As they stood near the dark gaping mouth of the cave of the ant lion, Edward explained the significance of the caves on the island.

"The people of Damcyan often visit this cave to mine for iron ore and minerals and diamonds and other such stuff --"

He gazed around the shore pensively.

"--But I thought they traveled here in small fishermen boats --"

The prince answered his own musing with a shrug.

"--That is why they never used the hovercraft…"

Rydia stared into the dark cave.

"Will there be any people in here, Edward?"

Cecil thought she sounded a bit too eager to enter the cave…God, if only I had her courage he thought with amusement…

"I shouldn't think so --" Edward shook his head. "--Then again, there could very well be people in here…"

He bowed his head, murmuring:

"--Which means that they have not heard the news…"

"Maybe this is where Master Tellah went!"

Rydia peered into the darkness as if she would catch sight of the old man on first glimpse. Cecil shook his head solemnly.

"Master Tellah knows where he's going ---"

He cast a sidelong glance at the Prince.

"--I think he knows more about this than we do…"

About this…Cecil pondered what he had said…what is this?

"Perhaps he will find what he seeks," Edward stated softly. "We now need to find what we seek…"

He glanced back at the girl.

"As I was saying, we will probably find ourselves in and out of several mining tunnels, which will be well-lit by candles and oil-lamps and what not --"

He nodded as if he were agreeing with himself.

"We will certainly find our way about…"

Rydia, who had nearly been bubbling over with excitement, finally decided that she could not contain herself any longer.

"Let's go!"

She bolted into the darkness of the cave, followed by a terrified Edward.

"Good God, Rydia!"

He clutched at her arm frantically.

"Watch where you are going!"

The little girl ignored the prince behind her and gaped in fascination at the interior tunnels of the cave.

"Wow!"

She was absolutely mesmerized.

"Look in here!"

When Cecil stepped close to her, he saw the candles and oil-lamps that Edward had mentioned earlier. Several holes had been dug into the side of the narrow tunnel, and candles, burning brightly, were perched in each crevice. The tunnel sloped sharply downward, and in her excitement Rydia almost toppled head over heels down the incline.

"Now Rydia --" Edward scurried down after her, speaking not unkindly. "--The presence of lights does not necessarily mean there is no danger!"

Rydia giggled, heedless of his warning, and grabbed each one's hand, skipping merrily between the two men as they made their way through the winding tunnels and passages…deeper, deeper they went into the cave, the candles still succeeding in brightening the otherwise dank and gloomy environment.

"It smells bad down here!"

The little girl turned her nose up in disgust…as she made her observation, Cecil did notice that it was quite rank in the underground…Edward sniffed, obviously catching the stench…

Suddenly Cecil's ears pricked up…not only did he smell something, he also heard something…

"Did you hear something?"

He whispered back to the Prince of Damcyan…he didn't even bother to watch his reaction…

They stood frozen for several minutes.

"It is likely to be cave bats…" Edward suggested in a whisper, gazing around the semi-darkness apprehensively…

"Cecil, it stinks!"

Rydia was nearly shouting and Edward groaned…she had quite possibly destroyed any hope of something not finding them…

"SHH!"

Cecil stared down at her, trying to curb his impatience. Rydia scowled at him.

"Why not try closing your mouth…errr…nose…"

Edward squinted down the tunnel.

"I do wish that I had some idea how far the ant-lion nest is from here --

Cecil nodded, glancing around uneasily.

"All I can suggest is we walk and hope for the best…"

When they continued through the tunnels, they found themselves in another large cavern…the stench was overpowering…Rydia pinched her nose and Edward fanned the air around them.

"Great Bahamute! What is causing this noxious odor?"

The Knight held a finger to his lips.

"--I know I heard something…"

They hushed…listening intently…Cecil was right…a peculiar muffled crunching sound floated on the air…followed by an unrecognizable flapping…Cecil frowned…dark figures lurked on the ground several yards ahead in the shadows of the tunnel…

"What the --"

An ear-splitting screech erupted all around them, mingled with the beating of huge wings…Cecil dropped into the dirt and felt Rydia tumble near him with a shriek as large furry bats gushed into the tunnels, hovering overhead for only a few seconds before disappearing into the darkness in another rush of wings and screeches…

Silence…

"My God…"

Cecil exhaled deeply…dirt drifted around in the tunnel, making the surroundings even bleaker than before…

"That was gross!"

Rydia exclaimed, leaping to her feet.

"Did you see the bats, Edward?"

The prince's face was pale.

"I do not want to know what they were doing --"

He climbed to his feet slowly, shakily….

"--Yet I fear we have no other choice…"

They proceeded cautiously to the tunnel where the flock of bats huddled…There was nothing…Edward heaved a sigh, his shoulders drooping with relief…

"I suppose they must not have been here for --"

A squeal from Rydia interrupted his words. Cecil turned to her…she wasn't hurt…not that he could see…

"What?"

She lifted a trembling finger to a dark corner of the tunnel…

"L-look!"

Edward gasped…

A body…

There was body lying face-down in the black dirt…The filthy clothing on its back was shredded…sections of the body, its arms, face, were chewed…torn…

"Oh…my…."

Edward closed his eyes and leaned heavily against the wall of the tunnel…Cecil stepped cautiously toward the ravaged body…not because he wanted to see the carnage for God's sake but because that's what his human instinct made him do…studying dead bodies…especially one of your own kind…cheap barbaric human thrills…

"Ugh…"

Cecil turned away as the stench struck him like a physical blow…

"I think we found one of the miners of Damcyan, Edward…" he stated grimly. Edward drew a quivering breath and nodded…

"Yes --"

His face was nearly white.

"--But not in the position that we expected…"

The lifeless hand of the miner still clutched a mattock…the blade was broken…a few depressions were etched in the corner where the man must have started digging…a candle was lying near his other hand…it had been removed from a crevice in the wall during…what?…the miner's search for a noise that had suddenly frightened him?…a struggle…?

"Cecil --"

Rydia glanced around nervously.

"--I'm kinda scared now…"

Cecil regarded her anxiously…he hoped she didn't suddenly have a change of heart and want to leave…of course he would have taken her out…reluctantly…The prince of Damcyan backed away from the ravaged body…

"Please…let's leave this ghastly sight and imagine we never saw it…"

Cecil couldn't have agreed more as he motioned for an unusually calm Rydia to follow…he glanced back at the body before they continued deeper into the dark tunnels…

* * * * * *

At long last they emerged from a cramped tunnel into a cavern with a few candles scattered here and there, shedding very little light throughout the chamber. The dim fires glowed a pale sickly brown on the fine sand upon the ground…three dark figures entered the cavern a bit uneasily…

"I am beginning to think we should have turned around…back there --" The prince of Damcyan shuddered at the memory. "--But I feel that the ant-lion's lair is not far from here…"

He took a few steps ahead of Cecil and Rydia, who had paused to survey the cavern.

"We have no choice but to continue…"

Cecil walked close behind Rydia as she trudged toward Edward…after a couple of steps she stopped so abruptly that Cecil nearly ran her over.

"Wait!"

She hissed in a fierce whisper. The prince turned around, alarmed.

"Stop!"

Edward frowned.

"What is it?"

She scowled at Edward thoughtfully.

"It feels funny in here…"

The little girl glanced at Cecil.

"--Like we're being…watched…"

All three instantly peered into the dark tunnels and the shadows in the corner of the large cavern. Cecil's hand was on the handle of the sword strapped to his back…

"Do you feel it?"

Rydia gazed at the Knight anxiously. He shook his head…he felt nothing…Rydia scowled at him and spoke in a low voice.

"Something's weird…"

Edward stood a few yards away from them. He scanned the room suspiciously, obviously not believing the little girl's claim…after several moments of death-like silence, he breathed a sigh and turned to Rydia, a faint smile on his face.

"I think you are just scared and you think you…AHH!"

The sand that Edward was standing on suddenly quivered then rose into the air…erupted…Cecil would have used the word to describe what he saw…the prince of Damcyan flailed backwards in a cloud of fine sand, tumbling helplessly on the ground…another burst of sand exploded near him, and Rydia shrieked…

Standing in the dim light of the cavern was a creature…the scene was god-awfully familiar…Cecil cringed when he recognized the man-beast…Kaipo…the Cappodocian Mountains…

Five long clawed toes…scale covered body…thick muscles very prominent over its spindly limbs…a leather loincloth dangled carelessly around its waist…the ribs were clearly visible but the chest bulged into rippling muscles…two gaunt arms hung loosely at its sides, each terminating into five thin clawed fingers…The face that of a reptile…a lizard or dragon or snake…tiny sharp teeth glittered in the candle light…dark flaring nostrils…yellowish sparkling irises surrounding an empty black pupil…a tiny horn was pressed into the elongated snout, and two more sprouted from its hairless head…a blood-red forked tongue flicked between the two prominent fangs held by sneering jaws…Cecil saw each feature of the beast with amazing clarity…with his eyes he sculpted the statue of the creature, labeling every aspect but its race…what in God's name is it…

The lean man-creature peered at the interlopers, its narrow black pupil absorbing their fear and curiosity with amusement…the wide nostrils flared slightly…sand poured between its scales like rivers coursing through winding valleys and ravines…a cruel curved sword clung to its belt…without experience Cecil had a feeling that the creature could use the sword well…

The urodele had succeeded in frightening the intruders…now there was only one thing left to do…

The creature lunged at Cecil with a snarl, drawing its curved blade in a flash.

"Rydia, get out of here!"

Cecil only had time to squeeze those words between breaths before the urodele met him without mercy, their swords clashed together, showering the sand with sparks…Cecil grunted as he pressed against the beast sword-to-sword…its strength would gradually wear him down if he didn't do something else…at last he lifted a boot and planted it directly into the creature's gut, kicking it aside with all of his might. The grotesque beast staggered and crashed onto its back in the sand, and Cecil took the chance to leap in the direction that he had last seen Edward…

Another urodele lurked between Cecil and the prince…

"Edward!'

Cecil shouted desperately to Edward, and he heard a cry amidst the dust…as he strained into the darkness he saw the creature swinging its blade viciously at the ground…the prince of Damcyan emerged from the clouds of dust, rolling across the ground to escape the blade…

"Edward!"

Cecil shouted, charging toward the prince.

"I'm coming!"

Suddenly a heavy weight clutched his forehead and his neck lashed backwards painfully. Cecil cursed loudly as the dark helmet tipped back on his head, and another violent jerk ripped the helmet completely from his head. He knight fell forward on his knees into the sand, and the moment he tried to stand again, a force smashed into the back of his skull, his face pressed roughly into the sand. Cecil gulped in a mouthful of dirt and he started coughing and choking…his eyes filled with tears and bits of sand stuck to his eyelids…As clawed fingers gripped his throat he vaguely heard Rydia squeal and shout his name…he wanted to shout at her to run leave just get out of there because if she didn't those creatures didn't care if she were a young child they would kill her without mercy…he couldn't say anything with his mouth full of sand and the fingers around his throat…

With all of the strength he could muster, Cecil planted his palms in the sand and pushed himself up, flinging the creature against the wall.

Edward was lying in a daze in the sand, breathing hard…he finally opened his eyes and gaped in horror as the urodele standing over him drew its sword back again…with a cry of despair the prince reached out blindly and wrapped both hands around the skinny ankle then lurched back through the sand…the creature hopped madly on one foot for a moment then lost its balance, toppling into the sand near Edward…without hesitation the young man rolled away from it and clawed his way to his feet, watching fearfully as Rydia darted in every direction through the clouds of dust, evading the claws and swords of the urodelae. As his eyes fell on the Knight groping frantically in the dirt for his sword, Edward coughed and started toward the little girl…

The instant Cecil grasped his sword handle in triumph, he saw from the corner of his eye a flash of the sand-colored scales of a urodele. It was weaponless but it wrapped both arms around Cecil in a brutish tackle, both bodies smashing into the ground…Cecil was lying on his back, pummeling the creature with his fists as it clawed unmercifully at his unshielded face and neck…a claw screeched across his black armor and Cecil's skin prickled feverishly…A claw lashed out again, opening a gash in Cecil's shoulder; with a loud groan Cecil clutched his shoulder and with the other arm tried to shove the beast away…Instead it deftly produced a curved blade from its belt…

My God…

Cecil's first and only reaction was flinging his arm up in front of his face…the blade of the dagger glanced off Cecil's gauntlet and bounced across his shoulder guard…he couldn't triumph in his good fortune because the next swipe was aimed at his chest…Cecil deflected it again with his gauntlet, emitting another screech as the metal blade came in contact with the metal gauntlet…

Cecil gasped as the urodele's bony knee pressed firmly into his stomach…he could hardly breathe for God's sake and now it was lifting the dagger again, preparing to leave him bleeding to death in the dirt and darkness and stench of the cave of the ant-lion…a perfect coffin…The creature sneered at the Knight…Cecil braced himself for the blow…the final blow…

As the knotty muscles of the urodele twitched, Cecil watched in disbelief as two arm's grasped the creature's shoulders…

"Edward!"

Cecil hoarsely gasped the name of his savior…the prince had a surprisingly firm grip on the creature's shoulders, and the urodele whipped frantically left and right, trying to tear the young man loose…its long muscular tail lashed angrily back and forth…Edward's arms were wrapped so tightly around the scrawny neck of the creature that his knuckles were turning white. He grunted in pain as he bounced viciously against the row of small spines lining the urodele's backbone…the dagger was still clutched in its hand and it thrust time and again at the prince…Edward's head reeled and he cried out frantically but somehow managed to dodge the blade…the other arm of the creature reached back and clutched Edward's shirt, flinging him over its back into the dirt. The prince was miraculously on his feet in seconds, but the urodele was upon him again…the two figures wrestled for control of the curved dagger…

"Cecil!"

Edward shouted for the knight…he wanted to scream to him to find Rydia…he cared not about himself but about the little girl…

When the prince finally dared to look up, he did see the little girl…

She stood several yards away from him, her bowstring pulled tightly to her cheek, an arrow nocked in it…

…Aiming in his direction…

"Oh dear!"

Edward pleaded fervently, holding a trembling hand toward her.

"Rydia, please dear God don't….AAAHH!"

Rydia released the arrow. It whizzed by Edward, grazing the front of his shirt near his stomach and burying deep into the gut of the urodele behind him. It groaned and toppled to the sand, its red forked tongue flopping from its mouth. Edward gaped at it wide-eyed then lowered his eyes to his own stomach…to his surprise he was unscathed…he turned back to Rydia to ask her how she had managed that feat…

She was fitting another arrow into the bow, and when she pulled the bowstring back, the arrow was aimed at Cecil…

The knight's back was conveniently turned to her…

"Sweet Lord above, Rydia!"

Edward leaped toward the little girl but to no avail.

"--Don't….AAAHH!"

Edward wailed in despair as she released the arrow…he squeezed his eyes shut tight so he wouldn't have to witness the horror that would follow…He heard Cecil mutter an oath, presumably when the arrow whizzed by his ear then Edward was dimly aware of a muffled thunk and a snarl that sounded very much unlike an exclamation made by the Knight…

The prince peeked between his fingers in time to see a urodele drop to the ground, an arrow imbedded in its scaly neck…

Edward shouted in surprise as a hand suddenly grabbed him from behind…he whirled around…

Rydia stood behind him, her hands on hips, a ferocious glare on her face.

"Edward!"

It sounded like the beginning of a scolding.

"You almost messed me up!"

She pointed her finger at him and spoke seriously.

"You know you could've made me hit Cecil?"

The prince stared at her in mock surprise.

"What are you talking about, Rydia?"

He shook his head, unable to hide a faint smile.

"That thought never once crossed my mind…"

The little girl beamed proudly at his confidence in her and dashed to Cecil.

"Cecil! Are you --"

"SHH!"

The Knight held a finger to his lips…sweat beaded on his forehead…

"Two down, one to go --"

Edward glanced around fearfully.

"Please pardon me while I have a heart attack --"

He was absolutely white.

"--I shall rejoin you shortly…"

Rydia giggled at his remark.

"Edward, you're --"

"SHH!"

Cecil quickly scooped his dark sword from the sand, sweat dripping from his chin…there was another creature…somewhere…in the darkness…

They stood in utter silence for several moments…death-like silence…there was no sign of movement, no sound of any of the creatures…all they heard was their own light breathing...

And my heartbeat, Cecil thought wryly…

At last Cecil breathed a deep sigh of relief…the prince of Damcyan was first to speak:

"I suppose it must have fled since it was overpowered --"

His face immediately fell apprehensively.

"--Since they resemble humans, they must also think rationally like humans…"

Cecil shook his head slowly…but for some odd reason the words did sound reasonable…it seemed like there were something else…

"They're not here to think rationally --" Cecil revealed…he gave a small laugh after he spoke because he wondered why he sounded so sure of himself.

"--Don't ask me why I think so because I …don't know --"

He grimaced...

"--It feels like they're here to do something that doesn't involve much thinking…just obeying…"

Edward stopped over to retrieve Cecil's dented helmet.

"Seriously --"

He handed the helmet to Cecil.

"--I believe in those scaly heads there is quite a bit of sense; they displayed some form of thought when they set that beastly trap here…"

The prince shuddered at the memory and Cecil nodded grimly.

"That trap was almost sprung perfectly…"

Rydia suddenly appeared in front of them animatedly.

"I told you we were being watched!" she scolded them with a loud voice. "--I just didn't know where!"

Cecil smiled beneath his horned helmet.

"We also asked you not to use the bow --" he pointed out, not unkindly. "--But it turned out for the best; for me, anyway…"

Rydia folded her arms authoritatively.

"I told you if you'd let me shoot I could --"

"Great saints alive!" Edward broke in, staring at her in amazement. "--Let you shoot?! I should say not!" He clutched his head with his hands.

"It is the maddening source of my anxiety…"

Rydia scowled and punched him hard on the arm.

"You should be glad I can shoot!" she declared. "I saved your life!"

Edward paused with a solemn nod.

"I suppose so…"

He seemed about to say something else when he was interrupted by a snarl that burst out from behind them in the dark tunnels.

They all spun around…

The third urodele had arrived…

Quick as a flash Cecil drew his black sword from the scabbard and leaped without hesitation toward the creature. It also sprang at him, claws spread wide, but as it descended Cecil buried the dark sword to the hilt into its chest…It gurgled and sputtered then flopped onto the ground, blood gushing from its gaping jaws and from the deep wound. They stared in horror and fascination before Cecil stooped over hastily to snatch the sword from its chest… The blade emerged shiny red in the candlelight…

"That…was…quite a surprise…"

Edward announced meekly…his voice clearly said 'I had no idea that was coming…'

Cecil nodded…he watched the red fluid drip slowly from his sword…some of it never made it to the end...it dried on the dark blade, making it appear even blacker…

"It's probably not the last surprise…" he stated evenly…He glanced at the body near his feet and shuddered, a sudden chill coursing through his spine…