To Fly the Soaring Tides

“I believe that to be the case.” Cira confirmed Kuja’s fears, “They’re clearly of human form, and the revenants were perfect candidates, really. Given the element, you can call them shadow goliaths. One of the highest forms of—”

“There’s more coming!” Ike’s frightened shout trembled, “D-do we run yet?!”

“Shhhhh.” With a finger pressed against her lips, Cira quieted the crew while keeping an eye on the towering spirit. “First of all, suppress your mana. Quickly.”

Not that it did much. Cira held the most mana among the party in her hand, but it was likely a close second to none other than her painstakingly constructed shadow barrier. Meaning they may as well have been a hot potato full of mana sitting in the dark, perfect size for the goliath to pick up in its hand.

“Do you…” Kuja spoke quietly, as if in fear of the answer, “Do you think it recognizes me?”

“Well, I only learned of sigils the other day…” Much like the revenants, these spirits seemed only to stare at Cira and the crew. Without the ability to see their features, it was difficult to tell if they were just as curious, but there weren’t any signs of hostility so far. The second giant had stopped after getting close enough to lurch over them imposingly and didn’t seem to have any further plans.

One possibility that crossed Cira’s mind was that their mana was far too overwhelming to feel any killing intent in her aethereally crippled state. That would not explain their disinterest in eating the crew thus far, though—by all means a goliath should not be the type of creature to play with its food.

“Memories should have long dissolved,” Cira continued, “but it would not surprise me for something important to them to be ingrained in their mind even in this withered state. I also think we possess such pitifully small amounts of mana that they don’t even see us as potential food. See how the darkness is still seeping in? We literally possess less mana than the air here.”

A thin mist of pure black made its way through the barrier only to quickly disperse as it approached the Lamplight, though it seemed to pervade further with each approaching spirit. A third now with arms that reached the floor swayed like a tired drunk as it stared at them from above.

“So, we’re still weak…” Ike lamented the obvious truth.

“And surrounded.” Marko added.

When I think about it, this could be really bad. The amount of mana they have is ridiculous… I guess now I know why Dad told me I better hope never to see one in person. He did give me the impression they would be ravenous, but that old man possessed a great deal of mana. Either way, it wouldn’t be a good idea to let them encircle us.

There were more coming, at their own pace. Some dragged themselves across the ground while others lumbered over unsteadily. They could arrive at the stays rather quickly if they wanted.

“Let’s move then.” Cira started walking between the largest goliath and the lanky newcomer. The edge of the barrier started to move as she approached it, causing a ruckus from behind.

“H-hey hold on!” Rictor cried as the backline mages scurried to not be left behind, “Why are you going forward?”

“These spirits have no interest in us,” Their dilemma was to either give up or continue. It would take all week to come back with artifacts capable of dealing with a shadow goliath. The Sunbearer Coins wouldn’t cut it by any stretch of the imagination. they would burn up if one flicked them into the mana well, for instance. The mass-produced artifacts had their limits and to properly make real weapons to combat goliaths, Cira needed a mountain of catalysts she didn’t have. No matter how she looked at it, continue or die slowly were the two paths open to Cira. “I say we carry on.”

Besides, destroying Kuja’s ancestors didn’t feel right. Cira wanted to avoid it at all costs, as it wasn’t her decision to make. For a spirit ascended all the way to goliath, there was no cycle to return to. Only utter dispersal awaited them at the end of their journeys. An anticlimactic return to the shadows in this case.

These shining white giants sure were intimidating though, and through the shadow’s lens it was easy to forget they were beings of pure darkness. Kuja looked a little uncertain walking past these creatures, but it was unavoidable even if they retreated at this point.

The lid of Jimbo’s flask clattered as his hand shook with it tipped all the way back. “I ain’t dyin’ sober. I’ll tell ya’ that.” He dragged his feet to stay as close to the center of the bubble as possible, erratically checking his shoulders.

“You’ve been drinking all day,” Tawny cast him a disapproving glare, “Just like every day. This is serious—”

The massive goliath’s foot planted on the ground was taller than them and it shifted slightly as they passed by. The sound of stone scraping was deafening from up close, and everyone nearly jumped out of their skin. More than a couple grown men shrieked from the shock.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Kuja locked eyes with the spirit and her voice trembled, “We cannot be sure they are docile… They could kill us with the sweep of a hand.”

Cira watched one stumble on something and crash into the ground about a hundred feet ahead while another small group of goliaths made their way closer from along the tomb’s wall. “Nothing will change if we return. Fighting them is akin to fighting a mana well. It would be a fool’s errand, and I doubt you want to extinguish them as we did the slimes.”

With a gesture, Cira got the timid pirates moving again while Kuja gathered her words, “Does the same fate await me…? Or did these souls have the poor luck of residing too far down? What do you think it’s like for them?”

Each goliath followed them with their gaze as they continued into the dark tomb. The first seemed fine with sitting there and watching them from a distance, but those who could walk shambled behind the crew after a certain distance. As only mana showed up outside the barrier, the terrain could not be seen, and the goliaths looked like otherworldly beings floating in an endless abyss.

“Probably boring, but at the same time there is nothing they particularly need. They eat opportunistically, but it’s not necessary—especially for these ones I suppose. Meaning they exist rather aimlessly.” A goliath lay on its stomach with its chin on its hands like a schoolgirl in the grass, turning as they slowly passed. “While you may be overestimating their level of consciousness, I can’t help but think they feel like the revenants above. Regardless… fighting them just isn’t practical. Any attempts at stealth would just create more mana for them to see. There’s nothing we can do except press on. Unless someone wants to leave the expedition team, there is no reason to return to the surface now.”

Cira stopped in her tracks and turned around to look over her crew. “This really is the last call. I won’t blame anybody if they wish to stay behind. After all, even I’m useless before these spirits.” As always, she could hit the drawing board to forge up some drastic measure to make it past this floor, but it would be a lengthy and uncertain process. Ideally, they could just keep walking.

Shores looked between his glorious leader and the glimmering white face twice her height with terror in his eyes, “W-we didn’t just rest for nothing, did we?”

“Yeah, so can we get the hell away from this thing?” Tawny looked like she was holding back the same expression, “Why did you have to stop right next to it?”

With her arms crossed, Cira stared right at the face that was like a glowing monument. She really wished she could see its features clearer, if it even had any, “I was curious. Let’s make haste, then.”

Below their feet were remnants of bricks from ages past, most having been crushed into a fine dust and scattered. Many pieces of carved blocks were scattered about and occasionally came into view as Cira’s domain passed over them, so it stood for reason most of the grave markers and caskets may have met a similar fate.

“We really are blind…” Aside from the gradually encroaching posse of giant spirits, they were in a sea of darkness. Trying to take attention away from the decrepit surroundings, Cira asked, “Kuja, what does this place look like?”

“We are standing in what used to be a residential district. Though it was mostly taken over to make space for graves by the time I was of age. We will soon reach a river which served as the water source for those that lived this low. Beyond that is just more graves.” Perhaps not the best topic for lightening the mood, Cira thought. “I just hope the bridge still stands.”

“So that’s what I’m hearing...” I hope so too, else we’ll be cornered against a river by these things. They had collected a good ten goliaths of all different shapes and sizes in their wake, none of which were reasonable in any proportion. Each goliath possessed a vaguely human form, as they used to be ones, but their form ranged from uncanny to oddly terrifying depending on where she looked while their gait was unsteady at best. “We must be close now.”

The sound of running water had become much clearer now. Kuja nodded warily as she watched two goliaths up ahead, “Those two should be just on the other side of it.”

They were bigger than most among the posse behind them and one was staring right at them from afar. The other seemed to be walking towards its friend for some reason.

“Is it planning on crossing the bridge…?” Cira reasoned, “What’s it doing—"

Without warning, the approaching goliath reached out its hand and clawed at the first’s side, ripping out a huge chunk of what couldn’t be considered flesh and voraciously bringing it to its mouth.

“Oh shit—” Jimbo exclaimed watching the gruesome scene unfold on a scale he never thought possible. The moment the attacker seemed to be about to chomp the massive morsel of mana, the wounded goliath swung its arm out blindingly fast. The strike sent its recipient toppling to the ground with a tremor and almost threw Cira off her peg leg.

One of their followers broke off and started lumbering towards the battle in absent hunger and more could be seen crawling up from the other side. They were all smaller, like goblins compared to the two fighting, but one grabbed a lump of not-flesh from the ground and started eating it like scraps of carrion. Despite it being all mana, there was an unsettling crunch.

The first goliath who was patiently awaiting Cira and the gang to arrive wasted no time in falling on its opponent and tearing away at it. It started with one bite, but discarded handfuls while it chewed. The spirits made no noise. No roars, growls, or vicious cries. The only sounds were explosions of mana from each gathering wound and the rumbling tomb under their weight as they thrashed around.

From the ground, the other goliath couldn’t do much, but Cira watched tears form in the first despite its onslaught. Mana burst from every new wound torn open with explosive force before eventually fading away like the blood of a nimbus shark. Cira was glad she could witness such a rare event, but each blow they exchanged shook her to the core—mentally and physically. The barrier shuddered in kind.

Luckily, the goliath had turned the tables swiftly. Cira didn’t know why the one had suddenly become violent, but at least it paid the price. The scavengers only went for scraps, which the aggressor had become, leaving the first to stand back up.

Its body poured mana and the wounds seemed to dim slightly through the barrier’s lens, but it shambled its way a few more steps before stopping, presumably at the river and continued gazing across to watch the crew.

“What the hell did I just witness?” Shores’ jaw was on the floor, and he was breathing heavily. “I thought I was gonna suffocate if that went on any longer. I might be having second thoughts…”

A silence as heavy as the surrounding shadows hung in the air. Each person here had felt the waves of mana. The repercussions of simply standing anywhere near a fight between two great spirits was clear. Cira decided it was best for everyone to take a moment to breathe.

“Huh…” Eros said, looking off into the darkness. “You didn’t say your barrier can see other types of mana too.”

“Of course it can, brother—“ Lero’s voice held a smug tone and Cira had to shut it down right away.

“It absolutely does not.” She stared wide-eyed at an inexplicable mass of cerulean light. It travelled down a path—certainly the river. “What could that be…?”

“You’re asking us?” Jimbo hiccupped in the increasingly brighter blue light.

To be able to penetrate this darkness… It’s just as bad as any goliath. Easily as large, too.

As it got closer, it became apparent just how massive this thing was. She could almost see some kind of body shape, but the light and veil of shadows obscured her vision far too much.

“Okay, guys. Maybe we should go…” As she tried to rally the crew, an explosion of water sounded from somewhere in the dark. They couldn’t see it, but the cerulean radiance immediately followed suit and turned into a geyser, bursting out of the river and into the abyss.

Her crew was startled to their asses and began clawing their way back, fleeing in a mindless panic. Cira’s shadow barrier held no defenses against water mana, so everyone was being crushed with its full force.

“Stop, you idiots!” Cira shouted, “Don’t step out of the barrier!”

It was a very real possibility that they would die or become seriously injured on the spot if they did—there was only one way to be sure, and it wasn’t a good one.

“Gyahh!” Tawny yanked Jimbo back by the collar, but Cira’s eyes were glued forward.

As the initial burst of mana cleared, it revealed a creature that towered over the goliath with countless appendages shooting out and wrapping around it. Its tentacle-like arms reminded her of Aquon’s. Each writhing tentacle wrapped around the wounded goliath, encasing it such that the blaring white was no longer visible. The entire area was illuminated in the tumultuous blue as it aggressively took over the tomb.

Meanwhile, Cira struggled just to stay on her feet. She only had one of them, and the stump may as well have been grinding against a tree trunk under the pressure. She winced, knuckles turning white around Shadow Quill’s haft.

“What do we do?!” Kuja shouted in a panic.

“Nothing!” Slowly but surely, the monstrosity of the river dragged its prey toward the depths. Cira was nearly blinded by the mana’s light as it reflected off the surface of the water but couldn’t bring herself to look away. “Just don’t move and hope it leaves us alone.”

The strain had started to overwhelm her senses and she bit her lip to try and stave off the delirium. In this moment, Cira knew that wishful thinking was all she could manage here.