Disclaimer: As the same with all the other chapters, we don't own anything we didn't come
up with. That belongs to Square. We do this for no profit. Blah, blah, blah.
Chapter 16: The Hunted
Seifer began to come to, and immediately wished he hadn't. His head felt like someone
had taken a sledge hammer to it and he smelt like smoke. It took a few seconds to realize it
wasn't him, it was the entire cockpit that was filling with thick grey smoke. He blinked once or
twice and his vision came back to normal. And in front of him...
-Quistis!-
She was slumped down in her seat, her bowed low over her breast. Seifer unharnessed
himself and reached over for Quistis. "Quistis, are you alright? Quistis, speak to me!"
All he heard was a groan. Seifer felt somewhat relieved. At least she was alive.
Slowly, Quistis' groans became more like incoherent mumblings until she shook her head a
few times and said, "Wha....what happened?"
"We crashed. The Galbadians hit us with one of those rockets," Seifer answered. He
lowered himself down to unharness Quistis. When he had, she fell foward a little bit, still out
of it from the impact.
"We...have to get out of here," she mumbled out groggily. "They...could be...coming
after us...right now." Gingerly, Quistis raised one hand to her head to massage it.
Seifer pushed at the cockpit and felt it give a little. Another try, harder this time,
and the cockpit rose up, revealing a forest they had crash landed into, the scent of dried
leaves and conifer trees detectable over the smell of fried electronics and smoke. Seifer turned
back to Quistis. "Can you walk?"
Quistis shook her head. "I'm...don't know. Still groggy..."
Seifer cursed softly and picked up Quistis, lifting her out of the wreckage. A stiff
wind blew, and Seifer knew without having to look up that the Siren was over them. He took off
running into the forest, moments before another missile screamed down and obliterated the
remains of the jet.
Seifer landed hard on his feet, the weight from Quistis making it all the harder.
Recovering as quickly as he could, Seifer began running at full speed through the forest, the
dark shadow of the Silver Siren hanging above them.
Quistis' cloudy eyes gazed upward to the Silver Siren and she shook her head. "Am I
imagining things or is the Silver Siren above us?" she asked slowly.
"It's above us," Seifer grunted.
Quistis groaned. "Figures."
Seifer struggled over a huge tree root, hefting Quistis up gently as he stepped over it.
"At least you're not the one running right now."
Quistis laughed softly, her eyes fluttering before they closed again. "True, true..."
Seifer ran a few more yards before he reached a densely wooded area where they could
hide at the moment. He laid Quistis down amongst some heavy underbrush and joined her by laying
next to her. "Don't move. They might not see us."
Quistis sighed heavily. "Not a problem...I don't think...I could move too much even if I
wanted to."
"Where does it hurt?" Seifer asked, concerned.
Quistis blinked a few times. "My head, I think...can't really think straight..."
Seifer smiled at the comment in his head, but decided it wasn't the place nor the time
for it. He noticed a small trickle of blood coming out of Quistis' ear. "I think you got a
concussion, there's some blood coming out of your ear. But it doesn't look too bad. Just rest
until we're in the clear."
"Ooohh...blood..." Quistis said groggily. "That's bad, isn't it?"
"Yeah, but it's not that bad. You'll be okay," Seifer replied.
Quistis mumbled something and closed her eyes. She was soon breathing rhythmically,
unconscious for the moment. Overhead, the Siren hovered for a moment, then began to move on.
Seifer sighed with relief and began to work out the situation Quistis was in no condition to go
anywhere just yet, so he had to tend to her first.
Seifer rolled her gently onto her back and noted the serene look on her face. Seifer
shook his head, telling himself that this was the worst possible time to even be thinking about
something like that, and proceeded to cast Cure on Quistis. The thin flow of blood stopped, and
the swelling on the side of her head decreased a little. Seifer had noticed a small brook
running a few feet away when they had escaped, so he went to the bank and dipped a bandana in
it's cool water. He took it back and washed Quistis' face with it, mopping up the blood and the
soot of the crash.
When he had finished cleaning Quistis' face, he sat against a tree, watching Quistis to
make sure she was okay. Her breathing had become easier than it had been, assuring Seifer that
the Cure spell had worked. But she still was unconcious. Seifer sighed, deciding to just sit and
wait for Quistis to come to. After all, the Siren was heading in the opposite direction. A few
minutes to let Quistis recover would be all right. So, Seifer sat silently, watching Quistis
carefully.
Seifer also began working out where they were. The GPS system on the recon jet had told
them that they were near Winhill. Though exactly where and how far they were was anyone's guess.
Either way, they had to do something, because the Siren would probably be back to look for
survivors, and there were monsters still around.
Looking up, Seifer tried to pinpoint where the sun was in the sky, but the branches
above made it too difficult. Seifer looked towards the brook again, deciding that following it
with the flow would probably be the best bet for the time being.
Cautiously, Seifer moved over to Quistis and nudged her a little in an attempt to wake
her. She groaned lightly in response, but she was still not awake.
"Quistis. We have to go now," Seifer said softly. Quistis groaned again and blinked her
eyes, looking up at Seifer.
"Hey again," she said. Her voice was a lot stronger than it had been. "I take it the
Siren moved on?"
"Yeah, but I don't know how long it's going to stay that way. They'll probably be back
to look for survivors, so we need to move. Are you okay to walk?"
"I...think so..." Quistis answered, shakily getting to her feet with Seifer's help. He
placed one of his arms around her to stabilize her. They took a few steps forward. "Yes, I think
I can walk like this..."
Seifer pointed down to the brook nearby. "I think we should follow the brook for now.
It'll lead us somewhere, eventually an ocean. But, maybe we can run into Winhill before that."
Quistis nodded. "Alright..."
As they set off, Quistis began to get some of her equilibriem back. Seifer eventually
let his arm drop as she got back her balance and within an hour or two, she was fine.
"Did you get a good look where we landed at?" Quistis asked presently.
Seifer shook his head. "I only glanced at it. We were in the vicinity of Winhill, I was
able to get that much. It fried right after we were hit."
Quistis cursed to herself. "So we have no idea where we are and that means Squall and
the rest are equally clueless."
"They had us on radar, right? That means that they'll be sending someone to pick us up."
Seifer sounded a bit hopeful, because the thought of staying out in the forest with no food or
supplies didn't really appeal to him.
"Maybe. But since the jet was destroyed, it'll be harder to find us." Quistis stopped
and bent down to take a sip of water from the brook.
Quistis thought for a moment. Knowing Squall, he was probably going out the door
already, by himself. "I have a feeling Squall might've went out on his own to find us. I mean,
he is the type to do something like that and probably wouldn't let anyone else go."
Seifer nodded. "Yeah, just like him to go off by himself to play hero."
"Yes," Quistis agreed. "But we really should keep moving. Can't count on him having the
exact point where we are, can we?"
"Nah," Seifer agreed. "They probably lost our signal when we were hit, too."
"Yeah. So they know the area we're in, but not the exact location." Quistis sighed.
"Look, over there!"
Seifer half turned to the voice, and then they were being shot at. "Dammit! Come on!"
Seifer shouted. He and Quistis took off along the stream, dodging and zig-zagging as they ran.
Seifer cursed himself for not being more observant. He should've known that the Siren would've
radioed their position to the Galbadians.
Seifer glanced to the side and saw a squad of Galbadians pop out of the brush. He
whirled and drew his gunblade as they closed with him, swords drawn.
KE-RASH!
Several trees were knocked over and uprooted as a huge shape erupted through the trees.
Seifer took one look at it and recognized the huge muscular body, red scaly hide, and steak
knife teeth. A T-Rexaur.
"Hyne! RUN!" Quistis screamed. As Seifer turned, the huge dinosaur caught one of the
soldiers in it's mouth and whipped him back and forth before it threw the unlucky man into a
huge tree, Seifer hearing the sickening squish of the impact as he began running, Quistis
huffing beside him.
The ground shook as the T-Rexaur gave chase, one of the soldiers crushed beneath the
massive weight of the dinosaur as it thundered through the brush.
Seifer was almost out of breath.
-Hyne, getting shot down, shot at by Galbadians, and now a T-Rexaur. Somebody really
wants me dead-
Suddenly, the brook widened into a shallow river and Seifer heard a dull roar of water
that was growing louder.
"Isn't that a...waterfall...up there?" Quistis asked breathlessly.
Seifer grunted in reply. "Yeah. Any thoughts?"
"Try and hide under it? Maybe it can't swim."
Seifer nodded as he turned back. Several of the soldiers were running behind them,
dangerously close to the Rexaur. One turned back to fire at it, and the Rexaur roared in anger
before it snapped down and caught the man in it's maw, the soldier's screams muffled inside the
mouth of the Rexaur. It chewed twice and swallowed, the snapping of bone and gristle lost to the
roar of the ancient beast.
The two dashed under the waterfall quickly, and not a moment too soon. Their Galbadian
persuers ran through the river, now more concerned with the T-Rexaur behind them than Seifer and
Quistis. Scared yells from them were heard by the two, follow by a thunderous roar from the
T-Rexaur as it ran past. The ground underneath shook from its massive size, but soon the termors
became smaller. It had passed them by.
Quistis and Seifer began to breath a little easier. Still, they dared not move from
their hiding place. "You think it's gone?" Quistis said over the roar of the falls. Seifer
shrugged. "We'd better wait for a little bit. It'll probably be sluggish and sleepy after
eating."
Suddenly, through the water, ran a terrified soldier, his eyes wide with fright through
his tinted visor. Seifer's hand flew to his gun blade, but a ferocious roar echoed nearby.
A massive head crashed through the curtain of water, it's hot breath stinking of half-
chewed meat, Seifer gagging at the smell. The Rexaur's maw caught the soldier in it's mouth and
retreated back through the water fall, the soldier flailing weakly, screaming horribly. In a
moment, the head and the dying soldier disappeared through the water, the screaming continuing
before it gurgled to a stop, and wet meaty sound replaced it as the water ran red. Seifer
grimaced and Quistis turned away, disgusted.
"We need to find Winhill soon...there could be more T-Rexaurs out there," Quistis
whispered.
Seifer nodded. "Yeah, we better hurry up...and be more careful."
They waited a few hours to make sure the Rexaur had passed on, then they emerged. The
sun was setting in the west, the sun turning the blue sky an orange hue, the trees turning black
in the dim light.
"We'll have to get somewhere safe for the night." Quistis said. "We have to watch out
for both monsters and the Galbadians."
"Sure. But we also need food too," Seifer said as he helped Quistis over a pile of
boulders back into the forest. A small growl came from the right, and Seifer saw a Geezard crawl
from under some brush. Seifer drew his gun blade and beheaded the thing in one clean stroke. He
picked it up by the tail and turned to Quistis.
"What was that-oh no, you don't mean that you're going to..." Quistis looked shocked and
grossed out by what he was incinuating.
"We have no choice," Seifer replied as he wiped off his gun blade and sheathed it.
"Besides, I heard it tastes like chocobo."
Quistis shook her finger at him. "It had better..." She warned him. "I hope you're not
suggesting eating it raw, though..."
"We can't start a fire, it'd attract both the Galbadians and monsters," Seifer answered.
Quistis frowned. "Yes, but eating raw meat isn't any more healthy."
Seifer grinned. "Try using meltdown. Nature's own microwave."
Quistis smirked back at him. "I don't have any junctioned, do you?"
Seifer's grin turned to a frown. "Uhhh, no..."
Quistis' shook her head. "And you don't have any either. That's great."
Seifer sighed. "Guess we will have to build a fire. But we can't do it out in the open.
We have to find a cave or something."
"I think there was one not too far back from here," Quistis said as she pointed to where
they came from. "I have some Fire spells junctioned so at least we can start a fire."
"Good. We oughta be safe there." They began to walk back the way they came, saying
nothing between them.
Quistis took a tentative bite out of the brazed meat Seifer had offered her and decided
it was edible. It wasn't a charbroiled t-bone, that was too much to ask for. But it was good for
a growling stomach, and that was all she cared about at the moment.
Seifer put another log on the fire and sat back, blowing out a breath. "So you think
Squall's out looking for us?"
Quistis nodded as she took another bite. "Yeah. He wouldn't leave us out here."
Seifer looked at her. "But if he knows that the plane was destroyed, he might think that
it was too risky to make sure."
Quistis scowled at Seifer. "How can you say that? He wouldn't let us die out here!"
Seifer sighed and leaned back against the damp cave wall. "Maybe. But he's also not the
type to send people on a suicide mission, and with the Siren nearby and the Galbadians searching
for us, it'd be too dangerous."
Quistis shook her head, but she knew that part of what Seifer said was true. It was too
dangerous to make a rescue attempt, at least right now. But she knew Squall himself would try
and locate them.
"I'd just not lose hope right now," Quistis said. She looked down at her meal. "It's not
bad, just needs a little garlic."
Seifer chuckled. "Told ya it was good."
Quistis laughed lightly and looked at Seifer for a second. Almost eight months ago he
had been their worst enemy, nearly killing them as he fought under Ultimecia's spell. Now here
she was laughing with him. Strange how life tended to change people. She had been hated by him
for flunking him on his first SeeD exam. Now she felt that he regarded her as his confidant.
There was no other reason why he had told her about Xana's summons to her.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
Quistis shook her head. "Nothing. Just thinking."
"'Bout what?"
Quistis sighed. "Just...how things end up working out and stuff."
Seifer chuckled. "Like how you got to be in a cave with the same man that tried to kill
you several months ago?"
"Something like that."
"I know," Seifer said. He looked out of the cave, his eyes growing distant. "Seems that
a lot has changed. I'm a SeeD, alright. But who's there to share it with me? No one."
"What about Fujin and Raijin? Aren't you guys still a posse?"
"Sort of. But telling your best friends that you're going to kill them doesn't do a lot
for the friendship. Yeah, we still hang together, but they've kinda distanced themselves from
me. Can't say I blame them."
Quistis sighed. "You don't need to be so hard on yourself, Seifer. You were under
Ultimecia's control."
"But part of it was my decision." Seifer turned his gaze back at Quistis. "I wanted to
play hero so bad that it blurred my conscience. I tortured Squall, imprisoned you and the rest,
damn near destroyed the Garden and Esthar, and almost killed Rinoa. All to play hero..." Seifer
trailed off and he looked away quickly. And though she wasn't sure, she thought she saw a tear
run down Seifer's cheek.
-By Hyne, how long has he held all this inside?-
Too long, she gathered. Her heart ached for him. After all he had done, he'd been to
hell and back to prove his loyalty. But he still had to overcome his personal demons.
She got up and walked over to where he sat, sitting down next to him and put an arm
around him. He looked at her, confused.
"Seifer, listen to me," she said. "You've done more than enough to prove you've changed.
You're a SeeD. You've obeyed orders. You've beaten Xana's temptations. And hell, you saved my
life."
Seifer nodded evetually and smiled at her. Quistis smiled back, but noticed a small
feeling of...well, she didn't know what. Unsure, she let her slide back to her side and looked
away nervously. "Um, I think we should get some rest."
Seifer nodded. "Yeah. It'll be tough on the rock, though."
Quistis grimaced, but laid down anyway, the cold of the stone floor of the cave chilling
her skin.
-This is what you get when you don't wear extra layers, girl.-
Well, it could be worse, she could've had Selphie's outfit.
Quistis watched the fire burn for a while before she finally closed her eyes. She began
to drift off to sleep, thinking about Seifer and Xana before she nodded off. One of the final
things she felt before she fell asleep was that something warm was covering her, and she
realized that it was Seifer's coat before she dozed off.
Seifer looked at the sleeping Quistis before he laid down beside her. She was probably
his only true friend left, and he owed her so much for just helping him. Seifer smiled,
genuinely happy for the first time in a long while and went to sleep.
Author's comments: Well, how'd you like the first part of the Seifer and Quistis journey?
Hmm? I gotta give my co-author one helluva round of applause for putting this part together. The
second part of the journey will be up soon and as soon as this "arc" of the story is over, we'll
be returning to Vira's problems. Fun, huh? Until then, please R&R to let us know how you like it.
:D
