Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A Time for Reflection ❯ Barrier of Anguish ( Chapter 13 )

Chapter XIII: Barrier of Anguish

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Earlier that morning, in the Farplane
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The morning was grim and dreary on the Farplane, with unattractive dark clouds swirling ominously in the sky. Braska walked briskly in the direction of Auron's home, contemplating his cowardice. It had been over a month, and he had never told Auron or Jecht about his interlude with Kaemon.

Wanting to find more information before he told them, he increased his efforts to uncover Kaemon's plans, but to no avail. He didn't want anything to happen to his friends, and he certainly didn't want them to do anything they would regret. Jecht was never the person to think things through, and Auron could let unsaid passions fuel his desire. It made for a bad combination.

After a short period of time, he reached his destination. Jecht and Auron were in the front yard, casually discussing the bad weather. Braska, despite his melancholy, humorously mused that it wasn't going to be a good day to put up more of Auron's flamingos.

"Wow, he put a couple more in the ground," he thought dryly.

Walking swiftly up to them, Braska made his presence known. "Good morning Auron, Jecht."

They nodded at Braska, and Jecht looked disgustedly at the sky. "Yeah, good morning…. right," he proclaimed sarcastically. "It looks like staying outdoors is gonna be out of the question today." Auron nodded and strode purposely into his house, and his two companions followed him to the door in short order.

Auron walked into the kitchen to get his friends something to drink as Braska and Jecht sat on the sofa and chair opposite each other. Looking at him carefully, Jecht noticed Braska drifting off into space, his thoughts wandering once again. He had been doing it with alarming frequency many times before in the past month.

"It's going to be a long day," he muttered incoherently.

Auron returned with coffee, and his acquaintances took their cups and started sipping casually.

"So," Auron said nonchalantly. "What have you been up to lately, Braska? I have not heard much from you, and your elusiveness surprises me."

Braska looked at him and shrugged. "I have been rather busy."

Jecht looked at him and laughed hardily. "Busy? Ha, what have you been busy with these days pre tell?" He wasn't going to buy Braska's excuse.

Braska had no excuse, nothing more to say. He determined long ago that he needed to tell them, but he could never bring himself to do it. On this day, however, he came here with a purpose. He was determined to let them in on his dark secret that he had been hiding for over a month; he had to.

He lifted his head and looked up at him seriously. "I… I have something to tell both of you," he stammered, looking for their approval for him to go on. After being convinced that he received it, he continued.

"I didn't want to tell you this… not until I found some more information," he said, looking at his friends seriously. "But I have found none, and I cannot hide it from you any longer. About a month ago, I went to see Master Kaemon about something that Tidus said before he left. I… didn't like the answer I received." Jecht and Auron looked at their comrade seriously, unsure of what he was trying to say.

"Jecht," he continued. "When your son first arrived here with you and Auron, he told me something very troubling. Do you remember when I had to tell all of you about Zanarkand?" Jecht looked at him and nodded slightly… it was something that none of them wanted to discuss.

"When I told Tidus, he… he took me to a private place and told me, quite adamantly, that he didn't believe me. He said that when he was on Yuna's pilgrimage, he saw his mother at the Farplane," Braska choked, somewhat relieved that he finally got his nasty secret off of his chest. He knew there was more to tell, however, and forced himself to continue.

"After Tidus left, it started to disturb me. I reasoned that if he saw Anya in Guadosalam, she must be on the Farplane, right?" he asked, looking at Jecht's reaction to the revelation.

"So, I went to see Kaemon. He told me to stop meddling in his affairs, saying that he was the ruler of this place. He told me to leave immediately, and that was it." Auron and Jecht looked at him seriously for a moment.

"Are you saying that Kaemon is evil, Braska?" Auron finally replied. "Remember… he sent Tidus back to be with Yuna."

Braska looked at him sharply. "No! That is not why he sent him back! He sent him back because he knew that Tidus would start looking eventually. He knew that Tidus was restless, bored, and disgusted about being here. Auron, the memories at the Farplane in Guadosalam do not lie! If you would have ever visited the place, you would have discovered that."

Jecht looked at Braska and replied passionately, failing miserably to suppress the emotions brought about by this startling news. "So Anya might be alive? Why in the *hell* would Kaemon hide something like that? I want some answers, Braska!"

Braska looked at him, fully aware of the emotions surging through his body. "And I have none, Jecht. It has been troubling me ever since he left. I… I couldn't bring myself to tell both of you."

"Braska, would it do any good to go to the temple and demand answers?" Auron commented briskly, looking at Braska intently.

"No. It would do absolutely no good. They won't even let me near the place now. They have something planned," he commented dryly, taking a sip of the coffee after finishing his comment.

"So you're saying that we can't do a damn thing about it? That's just perfect!" Jecht exclaimed unhappily, looking sharply at Braska. He certainly didn't like this conversation, and he wanted to find out the truth immediately.

"No wonder Braska's been like this," he thought angrily.

Braska interrupted his thoughts by speaking once again. "No, I'm sorry. We can't do anything about it right now. All we can do is try to find some information. Kaemon has something of an enormous scale planned… I can feel it. His tone of voice and the actions he took that day proved it to me. We must wait for some answers."

They wouldn't have to wait long.

Later that morning, as they were discussing the course of action that they should take, a bright flash of light filled Auron's home. The rest of the Farplane was ignited with a blinding luminosity that forced them to close their eyes, and the ground started quaking violently. After a few moments, the illumination and the tremors subsided, leaving the three companions completely flustered. Jecht was the first one up. He bolted for the door and looked at his surroundings intently.

"Come here! You need to see this, now!"

Auron and Braska got up quickly and walked outside. It shocked them when they beheld the sight that greeted their eyes. On the horizon, a city of dreams greeted their vision; a city of one thousand years past, with its city lights glowing brightly in the Farplane.

"Zanarkand," Auron proclaimed forcefully. They needed answers. Immediately…

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In Spira
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The airship smelled of gears and grease; Tidus and his companions stood on the bridge of Cid's baby, looking intently at the beautiful scenery that filled their vision. Yuna stood close to him, grasping his hand tightly.

Lulu walked up to Tidus to try to get an explanation of why they were heading to Guadosalam in such a hurry. "Tidus, I realize that it is important that we go to Guadosalam, but why so quickly? What can we possibly do about it?" she asked quizzically.

Tidus glanced in her direction and sighed.

"Probably nothing… but I, err we, can't just sit around waiting for something to happen! I think all of this might have something to do with Zanarkand."

Lulu gazed at Tidus for a moment and nodded. That was all the information she needed from him. However, it was not enough information for Rikku.

"Zanarkand? Why do you think that?" she found herself asking him. She didn't receive a response from him, so she quickly looked at Yuna. "Yunie, why does he think that?"

Not paying attention to Rikku's curious questions, Tidus shrugged and looked back out the window. He wasn't really even sure of it himself. He didn't know why he made a logical connection between the phenomenon in Guadosalam and Zanarkand, and he doubted that they could do anything about it. But he knew he had to try.

"You're thinking too much," Yuna proclaimed, interrupting Tidus' thoughts. He looked at her and smiled slightly. He noticed that no matter what mood he was in, she could always bring a smile to his face.

"I'm sorry. I… I don't even really know why I have myself so worked up about it. I'm just worried for them… I hope nothing happened."

Yuna looked at him and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "I'm sure it's nothing, but you're right. We… have to at least look."

"We're almost there," Cid mentioned, interrupting the thoughts of everyone on board. "We should touch down in about five minutes."

The landing was smooth, and everyone piled out of the airship quickly. Upon entering Guadosalam proper, they realized that the entire town was in a state of alarm. A Guadosalam inhabitant, a young woman, stood outside the entrance to the Farplane, weeping bitterly. Yuna shuddered when she saw her sadness; it reminded her of… herself about a month ago. Unknown to Yuna, the lady's husband and son was visiting the Farplane when the barrier appeared.

The group walked solemnly to the entrance of the Farplane. A bright, large barrier covered the entrance; the link to all of Spira's loved ones had been permanently severed. Yuna was the first to speak. "I… I was going to visit my father. I wanted to say hi to him." Tidus looked at her put her arm around her shoulder protectively. The entire group stood there for a moment, taking in the sadness of the ordeal.

Wakka interrupted Tidus and Yuna softly. "Sorry to bother you two, but we need to see Imam Guado, ya?" Yuna broke her embrace with Tidus and nodded.

Tidus was unfamiliar with the name, and he was informed that Imam was the temporary leader of the Guado until they could find a permanent head. The trip to Imam's residency was short; Tidus absolutely loathed the thought of going in there. In this very building, Seymour Guado had asked Yuna to marry him; it disgusted him to think about it. He was incredibly thankful that he never had to see him on the Farplane.

When they entered, Imam was waiting for them. "Thank you for coming. If anything, the comfort of High Summoner Yuna and her guardian's presence will prove to be a great service to the Guado." Yuna bowed and nodded at Imam, and Lulu was the first to start asking questions.

"Imam… What happened? I mean, how did it happen?"

Imam looked at her and shook his head vigorously. "I do not know. There was a blinding light, and the earth trembled. All of the torches that were lit in town this morning turned an intense blue. We… we heard ear piercing screams, thousands of them. When it all ended, the entrance to the Farplane was blocked by the barrier that you just saw. We tried everything to break through it… there was a little boy and his father visiting their loved ones. They are trapped possibly dead."

Yuna bowed her head in anguish.

"There were screams… thousands of them."

Her mind came across what Tidus said… she was beginning to believe that it had something to do with Zanarkand. What they could do about it though, she did not know.

Tidus looked at Imam. "Is there anything we can do?" Imam shook his head.

"I don't see what anybody can do to help. As I said, we have tried everything. But I thank all of you for coming. It gives us Guado some relief." The Farplane was all that they had in their sleepy little town, and now it was off limits.

Everyone bowed at Imam and walked out of the building quickly. They lingered in town for a while, talking to the villagers and trying to gather some more information. Yuna went to the barrier and tried to comfort the lady they saw at the entrance.

Tidus stood quietly at the barrier, contemplating what could be happening on the Farplane. After some time, they bid everyone farewell and made their way to the airship.

Once onboard, Tidus looked solemnly at the group. "Everyone… I wish there was something that could be done. I'm sorry for dragging all of you out here like this. Let's go home." With that, Cid took to the skies and set a course for Besaid.

The trip was long, turbulent, and uneventful. They reached Besaid at sunset, and everyone bid farewell to Cid. As they walked to their homes, they all felt a sense of loss. They hoped that one day they would be able to step foot on the Farplane once again. The ability to see images of their loved ones was taken for granted, and they no longer had the opportunity. It was a sobering thought.

When they reached the village, they all bid farewell and goodnight to each other. It was a long day, and they were eager to go to sleep. Tidus and Yuna walked home slowly, their arms encircled lovingly around each other. Upon reaching their residence, they made their way to the bedroom and shut the door. Tidus sat on the bed and sadly buried his head in his hands.

Yuna looked at him and sat beside him carefully. He… was crying. She had only seen him cry once before, when his father was dying. She realized how scared he probably was. It was impossible to tell what was happening on the Farplane, and it was Tidus' home for six long months. She understood his anguish and carefully put her arm around his shoulder.

Tidus looked at her, his tears falling softly onto the smooth satin sheets. "You must think I'm a real crybaby, huh? That's what my old man always used to call me," he said in between sobs.

Yuna stared at him despondently and kissed him gently on the cheek. "No Tidus, that's not what I'm thinking at all. I'm thinking you're scared. You feel hopeless because you don't know what is going on. I… I have never told anyone to stop crying, and I never will. I promise, you can cry on my shoulder all you want. I will *never* call you a crybaby."

He gazed at her as she lovingly wiped the tears from his eyes. "Thank you, Yuna. I… I wish I could have done something." As Yuna finished wiping his face clean of tears, she looked carefully at him and kissed him softly on the lips.

"I know… I wish so too. Come on, let's go to bed. You look exhausted." Tidus nodded and took off his clothing. Leaning into the compliant bed, he snuggled close to Yuna. His sobs subsided with Yuna's loving embrace.

Sleep claimed his tired body as Yuna stayed at his side, contemplating their loss. She held him securely in her arms, waiting for sleep to claim her, when a realization came to her.

"We have each other."

It would be all they needed. After all, they had a wedding to plan.