Well, finally, Destiny's Call has bookended itself. But a new story is just beginning. So, without further ado, I present FFX-2: Eternal Requiem. Enjoy.
Chapter 1—Return to Action
It's been about a week since I returned from my adventure with Yuna and the others. Now that I'm back, I can see just how boring my life here really is. Compared to the adventure I just had, that is. Never thought that I would fall in love with Rikku either, but I guess there are just some things you can't prepare for.
"I miss being there," I say to myself, as I lay on my bed, looking at my Sphere Grid. I still have it, as well as the stuff that I had when I left. Items, Gil, all the stuff like that. They don't seem to have any effect now, though. Guess they lose their power in my world, since stuff like that doesn't exist. The Sphere Grid still functions, however. Even though I still can't use any of my magic.
"Thinking?" someone says, interrupting my thoughts. Looking up, I'm a little startled to see the fayth standing there, though nowhere near as startled as I was the first time he did it.
"Yeah, that's basically it. So, why are you here this time?" I say, returning to my examination of the Sphere Grid.
"Do you want to return?" he asks simply, and I sit up quickly.
"You have my attention," I say, smiling.
"Good. The other fayth and I took some time to think about it, and we've decided to give you a chance to return, to help Yuna once more. Since you performed so well the first time around, that is," he explains.
"Yuna's in the Gullwings, now, correct?" I ask, to which the fayth nods.
"That's right. Why do you ask?"
"Oh, just so I know what I'm getting myself into this time," I say, smirking. The fayth smiles back at me.
"I suppose I had that one coming."
"Yep, sure did," I say, grabbing my sword off its wall mount once more. "So, same way I got there last time?" I ask.
The fayth nods. "Yes, with one small change. You may pick where you end up this time."
Thinking for a moment, I look down at the floor, before finally choosing my destination. "I want to end up inside the stadium where Rikku and Paine are. You know where I mean," I tell him, causing him to smile.
"Yes. I know where," he says, beginning to chant the portal spell again.
"One moment. Let me change first," I say, walking into my closet and shutting the door behind me.
A minute later, I exit the closet. Now, I'm dressed in the familiar white shirt, black khakis, and black jacket that I wore the first time I arrived in Spira. Pulling on a pair of black tennis shoes, I grab my old backpack and stuff my silver shoes and my other outfit into it, throwing my Gil and items in as an afterthought. Suddenly, the portal back to Spira springs to life in front of me.
"Are you ready?" he asks, to which I nod.
"This time, I'm more than ready," I reply, grabbing my katana and wakizashi, strapping them to my back and side, before walking into the portal without hesitation.
As the familiar dizziness that comes from using the portal wears off, I look around. I am, indeed, in the stadium where the concert is to be held. It hasn't started yet, as I can't hear any music playing.
"Wonder if..." I trail off, finding a secluded spot for a moment. "Fire!" I yell, pointing my hand at a wall. Nothing happens. "Dang. Can't use my old skills. Makes sense, though." I can hear people yelling now, and notice everyone filing into the stadium for the concert, guards having to maintain order as the enormous crowd gains access
"Better make myself scarce," I mutter, running down a hallway. Turning a corner, I notice a door that is labeled 'Machinery - No Entry'. A guard is standing in front of the door, apparently guarding it from intruders. Like me, in a moment. Walking towards the door, as if I'm going to walk right past it, I suddenly turn and slam my fist into the guard's face, knocking him out cold. "Perfect," I say to myself, walking into the door to the machinery area. Looking around, I notice a few of the flying machines that the band members are using. They seem to be spares.
'Guess no one will mind me 'borrowing' one, then...' I think to myself, smirking.
As I get on the machine, I take a moment to learn the controls. Finding the autopilot feature, I make a note of it, and steer the machine out of an exit door, and out towards the concert platform. Suddenly, I can hear the crowd erupt into screams and cheers, and music begins to play.
(Play FFX-2 theme Real Emotion)
What can I do for you?
"Oh yeah. This will be fun," I say, flying the machine low to the ground. A number of other people are near me, on the same machines, except these are labeled 'Security.' The song continues to play, and I sneak a peek towards the top of the stands, noticing Rikku bash someone over the head and jump onto a platform. Paine soon follows, knocking another guard out and sliding down a stair rail to jump onto the platform. As the song nears the end of the first chorus, I get an evil smile on my face. It's time to crash this little concert.
Maneuvering the machine closer to the stage, I quickly set the autopilot on, the machine continuing in a circular path around the platform. With a quick look towards the platform, I leap off the machine and onto the platform, landing in a crouch. I can see the look on Yuna's face, and she looks a little surprised, but keeps singing anyway.
"Hey, you!" I hear someone shout, and I look around to see two guards jump off of their security fliers, one advancing on me from either side. Smirking, I drop into a fighting stance, moving slightly with the music. Just to make the people think this is all part of the show, that is. As the guards advance, I suddenly spring from my spot, smashing a palm into the stomach of the one to my right. Spinning, I trip the one on my left with a quick leg sweep, before hopping back to let them recover. I'm going to have fun with this.
The one I punched recovers first and charges me, a fist breezing by my face, followed by another punch that I duck. Grinning, I duck again, just in time for the other to attack from behind, his punch instead almost hitting his friend in the face. Standing back up, I stab my fingers out into the throat of the guard facing me, and just as quickly reverse my right arm's momentum. My elbow catches the guard behind me in the face, and he goes down yet again, rubbing his jaw.
My entire fighting style for now has seemed like a dance routine, my body fighting to the rhythm of the song. As it comes to the last chorus, I decide it's time to end it. Spinning around, my left heel catches the downed guard behind me in the side of the head in a sweep kick, knocking him out. As the other guard approaches me again, I simply bring my right leg up in a high kick, catching him under the chin and lifting him up slightly before he falls, out cold as well. Smirking, I dance a little with the music as the song ends, a platform behind me quickly advancing from the sound of things.
(End FFX-2 theme Real Emotion)
Rikku and Paine suddenly jump onto the stage behind me, the platform flying off again. Rikku speaks first, glaring at Yuna.
"Hey! Give it back already!" she says, causing me to smile.
"Boys?" Yuna says, in a slightly different voice than I remember. Two strangely dressed men appear, their outfits completely purple with something similar to veils covering their faces. A heart is also drawn onto the veil. "You want in on this number? Then show me your moves!" Yuna says, using some kind of move on the two goons. I recognize the move as Ecstasy, and drop back into a fighting stance as Paine speaks up.
(Play FFX-2 theme YuRiPa Battle 1)
"Think you can keep up?" she says, drawing the sword of her Warrior dressphere, Rikku drawing her signature dagger-type weapons as well.
"Didn't think you could leave me out of this, now did you?" I say, grinning. Rikku's face lights up upon realizing who I am.
"Ben!" she exclaims, and I turn to her and smile.
"That's right! I'm back! Let's take care of these clowns!" I say, charging the one on the right before Paine can react. Dodging a horribly thrown punch, I slam my fist into the veil, connecting with the goon's face, throwing him down and out of the fight. Rikku charges the other goon, slashing him across the chest with her daggers, throwing him away as well. Paine sheathes her sword and charges Yuna, throwing a punch that's narrowly dodged. Yuna throws a punch of her own, but Paine blocks it and kicks her in the side, causing her to wince. Another punch, and Yuna staggers back, Paine smirking.
"I could've danced all night," she says, as Yuna shrugs.
"Sorry, no time for an encore," she says, throwing down an object, which explodes into a flash of light. Rubbing my eyes, I regain my vision in time to catch a glimpse of Yuna's blue and black outfit disappearing out the front gate of the stadium.
"There she goes!" I yell, hopping onto a flier with Rikku and Paine. We quickly fly down to ground level and hop off, chasing Yuna out the gates of Luca Stadium.
'Boy, Leblanc, you're even more pathetic in person...' I think to myself, chuckling on the inside. As we round the corner, only knowing which way to go by catching another glimpse of Yuna's outfit, we're stopped in our tracks by two more of the goons.
"I'm gonna enjoy this," Paine says, drawing her sword, as we follow suit. Paine runs up to the goon before he can react, and with a quick swipe, sends him to the ground, a large gash across his chest. Rikku deals with the other one equally fast, knocking him to the dirt with several small cuts on him.
"They're just trying to slow us down!" I yell, frustrated. Rikku and Paine nod in agreement, as we round another corner and are ambushed by 3 goons this time. Needless to say, the fight goes pretty much the same way as the last. Utter beatdown. As we turn the corner now, we end up at a 3 way junction. We came in from the left, so that eliminates that way, but Yuna is nowhere to be seen in either of the other directions. Rikku starts to pout, upon noticing this.
(End FFX-2 theme YuRiPa Battle 1)
"Hey, you run too fast!" she says, to no one in particular.
"You're too slow, little girl."
A voice behind us breaks the silence, and we turn to see a tall, lanky man, dressed in a blue outfit. He has a pair of revolvers, one held in each hand, and a blue hat sits atop his head.
"Show's over! Bwahaha!" another man says, this one quite different from the other. He has a purplish-blue outfit on, and a giant shield-type object strapped to his back. Combine that with the fact he is about a couple inches shorter than me and quite chubby, and it almost makes him look like a turtle.
"Yeowch," Rikku says, a disgusted expression crossing her face.
"This way," Paine says, the three of us running towards the left of where we came from. It's a small extension, filled with crates at the back. Not an actual path.
Drawing my sword, I get ready for a fight, as the duo approaches. Suddenly, several gunshots ring out, peppering the ground near the two men's feet. And that can only mean one thing.
(Play FFX-2 theme Yuna's Theme)
As we watch, Yuna bounces off Ormi's shield and over their heads, twisting in mid air so she's facing them, before letting off another barrage of bullets from the front. The men dance, their feet being riddled with bullets, as Yuna lands in front of us. Smiling, I look at her.
"Remember me?" I ask, Yuna not having noticed me. Her eyes go wide, and she grins as she turns to face me.
"Ben! Of course I remember you!" she says, and I laugh.
"Thought so. But we'll have the reunion later. We've got some goons to smash!" I say, stepping forward.
"Bring it on!" the bulky man says, and I smirk.
"More than happy to oblige! Yuna, watch Logos for me!" I yell, charging Ormi.
Yuna nods, and starts firing towards Logos rapidly, apparently using her Trigger Happy ability. Each bullet strikes its mark, making Logos wince in pain. By the time he recovers, though, Rikku is already up in his face. Paine is behind me, deciding to help me out with the big guy. I bring my sword down, but Ormi reacts quickly, snapping the shield up to deflect my strike. Laughing, he smashes me away with the shield, but that gives Paine a perfect opportunity to bury her foot in his gut. He doubles over, and Paine smashes the flat of the sword into his chin, snapping his head back up.
Rikku is attacking Logos with a vengeance, quick and accurate strikes keeping him from retaliating at Yuna, who is also firing away at him. Despite Rikku being almost directly in front of him, Yuna never hits Rikku with a single shot. Logos tries to dodge away, but Rikku will have none of it, slashing twice more across his chest, causing him to fall to the ground. Rikku backs off, knowing he won't get back up.
Paine is continuing to beat Ormi down, using her feet and fists just as much as her sword. I jump in, bringing the sword down, and manage to cut a gash across Ormi's chest, knocking him down too.
"He even falls like a turtle..." I mutter, resisting the urge to chuckle. Just then, 'Yuna' walks back up, still dressed in the Songstress outfit.
(End FFX-2 theme Yuna's Theme; play FFX-2 theme YuRiPa Battle 2)
"Persistent, aren't you?" she says, earning a glare from the real Yuna.
"My grid," she says coldly, still glaring at her doppelganger.
"Give us back Yunie's Garment Grid right now!" Rikku yells, obviously quite mad as well.
The imposter holds a hand to her mouth, giggling softly. "Didn't you girls ever learn to share?" she taunts, putting a hand on her hip.
"Give it back," Yuna says, now even angrier at the imposter's arrogant actions. The imposter simply shrugs, pulling off a bracelet on her right wrist.
"Very well, it's yours," she says, throwing it to Yuna. Suddenly, a bright flash of light surrounds her, and she transforms back into who she really is. "But it won't be yours for long, loves!" Leblanc says, pointing a fan at Yuna. It's almost hard for me to take her seriously, considering what she's wearing. A completely purple outfit, revealing enough to leave little to the imagination, covers her body, and she holds a Japanese fan in her right hand. Really, I don't take her seriously. She's not hard to beat at all.
"Really now. Why don't you try and take it back, then?" I say, taunting the woman. "It's four on one, and you seem to be outnumbered."
"I may be outnumbered, but it won't take much to beat the likes of you!" she yells, running towards us. She brings the fan down at me, and I laugh...before I feel a sharp pain in my arm. I look at my right arm, and notice a long cut running down my forearm.
"Ow! So that's why you have that thing...it has a blade in it!" I exclaim, unprepared for the move. Bringing the sword across with my good arm, the flat of the blade catches her in the side, and Rikku and Paine both charge her. Rikku lands 2 nice slashes along her stomach, and Paine cuts her arm, making her drop the fan. Yuna, however, seems to be concentrating.
"Let's see how you like it!" she says, a bright light surrounding her as she jumps into the air. When she lands, and the light dies down, she's now dressed in the Songstress outfit, holding a microphone in her right hand.
"Keep your eyes on me!" she says, beginning to dance. Suddenly, a black cloud covers Leblanc's face, a result of the Darkness Dance ability.
"Ah! My eyes!" she yells, clutching at her face with her left hand.
"Payback time!" I yell, sheathing my sword and running up to her, sweeping her legs out from under her while she's blinded. Her back hits the ground with a loud thud, and she groans in pain, lying still for a moment as the cloud over her eyes fades away. After a moment, she stands up, glaring heatedly at us as she shakes her fan angrily.
"I won't let you off so easily next time!" she says, running away. Logos and Ormi follow her, and Rikku starts to run after her as well.
(End FFX-2 theme YuRiPa Battle 2)
"Get back here!" she yells, Paine putting a hand on her shoulder to stop her.
"Rikku," she says sternly, causing her to reluctantly stop her advance.
Yuna smiles, and then starts to dance around the pier we're standing on, laughing the whole time. Rikku and Paine look at her like she's nuts, as a massive airship descends down beside the pier we're on. Yuna finally stops dancing, as the airship lands on the water, and a ramp lowers for us to walk on.
"Come on! I can't wait to talk to you again!" Rikku says, practically dragging me onto the airship. Paine simply shakes her head, following us onto the ship, Yuna right beside her. As the airship door closes, and the whine of engines fill the air, I can't help but think one single thought.
'What on Spira have I gotten myself into now...' I think, as Rikku drags me towards the control room.
Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter! Next chapter, Ben gets introduced to the Dresspheres and Garment Grids, and does some explaining of his own. As always, please review!