Queen of Souls
By Soul Hunter
Chapter Three
The air was replete with the moist aroma of a coming rain. The winds blew gently, but with enough gust to ruffle the hair that she didn't bother to dry after the short bath she took that early, overcast afternoon. And it was chilly, typical to the moment prior to an impending downpour. Edea looked up, albeit briefly. The gray darkness of the sky contrasted against the undulating green of dancing grass capitulating to the persuasion of the restless air. The winds brushed against her face with consistent coolness, quickly drying up the beads of tears rolling down her cheeks.
Her hands, which had just ceased trembling, groped for those of her husband's. She needed his warmth and his comfort. She needed whatever calm Cid had to offer no matter how remote the prospect may be. Unwittingly, he met her hands behind his back, and gripped on them tightly. He too, was seeking solace in the midst of this sad moment. He tried to smile at her but that smile remained bereft of any real cheer. His heart was too broken, same way as hers was. They both were agonizing in the doleful message Xu's speech was delivering. It was an elegy, a dirge minus the sorrowful melody.
All around them, stifled sobs and echoing sniffles emanated from the denizen of mourners who flocked to a secluded corner of Alcauld Plains to observe the last rites for their fallen comrades. They were all melancholic, sorrowful. Some were even in the verge of hysterics. They can't believe something like this would happen to the best among their ranks. The whistling chimes of the unsettled winds complemented the weeping throes they emitted, as if the world itself was lending its sympathy for their loss.
Behind them, Quistis stood quietly. Her heart was similarly replete with agony. But for some arcane reason, she didn't know why. Though her tears poured out with theirs, she wasn't sure of the reason. Training burdened eyes throughout the surroundings, she noted Squall's silent form in the near distance. Like her, he too displayed deep sadness. And like her, he too was segregated from the group of grieving students and teachers. Beside him stood Rinoa, with that same pasty look. A few paces behind them, Seifer sat sullenly.
Quistis momentarily wondered, what was all this for? And why can't she bring herself to join her friends in grieving for their lost colleagues? Why were they separated form the rest? Why is Selphie staying a score behind the column of pallbearers who lingered at the back of the assembly? Irvine and Zell stood similarly isolated. Why were they keeping their distance?
Slowly, her feet lifted up and took a step. She had stayed in her spot, mourning and weeping, though she didn't know why. She knew they were putting someone to rest, but their identities escaped her awareness. Were they new students? Neophytes who got in too deep and failed to save themselves in a battle? Unnamed peers? Who were they burying today? The questions bombarded her mind as she stepped up front, past the black-garbed students. They seemed unmindful of her, their sorrow must have been immense.
Quistis slithered in between Iris and Marcus to finally gain access to the row of rectangular pits into where seven caskets were being lowered. They were already closed, she can't see anymore who were inside the white, richly adorned wooden boxes. Looking around, she spotted a long, marble plaque that she believed carried the names of the fallen. She was almost afraid to read the inscription.
Her head nearly exploded when she did.
To Our Departed Brethren, May You Find Peace In Your Rest
Squall, Rinoa, Quistis, Zell, Selphie, Irvine, and Seifer
Honor In This World And Beyond
The searing horror plunged into her heart like cold bullets from a frozen hell. Why was her name inscribed in that stone? Why is Squall's name on there as well? And Rinoa's all of them? This can't be right. It had to be a mistake. They're not dead. They're fully and wholly alive. Why were they being mourned?
Panicking eyes hurled a horrified gaze on her separated comrades, who by then had begun to walk away. Why are they leaving? Where are they going? As if in reply, a shockwave suddenly struck her body. It was strong and powerful, and must have come from an explosion not far from them. Quistis reeled momentarily before noticing that she was the only one affected by the reverberation. Xu continued on her burdened chore, flinging a rose into each of the holes on the ground. Iris continued weeping, while the Balamb Colors carried on with the twenty-one gun salute. Didn't they hear the blast?
But Squall and the others seemed to have heard. She saw them as they ran for the source of the conflagration while preparing their weapons for battle. Even Seifer acted with urgency. Quistis didn't waste time and immediately ran after her colleagues.
But arcane leading appeared to make her run in circles. She had been scampering for much longer than she expected, but Quistis still can't reach the goal. Momentarily stopping, she tried to gather her senses. It was then that she noticed rustling sounds coming from a nearby grove. Taking that direction, Quistis alternated between running and crouching, fully expecting the enemy to appear from within the cluster of short trees.
"Your concealment is not necessary, fair maiden." A deep and hollow voice rang out. Her spine ran cold when she heard the resonance. It was as if it came from the deepest pits of Hades: cold, monotonous, bereft of any emotional weight. The timbre of the voice itself was enough to introduce her to a frightful wall of doubt. What manner of enemy will she be facing? Was her strength sufficient enough? She didn't know if she was equal to the task.
The wind bellowed a forceful gust, bending branches in utter submission. Quistis became puzzled, it was only now that she noticed the disturbing anomaly. She can't feel the wind.
She felt like a wraith
"Do not be puzzled, my beauty. Come and join your friends." The abysmal voice rang out once more. Deciding that she had hid enough, Quistis pushed from the ground and emerged forcefully into the open. She was planning to startle her opponent. But instead, she was the one who was introduced to shock.
By the feet of the armor-clad adversary lay strewn the clothes of her friends. Squall's leather jacket and pants, Seifer's gray overcoat, Selphie's canary-yellow short dress all of them. And they all contained skeletal remains.
He had murdered her friends.
"No what have you done?" Quistis nauseously bellowed, trying hard to maintain her composure despite feeling her stomach about to turn inside out. And the gruesome sensation disappeared as quickly as it came, and was replaced by that of tragic grieving. She was alone now. All her friends were dead.
Grief then transmogrified to rage. Her right fist turned white as it clamped tightly around the Save The Queen.
"You've killed my friends, murderer. You will die for this."
"Yes, that is absolutely true." The man with the silver armor matching his silvery locks returned. But this time, his voice reeked of a scornful tone as if deliberately irking the instructor. "I have killed them, my pretty. But not today, not at this hour. In fact, they were already dead before they faced me."
Despite her rage, Quistis grew confused. "What what are you talking about?"
"And the truth is, I have already killed you, too."
"What?"
"And now, allow me to feast on your soul."
"No!!!" Quistis screamed as white flames exploded from his eyes. "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!"
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"Nooo!!! NOOOO!!!!!!"
Quistis was so sure that she was on her way to the fiery pits of Hades. She was expecting the heat of brimstone to melt the skin and flesh off her bones. Her horror was great, and her fear was made black and bitter with helplessness.
But instead of infernal pain, she felt strong hands jostling her by the shoulders.
"Wake up! Quistis, wake up!"
"AAAAHHHH!!!"
It felt like emerging from the murky liquid of despair and terror, but eventually, the instructor slowly felt relief creeping back into her as she observed the four walls of the SeeD quarters surrounding her. It was just a dream. A nightmare. Probably the worst she ever had. As she tried to inhale, the sticky sensation of a dried throat impeded her breath. She struggled to echo out her need for replenishment.
"Water I need water"
"Here." He quipped while giving her a glass of that cold liquid. With trembling hands, Quistis grabbed the tissue-lined glass, spilling some of the water on her bed sheet in the process. She then devoured its contents with large gulps. She had never felt this thirsty in her entire life.
"Are you all right?"
She spent a moment to allow her body to sag back on the bed before answering his question. "I I don't know It was horrible"
"I know."
That was when she realized once more that she wasn't alone. Suddenly sitting back up, Quistis hurled a fearful gaze at the intruder kneeling in front of her.
"W-Was it you? Were you the one responsible for that nightmare? For me seeing my friends die?"
"Yes." Was his reluctant reply.
"Why? What do you want? And who are you?"
At that point, the intruder opted to stand up and walk a few paces away from her. Not knowing how to react, Quistis waited for him to answer. She knew she should be doing something else, but her golden bullwhip hung at a rack at the other side of the bed. And she wasn't junctioned. Unlike the others, she always felt compelled to unjunction her GFs whenever she went to bed. It was like she felt they also needed a reprieve whenever she herself was resting.
And without their assistance, she didn't know if she can take him on one-on-one. This intruder had just violated the privacy of her room without alerting Garden's security systems. No mean feat, she thought. If he can do something like that, he must also be well equipped to take on a SeeD in battle. Much more an unjunctioned one.
The instructor then looked at her bedside table and saw her SeeD communicator. One flick of the distress call and she could have a battalion of SeeDs rushing to her aid. But for some reason, she was dissuaded from calling for help. For some reason, she knew he had something to say. And she wanted to hear it.
"You don't need to know my name." The intruder started. "But you have to hear out my warning."
"Warning? What I don't understand."
"Then understand this." He blurted out while abruptly turning towards her. "You and your friends will all die. You will not survive the wrath of the nihilist who devours souls."
Quistis squinted. "I don't have any idea what you're talking about."
"You have just been appointed to seek out and destroy the one responsible for the recent rash of mass murders, right?"
"Y-Yeah" She stammered, recalling the meeting they held with Cid.
"And I'm telling you, you cannot defeat him. By pursuing this task, you will only serve to be his feast, and nothing more. Your combined strengths are not nearly enough to defeat him. In fact no one is powerful enough. Not sorceresses, not warriors like you. No one. And I need you to understand that."
She didn't answer, wondering hard at this stranger's possible motive for giving her this warning. He couldn't possibly be an ally, she knew no ally who fit his description. On the other hand, this could also be a trick. But she knew that theory was as thin as they come. Why would this stranger want to trick them? Is he in collusion with the enemy they were tasked to destroy?
"How do I know that you're not one of the enemies." Quistis blurted skeptically. "You came barging in here and induced this nightmare on me, just like that. And then you'd tell me that we're en route to a hopeless suicide mission. Why? What's in it for you?"
She knew she shouldn't be humoring him like this. Quistis should just ask for help and get this thing over with. She can't figure out why she's giving him the time of day.
Why is she doing a lot of things she knew she shouldn't be doing? What is it with him that drove her to such unorthodox behaviors?
"We're not done yet." He replied irrelevantly. "But my time here is limited."
He's going? No He can't go. Not just yet.
"And I implore you, reconsider. Your lives are at stake."
Was that it? He didn't want anything bad to happen to them? But why?
He then started back to the dark corner of the room whence he appeared earlier. And when she saw him leaving, Quistis felt a tearing inside her. As if she didn't want him to go.
"Please wait"
"You will see me again." Was all she heard from the intruder as his dark form melded back into the shadows. Quickly reaching out for the light switch, she illuminated the room with the white fluorescence only to find herself alone once more.
"Who are you?"
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"Quisty, are you okay?"
She heard Selphie's voice, but only as part of the background noise dominated by the steady hum of the Ragnarok's burning rocket engine. She was still awash with wonderment, pondering vehemently on the previous night's events. She found it unusual, but it seemed the impromptu guest she had managed to leave his mark in her mind. She couldn't stop thinking about him. He came quietly and left in the same manner, leaving ominous premonitions suggesting her and her friends' demise.
There may or may not be credence in his words. She didn't know. There was no way for her to judge his sincerity. But that hardly mattered at this very moment. All she knew was the way he talked to her that night. The way his low and raspy, almost scary voice emanated telltale signs of tenderness that she guessed wasn't really inherent to him. And how he brushed his fingers against hers when he gave her the glass of water she thought she felt a haunting eagerness in it.
"Quisty!"
"I'm all right, Sef. Don't worry about me." Quistis finally acknowledged without looking at her comrade.
"You overslept, didn't you?" Echoed the Trabian girl's usual, perky voice. "That's not fair. We agreed no sneaking into anyone's room last night."
The instructor chuckled. Though she knew that Selphie was only kidding, she still can't avoid feeling amused at the incredulity of her friend's allusion.
"And I'll bet you didn't pull Irvine into the service elevator again"
Her smile suddenly disappeared when she turned her attention to Selphie. Her eyes then glared in horror, together with the sudden chill that crept into her whole body. For a moment, Quistis thought Selphie had lost her head. Literally.
"Quisty? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Uhh n-nothing nothing, Sef." She stuttered a reply before walking out on her friend. Quistis felt queasy, recalling an age-old superstition about people appearing headless when they're about to die. She then remembered the nightmare, how she saw the Garden populace burying her and her friends. Quistis remembered the silvery-haired enemy who reduced all of them to bony remains.
Slowly, she tried to turn her eyes back toward the rest of the party. Zell was in his usual spot behind the control panel, teaching Rinoa the basics of the Ragnarok controls. Irvine and Squall stood by the side panel while talking about Galbadian politics. Selphie, who had just talked to her, was reluctantly approaching Seifer from behind.
And again, her blood froze at the sight that met her. All of them were headless.
End of Chapter Three