Prologue
There was another clang of metal on metal as swords collided. The man looked at his opponent and watched as his eyes narrowed. He spun away, and held his sword out to defend. His opponent took a low swipe towards his legs, that he easily jumped and returned with another swing of his own, which his rival avoided, but he had to back off, and returned the assault with a glare. So far he was on top, and he knew his opponent was not happy about it, it may have only been early hours, and the light still poor, but these two men had been in so many fights, he felt he could read his facial expressions like a book.
The fight had been going on for about half an hour now, with no clear-cut victor, so equally matched were these two men. However at the sight of his opponent backing off, the man made his crucial mistake. He decided to end the fight and dive in, little realising his rival had already prepared his counter. As he dived in, he felt a sudden, heat-searing blow to his entire body, which sent him hurtling backwards, landing against a convenient rock.
Fire magic.
Well that was his rival's speciality. As the flame and smoke cleared, the man looked up, getting his bearings. As his eyes finally focused, he realised his opponent was standing above him, his sword raised, his eyes narrowed and an evil, triumphant smile on his face. Before he could do anything, he felt the blade slash across his forehead, along the bridge of his nose and just under his left eye.
Anger swelled up inside him. This had gone far enough. He had been holding back before, but if this was how it was going to go…
With astonishing speed, he leapt to his feet, drawing his own sword up in a neat arc, directly towards his rival's face…
1. The Garden
Slowly he opened his eyes, and then shielded them when he noticed the brightness of the lights. As he did so, he noticed the bandages across his head. Looking up he saw Dr. Kadowaki looking over him, and realised he was in the infirmary.
"How are you feeling?" she inquired
The mark across his face still burned and was quite painful. But on today, of all days….
"Ok I guess" He responded coolly.
"Well you seem to have come round" she nodded satisfied and then sighed. "Take it easy next time, you hear?"
Well I was taking it easy until...
"Tell that to Seifer" he retorted. Maybe he sounded rude, but he didn't care. It wasn't his fault. They'd only meant to have been training after all, and now here he was here in the infirmary on probably the most important day of his life. The day all this training had been building up to. To add insult to injury, his rival was nowhere to be seen in the infirmary.
"That Seifer…"
Exasperated. At least she understood how he felt.
"Why don't you just ignore him? You might not be so lucky next time"
"I have to train" he replied. "I can't just avoid these situations"
"You really want to be cool? Well don't get hurt in the process!"
….
"Let's see" she continued "Your instructor is Quistis, isn't it? Quistis Trepe." I'll call her for you now. Just wait there."
As she exited the room, he lay back down and put his hand to his forehead as he overheard Dr. Kadowaki.
"Quistis? Come and get your student…. Yes, yes, his injury's not serious, it'll probably leave a scar…"
He stopped listening and turned his head away towards the infirmary bay. As he did, he noticed a young girl looking in at him. She was about the same height as him, had short, chestnut-brown hair, was wearing a long-white skirt down to her ankles, a blue sleeveless top and long green ribbons around each wrist. Everything about her seemed to flow.
"Squall?" she said softly "So, we meet again."
She knew him? He sat up, and she walked off. He would have followed her, but he didn't think Dr. Kadowaki or Quistis would approve of him leaving the infirmary. Instead he lay back down and waited.
A few minutes later, the bay doors opened and in walked another woman. This time with blonde hair, tied back in regulation uniform, his instructor, and only a year older than him, Quistis Trepe. The most prodigious student in the entire academy. She looked over at him and sighed.
"I just knew it'd be either you or Seifer." He lay back down. "Well, come on, you don't want to be late."
Don't want to be… So he was going to be able to go for it after all. His injury seemed to pale away into insignificance as he leapt up out of the infirmary bed and followed Quistis down the corridor towards the main building.
"Is there something on your mind?"
What the...? He stopped and looked at her as she turned to face him. What kind of question was that to ask, on a day like this? He didn't respond, and was even more surprised when she started laughing.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"Oh nothing, just happy. I just feel I'm beginning to understand my student a little better, that's all."
"Whatever". He carried on walking. He didn't have time for this.
"So tell me." She persisted. "Tell me more about yourself"
What was this all of a sudden?"It's…"
"None of my business?" she finished the sentence for him and chuckled again.
He briefly looked back at her and carried on walking. He was still trying to place the girl from the infirmary. Squall. She'd said his name, she knew him. But from where? He wasn't the type to get in drunken binges, hook up with a girl and forget her the next morning. Not him. He was a cut above his peers. He was only a boy really, a boy of 17, but many would mistake him for a fully-matured adult. Many others his age, were carefree, frivolous and hedonistic. Typical for teenagers at a college, or university, away from their parents, with many others their own age, in a similar position. All the usual temptations when one is cut loose for the first time. Parties, drinking, sex, and, quite frankly, not giving a shit about the real reason they were here. Not him. He was wholly dedicated to his practise, studies and, most of all, his training, and he hoped it would pay off, in his final exam today. In fact, all the partying didn't really interest him at all. No, Squall was no ordinary student. But then, this was no ordinary academy.
This was the elite military school, Garden. One could enter as young as they liked. After years of rigorous training, they'd take the exam and graduate into the elite force known as SeeD. Once SeeDs, they would stay on at Garden and could adopt to learn to teach the others, or remain with the company, as mercenaries. Soldiers for hire. They'd be despatched all over the world, in a variety of missions. Extra numbers in a military attack. Defence for a VIP. Or even just as extra muscle at a large venue if things looked like getting too violent.
All the same, it was still a school where youths were left on their own, and many would take advantage of this fact. Squall was quite detached from his fellow students. Not just in attitude and behaviour, but socially too. He had no real friends. No-one he'd confide in or let anyone close to. The closest person to him would be his life-long rival, Seifer. He'd known him as long as he could remember.
Seifer was also no ordinary student. He was over-proud and had a super-ego. He felt as if he was above all his fellow students and insisted they treated him as such. He was pompous, arrogant and a bully. Along with his two best friends, Raijin and Fujin, they formed the disciplinary committee and had more than a bit of a tendency to abuse their position. Unfortunately, due to his superior air, he always believed he knew better and had thus failed his SeeD exam on more than occasion. This did not mean he was not one of the most superior fighters in the Garden.
This was the cause between his and Squall's rivalry. They were both superb fighters, and nearly unmatched with their specialty weapon, the gunblade. It was a normal sword, except for one detail. Instead of the normal hilt, was the handle end of a revolver, which could fire ammo. The range was short, but could deliver a powerful blow, especially combined with the slash of the blade. If timed right, and used correctly, it was a devastating weapon, one which both Squall and Seifer excelled with.
It seemed to burn Seifer up that Squall, a full year younger than him, was the only person who was a match for him with this weapon. He was so powerful and yet wouldn't show it, he appeared reluctant to fight others, weak even. And yet here he was, equal to him. It also annoyed him that Squall didn't even care for this rivalry, he just shrugged him off as if he were nothing. Their fights were merely training matches. His insults bounced off. He never rose to the bait. Maybe these were all reasons why, despite his coldness, his distance and his anti-social behaviour, Squall was actually far more popular at Garden than Seifer was. Not that Squall cared. His only ambition was to pass the SeeD exam today, and then… Well, his life would be decided for him. He would be nothing more then a pawn for others to command. That would be his life. But he didn't care. And if he did, he would never dream of showing it.
Squall walked into the classroom ahead of Quistis and took his seat at the back of the classroom, not even looking at Seifer, who was cockily sitting across the row from him, leaning back in his chair, resting his legs up the table.
"Sit down class" Quistis took up her position at the front. "This is not a lesson today, more of a pre-briefing.
"As you already know, today is the SeeD exam. Candidates participating will have free time until the exam. Meet at 1600 hours in the reception area. Those not taking part and those who failed last week's written paper are to remain here in study hall. That is all.
"Oh, and Seifer..."
Seifer looked up.
"Do NOT injure your partner whilst training."
Squall did not look up, but heard Seifer smash his fist down onto the table.
"Be more careful from now on. Dismissed!"
Seifer was furious! Now HE looked like the one in the wrong. He'd won the fight and yet he was being victimised, whilst Squall would be the hero! He'd be the one everyone would look up to, who the girls would fuss over, and he wouldn't even care!
Squall meanwhile had got up, and was walking out the class, not bothering to stay and chat as usual. All of a sudden, Quistis called out to him.
"Squall!" He turned. "You haven't been to the Fire Cavern yet, have you?"
I was gonna go this morning, but Seifer… He decided not to argue. Yes, he had genuinely meant to go earlier, would still have done so had it not been for Seifer going over the top. But then would come the usual, "well you shouldn't have left it till the last minute".
"No" he said simply.
"You won't be able to take the exam this afternoon if you don't pass this prerequisite."
He didn't answer.
"Let's see, it's 5 past eleven now, I'll meet you at noon outside. It should only take an hour, that gives you 3 hours free time till the exam."
He nodded and left. He was walking down the corridor, and was just approaching the lift, when a young female student ran out from the next corridor and collided with him, knocking him straight over. She was the same age as him, but about half a head shorter, with brown hair that ran down the side of her head, but then seemed to do a U-turn back up again.
"Sorry" she apologised. "Are you ok?"
The second time he'd been asked in one day. Not a promising start with a serious exam only half a day away.
"Wait a minute" she seemed worried. "Did you just come from that class back there?" She pointed at the door he'd just left. He nodded.
"Is-is registration over?" Another nod. "Woo… Oh no! This place is SO much bigger than my last Garden!"
Ah, a transfer student. That's why he didn't recognise her as one of his classmates. Probably here for the exam.
"Hey, do you reckon you could show me round?"
Well, he had an hour to kill. There wasn't much else he could do in that time. He certainly didn't feel like another training session, not after earlier
"Sure" he replied.
They emerged out of the lift into the main area of the Garden. He could give her a full tour, depending on how long it would take, but he'd at least show her the map, and point out all the main areas.
He took her over.
"The main areas are all on the ground floor." He told her. At the South end, is here, the foyer. The North end is where the dorms are. On the East Side is the car park, we usually take a car when a mission comes up." He looked at her, to make sure she was listening. "Along with the library, and the training area. The monsters are real there, so be careful."
"Ulp, ok" she nodded.
"On the West side, is the café, the quad and the infirmary."
"What's the Doctor's name?"
"Dr. Kadowaki"
"And the headmaster?" She continued.
"Headmaster Cid."
He realised that he'd been thinking of showing her around, but if he took her to the infirmary, Dr. Kadowaki may want to look at him, and find a reason why he couldn't take the exam later. He also realised something else. He hadn't collected his GF.
"It's all here on the map", he said to her. "I've got to run, I've forgotten something."
Squall ran back into the classroom, went to his desk and turned his computer on. After sifting through all the pointless student newsletters, he finally found what he was looking for. GFs, he selected.
"GF's registered for user Squall" the screen read. "Quetzacotl and Shiva."
He selected to draw them both and watched as the cone of pink light emanated from the terminal, forming a Draw Point. Concentrating, he focused his mind on it. In semi-meditation, he opened up the dormant areas of his mind, the Junction Pathways and allowed the two beings to flow in there and take residence, opening up new areas in his brain to give him access to Magic, the ability to heighten his Strength and other abilities, and, most importantly, to summon these creatures to help him out when he needed it.
Closing down the computer, he left and went to meet Quistis.