Zell stood up on a hilltop, and took one look through his binoculars at the blockade on the city. One man could not get in there, let alone quietly. He needed a way to get in there without raising alarms, but with a tank and at least ten guards at the entrance alone, that wasn't looking easy.
-Of course, easy is for wimps.-
Zell put the binoculars away, and began waving frantically to the guards, "Help! HELP!"
Sure enough, the guards turned and began to discuss this event. One nodded, and began walking towards him. Zell faked falling down the hill, while he actually just jumped back a few feet to maintain cover.
The soldier came up and over the hill, and took a look at Zell. They were out of view of the others now.
"What's the problem?"
Zell grinned, "Will you please be unconscious?"
Zell threw a jab right into the man's face.
***
Corporal Terrence Owen watched as the soldier returned, and approached him, "What was the problem?"
"Uh… pipe burst, could have been a problem. I patched it up."
"Do they need a repair crew?"
"No! I mean, no, it'll hold."
"Alright then, your shift is up, head back into the town."
The soldier nodded, and walked into Winhill.
Wasn't he taller?
***
Zell entered the city, his mind racing a mile a minute.
-Now, intelligence says that the hostages are probably in the bar. The agents are probably being held as hostages, so I have to go there first.-
He encountered no resistance entering the building; his outfit was enough to keep soldiers at bay. The bar had been set up as a makeshift military office, soldiers littered the area, but none took much notice of them as they proceeded through the building. His smile hidden by the helmet, he marched up to man in the commanding officer's desk, and pulled out the small photo he had been given of the agents.
"I'm looking for these two. The captain told me to transport them."
The officer nervously nodded and pointed towards the staircase. Zell nodded thanks, and walked up the stairs, where the two were completely alone. They both stepped back a bit at the sight of Zell.
He ripped off the mask, "Take it easy, I'm here to rescue you. Zell Dincht, from SeeD. Laguna sent me."
They both breathed a sigh of relief, and the one Zell recognized as Ton Feris stepped up, "Mr. Dincht, I think I can say for both of us that we appreciate the rescue."
"Yeah, yeah. Appreciate it when we get out of here, aight?"
They both nodded, and Zell slipped the mask back on, then stepped behind them, "Now, hands up, act like I'm escorting the hell out of you."
They both smiled lightly, then turned serious again as they descended the stairs. As they came to the foot of the stairwell, an older man stepped up.
"Just one minute, where are you going?"
Zell was taken back, "I'm transporting the prisoners, as per the captains orders, the commander gave me clearance…"
"I'm the commander! That man was just filling in for a moment."
Shit.
"Don't worry about it, let me just see the notice of transport."
Zell nodded, "I left it right…" He flung his fist into the commander's face, "HERE!"
The other soldiers quickly began to respond with gunfire, and Zell shoved the agents out into the street, where he saw half a dozen more soldiers staring blankly at him. He pointed to the bar, "We've got a mutiny! We need backup!"
The soldiers nodded and ran into the bar, Zell took the moment and ran like all hell to the bridge, as the soldiers exited the bar again, suddenly aware of what was going on. Gunfire came blazing over the landscape, and the ground began to vibrate as a tank rolled onto the bridge.
The trio stopped short, and Zell cursed, "Okay, PLAN B!"
"What's plan B?"
"Thinking up Plan C!"
They pivoted and ran for a thin alleyway between homes, just as the tank opened fire. Finding the alley blocked off by more soldiers, they ducked into the nearest door. Zell was confronted with a dark room, and quickly flicked a light switch.
He was in a garage. Car, workbench, heavy objects, everything. He quickly pointed out the workbench, "Help me move this!"
They shoved the bench in front of the door, blocking entrance temporarily. Zell shook his head, "The tank'll fire on this place any second. We need a way out!"
The other agent, whom Zell had been told was Alex Scott, pointed out the car, "What about this?"
"Can ya hotwire it?"
"Yeah!"
"Then do it!"
Alex jumped into the drivers seat, and Zell sat in the passenger side. Ton sat in the back quickly, as Alex finished connecting the wires, and the car came to life.
"Okay, Alex, bust through!"
Alex grinned and hit the gas, sending the car right through the flimsy garage door. The tank fired again, and the building exploded behind them, as the car sped off next to the bridge. With a bit more acceleration, the car flew over the small waterway, and landed safely on the other side.
Zell gasped, "Great, now, the toughest part."
Up ahead was the blockade, and although the soldiers were gone, they had a nice set of tack strips for such an occasion. Adding to the mess was a car now chasing behind them.
"You'll have to get off the road, Alex!"
Alex took a look behind them, at the pursuing car, "NO!"
"What are you doing?"
"Trust me, man! I didn't become a secret agent by fluke, y'know!"
Zell shook his head, and let Alex handle things.
Alex continued quickly down the road. The strip was now 50 yards away. Alex kept up speed.
40 yards.
Alex began to let up on the gas.
30 yards.
Alex threw his hand to the side, by the emergency brake.
20 yards.
Alex flipped it up and cut the wheel right.
10 yards.
The car squealed in a hard turn.
5 yards.
The car violently began to stop.
1 yard.
The car stopped hard parallel to the strip. Alex hit the gas, and the car sped off into the fields. The pursuers, meanwhile, failed in the maneuver, and were halted by the tack strip. Zell stared at the spectacle behind him, allowed himself to breath, then looked at the two agents.
"Nice work."
"Thank you, sir."
Alex looked at Ton, "Don't call me sir! It's Zell. Second off, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"What kind of information do you have that we had to get you and only you out of here?"
"Information regarding Harket himself, very valuable information."
"Can you tell me?"
"Oh yeah."
***
Kiros screamed out orders to the Esthar soldiers in the palace, but they were in vain, Galbadia's forces would overrun them in a short amount of time. He cursed and looked out at the cityscape. You could see all of Esthar from the roof of the Palace.
-Too bad I'll never see it again.-
Kiros gave up on giving orders; it was time to just take action. He reached to the sheathes on his belt, and pulled out the Katal blades. It had been ages since he had used them, but he still knew how.
-I just hope I can.-
With a blood-curdling battle cry, Kiros dashed at a shocked Galbadian soldier and folded his arms around and behind him. As he came up next to his opponent, he swung his arms back, slashing the man in two directions, and immediately killing him. The sound of a gun clicking behind him spurred a quick pivot, and he dug the katal blade into the man's throat.
He stopped for a second, catching his breath, he was way too old to be doing something like this.
-I just don't have a…-
He was interrupted by the sound of a rather large engine, and the sudden blocking-out of the sun. He looked up, and the sky was filled with a familiar red dragon shape.
-Choice.-
The ship lowered, and the hatch opened, where Kiros was very happy to see Irvine Kinneas, beckoning the Esthar soldiers, "Someone call for an evac?"
Kiros grinned and began a full dash towards the ship, following right behind his troops. Irvine whipped out his rifle, and began to fire off potshots at pursuing Galbadian soldiers. As the last of the Esthar soldiers entered the ship, Kiros came within the last ten yards, and started yelling for them to pull out. Irvine nodded and yelled into the ship, and the Ragnarok quickly began to lift up. Kiros pushed off with his feet and leapt.
The Galbadian soldiers lined up and aimed their guns at the ship, the command came, and they opened fire at once.
Kiros was inches away from catching the ship, and safety when the gunshots went off. He felt two bullets dig into his left leg, and screamed in pain, his momentum ending. He began to fall, reaching out his arms desperately for some sort of rescue.
It came. Irvine grabbed Kiros by the wrist, and yanked him up onto the ship, bullets flying around them. Irvine quickly shut the door, and the Ragnarok sped off.
Irvine looked at Kiros' leg, "You alright?"
"Oh yeah, the bullets, they just bounce off of me."
"Funny. You'll be fine. Where are Laguna and Neos?"
"They evacuated earlier. They should be in Balamb about now."
Irvine nodded, "Alright, sit tight, I'll get someone for the leg."
((Next Chapter: The New Plan))
-Of course, easy is for wimps.-
Zell put the binoculars away, and began waving frantically to the guards, "Help! HELP!"
Sure enough, the guards turned and began to discuss this event. One nodded, and began walking towards him. Zell faked falling down the hill, while he actually just jumped back a few feet to maintain cover.
The soldier came up and over the hill, and took a look at Zell. They were out of view of the others now.
"What's the problem?"
Zell grinned, "Will you please be unconscious?"
Zell threw a jab right into the man's face.
***
Corporal Terrence Owen watched as the soldier returned, and approached him, "What was the problem?"
"Uh… pipe burst, could have been a problem. I patched it up."
"Do they need a repair crew?"
"No! I mean, no, it'll hold."
"Alright then, your shift is up, head back into the town."
The soldier nodded, and walked into Winhill.
Wasn't he taller?
***
Zell entered the city, his mind racing a mile a minute.
-Now, intelligence says that the hostages are probably in the bar. The agents are probably being held as hostages, so I have to go there first.-
He encountered no resistance entering the building; his outfit was enough to keep soldiers at bay. The bar had been set up as a makeshift military office, soldiers littered the area, but none took much notice of them as they proceeded through the building. His smile hidden by the helmet, he marched up to man in the commanding officer's desk, and pulled out the small photo he had been given of the agents.
"I'm looking for these two. The captain told me to transport them."
The officer nervously nodded and pointed towards the staircase. Zell nodded thanks, and walked up the stairs, where the two were completely alone. They both stepped back a bit at the sight of Zell.
He ripped off the mask, "Take it easy, I'm here to rescue you. Zell Dincht, from SeeD. Laguna sent me."
They both breathed a sigh of relief, and the one Zell recognized as Ton Feris stepped up, "Mr. Dincht, I think I can say for both of us that we appreciate the rescue."
"Yeah, yeah. Appreciate it when we get out of here, aight?"
They both nodded, and Zell slipped the mask back on, then stepped behind them, "Now, hands up, act like I'm escorting the hell out of you."
They both smiled lightly, then turned serious again as they descended the stairs. As they came to the foot of the stairwell, an older man stepped up.
"Just one minute, where are you going?"
Zell was taken back, "I'm transporting the prisoners, as per the captains orders, the commander gave me clearance…"
"I'm the commander! That man was just filling in for a moment."
Shit.
"Don't worry about it, let me just see the notice of transport."
Zell nodded, "I left it right…" He flung his fist into the commander's face, "HERE!"
The other soldiers quickly began to respond with gunfire, and Zell shoved the agents out into the street, where he saw half a dozen more soldiers staring blankly at him. He pointed to the bar, "We've got a mutiny! We need backup!"
The soldiers nodded and ran into the bar, Zell took the moment and ran like all hell to the bridge, as the soldiers exited the bar again, suddenly aware of what was going on. Gunfire came blazing over the landscape, and the ground began to vibrate as a tank rolled onto the bridge.
The trio stopped short, and Zell cursed, "Okay, PLAN B!"
"What's plan B?"
"Thinking up Plan C!"
They pivoted and ran for a thin alleyway between homes, just as the tank opened fire. Finding the alley blocked off by more soldiers, they ducked into the nearest door. Zell was confronted with a dark room, and quickly flicked a light switch.
He was in a garage. Car, workbench, heavy objects, everything. He quickly pointed out the workbench, "Help me move this!"
They shoved the bench in front of the door, blocking entrance temporarily. Zell shook his head, "The tank'll fire on this place any second. We need a way out!"
The other agent, whom Zell had been told was Alex Scott, pointed out the car, "What about this?"
"Can ya hotwire it?"
"Yeah!"
"Then do it!"
Alex jumped into the drivers seat, and Zell sat in the passenger side. Ton sat in the back quickly, as Alex finished connecting the wires, and the car came to life.
"Okay, Alex, bust through!"
Alex grinned and hit the gas, sending the car right through the flimsy garage door. The tank fired again, and the building exploded behind them, as the car sped off next to the bridge. With a bit more acceleration, the car flew over the small waterway, and landed safely on the other side.
Zell gasped, "Great, now, the toughest part."
Up ahead was the blockade, and although the soldiers were gone, they had a nice set of tack strips for such an occasion. Adding to the mess was a car now chasing behind them.
"You'll have to get off the road, Alex!"
Alex took a look behind them, at the pursuing car, "NO!"
"What are you doing?"
"Trust me, man! I didn't become a secret agent by fluke, y'know!"
Zell shook his head, and let Alex handle things.
Alex continued quickly down the road. The strip was now 50 yards away. Alex kept up speed.
40 yards.
Alex began to let up on the gas.
30 yards.
Alex threw his hand to the side, by the emergency brake.
20 yards.
Alex flipped it up and cut the wheel right.
10 yards.
The car squealed in a hard turn.
5 yards.
The car violently began to stop.
1 yard.
The car stopped hard parallel to the strip. Alex hit the gas, and the car sped off into the fields. The pursuers, meanwhile, failed in the maneuver, and were halted by the tack strip. Zell stared at the spectacle behind him, allowed himself to breath, then looked at the two agents.
"Nice work."
"Thank you, sir."
Alex looked at Ton, "Don't call me sir! It's Zell. Second off, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"What kind of information do you have that we had to get you and only you out of here?"
"Information regarding Harket himself, very valuable information."
"Can you tell me?"
"Oh yeah."
***
Kiros screamed out orders to the Esthar soldiers in the palace, but they were in vain, Galbadia's forces would overrun them in a short amount of time. He cursed and looked out at the cityscape. You could see all of Esthar from the roof of the Palace.
-Too bad I'll never see it again.-
Kiros gave up on giving orders; it was time to just take action. He reached to the sheathes on his belt, and pulled out the Katal blades. It had been ages since he had used them, but he still knew how.
-I just hope I can.-
With a blood-curdling battle cry, Kiros dashed at a shocked Galbadian soldier and folded his arms around and behind him. As he came up next to his opponent, he swung his arms back, slashing the man in two directions, and immediately killing him. The sound of a gun clicking behind him spurred a quick pivot, and he dug the katal blade into the man's throat.
He stopped for a second, catching his breath, he was way too old to be doing something like this.
-I just don't have a…-
He was interrupted by the sound of a rather large engine, and the sudden blocking-out of the sun. He looked up, and the sky was filled with a familiar red dragon shape.
-Choice.-
The ship lowered, and the hatch opened, where Kiros was very happy to see Irvine Kinneas, beckoning the Esthar soldiers, "Someone call for an evac?"
Kiros grinned and began a full dash towards the ship, following right behind his troops. Irvine whipped out his rifle, and began to fire off potshots at pursuing Galbadian soldiers. As the last of the Esthar soldiers entered the ship, Kiros came within the last ten yards, and started yelling for them to pull out. Irvine nodded and yelled into the ship, and the Ragnarok quickly began to lift up. Kiros pushed off with his feet and leapt.
The Galbadian soldiers lined up and aimed their guns at the ship, the command came, and they opened fire at once.
Kiros was inches away from catching the ship, and safety when the gunshots went off. He felt two bullets dig into his left leg, and screamed in pain, his momentum ending. He began to fall, reaching out his arms desperately for some sort of rescue.
It came. Irvine grabbed Kiros by the wrist, and yanked him up onto the ship, bullets flying around them. Irvine quickly shut the door, and the Ragnarok sped off.
Irvine looked at Kiros' leg, "You alright?"
"Oh yeah, the bullets, they just bounce off of me."
"Funny. You'll be fine. Where are Laguna and Neos?"
"They evacuated earlier. They should be in Balamb about now."
Irvine nodded, "Alright, sit tight, I'll get someone for the leg."
((Next Chapter: The New Plan))