Forsaken Chapter 2

Dangerous Path

By Asyria

Terra stood nervously before the full length mirror on the wall.  She was dressed in clothing for adventure, for probable battle.  A strong feeling of familiarity swept over her.  She looked down at her side, her sheathed Graedus hanging from her belt, and recalled her feelings when she had first picked up a sword.  She remembered feeling its weight, and how clumsy she’d been with it.  Terra took the sword from its sheath, holding it before her in attack position.  Taking a few swings at the air, a sense of confidence filled her.

“They say it’s like riding a chocobo…” A voice behind her said.  Terra swirled around to see Sabin standing at the door.  “Once you learn, you never forget.” He finished with a smile.

Terra smiled as well, placing the Graedus back in its place.  “How long have you been standing there?” She asked him. 

Sabin moved toward her.  “Long enough to see you haven’t lost your touch with that thing.”

“Thanks.” Replied Terra.

Sabin cleared his throat.  “So…today is the day, huh?”

Terra sighed in relief.  “Yeah, we finally get to go to the castle.”

“You’ll be okay.  I’ll be there to make sure of it.” Sabin told her.

“Thanks Sabin.”

Sabin said nothing for a moment.  He seemed to be thinking something while he stared at her.  Finally, he shook his head and held out his hand.  “They’re waiting for us.  Ready to go?”

Terra smiled excitedly.  “Yep!  Let’s go!”

 

The two met the rest of the team and Edgar in the prison cells of the castle.  The soldiers present saluted the king’s brother as he entered, as was customary.  Each of them were given a pack which contained enough food rations for a week, water, and various tools and medical supplies for the mission.  Terra slung her own back on her shoulder, feeling it’s weight. 

The team assembled before Edgar.  He cleared his throat, indicating that he was going to speak.  “You all have been given proper instructions and orders for this mission, so I will not go into them again.” Edgar announced.  “Ms. Terra Branford is in charge of this mission.   Respect her orders as you would any superior officer.  Use caution inside the Ancient Castle.  I wish you all good luck and godspeed.”

 

Terra waited patiently as Cyan and the troops went inside the narrow passage to the cave.  One by one they disappeared into the dark.  After all the nine soldiers had gone though, Locke and Sabin followed behind them.  Holding in her breath, Terra stepped forward into the cave’s entrance. 

As soon as she had stepped inside, Terra had felt a small hint of fear in herself.  The cave to the Ancient Castle was very dark, even with the torches.  It seemed like more than the lack of light contributing to this dark.  The slight fear in her mind was making her nervous.  And the nervousness was making her excited.  She hadn’t felt this way since the time of the war.  This was the feeling she got before a major battle.  The feeling she experienced before something bad happened.

Terra shook her head forcefully.  What danger could lie ahead?  There were bound to be monsters still inside, of course.  But it hadn’t been difficult for four of them to take care of.  And it would be nothing for thirteen of them.

 

The path to the castle had been as she remembered it.  The air was thick and stale.  The ground was rough.  And like she’d known, they had already run into several monsters.  The beasts were quickly dispatched by Cyan’s soldiers, all of whom had been in service before the second War of the Magi.  Before long, the entrance to the Ancient Castle had been located again.  The group descended down ladder, into the dark tunnel.  All the while, Terra’s feeling of fear had not gone away, but was beginning to grow.  It seemed like the closer they got to the ruins, the more the alarm seemed to grip her mind.  Terra was starting to believe that maybe her fear wasn’t so irrational after all.  Perhaps, something terrible was going to happen to them in there.  But how can I be feeling this?, her mind wondered, making her bit her lip.  She’s lost her Esper powers of perception long ago.  How could she be sensing true danger?  Maybe Edgar was right…their blood is still with me…Maybe I am still half Esper.  During her thoughts, she’d been unconsciously following Locke and Sabin ahead of her.  When Terra had finally looked up, they were already there.

 

The Ancient Castle appeared much as she remembered it.  Pieces of the walls, big and small, surrounded the palace.  Dirt and dust covered everything, making it seem as though they were the first to enter again in a thousand years.  There was no evidence that they had even been there two years ago, or that anyone had been there since.  Terra took a few steps forward, again mesmerized by the castle.  The first time, she had been flooded with images of the past.  Terra had told the story of the castle, with wonder and sadness in her heart. 

This time, pure terror.  There was a dark aura surrounding the castle.  And instead of silence, she heard noises that were unlike anything she’d ever heard.  She felt what she could only call ‘evil’ within the walls of the Ancient Castle.

Terra turned around to the others, her eyes wide.  “We have to leave!”  She told them.

Her three friends, and the soldiers, stared in confusion at the nearly hysterical woman.  Locke scratched his head for a second, staring at Terra.  “…What?”

“We have to leave this place!  Now!”  Terra repeated, with more fear and demand in her voice.

Sabin approached her slowly.  “What’s the matter, Terra?  Why do we have to leave?”

“Something isn’t right!  We can’t stay here another minute!”  Terra cried frantically.

“Terra, it’s okay!”  Locke objected.  “We’re all here.  Nothing bad will happen.”

Terra shook her head, tears beginning to fall.  “No!  It’s not okay!  There’s…there’s something evil here!”

Sabin placed his hands on her shoulders, looking her straight in her eyes.  “Terra…are you sure about this?”

Terra’s wide, fearful eyes looked right back into his.  “Yes.”

Sabin turned around to Locke and Cyan, both of whom were looking doubtful.  “She’s never been wrong, guys.”

Locke shook his head.  “I know, but that was before…” He paused, seeing Terra staring back at him.  “Well, you know.”

“Listen to me!”  Terra yelled again.  “We are all in danger here!  We have to leave this God forsaken place!”

There was silence until Cyan sighed heavily.  “Lady Terra is in command of this mission.  If she feels it is too dangerous, then we must leave.  We shall discuss this matter with his Majesty later.” He spoke with conviction.  Turning to his men, he pointed back to the exit.  “Go forth and secure the cave.”

The soldiers began to move out, one by one going back up the ladder.  Cyan followed behind them.  Locke gazed at Terra and Sabin, shrugging his shoulders, then followed the others.

Before going back up the ladder herself, Terra smiled at Sabin.  “Thank you for believing me.”

Sabin couldn’t help but smile back, though he was out of his mind worried about her.  “I trust your instincts more than my own.”

 

As they were proceeding further away from the Ancient Castle, Terra’s feeling of dread was fading.  Though doubt was now returning to her mind, wondering if her instincts were correct, she couldn’t help but feel glad they were leaving.  Standing before the castle, Terra had had no doubt.  The fear and danger was real.  It did not matter to if everyone thought she’d gone mad, they were all safe now.

 

A loud rumbling noise broke her thoughts, making her stop in her tracks.  Those in front of her stopped too.  She could hear screams of terror coming from the very front of the group.  Suddenly the walls and ceiling of the cave began to collapse before them.  Terra was frozen in shock, and hardly noticed as Sabin grabbed her.  He quickly ran with her back away from the collapsing cave.  The violent shaking of the ground caused them both to fall.  Sabin was above her, shielding her from falling debris.  All Terra could hear besides the loud rumble of falling boulders was Cyan shouting for his men to get back.  Almost as quickly as it had begun, the noise had ceased.  Terra, who had closed her eyes without realizing it, opened them to see Sabin right above her. 

“Terra!  Are you alright?”  He asked.

Terra blinked several times, wondering if she was alright.  She felt no pain, just shock.  “I’m fine, Sabin.  Are you alright?”

“Yeah.” He answered, getting up off the ground.  After helping Terra to her feet, they both looked around them.

 

What had been the cave leading back to Figaro Castle was gone.  An immense wall of boulders and rubble now blocked the entire path.  Though the veil of dust hanging in the air, Terra could see the soldiers standing before the blockage in just as much shock as she.  Cyan was the first to snap out of the trance and look around at the men.

“Is anyone injured?” Cyan asked the soldiers. 

One of them stepped forward.  “Nothing serious, sir.  But we’ve lost some men…”

“Who?” Cyan asked.

The soldier lowered his head.  “Kateran, Jessuri, and Taylor.”

Cyan simply nodded to the soldier.  “Damn.” He cursed quietly, shaking his head.

As the shock of the cave in wore off, Terra realized they had no where to go except back to the Ancient Castle.  She wondered if the cave in was just a coincidence or if the evil presence was behind it.  Terra turned to Sabin.  “We’re trapped, aren’t we?” She said with a shaken voice. 

Sabin looked at the barrier with hopelessness.  “We risk losing more men if we try to dig our own way out.  We’re just going to have to wait for Edgar to find out what’s happened and try to get us out from his end.  They have better tools for this kinda thing at the castle.” He explained.

Locke had been listening to Sabin’s words.  “What about the Ancient Castle?  Maybe there is something inside we can use.”

Whatever it is, Terra thought to herself, it’s left us with no choice.  “We will all go together.  Let’s find something that might help us so we can get the hell out of here!”


Chapter 3

Final Fantasy 6 Fanfic