Porom lifted her head out of the barrel she had dunked it in to try to get the rainwater collected in the container to wash off her makeup.

"Where DID you get this stuff, Palom? It refuses to come off!"

Palom, of course, didn't hear her, because the minute she lifted her head, her brother started laughing hysterically. "You look like a purple drowned rat!" he exclaimed during one of his gasps for air.

Porom waited impatiently for the water in the barrel to calm down, so she could see what her brother was laughing about. Her cakes and cakes of makeup had run off her face, and into her light colored hair, which was also submerged in the bucket to give her the quite accurate impression of... well, a purple drowned rat. Palom awaited the unavoidable thwonking that came from his sister whenever he made such a crack, but was disappointed. He finally opened his tightly closed eyes (they go well with the pathetic wincing look) to see his sister staring apparently at a building with a Cafe sign marked on it.

Her medallion was burning under her cloak, and she strained to see the face that had poked out from behind the Cafe. It looked a lot like...

* * * *

Porom saw herself, standing with her beloved Fritz, and he was talking to her. "Every time you think of me, just touch the medallion, and you'll know I'm there. It get hotter the closer I am. Use your magic frequently the hotter it is, okay? This is the symbol of my affection for you."

* * * *

Porom was rudely awakened from her daydream by something hitting her sharply on the head. She failed to notice again, as she had in centuries gone by, the evil smirk of satisfaction that Fritz sported after presenting her with her 'gift'. She looked up to see what had hit her, and was shocked to see her twin brother jumping between windows directly above her.

"Palom! What ARE you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious? This old bag of bones tried to tell me this place was dangerous, and that I shouldn't try to jump between the buildings! What a loser! This is more fun than bungee jumping!

Porom was just about to call out that they ought to at least find out where they were, but she lost sight of him. Looking about in the sky, she screamed when she felt a hand on her shoulder. There was Palom, hanging on to giant crane right beside her.

"Geez, Porom! Lighten up! You were never this jumpy when we were younger! D'ya think that 'turning to stone' thing did it?"

Porom was hyperventilating, and glaring at her brother with bright, very, very angry eyes. Then, they flashed with an idea... if her medallion was warm, then...

"Cur-...."

"Stop!" Just as that foreshadowing red glow was beginning to appear on her medallion, a cloaked figure appeared between the twins. Only the face was visible under the black robes, slightly older, but Porom was sure she still recognized her.

"Kit! You're still alive!" Whew! And Palom thought his sister's eyes were angry lookin before.

"Oh, no! Not _HER_ again, I thought we got rid of her when we jumped ahead about a couple millenia or so!"

Kit pulled back her hood, revealing her long ears, pointed as ever, and stared at Porom.

"That medallion is MINE! Fritz would have given it to me if you hadn't come along. I couldn't have cared less years ago when you disappeared, but this is the only thing that will restore my magic. So hand it over, you spoiled little brat!"

When Porom refused, Kit lunged at her, and forgetting that she was magic-less, Porom's instant reaction was to duck, close her eyes tightly and yell "Warp!" But that was enough for her medallion to start the chain reaction, and as it glowed red, Kit stopped her advance. Literally.

"Look, sister!" Palom called out," A Kit statue! Can I keep it?"

But Porom had a better idea. With her brother's help, she carried the stone Kit to the dock, where there was another boat just about to leave for Thamasa. They ended up giving it to one of the sailors from their voyage here as a 'gift', for Porom having won almost all their money at poker.

As they returned to the town, and looked for a place to sleep, Porom couldn't help but wonder exactly how her medallion got to be charged in the first place...

"Sister....WAKE UP! There's a nice man her who wants to have a conversation with you!"

Grumbling about being awakened from her bliss, Porom slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes. The first thing she noticed when her vision cleared was a very angry-looking citizen of the friendly town of Zozo looking down at her. This man made Golbez look like a fly, and Porom _really_ didn't like it.

"You can just sleep here wherever you want!" came the booming voice of the man, "This town isn't occupied by the great Sascha and Afkek, and they really like people loafing around in their occupied cities!"

Okay, Porom was incredibly confused. If it was fine by him that they sleep wherever they want, why did the man look so angry about it? Who are Sascha and Akfek, and why, if they don't have control over the city, does their opinion matter so much? This made no sense at all, and she wanted some answers.

However, Porom's questions would have to wait for another time, because just as she was about to address their 'friend', the well-muscled man was picking the twins up by thier shirt collars and carrying them down the stairs and out of the building. Once at the door of the cafe, their captor deftly threw them out of the building, narrowly missing hurling directly into a pole. As Palom was shaking his head, trying to bring the world back into focus, porom was trying in vain to attract his attention to something posted on the pole.

"Brother, look at this!" she said, pointing to the poster dirctly in front of thier noses.

As soon as Palom's head stopped spinning, he stared at the post to which his sister was pointing.

On the post was a picture of a man and a woman who looked strangely familiar. The caption underneath read:

"ALL HAIL SASCHA AND AFKEK!

Commanders of the New Imperial Army and Conquerers of This City!"

"Gee! What nice people!" Palom thought, and then it hit him.

"That WENCH and her buffoon lug! From Mysidia! That's her! SHE can't be the commander of the army! What a load of -"

That was all he had time to yell, before he had attracted a rather large crowd of unhappy looking onlookers. The twins rapidly reached the concensus that they should beat a hasty retreat, and ran into of the nearest building. They burned up the stairs and slammed through one of the doors on the balcony to find themselves inside a cave. Palom closed the door behind them and then sat leaning against it to catch his breath.

"Where are we?" Porom asked as she looked around. She didn't remember a mountain being linked to the city, but then again, she might have just missed it in the excitement.

"Let's go explore!" Palom suggested, "We could go and hunt for treasure and fight bad guys, and stuff, just like in the old days!"

"Yeah, the REALLY old days," Porom muttered sadly under her breath as they followed the nearest tunnel.

Suddenly she stopped.

"Did you hear that?" she asked her brother.

But before Palom could answer, the source of the sound was obvious. A cascade of rocks fell over the twins, and a rather large one hit Porom squarely in the arm, causing to yelp in pain as he fell to the ground. Porom quickly turned to wher the rocks seemed to originate, drawing her bow at the same time. A shadowy figure jumped down form the ledge above them and landed in front of the twins.

"What is your business here, children?"

Porom turned around to try to shush her bigmouthed ("idiot", I think, is what Sascha affectionately called him) brother, when the sranger began to speak.

"Oh, dear! I..I'm terribly sorry! I didn't mean to sound intimidating, it's been so long since I've associated with people, I'm really, really sorry. Gosh, I've made a mess of things again, haven't I? Really, I don't have a quarrel, please don't hurt me!"

Palom, and Porom both turned around to face the stranger again, very confused. A huge bundle of cloth was piled on the floor beside a very beautiful young lady with long dark hair and deep black eyes. One look at the cloth told the twins exactly how they had mistaken the 5'11" woman for a giant. There was enogh to cover her 10 times over there.

Seeing Porom's reaction to the mound of cloth, (Palom was _way_ too busy staring at Seyla), the woman offered an explanation:

"It gets very cold in these mountain cave at night, you know.... Hi! I'm Seyla, Leader of the Fifth Rebellion Merc...., um, I'm Seyla."

Porom was about to respond when Palom tore himself from the debis and ran in front of her.

"Greetings, I am Palom, Master Black Mage of the ancient times and Undefeated ninja!"

Palom cleared her throat from behind her brother.

"Uh, yeah, and this is my sister, the White mage and archer, sort of..."

"What do you mean, sort of?" Porom started, and then remebered their new acquaintance, and introduced herself.

"I'm Porom." She said "Don't mind my brother, he's only seen one other female in a couple thousand years, besides, he's kind of full of himself..."

"Wow, two thousand years, how did you manage.... Oh, where are my manners! Would you like to come to my place for dinner and hot chocolate? I've been collecting thses wild funguses all day for my seven-mushroom stew! I usually only cook for myself and my cat, but there's plenty to go around!"

Palom made a disgusted face at his sister.

"Um, we've already eated," Porom lied, " But hot chocolate sounds great!"

"Yes, wonderful", Palom agreed as he rushed to grab Seyla's arm and escort her down the mountain and into the second floor of one of the buildings where behind a secret door they found a cozy little apartment filled with flowers, and the fattest cat they'd ever seen!

The three exchanged histories in front of the warm fire over hot chocolate, and then the twins settled in for a night's rest as Seyla walked over to the window to contemplate her fate....

"Gee, he must be having one _very_ good dream not to wake up when I'm doing this to him." Palom thought.

As if to test his theory, Palom bent down and tweaked the man's nose. Still, there was no sign of consciousness. So Palom began to drag him _up_ the stairs to Seyla's place.

"Seyla, Porom, wake up!" Palom yelled.

"What _is_ it, Palom?", Porom replied, the haze of sleep still in her voice, and her vision, too. Porom saw her brother dragging a large dark blob into Seyla's apartment.

"I found this guy being attacked by scores of viscious soldiers. I, um.. I started to distract them so that he could escape, but he fainted. So I had no choice but to kill the soldiers singlehandedly, and to carry him here with my _incredible_ strength."

Porom gave Seyla a 'look what I have to put up with' face, and Seyla returned a sympathetic smile. Then, both of them turned in unison to the man on the floor.

"Let's get him to my bed," Seyla suggested, and the two carried the injured man onto Seyla's bed, and consequently, better lighting.

Meanwhile, still beaming at his "exploits", Palom simply looked on with an air of authority.

"I wonder if he's badly... hurt..." Porom shook the image out of her eyes. she could have sworn that the man on the bed was her long-lost Fritz. But it couldn't be, he obviously had both his eyes intact, and his forehead was completely pentacle-free, and besides, Fritz had lived over 1000 years ago. That's an awful long time to live, even for a necromancer (or Black Wizard, rather). But gosh, was he ever handsome - Porom couldn't tear her eyes off of him.

"He doesn't look to be." came a voice right beside her.

"Wha--what?" Porom snapped out of her reverie and looked at Seyla.

"He doesn't seem to be hurt, except for a large number of bruises on his arm and legs, but for all we know, Palom could have made those when he dragged the guy up the stairs."

Palom fumed. "Lucky guess," he muttered to himself.

"I'll put on some tea, and hot food," Seyla said to Porom, "Watch over him until he wakes up... if that's okay with you. Or maybe you should..."

"No problem," Porom said dreamily, staring at the injured man.

Seyla shrugged, and went off to the corner of the small room that served as a kitchen.

Porom took a wet cloth and tenderly wiped the man's face, humming half to him, half to herself, while Seyla continued with her cooking, and Palom, bored out of his skull, went off exploring the small apartment and its contents.

"Hey cool!" Palom exclaimed, but the only one who responded was Fozzy, who came and rubbed up against his leg. Oh, well, he'll just keep this dicovery to himself, Palom thought as he dragged out the two coffin-sized baskets filled with what seemed to be deflated balloons from a compartment in the floor. He was just about to unfold one to check it out, when...

"Guys! Come quick! I think he's waking up!" Porom exclaimed to her brother and Seyla.

The three gathered around as the man began to open his eyes.

"Yup!" Palom said, "I think he's waking up! I think I'll go back to my exploring now!" On that note, Palom headed back to the balloons that he was looking at before.

Just then a man spoke from the doorway. "Good day, I am Cordain Daunkipre, mercenary for hire, and I take it from your appearance that you are not natives..."

At the same time, the man lying on the bed asked, "Where... where am I?"

"Safe," Porom replied, in the same dreamy state that she'd been in since first laying eyes on him. Cordain went essentially ignored.

"My brother found you on the ground and brought you here. You don't seem to be hurt. Oh, I'm Porom, by the way, and this is Seyla. The one rooting around in the floorboards over there is my brother Palom. Don't mind him, though. he's a little bit deluded." Porom said as she carefully helped the man to sit up in the bed.

He looked briefly around at palom, and then turned back to the two by his bedside.

"Charmed," he said, as he reached out to kiss Porom's hand, "I am Miguel."

Porom melted.

**************

The next few hours were passed as Miguel and Cordain recounted stories of their adventures to an eager Porom, while Seyla kept them both full of hot chocolate and warm spice cookies. At the same time, Palom was still trying to inflate one of the balloons.

All of a sudden, Seyla let out a heartbreaking sigh.

"I had that thirst for adventure once..." she said sadly. "I just don't have what it takes, I guess..."

Porom's heart broke. "You can have it again, too!" she began. "All you have to do is get your self-confidence back! I suggest that you go back to Doma, and face the skeletons in your closet. That's the only way you're going to be able to look yourself in the mirror again."

The idea made sense. "But how am I going to get there?" she asked.

Palom, tangled in the cords of one of the balloons, lifted part of the cloth and said, "Take one of these!"

"Of course, that's where I put those after I left Doma! You're right. I'll leave tonight. Feel free to use my apartment while I'm gone. I've got to go now while I still feel..." She drew a long breath, "...confident!"

With that, she snatched up the balloon that Palom was not tangled up in, and walked out of the room.

"Well, that was quick," Miguel commented.

Porom just oogled, so he decided to retire for the evening, and find Omega and Landho first light.

Porom was satisfied with just staring at Miguel for what seemed like hours to Palom before falling asleep herself. This was his chance. He'd been dying to try one of these things out!

He sneaked down the stairs, and, once out of town, set his balloon up to fly. He'd only be gone for an hour at most, he thought to himself. No one would miss him.

Then, his full eyesight returned. He heard some kind of talking going on. He look up and looked at the two... women and a man looking at him.

"Where....where am I?" Miguel asked.

He heard one of them say "Safe" in a strange tone of voice. He heard the same voice, but in a different tone, say, "My brother found you on the ground and brought you here. You don't seem to be hurt. Oh, I'm Porom, by the way, and this is Seyla. The one rooting around in the floorboards over there is my brother Palom. Don't mind him, though. He's a little bit deluded." Porom then helped him sit up.

Miguel touched his head as he felt pain there. He also noticed some bruises on his arms and legs. Then like a flash, he remembered all the lacerations and gashes he had just a few days ago. He looked at his knee but didn't find the gash. His arms, legs, and chest were free of their cuts. 'That... image of sorts must have helped me,' Miguel thought.

He looked over at Palom messing around with some sort of thing. Then looked back at Seyla and Porom. He saw the look in Porom's eyes of which he has seen many times before. "Charmed," Miguel said as he kissed Porom's hand. At that instant, he remembered someone once saying to him, 'You ol' smoothy.' "I am Miguel," Miguel continued.

"Hello Miguel, I am Cordain." a man said.

"Where are you from, Miguel?" Seyla asked.

"I live in South Figaro, but I arrived here from Tzen, rather what is left of Tzen." Miguel said as he noticed Porom still staring at him.

"Why would you come to a place like this?" Seyla asked.

"I can't answer that. I just felt like I was needed here for some strange reason. Call it destiny if you will." Miguel said.

"So you travel a lot?" Porom asked.

Miguel had to think for a few seconds. All he could remember of his life was being in places other then South Figaro. "Yes, I travel a lot." was the only answer he could give. He glaced over at Palom still messing around with whatever it was he was messing with. Miguel remembered specifically searching for treasure and relics. He began again, "I guess you could call me a treasure hunter."

"You must have had many adventures then, huh?" Porom asked.

Miguel thought about it again. adventures were just about the only memories he had. "Yeah, you could say I've lived a very eventful life." Miguel said.

"Well, maybe it would help pass time if you care to tell us some of your adventures." Seyla said. Porom and Cordain acknoledged their curiousity as well.

Miguel agreed. He thought maybe talking about them would help bring back others. He first talked about some of his adventures in the Sabil Mountains. How he found the Returner's hideout, how he joined the Returners, and some of the treasure he found and some that he gave to the Returners. Then he told about his adventure to find the Tintinabar which he had found and was later stolen by the Empire. He talked about how he came here and about Omega and Lahndo.

Then, they realised it was some hours later and Miguel felt very tired. He also noticed Seyla with her head down.

"I had that thirst for adventure once." She said. "I guess I just don't have what it takes..."

"You can have it again" Porom began, "All you have to do is get your self confidence back! I think you should go back to Doma, and face the skeletons in your closet. That is the only way you're going to be able to look yourself in the mirror again."

"But how am I going to get there?" Seyla asked.

"Why not use one of these balloons?" Palom said as he tangled himself in one of them.

"Of course, that's where i put those after I left Doma! You're right. I'll leave tonight. Feel free to use my apartment while I'm gone. I've got to go now while I still feel..." Seyla drew a long breath, "...confident!"

Seyla took the baloon that Palom was tangled in and left with it. Palom quickly grabbed another balloon and started playing with it.

"That was fast." Miguel said. "Well, it is late and I'm tired. Better get some sleep now and find Lahndo and Omega in the morning."

"I'll help you find them." Porom said eagerly.

"Sure, if you want to." Miguel said.

"I'll accompany you on your journey as well." Cordain said.

"It's up to you." Miguel said. Then he stretched out on the bed and fell asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"MIGUEL..."

"MIGUEL..."

"Wh...who?" Miguel said. "What is it?"

"You must free these people from their torture. Find them in Mt. Kolts. You must find your freinds and you need the help of others."

"Who?" Miguel said.

"You will find them..."

The image faded.

He looked around the room and did not see Palom. He couldn't remember why he left, but he wasn't there still. For some reason, he put it in the back of his mind. He didn't really know this Palom person and didn't know if was suppost to return. He stood there, looking out the window. Watching the guards and troops walk the streets, harassing the citizens.

In her bed, Porom slowly turned and woke up. She looked around and saw Miguel looking out the window. She slowly walked up to Miguel and put her hand on his shoulder. Miguel looked up and back out the window.

"Are you hungry?" Porom asked Miguel.

"No, thank you." Miguel said.

Porom turned around. She caught herself before she screamed as she saw Cordain standing right behind her. She strangly looked and Cordain as she walked passed him. She make herself breakfast.

Cordain walked up to Miguel and looked out the window with him.

"I need to find a safe place in Mt. Zozo. Can you help?" Miguel asked.

"I sure can. We'll go to Cyan's old room." Cordain said.

"Alright, we'll leave in a few hours, when it's dark again." Miguel said.

The next few hours passed quickly for both Cordain and Porom, but not for Miguel. He sat there staring out the window the entire time half looking at what was going on and half looking at what should be. The more he looked at those troops harassing the people and destroying property, the more he wanted to help them.

* * *

Miguel, Porom, and Cordain easily stayed out of each of the troop's sight as they traveled to the entrance of Mt. Zozo. When they got there, three soldiers, 1 in agitek armor, stood at the entrance.

"They must have finally blocked the entrance." Cordain said.

"I'm still going in." Miguel said.

"How will we get past them?" Porom asked.

"Simple. We'll walk right past them." Miguel said.

"What?" both Cordain and Porom said.

"Stay here, I'll be back in about twenty minutes." Miguel said.

Porom looked at Miguel as he walked out of sight.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Miguel returned carrying three sets of clothing. They were Imperial uniforms.

"Here, put these on." Miguel said as he handed them both a pair. They put the uniforms over their clothing and walked up the guards.

"Where are you going?" the officer in the Magitek armor asked.

"We got word that three citizens that stole a Magitek armor were hiding out inside," Cordain said quickly.

"Really? I better go with you then." the officer said.

The three had no choice but to accept.

They traveled deep into Mt. Zozo not finding anything. The officer in the Magitek started to get mad. They traveled a bit farther when he said "That's it. We're heading back."

"No we're not not." Miguel said. At that moment, Cordain and Miguel jumped the officer, quickly killing him. They took the body at threw it off an edge. Cordain chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Miguel asked.

"Well, we told them three people stole a Magitek armor. Now, three people have," Cordain said. Miguel smiled.

Miguel sat in the Magitek armor and worked it properly. He never remembered having been in one but he sure knew how to use one.

Cordain led the way to Cyan's old room. Miguel and Porom sat in the Magitek armor. Since it was build to accomidate any sized troop with armor on, there was just enough room for Miguel and Porom to fit in it. They had to 'squeeze' together, but it wasn't uncomfortable.

They arrived at Cyan's old room and rested. Miguel sat outside on the cliff looking at the scenery. Not too long after, Porom joined him. They sat there looking out over the cliff and the beautiful horizon.

It wasn't too long untul they heard Cordain talking with someone. Miguel and Porom got up and walked back into the cave. Miguel instantly reconized the two men Cordain was talking to.

"Lahndo! Omega!" Miguel said.

revealed to the chosen one in dreams,

visions, and memories. He shall be

guided well, but it is up to him to

follow the given path.

--The Ancient Prophecies of the Espers

I shall speak if I must, but I'd

rather that you listened to my

commands NOW instead of waiting for

special guidance.

--The Book of Kefka

"Lahndo!"

"Leave me alone, I'm tired."

"Lahndo, this is important."

"What do you want?" Lahndo muttered.

"It's Miguel... you must find him again... Wake up..." said the Metatron.

"Hmph? What? Miguel? Wha?" Lahndo babbled incoherently.

"You've slept all day. Cross the hall, enter the room across from yours, and look out the window." The ghostly voice in his head ordered.

Lahndo crossed the hall, entered the room, and looked out the window. He saw three figures walking off to the edge of town. One of them was Miguel.

"Miguel! Hey Miguel! MIGUEL!" Lahndo shouted, but Miguel and his new companions were too far away to hear. 'They're heading for that mountain... Mountt Zozo," thought Lahndo. 'I have to catch up with them.'

Lahndo tromped across the hall. Omega was thrashing around on his bed, gasping for air. Lahndo shook him.

"Ah, No... not that... I... Ah!" Omega shot out of bed. "Pain... separation... What's happened to me? I must have had a nightmare," he said. "It was terrible... I felt like I was being pulled apart... or cut into pieces... but it didn't hurt... what hurt was the fact that I wasn't whole... it was terrible!"

"Well, it's over now... you're safe here in Zozo," Lahndo said. "You've slept all day. You did take a rather nasty knock, though." Lahndo paused. "I found Miguel. He's with some other people. They're headed for Mount Zozo... I think we should catch up with them. We need to get out of this town before more Imperial soldiers decide we don't belong..."

"Yeah... I see your point. What happened last night, anyway... what was that thing?"

"Let's get packing... I'll tell you the whole story on the way."

* * *

"And so, it seems that this 'Master of the Wraiths' is starting to pay attention to me... I could be in big trouble," Lahndo concluded.

"What an amazing tale!" exclaimed Omega. "That explains why the world has changed so much, in just the last year. It also explains how I awoke all of a sudden, when by all rights, I shouldn't have."

"Oh, why shouldn't you have awoken?"

"I was cursed into that green crystal by an evil magician, and I was to be held in there, 'as long as there is magic in the world'. So, now that there's no magic, I was finally released. What a wonderful world!"

Suddenly, The foot of Mount Zozo appeared, and in front of it, two soldiers of the New Imperial Army. Lahndo and Omega slipped behind a tree.

"What do we do now?" Lahndo whispered.

"Stay here. Leave it to me." Omega said. He left the tree and walked up to the soldiers. Lahndo's view of the action was blocked, but there seemed to be a struggle, by the sound of it. Then Omega's voice sounded across the field. "Lahndo, come out. It's safe now."

Lahndo stepped out from behind the tree. He saw the two N.I.A. soldiers, dead. He also saw, through his blue mage training, that Omega had a bright green magical glow surrounding him. Lahndo decided not to ask, because most people became suspicious and confused when he asked about their magical powers. He did, however, file the fact away for future reference.

Omega and Lahndo entered Mount Zozo, and it's winding caverns. They heard voices, one of which was Miguel's. There was also a man's voice and a woman's voice that they couldn't place. The voices led them through the caverns, to the top of the mountain. A light shown through a small cavern, which led to a large open "balcony" upon which sat... A MAGITEK ARMOR!

Lahndo and Omega slipped off to the side. "Miguel's been captured by Imperials! We've got to help him!" Lahndo muttered.

"Let me go first. I can take care of a few imperials," Omega said. He then proceeded to march straight into the chamber.

"Omega, wait! You don't know what you're up against! That Magitek armor is a killer!" Lahndo shouted, running after him.

A strong-looking man with an ornate sword stepped out to the door and faced the two of them. "Who are you, and how did you find us here?" he demanded.

All of a sudden, from the back of the cavern, they heard Miguel's voice calling. "Lahndo! Omega!"

Upon reaching it, Miguel and Porom sat down on the ledge outside to take in the sheer beauty of the well-watered Zozoian countryside. Cordain stood back awhile and looked from a distance. He then decided to reenter the room. Maybe he could find another of Cyan's letters to this 'Lola.'

He had kneeled down to look in the wastepaper basket, when he heard a noise. Quickly, he rose and drew his rapier. There - he heard it again. Voices... coming from within the caves.

He hid in the shadows until they became visible - two men, one with black hair in dark clothes and the other with white hair wearing white. The historical Doman Yin and Yang came to mind.

He stepped out of the shadows and asked, "Who are you - and how did you find us?"

Before they could answer, Miguel shouted, "Lahndo! Omega! You're back!" Miguel ran into the room, leaving a puzzled Porom behind.

"You know these guys?" Cordain asked.

"Yeah - this is Lahndo -" he pointed to the man in white, "and this is Omega -" he then pointed to the man in black. "Lahndo, Omega - this is Cordain. And her - she's Porom," he said as Porom walked into the room.

"Pleased to make your acquaintances," she said politely.

"The pleasure is mine," Lahndo said.

Omega scowled for a minute.

"What's wrong with you?" Cordain asked.

"Perfect strangers get along better than I do with anyone..." the man replied.

"I know the feeling," Cordain commented. 'It gets pretty bad when the person you're on best terms with is a 17-year-old mercenary loon who tend to turn invisible, mimic ninjas, and float you several feet up into the air at times..' he added to himself.

Now five people were united on the peak of Mt. Zozo for a righteous cause- the sorcerer Omega, the blue mage Lahndo, the mercenary Cordain, the treasure hunter Miguel, and the white wizard Porom. What they were going to do, however, no one was sure of.

Cordain sighed. The room of his former master was beginning to depress him. 'Too much emotion dealing with this room..'

He decided to speak up, "So, shall we go?"

"Anytime you guys are ready," Porom replied.

"I'm ready," Omega said.

"I, as well," added Lahndo.

"So am I," Miguel said.

"Right then - let's go.."

They all got up and began the descent down the mount. Not much conversation went on the first half of the descent - Lahndo and Omega quietly whispered to each other and to Miguel occasionally, but otherwise, it was quiet. But then, about halfway down, a single black rock dropped from above and landed at Porom's feet.

"What the - a black rock just fell from the sky."

"Oh, really?" Omega faked genuine curiosity. He was now only interested in getting out of this city. He wouldn't be so lucky.

'Hmm...' Cordain thought, 'Black...' He turned to them, "Uhh... it was probably the wind - coulda blown it down here."

"Yeah - probably the wind," Omega said.

"Oh, the wind..." Porom sighed. "Oh well, I'll keep it - it'll make a good birthday present for Palom."

"Umm..." Cordain said, "If you'll excuse me... err... nature calls..."

"Ahh, we shall wait for you here, then," Lahndo said.

"No... I'll catch up."

"Whatever you say," Omega replied.

Cordain entered a dead-end cave with no intention of relieving himself. He followed it to the end, where a large hole gaped in the ceiling, allowing light to flow through and fill up the cave. Then, as he stepped up, a figure in black jumped in through the hole.

"Cordain. I have found out what Cam is. He - or she, possibly - is a normal human being who came across a ring called the 'nomadic jewel'. This ring allows a person to disguise him or herself as any form they so desire. It can also be used to blend the wearer so well into their surroundings that he or she is quite literally invisible. Finally, it allows them to mimic any non-magical or natural energy attack they come in contact with."

"So this ring makes its wearer into the ultimate mercenary?"

"Yes, it does."

"Know anything else?"

"Not about Cam, no. About the current situation here in Zozo, yes. It has come to my attention that a large fraction of the sentry here has been drawn away from the Zozoian Headquarters in the weapon shop to the base of this mountain. If the Imperial headquarters were to be penetrated right now, it would easily free Zozo of Imperial command."

"But, how? The soldiers guarding the mountain could just as easily take it back from any invaders."

"By killing the base commander, it would greatly demoralize the troops and cause them to go into disarray, if not retreat. You, of all people, should know how to pull off this sort of attack."

Indeed, Cordain did know. He had been there that day with Kindar and Damien Regale when Cyan came up with the idea that if you killed the general, the army would retreat. Damien Regale was one of the only Doman casualties that day. He got it off easy...

When Cordain looked up again to acknowledge his source, the man in black was gone.

* * *

"Look, I'm telling you, we should attack the Zozoian headquarters right now!"

"Are you crazy?!" Omega asked. "All I want to do is get out of this... wet... town."

"Omega's right," Lahndo said, "Although I'm not going to sit here and beg to get out of the rain, I will say that that base is extremely well guarded and it isn't something to be sneezed at. On top of that, I'm not exactly that keen on following the inspirations you get going to the bathroom."

"Look - I wasn't - I mean - well... I guess I'd have to tell you anyway. See, that black rock was from my source. He told me that most of the force was stationed the base of this peak, and right now the headquarters is vulnerable. If we could kill the leader right now, all the trouble we've been having would be over."

"All this while you were taking a leak?" Omega asked.

"No... I wasn't doing that!" Cordain exclaimed.

"Look, I agree with both Cordain and Lahndo's reasoning," Miguel said, "If there is a sizable force there and we attack, we'd blow our cover, and quite easily be killed. However, there is good reason to believe that there is not much of a force at their headquarters. We might not get another chance like this. Well - I guess I don't have much of a choice but to leave it up to you, Porom."

The girl looked up at them and sighed.

"Me?" she thought to herself, in half shock.

She looked around at her new companions, hoping that one of them would give the facade away, wearing that telltale smile that would show her that it was all a joke. But the faces that looked back at her were filled with concern, confidence, (pity, perhaps?), but no trace of a snicker. Well then, she didn't have much of a choice, now did she? porom sighed in grudging compliance. And for eternal seconds, the silence ensued as no one took their eyes off of her for an instant.

"Okay, then. I take it we're kinda short on time. So, I'll think of a plan on the way to the headquarters. All you have to do is come running when I give the signal. Which I'll also invent on the way to the heaquarters. So just wait for something."

"Big strong men go and hide, and send the little girl, huh?" she muttered quietly to herself as she forced down a bitter grimace.

But as much as she refused to admit it, a little of Oalom must have rubbed off on her, because she also felt... important. With a new bout of confidence, she handed her bow and quiver to Miguel, and headed into town.

"Hey, cutie!"

It was Miguel. Porom turned. And so did the other three. That was _totally_ unlike what anyone would have expected to come from his mouth. Miguel almost grinned when he saw their reactions. He was more perceptive than they gave him credit for, and he knew that at that particular moment, that was one of the few ways to get her attention.

"Take this." He tossed her a sheathed dagger. "And be careful! We'll be right here, poised and ready. And, hey! Good luck! We're counting on you!"

Porom could have sworn she saw Miguel wink at her. She was _glowing_! This was more than she had hoped for from Miguel. Could it be that he actually cared for her? She virtually skipped off twoard the center of town.

***

Meanwhile, back at thier 'hideout', Miguel turned around to confused expressions and grins of amusement.

"She's a very liekable kid. Besides, I tought it would boost her spirits."

"You know, Miguel, that 'kid' couldn't be more than two years younger than you." Cordain had said what was, in one way or the other, on everybody's mind.

Miguel sighed inwarldy, but reamined silent. He knew. Maybe all too well.

***

"Okay, genius! So what do we do now?"

Porom had made it to the center of town, no more than two buildings away from the weapons shop, and she didn't have an inkling of a plan. The whole walk down, all she could think of was how cute Miguel looked today, and what trouble Palom was getting himself into without her. The only reason whe wasn't off looking for him was the fact that he could be anywhere. But he should have been _back_ from anywhere by now.

"Tomorrow morning." She thought to herself. "If he's not back by the time I wake up, I'll beg the guys to take me looking for him. There's no telling what he's done with no one to stop him!"

... Palom!

Porom's bazillionth lapse in focus had actually given her a wonderful idea. She glanced around her, and saw what she was looking for behind the cafe. Running over, she stepped under the only working drain pipe in sight and drenched herself.

"That ought to gain a sympathy vote or two!"

She looked herself over in a rain bucket. A drowned rat would have been a compliment. Now, if she could only fake tears....

This would have to do. She gathered up her courage and made a beeline to the Zozoian headquarters. Into the demon's lair.

***

Inside, the Captain of the Zozoian force heard a faint rap on the door.

"If it's another of those stupid backwards mountain dwellers tryin' to steal some rations, I'm gonna..."

Just then, and young girl walked hesitantly into the building. He was sure she would have been very pretty if she weren't so wet.

"Excuse me, sir. I was wondering if you could help me?"

She certainly wasn't from around here, that was true. Those filthy idiots and thieves.....

"Come in, then, dear. Dry yourself off, and have a hot cup of tea. Now where are you from, and what seems to be the problem?"

"My brother! He's missing! I can't find him!"

A familiar voice, with a hint of amusement, instructed the man to leave, seemingly out of nowhere.

"Yes, Miss Erystelle! Of course!"

Erystelle! hadn't Porom heard that name before? Of course, that's what Fritz used to call...

"Your brother," said the voice with a 'swish' of cloth, "would be dead if we had found him here."

Kit! The elf appeared in front of her.

"Thought you had gotten rid of me, child? You will pay for what you did to me. But for now, I will have my fun. I give you five seconds to run."

And she ran, turning around three seconds later to see a wall of blue fire racing towards her. The impact of it hitting her knocked her to the ground. As the flame surrounded her and finally dissipated, Porom clutched her brightly glowing medaliion and smiled. She had assumed that Fritz would have told her what the necklace did. Maybe he just didn't mention the specifics.

Porom assessed the damages. She had badly cut her arm on her fall, and she thought she'd sprained her ankle. Laying low, she dragged herself to the nearest patch of woods. She was bleeding pretty heavily. Leaving her tron and bloodstained cloa behind, she made her way through the woods behind the building where her friends were hiding.

***

The four were anxiously awaiting Porom's signal. Weapons poised, Lahndo and Omega were talking quietly between themselves, while Cordain and Miguel were sitting pensively. That is, until Porom burst in. She was bleeding heavily, and she was drenched and out of breath.

The four listened in silence as Porom recounted her failure.

***

Palom rubbed his sore head, and nursed his equally sore ego, forcing back a pout while he maintained his show of supreme Balloon Flight Commander. That was the third time this half hour that Kuralov had smacked him! He was beginning to wish his sister WAS here.. to protect him.

life is to stop the chosen one's mission.

They may not even know it, but they

must be stopped, lest the whole world

come to peril.

--The Ancient Prophecies of the Espers

There is a time for all things. Before

I said, "Destroy, Destroy, DESTROY!"

But it was time for destruction. Now

I say, "Create, Create, CREATE!"

--The Book of Kefka

Something odd was happening in the crowd of Zozoans. A man had broken loose from the crowd and was running toward the cave's entrance. The man was slightly less scruffy than the rest. His cloths looked like they had been stained and ripped, but recently, and on purpose. "Stop him!" someone cried. "He's an Imperial Spy!"

Lahndo was off like a shot. Unlike Miguel, Lahndo felt no particular attachment to these people or their struggle, but he knew that if they caught them, they'd catch him, and that meant that they'd probably attack the Church. The thought of those infidels destroying his beloved church terrified him. It all hinged on weather or not this spy escaped.

Unfortunately, it looked like he would. Lahndo was not a soldier, and, in fact, had been bedridden for quite some time before he founded the church, and, as such, was very out of shape. But, the thought of his religion being decimated spurred him on to new heights of bravery. He quickly reached out with his blue mage skills, searching for some magical power that he could utilize.

He found it. A tiny amount remained from Koparder's entrance and exit. Channeling it through the gold hairpin he wore, he increased its strength, until he had just enough magic to cast one spell. It would have to be a doozy. 'What spell should it be?' thought Lahndo... 'Gravity Bomb... too powerful, it wouldn't work. Explode? No. Flare Star? No. Havoc wing? No. What will stop him that can be cast with such little power? Wait! That's it!' Lahndo was struck by a sudden realization.

"Oh Holy Kefka, guardian of all magic, above and below, grant me the powers I desire! Give me speed beyond measure, that I may capture my enemy! Please, oh God of Gods, let me make HASTE!" Lahndo shouted the last word of his spell, and prayed a silent prayer that there was enough magic still in the world to do this.

Amazingly enough, there was! Lahndo felt himself becoming faster, and he began gaining on his enemy. "Hah! I've got you now!" Lahndo shouted, and then he laughed a funny, high pitched laugh at how silly his voice sounded. It sounded like a record played at the wrong speed. Lahndo realized that everything would be twice as fast for as long as the spell lasted. Heart rate, breathing, and even speed of thought were nearly doubled!

Then Lahndo realized that he had passed his quarry. He turned around, and charged at the spy, bringing him down with a flying tackle. The spy was knocked out by the force of Lahndo's charge. Lahndo brought him back to the cave, where Miguel, Cordain, Porom, Omega and the people of Zozo were waiting, and worrying.

He then collapsed from exhaustion as his spell wore off, and blacked out.

. . .

When Lahndo awoke, he found himself back in his home, the Town of the Faithful. And he saw himself, perhaps ten years older, giving a speech to the people. Lots of people. 'The Church must have really caught on,' thought Lahndo. 'All these people, part of the true faith.' Then he heard himself speak passionately.

"Friends, Romans, countrymen! Lend me your ears! Is it better to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, and let those who will not worship Kefka live? No! I say we go once more into the breach, dear friends, and destroy those pagans who would still worship the three dead goddesses! Lord Kefka, what fools those mortals be, who refuse to worship you in your glory! But, if it were done, 'twas best be done quickly, lest the pagans grow in number! But be careful, for if they do see thee, they will murder thee, for that is the way of the pagans! But you my children, hold tight to Kefka, for he says, 'I am proof against their enmity!' Now, go my children, and DESTROY THEM!"

Lahndo watched, as he led a charge of the faithful from town to town. He watched as they slaughtered innocent men, women and children, simply because they believed in the goddesses. The crimes his people performed made him sick to his stomach.

He began to think about what his dream-self (for this was surely a dream) had said. He had spoken about the everlasting glory of Kefka; that was good. He had roused emotion in a great crowd of people, in the name of Kefka; that was good. But there was something wrong... 'If only I knew what it was,' thought Lahndo.

He tried to remember what his dream-self had said, but was prevented from concentrating by an earthquake.

. . .

"Lahndo! Are you okay?!" Omega was shaking him awake. A look of concern was on his normally confused face.

"What? I'm fine... I was just having a nightmare... Why am I in the infirmary?" Lahndo asked. He found himself in a room with a few beds, lying next to the recovering Porom, who was being tended by Miguel.

"You collapsed after you apprehended the spy," said Miguel. "And it's a good thing you caught him. If he'd gotten through, they'd have sent up a troop of Magitek armors, and wiped us all out."

"Is this new empire that powerful? And that cruel?"

"Yes on both counts," Omega replied. "We got a lot of information out of that spy you captured. The new empire is controlled by Sascha DelAubre, a woman they call 'The Beast', and Akfek, evil brother to the Madman who destroyed the world!"

Lahndo grimaced, and tried to keep from strangling Omega. It looked like the chance to convert someone without preconceptions to the Church had come and gone. "What kind of weapons do their armies have?" he asked, returning to the topic at hand. "We'll need to know if we have to go up against them."

"They have Magitek armor, invisible airships, thousands of troops, fully working magical sources, and," Miguel concluded, "just to top it all off, some kind of brainwashing that makes all of the villagers that are still in the village believe them to be the good guys!"

"So it looks like we don't have a chance, huh?" Lahndo replied despairingly.

"Well, actually, Miguel and Cordain have hashed out a plan," Omega revealed, "Cordain's training the villagers to fight right now, and here's what we're gonna do..."