A/N: Sort of a short chapter, as it turns out…
To Voice in the Wind: Heheh…don't judge ANY character's heroism or villainy too quickly in this fic! Nothing and no one is quite what you might expect.
Fox and Hound
Chapter 5
ODINE RESEARCH CENTER FOR MAGICAL STUDIES
REPORT 63592
SORCERESSES AND SORCERESS ABILITIES
SECURITY LEVEL: 5
Recent research has discovered many fallacies in previous hypotheses about sorceresses and their abilities.
Although it was previously believed that only one sorceress existed at a time, it has now been determined that the population of sorceresses is much larger. Although exact numbers are unavailable, over two hundred cases have been verified to date.
Another recent discovery concerns the origins and passing on of power. It was previously believed that all sorceresses received their powers from another sorceress as she died. This has proven to be only partly true. While it has been determined that many subjects have received their powers in this fashion, by far the greater majority are born with their powers. Of the 200 subjects studied, only 75 initially received their powers from another sorceress.
Those individuals who were born with the ability appear to have inherited their powers from their mothers. This has led to speculation regarding the existence of a "sorceress gene." The S-Gene, if it exists, appears to be recessive as many of the subjects studied had given birth to non-gifted daughters. It is also speculated that the S-Gene is sex-related—passed on along the female line only. There are no known males possessing the ability.
More research is required to determine if the S-Gene exists, and, if so, if it can be spliced to genetic material containing Y-chromosomes.
It has also been determined that the subjects cannot die until they have passed along their powers to another sorceress or potential sorceress. A test group of fifty individuals was exposed to a lethal dose of radiation and kept in isolation for two weeks. The subject were, as suspected, unable to die before a suitable recipient for their power was allowed in their vicinity. It was observed that, in order to pass on their abilities, the subject must be in direct contact with the recipient.
Irvine closed the folder in disgust.
Hyne…I always knew that bastard Odine was crazy…but this…research…it's obscene!
With its talk of "specimens" and "subjects," the report attempted to gloss over the fact that it was really talking about people—about women. Fifty women had died merely to satisfy a madman's curiousity.
But they were just sorceresses, after all, Siobhan's voice taunted him. And they're the enemy, right? So what does it matter? After all, you've killed a few sorceresses yourself, haven't you, Cowboy?
There was a big difference between taking out someone in battle—particularly when they were trying to take you out as well—and what Odine had done to his victims.
Oh really? Siobhan's voice queried. And what about your mission? How is killing ShadowFox any different from Odine's experiments?
ShadowFox is a terrorist, the marksman argued. She's killed a lot of people herself. She and her sisterhood are dangerous—they've gotta be stopped.
His lover's laughter echoed in his head. Keep telling yourself that, if it gives you comfort. Maybe it'll help you sleep at night…
The sniper closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. He'd never been good at working out problems of ethics. Duty and morality always seemed to be at odds—which was one of the reasons he had resigned from SeeD. He hadn't been able to handle murdering people who'd never done him any harm—just because they were in someone else's way.
So…why the fuck was he here on this damn train? Why had he ruined things with Vonnie to do something that he no longer believed in? Irvine shook his head in confusion. He didn't understand himself. Hell, he didn't understand anything.
SO, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW? Diablos queried. ARE YOU STILL GOING THROUGH WITH YOUR MISSION?
Irvine sighed wearily. I don't know.
The sniper absently picked up the folder and began leafing through it again.
THE SORCERESS-KNIGHT BOND
Little is know about this aspect of the sorceress ability. Captive subjects were quite uncooperative when questioned on the subject. Observations of the subjects suggest that the sorceress and knight share a mental link, but dissection of the subjects' brains revealed nothing unusual in their composition.
Most of what is known, or suspected, about the bond is derived from observation of Seifer Almasy during the Second Sorceress War. The bond appears to enhance both physical and para-magical abilities of the recipient. In addition, it is suspected that there may be an element of mind-control involved. This hypothesis has remained unverified as Almasy went into hiding after Ultimecia's defeat and remains at large.
In the subjects available for study, little evidence of mind-control has been found. The knights examined appear to have accepted the bond willingly. It appears to be irrevocable and for the life of both subjects. Upon the death of the sorceress, the bereaved knight shows symptoms of extreme disorientation and agitation, ultimately resulting in the subject's loss of sanity.
Sorceresses whose knights were killed displayed similar symptoms: lethargy, depression, anxiety, and dementia.
Again, Irvine slammed the folder shut, sickened by what he'd read. He couldn't believe that this sort of "research" had been sanctioned by the Estharian government. Hell, he knew Laguna. He'd never seemed to be the cold-blooded type.
Why not? Siobhan's voice, which seemed to have taken over as his conscience, asked. He's fought against sorceresses too. They're just…things…to him. Not even people at all. No…Loire would have no love for sorceresses, would he?
Shit. Irvine had little love for them either, but that didn't mean it was okay to experiment on them like lab rats.
I can't do this, he thought. I don't care if ShadowFox takes over the whole fucking world and turns the Gardens into bingo parlors—I. CAN'T. FUCKING. DO. THIS!
SO WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? Cerberus 1 asked.
Find Vonnie, he answered. I'm gonna find her, and beg her to take me back—on my knees, if necessary.
BUT YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO LOOK, Diablos protested.
Of course I do, Irvine replied. There's only one place Vonnie would go—Deling City. To Jared. A bitter pang stabbed through him at the thought. In times of trouble, Siobhan always turned to Jared—not Irvine. Just another example of how little she trusted him.
Of course, he hadn't given her much reason to trust him lately—but that was about to change. He still wasn't sure what it was about his mission that had caused her to leave, but he would find her and spend the rest of his life making her happy, taking care of her, showing her that she could depend on him.
YES, Diablos chuckled, THE HUNTRESS ALWAYS SEEMED SO HELPLESS.
ABSOLUTELY, Cerberus 2 agreed, SHE CERTAINLY NEEDS A BIG, DIM-WITTED COWBOY TO 'TAKE CARE OF HER'.
The sniper grinned at his GF's good-natured abuse. That's right, he agreed, and I'm just the big, dimwitted cowboy for the job!
At last, the train pulled into the Esthar station. Irvine had already engaged Diablos's Encounter None ability, and he exited the train. The sniper immediately spotted Kiros waiting for him on the platform. Irvine turned and headed off in the opposite direction.
A/N Part II: Not much really went on in this chapter…just the report and Irvine's resulting argument with himself…Sorry about that. There was more to this chapter, but the next section needs some punching up, so I decided to end here for now. I'll warn you now… There's some REALLY weird shit coming up in the next installment (at least, I think it's weird)
Thanks to all my loyal reviewers. I really like to hear y'all's feedback—keep it coming!