VANISHING POINT
A Star Ocean 3 Fanfic by Ender
Chapter One: Pieces
Something was missing.
"Try it again," said Nel Zelpher, her voice cool and professional. "But this time, try to make me believe you're taking this seriously."
The young woman – little more than a girl – standing before the red head swallowed hard, then charged, letting out a war cry, fists flailing in a move that seemed more like an act of desperation than an attack. Nel sidestepped deftly and casually – yet none too gently - knocked the younger woman onto her back.
Something was missing.
"And what, exactly, was that supposed to be?" snapped the leader of the Crimson Blades, as the young trainee struggled to catch her breath. "Don't they teach you people anything at the academy anymore? Belaine, you are training to battle, not to gamble - and as such the last thing you should be depending on is dumb luck!"
The young woman blanched, and tried to stammer a response. "But, but, Lady Nel… I thought…"
"No – you didn't," Nel replied shortly, trying in vain to keep the disdain from her voice. "That was the entire problem."
Striving to hide her impatience, the red-head turned away from her fallen opponent. Nel did not see the look of sheer hatred Belaine through her way as the Crimson Blade addressed Tynave, who was standing nearby with Farleen, both of whom wore somewhat shocked expressions.
"Take over," Nel told the blonde agent, as the red-head began to walk away from the practice field. "I'm already going to be late for the debriefing with Magister Laselle as it is, and its obvious I won't be of any more use here."
Tynave saluted smartly but then fell into step beside her superior. "Lady… don't you think you're going too far? She came all the way from Airyglyph to train with us – the heat here is very hard on her… Belaine has only been with us for a month."
Nel sighed in exasperation. "Indeed she has – and what has she learned in that month? Nothing that showed today at the very least. If we're going to rebuild our forces, we're going to need to be able to- " the red-head stopped speaking suddenly as she felt a wave of warmth from behind her.
"Lady Nel – look out!" Farleen cried, but Nel was already moving, pushing Tynave to one side as she herself ducked and rolled under the respectably sized fireball. Before anyone else could so much as blink, Nel's blade was at Belaine's throat and her hand gripped the younger woman's blue-black hair, before the trainee could even lower her outstretched arms.
"Better," Nel said in a calm voice, "But today's lesson is for physical attacks, not runology. For example- " The Crimson Blade leader switched her grip on Belaine's hair and smoothly threw the trainee against the wall of the practice field.
Nel gazed in cold fury at the dazed young woman, but willed herself to calm down. The fireball had not been of enough size or strength to be a serious attack – mostly flash and no substance. If Belaine had really attempted to kill her, Nel would have ordered her immediate incarceration… as it was, no matter how personally affronted Nel was, the spell had been nothing more than insubordination. Not that Nel was inclined to treat the latter any more lightly than the former…
"Continue the session, with five extra hours – of both runology and physicals," Nel instructed Tynave and Farleen as they rushed to her. "If she has enough energy for a fireball spell, she has enough energy for at least that much training."
The Crimson Blade turned swiftly on her heel, brushing off some dirt from her scarf.
"And when she comes to – tell her that the next time she wants to try something as idiotic as that… She'd better be good enough to finish the job."
Nel sighed, her heels drumming lightly against the ramparts of the Kirlsa Training Facility as she looked out across the surrounding dry, night enshrouded landscape, her thoughts awhirl and her heart heavy.
Something was missing, and others were beginning to notice.
It had been a long day. Meeting with Laselle was never a pleasant task, and before she could return to her quarters, Claire had cornered her by the chapel. Her silver-haired friend was beginning to grow concerned over Nel's recent behavior.
"You've been tense and irritated almost from the moment you returned," Claire had said, her eyes full of worry. "This isn't like you."
"I've been busy," Nel had replied curtly, but her friend had been unwilling to let it go at that.
"It's more than that. You've always loved your work, but lately you're drowning yourself in it. Doing more doesn't necessarily mean you're doing better Nel…"
Nel's eyes had narrowed. "Is that a complaint about how I've been doing my job Claire?"
"No!" the other woman had replied, exasperated. "It's not – why are you being so defensive? It's just that you act as if you're… you're trying to distract yourself from something, and its making you miserable… Not to mention the people around you. And then there was that incident this morning…"
"Ah – so that's what this is about. It's not the first time that I bruised a trainee's pride in exercises."
"But it's the first time one of them has actually attacked you afterwards!" Claire had insisted. "Doesn't that tell you anything? You've changed Nel!"
Nel had tried to shake her mind free of the conversation, but Claire's words had stayed with her, and had led her once more to seek refuge in the old Training Facility. While there was talk of Airyglyph recomissioning the structure, for now it was a ghost fortress, inhabited by nothing but dust and shadows…And, for Nel, bittersweet memories.
They rolled over her like a wave. The first time she had stepped into these halls, alone and ready to die for her friends – and surprised when she discovered others were willing to do the same for her. And the last time she was here… and the tragedy that had led her on a journey to the edges of the universe – and beyond.
She sighed again, more quietly this time. Maybe she had changed… it was next to impossible to go through what she had gone through, and not change. Nel looked out at the world that, all of a sudden, seemed small to her… Even she had begun to call it Elicoor now. The Crimson Blade leant against the stone, her face to the starry heavens, and wondered at the suns and the planets that lay, just beyond her vision… And all the people who lived, just beyond her reach.
I wonder how he's doing…
The thought had come unbidden, and shocking in its clarity. Nel shut her eyes tight and forced the thought down, down into her subconscious, but a noise from below brought her back to the present. Cautious by nature, the Crimson Blade peaked over the rampart towards the large, open arena that lay below her. In the darkness, she could barely make out anything, but there was enough light that she could make out the shambling figure making its way to the center of the arena.
Nel's sensed trouble – the facility was supposed to be abandoned. It had been locked and sealed, and few people had the ability – such as she herself – to enter the complex as things stood, and even fewer would have had a good reason to do so. But then, the stooped figure hardly looked like a bandit or a smuggler, and he appeared to be unarmed. Nel was still deciding on a course of action when the figure suddenly dropped to his knees.
In a flash Nel was over the rampart, and at the side of the man. "Are you alright sir? It's dangerous here…" she asked then stopped, her mouth open in shock. Even haggard with fatigue and gaunt with hunger, she recognized that face… the azure of his hair and of the eyes that stared sadly into her own.
"Nel..." he said, in a tired voice, too old for his age, "Nel… Did we win?"
"Fayt?"
He smiled, once, then collapsed at her feet.
Author's Notes:
First fanfic in awhile – but what can I say? I love Star Ocean 3 and Nel too much not to give it a try – even with my sporadic schedule :P Comments and feedback is always welcome, and will help convince me to make time to see this fic through. What to expect? Nel x Fayt – but not without complications, as well as a plot which ventures across some ground not covered in the game itself. Oh, and did I mention NelFayt?
As for the title… Here's what our friendly dictionary has to say:
van·ish·ing point
n.
1.
a. The point at which parallel lines receding from an observer seem to converge.
b. The point in linear perspective at which all imaginary lines of perspective converge.
2. The point at which a thing disappears or ceases to exist.
By the end of this story, all three of these definitions will have taken some sort of meaning in the story. I'll give you the first one – this will be the story of how the lives of Nel and Fayt will converge and intertwine as time goes by.
The others – well, you'll find out soon enough
