Chapter 7
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for Adalia, Adalia's Song and the idea for my story.
I'm so afraid to love you, more afraid to lose.
Clinging to a past that doesn't let me chose.
For once there was a darkness, deep and endless night,
You gave me everything you had, oh you gave me light.
And I will remember you, will you remember me?
Don't let your love pass you by, weep not for the memories.
Sarah McLachlan
I Will Remember You
Adalia stood at the foot of Lunar Gate, gazing up at the massive structure that would
prepare the Ragnarok to hurdle her and two other team members into space. That morning,
Adalia had arisen and informed the others about her plan. She would be sent to the moon with
the Ragnarok, accompanied by the two team members. When they reached the moon, they were
to find what Adalia had called "Utopia", the place where Hyne dwelled. It was pretty ironic;
they would have go through a hell of a lot of monsters to get to paradise. Once they reached
Utopia, Adalia would try to convince Hyne that she should stay there and Rinoa should be left
alone.
It was a long shot at best, and Squall spent the entire ride on the Ragnarok there
convincing Laguna that they needed the Lunar Gate to reattach the booster rockets to the side of
the Ragnarok to prepare it for it's space flight. Squall also had to convince him that the crew of
the Ragnarok weren't under a sorceress mind-control spell.
But Adalia stood outside of the compound alone; everyone inside was rushing around to
reattach the boosters that were taken off after the defeat of Ultimecia. The technicians had
assured the party that with all the man power they had at their disposal, it would take no more
than two hours to reattach everything and get it working again.
For nearly two hours, Adalia had been outside all alone to wait. Wait for the man she
loved to return to her. She held on to the hope that he would return, take her in his arms, and
everything would be forgiven.
But nobody had come. The only activity Adalia had observed was a herd of migrating
mesmerize. She would wait here for the full two hours, even though her hope slowly diminished
with every tick of the watch Rinoa had let her borrow.
Adalia turned and looked at the vast emptiness that encompassed Lunar Gate from all
sides. A lizard ventured out of it's hole, not twenty yards from where Adalia stood. As she
watched, a vulture swooped down and grabbed the lizard in it's talons to carry off to it's
nestlings.
Suddenly, Adalia heard the soft crunch of footsteps behind her, yet she did not turn
around, for she knew who it was.
"The Ragnarok is ready; Squall says we can leave within five minutes." Rinoa's soft
voice gently stated.
Adalia closed her eyes, feeling a solitary tear streak down her face. "Okay." she
whispered, not wanting her voice to reveal her emotions.
The sound of Rinoa walking back toward Lunar Gate's entrance allowed Adalia to open
her eyes.
The tear that had been sliding down her cheek fell to the dry and cracked ground,
whereupon it was quickly evaporated into nothingness.
* * * * *
Adalia stood toward the back of the cockpit of the Ragnarok; Squall seated directly in
front of her beside Rinoa. They were the only people on board; Selphie had stayed behind to
watch over Irvine's condition and Quistis wasn't sure she could control her rage against Adalia.
Nida . . . well, nobody knew where Nida had gone. He had been missing since the confrontation
in Adalia's room and his bed looked like it hadn't been slept in.
"Ground control to Ragnarok, Ragnarok come in." a voice crackled over the static on the
radio.
"Ground control, this is Ragnarok. We've made all the necessary adjustments and are
good to go." Squall replied in his best mock space pilot voice. Rinoa giggled nervously at
Squall's attempt to lighten the mood which seemed to permeate into their every action.
"Roger that, Ragnarok. Prepare for hangar opening in three, two, on . . ." The voice on
the radio was quickly silenced by a bomb being dropped on to the main control room area of
Lunar Gate, that was quickly approaching the hangar where the Ragnarok sat. The deceased had
managed to hit the hangar opening button, but the door was creeping open slowly as the
explosions grew nearer and nearer.
"What was that?!?!" Rinoa asked, unable to keep the fear out of her voice.
"I don't know, but let's get the hell out of here!" Squall yelled as he hit a few buttons on
the Ragnarok's control panel then pulled up on the "wheel" that was located in front of him.
"Squall, those doors aren't going to open in time! We're gonna hit!" Rinoa yelled as she
curled into a fetal position in her seat. The Ragnarok shot out of the hangar, the doors scraping
each side just as flames exploded into the hangar.
They levelled off and began to circle the burning wreck of Lunar Gate to determine the
cause of the explosion and were met by a hail of gunfire, seeming to come from all directions at
once, yet no enemy craft was in sight.
Squall turned around the Ragnarok and came face-to-face with two enemy aircraft and
one helicopter. The aircraft ceased fire, and a man that was seated next to the open door of the
helicopter held a megaphone up to his mouth. "Crew of the Ragnarok, release the sorceress into
our custody and the Galbadian army may let you live."
"The Galbadian army?" Rinoa asked, puzzled. "What would they want with Adalia?"
"Who says it's me they want?" Adalia shot back out of anger and fear.
"I think I know what's going on." Squall said calmly, as though he faced situations like
this everyday. "I never sent out the order to the rest of the SeeDs that Adalia is our ally. They're
still operating under the order I previously gave them."
"The people in those craft are SeeDs?!?!" Adalia asked, shocked.
"That means we're safe," Rinoa said with a sigh of relief, "They won't shoot down their
own Commander."
"Don't be too sure." Squall cautioned. "SeeDs are trained to complete their mission at
all costs."
"We've waited long enough for your reply, Ragnarok." The man with the megaphone
said. "Now we have no choice. Open fire men!" Another stream of bullets began to careen
through the air towards the Ragnarok.
"Enough of this!" Squall yelled as he piloted the Ragnarok towards space. The other
aircraft started to follow, but stopped after a particularly large blast rocked the Ragnarok. A
warning light sent red swirls of light throughout the cockpit and was accompanied by an
incessant beeping.
"They hit the fuel pod!" Squall whirled around in his chair to face Adalia, letting Rinoa
take over the controls. "Adalia! You have to go down and fix the fuel pod!"
"What?!" Adalia exclaimed. "I don't know anything about this ship, let alone the fuel
pod!"
"Just use your magic, Adalia." Rinoa answered calmly, an amazing feat since she was
frantically hitting millions of buttons at once. "I'm sure you'll find a way."
Adalia nodded and ran over to the elevator, hitting the down button as she turned around.
When the elevator stopped, Adalia looked around and saw doorways in all directions.
Just totally relying on fate to dictate her actions, she ran through the doorway directly in front of
her, leading her to a walkway.
Adalia continued to run forward, but was stopped by a strong arm that had wrapped
around her waist. She whirled around to come face-to-face with the greenest pair of eyes she
had ever seen. "Nida . . .?"
A lock of Nida's dark hair fell on to his face, and Adalia brushed it away with shaking
fingers.
"You need a suit to get into the room where the fuel pod's located. The hole may have
went all the way through the pod, making the room an airless environment. I'll help you suit
up." Nida told her, his eyes staying locked on her's the whole time.
"Why are you . . .? And how did you . . .?" Adalia tried to ask, but it seemed that the air
had been sucked out of her lungs just being in his presence.
"I overheard you guys talking in the cockpit. The hull's covering may be ultra thick, but
the walls between the rooms are paper thin." Nida explained, as he entered a combination into a
locked cabinet that was nearby.
"But why . . . why . . . and how?!" Adalia struggled to get out, while tears threatened to
spill over once again that day.
"I snuck aboard the Ragnarok as soon as I realized. Adalia, I don't know what it is about
you, but I . . ." Nida started, but was interrupted by Adalia.
"Save it til we're back on solid ground." She said gently as she began to suit up with the
astronaut's suit Nida had unlocked from the cabinet. "We have more immediate issues at hand."
Nida nodded, and began to help Adalia so it went faster. When they were done, Nida
walked over to the button that would open the door to the fuel pod room and nodded. Adalia
would have to quickly run through the door and have Nida shut it after her so the air in the rest
of the Ragnarok would remain there.
Adalia nodded, and Nida hit the button, holding his breath as he did so. Adalia quickly
ran through the door and Nida shut it behind her, blocking her off from the rest of the ship.
Adalia walked over and examined the hole looming in the fuel pod. It had only been
about five minutes since the pod was hit, but almost all of the fuel had escaped into the outer
recesses of space. Adalia would have to act fast if she wanted to save what remained of the fuel.
Muttering a few ancient incantations under her breath, Adalia's eyes flared a brilliant
yellow and she said "Omega Shell!" The fuel immediately stopped leaking, and rested against
the invisible barrier holding it in.
Adalia waved to Nida as a signal to let her back in. Nida obliged, and soon Adalia was
out of her suit and walking hand in hand with Nida toward the cockpit.
When the elevator reached the cockpit, Rinoa and Squall didn't say anything when they
saw Nida. They didn't even give him a second glance.
"Hey, doesn't Nida deserve a welcome?" Adalia asked, puzzled by their callous attitudes
towards him.
"I saw Nida hiding in the passenger area. I told Squall afterward, but I just pretended
that I didn't see you, Nida. I figured you were going to surprise Adalia, and I wasn't going to
ruin it for you." Rinoa explained.
"How much fuel do we have left?" Squall asked Adalia, cutting to the chase.
Adalia chewed on her bottom lip in thought, then looked at the other members of the
team with sad eyes. "It's going to be a one way trip."
The other team members turned their eyes downcast. A sudden turbulence startled them
from their depressing thoughts as the Ragnarok descended into the moon's atmosphere.
"That was a short ride." Nida remarked.
"When they reattached the boosters, they added more power to them as well. That's how
we got here so fast." Squall explained to him.
"Well, let's go." Rinoa said as she pressed a button to ready the hatch to be opened. It
was there as a safety precaution, to prevent to hatch from opening in mid flight.
"We have a problem, people. We only have three space suits, and there are four of us."
Squall pointed out.
"Why would we need space suits? There's already air and gravity on the moon." Adalia
informed them.
"There's atmosphere on the moon?!" Nida asked, astounded.
"Yes, how do you think all the monsters live there?" Adalia asked him. He just nodded,
for they had reached the hangar.
Squall walked over to the far right corner and pressed a blue button located on the wall.
The hatch began to open, and the four of them peered at the surface of the moon, bracing
themselves against an onslaught of monsters.
But there was nothing. Only a cool breeze met the travellers as they walked down the
opening on to the dusty soil of the moon.
"She's waiting for us." Adalia remarked, as she began to trek off toward the horizon, the
others quickly falling into stride beside her.
They had walked for only about five minutes before they stood in front of a massive
building, shaped like the old castles of yore.
"Wouldn't something like this show up on Lunar Base's computers?" Squall asked, for it
was just sitting there in plain daylight.
"Those computers see only what Hyne wants them to see." Adalia told him. She took a
deep breath, then pushed open the gargantuan doors that served as the entrance to the medieval
fortress.
The four of them stepped inside the castle, the doors swinging shut behind them and
echoing through the vast, adjoining room. Pillars of fire lined both sides of the long room,
leading up to a throne set up at the far end. The granite walls were painted with murals of red
ochre depicting the evolution of the human race.
A wave of warm air washed over them and seemed to head towards the throne, where it
materialized and turned into a female figure.
Squall, Rinoa and Nida stood frozen in place before her awesome presence, but Adalia
bravely stepped forward. "Hyne, I have come before you to ask you to spare this sorceress' life."
Hyne stood up and smiled, revealing to all present her long and flowing violet gown that
showed off her slim figure. "Adalia, is that the only reason why you have come back?"
Adalia shook her head. "No, it isn't. Hyne, there are great perils your people are facing
everyday, like war and . . . and, well, that massacre at Balamb Garden! I also ask that would
stop it, or make it so that never happened in the first place!" Adalia pleaded.
Hyne smiled sadly. Out of love and out of the realization that the day she had despaired
for so long had finally come. "If I did stop it, would you forgive me?"
"Yes, Hyne, I would." Adalia replied, feeling relief wash over her.
"Then come over here." Hyne told her, as she held her arms out as if to embrace Adalia.
Adalia walked over and Hyne did embrace her. "Adalia," Hyne whispered into her ear, "I'm
sorry that I have to do this, but it is the only way. I hope someday you will understand."
Hyne pulled out an previously concealed dagger from within her dress and stabbed it
through Adalia's chest as quickly as she could, to avoid giving Adalia more undue pain.
"Adalia!" Nida screamed, but it was too late. The life force known as Adalia had already
crossed over, and had been lost for all time.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for Adalia, Adalia's Song and the idea for my story.
I'm so afraid to love you, more afraid to lose.
Clinging to a past that doesn't let me chose.
For once there was a darkness, deep and endless night,
You gave me everything you had, oh you gave me light.
And I will remember you, will you remember me?
Don't let your love pass you by, weep not for the memories.
Sarah McLachlan
I Will Remember You
Adalia stood at the foot of Lunar Gate, gazing up at the massive structure that would
prepare the Ragnarok to hurdle her and two other team members into space. That morning,
Adalia had arisen and informed the others about her plan. She would be sent to the moon with
the Ragnarok, accompanied by the two team members. When they reached the moon, they were
to find what Adalia had called "Utopia", the place where Hyne dwelled. It was pretty ironic;
they would have go through a hell of a lot of monsters to get to paradise. Once they reached
Utopia, Adalia would try to convince Hyne that she should stay there and Rinoa should be left
alone.
It was a long shot at best, and Squall spent the entire ride on the Ragnarok there
convincing Laguna that they needed the Lunar Gate to reattach the booster rockets to the side of
the Ragnarok to prepare it for it's space flight. Squall also had to convince him that the crew of
the Ragnarok weren't under a sorceress mind-control spell.
But Adalia stood outside of the compound alone; everyone inside was rushing around to
reattach the boosters that were taken off after the defeat of Ultimecia. The technicians had
assured the party that with all the man power they had at their disposal, it would take no more
than two hours to reattach everything and get it working again.
For nearly two hours, Adalia had been outside all alone to wait. Wait for the man she
loved to return to her. She held on to the hope that he would return, take her in his arms, and
everything would be forgiven.
But nobody had come. The only activity Adalia had observed was a herd of migrating
mesmerize. She would wait here for the full two hours, even though her hope slowly diminished
with every tick of the watch Rinoa had let her borrow.
Adalia turned and looked at the vast emptiness that encompassed Lunar Gate from all
sides. A lizard ventured out of it's hole, not twenty yards from where Adalia stood. As she
watched, a vulture swooped down and grabbed the lizard in it's talons to carry off to it's
nestlings.
Suddenly, Adalia heard the soft crunch of footsteps behind her, yet she did not turn
around, for she knew who it was.
"The Ragnarok is ready; Squall says we can leave within five minutes." Rinoa's soft
voice gently stated.
Adalia closed her eyes, feeling a solitary tear streak down her face. "Okay." she
whispered, not wanting her voice to reveal her emotions.
The sound of Rinoa walking back toward Lunar Gate's entrance allowed Adalia to open
her eyes.
The tear that had been sliding down her cheek fell to the dry and cracked ground,
whereupon it was quickly evaporated into nothingness.
* * * * *
Adalia stood toward the back of the cockpit of the Ragnarok; Squall seated directly in
front of her beside Rinoa. They were the only people on board; Selphie had stayed behind to
watch over Irvine's condition and Quistis wasn't sure she could control her rage against Adalia.
Nida . . . well, nobody knew where Nida had gone. He had been missing since the confrontation
in Adalia's room and his bed looked like it hadn't been slept in.
"Ground control to Ragnarok, Ragnarok come in." a voice crackled over the static on the
radio.
"Ground control, this is Ragnarok. We've made all the necessary adjustments and are
good to go." Squall replied in his best mock space pilot voice. Rinoa giggled nervously at
Squall's attempt to lighten the mood which seemed to permeate into their every action.
"Roger that, Ragnarok. Prepare for hangar opening in three, two, on . . ." The voice on
the radio was quickly silenced by a bomb being dropped on to the main control room area of
Lunar Gate, that was quickly approaching the hangar where the Ragnarok sat. The deceased had
managed to hit the hangar opening button, but the door was creeping open slowly as the
explosions grew nearer and nearer.
"What was that?!?!" Rinoa asked, unable to keep the fear out of her voice.
"I don't know, but let's get the hell out of here!" Squall yelled as he hit a few buttons on
the Ragnarok's control panel then pulled up on the "wheel" that was located in front of him.
"Squall, those doors aren't going to open in time! We're gonna hit!" Rinoa yelled as she
curled into a fetal position in her seat. The Ragnarok shot out of the hangar, the doors scraping
each side just as flames exploded into the hangar.
They levelled off and began to circle the burning wreck of Lunar Gate to determine the
cause of the explosion and were met by a hail of gunfire, seeming to come from all directions at
once, yet no enemy craft was in sight.
Squall turned around the Ragnarok and came face-to-face with two enemy aircraft and
one helicopter. The aircraft ceased fire, and a man that was seated next to the open door of the
helicopter held a megaphone up to his mouth. "Crew of the Ragnarok, release the sorceress into
our custody and the Galbadian army may let you live."
"The Galbadian army?" Rinoa asked, puzzled. "What would they want with Adalia?"
"Who says it's me they want?" Adalia shot back out of anger and fear.
"I think I know what's going on." Squall said calmly, as though he faced situations like
this everyday. "I never sent out the order to the rest of the SeeDs that Adalia is our ally. They're
still operating under the order I previously gave them."
"The people in those craft are SeeDs?!?!" Adalia asked, shocked.
"That means we're safe," Rinoa said with a sigh of relief, "They won't shoot down their
own Commander."
"Don't be too sure." Squall cautioned. "SeeDs are trained to complete their mission at
all costs."
"We've waited long enough for your reply, Ragnarok." The man with the megaphone
said. "Now we have no choice. Open fire men!" Another stream of bullets began to careen
through the air towards the Ragnarok.
"Enough of this!" Squall yelled as he piloted the Ragnarok towards space. The other
aircraft started to follow, but stopped after a particularly large blast rocked the Ragnarok. A
warning light sent red swirls of light throughout the cockpit and was accompanied by an
incessant beeping.
"They hit the fuel pod!" Squall whirled around in his chair to face Adalia, letting Rinoa
take over the controls. "Adalia! You have to go down and fix the fuel pod!"
"What?!" Adalia exclaimed. "I don't know anything about this ship, let alone the fuel
pod!"
"Just use your magic, Adalia." Rinoa answered calmly, an amazing feat since she was
frantically hitting millions of buttons at once. "I'm sure you'll find a way."
Adalia nodded and ran over to the elevator, hitting the down button as she turned around.
When the elevator stopped, Adalia looked around and saw doorways in all directions.
Just totally relying on fate to dictate her actions, she ran through the doorway directly in front of
her, leading her to a walkway.
Adalia continued to run forward, but was stopped by a strong arm that had wrapped
around her waist. She whirled around to come face-to-face with the greenest pair of eyes she
had ever seen. "Nida . . .?"
A lock of Nida's dark hair fell on to his face, and Adalia brushed it away with shaking
fingers.
"You need a suit to get into the room where the fuel pod's located. The hole may have
went all the way through the pod, making the room an airless environment. I'll help you suit
up." Nida told her, his eyes staying locked on her's the whole time.
"Why are you . . .? And how did you . . .?" Adalia tried to ask, but it seemed that the air
had been sucked out of her lungs just being in his presence.
"I overheard you guys talking in the cockpit. The hull's covering may be ultra thick, but
the walls between the rooms are paper thin." Nida explained, as he entered a combination into a
locked cabinet that was nearby.
"But why . . . why . . . and how?!" Adalia struggled to get out, while tears threatened to
spill over once again that day.
"I snuck aboard the Ragnarok as soon as I realized. Adalia, I don't know what it is about
you, but I . . ." Nida started, but was interrupted by Adalia.
"Save it til we're back on solid ground." She said gently as she began to suit up with the
astronaut's suit Nida had unlocked from the cabinet. "We have more immediate issues at hand."
Nida nodded, and began to help Adalia so it went faster. When they were done, Nida
walked over to the button that would open the door to the fuel pod room and nodded. Adalia
would have to quickly run through the door and have Nida shut it after her so the air in the rest
of the Ragnarok would remain there.
Adalia nodded, and Nida hit the button, holding his breath as he did so. Adalia quickly
ran through the door and Nida shut it behind her, blocking her off from the rest of the ship.
Adalia walked over and examined the hole looming in the fuel pod. It had only been
about five minutes since the pod was hit, but almost all of the fuel had escaped into the outer
recesses of space. Adalia would have to act fast if she wanted to save what remained of the fuel.
Muttering a few ancient incantations under her breath, Adalia's eyes flared a brilliant
yellow and she said "Omega Shell!" The fuel immediately stopped leaking, and rested against
the invisible barrier holding it in.
Adalia waved to Nida as a signal to let her back in. Nida obliged, and soon Adalia was
out of her suit and walking hand in hand with Nida toward the cockpit.
When the elevator reached the cockpit, Rinoa and Squall didn't say anything when they
saw Nida. They didn't even give him a second glance.
"Hey, doesn't Nida deserve a welcome?" Adalia asked, puzzled by their callous attitudes
towards him.
"I saw Nida hiding in the passenger area. I told Squall afterward, but I just pretended
that I didn't see you, Nida. I figured you were going to surprise Adalia, and I wasn't going to
ruin it for you." Rinoa explained.
"How much fuel do we have left?" Squall asked Adalia, cutting to the chase.
Adalia chewed on her bottom lip in thought, then looked at the other members of the
team with sad eyes. "It's going to be a one way trip."
The other team members turned their eyes downcast. A sudden turbulence startled them
from their depressing thoughts as the Ragnarok descended into the moon's atmosphere.
"That was a short ride." Nida remarked.
"When they reattached the boosters, they added more power to them as well. That's how
we got here so fast." Squall explained to him.
"Well, let's go." Rinoa said as she pressed a button to ready the hatch to be opened. It
was there as a safety precaution, to prevent to hatch from opening in mid flight.
"We have a problem, people. We only have three space suits, and there are four of us."
Squall pointed out.
"Why would we need space suits? There's already air and gravity on the moon." Adalia
informed them.
"There's atmosphere on the moon?!" Nida asked, astounded.
"Yes, how do you think all the monsters live there?" Adalia asked him. He just nodded,
for they had reached the hangar.
Squall walked over to the far right corner and pressed a blue button located on the wall.
The hatch began to open, and the four of them peered at the surface of the moon, bracing
themselves against an onslaught of monsters.
But there was nothing. Only a cool breeze met the travellers as they walked down the
opening on to the dusty soil of the moon.
"She's waiting for us." Adalia remarked, as she began to trek off toward the horizon, the
others quickly falling into stride beside her.
They had walked for only about five minutes before they stood in front of a massive
building, shaped like the old castles of yore.
"Wouldn't something like this show up on Lunar Base's computers?" Squall asked, for it
was just sitting there in plain daylight.
"Those computers see only what Hyne wants them to see." Adalia told him. She took a
deep breath, then pushed open the gargantuan doors that served as the entrance to the medieval
fortress.
The four of them stepped inside the castle, the doors swinging shut behind them and
echoing through the vast, adjoining room. Pillars of fire lined both sides of the long room,
leading up to a throne set up at the far end. The granite walls were painted with murals of red
ochre depicting the evolution of the human race.
A wave of warm air washed over them and seemed to head towards the throne, where it
materialized and turned into a female figure.
Squall, Rinoa and Nida stood frozen in place before her awesome presence, but Adalia
bravely stepped forward. "Hyne, I have come before you to ask you to spare this sorceress' life."
Hyne stood up and smiled, revealing to all present her long and flowing violet gown that
showed off her slim figure. "Adalia, is that the only reason why you have come back?"
Adalia shook her head. "No, it isn't. Hyne, there are great perils your people are facing
everyday, like war and . . . and, well, that massacre at Balamb Garden! I also ask that would
stop it, or make it so that never happened in the first place!" Adalia pleaded.
Hyne smiled sadly. Out of love and out of the realization that the day she had despaired
for so long had finally come. "If I did stop it, would you forgive me?"
"Yes, Hyne, I would." Adalia replied, feeling relief wash over her.
"Then come over here." Hyne told her, as she held her arms out as if to embrace Adalia.
Adalia walked over and Hyne did embrace her. "Adalia," Hyne whispered into her ear, "I'm
sorry that I have to do this, but it is the only way. I hope someday you will understand."
Hyne pulled out an previously concealed dagger from within her dress and stabbed it
through Adalia's chest as quickly as she could, to avoid giving Adalia more undue pain.
"Adalia!" Nida screamed, but it was too late. The life force known as Adalia had already
crossed over, and had been lost for all time.