DISCLAIMER: Okay, here's the deal. I don't own Final Fantasy any more than you do. (If you happen to be an employee of Squaresoft, disregard that last) All characters from any FF, past, present, or future, are copyrights of their corresponding game. All original characters are mine, with the exception of Astarte and Sindai, who are members on Final Fantasy Online Forums.
Chapter One
In which a Storm breaks and a few Characters are introduced
A year has passed since Squall and his companions defeated Ultimecia. The world is at peace, sun is shining, birds are singing, TV programming has taken off due to Esthar's Sorceress Sealing System going offline, SeeD has very little work to do, and even the indigenous creatures are bothering people less and less. It's even become safe to take your children out for a picnic on the beach. However, everyone knows that good things never last, and if they did, fan fics such as this one would never get off the ground. So it is with this idyllic scene.
Suddenly, dark clouds roll across the sky. Esthar's Orbital Meteorological Station is mystified as to the cause of this sudden cloud cover that seems to cover the entire globe. The clouds hang over the people's heads for a few days, as if taunting them. Then it began to rain. Not a gentle rain, one that just said, "Hello, here I am. Don't I feel nice?" No, this was one of those rains that fell in droplets the size of peas. You would know this rain, because as soon as you stepped out into it, you would be wet. It rained with a malicious intent that somehow allowed itself to seep in past the tightest of collars and largest of umbrellas. The rain was accompanied by lightning and thunder.
The lightning, as if guided by some malignant hand, struck targets of opportunity. Esthar. Deling City. Balamb and Galbadia Gardens. Blackouts resulted, and the Gardens had trouble steering. A day or so after the lightning strikes, the tornadoes began. Tearing up farms and countryside, it seemed like the storm would never end. It is into this maelstrom that the first of our lowly heroes rides.
* * *
Marlene opened the throttle on her motorcycle and raced down the highway. The wind and rain made the going a little rough, but she had handled worse weather. The manipulator claw on her gunarm twisted the accelerator, squeezing every ounce of horsepower out of her 'Makari MK 4' Motorcycle. She had built the motorcycle herself with the help of her father, Barret Wallace. She smiled at the memory. After he had defeated Jenova and Sephiroth, she had looked up to him more than ever.
She had trained most of her life in SeeD, and when she had turned 16, had taken the largest step of all. She had, with her father's blessing, had a gunarm grafted onto her right arm. It was more advanced than her father's and she was VERY good at using it on anyone or anything that pissed her off.
She pulled herself back to the present to avoid a tree that had fallen across the roadway. She was just startng to relax and enjoy the ride when a tornado corkscrewed out of the clouds behind her and began roaring towards her. She started to get a little worried.
Normally, her bike could easily outstrip the tornado. But with the rain and the dirt road, she needed an extra boost. She flipped up a small red switch cover on her left handlebar and flicked the switch under it. Nitro rockets ignited on either side of the bike, and she roared off, flames shooting out of the tailpipes. The gap between her and the tornado grew steadily larger, and ahead of her in the rain-soaked distance she could make out the lights of Galbadia Garden. Reaching the paved road at last, she pointed her bike at Galbadia Garden and left the twister far behind.
* * *
August sat huddled under a tree, waiting for the rain to ease. He had been in bad storms before, some of the rains they got in Grandidi Forest were enough to drown a Malboro. But he was no longer in Grandidi Forest, or even on the Esthar continent. He had travelled to Deling City on a business trip, following a wealthy socialite and reporting back to his wife, and got caught in the middle of nowhere on his way back. So he sought out a forest and took shelter.
All the forest creatures were acting restless. Geezards were burrowing fitfully, Cockatrices were glaring balefully about, and even the Mus, generally timid, shy creatures, were acting extraordinarily belligerent. Settling down for a nap, he was awakened by a motorcycle roaring by not ten feet from him. Leaping to his feet, he got a glimpse of its afterburners disappearing into the distance. Then he heard the roaring of the tornado coming towards him.
He began to run in the direction the motorcycle was heading, then realized he'd never escape the tornado at his present speed. Reaching deep into himself, he found a set of muscles that was rarely used. Squeezing them rhythmically, he felt the world around him slow. The howl of the wind subsided to a dull roar, sticks and leaves, driven by the wind, bounced off him slowly, and the tornado slowed to almost a crawl. In actual fact, he had merely activated a superadrenaline gland that increased his speed and reactions tenfold. Taking a deep breath, he began to run.
As he ran, sticks and leaves driven by the wind were left behind as he raced by them. After a few minutes, he saw the afterburner of the motorcycle that had passed him in the distance. He was steadily gaining on it. Looking up, he saw he was directly on course for Galbadia Garden, and figured that would be a good enough place to stop and wait for the storm to clear. He rocketed into the Garden parking lot just as the girl on the motorcycle parked her bike and got off. He slowed, and relaxed his muscles, returning his body to normal speed. He walked over to the girl on the motorcycle, intending to introduce himself.
* * *
After the threat of Ultimecia had vanished and Edea was left powerless, her White SeeDs were pretty much out of a job. So they started hiring themselves out to anyone that needed their services, just like the other SeeDs did. They specialized in magaical battles, due to their training to defend and perhaps eradicate Edea, when she was a sorceress.
Reeve had been a White SeeD since he was old enough to stand and although he liked the smell of battle, he disliked hiring himself out to all and sundry. He preferred it when he was protecting Edea, so every time he had a day free he went to visit Edea in her home. He liked to make sure that she is alright, even though she is out of danger now, without her powers. Plus, she also makes a killer cup of tea. Her coffee's not too bad either.
They had been chatting about the 'old' days, when she used to run the two orphanages (Reeve's orphanage and the one that Squall was in). Although she ran them both, she kept them seperate for some reason.
Whilst they were chatting, Reeve happened to notice a large storm cloud on the skyline. Edea commented on how it was 'rather large' and was approaching them 'quite fast'. Reeve stared at the cloud for a second and indeed it was moving quite fast. Faster than he had ever seen a cloud move before. There was something not quite natural about it.
The clouds were storm clouds. Bad weather was approaching. If only they knew how bad the weather would be. The dark clouds hovered overhead for a second and then let forth hail, snow, sleet and rain, all at once.
After rushing inside, Edea offered something stronger, before he rushed outside to batten down the hatches on the doors and windows. Satisfied that Edea was safe, Reeve rushed through the strong wind, rain and other bad weather, to the White SeeD ship that he had docked just along the coastline. The sea was very choppy. He was lucky the ship hadn't floated off without him.
It would be a rough trip back to Esthar.
Chapter One
In which a Storm breaks and a few Characters are introduced
A year has passed since Squall and his companions defeated Ultimecia. The world is at peace, sun is shining, birds are singing, TV programming has taken off due to Esthar's Sorceress Sealing System going offline, SeeD has very little work to do, and even the indigenous creatures are bothering people less and less. It's even become safe to take your children out for a picnic on the beach. However, everyone knows that good things never last, and if they did, fan fics such as this one would never get off the ground. So it is with this idyllic scene.
Suddenly, dark clouds roll across the sky. Esthar's Orbital Meteorological Station is mystified as to the cause of this sudden cloud cover that seems to cover the entire globe. The clouds hang over the people's heads for a few days, as if taunting them. Then it began to rain. Not a gentle rain, one that just said, "Hello, here I am. Don't I feel nice?" No, this was one of those rains that fell in droplets the size of peas. You would know this rain, because as soon as you stepped out into it, you would be wet. It rained with a malicious intent that somehow allowed itself to seep in past the tightest of collars and largest of umbrellas. The rain was accompanied by lightning and thunder.
The lightning, as if guided by some malignant hand, struck targets of opportunity. Esthar. Deling City. Balamb and Galbadia Gardens. Blackouts resulted, and the Gardens had trouble steering. A day or so after the lightning strikes, the tornadoes began. Tearing up farms and countryside, it seemed like the storm would never end. It is into this maelstrom that the first of our lowly heroes rides.
* * *
Marlene opened the throttle on her motorcycle and raced down the highway. The wind and rain made the going a little rough, but she had handled worse weather. The manipulator claw on her gunarm twisted the accelerator, squeezing every ounce of horsepower out of her 'Makari MK 4' Motorcycle. She had built the motorcycle herself with the help of her father, Barret Wallace. She smiled at the memory. After he had defeated Jenova and Sephiroth, she had looked up to him more than ever.
She had trained most of her life in SeeD, and when she had turned 16, had taken the largest step of all. She had, with her father's blessing, had a gunarm grafted onto her right arm. It was more advanced than her father's and she was VERY good at using it on anyone or anything that pissed her off.
She pulled herself back to the present to avoid a tree that had fallen across the roadway. She was just startng to relax and enjoy the ride when a tornado corkscrewed out of the clouds behind her and began roaring towards her. She started to get a little worried.
Normally, her bike could easily outstrip the tornado. But with the rain and the dirt road, she needed an extra boost. She flipped up a small red switch cover on her left handlebar and flicked the switch under it. Nitro rockets ignited on either side of the bike, and she roared off, flames shooting out of the tailpipes. The gap between her and the tornado grew steadily larger, and ahead of her in the rain-soaked distance she could make out the lights of Galbadia Garden. Reaching the paved road at last, she pointed her bike at Galbadia Garden and left the twister far behind.
* * *
August sat huddled under a tree, waiting for the rain to ease. He had been in bad storms before, some of the rains they got in Grandidi Forest were enough to drown a Malboro. But he was no longer in Grandidi Forest, or even on the Esthar continent. He had travelled to Deling City on a business trip, following a wealthy socialite and reporting back to his wife, and got caught in the middle of nowhere on his way back. So he sought out a forest and took shelter.
All the forest creatures were acting restless. Geezards were burrowing fitfully, Cockatrices were glaring balefully about, and even the Mus, generally timid, shy creatures, were acting extraordinarily belligerent. Settling down for a nap, he was awakened by a motorcycle roaring by not ten feet from him. Leaping to his feet, he got a glimpse of its afterburners disappearing into the distance. Then he heard the roaring of the tornado coming towards him.
He began to run in the direction the motorcycle was heading, then realized he'd never escape the tornado at his present speed. Reaching deep into himself, he found a set of muscles that was rarely used. Squeezing them rhythmically, he felt the world around him slow. The howl of the wind subsided to a dull roar, sticks and leaves, driven by the wind, bounced off him slowly, and the tornado slowed to almost a crawl. In actual fact, he had merely activated a superadrenaline gland that increased his speed and reactions tenfold. Taking a deep breath, he began to run.
As he ran, sticks and leaves driven by the wind were left behind as he raced by them. After a few minutes, he saw the afterburner of the motorcycle that had passed him in the distance. He was steadily gaining on it. Looking up, he saw he was directly on course for Galbadia Garden, and figured that would be a good enough place to stop and wait for the storm to clear. He rocketed into the Garden parking lot just as the girl on the motorcycle parked her bike and got off. He slowed, and relaxed his muscles, returning his body to normal speed. He walked over to the girl on the motorcycle, intending to introduce himself.
* * *
After the threat of Ultimecia had vanished and Edea was left powerless, her White SeeDs were pretty much out of a job. So they started hiring themselves out to anyone that needed their services, just like the other SeeDs did. They specialized in magaical battles, due to their training to defend and perhaps eradicate Edea, when she was a sorceress.
Reeve had been a White SeeD since he was old enough to stand and although he liked the smell of battle, he disliked hiring himself out to all and sundry. He preferred it when he was protecting Edea, so every time he had a day free he went to visit Edea in her home. He liked to make sure that she is alright, even though she is out of danger now, without her powers. Plus, she also makes a killer cup of tea. Her coffee's not too bad either.
They had been chatting about the 'old' days, when she used to run the two orphanages (Reeve's orphanage and the one that Squall was in). Although she ran them both, she kept them seperate for some reason.
Whilst they were chatting, Reeve happened to notice a large storm cloud on the skyline. Edea commented on how it was 'rather large' and was approaching them 'quite fast'. Reeve stared at the cloud for a second and indeed it was moving quite fast. Faster than he had ever seen a cloud move before. There was something not quite natural about it.
The clouds were storm clouds. Bad weather was approaching. If only they knew how bad the weather would be. The dark clouds hovered overhead for a second and then let forth hail, snow, sleet and rain, all at once.
After rushing inside, Edea offered something stronger, before he rushed outside to batten down the hatches on the doors and windows. Satisfied that Edea was safe, Reeve rushed through the strong wind, rain and other bad weather, to the White SeeD ship that he had docked just along the coastline. The sea was very choppy. He was lucky the ship hadn't floated off without him.
It would be a rough trip back to Esthar.