Cursed Hyperion (Ch. 2)
"Squall, what are you worried about? As I said before, it's only a gunblade, nothing more." Quistis's voice snapped Squall out of thinking mode and back to the Triple Triad game they had been playing.
He looked down at the cards, wondering which one to play next. Quistis had challenged Squall to a game, hoping to relieve some of the dry tension he had been feeling. This was the fourth game they had played so far. He had one the first one, but Quistis had beaten him the last two games. He placed his hand on his forehead and absentmindedly placed a Behemoth card next to the Shiva card he had laid down earlier. Quistis shook her head and laid down her card. Plus! With that, Quistis won the third game.
"You can't say nothing's on your mind this time, Squall. You can't even concentrate." Quistis picked up her cards and placed them back into her Triple Triad deck.
"I just can't concentrate, that's all." Squall watched his cards for a moment before putting them up as well.
"I know that, now what's the cause?"
"Nothing." Squall and Quistis said in unison.
"I wish you'd stop doing that." Squall stood up and turned to walk away.
"Then tell me! What's wrong?" asked Quistis. Squall didn't answer, keeping his back to her as he walked out of the Garden's cafeteria.
He didn't want to just get up and leave Quistis like that, but he had to work this issue out for himself. After Jeff Miles had the accident with Hyperion, a first year SeeD had also tried to wield the mighty weapon. It wasn't long after the SeeD had received the weapon than he was found laying motionless inside of the training area, his left arm laying in a pool of his own blood. Luckily the injuries weren't too severe and the arm would heal over time.
Squall surprised himself as he unlocked the weapon storage room and removed Hyperion from its case, loading the gunblade's bullets slowly one by one. If that cursed weapon did indeed try to kill anyone that dared to pick it up then it could do its best to try and kill him.
Inside the training area, Squall pulled out Hyperion, holding it with both hands as he would the Lionheart, and prepared to face the creature in front of him, a grat. The grat was the first to lash out, its tentacles flailing wildly. Squall deftly evaded the attack, Hyperion swinging slicing through the air in counterattack. The grat wailed and instantly fell. As for Hyperion, it rested easily in Squall's hands. So far nothing out of the ordinary had happened but perhaps it needed to be tested more?
The ground began shaking violently as another creature appeared, this one large, red, and extremely fierce looking.
Squall tightened his grip on the gunblade and dove into the fight, only taking one hand away from the weapon for the few seconds he needed to cast a Thundaga spell. The T-Rexaur flinched, allowing Squall to follow up his attack with Hyperion. Jumping over the T-Rexaur's tail as it swung around, he had a perfect view of the underbelly. Taking the chance to perform the fatal blow, he twirled Hyperion above his head once before carrying it through, slashing through the soft underside of the beast. The T-Rexaur fell, dead.
For a moment he imagined how Seifer must have felt when he wielded that blade, but the moment was halted, all together too short a moment. Squall fell backwards, grabbing his shoulder as if trying ot hold in the pain. Hyperion fell from his hand, laying on the ground as if it had done nothing.
Squall watched, wide eyed. He could have sworn he had just seen it slash at him, the light of the area glinting off its blade as it thrusted itself from his hand. It had only happened in what seemed like half a second, but still... He forced himself to lift the gunblade from the ground. It looked harmless. What he had just seen had to have been a part of his imagination, the gunblade slipping from his hand in the process. He could remember once before, when he was a cadet, that a practice gunblade had done just the same.
Convinced by his own reasoning, Squall left, a few minutes later Hyperion once again placed securely inside its case. The gunblade, illuminated by a faint glow that remained unseen...
"Squall, what are you worried about? As I said before, it's only a gunblade, nothing more." Quistis's voice snapped Squall out of thinking mode and back to the Triple Triad game they had been playing.
He looked down at the cards, wondering which one to play next. Quistis had challenged Squall to a game, hoping to relieve some of the dry tension he had been feeling. This was the fourth game they had played so far. He had one the first one, but Quistis had beaten him the last two games. He placed his hand on his forehead and absentmindedly placed a Behemoth card next to the Shiva card he had laid down earlier. Quistis shook her head and laid down her card. Plus! With that, Quistis won the third game.
"You can't say nothing's on your mind this time, Squall. You can't even concentrate." Quistis picked up her cards and placed them back into her Triple Triad deck.
"I just can't concentrate, that's all." Squall watched his cards for a moment before putting them up as well.
"I know that, now what's the cause?"
"Nothing." Squall and Quistis said in unison.
"I wish you'd stop doing that." Squall stood up and turned to walk away.
"Then tell me! What's wrong?" asked Quistis. Squall didn't answer, keeping his back to her as he walked out of the Garden's cafeteria.
He didn't want to just get up and leave Quistis like that, but he had to work this issue out for himself. After Jeff Miles had the accident with Hyperion, a first year SeeD had also tried to wield the mighty weapon. It wasn't long after the SeeD had received the weapon than he was found laying motionless inside of the training area, his left arm laying in a pool of his own blood. Luckily the injuries weren't too severe and the arm would heal over time.
Squall surprised himself as he unlocked the weapon storage room and removed Hyperion from its case, loading the gunblade's bullets slowly one by one. If that cursed weapon did indeed try to kill anyone that dared to pick it up then it could do its best to try and kill him.
Inside the training area, Squall pulled out Hyperion, holding it with both hands as he would the Lionheart, and prepared to face the creature in front of him, a grat. The grat was the first to lash out, its tentacles flailing wildly. Squall deftly evaded the attack, Hyperion swinging slicing through the air in counterattack. The grat wailed and instantly fell. As for Hyperion, it rested easily in Squall's hands. So far nothing out of the ordinary had happened but perhaps it needed to be tested more?
The ground began shaking violently as another creature appeared, this one large, red, and extremely fierce looking.
Squall tightened his grip on the gunblade and dove into the fight, only taking one hand away from the weapon for the few seconds he needed to cast a Thundaga spell. The T-Rexaur flinched, allowing Squall to follow up his attack with Hyperion. Jumping over the T-Rexaur's tail as it swung around, he had a perfect view of the underbelly. Taking the chance to perform the fatal blow, he twirled Hyperion above his head once before carrying it through, slashing through the soft underside of the beast. The T-Rexaur fell, dead.
For a moment he imagined how Seifer must have felt when he wielded that blade, but the moment was halted, all together too short a moment. Squall fell backwards, grabbing his shoulder as if trying ot hold in the pain. Hyperion fell from his hand, laying on the ground as if it had done nothing.
Squall watched, wide eyed. He could have sworn he had just seen it slash at him, the light of the area glinting off its blade as it thrusted itself from his hand. It had only happened in what seemed like half a second, but still... He forced himself to lift the gunblade from the ground. It looked harmless. What he had just seen had to have been a part of his imagination, the gunblade slipping from his hand in the process. He could remember once before, when he was a cadet, that a practice gunblade had done just the same.
Convinced by his own reasoning, Squall left, a few minutes later Hyperion once again placed securely inside its case. The gunblade, illuminated by a faint glow that remained unseen...