"Start from the beginning," Victori told Panca.

Everyone sat in the travel agency on Mi'ihen Highroad. Rin kicked everyone else out of, and left them to their conversation in privacy. Panca sat alone on one side of the small lobby room while everyone else stood on the other end. They all had their guard up, ready to pull their weapon in an instant if they needed to.

"Let me start by saying that my brother has severe emotional scars from the past," Panca began.

"Yeah, don't we all," Mowlin countered. "I lost half of my family in an attack by Sin when I was a child. Past incidents give no excuse for doing any wrong."

Panca held his hands up in defense. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not making excuses for him. I only said it so you would understand his own reasoning a little more. I was an infant at the time, but our father was a summoner during the days of Sin. He showed great promise as a summoner, and everyone supported him with love. Unfortunately, he got ambitious and tried to fight sin early in his pilgrimage while trying to protect a small village off the east coast. His strength was not enough, and Sin killed him and everyone else around him. It was a couple of years after that when High Summoner Yuna began her own pilgrimage and eventually defeated Sin for good. Our mother was so happy that day. She saw it as a type of closure for losing her husband when Sin was destroyed. Liasom did not share the same sentiments. Instead, he blamed the summoners for not figuring out how to defeat Sin sooner. He quickly grew a hatred for anything affiliated with Yevon in the past."

"So he wants to kill all of the former summoners as well as their guardians?" Vidina asked.

"Yes, but he won't kill them right away. He wants to round them all up first. He plans to execute them all at once."

"Where's he keeping them?" Chandale asked. Her voice was urgent, and filled with desperation.

"I'm afraid I do not know. Liasom wouldn't tell me. I would assume that was because he knew I wouldn't go along with his plan. All I know is that he takes them on an airship and flies off the west coast of the Calm Lands."

"He must be keeping them on some kind of island," Mowlin guessed. "That should be our next destination."

Panca stood up suddenly. Everyone tightened their grip on their weapons at first. They let their guard down when they realized Panca was only beginning to pace.

"You shouldn't try to fight him yet," Panca said. "Victori, you saw some of what he's capable of. He froze my entire body up, then somehow instantly transported himself out of the are. He possesses incredible power that no one has ever seen."

"Where did he get those powers?" Victori asked. "That's no type of magic I've heard of."

"It's not the kind of magic you are familiar with. As you already know, Liasom has the ability to summon and control dark Aeons. To my knowledge, he only has four Aeons that he can summon, but they are all substantially more powerful than the Aeons that summoners used in the past. To make matters worse, each Aeon in his possession bestows on him a special power. He used three of them in Luca today."

"I saw what he did to you, and his disappearing act, but what's the other one he used?"

Panca stared down at the floor. Pictures of the people Liasom killed flashed through his head. There were men, women, and children that fell victim, and none of them saw it coming until it was too late.

"He used a truly evil power," Panca finally said. "He creates a type of light orb, and when he sets it off, it will completely vaporize anyone around it. They will cease to exist, and can do nothing to stop their fate."

Chandale couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could they fight someone with those kinds of powers. It no longer sounded impossible for her parents to have lost to him.

"What about the fourth power?" Vidina asked.

"I'm afraid I haven't seen it," Panca answered. "Every time I tried to find out, he made it a goal not to reveal it. Whatever it is, he seems to be saving it for something."

"Alright, so how do we stop him?" Victori asked. She was tired of hearing Panca talk about how powerful Liasom was. No matter what powers he had, he was still just a man.

"We need to destroy the Fayth that gave him the Aeons," Panca replied. "I know the location of all four of them, but they will be very difficult to reach, and even more so to get into."

The conversation continued until they heard the commsphere at the front desk beep. Chandale was closest, so she curiously answered the call. Her eyes shot open when she saw Paine on the other end of the communication. She had dirt and cuts all over her body, but was alive.

"Oh my-it's Paine!" Chandale nearly shouted. Everyone quickly ran to the desk and huddled around Chandale. "Paine, are you ok? What about everyone else?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm the only one who made it out," Paine responded. "The Celsius was destroyed while still in the air, and after it crashed, a giant human-like bird came after us. It captured your mother, Rikku, and Brother. I haven't seen Buddy or Shinra since we went down."

"Where are you?" Vidina asked. "We can come get you."

Paine looked up suddenly, then back down to the sphere. "I'm hiding in some ruins in Zanarkand. That giant bird keeps coming back. I think it's trying to find me."

"Stay where you are," Chandale said. "We're going to get an airship and come for you."

"Where's your father?" Paine asked but realized what the answer was when Chandale's expression changed to sorrow. "He was captured too?"

"And Kimahri. They went looking for you guys after we heard what happened."

"I'm sorry Chandale. But be careful if you do come here. Whatever destroyed the Celsius wasn't normal. We didn't see it coming, and we couldn't find it when it attacked. The airship just started to fall apart with explosions. Stay on full alert the entire time."

Chandale wanted to ask more questions, but Paine suddenly looked up again, then turned the commsphere off. Tears began to flow down her face. Vidina put his arm around her, and she moved closer to him and started to cry on his shoulder. Everything was becoming too overwhelming as more and more problems piled on top of the ones that already existed.

"Do you have any idea what could have destroyed the airships?" Victori asked Panca.

"No I'm sorry," Panca answered. "It doesn't sound like one of his powers."

"One of his Aeons?" Mowlin guessed.

"It's possible. I've only seen two of his Aeons. The first was that Cerberus that you just fought, and the giant human-like bird is called Garudo."

"He also has a type of shark called Isonade," Vidina said. "We fought it on Besaid Island before coming to Luca."

Mowlin sat down in a seat. "So we know three of the four Aeons. I think it's safe to assume the fourth one is responsible for the destruction of the two airships. My gut says we shouldn't fly, but we might be able to bait it into showing itself. Then we can figure out a way to stop it."

Rin suddenly opened the door and entered the agency. "I apologize, but I overheard a bit of that. If you plan to fly to Zanarkand, allow me to give you an airship to use."

"You would do that for us?" Vidina asked.

"Of course I would!" Rin smiled largely. "Word came to me yesterday from the Al Bhed Home in Bikanel. Cid has finished building a new type of airship that is capable of flying faster and further than any airship that exists. It also carries a thicker hull, which could help you ward off possible attacks."

"But it's in Bikanel," Mowlin said. "How do you propose we get there? That's at least a two week trip by boat."

"We can't wait that long!" Chandale shouted. Tears were still flowing from her eyes. "We need to rescue Paine as soon as possible!"

"I agree with Chandale," Victori said. "Paine might be able to provide us with some information that we are yet to learn. She would also be a powerful addition to our team. I doubt anyone would disagree with me if I said she's more skilled than any of us here."

"Do not worry," Rin spoke up. "I happen to have a new type of machina transport right here. It is like a boat, but can move underwater. It is much faster than a boat due to its powerful engine. You would be in Bikanel in less than twenty-four hours."

Mowlin got back to his feet and looked at Rin. "And what if that shark Aeon comes after us?"

"It won't," Panca said. "Liasom has to be near in order to summon his Aeon. That's not possible in the middle of the sea."

"Then we are in agreement," Rin declared. "Prepare yourselves, and we may leave whenever you are ready. I must warn you, though. There will not be much space, so only bring what you need."

Rin stepped back outside once he was finished talking. Everyone looked at their gear and realized they had already packed light for the trip. They hadn't planned on going anywhere else after Luca originally, so didn't bring any necessities for a long trip.

"We should call Besaid," Vidina suggested. "My parents only sent us to deal with the Luca situation. I think they should know if we're planning on doing this."

"I agree," Victori replied. "Vidina, you and Chandale should do that. I'm going to speak with Rin about the preparations, and Mowlin is coming with me."

Victori grabbed a reluctant Mowlin by the arm and dragged him out of the agency. Panca elected to step outside as well, leaving Chandale and Vidina alone. Chandale still couldn't think straight. The only thing in her mind was her desire to rescue Paine before Liasom could find her. If they could get Paine, then they might stand a chance.

Vidina started up the commsphere and called for Besaid Temple. It only took a few seconds for a priest to answer the call. The priest smiled, then made a motion that told Vidina to hold on. A few minutes later, both Wakka and Lulu were in front of the sphere.

"Vidina, is everyone alright?" Lulu asked. "Word got to us about the attack on Luca."

"Everyone is ok here," Vidina answered. "Turns out a man named Liasom is behind all of this. He is getting help from four different Fayth, with four Aeons under his control."

"You did good; I'm proud of you both. We were afraid after we heard what happened. More than two hundred people were killed."

"Honestly, Mom, that's a low number given what happened. But hey, we got an interesting call just now. Turns out Paine is hiding in Zanarkand. She said everyone else was captured and taken somewhere in the sea. Tidus' rescue party was attacked and captured too."

"Your mother and I are coming to you," Wakka said. "We will go for Paine together."

"Don't!" Chandale suddenly shouted. "You two need to stay on Besaid, and keep your guard up. Liasom is after everyone who guarded Mom during her pilgrimage, so he's gonna be after the two of you too. At least if you stay on Besaid you can hide somewhere."

"You are not going to Zanarkand on your own." Wakka's rare stern voice broke through. "We shouldn't have even sent you to Luca. This Liasom is too dangerous for you to chase without us."

"We have Victori with us, and Mowlin is traveling with us too," Vidina replied. "We've also made allies with Liasom's younger brother. We don't know much about him, but it's clear he wants to stop Liasom. Even more, once we rescue Paine, we'll have her strength on our side too. You said it yourself that the only person Paine couldn't take in a sword fight is Tidus. We have to act now, or else we could lose her too."

Wakka and Lulu glanced at each other. It was clear that neither of them liked the idea of them going alone. It was more because of their age and lack of experience though, not because they didn't trust them.

"You be careful," Wakka ordered. "Vidina, look after Chandale. I'm not going to be able to face my best friend if something happens to his daughter."

"I will Dad," Vidina replied. "We'll all be looking after each other."

"Both of you, practice your spells as much as possible," Lulu said. "You'll need them over time."

Chandale and Vidina both nodded. After Lulu blew a kiss to them, they switched the commsphere off. Silence filled the room for a few seconds before Victori came in.

"You two ready?" Victori asked.

"Yeah, all good," Vidina replied.

They walked outside together and saw everyone else by the water. A large, metal tube-like compartment floated on the water with a large propeller on one end. A hatch was open on the top of it for people to enter. Rin's head was poking out of the hatch, waving for everyone to come on-board.

"There's no turning back after this," Mowlin declared. "If we're going to do this, then we're going to see it through."

"That's a given," Vidina replied. "We didn't decide to do this with a plan to run away."

Chandale turned to Panca and they locked eyes. "Panca, I still don't entirely trust you. You keep giving us good information, then our trust in you will continue to rise."

Vidina stepped forward. "But the minute you do something that betrays that trust, we will finish you without hesitation."

Panca could tell they were serious. He wasn't offended by their lack of trust. They both came from very tight-knit families, so it was unheard of to them for a family to hate each other. All he could do was help them in any way possible.

"I plan to continue helping," Panca finally said with his head bowed. "And I will drive my own axe into Liasom if the opportunity presents itself."

"I can't stay here much longer," Paine told herself. She was crouched down underneath a pile of rocks while the giant human-like bird flew overhead. "That stupid bird hasn't left all day."

Paine scanned the area. From what she could see, there was nothing she could crawl under to avoid being seen. It seemed to be only a matter of time until the monster found her though. Every so often, it would land and start throwing rubble around to uncover different hiding spots.

"Garudo, that's enough for today," a deep voice said, not even twenty feet away from where Paine hid. "She can't get anywhere, so we will just sit and wait."

"Who the hell is he?" Paine thought to herself. She adjusted her position to get a better look at the man's face. "I don't recognize him."

She moved back to her original position, but her foot suddenly slipped and kicked a pile of stones. She froze where she was, hoping they didn't just hear it. She stayed in place for another few seconds before turning her head to see where they were. Suddenly the rocks that sat above her head shot into the sky and crashed to the ground more than a hundred feet away.

"One slip is all it takes," the man said. He began to walk toward Paine, who had her sword drawn. "Paine, it is a true pleasure to finally meet you. My name is Liasom, and I will be your host where you are going."

"I'll have to decline the invite," Paine responded. "My schedule is all filled up at the moment."

Liasom chuckled with amusement. He rose his hand and opened his fist. Suddenly Paine's sword ripped out of her grip and flew into his hand. Paine stared in shock as he began to walk closer to her, pointing her own sword at her.

"As fun as it would be to exchange quips, I have a schedule of my own to follow," Liasom said. "This is a magnificent sword, though. I absolutely love the all-black blade, and the design on the hilt is priceless."

Paine accessed her garment grid and quickly turned into her black mage outfit. Immediately after, she launched a firaga spell toward Liasom. Liasom simply held his hand out, and the spell seemed to completely disperse upon contact.

"I've heard about the Gullwings and their garment grids," Liasom said. "You can switch jobs within seconds with such a technology. Truly and impressive piece of equipment."

"Mind if I ask what you want with us?" Paine asked.

"Honestly, my quarrel is not with you, but because you insist on trying to protect those that I am after, you must suffer the consequences with them."

"The one's you're after? Yuna?"

"To name one of them, yes."

Paine flicked her wrist, and a flare spell suddenly engulfed Liasom. She didn't wait to see if it did any damage, and turned to run away. His Aeon, Garudo, took to flight and began to chase her down. It flew much faster than she could run, and landed right in front of her to cut her off. Paine switched from her black mage to the dark knight and slashed the long blade across the beast's torso. The Garudo let out a screech of pain and jumped back to avoid another attack.

"This is my chance," Paine told herself.

Paine looked back and saw Liasom beginning to move toward her. She scanned the area, and eventually dove straight into the water. She continued to swim as deep as possible before leveling out and swimming away from where Liasom stood.

"You're a feisty one," Liasom said. He held his hand up and dismissed the Garudo. Seconds later, he pointed his finger at the water, and summoned the Isonade that attacked Besaid.

The large shark beast dove deep into the water and began to chase Paine. Paine saw the monster and frantically started to swim for the nearest piece of land. The Isonade swam far too fast for her to get away, and only a couple seconds passed before the beast was ramming into her. She gripped her sword and stabbed it into the Isonade's side, draining its blood into the water. She quickly withdrew the sword, then kicked off of the Isonade to give herself momentum to reach the surface.

"Is he summoning them?" Paine asked herself as she climbed out of the water. "I thought the Fayth couldn't give Aeons anymore."

Paine looked into the water, but didn't see the Isonade anymore. Liasom stood far on the other side of the large body of water, staring straight at Paine. Paine stared back for a few seconds before continuing her retreat in the opposite direction.

"No one escapes me," Liasom said aloud.

Paine continued to run down the path, running deeper and deeper into the ruins. It didn't take long for her to end up in an area that was completely unrecognizable. The ruins were massive, and barely touched by anyone still alive. As a result, she didn't know which way to go from there.

"I have to keep moving," Paine said. "There's no way they'll get here to rescue me in time."

Suddenly a large fireball flew above her head, then exploded on the side of a ruined building. Paine ducked in surprise, then turned to see the Cerberus running toward her. She rolled her eyes, both in annoyance and fright, then began to run again.

"Do not kill her," Liasom said as he rode on the Aeon's back. He stood perfectly straight as if there was no struggle while the giant dog ran. "I will execute her in front of her friends for her defiance."

The Cerberus launched two more fireballs, one on each side of Paine. The explosions threw debris all over the place. Sharp pieces of rock stabbed at Paine's skin as she ran, and the ground shook enough to make her focus on keeping her balance.

"I can't keep this up," Paine told herself. "If I don't lose him soon, I won't be able to keep fighting."

"There is Zanarkand just ahead of us," Rin called from the pilot seat.

Chandale stared out the window in surprise. It was her first time seeing the ruins, and had barely heard a description of it from her parents. Her attention quickly reverted to the giant Cerberus that everyone saw running through the ruined city.

"That's the Cerberus!" Vidina exclaimed. "It's after something."

"Paine," Chandale said. "Rin, does this thing have weapons?"

"I am insulted you have to ask," Rin answered. He flipped two switches on the panel in front of them. Lights began to blink on both switches, signifying the weapons were armed.

"I can see Paine ahead of it," Victori said from the far window. "Aim the weapons for the Cerberus' back. We don't want to hit Paine too."

Rin positioned the airship directly behind the Cerberus, then slammed his fist into the switches. Two large missiles flew out of tubes on the undercarriage of the ship and blazed toward the dark Aeon. Seconds passed before the missiles impacted right behind it, exploded with a brilliant flash of flames and debris. The Cerberus didn't see it coming, and fell over from the shock of the blow.

Paine continued to run as Rin brought the airship as low as he could get it. The hatch on the back slowly opened, revealing Panca and Mowlin with a long rope. They tossed it out for Paine to grab onto. After a couple of misses, Paine finally grabbed it and was lifted into the airship.

"Are you alright?" Mowlin asked as Paine rolled onto her back on the floor, breathing heavily.

"Ask me again when we're the hell away from here," Paine responded grumpily.

Panca pressed the intercom button on the wall. "We have Paine. Get out of here."

Rin didn't waste any time and put the thrusters at full power. The airship bolted high into the sky and reached the clouds within seconds. Everyone had to hold onto something to avoid falling over from the force of the boost until it leveled out and began to fly straight.

"I believe this mission is a success," Rin declared with a smile and a thumbs up.

Chandale let out a heavy sigh of relief. For the first time since they left Besaid, something actually went their way. It almost felt like Liasom wasn't the unstoppable force they thought him to be.

"I'm gonna go see Paine," Chandale said while already running for the elevator.

Vidina waved to her before returning his attention to the radar. He didn't want to look away from it, just in case something tried to attack. He was hoping the airship was too fast, or at least faster than expected, which would allow for them to get away by surprise.

"Paine!" Chandale called as she hugged the exhausted sphere hunter.

"Hey kid," Paine said with a smile. "Gotta say, I'm surprised to see you here. You sure you're not too young to be out here like this?"

Chandale shook her head while still hugging Paine. "I'm not going to sit and wait to hear whether my parents are alive or not. I couldn't bare it."

"You're just like your mom with that. She has that bleeding heart for her loved ones too."

Chandale chuckled as she ended her prolonged hug. The sight of Paine put new hope in her heart. With someone of her strength, they would have a better chance against an enemy like Liasom.

"So how about a rundown of everything?" Paine asked.

"Sure, let's go back up to the bridge," Chandale replied.

Everyone returned to the bridge to make plans for their next steps. Rin had switched the ship into autopilot and joined them as well. At the moment, they were on-course for Mushroom Rock. Rin had already sent word to the Youth League, and Nooj welcomed them to rest at the base.

"This is Panca," Chandale introduced. "Apparently he's Liasom's younger brother."

Panca bowed his head to Paine out of respect. Paine didn't do anything in return. She had a dead stare on Panca, which made him more uncomfortable by the second.

"Why do you trust him?" Paine asked. She rested her hand on the top of her sword hilt.

"At the moment, we don't," Victori answered. "But he claims to know how to stop Liasom, so we're entertaining his presence for the time being."

Paine stepped forward until she was only inches from Panca. Panca locked eyes with her, but had never felt more uneasy in his life. Paine's stare was penetrating and heavy.

"I'm sure you've already received this warning," Paine began. "I'm going to warn you in my own words. If I see even the possibility of you leading us into a trap, I will put my blade through you without hesitation. To make it worse, I will do it right in front of your brother."

"I-I understand," Panca responded nervously.

Paine finally stepped back to her original position. Silence filled the bridge. No one knew what to say next after that.

"Ok, so Panca says that Liasom received the power to summon four different dark Aeons," Victori finally said. "The Fayth also gave him some kind of power that he can use like magic."

"That would explain him stealing my sword without touching it," Paine said. "So let me guess, we need to destroy the Fayth if we want to have a prayer against Liasom."

"Yes, otherwise he will overpower us all," Panca replied. "I understand you are a very skilled fighter, but as he is now, Liasom is capable of killing crowds of people in a matter of second. Even worse, he doesn't even need to be close enough to touch those people."

"He killed over two hundred people in Luca just yesterday," Mowlin said.

"Then where are the Fayth that gave him these powers?" Paine asked.

"I can take you to all four," Panca answered.

"You're welcome to take us to them, but you will tell us their location right now," Paine ordered with a forceful voice. "Should you decide to betray us, or you get killed, we need to know where to go without you."

Panca was caught off guard a little at first. "Ok, but three of the temples are not on the main continent. Very few people have been there. One is on a small island east of Kilika Island. No one goes there because the island is a giant volcano that is still active. The Fayth is hidden inside the volcano."

"How did Liasom manage to find that?" Vidina asked.

"He claims that the Fayth came to him in a dream and gave him the locations. The only reason I know all this is because he tried to bring me in on his cause."

"His cause?" Paine asked.

"Revenge on ex-summoners and their guardians for blindly following Yevon all those years. He says they're responsible for the millions of deaths over the years by Sin, including our summoner father."

"Perfect," Paine said sarcastically. "We got a bitter kid who didn't like how his life turned out, so he wants to blame everyone else."

Panca felt slight irritation with Paine's attitude. He didn't agree with Liasom, but still hated what happened in the past. He was just as broken over his father being killed by Sin.

"The second temple is an underwater cave off the coast near Macalania," Panca continued. "I don't know the exact location, however. We'll have to do some searching in Rin's underwater transport."

"I am at your service as long as you need it," Rin spoke up. "I would do anything to help Lady Yuna and her friends."

"The third is at the bottom of the canyon in the Calm Lands," Panca said. "It's too small for an airship to get down there, so we will have to climb down."

"People have been at the bottom of that canyon," Paine said. "How wasn't it found in the past?"

"To my understanding, its hidden by an illusion created by the Fayth. The entrance is covered by illusory rocks."

"How long do you think we have before Liasom tries to hurt anyone he's kidnapped?" Victori asked.

"You time as long as he hasn't captured all of his targets."

"So he'll be coming after my parents next," Vidina said. "Rin, we need to get to Besaid as soon as possible!"

Rin didn't reply, but was already on his way to the pilot seat. He started to type some numbers into the terminal, then the entire airship suddenly banked to the left. The autopilot quickly corrected its course, then straightened out and started to fly straight again.

"We will be over Besaid in less than four hours," Rin announced.

"Thank you," Vidina responded. Rin bowed his head with a smile.

"We should keep Wakka and Lulu with us," Mowlin said. "We need to keep them safe."

"Bad idea," Panca countered. Mowlin gave him a harsh glance. "If they travel with us, then Liasom will track us to the temples. If he's preoccupied with hunting them, then he won't anticipate us attacking the Fayth."

"So where should we take them?" Vidina asked.

"Honestly, there is nowhere safe for them."

Vidina refused to believe what Panca said. There had to be a safe hiding place that Liasom wouldn't find them in. Liasom was powerful, but not psychic. If they could hide Wakka and Lulu well enough, he wouldn't be able to find them.

"I know," Paine suddenly said. "Underneath Bevelle Temple is a giant labyrinth of passages and rooms. If we can get them there without Liasom knowing, then he will never find them."

Chandale continued to listen to everyone discuss the plans, but she felt left out. She was the youngest person in the group, and the least experienced. If it weren't for it being her parents that were missing, she knew she wouldn't have even been brought on the mission. She didn't even have any decent ideas that would help them with their planning.

"Are you ok?" Rin said softly to her suddenly.

Chandale looked at him, then realized everyone else was to busy talking with each other to notice she and Rin weren't involved. Rin had a welcoming smile on his face, but also appeared concerned.

"I don't belong here," Chandale finally said. "I'm not good at planning, I only know the basics in battle, and my white magic isn't even good enough to call it beginner."

"So?" Rin shrugged her shoulders. "When I first met your parents, you mother was a beginner in both white magic and summoning. Your father was even worse. He looked like a nervous child who didn't belong near a battle. They grew stronger as they continued to push forward, and now you are the daughter of the High Summoner who brought the eternal calm, and the greatest guardian to ever live."

Chandale was already beginning to feel a little better after hearing Rin's words. She only knew her parents as the strong, resilient people that they are now. It was hard for her to picture them as afraid novices.

"Thank you," Chandale said with a small smile.

"No need for thanks," Rin replied. "I am here to serve you, just as I did your parents during their fight against Sin."

They reverted their attention back to the discussion, but everyone was caught off when the airship shook violently. Alarms began to beep loudly from the computer, and the ship suddenly began to dive. Rin jumped into his seat and switched to manual controls. He pulled the throttle towards his body and leveled the ship back out.

"What was that?" Victori asked.

Vidina studied the radar carefully. "I don't see anything on the radar."

The airship suddenly shook again. Rin continued to struggle to keep the airship steady. A third shake rattled the airship, then an explosion sounded from below them. The airship began to list to the right with no control.

"The port side engine is dead," Rin called. "I cannot keep the ship level."

"It's the same thing that attacked the Celsius," Paine said. "We didn't see it coming, and we couldn't find it as it destroyed the ship."

Suddenly two explosions burst directly above the group. Debris rained down on top of them, then they noticed there was a hole above them that led straight to the outside. The entire bridge began to depressurize as the oxygen was quickly being sucked out. Rin quickly opened a large crate on the bridge and revealed breathing masks. He tossed one to each person, and they quickly put them on.

The airship continued to rattle, and explosion could be heard all throughout the ship. Rin could no longer maintain control of the ship, so he switched it to autopilot and motioned for everyone to follow him. He led them all through a hatch on the far side of the bridge, and led them down a ladder. At the bottom was a small room with what seemed to be a miniature version of the airship.

"We are about a mile from the Besaid coast," Rin said. "We need to board the escape ship and try to reach the beach."

Everyone filed into the escape ship. It was clear that it wasn't designed to hold seven people at once, so they were forced to squish together as much as possible.

Rin flipped a few switches, then pressed a yellow button. The small airship quickly powered up, and when all the lights blinked green, Rin pressed a button to open the hatch. Once the hatch fully opened, he pushed the throttle forward and the ship thrust forward.

Chandale looked out the small window and up to the airship. It was still flying, but fire raged all over the hull, and pieces began to fly off. Her attention quickly switched to a figure that flew around the outside of the ship.

"Look!" Chandale shouted. "I see something!"

Everyone looked out the window and saw the same thing. It was flying around the ship, occasionally flying directly through the ship's hull, creating explosions as it passed through. It was wearing a pitch black robe that covered its entire body aside from its hands, which looked like long, skinny claws. Its face was covered by a large hood that was connected to the robe. It didn't seem to have wings even though it flew with ease.

"Could that be Liasom's fourth Aeon?" Vidina asked.

"If it is, then we're in trouble," Panca answered. "That would mean he's already here, and could already have Wakka and Lulu."

The creature continued to fly through the ship until the entire airship broke in half and began to plummet to the water. After both parts splashed into the sea, the creature brought its attention to the small airship they had escaped in. A mere second later, it was flying with incredible speed right towards them.

"It's coming after us!" Chandale called to Rin.

Rin didn't respond to Chandale's warning. He pushed the throttle inward, then the airship made a quick dive downward. The creature continued to follow them, quickly gaining.

"I apologize for this," Rin called to everyone.

"For what?" Mowlin asked.

Rin pressed a small red button to his left. A second later, the bottom of the airship opened up and all of the seats ejected out of it. Everyone screamed loudly as they began to plummet to that water. The fall was close to twenty feet, but only took a few seconds for them to reach. With a large splash, they all hit the water. Once they resurfaced, they noticed the creature was still going after the airship.

"Wait, where's Rin?" Chandale asked while spinning her head around. She looked back up at the airship and realized what Rin did.

"It truly was a pleasure to help all of you," Rin said from the pilot seat. "I wish the best for you all."

The creature reached the airship and flew straight through it, just like with the main airship. It only took one explosion for the whole thing to burst into a large fireball and fall into the sea. Chandale screamed loudly as she started to swim toward the wreckage.

"No Chandale!" Vidina shouted. "We need to get out of the water! He could summon the Isonade!"

"I'm not leaving Rin!" Chandale screamed. "He could still be alive!"

Paine caught up with her and grabbed her tightly. Chandale screamed loudly as she tried to shake free from Paine's grip. Paine kept her grasp tight, then pulled Chandale close to her and hugged her tightly.

"He couldn't have survived that," Paine said. "I'm sorry, Chandale, but we need to get to the beach."

Chandale could barely open here eyes as tears flooded them. Paine pulled at her arm until she finally started to swim toward the shore. Paine soon followed, but had to be sure she didn't have tears of her own first.

After almost five minutes of swimming, they all finally reached the shore. The creature that destroyed the airships was nowhere in sight, nor was any of the other dark Aeons. Vidina ignored his exhaustion and jumped into a full sprint down the path to the village.

"Please be ok," Vidina thought toward his parents. "Please."