Cry of the Lost: A Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Tale

Chapter 19

"Wake up, tough guy. It's chow time." A burly man kicked Mark and set a plate of food down on the floor next to him.

Mark slowly opened his eyes, looked up at the man, and then surveyed his surroundings. He realized that he was sitting on the floor with his wrists loosely chained to the wall of a small, dark room. Mark picked up the plate and inspected the food. As he did so, he felt a dull pain in the back of his head.

"Go ahead and eat it. The boss wants you alive. You already would've been dead if he didn't. It'll be a while before he comes, so no need to rush," the man noted before turning and leaving the room.

Meanwhile, Curt and Paul had been searching for Mark for nearly half of an hour. They had searched several pubs, walked a number of streets, and looked around the opera house without any luck. Curt was just about to suggest that they return to the inn when he saw a man, who was clearly drunk, stumbling in the direction of the opera house. Curt quickly recognized the man as the stalker who had tried to attack Mark in the old warehouse. Curt motioned to Paul that he wanted to follow the man.

Mark had just finished his food - which he found to be of surprisingly excellent quality - when the door opened and the burly man returned. The man released Mark's fetters from the wall and led him, still shackled, to a well-decorated room.

"Sit down and wait here," the man ordered.

Mark sat down on a plush sofa in the center of the room and watched the man leave. A few seconds later, another door on the other side of the room opened, and a tall, well-dressed man entered. The man wore a harlequin mask over his face, but Mark could tell that it was Hamilton. Mark had not been able to get very close to Hamilton after he left Curt and Autumn in the lobby of the opera house. He strained to remember what had happened. Mark recalled that he had followed Hamilton and the two women down a hallway, and then he was hit on the head from behind. Still, he was able to recognize that the man standing before him was indeed the same man he had followed.

"So it is you...such a small world we live in. How do you like my mask, Mark?" Hamilton asked.

"How do you know my name?" Mark replied as he scrutinized his captor.

Hamilton walked over to a chair that sat across from Mark, sat down, and crossed his legs. He chuckled softly and then slowly removed his mask. Mark gasped and looked at Hamilton in shock.

"John..." Mark whispered.

"It's a great mask. I purchased it for the masquerade ball I'm throwing...John? Hehe. No, the name is Hamilton. I had a friend named John once, but he is no more." Hamilton sat the mask down on the table beside him.

"I thought you were dead!" Mark exclaimed.

"Dead...yes, I tasted death once...as did you," Hamilton returned. "Remember that night around the fire?"

"We were ambushed...you were shot...I was shot...and..." Mark recalled.

"And that's where the memory ends...until you woke up in a farmer's hut," Hamilton finished.

"Yes, the farmer found me. I had him take me back to where he found me. Your body was gone though. He told me that he had buried you nearby and then showed me the grave. At the battle scene, I found your crystal pendant," Mark shared.

"Ah, my crystal pendant. I would like to have it back. Do you still have it?" Hamilton asked.

"I'm sorry, but no," Mark replied.