Squall and his seed companions have defeated Ultimecia but now they find themselves under the threat of an entirely new enemy.
Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy 8 characters, places and things all belong to Squaresoft and other involved companies. I own none of the rights to any of this. This fanfic is just for fun.
EMPEROR OF DARKNESS
CHAPTER 3
Squall let out a long sigh as he sat in the back seat of a Garden limousine. He was dressed in a decorative Garden Uniform. It was a white suit, top to bottom with shiny gold lining. The collar was round and had a similar gold color. On the side of it, he wore the symbol of Garden. Over his suit, he donned a similar white draping formal robe. It was also gold trimmed and its shoulder pads jutted out widely, signifying his position as head of Garden. And finally, his boots were a formal glossy black with gold pieces embroidered along the laces.
Squall hated wearing such formal outfits. He hated going to formal meetings. And most of all, he hated public appearances. Ever since becoming the head of Garden, Squall was always being pushed into meetings. Either about how to improve weapon armaments or simply some country asking to hire Garden's services. Squall handled himself well in these meetings, as he always handled himself well in everything he did. However that didn't stop him from harboring ill feelings about it all. More then once, Squall pondered the idea of resigning and turning over his position to someone more fitting for the task. Unfortunately for Squall, Cid would always intervene and tell him that he was the best man for the job and with his leadership, he could be an important key in pulling all the countries together in unified peace.
Squall silently let out a bitter laugh at this thought. Now he was doing just that. He was on his way to Cid's Manor. He would be journeying with Cid to Galbadia to serve as a symbol for Garden. His presence would represent Garden's approval of Balamb joining together with Galbadia as one unified nation. He approved of the idea, he just didn't like the thought of being a mere symbol. He had always imagined he would be doing more for the peace and justice of the world then just serving as a figurehead. Squall detested meetings and political discussions and the sort. He had always thought of himself as a fighter, a leader, or even an active, high ranking, officer of some sort. He wasn't made out for this office work. He needed more hands on experience in his life. He didn't want to be sitting in an office for the rest of his life smiling pearls all the time, symbolizing factitious peace when he could really be out in the world fighting and striving for the real thing.
Squall let out another sigh before resigning himself to simply staring out of his limousine window. Cid had the right idea of course, he just didn't think he was truly needed in the position that he was in. He was needed more on the forefront with his fellow seeds, rather then in the background issuing orders.
"Why so glum honey?" Rinoa looked at Squall with pure concern in her eyes. She was dressed in a silken blue dress, with diamond pearl earrings and necklace.
Squall took a moment longer to stare out the window then he turned his head to face her. "I don't know … It's just that…."
"…What?"
"I don't belong here." Squall said finally.
"What do you mean Squall? Of course you belong here! After all you've done for garden, they would be stupid not to want you at this ceremony. What has gotten into your head all of a sudden?" Rinoa said, misunderstanding Squall's meaning.
"No, I mean I don't belong in this kind of position. This kind of work doesn't suit me Rinoa. I feel like I should be doing more then I already am."
"But aren't you already doing enough? You're helping to inspire peace in the world."
"That's just my point Rinoa! If I'm going to be helping to bring peace to others, don't you think I would do a better job If I was actually out on the open 'physically' doing something rather then just sitting in an office looking pretty for all those top coats?"
Rinoa's brow wrinkled as she pondered Squall's words. Just as she was about to give her reply, however, the limousine came to a sudden stop. They had finally reached their destination.
Upon entering the Kramer's Manor, Squall and Rinoa where astonished at its overwhelming beauty and elegance. The main hall was bathed in various hues of blue. The staircase and floors were all marble. There was a skylight high above them blasting radiant light down onto the cold navy blue rug, which stretched out from the door all the way up the stairwell and fully enveloped the second floor. The number of doors lining the walls of the mansion were too numerous for Squall to count. Rinoa squealed with glee at the sight of all the beautiful bouquets of flowers. They all rested on stilts that adjoined each door.
Finally, Squall forced himself out of his stupor and regained some of his composure. "Is this were we will meet up with President Cid?" He asked in a formal, business-like manner.
"Err… no the master will see you in his study." Said the flustered servant. He was caught of guard at how quickly Squall regained his composure. 'This man was utterly incredible', he thought to himself. He did not think it possible for someone to change moods so quickly. However, he quickly dispersed these stray thoughts and promptly led Cid's guests towards the appointed room.
As they walked, Rinoa marveled at the vast assortment of artifacts displayed along the walls. They seemed to cover a long line of history. The sections she was currently viewing covered history from the great battles of Gustav, to the rebellions of Kellinger. Kellinger was once a noble knight under the New Kingdom. Then, later he became the revolutionist who gained the people freedom from Gustav's oppressive tirany. And right before her eyes, Rinoa saw Gustav's mighty sword, and Killinger's brimming lance. Both weapons were broken as a result from the battle those two warriors had many years ago. Then there was Merielus's staff. Merielus was the first in the long line of sorceress. At first she was very loyal to Killinger, however after a time she became consumed with power and destroyed the new world order from within. The history kept on going. As Rinoa walked further and further down the hall, history seemed to literally play itself out before her very eyes.
Rinoa was very intrigued by this and was about to ask the servant a few questions about some of the more unfamiliar artifacts when Squall suddenly tapped her gently on the shoulder. To her utter surprise, they were standing right in front of Cid's study. Slightly disappointed that she could not continue her tour down the remainder of the hallway, Rinoa let out a low scoff then followed Squall into the room.
Once again, Squall and Rinoa were bombarded by scenes of overwhelming beauty. Cid and Edea Obviously have very good taste. The study was furnished in a sea green color. The walls were bathed in a pale hue of green. The furniture was all gold rimmed and was at the height of elegance. Squall walked over to the sofa on the left side of the room and sat down quietly, seemingly lost in the splendor of their magnificent room. Rinoa couldn't contain herself as she scanned all aspects of her surroundings. Even though she was rich herself, her father was never much into the true nature of elegance. Of course he would have plenty priceless possessions in his mansion but none of his items compared to Cid's incredible inventory. Cid was not content with rich items but items which were symbolic of reminding everyone of past follies. Truly, Cid always had a greater plan in mind for everything he did.
"Woooo weeee, Cid sure does have some sweet dig's don't ya think?" Came loud voice from across the far end of the room. Squall and Rinoa immediately shot their heads towards the direction of the familiar voice.
Rinoa dropped her mouth in shock at the sight before her eyes. Even the, ever pensive, Squall felt his eyes widen in shock as he stared upon the figure standing in front of him. Standing before them both, was non other than a very classy, and excited Zell Dincht. He still wore his black armonie suit with the silk dress shirt and glossy dress shoes to go along with the outfit. In all their years, Squall and Rinoa had never seen such a change in a man.
Rinoa was the first to recover from her shock; replacing her expression with a sly grin instead. "Honey? Who is that man? I've never seen him before in my life." She said, with an amused glint in her eyes.
Squall, catching on to Rinoa's game, replied. "I don't know hon. He 'sounds' like a friend I once knew, but aside from that, he's a total stranger to me."
"Oh, har har har! Very funny, you two. But regardless, it's great to see you both after such a long time."
Before either Squall or Rinoa could react, Zell immediately rushed up and crushed them both in a tight bear hug. "This is great man…" Zell choked out in an emotional voice, still clutching his friends tightly. I've missed you both so much! I've missed you all… Man! I just never realized how much…"
By this time, Rinoa also became very emotional, and even Squall could not stem his tears from falling from his face. They remained in that same tight hug simply clutching each other and weeping with happiness. Suddenly they were interrupted by the sound of high heel shoes clicking against the cold marble floor.
"Is this a private meeting or can anyone join?" Asked a tall woman dressed in a formal business outfit. She wore a formally long military skirt, along with a fitted suit coat and dress shirt. She also wore formal high heel shoes and her hair was designed in a familiar style, which only one person could pull off effectively.
"Quistis!!!" Rinoa yelled, and swiftly ran over to hug the woman standing across the room from them. "Oh my gosh!! Ive missed you so MUCH!!!" She sobbed as she hugged Quistis tightly.
Quistis hugged Rinoa back with similarly wet eyes. "I've missed you too." She said softly. "All of you. It's been so lonely at Balamb Garden with you all gone. You can't imagine how happy I am right now!"
"But I don't get it. How did you all get here? And how did you know we were here?" Squall asked, breaking the mood.
"That's easy." Came a new voice from the doorway. The owner of that voice was wearing an olive colored dress suit with a certain trademark hat and trench coat. And By his side, stood his companion who was similarly dressed up. She wore A black dress and her hair was smoothed back in a fashion that almost made her unrecognizable.
"Irvin! Selphie!" Squall was utterly shocked and for the first time in a long time, he found himself at a loss for words. Selphie momentarily saved him from the spotlight by giving him a deep hug then running over to everyone else to give them hugs also. Irvin walked up to Squall and trust his hand out in a friendly gesture. With Irvine, that was the closes you were going to get to seeing him openly displaying his emotions to a guy. Squall shook it heartily and gave Irvin a reassuring pat on the back for good measure.
"Now as I was saying," Irvin said after breaking off his handshake with Squall. "As far as I can gather, Cid called us all here. He told me and Selphie that he wanted us to come to the ceremony with you because he knew you needed support and there's no better support then ones friend's to watch his back."
Squall gave a slight smile at this. Irvin was right, it really was a powerful feeling, to have the support of ones friends by his side. He didn't know what to say. Once again, Cid had made all the right decisions for him. "Thank you." Squall said simply.
They all laughed at Squall's odd way of showing gratitude towards others. "So tell me, what have you all been doing with your lives for the past three years?" Rinoa asked brightly.
"Well, I haven't been doing much of anything for the past three years." Quistis replied in a casual voice. "Just doing the same old stuff I always do. Being the head director at Garden isn't as glamorous as everyone thinks. My days are simply a long procession of analyzing seed results and deciding whether or not someone is fit to become a seed."
"Sheesh! Talk about a boring life!" Irvine exclaimed in shock. "But I'm almost as bad as you. Me and Selphie work at the Garden in Trabia. We're trainers for those young seed candidates aspiring to make it to glory. Its pretty boring."
Selphie chose that moment to kick Irvine in the knee for being so blunt. "If you don't like it then why don't you just leave you … you duffus!" Everyone could see that Selphie was clearly hurt by Irvine's words.
"Aww come on Selphie. You know I didn't mean it that way." When Selphie gave no response to his attempts at reconciliation, Irvin let out a long sigh. "Look, Selphie you know I love you. And if dealing with a bunch of boring seed candidates makes you happy then there's no place id rather be. I want to always be by your side Selphie."
This magnificent show of emotion sent everyone in the room drop dead quiet. Irvin truly had changed. He no longer hid what his heart wanted to say. He had no problems expressing his emotions to Selphie now. All selphie could do was look at Irvin with eyes full of love. She immediately embraced Irvin hugging him tight and crying softly in his arms. 'This' show of emotion, everyone was used to. Soon everyone broke out of their previous daze and started up again.
"Jeez Selphie! Not too attached are ya?" Zell said with a slight smirk on his lips. Selphie just turned her head to face him and stuck her tongue out at him. Zell chuckled quietly at this. It was just like old times.
"And what about you Zell?" Irvin said with an inquisitive eye. "What's your story. And for that matter, are you even the 'REAL' Zell?"
Everyone began to laugh at Irvin's joke. It was a drastic change from the young mans former attire. Wiping her tears away, Selphie joined in. "This must be someone Zell paid to be here while he went off to see more of the world!"
"If that's the case, then that show's how intelligent Zell is to think we would fall for someone like this!" Irvin added. They all broke out into uncontrollable laughter at the expense of Zell.
Zell began to seethe with rising indignation. "Oh come off it you guys! I didn't change 'that' much! Did I?" Everyone began laughing hysterically again, effectively giving him his answer. Even the, ever so stoic, Squall couldn't hide his chuckles. It 'was' just like old times.
"So what happened Zell?" Rinoa asked after the laughter had sufficiently died down. "What made you give up the 'hip' look, and move on to a more classy appeal?"
Zell shifted nervously, catching everyone off guard. The reason behind Zells change must have been drastically important if it caused this kind of reaction from him. "Zell? What's wrong? You're acting like you've just seen a ghost." Selphie said softly. Everyone's attention was now turned towards Zell.
Zell breathed a long sigh of dread. He knew where this conversation was going yet there was no avoiding it. 'Might as well get it over with now.' He thought in resignation. "Well… ok it started like this. Sarah and I had roamed the world for quite some time and we saw lots of cool things. Well finally we decided to stop at FH for a little bit of r&r. We stayed there for a couple days and it was great. Everyone looked up to us and stuff. I mean come on. We were seeds. The hero's famous for ending the sorceress tyrannical rule. And I was one of the hero's who actually went head to head with her. So anyway when we were getting ready to leave, A huge sea creature attacked the docks. Sarah and I had no choice but to fight. We ended up killing the creature but many townspeople were hurt… I was one of them. I had jumped in the way of one of the creature's attacks, which was meant for Sarah. So the way things ended up, we had to stay longer on account of my injuries. Well to make a long story short, the President of FH was very impressed with our battle and how much the people looked up to us. He therefor decided we were the perfect candidates to succeed him. He stepped down from office saying that age had worn him down. Thus Sarah and I became the new presidents of FH."
Everyone in the room was silent. Even Squall was baffled at this news. No one had ever imagined Zell would inherit such responsibility. 'Who would have thought a reckless showoff like Zell would become the president of a country,' Thought Irvin. Quistis was the first to break the silence. "So your saying there is a joint Presidency in FH now? What do the people think about such an action?"
"Oh the people fully accept the decision!" Zell replied in an exited voice. "Matter of fact, they prompted Sarah and me to make that a new official rule in FH. To have a joint Presidency with two people. They feel that it is a symbol of mans own inability to take hold of any action by his self. It is a symbol of humility and respect for the abilities of others."
Once again, the room was shocked into silence. 'We never once thought of that before' Squall pondered in shock. 'I suppose it is, indeed a good thing Zell has become president of FH. We need ambitious leaders like him, who will defy tradition and act in accordance to the desires of the people.'
"Wow." Was all Selphie could utter through her mouth. She was still too shocked to fully grasp the whole concept of what Zell had just told them. Quistis simply nodded in acceptance to Zell's career decision. Rinoa just wore a huge grin on her face the whole time. "Well Zell…" Squall said, surprising everyone with his sudden urge to speak. It was usual in these cases for Squall to remain silent. Always pondering someone's words and only speaking when absolutely necessary. "I, for one, applaud your efforts and look forward to your added leadership. In days to come, the world will need leaders such as yourself." Yet another shock to everyone present. It was totally unlike Squall to ever complement anyone. Now he was not only complementing Zell but praising his efforts as a symbol of true peace. Irvin began clapping, not really knowing what else to do in this kind of situation. He was soon followed by everyone else in the room. Zell smiled broadly and his face beamed a bright red color.
"So where is Sarah now?" Selphie asked curiously. She wanted to congratulate the girl. Selphie had only known the girl for a short period of time at Balamb Garden. They had been roommates when Selphie was first transferred there and had become fast friends. Unfortunately, After the battles with Ultimecia, Selphie saw less and less of her friend until finally the girl left with Zell on their voyage across the world. Selphie forcefully brought her concentration back to the present and was surprised to notice that the whole room was struck in an uncomfortable silence yet again. She followed everyone else's gaze towards Zell's direction and noticed that he was shaking slightly and wouldn't meet anyone's gaze.
"Zell what's wrong" Quistis asked worriedly. Still Zell remained quiet. "Has something happened to Sarah!" Selphie asked suddenly. Once this was said, everyone burst into a rain of questions and idea's at what could be wrong. Zell disregarded all of these ideas and became angrily offended and some of the ones Irvin brought up.
"Well then if these aren't the problems, then what's wrong?" Rinoa asked patiently. "Come on Zell, talk to us" Selphie piped in. "Sarah's our friend too ya know. He have a right to know how she's doing as much as you do."
Zell blanched at this and suddenly plopped onto the couch, head hanging low. "I,… I have a confession to make everyone… I hope that you will all understand me and not judge me too harshly." Squall's head raised slightly in interest to what Zell had to say. Irvin's customary grin dissolved and he now wore a serious expression. Even Selphie had taken on an interested, non-playful, posture. All eyes were directed at Zell.
"Well…" Zell began. His hands had become sweaty and he began clinching and unclenching them in nervousness. "Four months ago, Sarah and I were enjoying a wonderful sunset on the docks of FH. It was a beautiful night and everything was just perfect… That night I asked Sarah to marry me…"
Rinoa squealed in joy. Everyone began smiling and Irvin slapped Zell on the back. "Congratulations buddy."
"I'm not finished" Zell said in a harsh voice, effectively silencing the whole room. "Not long after I proposed, two weeks to be exact, Sarah and I got married."
"What!" Selphie said in shock and indignation. "Zell, you wanna repeat that?" Irvin uttered through surprised lips. "I'm sorry I never told you all but Sarah and I just wanted a quiet wedding." Zell continued in an explanatory way. "I guess we were just caught up in the moment or something. We were so happy, we didn't want to wait for everyone to get there. We just wanted to be alone." Zell could not bring his eyes to meet their faces. The room was quiet and he was sure they all seethed with rebukes for him. His eyes burned with tears and his hands were clenched in tight fists. "I'm sorry…" He muttered through clenched teeth. He felt as if he had betrayed them for some reason. He vaguely wondered if this was how Seifer felt when he sided with the sorceress over his comrades.
To his complete shock, he felt a hand pat him on the shoulder reassuringly. Amazingly, the hand belonged to Squall. "Its ok Zell. I know exactly how you felt. Rinoa and I felt the same way before we got married. Its nothing to be ashamed of." Selphie, Rinoa and Quistis all nodded in agreement to Squall. "Yeah!" Irvin pitched in. "If it can't wait, it can't wait. Besides," he said with a shrewd grin, "I'm sure if I was at such a magnificent place with my Selphie, I wouldn't be able to wait either." His eyes flashed devilishly in Selphie's direction. "Why you pig!" Selphie yelled in disgust. She threw a book at him, which he skillfully dodged.
"But that still doesn't answer the question" Quistis said, ignoring Selphie and Irvin's antics. "Where is Sarah?"
"Well… Sarah and I decided we didn't think it was such a good Idea for her to be traveling so much, not to mention all the commotion that would follow during the parade." Selphie became ecstatic. "Zell do you mean…"
"Yeah Seiphy. Sarah's pregnant. By about three months now." Everyone began to cheer and root. Quistis smiled proudly as if she were his elder sister. Irvin gave Zell another pat on the back. "Good work pal." Selphie hugged him furiously. "I wanna see the baby as soon as it's born!" She squealed happily. "Congratulations" Squall said with a smile on his face. Rinoa regarded Zell with a look of playful jealousy then turned her eyes to Squall and smiled evilly. Squall groaned and everyone began laughing again.
Just then, Cid entered the room. "I see everyone has made it here alright. That's good to know." Cid had a huge smile plastered on his face.
"President Kramer. It's a pleasure to see you again sir." Squall said formally.
"Stop that Squall. You know I don't like being addressed formally by those close to me. By the way I couldn't help overhearing some of your previous conversation. Congratulations Zell. Being a parent is a wonderful thing. I myself am learning from that experience." Just then, Edea entered the room closely followed by a young boy of about 3 years of age. "Everyone, you all know my wife Edea. However I would like you all to meet a very special person who is very dear to me. This is Jeffry. My son."
Rinoa smiled sweetly at the boy. "Hello there little guy. How are you? My name is Rinoa." The boy blushed shyly and began to creep behind his mother. Edea giggled at how shy her son was behaving. Everyone's attention was turned to him but he was not at all ready to meet any of their gazes.
"Jeffry, These are my very special friends. They are like my distant children. Your mother and I took care of them when they were young. Won't you say hello?"
"Hi" was all the child would say, still hiding behind his mother's skirt. Cid turned his attention back towards Squall. "It really is good to see you again, all of you. I am holding a banquet tonight. I would greatly appreciate it if you could all attend."
"Sir, with all due respect, shouldn't we get to Galbadia?" Squall asked. "There's plenty of time to make the necessary preparations for the ceremony in Galbadia Squall." Cid answered merrily. "I specifically asked you all here so that we may celebrate in honor of our time together when all of you were growing up. There's a lot of catching up to do. I want you all to feel at home in my mansion. It's the least I could do for all that you have done for me."
Selphie beamed at the idea of having a banquet in a mansion. Irvin was also very pleased with these arrangements. They all seemed happy except Squall. Rinoa regarded his worried face and approached him. "Squall? Don't worry about it please? Everything will be ok. It's perfectly fine if you relax a bit with the rest of us. Nothing will go wrong, and if anything, it will do you a world of good to unwind now that you have the chance."
Squall raised his eyes to meet hers. "As always, you're perfectly right Rinoa. I-… I'll relax and enjoy the banquet with everyone else… It really has been a long time. It's a good idea that we celebrate this occasion with a feast." That settled, Cid began issuing orders to his butlers making the necessary arrangements for his guests. Everyone began to relax more and prepare themselves for a night to remember.
The streets of Timber were dirty and garbage ridden, as the young girl named Dawn made her way across town. She shriveled her nose in disgust at the putrid smell emanating from the adjoining alleyways. This was, without a doubt, the lower, more secluded, part of town. She hated this. Everything about the atmosphere gave her a sense of dread and disgust. However this was her only lead. This was where she might possibly find 'him'.
She had been searching for nearly two months now. Just recently she found the location of Balamb Garden and was able to get inside. However this was little help. The man she was looking for was no longer there. And to make matters worse, not only did the Head of Balamb Garden know him, she seemed to not regard him too highly either. Dawn could tell this was going to become a very difficult task if things kept going the way they were going.
The cold air of Timber chilled her skin, giving her goose bumps. She wrapped her scarf more snuggly around her neck and clutched her coat tightly. Walking further, she noticed with distaste, that the scenery became less and less appealing in regards to the reputation of Timber. After walking a bit longer, she noticed four figures had continued to follow her. Through sheer training, she was able to keep a regular unsuspecting pace. She decided she would play dumb a bit longer until she reached a more secluded area. That way she could deal with them without having to worry about any innocents getting hurt. They hadn't gotten far, when she felt the rough hand of one of them on her shoulder.
"X'cuse us miss. We was lost and we was wonderin if you might be able to help us find the train station." Said one of the thugs with a huge grin on his face. Dawn let a small sigh of annoyance escape her lips then turned around to face her attackers.
"Why not just cut the crap and get to the point shall we gentlemen?"
The leader of the gang let out an evil laugh. "So you knew all along did ya? Well that aint gonna help you none toots." Dawn simply raised an eyebrow in mild interest.
"Oh? So then I suppose your going to assault me and take all my money without so much as a peep from me right?" Dawn said with a smirk. "I'm sorry boys but I'm just not that easy. And quite frankly, you're just not that good."
The leader became enraged and swung at her, fully intending to take her out with one hit. Unfortunately, fate was not on his side, as he only hit thin air. Dawn, deftly dodged his first attack, then rushed forward with a mid blow, landing her fist firmly below his rib cage. The leader crumbled like a sack of potatos. The second thug lunged at her next. They would not have their pride hurt my some 15 year old little girl. Dawn was ready for them and delivered an axe kick to the neck of the second thug. He dropped and another took his place. She jumped back as the thug tried to stab her with a dagger. He swung again and dawn caught his fist in mid swing. She, then, brought his hand towards her and snapped his wrist and forearm. The thug screamed out in pain until she silenced him with a quick strike to the base of his neck with the palm of her hand. Now armed with a dagger, she faced off with the fourth and final thug. He also had a dagger and held it menacingly in front of her face.
"You think your pretty hot stuff don't cha chick? Well all that's gonna end right now!" With out a second word, the thug pulled out a handful of sand from his trench coat pocket and threw it in her eyes.
Dawn reeled back, shocked by this treacherous maneuver. She tried desperately to wipe the sand away from her eyes but was too late when she felt the heavy hand of the thug's fist slamming into her face. She fell to the ground hard. She tried to get up but was brutally kicked in the stomach by another figure. Apparently the leader had recovered. Soon all of the thugs were on their feet again and were kicking and punching her relentlessly.
"Now were gonna have some fun chick" The leader said with an evil smile plastered on his face. Dawn tried to get up to resist but she had no more energy left after the attack. The Gang leader caressed her soft cheeks and she could feel the stench of his breath on her face. "You're a cute one aint cha, chick?" His eyes scanned her figure and she knew what he was planning. "You bastard!" She spat. The Leader and his gang began to laugh hysterically. Dawn closed her eyes tight, not wanting to see his sick face any further.
Then, the leaders hysterical laugh suddenly became a cry of pain. Dawn shot her eyes open to see a bum standing over her and the thug leader. "Just what are you punks doing?" The bum said, enraged. The gang leader was sprawled out on the ground, clutching his groin. Apparently, the bum had good aim. The other punks didn't like this one bit and rushed at the new stranger. However, the bum seemed not to notice them. He just wobbled to the side, barely avoiding their strikes. Dawn noticed with disgust that the bum was very drunk and his thick beard was covered in alcohol.
Soon, the bum's lazy eyes locked onto what the thugs were doing and he retaliated. One of the thugs lunged in with a knife but the bum merely sidestepped this and drove his fist in the poor man's stomach so hard he cracked some of his ribs. He, then, turned his attention away from them. The remaining two appeared slightly intimidated but rushed forward anyway. The bum didn't seem to notice. "LOOK OUT!" Dawn cried but she knew she was already too late when she saw they were already too close for him to do anything. However, he astonished her by spinning to the side at the last minute, letting them fall, head first, into the ground. He appeared to have just noticed them. "Oh." He said simply.
The punk got back on his feet and was ready to seriously hurt this bum. Who did he think he was, making fun of the Red Spikes gang. The fourth thug threw sand at the bum preparing to do the same thing he did to dawn. Unfortunately, either the bum was one step above that or he was simply lucky. He dodged the sand, then twirled forward effectively side lining the thug with his forearm. The third thug rushed forward but the bum was onto this and threw the fourth thug at him. They crumbled on impact. The leader rose to his feet. He would not be made a fool of.
"Now your gonna die you bum!" He screamed as he ran towards the drunkard with a dagger. The bum used part of the blanket he had around his shoulders and twirled it in front of the thug. The thug swung wildly trying to eliminate this distraction then felt a fist going across his face before he even saw it. He crumbled.
Dawn rose to her feet shakily. She had observed the bum the full time and noticed that regardless of the fact that he was drunk, he was quite good at fighting. She looked him up and down and was disgusted at the sight of him. He had tangled, messy, thick hair. His beard was also thick and covered in grime and alcohol. He wore a dirty, muck covered blanket around his shoulders. His regular T-shirt was covered in beer and putrid vomit. And the sweat pants he wore were dirty and torn at the knees. 'A totally disgusting sight indeed,' she thought to herself. Suddenly she noticed that he was staring at her as well. He had a look of curiosity on his face. "Who the hell are you?" he said in annoyance and disgust. "And what the hell am I doing here?" His eyes suddenly rolled to the back of his head and he collapsed in a drunken stupor. His eyes… Dawn walked up to him and regarded his face closely. There was something about his eyes. The SCAR! There was a scar slanting vertically in between his eyes. Could it be? She could hardly believe it but this was it. Her search was over. She had found Seifer Almasy.
Sorry it took so long but finals preoccupied my time. But now I have the whole summer and hopefully things will work out so that I finish a lot more chapters a whole lot quicker. As always, thanks for reading! And please send all comments, flames, and or critiques to cordis_xaltun@altavista.com