Chapter 11: Breakpoint

Focus. Mind like still water. Calm. Serene.

The gunblade slashed through the air with a whistle, following a specific pattern, coming to rest at guard.

Beginner's pattern I, complete. Pattern 2. Focus.

From guard position, Squall flowed into the next pattern, mind blank, letting his body take the lead. It was a release of sorts for him, when nothing else was available, and it was vital to his sanity.

Beginner's pattern 2, complete. Pattern 3. Keep the mind blank. Don't think. Just move.

He always started with the basics first. Drilled into the mind and body until they were automatic. Using them as a warm up to the more complicated and advanced patterns that he now knew.

Shift forward to thrust. Back to guard. Block high. Block low. Slash and parry. Back to guard…

He needed this. Needed to work his body through the routines he'd used since he'd first picked up the heavy, unwieldy gunblade. Needed to challenge his strength, his grace, and his stamina. He needed to.

He needed to be ready to kill without hesitation.

Beginner's pattern 3, complete. Advanced pattern, level 1. Keep the focus. Still water.

The pattern was harder than the first three, more challenging. It forced Squall's concentration to narrow until it was wholly upon the blade and his body, using the gunblade like an extension of himself.

Flow like water. Move like wind. Precise, controlled…

Like water: flowing from one technique to the next. Like wind: hard as a gale, soft as a breeze…

Soft as an Angel's kiss upon his cheek.

Sharp as an adamantine blade, smooth as expensive silk…

Obsidian strands sifting though his fingers…

He would not consider himself to be a master, though many would argue that point. He certainly had mastered this most difficult of weapons to the point that even watching him battle for his life with the gunblade displayed his grace and skill. At a time when style counted for nothing, it was still beautiful to watch.

Working through the advanced patterns, still focusing upon the techniques, the weight and heft of the blade, the surging of his blood, the burning of his lungs… it made him forget, just for a moment, where he was.

It was only the gunblade and the patterns. The deadly dance that he engaged in every day with the only partner that he'd ever danced with. Besides Rinoa, that was.

An Angel's kiss…obsidian silk…

Rinoa…

The pattern faltered as pain stabbed through Squall's heart. He took a deep breath.

Focus. Mind like still water…FOCUS.

He picked up the pattern again, and finished it correctly. But the zen-like state he'd entered while practicing had been shattered by an errant thought. A wisp of memory. A name.

He tried to regain it. Closing his eyes, he stood balanced, still as stone, and simply breathed.

Calm. Serene. Still water. Focus.

Breathe in.

Feet solid upon the ground, weight evenly upon both. Gunblade at guard.

Breathe out.

Grounded. Centered. All energy flowing into and from the earth; perfect in stillness.

Breathe in.

Mind calm. Serene. Shielded.

Squall frowned. He didn't need to shield. There was nothing to shield from. He tried not to look in the place where Rinoa's presence would normally be found, but it was like having a sore tooth. Even when the ache had faded into the background, it was always there. Always reminding him. He touched that blank spot, wishing he had the power to breach the barrier keeping him from her.

Sighing, he lowered the tip of his gunblade until it rested upon the ground. It was no use, his concentration was well and truly gone now, the momentary peace he got from practicing for war evaporating like smoke in the wind.

A slight scuff of shoe on pavement caught his attention and he turned, watching as Quistis approached.

"So this is where you got to," she said, looking around. The quad had survived the storm surprisingly well. Then again, perhaps it wasn't as much of a surprise as one would think, if one took into consideration the magical protections that the Garden had.

Without the magical barrier that had protected Garden, the quad, along with everything else, would have been destroyed.

It wasn't a surprise to see Squall out there, working with his gunblade. He'd been tense and stressed, and one good way to relieve that stress was to exercise. Quistis was that way herself; sometimes she just had to work up a good sweat to work off a mood.

What was a surprise was his complete withdrawal. Oh, he still communicated with her, with Nida, with anyone else he had to talk to. But when that need was past, he shut down. This retreat into brooding silence was unhealthy, and for the life of her, Quistis could not get anything from him that would give her a clue to what had caused it.

Whatever it was, it had happened during the hurricane and even though the storm had now passed, it was still bothering him. Part of it, Quistis was sure, was the fact that they were essentially stranded in their current location and unable to communicate with anyone.

There was nothing that Squall liked less than feeling trapped and powerless. She knew why; she'd endured a stint in the D-district prison right along with him and Zell. While she wasn't treated as badly as he was-as squad commander, they'd focused their "interrogations" entirely upon him- she'd heard his screams.

Even now, she shuddered at the memory. Squall had a high pain threshold. Quistis could only imagine what had been done to him to force him to scream in absolute agony like that. Zell and Seifer knew, but the grim looks they'd given her when she'd asked made her think that all things considered, she was better off not knowing.

Having at least a rudimentary understanding of his mindset however did not guarantee that her speculations were correct. Even his closest friends considered him enigmatic at best, infuriating at worst.

Which one of those two options he would be at this point in time depended upon the response he gave her.

"Yes?" he prompted, waiting for whatever it was she had come to tell him or ask him or remind him to do.

Quistis grimaced at his stone-faced delivery. Enigmatic, and infuriating; his blank expression gave nothing away.

"We're still unable to raise Zell or anyone else by radio. Cell reception is unavailable. We still haven't figured out what kind of damage the main propulsion systems have sustained, and they're still inoperable. Until we can get into contact with Zell and have him fly the Ragnarok to FH to pick up the repair techs that worked on the Garden when we crashed into them, we're stuck." Quistis reported.

"Any other damages to report?" Squall asked her.

"Nothing major. We do have tech teams working on the transmitters, so we should have the comms back online eventually. Really, aside from the damage to the propulsion systems sustained in the crash, everything else is okay. Neither of the main reservoirs was breached, so we've got plenty of fresh water, and the reserve in the desalination tanks is full as well. You have to admit; the Shumi really know how to build." Quistis said.

Squall nodded. Now, it was a waiting game. Until they could bring the comms back online and bring Zell back with the Ragnarok; there was nothing more that they could do. Not with Garden anyway. There was still plenty of work to do.

The sheriff had talked to him about getting a team of SeeDs together and driving out to Balamb Town for a damage assessment. Despite the rough night, and the crash resulting from it, the cars in Garden's motor pool had been secured well enough that none had been damaged. It only remained for Squall to select the team and go.

"We need to go into Balamb and do a damage assessment. Sheriff Douglas asked me about it earlier today. Since there's really nothing critical to deal with here, I plan on taking a team of about five SeeDs and cadets along with the Sheriff out there this afternoon." Squall said.

"Do you have anyone specific in mind for the team?" Quistis asked him.

"Not really. Whoever's available." Squall shrugged.

"All right. I'll send them out. When do you want to go?" Quistis asked.

"One o'clock." Squall answered.

"Okay. I'll get 'em assembled and ready to go by then." Quistis said.

"Thank you." Squall said. He sheathed his gunblade and looked around the quad a moment. There really was surprisingly little damage. Squall knew the Garden's shield spell had to have protected the open area, but it left him puzzled that he could still feel a light breeze ruffling his hair. Apparently, the spell had been refined to tell the difference between a gale and a breeze.

"What do you plan on doing now?" Quistis asked him.

Squall returned his attention to her, answering, "Well, as the cafeteria is now functioning, I suppose I should eat lunch."

"Well, I'd join you but I've already eaten." Quistis said. Squall shrugged. He didn't care either way, Quistis knew. But it worried her, seeing him fall back into an old pattern she'd thought he'd outgrown.

He'd turned to leave when Quistis called after him, "Squall, wait. Something's bothering you. I know it is. What's wrong?"

He paused and looked back at her, answering shortly, "Nothing you can fix."

She folded her arms and said, "Hey, it's me, okay? Quistis? Remember? You are allowed to talk to me. So… talk to me?"

Squall studied her silently. It was on the tip of his tongue to simply say "no" and walk away. She couldn't help him, and she couldn't help Rinoa. Nobody could. Not even he could.

So what would be the point of telling Quistis that Rinoa had been kidnapped just as the hurricane had struck, that he'd been helpless to save her and that each minute, each hour that ticked away took her farther and farther from him? What would be the point?

The point was that she cared. That she wanted to help. If nothing else, she could provide an ear for him to vent to, if he was so inclined. But he wasn't the sort to spill his sorrows to a willing listener, never had been.

Still, he owed her an explanation of why he was leaving them all at his first opportunity. When that opportunity presented itself, Squall would tell her.

Finally, Squall said, "Later." And walked away.

"This is Fire Cross, Seifer Almasy commanding. Anyone out there?" Static crackled in response, and Seifer adjusted the frequency for what seemed like the hundredth time. He should be able to raise either Zell or Squall soon; they were within sight of Trabia's shoreline now.

Static crackled and the radio responded, "…eifer? This is ….ell. Where are you?" Seifer adjusted the signal again and was rewarded with a clearer response to his answer.

"We're just off the Trabian coast. Should be within sight of you pretty soon." Seifer answered.

More static, and the signal cleared further, Zell responding with, "I see you now. Good to know you made it."

"It was a pretty hairy night. We lost two trawlers. Is Squall around? I can't raise Garden." Seifer said.

"Neither can I." Zell said.

Seifer frowned, asking, "What do you mean? Shouldn't it be right there by you?"

"It should be, but it's not. I haven't had any contact with Squall or Garden since I got here." Zell answered him.

Seifer swore quietly. That was a possibility he hadn't counted on. What the hell had happened?

"Well, the weather's cleared up, have you tried a flyover yet to see if you can locate them?" Seifer asked.

"Not yet. I was getting ready to when I heard your hail." Zell answered.

"Well, go ahead and do it now then, and let me know what you find. I have four refugees here I rescued from shipwreck that I'd like to get installed in Garden if possible. I don't have the room or the resources to keep them on my boat for very long." Seifer told him.

"All right. I'll let you know in a little bit. I'm taking off now." Zell said. A few minutes later, a scream from overhead sounded and Seifer saw the bright red airship taking off and heading south toward Balamb.

While he waited, Seifer busied himself with putting the boat to rights. Raijin had done a creditable job below decks, particularly with the bilges. But he'd never been good with keeping the decks cleared. This time however, anything that had been lost due to the storm couldn't be blamed on him. Everything had been secured as well as was possible, Raijin being particularly careful about his fishing tackle. It was just ironic, dumb luck that the fishing equipment was one of the few things that had been washed overboard.

Fortunately, it didn't take much work to get the Fire Cross back in shipshape order. Seifer's passengers were all sailors who were bored with inactivity, so had volunteered to help. They were just finishing up when the distinctive roar of the Ragnarok's engines signaled its approach.

Seifer headed back for the cabin, turning the radio back on.

Static crackled and Zell's voice sounded, "Fire Cross, this is Zell on the Ragnarok. I found 'em. Garden's down and it looks like it crashed or something. I'm going to be flying back in a few minutes to see if they need any help. If you want me to take your passengers with me that's fine."

"Yeah, I can have Raijin take them over in the lifeboat, unless you want to do the harness and winch thing to pick them up." Seifer said.

"Uh…lifeboat would be best. Airlifting takes two people; one on at the Ragnarok's controls and the other manning the winch, and its just me here." Zell advised them.

"All right, we'll be right over…" Seifer said, signing off. Then he hollered, "RAIJIN!"

A few minutes later, Raijin and the four refugees had piled into the inflatable raft and were making for the nearby shore. Zell met them there when they landed, and led the men to the Ragnarok while Raijin got back into the life raft and rowed back to the Fire Cross.

The Ragnarok took off again just a few minutes later.

Squall drove the Garden's transport truck overland toward Balamb; the sheriff sitting beside him and the SeeDs who'd volunteered (according to Quistis, at any rate) to go along sitting in the back.

They bumped along on the rough track, not even a road really, just a rough patch of muddy, waterlogged plain that they had to slog through before finally reaching the main road. Squall couldn't drive as fast as he wanted to, not if he wanted to actually get there and not get stuck in the mud or damage the sturdy vehicle they were using.

A particularly hard bump however generated protests from the SeeDs, with one of them saying, "Damn! Could this get any rougher?"

To which Squall replied, "Yes actually, it could." Then he pressed ever so lightly on the accelerator. The resulting bump was satisfyingly tooth jarring, and it left everyone wondering if Squall had lost his mind and was trying to kill them.

"Squall! Take it easy man!" Nida protested, gripping the strap affixed to the side of the vehicle he was sitting on. The sheriff simply swore quietly and held on for dear life.

"You did fasten your seatbelts, didn't you?" Squall asked as he continued negotiating the truck over the plain.

Fortunately that was the last bump before they finally reached the main road. The truck fishtailed slightly as it transitioned from mud and vegetation to pavement, and Squall sped up as their road smoothed out. For a little while, that was.

The closer they drew to Balamb, the rougher the road became, until Squall slowed down and finally stopped. Everyone simply stared in silence at what was directly ahead.

"We can't go any further. The road's gone." Squall said.

Beside him, Sheriff Douglas whispered under his breath, "Oh, my God…"

Squall got out of the truck, adjusting his sunglasses, and walked around to the front of it, studying what was left of the road that led into Balamb. The sun shone brightly, the breeze was sweet, if somewhat cold. In short, it was a beautiful winter day in Balamb. All the better to highlight the utter devastation left behind by the hurricane.

Nothing but a muddy scar remained of the road leading into Balamb. For a full quarter of a kilometer, the road was simply gone. And Balamb? It was gone too. Where they all currently stood, they should have been able to see the quay, the shops, and the hotel…. they should have been able to see the town.

All that was left was a scum of mud covering everything, and scattered debris with the odd chimney or corner of a building still stubbornly standing. Not even trees had survived. The entire town had been wiped off the landscape, virtually as if it had never existed at all.

"It's all… it's just… gone. All of it." The sheriff said, brown eyes wide, shock evident in his voice. Then he added slowly, "Commander Leonhart, when you're right, you're right. If we'd stayed…" He swallowed, not finishing his statement.

"I wish to hell I wasn't." Squall said in a low voice. The sheriff stared at him, puzzled.

"Why? You saved everyone. In spite of all of this…nobody died. That's impressive. I'm impressed, at any rate." Sheriff Douglas said.

Squall didn't respond. Instead, he continued gazing silently out at the scars left behind by the storm. He didn't expect it to affect him like it did, though it shouldn't be a surprise; Balamb was his home too. His living arrangement in Deling City was a temporary thing; he'd always intended to come back.

But now there was nothing to come back to.

Nothing to go home to either, he thought painfully. There was just…. wreckage.

"What do we do now?" Nida asked him softly.

Squall glanced over at him, and then met the eyes of the rest of the SeeDs he'd brought.

"You each have cameras, you were told to bring them." Squall stated, and they all nodded in confirmation. Stepping off of the road and into the waterlogged plain next to it, he began walking toward the remains of Balamb.

"Take pictures. Document everything." Squall said over his shoulder as he walked, heedless of the mud and the wet grass.

They walked silently alongside the remains of the main road into town. No monsters troubled them; they'd all fled to the mountains, driven by the storm. There wasn't even a bite bug around to bother them.

They were still several meters from Balamb's former location when Squall paused, studying evidence of how far the storm surge had come inland. From the beach, Squall could tell it had come in nearly half a kilometer. From the harbor, where the water was deepest, it had come in about half that distance. It was still enough however, coupled with the absolutely devastating winds, to completely obliterate everything in its path.

They all continued their measured trek, the SeeDs spread out and taking both still photos and digital video of the process, recording the damage wrought by nature herself.

Upon reaching what had once been the center of town, Squall stopped, the sheriff standing beside him, and looked out toward the damaged wharf, the stones of the quay battered by the wind and the tides, but mostly still there. Then he turned and looked toward where Zell's mother's house had once stood. Gone, along with all of the neighboring homes. The shops, the café, the pub… all gone; of the train station, nothing was left but twisted girders above the scarred concrete of the platform.

Squall could still feel the cobbled street beneath his feet though it was hidden by the mud and debris, but little else remained.

"Hell of a mess. Nobody's coming back here for weeks. Months even." The sheriff commented.

"We'll have to re-establish communications before we can even start cleaning up." Squall said, then added mentally, so I can call Zell and have him bring the Ragnarok back…so I can get the hell out of here. So I can hopefully find my wife and bring her home…

"Yeah, that'll have to be job one… But, look at this! I don't even know where to start," the sheriff said, sweeping his arm out to indicate the remains of the town.

Squall took a final scan of the damage, the debris; the mud and the bodies of both marine animals and strayed pets that lay scattered about. Gulls and other scavenging coastal birds were beginning to make an appearance, doing their part to aid in the clean up.

Meeting the sheriff's eyes, Squall said, "Well, nothing's going to be started today. Let's head back and we'll figure it out." The sheriff nodded and they turned to leave, Squall bringing the SeeDs to heel with a curt order.

They were just approaching the SUV that they'd driven to get there when Squall heard a telltale scream approaching. Looking up, Squall felt his spirits lift as he saw the sun glinting off the molten red paint of the Ragnarok. It was Zell. He closed his eyes as relief washed over him.

The Ragnarok dipped, signaling that Zell had seen them, then banked and flew away.

"That was Zell." Nida observed.

"Yes." Squall said.

"Thank Hyne." Nida said.

Squall nodded, agreeing with him.

It took everything he had not to speed his way back to Garden; as badly as he wanted to get there as soon as possible, he wasn't a fool. The terrain was too rough. He ran the risk of injuring himself or his passengers, or damaging the truck. It was sturdy, but not indestructible. An ill-timed bump or a hidden rock could puncture a tire or break an axle.

So he concentrated on driving, guiding the vehicle over the plains until he reached the grounded Garden, to find the Ragnarok resting serenely upon the grass next to it.

He wanted to run, leap up the ramp and into the Ragnarok and take off right that second.

But he couldn't. Not yet. Instead, he walked past it with a single, longing glance before leading the SeeDs and the sheriff back into Garden.

He'd almost made it when Zell came charging out, nearly cannoning right into him.

"Squall! Oh man! You had me worried when you didn't show up!" Zell said, nearly hopping with agitation, talking quickly.

"We couldn't make it." Squall said simply, figuring the reason why was self-evident.

"Yeah, I see that. Listen," he said urgently, gripping Squall's shoulders, "I talked to Laguna… and Seifer… and I brought some fishermen that he'd rescued with me. Laguna called me again as I was flying over here…" then he stopped, swallowing.

"Squall…" Zell began, voice faltering, "it…it's Rinoa…. she's..."

"I know Zell," Squall said, interrupting him. "I know. I'll talk to you later about it."

Zell frowned, confused, asking, "You know? But how?"

"I don't have time to explain, I need to make a report, and make some plans. Don't go anywhere." Shaking off Zell's grip, he continued into the Garden.

He'd gone directly to Cid, and together with the sheriff, the mayor and whatever experts on utilities and telecommunications that they could find that happened to be in Garden with them, they began to plan. By the end of the meeting, they had a workable plan of action.

Zell would fly the Ragnarok to FH and pick up as many technicians as he could and bring them back to Garden so they could work on getting the propulsion systems fixed. Seifer meanwhile would be contacted and it was hoped, put the ferries back into service so that they could start getting tools, equipment and materials brought to Balamb so that they could start cleaning up and reconstructing the town, starting with the infrastructure.

The Ragnarok would be put into service toward that end as well.

After the meeting adjourned and everyone had left Cid and Squall alone in the conference room, Squall said, "Cid, I need to leave." Cid stared at him, appearing as though he hadn't understood Squall's statement.

"What do you mean, you need to leave?" Cid asked.

"I mean, I need to leave here. Now." Squall said.

"No. You can't leave, we need you here." Cid said, shaking his head.

Squall's eyes grew cold as he said flatly, "I wasn't asking permission, I was giving notice."

"Squall, we're still in the middle of a disaster. We need everyone we can muster to get through this and you… you need to lead. You are the Commander. The head of the SeeDs. You are the leader. You convinced everyone they needed to evacuate. You coordinated the evacuation efforts, you even drove a truck out to Balamb and went house to house and got everyone out. Because of you, nobody died. You have a responsibility to everyone here. You can't just walk away from it." Cid protested, wondering what had gotten into his erstwhile star student and now current SeeD Commander.

"You don't need me. Nida knows the inner workings of Garden better than anyone aside from the FH technicians we're bringing in to fix it. Quistis is far better with people than I will ever be. Between the two of them, they can handle Garden as well or better than I ever could. Zell knows Balamb, he knows just about everyone in the whole damn town. Between him and Seifer, they can be put in charge of the clean up and reconstruction of the town itself." Squall said.

"We do need you. People look to you to lead. How will it look if you leave now?" Cid asked.

" I know how it'll look. I know what it'll do to my record. If you want to throw me in the brig when I get back, put me before a tribunal, be my guest. I'm leaving, and that's the end of it." Squall said, folding his arms across his chest and staring directly into Cid's eyes.

The silence stretched until Cid finally asked, "Why?"

Squall let out a deep breath and paced to the other side of the room, saying, "Cid, Rinoa's been kidnapped. I need to go after her. I need to find her."

"Squall, when you're in a position of leadership, sometimes you have to make sacrifices…." Cid began.

Squall rounded on him, eyes blazing and cut him off, snarling, "Don't you fucking lecture me about sacrifices Cid! You may have made that decision with Edea fifteen years ago and sacrificed your bond with her to build Garden, but I'm not you!"

Cid's face paled, "It wasn't a decision made lightly. She knew what she faced and she wanted me, and you kids, away from her. We had no choice. It was the only way she could think of to protect us all. Otherwise, Ultimecia would have killed you before you could have even touched a gunblade."

Squall gazed at Cid, silent. He remembered the day that Ultimecia had joined with Edea, though he'd only been five at the time. It was a day that he'd revisit years later as a young adult when he'd been lost in time, trying to find his way home after killing Ultimecia. He'd brought the circle to a close that day, he'd thought. Had he instead set events into motion that would make him into the person he was now? Was there even a difference?

His childhood memories of that day were foggy, but he remembered Edea changing after that. Everything changed. He and the rest of the children were separated, scattered. Some were adopted, others like him and Seifer, went directly to the new Garden academies, which had somehow been completed just when they needed to be.

Finally, Squall said softly, "You drilled responsibility and duty into my head from the moment that I could actually understand the concept. I lived it; I breathed it, for nearly my whole life. You molded me into what I am today Cid. Good, bad, or indifferent. Responsibility and duty were my mantra. My reason for being; it was all I had and all I was. Until I met Rinoa."

"And she let you see there was more to life than rules and regulations. Killing or being killed… She showed you what joy was." Cid said, thinking, like Edea did me...

"Yes." Squall said, then he added, "I did my job. I saved the whole damn town. I consider my duty to be done. It's someone else's turn to be the hero. The only duty I have right now that matters to me is my duty to Rinoa."

"Your sorceress." Cid stated.

"My wife." Squall corrected. "I'm going after her. Tell whatever damn story you want to explain it away, if it'll make you feel better." He turned away and headed toward the door.

"Squall." Cid said. Squall paused, hand on the doorknob and looked back at him.

"Good luck. I hope you find her." Squall nodded his thanks and silently left.

Cid stared at the door as it shut behind him, wondering if, in his zeal to save the world from Ultimecia, he'd pushed Squall too hard. Made him grow up too fast. Forced him to make choices that no one his age should have had to make. But, it was no use second-guessing himself when Edea's vision had been completely accurate and Squall had been instrumental in freeing her, and the whole world, from the threat that Ultimecia presented.

But of all of Cid's many regrets, the one that hurt the most was his regret at the sacrifice he'd had to make to ensure that Squall could do what he had to do. In pushing him to excel and succeed as a gunblade master and SeeD commander, he'd sacrificed his relationship with the young man he considered his son in all but fact. He couldn't be happier for Squall that he'd found Laguna and that they'd actually established a relationship.

But it hurt to know that for Squall, Cid was simply the Headmaster. His Boss. Nothing more. At least, nothing that he'd been able to detect, at any rate. Edea had been Matron, the only mother Squall had ever had. Laguna was his father by blood. But from the moment that Squall had walked into Balamb Garden as a cadet, he'd been under Cid's wing. Laguna had sired Squall, but Cid had raised him.

It was ironic that while Squall had never acknowledged that, Laguna had. It had been at Squall's wedding reception, last year.

"I want to thank you Cid. It's because of you that Squall has turned into the fine young man that he is. I know I wouldn't have done half as well." Laguna reached his hand out and Cid grasped it firmly. And then had been caught completely off guard when, after a few hard pumps, Laguna pulled him into a rough hug.

The memory brought a ghost of a smile to Cid's face. Then he sighed, the smile fading. He had to call Edea, and let her know what was going on. He opened the door and left the conference room, heading toward his office.

He hadn't needed to ask Squall how he knew that something had happened to Rinoa, like he and Edea, they had bonded as sorceress and knight. Yes, he'd sacrificed that bond at Edea's direction, and it had all but destroyed her. He hadn't been strong enough to stand by her and face the trials ahead, instead, he'd taken the easier path, for him, and constructed the Gardens and trained an assassin to kill his wife or save her soul.

But he'd found that while the bond could be weakened, it could not be destroyed. So, when Squall had gone out at his order to kill Sorceress Edea, he'd hidden in his office, alone, waiting for the anguish that would surely come at his wife's death. Instead, the final blow had tricked Ultimecia somehow into thinking it was a fatal one and she'd abandoned her host for Rinoa, leaving Edea just enough power to heal her wounds and survive.

Now, just a vestige of her magic remained, and Cid somehow had gotten a second chance with her, and he thanked Hyne for that opportunity. Had he been a stronger knight, perhaps things might have turned out differently, and they could have won through together without having to sacrifice the children they'd raised….

"Perhaps Cid, but, the visions were clear. Whatever choices we made would still have brought us to where we are now. I did not wed you for your strength beloved, but for your compassion. THAT is your strength." Edea told him.

Perhaps, but faced with the same choice, Squall's decision would have been a vastly different one. He'd have stayed and fought, side by side with his sorceress-wife, until his last breath escaped from his body. He was a far stronger knight than Cid was.

After leaving Cid in the conference room, Squall went in search of Zell. He was quickly frustrated by the fact that he had no idea where he would have gone too first. Momentarily undecided, he thought he'd try the cafeteria. If he couldn't find him there, he'd try his quarters.

Fortunately, Zell was in the cafeteria, just finishing up his dinner.

"Meet me outside at the Ragnarok." Squall ordered, then he turned to leave the cafeteria, nearly running into Quistis.

"Squall!" She gasped, surprised, rocking back onto her heels.

He reached out and steadied her, then let her go when she'd regained her balance.

"Sorry," he apologized, beginning to step away from her.

"Squall, what's going on?" she asked.

He didn't have time to get into long, drawn out explanations, so instead he simply said, "I'm leaving. It involves Rinoa, and I'd give you more but I really need to leave now."

He left her staring after him, as he hurried along the corridors of garden, trying to remember if he had anything he needed still in his old quarters. He'd only brought a couple of day's worth of clothing and toiletries, so he decided that there was nothing there he couldn't live without.

The only thing he really needed was his gunblade, which was currently hanging from his hip.

The increased population currently residing in Garden however impeded his progress. That plus the thought that it might be wiser not to be observed actually leaving, made him decide to resort to an escape method he'd employed once before, under more pleasant circumstances.

He detoured to the ballroom and a familiar, if unobtrusive door, punched in the access code and slipped into the maintenance tunnel. The emergency lighting was dim, but Squall found his way out easily, fighting the memories that assaulted him the entire way.

Finding the exit door, he paused, glancing back at the dim tunnel and sighed. Rinoa might not remember it, but it was the very same route he'd taken to spirit her away from their wedding reception so that they could embark upon their honeymoon together.

Memories were tricky things for Squall. Some slipped through his fingers like water; others left a permanent, indelible mark. The imprint that Rinoa had left upon his heart was one of those things that would never fade with time, no matter how many GF's he junctioned.

Zell caught up with him as he was approaching the Ragnarok, asking, "So, what's the plan? What are we doing?" Squall laid his palm against the scanner, and punched in the code.

As the ramp extended and the doors opened, he said, "We aren't doing anything. You are dropping me off in Galbadia and flying to FH to pick up some technicians to fix the Garden. Then you are going to take charge of the clean up and reconstruction of Balamb."

"Me?" Zell asked, incredulous.

"Yes. You. I know you can handle this. I've done my part here. Like I told Cid, its someone else's turn to be the hero this time." Squall said.

Zell swallowed, suddenly gaining a sense of what Squall had felt when Cid had dropped the responsibility of Garden right into his lap by proclaiming him commander and leaving him to sink or swim. He wondered how his friend had managed not to be crushed by its weight, especially with a battle against Seifer, who was in command of Galbadia Garden at the time, looming.

But this time, there was no battle to fight, no lives on the line, just a clean up and reconstruction job. The only thing Zell had to do was to help rebuild Balamb. Piece of cake. Squall was right; it was Zell's turn to be the hero now.

Putting his hand out, he looked Squall steadily in the eyes and said firmly, "Yo man, I got this. Let's get going so you can get your wife back."

Squall nodded and gripped his hand firmly before releasing it and leaping up the ramp.

"So, Squall…" Zell asked as they lifted off, "Since I'm like, going to be a hero and all…does this mean I get to be Godfather to your kids?"

"No." Squall answered.

"Aww…Why not?" Zell asked, frowning.

"Rinoa already asked Selphie and Irvine." Squall answered.

"Sure, blame the wife. How 'bout you name your son after me?" Zell asked, grinning.

"Zell, I'm already naming him Saber." Squall said.

"Oh, right. Middle name? Huh? C'mon, Saber Zell Leonhart? Sounds pretty cool to me." Zell urged.

"Zell?" Squall said.

"What?"

"Shut up."

AUTHOR'S NOTE: In 1969, a category 5 hurricane named Camille struck the US Gulf coast. It has the distinction of being one of the most intense storms to ever hit the continental United States, making landfall with winds exceeding 200 mph. The resulting devastation was virtually total, with the entire coastline razed to the ground. 259 people lost their lives during the storm. Camille was my model for the Balamb hurricane.