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The next morning things were rather tense, with even the chocobos now feeling sheer animosity towards both James and Baldwin glaring at each other cruelly. Luke the short-haired red-tipped chocobo was more subdued than usual, not even half as eager to pick on his brother like always which in turn worried Asch the long-haired brethren. He nuzzled Luke gently thinking something was off, the two rubbing beaks gently as they walked on towards Archadia's border region. Navarro began with: "We will do this calmly, kupo. Me and Dahlia will go first with our papers, then you three will follow." "Why you two?" asked FG. "Because-" "You'll sszhee," said Baldwin darkly. "Sszhe knowsszh why, you don't wanna sszhay anythin' an' not look ignorant...right, Navarro?" "...just be prepared and don't do anything stupid, kupo. For the sake of our mission." The border checkpoint was a large greystone gate of four interior rooms manned by several guards in a closed valley bottleneck, making it the perfect forced passage route for any travellers to succumb to Archadian diligence. Approaching with their chocobos single file they were halted by a strong-armoured hume reaching up towards a fine 6'6'', impenetrably covered from head to toe as a traditional knight. "Hold." The travellers stopped upon instruction as Navarro pulled the reins back keeping Lightning on her toes. The iron gate had an aura of amber magic circling its centre, making James wonder what exactly they had for the equivalent of security checks as the guard approached the moogle. "Could you all dismount yer chocobos please?" They did as they were asked with reins still in hand cautiously. He had a voice James imagined sounded disturbingly like that of London's rough East End. It left a bad taste for him to hear it, memories of bad words from his youth and suddenly he became all too aware of both him and Cadbury looking rather rough-beat from the zaghnal fight previously, swollen bruised cheeks. "Loicence an' registration miss." Navarro brought out several documents, authenticating firstly her clan title along with the purchase of her chocobo, the hume guard simply nodding. "Miss Navarro Rocino ehh? Huh, any relation?" "Yes," said the moogle, "my family own the ranch kupo." "Ohhhh oi see, huh, well that's sumthin' oi reckon, purpose for border crossing ma'am?" "We are travelling to Balfonheim." "Tradin' in yer bird for an airship?" "No, just business." "Well this all checks out, just place all yer items ou' on the soide there an' step roigh' on through the portal." The moogle did as she was requested, pulling her chocobo along behind her to the strange amber gateway showing the area beyond clearly. She placed all her items cautiously, the whole satchelful of things as one guard began inspecting everything vocalising his find. "Six bottles of potions...two golden hairpins...three bags of softs...one mythril short sword-" "Dahlia," murmured James. "Y-yes?" "Can you do me a favour?" "Um...yes, of course, what is it?" "Take this."

He brought out an odd-looking thing to the nu-mou, something both strange and beautiful for her aesthetic sense. What appeared to be a hyper-realistic miniature painting of an unusual threesome of creatures, resembling yellow-skinned turtles with pure green shells. They smiled sweetly waving at the viewer, amidst a brilliant tropical beach with pure blue sky. The only thing that seemed off about the portrait was the odd reddened stain across what appeared to be the raptor's own face, smudged horrendously. "What's this?" "It's something very precious to me," replied FG, "I want you to take it through, just put it in your coat, don't pull it out." "Wh-wh-what? But...that's not...what if they search me?!" "They won't, trust me, that photo's not magic, what's that aura do anyway?" "It detects any magical objects you have on your possession, but I don't-" "It's not magic. Please. I don't want them to take it from me." "Wh-why would they?" "Just...please..." He clasped her hands dearly with a look of plea on his face. "This photo is very important to me...it's the only thing that's kept me going through all this. I need it kept safe with me...please. They won't search you but I heard things about Archadia, I know it might not happen, but they might do just in case so please do this. I trust you." Shoving the photo in her hands cautiously he let her do what she wished as she felt the pressure undertake her. She wasn't expecting this, suddenly becoming some form of mule to the leader of her clan, was it illegal? What was so bad about a portrait, an incredibly good portrait supposedly not magic, that it would cause suspicion from the Archadians?! Why did he call it a photo of all things when that was clearly a small portrait?! "Miss Dahlia Orosco?" "Y-YES!?" The nu-mou startled herself as she stood up to attention upon hearing her name being called, having not realised she had moved forwards and was now in front of the security officer looking at her papers. He barely looked over them simply handing them back. "You'll have to also deposit your magic tome on the display table before going through that portal miss, need to check everythin' out. Also your staff as well." "Y-yes sir...I understand." She found herself soon standing at the entrance to the portal gasping to see Navarro on the other side waving blankly. Depositing her items except for one, she slowly walked through the barrier along with her chocobo Rinoa as the magic tome sat in waiting along with everything else she had. "One magic tome, white mage classification." Fear and panic rose in her, whimpering silently as she prayed the alarm would not go off for James' mysterious portrait. "One reference book entitled 'Electrical Revue'." What if it really was enchanted, what if it had some terrible curse on it, she was CERTAIN that there was blood on it. "Four bottles of potion." What could be so important about it, what were those strange creatures so adorably looking up to her?! What if- "A-AAAH!" The alarm went off, not an incredibly loud alarm but still terrifying her out of her wits as she stood fearfully before the aura pushed her back out falling nearly on her tush, were it not for Rinoa the chocobo budging into her also panicking slightly. "I-I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY PLEASE!" "Calm down miss," said the guard at the table, "lemme just check you over in case of something, it's just probably some aura rubbing off you from your magic tome." She stood perfectly still and waited as one guard waved a baton of the same lingering aura of the portal scanner, checking over every part of her clothed body as she waited fearfully. She expected them to find the photo and end up five years in prison, or something else awful but before her imagination could scare her much further, the guard found the source of the magical disturbance. A chittering sound next to her ear. "Could you remove your piercing please, madame?" "Wh-what?" "Your ear piercing, it appears to be magical and it's interfering with the scanner." "...OH! Ohhhhh hohoho I completely forgot I am so sorry! Hohoho, oh, I'm such an idiot, forgive me." "That's quite alright, happens quite often, protective enchantment is it?" "Y-yes...quite, it...does protect me...some sort." "Alright then just put it down here and I'll pass it to you on the other side." "Al-...a-a-alright."

Gently pulling out her dark stone piercing she placed it on the tray before walking through the iron gate with much greater confidence than she had previously. The scanner did not alert anyone as she made it through, sighing sweetly with her eyes closed as her mind became a panicked mess of relief before she heard Navarro stop her from moving too far ahead. "Breathe." Her words cut through her thoughts like a silver knife as she gasped with an exhale of breath, the moogle holding onto her shoulders tenderly as she bowed down. Dahlia nodded nervously as she walked to the other side of the iron gate's display table to collect her items, perfectly safe and through. Now all they had to do was wait for their friends to come through as James approached first, thankful that Dahlia had made it through as he handed his identification over. The hume knight looked surreptitious at him, leering beneath his helmet. "Mr. James Robert Campbell...thas an odd name." "Yeah well my parents chose it," James said, "what you gonna do?" "Says here you're the clan leader of this group, that roigh'?" "Yep, six months ago, officiated by Berniere Lavant of-" "Mmhmm, roigh' roigh', says so 'ere. Nasty look on yer face though, been in a foigh'?" "Heh, yeaaaah me and my boy Cadbury here got into a bad scrap with some zaghnals, hoho...it was not pretty but I'm just glad we got out of it." "You paid for this chocobo sir?" "Yep sure did, Navarro herself made the transaction, she can authenticate the papers." "You sure abou' that?" "Huh?" The hume brought out the paper in question which very clearly had Navarro's signature. "We may need to doublecheck this." "Well...okay, hey that's no problem I mean you got the writer herself right there." "Don't tell me 'ow to do my job sir." "I'm...I wasn't, sorry I just meant this'll be easy." "Really now? Step over would you sir?" Already James felt nervous but he knew he had to play it cool knowing he wasn't doing anything wrong. Taking Cadbury along with him, he placed his satchel and both weapons on the table tray as the guard went through them, the raptor warning him: "Uhh don't touch the scissors barehanded by the way, word of warning." "Why's that?" "Well they're...magic, see and they tend to react badly to anyone not the owner of them, kind of an enchantment see." "Ahhh, I see. This your weapon sir?" "Yeah I've had it for maybe ten years?" "You got a licence for that?" "Um...no I thought I didn't need one." "Ahhh...normally you need a licence for a magic-based weapon." "I'm a spellblade, I have my authenticity here." He showed the document of his clan status proving such as the hume sucked in his teeth, disapproving as he shook his head. "That may be but all magic weapons must have a licence on them." "You didn't ask Miss Orosco's licence for her staff." "Staffs are not weapons sir." This was the point he started smelling bullshit but decided to just reply with: "Iiiii am pretty sure they are." "You saying you know better than me, Mr. Campbell?" "Well no, but I DO know that staffs are weapons and they are bought in weapon shops and if you didn't ask Miss Orosco for her licence, why are you asking ME?" "Because unless you want me to put you in a cell fer a year or two, you'll obey the rules of Archadia and produce a magic weapons licence. Now...do you have one?" "He does, kupo!" Navarro called out through the gate and walked up towards the other side of the gate showing proof of identification concerning said weapon. James was simply gobsmacked with alacrity at her for the sudden pull as the soldier looked over the small document nodding. "Turns out you do." "Huh...someone must have...kept all those documents safely just in case." "My apologies," said Navarro humbly. James simply glowered at her as she simply shrugged before James was allowed finally to go through with all his items checked. "One wooden training sword...one magic-based weapon of bastard-sword length...one small rock of unknown origin with keychain attached...one metallic diode of unknown origin, magnetic...one small bell, possibly for a cat of some sort...one small roll of tapestry cloth..."

Suddenly the alarm went off as James passed through the aura monitor. He sighed rolling his eyes as the magic field pushed him back almost bumping up against Cadbury. He steadied him with a single look telling him to be cool as the hume guards investigated. "Please spread your arms and legs sir. Do you have any other magical possessions on you?" "I don't think so," said FG calmly, "not sure what else you got for me." "Hmmm...seems like residue from the magic weapon sir." "Maybe," said the chief guard of pronounced accent, "or maybe 'e's holdin' out sumthin' insoid o' him." "Wait wh-what?!" asked the raptor nervously "Step over to the proivate room for examination Mr. Campbell." You can't be serious, thought FG to himself. You have got absolutely nothing on me, you did not give nearly enough trouble to Dahlia for this seriously. "F-fine, okay but um, what about my chocobo?" "If 'e can pass through the aura without setting it off then 'e can go." "Alright...Cadbury, go to Navarro. Go to her." "Kweh?!" said the black chocobo haughtily. "Just do it, go to her alright, don't worry about me." "...kwehhhh-" "Don't. I can handle this alright dude?" The bird was suspicious and more than eager to make a ruckus but saw James' eyes coldly tell him to stand down and walk through the checkpoint. Swaggering as if defying authority, he made it through as Navarro grabbed onto his reins to keep him checked whilst his rider was getting a very personal examination. As the raptor was being interrogated physically despite every part of his body wanting to resist behind a door in a closed room, the bangaas were up next. "Mr. Baldwin Smithee...heh." "Yep," said the monk sternly, "that'sszh me sszhir." "Don't talk please." "Mmmmngh." "Did you buy this chocobo yourself?" "Mmhmm," said Baldwin nodding. "Same as yer friend bein' examined over there?" "Mmhmm." "...step over to the counter please would you." The bangaa looked nervously at them before placing all of his items down onto the tray, the raptor's having been put to one side until he was cleared to go through as the monk's belongings were scoured through. "Four potions...three echo screens...two packs of condoms-" "Hheheh," said Baldwin nervously, "can't be too careful." "What's this?" The officer brought up a small packet of crushed herbs which the monk shrugged off. "Oh that'sszh jusszht mint herbsszh, don't worry about it." "Really? Are you quite certain of that sir?" "Um...I am, go on, sszhmell them." "You realise that contraband like this will have to be confiscated and you will be on warning at the very least." "What, contraband it'sszh jusszht herbsszh, you can't get high off that, they're jusszht mint!" "These will have to be confiscated for security reasons, you will also have to consent to a drug test." "What the-...ohhh really, what a sszhurprisszhe you asszhk the bangaa to do thisszh." "I am merely doing my job." "Of coursszhe you are. Take them, like I sszhaid they are jusszht mintsszh, go ahead and check me." "Very well." Baldwin was given a small cup, realising exactly how they were going to test it as he looked with silent outrage towards Dahlia and Navarro on the other side of the large gate. Soon James was finished as he walked out a little bow-legged, wincing slightly but otherwise none the worse for wear apart from some small dignity of his. Baldwin had no such offer of dignity and was expected to produce a result of his urine in front of perhaps eight armed soldiers, the one who examined James stating: "All clear boss, got nothin' on him." "Alrigh' then," said the chief, "go on through Mr. Campbell."

James tried to do so once more, and again the alarm went, making him groan with frustration as he walked through before it could push him back simply being acknowledged that he was just cursed with the ruboff from his weapon. The final member was soon interrogated, asked by the chief of the border checkpoint who also saw an extra identity card amongst his belongings. A very prodigious-looking title embossed in clear unusual metals, worthless on its own but still very unique. "Mr. Fayne Smithee?" "Indeed?" "Wot's this?" "My identity, being a prelate of Lea Monde Grand Cathedral by the light of Kiltia." "Ohhh a bishop eh? Huh...musta run out of folks when they hoired you." "I have been part of the cathedral for...thirty-seven-years...my-good-sir." "Hohoho, jeez you 'ear that?! Thirty years 'e says!" "He don' half talk strange fer a bangaa!" replied back another guard. "Yeah," said a third, "least he don't sszhlur all over the place spitting everywhere like this 'un!" "Please," said Fayne promptly, "no need for that, I am merely a traveller along with my clan, I have been well-taught by the mean of orthoepy." "You wot?! What kinda dictionary you been readin', hey boss! Whoever 'eard of a lizard speakin' like a hume?!" Fayne stuttered at hearing this as chuckling came from the guards, struggling to restrain himself from screeching. "WHA-...h-h-how DARE you call me that term, I am offended!" "What?! I calls 'em like I see 'em!" "What manner of...operation do you run here, I am a member of the clergy!" "You sure got a mouth on you," said the chief, "the cap'n back 'ome won' BELIEVE this one, a bangaa bishop talkin' loik he walked out of a friggin' loibary!" "I am a prelate of Lea Monde, how dare you denigrate me!" "An' we're the boys of Archadia, mister walking thesaurus, so maybe think carefully abou' yer next choice of words." He calmed down and knew he was not going to win against authority of this type as he simply breathed in deep, softly conferring his next choice. "Forgive me...I am merely...passing-through, may I proffer you gentlemen to grant me the way forward?" "Hhhehehe...wow, look at 'im, no slur whatsoever...you musta been well trained." "I am VERY well-educated, if I may toot my own horn upon mention. May I go through...kind-sir?" "Alrigh'. But do one thing for us." "Very well, what may that be?" "...we wanna hear a tongue twister from ya, since yer so smart an' well educated apparently. If you can say it once withou' slippin' up, we'll let ya through seein' how high an' mighty you are of the clergy." "I...see, and what be the riddle?" "...she sells sea shells...by the sea shore." The bishop nearly stammered with hot fear running through him as he heard the words pile up onto him. The same feeling of stage fright of hot pits and sweating hands washed over him, gasping slightly as he asked: "Wh-...why do you want me to...repeat that?" "Wot?!" said the chief. "Just a li'l puzzle fer ya, yer not afraid of that aren't you able to speak all proper-loik, loik a clergyman so you say! Come on then, let's 'ear this tongue-twister mister thirty-years-up-in-the-clergy." He gripped his staff tightly holding on with anxiety as Baldwin looked round at him turning fearful all the more for him. He shook his head pleading him not to say anything, but Fayne simply stood up tall and did his very best. His voice was shaking suddenly in a way that James had not heard since. "...she...h-h-h-h-hhhhhh...hhhhs-s-s-sells...ffffffffhhhh...s-s-ssssseeeeea....hhhhhhhhHHHHHSSSZZZZHHHHEEE_AAAARGH!" "HAHAHAHAHA!" roared the cackling chief. "Well lookie 'ere, turns out you can take the lizard out of a slither bu' you can't take the slither out of a lizard can you?! Wanna try again my ol' son?" "STOP IT! Enough with your...charade, I have proven my authority do not play with me like a child!" "Aw wotsa matter scaly-shins? Not wanna play anymore? Oi ain' gonna let ya through until you gimme wot we's want to 'ear now come on! COME ON, SHOW ME YER A REAL CHOIRBOY!" "SHE. Hhhhh...SELLS! SSSSSEEEEAA! SSSSSHHHHZZZZZELLSSSZH-_AAAAAAGH!" "Hahahaha, wrong again me ol' muck." The men started laughing as the clan looked on watching Fayne turn inwards with disgust and shame, whimpering lowly as he cupped his face into his hands gasping tearfully. He softly pleaded: "Why...will you not let me THROUGH?!" "You haven't done wot I asked mate, you follow the rules, loik everyone else." "YOU ARE JUSSZHT-...YOU...YOU ARE BULLYING ME, YOU ARE NOT ACTING LIKE A PROFESSZHIONAL, THISSZH ISSZH BENEATH YOU!" "Don't you dare try an' spit on me with that tongue of yers lizard. You know wot 'appens to those who get spit on my armour?" "P-pleasszhe...let me through...I have done nothing to offend you, there isszh no need for thisszh sszhort of behavi-GUUUH!" "FAAAYNE!"

The chief slammed his fist into the bishop's gut as he gasped falling to his knees, wincing hard as Baldwin tried to rush him before two soldiers grabbed his shoulders and slammed him hard to the dirt. The two chocobos started panicking but one guard grabbed both of them before tying them to a hitching post to make sure they wouldn't start trouble. Cuffs immediately came onto Baldwin without warning as he roared out: "LEAVE HIM ALONE, YOU FUCKIN' PIESSZHE OF SSSZHIT, THAT'SSZH MY BROTHER!" "QUIET PONDSCUM!" shouted one guard to his ear. "THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" cried James. "Yer friends are tryin' to cause trouble, no surprise there, tryin' to start a fight at a border checkpoint." "YOU PUNCHED HIM FIRST WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM!?" "SHUT UP!" The head of the border crossing turned towards James with leering long steel finger. "This...has nuthin' to do with you." "RELEASE MY CLAN NOW!" roared Navarro. "YOU HAVE NO REASON TO HOLD THEM KUPO!" "Best 'old them now, before they make a reason fer me later on." "What are you talking about?!" "One of 'em's got contraband an' the other wants to spit on me suit, that blatant disregard of authority is good enough to throw these lizards in the klink." "You have NO RIGHT! They are members of my clan authority and have not broken any laws kupo!" "Not yet anyway." "THAT'S IT!" James marched back through the security portal as it rang off in his ears striding up towards the chief before one guard grabbed him to try and take him down. But instead of trying to fight he simply put his hands up as if surrendering for a full three seconds before they slammed him down to the dirt next to Baldwin. The hume officer on top of him went: "Well lookat this, resisting arrest are we?!" "Oh, is THAT what you call surrendering now?!" "Quiet lizard!" "What are you gonna do to us, throw us in jail for NOTHING?!" "You all 'ave yer misdemeanours," said the chief. "In fact...well well, look at this." He kicked Fayne over as he noticed something shining inside his robe, pulling out the short glinting dagger. Even with the helmet on James knew the chief was grinning as Fayne struggled to sit up breathing heavily. "Concealed weapon ehhhh? Now you're really in trouble." "I-i made no attempt to hide it!" cried Fayne. "You never let me claim it at the checkpoint, that isszh part of my duty to the church PLEASSZHE I-" "SHUDDUP!"

The hume slammed his foot across the bishop's snout knocking him down once again, bruised across the face with swollen dark cheek as Baldwin screamed with fury. "YOU SSZHON OF A WHORE, I'LL KILL YOU!" "Well that's perfect, threatenin' an officer of the law, now that racks up yer monthly toime in jail a good notch. Fuckin' lizard, think yer so above everyone with yer hat an' togs, bein' all holier-than-thou, you disgust me thinkin' you can preach any word of our lord Faram from that filthy tongue of yours." "A-AAAH!" Fayne cried out as the foot pushed briefly against his swollen cheek making it hurt that much more, the snarling chief saying under his breath: "You need a li'l ground lesson in learnin' sum manners." "STOP IT!" Dahlia and Navarro came back through the checkpoint, the nu-mou setting off the alarm but pushing through before it could repel her back. "STOP THIS, YOU'RE HURTING THEM! THEY'VE DONE NOTHING WRONG!" "Please get back miss, we don' wanna get you hurt." "NO! They have done nothing wrong, why are you doing this to them?!" "Isn't it obvious?!" cried FG. "They're racist fucks these people!" "Thaaaaat's roigh'," said the chief derisively, "go an' play yer race card loik anyone else cares 'ere in Archadia." "I do." Navarro walked forwards stridantly towards the chief officer, who from her perspective was impenetrably a mountain of a man before speaking: "Do you not remember what my clan leader said to you, kupo? Or rather what he said before you so brusquely cut him off? We are authenticated by Clan Herne, more specifically that of Berniere Lavant. Now I think you well know of his reputation and what command he can bring to your army." "An' wot's that got to do with it, madame?" "Do you really want to bring the Hero of the South Quarter himself, to your miserable excuse of a border crossing where you have repeatedly shown to humiliate and subjectively abuse certain races, as according to the current nonexistant treaties of Archadia's standard, kupo? I do not think he will appreciate having to spend time and money just to reverse your blatant errors in judgement for your sake of gratification." "...madame. You better choose yer next words carefully...won't do you no good insultin' our kingdom." "If you try to throw my clan here in jail, including my leader, then I shall be forced to come with you and in turn I shall be calling Mr. Lavant, who I know personally from knight academy of twelve years, kupo. He is a VERY busy mog and I don't think he would appreciate an old friend and former training partner, as in one who is able to stand against him in combat, being arrested on falsified charges by an oafish upstart in a tin suit in order to bloat his current track record. If you dare incarcerate my clan, Mr. Lavant is going to be very disappointed...in fact, I do remember him being part of the Archadian council on certain finances...namely that of your...ahem...union, kupo." The guards all looked at each other upon realising what she was threatening, Fayne and Baldwin grunting as they tried to resist lightly whilst James kept look upon the knight sternly facing up towards the high chief. Moments passed stretching out into minutes, already feeling as if they were serving their jail sentence as he made one last attempt, stating: "Wot makes you think he can even get to you in toime?" "Need I remind you how swiftly he came to Archadia to save the Southern Quarter from being decimated by a horde of beasts? What was it now, three days? Two? In fact, I recall last seeing him in Lea Monde just...west...of here, kupo. About two days hence. The choice is yours, sergeant. Or is that captain?" The chief started to look hesitant tapping his foot nervously, as Navarro stood with hands behind her back perfectly firm in posture before the two-feet-taller suit of armour. Eventually the threat turned too great as his hand threw up in the air with his new command. "Let them go." "You wot?!" said his subordinate. "But sir-" "LET them go NOW! An' don't confiscate any of their stuff, just let it all through!" The soldiers got off James and Baldwin who rushed over to help Fayne onto his feet, wounded clearly with bruised cheek and a sore stomach as he hobbled over towards the portal. Heading through with their possessions processed, they gently sat up onto their chocobos as Dahlia cured Fayne of his wounds stinging with a hot-cool soothing warmth. Blistering at first but eventually cooling off upon freshening his burst skin, he sighed heavily replying: "Thank you." Before they headed off the chief of Archadia's checkpointgave one word of warning briefly. "You ever come through 'ere again...you better no' have done anythin' or oi'll toss you into prison myself."

They said no more words as slowly they made approach towards the northeast region of Valendia, wounded in more than one place upon their bodies and pride as they entered the forest regions. A strange forest that which encompassed more than just darkness and intrigue for them as they gently made their way through, Navarro out in front with Dahlia riding behind alongside Fayne. James and Baldwin kept in the middle of the small chocobo parade as the bishop cautiously repeated: "Th-thank you...all of you." "Especially you Navarro," added Dahlia, "the way you stood down that awful person was incredible! I had no idea you could command such authority." "I don't," replied the moogle, "that is Berniere's name, not mine kupo." "The fuck was wrong with those people?!" asked James sharply. "It's like being at home all over again, fuck this." "Archadiansszh," said Baldwin darkly, "they desszhpiszhe usszh, hate bangaa fer even being here." "Not all of them do surely," replied Dahlia swiftly. "Ohhh yesszh of coursszhe, not all of them hate usszh riiiiiight...sszho they did not like the look of me and my brother, or lizzzhardsszh asszh they call usszh." "A few guards at a checkpoint do not mean-" "NO, it DOESSZH mean Dahlia, it DOESSZH mean everything, everything about them and their blatant power-grabbing! You were talking about thisszh EXSZHACT SSSZHAME THING back in Lea Monde with that old nu-mou!" "I meant their POLICY not their people, I did not blanket-state the entire populace of being prejudiced towards bangaas, that's not true! It can't be true!" "THEN YOU ARE A FOOL FOR IT!" "Wh-what?!" "HEY-EY-EY!" called FG. "Don't talk shit that you'll regret, come on we got through the checkpoint you can deal with them another way." "No, YOU deal with them you fucking sszhitpacker you have no idea what we've gone through!" He turned towards Baldwin with a look of incredulity, outrage and pure confusion slightly wincing with one cheek raised up. "...I'm sorry, WHAT did you call me?!" "You don't know what we've been through, what MY people have gone through, prejudisszhed by those filthy Archadiansszh! All high an' mighty in their perfect little sszhitty white coatsszh an' glosszhy sszhkin while they let bangaasszh sszhuffer in the sszhtreetszh, killed for no reasszhon by the people sszhupposszhed to PROTECT, they don't even get put on trial for it! Ohhh and let'sszh not forget the annexszhing of sszhmaller countriesszh, NOBODY talksszh about my people who jusszht 'mysszhteriousszhly disszhappear' from all thisszh well let me tell you, there isszh no masszh exszhodusszh becausszhe there are masszh GRAVESSZH of usszh out there! We sszhuffer more than anyone elsszhe in Ivalice, and you will NEVER undersszhtand that, my sszho-called leader." James allowed Baldwin to rant away whilst he slowly constructed his answer, feeling a bit tired of his attitude the past day or two and decided to put him down a notch. It was about two minutes later of total silence that he then asked: "Weren't you raised in Lea Monde?" "Huh?!" "You grew up in Lea Monde, right? In the church?" "Yeah?" "Fifty years, adopted, raised by kind hearts and given warm beds." "Yeah...sszho?" "...heheheh...okay, stop." "Huh?" "Everyone stop, RIGHT NOW!" Making his chocobo stop, the whole clan suddenly came to a halt as he got off his mount walking over to Baldwin. Navarro groaned with frustration building up in her as James asked: "Could you get down from your chocobo please?" "Why? ...you want to fight me?" "Get. Down." "You don't tell me what to do." "Yes I do, you are still part of my clan Baldwin and when I tell you to jump, you jump the fuck off your chocobo and get down NOW!"

Practically pumping himself up for a fight, the monk stepped down from his mount and walked close towards FG, the other clan members looking suspiciously to each other as Baldwin clenched his fists. James however did not even lift a finger as he placed his hands behind his back, starting his argument with: "Let me ask you something." "Huh?" "Do you remember what your parents looked like?" "...uh...n-no." "Do you know what happened to them?" "I...I don't know, wh-what isszh thisszh?!" "You have no idea what happened to them, so you got no real start to all this, not like say, your parents being killed in a mass riot or something?" "...what the sszhit are you talking about?" "Did they, or did they not? Answer me." "I don't know, Fayne did they?!" "No," said Fayne, "I do not remember anything like that to our family." "So your parents never died because your species had a huge riot against humans in a large city, and the violence was so overpowering it destroyed the first home you ever had? No? What happened to them?" He turned towards Fayne curiously with pondering pursed lips as the bishop mumbled nervously: "I...I-i-i don't remember. It...i-i-it happened when we were v-very young, forgive me but I am very sszhaken from my asszhault at the checkpoint, I am not in the mood to remember old unhappy far-off thingsszh-" "Alright...that's cool, no worries. Now..." He turned back to Baldwin curiously with a derisive smirk on his face. "How about ever having a nice normal family when you were say, eight?" "I...we had the church," said Baldwin simply. "Oh good, good. And they looked after you for what, fifty years was it?" "Yesszh?" "That's good. I had a family once. Adopted me, see my parents were killed in a riot, that's where I was coming from. They weren't even a part of it, just someone destroyed my house with a whole blazing fire and they died in it, but I survived that. I was two, I was found in a laundry closet and I don't remember what my mum and dad look like. Then I got adopted, six years later, nice people, kinda boring, mundane, don't remember much but it was peaceful, yanno." James said this as he walked slowly around Baldwin who kept his fists tight waiting for a punch. He never saw James raise his hand at any point as he kept talking. "Then I was fourteen, and for all that time we lived on this street full of humans, I mean, humes as you call them and...well they really hated us, not being very hume, all mixed-race and non-hume this perfect boring little mixed family. So they made up false reports, banded together to make it all seem more legit and made false statements to the police that I was being abused...just so they could separate us and take me away from them." "W-wait, what?" asked Baldwin. "Because they couldn't stand having that small liiiiiittle spot of non-human stain on their perfect little street...and course where I was living it was not just the sort of place one could just, throw a brick at a window or something." "Ah...o-okay?" "My first family was taken from me, not by humans, not by my own race but by both of them in blind hatred for each other. My second family was taken from me by humans because they were arrogant, and I lost any chance of having a perfect life growing up normally and was cast out on the streets because fuck going back into the system as a foster child at fourteen. Have you ever seen kids that age go back in the system? I have, it's no wonder they all end up all really fucked over one way or another, if the law don't get them then their own vices will cuz the fuck else you gonna do when nobody else wants you." "Wha-Jamesszh, what are you sszhaying?" "Homeless for a few months...stole from people, I wasn't a nice kid I admit, I was pretty much a punkass shit that frankly deserved a lot for things I did back then...adopted by a woman who took care of me, fed me, raised me sorta, she had problems but we got through them. Nice lady, bartender, kind of strong-armed the whole neighbourhood underneath her sort of like a neighbourhood watch thing only more uh...violent, I mean it works unless you're a REAL piece of shit then it got worse. But she was all I had and she did her best...can you guess what happened eight years after I was in her care?" "...uhhh-" "Humes. They took her away from me, a fake army wannabe group, pretending to be all big boys in jumped-up straps and fake army badges, kidnapped me and forced me to become their experiment, wanted some guinea pig that no one would miss, something not human. The last time I ever saw the most important person of my home life, was her screaming and fighting back at the humans trying to kidnap me back again. I never saw her again...that was ten years ago. Which brings me up to this." He brought his face straight up to Baldwin's with a powerful lean almost scraping snouts. His voice remained serene and disturbing as the rest of his group started leaning unconsciously away from him. "You lived your whole life inside a fucking church all nice and cosy and perfectly safe, and you BARELY have lived through any kind of suffering and prejudice to net you any kind of worth in that argument. Now I suffered through my whoooole childhood, I have fought and destroyed prejudice across five different lands at LEAST. Now tell me...how many times have YOU gone through that kind of experience we just went through back at the checkpoint? Hmm?" "...three," said Baldwin honestly, "three timesszh." "Four," added Fayne. "Huh?" "Four...not three...you were...n-no never mind you're right, only three." "The point is," said FG firmly, "is that you have nowhere near as much experience as I do when it comes to bigotry. You can crusade all you want, you can stand up for beliefs and you can fight against it whenever you want, that's cool. Fighting against it's a noble thing!" He leaned closer suddenly as he breathed fiercely into Baldwin's nostrils, eyes turned to dark piercing slits as his voice came deep within his throat. "But don't you ever tell me that I could never understand your prejudice, Baldwin. I have MUCH greater experience in this horseshit than you ever will and if I hear you talk like that to me again, I will break your hands off and shove them right up your fucking spine...understand?" "...yesszh." "Yes, what?" "...yesszh, my leader." "Good. And frankly the shit you've been giving me for my 'disease' just adds to that so I got a pretty good fucking idea right now about what 'your people' go through." "Hey-ey-ey don't you compare me wi-" "SHUT UP!" A stern clawfinger raised right next to Baldwin's eye who struggled not to flinch, his fake smile finally slipping off into one grimace of bare teeth. "I'm the fucking leader, so what I say fucking goes. Now you wanna go up against them that's fine, but don't call yourself some self-entitled prick whom no one else can understand just for the sake of it." "A-alright, I got it! I didn't...I did not know, I wasszh jusszht-" "GAAAAAAAA AAAARGH!"

Suddenly Fayne had fallen off from from his chocobo, clutching his knee hard as he gasped with sharp pains as Baldwin rushed over to help him. "F-FAAAAYNE!" As soon as he ran forwards a dozen arrows came flying out from the trees above, the raptor dodging in front with shield formed of tetra-blocks sprouting from his arm like a pixellated blossom. The vicious rain of arrowheads pinged uselessly off of James' shield as he watched on seeing Fayne roll over panting, wheezing from pain with an arrow lodged through his lower right leg. Dahlia was right next to him desperately trying to heal him as their chocobos panicked and squawked aflutter with worry, but she was halted before anything when four shadows swung down and grabbed both of them. "DAHLIA!" "N-NO, GET OFF, GET OFF MEEEEEE!" When the arrows stopped flying, James ran forth with Baldwin, but Navarro rushed past them remaining on her steed as the chocobo kicked dust hard across the ground before lashing talons out at one shadowed fiend. The dark-cloaked foe fell back and roared, blood flying from his face before the moogle swept off her mount and plunged her blade down upon the kidnapper's head impaling right through his forehead. Shanking through to the hilt, she pulled back and rushed forth towards the second one who held Dahlia hostage, wrapping her arms tight behind her with rope swiftly. But before she could reach her, more arrows came down to assault her, stopping her charge as she dodged swiftly out of range by a rabbit hop, the sudden glint of steel points from above her only sign of warning to avoid such danger. Baldwin ran straight towards Fayne, who was also being tied up despite his wounded leg as one shadowed robber swung out his curved sword. The first swing Baldwin dodged, ducking low before a one-two pummelling to the fiend's gut, slamming like a boxer straight-jabbing before he cracked his elbow across the face. The kidnapper's ally however tried to come up from behind to cleave the monk's head in, but James had him covered with a blasting fireball to knock the sword out of his hand as the enemy snarled with scorched fist. Baldwin however had more problems when the enemy he was fighting suddenly blasted him in the face with a gaseous substance, blinding him temporarily. He managed to dodge the first two swings once the bandit recovered, but the sword soon found its mark as it sliced deep across his shoulder giving a sudden anguish unexpectedly, blood dripping down his left arm. Slammed into by a charging rush, he fell back and tried to stand up before he felt a sword on his throat, gasping with bleary eyes before a sudden flash of yellow streaked past his vision. The cry of a chocobo signalled his mount trying to protect him, kicking claws hard as the fiend suddenly found himself assaulted by the large bird beast. But the foe dodged well, keeping well out of reach from the claws as he whistled a signal. Four arrows flew from the trees, two of which plunged into Baldwin's steed.

Luke screeched with newfound pain as the arrows pierced his feathered flesh, running with hot agony out of the combat zone as Fayne's chocobo Asch suddenly ran off to his distress. "NO!" cried Navarro. "COME BACK, KUPO!" But despite her cry of protest, the two brothers had faded off into the forest as she constantly dodged the arrows best as she could, until one was lucky enough to scrape past her elbow sending her off-balance. Then another tore streaking past her leg as she gasped and staggered, with Dahlia now being dragged off towards the trees along with Fayne as well as Dahlia's own chocobo Rinoa by the reins violently. The bird shrieked and cried with distress, tugging away as hard as she could until she finally flapped herself free and ran off desperately leaving Dahlia behind. "N-NAVARRO, HELP ME, HELP MEEEEE!" The raptor heard her cry for help and rushed forwards ready to attack, shield already formed and well up to deflect their arrows as he guarded Navarro briefly until she had time to recover. The moogle drank up a potion from her satchel briefly to give her a chance of fighting, sighing harshly as she stood behind her leader's guard. As he ran forwards with arrows pinging off his unbreakable shield, the velocity of which not even allowing them to slip through the many holes of his tetra-blocks, the enemy soon showed themselves truly. Sweeping down from the trees was at least a dozen unknown fiends of various shapes and sizes across all species, all of whom wore the skin and heads of Dire Rats upon them. An army of vermin as one cried: "GET THEM, TAKE THE GIRL BACK TO BASE!" "YOU'RE NOT TAKING ANYONE!" roared FG. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" With arrows now out of the picture, the three warriors remaining along with only James and Navarro's mounts still beside them prepared to fight. Baldwin managed to recover from his temporary blindness with the help of all-clearing eye drops, stumbling a little by himself before seeing the fight had changed. The vermin rushed forth as James took on three at once, swinging out his scissors with one tearing sweep that only managed to carve one across the cheek. Navarro fought two-on-one who tried to both spitroast her upon their swords before she ducked and striked upwards upon the sword in front of her, slicing downwards hereafter across the fiend's leg who buckled with screeching fury. Baldwin also had two at once, dodging one blade after the other with his arm guards helping to deflect their blows strongly. Wasting no time, he ducked one swing and blocked the other with left arm vertically against it, before a violent haymaker with his right cracking across the rat-faced fiend. Spinning harsh with the momentum of his punching swing, the monk roared with a sudden energy pulsating as he caused a small whirlwind of spiritual strength, tearing the other foe off his feet. Briefly cast into the air, the second bandit could do nothing but face a sternum-breaking punch to the solar plexus, crippling the inside with borne fury as Baldwin roared with rage. But just when he thought he had time for reprieve, four more enemies had come out of nowhere seemingly to cause further assault to him.

James found himself in a similar lost cause, having stabbed through one foe's chest before opening his scissors once to deflect two swords trying to slice down upon him. Once the two clanged off, he snapped them shut violently upon the second foe's neck and cut off his head with spurting brief blood staining upon his blades. The third panicked slightly at such sudden brutality, which cost him an early life short as the raptor opened up his blades once more to come down on his head by a cleaving dual swing, two sharpened tips slicing the enemy's head wide open. Even with Cadbury's help in taking down at least four enemies by his own claws, he was still finding an almost endless wave of enemies coming down on them. The black chocobo tore into one rat-faced kidnapper with claws ripping across his face, slicing through the animal skin and straight into the true flesh as eyes were dug out in a pustule-filled sweep. The second tried to stab him from the side but Cadbury sweeped fast, knocking him away with his swing before a sudden bite went to the enemy's throat, hard beak sharply snapping the neck with a sudden KRAKK and twist of the head. One managed to climb onto him, but Navarro's steed Lightning had seen the fight and slammed her head straight into the would-be-bandit to knock him straight off, before a sword came flying towards her face. Ducking the sweep of steel that aimed at her throat, she swung up her foot with an axe-kick-like motion striking down with talons hard across the face, ripping it open widely as blood tore screaming in dual strips of red. She glared towards Cadbury as if to say "follow my lead or else", the black chocobo simply lowering his head in mutual acceptance. "HOW MANY OF YOU FUCKERS ARE THERE!?" cried FG. "TOO MANY," roared Navarro, "WHERE DO THEY KEEP COMING FROM KUPO!?" "WHATEVER, MORE PEOPLE WANNA DIE, THEN THEY CAN FUCKING COME AT ME!" "THAT'S WHAT YOU THINK!" screamed one rat-faced bandit. "YOU AIN'T GETTIN' OUTTA HERE ALIVE!" "NEITHER WILL YOU, FUCKFACE!" Navarro and James backed up against each other trying to make their way towards Baldwin so the three could team up, both raptor and moogle striking hard with clashing swords against curved dark blades. The raptor stood ground striking against any that came at him, scissors splitting open to block two simultaneously before snapping shut on an enemy's wrist and twisting violently sharp to either dislocate, or disarm entirely of their blade. Navarro's greater agility served her highly in dodging the wide cutting sweeps above her head, shanking at the leg or stomach whenever they left themselves open. But for every one that fell, there always appeared to be two more replacing, like fighting a hydra, the never-ending swarm of vermin-skinned foes tiring them out more and more. Just when it felt as if the battle would never end, they heard a whistling cry from above much sharper than anything else they ever heard before. The bandits stopped suddenly at the sound. "QUIET!" "You 'ear that?!" "...aw shit, it's them!" "WHAT, I THOUGHT THEY WEREN'T IN THIS PART OF THE WOOD!" "PLAN B, ROUND UP EVERYONE KEEP YER GUARD U-GLLLK!"

One arrow suddenly lodged itself straight into a bandit's throat, before three more out of nowhere went straight through the eyes or heads picking off the enemy from above. The raptor was confused, but even more was he dumbfounded by the cry of a female screech from above. "FARTHING WOOD ANIMALS FOREVERRRR!" More creatures had suddenly dropped down, trapping the rat-faced foes on all sides almost perfectly. But Clan Koridai were utterly perplexed by the sight of them. They were all wearing the skin of beasts upon them, different animals that James had seen on his journey. The first one he noticed was larger than the rest, wearing the flesh of a Zaghnal whilst holding a mace with shining blue mythril head. "AQUA, EMPROS!" Just before the spell was cast, someone had grabbed onto James, Navarro and Baldwin all at the same time pulling them up into the trees, their chocobos suddenly absent from the battlefield as if lured away by some unknown person. At first the clan panicked but James heard a rather eloquent voice calmly speak into his ear: "It's alright, we're here to help!" "WHA-WHO-" "Don't worry, we'll take these ruffians down for you!" All the three could do was watch a sudden wave of water strike across the battlefield washing half of the vermin away, shrieking as they slammed into trees and muddy puddles formed anew to separate them out. More arrows came almost perfectly precise, killing off five more bandits with disturbingly sharp accuracy as skulls were impaled by metal and splinted wood. The smaller groups now spread apart by the watery blast were set upon by all sides as three arrows came shooting down. James' clan were brought back down once danger had passed, turning befuddled all the more as someone dropped down beside FG. "Ready?" "Wh-whuh?!" Double-taking a second glance, he saw now a person dressed in the skin of a Wolf, coloured fox-red with white underbelly and black almost draconic snout befitting of the species of Ivalice. The strange-garbed person wielded two slender swords readily as he smiled at the raptor, lips of the animal mask pulling back oddly. "I'm on your side, if you're not with them." He pointed with one sword at the now-thirty remaining vermin crying out with vengeance to set upon the new attackers, a surprising amount of even more unusual people in animal clothing ready to pincer in the rat-faced horde. James realised what the battle was going to be and readed his scissors up saying: "I'd appreciate the help yeah!" "WEEZUL, NOW!"

From one direction was a strange lanky-looking female in the brown-coloured skin of a Mu, which normally looked like as if a rabbit had mated with a cloudful of feathers. With six attackers nearing her seemingly weak form, she suddenly began to dance with such spastic alacrity, that it left them rather stunned with confusion. Literally. "Half a pound of tuppenny roiiiice, 'alf a pound of treaaaaacle, that's the way the money goooooes, POP goes the Weezulllll!" The way she danced seemed to resemble as if someone was trying to polka by their lonesome, which made it all the more pathetic combined with her horrendous singing. One every person cringed at hearing as if someone was choking a cat, but even moreso the enemy who suddenly felt a weak-willed essence come through their blades upon seeing her spinning by her own. With invisible partner, arms awkwardly out holding something with shuffling turning steps, she swung a cashmere-spun cloth out of moth-eaten brown and green which slapped the enemies across the face. The display was absurd enough to distract them from being set upon by arrows as they panicked with new wounds fresh shrieking as the Mu-clothed creature giggled manically. "Think they got the point alrigh', EHHHEHHEHEHEHEHEHE!" "GET THOSE FUCKERS NOW!" roared the vermin leader. The battle was a complete mess, as James ran forwards alongside the Wolf-cloaked stranger who spun low with twin swords stabbing straight into the sternum and throat of one unlucky bandit, before tearing them out to dual-shank another next to him. He was surprisingly effective, dodging each swing of a blade with superb agility before one blade cut low aiming for his feet, before he stepped on the sword and spunkicked straight up into the air pulling the sword from the vermin's hand by sheer momentum, right before both blades came swinging down to carve his head open like a fresh melon. Amidst another group of four rogues there was one person dressed as a Serpent, a greener skin than that of the Viper class James knew with spikes on both sides of its hood. The moment one enemy came forwards, it striked with sudden piercing thrust of a katana in one hand, laced with dripping poison as the foe simply gasped and stumbled back with whimpering death, from a wound in the leg no less. The other three backed off nervously as the Serpent-headed assassin grinned cruelly beneath its fangs taunting with female voice. "Who elsssse wantssss to die firsssst?" They decided all three of them would strike at the same time, but the Serpent-cloaked female simply swung her lithe body almost sinuously like a true serpent, stabbing all three of them individually before they could even draw their blades. One died screaming fully aware of the poison stopping his heart, the second became mortified as he felt his body turn rigidly stiff and hard as stone, silent scream forever masked beneath his Dire Rat skin. The third had the greatest of dignity, silenced by a slice to the throat as blood dripped down his entire front.

Yet another person wearing Wolf skin dabbled red had faced down a horde of enemies from afar, except this one now wielded a small green harp made of cedarwood with silver string. Thinking they had an easy prey, the rats walked closer in a stride of five as the harp softly played. A tender little ditty, almost whimsical, began playing, fingers lithely trickling along the strings before suddenly, all five of Koridai's chocobos had returned and come roaring with a vengeance, stomping out from the forest behind her to trample the entire group underfoot. Incensed by the song, they squawked with pure frenzy and tore the enemy underfoot, screams of primal rage before fading away back into the forest once more leaving bloodied and beaten foes almost dead beneath them. It was at this point amidst wild dances, assassin blades and arrows seemingly out of nowhere that mimicked theirs, that the remaining twelve vermin cried: "RETREAT, EVERYONE FALL BACK!" "WH-WHAT ABOUT THEM?!" "FUCK THEM, WE HAVE THE GIRL THAT'S ALL WE NEED!" The remaining force fled as best they could, hobbling with wounds and dignity left promptly behind as James, Navarro and Baldwin went chasing off after them. "COME BACK HERE YOU FUCKS I WON'T LET-" "Leave them." The male Wolf said softly with kindly stern voice, stopping FG in his tracks as he turned round to face him. "They won't have much else to tell their master anyway." "They kidnapped our friends!" "Really? ...oh...that's bad news I'm afraid." "Gee ya think?!" said Baldwin. "Sszho if you don't MIND, we're gonna hunt them down an-" "I don't think that's a good idea." "Why not?!" "Because if you chase after them, you'll meet their master who will most definitely kill you unless you are able to plan things out first." "...I see, kupo." Navarro understood this and agreed, nodding as she sheathed her blade firmly before asking: "Who are you exactly?" "A fine response," said a pompous female voice from the trees, "for those who just saved your life." "Ahwul," said the male in Wolf skin sternly. "Ignore her, she just likes to make a point often. Alright gang, come on out, let's introduce ourselves shall we?" The saviours soon fully showed themselves before Clan Koridai, all seven of them it seemed, each in a wild bizarrely-different garb of animal skin as two swooped down from above like giant birds of prey, whilst the rest simply moved up beside their leader in a flash. Navarro noted that each and every one of them were different in which monster they wore the hide of, but also having different builds and possibly of different races that she could not tell.

Two Wolfs, the twin-sworded leader along with a lighter-red counterpart with harp and long feminine hair on either side of her face; a Zaghnal painted black with two white vertical stripes on his head over each eye; a brown Mu that looked more stretched out and stoat-like than its usual rabbity appearance; a Dive Talon which resembled a large fishing eagle with long pointed spearbeak and a hole shot through one wing; a Wu which James likened to that of an old brown owl if one had sculpted it from a rock; and lastly the Serpent, of most sinister dark green and potent white fangs with twin spikes on either side of its hood. "My name is Fochs," said the male Wolf, "I'm clan leader of Farthing Wood. That's Vikhsen my mate with the harp. Bajher is our sage in the Zaghnal robes, Weezul as the Mu is...our resident dancer-" "You are serious," said Navarro bluntly. "Hwisler the Dive Talon is our archer, Ahwul the old dusty Wu is our hunter, and lastly there's...Adhur." "Charrrrrmed I'm sssszhure." The Serpent spoke with a breathless voice as if mimicking a snake, a cruel grin constantly plastered across her "face" as Clan Koridai all blinked at each other, already rather confused by this strange beast-wearing clan in front of them. Their eyes however were most certainly alive beneath the masks, presumably well-hollowed to see through as James decided to just go with his first instincts and offer his hand to shake. "I'm James, of Clan Koridai. This is Navarro my clan deputy and that's Baldwin my monk. Thanks for saving our asses back there." "No problem." The Wolf shook hands in return with his own hand modded from the paw of the beast, soft velvet red fur well taken care of. "You were unlucky, normally those rats don't come out this far for some reason." "Unlucky?!" cried Baldwin. "They took my brother, a-a-and Dahlia, we have to help them!" "Oh, r-really?" said the one draped in Zaghnal hair. "Well um...oh dear. This does not bode well for them." "You can say THAT again!" squawked the Mu-dressed girl. "EHHHEHEHEHEHHEHE-" "Shut up Weezul! But yes I am...afraid that they are now in great danger, and I...hate to say it bu-" "DON'T tell me nothing!" roared Baldwin. "You are NOT going to tell me there isszh nothing I can do for my brother becausszhe that isszh NOT AN OPTION!" "Your brother?! ...oh...oh I am so sorry my poor fellow but-" "I'm not your fellow and I'm not letting thosszhe sszhitheadsszh get away with thisszh!" "I know Baldwin," said FG, "we're not leaving them." "Huh?!" "Listen, um...Fochs, right? Who were those guys that took our friends?" The Wolf-skinned one looked warily from one side to the other as he decided on something mentally. He turned around to his fellow clan to confer upon the matter, a mutual agreement having been made within minutes as Fochs turned back towards FG, replying: "Come with us." "Wait," said Navarro, "what of our chocobos?" "They're safe," said Vikhsen with the harp, "I led them to safety out of battle." "And through it also," said the snobbish Ahwul. "But they are safe, my harp can charm many creatures." "Ahh, an animist, kupo?" She nodded softly at Navarro's guess with a smile before they walked deep into the forest grounds, off through the bushes and between trees as they faded from the well-beaten path of travellers.

Taken through the forest by the strange group, the raptor and his friends felt the changing light of the midsummer afternoon sweep softly across the trees dappling across their heads. They travelled deeper and deeper within the woods before reaching a strange remarkable haven, a part of the forest that seemed almost untouched by any sort of influence far and beyond the grasp of Ivalician society. A glade wide and spanning, a long-winding river passing through where every tree glinted softly with a morning-fresh dew in the late afternoon. Wide open spaces involved clearings where it seemed there had been dens made underground judging by the large holes made in rising sections of the uneven land, safe and sound beneath the roots of arching trees. There are those who are lucky to have witnessed a piece of nature, a part of the world where history has never struck upon it, and it is a feeling that one has felt through all generations. The simplest awe of unspoilt verdant beauty, a land perhaps a thousand years old that whilst had been sculpted by the inhabitants now here, felt somehow untainted. They saw other creatures garbed in animal clothing just like that of Clan Farthing, ranging from birds to rodents all altered in some way or another with more natural colourings. It reminded James immensely of how anthros had looked back in his own world, which to him now felt like a stultifying experience as they made their way towards one particular clearing, after passing over the river bridged by a fallen tree and through winding small forest paths where the moss just bounced against one's feet underfoot. A giant beech, resplendent above all. A campfire was here but no longer in use, along with one two gypsy wagons that while had not been touched remained perfectly useable and stocked with small amenities. Fochs sat down with his clan, the ones dressed as birds never actually walking on the ground but always somehow jumping from tree to tree as if the mockery of flight had escaped them, the constant sound of Hwisler's wing almost soothing to hear its whistling song eternally as he moved. Once they had all settled, with "birds" seated above them on the branch staring down below, they started with their questions with Navarro asking the one on everybody's lips. "I have not seen such a clan like you before, kupo. May I ask why the disguises?" "Disguises?" said Fochs. "Hmhmhm, they're not disguises...they're masks." "...how are the two different?" "Disguises you use to hide when you're not welcome by others. Masks you use to hide when you're not welcome by yourself." "By yourself, kupo? As in...if I may, you...wish to hide from yourself?" "That's about it. We'll come to that in a bit, but tell me-" "Wait. Where are the other chocobos kupo?" "Over there." Vikhsen pointed out towards a small glade where indeed the chocobos had been gathered up, tied by the trees and within range of water to lap up from the river and quench their thirst. Luke, Baldwin's chocobo, was also there along with Asch and Rinoa, and was currently being treated for his wounds as the moogle walked straight over to check on them without a second thought, ignoring the other clan completely. Lightning rejoined her, whilst Cadbury stuck beside James hissing venomously at the zaghnal-cloaked stranger for some reason as he held on tight to his reins.

"Wot cheek!" called out Weezul. "Bringin' 'er round 'ere an' she buggers off just to look at birds!" "She's just worried," said FG, "she really cares about them." "Only bird oi care about is on me plate, EHHhhehehehehehe!" "Don't be insensitive," said Vikhsen kindly, "we should care about all animals, not just ourselves like the Oath says." "Oath?" asked Baldwin. "We have an oath," said Bajher the old zaghnal, "to protect one another, but also to respect by the boundaries of nature to not bring unnecessary suffering unto others...beast or no beast." "Ohhh...yer like aaaaa gypsszhy commune right?" "Uhhhh no, not as such, it's all part of our story-" "And we will come to that," said Fochs interrupting, "after you have told us about you. Who are you exactly?" "We're from the west basically," said FG, "we came here on a mission. Apparently there's some kind of weird magic artifact up at some monastery? But it's supposed to be an anti-magic area sooooo...we decided to check it out." The monster-robed clan looked up with shock at the raptor upon hearing his mission, the staunch bird-cloaked Ahwul chuckling to herself. "It appears that our fate has become known widespread farther than we wish, hmmmm Fochs?" "I suppose it has," said Fochs, "I think it's now time we explain things to you but first..." He pointed over towards Navarro who walked slowly back to them before sitting back down beside James, who asked: "Everything alright?" "Yes," said the moogle, "your healers are very good with animals, kupo. No sign of any septic wounds to your chocobo thankfully." "Good," said Baldwin, "but that don't mean sszhit if my brother getsszh hurt." "It does to me, those steeds are MY responsibility and yours, do not treat them as if they are dispensable!" "I'm not I'm not I'm jusszht more worried about my own flesszh and blood than sszhome fucking animal!" "QUIET!" shouted Rocino with finger pointing. "He is not just some animal, he is a precious steed kupo!" "Shut it both of you!" James took over with stern authority in his eyes worn and bloodshot as long as they had known him. But in that moment they pierced more strongly than usual with a firm glint of leadership in them as both firmly stepped down, Navarro staring coldly at him before saying nothing. "Thank you. Now...who are you, and why were we attacked?" "If I may," said Bajher the zaghnal, "I would like to narrate this." The other "animals" rolled eyes but mutually agreed as the old beastly-looking male harumphed his throat clearing it. He outmatched everyone with his size at a hefty 6'8'' when stood up fully, orating his story to them by an old breathless voice belying his greater age. "Long ago, we were but a group of ordinary folk like you, living our lives in an abbey far to the northwest of here. The White Deer Monastery, was a strange yet wondrous place, a sanctuary for those like us those who were both lost and bereft of all civilisation's needs. It was a sacred place, one that allowed people to return back to old roots, their old ways. No magic, no electricity, just the simplest of tools in order to reconnect with nature. To appreciate all that is good in the world from what we wear to what we eat. Complete and utter efficiency with no grievances, no suffering towards others unnecessarily." "Really?" asked FG. "But...you guys aren't exactly advanced by THAT much." "Ahhh but you see you forget how much you rely on magic this day and age, my boy. For you see this abbey had one very special thing about it, the anti-magic field long ago formed by one known only as, the Warden. He realised, that magic for all its power and greatness, was both easily abused and yet wildly manipulative. And that was when he devised in all his wisdom, the anti-magical barrier that prevented us from ever wielding such power. No longer could people use it, not rob you completely of it but rather suppress it once inside its walls and allowing one to remain completely self-sufficient, returning to old ways before our discovery of it."

James took a while to absorb all this as did his two current allies, pondering on what exactly these people had come from as Bajher stood awaiting for any questions promptly with hands behind his back. They took their time for a few brief seconds to gaze upon their hosts' strange little world before the raptor asked: "Soooo basically this was some kind of sacred nature retreat where you just go back to basics?" "Yes, more or less, we all came from different parts of the world, different jobs, different species even. We all had a story to tell yet none of us ever wanted to speak it, forgetting the world behind and simply being part of something new, and yet all of us had managed to work perfectly in harmony by the laws of the Great White Stag, our...former master and beneficiary of the Warden." "Who is this Warden, kupo?" asked Navarro. "Our lord, our founder by all thngs that we adhere to. He founded the monastery as a place of peace and sanctuary, to protect lost wayward souls who could not fit anywhere else in the world, for if ever you were lost and in need of guidance and safety...the White Deer Monastery was there for you." "Our mission-giver did not tell us greatly about this place, but we did hear of it from Lea Monde." "Ahhhh yes, Lea Monde...a most wonderful place but I fear far too reliant on magic." "I disszhagree," said Baldwin defensively, "alsszho weren't YOU usszhing magic during that fight?" "The anti-magic field does not reach out here...I admit that after all I said that might look hypocritical about my talk on not relying on it, but the fact is we did have past lives where we did rely on them, and that of course I still possess it, just not need it in everyday life. Now, I fear that things may force us to wield such again were it not for this barrier around the abbey." "Why NOT usszhe magic? What'sszh it ever done to you, you sszhound like you're jusszht making thisszh too hard on yoursszhelf for a challenge." "If I may." The one known as Hwisler swooped down with his Dive Talon robes, wind gasping through the hole of his wounded wing as he landed down in front of them, leaning up against the tree with long legs and sharp golden beak. "It's not so much to do with being AGAINST magic but rather by a form of self-sufficiency. See, back in old days before people even knew of magic, we learnt to survive by our own means and our own capabilities without using magic to work everything. The reason why we all came to this abbey was to escape the pressures of daily life, not be TOO reliant on it, more independent ourselves you see. Uhm...sorry for butting in." "Well I'd much rather be more reliant on sszhomething if it helpsszh get my brother back rather sszhitting around here WASSZHTING MY DAMN TIME with-" "Baldwin." James glowered at him fiercely to shut him up, before Fochs leaned forwards from his seated position adding: "We will explain why it won't be...possible to get your brother back." "One must understand," said Ahwul, "that in order to know one's ending, one must also learn fully of one's very beginning." "Eassssier sssssaid than done," replied Adhur with reptilian grin. The monk stared back at FG with a look of incredulousness, as if hardly believing this shit watching people dressed like animals trying to narrate a tale, but Bajher went on with his story. "And so we lived in the abbey, our ruler the Great White Stag kept the laws of our Warden...the Oath of Mutual Protection. It is our very mandate, to not frighten, terrorise or assault one another whilst in these walls, no matter from whence we came without magic to ensnare us or be reliant on fully. Then...came the one we now know as Scarface." "Scarface?" asked FG. "That's what we call him," replied Fochs continuing, "but in truth we do not remember his old name. In fact none of us do...we had names once but...they're all gone, along with our faces." "Wait, what?"

The red-coloured Wolf sighed with regret, the animal-skinned clan looking towards the empty campfire as if hoping it would go alight by sheer hope until Fochs then spoke. "The one we called Scarface, we don't remember who he was or why he came. He must have been part of us at one point, as long as I can remember at least but then everything happened. One day, he attacked us without warning in the night, killed the Great White Stag and forced us to either join him...or be killed alongside him. For a while we fought back well but-" "Why did Archadia not intervene kupo?" asked Navarro. "We are not affiliated with anyone, the point of our abbey was to completely be self-serving and sufficient by itself. No alliance, no grievances, one wholly neutral place where anyone could come and live free, apart from the world of Ivalice." "You were foolish. Naive but foolish." "Shut up," said FG, "these guys saved our asses don't insult them." "It is not an insult if it is fact, kupo." "Facts," argued Ahwul, "are counterrevolutionary." "Factsssss," said the serpentine Adhur, "don't ceasssse to exissst jussssst becausssse they are ignored." "Hm. True." "Can I continue this story now?" said Fochs snarkily. "Oh. Yes, go ahead." "Thank you. So we were on our own, barely able to fight back against Scarface and soon he had a mighty army from out of nowhere of murderous thieves he had wrapped round his finger. The strange thing is, I remember the abbey and its anti-magic, I remember that we're all friends and we all worked together once as a group, a community...but I don't remember anything before that artifact came...though I do know he had no army before it." "What artifact?" asked FG. Fochs shifted nervously from his seated position as if itching with something fierce, struggling to comprehend what memories had told him. "...it arrived about eight months ago, a strange dark crystal that we could not really tell what it was. It appeared rather suddenly, not only just but also inside our anti-magic field. Someone had brought it to the abbey, we don't know how it broke through the field or how it could even work inside of it...but it was definitely much too powerful to not be magic. It changed Scarface, for the worse, took a greater evil right out of him and made him this fearsome warlock...much too powerful for us alone." "Do you know what kind of magic this is, kupo?" asked the moogle. "No," replied Vikhsen fearfully, "it was...like some twisted thing had come forth I couldn't...I could not tell what it was other than an infinite sadness and agony had come from it. But Scarface, he took it before anyone else could, had it in his hands before any of us knew and that's when it all started...all that power, all that vile energy run right through him. He became possessed, an almighty being of pure dark evil who called for his master." "Master?" "I barely remember the name anytime before that, a name he cried out before casting us from the monastery...it was...something...I could not think-" "Tomalag," said Ahwul. "Yes! That was it." "It was a strange word I think I remember hearing, before the Great Fire had come to erase our past." "Great fire?" asked FG. "When Scarface took it," continued Vikhsen, "the artifact in his hands, he chanted out his master's name as a great fire swarmed throughout the abbey, burning across every single living thing that was in the abbey's walls. We screamed, so many of us we could not see, we thought we had been blinded permanently by the fire...then...we saw the most horrible thing." She touched her Wolf skin softly by the face, pressing upon the cheek as tears came down on her fingers, her hair long and graceful brushing across her faded mask. "We had no face...not anymore...burned through and scarred to something else, we could not see what it was...but also, even worse came that we could not even remember what we looked like. Not any one of us at all other than the briefest scent of memory. That is why we wear these masks, we could not bear to see...it was horrible...awful...some of us could not even live with that and took their lives before coming here. There's not many of us left, maybe-" "Twenty," said Bajher, "twenty-nine if we count those too young to fight. We have lived almost an entire year struggling to comprehend this new way of ours, a much simpler life without memories of our past...hmmm in the end I suppose it is rather fitting that we wanted always this thing to have happened, darkest of our desires to erase everything from our existence. No names, no pasts, nothing. All we had left were simply the cloaks we had on us upon the day that Great Fire came. Burned our memories, leaving nothing but the war with our new enemy for us to think. We are simply nothing more than the animals of Farthing Wood."

James felt turns in his stomach at such a fate, wincing silently as Baldwin spoke what he could not speak, shaking his head softly. "That'sszh...horrible. I...but what about Fayne? Thosszhe thievesszh took Dahlia and him back to their abbey right?!" "Indeed," said Ahwul from above, "for what purpose I cannot guess, what classes are they?" "Dahlia'sszh a white mage but my brother'sszh a bisszhop." "Why would they want those?" asked Vikhsen to Fochs. "They know they'd have no ability to use magic inside their field." "Maybe," replied Fochs, "or maybe there are other purposes they have. They said something about getting the girl especially didn't they?" "W-wait, Dahlia?" asked FG. "But why would they want her?!" "Who knows, but whatever purpose they need for her I'd rather not guess and wait around." "Damn right!" cried Baldwin. "Sszho let'sszh get out there an' FIGHT!" The monk's boldness gave no reply but for an infuriating laugh from Weezul, squealing with laughter at his ballsiness cackling: "AAAAAHEHEHEHEHEHE, go on then, see 'ow far yous get before they gut you loik a fish! Who wants to bet, two 'ours?! One?! Make it thirty minutes, any takers?!" "Weezul will you shut UP!?" roared Bajher. "I appreciate your attitude um...sir-" "Baldwin." "Right, Baldwin...but you see, we have no means of gaining access to the abbey and of course we are at a great disadvantage what with not being able to use magic whilst their leader can use it." "Can the anti-magic field be destroyed?" asked FG. "I mean, maybe turn it off?" "No. Absolutely, the anti-magic field is part of the abbey, there is no way it can be." "Damn...wait, hold up. You say this field only stops magic right?" "Yes?" The raptor smirked cockily as he cracked his knuckles, chuckling with confidence as he stood up boldly. "Ladies and gentlemen, your new secret weapon." The clan all stared at him incredulously, including his own as if he had just stated that he was actually three moogles in disguise before Weezul cackled: "AAAHHHHEHEHEHEHEHEHHH, pull the other one, it's got bells on it!" "No seriously!" "I hardly think," replied Adhur sarcastically, "that anyone issss going to be afraid of a bangaa desssssperately trying to be a barber." "Hah, funny, wanna make a more original joke snake-eyes?" "Careful...my bite issss worsssse than my bark." "Listen, I may be a spellblade, but I am one-hundred percent not magic." "HUH!" scoffed Ahwul admonishing. "Next you'll be telling me you're actually three moogles in disguise." "Watch your tongue bird," replied Navarro, "I am already wearing thin with my patience in this place, kupo." "I'm serious!" cried FG. "Look gimme a test, give me one test and I'll prove to you that I'm not magic at all." "James this is stupid." "It's not stupid it's science!" "Yer not Dahlia," replied Baldwin, "don't talk about scszhientific sszhtuff like you know anything about it!" "Oh yeah, like YOU know anything properly mister 'women can't fuck each other', where's YOUR doctorate?" "SSZHUT UP, SSZHODOMITE!" "Quiiiiet!"

Fochs stopped the argument before it got too serious, his hand raised sheathed inside a paw looking rather blackened to the point they could not tell what race he was underneath. "You really think you can sneak inside that abbey without magic?" "I've done it before," said FG, "I've been through a dungeon without magic and broke free, I can do that shit again." "Huh...alright." "Huh?" "Bajher, get that iron from the carriage, let's see if we can't test this." "Righto Fochs." The zaghnal walked off with a slightly heaving back, looking much older with a worn gait about him as he stepped up inside one of the gypsy carriages and rustled around its contents. Shaking the wagon back and forth, he soon found what he was looking for as he brought out a nice thick steel cylinder of around 17 inches like that on window lattices for security, planting it before FG proudly. "There! Hhhhh...heavier than I thought." "Maybe lay off the cakes a bit eh?!" said Weezul elbowing his waist. "What's this?" replied James. "That," began Fochs "is an old iron bar we took in case of supplies but we won't need it really. I want to see you destroy it, or break it, or cut it in half, whatever, so long as it's broken somehow. Without magic." "...heh...sure, okay no problem." "And uh, just to make sure, Adhur, silence him for me would you?" "Gladly." "Wait what?!" Before the raptor could react, suddenly the serpent had snaked up towards him and kissed him upon the lips, gasping out a cold breath of darkness across his ear as she murmured a dark word to his senses. She had smeared something upon his lips and tongue sliding her fingers inside his snout without him even realising. It was almost disturbingly too intimate, as if she had waltzed darkly with his soul before Adhur slipped back to her seating space. James tried to cry out but suddenly found himself unable to speak, his throat unable to do more than gasp. W-what the fuck has she done?! WHAT THE HELL I CAN'T SPEAK, THE FUCK YOU DO TO ME?! "James?!" cried Navarro. "Are you alright kupo?!" SHE JUST FUCKING MUTED ME THE FUCK YOU THINK I'M ALRIGHT?! "James stop playing around, tell me!" I'M TRYING TO YOU DUMB BITCH GAAAARRRGH! All they could see was James waving his arms frantically with silent shrieks of panicked fury, mouth gesticulating wildly but no sound came from it except his breath. The serpent simply chuckled sinisterly at her work, the rest of Clan Farthing having a small chuckle at James' expense. All except Weezul who pointed and laughed falling over uproariously with cackling delight. Even Baldwin started laughing and pointing with fiendish glee at his leader's predicament, whilst Navarro remained stone-cold and fuming indignant. "STOP THAT! Why did you silence him kupo?!" "Simply just a test," replied Fochs, "after all he can't use magic inside the abbey so if he really can't use magic, this should be no problem for him right James?" Oh you fucking shit you could have warned me god dammitl-alright fine you want me to show you I'm not magic?! I'LL FUCKING SHOW YOU I AIN'T MAGIC BITCH I GOT YOUR FAKE MAGIC RIGHT HERE!

Summoning with all his might a furious short wind from the centre of the camp, the raptor brought forth a sudden gale that lifted the iron bar straight up towards the air in front of him. Spinning briefly before stopping in one place, the clans watched in amazement as their laughter subsided to be replaced with silent awe as James brought out his scissors. Flames already started burning across the hot tips as he opened them wide with blue nanosparks streaking from his hands, the raptor roared mentally: Abraca-FUCK YOU! With the shining white of his scissorblades he snapped shut upon the steel bar as a shrieking CLANG went ringing throughout the forest glade. Silence thereafter came as his scissors burnt softly, flames slowly dying out as the river trickled from a short distance sweetly babbling upon itself. Then, as soon as the raptor's gust of wind had died down, the cast-iron bar fell between two clans, severed straight in half as James simply swung his blade back whilst sheathing cleanly, smiling with the smuggest grin at all present before him. Even his own clan members were struck with shock staring up at him. "...good lords," murmured Bajher. "You...you really are not magic, and yet...you can wield it, how?!" "I wish to know too," said Navarro calmly, "and whether you were about to tell us or not, kupo?" "Maybe we should unsilence him first?" "Why? I like him that way, strong but silent." Oh fuck you Navarro, mouthed FG firmly towards her. I TRIED to explain that to you, it's not magic it's science but you wouldn't hear any of it because- "-you're too fucking arrogant to listen to people whether or not it matters." It was only then that he realised she had heard him speak the latter end of that train of thought as Navarro raised an eyebrow coldly. One of the clan healers had snuck up behind him, a little grey Mu-cloaked figure, to cast Esuna upon him rending him free of muted voice, smirking bashfully. The moogle crossed her arms asking: "Was that a complete sentence, kupo? Or were you in the middle of something?" "You know what? Never mind because I've shown you all I can do this shit without magic because that's what I do." "May I ask how?" replied Hwisler the Dive Talon. "I was an experiment, that's all I'll say, some people wanted to make me a non-magical weapon...well in this case I'm your weapon in exchange for helping me save my friends." "In that case," said Fochs gladly, "let's get started. The sooner we get our hands into this the better, Scarface won't expect us to attack so soon and we have a plan or two we've been meaning to work out, but all we had left was some way of breaking into the abbey without anyone noticing. And you...are exactly what we needed." "Glad I could help. So, you ready to plan out our mission?" "Definitely. Alright everybody..." The Wolf-clad clan leader stood up firmly before crunching his fist into the other palm. "Let's do this."