Helix - Kuja's Story

Chapter 9 - Revelations

It did not take them long to reach Zanarkand. The shuttle was small but it was fast, and Kuja found it difficult to make out distinct shapes as they flew by. He had spent several minutes tending his wounds, while Chi sat and looked worriedly at the monitors at the front of the shuttle. After a while he gave a sigh and came back into the mid-section, where Kuja was just beginning to get to his feet.

"They are not pursuing us."

He looked concerned, but made no move towards Kuja as he got to his feet with some effort and leaned against the wall.

"That's good! They mustn't have noticed us leave. By the time they realise -"

"No. They know we have left the City."

Chi sighed again and put his head in his hands.

"The only explanation I can think of as to why they are not pursuing is that they already have people in Zanarkand on the look out for us - but it's very unlike them."

"What do you mean?"

"People born in Laemanos do not want to leave it. Most never leave. I assumed I was the first in maybe fifty years or so. Though I suppose with the War it is necessary for them to keep watch on the other Cities."

At first it didn't register, then Kuja suddenly looked up, his eyes wide.

"There is a war? What war?"

Chi looked at him as if he had asked a very stupid question. The familiar topics seemed to have relaxed him, and he adopted a talking-to-small-children tone that Kuja would have complained about had he not been so ignorant that he felt he deserved it.

"The war between the two largest Cities in the world - Zanarkand and Bevelle. It has not come to much violence yet, but many fear it is only a matter of time before people have to fight for their lives."

Kuja thought about this a moment. He knew he had been sent to this world to prevent a terrible disaster, but nothing had made sense until now. In fact many things still didn't make much sense - Chi for one - but he now had a lead on what the "disaster" might be. A war was certainly a terrible thing, as he had found first hand… Perhaps he had to prevent the war - but if Chi was right it had already begun, and time was trickling away.

"Chi, are we near Zanarkand now?"

"Yes. The shuttle is landing. Can't you feel it?"

Kuja had to admit that he hadn't felt a thing. The transport in this world was incredibly sophisticated. He straightened his rumpled clothes, and took a few tentative steps. Though tired and weak, he wasn't in too bad shape and could probably cope with most things.

"Just don't ask me to do anything too strenuous…"

He muttered sarcastically. He wasn't used to being so helpless - no magic, and now even his physical condition had deteriorated. Still, at least he had an ally.

His ally was busy picking up their packs from the front of the shuttle. When he saw Kuja he paused for a moment, before waving his hand over a panel and causing the hatch to open.

"Um…Kuja? This place we are going - the man there probably won't mind you, he isn't from the Pure City after all - but we are…um…is there any way to hide your, um…"

"My tail?"

"Well um…yes."

Chi blushed, and twined his hands together, looking at the floor. Kuja tried to suppress a smile. He had hid his tail for years, and after all this time he still wasn't particularly fond of it. Offending him on that score was impossible, but Chi looked so concerned, he hastened to add:

"Well if you can find me a coat, I could make a very efficient disguise. But for now perhaps this will do."

He curled his tail tight around his waist - it was so long it wrapped several times - and then pulled the far-too-big shirt over the top, so it merely looked like he had a larger stomach than usual. Chi looked relieved.

"That's great! Now I think we can leave. The house is right next door, but it is best that we are not seen, at least until we get some different clothes - Pure City people are not liked here, and … twins dressed in Laemanos clothing would attract too much attention."

Kuja nodded understanding, and they stood braced on either side of the hatchway.

"Now!" Chi hissed.

They ran through the opening, Kuja following just behind Chi. He got the briefest glimpse of an expanse of water, and towering buildings ringed in lights, before he passed down a short flight of stairs and through a hatch-shaped door. The light was pleasant, dim compared to the harsh clinical light from the Laemanos shuttle. Kuja stopped behind Chi and gave a sigh of relief.

Then he heard the sound of heavy boots approaching, and a man appeared from behind a partition at the end of the room, and gave a start when he saw them.

"What the hell?! Okay, Chi'azmo, you have some serious explaining to do! You never told me you guys cloned people! Or is he your little brother…?"

The man gave a sarcastic smile, and walked closer. He was dressed in surprisingly normal clothes, but he was the same height as Chi - too tall as far as Kuja was concerned. His hair and eyes were very dark, a trait Kuja had not seen for a long time. He wore thin baggy trousers that were shot with patterns of blue and green, and a pale green shirt that contrasted with his deep tan. His boots were heavy-duty and made of a strange material which Kuja could not identify, but he suspected it was waterproof, as they were currently very wet and dripping all over the floor. The man noticed Kuja's attention.

"You'll have to excuse me, little one. Nothing gets in the way of a man's favourite sport - and I thought I could squeeze some practice in before you arrived. Of course being the punctual guy I am -" Here he winked "I misjudged, and had to cross most of the water-field in about 30 seconds to meet your shuttle. Those things are damned fast!"

He smiled, and Kuja found himself liking this man. He was as close to a "normal" person as he had met so far, and he felt he could trust him.

"I'm not so little sir, just different."

Chi flinched.

"Look, he has a right to know - he is helping us after all."

"The guy has a point, Chi'azmo." the man said.

"I suppose so." said Chi, non-committing.

"I just don't know if it is safe to tell you, Genshel. They are hunting us."

Genshel nodded, and gestured to Kuja.

"Well I am already in the think of it now - We've even met face to face. I just hope you've done the right thing. Now what exactly is it that's different about you, son?"

He looked closer at Kuja's hair - the feathers were mingled with his ordinary hair but it was possible to see them when you were close up.

Kuja looked at Chi, and they both shrugged. The twin gesture made them both shiver, and Kuja looked away, to face Genshel.

"Well this, for one..." he said, and lifted his shirt, unfurling his tail as he did so.

"Woah…"

Genshel's eyes widened, and he froze to the spot. However, he did not seem afraid.

"Just what the hell are the guys in that City of yours doing, Chi'azmo?!"

Chi made to protest, but Kuja interrupted him and stepped forward.

"Genshel, the people of Laemanos were just as confused about me as you are. I am not from the City."

Kuja straightened out his tail, and wished he had a few extra inches of height. Beside Chi and Genshel he seemed like a small child.

"I see." said Geshel, scratching his chin.

"Then, they kept you prisoner?"

"I was found outside the wall. They took me in for study. Then they noticed I looked a bit too much like Chi, and we felt that we had outstayed our welcome…"

"That was probably wise, but now it gives you a new problem - they will come for you."

Genshel paced backward and forward, his brows hunched together as he thought.

"There are a few other things bothering me though, that unless I'm mistaken you haven't told Chi'azmo either - such as how you came to be outside the City in the first place, and why you are different, as you put it. That is… if you know this yourself?"

He acted as if this possibility had only just occurred to him, and looked questioningly at Kuja, who nodded.

"Yes, I know what I am, and how I got here. I'm just not sure when I am, exactly."

Now both Chi and Genshel looked puzzled.

"What?" they both said in unison.

"I am not supposed to say anything, but I don't think anyone is playing fair here - and you need to know - I need to tell you. Do you have a safe place? This could take some time."

Genshel nodded, and he led them to a door in the side of the main room. Down a steep flight of stairs was a heavy door that Genshel unlocked with a complicated code.

"Cellar. I modified it a bit." he said, by way of explanation.

They all trooped down the stairs, and found a sparse but well provisioned living area. Chairs were arranged in a circle in the centre, and some bunks rested along the far wall. A sink and cupboards were on another wall, and another locked door opposite the entrance. After Genshel re-locked the door, they settled down on some chairs, and Kuja began his story.

"I was created in a laboratory on a ruined planet. My creator used cells from the planet's long-dead inhabitants to create mindless vessels - people without proper minds who would be used to house the souls of the dead. However I and a few others were different. We were given minds, because we had another purpose. We were created to destroy other worlds…and destroy I did."

Kuja now looked at the floor, refusing to meet anyone's eyes. Genshel and Chi were silent.

"I started wars, I killed thousands of people. I built mindless soldiers of my own and set them to kill even innocents. I tried to destroy anyone who stood in my way, including my own brother - another of the genomes with a soul. Then, I committed the worst crime of all. At the time I tried to justify what I did - I was dying, with a built in shut-down date. I was angry. I tried to destroy a crystal, an ultimate life-giving force. I was punished for it. This is part of my punishment."

He sighed, the rush of words, temporarily ceased.

"I know it seems an impossible thing - but I had so much power. We had magic, you see and I was a master of it." He smiled ruefully.

"Cities could be levelled in minutes. Souls could be called upon to fight celestial battles - I made a slave of those souls. My punishment was to be sent here, to help you overcome a great disaster. I don't know what it is, but I have a feeling it has something to do with the war you described, Chi. I just want you to know that you were right - I am unnatural, a mistake and perhaps the closest to evil you will ever meet. I am sorry. Your body - your cells were used and violated to create me."

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Kuja