To See Another Day Chapter 23
Birth of the Yin and the Yang
By Kain Servant
Menoth broke into a deep roar as his eyes snapped open. Ebony to the core. It felt like he had been out for an eternity, though he had felt and heard every moment of it – felt his muscles mold and reform into a greater being, heard Emryal curse his name…felt the sun go down and come back up again.
For a moment he simply stared upward at the bright blue sky. So beautiful…nothing like the atmosphere of Tialtor. Well, no need to complain about how awful Tialtor was anymore, it was now safely lying in shards all over the planet.
It was almost convenient that this Arteon had destroyed his original plan. With the added clarity he now felt the old plan seemed foolish. Merging the two planets would merely cause much disruption within the lifestreams…it also meant all of the inhabitants of Gaia would have to die – years and years of grueling warfare to clean up the scraps of persistent human fools.
This way no manhunt was necessary. Menoth was the all-powerful Allicar, and he was on Gaia, where he wanted to be, with his army waiting outside. He could feel them too, mingling about, their minds troubled with doubt and questions of loyalty. Menoth would soon take care of this problem…first he would make the Ellians serve him, and then the Humans. And of course, if the Genomes, whatever was left of them, wanted to serve as well, he wouldn’t mind.
Menoth took his first step toward the door. It was much easier than he expected, seeing as his frame had grown so much over the unconscious hours. He now resembled an organic machine…a massively structured human, his bones now harder than steel, his muscles stronger than any human could ever be. And his mind was the real strongpoint. He felt as if he could detect anything, solve any problem, look into any mind. 46 and 2 was below him, he could control minds, he could destroy them!
Individuality, he had finally found it. Menoth allowed himself a satisfied moment alone, staring around the wreck of a room that had witnessed perhaps the most epic moment the planet had ever seen. The birth of an Allicar. “Remember that well, eyes…” Menoth smiled and reached out with his mind to tap lightly on one of the heavy, stone eyes that hung above him on the wall. It cracked as he probed, and as he slowly added pressure of the mind, it compressed, then disintegrated into nothing. “Heh.” He was invincible.
It was quite amusing to see Emryal’s expression as the door swung open and the red-headed man swung around to view him. Pure anger decorated his features, grinding them together and making his fists clench. Menoth simply smiled at this act of insolence. “What a refreshing nap… take care of things while I was gone, Emryal?”
Emryal looked down sullenly, “Our force is ready to march and crush anything that gets in our way. Lindblum is the closest target from what I can tell, about a two day march from here.
So he would play ignorant again? “Scared of me, are you Emryal?”
“No!” Emryal’s head shot up instantly, the anger flaring back into his eyes like hot coals, “I’m not scared of you! This is my army, and I have them set to march.”
“Without me?”
“No thanks to you.” Emryal growled, “You’ve always been the one sitting back and thinking before, so why don’t you take it easy and let me handle this one too. I won’t leave a human left standing.”
Menoth chuckled and moved to stand next to Menoth. It felt good to be a few feet taller than the Alc Tzai…finally he felt supremely superior to the man, “Oh…the plan has changed a bit since the accidental crash. It actually saved us a lot of time – now we don’t have to kill all the humans…we can simply, you know, make them slaves or subjects or whatever suits our needs. They could even make some nice citizens, don’t you think?”
Emryal stared boldly up at Menoth, “Why should I agree to that now? We both made the original plan meticulously…my plants, your negotiations, taking the summoner…everything down to the letter.”
“But it’s not necessary anymore – the negotiations and plants were all unneccessary subprojects, Garnet was all that really mattered.” Menoth relaxed his mind once again and focused…easily he pushed himself up to hover a few feet in the air, where he looked even further down at Emryal, “See…now I am the Allicar. Mission accomplished.”
“You are the Ruc Tzai! And I am the Alc Tzai…I have my say-!” Menoth’s eyes pierced him into silence, and suddenly Emryal’s arm twisted behind his back in an awkward position, his fingers driving stiffly into his shoulders.
“No…Emryal, have you forgotten.” Menoth smiled condescendingly and with a twitch of his neck pushed Emryal’s arm harder against his back, until the man was forced to fall to his knees with an anguished groan, “Now let me remind you…an Allicar is the ultimate ruler of the Ellians…even a god to them, you might say. As of now, there is no Ruc Tzai or Alc Tzai. There is just me and my minions…”
“Yes…” Emryal gasped, acquiring a smile from Menoth as he released pressure slightly. As Menoth relaxed his mind, he noticed that a crowd was gathering around them on the porch of the ruined mansion. Ellians, their eyes hollow and questioning…and Menoth saw the same confusion he had felt earlier. Emryal had been spreading dissension among the troops…and now they saw their new hero being mentally cracked by the villian…he couldn’t imagine how confusing that would be. But he had to act quickly.
“I know you have questions…your heads are spinning with questions ranging from why Emryal is lying on the ground crying like a child to what your purpose is in this life. My life was full of questions a few days ago, so full my head was ready to explode. I wanted individuality, I wanted a unity with souls, I wanted the best for my people…and I couldn’t see how to get everything I wanted, how to get one without sacrificing another.
“Now, friends, I know. My mind has opened – and I would like to ask you one question. What is it that drew you here? Was it the scenery…or because you wanted to help your comrade Emryal dispatch a single traitor with the whole population of Tialtor?” Emryal gasped loudly, and Menoth smiled at him. “Of course that’s what he wanted to do…I can see right through him…but that is not why you came.
“You came because you were drawn to the Allicar. The one that stands high above the rest, one with arms of steel, the one who can kill by looking at you. Every one of us has lived our whole lives for one of two purposes…one is to follow the will of the Allicar, and the other is to become an Allicar ourselves. I…my comrades, have accomplished the latter category.”
There was silence. Menoth had forgotten how simple and animal-like the typical Ellians were. He really had been different, even from the start…his hair was not red and curly now any more than it had been then – he was himself…a king of dolts. “It is your life’s duty to follow me…but I, as a god, will be forgiving. If Emryal and anyone who wants to follow him wish to leave independent from the Allicar, they may. But be warned…if I ever see those traitors again, I will not hesitate to kill them. I do not want any rebels among my numbers…therefore I dismiss you before you join me. You may leave, and be individuals – such as we all seek to be.” He released Emryal’s arm.
As soon as Emryal could move he was back on his feet again, claw in hand, facing Menoth. The Allicar sighed irritably, “You cannot possibly face me as you are. If you wish to fight me, atleast make yourself worthy to be my opponent first…leave! Go search this earth and find how foolish it is to stand against an Allicar.” Emryal’s hand shook for a moment, and it looked as if he was still going to lunge at Menoth. But then, after a few moments, he relaxed his arms, and let his breathing go steady.
“Fine. Fine…I’ll play your game.” Emryal moved forward, pushing past Menoth, “You lived your life for this? To change everything that you stood for? I thought I hated you then…” Emryal looked around into the faces of the Ellians, all staring at him, still in confusion, “No one follow me.” He stalked away, calling over his shoulder, “Let’s play war, Menoth!”
It took a few moments, but as Emryal moved further down the horizon, a few Ellians began to revive themselves and stumble along after him, making sure not to look Menoth in the eye. He didn’t care – he knew who they were anyway, and he had already known they would go. It was fun to be psychic.
Five score were gone by the time the dust cleared. Then Menoth finally cleared his throat and spoke again, “Alright…well now that we’ve cleared that little situation up…let’s get on to our mission.” A few of the Ellians raised a weak cheer. Menoth smiled. He didn’t care if he was loved. He just wanted to be himself.
--
Tea sat stagnant in a mug before Kain. He stared down at it intently, not letting his eyes wander, listening to the woman moving around the room, murmuring to herself as she prepared a lunch for them both.
It was a nice, little one-room cabin, settled very secretively in the center of the forest. Kate had explained that her father had built the Cabin during a small war between townships, to have a safe place to run when any member of the family was in danger. She quickly noted, of course, that she wasn’t in any danger – just in want of a little peace.
Kain didn’t really buy it… but he stubbornly refused to persue the matter. He wasn’t about to repeat the process of getting too intimately involved with women’s problems. He had been the tragic bounce-back lover once already, he wasn’t going to do it again. No matter how good looking Kate was. He remained quiet.
And using that damn woman’s intuition, Kate picked up on it, “You’re awfully quiet now…maybe I should put a knife to your throat again.” Kain hastily put up his hands,
“No, no need.”
She smirked and continued slicing potatoes. “I won’t. So why the long face, mystery man? Never stayed in a house this small before?”
“Wel-“
“I know it’s small, but daddy put a lot of work into it…and its not my real house anyway. You should see my house back in Tyen. It’s…well it’s bigger.”
“I’m fine.” Kain put in. “I only have one house, and it’s nothing to speak of.”
“That’s modest. So, Kain, any particular reason you’re wearing all black? Someone die?”
Ouch. “I’m sure quite a few people have died these past few days…” Kain groaned and looked up into her eyes, “Is it necessary for you to pick me apart limb from limb? Can’t a nice superficial conversation before lunch work?”
“Oh.” She blushed, turning away quickly, “Right. Nice weather, isn’t it?”
Kain grinned. It was so hard not to be attracted to a woman. “Oh yeah…beautiful. Planet showers are quite a romantic display with wine on a starry night.”
“Oh stop.” Her knife stopped, “Is that all you can think about? The planet breaking, and the impeding doom of our planet? Pretty miserable person aren’t you?”
There was a brief pause. Then Kain rose from his chair and turned to open the door and look outside, “I can’t tell when you’re joking and when you’re serious.”
“I was being serious. You come walking through the forest, obsessing about planets falling from the sky…running from Macema – how do I know you’re not insane or something?”
“I don’t know…” It was quiet again. The sky was quite beautiful, blue shining through the occasional cloud patch here and there. Birds still flew among the treetops, singing to one another in the endless talent contest that went on among the winged. The world was still beautiful…Kain took in a deep breath and leaned heavily against the doorframe.
--
Everything was so quiet…like the earth had gasped in horror at the atrocity of everything, and fallen quietly into shock. Eiko swung her legs slowly over the edge of the cliff…looking at the lush green grass below, and the Pinnacle Rocks beyond the trees. It was the second time she had been there just that day…and neither points were the hilights of her day.
But was there one? At the pit of her stomach, Eiko felt as if this was the worst day she had ever experienced. Everything in her life was going wrong, and she could nothing to stop it. A freight train against her silly wants and needs. The latter being blown away with the wind. She bit back more tears.
“Why did I survive, and not them?” Eiko wondered aloud to herself, still staring down at the considerable drop below her. The officials that had survived the destruction of the castle were holding a meeting at the moment, to address the current state of the city…and who would lead it now that Cid was gone. She really didn’t care…Cid was gone, and so left her interest in the politics of the city. It wasn’t really her city anyway.
Ned had thoughtfully given her his address before slipping back into the business district he claimed as home. In case she ever needed him again… it was a nice thought but she was fairly certain she wouldn’t need a bunch of old men any time soon, unless she felt like adopting a grandfather.
Eiko heard a rustling behind her and looked up, expecting to see the posse of old fogies once again. Instead she found herself looking into the blue and shimmering eyes of a young man. A young in completely white armor, gleaming from head to toe. A young man who was looking at her with a very appreciative smile.
“Look who it is! A lovely young lady! Hey, lovely young lady, how about a kiss? Or maybe, if you like slower, we could just go on a date!” He spread his arms, “I’m a flexible kind of guy, we can make it work – I promise!”
Eiko looked up in amazement, her eyes blinking open and closed rapidly. What was with her meeting strange people today? “Who are you?”
“I…” The man pulled off his helmet and flung it to the ground, revealing a full head of blonde hair. Quite a…sporadic man, he was. “I am your own personal savior and servant…not to mention the savior of the world.”
“Savior?” Eiko blinked again. She felt dizzy…everything was going so fast, everyone expected her to know something she had no clue about…
“Ah yes…I was the one who brought you here this morning…you were falling from your window.”
Oh….”Oh…you saved me from falling out my window?” Well…finally a reasonable explanation for how she had gotten out there in the first place. “How could you possibly do that?”
“Well.” Savior-man blushed deeply, “I was hanging around outside your window when the castle started shaking…and you sort of…fell into my arms.”
“You were hanging outside my window? Why?” Eiko stood as she shook her head incredulously, “And don’t tell me that you’re a peeping tom. It’s the fourth floor of the castle.”
“True love, my dear, knows no boundaries.”
Eiko groaned, “So you are a peeping tom.” She turned to face him, putting her finger on his chest, “Well, thank you, mister savior. You going to go save the rest of the world now?”
“You do not believe me…” He hung his head, “But it is my destiny. Prophecy has ordained me to be the savior of the universe!”
“Okay…don’t kill yourself with that big…sword thing. Have fun.” Eiko began walking back toward the city. She had come out to the hillside for some peace and solitude…not to meet another rambling nutcase. Savior-man followed her closely,
“I would…but for two reasons. One, I don’t really know what to save the world from yet, and two…your beauty has captivated me and I have to follow my heart.”
Eiko stopped walking for a moment to look back at him, “You know…you’re really scaring me. I think you should get some professional help… do you have a name, sir?”
“Ah,” Savior-man twirled his finger in the air, “That, my good angel, is a secret even to you.”
“I kind of figured…” Eiko continued walking, and he continued following her, “Are you going to follow me now? What are you, a stalker hero?”
The man shook his head and sobered slightly, “I have to go back to Lindblum anyway…it’s quite a tragedy that happened today, and I need to help clean the rubble and rebuild. It’s my duty to the people of this town.” Eiko shrugged. That was admirable. Slowly linear thoughts began to fill her mind again. She was still wrapped in a blanket around her immodestly torn garb. She would have changed…but her room was gone, and so were all of her clothes. The day was dragging past the middle, and she had to find somewhere to sleep, something to eat and something to wear by the night. Of course the Lindblum officials would be happy to provide, but she would rather be somewhere by herself… away from the problems of the day.
Treno. Doctor Tot. The thought came to her suddenly…she could take an airship to Treno and go to Garnet’s old tutor for help. He seemed to be a nice enough old hermit…and maybe he would be able to throw some light on the travesty that had occurred.
Quickly she turned to Savior-man, who was still following her doggedly, a silly smile on his face, “Well…nice meeting you, mister nameless. I have to run now.”
His smile dropped. “You’re leaving? Oh…well…” Shaking his head, he coughed, “I-I…goodbye, I’ll see you soon.” She nodded and turned away, as he called desperately, “We will meet again!”
“I hope not…” She muttered under her breath. As she reached the gate, a familiar figure slipped out and brushed past her, holding up a hand as an apology. She followed him with her eyes, a gasp stuck in her throat,
“Kuja!”
--
Blank’s face lit up as he stared up at the cliffs, “Hey look! There’s a naked woman up there!”
Freya rolled her eyes as she continued to walk toward the cave, stepping gingerly over the dead bodies littering the path, “I think you’re hallucinating, Blank. Has it been too long?”
“No…look.” Steiner frowned heavily, “Blank is right. There is a bare woman up there…with some sort of beast.” At this, the whole party stopped to peer up into the cliffs…some of the men whistling appreciatively.
The two figures on the cliff noticed their attention, and the woman spread her arms, and the beast its enormous wings. “It’s a dragon…” Freya hissed, pulling her javelin into her hands tightly. “Careful everyone.” The two dropped from the edge of the cliff and floated lightly to the ground. The girl touched down just in front of the dragon, a seductive smile fluttering on her pink lips. Her hair was a bright green color, flung carelessly across her shoulders and over her face. And she was…completely naked. Very odd.
“Greetings, travelers.” She spoke beautifully, and everyone was immediately drawn into her aura…even Freya, though she resented it strongly. “How goes your day?”
“Actually…much better now you’re here.” Blank grinned from ear to ear as he looked her over. The woman smirked,
“I don’t think you know quite how wrong you are.”