Chapter 21 – Three's a Charm?
5/18/05:Going through for some spring cleaning, and the usual minor fixes I always missed.
The winds whipped fluently around Yuna as she looked down into the large gorge. Ever as the Calm Lands were grand, they seemed all the more impressive right now. She couldn't understand why, but there was a presence here that enraptured her senses. The picturesque landscape perfectly complemented by the heavenly blue sky was timeless. With every breath, her lungs filled with the smell of a cool, pure wind.
She felt a tap on her shoulder. Looking over, she saw the face of her love smiling at her. His gorgeous blue eyes mirrored the majestic shine of the sky. His loving smile which graced her every time she gazed at him filled her soul with unending satisfaction. She reached over to him, putting her hand ever so gently onto his cheek. The two grew closer, their lips perking for a kiss.
She, however, was too distracted to notice the unnatural change in her surroundings. The plains quickly became engulfed in thick clouds of gray fog. Pyreflies shot up from the ground a thousand at a time until everything was lit up by their glow. The sky faded to black, and the wind blew with hideous force.
Yuna shivered, clenching herself now from the swirling gusts. Raising her hand to guard her face, she looked over to her love. He was now different as well. Almost the same he appeared, but now something was amiss. Who was this man that looked like him, but wasn't? He reached out, gripping her tightly in his arms. For some reason, Yuna began to cry. Her eyes flooded with tears the moment they embraced.
Looking up, she opened her mouth to demand from him who he was. But no words came out. Instead, he gazed deeply into her eyes. The sparkle in them still wondrous, but not the same as her love. Brushing the hair blowing in her face, he smiled.
In a whisper, he spoke, "Together we will be, Lenne my love..."
Her eyes now were filled with reality, as she found herself violently shaken from sleep. Paine was rocking her furiously – an appearance of hysteria on her face. Yuna hadn't even the moment to lift herself out of her dream state.
"C'mon Yuna, we gotta hurry! There's an emergence in the temple!" yelled Paine, darting frantically outside.
Yuna jumped out of bed, herself still half-unconscious, and stumbled outside following Paine. Rikku was already standing by the entrance of the temple. As Yuna sprinted, she noticed many Al Bhed solider were laying on the ground, themselves bloody with wounds. A few Al Bhed medics were going around tending to them as best they could. Whatever had happened, Yuna immediately realized it was terrible enough to turn this place a field hospital. Journeying into the temple, the girls saw more bodies strewn out across the walls. Chaos ran amok, as Machine Faction soldiers and personnel were manically racing around. One of them came up the girls.
"You're here...we need your help!" he huffed out, gasping for breath.
"What can we do?" asked Yuna, her hands shaking anxiously.
"And where's Gippal? He should be here!" added Rikku, clawing up the soldier's arm.
He shook his head in reply, "We haven't seen Gippal since late last night. But right now, we need back up for our remaining soldiers."
Rikku wanted to grill the soldier for not telling her more about Gippal, but knew it best to refrain given the situation.
Instead she questioned, "Just what happened? All was perfectly calm last night."
"Early this morning, a gigantic wave of fiends rushed us. We took heavy loses. They also destroyed most of our guardian machina. We're in a lot of trouble!"
Paine looked at Yuna, who shared her concerned expression. They nodded in sequence and readied for battle. Rikku was even more eager, as she was afraid something might have happened to Gippal. The girls followed the soldier, who entered the Cloister. A few soldiers were holding position against the walls. Even some of them were injured. He pointed to a control pedestal at the far end of the hallway.
"That control box will activate the lift to go to the second floor. However, the electrified security wall was shot haywire by the fiends. You need to..."
"Don't worry," Yuna interrupted, "I've got this covered."
Paine gave her a perplexed look, but Rikku gave Yuna a big thumbs up. The girls took flanking positions on either side of her, letting Yuna maneuver with the spheres. There were numerous fiends in the adjoining rooms. Four jelly-like fiends roared from behind the electric wall, and oozed their way forward.
Rikku lobbed a special red grenade, bursting one of them. Paine fought between two others, dancing gracefully with her sword. A pair of guards shot from behind them at the remaining fiend. Paine easily diced the two she was on. Rikku, on the other hand, wasn't doing as well with her target.
"Ooo...can I get some help Paine?" she cried, kicking at the fiend.
It growled as she shook off some of its slime from her foot. Sticking her tongue out at it, she sprung to her side, distracting it nicely for Paine. Taking a big swing, she cut the blob in half, spilling its upper body onto the floor around it. Rikku cheered and high-fived Paine. Meanwhile, Yuna was racing around trying to remember how this Cloister went. Nobody hated sphere puzzles more than she did. The hours she spent studying for solving them always haunted her when trained to become a summoner.
In her hand were two charged spheres. She walked over to a pair of pedestals, which already had a glowing purple sphere in one of them. She wondered to herself if that was the Destruction Sphere, but wasn't really sure. Her memory for these things had apparently faded since she no longer needed to be a summoner. She grunted furiously and chucked the two spheres she was holding at the ground.
With a bellow she yelled, "This sucks! Screw the spheres!"
She turned and huffed over to the electric wall. A one-eyed fiend flew beside her. Sharply turning to glare at it, she shouted hastily and smacked it dead with her gun. Paine and Rikku, in awe by her chaotic outburst, followed behind her.
"Um, Yunie, what are you..." began Rikku.
Not paying any attention to her, Yuna lifted her gun in the direction of the control panel and began shooting at it. As her bullets connected, sparks flew from the pedestal. A rumble shuttered from behind them, as the lift began to work again. All the soldiers guarding behind them gasped at Yuna.
"Alright Yunie, you're awesome!" applauded Rikku, giving her cousin a smack on the back.
Yuna blushed at her own eruption, "Heh, I never liked the Cloisters."
"That's for sure." remarked Paine, giving Yuna an approving smile.
The soldier from before approached them again, "Uh, excellent works sir uh...I mean Lady Yuna. Remind me never to pick a fight with you."
At this Yuna's face turned bright red, "Oh, of course..."
"Now then," he resumed after clearing his throat, "we can handle the rest of the fiends here. Please, go up the lift and help our comrades up there."
"You got it!" she affirmed, dashing onto the lift with her friends.
The lift jolted, nearly knocking Rikku off it. Up the Gullwings went - guns, swords, and grenades ready. Immediately after reaching the second floor, they were attacked by a large, hissing ball of fire. Its red eyeballs bulged from its flaming exterior. Sweeping down with force, it attacked Paine first, knocking her flat on her back. Rikku through one of her fancy white grenades at it, but ended up almost blowing up Yuna.
"Hey watch it!" she growled, shooting at the fireball.
Rikku smiled timidly while helping Paine up. Instantly Paine grabbed for her sword - angry and ready to get violent. Harshly swinging, she cleanly sliced the fireball. Yet it was unaffected, as it continued hissing. Again it attacked, this time at Yuna. Hitting the deck in an instant, Yuna felt the top of her head get singed. Hissing back at it, she popping three bullets into it. It still appeared to not be hurt. The girls, fed up with dealing with this grandiose annoyance, formed a triad. Together they rushed at the fiend – Yuna firing, Rikku slashing, and Paine stabbing, until the fiend dropped.
"Hmph! Finally, the stupid thing's dead!" exclaimed Rikku.
"Let's keep focus girls," gathered Yuna, pointing to a set of five pedestals in an adjoining room, "we have to get to the Chamber of the Fayth now."
Paine let out a sigh, "For once, I really don't want to go. But..."
"But we have to do it." Yuna smiled.
From behind them, a lone soldier came forth. He was wounded partially, as blood dripped from his side. He limped up to Yuna, recognizing her from the previous day. Although grimacing in pain, he let out a sigh of relief.
"If you girls have made it up here, then everyone mustn't have died yet."
Yuna shook her head, "No, we killed most of the fiends on the lower level."
"Thank...mmm," he grabbed his side in pain, "this level is defended as well...now that you've killed that last fiend."
The girls looked around, noticing the numerous dead soldiers and dead fiends covering the floor.
"I may be all that's left, but I'll hold anything off as long as I'm standing. Just..." he cried out again in misery, now falling to his knees.
Rikku and Paine helped sit him down. Rikku began bandaging his wound. The soldier squealed at the immense pain. But after she gave him some blue potion, his pain subsided.
Yuna, knowing all to well his fate, choked to hold back her tears. She knelt down beside him, conveying some final comforts as best she knew how to. She wanted to tell him help would come up, but she understood all too well that nobody would probably come in time. She also gazed horrified at the long trail of blood the soldier had left behind him. Suddenly she was jolted by his hand grasping her with such firmness.
The soldier pointed to the Chamber of the Fayth, whimpering, "In there...is a horrid beast. You...you must destroy it...for all of us..."
With his last word, he slumped over. His eyes rolled back into his head - no longer did the soldier move. Paine closed his eyelids, respecting someone as brave as he. Now tears did roll down Yuna's face, as well as Rikku's. More people dying – an event they all did not want to become routine. Now it was as if it would become that very nightmare they feared.
There was no time for mourning for the Gullwings. Hammering together their fleeting resolve, the girls approached the five pedestals. Each pushed in one, with nothing happening. One the forth one, the door to the Chamber rumbled open. Ready for the inevitable battle, Rikku and Paine marched for the Chamber. However, Yuna called out for them to stop. She stood, her face stern and coarse. In her hand was three silver bracelets.
"W-what are these for?" asked a perplexed Rikku.
Yuna sighed, "We'll need them for the next battle. Just put them on."
The bracelets had a glossy shine to them. An insignia of a lightning bolt was engraved on them. Once sighting this, Paine looked up at Yuna. She understood exactly what these were for.
"I guess you were already prepared for this."
With hesitation Yuna nodded, "Yeah, I knew I couldn't avoid it."
And without another word, the Gullwings entered the Chamber. Matching their dreary expectation, the figure inside hollered with anticipation as well. Ixion, Yuna's third aeon, stood awaiting their arrival. Sparks of lightning flashed off its long, hooked horn. Snorting fiercely, it scoffed with its one hoof, charing for its opening attack.
The girls, too, wasted no time with reunion introductions. Spreading out, the girls encircled the beast. Their eyes all stark with determination, they held their breaths, waiting for the first move to be made. In a moment's eternity, all four battlers stood, facing each other. In Ixion's eyes was the same desire to kill as was in Valefor's and Ifrit's. Yuna recognized this well – only now with the same desire mirrored in her own.
Then the explosion came, and the girls began their relentless attack. Rikku lobbed some blue grenades at the aeon. Bursts of watery magic splashed onto Ixion, which let out a cry. Firing back without pause, Ixion shot a electrical charge at Paine. It flew so fast, she had no time to react. She covered her face from the blast, expecting the worse. Instead, she noticed a light blue sphere glowing around her. She was unharmed by the electrical blast.
"These are really something!" thanked Paine over to Yuna.
Yuna nodded and ran at Ixion, shooting a half-dozen shots into its abdomen. It roared, and swung its big horn around, nearly impaling Rikku on it. She shrieked and dove out of the way. It snarled, becoming increasingly more aggressive with every failed attempt. Another charge formed on the tip of its horn, and fired at Yuna this time. The same effect occurred, and the blast was absorbed. The girls knew they had the advantage for once.
Ixion also realized this, as it reverted to only using physical attacks. Paine swung at it with her sword, keeping it at bay. Yuna donned her purple mage's hat. With a thrust of her wand, she casted a wave of water onto Ixion. Recklessly the beast yelped, and fell into the wall. The battle wasn't over yet, as it quickly regained its composure, and attacked at Rikku again. This time it connected, smacking Rikku backwards hard. With a loud thud, she fell to the ground directly on her butt. She cried out, and began rubbing her backside, although otherwise she was unhurt.
Paine dashed over, stabbing Ixion in one of its legs. In reaction it kicked at Paine, nearly taking off her head. She backed away, letting Yuna cast more magic on it. The adamant blitzkrieg brought the monster to its knees. Limping out of the Chamber, it screamed on last battle cry, then toppled over.
Yuna breathed heavy, as were her comrades. The battle was hard, but the battle was won. They all smiled at each other, hoping now there would be no more fights. Paine sat down, exhausted from all the running and hacking she had accomplished. Yuna dropped down beside her, feeling fatigued as well.
Rikku, on the other hand, was busy examining a gigantic hole to the far end of the Chamber. Peering down, she saw a large swarm of pyreflies emitting from it.
"Hey guys," she yelled over, "come look at this!"
"Hmm...how'd we miss this?" wondered Paine, scratching her head.
Yuna put her finger to her mouth, "You know, there was a hole like this in Besaid, and I think Kilika too."
"What did ya see in it?" asked Rikku pertinently.
Yuna huffed, "Heh, well I didn't see anything since I didn't have the chance to look."
"I wonder if this is where the fiends came from?" asked Paine curiously.
"Hmm...I wonder too..."
From behind limbered Ixion, still clinging to life. With a roar, it stumbled at the girls. Paine and Rikku dodged to their sides, but Yuna had nowhere to go. Flying off balance, she fell backwards into the hole. Ixion again fell over dead, while Yuna's scream faded into the void.
"Yuna!" bellowed Paine into the hole.
But there was no response. She was gone – absorbed by the darkness of the endless abyss. Rikku and Paine, panic exuding from their faces, were clueless as to what to do.
Darkness, whether from the hole, or in her mind, surrounded Yuna. Believing it was her doom, she clamped her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable to happen. When she reopened them again, she was lying face down in a bed of flowers. They smelled so pretty – seeping a pure, sweet fragrance. Looking around, she saw swarms of pyreflies dancing about. The sound of waterfalls echoed around her as well. She sat up, in awe of her ethereal surroundings. As if she fell right into some fantasy, the world was like nothing she had ever seen before.
Her eyes caught the path of a pyrefly curling around her. She now rose to her feet, still completely unknowing of her environment. The low humming of pyreflies tickled in her ears. Suddenly she looked down at herself, realizing she was in her songstress' dress. She wondered how in Spira she could possibly be wearing it when it began to glow. Pyreflies shot from it, flying around Yuna. She gasped, partially frightened by all that was happening.
A new attention grasped her, as from the hazy cloud of fog before her came a man. It was the same man she had seen many times in her dreams. She wondered if this could be Shuyin, the man after Vegnagun – the man whom was Lenne's love. He walked nearer, his body steadfast. Both his appearance and demeanor were so similar to Tidus. Even though she realized instantly that it wasn't him, she still couldn't drive out the old memories of her love.
With his lips cracked in a faint smile, he stopped and spoke, "I've finally found you."
Next chapter: Alone in the Farplane, Yuna must face the man so much like her love. She wants to know who Shuyin is, and why he resembles Tidus. She must also wrestle with feelings that seem to be not her own, but of the summoner Lenne.