Chapter Five

They landed hesitantly, the Enterprise’s bow creaking slightly with the weight of descent and then settling just outside of Baron’s front gates. Cecil had decided on the course their preparations would take. He would inform Rosa and Kain of his leaving, but allow only one of them to accompany him. While that was going on, Nathaniel, Edward, and Kalahn would head for the dungeon to see about Risca’s liberation. The Paladin king had given her the pendant he wore as proof of his permission to let the young man out.

Cid and Malcolm were staying behind for two reasons. One, to keep a sense of order in the castle and it’s city; put up a front that Cecil was simply visiting Damcyan on formal business. The other reason…was simply that Cecil needed someone to watch Kain or Rosa. The old engineer liked espionage in whatever form he could get it, and Malcolm seemed cut from the same cloth, so it was perfect.

Cid had given Cecil the usual lecture. Take care of my darling Enterprise, take care of yourself, and kick plenty of monster tail. All things he’d heard before, but a comfort in their own way.

They’d separated in the castle’s lobby, headed their own directions. Cid and Malcolm went for the airship docks to kill some time; Kalahn forced Nathaniel down to the dungeon immediately; Cecil…wasn’t so keen on reaching his destination all that quickly. He walked, though slowly, through the shining halls of his palace, sighing inwardly at the emotion he would have to express and yet hold in when he did find his lady wife.

Up the stairs and out the door, and there were the palace gardens. Cecil paused to admire the rhidora and other flowers, surrounding him in open air and now completely blue sky. An apprentice in the knighthood strolled by, bowing slightly and smiling at the Paladin king. He returned the gesture, much to the young man’s surprise, and went his own way. Not before noticing, though, that the black rhidora he’d been admiring earlier was nowhere to be seen.

His tower was quite cold around this time of year. Early spring in Baron was a bit chillier than, say Troia or Mist. The palace, though, was worse. The stone walls and floors kept cold in and heat out, making spring seem like winter revisited. Cecil had noticed that his tower and the former king’s resting place were the worst in the palace, as strange as that was. Even on the warmest spring or summer day, he still felt a chill while lying in his bed or sitting at his desk. Odin’s secret throne down below the palace would have stayed cold during an attack by Ifrit himself, Cecil speculated.

And as he stepped into his chambers, the cold was still intact. The walls were a bit shaded, the curtains pulled on his windows and splaying tiny patterns on the floor. He watched them as he walked, as though they were snowflakes fallen from another world into this room and only this room; a blessing from the Gods.

"What are you looking at, Cecil?"

He wheeled about to see Rosa, standing in the doorway with a hand on one hip and the other holding onto a bunch of fresh cut flowers. Her eyes were bluer than usual…at least Cecil saw them that way. He had a habit of seeing her differently than everyone else, though.

Well…everyone else but Kain. The name stung his mind.

He focused on her; the eyes and pale skin and brown-blonde hair. The expression on her face. Pure indifference.

"I wasn’t really doing much of anything," he said. "Waiting on you, actually. Rosa…you’ll never believe who’s here, in the palace, right now."

Rosa went to the vase on their nightstand, taking the old flowers out and throwing them into the barrel beside her full-length mirror; replacing the newer flowers in the crystal container. Cecil noticed that the black rhidora was in the new bouquet.

"Who would that be, dear?" she asked, not particularly enthusiastic.

Despite this lack of emotion, Cecil felt the smile on his face. "Nathaniel. My brother, Golbez. You know the dark clouds that were hovering over the city for a fortnight? He was in them…or was them, one or the other. But anyway, he’s here now, and…and I’m leaving on a journey with him for a while, darling."

The Paladin king stared out the window, watching a few birds float idly by.

"Nathaniel says this planet’s facing a new crisis. He’s headed for Giott’s kingdom to see about it, and I asked to go with him. Rosa…are you listening?"

She nodded absently, still arranging the flowers with her back turned. "Of course, dear. You’re going to run off with your black-hearted brother and save the world. I was listening."

Cecil’s smile turned to a frown in seconds. "I suppose this means you won’t accompany me, then," he replied in an even, measured tone.

Then Rosa turned to face her husband. Her eyes were hard; colder than he’d ever seen them. Waving, curling hair fell over one cobalt sphere, the other fixed on Cecil’s face.

"Of course not. I want nothing to do with that bastard brother of yours, Cecil. I will not deny you the…dubious pleasure of being near him, but I myself want no part of it. You must understand."

She turned about again, returning to her flowers. "Besides, someone needs to be here for the kingdom while you’re away. We wouldn’t want Baron to fall into neglect like it did five years ago, right? I am the queen, and should stay here while you’re off on your adventures. We should at least exercise that much responsibility."

The frown disappeared, replaced with a worried expression. Something about the tone of her voice…

"Rosa Marie…are you alright? You don’t seem yourself."

Silence. She continued pruning the flowers she’d brought with her, seemingly not hearing Cecil. He gave up. Focused on other things, and went past her to find Nathaniel and Kalahn.

"Cecil…"

She’d spoken his name. The Paladin king turned to face her, staring into those bluest of blue eyes, and smiled a bit in reaction to the placid expression she wore. She walked over, her silky robes making the sound of sighs on the floor of their chambers. She kissed him, lightly, on the cheek. Cecil felt himself blush and his smile grew.

"Good luck, Cecil," Rosa said. Her voice was soft, low, and sweet. "Come back alive. And tell your…your brother that I said…hello.

"I love you, Cecil Ya."

Another blush. He felt as though his cheeks were on fire. "I love you, Rosa Farrell. No worries."

Cecil turned and walked out, his grin turned bright as air. So she was alright after all. The Paladin king saw the cerulean of the sky as he came down the steps and outside.

He thought, though, that he saw the light drain from the room behind him. If only for just a moment; a split second, but it still felt…colder.

"Gah! Golbez! HELP!"

The poor guard was scared stupid. He watched Nathaniel and the others descend the stairs to the dungeon with little interest, but upon putting together the pieces of the puzzle that was Nathaniel Ya; large of stature, snowy white hair, the presence he oozed while simply standing there…

Yeah. Fear seemed an appropriate option.

Edward laughed out loud at the sentry, who’d taken refuge beneath his desk as soon as the trio had reached it. The bard-king peeked underneath, armed with that bedazzling smile, and crooked a finger at the young man.

"Now, now. You should know better. This isn’t just Golbez; he’s not the man who took this place over before. Believe me, good sir, if he were I would want nothing to do with him."

Blinking a mile a minute, the guard realized the sanity of Edward’s statement and crawled out from under the desk.

"Aww, I do apologize, sirs; yer Highness von Muir…lady…um, mister Golbez sir. What be yer business here?"

Kalahn’s expression was pure annoyance. "We’re here to free a prisoner, under order of the king." She presented the ruby pendant as validation. The sentry looked to it, unblinking now, then to Edward who was still smiling, and then to Nathaniel who had actually never payed attention to a dungeon before. The big Lunar was staring at the grimy walls and floor like a child.

"Well if ya got the king’s jewelry there," the small man said, "and if the king o’ Damcyan’s with ya…hmm. I guess I could believe ya." He grinned wide, reaching for his key ring and heading back towards the cells. Kalahn and Edward followed close; Nathaniel kept watching things.

"We only got one prisoner right now, so I’m guessin’ that’s who yer after." The sentry went to the very back of the corridor, feeling around for a rather large key and inserting it in the last cell door before the wall.

Inside sat a well-built man of apparent Fabulian descent. He was large of stature, almost to scale with Nathaniel; his clothing consisted of a red vest and a pair of tight cloth pants cordoned off at black leather knee boots. His well-trimmed hair and goatee were black, the former painfully straight to the point of falling to a permanent position in front of his chestnut brown eyes. He wore silver wristbands, decorated with some runic language.

This, Edward thought, is Risca Tye.

At the sound of the door opening, he looked up from the floor. A smile crept over his features at the realization that Kalahn was among his visitors; Risca leapt to stand and caught the girl up in a tight embrace. She giggled in response, returning the affection.

"Little sister, you returned for me!" Risca said, concealing a laugh as best he could. His voice flowed like hot chocolate from a golden flask. "I thought I was doomed…how did you do it?!"

Kalahn came out of the hug and grabbed Edward’s shoulder affectionately. "With his help, Tye! This is Edward von Muir, the king of Damcyan. Without him, you’d still be stewing in here, heh."

The bard-king blushed crimson. "I wasn’t all that much of a help, really…"

"Nonsense!" Risca exclaimed, grasping the other’s hand and shaking vigorously. "If you helped in any way to free me, then I am forever in your debt, majesty. If there is anything I may do to repay you, please do not hesitate to let me know, yes?"

"Uh," Edward stammered, still embarrassed. "Y-yes, good man. Of course, I could take you up on that offer now, if you don’t mind."

Nathaniel simply took the exchange in, blinking at every misunderstood comment.

"Whatever it is," Risca answered, "I shall try my best. Ask, majesty."

Edward looked to the both of them. Risca, who looked a lot like Yang when he was young. Kalahn, the sweet little flower.

"You two simply must accompany us. Nathaniel and I, as well as a few others, are heading out on a journey shortly. I don’t know if you two had other plans originally, but…we could use such capable warriors. What do you say, Risca? Kalahn?"

The Warmage looked to her companion with questioning eyes. "I only came as far as I have to see you freed, Tye. What do you want to do?"

"Easy, little sister. We go. I wouldn’t miss out on the opportunity to travel with the king of Damcyan! Where are we heading, majesty?"

Edward laughed heartily, scaring Nathaniel.

"Well you’ll see soon enough. But I assure you, it’s somewhere you’ve never been. Now come on, all, we have to find Cecil and get going."

Cecil was headed out the door into the palace commons when the very man he was looking for intercepted him. He heard his name being shouted from somewhere far off, and simply stood and waited for a blue dragonhead helmet to appear.

Kain was perched atop a rampart facing east, out toward the sea and Mysidia in the far distance. He’d simply leapt down and landed without a scratch; the trademark of the Dragoon. It still scared the wits out of Cecil anyway.

"I heard you’re leaving for a while," Kain said. He held his spear, the Holy Lance, carefully, so as not to aim it the wrong direction. The poor man still hadn’t gotten used to magical weapons. "I also heard Rosa gave you the cold shoulder. Where are you going and…" he smiled, " what else is new?"

"Funny," Cecil retorted. "Have you also heard who’s here now?"

The Dragoon shook his head slowly. "No…word doesn’t travel that fast. Who?"

"Well besides Edward and some friends of his, we have an honored guest. My brother."

The lance disappeared into thin air; Kain’s face darkened under the cowl of the dragon’s face. "Golbez…? What the hell is he doing here now?! Hopefully not after the crystals, or he’ll be dead for certain this time!"

"Kain! Calm yourself!" Cecil glanced about to make sure no one had gathered at the Dragoon’s outburst. "Nathaniel is his name, and he is no longer the man we fought. I should hope you, of all people, would understand that, Kain. Anyway, I was going to ask you if you’d like to join me on this little adventure, but I believe now I’ve reconsidered. Watch out for Rosa in my stead, no?"

He went to walk away, and was met with a gloved hand on his shoulder.

"Cecil…I apologize." Kain’s features softened, and he let out a sigh. "I’m just…still wary. And still very bitter. You can understand, can’t you Cecil?"

"Yes, I can understand, but my point is that I could react the same way to you as you just did to my own flesh and blood. You are both changed men, Kain. "

Hesitantly, the other nodded. He withdrew his hand, looking off to the distance for a moment, and then back to his old friend.

"Well…if you would have me, I’d be more than happy to come along, Cecil. Only if it’s all right, though. I don’t want you or…Nathaniel to be uncomfortable."

Despite the emotion he was fighting, Cecil managed a smile. He looked to Kain and nodded slightly. "You’re more than welcome. Now come on, we have friends to meet up with."

The gates of Baron loomed high and wide over the heads of all assembled. Edward was growing impatient, especially since Nathaniel made little conversation and Kalahn was so overjoyed with Risca’s return that she was talking his ear off. The sky, at least, was clear now, with the clouds gone and the wind picking up a bit more. No storms were immediately visible, which was good because rain was a very annoying event while riding an airship.

"So…the underworld?" Risca had said. He was addressing both Edward and Nathaniel more than one of them singularly. "Why are we headed there, pray?"

"Long story," Nathaniel replied, shocking Edward with the fact that he actually spoke. "Needless to say, what happened five years ago will happen again if we are too late."

The monk raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his exposed chest. "You mean the Crystal Wars, no? I hope we’re not going to be too late, then. I was a part of the team that drove the monsters from Fabul. They were tough, even for Imps and Whispers… "

Edward laughed slightly. "You know, Yang Leiden said the same thing. Of course, he wasn’t the one who was tripped by them. I have yet to live that down, heh."

A pair of figures made their way toward the party at the gates. Edward and Nathaniel turned to see Cecil and Kain approach, both bearing their now-trademark weapons. The crystal blade reflected the light of midday onto the cobblestone streets of Baron town, making a rainbow that seemed to usher the Paladin-king forward. Kain’s holy lance rested in his left hand, a thing of pure energy called forth only when needed. Or when he wanted to show it off. Edward speculated this was the second instance rather than the first.

"Well I believe this is everyone," Cecil said, coming to a stop beside his brother. "May we have introductions first?"

"Surely," Edward replied, taking the offer. "Cecil and Nathaniel Ya; Kain Highwind. Meet Risca Tye. Risca and Kalahn, meet Kain Highwind and the monarch of Baron, Cecil Ya. Known to his subjects as Harvey. I believe that’s all of us."

A scowl registered on Kain’s face as he focused on Risca. "I already know this one. He’s the one I had locked up…what is he doing out?"

Again, Cecil shot his friend a reprimanding look. "I had everything to do with it, so stop whining. We are now a team, everyone, and I expect us to be cordial if not outright friendly. Understand? This is a very important mission we’re about to take on, and infighting will only make the trials we’re likely to face even worse."

He looked to each of them in turn, green eyes flitting about confidently. "Are we all in agreement, then?"

Tentatively, Risca held out a big hand to Kain. "I must take the opportunity…to apologize. For both Kalahn and myself. I did not mean to hurt you, sir."

"Yeah, me either," Kalahn added.

The Dragoon simply looked at Risca’s hand with hard gray eyes. "Just…make sure it never happens again. Alright?"

"Well that’s the spirit, Kain!" Cecil shouted, slapping his friend hard on the back and heading off in the direction of the Enterprise. "Let’s go, people. To Agart!"

"And to the Underworld!" Edward said. "Ha! I knew I’d get to see the place sooner or later, you know. Think you can keep me from a real adventure, Cecil my boy? Never!"