Chapter 22 Back Where it Started
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A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, but I had a hard time getting this chapter done. I'm trying to get to the action. LOL.
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Ian watched his team board the Ragnorak. After they were all settled and in the air he started talking. "As you have probably noticed on your papers, the destination was left blank and various other things were vague."
Everyone nodded as he paused. "This is a covert mission. Any information given to you will be on a need to know basis. At the moment we are heading to the Presidential palace in Esthar. We will be meeting with President Loire this morning. That will be our base of operations for the moment. Are there any questions?"
"Yeah" Irvine spoke up, "Isn't the presidential Palace a little bit public for a covert operation?"
"Yes it is. We will be hiding in plain sight. And if," Ian paused looking over at Squall "anyone does ask, well, you're all on vacation, visiting. It's not suspicious for a son and his friends to visit his father. Squall and I have already talked about this as your cover."
"Then why is Seifer with us? Everyone knows he's not a friend," Zell asked. "Won't that blow our cover?" he added snidely.
Quistis looked at Seifer who was sitting across from her to determine his reaction at the harsh words. She saw the arrogant smirk slide over his face, covering up whatever he really felt. 'Oh Zell, how could you?' she groaned inwardly.
"Ouch Zelly, that really hurt," Seifer laughed. "Cant we just be friends," he said sarcastically.
"Enough," Ian said sternly. "You have a valid point, Zell, which I will address in a minute, but first I need to make something clear." He frowned at Zell. "Seifer is on this mission at my request. He knows the man we are going after, and you don't," Ian looked at each of the faces surrounding him. "Whatever personal problems any of you have with Seifer will have to be put on hold until after this mission is over. Do I make myself clear?" Everyone nodded.
"Now, as to your question, Zell," Ian turned to face the younger man "After our meeting with President Loire, Seifer, Quistis and myself will be leaving for the prison, so there shouldn't be any problems in Esthar." All eyes swung to him in surprise.
"What!" Seifer was the only one to say anything.
Ian held up a hand, "I know you probably don't want to go back there Seifer, but there is unfinished business we need to take care of. We'll talk about it later."
"Sir" the pilot interrupted "we will be landing in a few minutes."
Ian turned in his seat to look at the pilot. "Thank you" he said then turned back to the others.
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It was still dark when the Ragnorak landed at the outskirts of the city. The group was transported to the Presidential Palace without incident and was now waiting in one of the plush conference rooms, for the President.
When the door opened, all eyes swung towards it. In walked President Loire, accompanied by two other men. He smiled at the people seated around the table before speaking "Good morning, shall we begin."
Laguna sat down at the head of the table. "This is," he gestured to the man on his left "Lt. Forbes. He is with Esthar Intelligence." Lt. Forbes nodded to the others then sat down next to Ian. "And this," Laguna continued, gesturing to the other man that had come in with him "is my personal aide, Ramiro Payton. You may talk freely around these men."
Seifer leaned back in his chair. 'This is gonna be a long morning,' he thought.
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He'd been right. The meeting had droned on and on. But by midmorning Seifer was back once again on the Ragnorak. Waiting to go to the one place he never wanted to see again. He looked up as Quistis sat down next to him.
"Hi," she said smiling. 'If he's nervous about all this, he sure doesn't show it' Quistis thought
"Hey," Seifer returned the greeting. Reaching over he laced his fingers with hers. "Hyne, that Laguna sure can talk. I thought I was gonna die of boredom after the third time we went over it." He paused, looking out the window, "And the stories…what does going on a T-rexaur hunt have to do with this, anyway?"
Quistis laughed, "You know how he is. At least we aren't the ones that have to stay and listen to more stories." Turning serious, she looked at Seifer "Are you OK with all this, Seifer?"
"I am now that I know what we're going to do," he answered. Seifer let go of Quistis's hand when Ian and the pilot came aboard. He was ready to get this over with.
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Seifer stopped at the gate and looked up at the prison. A cold chill past over him as memories ran through his mind.
"Ready?" Ian asked, stopping beside him.
Seifer looked at the other man, a frosty look in his emerald eyes and answered, "As I'll ever be."
Three people stood waiting as the gate slowly swung open, each hating this place for reasons that were different yet so much alike.
Quistis followed as Seifer and Ian entered the courtyard and walked to the main entrance. She watched Seifer nervously when they entered the building, waiting for some reaction from him. She could see how stiff he was carrying himself.
Seifer turned to wait for Quistis to catch up and gave her a slight smile at the questioning look in her eyes. "You coming?" he asked.
"Yeah," she answered. Looking around she was relieved to see that none of the people moving about the offices were familiar to her, from her last visit.
Ian stopped and began talking to one of the new guards. He motioned for Seifer and Quistis to join him.
"…men with him when he pulled out." Quistis heard the guard say when she was close enough.
"I was told that you had captured some of them, and were holding them here," Ian said.
"Yes sir, that's true. We managed to capture two men," the guard informed Ian.
"Well we're here to interrogate the prisoners." Ian handed him some paperwork.
After looking it over he nodded "This way, Agent Anders. We were told to expect you."
The guard led them further into the prison. "I'll need you to remove any weapons that you're carrying and leave them here," the guard told them.
Quistis took off her whip and laid it on the table. She watched Ian as he took his glock out of his shoulder holster and lay it beside her weapon then reached down to remove a knife strapped at his ankle.
She turned to say something to Seifer and stopped, her eyes widening in surprise. "Where did you find it?" Quistis asked. She hadn't noticed Seifer wearing Hyperion under his trench coat.
Seifer looked over at her "I meant to tell you but other thing kept coming up and I forgot. Fujin had it. She and Raijin found it after…" he paused and looked around the room "…I was brought here. She took care of it for me and when I came back to Garden, gave it to me."
He lay Hyperion down on the table then looked at the guard. "If anybody touches my weapon…" he gave the guard an evil smile, "well lets just say nobody wants to find out what would happen."
The guard assured them nothing would happen to their belongings then led them out and through the first security door. When the bars clanged closed behind them, Quistis saw Seifer jump.
Seifer reached up and wiped the sweat that had formed on his forehead away. 'I'm not a prisoner. I can leave anytime,' he reminded himself as he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and took a deep breath to calm his racing heart.
A hand gently brushing his arm and a familiar scent helped steady him, then he heard her ask "you alright?"
Seifer opened his eyes to look at her and smiled "I am now." Seifer took Quistis's hand and hurried to catch Ian and the guard, up ahead.
The group worked their way through the prison until they stood outside a closed door. Stopping, the guard motioned to the door. "You will interrogate the prisoners in here. One of the men has already been brought in and is waiting. There is a phone in the interrogation room and if you need anything just call. I will be at your service." With that said, he turned and walked down the hall.
Ian looked at Seifer and Quistis and said "time to go to work." He opened the door and the three of them went inside.
The first thing Seifer saw was a man with his arms shackled above his head. This looked too familiar to Seifer and for a moment he thought he wouldn't be able to breath, but when the man turned his head, Seifer's blood ran cold.
Ian saw the recognition on Seifer's face and walked up behind him. "Go ahead, Seifer," Ian told him.
Seifer stepped out of the shadows where the prisoner could see him. The man warily lifted his head to look at his interrogator and froze in fear.
"Well O'Neil," Seifer smirked at the man "Things DO look different from the other side."
"Almasy" the prisoner whispered.
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Thank you for all the great reviews. They're what keeps me working to get this story finished. I have an idea for another Seiftis/Queifer story but I'm going to make myself finish this first.
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A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, but I had a hard time getting this chapter done. I'm trying to get to the action. LOL.
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Ian watched his team board the Ragnorak. After they were all settled and in the air he started talking. "As you have probably noticed on your papers, the destination was left blank and various other things were vague."
Everyone nodded as he paused. "This is a covert mission. Any information given to you will be on a need to know basis. At the moment we are heading to the Presidential palace in Esthar. We will be meeting with President Loire this morning. That will be our base of operations for the moment. Are there any questions?"
"Yeah" Irvine spoke up, "Isn't the presidential Palace a little bit public for a covert operation?"
"Yes it is. We will be hiding in plain sight. And if," Ian paused looking over at Squall "anyone does ask, well, you're all on vacation, visiting. It's not suspicious for a son and his friends to visit his father. Squall and I have already talked about this as your cover."
"Then why is Seifer with us? Everyone knows he's not a friend," Zell asked. "Won't that blow our cover?" he added snidely.
Quistis looked at Seifer who was sitting across from her to determine his reaction at the harsh words. She saw the arrogant smirk slide over his face, covering up whatever he really felt. 'Oh Zell, how could you?' she groaned inwardly.
"Ouch Zelly, that really hurt," Seifer laughed. "Cant we just be friends," he said sarcastically.
"Enough," Ian said sternly. "You have a valid point, Zell, which I will address in a minute, but first I need to make something clear." He frowned at Zell. "Seifer is on this mission at my request. He knows the man we are going after, and you don't," Ian looked at each of the faces surrounding him. "Whatever personal problems any of you have with Seifer will have to be put on hold until after this mission is over. Do I make myself clear?" Everyone nodded.
"Now, as to your question, Zell," Ian turned to face the younger man "After our meeting with President Loire, Seifer, Quistis and myself will be leaving for the prison, so there shouldn't be any problems in Esthar." All eyes swung to him in surprise.
"What!" Seifer was the only one to say anything.
Ian held up a hand, "I know you probably don't want to go back there Seifer, but there is unfinished business we need to take care of. We'll talk about it later."
"Sir" the pilot interrupted "we will be landing in a few minutes."
Ian turned in his seat to look at the pilot. "Thank you" he said then turned back to the others.
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It was still dark when the Ragnorak landed at the outskirts of the city. The group was transported to the Presidential Palace without incident and was now waiting in one of the plush conference rooms, for the President.
When the door opened, all eyes swung towards it. In walked President Loire, accompanied by two other men. He smiled at the people seated around the table before speaking "Good morning, shall we begin."
Laguna sat down at the head of the table. "This is," he gestured to the man on his left "Lt. Forbes. He is with Esthar Intelligence." Lt. Forbes nodded to the others then sat down next to Ian. "And this," Laguna continued, gesturing to the other man that had come in with him "is my personal aide, Ramiro Payton. You may talk freely around these men."
Seifer leaned back in his chair. 'This is gonna be a long morning,' he thought.
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He'd been right. The meeting had droned on and on. But by midmorning Seifer was back once again on the Ragnorak. Waiting to go to the one place he never wanted to see again. He looked up as Quistis sat down next to him.
"Hi," she said smiling. 'If he's nervous about all this, he sure doesn't show it' Quistis thought
"Hey," Seifer returned the greeting. Reaching over he laced his fingers with hers. "Hyne, that Laguna sure can talk. I thought I was gonna die of boredom after the third time we went over it." He paused, looking out the window, "And the stories…what does going on a T-rexaur hunt have to do with this, anyway?"
Quistis laughed, "You know how he is. At least we aren't the ones that have to stay and listen to more stories." Turning serious, she looked at Seifer "Are you OK with all this, Seifer?"
"I am now that I know what we're going to do," he answered. Seifer let go of Quistis's hand when Ian and the pilot came aboard. He was ready to get this over with.
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Seifer stopped at the gate and looked up at the prison. A cold chill past over him as memories ran through his mind.
"Ready?" Ian asked, stopping beside him.
Seifer looked at the other man, a frosty look in his emerald eyes and answered, "As I'll ever be."
Three people stood waiting as the gate slowly swung open, each hating this place for reasons that were different yet so much alike.
Quistis followed as Seifer and Ian entered the courtyard and walked to the main entrance. She watched Seifer nervously when they entered the building, waiting for some reaction from him. She could see how stiff he was carrying himself.
Seifer turned to wait for Quistis to catch up and gave her a slight smile at the questioning look in her eyes. "You coming?" he asked.
"Yeah," she answered. Looking around she was relieved to see that none of the people moving about the offices were familiar to her, from her last visit.
Ian stopped and began talking to one of the new guards. He motioned for Seifer and Quistis to join him.
"…men with him when he pulled out." Quistis heard the guard say when she was close enough.
"I was told that you had captured some of them, and were holding them here," Ian said.
"Yes sir, that's true. We managed to capture two men," the guard informed Ian.
"Well we're here to interrogate the prisoners." Ian handed him some paperwork.
After looking it over he nodded "This way, Agent Anders. We were told to expect you."
The guard led them further into the prison. "I'll need you to remove any weapons that you're carrying and leave them here," the guard told them.
Quistis took off her whip and laid it on the table. She watched Ian as he took his glock out of his shoulder holster and lay it beside her weapon then reached down to remove a knife strapped at his ankle.
She turned to say something to Seifer and stopped, her eyes widening in surprise. "Where did you find it?" Quistis asked. She hadn't noticed Seifer wearing Hyperion under his trench coat.
Seifer looked over at her "I meant to tell you but other thing kept coming up and I forgot. Fujin had it. She and Raijin found it after…" he paused and looked around the room "…I was brought here. She took care of it for me and when I came back to Garden, gave it to me."
He lay Hyperion down on the table then looked at the guard. "If anybody touches my weapon…" he gave the guard an evil smile, "well lets just say nobody wants to find out what would happen."
The guard assured them nothing would happen to their belongings then led them out and through the first security door. When the bars clanged closed behind them, Quistis saw Seifer jump.
Seifer reached up and wiped the sweat that had formed on his forehead away. 'I'm not a prisoner. I can leave anytime,' he reminded himself as he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and took a deep breath to calm his racing heart.
A hand gently brushing his arm and a familiar scent helped steady him, then he heard her ask "you alright?"
Seifer opened his eyes to look at her and smiled "I am now." Seifer took Quistis's hand and hurried to catch Ian and the guard, up ahead.
The group worked their way through the prison until they stood outside a closed door. Stopping, the guard motioned to the door. "You will interrogate the prisoners in here. One of the men has already been brought in and is waiting. There is a phone in the interrogation room and if you need anything just call. I will be at your service." With that said, he turned and walked down the hall.
Ian looked at Seifer and Quistis and said "time to go to work." He opened the door and the three of them went inside.
The first thing Seifer saw was a man with his arms shackled above his head. This looked too familiar to Seifer and for a moment he thought he wouldn't be able to breath, but when the man turned his head, Seifer's blood ran cold.
Ian saw the recognition on Seifer's face and walked up behind him. "Go ahead, Seifer," Ian told him.
Seifer stepped out of the shadows where the prisoner could see him. The man warily lifted his head to look at his interrogator and froze in fear.
"Well O'Neil," Seifer smirked at the man "Things DO look different from the other side."
"Almasy" the prisoner whispered.
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Thank you for all the great reviews. They're what keeps me working to get this story finished. I have an idea for another Seiftis/Queifer story but I'm going to make myself finish this first.
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