Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy 8 characters, places and things all belong to Squaresoft and other involved companies. I own none of it. This fanfic is purely for the fun and enjoyment of others and myself. I make no money from it.
FINAL FANTASY/ ALTERED TALE
CHAPTER 10
'He left me…'
Squall had long since grabbed Rinoa and exited the doorway, leaving Quistis behind but for some reason she still could not believe what had happened right in front of her eyes.
'After all we've been through… he left me…'
Quistis couldn't hold it back anymore. In the past she had always prided herself on will power and her strong vitality to live. However, now as tears began to seep down her pale cheeks she began to realize how shallow those past claims were.
Drained beyond exhaustion, Quistis shook violently as she broke down into heart-wrenching sobs. It was irrelevant that such a feeling of dread came upon her in the face of death. She couldn't hide her emotions any longer. The fighting had drained her physical energy. The summoning sapped her mental reserves. And now, Squall's rejection destroyed what little remained of her spirit.
All around her, the ground began shaking apart and huge pieces of rock came pummeling down as the ceiling too, gave way. However, it didn't matter anymore. To Quistis life had ended for her, the very moment Squall made his decision to leave her behind. Too many emotions washed over her now. Of all the times in her life, this was the first time she had ever felt truly alone.
Unfortunately, she was not alone. The X-ATM092 slowly advanced towards her. Its circuitry sparked heavily and huge parts of metal hung loosely from its base yet it still endured. It crept menacingly as it neared closer and closer towards her. Loud, unnerving noises could be heard as it dragged its inactive back legs forward striving to reach its objective.
Quistis saw the monster approaching. She simply looked up towards it with lost eyes. 'Is this my end?' She wondered. 'Am I truly going to finally be free of the tortures of this world?' She continued to stare as fear of the unknown seeped into her heart. So many mixed emotions washed over her at that one moment and then it happened. Whether by a cruel twist of fate or an incredibly stroke of luck she could not tell. However there was no denying it. Hanging limply, atop the beast of death was none other then Seifer Almasy.
****
Seifer felt his life force ebbing. He felt every last bit of pain. He knew what awaited him soon. However the greatest pain of all was the knowledge fate had mercilessly bestowed upon him before sending him into the next world. He had failed. All would be lost because of his failure. His weakness. Seifer hated this feeling. Of all the dishonor done to him, this was the worst. Yet, none the less, no matter how hard he tried, he could do nothing to prevent what was to come. He couldn't move even if he wanted to. Blood seeped freely from his lips as he laboriously sucked in and out for each small breath. He felt his essence pumping out of him with each heartbeat. His left arm could not move at all. He was finished. Utterly and completely undone by his opponent. At least he had the solace in knowing he had fought the hard fight. Yet he had lost. He failed miserably due to his weakness. That was something he could not bear and hoped that he would pass soon so that these visions of defeat with cease to haunt him.
He faintly heard the rumble of concrete as the floors gave way under him. He felt his body shift as the X-ATM092 leaned at a slight angle as it tried to keep its balance. He didn't care about the world around him anymore. All he wanted was sleep now, a peaceful, heavenly sleep. He finally began to close his eyes when a faint glimmer caught his attention. With the little bit of energy he had, he painstakingly raised his head. His eyes came to rest of the defeated form of Quistis Trepe.
'Ah this is a cruel fate indeed.' He thought to himself. 'In my last moments of shame, she gets to gloat over my death.' Seifer looked towards her once more to confirm his suspicions but what he saw instead totally baffled him. His eyes slightly widened at that one single look in her eyes. His heart flooded with all kinds of different emotions as he regarded her. No longer was she the invincible Quistis Trepe. Gone was the bossy Battalion Leader he had grown to despise. All of that was completely lost on the face of this figure in distress and all that remained was a woman. A lonely, shattered woman who had lost everything. At that last moment, Seifer understood the one indescribable emotion he saw in her. She was waiting to die. She had nothing left to give to the world and was waiting to die by the blades of this horrendous machine.
The machine ebbed closer towards the Arckon, determined to reach its objective. Suddenly something snapped in Seifer. The pure innocence of this woman before him captivated his senses and urged him forth. He would not let this woman die. No matter how tired he was or how much of a failure he had become. He would not let the light of this woman die needlessly. He would not let her give up. Roaring like a volcano bursting free from its prison, Seifer tapped into the last reserves of energy he never knew he had and flung his left arm forth towards Quistis limp form.
"Barrier!" He seethed. His vision became more bleary. He could feel his essence leaving him. He viciously snapped his eyes wide. 'I'm not done yet.' He raised himself up to his knees, causing more blood to flow freely from his open wounds. Seifer knew he was dying but it didn't matter. This was his last chance at redemption. He would not fail. For the sake of the vulnerable woman who had touched his heart, he would not let darkness befall this world. He raised his sword high as the ground began to crumble even further.
"GHRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHH!!!" He wailed as he tapped into the very last reserves of the raging volcano within his soul and slammed his sword hard into the Septer once more. The crystal shattered and suddenly darkness snatched him.
****
Quistis mind reeled. Everything had happened as if in slow motion. Only one word graced her shocked limps as she tried to get a hold of the situation.
"…Seifer?"
The first thing she knew, he was lying dead on the top of the X-ATM092. She couldn't understand why he would even be here. His mission was to stand guard while they infiltrated the tower. Had something gone wrong? Then suddenly their eyes locked. She saw a single tear escape his dying eyes as he drifted into nothingness. At that moment, Quistis felt a deep well of sympathy for the man. She had never known him to show such emotion ever in his life. The very fact that he was expressing himself now, at the brink of his own death was too much for her to bear. She started to reach out to him in sympathy but then suddenly the unexpected happened.
She felt a tremendous force push her back. As she scrambled to collect herself, here eyes widened in shock when she saw the dying man rise up from the brink of death roaring like one who's will power overruled his very own body. She watched in awe as the man swiftly drove his sword down into the machine's core. Immediately following, an explosion erupted. Fear overruled shock as she called out his name. However it was too late. After striking the monster, the man was swallowed up in an explosion that completely engulfed him. Smoke flared up around him and the machine slowly fell to its end. Explosions reverberated off of its hull causing internal organs to fry until the machine finally burst into a ball of fire and chaos.
At that moment, the final floor supports gave in and Quistis felt herself falling. She didn't care anymore. In the blazing fires of hell, one man had stood up. One man had showed that in her last moments she was not alone…
"Wait for me Seifer…" She whispered into the darkness.
****
Squall sped through the empty corridors of the tower as fast as he could. He felt the explosions resounding dangerously close to him. He sped faster, however his mind was in a completely opposite direction. 'I left her behind…'
The thought continued to plague him as he rushed further down the corridors. Never before had he ever had to make such a cruel decision and now he felt dirty. He felt shameful in a way that no water could ever wash away the stains that were engraved into his very heart. He held back his grief and turned it into energy. He charged faster down the tower stairs. Suddenly a huge burst of flames shot directly behind him. He spun into the air and he held Rinoa close, shielding her with his own body. It was all he could do. After all, it was the reason he had abandoned Quistis over Rinoa.
In accordance to the Knights code, if you promise someone safe passage, you must strive to do whatever it takes to ensure that promise. Squall had made the ultimate sacrifice in following that code. Yet what else could he do? The Knighthood was his life. If he couldn't rely on the code then what else was there? Nothing was left for him in this world but the code. If he couldn't live by it then he was nothing.
All of this entered his mind as he continued to stumble down the tower stairs. Another explosion went off and sent him soaring through the air. He noticed that the momentum of the blast was carrying him out towards one of the tower's lookout posts. Squall Quickly made for the window and Jumped out. At the last moment, another explosion shook the passageway, increasing the momentum of his decent. Swiftly, He and Rinoa descended towards the grassy plains below. He only had one chance left.
"Float!" He grumbled then he crashed into the ground. The spell had worked at the last instance. The landing was rough but they were still in considerably good shape. Rinoa stirred in his arms.
"Where… where am I?" She asked dazedly as she scanned her surroundings.
Squall did not answer. He simply looked back towards the crumbling tower and the One single life he left behind.
"…Are you ok?" Rinoa asked quietly. She had noticed Quistis wasn't around and figured out what he was worrying about.
"I'm sorry." She said silently.
Squall lowered his head. The blast had taken a lot out of him. And he was still shooting on overdrive from his earlier exertions. Rinoa looked at him with sympathy. She didn't know what had happened back there but she saw how bad it affected the Knight. Thus she said nothing and quietly hugged him. He absently accepted the huge, too overcome with emotions. For once in his life, he could not suppress his feelings of grief. He needed someone to comfort him then and Rinoa was there for him. Slowly, as Squall's mind drifted off into uneasy sleep, one sentence remained on his mind constantly taunting his very core. 'I left her behind…'
THE END?
Author's Note: Well I accomplished the unexpected! I finished the 10 chapter fic I had set out to accomplish. It was great fun being able to write these 10 chapters. I really enjoyed writing many of the scenes especially in the last chapters. I know what many of you may be thinking. "That's it?" And the answer to that question is yes. However, I'm planning on writing another Saga to this Series in continuation to this story. I'm sorry I neglected to mention this before but the Saga heading for these ten chapters has basically been "The Dollet Mission." I know I left this fic off with a really bad ending and all that but I guess I'm just setting the stage for the new adventures awaiting Squall and Rinoa as they make their journey forth into new lands. Well, enough with the babbling I guess. I would really appreciate feedback on what you all thought. Suggestions for the next Saga would be much appreciated as well. Also I would like to take this time out to personally thank All of you who read my fanfic! And a super big Thank you to the following people.
- AlasAvalon
- Emeralda
- Laguna
- Critic
- Kakkarot
- Whatever
- (no name)
- and B. Braswell
I'd like to thank you all for your reviews. Your reviews helped give me the inspiration to go on and continue writing this fic. Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart!
So without further adieu, As always, thanks for reading and please review! J I'll be seeing ya!
-Cordis