Disclaimer: This piece is purely a work of fiction. I do not own the rights of Final Fantasy VIII, Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters...Square Enix does.
His vision blurred slightly as he found himself fully aware that he was staring intently into his lunch. He wasn't sure what was going on around him; it was just him and his food. It was nothing special, really. Some soup, a sandwich and a half-eaten dessert…a typical Garden lunch…and yet, it had him so fixated.
"Squall?"
That sound. Her voice. As softly as it was spoken, it nonetheless brought him out of whatever world he was in and he looked up at her. All previous thoughts fluttered away. She smiled slightly, concern washed over her features. Rinoa…He swallowed a thick lump in his throat. "Yeah?"
"You okay?"
It took him a while to figure out why she was whispering; there were other people at the table and she knew he would not want to draw attention to the fact that he had been stone silent for some time. "Yeah. Fine." He found himself whispering back, looking right into her eyes.
She gave him that look that he knew all too well. One that said, 'I know something's wrong.' But, instead of asking again, she simply sighed and reached for his hand under the table. The light squeeze of her hand on his fingertips sent a shudder through him.
Little touches and looks like these were what was keeping him grounded amongst everything. They made time stop and all the problems vanish for a split second before reality came biting.
Their world was in danger again.
No Sorceress, no time-compression, no 'trying-to-take-over-the-world' scheme…just strange little black creatures. Just black beings with bright yellow eyes intent on taking everything of value away from them all, whenever they chose to.
These beings were the reason why everyone at the table had brought their weapon of choice along. They were the reason why everyone at the table was fully stocked with powerful magic like Ultima and Flare. They were the reason why Zell was quieter than usual, why Quistis kept looking up at the 'Intruder Alert' warning alarm, and why Selphie and Irvine fidgeted with nerves.
He looked up at his friends sitting with him, his vision blurring again. Selphie was talking to Quistis enthusiastically, her hands flying as they tried to keep up with her story…but he could see that they were shaking…he could see the glances Quistis made at the alarm. Her blue eyes would focus sharply on it, almost willing it to sound, but when nothing would happen, she would relax for another moment.
The threat that these beings were giving to their home was obviously on everyone's mind. They could not be destroyed with regular brute force; there always had to be some sort of magic to accompany them…and any magic that had to do with light worked the best.
Of course, at lunch, all of these worries were cast aside…as best as they could…so that they could at least enjoy lunch together. At least they could pretend for a while.
It was then that Zell had returned from the line, carrying in his plate three hot-dogs with everything on it. He sat across from him, his smile wavering, his face shifting out of focus. "Hey."
Rinoa rolled her eyes at Zell. "You're disgusting. How can you eat a hot-dog with all that stuff on it? You can't even taste the meat anymore!"
His eyes fell on her again as she tried to get another conversation going. Her dark hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail by a blue ribbon. Rinoa…I…They were all trying to keep each other's spirits up, even though this threat was nearly overwhelming.
The dark beings had destroyed Fisherman's Horizon a few days ago.
Just like that.
What was once a peaceful fishing village was suddenly gone. Vanished into thin air. Just like magic, the civilians and all the animals were gone. Everyone and everything just…disappeared.
"No, Rinoa, you got it all wrong," Zell began, his mood lightening, "these condiments only compliment the taste." For effect, he took a big bite out of the first hot-dog…much to Rinoa's distaste.
"Watch it, Zell…those are some big words you're using. You're gonna get a headache if you keep it up." Irvine's smooth voice butted in from the other side of the table.
Mouth full, and unable to retaliate with words, Zell frowned and threw a piece of onion from another hot-dog at him.
"Zell! Stop throwing food! What are you, five?" Selphie playfully scolded as the onion sailed past her.
His eyes struggled to keep up with faces and dialogue, but he wasn't sure why. Everything was just so strange now. Everyone was on alert for the dark creatures that sometimes appeared from out of nowhere, popping up from the shadows…getting rid of all the light…
He caught Quistis' eyes looking up at the alarm again, now that Zell had Selphie distracted. He heard Selphie laughing as Irvine and Zell continued to fight. He felt Rinoa's hand squeeze his fingertips again, and he looked at her.
He had never seen her so sad. Rinoa…If you can hear this…I'm… Her eyes were downcast and her face was pale. She was worried, they were all worried, that their Garden could be next.
That their world would disappear. Just like that.
The sight of Rinoa fuzzed and broke up in his vision, but with another blink, it was back. He quickly reversed their hand positions so that he could be the one to squeeze her fingers reassuringly. The conversations around them suddenly quieted as Rinoa looked back to him.
…If you're listening…Please, I'm… It got hard to focus whenever she looked at him like that. A light smile playing on her lips, as if she had seen another shooting star…so carefree and strong…He gave a light smile of his own.
"Hey, Squall, do you have any free time this week to help me plan the Garden Festival next month?" Selphie's voice came to him. He was slow to respond. "Come on! You promised!"
"…How's Wednesday?" He leaned forward a little to get some eye contact with the smaller girl, but her face was blurred. He blinked slowly, and was relieved when Selphie's face was in focus again. …If any of you can hear me…
"What's the colour scheme going to be?" Quistis asked.
"I'm thinking black and gold…"
"Weren't those the colours from three years ago?" Irvine interjected thoughtfully, in between bites of his meal. He had to blink hard to even see Irvine's features from his position.
Selphie sighed and poked him in the ribs lightly. "No, three years ago we had the red and gold theme. If I can get about one hundred and fifty balloons…Do you think that'll be enough?"
"It should be." He heard himself answer.
"What bands do you have? Live music? Oh! Is the orchestra playing again?" Rinoa smiled.
"I'm hoping that I can book them…"
Zell swallowed down another hot-dog. "Remember last year? Those guys totally blew you off."
"I know! It was ridiculous!" Selphie took a long drink from her cup before starting again. He could barely hear her new thought…but he could see Quistis looking up from her drink again.
Staring at the alarm. …Please, listen…all of you…
He saw her eyes flash in surprise when the red light went on. Quistis dropped her drink and Zell nearly choked on his last bite. Everyone jumped a little when the alarm buzzed loudly. He looked over to Rinoa, who blinked slowly at him, trying to register that the moment they wanted to avoid had come again. …I'm just…I'm…
The moment of realization struck everyone's face, he noticed, as time seemed to slow down. He watched as everyone began to compose themselves, turning their fears into nerves of steel, their faces hardening, readying their minds for battle…
…I'm asking you…please…
Then, without a word of their previous conversations, they all stood, collected their weapons and raced out. It was now that all the anxiety disappeared. It was now that they became fearless. They couldn't risk losing everything. They would not let these creatures have control.
The hallways were flooded with SeeDs, cadets and instructors. He couldn't focus on anyone's face as the six of them rushed past the crowd. "They're on the east hull! They're coming in!" Orders were yelled as they all took the fastest route to the scene of attack. All the sounds muddled together as they ran.
He led them, with Zell and Rinoa up at his sides, Quistis in the middle and Selphie with Irvine bringing up the rear. He could hear them behind him…but just barely…as the sounds of battle echoed through the halls.
The black creatures had breached the hull without doing any damage to it. They were in.
He heard himself shout orders to those around him, like any Commander would do, as they entered the Grand Hall. Immediately upon entrance, there were flashes and cracks as energy whipped past them onto their intended targets. Some of the dark creatures were able to escape back into the floor without getting harmed.
But the ones who were hit vapourized on contact with powerful spells like Thundaga and Ultima.
He could almost feel the others getting ready to unleash their own slew of magic. He could feel the air around him get thick with energy. He had no time to look at Rinoa again however, as his body forced him to charge. …Please…
The creatures were scurrying around, with no real direction, using their black arms and bodies to lash out on the Garden's habitants and infrastructure. While many people who got hit stood back up to fight, others lay still…so still that not even the most powerful Cura spell could make them wake up.
Irvine had told him once, a memory that was slowing slipping from his mind, that the black creatures would steal their hearts if they were not fast enough to destroy them first. They would take it away from you, without giving you a scratch, and you would fall back into your body, unresponsive.
He had seen it happen, he told him. And he made sure that everyone understood what that meant.
He suddenly found himself in the thick of the battle, surrounded by the dark creatures. He could hear Selphie cast off multiple Thundagas in a row, he could hear Quistis' laser beams slicing the air, he could hear Rinoa and Zell fire Ultima, he could hear Irvine's recoil on his latest Quick Shot with Fire ammo. They were there, fighting…they were SeeDs, after all…and SeeDs protect their people, their friends, their loved ones from harm…
…Please, forgive me…
The creatures were everywhere. He could feel his magical energy rising as he let loose a Thundaga of his own. As the dust cleared, he raced forward, to get more traffic. Lionheart was flashing in front of his eyes, laying Sleep spells with every hit. The bodies of the creatures piled at his feet, but he would wait for another person to finish them. They all had to move.
He ducked, spun, and jumped out of potential harm's way, as he maneuvered himself around the Grand Hall. He unleashed some Blizzaga and a lot of Stop spells, to keep the creatures immobile and unable to sneak into the floor, away from harm. They would not get away.
There were screams, crashes and more explosions as the battle continued. He could barely hear any of it, though. More lightning and fire crashed and blazed around him, but the blood rushing in his ears and the sound of his heart pounding overrode every other sound. …Rinoa…I'm…
Chunks of debris were falling from the sky as the Garden's walls began to collapse. Windows shattered from magic and support beams crumbled. He turned quickly to see a large crack in the wall increase in size…and that there were three cadets situated underneath the cracking ceiling.
"MOVE!" He cried out to the unsuspecting cadets, racing over to them. He threw out as many spells as he could muster to the obstacles in his way, to hopefully get them to notice. "Hyne-dammit, MOVE!" But there were too many black beings around him to allow him passage. …Please, I'm…
"FLOAT!" He heard someone else call out. He skidded to a stop, lashing out with Lionheart onto the creatures that wanted to take advantage of his sudden halt. In a brief second, he saw Rinoa holding out her hands to the cadets, with a fierce determination on her face. The cadets that were in danger were suddenly a whooshed away on an invisible wind current as the heavy concrete slammed into the unoccupied ground. Rinoa…
Time slowed again…their eyes met from across the room. …I'm sorry…
"SQUALL!" The loud shout from Irvine snapped him out of his state and brought his attention to the creature that was jumping in the air to meet him. The yellow eyes were fixated on him, ready to steal him away…Lionheart was slowly picking up momentum as it began its ascent from his side. But its intended target was suddenly blasted away into a ball of fire as another Fire ammo from Exeter came into contact with the creature.
He whirled around to get a look at Irvine's face, but he was already turned away, firing at another one, giving aid to another inhabitant of the Garden.
The room seemed to spin around him, even as he was running straight ahead, towards the bigger sized creatures. He could see Zell, using his martial arts abilities to dodge them expertly and Selphie, nearby, calling on her advanced magic to support him. Quistis and Rinoa—he could see them in his peripherals—were teaming up with other SeeDs to take down a large group of the black beings. They were there, but not clear…their faces spotty and bodies blurry…but they were there. They were SeeDs, after all.
The battles were almost deafening at this point; there would be intense heat whenever Ultima, Thundaga or Firaga was fired…and then, it would cool down instantly when Blizzaga was cast. The damage the creatures were doing was nearly outmatched by the destructive forces of the magic. But it didn't matter. Garden could be rebuilt… if the dark creatures gained control…
…I'm so sorry…
His muscles burned and his body desperately needed rest from all the magic expulsion, but he couldn't quit. The spinning stopped finally, and he could focus on his targets again. They were tougher to take out, having doubled in size from his previous opponents, but he grit his teeth and pushed through.
He could feel them trying to grab onto his arms, his legs, to immobilize him…a cold touch that slinked down to his very core…Lionheart seemed to work automatically, swinging with precision, and casting Sleep on all that dared to touch him. The bright blue blade danced in front of his eyes as he expertly disabled them.
"THUNDAGA!" He roared, forcing his body for one more spell. Lightning shot out from his palm, striking several of the dark beings down. The flash of light was nearly blinding…the screams around him nearly drowning him…but he continued. "FIRA!"
He felt the rush of heat as fire danced out into the open air, nearly striking another SeeD, and charring one of the smaller sized creatures. Lionheart kept swinging, never missing a beat, as he moved forward. The larger ones were more aggressive and he cried out when one of them slashed him with their cold touch. Time seemed to slow, and he could feel the cold reaching into him, until he countered with a Firaga.
The room spun around him again, allowing him to see every angle…They seemed to be casting the entire Garden into shadows as they slinked into the floor and back out again. The once vibrant hall, with all its delicate architecture and soft colours, was disappearing from his sight. He couldn't let the darkness win.
…Forgive me, please…
He blinked once and found himself in another battle. Long dark claws reached out for him, but were swatted away by Lionheart. He turned around, hearing a scream, and sent another Thundaga over on impulse. It wasn't until he saw a familiar flash of bright yellow that he realized it was Selphie who had fallen.
Clouds of smoke, dust and debris began to pile up from the extensive use of magic. He felt his sweat pool at his brow from a nearby Fira spell…he felt goose-bumps rising at the summoning of a Blizzara…The sounds were too much…the Garden could not take much more of this…There had to be a source. A place where all these things were coming from…The numbers of the dark creatures kept rising…
As did the numbers of their fallen comrades.
Intent on finding it, he ran. He barely took two steps into this new mindset when he felt a low rumble through the floor. It steadily increased in strength, until any remaining windows abruptly shattered. Glass flew out in all directions and powerful winds suddenly swept into the room, giving more momentum to any debris. People began to scream as they were struck, but the sound was disconnected and varying between different volumes.
He felt something strike his cheek…his eyes watered as dust and dirt came close…but he ignored all of it and moved towards the source. It couldn't have been one of them to cause the explosions…No one had magic like that…He could see something outside on the balcony. Something big…that had blocked out the sun. …I'm sorry…He cast another Stop to an oncoming creature before jumping through whatever was left of the window.
The outside scenery had changed. The once sunny afternoon sky was covered in dark purple clouds…lightning crashed and lit up the sky…the strong winds blew overhead, pushing his hair and his clothes in different directions…and all of it seemed to be coming from the largest dark creature he had ever seen. A purple body with a shadow that danced like black fire…and the yellow eyes…
It had its hands outstretched to the sky, with the winds obeying the creature. It was like a tornado was forming from its hands…one that made the darkened clouds move into a funnel shape. The creature roared and pumped more energy into its storm. He stood there, eyes narrowed, adrenaline rising. It hadn't spotted him yet.
He gripped the handle on Lionheart tightly, knuckles turning white under his gloves, before taking off in the direction of the beast that could have easily been as tall as the Garden itself. Holding Lionheart steady in one hand and bringing the other out in front of his face, he channeled whatever magic he had left.
"ULTIMA!" The white light exploded from his palm and struck the giant creature in the arm, disrupting its stance.
Now it spotted him.
Its large yellow eyes narrowed as it let out a piercing, shrill cry. It did not have much time to react as Lionheart came down in a swift arc across its front. It cried out again, stopping its additions to the storm, and lashed out with its good arm.
He spun quickly, avoiding the deadly grip and the sharp talons from the creature's hand. It crashed into the concrete of the balcony, nails digging deep. Spinning back around, he moved quickly and approached the hand that was still stuck. He had an idea.
When his feet touched the hand, that unshakable chill ran through him…but he kept his momentum up and climbed higher, up the arm, dragging the sharp blade of Lionheart along the dark skin. He wanted to make it up to the creature's face, and let loose another spell there, however, he could not bring himself higher than the elbow. It was suffocating him.
He squeezed his eyes shut and thrust his arm out as he slowed his running pace. "ULTIMA!" He shouted for the second time, feeling the energy leave him and strike the creature in the neck. The loud, shrill cry came again, making his jaw shake, and the dark being retched its arm free, sending him into the air. …I'm sorry that I…
He saw the world spin around him as he flew, landing hard against one of the few walls left standing. His arm flared with pain as he tried to stand up again. "C—Curaga!" Lionheart had imbedded itself firmly into the ground beside him from the flight. He couldn't waste time…the Sleep spell wasn't working…He only had one shot now…
The creature, knowing that it would be interrupted again, doubled its efforts in creating the storm. Arm less sore, he ran towards it, noticing how the sky turned black and how the wind was fairly effective in keeping him quite the distance away. He felt his boots slipping backwards against the pavement as the wind pushed and gusted harder.
His eyes could barely stay open…He could barely move forward…He was so close…He could see the marks that his spells left on the creature's body and he was sure that one more hit would be enough to stop it. He crouched to the ground, lowering his center of gravity, and focused as hard as he could on the blurry, spotty image of the creature. …I failed you…
Steel blue eyes flashed and his teeth clenched as he called upon his last rare spell. "ULTIMA!" Light came forth from his hand and was on the path towards the creature's arm again.
But the winds were strong.
And the Garden was weakened.
Pieces of the hull broke off, heading towards the enlarged funnel cloud in the sky. Once the first pieces had been sucked in, it was a domino effect…and he saw more and more of the Garden fall into the sky. It shouldn't have surprised him to see his last Ultima spell be sucked into it, but it did. The pure light of his magic was easily engulfed by the excessive darkness.
"…No…" The words were barely off his lips when he felt the ground he was standing on break off. He stumbled back, in time to grab a piece of unleveled concrete and to watch the ground that he was previously standing on be sucked up. He felt his legs rising up with the wind, but his hands held on tightly.
His mind scrambled to think of something—anything—to stop this. …I couldn't protect you… He watched with wide eyes as the funnel got larger and as more items got sucked into it. He recognized trees and monsters from the forests of Timber, some machinery from Galbadia, parts of buildings and ruins…everything was being taken away into the sky. I couldn't protect anyone…
Lightning crashed overhead, and some even struck down on the crumbling Garden. The winds picked up, making it increasingly difficult to find grip. He kept his body as low to the ground as possible, but it was getting tiring. The wind was loud in his ears and his muscles burned…he turned his head to the creature again, and the yellow eyes smiled at him.
It was ready to steal him away.
He blinked first, turning slightly, to see bodies being whipped around like rag-dolls in the wind. He watched their path of flight and they all ended up in the funnel cloud. He saw people like him, barely holding onto their crumbling Garden, their crumbling world…he saw some of them let go voluntarily, and he saw some of them being unlucky enough that their anchor was ripped out from under them…
It was then he saw a flash of blue.
Like reception on an older television set, her body was fuzzy and grainy. She was holding onto a metal pipe that was protruding out from a slab of cement. He was glad that he could no longer see her face…It would have killed him if he had seen it.
"RINOA!" He shouted out to her. He looked back and forth between her and the distance he would have to travel to get there. He calculated and deliberated quickly…slowly, he began to move.
The wind whipped past him, tearing out chunks of concrete as he inched along. I'm sorry… He grit it out, pushing his body to remain as close to the cement as possible and to move laterally. He wasn't even sure what direction he was moving in at this point; everything was upside-down and backwards as the storm raged on.
She had seen him once he was halfway there. Her hands were slipping. "SQUALL!" He moved faster, sometimes holding on by his fingertips. He was close. She was right there. What he would give to feel her hands around his one more time. Please, please…
Finding a nook for his feet, he took a deep breath—nearly coughing it up from all the debris he inhaled—and reached one hand out to her. He stretched and positioned himself better so that she could grab onto him. At least, they could go together…
He watched her prepare herself for the risky grab. She tightened her hold on the pipe with one hand, knuckles turning white, and quickly shot out her other hand, grabbing onto his.
The wind continued to blow fiercely, whistling in his ears, as they stayed this way for a moment. Their eyes locked, and there was suddenly no more sound…he had never seen her look so sad. There were tears in her eyes, but he felt that pressure on his hand as she squeezed it.
The creature screamed again and the winds abruptly changed direction. Lightning struck down on the remaining pieces of the Garden, and suddenly, the pressure was gone.
The metal pipe, and the cement it was jutting out from, became detached. Time slowed down again, and Rinoa's face, shocked and pulled into a wail of despair upon realization, was blotchy and almost unrecognizable. It was cruel; he could feel every moment, painstakingly slow, as her hand inched out of his, and he was powerless to stop it. Forgive me…
His hand was still outstretched, hoping to connect with hers again as only their fingertips were touching …His heart lurched in his chest, his hand frantically trying to grab onto hers again…But suddenly, time was restored, and any lingering touch she had on him was ripped away, as she was pulled into the clouds at the regular fast speed.
"RINOA!" He screamed, the wind drowning out his voice. "NO! RINOA!" The fleeting sight of her crying face and extended hand got smaller and smaller…Darkness began to eat up the corners of his vision and he felt the last pieces of his home break…he felt the last pieces of his heart shatter…He let go.
Leon jolted an inch off the bed with a loud gasp. His body trembled slightly, heart pounding a mile a minute. His hair was matted to his forehead and neck, his body was slick with sweat and his skin was covered in goose-bumps. His vision blurred slightly, but refocused quickly, and he found himself staring intently at his pillow.
Moonlight drifted in from the windows of his home in Traverse Town, giving his sparsely decorated room a bluish glow. Once his breathing was sort of under control, he slinked out of bed and into the washroom, not bothering to turn on the light.
He leaned over the sink, gripping the edges tightly, as he swallowed more air to calm his nerves. He closed his eyes and immediately regretted the action as he saw Rinoa's face under his eyelids, with that sad expression…His body jolted again.
His hand shot out to the cold-water knob and turned it, splashing his face with water cold enough to make his hands turn purple. After the routine, he finally felt his body relax, every piece of his nightmare, his reality, pushed back into his mind. …I'm sorry…
The light was dim in the room, but it was enough to see his reflection in the mirror. His skin was damp, his face coldly expressionless, with eyes that showed every second of the nightmare he kept to himself…every sentence he never got a chance to say to her…every apology that he knew they would never hear…
It was nights like these that he wished the Heartless had stolen his heart that day.
At least he wouldn't feel like this.