Disclaimer: Sahxyel does not own either Final Fantasy XII or Final Fantasy VII, for Square Enix rightfully owns both concepts. Thank you.

The SOLDIER of Ivalice

Report VII

They surely mock me!

My studies have taken exhaustive measures from the first publication of my theses, and now I am certain my hypothesis to be absolutely correct!

The silly people and their beliefs cling to the idea that the world, that Ivalice itself, was created from godlike intervention and shaped everything into what it is today. However, how do the theocratic theories explain unimaginable phenomena that lay deep within the sand and dirt underneath our feet? How can one adequately explain where the bones of a monstrous serpent came to be, if Ivalice itself was created only a few thousand years ago?

I hear you asking, hm?

It is because Ivalice, no, the entire planet was here for much longer than predicted!

How do I know this, you may ask?

My excavation of a tiny portion of the Paramina Rift has revealed the remains of an amazing geological stratum, dating millennia ago! Ancient artifacts, many in great condition were uncovered!

Among the objects uncovered were various mechanical devices that seemed to have been preserved in casings from years ago, and peculiar orbs that seem to glow upon interacting with them. After a few studies, we found that the Mist actually reacts to the orbs!

I believe these orbs to be none other than the mythical 'nethicite' that Dr. Cid has been raving about recently!

Unfortunately, my colleagues call them nothing but 'shiny baubles' from a time long past. Oh-ho, but they shall see! Soon, Archadia shall benefit from this discovery, and I to it also!

-Marcus Lentil, Natural Researcher

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The marvelous and prestigious city within the heart of the empire, Arcades, simply glowed with some sparkle that was admittedly hypnotizing to all who gazed upon it. The city still hummed with action even as the beginnings of night shed darkness onto the capitol city. Lights illuminated the growing darkness, making the city of Arcades glow even brighter at night.

One of the brightest and certainly most conspicuous buildings that towered over what seemed to be all else was the Draklor Laboratory. The central hub of all the enhancements that made Arcades to what it was now, the Draklor Lab; a force to be considered and feared among all opposing countries. For the Lab, although it did not wield the sword, it held the mightiest sway over pure, unknown, power, which it shared with Arcades' armies again and again.

With the war of Nabudis drawing closer to some sort of climax, the Draklor Labs were busier than ever. Nowadays, rumors spread like wildfire among those in Old Arcades that the Labs were working on something amazing, something that could possibly destroy the world if ever found or truly manufactured.

Word often drifted around that this fabled 'nethicite' was nothing more than the inventions of the poor who scraped for a bit of cash to trade this information for. More adventurous investors of knowledge spoke of an excavation that unveiled actual nethecite buried deep within the ground, and that the Empire itself would rule all of Ivalice soon because of it.

The problem with these rumors, however, was this; they were rumors, and nobody can fully trust what they hear.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Dr. Cid barely wasted his time, for one quick glance said it all. A sneer pulled at his lips, "That is not nethicite."

The young researcher trembled, clutching the orbs to his chest. His brown eyes were wide and incredulous, as though he did not believe what he was hearing. "But sir, these look exactly as you described! They even react to Mist!" Thef youth earnestly held one orb out, showing the brilliance of it as it gleamed in the darkness of Dr. Cid's study. The orb was barely bigger than a child's shooting marble and was smoother than glass to touch. A small light came from the center of it, giving off a crimson glow to its surroundings.

Unfortunately, the red hue only seemed to darken the good doctor's mood. "It is a sham, only a knick-knack from centuries past. Get rid of it, and anything else you might have found in that blasted hole you dug into." For a brief moment, Dr. Cid's eyes flicked to his immediate left, as if he heard something, before returning his gaze to the researcher.

Marcus Lentil's face fell noticeably, "…Sir-"

A fist pounded on the mahogany desk, making Lentil jump in surprise. "That expedition was nothing but a terrible waste of time and resources! I need my underlings working on worthwhile projects, not busying themselves with ends that came to end before our time." Dr. Cid's voice grew oddly genial, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully behind his small spectacles. "…Lentil…how would you feel about a new assignment? Just to readjust to the new standards I am seeking?" He leaned back in his seat, tenting his fingers together as he did so. "You are aware of the war in Nabradia, correct?"

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Loud bombshells and explosions rocked the air, nearly making a poor researcher within the Arcadian airship 'Ifrit' drop the countless amount of paperwork he was buried in. This loss normally would have sent him scrambling for the lost pages, but his 'room' kept the space his papers could get to at a bare minimum.

A tuft of messy brown hair ruffed from the researcher's head like that of an unkempt Cockatrice, and a pair of reading glasses sat haphazardly upon his nose, reflecting the poor light that was mounted upon a shabby metallic desk in front of him. "Blast it all!"

BOOM!

Again, Ifrit shook from the power of another attack, this time sending the hapless Marcus Lentil slamming into the wall behind him. "Ow! I didn't mean it literally!" He snapped at nothing in particular. The airship shuddered violently in response, red alarms suddenly blaring over the sound of war outside.

Marcus sighed unhappily, gathering his papers together for the seventh time. Although Arcadian victory was assured to him over and over again, Marcus had the dubious feeling that he would be a casualty of war on such a rickety and old airship like the 'Ifrit'. Even the forces of overwhelmed Nabudis could shoot the old bird down with a few well placed arrows, for Ultima's sake!

"Why am I even here?!" Marcus yelled over the din of the alarms, stuffing the paperwork into a folder nearby as he did so. Yet again, the ship shook violently, this time making the researcher fall from his chair and crash to the floor from the impact. From his pocket a red orb flew, rolling along the tiled floor and away from its owner.

Marcus saw it go and gasped loudly, already scrambling to try and snatch it back. "Oh no!"

The orb rolled through a small grate on the floor, its red glow illuminating its fall deep into the bowels of the Ifrit. Marcus watched the glow fade from sight, horrified at the loss.

…Until he remembered that he still had the pretty green, purple, yellow, and blue ones back at his flat in Arcades, tucked safely underneath his bed in an old box. However, it still was an unfortunate loss because that was the only red orb he possessed. Unlike the other orbs, which only sat in his hands like colored glass, that particular orb gave him a feeling of…power, Marcus supposed, when he held it.

Maybe one day he would see it again-

BOOM!

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

The Ifrit exploded in a huge display of fire, the entire ship engulfed with unforgiving and voracious flame. Slowly, the nose of the airship dipped, flying over the city of Nabudis in a flaming display. As the metals that covered the once imposing ship curled and twisted in the fire, a small red orb that burned like the fire surrounding it dropped from an exhaust vent. The crimson orb twirled in the air and sparkled in the midnight sky like burning refuse that came from the ship itself.

The orb bounced on a nearby roof, continuing its decent into the war-torn city of Nabudis. It bounced from rooftop to rooftop, past grappling soldiers and avian steeds. It kept traveling onward, and remarkably, managed to avoid every soldier that would come and almost block its progress. The orb hopped down a flight of stairs, through a terrace, and finally to a section of the city that led underneath the majestic palace itself. Nimbly, it rolled through a small window-like opening and dropped several hundred feet into the bowels of the Nabudis fortress.

Slowly, its bounce diminished and the orb rolled onward, through the underground dungeons of the Nabudis fortress. The orb headed straight for a deep and dank well at the end of its path and reached the well without any trouble at all. The red orb teetered at the lip of the well…

And fell.

The orb traveled downwards, flying through a mist-like substance on the way down. In response, the mist it flew through rushed to the orb, collecting into it almost too eagerly to be considered natural. The shine of the orb glowed brighter and brighter on the way down, illuminating the stone walls around it in a harsh red light.

It hit the ground and bounced, this time in a dark and wet passageway. Lights above it flickered dimly as it rolled and bounced onward, down the passageway. It hit a rock and ricocheted off of it, hitting a switch nearby. A rumbling sounded off as it rolled into a generator room for the passageway, a gate slamming shut behind it with a mighty 'clank'.

Slowly, the orb crept along at a snail's pace, and finally stopped at rest at the bottom stair of the room. The brilliant glow from the orb never faltered once…

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Two Years Later…

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Burrough the Bangaa sighed softly, his old eyes focused on the gate in front of him wearily. In the dimness his small 'Fire' spell provided, he could see that the gate to the inner generator room was locked. With the power out, there would be no chance of getting inside unless a stroke of luck came to him.

Longingly, the Bangaa peered through the bars, spying a light of red in the dark room. For months he had tried everything possible to get to and obtain the mysterious trinket that glowed blood red in the dark. The Barheim Passage was dangerous to travel, he knew, but that trinket called out to him…almost mockingly at that.

A shuffle sound alerted Burrough, making him spin around in surprise. A colorful, but metallic, insect stood a few feet behind him, hissing vilely. A Mimic...it must have heard him, Burrough thought. Unlike the ones Burrough saw commonly in the passage, this Mimic was three times as big. Unfortunately, it looked three times as mean too.

"Skkktz!" The Mimic hissed and charged, its multicolored abdomen flashing in the dark corridor. Nimbly, Burrough leaped to the side, whipping out an old spear from his back strap as soon as he landed. The Mimic reared its wickedly sharp forelegs and lashed, but was stopped by Burrough's spear at the last moment.

With a mighty heave, the old blue Bangaa slammed the bug into the wall and heard a satisfying 'crunch' come from the Mimic, followed by a horrid wail. Sparks leapt from the Mimic in jolts, making the beast shiver and jerk about dumbly.

"Nasty beastie, aren't you?" Burrough gave a rusty chuckle, watching the Mimic as it tried to stand back up. The insect-like creature hobbled awkwardly on its long legs, gave one more shriek, and fell over.

Making sure it was dead; Burrough quickly searched the remains for anything he could sell back at the Nabudis Fortress. Unfortunately, it seemed as if the beast held nothing of value except what looked like a tiny trinket, probably something that could be used on a mechanical device.

Burrough had an odd feeling that the object he held was probably needed in the generator room just beyond that blasted gate behind him. He gave another chuckle, this time at the twisted irony of the situation. "Always my luck." With a flick of his scaly wrist, he chucked the piece through the small opening of the gate. Making sure it landed deep within the dim room, he turned to walk away. However…before he could even take one step-

BAM!

A loud crashing sound came from inside the generator room, followed by a plume of dust. Burrough jumped at the sound, immediately alert to his surroundings. Gripping his spear, the old Bangaa peered into the dim chamber beyond…and heard…voices?

Hume voices by the sound of it. The tones were too light to be the guttural Seeq, and not nearly as recognizable as how Bangaa normally spoke. By the sound and frequency of the voices, Burrough determined there had to be four within the interior of the room, three males and one female by the sound of it. He only made out a few words from their conversation, noting that the youngest sounding male seemed to be rather upset at the moment.

"Hrm…" The old Bangaa kept close to the wall nearby. The sound of steps came from within, followed by the sound of clanking metallic objects. Supposedly, the sound must have been coming from the weapons they were toting around. The room had remained silent for a moment, before a gruff male voice spoke.

"There seems to be no way out of this place. The gate is shut."

"There's always a way out, do not fret too much about it. It's only a minor inconvenience." A suave sounding Hume voice replied coolly. Burrough heard one of the Humes walk to a wall nearby, obviously looking for some sort of box that could operate the gate. The other three, by the sound of movements, were standing somewhere higher than the suave Hume, possibly on some stairs…

"What's that?" The youngest male Hume finally spoke, and sounded somewhat curious.

"Hm?" The gruff Hume grunted curiously, but only just.

"That glowing thing."

Burrough's reptilian pupils shrunk. Did that Hume see-?

"Oh?" The suave Hume, this time, sounded off. "Perhaps it's something we can use to work this blasted gate…"

Click-clacks of heels from the woman of the group came. The orb, to Burrough's horror, rose from its resting position. The orb still glowed in its alluring crimson light. The orb seemed to turn, as if the woman was inspecting it.

"…Fran? What is it?" Again, the suave Hume. This time, he sounded concerned. Briefly, Burrough wondered why…

"This orb. It reeks of Mist." The woman, Fran, said tacitly. Her voice softened, "It cries."

"Huh?" The younger male Hume sounded mightily confused. "What's she talking about?"

"Fran?" The suave Hume sounded very concerned, but it seemed as if the woman wasn't responding. It remained quiet for minutes afterward, in what Burrough thought to be quite uncomfortable by the tension he could sense in the room.

Finally, the woman spoke. "…I have never seen its like before." She sounded very faint.

"Let me see that for a moment." The suave man sounded authoritive now. An airy sigh came from Fran, as though she were relieved. Indeed, the orb had been taken from her by the looks of things. Perhaps the orb stole the life from those who held it? Whatever the case, Burrough was glad he did not obtain it now. What if the orb stole his life, simply because he held it in his scaly palm?

"…" The orb suddenly flew into the air in a graceful arc, followed by a surprised yelp from the young male Hume. "What do you think, Vaan?"

"Uhh…" 'Vaan' sounded surprised still. "…It's very warm?"

"Besides that." The other Hume sounded tired, as though he was talking to a mere child. "Do you sense anything else?"

"No…am I supposed to?"

An exasperated sigh came from the suave man. "Alright then." The orb changed hands yet again, probably back to the suave man. Burrough blinked. It seemed as if the orb did not harm the Humes, except for the female. Maybe it didn't steal people's life force then?

"Might I see that for a moment?" The gruff Hume finally spoke. Burrough noted that the man sounded very curious now. Again, the orb traveled in a tossed arc, but looked like it was caught without much surprise. Burrough watched the orb slowly turn in the dark, watching as the light went from dim to bright very quickly. The gruff man grunted in surprise, and Burrough finally saw into the dimness of the room.

The red light shone onto every crevice the room had to offer, allowing even the poor-sighted Bangaa to view inside. He saw that he was partially right about the people within. Obviously, only three of them were Hume and male, for the fourth looked like an exotic woman with rabbit ears and a peculiar presence. The three Humes varied in appearance, the youngest looking perhaps around eighteen years old. The eldest was the man holding the now-blinding red orb.

"What'd you do?!" The youngest Hume shouted angrily. Burrough saw a deep glare that the boy gave to the eldest man, one that spoke of deep hatred indeed…

The older man shook his head in shock, his longer hair waving behind his head. "I did nothing! It started glowing itself!"

"Well, it shed a bit of light on our situation-…hello?" The third male Hume, the one that sounded suave at least, looked to the ground. He knelt down and picked up…

Burrough slammed his palm onto his face. It was that stupid device he found on the Mimic! "Why did I throw it?!" He grumbled furiously to himself. Had he not thrown it, he could have traded them the orb for the device! Mentally, Burrough was kicking himself for such rotten luck.

"What is that Balthier?" Vaan asked, finally saying the man's name. 'Balthier' only brushed past him and the older, unnamed, man, heading up the stairs.

The rabbit-woman, Fran, eyed the orb that the older Hume held. "Something within it stirs." One of her ears twitched suddenly and her eyes widened. "What?"

"What is it-?" Vaan started to ask, but stopped abruptly. "Agh!" Burrough was alert for a brief moment, before blinding pain erupted in his eyes. Hissing out some foul Bangaa words, he took a step back and rubbed his eyes.

"Got it!" Balthier's voice came cheerily from the top of the room. "Sorry for the lack of warning, I wasn't entirely sure it would work."

"Oww…" Vaan whined. All the lights within the passage erupted to life as soon as the generator was fixed; contrasting harshly to the deep darkness that everyone had become accustomed to. Much eye-rubbing followed, as did a gradual eye adjustment for the blue Bangaa that stood against the wall adjacent to the gate.

Balthier came back down the stairs of the generator room, heading straight for the console with the switch nearby. With a simple flick, a groan came from the gate as rust and dust shifted from years of immobility. Slowly, the gate pulled all the way up and allowed Burrough to finally saunter inside. He still had the spots in his vision, unfortunately, so he plopped down in the corner nearby and sighed wearily, blatantly ignoring the stares he was receiving. Truth be told, he was dead tired from journeying into the Barheim Passage, and the disappointment of not obtaining the mysterious red orb drove his stamina into the ground.

The young Hume, Vaan, approached him. "Uhm…what're you doing here?"

Burrough let out a rusty laugh. "I came seeking this and that to sell at the Nabudis Fortress. Was trying to get in this room, but couldn't figure it out." He decided to leave the orb out of the conversation. It didn't matter what he said, for he knew they would not give up such a mysterious treasure to him. Might as well gain Gil at least… "You'll need supplies for up ahead. It gets pretty rough, and many things lurk in this passage." Tossing his traveling pack over his shoulder, Burrough opened it, revealing a surprising stock of items.

Vaan took one look at the items before he promptly took out a sizeable bag of Gil.

…Burrough had to admit, this venture didn't go unrewarded. He sold quite a bit of items, including magicks, weapons, and armor to the young man, who in turn gave items to his comrades, excluding the older man who held the shiny orb still. A gnawing feeling entered the back of his head, and he cleared his throat just as the group readied to leave.

"That charge won't last forever. Any use of electricity will mean lights out and things get tougher when it's dark, believe me." Burrough said sagely. "Be careful when you're wandering around."

Seemingly taking his advice, the strange group left Burrough to his own. The old Bangaa listened as their footsteps slowly melted away from earshot.

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

In all his years, former Captain Basch Von Ronsenburg of Dalmasca had never seen such an amazingly strange trinket as what he held now. The red orb glimmered in the light of the Barheim Passage, and twinkled whenever it was turned at an angle to the light source itself. Within it, Basch could see a swirling sort of Mist churn. Whatever the orb was, it was certainly peculiar at best.

At the moment, he and trio of thieves he was traveling with were standing in a junction devoid of monster activity of any sort. A blue crystal stood not too far away, and the exit to the blasted passage was just ahead. Balthier and Fran stood near the crystal, which was expected since both of them needed the rejuvenation after racing to kill a Battery Mimic before it sucked the electricity to the passage dry. The run uphill and the fight afterwards were very tiring, apparently.

Vaan looked as if he was sorting through the weapon supplies. He seemed upset, which was understandable to Basch. Balthier's earlier suggestions to the youth made him give up his sword in favor of some sort of rod Vaan found out in the Dalmasca Estersand before the whole business of 'stealing from the Royal Palace of Rabanastre' or something like that. The weapon was not manly, Basch admitted, but he was more capable with the sword than Vaan was, and Vaan had the most licenses for magicks besides Fran.

Needless to say, it worsened Vaan's mood about the whole affair of traveling with the supposed 'traitor' of Dalmasca. Indeed, another glare was sent his way by the young man yet again. Basch sighed softly and returned to looking at the orb he held.

For some reason, throughout the whole time he had held the orb, it had shined and twinkled. When the others held it, the orb sat in their hands as a stone, and did nothing. Fran had said, earlier, that the orb only 'liked' him. Vaguely, Basch wondered why it was so. Why would this orb respond to him?

"That orb entrances you, yes?"

Basch tore his eyes away from it, looking at the Viera who spoke to him. Her eyes were also on the orb. Looking back to it, Basch nodded once. "That it does."

"Strange…isn't it?" Balthier said, eyeing the orb also. "What would you say it's made out of? Crystal, perhaps?"

"It feels more like glass." Basch replied, feeling the texture underneath his fingers. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Fran shake her head slightly in a negative response. The Viera looked troubled, for it seemed as if she didn't want to say anything about the orb at first.

"…It is…Mist. I think." For the first time, Basch detected confusion in her voice. "It is solid, yet…it does not burn like the Mist does. The Mist trapped within it burns, but the shell of the orb dulls its flame."

Balthier looked thoughtful for a moment, "Solid Mist that isn't Mist, eh?"

"Hm." Basch turned the orb in his fingers and could feel the warmth pulse within it, like a beating heart.

"Can we get going?" Vaan suddenly snapped, sounding irate. "I want to get out of here." More or less, Basch had the distinct feeling Vaan wanted to get away from him. The two sky pirates across from Basch looked to one another and shrugged, picking up their weapons that they leaned against a nearby wall. Basch stood up from his seat on the ground, also retrieving his weapon and shield. The four headed right into the room ahead, all eyes on the exit.

Vaan, who was originally leading the other three, stopped in his tracks and stared. Balthier and Fran stopped as well, Balthier gaining a look of disgust on his face fairly quickly. Basch looked past them, to what they saw as well.

Green slime dribbled downwards, oozing out what looked like a treasure container onto the stone floor. However, as soon as the 'treasure' landed, legs straightened out and stood up, revealing a tiny Battery Mimic. The beast skittered around a very large leg, which towered higher than view from the other room. It was gigantic, and had a beautiful array of colors upon its massive thorax. Its legs moved as it noticed the group of four, and hissed loudly. The tiny Mimic underneath it skittered away to an open wire where three other tiny Mimics sucked the electricity from it. Behind him, Basch heard a slam, and turned.

A pair of huge gates now blocked their exits.

Now facing the four, the Mimic Queen gave an almighty shriek and lunged. One of her thick legs kicked up, barely missing Vaan as he dashed away from it at the last moment. Balthier and Fran split up and ran around the huge beast, already attacking it with as much power as they could muster. Vaan stood at a distance and fired first a Fire spell, followed by a Blizzard spell at the huge insect.

Basch, however, noticed the lights were beginning to dim and turned. The tiny Battery Mimics were sucking at the open wires eagerly, and were consuming a great deal of energy by the look of it. If it got dark, then they would have much more to worry about than just the Mimic Queen…

Unsheathing his sword, Basch charged at two tiny Battery Mimics that were nearby and sliced one in half right away. The second one lunged at him, but was stopped by the shield Basch threw up in defense. The tiny creature bounced of and squealed in fury, jumping again only to be sliced in half like the one before it. Without looking at the Queen, Basch ran to the next open wire where a third Mimic gorged on the electricity, swinging quickly to end the beast's life as well-

"Ooof!" A huge leg came from nowhere, slamming Basch into the ground before he could even turn around. The Mimic Queen seemed to be in a rage, energy around it crackled as it shook…

Basch's pupils shrank, but his realization came too late.

"SSSKKTTZZZ!" The Queen crackled magnificently as bolts of painful white light came from it. The power and force of the magick slammed into all four, and Basch saw two of his comrades fall from the intensity of the attack. A powerful swing of a leg took out the last, Vaan, before he could heal himself with a Cure spell. Now it was only Basch and the Mimic Queen.

And sadly, the Queen had him pinned under its insect-foot.

Scrambling, Basch reached into his pockets to get a Potion out before the Queen took him out of commission as well. Magick crackled around it, and Basch was sure the Mimic Queen was intent on finishing him off with some sort of 'Thunder' spell. Grasping an object in his pocket, Basch pulled it out seconds before the Thunder spell was cast.

He held the red orb.

Around that moment, Basch had the distinct feeling of regret, knowing he was going to perish from this monster. The lightning flew fast towards him, and in a sorry defense, Basch held the orb up in the way of the spell.

The Thunder spell hit the orb straight on.

In a brilliant flash, the orb glowed with the intensity of the sun, blinding both Basch and the Mimic Queen with its light. The Queen squealed, lifting its leg off of Basch as it stumbled around blindly, shrieking all the while. Basch rolled and stood, gripping his sword tightly. He couldn't see, but he could hear the shuffling of the Queen in front of him.

SLASH!

The sound of metal ripping metal tore through the room like a thunderclap, and a dying shriek of the Mimic Queen sounded out. The air seemed to fill with electricity as the Queen hit a wall. By now, Basch could see a deep gash in it that wasn't there before a moment ago. "What-?"

Above, rocks began to fall. Basch took a step back then looked for his comrades, but saw no one there except for the dead Mimic Queen. Where'd they go?!

Not seeing any other option, Basch ran for the open exit and into the bright sunlight a moment before rubble and rocks fell behind him, blocking the way back into the Barheim Passage. Dust flew into the air, and for a moment, Basch had to readjust to the change of light.

"Wasn't expecting that to happen, honestly."

Basch recognized the voice immediately, "Balthier?" He looked blearily to the left, seeing the aforementioned sky pirate sitting on a rock.

"Yes?"

"How did you escape?" Basch was completely mystified; all three of them were unconscious when he was fighting the Mimic Queen. How did they get out unscathed?!

"You tell me. All the exits were sealed, all hope of help cut off." Balthier shrugged, and then gestured towards Basch's left. "Yet…"

Basch turned his head to the left, and blinked in surprise. A man knelt next to Vaan, shaking the young man to try and wake him up. A huge sword, bigger than any sword Basch had seen in all his years was strapped to the man's back, and the weight of it seemingly did not bother the man at all. Midnight-black hair contrasted prominently from the man's head, and was spiked ridiculously back, missing a few strands for the bangs.

Even more peculiar were his clothing. He wore a dark and thick ensemble that did not fit right with the warm climate they were in at the moment. The cloth for the clothing also looked very different from anything Basch had seen before.

"Ugh…" Vaan stirred, his eyes opening slightly. "Wha?"

The mysterious man smiled in relief. "Phew! Thought you weren't going to make it for a second! That oversized bug took a lot out of you guys, huh?"

The man certainly had an…odd style of speaking.

"Bug? You mean that Mimic Queen?" Vaan asked as he sat up. The man stood up and helped Vaan up too, nodding as he did so.

"Yup. Thing was almost dead though, so I just gutted it as soon as I saw it." He shrugged modestly, "Fair enough to say you guys wore it down."

"Actually, only three of us are male." A tacit voice came from nearby, making the mysterious man jump in surprise. Basch watched him turn, and blinked. The man before him looked so young but his eyes held some appearance of age Basch could not oversee. It was the same look superior officers in battle held…

The man laughed sheepishly. "Sorry, it's just a term, I didn't mean-"

Fran's nonplussed facial expression didn't change. "Calling a collective group of beings 'guys' is not a term."

The man opened his mouth to say something in retort, but closed it again in defeat. "Right. Sorry, again. I'm not used to custom around here." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and looked around. He appeared to be mildly confused. "If I knew where 'here' is. Are we in the Corel Desert?"

Basch raised an eyebrow in a questioning way. "Corel Desert?" What was this man talking about? If he rescued them, wouldn't he know where they were in the first place?

"That's peculiar. You haven't the foggiest where we are?" This time, Balthier spoke. He looked to the man oddly, "Where did you come from?"

"Well…" The man stood there and blinked, with a blank look on his face. "…To tell you the truth, I don't really remember much." Again, he laughed sheepishly, this time because of the stares of disbelief he was receiving. "What?"

"You had to come from somewhere." Vaan pointed out. "You don't look native to Dalmasca though…"

The man now looked very confused. "Dalmasca? Never heard of it."

A silence gripped the group as they stared at their mysterious rescuer. Either he was lying, or he really had no idea where he was. Basch was fairly certain the young man wasn't lying to them, for his face spoke of pure innocent confusion. Even that look would be hard to pull off convincingly. The man frowned at their stares. "What? Am I in a place like that?"

"You're in the kingdom of Dalmasca, close to the Royal City of Rabanastre." Basch said, eyeing the man with clear derision now.

"Ahh…Then I have no idea where I am, then." The man said, apparently dreadfully confused now. "This 'Royal' city sounds like a place where I can get some answers though. Are all of you heading there?"

"Yes, and you are welcome to tag along, if you must." Balthier said as he stood from the rock. The supposed 'Leading Man' strode past them, retrieving his weapon from Fran, who for the whole time had remained completely silent. Basch saw her whisper something to Balthier, causing the sky pirate to glance towards the two Seeq that stood not too far away.

"So, what's your name?" Vaan stood up, looking to the man in curiously. The man chuckled, and then unexpectedly shook hands with the young thief.

"Zack Fair, you?"

"Err, just call me Vaan." Vaan replied, wrenching his hand away from Zack's amazingly strong grip. The man grinned, and nodded.

"Alright then, 'Vaan'." Looking away from him, Zack tilted his head, looking now at Basch curiously. "…Huh."

Basch immediately felt uncomfortable. Why was he looking at him like that? "What is it?"

"You remind me of someone…I can't think of who." Zack shrugged slightly. "What's your name?"

Inwardly, Basch debated telling Zack his name. It was that…he felt as if he did not deserve the name he owned now. His 'traitorous' past would surely bring shame to his once noble name, and there was no doubt on the street people would recognize his title. However, Zack did not seem to know of Dalmasca at all. In a way, Basch was relieved that the young warrior didn't know what stigma followed him. It meant that someone wouldn't judge him for actions made long ago… "Basch Rosenburg."

Instead of flinching, or a look of horrid realization, the young man grinned yet again. "There's a last name! Why don't you have one?" Zack asked jokingly to Vaan, making the younger man look at him indignantly.

"I have a last name! It's-"

"Time to leave!" Balthier announced. He stood near the sandy ramp leading down into a valley. "I've been informed that there is a Teleport Crystal in the village nearby. We'll use that to return to Rabanastre." He turned, "Do you have a Teleport Stone, Vaan?"

"…Err…" The young man dug a hand into his pocket, pulling out a small orange stone that was the size of a pebble. "Right here."

"Then let's depart." The two sky pirates headed down into the valley, with Vaan trailing behind them. Basch watched Zack walk after them, before he too walked into the sandy valley of the Dalmasca Estersand. The young warrior hung back with Basch as the other three raced onward to dispatch a large red wolf nearby.

"So…what's the rabbit-chick and the other guy's name? I didn't catch it earlier."

Basch sighed.

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Sahxyel: I've been playing Final Fantasy XII lately, and my crossover ideas flew towards this like metal shavings to a magnet. The beginnings of a crossover fic that will NOT contain strange pairings (yaoi included) and will be written in a style that hopefully will do both sides of the crossover justice, is what I hopefully will accomplish.

Random Moogle: Kupo! Sahxyel was dismayed that she could not find a decent FFVII and FFXII crossover fiction, so she decided to write this!

Sahxyel: If people like this, as reviews and hits will reflect public opinion, I'll continue this gladly! Until next time, dear readers!