Before Judas even left, Leblanc knew that her fate was sealed. The traitorous Al Bhed took pride in lashing Leblanc against the chair with expert rope work. The rope above and below her voluptuous breasts pinches every time Leblanc even tries to wiggle free of her bondage. Her plan was trying to squirm to the point that the ropes gives her enough room to move so that she can somehow pick at the knots binding her hands behind her. Of course there is no surrender when it comes to the strength of the ropes. The few moments of trying brought her nowhere closer to where she wants to be and the act only further enhanced Leblanc's agitation. By now the blonde would have stomped her feet as an act of temper tantrum, but given that they are bound together by the ankles and knees, she won't be doing that. To add more to her already restricted legs, Judas bent them back and lashed them one of the chair legs, preventing Leblanc from getting anywhere close to performing her usual temper gesture. Just the minor writhing about had caused her unusual dress to be strained, thus revealing her thighs that are barely covered by her choice of clothing in the first place. Needless to say, Leblanc was tightly contained to the chair she is sitting on.
"NUGUF! UUMM!" Leblanc shouts as loudly as she can through the ball between her lips. "GNF UUNU HNUN UMGHF NUW!"
Suddenly the door opens causing Leblanc to shriek through her gag in shock. Of course the sight of Rikku barging in and followed by Yuna doesn't exactly help her situation out. In fact, the moment Rikku's eyes finds her bound and helpless form, Leblanc can't help but whimper through the ball wedged between her teeth; drool spilling out as she tries and express nonsensical apologies for what had been done to the young Al Bhed.
"Who is she?"
Rikku barely acknowledges Yuna as she makes a slow and ominous walk towards Leblanc. The narrow eyes, the hands clutching her daggers with such hatred, and just the vibe she is letting out gives Leblanc all the more reason to struggle with urgency despite the ropes holding her firmly. Of course all the writhing produces nothing that would aid Leblanc; it only adds to the humiliation that she is now the captive—the helpless woman that is under the whim of Rikku, the one who Leblanc spent hours on hours torturing, degrading, and threatening. Those thoughts do not bode well and Leblanc finds herself shrinking away (as much as position would allow her). The unintelligible mewling does nothing for her as well since Rikku ignores them as she looms over the bound woman.
"Rikku?" Yuna takes a step closer, talking over the garbled pleas of Leblanc. "Rikku, are you okay?"
"I'm fine," despite the words, it's obvious that Rikku is far from okay. Her low and lethal tone of voice was enough to signify that the opposite of her words.
"Rikku!"
By now the young Al Bhed's arm is poised for strike with her dagger still held tightly in her hand. Leblanc screams and shakes her head vehemently—tears pouring from her eyes as she desperately tries to get through to Rikku—desperate to gain some kind of mercy despite all that she has done. Though the rage is burning and Rikku has no intent on letting it die, but lucky for Leblanc, Yuna isn't about to let her cousin go through with the plan. Reaching out, Yuna sets her hand on Rikku's shoulder in a calm manner, careful not to send the Al Bhed into a frenzy. For a moment, it almost seemed like it wasn't going to work with Rikku tensing up and gritting her teeth. Her dagger still held high with the sharp end pointed at the trussed up Leblanc who now has her eyes closed tightly. And for that moment, Rikku's intense breathing concurs with Leblanc's muffled whimpers and finally, for what seemed like forever, Yuna speaks and reaffirms her grip.
"Rikku, stop."
"You don't know what she did!" the young Al Bhed responds with a low but furious voice; her eyes never wavering and her posture never dropping.
"I don't know what she did, you're right, but I don't think—"
"What you think doesn't matter anymore, Yuna!"
Yuna's response is an immediate gasp, followed by her grip loosening due to the strength and the weight of her cousin's words. Luckily it wasn't just Yuna that felt the odd shift of attitude. Rikku herself felt the harshness of her own statement causing her to slightly drop her posture before turning her head to stare at her cousin. There is an inkling of pain etched in Yuna's face though she still retains the majority of her supporting eyes that she is known for. After a few moments of staring at each other, Yuna shakes her head, repeating what her opinion on Rikku's initial reaction on seeing Leblanc at her mercy.
"You don't need to do this, Rikku. You are better than this."
Better than this, she said. Those words bounced off Rikku's mind, causing her ambivalence to be rattled, evident by the shift in her posture. Slowly turning her head back towards Leblanc, Rikku takes a moment to study her former captor as she keeps her eyes shut tight, drooling profusely through the gag, and whimpering helplessly at the sight of Rikku who has Leblanc at her mercy. Everything in Rikku wanted to proceed with her vengeance, wanted to plunge her dagger right into Leblanc and make her feel the pain she is feeling now, but—that would be the ideal scenario. That would be an action influenced by her hatred. Yuna would spare Leblanc of course because she is the High Summoner and she is Yuna; Yuna believes in the greater good—perhaps Rikku needs to lean on that direction a bit to alleviate some of her conflict with her cousin. With an audible growl, Rikku sheathes her daggers, which of course evokes a sigh from both Yuna and even Leblanc.
"Where's Judas?" having no consideration of how aggressive she does it, Rikku unbuckles the gag and pulls it out of Leblanc's mouth. "And save the stupid begging for someone that cares about it, Leblanc."
Before Leblanc is able to respond, she adjusts her jaw to the best of her ability while saliva pours out of her mouth form having a large ball wedged between. Of course Rikku doesn't exactly have the patience to wait as her former captor situates herself.
"Talk!" the aggressive way Rikku yelled causes Leblanc to flinch in her bonds and Yuna cringing from the harshness of her cousin's tone.
"Alright… alright I'll talk," Leblanc responds with a low and raspy voice while trying to catch her breath between the words. "Or should you… talk first…? You've got a lot of—"
Even in her helpless form Leblanc managed the pompous expression that immediately gets under Rikku's skin. The result was the young Al Bhed's hand striking Leblanc across her face with a rage filled slap that sends the woman's face turning towards the direction of the strike. Her squeal resounds within the confines of the room.
"Rikku!"
"Shut it!" Rikku glowers over Leblanc, ignoring Yuna altogether. "Where's Judas you worthless idiot?!"
It takes a few moments before Leblanc can gather her bearings from the pain of Rikku's hand. With Rikku waiting impatiently, Leblanc turns to her direction, eyes narrowed despite fear still evident in her face. To Rikku, the paradigm shift is nothing short of glorifying since she herself was once in the mercy of this woman and almost this much of a degrading mess, though her situation was far more unflattering.
"That traitor ran," Leblanc uses her head to direct Rikku's and Yuna's attention to the ground on the far left of the room, "if you hurry, you might be able to catch him still."
It doesn't take long for Rikku to make her way towards the location, ignoring Yuna as her cousin calls out; her mind fully convicted towards the idea of catching Judas. But something in the table catches her attention: a note with her name written in Al Bhed lying on top of a sphere, her garment grid, and her dress spheres. Her heart skips a beat and her movement completely stops as her eyes seems to be fixed on the items.
"Rikku, what is it?"
"I'm going to guess that you found it," Leblanc speaks over Yuna, "isn't that convenient, luv?"
The letter written within the note serves no sense of solace but at least it is informative. The contents of the sphere is the one thing that Rikku isn't entirely too keen on having it close to anyone, much more, for it to be around Yuna—crumpling the letter and tossing it to the side, Rikku takes a deep breath and grabs the sphere before turning to face Yuna.
"I'm going after him, but you need to know something."
Mustering as much courage and swallowing her pride, Rikku offers the sphere to Yuna, the contents of it remains engrained in her head and she tries her best not to replay them as it sickens her. Though she knows that the secrets within are something she can't hide forever; in order to truly free herself from the bondage, she has to let Yuna know about her conflicts that has plenty to do with her. Rikku knows that in order to end the rivalry, she has to let the secrets out and what better way is there than to allow Yuna to know.
"Going after who?" Yuna stares at the sphere before looking right at Rikku's eyes.
"Look at that, the brat has courage!" Leblanc's voice breaks the moment, causing both Yuna and Rikku to glare at her direction.
"Shut it!" taking a deep breath, Rikku gives Yuna her attention once again. "I need to handle something personal, but I'll tell you all about it when this is over, but you can have the full truth now… unfiltered and not exactly in my best sanity thanks to what that woman and her partner did to me. That's up to you, Yunie."
"Are you sure you want her to see and hear that, brat?"
It takes everything in Rikku not to walk over and slap Leblanc again; luckily Yuna's full attention is enough to keep Rikku to stay put. Despite not entirely sure of what happened, it's quite palpable to Yuna that Rikku suffered a great deal that is only apparent through her emotional stability. Sighing, Yuna takes the sphere and looks at for a few moments. Unsure if Yuna is going to watch it, Rikku makes her way towards the trap door after grabbing her dress spheres and garment grid. Happy that her equipment is finally on her, Rikku opens the door and prepares her descend to finish the business with Judas.
"Rikku," but Yuna calling for her stops her on her tracks, "Be careful."
A small smile forms on the edge of Rikku's lips before proceeding down the trap door. For a few moments, Yuna looks at the direction of the door before looking down on the sphere in her hands, unsure and unable to truly comprehend the gamut of what is inside it. She wishes she could contemplate on it in peace since Leblanc is still an annoying distraction.
"You should watch it, dullwing," Leblanc taunts as she squirms against the ropes, "I can assure you that it's going to be an eye opener."
"Whatever Rikku has to tell me, I'll let her tell me herself."
"Hah!" of course Leblanc's response is far from respectful in regards to Yuna's words. "You really are a stupid, naïve girl aren't you, dullwing? Just like your idiot bimbo cousin!"
Yuna has been called far worse and for the most part, she had endured some of the worse aspersions in the past. Though the part where Leblanc spends the time to degrade Rikku does irk the former summoner. Taking a deep breath, Yuna sets the sphere down and calmly walks to Leblanc with something else in her hand. It doesn't take much for Leblanc to realize what Yuna intends to do with the item and with renewed vigor, Leblanc thrashes against her bonds, pursing her lips, and shaking her head fervently.
"Though I don't exactly agree for you to be left like this for a long time," Yuna grabs Leblanc's head, forcing the voluptuous blonde woman to cease movement in that part of her body, "I do however need you to stop talking."
Leblanc struggles mightily against the ropes holding her useless into the chair. She jerks her body forward with what little movement she is allowed. Trying to gain freedom with her hands, Leblanc tries to pull them apart, hoping that the ropes would snap. She kicks her legs this direction, and that, the result simply ends up the same: she is helpless against Judas' rope work, which in turns allows Yuna to force the ball right back in her mouth with very little effort. As soon as her mouth is filled with the vile rubber taste, Leblanc screams from the top of her lungs and curses with as much obscene words she can concoct though it does no good as Yuna tightens the straps and buckles in the gag with some care intended.
"Now please calm yourself. This will be over soon enough."
"Ufh nmffnn fuuuhmpf! Nupfh mn gu!"
Leblanc's response is of course a barrage of obscenities through her ball-gagged mouth. The rage exuding from her makes Yuna cringe as if it made no difference that the blonde was gagged or not. Once more her vigorous and useless struggling resumes and Yuna decides that the option of ignoring her is best. Once more her eyes focuses towards the direction Rikku ventured off to—a huge part of Yuna wants to follow with guns blazing but something about Rikku's conviction tells her that this fight is Rikku's battle—this is her story. This is her resolve and her moment to bury whatever it is that has been hampering her for the last few weeks. Sighing to herself, Yuna's eyes wanders back at the sphere she has cupped in her hands. There's that curiosity side of hers leaning towards the idea that perhaps she should delve into it. As ambivalence seems to be taking over at that moment, Yuna realizes just how much she has focused on the idea of watching or not watching the sphere; so much attention that it just occurred to her that Leblanc seems to be a little too quiet with just how much rage she was expressing not too long ago.
Rikku has been running for some time now. Who would have known that underneath that small room lays a tunnel that would lead to a man made hall way? If Rikku had to guess, Judas had his men build this for such an occasion like this one. An underground path that leads into getaway vehicles such as small aircrafts, sand mobiles, and even small ships is a smart course of action. And it would have worked too if Rikku decided to take heed of Judas' message, though the young Al Bhed is stubborn and still in dire need of some revenge. Judas is the other half of the tormentor and for that she can't let him get away even if he gave up the sphere containing her... insecurities. Then without warning, shots are fired that barely missed Rikku. Quickly finding the next wall to hide, Rikku immediately switches Dressphere to her Alchemist form, fully equipped with her submachine gun for the long-range battle that just started.
"You should have taken my deal, Rikku!" Judas' voice echoes throughout the open space. "It was a fair deal! But I should've expected that you wouldn't take it!"
Judas fires again giving Rikku little time to assess the situation, but it does give her a sense as to which direction Judas is coming from. Rolling out of her cover and to another wall, Rikku fires back the moment Judas relents. While Rikku's aim wasn't accurate, it did force Judas to stumble away from his position, which of course gives Rikku the proper advantage to move forward. Realizing that Rikku is gaining distance far more than he wishes, Judas releases a barrage of bullets in a reckless manner causing Rikku to halt her attack. Taking this to his advantage, Judas immediately runs after the nearest vehicle to proceed with his escape, though his tactic merely bought him a few moments and it wasn't enough to truly stop Rikku. Quickly shuffling through her chemical vials, Rikku inserts the proper combination in mind into her gun and jumping out of her cover, Rikku uses launcher on her weapon to fire the mixed 'projectile'. The moment it hits the ground close to Judas' vicinity, the wanted affect of thunder spreads everywhere, electricity lashing out hitting every machina around its wake, including Judas' intended escape transportation. Before Judas can react to the ruckus Rikku just made, the vehicle explodes, triggering a catastrophic chain of machinas exploding left and right which forces Rikku to hurl herself away from the chaos. As soon as she lands, Rikku uses one of her mixed items to cover herself in the barrier as the explosion continues for a bit longer, destroying every machina within the area.
"So… you want… to play… like that?!" Judas' voice suddenly pierces through the chaos. "Then … this means… it's you're funeral!"
Before Rikku can even entertain the idea of Judas' survival, she finds her barrier dismantled, and soon after, a strong grip wraps around her neck and squeezes tightly.
"I…would've let you LIVE!" if he had held on longer, Rikku probably would have been in deeper trouble, but Judas merely tosses her, giving Rikku very little option but to land painfully on her side as she slides across the ground. "But… now… I'm going to have to kill you!"
Retracting her Alchemist form and back in her usual attire, Rikku pushes herself a few feet away so that she may be able to stand, daggers in her grip, and ready to fight Judas who for the most part seems unscathed by the explosion. Of course his face, more notably, the exposed flesh seemed to have suffered some burns. The rest of his body seems protected by armor he easily concealed inside his clothing. The skintight form of his armor lets out strange lights and steam as Judas takes a step forward.
"Don't be so shocked," he tells her, "you're not the only one capable of messing with machina."
Judas' pain still evident in his voice and why wouldn't it be? He survived the harsh treatment of the explosions, yes, but the fact that his armor looks just as menacingly painful as it does seem to protect him seems to hinder him. With wires protruding out of his neck and into several parts of his limbs, the humanity in his right hand compromised to mere machinery, and the fact that smoke still rising in crevices here and there—it is indeed as painful as it seems to have lethal intent for anyone who would oppose him; in this case, it would be Rikku that's on the other side.
"Messing yes," twirling her daggers, Rikku reaffirms their grip soon after, "getting it right without messing yourself up is a different story!"
"We'll see about that, little girl!"
Not a moment after he shouts, Judas charges towards Rikku with speed barely noticeable by the young Al Bhed. Dodging out of the way barely saved her but then Judas readjusts his momentum so that he would be going after her once more. Sparks flying out of the ground as his legs grinds against the gravel and with spikes erecting from his forearms, Judas attacks, causing Rikku to immediately respond in a quick an defensive manner. Without the proper time to evade, Rikku meets Judas' strikes, her daggers colliding with the sharp metal on his arms. Once or twice Rikku finds herself resorting to defensive tactics, but once she gains the proper opening, Rikku cuts through, causing blood and sparks out of Judas. Requiring more distance between them, Rikku pushes him away with a kick, and as he stumbles away, the young Al Bhed runs after him, flipping forward and evading his immediate reaction of trying to grab her, and lands behind him where she quickly uses her blades to hack away at the wirings that are available to her. The result is immediate and Judas howls in pain before retaliating by grabbing Rikku and tossing her to the side. Despite the pain of the landing, Rikku rolls back on her feet and not a moment too soon! Judas is now on the attack again and after a few quick trade of blade versus blade, Rikku finds Judas penetrating her defense. The agony of feeling his fist driving upwards into her stomach causes her to fly backwards with a thud before sliding across the ground.
"You can't win you little brat!" Judas taunts as he takes a step forward. "You're going to regret going after me!"
"Maybe," slowly getting to her feet, Rikku changes into her Black Mage attire, "but I'm at least going to at least make sure that you don't walk out of here!"
Judas moves forward to reengage and Rikku reacts as quickly as she can, letting out a stream of thunder spells one after another. Only a few really hit, and even then, Judas' armor still keeps him going. Soon he is in range and Rikku meets him accordingly. Igniting her staff in thunder element, Rikku slams her staff right into his chest letting the force of her strike and the magic do its damage against anything machina and with Judas being covered in it, the feeling of thunder coursing through every inch of his body isn't the best feeling. With rage seething through him, Judas fights through the pain and grabs the staff and pulls it from Rikku's hands. Barely managing to evaluate the situation, Rikku feels the pain of having her own staff slammed on her stomach, and soon after it strikes her across her face, sending her in a spiral motion and falling a few feet away.
"After I kill you, I'm going to make sure that Spira sees that video of you," Judas takes a slow few steps forward as Rikku, now back in her normal attire, is having a harder time getting back on her feet. "Your legacy won't be about how you were one of the High Summoner's guardian, it will be about you being her greatest rival," grabbing the ends of her scarf, Judas pulls it up hard causing the clothing article to tighten around Rikku's neck. "Oh, and also as one sick perverted girl who likes to be tormented, dominated, and all of that sick things that young girls like you do these days."
Judas' force he is applying on Rikku's scarf is causing her to up on her feet in a rather painful manner with every moment of it struggling for breath. Any thought of trying to fight her way out is quickly deterred by the fact that every moment is about trying to alleviate the pressure on her neck. Eventually, to Rikku's dismay, she finds herself hanging off the ground; her feet dangling uselessly as she fights for air with her hands trying to pull the taut grip of her scarf off of her throat.
"Don't worry," Judas' free hand lets out a crackling sound of electricity as he speaks, "I'll only show parts of that little ordeal of yours to your family before I slaughter them one by one."
The sparks turns into a burst of energy that is emanating from the palm of Judas' hand. From this close of a range and the situation she is in, Rikku would feel the full agony of it along with the already severe feeling of losing air. Despite it all, Rikku knows she has to fight; she has to do something. With that thought in mind, Rikku makes one last final attempt to free herself, flailing her legs, trying to hit Judas off balance, but alas it results to him lifting her up higher. The affect of his action was immediate and Rikku lost all of her strength to fight—breathing is now more than a task and she can feel consciousness slipping away from her. Though just when hope seems to have slipped away, a loud sound breaks through the moment and almost immediately the tension of her scarf's grip loosens. Soon Rikku finds herself falling on the ground and eagerly trying her best to regain some air and the danger of Judas seems to be lost at the moment. While she's too busy trying to recuperate, she feels Judas' presence leaves and then the same roaring sound resonates a couple more times. Still grasping on to the moment of solace, Rikku catches a sight of Gippal holding a gun that was obviously the reason for Rikku's freedom.
"You survived," Judas nonchalantly states even after another shot from Gippal's gun. "I'm not surprised. A bit of a struggle I see."
Gippal takes a step forward, highlighting Judas' words about his 'struggle' for survival. His attire tattered and bloody, his face bruised and his usually well-done hair is disheveled, marring the 'pretty boy' visage that goes along with him.
"You've stepped on the line, father."
"You can't call me that," Judas replies with vehemence. "The moment you went against my plans is the moment you stopped being my son."
"How ironic," Gippal fires twice, both shots sending Judas on his knees, "you stopped being my father the moment you—"
"The moment I what? Used your girlfriend to get our people the power they deserve?!"
Gippal's eye narrows at those words, but before he would be able to take action, Rikku stabs Judas' on the side of his neck; the red blade penetrating the other side and almost immediately, Judas dies, falling face first on the ground. For a few moments, Gippal stands staring at the corpse of his father as blood starts to decorate the ground. His hand still pointing forward with the gun aimed where Judas was.
"I was going to kill him for yo—"
But before Gippal could finish his sentence, Rikku's fist flies across the side of his jaw, knocking him on the ground painfully. "How dare you show your face here!" Rikku stands over Gippal with rage boiling out of her tiny form—dagger in one hand while her other hand clenched in a tight fist ready to hit her former captor again. "Because of you I… I…"
"Yeah, I know," Gippal slowly stands up, risking another punch to the face as a smirk forms on his bloody lip, "I had a lot to do with this whole thing."
"You arrogant… jerk! Do you have any idea what I've gone through?!"
"Sort of," Gippal looks to the side, trying to avoid the glaring spiral eyes of Rikku, "kind of…. did you want me to know what you've been through?"
Not a moment after those words left Gippal's mouth, Rikku sends him back on the ground with another fist across his jaw, this time blood spews out the direction his face turns after the force.
"This isn't funny! Because of … because of what you did your father and that Leblanc forced—" tears are now streaming from Rikku's eyes as she recalls the events that transpired. "—drugged me! Degraded me! And they were going to kill me!"
"I'm sorry."
"SORRY?! You're sorry?!"
By now Gippal is making very little to no attempt to getting herself to a standing position. He remains on the ground as Rikku is once again standing over him with her rage.
"Yeah… I messed up. I'm sorry."
"You MESSED UP?!" Rikku howls again. "You MESSED up?! You ARROGANT… PIECE of…! I hate… I HATE YOU! I HATE You! I HATE…"
With that amount of fury, one can discern that Rikku would've succumbed to taking Gippal's life as well akin to what she just did with Judas who is now lying in a pool of blood face first. To Gippal, he is more than willing to say that he deserves it with how much he didn't do compared to what he contributed to this whole diabolical plot. He always knew his father was power hungry, but to go the route he did—regrets however won't abate the situation but the last of his integrity will. Despite everything, Gippal always thought of Rikku far more than what he says about her. Despite knowing that Tidus was on her mind, Gippal was always willing to take that hole that Rikku has in her life. Now that he has tainted that, perhaps her vengeance, her need for blood after what has happened can be the only way he would attain some kind of redemption. So with that, he lays there—waiting.
"I hate… me…" Rikku's tirade suddenly changes to a strange self-loathing statement, which is accompanied by the sound of her dagger hitting the ground. "… I hate… my… self…"
The abrupt change causes Gippal to move as Rikku falls on her knees and forward, leaving her mere moments until Gippal is able to catch her in his arms. Almost immediately, Rikku starts to cry uncontrollably; her outburst echoing even louder than the sound of the remaining fire that are left in the battle's wake.
"Sshhh," Gippal tries his best to give her the support while being aware of the fact that he was part of her suffering. His position remaining as neutral as can be until Rikku completely loses herself in her agony and wraps her arms around Gippal—her tears only gets worse as well as her uncontrollable crying. "Just… let it all out, Rikku… let it all out."
As Rikku 'vents' out all her built up emotions (ones that she can't form with words at the moment), Gippal can't help but glance at the chaos that occurred and the corpse of a man who was once his father. Hard to imagine that the young woman that is crying in his arms, the small petite framed Al Bhed whom he has teased all his life, a person whom he is too arrogant to admit he adores, is capable of all this destruction and bloodshed. Given the situation of her captivity, her vengeance and what she was willing to do to attain it was understandable and perhaps that is why Gippal decided to abort his loyalty for his father—a man who never gave him the kinship that Rikku gave Yuna or anyone else she deemed family. Though for the first time Rikku finally did something for the sake of her own name and the result is this. Something that Gippal has never seen Rikku do in a long time.
"Let it out," Gippal continues to hold her tight as his words keeps repeating. "Just let it all out, Rikku.
And so Rikku does just that. For the most part, the situation has been abated—despite the fear of her humiliating endeavor still at risk of being shown to the public. To Rikku, perhaps the greatest fear she feels is the aftermath; the act of telling Yuna everything and how she would react, that is if Yuna didn't watch the sphere already. Part of Rikku feels like the rivalry she has allowed to boil inside of her will finally do its damage; one that cannot be healed with any strong healing spells or potions.
Next: Epilogue