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maiyah

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Who: Maiyah and Braska
When: Mid-day
Where: Calm Lands
What: Maiyah gazes over the Calm Lands with a little contempt.
Rating: G for now.

There wasn't too much to be had in the Calm Lands anymore. It was disappointing even, at how the once peaceful plateau has been marauded by the sickening concept of thoughtless tourism. The Calm Lands had once been a ground with meaning, stained with righteous blood and scarred by the forthcoming of justice. It was a land of sacrifice, where the selfless summoners summoned their Final Aeons and tried their hands at finally ridding the world of Sin once and for all. It was a sacred land... upon which these people sauntered and swaggered, pockets full of gil and nothing but the desire for entertainment upon their shoulders.

Perhaps Maiyah took this all a tad too seriously. Perhaps she was too sensitive to the changing times, to the lack of consideration for the sanctity of such places of people seemed to hold now that Sin was gone. It was as if the times of the Summoners and the terrible trauma of Sin had never happened. Sin was gone and it was good, yes, but this, Maiyah felt, was taking it all too far. She stayed away from he Hovers, the agencies that pestered her to buy their credits and participate in their exploitative games. She would much rather fight a wolf-type fiend for food and exercise than to bid on which out of a group would win a pointless race.

Her stop in the Calm Lands would hopefully be a short one. Mount Gagazet was a peaceful area, one that she respected as much as the Ronso. There were things she wished to think about, and while she normally would have meditated in the Macalania Wood, its slow descent into nothingness made it noticeably difficult to concentrate. The fullness of the wood and the enclosure of the ceiling of the canopy had once filled her with a sense of privacy, even as fiends wandered around her along with the musical forest folk, it was always peaceful in its mysteriousness. Mount Gagazet seemed to be her last sanctuary, including the rifts of the mountain that overlooked the ancient necropolis. She did not dare set foot in Zanarkand, though she longed to, not feeling the least bit worthy to set virgin foot to weathered soil.

She brushed such thoughts off as she sat upon the rolling plateaus, cross-legged and blades at her sides. She overlooked the plains, eyes passing easily over hovers in the distance, and watching fiends as they went on about their lives. Wolves and Coeurls hunted the wild Chocobos, stalking the best they could in the short grass. She sat there with her small pack, a piece of fruit held in her hand up to her lips. She took small, juicy bites from it, sucking lightly on the lingering juice. She sat back, leaning back with her arm locked at the elbow with palm planted flat against the grass.

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It'd been a long walk but he'd taken himself from Auron's home inside the cave to Macalania Wood, through to Bevelle and into the Temple. They'd been thoroughly surprised to see him and it took him a while to explain things, though he'd been just as desperately surprised to see his own statue, despite Auron's words upon the fact. It was a little strange to be told you were supposed to be dead. Actually, it was very darn strange.

He hadn't told Auron or Jecht he was leaving. In fact, he probably should've left some sort of note but, really, they thought he was far more fragile than he really was. High Summoner he may be but he was not a child nor a porcelain dolly. He was a grown man, a widdower, a father. He was not to be taken lightly. Even if he was dreading the reactions of his guardians once he returned.

By the time he'd emerged from the Wood, it was nigh midday, as the sun hung high in the sky. Braska, donning full Summoner garb and carrying his most unique staff, crossed the grassy plains, spying a young girl on his travels. A slight smile came as he noted she was watching the 'attractions'. They bothered him. Far more than he was letting on. This was a safe land. A place where Summoners and guardians came to end their lives for the safety of their people. Not a funfair.

Settling down in the grass, just a short distance from the girl, he held his staff upright, his eyes skimming the land. How it had truly changed... Though he wasn't even sure this girl would know who he was. Certainly, Spirans would know him by his face, but was she Spira born? It was hard to tell with all the passers-by these days. The world was far larger than he'd first realised.

Maiyah heard the footsteps from afar of another being, though what it was she couldn't tell without having to glance around. Her eyes darted, but retained an oblivious face. When she was finished with her fruit, she stood and tossed the stem out onto the grass, an armet fiend waddling forward from afar and scooping it up with its stubby claws, holding it up as it ate on the remnants of the that Maiyah hadn't touched.

She leaned down to pick up her blades before slowly looking back at the presence that approached her. The site she saw caused her to lose her composure, turning her head and shoulders almost completely as she stared at the figure, draped in those legendary robes, the very image of the statue that she looked up to with the thought of her sister weighing heavily on her shoulders.

How could this be? High Summoner Braska, here in the Calm Lands? Was she seeing things? A spell cast by a fiend perhaps? Or was this a fiend taking form of the late High Summoner? What if it was a fiend? Should she attack? But what if it was truly the late High Summoner? Perhaps only one way to find out.

She flipped one of her weapons from pointing behind to the front before raising it and pointing it towards him, "Who are you?"

Perhaps she was not Spiran. Such a question really was so harsh to his ears but, standing up, he rested his weight slightly on his staff. The wounds he'd bore were hidden well by those robes but they still hurt. Quite a bit in fact. A slight smile came and he hooked his elbow around his staff, instinctively giving the Prayer of Yevon to the girl, bowing his head slightly.

"I am... High Summoner Braska." It was difficult to say that. High Summoner. It made no sense at all, but that was fact. Keeping his light smile, Braska stood straight, curling his fingers around his staff once again. There was little else he could do to prove his name, aside from Summoning. Which he'd do most willingly, if he was sure he could. Things had changed, it seemed, and he was unsure of the well-being of the Fayths.

Bound up lilac hair swayed in the breeze but he kept his cool gaze on her, never seeming threatening though always seeming intimidating, if just for the staff and his height. Though, the headdress did help to give him that height. "My sincerest apologies if I startled you, miss. I did not intend to." And once again, he bowed his head.

"That's not possible. Lord Braska died many years ago sacrificing himself to bring us an era of peace," her voice softened, lowering her blade. She shook her head a little, "How are you here...?" There was the slightest of ache in her chest, in her heart as thoughts of her sister passed through her mind. "You are... unsent?" she said, looking back up at him from the grass at her feet.

She shook her head again, "...You did not startle me." It was hard to startle her, always being alert and on guard unless she was sleeping--which she would never do unless she was in a place she knew was safe and secure. This man couldn't really be Lord Braska. Could he? The Prayer given convinced her, though she was reluctant to believe that the High Summoner was here standing in front of her.

"...Lord High Summoner Braska..." she uttered, defeated. She sank back down to the oldest traditions, not seeing the sign of Prayer as that of Yevon's, but rather a method with plenty of personal interpretations. She found it as a source of healing. Mentally at least. In one fluid motion, she stuck her blades into the ground and performed the Prayer to the High Summoner, "Forgive me for my transgression."

A soft laugh, almost like that of a man truly at peace with himself, escaped the Summoner and he smiled softly, tilting his head fractionally. So, she was Spiran. The Prayer settled it for him and he paused slightly as he tried to figure out just how he could explain his sudden appearance in these lands he'd once left behind.

"Truly, that is a question I ask myself. I spoke with a Guado on my passing, he sensed not the scent of death, so I am not unsent... yet he did say it lingered around me, which poses questions." Shaking his head slightly, Braska raised a hand to his chin in thought. Why would the scent of death linger around him if he was alive? Perhaps Jecht was unsent? Or... no, not Auron.

The High Summoner offered his hand to her, though it was a gesture for her to sit with him as he once more found comfort on the grass. "I performed the Final Summoning here thirteen years ago... yet here I am. I do not understand it myself but I believe the Fayths gave me another chance. I feel a change in the air, something... something will happen soon."

And with a single nod, his determination was set. Something would happen and that something would bring about a dark time for all, no matter what land they resided upon. "Please, do not call me Lord High Summoner... Braska is plenty on its own. Though, the preists at Bevelle Temple did find it rather difficult to call me that..."

Maiyah was unsure of what to think or do. She followed the gesture of his hand and sat with him, crossing her legs and resting her hands on her knees. "I apologize..." she said, looking down at the grass, "..I suppose old habits are... tough to break. Even with the changing times..." She shook her head slightly, vaguely expressing her disdain for the tomfoolery taking place in a land that once witnessed the countless closings of a once permanent drama.

She tried to view the situation with a lighter attitude, though it was hard with Kaiyah gone. She remembered Kaiyah speaking so highly of Braska, always praying to the man's statue every time they visited a temple. It made her silently wish that Kaiyah was in her place, and Maiyah in hers. She deeply believed that she belonged in the Farplane, and Kaiyah in the living world.

"Mm, I've a guardian who'd thoroughly agree with you about habits and finding it hard to kill them," he murmured, resting his staff down in the grass as he scanned the plains once again. "I suppose you are here to join this... circus? I have no qualms with the Al Bhed, none at all if truth be told, but to turn such a place into a sideshow, no, a freakshow... it is rather painful to watch."

For a moment, his eyes showed a deep sadness to the state of the Calm Lands that were not so calm anymore. He knew his daughter had brought about the Eternal Calm, though that went only as far as Sin. Everything else that caused unrest still remained. Yet, a moment later, Braska's eyes were full of serenity again and he set his gaze upon Maiyah. "May I learn your name?"

"No..." she said, shaking her head, "I hardly approve of the exploitation of this land. I once came here to dance with fiends and find peace in the sanctity in the air." She sighed as she looked over in direction of the Hovers, "I'm on my way to Mount Gagazet... It seems to be the last place I can turn to when I want to relax and meditate." Everything else has either faded away or been invaded by tourists looking for a good time.

She looked back up at the man that her sister had so vigorously idolized... and she followed in her footsteps, though silently, "..My name is Maiyah... born in the Temple of Macalania... and raised in Bevelle."

Braska smiled as she openly admitted she was just as disgusted by the use of these once sacred lands. It was also refreshing to hear she was a Bevelle child, though being born in the Macalanian Temple was a rare honour. "Well, Maiyah, I hope you find what you seek." There was a question that burned a little at him, begging to be asked, and who was he to stem the flow of a curious mind?

"Are you, by chance, an ex-guardian?" As soon as it came out, he regretted saying 'ex', though she held the bitter aura of an ex-guardian. He'd seen many through his pilgrimage. Many who'd warned him off the journey, who'd told him it was a fool's game, but he'd learnt not to listen to them. Only after Auron and Jecht talked sense into him.

Maiyah shook her head slowly, "No... But I might as well be. My sister... she looked up to you before and after you brought us the Calm. She wanted to be a summoner... and for me to be her guardian. Though she never did... She was killed... shortly after a Blitzball tournament. We were on our way home when we were ambushed near Djose."

She sighed softly, "Her name was Kaiyah... She died in my arms at Djose temple. She died protecting me. I couldn't do anything to save her." She was quiet for a moment, "Though I suppose if we were set on such paths, then I made a pretty terrible guardian."

He sat silent through her story, listening intently and giving a smile afterwards. "Your sister sounds very spirited. Have you visited the Farplane to speak with her? Perhaps it would sooth you a little," he suggested. Braska sighed softly, resting back on his hands and watching the sky. At least the sky never changed.

"A guardian is not going to protect their Summonder from everything. I've been very close to death through protecting my guardians," Braska smiled nostalgically, "ironic, really considering I am supposed to be the one protected. Maiyah; a guardian is not measured on their mistakes. They are measured on devotion. If you were devoted to Kaiyah and her wishes, you are not at fault."

"I have... many times after she had gone. She's the reason I travel, why I trained to fight. Even if she is not here... I can still fight for her..." She looked down and thought over his words. "We were only girls then... The only training we had was schooling... and the skills of Blitzball... at least on her part."

She looked back up at him, "I was devoted... so to speak... She lead the way and I followed. I stuck by her side, as she stuck by mine." She was quiet for a moment before tilting her head lightly, "...Why do you ask? Do I appear as such?" She smiled slightly at him.

"You... appeared to me as a guardian, did you not?" He gave her a warm smile, settling a hand gently on her shoulder for the briefest of moments, just enough to show her he did care about what she was saying before he withdrew it. "I see true devotion in your eyes when you speak of your sister. I'm sure she's very proud of you."

Resting his hands on his lap again, he let his gaze fall upon the plains as he tried to remember them as they were. "I do not think it is wise or healthy to blame yourself for her death. You were nothing but children. You are not to blame." His breathing, it could be noted, was quite laboured thanks to Jecht. Well, thanks to the Final Aeon. It was going to be difficult to separate man from Aeon it seemed.

"I wonder... have you ever seen an Aeon up close?" An almost childish grin came to the High Summoner's lips and he ghosted his fingers over the pole of his staff. He had yet to summon and the urge was beckoning him.

Maiyah closed her eyes briefly in a slow motion of her head. She looked back up when his hand was removed from her skin, "Thank you." She noticed the labored breathing and her brows quirked ever so slightly. "No, no I haven't... I didn't think they'd exist anymore now that Sin has gone...?" she said, "...Are you alright?"

"They exist. I hear them." Braska knew which Aeon called most to him. Jecht. His eyes settled on that little nook in the cliffside and he frowned slightly. He'd never call on that Aeon. Never. As he was asked about his well-being, Braska chuckled lightly.

How to explain... "I have a few broken ribs and a bruised lung. I'm afraid I was returned to the living realm not entirely mended after Jecht, my Final Aeon, dealt his finishing blow to me." At that he stood, bringing his staff with him.

The Summoner found a space a distance from her and closed his eyes, taking up stance to summon. What surprised him, mind, was that there were others. Other beings who beckoned him. Ones to whose Fayths he had not prayed... and there were a lot of them. Yet, with a concentrated thought, a glyph shone around him and, from the sky, Valefor plummeted, coming to perch behind the Summoner, curling graceful wings around the man with lilac hair.

Maiyah blinked at him and stood up, "I see... Maybe you should rest a bit--" She watched him summon the Aeon in awe. She stared at it, tensing up a little, though making no move for her weapons. She knew this beast wasn't going to hurt her, unless Braska ordered it--which he more than likely wouldn't--but still... it was rather intimidating. Especially since she's never actually seen an aeon up close like this before.

"Wow," she uttered, reaching up fingers to her lips, though not quite touching them, "...Amazing." There was something majestic about the aeon, despite its awkward curves and intimidating stature. It was a symbol of prestige. Of power, of innocence and purity... Of strength. "You mentioned Jecht... If you're here... then... is he around too? And your other guardian?" She couldn't remember the name of the third. It had been long since she heard the name but knew of his existence through word of mouth. He had vanished, but reappeared when young Yuna set out on her own pilgrimage.

Braska had attempted to speak but Valefor nudged at him, almost knocking him off his feet. Pouting quite childishly at the bird, he gave a gentle cratch behind the Aeon's crest and the majestic creature simply cooed and settled. "Heh... as fussy as always," he murmured.

Turning his attentions back to Maiyah, he smiled and nodded slightly. "Jecht is around, as is Auron... but Auron did not die with us... and so he has aged thirteen years while... while Jecht and I have not." A frown creased his brow and Valefor nuzzled him caringly, almost affectionately.

"So, I take it their names are as much 'legendary' as my own? Hn, Jecht will be highly amused." The High Summoner curled an arm to pet the bird that nuzzled and fussed at him, watching Maiyah. "Would you like to touch her? She doesn't bite. I cannot say the same for the others..."

"I see... I've never seen him... though I guess that's to be expected," she scooted the dirt with her toes slightly. She honestly wouldn't mind meeting them, but it wasn't something she was going to try and force. If she was meant to meet them, then she would in time. Though she wasn't sure what to say about meeting Braska, thirteen or so years after he defeated Sin and was presumably dead. She shifted her weight to one of her legs, pressing her lips together in thought.

She looked back up at the aeon and then to Braska, "...I don't know... would she let me..?" It was an honor enough to even see an aeon up close like this and be in the presence of one, but to touch them? She didn't even set foot in Zanarkand. "Is it alright to touch her...?" her thin brows curled upward.

"Oh, she's very affectionate, compared to the others. Ifrit is full of temper tantrums, Shiva is as expected; cold, Ixion hates being touched and Bahamut is very indipendant. The others have their own attitudes... they were people once, remember." Braska smiled and looked to the Aeon towering over him.

Silent words were exchanged and Valefor gave a nod, stepping around her Summoner and towards the girl. Her black eyes were unblinking and Braska did wonder what was going through her mind, but Valefor dipped her head down, making a light cooing noise.

Maiyah watched as the aeon approached her. She was intimidated, despite the apparent gentleness the beast presented. She took a step forward regardless and reached up a hand, turning it slowly and gently stroking the aeon's cheek just under her eye. She turned her hand back again and reached further back, touching the aeon's mane. Her tension relaxed slowly but surely, looking up at the aeon with a soft expression.

Braska's smile broadened as Maiyah touched Valefor. The aeon really was gentle and very motherly at times, which helped Braska keep Jecht in line and stop Auron and Jecht bickering long enough to pray at the other temples. With keeping that smile, he glanced to the crack in the cliffside where his guardians rested. "Hn... and they haven't even come to find me. Punishments are in order~" he murmured to himself.

Raising his staff, Valefor backed away from Maiyah before curling towards Braska, nudging him. "Alright, alright... I promise I won't wait thirteen years to summon you again. You can't blame me, though. I was dead." A soft laugh escaped before the aeon was dismissed and Braska looked at the young girl.

"My apologies. With my injuries, I couldn't keep her summoned for long," he murmured, frowning slightly at his own weakened state. It never was any fun admitting defeat.

Maiyah glanced at Braska at his comment. She reached up her hand and scratched gently at the back of her head. She tilted her head, watching the aeon as she left them. She gave Braska a concerned look, "...Perhaps you should head back to wherever you're staying and rest..." She walked towards him, "Is there anything I can assist you with?"

Braska noted her suggestion and thoroughly agreed with her. It was time to return and rest. Then dish out punishments. Though, it'd probably be just something to amuse himself. Settling a smile on his lips, Braska gave a light nod and began to walk. "You could accompany me to the monster arena in the cliffside. I reside there with my guardians."

And with that, he was off, whether or not she was going to follow him. He began walking through the grassy fields and his look of determination was ever present, even with a smile still firmly in place.

Maiyah smiled and nodded. "Allow me to guard you until we get there. It's the least I can do," she said. Though he would probably be tired of the whole being guarded thing, but the fiends here were wily and she couldn't see him fending off a pregnant coeurl. Not in his state. She grabbed her blades and her pack and followed him.

Despite Braska's apparent physical weakness, it wouldn't be likely that any fiends would be interested in bullying them. Maiyah's swords were like talons reaching for the sky at her sides. Not all too inviting, as far as the fiends were concerned.

"So, Maiyah, tell me. Aside from Gagazet, where are you bound for? Zanarkand is the only thing you will find past the Guardian Mountain. Do you wish to enjoy her serenity?" It really didn't bother him if people visited Zanarkand. Of course it was a holy place where heathens and the such should never set foot but it was a place where peace and sanctity could be found. A place where he'd made the decision to die by Jecht's hand. It'd been dreadfully painful to make that decision and, vaguely, he wondered if it had hurt Auron not to be chosen for the task. However, he knew Jecht wanted it so and the thought of Auron being the one to kill him... it was horrible.

Hardly any fiends did find their way towards them, maybe one or two, but they really didn't seem all that interested. It was the gamers and Al Bhed and all those running the attractions that seemed to be more predatory.

"No... I've never set foot in Zanarkand. I watch it from Gagazet's peaks, though I've never once intruded the necropolis," she said, "...I've never felt worthy enough. And I doubt I'd want to now with all the tourists and sphere hunters..." There were plenty of other reasons for not going to Zanarkand directly, most of them focusing on Kaiyah.

"I wander all over Spira, searching for truth... but sometimes I find myself wondering what it's all really for... I ask myself if it's really all worth it. Before Lady Yuna brought us the Eternal Calm... I wandered Spira, protecting people from Sinspawn whenever it appeared. But now that they're gone and the Al Bhed have helped keeping fiend activity in check, I feel like I don't have much of a purpose anymore," she explained.

Braska shook his head slightly. "What you need to do is get out of Spira, Maiyah. I have it on good authority that there is far more beyond Spira's seas. There is a whole world out there. Perhaps exploring it might do you some good, hm?" He rested a hand once more on her shoulder, though it was a little firmer, more authoritative.

"Zanarkand is not as you'd think. From what I heard through several mouths, the tourists have vacated and the shpere hunters have no more business there." He smiled softly, trying to keep his breathing as steady as he could. "I must admit, though, my daughter's Eternal Calm is not as exciting as the times between Calms. Of course Sin's attacks were dreadful... but we all had a single cause to strive for. Without Sin, Spira is drifting away from herself."

"Perhaps," she said softly before shaking her head slightly, "I still don't know if I'd feel right treading such ancient ruins..."

She looked up at the notion of lands beyond Spira, "...Really? I've never heard of lands beyond Spira's shores... I assume you've been to some of them? What are they like?" Her curiosity was piqued, almost seeming like the young quiet girl she once was before her sister died and left her to crawl home with blood on her clothes. "Are they anything like Spira?"

"I have yet to venture out of Spira's hold. I'm not well enough, if truth be told." He shook his head just a little, supporting his weight with each step by gripping tight to his staff. "I've been hearing about the lands from adventurers passing through the Calm Lands and from those in Bevelle. Many people from distant lands are appearing here."

A smile came to his lips as he gave a gently sigh. "I suppose I shall have to wait until I'm capable to travel long distances but I will see these lands, one day. I hear they are wonderous, and some far larger than Spira could ever hope to be." Though, he did have a little bit of trouble condoning all the machina... machines around these days. Times really had changed.

"I see..." Maiyah said before going quiet as she watched around for fiends. They weren't far from the Monster Arena, and when they got there, she stood back, not wanting to intrude without being invited in. "I suppose this is where we part," she said softly.

"Indeed it is." He gave a single nod and rested a hand against the cliffside, looking at her for a brief moment. "I would invite you in yet it is not my home to do so. I'm merely a guest." With a polite smile he moved to head inside but turned and took her hand for a moment.

His eyes settled on her face and Braska frowned just fractionally. "Maiyah. Stop blaming yourself. You should live your life for her, not in spite of your loss." He smiled softly and released her. "Thank you for your guardianship," he murmured, before vanishing away inside the cliffside.

Maiyah nodded and bowed to him, having figured that he wouldn't have a place of his own, having been dead for thirteen years or so. She looked up when he took her hand, lips parting slightly. She listened to his words before quietly nodding and pressing her lips together. When he let go of her she stood back and watched him disappear. She did the Prayer for him before turning herself and heading off towards Mount Gagazet.

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