Disclaimer: Refer to Chapter 1

Fight

Chapter Ten

The heavens opened and God's wrath fell upon them. Thunder shook the earth and bright flashes of electric light streaked the grey skies, a fresh anger was upon them now. Such and anger, no one could stop. Laguna headed the small party of rescuers as they walked through the already flooded streets. Boots splashed through the murky rainwater as they marched courageously onwards into a part of Dollet which lay for now, unknown. Outrun with Galbadians soldiers, the aims of the Dollet rioters had been dismissed to the Galbadians plot, a plot that involved Squall.

All people, of young and old, held serious faces, even Zell's expression held none of his usual look, but one of complete seriousness. All held their heads high, mouths pulled taut and shut and their eyes focused ahead of them. Nothing passed them without being seen, without being considered. Their sight, hearing, touch and smell were all at their strongest. What lay ahead of them was too important to miss. Nothing would go by un-noticed. Nothing at all.

The wall that they came to was made of thick steel wire, rimmed with barbed wire along the top. "There must be a way in," Quistis said thoughtfully. Laguna shrugged and they approached the wall from a distance. "It isn't very heavily guarded," Quistis noted.

"Come on guys, Squall's relying on us to rescue him. Let's not waste time finding an entrance and make one," Irvine said and let a smile spread thinly across his face. Zell looked at the sniper with a confused look.

"How exactly do we do that?" he asked, "be realistic, that thing is going to be strong, it isn't going to blow up that easily," Zell snorted. Irvine made no reply.

"Zell, remember what Guardian Forces are for?" Irvine growled.

"Oh, so we set a GF on a wire fence?" Zell didn't sound as convinced as Irvine did. "They're not there to blow away bits of rubbish like wire walls which just happen to be in our way!" Zell snapped.

"You two shut it," Quistis ordered, "what would Squall think if he saw you two arguing when he needed you most?" Quistis said, trying her best not to yell at them. "Irvine, use Pandemonium," she ordered. Zell sulked as Irvine summoned the wind GF that was junction to him. "Will you grow up Zell," Quistis said irritably, "this is no time to act like a child." Zell was about to make a snappish reply before until he thought better of it.

Irvine nodded and summoned the powerful GF who used its attack upon the wire wall, ripping it and all what stood in its way to shreds, killing mostly all of the few guards which surrounded that part of the wall. Laguna breathed in hard and with a smile he dashed into the west area of Dollet followed my Zell, Irvine and Quistis, they hid in the shadows were they would not be found.

"We're in!" Laguna grinned at the others who were already panting with the mad dash and the fierce anticipation. They were going to save Squall! Squall, Reene and Javri! "Come on, there's no time to waste, our entrance will be on full alert...we must get to Squall and the other two," Laguna said.

"Laguna, I think we should get to Reene and Javri first..." Irvine said softly, knowing Laguna was keener on re-claiming his son. The ex-Galbadian shot an annoyed look at Irvine.

"I couldn't care..."Laguna stopped realizing what he was about to turn into, a heartless Galbadian leader, who only had himself on their mind."Squall is my son damn it! I'm sorry for the other two, but Squall is my worry, I won't let him die!"

"Irvine's right Laguna, we must get to them first. Squall will be fine, Reene and Javri could be killed, they may even be dead already once that our presence here is out. Squall is here for another reason, he is the most important reason, Seifer remember?" Quistis said firmly. Laguna looked uncomfortable but the look Quistis was giving him had already melted his feelings into jelly.

The four determined people melted away into the shadows, they would not be traced, found or killed. The whole Galbadian army was no match for them! Their hearts were big; their goal was firmly set in their minds. Not one thing could deter them, not even each others own deaths. Squall meant more to them then anything before and none of them would fail him, their brave hero, soon to be married. It was that love that drove them on. How could they let him die, when a beautiful young woman waited for him back home? No, Squall would be standing before the alter on that day when Rinoa was to be married to him, the finest and most handsome SeeD that Garden had ever seen. That day, Rinoa would be smiling when she saw him there, in his SeeD uniform, with all the other SeeDs in theirs or maybe in the finest made tuxedos.


Darkness consumed Squalls thoughts, for there was not a single ray of light coming into the dark and damp room. How long will I be here? Just sitting and dreaming about Rinoa? Seifer, if you want to fight, fights me now! Squall willed Seifer to come through the door with their weapons, ready to fight. I'm ready for you Seifer! Yet, Seifer wasn't coming. Squall waited hours, hours on end, in hope that Seifer would keep to his word and kill him if he could!

Squall closed his eyes and he saw Rinoa holding her hands to her chest and looking so frightened, as she looked for him. Tears were coming down her cheeks as she cried for Squall.

Rinoa...I'm here alive! Squall felt his strength rise, not just physical strength, but mental as well. Rinoa would never fall into the arms of Seifer again! Rinoa, you are mine and I will marry you if it's the last thing I do I'll make sure But you said no you said you didn't know doesn't it matter to you? Don't you love me like I do?

Squall hated those thoughts, which crept into his mind every now and then. Did Rinoa love him? He didn't know anymore. Over two years he had convinced himself that Rinoa did love him as much as he loved her, he had been so positive of this he had asked her to marry him. Then she said she didn't know. Now Squall wasn't sure if she did love him. He wasn't sure on anything anymore.

"Squall," came a sudden voice. Squall's eyes shot open and focused on Seifer, the blonde haired wonder who stood in the dark doorway, his blade and Squalls in his hands. "It's time, don't you think, I do hope you are strong enough to fight," he smiled wickedly. Squall glared at Seifer, he was always ready to fight Seifer. Nothing would stop him and especially not now, not now Rinoa's life was at stake. Seifer cut away the wiry string which bound Squalls wrists to a pipe. "Get up Squall," he laughed, "no time for sitting around," Seifer grinned and he even pulled Squall up by the arm.

The SeeD yanked his arm away from Seifer and stood up straight for the first time in ages, he looked at Seifer, straight in the eyes and such a strange feeling past over him. It was the feeling of a lost friendship, of friends who turn into enemies. They had both felt it, but paid no heed. Tonight they would fight, they were enemies, forever.

Squall followed Seifer into a deserted street. Rain pelted down upon them and the skies became alive with thunder. The air was static and the atmosphere was mad. Seifer's eyes reflected the madness the chilly air which bit down into bare skin. Squall stared at Seifer, his shoulders squared, never before had he been so ready for battle. He had his gunblade, 'The Lionheart' its blue beauty seemed to exaggerate the flashes of thunder and enlarge the shy moon beam until it shied back behind a cloud.

Both young men stood facing each other, resting the tips of their blades upon the floor and holding onto the hilts tight. Squalls un-gloved hand felt strange against the leather hilt, he had never before fought without his prized black gloves, which kept his hands so warm and comfortable. Determination to kill was set in their eyes; failure was not an option to neither, yet out of two, only one could win. For minutes they just stared at each other, mentally talking each other out of fighting and asking themselves why they themselves were fighting. The answer to these questions went unanswered. The battle began on the cue of a blue bolt of lightening shooting out across the sky, crawling through the clouds and igniting the will to fight again.

Seifer moved quickly towards Squall, someone had to make the first move and it seemed Squall wasn't. Swinging his sword in an arc, keeping it close to the ground he missed Squall by and inch. "Good move, Squall, let the fun continue!" Seifer said, the madness in his voice was wild.

No time for magical attacks, not yet, Squall decided quickly. It was a time of pure strength, there was no need to fling magic at each other and both men knew this. No GFs, no nothing like that. Squall stared at Seifer in the eye with a hard calmness in his look. "Losing our touch Seifer? I thought you never missed, or at least, that is what you told me once, when we were younger," Squalls eyes grinned coldly at Seifer. Eyes showed more then a smile. With eyes, you meant it.

Seifer ignored Squall and took aim with his gunblade and swiped Squall across his left arm. Squall winced at the pain and felt warm blood trickle down his arm, the cold rain biting into his flesh as it leaked through his torn sleeves. Let it bleed! Let my blood run free, let it run wild, become the air we breath! Squall thought and running at Seifer, holding the hilt of his sword with both of his hands he met Seifer and their blades clashed together, sending out yet another jet of lightening as they sky above copied their movements in every blow.

How the bolts of lightening tore through the sky that night! Letting them bleed, letting them howl and cry in pain! Let them bleed, let them die! Let them die and fall to the mercy of the lords! Bleed like you've never bled before, let me feel the pain as it swipes my body but let me win! Let me prosper; give me strength, the will to fight! Let me win, let me bleed! Taste my blood and tell me what it is you feel! Death! I will be your death! Feel my blade, feel my thunder! What do you have? Nothing, no friends no family! I have it all, look at me and look at you! Almost friends, maybe brothers! I won't hate, you will never hate you, but I will kill you! I will kill you!

Fight, fight, fight. All these men ever did was fight. One nineteen, one twenty, years they had spent together and for years all they knew was to fight. Now it was their last and only one could come out alive for death, it was the only option. Wasn't it? Whatever it was, they fought and how they fought!

Seifer touched his scar, he smiled and their blades yet again met and yet again thunder struck. Both were tired, so worn out they were near to collapsing, but neither of them stopped. Blood bled from many places. Squall swung his gunblade up, letting the tip shriek along the stony ground, up and across Seifer's chest, from his belly to before his heart, a deep long cut oozed with blood, which bubbled as Seifer looked down upon it, still surprised. He gulped down the pain and forgot the feeling of blood trickling out of his body. He forgot the pain which it caused as he moved. He wouldn't stop fighting, never! Not even if he was on the floor and dying!


Javri and Reene were tied together, back-to-back and gagged. Javri, a strong clever man worked the nasty bit of cloth out of his mouth. Coughing, he spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, trying to rid his mouth of that nasty taste, of gone off cheese. "Reene," he whispered, the pretty young woman tied to his back grunted in reply. "Turn you head around I'm going to try and get that gag out of your mouth," he told her. Reene stretched her neck around and with his teeth, Javri bit and tore at the gag until Reene's mouth was also freed of the foul cloth.

"Thanks," she smiled. "Are you alright?" she asked, it had been a long time since she had last spoken a word to anyone.

"I'm great," he laughed, "sore, let's see god these ropes are tight, I don't think we'll be able to wriggle out of these," he said, trying to loosen the strong bits of rope which were wrapped all around their bodies and tied their hands together in the middle. "Shit, that hurt," he growled as he tried to free a hand, only inflicting a bad friction burn to his wrist.

"Yeah I know Javri," Reene complained. Javri apologized and they sagged against each other. "What do you think about Mischa?" she asked her friend.

"He likes you," Javri replied and he felt jealous. Reene's beauty was Rinoa's rival, in most young men's opinions.

"I know, he makes it so obvious," she laughed and then paused thoughtfully. "I never told him I liked him, the blonde look always appealed to me. I wonder if I will ever be able to tell him," Reene sighed. Javri found her hand and squeezed the tips of her fingers with his.

"They won't leave us here to rot! I won't let us die either, don't worry Reene," Javri soothed as Reene tried to stifle a sob.

"Thanks Javri," she said, letting a few tears rolled down her face. She knew she must be appearing very weak, crying like a baby, but she didn't care anymore. "I love Mischa," she whispered. If only I had told him this before! Oh mom, why did you make me like this? Now I will never be able to tell him I love him! All because you said it was wrong, because you made it seem so wrong to love!

Javri hated to hear her cry, but there was nothing he could do. What was happening to them just could not be stopped, they were being held prisoner and no one had come for them. Had they forgotten? SeeDs wouldn't forget their comrades. Javri hoped they hadn't forgotten them.

"Javri," whispered Reene a little while later. "Can you her that?" she asked nudging him with her shoulder blade.

"Hear what? There's nothing..." he replied with confusion.

"No! its gunfire, there's fighting going on out there Javri!"

Both SeeDs jumped and shuffled to the barely see-through window and tried to stand up together, but they could see nothing. "Javri, that sounds like Zell!" Reene cried joyfully. The young woman's face lit up happily and they began to thump against the wall. "Zell! Irvine! Help!!!!!" Reene shouted, her happiness at the rescuers arrival however was short lived.

Reene's dark brown eyes glittered with her happiness. Their friends were coming; they were going to live...

"Javri, I'm going to tell Mischa everything. That I love him that I always have done. Jav, have you ever loved anyone? Really loved? "She asked, falling into a deep peace, as she imagined Mischa after she had told him her love for him. They would hug. They would kiss. They would be together. They would walk through star-lit nights holding hands. They would marry and have children.

Javri felt tears warm his cheeks, he felt Reene sink into a dazed peacefulness as she thought about her true love. Mischa. "No Reene, I haven't. Not anymore. Once I did, when I was fifteen.... and all they way up until now, but no, not anymore," Javri replied as they found each others hands and held them. Reene...

"Oh, what happened?" Reene asked holding on tighter to his hands. Concern and sorrow filled her voice.

"She loved someone else, so I never bothered," he replied. Reene said nothing and they remained in silence. For ages they waited, it may of only of been minutes, but it seemed hours, did they wait. The door opened slightly, Reene's face lit up, her face broke into a happy smile as she saw light reflect off of a silvery shot gun, a man wearing a long sandy coat and wearing a hat.

"Irvine!" Reene cried with joy, her face lighting p, hop, love and joy filling her heart. Irvine's figure entered and he smiled at them happily, followed by Zell, Laguna and Quistis.

"Hey Reene Javri, we've come to get you outta here," Irvine grinned.

"Stop them!" A shout.

It happened in an instant it happened in a second. Brown eyes bulged wide, her lips parted, her face hadn't even fallen...

A flash of blue came out from behind, running into Irvine as the young flirt lifted his platinum coloured shotgun to fire. Yet as all tragedy happens, it happened like that then. The Galbadian soldier flew into Irvine's arm as he fired, the bullet sped off into the wrong direction as the tall brunette male struggled to keep the enemy soldier off him.

There was nothing anyone could do. A red flash, a shout, a scream and a thud. The bullet miss-fired, stuck Reene, in her head. Her death had been instant, no pain felt.

Irvine smashed the soldiers head against the hard wall, splattering his brains over the wall, as Reenes' were over the floor and on Javri. The young sharp shooter fell to his knees, dropping his gun to the floor; Quistis, Zell and Laguna were too shocked to move. Irvine cried aloud with Javri, falling into a crumpled heaping the floor, allowing Laguna to free Javri from Reene's dead body.

"I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry! Forgive me please? Please forgive me, I didn't mean to I didn't want to kill you...forgive me?!? Please! Reene..forgi..."

Irvine cried, all of his coolness disappearing into oblivion. Gone, all gone. All he could do now was cry. The world around him was black, there was nothing. He had just killed someone, the girl whom Mischa had loved. They had all known it, for Mischa had cried for her. He had called her name out aloud.

Selphie… oh Selphie! Will you ever be able to live with a man whom has killed a fellow SeeD a friend? Will I ever be able to live with myself? Life...is it worth living..? I should die... I should no longer exist. Squall... what will you think.. I have failed you and you will never trust me ever again. Rinoa... beautiful Rinoa, will you hate me too? Quistis...serious Quistis who knows more about being a SeeD then Cid Kramer himself, will you want to know me anymore? Laguna... Zell? No one will want to know me, no one… Selphie my true angel... I have failed you haven't I? I'm a failure as a SeeD... as anyone. I shouldn't exist anymore. This is something. .Oh Hyne! Forgive me everyone… just say you forgive me.., please Hyne! Except me into your gates...forgive me of my sins! I won't flirt with another girl. .I won't let my heart beat anymore. I'm not worth it! Kill me now… Just kill me Hyne please!

Javri ran towards Irvine, who was still crumpled in a heap on the floor, crying, weeping, and sobbing. "You bastard you killed her! I hate you! I hate you! I should kill you! I'll kill you! You bastard! I hate you!!!!" Javri shouted, flying out of Quistis's sympathetic hold and kicked Irvine hard in the head. The crying man flew backwards at the blow, choking blood from his mouth. "I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" he yelled and kicked Irvine several times in the ribs. Laguna finally grabbed the grieving man and dragged him away from Irvine, who huddled in a painful ball on the ground.

"Javri...he didn't mean to kill her.." he whispered as the man flopped over Reene's body, her head, half not there, her brains leaking and seeping blood all over the floor.

Quistis knelt down next to Irvine and comforted him with a reassuring hug and a few words. "Laguna, Zell. You two go on. I'll take Irvine and Javri back," she told them helping Irvine up and keeping between the two crying men. Laguna nodded and stared a while at Irvine.

"Okay. It'll be alright Irvine..." he tried to say something which would make him feel a little better, but there was nothing to say. Nothing at all. Javri picked Reene's body up and hugged her close to his chest. Irvine looked at her, still crying loudly, repeating the word 'sorry' over and over again.

"Don't tell Squall Laguna, not until after his honeymoon. This will destroy him, Mischa and Reene meant a lot to him. A lot," Quistis warned the father of the hero SeeD. Laguna nodded and they left, tears still in their eyes.

Oh Mischa....