Blinking my eyes slowly, attempting to clear the blurred images from my vision, I sat up. I immediately grabbed both sides of my throbbing head, and groaned a bit, when I felt to sets of hands on my back. Opening my eyes again, Milan and Elaina were on either side of me, and I was sitting on a simple cloth cot in a small dwelling near the beach on the opposite side of the island. I could tell it was the opposite side, because I could not see the distant shore of the continent out across the... across where Sin had been. I guessed that they must have brought me here so that I wouldn't see the area where Sin had... I groaned again, another blunt throb pulsing through my temples. Elaina held up a cup full of some liquid that looked and smelled foul. I shook my head.
"Come on," she said gently, pressing the lip of the cup to my own lips. "It will help you with your headache." Grimacing, I opened my mouth reluctantly as she tipped the bottom upwards. Milan did me the courtesy of pinching my nose in order to dull the flavor, but even then it was still nowhere near desirable. I almost retched on tasting it, and only Elaina's swift upending of the cup allowed me to get all of it down. A second cup was put in front of me, this one full of water, and I gulped it down as if I'd been lost in a desert. The ache behind my eyes seemed to be sluggishly ebbing away, and I allowed myself to let go of my head. It was at that moment that I noticed we were not the only ones in the room.
"It is good to see you wake, my lord," the captain of our skiff said, making the prayer gesture. I returned it as best I could from my seated position, and he smiled. "I know you are not feeling well, sir, but we must prepare to move on. I think, in lieu of recent events, we should delay a trip to Luca in favor of visiting the temple at Baaj." He handed me a map with our new route marked out in red ink. "From there, we can travel to Bikanel Island and visit Gulg, before approaching Luca from the West, as opposed to the South." I nodded, but Elaina spoke up.
"Is it wise to visit Gulg Temple?" she asked. "With the Al Bhed becoming more restless about the Pilgrimage, I was under the impression that the Church had made its visitation optional." The captain nodded.
"That is true, ma'am," he said. "However, with circumstances being what they are, I would prefer to approach the mainland from as far North as possible without straying into the Zanarkand Sea." Elaina bit her lip, but nodded. Milan put an arm around my shoulders and jerked a thumb at himself.
"Come on, El," he said. "Don't sweat it! After what we just went through, we can't let something as little as Al Bhed dissent stop us from seeing a temple." I nodded, but unlike Milan I could not seem to force the corners of my mouth up.
"It is true," I said. "And now it is even more imperative that I make an appearance at Gulg Temple. The people need to see that Sin will not scare us- will not scare me." With that, I turned to the captain. "How soon will you be ready to make weigh, captain?"
"I shouldn't need more than, say, four hours," he said. "Most of that is just patching a couple small holes those birds made in the hull, but we'll be loading on some supplies as well. If you need to restock personal supplies, I'd suggest you do it while you can. Baaj is a full day's sailing from here, and that's if the wind favors us." I nodded my assent, and moved to stand up. When I wobbled unsteadily, Milan held out his arms in case he needed to catch me, but I shook my head and started walking. Before I left the dwelling, I made sure to straighten my clothes and hold my head high, and a smile now found its way on to my face quite easily. Perhaps because now, I was not smiling for myself, but for all the people of Kilika, and Spira.
Once outside, people flocked to me, asking about how I felt and if I was fit to be walking and telling me that I should continue resting. They fretted and worried over me as they nursed bandaged wounds or dug graves for their loved ones and neighbors. I continued to smile, though, and told them I was fine, even though I was far from it. Physically, I was fine, but it wounded me deeply, the sight of these people's' losses. I started to go around and offer what little healing I could with the white magics that I knew. The majority of the injured people were either elderly or very young, and I worked for as long as I could until I found that I could no longer cast spells. When I did finally stop to rest, people rushed to bring me food and water, which I declined politely. The only thing I ingested was a small vial of something that seemed vaguely airy, something Elaina called "Ether", and then I returned to assisting the injured. I ended up taking another three doses of Ether before the skiff captain came to collect us.
"My lord," he said, "it is time for us to leave now. If we do not hurry, we risk spending two nights on the open ocean instead of one." I nodded, and made my way to the vessel. As I reached the top of the gangplank, I turned around and offer the people of Kilika the prayer gesture. Every single person returned it, and I had to turn away from them quickly so that I did not cry. Elaina ushered me down into one of the cabins to rest, while Milan and the captain began to weigh the anchor. Somewhere, the engine started up, and I felt the boat lurch forward and off on its course to Baaj Temple, with me praying silently that we wouldn't meet any trouble along the way.
I would never believe it of myself if it had not been explicitly told to me, but on waking the next day from my rest, Elaina informed me that I had slept through both the morning and the afternoon, and it was now early evening. Baaj was mere minutes away, a sizeable smudge on the horizon, from my vantage point on the deck. Thankfully, we had run into no more turbulence. Elaina had managed to prepare an array of alchemical solutions to any fiend-related problems we might encounter, while Milan had been busy practicing with a sword and shield that a family in Kilika had given him. The fight with Sin had made him feel weak, he told me shortly after boarding the ship. He was grateful for an opportunity to train with an actual weapon. I wandered over to the railing, leaning over and watching the navy blue slip away into the horizon.
"Are you feeling any better?" Elaina asked, taking a spot next to me and looking out over the seemingly endless sea. I nodded.
"Yes, I feel better," I answered. Elaina didn't reply- she was waiting for me to continue, and eventually I obliged her. "All right, I confess... I have not felt at ease since the events in Kilika." Elaina nodded. "I just... I feel like I failed, El. I failed all those innocent people." One of her arms wound around my shoulders, while the other gently rubbed my arm.
"You did as well as any Summoner in your place could have," she said. "You have only visited two temples, Mathys. What did you expect to do, slay the beast that makes other Summoners soil themselves when they see it?" Milan wandered over to us now, stretching his arms.
"He beatin' himself up, Lai?" he asked. She nodded, and retracted her arm in time to avoid Milan's closed fist as it gently struck my arm. "Hey, stop thinking like that, Mat. If you keep worrying about what could've gone better or how you messed up, you'll never be able to finish your journey." I nodded, but continued looking down at the water.
Keep moving forward... Finish my Pilgrimage. Only then will I be able to get justice for those who died.
The rest of the journey to Baaj was relatively uneventful. I did manage to gawk when I saw the famous Rising Falls of Baaj, though. The Aeon of Baaj Temple was apparently responsible for them, much like the deep, thick ice covering Lake Macalania. It actually forced the priests of the temple to commission a large way station that was held aloft on pillars and lead from the open ocean to the first floor of the temple, the ground floor having been built before the island itself had sank below the surface of the water. I let my mouth hang open a little as we finished our approach.
"Hey, Mat, we're finally here!" Milan called, running across the deck to the gangplank. Elaina followed, her easy stride much less enthusiastic. She shook her head as she stepped off the skiff.
"Honestly, you get excited about everything on this journey," she said. "Save some for Zanarkand... when we'll actually need it." She faltered for a second, but then resumed her walk to the temple. I sighed, running a hand through my hair. She was still having trouble with the inevitable result of our journey.
Stepping onto the stone archways which formed the path from the way station to the temple's upper floors, I watched below as the various priests and nuns who called Baaj Temple their home began to scurry into the towers which I assumed housed stairwells leading up onto the pathways, as there were several branching arches that seemed to connect to what I had assumed were pillars. On making my way into the temple proper, a tall, silver-haired nun with a strangely greened complexion greeted me. Her hair seemed to stick out at odd angles, stiff and rigid like thorns. She bowed, and made the prayer gesture to us, which we returned.
"Welcome to Baaj, m'lord Summoner," she said. Her voice was rich and a little slow sounding, and she seemed to smell of the forests of Besaid, though slightly off. She smiled, probably noticing my analysis of her presence. "I see you have not met a Guado before, and I can almost assure you that you will not meet one for some time after you leave here. I am Iifanoki Guado, at your service." I bowed, and Milan and Elaina followed suit.
"I am Mathys, on my way from Besaid," I told her. "These are my Guardians, Elaina and Milan. We are humbled by your gracious welcome. The temple is so immaculate, even considering the sinking of the island three years ago." Iifanoki laughed a bit at this.
"Indeed," she said, "Baaj Temple was originally a great palace of Guado design, much like the House of Lords in my homeland. It is sturdy, and meant to endure for many generations. Of course, the Guado who built it did not remain. We found that the sea is a place for people like you or the Al Bhed, and our roots could find no hold among her cerulean waves." She then turned, gazing up at what I assumed was the entrance to the Cloister of Trials. She must have guessed what I had assumed, for she then turned around to look at us once more.
"May we proceed to the Cloister, my lady?" Elaina asked. The Guado woman shook her head.
"I am afraid that we do not have a Cloister of Trials here in Baaj Temple, young lady," she said. "The architectural style used in Guado buildings does not allow for the contrived glyphs of power that the Church uses in their operation. Rather, there are several sconces in the antechamber. As the temple's Fayth holds back the very ocean with its inner strength, so too must the sconces be lit with something within you that is indestructible." She paused for a moment, gazing into my eyes and, to me it seemed, my soul. "Though what within you could equal the Fayth's indomitable spirit, I cannot say, nor is it for me to know." With this, she stepped to the side and the door opened. "Now, go to meet your fate, young lord."
We tromped up the steps quickly, then just as quickly descended the spiral staircase beyond the door, which closed behind us. The air down there was chilled slightly, though, I could feel that beyond it was even colder. Perhaps it was the effect of the water leeching warmth from the air, or that we were below the natural sea level. Whatever it was, I could almost feel it sapping the strength from my limbs as we walked into the corridor beyond. The room we found ourselves in was large. Five large braziers, still looking new and shiny, sat at equidistant points on a circle that was engraved in the floor. Within the circle was the glyph for Yevon. In front of the braziers were each a glyph- two of them I recognized as the glyphs from Besaid and Kilika Temple. I thought for a moment.
"I thought that Iifanoki said that Guado architecture interfered with glyphs," I said. Elaina and Milan nodded, and my eyebrows knit together. "Then why take the time to engrave them if they can't work properly?" Milan shrugged.
"Maybe to give the place the look of a temple, even if it doesn't work like one?" he said. I put my thumb and index finger to my chin in thought. What purpose was there to falsifying a Cloister set up if you were going to tell everyone beforehand that the architecture rendered it useless?
"Perhaps when converting it into a temple," I said, "they did not know the building style would inhibit the glyphs?" Elaina shook her head.
"No, that couldn't be," she explained. "We've known since before Yevonism that Guado building styles render most hieroglyphics inoperable..." She sat down on the floor, and Milan went over to lean on a wall. We were all having trouble staying on our feet, and I was resisting the urge to sit down myself. I was starting to feel so weak... How could cool air be having such an effect on us? My eyes widened as it hit me. Elaina gasped, and I guessed she had come to the same conclusion.
"Of course!" I exclaimed. "I see it now! Dress up a place to look like a temple, even fabricate a Cloister of Trials, just so that the Summoner and their Guardians will-"
"Will spend hours and hours in a room that is slowly draining their strength," came a familiar voice. Whipping around, I was just in time to see Iifanoki Guado descending the steps from above. "All this so that, by the time they do figure it out, they will be too weak to effectively summon their Aeons or, for the Guardians, defend the Summoner. You're very clever, my lord. I did not expect you to get it so quickly." She wasn't smiling now. "Still, now we come to the true Trial of Baaj Temple. You and I shall face each other in a Contest of Aeons. If you can defeat me, then these beacons shall alight and you may proceed, and speak with the Fayth."
With that, she drew out a long, dark wooden staff carved so that it appeared that a giant serpent was wrapped around it. Twirling it about her, she flicked the end into the air and flower petals scattered into a sudden wind. There were so many petals, in fact that, I could not see what was behind them. When the flowery curtain subsided, I saw a vaguely humanoid figure seated behind the Guado woman, hands on its lap and a dog laying patiently beside it.
"Arise, Yojimbo!" she shouted. The figure drew out a long katana from a red scabbard, while the dog stretched and ran in front of the Guado, followed shortly by the Aeon. "Now shall you contend with the true force of Baaj, young Summoner. If you cannot defeat me here and now, then I suggest you go home to play hero- the Summoner's Journey is no place for children!"
With little time allotted to me, I quickly called out to Valefor, the first Aeon who came to mind. The starlights used to summon her lit the room, and in a rush of wind she was upon us. The two spirits regarded each other with something akin to familiarity, but then my lady was away. Flying as high as she could, she let fly a ball of fire. Though it was on course to strike the Aeon, at the last second the dog-like spirit jumped to take the attack for its master. The Guado Summoner laughed as the dog shook its head free of embers.
"Daigoro, faithful companion to Yojimbo, is the shield which safeguards both the Aeon and his Summoner," she said. "Until you manage to wear him down, no attack will be able to bypass his vigilant watch." I gritted my teeth. How was I supposed to win this contest if she was, in essence, using two Fayth? Valefor seemed to pick up on my dilemma, because her next move was to swoop in and attempt to claw the dog. Though she got in a good strike, Yojimbo was quick to seize upon her focus. It produced a throwing knife and quickly found it a home in Valefor's side, which forced a swift retreat. Daigoro, licking his new wound, growled at the feathered dragoness.
"My lady!" I called out, pouring out all my hope and determination to her through the link we shared. "Please, we must not fail." She seemed to not only understand, but be filled with a second wave of energy. Tossing her head around, a bright circle of glyphs appeared in the air. Energy poured from her mouth into the symbols, which then began to rotate and fire shots of magic at the two opposing aeons. When the attack finished, neither looked very well. Then again, Valefor looked incredibly drained as well. For a moment, neither she nor the duo took any action, each panting and heaving heavy breaths. As the spirit-dog looked to be rising for his strike, Yojimbo held out a hand to stay the attack. Shaking its head, the Aeon stepped forward, blade held forward. With a rush of wind, the dragoness took a swipe at the swordsman. He fell forward onto his knees, and then began to fade away in pyreflies. Another quick strike, and his faithful companion began to follow. Beyond the pale and fleeting rainbows, Iifanoki Guado seemed awestruck at her defeat. Recovering herself, she bowed before me- not the ritualized bowing of the prayer gesture, but a true and reverent bow. Such a thing is taught to be unbecoming of a Summoner, even moreso when they bow to a fellow Summoner.
"You have succeeded, young Summoner," she said, "where many who are your elder have failed." At once, all of the sconces were alight with dazzling flames. "Proceed, and speak with the Fayth. You have proven your power."
As she turned to ascend the steps and return to the floor above, I called out to her. "Please, a moment, Lady Guado." She turned her head over her shoulder, an expectant look on her. "I must know... Why did you bow to me, when Yevon teaches us that a Summoner bowing does injustice upon their office as the Hope of Spira?" She smiled, and resumed the climb, calling back to me.
"Yevon never knew about you."
As her robe retreated beyond my sight, I turned, pondering her words as the chamber of the Fayth opened to greet me. I entered, and it surprised me to find many young trees were growing, roots digging into the floor and branches framing the Fayth in the middle of the room. The smell, when it came upon me, gave up the trees as cherry trees, all in a state of blooming. Kneeling before the Fayth, I made the prayer gesture, and waited. I didn't have to wait long, the Fayth and his loyal companion manifesting before me like phantasms. A warrior and a dog...
"Mine is the blade of honorable fury. Evil fears the mere whisper of my name- Yojimbo." He gave me a stern once over, before nodding curtly. "You seem adequate. I shall aid you henceforth, and guard you along your journey. Together, we shall attempt to outrun this waking nightmare." The room became bright, and I felt a great pressure for the briefest of moments, and then all was as it was before.