I am trying to emulate the style of Final Fantasy X more accurately. How should become more or less immediately apparent. Also, I feel that in later chapters "Dreams" wasn't moving the way I wanted it to. Hence…
As always, I own none of the people, places, or things, depicted in this story, however that I use them at all indicates only my highest respect for those involved in their creation. On to the story.
Where dreams end...
1. Kilika Temple
It all began when I opened my eyes, and found myself in a world not
my own. I can remember feeling confused and alone. It was not the last
time I'd feel that way…
The girl sitting on the stone steps had been crying; her eyes were red-rimmed, her cheeks tear-streaked. She wore her shoulder-length blonde hair in a messy ponytail, most likely to keep it from her pale face and green eyes. She looked about sixteen. The girl was dressed strangely, wearing a plain black shirt and a pair of tan coloured trousers with big pockets available down the sides.
Yuna, seeing the girl's distress, immediately moved towards her. "Hello," she said, smiling warmly in an effort to cheer the girl up.
The girl blinked, eyes that had been distant came to focus on the young Summoner before her, examining her for the briefest moment. Yuna had shoulder-length brown hair, a braid down the left side of her face. She had one green eye and one blue, creating a disconcerting effect, but not an unattractive one. She was dressed in a white top that left her shoulders bare, and a long blue pleated skirt, with a white pattern up one side. Sensible black boots finished the image off.
"Hi," said the girl. She wiped her tears away on the back of her hand, wiped the back of her hand on her trousers. She tried to return Yuna's smile.
"What's wrong?" Yuna asked. "Did you lose someone in the attack?"
"Attack?" The girl asked, a confused frown crossing her face.
"You get too close to Sin?" Wakka asked. The girl gave Wakka a confused frown. Wakka watched the girl with a concerned look in his eyes. He had flaming red hair, that seemed to defy gravity, and warm brown eyes. He wore tan overalls which left his well-muscled arms and broad shoulder bare for the most part.
"Sin?" The girl asked. She shook her head, returning her attention to Yuna, who was closest. "I don't understand. I was having a nap and when I woke up all of a sudden I'm in a jungle. I have no idea where I am, and there are these… these things attacking me."
"Not another one," Lulu said almost inaudibly. The girl frowned, shifting her attention to the black magician. Lulu had dark hair contrasting harshly against her pale skin and violet eyes. She wore a black dress that seemed to defy gravity in places, seemed to be made up of belts and straps in others.
Sensing it was the right thing to do, Yuna put a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. "I just want a straight answer," the girl said, sighing in frustration. "Where am I?"
"This is Kilika island," said Yuna. By the look on the girl's face, this really didn't help her much. Tidus knew how she felt. He came from Zanarkand, which, if he believed what he'd heard so far, was a dead city, and had been for the last thousand years. "I am Yuna, a Summoner from Besaid."
"My name's Buffy," said the girl. "Buffy Summers. From Sunnydale, California, if that means anything to you." Buffy searched Yuna's face for some reaction.
"I'm sorry," said Yuna earnestly. "I've never heard of that place."
"Hey, why don't you come along with is?" Tidus suggested cheerfully. "I'm kinda in the same boat as you. I'm from Zanarkand, so I don't know anything about Spira." Tidus sat down next to Buffy, giving her a grin, trying to cheer her up. "Name's Tidus, star player of the Zanarkand Abes!"
"I'm Wakka," said Wakka. "And this is Lulu." The black magician nodded a silent greeting.
"Kimahri," the blue Ronso grunted. Buffy tensed slightly, when she saw him, a reaction that only Tidus caught. Kimahri did look fearsome, but he was small for a Ronso. Kimahri had blue fur and a broken horn on his head. His features reminded a first-time observer of some kind of feline. Kimahri was armoured in various different pieces of armour, giving him a wild look.
"So how 'bout it, Yuna?" Tidus asked. "We're going to Luca anyway, and she's about as likely to know someone there as me. Why don't we take her along?"
"Yes," said Yuna, smiling radiantly. "You can come along, if you like."
"I… Is it okay?" Buffy asked uncertainly. Yuna nodded, still smiling. "I'd like that. Thank you."
"Alright!" Tidus exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "Then let's get going!"
"You forget something, ya? We gotta go up to the temple to pray for
victory," Wakka reminded Tidus. Tidus grinned sheepishly; he had indeed
forgotten.
It seemed so easy back then. Tidus made me feel like everything would
work out in the end; in retrospect, I should have known better. I was in
an alien world, surrounded by people I didn't know, with customs I didn't
understand. Talk about culture shock.
"These stone steps have a history, you know?" Wakka intoned solemnly. Buffy could tell he was the religious type right then and there. She wondered if people went door-to-door here, handing out religious pamphlets, wherever here was. "Yep. Lord Ohalland trained here at his peak."
"Trained for what?" Buffy asked.
"You don't know about Blitz?" Wakka asked incredulously. Buffy shook her head, a little embarrassed. Wakka smiled broadly. "It's only the greatest game in all of Spira!"
"If you say so," Buffy said, shaking her head. She stood up, and started up the stairs a little way. So Wakka was a sports nut too. She tried to catalogue these things about the people she'd chosen to travel with.
"You'll see when we get to Luca," Wakka said, clapping her on the back. She stumbled forward a step; she hadn't expected that. "There's a big tournament goin' on there, ya? The Aurochs are goin' to win this year."
Wakka glanced over at Tidus. "Right!" Tidus said, enthusiastically. Was he a sports fanatic too? Maybe that was something he had in common with Wakka, this "blitz," whatever that was.
Two young men ran past, laughing, stopping a couple of steps higher up, poised to start running again. They were dressed similarly to Wakka. Maybe Wakka was part of a team or something.
"A race, huh? Think you can beat me?" Tidus asked, chuckling. He took his place next to his two teammates. Wakka took his place next to Tidus.
"Yuna, if you would?" Wakka asked.
Yuna moved up the stairs, past the four racers. She turned around to face them. "Ready?" She asked. She turned and ran up the stairs, laughing. Buffy couldn't help but laugh at the surprised looks on the racers face.
"Hey!" Tidus exclaimed. He, Wakka, and the two men started up the stairs. Buffy started up the stairs after them, quietly following Lulu and Kimahri.
"L-look out!" One of the men yelled, running back down the stairs. He was closely followed by his friend.
"What's his problem?" Buffy wondered out loud.
"Everyone, quick! Sinspawn!" Wakka yelled. Suddenly, Lulu and Kimahri were running up the stairs. Buffy quickened her pace joining them at the top. The look on her face said it all.
"What the hell is that?"
The monster, Geneaux, looked like some kind of bizarre combination of plant and animal, consisting for the most part of a collection of tentacles and a giant gaping maw.
So this was a Sinspawn. Not exactly what she'd been expecting, but it looked like something she could deal with. Buffy couldn't help but feel a little grateful for that.
"Stay back," Lulu said, putting a restraining arm on Buffy's shoulder as she moved to attack.
"But I can help," Buffy insisted. Lulu obviously didn't believe her. Tidus, Yuna, and Wakka fanned out, Lulu and Kimahri waiting and watching from the sidelines.
Tidus and Wakka were trying to deal with the thing's tentacles, before they had to deal with the Sinspawn's maw, but they weren't having much luck.
Yuna supported them with curative magic and magic that enhanced their strengths. Even so, the battle seemed to be an uphill one all the way.
"This is tough," Tidus muttered, hacking and slashing at one of Geneaux's tentacles in an effort to hurt the monstrosity.
Geneaux roared its outrage, and whipped one of its tentacles in Tidus' direction. He only just managed to dodge out of the way. "I think I made it mad," he said, with a grin.
Geneaux continued to thrash, whipping its green tentacles all around. Tidus and Wakka were too busy trying to avoid being smashed to notice that Geneaux sent one of its tentacles at Yuna.
Buffy shrugged Lulu's hand from her shoulder, and ran towards Yuna. She got there a heartbeat before Geneaux's attack did, pulling Yuna to safety.
"Yuna!" Tidus yelled, realising what happened.
Buffy rolled to dodge one of Geneaux's follow-up attacks. She scooped up a stone, in her roll, and, coming to her feet, hurled it at the monster.
The stone hit the Sinspawn right between where she imagined it might have had eyes, stunning it momentarily. That moment was all the time Tidus needed. He leapt into the air, flipping, and brought his sword down with all the power and force he could manage.
The Sinspawn shrieked as it was cut in two. It seemed to melt, dissolving in a dazzling display of... something. The rainbow-coloured streaks seemed almost insect-like.
"Is that normal?" Buffy asked uncertainly. She pointed to the rapidly dissipating streaks of rainbow colours.
"What? The pyreflies?" Wakka asked.
"Yeah, that's normal as far as I can tell," Tidus said. He moved a hand up and tousled Buffy's hair. She glared at him for it, a fact that only made Tidus grin that much more. "You've got some moves, kiddo."
"Are you okay?" Buffy asked, turning to Yuna.
"Yes. Thank you for protecting me," said Yuna, bowing slightly, grateful.
"So, I'm guessing that whatever that thing was, it was a Sinspawn?" Buffy asked, uncertainly.
"Yes," said Yuna, smiling warmly.
"Weird…" Buffy muttered, shaking her head. If that thing was a Sinspawn, then she really didn't want to meet what had spawned it. It sounded like bad news.
"Sorry about that!" Wakka said, tossing a grin at Tidus. "Hoped to break you in a little slower."
"Being a guardian's tiring!" Tidus said, still breathing heavily from the fight.
"You handled yourself pretty well. You got talent," said Wakka.
"Nah," Tidus dismissed, though Buffy could tell he was pleased with the compliment. He decided to change the subject. "So, what are these Sinspawn anyway?"
"Fiends," Lulu answered in her cold calm tone of voice. "They fall from Sin's body, and are left behind in its wake." Lulu returned her attention to the young Summoner, fussing over Yuna like an older sister would fuss over a younger sister.
So if this Sin creature dropped things as big as Geneaux and didn't notice until later, how big did that mean it had to be? "Um, and the fiends? What are they? Are they, like, demons or something?"
That question earned her an incredulous look from everyone, even Tidus. They probably had fiends in Zanarkand too, Buffy realised. "Don't they have fiends where you come from?" Yuna asked curiously.
"Not exactly," Buffy said. "I mean we have demons. Lots and lots of different demons, but nothing quite like that. Nothing that vanishes like that." She turned to look for traces of the pyreflies, but they had dissipated already.
"What's a demon?" Tidus asked.
"That'd take a while to explain," Buffy said, shaking her head.
"We better get moving, ya?" Wakka suggested.
"We don't want to miss the boat to Luca," Lulu added calmly. They started back up the stairs in silence.
Buffy had been given a lot to think about, but there were still questions in her mind. "So, what's a guardian guard?" She asked.
"Guardians protect Summoners on their pilgrimages," Yuna explained.
"And you're a Summoner, right?" Buffy asked. Yuna nodded, smiling at Buffy. "So then these guys are all your guardians?"
"That's right," Tidus said.
"Um, why do Summoners go on pilgrimages?" Buffy asked, still sorting through the questions in her head in order of apparent importance. "I mean, what's the reason? Is it some kind of uber-religious thing?"
"Perhaps you should ask the Temple priest your questions," Lulu suggested, as they reached the end of the stairs.
The Temple – for that was undoubtedly what it was – was an impressive building, even if it did come across as in a little disrepair. Perhaps the best description for it would be well-serviced ruins. Two spires of what looked very much like coral rose up above the jungle's canopy, and certain parts of the temple looked very much like giant clam shells.
At the threshold there was a large round crystal. Buffy looked down at it, and saw magical flames burning from within. Looking around, she saw flames like that all around the entrance of Temple at strategic points.
Inside was a different matter. Inside, the temple had a religious atmosphere. There were large statues of people Buffy had never seen before in a semi-circle, and people were praying to the statues. "Are they gods?" Buffy asked Lulu.
"You really are clueless, aren't you?" Lulu asked. Buffy frowned slightly, obviously a little annoyed. "Those are the statues of High Summoners."
"What's a High Summoner?" Buffy asked, her voice conveying the annoyance she felt.
"High Summoners are Summoners who have defeated Sin," Lulu responded calmly. A look of understanding passed over Buffy's face. She wandered over to one of the statues. It bore a strange resemblance to Yuna, if only in the way that the High Summoner depicted seemed to carry himself with the same sense of quiet purpose.
"A Summoner, are you?" Buffy glanced around. A woman was descending the stairs from the temple's back chamber, sauntering confidently over to Yuna. She had dark hair and dark skin, and was dressed in a ridiculously revealing outfit, a large bow at her back.
There was a man with her, a large muscle-bound man. He was dressed mostly in green, with his broad chest and strongly muscled shoulders exposed. Buffy thought the look on his face made him look a little constipated, and she had to stifle a laugh at that thought.
"My name is Yuna – from the Isle of Besaid," said Yuna, bowing respectfully.
"Dona," said the other summoner, an air of superiority about her. She glanced around at Yuna's guardians, as they crowded around her.
"So, you're High Summoner Braska's daughter. That's quite a name to live up to. My, my, my… And all these people are your guardians? My, what a rabble! As I recall, Lord Braska had only two guardians. Quality over quantity, my dear. Whatever were you thinking? I have need of only one guardian. Right, Barthello?"
The muscle-bound man nodded.
"Please," said Buffy, a note of contempt in her voice. She'd decided that she didn't like Dona. There was something in her voice that just annoyed the young girl.
Buffy stepped right up to the man, looking him in the eye as if daring him to make a move. "I could take him. No problem. Then where would you be?"
Dona cast her a glance but Yuna cut in, before she could respond to Buffy's challenge. "I only have as many guardians as there are people I can trust. I trust them all with my life! To have so many guardians is a joy, and an honour!" Yuna said, smiling warmly. "Even more so than being my father's daughter. Of course, I would never think of questioning your ways, either. So, Lady Dona, I ask of you: please leave us in peace."
"You do what you want. Barthello, we're leaving," said Dona.
"Lady? Yeah right," Buffy muttered. Tidus nodded his head in agreement.
"You mustn't act like that," Yuna told Buffy, her tone gently admonishing the younger girl.
"But…" Buffy started.
"She's right, eh?" Wakka said. "We don't want no trouble with the Temples."
"Come with me," said Yuna, taking Buffy by the hand. "I will introduce you to the Temple priest. He can answer any questions you may have."
"Where are you going to be?" Buffy asked.
"I must pray to the fayth," Yuna said.
"The fayth?" Buffy asked. Just another one of her questions that would need answering. Yuna just gave her a patient smile, and led her into one of the side rooms. It was round too, and looked like it was used for a study, or place or meditation, or something.
"Ah, Lady Summoner," said the man that they found there. He bowed, and did something strange with his hands, which reminded Buffy of some kind of martial-arts-tai-chi move.
The man was middle-aged, with dark eyes and a bald head. He was dressed in long robes. There were symbols embroidered all over his robes, symbols that Buffy couldn't understand. She wondered if that was their form of writing.
"I am Yuna, from the island of Besaid," said Yuna, bowing and performing the same set of movements that the priest just did.
"How may I be of assistance?" The priest asked.
Yuna nudged Buffy forward, and Buffy felt a little uncomfortable as she came under the priest's examination. "This is Buffy Summers. We found her at the foot of the stairs. She is unfamiliar with our ways, and has many questions to which she needs answers."
"I will do my best, Lady Summoner Yuna," said the priest, bowing.
"Thank you," said Yuna, smiling gratefully. She turned to Buffy. "I must go to the Cloister of Trials, but I will be back soon. Please remain here until then."
"O… Okay," Buffy said.
Yuna smiled warmly at the young girl, before turning and leaving the way she had come. "Lady Yuna is kind," said the priest.
"Yeah," said Buffy, nodding her agreement.
"You have questions?" The priest asked.
"A lot of them," said Buffy, nodding again. The priest sat down and
gestured for Buffy to do the same. A little hesitantly at first, the young
girl sat herself down, wondering where she should begin.
It hadn't occurred to me, until then, how alien this world was, how little it had in common with my own. It wasn't until then that I really started to miss you guys; it wasn't until then that I really started to realise how much you guys meant to me.