Remembrance

[06.26.01] » by Ashley Valdes

"I’m bored, Dad, can’t we go home?" Gestahl’s youngest son asked impatiently. He tapped his foot annoyingly on the cobblestone, but only got a sharp kick from his eldest brother in return.

"Silence, you little rat!" hissed Kefka. "I’m supposed to take care of you, and that includes not bothering Father! Go eat something, you look like you came from an Imperial Prison camp, you pale-faced little rodent!" Kefka gave him one more good kick and turned away.

Little Setzer rubbed the tears from his eyes. Everyone was always so mean to him now. Even his big brother started acting oddly after that magitek infusion. Emperor Gestahl didn’t even talk to him anymore. But worst of all was Cid.

Cid has always treated him like a grandson. He taught Setzer engineering and modern weaponry. They built models together, of magitek armor and even the castle of Vector. But Cid was most impressed when Setzer made his own, slightly gooey design of a flying machine. Cid had hugged him and made blueprints for all kinds of odd machinery. He was mumbling something about an "Imperial secret weapon" this and a "new position of power" that. He promised Setzer that someday he really WOULD build a flying machine, and Setzer would be the pilot.

But then Cid stopped all his work when those GIRLS came. Setzer hated girls. All they cared about was hair and clothes. He loved making fun of them, in his own subliminal way. He always made a show of worrying about HIS hair and HIS clothes, just to mock them. Just to show them how stupid it was. But his plan totally backfired. Now he had more girls crowding around him, always complimenting him on how he looked, not rough and rowdy like the other boys, but that only made him feel worse! Besides, he got teased by other boys his age.

Setzer raised a finger to trace the rough edges of the scar on his cheek. He got that from the Princes of Figaro, on their last visit to Vector. Sabin had teased him to the point of insanity, and Setzer had no choice but to retaliate. He had hit Sabin as hard as a sheltered five-year-old possibly could. Sabin had given him a black eye in return, and Edgar whipped out a dagger and slashed Setzer’s face. The Emperor wouldn’t believe the Princes of Figaro would do such a thing, and decided that setzer had done it himself and blamed the other boys just to embarrass Gestahl in front of the King of Figaro.

The boy awake from his daydream. He fingered his soft white hair as it was whipped by the summer winds. He looked at Kefka, who was busy talking to other nobles. Gestahl was conducting business with the King of Figaro. This summer party was so stupid, there was nothing to do. He didn’t like parties at all. Maybe Setzer could escape?…No one was watching….

No, it was impossible. Someone would be sure to spot him, and it wasn’t worth the risk. He sat in the green grass under the noon sun, his sweat trickling down his hair and into his eyes. He looked around at all the nobles, making fools of themselves. He wanted so badly just to leave.

Then his eyes caught sight of something most peculiar. From within the nearby Mystic woods, there was smoke! "But nobody has lived there for centuries." Setzer reminded himself calmly. Still, the smoke rose into the air. Being an adventurer at heart, Setzer could not take the suspense any longer. Making sure of the fact that Kefka and Gestahl were not watching, he slipped away from the party and raced towards the dark woods.

No light penetrated the Mystic woods. All kinds of horrible creatures lived here, and no one ever came out alive. But not even the most frightening story could keep Setzer away from this place. He slowly made his way through the dark woods, as tree after tree reached out its branches to stop him. He still could not see the source of the smoke, but it was choking him. He grabbed at his throat and gagged, but the fog closed in, and he could not get even a breath. Setzer fell, to the floor from exhaustion. Surely he could not survive this place.

Then he saw shadows moving about from behind the trees. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine that they weren’t there.

Setzer suddenly felt a cool hand on his shoulder. He found that he could breathe again. He looked up at his "savior", and locked eyes with a beautiful blonde girl about his own age. She backed away suddenly, as if frightened of him. Setzer raised a hand to cover the scar on his cheek, but the girl still looked surprised.

"Your eyes!" she exclaimed. "Your eyes look like green smoke, like jade in a fire. Who are you?"

"My name is Setzer," he said weakly, rising from his spot on the ground.

"Darryl." The girl replied simply.

"Hello, Darryl. May I ask how you saved me?"

"Goodness, I didn’t save you, Father Cecil did!"

"Cecil? Who in the Goddesses’ name is Cecil?!"

Darryl smiled at Setzer. "You don’t know? Well, then I suppose it doesn’t matter. You’re safe now. "

Setzer could not believe it. "I am safe? You jest! I will never be safe! There is no such thing!"

Darryl pushed his hair out of his face. "Yes, you are. Safety is in the arms of your friends, and you will always be safe with me. .."

Setzer smiled. "I trust you. Safety is in love, and I do believe that I’ve found someone to love…"

Raising his lips to hers, Setzer kissed Darryl with pure love and utter trust in his heart.

Relm screamed as the wild Lobo sprang at her. "Ahhhhh! Somebody, help me! Help!" But no one was there. No one would listen.

Except one person. Setzer heard Relm, and ran towards her, just as she fainted in fear. Suddenly, a glowing silver light appeared before Relm. It was a white-haired young man, wearing a diamond crown. With one glance, he killed the Lobo dead. Then he turned, winked at Setzer, and disappeared. Setzer could not believe his eyes. He shook himself out of his "trance" and raced to Relm’s side.

"Relm!" he cried. "Relm, are you alright?" Setzer shook the girl until she regained consciousness.

"Oh, Setzer," she whispered. "Thank you for saving me. "

"I didn’t save you…Father Ce-" Setzer stopped. A wave of memories washed over him. "Yes, Relm, I did save you. You’re safe now. "

"Don’t kid me, Setzer!" Relm said angrily. "With the world the way it is, there’s no such thing as safety!"

Setzer pondered this for a moment. "Safety is in the arms of your friends, and you will always be safe with me…"

Relm laughed. "You’re a funny one, Setzer! Where do you get all this crazy philosophical stuff, anyway?"

Setzer flashed a smile that he usually reserved for charming the ladies, and picked up Relm. "Are you too old for a piggy-back ride, kiddo?" he asked.

"As long as you don’t tell anybody!" Relm responded smugly. "So honestly, tell me, where do you get all that crazy stuff?"

"Did I ever tell you how much you look like Darryl?…. She was sharp as a tack, just like you."

"Tell me a story about her, Setzer!"

"Let’s see…One day, when I was very young, I was at a party with my Father…"

End