A/N: Shorter chapter than usual, but meh. Here's probably one of the more notable events of FF4, with a slight tweak to it.
Attack at Sea
Sora: "Yeah, I had a feeling it was Xigbar."
Patria: "Who's Xigbar?"
Sasuke: "Once again, you'll find out later."
Pith: "This Golbez person sure sounds powerful."
Kairi: "I hope Rosa is okay."
Sasuke: "I'd worry more about what's about to happen next."
It was the morning after the invasion. The Yang, Edward, and Cecil had already gone to see High Master Long, while Rydia sat in the bed next to me. I put on my gears and did a few quick stretches. I was feeling as good as new today. Those Chakra using monks sure healed me up great.
"You feeling better?" Rydia asked.
"Fit as a fiddle," I replied. "I really ought to thanks those healers." I then looked at the girl and noticed she was looking pretty down. "You okay, Rydia?"
She shook her head. "It's nothing."
But I wasn't convinced. I sat down next to her. "Hey, you can tell me anything, you know. Come on. What's bothering you?"
She then turn her head away from me before saying, "You guys fought so hard back there. But they got the crystal and Rosa. And what did I do? Nothing. All I did was watch. All that power... I was... so scared." I could see she was trembling in fear.
I put my arm around her, hoping to comfort her. "Nobody blames you. I'm pretty sure Golbez frightened all of us. You saw how he pretty much wrecked the rest of us. He didn't even take us seriously. Personally, I think you should consider yourself lucky he didn't even give you so much as a glance. I don't wanna think about what he could've done to you had you gotten involved."
"If only I was able to summon Titan like I did before. I just... I just wish I was stronger, and more help to everyone."
I thought for a moment before saying. "Hey don't worry about it. You're still a kid, you know. And that means you still have some untapped potential within you. I'm sure you'll get stronger soon enough. My master always taught me that as long as you have something you wish to protect, you'll be able to tap into a power you've never known before. And sometimes it comes out when you least expect it. You just have to be patient and have faith. And a little hard work doesn't hurt either. And who knows? Maybe one of these days, you'll be the one saving our hides."
The little girl looked at me with that look of admiration again. I was beginning to think I was becoming a big inspiration to her, which felt strange as I was still just a rookie just following my teacher's example, and yet it also felt good. I wasn't even surprised when she hugged me again. "Thank you, Sasuke."
Naturally, I hugged back. "Anytime, Rydia."
It was then that Cecil, Yang, and Edward walked in.
"How are you feeling, Sasuke?" asked Cecil.
"A lot better than yesterday," I answered. "I think I'm good to go in a fight."
"That's good to hear," said Edward.
"We spoke with High Master Long," Yang said. "And he's gonna arrange a ship for us right away, and has also granted me permission to accompany you all on this quest. We will be leaving this afternoon."
"Good," I replied, "the sooner we get going, the better."
"By the way, Sasuke, I took the time to get these for you. Take them." Yang handed me three colored fangs, red, blue, and white.
"These are those magic fangs you were talking about before."
"Correct. You said you wanted to cover your weakness in magic, and here you go. Just remember what I said before. Unless you're using them for physical attacks, their powers are difficult to control, so be careful where you use them when unleashing their raw power. Also you can only use them so many times before they need time to recharge, so use them sparingly."
"Got it."
Later, we got to the docks, where a sailing ship was preparing for departure.
Sheila was here to see us off. "Good luck to you all! Take care of yourselves and bust some backside for me!"
Yang chuckled. "You know I will, my dear."
Sheila giggled before turning to Cecil. "And keep your chin up, Cecil. You'll get her back in no time!"
Cecil looked down for a moment before saying. "Thanks... We'll do our best."
Yang the pull his wife into a hug. "I trust you will look after everything in my stead."
"You bet." Sheila answered. "I love you, you big lunkhead!" The two then shared a kissed.
After saying goodbye to Sheila, we all stepped onto the boat. Soon, we found the captain.
Yang walked up to him. "We ready to sail, Captain?"
"Aye," the captain answered, "we sure are! Ready to depart anytime!"
"Good. Then let's be off."
"Right away." Captain then looked at the dark knight. "You're Cecil I reckon?"
"Yes." Cecil answered.
The captain chuckled. "I hear ye smacked the shell out of those Baron lovelies. You got me respect. Now just sit back, mate, and enjoy the ride." He then turned to his crew. "All hands on deck! Anchors aweigh!"
"Aye-aye, Captain!" the crew shouted.
Soon the ship set sailed, and we were off to Baron. It took me awhile to get use to being on a boat, having never been on one before, but I was able to handle it well. The trip was taking longer than I would've liked though, as before I knew it the sun was starting to go down. We all sat on the deck, we had been quite for a while.
Soon Yang spoke up, "What should we do once we arrive in Baron?"
"I doubt they're gonna let us just waltz in and take one of their airships," I interjected.
Cecil thought for a second. "We have to meet with Cid Pollendina, Baron's chief airship engineer. He didn't approve of the use of his airships to steal from others. He's old friend, and I trust him with my life. He'll help us."
Yang crossed his arms. "I can only hope the man you speak of is safe."
As it was got dark out. I couldn't help but gaze up at the two moons in the sky, something I still haven't gotten use to saying.
Rydia sat next to me. "You like staring at the moons, don't you?"
"Yeah." I answered. "I find it fascinating that this world has two moons in the sky. Mine only has one. For me it's just kinda surreal."
"I can imagine."
"You know, I was told that my father always had a fascination with the moon. In fact I was told that the best things his life always happened on a full moon. He called those times his Moons of Fate.(1)" You know, now that I thought about it, I too had a few of my own Moons of Fate. The night I became Master Kaname's apprentice was a full moon, as was the night I received Moon Cutter. Heck, I had just remembered that the night I met Cecil and Rydia was a full moon, or rather two full moons. It was rather funny that I seemed to have inherited my father's lunar fortune. "I wonder how he'd react if he were to come here and see two moons in the sky."
"You know there's rumor that the smaller red moon isn't our natural moon," said Cecil.
"Is that so?"
"Yeah, some believe that it actually came here from beyond our world, getting caught in orbit as it flew by. But nobody knows for sure."
"One thing I was told," said Rydia, "is that the Hallowed Father of Eidolons, Bahamut, dwells on the smaller moon."
"Hallowed Father?"
"Like the god of this world's eidolons, so to speak. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but he is definitely the most powerful. However, no summoner has ever earned right to summon him." Rydia had told me that most of the eidolons of Feymarch employ a strict rule that a summoner has to earn their respect through combat in order to earn the right to summon them. Fortunately, there was no rule against said summoner having companions join the fight, in fact such a thing earned them points for teamwork. Apparently, Rydia was given a freebie when she summoned Titan before due her anger and fear at the time.
I couldn't help but chuckle. "If he really does live all the way up there, it's a wonder how anyone is suppose to even challenge him. I'm not sure an airship could reach that high."
The girl just shrugged.
I looked back at the moons, before I decided to say something that was on my mind. "You know, Rydia, you didn't seem all that surprised that I'm from another world."
Rydia fiddled with her emerald hair. "Well, Whyt had already told me." I couldn't help but chuckle at myself. So that's what Whyt was conversing with her about privately. "At first he wanted me to keep a close eye you just in case, but he warmed up to you pretty quickly. Besides, the knowledge of other worlds is actually pretty common among us summoners."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. Thing is, this isn't the only world with eidolons. There are plenty of worlds out there with their own group of eidolons, some even going by different names, like espers, guardian forces, aeons, or just plain summons. I'm told that the eidolons of Feymarch are capable of communicating with summons from other worlds. I even heard that some summons from two separate worlds have the same name and powers, like there's multiple Ifrits out there, multiple Shivas, heck even multiple Bahamuts."(2)
I found myself chuckling again. "That's all very fascinating."
She paused for a moment. "Um... I hope you don't mind me asking, but what's your home world like?"
I took a deep breath, before answering. "Well, I don't really know how to describe it. I mean, no offense to this world but it's a little bit primitive compared to mine, although the airships did surprise me. Radiant Garden did have a castle, and a wise king." I paused for a moment as I noticed the others seemed to be listening. "My father, Yamato Kazekiri, was once a great hero. He always defended our kingdom from monsters and most notably a violent extremist group. Unfortunately, he was killed defending his lordship, before I was even born. I never knew him personally, yet he was still my hero, one I always wanted to be like. It wasn't easy though, growing up without a father. I was always insecure about myself. That is until day I came across the best man I had ever met."
"You're speaking of your master, right?" asked Cecil.
I nodded. "Kaname Mae was his name. As it happened, he was actually my father's apprentice. He was a great warrior, captain of the royal guard, and husband to the crowned princess. He may have been a tad bit goofy sometimes, but he was strong willed and loyal to his family, so much so that he's very intimidating whenever his loved ones are threatened. Once I was old enough, and after defending his daughter from a bully, he decided to take me on as his apprentice. He taught me everything I know, how to be a swordsman, as well as how to be a man. Over time, he became the closest thing I would ever have to a father. Heck, I would later learn that my mother had actually made him my godfather. I had even met three people who quickly became my very best friends. One was Lea Fahrenheit, a rather hot blooded and adventurous boy. Then there was Isa Gekko, mister cool, calm, and collected. And finally there was the youngest one, my master's own daughter, Kairi. I guess you could say she was the heart of our group, the little sister of our brotherhood so to speak. She was just the sweetest little girl I know, the first friend I ever made who accepted me without a second thought. We were all inseparable, and we got ourselves into all kinds of shenanigans. Some people liked to call us the...heh...Radiant Garden Renegades.(3) There was just never a dull moment with us."
I then sighed before continuing. "When I mother got terminally ill, the Mae family was willing to take me into their home when her time came. I would've actually gotta myself a little sister. But then Xehanort and the Heartless ruined everything. My mother is died when our home collapsed on her, I found the dead bodies of Master Kaname and his wife, and I have no idea what happened to any of my three best friends. I'm really worried about their fate, especially Kairi's. Assuming she's even alive, she's all alone out there with no parents, and she's only five for crying out loud. Wherever she could be, I can only hope she's found some good people to take care of her."
"We so sorry, Sasuke," said Rydia
"You sure weren't kidding when you told me you knew what it's like to lose someone you love," Edward said.
"And you lost all that because of the actions of one vile man," said Yang.
I clenched my fists in anger. "You have no idea how much I wanna go out and make Xehanort pay for what he did, or look for my missing friends." I then sighed again as I relaxed. "But what's the use? I'm stuck on an unfamiliar world with no means of returning home, assuming I even have a home to return to anymore. And now I have no idea what to do with my life anymore. The only goal I have right now is helping to stop Golbez, and prevent the tragedy that befell my home from happening again."
"Well, one step at a time I suppose," said Cecil. "I'm sure we'll figure something out once Golbez has been dealt with."
"We're all here for you, Sasuke," said Rydia. "We'll help you any way we can."
I chuckled. "Thanks."
"What about that man in the black coat?" asked Yang. "He seemed to know you somehow."
"I wish I knew." I answered. "Golbez called him Xigbar, which is not a name I'm familiar with. I can only assume that he came from, or has at least been to, my home world. I don't know who he is, or what he's really doing here. All I know is that he knows too much about me for my liking. Next time I see him, I'm getting answers from him."
Soon we began to notice that the evening sky was getting very cloudy. Uncomfortably cloudy. And soon the wind was starting to pick up, and the boat began to rock a little as the sea grew rough. I was soon beginning to get a strong sense of foreboding. I could shake this feeling that something bad was about to happen.
"Steady lads!" shouted the captain. "We've endured worse storms than this!"
"Captain!" shouted the lookout. "I think I saw something moving in the clouds!"
That prompted all of us to look up. And sure enough I saw something moving in the clouds too. Soon, a large dragon-like creature came burst out, and headed right for us.
I immediately noticed the symbol on its chest. "It's a Heartless!" It looked like a much larger version of the Wyvern that Golbez summoned to nab Rosa.
The Dustflier swooped right above us, the wind knocking us off our feet.
"Get off your rears, and man the cannons!" the Captain shouted at his crew.
The crew got to work and start firing cannonballs at the Heartless. Meanwhile, Edward started conjuring his music bolts, Yang started launching Qigong Waves, Cecil started firing spheres of darkness, Rydia started casting her black magic, and I started launching my Sonic Waves. Unfortunately, hitting a flying target is never easy, and although its size allowed a few shots to hit, it felt like we were barely making a dent.
Soon it began firing back at us with a volley of fireballs. Some fireballs just landed in the ocean, but some might have hit the ship had Cecil not used his Dark Wave to counter them. Only one fireball managed to graze the side of the boat, which set it on fire, but fortunately Rydia immediately douse it with a blizzard. It then swooped by us again, the wind this time blowing me into rail, I found myself catching Rydia too.
I stood back up and pulled out my Red Fang. I pointed it at the Dustflier as channeled my energy through it. Soon enough, a large fire blast shot out of the fang. I was knocked backwards from the recoil, as I watch the flame scorch the Heartless. It seemed to stagger a little but he regained its balance quickly.
I grunted it frustration. Here we were on a sailing ship at sea, with little room to move around, while a large Heartless was flying around attacking us. We were sitting ducks out here. How were we suppose to fight this thing. After firing more projectile attacks and defending against another barrage of fireballs, we saw the Dustflier flying towards us with its talons in front of it. I had a feeling it was either gonna grab someone or stomp onto the ship. Either way, we got ready for its attack.
However, before it could even get close to us, a pillar of water suddenly jutted out of the ocean. colliding with it and sending it off balance.
"Where did that come from?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Captain!" shouted the lookout. "Maelstrom! Dead ahead!"
We look out across the ships bow and there was a giant whirlpool ahead. However, I don't think anyone was expecting a large serpentine tail sticking out of it. I hear the crew shouting in awe.
"Shiver me timbers!"
"Holy Mackerel!"
"The lord of the sea!"
"Is that...?"
Captain then finished everyone's thoughts. "It's Leviathan!"
"Leviathan!?" Rydia shouted as she ran towards the edge of the ship and stared in awe.
Soon a large serpentine creature emerged from the whirlpool. I couldn't see it very well due to how dark it's gotten by now, but its eyes look as if they were glowing. It seem to stare at us for a moment before turning its attention on the Dustflier. The sea monster breathed out a blast of ice at it, freezing much of its body, making it struggle to stay in flight. Then Leviathan grabbed the Heartless by the neck with its jaws.
The ship shook as the water started getting rougher.
"Don't stand about!" shouted the captain. "Reef the sails ye witless dogs!"
The crew worked as hard as they could to keep the boat steady and change course away from the monsters. But the waves were starting to rock the boat quite a bit.
Suddenly, I heard Rydia screaming. I looked to find that the rocking had flung the little girl overboard.
"Rydia!" I shouted as I ran over to the rails and saw her splash into the water and disappear from my sight. "RYDIA!" My heart started to panic as I looked around trying to look for her. The little girl I had grown attached to since I met her was suddenly lost at sea. I didn't know what to do.
"Hold on!" I heard Yang yell, as he dove into the sea after her. He too disappeared from my sight.
Cecil then ran to he rails next to me. "Rydia! Yang!" We both looked for them until a wave shook the ship real hard, and we heard Edward shout. Cecil looked back. "Edward!" He left my side as I continued trying to find Rydia and Yang.
Soon I looked back at the monsters, and I saw Leviathan had wrapped some of itself around the Dustflier before tearing its head right off, and the Heartless's body dissolved into darkness. The sea serpent then looked towards us before letting out a really loud roar.
...
And that's the last thing I remember before blacking out yet again.
A/N: Another cliffhanger FTW! XD
Yeah, I decided to add an attack by a giant Heartless before Leviathan shows up. Why? Well without spoiling anything, let's just say I wanted to make Leviathan look less like he attacked a ship for seemingly no reason.
Footnotes:
(1) See my Yamato centered story, Moons of Fate, for more information on that.
(2) With another FF summoner, specifically Garnet from FF9, appearing in the early chapters of Kris's KH3 rewrite, I felt that this should be addressed.
(3) See what I did there?
