Peacefully, the giant sea serpent was gliding through the ocean. He was pretty relaxed, as he knew, from all the beings living in the sea, only Sin himself would be a serious danger.
Unluckily for him and his passengers, that was the one they ran into.
Ranma was lying on her back and glancing up at the surface, where the morning sun was making the water glimmer.
When suddenly, a giant shadow appeared above them, as if the sun itself had been swallowed by the shadows.
And when that inhuman cry came down, she immediately recognized it: Sin!
"It's Sin," she cried and jumped to her feet. "Damn! Leviathan, swim faster!"
'I'll try,' Leviathan replied. 'But I fear it won't suffice.'
A dark cloud of... something came down from Sin's enormous body.
"The toxin," Wakka shouted. "Watch out!"
Leviathan gave a shrill cry of alarm and swept the toxin away by influencing the currents above him. Either way, it seemed to be futile, as they could never escape Sin here, in its domain...
Suddenly, Leviathan gave off a strange tune...
It sounded like a whale was singing, but it had an actual melody. And Ranma heard that melody before...
"The hymn," she said in surprise. "The hymn of the fayth!"
And as Leviathan was singing, Sin slowly ceased his attack and stopped moving. He just floated along, alone in the sea...
And then, everything went white.
----
Ranma was standing in what looked like some sort of coliseum. It was in ruins, but seemed somehow familiar. She was standing on a circular platform in its middle. She looked up, but couldn't see any sky. Just a black void of nothing.
"Where... am I?" she muttered.
"Ranma," someone shouted next to her. Ranma turned around. "Tidus? What happened? Where are we?"
"Well, I don't exactly know what happened, but I certainly know this place," Tidus answered. "This is Zanarkand... the blitzball stadium."
Suddenly, they heard footsteps behind them.
A muscular arm was put on Tidus' shoulder. "So, you've finally come to Spira, huh?" a gruff voice said.
Tidus turned around to face his father. "Yeah..." he said. "Actually, several days ago. I already saw you, after that day in Zanarkand... Out in the open sea... twice... and at the Djose shore."
Jecht chuckled. "I thought I felt something out there. Sin rarely lets me get control, mostly when no humans are around. I can only sit back in a corner of its mind... and watch how it kills..."
He turned around to Ranma. "So, you must be one of those kids that ain't from this world, huh? Well, yer in a similar position than me and my boy. Hang in there! Perhaps you'll find a way - I didn't!"
"What is this place, anyway?" Tidus asked while looking around. "This isn't Zanarkand, is it?"
"No." Jecht shook his head. "This is the inside of Sin's mind, and you two aren't actually here... I just sent you this image to talk to you. You're still out there in the ocean, on the back of that juggernaut of an Aeon. I swear, no one of Braska's pets came even close to being that big."
"But if you say that you only can get control over Sin when no humans are around... how did you do it now?"
"It's the hymn," Jecht explained. "I dunno why, but I know it from home. It... kinda soothes my soul, if you know what I mean. When I hear it, I feel at peace. And Sin doesn't stand a chance against that... well, at least for a while. Your big water worm really had the right idea to save you all."
"Dad..." Tidus said quietly. "When Yuna reaches Zanarkand... I mean, when she gets the Final Summoning... I'll have to... you know..."
Jecht looked into the face of his son. "Yeah, you'll have to kill me. It's okay! You can do it! I don't want to keep on living like that... forced to kill and everything. And, besides..." He smirked. "You never really liked me, did you?"
Ranma suddenly saw her body getting translucent. "W-what's going on?"
"You're waking up. I can't hold you here for much longer. And when Sin regains control, I'll have to be far away from you. Well, junior... one last thing..."
He looked at Tidus with a sad face. "There is a secret behind the Final Summoning... that I cannot tell you yet. It's not for me to say it. But... you'll have to make a choice. A very, very hard choice! And I'll just want you to know: Don't be a fool! Try your best to make the right choice, other than your old man. I know you can do it, you're smart..."
He turned to Ranma. "I also can tell you that there might be a way for you and your friends to go home... but to find out if it's true, you'll have to defeat Sin first. Got it?"
Ranma nodded. "Yeah, I think I understand."
"That's a good girl. Now, I'll have to go... See ya!"
"Dad?" Tidus asked and looked at his father with teary eyes.
"Yup?"
He sniffed. "I hate you!"
Jecht smiled. "I know, I know... Now, don't start crying again..."
White light surrounded them, and the stadium and Jecht disappeared.
----
Ranma gasped when he broke through the surface. She looked around. "Akane? Yuna? Wakka! Nabiki? Anyone?" But she was alone. Only Tidus was floating besides her, his closed eyes facing the sky.
She wasn't in the ocean any more. She was in a small pond of water, surrounded by bushes and two trees. And behind that...
Sand. Nothing but sand.
"Looks like I'm at an oasis in some sort of desert. Leviathan?"
'I'm here, Ranma,' the water Aeon called from out from her mind. 'Sorry, but Sin awoke too quickly, so I had to open a portal that lead directly to Bikanel Island. Sadly, because I had so few time, the others might have appeared somewhere else. I know they're somewhere on this island, but they might be scattered all over this desert.'
"It's okay," Ranma sighed. "We'll just have to find them. Great job."
She shook Tidus' shoulder. "Tidus! Hey, Tidus! Wake up!"
See other episodes by Shritistrang
(Posted Sat, 29 Jul 2006 18:44)
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