Chapter 7: The Crescent
Kelly sat flipping through the DNA report from Esthar International one last time. Her final orders from Quistis were to take it back to Garden and deliver it to Dr. Kadowaki who had agreed to work with one of the doctors in Deling City on finding an anti-venom for the monster's poison. It was a kind gesture from Quistis, one last thing for Kelly to do to offset the pain of not being able to see the mission through to the end. That was often the nature of her work, however. She dealt with the dead, rarely the living. And she only ever saw the beginning or the tail end of an investigation.
Next to her, Carson Brecht shifted in his seat.
"Something wrong?" she asked.
"Hmm? No. Just thinking."
"About what?"
"Quistis," he admitted.
Kelly frowned, remembering the look on Seifer's face when Brecht had stepped off the train in Deling City to sweep Quistis up in his arms. She hadn't quite understood his fearsome reputation until then; he'd looked ready to commit murder. And it was obvious that whatever friendship had blossomed between him and Quistis was quickly growing to be something more intense.
"She's flying off to Hyne knows where," Carson continued, "out into the middle of the ocean, tracking down some monster for no good reason. I lobbied my department head hard to get him to oppose this mission."
Surprised, Kelly asked, "Why?"
"To keep her safe."
"Quistis can take care of herself," she replied, wondering how well Carson really knew his girlfriend. He did realize that he was dating Quistis Trepe, didn't he? She was still the youngest person to ever make SeeD and the youngest instructor Balamb Garden had ever had. Not to mention, she was one of the six who had defeated the Sorceress Ultimecia.
"Taking care of her is my job," Carson said, shaking his head. "As far as I'm concerned, she doesn't need to look out for herself anymore now that I'm around."
Kelly couldn't help saying, "She doesn't seem like the kind of person who needs or wants someone to watch over her. And besides, she has Seifer with her."
Brecht's back stiffened when she mentioned Seifer, and she was amused at the way the other man's name could unravel him. His feathers were in a bunch when he turned toward her, his eyes blazing.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"Seifer's the best SeeD in Garden next to Squall," she replied. "He can take care of her if they get in trouble. He'll protect her. And, I suppose if she asks him nice, he'd even hold her in the night when things get cold, dark, and scary." She was being malicious now and wasn't even sure he'd heard the last of what she'd said over his own rage.
"Quistis hates Seifer," he barked.
"Not from what I've seen," she said. In fact, they seemed perfectly at ease in each other's company, like any two people who'd known each other their entire lives. And she didn't see why more time alone wouldn't bolster that. "I mean, they stayed in Esthar together for several days without any trouble," she pointed out.
"They what?"
Though she knew she'd crossed a line, Kelly plowed on anyway. "They flew our DNA sample to Esthar and stayed there waiting for the results. All I'm saying is that they got along just fine. I don't think she hates him or vice versa."
"Well…Quistis and I are in love," Brecht announced tenuously. "I wish I was going down there with her. I don't trust Seifer. That loser couldn't find his ass if it was on fire. Do you know how many times it took him just to pass the field exam?"
"Seifer knows damn well where his ass is," Kelly replied. "And he's a good SeeD. What's your problem with him?"
"He's a screw-up! He gets everyone around him in trouble! And I don't want anything to happen to my girlfriend because of him!"
On behalf of Seifer's honor as a mercenary, Kelly was a heartbeat away from standing up and cracking Brecht with a hard left hook when Squall finally took notice of what was going on between them. "Hey," he grunted with authority. "Knock it off."
Settling back into her seat, Kelly crossed her arms and looked out the window. Someone like Quistis deserved someone who recognized what she was at her very core — a smart, capable soldier — and wouldn't try to mask that under some fairy tale princess idea of femininity. If she was smart, she'd see what a dead end this relationship with Brecht was and wake up to the possibility standing right in front of her.
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A long map of blue water was spread out on the glossy table in the Deling City Hotel bar between Quistis and her new SeeD teammate, Adrian. Seifer leaned over top of it, a thrilled gleam in his eyes.
"All right." He cracked his knuckles and jabbed one finger down against the map. "This is approximately where the body was picked up by the sailors. Assuming that it had been in the water for four to five days like Kelly thought, and assuming that the body traveled in a constant north westerly direction—"
"Why are we assuming that?" Quistis asked and took a sip of her drink.
"Because there's a big current sweeping through this whole area," Seifer replied, indicating the direction the water flowed on the map. "Goes right from this area down here toward the Centra shore. That's why it's always so nice around the orphanage. Lots of rain and a good cool sea breeze off this current."
"Makes sense to me," Adrian said.
Quistis thought she might have taught Adrian during her one year as an instructor, but she wasn't sure. She knew enough about him from his reputation around Garden to know that he was a good guy though, a solid SeeD who could be relied on. He was a solider, a gladiator, tall and dark and handsome. Together, she knew Seifer and Adrian would make a formidable team full of raw power and strength. It was a good combination for going up against this monster strong against magic. They could fight while Quistis backed them up with casting.
"So, I think we're looking at these group of islands in here," Seifer continued.
"Those are all pretty small," Quistis pointed out. "Wouldn't a big animal like this need a considerable range? More-so than a few square miles, anyway? And we need to remember, the island we're looking for might not even be on a map."
"Doesn't do us much good to consider about that," Seifer replied. "If it's not on one of these maps, then we're not finding it."
Adrian reached around his tall, frosty mug of beer and pointed to a moderate sized island just west of the chain Seifer had indicated. "How about that one? Large enough to support big animals, small enough to be inconspicuous. About five day's journey from shore as the body floats, wouldn't you say?"
It was an odd island, shaped like a crescent.
Quistis shrugged. "Looks good to me. Compared to the rest of them, that one certainly looks like our best shot."
"Okay. I agree." Seifer marked down the latitude and longitude of the island before folding the map back up. "So, when do we leave?"
"We've got to pick up some supplies first," Quistis replied. "We're going to be at sea for a while. And who knows how long we'll be hopping from island to island. Plus, we need to take everything we'll need with us for building a barge."
"A barge?" Adrian asked.
"For bringing back a specimen," she explained. "If we manage to kill one, we're supposed to radio Garden, then ferry the carcass back to Centra, and Cid will set up a temporary base there to examine it."
"I see." Adrian finished off his beer and leaned back in his seat. "Well, I'm ready. Let's get on it."
"Me too," Seifer agreed, finishing his drink as well. "I say we get out of here first thing in the morning."
They had just finished dinner, and the bar in the lower level of the Deling City Hotel was just beginning to come to life around them. The evening's entertainment walked by their table clutching a stack of sheet music in one hand. Her full lips curved sweetly as she passed Adrian.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey to you, too," she replied.
Next to Irvine, Adrian was the biggest player in Garden. Where Irvine had fame he could rely on to snag any woman's attention, Adrian had smooth charm. He always seemed sincere in his compliments and, from what Quistis had heard about him, had never gone more than a few days between conquests. For a second, she caught Seifer regarding him with a mix of admiration and wariness, one alpha male sizing up another.
Men, she thought with a shake of her head.
They both ordered another drink from the bar. Quistis still had half of hers left but could already feel it hitting her — the relaxation, the fuzziness, the warm flush to her cheeks. As a leader, she didn't want to make a fool out of herself by getting smashed before the music even started. It did a moment later, and Adrian craned his head around to look at the dance floor, either looking for a partner or taking a second glance at the singer, Quistis wasn't sure which. It didn't take long before a girl approached him though, and Quistis watched as he took her hand and led her out amongst the other people.
"Like a moth to a flame," Quistis said and took another sip of her drink.
Sitting beside Seifer, she couldn't help but mark the differences between her two partners. Adrian was utterly non-threatening, safe and suave. But Seifer created a visible wake when he walked through a crowd as people scrambled out of his path. His handsome face was almost always twisted into a scowl, driving people away, relishing fear over friendship. Except right now, she realized as she looked up at him. He was a little bit drunk, just enough to soften his expression into something easy and undeniably attractive.
For a while, they sat together drinking, listening to the music, and watching Adrian work his magic on the Galbadian girl.
Then, suddenly, as he sat down his empty glass on the table, Seifer asked, "Wanna dance?"
"What?" Quistis was caught off guard. "You mean…you and me?"
"Yeah. What else would I mean? Come on." He stood up and offered her his hand.
Hesitantly, Quistis took it and let him lead her out onto the dance floor. Maybe she was a little drunk, too, she thought as her heart began to race. The pianist spotted them and smiled, then started a new song, her fingers moving elegantly across the keys as she leaned into the microphone. It was a slow song and across the room, Quistis saw Adrian wrap his arms around his dance partner and kiss her. Quistis jumped when Seifer pulled her close, one of his hands resting on the small of her back.
She'd danced with him before, a long time ago when they'd both been students. But that had been formal dancing full of routine movements and steps. Now he just held her close and swayed slowly to the sluggish, heady beat of the music. They danced like that for half the song before Quistis began to relax. Into the second, she closed her eyes and let herself lean into him. It was hard to think beyond the haze of alcohol in her veins and the singer's sultry voice, but Quistis knew she was enjoying this. Seifer was a good dancer, well trained but there was also something more…something in the way he held her, or the way his shoulder felt under her cheek as she laid her head against him.
Neither of them said anything, but she felt Seifer look down at her. His chin brushed the top of her head. Then his head dropped lower until she felt his breath on her cheek. Quistis didn't mean to grip him a little tighter or press herself a little closer, but she did. The song changed and Seifer led them without pause into the new beat.
I could do this all night, Quistis thought as she let out a relaxed sigh.
They did, until Adrian came by with his date and tapped Seifer on the shoulder, breaking them apart. "I'm heading out," he announced with a wink. "Don't wait up. I'll meet you in the morning."
They went up to their room after that, showered, and went to bed. Quistis was glad that Seifer didn't seem to want to talk, and even more glad when she woke up the next morning feeling content and refreshed, without any hint of a hangover from the far too loose evening she'd had in the hotel bar. Seifer appeared to be feeling just as good and was ready to go before she was. In the lobby, Adrian was waiting for them, a content smile on his face as he finished eating a doughnut he'd gotten from the hotel's breakfast buffet.
"Mind if I head on over to the junk shop first?" Adrian asked as they got out onto the sidewalk. "I'd like to check on a weapon upgrade before we go."
"Sure. We'll be right up the street," Quistis replied.
"Great. Thanks." He flashed her a white grin filled with incredibly perfect teeth and then jogged through traffic to the other side of the street as she and Seifer continued on up the road to the general store.
When Seifer opened the door to the Galbadian shop, a bell tinkled above them, and a little woman peeked out from behind a shelf.
"Can I help you?" she asked, shuffling as quickly as she could to the front of the store on a knee that was evidently stiff and painful. "Here to buy something? Or sell perhaps?"
"We're just going to look around for a bit. Thanks," Quistis answered, grabbing hold of Seifer's arm to steer him away lest he request any sort of assistance from the woman. Quistis had made that mistake in this shop once before only to have the woman follow her through the entire store, spouting long, involved sales pitches for nearly every item.
"Okay. But if you need any help, you let me know," she said, looking a little forlorn.
Seifer grabbed a basket and Quistis followed him to the back of the shop where the healing items were stocked. Rummaging through the shelves, Quistis grabbed everything she thought they could conceivably need. She was on her knees, picking the best phoenix pinions out of a plastic bin on the floor, when Seifer set his now overflowing basket down beside her and asked, "How come you haven't been calling your boyfriend?"
Stunned, Quistis stopped what she was doing and turned to look up at him. "What?"
"When Brecht got off the train, he said that he hadn't heard from you. I know he's been writing you love letters every day, so why haven't you been talking back?"
"I...uh..." She was completely stymied. "I've been busy."
"If I found the time to read his stupid love notes to you, I'd think you'd have been able to find time to respond to them."
Quistis stood up. "Why exactly do you care?"
"I'm just curious."
"Curious. Right." She narrowed her eyes. "If you really have to know, I haven't been writing to or calling Carson because I'm on a mission right now. And I don't like to let personal matters interfere with my work." Not anymore, at least. She'd learned her lesson to keep those things separate after losing her job as an instructor. And she'd never had another adolescent obsession like she'd had back then with Squall. When Carson was out of sight, he was usually out of mind as well. She hadn't been thinking about him at all.
"What's he teach anyway?" Seifer asked as they got back to shopping. "I've got him pegged for something like...Survey of Historical Battles or something."
"He teaches junctioning."
Seifer grunted softly. "Another one of my least favorite classes. All the tables and the magic stats to memorize. Lame."
"What one was your favorite?" she asked.
He smiled. "Yours, of course."
"That wasn't really the impression I got from your behavior," Quistis replied as they headed up toward the register.
"Imagine what I was like for everyone else."
There wasn't any need to. Quistis had heard stories from Xu, and Carson, and a dozen other members of the faculty about Seifer's historic reign as Balamb Garden's resident trouble maker. Maybe she had gotten off easy compared to the other instructors he'd had, though it certainly didn't feel like it at the time. For all the trouble he'd caused back then, she thought he hadn't turned out all that bad. She watched as he gathered up their bags in his arms and pushed the door open for her with his shoulder.
Adrian was waiting outside. He took one of the bags from Seifer and fell into step with them as Quistis continued up the street. All three were completely loaded down with supplies before she was done. They rented a car to transport it all down to the beach and load it into the vessel Squall had dropped off for them - a newer model Garden ship, sleek and sexy and fast. It glinted in the afternoon sunlight as it bobbed in the waves rolling in toward shore.
"Squall was telling me about this ship on the way down," Adrian said as he climbed inside. "It's pretty sweet. Built in navigation, just like the Ragnarok, with fully equipped auto pilot. Built in FH too. All the same technology. And check this out." He walked to the back and pulled open a dark curtain to reveal several bunk beds. "Nice. Huh? All the comforts of home. Plus, this puppy is armed to the teeth. Machine gun mounted up top fires a third faster and with twice the range of the old models."
"It's lovely," Quistis agreed.
"I made a joke about a little bunk bed hanky-panky," Adrian admitted. "It made Instructor Brecht pretty mad. He's really protective of you. Sorry if that cased any trouble."
"He didn't say anything about it," Quistis replied. They hadn't had much time to talk, and what little time they did have he'd spent filling her in on what he'd been doing while she'd been gone.
"That's because he was too busy marking you as his territory," Seifer said. "The asshole did everything but pee on your leg."
They were putting their supplies away, stocking the ship's locking cupboards with canned food and healing items. Quistis slammed one cupboard closed and moved to the next one. "How come all anyone ever wants to talk to me about is Carson?" she asked, irritated both that the subject wouldn't go away and that anyone might think of her as their own personal property.
"Because you're Quistis Trepe," Adrian said. "It's all the Trepies have been talking about since you got together with him. You should see the message boards. Almost every thread is about you and Carson. It's all anyone is talking about. Everyone wants to know the juicy details."
Seifer made a gagging sound. "Juicy and Brecht do not go together."
They both laughed and Quistis walked between them, fuming. The ribbing shouldn't have bothered her, but they were rubbing up against her own unease over the way she'd felt when Carson had ambushed her at the train station. She hadn't been prepared to see him, and she'd been even less prepared for him to kiss her in front of everyone. She wasn't confident enough yet in their relationship to have it displayed in public like that. And it made her mad that he didn't seem to realize how uncomfortable he'd made her.
"You know that he has like…twenty pictures of you in his wallet, right?" Adrian asked.
"No. I didn't know that."
"And did you also know that you are 'frail and sweet and gentle?' Like a flower, he said."
Seifer chuckled. "Hyne. What a sap."
"Guys!" Quistis barked. "Knock it off. All right?"
Looking genuinely apologetic, Adrian said, "We're just teasing. Didn't mean to upset you."
"Well, let's try to get our minds back on track. We're on a mission, and we need to get out of Galbadia soon if we're going to make it to this island sometime in the next week."
Properly cowed, both men looked away from her and got back to work. While they finished putting away the supplies, she sat down in the captain's seat and booted up the onboard navigation. Adrian was right; it was the exact same system they had on the Ragnarok. Easily, Quistis maneuvered through the menus and imputed the coordinates of the island. A pinwheel appeared while the computer plotted a course.
When it was done, a map appeared showing their current position and a solid red line leading south, around Centra, and off into the empty ocean where it eventually stopped at a pinpoint flagged with the island's coordinates. It was a long trip. They'd be at sea for several days just getting there, even in this absurdly fast ship. She plotted in two short stops in Centra to get out and stretch their legs, maybe even refill their water supply, then saved the course.
"We're all set," Seifer said and sat down.
"Anything else you can think of that we need?" Quistis asked. "This is our last brush with civilization here."
Both men shook their heads, so she swiveled around in her chair back to the navigation display. "Then we're off." The engine roared to life and the Galbadian shore line suddenly lurched away.
Off into the unknown.
