The Lost Valentine

Chapter 3

I never got as much of a chance as I wanted for researching summon gods, but I did look into the life stream. It was fascinating. I found an old man named Machen in the deep recesses of the building. He looked lost, and I helped him find his way out. He saw the papers in my hand though, and politely inquired.

I'm glad he was there. He was better at translating than Rinoa. (Though, I still want to talk to her and translation was my only excuse.) He told about a strange story about the Religion of Yu Yevon.

It's a little hard to remember, but truly interesting. A young woman who was a summoner (Apparently without materia only those with a special skill could summon the gods.) She received a guardian from the gods, made up of the afterlife. A person. A dream... he couldn't quite remember. I don't get how a person can be made of the afterlife, but he got confused about other stuff, so maybe he made a mistake. Anyway, this dream person/ ghost aided her in defeated Sin. The way he said it made me wonder... Was Sin an actual fiend, rather than a personification of it? But it helped her beat Sin and took it over to the afterlife with him.

I asked about the afterlife. I want to know if it is the same as the Lifestream, but he didn't seem to know much about the Lifestream. A little disappointing. I was convinced last time I went through this with Rinoa that they were the same, but he seemed so confused.

Regardless, he looked at the sheets I'd taken a long time ago, with something that resembled the Shin-Ra logo on them. This ended my own confusion about the Lifestream, but filled me with concern. It said that the life force of the planet, from which summon beasts come from, will one day burst forth from the planet and cleanse everything. It sounds like an end-of-the-world type idea, but ... I don't know. Maybe it was how much detail the author had gone into about how humans come from the Lifestream, how they return to it and how everything about it links up. I'm not used to scientists believing in some form of god so strongly. Perhaps that comes from living in the secular society of Midgar though.

Then it occurred to me; someone with this much knowledge may have another reason for believing the Lifestream who move out from the planet's core to wash over its surface. What if they had some kind of proof that has been lost with time? I pushed it out of my mind though. Machen then showed me another sheet, not one of the ones I had. It spoke of a place to see the dead. Machen called it the window into the Farplane. I have no idea what it means still. Though, he did try to explain to me. Something to do with pyreflies and the dead. But you could only see those who had died. Something to do with sending people too. But he didn't say where they were being sent, or for what purpose.

We talked for a long time... I say talked. He rambled and I listened. What he said may not make sense, but he seemed to have knowledge that exceeded that of anyone else. I took him to the front rooms and asked if anyone knew who he was. No one did. Maybe he is just an old scholar that drifts... kind of freelance. I decided to take him to the hotel I was staying in and get him a room. He's a really good old man. I couldn't just leave him alone.

He didn't seem to recognise anything. The first thought that came to me from that was how long had he been there? Then I realised it can't have been too long. He only had a small bag with him, so he couldn't have much food or anything with him.

He gave me some coins for the room, but I don't know what they were. I stuck them in my pocket to avoid seeming rude, but I don't know what I'll do with them. I wanted to ask about the robes he was wearing. Now that we'd gotten out and into sunlight, I could see they were frayed, badly. They were faded, with intricate patterns woven into them but he seemed comfortable in them.

He told me he'd speak to me tomorrow and retreated into his room. I headed to my own room to clean up, and then left to find Rinoa.

She was sat in her front garden, leaning back and enjoying the sunlight that filtered through the trees. Beautiful. I called out, and she sat up, grinning. As I made my way over, she turned away as if disinterested, but even I could see the smirk.

I asked about Machen, to see if she knew who he was. I wanted to find someone who knew him. He must have family, friends... in the very least colleagues. She said she'd look into it for me.

She then invited me inside. I can't deny I suddenly developed a very tight knot in my stomach. Once inside, I know I was gaping. I know I'd been in the library building, so I'd seen inside these structures, but this was beautiful. The pillars resembled trees, and had been made to look as though the branches at the top were holding up the roof, which I noticed seemed to be covered in a leaf pattern. The walls were plain, but the door ways were framed by the same beautiful nature design as the pillars. There were arches and columns throughout. They were corroded, fatigued and fractured, but still amazing.

I can see why the General made this his home. I was staying in one of the few modern buildings in the city. It was nigh on impossible to get permission to build anything here. Gardeners paradise though. The roads had been redone, but there were no new ones created. The majority of the place was woodland and it was so in touch with nature... it was breathtaking.

I am unendingly glad I convinced my boss to let me do my research here.

We sat in her room and chatted about everything and nothing. It killed off my nerves. I relaxed and enjoying myself immensely. It was late when I decided I should get back. She walked me to the front and pressed a kiss to my lips. She grinned slightly as I gaped. She simply told me to take her out sometime then greeted her father, who was returning home.

I went back to my room in my own little world. My thoughts shot around, wondering if she really meant it, or if it was a joke. I hoped not. She really is something else. I was sat staring at the wall when the phone rang. It was my mother. She wanted to know how I was getting on. I'll admit, I gushed. It all came out and I told her about Rinoa, how I knew her and what I thought of her. It felt good to get it off my chest. I also told her about Machen. She said I was doing the right thing.

When I hung up, I was feeling much better. Why is it mothers can do that? I'm 18 years old and I still feel better for clinging to my Mum. I lay back on my bed and thought about how I'd spent over a year now working for Shin-Ra. That had to be good. I had heard all kinds of horror stories about how soon people got fired from the research department.

When I'd started, my boss had given me a strict warning. Shin-Ra did have their own version of secret police. Turks. It was a small but highly efficient division of those who could kill you with no effort. I had to be sure nothing I did would truly piss Shin-Ra off. I had taken it to heart. I have no interest in ending up dead.

I headed over to the bathroom to get ready for bed, my head starting to fill with thoughts of Rinoa again.