BAM! I'M BACH!
Sorry to keep you waiting...again...
Honestly, this writing thing is getting on my nerves. Stupid writer's block XDDD
But I won't be as emo as I was last chapter! Because I'M BACK, BABEH! YEAH! (For liek, two seconds. Then, watch me in the morning. I'm going to open up Carpe Diem, stare at it, then close it and work on something else D8)
Buuuuut I promised mehself that I'd get a new chapter done by tonight, so here it is! At least I'm not procrastinating...
So tada! I don't believe there are any new readers (well, there might be, but...), but if I haven't mentioned you yet then just say so in your review ;)
Disclaimer: By the way, the chapter name comes from Nirvana, which is-in Buddhist faith-the state of complete happiness that comes after a ton of reincarnations. And the movie. WHICH I DO NOT OWN. (though I spelled it differently, I know ^^;)
x.X.x
The days of sleeping late were long gone, as Rikku bounced through the cabin and woke everyone up only shortly after the sun had risen.
"Up and at 'em!" she called. "We're gonna get some weapons today!"
"But we already have weapons, ya?" Wakka asked groggily as we all walked blearily to the bridge where the Al Bhed were waiting.
"No, silly! Ultimate weapons! Masters of destruction! The final upgrade!" She struck a pose, then turned to her brother sitting in the spinning chair by the computer. "And Brother here knows where to find them! A few, anyway." She shrugged, and then turned to Tidus as he asked disbelievingly, "How does he know?"
"Oh, I dunno. He used to travel around Spira or something. Don't ask me!" She flapped her hand at the blitzer, and he spread his hands and stepped back. "Now, Bro, which are we gonna start with?"
Brother thought for a moment, and finally nodded to himself and said, "Yuna."
"Okey dokey! Yunie, you're up first!" Rikku pulled the summoner forward, telling her sibling, "Hey, so c'mon! Where's this fancy-schmancy weapon?"
"Calm Lands," Brother answered in his usual halting Spiran after thinking for a moment.
"Frana eh dra Calm Lands?" his sister inquired with a gesture of impatience, and he rolled his eyes.
"Dymg du dra syh fedr dra fiends," he sighed. "Huf crid ib yht mayja sa ymuha."
"E'mm crid ib frah oui maynh cusa syhhanc!" Rikku answered hotly, her eyebrows lowering in anger. Standing at my side, I heard Auron give a low chuckle as Cid appeared and stepped in between his two children and told them sternly, "Ev pudr uv oui tuh'd crid ib, E's vaatehk oui du Evrae. Fa ryja kiacdc, oui ghuf."
"Yeah, yeah," Rikku muttered, transferring to Spiran. "He started it, the big meanie."
"I don't care who started it, but if both of you keep this up Evrae is going to end it. Ys E lmayn?"
"Veha," Brother muttered. "Cunno, Rikku."
"Cunno," she growled.
"Now, you said that we needed to go to the Calm Lands?" Cid asked, and both of them nodded. "Good. Then everyone hold on!" He crossed to the controls and punched a few buttons, pointedly ignoring his two children sticking their tongues out at each other, but shoved the wheel forward a bit faster than usual so that both of them, hopping around as they mocked the other, were sent sprawling when the ship lurched.
With some dignity, Yuna held in a laugh, but Tidus couldn't contain a snort as Rikku and Brother pushed themselves back up.
"What're you smirking for?" she asked stormily, then muttered, "It's his fault." One hand covering his mouth, Tidus nodded mutely and turned away to fiddle with the computer, shoulders slightly shaking. I shook my head, nodding at Rikku, and then reached out to grab the railing behind me as the Fahrenheit rocked and shuddered.
A few minutes passed of silent flying, except for the two youngest Al Bhed on the ship having a mumbled, yet heated argument. Finally, the airship skidded on the dirt of the Calm Lands, and Yuna pulled Rikku away and led her party onto the grass.
"So where to?" Tidus inquired, folding both hands behind his head as he stretched. Rikku withdrew her tongue and turned away from Brother, making a face before answering, "The man with the fiends."
"Huh?"
"He's got an arena over that way." She vaguely gestured towards the right of Remiem Temple, continuing, "Brother said to talk to him." Yuna nodded.
"All right. Shall we go?" she asked, and her guardians nodded as the summoner started forward. I matched my pace to Rikku's, catching up to her, and inquired as we walked, "So, do you have any idea how Brother knows all this?" She shrugged.
"Well, I know that he used to travel a lot, like I said, with Dad. And he liked the Calm Lands 'cause he's a history nut, and he likes the sentimental value of them or something, so he spent a ton of time here. Keyakku used to go with him sometimes, and they were the ones that found the arena in the first place. I'm pretty sure that's how Brother knows where the weapons are, too, because the man who owns the arena told him about things for a mage, a summoner, a blitzball player, and a physical fighter. Brother took that to mean Lulu, Yuna, Wakka, and Auron, so…that's all he knows."
"Got it," I said, nodding, and then a moment passed. Finally I broke the silence again, asking a question that Rikku's explanation had brought up in my mind. "Who is Keyakku, anyway? I remember him from Home, but…" I trailed off, not sure how close she was to him, and Rikku looked down at her feet, shrugging as she punted a stray rock out of her path.
"Well, all of the Al Bhed are pretty close to each other. Keyakku was a really good friend of mine when we were younger, and he was there when Brother accidentally hit me with a Thunder spell, remember?" I nodded, and she shrugged. "Basically just an old family friend, I suppose, but when we were younger I used to fantasize, y'know, about us getting married and all that." She rolled her shoulders again, and then looked up. "Hey, look! The arena's right over there!" The youngest guardian suddenly pointed enthusiastically, and I followed her gaze until my own alighted on a door and half of a wall seemingly carved into the cliff face. I nodded, accepting the subject-change, and waited as everyone gathered around.
A man emerged out of the door as Yuna stepped forward to knock, and formally performed the prayer as if he had been waiting behind the wood for us to arrive, saying, "Lady Summoner. What can I do for you?"
"We were told to speak with you about something called an Ultimate Weapon," Yuna answered, globing her hands and then bowing at the waist in return.
"Ah, yes. Is that an Al Bhed I see in the back?" he asked with a wry smile. "Rikku Highwind, perhaps?"
"That's me!" She was back to her cheerful old self, I reflected dryly.
"Where's your brother?"
"Back on the ship with Vydran."
"I see. I take it he is the one who told the Lady Summoner here about the weapons?"
"Yep."
"Well, then, I had best offer you my assistance. What is it you're looking for?" There was silence as Rikku thought, saying finally, "Well, Brother said that we should look for Yunie's weapon first, so…"
"Ah, Nirvana?" the man interrupted her, and she nodded.
"Yeah, I guess. We also need the two other thingies, the crest and something else…" She shrugged helplessly, and the owner of the arena chuckled.
"The sigil, yes. They are both used to unlock Nirvana's true potential. I take it Brother knows where to find them as well?"
"I think so, yeah."
"Good." Now he turned to the whole group, a sly smile playing on his face. "But before I give her to you, you will need to do a few errands for me: prove you are worthy to wield Nirvana and such. She's picky, you know."
"'She?'" Tidus echoed abruptly, clearly questioning the logic of a weapon having a gender.
"There is life in all of the final weapons. That is why they are so different," the man explained. "Now, shall I tell you what you need to do?"
"Yes, please," Yuna answered before Tidus could, bowing slightly. He dipped his head.
"All right." He straightened, looking around at the group, before continuing. "I need fiends, you see. Live ones. If I don't have those, I cannot have them available to fight for tourists coming to the Calm Lands and summoner parties ready to practice their skills in a…relatively safe environment. Lately I've been running out of them, especially species native to the Calm Lands. That, as I'm sure you've guessed, is what you will help me with." He paused, and glanced at Wakka as the blitzer drew breath to ask a question. "Yes?"
"But…how're we gonna do that? If we fight them, the only way to bring them back would be to kill them, ya?" he asked, clearly thinking along the lines of a huge cage or rat trap-like device, and the man smiled.
"I have a few special weapons tailored to each of your fighting styles. You can use those to 'kill' the fiend, then its pyreflies will go back to me, and I can rejuvenate it. Does that suit all of you?" he inquired, and Yuna nodded.
"Thank you," she told him, and he laughed.
"Any time, my Lady. I am Usse, if it helps you."
"Then you have our gratitude, Usse."
"Now, go out and capture a few fiends for me!" He produced a long, willow staff from his robes, handing it to the summoner and then moving to her guardians. "You are Tidus, am I correct? Then this is yours." Usse gave the foreigner a sword that looked almost exactly like Brotherhood, but-like Yuna's-it was made of a dark wood. "And you would be Wakka,"-a light, shoopuf-hide blitzball-"Lulu,"-a wooden bangle that I assumed would affect her magic in some way-"Sir Auron,"-a long oak sword that mirrored his old katana's appearance-"Rikku,"-gloves with round knobs on the knuckles-"Kimahri Ronso,"-a long cherry lance with a dull tip-"and Aey." For me, Usse produced an elongated throwing knife with a leather-wrapped hilt and sharpened oak blade, similar to Auron's, and then turned back to the rest of the group. "All right. There are a total of nine fiends that I know of which are native to these lands. Capture them and I will grace you with Nirvana." One eye flitted closed in a wink, and then he turned and disappeared back into the arena.
"Okay, are we ready?" Rikku asked with a grin.
"I think so," Yuna answered, cautiously hefting her new staff.
"Then let's go catch us some fiends!"
The summoner led the way out into the Calm Lands, turning back to her guardians.
"I suppose we wait, then?" she asked lightly, and Rikku nodded.
"Yup! Or we could go out and ambush a few monsters, but whichever suits you!" I snorted quietly; since when did Rikku want to do what suited someone else? Lulu smiled wryly, glancing sideways at me and clearly thinking the same, both of us remembering the dance a day ago.
"All right. Since we probably shouldn't stand around in an open field for hours, how about we track them down?" Yuna suggested, going along with her cousin, who beamed.
"Okay! I'll scout ahead!" She sprinted off without another word, and a few moments later there was a shrill scream and a rushed call of, "I found one!"
"Better go and help her," Tidus said with a grin, jerking his head. "C'mon, Yuna." She chuckled and nodded, following the blitzer as they both ran ahead to rescue Rikku. Kimahri shadowed his summoner, following unobtrusively behind, and Auron, Wakka, Lulu, and I branched off in a different direction to look for other fiends.
We soon came across one, a Flame Flan-similar to a big pile of the Jell-O I used to eat as a child. I sighed, gesturing at Lulu.
"Your area of expertise, Lu," Wakka agreed, and she smiled grimly.
"If I were to die, I wonder how you all would handle these pathetic little creatures?" the mage mused, and I rolled my eyes.
"Easy. We'd either summon an aeon or pound on its squishy little hide until it died."
"That might take awhile."
"Yeah, but still. Are you going to use your magic or not?"
"Actually, I think I won't. I want to see how you'd handle these without an aeon or magic." She curtseyed and stepped back, gesturing for us to have a go at it, and I rolled my eyes.
"Fine. But expect to be here all day."
"I know."
I sighed, turning around, and Wakka nodded and chucked his blitzball at the Flan. Soon after, I followed suit and hurled my new throwing knife at the fiend, my eyes widening slightly in surprise as it turned and opened its mouth, letting the knife sink in and then float suspended in the Jell-O-like body.
"What the…?" I muttered, backing up and wondering how I was going to retrieve it. "Hey…Lu? Think you could…?" I gestured at the knife, and she laughed.
"No. I'm not here, remember? You can't use my magic."
"Then how in the name of Yevon am I supposed to get my knife back? Usse's knife?"
"I'll let you figure that out, then shall I?"
"That is cruel. Cruel and unusual punishment."
"Then I'll have fun watching you." I rolled my eyes again, sighing and muttering to myself, and stood off to the side and watched as Auron and Wakka gradually weakened the Flan. Minutes passed, and still the both of them hadn't made much progress and only barely avoided being burned to a crisp, and finally Auron asked as he fought, "Are you going to try and get Usse's knife back?"
"I was planning on letting the thing burst into pyreflies and then getting it back, actually," I answered, taking another step back as his wooden sword flicked past my face.
"So you plan to watch us all day until you get it back?"
"Are you trying to hit me with that thing?" I retaliated with a smile, taking another involuntary half-step away from his katana.
"I wouldn't be able to if I tried. Are you going to get your dagger?"
"Alright, fine. Don't let that thing fry me, will you?"
"Mm."
I sighed, staying on the balls of my feet as I circled around the fiend and tried to get around to its back as Auron kept it facing one direction, and finally glanced at him and nodded. He inclined his head in the Flan's direction, his katana still stuck in the jellylike substance, and I finally darted forward and plunged my hand into its body, grabbing the knife and making a face as the gooey material clenched around my arm, making a squelching noise as I pulled it out.
"Blech," I muttered, shaking the Jell-O off of my hand and weapon, then looked up and danced out of the way as the fiend shot a Firaga in my direction.
"Got it?" Lulu asked in amusement, and I resisted the childish urge to stick my tongue out at her, nodding instead.
"No thanks to you," I told the mage with a smirk, lightly punching her shoulder. She chuckled, and now I turned and ran forward again, stabbing the Flame Flan with my knife instead of throwing it. Auron nodded, and I smiled back at him.
Minutes later, Lulu decided she had had enough. By now Tidus, Yuna, Kimahri, and Rikku had finished fighting their own fiend and had come back to us, wondering what the holdup was. Evidently, Rikku was getting impatient, and a sudden Blizzaga shot down sent the Flan down in a flood of pyreflies. "Thank you," I said in exasperation, jogging over to the mage. "For finally coming to your senses."
"I guess we should thank Rikku, though, ya?" Wakka asked with a grin, looking at the Al Bhed, who giggled.
"Yup! Anyway, we have a Skoll and a Flame Flan now, right? So…two out of nine."
"Mm-hmm," the mage replied. "What's next?"
"Sir Auron?" Yuna asked, tilting her head to one side. The legendary guardian thought for a moment.
"The next two most common that come to mind are Nebiros and Shred," he answered, naming the giant wasp-like fiend and the other that resembled a huge boulder-the one that only Auron or Kimahri could effectively fight.
"All right," Yuna agreed, nodding. "Should we split up?"
"That would probably be best."
"Okay. I'll go with Kimahri. Lulu, Aey, can you two work together?"
"As long as she doesn't decide to forfeit again," I muttered teasingly, and the mage rolled her eyes as Rikku and Auron were paired up, along with Wakka and Tidus.
"Good. So…Kimahri and I will look for Nebiros and Shred. What other fiends are there?"
"Anacondaur, Ogre, Chimera Brain, Malboro, and Coeurl," Auron recited easily, his memory once again our only guide. Yuna nodded.
"Lulu and Aey, you two take the Ogre and Coeurl," she told us, naming the huge beast with fists bigger than its head and the graceful, whiskered tiger that usually proved to be easy to fight. So one difficult fiend and one effortless one. I nodded to myself as Yuna continued. "Wakka, Tidus, you two look for the Anacondaur. Rikku and Sir Auron, you two can take the Chimera Brain and Malboro." She stopped and thought for a moment. "Is that all right with everyone?"
There were scattered nods, and finally Yuna jerked her head decisively. "So we'll meet back at the arena when we're done. If something goes wrong, don't hesitate to use your real weapons. Everyone ready?"
"Yes ma'am!" Rikku said excitedly, and I chuckled to myself and shot a sympathetic smile at Auron. No doubt she would be an endlessly working chatterbox with no "off" switch, and that-more than anything, I guessed-would be what tested the guardian's patience. He nodded back at me, and then Lulu and I turned to face the north, walking toward the cliffs and the Scar as we searched absently for a glimpse of a tiger or a humanoid, furry, almost Ronso-like fiend.
It took twenty minutes of walking, bursting into a sprint to avoid fiends we didn't want to fight, walking again, stopping to fight if we were unfortunate enough to be sucked into a battle, and then nearly breaking one of our borrowed weapons, until a white tiger appeared from behind one of the rock formations, silently prowling after a wild chocobo.
"There," Lulu murmured, hands glowing in preparation to fight. I nodded, adjusting my grip on my dagger, and we both moved around to the fiend's back so that it wouldn't notice us. The Coeurl, of course, was too intent on the chocobo being hunted to pay much attention to its surroundings, and it was relatively easy to sneak up on it even for people without any hunting or tracking skills.
We were a mere twenty feet away when the tiger wriggled its haunches to pounce on the chocobo, though it was still a little bit of a run away. What we didn't expect, though, was for the fiend to start running and then skid to a halt and reel backwards as a familiar yellow blur knocked into her comrade, and then Lola was standing in front of the tiger, feathers fluffed up to their full potential and wings outstretched, her jaws gaping in a blood-chilling screech.
"Now!" Lulu hissed, making a slashing motion with her palms and sending a crackle of electricity shooting down from the sky and stopping the hunter in its tracks. I flicked my wrist, cursing to myself as the blade veered a little off course and hit the Coeurl's lower ribs instead of the fatal shot I had been aiming for. It was enough to make it whip around, though, its attention diverted from my chocobo, who quickly pounced and buffeted the creature with her feathers, scratching blindly with her talons. Another flood of lightning, and the tiger yowled and collapsed.
Lola bounded over to both of us, nuzzling the side of my face and then bumping my shoulder so that I was knocked backward on the ground, the bird standing over me with her trademark goofy grin. I chuckled and pushed her away, getting to my feet and dusting myself off as I asked Lulu, "So I guess we have to find the Ogre now, huh?"
"Shouldn't be too hard," she agreed, nodding. "Unless your little monster decides to follow us."
"Mm," I answered, absently scanning the horizon for the fiend. Lulu chuckled as we started walking, Lola bouncing along behind us, and I looked up.
"What?"
"You sounded like Sir Auron. 'Mm.' I think he's rubbing off on you."
"Is that a bad thing?" I asked with a smile, and she shrugged innocently.
"Not necessarily."
We kept walking, easily finding the Ogre because of its bulk, and by the time that battle had passed Lola had disappeared. So, job done, Lulu and I headed back to the arena, where Yuna, Kimahri, Rikku, and Auron were already waiting. Tidus and Wakka were the last to appear, and as soon as they did Usse opened the door, smiling broadly.
"Impressive," he said. "You deserve this." He tossed a tiny silver shard onto the ground, which expanded and morphed until it had become a treasure chest. Hesitantly Yuna stepped forward, but when she tried to open it, the lid stayed firmly sealed shut. Usse raised his eyebrows, asking, "You don't have the mirror?"
"This one?" Yuna asked, withdrawing a small circular disc from the sleeve of her dress, though its surface was clouded and foggy. He pursed his lips, shaking his head.
"No. In Macalania Woods, there is a crystal that waits for that mirror, which is good for nothing else. Give the mirror to that crystal, and it will give you the one that you need."
"Macalania?" Rikku interjected, and Usse nodded.
"You will need such a mirror for the other weapons as well," he said, and then smiled slightly as an audible raspberry came from somewhere in the back of the group.
"Okay," Rikku sighed. "I s'pose we're going to Macalania Woods, then." She turned to Usse. "Can we come back here for Nirvana?" He laughed and nodded, taking the treasure chest back.
"But of course. Be quick, though: she is not a patient one."
x.X.x
Honestly, I'm so proud of myself. I finally got it done! Now I don't have to feel guilty or anything!
But, of course, I had to go and forget about the Celestial Mirror, so Yuna forgot about it too! Or...Brother did...
Yeah. Cid likes threatening to feed his children to Evrae, in case you didn't notice. (And doesn't he have the most amazing last name~? Highwind...Highwind...)
So, obviously, I'm not going to do EVERYONE'S final weapons. Just four =D (Sorry...lazy writer, you know)
As always, I'm purdy sure I have the best readers in the world. And I'm not just gushing about how amazing everyone is or anything: I seriously do. Every one of you gives the best reviews instead of just, "I liek it lolz update soon heehee!" Suggestions, praise, all that jazz (XDDD).
So, without getting ridiculously mushy or meaningful, thanks!