The War of the Magi - Nothing Else Matters

(Lyrics, in bold, are "Nothing Else Matters", by Metallica, © 1991. From the album "Black")

Picture a sunrise above mountain tops.
Picture a man on horseback, riding in the desert morning sun.
Picture plains seen from high above the clouds, as you're flying on flaming wings.

So close, no matter how far.
Couldn't be much morre from the heart.

Hear a yawning sqwawk as you're walking through an icy cave.
Picture a four-clawed, rainbow coloured bird wake up in the cave, and go out into the morning sunlight as the moogles greet him merrily.

Forever trust in who we are...
And nothing else Matters.

The horse rider comes to a halt at a castle in an oasis, in the middle of the desert. His helmet's horns shine in the sunlight.
A group of humanlike, yet a bit gnarled figures walks through a flourishing valley, one of them carrying a wonderful sword on his back.

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new

Rainy evening in a city.
A tall shriek of an assasin's victim in one of the alleys and a flash of magic lighting up the darkness.
A dark shape walks out of the alley, and out of the city.

Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters.

Tritoch looks from atop the mountains and sees a vast group of human-sized creatures walking through the desert.

Never cared for what they do

Corpses spread through the burning ruins of a town.

Never cared for what they know

An army of humans and espers hurling their most destructive spells at the castle in the middle of the desert.

But I know...

Odin mounts his horse in the throne hall. He and the queen share a moment of deep feelings as they look in each other's eyes.

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart.

The Queen hides in the cellar and Odin gets ready for battle. The attacker charge into the hall.

Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters.

He slashes through his enemies with ease and kills every last one of those who came into the hall. He pauses as one tall, slim figure, shrouded in a dark cape walks into the hall.

Never cared for what they do

Odin attacks this figure, yet his slashes proove useless.
The man extends his hand towards Odin.

Never cared for what they know

The man laughs right before a stream of energy bursts out of his hand and turns Odin to stone.
He senses a lifeforce in the basement.

But I know...

He teleports himself to the sealed basement. Screams of terror and anguish explode inside its dark chambers.

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours we live it our way.

The war continues. The sorcerer leads ever greater forces on the conquest of the world.
Still, there are some who will oppose him.

All these words I don't just say,
And nothing else matters.

Tritoch in the cold north...
Phoenix and Palidor in the volcanic mountains...
Crusader and Ragnarok in the battle-torn west...
Bahamut in scorched lands of east...

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new

These espers gather supporters, help the undefended, fight and crush the aggressors' forces whereever they encounter them.
Believing that the cause for wich they figh is righteous, they form an alliance.

Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters.

After months of fierce battles, it comes to what seems the final struggle...:
The sorcerer, leading the army of aggressors, accompanied by Eight Dragons, Phunbaba the Demon and the Undead DoomGaze met up with Tritoch, Ragnarok, Crusader, Palidor and Bahamut in the cold mountain range of north.

Never cared for what they say...

The eight dragons charged Crusader and Ragnarok. They underestimated their opponents' power. A burst of magic reduced, Crusader, Ragnarok and the Dragons to magicite.

Never cared for games they play...

Phunbaba cligned to Palidor and started sucking its juices. Palidor saw no other possibility than sealing itself away together with Phunbaba. It flew up high and dived into the very core of magic power on the planet.

Never cared for what they do...

Bahamut was flooded by DoomGaze's death magic. Teetering at the brink of oblivion he gathered all of his magical power and did the same with DoomGaze, as Palidor did with Phunbaba.
This left only Tritoch and the Sorcerer on the battlefield.

Never cared for what they know...

The man took of his cowl, laughing madly. He had a long face, fancy blond hair, medium-lenght, a pointy nose and a mad smile.
"Whom do I have the pleasure of bringing down from the pinnacle of power?" asked Tritoch calmly.
"No-one." answered the man luaghing "But if you'd be asking for my name, I'd tell you it's Pallazzo. Zimon Pallazzo."
"That's ALL I wanted to know..." said Tritoch. He then shrieked 'Zimon Pallazzo' with all his power and a tremendous avalanche fell in on Zimon, while Tritoch began turning into a block of ice.

And I know...

"There are other's like me!" yelled Zimon "You will not win!"
"Neither will they," said Tritoch "For there are other's like us, too."
And they both silenced.

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart

One fine day, after the battle...
Ultima...
Merton...
Meteo...
Doom...

Forever trusting who we are...

...
A green-haired girl wakes up from a nightmare, chained to a chair in some high-tech compound.
"...I'll practically own you, my pretty, little magic-user..." she hears, before she loses counciousness once again.

And nothing else matters...