Chapter 22
Alkaiser and Terra in full esper form prepared to train in Alscape, the alternate dimension that could only be reached through a Hero's power. The place was very dark and not a sound could be heard. Terra and Alkaiser had been training diligently for a while now. Alkaiser especially gained a better understanding of the hero techniques. He found that in a way he could actually create more advanced and powerful techniques by focusing his energy.
Terra had been training hard as well and over the past few days she had been thinking about all that Ramuh had told her. Alkaiser/Red had been getting antsy over the past few days. He wanted to attack Campbell's base as soon as possible but Terra subtly encouraged him to train more and wait. Ramuh had told her that the fight would come to them but she didn't tell Red or Hawk anything about her meeting with Ramuh. She felt that it was something that she should keep to herself.
"Are you ready to spar?" asked Terra.
"Oh yeah I want to try out some new techniques!" said Alkaiser.
"Hmpf I'm still going to beat you" said Terra jokingly.
"Is that right? We'll see about that!"
Alkaiser ran at Terra with his Ray Sword at his side. When he approached he slashed horizontally toward Terra. She ducked evading the attack then leapt up into the air. She floated there and cast a spell. For a few seconds nothing happened.
"Wha.." said Alkaiser confused.
-BOOM-
A powerful bolt of lightning hit him head on knocking him back. Alkaiser landed on his feet and another bolt of lightning came down and Alkaiser ran forward dodging it as it struck.
"This is a new technique…" said Alkaiser as he ran around in a zig zag motion.
"It sure is" said Terra with a smile.
Another bolt of lightning struck and Alkaiser leapt forward to dodge it. He ran towards Terra and prepared an attack. Alkaiser's Ray Sword grew about two feet longer as he held it to his side.
"I've got some new moves too! Kaiser Wing!" yelled Alkaiser.
Alkaiser hurled the sword into the air. It spun around at first then it straightened as its blade sped toward Terra. The sword then changed into an eagle made of green energy. The wings of the eagle were outstretched and it screeched as it sped toward Terra. Terra managed to cast a barrier type spell and managed to block the attack just in time. The eagle crashed into her barrier and knocked her back but not out of the air. The sword changed back into its normal form and flew back into Alkaiser's hand. It then vanished from his hand as he decided not to use it anymore.
"Grrr all these powers and abilities and flight isn't one of them!" yelled Alkaiser as he watched Terra floating in the air.
"Hah hah don't you wish you could do this?" Terra flew around a bit and twirled in the air mocking Alkaiser.
"Very funny…." said Alkaiser.
Terra flew down and landed near Alkaiser.
"Well what about that attack you told me you were perfecting?" asked Terra.
"Oh let me give you a demonstration. This attack takes up a lot of my energy…you might want to step back…" said Alkaiser.
Terra took a few steps back as Alkaiser prepared his most powerful attack. He held his right fist up and suddenly a surge of gold energy began to emanate from it. Alkaiser's fist pulsated with so much energy that Terra could feel it beat against her body from where she stood.
"AL….PHOENIX!"
Alkaiser ran forward and punched the air. The large amount of gold energy seemed to engulf his body. The power of the punched made a booming noise that echoed through out the Alscape.
"Wow…" thought Terra.
Alkaiser fell to his knees and panted. That attack had taken a lot out of him. Terra walked over and placed her arm on his shoulder. One couldn't tell because of his mask but he was smiling at her.
"Black X won't stand a chance with that attack eh?" asked Alkaiser.
"Yes..I guess when that time comes…" said Terra sadly.
"Why do you keep saying things like that? Is there something on your mind?" asked Alkaiser.
"No…I'm fine"
(Next Scene)
Squall and Rinoa stood around in the airport almost in the exact spot that Yuna and the others had waited a few days before. Squall had somehow managed to convince the others that AGRIAS had somehow malfunctioned and that that was how the Training Area got destroyed. He was only barely able to come up with an excuse because the great and powerful Griever that has fought many battles is apparently no good when it comes to lying on the spot.
"Now Squall please be nice to your father" smiled Rinoa as she looked up at him.
"You're telling me? You act like you have such a great relationship with your father" said Squall.
"Well my father isn't the one coming to the Gaia Summit so be nice to Laguna" said Rinoa.
"Hmm Laguna is the one I persuaded to send me to you" said Griever in Squall's head.
"You persuaded him?" asked Squall.
"Well he already wanted to send you the gunblade as a gift but I managed to put it in his head that he should send the ring also" said Griever.
"I see" said Squall.
"Squall, are you alright? You've been staring off into space a lot lately" said Rinoa.
Squall seemed to get a rather blank expression on his face when talked to Griever.
"Oh umm…I just have a lot of things on my mind" said Squall.
"Like marriage…" said Griever.
"Shut up" said Squall to Griever.
"You still haven't asked her" said Griever.
"Leave me alone about that" said Squall.
"Well whatever's on your mind I'm sure it will be ok" smiled Rinoa as she held Squall's hand.
Soon several passengers began rushing out of the exit.
"Do you see him?" asked Rinoa.
"No I…wait I think I see him" said Squall.
In the distance a man with long dark hair walked toward them and he was escorted by several otherspeople in robes. The man was actually more casually dressed. He wore a simple blue cotton shirt, a pair of jeans and some sneakers. This was Laguna Squalls father. Closest to him were two men and a young woman. A tall slender dark skinned man wearing a tighter fitting outfit named Kiros and a very large light skinned man named Ward. The young womans name was Ellone and she wore a blue skirt and blouse and had short brown hair. Laguna smiled as he saw both Rinoa and Squall there.
"Hey..Squall and Rinoa it's good to see you both" said Laguna putting his hand out toward Squall.
Squall shook his hand and managed to crack a smile.
"Hey" said Squall awkwardly. He didn't feel right saying something like "Hey dad" so he kept it simple.
Rinoa then gave Laguna a hug.
"It's so good to see you" said Rinoa.
"Oh Squall it's so good to see you" said Ellone
"Hey sis" said Squall. He gave her a hug.
"Rinoa you're looking great as always" said Ellone.
Rinoa chuckled and gave her a hug as well.
"You two been holding out alright? Haven't had many fights have you?" asked Laguna jokingly.
"Not too many" laughed Rinoa nudging Squall with her elbow.
"She's taken the fight out of me I just blindly do what she says" joked Squall.
"Heh heh, you remember Kiro's and Ward?" said Laguna.
"Hello Squall" said Kiro's.
Ward simply smiled. He lost his voice a few years ago due to an accident.
"Hey there" said Rinoa.
"Hi" said Squall.
"Well what do you say we go grab a bite to eat or something? I want to cram as much fun things in before all this boring political stuff starts" said Laguna.
"With an attitude like that I bet you're wondering how he became president?" joked Kiros.
(Next Scene)
Kairi, Garnet, Sora and Zidane sat on a bench in Square Park that day. Riku was off somewhere with Rikku and Vivi had gone to get a hotdog.
"Garnet I can't believe you kept this big a secret from me" laughed Kairi.
"I know I'm sorry" said Garnet.
"No wonder you could afford all that expensive stuff" said Sora.
"I don't know why you'd think we'd look at you differently" said Kairi.
"That's what I was telling her" said Zidane.
"I don't know I just didn't want to blab it to everyone. You don't know how it is. The media can be so annoying and I've managed to stay under the radar for so much of my life" said Garnet.
"I guess I can understand that. Princess Marle is in town and the papers have been snapping pictures of her doing the most mundane things like…eating" said Kairi.
"I know the media is terrible" said Garnet.
"Do you know Princess Marle?" asked Zidane
"No I've never met her. I heard she was at Tifa's club the other night though" said Garnet.
Just then Vivi walked up holding two hotdogs. He stood in front of Garnet then he knelt to one knee.
"Oh fair princess please accept my humble offering of bread and miscellaneous meat" said Vivi as he held a hotdog in Garnet's face. Everyone burst out laughing.
"Why thank you kind sir" smiled Garnet as she accepted the hotdog.
"So a lot of people will find out you're the princess when the Gaia summit starts eh?" asked Sora.
"Yes…but I guess I couldn't hide it forever" said Garnet as she took a bite out of her hotdog.
"Look there's old man Maechen telling stories again" said Vivi
They looked and a few feet away Maechen was telling an old story to some kids.
"…then the mighty Griever defeated the evil Catoblepas and everyone lived happily ever after…and that as they say…is that…" said Maechen.
"That guy must have over a thousand stories" said Zidane.
(Next Scene)
Aya walked into the police stations firing range with Fuse after a mandatory vacation. She felt good to be back but some strange things had been happening to her in the past few days.
"Glad to have you back Aya" said Fuse as he put on some protective glasses.
"It's glad to be back" said Aya as she put on some glasses as well.
The firing range was indoors in the police stations basement. Several other officers were in a line firing handguns at paper targets on the other end. Each of the officers was separated by large partitions. Aya and Fuse held some handguns as they walked over to the end of the line.
"I hope your aim hasn't gotten too rusty" joked Fuse.
"Hmpf…you wish" chuckled Aya as she stepped in between her partitions. She looked to her left and her right…no one was looking at her. She decided now was a good time to use this strange energy that had been appearing on her body. She aimed the gun and concentrated. The gun began to glow with a green energy.
"Steady…"
Aya aimed at the targets head then slowly pulled the trigger. The bullet shot out of the gun was incased in a large spherical green orb. It sped toward the target which was a paper cutout of a person and completely incinerated it.
"Whoa too much power!" thought Aya.
Fuse saw Aya's target go up in smoke.
"What the hell?"
Fuse walked around to Aya's side and stared at her.
"What happened?" asked Fuse.
"Umm I don't know must have caught a spark from somewhere…." said Aya.
(Next Scene)
Rikku, Paine, Riku, and Nida had just finished getting something to eat. They stepped out onto the sidewalk and began walking together.
"So yeah Squall wrecked the Training Area so I have to help fix it later on today" said Nida.
"How long will it take you to fix it?" asked Paine.
"It's pretty banged up it'll take a few weeks" said Nida.
"Hey what's everyone doing over there?" asked Riku.
"They're all crowded around that news stand" said Rikku.
The four of them walked up to the crowd. Many of the people were holding magazines and all of them were pointing to the cover. Paine walked up and looked at a magazine on one of the racks.
"Rikku…" said Paine.
"What is it…oh my…" Rikku looked at the cover and sure enough it was the picture of Lenne kissing Tidus at the club. The cover had all sorts of things like "Tidus and Lenne's secret love affair" and "Plans for a secret wedding".
"This can't be true! Tidus couldn't do this…could he?" asked Rikku.
"You know the tabloids blow a lot of things out of proportion" said Nida.
"That's right it might not be as bad as it looks Rikku" said Riku.
"Do you think Yunie has seen this?" asked Rikku.
"I don't think so. She's preparing for her duel now" said Paine.
(Next Scene)
"I'll kill him! I told him not to hurt her!" yelled Wakka as he stomped throughout his home. He was furious because a show on television had just run the same story about Tidus and Lenne.
"Wakka! Calm down now! There could be more to the story don't jump to conclusions" said Lulu trying to calm him down.
"Yeah there's more to the story alright! The rest of the story is me throwing a blitzball at Tidus and knockin' him out ya?"
(Next Scene)
On the other side of town Dona was preparing to go to the Summoner Academy when she passed by a sidewalk news stand. She stared at the magazine and a grin quickly stretched across her face.
"My my my…isn't this a shame…" said Dona as she picked it up.
"Excuse me sir how much for this magazine?" asked Dona.
"10 gil" said the man behind the counter.
Dona reached into her shirt of all places and somehow magically produced the money. She handed it to the cashier and was on her way.
"Daddy's little girl is going to be in for a surpise" thought Dona.
(Next Scene)
Far away the Returners were still trying to find a way to get to Square City. Setzer had Vincent's Exit Materia and by studying the diagrams that they stole they hoped to produce a working model that would teleport them to Square City. As of now they had no luck but they continued to work on it. Vincent stepped out on the deck once again and Shadow was out there staring off into the forest.
Vincent had mostly tried to avoid Shadow. He hoped he wouldn't snap and try to kill him but somehow he felt that there was more to Shadow. For some reason he felt that there was something or someone out there that Shadow cared about. For this reason Vincent felt that he needed to talk to him.
"They're making a little progress on getting us out of here" said Vincent trying to make a little small talk. Shadow seemed to be ignoring him.
"I really would like to get back to Square City and see Quistis again" said Vincent continuing.
After a few moments Shadow finally spoke.
"That's the girl?" asked Shadow.
"Yeah that's the girl you err…yeah that's her" said Vincent.
"You care about her a great deal?" asked Shadow.
"Yeah, I do. Not a day goes by that I don't think about her…Shadow is there something you care about? I mean other than your dog or money and stuff like that?" asked Vincent. Vincent felt that he was really pushing it with this question but he felt he should ask anyway.
After a few moments Shadow spoke again.
"Why does it matter?" asked Shadow.
"Well it does matter. There is more to life than getting gil and doing your job. I didn't always realize that" said Vincent.
"I have a daughter…but what does it matter now? These hands have done too much wrong to ever hold her"
Shadow began to walk away.
"It's not too late Shadow" said Vincent.
Shadow walked away and thought to himself.
(Flashback)
Far away in a village called Thamasa Shadow watched a little girl painting on an easel. It was night and Shadow watched from some woods through the girl's window. The little girl wore a red out fit with a red bandana like scarf that was tied around her head. She smiled happily with every stroke of the brush and the painting was so lovely that it looked as if it could actually come to life…
Shadow watched her painting then an old man opened the girl's bedroom door and stepped into the room. He wore a red cape and had a large white mustache with white hair that stood up sort of like a Mohawk. Behind him as he walked into the room came Interceptor. Interceptor limped and his right leg was bandaged. Shadow could hear faintly they're conversation.
"Oh Strago he's hurt!" said the little girl putting down her brushes. She knelt down by Interceptor and began petting him. He began licking her face playfully.
"Heh heh" giggled the little girl.
"Relm we're going to take care of him while the owner is away" said Strago the old man.
"Who's the owner?" asked Relm.
"Well…uhhh…he's a man that travel's around the world and he doesn't have time to look after him right now" stuttered Strago.
"Oh ok well I'll look after you and take good care of you! Do you like that?" giggled Relm as she petted the dog.
Shadow watched her laughing and playing with Interceptor then in an instant he vanished into the darkness of the woods.
(End Flashback)
Shadow walked to the other end of the deck and sat down on the ground. Vincent watched him from afar.
"I know there's more to him that this" thought Vincent.
(Next Scene)
Palmer looked around nervously as he stepped into his office…if you could call it that. Palmer was a Shinra executive over the now discontinued space program so no one took him seriously. He resented this. His office was very small and most of the other executives had storage closets in their office that were bigger than his entire office. He shut the door then pulled out his cell phone as he sat down at his desk. He dialed a few numbers and the phone rang.
"Hello" answered someone on the other end.
"Campbell?"
"This is she what is it Palmer?" answered Cindy Campbell.
"You told me to tell you if anything shady came up. The new president is looking to cut you all out of the deal. He's planning to up the number of troops and wants to eventually cut you all and the Empire out of everything" whisper Palmer.
"Is that so…and after all that we've done for the Shinra…he he thank you for this information Palmer. You will be rewarded" said Campbell.
"Alright then bye" said Palmer as he hung up the phone.
"He heh heh! I'm going to be rewarded!" Palmer spun his swivel chair around in excitement but the cheap chair broke and he fell on the ground.
"Hmpf…They gave Heidegger and Scarlet new swivel chairs…why not me?..."
(Next Scene)
Seifer was on the altar with his eyes closed and his head held down.
"My knight the time is nearly at hand" Ultimecia's voice came from behind Seifer then she suddenly appeared. She began rubbing Seifer's back and then his chest from behind.
"The foolish president has been killed…our deal with him is done but we'll still destroy the kursed SeeD.
Seifer said nothing. His eyes were still closed and his head was down.
"Did you know that SeeD was formed to keep my kind in check? Ha! A daughter of Hyne is bound by no one! They'll pay for their foolishness….we'll make them pay won't we Seifer?" Ultimecia laid her head on Seifer's shoulder and hugged him from behind.
"Then when they're gone our power will subdue all of Gaia!" Ultimecia began to laugh hysterically.
Seifer lifted his head and opened his eyes. His eyes now shined red with evil and hate and a sinister grin crept on his face.
(Next Scene)
Cloud, Red XIII, and Zack rode a bus to their first mission as freelance mercenaries. Cloud and Zack sat next to each other and Red XIII had a seat by himself behind them. He sat on his hind legs in the chair and looked out the window. They were headed to a few miles outside of Square City which was a more rural area. Cloud and Zack had on the new uniforms that Auron gave them. The uniforms met Zack's approval of having a great look. He played with the red scarf that came with it. They even had their Ragnorak swords in cases above them in some holding compartments.
"Zack how long do you think this mission will take?" asked Red XIII from the seat behind them.
"Umm I don't know. It shouldn't take more than a day or two why?" asked Zack.
"Well I want to get back to Square City in time to see my grandpa when he comes for the Gaia Summit" said Red XIII.
"Oh don't worry about that we should be back in time" said Zack.
"Alright that's great. Is Cloud still asleep?" asked Red XIII.
"Yeah, it's not even going to take us that long to get there and he's already sleeping like a baby" said Zack.
Cloud sat near the window and his head pressed against the glass. As he slept Cloud had a very strange dream that went from one strange event to another.
(Cloud's Dream)
Cloud and Zack were riding in the back of a truck down a long dirt road. Cloud noticed that Zack was dressed in the Shinra SOLDIER uniform and his eyes were different. They were strange and glowed with a light green color. For some reason Cloud felt very sick.
"You know Cloud I've been thinking…we should become mercenaries" said Zack as he looked at Cloud.
The scene quickly changed and now Zack was holding Cloud up as they walked toward what looked like a large city in the distance.
"Uh oh I hear someone…Cloud stay here…" Zack helped Cloud sit down on the grass. Then he ran off into some bushes.
Cloud noticed he felt very weak once again. He could barely move and he fell over on the ground. In the distance he heard what sounded like gun shots and a sword clashing. Soon Zack came running through the bushes again. He was wounded. As he turned around Cloud heard several gun shots and Zack fell to the ground. Two Shinra soldiers came walking up to him.
"This one's dead…and that guy isn't going to make it much longer" said one of the soldiers as he looked at Cloud.
Cloud next found himself in a bar and Tifa was standing there serving drinks. He sat down at the stool and Tifa walked up to him.
"Did you and Barrett have a fight?" asked Tifa.
Next Cloud found himself being yelled at by Barrett in what looked like a basement.
"Don't go thinkin' you so bad just 'cause you was in SOLDIER!" yelled Barrett.
Now everything got dark and Cloud was surrounded by voices and images of people he knew and some he was sure he had never met flashed around him.
"…That was my sin…" said Vincent appearing in front of him.
"…don't forget me if another Cait Sith comes along…" said Cait Sith appearing as Vincent vanished.
"…sit down and drink your goddamn tea!..." yelled Cid.
"…Cloud be strong…" said Tifa.
"…you spikey headed jerk! One more time, let's go one more time!..." yelled Yuffie.
"…there ain't no gettin' of this train we're on…" said Barret.
"I am Nanaki son of Seto!..." said Red XIII.
Finally Aeris appeared in front of Cloud.
"…just leave Sephiroth to me…" said Aeris as she smiled at him.
Cloud looked at Aeris for a moment then suddenly…
"Ugh"
Aeris winced in pain as a sword pierced through her back. She slumped to the ground dead as the killer pulled the sword out of her back. Cloud stood face to face with Sephiroth who smiled coldly at him.
"…you're only a puppet…" laughed Sephiroth.
(End Cloud's dream)
"AHH" Cloud woke up and screamed.
"Hey calm down man you must have had a bad dream" said Zack.
"Oh…yeah…" said Cloud scratching his head.
"I bet it was one of those dreams where you're falling and you wake up and as soon as you're about to hit the ground. I hate those. Anyway we're here" said Zack as he stood up and started getting things out of the upper compartments.
The bus had stopped at a bus terminal in the middle of a rural area. Several of the passengers got off the bus. When Cloud and Zack finished getting their things they along with Red XIII made their way off the bus. Almost as soon as they stepped off they were greeted by a middle aged man with brown hair and glasses. Beside him was a middle aged woman with brown hair and a young girl that had her brown hair in a pony-tail.
"Are you all the mercenaries?" asked the man.
"Yep that'd be us. Are you Professor Howard?" asked Zack.
"Yes I'm Professor Doug Howard and this is my wife Professor Amy Howard and my daughter Priscilla" said Professor Doug.
"Hey I'm Zack this is Cloud and Red XIII" said Zack.
"Hey" said Cloud.
"Hello" said Red XIII.
"It's nice to meet you all" said Professor Amy.
"Daddy, are we going to the site now?" asked Priscilla.
Professor Doug bent down and smiled at his daughter.
"We have to make sure it's safe and that all the fiends are gone" said Professor Doug.
"That's why these men are here to help us" added Professor Amy.
"Ok…I hope they can make it safe soon. I want to help you find out more about the Knights daddy" smiled Priscilla.
"I know you do honey" smiled Professor Doug.
"Don't worry we'll have that place fiend free in not time" said Zack surging with confidence.
"So the place is a high fiend area?" asked Cloud.
"It most likely is. There have been reports of large fiends as well. The area is a few miles north of here near the bay. My students are in a nearby village and we've been staying there. We'll drive you there" said Professor Doug.
They all began walking toward Professor Doug's van to head to the village.
"Easiest gil we'll ever make" said Zack under his breath to Cloud.
(Next Scene)
At the Summoner Academy Yuna prepared for the Summoner's Duel. She had been there almost all day focusing her mind in preparation for the duel with Dona. Whenever it was time for a new High Summoner the top student was usually selected to become the apprentice. However, whenever there were two students whose skills were closely matched they had to duel in order to decide who would be the next apprentice. When Braska was at the Summoner Academy he didn't have to duel anyone. His skills were vastly superior to all of his classmates.
Yuna walked into the area of the Academy that would be the setting of the duel. It was a very large room with white marble floor and high ceiling. At the top of the ceiling was a stained glass sky light. On the opposite end of the room was a high balcony. Braska, Issaru, and Lady Belgemine sat in the balcony. These were the seats for the High Summoner and Summoner leaders of the school to oversee the duel. As Yuna walked into the room Braska noticed her in the distance and he smiled proudly. Yuna was too far to see this though.
On the left and right sides of the room were coliseum like seats where several other top ranked Summoner's from all over Gaia had come for this event. The only ones that could watch the duel were full fledged Summoners so Garnet and Eiko were not there. In the stands there was one person that Yuna did not realize would be there. Seymour Guado watched Yuna walk in and he too cracked a smile…an almost sinister one.
There was still a bit more time left before the duel would start but Yuna wanted to get there early and get comfortable. Yuna walked to the left side of the room and sat down on a stone bench. Yuna was dressed in her Summoner clothes and she held a small staff with a blue ball at the top.
"It's finally time….is this really what I want?" thought Yuna.
Ever since her conversation with her father about having to leave Square City if she got the apprenticeship she had been questioning herself. All of her friends were here and Tidus was here and she loved him. She didn't want to leave but on the other hand she could finally be with her father. Yuna sat there for a few minutes when Dona finally arrived. She held a magazine in her hands.
"My my my daddy's little girl showing up right on time as usual?" mocked Dona as she walked up to Yuna.
Yuna simply ignored Dona.
"You know I would have gotten here sooner but I found this really interesting piece of reading material and I just couldn't pull myself away" said Dona softly as she sat down beside Yuna.
Dona put the magazine right next to Yuna and chuckled. Yuna's mouth dropped as she saw the picture. She grabbed it and looked at it but she couldn't believe what she saw. It was the picture of Lenne kissing Tidus at Tifa's Club.
"She must have done that when I went to the bathroom" thought Yuna.
Yuna felt a nasty combination of hurt, anger, and confusion mixing around inside of her. Was Tidus cheating on her this entire time?
"Aww poor thing…I can see it in your face that you didn't even know. Have you been here all day? It's all over the television too and everyone knows about Lenne's new fling. Anyway good luck on the duel" said Dona insincerely. She got up and walked away.
Yuna was still sitting there looking at the magazine in shock. She felt a tear well up in her eye but she quickly wiped it away. Yuna quickly composed herself but this last antic of Dona's had simply pushed Yuna too far. Yuna had grown tired of Dona's constant harassment and now she knew that the time had come to make her pay…
Lady Belgemine, a Summoner wearing green robes stood up and addressed everyone.
"Welcome fellow Summoners. We are happy to see so many of you from all over Gaia have come to witness this rare yet glorious event. Two of our pupils have earned the right to become apprentice to the High Summoner. I wish them both the best of luck and encourage them both to use all the skill that they have acquired here at the Academy"
Lady Belgemine sat down and the whole audience clapped. Isaaru then stood up and addressed everyone.
"I am also happy to see so many of our order gathered here today. The two students competing today are fine upstanding individuals as well as star pupils"
"Fine upstanding individual? He obviously never knew Dona that well" thought Yuna
Would the High Summoner like to say a few words?" asked Issaru turning to look at Braska.
Braska then got up and spoke.
"I would just like to say that I'm happy to be here and that I wish them both the best of luck" said Braska keeping it very short and simple.
Everyone clapped and Braska sat down. Lady Belgemine got up again and stepped forward.
"Would Lady Dona and Lady Yuna please take their positions in the arena?" asked Lady Belgemine.
On the white marble floor in the room was a large area that was sectioned off as the combat area. On the right and left sides of it were lines where Dona and Yuna would stand. Dona took her place at the left side while Yuna took her place at the right. Suddenly a wall of blue energy extended from the floor all the way up to the ceiling. It covered the audience on both sides and the area where Braska was sitting. This energy was to protect the audience from any stray attacks made by the Aeons.
Dona had a slight grin on her face. She hoped that showing Yuna that magazine would break her concentration enough to give her an edge. You see deep down Dona knew that Yuna was the better Summoner whether she would admit it to herself or not she knew. Dona always resorted to little tricks and mind games to break Yuna's concentration. Yuna looked at Dona with an expressionless stare.
"Lady Dona and Lady Yuna the rules are simple. The winner of the duel is the one that gains the best out of three matches. You may choose any Aeon that you have learned to use. The duel begins…now" said Lady Belgimine.
The duel had now started and both Yuna and Dona summoned their first Aeon.
"Shiva! Queen of Ice I call you forth!" said Dona waving her staff.
"Ixion! Master of Lighting I call upon you!" said Yuna at the same time.
In front of them both large portals appeared. In front of Dona the Aeon known as Shiva leapt out of the portal. Her skin was blue as well as her long braided hair. At the same time Ixion jumped out of the portal in front of Yuna. Ixion was a large unicorn and electricity swirled around its body.
"Attack!" yelled Dona.
Shiva ran toward Ixion and did a spinning kick that struck Ixion across the face. Ixion was knocked back a bit but then shook off the hit.
"Be Strong. Counter attack" said Yuna in a voice that was more soothing that Dona's. Dona yelled at her Aeons.
"Dodge it now!" yelled Dona in a gruff tone.
Shiva leapt back quickly and avoided the swipe of Ixion's long horn.Shiva was much more agile than Ixion.
"Heavenly Strike!" yelled Dona.
Shiva lifted her hand and suddenly a huge block of ice fell from the sky and landing directly on Ixion. Ixion was damaged a good bit by the attack. Ixion fell on its front legs in pain.
"Don't give up! You can do it! Cast Thundaga on yourself" said Yuna constantly encouraging her Aeon.
Ixion managed to stand up straight. With a loud neigh and a shake of its head it case a Thundaga spell. The large bolt of lighting struck Ixion and the use of its own elemental power healed most of its wounds.
"Use your Aerospark" said Yuna.
Ixion held its head down and ran a bit toward Shiva. As it lifted its head two razor sharp discs appeared and began flying toward Shiva at great speed. Even the agile Shiva couldn't dodge them as they flew at her from both sides. They hit her at the same time cutting across her body. Shiva knelt down on the ground from the damage that had been inflicted on her.
"Now! Finish it now! Diamond Dust!" yelled Dona.
Shiva got to her feet and prepared to use her overdrive. Shiva then concentrated and the surrounding area suddenly got very cold.
"Ixion, attack her quickly" said Yuna.
Ixion ran toward Shiva. Shiva lifted her hands and as Ixion ran toward her it began to slow down. Its body was slowly becoming frozen as pieces of ice began to form on its body. Soon it came to a complete stop. Shiva focused some more and Ixion's body was now covered in a thick block of ice.
"Oh no" thought Yuna.
Shiva stood up straight and lifted her right hand. She then snapped her fingers and the ice shattered into thousands of pieces. Shiva defeated Ixion. Ixion fell to the ground and slowly vanished.
"The first round goes to Lady Dona" said Isaaru.
Yuna prepared to summon her next Aeon. She thought for a moment that she should choose Ifrit which was a fire Aeon to counter Shiva the ice Aeon. Most Summoner's would have used this strategy but Yuna decided against it.
"Ifrit could damage Shiva easily but then Shiva could also damage Ifrit easily with ice" thought Yuna.
Yuna had to win this next round to continue. If Dona beat her in this second round it would be all over. Dona had a slight smirk on her face as Yuna finally chose her Aeon.
"Valefor, Free like the wind…aid me" said Yuna.
The Aeon Yuna called forth was very first one she ever had and it held a special place in her heart. This Aeon had no elemental weaknesses but was generally not as powerful as the other Aeons. Valefor flew out of a portal that appeared above Yuna. Valefor looked like a large bird with bat like wings. It flew down and landed near Yuna. It bent its head down toward Yuna and she petted it softly whispering reassuring words in its ear.
"Whenever you're done petting him I'd like to get on with beating you" mocked Dona.
Valefor looked toward Dona and screeched loudly. It was as if it understood that Dona was making fun of Yuna and it didn't like it one bit. It then began hovering above ground.
"Shiva, punish this weak Aeon!" yelled Dona.
Shiva ran toward Valefor and attempted to hit it with a jumping spin kick but Valefor easily hovered above her and dodged the attack.
"Be strong and use Sonic Wings" said Yuna.
Valefor began to flap its wings and soon a shockwave of energy sped toward Shiva. Shiva flew back several feet as she was hit by the shockwave. Shiva skid across the ground and laid there.
"Quick, heal yourself now! Cast Blizzaga!" yelled Dona angrily.
Shiva was stunned and could react quickly. She slowly got up off the ground. This was an effect of the Sonic Wing attack. It would delay the actions of whoever it struck.
"Ugh! Stupid Shiva heal yourself now!" yelled Dona angrily.
Up in the balcony Braska had been watching the fight closely and the main thing he noticed was the difference in the way Dona treated her Aeons and the way Yuna treated hers.
"Dona talks to her Aeons in an angry tone. They have souls and feelings and choose to aid us. She will never go far treating them like that" thought Braska.
"You can do it! Do Sonic Wing again" said Yuna.
Valefor flapped its wings again and the shockwave struck Shiva again before she could react. Shiva fell to the ground again and was delayed in reacting once again.
"Grrrr" said Dona frustrated.
"This is it do it once more with all your might" said Yuna.
Valefor flapped its wings once again and sent the shockwave of energy out toward Shiva. This final blow finished Shiva. She fell to the ground and then slowly vanished.
"The second round goes to Lady Yuna. This is the final round whoever wins this will win the duel" said Isaaru.
"Ifrit, Lord of Fire! Come forth!" yelled Dona wasting no time in selecting her next Aeon.
A large demon like Aeon with a huge set of horns on its head jumped out of the portal that appeared in front of Dona. As it landed on the ground it let out a booming roar.
"Ifrit Meteor Strike!" yelled Dona.
Dona wasted no time in attacking. Ifrit formed a large ball of fire in its hands and then it batted it toward Valefor. The ball of fire sped toward Valefor and struck its midsection. Valefor screeched in pain.
"Stay on him don't let up your attack!" yelled Dona. Ifrit ran and leapt toward Valefor. Valefor flew higher as Ifrit tried to slash with its claws.
"Thank you so much! Use the spell I taught you" said Yuna.
Valefor cast a Blizzaga spell from the air. The cold icy blast of the spell hit Ifrit and damaged him quite a bit since it was his elemental weakness. The Blizzaga spell was not a spell that Valefor could cast naturally. It was a spell that Yuna taught it.
"You taught it Blizzaga?" asked Dona angrily and with disbelief.
"Valefor try it again you're doing great" said Yuna.
Valefor cast the Blizzaga spell once again and this time Ifrit was knocked back several feet by the ice blast. Ifrit had been damaged enough to do its Overdrive attack.
"It's over now! Ifrit end this duel with Hellfire!" yelled Dona.
Ifrit leapt in the air and began forming a large ball of fire. The ball continued to grow as Ifrit ascended higher into the air almost to the ceiling. Finally Ifrit shot the massive ball of fire down at Valefor. Valefor screeched in pain as the fire ball struck it.
"Be strong! No matter what happens I'm proud of you" said Yuna soothingly.
Valefor kept screeching in pain as the fire encircled its body. It could hear Yuna's words and somehow it pushed harder to stand the pain.
"Finish it!" yelled Dona.
Ifrit landed on the ground and sunk its claws into the floor. With a mighty pull it yanked a large piece of the floor out and then hurled it toward Valefor. The piece of the floor flew toward Valefor and dashed to pieces on impact. Valefor fell to the ground. It had been severely damaged.
"It's over" laughed Dona.
"Valefor, my first Aeon. I'm so proud of you. You've fought with all your might. If we lose I know that you've done your best" said Yuna soothingly.
"My my my she coddles it like it was a baby…let's put him and you out of your misery. Ifrit attack now!"
As Braska said earlier Aeons were beings with a soul and feelings. Valefor heard Yuna's words and it heard Dona's words. As it lie there slumped on the ground a feeling of anger rushed through its body. Valefor knew it could not let Yuna lose to the likes of her.
Ifrit ran toward Valefor prepared to make the final blow.
"It's ok be strong" said Yuna softly.
-SCREEEEEEE-
Valefor leapt up and flew high in the air screeching loudly all the way. It was filled with a new energy. Ifrit stopped dead in its tracks.
"Wha?..." asked Dona surprised.
Valefor flew almost to the stained glass skylight in the ceiling. It stopped and hovered there.
"Valefor! I knew you could do it! Energy Blast!" yelled Yuna joyfully.
Valefor stretched its wings out as far as it could and opened its mouth wide. White energy began to form in its mouth. It then shot down a massive stream of white energy toward Ifrit. The energy hit Ifrit and incinerated him almost instantly.
"Noooooo!" yelled Dona.
The stream of energy finally exploded toward Dona's direction. Dona was knocked back by the blast and flew back several feet. As she hit the ground she slid for several more feet until finally stopping.
"Lady Yuna has won the third round and the duel" said Lady Belgemine.
The crowd roared in applause and everyone stood up.
"Hmm well done Lady Yuna…" thought Seymour with a shady grin on his face.
Yuna looked up at Valefor.
"Thank you so much. I'm so proud of you" said Yuna.
Valefor looked down on Yuna and gave a high pitched screech of joy then it vanished.
"Lady Yuna will be the next apprentice to the High Summoner!" said Isaaru.
Braska was clapping and cheering loudly. He was so proud of his daughter that day that it felt like his heart was melting away. Dona finally got up off the ground. She had no excuses. She couldn't say that Yuna's father helped her at all. She had been beaten fair and square and that day she had to give Yuna credit. She stood up and clapped along with the others.
Yuna smiled as everyone around her cheered for her. She smiled on the outside but on the inside she was hurt. She had so much on her mind now about Tidus and Lenne. She really felt like crying but she held back her tears…and smiled.
(Next Scene)
Sephiroth stood at the foot of Mt. Gagazet. A few feet behind him a stolen Shinra helicopter was parked. He looked up at the highest mountain in Gaia. The peak of it was shrouded by fog. He began walking slowly up a snowy path.
"Once again…my destiny awaits me…in the north"
(End Chapter 22)
Hey folks. If you're reading this then you've read another chapter and I really appreciate it. I hope you enjoyed it. I would have updated sooner but I've been sick the past few days. Alkaiser and Terra are training and Al's learned some new moves. Terra has somehow managed to keep him from fighting Black X on his own. Laguna, Ward, Kiros, and Ellone are finally in the picture. It seems Garnet's friends love her just the same after finding out she's a princess so she was worried about nothing. Aya is experimenting with some new abilities but what's causing this?
We found out that Palmer is a double crosser but can you blame him? Shinra treats him like dirt. Give the man a new swivel chair! Will Lulu be able to stop Wakka from knocking Tidus out with a blitzball? Will Griever stop bothering Squall? Can the Returners figure out a way to get the Exit Materia working so they can get to Square City in time? Does anyone smell nachos? Did that last question make any sense? There seems to also be a lot more to Shadow. Seifer is all messed up by the crazy Ultimecia and hopefully Cloud's weird visions won't stop him from performing well in the next mission.
I hope you liked the Summoner's Duel. I know I've been talking about it for a while but a lot of things had to happen first before they actually had it. Poor Yuna, what will happen when she confronts Tidus? Find out next time.