And now.Chapter 3!
Mandatory disclaimer: I don't own these people. Square does. I just like to poke around in their heads.
Author's note: This one's rated PG, because of mild language. I don't typically swear, but Jecht does (if I remember his character correctly). So I self-censored.
* * * *
Reflections, chapter 4
Jecht: The Final Aeon
I'm the first to admit, I haven't exactly lived a saintly life. Well, not the first, maybe. I'm sure anyone who ever had to be near me would tell you that I was a solid gold a**, which of course I was. Not that I would have admitted it when I was alive, but, having been Sin for ten years, I've had plenty of time to think.
My greatest asset - my gift, if you want to call it that - was my athletic ability. I was a blitzball player, had been since I was a child, for as long as I can remember. I was good, too. In fact, I was the best blitzball player in the history of Zanarkand - that's what everybody said, anyway. I was stronger than the other players, faster, more agile, and I could score like nobody's business. I even had a move named after me! Can you believe it? There wasn't a player in Zanarkand, or in all the world, who could perform the move I invented. The Jecht Shot, they called it. Impossible to stop.
I guess you could say the Jecht Shot was my claim to fame, since it made me a superstar. Overnight, I became the great Jecht, the unstoppable one, the guy you'd hate to meet in a blitzball sphere if you were the other team's goalie. Wherever I went, I found myself surrounded by adoring fans, little kids who practically idolized me, wanted my autograph, wanted blitzball lessons, wanted to know how to do this move or that. It was great! I wasn't a nobody trying to make it big. I was famous!
Ultimately, though, my fame doomed me. I became proud, conceited, completely unaware of the needs of others. At first it was just the team, complaining that I was getting too big for my britches, that I was taking all the credit for the team's success. "It's the Zanarkand Abes, man, not Team Jecht!" they would scold me. I ignored them, or worse, hurled nasty insults at them. After all, I was the captain of the team, the high scorer, the one who was envied and admired by all! If it wasn't for me, there wouldn't be any glory to steal! They should feel privileged to have the great Jecht on their team!
That was bad enough, but then I began to take the same attitude with my own family, especially my son. The boy would follow me to practice, his eyes wide with admiration as he watched us hone our skills. It wasn't long before the little tyke started to play himself - well, he tried to play. There wasn't much he could do at first, since he had to teach himself. He had talent, though - God, yes, he had talent! Before he even hit puberty, he was playing on school teams, receiving decent instruction, learning from the other players. That was when people started comparing him to me, saying he had inherited all his old man's talents and then some.
"Better watch out, Jecht," my wife once advised me. "He'll be taking over your job soon."
I know, I know, I should have been proud of my kid, happy that I could pass my skills on to him. Instead, I panicked. If he was as good as everybody said he was, what would become of me? All I could think of was myself: that I wouldn't be the legendary Jecht anymore, that I was about to get knocked off my throne by some upstart kid - not just any upstart kid, but my own son! A child! My fragile ego and I couldn't stand the thought. So, when he approached me and asked me to be his trainer, I blew up at him.
"H*** no!" I roared. "You think you're so great, fine, but you're not taking up any of my training time!" And since then, my family and I have done nothing but fight.
* * * *
It was the pilgrimage that changed me.
God knows it wasn't instant. When I first met Braska and Auron, I was a stranger from a place that didn't exist anymore, in a world that confused and frightened me. Plus, I was still incredibly selfish. So what if their world was in danger? So what if this "Sin" thing could wipe out Spira and everyone in it at any time? I didn't care. I just wanted to go home, not even to my family, but to blitzball, the oh-so-important game I'd devoted my life to. That's why I agreed to go on the pilgrimage. Thought I'd find a quick way home.
But, like I said, I changed. Here in Spira, I couldn't hide behind blitzball. Oh, I played a few games in Luca, but Auron made sure I remembered what I was supposed to be doing.
"This is a pilgrimage, not a pleasure cruise," he told me. "You're here to protect Braska. Don't forget it."
Good old Auron. He always had a way with words.
After that little conversation, I couldn't really leave the pilgrimage. I stayed on as Braska's guardian, and he taught me about life. Sure, he annoyed me at first, talking about saving the world from Sin and doting on his daughter and all, but soon his comments and stores started to make an impact. Instead of being stuck on myself, I found myself thinking about all the people I'd hurt.
I thought about Braska's little girl, Yuna. If we succeeded on the pilgrimage, if we managed to defeat Sin, she would have to grow up without her father. Our victory would also be a terrible personal loss for her.
I thought about my wife, who for some crazy reason tried to love me, no matter how much I hurt her.
Most of all, I thought about my son, and I realized that he had already grown up without his father, not because I was dead, but because I was too busy to spend any time with him.
When we met Lady Yunalesca, it didn't take long to make up my mind. I wanted to become Braska's Final Aeon.
* * * *
So, here I am, the great Jecht, stuck inside Sin. Was it worth it? Maybe. We stopped Sin, didn't we? We saved Spira - I guess that counts for a lot. Was it selfish? Of course! During the pilgrimage, I realized how much damage I had caused, how many people I had hurt. I thought that this "noble sacrifice" might erase some of my mistakes. Thought I could atone for my sins, so to speak. Besides, I was a stranger, thrown into this world by some freak accident. My wife and son were lost to me, had been for almost a thousand years. Auron and Braska didn't like it, but they were decent men. They understood what I wasn't saying: that I needed absolution, some way to get rid of my own guilt, at least some of it. They agreed to let me become Sin.
* * * *
Tidus is here now, in Spira, guarding Yuna on her pilgrimage as I guarded Braska on his. Yeah, it was a bad idea - good old Jecht, screwing things up for his son yet again. Why? Because this Sin cycle sucks. Because Tidus is smart and might be able to figure out a way to actually kill this d*** thing. Because I'm hoping that maybe, just maybe, I can see him one more time. Apologize for my mistakes, for screwing up his life. I want to tell him, I'm proud of you, kid, real proud. I'm sorry I messed things up for you. And, even though it's sappy: I love you, kid.
If that happens, then maybe I can rest in peace.
@}------
* * * * Well, whaddaya know? You go almost a month without a single idea, and all of a sudden, wham! Not just one idea, but three! Jecht, Seymour, and Yunalesca, I magically sprouted ideas for all of them. Seymour might grow into his own little story, though, because I have interesting plans for that one.
I'm a little worried that this one might have had some OOC going on, since I haven't played the game in five months and have gotten foggy on some of the details. Plus, as fascinating as Jecht is, he is really hard to write, at least in this style. So, please R&R - I welcome constructive criticism!
Also, did Lulu go on two pilgrimages before Yuna, or just one? Someone asked me in a review and I didn't know the answer. Doh!
Yunalesca78
Mandatory disclaimer: I don't own these people. Square does. I just like to poke around in their heads.
Author's note: This one's rated PG, because of mild language. I don't typically swear, but Jecht does (if I remember his character correctly). So I self-censored.
* * * *
Reflections, chapter 4
Jecht: The Final Aeon
I'm the first to admit, I haven't exactly lived a saintly life. Well, not the first, maybe. I'm sure anyone who ever had to be near me would tell you that I was a solid gold a**, which of course I was. Not that I would have admitted it when I was alive, but, having been Sin for ten years, I've had plenty of time to think.
My greatest asset - my gift, if you want to call it that - was my athletic ability. I was a blitzball player, had been since I was a child, for as long as I can remember. I was good, too. In fact, I was the best blitzball player in the history of Zanarkand - that's what everybody said, anyway. I was stronger than the other players, faster, more agile, and I could score like nobody's business. I even had a move named after me! Can you believe it? There wasn't a player in Zanarkand, or in all the world, who could perform the move I invented. The Jecht Shot, they called it. Impossible to stop.
I guess you could say the Jecht Shot was my claim to fame, since it made me a superstar. Overnight, I became the great Jecht, the unstoppable one, the guy you'd hate to meet in a blitzball sphere if you were the other team's goalie. Wherever I went, I found myself surrounded by adoring fans, little kids who practically idolized me, wanted my autograph, wanted blitzball lessons, wanted to know how to do this move or that. It was great! I wasn't a nobody trying to make it big. I was famous!
Ultimately, though, my fame doomed me. I became proud, conceited, completely unaware of the needs of others. At first it was just the team, complaining that I was getting too big for my britches, that I was taking all the credit for the team's success. "It's the Zanarkand Abes, man, not Team Jecht!" they would scold me. I ignored them, or worse, hurled nasty insults at them. After all, I was the captain of the team, the high scorer, the one who was envied and admired by all! If it wasn't for me, there wouldn't be any glory to steal! They should feel privileged to have the great Jecht on their team!
That was bad enough, but then I began to take the same attitude with my own family, especially my son. The boy would follow me to practice, his eyes wide with admiration as he watched us hone our skills. It wasn't long before the little tyke started to play himself - well, he tried to play. There wasn't much he could do at first, since he had to teach himself. He had talent, though - God, yes, he had talent! Before he even hit puberty, he was playing on school teams, receiving decent instruction, learning from the other players. That was when people started comparing him to me, saying he had inherited all his old man's talents and then some.
"Better watch out, Jecht," my wife once advised me. "He'll be taking over your job soon."
I know, I know, I should have been proud of my kid, happy that I could pass my skills on to him. Instead, I panicked. If he was as good as everybody said he was, what would become of me? All I could think of was myself: that I wouldn't be the legendary Jecht anymore, that I was about to get knocked off my throne by some upstart kid - not just any upstart kid, but my own son! A child! My fragile ego and I couldn't stand the thought. So, when he approached me and asked me to be his trainer, I blew up at him.
"H*** no!" I roared. "You think you're so great, fine, but you're not taking up any of my training time!" And since then, my family and I have done nothing but fight.
* * * *
It was the pilgrimage that changed me.
God knows it wasn't instant. When I first met Braska and Auron, I was a stranger from a place that didn't exist anymore, in a world that confused and frightened me. Plus, I was still incredibly selfish. So what if their world was in danger? So what if this "Sin" thing could wipe out Spira and everyone in it at any time? I didn't care. I just wanted to go home, not even to my family, but to blitzball, the oh-so-important game I'd devoted my life to. That's why I agreed to go on the pilgrimage. Thought I'd find a quick way home.
But, like I said, I changed. Here in Spira, I couldn't hide behind blitzball. Oh, I played a few games in Luca, but Auron made sure I remembered what I was supposed to be doing.
"This is a pilgrimage, not a pleasure cruise," he told me. "You're here to protect Braska. Don't forget it."
Good old Auron. He always had a way with words.
After that little conversation, I couldn't really leave the pilgrimage. I stayed on as Braska's guardian, and he taught me about life. Sure, he annoyed me at first, talking about saving the world from Sin and doting on his daughter and all, but soon his comments and stores started to make an impact. Instead of being stuck on myself, I found myself thinking about all the people I'd hurt.
I thought about Braska's little girl, Yuna. If we succeeded on the pilgrimage, if we managed to defeat Sin, she would have to grow up without her father. Our victory would also be a terrible personal loss for her.
I thought about my wife, who for some crazy reason tried to love me, no matter how much I hurt her.
Most of all, I thought about my son, and I realized that he had already grown up without his father, not because I was dead, but because I was too busy to spend any time with him.
When we met Lady Yunalesca, it didn't take long to make up my mind. I wanted to become Braska's Final Aeon.
* * * *
So, here I am, the great Jecht, stuck inside Sin. Was it worth it? Maybe. We stopped Sin, didn't we? We saved Spira - I guess that counts for a lot. Was it selfish? Of course! During the pilgrimage, I realized how much damage I had caused, how many people I had hurt. I thought that this "noble sacrifice" might erase some of my mistakes. Thought I could atone for my sins, so to speak. Besides, I was a stranger, thrown into this world by some freak accident. My wife and son were lost to me, had been for almost a thousand years. Auron and Braska didn't like it, but they were decent men. They understood what I wasn't saying: that I needed absolution, some way to get rid of my own guilt, at least some of it. They agreed to let me become Sin.
* * * *
Tidus is here now, in Spira, guarding Yuna on her pilgrimage as I guarded Braska on his. Yeah, it was a bad idea - good old Jecht, screwing things up for his son yet again. Why? Because this Sin cycle sucks. Because Tidus is smart and might be able to figure out a way to actually kill this d*** thing. Because I'm hoping that maybe, just maybe, I can see him one more time. Apologize for my mistakes, for screwing up his life. I want to tell him, I'm proud of you, kid, real proud. I'm sorry I messed things up for you. And, even though it's sappy: I love you, kid.
If that happens, then maybe I can rest in peace.
@}------
* * * * Well, whaddaya know? You go almost a month without a single idea, and all of a sudden, wham! Not just one idea, but three! Jecht, Seymour, and Yunalesca, I magically sprouted ideas for all of them. Seymour might grow into his own little story, though, because I have interesting plans for that one.
I'm a little worried that this one might have had some OOC going on, since I haven't played the game in five months and have gotten foggy on some of the details. Plus, as fascinating as Jecht is, he is really hard to write, at least in this style. So, please R&R - I welcome constructive criticism!
Also, did Lulu go on two pilgrimages before Yuna, or just one? Someone asked me in a review and I didn't know the answer. Doh!
Yunalesca78