Liana opened her eyes and slowly sat up, checking the time on her alarm clock. Six o'clock in the morning. It was unusual for her to be up this early. Standing into her comfy-fitting boots and looking out of the half-open window, she noticed dawn breaking across the beautiful horizon beyond Dollet's harbour.
"(True beauty is something everyone can find wonder in…)" she thought to herself. It was something Alex had said, and the words had been turning over in her head for some reason.
A seagull flew past the window of her quarters, and she smiled as a speck of light slowly grew into the sun beyond the edge of the sea. The excitement of a new day filled her with a positive energy, and the chilly breeze from outside refreshed her.
Walking out of her quarters, wearing a smile even brighter than her white tank top and skirt, she began to head for the Library. She needed to find something to do until the cafeteria was open. The Garden was scheduled to leave Dollet and return to Balamb at noon, and she'd also considered having one more look around Dollet.
As she walked across the clean main hallway she noticed a number of students were up and around. Then she noticed one of them was Alex.
"Heya." She smiled as she came up behind him. "Up early?"
"I hate waking up late." Alex nodded. "And I'm guessing you never sleep."
Liana chuckled. "Not quite, I'm just energetic."
A boy wearing garden military uniform and a little shorter than Alex walked up to them.
"Hi Tim." Liana smiled.
Tim gave her a brief look. "Oh. It's you."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Liana pouted.
"You tried to poison my moogle!" Tim replied.
"I did not!" Liana protested. "Well, maybe I helped it not feel well… but, ahh… don't you know they're out to kill us all?!!"
"My moogle is very nice." Tim shook his head.
"Can we lose the moogle subject?" Alex interrupted gruffly.
"Oh, yeah." Tim agreed, turning to him. "Anyway, my name's Tim, if ya haven't guessed yet. I'm off to pick up those things you guys left after your mission."
"Taking the Ragnarok?" Alex asked.
"Yeah, it's the only thing that can get in and out un-noticed. So to save ourselves wasting a journey, I'm gonna do a bit of sight-seeing around Deling city." Tim explained. "Might be a day or two. I'm taking my girlfriend there."
"Have fun. And don't forget your moogle." Liana said darkly.
"Oh, I won't…" Tim scowled back, before walking off toward the dorms.
Alex and Liana remained quite for a moment.
"So…" Liana said, turning to Alex. "The Cafeteria opens at eight. I was gonna go to the Library for a while, but I think I might take one more little wander around Dollet. You wanna come too?" She smiled.
"Um…" Alex looked at the floor. "That'd be really nice but I need to do some training this morning."
"Okay." Liana smiled and began to walk toward the front gate. "See ya later then."
"Right." Alex finally smiled back.
Liana walked down the ramp from the huge Garden to the docks of Dollet, then up the pier to the edge of the town. It was fairly early, so only a few people were about. She decided to head for the center of town to look at the shops.
She'd once heard that shops in Dollet are open at all times of day, and was surprised to find this true. Even the marketplace was beginning to fill with early shoppers, and one stall had started a competition. People were gathering around it as the sun rose higher. Liana made her way toward the stall, looking at her watch to see it was already past seven. When she looked at the sign for the stall, her face lit up in a huge smile. It was a shooting competition!
The attendant at the stall cleared his throat loudly before explaining the rules. "To win, the competitor must hit the target twenty times with the highest possible accuracy."
A young man stood at the edge of the range, a cocky smile on his face. He turned to the crowd and held up his pistols.
"Okay, now watch a pro." He grinned. He whirled around to face the targets with drawn pistols and let off a volley of shots that cut holes out of the target. A computer sensor added up the hits, and the assistant smiled.
"Mr Almiroth scores eighty two point one per cent accuracy. Quite incredible!" He nodded. "Anyone wish to challenge?"
Liana pushed through the crowd and slapped a hundred gil on the assistant's table. "I will." She smiled.
"Okay, lady." The man nodded again. "Go ahead."
Liana drew her own two pistols and walked up to the target range, looking across to the target calmly. She stopped and stood sideways on, pistols at the ready.
"Don't forget to take the safety off, little girl." A shout came.
Liana made a determined expression somewhere between a scowl and a smile.
"Okay, you've got a maximum time limit of twenty five seconds, beginning the moment you hit the target." The assistant informed her. Liana nodded, then breathed out slowly.
Suddenly she held up her left pistol and let off a shot, then whirled her right arm behind her back and let off another, then span around and fired another, hooked her right hand behind her head and fired another from there and continued as the crowd watched in amazement. Liana let off shot after shot from an imaginative variety of stances, each one seeming to hit the target right in the middle.
As the smoke from the guns cleared, she smiled in satisfaction at the burrowed hole in the center of the target.
"That's incredible…" The assistant stared at the computer. "Ninety six point three per cent accurate. You really are something, girl!" He began to clap, as did the observing people around them. Liana relaxed and put her pistols in the holsters, looking at the target. "Well it deserved it for being such a meanie little target." She grinned.
* * *
Carlie walked into the Garden's front gate, and looked around. It was only about eight o'clock in the morning, but already the Garden was busy. Where would Liana and Alex be? She walked up to a tall man standing at the central fountain. He was wearing a long beige-coloured leather overcoat and a fedora hat, and looked fairly bored.
"Hi, do you know Liana or Alex? I'm looking for them." She said.
The man smiled at her. "Hey, I don't remember them. But that doesn't mean we can't be friends, eh?" He winked.
Suddenly there was a shout from across the hall and a short young woman in a bright yellow pinafore ran up to him.
"Irvine! Can't leave you on your own, can I?" She giggled, and grabbed his arm. "Common', I wanna go to Dollet." She added with a smile.
"Alright, Sefie. Gotta go babe. See you another time..." He shrugged with a smile as the young woman led him off.
Carlie waved back with her fingertips. "Yeah, bye…" She said with a freaked expression. "(Man, this place is nuts.)" she thought, brushing her hair behind her ear and looking around. She suddenly caught sight of something going on in the training area.
Alex ran up and smacked the caterchipillar with his gunblade and rolled away to avoid the counterattack of its accomplice, an imp. He stood and held his right hand back over his left shoulder, glittering light appearing as a bolt of lightning lanced the imp from nowhere. The caterchipillar was not a problem, but he'd never seen an imp in the training center. Now he could be in trouble, and it would be his fault. 'Never enter the training center alone', Instructor Trepe always said. But he preferred training alone. There won't always be somebody there to help you, after all.
The caterchipillar struck out at him and knocked him over. He rolled as the imp cast fire, causing the ground to erupt in flames where Alex had lay a moment before. He rolled backward onto his feet and stood again, charging at the imp. The metallic clank and thundering shot as he struck the monster was satisfying, and the imp was flung backward by the ferocity. Seeing it's chance, the Caterchipillar moved toward Alex, ready to strike.
Carlie appeared, running forward to begin casting her magic. Suddenly the two humans felt themselves fade away… Carlie was using a GF!
Experiencing a GF is something most people have to train for, as it can be disorientating. There is an odd feeling of being out of your body like a spirit, and as you watch from non-existence you can see the GF wreaking havoc on the enemy. A creature resembling a tall pale woman but of gigantic size descended from above. She was beautiful and calm, she looked a little like Shiva. In a wave of her arm, a swirling pit appeared below the two monsters. As Alex and Carlie watched, the caterchipillar and imp were dragged into the vortex. Then as quickly as they appeared, the woman and the swirling pit left.
Alex found himself back in his body, and turned to see Carlie lying dazed on the floor.
Alex looked at her. "You alright? You never told me you had a GF…"
"Um… I…" Carlie sat up. "It is mine." She said finally.
Alex sighed. "Jeez… civilians with GFs. What next?"
"I'm not a civilian, I'm a Dollet agent." She insisted.
"Dollet's agents don't go through any real combat training. You might as well be." He shook his head. "Where did you get the GF?"
Carlie paused, and looked to the floor. "I found a dying SeeD when I was younger, during the Dollet invasion. She said she had a creature that would protect me. It was her that gave me the GF, she called it Eidolon."
"Eidolon? I've never heard of it." Alex stated, before Carlie continued.
"She insisted I take it, so I've kept it ever since. I've never needed to use it until now." She mused.
"You didn't have to use it. I was fine." Alex stated coldly.
"Yeah, right. You were in loads of trouble!" Carlie corrected him.
Alex stood. "Don't get me wrong. I thank you for your help. But just for future reference, I don't need anyone's help."
"Everybody needs someone." Carlie stated, standing too.
"Guess that's more proof I'm not included under the term 'everybody', then." Alex said simply.
"Fine, I won't help you next time then."
There was a long pause. Alex let out a sigh. "Look, I'm just being honest. I'm sorry. I do appreciate you were trying to help me out. I'm just saying I was fine."
Carlie shrugged. She wasn't going to let this stupid conversation erupt again. "Never mind, don't worry about it." She smiled.
"So, what you brings you to the Garden?" Alex turned away, gazing dully at whatever met his glance.
"Looking for you and Liana, actually." Carlie gazed around too, so they stood facing away from each other.
"Liana's gone into Dollet, ironically enough…" Alex turned again to face her.
She looked back. "There's been a change of plans. I'm coming on the Garden with you two now." She said.
Alex frowned slightly. "Really?"
"Yep. I had this really odd dream. It's called an 'Ellone Dream', I've read about them. I told the guys at Garden about it, and they asked if I could come along wherever they're going. I said yes, seeing as I'm not sure what I'm gonna do with myself now the DIA don't need me." Carlie told him.
"Well, welcome to the Garden in any case…" Alex said blandly.
"What's wrong? Don't act too nice, Al, you might make me feel welcome." She added sarcastically.
Alex sighed. "Sorry, it's nothing really. It's great to hear you're coming too, I'm just concerned. I hope you thought about this."
"Of course. Stop worrying; and smile." She beamed. Alex brightened a little.
"Right…" He nodded. "Hey, the cafeteria's open now. Wanna get something to eat?"
* * *
Juri awoke suddenly as Kodansha flicked her ear hard.
"Ooow!! What did you do that for?" Juri rubbed it.
Kodansha smiled. "Come on, fuckwit. Get up."
"Who are you calling a-" Juri was interrupted by the loud thundering of what sounded like a couple of fighter jets flying overhead. The two turned to see where the sound was coming from, in time to see two strange jets zip across the sky above them. The roar died down as the odd vehicles departed, and all was quiet again.
"Did… you see that?" Juri asked slowly.
"Of course I did. Haven't a clue what they are though." Kodansha replied.
"They looked a bit like Esthar flying craft." Juri said thoughtfully.
"I've never been to Esthar, so I wouldn't know." Kodansha told her simply. By now the pair of jets had become dots disappearing over the horizon.
"I've been to lots of places. That's why you ought to listen to me once in a while." Juri turned her head to her.
Kodansha didn't reply, she simply stood and began to walk again. Juri sighed and watched her go, she was tired of running after her. The SeeD stopped after walking ten meters or so, but didn't turn around.
"Are you coming or not?" she said.
Juri stood up and let out another sigh, trying to take the unbearable heat as well as she could. She was quite used to deserts, so she had not idea how Kodansha was putting up with it. She walked over beside the SeeD ninja and they began walking again. "Did it occur to you that those strange Esthar-like jets might have something to do with Annie Tilgari?" Juri asked without really expecting an answer.
"No." Kodansha shrugged.
"Well, they look similar to her flyer. I think we should go in the direction of the jets." The Shadow Hunter continued.
"Fine by me."
"Right…" Juri was surprised to hear the ninja agree for once. "Then let's follow them up the coastline…" She looked to where the jets had headed. "Maybe they're headed for Timber…?"
* * *
Just before the Garden was due to depart, Instructor Trepe had made the announcement that she was leaving. Nida had also informed them that they had a new course, too. Balamb Garden was to head for Centra, due to a request from Galbadia Garden to track down a magic bandit named Annie. Why this young girl demanded the attention of the entire Garden in such short notice was still unclear.
On the balcony high up at the classroom level, Liana and Carlie stood talking and admiring the view as the Garden set out on it's journey down the coast. Carlie held a cup of coffee in her hands, taking comfort in the warmth of it. The weather had gotten cooler since the sky had clouded a few hours ago, and the height of the balcony made it colder.
"So, what do you think of my new duster?" Liana twisted her torso to show the back of the long, soft garment. It was black, fitted snugly around her neck and mostly covered the back of her contrasting white tank top.
"Aww, it's great. Did you get that from 'Minwalls' in Dollet?" Carlie asked her smiling in admiration.
Liana nodded. "I haven't seen them anywhere else." She grinned and bounced from one foot to the other.
"But aren't they about a thousand gil?" Carlie was amazed, but still smiling.
"Yeah! I won a little competition in Dollet marketplace." Liana bounced more.
"Wow…" Carlie smiled as Alex walked out onto the balcony too.
Alex was still wearing a ruffled long leather coat with a high collar and large cuffs, with black jeans and boots. Just like always. Carlie felt somewhat underdressed alongside these two.
"Hi." He gestured simply. "Hey, Liana, that looks nice." He pointed out Liana's new duster.
"Thanks." She beamed.
"Well, I'm going inside now." Carlie smiled. "This coffee isn't enough to keep warm up here anyway." She stepped past the other two. They watched her walk down the hallway toward the classrooms.
There was a pause as Liana looked out across the sea passing beneath the Garden. "Y'know, I forgot to thank you for catching hold of me when I jumped for that train, back in Deling." She said eventually.
"Don't worry about it." Alex smiled a little, looking away in embarrassment.
She looked over at him, and decided to change the subject. "I can tell you don't like the idea of Carlie coming along." She sounded as if they'd been avoiding having this conversation.
"No, I'm worried, that's all."
"Hey, nobody's safe." Liana stated.
Alex turned to her. "That doesn't mean we should endanger someone else, though. I admit I'm a risk-taking person. But I only take risks for me. With other people, it's different."
"It's just not like you to worry about everyone." Liana shrugged, smiling a bit as she added: "Do you like her?"
"Not in the way you're thinking." Alex smiled a little. "We're too different. Although I just can't help the fact she looks so much like someone I did love."
"You can't let that affect you." Liana stated. "Just 'cause she looks like your ex girlfriend doesn't mean she-"
"She wasn't my girlfriend." Alex interrupted mournfully. "She died in the Trabia missile bombing before I told her my feelings."
Liana bit her lip. "I… I'm sorry Alex. I didn't know."
"That's okay." Alex sighed. "I've never told anyone about Jenny."
"Alright... You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."
Alex paused a moment. "I want to." He looked away, across the coast of Galbadia below.
"What was she like, then?" Liana asked him sensitively. Her usual hyperactive nature seemed to be dormant.
Alex rested his folded arms on the balcony. "She was… my perfect girl in every way. I can only begin to describe her… she was kind, beautiful, comforting and bright natured. She loved to talk about anything. One night we lay head to head in a field looking at the stars and just talked about loads of things. Even though she wasn't my girlfriend, she would do that anyway. She just loved everyone around her.
Sometimes she was a bit of a joker, and her moods would swing a lot too. But despite that she was strong and spirited inside with a cute sense of humour. But the main thing was, she actually noticed me. One of the few people that ever did."
"I notice you." Liana pointed out.
"I know." Alex smiled briefly, though Liana noticed a tear on his cheek. "But… then the Galbadians took her life. And… him. That son-of-a-bitch that trapped her in the collapsing classroom to save his own skin. That bastard Gary Almiroth!" Alex gritted his teeth as the tears began to soak his face.
"Almiroth…" Liana shook her head. She'd heard that name somewhere.
Alex dried his eyes with his hand in one irritated movement. "A student from Galbadia garden who was in Trabia. Gunblade expert, though I never got on with him. When I found out what he'd done… no, I *more* than hated him. Words cannot describe the pain he's caused me."
"What happened after Trabia was bombed?" Liana asked carefully.
"Gary went rogue, and I was transferred to Balamb along with a few other students from Trabia Garden." Alex explained. "I hear Trabia's been restored now, but…" He shook his head.
"It would be too painful to go back." Liana finished with a nod.
Alex nodded too, and forced himself to lighten up slightly. "Thankyou Liana. Thankyou for just being the person I can talk to. It's one thing I always missed about Trabia… and Jennifer." He almost smiled.
She put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. Be strong. But don't forget it's okay to be sad if it hurts…" She turned and walked inside the doorway.
Alex watched her go, then turned around to look out across the coast again. He took a deep breath, taking in the fresh sea breeze. All he needed now was a little while on his own…
* * *
The evening had filled the sky with a kaleidoscope of deep violets and red clouds, and the shape of the Garden drifting across it was dotted with bright lights like a glorious ocean liner enhancing a sunset. Aboard the floating academy, a party was beginning; organised by the leader of the Garden festival. She bounced back and forth between the students saying hello. Carlie recognised her from the fountain with the tall man earlier that day, she still wore her yellow pinafore, though she was wearing the tall man's fedora.
"Loads of stuff has gone on today." Carlie smiled, tapping her glass on Liana's in a toast. They both stood beside the bar casually.
"Yeah… I can't believe Instructor Trepe left the Garden." Liana said staring nostalgically. "I wonder who'll teach us Fire Creature Anatomy now. Hey, I wonder what the Treppies are gonna do?" She giggled.
"So where's Alex then?" Carlie asked. "Haven't seen much of him today."
"Um, I only got introduced to him just before the Deling mission. I don't think he comes to parties much, or I would've seen him before. Trust me." She added.
"It's only because I never had anyone to go with." Alex's voice came from behind them. They slowly turned to see he was standing behind them with a humble smile on his face.
"Hey, I really didn't expect you to come." Liana grinned a little.
"I thought I might as well." Alex shrugged.
The voice of a tall man came from behind them. "Is this guy bothering you two?" Liana and Carlie turned to see a man in his early twenties, wearing a long coat like Alex's only it was white, with short blonde hair.
"No, you are." Carlie retorted. "Get bent."
Liana smiled. She could tell Carlie was good at this sort of thing.
The tall man shrugged. "Guess he'd be no problem for you if he needs girls to stick up for him." He taunted.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Liana nearly yelled at him.
Alex stepped in front of her, and looked up slightly at the tall man. "I'd put my money on these two girls in a fight more likely than a chickenwuss like you." He scowled harder.
"Hey, that's my insult, you little twat." The man swung a fist into Alex's face. Alex stumbled a little, bracing himself by putting his foot back. He noticed the taste of blood in his mouth.
"Don't fight him Alex, ignore him." Liana told him.
"I'm not gonna run away." Alex muttered, turning back to his opponent like a persistent machine.
"Still picking on the kids, Seifer?" A monotone voice from behind the tall man came, and he turned in response. Behind him stood another man, he looked a little like Alex but a few years older and he wore a short black leather jacket with a fur collar.
Seifer smiled back disturbingly. "And you're still saving the weak, Squall."
Liana nodded to Alex and Carlie, who returned the gesture as the three students crept away from what seemed to be an impending fight. They hurried out into the lower open deck at the stern of the Garden, and stopped when they'd left the scene behind. As they paused to catch a breath Alex realised he suddenly had the feeling of being a kid again. Childhood, though it always seemed as though he hadn't lived it, ran through him for a brief second. The thrill of the escape from trouble to a quiet place, like playful children. A situation Alex knew so well, though he'd never experienced it.
"Mmmmn, I didn't know Squall Leonhart was so cute." Carlie sighed, a coy smile on her face. She'd barely finished her sentence, as a thundering sound like jet aircraft came from the distance. It grew louder as the source neared them, though the darkness made it impossible to see what was coming.
"Uh, guys, what is that loud noise…? It sounds like fighter jets!" Liana raised her voice and began to sound more worried as the noise intensified. Alex, who was normally unmoved by odd occurrence, seemed to be immobilised by the deafening thunder of the jets.
Suddenly, two black shadows could be seen against the stars of the sky, passing over the Garden with incredible speed. The silhouettes of what could only be described as aircraft turned gradually in a wide arc back toward the Garden. By now many of the students were looking out of windows or standing outside to see what the noise was about. As the UFOs came back toward the Garden, they lit up with a flash as bright projectiles hurled toward the flying academy.
"Look out!" came several yells. The students standing on the outer stern deck ran for the door to the inside as the red star-like pulses smashed into the decks' smooth flooring. In a shower of marble the stern deck erupted fantastically, the last few students diving forward from the impact. The two hostile objects flew over the Garden and began to come around for another attack.
Alex, Liana and Carlie stumbled back inside and ran for the elevator to the classroom level. Liana slammed the button and they leapt in hurriedly.
"What the hell did we do now?" Liana shook her head as the elevator began to move upward.
Alex shrugged. "I'm more concerned how we're gonna destroy them. If they don't board, how do we fight them?"
"You mean there aren't any guns on this thing?" Carlie seemed alarmed.
"Not that I know of…" Liana bit her lip. The elevator came to a stop at the classroom level and they ran down the hallway to the balcony at the end. Liana drew her pistols from her belt.
"You reckon you can hit them?" Alex asked respectfully.
"Hitting them ain't the problem, I gotta see them." Liana slipped a clip into each pistol and stepped outside. Alex and Carlie stepped out on either side of her, looking around.
Headmaster Cid and Nida weren't exactly old war buddies, but Nida's current shouting was unusual between them.
"Are you saying we have no weapons to fire at them? Hasn't this kind of thing happened before?" He folded his arms angrily.
Cid replied slowly and quieter. "The Garden isn't a warship." He reminded.
"Does the phrase 'self-defence' mean anything to the Shumi, or you for that matter?"
"Commander Nida, that is no way to address me and you know it." Cid said, much sterner this time.
Nida gave a short sigh. "You're right sir… I'm just frustrated because we're helpless." He confessed.
"Gather the Garden's best gun students to the stern." Cid ordered. "We'll give them something to reckon with…"
"Look, here they come!" Carlie pointed. Liana looked up to where her friend had indicated and scoured the stars for the black silhouettes. She suddenly noticed a patch of darkness dive toward them and took aim. She held up her arms straight and fired several shots from both pistols, muzzle flashes lighting up the balcony for split seconds. The shadowy fighter seemed damaged, and broke off its attack temporarily.
Suddenly a cheer sounded from the stern of the Garden, as a flaming aircraft darted down into the sea in a mighty plume of water. The gunners at the back had succeeded in destroying one of them. Then the other returned, this time from Alex's side of the balcony, to the front-right of the Garden. Liana whirled around and fired every shot left in both clips, and the damaged craft corkscrewed in flames toward the balcony.
"Oh, crap, RUN!" Alex said, almost pushing Liana and Carlie through the doorway. The aircraft smashed into the balcony, taking a chunk from it and then fell to the sea thirty or so meters below. Liana breathed a sigh of relief, turning to look at the damage, noticing somebody was missing. She looked at Carlie, who was standing next to her.
"Alex?" Carlie said slowly.
"Yeah…?" Came a strained voice. They stepped out onto the damaged balcony, catching a glance of Alex hanging onto a piece of the flooring.
"Oh, heck. Don't look down." Liana suggested.
"Sure…" Alex grunted.
"Hey, we neeed help over here!" Carlie called out.
A number of students had heard the impact and were arriving at the balcony, among them a tall and beautiful woman with long black hair and a short white dress. Upon seeing the situation, she turned to her friend who had just run up too. He was a little shorter, but about the same age, and wore long baggy shorts and black fingerless gloves.
"You know what to do Zell." She said.
"Sure Rinoa, tell him to hang on." Zell replied as he disappeared.
"Hang on Al." Liana encouraged.
"Right…" Alex would've shrugged, had it not been so dicey to do so. He found himself suddenly questioning his actions. Why was he hanging? If there was an afterlife, he could be with Jennifer again in just moments. If he just let go…
"(No, you're not like that. I can't abandon my duties here. Letting go would mean letting Almiroth win.)" Alex told himself. And he was *not* going to let that happen.
He noticed movement of something coming towards him from the stern, hovering along the side of the Garden. It was Zell, riding some kind of flying skateboard. Zell manoeuvred the board under Alex's feet, so that he was lifted up onto the balcony. They stepped off and Alex stumbled forward through the balcony doorway. With the rescue over, and Alex having thanked Zell, the three young students began to walk back to the dorms.
"Man, that damage is pretty bad. I can't believe the Garden has no defences against that." Alex muttered.
"They'll repair it." Liana nodded with an optimistic smile.
Carlie stopped at a door, and the other two turned to face her.
"This is my room, so I'll be going now. Goodnight guys." She said sweetly.
"Night Carlie!" Liana headed off in a skip down the hall.
"Pleasant dreams Carlie." Alex replied as he began to walk to his own quarters…
* * *
Carlie opened her eyes. The landscape was a dull grey/brown, dead and scorched. Bones covered the ground, everywhere. They crunched beneath her feet, snapping like brittle dry twigs. Some of them looked like they must be human, others were unrecognisable. Her mouth gaped open at the morbid spectacle, the seemingly endless graveyard stretching out for miles around her.
A sudden movement disturbed the un-natural still, as a blur of metal bounded toward her from the horizon. She could hear its heavy metal footsteps smashing the bones beneath its feet. It was definitely running for her. Carlie turned and ran, overcoming fear with determination. This didn't make sense, where was she? She didn't even feel like herself, she was shorter and younger. It felt all too real to be a dream.
Carlie took a glance over her shoulder to see the nearing mechanical monster leap forward at her. Just as it was about to come down on her, she dived sideways and it landed with the sound of shattering bones. Carlie stumbled across the landscape, desperately trying to get back on her feet. Suddenly a mechanical arm came out and grabbed her waist, pulling her into metallic jaws. She cried out as she felt the pain of being devoured by it. This was real. She really was about to die.
"Are you alright?" Liana's voice came.
Carlie flung open her eyes to find herself lying on her back in her bed. Liana stood at the doorway with a look of concern. Carlie caught her breath and gave a short sigh of relief. It was another one of those 'Ellone Dreams'. She knew it was, because they were different from normal dreams. More real, and she felt as if she wasn't herself somehow.
"I-I'm… alright." Carlie stuttered. "Just a very bad dream. I'll get over it."
"I heard you crying out from down the corridor." Liana told her. "I've been awake for a while, so I came over."
Carlie nodded. "Thanks, you woke me up just in time." She forced a smile, though she still felt anxious and tense.
Liana turned back to the doorway. "Sleep well Carlie…"
* * *
The Shadow Hunter had been right, somehow. By Juri's gut opinion, they had woken the following day to see Balamb Garden drifting over Timber, and were able to bring it to a stop and board. Kodansha walked alongside her companion up the gantry to the stern of the Garden.
"You should think about getting this place done up, it looks a mess." Kodansha said bluntly. The two SeeDs' standing on the stern deck where the gantry exited onto the Garden exchanged a glance.
"It was damaged last night, in an attack by two jets which we couldn't identify." Alex explained.
"Ah, yes. I believe we also saw those jets." Juri nodded. "They damaged the Garden?"
"It is a little busted, yeah…" Liana nodded. Alex noted she had a talent for understatements.
Juri suddenly realised they hadn't introduced themselves. "Oh, forgive our manners." She shot Kodansha a dark look. "I am Juri-shai Kisatine, Shadow Hunter."
"I'm Liana, a SeeD gunfighter." It was clear Liana enjoyed saying hello to new people, as her greetings always seemed sugar-high. "And this is Alex, gunblade specialist."
"Nice to meet you both, indeed." Juri smiled. She gave Kodansha an expectant look.
"Kodansha. SeeD." She grunted, and wondered off.
"Anyway, we'd better let the Garden get going. We've gotta get to Annie Tilgari in Centrotia." Alex told Juri, as Kodansha had left.
"I'm also in pursuit of Annie Tilgari." Juri nodded.
"Then you may continue your search with the aid of the Garden." Nida said from behind Alex. "I'm sure the headmaster will agree."
"I'd be honoured…" Juri smiled.
