| Anything you dream can be achieved. The only thing holding you back is yourself. -Rules of Life, pg. 66 Part 39 She bowed hastily and flew up to him. [I am at your service, Sire.] [Vanel, what are you doing here? Where is everyone else?] [I flew here alone. When I got word in Treno, I came.] [You flew here from Treno by yourself?!] She nodded. [Can we talk about this later?] Another form dropped from the sky, settling on Vanel�s other side. [Are you two all right?] Tiovex gazed at Kitiane for a long moment. [We�re fine.] [Good, because he�s coming back.] They all pulled their wings close and dove to meet Bahamut. Farther away, on the other side of Alexandria, the Hilda Garde 2 landed roughly. Zidane and the others leapt out and ran into the castle. They looked all over, warning those inside that it was best they flee. Continuing up to the roof, a stairway led even higher. � I�ll go alone,� Zidane stated in a tone that brooked no argument. They argued anyway, but finally left. Zidane rushed up the stairs, staggering as the upper part of the castle shook violently. He continued up at a dead run while the castle collapsed around him. When he finally reached the top, he saw Dagger disappear with a chunk of stone. Without thinking, he ran to the edge and took a flying leap, landing painfully on the stone Dagger was on. She looked at him as if she didn�t quite believe he was there, then threw her arms around his neck. He held her as he felt the stone, being so much heavier than them, drop quickly to the ground below. Being weightless, he decided as they fell, was an interesting experience from such a height at such a speed. No! What am I thinking?! I can�t let her die! <What are you going to do?> a part of him sneered. <You can�t fly.> I�ll call Kiti! <Yeah right. She�ll never get here in time.> Shut up! What do you know?! <I know you�re dead.> He ignored the voice and concentrated briefly. �Kiti! Hurry! Please!� A strange feeling began to run through him. It turned into a searing pain that made him arch backwards. The pain intensified and exploded, frying his nerves to nothing. Everything vanished, leaving him in darkness. �Mother . . .� *~~* Alexander�s attack, whatever it was, did not look pleasant. We watched the blue streaks come for us . . . And fled. We twisted and dodged as though a quartet of acrobats. �Kiti! Hurry! Please!� I veered away and rushed back toward the castle. Tiovex and Vanel followed closely. Bahamut tried, but he was just a bit too slow and a bit too big. The blue streaks froze him as we continued to the castle. �Mother . . .� �I�m coming, Ziaden. I�m coming.� The castle was in shambles and huge pieces fell off so often that I couldn�t see much other than them. � Kiti!� I looked up at Eiko, who was hanging onto a line of some kind that was attached to a momentarily safe part of the castle. She pointed down. � There!� I dove as I swept my gaze back and forth. A flash of white caught my eye and I zeroed in on it. A wing. Pulling my own wings even closer to my sides, I shot toward the ground. I saw the wing again and maneuvered past another slab of stone, my focus now totally on that wing. I reached out past them and caught Zidane�s waist. Angling my body up, I slipped under the stone just before it smashed into the ground. I lifted my head and pulled up, then finally, as I began to fall, spread my wings and carried he and Garnet out of Alexandria. Garnet appeared to be trying to wake him, but she wouldn�t speak. � Climb onto my back.� She did so and I readjusted my grip on Zidane. He was a few pounds heavier now due to his wings. They were wet and dripping, like a newborn hatchling, so they had just appeared within fifteen minutes. Luckily they hung limp and didn�t work on their own, as wings tend to do until their owner gets control of them. If they did, I�d really have my hands full. I followed the others to Lindblum, where repairs from Brahne�s attack were underway. I went right to the guest room (I�m not sure whether Garnet was scared or excited about flying through the castle; the sounds she was making seemed rather neutral in my opinion). Landing by the beds, I had Garnet get off and laid Zidane down on one bed. She tried to argue with me silently, but I continued to shake my head to make sure I got my point across. � No. I can tell by the way you�re standing that you�re tired. I can take care of him.� She stomped her foot and gestured wildly. � . . .!� I tilted my head. � If you�re going to throw a tantrum, I�ll either ignore you or forcibly shut you up.� � . . .!� I despise guessing games. But this time it�s a necessary evil. � Is this even about Zidane?� She nodded. � Are you worried about him getting up and leaving?� She nodded, but then shook her head. Not in that order. � Are you worried about him not waking up?� She nodded violently. I was very close. � Wait wait. Firstly, are you hurt?� She shook her head. � Just tired. All right. Are you curious about something?� <--Part 38 Part 40--> |