Ch 8: The Ends Justifies the Means

Revealing himself as a Revenant, Fox kidnaps Saria and challenges Grey to a duel in the desert. Back on Teramis, Mythra struggles to open a magical portal without the proper equipment.

            Mythra’s house. Monday June 25, 520NA. Sitting at the table on Mythra’s porch, dressed in the blue coat, blue jeans, and sneakers he’d picked up from home when they’d swung by Aerennis, an agitated Scott moaned and said, “I can’t take just sitting here and waiting! It’s been four whole days since Grey’s been gone! Who knows what could have happened to him?!” Sipping his tea calmly, as Alexander set the cup back on the plate, he said, “I’m afraid we will just have to be patient Scott. We can only wait for however long it takes Mythra to use her abilities to create a new portal into Gaia. It’s unfortunate that the way to the surface through the Timeless Caverns caved in, but there’s little we can do about that…” Reading an old newspaper he’d found in Mythra’s house, Richter said, “Considering the fact that she can create such a portal at all, I would say we are quite lucky regardless of how long it takes. Grey does not seem like the type who would not be able to get by on his own for just a few days. Have some faith in him and stop moping…” Glancing at Amy, who had a slightly depressed look on her face while resting her head upon her arms on top of the table, he added, “Both of you…” Suddenly there was a loud sound like an explosion, and rising to their feet, Alexander, Scott, and Richter rushed into the house to investigate. Seeing smoke coming from the direction of the portal to the Timeless Caverns, which Mythra was altering into a portal to another location on Gaia, as they were about to enter the hallway, Mythra popped out, her hair a mess and her clothes slightly charred. Coughing, she muttered, “Damn it all! If only I hadn’t lost my stupid grimoire…” Then noticing them all, she sputtered, “Ah! I… uh… E-everything’s going fine, just fine! Nothing to see here! There’ve just been a few technical difficulties!” Rushing past them into another room while muttering to herself, as she left their sight, Alexander said, “We may not be quite as lucky as we first thought Richter…”

            Down by the pond visiting her old pet frogpole, Lei, Amy thought to herself, “Richter’s right. I should train with the others now that I might have enough strength to fight alongside everyone. Moping really isn’t doing any good, but I just can’t seem to do anything but worry… If only I knew for sure something terrible hasn’t happened to him…” Suddenly she heard a rustling in the bushes, and turned to see Schmitt and Rufus returning from the Audentia, having been sent to check any messages sent to the ship. Spotting her, Schmitt grinned and said, “Ah, Amy! Havin fun with ol’ Lei? Gotten big hasn’t he?” It was true. Lei looked to be well on his way to outgrowing the pond, being about the size and width of a tree stump now. Rufus eyed Lei warily, thinking, “Are they supposed to get that big?!” Managing a smile, Amy said, “Any messages on the ship?” Approaching Lei by the edge of the pond, Schmitt bent down and petted him as he said, “Nothing big. We just got a short report on what they found in that place in Abnoct. Apparently it had a bunch of EDE based technology. They think Altera Veritas might be tryin’ to build somethin’ sinister…” Finished petting Lei, as he stood up straight, Schmitt asked, “Anyway, how’s the portal comin’?” A loud explosion from the direction of Mythra’s house answered his question. Staring over at the house, Schmitt muttered, “That good, eh?” Startled, Rufus said, “That sounds more like it’s going badly to me…” Amy heaved a sigh, looking depressed again.

            Heading down the street towards the bar, Grey rubbed his head and muttered, “Damned circus freak…” Watching him with concern, Saria said, “S-should we get you an ice pack?” Not worried at all, Serius said, “Even without my healing, his regeneration abilities would no doubt have healed whatever injuries he had by now. He’s just bellyaching…” Glancing at Serius indignantly, Grey muttered, “Well sorry! Anyways, what’s that guy doing now? Telling us to meet him at the bar… He’d better not just ask me to fight him as soon as we get there!” Reaching the bar, they spotted Fox leaning against the wall beside the door, and as he spotted them as well, he called out to them, “Hey all! How’s the head hotshot?” Not having forgotten that they owed him for warning them about the impending attack, Grey reluctantly said, “It’ll be fine. Thanks for helping us the other night…” Waving away his thanks, Fox cheerily said, “Aww it’s nothing! C’mon in, I’ll buy you guys some drinks!” As he made for the door, Serius said, “Forgive us, but if that’s all you wanted, I’m afraid we have more important business.” Glancing at him with a smug look in his eyes, Fox said, “Oh don’t worry. This won’t take long…” Getting them a rectangular table in the back where they would be less likely to be overheard, as one of the barmaids came over to the table, Fox said, “Anything particular you guys want?” Sitting next to Fox, Saria nervously said, “I don’t drink…” Leaning on the table in his seat next to Serius, Grey said, “Yeah, there anything non-alcoholic in here?” Serius simply said, “Water.” Turning to the barmaid, Fox said, “Three River Drops and a Flamberge.” The barmaid walked away as she scribbled on her notepad. Leaning back in his chair, Fox said, “So then… Before I decide whether or not to tell you what you wanna know, why don’t you tell me just what you plan to do when you get there?”

            Fox waited for Grey to explain. Saria was eager to hear this as well, and at last Grey said, “Well it’s not like you’ll believe me, but I’m from Teramis, and things aren’t going so well over there… Altera Veritas, the Dark Crusade, is over there breaking the seals on the Nameless One, and my friends who have been fighting them with me are in trouble. I need to get back there and help them.” Not looking anywhere near as surprised as Grey thought he would be, Fox said, “Interesting…” Suddenly, Serius said, “You already knew all of that though, didn’t you Fox?” Saria and Grey looked surprised, but Fox merely chuckled to himself and said, “Not quite sure how you figure that…” The barmaid returned with the drinks, three waters and some form of alcohol. As she left, Grey and Serius eyed Fox warily as he took a swig of his Flamberge. Then with a sly look in his eyes, Fox said, “Maybe I did… Maybe I didn’t… Everyone has their secrets, right Grey?” Grey, understanding the meaning of his comment immediately, glanced at Saria and said, “Just what is this about Fox?!” Laughing strangely, Fox said, “I was planning to come along with you guys on your little journey here and watch you myself, but since your friend here is so sharp, I’d probably be found out soon enough. It looks like we get to have our fight sooner than expected!” Quickly Fox reached out and grabbed Saria by the throat. As Grey’s eyes went wide he quickly rose and opened his mouth to shout, but then Fox said commandingly, “Sit down hotshot.” Seeing him tighten his grip on Saria’s neck, Grey sat back in the chair and said, “You b*****d…!” Watching Fox carefully, struggling to devise some plan, Serius said, “Why are you doing this?” Grinning smugly, Fox said, “Why don’t you figure it out, Serius the Unbound?” Struggling to remain calm, Grey said, “Just who the hell are you?!” Grey was shocked as Fox replied, “Maybe a friend… Maybe an enemy…” Seeing the realization on Grey’s face, Fox said, “Finally catching on huh? That’s right hotshot. I’m the man whose brother you killed. Fox Marcellus, the Revenant of the Black Flame.”

            Grey simply stared into space, the memories rushing through his mind. The Professor’s last words, the last words of Vincent Marcellus, repeated in his mind, “Forgive me… brother… I only wanted… you to live… free…” Grey quickly snapped back to reality as Fox said, “Remember now? Good. Why don’t I tell you about him? The story behind us and Altera Veritas…” Grey and Serius were silent as Fox continued, “Spit on by the world, living in complete poverty, my brother Vincent and me grew up in the Sanctuary of Lamis. We were orphaned when I was little kid, I didn’t remember our parents. In some ways, Vincent was like a father to me. Anyhow, eventually the desperation got to me and I resorted to thievery. I got caught of course, and when my brother came to stand up for me, we were both fitted with collars and thrown into a cell. Treated like stray dogs. Just when it looked like it was over, a man named Alastor came for us. He said he needed our power to break the seals on his own. Seeing our potential and our rediculous lives, he used his vast influence to set us free, wipe our criminal record, and in return we swore loyalty to his organization, Altera Veritas. He was able to wipe my brother’s name from the energist registration files and get him a place in the Guild’s EDE Weaponry Research and Development, while I became a spy within the Special Forces.” 

Taking another sip of his flamberge with his free hand, Fox went on, “While in the Special Forces, I made friends, advanced in the ranks, and for once in my entire life… I was pretty happy. Then one day, one of my friends was captured by Altera Veritas. By the time I saw him again, he had been used in one of the twisted experiments my brother had been overseeing. My brother used normal people and energists alike to create new, more deadly anomalies, among other things. I realized too late just what we were a part of. When I confronted him about it, when I tried to make my idealistic brother see we were treating people the same way they treated us, like dirt… His answer was that the end justifies the means.” Fox fixed his eyes on Grey with a cold stare and said, “Does the end justify the means Grey? Is that what it takes to make this world change? You run around spouting ‘one of these days I’m going to make them understand’, but do you ever think about what that’s going to take?” Anger rising into his eyes, Fox said, “I want to know, I want to hear it right now! What the hell makes you think you can do better than my brother did?! Speak up, oh great He of the Infinite!” Clenching his teeth, Grey sat there and realized he didn’t have a real answer. Watching his troubled face, Fox muttered, “I didn’t think so…” Rising he pulled Saria, who could barely breathe, up with him as Grey exclaimed, “Wait, let her go!” With a wicked grin, Fox said, “Oh don’t worry, I’ll take real good care of her! If you want her back, come to the oasis at the far west of the desert. Make sure you come alone hotshot. Be there by this time tomorrow, or I’ll give you a little taste of what it’s like to lose a sibling…” Fox opened a dark vortex, and as he dragged Saria into it, he added, “Don’t be late now, m’kay?” With that, both Fox and Saria vanished into the dark vortex.

            Grey stormed out of the bar, Serius following behind him as the rest of the bar patrons watched, wondering what all the noise had been about. Stepping out into the sunlight, Grey exclaimed, “I can’t believe I was starting to trust that b*****d!” Remaining calm, Serius said, “I knew there was something wrong about him. Stay calm though, I do not think he will do her any harm. He seems to be acting on his own, and while I do not understand his objectives, he seems more interested in fighting you than anything else…” Unable to grasp what Fox was up to either, Grey could not shake the feeling that this was about more than revenge for his brother. Despite his anger and his concern for Saria’s safety, he was also shaken by what Fox had said, and muttered to himself, “When it comes down to it, maybe I’m the one who’s all talk…” Trying to put the matter aside, he turned to Serius and asked, “You got any idea where this oasis is?” Turning his gaze to the west, Serius said, “He said it was in the far west region of the desert. I believe it’s marked on the map.” As Grey got out the map and unfolded it, Serius added, “If you’re going into the depths of the desert by yourself, we have much to prepare.” His eyes moving across the map, Grey spotted the small oasis on the other side of the desert. Staring at it, he thought, “I still have to tell you the truth, so please, hang in there Saria…”

            Searching through the titles of the books lined up in the shelves of Mythra’s library, as Alexander searched for something interesting to read, a loud bang suddenly shook the house and several shelves worth of books rained down on him from behind. Clutching his head, Alexander wandered over to the door, and poking his head out he looked down the hallway at the cloud of smoke coming from where Mythra was working on the portal. With a sigh, he called out, “Mythra… That’s the sixth time today…” Appearing from the smoke with a cough, Mythra said, “Look, this is a very delicate procedure here! It’s been a long time since I’ve needed to do something like this! If I only had that damned grimoire…” Raising an eyebrow, Alexander said, “Grimoire? You mean the Grimoire of the Spellweaver I presume?” Nodding, Mythra said, “Yep. It’s the magic book that holds all the spells in existence within its pages. Right now I’m trying to use a substitute spell since I can’t remember what the proper one was. You can see the result…” Leaning against the door frame scratching his head in thought, Alexander asked, “What happened to it?” Shooting him a glare, Mythra said, “How the hell should I know?! You think I’d be doing this if I knew?! Damn thing just disappeared! Should have just memorized the stupid thing while I still had it…” Turning back to the portal door, Mythra walked off muttering, “Stupid misplaced piece of…” Going back into the library, Alexander returned to the pile of books knocked down by the blast. Gathering them up, he began to place them back on the shelves, and as he was about to place the last book on the shelf, he stopped and took a better look at it, sure he had seen it before. Old and worn, it was bound in leather complete with a leather belt and silver buckle holding it shut. There was no readable title on the front cover, only three silver symbols of unknown origin, and on the back in the bottom left corner were scrawled the words, “IN MEMORIAM…” Rather certain of his conclusion, he walked back to the door just as another blast rocked the house and the books he had placed back on the shelves fell once more. Looking down the hall at the cloud of smoke, he called out, “Still having trouble?” Turning to him with an icy stare, Mythra muttered, “That’s it! I quit…” Holding up the Grimoire of the Spellweaver, Alexander grinned and said, “Try using this.”

            As everyone was gathering up in the hallway lugging their supplies, from where she stood by the doorway of the newly created portal with a triumphant look on her face, Mythra called out, “Alright guys, hope you’re ready for a real journey! There’s more than monsters and wild anomalies to worry about in Gaia, so keep that in mind! If anyone asks, you aren’t humans. Humans were banished to this world, so you aren’t even supposed to be there, and it could cause some real problems if you’re found out. Another thing…” Gesturing to the portal, she quickly continued, “Due to unfortunate circumstances, there was some damage to the base of the portal, and so while I was able to get it up and running, I’m afraid this’ll be a one way trip! Once we’re on the other side, the portal will disappear!” Greatly surprised, Scott quickly exclaimed, “What?! Then how are we supposed to get back?!” Smirking, Mythra said, “Good question Scott! You see…” Lifting up the Grimoire of the Spellweaver, she continued, “With this, the Grimoire of the Spellweaver, I’ll be able to create another portal with much less difficulty than this one! Once we find Grey on the other side, it’ll just take me a few days of work to make a new base, and then we’ll set up a new portal and go! Now, any other questions?” 

Speaking up, Rufus said, “Yeah. Can I be on the Gaia team? I mean, what point is there for me and Schmitt to stay here?” With an apologetic look, Alexander said, “Sorry Rufus, but this could be rather dangerous…” Nodding in agreement, Mythra said, “Yes, and we also need someone to remain here and keep us up to date on anything we should know about, using the Conjunctio Vitro I’ve created using my grimoire.” Lifting up a silver framed hand mirror, she smugly said, “With the mirror I gave Schmitt, we will be able to communicate with you from Gaia through this one here!” Looking at his mirror skeptically, Schmitt said, “Well, if ya say so. Still looks pretty normal to me…” Just as Mythra was about to explain the mechanics, Richter said, “Mythra, are you certain this portal will take us to a reasonable location? As in not in the middle of an ocean, or perhaps five hundred feet in the air? I know we’ve used it before, but the fact that it was damaged concerns me somewhat…” Crossing her arms with a confident air about her, Mythra said, “Relax Richter! Taking into account my skill and ingenuity, I’d estimate this portal I’ve made has almost a ninety percent chance of getting us there safe and sound!” Richter now looked more concerned, but before he could voice it, Amy quickly said, “Guys, let’s just go! Grey might need our help right now!” Grinning, Mythra said, “That’s the spirit! Now then, here goes!” Turning to the portal, Mythra flipped the combination lock to 8033 and pushed the door, which swung open to reveal the darkness of the dimensional boundary they would be passing through.