Chapter 26
"I want you to hear what I have to say, but under one condition." Said Edea. Yannie's hands were shaking as she said
"What condition?"
"Don't worry nothing life changing. Just, please, don't interrupt me until I have told you everything I have to tell." Yannie nodded. "Very well, I shall begin." She sat back in her chair.
"Since the age of five, I have, or had been a sorceress. What defines a sorceress is the hosting of the sorceress power. When humans defeated the great Hyne in ancient times, he surrendered half his power to them. This was the basis of the Sorceress Power. It is passed from person to person. When I passed my powers to Rinoa, through no will of my own I may add, she received the powers of two sorceresses, the sorceress I received my powers off when I was five, and the sorceress Ultimecia, from the future. But that is another story, and one I am sure you are well versed in.
"Since my passing on of the sorceress power to Rinoa, she has received another portion of power, from the sorceress Adel. When Adel was defeated, Rinoa was the only sorceress in the immediate vicinity, and since Adel was free to die, Rinoa must have received her powers as well. This leads me to believe that Rinoa actually bears the entire half of Hyne's power and all the sorceress power in existence.
"For countless generations the sorceress power has been the bain of mans existence. It gradually turns the host evil, and if you consult the history books, you will see that all of the wars of the last millennia were caused, if not intentionally by sorceresses. Many have thought this world would be a peaceful and warless place had there not been the sorceress power. I myself once consumed by the power am accountable for many deaths due to my reign of terror. And it pains me to know that. However, I was also under partial control of Ultimecia, but that is no excuse for my actions.
"Knowing full well that my future was bleak, my husband Cid and I came up with the idea for SeeD. This was originally an organisation made for defeating sorceresses. I allowed its founding; knowing full well that the children I had so lovingly brought up, would one day have to fight me. However, successful as it was SeeDs only dealt with the symptoms, and not the cause. Once one sorceress was defeated, another one would rise up in her place. Once I was defeated, Rinoa rose up. But her rising was quicker than I anticipated, I shall explain why later.
"While running the orphanage, and laying the foundation for garden, I happened to come by some news that interested me. A source at the Odine Labs in Esthar leaked me some information. Dr. Odine himself was working on a project that would put an end to evil once and for all. A plan to rid the world of the sorceress power. He called his creation the 'Odine Created Artificial Sorceress Power Eliminator' for short, OCASPE. This eliminator had to be organic. No mechanical device could reach the complexity desired.
"The OCASPE had to wield power that would mach that shown by sorceresses. Unfortunately, such power was uncontrollable, and to counteract this, two Odine bangles were specially made. One of which you wear now. The second, I shall come to.
"My initial reaction to this was joy and hope. Hope for my future and the future of the world. I managed to get myself a special invitation to Odine Labs, to see this miracle for myself. I walked in, and there you were, a tiny child, three years old. Immediately, a great hatred rose up inside me, and I was paralysed with anger. At the time, I did not know what this was, but now I realise it was the sorceress power inside me being ignited. You were a spark to petrol for me. The power was threatened. It knew that you alone could end its existence. Then, it took over my being. I hired a group of the best stealth kidnappers I could find, and sent them to bring you to me, along with any other research.
"They did, and along with you, were two steel armlets. I tried to destroy them, but they were indestructible, be it by fire or force. So I hid them. Under the floorboards. Then I began on you. I didn't want to kill you. The sorceress power had a hold on me, but not so much I couldn't make some sort of a stand. So I decided to keep you locked away. Behind you, behind that wooden door is a windowless room. All of this I did behind Cid's back. To this day, he still has no idea of these events. I was ashamed of the lengths I went to, and I am ashamed of my actions. I hope you can understand I would never have done any of it, had it not been for the power. You have my deepest and heartfelt apologies.
I wondered if I could turn you the other way, and have you on my side. I feared you. You could destroy me, and I didn't know how. And then one day, you disappeared, leaving nothing behind but an empty room and a hole in the wall. I sent troops searching for you, but you were no-where. It was then I became possessed by Ultimecia, and was sent on a search for another girl, Ellone, and the rest as they say is history.
"That is why Rinoa tried to kill you. She is a gentle girl usually, but has a larger portion of the sorceress power than I had. This mass of power, combined with the spark of her hatred for you caused her rise as a sorceress to be much quicker. She has been completely engulfed by the power, and I fear although she has gone, that she may come back for you. I understand what she is feeling, and I know that she will let nothing stand in her way to destroy you. I don't mean to frighten you, I'm trying to be realistic. That is why I needed to speak with you right away, as the day of reckoning is close at hand.
"Now, for the armlets. The first one you wear, it is a controlling device. I'm sure you found this out yourself. Without it, you have no control over the raw power concealed. With it, you are as strong as a sorceress, yet, you are pure, and not evil. I'm sure you have never tried, but, if you did, you could turn stone into water, wood into gold, bring statues to life, and everything a sorceress can do and more. You could hold the world at your mercy, and bring all men to their knees, if it was your wish. But you are good. You are the white against the blackness, and will bring about the most important event in human history.
"The second armlet, I know less about. It looks and feels the same as the first one, but it has the number two on it. It is the switch if you will. It will turn on the mechanism for destroying the sorceress power. Up till now, this mechanism has lay dormant inside you; otherwise Rinoa would not have the power. I don't know how it will work, how the ridding the world of evil will take place. I think, that when you wear it, you will come to understand how you are to go about fulfilling your purpose. When you wear it. You will understand."
She leaned back in the chair, her story over. She gave Yannie a few moments to let sink in what she had heard. She looked at the box on the table.
"Open it." Said Edea. She removed the lid, and extracted the armlet. "I want you to know, that I am eternally sorry for my past actions, and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me." Yannie looked at the armlet in her hands. She looked up at Edea, who was close to tears. She gave her one last piece of advice. "The future is in your hands now."
"I want you to hear what I have to say, but under one condition." Said Edea. Yannie's hands were shaking as she said
"What condition?"
"Don't worry nothing life changing. Just, please, don't interrupt me until I have told you everything I have to tell." Yannie nodded. "Very well, I shall begin." She sat back in her chair.
"Since the age of five, I have, or had been a sorceress. What defines a sorceress is the hosting of the sorceress power. When humans defeated the great Hyne in ancient times, he surrendered half his power to them. This was the basis of the Sorceress Power. It is passed from person to person. When I passed my powers to Rinoa, through no will of my own I may add, she received the powers of two sorceresses, the sorceress I received my powers off when I was five, and the sorceress Ultimecia, from the future. But that is another story, and one I am sure you are well versed in.
"Since my passing on of the sorceress power to Rinoa, she has received another portion of power, from the sorceress Adel. When Adel was defeated, Rinoa was the only sorceress in the immediate vicinity, and since Adel was free to die, Rinoa must have received her powers as well. This leads me to believe that Rinoa actually bears the entire half of Hyne's power and all the sorceress power in existence.
"For countless generations the sorceress power has been the bain of mans existence. It gradually turns the host evil, and if you consult the history books, you will see that all of the wars of the last millennia were caused, if not intentionally by sorceresses. Many have thought this world would be a peaceful and warless place had there not been the sorceress power. I myself once consumed by the power am accountable for many deaths due to my reign of terror. And it pains me to know that. However, I was also under partial control of Ultimecia, but that is no excuse for my actions.
"Knowing full well that my future was bleak, my husband Cid and I came up with the idea for SeeD. This was originally an organisation made for defeating sorceresses. I allowed its founding; knowing full well that the children I had so lovingly brought up, would one day have to fight me. However, successful as it was SeeDs only dealt with the symptoms, and not the cause. Once one sorceress was defeated, another one would rise up in her place. Once I was defeated, Rinoa rose up. But her rising was quicker than I anticipated, I shall explain why later.
"While running the orphanage, and laying the foundation for garden, I happened to come by some news that interested me. A source at the Odine Labs in Esthar leaked me some information. Dr. Odine himself was working on a project that would put an end to evil once and for all. A plan to rid the world of the sorceress power. He called his creation the 'Odine Created Artificial Sorceress Power Eliminator' for short, OCASPE. This eliminator had to be organic. No mechanical device could reach the complexity desired.
"The OCASPE had to wield power that would mach that shown by sorceresses. Unfortunately, such power was uncontrollable, and to counteract this, two Odine bangles were specially made. One of which you wear now. The second, I shall come to.
"My initial reaction to this was joy and hope. Hope for my future and the future of the world. I managed to get myself a special invitation to Odine Labs, to see this miracle for myself. I walked in, and there you were, a tiny child, three years old. Immediately, a great hatred rose up inside me, and I was paralysed with anger. At the time, I did not know what this was, but now I realise it was the sorceress power inside me being ignited. You were a spark to petrol for me. The power was threatened. It knew that you alone could end its existence. Then, it took over my being. I hired a group of the best stealth kidnappers I could find, and sent them to bring you to me, along with any other research.
"They did, and along with you, were two steel armlets. I tried to destroy them, but they were indestructible, be it by fire or force. So I hid them. Under the floorboards. Then I began on you. I didn't want to kill you. The sorceress power had a hold on me, but not so much I couldn't make some sort of a stand. So I decided to keep you locked away. Behind you, behind that wooden door is a windowless room. All of this I did behind Cid's back. To this day, he still has no idea of these events. I was ashamed of the lengths I went to, and I am ashamed of my actions. I hope you can understand I would never have done any of it, had it not been for the power. You have my deepest and heartfelt apologies.
I wondered if I could turn you the other way, and have you on my side. I feared you. You could destroy me, and I didn't know how. And then one day, you disappeared, leaving nothing behind but an empty room and a hole in the wall. I sent troops searching for you, but you were no-where. It was then I became possessed by Ultimecia, and was sent on a search for another girl, Ellone, and the rest as they say is history.
"That is why Rinoa tried to kill you. She is a gentle girl usually, but has a larger portion of the sorceress power than I had. This mass of power, combined with the spark of her hatred for you caused her rise as a sorceress to be much quicker. She has been completely engulfed by the power, and I fear although she has gone, that she may come back for you. I understand what she is feeling, and I know that she will let nothing stand in her way to destroy you. I don't mean to frighten you, I'm trying to be realistic. That is why I needed to speak with you right away, as the day of reckoning is close at hand.
"Now, for the armlets. The first one you wear, it is a controlling device. I'm sure you found this out yourself. Without it, you have no control over the raw power concealed. With it, you are as strong as a sorceress, yet, you are pure, and not evil. I'm sure you have never tried, but, if you did, you could turn stone into water, wood into gold, bring statues to life, and everything a sorceress can do and more. You could hold the world at your mercy, and bring all men to their knees, if it was your wish. But you are good. You are the white against the blackness, and will bring about the most important event in human history.
"The second armlet, I know less about. It looks and feels the same as the first one, but it has the number two on it. It is the switch if you will. It will turn on the mechanism for destroying the sorceress power. Up till now, this mechanism has lay dormant inside you; otherwise Rinoa would not have the power. I don't know how it will work, how the ridding the world of evil will take place. I think, that when you wear it, you will come to understand how you are to go about fulfilling your purpose. When you wear it. You will understand."
She leaned back in the chair, her story over. She gave Yannie a few moments to let sink in what she had heard. She looked at the box on the table.
"Open it." Said Edea. She removed the lid, and extracted the armlet. "I want you to know, that I am eternally sorry for my past actions, and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me." Yannie looked at the armlet in her hands. She looked up at Edea, who was close to tears. She gave her one last piece of advice. "The future is in your hands now."