As usual, I give Chaka and Insane Child my thanks for being such regular reviewers. Also, I'd like to say welcome back to Kiki, and tip my hat to XMaster for such a nice review. (Bob appears and does a happy dance) It feels really good to know that you all like my work so much. Sadly, I can't tell you what the feather is for, just that it's important. Well, here's the next chapter.
Chapter 13: Encounter
"Rikku, was it really necessary to change your outfit?" Ria asked the thief. "You almost got left behind, you know."
Before they left, Rikku changed from her usual pink top and skimpy shorts to a yellow bikini, an orange scarf, a khaki micro-skirt, and a pair of blue and white boots. She had also equipped a pair of odd-looking red daggers and a belt pouch that strapped across her hips. "Yeah, I know, but that other outfit was old, and I needed a change."
"Next time, we'll just leave you behind," Auron told her, irritated at the delay.
"That's just because you're a big meanie," the Al Bhed retorted.
"Could you two PLEASE stop fighting?" Bob's voice was plaintive. "My head hurts and I…I…"
The little Tonberry blanched, no mean feat for a green-skinned creature, and vomited noisily into the nearest garbage can. The four of them were riding in the Airship, on their way to Zanarkand, and Bob was prone to violent airsickness. "Don't worry, Bob," Ria said, patting the fiend on the shoulder, "We'll get to Zanarkand soon, and you won't have to fly anymore."
Suddenly, a red light started flashing and a loud alarm buzzed, nearly deafening the passengers. "Pop, what is that?" Rikku cried, covering her ears in pain.
Cid turned to Brother and barked something in Al Bhed that Ria did not understand. The tattooed pilot chuckled nervously and replied in the same language. "WHAT? You IDIOT!" the thief shrieked.
"Rikku, I'm not very fluent in Al Bhed, so what did he say?" Ria asked her friend.
"That dingbat brother of mine forgot to refuel the ship!"
"So, what are we going to do now?"
"We're gonna have to head back to Bikanel Island," was Cid's terse response.
"We don't have time for that," Auron growled.
The Al Bhed leader gave him a jaundiced stare. "It's either that, or crash, and then it won't matter now will it?"
Ria sighed and asked, "Well, can you drop us off somewhere?"
"I suppose I could drop all of you off at the nearest city, but…" he thoughtfully replied.
Auron gave him a hard look. "But?"
"The closest one is Bevelle, and you didn't exactly make yourselves popular the last time you were there."
"Dad that all happened back when Yevon was still in power. Nobody will care about that now," Rikku told him.
Cid shrugged. "Suit yourselves."
St. Bevelle, once the heart of the Church of Yevon, was now full of political turmoil since the maesters fell from power. The city had become a place of commerce, and people were busily shopping, and ignoring the warrior monks that still patrolled the streets. "This place has changed a lot since the last time we were here," Auron said, looking around with interest.
"Yeah, but the last time we were here, we were trying to stop Yunie from marrying Seymour," Rikku cheerfully replied.
"Hey, Auron, didn't you tell me that you used to be a warrior monk?" Ria asked as they passed a patrol.
"Yes, but that was a long time ago," he replied, not looking at her.
The thief poked him in the ribs. "You might as well go ahead and tell her that you only left because you got in trouble with the High Priest for refusing to marry his daughter."
"How would you know?" he snapped. "You were only a child when I left with Jecht and Braska."
"Tidus found one of his dad's spheres when we went on the pilgrimage, and that was recorded on it."
Bob giggled, and the guardian turned to glare at him and Ria. "What? Did you have something you wanted to say?"
The Tonberry quickly scurried behind the sorceress' legs, and she returned the glare and coldly said, "Actually, I had no intention of saying anything. You're not my boyfriend, so I could care less if you want to go off and rekindle an old flame while we're here, but you don't need to take that tone with me."
"I…I'm sorry," he replied. "I didn't mean to snap at you."
"Hey, it's okay."
A low female voice came from behind them, and chuckled softly. "You found somebody with a temper like yours, I see."
The four of them turned around and a shapely woman in a long black dress was standing in the path. She was pale, with red eyes and elaborately coiffed dark hair and her dress had an unusual series of belt buckles on the front of the skirt. "Lulu!" Rikku cheered, happily hugging the strange woman.
Lulu chuckled again. "It's nice to see you, too."
Introductions were made, and then the former guardian asked them, "So, what brings you to Bevelle?"
"We're going to Zanarkand," Auron answered.
"Haven't you heard about what's been happening? About the corrupted pyreflies?" the mage was shocked.
"Yes, ma'am, that's why we're going," Ria replied.
She shook her head and turned to Rikku. "What about you?"
"I'm going with them to look for Yunie. Didn't you know that she's gone missing?"
"Yes, and that's why I'm here, but if she's gone to Zanarkand, then we don't have any hope of finding her."
"Has it gotten THAT bad?" the thief looked worried.
"They shut down the shoopuf ferry at the Moonflow right after I crossed. The pyreflies there will attack anything that moves, now, and fiends that no one has ever seen before have showed up everywhere. I came up here to see if I could find Yuna, but it's no longer safe for anyone to travel alone."
"Didn't Wakka come with you?" Auron asked.
"He left Besaid before Yuna disappeared, saying that he was going to Mt. Gagazet for some extreme blitzball training, but we haven't heard from him, either."
"How long ago was that?"
"It was three months ago."
"Well, maybe we'll find him, too," said Ria.
"Maybe you will," the mage agreed, but then changed the subject. "Have you heard about the wild aeons?"
"Wild aeons? What are those?" Bob wanted to know.
"They're aeons that appear without the call of a summoner."
"But none of the summoners can call aeons anymore, Lulu. The fayth disappeared when Yu Yevon was defeated…didn't they?" Rikku's expression was concerned.
"Whoa, wait a minute!" Bob interrupted. "The fayth aren't gone. Wes is the fayth for the aeon Alexander, and Ria can call him."
Rikku and Lulu turned to the sorceress and stared at her with expressions of pure amazement. "Ria, I didn't know you were a summoner. I thought you were just a mage," the thief was astonished.
Ria looked away and closed her eyes. "I'm not a summoner…and I'm not very good mage, either. The fayth…Wes…is my younger brother. He became a fayth when our family died back on Earth."
The next hour or so was spent telling Lulu and Rikku about what happened before they came along. When the tale was finished, the mage's eyes were troubled. "So, Spira and Earth have become one place?"
"It seems so," Auron shrugged, "But Ria is the first Earth person that's been able to set foot on Spira, so I don't think the fusion is a complete one."
"But why would anyone want to stick two worlds together like that?" Rikku asked.
"Maybe they had a bunch of leftover Crazy Glue, and decided to put it to good use?" Bob replied, his eyes full of mischief.
The Al Bhed stuck her tongue out at the Tonberry. "Ha, ha! That was so funny I forgot to laugh!"
Lulu shook her head with disgust, and turned to Ria. "Do you have any idea as to who might be behind this?"
"We ran into O'aka a while back, and he said that there were some people who think that Maester Seymour Whatever is responsible," the young woman told her.
"Seymour Guado?" she gasped. "But he was sent to the Farplane!"
"As was I," Auron said, drawing his katana with a grim smile, "But we don't have time to discuss this now. Company is coming."
A crowd of panicked people surged past the group, running as fast as their legs would take them. On their heels was a swarm of fiends in all shapes and sizes, and they were out for blood. The warrior monks attempted to drive the horde back, but were relatively unsuccessful
The battle began in earnest when Bob started waving his little silver lantern, unleashing a chain of 'Karma' attacks in rapid succession, knocking a flock of flying eyeballs. Rikku, as nimble as a cat, sliced her way through several brightly colored lizards, stealing various items as she went. Auron, cool as always, dispatched a pair of large, dragon-like fiends with a strike that engulfed his blade in a wave of darkness, and turned his attention to a gray Sasquatch-type monster. Meanwhile, Lulu and Ria were casting their magics at several Bombs, with varying degrees of success.
"Don't you know how to properly use magic?" the black mage asked when Ria's spell misfired, soaking everything within ten feet.
"Hey, getting training is on my to-do list, okay?" the young woman responded. "Hey, watch out!"
Ria pushed Lulu out of the way just in time, as an enormous black dragon landed where the mage had been standing. The new attacker was covered in plate-like scales, and its four wings had what looked like hardened blue feathers. Behind the bizarre wings floated a golden wheel. The dragon's eyes burned a poisonous scarlet as the two mages backed away. "That's Bahamut, the Dragon Aeon," Lulu explained as she and Ria slowly stepped out of the creature's reach. "Something's not right, though. His colors are all wrong."
"Maybe we should run?" Ria suggested.
"Good idea."
The two of them ran from the transformed aeon, and passed up their friends as they went. "Hey, where are you two going?" Rikku shouted, finishing off a wolf as she did so.
"We're running from THAT!" Ria yelled, pointing at the dragon.
Bahamut roared and fired off a volley of dark energy blasts, and the shockwave knocked the women to the ground. "Does that thing absorb any elements?" the sorceress asked Lulu.
"No, why?"
"Just checking."
Ria waved her arms and shouted 'Holy', but a bolt of lightning rained from the empty sky and stuck the dragon instead. "Damn it, I really need to get some kind of training!" she swore under her breath.
"If we make if out of this alive, then I'll train you myself," Lulu told her.
Auron and Bob then joined the fray, sword and knife flashing as they stuck the heretic aeon simultaneously. Their attacks, however, were about as effective as the spell, which is to say, not very much. Suddenly, Bahamut dropped to all fours, and his wheel began to spin, charging up as it did so. The swordsman realized what was happening, and shouted, "Everyone run!"
They did as they were told, but Bob's legs were too short for him to run very fast, and when he tripped, Rikku went back to get him. When the thief picked up the Tonberry, however, it was too late, and the dragon fired a blast of coruscating energy at the two of them. Ria, not knowing what else to do, raised her arms to the sky and screamed, "WES!"
As if from nowhere, a flash of white snatched Rikku and Bob out of the way at the last moment, and a huge explosion obscured everyone's vision. When the smoke cleared, a crater lay in the middle of the street; however, the fiend and the thief were not there. Ria, Auron, and Lulu, hearing the sound of flapping wings, looked up and saw Alexander. His silver armor shining in the sun, the Holy Aeon slowly descended, and set down a very terrified Bob and Rikku.
Once the two of them were safely back on the ground, Alexander drew his crystal sword and launched himself at Bahamut, striking the dragon with reckless abandon. The two aeons took to the skies, trading blows and causing explosions that rocked the surrounding buildings to their foundations. Finally, Bahamut struck Alexander a severe blow with another dark burst, but the winged knight retaliated with a two-handed slash that left the dragon engulfed in gold-white flames. The two aeons fell from the sky, crashing to the street with a heavy thud. Neither of them moved for a moment, but then Alexander struggled to his feet, while Bahamut expired and collapsed into a cloud of the 'corrupted' pyreflies. The knight saluted the group, and faded away, leaving Wes floating in his place.
"Wes, are you all right?" Ria asked her brother.
"Yes, I'll be fine, but Alexander is going to be out of commission for a while," the fayth replied.
"What about Bahamut? Won't he come back?"
Wes shook his head. "No, there's no fayth to support him, so he won't return."
"How did he get here in the first place?" Auron asked him.
"The dark force called him back from the Afterlife…the place you call the Farplane. That's all I know."
Rikku looked at the spirit for a moment and said, "Thank you, Wes. If you hadn't come when you did, then Bob and I would've been goners."
"You're welcome, Rikku. If only we had met when I was alive," he sighed wistfully. "If I were still alive, then I'd ask you out on a date."
The Al Bhed girl giggled, blushing slightly, and Bob said, "I don't mean to sound ungrateful or anything, but next time, could you NOT fly with us?"
Wes howled with laughter at that, and soon everyone else joined him. Once they recovered, the fayth replied, "I'll try to keep that in mind."
He started to fade, but Ria called out to him. "Wait, I have to tell you something."
"I can't stay much longer, so make it quick."
She nodded. "I just wanted to say thank you, and that I miss you and the others every day."
Wes smiled and vanished, leaving the group standing in the now-deserted streets of Bevelle. "Well, what now?" Bob wondered. "Are we going to leave?"
Lulu shook her head. "No, you can't go just yet."
"Why? We have to leave as soon as possible," Auron told the mage.
"I know, but I promised Ria that I would train her in the use of her magic, and now's as good a time as any."
Woo-hoo! I finished Chapter 13! I know that some people were looking forward to the gang going to Zanarkand, but I don't want to make it too easy for them. Besides, how's Ria supposed to fight if her magic's not working properly? Anyway, review and let me know how I'm doing.