Author's Notes: Well, I'm so happy that people actually liked this that I'll actually write another chapter! And then, after that, I'll write another one! And another, and another, and another, until I finish the fic! (Oh wait, I was going to do that in the first place.) I hope you guys don't get the idea that I'll be updating at this rate, because I won't! I promise, my next update will come much sooner than this one did.
Wow, eleven reviews? Already? (beams) How awesome! For being my first reviewers, you all have won two chocobo plushies, a pic of Lenne and Shuyin, and five billion gil! But the bad part is, it is all fake. Therefore, you win nothing! (everyone groans disappointedly) Well, actually, you do win something—a second chapter! And here it is!
Fiona Summoner- I'm really glad you enjoyed reading the first chapter, and now you can read more! But man, I sure haven't heard from you for a while, huh?
Cathleen- Gracias, amigo.
Auron's Fan- Lenne is in a wedding dress because . . . I don't know, use your imagination! (crosses arms)
EPearlFairy- I did finish the book! In time. And oh, thanks for the complement about Reina and Darian—I really appreciated that.
Sum1special- (uses Al Bhed translator) You like this story? Thanks! I'm glad you think it's really interesting, and yes, you can read more now because I'm updating! D
Ramya- Yeah.
White-emerald-kitsume-hime- Y'ello! That's alright. I hope you read this update, though. I have a feeling that no one will read this . . . . (face drops)
Super hyper anti chibi rikku- Sorry, but from now on, I'm referring to you as "Tidus Luver," because your new pen name is just damn long. Hope you don't mind?
Slamlam- Awesome pen name! And don't worry, I'll keep writing as long as I keep getting reviews.
Nyviay and Cyraxis- Long reviews rock! No, I'm not really an alien thing that attacks everyone, so don't you worry yourself about that. Oh, but the poem at the end of the last chapter didn't belong to me. Nope, nope, nope. It belonged to Square. Yup, yup, yup. And you know, I haven't heard from you for a looong time, you know? You don't update, review, email . . . well, hopefully, you'll at least review this.
Lea- Thanks thanks thanks.
Disclaimer- I don't own any of these non-OC characters — Square does. So don't bother suing me, because I have no money to start of with.
Where We Left Off- And now, back to the fic. Now let's see . . . last time, we left off at the concert, and Lenne's song was suddenly interrupted by some woman who was warning everyone about some kind of . . . attack? I wonder what's going on?
(IMPORTANT NOTE: This chapter starts off about five minutes after the last chapter, so don't be confused. And also, there are a lot of scene switches in this chapter, because there are a lot of conflicts that go on. But don't worry; they all meet up towards the end.)
Oh, and also….
Chapter 2: A Summoner's Destruction
---
"ATTACK!"
- - -
"What's going on?" Lenne pointed a quivering finger toward the outside exit. "What's happening?"
Silence.
"Darian! Answer me!" she cried.
She was ignored.
"Where is everybody?"
Darian shook his head stiffly, holding a finger up to his mouth. "Shhh!"
"Are you crazy?" she screamed. "If we don't do something, our city could be destroyed! What if the Bevellians are here?"
"No. They aren't," Darian insisted quietly, still holding his pointer finger to his mouth, which was obviously signaling for the older teenager to mute herself.
"And how do you know that?"
At first, the 17-year-old didn't respond with anything, but then, he lowered his finger and whispered, "Listen."
The sound of the ground trembling, the sound of people screaming . . . what, Lenne wondered, else was there to hear? The Young woman. couldn't figure it out. Something terrible was going on outside, and she had to do something to help. The concert had been interrupted, and it was obvious that there wasn't going to be a rain-check any time soon. Nobody was in the audience any longer — they were all outside, trying to figure out what all the ruckus was about.
She laughed sarcastically. "Yeah, Darian, I'm listening, and I still here the sound of the people screaming. What are you talking about?"
"No, listen closer."
At first, Lenne didn't hear anything new. But then the screams grew louder, almost deafening. She could barely make out what they were saying.
"SIN! SIN!"
"Sin?" she asked Darian, almost as loud as the people from outside.
"It must be."
"Sin was defeated a decade ago, by Lady Yunalesca and Lord Zaon! How could it be back?"
"I'm not sure," he responded gravely. "But it is back, and we don't have time to mull over it. You ready?"
Lenne nodded. "Of course." He was right; there wasn't time. Throwing a quick glance to her right, the young woman spotted an outside exit and ran over to it. Darian followed.
The screams grew louder and louder the closer they came, but they were ignored as Lenne stepped ahead of her younger comrade to shove the door open. She placed her hands on the metal bar and utilized her strength to force the bar to move forward. It stayed put.
Lenne frowned. "Oh my god… It's not opening.."
"Never leave a woman to do a man's job," Darian muttered below his breath, dodging a rightful slap. "Watch this," he said, placing a firm hand onto the bar. A few seconds later, he found himself banging violently on it.
Peeking over Darian's shoulder, Lenne eyes bulged. "Don't tell me…" she whispered fearfully.
Darian hesitated, and then stammered, "It…it's locked."
"Oh my God…"
---
"Where the hell are Lenne and Darian!" Reina shouted to no one in particular. She didn't even bother saying "Lennie", which was something new indeed.
She was practically going insane, pulling her golden-colored hair out, searching for her dear friends. Didn't they know it was coming? No amount of magic could save them from the beast that was edging closer and closer to their town, and Reina was useless by herself.
And what was worse was that she knew that no manmade machine could defeat Sin, no matter how powerful or deadly it may be. Obviously, no one else knew that, considering the overwhelming number of people who were aiming their guns and canons.
Spotting a group of men a little bit ahead of her, the young teen shook the blonde-colored hair out of her face and scurried over. "Excuse me?" she said as politely and calmly as humanly possible.
One of them turned around and scowled. "What is it, little girl? Can't you see we're preparing these canons to fight off Sin?" He furrowed his brow, wondering what she could've wanted from him, but then realized she was probably only twelve or thirteen years old anyway (although she was well over seventeen). What else, other than Barbie dolls, makeup sessions, and pedicures, could a twelve or thirteen-year-old want? "There's no time for any girly makeup suggestions," he snapped, before Reina could say a thing.
Bastard. Reina didn't have time to mess with these people. Just let them die, she thought bitterly. But before the young woman could look for another group of people to ask for help, a short woman with short, puffy hair came running to her, her body shaking.
"I've lost my son," she pleaded. "I'm sorry, but have you seen a short, skinny boy in a dark green shirt anywhere near by?"
Reina shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. But I was also looking for someone, named Lenne? And I was hoping you could help me —"
But the woman had already took off running, her wig falling off.
Another group of people, this time, three young boys probably around the ages of twelve, stood talking leisurely up the street. Reina had no clue whether they were aware of what was going on or not, but decided she didn't have the time to ponder it. She threw herself towards them.
"Excuse me!" she shouted to get their attention. All three turned around. "I've lost two of my friends. I really need some help. Do you think any of you could help me find them?"
"Why us?" the fattest one snorted. "We were talking, lady."
"I know, but you don't understand, I —"
"EH!" interrupted the tallest. "He said we were talking! Now, buzz off—"
She grabbed the boy by the collar, fire burning in her eyes. "LOOK," she said sharply. "Are you going to help or not?"
The boy screamed and wriggled free of her grasp, running away. The two remaining boys were right behind her.
Reina clenched her fists. The next person she saw, she would force to help her.
----
"You two have to hide! Sin is coming."
"But Sir, where do we go? Our home is in Besaid!"
The blonde 19-year-old quickly ushered the couple into a nearby alleyway. "Just please wait right here and don't move."
The couple cupped their hands together and bowed, showing their civil gratitude.
Noticing another small group of bystanders, the blonde teen hastily ran over to them, shaking sweat from his face. "You can't stay here," he warned.
"We know, but we don't have anywhere nearby to flee to. Can you help us?"
"Yes. Please, just follow that couple over there, into the alleyway. We're trying to clear everyone from this site."
"Are you sure we'll be safe? Sin will leave us alone?"
"Yes. Trust me."
With that, the group sprinted down the path. Shuyin didn't want any innocent citizens to be injured or killed in the upcoming attack, although he knew it was going to happen anyway. All he could do was his best to prevent the massave loss of inhabitants of the city. And hell, if that wasn't good enough, he could mourn over it later.
A blonde-haired young woman, probably a few years younger than him, came jogging over to him, panting heavily.
"My friends are lost. Can you help me?" Reina asked him.
-------
Lenne shook her head. "This is just great," she said bitterly. "I'm going to look for another exit."
Darian sent a sweaty hand through his hair. "Okay, I'll wait here. Stay alert if something happens."
Lenne nodded and ran around the corner, into another hallway.
The past half hour had seemed to zoom by. There she was, in the middle of a concert, when — BAM! Interrupted by an attack. And then, suddenly, everyone in the audience had left, leaving the backstage crew alone. Somehow, everyone else but her and Darian had managed to escape to see what was going on. It didn't make sense. How could everyone except for two people have left the stadium? She left the thought unanswered.
Now closer to the door, Lenne stopped walking altogether. That's odd, she thought. In all of the times that she'd been in this stadium, she had never noticed that door before. And . . . why was that glyph glowing on the front of it? And, exactly where was the doorknob?
What the hell kind of door was this?
Lenne placed her closed fist on the door and banged on it ferociously. "Hello?" she screamed.
No one answered.
"Hello!"
Surprisingly, the door slid open, almost just like an elevator. Lenne shivered, then cautiously, but with growing confidence, stepped inside.
Inside the room was nothing but stone walls with glowing symbols etched across them, each one of them lighting up one at a time until the entire area was filled with a green brilliance. She gaped and stood motionlessly.
The door shut behind her.
"Darian, that's not funny!" Lenne whirled around, expecting to see her younger friend rolling on the floor, pointing and laughing at her. But all she saw was a closed stone entry, and more glowing symbols. Still facing the blocked entrance, the 19-year-old young woman suddenly heard the faint sound of a hymn playing from behind her. Almost instantly, she listened without turning around.
There was silence for a moment.
Lenne spoke up. "Who's there?"
Another moment of silence made its way about the room. However, this time, it was followed by a voice. "I."
Lenne twirled around, seeing a tall, slim woman standing in front of her. She was dressed in a long, white robe, stretching down to her knees, with light brown shoulder-length hair. Her face pale and white, she looked the young woman in the eye as she spoke.
"Art thou the chosen? Art thou the one destined to end Spira's devastation?" The woman began circling around Lenne, as if looking her over. "Or hast thou intruded?"
Lenne said nothing. She only glared at the being in total disbelief.
"Who art thou?"
"Um . . . hi? I'm Lenne," she stammered.
The woman came to a stop. She looked Lenne up and down and finally nodded. "Why hast thou cometh? Thou art no summoner, nor guardian!"
"Excuse me" the befuddled young woman snapped, half angry, half confused, "but this isn't a temple. It is a stadium."
The being shook its head. "No, it is a temple. But Spirans have altered its use. Years ago, this place was a place for summoners and loyal guardians to come to gain the Final Aeon in order to defeat Sin. Now, it's use has been changed, but it's purpose still remains."
"Purpose?" Lenne brushed her hair out of her face, revealing a tired and confused young woman. "What are you talking about? Who are you?" She thought for a moment, realizing what this Fayth, or whatever it was, was trying to explain. This was a temple?
"What are you trying to say?" She repeated, lowering her voice. "This isn't a stadium?"
"No indeed," was the strange being's reply. Lenne thought she glimpsed a smile edge across her face when she added, "For reference, I am the original fayth of this place. Call me Valefor."
What the hell?
"Then…"
"But you, Lenne, can change it back, and in the process, defeat Sin."
Sin?
"You said 'Sin,'" Lenne remarked. "So...does that mean--"
"That's right Summoner." The female Fayth nodded. "Sin is back."
The being looked her in the eye. "Did you think the Calm would last forever?"
Lenne gaped at her. "Oh my God..." She shook her head vigorously, backing away. "No! No, it can't be!"
"It is."
"What?" the girl screamed, her eyes widening. "But…. but I can't do anything! I'm no summoner!" she stuttered. "I'm just —"
"Thou hast none of the proper preparation, no." The Aeon nodded. "But with the help of thy guardians and Aeons, thou shalt succeed."
From where she stood, she could hear pounding on the door. "Lenne! LENNE!" a blaring voice screamed from outside of the room. "Are you in there?"
"My friends are out there. They'll die!" she said hurriedly. "Have you forgotten about Sin!"
"I shall aid thee in thy battle against the Sinspawn." The female fayth moved closer toward her. "Do not fret."
Wait.
Lenne blinked. "It's not truly Sin?"
"No. Only a spawn. And a fully grown one, at that." The fayth nodded. "But, you do realize," she began, "that if there is a sinspawn here in Zanarkand, it means that Sin isn't too far away. So yes, Sin is back, summoner."
Lenne blinked again, but otherwise didn't respond.
"Why so silent?" the Fayth asked quitely."Doth thou not believe my words?"
She forced a weak, sad smile upon her lips. "I believe you now, more than I did before."
"LENNE!" a voice shouted again from beyond the door.
Hurry it up! she thought hurriedly to herself. "Am I really destined to do this?" she whispered, looking dead at the fayth in front of her. Her face was grave.
"Yes. Now, go help the city fend against Sin. You won't defeat him now," it said genuinely, "but thou shall journey. And by the end, thou will be ready, Summoner. I will aid thee and become thy first aeon, Valefor. Now go. And take this staff." It held out a white rod, one that seemingly came from thin air.
Nevertheless, Lenne smiled and nodded, grabbing the long rod in the Aeon's hands. Just before she could leave the room, the fayth faded away, and the glyphs seemed to fade as well.
She ran towards the door, and before it opened, the Summoner turned around and cupped her hands together, bowing. It was the first time she had done the Yevonite bow, and seemed a bit ironic, as well.
Before, it always seemed so childish, so weak. But things were different now, somehow. She felt a surge of power flow through her body as the door slid open, revealing a relieved Darian.
"Yevon, so you are alive," he panted. "Come on! Reina and some guy—Shuyin or something—managed to open the door for us. They said to meet them outside."
"Okay, let's go."
The two ran to the exit, but when the group of four finally stood together, gawking at the creature thrashing about, Darian's relieved expression faltered. He stared at the fiend in horror. "What the hell is that?" he shouted, fixing his eyes directly upon its tough scales.
"I thought you said you knew it was Sin," Lenne said sourly, shooting him a disgusted look.
"I—"
She blinked and shook her head. "It's alright, Dar. It's only a spawn."
Desipte the situation, Reina smiled. "Good! Then maybe we have a chance, right!"
Shuyin, the one who had Reina helped free Darian and Lenne earlier on, coolly slid a hand through his hair. "All of you, do shut up."
Although the Sinspawn wasn't as much of a threat as it originally might've been if it were the true Sin, there was something about it that made it seem… frightening. The four teenagers — Lenne, Darian, Shuyin, and Reina — all watched the Sinspawn as it pounded it's enormous, sea green fins upon the ground.
It was definitely not quite a fish, not quite a bird, nor mammal, reptile, or amphibian. The Sinspawn seemed to have firm scales shielding it's skin, and had enormous, flat feet, probably capable of smashing a single structure to pieces. Its arms — all six of them — extended far out across the afternoon sky. And the head was the largest part of its body.
The creature roared thunderously.
"Er…" Darian scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Whose idea was it to come out here, again?"
The deafening cry of the creature pierced through everyone's ears as it stepped within the city limits. Now that it was here, no one held back.
"FIRE!"
Canons launched from the ground, missiles soared, and bow and arrows flew swiftly into the sky.
Everyone had to cover their ears to avoid going deaf, as the thunderous, offensive weapons shot through the air. Unfortunately, the sinspawn only continued its wild thrashing and, by a few meters, only barely dodged the oncoming attacks. The flying weapons arched downward again and landed on the city.
Lenne screamed and turned away. She clenched her fists and tightly closed her eyes.
Stop them. Do something!
"Urgh…. I can't…" Lenne thought aloud to herself, shaking her fists. She opened her eyes briefly, only to see the horrid vision of innocent people lying lifeless on the cold, harsh ground. Women screamed, clutching their babies close to their chests for protection, while the men continued firing their weapons.
Darian spotted a shimmering sword lying on the ground. Running over, he quickly picked it up. "Let's see what this thing can do," he murmured, swinging himself into a stance.
The 17-year-old ran toward the fiend ahead of him, screaming and clutching the sword with his right hand. Shuyin was right behind him wielding his own sword. The two aimed for the monster's feet, slashing its skin with all possible effort.
Reina watched. "Lenne?" she said doubtfully."You think they'll be okay?"The girl raised her eyebrows, looking at Lenne directly in the eye.
"I….I don't know…."
She watched the two boys struggling with the fight, and the other citizens screaming. "We've gotta help them," Reina said anxiously.
Lenne was having an internal fight with herself to do something. She couldn't respond to anything Reina said.
"Lennie? Well, I'm going," the girl stated. "I know some black magic. And hopefully, you'll do something."
The girl ran to the left some, glaring up at the suddenly dark sky. Lenne watched with interest as a vivid ring of blazing inferno circled her body. Suddenly, the ground under the Sinspawn ripped open, shoving out a burst of flames. The fiend only cringed.
Do something! she repeated to herself. Go! Fight!
But she couldn't. She had no weapons, no fighting skills. What was she supposed to do?
What about the Fayth? The Aeon?
Lenne, call me, said a voice from inside of her. Call for the Aeon! Call me, summoner!
Do what?
Call me! the voice demanded. Call for Valefor.
Lenne tried. She pulled out her staff, twirling it below her waist.
If the Fayth had been telling the truth when she was in that room, then she was really a Summoner, right? And if she was a Summoner, she could call upon an Aeon, right?
Try.
Lenne closed her eyes. The only thing she could see in her mind was a faint image of an Aeon, soaring through the sky. An Aeon with red feathers covering its neck, a long bright beak, and a long, violet tail hanging from its end beat its wings anxiously.
Her eyelids snapped open. "Valefor, come!"
The image became real. The aerial aeon flew up beside her, flapping it's massive wings.
Reina could only glare. "Lennie! What are you?"
Previously screaming people walked up to her, bowing. "Summoner?" one of them asked.
Another came up from behind him. "Oh, thanks be to Yevon, for sending us a Summoner to defeat Sin once more!"
Others followed. "Hear, hear!"
Dear Yevon….Lenne shook her head and concentrated on the Sinspawn.
She pointed a shaky finger towards the monster. "Valefor, attack!"
The aerial aeon nodded its pointy head, taking off to the high sky. Flipping and turning, the Aeon opened its beak wide, letting out a white beam of forceful energy into the stiff air.
Darian and Shuyin took a few steps back as the target stumbled backward, let out a screeching death cry, and burst into a cloud of pyreflies, drifting up into the heavens, and then fading away slowly.
No sound occurred for a few seconds. Just awkward silence.
Then, Darian's eyes widened, staring directly at the Aeon in the sky, and then at Lenne. "You did that?" he asked, in a state of complete shock and confusion.
A sheepish grin made its way across her face. "Pass?"