Catherine: First of all, I own nothing. No Square Enix, Squaresoft or Final Fantasy. Except for all my OC of course.
Second, it's been years I know. Three to be exact since the Author's Note. The worse part, is that I had a major writer's block in a part that was already done. I have no excuse and they only way to compensate is to actually update more often. There are a lot of new things in my life but I am sure that you are more interested in the new chapter. The more I can add is that I will try to update this as often as I can, considering I have the whole thing mapped. The hardest part is writing it but you know what they say - it's like riding a bike. You might be rusty, but you never really forget it. I have the intention of finishing this story before it's 10th anniversary - which isn't that far away...
Apart from that, it is, as of today, the name of this story changed from "The Lionheart" to "Liberi Fatali – The Fated Children". The new chapters won't be updated right now, but they will soon. Give me a few more weeks.
Liberi Fatali – The Fated Children
Capítulo Trinta e Quatro: Trabia
When they had said Trabia was cold, they weren't fair to the concept of cold. Katrin was pratically an ice cube – on the other hand, Elton seemed just fine.
"Explain to me the trick".
"There is no trick."
"Liar."
He chuckled then, earning an inquisitive look from Irvine.
The air was cold and silence in the group was even worse. They were approaching Trabia Garden then – the once almighty building was a dark ruin in the distance. Selphie face had closed off – to say she was scared and anxious was an overstatement.
Katring could smell the death in the air and something inside her moved -maybe it was her stomach or maybe it was something else but she was sure something wasn't right.
The big wall that divided them from the Garden's inside seemed so strong and yet, they knew that inside only awaited death.
Quistis took a deep breath.
"Want us to go first Selphie?"
Katrin was sure Selphie was trying really hard to just breath and seem calmly. She was sure the brunette wouldn't endure for long.
"No, just… just give me a second."
No one spoke and a few seconds later Selphie was vigorously climing the net around the wall. The others soon followed, the air around them heavy with anticipation. On other side of the wall, the teens saw complete destruction. The whole place looked like it had been target of a massive earthquake. Katrin noticed, with some hope, that most of the place could be helped.
"To think that Balamb Garden could have ended like this…" Quistis voice was practically a whisper "Thank goodness we were able to avoid the missiles."
Selphie dashed ahead, obviously anxious to know what had happened to her fellow friends and colleagues. The others decided to follow her, more calmly, taking all in of the ruins around them.
"Do you… do you think anyone survived?" asked Zell, his voice in the same tone of Quistis. The air around them seemed offended when anyone tried to speak louder – there was a solemn air to the scene around them.
"I'm sure some made it. Garden isn't that weak and I am sure that…." Quistis stopped mid-sentence, looking at Squall … I am sure that some of it endured the attack… Right?"
Squall didn't say anything in the beginning. Right in front of them stood part of a fountain and Selphie was there, talking with a girl, seemingly happier. The two of them turned around when they heard the group's footsteps.
"So… you have been looking after Selphie?" the girl asked, as soon as they were close enough.
"Selphie has been a great help." Squall replied, his voice calm. The others looked at him, in a mix of awe and happiness.
"Ah…"
"What's wrong?" the girl asked, looking at Selphie.
"That's not like Squall at all!"
There where giggles among the group, none of them daring to laugh louder. It didn't fit the situation and they were sure that happiness was something none of them were feeling. There was too much death around them,
"There should be a basketball court in the back. Wait for me there, ok? I want to catch up with some of my friends." Selphie asked them, turning around to her friend again.
The group looked around, not sure where to start. In the distance, low voices could be heard.
"Maybe we could… help around for a while? I am sure there are lots of things we can help with…"
They all nodded at Rinoa. They all unconsciously divided into groups – Katrin and Elton headed towards the right, while Rinoa, Squall, Zell and Quistis headed ahead. Irvine clearly wanted to stay with Selphie – he looked at them apologetically but Squall just nodded, indicating it was fine. Seifer, on the other hand, just looked around.
"There's a group over there, fixing things. Trepe, want to check it out?"
Quistis stopped for a mili-second, enough to indicate how surprised she was at Seifer's request, but soon nodded and accompanied him. Katrin looked at Elton, raising an eyebrow.
"Not telling."
"Oh, come on!"
"Nope. Don't be nosy Kat."
Ignoring the pout the girl gave him, Elton looked around. There was only destruction, but we could see life trying to come back. He was pretty sure, however, that among the minds around him, there was one weirdly familiar. On top of that, we was sure we could hear a singing…
"Dan..?"
He stopped. Right in front of him, crouching, was a girl he knew well.
"Dannyella?"
The girl sighed, just finishing her Cure spell. Raising with clear difficulty, she grabbed the metal above her. Looking tired, she turned around- and stopped.
"….Elton…? ….Kat…?"
In the next moment, Elton just saw a blur launching itself on Dannyella – and nearly tumble.
"Dan!"
He was sure Katrin was crying – or at least, very close to it. He couldn't really believe it was her – what were the odds? On the other side of the bear hug, Dannyella looked at him, a tired but happy smile on her face.
"I knew you would come… it was just a matter of time… I saw it. I knew you were coming."
Hundreds of images flashed through his mind – past, present and a few he couldn't understand. But somewhere inside of him, he understood them as future. He couldn't understand the concept of seeing future images.
Then, suddenly, it hit him. The knowledge that Dan could see the future. He looked at her then, surprise, not sure of what to say.
Kat finally released her 'sister', whipping away her tears.
"What are you doing here?"
Elton heard the blonde's thoughts before they left her mouth and he, in that very moment, promised himself that he would try his hardest to not hear them.
"I don't know. What about you? How did you ended up in here?"
They didn't have a chance to answer as the voices of the others were heard.
"…and apparently, it was just a circuit. In seconds, we had that up and running."
"Never thought that you had a techno vein in you Seifer."
"There are a lot of things that you don't know about me Trepe."
Elton could see the smirk on the blond's face before he even turned around. Next to him, Katrin hadn't let go of Dannyella yet. The other teens, as soon as they saw them, stopped in their tracks, trying to understand who the blond girl Katrin was currently grabbing on was.
"It's a friend." Elton answered before they could verbalize what they were thinking.
"You have friends everywhere, huh?" Zell asked, sounding confused. The other blond, however, had connected the dots. Elton could hear perfectly well what Seifer was thinking and he made sure to tell that to Katrin.
"Later."
"We need to tell them Kat. The whole truth."
"I don't think…"
"We will talk later, but we have to consider telling them. For real."
Katrin didn't say anything and Elton didn't need her to. He knew what she was thinking. Next to her, Dan was practically sleeping while standing.
"Dan you in there? I know you are tired, but Anne is having problems again and we need you to-" The newcomer stops when he comes face to face to the group of teenagers. Elton automatically doesn't like him and tries not to hear the young man thoughts because he isn't liking what he is hearing right now.
"Huh… you are you?"
"Friends Adrian." Dannyella answers, her voice weak as she tries to get away from Katrin. "They are my friends. This is Katrin and Elton." She says, pointing to the other two. "The others… I am still not sure."
"We are from Balamb." Quistis quickly asnwers. "You said you were having problems? Anything we can help with?"
"Huh yeah…" the boy still seemed a little shaken "We have a few injured but there this girl that-"
"Take me to her." Quistis cuts him, walking off. The boy has no other option than to follow.
In her arms, Dannyella is practically passing out. Her sudden dead weight is an indication of that as Katrin helps her down.
"What… what happened?" she asks, trying to make her friend the most comfortable as possibly. Before she can reply, Elton turns to the others.
"You go ahead towards the meeting point. We will be sure to follow soon."
Seifer nods, understating that something is off but they have no right to be there right then. When he starts walking, the others soon follow, no questions.
*…...* *...…...* *...…...*
Dan told them everything. What happened when she arrived, the attack on Trabia, the days that followed. Elton and Katrin heard her, pain squeezing their hearts. Their friend had suffered and Kat was sure had lost a lot of weight since she had seen her. She wasn't sure what surprised her more – Dan being there or Dan being able to see the future. That had surprised them both but considering that Elton could hear thoughts, that wasn't much different.
Danyella also told them about the weird lady in her head, the one she met right before she awoke in Trabia. None of them knew what was going on for sure, but some theories were arising. Elton, however, had other urgent matters.
"We need to tell them."
"No."
Katrin's quick and dry answer makes Dan turn her head suddenly, surprised by the other girls' behavior.
"Kat you know that-"
"I don't care! I am not telling them. Too much at risk."
Elton sighs, his face showing how much he expected that.
"Kat…. Seifer already knows and it went well. I am sure that the others also-"
"No. You don't know that. Seifer is different- he doesn't have the same mindset. Squall will… Squall won't react so well."
Silence befalls them then, none really sure what to say. Dannyella takes that moment to speak.
"You had a meeting right? Shouldn't you head back to them?"
Elton and Kat looked at her, not really sure of what she was talking about.
"Oh right… the basketball court right? They are having their little "family reunion" there…" Katrin got up, dusting away the dirt. "Maybe we should go meet them. You should come with us." She turned to Elton then "You are right… We should tell them." With that, she turned away.
Elton sighed and then helped Dann get on her feet. She smiled at him then and he was sure that he saw something in her eyes. For a few seconds, he felt tempted to hear what she was thinking.
To say that the air in the basketball courtyard was heavy would be an understatement. Everyone seemed like someone had died and they were all guilty. Elton could hear their confused thoughts and he couldn't really pinpoint which thought belonged to whom. There was one that was completely calm however – Irvine was looking at all of them, not sure what else to say. When Elton, Kat and Dan approached then, seven pairs of eyes focused on them. The silence reigned for a few seconds before Katrin, very bluntly, asked what was going on.
"We found out we all knew each other. Apart from Rinoa, we were all from the same orphanage when we were kids."
Elton knew that Seifer knew that Katrin already knew that, judging from his looks. The blonds' thoughts were the confirmation of that suspect. Katrin looked around and he could feel her nervousness.
"We…have something to tell you all too…"
*…...* *...…...* *...…...*
His mind was a roller-coaster, full of ups and downs and loops. He wasn't even sure what to think or even feel anymore- it seemed his whole life was just a lie.
That's what they are… Liars…
They weren't sure how to deal with it, you have to-
Doesn't matter they are all liars. They knew everything and didn't say anything.
Would it really change anything? Would any of us believe it though?
It doesn't matter…. They could have said the truth before.
He felt betrayed, like nothing was set in stone, like he couldn't really trust anyone. Squall looked around, to the faces around him and he wasn't sure what to feel anymore.
Seifer knew and he wasn't sure if that was the worst or best of all – Seifer knew, just a few days prior, and didn't say anything. But that wasn't the worst of it.
Seifer knew.
Katrin had felt she could trust him. She had felt that he deserved to know the truth, the only one. He didn't know what the others felt, but he felt betrayed. Confused as well, but mostly betrayed. He wasn't even sure why exactly, not sure why he felt such strongly the betrayal, but he did. Around him, the others looked as confused and betrayed.
"Does that mean… you knew this was going to happen? All of this?" Zell looked around, a sad look as he took in all of the destruction. Katrin seemed like she was in suffering and for a few seconds, Squall was glad that she was indeed suffering.
"Would it really have made a difference?" Elton asked, looking at each one of them. "Could we have stopped anything?"
"No, you couldn't." Irvine's voiced surprised all of them. His face was serious and dark. "No one would have believed you back then. No one could have helped you really. You didn't have much time."
No one was sure what to say back then. There was too much to take in – they were all from the same orphanage, Matron was the sorceress and two of their friends were from another world apparently.
Their silence was interrupted when a young man suddenly appeared.
"Dan, can I borrow you for a second? The group…. The group wants to make the ceremony now…"
Dannyella nodded to him and looked at the others.
"We are having a ceremony in memory of all the people that died… A funeral of sorts, with everyone…. I will be singing for their souls…. Everyone thinks it's fitting… You can come of course…" she looked at Selphie then, who was, for the first time since all of them knew her, completely quiet. "I am sure you will have a few words to say. Want to come?"
She extended her hand towards the brunette who took it, gently and quietly. The two of them headed towards the graveyard, with the others following behind. Squall on the other hand, stood behind, watching as no one dared to speak.
"It's not their fault, you know?" Seifer's voice seemed distant and Squall didn't really need the other teen with him. Right then, he wanted to be left alone, especially by Seifer. He had a cocktail of feelings towards the other and none of them were good. "They couldn't really do anything. But if you think they can… Then we have to help them out from now on, don't you think?"
He didn't wait for a reply, leaving Squall behind, lost in its own thoughts.
*…...* *...…...* *...…...*
When Squall approached the graveyard, where the ceremony was being held, the first thing he noticed was the beautiful and sweet voice that was singing.
Win chent a lótica
En val tu ri
Si lo ta
Fin dein a loluca
Si katigura neuver
Floreria for chesti
Si entina
In the least, he had to admit it was enchanting. Upon reaching the graveyeard, he noticed that it was Dannyella that was singing. Around her, several people were crying, Selphie, with a very supportive Irvine, included. The whole scene seemed almost magical around her, like she was somewhat glowing a little. He felt at peace then, like there was no wrong in the world. His whole feelings a few minutes before seemed so far away, like they didn't belong to him anymore. Looking around, his eyes found Katrin's – she was looking at him, like she was trying to understand what he was thinking. To him, she seemed more than human- like she was of divine origin. Time seemed to stand still and for a second, he imagined her coming to him, touching his arm, asking how he felt, what kind of step where they now….
"Squall?"
The voice wasn't from Katrin but from Rinoa. The girl's eyes showed how worried she was- Squall realised then that the ceremony had ended and he was just standing there. Around him, everything was starting to move again. Gently, Squall took off Rinoa's hand.
"We should get back to Balamb Garden." The others had approached him then too – apart from Kat, Elton and Dan who were speaking in a corner between the three of them. Katrin glanced at him then and right after to Elton. Squall wanted to know what was going on but all the feelings had come back – albeit weaklier.
"Hey look! A gift from the fairies!"
They all looked up at Selphie's remark. It was snowing, little wisps of snowflakes, but they were there, slowly falling. It seemed almost magical, Squall had to give it that.
"Squall…"
He turned to the voice. It wasn't Katrin as he had expected, but Elton. "We need to know… Are we still welcome on the Garden?"
For a split second, we wanted to say no. He wanted for them to suffer like he was suffering. But he quickly realised how childish that sounded. Besides, he needed them now – their knowledge would prove valuable in the days to come.
"Selphie…. I need you to figure out who needs help and who can help them out. We need to take all of Trabia's remaining people to Garden, along with all the usable equipment. Quistis, help her with that. Zell, you too. We can come and help them rebuild after all of this is over." The three nodded. He looked at Katrin, who had approached, Dannyella in tow "You three can come with us of course. We go back to Garden now – tomorrow we will need all the help we can get to move around the cargo."
They nodded, determined, but Squall could see in Katrin's eyes what she couldn't say in words.
*…...* *...…...* *...…...*
The walk back to Garden seemed awkward. No one spoke, it was getting dark and they all moved with one intention – to go back to the warm of Garden. Suddenly, Seifer stopped.
"Hey… doesn't seem the air a little… heavy?"
The whole group stopped at Seifer's remark. He was right – the air did seem a bit heavier than usual, even for Trabia's standards. Squall was about to tell them to ignore it, to just keep going on, when a male voice was heard.
"Sorceress!"
He was pretty sure no one had spoken. In fact, that voice sounded like it had come from inside his head, like when Shiva spoke. The thing was, it was a male voice and not of his trustworthy Guardian Force. He had a second to grab his gunblade when a Snow Lion suddenly appeared in front of him – quickly followed by three Forbidden. Next to him, the others were being attacked from more monsters.
"Where the hell did they come from?!" shouted Zell as he punched a Forbidden to oblivion. Two others were quick to follow.
"No idea, but just destroy them all!" Seifer was quickly surrounded by two Snow Lions and Squall saw a dozen of Mesmerize approach them. Even in a wild place like Trabia, it was unusual to find so many attacking at the same time. The scream on his side made him look away and realise the reason why it wasn't happening.
"Edea…"
The sorceress stood there, surrounded by a kind of mystical aura around her. The smile on her face was nothing short of cruel. She raised her hand and another horde of Forbidden appeared. Seconds later, she was nowhere in sight.
"Where is Seifer?!" Katrin's scared shout made Squall look around – Seifer was nowhere to be found. "Seifer!"
She had given up on fighting the monsters around her and dashed off, seemingly to look for Seifer. He was sure that was a terrible idea, but the Mesmerize in front of him stopped him from following.
He wasn't sure how long it lasted – it could have been seconds, it could have been minutes or even hours. He just knew that all the muscles of his body ached when he Katrin shout again. Looking around, he found her running in the sorceress direction, who was…. Who was grabbing the head of Seifer. For a second, Squall couldn't do anything but watch – in the second after, his body was moving, not sure if to stop Katrin or to help Seifer.
The sorceress looked at the girl, smiling. Around them, a whirlwind formed, stopping Squall on its track. Inside it, Katrin fully lauched at the sorceress.
"Give him back!"
"He is not yours to get…"
Seifer seemed completely limb under the sorceress hand and Squall feared that the teenager had died. On the other hand, Katrin had just summoned Diablos. Countless Snow Lions' had thrown themselves at the Guardian Force, not stopping Katrin – the girl had picked up one of her daggers and was running against the sorceress.
"…. Your effort is fruitless…"
"NO!"
Katrin's screamed pierced the night. Squall was pretty sure that he hadn't heard the such grief before.
The whirlwind died just then, taking the monsters with it. In the middle of it, stood Katrin on her knees.
The sorceress was nowhere in sight.
The teens looked around, guarding their weapons as they realised all monsters had vanished.
"Katrin!" Dan's voice pierced their senses. In the place where the eye of the whirlwind stood, was now Katrin – or what was left of her. Elton approached her slowly. Something was off though…
"What happened to her hair?"
Katrin's hair seemed different. In fact, all of her seemed different. In fact, it didn't seem like her anymore.
"Selene…"
The teens turned to Dannyella. The girl was looking at her 'sister' in Elton's arms. Her hair had grown and turned to pitch black. She also seemed somewhat… older.
"What do you mean by "Selene"?" asked Zell as Elton picked Katrin.
"It's… maybe we should speak later." Dannyella looked at Elton and the boy nodded.
"She isn't waking up…" remarked Rinoa, concern in her eyes.
"Give her some time. I am sure she is just exhausted."
Squall could see in Elton's eyes that the teen didn't believe his own assurance. In less than an hour, tables have turned – Seifer had vanished and Katrin had shut down.
As if the day couldn't get any better…..