Disclaimer: I do not own the Final Fantasy series and Square Enix. I do own the storyline and the new characters, such as Millea and Daine. (I bet you wish you did…)
Author's Note: This chapter will be focusing on the characters of the story and their relationships, such as the characters from the original game Final Fantasy VIII and the characters that I invented. Some foreshadowing and references will also be scattered throughout this chapter. There's really not anything more to say, so I hope you read through it and stick to the end! Oh, and there's a shower scene! Yay! (It's not porn, okay?) Also, the thoughts of the characters are in italic except for the quotes at the very beginning of chapters. (Like the one below this)
Final Fantasy VIII: Wounds of Time
Act 1 Beginning of Pathways
Chapter III - Commencement's Wake
An arrival that left a great wake behind: questions unanswered and people hurt both in the inside and outside. Will recovery ever embrace the place that was once wondrous and joyful just the day before? That was just the commencement of something bigger, and the wounds of time are still far from being healed yet.
Rinoa sat idly on a chair beside a bed coated in a white, spongy mattress. She was quietly reading an epic and striking book entitled 'The Pilgrimage of a Summoner' whilst the clock silently ticked. The petite hand just passed the first number as a boisterous hum echoed, and time couldn't be anymore slower. As she flipped through another page, a chilly, howling breeze swirled from the open window of the room. The dreary curtains started to flap as the wind grew more intense. Squall, who was sound asleep on the bed recovering from his injuries for a few hours already, began to shiver as the cold air lowered upon his serene, pale face. Noticing him tremble, the girl got to her feet and hastily secured the window with a gentle clunk. Soon after she situated herself back in the chair, the woman closed the novel she was reading and moved the seat nearer to her love. She was the one who found him unconscious at the aftermath of the battle, and she was worried deeply by what had happened. The lady gently caressed his dormant face and observed his sealed eyes. Rinoa tenderly pressed her warm cheeks against the man's chest as if listening to the beat of his heart.
"Squall… I hope you wake up soon… I miss you."
Tiny beads of tears sauntered down her face as she rested her face on the man. The girl started to sob delicately, as she didn't want to awaken the slumbering man. He had wounds all over his body, and even though they weren't fatal, many were deep and painful. Dr. Kadowaki even said that some of the lesions might leave scars, just like Seifer left behind the mark on his forehead. Rinoa gradually picked up her head and examined the bandages that littered Squall's body. Within a second, she immediately looked away as she couldn't bear to see them. Heartilly wiped away her tears and sniffed briefly. The woman started to read the thick book again. Realizing that the book was filled with tragedies and fading dreams, she once again sealed the book shut and hid it away in the nearest timber drawer. Not wanting to shed tears once more, she walked up to the window and thought of the sorceresses.
Anger and bewilderment built up inside her as the cruel and malevolent women were pictured inside her mind. She wanted to know why they were looking for her and Ellone. Rinoa then contemplated the resemblance between what happened five years ago and now: both of them were crucial to the plan of their enemies. The girl established the thought of Time Compression.
What if that was their goal they wanted to achieve? Why would they do it? Just to bring destruction and mayhem on the world?
These questions rang repetitively on Rinoa's mind, and she dared not to answer these inquiries for the girl knew that the answers won't show up very easily in front of her. She sighed and closed her eyes to calm down herself. All she could think of was either Squall or the sorceresses, so it was a choice between sadness and hatred. Merry thoughts couldn't turn up inside her; it just wasn't the right time to be happy about anything.
Those sorceresses… they kinda spoke like Ultimecia… especially the word lokusts… Huh. Are they allies of her? How can it happen? Ultimecia's from the future… so does this mean that they are too? Or are they the ancestors of Ultimecia?
"Why are they really here?" she asked herself.
The girl suddenly yawned. Being exhausted for the evening, Rinoa finally turned her gaze away from the blinking stars of the bright night sky and into the small couch inside the quiet hospital bed room. She slowly made her way to the furniture while scratching her watery, tired eyes. As she reached it, her weariness quickly overcame her and within a second, the girl was lying on her back. Even with her exhaustion, she found it hard to sleep with all the thoughts that were present in her head. Minutes went by and as she grew more uncomfortable, she glanced at the ceiling and commenced counting imaginary sheep like she did when she was a little girl. Rinoa pointed her right hand up into the ceiling and traced the animals as if they were moving along a vast field of plains.
"One… two… three… four… five… six… seven… eight… nine… ten… eleven… twelve… thirteen…"
Squall… I'll always be here… beside you.
When the ash-haired lady reached the hundreds, she finally dozed off to sleep; her questions evaporating with her exhaustion as she rested for the day ahead.
Dawn was just marvelously inaugurating as the skies were overwhelmed with blue and orange streaks. Shuffling sounds were already heard in a dim, untidy dormitory room, since the owner was already awake in the middle of dawn preparing for the day ahead. Millea opened the window of her dormitory that was lined up with numerous tiny shrubs and herbs. She quickly smelled the fragrance of the plants as the soothing wind entered her room. Sunlight started to pour inside and as she savored the warm rays of heat, her ears met the sound of music it always looked forward to. The sweet chirping of the birds and the tender rustling of colorful leaves always relaxed her mind and body as they prepared for the beginning of a new day. If only her entire day was like that.
As she prepared to take a bath, she exhaled noisily whilst Millea searched for her towel.
"It's time to do some cleaning again," muttered the girl with false enthusiasm.
Her and many other residents of Balamb Garden had done some arduous cleaning and repairing since the assault, and she only had two hours of sleep since her duties. Now, after her moment's slumber, was time to do a number of chores for the Garden again. When finally fully prepared, Millea went inside the bathroom to freshen herself. She smelled herself as she lightly took off her clothes. Noticing the odor of dirt, sweat and blood in her body, disgust quickly seized over her senses that she straight away blasted open the shower. Icy water streamed down from the shower head and as she felt the frosty sensation, the SeeD quivered madly and released the faucet of hot water. Satisfied with the temperature, the young woman shampooed her greasy hair while thoughts overflowed the back of her mind.
Why didn't the sorceresses kill anyone? Were they too weak to kill us? Or maybe they are-?
Her thoughts stopped flowing as one idea stood above any other notions in her head.
Nah, they can't be in the good side… Can they? Maybe I'm just thinking too much… Heh, too much… It's always too much… And how many were there again?
Millea pointed her index finger at the air and started to write numbers in the air as if there was a make-believe writing board in front of her face. As she finished sketching the number ten in the space before her, she curled her forehead and reached for the soap. The SeeD hadn't realized that they had just fought ten sorceresses until now. The heat of the previous battle left no room for much thinking; as she fought, all Renecus could think of was a sentence that recurred in her mind a lot of times.
I have to survive this or else I would never get back to my family.
As if that was just the case. Millea, who just joined the Garden of Balamb three years ago, couldn't remember most of her past before that. The girl was ascertained out cold at the pier of Fort Balamb, by a fisherman who thought that he had caught a mermaid. Several cuts and abrasions were found in her body, and at first she was at a state of shock. When the young lady at last regained the power of speech, all she committed to memory was the name she possessed. Millea tried so hard to retain information about her family and her precedent life, but to no avail, no memories resurfaced. Without a home or any recollection of her past, she was introduced to headmaster Leonhart and was accepted at the Garden. She showed considerable talent in battle which led her to quickly become a SeeD during her first year.
It's funny how I'm worrying about these things when I still don't know who I really am…
The lass stopped the fluent rush of showering water and momentarily dried her body. Finally devoid of falling droplets of water, she slipped into her casual clothes and headed out of her room. Her preparation being finished, she went into the Dormitory Lounge and came across a cluster of students clouding over the computer-run Garden Board. Filled with longer virtual notes that withheld assignments for students, personnel, instructors and SeeDs, the lookers expressed different concerns regarding the chores they were dispensed with.
"Repair the Garden gates with Mr. Baku and several other students at 7:00 A.M… With Mr. Baku?! But he's creepy!" mentioned a student to her fellows.
A girl in her pajamas giggled as she found out her duty. "Hah! I get to go shopping for food supplies with Mr. Sephi Roth and H-students at 1:00 in the afternoon. That would be easy! And besides, Mr. Sephi's cute…"
When the gathering of students thinned a bit, Millea acquired the chance to uncover her tasks for the day. After pressing a few buttons, the job and its descriptions allocated to her popped on a separate window screen. The new writings that appeared were as follows:
Date: April 11, 2056
Time: 4:16 A.M.
Name: Millea Renecus
Gender: Female
Garden: Balamb
Status: Rank A SeeD
Please meet at the Briefing Room for an urgent SeeD meeting at 0700 hours. No formal attire needed.
Upon seeing the memorandum, she wasn't as surprised as some of the other students.
"A mission, huh?"
Exactly ten minutes before seven in the morning, different ranked SeeDs were already congregated outside the Briefing Room of the 3rd floor. Every one of them read the memo and wore informal clothing; many in their normal civilian clothes, some in sporty attire, and a few that just roused up for the day clad in their pajamas. Some of the SeeDs just finished their early daybreak routines, while others seemed relaxed and were leaning against the wall as they pondered over the conference ahead. A number of them were even playing Tetra Master while they waited for the time to pass by.
"You lose! I get… nine of your cards!" energetically said one of the SeeDs who were playing as he won many of his opponent's cards.
The opponent stomped his foot and grimaced. "Ahh… You got my Superman, Wonderwoman, Ifrit, and Shiva cards! Damn it! All I got from you was your…Geezard card! Damn!"
Not very suddenly, the elevator made its usual 'ding' sound as Zell came out of it in a hurried pace. He looked around him and started to ask questions.
"Am I late? Am I late? Am I late?!"
Another 'ding' was heard as the 3rd floor met more of its latest arrivals.
"Not yet Zell," said a voice from behind his back. It was Selphie, accompanied by her fellow Trabian SeeDs. They still haven't departed from Balamb and were included in the meeting. "You should really bring a watch next time."
"It's 6:56," answered a male Trabian SeeD to the left of Selphie. He and the other Trabians weren't wearing casual clothes and were already in their green uniforms. Among them, only Selphie was dressed in unofficial attire being her favorite yellow jumper and a pair of brown, shabby boots.
Minutes after Selphie and her colleagues' entrance, the doors to the Briefing Room were opened by a smiling, brunette SeeD instructor. At this time of the day, she was already wearing her uniform that looked like a hybrid between a SeeD and instructor's official clothing. Her name was Xu Chen, and as she stood at the middle of the doorway, the girl handed out the briefing folders to the attendants.
"Those will be your Mission Files. Read every detail carefully."
When the entire entourage was inside, she closed the ancient yet modern-looking wooden doors. Then, while the instructors and SeeDs settled themselves on the chairs that surrounded the huge, round table at the center of the room, Xu prepared the Briefing Board for the conference. Despite the sheer smoothness and elasticity of the seats, the pack seemed unsettled as they laid out the files and began reading the inscriptions written inside. No one in the room expressed shock or disbelief concerning their tasks; this was their job and danger was always a part of their missions. After seconds' worth of examining in silence, the quietness was broken as the acting commander of the Garden pressed some buttons in the wide, technological board. But a second before Chen commenced the briefing; she noticed some curled foreheads and puzzled looks on her audience.
"Before we begin, you may notice that the headmaster is not here. He is still resting in the infirmary; therefore he will not be able to join us for today. Being currently in command of the Garden, I will be the one to brief you."
The mystified expressions of the people around Xu were lifted as they got their answer.
"So, without further ado, let's proceed with the briefing."
A large screen containing data was suddenly projected on the view screen.
"As you all know, the Garden has just been attacked by a group of sorceresses. The intruders were searching for Rinoa and Ellone. For what reasons, we don't know. But what we do know is that this group of sorceresses poses a threat to the entire world."
"Rinoa and Ellone? What's so important about those two?" questioned one of the youngest SeeDs, her hair disheveled and covered her face; probably because of all the business and chaos lately.
Acknowledging the inquiry, Xu switched the screen to another that contained pictures and profiles of Ellone and Rinoa. The data zoomed a bit, which made it readable to the pack; as soon as the letters were visible, people started to read their profiles to know more about the subjects. Everyone except for Zell, Quistis, and Selphie bothered to set their eyes on the Board; the three of them knew almost everything about Ellone and Rinoa that you would think they are brothers and sisters.
"From the information provided before you, you can see that Rinoa's a sorceress, and Ellone has the ability to send a person back to the past. While Rinoa Heartilly got her magic from sorceress Edea, it is unknown to anyone how Ellone was gifted with such talent," explained Chen as she toggled the current window of the computer-controlled Board to a blank one. "It is obvious that powerful magic spells and the power over time are incredible skills; no wonder the sorceresses need them. But then again, we don't know what the sorceresses need them for. It could be Time Compression, but we can't be sure of that. There may be other reasons." Xu looked around and expected someone to ask the purpose of Time Compression. Sure enough, her assumption came true as a short SeeD (who seemed to be too tiny for the chair) raised her hands that suggested a query.
"Yes?" said Xu, already preparing to answer.
"Can you explain what Time Compression does?" pronounced the woman, which had an unexpectedly deep voice.
Her mind now content with a response, Xu faced the inquirer to give details. "I will try the best I can. To my knowledge, Time Compression is the event where the whole timeline compresses; the past, present, and the future all mixed into one point in time. Time will slowly start to collapse and no one will be able to exist after the Compression."
Then, Quistis extended on Xu's reply.
"Five years ago, a sorceress named Ultimecia tried to achieve this. We don't know why, for I'm sure that she could have been destroyed as well in the process. We stopped her from completely finishing the Compression, although time was starting to blend to each other already. We were thrown into different timelines, but thankfully, all went back to normal immediately after Ultimecia's death."
"So, could it be that they're allies of Ultimecia?" asked Millea almost instantly.
With all the questions shot at her one after the other, the woman in front of everyone tried to come up with an answer to satisfy the mystified crowd once again. Xu dreaded the fact that she was being treated like a super-computer, but tried to keep up nonetheless.
"It is possible, considering how Ultimecia got to our time. If she could, then why these sorceresses couldn't?"
Not a sound came from Millea Renecus, so Chen assumed that she was convinced with the answer. When Renecus opened her mouth, which suggested that she had more to say, Xu didn't wait for any more inquiries; she was just as mystified as with the rest of them. The SeeD instructor didn't have all the answers, and tried to avoid another question about Ultimecia and Time Compression.
"We got a close look on some of them, and be aware if you see one of them on your missions," started Xu swiftly, changing the subject.
Several pictures that were taken by the Garden security system of the sorceresses were shown, and the attendants had the chance to examine their appearance.
"The one in the blue is the presumed leader of the sorceresses. According to reports of some of the students and SeeDs, she possessed the most power amongst their group. Even though she was weakened by the headmaster, she lasted for the whole battle and she knocked out many students and SeeDs. This sorceress is indeed a formidable force, and a powerful threat."
Xu moved on to another shot taken of a sorceress.
"While their leader was formidably strong, this woman that you now see on the screen was the first of the three sorceresses that were knocked out in the battle," explained the briefer as she pointed to the picture of a blonde sorceress. She then illustrated the two other sorceresses that collapsed in battle: a black-haired and a brunette sorceress. "So, it is safe to assume that not all of these sorceresses have equal power. Some of them possessed incredible magic, while some did not."
"Unfortunately, we didn't get a hold of the unconscious ones as they were quickly teleported out of battle by this sorceress," declared Xu as she directed her index finger to a gray-gowned sorceress on the screen.
"So, it's like they're sorceresses-in-training?" inquired Selphie while deep in thought. "And this sorceress wearing a gray dress is like their protector or something?"
"You could say that," the briefer told Tilmitt, though not with a very strong and sure voice.
"Then we might use these weaker sorceresses as an advantage," assumed a male SeeD as he rubbed his chin.
Zell, who hasn't had anything to say for a while, hit the table hard with his fists and proceeded to join in on the conversation.
"HELL YEAH!"
Everyone turned to look towards Dincht. His comment wasn't really necessary, and in a second, they pretended that they didn't hear anything. The SeeD then became embarrassed and reddened a bit. To take away some of his embarrassment, Millea pretended to giggle as if she found his comment funny. Zell smiled at her; not knowing that it just was an act.
Returning to serious matters, the girl that stood beside the Board demonstrated more pictures of the subjects and answered the last proper comment made. "That's right, but if we could find them. Right now, these sorceresses haven't been sighted anywhere but here in Balamb Garden. After their initial attack, they've disappeared. There was no trace of them, nothing."
"And they might be working on another way to get Rinoa and Ellone as of now," remarked Daine in a deep and stern tone.
Chen nodded. "That is true. This is why we've gathered here today; to assign you missions on the subject of discovering the entirety of these sorceresses' plans, and to stop them in every way possible. We can't afford to let the world be in danger again."
A long pause began to play in the room.
"Are there any more questions before we start analyzing each mission?"
The evident stillness in the room didn't cease. Every person in the meeting was deep in their well of thinking; all these discussion about the sorceresses had their minds provoked. When no one seemed to have anything to inquire, suggest, or comment on, she pressed some more buttons and the screen changed once again. This time, the Briefing Board presented the analysis of the various missions and tasks that were handed to each SeeD and instructor.
"Very well. As you can see on your Mission Files, each and every one of you is to work on a team," announced Xu as she looked at every one of the listeners. She turned to Selphie and the Trabians. "Selphie and the Trabian SeeDs will be going to Esthar to transport Ellone."
The Trabians bobbed their heads in agreement.
"Zell Dincht, as you know, you will be working with SeeDs Delaure and Neoris, in searching for a woman who just discovered her powers as a sorceress in Rhyllion City. Some trouble was created during the discovery of her powers, and you shall investigate if this woman might have some connection to what's happened in the Garden," declared Xu as she nodded towards Zell and the other two SeeDs' direction.
"Understood," confirmed Neoris and Delaure simultaneously, whilst the tattooed SeeD rubbed his nose for confirmation.
"Although, there is one thing that your file didn't say," said Xu a little worried as she met Zell's eyes. "Upon your arrival at Rhyllion, some accomplices of ours will meet you there and assist you."
Delaure examined the mission folder that was sprawled in his desk more closely. "Who are they?"
"I'm afraid I cannot say that information at the moment," answered Xu, with a non-committal jerk of her head convoyed with a mysterious grin.
Leaving Zell and his teammates bewildered of who their secret collaborators will be, the SeeD instructor continued to talk.
"Millea Renecus, Daine Feryl, Errol Bluerock, Buffy Winters, and Anakin Firetreader, you will be posted in Balamb Town for a week to scout for any hints of the sorceresses, to investigate about them and their disappearance, and to protect the residents of Balamb from harm."
The five of them simply made gestures that suggested concurrence, and no complaints or queries poured out of the individuals.
"Trepe, being recently reassigned as an instructor, your first opportunity is to lead instructors Potter, Jardine, and Leoryo in teaching students, especially the B-students, more advanced lessons and training concerning the subject of the battlefield. You and the other instructors will make up the schedule for the training lessons."
As Xu paused for a breath of air, while Trepe's eyes widened in a confused state, instructor Leoryo looked up to the announcer of the task with disbelief and hindered her next sentence.
"Why her? She has just been reassigned before the Festival; she didn't have a great track record on being an instructor, and who knows how she got this job back?" retorted the man, who was undoubtedly skeptic about the idea.
Quistis was clearly insulted by the man's remark, and as she narrowed her blue eyes while ascending from her chair, she faced the instructor with a very stern expression on her face.
"I got this job back, didn't I? And besides, I won't make the same mistakes I did back then! I'm not a failure! Who are you to assume that I will fail again?" cried the woman towards Leoryo.
"DAMN TRUE!" cheered Zell to Quistis.
The insulter smirked and ignored Dincht's out-of-place statement. "You see, she's not the right fit for this job. She clearly has no discipline. How could she discipline the students, if she, herself is not?"
Even more enraged and offended, Quistis pounded the table more powerful than Zell did. "Do you have anything against me, Darren? Because if you do, just say it to me here right now."
"What do you want me to say, babe?"
Hearing angry groans from Trepe, Xu situated herself at once to stop them from spurring words at each other.
"Enough! The job will go to someone else other than you two if this won't stop," threatened the girl in her most serious manner.
Darren Leoryo, taking her warning into consideration, quieted down in an instant. However, he persisted on staring and smirking mockingly at his fellow instructor. This action pushed her off the edge, and made Quistis tread to the door almost similar as a little girl whose candy was taken away by a stranger. She robustly opened and closed the door in a portion of a second, and with that, Trepe was gone from the meeting. Selphie left her seat and proceeded to follow Quistis, but before she could leave the room, Xu approached her and spoke softly.
"She hasn't been feeling really good this day," whispered Xu.
"I know," affirmed Tilmitt in a voice more tender than the other girl's. "I'll try to find out why… Just carry on with the briefing. We'll be okay."
"Okay," she muttered back. As Selphie walked over to the door and departed from the chamber as well, Chen deeply sighed and straightened her uniform. She faced her puzzled, entertained and silent audience as if everything was fine. "Let's continue on with the briefing. Now, to finish what I was saying…"
Selphie strolled away from the room as soon as the door closed, marking the restarting of the conference. She was careful not to trip on any piles of cement as she made her way through the dirty and damaged hallway, although on a few occasions she stumbled upon students or personnel that were laboring on their tasks for the day. Nearing Quistis, she was so fixed on the infuriated woman she didn't notice that a broken, sparkling light bulb from the ceiling almost fell directly to her head; Tilmitt was lucky that a student quickly levitated it with a magic spell away from the girl's direction. As she passed the malfunctioning Central Board, Selphie finally caught up with Trepe before she could enter the Training Center.
"Wait up, Quisty," called Selphie to the swearing woman as she almost crashed to a B-student assisting an S-student fix the fountain.
"What do you want?" said Quistis irritatingly, and then continued to spew curses from her mouth again. She stopped in her tracks, but remained her back turned from the girl trying to approach her.
"I just want to know what's the problem," claimed Selphie as she reached for her shoulder. The woman resisted to turn around, and kept walking in the Training Center's direction.
"Will you wait?" exclaimed Tilmitt, as she got annoyed of Quistis trying to get away from her.
Finally, the woman she was pursuing turned around with an angry yet gloomy expression on her face. She had quite a few droplets of tears flowing down her red cheeks, and her mouth was trembling a little. Quistis almost began to sob, but she immediately stopped the outburst as the girl bit her lips. Trepe wiped her face quickly to hide the tears.
"You won't understand!" insisted Quistis as some more tears fell from her misty eyes. She tried to wipe them again.
"What won't I understand? Please… tell me," said Selphie as she ushered down her friend to the dirt-covered edge of the lobby fountain. When Quistis was seated, Selphie situated herself beside her and put one arm around the instructor. "Come on… you can trust me… What's wrong?"
Trepe mopped her face once again and shivered. As she opened her mouth to speak, her words crumbled and turned into an angry moan. Quistis then tried again, but only a curse word came out of her. When it at last seemed that Quistis would be able to reply, an interference swung by as a big shard of cement zoomed speedily to their course.
"LOOK OUT!" shouted one of the M-students who witnessed the flying object.
"STOP!" muttered Selphie quickly, and with that word, a twirling, purple magic spell coated the large fragment. The object was halted in mid-air, and when the spell's effect ended, the rock landed to the floor with a loud thud.
A B-student, who stood beside the M-student that notified them of the danger, scratched his head and looked down at the floor in embarrassment. "Sorry about that… I was trying to levitate it to the Waste Receiver…"
"It's alright," said Selphie, who looked at the young boy and smiled. "Just keep practicing that spell, okay?"
After that, the lad walked over to pick up the fairly heavy piece of cement and carried it to the Waste Receiver with great struggle. He dropped the object to the machine and pressed a button; soon enough, the rock was reduced to smaller pieces and was sent down the pipes that led to the Waste Chamber.
Selphie looked back to her companion, still expecting an answer. Just as she turned her head to look at Quistis, the woman was again on her way through the corridor. This time, the instructor didn't head for the Training Center but instead continued her way throughout the round hallway. Tilmitt got up to her feet and decided to go after her once more. But when a sweeping janitor and several students carrying a machine blocked her way, Selphie couldn't do anything but watch the crying, furious woman disappear out of sight.
Author's Note: Phew! This was quite a chapter to write! I really had writer's block writing this chapter, and with moving to a new house quite a disturbance to me, this chapter was quite slow and long to write. But then again, it gave me more time to really think of my story. With that said, I hope you stick through for more of Wounds of Time next chapter! The next chapter will be titled, "Dilemmas, Outbreaks, and Guffypluffs". Sounds interesting, right? Right? Well anyways, comments, suggestions, and questions are all appreciated as usual! Until next time…
07/15/06: The D.O.G. chapter won't be chapter 4 anymore. Chapter 4 will be "Children of Sleep".
07/17/06: I edited one of the paragraphs- the one where Xu assigned one of the missions to Zell and other two SeeDs.
