Love Her and Despair (23)

[auronlu]

Title: Love Her and Despair
Chapter 23: "Echoes of Woe"
Final Fantasy X/X-2
Characters: Isaaru, Maroda, Auron, Elma, Rikku, Gippal, Shinra, Nooj, Cid
Rating: PG-13 (Violence)
Word Count: 3100
Summary: Summoner Isaaru arrives in the aftermath of an attack on the Al Bhed Home.
Navigation: Previous Chapter | Next Chapter
Map of Pilgrimage - Links to All Chapters

Our Story So Far: Thirteen years into Lady Yuna's Calm, Sin/Lulu is destroying the temples and their fayth one step ahead of Summoner Isaaru. A disastrous Crusader operation at Djose scatters his party. The survivors find themselves transported by Sin to the islands inhabited by the Al Bhed, where they hitch a ride on Gippal's airship.

---

Wreaths of steam and smoke marked the sunken island of Baaj long before the piers of New Home rose from the sea. Late afternoon sun flared off distant panels and windows. As the airship began to descend, the jumble of structures resolved itself into a circular hive of new stone buildings built on and apparently from a vast field of submerged ruins, interconnected by arching bridges of metal and glass. The town was surrounded by a fortified ring-wall of more typical Al Bhed design, an intimidating exoskeleton of girders and rusted metal, massive guns facing out to sea. Baaj Temple reared up at the center of the settlement. Black smoke vomited from a wing jutting out behind its central tower.

The temple's cracked dome was not the only testament to Sin's passing. All the windows facing north had been blown in. Struts and spans tilted at dangerous angles. Porches and awnings had been ripped away from houses. Every channel of open water was fretted by a spiderweb of snapped cables drooping from twisted pylons. Yet apart from a few missing roofs, most of the structures appeared to be intact.

Gippal, returning to the flight deck with noisy disregard for his somber passengers, thumped Rikku's back before climbing into his seat. "Buck up, Sunshine. It's not as bad as it looks."

"Easy for you to say, Gip," she said, drooped over her console. "You're gonna make a fortune selling building materials, right?"

"Two percent," he said. "Rin wanted a big markup, but I won't kick the home team when it's down."

"What a mess," Elma said. Ensconced in the gunner's bubble, she had a bird's eye view of the devastation crawling by beneath them.

"At least they had warning," Isaaru said. "Thank Yevon they fled in time."

"Besaid got hit a lot worse," Maroda said. "Maybe Sin was trying to pull its punches?"

"If that's pulling punches, I'd hate to see a direct hit," Rikku said.

"I have," Gippal said, glancing over his shoulder at Auron. "Wish I hadn't. Okay, people! This is where you get off. Exit's through the back, the same way you came in." He hopped down and extended a hand to Elma. "Machina cooties?"

"Yevon cooties?" she shot back, grasping his forearm and pulling herself up.

Descending through the ship, they stepped out into humid sunshine and a light rain falling from shreds of clouds, the last wrack of the spent storm. At the foot of the loading ramp was a flooded courtyard that the Yevonites recognized as the great hall of a temple whose dome had fallen in. A semicircle of broken summoners' statues jutted from the shallows. The area was spanned by crisscrossing catwalks, one leading to a crude square opening cut into the great stone tower that formed the hub of New Home. Cid's gaudy airship was moored on the far side.

As they started towards it, a pair of armed Al Bhed emerged from the tower, marching behind a stumpy figure in a stifling head-to-toe coat and goggled mask. It was impossible to tell age or gender, but the leader was slightly shorter than Rikku.

"Protect," Auron said.

Maroda gave a grudging nod. He and Elma closed ranks ahead of Isaaru and marched shoulder to shoulder as if they had served in the same company for years. Auron took his customary post as rearguard.

Isaaru sighed in fond exasperation. "We're among friends here, remember?"

"That remains to be seen," Auron said.

"Yo, Shinra," Gippal said, sauntering towards the small welcoming party. "Got some visitors. Where's the boss?"

"Working on the generators," he replied, voice roughened by a respirator. There was a loud crackling noise and a blue flash from the far side of the tower. "Gippal, I've found Nooj. He was still in his jail cell after all."

"He okay?" Gippal said. "Wait...are you okay? Rikku said Nooj went nuts and shot you up pretty bad."

"No and yes, thanks to Rikku's potions. Got a minute? We need help digging him out."

"I beg your pardon," Isaaru said with a bow. "I am Isaaru, a summoner. I came to speak to Elder Cid. But first, may I and my guardians offer aid?"

"Yevon?" one of the guards said, raising the muzzle of her weapon.

"Feyd!" Rikku interposed herself between guard and guardians. "I'll vouch for them, Shinra. They're gung ho on fighting Sin, but they don't mean us any harm."

"That's all we need," Shinra said. He peered up at the man, debating. "Well, they could help with Nooj. Not much harm they can do there."

"I am a healer," Isaaru said. "If one of your people is hurt—"

"This way." Shinra turned and clanked back towards the tower. "Follow me."

"We shouldn't get involved," Maroda said, dropping back to whisper in his brother's ear. "We're falling behind again. But this time, we're racing Sin, not another summoner. We've got to find Cid and finish our business here as quickly as possible. Bevelle needs you."

"Maesters Baralai and Shelinda can hold Bevelle just as well without me," Isaaru said. "And we must earn Elder Cid's trust. We need his help."

Entering the tower, they found themselves facing large double doors across a darkened antechamber. The doors stood open, revealing another circular hall within the tower. Its decor was a fusion of old and new: ornate columns and ancient statues and ornamental stone vases scattered like pieces on a gameboard between concentric rings of workstations. All the consoles and screens were dead. Several Al Bhed were crawling under the computer banks with hand-lights, inspecting a network of cables crisscrossing the floor.

Shinra waved at the technicians, but steered the Yevonites away from the control room. Instead he turned left, following a walkway that hugged the tower's perimeter. Small square windows in the outer wall provided inadequate light. Passing several doors on the right, most of them smashed or sealed tight, they eventually reached a flooded antechamber. Out of the water rose broken stone steps leading up to an inner door. It was flanked by two squat statues of stylized dragons.

"What is this place?" Elma said. "It looks Yevon-built."

"Correct," Shinra said. "Baaj Temple. Former prison of Seymour Guado and his mother. We tap Baaj Spheres and the Chamber of the Fayth for power, the way you do at Djose."

"Hey!" Elma said. "We don't—"

"Prison?" Maroda said. "When was this?"

"When his father's hold on the Guado was less secure," Isaaru said. "Yet another dark secret of the old regime."

"It still is a prison, in a pinch," Gippal said, leading the way across the flooded area on a floating walkway. "The Chamber of the Fayth is pretty secure."

Elma exchanged rueful glances with Maroda. He shook his head and drew a finger across his lips. Behind them, Isaaru's shoulders rose and fell in a sigh. Auron pushed past them on stepping stones that seemed to have fallen from the ceiling.

Gippal and Shinra led the way into the inner room. Six more statues, two of them toppled, crouched along the walls of the rectangular chamber. Colored spheres set in steles before their knees provided eerie illumination. The far end of the room had collapsed, choking the portal to the Chamber of the Fayth with huge blocks. A cloud of pyreflies drifted in aimless eddies over the rubble.

"No," Gippal said, hurrying towards them. "Nooj!"

"Isaaru," Maroda said, barring his brother at the door. "Stay back. Let your guardians make sure it's safe. This guy sounds dangerous."

"Oh, come on already!" Elma said, hurrying after Gippal. "Man down. Let's do something."

Shinra turned to one of his companions. "Ehvuns Amtan Cid drao'ja lusa. Rikku yht Gippal fedr drnaa Yevonedac." The woman nodded and slipped out.

"He's under there?" Gippal said, staring glumly at the pile of broken masonry. "You sure? He's got to be dead."

"My scanners show a pocket of open space," Shinra said, "and someone in it. Faint heartbeat. Still alive, but weak."

"Then we'd better hurry."

They converged on the rock-fall, picking their way down the aisle between statues and debris. Shinra, Elma and Rikku cleared away smaller fragments while Auron, Gippal and Maroda levered away the larger blocks. Isaaru, shooed off by his brother, paced around the chamber, examining the statues and their inscriptions. The remaining Al Bhed stood guard by the exit, gun sloped against his shoulder.

At length they uncovered a large block that had once spanned the portal. It had dropped straight down and cracked in two, forming a triangle with the threshold. Fragments from the door's moldings were wedged under the two halves, propping them inches above the floor. An unrecognizable spur of red cloth and twisted metal jutted out from underneath.

"Wait," Gippal said. "I see him. Damn, this looks bad." He leaned against the wall, panting. "How the heck do we get that off?"

"See him where?" Maroda said. "All I see is a smashed machina."

"That's him," Shinra said. "Be careful. His leg's supporting most of the weight."

"His leg?" Elma said, staring.

Preoccupied as he was, Gippal chuckled. "Yeah. You're gonna love this. Shinra, got your scanner handy?"

Auron had stepped clear of the rubble to give the Al Bhed room to plot their next move. Abruptly he swung towards the summoner, who had frozen on the plinth of a toppled statue. "What's wrong?"

"I could swear there is someone here," Isaaru said, face drawn and dazed. He gestured blindly towards the choked doorway of the inner chamber. "The fayth...it weeps, Sir Auron, but I do not think it has been destroyed! Perhaps I can reach it."

"Forget the Fayth," Elma snapped. "Haven't we lost enough people already for some damned statue? Let's just get this guy out!"

"Shhhh!" Rikku said, making frantic hushing motions with her hands.

There was a croak from the far side of the rubble. "...a dead man. Forget him too."

"Noojster!" Gippal said. "Not cool, man. Is your arm free? Give us a hand. You're the one with the built-in forklift."

"Ugh," Elma said. "Are we trying to rescue a man or a machina?"

"Both," Shinra said. "We replaced the arm and leg he lost in battle. My father's best work."

"Your father was a sadist," came Nooj's muffled retort. There was a scraping sound from the other side of the barrier. The two halves of the lintel shifted slightly, dust and flakes of stone pattering down between them. "No good. Can't get leverage."

"Hang on," Rikku said. She cocked her head at Isaaru. "You've got white magic, right? Life too, just in case?"

"Yes, milady. But I don't think—"

"Spirit stuff's your specialty; small explosives are mine. Take cover, everybody. Nooj, cover your head if you can." She plucked a metal cylinder out of her belt-pouch and worked it into the crack in the broken lintel. "You too, Gip. You don' wanna lose the other eye."

"You sure you know what you're doing, Rikku?" Gippal said, backing away. "We're running out of replacement parts for this guy."

"I'm sure. Trust me, Gip. Get behind a statue."

She flipped a recessed switch on the end of the capsule with a fingernail and scampered backwards. There was a loud pop, a white flash, and the rattle of of falling rocks. A cloud of dust obscured the rear third of the room.

"Nooj!" Gippal said. "Nooj, you still with us?"

Shinra started forward, trusting his mask to filter out the dust. "Someone give me a hand."

Expressionless, Auron followed him into the gray haze. They emerged dragging a barrel-chested man between them, his metal limbs rasping across the flagstones. Nooj's artificial leg was bent, crushed, and snapped off below the knee. Dried blood obscured his face.

Auron suddenly lurched and dropped Nooj's shoulder with a clang. He staggered backwards, swatting at the pyreflies weaving around them like hungry mosquitoes.

"Hey, watch it!" Gippal said, hurrying forward to help lower Nooj to the floor.

"Sir Auron," Isaaru said. "Focus. Sin awaits, remember?"

"There's someone here," Auron said through clenched teeth. "Unsent."

"Nooj?" Gippal said. "Dammit, Rikku, if you've killed him—"

"No, it's the fayth," Isaaru said. "It's been damaged. I've never sensed such pain! Don't listen to it, Sir Auron." He hurried over and dropped to one knee beside Nooj, compassion in his eyes as he surveyed the battered shell of a man. "Well, now. I must defer to your people's art for mending that leg. But as for the rest—"

"Point that thing somewhere else!" Elma barked, launching herself through a stream of pyreflies at the Al Bhed by the door. The guard's gun was off his shoulder. As heads turned, he shifted his aim towards the Crusader.

"Fayd!" said Rikku.

Elma did not wait. She dropped into a sweeping kick that cut the man's legs out from under him as he fired. A bolt of energy struck the ceiling, scattering slivers of rock. Elma fell on the guard with a yell and wrenched his gun away, slamming the butt of it against his chin. The Al Bhed went limp under her.

"Elma!" Maroda said, dashing towards them. "Stop!" He reached her an instant before Gippal, grappling with her to pry the gun out of her hands. "What the hell are you doing? Calm down!"

"Calm down?" she said, jabbing an elbow in Gippal's stomach as he wrestled her off of her victim. "Machina everywhere, Yevon a lie, Sin about to wipe out Bevelle, my troops decimated, Pacce and Lenne dead for all we know—"

"Lenne?" Shinra said, looking up. "Nooj mentioned her."

"Who?" Elma bristled. "I said Lucil! Maester Lucil."

With Maroda's help, Gippal had managed to pin her arms behind her back. "Ow. Sorry life sucks, lady, but what the vilg gives you the right to take out your troubles on us?"

"Your guard was taking aim at our summoner!" Elma said, heaving against his grip. "And if you weren't so busy — oof! — fraternizing with these machina-lovers, Maroda, you'd have noticed he was about to blow your brother's head off!"

"Oh, great, now she's got the toxin," Rikku said, checking the unconscious guard. "It's Lulu's PMS Overdrive."

"Commander Elma," Isaaru said, his view obstructed by Auron, since he had planted himself between the summoner and the fray. "Forgive me, but you must be mistaken. Perhaps you misconstrued his gesture."

"Isaaru," Auron said. "We need to leave this place. Now."

"And go where?" The metal ramp outside the chamber clanked under a heavy tread. Cid entered a moment later, dressed in an ugly orange jumpsuit grimed with oil and soot. He halted in the doorway and surveyed the tableau with a scowl. "Gippal. I thought I told you to keep our 'guests' secure until I got here."

"Pops!" Rikku said, springing to her feet.

"Good to see you, too, kiddo," Cid said, giving her exposed midriff a dig. "Put some clothes on."

She stuck out her tongue. "You like it when Nhadala dresses like this."

"Excuse me, but..." Gippal's voice cracked. "Nooj is dyin' over here!"

"Thought that's what he wanted." Cid said. He glowered at Isaaru, mostly hidden behind Auron. "Don't suppose you know why Sin suddenly decided to pulverize Home right before you lot showed up, eh?"

"Elder Cid," Isaaru said, rising with a bow. "Sin is targeting the temples, securing itself against the aeons' threat. I am Isaaru. Some years ago, you hosted me and my brothers in your Summoners' Sanctum. I shall never forget how your people protected us during the Guado attack. It is a debt I must repay. Please, allow me to help this man."

"Isaaru?" Cid said. "I remember you. Grand Maester o' Yevon, now, eh?"

"No longer." Isaaru said. "I abdicated. A summoner's first duty is to fight Sin."

"Bilge." Cid shook his head. "You Yevonites never change. And as for you," he growled, staring murderously at Auron, "what've you got to say for yourself, eh? Where's my niece?"

"I'm sorry," Auron said. "Yuna was...determined."

"Sorry?" Cid's scalp and ears flushed crimson. "You sent her to her death, and now you're sorry, eh? I'll show you sorry!" He took a step towards the man, hands balling into fists.

"Augh!" Rikku stepped between them, pressing her knuckles against her father's chest. "Can't you guys hold off pummeling each other until we've dealt with Nooj and Sin?"

"Sin?" Cid said. "You're playing guardian again, is that it? And now you and these bungling Yevonites lead Sin straight to Home, and we have to rebuild all over again!" He broke off with a violent fit of coughing, face contorting as he doubled over.

"Pops?" Rikku slipped an arm around him. "Whoa. Deep breaths. Home's gonna be fine. We'll fix it! And I'm not guarding anybody 'cept family, okay?"

"Family? Don't talk to me about family! You all marry Yevon dunderheads, and as for that cradle-robbing husband of yours—”

"Who pulled you out of a sand worm last month!" she said. "Leave Wakka alone. What's gotten into you, Pops? The damage isn't that bad."

"Isaaru," Gippal pleaded.

Isaaru nodded and hurried over, setting his hands on Nooj's chest.

"Great. Just great. 'We'll fix it.'" Cid wheezed with bitter laughter, his voice taking on a strange timber. "Yeah, that's right. I'll...fix it." Moving with startling agility, he jerked away from Rikku, yanked the gun from Maroda's hands and trained it on Auron.

"Hey!" Maroda said.

"Rikku!" Auron said, stepping away from Isaaru. "Stun him!"

Rikku darted around Cid to block his line of fire. "Pops!"

Horror flooded Cid's eyes as he pulled the trigger. Howling as she collapsed, he fired point-blank at Auron lunging to shield her from a second shot.

The guardians' chamber exploded into madness. Sobbing and bellowing in Al Bhed, Cid began firing blindly. Bolts of energy and shrapnel ricocheted off statues, walls, floor tiles. The others charged him, but their initial moment of shock proved costly. Maroda, Elma and Gippal were mowed down before they could reach him, and Shinra was caught diving for cover. Taking aim at Isaaru, Cid stumbled over his daughter's feet and glanced down. His face contorted in anguish.

"Elder Cid." Isaaru rose to face him across the suddenly still chamber, voice soothing and deliberate, reaching out to him as a summoner might pray to a fiery-tempered fayth. "Stop. You are not yourself. Please, let me help you. Let me heal her. There is still time."

"Time?" Cid gave a broken laugh. "So much time. She died, and I couldn't save her. I'll avenge her. With Vegnagun and Sin." His lip curled in a sneer, noting Isaaru's hands making the sign of Yevon over his heart. "A follower of Yevon, eh? See you on the Farplane."

It was a tribute to a summoner's training— or folly— that Isaaru's smile did not falter until the bolt struck.

---

Next Chapter: Anima Sola

---

Author's Notes

"Cradle-robbing husband" — Rikku was 18 when she and Wakka got together. That's a typical age for Spirans to get married (according to FFX dialogue), but the 8-year age gap probably wasn't. (Then again: Yuna and Seymour, 11 years apart. Which is hardly a recommendation.) I imagine Cid was furious. But as this convo from near the end of FFX makes clear, Cid could get along with Wakka, so long as his own daughter wasn't involved:

Wakka: There’s something I want to say before the fight. I…uh…I guess I didn’t know anything about the Al Bhed. Didn’t know anything. Didn’t want to listen to anything. I was a big jerk. So, I…Well, uh… (Half-slumps, half-bows) I’m sorry, ya? Please forgive me.

Cid: Don’t let it bother you. Hey, I’m guilty of hating those durn Yevonites, myself! Well… There’s a lot of folk in this world–some of ’em good, some of ’em bad. That’s all there is to it.

I think Cid's regret in cutting off his sister would've stopped him from disowning Rikku, no matter how pissed he was.

Comments

[jlsigman.livejournal.com]

AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[auronlu.livejournal.com]

Ah, the sweet sound of readers' heads exploding. :D

[jlsigman.livejournal.com]

Yeah, pretty much. Oh gods. I did not expect him here.

[auronlu.livejournal.com]

"Him" -- Nooj or Shuyin?

I set this up with tiny bits of foreshadowing in chapters 8 (http://auronlu.livejournal.com/110066.html) (Baralai reference), 13 (http://auronlu.livejournal.com/114375.html) (Den of Woe reference), and 21 (http://auronlu.livejournal.com/130221.html) (Gippal and Rikku allude to Nooj working with Shinra), but of course those posts were so many months ago, and the hints were so tiny, there's no way anyone could've put them together to realize the Crimson Squad plot was gonna figure in here somehow. The disadvantage of posting so slowly!

[jlsigman.livejournal.com]

More Shuyin than Nooj, although I was surprised Nooj was here and not wherever Paine is.

But, of course, now that I think about it, Shuyin would have been IN Nooj...

Well, I'm home for the day, bad weather and arthritis acting up. Sounds like an excuse to re-read everything. ;-)

[mandyiam.livejournal.com]

Damn...Cid has gone nuts, Elma's flipping out, Rikku's hurt and poor Issaru seems to be struck down. It's chaotic but awesome!

Good to see a new chapter!

[auronlu.livejournal.com]

And good to see a few readers still lurking after all this time, thanks!

Hopefully the chaos wasn't too bad. I've never written a scene with that many characters in it before, and I'm still more comfortable with Greek Tragedy stages of 2-3 characters interacting.

But I wanted Gippal, Nooj, Baralai and Paine (if possible) in this story from the start. The question was just whether to go ahead with the Vegnagun/Shuyin plot or not. It risks making this story too complex, but I think... I THINK... the result will be worth the chaos of a few key chapters.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

ohgod yes. Ever since you mentioned Baralai and brought in Gippal, I was wondering whether the entire Shuyin plot would feature or whether you'd just write in the X-2 characters. Either is fabulous, but this takes the entire thing to a whole new level.

[muggy-mountain.livejournal.com]

I echo the AAAAAHHHHH.

Excellent turn of events and pretty unexpected!

I continue to be impressed by your sense of place -- your description pulls me right in and doesn't waver a bit. Very engaging. And damn, damn, damn. You set us up the bomb on this one. So many strings being pulled tight at once.

What a way to come back. Can't wait for the next!

Like I said in FF.Net...

[vandevere.livejournal.com]

I wasn't expecting you to update, and that was one of the most pleasant surprises i've ever had.

As for the story...

Holy Cripes!

Everyone was going nuts. Especially Cid. Tell me he didn't wind up shooting his little girl?

Yikes...

So, you *ARE* going to bring Vegnagun, and Shuyin, into it...

I don't know if Auron knows anything about Vegnagun, or Shuyin. But, if Auron ever sees Shuyin, can we reasonably expect a stunned Auron?

Wouldn't it be ironic if Shuyin was this story's Seymour; always turning up at random intervals to plague our heroes?

Another great chapter, as always. Please don't take so long next time... :P

Vandevere

Re: Like I said in FF.Net...

[auronlu.livejournal.com]

I can't dilute the focus too much from Sin... but everything has its place, and I think I remember your comment/question you had ages ago speculating how Auron might react to Shuyin!

It is an intriguing question. I hope I can do it... and all the other ten zillion loose ends I've drawn into the story... justice. :)

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I have been waiting for this. :) What an excellent way to bring in Shuyin! I particularly love how Isaaru can sense him, but mistakes him for the fayth.

Now off to read the next one...

[auronlu.livejournal.com]

Yay, you're here!
I keep thinking of Nooj as YOUR character, while writing this part.

*Belatedly adds link to next chapter*

[trekqueen.livejournal.com]

ooooooooooooh Shuyin is rearing his ugly head! *sniffle* everyone's getting so crazy and overwhelmed here, only makes sense he's pushing the buttons!