Revelations, The Moonflow and the Start of a Shoopuf ride.
"The highroad to The Moonflow, the most eventful and exciting instalment of our journey."
"Not!" Zen shouted and jumped onto Arkinlae's back his hands round her neck, or at least tried to jump on her back. Due to the fact that Zen was taller than Arkinlae and of course she hadn't been expecting it Arkinlae fell over and Zen landed on top of her. Bekayla moved with the camera to get the two companions and Sesh pointing and laughing for all she was worth in shot.
"Kad uvv sa oui pek misb!" (Get off me you big lump!) Arkinlae shouted while laughing, her voice muffled by her face being inches from the ground.
"Un oui'na hela (!)" (Oh you're nice !) Came Zen's sarcastic reply and getting up and once again started to tickle Kinny as she was still on the floor.
"No no! Stop it!" Arkinlae protested gasping out in the midst of laughter. Yuna and the others came past. Lulu and Tidus looked on at Arkinlae trying to hit Zen playfully in the middle of her laughs.
"Heh kids." Lulu chuckled. Tidus on the other hand was also laughing and was going to take Zen's invite to join in, but Arkinlae put him off.
"You join in Tidus and I'll cut your hands off." She threatened him. It was only a joke, but Tidus backed away and ran to join the others hastily. Zen then finally gave in and pulled Arkinlae up.
"Come on let's catch up." He said seeing that Sesh, Tidus and the others apart from Bekayla were far ahead.
"Yeah," Arkinlae agreed, "Now let's see, Becks give me the camera. Now what do we have to work with? Ah road… road… and look! More road. Brilliant (!)" she then turned the camera off. "Right let's go." She said and the three of them ran to catch up. When they reached the others they were talking Shelinda. Arkinlae gave a slight moan, Shelinda was nice and all, but she was rather annoying.
"Good day everyone." Said she, "We can all learn from what happened to the Crusaders. Only the truly faithful have a hope of defeating Sin."
"That's your opinion?" Arkinlae asked mockingly, "Hope is a fickle friend. It only works if you know how to use it." She then said more as a warning rather than an opinion, "As does Sin. As long as you know how to control him do you have any chance of defeating him. It doesn't matter if you were The Grand Maester. If Sin had a reason it would destroy him." Everyone stared confused but shocked at Arkinlae. Even Lulu looked surprised. Auron though kept composed. Then after saying their goodbyes to Shelinda they continued up the road. Arkinlae's guardians however waited for their summoner who was staring into space. Silence filled the rest of the space around them apart from distant voices.
"I think I will go to Guadosalam." Shelinda then said to break the silence, "I have not spoken with the Guado for some time." Her last comment interested Arkinlae who it turned out had been listening looked at Shelinda. She still looked thoughtful and chortled
"Hmm neither have I." She said in an almost mysterious way to which the
Others looked bemused. Even Seshay didn't appear to know what she was talking about.
"Yo! You boyos comin'?" Wakka called to them. Arkinlae then said goodbye to Shelinda as did the others and ran to Yuna and the group.
When they reached them Yuna and the others they were surrounding Kimahri, Tidus and two other Ronso who they soon learned to be Biran and Yenke.
"Poor Kimahri lose his horn now lose his summoner." One said.
"Pitiful Kimarhi! Howl alone! Howl alone!" said the other. Then the two ran off.
"Do those guys have something against you?" Tidus asked Kimahri. He shook his head.
"What they were just picking on you?" Tidus continued quite attonished
"Kimahri will deal with them." Was all the Ronso said.
"And I'll help."
"Kimahri alone."
"It's Kimarhi's problem." Wakka said, "We can't interfere its rule."
"I'm worried." Lulu then put her view into the conversation.
"Hey Ronso deal with Ronso problems ya? It's how it's always been."
"I mean about all these summoners going missing."
"They aren't just disappearing into thin air." Auron said speaking more to himself than anyone else.
"Yeah but if we guardians do our jobs no problem right?" Tidus said
"Ooh."
"Confident."
"You bet." Came Tidus' reply to Wakka and Lu's comment.
Arkinlae and the others at that moment looked around trying to be inconspicuous. Auron noticed this and saw right through them.
"If you have any suspicions or know what is causing the disappearances my guess is that you are correct."
That was all he said. No more. No less and he was correct Arkinlae and the others knew exactly what was causing it not that they told anyone not that it was doing any harm. They carried on. A few fiends got in their way, but they were no hindrance to the summoners or their guardians. They were almost at The Moonflow when they met a woman called Belgamine. She challenged both summoners to a contest of aeons to see what they'd both learned. Yuna went first, but was defeated by her Ixion aeon.
"You are very powerful Lady Belgamine. You are a good opponent. I am glad I lost to one such as you." Was all that Yuna said.
It was now time for Arkinlae to try. Belgamine's aeon was still out. Belgamine waited and Arkinlae looked at her waiting for her to make the first move.
"Well," Belgamine said, "Aren't you going to summon your aeon?"
"Dear," Arkinlae said as if Belgamine was stupid, "I am my aeon." And with that she flew up into the air.
"Thundera." Belgamine commanded her aeon. It hit Arkinlae and took off half of her HP. Thunder magic was Arkinlae's weakness and it seemed Belgamine had worked that out. Even if it wasn't Belgamine's aeon was powerful. Arkinlae knew she had get rid of this aeon quickly if she had any hope of defeating it.
"Watera." She uttered. It also took off most of the aeon's HP. However it was not defeated. If Belgamine's aeon did one more hit of Thundara she'd be for it. Suddenly Arkinlae had that weak tired feeling come over her again. It was a thing she tried to not let happen, but this time she seemed to welcome it. Well desperate times call for desperate measures she thought, and then she came to her senses. Wait no this is bad but it was too late. A dark aura suddenly came around the two summoners.
"You really should have picked on someone your own size." Arkinlae said looking darkly at Belgamine. It was the same voice that Yuna had heard in Operation Mi'ihen. Deep, dark and unfeeling, but definitely Kinny. Two kids had been watching Yuna's match with Belgamine and were now interested in Arkinlae.
"Hey you guys come and see this." The children called their friends who were accompanied by adults and a few hypellos.
"Now what are we going to do about you?" Arkinlae asked Belgamine's aeon, "Ah I know." She smiled laughing through closed lips. She pointed a finger at the horse like aeon and clicked her fingers. An explosion was heard and the aeon immediately fell to its knees and faded away. Everyone watching was surprised especially Lulu who unexpectedly grabbed Tidus' arm and dug her nails in. Tidus winced.
"Ow!" he protested, "What is it?"
"She used Death. On an aeon." Lulu said with no sound of surprise in her voice, but her eyes looked like they were about to pop out her head.
"Is that bad?" Tidus asked.
"Aeons and Sinspawn and some fiends are immune to magic like sleep, poison and death." Yuna explained scared, "I don't understand how she could…"
"But what about an aeon using Death on an aeon?" Tidus still queried.
"It's still the same magic used by an aeon or not. An aeon just makes the power of the poison or whatever it's using stronger. They're still immune to it whether inflicted by another aeon or not." Auron explained. Tidus went quiet.
"No matter." Belgamine said trying to sound as if Arkinlae's last move hadn't totally freaked her out and summoned her Valefor aeon. Arkinlae's amusement had gone when she'd seen how weak Belgamine was compared to her.
"Is that all you can summon? One how pathetic."
"That is all you can summon at a time." Yuna called
"Not on my watch." Arkinlae said.
She started to dance on the air. The aura that had been around the two summoners lifted and the sky went dark. Rain fell from the sky in a circle with and X through it. The command to summon the fire aeon that Yuna named Ifrit. It landed by Belgamine and the other aeon. Arkinlae's overdrive was full. What would she use Yuna wondered. Energy Blast, Energy Ray, Hellfire, Thor's Hammer? She didn't use any of those. She used all four. The sky still darkened Arkinlae blew a line onto the floor. She then swished her hair round which did damage to the two aeons immediately. Then a column of fire mixed with lightening picked up the two aeons. It lit up the darkened sky. Arkinlae flew up above the trees and looked tauntingly at the two aeons. She threw a rock and a blast of lightening simualtaneousley.They both fell to the ground and at that instant the line that had been on the ground exploded. The power of all the magic's mixed together had killed the aeons in one blow. Belgamine was defeated. Belgamine said nothing but gave Arkinlae the prize. Summoners soul.
"Here Yuna you have it." Arkinlae said guiltily. Her voice had changed again, back to the kind caring Arkinlae, "I don't deserve it." Then all the friends walked up the road. Soon they came to a beautiful river with pyreflies floating around. Arkinlae stood and took in the calmness of it all before going to the waters edge lying down on her front her head facing the river and dangling her hand in the water.
"This is The Moonflow." Lulu explained to Tidus
"These are moonlillies." Yuna told him crouching down looking at the purple flowers, "They say that clouds of pyreflies gather here when night falls."
"The entire river glows like a sea of stars." Lulu and Arkinlaefinished.Arkinlae thensat up and dangled her bare feet in the water. There was a beautiful silence over The Moonflow for a few moments.
"Hey I got an idea!" Tidus suddenly shouted
"We're not waiting till nightfall." Auron said sternly and Tidus' faced dropped
"Then once we beat Sin we're coming back." He said with defiance in his voice. After that they all just stared at the pyreflies some more until Wakka got up from his sitting position.
"Hey we better hurry or we'll miss the shoopuf!" That made everyone get up and get back to the path except Arkinlae and the others.
"Shoopuf?" Tidus said confused, "That some kind of boat?"
Wakka just left to follow the others.
"A shoopuf I've always wanted to go on one. Come on let's go!" Arkinlae said excitedly.
"Are you ready?" Zen asked which reminded Arkinlae what she was setting out to do. For a minute The Moonflow had made her forget about her pilgrimage and think of other things…She stared at the pyreflies following them with her eyes up into the sky.
"Will someone please tell me what a shoopuf is!" Tidus complained
Arkinlae got up feeling she'd had enough and laughed.
"You're so impatient Tidus. Patience is a virtue. Learn to use it at the right time."
She, Tidus, Zen, Sesh and Bekayla then reached the landing. Tidus looked up at the huge elephant like creature.
"Whoa, what the? Whoa!" he exclaimed
"This is a shoopuf." Wakka explained and went to stand beside Tidus.
Arkinlae and her guardians went to little store by the landing. Zen and Bekayla stocked up on supplies that they might need. People at the landing shied away from Arkinlae as she came towards them, even people who had returned from the previous journey. They must have been told about Arkinlae's match with Belgamine. Soon everyone decided they were ready to 'Ride ze shoopuff' as the hypello put it. Arkinlae thought he was quite sweet and smiled at him. They all climbed into the cabin and got ready to start a new means of transportation to Guadosalam.
AN: So the plot thickens. The others realise Kinny can use Death on an aeon and can mix all the overdrives of her aeons. What will happen when the gang reach Guadosalam? You'll have to keep reading to find out. Oh and review too of course.