony tore away at her body and soul. She screamed out so loud that the very rocks cracked, and fell to the floor in mindless agony, writhing and crawling and begging for relief. The lifeless arm that had been attached to her body not three seconds ago laid useless on the floor in a disgusting slump.

"HIGHNESS!!!!!!"

"GARNET!!!!!!"

"NO!!!!!!" Instantly, more screams were added to hers, as Eiko, Beatrix, and Steiner yelled out in terror. A wounded Zidane and Freya, persistently following their foe, had limped all the way there despite their injuries, only to see their lover and Queen (respectively) hacked apart so viciously. They too screamed out for her, and even though their bodies were littered with bloody scars, they blindly ran forth to avenge such a loss.

"VIKAR IUDICIUM!!!!!! YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!!!!!" Yet no voice was quite as loud as Beatrix's, who had been wallowing in meaningless grief for the past few seconds. The General stood up, renewed and ready to tear Iudicium apart, and from the looks on the faces of Steiner, Freya, Zidane, and Eiko, she would not be alone. Iudicium merely smiled.

"How absolutely typical," he spat. Turning around, he gave the wailing Garnet a weak kick, which enraged everyone beyond the point of insanity. "This," he said darkly, "is but a taste of what will happen to you, and your kingdom, and everything you hold dear. Judgment will be meted out."

"You sick, maniacal, freakish, illegitimate son of a worthless mother!!!" Zidane screamed out the worst curses he had ever known (Author's note: what is seen here is the edited version) and tore after Iudicium with a strength and vengeance of his own; indeed, everybody ran towards him, despite their injuries. Yet even then, even then, Iudicium managed to beat them all back. He gave Zidane a vicious punch in the face, and whacked Eiko with a powerful kick as she stormed off after him. He sliced at Freya, narrowly spilling her intestines out with such a blow, and jabbed his sword straight into Steiner's armored body. The tip of his sword just barely pierced the skin, but with the armor taking most of the blow, Iudicium was able to throw the knight away with one single powerful toss. Now, only Beatrix remained.

"Well, General," he said, "looks like it's just you and me." Beatrix, having no use for words, roared out a guttural cry of rage and justice as she attacked Iudicium, and with a power and speed unknown to even her, she slammed Save the Queen against his defending sword like a hurricane buffets against a house. Again and again, she mercilessly attacked him, sending him stepping backwards slowly, again and again, attacking and attacking, never knowing anything save for the battle--not even her own endurance.

Yet as Beatrix had managed to escape from a similar madness before (with Freya), so too did Iudicium escape this. He received a single cut on the cheek before retaliating with his own weapon, clashing and smashing his sword against Beatrix's until the woman was too weak to protect herself, then cleaved at her stomach with what would have been his final blow. The attack hit her, creating a small but noticeable gash on her abdomen. Paired in with the exhaustion she had been through, and the emotional distress she had seen, the blow was just strong enough to send Beatrix to the floor. But just to be certain, Iudicium let her have it in the face.

Now, with nobody left to stand in his way, Vikar Iudicium slowly walked over to where Garnet was, and pitifully glanced down at his substitute foe. The Queen was still screaming out in untold agony, her entire left side gushing out blood, and not even the world's most powerful spell, item, or doctor might have cured such a grievous wound. She was suffering, of course--suffering like nothing she had ever felt, even against Kuja or Necros. Her entire arm had been completely cleaved off in a single hack, leaving nothing except a bloody, empty remnant, and screams.

"Well… well… well…" With the deliberation of a king, Iudicium examined the moaning woman, and gently poked her with his sword. A kick or two completed the insult, and not even such a heinous travesty as this could spurn the Queen's protectors into performing their duties. Everyone was beaten beyond their physical limits, leaving Iudicium unscathed enough to torture the defenseless monarch.

"This is good," he said softly, gazing down at Garnet's pained expression. "Your suffering is good, and pure. I have suffered ten times more than what you are going through even now, and over a much longer period of time. Even now, Alexandria, you do not fully comprehend the pain and agony I have been through, nor will you ever, not even in the bowels of Hades itself!

"But," he continued as he smiled sickly, "we can certainly come close, can't we?" Iudicium continued his thin, sadistic smile, even as he slowly raised his sword to perform another mutilating strike. Garnet, who could barely open her eyes because of the immense pain, could only whimper and hope for things to be over fast.

"Stop!!"

A powerful voice halted Iudicium's actions briefly, causing the invader to turn around and see who had spoken. Out of the violence and chaos of the battle around him, there came a distinct tap-tap-tapping sound, and the deliberate yet strong footsteps of one who never knew what laid ahead of them. From the flames and smoke emerged the unidentified girl, a dark expression on her face and her walking stick in her hand. Though blind, she seemed to glare coldly at Iudicium.

"Vikar Maoska Iudicium…!" she spat. "He" smiled wickedly at her.

"Child of Nostrudamus…" The two of them stared each other down for awhile, almost as if there was some hidden past between them, which there was. "…So, my theory was correct. You did manage to find refuge in this castle."

"The time for talking has come to an end, Vikar," spat the girl. "If nobody else can stand up to you, then I will! My only regret is that I was unable to arrive when the fighting first started, but I'm going to make up for that mistake by stopping this madness!!" The smirk on Iudicium's fade ceased to be, and calmly, the girl turned her head around and smiled at her temporary aide, a young Burmecian male who was around twenty.

"Excuse me," she said gently, "but could you do me a few favors?"

"Certainly, milady," he said. The girl smiled, and delicately removed her dark glasses.

"Hold these for me," she said. "I wouldn't want to lose them in the fight. Oh, and could you exchange this walking stick for the weapon I had when I came in?"

"Certainly, milady," repeated the Burmecian. The young male loyally kept the girl's glasses in his pocket, and placed her staff off to the side while he retrieved another weapon. In the meantime, the young girl slowly tied her blonde hair back in a ponytail, so it wouldn't get in her way during "the fight". As she busied herself, anyone healthy enough to talk did so, questioning her most unorthodox actions.

"Milady! What do you think you're doing?! That's a monster over there! Surely you don't intend to actually fight him! Why, he plowed through fifteen of the finest warriors in the land, with almost no scratches on him! What do you think you could do?!"

Silence.

"Trust me," she said as she tied her golden hair back. "I'll be fine. Believe it or not, I've seen much worse than him."

"But, milady…!"

"I'll be fine," she assured them with a smile. "Your concern should be with the injured. Ah, thank you, Morris." The Burmecian who had been attending her--Morris--bowed his head as he handed her what appeared to be her true weapon, a very long and very powerful staff that was rumored to have been made on the moon. It was as legendary a weapon as Save the Queen, Ragnarok, Ultima Weapon, etc., and though it would not break under the stress of Iudicium's unstoppable blade, people had to wonder whether this timid girl was sane or not when she stepped forth to challenge the hitherto-unstoppable Iudicium.

Twirling her long staff in the air like the blades of a windmill--only with a considerably-faster speed--the girl stood in wait to see what Iudicium had in store for her. The man in white, whose smile was long gone, merely held his sword in a neutral position, waiting for the chance to strike or parry. A dark pause, thick and tense like rope, hung silently in the air as these two people squared off. Only the fires moved in the dreadful silence; even Garnet had stopped writhing long enough to watch. There was no activity, yet everyone was entranced with what might have happened next.

Suddenly, with a powerful force, the timid, quiet, shy, and mysterious young girl exploded into a ferocious blur of impossible speed, and swung at Iudicium with the power and haste of a meteor. Yet this was but one swing; perhaps a hundred-thousand more followed it, as the girl's sheer fighting speed was too much to categorize by even the fastest of eyes. Hit after maniacal hit came from her once-timid frame; her weapon sailed faster than lightning, spinning and weaving so much in the air that her weapon alone became a blur. The girl herself, who kept her eyes closed the entire time, had a look of deadly concentration on her face as she did battle with Vikar Iudicium.

Yet his power went unquestioned, as every blurred hit from her was quickly countered by him. Again and again, with such speed that not even light itself could completely equate with it, the two struck and parried with such unimaginable force that even the skies above trembled and shot forth bolts of lightning. Flames intensified as the unknown girl and Iudicium dueled, yet even then their full power was not completely revealed.

The girl hastily flipped and tumbled into the air, almost as if she were flying and not making any leaps. The sheer amount of time she spent in the air was illogical, and all the while, her legendary staff never once ceased to strike at its foe. Again and again, the girl would vault and tumble in the air with a skill more powerful than the world's greatest gymnast, swinging and twirling her weapon at such an incredible speed that sometimes a snap would come out of the air; sometimes the weapon moved so fast that it became invisible. Iudicium, too, was swinging his weapon at an unknown speed, yet for all his previous terrors, all eyes were now focused on the girl.

Her skills were beyond incredible, perhaps even beyond perfect, and the battle would have went on for hours on end had not one of them suddenly buckled under from such a strike. Morris--no, everyone noted that the one doing the grimacing was Iudicium, and not the girl. She had actually struck him, and from the pained look on his face, she had hit him hard.

Yet, the battle raged on as soon as he recovered, on and on with speed and leaps and hits and blocks and so much chaos that nobody even dared to breathe. Everyone who had previously been in pain was now experiencing numbness from just watching the battle. The scene was spellbinding, and shocking, and probably even foreboding--but more than anything, it was incredible. Of course, in reality, the two of them could not keep up such indescribable feats all day long…

…Could they?

Iudicium was struck again, but not nearly as badly, but had to leap away to catch his breath. He smiled grimly at the girl, who didn't look to be exhausted at all. She simply held her staff in a defensive position, coldly gazing into Iudicium's direction with dead eyes. Suddenly, the earth began to rumble, and a horrible growling sound came from behind. Iudicium briefly turned around to see what the disturbance was, and literally paled as he spotted a gigantic mutated moogle monster glaring down at him.

"…Maideen…" he hissed. "This isn't looking too good for me…" From somewhere on the ground, a wicked chuckle could be heard; some people discovered that the laugh came from Eiko.

"How… do ya… like… that… mister?" she wheezed. Iudicium's pale face grew dark, and he scowled at the girl and her Eidolon. Suddenly, yet another explosion rocked the whole kingdom, and from the skies above, one could hear the loud roar of one drunk on madness.

"Heeeeeeeeey yooooooooooou guuuuuuuuuys!!!!!!!!" shouted the drunken one. "We're here to save the day!!!! Looks like we came just in time!!!"

"Ugh, what a sight for sore eyes," muttered Beatrix weakly. "Steiner, if you don't kiss that Erin, then I will."

"She…… has saved our lives many times…" managed the knight. Beatrix smiled weakly as Erin and the crew of Hilda Guarde 5 waved down at them, cannons ready to fire at a moment's notice. Iudicium scowled fiercely at this new development, and let out a curse.

"…Blast……! Well, I'm not so foolish as to not know when I'm outclassed, so if you'll excuse me, I'll be leaving now. But heed my words, Alexandria! Your suffering does not end today!!!" And with that, the madman waved farewell, and hoisted his hand in the sky for a passing Harpy to catch. The last they ever saw of him was the white clothes he wore, and then, nothing.

Once the terror was gone, the girl took a deep breath, and gazed into the sky.

She slowly opened her dysfunctional eyes, revealing a pair of golden orbs resting in her sockets.

And then, just as suddenly, the girl crumbled to her knees, wheezing and perspiring terribly. As if a spell had suddenly lifted up off the kingdom, everyone else resumed groaning and screaming from their own injuries, even as the soulless golem army left the area to follow their master. Dr. Quban was quickly called to attend to Garnet's wounds, and most every available white mage, cleric, or doctor was called for everyone else. The girl's assistant, Morris, rushed over to see if she was okay.

"Ma'am?! Miss! Are you all right?" Through heaving gasps of breath, the golden-haired (and golden-eyed) lady assured him that she was fine.

"Yes, I'm… all right…… Hahaha… Sorry to worry you, Morris. I… just… overexerted myself, that's all… ha… ha… ha……"

--------------------

Watching Dr. Quban scurry around was perhaps the most hilarious and depressing thing that anybody had ever seen: hilarious because s/he ran just as a Qu would, and shouted so many garbled orders that one couldn't help but laugh; depressing because of the situation that Quban had been thrown into. It seemed as if all of Alexandria was groaning in painful agony, perhaps none more so than Queen Garnet, who had suffered one of the worst wounds of the recent invasion.

It had taken everything the kingdom had and more to heal the Queen as best they could, and even then, she was still missing an arm and about a liter of blood. The poor girl had screamed all the way from the streets to the infirmary, and it was only through the grace and skill of dozens of excellent doctors that she had made it this far. The severed stump had to be operated upon, cured, healed, and sterilized, while the Queen was pumped with as many drugs as necessary. She was now out like a candle, dozing quietly but painfully, a team of doctors still working around her. The severed limb was a lost cause; at almost eighteen years of age, Garnet had been deprived of a body part. She would have to go through the rest of her life with only one arm.

But while Alexandria's best doctors attended to the Queen, everyone else had to scramble to cure the other victims of Iudicium's rage. Countless bodies were piled in the operation room, and though most every single one of them lived, they had all been shredded apart by a masterfully-wielded blade. Even the greatest of warriors had dozens of scars over their bodies, and only a small portion of characters made it out with only a few bruises.

All of Tantalus, save for Lani, had been placed inside a room reserved for those who had been injured, but not so much that they would need expert medical attention. Cinna, Marcus, and Blank had merely gotten beaten and not cut, so they were very close to being released from the overcrowded hospital. Baku, Ruby, Genero, and Benero tried cheering them up, and even though things seemed their grimmest, the members of Tantalus still managed to goof off a little.

"Man!" exclaimed Marcus. "What a day, huh? It's like a madhouse out there!"

"For real," agreed Blank. "But hey, I'm just glad that that Iyoo-whats-his-name went easy on us. At least we can still walk."

"Yeah," nodded Cinna. "But hey, there's one among us who wasn't hurt at all." The three Tantalus "brothers" turned their attention towards the unidentified blonde who was resting in a bed not too far away. It was true that she escaped Iudicium's wrath unscathed--in fact, the only reason she was even there was because of sheer exhaustion. The poor girl, while demonstrating unfathomable skills as a fighter not too long ago, had taxed herself to her very limit, and was rushed to this room so she could rest.

Rest she did, though she expressed unworthiness for the kind treatment. Stating that her weariness was nothing compared to the grievances others had received, the girl insisted that her caretakers attend to someone else. The only person who really stayed to watch over her was a young Burmecian who was acting as her aide.

"So," said Marcus as he looked at the girl, "what's your deal? How come you could hold off that guy like that while the rest of us got whooped solid?" The girl quietly stared ahead for awhile, choosing not to pleasure the thief with an answer for the time.

"…I will tell you," she guaranteed. "But I'd prefer to wait for everyone else to recover. I want this news to reach as many people as possible."

"News? What news?" Another silence filled the room. The girl turned her blind vision towards Cinna, who had spoken last, and gave him an empty stare with her topaz eyes.

"Information that I have selfishly been withholding from you ever since my arrival," she said. "…Though when you hear it, you may not think it to be selfish. But trust me, I've kept it secret for a reason." The bearded thief nodded his head slowly, and since there really wasn't anything else for them to do at the moment, all of Tantalus laid back in their beds and began to nap.

Meanwhile, in the other room, doctors and nurses were working endless hours to heal those who bore more severe injuries. They concentrated on clerics and white wizards first, then on anyone who could use healing techniques or spells. Slowly, little by little, the wounded forces were reviving, though at the rate they had been slaughtered, it would probably take an entire week for everyone to heal up.

Steiner, who had not been seriously hurt thanks to his armor (which was now sadly skewered and slashed to pieces), was at Beatrix's bedside like a grieving brother, moaning over the fact that he could do nothing to save either her or his liege. The holy knight herself was receiving stitches for her various injuries, while several clerics pounded her with cure spells. She was just healthy enough to respond to Steiner's moan.

"Adelbert, I know how you are feeling," she rasped weakly. "I know that you're in great pain, and that you blame yourself for what happened earlier. I too feel as if there should be some blame on my part. But, let me ask you something else."

"Wh… what is it, Beatrix?" sniffled Steiner. The holy knight, sans eye patch, smiled at her comrade as he kneaded her bruised hand.

"Did you fight to your greatest ability and beyond? Did you give everything in that fight? Did you battle as if there were no tomorrow? Did you, Steiner, perform at your best given level?"

"…Y… yes… I, I did…" Beatrix smiled.

"Then there is nothing to worry about." Moaning just slightly, she managed to sit up without disturbing the clerics or the doctors. "I'm… tired of beating myself up for things beyond my control. I have long ago learned that if I simply perform at my highest level, then I cannot be blamed for failure. If something is out of my field of performance, and I cannot achieve it, then what little is there to gain for blaming myself?"

"Y… yes," said Steiner weakly, "I… I see…" Beatrix smiled a beautiful smile, and placed her hand on his cheek.

"Out of all the people here… you're probably the healthiest of them all. That blasted rusty armor of yours has saved you the trouble of an operation." Steiner wordlessly smiled, obviously trying to hold back a tear, and there would have been a scene if Dr. Quban hadn't intervened.

"Scuse' me!" s/he cried. "Must get to work on others! Many-many more people hurt!" The Qu dashed past them in a blubbery blur, leaving the two knights slightly flushed from being discovered in so unusual a position. Freya, who was having her backside treated, quietly put a book she was reading away and decided to insert her two cent's worth.

"I agree with both of you," she said. "Steiner's right when he says that we could have done more, but Beatrix is right as well for saying that we can't exceed our own greatest expectations. I know that I fought even harder than I had at the last Burmecian invasion, and I poured my soul out then. Of course, I have also found many new pools of strength in this life here…" Beatrix nodded her head, apparently not quite understanding the full depth of Freya's words.

"Even so," said the brown-haired knight, "I can't believe that there exists a warrior out there who is more powerful than all of Alexandria's greatest fighters and strategists. Iudicium barely escaped with little more than a few bruises, and it was only by the intervention of Commander Erin and Eiko's Eidolon, but we were ruined senseless."

"Fratley always used to say to me that there was always going to be a stronger warrior out there," mused Freya to nobody in particular. "…And with few exceptions, I could not believe him. After I met Beatrix, though, my doubts were quelled--but even this man…"

"He is simply stronger than all of us," shrugged Steiner. "I suppose that is that. But, dear Lord in Heaven, what about that girl?!?!"

"You're right!!" snapped Freya suddenly (nearly grimacing in pain as she lurched). "How in all of Gaia do you suppose one human could have such monstrous abilities? Her speed was so incredible that it was like watching a blur, and I do believe she might have even been more powerful than our foe!!" Both Beatrix and Steiner nodded their heads eerily, and in an almost-comic fashion, rubbed their chins in the exact same manner.

"We really should have a talk with her once we recover," suggested the male knight. Beatrix agreed.

"…You know," she said suddenly, "my only regret is what happened during that pitiful little scenario I displayed when I saw that worthless eye patch of mine being cut in two. I…… I think it was that weak display of pathetic emotion and selfishness which caused Alexandria, and her majesty, to suffer so."

"Now that you mention it, why did you go crazy when that silly thing was cleaved apart?" asked Freya. "I mean, I know that you don't really need it that much, and in my opinion you're much prettier without it, but… you acted like you just lost your soul or something." A pause. Beatrix stared ahead of her darkly, her hand touching the area that her patch had once covered. To feel skin and eye instead of the comforting cloth was a different experience; to know that the material was gone forever……

"It is… a very long story," she sighed. She turned her gaze to two of the closest people to her heart, smiled sadly, and brushed the hair out of her eyes. "…But… I think it's high time I finally let you two in on the secret…"

"Garnet…"

Kings, by theory, should not weep, not even in times of great distress. They should be strong, and proud, and willing to go into the darkest of situations with a bold face and a tightened fist. They should approach everything as a King should, even darkness and grief, and they should never show signs of weakness.

But in that moment of time, Zidane was more of a King than any other monarch could ever claim. Grasping his beloved's only hand, he freely allowed the tears to fall as he wept her name out aloud: Garnet, Garnet, dear Dagger, beloved Sarah…

"This isn't happening," he moaned quietly. "This… this is not happening… Garnet… no…" Too petrified to even speak, Zidane merely placed her unresponsive hand on his cheek, and allowed the gentle palm and fingers to caress his face, like they would have done if she was still conscious. Queen Garnet was alive but hardly well; she was hooked up to a very primitive machine that kept her vitals stabilized, and a horde of doctors were constantly buzzing around her, especially the place where her left arm once hung. Over the confusion and the haunting sounds of her shrill breath, Zidane let tears come out.

"My Garnet…" he wept. "My Dagger… my beautiful jewel, my brilliant, gorgeous jewel… My… canary…" More and more tears came out from his endless cistern of sadness, so much so that they moistened her bare arm. Garnet was sleeping in pain: her face was still contorted, like her soul screamed in the body's stead, and the touch of her hand was chilling. The girl was suffering greatly, with no peace to claim for her, yet for all her misery and physical handicap, Zidane could not get over the thought that she was and would always be the most beautiful girl ever.

And so, he stayed by her side like a King should, despite his own "minor" injuries.

Days passed before anyone was declared healthy enough to move around. The room formerly occupied by Tantalus and the unknown girl was becoming more and more crowded, as more and more people filled its beds. Many of them just needed to rest from their operations; some were almost well enough to move around again. The scars that remained were small and pinkish, almost unnoticeable, and definitely healed up. Quban, and everyone under the watchful eye of the Qu, had done magnificent jobs.

But now, it was time for answers.

Gathered around the blind girl was everyone who had been cleared from the intensive care medical ward, in which only Garnet and a few others remained. It had taken a lot of persuasion to tear Zidane away from Garnet, and even then, he insisted that his beloved wife be wheeled into the room with him. The King's request was granted, and soon, not a soul was absent from the large resting room. All eyes were focused on the young woman that Amarant had brought in a week or two ago, but she looked ready to answer their questions. Requesting that none of them interrupt unless it was crucial, the girl began to clarify everything that had hitherto been a mystery.

"My name is Cassandra," she began. "As most of you might have noticed, I'm not exactly a normal girl. Physically, I am just like any normal human girl, except that I have a blindness in my eyes, but I do not refer to physiology when I claim difference. For starters, as some of you may have noticed, both of my eyes are a very unnatural and rare color: gold." And to prove it, she removed her dark glasses and showed everyone the hue of her eyes. They were gold, all right, as topaz as bullion.

"But even this is but a small example of how unusual I truly am," she continued. "I don't know how I'm going to say all of this, so please bear with me if I get repetitive or if I drone on. …To begin with, my difference lies in my extrasensory perception--my… psychic powers, if you will. Yes… I am one of the very few individuals in the world that can claim to have psychic abilities.

"This would then explain many subsequent things, such as how I knew of Iudicium's invasion, and other miscellaneous things. I consider this an irony: my sight is gone, yet I can see more in the span of five minutes than many of you ever will in your lives. Of course, my abilities are not perfect. For example, I require a walking stick and an aide everywhere I go, and I thank God that Morris was able to escape Burmecia and make it here without being detected." She then flashed her aide a smile, and cleared her throat with water before continuing.

"Iudicium was one of the few people in the world that knew of my powers," she said. "He figured that my abilities would eventually lead to his defeat, and I think he was right, hence the bounty he placed on my head. It might have been fate that saw Mr. Coral and Mr. Hunter, both loose allies of Alexandria, to find me moments before Iudicium's invasion. I suppose that it was good that I was found. Had I been left to my own devices, Iudicium would've been free to do as he pleased with this kingdom.

"…My powers remain mostly suppressed, and only come out at random and uncontrolled intervals," she said softly. "But sometimes, they can escalate beyond anything the human imagination can conceive, which may explain how I was able to fight off such a man. I have heard of prophecies that point out a 'child with eyes of gold who will smash the skull of Death and bring order to Chaos', and this probably refers to me. I can tell you, though, having all these problems on my shoulders isn't an exciting experience, so you'll forgive me if I'm distant or depressed most of the time.

"Being a psychic is a horrible existence," continued the girl. "I have been plagued with nightmares far worse than Iudicium's recent wrath, and in much closer and more intense proximities. I guess you could even say that a few towns fell because many were too doubtful to believe what I had to say, but I can't blame them. Only a person with a kind heart and an open mind would heed my words--after all, I am but another Cassandra." Again, the girl paused for a water break, allowing everyone in the room to absorb what she had to say. Before any of them could think about it, however, she continued.

"I'll admit that not all of my skills are due to psychic powers," she said with a humble smile. "I'm very well-trained in the martial arts, so despite this frail-looking body you see, I'm actually quite tough. The, ah, weapon you saw me using against Iudicium was a legendary tool forged from the ancient Lunarians, a race that has been in hibernation for thousands of years.

"I do apologize for coming to the battle scene so late," she said sadly, "but it could not be helped. The whole kingdom was swarming with unholy golems, and it took a lot of my time to ward them off. I regret not coming quickly enough to do anything about Queen Garnet's situation, so I can only beg for forgiveness. I must also apologize for keeping so much information away from you all, but you must realize that if there had been an eavesdropping spy in the area, they would have given this information to anyone with a big enough wallet. Besides, nobody is meant to know that much about their future, and what I told was just enough for you to survive on. Please, everyone, please forgive me.

"…By the way," she added after a pause, "Amarant is not affiliated with any of the invasions, recent or otherwise. His information came from other sources, mostly Mognet Central or Lindblum, though I do admit that this most recent one came from me. Please, don't blame him or the Hunter for any of this. Your enemy lies elsewhere.

"Well, I suppose that's all I have to say. My throat's a little sore from all this talking, so if you don't mind, I'd like to rest for awhile. Please, if you have any questions, you should either ask Morris or write them down for future reference. I'm not in any condition to answer anything yet. …Thank you, for listening to my madness. Your audience and your friendship are more dear to me than the greatest treasures or the richest comforts."

And with that, the girl sat back in her bed and pulled her dark glasses over her dead eyes. She turned a deaf ear to the world as she slowly went to sleep, and even with her abilities, she could not help but wonder what the next day would bring.

To be continued…