The Origin Of Mount Woe Chapter 18
Woe Comes To Enhasa
By Nanaki
12,010 B.C.
Serges grinned sadistically at the base of the mountain. He was glad to see their two explosions had done even more damage than he thought. He had tried to break the chains that held the mountain together, but every time he did, a bright flash came from the Sun keep, and the chains would not budge. He surveyed the once empty plateau, memorizing the positions of the bunkers and catapults. The catapults posed no threat, but he didn't know what kind of shielding was on the bunkers. "You two ready?" He asked the empty air. Behind him, Violen and Jade nodded in agreement.
As Serges stepped out of the rocks and into view of the sentries, many mages scrambled out to the bunkers. A few of the closer catapults fired stones that bounced harmlessly off his chest. They were quickly reloaded. This time, Serges had chosen to appear over three hundred feet tall. Violen and Jade were both over two hundred fifty feet. A few preliminary spells roared out of the bunkers, having no effect on the Weapons. Serges laughed, looking for a worthy opponent. No one was there yet, so he just stood waiting.
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"Father, what are you doing?!" Zeal yelled. She had just arrived at the medical wing, and was shocked to see Maro struggling out of bed, despite the medics' protests.
"Zeal..." he coughed, "Vigo needs my help. I must go."
"No father! You're sick. You have to rest. You could die if you go out there!"
For once, Maro's poor eyes were clearly in focus. "Zeal, a lot of us ARE going to die tonight. There's nothing we can do about it. But maybe if I'm out there, Vigo doesn't have to."
Zeal thought about it for a moment, then a dark look came across her face. "Very well. But Schala and I will go too. We really don't know how many Weapons are out there, after all."
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Serges was getting bored, so he stretched out his arm and summoned a lightning bolt massive enough to overcome any barrier put on the bunkers. To his surprise, the bunker he cast it on collapsed with no resistance, screams coming from the inside. "I don't believe it!" He cried, mouth opened in a grin. "Those bunkers only provide physical shielding! Ha!" Serges began to take a step forward, but the ground collapsed under his feet. He stepped back quickly and watched the thin layer of earth fall away. "What is this? A booby trap?"
"There's no telling how many of those things there are." Violen whispered.
"Oh yes there is." Serges reached to his side and drew out a huge sword that neither of the other two Weapons had noticed before. It was made of the same blue metal as his armor.
"I never knew you carried a sword." Jade smiled.
"I've never had cause to use it, until now." Serges concentrated for a moment, then drove the sword into the ground in a wide arc. "Blast Charge!" He screamed. A series of small explosions erupted from the ground, continuing outward in an ever expanding circle from the three Weapons. The topsoil was blown high into the sky, revealing two more large holes that led all the way to the bottom of the mountain. Many of the bunkers were heavily damaged as well. As the explosions finally disspated, Serges viewed the holes with interest. He looked at the chains in the mountain, then back at the holes. "Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked, smiling.
Violen looked confused, but Jade nodded, smiling. "All right then, lets have at it!" Serges and Jade each dived into a hole, Violen following a moment later. The surviving mages in the bunkers didn't know what was going on, until bright lights began to flash from inside the holes. Cracks began running along the ground.
Then, to the mages' amazement, all three Weapons were hurled out of the holes, arms thrashing wildly. As Serges landed heavily, he recognized the insignificant insect standing at his feet. "Leaving so soon Serges?" Vigo asked smugly. As he rubbed his head, Serges noticed there was another man standing beside Vigo. "We thought you'd want to stay awhile. But if you're tired, you can take a nap... a long nap!" Vigo stretched out his hand, and two triangles flew at Serges. As Serges ducked, the triangles flew past him, but then returned like boomerangs. They fused together, and became a hexagon shaped beam of light that smashed into Serges. The surprising force of the blast actually threw Serges off of the plateau. Vigo smiled.
"Smile all you want Vigo, I'll be happy to wipe it off your face!" A Weapon Vigo had not seen before stepped forward. He was definitely draconian in form, no question. He had jade green scales, and huge claws on his feet. He was flanked by a Weapon who was more humanoid in form. She was less massively muscled than Serges, but still looked very powerful. Her face was surprisingly human, but it still was not. Her indescribable armor was a light blue in color, while her skin was nearly pure white. "We are here to avenge our friend Shivan, and to put an end to your leeching of the planets' energy!"
With no further warning, Jade charged forward. Vigo thought he was going to attack physically, but he jumped up while making an odd gesture. He was suddenly thrown high into the sky as a huge vein of pure jade erupted from the ground. He landed hard, and was buried by the jade as it cracked apart, as was the man next to him. The stones had barely settled when a green fire raged across them, melting them into one hard substance. "All too easy for a true Weapon." Jade grinned. He ran up to the jade mass and kicked it. It shattered into many pieces again. There was no sign left of Vigo.
Jade and Violen whirled around as a huge shadow rose up behind them. A wall of earth several hundred feet high towered over even the Weapons. Vigo and Maro stood on top of it."That was a close one!" Vigo breathed out. "You all right Maro?" He turned to the old man next to him.
"For now, yes, your majesty. I don't know how long I can hold up."
"All right then, we'll try to end it quick." Vigo turned back to look down on the Weapons. "If you specialize in only one type of magic-" Vigo spoke to Jade. As he spoke, the wall of earth crumbled, burying Jade beneath it. Only his head remained visible. The Weapon could not seem to free himself. "-you're likely to get burned. Or buried, at the very least." As the last of the pieces of earth came to rest, the ground beneath them rumbled.
"Your majesty, I would recommend that we not try anything like that again. The mountain is falling apart already." Maro sighed.
"I'll try not to Maro, but we may need that trick again, especially when Serges returns." As ifthat had been a cue, Serges rocketed out of one of the holes in the plateau, fireballs flying from his arms like machine gun bullets. Several more bunkers were decimated. "I really wish I hadn't just said that." Vigo frowned.
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"Damage report!!" Melchior yelled over the din. Out in the field, Vigo and Serges were waging an explosive battle, and it looked like Maro and the other Weapon were sizing each other up. A young guard ran up.
"Sir, Gamma, Epsilon, and Iota bunkers have been destroyed. Omicron, Rho, and Omega bunkers have been severly damaged. The catapult ammunition has been nearly exhausted, and the Weapons have discovered all of the holes." Suddenly, there was a huge explosion. As they turned to look, everyone could see Vigo in front of it, and Serges staggering back. "He's driving Serges away!" The young guard cried happily. "The Weapons are retreating!"
Melchior squinted against the explosion for a while, then shook his head sadly. "No, they're leading him into a trap. Vigo, don't follow them out there!!" Melchior shouted, knowing it was no use. "Try to find a messenger brave enough to go out there. We've got to warn him about- aaugh!!" Suddenly, Jade reared to his full height, almost right in front of them. He began to smash his way into Enhasa. "Earth and Ice mages, counterattack at full power, now!!!"
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Vigo grinned as he ran after Serges and Violen. The two Weapons were now almost running backward across the plateau, only counterattacking once in a while. His smile widened as he raised his arms and cast the most powerful Shadow spell he knew against Serges. Serges was not able to dodge it this time. When the spell resolved, Serges had completely disappeared. Vigo prepared to yell a victory shout, until he noticed the other Weapon had vanished as well.Then he noticed that two of the holes that led to the bottom of the mountain were right behind where the Weapons had just been. An ashen look fell across Vigo's face. Next came two bright flashes, a shaking more violent than any earthquake, and then, the cracks already in the ground widened until the plateau broke free of the mountain. Vigo bowed his head, waiting for the mountain to fall away.
It never fell. "Huh?" Vigo looked up. "What the hell is keeping it in the air?"
"You'll find out soon enough Vigo." Serges said as he climbed back onto the plateau. "Right now in fact, if you'll follow Violen and I."
"Gladly!" Vigo roared.
"Your majesty, I would strongly recommend against doing anything these two say. They're sure to be leading you into a trap." Maro said, wheezing.
"I don't know. They've stopped their attack. Maybe seperating us from the mountain was enough for them... for now, anyway." Vigo started walking after the Weapons, but changed his mind. "Say Maro... Since the Sun stone isn't powering those chains anymore, have somebody bring it over here." Then he ran after Serges.
"There may not be time to get it!" Maro shouted after him. "Rats. He didn't hear me. Well..." Maro touched his hands to his temple.
"Huh? Maro? When did you get back?" Melchior whirled around, but found no sign of the old wizard.
"I am communicating telepathically! Vigo wants the Sun stone, so have someone send it now! The Weapons are acting friendly, and that scares me more than when they were openly attacking us!" Then, Maro cut the telepathic link.
Vigo realized the Weapons were leading him toward Alpha bunker. It was the farthest remaining bunker from Enhasa. Violen and Serges jumped across the narrow gap to the mountain. Serges grinned. Vigo didn't like this, and hopped down into the bunker. "Now Vigo," Serges began, "the power source of the mountain is now... someone you've already met!" With that, Violen and Serges jumped up, and landed near where Maro was running to the bunker.
"And just where do you think you're going old man? Let's see what you've got!" Maro gulped, but his hands began to glow just the same.
Vigo would have gone to help Maro, but he did not notice what was happening. Across the gap, on the mountain, a shape even bigger than the Weapons was rising up. It's head was shaped vaguely like a bat, but the rest of the body was humanoid, and even more massively muscled than Serges. But the thing did not move yet. It just stood there, as still as a statue.
Vigo jumped as a bolt of energy slammed Maro into the bunker beside him. He quickly healed the old man, and then jumped again as the ground beneath the bunker rose up high above the land around them. Serges walked up to the bunker, which was now high enough for him to look inside. "Well, are you two ready to die? The time has come for you to pay the price for draining the planet!" With that, Serges and Violen jumped over to the mountain again. The shape across the gap began to move. "Shivan didn't appreciate your ending his existance as a Weapon, so he's come to complain in person... as a Gaia!"
With that, the Gaia roared to life. It immediately hurled spells of many different magic types at the bunker, which Maro took it upon himself to repel. After the initial barrage, Maro collapsed to the ground. Vigo hurled many spells back, but the Gaia almost seemed invincible. After a protracted period of spellcasting, Vigo managed to blow the Gaia's arms off. "What do you think of that Serges?!" Vigo yelled. "Your Gaia isn't so tough!"
Serges didn't answer, but just watched with satisfaction the expression that appeared on Vigo's face as the Gaia's arms immediately reappeared. Vigo flew into a rage, and for a few minutes, neither side could see Vigo or the Gaia as they hurled spells back and forth. A pause in the action revealed that both were wounded badly. Suddenly, Violen whispered something to Serges. He nodded reluctantly, and the Gaia ceased it's attack.
Vigo turned his aching head to the side as he heard two sets of feet running up to the bunker. To his surprise, horror, and delight, Zeal and Schala appeared at the blown-apart wall. "What are you two doing here?! Its too dangerous!"
"Yes, it is." Zeal nodded her head. "You're going to get killed if you stay out here. Please Vigo, agree to land the island! Its better than having us all get killed up here!"
"I can't believe what I'm hearing! I'll be fine. I can defeat these guys!" Vigo looked at the object in her arms. "You brought the Sun stone! Great, give it here!" Vigo grabbed the stone from her arms.
"That's just the adrenaline rush talking!" Zeal yelled at him. "You don't realize how badly hurt you are already, do you?" Vigo looked at himself in surprise. He was bleeding and burned in many places.
"Zeal, I'm not gonna die! I love you too much to leave the mortal coil this soon. I will be fine, believe me." Suddenly, Maro awoke slightly.
"Zeal..."
"Father! What happened to you?!" She glared at Vigo accusingly.
"Not his fault... Listen, your moth-" Maro was interrupted by a fit of coughing. He tried many times to finish his sentence, but it could not be done. Finally, he gave up, and switched topics. "Listen Zeal... You must remember. The blue haired man... he is our savior..." With that, Maro drifted into unconsciousness.
"Blue haired man? That's impossible! Well, come along Schala. We have to get to safety." Zeal turned and walked out of the hole in the wall. Schala ran over to Vigo and threw her arms around his waist.
"I love you daddy." She whispered, than ran out the hole. Vigo looked up as heavier footsteps came back his way. Zeal reappeared in the ragged gash in the bunker.
"Of course, you know I love you too. With all my heart." Then, she was truly gone.
Vigo looked down at the glowing stone in his hands. Was it truly worth possibly dying to keep his kingdom in the clouds? He pondered these recent events for a minute. "Enough waiting!" Serges roared from across the mountain. "Gaia! Resume your attack!"
All of Vigo's determination came rushing back. "Its time you all had a taste of the magic of the sun!!" He roared back at Serges. Before the Gaia could act, Vigo hoisted the Sun stone high, and whispered an incantation. A truly huge beam of light raced out of the stone and impacted with tremendous force into the Gaia. As the light faded, Vigo's eyes could barely register that the Gaia was leaning forward, wounded badly. "Care some more?!!" He yelled up at Serges.
To Vigo's dismay, Violen waved her arm, and a healing light fell on the Gaia. It immediately straightened up and resumed its battle stance. "I guess you do." He smiled. He concentrated, and summoned more energy from the Sun stone.
It didn't come. Looking down, Vigo was shocked to discover that no glow radiated from the Sun stone's heart. "You little piece of crap!" Vigo roared at the stone. He threw it away from the bunker. Assuming a more defensive postion, Vigo began to gather magical waves.
They didn't come either. Vigo could barely get his eyes to glaze over in his sudden panic. Once they were, he saw clearly that there were no more magical waves in the area. It was totally empty. He prepared to teleport away, but even that last resort wouldn't work.
"What's this? Vigo all out of tricks?" Serges asked in a mocking voice. "I guess its time you learned WE are the ones who are not to be messed with!"
Vigo's emotions and reflexes were going haywire. He couldn't get anything to work, and his feelings ranged between fear and anger. He suddenly realized how foolish it was to have come out here all alone, to trust that the Sun stone would be enough to finish the battle, and especially not to have listened to Zeal and ran when he had the chance.
By the time the fireball began to form in the Gaia's hands, Vigo was resigned to his fate. Quiet, reserved dignity seemed best. Anything else would be futile. Even so, he was amazed at the size of the fireball when the Gaia finally hurled it. The fire inside his eyes was dwarfed just by the reflection of the huge spell. "And so, the end comes..." he whispered, "Beyond chaos."
At the last moment, Vigo observed that the fireball was nearly five times as large as the bunker. It smashed into the bunker with blinding speed, destroying it in an instant, and killing Maro in that same instant. A tear would have formed in Vigo's eye if he still had any tear ducts. But not because of the excruciating physical pain. It was because he was losing Zeal, and to end that pain, he gladly welcomed the releasing nothingness of death. But somehow, the fireball did not kill him instantly. As Serges' laughter filled the air, he realized that although his skin had burned off, he was still alive, even though he wasn't going to stay that way. Overall, Vigo's death was very bad; long, drawn out, and incredibly painful.
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"What's this? You're not trying to convince me that you're actually SAD, are you?"
"Shut up! My throat is dry. My eyes are on fire..." - Sephiroth and Cloud Strife
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