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"Rikku's Destiny" - Prologue
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The Djose temple was quiet. It was, after all, the dead of night. Nothing moved, save for the large chunks of rock and mountain that floated around the temple, held in their precariously high positions by the white-blue jagged lines of electricity and anti-gravity that coursed from countless machina.
The three-person group approached the temple, making no effort to be overly quiet. The one on the furthest left had long auburn hair, pulled back in a tight and neat French braid that reached almost past her waist. It offset nicely her pallor, which seemed to glow in the darkness, reflecting the dancing lights of the machina as they approached. Her eyes were hidden behind goggles, but were of a hazel-blue that shifted with her moods. Those eyes were also not those of the Al Bhed, as she was the only one in the group lacking the blood of the Al Bhed.
The one to the furthest right was obviously male, despite his shorter stature. His dark, somewhat messy hair was only made messier by his goggles, which rested atop his head. His eyes were so dark that one could barely discern the swirl that marked him as the full-blooded Al Bhed that he was. He was one of the few who didn’t possess the lighter eyes and hair, a rarity in the normally fair-skinned, light-eyed race of people.
In the center was the shortest of the three, though not by much. Her hair was short, almost boyishly cut. Her goggles were settled around her neck and would bounce ever so softly with every step she took. Her eyes could only be described as dichromatic, one a dark brown, the other a startling emerald. As a child she had scared away many children her age with that attribute alone. Freckles were scattered across her face, as if someone had spattered paint across her skin and it had just stuck that way. One would say she was even ‘cute’, but then, if they did so within earshot, one would say they would be ‘dead’. There were a few exceptions to that rule, but not many.
Without a word the three figures stole into the temple beneath the cover of darkness. Once inside the woman in the center, presumably the leader, remained still while her two associates spread out to the chambers on either side of the main door. The female with the braided hair found only an empty bedchamber, while the male found two slumbering Al Bhed. Silently he reached into his pocket, withdrawing a small metal disk that was about three quarters of an inch thick. He depressed the small button and slid the disk along the floor into the center of the room. The top of the disk popped upward and a hissing sound emitted from it. Smiling, the man closed the door again and returned to the entrance to speak to the woman.
“Dra kiyntc yna dygah lyna uv,” (The guards are taken care of) he whispered.
“Kuut zup.” (Good job)
“Aradia,” spoke the braided woman, calling the presumed leader by name. “Dresspheres, eh dra udran nuus. Veja un ceq uv dras.” (Dresspheres in the other room. Five or six of them.)
The woman, Aradia, thought for a moment. “Fa femm nadneaja dras yvdan fa kad fryd fa lysa vun,” (We will retrieve them after we get what we came for.)
“Oac,” (Yes) said both the braided woman and the man.
Together the three continued into the temple. Aradia knew for a fact that there was no other guards. These days Djose was pretty deserted these days. The few machina that guarded the temple were simple to dispatch. They barely slowed the trio from their goal. Finally they reached the last lift. Aradia ordered the braided woman to remain behind while she and the man took the lift to the room that only High Summoners had been allowed to enter once upon a time; the chamber that held the sleeping Fayth. Or at least it did. Now the crystallized floor held nothing. The faceted stone was empty and without reflection, it sounded hollow as the trio strode across it.
“Yna oui cina ed ec rana?” (Are you sure it is here?) asked the man, watching Aradia.
She nodded in response, going right to the back of the room, pushing back one of the drapes bearing the Ixion rune to access the panel behind it. She reached into her pocket and retrieved the single destruction sphere, sliding it effortlessly into the opening on the wall and smiling as a rather large section of the wall vanished. Behind it was a pedestal, holding a single orb that glowed with a golden aura. Aradia strode forward and snatched the sphere from its resting place. “Dryd fyc ayco.” (That was easy)
“Hud cu vycd.” (Not so fast.)
The intruders turned at the sound of unfamiliar voice and were confronted with a rather amused looking Al Bhed holding two guns. Spiky blonde hair and an eye-patch over his right eye gave him a rugged and somewhat attractive look to him. He was dressed in baggy black pants and a whitish-purple shirt that showed off his obvious musculature. He hadn’t had time to don his normal apparel before making an appearance, but he looked good nonetheless.
Aradia strode forward, slipping the sphere into her pocket she placed a hand on her hip, wondering if the strange Al Bhed thought her as physically attractive as she did him. “Muug yd dryd. Picdat. Fryd yna oui kuehk du tu?” (Look at that. Busted. What are you going to do?).
“Ynah'd oui dra veano uha,” (Aren't you the fiery one.) he replied, raising the eyebrow above his good eye. He looked her up and down, apprising the current situation. “Yht lida duu.” (And cute too.)
Aradia’s lips pursed at the sound of the word, and her eyes darted momentarly to the side. A slow, smug smile erupted on her face and she laughed. “E syo pa 'lida', pid oui'na zicd kimmepma.” (I may be 'cute', but you're just gullible.)
Before the Al Bhed had a chance to respond, his body stiffened. He then slumped forward, hitting the floor with a rather loud thud. The braided woman stood behind him, a taser in her hand and a disappointed expression on her face. “Sah. Cu cemmo.” (Men. So silly.)
The male accomplice stepped out of the shadows that he had stepped into when the stranger had appeared. “Hud ymm uv ic vymm vun dryd.” (Not all of us fall for that.) He strode into the center of the room and knelt beside the unconscious Al Bhed. “E fuhtan fru ra ec.” (I wonder who he is.)
“Dryd ec Gippal,” (That is Gippal) announced Aradia. She was astounded at the luck. “Ra ec uha uv dra ceq baubma fru cyf Vegnagun eh fungehk luhtedeuh. Yht ajanouha ghufc dryd uhla yh Al Bhed caac machina yd fung…” (He is one of the six people who saw Vegnagun in working condition. And everyone knows that once an Al Bhed sees machina at work…)
“...drao lyh nabyen ed.” (they can repair it.) finished the braided woman.
Aradia nodded. “Fa dyga res duu.” (We take him too.) She waited for the braided woman and her male accomplice to lift the unconscious Gippal, then they left as silently as they had come, though now with much more of a potential to hurt people.
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