Chapter 9: In Which Lahndo and Omega Travel to Mount Zozo
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            The path that must be followed will be
            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!"