Chapter Sixteen
Tifa bit her lips. Raine's funny behavior had continued ever since they had arrived in Esthar. Even Laguna had noticed. When he had asked Raine if she needed anything, the answer had been a curt "No" and the door being shut in his face.
"Guys, that's it. No more. We gotta find out what's wrong with Raine!" She stood up.
"Tifa, are you sure you want to do that?" Her twin asked. Tifa shot him a look.
"Well, how else are we going to find out?"
"I agree. Raine's hiding something." Celes said.
"What are we waiting for then?"
Raine leaned forward, looking out of the window. Laguna played the part of the adoring grandfather to the hilt, even setting a room aside for Raine's personal use whenever she was in Esthar. Her musings were suddenly interrupted when Sabin, Celes, Tifa, and I.J. all burst into the room at the same time.
"OKAY! THAT'S IT!" Sabin roared.
"Raine, you have to tell us what's going on!" Celes said.
"Okay." Raine said calmly. This had all her friends stopping cold and staring at her.
"Huhhh?"
"I said I'd tell you!" I.J. blinked.
"That was too easy! Even for Raine!" He thought. Raine took a deep breath.
"I know what's wrong with my mother."
"How?!" Tifa gasped.
"Someone's trying to turn her into Ultimecia."
"WHAT?!"
"ULTIMECIA?! THE SORCERESS ULTIMECIA?!" Raine turned around.
"You're joking, right?" Sabin said.
"What makes you think I'm joking?" Raine asked.
"Um, maybe because there is no way your mother can turn into Sorceress Ultimecia!" I.J. said.
"She died 38 years ago!" Tifa added. Raine shook her head.
"No." Celes blew out a breath.
"Ok. Raine, you've been under a lot of stress lately. Could it be you're imagining things?" She asked in a patronizing tone. At this, Raine blew her stack.
"WHY would I be imagining things? HUH? TELL ME, WHY?"
"I don't know, maybe it's the fact THAT YOU'RE FINALLY CRACKING UP!" Celes screamed back.
"Ladies! Chill!" I.J. said.
"I HAVE PROOF!"
"Oh, really? What?" Celes mocked.
"Raine, your mom and Ultimecia are two separate people, for crying out loud!" Tifa said. "So there's no…"
"THERE IS A WAY, BECAUSE MY MOTHER IS SORCERESS ULTIMECIA!!" Shocked silence met this remark. Tifa stopped in mid-sentence, mouth hanging open. Sabin, I.J., and Celes all simply stared at Raine.
"What?" Raine ran her hands through her hair.
"A year before my parents got married, my mom went to Esthar after she had an…accident on an assignment she and my father were both on."
"What sort of accident?" Celes asked.
"Somebody cast a bad Demi spell, and it caused her to lose control of her sorceress powers. You guys know about her wings, right?" She waited for them to nod, and then continued. "When they came out, instead of being white, they were black. And you all know what black wings mean on a sorceress."
"Oh no." Tifa said. Raine nodded.
"Mom was scared out of her mind. She couldn't find an explanation for what had happened, so she came here looking for answers. Aunt Ellone met her, and they combined their powers to go into time and find some answers."
"And?" Sabin asked. Raine took a deep breath.
"Apparently…in another dimension, Adel had reawakened and came back to Gaia. She was trying to obtain all the powers of other Sorceresses on the planet so she could rule again. Edea Kramer lost hers in a freak accident at her orphanage, and they went to my mom. Adel found out and had her kidnapped."
"What happened then?"
"Dad…he and Mom were already in love with each other…he and the others went to rescue her from Adel. They had to fight her…and…and…"
"And what?" Celes prodded gently.
"During the fight…he died. Mom went mad with grief and disappeared shortly afterwards. Nobody heard from her…until a couple of years later…"
"When she re-surfaced as Sorceress Ultimecia." Sabin said, understanding perfectly. Raine nodded.
"You got it…" Celes wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders.
"Raine, I'm so sorry…"
"It's ok." Raine murmured.
"I'm confused. If your mom is Sorceress Ultimecia in another dimension, and she got defeated by…you catch my drift." Tifa said.
"It has to do with the timeline and it's events." Raine replied.
"Huh?"
"In that dimension, the only reason why my mother became Ultimecia was because my father died, and Mom couldn't handle her grief. In ours, nothing has happened to my dad, and I'm around. So if something did happen to him, Mom wouldn't turn evil."
"Because she has you." I.J. said.
"There might be some other reasons, but those are the only two I can think of so far." Raine added.
"So, how can your mom turn into Ultimecia?" Tifa wondered. Sabin gasped.
"Oh my…"
"What?" Raine asked.
"Your mom. A couple days ago, I heard her speak to Ellone. She said something about there being a disturbance in the space/time continuum…" Raine's eyes widened, and then narrowed.
"Bingo."
"Oh my God." Celes said.
"Exactly." Raine replied.
"What?" Tifa asked.
"They're messing with Raine's parents' past! That's it! Something must have gone wrong…"
"And my mother ended up in the coma because something happened to her in the past." Raine finished. Silence blanketed the group for several minutes.
"So what are we gonna do?" Sabin asked, breaking the silence.
"We go and make things right." Raine said softly.
"HUH?" I.J. said, shocked.
"How?"
"Time-travel?"
"I don't know how yet. But I'll figure something out."
"Raine, you're nuts!" I.J. said.
"Your father is going to kill you!" Sabin added.
"I'll go by myself if I have to, so don't try to talk me out of it, you guys." Raine said. "This is something…this is something I gotta do." She turned back around to face the window. She was startled out of her thoughts by a hand gently landing on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw Celes smiling at her.
"We'll help."
"Yeah." I.J. piped up.
"We're pals, remember?" Tifa said.
"Sounds like fun to me!" Sabin added. Raine's lips twitched.
"Okay then."
"As for the time-travel thing…I think Odine can help us out in that department." Celes said.
"How?" Raine asked.
"Well…he doesn't strike me as the type of person who would do anything without a backup plan." The older girl said. Raine inhaled sharply.
"You mean…"
"Could be." Celes replied.
Due to the urgency of the situation, it was quickly decided that this trip could not be put off, the main factor being that something serious could happen in the past, and so the decision was made to leave immediately was made that very day. The only problems the teens could anticipate were weapons, G. F.s, and transportation. Tifa, Celes, and Sabin had all managed to pack their weapons, but Raine and I.J. hadn't.
"I brought some money with me, so I can get a new gun, but…" I.J. trailed off.
"It's alright. I'll figure out something." Raine said. "Here." Emptying her pockets, she revealed two stones, one an aquamarine and the other a citrine.
"Leviathan and Quenzacotl, respectively. I don't need to junction with a G.F. to use magic, but…"
"Only two G. F.s, so only two people can go with you." Celes said. Raine nodded.
"I only have enough power to override the JME's original commands and send my physical body and mind along with the bodies and minds of two other people to the past."
"We'll worry about who's going with you later." Tifa said.
"Will you have enough power to get back?" Celes asked. Raine nodded.
"I'll recharge when we reach our destination. If I don't overstrain myself, I should have enough to get back."
"How are you gonna get Odine to talk?" Sabin wanted to know.
"Flatter him! That's all you have to do!" Raine replied.
"We need healing and attack items…" Tifa mused.
"I'm heading to the mall anyway, wanna tag along?" Her brother asked her.
"Okay." Tifa said.
"Alright, so you two take care of the items, and I'll see what I can do about Odine." Raine said.
"Sabin and I will run interference if anybody starts snooping." Celes said.
"Right." Raine replied.
Laguna walked down the hallway towards Raine's room, carrying a long, rectangular black case in his right hand.
"Raine?" He called, knocking softly.
"Come in." Laguna entered. Raine was in front of the mirror, brushing her hair.
"Hey."
"Hey." Raine replied back. Laguna rubbed the back of his head.
"Uh, listen…I had your dad send this over." He placed the case on Raine's bed. Pulling it towards her, the girl opened it to reveal her Gunblade and a box of bullets.
"I figured you would want to get some experience in with the monsters hanging around."
"Thank you." Raine murmured, fingering the Griever charm at the end of the handle. Laguna stood there for a couple of minutes, and then clapped his hands together.
"Well, if there's anything you need, I'll be in my office." He started to leave.
"Grandfather?"
"Yes, darling?" Laguna turned around and was nearly run over by Raine, who hugged him tight.
"I'm sorry…" Laguna smiled softly.
"Hey." He hooked a finger under Raine's chin. "It's alright. Everything will work out. Just you wait and see." Raine nodded. Laguna gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"Chin up, huh?" As he started to walk out of the door, Raine stopped him.
"Grandfather?"
"Yes?"
"I love you." Laguna blinked at this sudden declaration of affection, then smiled.
"I love you too, honey." He left. Raine sighed, and then grabbed her jacket.
Squall looked down at a map.
"Everything's in place, Commander."
"Right…" Selphie walked up, nunchaku at the ready.
"Is everything alright?" Squall looked at her, traces of worry evident in his blue eyes.
"I don't know, Selph…I have this really bad feeling…" A shout got their attention.
"Here they come!"
Odine's laboratory was located not too far from the Presidential Palace. Raine looked around at the inside as she waited for Odine.
"Raine, darling!"
"Oh God, please help me not to hurt him." Raine thought, plastering a fake smile on her face.
"Let Odine zee you!" The short doctor waddled towards Raine. "It iz such a pleasure to zee you again! How are your sorceress powers faring?"
"Just fine. Umm…" Raine twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "Is it alright if I hung out around here for a while? My dad just dumped me off here and my mom…" Her lower lip trembled, and tears threatened to spill out of her eyes. "And Grandfather's too busy…" She looked at him with the saddest puppy-dog eyes she could manage.
Naturally, Odine fell for it, completely.
"But of course, of course! Please! Come into my parlor!" He led Raine inside. As he went in front of her, Raine allowed herself a small smile.
Victory.
Of course she had to spend the next hour and a half being bored out of her mind, but she was willing to let it slide if what Celes had told her was true. And she was about to find out.
"Dr. Odine?"
"Hmmm?"
"I was wondering…"
"Yes?"
"Did you…did you ever invent anything that could time-travel other than the JME?" Odine's eyes slitted at this.
"Vhy vould you vant to know?" Raine allowed a hurt expression to flit across her face.
"I'm sorry! I mean, I read about the JME in my History class, and I was just wondering, that's all!" Her lips started to tremble. "Did I do anything wrong?"
"No, no!" Odine relaxed. The girl was just curious, he assured himself. And she was under alot of stress. It wouldn't hurt to assuage her curiosity.
"Vell…if you promise not to tell anyone…"
"Yes?" Odine's eyes twinkled.
"Zhere iz a second JME! Vhen I created the first one, I made a duplicate as vell and hid it! After all, I could not have one of my greatest accomplishments destroyed!"
"Where did you hide it?" Raine asked, breathless.
"Zee ruins of zee Deep Sea Research Center. It is in a hidden chamber inside zee left wall of zee blue core in zee first room."
"Bingo! Hidden chamber inside the left wall inside of the room where my parents got Bahamut. That shouldn't be too hard to find." Raine thought. She got up.
"Now you von't tell anyone, vill you?" Raine shook her head.
"I won't. But you will!"
"Huh? Oomph!" Odine's head snapped back, and he slumped to the floor, unconscious. Raine dropped her leg.
"Sweet dreams, Doctor." Quickly, she left the room.
Squall surveyed the damage, Lion Heart in hand. The planned ambush had gone off without a hitch. Vanish spells had been cast on the Balamb residents, and they had been escorted out of the town to a safe place. SeeDs, also with Vanish spells cast on them, had then moved into the town and waited. When the terrorists had arrived, the SeeDs had attacked.
"Hey man, your plan worked!" Zell said, coming up. Squall rolled his shoulders.
"Yeah…"
"What's wrong?"
"Something's bugging me…but I don't know what."
"Look at it this way. At least the kids aren't here. That was one less problem to worry about."
"Yeah…"
"I just hope they're not getting into any trouble over there…" Zell said.
Sabin watched as Celes packed the items for the journey.
"Any idea of transportation yet?" I.J. asked. Raine walked in.
"You were right. There was a second JME!" She said, striding over.
"I knew it." Celes replied.
"Did you find out where?" Tifa asked.
"The Deep Sea Research Center."
"The place where Ultima Weapon was?!" Sabin said.
"It's dead, Sabin, so don't worry!" Raine bit her lips.
"I still don't know who's coming with me when I get the JME activated, however…" Silence reigned for a few minutes. Then…
"I'll go." Celes volunteered.
"Me too." I.J. added.
"That leaves Tifa and Sabin to take the flack…" Raine said.
"Hey, that we can handle." Sabin said.
"Yeah, leave the 'rents to us." Tifa chirped. Raine looked at the two, then nodded.
"Okay."
"I assume we're going to have to steal the Ragarnok to get there, right?" I.J. said, rubbing his hands together.
"Yeah. Celes knows how to fly it…"
"You do know that the second the Ragarnok takes off, your grandfather will have our parents down here so fast it won't be funny?" Tifa interrupted. Raine nodded.
"That and another thing." Sabin said.
"What?" Celes said sharply.
"Odine. He's not stupid. It won't take him too long to figure out why Raine was asking about the JME…" Raine shook her head.
"Not a problem right now. I knocked him out right after he told me, so he's in dreamland for a while, and my father and grandfather don't know about the second JME. If they knew…"
"Ohoh." Tifa said.
"Exactly."
Squall rubbed a hand over his face. Zell's earlier words had been haunting him.
"I hope they're not getting into any trouble over there…"
"Something's wrong. I can feel it! But what?" Squall thought. "What am I missing?" And then it hit him.
"Raine, listen. Don't argue, just do as I say. G…"
"Get some stuff together, you're going to Esthar." Raine finished, sounding was if she were in a daze.
"She knew exactly what I was going to say! And she didn't give me any grief about leaving like she normally would…" His mind flashed to an image of Raine sitting on board the Ragarnok, unnaturally silent.
"Oh my God…"
Quistis, Zell, Selphie, and Irvine were plotting the next course of action when Squall burst in, eyes wild.
"Get Laguna on the radio NOW!!"
The Ragarnok sat on the landing pad, undisturbed. Moving quickly, the five friends got on board.
"Strap yourselves in, guys." Celes said, pressing buttons on the console in front of her. "Cuz when we take off, all heck is gonna break loose."
Laguna was busy reading through a report when the phone rang.
"Yes?"
"Sir, there's an emergency call from Balamb Garden. Commander Leonhart says he needs to speak to you now."
"Put him through."
"Dad?"
"Squall? What's wrong?" Panic was evident in Squall's voice, something that wasn't normal.
"Where's Raine?"
"In her room, safe. Why?"
"Dad, listen. Raine's gonna pull something. You need to get her now!" A solider burst in.
"Sir! The Ragarnok's taking off!"
"What?" Laguna tore out of his seat and dashed over to the window. The massive spaceship was hovering over the Airstation.
"Who's flying it?"
"We don't know, sir!" As they watched, the Ragarnok did a 180, and then flew off.
"ETA to Deep Sea Research Center one hour." Celes said.
"An hour? Our parents might have caught up to us by then!" Tifa said.
"That's the fastest I can go. This ship is old, you know. If I push it any further, something might happen."
"We're already getting orders to return." Sabin said from over at the communications console.
"Not only that, but Esthar can track us. So they're gonna know where we're going." Celes added.
"Then we're gonna have to make sure we get there first." Raine said.
Tifa bit her lips. Raine's funny behavior had continued ever since they had arrived in Esthar. Even Laguna had noticed. When he had asked Raine if she needed anything, the answer had been a curt "No" and the door being shut in his face.
"Guys, that's it. No more. We gotta find out what's wrong with Raine!" She stood up.
"Tifa, are you sure you want to do that?" Her twin asked. Tifa shot him a look.
"Well, how else are we going to find out?"
"I agree. Raine's hiding something." Celes said.
"What are we waiting for then?"
Raine leaned forward, looking out of the window. Laguna played the part of the adoring grandfather to the hilt, even setting a room aside for Raine's personal use whenever she was in Esthar. Her musings were suddenly interrupted when Sabin, Celes, Tifa, and I.J. all burst into the room at the same time.
"OKAY! THAT'S IT!" Sabin roared.
"Raine, you have to tell us what's going on!" Celes said.
"Okay." Raine said calmly. This had all her friends stopping cold and staring at her.
"Huhhh?"
"I said I'd tell you!" I.J. blinked.
"That was too easy! Even for Raine!" He thought. Raine took a deep breath.
"I know what's wrong with my mother."
"How?!" Tifa gasped.
"Someone's trying to turn her into Ultimecia."
"WHAT?!"
"ULTIMECIA?! THE SORCERESS ULTIMECIA?!" Raine turned around.
"You're joking, right?" Sabin said.
"What makes you think I'm joking?" Raine asked.
"Um, maybe because there is no way your mother can turn into Sorceress Ultimecia!" I.J. said.
"She died 38 years ago!" Tifa added. Raine shook her head.
"No." Celes blew out a breath.
"Ok. Raine, you've been under a lot of stress lately. Could it be you're imagining things?" She asked in a patronizing tone. At this, Raine blew her stack.
"WHY would I be imagining things? HUH? TELL ME, WHY?"
"I don't know, maybe it's the fact THAT YOU'RE FINALLY CRACKING UP!" Celes screamed back.
"Ladies! Chill!" I.J. said.
"I HAVE PROOF!"
"Oh, really? What?" Celes mocked.
"Raine, your mom and Ultimecia are two separate people, for crying out loud!" Tifa said. "So there's no…"
"THERE IS A WAY, BECAUSE MY MOTHER IS SORCERESS ULTIMECIA!!" Shocked silence met this remark. Tifa stopped in mid-sentence, mouth hanging open. Sabin, I.J., and Celes all simply stared at Raine.
"What?" Raine ran her hands through her hair.
"A year before my parents got married, my mom went to Esthar after she had an…accident on an assignment she and my father were both on."
"What sort of accident?" Celes asked.
"Somebody cast a bad Demi spell, and it caused her to lose control of her sorceress powers. You guys know about her wings, right?" She waited for them to nod, and then continued. "When they came out, instead of being white, they were black. And you all know what black wings mean on a sorceress."
"Oh no." Tifa said. Raine nodded.
"Mom was scared out of her mind. She couldn't find an explanation for what had happened, so she came here looking for answers. Aunt Ellone met her, and they combined their powers to go into time and find some answers."
"And?" Sabin asked. Raine took a deep breath.
"Apparently…in another dimension, Adel had reawakened and came back to Gaia. She was trying to obtain all the powers of other Sorceresses on the planet so she could rule again. Edea Kramer lost hers in a freak accident at her orphanage, and they went to my mom. Adel found out and had her kidnapped."
"What happened then?"
"Dad…he and Mom were already in love with each other…he and the others went to rescue her from Adel. They had to fight her…and…and…"
"And what?" Celes prodded gently.
"During the fight…he died. Mom went mad with grief and disappeared shortly afterwards. Nobody heard from her…until a couple of years later…"
"When she re-surfaced as Sorceress Ultimecia." Sabin said, understanding perfectly. Raine nodded.
"You got it…" Celes wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders.
"Raine, I'm so sorry…"
"It's ok." Raine murmured.
"I'm confused. If your mom is Sorceress Ultimecia in another dimension, and she got defeated by…you catch my drift." Tifa said.
"It has to do with the timeline and it's events." Raine replied.
"Huh?"
"In that dimension, the only reason why my mother became Ultimecia was because my father died, and Mom couldn't handle her grief. In ours, nothing has happened to my dad, and I'm around. So if something did happen to him, Mom wouldn't turn evil."
"Because she has you." I.J. said.
"There might be some other reasons, but those are the only two I can think of so far." Raine added.
"So, how can your mom turn into Ultimecia?" Tifa wondered. Sabin gasped.
"Oh my…"
"What?" Raine asked.
"Your mom. A couple days ago, I heard her speak to Ellone. She said something about there being a disturbance in the space/time continuum…" Raine's eyes widened, and then narrowed.
"Bingo."
"Oh my God." Celes said.
"Exactly." Raine replied.
"What?" Tifa asked.
"They're messing with Raine's parents' past! That's it! Something must have gone wrong…"
"And my mother ended up in the coma because something happened to her in the past." Raine finished. Silence blanketed the group for several minutes.
"So what are we gonna do?" Sabin asked, breaking the silence.
"We go and make things right." Raine said softly.
"HUH?" I.J. said, shocked.
"How?"
"Time-travel?"
"I don't know how yet. But I'll figure something out."
"Raine, you're nuts!" I.J. said.
"Your father is going to kill you!" Sabin added.
"I'll go by myself if I have to, so don't try to talk me out of it, you guys." Raine said. "This is something…this is something I gotta do." She turned back around to face the window. She was startled out of her thoughts by a hand gently landing on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw Celes smiling at her.
"We'll help."
"Yeah." I.J. piped up.
"We're pals, remember?" Tifa said.
"Sounds like fun to me!" Sabin added. Raine's lips twitched.
"Okay then."
"As for the time-travel thing…I think Odine can help us out in that department." Celes said.
"How?" Raine asked.
"Well…he doesn't strike me as the type of person who would do anything without a backup plan." The older girl said. Raine inhaled sharply.
"You mean…"
"Could be." Celes replied.
Due to the urgency of the situation, it was quickly decided that this trip could not be put off, the main factor being that something serious could happen in the past, and so the decision was made to leave immediately was made that very day. The only problems the teens could anticipate were weapons, G. F.s, and transportation. Tifa, Celes, and Sabin had all managed to pack their weapons, but Raine and I.J. hadn't.
"I brought some money with me, so I can get a new gun, but…" I.J. trailed off.
"It's alright. I'll figure out something." Raine said. "Here." Emptying her pockets, she revealed two stones, one an aquamarine and the other a citrine.
"Leviathan and Quenzacotl, respectively. I don't need to junction with a G.F. to use magic, but…"
"Only two G. F.s, so only two people can go with you." Celes said. Raine nodded.
"I only have enough power to override the JME's original commands and send my physical body and mind along with the bodies and minds of two other people to the past."
"We'll worry about who's going with you later." Tifa said.
"Will you have enough power to get back?" Celes asked. Raine nodded.
"I'll recharge when we reach our destination. If I don't overstrain myself, I should have enough to get back."
"How are you gonna get Odine to talk?" Sabin wanted to know.
"Flatter him! That's all you have to do!" Raine replied.
"We need healing and attack items…" Tifa mused.
"I'm heading to the mall anyway, wanna tag along?" Her brother asked her.
"Okay." Tifa said.
"Alright, so you two take care of the items, and I'll see what I can do about Odine." Raine said.
"Sabin and I will run interference if anybody starts snooping." Celes said.
"Right." Raine replied.
Laguna walked down the hallway towards Raine's room, carrying a long, rectangular black case in his right hand.
"Raine?" He called, knocking softly.
"Come in." Laguna entered. Raine was in front of the mirror, brushing her hair.
"Hey."
"Hey." Raine replied back. Laguna rubbed the back of his head.
"Uh, listen…I had your dad send this over." He placed the case on Raine's bed. Pulling it towards her, the girl opened it to reveal her Gunblade and a box of bullets.
"I figured you would want to get some experience in with the monsters hanging around."
"Thank you." Raine murmured, fingering the Griever charm at the end of the handle. Laguna stood there for a couple of minutes, and then clapped his hands together.
"Well, if there's anything you need, I'll be in my office." He started to leave.
"Grandfather?"
"Yes, darling?" Laguna turned around and was nearly run over by Raine, who hugged him tight.
"I'm sorry…" Laguna smiled softly.
"Hey." He hooked a finger under Raine's chin. "It's alright. Everything will work out. Just you wait and see." Raine nodded. Laguna gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"Chin up, huh?" As he started to walk out of the door, Raine stopped him.
"Grandfather?"
"Yes?"
"I love you." Laguna blinked at this sudden declaration of affection, then smiled.
"I love you too, honey." He left. Raine sighed, and then grabbed her jacket.
Squall looked down at a map.
"Everything's in place, Commander."
"Right…" Selphie walked up, nunchaku at the ready.
"Is everything alright?" Squall looked at her, traces of worry evident in his blue eyes.
"I don't know, Selph…I have this really bad feeling…" A shout got their attention.
"Here they come!"
Odine's laboratory was located not too far from the Presidential Palace. Raine looked around at the inside as she waited for Odine.
"Raine, darling!"
"Oh God, please help me not to hurt him." Raine thought, plastering a fake smile on her face.
"Let Odine zee you!" The short doctor waddled towards Raine. "It iz such a pleasure to zee you again! How are your sorceress powers faring?"
"Just fine. Umm…" Raine twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "Is it alright if I hung out around here for a while? My dad just dumped me off here and my mom…" Her lower lip trembled, and tears threatened to spill out of her eyes. "And Grandfather's too busy…" She looked at him with the saddest puppy-dog eyes she could manage.
Naturally, Odine fell for it, completely.
"But of course, of course! Please! Come into my parlor!" He led Raine inside. As he went in front of her, Raine allowed herself a small smile.
Victory.
Of course she had to spend the next hour and a half being bored out of her mind, but she was willing to let it slide if what Celes had told her was true. And she was about to find out.
"Dr. Odine?"
"Hmmm?"
"I was wondering…"
"Yes?"
"Did you…did you ever invent anything that could time-travel other than the JME?" Odine's eyes slitted at this.
"Vhy vould you vant to know?" Raine allowed a hurt expression to flit across her face.
"I'm sorry! I mean, I read about the JME in my History class, and I was just wondering, that's all!" Her lips started to tremble. "Did I do anything wrong?"
"No, no!" Odine relaxed. The girl was just curious, he assured himself. And she was under alot of stress. It wouldn't hurt to assuage her curiosity.
"Vell…if you promise not to tell anyone…"
"Yes?" Odine's eyes twinkled.
"Zhere iz a second JME! Vhen I created the first one, I made a duplicate as vell and hid it! After all, I could not have one of my greatest accomplishments destroyed!"
"Where did you hide it?" Raine asked, breathless.
"Zee ruins of zee Deep Sea Research Center. It is in a hidden chamber inside zee left wall of zee blue core in zee first room."
"Bingo! Hidden chamber inside the left wall inside of the room where my parents got Bahamut. That shouldn't be too hard to find." Raine thought. She got up.
"Now you von't tell anyone, vill you?" Raine shook her head.
"I won't. But you will!"
"Huh? Oomph!" Odine's head snapped back, and he slumped to the floor, unconscious. Raine dropped her leg.
"Sweet dreams, Doctor." Quickly, she left the room.
Squall surveyed the damage, Lion Heart in hand. The planned ambush had gone off without a hitch. Vanish spells had been cast on the Balamb residents, and they had been escorted out of the town to a safe place. SeeDs, also with Vanish spells cast on them, had then moved into the town and waited. When the terrorists had arrived, the SeeDs had attacked.
"Hey man, your plan worked!" Zell said, coming up. Squall rolled his shoulders.
"Yeah…"
"What's wrong?"
"Something's bugging me…but I don't know what."
"Look at it this way. At least the kids aren't here. That was one less problem to worry about."
"Yeah…"
"I just hope they're not getting into any trouble over there…" Zell said.
Sabin watched as Celes packed the items for the journey.
"Any idea of transportation yet?" I.J. asked. Raine walked in.
"You were right. There was a second JME!" She said, striding over.
"I knew it." Celes replied.
"Did you find out where?" Tifa asked.
"The Deep Sea Research Center."
"The place where Ultima Weapon was?!" Sabin said.
"It's dead, Sabin, so don't worry!" Raine bit her lips.
"I still don't know who's coming with me when I get the JME activated, however…" Silence reigned for a few minutes. Then…
"I'll go." Celes volunteered.
"Me too." I.J. added.
"That leaves Tifa and Sabin to take the flack…" Raine said.
"Hey, that we can handle." Sabin said.
"Yeah, leave the 'rents to us." Tifa chirped. Raine looked at the two, then nodded.
"Okay."
"I assume we're going to have to steal the Ragarnok to get there, right?" I.J. said, rubbing his hands together.
"Yeah. Celes knows how to fly it…"
"You do know that the second the Ragarnok takes off, your grandfather will have our parents down here so fast it won't be funny?" Tifa interrupted. Raine nodded.
"That and another thing." Sabin said.
"What?" Celes said sharply.
"Odine. He's not stupid. It won't take him too long to figure out why Raine was asking about the JME…" Raine shook her head.
"Not a problem right now. I knocked him out right after he told me, so he's in dreamland for a while, and my father and grandfather don't know about the second JME. If they knew…"
"Ohoh." Tifa said.
"Exactly."
Squall rubbed a hand over his face. Zell's earlier words had been haunting him.
"I hope they're not getting into any trouble over there…"
"Something's wrong. I can feel it! But what?" Squall thought. "What am I missing?" And then it hit him.
"Raine, listen. Don't argue, just do as I say. G…"
"Get some stuff together, you're going to Esthar." Raine finished, sounding was if she were in a daze.
"She knew exactly what I was going to say! And she didn't give me any grief about leaving like she normally would…" His mind flashed to an image of Raine sitting on board the Ragarnok, unnaturally silent.
"Oh my God…"
Quistis, Zell, Selphie, and Irvine were plotting the next course of action when Squall burst in, eyes wild.
"Get Laguna on the radio NOW!!"
The Ragarnok sat on the landing pad, undisturbed. Moving quickly, the five friends got on board.
"Strap yourselves in, guys." Celes said, pressing buttons on the console in front of her. "Cuz when we take off, all heck is gonna break loose."
Laguna was busy reading through a report when the phone rang.
"Yes?"
"Sir, there's an emergency call from Balamb Garden. Commander Leonhart says he needs to speak to you now."
"Put him through."
"Dad?"
"Squall? What's wrong?" Panic was evident in Squall's voice, something that wasn't normal.
"Where's Raine?"
"In her room, safe. Why?"
"Dad, listen. Raine's gonna pull something. You need to get her now!" A solider burst in.
"Sir! The Ragarnok's taking off!"
"What?" Laguna tore out of his seat and dashed over to the window. The massive spaceship was hovering over the Airstation.
"Who's flying it?"
"We don't know, sir!" As they watched, the Ragarnok did a 180, and then flew off.
"ETA to Deep Sea Research Center one hour." Celes said.
"An hour? Our parents might have caught up to us by then!" Tifa said.
"That's the fastest I can go. This ship is old, you know. If I push it any further, something might happen."
"We're already getting orders to return." Sabin said from over at the communications console.
"Not only that, but Esthar can track us. So they're gonna know where we're going." Celes added.
"Then we're gonna have to make sure we get there first." Raine said.