Disclaimer: The characters used in this fic are the sole property of Square-Enix, Tetsuya Nomura, and anyone else with copyright on the Final Fantasy series and characters. I own nothing, save it be my own plot ideas and original characters.
Day 7: Sin
A/N: This is the final chapter of Countdown. Thanks to all of you who have reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story.
When Tidus awoke, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and plodded to the bathroom. The faucet turned on, and the soothing sound of running water made Tidus feel at peace. He splashed the water on his face, instantly alerting himself. The teen grabbed his toothbrush, quickly squirting a glob of toothpaste onto it before sticking the object into his mouth. After the routine two minutes of solid brushing, he spit into the sink, washing the foam away with fresh water.
Finally taking notice of his growling stomach, the teen opened the bathroom door and headed out into the kitchen for some breakfast. The sphere was on, and his guardian was staring at it with little interest, changing the channel every few seconds.
"I don't understand why you pay for this," Auron muttered, staring darkly at the sphere. "There's nothing but senseless garbage."
Tidus flinched at his guardian's voice, remembering the promise he'd made to Szera the night before.
"You'd better apologize when he wakes up. And if you don't, I'll beat you within an inch of your fucking life."
He groaned aloud, not really caring if Auron heard him. Trying to act inconspicuous, Tidus sat down as far away from his guardian as possible while still trying to get a good look at the damage that had been done. Deciding instead that it would be smarter and less suspicious to act like he was going outside to fetch the paper, Tidus stood up and stretched, walking slowly to the door. From the corner of his eye, Tidus got a good look at the bloodied bandages that Szera had expertly wrapped around Auron's left arm and shoulder.
You're stupid, he told himself. You're freaking stupid for taking off like that. Idiot!
As he neared the front door, Auron's voice made him jump. "Paper's on the counter," he said, refusing to look away from the sphere.
"Oh." Tidus turned around and walked into the laundry room. He leaned on the washer and began slapping himself in the head. "Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!"
The sound of Tidus slapping himself must have been louder than he thought, as Auron's voice echoed from the front room. "What are you doing in there?"
Tidus flinched. His guardian's rough voice sounded... almost angry. An emotion which Tidus had never actually seen from the man. Not even as a child. "Just a bug!" Tidus called back, mentally kicking himself in the ass. "I got it!"
He slumped his shoulders and walked back out into the front room, throwing himself on one of the long couches. A weird feeling shot down his spine. The kind that told him that Auron was staring at him. Tidus groaned and covered his head with one of the pillows, wishing he could make himself invisible. But he doubted that even something as fascinating as invisibility would repel Auron's eagle-eyed glare.
The sound of the cork popping out of Auron's ceramic sake jug reached Tidus' ears, and he remembered that he'd been forced to drink the foul-tasting liquid after being brutally attacked by the Orettes forward player three days earlier. That only made the teen's spirits sink further. Auron didn't usually drink in front of him unless there was a damn good reason. And Tidus knew why he was doing it now: Pain.
He heard the jug clunk against the floor, his guilt making him want to sink into the couch. Before he could gather up enough courage to actually say something, he felt the pillow being lifted out of his hands. The teen stared up at his guardian awkwardly, pressing himself further into the couch.
"What are you doing?" Auron asked, raising an eyebrow.
Tidus rolled off the couch, hitting the floor with a thud. "N-Nothing," he stammered, scooting away from his guardian as quickly as he could. "Why do you ask?"
"You're acting strange. Why?"
The teen continued his escape, turning to crawling instead of scooting, as crawling was much faster. As he sped towards his room, he felt Auron grab him by the back of the shirt and pull him to his feet. Tidus sighed and hung his head, afraid to say anything for fear of upsetting his guardian. "Well..." He paused. He'd barely said a word, and he already felt stupid and horrible. "I... feel really bad about... running off last night... I just panicked... I'm sorry..."
"You... ran off?" Auron said sternly. "That's news to me."
Tidus' eyes widened in awe. "What? You mean you were already unconscious by the time I took off? What the hell?"
"I could ground you," the man muttered. "But it wouldn't do any good. You do what you want regardless of anything I say."
The teen thought back to his guardian's words three days earlier. "Liar," he laughed. "That's not why. It's because of what you said the other day, isn't it? About everything I know being irrelevant today. What the hell did that mean, anyway?"
"You'll see."
0 - + - 0 - + - 0
The day passed by quickly, and Tidus lounged around the house, watching whatever was on the sphere. Around 2 pm, he picked up the phone and called Szera, asking her to come over with the guys. "And see if Kahra wants to come, okay?" he pleaded.
Szera's end of the line was eerily silent for a moment. "Did you do what I told you to?" she demanded.
"Yes," he gasped with a roll of his eyes. "But you're not gonna believe what the old man said to me." Tidus smirked to himself. Szera was definitely going to make fun of him. Probably. He hoped not, though. "When I told Auron I'd run off, and he told me he didn't know about it. Said that he passed out just after you and the guys came back."
Szera's laugh rang through the phone. "Seriously? Oh, God, that's hysterical!" She coughed and cleared her throat. "I mean... It doesn't matter. You did the right thing. And because of that, I'm going to bring Kahra over. I'll even bring her to the game. Just for you."
Tidus felt his heart skip a beat. He grinned, imagining seeing Kahra in his house of all places in Zanarkand. His house. He fell forward onto the couch, earning an odd glance from Auron who stood in the kitchen with the sake jug, taking a few drinks while Tidus was distracted. The teen felt like dropping the phone and jumping and screaming as loud as he possibly could. Finally, after all the crap that had happened earlier that week, things were finally looking bright. The most amazing girl in school was going to be at his house, and his blitzball team was in the finals of the Jecht Cup tournament. Although, the idea that the tournament was named after his old man certainly put a slight damper on things.
But that, as Auron might have said, was irrelevant. He didn't care who the cup was named after. All he cared about was Kahra. Tidus swooned happily, falling onto the floor with a thud as he got off the phone with Szera. He was so happy, the pain didn't even register in his mind. Tidus flopped onto the floor, hands behind his head, as he stared happily up at the ceiling.
My life is officially complete, he thought with a grin. Well, maybe not complete, now that he thought about it. It would definitely be nice if his mother were still alive to see how much he'd grown. She'd be proud that her son's team was competing in the tournament finals.
The sound of Auron's footsteps didn't even register, even as the man stood over him with a look of mild amusement on his face. "They're coming back," he said, practically reading Tidus' mind.
"Yeah," Tidus said with a happy sigh. "Kahra's coming back..."
Auron raised an eyebrow. "'Back'?" he repeated. "She's never even been here," he said taking a seat on the couch. "Unless there's a little love affair you'd like to tell me about."
Tidus shot upright. "I wish!" he said, jumping to his feet. "Man, would that be a treat. To have a pretty girl like Kahra here. Alone. With me..."
"She looks like a boy," Auron muttered from behind his coffee cup.
The teen's eyes widened. "She does not!" he shouted, glowering at his guardian. "What the hell do you know? It's damn common for girls to cut their hair short! So don't say she looks like a boy, because she doesn't!"
Tidus stopped, realizing how defensive he was getting over a girl he barely knew. But he didn't really care. After all, Auron couldn't possibly know a thing about teen love. And it would be damn creepy if he did. The blond stopped, allowing himself to fall into the chair in front of the sphere. He glanced at his guardian's bandaged arm, wondering exactly what could have caused such severe damage to a man like Auron.
"Now that I think about it," Tidus said, trying to sound nonchalant. "What kind of fiend is strong enough to to that to you?" The blond pointed at his guardian's obvious wounds. "There's no way you got taken out by a pack of Garms."
Auron shrugged, opening the newspaper. "Behemoths," he said.
Tidus' eyes widened. He hadn't even known that Behemoths were causing trouble in Zanarkand. Garms and Nidhogs were common enough, but Behemoths? "Behemoths? You've gotta be kidding! I've heard of one, maybe two, roaming around in the South, but I didn't think they were all that common."
"They're not," came the reply. "That's the problem."
The teen raised an eyebrow. "How the hell can an uncommon fiend be a problem? Sure, they're big, but they're slow, too."
Auron shook his head, not once looking up from the paper. "Not when you're fending off seven."
"Oh, crap..." Tidus felt dizzy all of a sudden. That explained so much. No... It explained everything. All the panic, blood, and gore. Everything. Well, most everything. It certainly didn't explain why Auron had been so deathly calm about the whole situation. That much, Tidus was sure, he'd never understand. "And yet, you're completely calm about it."
"Hmph."
A loud knock at the door caught Tidus' attention. The teen's face lit up and he jumped to his feet, running high-speed towards the door. Without bothering to peek out the window, Tidus opened the door, expecting to see Kahra there. Instead, Arlan, Teyron, and Szera waltzed in. Tidus stuck his head out the door, looking for Kahra. "Um... Where's Kahra?" he said, staring blankly at Szera.
The redhead gave her friend a sad smirk. "She didn't come."
"Wh-Why?" Tidus shouted eagerly, grabbing Szera by the shoulders. "Why didn't she come? Did you say something bad about me?"
Szera shook her head, gently prying Tidus' hands away from her. "No," she said. "Kahra just told me that she didn't know you well enough. I mean, come on, Tidus. She only met you that once at the party, remember?"
"That's a lie!" he exclaimed. "We've had classes together since the sixth grade!"
"Oh." Szera stared blankly at her flustered friend. "I didn't know that. I guess she just doesn't like you or something. Sorry."
Tidus sighed and slumped onto the couch. "Aw, man!"
Auron sighed loudly, folding up the paper. "Enough with the overreacting," he said simply. "Don't you have a game to prepare for, boy?"
"Don't call me 'boy,' old man," Tidus muttered as he and his friends headed to his room to grab his blitz gear. "We'll be gone until after the game!" he called from the room. "So don't wait up!"
As the group of teenagers headed out the door, Tidus could have sworn he'd heard Auron mutter, "I'm not old."
0 - + - 0 - + - 0
After several hours of drills and practice with the Abes, Tidus was worn out. While Coach Jaris talked to the rest of the team, Tidus had been permitted to head into the sphere pool to relax for a bit. Mainly since Jaris had lectured him throughout most of the practice session. He sat on the ring that bound the water in the sphere poo, blitzball in hand. The water that was already in the ring lapped at his feet, soaking his boots through.
He sat there quietly, eyes closed, listening to the drip, drip, drip of water somewhere in the unlit arena. Tidus knew that, once the cover surrounding the pool opened, his ears would be brutally assaulted by the constant cheering of his fans. His blond hair, still soaked through from practice, seemed to shine in the dim blue light within the ring. Sensing that the ring was about to open, Tidus opened his blue eyes on cue.
The screaming fans cheered him on as the lights flickered to life. Tidus stood up, waving to the people in the stands. The large light within the empty sphere pool began to glow, casting a radiant blue flash upon the stadium. The fans screamed louder, some of their throats probably raw from cheering for their favorite player. The large cover above the stadium opened up, and the bright lights of the ever-living Zanarkand shone in.
Tidus looked up at the tall buildings and dark star-spotted sky with pleasure. He turned his head towards the stands, scouring the audience for Kahra and his other friends from school. He spotted her in the audience in the East block, right there on the front row. She held up a homemade sign emblazoned with the Zanarkand Abes logo. She flipped it over for him when he spotted her, revealing his name in blue letters with a bright yellow outline. Stars were all over the sign as well.
The star player of the Abes smiled and waved at her, making all the girls around her frown in jealousy. He smiled brightly, turning back to watch the sphere as it filled up with water. He spotted the rest of his team down at the entrance to the sphere pool and gave them a thumbs up before diving headfirst into the cool, refreshing waters.
Several hundred yards away from the stadium, a large wave had appeared over the city, sending several people running for their lives. Within the wave sat a large, ugly creature. Several eyes adorned its massive snout, and it moved silently over the city. As the people ran, Auron merely ignored their frantic cries, for he knew what was coming. The time had come for Tidus to fulfill his destiny.
Tidus managed to get his hands on the ball, throwing it to Teyron who managed to keep it away from one of the Duggles. He twisted in the water, sending the ball soaring back to Tidus, who scored the first goal of the game. The fans screamed as loudly as their lungs would allow. The ball came loose from the net as it was thrown back into play. Moving swiftly, Tidus beat the Duggles' forward to the punch, sending the ball soaring out of the sphere pool. The fans cheered loudly as he back flipped, preparing to kick the ball right into the net to put his team two above their opponents.
Tidus' blue eyes widened as the now giant sphere of water caught his eye. He gasped, forgetting about the blitzball and the match as several projectiles were fired towards the stadium. Several buildings absorbed the impact, sending massive waves of energy throughout the city. Tidus soon found himself caught up in one, and ended up hanging onto a building high above the stadium. The teen looked down, eyes wide with fear.
The stadium was collapsing.
Crap! he thought as his friends came to mind. Please, be okay!
The rafters of the stadium began to come loose, sending chunks of marble and heavy rock hurtling up towards Tidus. He dodged them with ease, only to feel himself slipping from his perch. His left hand fell, leaving him only one hand with which to keep himself high above the damage. He found himself swinging wildly before his other hand failed him, sending the teen hurtling into the demolished ruins of the stadium below.
Tidus hit a large piece of the stone statues outside the stadium with a heavy thud, rolling down the statue's back before hitting the ground hard. He rolled over onto his stomach and stood up, trying to focus his sight. A brief flash of red caught his eye, and Tidus saw Auron standing only feet away.
"What are you doing here?" he shouted.
Auron turned his back on the boy. "Waiting for you," he said.
Tidus followed as his guardian began walking off. "Where are you going?" he shouted, turning back to the stadium. "What about Kahra? What about my friends? My team?"
"There's nothing you can do," Auron replied. "Hurry."
Tidus felt his blue eyes prick with tears. Nothing he could do? Yeah, right! He turned back and began digging through the rubble as quickly as he could. "Arlan? Teyron? Szera? Guys? Where are you? Answer me!"
The teen felt Auron's hand on his shoulder. "They're gone," he said firmly. "No one could have survived that."
"Damn!" Tidus hung his head and regretfully followed his guardian into the city.
As they walked through the street, Tidus realized just how much panic there was. People were running about screaming in horror while others knelt beside friends and loved ones on the side of the road, cradling their broken bodies as they mourned. How could this happen? And in Zanarkand? Was this what Auron had been talking about the other day? Was this what he had meant when he had told Tidus that "everything you know will no longer matter"?
It couldn't be.
Tidus clenched his fists and ran after Auron, grabbing the man by the coat. "Is this what you were talking about?" he demanded. "Why didn't you tell me that my friends would die? Why?"
Auron ignored him, turning to face the massive beast within the sphere of water. "You wouldn't have believed it," the man replied. "Why tell you something that you won't understand or believe? It's pointless."
Tidus turned in anger. His life was falling apart before his very eyes, and he was powerless to stop it. Powerless to save his friends and the ones he loved. He gasped, realizing that the screaming and running has ceased. Tidus glanced around, realizing that the people around him, aside from Auron, were all frozen on the spot. As he investigated the scene, a small boy, clad in a purple hood approached the teen. He frowned in disbelief, realizing it was the same boy he had seen on numerous occasions throughout the city. But who was he?
"It begins," the child said calmly.
Tidus took a step forward, staring at the boy. "What?"
"Don't cry."
Suddenly, everything was thrown back into chaos. The screaming, sobbing, and running began once again, and Auron set off towards the massive beast. Tidus' eyes widened. What the hell did he think he was doing. Did he want to die?
"What are you doing? Are you trying to get yourself killed? If you wanted to die, you could have just let those Behemoths tear you apart instead of trying to take me down with you!" Tidus shouted angrily. "You're insane!"
"Sin."
Tidus glanced up, momentarily forgetting his anger as a large, black squid-like creature flew from the water-enveloped beast's body, lodging itself in the side of a nearby building. The creature's tentacles opened like an umbrella, spewing several scale-looking objects. Tidus stepped up to touch one of them, only to realize that it was a fiend of some sort. The creatures were about as tall as his waist with glowing wings equipped with sharp spines.
One of the creatures lunged forward, sending Tidus sprawling to the ground. "Hey!" he shouted, chucking a piece of rubble at the creature. "Back off!"
"That's not enough," Auron said, handing him a bright red blade. "A gift from Jecht."
Tidus' eyes widened. A gift? From his father?
"I hope you know how to use it."
The teen nodded, charging forward, slicing through the beasts with ease. Tidus ran for it, Auron close behind him, only to end up being cut off by a flurry of the creatures. The two sliced through these just as easily as the fist batch, but more kept coming. Tidus cut thorough once again and made a break for it, only to find himself cut off by the large squid-like creature.
"Are you kidding?" he shouted, stabbing the thing with his blade. "I thought I told you all to back off!"
In a matter of minutes, Tidus and Auron had successfully fended off the creature, leaving it to fester and die in a heap of bright lights. Tidus glanced up at a building that had his father's smiling image on the side. The teen scowled, remembering how much he hated the man for everything he'd put Tidus and his mother through.
What're you laughing at, old man? he thought bitterly as the building collapsed.
Tidus gasped as the highway in front of him began to sink. Taking a chance, he ran forward, catching hold of the edge. Amazingly, Auron had made it onto the strip of highway that was now directly beneath the creature that had attacked the stadium. Tidus gasped, fearing he might fall.
"Auron!" he shouted, trying to get his other hand up.
But Auron clearly wasn't listening. The man was staring up into the hole that threatened to swallow them up, and seemed to be... speaking to it. "You are sure?"
The creature above made a loud rumbling noise that made Tidus' ears ring. He swung his body forward, managing to get both his arms up over the highway. "Damn you, old man!" he shouted. "You're really trying to get me killed!"
Ignoring the boy's comment, Auron reached down and grabbed Tidus by the shirt. "This is it."
Tidus' eyes widened. What the hell was going on. Surely, Auron wasn't going to drag him into that gaping hole. Right?
"This is your story," he continued. "It all begins here."
In a bright flash of light, Tidus watched as everything around him was sucked into the hole. The light shone brighter, blinding the teen, and he began to scream, fearing that this was the end, regardless of what Auron had said. The very end of his life.
You'll notice that I left out quite a few things. Like the machine blowing up the Sinspawn creatures. I also changed and added some dialogue to make things more interesting. This is my fanfic after all. I hope you've enjoyed. Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and alerts. I appreciate it. And please be sure to read my other works. Thanks! :)