Chapter 1: The Aftermath of Mi'ihen
The wash and spray of the sea rolled in onto the beach, whereupon bodies and weapons lay strewn across the reddened sands. This little stretch of coastal land overlooking the way to Djose Temple was the scene of a gruesome death battle against the world-destroyer, Sin. It was evident that the battle had gone ill for those bold Crusaders who had made an unconventional attempt on Sin's life.
The companions had been scattered during the battle; Summoner Yuna and her Guardians had broken against the assault of Sin's spawn, and the wrath of Sin itself had scorched the earth and shattered the resistance offered by Crusaders, Al-Bhed and all the rest. Tidus was gone; whereto, no one knew yet. Yuna was performing a sending on the beach, and while she tended to the dead she was oblivious to the plight of all the other survivors. Her mind was drifting in the magical realm as she whirled her staff and dispersed the souls of the deceased.
Paine was running along the shore in the fallout of Operation Mi'ihen. She was on her own mission, but when she spotted Yuna waving away spirits on the beach, even she paused for a moment to watch. She soon ran along, however, and made her way to regroup with the rest of her companions.
Elsewhere, Auron was striding through the wreckage of the Al-Bhed weapon and their various machinery in the area. He found Wakka there, running frantically around and shouting for help. Auron hurried toward him.
"What's wrong, Wakka?" Auron shouted to him. Wakka turned and ran to meet him.
"It's Lulu! She's trapped under rubble! We need a healer now!" Wakka cried.
"Take me there!" Auron ordered him, and together they ran through the wastes to find Lulu.
Meanwhile, Seymour was still wandering about the wreckage, searching for Yuna. He had several Guado spellswords with him, as well as two squads of Yevon soldiers. He encountered Kinoc along the way, who had his own retinue of armed men with him. Seymour grinned with his wicked delight, and spoke in his soft, coy voice.
"The battle has ended to your satisfaction, Maester Kinoc?" He said.
"As we knew it would. This operation's failure has ensured the unquestioned authority of Yevon for generations, no doubt. The remaining Crusaders have been excommunicated. They will spread word of this catastrophe, and rumors will spread like wild fire. Now, in the minds of the people, we rule alone." Kinoc replied, with a devious grin. He chuckled contentedly. Seymour secretly despised Kinoc, but he tolerated him for the time being. The pleasure that Kinoc took in the continued misery of the world, and in securing his own luxury and affluence was enough to make Seymour's skin creep. In his own mind, Seymour had the cure for this human disease exemplified by the corrupt old Maesters. He only needed one more thing to complete his ambition.
"So it is then, and no one can stand in our way." Seymour replied.
"And what will you do now, Seymour? Return to Bevelle, or to Guadosalam?" Kinoc asked him.
"I think I shall find Lady Yuna first, and then I shall decide." Seymour answered. Kinoc chuckled again.
"You've got quite a fondness for the girl. I understand. Just be careful. If she disappears now, it will be assumed that she fell under Sin's wrath. But if there are witnesses, rumors will spread and the people will begin to wonder what happened to Lord Braska's legacy and the beloved daughter of all Spira." Kinoc cautioned him.
"No need to worry about that. I shall spirit her away to Guadosalam in secret, and there she will come around to my way of thinking. My people keep Guado business strictly to the Guado. None will know of her confinement there." Seymour assured the old maester. Kinoc nodded with a grin, and then turned to depart with his soldiers. Seymour and his men went down to the beach then. They were unaware that they had been watched; spied by keen eyes hidden in the crags, jagged rocks and caverns of Mushroom Rock Road. Another party followed his own in clandestine manner, paralleling their descent to the shore.
It wasn't long before Seymour spotted Yuna where she sat exhausted and dejected by the edge of the water, watching the rolling waves come in reddened with blood while pyre flies danced and shimmered over the surface of the sea. Seymour went down onto the white and bloody sands then to speak with her.
"Lady Yuna, it is time to go. You should come with me now, since your companions are missing. I will take care of you." Seymour said to her.
"I am grateful for your offer, Maester Seymour, but I can't leave yet. Not while he's still missing. I have to wait for him to come back." Yuna refused gently.
"You are speaking of Tidus, aren't you? Where did he go?" Seymour asked.
"He swam out into the water, chasing after Sin. No one has seen him since." Yuna replied softly, and in a weary, trembling voice.
"Then he has surely lost his senses. When he calms down he will return, and then he can find his way. I will leave men to keep a lookout for him, but you should come along with me. It is not safe for you to be out here alone." Seymour urged her. Yuna sighed deeply, and hesitated in silence. Finally she spoke again.
"I greatly appreciate your concern, Maester Seymour, but I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for leaving him, and all of my friends. I have to find them first." She insisted. Seymour grimaced faintly with displeasure.
"Very well, Lady Yuna. Have it your way." He said. Seymour turned to his men and gave them a nod, beckoning for them to seize the young girl. Three of them rushed forward then, laughing as they grabbed Yuna and lifted her up. One of the biggest and mightiest of the soldiers slung her over his shoulder, paying no mind to how she struggled and screamed.
"What are you doing!? Where are you taking me?" Yuna screamed.
"Bind her hands, and blindfold her." Seymour ordered them.
"Maester Seymour! What is this about?" Yuna demanded from him in shock.
"Your companions are scattered, Yuna. I am taking you to Guadosalam with me. You will be safe there." He said to her, offering half-hearted assurances. His men bound her as he ordered and carried her up to the road where a carriage awaited. Seymour had his men stow Yuna inside the carriage, binding her so that she could not escape. The driver urged on the two chocobos that pulled the carriage at a slow, leisurely pace. Seymour and his soldiers walked along Mushroom Rock Road in front of the wagon, never minding the scenery around them, since most of the fiends in the area had been collected up by Sin in its passing. It was only when they had marched halfway toward the fork in the road leading to Djose and the Moonflow, that they saw a group of warriors dressed in black come marching down the road toward them. Seymour raised his hand and called for his own men to halt.
"What is going on here? Be on your guard!" Seymour commanded them, but just then an arrow with a bladed tip made of red steel came flying straight into the heart of the man at the front of the formation. He fell over dead, and all of Seymour's men reached for their weapons. The warriors in black garb began shouting jubilantly then, and they marched forth at a brisk pace. Once they were within a few hundred feet, many of them began to dash forward at a sprint.
These men were clothed in black tunics, or else wore dark trousers and were naked above the waist. They wore armor-plated belts that covered their midriff and large leather bracers, some scaled with red steel, and red steel plates on their shins. They were covered with black or red tattoos depicting skulls, severed heads, or skeletons, sometimes impaled on spears or swords. Many of them had red war paint covering their faces and bodies. They were armed with swords, tomahawks, axes and bows, a few carried bayoneted rifles and carbines.
"Who are they?" Seymour demanded with a shout. One of the more seasoned veterans in his bodyguard answered him.
"Tribal warriors, who live hidden in the wastes and secret places of Spira. They are the Red Blade Tribe, a very fierce and vicious band of marauders. We're in for a fight, sir!" The soldier told him.
In the next instant a dozen warriors fell upon them with hatchets and machetes, killing several of the soldiers with ease and engaging the rest in a brutal battle of life or death. The soldiers opened fire and killed or wounded them, but a dozen more followed up the assault and took down more of Seymour's guards. These tribal warriors were expert fighters and all cooperated together as they weaved in and out of the lines of battle, switching or trading weapons among themselves, and thus it seemed that they had an unlimited arsenal. Seymour went to his Guado sorcerers and together they conjured up a protective aura around each other, and then summoned fiends to guard them. The tribal warriors released their hounds then, and suddenly three bloodthirsty lupines came barreling down the road and attacked the fiends that the Guado had manifested. Seymour summoned up more fiends and protected himself with a magical barrier, but his soldiers were soon dead and the tribals rallied into a mass before him, cheering and shouting their war cries. One of their warlords was out in front of his men, chanting the name 'Setanta' over and over.
"Setanta, the devil-killer!" One of the warriors shouted. Then suddenly the crowd of warriors parted in the middle, and a lone youth came striding between them with a large, ravenous black lupine walking at his side. This young warrior was tall, lean and lithe of figure, with muscular arms. He was clothed in baggy black trousers and black boots, and wore a black cloak around his shoulders that covered his upper body. Red hounds were embroidered on each leg of his trousers and also on both sides of his cloak. He reached one hand out of the folds of his cloak and unclipped it. As the black, shadowy cloak fluttered and glided away from his figure, his bare upper body was revealed. His stomach and chest were rippling with muscle and covered with intricate tattoos. Tattoos spanned across his back and over his shoulders, depicting devils, hounds, crossed blades, and ancient glyphs or symbols. He took a large curved glaive and a gleaming hatchet from their places on his belt and leaned back, breathing deep and lifting his arms wide before he lunged forward with a sudden burst of power. (Setanta's battle theme is "Cursed Giant" from DMC2)
The youth came charging down the red dust of the road with his raging black lupine dashing just in front of him. When they crashed against the wall of fiends that Seymour had called up, there was a lightning strike over the sea and the sound of rolling thunder. The youth slashed his way through fiends with ease, and his lupine tore them apart with savage jaws. Both of them had red eyes, and they gleamed as the pair reveled in their bloodletting and battle frenzy. The youth hurled his glaive and it killed one of Seymour's Guado guards. His hatchet came flying across the air and killed the other next.
Seymour thought he was disarmed them, and conjured up more fiends. The young warrior reached behind his back then and pulled two pistols from their holsters. They were black from the handles to the upper receivers, of which one was dark gray and the other was gleaming red steel. The barrels began blazing then, and the youth flew through his enemies like a whirlwind, unleashing a veritable bullet storm. Seymour frantically began conjuring again, but one of the bullets shot through his upheld forearm. Blood splashed out and the wound fizzled with heat and smoke. Seymour groaned in pain and gripped his wound with his hand. The blood was seeping out between his fingers.
He knew he could not win the battle now, and so he ran to the carriage and unfastened one of the chocobos. He jumped on the bird's back and urged it onward, back down the road to the site of operation Mi'ihen. The carriage driver took the other chocobo and fled along with him, leaving Yuna helpless in the back. The tribal warriors cheered as they watched their enemy flee, and they fell into the battle with their champion and crushed the remnants of the fiends. They looted the bodies of their foes and collected their weapons, while the young warrior and his hound walked to the carriage. He opened the door and saw Yuna bound inside. He lifted the bandana from around her face, and Yuna's bright innocent eyes beheld him, widened with fright and surprise.
The young warrior whooped with triumphant glee and lifted her out of the carriage. He carried her out across the road, and his comrades cheered as they saw the girl that their champion had captured. He carried her over his shoulder as the marauder band marched across the red dust and gravel up a steep climb to the top of the rocks and precipices overlooking the road. They crested this ridgeline and went into the rocky ravines and caverns of the region of Djose. This area was so cloistered by giant rocks and boulders, and so cavernous, that it was practically a natural maze.
The war party walked a ways through this barren land until they came to a settlement cradled between three tall rock mountains. There the men went on to meet the rest of their people. The young warrior slid Yuna from over his shoulder and sat her down on a smooth rock beside the narrow path. He untied the bandana over her mouth then and permitted her to speak.
"Where have you taken me?" She asked desperately, and she began to weep.
"To my village, the home of the Red Blade Tribe." He answered plainly.
"Who are you?" She asked. He grinned wickedly.
"I am Setanta, son of Suldane, of the Red Blade Tribe. I was raised to be a warrior and fiend hunter. From childhood, my father worked to purge the fear from my heart. I am proud to say that he succeeded." He told her. Yuna gaped at him in fright and dismay, but he merely smiled unabashedly. Setanta had tawny skin and straight black hair that tussled around his head and spiked down across his brows, above his amber red eyes that burned with the flames of vigor and confidence. He was incredibly handsome, and his body was lean and lithe and rippling with muscles. His black lupine, Skal, was his closest companion. The hound wore a spiked collar, and much like his master he was lean and powerful, full of vitality and sanguineous luster.
"What are you going to do with me?" Yuna asked him nervously. Setanta's grin widened.
"We'll see. First we'll go my father's yurt, and hear his counsel." The fiery youth said to her with contentment in his sultry voice. He grabbed her up again and hoisted her over his shoulder, unaffected by her whimpering and dismay. He carried her off toward the colorful yurts and campfires of the clan's settlement.
On the dust and rocks of Operation Mi'ihen's battlefront, Auron and Wakka were struggling with all their might to lift a piece of metal that had fallen from the machina weapon used in the battle. It was crushing Lulu's leg. They couldn't budge it. Out in the water along the coast, a body was floating in to shore. It was Tidus. He woke up as his back brushed against the sands, and he opened his eyes to see the gulls flapping and crooning overhead. Tidus slowly sat up and glanced around him, seeing an unfamiliar terrain. He soon spotted the two men and heard their shouts of frustration and laborious struggle.
"What's happening over there?" He called to them.
"Get over here and help us!" Auron shouted. Tidus could sense the urgency in the old man's gruff, aged voice, and he sprang to his feet immediately to dash to their aid. When he arrived there he saw Lulu passed out, and her mangled and bloodied right leg. He reflexively jumped beside Wakka and grabbed hold of the large metal plate, and together they gave a final desperate heave. They finally lifted the plate and Auron tipped it over with a final burst of might, so that it fell back away from Lulu. Wakka instantly snatched her up and began carrying her to the tents where monks had been tending to the wounded Crusaders. Auron and Tidus chased after him.
"What happened here?" Tidus asked Auron as he ran alongside him.
"What does it look like? Sin crushed the whole operation. We barely survived." Auron said grimly.
"What? What operation are you talking about? What's going on?" Tidus asked, puzzled. Auron stopped then and gazed at Tidus in bewilderment. Tidus stopped running then and strode back to face the old man.
"What is it?" Tidus asked him.
"Look at me, let me see your eyes." Auron demanded. Tidus was suddenly shocked and his face filled with the light of recognition.
"Wait a minute… I know you! You're Auron! Where are we?" Tidus asked him. Auron understood what had happened then. He grimaced in dismay.
"Your memory was lost. You went chasing after Sin, and the toxins went to your head. What else can you remember?" Auron asked him.
"I don't know, I guess… I remember…" Tidus said, pausing in contemplation. He suddenly realized that he could only remember Zanarkand, and the strange titan creature that had attacked it. He could think of nothing else.
"Do you remember her? Yuna?" Auron asked him.
"Yuna?" Tidus asked, puzzled. Somehow that name did not feel unfamiliar, and he could not deny that it conjured a deep and mysterious feeling within him, but no face appeared in his mind's eye. "I don't think I can…" He admitted.
"This is bad. Everything has gone to hell now, and all it took was one wrong move. We have to find her, Tidus. Listen to me very carefully, this is the most important thing I can tell you; We have to find Yuna. The girl is the key to the fate of this world, and your destiny. If you don't believe me, just wait. But We have to find her and protect her. We have to find the rest of our companions, if they are alive. Come with me." Auron beckoned him, and then they ran toward the relief camp where Wakka had taken Lulu. Tidus was utterly confused, but somehow he knew that Auron was right, and besides he had no one else to trust in this strange land.