Xocotl: Aztec god of fire and stars.
--
Sin seeks it's own.
It does not care for others.
It searches for one that it might devour.
Sin is the harbinger of pain.
The child cried as he could not see his parents anywhere. The adult with him was not his mother, and he wanted no one else. They tried to appease him as best they could, but all in vain. The boat was full of people just like the child. Many of them have lost friends and family to the beast that destroyed their homes.
He cried louder when a wave crashed into the side of the vessel causing him to crave the attentions only parents can give. A voice entered into his hearing and he stopped crying long enough to find the source.
"So who did you say you left Vidina with? I don't see them anywhere."
The little boy kicked his legs trying to run for the woman who had spoken.
"Over here I think." Wakka led her over to where the agreed meeting place would be.
"You think? Wakka, I would hope you had more sense then to guess." Lulu scolded. She was tired and injured after her fight with Agrona. But her desire to see her son took precedence over her own welfare. She sighed in relief when Vidina came running up to her. She picked him up and held him tight.
"Mama, mama." He cried as she hugged him. Wakka smiled at them as he joined the small reunion.
"I'm glad we are all okay and all. But it looks like we will have to rebuild our homes." He said as he stared over the sea at the dark smoke that rolled off the island.
--
The airship arrived in time to see the beginning of the destruction of Kilika. A summon even Yuna had not seen before was casting fire and huge chunks of rock all around two figures who stood in the center of the village by what used to be an inn. Tidus was the first to recognize who it was.
"Rikku!" He shouted to get her attention. When she faced him he asked, "What are you doing?"
Rikku looked him over. Blond hair, dark clothes, sword in hand. He was a light fighter, and a threat to her at the moment. Her eyes shifted to her side at the summon that was waiting for further orders. "Xocotl, meteor strike there." She lifted one hand and pointed in the direction where the group was standing.
Tidus, Yuna, and Auron all rushed to take cover. The flaming rock set ablaze to the debris that was where they just were. Yuna and Tidus had gone one way, while Auron had jumped the other. He cursed under his breath when he realized what this could mean. He was no healer, and compared to Rikku, he was lacking in the speed department.
Brushing ash from his pants, he stood and attempted to move closer, He could just make out the snippet of conversation. Seymour was speaking.
"Do not kill the lady Yuna. I may have a use for her yet. However, the two men, you may do as you please with them. But I would advise that you do not allow them to live. They will be forever a thorn in your side if you do." He warned her.
"I understand. But who are they? How is it they know who I am?"
Seymour moved closer and wrapped one arm around her waist. Being taller he had to lean over a bit placing his face unnecessarily close to her chest. Auron had to force himself to remain quiet. The smile that Seymour had on his face was nauseating. "Those people my dear, are trying to stop what we are attempting to accomplish. They do not want to heal Spira's suffering. Surely you can understand that, right?" He nipped at the small area of exposed skin on her neck before moving away. "We have company." He noted as he stared in Auron's direction.
Knowing he had been found, Auron removed his weapon from the sheath on his back and came out of hiding.
Rikku hissed as she saw him approach. "It's you. Why do you insist on harassing me?" She glanced over quickly to see Xocotl still fighting with the others. They were winning for now, but quickly weakening.
"Allow me to do this for you. I had promised he would not be coming near to you. I must uphold that, mustn't I?"
"Then I will continue over here." She replied as she went back to commanding her aeon.
"Sir Auron. I would say it is a pleaser to see you once more, but I'm afraid that isn't the case. What lengths you must have gone through to have the fayth intervene and allow you out of the farplane."
"Seymour, I don't know what you have done to change her, but you must stop. Rikku is not a toy you can use then throw away when you are finished. She is a young human worthy of the adoration she deserves."
"And you think you are to be the one who can give that to her?" When Auron said nothing, Seymour went on. "As I thought. You think you love her. You are a fool. Rikku may be a human as you have said, but you forgot one important part in that. She is mine." Before Auron had a chance to react, Seymour lifted his hands up and called upon a spell he had not used in two years. "Time to send you back. Death!"
His eyes opened wide in shock. He could not go down yet. The fayth told him they would not be able to send him back again.
A stream of dark smoke formed in front of him before a demon with a sickle took shape from it. It lifted the sickle above his head with the intention of causing pain. But it never came. Not the way he was expecting anyway. Fire that burned his side hit him and threw him down to the ground. Tidus had gotten a clean hit on the aeon and sent it flying into him. The aeon instead took the brunt of the spell sending it away in clouds of pyerflies.
Seymour growled in annoyance. "Rikku, we leave now!" He moved so swiftly even Auron had trouble seeing it. Seymour grabbed Rikku and held her close to his chest. In a flash of light they were both gone.
Tidus and Yuna came over to see how he was doing. "Sorry about that, man. Didn't mean to hit you."
Auron stood and brushed the dirt from his clothing before answering. "No, it is alright. In fact if you hadn't done that as you did, I would not have survived."
"Still, the village." Yuna added as she looked around. "I hope everyone made it out safely. There doesn't seem to be any trace of any life left here."
The fires had consumed the docks and huts that were scattered around. It was now making its way into the forest beyond. Off in the distance where what would be the temple, the trio could see more smoke rising to the sky.
"It looks like not even the temple was spared. Whatever Seymour has done to her is just wrong. Rikku would never do these things." Tidus spoke up. "But we better get out of here ourselves. Let Cid's people get these fires put out."
"I agree. Are you able to walk, Auron?"
"I will be fine. Don't worry on my account." He grunted once as he took the first step, but had no problems after that point.
--
"You did excellent today, Rikku. I'm very proud at how well you handled yourself."
"Seymour, I still have one question, if I may?"
After the escape from the island village of Kilika, Seymour had taken them back to his mansion in Zanarkand. It had taken a toll on his mana stocks to teleport like that, but several hours of sleep helped to cure the tiredness. It was a spell he had learned during his short time inside the farplane.
"If it involves those three we met in Kilika, I would advise you to keep those thoughts to yourself." He snapped at her, his voice a dangerously low tone.
"But, I don't understand! They knew who I was. Called me by name even! I just want to know the same!" She pleaded with him until eventually throwing herself at his feet and grabbing hold of the hem of his robe.
Seymour sighed before kicking his foot and shooing Rikku away. "No more such talk!" He scolded. "I will tell you only the information you need to know. That is not one of them. Do I make myself clear?"
Rikku stood away from him, hands clasped in front of her and head bowed. "Crystal." She mumbled. "I'm sorry for displeasing you, how may I make it up to you?"
Now this was the Rikku Seymour wanted to see more of. The submissive obedient girl. He smirked in thought at all the possible ways he could use her at the moment. A low beeping sound distracted him before he could make a decision though.
Rikku quickly answered the sphere before he had a chance to react. "It's Tromell. He says he has something of utmost importance to tell you."
Taking the sphere from her hand, he ordered her away first. "Rikku wait for me up in my room. I will be there shortly." He waited until she was gone before speaking. "What is it, Tromell. I gave orders not to be disturbed here."
"Dreadfully sorry, sir. But I have more information I thought you might be interested in."
He was annoyed, why did he keep this old fart around? "Go on." He pressed gently trying to keep his cool demeanor.
"Yes, as I was saying. Guadosalam has been crawling with Al Bhed here recently. It seems as Cid is looking for something. Several groups have come through before leaving and going north into Macalania, or south to Djose. When they stop, it's at the entrance to each temple."
Seymour suppressed the urge to growl. While he would find a way in, it still make passage difficult at best. Cid seemed to have figured out his plans already. It had to have been the work of Lady Yuna's friends. But that could be remedied.
"So why haven't you ordered anything done about this problem? I can't be expected to do everything."
"We did not want to risk your wrath, sir. The whole city awaits for your arrival so that we may begin to grow. They will do nothing without your word." Tromell explained.
"I'm afraid they will have to keep waiting. I won't be able to come back for some time. I have reasons that I care not to discuss." He added the last part just as his servant was about to ask. "For now, just kill them. Kill them all. And Tromell, one more thing."
"Name it sir."
"Make sure the temples are blamed for the deaths. That is all." If Tromell tried to say anything more, Seymour would not know. He clicked off the sphere before he even had a chance. Rubbing his hands over his face in a tired manner, he remembered Rikku upstairs. She was no doubt wondering what had happened to him. Time to face her.
--
"Two villages burned, two temples down. How many are left?" Cid was tired. He had not slept in over twenty-one hours and it showed in his face. Dark circles surrounded his eyes, his cheeks seemed to sag, and he looked pale.
"Three known, and two hidden ones. Though there are doubts they even exist." Yuna answered. She fared a bit better then her uncle, but one could see the bags under her eyes as well. Tidus, though tired, did not appear to be so. He had gotten at least two hours of sleep. But it was all he needed for the moment.
Auron was not in the room. He was laying down in his room that Cid had set aside for him. Being in between living and death, took a toll on his body and spirit. If he did not get enough rest then he would surely collapse into a cloud of pyerflies. Though no one but Cid knew of that little bit of information. Tidus and Yuna assumed he was back as he was before his untimely death.
Back in the meeting room, as Aniki had dubbed it, the other three tried planning the next move. Cid spoke next. "We have teams blocking passage into Djose and Macalania. If he goes there, he will have to fight through them first. They are the best we have, so we shouldn't have any trouble."
"That sounds good and all," Tidus began as he leaned over the map in front of them. "But look at what happened in Besaid and Kilika. What if he uses those aeons to kill them all off?"
"That's where Yuna comes in. She's going to speak to that aeon in Bevelle again. It helped before, perhaps it will do it again. Think you can do that?"
"Yes, I think so." She answered without a second thought. "When do we leave?"
"Aniki is heading there as we speak. We had a feeling you would agree. But even if you hadn't, we could have quickly sidetracked." Cid added the last part when Tidus glared at him.
Placing one hand on her husband's shoulder to calm him down, Yuna spoke again. "It is alright. Perhaps the fayth will be willing to help. We still don't know what to expect, so we need to be as prepared as possible."
An hour later, Cid dropped them off near the temple. They allowed Auron to continue resting, on Cid's orders in fact. Surprisingly, unlike last the last visit they made, the couple entered and walked the city just like any normal citizen. Tidus held her hand tight as they approached the temple. But it seemed as they closer they got, it was more deserted then ever. It was as if the city had forgotten about it, and left it to rot away under the weather.
"I don't understand. Why would they just leave this alone?" Yuna questioned as they entered.
"I'm not sure. It sure does seem odd. Don't worry though." He pulled out his sword as he spoke. "No matter what happens, I'm right here. I'll protect you." He glanced to the set of doors at the back. "You remember how to solve the trials?"
"Leave that part to me."
It didn't take long before they stood together outside of the fayth's chamber. Yuna let go of his hand as she approached the doors. They rose giving her entrance. Still not quite sure what to say to the dragon fayth, Yuna took a deep breath a relaxed. She let it out just as quickly when she saw the statue was nothing more then a stone.
"Tidus!" She called out.
Within seconds he was standing beside her looking at the same thing she was. "What is this? What happened to it?" He squatted down and touched the dome that covered it.
"I...I don't know. It's empty, there is no fayth here any more."
"Do you think all of them are like this?"
"It's hard to say for sure, but if they are, we may be in over our heads. I don't know of anything else strong enough to fight against Seymour." She turned away and lifted one hand to her cheek in thought. Tidus' voice made her turn around.
"Yuna, look at that." She spun around to see an image of Bahamut's fayth floating above the dome. If possible he looked tired and worn out. "What happened to you?"
He comes, and we cannot stand.
He fights only to kill.
We cannot stand alone against him.
Help us, help us defeat the foe?
The image faded leaving only more questions. The couple stood in place staring at the place he hovered.
"I don't get it." Tidus finally exclaimed. "They can't fight, but want us to help? It doesn't make any sense!"
"Wait, maybe there is more to it then just what he said. What if it was a clue?"
"Then you figure it out. I'm going back." He left her alone with a huff. Yuna took one last glance to the empty dome before following him out.
--
Rikku stretched out as she awoke from the nap she had taken. She pulled the covers up to cover her nude body before wrapping them around herself. Seymour had told her last night that they were going to have a busy day today. She wasn't sure what he had in mind, but trusted him all the same. She dropped the sheet and made her way to get showered.
As the water ran down her body, her mind began to wander. Seymour had scolded her last night for questioning him. She couldn't imagine the reasons why. Leaning against the tile wall, she closed her eyes and allowed the water to relax and clean her.
She gasped as a sudden thought hit her. No, it wasn't a thought, more of a memory. There was a man, one older then herself. He wore dark colors, and had dark hair as well. She tried to envision the face to go with it, but it faded quickly.
Opening her eyes, she tried to forget what just happened. If Seymour were to find out about it, he would not be happy in the least. He had practically ordered her to forget about all them. Easier said then done though.
The water had grown cold by now, and with a small shiver she turned it off and pulled back on the curtain. She almost closed it just as fast at the presence that stood on the other side.
"Rikku, here you are. I grew worried when I did not find you in your bed."
"S-Seymour. Is there something I can for you?" She asked as she wrapped a towel around herself.
Without saying a word, he moved closer to her and placed one hand on her shoulder gently. His other hand was waved in front of her face before resting under her chin. He smiled softly before leaning in and kissing her forehead.
Rikku was rendered speechless. She didn't know what to expect next from him. All thoughts and memories left her mind leaving only the ones about him. She stared up at him in awe. Whatever he had come for, she was more the willing to do it for him.
"We head to Macalania next." He said simply. "I trust you will be prepared?"
"Yes, anything you say." She whispered.
"I am glad to hear that. The journey will not be easy. We may have to fight our way in. Are you able to handle that?"
"I am. I will not disappoint you."
Seymour nodded once before releasing her from the trance she was put under. Everything was working out just fine. Soon his nemesis won't be able to fight back much longer.
--