She shut her eyes.

It was the first thought that filled the elf's mind. She had said that the day after her mother had been buried. Her mother... Who was her mother? Decca felt herself flinch inwardly, then she opened her eyes. Still, red was everywhere. Did something go wrong with the spell? Were she and her friends teleported somewhere else by mistake? Decca closed her eyes again, as if to will the color of blood to disappear and for something, anything, tangible to take its place.

Had Jorhan tricked them? Perhaps he had and instead of Valqua, he sent them to their deaths--

Decca sat upright, through the red haze, the sudden piercing pain that followed dulling to a numbing throb. The red wrapped around her like a lover's embrace--there was warmth, she was certain of it. She thought of Kain, and immediately her heart ached. The crimson mist that clouded and penetrated everything around her somehow made some strange sort of sense. Red, the color of blood. Red, the color of war. Red, the color of flames. But didn't it also symbolize love? Decca felt the edges of her lips quirk upward. She was finally here, wherever here was, and what thoughts she entertained were silly little emblems of love and war. She felt her head throb in response to her unspoken questions.

The red soon faded after what seemed to be an eternity with only herself. Light and darkness suddenly became discernable, and objects that were once blobs and smears of scarlet were now shaping into more recognizable images. She blinked a few times, trying to hasten the process, and reached out her hands to the nothingness around her. Her fingers brushed against something...

Valzer groaned in response.

She nudged him again.

"Ugh." Valzer sniffed, immediately coughed afterwards, and rubbed his eyes. "That wasn't as fun as I thought it would be..."

"What's the matter, wizard? Never opened a portal to another world before?" Came Jorhan's snapped reply.

Valzer opened his eyes to both Decca's and Jorhan's faces, the latter not as pleasing. He suddenly smiled and sat upright. "I guess that means you're fine." Staggering to a stand, he placed one hand on Decca's shoulder to steady himself and the other went to his forehead. Something warm and sticky ran down his face. Quickly he rubbed it away and looked Decca over with more clarity once his vision adjusted. "You're all right?"

Decca nodded swiftly, pressing both her forefinger and middle finger against his wound. But before she could summon any healing spell, Valzer snatched her hand and moved it away.

"Save your magic. You might need it later, kid." He smiled his lop-sided smile, which was hiding something much more weighty, as it always did. It was pointless to disguise, however, since Decca could read him as effortlessly as any book. What he really meant was "Your power has weakened since that day, Decca." Valzer's grip on her hand tightened with brotherly concern. "Besides, I have my potions for the little stuff." He tapped his black pouch with his free hand, wrapped around his waist and no longer concealed beneath robes. Valzer felt strange without his wizard's garments, suddenly remembering that he no longer had his blue robes. He let go of Decca's hand and shuffled through the bag for a healing potion, his smile widening once he found the proper bottle.

With Valzer enthralled in healing potions, making sure the right amount of powder was distributed, saving enough for later use because he probably didn't bring enough, Decca left his side to explore. She looked around the shrine briefly, noticing for the first time that it actually was one, probing every shadow with her keen eyes. The room was noticeably smaller than Amyl, having no back door and seeming nearly dilapidated. That offered very little in the way of comfort. The windows, similar to the other shrine's and of which had at one time most likely been decorated with various pictures, had barely any glass left in their frames. The ground was split and cracked, but not with age like Amyl's floors. This was from a much different source.

"There was a battle here," she whispered.

Perhaps they were too late.

"The sky is like blood." Rydia stood next to the elf, her head craned upward as she gazed through the glassless windows.

Decca glanced over at Rydia, who seemed to be unfazed by the sudden shift in time and dimension. Obviously, the Caller was used to moving between worlds, since she often visited the Land of the Summoned Monsters. The girl's aqua eyes and her light colored skin reflected the red of the sky. As the elf watched her more closely, all of Rydia's delicate features blurred together and Decca felt herself lean forward. Luckily, Rydia grabbed her before she fell.

"Decca?" Rydia tried to support the elf, almost toppling over with her.

Decca looked at her friend's concerned face, then steadied herself once more, breathing in quickly. "I'm fine. It's...just the first spell I did that actually required a bit of effort since--"

"Kain." Rydia smiled, still keeping an arm around Decca.

The elf returned the warm gesture. It was nice to have Rydia around when everything felt like it was falling apart.

"This... is what I expected." Jorhan's voice echoed, bouncing its way against crumbling pillars and hole-filled walls towards the others, and he placed himself on the stone ground with a grunt, making sure not to sit on anything upturned and pointed. "I didn't think it would be the same, I knew... I know something..." The elvin monk gave up on trying to communicate his feelings with words, simply throwing his hands upward in disgust.

"Take some consolation in knowing that at least this world still stands, Jorhan." Rubin stood before the monk, Aeolos seated on the ground besides him. The silver wolf offered a friendly lick on his master's hand for support.

Cecil was sitting a few feet down from the group, listening to Jorhan's frustrated words. Another world, the same evil, it seemed. It was an endless cycle that wound its way around the Paladin. But he couldn't complain. After all, he wanted to come. Cecil briefly thought of Rosa, then sighed despondently. He was next to Kain, who was still lying on the floor, his hands tucked diligently beneath his head. It was almost as if he was sleeping with his eyes open. The Dragoon Knight was very much awake, though, and he hadn't so much as stirred since Cecil had made way over to him. The Paladin King simply thought he was exhausted from the portal, so he made no real attempt at conversation. Kain didn't look like he wished to converse at the moment, anyway.

Kain tilted his head to the right slightly, watching Cecil with silent, probing eyes. The red light seemed to surround his Paladin friend, making him look more profound than usual. Kain felt a twinge of regret and guilt, then quickly dismissed it with a bitter half-smile. No. I have redeemed myself. I have nothing to prove. Nothing. Redeemed. Even the word felt acidic on his tongue. Perhaps not full redemption... But I'm getting there... He let his gaze linger on Cecil for a moment longer, then his eyes wandered to Decca. He felt his smile soften. Yes. I am getting there.

"I know you all distrust Jorhan... Well, perhaps Decca doesn't."

Cecil's voice broke through Kain's thoughts. It felt like the Paladin King had just smacked him across the face with that last, idle remark. Kain's brow rose slightly, then he realized what exactly his friend had meant.

"I don't understand why she trusts him so fully." Kain sat upright, patting the dust from off his shirt and failing miserably in his attempts to seem indifferent. "She's not like that, Cecil."

"Then perhaps we are the ones who are wrong." Cecil brought his armored-clad shoulders up to form a shrug, the red light bouncing off of his metal plates and almost making him resemble one of Valzer's fire spells.

He seemed one big ball of fire at that moment.

"You still don't trust him."

Cecil smiled. His red light was nearly blinding. "Do you?"

The Dragoon snorted and looked away.

"Right." Cecil watched the small group of allies form together, some feet before himself and Kain. He felt the impulse to stand up and join them, but his friend didn't budge. So neither did he. "What Jorhan said before, Kain, it just didn't sit well with me. Who was the sage that cursed him?"

"I think you mean why did the sage curse him." Kain stood up so suddenly that it made Cecil flinch instinctively. He finished dusting off his pants, looked around for his weapons, immediately picked them up, then stood so still that it was as if he had never moved to begin with. His head turned partially in Cecil's direction, yet Kain's piercing gaze never fell on him. "As far as I'm concerned, he's not on our side." His tone was uncomfortably chilling.

Cecil felt himself sigh inwardly as his friend walked away.

The outside world was more brilliant than what showed on the inside of the shrine. Rubin squinted upward, one hand hovering a few inches before his face, shielding it from the sun. At least, he thought it was the sun. The sphere, its red more ginger than the sky, stood out noticeably amongst the thin, pink clouds. If the world's profound grasp would have lessen its hold on the old wizard, than perhaps he could have enjoyed the diversity, the almost frightening beauty of the ruby heavens. Rubin shudder and pulled his robes around himself tighter.

Perhaps more frightening than beautiful.

Decca stood besides him, slipping her arm in his. "Ruby?"

"It's your world, Decca," the old man said. The words escaped slowly past his partially opened mouth.

They were a few feet down from the shrine, upon a worn path, which gently sloped down from the hill the shrine was located on. If they had been on a higher hill, then perhaps they could have seen more of the world, but from their position they were able enough to make out the dying forest beneath them and the remnants of the path leading into it. What was clear from any location, however, was the large, towering castle in the distance. The wizard briefly wondered if that castle was visible from any part of Valqua. Its feel was more ominous than the world itself.

Rubin turned around, placing both of his hands on Decca's shoulders. "You will lead us, child."

Decca studied his scarlet eyes. She couldn't figure out just what he meant by that--or better, wouldn't figure it out. At that moment, she wished to remain ignorant. The elf nodded her understanding. After all, wasn't this her quest? Both of her hands reached up to grasp Rubin's arms and a faint grin brushed her lips.

The wizard smiled.

But Decca could not tell of the concern and sorrow hidden behind that smile.

Jorhan wandered over to the warrior elf when Rubin's hands slipped away from her. There was fear in the monk's eyes, and it was a most unnerving sight. "The sky was never red before." His voice wavered and his normally flawless face wrinkled somewhat with concern. The world he knew was dead, and the moment he looked out onto the wilderness before him, he already knew the answer to that nearly forgotten question. "The Dark won," his whispered.

Valzer made a strange face and Rydia shook her head.

"Maybe," Decca said, and Jorhan cast a quick, grim look her way. "It doesn't matter if they won the war, Jorhan. We'll take our world back from them."

The monk remained quiet, keeping his gaze straight ahead. But on his face a small smile appeared, breaking through the worry and concern. Good girl.

"Where do we go from here?" Kain stepped forward, wedging his way between Jorhan and Decca. He briefly glanced toward the monk, watching him indifferently for a time. The expression etched onto Jorhan's face never changed; he seemed worried and calm at the same time, eerily so.

"The only way we can go, Nimerèl. Forward." Decca checked to make sure her weapons were still attached to her in their belts around her waist and across her chest. Once she was satisfied, she flashed a smile towards Kain and continued on down the hill's path. Back in the shrine she had seemed so tired, but now it was as if the promise of an interesting quest had made her forget any pain. Apparently Decca's love of adventure had rejuvenated her somehow.

And for a moment it was like old times again.

Kain couldn't suppress the slight smile that forced its way onto his face. He shouldered his lance and he and the little troupe followed after her.

It was different from Mysidia's forest. Not just the appearance. The feel... Something was terribly off. They had been walking through the strange forest for a time, and still no chirps from birds, no scurrying of a frightened animal. Nothing. Decca craned her head upward, watching the faint, red light that filtered in from above. That light squeezed through the opaque blanket of leaves on thick branches, bathing the area beneath in a mist of soft scarlet. The trees that loomed from above seemed as high as the ones from Earth, but their trunks and leaves were notably different; silvery chunks of bark, peeling off of a smooth marble-like wood beneath, and an array of orange and brown leaves drooping down on either side. This woodland's trees were more suitable to line a cemetery with. The feel was certainly like one. And the small, curved stones that stuck up from in-between the trees were enough to make the group believe that this was some sort of burial ground.

"Necropolis. That's what it is," Valzer whispered. He was taught well enough by the elders of his village and by the wise words of his late mother to not raise his voice in a sacred place. There certainly was no need to wake any spirits that might still be lingering. "Damn. Of all the places we had to wander into..."

"It's not a formal graveyard, Valzer," Kain said simply. "I've been around long enough to know that graveyards aren't hidden in forests. There might have been a battle here." Kain bent down before one of the upturned stones, resting his gloved hand on the rough, poorly made gravestone. "Obviously they were still in battle when they buried these people. They probably didn't get a proper funeral."

Valzer snorted. "Great. Just what we need, angry ghosts."

Cecil walked up behind Kain, his shadow veiling the already faded writing on the stone's face. "I don't like the feel of this place." His words were spoken more for Kain's ears than any other's. "We can easily take monsters and men. But ghosts?"

A smile spread across the Dragoon's face. "There's a first for everything, my friend."

Rubin, a breath away from the two warriors, looked around, into the dark, nothingness of the forest and then back to the path the group was on. On either side were trees and gravestones. Nothing else could be seen past them, save for more trees and darkness. The route forward was just as bleak and with a quick glance behind, the same almost mirror-like image stared back at him. "I think we should be moving along." A faint mummer of an indiscernible noise blew through the trees with the warm wind, following the old wizard's words like an ominous warning. It was the first noise that they had heard, other than their boots against the dirt path and their soft, hesitating breaths.

"It sounds like thunder..." Rydia breathed in slowly.

"How can you tell?" Valzer jumped slightly when Rydia's back brushed against his. He spun around and nearly knocked into her for a second time. Again the wizard turned, though this time his brown orbs were searching for something. He could see Kain and Cecil by the path's edge, right before the never-ending row of trees and stones; Rydia was besides him and Rubin was but a few inches away; Decca was somewhere ahead, looking back with an unreadable expression.

But where was Jorhan?

The rumble grew louder.

Kain felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up almost expectantly. It had been a while since a good battle. But truth be told, he would have liked a face to go with that anticipated enemy. His left hand unhooked the lance from the leather holder on his back and the fingers of his right hand laid steadily on the pommel of his sword. From the corner of his eye, he saw Cecil do the same with his weapon.

A small smile touched Cecil's lips. "Looks like we get to battle ghosts after all." The Paladin's voice, usually steady with years of battle experience, had an unrecognizable falter in it. Something was terribly amiss. It was like a thousand unseen eyes were watching him and his friends.

"Maybe this isn't a good time to point out that we're missing one sarcastic monk and his wolf." Valzer drew his white blade and held it firm with two hands, a few inches before his frowning face.

Both Cecil and Kain turned around almost simultaneously towards Valzer, then exchange quick looks with one another.

"Damnable monk, " Kain cursed, searching with his blue orbs what had been already roamed over by a number of people's eyes. "I shouldn't have let him leave my sight. I knew he couldn't be trusted." At that thought, Kain's eyes quickly darted to Decca some feet ahead on the path, both of her long daggers in her more than capable hands.

"Perhaps he got frightened and ran?" Cecil suggested.

A quick shake of Kain's head was all that answered Cecil's question. The Paladin King held his sword tighter. Whatever Jorhan had done, he would most certainly pay for it.

The group moved closer together, towards the middle of the dirt path. It was impossible to give the noise a proper direction; it seemed to come from every side, every possible angle, echoing in the depths of unseen places. The ground began to shake as whatever it was approached them, then to the surprise of the warriors, the ground beneath them buckled and seemingly sprung upward from different places on the path; awkward, almost icicle shaped earth. Decca jumped aside in time to miss the hardened spear-like rock that sprung up from beneath her. Kain, Cecil and Valzer swung their blades, trying best to decapitate the sharp tips from off the spear-like creations.

"Someone's using magic!" Rydia managed to say before she dodged the upturned ground, her words ending with a yelp.

"What?" Kain snapped his head in Rydia's direction, where he had last heard her voice, only to see more spear-like rock that reached far beyond his own height.

"She means that someone is using a quake spell!" Decca ran towards the Caller, swinging her blades, which did little in hindering the magic spell. She wasn't sure if Kain had asked his question out of confusion, or because he couldn't hear them over the thunderous booming of the magic. "Put your weapons away!"

Kain and Valzer shot her a confused, cynical look.

"She's right. Magic defeats magic, boys!" Rubin stomped his foot on the ground, as if to gain the attention of the spell, or to understand where it was coming from, and closed his eyes. "There are multiple casters..." Rubin's eyes snapped open quickly, realizing that his whispered words were inaudible to anyone else around him; they had been barely audible to his own ears. "There is more than one!"

"More than one what?"

Whoever had said that, the old wizard could not tell. In fact, he wasn't even sure of the question. It seemed like the noise was growing louder even still. "Caster!" Rubin answered, jumping aside to avoid another magic-made spear. It didn't take Rubin long to steady himself and to close his eyes once more. But an abrupt shove forced Rubin's eyes open again, just in time to see Decca's arms and the ground rushing towards him. They both hit it with a thud that was quickly lost in the endless sound of the angry, rumbling ground. Decca, however, had turned herself to the right, making sure that the brunt of the fall found her shoulder instead of Rubin. With a small grunt, she was crouching on the ground and helping Rubin sit upwards.

"I think they're riding us," she said to the old man. "Either that or they're trying to herd us together."

Rubin stood as quickly as he could, swiftly scanning the area for the rest of their comrades. Much to his dismay, it seemed that Decca's last words were true. They weren't being scattered; they were being forced back towards the center of the path, for who knew what reason, a reason Rubin most certainly didn't wish to know. "Then we must do the only thing we can..." The old wizard ran towards the path again, waving his hands to get the attention of everyone else, and said two words as loudly as the noise around them would allow: "Split apart!"

"What?" came Kain's discontented reply. He most certainly did not run from any battle.

"Hell, listen to the old man, would you?" Valzer grabbed Kain's arm, much to the Dragoon's protests, and headed towards the thick row of trees. There was no way they could fight against invisible enemies. Valzer looked back to make sure the others were following Rubin's words. They were; at least, they were trying to.

A wall of solid ground had stopped Decca and Cecil from going anywhere, so the elf and the Paladin ran back the other way, towards Rubin and Rydia, who seemed just as trapped as they were. Before Valzer and Kain could react, they slammed into a wall of stone, which spit through the ground with a loud roar, uprooting a few small trees and even splitting one in half.

Decca set her jaw tightly and kneeled on the dirt path, laying her hands palm flat upon it, her fingers slowly digging beneath the cool dirt. This annoying game had gone on for much too long... She breathed in deeply, held it expectantly, then slowly she let go that air trapped within her lungs. The ground responded with another loud grumble and more walls of rock, which came uncomfortably close to the now trapped group. Decca breathed in for a second time, and more rock walls answered her with thunder-like roars. When she did it for a third time, however, the grumbling softened somewhat, nearly sounding like the purring of a kitten. The forth time was more successful and Rydia followed Decca's lead, kneeling on the ground and trying to sooth the magic spell. Soon, the only rumbling that filled the hot air was the noise the rock formations made as they slinked away and back into the ground. Some even melted away before their very eyes, turning back to soft dirt.

Decca let out her last held breath in relief. Another minute and those walls would surely have taken one of her friends for a most unwanted ride. Still, the feel of the spell lingered, and before she could figure out why, she heard Rydia gasp in alarm behind her. Decca looked up to see a figure standing over her.

"Impressive," the feminine voice purred.