Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A New Threat To Spira ❯ Power Awakening ( Chapter 7 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Neon Ronin 
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.01.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.3K | Visits: 272 | Status: Completed
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Action / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.01.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.3K | Visits: 272 | Status: Completed
[A/N: As has been mentioned before, I own nothing. Square Enix owns everything. On with the show.]
7: Power Awakening
The wreckage of the Plains Agency seemed to be overwhelmed with fiends as thunder echoed across the landscape. They were quite literally crawling out of the woodwork, creeping and scuttling across the shattered land as if beckoned by an undeniable urge. There was no time for territorial disputes; fiends that had normally stayed far from one another now traveled side by side. At the top of the broken agency roof, a violet glow was pulsing like a heartbeat, pulsing from the extended right hand of Malar. The wind tossed his black hair about his face and his mouth was set in a cruel sneer. He watched as more and more fiends approached, only to stop and genuflect before him. To his right stood the Gigas that had first approached him many days ago; the beast had since grown taller, its claws and muscles more defined, and fire seemed ready to leap from its eyes.
"They will do for a start," Malar said, gazing at the motley assortment before him. "Do you not think so, Neogas?"
The beast next to him nodded. "As you say... Master."
Malar's smirk twitched a bit. How satisfying it is, to be able to speak with one's own creations, he mused to himself. Still, I had best not make such an... adjustment with my eventual masterpiece. That would prove most unwise... He lowered his right hand and concentrated, a flash of anger suddenly crossing his brow. But before I begin, I must ascertain where the remaining crystals are. I cannot risk them all awakening before my preparations are complete. And then... The gem set in his palm intensified in its glow.
"I've got something!" Buddy announced. "Sensors are picking up a reading that matches the crystal we found." Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; they had been airborne for over an hour after dropping Baralai off and nothing had turned up. They had taken the long way across Spira, trying to avoid the Thunder Plains for the moment; not only was there a chance the purple miasma surrounding it might damage the Celsius, they were in no condition to face who or what might be within just yet.
"Where is it?" Yuna asked, sliding the Water crystal over her right hand and fixing the glove in place.
"Looks like it's located somewhere along the Mi'ihen Highroad."
"Somewhere is a pretty vague term, Buddy," said Tidus, looking up from resetting his Grid. "Can't you nail it down a bit?"
"Not really," Buddy replied. "Looks like the waves are in flux, some kind of distortion. Best I can get is that it's North of the Highroad Travel Agency."
"Distortion? Could mean it's underground," said Paine as she gave her sword one last sweep with a whetstone.
"Oh, that's just great! Then it's probably located in that icky colony of bugs!!" said Rikku, a disgusted look on her face. "I'd better make sure we've got some explosives on hand if that's the case."
"Assuming the entrance hole hasn't been sealed over," said Yuna. "Rin might have had it blocked off to keep fiends away from travelers; if he did, this might be tougher than we'd expect."
"Even so, it sounds like that's as good a place to start as any," Tidus said as he locked his last sphere into place and stood up. "Where's the closest place we can land?"
"I think we might be able to pull in by the Travel Agency if we're careful," said Yuna. "That ledge by the corral should be wide enough for us to disembark."
"Hold it!!!" Everyone turned and looked at Brother with an exasperated air. "As Captain, I decide where we are landing my ship!!" Rikku groaned. Paine lifted an eyebrow. Yuna put a hand to her forehead and Tidus crossed his arms and looked at Brother tiredly.
"And... I say, full speed to the Travel Agency!!" He turned around and jumped back into the control seat.
"Never fails," muttered Paine.
As the weather was getting colder, travel on the Highroad was sparse. Several Hovers had been put into storage to save on maintenance costs, and only a few Chocobos were kept on site. The trees and bushes had begun to show their magnificent fall plumage, but the Gullwings hardly noticed this as they descended the airship's access ramp. The thing they noticed first was a young woman in green running towards them from the Agency.
"Lady Yuna!! What an incredible coincidence, I was just talking about you with a friend!" Shelinda gushed, an excited smile on her face. "We were just mentioning your epic battle with that ancient Machina weapon, that must have been terribly exciting! Oh, it's sooooo good to see you all again; are you doing well?"
"Um... yes, of course! I'm doing just fine," Yuna stammered. "And you?"
"Never better!" Shelinda replied cheerfully. "Actually, I'm on vacation at the moment; there's not too much news going on in Luca these days, and what there is, the other reporters have it covered."
"Oh, I see." Yuna breathed a silent sigh of relief. The last thing we need right now is another interview, she really put us all through the wringer when Tidus came back...
"Although I did hear something strange recently..." Shelinda leaned in close and whispered. "They say that just the other day, Kilika got assaulted by some fiends no one had ever seen before! Did you know that?"
"Well... We, uh, kinda heard about that; good thing the League got it contained, right Yunie?" Rikku interjected, throwing a wink towards Yuna. Yuna nodded in return, hoping that they could avoid being caught in another savior hoopla. Maybe she hasn't heard we were involved yet; we can't afford to spread this around at the moment...
"But that's really weird, isn't it? You'd think that most fiends had been catalogued by now..." Shelinda continued. "Then again, I guess stranger things have happened, right?"
"Look, I hate to break things up here, but we're in kind of a hurry right now," Paine said as she stepped forward. "We can talk some other time, all right?"
"Oh! Another sphere hunt then, Lady Yuna?"
"Well... something like that, yes."
"Well then, I guess I shouldn't keep you too long, but when you do have a chance..."
"We'll talk again when we have a moment," said Tidus. "This really is a time-sensitive issue, we can't stay long."
"I understand, Sir Tidus," she replied with a cheery smile. "Say, would you mind doing a follow-up with me at some point? People still want to hear about that reappearing act you did six months ago, and where you'd been all this time..."
"Sorry Shelinda, we've got to go now!" Yuna said, grabbing Tidus and Rikku and starting up the North trail. Paine followed suit, leaving Shelinda standing outside the Agency in a confused stupor.
"That was kinda rude, Yunie!" Rikku muttered as they rounded the bend and started up the narrow cliff pathway.
"I know," Yuna responded, her face turning slightly scarlet. "Shelinda means well and all, but this is one time we really don't need her pressing into things like this."
"Yeah, if word gets out of what we're up to, a lot of people are going to panic," said Tidus.
"You've got a point there..." Rikku relented. "Hey- she didn't mention anything about the Thunder Plains, did she?"
The group slowed down for a moment. "Come to think of it, she didn't," said Paine. "Though it's quite possible the Council is trying to keep it under wraps to prevent a mass panic; that would make sense. They did the same thing during the Vegnagun incident- the network didn't hear the whole story until after we'd finished it off."
Just then a loud explosion erupted from the valley to their left, rocking the cliffs and causing all four to fall to the ground. Scrambling to her feet, Rikku dashed to the side of the path and peered down. "Kuut kneav!!!" she exclaimed. "There's gargantuan Fire Flans all over the valley floor!!"
[Translation: Good grief!!!]
"That's down where the cave is!" cried Yuna as she jumped to her feet and pulled both guns from her belt. "We'd better get down there fast, before..."
A massive crash echoed across the valley as two enormous Flans simultaneously slammed into the cliff wall. Parts of the path crumbled away, causing Rikku to lose her footing and stumble over the edge. She shrieked and twisted in midair, plunging both daggers into the ground above. Mercifully, the daggers held and she clung to the side of the cliff for dear life.
"Rikku, hold on!!" Yuna and Tidus scrambled to the cliff edge, each grabbing one of Rikku's arms and pulling up. Paine stepped in and grabbed hold of each arm, but just as she was about to add her muscle to the effort, another Flan collided with the cliff wall with unprecedented force. The ground beneath Yuna's boots gave way, followed rapidly by the harder rock face cracking and crumbling around Rikku's daggers. With a shuddering rumble, the edge of the cliff gave way and sent all four Gullwings plummeting to the valley below.
"Owie."
Rikku took a few shallow breaths, then a deeper one. Doesn't feel like I broke anything... Her eyes snapped open; remembering they had just fallen into a valley full of fiends, she jerked herself to her feet and scrambled up to the rock face they had collapsed beside. Yuna and Tidus were helping each other to their feet, while Paine had lifted herself onto her knees and appeared to be clutching her head. All of them were covered in bruises, and rivulets of blood were dripping from gashes on Tidus' forehead and Paine's arm. If that wasn't bad enough, the 15-foot high Flan Rojos infesting the valley were approaching them from all sides.
Rikku punched a sphere on her Grid and assumed one of her favorite forms, Alchemist. "This oughta help, guys!" she cried as she quickly retrieved a prepared Mega-Potion and showered the group with healing energies. Paine sprang to her feet and readied her sword, while Tidus did the same. Yuna raised both guns, trying to cover as much area as possible.
"Any ideas where to start?" Tidus muttered grimly.
"I've never seen this many Flans in formation before..." said Yuna, worry evident in her voice. Fire was beginning to lick outwards from the gelatinous beasts.
Use my power, Lady Yuna.
Yuna's eyes widened. That wasn't my imagination! she told herself, glancing at her right hand. The crystal was starting to emit a bright blue glow.
At that moment, massive gouts of flame began to roll directly towards them. "Everybody down!!" Tidus shouted, raising his armored glove in front of his face. Rikku ducked, while Paine lowered her blade in front of her in a defensive stance. Yuna crouched and threw both hands up over her head.
The glow in the crystal turned blue-white; a sudden rush of cool air enveloped the four, and just as the wall of fire was about to strike, a torrential wall of water erupted from the ground, colliding with the flames and showering the encroaching Flans. The fiends shrieked in pain and surprise, backing away from the Gullwings several paces. The cyclone of water slowly dissipated, leaving the four within unscathed. Gradually, they opened their eyes, a look of wonderment on their faces.
"What was that??" Rikku asked incredulously.
"I... I heard a voice in my head- the crystal, I think..." Yuna stammered. "I don't know how, but I think I bought us some time!!"
"Then we'd better make the most of it!" said Tidus, focusing eldritch forces of ice into his sword. Yuna nodded and punched a sphere on her own Grid, entering a swirl of light which ended in a series of dynamic explosions around her feet. She hadn't used the Songstress sphere very much since the final showdown with Shuyin, but she still carried it just in case. She twirled in the purple miniskirt and tapped her feet. "Let's get moving!" she called out, energies bursting out towards the others as her feet sped up into the familiar steps of the Jitterbug.
Almost faster than the eye could follow, the Gullwings exploded in a flurry of motion. Tidus plunged his ice-augmented sword into the nearest Flan with blinding speed, whipped around and delivered the same to its neighbor. Rikku slammed several ingredients together, grinned, and hurled a Winter Storm grenade into the mix. Paine somersaulted to the other side of the group and began carving her way through the fiends with near-reckless abandon. One Flan broke away from the others and tried to make a beeline for Yuna, who promptly spun around and shoved her right hand forward. The crystal glowed bright blue and shot forth a massive barrage of ice shards that struck the Flan right across the midsection. The Flan screeched and collapsed, burbling into a puddle of goo and pyreflies.
"These things aren't so tough now!" Rikku giggled, whirling around and shooting another Flan into nothingness. Next to her, Paine had finished off one and was barreling into another. Tidus smashed his third opponent into oblivion and turned to face the others- then noticed Yuna was trying to catch her breath and was shaking. "Yuna, are you okay??" he called out.
"I'll be all right... I think I just... overdid it a bit," she gasped. Tidus looked back to the fiends; several more had joined the ranks and were closing fast.
We've got to finish this fight now, he thought to himself as he activated his Grid. The mystic power and wisdom of the Orient washed over him as the energy of the Samurai sphere took hold. Stepping out of the light, he suddenly became aware of his appearance. The robe he was clad in was blue with white trim, there was no high collar, the left shoulder guard was silver and he wore a bronze helm capped with a crescent moon, but in all other respects he looked exactly like Auron. The thought had never crossed his mind any other time he had used the sphere, but now was not the time for speculation. Drawing his massive katana back, he dashed forward and swung in a wide arc. "SHIN-ZANTETSU!!!!" The blade flashed across the battlefield, scoring gash marks across the encroaching fiends. Seconds later, each and every one collapsed and dissolved into thin air.
"Yunie!" Rikku was dashing over to Yuna's side just as Tidus was helping her to her feet. "Good thing I had one of these saved for emergencies." She produced an Elixir and pushed it into Yuna's hands. "And don't say you're going to be all right, you look terrible!"
Yuna nodded and gulped the potion down, then took a deep breath as the color returned to her cheeks. "I think I'm going to have to practice with the crystal a bit; when I saw that Flan charging I just threw everything I could into it," she said. "It felt like I'd used up all my magical energy at once."
"Next time, go easy on it," called Paine from her position across the valley. "Looks like the access tunnel is still open, you guys. We won't have to blast our way in."
"That's some relief," said Tidus. "You feeling all right now, Yuna?"
"Yes, I'll be fine," she replied with a smile. "Just give me a moment here..." Light twirled around her as she switched Dresspheres and emerged in her purple Gun Mage dress. "Okay, I'm ready now."
The corridors of the subterranean maze held no real surprises for most of the Gullwings. On their first venture within months before, Rikku had had the sense of mind to map out the passageways they had found, so it was a simple matter to negotiate their way around. Loose soil and rocks had been molded into new walls by the insectoid residents of the cavern, but these were quickly dispatched with the explosives the group had packed.
"How many of those bugs do you think are in here?" Tidus asked.
"I'm not sure; we took care of an awful lot the last time we were here," Yuna replied.
Strangely enough, as they progressed further into the caverns there appeared to be little or no signs of an attack. Once or twice Yuna looked over her shoulder in response to a noise, but nothing was there. Not even a scanning picked up any signs of fiend infestation. Each progressive step produced no reaction except the hollow echoes along the walls. Along the ground were strange scuttle marks, indicating something had been that way previously. But wherever the occupants had been in the past, they weren't there now.
"Do you suppose the climate got too cold for the bugs?" Paine mused. "Maybe they burrowed further into the ground to keep from freezing."
"Maybe we trounced 'em so badly last time they didn't want to stick around!!" said Rikku.
"Or maybe they're waiting for us, and we're walking right into a trap..." Yuna stopped as soon as she said that. Something on her scanner was flashing. She hefted the gun up and to her right. "There's something just beyond that wall. Can't make out for sure what it is, though."
"Yunie... You weren't serious about there being a trap, were you?" Rikku asked in a small voice.
"I don't know, but right now we'd better find out what's beyond this wall." Yuna reached into her equipment bag and produced one of their higher-rating explosives. "I only hope this is enough to knock it down," she said as she jammed the bomb into a crack in the wall. Pulling the detonator cord, she and the others sprinted across to the far wall.
The charge tore the rock to pieces with a thundering report that threatened to deafen each of them. As the smoke cleared, it was apparent the bomb had done the trick. A seven-foot high hole gaped in the wall, and the sensor on Yuna's gun began beeping faster. A scintillating green aura shone deep in the cavern beyond the blast zone.
"Don't look now, but I think we may have hit the jackpot," Tidus said, the excitement evident in his voice.
"Let's see what it is first before we celebrate," said Paine as she started towards the hole in the rock. She got no more than three steps before a massive set of forelimbs thrust forth from the cavern, breaking the wall apart even further. Chunks of rock showered everybody as the unmistakable form of the King Vermin emerged from his hiding place. Time had done nothing to diminish his ferocity; the great insect patriarch was wrapped in a sheath of flame and venom dripped from his gaping maw. Before anyone could react, the massive fiend charged forward and slashed Paine across the face and shoulder, then dove into the others with a massive backhand that knocked them across the ground.
"Paine!!" Yuna shouted as she scrambled to her feet. "Are you all right?"
"It's just a scratch; don't worry about me!" Paine responded. Glaring at the vermin, she activated her Grid and discarded her sword for the claws and blue body paint of a Berserker, then lunged directly at the beast's underbelly, tearing a massive gash in its exoskeleton. Yuna twisted a knob on her gun and pulled the trigger, producing a powerful White Wind aura that washed over all four of them and sealed their wounds. Tidus dove at the great insect, feinting to one side and slashing upwards, tearing through the sinews of one of its leg joints. The creature roared and began spewing fire in all directions, burning everyone in its reach. Instinctively, Yuna thrust her right hand forward again; the crystal glowed and another shield of water formed around her and the others, extinguishing the flames. "I think this is going to be harder than I thought!" Rikku yelled as she tossed an Icefall bomb at the bug. The bomb exploded in a flurry of ice crystals and caused the fiend to growl in pain, but did little besides.
Tidus punched the next sphere on his Grid, which happened to be Gunner, and emerged from the transformation sequence with both guns blazing. "Everyone shield your eyes!!" Yuna cried; she twisted another knob on her gun and activated a Storm Cannon round. The bolt of energy screeched out of her weapon and exploded in mid-air, showering the great insect with eldritch forces and shrapnel. The creature roared and began swiping at anyone it could reach, gouging Tidus across the abdomen and tearing a wicked gash along Yuna's leg. Rikku shrieked and began mixing the ingredients for a Mega-Potion when she saw the beast's claw descending towards her. She flinched and tensed up in preparation for the impact, when all at once Paine jumped between her and the fiend, grabbed the claw in both arms and twisted it around with a sickening crack. The beast squealed in agony; without wasting another moment Paine dashed forward, leaped up onto the vermin's back and began tearing at its neck and thorax with both hands.
Seconds later, Rikku's Mega-Potion had done the trick. Tidus slammed a clip of armor-piercing rounds into his guns and dashed forward, firing at the King Vermin while jumping aside from the oncoming claws. Rikku took careful aim with her gun and fired a round directly at an exposed spot on the fiend's neck, causing it to rear back even more and spew even more flames at the party. "How much longer is this going to take??" she groaned as she began to mix another Icefall bomb, but stopped as she saw Yuna lifting her right hand up again. The crystal was glowing blue-white again, and her brow was knitted in grim determination. "Yunie, are you crazy?? You're gonna knock yourself out again!" Rikku yelled.
"It's all right, I think I can control it now," was Yuna's reply. The glow around her hand grew brighter still, emitting a high-pitched tone that caused the vermin to pause in its struggles and stare. Paine, who was in the midst of trying to break another of its legs, quickly backflipped away from the beast, while Tidus dashed back to Yuna's side, reloading both his guns.
With a cry that sounded like a chorus of angels, a beam of blue light burst forth from the crystal, striking the vermin lord with incredible force. The fiend shrieked in agony as its limbs became coated with ice, binding it to the ground around it, but the beam did not stop. Instead it narrowed, focusing on a point on the fiend's thorax, pounding away until the fiend's armor gave way and the light pierced through its body. Letting loose one final hideous screech, the great vermin collapsed under its own weight, clouds of pyreflies pouring forth from its wounds. It wasn't long before it had dissipated completely, leaving only scorch marks on the walls and floor to mark his presence.
All was silent. Yuna took a deep breath, wobbling a little on her feet.
"Now that was impressive," said Paine as she rejoined the group. "But that was also one hell of a risk, Yuna; with what that crystal did the first time you used it, I'm surprised you'd try it a second time."
"I think it's because the first time, I wasn't sure what I was doing," said Yuna. "This time I tried to focus a little more, instead of giving it everything at once. A few more times, and I should be all right." She wiped the sweat from her brow and sighed.
"Just so long as you don't push yourself too hard, okay?" said Tidus. Yuna looked up at him and nodded. "You got it," she replied with a smile.
"C'mon, guys! I wanna see what's in that cave!" Rikku called, pointing to the hole from which a green light was still shining. Yuna and Tidus chuckled. "Be right there, Rikku!" they replied, stepping forward to join her. Paine sighed and followed suit, wiping the blood from her clawed gloves.
To Be Continued.
I had intended to continue the scene in this chapter a little further, but I felt it would be better to save it for the next chapter. Hope you liked this installation; more to come! - Neon Ronin]
7: Power Awakening
The wreckage of the Plains Agency seemed to be overwhelmed with fiends as thunder echoed across the landscape. They were quite literally crawling out of the woodwork, creeping and scuttling across the shattered land as if beckoned by an undeniable urge. There was no time for territorial disputes; fiends that had normally stayed far from one another now traveled side by side. At the top of the broken agency roof, a violet glow was pulsing like a heartbeat, pulsing from the extended right hand of Malar. The wind tossed his black hair about his face and his mouth was set in a cruel sneer. He watched as more and more fiends approached, only to stop and genuflect before him. To his right stood the Gigas that had first approached him many days ago; the beast had since grown taller, its claws and muscles more defined, and fire seemed ready to leap from its eyes.
"They will do for a start," Malar said, gazing at the motley assortment before him. "Do you not think so, Neogas?"
The beast next to him nodded. "As you say... Master."
Malar's smirk twitched a bit. How satisfying it is, to be able to speak with one's own creations, he mused to himself. Still, I had best not make such an... adjustment with my eventual masterpiece. That would prove most unwise... He lowered his right hand and concentrated, a flash of anger suddenly crossing his brow. But before I begin, I must ascertain where the remaining crystals are. I cannot risk them all awakening before my preparations are complete. And then... The gem set in his palm intensified in its glow.
"I've got something!" Buddy announced. "Sensors are picking up a reading that matches the crystal we found." Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; they had been airborne for over an hour after dropping Baralai off and nothing had turned up. They had taken the long way across Spira, trying to avoid the Thunder Plains for the moment; not only was there a chance the purple miasma surrounding it might damage the Celsius, they were in no condition to face who or what might be within just yet.
"Where is it?" Yuna asked, sliding the Water crystal over her right hand and fixing the glove in place.
"Looks like it's located somewhere along the Mi'ihen Highroad."
"Somewhere is a pretty vague term, Buddy," said Tidus, looking up from resetting his Grid. "Can't you nail it down a bit?"
"Not really," Buddy replied. "Looks like the waves are in flux, some kind of distortion. Best I can get is that it's North of the Highroad Travel Agency."
"Distortion? Could mean it's underground," said Paine as she gave her sword one last sweep with a whetstone.
"Oh, that's just great! Then it's probably located in that icky colony of bugs!!" said Rikku, a disgusted look on her face. "I'd better make sure we've got some explosives on hand if that's the case."
"Assuming the entrance hole hasn't been sealed over," said Yuna. "Rin might have had it blocked off to keep fiends away from travelers; if he did, this might be tougher than we'd expect."
"Even so, it sounds like that's as good a place to start as any," Tidus said as he locked his last sphere into place and stood up. "Where's the closest place we can land?"
"I think we might be able to pull in by the Travel Agency if we're careful," said Yuna. "That ledge by the corral should be wide enough for us to disembark."
"Hold it!!!" Everyone turned and looked at Brother with an exasperated air. "As Captain, I decide where we are landing my ship!!" Rikku groaned. Paine lifted an eyebrow. Yuna put a hand to her forehead and Tidus crossed his arms and looked at Brother tiredly.
"And... I say, full speed to the Travel Agency!!" He turned around and jumped back into the control seat.
"Never fails," muttered Paine.
As the weather was getting colder, travel on the Highroad was sparse. Several Hovers had been put into storage to save on maintenance costs, and only a few Chocobos were kept on site. The trees and bushes had begun to show their magnificent fall plumage, but the Gullwings hardly noticed this as they descended the airship's access ramp. The thing they noticed first was a young woman in green running towards them from the Agency.
"Lady Yuna!! What an incredible coincidence, I was just talking about you with a friend!" Shelinda gushed, an excited smile on her face. "We were just mentioning your epic battle with that ancient Machina weapon, that must have been terribly exciting! Oh, it's sooooo good to see you all again; are you doing well?"
"Um... yes, of course! I'm doing just fine," Yuna stammered. "And you?"
"Never better!" Shelinda replied cheerfully. "Actually, I'm on vacation at the moment; there's not too much news going on in Luca these days, and what there is, the other reporters have it covered."
"Oh, I see." Yuna breathed a silent sigh of relief. The last thing we need right now is another interview, she really put us all through the wringer when Tidus came back...
"Although I did hear something strange recently..." Shelinda leaned in close and whispered. "They say that just the other day, Kilika got assaulted by some fiends no one had ever seen before! Did you know that?"
"Well... We, uh, kinda heard about that; good thing the League got it contained, right Yunie?" Rikku interjected, throwing a wink towards Yuna. Yuna nodded in return, hoping that they could avoid being caught in another savior hoopla. Maybe she hasn't heard we were involved yet; we can't afford to spread this around at the moment...
"But that's really weird, isn't it? You'd think that most fiends had been catalogued by now..." Shelinda continued. "Then again, I guess stranger things have happened, right?"
"Look, I hate to break things up here, but we're in kind of a hurry right now," Paine said as she stepped forward. "We can talk some other time, all right?"
"Oh! Another sphere hunt then, Lady Yuna?"
"Well... something like that, yes."
"Well then, I guess I shouldn't keep you too long, but when you do have a chance..."
"We'll talk again when we have a moment," said Tidus. "This really is a time-sensitive issue, we can't stay long."
"I understand, Sir Tidus," she replied with a cheery smile. "Say, would you mind doing a follow-up with me at some point? People still want to hear about that reappearing act you did six months ago, and where you'd been all this time..."
"Sorry Shelinda, we've got to go now!" Yuna said, grabbing Tidus and Rikku and starting up the North trail. Paine followed suit, leaving Shelinda standing outside the Agency in a confused stupor.
"That was kinda rude, Yunie!" Rikku muttered as they rounded the bend and started up the narrow cliff pathway.
"I know," Yuna responded, her face turning slightly scarlet. "Shelinda means well and all, but this is one time we really don't need her pressing into things like this."
"Yeah, if word gets out of what we're up to, a lot of people are going to panic," said Tidus.
"You've got a point there..." Rikku relented. "Hey- she didn't mention anything about the Thunder Plains, did she?"
The group slowed down for a moment. "Come to think of it, she didn't," said Paine. "Though it's quite possible the Council is trying to keep it under wraps to prevent a mass panic; that would make sense. They did the same thing during the Vegnagun incident- the network didn't hear the whole story until after we'd finished it off."
Just then a loud explosion erupted from the valley to their left, rocking the cliffs and causing all four to fall to the ground. Scrambling to her feet, Rikku dashed to the side of the path and peered down. "Kuut kneav!!!" she exclaimed. "There's gargantuan Fire Flans all over the valley floor!!"
[Translation: Good grief!!!]
"That's down where the cave is!" cried Yuna as she jumped to her feet and pulled both guns from her belt. "We'd better get down there fast, before..."
A massive crash echoed across the valley as two enormous Flans simultaneously slammed into the cliff wall. Parts of the path crumbled away, causing Rikku to lose her footing and stumble over the edge. She shrieked and twisted in midair, plunging both daggers into the ground above. Mercifully, the daggers held and she clung to the side of the cliff for dear life.
"Rikku, hold on!!" Yuna and Tidus scrambled to the cliff edge, each grabbing one of Rikku's arms and pulling up. Paine stepped in and grabbed hold of each arm, but just as she was about to add her muscle to the effort, another Flan collided with the cliff wall with unprecedented force. The ground beneath Yuna's boots gave way, followed rapidly by the harder rock face cracking and crumbling around Rikku's daggers. With a shuddering rumble, the edge of the cliff gave way and sent all four Gullwings plummeting to the valley below.
"Owie."
Rikku took a few shallow breaths, then a deeper one. Doesn't feel like I broke anything... Her eyes snapped open; remembering they had just fallen into a valley full of fiends, she jerked herself to her feet and scrambled up to the rock face they had collapsed beside. Yuna and Tidus were helping each other to their feet, while Paine had lifted herself onto her knees and appeared to be clutching her head. All of them were covered in bruises, and rivulets of blood were dripping from gashes on Tidus' forehead and Paine's arm. If that wasn't bad enough, the 15-foot high Flan Rojos infesting the valley were approaching them from all sides.
Rikku punched a sphere on her Grid and assumed one of her favorite forms, Alchemist. "This oughta help, guys!" she cried as she quickly retrieved a prepared Mega-Potion and showered the group with healing energies. Paine sprang to her feet and readied her sword, while Tidus did the same. Yuna raised both guns, trying to cover as much area as possible.
"Any ideas where to start?" Tidus muttered grimly.
"I've never seen this many Flans in formation before..." said Yuna, worry evident in her voice. Fire was beginning to lick outwards from the gelatinous beasts.
Use my power, Lady Yuna.
Yuna's eyes widened. That wasn't my imagination! she told herself, glancing at her right hand. The crystal was starting to emit a bright blue glow.
At that moment, massive gouts of flame began to roll directly towards them. "Everybody down!!" Tidus shouted, raising his armored glove in front of his face. Rikku ducked, while Paine lowered her blade in front of her in a defensive stance. Yuna crouched and threw both hands up over her head.
The glow in the crystal turned blue-white; a sudden rush of cool air enveloped the four, and just as the wall of fire was about to strike, a torrential wall of water erupted from the ground, colliding with the flames and showering the encroaching Flans. The fiends shrieked in pain and surprise, backing away from the Gullwings several paces. The cyclone of water slowly dissipated, leaving the four within unscathed. Gradually, they opened their eyes, a look of wonderment on their faces.
"What was that??" Rikku asked incredulously.
"I... I heard a voice in my head- the crystal, I think..." Yuna stammered. "I don't know how, but I think I bought us some time!!"
"Then we'd better make the most of it!" said Tidus, focusing eldritch forces of ice into his sword. Yuna nodded and punched a sphere on her own Grid, entering a swirl of light which ended in a series of dynamic explosions around her feet. She hadn't used the Songstress sphere very much since the final showdown with Shuyin, but she still carried it just in case. She twirled in the purple miniskirt and tapped her feet. "Let's get moving!" she called out, energies bursting out towards the others as her feet sped up into the familiar steps of the Jitterbug.
Almost faster than the eye could follow, the Gullwings exploded in a flurry of motion. Tidus plunged his ice-augmented sword into the nearest Flan with blinding speed, whipped around and delivered the same to its neighbor. Rikku slammed several ingredients together, grinned, and hurled a Winter Storm grenade into the mix. Paine somersaulted to the other side of the group and began carving her way through the fiends with near-reckless abandon. One Flan broke away from the others and tried to make a beeline for Yuna, who promptly spun around and shoved her right hand forward. The crystal glowed bright blue and shot forth a massive barrage of ice shards that struck the Flan right across the midsection. The Flan screeched and collapsed, burbling into a puddle of goo and pyreflies.
"These things aren't so tough now!" Rikku giggled, whirling around and shooting another Flan into nothingness. Next to her, Paine had finished off one and was barreling into another. Tidus smashed his third opponent into oblivion and turned to face the others- then noticed Yuna was trying to catch her breath and was shaking. "Yuna, are you okay??" he called out.
"I'll be all right... I think I just... overdid it a bit," she gasped. Tidus looked back to the fiends; several more had joined the ranks and were closing fast.
We've got to finish this fight now, he thought to himself as he activated his Grid. The mystic power and wisdom of the Orient washed over him as the energy of the Samurai sphere took hold. Stepping out of the light, he suddenly became aware of his appearance. The robe he was clad in was blue with white trim, there was no high collar, the left shoulder guard was silver and he wore a bronze helm capped with a crescent moon, but in all other respects he looked exactly like Auron. The thought had never crossed his mind any other time he had used the sphere, but now was not the time for speculation. Drawing his massive katana back, he dashed forward and swung in a wide arc. "SHIN-ZANTETSU!!!!" The blade flashed across the battlefield, scoring gash marks across the encroaching fiends. Seconds later, each and every one collapsed and dissolved into thin air.
"Yunie!" Rikku was dashing over to Yuna's side just as Tidus was helping her to her feet. "Good thing I had one of these saved for emergencies." She produced an Elixir and pushed it into Yuna's hands. "And don't say you're going to be all right, you look terrible!"
Yuna nodded and gulped the potion down, then took a deep breath as the color returned to her cheeks. "I think I'm going to have to practice with the crystal a bit; when I saw that Flan charging I just threw everything I could into it," she said. "It felt like I'd used up all my magical energy at once."
"Next time, go easy on it," called Paine from her position across the valley. "Looks like the access tunnel is still open, you guys. We won't have to blast our way in."
"That's some relief," said Tidus. "You feeling all right now, Yuna?"
"Yes, I'll be fine," she replied with a smile. "Just give me a moment here..." Light twirled around her as she switched Dresspheres and emerged in her purple Gun Mage dress. "Okay, I'm ready now."
The corridors of the subterranean maze held no real surprises for most of the Gullwings. On their first venture within months before, Rikku had had the sense of mind to map out the passageways they had found, so it was a simple matter to negotiate their way around. Loose soil and rocks had been molded into new walls by the insectoid residents of the cavern, but these were quickly dispatched with the explosives the group had packed.
"How many of those bugs do you think are in here?" Tidus asked.
"I'm not sure; we took care of an awful lot the last time we were here," Yuna replied.
Strangely enough, as they progressed further into the caverns there appeared to be little or no signs of an attack. Once or twice Yuna looked over her shoulder in response to a noise, but nothing was there. Not even a scanning picked up any signs of fiend infestation. Each progressive step produced no reaction except the hollow echoes along the walls. Along the ground were strange scuttle marks, indicating something had been that way previously. But wherever the occupants had been in the past, they weren't there now.
"Do you suppose the climate got too cold for the bugs?" Paine mused. "Maybe they burrowed further into the ground to keep from freezing."
"Maybe we trounced 'em so badly last time they didn't want to stick around!!" said Rikku.
"Or maybe they're waiting for us, and we're walking right into a trap..." Yuna stopped as soon as she said that. Something on her scanner was flashing. She hefted the gun up and to her right. "There's something just beyond that wall. Can't make out for sure what it is, though."
"Yunie... You weren't serious about there being a trap, were you?" Rikku asked in a small voice.
"I don't know, but right now we'd better find out what's beyond this wall." Yuna reached into her equipment bag and produced one of their higher-rating explosives. "I only hope this is enough to knock it down," she said as she jammed the bomb into a crack in the wall. Pulling the detonator cord, she and the others sprinted across to the far wall.
The charge tore the rock to pieces with a thundering report that threatened to deafen each of them. As the smoke cleared, it was apparent the bomb had done the trick. A seven-foot high hole gaped in the wall, and the sensor on Yuna's gun began beeping faster. A scintillating green aura shone deep in the cavern beyond the blast zone.
"Don't look now, but I think we may have hit the jackpot," Tidus said, the excitement evident in his voice.
"Let's see what it is first before we celebrate," said Paine as she started towards the hole in the rock. She got no more than three steps before a massive set of forelimbs thrust forth from the cavern, breaking the wall apart even further. Chunks of rock showered everybody as the unmistakable form of the King Vermin emerged from his hiding place. Time had done nothing to diminish his ferocity; the great insect patriarch was wrapped in a sheath of flame and venom dripped from his gaping maw. Before anyone could react, the massive fiend charged forward and slashed Paine across the face and shoulder, then dove into the others with a massive backhand that knocked them across the ground.
"Paine!!" Yuna shouted as she scrambled to her feet. "Are you all right?"
"It's just a scratch; don't worry about me!" Paine responded. Glaring at the vermin, she activated her Grid and discarded her sword for the claws and blue body paint of a Berserker, then lunged directly at the beast's underbelly, tearing a massive gash in its exoskeleton. Yuna twisted a knob on her gun and pulled the trigger, producing a powerful White Wind aura that washed over all four of them and sealed their wounds. Tidus dove at the great insect, feinting to one side and slashing upwards, tearing through the sinews of one of its leg joints. The creature roared and began spewing fire in all directions, burning everyone in its reach. Instinctively, Yuna thrust her right hand forward again; the crystal glowed and another shield of water formed around her and the others, extinguishing the flames. "I think this is going to be harder than I thought!" Rikku yelled as she tossed an Icefall bomb at the bug. The bomb exploded in a flurry of ice crystals and caused the fiend to growl in pain, but did little besides.
Tidus punched the next sphere on his Grid, which happened to be Gunner, and emerged from the transformation sequence with both guns blazing. "Everyone shield your eyes!!" Yuna cried; she twisted another knob on her gun and activated a Storm Cannon round. The bolt of energy screeched out of her weapon and exploded in mid-air, showering the great insect with eldritch forces and shrapnel. The creature roared and began swiping at anyone it could reach, gouging Tidus across the abdomen and tearing a wicked gash along Yuna's leg. Rikku shrieked and began mixing the ingredients for a Mega-Potion when she saw the beast's claw descending towards her. She flinched and tensed up in preparation for the impact, when all at once Paine jumped between her and the fiend, grabbed the claw in both arms and twisted it around with a sickening crack. The beast squealed in agony; without wasting another moment Paine dashed forward, leaped up onto the vermin's back and began tearing at its neck and thorax with both hands.
Seconds later, Rikku's Mega-Potion had done the trick. Tidus slammed a clip of armor-piercing rounds into his guns and dashed forward, firing at the King Vermin while jumping aside from the oncoming claws. Rikku took careful aim with her gun and fired a round directly at an exposed spot on the fiend's neck, causing it to rear back even more and spew even more flames at the party. "How much longer is this going to take??" she groaned as she began to mix another Icefall bomb, but stopped as she saw Yuna lifting her right hand up again. The crystal was glowing blue-white again, and her brow was knitted in grim determination. "Yunie, are you crazy?? You're gonna knock yourself out again!" Rikku yelled.
"It's all right, I think I can control it now," was Yuna's reply. The glow around her hand grew brighter still, emitting a high-pitched tone that caused the vermin to pause in its struggles and stare. Paine, who was in the midst of trying to break another of its legs, quickly backflipped away from the beast, while Tidus dashed back to Yuna's side, reloading both his guns.
With a cry that sounded like a chorus of angels, a beam of blue light burst forth from the crystal, striking the vermin lord with incredible force. The fiend shrieked in agony as its limbs became coated with ice, binding it to the ground around it, but the beam did not stop. Instead it narrowed, focusing on a point on the fiend's thorax, pounding away until the fiend's armor gave way and the light pierced through its body. Letting loose one final hideous screech, the great vermin collapsed under its own weight, clouds of pyreflies pouring forth from its wounds. It wasn't long before it had dissipated completely, leaving only scorch marks on the walls and floor to mark his presence.
All was silent. Yuna took a deep breath, wobbling a little on her feet.
"Now that was impressive," said Paine as she rejoined the group. "But that was also one hell of a risk, Yuna; with what that crystal did the first time you used it, I'm surprised you'd try it a second time."
"I think it's because the first time, I wasn't sure what I was doing," said Yuna. "This time I tried to focus a little more, instead of giving it everything at once. A few more times, and I should be all right." She wiped the sweat from her brow and sighed.
"Just so long as you don't push yourself too hard, okay?" said Tidus. Yuna looked up at him and nodded. "You got it," she replied with a smile.
"C'mon, guys! I wanna see what's in that cave!" Rikku called, pointing to the hole from which a green light was still shining. Yuna and Tidus chuckled. "Be right there, Rikku!" they replied, stepping forward to join her. Paine sighed and followed suit, wiping the blood from her clawed gloves.
To Be Continued.
I had intended to continue the scene in this chapter a little further, but I felt it would be better to save it for the next chapter. Hope you liked this installation; more to come! - Neon Ronin]