Mission of Bahamut

The chocobos warked nervously as a dozen men lined up. Eric walked out of the smithy and stood beside his father with his arms folded. Rufus moved his chocobo to the front and glanced around him with a satisfied look. His eyes turned up and Eric followed them, finding Tifa staring out of the window. Her eyes lingered on Rufus and then moved slowly to Eric, who turned away eventually. Cid sighed.

"Don't stare at the Princess," he lectured. "It's not polite." Eric scoffed at the words.

"I'm not staring." He snapped before his eyes turned up again. She was looking right at him. "She is though." He smiled, gesturing with his head. Cid looked up too. Tifa blushed and averted her eyes quickly.

"To the Forest of Bahamut!" Rufus declared, holding up his new sword. As they passed him, Eric bowed respectfully and in his mind, he was praying for their safe return.

On the Northern Continent, Aerith sat on her throne with a bored expression as two men lectured her about marriage. Beside her, Elmyra remained silent, listening closely.

"My Lady, you have set tests for your suitors. Such tests are almost an insult to their rank." One of them explained. "These men who ask for your hand are Kings and Princes." The other added.

"And I am a Queen." Aerith replied. "They are equal. So tell them that I shall set a challenge." The men looked at each other and then at her, waiting for her to continue.

"The man who can defeat me in battle will be my husband." The Queen saw Elmyra smirk a little but the men looked stunned.

"But my Lady, no man can hope to achieve such a challenge!" They argued.

"One man will." She answered. "And I will know that man as soon as I see him. You may go."

Realising they couldn't do much more, the two men bowed and left. Elmyra turned to the Queen as soon as the doors shut.

"You're thinking about that man from the night the meteor fell aren't you?" She teased. Aerith smiled at her and sank back into her chair.

"I have thought of him ever since." She replied dreamily. "And I will marry no one else Elmyra, not a King, not a Prince. Not even the Wutaian Emperor himself." Elmyra stood up and tilted her head.

"Do you think he will have the strength to fight you again?" she asked worryingly. Aerith brushed it off with a small laugh.

"He defeated me once, only he shall do so again. The ruin stones do not lie." She replied as she stoked her raven.

The next morning, the cry of the people awoke Eric and he quickly dressed before heading out of the door. The giant double oak gates opened while people shouted that the King had returned. Eric wrinkled his nose at the smell of blood and he grimaced as he saw Rufus being carried into the city on a stretcher. A high-pitched cry caught his attention and he moved his head to see Tifa running down the stairs, hiking her dress above her feet and falling to her knees beside the stretcher.

The King's eyes were closed and his skin pale and Eric reckoned the townspeople would have been right to assume he was dead. His chest was rising slowly but you had to be close to see it. Sephiroth stepped forward.

"The dragon's hide was impenetrable. Our weapons were useless against Bahamut." He explained in annoyance. Tifa wiped her tears away.

"Take him in." She commanded, standing to allow them access. As she turned to walk up the steps, Eric grabbed her arm.

"He will be avenged my lady!" He said fiercely. Tifa continued to stare at him in a dream-like state as she tried to process what had happened.

"I swear it." Eric added determinedly. Tifa smiled a little and nodded before she walked up the stairs.

Eric watched her leave before he turned to the smithy. He walked over to where his sword was hanging on the wall and harshly grabbed it and putting it in the sheath. The chocobo 'warked' and he smiled at it as he untied the knot in the rope.

"Come on Boy, you're going to help me get to that dragon." He whispered before he mounted it.

The cave was silent but Eric wasn't fooled as he approached it. He jumped off the chocobo and tied it to a near by tree. He unsheathed his sword and walked slowly towards the entrance. Skulls and bones littered the floor inside but Eric had sworn he would kill the dragon and he wasn't going to break his word. He took a step inside, waiting for a second for his eyes to adapt to the darkness.

"Bahamut!" He cried. Silence was his answer. He tightened his grip on his sword as he looked around. There was no sign of the dragon but he wasn't fooled.

"Bahamut! Come out you worm!" As soon as the words escaped his mouth, a large shadow crept onto the wall beside him. He jumped and separated his legs in a battle stance. The shadow grew bigger as the creature approached.

The lizard appeared at the top of the rock and licked its lips teasingly. Eric gave a fake smile to show his annoyance at the reptile for making him think it was the dragon. However, he couldn't be angry for long as the cave began to shake. He turned his head, his eyes widened slightly as he saw the dragon emerging from a tunnel ahead of him. It's wings were flapping in annoyance and it's eyes narrowed to slits. Eric took a step back and raised his sword.

"That's it." He urged. "Come out." He began to walk away from the tunnel entrance slowly and carefully.

Bahamut emerged, sniffing the air suspiciously and turning its head left and right. The scent of Eric was still fresh in the cave but he couldn't see him. That was until Eric leapt from the boulders above, pushing his sword through the dragon's skin with all his power. The dragon screeched and tossed its body, the force caused Eric to fall from the creature.

He rolled on the ground and looked up in time to see the dragon open it's mouth wide. He didn't need to be a genius to know what it was about to do. He only just managed to roll out of the fire that Bahamut breathed his way. Using the rocks as cover, Eric got to his feet and waited.

Bahamut's head appeared at the side and Eric moved away slightly, hoping the dragon didn't spot him. The creature snarled and attempted to bite him in half, but his head couldn't fit through the gap. Eric sighed in relief but merely a second later, he felt a ripping pain in his right arm and turned to see the dragon's tail swinging forward for another blow. He raised his sword and brought it down, slicing the tail in two. Bahamut shrieked in pain and used what was left of it's tail to toss the blacksmith across the cave.

Eric landed on the ground and rolled over in a small crack in the floor that his body could just fit into. He lay quiet and still as he heard the dragon approach. He watched one foot and then another cross the opening before he leapt up, piercing the dragon's chest and allowing the blood to spill down all over him. Bahamut gave a high-pitched cry and tossed his head from side to side. Eric pushed his sword in further and the dragon gave one last screech before it slumped forward. Eric grasped his sword and ripped it from the dragon before he turned a looked at it. A proud smile found its way upon his lips as the realisation sank in. The threat of the dragon was over.

Bahamut was dead.