Chapter 1: Fellow Mages

"Oooo... What happened?" The little mage groaned softly, rising to a kneeling position and placing a red-gloved hand to his head, pushing his hat back a bit in the process. Slowly, he became aware of his surroundings.

He was in a cage, much like a bird cage, hanging from the ceiling. The room was dark, with no light source other than an open doorway which appeared to lead to a dim, torch-lit hall. Along the walls and floor were other cages, some bigger, some smaller, stacked one on top of the other in neat rows. All were empty. He could faintly hear noises from outside: voices speaking in a strange language he didn't know, creaking metal, groaning... and, as if from far away, a faint, periodic scream.

The sights and sounds were so disorientating and frightening that, for a moment, the little mage had trouble recalling who he was. Then he forced himself to take a few deep breaths, to calm down and think.

His name was Vivi Orunita, the Black Mage, from the world he knew as Gaia.

Slowly Vivi forced himself to think back, to try and recall how he's gotten in this situation.

He'd been in the woods outside his home, the Black Mage Village on the Lost Continent, going to meet with his friends; Zidane Tribal, Garnet til'Alexandros, Adelbert Steiner, and Beatrix. They were going to pick him up in one of their airships, then return to the Mist continent to hook up with Freya Crescent and Sir Fratley and Quina for a little vacationing together. A time to relax and have fun.

But before he'd reached the grassy clearing set for the meeting, the shadow had appeared. A huge shadow, appearing out of nowhere it seemed, hovering overhead, with wide wings and a long tail and neck. It swooped in, fast as a gasp, and before Vivi could even think of a spell to cast, it had grabbed him in its front claws and swept him away. The last thing Vivi recalled was a sharp poke in his side before he'd fainted.

Quickly Vivi checked himself for his things. His Gold Hairpin was gone, as was his High Mage Staff, and all his other magical items. All he had were his clothes and his bent, yellow hat. For a moment tears filled his glowing yellow eyes. Vivi was scarred, very scarred. Then, abruptly, he heard voices. Loud voices, speaking a language he didn't know. Shadows danced upon the wall opposite him, of two figures trying to restrain another between them. The shadows jerked and there came a loud CRACK... the sound of flesh striking flesh. Then the figured moved away.

For a few moments, Vivi was still. Then he took a deep steadying breath. He didn't know where he was, but he knew he had to get out. Quietly, he casted Fire on the lock of his cage. It took him many minutes, but at last the lock melted, and Vivi was able to push it open. He slid down on his belly until he hung by his arms, before dropping to the ground. The impact nearly bounced him off his feet, and he had to pause for a moment to adjust his hat, before creeping to the doorway and peering out carefully.

The hallway was stone, gray and unremarkable, with sconces sparsely situated in the mortar bearing lit torches. No one was in sight, so Vivi decided to move down the hall in the general direction the shadows had taken, to see where they were going.

Slowly, sneaking along the walls, Vivi approached a T-intersection. The closer he got, the clearer he heard the voices again. As he reached the intersection, he glanced first down the hall he faced and then - seeing no one - peeked around the corner.

He saw two strange, frightening creatures. They were tall, taller than Steiner by at least a foot. The heads were lizard-like, but with sharply narrowing snouts filled with protruding fangs which dripped some sort of drool or venom that Vivi would rather not contemplate. Their arms were muscular but wiry, appearing quite capable of snapping the little mage in half. Over their torsos they wore bands of metal and leather, make-shift armor, but only loincloths hung from their hips... loincloths, and sword belts sporting wicked-looking falchions, the edges nicked and chipped and looking painful. Their legs were like a dragon's, covered in the same dull gray-green scales as the rest of their bodies. Tribal tattoos of red paint marked what exposed flesh there was, and both hand and foot were adorned with vicious claws.

Their weapons were sheathed, however, as their hands were busy trying to restrain the person between then. He, too, was taller than Vivi, but closer to Steiner's height, perhaps a bit shorter. He wore purple robes over black pants and boots, so much of his physic was obscured from view, plus his back was to Vivi, but he could see the person's hands, hair, and a bit of his face when it was turned. His skin was gray in color, like ash, and his hair dull silver, like unpolished ore or a worn coin, hanging down past his shoulders in a ponytail. His face was gently angular, and human-like, save for his ears which rose to a tapered point rather then rounded off unlike anything Vivi had ever seen before. The prisoner struggled in their grasp fiercely, but it availed him not. Their grip was as unyielding as iron. Slowly they were forcing him down the hall, growling at him in their odd language. One raised his hand for another strike.

Vivi struck first, leaping into the hallway and casting.

"Fire!" Flames erupted from his extended hands and struck into the captive's attackers. The force knocked the lizard-man backwards. Reacting quickly, the captive kicked, his boot connecting solidly with the now-singed monster's chin. It slammed into the stone wall, the head connecting with a loud CRACK! Then, before the second could react, the captive pulled his body into a spin, gripping the scaly arm as he did so. This one 'kissed' the stone most painfully, slumping next to his comrade. But the freed captive wasn't done yet. He unbuckled the creature's belts, removing the blades, and used the leather to then bind the monster's muzzles closed. Then he removed their armor, dismantling as much as he could and using the leather bits to secure their wrists and ankles. Only then did he look back at Vivi. His eyes, Vivi clearly say, were ruby red.

Like blood, Vivi thought uneasily, not sure about the demeanor of this new person.

Neither spoke for a moment, then the captive strolled past Vivi to look down the hallway. Vivi saw him smile and nod to himself, then return to the monsters. Grabbing one by the leg, he began to drag it around the corner. Vivi understood suddenly, or at least he hoped he did, and darted past to open one of the larger cages. It was there, after many minutes of work, that they imprisoned the still unconscious beasts. Then, as they paused to rest (or more like, as the taller stranger paused to rest, as Vivi hadn't done much other that be a lookout) the two got a good look at each other. They stranger eyes Vivi over, and Vivi - normally uneasy around strangers - felt unafraid. Perhaps it was because they were both prisoners of the same captor, or maybe it was the gentle look in his eyes, but Vivi just got the feeling he had nothing to fear from him.

Then, the stranger spoke in a whisper... and in a language Vivi couldn't understand.

"I don't understand," the Black Mage whispered back. Again the stranger smiled, brightly this time, and spoke again.

"Ah, you speak Common. I thought I heard you do so before, but was unsure." He sounded relieved.

"I understood that!" Vivi felt as relieved as he had sounded. "That makes me feel better."

"Me too. How did you get here?"

"A large - no, huge! - thing snatched me up."

"Same for me. Looks like whoever is in charge here is collecting mages."

"You're a mage, too?"

"Yes - Shh!" Abruptly, the stranger grabbed Vivi and pulled him into a shadowy corner, enveloping him in the sleeves and sides of his dark purple robe. "Don't make a sound!" Vivi didn't, and a split second later heard what the stranger had heard: clawed footsteps. As the footsteps drew nearer, the stranger pulled Vivi more into his embrace, as if he felt he could protect or hide Vivi from being seen. The little mage could feel a faint trembling from the stranger, or perhaps it was himself. If they looked in, and saw their fellows, it would be very bad for the pair. But fortunately the brace of soldiers passed by without even a casual glance. Nonetheless, the stranger mage didn't move a muscle until about fifteen seconds had passed, and their footsteps were long faded away. Then he let Vivi go.

"Sorry about that. It's a reaction."

"It's okay," Vivi replied. "You probably saved my life. I didn't hear them at all." The mage smiled, tapping his pointed ears.

"Elven ears don't miss much. Now, we should move while we can. I don't know about you, but they stole some very valuable items of mine, one's I'll not leave without."

"They stole some of my things too. Count me in." The elf carefully stood and peered out the door.

"Okay. Let's go."