New Excerpt from Emerald

A something I wrote last night, this morning, and this afternoon. It's a key part of Emerald.



Firenze stood at the end of the workshop, his eyes wide as he saw the two girls and one boy. Three of the four children, who were, in a way, his heirs. There was always a chance that they wouldn’t know who he was. Playing the role he had been playing since he was fifteen, he pushed his glasses up his nose and took a step forward to greet his guests. “Hello, there. Forgive me for the awful mess. I usually don’t expect people over. Tell me, what can I do for you? Would you like anything to drink, or-”
“Firenze,” the red head said coldly, her fiery eyes burning into his. It felt strange to be looking at exactly what was often said about himself, having the fire reflected in his face. “Don’t play with us,” she said. “We want answers and we want them now.” She and the other two stood still as they waited for Firenze to reply.
He eyed them warily, desperately trying to find a way out of the mess he had gotten himself into. Finally he sighed. “Of course, Fira. Aqua, Windel. We have much to talk about.”

Once they had settled down into the seats, Fira and Windel had bombarded him with questions not even allowing him the chance to answer. He felt uncomfortable, having such undivided attention after so many years, but he forced himself to relax, and waited for the endless stream of chattering to die down. When they grew quiet, he finally asked, “Is that it?”
Silence. Then, Aqua spoke up, slowly and carefully. “Tell us your story, Firenze. The whole story. From the beginning.”
Firenze swallowed. That was exactly what he didn’t want to do. “Fine. I will. But after I am finished, whether you have gained whatever you had hoped to achieve by coming here, you will leave and never speak of me again.”
“No,” Aqua replied. “We do not agree. But we do have means of finding out what we need to, and we will use them if we must.”
Firenze smiled knowingly. “My child...you forget who I am. You cannot hope to best me.” He allowed some of his old fire to return to his eyes as he drew in a breath. “But I acquiesce. I shall share with you what you wish to know, for you must have good reason to search me out so. If it turns out that you came merely to admonish me, then I will be most unpleased.”

“I was fifteen when Wendy died. I loathed myself for her fate, and I grew to be angry and grouchy all of the time. I think that her death affected me so greatly because, well, it had been my fault. We battled Althalos fiercely but it wasn’t enough. Slowly their forces began to overwhelm us, and unless a miracle occurred, we would become slave to the powerful planet. So I decided to make a move no one would have dared to. I snuck into the heart, the capital of our enemy and destroyed their forces from within. Little did I know I was being followed.
“I dealt with their defenses with ease and moved along much quicker than I had anticipated. Everywhere I walked, dead bodies would lay strewn behind me. I was reckless and foolish, and I embraced my victory much too early. When I had killed the last set of guards, I opened the door of the throne room too confidently and marched straight in.
“Instantly, I was overwhelmed. Sorcerers swarmed me from every angle, leaving me defenseless as they breached my6 mind and froze my body. They tortured me while I couldn’t move, and when they finally released me from their spell, all I could do was fall, my blood coating their pretty marble floor as I writhed in pain. Finally, the leader hauled me up and pressed me against the wall, his sword aimed at my gut. As he was about to plunge it in, a commotion from just outside reached his ears. Wendy walked in, fearlessly fending off each blow.
“While my captor was distracted, I grabbed his arm and drew enough strength from him so that I wouldn’t collapse. No more though, because no matter the circumstances stealing energy is a crime and should never be done. Once I was able to stand, I burned the man holding me and hoped to catch Wendy’s eye. When I finally did, she just mouthed at me to go. Although I hated the idea of leaving her there alone, I knew I was too weak to help and would only make it more difficult for her. So I ran.
“Then I heard a scream and I looked back. A knife protruded from Wendy’s chest and her body hung lifeless, her face deathly pale. Horror froze me in my tracks, and I was just about to run back for her when they rushed at me. Having no time to outrun them, I cast a barrier of fire between them and me, feeling only a twinge of strength left in me. Then I escaped.
“It took me more than a day to recover before I could teleport home. Once I reached there, of course Tidus and Edna were furious with me. Especially Edna. She had always treated me like a child, as she rightfully should being twelve years older than me, but since then she regarded me even more coldly, and speaking to me when she must. She had always been very close to Wendy, as sisters would be.
“Naturally, I hated myself for what had happened. Even though Tidus disapproved of my actions as well, he tried his best to console me. If it weren’t for him, I might have vanished from then itself.
“Two years passed. At seventeen, I grew headstrong and arrogant, too proud of my powers. I dated many girls, though didn’t care for any of them. I suppose I was what you might call a player.
“But the war with Althalos still raged on. In one particular battle, they captured me. They remembered me from when I had slipped out of their grasp and they hated me for it. Apparently, I had cause them quite a bit of embarrassment. That part still entertains me. Anyway, they remembered me and were determined to make my death as painful as they could. The succeeded. After driving a blade through my body a countless number of times, I couldn’t think anymore. I could barely breathe. Not to forget the fact that they exploited my weakness against ice and water.
“I didn’t realize when they left. All I could do was wonder if I was dead yet or not. And if I was, would I remain in that painful state for all of eternity? Then the pain in my chest increased dramatically, and died down. I felt a presence beside me, whom I later found out to be the one girl I had feelings for but never got the courage to voice my opinion. She nursed me back to health, a difficult job, and in three months I had fully recovered. I learned what had become the fate of my planet, then retreated into hiding.
“You see, they had managed to make peace with Althalos But it was a fragile truce, like a rubber band stretched so much, that it could snap any moment without warning. And I knew my survival would only infuriate Althalos. So I remained hidden. And I have been ever since,” Firenze finished. He took a sip of his water and moistened his lips, waiting for their response.
The three teenagers were silent. Then WIndel asked, “But why didn’t you go back once the threat had passed?” His gray eyes were curious and bore into him, too similarly to Wendy’s.
Firenze sighed. “I was afraid. How could I face them, how could I show up after so long and explain somehow that I had been alive and staying away the entire time? I couldn’t. Besides, I’m sure they must have been happy I was dead, Finally my foolishness wouldn’t cost them the peace they were maintaining.” They were silent again, obviously having found no way to reply to what he had said. Seeing the opportunity, he changed the subject, asking, “Are the rumors I hear...Tidus...is he really-?”
“Dead. Yes,” Fira replied emotionlessly. She was quiet for a few moments, then she finally said, “You can come back now. Edna, she is the only one left. Or so she believes.”
Firenze shook his head. “No, I couldn’t. Never.”
“Let me repeat this a slight bit more clearly,” Fira said, her voice firm. “We aren’t really giving you a choice. You’re coming back. We’ll fight you if we have to.”