A New Frontier

Opening his eyes, Andrew found himself in a fairly colorful world with crisp air, blue skies, and pristine, white-sand beaches.

"How strange..." muttered Andrew, looking around at the beach and then up at the sunny sky above. He couldn't recall having ever been to one, but he had the distinct impression it would be an amazing place to spend time with the girls, particularly in their bathing suits...

'First things first,' thought Andrew, leaping more than 10m to reach the top of a moss and tree-covered sea cliff. The ruins of a rusted metal tower sat atop it, so Andrew leaped to the very apex of the slanted building to get a better view of his surroundings.

Though his Link function didn't allow him to choose his starting location, it always placed Andrew at the approximate location of where he wished to be. As such, even though it was his first time seeing it in person, Andrew could tell by the tropical trees, plants, and distinctive ruins that he was on Besaid Island, one of the southernmost points of Final Fantasy X's world, Spira.

"Well, I know where I'm at. The only question now is 'when'..." muttered Andrew. When he first arrived in FFIX, he had about a month before the events of the canon kicked off. FFXIV also afforded him about two weeks before the Warrior of Light appeared in Gridania, but FFVIII only gave him a few hours before Squall set out to undertake the exam that would make him a SEED, one of Balamb Garden's Elite Combat Forces.

Deciding that the best way to get answers was to seek them out, Andrew moved through the jungle, leaping across stone outcrops and over quite a number of waterfalls before he discovered a rather precarious path of dirt and stone. Iron chains linked together by wood and metal stakes to stop people from wandering off the path, but since most of the chains dangled around knee-level, it wasn't the most reassuring barrier.

Following the winding path upward, the cliff providing a great view of the sapphire blue sea that seemed to stretch out to the ends of the horizon, Andrew eventually found himself at the top of a cliff supporting a 'familiar' memorial, a largely destroyed stone pylon. Andrew seemed to recall it had some significance, but as it had been years since his playthrough of FFX, he couldn't recollect any specifics.

Since it probably didn't matter, Andrew turned away from the memorial and made his way up the final incline leading to Besaid Village and its associated Temple. The village was exceptionally small, comprised of twenty or so thatched-roof huts and constructed from locally sourced materials. As for the Temple, it was a large, seemingly ancient construct of bluish-white stone, built atop an elevated stone platform and covered in intricate designs and ornate carvings. Several archways connected to the central temple complex, but its most surprising feature was the giant shell serving as a roof over the entrance, the width of which had to be at least 10m across.

As Andrew approached the village, its residents, dressed in simple but colorful clothes, noticed him. One, in particular, an old woman dressed in a yellow and purple dress adorned with unique patterns, made her way over to him, smiling as she said, "Welcome to Besaid Village, traveler. If you are here to speak with the Crusaders, you can find their lodge near the back of the village. If you're searching for a place to stay, there is the local inn, but if you're willing to do a bit of manual labor, my hut has a bed you may use."

Adopting a smile of his own, Andrew remarked, "Thank you, ma'am. That's very kind of you. But before I decide anything, I'm going to check out and pay my respects at the Temple."

"As you should," hummed the woman, stepping back with her left foot and angling her arms down before bringing her foot forward and arranging her hands as if holding an invisible ball. In the ancient past, a thousand years prior, this was traditionally a victory pose for players in a profession called Blitz Ball. Now, due to misinformation spread by the Bevelle, the capital of Spira's dogmatic society and the home of the Yevon faith, the largest and most influential religion in the world.

Since it would make things more difficult for him otherwise, Andrew mirrored the elderly woman's prayer before parting ways with her, his destination the Temple at the back of the village, overlooking a cliff that provided an overview of nearly the entire island. At least, that 'was' his destination until he spotted a familiar group of people gathered outside a particularly large hut. The one that stood out the most was a large, cat-like man with white hair, a beard, a broken horn, yellow eyes, and a muscular body garbed in tribal clothes and covered head to toe in blue fur. There was also a brown-skinned man with orange hair styled into a distinctive coif hairstyle, his body garbed in a bright and sunny outfit, but the two Andrew paid the most attention to were the women in the group. The first was an exotic, gothic beauty with fair skin and raven-black hair fashioned into several braids. Her voluptuous body was garbed in a black, fur-lined dress adorned with dozens of belts, but the thing that stood out the most about her was the stuffed moogle she carried around like a giant teddy bear.

Though the gothic beauty drew Andrew's attention, the person his gaze most prominently focused on was a young woman with shoulder-length brown hair curling sweepingly near the ends. Her ensemble consisted of a purple-pleated, flower-patterned hakama, a yellow obi, black boots, and a black spaghetti-string top beneath a white sash that wrapped around her neck and hugged her breasts. Separate kimono-like sleeves adorned her forearms, attached above the elbows, and she wielded a Khakkara-style staff with a circular golden head, a dark blue shaft, pink wrapping around the base, and a tiny bell dangling from the pommel.

Without hesitation, Andrew made his way over to the group of four with a smile, earning their attention and causing the blue-skinned cat man to bar his passage, towering over him with crossed arms as he said, "You, leave," in a deep, no-nonsense tone.

Though the man towered over him at 204cm tall, Andrew maintained a fearless smile as he hummed, "No, I don't think I will."

Before the man, known as Kimahri, a member of the lion-like Ronso Tribe, could attempt to 'make' Andrew leave, the brown-haired girl he had been staring at moments prior said, "Wait, Kimahri. I'm sure he means no harm."

Stepping past Kimahri, smiling and staring at Andrew with her distinctive green and blue eyes, the young woman said, "My name is Yuna. May I ask for yours?"

"The name's Andrew. Nice to meet you, Yuna," replied Andrew, extending his hand for the latter to shake. She was initially confused by his actions, but after a moment of awkwardness, she placed her delicate hand in his own, narrowing her eyes into a beautiful smile as she expressed, "It's nice to meet you, Andrew."

"Hey, now. Let's not get too ahead of ourselves," said the man with the unusual orange hairstyle, stepping forward and crossing his arms as he said, "We don't know where this guy came from, and we don't have much before you're set to enter the Temple, ya?"

"Wakka's right," said the busty goth woman, moving to stand on Yuna's opposite side as she eyed Andrew with her singular, wine-red eye. Her second eye was hidden behind the bangs that covered the left side of her face, but she gave the impression she could see through anything as she met Andrew's gaze and asked, "Who are you? No boats are scheduled to arrive today, so how have you come here?

Pointing skyward, Andrew replied, "I dropped down from another world. Figured my tail would make it pretty clear I'm not from around here."

Punctuating his statement, Andrew raised his tail, waving the tip from side to side. The busty goth, Wakka, and Kimahri stared at him strangely, but Yuna's heterochromatic eyes practically lit up as she asked, "Are you truly from another world?"

"Nonsense," answered the busty goth, narrowing her eye into a withering stare as she asked, "Who would believe such a silly tale?" while staring at Andrew.

"I'm afraid she's right," replied Andrew, raising his hands and shrugging exaggeratedly as he said, "The truth is, I surgically attached this tail and swam all the way over to Besaid just to play a trick on you. That makes a lot more sense, doesn't it?"

"Hey, watch it, smarty pants," said Wakka. "Lu ain't tryin' ta offend you or anything. It's just, you wouldn't be the first to come over to Besaid, tryin' ta get all chummy with Lord Brahska's daughter, you know?"

"I am the first from a different world, though," said Andrew. "I can even prove it if you'd like."

"And how do you plan to do that...?" asked Lu, better known by her full name, Lulu.

"Simple," said Andrew, extending friend requests to everyone present.

"What's this?" asked Wakka, frowning deeply as he assumed the window before him was some kind of strange magic or forbidden machina tech.

While everyone else was indecisive, Yuna smiled when she saw the message asking her to be Andrew's friend, happily accepting it as she asked, "I'm happy you want to be friends, but how does this prove you're from another—"

Before Yuna could finish speaking, Andrew transported himself and her to his penthouse, a section of the suite that provided an overview of the city from floor-to-ceiling windows. Yuna was startled by the sudden change in scenery, but the sight of the city below, bright and lively even in the dead of night, prevented her from speaking for several seconds.

Breaking Yuna from her reveries, Andrew remarked, "We should probably return before your would-be Guardians rally the village to start searching the entire island."

Turning to face Andrew, Yuna was momentarily surprised by the subtle differences in his appearance. When he extended his hand for her to grab, however, she immediately entrusted her own to his large and warm palm. Then, in less time than it took to blink, they had returned to her world.

"You! Get away from Yuna...!" shouted Lulu, releasing the Moogle in her arms, allowing it to move of its own accord while Kimahri and Wakka cut off Andrew's potential paths of retreat. Lucky for the doll and everyone else present, Yuna quickly interjected, standing protectively in front of Andrew with her arms spread, shouting, "Please, wait, everyone! He was telling the truth! I saw it with my own eyes...!"

Drawn by Yuna's exclamation and the actions of Wakka, Kimahri, and Lulu, the people of Besaid began to gather around, mostly out of curiosity but a few carried makeshift weapons such as rakes and pitchforks.

"We don't know that what you saw wasn't some kind of trick or illusion," warned Lulu. "For now, it would be best if you stepped away from him, at least until we get a better understanding of the situation."

Surprising everyone present, Andrew appended, "She's right. I'd also like to avoid having to fight and beat up my future allies, so let's all take a step back and try to de-escalate things."

Punctuating his statement, Andrew raised his empty hands as if he were planning to surrender. However, while he didn't mind turning himself over for questioning, he wouldn't take it sitting down if they tried to rough him up. He already had Yuna on his contact list, so if push came to shove, he could always whisk her away until things calmed down or they developed enough sense to avoid antagonizing him...

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