Chapter IV – Luca
The boat cruised pleasantly at a gentle, slow pace from Kilika port. For now, the journey was a peaceful one. Cid felt a calm wind brush against his face. It seemed so gentle and tranquil but also cold. The air made Cid think.
Some nineteen years ago, he had been that small, innocent child handed form his father to an elderly family. For years, the young Cid grew up unbeknownst of his heritage. He was so naïve and innocent. The talk of his father never reached Cid's ears. Until that fateful day, when Cid discovered a letter addressed to his caretakers, all of his innocence melted away like ice in the sun. It gave a full explanation of the purpose of his giving up of Cid. The message even included some photos of Cid holding his son as a baby, taken by various people. That day, he decided to become a guardian of a summoner. He was confident that he would be remember, even after he died, just like his father, High Summoner Cid, the vanquisher of Sin. Just as he did when he read the letter, a cold chill crept down his back.
Sara rushed into his room below deck. "What happened?" she asked in a slightly frightened tone. Cid put his feet off his bed. "Your presence just…vanished…" Her sentences were broken, incomplete, and hasty.
"I must've masked my bond," muttered Cid. He assumed a relaxing sleeping position.
"How?"
Cid turned away from her. "Sorry but, I can't think right now. Please leave." His last two words were slightly demanding. Sara shut the door and window as she left. Cid looked up at the ceiling, staring into something else all together, wondering what he had done with his life.
Two men were engaged in a clash of swords and wills. As steel rang like trumpets in the air, they hurled the many sword forms known and unknown. But one with wild red hair grew tired and changed to the loser of the duel. In a desperate effort, he ran to a woman in a long dress, placing his sword at her throat. She did not seem afraid at all. In fact, her lips curved into a smile as she raised a staff into the air, creating rings of light around her. He struck with his sword at her with everything he had, but to no avail. That woman was Sara.
He shook himself off the bed, pondering his vision. That had been Sara. But where was he? Who was the man who had lost? Cid exited the door to check on Sara.
The boat docked at the port of Luca. It was the second biggest city in Gaia. The buildings were over a hundred feet high. Sara and her guardians did not leave Luca to go to the Mi'ihen Highroad just yet.
"The Maester's ship is docked at Dock 4," said Sara.
When they arrived, the Maester had just arrived. Everybody bowed their hands and prayed.
The Maester was the ruler of Gaia, of all the land. This one was a new one. He was a person with long blue hair. He also wore the blue cloak of the government over green and red clothes underneath. Evidently, he was a Guado, a strange elfish people.
"Hello everyone!" His voice was like a microphone. "I am Maester Seymour, son of Maester Jyscal." Jyscal was the previous Maester. "I wish you all a good day today, for there will be the blitzball tournament. I will work hard to maintain peace between humans and Guados. But this is no time for a speech. I will see you all at the blitzball tournament." His eyes fell on to Sara, who held her breath until he left.
"Do…do you suppose we can stay for the game?"
The game was halfway through with the Besaid Aurochs and Luca Goers tied 1 to 1. Sara and Alexander had gone to buy food and drinks. They came back quickly a minute later on fast feet.
"Sir Auron is here!" exclaimed Sara happily. "Let's go find him!" She ran quickly to the nearest tunnel exit. Cid followed closely behind with Edgar and Lulu trailing him.
First, they searched the bar. Asking around brought no results.
Somebody shoved Cid rudely to the ground. He recovered swiftly, only to be dealt a hard blow to the face. Drawing his sword, Cid jumped to his feet, eyes scanning for the attacker, but no one was there! He grimaced sourly as he left the bar angrily on the winds of a storm.
"Cid!" called Lulu. "Sara's been kidnapped by the Al Bhed. They say they'll let her go if the Aurochs lose."
He thought for a moment. "Let them take care of the game. Let's go get Sara."
"That's what Alex says…"
The docks were almost empty. Two machine droids with sharp arms ending in points rested in a crouched position and sprung into action as the guardians arrived. Evidently the Al Bhed were expecting them. In one flash of movement, Cid sliced cleanly through the droid, advancing to Dock 3. The other machina was impaled by the spear of Edgar and dispatched by a thunderbolt from Lulu. After all, she was the black mage.
More droids were positioned to halt them. They came in groups of two or three, one after another in never ending waves. However, the web of lightning magic from Lulu exploded into the machinations, tearing them apart like a knife through butter. Once arriving on the dock, Cid, Lulu, and Edgar saw the Al Bhed ship preparing to leave the port. One great leap of faith was all it took to reach the boat. Surprisingly enough, it was much easier than it looked.
Cid straightened on the deck of the ship. The metal floor in front of him opened, revealing a strange machine on four legs with two power motors at the top which were spinning rapidly to provide energy. The middle had many holes to shoot something spherical. It immediately began firing spiked blitzballs, spheres with blue stripes, at the trio. They ran behind a nearby crane for cover.
This gave Cid an idea. "Lulu, do you think you can power this crane with enough electricity to get it going?" he asked. Lulu nodded.
Cid beckoned them closer after peering out to spot the Al Bhed machina. "You need to use this crane to drop the machina into the ocean. Then, you'll know what to do." He winked at Edgar. "Let's go." He and Edgar jumped out.
The deck provided much room to battle. The faint sound of thunder striking the crane could barely be audible. The blitzball rapid-fire was tough to avoid. Sweat stuck his shirt to his back as Cid jumped around the battlegrounds, dodging the sharp edges and batting away the smaller ones. A roar of the starting of an engine brought a smile to Cid. The claws picked up a squirming robot and dropped it into the ocean. Storm clouds began to gather overhead. Thunder and lightning rained down like an avalanche. The water burst noisily with electricity as it conducted the energy. A loud boom brought silence again. The door to the lower areas of the boat grinded open slowly to reveal a slumped body of an unconscious man. Sara stood safely in the opening.
"I hoped you hurt them," declared Cid as he helped Sara out to the deck.
"A little," she replied.
Minutes passed by as they thought of a way to leave. Lulu finally tossed a grenade-like object on to the floor, bursting into an orb of light. On the other side were the stands of the Luca stadium. Sara and Edgar went first. Cid and Lulu were last.