In The Arms Of The Goddess
Disclaimer: all Final Fantasy names, characters and locations are property of Square Enix. I own nothing that you recognize.
Written for the Monthly Oneshot Contest on Caesar's Palace
Prompt - illusion
The dust had finally settled. There were no more screams, no more cries of agony and despair. The earthquakes had stopped, and the world had gone silent. All that remained was a world in the grips of post-apocalyptic ruin, with nothing but complete and utter devastation for as far as the eye could see.
Kefka Palazzo stood alone amid the destruction, watching as a gust of wind swirled the ashes on the ground, causing them to rise towards the heavens, dancing, spiraling on the warm winds. He was the only one who had survived. Everyone else was dead, having been lost to the fires that consumed the planet, or swallowed up by the great chasms and fissures in the earth, and all that was left of this miserable little town were the blackened frames of burnt out buildings, with broken bodies strewn across the streets.
He surveyed the damage, feeling pleased with himself and the destruction he had caused. He was just about to turn around and head out across the barren wastelands that now covered the earth, when he caught sight of something moving amongst the dust and debris. A single scrap of red leather, torn from the hem of someone's coat, had caught on the corner of a broken branch that was half submerged in dirt and ash. It waved in the breeze, carelessly flapping like some tired remnant of the banners that adorned the walls and buildings in Vector.
Kefka moved towards it, until he was standing on the edge of the chasm that had formed when the earth split in two. He knelt down beside the broken branch, and held the scrap of leather between his fingers. He traced the stitches with his thumb, wiping away the dust and grime that had accumulated on the surface of the red material. There was a powerful life force emanating from this torn piece of fabric. He could feel it thrumming inside the thick, worn leather, pulsing and glowing with an energy all its own. The person whom this belonged to was still alive, but where were they? And more importantly, how did they survive?
He let go of the fabric, and the rising wind caught the edge of the crimson leather, whisking it away before letting it drop below his line of vision into the chasm far below. His senses told him that something was down there, and he peered into the darkness that filled the endless void, searching for the source of the energy he felt flowing through the torn scrap of leather. There,somewhere far below, something was moving. He took a step back, not knowing if the creature hidden in the darkness far below was another monster set free from the cataclysm that destroyed the earth.
What emerged from the chasm wasn't a monster, it was a human being, one with greying hair and dull, dry, cracked skin. The crevices in his flesh ran deep, scarring his once handsome features like the cracks in the surface of his worn leather coat. His fingers scraped against the edge of the chasm, his breathing loud and harsh, rasping in his throat as he struggled to pull himself out of the abyss. He looked up at Kefka, and their eyes met in the fading light of the dying sun. It was then that Kefka realized that this man wasn't the lone surviver of the destruction that had leveled Mobliz. There was fire burning in his eyes, the likes of which he had only ever seen reflected in his own. It was magic, but it was different somehow, and it was strong.
"You," the stranger gasped, pausing in his struggles to haul his tired body out of the chasm. "Who are you? You're not Zack Fair... You don't look like any of the men he had with him."
"What sort of nonsense are you babbling about? And how is it that you don't know my name?"
The stranger grit his teeth, growling low in his throat as his eyes flashed with the light of magic burning in his veins. He gathered his remaining strength and hauled himself out of the crevice in the earth, his wing unfurling at his side as he loomed over the Magitek Knight.
Kefka laughed. "What are you supposed to be? Some sort of one winged angel? How do you fly with that thing?"
A hand shot out and seized him by the throat, crushing the red and yellow collar around his neck. But the mage had no desire to let himself get strangled to death by this mysterious winged stranger. He conjured a ball of fire in his left hand, and prepared to release in in the stranger's face. The stranger gasped, releasing him at once and conjuring his own blazing ball of fire, which he hurled at the crazed knight, only to watch as the burning spheres met and exploded in midair.
Kefka grinned. "So you know a few magic tricks. You think it's enough to impress me?"
The stranger stood his ground, his feathers quivering with barely subdued rage. "I don't give a damn whether or not you find my skills impressive. All I know is that one moment I was fighting Zack Fair in the abandoned warehouse, then I fell into the chasm below the building and wound up here."
The mage was curious. He considered the man for a moment, wondering who he was and where he came from. He looked as though he was being prematurely aged to death. His obsidian feathers were tipped in grey, matching the silver strands that stood out amongst the deep shades of auburn that fell across his face.
"You seriously don't know who I am?" spat Kefka, glaring at he man in the worn leather coat. "I am Kefka Palazzo, the god of magic."
A smirk creased the corners of the stranger's mouth. "Oh yeah? Well, if you're the god of magic, then let's see you prove it."
Three pairs of wings sprouted from his back, and Kefka laughed in his face.
"Show off," the stranger remarked with a tired smile. "The name's Genesis. Though the name probably doesn't mean anything to you, seeing as how I've landed on the other side hell apparently." He paused, his eyes widening as realization suddenly dawned on him. "Wait, you said you're the god of magic. If that is true, and there really is a god, then surely there must be a goddess!"
Kefka narrowed his eyes. "Goddess? What do you want with her?"
"Then you know what I'm talking about!" Genesis held out his arms. "Look at me. Isn't it obvious what I'm searching for? I need the gift of the goddess to cure my degradation."
"Your what?" Kefka still had no idea what this man was talking about, and he was starting to lose patience with him.
Genesis sighed. "You aren't the real thing, are you?" He ran a hand through his graying hair. "I should have known better than to get my hopes up. No god would ever dress like that anyway." He turned and started to walk away, when suddenly Kefka screamed at him.
"Don't you walk away from me! You're not going anywhere unless I say so."
Genesis turned on him in an instant, and closed the gap between them in the blink of an eye. "I don't know who you think you are, little man," he said, leaning forward until he was nose to nose with Kefka, "but unless you can point me in the direction of the goddess I'm searching for, then we're through here."
"You want the goddess?" Kefka sneered. "Fine. I'll take you to her, but only so I can watch you die when she squashes you like the insect that you are."
The ground began to tremble beneath his feet, and Genesis looked up to see debris from all over the world soaring through the air. His jaw dropped, the earth heaved, and massive boulders broke free from their imprisonment in the earth, joining the scraps of metal and concrete that went flying towards the horizon.
Kefka flapped his wings, laughing as he rose into the air. "If you can really fly with that thing, then follow me. I'll take you to your precious goddess."
Genesis swore under his breath and took to the skies, following Kefka as he flew towards the tower that was forming in the distance.
The skies were filled with undulating ribbons of debris, crisscrossing the horizon for miles around. Genesis could feel the vibrations in the air as both the heavens and earth trembled. Dust rose in a spiral far below, the clouds bending to the magician's will as they swirled in a circle overhead, meeting at the center where various bits of debris came together to form a massive tower that rose beyond the clouds.
"What kind of power does he have?" Genesis mused aloud, watching in awe as the tower formed in the center of the charred earth. The vibrations were growing stronger, the clouds quaking with the force of Kefka's godlike strength. And then he saw it - three figures racing to join the mass of broken bricks, steel, stone and concrete. The first was a hideous Fiend the likes of which he'd never seen before, with four arms, ragged wings the color of a burnt orange sunset, and horns sprouting from his head. The second was a Demon wielding a large axe, with feathered wings, crimson armor and enormous claws. And there in center of it all was the Goddess.
Genesis gasped, and came to an abrupt halt miles above the earth, his one wing flapping to keep him suspended in the air. It was her, the Goddess. At long last he had found her. He watched her fly past, her hair streaming out behind her on the wind, her nearly naked body wrapped in ribbons that just barely covered her breasts and thighs. She soared overhead, her voice drifting on the wind as she glanced down at him.
"My friend, do you fly away now? To a world that abhors you and I? All that awaits you is a somber morrow, no matter where the winds may blow. My friend, your desire, is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess. Even if the morrow is barren of promises, nothing shall forestall my return."
"The Goddess," Genesis whispered. "It's her! I have to see her. She's the only one who can heal me."
He sped off across the sky, chasing the Goddess as she flew towards the tower. He watched her land atop a stone statue that rose out of the debris, and was startled when he saw a single golden wing attached to the back of the statue. The wing was on the left side, mirroring the location of his own wing, and Genesis couldn't help but feel as though this was a sign, a sign that he truly was one of the characters mentioned in the poem, and that she would free him from his terrible affliction.
Genesis landed on a jagged path made from broken strips of steel, soil, and shards of magicite from the fallen Espers whose bodies littered the framework of the tower. Their corpses hung suspended from iron beams that had flown in from Vector, and were now impaled upon the heavy iron bars. They had already begun to disintegrate, the wind carrying away the glimmering shards that remained of these once powerful creatures. The sparkling shards filled the air between Genesis and the Goddess, illuminating the darkening skies with shining specks of crystalized magic.
A piece of this solidified essence of magic fell to the ground, and Genesis stopped to pick it up, staring at it in wonder. It resembled a piece of crystalized Mako, and yet it was different somehow. It wasn't spawned from the energy that rose seething and bubbling from the center of the earth. It was born from the heart of these dying creatures.
He spun around when he heard the sound of wings approaching from the south, and saw Kefka land atop a nearby spire made from the same rotting corpses and scraps of metal as the rest of his tower, his hulking form perched there like some sort of gargoyle, grinning at the one winged man in the faded leather jacket.
"What are you?" he shouted, tightening his grip on the green, glowing shard of magicite in his hand. "Are you really a god?"
Kefka smiled, tilting his head to the side as he considered him for a moment. "I am now," he said simply. "Before the experiments began I was just your average soldier. Though as you can see, I've risen far above my humble beginnings as a lapdog working for the emperor."
"Soldier?" Genesis blinked and looked at him in confusion. He looked down at the crystal in his hand, his face illuminated by its soft, green glow, then looked back at the Goddess who sat upon the throne that adorned the pinnacle of the statue.
Kefka motioned with a nod of his head towards the Goddess. "Go on then. I thought you wanted to meet her."
"Yes, but..." His words trailed off into silence. The wind was rising, whipping his jacket out behind him and tugging at the feathers on his wing. Was this really the goddess he'd been searching for? He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Now wasn't the time to question it. He had to believe in her and in the gift that would save him.
He let the glowing crystal fall from his fingers, and approached the Goddess. An alluring smile creased the corners of her lips, and she held out her hand, her body surrounded by an ethereal light, bathing them in the essence of her wisdom and strength.
Genesis smiled back, knowing that his salvation was at hand. "My Goddess," he whispered. "I've found you at last."
The light was growing stronger. Genesis held her hand, his fingers brushing against her soft, supple skin, and suddenly the light exploded around them. The next thing he knew he was screaming, his body flooded with an overwhelming amount of energy as her magic surged forward, merging with his as she worked to purge the tainted cells from his flesh. The pain was like nothing he'd ever felt before. He couldn't stop screaming, and he swore with the last ounce of his conscious mind that every nerve and muscle in his body was being torn to shreds.
Kefka was laughing, his high-pitched cackle echoing in the distance. Genesis had but a second to glimpse at the maniacal laughing clown before he was plunged into darkness. He fell forward into the arms of his Goddess, losing consciousness as world around him dissolved, fading to nothing as the last rays of the dying sun dipped below the horizon.
He awoke some time later to find himself on the floor of the warehouse. He must have climbed out of the abyss beneath the warehouse before losing consciousness, and the vision he had was nothing more than an illusion brought on by the Lifestream that poured from cracks in the earth far below. The pit he'd fallen into was full of it, and since Lifestream contained the memories, emotions and knowledge of all who have lived on the planet, Genesis could only speculate as to the origins of the vision, believing that he had seen a glimpse of a moment in time that took place long ago.
It was too real, too vivid and life like to be a dream. He felt and experienced it as though it were real, holding the crystal in his hands and running his fingertips over a crack that split the stone in two. He felt the raw, burning power of the Goddess coursing through his veins, and had witnessed the very fabric of the earth and sky bending to the will of an almighty god. And yet when he looked down at his reflection in the puddles of water that dripped from the ceiling, he could see that his skin was still ashen grey, with deep cracks in the surface of his flesh.
"No!" Genesis brought his fist down in a puddle of water, causing droplets of cold, foul smelling liquid to scatter in all directions. The liquid splashed onto his cheek, trickling into the gaps in his flesh. This entire area was tainted with Mako. He could tell because of the way the fluid burned when it entered the cracks in his skin, and by the faint luminescence swirling on the surface of the water that pooled on the floor beneath him.
"I was so close! She was right there and I... I..." He bowed his head, tears forming in the corner of his eyes and spilling onto the floor. He'd come so close to realizing his dream of meeting the Goddess and receiving her gift, the gift that would rid his body of this terrible affliction that was slowly killing him. "I will not give up! The goddess exists. I know she does. If she existed in the past then some form must still exist in the present. And no matter what happens, no matter how far I have to go in search of a cure, I will find her."