Chapter 11: Reason to Be

"The aeons were not enough to help the survivors of the Machina War truly defeat Sin," Bahamut began. "This was Lady Yunalesca's plan from the beginning, that the Final Aeon would defeat Sin, only to take its place as the next one. The dead could only look on in despair, unable to affect change in the physical world because of their rest. And the spirits who could not rest were too lost in their own pain. The fayth could not fight Yu Yevon because his necromancy trapped our souls in his summoning spell. But the fayth decided to see if one of the illusions from the dream was strong enough to do it. If the illusion could reflect part of Yevon's own magic back at him and cast off the possession of the Final Aeon, maybe he could defeat Yu Yevon himself. At the very least, a real life would not be wasted if the illusion did not survive. At least, ... that was the plan." The small boy's spirit floated in silence for a moment, no trace of emotion on his half-hidden face.

"Our first choice was Jecht. As a famous athlete, he was physically capable of becoming a strong warrior, but more than that, he had determination and courage. We needed someone who wouldn't give up until he won. So, we sent him to Lord Braska as a guardian for his pilgrimage. Jecht befriended Braska and another guardian, Auron. And when the time came for Braska to chose which of his guardians he would sacrifice to become his Final Aeon, Jecht volunteered because he didn't think he could ever return home. We thought everything was going according to plan. He did defeat Sin, but then he, too, fell victim to Yu Yevon's possession. As the new Sin, he returned to punish the rest of Spira once again for attacking Zanarkand, feeding Yevon's desire for revenge and power with more sacrifices, just like all the other Sins before him. There was, however, one difference. Jecht retained his awareness of who he was and what he was doing. He hated Yu Yevon for using him, and he hated himself for being helpless to stop the cycle of destruction. So, he was willing to help us try again. But we needed something more - something Yu Yevon wouldn't expect." The small fayth paused again.

"Auron's spirit made a promise to Jecht to search for his son. But Jecht's son had died almost a thousand years prior. Jecht never knew because he died when the boy was a child. I assume you know the story of how Shuyin died since you are the one who was finally able to send his spirit, Lady Yuna."

Yuna blinked with surprise but nodded in agreement. Shuyin was Jecht's son. That truth was difficult to accept, having believed all this time that Sir Jecht was Tidus's father. "I didn't send Shuyin. He left voluntarily, ... with Lenne."

Bahamut became silent again as he hovered before her. His hooded face continued to show no trace of emotion, but Yuna could sense his sadness.

She considered what she had learned from talking to Shuyin's spirit. "He was your friend, wasn't he."

The boy nodded.

"And yet, ... he used you to attack the temples."

The boy nodded again.

"You must feel very betrayed." She quietly sympathized. "I think he regrets having done that now."

"He does." The young fayth lifted his chin ever so slightly. "I'm still glad that my sister chose to be with him. He was fun, sincere, and loyal. He had his father's courage and determination, even if his jokes were corny and he got a little cocky sometimes. When Lenne died, Shuyin's soul changed. He became lost to us because he refused to let go of his despair. But we found the part of his soul that desperately wanted a second chance, and we fashioned an illusion around it. The neo-genesis was unique. He was an illusion created from memories, but he shared a real soul. He came from the past into the present, ... like the way we see a star's light only after it has traveled many years to reach us."

"Neo-genesis ..." Yuna tried to understand so she could explain it to Tidus when she returned.

"Auron's spirit watched over him as if he was Jecht's real son until the time was right that he and Jecht could pull him from the dream into reality. As we sent Jecht to your father, we sent the neo-genesis to you. The neo-genesis was to be your guardian for a short time – just long enough to help you defeat Sin and banish Yu Yevon from Spira forever." Bahamut's tone saddened again. "Because of our earlier failure, he had to kill his own father. But he is the only one who could have done this. It was the only way to free Jecht, the fayth, and all of Spira from Yu Yevon's control."

Yuna remembered the tears that freely flowed down Tidus's cheeks as he held his defeated father in his arms, after finishing his tragic deed. His friends had helped him win the battle, but afterward, they all felt his grief more than their victory. Even now, thinking about it made her blink back tears. She had cried a lot that day, having to fight her faithful aeons before sending them and her faithful guardians, away - first Auron, then him. Yuna buried her face in her hands, but she tried to keep listening beyond the burning emotion returning with the memories.

"When the fayth were sent, he faded with us because he was an illusion from our dream. But like Shuyin, his soul couldn't rest. He wanted to continue being your guardian." The boy shrugged in exasperation. "We didn't know what to do with him."

With a light laugh, Yuna wiped away a tear.

"We thought maybe we could use him to help Shuyin find his peace, but this other half of his soul had developed a consciousness of its own. When Shuyin finally did return, he wanted to give the neo-genesis a second chance with you, ... in return for what you gave to him."

"Lenne," Yuna guessed.

"More than Lenne - forgiveness." The child-spirit paused. "We weren't sure it would work. Spirit magic is powerless in the material world without some kind of bond to it. But since you seemed to miss each other so much, we summoned him one more time. His own desire to live is what sustains him now."

Yuna sniffled and clasped her fingers at her chin. "Can he stay? ... Please?"

"We can't promise he'll never fade; but if he uses common sense and stays out of trouble, he should be able to live in your world for a very long time. He's as real as he can be, considering his origins. Just make sure he understands why we had to do this – why it had to be this way."

"I think he accepted his fate soon after you told him the truth about the dream. He knew what would happen, but he did it anyway … for us."

"Lady Yuna, you have done so much for the lost and living souls of Spira. The least we could do was return the soul of your guardian to you. Besides, he was beginning to drive us crazy."

Again, Yuna laughed lightly and brushed at the tears on her lashes. "Then, his return doesn't mean trouble for Spira?"

"Trouble for you maybe, but not for Spira." The fayth allowed himself a hint of a smile.

With a smile that she was unable to contain, Yuna straightened and turned to face her friends. Everyone grinned, sharing her happiness at the good news. Rikku, who had also been moved to tears at the memories, stepped forward to hug her. "He can stay with us, Yunie. He can really stay!"

But looking at her friends and their equipment, reminded Yuna of the other reason they came here, and she wondered if the fayth could help with that, too. "Oh! Bahamut, would you happen to know why all this machina is down here?"

"It's the Heart of the ship."

Everyone blinked in bewilderment.

"Ship?" Brother asked. "What ship?"

"Spira. She's a ship."

Buddy was as stunned as everyone else. "Like an airship?"

"Space ship." Bahamut's body began to thin slightly, but he lingered to explain. "A long time ago, a faraway world was looking for planets to colonize as their population expanded and their resources dwindled. They couldn't find any worlds suitable for their needs, so they built one. Spira was the first ship to successfully support life as an artificial world, partly because Zanarkand intermingled with non-human races and learned how to summon a magical dimension into its core. Alien technology and magic gave the ship itself life, in a sense. The Founders weren't happy about that. They didn't know much about it but thought it was dangerous. Eventually, they ordered Zanarkand to cease and desist because they feared the magical experiments had gone too far. What they really feared was being outpowered and overthrown. So, the Founders ordered Bevelle to attack Zanarkand. Yu Yevon convinced Spira to flee the Founders to prevent an even greater retaliation. Spira's freedom was perhaps the only good thing to come from the Machina War, but we've been fighting to be free of Yu Yevon ever since."

Buddy gazed at the overhead circuitry with new awareness and awe. "What kind of fuel could keep a ship running for a thousand years?"

"The Farplane," Shinra answered. "Remember the tests we did before allowing the Gullwings to come down here to find Vegnagun? All that energy to power many cities ..."

"The Farplane breathes life into Spira." Bahamut thinned a little more. "As long as life exists on Spira, the Farplane will absorb the energy cast off by spirits and use it to sustain the ship. You could say Spira is the real dream since she is the one who ultimately holds our collective memories."

"Well, dream energy might endlessly recycle, but the part of the ship that is machina is falling apart," Buddy stated. "If you ask me, corrosion is our biggest enemy now."

"She hasn't had any maintenance checks in over a thousand years." Bahamut shrugged and shook his head. "What did you expect?"

"Why doesn't anyone else know about this?" Paine asked.

"Yu Yevon hoarded and destroyed spheres containing that knowledge. Destroying knowledge made it easier for the Temple of Yevon to take control of Spira following the Machina War. Banning machina for everyone but themselves ensured people would continue to fear Sin. With no knowledge of their own history or technology, future generations would perpetuate the cycle of sacrifice based on fear and ignorance. Yu Yevon and his dream would be immortal."

"That's why surviving spheres are precious," Yuna realized.

"I don't suppose you could tell us where his sphere hoard is?" Brother could almost taste sweet fortune with such a discovery.

The fayth defiantly folded his arms. "Fat chance."

"Oh, come on! We deserve some kind of reward for fixing such a big machina. It's a whole planet we're talking about!"

"If you keep finding spheres that survived the war and piecing together their individual stories, you'll soon have a whole library of knowledge. That kind of reward truly is priceless."

Paine tilted her chin to one side in curiosity. "What kind of world did Spira come from?"

Bahamut's body began to swirl with pyreflies. "Earth."

"Wait!" Yuna begged of the cloud of light that was disappearing. "I forgot to ask one more thing. Please. …He would like to know how old he is now."

"The neo-genesis was created about three years ago, just in time for the reappearance of Sin," the voice answered though his light dimmed.

Rikku giggled. "He's three?"

"Well, that would explain a lot." Pain gave Yuna and Rikku a glance of wry amusement.

"But, technically, his soul is a thousand-year work in progress. So, we'll split the difference and say he's the same age as when he had to leave you - seventeen." The boy's presence trailed away and was gone.

Yuna smiled. "Thank you, my friend. ... Rest in peace," she whispered to the departed fayth.

))((

A few days later on the island of Besaid, the door from the lift opened and Yuna walked down the stairs into the engine room of the Celsius, with a cheery smile and two tall drinks decorated with tropical flowers.

Brother and Tidus were working on the hoverbike that crashed when Brother put his hands to his head and shook it in disgust. "No, no, no! You can't put that part there! It goes here! You will never be able to help us repair Spira's Heart if you can't tell the difference between a gyroscepter circuit and a spring-fusion conductor!"

"Well, you didn't tell me what a ... spring-gyro-fusion-thingy is!" Tidus cast his wrench aside before standing and leaving the engine room though the open hatch to the beach.

Yuna paused with concern at Tidus's frustrated exit, but then continued toward Brother and handed him one of the cups she carried. "Rikku and I have been experimenting with fruit. Would you like to try one of the drinks we made?"

"Oh, thank you! Yuna is an angel to think of such things on a hot and humid day like this." He gratefully accepted and guzzled down the drink to quench his thirst.

"It's just something to thank my brotherly bulldog for protecting me so well." She planted a quick kiss on his cheek.

Brother's tattooed face flushed a slight pink, and he waved her away in embarrassment. "It was nothing, really. At least, he will take good care of you, now that he knows he will have to answer to me if he doesn't."

Yuna was amused at her cousin's assessment of his previous conflict with Tidus. "How's the repair going?"

Brother snorted in annoyance. "You were right. He's got the mechanical talent of a monkey! He will never be able to help us fix Spira's inner core. He is useless to us except for picking up trash and cleaning the bathrooms."

Yuna tried not to laugh. "Oh, I don't know. He's pretty good with a sword and magic. We'll need that for hunting spheres."

"Are you saying he's better than me at hunting spheres?"

"No, no. You are ... differently gifted." She smiled.

"Oh." He had never thought of it that way before, but he liked the way it sounded.

"As for the inner core, maybe it would be better to ask for help from the Machine Faction. It's a big job to repair a big ship. Cid contacted Gippal, and he's on his way to help Shinra with his analysis of the core's design."

Brother set down his cup and looked up at her, aghast. "What'd he do that for? We can handle it ourselves!"

"Well, ... leading the Gullwings is a big job, too. It's very important that we continue to find as many spheres as we can. We need the help of our captain to do that."

Brother folded his arms at his chest and nodded in approval. "Well, when you put it that way ..."

Yuna smiled and picked up the spent cup. Then, she walked down the ramp in search of Tidus. He was right where she suspected he would be - in the water taking out his frustrations on a blitz ball by seeing how many sustained air-volleys he could keep going. After setting the empty cup in the corner of the ramp, she removed the sleeves of her thief sphere attire and folded them on the ground to keep them dry. In her bikini top and skort, she stepped into the cool, shallow tide and waded in up to her knees. Putting her fingers to her lips, she whistled to get his attention and held up the other drink with a light shake.

Tidus swam toward her until he could tuck the ball under his arm and walk the rest of the way to her side. "Thanks. What is it?" Accepting the cup, he examined it skeptically, then took a cautious sip.

She laughed at how different his response was to Brother's. "It's a fruit drink. It won't poison you; I promise."

"I saw Rikku making drinks behind the bar when I took a break from the engine room. I've seen her mix alchemy potions, too. Anything she experiments with has the potential to be poisonous." He liked the concoction, though, and ended up drinking down the rest of the icy treat rather quickly. "Ah -!" He winced. "Brain freeze."

"I take it your bike repair lessons didn't go so well?"

"Not exactly," he grumbled.

"Well, Cid's talking to Gippal right now about the Machine Faction helping with the repairs on Spira's Heart. So, while Rikku and I were making drinks, I contacted Kimahri and updated him on what we found out. Then I contacted Tromell, Nooj, and Baralai to update them, as well. They think it would be a good idea to build a library near the ruins of Zanarkand for storing any future spheres we find, like Bahamut suggested. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but even Isaaru and Kimahri thought it was a fitting way to honor the memory of what happened there. I told them I wanted to check with you first."

"Me?"

"You're the only real Zanarkand resident left who can voice an opinion about it."

Tidus laughed lightly at the irony of the word. "It's okay with me." He shrugged. "It's not like the blitz stadium works anymore, anyway." With a sly grin, he finished the last of the drink.

Though amused, she bumped the ball out of his grip. "What a shameless thing to say. That's a sacred place for everyone else on Spira."

"Oh, so I'm the only real resident of the place, but I'm completely out of touch with reality because I only think I used to live there?" He drew back in mock offense. "Get your act together, crazy woman. Either I'm really here, or you're a little touched in the head for thinking you see me." He set the empty cup in the sand and waded a few strides in to reclaim the ball floating on the surface.

"Who's crazy? I already explained that you're really here." Maybe he needed a little reminder. Feeling mischievous, Yuna sneaked behind him to give him a surprise push.

Hearing her feet in the water, he anticipated her action and dodged. What he didn't anticipate was the broken shell his foot landed on. Tidus hopped back with a wince just as a wave rolled forward and tipped his balance, wiping him out with a splash. Sitting in water up to his waist, he squinted up at her as she giggled.

"See? You're really here."

Ignoring the ball, he sprang out of the water and hefted her over his shoulder as he had at their beach-night game. "That's twice you've done that to me now, on top of all the other abuses! I think you need to see how it feels." But instead of taking her back to the dry sand, he faced the ocean.

"Wait! I didn't push you that time!" Still laughing, Yuna cried out and gripped the back of his shirt while hooking an arm around his neck to avoid being dropped in the water.

"Hey! Goldilocks!" Wakka called from the beach as he strode toward them. "When you're done being a kind and loving gentleman to your girlfriend there, how about giving me a hand with a few things here in the village!"

Tidus stopped swinging Yuna over the water and set her gently on her feet. "What is it with everyone calling me that? Have you never seen blond hair before?"

Yuna swept a strand of thin, brown hair behind her ear that the breeze had blown into her eyes. "Have you never heard the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears?" The realization hit that he probably had not. "If you can't remember Shuyin's past, you probably can't remember his childhood either."

"She's a little girl in a children's story, ya?" Wakka chuckled. "And since you're surrounded by three women who have to protect you from fiends …"

"Very funny." Tidus squinted one eye shut into the sun and patiently wiped the salt water from his arms before wringing out the hem of his Besaid shirt. "You know a smart man would enjoy being surrounded by three women on a long road trip. ... Well, except when they kick him out of the hot spring into freezing wind and snow."

"Heh. A smart man would know not to say something like that in front of the one woman who could send him packing."

Tidus looked at Yuna, who lifted her chin and folded her arms, tapping her fingers on one elbow. "He's right, you know. You're pretty vicious now. Am I even safe with you any more?" He rubbed his chin as if rethinking this decision.

She waved off his mock doubt.

"So, Goldilocks, you going to make yourself useful and help me back at the village? Or you gonna bum around all day on the beach?" Wakka asked again.

"Well, I'm definitely not going to help if you keep calling me that."

"Who's gonna stop me?"

Squinting into the sun again, Tidus defiantly crossed his arms and stood his ground. "Seven to nothing, old man."

Wakka got in his face. "Who are you calling old man, little girl?" Turning away, he strode toward the dunes but then stopped and looked back. "I'll sweep the beach with you tonight!" Continuing up the beach toward the road, he paused and called back, "I'll put you on diaper patrol, that's what - now that's scary work, right there!"

Tidus and Yuna grinned as they watched Wakka leave the beach for the road back to the village. "He doesn't realize yet that I've got all the time in the world now to whip him back into shape," he told her.

Yuna laughed. "Don't hurt him too badly, okay?" After picking up the empty cup, she turned to walk back to the airship but stopped with a small yelp when her long braid pulled taut behind her. He was holding onto it again.

Closing the short distance between them, he toyed lightly with the fluff of hair at the end of the braid. "Will you tell me the story of Goldilocks when I come back?" he asked with a hint of embarrassment.

Yuna was touched by the child-like innocence of the request. "Of course." A spark of excitement ignited within. "I know lots of stories I could share. In fact, I should make spheres of all the stories I can think of and donate them to the new library at Zanarkand, so they won't be forgotten. Stories are part of our collective knowledge, too. They represent who we are and who we hope to be, ... kind of like our dreams."

Tidus seemed to like that explanation. "Tonight, then. On the beach with a bonfire. Okay?"

"I'll be waiting ... right here," she promised, as he had promised when he remained behind on the edge of the Farplane.

"It feels good to be alive again - at least, as alive as a dream or a neo-genesis can be." Releasing her braid, he cupped her face in his hands and gave her a kiss.

Time stood still for Yuna until he withdrew.

With a sheepish smirk, Tidus cleared his throat. "I'd … better see what Wakka wants in the village. I should be nice to him before I cream him tonight so I can coach his sad little team." Wading back into the water, he picked up the blitzball. Then he jogged away from her, across the white-sand beach toward the road to the village, but paused to wave before continuing on that path.

Shielding her eyes from the sun, Yuna waved back and watched until he disappeared behind the foliage at the bend in the road. Looking down at her toes in the cool, wet sand, she felt the tide pull away some of the grains beneath her feet. Losing sight of him felt a little like that. But then she smiled and grasped one arm behind her back, comforted that this time he would return to her again and again. "Now it's our story."

))((

Author's Note:

Thanks to those of you who left reviews during the original story's posting, and to those who wrote or left messages during my absence from this account. Your support and encouragement reminded me why I enjoyed writing in the first place - to imagine, to explore, to have fun, to entertain. If you are new to my Final Fantasy fan-fiction series, thanks for taking the time to check it out. And if you enjoyed this one, "Spira's Sphere" is the sequel. I will be revising and uploading it next.