Not many reviews this time...where did all my reviewers go? Hmm...something to ponder on. For now, the replies!

MysticSuperSaiyanGohan: Ok, one at a time. First, I haven't decided yet whether or not Ben will have a legendary weapon. But they will make an appearance. Second, there will be a sequel. Hope you're familiar with FFX-2. Third, interesting idea with Bahamut. I might just do that.

Daniel Wesley Rydell: (throws DWR off the Calm Lands gorge) Direct it to the bottom of this! Heh heh heh...

Bracey Face Anime Gurl: If all goes right, next chapter shall be Seymour's demise! Mwahahaha! And things will be revealed. Just what...you'll have to see.

Now that that's all said and done, on to the chapter!


Chapter 23—The Call Of Duty

Lake Macalania. One of the most tranquil places in all of Spira. In fact, pretty much the whole of Macalania is a very calm, soothing place. Right now, it's cold. The whole lake is iced completely over, quite solidly too. I tried stabbing my sword through; it went in halfway up the blade, and still was in no danger of breaking.

"I wish I had places like this where I come from..." I mutter to myself, looking out over the frozen lake. "So peaceful."

"Hey, what's the matter?" Rikku asks, walking up behind me.

"Just...admiring the view." I respond, turning to face her.

"You're a bad liar, you know that?" she says, grinning. I just sigh.

"Okay, fine, you caught me. I was just wishing I had places like this back home...it's so peaceful here." I tell her, turning to look back at the lake. I feel an arm around my shoulders, and turn, looking Rikku in the eyes.

"It is, isn't it." she says, joining me in my gazing.

'I wish I had my family here to share this...I miss them. Everyone I cared for is gone...'

"Hey! You two lovebirds coming, or what?"

"Wakka, don't make me come over there!" I yell back, joking with the former captain. "Alright, we better get back before 'Cap'n' over there has a heart attack." I tell Rikku, causing her to laugh, and follow me back over to the group. Approaching, I notice Clasko walking up, with a chocobo of his own this time.

"Hi there."

"Hey, Clasko. They leave you again?" I ask, and he nods.

"They always leave me behind." he says, as the chocobo makes a strange noise; I guess some kind of cry. Clasko turns to it, looking at it a moment. "Oh, you want me to scratch you?" he asks, and the chocobo leans its head down, Clasko scratching it on the neck, causing it to make a sound of contentment. "There. Good boy!"

"How'd you know what it wanted?" Tidus asks, obviously confused at Clasko's understanding of the chocobo.

"I've always been able to tell how chocobos feel. I think I'd make a better chocobo breeder than Chocobo Knight, huh?" he says, turning to me suddenly. "Hey, what job do you see me doing?" he asks, and I think a moment.

"Chocobo breeder. If you can understand them so well, why let that talent go to waste?" I reply. Clasko nods, smiling.

"Yeah! I think so too! Hmm...you know, I just might give it a try." he says, and we nod, doing the prayer gesture, before continuing to walk down the bank of the frozen lake.


After a couple minutes of walking, I can see the travel agency, the one shown in the sphere. Someone's approaching us too, and it turns out to be Tromell.

'Great, him.'

"Lady Yuna, we've been expecting you." he says, greeting us with the prayer gesture. "We were surprised you decided to come so soon. Pleasantly surprised, of course. Lord Seymour sends his apologies for having left without notice."

"It's quite all right." Yuna replies, nodding. "I have one question, if I may, sir."

"My lady?"

"I want to keep journeying, even if I marry." Yuna says, determination showing in her eyes. "Do you think that Maester Seymour would let me?" Tromell nods quickly.

"But, of course, my lady. Lord Seymour wishes nothing else, I'm sure." he replies, and Yuna turns to face us, nodding.

"Goodbye." she says, walking up to Tromell.

"Well...we must follow Guado tradition." he says, and I quirk an eyebrow. "I'll have to ask you to wait here a little while longer. I'll send someone to escort you." he finishes, beginning to walk away. Yuna starts to follow, but then stops, turning around.

"I..." she starts, but Auron cuts her off.

"We're all with you. Do as you will." he tells her, and she smiles.

"Thank you." she says, turning to follow Tromell. Auron turns to Tidus, after Yuna starts walking away.

"Sorry." he says, and Tidus looks at him, confused.

"Hmm?"

"That was your line." he replies, and I look around. I could've sworn I just heard something...

"Yuna!" Tidus says, running forward and giving a loud whistle, causing Yuna to turn around.

"Yessir!" she says, playfully, before continuing to follow Tromell.

"Wait...I did just hear something!" I say suddenly, having heard what sounds like motors. Looking around, I quickly notice the source. Four snowmobile type machina, and they're heading straight for Yuna and Tromell!

"Yuna!" I say, dashing towards the two while unsheathing my katana and wakizashi.

"Oh, no!" Rikku exclaims, as everyone else follows me.

"Al Bhed!" Wakka yells, pulling out his blitzball, as everyone else arms themselves as well, forming a circle around Yuna and Tromell.

"Stand back." Auron orders, Tromell stepping behind our group.

"Thank you!" he says, beginning to walk away, holding on to Yuna, but Yuna removes her hand, and rejoins us. "Lady Yuna!" he cries, unable to do anything but watch.

Suddenly, just as soon as the Al Bhed have surrounded us, they back off, and a shout is heard from a hilltop nearby.

"Rikku!"

Everyone's attention goes to the hilltop, as the mohawked Al Bhed that was on the ship with Tidus and I earlier yells down, standing beside a large, cannon-type machina, and a smaller, flying one that resembles a recording machine of some sort.

"Tuh'd endanvana un oui kad drec!" he yells, pointing to the cannon. "Ouin bnaleuic magic yht aeons yna caymat!" I growl, and Rikku gasps, as he starts to laugh.

"Oh, no!" Rikku yells, causing Tidus to turn to her.

"Translation?"

"He just sealed our magic and aeons." I answer, calmly, causing Tidus to look at me.

"Since when do you understand Al Bhed?" he asks.

"Explanations later, okay!" I say, noticing the Crawler rolling down the hill, stopping in front of us. Tromell grabs Yuna's arm, saying something to her, and the two of them leave quickly, heading in the direction of the temple. "Okay, go for the little thing! We blow it up first, we get our magic back!" I explain, and Wakka nods.

"Take this!" he yells, heaving the blitzball at the small machina, hitting it and causing it to wobble.

The Crawler responds by beginning to charge up one of its weapons, the gatling gun to be exact, and shooting a burst at Wakka, slamming into him, but not killing him. The Sphere Grid is apparently very useful, if it can stop bullets from piercing, or at least from doing severe damage.

"Wakka! We need to double team it! Knock it down, and I'll shred it!" I yell over, and Wakka nods, throwing the ball at it again, causing it to wobble, and I dash at it. Jumping into the air, I'm suddenly caught by a burst of energy, and sent flying back to land on the ground.

"Unngh...yeah, beam attacks, right..." I say, getting back to my feet. "Well, time to cut up this big lug!" I cry, and charge the Crawler, jumping away from another beam, and jumping onto the machina. Looking around, I don't notice anything that could be exploited as a weakness, and jump back down, slashing at the metal as I run back. Tidus, Kimahri, and Auron are slicing away at the thing, but they're taking hits from both beams and the gatling gun. Tidus, apparently, has had just about enough.

"Take this!" he yells, jumping and flipping through the air, using his Spiral Cut on the Crawler, and Kimahri focuses as well, growling, before jumping into the air and slamming down on the Crawler with his Jump Overdrive. Unfortunately, not much damage is being dealt.

"Enough!" Auron yells, running up and drawing his sword back like a baseball bat, before slamming it into the front of the Crawler, slicing right into the gatling gun. The Crawler tries to fire again, but ends up completely destroying the gatling gun, jerking back from the explosion.

"Rah!" I yell, running back up to the Crawler, before jumping back onto it. "Wakka, hit the Negator, now!" I cry, and Wakka slams the blitzball into it, and as it wobbles, I jump off the Crawler and slam my sword into it, slicing right through the fragile machina. Immediately, I can feel my magic and aeon powers returning. "Cura!" Healing Wakka, Tidus, Auron, Kimahri, and myself, I take a moment to act as support, while the others attack.

"Thundara!" I hear Lulu yell, slamming into the Crawler with a bolt of lightning, as Wakka continues to hit it with the blitzball, and the others slash at the metal. Suddenly, the Crawler shakes, and begins to glow slightly, unleashing a powerful beam that knocks us all to the ground, wincing painfully from the force of the attack.

"Whoa, that had to be Mana Beam..." I mutter, staring in awe. "This thing can't stay intact any longer! Renzokuken!" Running up, I deliver several slashes, cutting into the machina slightly, before slashing a final time and bouncing off the machina, picking a finishing move that I've just discovered I had.

"This should hurt it! Blasting Zone!" I yell, before planting my feet, gripping my katana with both hands, and holding it up towards the sky. Energy gathers around me, and my katana shines slightly, before a large beam of energy extends from the blade, shooting up through the clouds and sky. After a moment, I notice the move is fully charged, and bring the katana straight down, the beam slamming into the top of the Crawler, setting off small explosions and sparks from the machina. "I think it's almost destroyed! Hit it with everything you've got!" I cry, dropping to a knee and letting off a Thunder spell, the others following suit with their attacks.

"Thundara!"

"Armor Break!"

Wakka throws his blitzball at the Crawler, while Tidus and Kimahri run in alongside Auron for melee combat. The two spells hit the Crawler, setting off more sparks and crackles, and Auron, Tidus, and Kimahri slice into the front, Wakka's blitzball also impacting. The Crawler gives several more small explosions, before shuddering a final time and shutting down.

"Finally!" I cry, utterly exasperated at the resilience of the machina. The mohawked guy has been watching the whole fight, and begins to yell again from the hilltop.

"Rikku! E femm damm Vydran!" he cries, and Rikku glares up at him.

"E ys dra guardian uv Yuna, oui caa? Yuna ec cyva! Fa femm kiynt ran! Cra ec cyva!" she yells back, and the mohawked guy shakes his head, before yelling again.

"Oui tu drec ymuha, cecdan!" he yells, running off, disappearing over the hilltop. As I watch him depart, I suddenly notice Wakka staring at Rikku.

"I told him I was a guardian." Rikku says, giggling. "Well, guess I had to, really." Wakka just continues to stare, finally saying something.

"How come you speak Al Bhed? Why?" he asks, looking at Tidus and Lulu. I mentally groan, wanting to shake my head at Wakka's ignorance. Tidus can't seem to find the words, and so Rikku explains for him.

"Because I'm Al Bhed. And that...was my brother." she says, Wakka's eyes going wide, as he looks at Tidus and Lulu again.

"You knew?" he asks, and they nod. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"We knew you'd be upset." Lulu states simply. Wakka just growls.

"This is great. I can't believe I've been traveling with an Al Bhed! A heathen!" That gets me angry. I won't stand for anyone insulting my friends, and especially not my girlfriend.

"Shut it, Wakka!" I say, walking over to him.

"But, the Al Bhed use machina! They're responsible for Sin! Sin was born because of people using machina!" he says, and I just glare.

"And exactly how were the Al Bhed completely responsible? There were Yevonites too, if I recall!" I growl, thoroughly annoyed at his childish behavior.

"You got proof? Show me proof!" Rikku says, and Wakka turns his gaze to her.

"It's in Yevon's teachings! Not that you'd know!" he says, and I grab him by the shirt.

"One more insult. Just one. I want an excuse to knock your lights out." I say, voice low. Wakka growls, ripping my hand away and throwing a punch at my face. He obviously doesn't seem to remember I'm a martial artist. Dodging the punch quickly, I move behind him, grabbing his wrist in the process, and effortlessly twist it behind his head, bending his arm at the elbow, with his hand now between his shoulder blades. Keeping one hand on his wrist, I grab the other wrist and bend it behind his back, putting that hand together with his other hand. "You were warned." I tell him. "Now, you didn't seem to have any problem with Rikku until someone said something. What's the big deal?"

"She's an Al Bhed! They use machina! It defies Yevon's teachings! That's the problem!" he spits, and I put pressure on his arm, making him wince.

"There is no problem, Wakka. You need to drop your prejudices! We have a job to do, and that's protecting Yuna! I will knock you out if you let your hatred of the Al Bhed get in the way of doing your job as a guardian. Clear?" I say, and he growls. I simply increase the pressure on his arm, making him wince even more.

"Alright, alright! Fine!" he says, and I let him go, causing him to rub his arm.

Funny thing is, no one even tried to stop me. I guess they saw it coming.

"Rikku!" Auron says, examining one of the machina snowmobiles. "Will this move?" he asks, and Rikku runs over to check it out. Nodding, she quickly sets to work on it, and I walk over, watching. I know nothing about mechanics, so I figure I'll just be in the way if I try to help. After a minute or two of fiddling with the snowmobile, Rikku stands up.

"It should work now!" she says, triumphantly. Wakka just growls softly, and I shoot him a glare, shutting him up again.

"Okay, 7 of us, 4 of these. 1 or 2 to each one. Me and Rikku will take one, Tidus and Lulu, Auron and Wakka..." I trail off, noticing Kimahri flip one of them over, get on, and drive off. "And, Kimahri gets his own, I guess." I say, chuckling slightly. Everyone nods, and moves towards the snowmobiles, climbing on and starting them up. Me and Rikku get on one, Rikku taking the back to let me drive. Nodding, I start the engine, and take off after everyone else, heading for Macalania Temple, and Seymour.


And so it begins...the introduction of the other main villain...to the rest of the gang, at least. The next chapter will probably be longer, as quite a bit happens at the temple. As always, please review!