Quick note: There may be future Chaos Warriors that aren't actually playable in the game.
(-)
"There is a reason there exists billions of humans: What one can't do alone, someone else is willing to lend a hand."
(-)
"Wait, you want to what?" Bartz asked.
"Jockey," Tidus answered like he already said this before. "Is that a problem?"
"Tidus, what do you know about chocobo racing?"
"Before I Awoke, not much," he admitted scratching the back of his head. "But, afterwards, I found out the other me can race a time of 00:00!"
"Tidus, two things. One: remember doing it is one thing. Actually doing it is something else entirely. Two: How is a time of 00:00 even possible?"
"Aw, come on, Bartz!" Tidus started to beg. "You've said it yourself: No one has wanted to jockey for you since the incident. I bet your chocobo are going stir-crazy! Running is in their genes, dude!"
Well, Tidus did make a good point. The chocobo have been a little riled up as of late. The little runs around the property just weren't satisfying them like they used to. They needed to race. Bartz knew it, but, to trust someone who only remembers being a good jockey? Could he risk it?
He was the first person willing to work for him ever since then. This was for the chocobo, not him. Although…
"Tidus, what does Cloud have to do with this?" Bartz asked, noting Cloud standing in the corner of the room. Tidus brought (or rather dragged) him along for some reason, though Bartz couldn't begin to fathom why.
"I figured he could be one too! I mean, he's got to be a natural with the chocobo! His hair even looks like one!"
"… Quite infallible logic you've got there, Tidus," Bartz deadpanned in response in a very good impersonation of Squall.
Now that the conversation has shifted to include Cloud, Cloud decided to respond. "Actually, I remember a thing or two about jockeying from my other memories. I managed to break out of prison because of it."
Bartz scratched his head. "Again with the 'other-memories'? And, do I really want to ask what Cloud meant by that?" Still, he needed jockeys, and they were offering. What could it hurt? "Fine. You guys wanna do it? We'd better start training."
"Training?" Tidus asked. "What, now?"
"Well, duh! One of the biggest cups in the country's next weekend! We've got a lot of work to do!"
(-)
"I didn't think I'd ever see you here again, Bartz. Especially after that little… incident," said a blond-haired man feinting concern, evidenced by the light smirk his lips momentarily twitched into.
"It's great to see you too, Mateus," Bartz replied as sarcastically.
Mateus Palamecia, a man with long, golden-yellow hair with purple tips that was stylized into a crown-like do and wearing a fancy, royal-blue tux, sneered at him with those condescending purple eyes of his. Bartz always disliked that man, not just because of their rival chocobo ranches. Those eyes of his always looked down on him, like he was just some punk from the country. Bartz's ranch had proven time and time again they were just as great, if not better, than some of the older ranches in the country. There were also rumors that Mateus cheated and fixed races, though no one could ever pin any proof on him.
"I'm honestly shocked you managed to find someone to jockey for you and your cursed ranch." He turned to Cloud and Tidus. "I mean, your brother was a traitor after all."
"My brother was no traitor, and he poisoned no soldiers!"
"And, you yet continue to live in denial."
Bartz grunted. He really disliked talking to this guy. How did his dad ever put up with him? "I'm sorry, Mateus, but we have a race to prepare for."
"The ranch owner is participating in the races? Boy, you really must be facing hard times," he ended the conversation with a chuckle and headed for his private booth to watch the race.
Tidus turned to Bartz and pounded his fists together. "Bartz, just say the word, and I'll punch that asshole's face in."
"No, no. We're here to race, not fight." Bartz scratched the back of his head. Deep down , he agreed with Tidus. Hell, he'd have been the one to throw the first punch to wipe that condescending smirk off his face. "As much as that guy deserves a good pounding, that's not how we're going to beat him." Bartz flashed a cocky and confident smile. "We're going to humiliate him. We're going to trifecta."
Cloud and Tidus recoiled in shock. "T-Trifecta?" they blurted out.
"You honestly think all three of us are going to finish in the top three spots?" Tidus asked, still shocked.
"Hey, I've seen the way you handle your chocobo. I have complete confidence in you guys."
Bartz gave such a warm and honest smile that the other two felt that they really could do it. They didn't need a rousing confidence-boosting speech. That smile was enough.
(-)
Bartz shifted nervously on his saddle. Boko, his yellow chocobo, scratched the ground in anticipation. He was going to run. He was going to race. He wanted nothing more than to leave all the other chocobo in the dust. It's been far too long since his last good run. Sure, he got to run a bit for the pole position, but this was different. He was going to run with other chocobo! He could hardly wait!
Bartz turned to look behind him for his team mates. Cloud, numbered seven, won the honor to start at fifth place compared to Bartz's third. Tidus, however, overestimated his abilities and ended up starting in dead last out of twenty possible racers. He only barely managed to qualify for the race, much to his embarrassment.
Cloud stroked his blue chocobo which was, strangely, called Tangerine. In the short amount of time he had available to bond with the bird, he quickly figured out why she was called Tangerine. Her real name was Aqua Marine, but her love of oranges earned her the nickname of Tangerine. Blue chocobo aren't as fast as other chocobo, but they make up for it by having superior grip and endurance. They could round corners sprinting, giving them an edge in more twisty-turny tracks. Cloud found he worked with her best. Although he did suffer from a bit of motion sickness, her lower overall speed and superior grip on the track made it easier to handle. When Cloud noticed he could no longer see the five on Bartz's back, he waved to him in hopes of calming him down. It seemed to work as Bartz smiled and turned his eyes back toward the front of the track.
"ARGH! START THE RACE ALREADY!" Tidus shouted in frustration. The pink chocobo he was riding, Lilly, warked in agreement. Much like Tidus, Lilly was very impatient, probably due to her coloring. Pink chocobo were very good sprinters. When they traveled at their top speed, they were even faster than the normally fast red chocobo. However, because of this, they have very low endurance and tend to tire very easily. Tidus ended up pushing Lilly too hard and tired her too quickly, which was why he was starting so far back. After a good scolding from Bartz, Tidus learned from his mistakes. He wasn't going to do that again, no sir! Not especially if he wanted to help Bartz humiliate Mateus.
The three of them turned on their headsets. They were the only things that connected the teammates to each other and their "coach." "This is Twelve! Five, Seven, Ten, report in!"
"Vaan, we have names, you know," Cloud replied with a bit of coldness. While Vaan couldn't see his glare, he could surely hear it.
"Aw, come on, Cloud!" Bartz joked. "Let him have his fun."
Cloud rolled his eyes and responded, "Fine. Seven reporting in."
"Five here! Ready to go, right, Boko?" The chocobo kwehed in agreement.
"CAN WE START THIS RACE ALREADY?"
Cloud, Bartz, and Vaan all quickly yanked off their headsets and rubbed their sore ears from Tidus's screaming.
"DAMNIT, TIDUS! THOSE WERE MY EARS!" Vaan yelled back though his microphone, though the speakers were still off his head. Zidane couldn't help but laugh. "That's not funny, Zidane!"
"You kidding? It's hilarious!" he blurted out between laughs.
"Um… Tidus? Maaaaaybe you should turn down your microphone a bit…" Bartz added with a bit of a forced, nervous chuckle.
"Alright, alright…" Tidus turned down the microphone volume from nine to four.
"So, Bartz," Vaan started. "How's it feel to be racing again?"
"Honestly? It feels pretty good!" He gave Boko a quick scratch on the back of his head. "I really missed it."
Back when his dad owned the ranch, Bartz was one of the ranch's jockeys. He and Boko always did well in the races, but, ever since Reks died, Bartz was just too busy with other things to race, his brothers and the end of the world being the main ones. Well, Squall and Terra were back home to take care of any forces of Chaos that might Awaken back there if anything were to go wrong, so he didn't have anything to worry about. Maybe it was a good thing more people knew about it. Now, Bartz could start to have a life again, as long as his brothers were involved in it, of course.
"Welcome, everyone!" announced a voice over the loudspeakers. Bartz snapped out of his thoughts as he and everyone else in the stadium concentrated on the voice. "It is time once again for the annual Gold Saucer Cup! Many hopeful jockeys and chocobo have come here from across the globe in hopes of winning this coveted trophy, but, alas, only twenty racers shall have a chance at such an honor. I'm sure the racers are getting anxious, so let us begin the countdown to race!"
Just then, a little buzz rang out over the field. The red light on the race start lamp turned on. Bartz readied himself. He focused on the lamp and on the track ahead. The two chocobo ahead of him and the one just behind him all belonged to Mateus. The one in first was a black chocobo numbered three. Those particular chocobo specialized in jumping and "flight," though, since chocobo were flightless birds, it only meant they could remain airborne for longer periods of time. They were good at taking short-cuts and avoiding obstacles to make up for their otherwise low speed. It seemed the jockey was unusually skilled at them which was why he was starting in first. The second place chocobo was a red one numbered six. They were exceptionally fast without sprinting, though, if a red one and a pink one were in a sprinting match, the pink one would, eventually, win. Bartz knew he could be a problem as well. The chocobo in fourth, but only by a few seconds, was an orange one numbered eleven. Overall, those chocobo have the best stats, basically a yellow chocobo on steroids, but they are highly unruly and are difficult to race. Bartz knew underestimating that one would be foolish.
The red light shifted downwards to light up the yellow lamps. Boko readied himself to bolt off the starting line. He adjusted his stance and couched slightly. Everyone sprints off the starting line, and Boko was no exception. A drip of sweat started running down Bartz's face. His heart was racing. His grip tightened on the reigns. Oh, to be racing again! He was ecstatic!
Cloud took the few seconds between yellow and green to calm down and remind himself of his racing plan. Since Tangerine was great at turning, he could take those sprinting. He would sprint on straightaways and loose corners. On tight corners, he would use the chocobo's great turning ability to hug the wall and make the smallest turn he could. The smaller the turn meant the less distance traveled. What he lacked in speed, he would make up for in strategy.
Tidus's fingers itched. He was just waiting for the moment he could snap the reigns and bolt off the starting line. Though, he had to remind himself to remember to watch for Lilly's condition. His carelessness was what cost them in the pole position race. It was why he was starting so far back. After the good chewing out from Bartz, he decided he was only going to let loose on the flat straightaways. Whenever he had a straight portion of track, he was going to fly down it at full speed. He then began to wonder if Jecht was watching this from his cell in jail. If he won, he wondered how proud his dad would be. It would be quite the story to tell Yuna and Firion when he got back.
Those agonizing few seconds between yellow and green seemed to stretch into hours. Everyone's adrenaline was pumping. Chocobo and Jockey each waited for the holy, green signal of go. There were only three colors that they worshiped: the holy green to begin, and the treasured black and white to end. The green was shared by all. However, the black and white could only be claimed by one but was wanted by all. The black and white, everyone swore, would be theirs.
There was the green! A quick flick of the reigns and the signal to go were all the chocobo needed to start zipping down the track. The crowd cheered the start of the race, but the jockeys didn't notice it. They were focused on claiming the coveted first place to claim the white and black checkered flag. Tidus was soon using his superior sprinting abilities to move up in place. He soon sprinted from dead last to a slightly more respectable fifteenth. Cloud dropped from fifth to eight, and Bartz was trying to hold of the person in fifth, also a pink chocobo, after he lost third to the orange chocobo's superior breeding. The red chocobo pulled out in front, but he ended up taking the first corner a little wide, allowing the black and orange chocobo to pull in front of him, falling back toward third. Bartz pulled back on the reigns slightly, causing the chocobo to slow down just a tad, so that Bartz could take the corner at a respectable angle at the highest speed he could. He was used to racing, and he really knew Boko's abilities. He instinctively knew what Boko was capable of. He pulled ahead of the red chocobo as well, though Bartz knew it was only for a little while as he would try to overtake him again in the straightaway. The pink chocobo in fifth would probably do the same.
Cloud flew around the corner using his chocobo's great grip, overtaking the chocobo in seventh and sixth, catching up to where he was before the race started. Tidus had to slow greatly down before the corner just so he could make it and give Lilly some time to rest before he let her loose again in the next straightaway right afterward.
"Five, Seven! Remember, the first track obstacle is coming up!" Vaan reminded them.
Placed at various intervals on the track were hazards that were placed there to make the races more exciting. Only the most skilled of riders could navigate them safely, let alone use them to their advantage.
The ground gave way to a cliff over a large pool. There were eight rather large pillars spaced decently enough that you couldn't walk between them, and, if you missed, you'd have to swim in the pool and take a lower portion of the track which, although generally shorter, was littered with very sharp turns that were nearly impossible to take at full speed. The black chocobo numbered three jumped and flapped. Its natural flight skills allowed the chocobo to avoid landing on many of the pillars, shaving off a good deal of time. The red chocobo had to take it very carefully since his flight wasn't as nearly adept as the black's. But, he wanted to remain on the upper portion of track since it was overall straighter and would save him time in the long run. Bartz decided to shoot for the upper track as well. He soon caught up to the cautious red chocobo and passed him, spryfully skipping along the pillars. Cloud, however, decided to screw the pillars and shoot straight for the water. Not only was his chocobo a good turner, which the lower portion of the track was littered with, Tangerine was a great swimmer. For them, the lower track was definitely faster. Cloud soon pulled ahead of the red chocobo and Bartz in the pool below, leaving him sitting in second as Tangerine squawked happily in the water. The black chocobo crossed to the other side and took off running down the track again. Bartz wasn't that far behind though.
The red chocobo fell back a few places from his cautious racing, but he made it safely to the other side. Tidus finally made it to the pillar area. Tidus had an idea. Unlike the others whom he was racing against, he wasn't going to slow down. He was taking this at full speed. He flicked the reigns, giving Lilly the signal to sprint, and sprint she did! They zoomed forward as the other chocobo were nothing but rainbow-colored swirls behind him. He saw his target, the second pillar!
"WHAT IS HE DOING?" Vaan shouted in confusion, watching him from his binoculars. "IS HE NUTS?"
"He's Tidus, so I'd say that's a 'yes,'" Zidane answered Vaan's rhetorical question.
"Trust him, guys!" Bartz responded on the intercom. "I'm sure he's got a plan."
"That makes one of us…" Cloud retorted.
Tidus and Lilly jumped! They soared through the air using the momentum from Lilly's sprint to give them the needed inertia to propel them to the second pillar. She landed on it safely with two feet, but Tidus wasn't done yet! They leaped again! She kept the rhythm and jumped to the fourth, then sixth, then eighth pillars! With one final leap, he came to a skidding landing on the higher portion of the track. He had crossed the pillars in spectacular fashion, jumping up all the way to fifth (and knocking off some of the competition along the way to the track below)! The crowd cheered for such an impressive display of jockeying from the "rookie for the cursed ranch," as he took off running again down the straightaway. The sprint leading up to that had tired Lilly out, but their current place was totally worth it.
Bartz was catching up to the black chocobo in first leading the pack of those who took the high road, while Cloud had a sizeable lead on the next person behind him on the lower track, being the sole orange chocobo of the race. The orange chocobo resisted his trainer and ended up taking a little swim like a few of the others. This was good for Cloud though. He didn't have to worry about anyone breaking his concentration while he took these rather sharp turns.
The red chocobo started to catch up to Bartz and the black chocobo, quickly recovering the time he lost on the pillars. When Lilly's stamina recovered enough, Tidus was soon sprinting down the track as well. He started to catch up to that darn red chocobo while Bartz kept focused on the black one. The two separate tracks soon merged back into one as Cloud rejoined the pack from the right fork not too far behind Bartz and the black chocobo as he saw Tidus's pink and the red chocobo close the distance behind him. The orange chocobo soon came out of the right fork as well and started to make his move on Cloud, Bartz, and the black chocobo.
"So glad you could join us, Tidus," Bartz joked over the intercom.
"Hardy-har-har."
Soon, the six racers came upon the second obstacle of the race, the tile pits. At periodic intervals, a section of floor would give way to a longer, poorly-lit section of track. The panels were normally green until it was time to drop. Before they opened, they would flash three times yellow before opening and turning red. It was a great way to test a chocobo's agility as racers would aim for the upper portion of track.
Tidus and the red chocobo racer adopted similar strategies: Run like mad! The two of them were soon bolting down the green-yellow-holed track in hopes that they'd speed through it fast enough they wouldn't have to worry about a bad tile. The orange chocobo was off being unruly again as it zigzagged haphazardly around the area. The black chocobo was using its great hang-time to "fly" over the tiles and not have to worry about hitting any of them. Bartz and Cloud were playing it a bit more cautiously, though, as they, though running, tip-toed through the "mine-field."
The orange chocobo had quickly fallen though one of the bad tiles and continued on the lower portion of the track. That was okay though. Bartz figured the orange chocobo, though one he would have to watch out for, was more of a decoy than anything. He didn't underestimate it, but he wasn't going out of his way to stay ahead of it. That was just what Mateus wanted. He wanted racers to burn out trying to stay ahead of the orange chocobo while his real racers on his black and red ones, claimed victory.
Just when Cloud and Bartz thought they were in the clear, the tiles beneath their chocobos' feet gave way, turning from green to red without warning. The two of them plummeted into the darker track below as they watched the light shining in from the tiles above disappear with their closing.
"What just happened?" Bartz asked, though, from what Bartz could tell, the same question was on Cloud's mind as they continued on the poorly lit-path. The only real light available was the momentary opening and closing of the tiles from the obstacle.
"Cheating, that's what!" Vaan responded over the intercom. "Those tiles didn't flash yellow before they dropped you!"
"Thought so," Cloud said with a knowing voice. "I was sure that tile just opened which was why I stepped on it."
"Same here," Bartz agreed.
"That bastard!" Zidane spat. "Mateus will just get it written off as an electrical glitch after sending 'a generous gift' to Dio." He got up to leave the room in a huff.
"Zidane!" Vaan called after him. "Where are you going?"
"To give that bastard a piece of my mind."
The only thing that kept Tidus from falling like the other two was how closely he stuck to the red and black chocobo. Bartz and Cloud had to take it slow since they could barely see a foot in front of their face.
Tidus soon noticed that his team mates weren't behind him anymore. "Guys! You alright?"
"Yeah, we're fine!" Bartz reassured him.
"Kick their asses," added Cloud.
"Oh, with pleasure!"
(-)
Zidane pounded hard on the door that led to Mateus's private box. It wasn't that hard to figure out which was his: It was the only one that screamed, "I'm rich and of noble blood, therefore, I'm better than you." Unsurprisingly, the one to open the door was not Mateus. It was one of his various "associates," though that was just snobby rich-kid for goon. The black suited man wearing sunglasses towered over the tiny Zidane, but, Zidane could shoot laser beams from his daggers. This guy was nowhere near intimidating.
He puffed out his chest to make himself seem bigger. "I demand to speak with Master Mateus!"
Though the "associate" remained stoic, Zidane could tell he was mentally laughing at him.
"One good punch in the balls oughta shut him up!" he thought. He was at the right height.
Mateus casually looked back to notice the diminutive, blond guest. He waved his hand inviting Zidane to enter, and the "associate" stepped aside to let him in. Zidane stomped his way over to Mateus, moving only to avoid the many guests Mateus had invited to party their Gold Saucer victory before they actually won it. Mateus dismissed the ladies that were practically draped over him and invited Zidane to sit down next to him. Zidane did it but he grunted, clearly unhappy with his "oh-so-gracious" host.
"Ah, Zidane, to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked, though, by the tone of his voice, he was sure he already knew the reason.
"Cut the crap, Mateus," he spat. "You know why I'm here."
"What ever do you mean?" he asked with the same tone of sarcasm as before, taking a sip of his martini.
"You're cheating! You're cheating just like you always do! Damnit, leave my brother alone!"
"And, what proof do you have of these alleged claims?"
Zidane spat. He didn't have any proof, not that it would matter though. Mateus would make it disappear, and then would probably make Zidane disappear. Still, Mateus brushed off the accusation like it was a little joke between friends. Well, in Mateus's eyes, it was little more than a joke. All he had to do was spread a little money around, and everyone would eat out of his hands. He would tell them to jump, and they would ask, "How high?" People are all fools: They'd sell their soul if they could make a fortune on it, that's what Mateus believed anyway. He was only proven wrong once, and that was with Bartz. No matter how much money he offered to get him to sign as a jockey for his ranch, he would politely decline. No matter how much money he offered to pay for his chocobo, Bartz would continue to refuse. Bah, that kid was a fool, Mateus would make him see it.
"What right does a mere peasant have to refuse the demands of an Emperor?"
"No right, that's what," Mateus mentally responded to the voice that spoke to him, like a distant memory.
"Precisely." Mateus could then feel a strange sensation fill his being. This-! This feeling! He felt like he waited his entire life for it! This was the feeling of true, royal blood! Everyone would obey him… OR ELSE!
Zidane's tail twitched under his shirt. It only twitched like that when something bad was coming… Chaos Warrior bad.
"Uh… You know, I think I just remembered I needed to do something… Um… Not here…" Zidane got up to excuse himself before he was stopped by a crest of purple light drawn in front of him, threatening to shoot its purple bolts at him.
"Come now, Zidane," Mateus spat as he rose from his seat. When he did, his form shifted, transforming to a man wearing a purple suit under golden yellow armor adorned with various demon heads and a purple cape. "Stay… AND ENJOY THE PARTY!"
The other people in the room reacted to the Chaos energy being emitted by the Emperor and also transformed. Each and every one of them transformed into a soulless Manikin, the true form of anyone not from the other worlds. Zidane attempted to pull out his Crystal to transform and transport Mateus to the world between to do battle, but Mateus would have no parts of that. With a quick flick of Mateus's wrist, he drew a crest on the ground that trapped Zidane and emitted a powerful wave of electricity through his body. He screamed in pain as the thousands of volts ran through his being. When the crest disappeared, he dropped to his knees, and the Manikins that were once honored party guests pinned him down. Mateus snatched Zidane's Crystal. He wasn't going to go anywhere or call for any help; Mateus would be sure of that.
Mateus returned to his comfortable sofa and took another sip of his martini. "Relax. Stay a while… There's a race to watch."
(-)
Oh, shit! Mateus, the Emperor, is Awake! This can only spell trouble for our heroes!
Okay, originally, it wasn't supposed to be Mateus. I had originally planned for Seymore to be the Warrior to Awaken this chapter, but, the way I was writing him just screamed Mateus. So, badda-bing, badda-boom!
And, by the way, writing out a race is not easy. Battles are easier since we've played the game and know how it works, but, the race is a product of my own imagining. I have to be a little more detailed in it so everyone knows what's going on. In my head, I kinda picture it somewhat like the Chao Racing of Sonic Adventure 2, Bomberman Fantasy Race, and I guess Ninja Warrior in the obstacles. (By the way, I've always wanted a real monster breeding/racing game. Something like Monster Rancher, only we race the monsters we raise instead of making them fight. I think that's one of the reasons I loved the chao system in Sonic Adventure 2. I was so upset when they took that out of Sonic Heroes and all subsequent games. I wasted hours breeding my super Chao. Hell, I've even had some neat special ones, like an invisible chao, a chao made of glass, and a normal chao that was shiny!)
Next time: Mateus sets his trap! The pieces are falling in place for his ultimate checkmate. Can our heroes find the one move that will turn it all around?