If you are reading this, then thank you for taking the time to read this story…. That's all I got!

I do not own the rights to Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles etc

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Chapter 2: The ceremony

"…For we are all children of this earth," bellowed the elder "and it is thanks to these great crystals that we allowed to continue to live here…" Sett looked through the crowd at the elder. The ceremony had started. For a few hours he, Lillian and Tim had worked together to decorate the town centre with flags of tribal symbols, and different coloured banners and other such decorations. Afterwards, he had helped move several tables, so long, that it was a wonder that they fit in their designated area, though where that was going to be took a while to decide.

To Sett's great annoyance, he had only been told to move these tables to the town centre and he was constantly yelled at by the old lilty in charge of the ceremony's arrangements for 'doing it wrong' Sett had never met this old Lilty before but he could clearly tell that he was one of the 'old fashioned,' in other words racist Lilties who still believed they were superior to all other tribes. Sett wouldn't have thought this way had it not been for the kind way he had shown Tim how to tie the ribbons or the way he screamed at the Yuke who had been carrying the opposite side of my table for letting it slip out of his hands and fall to the floor. Though it was impossible to tell a Yukes mood, mainly due to their ridiculous headgear the Yuke merely picked up the end of the table and continued as though he could not hear the yells that left a ringing in my ears. It was a good thing Yukes were so good at controlling their emotions. Anyone else would have smacked him!

Eventually all the tables had been set up and Sett had slipped away for a few minutes so he could give his sword a proper wash he had never attended a ceremony such as this one before, let alone been a possible nominee, but he figured he would be on display at one point or another so he wanted to look his best.

When he had returned the decorations were so close to completion that there was really nothing left to do. Some of the early arrivers were sitting on those godforsaken long tables so Sett figured he might as well join them. While he waited for the ceremony to start, he watched people arrive. Soon his family came and joined him.

"Move over," his little brother said. Much louder than he needed to. Sett moved aside.

"Its your big day." His mother said "I'm so proud of you. Sett felt like sighing but he didn't want to hurt her feelings. His mother had been saying the same thing at least twice a day for the last two weeks. Sett knew it was bothering her and it was probably why her vocabulary had become so limited. She couldn't seem to say anything else as it would make her feelings even more obvious. Or perhaps she wanted to make it clear to him how she felt in case he died. An unsettling thought to say the least!

"You never know," Sett said awkwardly "I might not get picked." But this had clearly been a poor choice of words. The tear his mother had apparently been holding back burst from her eyes like a dam collapsing. Sett thought he could hear a muffled apology, but he couldn't be sure. His Father patted her on the back and then said

"Don't worry boys, your mothers just feeling a little emotional." Sett looked at his brother who didn't seem to have noticed his mother's emotional outburst. He was playing with an insect he had found on the table. Sett turned back to his father who said. "Sett, once the ceremony's over. I want you to meet me back at the house. I have a surprise for you." That certainly got Sett's interest. It got his brother's as well

"Why does Sett get a pre…" He started to say but his mother snapped at him to be quiet causing him to bang is fist on the table and squash his new friend. Sett chuckled, but so his brother couldn't see him. He didn't want to cause another problem. He often wondered why his brother wasn't compared to Selkies like he was. He seemed like the selfish one in the family, but perhaps all Clavats were like that at his age. Sett turned back to his father.

"Listen Sett, whatever happens today or in the future," he said. "Please do remember that we are truly proud of you and what you are willing to do for Tipa.

"Thanks dad." Sett said, but what he thought was "Not you too!"

"You know something, Sett," his father said. "I remember when I was younger…" At that point Sett stopped listening. Anything his father said that started with 'when I was young' wasn't worth listening to. He looked around the tables. The crowd had become a lot bigger since his family had arrived. Sett looked around and saw Tim sitting with his parents and siblings. Tim caught his eye and waved. Sett's eyes scanned the crowd looking for Lillian and her family, but they were nowhere to be seen. They must have been seated in a corner somewhere.

"Are you listening to me?" his father asked.

"Course," Sett told him and his father continued to drone on. Sett had noticed the Selkie gang. They had chosen to sit together instead of with their families. They were all whispering excitedly and had their weapons with them like all the other hopefuls. Sett hadn't given much thought to whom else might be going other than himself, Tim and Lillian. Sett couldn't see the elder entrusting any of those boys with a mission as important as this, though on the other hand, it would get them out of the village.

When everyone in the town had arrived, the ceremony started. There had been a fanfare and then the elder had started, what was due to be a very long-winded speech. Which he did standing on a large platform that had been built around the town's crystal. It was now fifteen minutes into the ceremony and the elder still hadn't finished. Sett wondered briefly if he was the only person still alive when suddenly, the elder finished. Those who had been on the verge of dozing off suddenly snapped to attention at the sound of the applause. No one wanted to miss the next part.

"Thank you" the Elder said "It is now time for the unveiling of the first caravaner. But before I do, I must tell you all that I have chosen five brave young warriors to travel this land. As you all know, the maximum number of people any caravan will contain is eight. However I have decided, from my own experiences that it is unhealthy for so many people to be made to live so close together for so long." Sett thought he had a point. He would hate having to live so close to his brother for the best part of the next year. Who was to say the other people chosen would be any better. "I can now announce , that the first caravaner is…"

In that moment, all the doubt, nerves and fear that should have been gnawing away at Sett every day leading up to this moment, suddenly hit him as though he had been knocked in the back of the head with a rock. If he was chosen he would be risking his life. Every day could soon be his last. Then there was the prospect of having to be stared at by the entire village if he was chosen. And if he was chosen first…

"…SETT!" It took a few moments for Sett to realise that his name had been called. He hadn't moved and the people around him were looking in all directions trying to figure out who Sett was. "Come on up here Sett."

Someone kicked Sett in the shin, causing him to jump upright. Sett was too preoccupied with everything else that was happening to care who it was but he later suspected that it had been his brother. As people realised he was standing, they started clapping again. Sett gulped deeply which seemed to bury his anxiousness for the moment and made his way to the stage. When he reached the stage the elder shook his hand and muttered,

"Well done," He then ushered Sett to a space on his left where another long table had been set up. Sett was just calm enough to realise that this would be where he and the other caravaners would be eating. He supposed it would be for the best, this way he would be able to get to know his partners.

"Congratulations Sett," The elder said loudly so the crowd could hear. "However, let us not focus all our praise on him as there are four more individuals who deserve some." The town's attention was focused once again on the elder, something Sett was very grateful for. "Our next young hero is…" It was odd, thought Sett, but the whole crowd seemed to hold their breath. "…Miss MISTIE"

This was a name Sett had never heard before. Mistie must have been a Selkie though as there was a lit of commotion going on at the Selkie side of the room. Eventually a blonde female Selkie made her way to the platform. She looked very beautiful as all Selkie girls did and she looked a few years older and a few inches taller than Sett. She wore a short blue skirt and a tight white top, which didn't show her cleavage or stomach, which was rather unusual for Selkies. Mistie made her way to the platform, shook the elders hand as Sett did and then took her seat next to him. He had been hoping to save that seat for Tim but he had no objection to letting Mistie sit there (Who would!)

"Hi," she said as she sat down. "My names Mistie."

"I'm Sett," Sett replied. "Congratulations"

"You too…" but they got no further. The elder was about to announce their next crewmember.

"The next caravaner…is TIM." Sett gave a loud 'Whoo!' as Tim came to the platform.

"Isn't that the guy your always sword fighting with?" asked Mistie. Sett nodded. He didn't need to ask how she knew. He and Tim were always sparring in the town centre and it was hard for passers by not to notice. Tim sat down next to Mistie. Sett introduced them briefly, then Tim asked,

"Have you seen Lillian anywhere?" He seemed concerned.

"No, why?"

"I haven't seen her since we finished with the decorations."

"She's bound to be around somewhere." Said Sett "I mean she wouldn't miss this would she?"

"I suppose not." Tim muttered, but he didn't look convinced. He stopped talking and started scanning the crowd. Sett was glad they had ended their conversation then as not only was it very uncomfortable for Mistie to have two people talk through her, but also the Elder had started speaking again.

"Our fourth caravaner is…MORGAN!" Another name Sett had not recognised.

"Do you know who Morgan is?" he asked Mistie. She shook her head.

"He's a Yuke." Tim said. He pointed to an area of the crowd where a tall Yuke was striding towards the platform. Sett could tell he was male by the bat-like wings coming from his back. He wore blue robes with yellow stars on and had two pointy ears…or perhaps they were horns coming from two holes in his helmet. Sett recognised him a the Yuke that had been screamed at by the racist Lilty earlier that day and wondered briefly what he must be thinking as he watched this. When Morgan arrived at their table, they all greeted him.

"Nice to meet you," Tim said.

"It is a pleasure to meet you also." Morgan said. He spoke in a very odd way. His voice was deep, formal and showed no emotion whatsoever. "It is comforting to know that you are not one of the self worshipping Lilties who consider themselves superior to all others."

"Erm…thanks!" Tim replied, taken aback by the odd compliment. When Morgan wasn't watching, Tim looked at Sett and Mistie with raised eyebrows.

"And our fifth caravaner…" The elder bellowed. "…is LEO."

A very loud "YEEESSS!" was heard and everyone in the town centre turned to look at the speaker. Sett did not have the best view but he could tell that whoever had shouted was now dancing on his table. He had to be a Selkie and sure enough, when the crowd had parted, a very wild looking Selkie made his way to the platform. At first, Sett was relieved to see that the he was not one of the Selkie gang but he soon realised that Leo wasn't any better.

This Selkie was unlike any Sett had ever seen. He was absolutely filthy. He had long blue hair, but there was so much brown muck in it, that it looked more like a dark purple. He wore an animal's skin and was barefoot. The people he walked past seemed to turn away, their eyes watering and as Leo approached, Sett understood why. There was a disgusting smell coming from him. When the elder held out his hand for Leo to shake it, Leo merely pushed the hand away and embraced him in a big hug. Sett felt a great deal of sympathy for the elder as Leo patted the elder roughly on the back. Sett couldn't think of anything worse than having to hug such a person.

As Leo approached, Sett realised that the smell was mainly coming from the Selkies garments. The animal hide looked as though it had been killed fresh and hadn't been washed. Now it was starting to rot. Another thing Sett noticed was that Leo had no weapons. Ordinarily Selkies wielded rackets that were usually capable of unleashing psionic blasts like the one Mistie had with her but Leo carried nothing. Perhaps he had forgotten it. When he passed Mistie, he gave her a wink. Needless to say, Mistie wasn't the slightest bit interested in the foul smelling Selkie. And that was putting it mildly! Sett wondered if he had been too kind in his opinion of the Selkie tribe. This must have shown in his expression because Mistie then said

"Not all of the males in our tribe are like that," she was still scowling at the Selkie who was waving his hand in front of Morgan's helmet. He knocked on the metal a few times and then took his seat. Morgan showed no sign that he had noticed. Leo put his bare feet up on the table. His soles were jet black. Mistie looked away disgusted. "I've heard about him, and he won't be a good travelling companion."

"What have you heard?" Sett asked

"Well…he has a lot of bad habits which he isn't afraid to show off. You know things like picking his nose and eating it. That sort of thing." Sett was strongly reminded of his little brother. "And now we have to spend the next year with him. Ugh!" Their food had just arrived. Leo had taken his feet off the table so that he could lean forward and eat. He grabbed a chicken leg with his dirt covered fingers and bit huge chunks off it so that it was impossible to chew with his mouth closed. He then lent back again so he could put his feet back on the table, and in his plate. It wasn't the most appetizing thing to watch.

"Gross," Sett muttered, forcing himself to look away. "What do you think of him Tim?" Tim didn't answer. "Tim?…Hey Tim" Tim's head spun round. He looked angry and hurt. "What's wrong.?" Tim scowled at Sett.

"How could they put that animal in our caravan!" he hissed angrily, but Sett got the impression that that wasn't what was bothering Tim.

"Maybe he's a good fighter." Sett said. "Or maybe there was no one els…" Tim glared furiously at him and suddenly Sett realised what was wrong. There were five places available. He and Tim had filled two of those places.

Sett and Tim were going. But Lillian wasn't.

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Well I hope you are enjoying the story so far. If you are enjoying it then please take the time to review. And if you are REALLY enjoying it then please tell all your friends to read and send their reviews. AND if you REALLY REALLY enjoy my story then tell all your friends to tell their friends so they can read and review and basically we jus keep going until everyone in the world loves my story.

Oh, and if you don't like it then I'm sorry for wasting your time.

Just a reminder, If I stop updating for a few weeks its because I'm on holiday, NOT because I've abandoned all my fans…. Again.