Dream of the Fayth
Author: Chaos Valkyrie
First Conceptualized: April 2006
Posted Chapter 01: August 1, 2006
Theme(s): 11. Lightning.
Disclaimer: I'm not an exclusive programmer, in on lots of neat-o video games and killing off everyone's favorite characters within them. I'm just a poor American girl with a Computer Science degree that she doesn't do jack or shit with.
Author's Note: This is a series of one-shots about Jecht that I'm writing for 30 Fantasies over on Live Journal. I didn't like Jecht at first, but he's grown on me as I've played the game and read fan fiction. That's how "Death's Gamble" came about; that's how this series began to grow. These stories won't be in any kind of chronological order, but they can be sorted into four time frames – Jecht in Dream Zanarkand, Jecht on the Pilgrimage, Jecht as Sin, and Jecht on the Farplane. You should be able to figure out where they go, but if I feel it's vague enough, I'll tell you.
Jumping Jacks
"Tell me again, why are we still out here?" Auron asked with a sigh, leaning against the lightning tower. Jecht rolled his eyes, concentrating. Even relaxed, Auron radiated a stiff formality. 'The statues in the temples are more flexible than this guy!' he thought to himself with a chuckle. He tensed quickly, however, as the light flashed above him, diving to the side quickly as a lightning bolt narrowly missed him. He cheered, then resumed his watch on the skies above.
"I was lookin' through the books at the Travel Agency –"
"You can read?"
"Har har. Anyway, they had this log of different traveling parties and the number of lightning bolts they've dodged passing through." Jecht leapt again before continuing. "They award prizes the more bolts you dodge in one setting."
"Do they award prizes for how many times you get hit?" Auron asked with a wicked twinkle in his eye. Jecht took the opportunity to both dodge the next lightning bolt and put more distance between himself and the irate monk.
"Yes," he answered slowly.
"But Jecht," Braska began reasonably, "I think we have everything we need for the journey. What prize could be worth the delay?" Braska did not look annoyed, however, from his spot on the ground. Of course, the laid-back summoner always seemed content, whether at an inn, temple, or fighting Chimeras in Macalania…
Jecht dived to the left. "I hear the prize for 200 misses is fantastic, somethin' really rare. C'mon! If we break it up three ways, that's only…"
"Don't strain yourself," Auron warned with a smirk. Jecht gave the uptight former monk a rude hand gesture.
"…about sixty-seven jumps a piece. We can do that!" he called, diving again.
"We don't have the time to waste!" Auron shot back.
"Think of it as training, oh anal one," Jecht sneered,
"I'll give you some training!" Auron retorted, leaping forward, his sword arcing towards the blitzer. Jecht scrambled backwards just in time to miss the overly large blade. The light above flashed, and suddenly everything went white in his vision as the lightning hit the ground before him.
Jecht's hands shot to his chest, and he realized rather belatedly that the bolt had missed him. He shook his head to clear his vision, wondering what the strange noise was that he heard. The sight that met his eyes caused him to burst out into laughter, for there on the ground before him was a somewhat scorched, very angry monk, and a summoner vainly trying to contain his laughter.
"Now who needs the trainin'?" Jecht howled, managing to dodge another attack from Auron.
End Note: Just the first of thirty Jecht drabbles. We know Jecht got hit by lightning, thanks to Sphere-cam, but I could see something like this happening to Auron, since Jecht seems to anger him to distraction early in the pilgrimage. Anywho, most of these will probably be kind of funny, but some will take on a more serious note… just depends on the challenge, really. Stay tuned!