A Generation of Aeons
Chapter Nine

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy X or X-2

Last Time:

Kiron took her answer into account, never noticing the defeated tone Seru spoke in. "Takoire, hm? If my memory serves me right… I wonder what he's doing here…" Kiron drifted off gaining a thoughtful look, he motioned to Seru. "I want to find out her name."

She looked at him unsure. "Even if she does not become a summoner, Kiron?"

The young man nodded. Seru started to leave, but he grabbed her gently on the sleeve.

"And find out if she has undergone summoner's training from another temple or if they're expected; but I'm guessing that won't be the case."

Standing a few feet away from Suzaku, Lenne had gained a determined face. "Okay, I'm ready. Bring it on."

"Very well, prove to me that you have power over the wind. You may use whatever means you wish. But you must do this task alone; no one must help you. Think wisely."

Lenne looked around and saw the small audience that had formed at the entrance of the temple, just behind Suzaku. Becoming even more nervous, Lenne looked towards Takoire who motioned to her, giving her an encouraging smile. "Go on, you'll be fine."

She nodded and breathed out a deep breath. "How can I prove that I have power over the wind?" Lenne asked herself, but without warning, she lurched over, clutching her head as Takoire attempted to run towards her.

"Lenne!"

"Stop!" Suzaku's thundering voice pierced the air. "Take not one more step towards her! You do, and this woman fails the test!"

Takoire angrily clenched his teeth but heeded the aeon's warning. "Lenne! Lenne, are you okay?"

With one hand supporting her forehead, Lenne used her other arm to gesture to her friend. "I'm-I'm fine, Takoire. Whatever it was is leaving," she stammered, out of breath; a splitting pain going through her head. "But-but I know wh-what to do." Pulling out her katana, Lenne tucked it under her spread arm for a moment as a red circle centered around her on the ground. Suddenly, she thrust her sword upward. Holding her sword for a moment, Takoire realized what she was doing. The priests and summoners whispered to each other as a cloud above broke apart and a swirl of colors came hurtling towards Lenne.

Takoire couldn't help but flinch while the priests, summoner, and guardians cowered their heads in fear. No less than a few feet from the ground, the great creature unfurled its colorful wings. Valefor was smaller in stature, but it had the same amount of confidence reflected in its eyes as its larger counterpart, Suzaku.

Suzaku's deep voice soon sliced through the air. "What abomination is this!"

Lenne glared up at Suzaku angrily. "Valefor is no abomination!"

"Then why have you a slave to serve you!"

Her faced winced for a moment as she rubbed her temples with her fingers but continued to look up at Suzaku. "Valefor is a free spirit who has chosen to aid me, by no right have I forced them to do anything for me."

Suzaku nodded tactfully. "Very well, your ally, how does it prove to me that you have power over the wind? Do you imply that you have power over an object that bends the wind to its will?"

Lenne shook her head. "Not at all. Only with Valefor am I able to have power over the winds, working together as a team."

"A wise but strong answer. What you speak of is the basis of a relationship between summoners and aeons. Very well, it is done!" Suzaku turned its view towards Takoire. "And you, you shall be this summoner's guardian?"

The blitzball player nodded confidently. "I will."

"And you will guard this summoner at all costs, no matter the circumstances?"

"With my life."

"Very well then." Suzaku closed its eyes. "I shall search your thoughts, Lenne. I shall search them for your mark: your summoner's brand."

She looked at the aeons confused. "Summoner's brand?" Lenne turned to Takoire standing grimly nearby. "Takoire?"

Suzaku began to speak; its voice sounding as if the aeon were in a trance. "The ocean, an unending presence; the sun to watch over it; and the moon to keep it steady." Suzaku opened its eyes. "Behold! A summoner and her guardian!"

As soon as the words had been said, a searing pain seemed to flow through Lenne. Centered on her wrist, she squeezed it tight. It seemed as if her blood was boiling, and a hot metal knife was carving into her wrist. Lenne glanced over at her friend, wondering at the same time why he didn't help her and what was happening to him. She saw him clutching his shoulder and watched him fall on his knees as she realized she too was lying on the ground. And before the darkness fell upon her, Lenne could barely hear Suzaku say, "The ocean, sun, and moon, at last… the prophecy…" Lenne fell into the darkness.

There was something wet on her forehead, no, not just her forehead, there was something on her wrist, too. With a groan, Lenne pulled herself up, and the cloth on her forehead fell as she felt soft cloth beneath her. She was sitting on a bed. Lenne threw off the wet towel on her wrist away with the towel that had been on her forehead moments earlier. Underneath, the skin was red but there was nothing left. She looked around confused, until a familiar voice spoke. "If you're wondering where we are, we're inside Suzaku's Sanctuary." Takoire gave a small wave sitting on a bed opposite of her.

"What happened? What-What was that pain I felt?"

He shrugged. "The summoner's brand. It's suppose to recognize the summoners and their guardians."

Shakily, Lenne got up and walked towards Takoire. Sitting next to him on the bed, she ran her fingers over his bandaged shoulder. Lenne gave him a look as if asking permission, and he nodded, with an expression that said he didn't care. "What happened to you? During the test… I saw your clutching over and supporting your head. You okay?"

She looked at him. "You saw that, huh?" He shrugged and gave a small smile while Lenne slowly peeled off his bandages, revealing a black mark of an ocean with a rising sun and a setting moon. "I did this?"

He shrugged and winced slightly as the rest of the bandage came off. "It's not like you took a hot poker yourself and engraved the thing. It was more like Suzaku when you became a summoner."

"Still, it was my fault that you got hurt like that. I saw you."

He scratched his head uncomfortably, and chuckled slightly, mocking Lenne. "You saw that, huh?"

Gently, she outlined the summoner's brand. "But, that brings us back to my point. Who told you that you could be my guardian?"

"Apparently Suzaku." She eyed him sternly. "Look, a summoner has to have at least one guardian to protect them. If you didn't have one, then you wouldn't have been able to become a summoner."

She thought on it for a moment. "I still can't believe it… I'm a summoner now."

Takoire nodded. "Yes, you are." He smiled softly. "I told you you could do it, Lenne."

"Thanks," she responded but still looking at him with the smallest hint of anger, "but you still never told me that I needed a guardian!"

"And if I had told you, what would you have done? Wander around the city and try to find someone willing to be your guardian? Being a guardian is a full time commitment, you can't just go I quit one day!"

Lenne stood up as to tower over Takoire with a face of both disgust and shock. "Then if being a guardian is such a big thing, then why the hell did you tell Suzaku that you would be my guardian! You're the captain of the Zanarkand Abes for crying out loud!"

Takoire abruptly sat up from the bed and stood in front of Lenne, his height giving him a small edge. "What? I'm not good enough or something!"

"I never said that!"

"Look, Lenne. I can tell when something's bigger than me! If everything you told me in the past week has had a glimmer of truth to it, then I know you're here for some greater purpose! When I look at you, I can feel it; you were meant for bigger things, Lenne, bigger than I could ever imagine!" Takoire finished, looking at the new summoner confidently in the eyes.

As Lenne prepared to yell an answer back, through a hanging drape covering the entrance of the room, a young summoner appeared with an uneasy grin. "I mean no disrespect, Lady Lenne, but at your present volume, I believe that you have awakened the Cheribum in Bevelle."

Lenne blushed slightly. "We're very sorry. Right, Takoire?" The blitzball player only gave a muffled grunt, and Lenne, trying to draw attention away from him, turned to their new guest. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but who are you?"

The summoner bowed his head. "My sincerest apologies. I am Kiron, a new summoner, like you. I passed only yesterday."

"Oh," Lenne held out her hand, "it's nice to meet you, uh, Lord Kiron."

Before accepting her hand, Kiron looked at her with a mischievous smile. "The title of lord really isn't necessary, is it?"

Lenne looked at him, equally mischievous. "Well, you called me Lady Lenne. So I'll tell you what, if you call me Lenne, then I'll just call you Kiron."

"Sounds agreeable, Lenne."

"All right then, Kiron," the two summoners began to laugh until Lenne heard the subtle cough behind her. "Takoire? What's up?"

The blitzball captain looked at the summoner Kiron uncomfortably. "Nothing, it's not important."

Kiron looked behind Lenne to see the new guardian standing not far. "Ah, Lo-" Takoire looked at him with a stern face and shook his head. "Takoire, captain of our Abes. I was at your last game; it's a pity with everything that happened. We still haven't gotten any new leads on how it happened."

Takoire put on forced smile. "Yes, well, we'll just have to see how it turns out tomorrow, won't we?"

"I am surprised, though," Kiron commented. "What is the captain of the Zanarkand Abes doing as a newly christened guardian?"

Lenne looked at Kiron with a light smile. "You're from Zanarkand, too, Kiron?"

Takoire gave a small, forced chuckle. "Maybe Kiron neglected to tell you. He's the sole prince of Zanarkand; son of our leader, Maester Yu Yevon; and younger brother to High Summoner Yunalesca."

"Well now," Kiron responded, "next time we see each other, Takoire, I'll have to lay out your family tree so we stay on even ground."

The guardian clenched his fist with an angry face in the prince's direction. "I'll take that as a friendly jest, I think you would call it."

Kiron nodded his head. "Of course. I didn't mean anything by it," he finished by looking him in the eyes.

Noticing the tension between them, Lenne spoke up, trying to find an understanding. "So, how long have you two known each other?"

"A good while," the blue-haired summoner replied.

Lenne looked to Takoire, but before he could answer, a woman wearing a light blue dress from earlier entered. "Kiron?"

Takoire peered past Lenne to find the source of the questioning voice, and at the sight of the young woman, he nearly toppled over.

Seeing him in return, the woman named Seru hid her amazement for a second time. "T-no, Sir Takoire, I have to say it's an honor to finally meet the captain of the Zanarkand Abes. Unfortunately, I was only able to occasionally watch your games with Kiron."

He seemed to study her for a moment and nodded, putting on his usual cheery smile. "It's nice to know we have the royal family in our audience, but I have to admit, the chances of me continuing to play are pretty slime. I am a guardian now, after all…"

Lenne glanced at him, and he felt her gaze, but ignored the feeling as Kiron spoke. "I suppose I just came to see if you were awake yet. A few of us brought yourself and Sir Takoire back here. You must be a pretty powerful summoner if your brand knocked you out like that."

"What do you mean?"

"When summoners and guardians are marked, the more powerful a summoner is, the painful it is." Kiron looked at her curiously. "I'm surprised you didn't know that… I apologize. I didn't mean it that way," he said. "You didn't go through summoner training, did you?"

She looked at him sheepishly. "Is it that obvious?"

The other summoner gave a wink at her. "Don't let it bother you too much, neither did I."

Feeling slightly better, Lenne smiled and heard both Takoire and Seru cough uncomfortably. "Lady Lenne, the priests asked me to see whether or not you were awake and were willing and able to try on your new attire."

"New attire?"

Kiron looked at her slightly confused. "To show your rank as a summoner. Sorry… you must still be tired from earlier. Seru and I'll leave so you and your guardian can get some sleep."

Takoire stood up and followed them, "Uh, Lady Seru, was it? I was actually hoping I could talk to you." He put on a cheery smile. "You know… about guardian stuff."

Seru tried to give a smile back. "Of course, we can talk outside?"

"Sure," Takoire replied and followed her out of the room.

Author's Notes:

Final Revision