Disclaimer: Square-Enix Incorporated owns all copyrighted material this fanfiction may include. All other materials, such as characters, events, dialogue, et cetera, all belong to Zeshin-kun.
Author's Note: Alright, let's get down to it! This is the final battle between the group and Yu Yevon. What does the master summoner have in store for the group? You know it can't be good, but just how bad can it get? At the end of the last chapter, Shuyin stopped himself from attacking. Why is that? Just how hard are these final steps on their road to ending Spira's Eternal Discord? ^_~
Without further ado, I present the final chapter to this story!
Spira: The Eternal Discord
Chapter 48: Ascending
Shuyin
"He was right. He was right all along. You did come for me and you didn't accept my logic. The things I've done, my mission, how could I have fallen so far?"
"You saw, didn't you? You saw through my mask. You tried. Each time, you tried. The lies I told never worked on you even if I, myself, was fooled."
"It's up to you then… But you'll make it. You'll finish this chapter. End this story for all of us."
Had it been a trick? Was that his final illusion? How was I expected to make it through this challenge? How could I be expected to? We'd been through everything together. We were the closest people could ever come to be. How could she?
"Kirin, why did you do this to me?" I found myself uttering.
This was no ordinary Final Aeon. The rest of them gasped in shock when they saw. Yu Yevon had created the perfect weapon and that vicious grin on his face proved he knew he had. I wasn't going to make it, not after this.
"Is this who you really are, Kirin?" I grumbled beneath my breath.
"This is unreal." Rikku whined beside me, her hands cupped over her mouth.
"No, it can't be…" Yuna mumbled absentmindedly, talking a few small steps forward until my better stopped her.
"What is this?" Paine asked in a seething tone.
"Lenne…" I finally managed to say, gazing upon her beautiful form.
As soon as I did, the old coot cackled, getting himself into position within his new host and I was forced to watch my love transform in horror. They rose together and the soft fabrics of her clothing unwound, giving way to jagged and unwelcoming armour. Spined gauntlets appeared in place of her sleeves. Her ruffled blouse became white robes underneath boney layers of platemail. Her skin paled into cerulean and then sharpened to appear almost crystalline. As it did, I saw her eyes grow cold and white, the melancholic expression upon her gentle countenance breaking my heart. A crown of thorns adorned her, its ruby center emanating a blood red glow. As it shined once, three pairs of feathery wings extended from her back. As it shined again, several vines of thorns shot out from the surface of Sin and bound her, holding her in her place, as a captive. The ruby shined once more and the entire area began to rumble, the airship fading away as a new surface replaced it. It shined one final time and two obelisks rose from either side, several of the vines attaching Lenne to them. Glyphs on their stone faces gave off an eerie green glow as the ruby finally dimmed.
I gazed up at my Lenne's cold face, her eyes finding their way to me, as well. I could sense it; she wasn't a willing host. She wasn't there by choice, but she was being made to witness everything. Yu Yevon wanted her to be present for this fight, not because he was so confident he could keep her under his control, but because it meant everything we did, we'd be doing to her. How was I to make it? Was this Areth's final lie?
As I continued to stare into her eyes, I felt the world change around me. Suddenly, I wasn't standing within Sin. Suddenly, Lenne wasn't the Final Aeon opposing us. I found myself in Zanarkand, on a familiar road. To my left, a neon advert of my father glimmered against the side of a building, the same one I had mocked each time I had the chance. Lenne's form floated down to me, landing just out of reach.
"Lenne…"
Without a second wasted, she threw herself into my arms, embracing me tightly. I pulled her in closer and drowned everything else out. Why couldn't it stay like this? Why did we always have to be pulled apart by circumstance? Over one thousand years had passed us and we still couldn't be together. It wasn't fair.
"Hold onto me, love. You know I can't stay long. All I want to say is I love you and I'm not afraid…"
Then, she was gone. The world came crashing back and my love was the Final Aeon again, bound by Yu Yevon's will. It was too much. How was I to make it? I felt myself sinking, falling to my knees in defeat.
"Shuyin! Get up! It's starting!" My better shouted.
The others all rallied to fight her, so ready to slay the person I most wanted to save in this world. It all came rushing back to me. I didn't calculate how ruthless Bevelle would be in the war and all my friends were taken from me. I ended up fighting more of its forces than the summoners on the front because none of us had expected them to bypass us on the Calm Lands. It rendered Zanarkand in ruin and Bevelle the de facto victor, but they weren't going to stop there. They would take her from me. I wasn't going to let them. I wasn't going to let him and his schemes take her away from me. No, I'd rather murder an entire city than lose her… And yet…
"He's out of it. We'll have to handle her ourselves!" Paine exclaimed, her sword's blade glistening in the light of Sin's pyreflies.
It wouldn't be soon. Soon, it would be stained in blood just like mine had been that night, so much blood that it drowned the pristine glow my sword normally had. I felt myself lifting my hands to my eyes. They were warm and dripping with it. I'd taken so many lives, what was this one to me? I couldn't save anyone. I wasn't the hero here. No, I'm just a murderer.
"Murderer…" My voice uttered beneath its breath.
"What was that?" The dream asked, having stayed back while the others attacked.
Even in such a daze, those senses never felt clearer. I heard all the sounds, each cut they made against her, each bullet that pierced her form. My pyreflies did the rest. They flooded the area and sensed the things human senses couldn't detect. They showed me how my love suffered and that Yu Yevon had wanted her to suffer. They told me all the vile thoughts going through his own pyreflies and how much he relished the moral dilemma haunting all of us. However, there was no morality to my being. What had I done in virtue? I'd killed for my own benefit since I was fourteen.
"I killed them all…"
"Shuyin, now's not a good time for this episode you're going through." His words, always his words.
"Lenne, stop this!" Rikku's pained voice pleaded, "You have to be strong enough to beat his control."
No, she wasn't. That wouldn't make her Lenne, after all. She was such a compassionate person. She always considered others before herself and went beyond the call of duty to do what needed to be done for the greater good. She wasn't like us. No, Yu Yevon and I were always doing what we wanted done. We're villains, you see.
"Nothing will stand in the way of our ambition."
"What is the matter with you?" Rikku shouted.
"Villains like us are nothing more than cowards. Let's hide from reality by shaping it however we choose."
"I thought we were over this already!" She whined.
"Probably just the push he needed to sink back down." Paine suggested.
"I think Yevon's Final Aeon caught all of us by surprise." Yuna added.
"Worst yet, she's not even moving." My better announced, waving them to Lenne, "It's like he wants us to kill her."
Of course, he did. It was such a perfect double-edged sword. Lenne was never someone to lash out or fight her allies. If she had her wits about her, not even total control would have her raise a finger. So why not torture those wits away? Why not show her how little her good deeds have counted? He had her own allies out for her blood and, each time they struck, they only tainted their own virtuous souls.
"Defile them and show them the truth of darkness. There is no hope, only despair. Nothing is absolute but death."
"Look, get a hold of-" I didn't let him finish.
"I kill you and your struggling will cease." I grumbled deep in my throat, taking a firm hold of my blade.
"Shuyin, what are you doing?" Yuna asked, reaching out to pull at my arm.
Stopping as she held me back, I turned my darkened blue eyes to her and she let me go immediately. Without another moment wasted, I roared my rage and rushed to my love. As soon as I was close enough, I swung out my sword, aiming for a decapitating blow. It was blocked. The attack was a failure… another failure. Looking past my opponent, I found Lenne, her countenance wild and loosing an uncharacteristic cackle at my missed opportunity. It wasn't my love's laughter; it was her captor, howling with glee over what he'd reduced me to. Assuming full control, he had her levitate higher, the closest vines pulling taught. My eyes shifted to the one who had stopped me with bitterness. What right did he have to stop me? I wasn't him. I didn't walk the path of a hero and I never wanted to. I just wanted an end.
"Get out of my way." I said lowly.
"No."
I struck harshly with my sword, knocking him back a few steps, "Get out of my way."
"No." He repeated once he recovered, holding his sword out in defence.
Stalking to him, I raised my sword and bashed it into his again and again. The force of my blows strengthened each round, knocking him further and further until he was on his knees. I kept going and he had to plant his other hand on the ground behind him for support. I struck him again and our swords began to pulsate. I struck him again and felt the distance between us shorten. I struck him… He struck me. I felt the fist push deep into my middle, toppling me over.
"Hey! You realize what you're doing, right?" He growled, pulling me by the collar, "Your head has to be clear. Remember when Areth got to Yuna? I listened. It's time you did the same. Help us save Lenne."
Staring at his eyes that stared at me, I realized how right he was, waking from my daze, "You know, you are more than a dream."
With a light chuckle, he replied, "I was based off a good guy."
After that, he stood back up and gave me his hand. My thoughts trailed from him, from the battle, back to that road in Zanarkand. Lenne was just out of reach, but I was getting closer.
"Thank you, Shuyin." She said, her eyes tracing up from my chest to meet with mine.
"You keep saying that, but I never saved you." I said through gritted teeth.
"You are always with me. Even here, in such a place, you came to me. I could never ask for more."
"You deserve more! You deserve better than this." I grumbled, my hand tightening on the sphere in my hand.
"You always tried to protect me." She said, her eyes finding the sphere, "That's why you wouldn't let me go to the front."
I looked at the sphere in my hand. It was the same one I had shattered when we had our fight. It was the sphere with a message for all summoners, to have them go to the Calm Lands front.
"You went to Bevelle on your own just to protect me from it." She continued.
"But you wouldn't let me. You knew it wasn't worth the cost. I still have my doubts about it at times, but I know you were right. Still…"
"You always tried to protect me."
"Yea…"
"Now, protect them."
I found myself standing tall, a firm grasp of the weapon in my hand. Despite everything that had happened, Lenne and I were on opposite sides. She was there to hold me back from destroying Bevelle. She was there to stop me destroying Spira with Vegnagun. Now, here she was again, stopping me from destroying Sin. However, this time, it was artificial. She wasn't trying to stop me anymore. I wasn't the antagonist anymore. Yu Yevon was to blame for this odd twist of fate. I prayed that that would make a difference.
"Hey, we could use some help here!" Paine called out, gaining both of our attention.
"What's going on?" My better asked.
"These vines just multiplied!" Rikku pointed out.
"I thought we had her until all of them suddenly covered her up." Paine added, cutting away at them.
Yuna spherechanged to Berserker and suggested, "We'll have to cut through them again if we want to get to her."
"I agree." I replied, "We should be careful. I don't like this. Yu Yevon should've tapped into Lenne's magic by now. Why would he be shielding her with Sin like this?"
"Less yapping, more hacking!" Rikku yelled, cutting apart the vines at the root with her, or rather, Kirin's old daggers.
The rest of us took our places and slashed away at them, severing each of the vines. All the while, it struck me as odd that Yu Yevon would waste his powerful weapon like this, holding her at bay while using Sin instead. Even if he didn't have full control of her, he had to have seen the open opportunity. Even a few well-placed spells could have us reeling and if he could harness her overdrives, we'd be in trouble.
"Something is out of place." I muttered as we kept cutting.
"What are you on about?" Paine grumbled, taking out her Garment Grid only to sigh at her non-functioning Full Throttle Dressphere, "We have to get these clear fast before more shoot up."
"Are you sensing anything from Sin, Shuyin?" Rikku asked, hopping closer.
Huffing out a breath in frustration, I shook my head, "No, it's probably nothing. Besides, we don't have a better plan."
With that out of the way, we were tearing the vines apart and making short work of Yu Yevon's handiwork. Still, something wasn't right about it. It was as if he wanted us to freely attack him. After all, the vines weren't attacking us. Lenne wasn't attacking us. It was all just a bit unlikely.
"We're making progress! I can almost see her!" My better said, pointing out Lenne's Final Aeon form behind a few more vines.
Ignoring my doubts, I sliced cleanly through another vine. Once it was severed, I noticed one of the vines around Lenne loosen meaning it had been one of the original batch that ensnared her. We really were getting through. However, it was then I noticed Lenne wince as if in pain. Looking back at where I had cut, I saw something oozing from it and went to investigate. Upon closer observation, I concluded that it had to have been blood. These vines were a part of her Aeon form?
"Guys!" I alerted, trying to inform the others, but it was too late.
Each of the remaining vines was hacked apart and the ones binding Lenne loosened completely and fell away. As we watched on, Lenne spread the wings on her back and floated higher, lifting her arms and beginning to channel the massive quantities of pyreflies around us. They started collecting near her, forming ten concentrated groupings.
"What's going on now?" The other blitz ace asked.
Within moments, we had our answer. Sigils appeared where the pyreflies had gathered, each one unique to what it was calling. Following the sigils came the towers of energy, the power released from the pyreflies in order to fuse together. This would drain them and they'd need another source of energy to sustain themselves. I turned my attention to Lenne and saw the glow expanding from behind her wings. It was true; she was calling for them.
As the first of them took form, Yuna gasped, "It can't be."
The first to complete was Valefor, something I knew would be the most troubling for her, except that she didn't recognise it. No, she didn't and neither would she identify the rest of them. They were all strangers to her as Aeons of this Spira weren't unique to the summoner creating them. However, there was one she would know very well. It was what drew me to possessing them back when I was unsent. Once the others had formed, the greatest beast among them descended from above, called down by the pyreflies. As soon as it landed, its wings spread out and it let loose a roar to demonstrate its immense power.
"Is that?" She gasped again, covering he mouth with both of her hands.
"Bahamut." I finished for her.
"Are they… Aeons?" She asked.
"Lenne's lineup."
"That's not possible. All of the fayth were sent."
"Summoning worked differently back then. A fayth was unique to each summoner and their pyreflies were absorbed by the summoner they chose. They are a part of her and she'll always have access to them; it was one of the reasons I was worried when Yu Yevon didn't use them." I explained.
"Which ones are they, though?"
We didn't have time left for the Q&A. Just as Bahamut readied itself, the others began their approach. Valefor took to the air, its two sets of wings allowing it to maneuver smoothly through the air. Leviathan slithered behind it as backup while Ixion charged its Aerospark ability in the palms of his hands. Kinok burrowed under whatever it was we were standing on and Titan assisted it by loosening the, whatever we were standing on. As soon as it started to rumble, we knew we had to move.
Ifrit came at me first, bounding for me on all four. Unlike the Ifrit Yuna knew, this one was more feral, its body lengthened to more of a wolf shape. It was still capable of standing on its hind legs, but it would hulk over more with its lanky torso lacking the same support the modern Ifrit had. It was faster because of it and, with Lenne's strength within it, it was a dangerous adversary. I baited it towards me as Odin leaped overhead to the blitz ace, who just barely dodged its jousts on its thunderous pass. Odin didn't stop there; it immediately doubled back and cast Thundaga on him, catching him in the back. He rolled out of the way just in time before Titan could pound him down with its hammer. Right after, Ifrit showed me that I had miscalculated. It wasn't me baiting it; it was leading me. My attention returned to my own situation and that's when I noticed Shiva standing ahead while Ifrit herded me in her direction. With a kiss, she blew powder snow at me, the intense cold slowing my movement enough for Ifrit to slam its claw into my back, sending me lurching forward into the ground.
Before they could do any more damage, Rikku jumped in, swiping away the werewolf with her daggers before switching to Gun Mage and pointing a Blue Bullet at Shiva to back her away. However, she didn't see Ixion to her left casting Thundaga. The bolts struck her gun and forced her away, Rikku changing to Psycher to teleport away before Kinok's Quake Burst could hit. Paine launched her own attack at the Aeon while its tail made it immobile, but Leviathan swooped in to save it, ensnaring her in its coils. Paine changed to Dark Knight, using its armour to safeguard against being crushed. As an added bonus, she cast a close range Darkness on the Aeon, causing heavy damage until Valefor interfered and knocked her away with its Sonic Wings.
The distractions were enough to let me escape, but the strongest of them, Bahamut, was at the ready. Diving down, it surprised me as I ran to regroup, its claws swiping across my chest just as Trista's had done so many years before it. Lenne's Bahamut was stronger. It wasn't like Trista's or even Larea's Bahamut. Which was why I knew just when I recovered that Impulse was headed for me. The tremendous force of pure white energy struck me before I had any chance to counter, the raw power behind it throwing me a good ten yards away.
When I regained my footing, I went to head back into the fray, but I was stopped. A wall of pyreflies barred my path then encircled me. As they mingled with my own, I realized I knew these pyreflies.
"Larea." I mouthed, the battle still raging onward in the distance.
They slowly drew together and her form appeared from them, "You used us."
"You showed us horrors unimaginable." Another of the Zanarkand fayth said.
I nodded solemnly to them and a third approached, arriving from the ether, "But that was only a short while."
"Yu Yevon held us for one thousand agonizing years and fooled us with hopes of saving Zanarkand." Larea clarified.
"We asked Yuna to save us." Bahamut's fayth appeared behind her.
"We were weak." Valefor's fayth admitted.
"Now, we know our power." Ixion's fayth exclaimed, electricity pulsing from his fists as he melted back into the pyreflies with a few of the others.
Shiva's fayth placed her gentle hand on my shoulder, "Be our summoner. Use us as your weapon."
Understanding what they wanted of me, I focused on my pyreflies, sending them out into the cloud they had produced. No, not just them. I felt it, I felt those pyreflies that Yu Yevon had recently absorbed from the resurrected Zanarkand. That was right. He fell for my ruse and it was only to my benefit. I had a tremendous supply of spiritual power to tap into. Reaching out further into the ethereal space, I found them, I called to them, and they answered. Using the combined swarms of the Zanarkand fayth, the Zanarkand people, and my own hordes as unsent, I pulled their creations from the ether.
Just then Lenne's Cerebrus leaped forward, trying to stop me, but it was too late. From the pyreflies, my Valefor erupted, clawing at the larger Aeon with its talons before my Shiva assaulted it with its Heavenly Strike, causing it to retreat. With a wave of my hand, I commanded my Ifrit to aid Yuna and Paine who were being overwhelmed by Lenne's Ixion and Odin. Odin charged towards Paine who was too weakened to move out of the way. Ifrit leaped onto its Sleipnir and began clawing into its back. However, Ifrit was no match for an Aeon as powerful as Odin so when I noticed it going for Thor's Wrath, I quickly had it disengage and sent Mindy in to distract it with her stinger.
"It's still a long shot, but we're making progress. Ixion!" I said, calling for the horse.
Getting on it, I rode to Rikku, who was having trouble handing Lenne's Valefor. As soon as I reached them, I jumped from Ixion and had it give Rikku a lift while I landed on Valefor. My time on the wyvern would be short-lived as her Bahamut rushed in with another Impulse. I managed to dodge it this time by falling from Valefor, but my position in the air made me vulnerable. Cue Sandy, who came in with a swift Razzia to blind Lenne's Bahamut and carry me back to safety on the ground.
"Did I say safety?" I said, running as Cerebrus came at me.
"Holy crap, what's with the Aeon parade?" My better asked as we found ourselves together.
"I think Zanarkand's fayth got a bit attached to me when I was possessing them before." I mused, deflecting one of Cerebrus' vipers from biting.
"This is nuts!" He shouted, swinging me about so I could kick Lenne's Ifrit while he slashed off a few snakes from Cerebrus' mane.
"Gift horses, right?" I managed to get out before Lenne's Leviathan forced us to separate.
Rikku held out her hand while still mounted on my Ixion and I got on behind her. Together, we rode in towards Yuna, Paine, and my Ifrit. I had Ixion use Aerospark on Odin, but that was just to distract it while I had Ifrit hurl one of its meteors at Lenne's Ixion. The shot blinded it enough for Yuna to get in close and Trigger Happy it while equipped with Cat Nip. Her fatigue activated the SOS function of the accessory and severely wounded the shaman. However, with Odin so close, all it took was a Thundaga to revitalize the Aeon and we were back to square one.
"The fayth." Yuna gasped in acknowledgement.
"Yea, they're here to help." I said, "We have to separate these two. They're too complimentary."
As my Ixion was also a thunder-based creature, I had Rikku stay with them while I went to attack Odin. Running in close, I ducked under a swipe of its joust and slashed at one of Sleipnir's legs, irking the knight. It charged at me, but I simply called my Valefor to lift me into the air. Instead, it came face to face with an Aeon I hadn't even realized I summoned, Trista's Special Aeon, Yojimbo. It was too late for it to recover from its mistake. With one strong slash of its Zanmato, Odin found itself bisected and scattering into pyreflies.
Without Odin to help it, Lenne's Ixion was made vulnerable. I had Ifrit, now at capacity, to launch its Hellfire at the shaman. Yuna and Paine both spherechanged, Yuna back to Berserker while Paine went with Thief. Once Ifrit lifted the large slab of… whatever it was we were standing on, Yuna and Paine leaped onto it, following it and the pillar of fire to Ixion moments before Lenne's Leviathan swooped in to douse the flames with Waterga. Yuna clawed at the large Aeon while Paine only hitched a ride on it to make her way onto Lenne's Valefor. Once she had her balance on the wyvern, she changed again back to Warrior and stabbed it through the skull. Valefor whined and faltered and, as it did, Paine lunged from its dissipating body into Titan. Meanwhile, despite Yuna's best efforts, Leviathan managed to shake her and escape. Lenne's Ixion, on the other hand, was having trouble keeping on its feet. It was the perfect time to have my Valefor finish it off. However, Larea got to the scene first and had Mindy Passado it into defeat.
It was then that I noticed the obelisks that had been beside Lenne were no longer there. Something else that struck me as odd was when I remembered counting only ten Aeons summoned by her. She had twelve in total, which meant…
"Ah!" Rikku screamed as Ixion abruptly collapsed.
I got off Valefor to help Rikku up. Looking at the horse's wounds just before it exploded into pyreflies, I saw bite marks on its nape and knew it had to have been caused by only one Aeon. That was when I noticed another troubling detail. Lenne was nowhere in sight.
"Everybody, keep on the lookout. Lenne's summoned her final two Aeons." I said, getting into a defensive position.
"Two more? How many did she have?" Rikku complained.
"Twelve in total: All five of the ones available during the pilgrimages, Kinok, Titan, Cerebrus, Leviathan, Odin, then Zaroth and Elumina." I explained.
"I don't see a Zaroth or Elumina around here. Do you?" My better asked, his Caladbolg shifting uneasily in his hand.
"That's the Celestial Shroud for you. She summoned them after we turned the tide. We have to draw them out. Keep up the attack!"
Valefor was the next to succumb to the invisible hits. As soon as it fell, I sliced at the air next to it, but didn't strike anything. Kinok took to the front next, digging its tail into the ground again. This time, rather than using its Quake Burst, it went for its overdrive instead, the Grasp of Gaia. I knew what the attack entailed and told everyone to run from its attack radius. However, my Ifrit wasn't fast enough. Kinok pulled it by the leg underground, Ifrit struggling against it the entire way. Once buried under the earth, Kinok compacted the ground and caused it to collapse inward, creating a sinkhole in its wake and allowing Ifrit's fallen pyreflies back out. We didn't waste a moment of the opportunity. Before the lizard could pull out, Rikku teleported to it and struck it with Time Trip. While frozen, the rest of us hacked it to pieces, the remainder of my Aeons holding Lenne's at bay. As Kinok fell, Bahamut rose, casting Impulse at us. I had my Bahamut fire Impulse back, but its smaller spheres of black energy were no match for it. Lenne's Bahamut dove down, leaving us just enough time to dodge, my own Bahamut rolling out of the way. I finally found Lenne again, hovering just a short distance away, but that only meant something worse. Elumina had lifted the Celestial Shroud, which made it active. Of her Aeons, nothing was as powerful as Elumina. It had taken all her other Aeons and the three of us, Lenne, Kirin, and I, just to stop its fiend trial.
Lenne wasn't making the fight any easier. Having stepped out from the shroud, she had become active, as well. Her first move was to evoke her Siren's Song, taking momentary control of all of us for just enough time to have each of us cast Entrust on one of her Aeons, rendering us weaker while her Aeons became empowered with their overdrives. Leviathan took to the sky next and I knew what was coming. From the horizon, a great tidal wave loomed. Leviathan's Tsunami was an onslaught of water not even Lenne had had full control over. As the waters drew near, I had my Bahamut disengage from Lenne's and take me to the sea serpent. Due to its withdrawal, Lenne's Bahamut managed to tear off its ring, rendering it unable to use Megaflare. However, Tsunami was the major issue at present so it soared straight for it, planting its claws into the serpent's underbelly. With a howl of pain, it stopped its attack, but my Bahamut stayed with it. Its claws dug through Leviathan's softer underside and created deep wounds, which was perfect for the dragon to call its Triple Foul into play, launching it directly into the Aeon. The spell tore through it and it shattered into pyreflies, Bahamut flying away as it did. On the ground, Cerebrus roared its overdrive, Guardian of Hell into play. Though I did not see it take effect, I knew what the attack entailed. My Shiva was a goner, taken into a fiery dimension to be bombarded by intense flames and tormented by ghosts of the damned. Once the attack finished, Shiva's blackened and writhing corpse quickly dissolved into pyreflies.
"We're not doing too well." Rikku shouted, "We've only got four Aeons left!"
"It's fine. There's only five of them." My better reassured, though he was wrong.
"Actually, there's seven." I said, pointing up high, "And that one's the worst!"
Elumina descended from on high and fired several arrows from her bow. Just like that, my Ifrit was destroyed and Yuna, Rikku, and Paine had to spherechange. My Bahamut managed to survive the assault, but it was waning. The Silence the arrow induced rendered it unable to cast spells to heal itself. Yojimbo and the Magus Sisters managed to escape just fine and both us blitzers had deflected her attack.
Zaroth came from behind to try sending me into the Abyss with its overdrive, but I sensed its presence after our long history in the past and was able to stab it through the heart. Yojimbo did the honours by unleashing Zanmato again and slicing off the vampire's head. However, as soon as it sheathed its sword, Cerebrus lunged forth, biting off its head. The decapitated samurai fell to one knee before dispersing into pyreflies. It did, surprisingly, leave Daigoro behind, which I advantaged. I sent the smaller canine into the one of the roaring mouths of Cerebrus, the tiny Aeon part self-destructing inside the fiery belly of Lenne's hound. With it weakened, Yuna, Rikku, and Paine attacked it together. Rikku and Paine had both changed to Dark Knight, bombarding the beast with Darkness while Yuna resumed Gunner form and overwhelmed it in a hail of bullets. Once Cerebrus fell, Lenne's Shiva summoned Diamond Dust to her aid, the blizzard freezing the Dark Knights in their tracks. Unfortunately for her, the rest of us were fast enough to dodge it and Larea had the combined might of the Magus Sisters take her down. Delta Attack completely obliterated the ice queen right as Titan tried to clasp them in its stoney vice, evoking Gaia's Rage. The three were too swift for it, but it turned its overdrive into a continuous attack, the stone hands landing vicious blows against them, Mindy even being swatted flat into the ground.
"That's not very gentlemanly of you." My better said, using his own overdrive of Slice & Dice.
Each blow to the distracted Aeon caused tremendous damage and before long, pyreflies exhumed from the open wounds upon its form and its body disintegrated back into sand. Lenne only had three Aeons left to harness. It precipitated into a more active role for her in the battle. My guess was that Yu Yevon realised just how much he underestimated the opposing party. What was worse, we began to hear sounds coming from the outside, sounds like Gippal's rockets. They were making progress on the ground, thinning the layers of armour on this Sin much as we were nicking away at his internal defences.
Elumina struck us with another shower of arrows, but included her daggers in the mix, too. The volley came with a simultaneous ambush from her Ifrit, which caught us off balance. My better and I dodged the bolts headed for us, rolling past one another. When I got back to my feet, I stabbed through one aimed at Yuna while he managed to slice apart the ones headed for Paine and Rikku. My Aeons weren't so lucky. Larea was mostly fine, but Mindy was showing some wear. Sandy had unsuccessfully countered with Razzia, but Cindy managed to strike her with her Camisade. Of course, such a weak attack on a goddess like Elumina posed little threat and she simply countered back with an Ultima. Cindy was down. After all the abuse my Bahamut had taken, it was about ready to collapse, too, but I knew in its exhaustion that it had one final attack left.
Trouble was, Ifrit remained on the prowl and there was no opportunity to leave me free to get to Bahamut. Lenne began casting Firaja upon the surface everywhere between her Aeon and our group, which made it all the more comfortable for the fire-imbued wolf to launch an attack. The flames sheltered it and provided it camouflage. It jumped out once and managed to sear my right shoulder on a pass. Another one followed, catching Caladbolg away and hiding it amongst the fire. A few more passes allowed it to send Meteor Strikes at the girls, though Paine was able to snatch one when she changed to Samurai. The meteor exploded before it could reconnect with the Aeon, but the counter did afford us some time. At least, it would have except that Elumina fired her arrows again and we were all on the run. Rikku changed to Machina Maw so we could hide behind it while she could still command the machina to launch its missiles at the goddess. Lenne's Bahamut countered for her instead, catching them with various elemental magic before sending Impulse our way. Machina Maw absorbed most of the damage, but it wouldn't have lasted a full blast, so we blitzers stepped in, channeling the rest into our swords. He had changed to Samurai, as well, his katana still fit to house the energy. Though we had held off Impulse, Lenne and her three remaining Aeons still had us pinned. It wouldn't be long before one of them had the stamina to release an overdrive and either NovaBurst or Megaflare would be enough to vapourise us.
The sounds of rattling chains alerted us to a new presence. Yuna and Paine peeked out ahead into the burning terrain and reported seeing a familiar anchor drop down into it, the metal item smothering most of the flames near it. We stepped out from Rikku's machina and watched as my last Aeon revealed itself, the Dark Aeon, Anima. It let loose a terrible moan as Ifrit dashed out from the dying embers and struck it with Pain, Ifrit exploding into pyreflies immediately. With Ifrit lost to her, Lenne commanded Elumina to charge NovaBurst, which I knew meant we had little time left. I ordered Anima to use Pain on Lenne herself, knowing that an Aeon can't exist without its summoner. Pain landed directly at the heart of my love, but it didn't stop her, the only visible damage being the cracks in her crystalline skin. Instead, it would be Lenne singing her Song of Submission to cause Anima to wither into a husk, slowly crumbling to dust. Of course, the attack had been a distraction and it worked. I had gotten to my Bahamut and had it fly me to her at full speed. She countered with her own Bahamut, ready with its overdrive boiling in its mouth. Likewise, I commanded my Bahamut to release its Megaflare. The two immense blasts of energy raced to one another, seemingly canceling out until my Bahamut's power waned with the loss of its ring and its Megaflare exhausted. Lenne's had been much stronger and its Megaflare had crippled other Bahamuts of our time. Once the opposing Megaflare reached, the dragon threw me from its back, its destruction creating a fog intent on allowing me to complete my move. Sandy caught me mid-fall and took me the rest of the way, Mindy keeping close to defend us against Lenne's potent magics. It was too late, though. I had arrived, Lenne and my eyes meeting once more.
"Can you hear me?"
The battlefield dropped away again, though this time, Lenne and I remained in the air. She glided to me, taking hold as Larea let go. I looked into her eyes as the din of war melted away, but we both knew there was more to be done.
"Can you feel me in your arms?" She whispered as I wrapped my arms around her, "… holding my last breath."
I gripped my sword tight and pushed the blade forth into her. I looked into her eyes again, those cold white eyes that showed such sadness and cried for her. Her body began fading and we floated back down to the surface of Sin. As soon as my feet touched the ground, she was gone, a few feathers from her wings being the last to fade.
"Shuyin…" I heard Yuna whisper.
'Now, it falls on your shoulders.' Larea told me within my mind.
Elumina's NovaBurst had completed, but she had the Magus Sisters block it from hitting any of us, sacrificing herself in the process. With Lenne gone, Elumina could no longer maintain her form and faded, too, leaving the five of us the only survivors of the battle. While the rest of them regrouped and healed with the Alchemist Dressphere, I was lost to my own devices again. My mind haunted me with images, past and present, of everything we'd lost because of one man's desires. They were all crying out inside of me, the pyreflies of the fallen fayth, those of my people in Zanarkand, and still those countless souls that had traversed the Farplane. I had felt them before, but their violation of my mind only drove me insane in the past. I had lost my purpose, given in to the crushing pressure of life's unending torment. I told myself I had a purpose this time. I wasn't a wandering ghost or shadow, not some phantom to be exorcised from existence. It was here that I could finish what I started, bring an end to my story.
"Arrogant youths." That old crone's voice penetrated the emptiness.
All of us readied our weapons as he appeared, "You cannot hope to win, boy. I am the Alpha and Omega of this world. I am the power to guide Spira through its darkness. I am the power to end Spira's despair."
I smirked at him, "No, you're just a blind old fool. My Lord, Yu Yevon, I understand now. I understand your purpose for the Age of Sin." After all, I had a millennium's worth of history flowing through my thoughts; I was bound to learn something. "Machina. You know, there's more to them than just the path you see. There's so much more than the Machina War. Look around you and you should understand. It was our advanced cities that cleansed the Moonflow. It was our technology that prevented the decay in Macalania. The Age of Sin saw a great loss for Spirans, which is why repent became tradition. Don't you feel them? Can you not see? Though your heart had been in the right, you've lost sight of your intention for the objective of control. I admit I was too young, too naïve, too distraught to aid you then, My Lord. It took one thousand years of death, of drowning in the Age of Sin to show me the way. You lost sight of your goals in order to achieve the immortality to mold Spira the way you deemed correct. In doing so, you cost so many innocents their lives. There is no other path left, My Lord. For that, I am deeply sorry."
He only set off an anticipated scoff, "Spare me the remarks of ignorance. You had not and will never comprehend what I have to offer this nocuous world. Lost lives are a necessary sacrifice and one worth the price of salvation."
"Even the sacrifice of your own daughter?"
"Yes. To accomplish the greatest of all good, one must not lose poise. Only a true leader is prepared to do all that is necessary, sacrifice as many 'innocents' as required. That is how goals become results."
I nodded, tightening my grip on my blade, "My Lord, I must then inform you, I see your flaws now. Your desire for control led you to this power and, with that power, you sought greater control. While your motives are justified, your direction has poisoned your soul. You forged alliances to which you regret. You acquaint with those you revile. Now that those voices have been silenced, they hear the sorrows of their squandered days. I can feel them."
Closing my eyes, I allowed those memories to permeate my own essence, imbuing me with what they knew. In turn, they were granted the strength that had drained from them all these long years and renewed their hopes that their slaver would meet his end this day. Even the four of them standing behind me grew more resolute, Yuna joining Rikku by activating her Special Dressphere, Floral Fallal. Paine and my better remained their most comfortable selves, warriors together with me against the dark magician blighting our future.
I took a few steps forward, Sin's pyreflies dancing around me, "When Seymour was sent, you moved into the Farplane to reclaim your pawn, didn't you? His lost humanity wasn't enough of a tribute; you needed even more. Sin was fed the extinguished flames of generations that suffered the tolls of your ambitions. I can feel them."
The old one merely whisked the pyreflies away with a wave of his mystically empowered hand, but I continued, "Now, My Lord, they/we want to show you their/our ambition!"
I rushed him, flipping in the air to perform Spin Cut, charged by the will of the pyreflies. Rather than dodge, Yu Yevon only called upon his own pyreflies to take the impact for him. The pyreflies, now radiating with energy, began constructing into a large being. As their new form took shape, we noticed that it was an Aeon, though only of artificial manufacture. Those pyreflies echoed their cruel fate, recounting what had befallen them during their first tenure as their master's servant. It was none other than Lord Zaon, the armoured soldier and husband to Yunalesca. This form that Yu Yevon had rebuilt was that of his Final Aeon, a majestic centurion wielding all sorts of weapons in his many hands. With an axe and spear, he had locked my sword in his grasp. Luckily, Yuna's heavy hitting Great Whirl loosened that grasp in no time.
"Still hiding behind your slaves? They are your last remaining shields, aren't they?" I mused, running around the centurion to target the old crone again.
To that, he only summoned more, bringing forth four more Final Aeons. One of them, a hulking minotaur, had been the Final Aeon that created the scar in the Calm Lands. Another, a griffin with eight wings, had produced the Sin that plunged Kresia Island into the sea.
"I know what they are!" Rikku yelped, not knowing what had occurred while I spoke with Yu Yevon.
"You've been joined with the pyreflies of Zanarkand, the forces within Sin that want to stop their former lord and master." I explained.
"These five are his strongest Final Aeons." Paine said.
"Yes, but we will overcome them." I assured.
"It took everything just to stop Lenne and Sir Jecht." Yuna uttered, backing away from our adversaries.
"No, he's right. We're not alone anymore. We have all of Zanarkand and even the innocents of the Farplane backing us up. And don't forget about our cavalry outside Sin." The blitz ace cajoled.
I ran forward, clashing my sword with Lord Zaon's halberd, "Besides, there's five of them and five of us. I appreciate those odds."
Zaon's other arms tried swatting me with their mace and hammer, respectively, but I backflipped away, pulling out the "The End" Garment Grid I was given and changing to Black Mage. However, given the lack of speed and agility the garment provided, I was only able to cast a single Ultima before Zaon went on an onslaught, bashing me into the ground. By the time I escaped, the Black Mage Dressphere had accumulated too much damage and ceased function, forcing me to change to Samurai. Elsewhere, Yuna's Floral Fallal had analysed the minotaur and her pistils were weakening it with its various debilitating pollens. Vajra had caused tremendous damage to another one, but the griffin blasted Machina Maw with corrosive acid and she had to abandon it.
"Meanie!" She shouted, changing to Gun Mage in order to reengage her assailant.
"These guys aren't so tough after the last battle." My better proclaimed, his Caladbolg slicing off one of Zaon's arms while he passed through the five during Slice & Dice.
SuperNova cleaved a few wings from the griffin while Paine had spherechanged to Trainer to have her pet work on her opponent, a four-faced totem being. As its rigid body rendered it highly immobile, the small animal was easily able to precipitate increasing amounts of damage. Its spellcasting, on the other hand, was being dealt with by Yuna, who had switched over to White Mage to dispel everything the Final Aeon conjured.
Unfortunately for us, none of us figured out the true point of these creations until it was too late. Off to the side, Yu Yevon had collected a strong concentration of aura, channeling it out in the form of Graviton. The radius of the spell encompassed us and I could sense the others buckling against the incredible weight of it. It was obvious, Yu Yevon had forgotten that I had been made immune to his brand of magic since he betrayed me on the night Zanarkand fell. Abandoning Zaon, I stalked to the wizard, sword in hand, but I would never make it. Instead, the fifth Final Aeon, a metallic spider-like creature, overtook me, barring my way to its master with its sharp bladed legs. It jabbed at the ground with its stinger, something more akin to a wasp, but I rolled out of the way. When I was clear of the spider, I found Rikku back in Thief gear, making the most of her speed to counter the effects of Graviton. The others had also found a way to mitigate the ill effects to some degree, but we all knew we'd have to stop the spell if we were to bring the fight back to an even plane.
Rikku took advantage of the griffin's confidence, feigning fatigue and faltering to her knees. The Final Aeon attacked her, diving down just in time to be caught in the neck by her dagger as she hopped onto its back, stabbing the other side of its neck to keep balanced. Steering with the weapons, she had the griffin collide with the spider, leaving the rest of us open to attack Yu Yevon. I gained some ground first, readying my katana for a decapitating blow, but was stopped by Zaon, who bashed its warhammer into me, forcing me to block with the blade, which shattered it. Without my samurai's weapon, I threw some rockets to distract before spherechanging to Berserker. Paine moved in next, changing out of Trainer to Gunner, attempting a Trigger Happy. The four-faced Aeon used Aeraga to warp the trajectory of the shots. Paine went on to deal with it while my better had used Yu Yevon's focus on us to sneak in close and hit the spider with Telekinesis, sending its sharp leg into the wizard and scattering his pyreflies. The temporary loss of his physical manifestation cost him the Graviton, which freed us for a full on assault.
Yuna was back in Floral Fallal, striking the spider with another Great Whirl, though this time, she had aimed each spark for one of the Aeon's many weak joints, eventually punching through them and dropping it to the ground. Yu Yevon reformed by them, trying to cast Flare on her, but I blocked with my claws with a howl of glee, galloping to him at full speed. Again, I would be foiled by Zaon, but in my fury, I managed to chomp off a couple of his other arms. In a fit, he grabbed me with his remaining arms, breaking my back over his knee, which forced me out of that dressphere into Dark Knight. The stiff armour supported me while I advantaged its smooth and sleek surfaces to glide through Zaon's attack, using my jagged blade to cleave into his middle. The attack was effective, but Zaon was persistent. In the struggle, he managed to snatch the Garment Grid from me, crumbling it in its last remaining arm. Of course, that left me in my original state, which sported my best-accustomed weapon.
"Let's call it." The blitz ace shouted out, having shifted back to normal to use Energy Rain on the spider, "One!"
Paine continued from that, changing back to Warrior while falling from a previous attack. As she fell, she pointed her blade downward, stabbing at the center that joined the four-faced totem. With it severed, the four parts could no longer stabilise themselves and pulled themselves apart.
Once it had dissipated, she exclaimed, "Two!"
"Three!" Yuna called over, blowing out the smoke from her guns as the minotaur fell.
"This one makes four!" Rikku cheered, pulling up on her daggers and tearing through the skull of the griffin until it crashed down, sliding to a stop.
The momentum was just the right amount to allow her to glide over to the rest of us. Looking at me with a smile, I turned back to Zaon to say, "Five", and bisected him back into pyreflies.
With that, Yu Yevon was alone again, "You've run out of slaves to shield you from this, My Lord."
"Bah, I need only this, my true power!" He bluffed.
All that resulted was a barrage of wayward spells, the telltale proof of a desperate ploy. Ultimas were carelessly placed, hardly managing to lure us into the stronger Gravijas he cast alongside them. He attempted Graviton again, but knew that would only hinder his evasiveness. However, at the very end, he gave in, sending the spell our way, albeit only as a way to distract us while he unleashed the much more potent Mega Graviton against us. A black circle formed all around us, the whole of Sin trembling from its power. Slowly, the areas closest to the circle began to warp, bending and collapsing in on itself. Graviton made it highly unlikely we could avoid Mega Graviton's effects. So this was it.
"Now you foolish children, now you see how pitiful your resistance is." He cackled.
Yuna spherechanged to White Mage, casting Holy in hopes the orbs of pure light could dispel it, but it would be to no avail. They were all feeling the effects of the strong gravity, which left me to deal with Yu Yevon. I closed my eyes and remembered what I had found… at the beginning.
Just as Jurama had instructed, I went back there, to our home of Zanarkand. The resurrection had served a few purposes: It created a focus that would lure Sin from its hiding place. It left me the opportunity to slip out and seek Vegnagun while the others marveled at the machina city. However, the primary purpose for my maneuver was to obtain what Jurama had left for me on the day he perished and that was a unique spell. In a losing war like the one we had against Bevelle, any means of victory was worthwhile. Jurama had discovered a spell only accessible to warriors, a spell called Magna. It called forth the whole of his essence, fusing it into a destructive bomb that dwarfed even the strength of NovaBurst. The cost was the warrior's life as his pyreflies would be completely drained of life.
But I was no ordinary warrior and I was not alone. Planting my sword before me, I lifted my arms to call the pyreflies, "Now, it is their moment. They can shed themselves of the taint that is Yu Yevon."
Following that, I circled my hands, sending my left palm out to my right, the pyreflies within me flowing outward, "I accept it, their pain and loathing. Seymour, I relieve him of his anger at a Spira that abominates his existence and the anguish of losing his cherished mother."
Circling my hands in the opposite direction, I thrust my right palm to my left, more pyreflies freeing themselves, "I present you the despair of a man who felt failure in avenging his brother, of hatred at an uncaring society, Areth's rage."
"And lastly, I offer the darkness of myself, of one thousand year in torturous solitude, of lifetimes spent watching the ruination of this world, of generations screaming to be spared." I spat, redirecting the two streams of pyreflies upward with my hands, "This, Lord Yu Yevon, this is the price of blind ambition. This… is the end of my story."
The energy pouring from the pyreflies began drawing in more and Sin itself started to be pulled in. Noise from the outside became more and more evident as Sin's skin thinned and fell into Magna. Finally, with the Celsius back in view and what was left of Sin barely reminiscent of the fearsome feral beast, I dropped my hands and knelt down, letting the giant concentration of energy crash. Though it was meant only as an offensive weapon, I could feel it healing the others, the airship, and myself while it ripped through Yu Yevon. In the aftermath, Yu Yevon's form wavered, the weary pyreflies that made up his existence fizzling from Magna.
"Now Yuna!" I shouted, turning to her.
My better stepped forward, "But you'll…"
"Yuna, now!" I repeated, staring hard into her eyes.
With a heavy heart, she nodded, taking hold of her White Mage staff and getting into position. Unlike the Sending, Yuna's moves were broken, fragmented steps and rough twists causing the aura about the area to falter. Even though the Breaking wasn't meant for me, I could still feel it in my pyreflies. They feared her movements. Taking my eyes to the lord, I saw him twitching. The first of his pyreflies escaped his clutches, soaring for a bit as if Sent until, just a few feet away from the deck, it shattered like glass. Several others followed it, breaking apart after a certain point. Yu Yevon screamed out in horror as more of his pyreflies died, scattering his memory to the wind. At last, there was nothing left, the remainder of his pyreflies exploding above us in a dazzling show of light.
A jolt of pain suddenly surged through me and I was blinded by the strength of it. Before I knew it, I was falling and felt nothing. There was no wind or cold, no emotions or colour. Everything around me blurred into white and I couldn't even place myself in it.
From very far away, I thought I heard the others calling out, but it was far too distorted amidst the blankness of where I was. No, there was no where. I was nothing. I was no one. I couldn't feel anything anymore, but I knew. I knew because there were no more pyreflies, no more sensing, no more awareness. I had no up or down, no here nor there, not even a place in time. I had been a dream of the fayth like the blitzer before me. Without Yu Yevon to pull them from the Farplane, my friends were no longer fayth and without those capabilities, they could no longer forge their dreams into reality. My true self had already accepted death and that was where I was, in the empty space beyond life and death. What kept me conscious, I had no idea, but I was glad it wasn't over just yet.
And I could still imagine. I could imagine my new friends still there, calling out to me. I could imagine my old friends still amongst them as the fayth they were transformed into. I could still pretend Zanarkand stood against the evening sky, its lights coming on as the sun set across the horizon.
"And if I concentrate hard enough, I can just hear the oars crashing upon the waves of our new future." I found myself saying aloud, standing behind them on the deck of the Celsius.
"Shuyin?" Rikku asked, turning her teary-eyed face to me.
"Hey."
"Are you…?" Yuna began her question.
"Not sure what I am now. I'm not alive, but I can will myself into being like an unsent. But it still feels different." I tried to explain.
"You've become a guardian to this world, my love." That loving voice.
"Lenne!" I uttered, moving towards her.
"You now protect it, this wonderful life in the period of tranquility." She told me.
So that it was, my destiny, to have lived a life cut short, to descend into darkness and become a demon, to return to a new life and save this world, and now to rise and be its protectorate. What lay ahead was unknown to me, but for now I say, "The Calm will continue."
Author's Interlude: Whew, such a long battle. I had run many a scenario over just how I wanted to have Yu Yevon defeated. I had in mind I didn't want him sent as this entire story is about how he came back from it. From that thought, I developed the Breaking, as it had to be Yuna that finally rid Spira of him and his Sin. However, as I had always wanted to give Shuyin his revenge on the summoner for what he did to him, I kept hitting pitfalls on just what Shuyin could do against such a powerful opponent. I threw his overdrives out the door right away, no way they would do it justice. It wasn't as if Yu Yevon was like Areth from my last story. Yu Yevon had been the mastermind behind it all and was one of the major factors in Shuyin being trapped in his own regrets. From that, I came up with the idea that Yu Yevon deserved to be struck down by his own arrogance, that underestimating of others he kept doing. Therefore, it had to be magic that defeated him and that's when I remembered that I had Jurama visit Areth in my last story. I never could place it into Eternal Love because it was all in Shuyin's perspective. It would be a bit odd to have him present for a heart to heart between those two, but I had wanted Jurama to visit Areth to give him a spell he could use to avenge Kai. Yes, that spell was Magna and that was what Ju meant when he told Shuyin to find it "at the beginning". Of course, I had tried to include it again in Eternal Love when Shuyin found Ju's body, basically having it be on the reverse side of the note Trista and Areth left or another note clutched in his dying hand, but that felt too cluttered for one story. So, after that was taken care of, I had Magna, but it was originally going to bring about a warrior's death. That death was going to come from Shuyin's "undead" sword as, if any of my old fans remember, Shuyin's sword was given to him by Takuma and wasn't actually a totally physical weapon. Since I wanted to beat Yu Yevon using his own arrogance, the only concept that came to mind was all he had done and how he created his Sins. That's where the idea of resurrecting Zanarkand came from, to have the pyreflies of all the people he betrayed when he forced them to die for him come back and tear him a new one. x)
It was actually perfect. If every ill deed Yu Yevon had done was coming back on him, then who better to present it than the one person in the world that had to suffer through it all? So, as Magna takes from the warrior that casts it his essence, then rather than having Shuyin sacrifice his life as the spell intended, I had him sacrifice all those pyreflies he'd gathered together in Sin. He created Zanarkand from the pyreflies of the dead. When Yu Yevon had Sin absorb them, those pyreflies became a part of it, which was easy access. Then, I had Yu Yevon absorb both Seymour and Areth, who were both put to rest last chapter. Finally, and key to the point, Shuyin let go of his own demons, the thousand years of unrest he keeps droning on about. =p Wasn't that exciting?
*crickets* You lot aren't even listening, are you? . You lot just want me to shut it and get on with the Good Ending part, don't you? … Fine, have your smelly Good Ending.
Chapter 48: Rebirth
Lenne
"Now Yuna!" I heard him scream.
The former high summoner was so distraught by what was being asked of her, her voice shaking as she said, "But you'll…"
"Yuna, now!" My love commanded again, his hardened tone bringing tears to my eyes.
Lady Yuna stepped forward, her head bowed as she contemplated what she was to do. This was no Sending. I felt the magic coursing through her and immediately identified it as the horrible enchantment I discovered long ago. She would tap into the core essence of the pyreflies themselves. She would expose the energy stored within, deteriorating the shells that housed them, and that would cause them to rupture. Once those fragile creatures lost that precious spark inside, it would be lost forever. It was such a cruel fate, but they were right. I didn't want it to be true, but they were right. Our Lord, Yu Yevon, had become consumed by his own devices. He no longer cared for the nexus of magic in Spira, the pathway to enlightening the peoples. It had become so twisted in his mind that he wanted to force all those who opposed his will to obey him unquestioningly. And so, this would be his end, such a pathetic end for one who wanted to be righteous.
As the mystical forces took hold, Yu Yevon's pyreflies deserted him, spreading into the open air now that Sin's armour had fallen. The magic corrupted their composition, compromising their delicate stability. Once the first ruptured, it was only a matter of time. In just a few short seconds, more pyreflies vacated the body of our former leader, shattering in a growing display of light. It would have been a beautiful sight had I not known what was really occurring to bring it about. Despite all he had done to me, I felt his pain and anguish. He had not wanted to become the enemy. He had not chosen to force his will unto others, but that was the thread woven by fate, which guided him to this destiny. With a horrified wail, the rest of his form washed away, his exposed memories swept away by the atmosphere like a tide of change.
My heart stung from what I knew to be next. As my eyes fell back upon my love, I saw him falter, the power that Yu Yevon had summoned to maintain Kirin and the others as fayth now gone. Without it, the hybrid fayth our lord had built in the Farplane no longer possessed their restorative talents. My dear Shuyin had been resurrected by them as one of their dreams and now, he was lost to them. Additionally, my love would suffer from the ordeal of fading back into the void because, dissimilar to Yuna's great love, my Shuyin was a true life before becoming a dream of the fayth. When they brought him back from the dead, they rekindled the fires of life within his pyreflies, in essence holding back the wave of death that had drowned them. He fell immediately, his pyreflies flowing from him back into the Farplane. His body would strew itself upon the ground in the same way it had in his original death, but only moments before fading away as the remainder of his pyreflies fled.
"Shuyin!" Paine cried.
"No, come back!" Rikku screamed, rushing over to where my love had fallen.
"So he's gone…" The dream reality's version of my love finally put to voice.
"I guess so." Lady Yuna replied, leaning into him for support.
"He can't be! It's not fair!" The young Al Bhed whined, tears flowing freely from her eyes.
My heart ached for her; I did not like the fate that befell my love either. Rikku's cousin and her love moved in to offer the girl their sympathies, but anyone could tell it wouldn't be enough. Nothing would change the fact that he had been robbed of his second chance at life. My Shuyin had given everything to protect Spira and it took from him more. It wasn't right.
At first, I waited patiently to disappear. It wasn't quite clear as to why I hadn't already, but I waited. My mind wished to reunite with him again in the Farplane; we had been kept apart for entirely too long. However, nothing ever came of it. Instead, I found myself returning to the physical world, pyreflies from what remained of Sin's stolen swell imbuing me with new life. I gazed at my returning hands and felt the coldness of my skin, shocked that I could. My clothes were real and I could even smell the leather of my boots and the straps that held my sleeves in place and decorated my upper arms. Taking a slight glance at my legs, I chanced my first step in over one thousand years to find that they were actually standing on the surface of Akoji's ship. I could hear the heels of my boots as they touched the metal of the deck and found myself jumping for joy. It was so very childish and embarrassing, but all my senses were overwhelming me and I could not think of anything else to do.
My antics finally alerted them to my presence and Rikku would be the first to approach, half of the young girl brokenhearted while the other half welcomed me into their world, "How… how is this…"
Paine would aid her, asking the question in her mind in her stead, "How are you back?"
Nodding to them with tears in my eyes, I responded, "I'm actually not sure of it myself."
"But if you're back, does this mean…" Rikku tried to say between sobs.
Smiling at the poor girl, I hugged her close, "I hope so."
"It's so wonderful to finally make your acquaintance." Lady Yuna greeted, making a small bow.
I nodded to her, as well, "And I you, Lady Yuna."
"This is great and all, but what's going on? I don't mean to sound rude, but I'd like to know where my guests came from before I go and sit down for tea with them." Paine stated in retort.
"Yes, I agree. It is a troubling matter." I replied.
"Who really cares? You're back, hopefully your guy's back. Why keep looking that gift horse in the mouth?" My love's more innocent counterpart suggested.
"It may be a foreboding to future events. That is why we should discover what has brought me back and if it should cause further problems for all of you."
"But, Lady Lenne, how would we go about it? We have been caught off-guard by everything that's happened so far." Lady Yuna enquired.
"Sounds to me like you guys just need the intel." A very familiar and welcome voice echoed from the negative space, "Isn't that right, Lennie?"
"Of course. So, might I take it that this is all your doing, Kirin?"
"We knew we were going to lose our power the minute Yu Yevon's pyreflies started blowing up. So, before all of that power was gone, we grabbed up all your memories and bunched you back together… Both of you." She explained, winking after her last comment.
"You mean like the other fayth did for him?" Lady Yuna asked of her, pulling on her love's arm.
"Who do you think taught us?" Came her reply as she tilted her head to the side.
"Does that mean that it's…" Yuna started to ask, but would be interrupted.
Kirin had a highly one-track mind once she started, "Didn't have enough time, though. I can't tell where he is. We got Lennie back here because all her memories were in the Farplane with us and Sin soaked up all of those."
"What will become of the Farplane now that the pyreflies have been taken from it?" I asked, concern in my voice as I knew how grave that outcome would be.
"Don't worry, Lennie, the pyreflies are all heading home. They were kinda pulled out of there by force and that doesn't work for long. Yu Yevon was really full of himself for pulling that stunt. It's no wonder his new Sin couldn't hold it together."
"But I thought Nooj, Baralai, and Gippal were the ones that…" Paine began to comment.
"Oh, they helped. Sin was losing it the whole time. It was surprising that it lasted as long as it did. What those boys on the ground did weakened Sin so much, the thing was using up all its energy just staying in one piece. Yu Yevon was almost all on his own when you guys were fighting him. Talk about biting off more than you could chew, huh?" Kirin mused, turning away from us, "Would really like to know where the lunkhead turned up, though. I'm too weak to sense him now."
Smiling softly, I said, "I think I do."
I went over to the lift and opened a communications channel. A humourous Al Bhed answered me, though from the name he eagerly called out told me I wasn't who he was expecting. Once he calmed himself, I requested that he land in the ruins of Zanarkand. He was understandably confused as were the rest of them, but he accepted my request and the airship descended on the razed city below. Together with friends old and new, I traveled with them over the rock and rubble. If my suspicions were correct, I'd finally be reunited with him. Even though the Zanarkand of this time had laid in ruin for so long, nothing would let me lose the memory of my home here. I recognised all of it as it once was, every crumbling building that used to stand proudly, every twisted street that used to carry us all. The route I took was the same one my Shuyin had shown me on our first date. I even found myself giggling at how we ran from those paparazzi that day, moving though the hotel and into the alcove. That hotel was still standing, though its lobby was now a dry cavern coated in debris. Still I followed that trail, moving about the furniture that used to be there and stopping to gaze upon the now empty concierge desk. By the time we were outside, Kirin had caught on to what I was doing and we began roaming together, though she was still surprised when I didn't head inside Shuyin's house. After all, the path I had taken was how he had eluded them and gotten me to his home, but I knew he wasn't there. He had always told me there was nothing for him there. No, there was one place he did feel was home and that's where I took them.
"Lennie, you sure about this?" Kirin whined, her essence fading slightly as she was further from the Farplane.
"Not to worry, I'm sure."
"Where are we?" Rikku asked, looking at the grayed structure.
"This is my house. Welcome!" I greeted, opening the door, which promptly collapsed onto the floor.
"I'm sorry for the mess. I haven't cleaned it in ages… literally." I added with a grin.
Kirin rolled her eyes at me as we all entered. The marble stairs inside had petrified additions to them now, but they were still open enough to travel on so I led them to the second floor where my living room used to be. Each step was simply wonderful because I could feel him already. The roof had long since been torn from the foundation and I found myself looking out at the night sky, the stars and moon bathing me in their gentle light.
Taking it all in, I looked at the others who stared straight ahead of them at the flat rock slab that had replaced my couch. There, lying on it just as he had that one night so many years ago, was my love. It was the most amazing night of my life and now I knew it had been his, too. He was drawn to the way we had been then, before all the war and sorrow consumed our lives.
I felt a smile form on my face and followed the moonlight that led to where he rested. He seemed so at peace, the first I'd seen on his complexion in a very long time. Placing my hand on his chest, I felt it rise and fall to his breath. I felt his slow heartbeats, the warmth of his chest lulling me back to that night. I found myself lying down as I had been then, resting my head on my hands that pressed against his chest. Suddenly, I felt his own hands wrapping around me as if on instinct, pulling me closer just like he had before. I nuzzled him, cuddling up against him to better fit his embrace.
"I love you…" He whispered to me under his breath, trying to hide those words like he did last time.
This time, I remained still, playfully pondering if he'd realise that we had an audience. I felt his warm breath on my forehead and felt him stir beneath me. Looking up at his face, I waited for his eyes to open once more.
Hazily, they fluttered open, his pupils adjusting to the light before they focused on me, "Lenne?"
"Hi there." I cooed, looking over at the others.
Likewise, he turned to where I was facing, noticing our blushing company and quickly sat up, holding onto my arms to steady me as he rose. In his confusion, he couldn't form the words he wanted to say.
"Good morning…" I said softly.
"Morning? A little late for that, wouldn't you say?" Kirin returned, putting her hand on her waist.
"Kirin! Is this…" He said in surprise, looking about him.
"You're back!" Rikku yelped, jumping in her excitement.
"How?" He asked, taking his eyes to me then back to Kirin.
"We brought you back, silly head." She told him, walking over to flick his forehead.
"Ow!"
Lady Yuna was overjoyed, "So there was no sacrifice after all!"
"As if there was ever any doubt." The dream of the fayth said confidently, "Yuna, didn't I tell you?"
Without another word, she kissed him and I turned to my love who kissed me. The period of disharmony had passed. The endless fighting and struggling to survive was at an end. We were together again after lifetimes spent searching and we would treasure it… Together forever, even until the end of time.
Author's Note: Now, wasn't that something? I'm not sure if I captured the mood of it, but hopefully I have. After all their struggles, they get to go back to a life as it was before. That's nice, isn't it?
That concludes Spira: The Eternal Discord. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I had writing it. The next and final part to this fiction will be the epilogue, which will be the "Perfect Ending" to this X-2 sequel.
Until then, please review! I look forward to seeing what you took from it. ^_^