Chapter V – Sir Auron
Alexander threw a fist triumphantly in the air, cheering wildly as Sara and her rescuers appeared. "What happened?" asked Sara.
"Besaid won! The Aurochs actually won!" He yelled while jumping up and down like a maniac. The Besaid Aurochs was a losing team, not making it to the second round for seventeen years, and now made first place, making it through four teams! It was truly an epiphany. The score was 4 to 3.
Maester Seymour raised from his seat, high up in the stadium so everyone could hear him. "Good job, Besaid Aurochs! Excellent performance," complimented the Maester. His hands were making dull roars. He made more comments on the game.
An abrupt scream of terror tore through the tranquil air from the lower levels. Fiends materialized out of space. JENOVA was not happy, even though Gaia's people were. Alexander and Cid moved through the speeding crowds, butting and shoving their way through. Strangely, no monster was Sinspawn. All of these were unsents. Where were they coming from?
Cid sighed as a wolfish beast stood in his path. Its haste and hard shell gave it a great advantage. It shattered into a number of souls suddenly. Auron stood behind it with a huge sword raised on his shoulder. His long red coat, embroidered in many places, billowed in the wind, blowing behind his knees. His left arm was out of his coat, resting it on his left leg, wrapped in black pants. The high collar covered his neck and almost his mouth. Those black boots were made of the night sky. An ivory belt was tied around his waist. A long gash closed his right eye, and dark glasses rested on his nose.
"Sir Auron!" gasped Cid astonishingly, destroying another fiend with several cuts of the blade. A flying monster slashed Auron, hardly penetrating the hard plates of his sleeveless shirt, and showered the sky with pyreflies.
Alexander took several steps backwards until he hit Cid, who faced a large lizard with rose of razor-sharp teeth. The reptile struck with a claw at Cid, attempting to defend. He was knocked into a wall, plunging him into a deep darkness.
Consciousness came in sections. The first time, he felt himself constantly hitting something. His eyes refused to open. Next, the faint aroma of the salt of the sea whisked into his nose. He began to see things, incredibly blurry. Pain throbbed painfully in his stomach until vomit spewed out of his mouth. Something, probably another fiend, stomped all over him, knocking him out once more. Finally, the third time Cid's hand rose for support. His strength could not sustain his body weight. A cold gloved hand met his, pulling him upright. Black flecks danced across his vision as the bright rays of the sun crept into his sight. Cid reached for his sword, impaled into a wall, and stared ahead at Auron.
"It's been nineteen years, Cid. Nineteen years is a long time. Nineteen years changes you," Auron muttered quietly, barely audible. His back was facing Cid.
At the platform high up in the stadium, Maester Seymour raised his arms high above his head. A gigantic metal hook plunged into the ground in front of him, enveloping the vicinity in a black inferno. The hook tightened and rose, revealing a hideous monster that resembled the skeleton of a fish. Chains wrapped the disgusting thing, binding its arms. Similarly, Sara heightened her staff. Pillars of fire surrounded her and vanished, showing a black and red aeon engulfed in fire. A ball of fire erupted from its mouth and struck a flying fiend. Maester Seymour's summoned beast shot strange, clear beans at all the monsters. Billions of souls flew in the sky. It never failed to strike any fiend with its ability to hit right before it landed on the spectators. Red blood rolled out of the monster's eyes. Had Maester Seymour summoned an aeon?
At the landing on the stairs to the highroad, Auron approached Sara.
"Would you permit me to be your guardian?" His voice was clear, deep, and menacing.
Sara put her hands over her gaping mouth.
"Do you decline?"
"N-n-no! Of course not!" she managed to say. Sara bowed to Auron, placing the magic weave of bonding. "Welcome, Sir Auron!"