AN: HIYA OH MY GOD I AM ETERNALLY SORRY IT HAS TAKEN ME SO LONG TO UPLOAD THIS!

Sadly, real life caught up with me these past two weeks and I was called away from my day dreams and imaginings by work (the ever present grim reaper to all things fun and free) and have only just managed to wrangle myself some days off to get my writing and drawing back on track. (I'm hoping to get a good fan art to go as the cover of this story)

I had to re-read the fanfiction to start back up writing...I did NOT realise how much I had written...you guy are epic for reading it, typos, grammatical errors, cliches and all!

Also, what happened to my line breaks?

Chapter 13

Auron was thankful to have his friends and their counsel. He led them forward, explaining all that he had learned about Vegnagun as the gap between them closed. The path rounded to the right leading them directly to Vegnagun's tail. They would have to scale him to reach the mortal who was being puppeted by Shuyin at the top.

Shuyin...

Auron stopped abruptly and turned to Jecht. He was confused, as the Shuyin in the spheres Rikku had shown him bore an unmistakable resemblance to Tidus. How would Jecht react to seeing his son's doppelgänger possessing an innocent? What link did the spirit of Shuyin have to the dream that was Jecht and Tidus.

"Jecht...how is it that you are on the Farplane?" Auron scanned over him making Jecht self-consciously straighten his shorts out. Braska crossed his arms in thought. "He's got a point Jecht..." said Braska.

Jecht scratched the back of his head. "You mean because me and the cry baby were uh...'dreamed up'?" Auron nodded slowly.

"I don't know." He said as he shrugged his shoulders.

Auron turned to Braska. "Is it possible the Fayth are able to give life to dreams?"

"...I'm not sure, Auron, but Jecht and his son both stand as proof that they may be able to. However, you would do best to remember that you are not a dream." He said, sympathetically.

"I am fully aware of what I am, Braska." Auron cut back at him. Braska knew Auron well enough to know when it was best to change the subject, and he did so as he rolled his eyes.

"Well, what do we know about Shuyin?" They turned to observe the source of the current catastrophe.

Auron recounted what he had learned. "He is a one thousand year old spirit, corrupted by his feelings of failure at saving his lovers life during the war between Zanarkand and Bevelle."

"Before the Fayth were given the task of preserving Zanarkand in a dream?"

"Yes." He paused as he decided whether to reveal all that he knew or not. Deciding it was the right thing to do, he continued on, pushing his glasses up his nose. "He also...he looks exactly like Tidus, Jecht." At this Jecht swallowed nervously.

"You mean... he's the crybaby?"

"I...don't think so, but I do believe they may be linked. Perhaps the appearance of Shuyin has something to do with why we cannot find Tidus on the Farplane?"

"Yeah...he disappeared around the time this guy showed up." Jecht ran his hand through his hair. "Well, sounds to me like we need to speak to him or the Fayth, and I'm not too keen on speaking with the Fayth right now."

"Then, lets go talk to him." Braska's voice of reason called them to continue onward to Vegnagun.

The three stood side by side at the end of Vegnagun's tail. They took a moment to fully scope out the task that they were about to attempt. It appeared that Vegnagun or Shuyin had yet to sense their approach. Auron signalled silently to them the brace themselves, and without words, they each jumped onto the tip of the tail and ran towards the base of what appeared to be it's spine.

Their agreed plan was to approach Shuyin in Baralai's body undetected, Auron and Jecht were to use their strength to hold him down as Braska would attempt to exorcise Shuyin's spirit from him and send him using his impeccable skills as a summoner. It was a meagre plan at best, but with limited time and resources, it was all they could come up with. The plan could not fail to prove fruitful though, as Braska was confident even if he could not exorcize him, he should still be able to glean some information from him that could be useful. The odds of three experienced warriors, one of whom was Sin in a past life and the other who played a part in destroying Sin, against an angry ghost was a small point to remember in their favour. Vegnagun, however, remained as their only unpredictable factor.

As they approached the landing beneath the controls, Shuyin's melody grew louder, it's heavy scales crushing them with his feelings of misery and remorse. Auron and Jecht shared a look as they began to climb either side of the weapon toward Shuyin's pawn playing the piano. Braska watched after them and turned to the edge of the platform, observing the path that they had traversed flow back out toward oblivion and the rest of the Farplane. He prepared himself for when Baralai would be pulled down to him and called out the pyreflies lurking dimly in the distance. He flexed his fingers and raised his arms above him, sending his thoughts out to the flowing energy of the Farplane around him to come to his aide. It was time Shuyin was absorbed into it. The melody around him fluctuated and spiked.

Jecht and Auron hung hidden on the edge of Shuyin's booth. In front of them they could see Baralai's body jerk and jut erratically as his wayward fingers punched at the keys. His body moved without his control and occasionally his hands flapped an invisible enemy away from his face, a sure sign that his own soul was still conscious, drowning under Shuyin's misery. His back was turned to them but occasionally they could hear his high pitched sobs cry out for help. Jecht, softer at heart, urged Auron to give the signal to move and lay him to rest. As the melody peaked at a crescendo, Auron signalled and they pounced on him. Jecht gripped Baralai's arms to his sides to stop him from thrashing out at them but Baralai strained against him, his veins popping on either side of his neck. His eyes rolled wildly so Auron grabbed his face, forcing their eyes to connect before knocking him out with the butt of his katana. With no one to conduct the music that was the source of Vegnagun's energy the lights on the giant machina started to shut down and silence took over the heart of the Farplane again.

Jecht hauled Baralai over his shoulder and jumped down to the platform where Braska stood waiting for them.

"We must act quickly Braska," Auron called out to him, "He could regain consciousness at any minute."

"Tell me the boy's name."

"His friends called him Baralai."

"Where do you want him?" Jecht asked.

"In the centre, kneeling." Jecht arranged him so, holding Baralai's silver-haired head upright as it lolled in his hands. Auron was familiar with this type of exorcism, he had seen Braska perform it before, many years ago at the aftermath of various attacks by Sin. Sometimes, when people could not accept that their time was over, they would attach themselves to another person, effectively possessing them, in order to stay a little longer. The disengagement of the spirit from the host was often harrowing to watch as the host suffered excruciating pain.

"Before we begin, Auron, I should warn you that this may be painful for you too. The Farplane will try to call you back." Braska said quietly as he rolled up his sleeves. "But if you are ready to join us..."

"I'll be fine Braska, I have something to hold on to."

"...Gullwings, over." Shinra's tinny voice crackled across the commsphere. Rikku physically jumped out of her thoughts. She bent down to observe the commsphere stationed outside Wakka's house. It's azure screen shone out into the night like a beacon in an empty village and Rikku had to take a moment to adjust her eyes to the glare.

"What's up Shinra? You nearly scared the hell out of me!"

"I scared you? You're the one moping around in the dark."

Rikku bit her lip. "I'm not moping..." she whined.

"Yeah well, whatever you're doing, you got to come back to the Celsius. Brother wont shut up about Yuna and Le Blanc came on board and keeps trying to hug me. Buddy and I are calling for a mutiny." Rikku giggled as she listened to Brother's shrieks of horror in the distance. What was Le Blanc doing on the Celsius?

"Sure thing Shinra, I think we're almost done here anyways." She said smiling.

"Cool, okay." The screen flickered as it was about to power off. "Oh, I forgot to tell you. We got word from Nooj and Gippal. Looks like they found Vegnagun." Rikku almost fell over.

"Shinra! You should have said!"

"Yeah well...oh yeah, Gippal's pretty injured and Nooj thinks Vegnagun is powering up for attack so they kinda need our help." This time Rikku did fall over. She could hear Le Blanc shouting "We gotta save Noojie!" in the background.

"Shinra!" Rikku screamed across the commsphere.

"Whaaaaat...I'm just a kid." And with one shrug of his shoulders the commsphere clicked off leaving Rikku in a state of complete darkness. Her thoughts threw themselves at her quick fire.

Gippal's hurt...Vegnagun's powering up...Auron's alone in the Farplane...If Vegnagun attacks, everything will...Wakka and Lulu just had a baby...

She looked around at Besaid Village quietly sleeping under a clear sky of thousands of stars. Everyone slept so deeply now that they had no fear of Sin. No one in the whole of Spira knew that there was a chance they wouldn't wake up tomorrow.

"Screw this!" She shouted and slammed her fists on the ground before scrambling her feet and running into the tent.

Everyone in the tent jumped as Rikku flew in. Yuna and Paine were already on their feet sensing the reason for her urgency. Rikku's eyes glowed at them excitedly.

"Yunie, Paine, we got to go save the world!"

Wakka had to steady himself on his seat. "You gotta...wait, what!?"

Paine shrugged her shoulders as she headed for the drape at the exit. "You heard her." She said calmly.

"Well, um...be careful, okay?" Said Lulu as she cradled her baby. Yuna laughed, her bi-coloured eyes reflecting the same excitement as her cousins. Finally, she might get the answers she was looking for.

"You got it." She said as she followed Paine towards Rikku. She reached out and grabbed their hands. "YRP, move out!"

Auron felt like something was tearing his arteries from his heart. He could feel the connective tissue throughout his body tighten and strain as he used all of his mental power to hold his body, and indeed his soul, together. Braska had his hand firmly clamped onto Baralai's forehead and was reciting ancient incantations that were probably as old as the spirit embodying him. The pyreflies that swirled around them didn't affect Braska or Jecht at all, they were sent spirits and part of the Farplane, but Jecht watched his friend with concern as he began to buckle under the pain. Sweat ran down Auron's face and neck and he cursed his current state for being unable to let go of his mortal body. But no matter if it was the right thing to do, if it was where he was supposed to be, he could not let the Farplane take him. As Braska's continuous words rose higher the pain of forceful separation shocked Auron's body over and over. Baralai too was suffering and screamed out as the pain became too much until his eyes rolled back into his head and he abruptly fell forward, his body completely limp.

Braska paused momentarily and rested a hand on Auron's shoulder. Auron nodded back to him between heavy breaths and, confident his friend was not too damaged, Braska called out the final round of incantations. His voice filled the void around them, each word cutting into and tearing Shuyin from Baralai's flesh. Baralai twitched under this spiritual surgery and slowly an ethereal vision of Shuyin rose up out of his body.

Jecht regarded him warily, before him the vision of his son stood, his son yet not his son. Shuyin was standing over Baralai, his eyes flitted between their expectant faces and although his posture remained calm, his pin point pupils caused him to look wildly like a trapped animal. A sneer spread over his face as he realised what was beginning to happen to him.

"You're efforts are futile." His voice sounded hoarse. "Do you think a failed summoner who couldn't break Yunalesca's cycle is able to send me?"

"Shuyin," Braska, undeterred, spoke with no hesitation, "You have committed an atrocious act against Spira by stealing Vegnagun and planning to use it as a weapon."

Shuyin laughed casually. "And?"

"And we're here to stop you, punk." Jecht spat at him. Shuyin snorted.

"If you send me, you will also destroy your friend." He regarded Auron slyly. Auron's face was creased with strain, his lips pressed thinly in concentration.

"That is a lie, Shuyin, I will merely escort you onto the next plane." Auron replied gruffly.

"Perhaps...And by letting her go to prevent my plan, you will understand my pain and suffering." His response had caught Auron off guard. "For what other reason would you choose to live a half life instead of eternal rest if not to stay with someone you love?" At the mention of love, Auron's concentration snapped and the hairs on the back of his neck rose in panic as he watched the lines of his body blur in separation.

"Pathetic..." Said Shuyin as he laughed evilly.

Jecht had had enough, his patience had well and truly worn thin by Shuyin's arrogance. He pulled Baralai out from under Shuyin and shouted over to Braska.

"Finish this Braska!"

Braska watched Auron sadly as his friend stood, eyes closed, clinging desperately to a mental anchor to prevent his spirit moving on.

"I'm sorry Auron..."

And he raised his arms to perform the sending.