Author's note: Only been a year since my last update… oh, what can I say? I suck.

It will come as no surprise to anyone that I own nothing of this other than the plot (such as it is); I'm riding on Squaresoft's coat-tails hoping to go unnoticed.


WHIRLWIND

Chapter 1: Incursion


They came by night, shrouded by science, darkness and the rumblings of an unquiet sky. Wings born of high technology bore them safe through the storming night towards their target, a vast humped shadow like some slumbering monster. Silently, gracefully, they slipped through its invisible shroud of protective electronics to alight on its shell, gatherings of fleas unnoticed on the back of a great tortoise.

No fleas these, though. A strobing flash of lightning illuminated them for an instant, a frozen tableau of lethal high technology from their close-fitting smartsuits to the sleek, deadly forms of the assault carbines slung at their sides. They moved swiftly, efficiently, following procedures practiced until they were second nature. The gliders were secured and stowed, weapons checked, climbing rigs readied. Not a word was spoken as they separated into twos and threes, a routine drilled into them over months of preparation.

At the center of the activity their leader – known even to his own team only by his callsign, Saber One - watched them with a critical eye and a touch of pride, for he had undertaken their training. He had judged them ready almost a month before, and since that time they had waited for the opportunity this storm had given them. Watching them work now he knew he had been right, and was glad of it; their objective was the ultimate hard target, and they were heavily outnumbered. They would need to be at their best.

And we are, he thought with satisfaction. One by one the teams departed to their assignments; he and Alpha team were the last to set out, ascending the steep curve of the hull towards their first target.

As he climbed Saber One's mind was racing, processing the tactical situation as updates from the other teams began to trickle in. The rhythm of the reports was a familiar beat, so often had they practiced it: everything was proceeding as planned. Saber One knew better than to expect it to continue indefinitely, but he relished every moment that it did. Under his helmet his lips curled into a sneer: arrogant and complacent, their target was ripe for the picking.

Moments later the team arrived at the transceiver cluster that they were heading for and briefly separated, circling it in two directions and pausing briefly to attach compact electronics packages to its base before reuniting above it.

Fifty metres farther on, a secure access hatch was recessed into the smooth metal of the hull. Saber Two drew a slim omnitool from a hip pouch and went to work.

It took her less than a minute. The hatch slid open and the three of them slipped into the darkness beyond.


"Quistis!"

The voice shattered a pleasant dream of bubble baths and champagne, replacing it with a whirl of flying paper and a cool, hard tabletop. Her steel-rimmed glasses clattered across the table as she jerked upright, blinking, dazed and disoriented. A strange sound was ringing in her ears, one it took her some moments to place.

When she finally succeeded her expression shifted from confusion to exasperation.

"Yeah, very funny, Xu," she growled, amusement in her expression belying her irritated tone. Her friend's response came out haltingly, punctuated by peals of laughter she was evidently having difficulty containing.

"Sorry, Quisty, but you just looked so adorable snoring away like a little golden baby.." the older woman broke off with another burst of laughter, this one culminating in a fit of gasping breaths that had Quistis mildly concerned her friend might just die laughing. Not, she thought wryly, that Xu hadn't brought such a fate on herself.

Eventually Xu quietened, regaining her composure with visible effort. She took one look at Quistis – now fumbling about trying to find her glasses – and collapsed into laughter again.

"I'm really not sure it's that funny," Quistis muttered grumpily, knocking a stack of test papers off her desk to join others scattered about the floor. Where were her damn glasses?

The laughter quieted again and the dark, vaguely Xu-shaped blob loomed closer. Quistis frowned, squinting and was wondering what her friend was up to now when the world came abruptly back into focus as Xu slipped her glasses back on.

"Ah, sorry, Quisty," Xu repeated, though she neither sounded nor looked very remorseful. She paused for a moment, looking suspiciously as though she were marshaling another outburst, wiping tears from her eyes.

Quistis snorted, stooping to gather the papers she had knocked off her desk. "Yes, well I'm glad one of us is having fun," Her tone softened, "…haven't heard you laugh like that for a while." In truth, she thought, there had been precious little laughter about the Garden for some time. Straightening the papers as she rose, she turned to look at her old friend. Xu met her gaze with one that suggested she knew just what Quistis was thinking.

Her words bore that out. "There hasn't been all that much to laugh at. Well, except for Sleeping Beauty of Balamb, of course." She snapped her fingers, feigning vexation, "Blast. Wish I'd had a camera."

"Right, that's it," Quistis finished gathering her papers, rolling her eyes at Xu as she did so, "I'm going to finish these in my-" she stopped abruptly, her gaze falling on the clock over the door. "Please tell me you changed the time on that thing?"

"Yeah, I did," Xu replied, straight-faced, "Only, not really."

Quistis groaned in disbelief.

"I have class in three hours!" she moaned, stumping out of the door towards the elevators.

"Yeah. Well, lucky you got some shut-eye," Xu quipped brightly, trotting to catch up.

"Leave me alone," Quistis growled, summoning her best instructor's voice to no avail. Xu kept pace with her, seeming to Quistis to somehow manage to do so as loudly as possible.

"What sort of friend would let a friend walk home in your condition?" she asked blithely, apparently addressing the world at large, "What if you fell asleep in the middle of a walkway? There could be an… incident." Xu gave the last word the royal treatment, stage-whispering loudly and wiggling her eyebrows dramatically. Quistis smiled in spite of herself, knowing this was a side of Xu very few people got to see.

"What the hell are you on today, girl?" she asked, and then frowned as another thought struck her, "And why are you up, anyway? Caffeine overdose?"

Xu sighed, her manner becoming that of an exasperated adult explaining a simple concept to a somewhat backward child, "If you paid more attention you'd notice I'm up at all odd hours these days. Comes with being Deputy Headmaster – you know, a real job." She paused, frowning, "Then again, maybe you don't know. Y'know they do say, those who can, do, those who can't-"

"All right, all right, sorry I asked," Quistis sighed. While it was good to see Xu in high spirits and even in her current state it cheered her, she really needed to get some sleep. They had reached the elevators as they spoke, and she thumped the call button

Xu didn't respond, but Quistis could feel her smirking. "What? Come on, Xu, if there's something you want to tell me then spill, or let me get to sleep for... well… fifteen minutes…"

"Really, Quisty, I don't know what –" Xu began. Quistis rounded on her, one eyebrow quirked and a look in her eyes Xu knew better than to trifle with, "Whoa, whoa, okay. Cid wants to reinstate your license. I tried talking him out of it, but you know what he's like when he gets an idea in his head – like a dog with a damn bone…" she trailed off, grinning broadly and enjoying the expression on her friend's face.

A long moment's silence was broken by the elevator's arrival.

"You're kidding," Quistis finally managed. Xu frowned.

"You know, you could try to sound happier," she muttered, though her eyes were glittering. Quistis, shaking her head, walked into the elevator. "Anyway, Selphie's organizing the party-"

Quistis' head snapped up, her expression alarmed. "You – Selphie? But she-"

"Flying down today." Quistis closed her eyes and slumped against the side of the elevator as Xu paused, then added, "Kinneas too..."

Quistis was lightly banging the back of her head against the wall now, her eyes shut tight and her expression pained. Xu couldn't restrain a smile as she continued, "Selphie said she'd get a few people to help out – uh, Rinoa, Zell, your old team – she was on the line to the commander all afternoon, I don't think even he could resist her for that long."

"No…" Quistis' eyes snapped open and she leaned forward, urgency in every line of her figure. "Xu, you've got to get me out of this!"

"Out of what?" Xu feigned confusion, "You don't want a party? It'll just be a small thing-"

"No no no, out of the whole thing! I don't want to go back to Instructor full time, Xu!" Quistis' voice was almost a whisper, as though she were communicating some scandalous secret.

"Oh." Xu paused, "Right."

"I'm sorry, Xu,-"

"Well, uh, if that's how you feel I guess-"

"It is, look, I'm happy to help out - take up the slack when you guys need me, but-"

"Sure. Fair enough-"

"-I like being a regular SeeD."

"Okay. Well, um... you, uh, could have said something-"

"I know, I know, I'm sorry!"

"Right."

Quistis looked so miserable Xu couldn't prolong her suffering any further.

"Mmm, didn't think you'd go for it," she said finally. Quistis looked up, hope sparking in her eyes, "That's what I told the headmaster."

"You did?" confusion clouded her bright blue eyes, gradually mingling with suspicion as Xu nodded, "And he went ahead anyway?"

"Well… no."

"No." The confusion was entirely gone now, along with the suspicion. What had taken their place could reasonably be described as calculated homicidal intent. "So all that about Selphie…"

"I do hear she's doing well in Trabia," Xu commented, keeping a straight face with a Herculean effort, "Pity she doesn't get down here more".

"Right." Quistis grated, her own composure clearly at the very end of its tether, "Maybe she'll come back for your funeral!"

If Quistis hoped to cow Xu with that, she failed dramatically. Xu merely twinkled at her.

They remained like that for a moment before Quistis' resolve faltered and she snorted. Xu actually giggled in response, and within moments they were both helpless with laughter.

Quistis leaned back against the wall, letting the laughter wash through her. It felt wonderful to let it free, to give rein to simple joy even if it was only for a few moments. Shifting the papers in her arms she freed one hand to wipe tears from her eyes. As she did she glimpsed Xu doing the same, which perhaps inevitably set them both off again.

A few minutes and relapses later their laughter had faded to occasional shudders. Xu took a deep breath.

"Oh," she sighed, "Oh, Quisty. You must be seriously tired to fall for that."

Quistis grinned, raising her eyes to the ceiling, and shook her head as Xu continued, "So I should tell Cid that's a big no, then?"

"Eh?" Quistis started, "I thought you were joking?"

"Yeah, well, everything after that part," Xu explained, "but Cid did make the suggestion. I told him I didn't think you'd go for it - so did Squall - but I'd check with you."

"Oh." Quistis thought it over, pleased by the offer. "No, you were right. It's nice to do it on occasion - this last week's been great – but I don't want to go back full time. You think he'll be okay with that?"

"He'll survive," Xu replied dryly, "Don't worry about it. One of the reasons he waited this long was that he didn't want to lose you from the active roster."

"I should thank him for the offer, though,"

"He'd like that," Xu's smile softened, "Congratulations, anyway, Quisty. You earned the choice."

Quistis smiled gratefully at her. After a moment's companionable silence she glanced up, frowning.

"Is this thing even moving?"

Xu pursed her lips, giving her the patient adult look again, "I'm not an expert, but… sometimes it helps if you push one of those buttons." Quistis looked at the untouched controls and groaned.

"You could have said something," she muttered.

"I did." Xu responded, all wounded righteousness. Quistis mock-glared at her as she stepped across the elevator-

-and something landed heavily on the roof. Quistis' head snapped up to the ceiling then across to Xu, who was unsnapping the flap of her holster. Quistis gave her a questioning look and Xu shrugged, frowning.

Before either of them could do more the roof hatch slid open and a black-clad figure dropped into the elevator. His head snapped around to face Quistis and the weapon in his grip followed suit.

Instinctively Quistis threw her armload of papers in the man's visored face. Undeterred by the momentary blindness he fired from the hip, his short burst barely over her head as she dropped to the floor. His second burst went into the ceiling as Quistis, pivoting on her hands, scissored his legs with her own and before he could recover from the fall Xu put two rounds through the temple of his high-tech combat helmet.

For a long moment the only sounds in the elevator were their harsh breathing and the soft fluttering of Quistis' papers settling to the floor. Their eyes met and the spell was broken; Xu's pistol swung up to cover the hatch as Quistis yanked the man's body towards her by the legs. Freeing the carbine – a sort of machine-pistol gunblade, she noted – she slung it at her side, jamming his spare clips into her belt. His pistol she passed to Xu along with the long dagger in his boot-sheath. After a moment's consideration she handed Xu the webbing belt with his grenades, counting them both lucky he hadn't dropped one to clear the elevator.

Xu nudged her with one boot as she finished, gesturing at the ceiling with her pistol. Following her signal Quistis was momentarily at a loss as to her friend's meaning, but after a moment understanding struck her in a chilling realization.

The ceiling was bleeding.

At least, blood was trickling from one of the holes their assailant had put there.

Neither woman moved for a heartbeat. Then Quistis rose silently to her feet, moving to try and get a look through the open hatch as Xu, pistol gripped in both hands, continued to cover it. Unable to make anything out Quistis signaled Xu her intent, slung the carbine across her back and with a light spring caught the edge of the hatch and swung herself up through it.

Another black-garbed corpse was slumped on the roof of the elevator car, this one the victim of pure bad luck. One of the first intruder's wild shots had taken her under the chin; she'd never have known what hit her. Quistis stripped her ammunition, passing the carbine down to Xu.

"Check her for comms gear," Xu's voice was an urgent hiss. Quistis nodded, pulling the woman's helmet free. A moment later she leaned back through the hatch.

"No go," she informed Xu, "It's wrecked."

"Yeah, this one too," Xu cursed softly, "Elevator comm's out too."

"Oh come on," Quistis groaned, "Don't tell me that got hit too."

Xu shook her head, grimacing.

"No, this one's not our fault. These guys," she kicked the man's body by way of explanation, "or friends of theirs, probably toasted the network."

"Right," murmured Quistis. Her mind raced, sorting through possibilities and options, "Okay. Let's try getting to the bridge." She reached down to help Xu up.

Xu glanced down at the body on the roof, dusting herself off absently. "Lucky," she muttered. Quistis nodded, but didn't reply. "Quisty, this gear-"

"Yeah," the younger woman sighed, "I know. All TC standards."

"So we're probably not talking about just a couple more guys."

"Nope," Quistis started climbing, her mind churning. Galbadian tech-commandos. If their intruders were what they appeared to be there was a world of trouble ahead.


Saber One repeated his directive to Dagger Team with no result. Inwardly, he cursed; they had given no indication of trouble, just routine updates followed by this damned silence. Perhaps it was a comms failure… he shook his head. The protocol was clear; he had determined it himself. Assume the unit to have failed and proceed accordingly.

A quick check confirmed the other teams were still on target, or better. Rapier Team had just completed acquisition of Target Two and were standing by.

"Rapier One, Rapier Two, leave Three with the target and proceed to the bridge. Dagger Team is not responding. Investigate and eliminate any resistance. Move!"

Rapier One acknowledged the orders briefly. Saber One toyed with the idea of going to back them up himself, but dismissed it; his team still had other work to do, and Rapier could take care of themselves. He checked his chrono; they were still ahead of schedule, he noted. Plenty of time for success.