Chapter XV – Home
Again, Cid came from a deep sleep. He opened his eyes, only to be stung. It was then that he noticed he was in an oasis in a desert. Rubbing water out of his eyes, Cid stepped out of the oasis. "Where am I?" he asked himself. Suddenly, a giant bird stopped in front of him. Cid ran to it and stabbed it as hard as he could with his sword, but it wasn't enough. The bird came swooping down, making a full circle with its talons out, sharp and deadly.
A chunk of ice fell on the bird's head. The fiend fell to the ground under the weight of the giant block. It then proceeded to burst into a shower of pyreflies. Auron and Lulu stood behind it.
"Where are the others?" Cid asked automatically after defeating the monster.
Lulu shook her head. "Haven't found them yet. We're supposed to stay in one place if we get split up."
"Wait here if you want," said Cid. He looked at Auron, who was already walking away. "He's not."
The desert was a really hot place. The scorching heat beat down on the three. Sweat dripped down their faces, but Auron certainly didn't seem to care. Luckily, they remembered to drink all the water they could before leaving the oasis. Fortunately, they found the others quickly, one after another.
First, they found Alexander under the shade of a tent. "Where's Sara?" he asked as soon as he saw them. Cid, Lulu, and Auron all shrugged. "Damnit! First I lose Sara. Then I'm ambushed by machina! Great day I'm having…"
After Alexander, Edgar was discovered. He was running up a sand dune, but it was too steep. He slid back down, shaking his head one final time before giving up. "Sara is gone…" For once, Edgar seemed to be disappointed. Cid tried to give him some cheery words, but they didn't seem to have any effect.
Helena was on the top of a sand dune, scanning the area. "Oh, hey guys! Where's Sara?" she asked cheerfully. Cid was amazed that an Al Bhed girl like Helena could always be so happy and joyful. They also didn't know. They traveled some more distance along the desert before Helena stopped them.
"There's something I wanna tell you, but promise not to say anything," she said. Alexander looked at her suspiciously. "No glaring either!" she snapped at him. "I know where we are. We're on Bikanel Island. There's a place us Al Bhed call Home near here. Sara's there. I'm sure of it! Other Al Bhed probably came and rescued her."
"Rescued?" Alexander spat. "You mean kidnapped!"
"What does it matter as long as she's safe?" interrupted Cid to prevent another Al Bhed – Yevon argument between Helena and Alexander.
Helena nodded. "Right! Anyway, I'll take you there if you promise not to tell anyone about it." She looked at Alex. "Especially not Yevonites. They don't like us Al Bhed, and who knows what they'll do if they knew?" The others promised, but Alexander was holding back. The other five managed to convince him, verbally and a bit physically, to swear. They followed Helena through the desert. Cid noticed that it was much easier to travel in desert after he got used to the temperature. Auron didn't take off his jacket even though it was burning on the outside. As they approached the final hill, Helena arrived there first. She screamed out loud in fear. The others caught up and saw. Home was under attack. On instinct, they ran down the hill as fast as they could.
In Home, there were tons of Al Bhed shooting as fast as they could with their guns, but they were so outnumbered that for every bullet they shot, two more would die. Helena ran to a man who had just been pierced through the stomach by a bird fiend, similar looking to the one that Cid had encountered near the oasis. "Keyakku! Who? Who's attacking us? Fru tet drec du oui?" she asked him. The man managed to murmur two words: Guado and Yevon.
"A war between the Guado and Al Bhed?" questioned Lulu, also in surprise.
"Dryd ec fnuhk! Guado ku vun dra summoner," said a man who appeared out of the shadows. He had short blonde hair and green eyes. The man wore a similar outfit to Helena's, only it was yellow. Helena whispered something like "Vydran." The man went to Keyakku's body, closing his eyes with a hand. "You Helena's friends?" he asked them. "Well, don't just stand there! C'mon! Let's go kick the Guado out of our Home!"
"And that was…" Cid began to say something.
"Braig," whispered the Al Bhed girl. "He's my dad, leader of the Al Bhed."
Cid snapped her out of her trance-like state. "Well, c'mon! Let's go save Sara!" He threw open the entrance door and ran inside. Helena followed closely behind, while Auron and Edgar took up the rear.
The inside of Home was like a complex maze. There were a dozen passageways, yet Helena seemed to know exactly where she was going. Suddenly, they stopped at a fork. A voice blared somewhere from a loudspeaker. "Drec pedac! Helena! Oui nayt sa? Oui ku ihtan, duu! E's majamehk Home! Yht dra fiend fedh ed!" announced Braig's voice.
"Oh no!" screamed Helena. "We have to get underground." For once, her voice ordered them to do something. "Sara's in the Summoner's Sanctum! Over here!" She dashed to another door, pressing some buttons and entering. The others followed her closely.
"This place is done for," commented Alex as they ran.
Cid saw another emotional change for Helena. She actually looked sad. "You're right…You're right, Alex. We Al Bhed, we…we weren't always like this. Sin destroyed the island where we all used to live. After that, we were scattered all over Gaia. But then, my dad brought the Al Bhed together again. We few put our minds into it and worked together. Then, we could make a new home. Everybody worked hard, and we had our Home back again…But now…Why did things have to turn out this way?" She began to cry.
Alex stepped in front of her, looking at her face. "Helena…" He kicked the wall with his foot. "Damn those Guado! What are they thinking?"
Lulu changed the subject. "What is the Summoner's Sanctum, exactly?" she asked.
"The Summoner's Sanctum is the place where we keep the summoners. We keep them safe here. I know it's against the Teachings and all that…" Alexander nodded in agreement as he understood why they did that.
"It's quiet," Edgar mumbled. "Let's go." They all ran down a final set of stairs before throwing open the last door. "Sara!" he hollered.
"Sara, please be in here!" Helena yelled as loud as she could.
Cid knew the answer before he stepped into the room. "She's not here," said a woman's voice. "Hello, my name is Dona. I, too, am a summoner. Wait there until we have performed the Sending." The others stood in the entrance corner of the room.
Judas was there too, but much to Cid's dismay, Be'lal was nowhere to be seen. Many dead bodies of the Al Bhed were laid, almost in piles. Blood was everywhere to be seen, making the room a truly gory sight. "They died…protecting us," he said. "It's not much, but the least we can do is give them a proper Sending."
"The pilgrimages have to stop!" cried Helena. "If they don't, and they get to
Zanarkand... They might defeat Sin. Sara could...but then she...Sara will
die, you know? You know, don't you? Summoners journey to get the Final Aeon. With the Final Aeon, she can beat Sin. But then...but then... If she calls it, the Final Aeon's going to kill her! Even if she defeats Sin, it will kill Sara too, you know!"
"Don't you think we tried to stop her?" asked Lulu. "She follows her heart." Cid now knew, somewhat, what Sara and Lulu and Alexander had been talking about on the boat to Kilika.
"Sara, she knew what she was doing when she chose to become a summoner. To face Sin! She knew!" Cid added.
"But that's totally wrong!" argued back Helena. "Summoners shouldn't have to sacrifice themselves just so the rest of Gaia can be happy."
"That is our choice," began Judas, moving towards a monster that appeared not too long ago.
"We all live in fear of Sin," said Dona.
"A world without Sin…That is the dream of all Yevon's children. And we will use that power, even if it means our lives!" he finished, summoning Valefor.
Cid didn't notice that tears were rolling down his eyes. He was pounding the floor with his fist. He cared too much about Sara to let her die. His mouth almost opened to laugh, but his crying shut that out. "I won't let her die. I'll find her!" he screamed as loud as he could till his throat began to throb. Cid ran to the airship dock and boarded.
"Hu desa! Ku, ku, ku!" Braig's voice was like an alarm bell.
"Where's Sara?" Cid asked as soon as he got on board and saw Braig. However, the Al Bhed man seemed to ignore him. "Where is she?" Braig still seemed to not look at him. Cid picked up Braig by the collar. "Answer me! Damn you, answer me!"
"What'll you do when you find her?" Braig asked in a mocking tone.
"I have to tell her that I care…I care about her!" he shouted back.
"That's it? You're going to tell her that you care? And then you drag her to Zanarkand and make her fight Sin? You're all the same -" Braig reached for Cid. "Let the summoner die so we can live in peace!" He threw Cid violently on to the ground.
"No!" responded Cid. He stood back up immediately. "I'm not gonna let her die!"
"Hah! Words! Show me action!"
He said the words very slowly and seriously. "She won't die."
"Boy, don't you forget those words. 'Cause if you do, I'm gonna make you regret it," warned Braig in an angry tone.
"I won't." Cid approached a large sphere Braig was looking at. "So, do you know where Sara is?"
"Course not! That's why we're going to look for her with this airship!"
Alexander looked very unsure. "Airship?" A rocking of the ground announced their departure.
"Oaaryy! E vmekrd 100 oaync ujantia!" yelled Braig excitedly. Cid would really have liked it if he didn't speak in Al Bhed so much. Over their heads, a hatch began to open. The airship took off into the air. After some more talking, Braig and two Al Bhed pilots began to sing the Hymn of the Fayth.
"What's going on?" Alexander asked.
"We're…We're going to blow up Home," explained Helena. Cid thought she would cry, but she just seemed sad.
"With one of the forbidden machina!" finished Braig almost too cheerfully. The sides of the airship opened to reveal more than a hundred cannons. They fired many missiles at the besieged Home once they were a safe distance away. Home detonated in a giant colossal explosion that caused a chain reaction by causing mines that were dug deep in the sands of the desert to be set off. Billions of mines and traps exploded at different times. They were all surprised that Braig actually pulled it off.
One of the pilots began to cry, but Braig seemed to say something in Al Bhed to comfort him. Alex also tried to cheer up Helena, but it didn't seem to work. After all, Alex was a Yevonite.
Auron talked to Braig for awhile. "After rescuing Sara, then what? You want to keep her safe. Would you seek to stop her pilgrimage?" he asked.
"Of course!" the Al Bhed replied. "If she continues this stupid pilgrimage, she'll die! Sure as if you killed her yourself. No hair-brained law or teaching can send my niece to her death! When I save her, I'll make her give up being a summoner quicker than a desert melts ice!"
"Even against her will?"
"Better than dog's death! And I'll take down anyone who don't agree!"
The guardian looked away for a moment. "You are the captain." He walked away.
"Vydran!" one of the pilots called. "Fa vuiht Sara!"