Rydia pranced around the hovercraft, singing and shouting gaily.

"Hurry!" she urged the two men lying on the white sand. "Let's drive it!"

She clambered up the side of the hovercraft, and Edward leaped to his feet quickly.

"Rydia, dear…I --"

He groaned inwardly as he watched her legs stick straight up then disappear into the open hatch at the top of the vehicle. He turned to Cecil hopelessly.

"We should get in there before she offers any more help --" the Knight stated ruefully…he honestly wouldn't have minded taking a long rest on the pearly white sand of the beach, but with a sigh he hoisted himself onto the hovercraft and peered into the chute. Suddenly a hand darted out, grabbing his own hand.

"Cecil!"

Rydia's voice drifted out in delight.

"Come on!"

Cecil felt himself being dragged down.

"Rydia...I -- God!"

Cecil crashed onto the hard floor of the tiny control room of the hovercraft. His dark helmet rolled into the corner, and he stared around the small room. It was empty except for a meager pilot seat perched in front of a complex looking control panel...A U-shaped steering wheel protruded from the panel…Buttons and switches were scattered around the steering wheel and there was a wide window spread across the front of the vehicle, which would give the pilot a clear view of his surroundings… There was also a small window in the posterior on the hovercraft, displaying the two round propellers located on each side of the rear of the vehicle.

When Cecil's gaze at last shifted back to the pilot seat, he saw Rydia pop up in front of him.

"Cecil, are you ready?"

Without waiting for an answer she charged to the pilot seat, flopping down in it as Edward's flushed face appeared from the hatch above them.

"Oh…I do wish I had learned to use this thing before we decided to use it!"

Edward made his way carefully around Cecil and approached Rydia, who was fiercely pecking on the buttons with her finger.

"How do ya get it to work?"

Edward glanced toward Cecil eyebrows raised…he was obviously waiting for the Knight to offer advice…Cecil shrugged:

"I was only the captain of the Red Wings --" he admitted. "--I've never driven a hovercraft…"

Rydia continued to rat-tat on the buttons as Edward scanned the control panel in despair.

"I suppose it doesn't hurt to try something since we know --ACK!"

There was a sudden jarring and grinding and the hovercraft lurched violently. Cecil was crawling to his feet then he teetered helplessly to one side and smashed into the wall. Edward snatched frantically for the panel before he fell forward; he miraculously regained his balance and stood up, breathing hard. He looked around with a frown as a strange hissing sound rippled through the room…the hovercraft lurched again and the propellers in the back began whirling.

"My God!" Edward gasped, looking at Cecil in bewilderment. "What on earth?"

Cecil's head was reeling and he was unaware of what was happening until Rydia's voice erupted shrilly in the control room.

"I did it, Edward!" she shouted in glee and pointed at the control panel where the buttons were glowing brightly. Edward blinked in dismay…

"Oh…you've done it alright…"

The prince gripped the control panel with both hands to calm his wobbling knees. Rydia pun around in the pilot seat and gaped at the Knight on the floor.

"Cecil!" she shrieked, aghast. "What are you doing on the floor?!"

She motioned for him to get up.

"Come over here and watch me drive, silly!"

Cecil couldn't prevent a smile from appearing on his face…Edward gazed out the window uncertainly…

"Hmmm…we still aren't moving anywhere…"

He surveyed the control panel to solve the problem but Rydia snatched his hand urgently.

"I'll do it! She shrieked merrily and began hammering on the buttons again. Edward watched in dismay.

"No, Rydia…really…that is quite alrieeEEEE!!"

Rydia stomped viciously on a pedal near her right foot, causing the hovercraft to jolt forward and sending the prince of Damcyan staggering back, reaching desperately for the control panel. Cecil had clambered to his feet once again and had almost laid hold of the pilot seat when the vehicle burst into action; he was hurtled into the rear of the control room, smashing into the wall…his horned helmet tumbled across the floor and the little girl giggled with excitement…

"Look!"

Rydia pointed out the window.

"We're goin' across the water!"

Edward was on his feet and staring wide-eyed out the window where she was pointing.

"Oh, dear God --" he murmured. "--Straight for the rocks…"

He flung his arms over his face and winced, waiting for the hovercraft to strike one of the jagged rocks jutting from the shallow water; instead the vehicle veered insanely to the left, almost sending the prince toppling to the floor again. He clung to the edge of the control panel, managing to maintain his balance; and he stood shakily, gaping dumbly out the window.

Three great rocks loomed in front of the hovercraft.

"Edward?"

Rydia shouted over the humming of the hovercraft.

"Are you okay?"

The prince of Damcyan had turned an unusual shade of green as he stared out the window…

"R-Rydia --" he stammered anxiously. "W-we…are…ummm…the r-rocks --"

Rydia looked up curiously.

"Oh --"

She yanked the wheel back to the right as if it would solve all of their problems…Edward lurched toward the pilot seat and flipped over her lap, sprawling on the floor beside her chair. He heard a loud oath and the tumbling of a body; and when he looked up, he watched the hapless Knight bash into the rear wall.

"Edward --?"

The prince wearily groped for the back of the pilot seat as Rydia's voice drifted uncertainly toward him.

"--I'm really driving this thing, aren't I?"

She beamed with pleasure.

"Oh ---" Edward's face was bathed in sweat. "--You are driving it; that much is certain…"

He focused dizzily on a mammoth rock projecting from the shallows in the near distance.

"In a moment we will need to stop --" Edward hinted, not at all disappointed that the flight would soon be over. Rydia didn't reply as the hovercraft sped without bound toward the rock.

"--You…err…know how to…stop…d-don't you?"

Edward had his hands propped on the control panel, staring in dumb fascination out the window…

"I don't know how Edward!" Rydia squealed, leaping from the pilot seat in a frenzy. "You do it!"

With a panicked cry Edward lunged toward the steering wheel and twisted it with such force that it was almost torn from the panel.

"Oh sweet heavens help us!" he moaned breathlessly. "This is not good…"

He closed his eyes and waited for the impact as the hovercraft smashed headlong into the behemoth rock in the shallows; but it was only jarred slightly to the left as the corner of the vessel collided with the rock. Water splashed onto the front window, momentarily blinding them, and when the foam blew away, Edward realized that they were near the land…and they were near a bed of jagged rocks and stones…

Just as he reached for the steering wheel again, Rydia sprang in front of him and plopped into the pilot seat, grabbing the wheel with both hands.

"I got it now!" she screeched jubilantly in Edward's ear…Cecil climbed to his feet once more and saw the prince gesturing frantically with both arms…

"Rydia! No...dear…this way…please!"

He pointed his finger haphazardly out the window.

"Oh --"

The little girl nodded in agreement.

"--This way..?"

Rydia totally misinterpreted his directions and spun the wheel so the hovercraft was at full-speed toward the jagged rocks peering at them with their menacing stone gazes.

"Great God, no!" Edward screamed shrilly and yanked the wheel just as the front end made contact with the rocks.

There was a high-pitched scraping sound and the hovercraft jolted so violently that Cecil's teeth clicked together painfully…the front end rose from the water and the back flowed shortly behind, sending the craft soaring through the air with unintended perfection and grace…Rydia toppled backwards from the pilot seat and Edward was flung into the rear of the control room. There was a deafening whoosh as the hovercraft struck the water, bouncing through the waves with another series of whooshes which turned to loud clangs as the craft made its way from the water to the sand then into the rocks on the shore of the beach...after a final bone-numbing tearing and scraping, the vehicle shuddered to halt.

Everything was frightfully silent…Cecil somehow managed to crack one eye open, uncertainly…he wasn't sure what he would see when he did…he expected to see the worst to be perfectly honest…

He could see nothing…God now I'm blind from all of the shaking and jolting…he reached his hands up to feel his way around and his fingers dug into something hard; a fanatical giggle erupted in his ears.

"Cecil!"

It was Rydia's voice…god-awfully happy…Cecil realized that she was lying on top of him…After something shifted beneath his legs, he discovered the whereabouts of the prince of Damcyan.

"Is now the time to ask if we are still among the living?"

A muffled voice drifted from the floor. The hovercraft trembled for a moment then collapsed in a cloud of dust and smoke.

…Silence…

Rydia wriggled free of the tangled pile of bodies, and she began laughing merrily as she climbed to her feet.

"That was fun!"

Her hazel eyes glittered brightly, a smile on her face. Edward crawled from beneath the Knight's legs sheepishly and brushed himself off.

"Well…now that is over --"

His face was flushed and his hair was scattered in all directions. Rydia crouched down and clutched Cecil's wrist earnestly.

"..Need some help, Cecil..?"

She attempted to tug him across the floor. Cecil hastily pulled himself to his feet and straightened his dark armor.

"Thanks Rydia --"

Despite their shortcomings a smile was slowly spreading across his usually serious face.

"--I know I can count on you.."

The little girl beamed with pride. The prince of Damcyan hauled himself up the chute and his voice drifted down into the control room.

"Do you suppose we have actually reached the cave of the ant-lion?"

He hoisted himself from the control room; immediately after he disappeared Rydia leaped up and down urgently.

"Cecil! Lift me up so I can get out too!"

The Knight sighed but nodded.

"Lift up your arms --" he instructed her, and she obeyed, hardly able to contain her excitement.

"Ready?"

Cecil grasped her under the shoulders and began to count.

"One…two…three!"

She shouted gleefully as he tossed her from the hovercraft. He put a little too much strength into the toss, and he knew it; Rydia flew out, rolling down the side of the vehicle and into the sand below. Cecil heard her yell shrilly as he tossed his horned helmet out. He chuckled to himself and climbed out; he was instantly greeted with a faceful of wet sand. Cecil wiped it away in disgust and opened his eyes to see Rydia gleefully scooping another handful near the water.

"Rydia --"

Edward stopped her before she could fling the sand.

"--Cecil might fall and hurt himself…"

He turned away and surveyed the land…after a moment he felt a ball of wet sand smack into his shoulder with a splat. Edward paid no attention and walked toward Cecil, who was staring at the hovercraft and shaking his head.

"So, what do you think…?"

The Knight looked at Edward ruefully…Edward shrugged.

"To be perfectly honest my mind is not quite clear enough to think …"

Cecil nodded grimly…

"Do you think it'll work again?"

He indicated the hovercraft, which seemed to have taken quite a beating in the flight. Edward shook his head.

"I should have considered that before I climbed out…"

Before Cecil could recommend that they test it once more, Rydia leaped up and down in excitement.

"You want me to go back in and see if it works?"

She started to dash toward the vessel, but the prince of Damcyan grabbed her arm hastily.

"Ummm…no…Rydia --" He stated urgently. "--Why don’t I go take a look?"

The little girl heaved a disappointed sigh.

"All right…" she grumbled loudly. Edward sighed with much relief.

As Edward climbed up the hovercraft to inspect it, Rydia sprang toward Cecil and promptly stomped on his foot. After calmly pushing her aside, Cecil indicated that they should watch Edward disappear into the run-down hovercraft. Rydia giggled as his spindly legs thrashed around vainly then fell straight down through the chute. The motor grinded a few times…the propellers choked and sputtered, and the buoy device on the bottom of the vehicle finally inflated with an explosive hiss. Rydia clapped and cheered merrily as Cecil dropped his shoulders wearily, heaving a gusty sigh of relief.

Edward's face emerged shortly, displaying a broad grin.

"It works after all!"

He hoisted himself from the vessel and hurried toward Cecil and Rydia. The little girl flung both arms around his waist.

"I knew you could do it, Edward!"

The prince blushed fiercely and shrugged.

"God works in mysterious ways --"

He pointed across to a rock that seemed to bubble from the white sand.

"That is the cave of the ant lion…"

"Come on!"

Rydia jumped in front to lead the way.

"Let's hurry!"

As she scooted across the shore toward the cave, Cecil glanced at Edward, who shrugged hopelessly but smiled nevertheless. The little girl gave them no choice but to follow…