Chapter 8
Rikku
We made our way up Mount Gagazet but were stopped before even clearing the gates by a herd of Ronso, and their elder Kelk.
"Summoner Yuna! Gagazet will not bear the footsteps of traitors. We must detain you and report you to Yevon." Kelk Ronso informed Yuna.
"I have no intentions to return to Bevelle. I must continue my pilgrimage!" she protested to them. That girl is pretty crazy. She risks her life to defeat this beast called Sin and yet she'll only die at the end. Spira is just a circle of death.
"You are wanted and hated by Yevon, yet you wish to continue your pilgrimage?" Kelk said sounding confused. Hell I was confused and I could tell I wasn't the only one.
"If defeating Sin would bring happiness to Spira once more than I would gladly endure any punishment and hardship along the way to ensure such happiness." Yuna explained.
"Such words! You appear before us a frail being yet your will towers over the great peaks of Gagazet. We will allow you continue. Great Mount Gagazet welcomes you!" Kelk declared as all the Ronso stood down and left.
"Yenke and Biran leave." Kimarhi told Tidus who just happened to walk up to him. Tidus then decided to hear my input.
"Yes?"
"Just wondering what you make of all this." he explained.
"I dunno. Pilgrimages are stupid and need to stop. All you do is risk your life countless times only to have it taken away to make others happy. I'm sorry but that's no happiness. I mean technically everyone is happy Yuna is dead and not that Sin is gone for awhile." I told Tidus.
"That's my thoughts. Rikku and I haven't found a way to stop it yet either." he said.
"I doubt we can. Maybe there isn't a way. Maybe Sin just does this and that's how it works."
"I refuse to believe that Shinn. We'll find a way." he said leaving to speak with Auron.
We then climbed up the mountains and Kimarhi was forced to battle with Yenke and Biran, two larger and much more muscular Ronso.
"Guardians may pass. Summoner may pass. Kimarhi not pass!"
The fight was long but eventually Kimarhi emerged victorious. We could then finally pass and continue after the Ronso assembled and chanted the Hymn of the Fayth.
The snowstorms up here were getting much more violent as the day went on. Eventually we were forced to rest part way in a cave away from the blizzard.
"This storm will continue for awhile. We might as well wait until it dies down slightly." Auron told us sitting.
We all huddled around Yuna so she wouldn't freeze and it worked but I was cold myself. Rikku was shivering so much that I could feel it, and she was at least 2 feet away from me.
Eventually the storm subsided and we began to walk again. The storm was still raging but on a lesser scale. We had to pass over this narrow ice bridge. Yuna, Tidus, Auron and Lulu had made it across and I was next.
I was afraid of heights. I hadn't know until now looking down into an endless abyss of white nothingness. I got nervous and just stopped.
"You can do it Shinn!" Yuna yelled to encourage me. I then slipped and fell hanging onto the snowy ledge while my hand slowly became numb to the point I had thought I let go and was just floating there. Rikku ran up and tried to pull me up but the combined weight of the two of us collapsed the snowy bridge and we were sent down.
We both landed down the mountain and the group called to us. "Are you two okay!?"
"We're fine! Just a little shaken!" Rikku called back.
"We'll be down as soon as we can. Hang in there!"
We were only sent further down along the path leading up. Some shortcut.
"Shinn are you okay?" Rikku said holding my face.
"Am I dead?" I asked weakly.
"No. We'll be fine Shinn. We have to get you out of this storm though." she said dragging me into a different cave and setting me against the wall.
"You didn't have to help me up there." I told her.
"Don't worry we'll be fine. Have to help a fellow Al Bhed." she smiled.
"I don't feel Al Bhed. I barely know about them and I have no idea what to do." I said.
"Well just try Shinn. I know you can do it if you only tried."
"Why did you want me to come along Rikku?" I asked.
"What do you mean?"
"When you first met me. You felt sorry for me and took me along. Why?"
"Well I didn't want you just staying out there alone. Besides I was hoping to take you back to Home and then you could live there. Now I guess you're stuck with everyone. Sorry." She said becoming a little teary.
"Are you crying?"
"No! Just this climate is real freaky." she told me. Now she was definately crying. So unlike her.
"What's wrong?"
"I feel bad dragging you into this. Now we're faced with death and if you died I'd never forgive myself. When we split up in Bevelle I thought you were dead for sure. I was certain that I'd never see you ever again and it was my fault."
"I'm really glad I'm here now." I told her.
"Why?"
"Cause if I wasn't here I couldn't do this." I said softly.
I leaned in closer to her wrapped my arms around her body and kissed her square on the lips. She seemed very shocked at first but then she did the same. I'll admit it. I liked Rikku the day I saw her. And now I had to express the way I felt to her.
We remained kissing for a long time breaking away only for short breathes and then resuming. We eventually ended up on the ground with her leaning over me.
I reached behind her head and undid her hair and let it flow down. It was long and went to around her waist and was a golden blonde. She looked even more beautiful now. We then shared another kiss in this frozen cave not paying heed to the cold temperature around us.
This was a very unique feeling. Is this love? I didn't think love would feel like this. I had barely considered it until Rikku showed up. We enjoyed ourselves further until the day ended and we both slept on each other. I slept with most of my body covering her as she had barely any protection from the biting winds and cold from her clothing.
What did I do today? Rikku and I shared what you'd call an intimate moment together and now what was I supposed to do? Was she my girlfriend? What does it mean? I don't remember being taught how to love. Perhaps I should ask her. She might even be wondering the same thing.
We awoke to a calmer outside then yesterday and I looked into her spiral green eyes and she greeted me with her warm smile.
"Morning." I said.
"Yeah, sleep well?"
"Yup, how about you?"
"I'm fine. It was nice, ya know. I've never shared such a feeling like this before."
"What does this mean now? We kissed so passionately and now what happens?"
"Well Shinn I believe people would say I'm your girlfriend." she teased. What the hell does it mean? It's only an adjective to me.
"You probably don't know what it means, eh?" she said.
I nodded.
"Well it means we spend time together and do stuff like we just did. I mean I feel comfortable around you but I'm not sure totally about us yet. I've dated a few Al Bhed and I'm not sure if I love you just yet. Well love you more than a friend, ya know?" she informed me. Her words made things a little clearer to me and I felt that I would listen to her advice.
"Thanks Rikku. I've never met someone like you. I don't know how to feel?" I told her.
Then she did the same thing she did on the airship. She wrapped her arms around me from behind and just held me tightly.
"Well now that I'm holding you how do you feel?" she asked resting her chin on my right shoulder.
"I feel happy. Happy that you are doing this. It's like we are connected now." I told her.
"Maybe we are Shinn. Who knows?"
Then we saw the rest of the gang head towards us as Rikku remained in the cavern to redo her hair the way it was before. Nobody knew about us at all, and I kinda wanted it that way.
"Are you two alright?" Yuna asked first.
"Yeah, we're fine Yunie, we only have a little ways to go." Rikku said pointing upwards along the path.
"We still have a large cave to traverse first." Auron told us breaking my spirit at least.
We marched along the path and used a saving sphere to regenerate our strength. These were very useful, although I used one only now.
Rikku and Tidus broke off from the group and were talking about something. We all continued to march on. Then Rikku came dashing to us yelling something important.
"He's back! It's Seymour!" she cried to us as we got our weapons and ran back to Tidus.
"Seymour!? Didn't we kill you?" I shouted.
"Ah Lady Yuna. It is a pleasure." he said casually. We were all about to tear him apart from the body language from everyone.
She then began to do this Sending I was hearing about.
"A sending so soon? Allow me to say something to the last Ronso before I go. Yours was truely a galant race. They threw themselves at me to bar my path. One after the other." He then chuckled sadistically to himself.
The Ronso said they're prevent Yevon from reaching us but Seymour managed to kill all of them. Now we had to face such a force.
"Come with me Yuna. Together I can become the next Sin and heal Spira from suffering. Once I become the next Sin your father with be freed." he told Tidus.
"What do you know!" Tidus shouted charging him.
"Pitful Mortal!" he said rising into the air as a large machina rose behind him. They seemed to fuse together. "Your hope ends here!" the fusion was complete. His body was attached to this exoskeleton and his face was all metal plated. "And your meaningless existence with it!!"
This didn't look good for us. I had both pistols ready for him. Then he hit me with his lance and I turned this green color and black fog poured from my body.
"I don't feel well." I said as I drank a Potion, but that only made it worse.
"You've been zombified. Use this!" Lulu said tossing me a Holy Water. I drank it and then the healthy color of my skin returned.
"Thanks Lu!" I said firing at Seymour's face.
We beat at him over and over. Kimarhi showing the most rage from losing his Ronso brothers and sisters.
"Shinn here!" Wakka said handing me two items. He said they were a Dragon Fang and a Bomb Core.
"Overdrive time!" I shouted combining them into ammunition.
All loaded and ready to fire. "Dragon Stream!" I shouted firing at least 50 rounds of ammunition into Seymour's new form. He seemed to take a load of damage but then began to glow.
The machina spoke "Mortiorchis: Ready to annihilate!"
Whatever that was isn't good. Yuna immeadiately placed these pink orbs around us.
"I've put Shell on all of you! Keep going!" she cheered placing a Shell on herself.
I continued to empty rounds into Seymour then the machine spoke again. "Total Annihilation!"
It launched a series of lasers and missiles at us which hurt like hell then it circled back with a large blast and that nearly got me. Then Seymour reflected a Flare directly at me. I fell to the ground.
"There goes one!"
"Life!" Yuna shouted sending a light over my body as I rose up again to my feet.
"What the hell? I thought I died." I said staring at myself.
Rikku threw a Frag Grenade at Seymour and his body began to break apart.
"Urph! Argh!" he screamed out in pain as his body rose to the sky and exploded in a cloud of fayth.
"And stay up there!" Tidus shouted sheathing his sword.
"What was Seymour talking about Tidus?" I asked him "He said your father would be freed."
"Well"
"What is it?" Yuna asked. Tidus stared at her worried.
"Sin is my old man. Sin is Jecht."
"You hit your head?" Wakka asked.
"Jecht is Sin. I don't know why he did it."
"You'd keep fighting your father like this?" Yuna asked.
"I have to."
"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear anything." Wakka said turning away.
I myself didn't know what to make of it. But then I found something on the ground. It was dislodged from the cliffside from our fight with Seymour Flux. Another sphere.
"We can look at it inside the cave." Rikku said startling me from behind.
"Sorry, but let's keep going." she said.
Well did you all like it? Sorry I haven't updated in awhile.
Rikku
We made our way up Mount Gagazet but were stopped before even clearing the gates by a herd of Ronso, and their elder Kelk.
"Summoner Yuna! Gagazet will not bear the footsteps of traitors. We must detain you and report you to Yevon." Kelk Ronso informed Yuna.
"I have no intentions to return to Bevelle. I must continue my pilgrimage!" she protested to them. That girl is pretty crazy. She risks her life to defeat this beast called Sin and yet she'll only die at the end. Spira is just a circle of death.
"You are wanted and hated by Yevon, yet you wish to continue your pilgrimage?" Kelk said sounding confused. Hell I was confused and I could tell I wasn't the only one.
"If defeating Sin would bring happiness to Spira once more than I would gladly endure any punishment and hardship along the way to ensure such happiness." Yuna explained.
"Such words! You appear before us a frail being yet your will towers over the great peaks of Gagazet. We will allow you continue. Great Mount Gagazet welcomes you!" Kelk declared as all the Ronso stood down and left.
"Yenke and Biran leave." Kimarhi told Tidus who just happened to walk up to him. Tidus then decided to hear my input.
"Yes?"
"Just wondering what you make of all this." he explained.
"I dunno. Pilgrimages are stupid and need to stop. All you do is risk your life countless times only to have it taken away to make others happy. I'm sorry but that's no happiness. I mean technically everyone is happy Yuna is dead and not that Sin is gone for awhile." I told Tidus.
"That's my thoughts. Rikku and I haven't found a way to stop it yet either." he said.
"I doubt we can. Maybe there isn't a way. Maybe Sin just does this and that's how it works."
"I refuse to believe that Shinn. We'll find a way." he said leaving to speak with Auron.
We then climbed up the mountains and Kimarhi was forced to battle with Yenke and Biran, two larger and much more muscular Ronso.
"Guardians may pass. Summoner may pass. Kimarhi not pass!"
The fight was long but eventually Kimarhi emerged victorious. We could then finally pass and continue after the Ronso assembled and chanted the Hymn of the Fayth.
The snowstorms up here were getting much more violent as the day went on. Eventually we were forced to rest part way in a cave away from the blizzard.
"This storm will continue for awhile. We might as well wait until it dies down slightly." Auron told us sitting.
We all huddled around Yuna so she wouldn't freeze and it worked but I was cold myself. Rikku was shivering so much that I could feel it, and she was at least 2 feet away from me.
Eventually the storm subsided and we began to walk again. The storm was still raging but on a lesser scale. We had to pass over this narrow ice bridge. Yuna, Tidus, Auron and Lulu had made it across and I was next.
I was afraid of heights. I hadn't know until now looking down into an endless abyss of white nothingness. I got nervous and just stopped.
"You can do it Shinn!" Yuna yelled to encourage me. I then slipped and fell hanging onto the snowy ledge while my hand slowly became numb to the point I had thought I let go and was just floating there. Rikku ran up and tried to pull me up but the combined weight of the two of us collapsed the snowy bridge and we were sent down.
We both landed down the mountain and the group called to us. "Are you two okay!?"
"We're fine! Just a little shaken!" Rikku called back.
"We'll be down as soon as we can. Hang in there!"
We were only sent further down along the path leading up. Some shortcut.
"Shinn are you okay?" Rikku said holding my face.
"Am I dead?" I asked weakly.
"No. We'll be fine Shinn. We have to get you out of this storm though." she said dragging me into a different cave and setting me against the wall.
"You didn't have to help me up there." I told her.
"Don't worry we'll be fine. Have to help a fellow Al Bhed." she smiled.
"I don't feel Al Bhed. I barely know about them and I have no idea what to do." I said.
"Well just try Shinn. I know you can do it if you only tried."
"Why did you want me to come along Rikku?" I asked.
"What do you mean?"
"When you first met me. You felt sorry for me and took me along. Why?"
"Well I didn't want you just staying out there alone. Besides I was hoping to take you back to Home and then you could live there. Now I guess you're stuck with everyone. Sorry." She said becoming a little teary.
"Are you crying?"
"No! Just this climate is real freaky." she told me. Now she was definately crying. So unlike her.
"What's wrong?"
"I feel bad dragging you into this. Now we're faced with death and if you died I'd never forgive myself. When we split up in Bevelle I thought you were dead for sure. I was certain that I'd never see you ever again and it was my fault."
"I'm really glad I'm here now." I told her.
"Why?"
"Cause if I wasn't here I couldn't do this." I said softly.
I leaned in closer to her wrapped my arms around her body and kissed her square on the lips. She seemed very shocked at first but then she did the same. I'll admit it. I liked Rikku the day I saw her. And now I had to express the way I felt to her.
We remained kissing for a long time breaking away only for short breathes and then resuming. We eventually ended up on the ground with her leaning over me.
I reached behind her head and undid her hair and let it flow down. It was long and went to around her waist and was a golden blonde. She looked even more beautiful now. We then shared another kiss in this frozen cave not paying heed to the cold temperature around us.
This was a very unique feeling. Is this love? I didn't think love would feel like this. I had barely considered it until Rikku showed up. We enjoyed ourselves further until the day ended and we both slept on each other. I slept with most of my body covering her as she had barely any protection from the biting winds and cold from her clothing.
What did I do today? Rikku and I shared what you'd call an intimate moment together and now what was I supposed to do? Was she my girlfriend? What does it mean? I don't remember being taught how to love. Perhaps I should ask her. She might even be wondering the same thing.
We awoke to a calmer outside then yesterday and I looked into her spiral green eyes and she greeted me with her warm smile.
"Morning." I said.
"Yeah, sleep well?"
"Yup, how about you?"
"I'm fine. It was nice, ya know. I've never shared such a feeling like this before."
"What does this mean now? We kissed so passionately and now what happens?"
"Well Shinn I believe people would say I'm your girlfriend." she teased. What the hell does it mean? It's only an adjective to me.
"You probably don't know what it means, eh?" she said.
I nodded.
"Well it means we spend time together and do stuff like we just did. I mean I feel comfortable around you but I'm not sure totally about us yet. I've dated a few Al Bhed and I'm not sure if I love you just yet. Well love you more than a friend, ya know?" she informed me. Her words made things a little clearer to me and I felt that I would listen to her advice.
"Thanks Rikku. I've never met someone like you. I don't know how to feel?" I told her.
Then she did the same thing she did on the airship. She wrapped her arms around me from behind and just held me tightly.
"Well now that I'm holding you how do you feel?" she asked resting her chin on my right shoulder.
"I feel happy. Happy that you are doing this. It's like we are connected now." I told her.
"Maybe we are Shinn. Who knows?"
Then we saw the rest of the gang head towards us as Rikku remained in the cavern to redo her hair the way it was before. Nobody knew about us at all, and I kinda wanted it that way.
"Are you two alright?" Yuna asked first.
"Yeah, we're fine Yunie, we only have a little ways to go." Rikku said pointing upwards along the path.
"We still have a large cave to traverse first." Auron told us breaking my spirit at least.
We marched along the path and used a saving sphere to regenerate our strength. These were very useful, although I used one only now.
Rikku and Tidus broke off from the group and were talking about something. We all continued to march on. Then Rikku came dashing to us yelling something important.
"He's back! It's Seymour!" she cried to us as we got our weapons and ran back to Tidus.
"Seymour!? Didn't we kill you?" I shouted.
"Ah Lady Yuna. It is a pleasure." he said casually. We were all about to tear him apart from the body language from everyone.
She then began to do this Sending I was hearing about.
"A sending so soon? Allow me to say something to the last Ronso before I go. Yours was truely a galant race. They threw themselves at me to bar my path. One after the other." He then chuckled sadistically to himself.
The Ronso said they're prevent Yevon from reaching us but Seymour managed to kill all of them. Now we had to face such a force.
"Come with me Yuna. Together I can become the next Sin and heal Spira from suffering. Once I become the next Sin your father with be freed." he told Tidus.
"What do you know!" Tidus shouted charging him.
"Pitful Mortal!" he said rising into the air as a large machina rose behind him. They seemed to fuse together. "Your hope ends here!" the fusion was complete. His body was attached to this exoskeleton and his face was all metal plated. "And your meaningless existence with it!!"
This didn't look good for us. I had both pistols ready for him. Then he hit me with his lance and I turned this green color and black fog poured from my body.
"I don't feel well." I said as I drank a Potion, but that only made it worse.
"You've been zombified. Use this!" Lulu said tossing me a Holy Water. I drank it and then the healthy color of my skin returned.
"Thanks Lu!" I said firing at Seymour's face.
We beat at him over and over. Kimarhi showing the most rage from losing his Ronso brothers and sisters.
"Shinn here!" Wakka said handing me two items. He said they were a Dragon Fang and a Bomb Core.
"Overdrive time!" I shouted combining them into ammunition.
All loaded and ready to fire. "Dragon Stream!" I shouted firing at least 50 rounds of ammunition into Seymour's new form. He seemed to take a load of damage but then began to glow.
The machina spoke "Mortiorchis: Ready to annihilate!"
Whatever that was isn't good. Yuna immeadiately placed these pink orbs around us.
"I've put Shell on all of you! Keep going!" she cheered placing a Shell on herself.
I continued to empty rounds into Seymour then the machine spoke again. "Total Annihilation!"
It launched a series of lasers and missiles at us which hurt like hell then it circled back with a large blast and that nearly got me. Then Seymour reflected a Flare directly at me. I fell to the ground.
"There goes one!"
"Life!" Yuna shouted sending a light over my body as I rose up again to my feet.
"What the hell? I thought I died." I said staring at myself.
Rikku threw a Frag Grenade at Seymour and his body began to break apart.
"Urph! Argh!" he screamed out in pain as his body rose to the sky and exploded in a cloud of fayth.
"And stay up there!" Tidus shouted sheathing his sword.
"What was Seymour talking about Tidus?" I asked him "He said your father would be freed."
"Well"
"What is it?" Yuna asked. Tidus stared at her worried.
"Sin is my old man. Sin is Jecht."
"You hit your head?" Wakka asked.
"Jecht is Sin. I don't know why he did it."
"You'd keep fighting your father like this?" Yuna asked.
"I have to."
"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear anything." Wakka said turning away.
I myself didn't know what to make of it. But then I found something on the ground. It was dislodged from the cliffside from our fight with Seymour Flux. Another sphere.
"We can look at it inside the cave." Rikku said startling me from behind.
"Sorry, but let's keep going." she said.
Well did you all like it? Sorry I haven't updated in awhile.