By: Y2Chai
(As per usual I own no one in this story save for a few original characters)
Prologue:
Squall sat alone in the dark and damp room. He found refuge here now. As each tear trickled down his cheek, he pondered the worst 72 hours of his life…
It all started this past Saturday. Squall, Rinoa, Irvine, and whatever girl Irvine had swooned at the time were all going to see a movie. It was a normal date, with Irvine and his girl making out the whole time. But afterwards all hell broke loose. They were standing out on the curb to the theater, the rain was pouring and they were all having a good time chatting about the corniness of the movie. Out of nowhere, a car came screeching off of the road and towards them. Irvine shoved Rinoa out of the way and caught the car head on. He's still in intensive care. Squall didn't have his Lionheart at the time, so he watched in horror as three dark figures came out of the car. They all drew out their weapons. The shortest figure had a hook for his hand, the tallest figure drew a scythe and the third figure drew something that looked exactly like the Lionheart. In one fell swoop they all slashed their weapons and Rinoa died on the spot. Squall looked on in horror as the intensity of the situation slapped him across his face. He lunged at the shortest man, only to have a scythe impede his path. Squall batted it aside, when a flash of green energy launched him straight into the box office. The last words Squall heard before slipping out of consciousness were, "Should we kill him Rexstar?"
The next morning he awoke in a hospital bed. It took him a little while to focus his eyes, a million thoughts swirling in his mind. He looked at the adjacent bed to see Irvine hooked up to multiple machines, obviously working to keep him alive. Squall swung his legs out of his bed when a sharp pain shot through his ribs. He knew his own body well enough to realize he had broken ribs.
"Whoa dude, chill out a second. You're still really banged up," chimed a very familiar voice.
Squall looked up to see Zell. Squall would have normally smiled to see an old friend like Zell, seeing as how they lived on opposite ends of the country, but now was not the time to rejoice.
"Zell… Please tell me that last night was a very intense nightmare…" Squall seemed to mutter to himself more than anything.
"I'm really sorry man. About Rinoa and everything," replied Zell.
"You're lying you bastard!" Squall shot up and punched Zell right in his face. Squall immediately collapsed on his knees, tears from physical and emotional anguish coursing through his body.
"Squall… I'm really sorry. If you want, take another shot," replied Zell. He had never seen his friend so out of it.
"No… Why?" through his tears, Squall looked up at Zell with unsubstantiated hope written across his face.
Zell just shook his hood and looked at Squall. "She's gone…"
Squall screamed at the top his lungs and collapsed under his own emotional exhaustion. The rest of that day proved to be nothing.
The following morning, Squall was released from the hospital. The first thing he did was go home and find Lionheart. He gripped the blade and felt the comforting weight of the hilt in his hand. He looked up in the mirror and was not surprised to see himself crying again. He swung Lionheart into its buckle and he walked out, deciding to first go the local police to see what was going on. The name "Rexstar" was all he had to work with. He walked into the police HQ lobby, and spotted the information center. He explained his situation and the young man at the desk directed him to Chief Detective Arsen's office. He knocked on the door when a surprisingly soft and eloquent voice invited him in.
"What can I do for you sir?" asked Arsen.
"The theater murder 2 nights ago…"
"Ah yes… Two men injured, one woman murdered correct?"
Squall grimaced and barely put out a, "Yeah."
"Well, how can I help you?"
"I need any information on a 'Rexstar'."
"Rexstar? Hmm… Rings a bell…" Arsen stroked beard and looked to be in deep thought.
"Please, take your time. This is a very important matter to me," said Squall.
"Well, of course! I am Rexstar!"
"What?" Angst and confusion flooded Squall.
"Brother, are you telling me you don't remember me?" Rexstar had a sadistic grin on his face.
Squall looked on in a total loss for words.
"Hmm… Where should I begin?"
"How about you fucking start with Rinoa!" Squall grabbed Rexstar by his throat and slammed him into a nearby locker.
"Now this wouldn't be smart brother…"
"Stop calling me that… I am not your brother!"
"Tsk tsk brother… killing me won't get you any answers…"
Squall loosened his grip and eventually let go of his throat. "Start talking…"
"Yes… I guess I should begin with the 'Gunblade Trinity' project…"
"Gunblade Trinity?"
"Yes… You see... Many moons ago, there was a group of scientists fascinated by the sheer elegance and strength of the Gunblade. The darn problem was that not one single subject they tested could fully master it. They were ready to scrap the whole thing when they discovered old texts of Gunblade techniques and journals of all who had mastered the weapon. Using this, they created three artificial humans, born and bred to be nothing less than human, all the while maintaining an inhuman mastery of the Gunblade. Thus, brother, the three of us were born," explained Rexstar.
Squall staggered back, trying to comprehend all of this information.
"Don't act so surprised… Ever ponder why you never knew or had any memory about you parents? Your parents were nothing but test tubes of chemicals. The orphanage was a simple alternative for the scientists as opposed to splicing a false memory of faux parents into your memory. Two out of the three of us ended up in the orphanage. I was personally raised by direct lineage of Gunblade masters."
"Two of us?" asked Squall.
Rexstar grinned. "Ah… yes… You remember Seifer Almasy correct?"
"Seifer too? But he died several months ago from a heart attack…"
"Yes, so? We are not immortal. We are everything human, save for our superior strength and skill with the Gunblade. And either way, I planted poison in Seifer's tea to cause his heart to spasm and make it seem like a heart attack. It was an assassination if anything…" explained Rexstar.
"Why?" asked Squall.
"Same reason I tried to kill you brother… You see, in the ancient texts, legends already existed of three brothers who were all masters of the Gunblade. In a cataclysmic chain of events, the three of them all died. Legend says however that had one brother survived, his skills would have multiplied infinitely through the spirits of his other two brothers, and created the ultimate warrior. I will fulfill that legend, and become the legendary Gunblade master of lore," explained Rexstar.
"What did Rinoa have to do with this?" said Squall through gritted teeth.
"Well, another legend tells of a Gunblade master who fell in love with a woman and had 7 children, all of whom were masters of the Gunblade and united were an unstoppable force, as well as all of them being of the pure heart. Seeing as how Seifer never was emotionally attached to any woman, I figured that legend told of… Rinoa was it? Yes… I figured that she was the one, and the last thing I needed after I kill you was 7 more pure hearted warriors who together could exceed my strength," explained Rexstar.
Squall had heard enough, he drew Lionheart and glared at Rexstar. Everything he had heard from him had overwhelmed him. He drew his Lionheart on instinct and felt the comfort of the hilt again.
"You see that my brother? Your Gunblade seems to be your vice away from all of your worldly troubles. A true mark from the product of the Gunblade Trinity project."
"Die you bastard!" yelled Squall. He lunged at Rexstar and aimed for the side of his ribs. Out of nowhere, another Gunblade materialized in Rexstar's hand and it deflected the blow. The collision of the two weapons created a miniature explosion. Rexstar's Gunblade was identical to the Lionheart except in color. While the Lionheart had an ethereal blue glow, Rexstar's Gunblade was a sinister and dark red.
"Like it? I call it the Blood Blade!" yelled Rexstar. "It's strength grows from the blood of its victims. It can only kill, it does nothing else!"
"What's going in there?" yelled officers outside the office.
In a completely different voice, Rexstar yelled, "HELP! He's trying to kill me!"
"Break the lock now!" ordered someone outside.
"Until next time brother! Think of it like this, that jail cell will keep you alive a little while longer!" Rexstar opened up the nearby locker and then jumped out of the window. A corpse fell out of the locker; Gunblade wounds the obvious cause of the death. Several officers burst in, and when they pieced together the apparent puzzle. Squall saw that the name tag on the officer read "Chief Det. Arsen." He also realized that he was holding a Gunblade over a man who was apparently killed by a Gunblade…
Squall sat in the jail cell, the pitter patter of water from a nearby broken sink lulled him to sleep. His eyes were red from crying them out, as he realized all that had just happened within the last 72 hours. The only thought he had as he fell asleep was that these jail cells weren't protecting him from Rexstar; they were protecting Rexstar from Squall.
Chapter 1 Preview:
Squall escapes thanks to an old friend. Zell and Irvine set out on a similar odyssey to help Squall. Rinoa receives shocking news in the after-life. Rexstar and his companions, Spade and Reaper, prepare to slowly take away every important person in Squall's life, starting with Former Headmaster Cid…