Hey guys! I'm back again! I told you that I wouldn't be gone long! I had a problem with my old laptop. It decided that it wanted to end its poor pathetic life, and so it fried itself. Well, that's okay. I have a new computer (compliments of my editor and best friend, Megan and her cool dad!) and I intend to use it wisely! Hah ha ha!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything associated with Final Fantasy. It all happens to belong to Square. Yes, it's sad, but true.

Chapter Nine

"Switch Off"

"And have you found anything of use to the Great One? You had better hope that any information that you have be worthy enough to fall upon my ears." Seymour Guado said harshly in a calming tone to Seifer who now stood before him. Sephiroth stood next to the ex-cadet, head bent in respect for Seymour, even though he was stronger than the one in charge by any means. Still, he respected the one who stood in command for now.

"I believe that I have news that you will see to be most useful. I have failed before, but this time, I failed you not." Seifer did his best to speak with respect and look the filthy Guado in the face. He hated the menacing expression that always cluttered his inhuman features. Something about the Guado frightened him more than he ever cared to say. He felt limpid and could swear that the other could see right through him. He felt controlled, much like with Ultimecia. That witch had used him for her own dirty deeds and in the end, left him for angered SeeD to find him. He, because of her, was sentenced to a place where he knew he would die. His ambition and his need to prove that he was a bigger threat than everyone thought was his ultimate downfall. He killed himself in the end but had help from one who he now sought revenge. Leonhart would pay for what he did. One way or another, he'd finally win against him.

"Well, what is it?" Seymour demanded, leaving no room for respect, which angered Seifer further. It was hard enough.

"The Challengers are getting all the heroes together in one place and switching off others. They are making a small army of strong people and then leaving equal power on all the other world's!" Seifer exclaimed. He looked up at the Guado, anticipating what he'll say, if he'll say anything at all.

Seymour Guado turned his back to Seifer and smiled wickedly to himself. "So they plan to disrupt the balance, do they?" he began to laugh, and Seifer flinched at the horrible sound. "They will find that two can play that game. It's time to call upon enemies that they thought were once defeated."

Sephiroth looked up at this and displayed a smile of pure evil. A single thought ran through his head: Revenge. Ah, what a feeling that would be to take down the one who was never supposed to beat him. He'd waited in death, watching from a world where he could do nothing. As a result, he was filled with anger. This was the perfect opportunity to seek what he so desperately wanted.

"I give you two another task. From here, we will summon those enemies long defeated for a second chance. You two will return to the world where the Challengers have placed an army of heroes. Do what you can to obtain their goals and their plans. When the time is fitted right, stall them and end a life that may put us up one step ahead. The Challengers provide more of a threat than we have made them. They have gone too far, and now it is time to bring them back. The Great One will find this very interesting. You have done very well this time, but do not let it go to your head. Do not forget that you have failed in the past and doing one thing does not grant you compensation for past mistakes. You still have much to prove." Seymour began to walk away from the other two men, plans forming in his mind. "Go. Go and give them Hell. Take others if you need the help. I will stay here and work on a plan that I believe will provide us with quite a lot of assistance. The Challengers have left out several very important worlds, and I plan to target those first." He sighed with pleasure and walked out of view. For once, Seifer did something right. So there was hope for that pitiful human.

Seifer watched his retreating form, filled with anger and rage. He hated that Guado more than anything he had ever hated in his entire life. Except for maybe Leonhart. The loathing for him was too strong to ever be replaced. He hated Leonhart with such a passion that it threatened to kill him again, which of course was impossible. Still, that was beside the point, as he hated Leonhart. That man had taken everything from him that he ever possessed and one day, he'd get his revenge.

"Just what does he take me for, anyway?" Seifer demanded, losing his cool. "I am not just some second-hand servant! I do what I want, and if I don't want to listen to that stupid, filthy Guado, then I won't! All he does is use me! He won't even let me do something that will really affect the Challengers! I could cause some real havoc if that damn Guado would let me!" he snarled.

"He just gave you that." Sephiroth said to him. "He told us to go and cause damage to the Challengers. We've got to find the big group that they have put together and give Hell. This is the perfect opportunity for revenge." He grinned wickedly, much like the Guado.

"What reasons do you have for revenge?" Seifer demanded, outraged.

"You have no idea," Sephiroth stated as he turned and strode out of the eerie room. It was show time.

"Yes, go obtain what you have begged so long for. The greed to seek vengeance in your hearts will consume you, and then, taking over you will be very easy. I will be there to pick up the pieces. You do not wish to be controlled, but you just wait. It will happen. I will use your zombie corpses to do my own bidding, and you will have no ability to stop it. It's wonderful how everything has worked out as perfectly planned, and you never caught a glimpse of the plot that was taking place behind you. Yes, you are oblivious to your own destruction. I will wear you out until there is nothing left of you, and then I can march on to victory." Seymour watched from the shadows as Seifer and Sephiroth left. He had heard every word that was spoken. He was filled with amusement from Seifer's sophomoric words. He decided that he would play that idiot until the time came to do away with him for good. He was utterly useless to him, but the Great One had made it very clear that they could use him for their cause. He held loathing in him for one man that was so strong it could be played quite well. All that had to be done was lead him to the one who had defeated him four times in life. He will be destroyed by his own hate for another. It would be perfect. Slowly, one by one, they will all destroy themselves until only a few were left to take over.

"This will be the perfect way to finally dominate against those who defeated me, but I will not let me hatred destroy me. I am stronger than that, and soon nothing will defeat me!" he laughed hysterically. "All in due time. All in due time my reign of terror will make all bow down to me!"

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"It's time to correct the balance and finish this before our enemies realize what we're doing and try to stop us. We have to initiate and put everything together." Auron said, walking around the room, talking to the rest of them and himself.

"Are we going to visit those switching like we did for the others? Or are we just going to throw them into another world with no warning?" Aeris demanded, losing all her patience with Auron. He was being incredibly harsh, and it was driving her crazy! She wanted to smack him as hard as she could, even though she wasn't the one who was a fan of violence.

"Right now, we can't help them. They'll have to take care of themselves until we can get there to them. We have to concentrate on the heroes first. Right now, they are our first priority." He answered, watching the shining water. The picture that was laid out before him was Bevelle in Spira. They had set up a guide to wait for the heroes, but so far, none of them had showed, and he was getting worried. There was a chance that the enemy had already discovered their plan and stopped the heroes. If that were the case, then they had a real problem.

"I'm sure that they're fine. We can't interfere anymore. We need to concentrate on the others. They need our help, too." Aeris said, trying her best to comfort Auron. He gave her the first kind look that he'd ever given her. He said nothing but nodded slowly.

"We need to decided who is going to be switched where. We discussed this briefly previously, but we did not get too far. We have very little time to decide and out decisions should not be rash. We have to choose carefully." Raine spoke wisely while her eyes remained transfixed on the shining water. She prayed that at any moment her son would appear in the vision so that she would know that he was all right. She knew that seeing him through the water was the only way that she would ever see him. She could never meet him face to face while they were lives apart. It was against the laws of nature. He had never known her in life, and if she were to appear to him, there would be a terrible upset. She could only watch him from afar without his knowing that she was there. She had to be his shadow. It was a sad way to think of things, but that was how they were. At least she wasn't alone.

"We cannot visit those that are switching right now. We are just going to have to switch them and have them do what needs to be done on their own until we can get to them. It is going to be hard for them to adjust but there is nothing that can be done for now." Auron said with a hint of actual sadness, an emotion that he rarely expressed. He was reluctant to result to this decision. He knew that they were all more than capable of working out problems on their own, but he still felt that he was leaving them unarmed against a pack of wild wolves.

"We can't leave them in the dark forever!" Julia declared in protest. There were people that she cared about on her old home, and she wanted them to have the benefit of the upper hand as well. To give only half the army protection and arms was also giving the enemy an easy weakness to defeat. When it came to military tactics, she had a pretty good idea of what she was talking about. After all, she did marry a military general that had been too concerned with his job. Those were the days that she didn't miss.

"Of course not!" Braska stepped into the conversation. He was there to assure everyone that things would go by smoothly. "They will all receive our help. No one will be left out, but we do have other things that must be taken care of first. Our priorities lie with deceiving our enemy to keep them behind us. If they somehow obtained out ultimate plans, we would be risking immediate failure. We do not need to expose ourselves to those risks." Braska announced, reminding them all of their duties.

"I understood that! I only do not want those that I care about to be let on their own." Julia explained. If she couldn't be there in person to protect them, then she wanted to at least make sure that they were safe from harm that she could stop.

"I assure you, Julia, that they will not be left on their own. They will receive our help. It may take some time, but it will happen."

Raine frowned, finally drawing her eyes away from the shining water. She had to concentrate on their upcoming tasks. "What happens if the Final Battle comes, and we still have not helped them? You know just as well as I do that we cannot assist any of them when the Final Battle comes! What happens then?" She demanded. Like Julia, Raine wanted those that she held in her heart to be safe.

"I know that our help is useless during the Final Battle, but that particular event is a ways away. We have enough time as along as we use it wisely. We can get more done if we think ahead and know just what it is that we are doing. We must plan our actions very carefully. Soon, we will act on our own and throw the first punch. I do believe that the last thing that they expect us to do is act. They have been planning against us since the beginning of it all. There is no need to worry about anything." Braska's soft voice was what calmed everyone down to a point that all panic, anger, and any other emotions were gone. Braska certainly had the sense around him that would calm even the worst of storms.

"I certainly hope that you are right," Julia said quietly while Raine stood next to her nodding. "We certainly can not run into anything that could set us back." She turned and left them with no intentions of her destination. Raine soon followed her after one last look at the shining water that displayed no change. The "guide" still waited with no arrivals.

As he watched them both leave, Braska said quietly, "I fear that our own group is becoming divided. If we ourselves begin to fall apart, then there is no hope for any of our heroes."

The others nodded sadly, knowing that the peace of the universe was crumbling beneath their feet.

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A cloaked figure in a dark robe waited in the sun, baking. This individual had been waiting for what felt like hours now, and still, there had been no show of those who were supposed to come. The people here in Bevelle were of no one out of the ordinary, and this individual had been told that the people that were being waited for would be easily spotted. So far there was no one that fit that description. All the citizens that walked around the great, busy city of Bevelle were all blended together, molded as one big group. There was no one that fit any portrayal of "out of the ordinary." These people here in Bevelle knew their place, knew what they were doing. Those individuals that the figure was supposed to be waiting on were not here by any means. How long would this figure stand wasting time? That was hard to say. The figure hoped that it wouldn't be much longer. Too much time had already been wasted. The Challengers would not like it if the figure announced that there was no one who ever appeared. Could it be that maybe the "enemy" knew about these warriors and had them captured? Now that would cause some extreme problems because those individuals were referred to as "the last hope of them all." If that " last hope" were gone, then there would be virtually nothing left to do but surrender. This event was nothing short of a universal war that was being fought in the worlds that had no idea that there even was a war going on. Only a select amount of people even knew that there was an enemy who threatened the true state of reality. Most of the inhabitants of these worlds were unaware of an on-going struggle, and the main goal for the time being was to keep those inhabitants continuously unaware. But that would be difficult should the enemy make an attack on a world.

The waiting figure decided that the current post could not be abandoned unless some news was received. It would be difficult to wait even longer for news or individuals who may not even show.

It was going to be a long wait.

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"They will expect us to make our move and attack them head on, but I have a much better idea. If we attack them where they have the 'heroes' as they call them, then they will immediately know what our plan of action will be. I intend on being a bit more secretive than that. They will know nothing until we are right up on them, and by the time they realize what we are doing, it will be too late to save them. What happiness that will bring to the Great One and me!" Seymour chuckled to himself, completely disregarding the individual who stood next to him.

"And what if somehow that plan is foiled?" The "person" asked quietly, respectably.

Seymour glanced briefly at the other but gave no answer to the inquiry. The plan will not be foiled. He'd make sure of that. No one would be daring enough to try and pull the wool over his eyes. He was superior to all these disgusting, low individuals below him. They could not beat him at anything. He was much stronger than he used to be and would not misuse his extensive power. He now knew its full potential, and the Challengers would be the firsts to feel the full force.

The figure beside Seymour realized that they would not receive any sort of answer from the leader, so they began to walk away, out of Seymour's line of vision.

"My plan, the Great One's plan, will not be foiled. It will succeed. I will succeed! Nothing will ever be able to stop me! I have said it before, and a thousand times more will I say it again! I am no fool. I cannot and will not lose this time. I have remained in the shadows of death, waiting for the chance to seek my revenge. They might think that I am gone, but I am still a threat to them. I am still a nightmare that haunts their sleep, the voice that taunts their minds, and the death that will surround them on all sides when I am done." He glared into the shadows that stood before him and was able to confirm that he was alone. There were no wandering eyes that could plot against him, but walls did have ears, however, and that could be what set him back.

"The worlds will be my first target. I prefer to take the weak and helpless first anyway. The sooner that they are out of action and under my own power the better. I can make them into the army that will destroy the Great One's enemies!" Seymour left the room, headed to another area to carry out of his plans. He knew how things were going to work. The plan was hatched perfectly in that hungry-for-power little brain of his. It was foolproof and that drove him even more to gain what he wanted.

"I will get it, and I will use my invincible power and the power of those once defeated to become the sole ruler of everything!" He was headed to another area of this strange place that faded in and out of reality. The distinctness and details of this odd place that rested on Hell's doorstep was gone. There were only the faded forms that were relative like walls, floors, ceilings, etc. Even Seymour himself was a faded from wandering through this parallel universe. He continued on through desolate corridors in search of another location that would serve its purpose to him.

"I will rule it all! I will be the one who controls it all! I will call the demons that have been banished to return and help me, and then they too will be under my control! No one will stop me. I will be the one that holds the highest power!" He hissed to himself. He finally reached his destination and sealed the entrance so that no other could follow or interupt. He then proceeded to the middle of this other room that was just as plain as the other. "Here I will bring back those defeated." He pulled out a staff and began the spell that he learned. The room around him disappeared and he stood now in a bleak place, surrounded by darkness. His body became illuminated by the tiny balls of light that appeared and drifted. The shadows of figures that were familiar, not to him, but to the other worlds took their form and the balls of light raced to each of them. The light bended as one, and when Seymour stopped, there were the enemies standing there, in that room, that had long been defeated.

The first wave was coming.


A/N: Here's Chapter 9. It's a little weird and was difficult to write, but here it is. R&R. Chapter 10 will be here soon. And I am sorry that things are going so slow and the story isn't very exciting right now. I'm working on that. Later Days!