Glancing around the empty courtroom, he briefly allowed a smile to cross his face. When he closed his eyes, he could see the trial unfolding before him. Balamb Garden, from the Headmaster on down, in one place, focusing their attention on Seifer and his guilt. His misdeeds revisited, his entire character called into question. All the students he'd ever bullied could watch him writhe in agony as the court ripped him apart. The victims of his sadism could finally see justice served. All the administrators he'd ever crossed free to fling accusations at him. The recipients of his insolence would finally see him truly punished.

Other events would come into play, those acts Seifer undertook in service of Ultimecia. The missile launch he orchestrated that destroyed Trabia Garden. The hours he spent torturing Squall in Galbadia's D-District Prison. His famous attack on Balamb Garden, resulting in so many deaths. And under the weight of so much testimony, Seifer could do nothing but crumple.

Without realizing it, he licked his lips in delicious anticipation of the upcoming event. Seifer would stand before the bench, classically proud and defiant. One by one, the shreds of his world would fall away and everyone would see him exposed as a simpering coward.

His proxies failed to kill Seifer. This, too, played a part in his plan. He had selected those three SeeDs, wooed them carefully. Systematically, he allowed them to think they had entered his inner circle, joined the ranks of those privileged SeeDs to know his mind. He proposed ideas to them, ideas that hinted at intrinsic flaws in the structure of Garden. The stagnant state of the administration. The growing bureaucracy that threatened to strangle SeeD. And then, with great care, he led them to the notion that a violent shock could begin to balance out the scales. From there, the notion to assassinate Seifer came naturally. He sent them in, expressly hoping they would perish. That two died, and one managed to escape -- albeit horribly maimed - only furthered his agenda.

This day would see his ultimate triumph. The final movement in his delicately orchestrated symphony. Under his guidance, all the pieces had moved to their starting positions, and the game would play out before him. In order to get to this point, he had exerted his considerable influence at all levels, gently nudging some individuals and overtly threatening others.

Yes, seeing his plans come to fruition after working in secret for so long thrilled him. He could not tell which of his victories would taste sweeter: seeing the power within Garden restored to its rightful executors, or seeing the grisly demise of Seifer Almasy.


The day of the Tribunal dawned with great solemnity. An eerie stillness pervaded Balamb Garden. The silence reminded some of the rigorously policed halls of Galbadia Garden. Others thought of it as a tomb.

Squall and Seifer stood together in the annex, waiting for the Tribunal to start. Seifer, impatient and more than a little anxious, began pacing the length of the room. He glanced over at Squall, who stood immaculate in his dress uniform. He glanced up at Seifer, watching the taller man pace. Seifer came to an abrupt halt and turned to face Squall.

"How can you stay so calm at a time like this?"

Squall shrugged. "It's not my trial."

"You know," Seifer said, "you never were any help at times like this."

"What do you mean, 'like this?'" Squall asked, one eyebrow arching upwards.

"How many times did we wind up outside Cid's office, waiting for him to call us on the carpet?"

"True," Squall replied. "We did cause more than our fair share of trouble."

Seifer went to lean against a wall, careful, as he did so, not to wrinkle his dark brown suit. He fiddled with the gold buttons on his jacket, all emblazoned with the cruciform sword.

"You know," he said, looking over at Squall, "I'll always have this image of you, sitting on the bench outside Cid's office. It didn't matter what we were there for, you always sat there, just staring at the ground. Cid could lecture us for hours, and all you ever did was nod at him when he was through."

"And as I recall," Squall answered, "my punishments were considerably less severe than yours."

"Yeah, well that's because you never did anything. You just fought back. I had transgressions of my own."

"Like the time Quistis wrote 'unacceptable' on your homework and you wrote 'tough' on it, handed it back to her, and left class?"

"Yeah," Seifer said, nodding, "exactly like that." A brief moment of silence passed. "You know," he ventured, his voice low, "I always felt bad about what happened with Quistis. I always felt like I was the reason Cid revoked her instructor's license."

"Why is that?" Squall asked, not entirely sure how he should react.

"Think about it," Seifer countered. "The day of the field exam, I decided to disobey orders and you almost got killed by that spider-robot. Later that evening, Quistis gets her license revoked, theoretically, because she lacks leadership qualities. You and I both know that Quistis is the best SeeD ever to pass through Garden, as well as one of the best instructors. I hardly think it's a coincidence. Do you?"

"I don't know," Squall said. "It never really occurred to me."

"Is she going to be at the Tribunal?"

"No," Squall replied. "When we got back from fighting Ultimecia, Cid sent her on some sort of secret mission. No one knows the details, not even Xu. We haven't heard anything from her since she left."

"So who is going to be there?"

"Everyone else."

Almost on cue, the doors swung wide open. Seifer looked into the cavernous room before him and a shudder ran down his spine, as if he were looking into the gaping jaws of some great creature. A small woman in the doorway, her features devoid of emotion. Like Squall, Xu allowed nothing to interfere with her work.

"Hello, Seifer." The words slid out of her mouth with detached objectivity. "It's time."

Seifer moved away from the wall and straightened his jacket once last time. He nodded at Squall and moved to the door. Squall and Xu followed him, each maintaining a cautious distance. Seifer kept his breathing regular and did his best to moderate the pounding of his heart. Still, he found the Tribunal Room very imposing.

The former Garden Master's room, no longer occupied by the creature known as NORG, had undergone a transformation, as per Cid's orders, and now changed into the room where all Tribunals would take place.

The entire Garden had emptied itself into this tremendous room. One on side sat the junior cadets, the youngest members of Garden, ranging in age from 5 to 12. Behind them sat the cadets themselves, followed by the SeeDs, seated in order of rank. Everyone wore, as mandated by the circumstances of the Tribunal, their dress uniforms. By tradition, the SeeDs left a few seats in their section empty. This custom served to honor those rare individuals, like Quistis, who had attained the highest rank possible but could not attend the Tribunal. The residents of Garden, always eager to find heroes, idolized these warriors. Seifer's eyes roamed over the section, and he quickly noticed Selphie and Zell, seated in the back row. Selphie leaned over to whisper something in Zell's ear, but stopped when she noticed Seifer watching them.

The opposite side of the room provided seating for students - those attending classes at Garden, but for purposes other than receiving a commission as a SeeD. Many of the students simply sought education beyond that mandated by their home countries. For these hardy souls, the strict discipline required to succeed at Balamb Garden resulted in impressive credentials when applying for jobs.

Behind the students sat the enigmatically robed Garden Faculty, those responsible for the more academic end of Garden's curriculum. The Instructors, culled from the ranks of the most skilled and qualified SeeDs, taught the martial classes such as field tactics, weapons, and the usage of Guardian Forces. This left the Faculty members to teach history, philosophy, mathematics, and other, more theoretical courses.

The support staff of Garden sat in the gallery, looking down over the courtroom. Tribunals, epic in scope, involved the presence of as many people as possible: Dr. Kadowaki and the staff of the infirmary the workers in the cafeteria, the janitors, and the mechanics from the various repair bays. This also included those individuals working as adjunct staff members of Garden - fighters under extended contract, like Irvine - or academic tutors like Rinoa. Seifer allowed himself a brief glance at the gallery and noticed Laguna looking down at him, Kiros and Ward flanking him. Laguna did his best to offer Seifer an encouraging smile, but Seifer could read the worry in the older man's eyes. Edea sat off to one side, by herself, concern etched on her marble face.

The grave nature of the proceedings registered on the faces of even the youngest child present. The normally high-spirited junior cadets sat perfectly still, apprehension engraved on their faces. For the littlest ones, the proceedings had no meaning, other than the tall tales their classmates told them: that Seifer stood eight feet tall, could kill with a glance, and swallowed small children whole. The older ones remembered the attack, remembered seeing their friends and playmates dying all around them, and they knew who to hold responsible for those deaths.

As he moved in the room, Seifer could feel the eyes passing over him. Cid sat at the far end of the room, a judge presiding over his courtroom. Squall and Xu moved away from him, heading to their assigned places. Seifer seated himself at the table before the bench, crossing his hands in front of him and trying to stay calm.

"Seifer Almasy." Cid's voice echoed through the cavernous hall.

"Sir."

"Do you understand why you are before this court?"

"I do."

"And do you acknowledge its authority?"

"I do, and I submit myself to its judgment."

"Be seated. Xu, you may proceed."

As Seifer took his seat, Xu stood up and crossed to a lectern at the side of the room. She pressed a button on her handlink and the ceiling-mounted holographic display came to life. A life-sized projection of Seifer appeared before her, rotating slowly so all could see it in detail.

"Presented for the court's review, Seifer Almasy, student number 30127, cadet of the first rank, gunblade specialist, candidate for SeeD," she said, her voice still level. Xu pressed another button, and the next image in the three-dimensional slide show winked into existence. Seifer sighed under his breath and slid down in his chair, knowing that the worst lay ahead of him.

Image: Seifer at seven years old, upon his entrance to Garden. His face looks a little more childish, perhaps, but the smirk serves as a dead giveaway.

"Seifer arrived at Garden at the age of seven, on a recommendation from Edea Kramer. Early psychological profiles indicated several traits that recur throughout his dossier. Highly intelligent, but prone to acting on impulse. Extremely competitive. Some antisocial tendencies, often manifesting as cruelty to others. A deep-seated need to be the center of attention. Potential psychological anomalies include antisocial personality disorder and delusions of grandeur."

Image: Seifer at seven years old, not long after his entrance to Garden. This picture resembles the previous one, only now Seifer has some scrapes and bruises marring his face. The smirk remains.

A second image appears next to it: Zell, six years old and considerably rounder than Zell at eighteen. Zell's eyes have turned red from crying, and one has swollen shut in an angry bruise.

"Twenty-seven minutes after arriving at Balamb Garden, Seifer engaged in a fistfight with another cadet. According to the report, Seifer entered the junior cadet's commons, where another cadet, Zell Dincht, was watching 'The Adventures of Pupurun.' Seifer insisted on watching one of his 'Sorceress' Knight' videotapes and, when Zell refused to cooperate, Seifer attacked him. Seifer made no attempt to dispute Zell's account and, in fact, failed to see how he had done anything wrong."

Seifer turned to look at Zell, who, by this point, had his arms crossed over his chest. Seifer tried to mouth an apology, hoping Zell could read lips, but Zell just scowled at him.


He listened in rapt attention as Xu detailed Seifer's history at Garden. She kept her words cold, mechanical, detached, but he found himself delighting in every syllable, torn between wanting to hear the next accusing word and wanting to savor each separate indictment.

Every time he glanced at Seifer, he felt a slow rage burning inside him, the stirrings of a long-dormant volcano. Glancing around the room, though, buoyed his spirits, by letting him look at the faces of others shared in his contempt for Seifer. The few who didn't hate Seifer at the start of the Tribunal seemed to change their minds without much convincing.

He leaned back a little in his seat, suppressing the urge to stretch. He had no idea how much longer Xu's presentation would last, but the file in front of her seemed rather extensive. And although he desperately craved a cigarette, he had no intention of leaving. Not now, when the pieces had just started to move.


Image: Seifer, ten years old. He looks out at the camera, challenging the photographer. Fujin and Raijin flank him. They stand with Seifer, the three of them defiant, and a slight smile runs across Seifer's face. In his own antagonistic way, he seems almost triumphant.

"At the age of ten, Seifer became the chairman of the Junior Disciplinary Committee. As was his prerogative, he appointed his friends Fujin and Raijin to the committee. The committee received frequent commendations for their zealousness in enforcing the rules. However, they received an equal number of demerits for their inability to follow those same rules."

Image: Seifer at twelve years old. His features have hardened considerably in the five years since his arrival at Garden. He has acquired a lean grace, exempting him from the awkwardness so common at that age.

Second image: Squall at twelve years old. His face has an eerie stillness about it, a gravity unbecoming someone so young. He regards the camera through cold, guarded eyes.

"When called upon to choose his primary weapon, Seifer opted to become a gunblade specialist, the same choice made by Commander Leonhart. This added one more dimension to their already extensive rivalry, which, the court will note, became the common denominator in their respective disciplinary files.

"Shortly after receiving their gunblades, Seifer and Squall received citations for recklessly using their weapons. Specifically, they were found fighting in the central concourse of Balamb Garden. According to the report, filed by Quistis Trepe, and undisputed by both parties, Seifer attempted to taunt Squall into fighting a duel with him. This having failed, Seifer began physically shoving Squall until he retaliated. After this incident, the two were slightly more judicious regarding their weapons, but further scuffles occurred regularly.

"At the age of thirteen, Seifer assumed the role as chairman of the Disciplinary Committee proper. The results were much the same as his service on the JDC: he received an impressive number of demerits, but remained chairman due to his efficacy in that role.

Although he provoked Squall to violence on numerous occasions, others did not escape Seifer's attention."

Image: Balamb Garden's cafeteria, in shambles. Tables overturned. Food on the floor. Two SeeDs lead Seifer out of the cafeteria, his arms restrained.

"This picture was taken after Seifer attacked Nida Nomura for sitting at 'the Disciplinary Committee's table.' Ultimately, it took three SeeDs to separate the two of them.

"Other fights took place inside the Training Center, several classrooms, the parking garage, the hallway outside Headmaster Kramer's office, the library and, perhaps most noteworthy, in the infirmary. He was a patient at the time, recovering from a fight earlier that afternoon. The court is advised that I have only presented a partial list of such incidents."

Image: The detention facility, door wide open. A SeeD stands inside, looking up at the camera, dumbfounded.

"All conventional methods of punishment failed. Almost every time he was placed in the detention facility, he escaped, usually without the camera picking up how he broke free. The majority of the times, he simply returned to his room, or resumed his class schedule. When questioned about this behavior, he indicated that he only bothered escaping to prove that he could do so. He never made a serious effort to flee Garden, the closest exception being the time he rented a room in the Balamb Hotel under the name 'Cid Kramer.' Following an intense search of Balamb Town and the surrounding area, Seifer mailed a Balamb Hotel postcard to Garden, complete with his room number on back."

A few cautious eyes darted up to Cid, unsure of how to react. Cid smiled and laughed a little, shaking his head ruefully. He leaned forward to the microphone in front of him.

"On that note," he said, "let's take an hour's recess. I'm feeling hungry, and I'm sure we could all use a chance to stretch our legs. Does anyone object to this?" Cid glanced around briefly before pressing one of the buttons near his seat. Instantly, the lights switched to full power and the doors opened.

As Seifer stood and buttoned his jacket, Squall walked across the room to him.

"What now, Squall?" he asked. "I mean, I doubt I'd be very welcome in the cafeteria right now."

"No. You wouldn't be," Squall said, his eyes glittering slightly. "I have the feeling Zell would defend those hot dogs to the death. Anyway, we've set a room aside where you can have lunch. It's not much, though."

"Am I to presume that you'll be dining with me? I mean, someone has to keep me from escaping again."

Squall nodded, and pointed towards a door to the side of the courtroom. At Squall's approach, the door slid open.

"Wow," Seifer said, looking into the room. "When you said it wasn't much, you weren't kidding. A table and two folding chairs? That's what I'm worth?"

"Plus gray paint and a light bulb. What did you expect?"

They sat at the table, and ate in silence for a few minutes. After he finished his first sandwich, Seifer looked up at Squall.

"How do you think it's going so far?"

"I couldn't tell you," Squall answered, setting his apple down on the plate before him. "Cid hasn't been very forthcoming with information about this trial. He hasn't even told me the procedure for rendering a verdict."

Seifer took a deep breath and held it in for a while, before expelling it in a deep sigh.

"Hell of a day, I can tell you that," he said.

"I don't think anyone's enjoying this," Squall said.

"Oh, please, Squall. Since when do you sugarcoat the truth? Do you have any idea how many people are hoping I'll be executed? I might as well just hand the gun to Xu and save us all the trouble."

"Xu's just doing her job. She didn't get a choice in this, which she wanted me to tell you. Cid 'asked' her to volunteer, and you know how that works. Just like he 'asked' me to be your warder."

"Well, that's something," Seifer said, more to fill the silence than anything else. "I guess."


Xu approached the podium again, and straightened her notes, ready to resume her lecture. She took one final sip of water from the glass in front of her before beginning.

"Despite his disciplinary problems, Garden opted to retain Seifer due to his outstanding potential as a SeeD. On those rare occasions when he opted to do his homework, he received excellent marks. All of the standard diagnostic tests placed him in the ninety-fifth percentile or higher. This indicates that he is either extremely gifted in those areas that we routinely measure, or that he has an outstanding grasp of our methodology and how to subvert it. Both scenarios presented a compelling case to keep Seifer on hand, and the administration repeatedly decided to do so.

"Seifer took his first field exam the year he turned sixteen. The mission was codenamed 'Beta Syndicate' and was a counter-insurgency operation in Deling City. Faced with a popular uprising and unwilling to use their own troops, a coalition of generals within the Galbadian military hired SeeD to restore order to the increasingly lawless city. The mission profile assigned Seifer to Squad B, charged with capturing the leaders of the resistance. Squad B did so, but when a child was injured in the crossfire, Seifer refused to leave her behind. Ultimately, Squad B's captain shot the girl in order to facilitate the squadron's withdrawal. Once aboard the transport vessel, Seifer engaged him in a fistfight. Needless to say, Seifer failed that exam.

"He also failed the next field exam, codenamed 'Cobalt Lightning.' This mission was a part of the larger campaign known as 'Ghost Blaze,' the extended action financed by the various Timber resistance factions in an effort to expel Galbadian forces. 'Cobalt Lightning' was a special reconnaissance assignment. We assigned each squad of SeeD candidates to one of the resistance groups. The candidates would infiltrate various facilities deemed to be of importance to the Galbadian military, and provide intel to their group, who would carry out the actual assault on that location. The candidates were not, however, to engage in any combat themselves, unless attacked. Seifer, assigned to Squad D, was to work with the 'Forest Owls.' Again, the mission went largely as planned, until Seifer deviated from the profile.

He saw the leader of the 'Owls,' Rinoa Heartily, captured by the Galbadians. When they tried to use her as a hostage, to force the faction to surrender, Seifer ignored orders and attacked the Galbadians. As a result, he exposed the location of his squad members, forcing them to join the attack. No casualties resulted, but Seifer's grievous noncompliance earned him another failed field exam."

Xu took another sip of water from her glass, setting it down gently.

"If the court is satisfied, this marks the conclusion of my introductory summary. We may now begin presenting evidence dealing with the Dollet mission, 'Crimson Shark' and the events subsequent to that mission."

"The court is satisfied, and thanks you for your efforts, Xu." Cid looked down at her and smiled obligingly, as she left the podium and went to her seat. "We are now ready to begin the trial."

Seifer felt a lead weight in his stomach and ran a hand through his hair. That the trial had not yet begun in earnest did nothing to calm him. A SeeD Seifer didn't recognize approached the podium and cleared his throat.

"I am Lieutenant Beckett, and I will be presenting the prosecution's case for the duration of this trial," he said, his voice less pleasant than Xu's "and will demonstrate to the court that Seifer Almasy is guilty, among other things, of treason and war crimes…"

The mild throbbing at Seifer's temples had, by this point, increased to a sharp stabbing. He rubbed his temples and wished his would-be assassins had succeeded in their mission.