Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 8 or 10-2 grins evilly Yet.
Chapter 10.
The uniforms they stole from the Leblanc Syndicates were a little tight on Zell and Squall but at least they were the right height for them. Irvine, unfortunately, was just too tall for them. They still had only one more uniform to go for. Hopefully they could find one his size. So their next destination was the Mushroom Rock Road.
Unfortunately, once again, Brother dropped them off in the wrong spot. He had dropped them off on the Mihen Highroad instead. Of course, the SeeDs were extremely annoyed with the tattooed leader of the Gullwings. Zell knew that Brother was doing it on purpose, probably because of him. But no one complained as they began to make their way up the road, heading straight for the Travel Agency.
When they arrived, Zell remembered the very first time he had been there. It made him smile a little because it had been the very time he actually had a conversation with Auron, the legendary Guardian and swordsman of Spira. "Wow. This roads changed a bit." The blonde martial artist said as they walked down the road. He was noticing all the machina wandering around and he did not see any chocobos. He remembered that there had been quite a few the last time he was on that road. Yuna just looked at him as she walked beside Rikku and Paine. "It has been two years, Zell. Change can happen pretty fast."
"Yeah. But look at it this way. At least the roads more safer." Rikku said smiling. "The machina, here, are always taking care of the fiends that wander this road and protect the people who walk it."
Zell only shrugged as they approached the Travel Agency. "I know. It's just, I've missed too much while being gone." He said with a sigh. Yuna just smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry, Zell. You didn't miss that much." She said. Rikku only nodded in agreement. Squall, Irvine and Paine chose not to say anything as they walked.
When they reached the agency, they decided to stop for a quick rest up and buy some items they may have needed. All six went into the agency to make their purchases but had to wait because the items shopkeeper was talking to a young teenager, who looked very disappointed. Zell couldn't help but wonder, where had he seen this girl before. He knew he had seen her once. It must have been two years ago though.
"I'm sorry, miss. But you won't be able to go chocobo riding." The shopkeeper said shaking her head.
The girl sighed as she lowered her head. Her shoulders slouched low as she turned away. "I see. Sorry for bothering you." She muttered before leaving the building. Zell just stared after her, still pondering over the thought of that girl. Squall seemed to notice because he moved over and nudged the martial artist's arm. "Zell what is it?" He asked. Everyone now looked at him. Zell just shook his head as he rubbed his chin. "I don't know, Squall. It's just that girl...she seemed oddly familiar. And now it's bothering me."
Yuna tilted her head as she folded her arms behind her hand. "Why don't you go ask her who she is then?"
Zell just shrugged. "I might. But let's get our stuff first." He said. Everyone nodded in agreement before approaching the desk.
Once they had all their stuff, they left the building to look for the girl. It was Irvine who spotted her first. He pointed towards the cliffside where she was standing. It was the same place where Yuna and Tidus had talked to one another two years ago when they visited that place. "Come on. Let's go talk to her." Rikku said now jogging over. The others just followed after.
The girl had turned around when she heard them approached her. She looked very interested in what they wanted but her eyes widened when she recognized Yuna. "You wouldn't be Lady Yuna by any chance?" She asked with a smile.
Yuna nodded as she folded her hands together. "I am."
"Do you remember who I am?" The girl asked hopefully.
The former Summoner shook her head. "I'm sorry. I don't remember you. That's why we came over to talk to you. We were wondering who you are." She said gently. The girl didn't seem disappointed at all. She just looked more cheerful as ever. "It's me! Calli!" She said happily.
Like Yuna's, Zell's eyes widened with recognition. He now remembered who this girl was and it made his face brighten. Yuna stepped back with a gasp. "Calli?!" She said with surprise. The girl nodded brightly. Zell just shook his head. "Wow, you've grown, Calli! It's been too long!" He was sure that Rikku gave him a confused look but he just kept smiling at the young teen before him. Calli looked at him for a long minute before her eyes grew very bright. Even brighter than they had when she looked at Yuna. "Sir Zell?! Is that you?!" She asked excitedly. Zell laughed softly before nodding. "Yep, it's me. It's nice to see you again, Calli." He told her. Calli just kept on smiling at him. "Wow! You've changed quite a bit yourself!" She said. Zell just shrugged as he glanced at Irvine, who was smirking. "What are you smirking about, Irve?" He asked seriously.
The cowboy just shook his head before glancing between Zell and Calli. "Oh, nothing, Zell. It just got a little more interesting that's all. How ya know this girl?"
Yuna shook her head as she came to Zell's defense. She seemed to have guessed what the cowboy was thinking. "He was with me when we first met Calli. She was only a little girl then." She told Irvine, who immediately shut up. "What are you doing here?"
Calli shook her head as she folded her arms around herself. "I've been doing a little traveling myself. I came here, hoping that I could ride a Chocobo. But problem is there's no more chocobos here. They've all gone because of all the hovercrafts." She said with a sigh. Zell looked around with confusion. "Huh, I was wondering where they all were. Where'd they go?" He asked. Calli just shook her head with an even deeper sigh. "I don't know. No one's seen a single Chocobo since the Calm started, two years ago. No one's ever seen a single one." She said sadly. Yuna shook her head. "That's so sad. I really liked those creatures. I wonder where they went." She said thoughtfully.
It was at that very second, they heard a strange warking sound. Everyone but Paine and Squall turned to see what it was. Zell's eyes lit up brightly as he saw it. It was so weird. They had just been talking about how the Chocobos had not been seen for such a long time and suddenly one shows up.
"Cho...!" Yuna gasped pointing.
"Cho...!" Rikku cut herself off.
Both Paine and Squall looked at them with confusion. "Cho?" They both asked.
Zell pointed with Calli and Irvine. "It's a Chocobo!" All three of them said making the two teens in black turn around and look to see what they were talking about. The chocobo seemed to have guessed that it was what they were talking about because it bolted. "Aw, sweet! Let's nab it!" Zell said already running after the large yellow bird. Yuna nodded as she and Rikku were already following after him. "Yeah! For Calli!" They both said.
Squall, Paine and Irvine just glanced at one another before running after their three friends, while Calli was cheering them on. The six teens quickly ran down the path, following a trail of yellow feathers as they went. They could barely see where the chocobo was because it was so fast. Rikku eventually pointed in the wrong direction thinking she might have seen it but the others kept following the trail of feathers. They were practically out of breath by the time the caught up with the Chocobo. It was just pecking at the ground for any seeds. Not even seeming to notice the six approaching. They stopped moving a few feet away before looking at one another.
"All right. We need a plan to catching this thing. What do you think, Irve? You're the Chocobo expert out of us." Zell said as he bent over to catch his breath.
The tall cowboy just looked at the chocobo before nodding. "Well, it's obvious that it might just try to run away from us again. We gotta trap it somehow. Two of us needs to be on this side of the road while two of us needs to be on the other side. And two of us can try to catch the thing. That's our best bet on catching it." He told everyone. Everyone nodded in agreement. "Okay! Rikku and I'll get the far end of the road." Zell said. Squall and Paine just glanced at one another. "All right. Then we'll be on this end of the road."
"So that leaves me and Yuna to try and catch the chocobo." Irvine said as he tilted his hat back.
Yuna just nodded as she looked at Zell and Rikku, who were already making their way down the road. They all waited for a minute until everyone was in position before Yuna and Irvine ran down the road towards the Chocobo. When they approached it, it bolted straight towards Zell and Rikku, who began jumping up and down to scare it back the other way. It stopped quickly before turning to face Yuna and Irvine who was right behind it. The chocobo made a threatening wark as the two approached it.
"Easy, boy." Irvine said, holding out his hand carefully towards the large bird. "Take it easy." he whispered softly. The bird seemed a little more calmer with him talking like that but just as Irvine was only three inches away, it threw its head forward and hitting his hand before running right around them. The cowboy hissed painfully before sucking on the finger it had bit.
"Irvine! Are you okay?!" Yuna asked quickly.
Zell was laughing though. His arms wrapped around his waist as he doubled over with laughter. "Oh, that was smooth, Irve." He said. Irvine shook his head before turning and was already running after the chocobo. Yuna hesitated before quickly following him. Rikku just looked at Zell, while he was still laughing. "Zell, that wasn't funny. It could have hurt him." She said. The other blonde just shook his head. "No, it was all right, Rikku. Irvine's actually used to getting bit by chocobos. He gets bit every time he tries to tame a wild one. The chocobos that bite you when your trying to catch it shows you that it's a fighter and it won't give in easily." He then shrugged before he looked to see the chocobo was coming back. This time Irvine had been knocked to the ground. But the cowboy was up on his feet chasing after the large bird, not even bothering to pick up his hat when it had fell of his head. Yuna was already protesting against trying to catch the Chocobo. But Irvine kept going.
"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea." Rikku whimpered as the chocobo came running towards her and Zell. Zell was already throwing his arms high above his head, making the chocobo halting again. "Ah don't be afraid of it, Rikku. It's okay." He told her. "Irve and I have done this so many times. These chocobos can't be any different from the ones on Gaia. We'll have this thing in no time."
"Ooooh. I hope you're right." Rikku said nervously as the Chocobo resumed to running towards them. And to their disappointment, the large bird jumped clean over their heads. Zell was cursing as he and Rikku watched it run off. Irvine and Yuna joined them, breathing heavily and was soon joined by Squall and Paine, the dark Commander holding Irvine's hat.
"This wasn't a good idea. That thing is too fast and mean." Paine said shaking her head as they watched the chocobo run off. Irvine shook his head as he took his hat from Squall and put it back onto his head. "Nah. It's just like any other Chocobo I've chased after. It's no different." He said. "We'll have that chocobo within an hour or so."
"But," Yuna said as she looked at his slightly bleeding hand. "It bit you. Are you sure you're okay?"
Irvine shook his head as he quickly cast a cure spell onto himself. The wounds in his hand vanished quickly. "I'm fine. I always get bit by chocobos. It's apart of being a Chocobo breeder. They always bite ya at first."
"In that case, I don't think I want to chase it anymore." Paine muttered shaking her head. Irvine shrugged. "If ya wanna sit around and watch us have all the fun, be my guest. But just trust me. When we get that Chocobo, you'll be surprised on how I can handle 'em. But you'll miss out on the fun." He told her. Paine raised her eyebrow at him but Squall shook his head. "Just trust him. He knows what he's talking about. If there was anyone that knew more about chocobos, it would be Irvine. He's been doing this kind of stuff for many years now." He told her. Yuna nodded as they were already hurrying down the path. "Okay. But if you get hurt again, we're stopping." She told Irvine.
The cowboy shrugged. "All right. Whatever you say. But I can guarantee you that it won't bite me again." He said grinning as they raced down the path together.
Rikku just scratched the back of her head as they ran. "You sure seem confident in that." She said. Zell shook his head as he grinned at his girlfriend. "Yeah, of course he's confident. He's a skilled chocobo rider and breeder. Just trust what he says when it comes to chocobos, ladies. He knows his own business." He told her.
The six had a hard time trying to locate the Chocobo after they lost sight of it. Rikku had to climb up onto the high ruins to see if she could spot it. Zell had to help her down when she did see it. They were off again after it. At one time, she climbed at very high area and spotted it almost fifty yards away. "Over there!" She called to the others. Everyone nodded and rushed after the chocobo while Zell stayed behind to help her down. She protested though this time. "Just go, Zell! I'll catch up! Help them get that Chocobo." She said as she climbing down the ruins.
"You sure?" Zell asked as he quickly looked after his friends.
Rikku only nodded. "I'm a fast runner, you know that! Just go, Zell!" She told him. Zell only shrugged before running after the other four. He stopped several feet away when he heard a crash and Rikku yelped with surprise. He spun around to see her running after him while rubbing her behind. "Ouch." She muttered.
"Are you okay?" Zell asked worriedly.
Rikku just nodded as she ran with him after the others. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just tried to jump from where I was and ended up landing on my butt." She said. Zell laughed before they picked up their speed.
The two blondes caught up with the others pretty quickly. Irvine was slowly approaching the Chocobo again, his hands outstretched towards the bird. "Come on, boy. It's all right. We're not going to hurt ya." He said soothingly. The chocobo's head was bent down and it seemed to be panting and whimpering at the same time. It was tired of running, all of them could see that.
"Irvine, are you sure you want to be getting close to that again?" Yuna asked worriedly.
The cowboy didn't look at her as he kept his eyes onto the chocobo, making a few soft warking noises himself. He paused for a second to answer. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. It would've been a lot easier if we had some Greens but since we don't we'll just have to do it this way."
"Greens?" Rikku asked clueless.
Zell just nodded as he wrapped his arm around her waist and watched his friend slowly approach the large yellow bird. "Yeah, Greens. Greens are certain kinds of seeds that Chocobos eat. Like Mimett Greens or Pasana Greens. They kinda help chocobos calm down." He told her. Rikku then groaned loudly as she slouched over. "Oh! Why didn't you say so then?! I've got a bunch of Gysahl Greens!" She said as she dug into her waist pouch and pulled out a few brownish green seeds. Irvine shouldn't have took his eyes off of the Chocobo when he did but he did and the chocobo taught him a lesson for it. It warked loudly before rushing right past him, whacking him with its wing. The cowboy hit the ground, rubbing his head while the others had to scatter to avoid getting ran over by the chocobo.
"Ow." Irvine muttered before climbing to his feet. "I hate it when they do that."
Rikku winched as she curled his fingers around the seeds and dropped her hand. "Sorry, Irvine. That was my fault." She said. Irvine shook his head as he fixed his hat. "Nah, don't even worry about it. He was gonna do it anyway. He tensed up when I got too close." He told her.
Paine shook her head as they looked down the path to see the Chocobo now watching them. "This isn't going to work. We have to think of something else." She said sighing in despair. Zell then pointed off. "We can always try that."
Everyone looked to see a hovercraft and its driver sitting off to the side of the road. Apparently, the driver had been watching the entire time because she was laughing hard. Irvine then grinned. "Hey. That's not a bad idea." He said already walking over. The other five just followed after him. The driver hopped off her hover and walked over to meet them. "Well that was the most amusing show I've ever seen. You need any help trying to catch that Chocobo?" She asked. All six nodded and she smiled. "Okay. Count me in. It's been too long since I've last chased a chocobo." She said. And Irvine told everyone the plan he had just thought up.
Everyone was in position now. Zell and Rikku would walk up to behind the chocobo and scare it out of where it was hiding while the others would try and block it's path. Irvine was going to ride the hover craft with the driver, a very long strand of rope in his hands. He had already made a loop through it. "All right! Everyone, ready?" He called.
There was a few shouts of yeses before they got started on doing the plan. Zell and Rikku ran up and around to the chocobo, scaring it immediately. It bolted of course but halted when it found Squall and Paine blocking it's path. It jerked around and ran towards the other way but found Yuna there. Again, like it did to Rikku and Zell it jumped over her head and ran off. But it was soon pursued by Irvine and the hovercraft. The craft sped after the chocobo, going right ahead of it. As Irvine had thought, the chocobo tried to turn and run off into the field where the hovercraft couldn't follow. But he was ready for that. He swung the rope high above his head in several circles before releasing it. The loop flew right over the Chocobo's head and around it's neck. It came to a sudden halt as Irvine held tight to the rope, keeping it from going anywhere.
The chocobo fought a little, trying to get its head free from the rope but Irvine kept a hold of it, keeping it from running off. As he kept hold, he slowly made his way up the rope to get closer. "Now, you stop that, big guy. Quit makin' such a fuss. We caught ya fair and square. Now cool your hide." he said gently as he carefully reached forward at the thrashing head and gently touched its beak. The chocobo gave a jerk in protest but relaxed as Irvine began rubbing its feathers on its forehead. "That's right, big boy. Calm down." The cowboy said soothingly.
The others just watched in wonder as the cowboy began to whisper sweet words to the large animal. "Wow! He's really good." The driver commented as she just sat in her seat. Zell grinned as he folded his arms. "He's Irvine Kinneas, for you. The Desperado who can charm anything."
The chocobo was finally calmed down and was letting Irvine run his fingers along the glossy yellow feathers. "That's it. You're a good boy." Irvine said as he approached the Chocobo's side. He grabbed a hold of the back feathers and pulled himself up onto the chocobo's back. It had tensed for a second, warking in protest but didn't fight. It finally gave in. Irvine nodded in satisfaction. "There ya have it. We have caught ourselves a chocobo." He said grinning at the others. The three Gullwings and the two SeeDs cheered for Irvine as he tied the rope into reins.
Just then someone came running towards them. It was just some man who had been at the Travel Agency, no one in great importance. "Hey!" He called to them. The Gullwings and the SeeDs turned around to look at him. The man looked quite out of breath as if he had been running as fast as he could. And he probably had. "Yeah?" Zell asked as the man approached them. "What do ya need?"
The man shook his head as he pointed in the direction he had come. "Your friend is in real hot water!" He told them. Everyone's eyes lit up a little. "Huh? Who..." Irvine was starting to ask. "Calli!" Zell said sharply before running down the path. The others quickly followed after.
They ran as fast as they could down the path, the man in the lead. They could already hear a few screams and loud roars of danger up a head. When they found out where Calli was, they already had their weapons out and ready. Calli was in the ravine, lying on her stomach on top of one of the ruins. She seemed to be out cold too. But that wasn't what they were looking at. It was the very large monster, trying to climb up to where she was. Zell recognized it as a Chocobo Eater. He had fought one before. Two years ago when he was in Spira.
But right now, Calli was in trouble.
Zell saw Yuna back up and look ready to jump off the cliff to go to Calli's rescue but Paine quickly stepped into the way. "You can't!" The pepper haired girl said sharply. Yuna just shook her head. "But there isn't much time!" She said worriedly.
And that's when Zell jumped.
"ZELL! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Irvine yelled as Zell fell from the bridge. The martial artist ignored him as he slide down the steep side, ending up rolling head over heels when he lost control and landed in the middle of the ravine. "Ow. Don't try that, guys." He muttered just barely loud enough for the others to hear. There was also the loud warks of Chocobos above them and someone shouted, "Heeya!"
Zell climbed to one knee and looked up to see several chocobos flying over head and landing in front of the Chocobo Eater.
Standing close by was Clasko. He was looking quite fierce but proud as he pointed towards the Chocobo Eater. He turned and looked straight up at Yuna and the others. "That can buy you some time, Lady Yuna! Please hurry!" He called. He then looked over at Zell and hurried over to him. "Zell, are you all right?"
Zell just smirked as he stood up, rubbing his head. "Yeah, I'm fine." He then looked over at the Chocobo Eater who was fighting with the Chocobos. "Heh, I think it's time I joined in. Just until the others get here." He looked back at Clasko. "You better stay back. This might get messy." He told him before charging towards the fiend. The blonde SeeD quickly rushed up to the fiend before punching it hard in the back, making it roar in pain and jerk around to face the threat. It roared at him before charging right back. Zell gritted his teeth as he waited as it swung its large fist at him before ducking under it and getting behind the monster. He punched the Chocobo Eater hard in the back again and kept up that strategy until it swung around the other way and hit him hard across the way.
Zell went flying very fast and hit the side of the cliff, leaving almost an imprint of his body. He grunted in pain as he slid down to the ground. "Ouchies." He groaned as he climbed to his feet and looked up at the fiend as it towered over him. He didn't even have time to fight back as it swung at him again, only this time wrapping its powerful hand around. "Oh! This looks familiar!" He growled at himself as he strained his muscles to try and break himself free from the monster's grip.
However, it tightened its hold and that really hurt Zell. He gritted his teeth tightly to keep himself from crying out. There were several warks of anger and the chocobos came to his defense. Feathers started flying as the chocobos attacked the Chocobo Eater. The monster roared in pain, letting Zell drop to the ground. The SeeD landed on his feet but fell to his knees wincing a little pain. "Ow. That really hurt." He grumbled.
Suddenly there was gunfire making the chocobos immediately retreat from the fiend. Zell looked over to see the others had arrived. He grinned as he stood up and got back into his fighting stance. "All right! Time to play hardcore!" He said grinning.
Squall rose a hand as he charged at the fiend with the others beside him. "Zell, stand down! We'll take care of this!"
That came as a blow to Zell as he looked at Squall. "What?! Oh come on, Squall! I want some fun too!" He cried out to his friend. Squall seemed to ignore as he began to attack the fiend. But when Zell snapped back into his fighting stance, he glared at him. "We saw the way it attacked you, Zell. I know you're hurt so stand back." He told him. It was true that Zell's left arm was hurting a little after getting squeezed by the fiend but it wasn't that bad. He was sure that he could still fight. But Squall seemed to read his mind. "Don't make it an order, Zell." The Commander warned him.
Zell grumbled but then stepped back to watch the others attack the fiend. He watched as each of them fought it, making it even weaker with every blow they did to it. He was a little more put out when they finally killed it and he didn't get to do anything. But he was glad that they had defeated it without getting hurt.
Once the Chocobo Eater was gone, Rikku rushed over and threw her arms around him. "Zell! Are you okay?" She asked looking him over. Zell just nodded as he looked at Squall. "I was fine. I wasn't that hurt." He told him.
"Right." Squall said looking him over before sliding his gunblade away. "Then lift up both arms above your head."
Zell gave him a confused look but then did so. When he did, there was a sharp stinging sensation in his left arm. He winced as he quickly dropped his arm and rubbed the area where it had hurt. He instantly knew what had gone wrong. When he had strained his muscles to get out of the fiend's grip, he pulled a muscle. "Ow." He muttered rubbing his arm. Squall looked at him dully while the others looked a little concerned. "Just as I thought." The dark Commander said before he threw his hand towards Zell, casting the Cure spell he had. "You always do that, Zell. You need to think before you jump." He told him a little sternly before walking away.
"Ouch. He's not that nice, is he?" Rikku asked as she watched him go.
Zell shook his head as he rubbed his forearm. "No. It's not that. He's right. I do intend to go over my own limit when there's someone in danger. You guys should already know that. You've seen me fight." He told them.
"Yes." Yuna said shifting her weight. "He's right though. You do need to take it a little easy."
Zell only shrugged before they all walked over to where Calli had jumped down. She was jumping up and down with joy. "Thanks, everyone, for saving me!" She said happily. Everyone just gave her a nod and a smile. "It's no problem at all, Calli. We're just glad you're okay." Yuna said. Everyone just smiled before looking at that Chocobo they had caught. Calli squealed in delight before hurrying over and petting it. "Oh! It's the Chocobo! He's so pretty!"
"How 'bout takin' a ride, missy?" Irvine said grinning. Calli's response was jumping up and down with joy. Everyone but Squall and Paine laughed as they watched Calli climb up on the Chocobo and ride around. The group just went back to the bridge and watched as she rode around, with Clasko telling her how to ride. The two seemed to be getting along just fine.
"She looks happy." Yuna said as she looked thoughtfully down at Calli. Paine folded her arms as she turned and started to cross the bridge. "Whatever works for her." She said. Squall followed after her with Irvine close behind. Yuna, Rikku and Zell looked at one another with smiles. "Shall we?" Yuna asked. The other two just nodded before looking back down at Calli. "Well let's go." Zell said as he walked after Yuna and the others. Rikku paused as she just watched Calli before hurrying after. Zell had to walk to the side of the cliff as a Hover passed by him. He only glanced up at the driver for a second before hurrying after the others. He thought he had heard the driver shouting something and then a crash but he didn't even bother to look behind him as Rikku had joined his side and they both jogged after the others.
They finally reached the Mushroom Rock road and to their great relief there were Leblanc Syndicates running all over. They even spotted Ormi and Logos wandering around but none of them seemed to even notice the six young adults watching them. "Well, we found them. But now we just got to figure out which one of those guys over there is Irve's size." Zell said looking a bunch of guy Syndicates over.
"Let's go check them out then." Yuna said as she lead the way. Everyone just nodded and followed after her.
They were almost close to the Syndicates when they paused to hear a few girls talking about something that definitely caught their attention. They heard something about a sphere and that made all six smirk or smile at one another. "Hey, did you hear that?" Yuna asked as soon as they eavesdropped on one of the groups.
"Yeah. Let's find before they do." Zell said grinning. Squall folded his arms. "We still have to find a uniform for Irvine, though." He reminded Zell, who just waved him away. "I know, Squall. But the sphere those girls were talking about might be really useful." The blonde complained. Squall rolled his eyes though as he looked away.
"Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't you guys just look for a uniform while we look for the sphere?" Rikku said shrugging. "That way it'll be like killing two birds with the same stone."
The three SeeDs just shrugged, yet Zell was grinning. "Good idea. We, SeeDs'll look for Irvine's uniform while you take care of the sphere. But if you run into any trouble, give us a shout." He told the girls. All three just nodded before they split up and began their search. The three SeeDs walked down the road, looking at each Syndicate they passed, who stared right back before charging at them. Fighting them was too simple though. The SeeDs were a lot stronger than they were put together. But neither of the Syndicates were Irvine's size. Zell was starting to get a little patient as they passed by several members before Squall stopped and pointed at one Syndicate. "I think that's the closest one we're going to get to." He told the other two.
Zell and Irvine both looked to see a tall Syndicate member arguing with an Al Bhed hover driver. The member wasn't as tall as Irvine was but he was pretty close. Zell nodded as he looked the member over before looking at Irvine. "Yeah, he's just about right. What do you think?"
Irvine pulled a face but breathed out a long sigh. "It'll have to do. Let's go get 'em." He said. The other two nodded and walked over to the arguing two. The argument was pretty bad from what they could hear. As far as they could guess was the driver had refused to let the Syndicate member have his ride and the member was getting angry. He even started to pull out his weapon to attack the Al Bhed. But before it could even leave it's place, a fist hit him hard over the head, knocking him to the ground.
"I don't think so, buddy." Zell said as he lowered his fist after knocking him unconscious. The Al Bhed just stood there in a confused way but didn't seem to care too much of why Zell had just interfered with the fight that was about to break out. Instead he said something in Al Bhed before walking away. "Well, we have your uniform, Irve. Let's go find the girls and see if they found that sphere. Maybe they need some help." Zell said clapping his hands together as if to rid of the dust.
Squall just looked away before pointing down the pathway. "I think they found it just fine."
Both Zell and Irvine turned around to see the girls running towards them, Yuna waving a sphere in her hand. Rikku was laughing as if she found something very funny but Paine just looked annoyed.
"Well?" Zell asked as soon as the girls walked up to them.
Rikku stopped before jumping into his arms and laughed. "Mission accomplished! We've got our sphere! And wait till you see what it can do. Yuna tried it out." She looked down at the unconscious man lying in the bushes. "Hey! You've got a uniform!" She said brightly. Irvine nodded as he flipped the uniform over his shoulder and grinned. "Well, now we can go see Miss Priss and find out what she did with your sphere." He said. Yuna nodded with a smile. "This time, it's our turn."
When they went back to the airship, all of them tried on their uniforms, though Irvine was grumbling on how his was definitely tight on him. It fit him all right but was a little short on him. Squall just told him to deal with it. It was good enough for now. It wasn't like they were going to wear the uniforms for good. They all stood together, looking their selves over or looking over their friends. "All right! Rikku, you look hot!" Zell said grinning at her. Rikku just laughed while the others rolled their eyes and Brother scowled at him.
"We're ready. It's time to pay them a visit." Irvine said tipping his hat.
Paine nodded as she fixed her helmet. "Time to pay the score."
Yuna pointed forward with a determined smile. "Onto Chateau Leblanc!" She said cheerfully and the airship kicked into high speed.
The six finally arrived to Guadosalam by dusk and was standing together, hidden out of the guards' eye sight on the bridge near the Farplane. All of them glanced at one another before nodding. All six of them walked up to the main doors, dressed in their uniforms. The guards guarding the doors both looked at them, though one was more confused than the other.
"Reporting for duty!" Rikku and Yuna both said cheerfully while all of them saluted the two. Though Squall, Zell and Irvine gave them the SeeD salute instead. They weren't exactly sure how the goons usually saluted. It seemed to be just fine because the guards let them past with a thanks. But as the three guys were passing by, the other guard who hadn't spoke stopped them.
"It's your turn to guard the door and our break time."
Zell stepped back in surprise. "Wha? B-but we just got in. That's not what we were ordered to do." He said. The guard just groaned with impatience. "Oh come on, man! We've been standing here for six hours now! It's your turn. Unless you want to take it up with the boss." He growled at Zell. Zell clenched his fist and was ready to start punching this guy but Squall stepped forward and saluted him. "All right. We'll take your positions." He said impatiently. "Just get out of here before we decide to tell the boss that you're slacking off." The two guards just gave him a look but then they hurried away.
Zell and Irvine both looked at Squall, who leaned against the wall as if he was going to do exactly what he had been ordered to do. "Squall, what are you doing? I thought we were..." The blonde SeeD started to say.
"Zell, we're on a covert operation. We have to make them think we are one of them. You know that." Squall said impatiently. "So if we're ordered to do something then we have to do it." He told him. Zell grumbled but then leaned against the other wall, looking a little moody. Irvine just stood right where he was. "Yeah, what about the girls though? What if they need our help?"
"I highly doubt that they do. They can take care of their selves. Besides, if they need our help then they'll call us." Squall said folding his arms. Zell could already tell that he closed his eyes in thought. He always did that.
With a shrug, the blonde just began going through his own thoughts. He was thinking about everything. Trying to piece the puzzle together. A dangerous weapon called Vegnagun. The sphere of the man who looked like Tidus. The disappearance of Bahamut, Ifrit and Shiva. Where had they gone? And where was this whole thing going? Zell didn't like it. And he knew Squall and Irvine didn't either. Something was definitely up. Something bad.
Just as the three SeeDs in disguise got their selves comfortable to waiting for the girls, the doors opened and someone walked out. Zell just tilted his head, looking at the person lazily before quickly straightening with surprise. Irvine seemed just as surprised, though Squall hadn't moved at all. He probably had his eyes closed still. Though Zell couldn't really tell. The person that had just walked out of Leblanc's place happened to be Nooj. The Youth League Meyvn only glanced at the three before continuing away from the Syndicate base.
Zell and Irvine stared after him with surprised but didn't say anything until he was gone. "What the heck is Nooj doing here?!" The blonde SeeD asked. Squall straightened a little but kept leaning against the wall. "Hm. He's up to something. No doubt about that." he said shaking his head.
"Yeah but why was he here?" Zell asked again.
Irvine looked between the other two SeeDs. "You don't think he asked Leblanc to steal from the Gullwings' ship, do ya?" He asked. Zell gritted his teeth as he clenched his fists. "I knew he was no good! And look what we did. We gave him that 'awesome sphere'." He growled. Squall only glanced at him. "Zell, cool it. We don't know what he was doing here. Maybe he's just a friend of Leblanc's or something." He shook his head straightening. "I don't like it anymore than you do, Zell. But we're here to find that stolen sphere. Nothing else." He said. Zell just shook his head before folding his arms and began pacing. "I don't like it. I didn't like Nooj when we first met him. But now I really don't like him."
"I know. But like I said." Squall said before going back to his thoughtful stage again while Zell pondered over the thoughts in his head.
Not more than fifteen minutes later, there was someone shouting from within the building. It sounded like that man, Ormi. Zell stepped away from the wall and cracked the doors open to take a look. The two thugs were talking to one another, though Ormi seemed to be panicking about something.
"Huh. I wonder what's up." Zell muttered as he watched the two. Squall only tilted his head towards him before shaking it. He was quiet for a minute before standing up straight and joined his friend to eavesdropping.
"It's the Gullwings! They're downstairs sneaking around!" Ormi whined.
Logos pulled out his guns before hurrying towards the living room door. "Then let's take care of them." He said coolly. Ormi followed after him. "Don't ya think we should wake up the boss?" He asked. Logos didn't look at him. "And get the heel? We can take care of this on our own." He said before they went into the room.
The three SeeDs straightened before looking at one another. "Uh-oh. The girls need our help now. Are we going in?" Zell asked looking at Squall. Squall was quiet for a minute before nodding. "Yeah. Let's go in." He said. Then the three hurried into the room, still wearing their uniforms. The building hadn't changed that much from the last time Zell had been in it. Two years ago, it had been the home of Seymour, the one man that he despised. Now it was the Chateau Leblanc. And it had pink and purple curtains hanging up over the windows. Zell pulled a face under his mask but then took the lead to going into the living room. The three SeeDs had just barely entered the room when Logos and Ormi came running out of a hidden door Zell did not remember being there two years ago. It was lucky the three were still wearing their uniforms other wise there would have been a fight. Though Zell was pretty sure there would be one later.
One look at the three though, Logos pointed at them as they stopped by the door. "You three! Where have you been?!" He demanded.
Zell and Irvine looked at one another while Squall shrugged. "Uh..." The blonde began.
"Oh! Never mind! We have intruders in the hidden corridors! Take care of them right now while we report to the boss!" Logos ordered. And then he and Ormi was gone.
"..." Squall muttered.
Zell slouched a little but then shook his head. "Man, that was dumb. I hate getting ordered around by idiots like that." He said before turning towards the secret door. "Well, shall we go find the girls and get the heck out of here?" He asked. The other two only nodded and they proceeded to going into the hidden corridor.
This was definitely weird to Zell. He had been in that one room just once and had not ever known there was a secret corridor. Of course, how he could have known? It was Seymour's old place. It wasn't like the evil Maestor was going to give Yuna and her Guardians a tour of the place. Not long after they were in there, they had seemed to gotten lost. The halls twisted and turned like a maze and they still couldn't find out where the girls were. They thought they heard gunfire but they weren't too sure until they got closer to it.
Finally they heard some screaming and then they took off running. Zell in the lead, they turned a corner to see the Yuna, Rikku and Paine locked in a battle with Leblanc and the two thugs. They seemed to be doing pretty well but they were also taking a beating. There was a very strong whirlwind of some sort swirling around the girls and making them stagger from the impact. And with Logos firing into the whirlwind at them like he was, they were in trouble.
"Oh no. You did not just fire at my girl." Zell growled before quickly shedding his uniform, revealing his cloths under them.
"It's time for the SeeDs to kick some ass." Irvine said placing his cowboy hat back onto his head. Squall was out of his uniform as fast as his two friends were. He slashed the air with his gunblade before all three of them rushed forward to help the Gullwings.
"Parting is such sweet sorrow." Logos said as he aimed to fire another round at the Gullwing girls but before he could, something slammed into him, knocking off his feet.
"Don't you dare shoot them, you jerk!" Zell snapped.
Leblanc and Ormi spun around to see who had interrupted while Logos got to his feet, groaning a little from pain. "What?! Who are you?!" The snotty blonde demanded.
"Boss! It's those three we told yas about!" Ormi said as he stood ready to fight.
"Zell!" Rikku and Yuna said breathlessly. "Squall, Irvine!"
Paine was bent over a little but stood up a little straighter. "It's about time you got here." She said sounding very annoyed. The three SeeDs just faced the three enemies. "Don't worry about that, Paine. Now what do you say we pound some manners into these three dweebs?" Zell asked punching at the air. Yuna, Paine and Rikku all smiled as they straightened and stood ready. All six stood around the three, their weapons ready.
"How dare you! I'll teach you not to mess with the Mighty Leblanc!" Leblanc snapped.
Zell rolled his eyes as he looked at her. "Yeah right. More like the mighty pain in the ass." He said sarcastically. Rikku and Yuna both laughed while Paine just smirked. Leblanc was not amused. "OH! I'll teach you! Boys! Are you ready?!"
"Yes, boss!"
The three SeeDs all stood ready to face their enemies while the girls would stand back and watch. "Hmph. This will be an easy match." Squall said quietly. Zell punched at the air as he looked towards Omri. "Girls, we'll take care of this. Just stand by and watch the fun."
"Whatever happened to not hurting girls?" Paine asked sarcastically as she slide her sword away and folded her arms.
Irvine tilted his hat back before raising his shotgun at Logos. "Oh don' ya worry, Paine. We won't be hurting Leblanc. She's just gonna be a little sore in the mornin', that's all." And the fight began.
Zell waited as Ormi jumped for to hit him with his large shield before he quickly jumped to the side and around the large man. He grinned as he threw his palm forward hitting the man in the back and sending him flying across the floor. "Ha! That's one thing you have to know. Never rush your opponent." He said before rushing towards him. Logos and Irvine faced one another, guns trained on each other. "Do you honestly think you are a better marksman than I?" The very tall thin gunslinger asked. The cowboy just grinned at him. "Why don't we just find out, partner? I'll even let you fire first." He said. Logos hesitated but then began firing his guns quickly. Irvine dodged to the side as the bullets came at him before he threw a Demi spell at Logos, knocking him off his feet before blasting him with Fire Ammo. Leblanc wasn't faring any better than her two goons. She kept trying to slash Squall with her clawed fan but he blocked very easily with his gunblade. And that was all he was doing. He wasn't even attacking back. Just letting her attack him while he defended himself. But when Leblanc miscalculated her steps, she tripped on her own feet and fell to the floor. That was when Squall threw the Stop spell onto her and she was still as ever. "Too easy." He muttered before stepping back.
"Ha! How'd you like that?! Want another helping of your just desserts?!" Rikku said as the battles ended only minutes later.
Paine smirked as she folded her arms. "No one's going to hear you scream from down here." She said with amusement. Leblanc and her goons were panting from exhaustion but as soon as that threat came out of Paine's mouth, the blonde shook her head looking up at them with fear. "W-wait a second! I'll...uh, I'll let you see what's on the sphere!" She said pointing her fan towards the broken sphere in Yuna's hand. It surprised Zell, Squall and Irvine to see that there were now two half spheres.
"Let us?" Paine asked with a raised eyebrow.
Leblanc sighed in defeat before lowering head. "Please. The sphere is yours to watch."
"Huh. So that's why they stole the broken sphere. They had the other half already." Zell said as he went over to get a better look at the sphere. Yuna just nodded as she put the halves together. "That's right, Zell." She said before pushing play. The three Gullwings and the SeeDs all moved a little closer to see what the sphere's contents were.
The sphere only showed the super weapon, Vegnagun again. Only this time there were guards walking all around it. By the look of the walls all around the weapon, it was in Bevelle.
Everyone looked at Leblanc as she began to make herself more presentable again. "That is the colossus Vegnagun." She began with a shrug. "We've finished our analysis of the sphere. It appears to have been recorded underneath Bevelle."
Zell frowned at the very thought of that. If Bevelle was hiding that dangerous weapon, then so must have Baralai. "Bevelle?" He asked. The others only glanced over at him. Paine impatiently folded her arms, looking moodier than ever. "I see Bevelle hasn't lost its fondness for secrets." She muttered. Leblanc nodded as she pointed her hooked fan towards her. "Exactly!" She said sounding a little excitedly yet annoyed. "Those Yevon scums have been concealing that weapon all along. If anyone uses that thing, Spira is done for."
Irvine folded his arms while tipping his head back a little. "It can't be that powerful, can it? I mean, it's just a machine and if I didn't know any better, this world's a lot bigger than it, ain't it?" He asked looking around. Zell looked away with a look on his face. "You'd be surprised, Irve. Spira's a lot different from Gaia." He told him.
Rikku bounced up and down on her heels. "But it's a machina! All we gotta do is shakey-shake our way up to it and take it apart." She said sounding excited. Zell grinned at her idea, even Leblanc was smirking. "That's what Noojie's got in mind. And of course, whatever he's planning is what I"m planning." She then tilted her head back while looking right at Yuna. "What about you?"
Yuna was a little surprised at the question. "Me?"
Leblanc nodded as she folded her arms. "The summoner who defeated Sin ought to stand up and defend Spira again." She said. Yuna was quiet for a minute before she glanced around at everyone then nodded. "So, then I guess we're on the same side. We'll be waiting for you." She said starting to turn away with Ormi and Logos.
The three SeeDs and three Gullwings all looked at one another though Paine was giving Leblanc a look. "Waiting where?" She asked, sounding as if she was going to regret even asking.
"Don't be silly, love." Leblanc said smirking at them again. "On your airship of course. I've always wanted to take a spin on that thing!" She said before she turned around and started out of the room. Zell gritted his teeth with annoyance while the others just shook their heads.
"Every heard of asking?!" Rikku exclaimed as they watched their rivals hurried off.
But Leblanc didn't reply as they vanished around the corner. Zell glanced side wards at Yuna, who lowered her head, looking worried about something. It didn't take a genius to guess what she had been thinking of. Once again, there was a threat in Spira. At least, a possible threat. Zell didn't like it anymore than she did. But at least this time, they couldn't stop the threat from happening before it ever did. Not like it had been with Sin. But as they started to leave the Leblanc Chateau, Zell couldn't shake the feeling of dread. There was too many secrets being hidden. By both groups, the Youth League and the New Yevon. He couldn't help but grumble at himself for even thinking about trusting that Baralai guy. He had to be behind it all. He was the leader for Hyne's sake. Of course, Nooj wasn't trustworthy either. So who was, besides the people he already knew?