Tidus had caught up with Rikku before the rest of the group did. He could tell that Rikku was embarrassed about her outburst so he didn't bring it up. He only slipped his hand into hers as they walked up the path to the summit. They reached the pinnacle of the mountain. Tidus inhaled deeply as he took in the sight of the ruined city. Alexia was right. It seemed cold, sterile, hostile...not the great and beautiful city the scholars made it out to be. The sunset cast a pale red glow over the metal and stone buildings. Rikku stared at the huge city. More tears threatened to roll down her cheeks and she squeezed Tidus' hand. The summoner squeezed back. He half-turned as the rest of the group walked up behind them.
"Wow..." Wakka blinked.
"It's...eerie..." Lulu said.
A blast of cold wind hit the group. Strands of Rikku's beaded hair whapped Tidus in the face but he didn't seem to care. Rikku turned and took Tidus' hands in hers.
"Tidus, I say no! If we go down there, then you'll..."
"Rikku. You're my best friend. I think of you as my little sister. You've always been good to me and I thank you but...I have to go down there. I have to go to Zanarkand."
"I'm not saying we shouldn't go. But shouldn't we think about it some more? There's gotta be another way!!"
"Ever since I was little, I knew this moment would come." Tidus replied quietly.
"Tidus..."
The blonde turned briefly to look at Zanarkand. Something fell from his carrier and hit the ground.
"Thank-you, Rikku. Thank-you for everything." He whispered.
"Don't say that! It's not over yet!"
"Rikku...please..."
"Tidus, don't say that because...we're gonna see each other again, okay??"
Tidus only smiled sadly. He kissed the backs of Rikku's hands before releasing them.
"Kimahri. Let's go."
The Ronso nodded and followed the blonde down the path into Zanarkand. Lulu took Rikku by the hand and started leading the girl down the path. Rin and Auron slowly followed. Wakka was lagging behind. He tripped over something and looked down. It was the audio sphere that had fallen from Tidus' carrier. The redhead picked it up and turned it on.
"I don't know where to start. So I guess I'll just start from the beginning. Rikku...I consider you to be my sister even though we don't share the same blood. You were always there to support me. To pick me up when I fell. To set me up on blind dates then rescue me from them later..." Tidus laughed softly. "Thank-you Rikku. Kimahri. I consider you to be my family as well. You too were always there to comfort me. Remember...when I was nine and I fell and skinned my knees? I started bawling and the neighbourhood kids were making fun of me. You wouldn't hear of it. You picked me up in one arm and held me close. Then you roared your loudest and scared the other kids off. I thought that was funny as hell and forgot all about my knees. That's what I like about you Kimahri. You always know exactly what I need. Thank-you Kimahri. Lulu. I'm glad you joined our little troupe. You are a very helpful addition and have become a dear friend to me. I'm sorry we didn't have more time to really get to know each other. Take care of Rikku for me." The blonde paused and took a deep, shaky breath. "The same apology goes to you, Rin. Even though we didn't have time to really bond I think of you as a great friend. Sir Auron. I am almost ashamed to say that I don't remember the first time I met you...but I am glad that I had the chance to meet you again. I'm very honored that you asked to be my guardian. I don't know how to thank-you, Auron. Wakka..." There was a long pause. "I love you...always and forever. Never forget that." Another pause. Tidus spoke again. His voice breaking. "I'm sorry I let you fall in love with me..."
The sphere hummed and clicked off. Wakka wiped the tears from his cheeks and stuffed the sphere into his carrier. He could see Tidus and Kimahri from his vantage point. They were halfway down the path. As if he could feel Wakka looking at him the blonde looked over his shoulder to watch Wakka as he walked along. The guardian shook his head and started jogging down the path. By the time he had caught up with the others they were huddled around a small fire Lulu made. Their weapons were all arranged neatly in some sort of morose symbolic artwork. Wakka set his blitzball with the other weapons and joined his friends around the fire. He sat beside Tidus and kissed the blonde's cheek.
"Anyone care to tell me why Zanarkand is like this?" Rin asked.
"There is a legend. Just before Sin appeared a war raged between Bevelle and Zanarkand. When the armies of Bevelle attacked Mount Gagazet, they heard a song echoing across the snowy slopes. The soldiers panicked and ran. And then, as if to pursue the retreating armies, Sin appeared. Some time later, scouts from Bevelle braved the mountain. On the other side, they witnessed the ruins that had been Zanarkand. The city destroyed. Not a single soul left standing. In its place, a multitude of the what they called Fayth had gathered on Gagazet. They were singing a song. It's the song we now call the 'Hymn of the Fayth'." Auron said.
Rin leaned forward, interested. Auron continued.
"Rumors flew in Bevelle about Sin's sudden appearance. They said that the people of Zanarkand became Sin's Fayth. That they had called Sin. And that the man responsible was none other than Yevon, ruler of Zanarkand. The father of Lady Yunalesca. On the eve of Zanarkand's destruction, Lady Yunalesca had fled to safety with her husband, Zaon. Later, it is said that the two used the first Final Summoning to defeat Sin. Yet the people of Bevelle still feared Yu Yevon. It was to quell his wrath that they revered him, and first spread his teachings. And so were born the temples of Yevon. I suppose it's possible Yunalesca had planned it that way from the start. A fair trade, she defeats Sin in exchange for her lord father's honor. Of course, there's no proof. And who'd admit Yevon was an enemy of Bevelle? You can bet the temples had a hand in covering that one up."
"The night of Zanarkand's destruction Yunalesca and Zaon are the only ones to escape? Sounds fishy to me." Rikku said. She too, was interested now.
Auron shrugged, "It's said that Yevon found an ancient spell that could turn people into Fayth. Once the person is a Fayth they use the power of their dreams to create summons or Aeons as we call them now. One person makes one Aeon, like Shiva. Multiple people make mutated Aeons, like Cerberus."
"And Sin." Rikku grumbled.
"But there's no proof of that. To this day no one knows how exactly people become Fayths."
Tidus shivered. "I think we should continue on..."
Rikku sighed. The summoner stood and retrieved his sword. His guardians stood and followed suit. Lulu put the fire out with a Water spell. With Tidus and Kimahri in the lead the group made their way into Zanarkand. They walked, climbed, and hiked their way through the rubble-laden streets. They climbed up a hill and looked around. In the distance loomed Zanarkand Palace. Thousands of pyreflies were slowly circling around the building.
"Looks like the farplane." Wakka said.
"Close enough." Auron grunted.
They continued on their way down the long winding roads. They reached the palace entrance to see a man waiting for them.
"Journeyer, name yourself." The man demanded.
"I am Summoner Tidus from Besaid Island." Tidus replied.
"Your eyes, my boy. Show me the long road you have travelled. Very good. You have journeyed well. Lady Yunalesca will surely welcome your arrival. Go to her now, and bring your guardians with you. Go."
Tidus nodded. The man nodded too and walked into the palace, vanishing in the process.
"Scary..." Rin murmured.
Tidus spared a moment to smile reassuringly at Rin before entering the palace. Two transparent woman suddenly appeared beside Lulu making the woman jump.
"If it might benefit the future of Spira, I will gladly give my life. It is the highest honor for which a guardian might ask. Use my life, Lady Yocun, and rid Spira of Sin." One of the ghost's exclaimed.
Both women vanished. Lulu swallowed hard. The color had left her cheeks.
"What...was that?" The mage asked.
"Our predecessors." Auron replied.
"She said 'Lady Yocun,' didn't she? Wait! She guarded High Summoner Yocun?" Rikku blinked.
"This palace is filled with pyreflies. It's like one gigantic sphere. People's thoughts remain here. Forever." Auron said.
Tidus made sure Lulu was 100% ok before continuing on. They were about to cross a gap on a make-shift bridge when a woman and a young boy appeared in front of Tidus. The blonde's eyes widened. It was the woman from his vision.
"No mother! No! I don't want you to become a Fayth!" The boy cried.
The woman seemed to look right at Tidus before answering, "There is no other way. Use me and defeat Sin. Only then will the people accept you."
"I don't care about them! I need you, Mother! No one else!!"
"I don't...have much time left..."
"MOTHER!!!"
The boy and the woman vanished. The summoner closed his eyes briefly. Willing the chills in his body to subside. Wakka was the first to speak.
"Hey...wasn't that...Seymour?"
No one replied and they continued on. They were almost at the main hall when transparent images of Jecht, Auron, and Braska appeared. The real Auron growled slightly and turned away from the figures.
"Hey Braska. You don't have to do this." Jecht said.
"Thank you for your concern." Braska replied.
"Fine. I said my piece..."
"Well, I haven't! Lord Braska, let us go back! I don't want to see you...die!" Auron shouted.
"You knew this was to happen, my friend."
"Yes, but I... I cannot accept it."
Braska laughed a bit, "Auron, I am honored that you care for me so. But I have come to kill grief itself. I will defeat Sin, and lift the veil of sorrow covering Spira. Please understand, Auron."
The real Auron charged ahead through the images and they vanished. Tidus followed and the rest of the group lagged behind. They walked down the long hallway to the beginning of the trials. It took them twenty minutes to do the floor puzzle and the platform to the Chamber of Fayth appeared in the middle of the room. The blonde went to approach it when a blinding light filled the room.
Tidus and his guardians felt themselves being sucked forward and they were hurled into the light. Once the light faded the summoner opened his eyes to see an Evrae-esque fiend growling down at him. There was nowhere to go. He was stuck on a floating Yevon symbol. His guardians were also stuck on their own symbols. No one could go anywhere. The fiend roared and dove at Tidus. Wakka's blitzball smacked the thing in the face and it was knocked off course. The blonde jumped to another Yevon symbol and drew his sword. Lulu cast Flare spell after Flare spell. Kimahri used the various abilities he learned through Lancet and Rikku used whatever she could mix up. The Spectral Keeper swung around. Its tail smashed into Rikku, knocking her from her symbol.
"No! Rikku!!" Tidus cried.
There was a flash of light and Rikku was gone. She was deposited back into the trials. Lulu blasted the fiend with a Fury Blizzaga spell. As the beast swung to face him Rin gave it a good smack in the chin with his Nunchaku. The Keeper glared down at Rin. The Al Bhed's symbol exploded in a cloud of fire and stone. The creature used a Glyph Mine spell on Auron's symbol too. The symbol exploded and Rin and Auron were sent back to the trials. Lulu hopped to another symbol just as hers exploded. She unleashed a Bio spell on the fiend. It did some damage but didn't poison it. Kimahri used Aqua Breath just as the fiend shot a Thundaga spell at him. The thunder used Kimahri's spell as a high-powered conductor and blew the Ronso off his symbol.
Rikku, Auron, and Rin jumped back as Kimahri came flying out of the light. He rolled across the ground and hit the wall. His fur was singed and smoking.
"Kimahri!" Rikku cried, running to the Ronso's aid.
Lulu was exhausting her magick. Her body was starting to shut down. Nevertheless she continued firing Flare spells at the Spectral Keeper. The fiend used a Glyph Mine spell on every symbol except for Wakka and Tidus'. Lulu fell a ways before she was dropped back into the trials. The blonde's body was sore and tired but he kept attacking the beast. He had to get its attention because right now its attention was focused on Wakka. The redhead was nearly knocked off his symbol when the fiend tried to hit him with a Thunder spell.
[The damn thing is playing with us!] The guardian thought angrily.
Tidus' arms felt like lead but he kept attacking. Not good enough. The Keeper blew Wakka away with a Flare spell. Anger and fear surged through Tidus' body. He charged the keeper striking it again and again with his sword. The beast roared in surprise and blew Wakka's empty symbol up. The summoner kept pummeling the fiend. He jumped back and shoved his sword into the symbol. Using the sword as a spring board he leapt high into the air in a backward flip. The creature blew Tidus' symbol up and his sword fell but he didn't care. Wakiza appeared in front of the beast.
"Here!" He called, tossing a blitzball into the air.
On his way down Tidus kicked the blitzball as hard as he could. It hit the Keeper and exploded, ripping the fiend in half. The blonde saw the beast devolving into pyreflies and smiled. He was briefly engulfed in white light then found himself back in the trials. He twisted his body in midair and landed on his side instead of his head. The blonde's guardians crowded around him. Tidus painfully rolled onto his back.
"Everyone...ok...?" He asked.
"Yeah. We cured Kimahri, Lulu, and Wakka." Rikku replied. "How do you feel?"
"Like a giant bruise..."
Rikku grinned and gave Tidus a Mega-Potion that she'd mixed. He drank it all down in three gulps.
"Thanks."
He slowly stood up and looked at the awaiting elevator.
"This is it." Auron said.
"The Hall of the Final Summoning..." Tidus murmured.
"Go."
Tidus nodded and stepped onto the platform and it lowered out of sight. Auron turned away.
["Huh? What do you mean 'no Final Aeon'?"]
Not even a minute later the platform ascended with Tidus standing on it.
"Auron! Everyone! Quick!!"
Everyone piled onto the platform and rode it down into the Chamber of the Fayth. Tidus lead them to the Fayth's statue.
"This isn't a Fayth. This is just an empty statue..." He whispered.
The wall behind Tidus faded away and the man that had greeted them walked in.
"That statue lost its power as a Fayth long ago. It is Lord Zaon, the first Fayth of the Final Summoning. What you see before you is all that remains of him. Lord Zaon is...his soul is gone."
"Gone!?" Wakka exclaimed.
"No Final Aeon?" Kimahri asked.
The man shook his head, "But fear not. Lady Yunalesca will show you the path. The Final Aeon will be yours. The summoner and the Final Aeon will join powers. Go to her now. Inside, the lady awaits."
The man made the prayer gesture and vanished. Tidus stepped towards the hole in the wall.
"Tidus, wait!" Wakka said. "Auron, you knew this was going to happen, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Rin asked.
"If I had told you the truth, would that really have stopped you from coming?"
"Tidus..." Kimahri mumbled.
"I'm not going back..." Tidus said.
"Kimahri knows. Kimahri go first so Tidus safe."
Tidus smiled and nodded. Kimahri walked through the hole and Tidus followed. Rikku, Wakka, and Lulu were next. Rin and Auron were in the back. The group found themselves in a large circular room. A tall staircase lead up to two large oak doors. About thirty or so pyreflies were flying around the room. The sound of dainty footsteps filled the room.
"Someone's coming." Rin said.
The doors at the top of the stairs opened and a woman walked into the room.
"Lady Yunalesca." Tidus replied.
"Welcome to Zanarkand. I congratulate you, summoner. You have completed your pilgrimage. I will now bestow you with that which you seek. The Final Summoning...will be yours. Now, choose." Yunalesca started making her way down the stairs. "You must choose the one whom I will change...to become the Fayth of the Final Summoning." Everyone, except Auron, let out a gasp of surprise. "There must be a bond, between chosen and summoner, for that is what the Final Summoning embodies: the bond between lovers, family members, or between friends. If that bond is strong enough, its light will conquer Sin. A thousand years ago, I chose my husband Zaon as my Fayth. Our bond was true, and I obtained the Final Aeon. There is nothing to fear. You will soon be freed of worry and pain. For once you call forth the Final Aeon, your life will end. Death is the ultimate and final liberation. Your father, Jecht, chose this path."
Again the transparent images of Braska, Auron, and Jecht appeared. And again, Auron turned away from them.
"It is not too late! Let us turn back!" Young Auron cried.
"If I turn back, who will defeat Sin? Would you have some other summoner and his guardians go through this?"
"But...my lord, there must be another way!"
"This is the only way we got now!" Jecht interrupted. "Make me the Fayth. I've looked back on my life and I didn't like what I saw. I treated my wife and only child like garbage. I need a little redemption for them. So make me the Fayth. I'll fight Sin with you, Braska. Then there will be one good thing I've done in my whole life..."
"Don't do this, Jecht! If you live...there may be another way! We'll think of something, I know!"
"Believe me, I thought this through. Besides...I don't deserve my wife and boy anymore. I never did."
"Jecht..." Braska said softly.
"What! You're not gonna try to stop me, too?"
"Sorry. I mean...thank-you."
"Braska still has to fight Sin, Auron. Guard him well. Make sure he gets there. Well, let's go."
"Lord Braska! Jecht!"
"What do you want now?" Jecht half-grinned.
"Sin always comes back. It comes back after the Calm every time! The cycle will continue and your deaths will mean nothing!"
"But there's always a chance it won't come back this time. It's worth trying." Braska replied.
"I understand what you're saying, Auron. I'll find a way to break the cycle." Jecht said.
"You have a plan?" Auron asked hopefully.
Braska looked at Jecht. "Jecht?"
"Trust me, I'll think of something."
Jecht laughed and he and Braska's images vanished. Young Auron fell to his knees in grief. The present-day Auron finally snapped. He unsheathed his katana and struck repeatedly at the ghost of his younger self. Cries of anguish and pain accompanied each blow. Finally Auron's image vanished.
"And the cycle went on." He growled bitterly.
"We'll break it!" Rikku exclaimed.
"But how? What, you got a plan now?" Rin asked.
"If one of us has to become a Fayth...I volunteer." Lulu said.
"Kimahri too." The Ronso added.
"That still won't change anything, you know? You'd bring the Calm, and then what? That won't break the cycle!" Wakka argued.
"Listen...You want defeat Sin and keep Tidus alive? You don't want Sin to come back? That is just not going to happen." Auron replied.
"If you want everything, you'll end up with nothing." Rin said.
"But I want everything!" The redhead growled.
"Now you're being childish!" Lulu scolded.
"I give up. So what would an adult do, then? They know they can just throw away a summoner, then they can do whatever they like. You're right, I might not even have a chance ya!? But no way in hell am I gonna just stand here and let Tidus go!! And what Auron said about there being a way...I think it's true."
"You'll think of something?" The Al Bhed girl asked.
"I'll go ask Yunalesca. She's got to know something." The guardian replied.
"You really think she'll help you?"
"I don't know, but I have to try. This is my fight. It'll go the way I want it...or I'll end it here."
"Wait." The summoner interrupted. "You say it's your fight, but it's my fight, too. It would be so easy...to let my fate just carry me away...following this same path my whole life through. But I know...I can't. What I do, I do... with no regrets."
Everyone ran up the stairs and passed through the doors to the next room. They found themselves on a large circular stone platform, not unlike the one the group stood on when they visited the Farplane. Above them, they could see the night sky and the stars. Yunalesca appeared a few feet away from them.
"Have you chosen the one to become your Fayth? Who will it be?"
"Might I ask something first? Will Sin come back even should I use the Final Summoning to defeat it?" Tidus asked.
"Sin is eternal. Every aeon that defeats it becomes Sin it its place. And thus is Sin reborn."
"So that's why my father became Sin."
"Sin is an inevitable part of Spira's destiny. It is never-ending." Yunalesca continued.
"Neverending? But...but...if we atone for our crimes, Sin will stop coming back. Someday, it'll be gone, ya?" Wakka stuttered.
"Will humanity ever attain such purity?"
"This...this cannot be! The teachings state that we can exorcise Sin with complete atonement! It's been our only hope all these years!" Rikku shouted.
"Hope is...comforting. It allows us to accept fate, however tragic it might be."
"No!" Wakka and a young Auron shouted.
The redhead and the group looked over to see young Auron and an image of Yunalesca.
"Where is the sense in all this? Braska believed in Yevon's teachings and died for them! Jecht believed in Braska and gave his life for him!" Young Auron demanded.
"They chose to die...because they had hope." The image of Yunalesca replied.
The image of Auron charged at Yunalesca. She simply waved her hand in Auron's general direction and the young guardian went flying. He smashed into the platform. His katana stabbed into the ground a few inches from his head. Tidus looked over at the real Auron. He wasn't watching. The images of Yunalesca and injured Auron vanished. The present-day Yunalesca spoke once again.
"Yevon's teachings and the Final Summoning give the people of Spira hope. Without hope, they would drown in their sorrow. Now, choose. Who will be your Fayth? Who will be the one to renew Spira's hope?"
Silence reigned over the group for a few moments. Tidus looked straight into Yunalesca's eyes.
"No one. I would have gladly died. I live for the people of Spira, and would have gladly died for them. But no more! The Final Summoning is a false tradition that should be thrown away."
"No. It is our only hope. Your father sacrificed himself to give that hope to the people. So they would forget sorrow."
"Wrong. Braska wanted...Braska, my father, and Auron wanted to make Spira's sorrow go away. Not just cover it up with lies!"
"Sorrow cannot be abolished. It is meaningless to try." The woman replied.
"I will live with my sorrow, I will live my own life! I will defeat sorrow! I will stand my ground and be strong. I don't know when it'll be but someday, I will conquer it. And I will do it without...false hope."
"Poor creature. You would throw away hope. Well...I will free you before you can drown in your sorrow. It is better for you to die in hope than to live in despair. Let me be your liberator."
Yunalesca rose up into the air. Everything started to shake.
"Now! This is it! Now is the time to choose! Die and be free of pain or live and fight your sorrow! Now is the time to shape your lives! Your fate is in your hands!" Auron proclaimed.
"Tidus needs Kimahri. Kimahri protect Tidus." Kimahri replied, readying his spear.
"Well I'm fighting!" Rikku exclaimed.
"You couldn't pry my away with a crowbar!" Rin grinned.
Lulu smiled. "Took the words right out of my mouth."
"Tidus." Tidus looked over at his redheaded guardian. "I love you. There's no way I'd abandon you now. This is our fight! Now let's see it through together!"
Tidus nodded and readied his sword.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Longest chapter in the whole freakin' universe @_@. Anyway, I never understood how the Zanarkand "temple" could be in the Blitz Arena so I changed it to Yu Yevon's Palace. Makes more sense to me. Boss battle is next. R&R please ^^.