Shadow of Darkness
Welcome to chapter 16! My, I never expected this story to get this long… Nor me to write this much! Just a small update about chapter 15. It was re-updated (slightly). Not much was changed, I just lengthened it slightly. So, if you feel up to it, re-read it. Either way, it doesn't effect this chapter. And I do apologize, this chapter is both late and shorter than the rest. It was rather difficult to write! laugh
Chapter 16:
It took nearly two hours, but Rikku and Barthello finally restored the path to Macalania Temple. Despite the chill air, they were sweating heavily- that much magic took quite a physical toll.
Rikku plopped down into the snow, wiping her brow as Effram checked the ice for soundness. She gave a melancholy sigh, staring at the path. Gippal was… he was… Tears burned in her eyes, threatening to fall. Hastily, she blinked to keep them at bay. Ice crunched and with a grunt, Barthello plopped heavily beside her.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
She frowned and shook her head. "I don't know… Helpless, I guess." She sighed again. "Scared…" She glanced at him. "I- I can't do this. I can't handle it." Her bottom lip quivered. "I'm not strong enough. If- if I were Yunie-" She choked back a sob. "If I were her, this would all be over by now!" And with far less death. She was not cut out for this.
Barthello placed a large, comforting hand on her thin shoulder. "It is true that you're not High Summoner Yuna." She sniffled and glanced at him. "But you must have been chosen for a reason," he pointed out.
"Yeah," she muttered wryly, drying her eyes on her sleeve. "I was chosen because I just happened to be there when Marin died."
"You see. You were the one who found her. Not me or Effram or even some other stranger. There was a reason."
She frowned, looking at him. "Al Bhed don't believe in Fate."
He shrugged. "Simply not believing doesn't extinguish the possibility it does exist. And believing doesn't make it so," he added when she opened her mouth to argue. "Be that as it may… I believe you were chosen for a reason."
Rikku shut her mouth and blinked at him. Barthello was a lot wiser than he let on. She always thought of him as all muscle and no brain… She was thoughtfully quiet on this, looking out as Effram returned.
"She's sound," he said with a smile. "Good job, you two." He cast a sidelong glance at Rikku. "Ready to go?" he asked carefully.
Taking a deep breath, she nodded and pushed herself to her feet. She squared her shoulders, staring ahead. "Let's go. And make sure you're careful up ahead. The ice gets narrow further along the path."
Effram nodded and led the way across the new patch of ice. Barthello followed and Rikku brought up the rear. She cast another glance at the ice. There was a glow beneath the ice- pyreflies were still trying to escape- and she felt compelled to destroy the ice and jump in. Perhaps Gippal had survived. He wouldn't be able to get out if he had… Perhaps…
"Rikku! Step up the pace!"
The shout jarred her senses. Shaking her head, she ran to catch up.
''''
"It's awfully quiet here," Effram murmured as they approached Macalania Temple. He was right. There was not the traditional music or chanting that usually sounded around a temple.
Rikku froze as images of the massacre at Djose flooded her senses. "Er… maybe- maybe we should go back?" she suggested. But Effram and Barthello were already heading in. "Guys?" she pleaded. "Guys, come on!"
But they didn't listen. Into the temple they disappeared.
"Oh dear…" Barthello's voice echoed back to her.
"Oh dear? Oh dear what? Guys!" She fidgeted, torn between staying and going to see what happened. But her curiosity finally got the best of her. "I'm going to regret this," she moaned, rushing into the temple.
The first thing she was greeted with was a putrid smell that nearly made her drop. "Ugh! Yeesh, what is that smell?" It was when she caught up with Effram and Barthello that she saw the source of the aroma. It was a sight she had expected… and yet, strangely hadn't. There were bodies strewn across the floor, yet oddly bloodless. She gasped. More Plague?
"They starved," Effram murmured, refuting her theory. He gestured to the corpses and it was then she noticed that they were little more than skin and bone.
She drew in a horrified breath. "But how?"
"The path to the temple was destroyed, as you saw. I doubt any of them were accomplished black mages- the Guado didn't linger, after all."
"And the only ones able to get to them were you Al Bhed," Barthello added, glancing at her. "You know they were too biased to accept help from an Al Bhed."
That made sense, surprisingly. "But… what about the fiends? They could have eaten them," she pointed out. "Right?"
"I'm sure they tried," Effram said thoughtfully. "After all, you may have noticed that, since we passed the broken patch of ice, there have been very few fiends. No doubt they killed off most of them. Unfortunately, the fiends don't stick around to be eaten. They usually turn into pyreflies after they're killed."
"This is awful!" Rikku wailed.
"It's the price you pay for being prejudiced at such a crucial time," he said, kneeling next to one of the decaying bodies.
"We should- we should bury them."
"How? You might not have noticed but the ground is frozen all year round!" he snapped.
"Don't you snap at me!"
"We could cremate the bodies," Barthello suggested, amidst the bickering.
There was silence and then Rikku nodded in agreement.
"We don't have time! We have to investigate your Seymour theory and, if he's not here, we need to make tracks to Zanarkand!" Effram said impatiently.
"Shut up, Effram! We have time for this! You guys can cremate these bodies and I'll look for clues," Rikku snapped, annoyed by his impatience. How could he be so crude?
Barthello nodded and hauled Effram after him before he could argue.
With a sigh, Rikku headed to the entrance to the temple's inner chamber. This would be the room where they killed Seymour- the first time. If he was going to be anywhere (excluding Zanarkand, which seemed to attract all sorts of evil spirits) it would be here. With a deep breath, she pushed the heavy, ornate door open. It creaked, a sound magnified by the utter silence and emptiness of the chamber. Carefully, hesitantly, she stepped into the chamber. She felt as though she was intruding on something sacred.
She harrumphed. There was nothing sacred about this chamber. It was just an elaborately decorated room. She had every right to be in it, considering there were no more Yevonite fanatics lingering to throw her out. Still, she was careful. The heels of her boots made crisp thudding noises as she walked over to the spot Seymour had fallen. She was surprised that she remembered exactly where with such clarity. Kneeling, she touched the cold tiles. She didn't know exactly what she was looking for- just a feeling, some weird realization that this was where he would be found. But she felt nothing of the sort. Nothing but cold stone.
She growled in frustration and slapped her hands onto the ground, wincing as a jolt of pain shot up through her hands to her elbows. Still, it managed to calm her down a bit to think. So, Seymour's spirit didn't linger here.
'Okay. Well, I still have Zanarkand.' She frowned She had wasted so much time to get to Macalania Temple for nothing! If she had just gone straight to Zanarkand, she would have saved a lot of time end effort. "And Gippal wouldn't have died…" She stood. She would help the guys finish cleaning the temple of corpses and then… Zanarkand.
"No luck?" Effram asked, grunting in exertion as he dragged a body towards the funeral pyre.
She shook her head with a sigh. "Say… Effram," she murmured. "Do you think… do you think its someone other than Seymour?"
He paused, wiping the sweat off his brow. "Eh? But weren't you convinced it was him? What changed your mind?"
She twisted her fingers anxiously. "No, I mean… Well, Gippal kept saying I was wrong, you know? Maybe he was right, you know? Like, maybe…"
"You said it yourself, who else could it be? He's the only one that could have that powerful of a grudge right? That you know of? Barthello, let me get that."
"Who else?" she whispered as he and Barthello took care of the last corpse. Yes, Seymour was her most logical choice. "But who else…?"
''''
"Should we stop at Bevelle?" Effram asked as they headed down the trodden path that would lead them from Macalania Woods.
Rikku cast a glance towards the path forking off the main one- the one to Bevelle. Slowly, she shook her head. If she stopped there, she'd never be able to leave until every last person in Bevelle was cured. "No… we need to get to Zanarkand." Zanarkand was only about two or three days or two away, if one walked at a brisk clip. At that thought, her heart felt heavy in a way it hadn't in years. The end of all of this was waiting for them there. After all, where else would it be? She hugged her arms to her chest. She was afraid. Not that she couldn't do it- she knew she was physically capable- but she was afraid of what would happen to her in the process. Would she die? Worse?
They approached the Calm Lands as the sun was setting. Brilliant shades of golds and reds and violets spilled over the grassy plains, making it look otherworldly. It made Rikku sick to her stomach. She wondered if this was how her cousin felt when she stood on this cliff during her pilgrimage, overlooking the plains, thinking about Zanarkand and the terrible fate that would meet her there.
"There is a Travel Agency down there. Shall we stay the night?" Effram asked as they sat down to rest for a moment.
Rikku shrugged. "Let's see how dark it is by the time we get there." It was a long walk across the plains and the hovercrafts had shut down for the night.
He nodded and, after a moment more of rest, led the way down to the Calm Lands.
As it turned out, they ended up sleeping under the stars near the bridge leading to Mt. Gagazet. None of them had enough gil to afford the outrageous prices the inn was charging. The Calm Lands were peacefully quiet though, with only the sound of a gentle breeze blowing through the long, lush grasses. All the fiends that lingered in the area were rounded up for games and races, so they were safe for the time being.
Rikku stared up at the clear sky. The breeze was cool, tousling her long blond hair carelessly. The sky was clear, brimming with brilliant stars and a sliver of a moon hovered in the corner, glowing silver. It would have been the perfect night for sleeping outside, had she not had to face Zanarkand so soon. She could hardly enjoy it.
Sighing, she rolled onto her side. She sorely wished she knew Effram's sleep trick. It was the one time she could really use it. Unfortunately, she couldn't ask him for it because he was fast asleep. And once Effram was asleep, he was dead to the world. He could probably sleep through the rebirth of Sin, bellowing right in his ears.
"Men…" she muttered grumpily. "Useless when you need them."
"What was that?"
She squeaked, startled. Barthello was still awake! She cleared her throat. "Ah… um… Ah, just thinking about the spells I know. And how-how useless they are when I need them…" She bit her lip. That was a bad cover up even for her.
But he didn't press her on it. She was relieved. Dona was really lucky. Barthello was a good guy.
"You can't sleep?"
She sighed, rolling onto her stomach. "No, not really."
"I have an herb that promotes sleep, if you'd like some," he offered.
She poked her head up from the grass. He was sitting up, rather alert, across the fire from her. "Promotes sleep huh? Then why are you still awake?"
"I haven't taken any. I am standing watch?"
"Standing watch?" She arched a brow skeptically. "Watch for what?"
"Bandits. Or fiends."
"Fiends and bandits? Look Barty-"
"Not Barthy. Barthello, if you please."
"Barthello," she stressed, "I don't know if you've noticed but there are no fiends or bandits around here. The park rangers have cleared it out."
"You never know," he said solemnly.
Rikku clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes. Did he really think they were going to be assaulted? 'Honestly, overprotective much?'
Barthello tossed her a small vial. "Here, take this."
She sighed and uncorked the vial. "Cheers," she murmured, knocking back a bitter liquid. She made a fierce face. "Nasty…" And suddenly, her eyes were getting heavy. 'I can't believe it… it worked.' And less than a minute later, she was fast asleep.
''''
It was near noon when Rikku finally woke up. She sat up groggily, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. The Calm Lands were thriving with the sound of chattering birds and folk enjoying the various games. She glanced around in a sort of daze, absently pulling grass from her tangled hair. Barthello was asleep across the dying fire, sitting up. 'Don't know how he can do that.' She frowned. Now where was Effram? The only sign that he had been with him was the matted grasses where he had been sleeping. And surely… he wouldn't let her sleep that long? Not when an important mission was at hand.
Getting up and stretching, she went to wake Barthello. He gave a startled snort and opened his eyes, looking around, rather puzzled.
"When did I fall asleep?" He looked rather funny with broken grass clinging to his short hair.
Rikku ignored this as a stupid question. "Do you happen to know where Effram is? He didn't say anything about leaving to you, did he?"
The big man shook his head. "Not that I recall. He was here this morning." He looked perplexed. "I must have fallen asleep after that. I don't remember falling asleep…"
"Enough, Barthello…." She sighed. This was an unexpected problem. Where could Effram have gone? Should she wait for him? But there was no telling when or even if he would return. She voiced her concerns.
"We could wait for an hour- after all, he could be betting something to eat… or something. And if he doesn't return, we could just leave without him."
"I guess we could do that." She sighed and pulled her knees to her chest. She really hoped nothing serious had happened to Effram. She couldn't deal with another loss. Of course, she was also compelled to beat the crap out of him if nothing had happened to him. He would deserve it if he left without a word! With another sigh, she settled down to wait.
…………………..
iceclown: I'm glad you liked the last chapter.
A-RIKKUGIPPALfan: laughs Well, I'm glad you liked the story! I would have liked more fluff between Rikku and Gippal but alas… That is not how it turned out! Though I must say, you are not the only one convinced that Gippal must still be alive!
lemy: Oh dear, lol! I hadn't intended to make Gippal seem weak and useless… but I suppose that's how he came off, hmm? grin Ah well, I am glad you still enjoy the story!
Cute-Kitty: Ahhh! Do not kill me! Laughs if you do, you will not know the end of the story!
Change in Paradigm: meep My goodness, all of my readers are having quite a violent reaction to Gippal's death! laughs
Fanfic-Lover: laughs Oh dear, your reviews bring a smile to my face! Well, it was very difficult to kill Gippal but at the last minute, I had changed my mind. The death was originally supposed to befall another character.
i won't tell: It is curious that you say you don't like Effram. grin And many of my readers don't want to believe Gippal's dead. I am glad you like this story so much and I hope this chapter is as good as the others
oui: I appreciate your comments
fallenAngel: Well, Gippal fell into a gaping maw with a fiend laughs I'm glad you enjoy the story!
Black Eyed Mistress: Yes, I too felt like Gippal's death was a bit rushed, once I re-read the chapter. It was a difficult scene to write! Anyway, I did add a little more, as you'll probably know if you read the author's note over this chapter. I don't know if it made it any better, but it did make it more detailed. I'm glad you enjoy this story so much! I hope that the next chapter won't take so long to write.
xInsanoBananax: It was very hard to do, but that was part of the reason why he had to die! … And my, I just sounded really cruel there, didn't I? laughs