Prologue: The Weapon

I remember the first time I laid eyes on her. She was little more than ten years of age, hardly old enough to be called anything more than a girl, yet old enough to kill – at least, in the eyes of the emperor. Yet next to the retinue of imperial soldiers who had been hired to lead her here to the Empire's doorsteps, she seemed harmless. She was frightfully thin and very pale, her skin the milky white of a child who did not often see the light of day. Dark smudges lingered beneath her eyes and her slim, bare arms showed signs of recent bruising. Long years of captivity in the Magitek research facility had not treated this girl well, and I was caught off guard. I felt neither the fear nor the awe she was meant to incite, but only an overwhelming sense of pity at this, the Empire's greatest weapon.

"Welcome to Vector, the capitol of the Empire. You must be Terra," I murmured gently, stooping slightly to look into the lowered face of my new charge. Her eyes were scarlet, shocking in comparison to her fair skin and hair, which resembled sea foam in both color and action as it tumbled in waves about her shoulders. There was something strange about this child, something unearthly, and I realized with a surge of compassion how utterly alone in the world she was. The insight robbed me of words for a moment and I gestured helplessly to the golden girl at my side. "I am Cid, and this is Celes. You two are nearly the same age. She will be your friend, and I your caretaker."

With as much scorn as the child could manage, Celes dragged her crystalline blue eyes slowly and critically down the length of her rival's frail body. I thought the girl would break under the contempt of the appraisal, but the slight flush of her cheeks was the only indicator of her distress. This was a child accustomed to hatred.

"I don't want to be friends," Celes said stubbornly, reaching for my hand in a jealously protective grasp.

Pink with hurt, Terra dipped into a curtsy. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Without a word, Celes turned and strode toward the palace. I turned to follow suit.

"Come, Terra. It is time for you to meet the emperor."

She nodded, still blushing, and followed silently behind.

The grandeur of the palace would be enough to strike any guest with awe, but the little girl in my footsteps cast her gaze downward and shuffled after me obediently. Not even when we passed into the grand throne room did her eyes so much as widen. This child was either stupid or wary, the latter being my strong assumption, for she was the first to kneel at the foot of the emperor.

Gestahl cast a quick glance in my direction before rising and staring long at the girl at his feet. Ancient though he was, when drawn to his impressive full height the emperor was magnificent. His robes, sewn from the finest silk, fell in luxurious folds to the floor. Flowing to his shoulders were both his beard and his hair, dazzling in their snowy splendor. He commanded presence but it was his eyes, dark and piercing, that were the emperor's greatest asset, for they missed nothing and saw everything.

"And what have you brought me, Master Cid?" Gestahl asked slowly, circling around the kneeling girl.

"Emperor, I have brought you Terra, orphan child of the Magitek research facility."

"Terra… yes, I suppose that is what they called you, wasn't it?" Gestahl murmured. "Rise, child, and look at me."

Rather than scramble like a common servant at the command of the emperor, Terra rose calmly and curtsied. "At your service, my Emperor."

The emperor smiled at this. "I see they taught you manners. But were they as competent in their lessons, I wonder? Do tell me."

"I am decent with a blade, Sire, though my skills with a weapon are far eclipsed by my…other abilities," she answered carefully.

He nodded approvingly. "I would have assumed as much. Your discreetness is admirable, but you make speak freely. Master Cid and Celes are aware of your power. Celes herself will someday be a Magitek Elite, thanks to the great work of the professor here."

I smiled and bowed my head at the praise. Celes beamed at my side, but the girl with scarlet eyes seemed distraught as the emperor demanded a demonstration.

"I-I cannot…" Terra pleaded, looking around wildly. "Please…"

"Girl, I did not give you shelter all these years to be a grandchild to me. You are a soldier, the first of my Magitek Elite. I care nothing for you; it is only your power that is of use to me. You are the key to the world's greatest treasure, and I will not be denied. I will usher in a new era, a golden age of greatness that humankind has never before witnessed. My dream will be realized; the world will be mine, and you will give it to me," Emperor Gestahl boomed imperiously. His dark eyes narrowed. "Now, show me your power."

"As you wish," she whispered, taking a step back and closing her eyes intently.

For a moment she stood still, her hands clasped at her heart, brows furrowed deeply in concentration. Only her lips moved, whispering soft words in a beautiful, lilting language that I was unable to translate but knew to be the ancient tongue. I had never heard it spoken before; to my knowledge, no other mortal speaks it. I shivered with excitement, disbelieving of what I witnessed next. Magic.

The air around the girl began to shimmer with heat, though her eyes remained shut and she was now murmuring at a furious pace. I felt the temperature climb steadily, beads of sweat dampening my forehead. Celes reached nervously for my hand.

Slowly, this unearthly child untwined her slim fingers, leaving one hand pressed over her heart as she raised the other arm straight out before her. Her concentration was trancelike as she breathed long forgotten words.

I glanced to my side. Gestahl's lips were twisted in an eager, hungry smile as he watched the scene unfold before him. His eyes were black and, for a fleeting moment, I wondered if his soul might be as well. It was the first time I ever doubted the intentions of my great emperor and for an instant I felt an inexplicable fear I had never before known. But as his face lit up with delight, I quickly put aside my apprehension and turned back to the sight before me.

Abruptly, her lips ceased their movement and her eyes, suddenly changed, flew open. Gone was the crimson, which had brightened like flaming embers and now glowed a blood red. There was something wild about her and as the air around her ignited into flames, threatening to engulf her slender body in a raging inferno, I realized that she was not of this world. With her hand outstretched and her gaze fiery, she appeared not to be the pitiful girl I had first laid eyes on mere moments ago but rather the harbinger of death itself.

"Enough," Gestahl murmured. I could see the elation in his eyes. "You have done well."

Instantly, the room grew cooler and the blaze disappeared. Terra's eyes ceased glowing, fading back to a deeper ruby, and she nodded silently at the emperor though her cheeks burned with humiliation and shame. He turned from her to me.

"Use this girl to gain the knowledge this empire needs. You will be given a few days to gather whatever supplies you may need and then you are to return to the research facility with both of these girls. Your infusion proposal is brilliant and I eagerly await your progress. I will expect regular updates," he said crisply. Reflecting for a moment, he smiled wistfully. Unable to suppress his pleasure, the emperor afforded a rare moment of intimacy and affection amongst friends. "Cid, we have waited many long years for this. You will have your research, and I my Magitek elite force. Our dreams are finally coming true. Go now, and may fortune be with you."

If only I had known then the dangerous path I was starting down, for I would have turned 'round and washed my hands clean of this blasphemy. I was toying with fate, teetering on the verge of provoking another War of the Magi – an ancient war of magic and mankind whose fury was so devastating it had threatened life itself.

I blame myself for the way the world would suffer at the hands of the Empire; I blame myself for the havoc that would be wreaked by the fruits of my research. Driven by my own selfish desire for knowledge, I was blind to the suffering around me, even to the anguish of those I loved most. For it was these two girls, these two little, innocent girls whom I grew to love as my own grandchildren, that suffered most at my hands.

It would be my technology that nearly killed them both, my technology that chained them to the empire, my technology that thrust them to the forefront of history and placed the heaviest burden of all on their shoulders: the weight of the world. I was mistakenly trying to play the hand of fate, but destiny had something much larger in store.