Tada, some actual new stuff! Well, sorta at least. Rewritten, and Beta'd by the fantastic TwiliPrincess049! (9/15/11) (I FORGOT TO UPLOAD THIS A LONG TIME AGO!)
::Chapter Three: It had to be Blitzball, didn't it?::
By the time we reached Luca, I had grown sick of the rocking boat. Literally. I had lost count how many time I had lost my food to the ocean, and how many times I hadn't reached the side of the ship in time. When the boat finally docked, I wasn't the only one thankful.
However, I was the only one that threw myself to ground, kissing the faded paint of the wooden boards. Thank Alexander, I was never setting foot on a ship that didn't fly ever again.
Eventually, I became aware of the unsettling feeling as if someone was trying to burn holes into my back. I sat up and looked behind me, and sure enough Belgemine was standing there with her arms crossed and a murderous look on her face. Others were gathered around too, with expressions ranging from amused, confused, and disgusted.
"Terra." Belgemine's command was short and severe, and while I was sorely tempted to stay seated on the unmoving dock, the darkening glare practically promised pain if I didn't move.
"Yeah?" I answered cheerily as I jumped to my feet, a grin on my face. It grew even brighter as she narrowed her eyes even more- practically shutting them, actually- before she turned and stormed away. Terra-1, Belgemine… Well, I wasn't sure how many points she had, but the fact was I had won this little dispute. That alone made me laugh as I walked after here, not paying any attention to the new looks I was receiving. I was just too happy to be off the boat to really care.
Luca's docks were crowded with people unloading from other boats- once again with no machina in sight. As I followed Belgemine, I noticed a few people would give me, or rather Bessie, pointed looks, but not as many as there was back in the so-called 'holy city.' I actually noticed a few people, generally dressed differently in overalls or some kind of leather ensembles with goggles, smile at me as I walked down the streets. I made a point to smile back and wave at them, which seemed to surprise many of them.
Belgemine was waiting for me where the dock opened up to a reception area. Not for the city itself, but for the Blitzball stadium. The only machina I had seen so far except for Bessie, and it had to be related of Blitzball. "The tournament starts tomorrow."
I nodded my head, "And… we're here because of the masters, right?" Whoever they were.
Belgemine gave me a look, it wasn't exactly angry, more exasperated than anything. "The Maesters. And not quite. We are here because many Summoners will be attending the tournament before continuing on their pilgrimage. Hopefully, this includes the Summoner that the Aeon's dream is guarding."
I frowned, "You said the same thing back at Remiem, but you didn't really explain why." Not that I asked….
Belgemine tilted her head slightly, her annoyed expression fading into curiosity. Which, really, was actually scarier. I knew how to deal with an annoyed Belgemine, but a curious Summoner only caused situations that never ended well. "You truly do not know why you are here, do you?"
I shrugged my shoulders, "Because I know of the 'Lost Aeons' " I said, making air quotations with my fingers, "that can kill Sin, and topple Bevelle and this Yevon's control over Zanarkand."
She shook her head with a sigh, "You follow mindlessly without much complaint, like a sheep."
Instead of being offended, a smiled and shrugged my shoulders. "It's easier that way, I never get laid with responsibility and blame that way." I paused before adding, "Besides, sheep are fluffy."
Her gaze became sharp. "You need to take responsibility, Terra. Spira's fate now rests on your shoulders just as much, if not more so, than the Dream and the Summoner. You will lead the Summoner to the Aeons, and both you and the Dream must convince him or her not to follow the traditional path of the Final Summoning. You cannot just breeze through this. You must take initiative and fulfill your responsibilities."
I frowned and crossed my arms, "I thought you were that Summoner."
"No. While I may be able to Summon, I can no longer pray to the Fayth to receive another Aeon."
"Why not?" I asked. To my annoyance she ignored me and marched towards the ticket desk. "Bel, why can't you…" I rolled my eyes as the Silence spell was cast with a simple flick of her wrist. I was even further annoyed as she ordered two set of tickets for every game of the Opening Tournament.
X.x.X
I. Was. In. Hell.
I sat slumped on the painful wooden bench, grumpily munching on my third box of popcorn. Even with Lenore back in Zanarkand, sitting still for an entire hour long Blitzball game was hard. I was generally dead-bored in ten minutes, and fell asleep in the soft stadium seats. Unfortunately, theses benches were far from comforting, and I couldn't even stretch out because I was squashed between Belgemine and a wall.
Add the fact that this wasn't the first game, but our fifth game.
Thus, I was in hell.
I had to admit, I was amused by Belgemine. She had been so uptight, it was a shock to find out she behaved a lot like Lenore when it came to Blitzball. The calm and collected Summoner often yelled passionately during the plays, hollering in outrage when her favorite team's goalie missed the blitzball, and actually jumping in joy when her team scored. I so wished I had a recording sphere for those moments.
"Keepa catches the ball! No goal for the Luca Goers this time, which means the Besaid Aurochs win!" The announcer shouted loudly as most of the stadium scream in joy, bringing me out of my funk. The game was over? I looked up at the lone machina screen, and saw that indeed the game was over, with the score 5-4, with the Besaid Aurochs as the winners. At the beginning of the game, I had thought the Luca Goers were a fan-favorite, but half way everyone had begun to cheer for the underdogs. "The Aurochs have sure cleaned up their act, not only breaking their losing streak, but winning the championship! The new player, Tidus, sure seems to be their new lucky player."
My stomach knotted at the name. For some reason, it bothered me that Tidus was so familiar. I knew the name from somewhere, but I couldn't place where. I tried to shrug it off,; I probably heard it from Lenore, or maybe Shuyin. But that nagging flared to life every time his name was mentioned.
Another thing that bothered me was the fact that this was supposed to be the opening tournament, yet there were only six teams competing. I had thought there would be more than that, after all, there were 10 teams in Zanarkand alone! Maybe this was just a regional? But then why would teams from Kilika and Besaid be here?
I lost my train of thought as terrified screams suddenly pierced the excited atmosphere. I looked up at Belgemine for a brief second, who no longer cheering, but had that tell-tale feel of magic ready to be cast. That was all I needed before I jumped to my feet, grabbing Bessie off the ground as people started to rush towards the exits. "What is it?" I asked as I looked around, trying to find the source of the ruckus. I frowned before she gestured towards the sky. I looked up and saw swarms of aerial fiends circling the stadium.
"Fiends." Just as she said it, an ugly looking bird-fiend, a Garuda if I remembered right, broke off from its flock and swooped down out of the sky, heading for a small child with a bright balloon.
My heart pounded, and I acted without thinking. "Hey, leave the kid alone, you underdressed turkey!" I yelled as I quickly brought up my shotgun and fired. The bullet slammed right into its body, not killing it but drawing its attention away from the boy. However, before it could dart towards us, Belgemine made a sharp gesture with her hand, and a large Firaga burst to life. The fiend screeched in pain less than a second before it exploded into pyreflies.
Unfortunately, as the bird disappeared, three more took its place. "Oh, come on!" I moaned as I raised my shotgun again and fired off quick rounds at the avian fiends. I had long since appreciated that the shotgun needed no bullets, so I didn't have to carry around a bag full of bullets, or take time reloading Bessie. I also greatly appreciated the barrier spell Belgemine casted when the Garudas gathered wind in their wings and shot it at us, knocking me back into the benches. I managed to get back on my feet as Belgemine made a complicated hand gesture before thrusting her hand towards the fiends, using her overdrive to send non-elemental magic slamming into the birds. The magic was strong enough that all three disappeared in a colorful burst.
"Bel, you rock!" I grinned as she lowered her hands. She gave me a tired look, but at the moment though, I couldn't really care what she thought. Adrenaline flooded my veins, and I was ready for another fight. I scanned the stadium, looking for the closest fiend when red caught my eyes, drawing my attention to the pathway about ten rows down. My heart skipped a beat when I recognized the red coat, the large sword, the black and grey hair. "…Auron?" I whispered, in a daze as I watched him easily take down a large dragon-like fiend. He- he was here?
"Hmm, so the legendary Guardian is here." Belgemine put a hand on my shoulder. "The Dream should be here then, but perhaps this isn't the best time…"
I didn't hear any of her words, focusing instead on the man below me. He was here? He was here. He was here! I didn't know whether to cry in joy, rush down there and hug him, or to shoot him for somehow being involved in all of this.
Over the week or so since I first woke up at Remiem, I couldn't help but notice he left a day before Sin attacked, and the eerie message he had given me when he left. Had he known about Sin? I knew he came from Bevelle, who was mysteriously untouched by this Sin fiend. Had he been a Bevelle spy?
"Terra."
I yelped as the Summoner dug her nails into my bare shoulder, drawing my attention back to her. "What was that for?" I whined, rubbing my shoulder.
"We are in a battlefield," she scolded me. "You must focus."
I frowned at her. I was focused, 100 percent focused! My focus just happened to be on a guy and not the fiends.
"Right, let's…" My words died in my mouth as the sky grew dark, then red. Inept at magic I may be, but I still knew a Summoning when I saw one. Except, this didn't 'feel' like any of the summons I knew. My point was proven right as a chain slammed into the ground in the center of the arena, bringing up a large, hideous creature. "What Aeon is that?" I shouted, jumping back in horror and disgust. Gruesome didn't even BEGIN to describe it. In all my studies, I didn't remember anything remotely like it. Not even Diablos, the forbidden Aeon!
"Anima, an Aeon created by Yunalesca, full of the hate that now surrounds Spira." I looked over and saw a look of, well, hate on her face. But I was more troubled by her words. Someone created an Aeon? How? Aeons had existed forever! You couldn't just create one! "We leave, now."
"What?" She grabbed my hand and dragged me up towards the exit as fiends began to burst around us. "But, Auron…" My argument was muted as we left the stadium, and I began to run right alongside the Summoner. Maybe, maybe it wasn't him. But, hadn't she addressed him as Sir Auron?
Since when was Auron a Sir?
Besides, if he really did betray Zanarkand to Bevelle, if he was the cause of the destruction of my home, did I really want to face him? Did I really want to know why he did it, and ruin the memory of the sorta-but-not-really friend I knew?
No, I didn't. I closed my eyes, admitting to myself I was a coward. I was thrown into this strange situation, I was completely confused about some things Belgemine refused to answer, I didn't need any more confusion, or heartache.
