Wayhey! It's finally here! I should apologise again for taking so long, but I'm hoping you'll forgive me ;)

I didn't started writing this chapter until a month or two ago, which actually coincided with some family crap that is still on going. It actually made me want to write, which is rather stange. Usually I write when I feel like it, whatever my mood, but the past few days I've been writing because things at home have escalated so much. Although, that may be because of the nature of this chapter, more than anything else. Either way, I've written it, and once again, I hope it was worth the wait.

Also, have any of you actually pasted "Tajem" into a translator yet? I don't think you'll be surprised with the outcome P

Anyway, enough rambling by me. Here is the next chapter, and I hope you enjoy!

The atmosphere on the airship was so tense Yuna was sure she could cut it with a knife. Tidus was stood by her side in the control room, the two of them looking worriedly out of the large viewing window with Gippal standing several paces away. She felt like the umpire in a boxing match with one opponent unaware that he was even playing. Gippal was the only one ignorant to the fact that the baby wasn't his, but rather Tidus's. It was stirring up the old, familiar feelings of hurt and anger from the past months, but she was determined not to let them take over. Rikku's life was at stake, and that was far more important than her previous feelings to the whole drama.

Tidus was struggling to control his own feelings of worry and anxiety, knowing that if he let it burst out, Gippal would be curious as to why he was so concerned about the child. The two men had never been close, never having the time to, but it would make the whole situation more complicated if they fell out. His first-born may be with Rikku, instead of Yuna, but it didn't mean he would love it any less, and when the day came when Yuna become pregnant, he would treat both children exactly the same.

Gippal, separate from the couple, had initially wondered why the High Summoner had insisted Tidus came with them. But, seeing them united now, he realised that Yuna needed him, to help her through this. It made his heart clench that he should be with Rikku right now, but if she were there, this whole trip wouldn't be needed anyway.

All three of them were lost in their own thoughts, all travelling down different paths, but ultimately reaching the same end; their worry for Rikku. The journey to the ruins had never seemed to taken so long in their lives, but they eventually loomed through the clouds, all three stomachs twisting in fear at what they might find when they got there.

---

Half of her vision was masked by a blaze of dark red, her own blood running over her face, the cuts on her skin oozing with plasma as they tried to heal. Thick straps held her to the table, but she had given up squirming long ago. The circular, operating lights above her head restricted her already obscured vision even more, adding to the terror of the unknown.

Sounds reached her ears as Tajem scuffled about, occasionally dropping the tools back onto the trolley, making sounds of annoyance or satisfaction depending on how her little "operation" was turning out. Rikku's brain had blocked out most of the pain, turning herself numb in fear for her child, trying desperately not to think about what the wicked woman could be doing.

Tajem seemed to be paying particular attention to her upper chest, at the top of her ribs and along her collarbones. It almost seemed as though she was painting some sort of weird signs and symbols onto her flesh, as she wielded the scalpel with the careful control of an artist. If she had wished to simply massacre Rikku, her moves would have been much more harsh and deliberate.

A brief moment of hope passed Rikku when Tajem turned away from the table, moving off to the other side of the large operating room, obviously in search of some instrument or device to add to her work. Wiggling one of her arms, she found the straps allowed her to twist her hand, grasping the edge of the rough constraining device, and giving it a short pull. It remained stuck fast, causing her to let out a small sob of despair, just as Tajem returned, holding a glass bottle.

"Try that again and the pain will increase tenfold. I've been extremely kind so far."

Tajem's eyes were narrowed to slits as she glared at Rikku, with such hatred it would have made the trapped girl recoil, if she had had the room to do so. The young girl strapped to the table couldn't fathom how someone could hate so much. Rikku had never hated anyone in her life, aside from brief moments as a child when Gippal had teased her, or stolen one of her toys. Even then, it wasn't real hatred, merely something for her to yell at him before stomping off in a huff. His teasing would be most welcome right now, even the way he sometimes looked at her like she was an immature child, anything to get her away from this living hell.

Licking her dry lips, she sucked in a breath as Tajem pulled the stopper off of the large, blue bottle, the sound being similar to a cock escaping the lip of a wine neck. Swallowing loudly, she instinctively flinched away as the strong stench of the liquid inside reached her nostrils, knowing it couldn't be anything good.

The bottle hovered in the line of her vision for a few seconds, Tajem seemingly enjoying the look of pure terror on Rikku's face, before letting the liquid spill over the edge onto her chest.

Pain spread like hot knives over the wounded flesh, causing Rikku to cry out before she could hold it back. Biting her lip rather harshly to stop the rising screams in her throat, she dug her nails into her palms, aware that anymore "work" on the burning area of her chest would break her restraints. Which was precisely what Tajem wanted.

"You bitch," she managed to grind out, the words trailing off into a moan of hurt, eyelids fluttering closed tightly to block out the horrifying image of Tajem's gleeful face.

A sinister laugh reached Rikku's ears, almost inhuman with evil, before another flood of liquid hit her skin, causing her back to arch up from the metal table, as much as the straps would allow. It was in that moment that the smell of the clear liquid registered in her groggy mind, and the results surprised her. An anti-bacterial wash, albeit a rather strong one, hence the pain, but a disinfectant nonetheless.

Her second realisation quickly followed the first, causing her fists to clench and her eyes to squeeze shut even tighter. Tajem was branding her. A clean wound to leave a neat scar forever marked onto her skin, to remind her of this ordeal. If her mind ever allowed her to forget, her body wouldn't.

The sound of the stopper being replaced was cut off as the room started to vibrate slightly, bottles and urns clanking on their shelves, as the dull humming sound grew louder, and more intense.

Rikku's first thought was that of a vacuum machina, causing her to wonder why anyone would be using such a machine in this area. It was desolate, and uninhabited, what were they doing?

"Finally."

Tajem's words viciously cut Rikku out of her own mind, the table underneath her now vibrating quite strongly as she heard something fly overhead. An airship, of course it was an airship. Letting out a sigh of relief, which was dangerously close to a sob, she opened her eyes, seeing Tajem looking at the ceiling with a smirk on her face. Obviously this was all part of her plan. Was it rescue? Or was it a shipment of some sort to aid Tajem in her operation?

The older woman brought her eyes down from the ceiling as they both heard the airship land, the smirk on her features growing into a full on grin.

"Let's get this show on the road."

---

"She's here! She has to be here!"

Gippal wiped a bead of sweat off of his brow with a gloved hand, before using it to shield his eye from the blaring sun of the desert. He'd almost forgotten how hot it could be out here.

"We've looked everywhere Gippal, Tajem must have meant somewhere else."

Yuna was looking up at him with a mixture of fear and sympathy in her bi coloured orbs, placing a comforting hand on his bicep. Tidus, however was occurring his own vision by gazing intently at one of the few buildings they hadn't searched yet.

"How about in there?" He pointed a hand at the large hospital block; it's outward appearance seeming much cleaner than the buildings around it, almost as though the old healing inside was washing it of impurities.

Turning his gaze, Gippal rested his one eye on the structure, a frown creasing his brow. "The old hospital? It doesn't seem likely, why would Tajem take her there?" The haze of worry and fear clouded his logical thought, which would, in any normal situation, know exactly why his ex would take Rikku there.

"We should check it out anyway Gippal, just in case. I don't want to leave until we've looked in every possible place."

It was Yuna's pleading face that convinced him, causing them all to move at a quick trot across the sand. With every step dread grew in Gippal's stomach, suddenly aware of what he may find inside. He knew Tajem was here, he wasn't sure what made him so certain, but he just knew it. Would there be anything left of Rikku to find? Was Tajem corrupted enough to kill? He didn't know, but he wasn't going to linger about outside, wondering what could be happening.

Striding through the broken doorway, boots crunching on the broken shards of glass that scatted the tiled floor, Gippal tried to prepare himself for what he might see, or rather the lack of who he might see. The thought of never knowing what had happened, and of never seeing Rikku again, drove him on, forcing him to push open doors to wards, and offices. Everything was still and silent, the rooms filled with dust and memories of long past. It was clear that no one had been in these rooms for a very long time.

It was only when he stepped back into the main hallway, after inspecting what must have been the children's ward, that a familiar tang drifted to him causing him to halt in his steps. Sucking air into his nose a few times, just to make sure he hadn't imagined it, he turned himself around until he was facing the back end of the hospital. It housed the two large operating rooms, and his heart seemed to jump into his throat as he swallowed quickly, beckoning behind him for Yuna and Tidus to follow.

This building hadn't been used in over a decade, it would be impossible for such a scent to linger for so many years, especially considering the lack of such odours in the other parts of the building. Even if no one was here now, someone had been recently, and that someone could be Rikku.

Gippal jumped as the sound of glass smashing fled down the corridor, his hand reaching for his pistol, hearing Yuna doing the same, whilst Tidus stayed silent. Whatever they met in there, it most likely wouldn't be friendly, and they needed to be ready for a sudden attack as soon as they stepped into the room. They also needed to be geared up to rescue Rikku if she did lie inside, and that was the most vital thing. If she lost her life because of his stupidity, he'd die along with her.

Edging slowly closer to the double doors of the right hand operating room, Gippal reached out a cautious hand to ease one of the doors open. His view was restricted to some shelving and a large sink, causing him to push a little harder, moving the door until it was standing half open.

Sucking in a small breath, he stepped inside, gun raised and finger poised to shoot. He didn't have time to think about what may have been in the room, as his attention was entirely focused on the woman standing in front of the operating table.

"Gippal! You're just in time!"

Tajem clapped her hands together in something close to joy as she smiled sweetly at him, her face a picture of innocence and childlike delight. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought her to be genuine; she'd always been a good actress.

"Where is she?"

He managed to keep his voice rather calm, almost like he was attempting to talk down someone about to commit suicide. But in this case, it was most likely closer to murder. With Rikku's life at stake, he wouldn't take any risks.

Tajem stepped to the side, finally allowing him to see Rikku propped up on the table, arms bound behind her back. He swore under his breath and stepped forward a few steps, tears clinging unnoticed onto his lashes as he took in her injuries.

A hand flashed up for him to stop in his advances, the glint of a blade following soon after, as Tajem stepped up beside Rikku, shoving the knife under her chin.

So much time had gone by, and she'd had so many visions of Gippal rescuing her, that Rikku wasn't sure if he was real of not. Or if her cousin and Tidus were real, or just her own imagination.

A hand grabbed her roughly by the arm, yanking her off the edge of the table, onto unsteady feet, knife still planted dangerously close to her throat. She was walked to the back wall, Tajem moving behind her, one hand still on the knife, whilst the other grasped her shoulder in a cruel grip.

"You have no idea how pleased I am that you get to see this Gippal, you really are lucky. This is a once in a life time showing."

Tajem's voice was unrecognisable as she spoke, her usual tones replaced by the high notes of hysteria, before being followed by a shrill laugh that echoed around the room. It ended with silence, as three of the occupants in the room held their breath, fear pinching at their faces at what may happen to their loved one.

Rikku merely whimpered slightly, the fingernails of Tajem's left hand digging into the broken flesh on her collarbone, her legs weak and jelly like, almost like an invisible current was tugging her under. She should fight, resist the impious woman behind her, but she just couldn't find the strength.

The next moments seemed to happen in slow motion, as the blade came away from her neck to be lifted into the air above her head. Time then seemed to stop as it hung over her, flashing and glinting, almost winking, in the harsh, artificial lights of the room.

Gippal, sensing what was about to happen, lunched forward, a scream lighting the air, mingling with Rikku's own cry as Tajem plunged the knife into her stomach.