V. Sorry for the wait. Exams, work etc conspire against me. Hope you'll still enjoy the latest installment.
A short distance down the pathway, the only flat rock in the area, a large group of crusaders gathered. As Seymour approached them, they saluted as one.
"All hail, Maester Seymour," one of the crusaders, a captain, ordered.
"Brave Crusaders of Spira, protectors of all Spira," Seymour addressed them, "Believe in the path you have chosen, let faith be your strength! I, Seymour Guado, Maester of Yevon, will bear witness to your deeds today."
Again the crusaders saluted, "Sir!" they acknowledged in unison.
"What's goin' on?" Wakka said suddenly, "Why's Maester Seymour backing the Crusaders, eh? They're using Al Bhed's machina! They're violating the teachings!" The orange haired guardian sounded horrified.
"Even going against the teachings they're willing to risk it for the greater good," Yuna told him quietly, "Wakka, I think Maester Seymour sees that, too."
Wakka didn't look convinced, "Lulu?" he asked for the black mage's opinion.
Lulu raised an eyebrow, "I can only speculate," she said after a moment.
"Ask him yourself," Auron suggested, looking pointedly over Wakka's shoulder. Turning the former captain saw Seymour approaching the group. The Maester seemed to making for Yuna but paused and looked at Auron suddenly.
"Ah, Sir Auron. It is an honour," he said with a smile, "I would be most interested in hearing what you've been doing these past ten years."
Auron's expression didn't change, "I've got nothing to say about it," his tone clearly stated the subject was closed.
"I…see," the Maester said. Tidus couldn't imagine what Seymour's reaction would be to the truth. Not for the first time, the blitzer wondered just how Auron had showed up in Zanarkand. Before he could ponder it further, the Maester approached Yuna.
"Sir Auron must be a great asset as a guardian," he told her.
"Your grace!" Yuna bowed immediately.
Seymour looked down with a smirk, "Please, there is no need for formalities," he murmured in his melodic voice.
Wakka stepped forward, unable to contain himself any longer, "Excuse me…Maester Seymour" he started, "Why is you lordship…presently…present here…sir?" he asked awkwardly. Behind him, Lulu could only shake her head.
Seymour sighed, "Please, speak as you normally would," he said firmly.
"Isn't this operation against the teachings of Yevon? Aren't you gonna stop them?" Wakka amended, just short of a demand.
Seymour gave another smirk, "It's true, I should," he agreed, "However...both the Crusaders and the Al Bhed truly wish peace for Spira. This Operation Mi'hen was born from that wish they share. Although it may be sacrilege to Yevon, their intentions are pure. And I, Seymour Guado--the person, not the Maester of Yevon...as a denizen of Spira," he paused, "I wish them well in their endeavour."
"But using machina…that's bad, ya?" Wakka insisted.
Seymour shrugged, "Pretend you didn't see them," he said simply.
Wakka's mouth fell open and the rest of the group, save Tidus and Auron, gasped in shock. The blitzer was surprised at the statement, especially coming from a Maester of Yevon.
"Beg your pardon, but that's not something a Maester should say!" Wakka managed to get out after a moment.
Seymour gave a chuckle, "Then pretend I didn't say it," he said before walking away down the path. A short distance down the road he met his two Guado guards and they escorted him away.
"You're kidding!" Wakka muttered to himself, looking shocked.
Tidus watched Seymour disappear with a thoughtful expression on his face. He'd never liked the half-Guado, not since the first time he'd seen him but he found himself agreeing with some of what the Maester had said. It made a lot of sense to him. He remembered there being a rock star in Zanarkand who'd been slammed by the media due to the violent lyrics in his songs. Upon been questioned about it, he simply said, "You don't like 'em? Don't listen to 'em!"
Tidus doubted Wakka would ever look the other way when it came to machina; he seemed to hate machines even more than the rest of Spira. He wondered why and made a note to ask Lulu about it at a later point.
The group continued onward, down what could only be called slightly more even terrain. It was a pathway of sorts but not much flatter than the rest of the rocky landscape that gave the Mushroom Rock its name. Not far from where Seymour had given his speech they could see the crusaders bustling about in preparation of the upcoming battle, many of them looking nervous. Before they could make their way amidst them someone ran up to them in great haste.
"Excuse me? Lady Summoner Yuna?" he questioned. Tidus recognized the third Chocobo Knight from the Mi'hen Highroad who'd never got round to introducing himself.
"Yes?" Yuna confirmed with a frown and a slight bow.
"I am Clasko, of the Chocobo Knights," he introduced hastily, "Lord Seymour requests your presence at the command centre."
For a moment Yuna looked startled but quickly regained her composure, "Thank you," she said.
"Take that road to the command centre. It's not far," Clasko pointed along a stretch of bumpy road that led away from the shoreline, "We're still in the midst of preparations this way. Sorry," the chocobo knight indicated the area of road running parallel to the shore. True to what he'd said, a number of Crusaders gathered, making preparations for battle.
The group took the road Clasko had indicated and found it soon led deep into the bulbous landscape as it stretched away from the sea. Soon the view of the shore and surrounding lands was obscured by the rock faces stretching well above their heads. The path led up and down as it meandered over the irregular terrain with only one clear direction to head in, unless you wanted to climb down into the occasional ravine that separated the road from the bedrock, turning it into a bridge for short distances.
The road wasn't long but the going was slow due to the uneven ground and a couple of hours had passed by the time they reached an area that was more open than the path. As the path widened it rose gently as well until the group was standing in an open area that was about a fifty feet above sea level. Even though the shoreline still wasn't visible, Tidus could hear the crash of erosive waves on the other side of the tall cliffs. It occurred to him the sea level must once upon a time been a lot higher for the rocks so far inland to have also been eroded.
The cliff surrounded the area on all sides and on the face opposite the pathway a contraption, which Tidus recognized as a crude lift, was set into the stone. To the right of the lift the blitzer spotted the two Besaidian Crusaders, Luzzu and Gatta. By Wakka's facial expression, he'd seen them as well. As the group approached, the crusaders' conversation drifted onto the edge of their hearing. The sound of raised voices and angry tones suggested an argument. As they drew even closer Gatta's words and his body language confirmed this.
"Why only you, sir? I want to fight, too!" he was demanding, gesturing fiercely to emphasise his point.
"Orders are orders," Luzzu told him, his tone tight as if he was trying very hard to be patient.
"I'm not a cadet anymore, sir!" Gatta retorted. He made a short noise in frustration, "Let me go with you, and I'll prove it to them!"
"Guarding the command centre is important too, you know," Luzzu placated, his brow furrowed in a mixture of annoyance and worry that the younger man would do something rash.
"But I came all the way from Besaid to fight Sin, sir," Gatta pleaded his tone taking on a defeated quality.
Luzzu sighed, "I know," he said, sounding sympathetic for a moment then his tone hardened again, "But an order's an order. To your post, Crusader."
"But…" Gatta started then, seeing it was useless, stalked off furiously with gritted teeth. He either didn't see or chose to ignore Yuna and her Guardians as they came to stand next to Luzzu. A moment later he'd ridden the lift to the top of the cliff and disappeared.
The older Crusader watched him go regretfully then turned his gaze on the group behind him, "They let you through, huh?" he asked rhetorically.
Tidus glanced in the direction Luzzu's protégé had disappeared, "Gatta…deserves better," he said lightly when no one else seemed inclined to comment.
"At least there's no chance he'll get hurt," Wakka pointed out. The former Blitzball captain gave Luzzu a critical look that bordered on derisive, "Why are you guys fighting, anyway? Aren't the almighty Al Bhed machina enough?"
Tidus shot Wakka a look but he didn't seem to notice. Luzzu chuckled almost inaudibly, "They still need some time to get them ready. Our job is to keep Sin at bay till they're done," he explained.
Wakka snorted and turned away. As he did so Luzzu's expression changed abruptly into one of deep regret and Tidus saw Lulu shift her stance subtly. Before the blonde blitzer could wonder at the sudden change of mood Luzzu spoke up.
"Wakka..." he started, "I might not get another chance to say this. It's about your brother."
This time Lulu shift in stance was more dramatic as she took two quick steps forward, "Luzzu, no!" she ordered, her voice pitched higher than usual in what seemed like alarm.
Wakka looked from Lulu to Luzzu as he turned back to face the group again, "What?" he wanted to know.
"I'm the one…who convinced him to enlist," Luzzu confessed. Lulu made a small noise of distress and hung her head. Yuna hurried to her side, looking unsure but wanting to lend support. Wakka glanced at her briefly then focused on Luzzu intently.
"I'm sorry," the crusader added, looking repentant.
Tidus watched the scene warily but Wakka was merely staring at Luzzu, his face giving nothing away. For a moment it seemed he would do nothing but then, with surprising speed, the orange haired blitzer lashed out and punched Luzzu solidly across the face. The crusader went down hard and, as it seemed, had done nothing to defend himself from Wakka's assault.
Yuna gasped in surprise and Lulu shook her head sadly. For a moment her brow furrowed as if she wanted to reprimand the former blitz captain but her expression fell once more just as quickly.
Wakka seemed ready to have another go at the downed Luzzu but Tidus rallied and jump forward to restrain him.
"Wakka!" he warned, "That's enough, Wakka!"
The older man struggled for just a moment before sagging in a mixture of defeat and anguish. A flurry of emotions raced across his face as he tried to make sense of what he'd heard. Tidus released him but stood near his shoulder, providing support as well as watching for signs of more violence to come.
"When we used to play blitz together, Chappu used to say...," Wakka started, his voice heavy, "He'd say that--when we won the Cup, ya?--he'd propose to Lulu. And then one day...he goes off and becomes a Crusader. Just like that."
Tidus looked at Lulu in surprise. The black mage was still standing with her head bowed but the blitzer looked at her in a new light. He'd never imagined that the past Lulu shared with Wakka and his brother had been so poignant.
Luzzu climbed slowly to his feet, wiping a trail of blood from his chin, "Chappu also said to me...that being with your girl is good...," the crusader pointed out, "But keeping Sin far away from her is better."
Wakka looked at him without speaking for a moment then shifted his gaze to Lulu, "Lu, you knew?" he demanded.
"Luzzu told me...before we left," she confirmed, not meeting his eye.
The crusader chuckled as he rubbed his jaw, "She hit me too," he said lightly.
At that moment the call of a Chocobo interrupted any further conversation and Lucil rode past on her way to the lift.
"All Crusaders in the vanguard are to assemble on the beach!" she called as she passed the group.
"That's my cue," Luzzu said, he hesitated a moment then started to follow the Chocobo Knights captain. Wakka seemed gripped by indecision for a moment then he raised his hand.
"Luzzu!" he called. The Crusader paused but didn't turn, "Don't die out there," Wakka told him, making it sound like an order but his tone held a hint of what Tidus thought was forgiveness.
"So you can hit me more?" Luzzu enquired lightly.
"Lots, lots more," Wakka said a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. The crusader shook his head with a wry smile and made to continue on his way but before he could Yuna stepped in front of him a spread her arms out.
"Sir Luzzu, please!" she implored to the surprised crusader, "Please don't go!"
The crusader gave her a surprised look but his face quickly fell into an expression of regret, "I have to Yuna," he told her gently.
Yuna seemed prepared to argue but Auron cut in, "Let him go," he said softly but pointedly, "The man has already chosen his path...as you did when you became a summoner." As he spoke these words he gave the young summoner a look that surprised Tidus. It was one of empathy.
Yuna's eyes widened marginally then she looked down and nodded slightly in understanding before stepping aside. Wakka and Lulu seemed to tense at the exchanged. Tidus frowned, unsure of what to make of it. He wondered why Auron would liken Yuna's pilgrimage to Luzzu's obligations as a crusader.
The group watched Luzzu make his way to and ride the lift to the top of the cliff solemnly. It seemed as though they were already counting the crusader as dead. Yuna and the two Besaidian guardians looked saddened while Kimahri wore his usual blank façade. Auron, however, looked angry. A moment later the party followed Luzzu's path via the lift to the top of the cliff.
Thanks for reading. :) Please R&R