Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Fan Fiction ❯ Akirame Norwen ❯ Guadosalam ( Chapter 35 )

Chapter 35: Guadosalam

Akira kept a soft grip on Riku's hand as they walked down the pitch-black tunnel. She had silently vowed that she would never go rock-climbing again for as long as she lived. Looking back on her narrow escape, she had to thank her karma... but wait, did she even believe in karma? Now that she thought about it... what *did* she believe in? Luck, self-reliance, or some strange, outside, otherworldly omnipresent and omniscient force? Did it even matter? Probably not...

The end of the tunnel was within grasp, and there was a bright light illuminating their path ahead. Squinting as her eyes adjusted, Akira turned off the lamp in her helmet and sighed in relief. "'Bout time." She muttered as they approached the exit, and happily stretched out her arms as the warm sunlight touched her skin. "That feels goooood." She sighed.

The floor of the canyon wasn't what they had been expecting. Instead of sand, rock and shadow, there was bright sunshine, grassy earth and trees. "Wow..." Jerdania managed to say, the first to break the silence.

"Yeah.... it's beautiful." Erik added.

Akira blinked and looked towards the towering trees towards the center of the canyon. "That must be it, Guadosalam."

Riku took a shaky breath. They were so close to the end of their journey, he could feel it inside. All their questions would soon be answered. The reason for the scar on his hand, his missing past, everything... "Well guys, let's go for it then." He finally spoke.

They walked through the knee-high grass towards the forest of twisted trees, oddly quiet. The grass slowly faded away to reveal cobblestone, and the whole forest had an air of quiet civilization. In fact, peacefulness emanated from the whole canyon's depths. Riku couldn't explain it but somehow, deep down inside, he felt almost as if he... belonged here.

The group walked into a round room encased within the entangled trees that served as an entrance into the city. A few strange characters lingered in the area, tall fellows with green, gnarled hair that resembled tree roots. One of the brightly clad inhabitants raised a huge, long-fingered and long-nailed hand to salute them, and gave a hint of a smile. "So... that's a Guado, right?" Akira whispered to Jerdania, not wanting to insult the natives with her ignorance.

"Yeah, I think so." Jerdania whispered back.

"So.... uh... hi?" Riku tried, looking at the small welcoming party. "We just.... go in, right?"

The Guados didn't say anything, but merely nodded. With a nervous laugh, Riku approached the entrance. As soon as he set foot on the path leading in, three Guados in formation suddenly bustled up the path and stopped in front of them. The Guado in the middle appeared to be an official of sorts, guessing from his lime-green robe with its multicolor trim. The other two Guado posted on his either side were guards of sorts, toting spears. The Guado in the center cleared his throat and began to speak in a somewhat high, melodious voice, " Greetings, I am Tristen, Steward of Guadosalam."

"Steward? Sounds like someone who works in a cafeteria... ow!" Sora winced as Jerdania elbowed him in the ribs.

"No, you ditz. It means that he's not rightfully the ruler, but taking position as such because the true ruler is gone." She hastily corrected him.

"Indeed. The last true ruler of Guadosalam was Seymour.. but alas, his days ended ages ago, and he supposedly left no heir. Since then only stewards have held the position of mevyn." Tristen told them.

"So this Seymour never had a son or daughter or anything like that, huh?" Irvine asked, crossing his arms.

"There are... rumors, but that is all they are. Mere stories whispered among the trees... well, won't you come in then, we've been expecting you." Tristen invited. With that he respectfully bowed his head and turned to lead them inside.

Guadosalam was entirely carved from the inside of a huge tree, but it was hard to tell exactly as the sky overhead was easily spotted behind the leafy canopy. Homes were quite simply marked by doors carved in the smooth bark, and over a few doors were colorful signs printed in an unreadable language. Everything had a charisma to it, a warm, welcome feeling that smelled of age and wisdom. Nothing here had changed for hundreds of years. Tristen lead them to the grand door at the back of the village, the two gaurds posted on either side bowing as he walked past them and opened the door. From there they walked directly into a beautiful, high-ceilinged room that had a pair of stairs sweeping up either side to a balcony up above. The walls along the staircases had grand portraits of what were presumably great Guado, more than likely mevyns of the past. Erik examined them closely, and came upon a strangely familiar face. It wasn't similar to the others, as it had more... human features. The hair wasn't green and gnarled, but light blue and a few locks of hair were quite longer than the rest, and were spiked in a manner that defied all physics. There were blue veins showing on his forehead... "Ah, I see you have found the portait of the late Lord Seymour." Tristen said as he noticed Erik examining the painting.

"So that's Seymour, huh?" Erik said. He looked closer at the painting, and his eyes suddenly locked with the ice blue ones of Seymour's portrait. A severe chill ran down his spine and he quickly stepped away.

"Is something the matter?" Tristen asked.

"N....no... I'm fine." Erik quickly brushed off, and turned away from the picture. He could have sworn he had seen those eyes somewhere before...

"You are most likely weary from your travels. Come, I'll show you the way to the dining hall." Tristen graciously offered, and opened a door under the balcony and led them into a great hall adorned with tapestries and wall-hangings, and in the center of the room was a huge table bearing every single luscious fruit anyone could possibly think of. Sora took little time getting to the table and quickly began devouring his first victim, a helpless banana. "Sora, slow down." Kairi said, dragging him away.

"By all means, help yourself. We live in plentiful times." Tristen softly said, putting his arms behind his back and watching his guests enjoy themselves. "We have grave matters to discuss, so be cheery for soon you will bear a great weight on your shoulders."

Once everyone had had their fill, they sat about the room in high-backed chairs waiting for Tristen to address them. The Guado paced back and forth across the room, and his young face was etched with worry. "My friends..." He finally began, turning to face them at last, "you have endured much on your journey, and its end is close at hand. Even so the hardest part has yet to begin. Before I can tell you anything of your trials to come, there must be an understanding. An understanding of the past." With that he looked directly into Riku's eyes, as if to suggest that he knew some dark, hidden truth.

"Everything has to do with that story and this scar..." Riku softly said, taking off his glove and staring at the markings in his palm. "....Nakineiri Itami... accepting pain..."

"The only key you have to your journey's end is in your hand, Riku. The weight of the world is on your shoulders."

"But... why me? What does any of this have to do with me?" Riku demanded, curling his hand into a fist.

"You have no small part in this story, Riku... you're the main character. However... I'm afraid I don't have a great understanding of all that has been happening, or even of that legend you speak of... but I do know some things that may help you."

"Then tell me, anything that will help me to understand." Riku replied, resting his head on his fist.

"Time... is no longer abiding to the rules of Order, but has given in to Chaos... or rather... forced, as it were... what is going on is hard to explain by words..." he began, picking up an hourglass that had been hiding among the clusters of grapes on the table. "Time as we know it..." he tilted the hourglass so that the sand began pouring to the empty container, "the present is all we know, and the past, every single second that ticks by, is lost to us forever."

Jerdania nodded, being the only one in the room to have a good idea of what he was trying to tell them. Tristen continued, "However, something has changed. Time no longer abides by the rules, but has been released of its boundries, allowing the past to reunite with the present." And with surprising strength, he took the hourglass and broke it in half, letting the sand pour into a pile on the floor. "Things that no longer existed are living, ruins rebuilt, the deceased walk among us... nothing is in its rightful place in time."

"Woah.... so that would explain Sephiroth, and even Cloud, right?" Jerdania suddenly spoke up. "Time is all screwed up, so now those two are back."

"Exactly."

"So... how long has this been going on, exactly?"

At this Tristen turned away from them and lowered his head. "Exactly... eleven years." He softly spoke, and turned to look Riku in the eyes.

"Eleven years... but.. that's how long I've been living on Destiny Islands!" Riku said, his voice trembling.

"I know."