Pulling his wide-brimmed hat to shade his eyes from the sun, he gazed at the tower for a few moments. No, it wasn't his imagination. The red glow was dim, but still present. Once it faded, he would be trapped on this world until his death. How many of his kind had been sent to help rebuild the world? If he was the only one, then the battle couldn't be finished yet.

Before entering this world, he was given certain knowledge... that Kefka's rule had been thwarted by a group of heroes, and that he was supposed to meet them. Unfortunately, he had no clue why. Not yet, anyways. It would come to him with time. Most things did.

Cardia began down the hill, towards the tower. If the heroes were gone already, he would still be able to find them. Again, he had no clue how, but he knew he would. Was it fate, or...

The King of Eblan sat on his throne, staring blankly at the walls of the cavern which was his castle. Eblan was once a proud, prospering nation, but thanks to the power of Zeromus, the empire was no more. Forced to flee underground, the people of Eblan started anew. For now, they were content.

Edge daydreamed often of his adventures with the Hero of Light and his friends... oh, how he misses the beautiful Caller Rydia, the one woman whom he truly loved. However, she was even father underground than he, in the Land of Summoned Monsters. "One day," he mused, "I will leave this castle in search of her." But he had responsibilities... to his people, to his empire.

He'd trade it all for a breath of fresh air from above, though. Eblan had been in isolation for much too long.

Unbeknownst to him, however, the world above had been in chaos. Kefka, with his minions of darkness, had seized control of the Statues which kept the world in balance. Now, the entire surface had been torn asunder, and lay in ruin.

Then, it happened.

The Chancellor, a short, elderly man, hobbled into the throne room of the bored King as quickly as his stumpy legs could take him. His face was bright with excitement.

"My liege," he wheezed, "the earth... hole... out... air..."

"Calm down, old man." The Ninja flipped nonchalantly off his throne. "Now, can I get you something for that wheeze? You look exhausted."

"No, thank you. I have great news! News that will change our lives!"

The Ninja did smile under his mask. "Let me guess, the Cobblestones have discovered a new brand of fungus that they're dying to serve...? Or maybe the Derelict twins said their first word? Or maybe, just to break the monotony, the Armourer wants me to try out his newest creation?"

"No, my liege, much better than any of that. The earth, she has ripped herself apart! Several miles from here... there is an enormous hole! A way to the surface!"

Edge's jaw dropped. "You're sure?"

"Yes, our scouts have just come back! Everyone is ecstatic!"

"Well then." Edge ran over to his twin swords mounted on the throne room wall, Murasame and Masamune. Gently, he lifted each blade and mounted it on his back. "I guess SOMEONE will have to go and check it out."

"Your Majesty, surely you're not thinking about going yourself!"

"Sure, why not? You have everything under control down here. I'm just an idle icon. Don't wait up!" With those words, the Ninja dashed for the door.

"Wait!" begged the Chancellor. "You just can't leave! What will your people think?"

"My people won't know I'm gone... and even if they do, so what? They can take care of themselves. You make everything sound so melodramatic, Chancellor." Edge laughed.

"I'm only looking out for your best interest, Sire."

"My 'best interest' is leaving this hole and do something useful before I die of old age! I'll be careful, I always am!" Edge scooped up a handful of shurikens on his way out. Before the Chancellor could get out another word, the door closed behind the aging yet spry King of Eblan.

The Chancellor shook his head. "Young people..."

Edge travelled the subterranean tunnels of his kingdom by foot, making a bee-line for the chasm. After several hours' travel, he reached the rift.

Looking up, the Ninja grinned. "That's gonna be quite the long climb. Hope I don't slip. That would hurt."

Edge hopped onto the wall, and began to spring from side to side, grabbing onto outcrops and hoisting himself up where he could.

By the time he reached the top, it was nightfall on the surface.

Edge breated in deeply. The crisp night air filled his lungs for the first time in perhaps thirty years.

"It's beautiful. I had almost forgotten what the sky was like. The stars, the moon, the bright red pillar..."

Off in the distance, a huge beam of crimson light pulsed skyward. Sparks flew from its base, and the tip of the beam was all but invisible. Edge raised an eyebrow, and said to himself, "That shouldn't be there... I wonder what is is?"

Curiousity had a very strong pull on Edge. Inexorably, Edge began his trek toward the ruby light.

The ruby ray was in fact a large cone, almost as large as the base of the mountain itself. At its base, raw energy sizzled and envelopped the hole from the cone's origin. This energy cracked skyward, envelopping the entire cone in an array of beautiful yet sinisher colours.

Edge glared into the ray.

"Is that? No, it couldn't... maybe... it looks like... Edward? It couldn't be him, though... I doubt he could have made it past the foothills..." Edge snickered, remembering that Edward wasn't exactly the bravest of adventurers.

"Whoever it is, he shouldn't be in there... alone, at least."

With a leap, Edge entered the crimson pillar of energy. The sparks, seeming to have a mind of their own, followed the Ninja into the pillar, and wrapped themselves about him. Edge began to rise into the air, behind whoever it was that beat him to this new experience.

"Hey, you there!" he yelled to the interloper. "Get out of the way and let a REAL hero through!"

....

As soon as his eyes had adjusted to the dark, he began to investigate his location. It was a huge cavern, made of obsidian. If he had more light, he could see more. Uttering the words of a simple spell, a lamp appeared in his hand. Up ahead, he could make out a stairway, leading down. Totally lost and beginning to feel afraid, Cardia went in that direction.

He wished he still had a sword, not that it would do him much good. He hadn't wielded one in a good four thousand years. As he reached the bottom, he gasped in amazement.

Beyond was a chamber filled with long rows of capsules, each containing a living person!

One of the crystals around him spoke. "Sir Golbez, when an object is warped, during the movement it appears as the color of magic it uses. Red would simply indicate a type of magic."

Golbez pondered this. "But what is there besides White or Black? Never mind! I've got a trip to take. If I can't rest, I might as well take a vacation!" He boarded the Pheonix Wing and prepared to leave. "I hate this thing. It uses two flight crystals." His take-off was quickly underway, and soon he could see the moon shrinking in the distance.

And then it sunk in.

"What if... the whole world... is like this?"

Sorrow filled Edge's heart. "That would mean that everyone... is lost. I am truly alone in this world... except for that man above me..."

And then he saw the man bend down and grab something.

The sparks that surrounded Edge seemed to close in, crunshing him.

"Wait! NO! Don't touch that...!"

PAF!

Edge tumbled to the ground in a heap. He looked all about him, and could not believe his eyes. "Something feels familiar about this place... maybe that fella can tell me more... but where IS he?"

Edge called out: "Hey, is anyone here?"

Despair begin to mount in Cardia's heart. Where was he, anyways? In all his adventures he had never seen such a place. He slumped down against a capsule and began to cry. Eventually he cried himself out and fell into a troubled sleep.

His sleep was troubled by a terrible dream... he was being chased through a cavern of razor-edged crystal by a terrible demonic monster. Up ahead he saw a radiant figure waiting for him, and just when he thought he was going to make it... he woke up.

As soon as he opened his eyes the first thing on his mind was his stomach. How long had it been since he'd eaten? He laughed to himself. 'Try 4000 years.' Rising to his feet, he began to explore the cavern further, more for food than for curiousity's sake. He found an intersection, and, looking in all four directions, headed what he thought was north.

Eventually he came to a stop before a heavy iron door. Locked, of course. Sliding into deep concentration, he focused his thoughts on the door and raised his hands. When he opened his eyes a few moments later, the door had completely vanished.

Stepping through the now-open doorway, he found himself in a wide chamber. On a pedestal in the center of the room was a single shining crystal. He felt the familiar energy of black magic radiating from it. He approached cautiously. When he was within ten feet the crystal, it spoke to him in a commanding male voice.

"Stop. Do not come closer. I sense unknown powers flowing through you. Who are you that you would command such forces?"

Gathering his courage to speak to a piece of rock, he replied: "My name is Cardia, and you are right. I do possess some power. I have never seen a talking crystal, sir, but I suppose you can help me as well as anyone else. Where am I?"

"The Moon. How did you come here if you didn't even know you where here was?"

Cardia decided he had to find out more. "I touched a red crystal, not unlike yourself, and found myself in these lonely caverns. Sir, how can I ever get back home?"

The crystal was silent in thought for a few moments. "I cannot help you to leave the moon. But, you say your name is Cardia? Bahamut may find you of interest. Indeed, you can find his cave close, about seven miles away, to the east."

"But how do I get out of these caves?"

"Through the door of course." With a flash of golden light, a door appeared on the wall behind the crystal. "Be on your way now, Cardia. The master awaits."

Casting a quick glance at the crystal, Cardia pulled open the door and stepped out onto the lunar surface beyond.

"Eh? What's that?"

Carefully, he sheathed his swords and donned a pair of Catclaws. Their claws bit deep into the stone as if it wasn't even there. Edge then hoisted himself up and over onto an outcropping ledge.

"Well, would you look at that!"

Edge beamed under his mask. What he saw was, in fact, a Shuriken, lodged into the stone.

"This looks like one of mine... but how can that be...?"

From the outcropping, Edge looked down into the obsidian cavern. In the far end of the cavern, a huge stairway loomed before him. A large crater filled the centre of the room, and another stairway leading downward on the south end.

"?!? No. I can't be here. It's impossible... That's the stairway that FuSoYa and Golbez fled to when the gang and I slew Zeromus! But that means I'm on... the Red Moon!"

Excitedly, Edge scampered down from the ledge and raced for the stairway.

"I wonder if the Lunarians are enjoying their slumber? And I wonder if THEY can get me off here... there's no sign of that other fella...."

Edge entered a large obsidian chamber, filled with various containers.

"Now, what d'you suppose is in here...?"

Edge wiped the mist from a window, and looked inside.

"Lunarians...! Now I have to find that FuSoYa fella... I don't want to die on this rock!"

Edge began a frantic search for FuSoYa.

Golbez studied the stones. Two more Lunarians had joined him, now. "I can't figure out what it does. It doesn't seem to actually be a crystal. WAIT! I've seen one if these before! A long time ago, I saw a strange man use one of these to... IT'S A WARP STONE!" The two other Lunarians gasped and began shouting to each other. "STOP!" Golbez hated how he always had to deal with new recruits. "If there is a warp stone here, and one on our moon, doesn't it seem likely that they were used to get on the moon? And also, It's unlikely that whoever went there left, because the warp stone was broken. Therefore, unless there are more stones, it is likely the intruder is still on the moon."

The two Lunarians consulted for a bit. "Sir Golbez, though this makes sense, there MUST be another stone. Nobody lives here, so somebody had to warp HERE to drop this stone." Golbez thought for a few minutes. The others seemed a bit impatient. "I don't like the sound of this. I'll keep this stone. You take the ship back to the moon. If I have to leave, I'll use this." He held the stone in the air. The Lunarians nodded and left. "I REALLY hate these guardians who spend nine-tenths of the time sleeping," he muttered and went down the dark corridor.

Farther down, he found the sleeping quarters for this planet. Maybe someone woke up and dropped the warp stones... He didn't like how dark the chamber was getting. Every once in a while, he could swear he sensed another magic- wielder near him. There was a red shimmering ahead. He walked on cautiously. Another warp crystal was laying on the floor. Suddenly, he heard someone behind him. Another magic user! He turned around slowly. Golbez grabbed his warp stone, just in case...

It was FuSoYa. "Easy, child. I was informed of the warp stones. I felt an unfamiliar sense back on the moon. If you're looking for intruders, check there."

Golbez frowned. FuSoYa was right. "Alright. Here, take the stone and I'll go back to the moon." Golbez handed the stone to FuSoYa and went back to the ship. This time, he was riding in the "Wild Chocobo." He didn't especially like the name, but it was a good ship.

Back on the moon, he felt a strange power coming from beyond the lunar mountains. As he neared the source, the prepared his best immobilization spell. He wanted answers, not blood. When he finally got to the other side of the mountains, he heard two voices. One sounded like a crystal, but the other he had never heard. His spell was nearly ready. As Golbez turned the last stone he let the spell loose. When he saw his target, he was stunned. He had never seen such a counterspell. This could only be the work of... a legendary red mage...

Edge rolled his eyes. "Of course he did, how else could I explain my luck today?" With a sigh, Edge assumed the lotus position and began to think.

"Now, I have several options here. One: I can just sit here and hope someone finds me... but that's about as likely as me missing a target with my Dart. Two: I can blindly wander the moon and hope to find someone... that holds some promise, but I can't quite recall anyone else on here... no wait! There are other people here... the Hummingways..." Edge laughed to himself, and, just for his own amusement, hummed the familiar tune of the Hummingways. "Loveable little creatures... who else?" Edge leapt to his feet, excited. "Bahamut! The Lord of All Creatures! By the Light, if he cannot help me, then I might as well end it all. Or, I could always become a Hummingway..."

Edge began to leave the chamber, when he heard a strange sound... like chanting.

"What... or who... could that be? Magic? Hell, if it's magic that is being thrown about, they'll not leave me out of it!"

Following the sound of chanting, Edge drew his Masamune, fabled to enhance his speed in combat. Raising it above his head, he chanted, "Fast!" The sword hummed, and he felt the effects of the Fast magic. Racing down the hall, he hoped he wasn't too late to ambush the source of that chanting.

"Who are you? Why would a RED mage visit our moon?" Golbez had trouble forming the words, for the spell was beginning to get heavier.

"Never mind that," came a voice, almost calm. "Why did you attack me?"

A conversation (made mostly of these phrases repeated over and over) ensued until Golbez felt the spell around him fizzle. Still weak, Golbez had trouble lifting his helmet to see. Someone else was talking to the stranger now. It sounded like FuSoYa. "...and that is Golbez, our grumpy-yet-trusty security leader. He sometimes jumps to conclusions, and is known for attacking almost anyone he doesn't know. I remember a nice lad named Cecil. You wouldn't beleive..."

Golbez had heard enough. "HEY! I'M NOT GRUMPY! And you don't even know who that is! How can you be telling him all this?" Golbez got up and waited for the answer.

"Now, Golbez, you were asleep for a while . You don't know the conversation that went on here."

The stranger looked around, dazed, and said, "Frankly I don't think I do either..."

Golbez hated being left out.

"I want some explanations NOW!" Golbez demanded.

FuSoYa gently took hold of Golbez's shoulders and shook him gently.

"Calm down, my boy. He was only acting in self-defense, anyway. He seems to have quite a tale to relate. Cardia, if you'd repeat your story for Golbez?"

"Certainly, oh ancient one. Over 4000 years ago I wandered the Earth with several other companions. The quest began innocently enough, but in the end we foiled the plot of a time-travelling demon and restored the elemental balance. With order restored, my order, who represent neutrality or more precisly the spaces in between good and evil, white and black, left the world to hibernate as I have seen you Lunarians do. But our sleep was magical, not technological. When the world of balance was destroyed, my order began to awaken, but it was too late. Kefka had done so much damage already. As far as I know now, my people are staying away for now, but they sent me to remind you of the balance."

Here Golbez asked his question. "So why are you on our Moon?"

"Well, to be honest I had no intention of coming here. All I know is that something is calling me towards Bahamut. I must see him. And I must go soon. Alone."

Then something slammed to the ground some distance down the hall. It was large, and chalky white. Its mass sealed off the entirety of the passageway. Its grim, demonic face leered at the darkly-clad person barreling down the hall.

Another thought raced through Edge's head... Flee now and be spared.

Edge skidded to a halt, and nearly lost his balance. "I didn't think that..." he said to himself and peered down the hall. What loomed before him, he had seen before... once before, on the Blue Planet...

"EvilWall! That's all I need, complications... why isn't anything easy anymore?"

Flee now and be spared.

"I think not, blockhead. I have more important things to do than to talk to you!" With that, Edge slid a Shuriken from a wristband, and hurled it with a flick of his wrist. The gleaming razor-edged blade split into many of the small devices and impaled themselves into the EvilWall. The Wall roared.

Prepare for extinction.

The EvilWall advanced down the hallway, striking out at Edge with an unseen force. Edge fell back, as if struck by a Mad Ogre. Edge shook his head, and said, "I see you still have some punch. Well, so do I!"

Edge wove his fingers and chanted, "Blitz!"

Nothing happened.

Edge's jaw dropped to the floor.

"Wha...!"

The EvilWall's eyes narrowed and gleamed a dark light from within.

Petrify.

Edge leapt into the air, and sprung off one of the side walls in an effort to dodge the EvilWall's spell.

Edge landed gracefully on the floor... but rather heavily. His feet and lower legs had become living stone!

"It'll take more than that to stop this Ninja..." he grunted.

Another volley of Shruriken whistled through the air, embedding themselves in the EvilWall.

Petrify.

A crack resounded through the halls, and Edge stared at his lower body in horror... he was now half-man, half-stone!

"Flood!" Edge yelled.

Nothing.

The EvilWall struck out again, forcing Edge to the floor.

Edge hissed and wheezed with exertion. Laying on the ground, Edge reached out with his mind, tried to find his focus.

Petrify.

A cold wind brushed past Edge's form, and Edge felt as though he was being crushed by a large fist. A full three-quarters of his body had been turned to the same substance as his foe.

Through the pain, in his mind, he heard a voice...

"I demand an explanation NOW!"

Edge concentrated, and felt a tinge of hopelessness course through his body. "I must reach the source of that voice... or all is lost."

... Help me... Edge projected through his mind.

The EvilWall advanced.

He ran through the corridors, which were filled with strange sounds. They seemed familiar, but Golbez was in no mood to think. Whenever there was a possible problem, his insticts took over.

Wait, that sound. He knew he had heard it before! What was it... Golbez suddenly remembered good times he used to have... times when he owned a bizzare pet... EVIL WALL! Evil Wall came into sight. "Bad wall! Bad!" Suddenly the wall stopped moving. Someone was on the other side. Evil Wall started hopping up and down, which was the same as four wizards casting Quake. Golbez saw a statue near his pet. It looked familiar, but he was having trouble remembering, for some reason. He used an Elixir on the statue, which promply became flesh. It hit the floor, unable to keep balance from the sudden healing.

Edge looked up. "Oof! Golbez? Is that you? I haven't seen you for a long time!"

Golbez rolled his eyes, although under his helmet, this couldn't be seen. "So you just decided to visit? We're getting a lot of visitors these days."

"Say, Golbez, do you have any explanation for the lack of magic around here?"

"Lack of magic? Ha! I hardly think a planet almost completely powered by magic is lacking anything." Golbez threw a slab of meat to Evil Wall, who stared at it for a second, then Drained it.

Edge looked up at Golbez. "Well, my magic isn't working, and this place isn't looking too good either."

Golbez looked around, and found Edge to be correct. The wall were no longer black with white streak, but just white. "I-It...It's just your, um... imagination..." Evil Wall fell over, flat on its face. "Oh great," yelled Golbez, "It's so hard to get him up, when he does this..."

Edge found himself snickering but figured he'd best get out of this cave. "We'd better get out of here, " Edge said. "First the walls change colors, next we're gonna be trapped."

Golbez picked up the warp crystal's fragments that he had found earlier. Then they left the cave, talking of old times and ideas to join forces again.

When they finally saw the sight outside of the cave, their jaws hung open. The landscape around them was quite different. "When did this happen?" asked Edge.

"It must have happened in the past few minutes." Golbez said quietly. "Maybe Cardia knows what happened... Let's go to Bahamut. He controls the source of magic around here."

They began their travel across the newly formed wasteland. Golbez felt no magic or life coming from the terrain around him. Maybe Cardia had upset Bahamut... or maybe... it had finally happened.

Soon the lonely entrance to Bahamut's cave appeared just ahead. He was so excited on reaching it he scarcely noticed the monsters until it was too late.

The next thing he knew, he was on the floor, a wound on his back oozing a foul poison. He immediately felt the toxin spreading through his body. Uttering a spell through his teeth he caused the poison to exit his body via the same cut it had entered and launch itself at the initiator. He heard the creature hiss in displeasure and the poison flew back and hit it. It was immune, but still annoyed. Instantly Cardia was on his feet with his Lunar Blade in hand. The jellyfish-like creature bobbed towards him, but with a single swing he dispatched it.

Checking his wound, he continued on his way and finally entered the home of the one person in the universe who would know him. Bahamut.

Golbez hurried down, but Edge decided it was too dangerous. Looking around, he noticed the palace changing. It wasn't for a few seconds, that Edge realized it was also coming downward. If Edge didn't go down the stairs or out the door soon, he would be crushed.

Golbez finally reached the core, where he and his brother and their friends had once battled Zemus and Zeromus. Golbez was already in one of the huge caverns that held thousands of Lunarians when he realized that Edge was not with him. "No time to find him," Golbez thought. "Soon, the next phase will start." Golbez began looking through the section of heros that were still sleeping. FuSoYa Jr. Nope. Julia the 2nd. Nope. Aha! Golbez fumbled with the magical seal. When he was done, though, he had the hero he was looking for. "We have to hurry, a crystal is missing and any second..."

Suddenly, the floor started vibrating. Rocks fell from the ceiling and the floor broke. The peices that they were standing on started to drift apart. "It's too late!" yelled the man over the noise. "The second phase has begun!"

She thought to herself. "Okay, I've got to find my friends... I wonder if this power works over long distances? Hmm... Where am I?"

Rydia concentrated on her surroundings, and got a perfect map of the area, sketched in her mind. "A lot like a Sight spell," she thought. She smiled. "Oh... that tower! That's... the tower where we first met FuSoYa! I better go there first! Monsters might be abroad, I better call a monster to escort me." She faltered a bit. "From the land of the summoned monsters, I call. uhmm... Bahamut!"

In a flash, the mighty dragon appeared in front of her, and Rydia climbed upon Bahamut for a quick flight towards the tower.

"It's so lonely without friends..." Rydia looked at the blue speck again, and sighed. She looked up at the enormous crystal tower-like structure that loomed in front of her. A noise, behind her.

She whirled, drawing her whip. Bombs! Rydia concentrated on the orb she held. "Pharoah." she whispered softly. The ugly round things were enveloped in a whitish light. Only one survived. It looked like it was attempting to blow itself up, but couldn't do it. "More magic not working... " She cracked her whip and the bomb fell. A little potion dropped from the bomb. "Yes! An Elixir!" She pocketed it. "Better go in quick," she thought, and she headed in.

"Looks pretty empty." She did a quick mind-search. It was very easy for her now. A... person? Rydia ran through the hallway to the larger room, and saw a throne. She walked up to it and saw...

Edge assumed the lotus position and began to reach out with his mind, probing for Golbez.

Hmm... looks as though Golbez is upset at something... by the looks of things, those are tombs... now he's really angry... of course, I'd be angry too if...

Before he could complete his thought, the ground all about Edge began to shake and upheave.

"What the...! I KNEW I should have gone first. Leave it to me to send a wizard to do a HERO's job." The ground shuddered and shook. "Gotta act fast..." Edge raced down the stairs after Golbez. "I'll probably regret this later..."

Large tiles from the ceiling crashed down to the ground all about Edge. He dodged left, right, tumbled and rolled past the obstacles. "Those look painful. Good thing I'm a skilled Ninja."

Shards of obsidian shot from the walls on either side of Edge. With a quick flick of the wrist, he deflected them with Murasame. Racing into the chamber, he saw Golbez hunched over some tombs.

"It's too late!" shouted Golbez.

"Whatever. Come on, let's get outta here!" Edge grabbed hold of Golbez's wrist and dragged him along behind him.

"Let me go," snapped Golbez, "I can take care of myself."

"Fine, you do that." Edge released Golbez. "In the meantime, how about we concentrate on getting US out of here?"

Golbez shook his head, and pointed up to the entrance.

The entrance was blocked off by a large pile of debris from theabove chamber.

"Oh, swell." Edge sighed.

The ground shivered, knocking both Edge and Golbez to the ground.

"There's gotta be SOME way to move that junk...!" Edge yelled.

At that moment, a piece of the ceiling fell down, near her head. She fell, the palace still shaking. She rose, and looked down the stairwell. "NO! Blocked..." Her mind whirred... "Uhmm... From the land of the summoned monsters, I summon... Bomb!" A big ball flew up to the debris and exploded. "Phew..." She ran down the stairs, nearly tripping. "Better get ready for a fight..." She drew her whip. She slowly walked forward, and saw the figures of two men. She tried a mind scan, but couldn't do it. The call spell had weakened her and the orb too much. She caught a glimpse of one of the men.

"Edge...?" she murmured. The place was still rumbling. Some obsidian flew at her head. She whipped one, as another struck her. She yelled, "HEY EDGE!", and she fell, unconscious. The rumbling continued.

"Let's try and push it out of the way!" shouted Golbez.

Edge nodded, and the two of them scurried up the stairs.

"On three!" shouted Edge.

Below, the floor under the stiarcase began to give way. Several of the stone steps were swallowed by a rift which had just recently opened up.

"THREE!"

Golbez and Edde leaned into the debris which was blocking their escape. They pushed with all their might, and the debris moved a little. The ground shook, knocking Edge away from the debris. It slid back into place.

"Get back up here!" bellowed Golbez, "We almost made it!"

Suddenly, the debris shook and caught aflame. Pieces of the debris were thrown all about. Some poured into the stairway, brushing past Golbez.

Golbez flexed. "HA! Nothing can stand in MY way!"

Edge rolled his eyes, "Way to go, HERO. Now, let's get up there before..."

A form advanced down the stairs. Feminine in appearance, she wielded a large whip. She looked down at Edge.

"Edge!" she yelled. "EDGE, IS THAT YOU?"

From above, a shard of obsidian struck her squarely on the head, and she topped down the stairs in a heap... straight toward the rift.

Edge dove toward the tumbling form. He scooped her into his arms, then leaped up the stairs, past Golbez. Looking over his shoulder, he yelled, "You coming?"

Without turning back, Edge ran from the collapsing tower. Glancing at the crystals on his way through, he couldn't help but wonder if they were worth saving. After all, they DID talk to him long ago...

"I'm sure they'll be fine..." Edge thought.

As Edge fled the Lunar's Palace, the ground gave one last upheaval in protest, and the building began to crumble. However, this would not be the end of the chaos.

Edge placed the unconscious form on the ground, and examined her wounds. All color faded from his face when he reacher her face.

"Rydia! NO! It can't be... but... it is!"

"Are you coming?" Golbez heard Edge shout.

No. He wouldn't be going, at least not yet. Golbez ran back down the stairs, trying to find the only hope of the moon. He had searched only a little bit of the chamber when the quake stopped. Golbez looked around at the chamber. A flicker of light caught his attention. Off in a corner was a blue crystal, showing under the debris. Golbez quickly grabbed it and started up the stairs. "Only a little time before the next disastrous phase." No sooner said, the crystal in his hands turned black. "Hmm... disastrous phase starting or just my imaginataion..."

By the time he had made it to the crystal chamber, the crsytal looked like it was just a shadow. At least there was nothing stopping him. No huge monsters. No evil beings with intentions to rule the universe. No problem. Just put the crystal in its place and be done. Golbez ran up to the platform and placed the crystal in the small holder.

There was a brilliant flash. The crystal slowly changed to its old color. That would not fix the damage done, though. Golbez put the warp tile back over the stairs. When he left the palace, he saw how quickly life was returning to some places, while others kept their unpleasantness. "How well things are getting along!" Then Golbez spotted Edge and the figure near him.

Long after it had disappeared, FuSoYa spoke. "I have been studying for a long time, now. There is much that I have learned of magic, but recent news baffles me."

Golbez was relieved that someone had finally spoken. "Oh? And what news is that?"

FuSoYa looked at the stars and sighed. "People say that magic is gone. I have seen twelve magic users from four planets and moons attempt different spells. Weaker spells seem to work for now, but others won't. I'm worried that magic is fading away."

Golbez knew that this would be a cause for concern, but proved his magic was all right. He waved his hands and all of the creatures within sight busrt into fire. "My Fire3 is fine. I think you're just imagining things." Golbez laughed and turned back around.

"Golbez, I'm serious. I've heard of a few legends concerning this. One planet says that the center of all magic was destroyed, therefore magic is slowly fading."

Golbez looked back at FuSoYa. "And you believe this? Why is our magic so strong? I've got ya there, haven't I!"

FuSoYa stopped reading. "I have an answer to that. The crystals are independent of the statues. The statues created them, but once they were created, the crystals became their own source of magic. Just don't use too much magic; the crystals seem to be running low on magic lately."

Golbez looked up at the blue planet overhead. It had been a long time since they had orbited it and Golbez wanted to see how it had changed. "FuSoYa, if I left the moon, according to your theory, I'd lose my magic?"

FuSoYa was getting tired of answering questions. "It is only a theory, but it does seem likely. Are you planning on leaving?"

Golbez thought for a minute. All of his darkest memories were from his trip to the blue planet, when Zemus had controlled him, yet something seemed to call him there. "I just... wanted to look around on that planet one more time."

Golbez stared out at the stars, when suddenly the ship jerked to one side. The scenery began to move. "The ship is spinning!" Golbez ran to the crystal. "Back to the moon, now!" The crystal sat silently, apparently out of magic. Golbez looked back at the moon, spinning with all of the other stars and planets. "I'm too far from the moon crystals." The Wild Chocobo was now spinning toward the blue planet, living up to its name. The planet was approaching fast. Golbez noticed a forest almost resembling a dragon head. Uh-oh. He was heading toward mountains... no, he had barely cleared the mountain range. Now the plains were speeding toward him. Golbez tried one last time. "Crystal, land us safely!" The crystal started to glow faintly. Not enough to land them properly, but enough to slow the fall. The crystal's light faded again, and the speed increased again. As the ship collided, pieces flew and Golbez lost consciousness.

The Hummingways.

Edge looked down into the closed eyes of his fair Rydia. He still couldn't believe that it was truly she who had found him... followed him... all the way to the moon. "I'm touched." Edge smiled.

Unfortunately, there was a large section of moon mountain surrounding the entrance to the Hummingway's cave. "Of course, one might think that this might be a problem." Edge looked up, way up, to the top of the hills. From his satchel, he again withdrew his Catclaws and donned them. With great effort, Edge skittered up the hillside. "You've gained weight since I last saw you," Edge grunted.

At the top of the hills, Edge could see the Lunar's Lair shuudering and buckling under its own weight. And then, a small mote of light flashed in the distance.

"No... no... NO!" Edge stomped his feet with rage. "That... bastard! He had a ship all this time and didn't tell us! I knew I should not have trusted him. Evil to the core... and selfish, too."

Edge ran full-tilt down the other side of the hill, to the valley where the entrance to the Hummingway's waited. Lathered in sweat, he entered.

Even through his blind rage, Edge couldn't help but feel slightly light-hearted at the sight of the adorable little Hummingways. From the opposite side of the enormous obsidian chamber, a rose-coloured creature beckoned to him. It bore a slight resemblance to a rabbit.

"Edge... I cannot believe it is you," it said.

"Well, that makes two of us." Edge gently placed Rydia's unconscious form on the ground. "Anyhow, I'm not here to exchange pleasantries. My friend here is in need of serious healing. And I think you fellas have something that might help."

The lunar rabbit nodded. "We do... come here, Storeperson."

Another rabbit-like creature hopped over with a large sack slung over his shoulder. It looked at edge and uttered a musical hum-hum-he-hum- hum in greeting.

"I need one of your Life potions, little one." Edge ruffled the bunny's hair.

The bunny slammed his sack on the floor, and hopped inside. Sounds of rattling and jingling filled the room. Edge raised an eyebrow. After several minutes, the rabbit produced what appeared to be a Life potion.

Edge grabbed at the potion, "Thanks... what?"

The rabbit pulled the potion out of Edge's reach, and pointed at its open palm.

Edge went livid. "WHAT?! You want me to PAY you?! Grr... fine." From his satchel Edge pulled out a small pouch of coins. He tossed it to the rabbit and grabbed the Life potion in one swoop. Edge then proceeded to administer the potion to Rydia.

Rydia awoke with a start. "EDGE! OH MY GOD!" She kissed him lightly on his cheek. "We have to get to the surface...!"

"Who... what... huh?" she stammered.

She rose, fully conscious now. She caught sight of Edge.

"EDGE! OH MY GOD! EDGE!" she yelled. Another quick mental map. Well, she tried to do another mental map...

"Huh... the ORB! NO! EDGE! Did you see an orb?" she called out. She picked out of her pocket a small piece of the orb, a precaution she had taken earlier. "Great... " she thought. She smiled. Now she took her mental map. "... another human?" The reading was very faint. "Who... Besides Edge... CELES!" The reading faded. She gasped. "No! Edge! C'mon!" She ran over to Edge, gave him a quick kiss, and said: "Edge, we have to go NOW."

"Sure... Okay... But what about... Gol..."

She cut in, "He can fend for himself... But we have to go now."

"Uhmm... Why do we have to go so soon?"

"I'll explain on the way, but can we go... like now? I think my friend may be in danger." She half-fainted.

"In your condition? Sure... we'll just run off and get you slain. Real good."

"We have to go!" She reached into her pocket. The Elixir! She drank it, slowly. "See? Happy? Oh no, I need to find that Orb again. Looks like we'll have to wait a bit longer.... I wonder if my magic..." She shook her head. "Urgh! From the land of the summoned monsters! I summon Bombs!" Hundreds of little red balls floated up to the rubble and blew themselves up. "From the land of the summoned monsters, I summon Odin!" Odin appeared and cut through the rocks. She turned to Edge. "Doing this we can find Golbez, too."

"Okay... But what about..."

"The rest of our friends? I don't know, but they're not on the moon. Look, as soon as we find that orb, and Golbez, I'll explain everything to you. Then we have to find my friend."

She looked at the rubble again, and saw a glimmer. The Orb! Well, a piece of it, enough to satisfy her needs for the rest of the time. It was only about 3/4 of the whole piece; she had lost another 1/8 to Celes, and the other was gone. "Edge, give me your Murasame."

"Okay, whatcha gonna do with that? You're not capable of fighting with it." He handed it over.

She took the blade and chooped off another piece and gave it to Edge. "Try your magic now." she whispered.

"Uhmm... Blitz!" A bolt of lightning smacked a nearby rock. "Yes! The all powerful Prince of Eblan has his magic back!"

"Yes, but only if you hold the orb... I don't know exactly how it works, though, well, anyway we have to find Celes!"

"Celes? Who's that?"

"Oh, just come! From the... Oh, forget it... Bahamut!"

The King of the dragons neared and landed, and the two companions waited.

Golbez somehow felt empty. Like he wasn't really there. "Oh yes," Golbez muttered. "No magic." It was a few seconds later that he realized his armor and mask were also missing. No magic, no way to hide behind his mask. Now, for one of the first times in a century, besides his meeting with Cardia, Golbez was not wearing his mask. The armor was no problem to replace... Golbez searched the wreck for these items, but couldn't find anything useful. Even the food was gone, probably eaten by wild creatures. Where would Golbez go next? Not very much north that Golbez could reach; he'd have had to swim across a river. Swimming was not one of Golbez's best skills. South was a cave that might be inhabited. South it was.

About twenty paces away from the wreckage of the ship, Golbez spotted a creature approaching. Pulling out his sword, he ran up to face the challenge. "Ha! Take that! Die! I'll get you!" Golbez hadn't fought with a sword in a long time, though; the creature hit the sword out of his hand.

"Well, I guess it's worth a try... FIRE 3!"

The fire that came from the spell wasn't enough to pass as Fire 1. Whatever Golbez was fighting, though, didn't seem to like fire. It backed away.

"You're not getting away! METEO... FIRE 3... ... ... FIRE!" The sparks that appeared must have been the effects of the spell. "ICE... LIT... FIRE... uh... gulp..."

The beast started coming towards him again. Suddenly it stopped, turned and ran. "I guess I showed you!" Golbez shouted at the fleeing creature. Then Golbez noticed the shadow that covered him. Slowly Golbez turned around. "You? I thought you were... Are you all right? I haven't seen you in centuries!" How long had it been? 1032 years? That seemed like a long time ago. He hadn't even KNOWN Cecil then...

He looked back at Golbez. "You greet me? Ha! You sent me to kill Cecil and he killed me! THREE TIMES! Then you lost interest in me and attacked with others! You used me!"

Golbez looked around. "Please, I'm trying to make sure nobody knows me. Don't mention my brother..."

"And that's another thing! After I died trying to kill Cecil, you found out he was your brother and joined forces! I died thrice for nothing! Then you destroyed the master of evil and his power. You destroyed me! How can you dare show your face!"

"Best not to anger him," Golbez thought, "he's more powerful than I at the moment." "That was long ago! I, as your master, demand to know where I am!" Golbez waited for an answer.

"Master? MASTER?! You're no master of mine! I am the master of the Veldt!" Golbez started to walk away. "Wait, where are you going, Golbez?"

Golbez turned around. "Thank you for the information, Milon." He began to walk away again.

"Nobody does this to MILON! Not even Golbez!"

Golbez turned around again. "Milon, you couldn't even beat Cecil when he was a dark knight! How do you expect to beat me?"

Milon glared at Golbez. "And tell me that you did not lose to him!"

Golbez was getting tired of this conversation. "I am through talking to you, Milon. Begone!" Golbez looked at the landscape. Some chocobos were heading near him. "This place has every kind of monster... too bad it couldn't come up with some black chocobos." Golbez laughed and jumped on his new mode of transportation. "I wonder if this thing can swim across the river... I thought I saw a house up there."