Yang fell back against the crystalline floor and gulped in breath after breath, feeling as though he might never breathe enough again…the other warriors turned and dropped their own weapons and collapsed to the floor as well…they had fought so bravely and now there was time for rest…

Cecil flung his dark sword into its sheath, biting nervously on his lip…it isn’t over…something told him it wasn’t over…

There were loud angry frustrated shouts from behind the door…

Edward drooped on the floor with his cheek resting against the cool crystalline surface…Everything looked so bright…or distant…or something in between…he felt so…disconnected…

Yang stared around the crystal room where light was born from an unknown source and everything glowed pale and frosty blue…the crystal…the sacred crystal of Air rested on an altar in the center of the room…for a moment it seemed to mock them…to wink at them as though it said you have come this far…this is as far as you may come…and you have done it for me…

"What can we do now?"

Cecil’s harsh demand broke the silence in the crystal room.

"I mean…what in God’s name can we do now?!"

Yang sighed wearily then looked toward the door as a grating sound exploded in the room…

"What is happening?"

Edward propped up painfully and gazed at the steel door in concern…a few of the warriors took cautious steps toward the door…

"What the –"

Cecil’s words broke off as another crash echoed through the room…the door shuddered violently…Cecil had imagined the door to be impenetrable…Now he wasn’t so sure…

"…They are trying to enter…"

Yang turned to the warriors in horror…they immediately dashed to the door, lunging against it in the hopes of intervening…Cecil stepped close to Yang and grabbed his arm urgently.

"…That…door…can’t be…broken, can it?"

Yang said nothing…he hardly glanced at the knight…Cecil grew impatient…

"It can’t be!" he shouted at Yang’s back. "—I know it can’t be broken!"

But it can, a voice seemed to mock amid the echoes as the door shuddered…the warriors tumbled forward…a long dent sunk into the steel door…The warriors leaped against the door again in a desperate attempt to prevent the urodelae from entering…

Edward watched the scene from his position on the floor…another blow to the door produced a piercing screech and warriors toppled left and right…Cecil drew his sword wildly and screamed toward the door in a voice high-pitched from fear and anger:

"You bastards!"

He was so angry…he was nauseatingly angry…those god-forsaken creatures were about to come into the crystal room…uncaring…emotionless…they wouldn’t know or care what everyone had been through to get there…to protect the crystal…and in one night the creatures would destroy everything that Cecil had worked so hard to accomplish…his promise…to right his wrong…

The door was struck again and it shuddered…it seemed to be shivering…from fear…even it was aware of the desperation…the blade of a huge battle-axe jutted through a slit in the metal…shouts from behind the door raised…

"You’ll…never…get…in here!!"

Cecil screamed again…he was nearly sobbing…how god-awfully unfair…he strode toward the door…hot tears stung his eyes…he felt crazy…he felt mad…wild…if those creatures dared enter the room, he would kill them…he would mercilessly kill them…The warriors still retained their positions at the door…they leaned against it with as much strength as they could muster…

Yang began to back away with a hopeless shake of his head…

"Merciful…heavens…"

With a final blow the door collapsed inward with a high-pitched shriek…the blade of the battle-axe fell completely to the floor as it made its way through the steel…an instant later the urodelae squirmed into the shredded door, the impenetrable door…

The goal of the urodelae was complete…

Shrill cries escaped the lips of the frightened warriors as the creatures entered…the battle-axe raised again and brought smashing into the chest of a Fabul warrior who stood in the way…Cecil turned away, sickened by the ripping and the blood and the bubbly scream of agony…the warriors of Fabul held their ground as long as they could and now they would pay for it…

A urodele turned its attack on Yang and the Karate master brought the steel blades on his glove up to his face as hope for protection; the sword of the urodelae crushed into the clawed glove, shearing one blade from the glove and snapping one…the other was rent completely out of shape…Yang slashed at the creature’s grotesque face with the remains of the glove but he was too weak and the urodele was too determined…it tore the glove from his hand and buried the stump of a blade deep into Yang’s side…

Yang gasped in pain and clutched his side, staggering back…away from the urodelae…away from the door…away from the flames that still burned outside…away from…everything…away from everything…

"Yang!!"

Edward managed to crawl to his knees…he screamed to the warrior…

"Yang!!"

The karate master was lying motionless on the floor with his hands pressed firmly to his ribs…

"Oh…God --" Edward moaned, forgetting his own pain for a moment. "No!"

A sharp pain erupted in his side and he was tumbling across the floor, his pain now so great that it seemed like he couldn't feel it anymore…it was beyond pain…beyond agony…he could feel nothing…

With a roar of rage Cecil leaped at the nearest urodele and buried his dark sword deep into his chest…it gurgled and feel back and Cecil snatched the blade out and swung it again…there were so many creatures around him now…they were surrounding him but he still fought insanely…spears were repeatedly thrust at him but he managed to avoid them yet he knew he had to fall sometime…he would slip…make one mistake…then it would end…his strength wouldn’t last…a battle-axe crashed toward him and Cecil stumbled back blindly to escape it…he did slip and almost fell but he drew his dark sword close to his face as swords lashed at him from all sides…the flat of one blade smashed into his fingers and with a curse he lost the grip of his sword and it skittered across the crystalline floor…Cecil dodged the swing of another sword and desperately attempted to crawl toward his weapon but there were too many of the god-awful creatures…he saw a lance near his face and he only had a half second to tumble on his side, evading it before it drove deep into his back…he lashed out with his foot to fend the creatures off but he could only slow its pace….the urodele hissed and lunged at Cecil again, this time grazing his side and snapping several links of the chain mail…more of the creatures approached…eyes glittered…lips curled back over the fangs…lances and axes poised at the knight on the floor…

The only choice Cecil had was to roll toward the oncoming wave of urodelae…

He did…

The impact knocked one of the creatures legs out from under it and bowled it over several of the others…then the spears were raised again at Cecil’s face…

There was nowhere to turn…Cecil closed his eyes and his head drooped wearily toward the floor…it was over…everything was over…he heard the sneering laughter of the urodelae standing over him…this is how it would end…in vain…everything was in vain…sweat crept slowly slowly down his cheek...in a moment everything would end…his world would end…yet somehow it felt okay…

"Wait!"

Above the dull steady throbbing in his head Cecil heard a voice…a familiar voice…it spoke loudly and commanding…it was very close…suddenly it felt as if the creatures weren’t there…they weren’t hovering over him anymore…they wouldn’t kill him after all…he nearly felt like crying from relief…but he paused thoughtfully before opening his eyes…and the voice spoke again…

"How are you, Cecil…?"

Before Cecil looked up and saw the man garbed in deep blue dragon armor, he knew exactly who was addressing him…

"Kain…"

Now it as a dream…it had to be…the blond-haired man adjusted his wicked dragon helmet and stood very still…Cecil dragged himself to his feet.

"Kain!"

He started toward the looming figure, half-encased by the shadow of the throne room…Cecil limped drunkenly toward him…

"—I...thought…you –"

A heavy blow to the skull sent Cecil reeling to the ground, bouncing hard against the crystalline floor…there he laid…very still…practically dead he thought…He swam in unconsciousness for several moments and everything drifted around in front of his dimming eyes…

"…Ughh…"

Cecil clutched his head in his hands and rolled across the floor. The creatures still circled him threateningly.

"…Kain --" Cecil blinked dizzily several times, trying to straighten the image dancing in front of his eyes. "--What are…you…doing…?"

Kain didn't respond and Cecil heard the tingle of chain mail as the urodelae shifted restlessly. Suddenly an agonized cry from Edward rose above the screaming outside…one of the creatures roughly heaved the prince to his feet and pressed a knife to his throat…Edward wheezed as the hot fetid breath of the urodele gushed over his face and he trembled so badly that he thought he might faint but if he showed his weakness the ruthless monster would certainly kill him… it would probably kill him anyway…

Kain Highwind began to laugh…

Cecil pushed himself to his feet and nearly toppled over on his side again…his sense were dull and everything was hazy but he heard Kain very clearly…the familiar voice…the familiar laughter…but it was different…not the good-natured laughter of Kain Highwind of the order of the Dragoons of Baron…this was the laugh of a beast…Cecil couldn't focus on anything…his eyes were blurred from smoke and tears and blood…

Kain's chuckles died down at last…Cecil thought he would go crazy if Kain laughed any longer…but then he spoke:

"What am I doing?" the dragoon echoed Cecil's last words. "What am I doing?!"

His voice was rising in amazement.

"Look --" he instructed to Cecil…he instructed everyone around. "--Look what I've done!"

He began to laugh crazily…not loudly…but it was the only thing Cecil could hear…Kain laughed like a maniac and threw his hands into the air.,.

"Look what I've done, Cecil!"

Cecil lowered his head and focused on the floor…the crystalline floor…God it was a good start to regaining his vision…but it was so perfect…it was so soothing…it should have comforted him but he couldn't concentrate on it…all he saw was his face reflected in it…his skull was being constricted…it seemed…his head and his mind…his eyes…his head…they hurt like hell and he didn't want to think at all but there was so much to think about…

"…Kain --" Cecil whispered, his back turned to the dragoon. "--That's…not….you…talking…"

He heard a quick shuffle behind him as Kain started angrily toward him…

"Turn around, Cecil!" Kain shouted vehemently. "Turn around and look!"

He clenched a spear, its blade laced with feathers and ribbons…his decorations…

"Turn around and look at me, Cecil!"

Cecil couldn't turn around…he kept his eyes on the floor…there was a dull roaring in his head but Kain's voice still made its way through…he was feverish…his face burned and sweat popped out on his forehead...

"…Oh --" Kain's voice was suddenly and surprisingly sympathetic.

"--Cecil…are you afraid?"

Cecil's face burned hotly at the biting tone of Kain's voice…the mock sympathy…

"---Are you afraid to look at what you've always wanted, Cecil…?"

The screaming beyond the crystal room continued and Cecil knew it would carry on forever…of course this would end in Fabul and it would end in the world but it would never end in Cecil's mind…it would never end and eventually he would be…insane…he would be insane like…

"Kain…you're crazy…"

After he spoke he nearly burst into laughter…what did I say? How stupid am I…It sounded so stupid…God I'm so stupid because now he'll kill me…

There was another shuffle behind Cecil as Kain took a step closer…

"Are you afraid to look at what you've always wanted to be, Cecil?!" Kain screamed, his voice echoing in the pale bluish room.

"Turn around and look at me! See what you could have been, Captain?!"

How those words hurt…God there was no way to express how much the biting tone hurt…Cecil finally did laugh…it was a strained high-pitched laugh…

"You're…a…crazy bastard…"

Cecil didn't look at Kain…his words sounded so funny…he wanted to laugh again but there was a steady nauseating pain in his head…

"Are you afraid to see what you could have been?!" Kain demanded furiously. His voice died away into silence…Cecil didn't attempt to break that silence…everything would be okay with silence…Kain smirked at last…destined to crush the soothing silence…

"You imagined yourself being a hero, didn't you, Cecil…?"

Cecil stared at the floor intently…the floor…the crystalline floor…the soothing crystalline floor…his face as still reflected in the mirror-like layers of glass…the eyeholes of his horned helmet glared at him…his reflection seemed to say 'Look at yourself, Cecil…Listen to Kain…'

"You were the captain of the Red Wings --" Kain continued in a tone of conviction. "--Everyone praised you and worshipped you like you were a god!"

Cecil clenched his fist tightly…he felt something warm in his hair…it was blood, he realized…but it had been such a natural thing to see recently so he paid little attention…

"But --" Kain began again, caressing the spear he held in his hand…Cecil wanted him to just shut up…just shut up Kain, he wanted to say…shut up you're crazy…

"--I wasn't stupid --" Kain stated thoughtfully. When he spoke again his voice was angrier. "--I wasn't stupid!"

Cecil felt something pierce his palm as he clenched his fist tighter and tighter…

"Beneath that mask of pride and vanity and idiotic courage I saw what you really were!"

Cecil opened his palm and sucked in a deep breath through his gritted teeth…

"Shut up Kain…"

Speaking of idiotic courage…Kain laughed and approached Cecil…

"You're a coward, Cecil…" the dragoon stated…testily…experimentally…

"Shut up!" Cecil shouted into the floor…he couldn't face the dragoon. "--Just shut up!"

How childish, Cecil thought, nearly laughing again…Kain did laugh…crazily…

"You're a coward!"

He pounded on his dark blue chestplate to emphasize his next words.

"--This could be you, Cecil! But you're a coward! I saw through the --"

"Shut up!" Cecil shouted, staring into his palm…his flesh was punctured and dark red blood peeked from the wound…He had been holding a strip of jagged chain mail and a torn link of the armor had pierced his skin…

"Get your sword and fight, Cecil --" Kain offered to the dark Knight. "--I'll give you another chance…"

"Shut up!"

Kain give me another chance…? The ridiculousness of that statement…I don't want another chance from him…I don't need him to tell me I can have another chance…

A link of chain mail snapped between Cecil's fingers and he glanced down at it…he never looked at Kain…

"Get your sword and fight, you coward!" Kain taunted, leaping close to Cecil…Cecil breathed shakily and felt another link of chain mail snap between is fingers…it was strange…how the steel links of the armor broke so easily…they were made to withstand almost anything…sword blades, fire, arrows…but could it withstand the most powerful force…human emotions…? Anger…pain...grief…sadness….?

"Turn around, you coward!"

"…Shut up…"

Cecil’s voice came in a whisper…he was determined not to listen to Kain…he didn’t want to become like Kain…but what exactly was that? He stood motionless…too afraid to breathe…he might give his anger away…his frustration…

"Get your sword and turn around!" Kain lunged at Cecil and swung his spear in an arc, strike Cecil’s horned helmet and knocking it to the floor…

Cecil backed away, clenching his teeth and feeling a burning sensation behind his ear…He lifted his hand slowly to his neck and it was warm…blood…he was bleeding and it hurt like hell but he never faced the dragoon...Kain stepped back to watch Cecil’s reaction...He soon lowered his spear and laughed to himself softly…

"There’s your hero –"

Kain pointed an accusing finger at Cecil and looked at everyone in the room. Then he laughed again…

"—There’s your hero who won’t even –"

"Shut up, Kain!"

Cecil’s eyes were squeezed shut tightly…painfully…

"--Shut your mouth…"

"Get your sword, Cecil…and fight for the lives of the women and children --"

Kain’s voice as predicted still continued to flow arrogantly into Cecil’s head…but now they were making sense…god-awful sense…Cecil’s heart skipped a beat and his blood froze but he couldn’t speak or even turn around now…not that he wanted to anyway…

"---You should have heard them, Captain –" Kain went on and on in a voice of sympathy and sorrow but it was all senseless…he’s just crazy, Cecil reminded himself. "—The mothers…begging for their lives --"

Sweat broke out on Cecil’s forehead and the frown line of his brow deepened…

"—Begging for the lives of their children –"

Suddenly the prince of Damcyan began sobbing breathlessly…his breath was cut short by the creature restraining him as it pressed the knife to his throat again…his breathing and sobbing faltered as he felt the cold steel against his flesh…he wasn’t dead yet but he would soon be so nothing really mattered anymore…

"—The children –" Kain repeated solemnly, pulling his dragon helmet from his head and tucking it carefully under one arm…

"…You…didn’t…"

Cecil was sick now…nauseated…he would faint in a moment…

"It was so sad, Cecil –" Kain shook his head and lowered his eyes, his voice heavy with mock remorse…

"…oh…God…" Cecil whispered, choking back tears…

"--The elders…so wise…and…helpless…"

"…God…no --"

Cecil felt nauseated and something was in his throat that wouldn't move and he couldn't breath very well…

"--my God…no!"

"…It didn't matter, Cecil…"

Cecil snapped one more link of the chain mail in his fingers and let the torn strip dangle loosely in his hand…

"--The women…the mothers…the poor little children…the wise old men…the widows…"

"Shut up!" Cecil screamed and once more the jagged links of chain mail cut deep into his palm.

"--It didn't matter, Cecil --" Kain intoned in that same voice of sympathy and regret and coldness….

"--They all bleed the same color red in the end…"

"No --" Cecil's head throbbed painfully. "--No!"

Kain laughed…he started and it seemed that he might not stop…that maniac laugh…God he was crazy…Cecil clenched his teeth together so tightly that his jaws and skull hurt…

"Get your sword and fight, Cecil…" Kain suggested…Cecil stared at the strip of chain mail in his hand and watched the blood ooze between his fingers. Outside, the mass of people were still screaming and crying but all Cecil heard was the steady drumming of his heart…

"…You're crazy, Kain…" his voice finally made its way out in a pathetic whisper….

"…I am..."

"…You're sick…"

"…I know…"

"You're sick!"

Cecil whirled around and whipped the torn strip of chain mail at Kain, and the jagged links slashed into his cheek…Four gashes instantly appeared on his tan face as blood trickled out…tears instinctively welled in Kain's eyes…The dragon helmet feel from his hand and the big man staggered to one side but he still held his spear in the other hand…The dragoon raised a hand slowly to his cheek and gazed stupidly at the blood on his fingers…his blazing eyes lifted to stare at the face of the dark Knight…

"…You son of a ---"

Cecil lunged at Kain and snatched at the spear…they wrestled desperately for the weapon, Kain's blond hair flapping wildly left and right…Cecil tried to drag him over a body lying in the floor but he was too weak...Kain outweighed him and dragging him down would have been like dragging a boulder…his body was screaming for rest and he didn't know why he ever even decided to fight Kain…crazy…I'm crazy, he concluded…I'm insane like….him…

"You're about to die, man!"

Kain kicked Cecil hard in the gut and the knight stumbled back, his legs becoming entangled in the legs of a slain warrior of Fabul…he toppled helplessly to the floor and Kain was immediately there…his lips curled back from his shiny teeth as though he were an animal…he is…he is…

"…It's…not…you…Kain!" Cecil managed to croak between breaths as Kain raised the spear above his head…Cecil snatched at Kain's arm and pulled the spear aside…the head smashed into the crystal floor and shards sprayed into Cecil's hair…The dragoon, his eyes flaring, clawed at Cecil's throat with his gauntleted hands…Cecil tore one of the gauntlets from his hand but Kain's nails dug into his neck…

"…Where's…Rosa, Cecil…?"

Cecil groped across the ground for his sword but it was out of his reach…

"…I…don't…know!"

Hid fingers closed around Kain's dragon helmet, which was lying nearby…

"…You…should…know…if --"

Cecil brought the helmet up blindly and smashed it against the side of Kain's leering face…the startled man tumbled over and Cecil could at last breathe again…he reached for his dark sword but Kain kicked it away furiously…the dark blade was taunting him…Cecil's strength was flagging…

Kain crawled to his feet his hair, clinging to the four bloody gashes on his cheek…he hassled for breath, not from exertion but from anger…sweat stood out on his forehead and shined on his upper lip…with a cry of rage the big man leaped at Cecil again, this time scooping up his lost gauntlet…

"Bastard!"

Kain swung the gauntlet at Cecil's head and it struck him once in the temple…Cecil saw bright light but he forced himself to raise his arms cause if you don't he'll just smash your head off, Captain how would you like it to end like that? The gauntlet bounced aside as it struck Cecil's arm and with a one final burst of strength Cecil ripped the gauntlet from Kain's hand and tossed it aside…

"Wake…up...Kain!" Cecil stated breathlessly. "--Wake…up!"

Kain roared fiercely and clutched Cecil's collar.

"Shut up!"

He wrenched Cecil's collar so viciously that Cecil could only get a few wheezing breaths…he was choking and tears flowed from his eyes…it felt like he might swallow his tongue…his mouth was dry but foamy saliva sprayed his lips…he tasted blood and ashes…Kain yanked Cecil's head very close to his…through his squinted eyes Cecil could see Kain's white teeth flashing like fangs at his lips…his hot breath poured over Cecil's face…there was a quick scrape as Kain snatched Cecil's dark sword from the crystalline floor…

"…The Dark Knight --" Kain snarled in Cecil's face. "--Killed by his own…dark sword…"

He lifted the sword to Cecil's nose and the knight stared over its black blade into the wild eyes of the dragoon…

"Why...are...you…doing…this…Kain?" Cecil asked, his voice surprisingly calm and steady…Kain twisted Cecil's collar even tighter and drew his face close.

"You should've gotten out of this, Captain --" he hissed threateningly. "--You should've turned all of this aside…and you should've at least tried to understand what Rosa wanted to tell you…"

Droplets of spit from Kain's mouth flecked Cecil's face…Cecil didn't flinch…Kain's words suddenly stung him…

"Kain…you're crazy…" He gave another high-pitched strained laugh…his breath was cut off again as Kain's dark face drew nearer…

"You are a dumb bastard, Cecil --"

Blood from the four gashes on Kain's cheek trickled from his chin and spattered on Cecil's sweaty forehead…

"--Pray to God, Cecil --" he commanded simply. "--Pray that he'll show some mercy even though your heart is as black as your armor!"

He laughed again…what an awful sound…above everything else Cecil would remember that sound…his dry raspy laughter…the laugh that did not belong to Kain…

"Pray that he'll help you now --" Kain's voice rose with each following word. "--Even though you’re a pathetic COWARD!"

Cecil drew in ragged breaths as Kain glared intently into his eyes…the dark sword rested on Cecil's forehead…Kain waited for a reply…my last words, Cecil thought…it was so damn funny for some reason…my last words…I'm dead…I'm as good as dead now…and it's so god-awful because Kain is right…Rosa…I'm sorry…my last words…

"Kain --"

Cecil gave a small laugh…a mirthless laugh…God this isn't funny at all he's crazy and it's spreading to me now…

"…I'll see you in hell!"

With a triumphant cry Kain raised the dark sword and prepared to plunge it deep into Cecil's chest…Cecil never closed his eyes…see Kain I'm not a coward am I…he stared at the enraged dragoon…Kain was right…I can never see the light as long as I stand in the dark…it was so dark…it always seemed so dark…and in a moment his world would be dark and would remain dark…it had happened so fast…what? This? My life? All of the above? Yes…he couldn't remember thinking one time in the past…how long had it been? It didn't matter…it wouldn't matter...after awhile…

"No!"

A voice from behind caused Cecil and Kain to snap their heads up and gaze toward the doorway…a familiar voice…Cecil was half-conscious and disoriented but the voice drove into his ears and he recognized it immediately…

"Rosa!"

It was Kain who spoke her name first…He stared, his eyes flickering crazily in the strange pale light of the crystal chamber…the woman stood in the doorway…Her white robes were dirty and dingy and her usually golden hair was caked with ash, dirt, blood…Cecil was a bit startled at the blood…he hoped she wasn't hurt…despite everything she still retained an air of beauty…her eyes still glowed as they did months ago…years ago…now she stared wide-eyed at the scene in the crystal room…she was confused…

"…Kain…?"

The dragoon threw his hands over his face and scrabbled away frantically…

"Don't look at me!"

Rosa gazed at Kain in bewilderment…

"Kain…what's wrong…?"

"Don't look at me, Rosa!" Kain turned his head away, his breath coming in quick gasps…

"…Oh...God….don't look at me!"

Rosa stepped into the room and Cecil noticed that she was holding Rydia's grubby little hand…the little girl looked absolutely shocked at everything around her…she was paralyzed with fear…

"Cecil!"

Rosa finally released Rydia's hand and dashed toward Cecil, who still laid on his back on the crystalline floor…how crazy…he was still alive...he was basking in that victory…he was still alive…Rosa knelt at his side…

"Cecil! Oh dear God…."

She cradled his head in her hands…

"I thought --"

The urodelae started toward them uncertainly but Cecil paid no mind to them…let them approach me…I don't care…

"Rosa…" he whispered weakly, trying to look into her eyes but feeling awfully light-headed and dizzy…

"…Cecil --" she brushed his hair back with her hand. "--It's awful…Cecil…"

She broke into sobs and threw her arms around his neck, heedless of the blood and ashes clinging to him…one of the creatures instantly snatched her by her hair and dragged her to her feet…Cecil reached for her hand as she was jerked away from him…

"What the --"

"--I said back off!"

A scaly foot smacked into his nose and Cecil toppled backwards, moaning and clutching his nose…

The other creatures made their way across the room where Kain laid on his side…his hands were pressed to his head…he sucked in deep breaths of air…

"Edward!"

Cecil vaguely heard the urgent shriek from Rydia…he looked through the blur in his eyes and saw with horror that the little girl was dashing toward the prince of Damcyan, who was presently being held fast by one of the creatures…

"...Rydia…" Edward whispered as she leaped toward him, oblivious to the bodies scattered on the floor…

Suddenly Edward felt himself hoisted into the air …he seemed to float…but instantly he crashed into the ground, his chin jarred against the crystal floor and tears sprang to his eyes…he could still see Rydia and he forced himself to watch her as long as possible…his vision was dimming slightly…

"Shut up!"

A bony knee drove hard into Edward's shoulder blade and he groaned in agony as white-hot pain coursed through his body…

"Edward!"

Rydia was grappling fiercely with a urodele who had a firm grip on her tattered shirt…the creature would have torn it from her shoulder if she had not planted a hard kick directly in its shin…it swore crudely and released its grip and Rydia stumbled over her own feet but regained balance and continued toward Edward…

"Rydia…please --"

It was the voice of Yang…

"--Stay there!"

Yang thrashed desperately against the clutch of the creature holding him…but it drove the handle of its sword deep into the small of his back and Yang slumped heavily to the floor with a cry of pain…

"AHHH!"

An unexpected cry from Kain stunned everyone…all eyes shifted toward the figure of the large man standing in the center of the crystal room…

"I…can't…do…this!" he screamed into the air, both hands still clutching his head…one of the creatures scooped Rydia into its lanky arms and hoisted her over its shoulder as she kicked and squealed…

"--I can't...do…this!!"

Kain screamed again, climbing drunkenly to his feet.

"Kain --" Rosa started softly...urgently…but the urodele holding her gave her a rough shake that instructed her to remain silent…Kain spun around toward her voice, his eyes flashing with madness and anger and fright…He lifted a trembling finger to Cecil:

"Kill them!!"

The creatures frowned uncertainly at the dragoon…Edward shook his head in disbelief…

"Kill them now!" Kain sobbed wildly, one hand over his tan face. "--Kill them, you stupid bastards!! Kill them!!"

Edward gasped weakly as he felt himself dragged to his feet…he heard the hiss of the creature near his ear and felt droplets of spit splash onto his cheek…this is how it would end after all…

"EDWARD!" Rydia shrieked once again, her voice breaking away into breathless sobs…

How could they kill so heartlessly…how unfair…it was unfair…and then Cecil was tired of it all…the injustice…God it could make you crazy…

"NO!"

With a roar Cecil sprang to his feet…several urodelae were advancing, swords raised but Cecil didn't care…not one bit…he would go down, that was obvious…but he would go down fighting and he would take some of those bastards down with him and if he could only make it a few steps forward he would take Kain down with him too…Cecil grabbed at one of the creatures, heedless of the blades hovering around him…with a savage snarl he tore at the beast's throat…red blood spurted over his hands…it was so warm…it was actually comforting and relieving because he thought until that moment that he had been dead but now he could feel the warmth of the blood so he knew he wasn't dead yet…the body fell from his hands and he ripped the sword from its lifeless fingers…with another roar he whipped around, slashing at the urodelae behind him…the unexpected ferocity of his attack caused one to lose its weapon and another stepped away warily, its glistening fangs bared…Cecil lunged at them, intent upon killing as many as possible…

"Cecil!"

The knight didn't hear Rosa pleading with him…he was tired of everything…tired of it all…

"Cecil!"

He would kill them now the way they killed…ruthlessly…mercilessly…like an animal…

"Kain!"

Cecil snarled as he leaped at the dragoon…his head throbbed from the sudden outburst and the rush of adrenaline God he was crazy he was just like the urodelae and like Kain because

"I'll…kill…you!"

Kain staggered away from the dark knight and tripped over the bodies that littered the room…all trace of fight gushed from him…for what reason Cecil didn't know but he didn't care…Kain's eyes were squeezed shut and tears flowed over his cheeks…he feel back onto the steps that led to the altar where the crystal rested…the crystal of Air…the…

"The…crystal!"

Yang's deep voice echoed against the walls of the crystal chamber…the crystal began to flicker strangely…its pale bluish light echoed across the room with Yang's voice…without warning it shimmered so brightly that it seemed in one panicked moment everyone in the chamber had lost vision…irreversibly…eternally…Edward cried out and threw his hands to his face but it was too late…he could see nothing…he could feel nothing…(but you're going to have to now that you're blind)…the light was intense…numbing…Edward felt like he stopped breathing for a long while…

The whiteness faded to nothing…it was dark…inky darkness…oppressive darkness…Cecil was light-headed but he realized it was only because he tripped and careened forward, striking his skull on the corner of the altar…probably bleeding to death too…bleeding his brains out how funny was that…he might actually live but then he stumbles over his own feet and splits his stupid head open what a damn moron…

Several exclamations from the startled creatures shattered the oppressive silence but did nothing to penetrate the blackness…rustling followed the grunts and shouts and the scraping of boots and armor followed…Rydia was crying somewhere…poor little girl, Cecil thought incoherently…so much for my stupid promise…protect you? Of course…but I need someone to protect me first then I promise I'll protect you…he had no sense of direction anymore…the crystal flickered softly once…twice…Cecil imagined that it was humming loudly…of course…no…it was only his head…his mind…

…The crystal of Air flickered again…

…A silhouette was in the doorway…no…it was Cecil's imagination…

…The crystal began to burn dully with pale blue flame…it grew brighter and brighter until the room was lit to an unearthly tint…

…A figure stood in the doorway…no my imagination…my imagination…but deep down where his reason really laid the voice was contradicting that shallow thought…

There was a figure in the doorway…

Cecil blinked repeatedly to attempt to restore his vision…it was returning slowly…he squinted and stared at the figure in the doorway…

When everything was in focus, Cecil gasped at what he saw…