Chapter 12: South ----------------- "South, ever south we go, Find an end to the blowing snow..." They had been walking all day. South. But what exactly was south? Oh right. A big magic source. And? Did they really want to be going there? Who or what would they find? Did they really want to know? Kuralov and Ciara were still at it, speaking that strange language. Ciara still hadn't quite got the hang of it. The only time Kain had tried, the moogle made an astonished face and muttered something about that "not being fit to repeat in public". He had just left it at that. His musings were interrupted when Kuralov, who had been walking up front, stopped suddenly. He walked right in to Ciara. "Ow! Hey, watch where you're going!" "Huh? Oh, I am sorry." "Hey guys, look up there!" Kuralov was pointing at a large black coloured object that seemed to falling from the sky. It almost seemed to be heading straight for them... "SCATTER!" Kain shouted as he leapt aside. His two companions quickly followed suit. * * * Palom had been, up to that point, enjoying the ride. That is, until he noticed that he wasn't as high as he had been a moment ago. Then he heard a strange tearing sound, and started to fall. He though for a moment that this might just be the single most exciting thing he had done in his life. Except for killing Zeromus, of course. Not that he had actually _been_ there, but he should have. He was after all Palom, the Great Mysidian Black Magician of Old (now reduced to being Master Ninja and Bravest Hero to have ever Flown in a Balloon.) He did not, however, much like the though that this might possibly be his *last* most exciting event. He decided that his best course of action would be to aim for the band of travellers he had spotted awhile ago, and pray to the goddesses they might be able to do something for him. For a moment, he almost wished his sister was here... 'Palom, you twit!' His mental image of her bonked him on the head. 'I told you this was a bad idea!' Then again, maybe not. He looked up to see the travellers scatter before him. Then he hit. * * * Through some strange twist of fate, the balloon managed to twist itself over before impact, and Palom was dumped uninjured on the still deflating balloon. He slid down and stood up. Kuralov was the first to speak up. Ciara's first reaction, after seeing that the passenger was alright, was to check out the balloon. "What the Kupo was the all about?" Palom took his cue. "Greetings, traveller! I am Palom, the Great Mysidian Black Magician of Olden times, now Master Ninja of the World, and the Bravest Hero to have Ever Dared the Skies in a Balloon!" His bow saved him seeing the dubious looks the companions gave him. "And what are you?" He pointed at Kuralov. "Oh, kupo, not another one..." he muttered to himself. "I am Kuralov, a moogle. This," he gestured at the dragoon (who was silently watching the strange adolescent, and wondering what on the Blue Planet could make him wear his hair like that), "is Kain, and the girl who is currently scavenging your flying device is Ciara. Sorry, no titles," he added sarcastically. 'Kain, Kain, Kain. Hmmmm....' He -knew- he'd heard that name before, and he did kinda look familiar. As familiar as any two guys wearing armor can look, anyways. Then he remembered. "Hey! Your not _the_ Kain, are you? Boy what a jerk. Wouldn't even come to your best friend's wedding... Nah. Couldn't be. Wrong time period. Good thing too, he screwed over his friends bi - Hey, ow!" Kuralov poked him in the thigh with the flame spear. He looked over at Kain who had turned away. "*Shut up!* Kupopo. Some humans... just don't have any tact." He wandered over to check on his tall friend, leaving a very confused Palom behind. Never one to be left out of the action for long, the ex- mage went over to check on Ciara. "I can fix it!" She declared when she heard the approaching footsteps. She looked up and saw Palom. "So what _is_ south form here anyways, Mr Air-Borne?" "Well, that's silly! You don't even know where you're going? There isn't anything south except for water. And some continents." "Kupo." She wasn't really thinking about what she meant, it just seemed to be the right thing to say. She frowned. "Well... I can fix your balloon, even modify it a bit to make it bigger, IF you take us across the water." "Hey! I'm a Hero, not a Ferryman!" Kain and Kuralov had come over to see what was going on. Then the latter spoke up. "Well then. Narshe is directly north. You'd better start walking. We'll find our own way. see-ya!" He waved and started walking away. He was quickly followed by Ciara. Kain, who hadn't said anything during the whole encounter, stop looking at the adolescent before starting off after his friends. Of course, as soon as Palom clued in that they probably *would* just leave, he spoke up. "Hey wait!" He ran after them. "Where are you going, anyways? Maybe I'll take you... err, let you be graced with my presence, that is." He tried to strike a sophisticated looking pose, but it just kind of flopped on him. Kuralov barley managed to stifle a guffaw. It was Kain who spoke. He was peering intently at Palom, making the 'Ninja Master' a little nervous. "Well, Palom, great Mysidian black magician of legend, we are going to magic." His face lit up. His mind filled with thoughts of regaining his own power, impressing his sister, and, of course, ridding the world of that wench and her pet monkey. He struck another pose that, while it would have looked sophisticated on Edgar, only succeeded in making him look like a lemming caught in a wind trap. He sighed for effect. "Well, alright. I'm sure we can work something out." "Great," replied Ciara. "I'll start making the alterations. It might take awhile; I have to enlarge the basket, and add more air capacity to the balloon..." Kuralov leaned over to her. "Yeah," he whispered, "and if we are still too heavy we can throw Mr. Wonder full over the side..." Thankfully for Palom's ego, he didn't overhear. "We might as well stay here for the night then," Kain added. "I'll start setting up." * * * Later that night, Ciara was still working away, Kain was off thinking - he had been doing a lot of that lately - and Palom was harassing Kuralov. "So what exactly is a moogle anyways? Where do they live? What do they eat? What does Kupo mean..." "Look, you," Kuralov glared at him. "If you want to learn about moogles, I've already said Narshe is to the north. Just tell them -" He grinned maliciously. "- tell them you're a friend of Kuralov. That ought to endear them." Then the oogle sighed inwardly. He really wished he knew what exactly was going on. Why were they after him? "Geeze! I might as well have been caught by the Empire for all the love in this group!" Palom wandered off to see what Ciara was doing. Kain who had been half musing, half listening, wondered at what he had said. What empire? Had there always been one? Did this have anything to do with those strange people who had tried to steal him away before Cecil had come? And what about the boy? Who was he? Had he been talking about him? He knew he came from the past, and so, seemingly did the boy... What had he done to his friends that was so bad he couldn't remember? He wished Cecil were here so he could talk to him. And where was Cecil? What had happened to him, and Lola, and Omega... He liked his new friends (well, except for Palom - how could a boy be so _annoying_?), but he was still concerned for the old. He supposed that, like the rest, he would just have to wait and see what new adventure morning would bring...