Final Fantasy X: Harbinger
Chapter One: We Will Be One
A/N: So here is it. I could go on and on with a lengthy author's note but I'll just get right to the point.
The constant but subtle lapping of the waves on the side of the S.S. Liki was so perfect that he could barely keep his eyes open. Elric had an angular face with slightly defined cheekbones and a sharp chin. His deep-set almond shaped eyes were a bright grey and his eyebrows were shaped in a perfect arch over his eyes. His nose was of medium size and came to a point above his thin lips.
He was lying on a deck-chair on the upper deck of the boat, sunbathing and drifting in and out of dreamland for the past several hours. The light breeze and lovely weather were not helping whatsoever either. He stretched his arms and legs, a groan drifted out of his mouth as he folded his hands behind his head. A contented smile drew his lips up.
Elric had been fishing off the coast of a few islands near Besaid and was absolutely exhausted after nearly seven straight, 18 hour days. He was finally getting his brief vacation that he had promised himself; he was going to the opening tournament of the blitzball season. His father had taken him every year for 12 years. Considering they lived in Luca it was a wonder why they didn't go every year.
Like Elric, his father was a fisherman. The two of them would troll up and down the coast of Kilika and Besaid for hours recreationally and would go drift-netting and crabbing for days. This process was all well and good, but their real money came from pearling. The two men would take turns diving for pearls, seeing who could hold their breath the longest; Elric always won. They would take their catch back home to Luca and sell it at the market, sometimes stopping off at Besaid and Kilika if they had a particularly large haul to lighten the load before heading home.
He leaned up off of his deck chair, almost like he was doing a crunch, and tied his long black hair into a tight ponytail, then laid back down. A calm sigh escaped his lips. He had managed to find a spot where there was only a couple of people and even so, they were all the way across the top deck talking. He could barely make out what they were saying but it was slowly making him drift off to sleep; their voices adding to the soothing white-noise of the waves lapping against the boat. He felt himself really start to fall now, and soon he was snoring quietly while his already lightly bronzed skin turned even darker.
Elric awoke to the warm, beautiful blue waters of the ocean. He was swimming faster than he could ever hope to swim. It was more like he was flying through the water rather than actually kicking or stroking through it.
"This is incredible!" He said out loud as his body launched itself out of the water. He let out a loud 'whoop' noise only moments before he crashed back into the water. His body flew out of the water again, this time diving deep into the blackness when it re-entered the water once more.
He looked behind him to see the sun's bright, warm light slowly fading. Even though it was a dream he could feel the water grow cooler the deeper his body went. The soothing warmth near the surface slowly disappeared and pitch blackness took its place. He could feel the pressure slowly crushing him.
"Okay," he said nervously, his voice echoing, "I'd like to wake up now." He let out a pained grunt, grabbing at his chest; it was getting harder for him to breath. He tried to flail his arms, but he found his muscles were frozen stiff. He could only watch helplessly as his dream spiraled into nightmarish territory.
Elric shot up and inhaled a deep, deep breath, like a whale breaching for air. He looked around, letting out a to see familiar surroundings. "Still on the Liki..." He thought to himself. He looked down at his body, relieved to see that he actually had one now. Flopping back down onto the deck-chair, he exhaled. A small smile crossed his face. "It was only a-"
His moment of relaxationwas cut short. A tremendous impact rocked the boat, sending him flying off his chair and crashing hard into the hot wooden planks of the deck. "Dream," he finished painfully, grimacing as he rolled over onto his side. Another impact sent his chair over the railing and he heard it shatter on the deck below. The ship began to tilt, slowly leaning to one side. People were screaming now. He felt himself start to slide and quickly attempted to gain purchase on the smooth wood. Elric's body started to accelerate, speeding him towards the railing on the port side. He quickly and silently thanked the shipwright's who assembled this boat for sanding down the planks, or his bare-back and feet would have been in a world of hurt. He drove his shoulder into the thin wood and metal railing, letting out a painful cry as he heard a loud cracking noise that he hoped was the wood. He crumpled, his body splayed painfully against hot wood and cool metal. Waves towered over the boat, each one threatening to engulf it and let the sea claim it.
He felt the boat slowly start to level off, objects rolled and shattered on the starboard side. Elric's weapons – which had been under his chair only a few moments ago – had slid down and were sitting beside him; it was an odd convenience, but one he would accept nonetheless. Just as he was reaching for them, a gigantic fin broke the surface just off the starboard bow. Elric knew what it was; he had seen it before.
"Sin!" Someone called out. People screamed louder; the level of panic increasing even more. Passengers ran inside the ship, performing futile attempts and prayers to save themselves. If it wanted to, Sin could crush this ship like it was nothing. Elric braced himself for the inevitable outcome, seeing himself being crushed by the tremendous girth of the swimming leviathan.
The fin moved around to the front of the boat. Elric heard the familiar noises of harpoon guns being fired. He quickly strapped his sword belt to his waist, it hung loosely as he was wearing a blue bathing suit and not his trousers; he wasn't exactly dressed for battle, but he wasn't expecting it either. But he had been taught to always carry a weapon wherever he went; better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. He stumbled to the railing overlooking the bow, seeing one of the harpoons had sunk deep into Sin's fin.
"Are you crazy!?" He yelled out through cupped hands. "We'll get pulled under!" He remembered when his father and him had accidentally caught a whale in one of their nets. He remembered how quickly their boat had started to sink. He remembered the sound of splintering wood and bent metal as it tore the rigging and dragged it under the water. He gave a silent prayer to Yevon that today wasn't the day he died.
A sudden heavy impact from behind him, sending splinters and broken planks in all directions, rocked him back from memory lane, causing Elric to spin around. As the dust started to settle, Elric could make out a blue light from the impact site. Then more blue light. And more blue light.
A large crustacean like creature leapt out of the dust straight for Elric. His eyes widened and he let out a surprised gasp. He dived to the right, tucking his shoulder in as he hit the deck and rolling back to his feet. The creature smacked itself into the railing with a loud 'clang'. It skittered around for a few seconds, it's mandibles clicking as it chirped and hissed in pain.
"Sinspawn..." Elric hissed. His right hand reached for his sword, his fingers settling on the curved grip. He eased the sword out of its scabbard, the subtle sound of steel scraping against leather sent a tingle up his spine. He twisted his feet slowly, evenly transferring his weight from the balls of his feet to his heels in turn to give him a wider stance. The Sinspawn, with their numerous glowing blue eyes, sized him up, trying to determine the best place to strike. Elric simultaneously did the same, his grey eyes narrowing as his brow furrowed.
One Sinspawn made the mistake of charging him. It's multiple legs clicking on the wood, screeching angrily as it pounced at him. Elric sidestepped the attack, letting out a quick exhalation of breath as he turned his body to face the enemy mid-jump. The blade, faded light blue in color, freed itself, singing loudly as it cleared it's scabbard. Using the same motion he used when drawing his weapon, Elric defended himself, making a semi-circle from the deck to the sun. The Sinspawn split in two, quickly disintegrating into pyreflies. Elric turned to face the other two enemies, bringing the sword to a 45-degree angle in front of him and pointing it towards the ground.
The other two Sinspawn hissed and chirped loudly, both skittering quickly along the deck. Elric went through the motions that he had been taught. He slowly reached behind him to the small of his back, the fingers on his left hand brushing against a leather-wrapped handle. One Sinspawn gouged it's legs into the deck and spread its 'wings'; they started to glow. Elric cocked an eyebrow at the action, but kept his focus on the one in front of him. Just as the one charging him leapt, mouth agape and hoping for something warm to latch on to, Elric pirouetted. He moved behind the creature, his left hand flashing out from behind him with a long and devilishly sharp dagger. He drove the dagger into the back of the spawn, pinning it to the ground. It exploded into pyreflies immediately.
Suddenly there was a shooting pain in his back. He let out a wince, trying not to scream. He grit his teeth and whirled around. The Sinspawn bounded side to side, almost like it was dancing. Elric tilted his head to the side slightly, his upper-lip and nose twitching. The Sinspawn ceased its dance, almost comically. Elric gripped his dagger in his hand, twirling it around so he gripped the blade and flicked his wrist forward, the blade flying out at lightning speed. It impaled the monster right between it's many eyes, again dissipating into light.
Elric dropped to one knee, placing his free hand on the deck and putting his weight onto it. He was taught to never use his sword like a crutch, it would dull the tip. Instead, he kept his sword raised horizontally, ensuring an effective defense even though he was wounded. His vision blurred, his back throbbed. He shook his head violently. He had no potions or antidotes on him, seeing as a bathing suit wasn't the best garment to carry his luggage in. He brought himself shakily to his feet, grasping the railing to steady himself. He glanced to the deck below.
Several other passengers had taken up arms against the Sinspawn. A large, blue Ronso twirled a halberd over his head, swinging it down at an enemy and bisecting it. Another, a woman wearing a black dress, waved her arm and lightning cracked down from the sky. Three more fought alongside them; a woman wearing a white dress, and two men. He watched one of them hurl a blitzball at one of the Spawn and creamed it in, what he could only assume, it's face. The other man held a glowing blue sword in his hands, constantly flipping his body around and twirling; it was an impressive bit of footwork Elric had to admit.
The numbness in his back slowly faded; he rolled his shoulder around, feeling pins and needles prick his body. He raised himself up to his full height, wincing as he felt the familiar pain associated with a limb waking up; it felt like he had been stung by a jellyfish.
He sheathed his sword on his waist and, as he did so, took hold of two disc-shaped objects. He depressed a small button inset in the center of the disc and heard a high-pitched winding noise, then a click. Elric took a step up onto the railing, using the strength in one leg to hoist himself up. He took a deep breath, flexed his knees, and jumped.
Tidus took another swing at a Sinspawn with his sword, Brotherhood. He smirked as it burst into Pyreflies. Pirouetting on his toes he transferred his weight onto his dominant foot which he slid in front of him. He flexed his knee and rocketed himself forward, his sword spinning wildly in his hands; several more Spawn exploded as he passed.
He stopped for a moment to catch his breath. Was Yuna okay? Was she in danger? He chanced a glance over in her direction. She had taken cover behind Kimahri, healing when necessary; Tidus should have known that Kimahri would keep her safe. "When are they gonna give up!?" He panted.
Wakka turned around, catching his blitzball as it came back to him. "We just gotta hold out until Sin gives up and leaves, ya?" He said, hurling his blitzball at another Spawn.
"Or we wait until it takes the boat under." Lulu said calmly, effortlessly dodging a Spawn that took a swing at her and countering with a crack of lightning.
"Well aren't you the optimist?" Tidus replied sarcastically, knocking an enemy away with his steel-toed foot.
Two whistling blurs sped past him, striking two Spawn in the body, then returning behind him. Tidus whirled around and saw a young man, probably not much older than he was, in a loose fitting blue bathing suit, no shirt, no shoes, and a weapon belt, jogging towards them. He watched as he caught the two blurs, which he could now see looked like small dinner plates, and affixed them to his belt. He drew a long, curved, blue hued sword and rushed up beside Tidus, quickly pressing his back to his.
"Heck of a party barge we got here, eh?" The man replied, holding the sword in front of him and ready to strike.
"Ye-Yeah." Tidus replied with a nod, eyeing the approaching Spawn. "They just keep coming. Are they ever going to end!?"
The black haired man swung his sword in an upward arc, bisecting a Sinspawn, then swinging it back down to clean the jet-black blood from it's blade. "We need to cut that harpoon cable." He said. "Sin's gonna pull us under if we don't."
Tidus nodded again, spinning his sword in his hand and jabbing at a lunging enemy. "Hey, Wakka!" Tidus yelled.
Wakka twirled and caught his ball. "What?" He cried out, throwing his ball again. "I'm a bit busy at the moment!"
The black haired man inclined his head towards Tidus. "He's got a pretty good arm. Who's he play for?" He drew one of his strange discs, clicking it open and hurling it towards the colossal fin.
"Huh? Who, Wakka?" He asked, watching the disc spin up.
The black haired man laughed. "Yeah. The guy throwing the blitzball like it's being shot out of a cannon." He caught the disc in his hand and spun around, throwing it again with a grunt.
A Sinspawn leaped out of both Tidus' and his new battle-brother's blind-spots. Tidus raised his sword but the other man reacted faster, jamming his sword deep into the Spawn. It staggered around in pain, screeching loudly. The man spun around and, in a single fluid motion, caught the disk and hurled it back at the fin. Then using his momentum, he grabbed his sword and pulled it out of the Spawn, finishing it with a lightning fast flourish.
"Look," he said, catching his breath in a lull, "let's talk later, okay? I'm Elric. What's your name?"
Tidus struck down two more Sinspawn before realizing that he had been asked a question. "Huh?" He said, surprised. "What did you say?"
The man caught his disk and clipped it to his belt. "I asked you your name. Mine's Elric." He responded, clutching his sword in front of him.
"Oh. My name's T-"
There was a loud cracking noise. Tidus and Elric both looked over to see the harpoon gun that had held Sin for far longer than it should have come loose. Wood splintered and flew in all directions as the gun disappeared beneath the waves.
Come back to me...
Elric dropped to the deck, both hands clutching his head in pain. He let out a painful cry; his head felt like someone had filled it full of razor-blades.
We will be One. Soon. We will be ONE.
Elric clutched his head, rolling over onto his side. He felt his stomach churn as the contents of his stomach made an unscheduled appearance. His entire body felt like it was going to be torn apart.
Remember who you are! We will be One!
Elric's eyes rolled into the back of his head, swiftly losing consciousness. Before he blacked out, the words kept repeating in his mind.
We will be whole once again.
A/N: So there it is. The first chapter. I know I'm not the most active writer for updates but I'm really, really gonna try this time. I'd appreciate Reviews and any criticism that you can give, but be nice! The second chapter is already in the works but there's still a lot of work to be done on it yet.