Chapter 12 : Sacrifice.

Summery: with Hyne gone from Squall, and now inhabiting the body of his over-zealous priest, do the Troupe finally have a shot at defeating him?

Notes: getting near the end now. I wanted to make this fic alot longer, ALOT longer, with more in depth chapters, but I have to go away at the end of the week..T-T and I dont know how long I'll be gone for... Im sorry if its seemed rushed everybody!

It took Quistis at least twenty minutes to regain her composure, Having all the magic drained from you was an exhausting experience. Eyes still unfocused, she scrambled her way to where the unconscious Seifer lay. There were no obvious wounds, and his breathing was regular, nothing to worry about unduly. Quistis silently cursed her haste in giving up her magic to the sorceress, had she kept it for a moment longer she may have been able to revive the gunblader, giving them another ally...But then there was Squall to worry about. He lay Seifer down in the recovery position, justas her training told her to, before checking her pockets for a Phoenix down or potion.

'They won't work anymore,' rasped Squall from his place against the wall, 'If they were touched by the blast of Hyne jumping...the downs' will be useless...' True enough, Quistis pulled a red and yellow tuft from the pouch on her back, and watched it crumble to dust in her fingers. Every SeeD was told to keep the precious feathers away from large sources of magic, as the ambient mana in the air would draw from the bewitched fluff. If you threw a Phoenix down, at just the right time, into the path of a spell, you could amplify its power three or four times, but render the down useless. Normally the silk lining of SeeD issue bags had the properties to reflect the magic, (and the only reason everyone didn't wear silk all the time, was because there was no guarantee which way the spell would be deflected. The first few uniforms that garden had come up with had found the spells jumping between party members, and even into the holes for arms and neck, frying or freezing the cadet, but leaving the uniforms relatively untouched.) But it seemed the blast from the jump had been even too much for the bag to be able to deflect. Silk wasn't one hundred percent spell proof after all.

Quistis sighed and slid down the wall next to Squall, brushing the dust from her hands. 'Suppose I shouldn't have taken them all.' Another protocol broken, never give all your healing items to one person. 'The potions should still be alright,' She dug a tiny bottle from the bottom of the pouch, brushed the dust from it, and handed it to Squall. The bottle was no bigger than his thumb, filled with a crimson liquid. He took it gratefully and removed the stopper with one deft movement of a claw, before downing the bitter fluid in one gulp. A shudder spread through him, the red ones were good for physical tiredness and wounds, but tasted terrible.

'...Thank you.' He handed the bottle back and rested his head back against the cool metal, feeling the effects of the potion seeping into his aching bones. Quistis was looking at the sleeping Seifer.

'Can't you...You know, wake him up?' Squall looked at his, well Hynes', hand and flexed his fingers. He sighed and dropped the hand to his lap, shaking his head.

'I have almost no magic left, It's all I can do to hold it together for when Rinoa gets back...' He closed his eyes and tried to rest, hardly noticing as Quistis gently moved a strand of silver hair from his face.

'Does she know what she's done?' A pained look darted over Squalls' marked face, then faded as he nodded.

'Yes, I think she knew from the beginning...' He took a deep breath, that caused his chest to shake with the effort. 'I'm using what's left of the power she gave me, just to last until after the fight.' Squall frowned and looked at the ceiling, the single bulb set into the metal was flickering dully. '...I didn't want to go...this time, without saying goodbye.' He could feel Quistis' tear on his arm as she held it, a small gesture when a hug was not quite right.

'Bu, the potion, surely it helped right?' Squall chuckled.

'Yeah...It did, I'm not wrecked anymore, all I have to do is stay conscious now.' He gave Quistis a rare smile, one she could count the times seeing on one hand. 'You've bought me a few hours, maybe.' They both fell silent, Squall not wanting to talk and Quistis unsure what to say. It was a good few minutes, but Quistis couldn't let the question stew in her mind anymore.

'You were Hyne, part of him, right?' She sat up and looked at the young mans' face, his eyes closed. 'I...the others, do they stand a chance?' Squall did not open his eyes, but a very slight crease appeared at the side of his mouth.

'...If anyone could stop him, It's them. If they hadn't gotten him out of me...then maybe..I would have doubted they would have gotten out of it unscathed. Lokai's not a Sorcerer, he was just a willing host, the join is unstable...His body might not survive the transformation without his own magic to help heal him.' He was silent for a while, thinking. 'I wanted, to give Rinoa what was left of my power, to make the fight easier for her.'

'That would have killed you outright.'

'I'm dying anyway... Question is,' He shifted his weight, getting comfortable, 'Do I go out fighting or here on my ass?' Quistis couldn't help but notice the feathers that had been dislodged from his wings on the floor.

'Just shut up, Squall. Save your strength, when Rinoa's done beating Lokai then she can come give you more power...'

'And I'll become Hyna again.' He finished her sentence with the words she had been fearing. 'Even if we, she, beats him he is still present in all sorceress' the world over. Any fragment of their power can become Hyne in the right host.' The truth of the situation was finally sinking in. He closed his eyes again, stopping himself from showing any emotion. 'He did say something though...'

'Who?'

'Lokai, said something about Hyne was the one to give us guardian forces...I've been thinking... He said that anyone has the power to bring a GF into being.' Quistis nodded.

'With the right training, anyone can summon a guardian.' Squall shook his head.

'I don't think that's what he meant... Where do the Guardians come from?' The blonde thought for a moment, puzzled over the nature of the question.

'You think, he meant that...but that would mean GFs' were once people. That cant be the case.'

'Why not?'

'They don't look human.' The silver haired youth still had his eyes closed, deep in thought.

'I've always wondered...since that fight...where that, where he came from...How did she get him out of my head? But, I think, I understand...Quistis? would you do me a favour, one final thing for me?' Quistis looked into the eye of her former student, half concerned, half angry. 'Not if you keep talking like that,' She snapped, the tone was betrayed by the fact that tears were once again glistening on her cheeks. Squall smiled again, twice in such a short time, his eyes full of kindly resolve. 'Please, Quistis, Just one thing?' She sighed and looked at his hand, her own wrapping itself around it, holding it tight.

'Name it.' She whispered. Squall squeezed her hand gently in thanks, allowing himself to relax.

'Help me,' He breathed, 'Help me protect Rinoa...' And he fell still, hand going limp in her own, his head lolled down onto his chest. The tears he had been holding back now broke free, trailing down his cheeks, leaving black trails. Quistis fought back the urge to sob, collecting the still man into her arms, unable to keep herself from crying.

'Is this how you planned to protect her?' She shouted, suddenly angry, 'By dying? You said you were going to wait for her!' She held his head to her chest, in a motherly embrace, and wept. 'You were supposed to be her knight! I bought you a few hours, and you give them up for a story.' She bit her lip, fighting the scream that was growing inside her chest. 'You were right, all those times.' her voice was little more than a whisper. 'When you spoke of how getting close to people would only lead to pain. I wouldn't have tried to convince you otherwise...If I'd known it hurt this much.' Quistis threw back her head and screamed, crying out in a pain and anguish, clasping Squalls' limp body to hers. 'Tell me then!' she screamed, 'Tell me how you plan to protect her!' The scream broke into a sob, and it was all she could do to cradle the cooling body in her arms.

Seifer groaned and rubbed his head slowly, sitting up. 'Oh, man what a rough night.' He looked up and spotted Quistis, 'Hey Instructor, what-?' He spotted Squall, and the tears on Quistis' cheeks, and fell silent. Though he was stubborn, Seifer wasn't stupid, he knew enough from this tableau to be able to guess what had happened. Somewhere, deep inside, it ate him up to see the Instructor crying over his rival like that...But it was masked by the sense of loss he felt. The two had never really gotten along, but Squall had been one of the few people he had respected, and was the closest thing he had ever had to a brother. The two mourned silently, before Quistis slowly laid Squall down, Gently kissing his forehead. 'We need to go,' She whispered finally, 'I promised I'd help protect Rinoa.' Seifer sighed deeply, glancing at the face of his fallen friend, it looked like Squall was just sleeping...

'Alright.' He nodded. 'Can't leave them to fight Hyne all on their own.' He went to get up, but fell back suddenly, pushed by a feirce light. 'What's happening?' he called, shielding his eyes. Somewhere, surrounded by light, Quistis screamed.

'Seifer! Help me! Help me -' Her scream stopped suddenly, warm filled her as the light began to take form, sinking below her skin in tiny darts. An overwhelming feeling of love, of strength, flowed into her.

So this is his devotion to Rinoa?

Yes, The light replied, The light of a fallen knights wish to protect his charge. This is how things begin, Quistis Trepe, History starts here. Do not hold back, do not keep yourself from me..Give your everything to my power and you shall forever be a part of him, in death as you never could in life...

The light and voice faded, Leaving Quistis panting, and Squalls' body was gone. Power buzzed at the back of her skull, the headmistress could feel the GFs she had junctioned shrinking back, actually un-junctioning themselves to make room for this new force, the owner of the strange voice and aura of mourning. She looked down at where she had left Squall laying, and smiled faintly, sparks playing about her fingers.

'Part of him, as I never could In life.' She shot Seifer, who was blinking, puzzled and slack jawed at the vanishing corpse, a look, before hurrying into the corridor. Seifer gathered himself, jumping to his feet and gave chase, pausing only to dart into the lab that Lokai had fashioned, to grab his gunblade from a scrap pile. 'Quistis!' He shouted, 'Instructor Trepe, wait!' But Quistis did not stop.

She knew what she must do.

Above ground, the battle was raging, explosions of magic rocked the very foundations of the mountains. Laguna had one hand firmly jammed into his hair, holding it out of his face, the other was clasped around the joystick of the Ragnaroks' cannons. He had learned that the blasts were far to dangerous to be aiming at Lokai, not when the others were on the field too, and was using the highly focused blasts to shatter any falling rocks that had been dislodged by the fight. He could not completely destroy the rocks, but being showered in pebbles is better than being squashed flat. Hyne was using the terrain to his advantage, leaping from rock to rock, two poorly formed wings on his backhelping to keep his balance. Rinoa was perched, brilliant white light surrounding her, on the roof of the building, throwing spell after spell at the half changed, half crazed Lokai.

The professors' small body was no match for zells' lean, well trained, martial artists form, and was out maneuvered every time. Zell would leap to a rock higher than the one Hyne had landed on, Throwing a rain of punches down, showering him in rocks and forcing him to dart left or right. Irvine was stood, rifle trained on the small, winged figure, firing shot after shot, not intending to hit the man.

'Turn, Left!' He grinned and fired bullets that pulverized the rocks to Hynes' right, forcing him into the path of one of Rinoas' blasts. Hyne brought down his hand in a flourish of sparks, the blast deflecting upwards towards Zell. Zell saw the attack coming, grabbed a passing chunk of granite and, using skills developed after years of using a hover board, brought it under his feet just as the spell struck. The rock shattered, absorbing the magic, but Zell used the force to back flip away from the tirade of ice Hyne had thrown his way, fingers spread into a fan, landing perfectly on the balls of his feet. Immediately he dived to the left, avoiding a strike of lightning that lit the ground, turning it red hot. The hairs on Zells' head stood up straighter than normal, and he could feel his teeth ringing with the static.

The boulder of ice that had been hovering over the spot, waiting for Zell to dodge, was blasted apart by a shot from Ragnarok, Soaking the ground and its intended target with slush.

'Oh, Cheers laguna!' He shouted, shaking himself like a dog to lose the ice, and raising one, carefully chosen finger towards the cock pit. Laguna grinned and let go of his hair long enough to hit the button for the P.A.

'Bite me, next time I'll let it fall.' Zell grinned back and ran forward, chasing the new host. It may have seemed to anyone watching to be just a game of cat and mouse, one being chased by three, with no real intention to kill the target. Rinoa was holding back, her wings not visible, indeed she did mean to kill Lokai, knowing full well that if she did then Hyne would just try to jump to one of her companions. Hyne had absorbed enough energy from his victims to force himself into another body, one without any previous magic or even willingness, but judging from what it was doing to Lokais' body it was not a good idea.

All they needed to do, was wear him down enough for Rinoa to draw him out..

Lokais' small form had mutated terribly with the power he had received. Whereas Squall had the magic to help his body survive the process, the professor did not. However his mind was willing, making him more suitable a host than Zell or Irvine, he did not have to wrestle for control. Lokai grabbed a portion of the building with one clawed hand, which was longer than his body, and scooped a great chunk out, flinging it at Irvine. Not only had the man gained magic from the transfer, but he was incredibly strong for his size. The laser cannon of the airship swung round, trying to get to the shard before it struck the cowboy. Irvine jumped, diving out of the way, just as the huge scrap crashed into his former position. The Ragnarok fired a second too late, hiting the metal as it lay on the ground, sending shrapnel flying everywhere. One hit Irvine in the calf with a massive jet of crimson. Zell ground his teeth together, pushing himself from the mountain side in a free fall. He wrapped a gloved fist around the ragged wing that adorned Hynes' left shoulder, and pulled him down. The bones underneath his hand cracked loudly, but The God seemed indifferent to the pain of his host, He swung around, seconds from the ground, and planted his feet squarely on Zells' chest. The pair hit the ground in a cloud of powdered rock. The force with which Zell had hit the ground, and snapped backwards, ripped the wing from its socket with a disgusting wrenching sound. Irvine was crouched, blood staining the ground and aimed a shot at the small mans head. The sound filled the valley, an almighty crack tore through the air. Laguna jumped forward, peering out the window. He glanced at ward who had been running too and fro, repairing the magical damage to the ship. 'Did it hit?'

The clouds slowly parted, and Laguna felt the cold, of the ice he had covered Zell in, hit his stomach.

Lokai stood, lop-sided, on Zells' chest, one foot depressed a bit too far into the body for Zell to be undamaged. He was resting heavily on his one, long, arm, the other before him, shining brilliant silver. He had deflected it! Laguna punched the dash board control and swore loudly. Ward grabbed his shoulder and spun him round in his swivel chair towards the building. Rinoa was standing, holding her shoulder, blood pouring from between her fingers.

'That, He hit Rinoa with the bullet meant for him!' Irvine sat down slowly, tired from the loss of blood from the severed artery in his leg. He looked up at the windscreen, face contorted in pain and said something that made the presidents' leg suddenly cramp up.

'That was a sliencing bullet...' Hyne laughed, head thrown back, cackling to the sky. He twisted his foot deeper into Zells' chest, causing the blonde to cough and splutter, blood staining his lips.

'Foolish, Idiot, Mortals! I warned you, time and again that you could not win! I even offered you the chance to face me with all your power, with SeeD behind you, and you did not heed me.' He stamped a foot, making Zell jerk and cry out. Rinoa sunk to her knees, unable even to whimper thanks to Irvines bullet. 'I believe,' Hyne grinned at the cock pit, knowing full well Laguna would not shoot while he was stood on Zell, 'That I have let you lead this merry dance for far too long.' He looked down at the bloodstained face of the man he was stood upon, and spat. 'You make me sick, Humans. I was once so merciful, so full of love and caring for you, my children.' He laughed again, crouching to look Zell in the eye. 'I created you, not out of laziness, but out of loneliness, And while I recovered from creating my children, they took it upon themselves to colonise the planet, filling every corner. Then what do you do on my reutrn?' He sneered, 'You attack the father, demanding more from him. I tried to make you again, to make you whole but you wouldn't let me. You cherished your pathetic half-lives far too much. I was forced to give you all my compassion, all my mercy and all my patience.' He looked up at the cockpit again. 'You hear that? You did this, you stole all my love, you brought this on yourselves with your selfishness.' Hyne stood, shadows gathering to him once again. The stump of wing on his shoulder began to twitch, healing itself, regrowing. 'You made me the angry monster I am today, and then left me to rot! Do you know what it was like? trapped in the silence for so long? A massive burst of power knocked Hyne backwards. He was only just able to compose himself in time to see Seifer and Quistis come running from the doorway.

'No, I have no idea shorty,' Shouted Seifer, aiming his blade at the stunned creature, 'And if you keep yapping, no one will ever know, will they?' He looked behind to where Irvine sat, pale and grinning.

'About time, never thought I'd be pleased to see ya' Seifer.' The grin was returned.

'Hold on to your hat cowboy, I get the feelin' we're about to see something truly spectacular.' He threw something small and crimson Irvines way, he caught it with ease. The potion was immediately applied to his open wound, healing it almost instantly. Irvine stood shakily, still suffering blood loss and nodded his thanks. 'Where's Squally then?' Seifer frowned then gave another smile before pointing toward Quistis.

'Believe it or not, he's there.' Quistis was facing Hyne, Crouching beside Zells' broken body.

Allow me, came the voice once more, Injuries of this nature are easily enough healed. Just allow me to reach out... Quistis took Zells' hand instinctively, letting the force inside her do its work.

He will be better, soon. Best let him lay still so his bones set. Quistis shot the amazed Zell a look that made him lay back, the power of the voice in her head glowing in her eyes. She stood up and took a step forward, towards Hyne.

'You,' She hissed. 'You call yourself God. You bring misery and death in your wake, and you expect us to bow down and accept our fate?' Her voice rang with the echoing tones of the benevolent power in her veins. Rinoa slowly made her way down from the roof, heading to where Seifer and Irvine stood, watching. Hyne growled at the ex-instructor.

'Insolent, that's the word for you. I don't expect you to do anything, I know you will bow before me!' He brought his arm down in an arc through the air, Ice instantly taking form and flying towards Quistis. There was a crack, and the ice shattered into dust. Quistis smiled softly and let her whip trail to the floor once again. Hyne looked at her with fear playing about his expression.

'How did you-?' Quistis shook her head.

'You claim to be a god, the one who created us...Yet you underestimate us so terribly.' Her lips pulled back into a sneer and she raised one hand to the sky. 'This is the power you gave us, You did this, you brought this apon yourself!' she shouted these words, the echo in her voice shaking the ground. Rinoa watched, silent and terrified, at the clouds above Quistis parted, revealing black night sky. Red lightning cracked the ground, sending rocks into the air, where they hung, suspended by some terrible force. Hyne was speechless, he threw spell after spell at the woman before him, but none reached. It was as though the air around her were swallowing the magic before they could even get within ten feet of the target.

'Impossible!' He screamed. 'There is not a force on this world that could Rival mine, I am God!.' Quistis' eyes glowed an eerie amber.

'And we,' she spoke, words resonating inside the head of everyone present, 'are man. We have seen what you have done...and we grieve.'

The light that had filled her began to fill the air, the ground before her trembling, light shooting up from cracks like geysers, spilling over the floor as though fluid. Everyone except Quistis sheilded their eyes, as the white light became blindingly bright. The very earth before Hyne was torn back, mud and rocks flying, as a great clawed hand reached up to pull itself free. A tremendous roar rocked the very air, sending a familiar shiver down the spines over the SeeDs' present.

'It cant be!' Zell covered his eyes, trying his best to shield himself without moving from where he had fallen. The grey head head of a great, and proud lion king, crowned with crimson horns, rose from the rend in the earth. A flowing silver mane trailing down its back, meeting two white feathered wings as the sprouted from the creatures back. A tail that ended in a thick, curved blade scythed through the air, cleaving the rocks and mountain side, creating a landslide that was shaken into powder by another, heart stopping roar. Blood red sword of bone pushed their way through the lions arms, just below the elbows, where they fanned out, sharp and terrifyingly deadly.

'It's Griever...' Gasped Irvine. 'Where did he, Where did Quistis find him?' Seifer didn't take his eyes from the summon beast.

'If I understood correctly...That's Squall.' Rinoas' mouth opened, mouthing silently, tears forming in her eyes. Hyne slowly backed up, Recognising the power of the newly born Guardian force, and fearing it. Quistis narrowed her eyes, eyes that mirrored that of her summon, and hissed.

We shall show you all the mercy you have shown us, Hyne. Your right to rule has long since passed. Now, Is the age of man, Behold what they can do.

The voice was inside every ones head at once, A deep voice of restrained Fury, belonging to Griever itself, twinned with that of Squall, and Quistis' own. Rinoa clasped a hand to her mouth, sobbing though none could hear, realising the terrible truth. Quistis raised her hand once more, passion of the battle rising in her voice as she cried out, ordering the final attack.

'SHOCKWAVE PULSAR!'

Griever reared its head, leaping backwards, paw out behind him, crouched on his hind legs. Seifer started when he realised the summon was looking at him. No words were spoken, and the exchange lasted less than a second, but Seifer charged forward, climbing onto the outstretched paw. Griever roared once more, Bands of light surrounded Hyne, who fought desperately to break them. The light tightened, forming a solid ball of energy around the man, lifting him into the air, where, surrounded by clouds, it imploded. The sky seemed to rip and tear as the Ball collapsed in on itself, pulling the force of it so thin, and yet so focused, the it seemed even gravity was pulled towards it. Seifer was thrown into the air by the beast, sending him above the shrieking Hyne, Trapped in the seemingly endless series of explosions. He twirled his gunblade, and fired off a blast of fire magic. It sunk into the mass of swirling energy, dispelling it in an instant, exposing the torn and wrecked body of the host.

'Here goes!' Cried the swordsman, blade before him, pulsing with energy. 'You asked for it, No mercy!' He dived, driving the gunblade straight through Lokais' chest like paper, crashing him to the ground., But Seifer was not done yet. He Grinned, an evil grin, at the man pinned, skewered on his blade, and pulled the trigger.

The gunblade is not, as most people seem to think, a gun attached to a blade. It is in fact, a sword that applies the principle behind the firing of a bullet, in order to make its attacks all the more devastating. The chambers of the gun component, the barrel, are filled with rounds of gunpowder that, when fired, hit a thick block of solid adamantium. This sends a pulse of energy that vibrates the blade to the point where, the resulting damage to human of monster flesh, is none too dissimilar to that of stabbing someone with a chainsaw...then turning it on. The wielder if the blade would have to train hard to withstand the recoil, and dedicate hours of maintenance to the deadly weapon.

Lokais' back arched, blood spraying the ground and Siefer alike as the shock wave finished it terrible duty. Rinoa, guided by Irvine, raised a hand to draw Hyne from the host. Blue light shone from the still jerking body, before entering Rinoa. Lokai fell still. Seifer drew his sword from the body and looked up at the great lion behind him.

'Cheers Squall.' The beast gave a low growl before lowering its' head down to face Rinoa. The amber eyes shone and turned blue, Squall looking at her from behind them. He breathed, a small sigh, and Rinoas wounds' were healed. He had dispelled her silence while Seifer was busy pulling the trigger. The sorceress reached out, and touched the snout of the summon, who inclined his head to allow her to stroke it.

'Squall..You...You came to protect me, didn't you?' Griever blinked and let out a low whine. Rinoa flung are arms around the beasts neck and sobbed into its silver mane. Tears rolled down the lions snout before Irvine stepped forward.

'Rin...Rin, I think...I think it's time to let him go...' Rinoa looked up at Squall, not wishing to believe it.

'You...You can't come back can you...' Quistis rested a hand on her shoulder.

'Rinoa...He became Griever to save you...He gave up his body to become a Guardian force. He'll...always be there when you need him...but he can't stay with you...not always, not as Squall.'

The sorceress watched as Griever, the terrible force they had fought and the man she loved with all her soul, began to glow, turning into a billion shining lights, darting into the ring she wore around her neck. She held the Griever ring in her hand, feeling its warmth, before turning to Irvine and sobbing into his coat. Zell slowly got to his feet and made his way to the group, all of who were watching Rinoa, as she wept for her lost Squall. He looked to Quistis, sorrow etched on his face.

'Is it over?' he asked quietly, 'Did we win?' Quistis shook her head.

'We didn't win...but..' She looked at the ring around Rinoas' neck, then up at the cockpit of the Ragnarok, where Laguna was straining to see what had happened

'It's finally over.'