So let's see. Bickson is dead. (fire) Kimahri is dead. (throat slashed.) A random monk is dead. (Bio.) Kinoc is dead. (Doom) Most of the Ronso tribe has been killed. (Aeon-Seymour) And finally, last be certainly not least, I killed off Rikku. Am I obsessed with death? I don't think so.
On the plus side, Auron and Rikku expressed their love...then I killed her. Though she will not be unsent. I need her death for future events. Hope you all don't mind too much. Now enough of my rambling, time for the story!
--
Auron had always been a fighter. Ever since the day his father taught him how to hold and wield a sword, he lived to fight. But today was different. Of course he planned on fighting, that came natural. But the reasons were different now. He was not doing it under the orders of anyone, nor was it for training. Today was the real thing. He was fighting for revenge, for love, for honor.
The airship flew quickly in the attempt to stop Seymour before he could destroy more of Zanarkand. They had to lead him away. He glanced to his left and saw Tidus scowl at the sky in front of him. This was his hometown, were he was born and raised until only a few short years ago. He appeared determined, yet the shaking hand at his side spoke about how scared he was as well. That was not surprising, they all were scared.
The wind lashed at loose hair and clothing as they flew over the city. Yuna held her staff close to herself ready to summon quickly even as her sleeves were blown back forcing her to widen her stance for balance. Lulu and Wakka stood close to one another offering support and strength.
They were drawing close now. They could see pyerflies floating in the air before being gathered and helping to create the shell that now housed Seymour. Auron glanced around at the small group of five. They needed something to encourage them. It was time he set his own thoughts aside so that his vengeance could be completed.
"Now! This is it!" He shouted over the wind. They all turned to him eager to hear what he would say. "We finish this now! We have come too far to turn back! This is our only chance to stop him. If we fail then all of Spira fails!"
"Well you can bet I won't be the one to fail!" Tidus answered.
Yuna added her own support. "I'm not turning back. I will finish this for Rikku's sake."
"Me too, Yuna. I can't believe we are fighting Lord Seymour, but it won't stop me!"
"Exactly my thoughts as well. Let's not let Rikku's death be in vain." Lulu said as she stepped up.
Auron stared at each of them for a moment before nodding. They would win, he could tell. They were too determined not to. They all turned to the front of the ship in preparedness to fight when he saw it. He was in the back of the group, so the others missed the tiny green and yellow pyerflie that floated from the deck of the ship and stop in front of him.
His hand reached out of its own accord as it settled gently on his palm. He closed his eyes for a second gathering strength from its presence. Just as he opened them once more, it lifted up and entered his chest just above his breastbone. It was a warm comforting sensation instead of what he was expecting. "Don't forget me. I want to fight too."
It was almost a whisper. And he would have thought he imagined it had it not been for the love within the words. He gripped the hilt of his sword tighter and rushed in.
--
Seymour watched from inside his shell as the ship drew close. Now was the chance he had been waiting for. He would defeat the young blond and Auron at the same time. Then he would move onto Besaid to finish off the island.
His lips pulled back into a grin revealing his sharp teeth. Ignoring the city below him, he moved closer to the airship. He could sense his slave was on board this ship. But it was fading quickly. It was too late to assimilate her, but that was fine. He would have his reward by using the rest of them.
He stopped just on the edge of the city. People looked up watching the confrontation. He was going to give them the show of a lifetime before destroying them. He gathered energy to himself creating a vortex of blackness before projecting it toward the ship. It was stopped though before it could connect by the appearance of a dragon in front of him.
"Bahamut." He hissed to himself. The dragon was strong and would be a problem if he could not defeat him quickly. Seymour prepared another black ball of energy, but was interrupted from the spell when he was attacked.
Claws that felt like daggers scratched his armor. The energy dissipated and he called upon his own dark magic instead. Bahamut shook in the air as the poison spread through his body. Seymour's intense magic power being even stronger then its own resistance. He watched as the great dragon tried to escape, but he shot it with a fireball of magic before it was able to. The summon's body grew clear before disappearing from sight.
Now that the dragon was gone, Seymour felt as weaker spells and projectiles were aimed at him. Though this was little more then a bother to him. He gathered gravity based magic and threw the power to the fighters.
--
The magic hit all on the deck of the ship and rocked them to their knees. They were weakened, but not beat yet.
"Yuna, heal Lulu then Wakka. Once healed, I want you two to keep attacking. We have to draw him closer before Tidus or I can do anything." Auron took charge of the battle, years of fighting giving him the advantage over the others.
"Tidus, haste her so she can heal faster." He was slumped over on the ground using his sword to keep himself remotely upright.
As soon as Lulu and Wakka were healed up, Yuna hurried to do the same for the rest of them. Seymour was coming closer, just as Auron had planned. He hoped that once he was in range, they would be able to do greater damage. They had to destroy the armor he created before they could reach and kill Seymour's new form. It was a risky tactic, but most effective if it worked out right. The problem was, they were having trouble breaking through. Lulu was almost spent from all the magic she was casting, and Wakka was starting to become tired.
Another wave of magic was blasted at them and Lulu fell to the deck. "Lu!" Wakka shouted. He dodged another attack before sliding to the deck next to his wife. He reached inside his pocket and pulled a potion out. "Here, drink this." He said gently as he lifted her head and poured it into her mouth.
The color came back to her skin right away. She shook her head to clear the stars from it. "Thank you, Wakka." She allowed him to help her back to her feet. "How fares everyone else?" She questioned.
He did not have time to answer her question as they were thrown back down. Seymour had come close enough to ram the airship.
"What are you doing up there?" Cid shouted through the intercom. "If you let him keep that up, he'll crash the ship!"
Auron ignored him for the time being. Now Seymour was close enough for himself and Tidus to do some damage. He took Wakka's place and lifted his sword over his head before cleanly severing an arm.
Seymour screamed in pain and rage as he tried to compensate for the loss of the limb. Taking his mentor's idea, Tidus did the same as Seymour struggled and turned his body close enough to the ship. The other limb fell to the ground barely missing the city below.
"Cid, lead him back to the Calm Lands!" Tidus ordered. "Zanarkand will get destroyed if we don't!" The love he felt for the city where he grew up was threatened by the battle they were engaged in. If Seymour fell now, they would be taking half the city with him. A small price to pay no doubt, but he was still hesitant to let it happen. He glanced to his right to see Auron nod in approval.
--
Floating, floating, floating. Darkness turned gray as the person tried to make out the shapes around them. Were they falling down, or up? It was hard to tell in this place. Was this what death felt like? Someone was beside them now. Just as quickly the presence was gone. What was going on?
They opened their mouth to yell, but no sound came out. In fact they couldn't even tell if they had a mouth to yell with. If this truly was death, she wanted no part of it. It was just nothingness. Was the sky black, or white? It was one, then they other just as quickly. How could the dead stand this? She knew that if she had to go through this for eternity, she would be forced to find a way to escape.
"I'm sorry little one. But leaving here will not be possible."
Someone had heard her thoughts? How was that possible?
"Do not be frightened. They have sent me to help guide you to where you belong." Gentle hands rested on her shoulders. How could she feel them now when she couldn't before? "Once you become accustomed to the farplain, all will become clear." They continued speaking easing her scared mind. The voice was so familiar, but she could not imagine as to why. Come to think of it, she couldn't even remember who she was herself. What had happened to bring her to this place?
"Relax, don't worry about it. It will come back to you soon." The voice grew more clear and she realized he was not the only one there. Someone else was with him.
"Who are you?" She managed to ask.
"You will find out in time. For now relax and allow yourself to float free. It will be easier that way."
"But I can't see anything but gray. Will it always be like this?"
"As soon as you are adjusted, it will all become clear." She sensed as he moved away and heard the other person whisper something to low for her to hear. "Very well. Let her know then."
"What is it? What's going on?"
"Shh, little one. Just a little more time."
She closed her eyes in disappointment. The afterlife was not what she expected.
--
The ship was listing greatly and they had to hang on tight or risk falling to the ground below. At this moment, the Calm Lands were anything but. With the battle in the air, it was quite loud.
Auron grit his teeth together tightly as metal dug into the flesh of his hands. He tried to advert his attention to the others making sure they were still doing well. Lulu was out cold and Wakka held her tightly around her waist to prevent her from falling. "Cid, you want to do something now?" He shouted in the direction of the intercom.
"Hold on! I'm working on it!" He shouted back.
The ship rocked several times, both from Cid and Seymour. It was finally straightened and Tidus hurried to throw a phoenix down over Lulu's body. She rubbed her temple trying to see once more.
"Lu, stay back. I can't stand to see you knocked out again. We'll take care of this now. You did a wonderful job helping to weaken him." Wakka leaned over and kissed his wife gently. She nodded before backing away.
Seymour dove down out of sight from the group. They waited anxiously for him to reappear. The rocking of the ship signaled his return. Yuna was ready for him this time. She had already began the motions to summon her other aeon. The clouds broke in the sky above them as the flying aeon descended. It stopped and hovered in front of Seymour and his armor.
They both stayed there and stared at the other waiting for one of them to make the first move. Valefor took the opportunity. She brought her wings together before the air in front of Seymour snapped cracking open the shell their weapons could not. She did it once more creating a place they would be able to enter into.
There! Now's our chance!" Tidus pointed to the hole left behind after the attacks.
"Then let's do it quickly." Yuna answered. Seymour had retaliated against the aeon and was using the scattering pyerflies to seal the crack.
Without second thoughts about how dangerous this was, the group jumped for the crack not daring to look down.
Surprisingly, they all managed to make the leap without injury. Tidus being the last to jump and landed in a half roll. "Where to now?" He asked.
"We must find Seymour and kill him. That should be enough." Auron answered. He took one quick glance around. "This way." They nodded and followed his lead.
--
Seymour felt as they entered his shell. They would be coming for him soon. How they had managed to breech his armor, he didn't know, but they would be stopped. He would not, could not allow them to go farther. Perhaps if he were to create and send fiends to bar their path, he could continue to destroy Spira without worry. He meditated to create Giants, Behemoths, Floating eyes to confuse them, and more. It took some of the pyerflies away from his shell, but without the outside attacks, he did not feel it would be needed.
But the small group fought on, defeated everything he could send to them. He began to grow angry. "How dare they!" He hissed when he felt them approaching.
"Seymour!" It was the blond, he noted. Now would be his chance to kill him first.
"You have come. I knew you would try." He did not turn to face them. If he had they may be able to see the hesitation on his face. "It is of no matter though. This will be the last you see of Spira. Watch as I destroy all you hold dear."
"No! We have come too far. We will stop you now!" Yuna shouted to him as she gripped her staff tighter in her hands.
"Ya. We won't let you destroy the dreams and hopes of all Spira." Wakka added.
Seymour turned to them after that. "You are wrong." He replied. "Just like I crushed the hopes of your friends, I will do the same to you as well."
Auron knew that barb was directed to him. He narrowed his eyes before taking the front line. "This ends now." He stated.
--
"Do you remember anything yet?" The gentle voice asked after some time had passed. She could feel as a hand reached out and brushed some hair back from her face.
"I remember..." She began slowly trying to call upon memories of her last few moments in life. "I remember a long creature. A serpent of blue scales." She paused trying to think of more. "I called him because I was in pain."
"Very good. Now, can you recall anything from before that?" There was a new voice. Female this time. Very soft and very familiar.
She ignored the nagging feeling that she should know this person to answer the question asked. "A man. Older, but kind. He helped me to see that I was loved. I cannot remember his name though. I recall he wore black and red."
"You are doing very well. Do you remember who you are yet?"
"I am..." She stopped. Who was she? The name escaped from her mind before she could say it out loud. "I don't know."
"Do not worry. It will come to you in time." The male spoke up to ease her mind.
--
Auron cursed under his breath as Seymour still stood and Wakka had fallen. Last time had been Yuna. They had been battling for over an hour and still Seymour would not go down. Even after two doses of Holy from Yuna, he stood in front of them almost mocking their efforts.
A crash of light around him and he felt himself fall. The stars were quickly pushed aside as Yuna stood over him holding her staff.
"Are you alright, Sir Auron?"
"I will be fine." He assured her. "How are the others?"
"Lulu has used up her mana, but supports us with items. It will take time before she can fight again. Wakka is tired, but refuses to give up. Tidus seems to be favoring his left arm, but otherwise fine. And I think I have just enough mana for one more shot of Holy." She explained quickly.
"Do it. Call back Lulu and Wakka. I have one last idea."
Yuna nodded before running off. Lulu and Wakka glanced back at Auron as if to make sure he was really fine. He nodded once and they backed far enough out of Seymour's range. Balls of pure light surrounded Seymour before going straight up then crashing into his already weakening body. He screamed in pain before the light cleared.
Auron took the opportunity while he was distracted before jumping high into the air and thrusting his sword deep into the ground in front of him. The ground under Seymour shook before exploding sending his stumbling backwards. "Tidus, now. Finish him!"
With a quick nod in understanding, Tidus ran up and slashed at Seymour eight times before using his sword to throw himself high into the air. Wakka took the chance and throw his ball at the same time. He was too far away for it to connect with the half dead lord. It began to descend rapidly. Tidus took a chance and kicked it as hard as he could. It connected in an explosion of light and fire. He landed on the ground huffing as he pulled his sword from the ground waiting to see if they had done it.
When the dust cleared, Seymour stood in front of them as if he had only begun to fight. They all held their breaths not believing this could go on.
"You..." Seymour began as he lifted one hand in the start of another spell. It fell just as quick as he dropped backwards. His eyes open but seeing nothing.
Yuna ran to his fallen side. She closed his eyes before saying a silent prayer for the man. "We have done it." She whispered.
It was quiet until the surroundings began to fall away. Now that Seymour had been defeated, the armor that was Sin was no longer being held together.
"Uh, I don't know about you all. But I think we better get out of here, ya?"
"Let's go quickly. We don't have much time." Lulu added as she looked around.
"Alright! Back the way we came. Let's move!" Tidus took the lead.
Auron stayed behind as they tried to escape. Now that his vengeance had been paid there was nothing left for him. His hand slowly let go of his sword before he fell to his knees.
Tidus heard the crash of the weapon behind them. He stopped running and turned before rushing back. "Hey man, what are you doing? We have to get out of here."
"There is nothing left for me. I belong here now." He answered without lifting his head.
"You're kidding, ya?"
"I don't believe this." Lulu marched closer to him before stopping just in front of him. Everyone watched in shock as she raised one hand before slapping him across the face. "I don't know what your problem is, but you need to snap out of it." She told him smartly.
Auron glared up at her, but she refused to be daunted. She continued. "We all miss Rikku, but you are taking this like a child would. I thought you were bigger then that."
Auron slowly got to his feet before leaning over and picking up his sword. Lulu backed away afraid she may have pushed him too far. He took a deep breath before speaking. "I did not criticize you when you mourned for Chappu. Yet you dare stand in front of me and complain I am acting like a mere child. Perhaps you are the one who needs to grow up." He slung his sword over his shoulder and walked deeper within Sin. "Leave me."
"Oh no you don't." Tidus grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "I'm not about to let you die here. You are coming with us if I have to drag you myself." The walls and floor shook once more signaling they didn't have much time left.
Auron tried to face him and glare, but instead was over come by blackness.
--
Shapes began to take form now. She could make out the outline of the person above her. It was a female with light hair. She blinked several times to adjust to the change in sight. "Mama?" She questioned.
The woman smiled down on her. "I am here. Don't worry."
She tried to sit up and get a bearing on where she was. "I'm dead?"
"I'm sorry." It was the male from before. The one who was there when she first arrived. "I know this must be hard for you. Jecht sends his regards."
"Jecht?" She repeated the name knowing it held some significance. "Uncle Braska?" She questioned now knowing why he sounded so familiar.
"That's right. Welcome to the farplain." He bowed slightly as he moved aside so she could see more.
"Mama?" She glanced up to the woman above her. "Is this really what the afterlife is?"
"Don't worry. You will enjoy it in time. It is a place of extreme rest. You will have no worries or pain here."
She bolted upright away from her mother's comforting embrace. "You're wrong! My life was nothing but pain. Nothing but worry. I was a slave, little more then a toy to be used and then thrown aside. I finally found the one thing I wanted all my life, and it was ripped away from me before I could fully enjoy it! What will happen now? What about my friends, my family there? What about.." She choked back a sob before saying his name. "What about Auron?"
Braska came forward and placed a hand on her shoulder allowing her to seek comfort in him. "You don't have to worry about them. They are strong."
"You don't understand!" Tears began pouring down her cheeks in anger and sadness. "I am Rikku, and I was the one to summon Sin."
--
So one more chapter should just about finish this off. I left you all with a cliff hanger again. I seem to do that a lot, don't I? But if it keeps you coming back for more, then I'm willing to do it. Don't worry, the ending should come soon. I have it all planned out. Just have to type it up. See you then.