FFOG3 Chapter 2

After being assisted by Civan, a soldier from the northern continent, the group sneaks back into Eijopi in an attempt to find passage across the sea. However, they're attacked by Mog along the way. After severely wounding him, they escape via Civan's ship.

In Truvia, the group makes passage to Battant, the capital of the country, in order to explain their situation to the Queen-Empress. While stowing away on a cargo train, they are attacked by Zimon, a former Truvian lord who went insane and became a bestial monster. Leading a pack of Chocobos, Zimon knocks them unconscious and drags them to his cave; Giuseppe is sent away to deliver a ransom to the Queen. However, Calaria manages to send a message to Chocobo the Djinn for assistance. Chocobo proceeds to infiltrate Zimon's pack.

At the cave, Civan and Kyson are separated from the others; Zimon offers them a chance to join him, but they refuse and their fight continues. Imajin, Stubbs, and Calaria are grabbed by the Chocobo pack and overhear their plans to kill Zimon and the rest. The Djinn Chocobo protects them until Zimon shows up, upon which they strike. The bard, Franz, steps in and soothes the Chocobos with music, then escorts the group to Battant.

Civan arrests Zimon and sends him to the palace dungeons. While Imajin searches for Giuseppe, Kyson and Stubbs make plans to enter the dungeons and speak to Zimon; they are joined by Calaria, having now learned the danger she is presented with for being a summoner. At the same time, Worthengraut the Unnerving arrives at the palace as a representative of the northern countries to attend a banquet set for the Queen.

Franz infiltrates the banquet via the band Frogsong and attempts to assassinate the Queen-Empress, but Civan and his superior, Luth, protect her. Franz is taken to the dungeons while Kyson, Stubbs, and Calaria are leaving, Kyson having offered Zimon a second chance without the others' approval. Franz tells Civan that the Queen-Empress is working with Vizier Hal'amek and had his family killed, raising Civan's suspicions. This is confirmed later in the banquet, when the Queen-Empress announces an alliance with Osyllia, right before being kidnapped. The Queen-Empress's bodyguard, Talia, instates a full city lock-down.

Kyson, Stubbs, and Calaria stumble upon Imajin, grievously injured during his search for Giuseppe by a man with glowing red eyes. The fatal wound has not affected Imajin at all, however, and it is determined that he has been zombified, with no apparent cure. Civan arrives and relays to them news of Hal'amek's arrival; the group decides to make their way to Auberon through Barren, with Civan and Kyson trading places so that Kyson can continue his work with Zimon.

Chapter 2: Just a Monster

Lupus

Imajin cringed as his body forcefully tore apart, ready to transport through the atmosphere. His limbs felt like they were being bent in the opposite direction they were supposed to go, and his ears pounded with what sounded like a million voices speaking at once. His eyes felt as if someone's thumbs were pressing them into his skull as hard as they could, and in front of him he could see nothing but a swirl of light and colour as all laws of the Universe were discarded and magic merged all into one. Occasionally he could make out something he recognized; the spires of the palace in Osmirri blurred into the crunching gears of the Floating City he had only seen in books, which in turn blurred into the Lighthouse of Eijopi...

His stomach shifted as he suddenly felt himself falling. He closed his eyes, and then--

***

He regained consciousness sometime later, his mind taking a few seconds to remember what had happened.

If this is what mages go through every time they teleport, then...

Imajin opened his eyes and looked up. He was lying on a bed in the corner of a one roomed house. From the looks of it the owner wasn't rich; it was scarcely decorated with humble belongings, but it felt cosy. Across from him, on rugs laid out on the floor, laid Kyson, Stubbs and Calaria, fast asleep.

"Finally awake, are you dear?" a woman's voice said, surprising him.

He glanced over at her. She was a thin, aging woman standing at the sink with a plate in one hand and a tea towel in the other. She smiled at his look of confusion.

"Who are you? Where is this?" Imajin asked rapidly. "Where's Giuseppe?"

"My name is Maram. You're in my house. And if you mean the tall fellow, he went for a walk," she replied immediately.

Imajin swung his legs off the bed and stood up. A sharp pain flashed up his back and he groaned. "What happened?"

Maram shrugged and turned back to the sink. "I don't know, dear. You'd best ask that friend of yours when he gets back. He brought you here." She turned back. "Are you hungry?"

Imajin shook his head.

"You don't have to lie to me, dear. You've been out of it awhile. Have some food."

She glanced at Imajin knowingly. Imajin was half way through shaking his head again when his stomach rumbled loudly. Maram laughed. "Are you sure?"

"I guess I could eat something," Imajin conceded.

Maram nodded and walked over to a pot on her stove. She started spooning out soup from the pot into a bowl.

"So how long have I been 'out of it'?" Imajin asked, trying to make conversation.

"Well, you've been here all night, dear," she said, bringing the bowl over to the table. "Before that, I don't know. Your friend brought you here last night but you were off with the fairies then. Sit," she commanded, motioning to the seat at the table. "Eat."

Imajin nodded and sat down. He picked up the bent spoon and dipped it into to the soup.

Suddenly, the door of the small house opened and Giuseppe appeared. He took one look at Imajin and let out a sigh of relief. "Imajin."

"Giuseppe," Imajin replied curtly. Despite all the thief had done to get him and his friends out of trouble, he still didn't quite trust him, nor forgive him.

Giuseppe took his top hat off and tucked it under his arm as he entered the room. "You're okay. I was worried."

Imajin snorted. "I wasn't aware a teleport spell leaves you unconscious for half a day. It seems sort of inconvenient."

Giuseppe smiled lopsidedly. "Well, about that. I sort of... teleported you a few meters above the ground."

"Only a few?" Imajin retorted, rubbing the side of his torso where pain still lingered.

"It seems you were right about him, Giuseppe," another voice said, as a figure emerged from behind the thief. His clothing immediately told Imajin that he was some kind of foreign military leader, perhaps from up north. On his hips hung a sabre and a pistol. "Stubborn 'til the end."

Giuseppe entered the room and walked over to where the other three lay on the floor. "I just hope these three are okay too... Time to get up!" Giuseppe shook the three sleeping figures. The sleepy grumbling from the corner told Imajin that his other companions were fine.

Imajin turned his attention to the newcomer that had just entered. "And who is this?"

The man nodded his head in Imajin's direction. "My name is Civan. I work for the Queen-Empress. I'm on the annual peace keeping trip; you know how it is..."

Imajin looked suspiciously towards Giuseppe. "Why do you trust him? He could be anyone."

Giuseppe chuckled, but Civan answered for him. "We've met. It was a long time ago... and I wouldn't call us friends. In fact, back in those days I swore I would get his head some day..."

"That sounds familiar..." the slurred voice of Kyson came from the corner. Imajin nearly snarled.

Civan smiled. "Anyway, you should see the wanted pictures they've got of you guys. Pretty lifelike. I identified Giuseppe immediately."

"That can't be good for my career," Giuseppe sighed.

"Well, they've got some different name under your face, but I could tell it was you."

"How did you find him? I assume the Caliph has got men searching everywhere for us," Imajin asked.

"Ahh... it's all about being able to see the trails of a teleport spell. It's a handy ability."

"You can do that?"

"Well... no. But one of the men on my ship can. He saw the trails in the sky yesterday, and the Caliph told me you had escaped in a similar way. And because of the laws, you don't exactly have people teleporting every day in Eijopi. It's just a matter of putting two and two together." He glanced at Giuseppe. "Anyway, Giuseppe just finished telling me your story. No wonder the Caliph is looking for you."

"Of course he is," Imajin said. "But he won't find us for awhile hopefully. Where are we anyway?"

"Eijban."

Imajin nearly choked on his soup. "What?" Eijban was a small town directly to the east of Eijopi. That meant they weren't as far as he'd originally thought.

"Also my fault," Giuseppe said. "I never claimed to be a magician. I only did what I could."

"Jus' be glad we ain't down the neck of a volcano!" came Stubbs' voice from the corner. "We're still alive, ain't we?"

"You won't be for long if you don't get out of here," Civan replied. "Your likenesses are posted all over the city. And probably every other city on the continent by now, if the Vizier's persuasive abilities aren't exaggerated."

"And you?" Imajin asked. "Why haven't you reported us yet?"

"I was considering it before Giuseppe told me your story. That's why I came all this way after all. But my loyalty is to my home, not this place. I may speak with the Caliph from time to time but I don't like him."

"So what do we do?"

"We leave," Giuseppe said, matter-of-factly.

"We?"

Giuseppe sighed and looked at the floor. "I fear this gentleman thief may have bit off more than he can chew this time. They may not know my name but they know my face. But more importantly... more importantly..." He looked up at Imajin. "A man is his morals. I saw it, you did too. Whatever the Vizier is up to..." He trailed off.

"He's experimenting with magic," Kyson finally said. "Testing resistance. It's practically torture, he doesn't even care if they die. It can't be legal."

"So what now?" Calaria asked.

Civan frowned. "I don't pretend to be involved with this, but my crew and I are sailing north to Truvia before heading home. The Queen-Empress isn't the kind to listen to southern monarchs, so you'll be safe there for awhile."

"What do you get out of it?" Imajin asked.

"I never did like the Caliph... I don't really think the Queen-Empress does either. And," he added with a half-joking sigh, "anything that keeps Giuseppe alive long enough so he can pay back what he stole from me."

"Then we should leave now. We can think about what we're going to do next when we're out of the Vizier's reach."

Imajin got to his feet, his soup long since forgotten. He hurried out of the house, followed by the others.

"Your boat is docked in Eijopi?" Imajin asked Civan, looking towards the west.

"Yes. It's only a few miles west to the Eijopi walls. There's no real danger until then. Just try to keep your head down."

Giuseppe turned to the thin, aging woman who now stood in the doorway of her house. "Thank you Maram. I never steal from ladies but if I did..." Giuseppe flipped his top hat onto his head. "I'd make an exception for you."

Maram smiled.

"You might want to keep that top hat off, Giuseppe," Civan interrupted. "It's fairly nicely drawn on your wanted picture."

Giuseppe complied reluctantly.

Kinoko

Ifrit... why? How could he have found his cave?

Calaria couldn't help but think about what just happened. As Stubbs, Kyson, Imajin, Giuseppe and the newcomer, Civan trekked back to the Eijopi port, she used this time to think. She also knew that one day, she would see Ifrit in her dreams and he probably did see her at that courthouse. If he brings it up, she'd have to explain.

She felt for her rod in its hiding place. Good. It was still there. No one would be able to find it.

Her hand went up to her head, due to her having a headache from that rather shoddy, she might add, teleportation spell. Well, he wasn't a mage. She was used to them due to having traveled with her parents who used them quite a bit, but having a non-mage use one was quite... interesting. The others seemed to be reeling from the teleport spell, and she couldn't help but hide a smile.

But something bugged her. Why would Kyson let himself be taken by the Vizier? Did he know something about what was going on regarding the Vizier? Granted, she's done her own research on the Vizier while she spent her time in Eijopi... but what reason would Kyson have to get involved? Did the Vizier do something to him, too?

She knew. She knew that if Giuseppe hadn't used that teleport spell to get them out of there, she'd be dead. She knew what the Vizier did. She had a feeling that her parents were taken by him and he did what Kyson said he did to them... she'd have to ask Kyson if the Vizier mentioned anything he shouldn't have in his presence.

Calaria sighed. Her curiosity really did get her into trouble this time.

"Hey, Calaria!" Kyson called to her. "You're starting to slow down!"

Her thoughts broken, Calaria came back into the real world, finally noticing how far behind she was compared to the others. She made an effort to catch up.

Luiigii of the Pipes

From the rooftops a figure watched as a group of six people entered Eijopi, five of them wearing rather concealing robes. The sixth clearly wasn't from around here, and since he was headed for the port he likely wasn't planning to get further acquainted with the area.

They had waited until dusk to enter the city. With both merchants and consumers heading home before the embrace of night, the streets were thicker than one could think possible. No one paid attention to the group therefore, and it was a snap to reach the private dock Civan was using.

No one paid attention may have been the slightest of exaggerations, though...

Civan glared at his ship, though it was a fruitless gesture. His crew had all gone below for the night and the expression was utterly wasted on a vessel that could provide no excuse for his crew's idle manner. He sighed and made his way down the dock.

The rest started after him, but a purple object dropped out of the sky between them and Civan. It twirled a spear while still crouching from its landing, then embedded the point in the sea-worn planks. "Hello," Mog said, glancing up at them. "I'm afraid convicts aren't allowed beyond this point."

"Mog, listen..." Imajin began, but was cut short by the spear tearing free of the dock to point at him.

"Listening isn't in my nature, despite the outlandish size of my ears, kupo. You all have five seconds to lay down on the ground. And seriously, next time try to look a little less inconspicuous."

Civan was frozen with indecision. He could easily strike the moogle from behind and end this problem, but attacking a lawkeeper of Eijopi would have political ramifications beyond what he could imagine. And who were these people anyway, to put this question on him? Before he could decide the answer to that, Giuseppe nodded to him; he also understood the consequences Civan would face and that it would be in his best interest to just go wake up his crew and get ready. So he did.

Mog rolled his eyes. "Come on, kupo. You seem like good people under all that criminal element."

The group slipped out of their robes, save for Calaria who only pulled up her sleeves.

"Whatever..."

Mog blurred through the air, leaping and kicking Imajin directly in the chest to send him flying away. Stubbs lunged at Mog from the side and clubbed him over the head with his rifle, breaking it in half, but Mog shrugged it off and tripped the old man with his spear. He jabbed the pole end of the spear into Stubbs's solar plexus, knocking the wind out of him. He jumped onto Stubbs's chest, then ducked as Kyson went flying over him. Kyson spun in midflight and grabbed Mog by the lip of his helmet, dragging him along. As they hit the ground, Kyson's legs kept going and kicked Mog facedown into the ground.

Stubbs got to his feet wheezing and grabbed the pieces of his rifle from the ground, trying to jam them back together like poorly cut jigsaw pieces. Giuseppe ran to join him, pulling Civan's saber (which he had stolen as a joke), as Mog turned his predicament to his advantage by jumping from his position and bringing Kyson up with him. He threw Kyson at the peak of the jump toward the two men, who both jumped away (Stubbs accidently rolling off the dock), then came down on Giuseppe before he could react.

Calaria held up her hand toward Mog, but Imajin caught her arm on his way back into the fight. "We can't use magic here," he said. "They'll be watching for us." Calaria nodded, though disappointed that she wouldn't be able to help; satisfied all the same, Imajin ran to the water's edge to grab Stubbs. Calaria turned to head for the ship, but Mog leapt off of Giuseppe and landed in her path.

She was suddenly scooped up from behind by Kyson, who took a flying leap over Mog's head. Mog scoffed and jumped up to meet them, kicking Kyson away and sending Calaria flying to the ship. She cursed her luck and gritted her teeth for impact, but was caught by Civan before that moment could come. He set her down gently, then motioned for her to follow him to the crew's quarters.

Above, the battle continued...

Masamune

A shot rang out across the deck.

Everyone looked up in shock to see the shot's origin. Civan stoof from the deck of his ship, holding out his still smoking pistol. Mog who had only seconds ago been in the middle of warding off both Imajin and Giuseppe, reached behind himself and on to his back. Sure enough... there was a hole in his armor. Blood was already dripping out of the wound. Stubbs came up from behind and butted the moogle's head with the end of his rifle, knocking the Eijan defender out.

"Want me ter finish him?" Neezer asked.

"No. We'll leave him," Imajin said hesitantly. "It won't take long for the authorities to find him."

"Then let's get off," Civan bellowed. "The crew is ready to leave!"

Giuseppe, Kyson and Neezer made their way on to the boat. Before Imajin joined them, he stepped by the moogle and pulled a potion from his pack. He poured the contents of the potion on Mog's wound. With that, he quickly followed his companion on the boat. The ropes were released and the ship started drifting away from the port.

Stubbs rested his hands on the railing at the stern of the ship. "I reckon dat'll be da last I see of Eijopi."

Calaria nodded sadly. "I always wanted to climb the Lighthouse of Eijopi. I guess I never will now."

"And who do we have to thank for that?" Imajin snapped as he turned to Giuseppe. "We almost got killed several times, thanks to you!"

"Imajin..." Kyson warned softly. "This is not the time for this."

"No! I think it is!" Imajin continued undeterred, too enraged to listen to reason. "Everything I ever worked for. My life, my work, my dreams! Gone! Just so you could pad your little pocket!"

Civan unsheathed his sword. "I'll have none of this on my ship, Mr. Imajin."

Giuseppe put his hand on Civan's hilt and had him lower the sword. He turned to Imajin and for once, his smirk vanished. "I am fully aware that you hate me, but you ought to be grateful."

"Grateful!? To you!?" Imajin retorted incredulously. "What? For ruining everything?"

"Grateful for saving your life," Giuseppe continued calmly. "Lord Duvronne wanted to see you fall. Had I not taken the job, someone else would have. A someone who places no value on life. Had I not been the one who did it, she would have. And she would have succeeded and you would have been dead."

"I'm glad you're such a martyr," Imajin scoffed.

"You were not the only man in debt," Civan explained. "Lord Duvronne owed quite a sum of money and a lot more than just a safe-full of gold. He wanted your rovers and your gold, not just one or the other."

"Which is less than legal, of course," Giuseppe added. "But he was desperate. So when I offered a price far below my usual pay to steal your gold, he was more than willing to claim the rovers as well."

"So why help us, then?" Kyson asked. "Duvronne has his rovers and his gold."

"He went too far," Giuseppe replied simply. "I wasn't about to let an innocent get killed as a result of my work."

"You mean me," Calaria replied. "Only now we're all exiles of Eijopi... and likely Osmirii as well."

"When it's convenient, I can take you back to El Vida, Miss Negime," Civan offered.

Calaria nodded, but said nothing.

Imajin was still fuming. "I can't believe you all are buying this."

"It 'bout fits up wit' Duvronne's kinna business," Stubbs said. "He'd slit any throat to make a buck, 'specially if he's got people pushing down on him."

"Only one problem," Imajin replied. "The Duvronne Family is one of the richest in the Merchant Guild. They're practically a small country unto their selves in terms of how much they own! They're not someone you bully."

"And there's the problem," Civan replied. "There's been strange things in the air with the Merchant's Guild. Some sort of confederacy or syndicate. Whatever you want to call it, they're calling the shots. Nobody knows why they are though."

"Even the Thieves Guild may be involved," Giuseppe added. "Though not many of my cohorts would be smart enough to realize it."

"And what does this have to do the Vizier and the Caliph?" Kyson asked.

"Nothing. Everything. Who knows?" Civan replied with a shrug. "I just know the Queen Empress is extremely interested in finding out what all of this adds up to. I suspect she'd very much like to hear your story, Mr. Imajin."

"Well, what have I got to lose?" Imajin replied bitterly. "I've lost everything else."

"That's the spirit!" Giuseppe replied with a grin. "Why don't we head below and see about our quarters, eh?"

GORE-ILLA

The ship sailed calmly over the ocean waves without further incident. Late in the night Imajin found himself unable to sleep and began to roam the deck of the ship. Everything was at peace and quiet. Too peaceful and quiet. Imajin found that he missed the scorching air and wold have traded the clear ocean breeze for it. He saw the peace and quiet only as the calm before a storm that was likely to tear apart the remains of his life.

Imajin managed to shake off the morbid thoughts, but he still found himself unable to sleep. However, he eventually saw the sun rise over the horizon. And it illuminated the coastline of their destination. Imajin wasn't sure things would ever be as good as they used to be, but he did start to find some hope that things just might get better.

Truvia's port city of Grandia was a coin of two sides. The main area was, of course, the city. It appeared to be a peaceful area, filled with Chocobo-drawn carriages. However, past the outskirts of the city lay a forest teeming with wildlife. It was like two opposing nations, the city of man and the animal kingdom, set side-by-side.

A figure rushed through the forest, hoping from treetop to treetop before stopping atop a rocky hill. Though he acted in the manner of a beast, this person was a man with a name. The name of Lord Zimon Gorenicusto III, a name he had not used in years. Now his human identity was hidden behind unbelievable amounts of shaggy hair. His clothing was the skin of Umaro, a rare ape-like creature of the icy depths. A pair of giant axes hung loosely from his belt.

A flock of Chocobos were loitering about on the hill. Zimon gave a quick ringing of his bells to call the Chocobos into order. He immediately noticed a gap in their ranks. "Where is Bethany?" he demanded. One would think that after living in the wild for decades, Zimon would have forgotten the human tongue. Yet he preserved his vocabulary for all these years and used it whether speaking with man or animal.

The Chocobos immeidately began sniffing around at Zimon's order. Zimon soon picked up the scent of Bethany the Chocobo with his own nostrils. He ran off in pursuit, with the Chocobos following in his rear. He hastened his pace, as the scent of the Chocobo was mixed with the smell of freshly-spilled blood. Zimon soon ordered the Chocobos to stop; he surveyed from a tree branch as a flock of hunters moved on the ground. One held in his arms a dead Chocobo- Bethany. Zimon gritted his teeth in anger. But he also remembered that he had also gone on similar hunting expeditions in his younger days.

Zimon let out a feral cry. The hunters turned and looked up in terror - the same look of terror which Zimon remembered had once been frozen on his face. "The Beast-Man Gorenicusto!" the lead hunter shouted. "It can't be, h's an urban myth!" Zimon knew very well that his story was used to scare young children. One hunter, before he died, had sputtered out how his parents told him that if he wandered off into the forest at night would be taken by Gorenicusto, the nobleman who went insane and ran away to live with the beasts. Zimon smiled. He didn't want to leave these hunters disappointed. With a snap of his fingers, the flock of Chocobos descended and attacked the hunters with a fury never before shown by any other of its kind. Zimon waited a moment to take all of this in, then descended with his axes in hand to finish the leftovers.

The land of beasts won another victory against the land of men.