A/N: I have a bad habit of starting chapters and then getting ideas for other things I want to add and it turns into a mess, I apologize. So the content that I had written originally for this chapter is being fobbed off to chapter eleven. I'm sorry!
It wasn't fear that he was feeling.
But it was like fear.
Fear came from the threat of being discarded should he become deficient in his ability to remain useful.
He had occupied this present for fourteen years and although he knew not where it stemmed from, there was a will within his being that demanded more time. Always more time. Of all the desires he dared allowed himself to harbor, above anything else, he wished not to cease.
This was different.
He looked down to the city below, his fingers intertwining within themselves without his notice, reciting the plan over and over.
He couldn't calm down.
He paused in his recitation to analyze what this feeling could be.
Filtering through his youthful knowledge, he reviewed his symptoms, noting that they were not as severe as the emotion "anxiety" he experienced when he first arrived on the planet. After a few quick thoughts, he settled on "nervous", his slightly accelerated heart rate and the twitching of his tail resembling more closely to that emotion that he had read upon.
But why?
He thought to the past few months, deducing the only variable being his upcoming interaction with the inhabitants alone, never having conversed nor seen with his own eyes sentient creatures that roamed this world.
Ah. That must be it. What a silly feeling.
But despite his logic, his tail quivered none the less.
Swallowing in an attempt to bury said emotion, his resolve to complete the task at hand propelled him forward, making his way down the large hill to the city below.
He had instructed Nova to remain hidden prior, unsure of how the residents below would welcome the creature, much less him.
After descending, he paused at the open archway into the town, his eyes wide in wonder at the ease of it all. There were no holographic "watchers", no system to alert the people within of his entry. With a little trepidation, he moved forward, past the threshold and into the open bright town of Madain Sari. Despite lacking these things, there was a noise, a beat; light but fluctuating that he heard in his acute hearing that he could not place. Unable to pinpoint where it was coming from, he decided to investigate it later, moving forward.
As it always did ever since he had arrived on this world, his senses were assaulted with smells and sights that were alien to him. Despite the logical warnings that welled up within his natural thought process, he couldn't help but be drawn to them. There were things within pots and on metal grates, being turned and stirred above open flames, fabrics in colors the likes of which he had never seen, shimmering like the bright star that had hurt him so badly in his first months here, glimmering fragments of stones strung together, others resting in solitaire upon smaller chains with a mate, utensils and tools he had no name for also on display. People were milling about through the items in a relaxed stroll and wondered at what it was he was doing. In observance and through his lessons of old Terran civilization, he came to the conclusion that the displayed objects were goods for sale and that the people about the stalls were purchasing said goods for their required needs.
It was fascinating.
Master Garland had instructed him to observe and report. He could easily deduce that this information would benefit his creator none, but he was taken in none the less.
Several smells caught his attention, not sure what they were and unable to identify them, only gleaning that they were coming from the things being turned within the flames, his stomach suddenly protesting in response. He hadn't even realized he had come so close to one before a man stood before him, blocking his view of the unknown delicacy, large and smelling of the items being roasted behind him.
"Three gil apiece, or five for two." His voice almost came out in a boom, seeming unaware of the volume of his cadence, his hands upon his hips.
Kuja was unsure of his meaning, his hands unconsciously slipping behind himself and finding one another. Strangely enough, there was a dull rumbling noise about the man, as if coming from within him, making the hairs on the boy's arms stand on end.
Something shifted in the man's expression and he bent down to peer closer at the genome.
"No horn…you're not from around here…"
The both of them looked to another with a discerning eye before the large man shrugged, gesturing to the fire behind him," No matter, gil is gil, it spends all the same. Are you hungry or not?"
Hungry?
He had been hungry every day since he had arrived. He had eaten things that had made him wretchedly ill, things which pricked his tongue and cut his gums, and tasted vile. There was no vita capsules administered to him here as he was accustomed to in Bran Bal. In the way of satiating his hunger, he wondered if this man's creations would be any better than they local fauna he had been choking down the past few months in the way to increase calories and retain stamina, much less reduce the growling that was constant within his stomach.
He could surmise that the "gil" the man was referring to was compensation in the way that "trade" usually worked, however not only was he unaware of what it was, he was most sure he did not have it.
"H-How do I procure gil?"
He wasn't interested enough in the wares behind the man to obtain the required item for it as he was still leery of all the things he had been "eating" the last several months. But he understood that should he require something in this town from these stalls, he would need this coveted item.
He could just take it and deflect repercussions with a spell but Madain Sari was a city of summoners and he did not know the range in which such a power entailed. Although that was his entire purpose of being here, he knew too little of the craft to know if he could defend himself from their magic.
"Where are you from? You have to work to earn it." The man turned back, his brows coming down from his wide forehead, his hand to his chin, "You seem very odd the more I look at you."
Not liking the scrutiny, he was finding himself under, he quickly turned away, apprehensively looking to the other people walking about that were turning to look at him here and there. Seeing a dark set of stairs between two walls, he opted for an alley, needing to regroup and plan his next move. He was already attracting attention so soon.
The shadow of the enclosed space helped calm him, walking along the stone path, the air stale and cooler, unsure of what to do and where to go.
"Boy! "a voice called out behind him, startling him," Boy! I heard you need money!"
Turning quickly, he saw an older man behind him, his hand out in offering, circular metal objects jangling in his outstretched hand. The background noise he had encountered with the seller was also being emitted from this man as well.
He had been noticed more than he had thought. He made to leave again before the man called out once more, a small smile softening his face.
"You can have these if you'd like."
In curiosity, he allowed him to come closer, peering into the man's hand despite himself.
"These pieces of metal are gil?"
The man laughed out loud, shaking his hand softly, making the coins jangle against one another.
"You really are not from around here."
Kuja looked at him in suspicion, not sure where this man's generosity welled from.
"Why are you giving these to me?"
"You talk funny…No matter, these are yours for some service."
Before he could ask further, the man had two hands on the sides of his face, head peering down at him, surprising him.
"Nice…a little dirty, but very nice, "he murmured to himself.
He was frozen in place, never having been touched so familiarly before. Reeling from the small experience, pondering it's meaning, he didn't notice until after the fact when the man's hand slid from his face and down to his side, his fingers digging into the flesh of his rear end.
"What are-"
A mouth pressed hard against his, a tongue slithering inside with sudden force, the feeling disgusting and vile, bile instantly rising to his throat.
His body was being shoved into the other, something stiff and repulsive pressing against his stomach, these events happening within mere seconds of each other, too fast for him to analyze.
A spell was casting in his hand, anything to get this animal from him. But before he could even think the incantation, the wretch was torn away from him, his head slamming into the wall with a sickening crash, his body going limp as it slid to the floor, his offender out cold, coins rattling everywhere.
"Nice work Eric. Can you handle the rest? I saw him making eyes at Herron's boy last week."
"Anything for you, Mariko."
Jerking his head away from the man that had touched him, he turned to see two more people, one very tall and the other just as slight by comparison. A man and a woman.
"And you, where are your parents?" she called out to him, stepping closer, her hair breath-takingly black and lovely. He watched the strands fall over her shoulder in a large plait in awe, never seeing such a shade beyond a record on a screen.
Shaking himself from the distraction, he looked to the other one, the man, short russet hair pointing in different directions, his summoner horn large and heavy.
Looking between them both, he understood she had meant in the biological sense but he could not reveal that this was not the case. Thinking quickly as to how to answer her, he was saved by the man.
"Just look at him. He must be orphaned, he's covered in filth. Not to mention he's not one of us."
Kuja stepped back in unease, this conversation sounding familiar to the one he had with the man selling food above.
"Is that right?" the woman looked at him, her charcoal eyes glancing up and down at him.
Kuja said nothing, merely remained silent as to not give himself away.
Bending down, she began to collect the scattered coins, giving half to the man and pocketing the rest.
"Hey Ned! "she loudly exclaimed in a mock yell, "We're taking these! You don't mind, do you?" She asked the unconscious body on the ground. The man snickered, reaching down to collect the limp form, tossing him over his shoulder.
"What are you going to tell your husband about the money, Mariko?" He had a small grin, his green eyes mischievous.
"It won't do any good to lie to him, he'd find me out in an instant."
"You're going to get scolded."
She sighed in acknowledgement, smoothing out her dress before grasping Kuja's hand, dragging him alongside her.
The man left in the opposite direction with his load while the one name Mariko began making her way to the stairs with him in tow.
"Release me."
She paused, looking to him, her eyes blinking several times, "Why? Do you have somewhere else to go?"
He was struck again by her coloring, mesmerized.
"Surely you're not opposed to a free meal and a bath at no charge?"
"And what would you require as compensation?" he asked wearily, the feel of the man from before still making his skin crawl.
"Are your ears plugged up in dirt like the rest of you? I said it was free." She rolled her eyes, propelling him forward alongside her once more as she continued on. "Do I look as sketchy as Ned?"
All these events and interactions were transpiring so fast, they were making him dizzy.
He didn't think she resembled that man at all, he thought she was very beautiful in fact, lovelier than any genome by far. In curiosity and a from being a little dazzled, he allowed her to take him to her home.
Setting him within a chair as she began to fill a large basin with steaming water, his eyes roved over the abode. The structure was wood, and…warm, different colors of various objects set about to entertain his eyes, the very seat he was in was cushioned, a novelty, comfortable and soft.
Even though it was clean, it wasn't the pristine sterile aesthetic of Bran Bal. There were cluttered bookshelves, more chairs with cushions in different colors, a large rug under a table teeming with more books. A small treasure trove of things he would love to explore left to his own devices but too leery of this unknown to give it a chance.
At the sound of splashing, his attention turned back to the room the woman had left for. Then she appeared, waving at him to come, instructing him to leave his clothes on the stool next to the basin but then exclaimed that they would be better for the fire than anything else as she did not see how she could mend such "rags".
"I'll be in to help you with your hair in a while."
He took all this in quietly, and once she left, he turned to the steaming water within the large basin. Looking to his reflection, he noted the severe matting of his hair and how the dirt from the rocky climate had turned it into a dingy gray. It had been five days since he last had the opportunity to wash himself and detested the necessary experience as much as he did when consuming his "meals". Every pond or stream he found was frigid and filled with wildlife, a far contrast from the cleansing room he was accustomed to, offset from his master's lab, filled with rotating arcs of light which disintegrated any contaminants upon himself or his brethren within seconds.
Shucking off his garments, the same one's he had been wearing since he arrived on Gaia, thinning and torn, he stepped into the basin and sunk down to his chin. The sensation was a new one, almost overwhelming, and he shivered with it, his muscles relaxing one by one. The warmth seeped into his very bones and his eyes grew heavy at the feeling.
This….this is wonderful…
"Don't fall asleep just yet, we're not done."
His eyes snapped wide when he realized he wasn't alone, slipping his arms around his knees.
She walked to the head of the tub, bottles in her hand.
"Sit up and lean your head back so I can wash your hair. You can manage the rest afterwards, yes?"
He nodded, meeting her dark eyes, a small grin on her face. He wondered at how old she was. Surely no more than a few years older than himself. She brought a chair over and he leaned back as instructed, sucking in his breath as a comb began working through his hair, pulling on the nerves in his scalp.
"Heaven's child, this is beyond awful! But it'll do naught to wash it before I straighten this mess."
He gritted his teeth against the tugs and tried to focus on the heat of the water and how pleasant that was in contrast the work placed on his head. It took the woman over half an hour to sort through the mess and when she did, he gratefully closed his eyes at the sensation of her fingers in his hair, massaging his scalp with the liquids from the bottles, pouring the hot water over his head several times.
This touch he didn't detest. It didn't evoke the same feelings of disgust the man's had. He pondered at that, working in his mind the differences and why one was welcomed and the other not.
"Where was that man taken to?" He inquired, wondering at the reason he was taken away to begin with. Had they waited just moments later, the man would have been obliterated.
"Ned? You don't have to worry about him. Eric's taken him near the Tree. Plenty of bad business around that area to keep him occupied rather than laying hands on boys like you."
The Tree…the Iifa tree?
"He is an undesirable person?"
"That is some accent you have there! Outsiders are not common but we do get them every few years or so but I have never met one that sounds like you! As for Ned, surely you didn't want to continue with what he had in store for you?"
He didn't need to consider, shaking his head to affirm his agreement.
So absorbed was he in all these new little experiences that he did not notice her chattering had stopped. Her hand plucked the hair from the back of his head and he turned to see what had taken her interest.
"Silver…" He looked to her to discern if her reaction was negative, to see if this trait of his was detrimental to anything that might act as a barrier to him being here but her interest didn't come across as such. Thinking he might be fine for now, his tail still hidden in the water, he turned back around, admiring how his fingertips had begun to pucker due to their exposure of the water.
Although he couldn't mimic a horn like the people of this place, nor did he want to, he could at least hide his extra appendage that he noted they did not have.
"All done. I left some clothes whenever you're ready, don't take to long. Come into the sitting room and I'll brush your hair." She left with no fuss and he watched her go, admiring the tendrils of her hair around her face. The water was turning cold and he was no longer interested in it, leaving him to pull himself from the large tub and to dry off with the cloth she had left for him.
The garments on the stool by the wall were cream with ochre and lavender embroidery around the collar, cuffs, and hem, smock like and large with billowy flowing trousers that he appreciated in their lightness and comfort. Although they did not retain the efficiency of his clothing from home, he decided quickly that he liked them very much.
Barefoot and refreshed, he walked into the sitting room, noting there was a chair next to a fire, the room growing dark with the sinking sun. The woman gestured him over with to sit and he did so. The crackling fire was warm against him skin and he liked this too. And when the woman began to bring her through his hair in what he assumed would be more pulling and tugging, he almost purred, the sensation almost paralyzing. He could feel the mass become lighter from the warmth of the fire and the ease in which she began combing through it.
"Surely not…" he heard her murmur to herself. Suddenly she was crouching in front of him, her fingers stroking his crown.
"By all…they really are feathers." Her eyes began to rove over him in a way that made him begin to squirm in the chair.
"I guess it's a good thing you looked the way you did before, otherwise you would have attracted more than just Ned's eyes. You've got to be the prettiest boy I have ever seen." There was something in her voice that he could not recognize but it didn't look untoward.
"Pretty? Me?"
No. That was wrong. He was the prototype to the genome schematic, flawed and defective in regards to those that had come after him. Though his kind did not communicate with him in the sense that his master did, even he could see the shift in their eyes as they recognized something abnormal about his person. Whereas they were golden, he was fair, white-washed and muted in comparison to their gilded faultlessness.
"I've never seen anyone like you but you're not the strangest I've seen, by far. What is your name, boy?"
Her words kept circling in his head over and over, he couldn't get them to stop. Pretty? Him? It didn't equate.
"Kuja."
She blinked once. Twice. And grinned.
"Now that is an interesting name. It means much to a summoner, you know? Surely you won't tell me next, you're truly a deity, hmm?"
He shook his head and she chuckled, standing.
"I'm Mariko Carol. You'll meet my husband and father in law later. Until then, let's get you fed."
Sitting at a table in another room, she placed a bowl and a spoon in front of him, the contents steaming and unknown to him. He watched her bring the spoon to her mouth and did the same, fearful of what was in store for him. His surprise was paramount, the taste of the meal another experience piling onto the plethora he had been acquiring throughout the day, pleasant and savory, his fixation causing him to consume the entire bowl within minutes.
She laughed, handing him a napkin, obviously enjoying his enthusiasm.
He wondered at the difference in what he had eaten as opposed to all the things he had tried on this planet thus far. After asking, she informed him it was a fish stew, her ingredients being items found and purchased locally.
"I…I ate a living creature?" He was perplexed and a little worried. Destruction for the sake of preservation was one thing but consumption?
"Not at the time you ate it," she looked at him questioningly, "It will do you well, the meat will give you energy you need throughout the day."
Despite his initial distaste, he ate another helping, turning to the door that was opened by two men just as he was finishing up.
"What have we here? "a bespectacled man smiled, lanky and of medium height with light blonde hair. There was another man coming up behind him, built similarly but with a shocking patch of royal blue hair.
Mariko's face lit up at the blonde man which made him turn back and forth between the two in interest, deducing that he must be the husband.
"Kuja, this is my husband Klise and my father-in-law Alan."
The older man smiled, waving in greeting, "Kuja you say? That's a name indeed!"
"Indeed, it is," the younger man beamed, very interested in their guest," What brings you to Madain Sari?"
Kuja grew silent, unable to respond. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Mariko cut in.
"Ned tried to get his hands on him. Eric and I think he's an been orphaned. He was covered in filth and half starving." She plucked his bowl and her own, placing them in the sink before making herself busy by preparing two more servings for the men.
"Ned Sutton?" Klise look to Mariko who suspiciously had her back to him. "What about him, Mariko?"
"What do you mean?" she didn't look over her shoulder.
Kuja watched on with interest.
"You just said you and Eric, Mariko, what did you do to him?"
With a heavy aggravated sigh, she turned and almost tossed the two bowls onto the table, the stew sloshing about, "What needed to be done, he was attacking this child and we already know he was planning on doing so to others-"
"We have no proof!"
"He's the proof!" she gestured to Kuja," We caught him in the act! He had his hands all over the boy in an alley!"
Klise brought his thumb and forefinger to the crease above his nose, shifting his glasses up, "Where is Ned now?"
She put her hands on her hips and looked to the wall at her right, "By the Tree…"
"Mariko!"
Alan chuckled.
"He should have been brought to the council and given a hearing! You and Eric had no right-"
"What's done is done!" she argued, stamping her foot like an irate child.
Kuja's eyes were wide, taking it all in. Alan was clearly amused by the entire exchange while Mariko began to weaken under her husband's ire. Although he was slight and scholarly looking, it was obvious that his strong-willed wife would come to yield.
Fascinating…
Klise sighed heavily, berating his wife for taking maters into her own hands, as she often did apparently. He turned to the boy at the table, apologizing for the outburst, inviting him to stay in the spare bedroom as the hour was growing late.
Taking his leave, he looked to the bed laden with blankets and slipped into the softness of the mattress, sighing into the weight of the covers, wondering if all these little delights upon this world would ever cease.
Right before dozing off, unsure if it was alright to let his guard down such but so very tired, he could hear Klise from the sitting room, his voice low but excited.
"Mariko, he is gorgeous!"
"Isn't he?" she replied, hush-like, "So peculiar but you cannot help but to be drawn to him."
"If I was still a young one myself- "cut in Alan but the rest faded as he drifted off.
He woke with the morning rays peeping through the crack in the curtains at the window, his body heavy but rested, his muscles relaxed. Sitting up, he began petting his hair down, his stomach signaling he was hungry again.
To his delight, another meal was being laid out on the table, Klise waving over to him with a smile to join them, pausing briefly to stare at the feathers in his hair.
"It's just as she said," he remarked, his head inching closer, "How…stunning."
Kuja began to tuck in silently, thinking as to how his interactions with these people would be reported to Master Garland.
"What is that sound?" he asked aloud, the noise amplifying as the people within the structure began to increase.
"Hmm?" Klise looked to him, chewing on a bite of bread, a book opened at his elbow.
"The vibrations," Kuja clarified, "and the resonance."
All three adults paused to stare at him, their mouth agape.
"You can hear it?" Klise's eyes focused on the boy even closer, as if looking for something," By vibrations, do you mean the pulse?"
Kuja gave a curt nod, not sure how he could be any clearer.
"That's the pulse of the planet," Alan supplied, "the ground onto which Madain Sari is built is the closest to Gaia's core."
That made sense, Kuja surmised. The conduit between raw power and wielder would be the strongest here.
"As for the resonance, "he continued, studying him as well.
"That would be our summons that you are hearing, "Klise finished, placing a hand over his chest.
There was silence that followed, three sets of eyes studying him thoughtfully, making him take pause in his meal, a feeling of discomfort crawling within him.
"Kuja, "Klise spoke up again," Today is a rest day. As such, would you like to accompany me to the Wall?"
The boy blinked once, twice, "The Wall?"
The blonde headed man nodded in confirmation, "It's a significant structure within our town. I would like to show it to you."
Kuja looked to Mariko, something fluttering within his stomach at the warm smile on her face, beckoning him with an encouraging nod.
"Yes, I will," he replied plainly, turning back to his meal lest it be taken away at his uninterest.
Later, he was given new clothes once more, the sleeves having to be rolled up to fit him properly, Mariko fussing over his hair.
"There is a bit of a snack in the satchel if you get hungry." Satisfied with how he looked, she bent down slightly, ruffling the feathers atop his head," Have fun."
Fun?
It was a short walk with Klise, the excitement in the man was uncontained as his fingers grazed the stone wall almost lovingly.
"This is the Wall, one of Madain Sari's most symbolic monuments. Here is where summoners of each generation record the likeness of their summons."
Kuja's eyes roved over the many designs and etched pictures, monstrous and angelic looking beings alike littered the wall, letters he could not read written alongside them. This would be significant to his Master.
"Why are you showing me this?"
Why was information of such importance being supplied so easily to an outsider?
"It is true you have no parents, yes?"
Kuja nodded at this, unable to grasp the relation.
"Perhaps you might like to stay with our family?"
A pause broke between them, thoughts swirling around, unable to grasp onto one decidedly before moving to the next, muddled confusion.
"Why?"
He was unaware how the tilt of his head and the innocent blink of his deep blue eyes charmed the man before him, making him chuckle in awe.
"Signs hold a heavy significance to a summoner. And despite the fact that you are not one of us, you are the first I have ever heard of being able to hear a summons resonance. And your name! Surely there's meaning in you being here now."
He thought to this, not wanting to correct the man as to the reason of his presence within his town and decided to stay silent on the matter.
"I will stay," he supplied, hoping that would suffice. He would stay as long as he could before he needed to move into action.
Klise smiled at that, a beaming thing, his spectacles riding on the bridge of his nose.
"Could you show me your summons?" Kuja enquired, slipping his hands behind his back. He wondered if the man had any large hulking ones like on the Wall or if his were small, demure things like the man himself.
The blond man scratched his head, his smile slightly troubled, "It doesn't exactly work like that. They're not ours to command, it is a partnership. They resonate with us and in order for them to continue to bestow their favor upon us, we must not call upon them so frivolously. Their power is devastation; we are fortunate to have such benevolent protectors within ourselves. There are actually very strict rules here concerning our abilities."
Kuja took all this in, his interest clawing for more.
Devastation, he said.
Klise continued on, excitedly reciting the summoner's history, their migration from the Mist continent after a failed summon, another at the base of the Tree, the rules and culture ingrained within the people of the town, each living with beings inside themselves but sworn to never unleash them upon one another. How each creature was a collection of their faith born from the planet's crystal and implanted within those that believed. He spoke for hours and Kuja absorbed every detail, enraptured. After translating various notes for Kuja from the wall, Klise pulled out a small notebook from his vest pocket, scribbling something short and precious onto it.
"In our handwriting, you share the first letter in your name with me. Here, this is how we would spell your name."
He tore the paper from the book, handing it to the boy. Kuja held it in both hands, staring, unable to speak for a time. To see a part of himself recorded on such a small thing shifted something within him. His fingers traced the letters reverently, willing himself to remember the symbols over and over.
"This is my name?"
"Yes," Klise smiled down at the boy, his hands in his lap.
"This is me?" Kuja looked to him, a death grip almost on the slip of material.
"Yes, is one form or another."
He could leave this place, this continent, this world, but a part of him was recorded, imprinted with ink, for others to see if they so found it. The feeling was almost overwhelming.
He felt…valid.
After a time, they headed back to his home, their conversation following them throughout the evening meal and after the boy's bath, Mariko joyfully combing his hair as he sat on the floor by the fire, Alan periodically chiming in as the two men spoke animatedly.
Several days passed in such a manner, Klise and his father leaving in the morning to teach their classes respectively, Kuja following Mariko about her errands, assisting with chores and her shopping.
After several times of watching the woman in the marketplace, she encouraged him to try "bargaining" for himself.
His first attempt was an absolute failure but there were no detrimental consequences to be suffered from it. She seemed more amused than anything, patting him gently on his head.
"You don't know how to lie, do you?"
Lying held no merit. Master Garland saw everything in Bran Bal. There had been no purpose to learn to do so.
"Rather than tell an untruth, I notice you say nothing at all."
His head whipped in her direction at being snuffed out and she laughed, heavy with it.
"It's quite alright, I'll teach you. If you don't master this, every merchant across the continent will have you in their debt!"
Watching as she had bidden, he focused on the deceptive falsehoods that flowed from her mouth, trickling little things that she only let out to steer a purchase in her favor.
Afterwards, carrying a bag between the two, he couldn't help but to ask.
"What are the repercussions if you're to be caught?"
She laughed at that, amused, "Nothing, but some broken pride on their part. He might ask around to see if I was telling the truth about others giving me better deals but once he finds out he was duped, he'll be so shamed he'll never let it out in the light of day."
"And what about Klise?"
There the laughter faded into seriousness and she paused to implore her meaning," Now that we don't have to share either. Just let him think himself lucky to have such good meat and that be the end of it."
"This way, you will not be scolded for tricking the merchant?"
"Oh boy, you really don't have a way with words, do you? You could be so charming if you wanted to with that face of yours. And as for the merchant, he should be more aware of his competition. Nothing wrong with being an opportunist!"
Kuja took these lessons within himself, weighing the validity of her words.
And later that evening, everyone ate in jovial gaiety, and when asked about his day with Mariko in the markets, he told his first successful lie, commenting on what good luck they had in their purchases with the vendors.
His days continued to pass as such and within a blink of an eye, a month had run its course. He knew a report to his Master was long overdue and making excuses one afternoon, he slipped away from the city to meet Nova in the caverns beyond.
The dragon was elated to see him, having been so long, and he hugged his dear friend, wrapping his arms around his head. They made their way to where his Master has instructed him the Invincible would be waiting, the ship having been resting there for three weeks if he calculated his absence correctly. Once aboard, his fingers flew over the control panel until his creator's face appeared before him on the screen.
"Kuja…I was beginning to believe you had prematurely expired."
"I have been communicating with the summoners. I lost track of the time, Master Garland."
"And what is it that you have learned?"
He knew many of the lessons he had learned would be inconsequential to his creator, so opted only to part with pertinent information.
"They know not the Iifa Tree's origins. Their eidolons vary in size and strength. They're generated from their beliefs fed into the planet's crystal."
"And have you seen them?"
"No."
Garland nodded once, decided, always quick to the point.
"Then proceed with the plan. Use the Invincible and eradicate this variable."
"Yes, Master Garland."
The image disappeared and he began inputing the city coordinates into the navigation system as he had been commanded. And then he paused.
Mariko…Klise…and even Alan swirled into focus within his thoughts.
He thought to himself for several minutes, his mind putting together things of which he was unaccustomed to.
He tried to use logic to dispel any emotion he was feeling but his fist kept clenching and unclenching in something unnamable.
If Master Garland were to ever find out what he was considering…
More minutes passed until emotion won out and full of resolve, he set out to practice one of Mariko's lessons.
"Where have you been?! I was so frightened something had happened to you!" Her arms held him tightly and although it wasn't the most comfortable feeling, he would allow it.
"I got lost." He spoke plainly, working his best to control his features.
Klise patted him on the shoulder," It's quite alright. Are you hungry?"
One of Mariko's meals would be divine but there was no time.
"I need you to do something for me. All three of you. It is very important that you follow my instructions exactly."
Mariko and Alan smiled at his serious tone but Klise did not, taking his weighted words seriously, if to be respectful of his earnest feelings if nothing else.
"What is it child?"
"Could you meet me at the base of the Tree at sunset? It's imperative."
"And what's so important at the Tree, boy?" Alan asked, his smile gone too.
"I-I'll show you. You said it was a sign that I was here. I need you to follow through on your belief in that."
The three adults looked at him oddly, making it hard for him to understand what they were thinking of his request. They looked to one another before coming to a silent agreement, Mariko nodding in consent.
"Don't keep us waiting." She smiled, something almost boyish in her playful charm," And it better be good!"
He looked to the other two who also smiled in turn, nodding in relief before he turned away, waving in parting.
He never saw them again.
Leaving quickly to meet with Nova, they raced on the wind back to the Invincible. Quickly relaying his instructions to the navigation system, he followed his creator's command, the ship rising above the clouds and propelling forward to their destination. Within hours he watched aboard as the ship laid waste to Madain Sari below, his interest caught as he watched eidolon after eidolon summoned in futility as each creature was beckoned forth one after another only to be disintegrated by the scorching rays of the destructive lasers being fired from the incendiary cannons attached to the ship. Great large beings decimated over sixty percent of the ships external weaponry and one in particular had tore through a turbine, compromising the vessel's flight stability momentarily, Kuja's equilibrium thrown off but for a moment when the ship almost went into descent before a back-up turbine launched into full throttle.
In less than an hour the city was engulfed in scorching hell-fire and no more divine creatures appeared to defend their home. They had been fierce, breathtakingly beautiful things and he wondered as to what it would mean to wield such strength of his own. If he were stronger…could he live a life of his choosing as the people he had met below? If he found the strength he needed to be the master of his own destiny…
"Kuja. Report."
He whipped around, trying desperately to conceal his emotions on his face, his thoughts of betrayal filling him with fear lest his Master suspect what has just transpired within his mind. Turning to the now lit monitor, he responded in turn.
"All inhabitants have ceased, Master Garland."
"Of this you are sure?"
He would never know of what became of Mariko, Klise, and Al. He never saw them again. He could only hope that they had followed his request to meet at the Tree as he had bidden, waiting for a strange boy that would never come, before witnessing the devastation he wrought upon their city and their people in the distance.
Master Garland's orders were absolute. And he lacked the strength to defy him.
He had never lied to his creator, not once. Now would be the first of many. And he would excel in the years to come with diligent practice.
"Yes, Master, all summoners and their eidolons have been eradicated."
Kuja looked to the ruins of the Eidolon Wall, fingers tracing the context of its remains, dissatisfied. It was looking as if Alexander would be his only option, as there seemed to be nothing left to glean from the ruins of the city. Turning to leave, he caught the tell tale sight of a moogle's wings just as it was flitting behind a fallen wall. That seemed to be all there was left in this city. He surmised that the Carol's had not followed through his request as there were no immediate traces of inhabitants as he could see. Deciding the trip a failure, he made his way through the broken archway that once greeted him to the city as a boy, and back to Condie Petie to check on his companion.
A/N: Thank you for reading this far and I welcome any advice or critique!