Wakka collapsed almost the second Tidus called out his name.
Hours later, he awoke groggily on his back next to a small campfire. He frowned slightly and found himself backed by a thick green bush that formed a lopsided semicircle around him and the fire. The stars were luminous above, and for a moment he simply lay still, admiring the constellations as his awareness slowly came back to him. His head was pounding and his limbs felt weak and rubbery. There was a strange bitter taste in his mouth and he felt slightly disoriented, even while lying still. It was as if he could sense the world spinning around uncontrollably beneath him.
"How do you feel?" a soft voice asked next to him. Startled, Wakka glanced to his right and saw a young woman kneeling close by. Her blonde hair was tied back in a messy horsetail with a few stray tresses escaping to frame her heart-shaped face. She smiled at the stunned look on Wakka's face, her multifaceted green eyes crinkling at the corners.
"Uh, fine, I guess," he muttered, blinking slowly up at her. Good Yevon, she was pretty. Half of her face was lit up from the fire's glow, and the other half was swathed in shadow. "Just a bit queasy, ya?"
"You had a pretty bad case of heatstroke," the girl told him with a quick nod. She held out a small tin cup towards him. "Drink this. It'll keep the nausea away and bring back some of your strength."
"Thanks," he mumbled, trying to sit up. He was mildly surprised to feel her arm around his shoulders, helping him upright. She handed him the cup and watched patiently as he drank it in great gulps. It was cool and oddly sweet, but he couldn't place the taste. When he finished, the girl took the cup away and placed it in a small sack hanging at her hip.
"Um, my name's Wakka," he told her, after a brief second of silence. "Are you a . . . a medicine witch, or something?"
She let out a small, bubbly laugh that made him want to smile in return. "Well, I'm no witch, but I am definitely a healer. The name's Rikku. I took care of you after you passed out."
"After I . . . oh, Yevon! Where's Tidus? I gotta tell him something, it's real important-"
"Hang on, big guy! It's all right, Tidus is here too. I'll go get him for you, okay? Just try not to get too worked up; you have to let that potion take effect first," Rikku said soothingly, gently forcing him to lie back down. She stood up and left the small clearing, disappearing in the darkness outside.
Moments later she returned with Tidus, Sir Auron, Lulu, and Yuna in tow. Tidus moved into the clearing first, crouching next to Wakka with a relieved look on his face.
"Thank the aeons you're all right," Tidus exhaled, gripping his friend's shoulder. "You gave us a scare, you know. What the hell were you doing, dashing off into the desert alone like that?"
"Listen, brudda, I gotta tell you something important. So shut your mouth and let me explain, ya?"
Tidus promptly did as he was told and settled next to the makeshift bed with a curious frown. The others seated themselves comfortably nearby to listen as well.
"Maester Seymour is sending the entire army to Bevelle at a double pace, hoping to get there before you guys," he began, gazing solemnly at each person in turn. The Order has been telling us that we're preparing for some kind of holy intervention, but they didn't really explained to us what it was all about.
"And then last night I overheard two priests talking about you, Lady Yuna," Wakka continued, nodding his head at Yuna, who paled slightly. "They mentioned something about you being with the Al Bhed, and then they started talking about Sin and sacrifices and assassins. It was kinda hard to piece it all together, 'cause it feels like there's a buncha stuff I don't know, ya?
There was a long uncomfortable silence as everyone took in the information. Wakka felt beads of nervous sweat forming on his forehead at their reluctant expressions. Tidus suddenly reached forward and gripped his friend's knee.
"Look, Wakka," he said slowly, keeping his gaze down. "This isn't going to be easy for you to hear, so bear with me, okay? Just trust me when I say I'm telling you the truth."
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Tidus watched Yuna shiver as another breath of chilled air blew over them, keeping her mismatched eyes focused on the flickering campfire. Swiftly he removed his cloak and threw it around her shoulders, as his long-sleeved shirt was heavier and certainly much warmer than that threadbare shift she was wearing. Smiling gratefully at him, she pulled it around tightly and leaned against his side comfortably as he glanced up towards the stars. He noticed some time ago that the further he travelled, the more the constellations were starting to change. He could still see the familiar stars like Laizen's Bane (eight stars shaped like a dagger) and The Roana (a floral pattern constellation), but he could plainly see that their positions were shifting further along the sky, and he was starting to see unfamiliar assemblages. It was both interesting and heart wrenching at the same time, and the young man felt a pang of homesickness. His arm tightened around the girl next to him, and she turned her face into the side of his neck as if reading his thoughts.
Earlier that evening, they had stumbled across a small canyon-like trench in the ground at the foot of the Gagazet Mountain Range, and stopped to settle for the night. Although the atmosphere was peaceful and laid-back, Tidus was certain he would get no sleep. His dreams were becoming much more frequent, and though he could still only remember that last line spoken in his mother's voice, he awoke from each nightmare with a growing sense of urgency.
Only love can defeat evil . . . The message was obvious enough, but what on Spira did it have to do with him? Why was he dreaming about his mother's voice for the first time in six years? Could have something to do with the ceremony, or Sin?
Rikku was brushing Kyrida and humming to herself, while Wakka was sitting by himself on a rock some distance. No doubt he was still mulling over the shocking details of the conspiracy behind the Children of Light ceremony, and with reason. He was experiencing the same conflicting emotions and anxiety Tidus himself had gone through, and it would not be easy for Wakka to finally accept that his faith was based off a lie. Wakka was a fairly simple man when it came to the comforts in life. He drew a lot of strength from his devout religious beliefs, and to find out that all of it was false was perhaps the biggest metaphysical slap in the face the soft-hearted giant would ever experience. As a matter of fact, Tidus reflected, Wakka was handling this spiritual shake down remarkably well. He had even been strangely calm upon learning that Rikku was Al Bhed, although every now and then he would give her a few wary glances before muttering something under his breath and shaking his head.
Auron and Lulu were busy poring over a map that Rikku had brought along, trying to plot a swift and easy route through the Gagazet Mountains. The Range in question towered above the small encampment like a wall of imperial guards, its snow-capped peaks gleaming faintly in the starlight.
" . . . we don't come across any Ronso, we should be able to cross through the Gale Pass without much difficulty," Auron was saying quietly, his index finger following a line on the map.
Tidus, whose mind had been wandering back to the tropical shores of Besaid, snapped to attention. "Ronso? Did you just mention the Ronso, Auron?" He felt Yuna stiffen in his grasp as well.
"I thought they scattered ages ago," the young woman said, clearly puzzled. "Kimahri never spoke of any tribe left in the mountains. They're said to be solitary nomads now, aren't they?"
"Only according to the priests cowering in their temples, too frightened to do any real investigating. They made a big mistake ignoring the Ronso's pleas, so they had to make up a cover story by turning the clans into nothing more than vagrant gypsies," Lulu said darkly, her claret eyes narrowing ever so slightly.
"What are you talking about?" Tidus questioned, utterly confused. "Investigating what?"
"Ten years ago, Ronso children started to go missing," Rikku said, returning from grooming the horse. She sat down next to Lulu and helped herself to an apple. "Nobody had any idea if they were running away or being kidnapped. No bodies were ever found, no trails, no clues, nothing to go on. So one day the Ronso elders went to Bevelle to ask the Order of Yevon to help them search for the children. But the priests wouldn't help them, claiming that the Ronso affairs were no concern of Yevon's. Even after all the years of friendship with the clans, the priests turned their backs and refused to search for the little ones."
"Needless to say, the Ronso were not too pleased with the Yevonites," Auron interjected. "So they severed all trading ties to the temples, and most went into hiding to avoid any contact with the Yevonites. By this time, such an endeavour was quite difficult, as it was required for Ronso to be registered citizens in any community. It is believed that the largest clan still existing retreated to Gagazet once more, where they originally used to live hundreds of years ago, but nobody has ever managed to stumble across their village. At least, no one ever has and lived to tell about it."
"And we plan on marching straight through their territory?" Tidus questioned, his eyebrows raised incredulously. "Don't you think that seems a little dangerous?"
"Tidus, what exact part of this mission do you consider not dangerous?" Lulu queried with a half smile. "Besides, as long as we have Rikku with us, we have a chance at staying alive if we do indeed come across any of the clan."
"And why is that?" Yuna asked of her cousin, trying to hide her amusement at Tidus' pensive expression. Rikku beamed with no amount of modesty.
"Because we Al Bhed chose to help the Ronso and maintain the ties. We had nothing to do with those stubborn meanies!" the blonde replied cheekily. She ducked when Tidus swatted at her head, giggling at his mock offence. "Of course, we didn't manage to find the tribe children either, but they appreciated our help anyway."
"How come I didn't know about the missing Ronso kids? Or, for that matter, the fact that there used to be registered clan members everywhere?" Tidus asked, his playful mask replaced once more by a thoughtful frown.
"You were young during all the politics involved," Auron explained with a shrug. "It was a very hush-hush sort of thing that parents talked about when their children were asleep or out playing. The Ronso trade had provided a lot of steam for Spira's economy, but when they broke it off, the priests lied and said that they had cut them from the trade without any reason, creating a lot of tension between the clan and the people who depended on the system."
"Wait," Yuna said suddenly, sitting upright. "All this happened ten years ago exactly?"
The guardian nodded once in confirmation.
"Do you . . . do you think the Children of Light ceremony could have something to do with the young Ronso who disappeared? I mean, is it possible that the temples were really behind the whole thing for some purpose related to Sin?"
Yuna's words brought a moment of stunned contemplation. Auron scratched his jaw thoughtfully.
"I hadn't thought of that," he admitted slowly. "I suppose it could be possible, if not just one big coincidence."
"But what would Seymour want with the Ronso's offspring?" Wakka asked in an uncharacteristically serious voice, returning to join the rest of them around the fire.
"It is difficult to say what motives that man has in mind," Lulu said with a hard edge to her voice. "We'll find out if we reach the Bevelle temple."
"You mean 'when' we reach the temple, right?" Rikku supplied in an obliviously chipper tone. The priestess fixed her with an unnerving stare.
"No, Rikku, I mean 'if'. I will not sugar coat the odds of us finishing this journey," she said sternly, instantly dampening the girl's optimism. "Only fools can hope to be so expectant under such circumstances."
"Lulu," Yuna gasped, shocked at the woman's coldness. "Don't say that! Hope is not a fool's dream at all."
"Yuna, it is ridiculous to assume victory without any doubt," the black mage said calmly.
"Hope does not mean one has no doubt," Yuna replied, clenching her fists. Tidus rested a warm hand on her arm and whispered for her to calm down, but she did not seem to notice him. "Hope means believing in yourself in the face of doubt and fear and darkness!"
"I refuse to lie through my teeth and say there is a way when I cannot see it with my own eyes-"
Yuna suddenly flew to her feet in a rage, her body quivering and her eyes blazing. "There is a way!" she cried vehemently. "There is always a way!"
They stared up at her in awe, too surprised to say anything in return. Her angry words echoed around them in the small gorge, fading away slowly into the night and leaving a gaping uncomfortable silence in its wake.
Abruptly, Yuna whirled around and disappeared into the darkness of the canyon beyond the campfire. Tidus' throat tightened and he immediately rose to go after her.
He caught up with her after a brief chase through the maze-like stones. Her fast pace was surprisingly hard to match. Tidus had to jog to reach her.
"Yuna, stop," he said gently, catching her by the arm to halt her. She violently shook him off and kept moving, her back resolutely turned to him. "Yuna, please!"
He gripped her arm elbow again and forced her to whirl around. She struggled for a second to get out of his grasp, but he shook her once to still her. With only the moon overhead to light them, Tidus could still make out her features clearly. Her face was twisted with an emotion he could not fully describe, but it wounded him all the same.
"Let me go!" she demanded shrilly, trying vainly to wrench herself from him. He only tightened his hold, stubbornly refusing to do her bidding.
"Calm down," he ordered in a soft but commanding tone. "Yuna, you know Lulu didn't mean to offend you."
"I don't care! Get off me!"
"Not until you stop this."
"Just go away!"
Tidus had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from gawking at her in shock. She was showing an abnormal amount of passion and fury that he had never seen her display. At long last she gave up and went still in his arms. Her head sagged forward and she sighed unevenly. His grip relaxed, but he still did not let go. He was slightly wary of this sudden change in demeanour.
When she lifted her head again, Tidus was surprised to see tears pooling in her bicoloured eyes. They spilled over like tiny fountains, causing silver trails down her face. Her lower lip quivered and her whole posture seemed to shift in defeat.
"Oh, Tidus," she whimpered in a strangled voice, instantly breaking down the barriers of his heart. "I'm scared. I'm just so scared . . ."
Yuna barely had time to voice a small sob before his pulled her towards him in a roughly tender embrace, crushing her to his chest as if he could somehow squeeze the pain from her. She burrowed her face into the space between his neck and shoulder, her hands gripping the material of his shirt. One of his strong arms came up to circle around her shoulders, and the other firmly pinned her waist against him.
"I don't know what to do," she whispered shakily.
"Don't you dare give up on me now," he murmured, his words muffled in her hair. "You cannot start quitting, Yuna."
"So afraid. . . ."
"I know," he breathed, tightening his hold on her. "I am too. We all are."