The Summoning
This was it, the big moment. If Cloud agreed to this, there would be no turning back. He would be promising to protect Yuna until her pilgrimage was complete. Not only that, he would be promising to prevent her death. He still didn't know how he was going to do that though; he needed more information.
"I accept your offer, but there's something you should all know."
"Don't worry, Cloud. I've already told Lulu and Wakka about where you're from. Actually, I knew that you weren't from Spira since before you got here."
"What?" Cloud was surprised, how could she have known?
"A woman came to me while I was praying at the temple, her name was Aerith. She told me she was sending someone to help me on my pilgrimage. When I saw you washed up on the beach, I knew it was you." That Aerith! She never intended on giving Cloud an option.
"Then, you know why I'm here? You know that I'm going to prevent your death?"
"Yes."
"Then, you really know of a way?" Lulu questioned Cloud.
"Not yet, but there must be a way. Aerith wouldn't have sent me here if there wasn't," The two guardians seemed troubled by speaking about this, "Don't worry, leave the thinking to me. I know it's probably hard for you all to talk about, so let's just let it lie for now."
"Well then, changing the topic. Yuna will be praying to the fayth tomorrow to obtain her first aeon. You should make sure you're prepared." Lulu informed Cloud. Lulu and Wakka both left after that. They must've gone to prepare in their own ways.
Lulu said something about an aeon. Cloud had read about them at the temple. Summoners could call forth these beings of great power to fight by their side. It sounded similar to summon materia, but Cloud wasn't sure how they were able to be called.
"Lulu said you had to pray to the fayth, is that how you obtain the aeon?"
"That's right," Yuna replied with a smile, "I pray to them and in return, they bond their soul with mine. That is how we summoners are able to call upon the aeons."
"You prepared for it?"
"I believe, I am ready for it."
"That's good, confidence is the key to anything," Cloud put his hands on her shoulders, "you'll be fine. You're trained for this, right?"
"Thank you, Cloud."
"Yuna." Kimahri, who was standing at the bottom of the steps to the temple, called for Yuna.
"I guess, you have a lot of preparing to do. I'll see you later." Yuna nodded in response and ran towards Kimahri.
Lulu had told Cloud to be prepared, but he wasn't exactly sure how to go about doing that. He thought about asking her how, but he couldn't find her anywhere in the village. Cloud noticed Wakka leaving the village with the rest of the Aurochs.
"Hey, Wakka." Cloud had made his way over to them before they left.
"Yo, Bubby! What's up?"
"Lulu told me I need to be prepared for tomorrow when Yuna prays to the fayth. Any idea how I'm supposed to do that?"
"Hmm. Well, everyone prepares in different ways. You're gonna be in there for a long time, ya? Might be your last chance to do any exercise for a while. Why don't you come join us and play some blitz? Could save ya from goin' crazy in there, ya?"
"Fine," Cloud sighed, "just don't give me any of that 'you can do better than that, Bubby' crap, okay?"
"Hahaha, no promises there!"
Cloud, Wakka and the rest of the Aurochs went down to the beach, where Cloud had washed up on. They swam under the water and commenced their game. It wasn't a full game. They didn't have enough players for that, so they played a three aside game instead. Cloud's mako advantages really helped him shine. Blitzball was a very physically demanding game, Cloud respected those who played it regularly. Once the game had finished, they returned to the surface and made their way to the beach.
"Bubby! You're really good, ya? Do you play Blitz back on your world or something?"
"No. On Gaea, Blitzball doesn't even exist. Didn't I already tell you? I've never heard of it before."
"So then, how are you so good? You must have some natural talent for it!"
"I wouldn't say that," Cloud shook his head "Look, I'm not built like a normal human. Mako runs through my veins, it enhances my abilities to the extreme."
"Mako?"
"Mako is the blood of my planet. All members of SOLDIER are showered in mako, that's why my eyes have this strange glow."
"You were a soldier?" Cloud sighed and proceeded to inform Wakka about all things Shinra and how they were draining the life from the planet using the mako reactors in Midgar.
After Cloud finished his story, Wakka and the Aurochs made their way back to the village. Cloud had decided to stay behind. He stared out at the ocean and thought back about his time on Gaea. Speaking to Wakka about it had really made him realise how much he was missing his friends.
Just then, Cloud quickly turned and drew the Buster Sword. He blocked an attack coming in from someone familiar to him. What was his name, Kimahri? Three more attacks came in from Kimahri's spear, however Cloud was able to block them. It seemed like Kimahri wanted to test Cloud's skills in battle, a friendly sparring match was all it was. Cloud decided to launch a few attacks of his own. He unleashed a three-hit combo at a decreased speed, just to test how fast Kimahri's reactions were. All three were blocked, with Kimahri countering the third. It was a straightforward thrust attack; Cloud simply side-stepped out of the way and found the opening he needed to end the spar. He swung at the spear knocking it out of Kimahri's hands and pointed the Buster Sword at him. Kimahri nodded in acknowledgement of Cloud's strength.
"Getting along?" Yuna must've been watching the whole time from a distance.
"I guess you could say that," Cloud shrugged, "you ready for tomorrow?"
"Yes, all the preparations have been made. I just hope I can make the people happy."
"Looks like the sun will set soon, why don't we head back?"
"Alright, you can tell me about Gaea while we walk!"
"What do you want to know?"
Just as Cloud said, the sun had begun to set as they reached the village entrance. As they got there, Cloud had just finished telling Yuna about all of the members of AVALANCHE. Kimahri really only seemed interested when Cloud spoke about Nanaki though.
Wakka and Lulu had spotted Cloud, Yuna and Kimahri as they walked deeper into the village, it seemed like they were discussing tomorrow's plans.
"So, tomorrow. Me, Kimahri and Cloud will be the ones to escort Yuna through the cloister of trials and wait for her while she prays to the fayth." Lulu informed them as she and Wakka approached.
"You're not coming, Wakka? I thought you were a guardian?" Cloud asked.
"Part-time guardian. I need to help train the Aurochs for the Crystal Cup in Luca."
"Isn't this more important than a Blitzball tournament?"
"Well, normally I'd agree with you, ya. But the thing is, Chappu used to play for the Aurochs. He said that after he won the Crystal Cup with the Aurochs, he would propose to Lu. This is just something I gotta do, ya! After this year's tournament, I'll be a full-time guardian. No questions about it." Cloud noticed that Lulu had turned her back, was she crying? No, not crying, but she was on the brink. This Chappu must've meant a lot to her and he was Wakka's brother, Cloud couldn't object.
"I get it. Make sure you train your ass off, Wakka."
"Thanks, Cloud."
"Yuna, you should rest. I suggest you do the same, Cloud. Tomorrow is an early start and we'll be in there for quite a while." Lulu said, she seemed to have regained her composure.
"I think you're right. Goodnight, everyone." Yuna replied as she walked to her hut. The others all began to disperse as well, leaving Cloud alone in the centre of the village.
Cloud could sense their sadness. He couldn't blame them, tomorrow was the day Yuna would become a summoner, the day she would start her journey to defeat Sin, the day she would walk towards inevitable death. Although Cloud had told them he was going to stop her from dying, they didn't seem to think there was a way. As he said earlier, Cloud didn't know of a way either. There wasn't enough information to go on. Another visit to the temple library would be pointless, there didn't seem to be anything there that would help. All Cloud could do now was rest and wait for the morning to come. A solution would present itself soon, right?
!~!
Cloud felt groggy. He stood with Kimahri and Lulu outside of Yuna's hut, waiting for her to get ready. The three of them seemed to share the same hatred for mornings, at least Lulu and Cloud did. Cloud couldn't tell whether Kimahri hated the morning or whether he was just being his usual silent self, Yuna did say he never really spoke much.
At last Yuna exited the hut. They made their way to the temple, passing by the Aurochs and Wakka on the way there. Wakka wished them good luck before running out of the village with the rest of the Aurochs, Cloud assumed they were heading to the beach again.
Upon entering, those who were in the temple bowed their heads to Yuna and performed the standard prayer of Yevon. Yuna replied with one of the summoner's prayers and was greeted by the temple summoner.
"You are sure you are ready, Lady Yuna?"
"Yes."
"Then the cloister of trials awaits you."
The cloister of trials, Cloud read about them briefly. A test of knowledge and problem solving, a test of wit and resilience. Apparently, it was within the teachings that only one person at a time could attempt the trial. Yuna, Lulu and Kimahri had all gone, now it was Cloud's turn to face the trial.
Right off the bat, Cloud noticed a glowing glyph on the wall of the tiny room. As he touched it another appear to the right of him, again on the wall. Upon touching the new glyph, the wall in front of him rose up, revealing a hidden passage.
"I think I'm gonna grow to hate this." Cloud sighed.
He continued on and took a sphere from a pedestal melded into the wall. There appeared to be a hole in the centre of a locked door, it seemed to be about the same size as the sphere he had just taken. Cloud inserted the sphere into the door causing it to fling open. A few exchanges of spheres into pedestals and Cloud had managed to reveal a passageway that lead to the chamber of the fayth, he even managed to find a treasure chest inside.
"Looks like you made it, although you did take your time." Lulu taunted.
"Maybe, but I did also find this." Cloud presented the staff he had found to the others.
"That's a summoning staff! It enhances the strength of a called aeon! Where did you get that?" Lule sounded both shocked and impressed.
"A magician never reveals his secrets," Cloud replied as he walked up to Yuna, "if it's a summoning staff then I guess you should take it, Yuna."
"Thank you, Cloud." Yuna smiled as she accepted the staff and took a hold of it.
The group approached the entrance to the chamber of the fayth. Yuna turned to Kimahri and hugged him. She said a few words to Lulu and also hugged her, then she turned to Cloud.
"Do your best in there, Yuna." Cloud said to her.
"I will." Yuna stood there awkwardly for a moment before giving Cloud a crushing hug. He was surprised by her actions. Once she had let go of him, Yuna made her way up the stairs and into the chamber.
A few hours had gone by. Everyone had claimed their own space and kept to themselves. Kimahri stood next to the exit, his eyes were closed. It seemed like he was in a meditative state. Neither awake, nor asleep. Lulu stood in the corner of the room, seemingly experimenting with her magic on a smaller scale. Cloud was sat at the top of the stairs, leaning back against at pillar and juggling two pieces of materia in one hand.
"What's that?" Lulu asked as she moved over and sat at the bottom of the stairs.
"It's called materia. It allows me to use magic, just like you do."
"All magic?"
"No, each piece of materia has its own unique ability."
"That sounds useful. Why don't you teach me about it, maybe it'll help pass the time?"
"Sure."
Cloud explained to Lulu the basics of materia, how it was formed, how to use it, that sort of stuff. He also told her about the different types of materia, magic, summon, command, independent and support.
"Summon? What does that entail?"
"It's similar to summoning aeons, I'm assuming. Though, we don't have to pray to them."
"Fascinating, perhaps there is some connection between your summons and our aeons."
"Who knows?"
It felt like they had been waiting for hours on end. By Cloud's estimate, they had been there for almost an entire day, close to a full 24 hours. Wakka did say that they would be in there for a while, Cloud just didn't expect it to be this long. His mako enhancements usually allowed him to go for a number of hours without eating, but even Cloud was beginning to feel hungry. He couldn't imagine what it must've felt like for Lulu and Kimahri.
Just then, Cloud heard the opening of doors. Wakka and some blond kid walked in. He had never seen this kid before, but he looked completely lost. Cloud knew he wasn't a guardian, so why was he in here? Wasn't it forbidden for anyone other than guardians and summoners to pass through the cloister of trials?
"What are you doing here? Didn't think we'd be able to handle it?" Lulu said in a sharp voice as she rose to her feet.
"No, it's uh… it's just," Wakka turned to face the kid, "See I told you she gets mad easy, Tidus."
"Is the summoner alright?" Tidus asked, he really had no idea what was going on?
"What are you doing in here?" Cloud stared directly at this Tidus, or whatever Wakka had called him. He looked shaken by Cloud's presence.
Again, the sound of a door opening could be heard. Yuna stumbled out of the chamber of the fayth, exhaustion reflected in her face. She took another step and began to fall. Luckily Cloud was right next to her and he was able to catch her before she fell to the floor.
"I've done it, I have become a summoner!" Yuna exclaimed as Cloud helped her back to her feet. He and Kimahri helped her walk to the exit. Wakka moved aside, while Tidus stood there gaping. Cloud just moved him out of the way and exited with Yuna.
"What's that guys deal?" Tidus asked Wakka with a shaky voice.
"Hahaha. You gettin' scared of Bubby over there?" Wakka teased, although he was quickly silence.
"Let's just go. We'll talk about this later, Wakka." Lulu scolded as she walked past the pair to catch up to the others.
Tidus felt bad. He felt like he'd just gotten Wakka into some big trouble because he barged in, ignoring the rules. Wakka had been nothing but helpful to Tidus ever since he got here, so it made him feel guilty.
"So, who's this 'Bubby' then, Wakka?" Tidus asked as the two set off after the others.
"His real name is Cloud Strife. He's only one of the most powerful warriors I ever seen, ya!? He was in a similar situation to you, you know? He washed up of the beach as well, Yuna found him there and took care of him until he recovered. I'll tell you more about him later though, you might wanna watch this, ya?" Wakka said as they exited the temple to a crowd of people standing around Yuna.
"Watch." Yuna said to Cloud as she gently pushed him in the direction of the other guardians. Tidus looked up at the man, his eyes emitted a strange glow. Creepy.
Cloud glanced at Tidus who immediately turned his head away and looked straight at Yuna. Cloud also turned his attention back to the newly announced summoner. She began performing a ritual, causing different types of glyphs to appear all around her. Purple rays of light spiralled into the sky and a regal roar pierced through the air. A winged beast emerged from the clouds, with great speed it landed next to Yuna.
"What's its name?" Cloud asked.
"Valefor." Yuna replied as she caressed the aeon's cheek and patted it on the head. As she dismissed the aeon, everyone from the village crowded around her. Cloud and the other guardians moved to her side and managed to give her some breathing room. Eventually, they managed to slip away and get some rest at their respective huts.
As Cloud awoke and exited the inn, the moon and stars were out. It seemed like he was the last to wake up. Wakka was with the Aurochs as well as that Tidus kid. Yuna was sat by a bonfire at the centre of the village, along with a few of the village folk. Kimahri was stood close by her. However, the first thing Cloud saw was Lulu waiting for him outside of the inn.
"Awake at last, I see."
"So, what do you want? You wouldn't be waiting for me just to chat, would you?"
"We leave first thing tomorrow to start the pilgrimage. We'll be taking a ship to Kilka, so make sure you're ready to leave." Lulu replied, ignoring Cloud's sarcasm.
"Got it."
As Lulu walked away, Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose. He had managed to get over his motion sickness for most forms of transportation, however he had not yet mastered sea travel. Luckily for him, he had a few doses of tranquiliser with him. Cloud hoped that would be enough to help him out.
"Victory! Victory! Victory!" The Aurochs were chanting, they seemed to be fired up.
"Looks like you guys are in the spirit for the tournament." Cloud said as he made his way over to them.
"Well with this Blitz wizkid on our side, there's no way we could lose!" Wakka exclaimed, throwing one arm around the neck of Tidus.
"If you say so." Cloud shrugged.
"Do you play Blitz, Cloud? Uh, Mr. Strife, sir?" Tidus asked, just managing to muster up the courage to speak to him.
"I've only trained with Wakka twice, so I wouldn't exactly say that I play it."
"Bah! Don't make me laugh, ya!? Bubby's a natural! He's probably faster in the water than all of us combined!"
"Then, you should join us! Yeah! You should play in the cup!"
"Not interested," Cloud shut down Tidus's request, "I hope this gamble of yours delivers, Wakka. You know Lulu isn't gonna like this."
"I hope so too, ya. Lu might kill me if it doesn't."
"Hey! The star player of the Zanarkand Abes always delivers!" Tidus shouted, causing heads to turn in their direction.
"Zanarkand? I thought it was in ruins, how could there be a team?" Cloud questioned. Tidus started stumbling over his words, he couldn't string together a complete sentence.
"Uh, don't mind him Bubby! He's got some crazy Sin toxin thing goin' on, his mind is a bit muddled up right now, ya? Thinks he's from Zanarkand or something, apparently the lights never go out there!" As Wakka was explaining the situation, Tidus seemed to have conveniently wandered off. Cloud saw him speaking to Yuna, the conversation looked awkward though. He thought about interfering, but at the end of the day it wasn't his business to do that.
Cloud had moved away from the bonfire, taking a position where there weren't many people around. He looked up at the night sky. Stars were lined all across the black canvas, it reminded him of that starry night at Nibelheim. The promise made between two friends that intertwined their fates rushed to Cloud's mind. He wondered how Tifa was doing, how everyone was doing. Denzel, Marlene and Yuffie were probably keeping Tifa on her toes though, Cloud hoped Barret was giving her a helping hand.
"They're pretty tonight, the stars, aren't they?" Yuna said as she moved to Cloud's side.
"Yeah, they're reminding me of home."
"Gaea?"
"Yeah, but also my hometown."
"Your hometown? Tell me about it, does it have a name?"
"Nibelheim. It was a quiet town, not much ever happened there. Not until the mako reactor was built anyway. Everything was fine until…" Cloud's expression changed. He didn't look like his usual self; sadness enveloped his visage.
"Until what?"
"Nothing," Cloud didn't want to get into the Nibelheim incident right now, he didn't want to relive that memory, "hey, let me ask you something?"
"Go ahead." Yuna replied.
"What are those things that a fiend turns into when it's defeated?"
"Pyreflies. They're beings of pure energy; they have no true form. They guide the souls of the dead to the Farplane, where they can rest in peace."
"Pure energy? That sounds a lot like-"
"Lady Yuna! Come and help us with our daisy chain!" Cloud was interrupted by one of the children of the village. Yuna agreed and the girl ran back towards the bonfire.
"Why don't we continue this conversation tomorrow? You can tell me about all your adventures with AVALANCHE." Before Cloud could even reply, Yuna started making her way over to the children.
Some time had passed, the bonfire had finally gone out and most of the village had returned to their homes. Cloud was about to enter the hut when he heard arguing in the distance, it sounded like Wakka and Lulu.
"He's dead, okay? Dead," Lulu seemed furious with Wakka, "he does look a lot like Chappu. I was surprised, too, the first time I saw him. But, nomatter what he looks like, he isn't Chappu. You shouldn't have brought him here in the first place!"
"Yeah, but… he needed out help."
"Excuses again?"
"Yeah, but…"
"That's it! No more. Enough, Wakka!"
!~!
Cloud had risen from his slumber and made his way outside to meet the others. He saw Wakka handing a sword to Tidus. It appeared to be a one-handed longsword with a hook connected to the tip. The blade itself reflected the imagery of water; the material gave it an illusory property that made it appear as though the water was moving.
"That's the sword you gave Chappu." Lulu observed, her voice slightly shaken.
"Well, he never used it." Wakka seemed almost depressed after the mentioning of his brother's name, it looked like he was still getting over the loss too.
"Where's Yuna?" Cloud asked as he approached the group, hoping to change the topic.
"We're taking the same boat as her, right? Why do we gotta wait here?" Tidus asked, clueless as ever. Wakka began explaining the relationship he and Lulu had with Yuna, that she was like a little sister to them.
"This is our journey; we should leave together." Just as Lulu spoke, Yuna exited the temple with a pretty big suitcase. She looked like she was struggling to carry it, "You really don't need all that luggage."
"They're not really my things. They're gift for the temples we're to visit."
"This isn't a vacation Yuna." Cloud wasn't really sure why Lulu and Wakka were getting so serious all of a sudden, especially Wakka. Cloud didn't think Wakka even had a serious side to him.
"What's the issue? This is Yuna's journey, right? She calls the shots."
"Ahh! Alright then, I guess you're right," Wakka seemed to have taken on his usual demeaner again, "but you're carryin' it, Bubby!"
"What? Too heavy for you, big guy?" Cloud teased as he made his way towards Yuna who was still struggling, though she did seem a bit happier after Cloud had spoken up for her.
"Thank you." Yuna whispered in Cloud's ear as he took a hold of the suitcase.
"No problem."
They didn't make it very far before they stopped again. Lulu and Yuna were looking down at the village in the distance, taking one final look before they left. Wakka did the same, however he was trying to make it less obvious. Tidus appeared to be getting restless.
"Let's get going, man!" He blurted out, jogging on the spot like a kid.
"Are you really that dumb?" Cloud asked rhetorically.
"We're gonna wait." Wakka informed him.
When Yuna moved away from the rail, they made their way to some kind of monument. Cloud had seen it before in the multiple times he left the village, but he just assumed it was another machina ruin. He overheard Wakka saying something about it being an ancient custom to pray at this monument for a safe trip.
"Chappu didn't pray that day. Said he'd miss his boat." Cloud felt almost compelled to pray after hearing Wakka say that, just to put him at ease. How did it go again? Cloud performed the basic prayer Yuna had taught him, he didn't get on his knees like she and Wakka did though.
As they continued down the path, various fiends had presented themselves. Fortunately, it looked like Cloud and Wakka had done enough by plugging up the mako fountain, these fiends were a lot weaker than the ones that had made their way to the village. Due this, Cloud took a backseat and stayed by Yuna's side, allowing the other three to deal with them. Wakka and Lulu were teaching Tidus about the different type of fiends and how to beat them.
"What do you think?" Yuna asked Cloud.
"I think Kimahri's gonna kill him." Cloud was less than impressed by Tidus's display of swordsmanship, more so by his lack of understanding.
"Heh! Watch this!" Tidus yelled as he went in for an attack on a water flan. Obviously, failure was the outcome. The kid seemed perplexed by the fact that he hadn't sent the fiend to the Farplane.
"Hmph. Clueless, aren't you? Good thing I'm here." Lulu took the fiend out easily with her lightning magic. She explained to Tidus that it was possible to take flans out with physical attacks, but it would either take a long time or a powerful blow, something Tidus lacked.
"So, AVALANCHE recruited you because they wanted you to help save the planet?" Wakka asked, Yuna and Lulu both seemed to be curious as well. It seemed like Tidus had gone ahead.
"Well, saying it was to save the planet makes it sound more gracious than it was. They recruited me to help them blow up a mako reactor," That seemed to spark a reaction from the others, they seemed to become wary of Cloud, "but don't get the wrong idea. Our main target was extraction pump. The bomb wouldn't completely destroy the reactor, it would just stop it from working. That's what we thought at least."
"You, uh, thought?" Wakka asked, still shaken at the prospect that Cloud may have been more dangerous than they thought.
"Just as we made our escape, the entire thing exploded. When our bomb went off, the extraction pump was destroyed just as planned. However, Shinra ordered all of the machina in there to fire at the reactor. They plotted to destroy their own reactor just to push the narrative that AVALANCHE were terrorists. Hundreds of lives were lost."
"That's terrible! How could anyone do something so bad, ya? This is exactly what causes things like Sin to appear!"
"Look, what's done is done. They got what they deserved in the end anyway. I'll tell you about that at a later time. Right now, we've got other things to deal with," Cloud said as he pointed up ahead, "it's started."
A battle had broken out, one Cloud was expecting. Kimahri was fighting Tidus to test his strength. It looked like Tidus was losing, badly. It wasn't that much of a surprise, Tidus was still a novice after all and Kimahri seemed like he'd been fighting all his life, the broken horn gave it away.
"That's enough!" Kimahri lowered his weapon upon Wakka's shout. He shook his head disapprovingly, before continuing down the path towards the ship.
"What's with that guy!?" Adrenaline pumped through Tidus' veins as he spoke.
"Kimahri Ronso, of the Ronso tribe. He's learned the fiends' way of fighting." Lulu explained.
"That's not what I meant!"
"Don't take it to heart. He just wanted to test your skills. If he wanted to kill you, he would've." Cloud told the young blitzer.
"Sometimes we don't understand him either. Kimahri doesn't talk much anyway, but he has protected me since I was a child." Yuna chipped in.
Swiftly, the group continued down the road in follow of Kimahri. They were beginning to pass the ruins where Cloud and Yuna had gone on their treasure hunt. Needless to say, not a single bit of treasure had been left behind.
"That's a big bird." Cloud observed as a Garuda flew by, deciding to engage in combat with them.
"That's your department, right Wakka?" Tidus asked.
"True, true. But, why don't we let our summoner show us what she's made of?" Cloud was intrigued by Wakka's comment, he too was curious about an aeon's fighting ability.
"You sure you can handle this?" Cloud asked Yuna before she went into battle.
"Just watch!" Yuna seemed like she wanted to impress Cloud in her first real battle. He was looking forward to seeing her fight, especially with her so fired up.
Valefor came down from the heavens to answer Yuna's call. The Garuda didn't stand a chance, right from the get-go. With a combination of black magic and wing attacks, the Garuda took a beating from Valefor. It didn't take long before the oversized bird was disappearing into a cloud of pyreflies.
"Impressive," Cloud said, reaching for the hilt of his sword as he did, "but it looks like you missed one."
In the blink of an eye, Cloud rushed past Yuna and the others. He jumped up to the second Garuda, that had accompanied the other, and struck its wing. The bird fell to the ground and with a bit of improvisation, Cloud performed Braver while in the air. With just two strikes the second Garuda had been defeated and Cloud performed his victory celebration.
"Show off." Yuna said as she nudged into him with her body.
"You'll get there one day." Cloud patted Yuna on the head and they continued on.
Eventually they came to the beach where a few of the people from the village, as well as the temple summoner, were waiting for them. The few that came were giving Yuna small departing gifts. Although the gifts weren't much, it was the thought that counted.
Cloud had just finished loading Yuna's suitcase of gifts onto the ship and had thrown back a tranquiliser before the honk of a horn indicated the departure of the ship. All of the village people that showed up were waving goodbye to them, some of them crying, some barely holding it back. A single child ran to the edge of the dock balling his eyes out and waving at Yuna. Cloud, who was leaning on the rail of the boat, noticed tears beginning to stream down Yuna's face. He sighed and pulled her head into his chest.
"Hurry up and let it out, before anyone notices." Yuna cried her heart out, a wet patch was formed on Cloud's SOLDIER uniform. Quickly drying her eyes, Yuna turned to face the docks.
"Goodbye, Besaid."