Xenoblade Chronicles

Chapter 29 - Galahad Fortress

Lorithia stood alone in her laboratory, eyeing the spear that was suspended in midair before her. The green fluid that was originally in some sort of hourglass near the tip was now empty, but it didn't meant that it didn't leave interesting traces of ether behind. She had learned much. She glanced up from her papers as Alvis approached her. Setting down her notes on a nearby stand, she turned to face him. "They are of surprisingly little use, those visions," Lorithia said, her voice echoing. "Because he could not save His Majesty?" Alvis raised an eyebrow. "That was within the margin of fate. It was not Shulk's fault." "Hm," Lorithia scoffed. "So you side with the boy?" "Did you find anything out?" Alvis asked, quickly changing the subject. "I did," Lorithia said, turning back to the floating spear. "It is most fascinating, this spear. The green fluid alters and destroys the structure of the ether, which is the building block of life on Bionis. It appears to have been created from ether energy drawn from the blood of the Bionis." "Could that explain the ether flowing through Sword Valley?" "I do not think that is the only reason, but it is too early to draw conclusions," Lorithia said. "Is there a countermeasure?" "Creating antibodies is a simple matter," Lorithia said dismissively. "We will be ready." "That is good news," Alvis said, smiling appreciatively. "Why did you have to include him?" Asked Lorithia suddenly, scowling. "You know how he disgusts me." "We must respect our elders," Alvis chided. "Dickson has known him far longer than us." Lorithia scowled, and picked up her notes once more, looking up at the spear. * * * Shulk was still shocked. Dunban seemed so indifferent about Mumkhar's death that it rather scared him. He had never seen the former user of the Monado so cold towards someone. He even wasn't that cold to any of the people in Colony 9 that he didn't particularly like. Shaking off his fears, everyone gathered together, since they had all sprinted for the nearest exit of the small circular platform. "At least he's out of the way," Reyn said, noticing Shulk's haunted look. "Now we just need to get inside." Shulk nodded. "They're in there," He said grimly. "Fiora and the Golden Mechon." He took a step forwards, when everything flashed white. Face Nemesis was stalking towards him, one sword raised and pointed directly at his chest. Another flash. Shulk was struggling towards her, where she was lying on the ground. There was a final flash, and Fiora was free-falling from the fortress. "Fiora!" Shulk shouted, reaching forwards, almost as if he could grab onto her. "Shulk?" Reyn glanced over at him. "What's up?!" "Did you see something?" Dunban asked. Shulk hesitated. He wasn't sure if he wanted to share the fact that he possibly just saw Fiora's second death. "N-No," He lied. "You did see something," Dunban decided. Shulk mentally cursed. That man could see through any lie, no matter how convincing. "Alright," He gave in. "It was the silver Mechon...Fiora. She's definitely inside the fortress." "Alright," Dunban said. "At least we know what to expect." Shulk nodded, biting his lip. So, Fiora is inside, He thought. I can't let that vision come true! I have to save her! They began walking, and encountered fewer Mechon. Perhaps they had heavily fortified the front of Galahad Fortress, in case of invasion. It wouldn't surprise Shulk, and he was slightly grateful that they took the rear entrance. When they reached it, they were glad to see it was unguarded. No Mechon appeared to ambush them and prevent them from reaching Fiora. "Here's our way in," Reyn wisely noted. "There's no turning back," Sharla agreed. Both of them turned to Shulk, who was pale. "We can't let them find us," He said at last. "Let's move!" "Right," Reyn agreed, and they entered the fortress. The first thing Shulk saw upon entering was another ether river. They crossed it with the walkways that zigzagged around the river. Shulk approached a door, which slid open upon his approach. Around them machinery hummed and spun in circles while Mechon units marched around an elevator. Originally, Shulk would have been ecstatic about the incredible technology, but he knew he was in the most danger he could ever put himself in otherwise. "Fiora's in here somewhere," He found himself murmuring. "Let's get looking," Reyn agreed. "Keep your eyes peeled. I'm ready for anything," He added, glancing over at Shulk. "I'll bash any Mechon that tries to mess with us!" Shulk nodded and smiled, grateful for his support. He went into the main part of the room and found the elevator inoperable. "I do not think we will be able to ride this with some sort of key," Melia said when Shulk explained the situation. "But where will we find one?" "Maybe a Mechon's got one," Reyn suggested. "But it ain't gonna be one here. Maybe if we search around for any rooms or something we'll find one with a pass to get this elevator working." "Good idea," Shulk agreed. He spotted a nearby ramp and lead the group up it. The first door he went through was filled in inactive Mechon units. "That won't be one," Reyn snorted. "There at least has to be one that's active. Try another room." Shulk rolled his eyes, but stepped away from the room. The door closed behind them. The second door they went through had one Mechon unit that was active, and two racks of inactive machines. Shulk stepped cautiously into the room when he spotted a key card sticking out of the Mechon. "There it is," He muttered to the group, careful of his voice level. He could very well alert the Mechon to their presence. "It looks like we'll have to defeat it in order to get that key card," Dunban said. He smirked, and took out his katana. "Not a problem." Shulk nodded, and took out the Monado. The first slash alerted every single inactive and active Mechon in the room. Shulk heard Reyn curse irritatedly, and he stepped protectively in front of the group. His driver's shield was up, and he swung in a wide circles, slicing Mechon through the middle or bashing them in their nonexistent faces. Several of them fell over, but more took their place. Shulk leapt in front of Reyn, slicing horizontally with the Monado while Dunban leapt into the air, spinning his katana and shouting, "I'll cut you all to shreds!" Melia and Sharla hung back, as usual. Melia was using three lightning elementals and she shot them off at a rapid pace and then promptly summoning more. Sharla was using her rifle to fire off ether bullets, mostly to heal the party and hopefully prevent some serious damage. At long last, the final Mechon fell over, it's eyes growing dim. Shulk plucked the key card from it's circuits and they made their way back into the original room. Scanning the key card, the red electrical barrier that was blocking their way disappeared. Shulk had a horrible feeling they'd be dealing with more of those blockades in the future. They rode the elevator downwards, and appeared in some sort of control room. Shulk took a step forwards and examined a panel with hundreds of buttons on it. "Where are we?" Asked Reyn. "Looks like the control room for an ether blast furnace," Sharla replied. She came up to Shulk side and pointed at several ether waterfalls. "There," She said. "Look at that." "So this is what supplies the Mechon with ether energy," Dunban folded his arms. "Shulk!" Riki cried suddenly, pointing to a huge platform with two pistons rising and falling at different times. "What's that? Looks like fun! Riki want to ride!" "We didn't come here to mess about, furball," Reyn chided, glaring at the Nopon. "Time to bounce on." "Hold on!" Shulk said suddenly. "If we can stop that piston, we might be able to shut down the blast furnace." "Nice idea," Sharla complemented. "Cut off the Mechon's ether supply." "Riki say we try!" Riki said. "Yeah," Reyn agreed, looking skeptical. "But how are we supposed to stop something that massive?" "If we can stop the turbines driving the piston, it should work," Shulk said. "And the turbines should be nearby." "Right, let's search for them," Dunban said. Everyone else agreed. It didn't take very long to find the turbines driving the pistons. They were in two separate rooms that branched off from the ether blast furnace control room. They split off in groups of three, Shulk, Reyn, and Sharla in one group and Melia, Dunban, and Riki in the other. As they neared the turbine, Shulk suddenly got a nervous feeling. A very strong Mechon was just beyond that door. Reyn stepped forwards and the door slid open. Standing in front of a button that would most likely shut down the turbine that was humming gently in front of them, was a large Mechon. Shulk froze, and grabbed onto Reyn's wrist. "What?" Asked the red-haired man, annoyed. "Be careful," Shulk said. "That Mechon...it's incredibly strong. We can't lose focus." "You're saying we have to fight that?" Demanded Sharla. Shulk nodded grimly. It was the only way to get to the button. Reyn shrugged, and pulled his driver over his shoulder. He ran forwards, yelling while Shulk followed him. Sharla attempted to stay back in the shadows and heal from a distance. The Mechon noticed them and slammed Reyn back with a single blow. Shulk leapt forwards and came down with clean strike to the head. The Monado ripped through circuits and Mechon armour alike at the machine staggered as Reyn was helped to his feet by Sharla. Charging back into the battle, Reyn jabbed his driver into the Mechon's 'legs,' toppling it. Coming up with a hard blow with the hilt of the Monado, the Mechon lay on the ground, dazed. Reyn followed up with a jab to the face with his driver, and Sharla slammed the butt of her rifle into it. Helpless, the Mechon could only struggle as the group finished off. Shulk sighed in relief when it's eyes grew dim. Sharla hit the button and the turbine stopped humming pleasantly. They descended back down the ramp to find Riki, Melia, and Dunban waiting for them. "That sounded like quite a battle," Dunban smirked. "We could hear it all the way from here." "Was your's unguarded?" Reyn demanded. "No," Melia shook her head. "It was guarded by very weak Mechon. We dispatched of them easily." "We get the hard one," Reyn grumbled, rubbing his sore head. Shulk resisted the urge to laugh as they left the control room. Guided by Sharla, they headed down a narrow passageway that opened up into the ether blast furnace. They crossed a narrow bridge and Shulk slammed his hand down on the button that would stop the piston. It slowly slid to a stop and the waterfall of ether began to stop coming out in such a heavy flow as well. "Nice one!" Reyn cheered. "We did it!" "This should prevent them from mobilizing any large Mechon squads for now," Dunban said proudly. "Hopefully we've improved the allied force's chances." "Hold steady my brother," Melia whispered, hanging her head. Riki waddled to the edge of the platform and looked down. A door that was previously closed was open now, and the Nopon jumped up and down to get the group's attention. "Friends!" He cried. "Here! Here!" Shulk joined the Heropon at the edge of the platform and looked down. Reyn, Sharla, Melia, and Dunban joined him. "It looks like the door's been unlocked," Shulk commented. "Nice," Reyn grinned. "Let's get down to the blast furnace." "If we're lucky, Fiora might be down there," Shulk said. As he spoke, he was unaware of Riki coming up to a self-destruct button that would completely destroy the turbines, and thus alert Mechon to their presence. "What this do?" Riki asked. Shulk spun around throwing out a hand to stop the nopon. "Don't touch-" But it was already too late. Riki had pressed the button and almost simultaneously, the turbines exploded with a loud boom! "Stupid furball!" Reyn picked up Riki by his hair. "Now the Mechon know we're here! Let's move!" They sprinted back across the bridge and through the narrow passageway. Coming out in the large hallway, Shulk could already hear the Mechon's tromping feet. "Honestly, sometimes you're worse then Reyn," Sharla told Riki, forcing Reyn to release him. "Riki very sorry!" Riki said apologetically. "Riki not know button do that!" "It's almost like Reyn at the High Entia Tomb," Dunban said. "Don't touch buttons that you don't know the purpose of." "Riki sorry! Riki never do it again!" "We'll see." The group ran into another narrow passageway, coming out into another huge ether river. Following it, they tried to avoid all the Mechon they could. Apparently the machines had given up the chase, since none of them followed them down to the blast furnace. Finally arriving at the door, they all piled into it and rode it downwards. It wasn't a blast furnace. From the looks of things, it was used to repair Faced Mechon units. Dozens of faced Mechon that had the exact likeness of Xord were inactive on the wall, spears clutched in their hands. Riki waddled forwards and yelped when he saw them. "Shulk, is that..?" Melia froze as well. "Spear ones!" Riki agreed. "Loads and loads of spear Mechon!" There was suddenly an alarm that went off above. Two doors slid open, revealing two Mechon units in each. The group sprinted forwards towards a large garage-door like thing when it too slid open, revealing Face Nemesis. "It's Fiora!" Shulk gasped. She drew her dual blades, and got in a battle stance. "We have to talk to her! Get rid of those Mechon units!" Everyone obeyed and did their usual battle routine. Racing for the nearest Mechon, Shulk sliced and hacked, destroying it in a matter of seconds. The second one he had a little trouble with. Reyn, Sharla, and Shulk had managed to topple it, but it had large spikes on it's bottom that made them reluctant to daze it. So they hung back and waited until it got back on it's feet to strike again. It was the same routine with the second one. After accidentally toppling the larger one, Melia realized her friends were getting hurt by it's spikes. She summoned three elementals, water, fire, and lightning, and fired them off at once. The Mechon screeched and exploded. The final Mechon was finally defeated, allowing them to turn and try and reason with Face Nemesis. "Stop!" Dunban ordered his sister. "Don't you recognize Shulk?! Fiora!" "Fiora, please!" Shulk begged. "Don't you remember us at all?!" "It's no use," Dunban growled, clenching his fists. "Everyone, it's time to retreat." "Got it!" Reyn said. "Understood," Sharla agreed, her voice trembling. The others took off, and Dunban grabbed onto Shulk's arm, forcing him along. They turned onto a bridge, Monado Speed helping them alone. Suddenly, Face Nemesis came out of nowhere, destroying the bridge. Every staggered and fell as the bridge collapsed. Shulk jammed the Monado into the bridge, which was hanging by it's hinges, and grabbed onto Melia's arm. The Monado fell loose, and they too plummeted. "You alright?" Dunban groaned, glancing over at Reyn. "Yeah," The man in question said. "I think so. What do we do now, Shulk? We ain't gonna last long here!" The Heir to the Monado glanced up, looking for Face Nemesis. "Fiora!" He yelled. "Try and remember! It's us!" "I pity you," A voice made Shulk tense up. "Without the power of that sword, I doubt you would have ever made it this far." He spun around and spotted the golden Mechon, hovering above them. "You..." He heard Reyn growl. The Mechon spoke only two words in response. "Apocrypha. Activate." The Mechon began to glow, and the Monado's light faded and the sword deactivated. "What is...?" Shulk's eyes widened as he saw the sword's transformation. "Oi, what's going on?" Reyn demanded. "What's happened to the Monado?!" Shulk glanced around and saw several hundred Mechon units flying towards them, most dropping from the air. One of them was Fiora. "Look out!" Shulk yelled to Reyn. One Mechon came down with it's pincers at the ready. It slice at Reyn, but Shulk pushed him out of the way. The pincers raked across the blonde's back, slicing his back open. He screamed in pain. "Shulk!" Reyn shouted. "I'm...okay," Shulk managed through the excruciating pain. "Shulk!" Reyn said again. He glared at the Mechon who had attacked his friend. "Wait here!" He sprinted forwards, jamming his driver it's it's face and toppling it. Sinking his weapon deep into the Mechon and yanking it forcibly back, Reyn leapt off of the Machine as it exploded. Fiora stepped forwards and pointed one of her blades at them in a threatening manner. "Fiora!" Dunban stepped forwards, his expression angry. "Stop this right now. How could you? Shulk came here to save you?" Dunban paused, waiting for her response, and through the pain Shulk felt shocked. He had never heard the former user of the Monado use this tone with his little sister before. "Do you hear me? Fiora!" Face Nemesis's sword began trembling and she turned her head away. "You must run." The front armour of her came open, revealing Fiora. Her expression was pained and she looked increasingly worried. "Fiora!" Shulk said. Fiora attempted to get out the machine, but failed miserably. "Fiora..." Shulk said her name again, his throat closing up. "Or...whoever you are." "Please, run!" Fiora begged. "The machine is...not under my control!" "Not under your control?" Shulk repeated as the armour reclosed. "Is it him?! The Golden Mechon?" "Most surprising," The Golden Mechon said, sounding amused. "I never expected such resistance to becoming a Face." "Egil..." Fiora managed, turning Face Nemesis's head to look at the Gold Mechon. He raised a hand to silence her. "Fiora!" Shulk growled. "What have you done to her?!" "From the moment of their creation, all Mechon are mine to control," The Golden Mechon said simply. "Should a passenger defy me, I force it to obey." "Why make Homs into Mechon?!" Shulk demanded, repeating the questions he had asked while preventing Duban from killing Mumkhar. "Why are you making them attack Bionis?!" "If you wish to know, you have only to submit yourself to me," The Golden Faced Mechon said simply. "All will become clear when you attack Bionis with a new body born of Mechonis." "Never!" Shulk shouted. "Who would ever submit to you?!" "Forget about him," Dunban said, worriedly watching the blood stain Shulk's clothes. "We have to get out of here." "But..." Shulk choked. "But what about Fiora?!" "If we die here today, she will be..." Dunban hesitated. "She will be lost forever." "Choose!" The Golden Faced Mechon interrupted. "I have rendered the Monado useless. You have no hope of victory or escape." "You chunk of scrap!" Reyn roared. "So it was you who did that to the Monado!" "The Monado is a tool that regulates the waves from the very ether from which the world is formed," The Golden Faced Mechon said simply. "Therefore, it can be counteracted simply by releasing opposing waves." "But how can you-" Shulk started. "The questions end here!" The Golden Faced Mechon growled. "Hand over the Monado. After all, it is no longer of use to you." "Never!" Shulk shouted, using the the Monado to help him stand. "If the Monado really is powerless, then why would you want it for yourself?! I'll never give it to you! Never!" "Then make your choice," Gold Face leapt backwards and forced Face Nemesis forwards. "Be crushed by my fist or slain by your old friend." Fiora cried out in protest. "Egil!" She was forced forwards and instantly, Egil and her attacked. The group dodged and weaved and Sharla managed to close Shulk's wound. They kept a tightly knitted circle, jumping out of the way to avoid attacks, but they mostly failed. They tried to keep away from Fiora, knowing that their main target was Gold Face. But the Mechon was toying with them. He stomped towards them leisurely, and Fiora watched in horror. "I cannot allow this!" She cried. "That boy is at risk!" She struggled with Egil's control as the group was surrounded by smaller Mechon, when she heard the voice. Shulk! Don't let him die! Help Shulk! Help them! Fiora's eyes widened in shock. She had never heard this voice before, and frankly, it surprised her. "Who are you?" She gasped. "This is the end..." Gold Face growled, raising his hand. A ball of light appeared in it. "Heir to the Monado!" "Whoever you are," Fiora closed her eyes. "Please...lend me your strength!" She drew her blades and shot forwards, slamming into Gold Face. "I won't let you do this!" Fiora shouted, sending both her and Gold Face backwards. "Fiora!" Shulk yelled. "How dare you defy me!" Gold Face bellowed as Fiora sliced with her knives. "Worthless machine!" He swatted Fiora backwards and she screamed in pain as her Mechon crashed into a nearby wall. "Fiora!" Shulk shouted her name. "Egil..."Fiora panted, getting into an upright position. Face Nemesis stood as well. "No matter how much you yearn for revenge...I will not permit you to have your way!" All at once, the face she had lifted up, revealing red eyes which began to glow. A blast of power washed over the whole fortress and the Monado began to activate in Shulk's hands. "The Monado...?" Gold Face leapt backwards. "But how?" The circle in the Monado began to glow, and Shulk suddenly was blinded by a flash of light. The fortress was exploding, and particles rained down everywhere. Fiora was falling through the air, unresponsive. Shulk's world returned to color, and he took a step forwards. "No stop!" He shouted, but Fiora ignored him, shooting towards Gold Face. He distantly heard her voice as she soared towards the golden Mechon. "Please...Survive!" "Will you die for them?!" Gold Face demanded, taking a step backwards. Fiora slammed into him and at the same time, the machinery on her chest began to glow. The light surrounding Face Nemesis grew bright and brighter. "What is this?!" Gold Face demanded, shocked. "Fiora!" Shulk yelled. The support beam that was keeping the platform they were on elevated exploded up and down it, sending particles raining down. "Not good!" Dunban shouted, stumbling slightly. "Let's get out of here!" The platform lurched dangerously to the left and everyone ran towards the right, back to the pillar. Everyone, except Shulk. "Shulk!" Reyn shouted, noticing this. "Where are you?!" He spotted his friend struggling towards an unconscious Face Nemesis, who was dangerously close to the edge. "Shulk, get back here!" Shulk ignored Reyn and took another hesitant step forwards. He reached out to grab onto the Mechon's leg, but the cement shuddered underneath her and broke. Face Nemesis fell. Shulk's eyes widened and he didn't waste another second. He leapt off the edge of the platform, screaming her name. "Fiora!" "Shulk!" Came the simultaneous cry. "No!" Despite the explosions around him, Gold Face flew from the fortress, examining the mass destruction. "The power of that Face..." A sudden thought occurred to him, and he shook his head. "No...That is not possible! It cannot be!" "We have to get out of here!" Dunban shouted, back in the collapsing fortress. "But what about Shulk!" Melia protested. "We cannot just leave him!" "Agreed," Reyn said. "We have to-" He was cut off as the platform cracked and shattered into bits, throwing them into the air. And they plummeted. * * * "The fortress has collapsed?!" Kallian's face went slack with shock. A High Entia scout had just reported that Galahad Fortress was now in ruins. Incredible explosions had rocked the entire valley, and the only thing that remained was a smoking heap. It was still functional, of course, but the damage was huge. Now was the time to call the other delegates for the allied force. But, there were more pressing matters to worry about, Kallian thought, his jaw clenched. "What of Melia?!" He demanded. "And Shulk?!" "The observation was based solely on long-range intelligence," The scout said. "We cannot be any more specific." "Gah!" "You don't need to worry about them," Someone said suddenly. Kallian spun around and saw the representative of the Homs, Dickson, striding towards him. "But-" "Take it easy!" Dickson chided. "I've got a pretty good idea where they are. If you're gonna attack, you'd better do it now. Their fortress ain't completely destroyed. Or do we just sit here and wait to die?" "Shall I perform the divination ritual now?" Alvis questioned, looking up at Kallian. The prince shook his head. "Forgive me, seer," He said respectfully. "That will not be necessary. From now on, we seize our destinies with our own hands." "We don't need to see the future," Dickson pointed out. "The Mechon forces are on their way. No doubt about it." He glanced over at Kallian, who had a grimly determined expression. "I like the look in your eye there, lad," Dickson said. "It's time. This is war!"