Author's Note: I'm back! And with a kick-ass, action packed chapter!
This is a really long chapter . . . over 4,000 words . . . but worth it,
every single word!
Read and enjoy, oh fic lovers!
Chapter 4 - The SeeD Test
"Right everyone! Move out!" Squall ordered, and the group split into their respective groups.
"Be careful, and good luck, everyone!" Zephyr called to her fellow candidates as everyone spread out. She was acknowledged by a wave from Makhir and Lance, and snort from Rey, as if to say, 'I don't need luck!'
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Groups D and E loaded onto the airship, and the airlift started without a hitch.
"Right, what exactly is going to happen is this. Nida will drop Irvine and Makhir off at the rendezvous point, then he will take Group E to our drop point. He will fly in at a low altitude, and we'll jump off and start our raid to get Caraway out of there. Then Nida will return to give you guys any assistance you might need. Got it?" No one responded, and Squall assumed that this information had sunk in. "Good. Zephyr, Rey, will you guys be okay without anything to lighten the landing? The less attention we draw to ourselves the better, but safety is our first priority."
"I'm fine, sir," Zephyr responded respectfully.
"I don't need anything either," Rey confirmed in a tone that almost reminded Squall of Seifer. That was one of the reasons that Squall had kept Rey with him: to keep an eye on him. No doubt he had amazing potential, but he didn't care for the boy's disrespectfulness or flippancy about battle.
"Good. Here, Zephyr, I want you to have this communicator." Squall tossed Zephyr a headset that was composed of an earpiece and tiny microphone. "That's our only line to the other groups. Be careful with it. I don't want us to be left without any communication to our allies."
"Yes, sir." Zephyr realized what a responsibility it was for Squall to have given her this headset.
"And Makhir, you take your group's. I trust you both know how to use them." Squall tossed Makhir an identical headset, and he nodded as he adjusted it. "Right, then. Sit back and relax until out part of the mission comes."
But no one had an easy time in doing so. The candidates were nervous about their first real mission, and the SeeD's knew that this was a very important mission. If they failed, they could have real troubles in the imminent upcoming war with Galbadia. And no one wanted it to turn out like the last Sorceress War.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"20 15. It's time to roll! Marissa, you got the headset up and running?" Xu inquired.
"Yes ma'am."
"Then inform the other groups that we're beginning."
Marissa did so, and Sonya, Lance, Makhir and Zephyr relayed the information to their group leaders. The mission had now begun.
Rinoa started it by melting the big metal gates that had been built with a Firaga. The guards from the gatehouse rushed out and assaulted the team, but Sean blasted them away with a Thundara before they could raise the alert.
The magical battle raged on fiercely, the attackers having no problem with the defenders of the town. That is, until one soldier managed to get away, and call for more reinforcements. Soldiers started to stream down the streets that hadn't already been cleared.
"Marissa! That's our cue! Now that things have started to get rough, call the others! Tell them what's going on!"
Marissa obeyed, and soon the whole force was aware that Group A was starting to have some difficulties. The time was only 20 35.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Zell! Group A are having problems! We have to go in there and help them!"
Zell checked his watch, which was set at the exact time as all the other group leaders' were. "We can't yet! They have to rough it out there for at least 5 more minutes! Squall has this timed so that his group will be going in when they are off their guard the most. They will be expecting reinforcements now. No matter how hard it is, we have to sit here and wait until the allotted time, or until Squall gives us a direct order." He looked over at Lance and Sara's agonized faces. "Sorry, guys, but that's the way it goes. Do you want to be marked down for insubordination?"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Hey guys, I'm having troubles here!" Rinoa was rapidly tiring. Maybe she shouldn't have accepted this mission when she knew she was pregnant. Her breath was shallow, and she was having troubles calling up the energy necessary to use her spells.
The attackers had been forced into a ring by sheer numbers, and were now having to fight hand-to-hand combat as well as casting spells whenever they got a chance. A Galbadian soldier started rushing towards Rinoa. She raised her projectile weapon and let it fly, but the soldier dodged around its path, and instead of being impaled, it just grazed his chest. Rinoa knew that it would take a few seconds for the magically enhanced projectile to return to her, and she didn't have the strength to cast a spell. She knew that she had ended it for herself, her and her stupidity.
"Instructor!" Marissa yelled. Rinoa was like a big sister to her. She couldn't let her get hurt!
Marissa didn't even know what was happening, but she felt an enormous amount of energy surge up inside of her. She couldn't control what was happening. All she knew was that she couldn't let Rinoa get hurt. The energy that had amassed pushed her off the ground about 6 inches. It was then that she realized that she, and her friends, were at the mercy of whatever was happening to her. She let a single tear drip down her face at the thought of what might happen to everyone just because she was foolish enough to let her powers get out of control . . . again.
Before anyone had realized what had happened, the energy exploded away from Marissa in a huge wave around her that kept going, and going . . . and going . . . The headset that Marissa was wearing exploded at the enormous amount of energy that had just passed through it. Marissa opened her eyes to see dead soldiers everywhere, but not one of her friends was hurt. She smiled slightly, before her eyes fluttered shut, and she fainted. Sean caught her before she could hit the ground.
"Rinoa, have you ever seen anything like that? What was that spell?" Xu asked the one person who knew more about advanced magic than she did.
"That," Rinoa replied, "was Holy. I didn't even teach her how to use Holy! And somehow she was able to direct her magic to attack the soldiers, but to leave us alone. That in itself is very advanced magic, even with a simple Fire spell. I don't know how she did it."
"Well, either way, she's too exhausted to do more, and so are you Rinoa. Take her and get back on the ship." Rinoa wasn't happy with Xu's verdict, but she knew that someone had to take care of Marissa, and right now, Sean was more of a help on the battlefield. She relented, and took Marissa's limp form from Sean. She was amazed at how light Marissa weighed. Even in her tired state, it seemed like she weighed no more than a feather.
She ran as fast as she could out of the town with her precious load.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr stifled an oath as the earpiece crackled loudly in her ear. Irvine and Makhir had already left to find the remaining resistance troops, while her group was waiting on Squall's order to start the lift into the town.
"What's wrong, Zephyr?" Squall asked.
"Marissa?" Zephyr said down the microphone. No response. "Marissa?" Still no response. "Marissa! Respond, Marissa!" No voice responded. Zephyr hung her head, knowing how Squall would react to the news. His wife was in that group, after all.
"Uh, sir, I've lost all connection to Group A."
"Shit!" Squall glanced at his watch. 20 42. "Damn it. Here, give me that communicator."
Zephyr handed over the headset, and immediately, without even adjusting it, Squall talked into the microphone. "Groups B and C advance now!" He handed the set back to Zephyr and started pacing impatiently.
"Do you want to start the airlift now?"
"No, Nida. We have to give Groups B and C time to draw away troops. If we don't, then it's all pointless. Sometimes we have to put the mission before out personal feelings." He said that last sentence more to himself than to the rest of the group, as if he was trying to convince himself of the statement's truth.
"Yes, sir."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Groups B and C advance now!" Squall's voice came through the headset.
"Zell, that's our cue. Squall just ordered us all to move out before schedule," Lance relayed to the group.
"Right. Nervous?" Both Lance and Sara nodded the affirmative. "Good. You should be. But don't worry. Remember all we've leaned in class, and keep a cool head and you'll both be fine." He ruffled Sara's hair affectionately and punched Lance playfully.
"Now let's get out there and kick some ass!"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Groups B and C advance now!" Sonya heard Squall's order through the headset.
"Instructor Trepe, we've just been given the order to advance."
"Are you sure?" Quistis questioned, glancing at her watch. "It's not time yet."
"Yes ma'am. I know what I heard."
"Right then. Let's go, girls!"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zell, Lance and Sara easily took care of any soldiers that came their way. Under Zell's order, they managed to find their way to where Sean and Xu were fighting, now exhausted by their constant use of magic. None of them saw Marissa or Rinoa. But they all saw the devastation caused by Marissa's Holy.
"Hey, Xu!" Zell yelled over to the team leader. "Where are Rinoa and Marissa?"
"Back on the ship."
"What the hell happened here?"
"Long story, Zell. Cover us for a while, will you? We're both exhausted. Magic takes a lot out of you, you know."
The flow of soldiers seemed to have slowed down. A majority of them had been taken out by Marissa's Holy. They had no trouble finishing the soldiers that came their way. Time: 21 13.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
The airlift had already started, and Zephyr was sitting down nervously. She contacted everyone she could one last time before they headed in, then reported back to Squall.
"It sounds like most of the soldiers have been taken care of. Group C joined up with Group A, and Lance told me to tell you that Instructor Leonheart is safe, as well as the rest of the group. Group D is finding little resistance from that sector of the town, and Group B is hunting down stragglers in their sector."
"Sounds too easy to me," Squall stated.
"What?! We're about to take over the whole damn place and you think it's too easy?! What are you, some suicidal maniac?" Rey burst out.
"No, actually, I'm not. But think of this: Caraway was one of their top prisoners, but he escaped. When they had the chance to take him back, they did so with enormous amounts of force. Now he's under top security until he can be executed. Does it sound like 8 SeeD's and 8 candidates for SeeD would be able to take down the whole operation there? We may be combat specialists, but we have to be realists. Either there's something we don't know about, or there are a bunch more soldiers hiding down in that town. Maybe both. Never get complacent, Rey. There's a lot more to being a SeeD than just running around waving your weapon at people. Remember that."
"Yes, sir," Rey replied reluctantly.
"Squall!" Nida's voice came through a speaker. "We're almost over your drop point. I suggest you guys head to the door. I'm only going to make one pass. More than one is risky for all of us. So I suggest you don't miss it."
"Right. Thanks Nida," Squall replied. Then he turned his attention to the candidates. "Come on. Nida's right. We're going to have to be ready."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Now Squall! These are the coordinates!" Nida's voice could barely be heard over the whipping of the wind through the open door.
"Zephyr, you first. Then you, Rey. I'll follow you guys. Make sure you clear the area before we move on. Quickly, Zephyr!"
She nodded curtly, then jumped out of the open door. Her pistols were in her hands before she hit the ground. She bent her knees and rolled once she hit the ground to soften the impact. She was back on her feet in an instant, and had to let off a couple shots to get rid of some soldiers who had been drawn by the commotion.
She covered Rey's back as he fell, unsheathing his knives as he came down. He failed to roll as he hit the ground. "Damn," he swore, even as he was checking his ankles gingerly, "that hurt."
"Why am I not surprised?"
"Oh, shut up, Little Miss Perfect!"
Squall landed with a roll between next to the two mildly bickering students. "Zephyr, inform them that we've landed and are going in to rescue Caraway," he ordered without any adieu. Zephyr followed orders even as they ran through the streets towards the place where they were keeping Caraway.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Great, this is just great!" Rey was complaining as he spun around and thrust one of his knives up to the hilt into a soldier's heart.
"Shut up and concentrate on the fight, you idiot!" Zephyr was starting to get exasperated with his constant whining and complaining. She let off a shot to her right, which landed between the soldier's eyes. She turned and ducked under an incoming gunblade, flipped her gun around so the handle was pointed up, then delivered an uppercut to the soldier's jaw, effectively knocking him unconscious.
"I think that's the last," Zephyr heard Squall comment calmly. She looked over to find 6 or 7 soldiers dead around his feet. She whistled softly through her teeth at his fighting abilities. And she hadn't even been watching him.
"Move out! The compound is right over there." Squall pointed to what appeared to be an Inn.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"This has been a cinch," Rey commented as they stood outside the door where Caraway was being held, even though they had left a trail of dead bodies in their wake.
"I agree. This has been far too simple. They've got some plan up their sleeves. Be careful. It's probably a trap," Squall cautioned. He reached out to open the door. But the knob wouldn't turn. He tried again, but nothing worked. He even tried to break down the door, but even that didn't yield any results. He cursed vilely, and banged his fist against the door in frustration. Then he turned to Zephyr.
"See if you can get anyone to hack into the computer system here. That's what's keeping this door closed. If we can get the system broken wide open, then this door is going down."
She talked down into the microphone, hunting in the databanks of her mind for someone that could do a hacking job like that. Then it hit her. "Hey, Lance, I have a question for you. How good are you at hacking?"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Hey, Lance, I have a question for you. How good are you at hacking?" Lance heard Zephyr's voice through the earpiece.
"How good do you need me to be?" he asked in reply.
"Good enough to hack into the town's computer system and break down the locks to any door in the Inn where they're keeping Caraway."
"Run into problems brawn can't handle?"
"Would I be calling you otherwise? Now quit sharpening your wit and start hacking!"
"Yes, ma'am. It might take me a couple minutes, though. I don't know how tough the system here's going to be." He took his laptop out of its satchel and attached it to his cell phone to access the world network.
"But you can do it, right?" Zephyr asked nervously.
"If you need me to do it, I'll get it done."
After about five minutes that were intensely frustrating for Lance, and agonizingly slow for Zephyr, he cried out in triumph. "Ha! I got it! See if the door will open now."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Sir, try the door again. Lance thinks he's cracked the code."
Squall put his hand on the knob and turned it. The door opened. Squall, Zephyr and Rey walked in cautiously.
Caraway was tied and gagged, sitting at a table. The only other thing in the room was a briefcase and a note on the table. They walked over to the table, suspecting a trap. Squall picked up the unconscious Caraway, and slung him over his shoulder.
"You guys are going to have to cover me on the way back. I can't fight with this big boy over my shoulder," Squall instructed the two candidates.
Zephyr was staring at the note. "Uh, sir, I think we have another problem . . ." She pointed to the note.
Squall looked down to read it. " 'Good job, you've found Caraway. I congratulate you. But you're not clear yet. Look at the briefcase. In actuality, it is a bomb, set to go off 15 minutes after you open the door. Open the case, and it explodes. Have fun!' Damn! It was a trap! 15 minutes, that means we've probably only got 13 now." He sighed as he tried to think of a solution. "Zephyr, take a look at the wires. How long will it take you to deactivate it?"
After getting to the bomb through the bottom of the case and examining the undistinguishable tangle of wires, Zephyr shook her head. "More time than we have, sir."
"Damn! We have to get out of here. And we have to do something about that bomb. If we don't, then all the innocent bystanders here will be killed in the explosion."
"Uh, sir," Rey spoke up quietly, "I have an idea. You and Zephyr will have to take Caraway back, and I'll get rid of the bomb."
"How are you going to do that?" Squall inquired.
"I'll steal a car and get it to the coast. Then I'll throw it in the ocean, and watch an explosion of water when time's up. Of course, I might not get there fast enough, so I want to make sure no one else gets hurt . . ." Rey's voice trailed off. It was apparent he didn't want to go down that train of thought.
"Are you sure?" Squall asked. Rey nodded the affirmative. "Then go. Be quick. And come back alive. That's an order."
"Yes, sir!" With that, Rey grabbed the bomb and ran out of the room as quickly as he could.
"Do you think he'll pull it off?" Zephyr asked Squall.
"If I didn't think he could, I wouldn't have sent him. He does hold the Balamb record for speed driving, after all." Zephyr laughed sadly, even as Squall urged her out of the door. "Come on, we have to get Caraway out."
Time: 21 40
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr and Squall ran through a rain of bullets as they were assaulted on their way back.
"Do you think they know that there's a bomb out there that would easily destroy them all if they manage to get Rey?" Zephyr asked before she turned around and fired the last of her shots. She jettisoned the empty canisters, and reloaded with fresh ones.
"I don't know, but either way I hope he gets back okay. He'll make a fine SeeD, once we get him to get a little more serious . . . Now come on, we've only get 5 minutes before that bomb goes off. We have to run faster or we're not going to make it!"
Zephyr called the rest of the groups to check their progress. "Commander, all other groups have left the perimeters of the town, and Group D have started their airlift back."
"Good. Now we can put our full attention to the task at hand."
More rounds were fired by Galbadian soldiers. Zephyr cried out in pain as she took a bullet to the back of her thigh. She turned and returned fire, smirking when one soldier went down for every shot she fired. She smile changed to a frown when she checked her bullets. She was quickly running out of ammo.
She ran to catch back up to Squall. Her thigh burned like fire with every step. She knew she couldn't keep it up for much longer, definitely not enough to get her back to the shore.
"Commander! You have to go! I can't run like this! You have to get Caraway out of here!"
"I can't just leave you here!"
"Don't worry, I have a plan. Now go! You may lose your only chance to get him out of here safely!" Squall gave a silent nod and sprinted away into the town, towards the beach even as Zephyr was contacting Makhir on the headset.
"Hey, Makhir, I have a favor to ask you . . ."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Rey drove like a manic through Dollet. Soldiers fired pot shots at him, or tried to take out the tires of his vehicle. He had found a revolver in the back seat of the car and was now driving with one hand, taking out as many soldiers as he could with the revolver in the other. He missed more than he hit, though. He had never really been taught gun handling.
He managed to reach the outskirts of Dollet as the ticking in the passenger seat grew louder, as if to remind him all the more the time limit set on this journey. He saw a fishing dock, and drove full speed down it.
Time: 21 52
00 30 until detonation
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr waited in tense anticipation for the airship to appear. She hoped that Makhir had managed to get Nida to help her, but she knew that Nida was a stick for rules . . . She had already taken another three shots, luckily all in unimportant places that would still allow her to fight. As soldiers started to close in on her, she shot the very last of her ammo into the hearts of two Galbadian soldiers. She flipped the twin pistols around, ready for hand-to-hand combat, and looked up to the sky to check one last time.
She breathed a sigh of relief as the welcome sight of the airship, complete with hanging rope ladder approached. "Thank you!" she prayed quietly. She didn't think an airship would ever be so inviting.
She briefly heard Makhir's voice in her earphone, "We're only going to be able to make one pass, so don't miss that ladder!"
She smiled at the irony of that last statement, then caught hold of the ladder as it came by. As soon as she had a firm grip, Nida raised the airship higher, out of range of the soldiers who were still firing at anything in their reach.
Zephyr spoke into the microphone, "Hey, Makhir, I have another favor to ask. Could you come down and help me? I don't think I can climb up . . ."
Makhir glanced at Irvine, who was kneeling beside him at the open door. "Did you see how badly she was wounded?" he asked the candidate. "She could hardly even stand, but she was still fighting. And now, look! Her grip is starting to slip, I can see it. You better get down there and help her, or I'm not going to be the only one mad at you!"
Without responding, Makhir scrambled down the ladder like a monkey to Zephyr's level. He grabbed her around her waist and held her close to him. "Thanks, Makhir. I owe you one," she said quietly before she passed out.
Makhir took a quick glance out towards the ocean before yelling up at Irvine to haul the ladder in. He saw a car clocking more than 70 m/h drive out onto a fishing dock. At the last second, the driver jumped out and rolled onto the dock before jumping up and running towards where the ship was stationed at the beach. Several seconds later, a huge mushroom of water sprayed up from where the car had driven off the dock.
Mission complete.
Author's Note: Mwahahaha! Take that, evil Galbadian army. You got creamed again! Mwahahahaha! Hope you all liked! What's gonna happen? Who's going to pass? Speculations to the answers of these questions, and anything else you might think will happen is greatly appreciated in your reviews! See ya, and have a happy easter!
Read and enjoy, oh fic lovers!
Chapter 4 - The SeeD Test
"Right everyone! Move out!" Squall ordered, and the group split into their respective groups.
"Be careful, and good luck, everyone!" Zephyr called to her fellow candidates as everyone spread out. She was acknowledged by a wave from Makhir and Lance, and snort from Rey, as if to say, 'I don't need luck!'
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Groups D and E loaded onto the airship, and the airlift started without a hitch.
"Right, what exactly is going to happen is this. Nida will drop Irvine and Makhir off at the rendezvous point, then he will take Group E to our drop point. He will fly in at a low altitude, and we'll jump off and start our raid to get Caraway out of there. Then Nida will return to give you guys any assistance you might need. Got it?" No one responded, and Squall assumed that this information had sunk in. "Good. Zephyr, Rey, will you guys be okay without anything to lighten the landing? The less attention we draw to ourselves the better, but safety is our first priority."
"I'm fine, sir," Zephyr responded respectfully.
"I don't need anything either," Rey confirmed in a tone that almost reminded Squall of Seifer. That was one of the reasons that Squall had kept Rey with him: to keep an eye on him. No doubt he had amazing potential, but he didn't care for the boy's disrespectfulness or flippancy about battle.
"Good. Here, Zephyr, I want you to have this communicator." Squall tossed Zephyr a headset that was composed of an earpiece and tiny microphone. "That's our only line to the other groups. Be careful with it. I don't want us to be left without any communication to our allies."
"Yes, sir." Zephyr realized what a responsibility it was for Squall to have given her this headset.
"And Makhir, you take your group's. I trust you both know how to use them." Squall tossed Makhir an identical headset, and he nodded as he adjusted it. "Right, then. Sit back and relax until out part of the mission comes."
But no one had an easy time in doing so. The candidates were nervous about their first real mission, and the SeeD's knew that this was a very important mission. If they failed, they could have real troubles in the imminent upcoming war with Galbadia. And no one wanted it to turn out like the last Sorceress War.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"20 15. It's time to roll! Marissa, you got the headset up and running?" Xu inquired.
"Yes ma'am."
"Then inform the other groups that we're beginning."
Marissa did so, and Sonya, Lance, Makhir and Zephyr relayed the information to their group leaders. The mission had now begun.
Rinoa started it by melting the big metal gates that had been built with a Firaga. The guards from the gatehouse rushed out and assaulted the team, but Sean blasted them away with a Thundara before they could raise the alert.
The magical battle raged on fiercely, the attackers having no problem with the defenders of the town. That is, until one soldier managed to get away, and call for more reinforcements. Soldiers started to stream down the streets that hadn't already been cleared.
"Marissa! That's our cue! Now that things have started to get rough, call the others! Tell them what's going on!"
Marissa obeyed, and soon the whole force was aware that Group A was starting to have some difficulties. The time was only 20 35.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Zell! Group A are having problems! We have to go in there and help them!"
Zell checked his watch, which was set at the exact time as all the other group leaders' were. "We can't yet! They have to rough it out there for at least 5 more minutes! Squall has this timed so that his group will be going in when they are off their guard the most. They will be expecting reinforcements now. No matter how hard it is, we have to sit here and wait until the allotted time, or until Squall gives us a direct order." He looked over at Lance and Sara's agonized faces. "Sorry, guys, but that's the way it goes. Do you want to be marked down for insubordination?"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Hey guys, I'm having troubles here!" Rinoa was rapidly tiring. Maybe she shouldn't have accepted this mission when she knew she was pregnant. Her breath was shallow, and she was having troubles calling up the energy necessary to use her spells.
The attackers had been forced into a ring by sheer numbers, and were now having to fight hand-to-hand combat as well as casting spells whenever they got a chance. A Galbadian soldier started rushing towards Rinoa. She raised her projectile weapon and let it fly, but the soldier dodged around its path, and instead of being impaled, it just grazed his chest. Rinoa knew that it would take a few seconds for the magically enhanced projectile to return to her, and she didn't have the strength to cast a spell. She knew that she had ended it for herself, her and her stupidity.
"Instructor!" Marissa yelled. Rinoa was like a big sister to her. She couldn't let her get hurt!
Marissa didn't even know what was happening, but she felt an enormous amount of energy surge up inside of her. She couldn't control what was happening. All she knew was that she couldn't let Rinoa get hurt. The energy that had amassed pushed her off the ground about 6 inches. It was then that she realized that she, and her friends, were at the mercy of whatever was happening to her. She let a single tear drip down her face at the thought of what might happen to everyone just because she was foolish enough to let her powers get out of control . . . again.
Before anyone had realized what had happened, the energy exploded away from Marissa in a huge wave around her that kept going, and going . . . and going . . . The headset that Marissa was wearing exploded at the enormous amount of energy that had just passed through it. Marissa opened her eyes to see dead soldiers everywhere, but not one of her friends was hurt. She smiled slightly, before her eyes fluttered shut, and she fainted. Sean caught her before she could hit the ground.
"Rinoa, have you ever seen anything like that? What was that spell?" Xu asked the one person who knew more about advanced magic than she did.
"That," Rinoa replied, "was Holy. I didn't even teach her how to use Holy! And somehow she was able to direct her magic to attack the soldiers, but to leave us alone. That in itself is very advanced magic, even with a simple Fire spell. I don't know how she did it."
"Well, either way, she's too exhausted to do more, and so are you Rinoa. Take her and get back on the ship." Rinoa wasn't happy with Xu's verdict, but she knew that someone had to take care of Marissa, and right now, Sean was more of a help on the battlefield. She relented, and took Marissa's limp form from Sean. She was amazed at how light Marissa weighed. Even in her tired state, it seemed like she weighed no more than a feather.
She ran as fast as she could out of the town with her precious load.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr stifled an oath as the earpiece crackled loudly in her ear. Irvine and Makhir had already left to find the remaining resistance troops, while her group was waiting on Squall's order to start the lift into the town.
"What's wrong, Zephyr?" Squall asked.
"Marissa?" Zephyr said down the microphone. No response. "Marissa?" Still no response. "Marissa! Respond, Marissa!" No voice responded. Zephyr hung her head, knowing how Squall would react to the news. His wife was in that group, after all.
"Uh, sir, I've lost all connection to Group A."
"Shit!" Squall glanced at his watch. 20 42. "Damn it. Here, give me that communicator."
Zephyr handed over the headset, and immediately, without even adjusting it, Squall talked into the microphone. "Groups B and C advance now!" He handed the set back to Zephyr and started pacing impatiently.
"Do you want to start the airlift now?"
"No, Nida. We have to give Groups B and C time to draw away troops. If we don't, then it's all pointless. Sometimes we have to put the mission before out personal feelings." He said that last sentence more to himself than to the rest of the group, as if he was trying to convince himself of the statement's truth.
"Yes, sir."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Groups B and C advance now!" Squall's voice came through the headset.
"Zell, that's our cue. Squall just ordered us all to move out before schedule," Lance relayed to the group.
"Right. Nervous?" Both Lance and Sara nodded the affirmative. "Good. You should be. But don't worry. Remember all we've leaned in class, and keep a cool head and you'll both be fine." He ruffled Sara's hair affectionately and punched Lance playfully.
"Now let's get out there and kick some ass!"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Groups B and C advance now!" Sonya heard Squall's order through the headset.
"Instructor Trepe, we've just been given the order to advance."
"Are you sure?" Quistis questioned, glancing at her watch. "It's not time yet."
"Yes ma'am. I know what I heard."
"Right then. Let's go, girls!"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zell, Lance and Sara easily took care of any soldiers that came their way. Under Zell's order, they managed to find their way to where Sean and Xu were fighting, now exhausted by their constant use of magic. None of them saw Marissa or Rinoa. But they all saw the devastation caused by Marissa's Holy.
"Hey, Xu!" Zell yelled over to the team leader. "Where are Rinoa and Marissa?"
"Back on the ship."
"What the hell happened here?"
"Long story, Zell. Cover us for a while, will you? We're both exhausted. Magic takes a lot out of you, you know."
The flow of soldiers seemed to have slowed down. A majority of them had been taken out by Marissa's Holy. They had no trouble finishing the soldiers that came their way. Time: 21 13.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
The airlift had already started, and Zephyr was sitting down nervously. She contacted everyone she could one last time before they headed in, then reported back to Squall.
"It sounds like most of the soldiers have been taken care of. Group C joined up with Group A, and Lance told me to tell you that Instructor Leonheart is safe, as well as the rest of the group. Group D is finding little resistance from that sector of the town, and Group B is hunting down stragglers in their sector."
"Sounds too easy to me," Squall stated.
"What?! We're about to take over the whole damn place and you think it's too easy?! What are you, some suicidal maniac?" Rey burst out.
"No, actually, I'm not. But think of this: Caraway was one of their top prisoners, but he escaped. When they had the chance to take him back, they did so with enormous amounts of force. Now he's under top security until he can be executed. Does it sound like 8 SeeD's and 8 candidates for SeeD would be able to take down the whole operation there? We may be combat specialists, but we have to be realists. Either there's something we don't know about, or there are a bunch more soldiers hiding down in that town. Maybe both. Never get complacent, Rey. There's a lot more to being a SeeD than just running around waving your weapon at people. Remember that."
"Yes, sir," Rey replied reluctantly.
"Squall!" Nida's voice came through a speaker. "We're almost over your drop point. I suggest you guys head to the door. I'm only going to make one pass. More than one is risky for all of us. So I suggest you don't miss it."
"Right. Thanks Nida," Squall replied. Then he turned his attention to the candidates. "Come on. Nida's right. We're going to have to be ready."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Now Squall! These are the coordinates!" Nida's voice could barely be heard over the whipping of the wind through the open door.
"Zephyr, you first. Then you, Rey. I'll follow you guys. Make sure you clear the area before we move on. Quickly, Zephyr!"
She nodded curtly, then jumped out of the open door. Her pistols were in her hands before she hit the ground. She bent her knees and rolled once she hit the ground to soften the impact. She was back on her feet in an instant, and had to let off a couple shots to get rid of some soldiers who had been drawn by the commotion.
She covered Rey's back as he fell, unsheathing his knives as he came down. He failed to roll as he hit the ground. "Damn," he swore, even as he was checking his ankles gingerly, "that hurt."
"Why am I not surprised?"
"Oh, shut up, Little Miss Perfect!"
Squall landed with a roll between next to the two mildly bickering students. "Zephyr, inform them that we've landed and are going in to rescue Caraway," he ordered without any adieu. Zephyr followed orders even as they ran through the streets towards the place where they were keeping Caraway.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Great, this is just great!" Rey was complaining as he spun around and thrust one of his knives up to the hilt into a soldier's heart.
"Shut up and concentrate on the fight, you idiot!" Zephyr was starting to get exasperated with his constant whining and complaining. She let off a shot to her right, which landed between the soldier's eyes. She turned and ducked under an incoming gunblade, flipped her gun around so the handle was pointed up, then delivered an uppercut to the soldier's jaw, effectively knocking him unconscious.
"I think that's the last," Zephyr heard Squall comment calmly. She looked over to find 6 or 7 soldiers dead around his feet. She whistled softly through her teeth at his fighting abilities. And she hadn't even been watching him.
"Move out! The compound is right over there." Squall pointed to what appeared to be an Inn.
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"This has been a cinch," Rey commented as they stood outside the door where Caraway was being held, even though they had left a trail of dead bodies in their wake.
"I agree. This has been far too simple. They've got some plan up their sleeves. Be careful. It's probably a trap," Squall cautioned. He reached out to open the door. But the knob wouldn't turn. He tried again, but nothing worked. He even tried to break down the door, but even that didn't yield any results. He cursed vilely, and banged his fist against the door in frustration. Then he turned to Zephyr.
"See if you can get anyone to hack into the computer system here. That's what's keeping this door closed. If we can get the system broken wide open, then this door is going down."
She talked down into the microphone, hunting in the databanks of her mind for someone that could do a hacking job like that. Then it hit her. "Hey, Lance, I have a question for you. How good are you at hacking?"
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Hey, Lance, I have a question for you. How good are you at hacking?" Lance heard Zephyr's voice through the earpiece.
"How good do you need me to be?" he asked in reply.
"Good enough to hack into the town's computer system and break down the locks to any door in the Inn where they're keeping Caraway."
"Run into problems brawn can't handle?"
"Would I be calling you otherwise? Now quit sharpening your wit and start hacking!"
"Yes, ma'am. It might take me a couple minutes, though. I don't know how tough the system here's going to be." He took his laptop out of its satchel and attached it to his cell phone to access the world network.
"But you can do it, right?" Zephyr asked nervously.
"If you need me to do it, I'll get it done."
After about five minutes that were intensely frustrating for Lance, and agonizingly slow for Zephyr, he cried out in triumph. "Ha! I got it! See if the door will open now."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
"Sir, try the door again. Lance thinks he's cracked the code."
Squall put his hand on the knob and turned it. The door opened. Squall, Zephyr and Rey walked in cautiously.
Caraway was tied and gagged, sitting at a table. The only other thing in the room was a briefcase and a note on the table. They walked over to the table, suspecting a trap. Squall picked up the unconscious Caraway, and slung him over his shoulder.
"You guys are going to have to cover me on the way back. I can't fight with this big boy over my shoulder," Squall instructed the two candidates.
Zephyr was staring at the note. "Uh, sir, I think we have another problem . . ." She pointed to the note.
Squall looked down to read it. " 'Good job, you've found Caraway. I congratulate you. But you're not clear yet. Look at the briefcase. In actuality, it is a bomb, set to go off 15 minutes after you open the door. Open the case, and it explodes. Have fun!' Damn! It was a trap! 15 minutes, that means we've probably only got 13 now." He sighed as he tried to think of a solution. "Zephyr, take a look at the wires. How long will it take you to deactivate it?"
After getting to the bomb through the bottom of the case and examining the undistinguishable tangle of wires, Zephyr shook her head. "More time than we have, sir."
"Damn! We have to get out of here. And we have to do something about that bomb. If we don't, then all the innocent bystanders here will be killed in the explosion."
"Uh, sir," Rey spoke up quietly, "I have an idea. You and Zephyr will have to take Caraway back, and I'll get rid of the bomb."
"How are you going to do that?" Squall inquired.
"I'll steal a car and get it to the coast. Then I'll throw it in the ocean, and watch an explosion of water when time's up. Of course, I might not get there fast enough, so I want to make sure no one else gets hurt . . ." Rey's voice trailed off. It was apparent he didn't want to go down that train of thought.
"Are you sure?" Squall asked. Rey nodded the affirmative. "Then go. Be quick. And come back alive. That's an order."
"Yes, sir!" With that, Rey grabbed the bomb and ran out of the room as quickly as he could.
"Do you think he'll pull it off?" Zephyr asked Squall.
"If I didn't think he could, I wouldn't have sent him. He does hold the Balamb record for speed driving, after all." Zephyr laughed sadly, even as Squall urged her out of the door. "Come on, we have to get Caraway out."
Time: 21 40
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr and Squall ran through a rain of bullets as they were assaulted on their way back.
"Do you think they know that there's a bomb out there that would easily destroy them all if they manage to get Rey?" Zephyr asked before she turned around and fired the last of her shots. She jettisoned the empty canisters, and reloaded with fresh ones.
"I don't know, but either way I hope he gets back okay. He'll make a fine SeeD, once we get him to get a little more serious . . . Now come on, we've only get 5 minutes before that bomb goes off. We have to run faster or we're not going to make it!"
Zephyr called the rest of the groups to check their progress. "Commander, all other groups have left the perimeters of the town, and Group D have started their airlift back."
"Good. Now we can put our full attention to the task at hand."
More rounds were fired by Galbadian soldiers. Zephyr cried out in pain as she took a bullet to the back of her thigh. She turned and returned fire, smirking when one soldier went down for every shot she fired. She smile changed to a frown when she checked her bullets. She was quickly running out of ammo.
She ran to catch back up to Squall. Her thigh burned like fire with every step. She knew she couldn't keep it up for much longer, definitely not enough to get her back to the shore.
"Commander! You have to go! I can't run like this! You have to get Caraway out of here!"
"I can't just leave you here!"
"Don't worry, I have a plan. Now go! You may lose your only chance to get him out of here safely!" Squall gave a silent nod and sprinted away into the town, towards the beach even as Zephyr was contacting Makhir on the headset.
"Hey, Makhir, I have a favor to ask you . . ."
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Rey drove like a manic through Dollet. Soldiers fired pot shots at him, or tried to take out the tires of his vehicle. He had found a revolver in the back seat of the car and was now driving with one hand, taking out as many soldiers as he could with the revolver in the other. He missed more than he hit, though. He had never really been taught gun handling.
He managed to reach the outskirts of Dollet as the ticking in the passenger seat grew louder, as if to remind him all the more the time limit set on this journey. He saw a fishing dock, and drove full speed down it.
Time: 21 52
00 30 until detonation
/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/*-*/
Zephyr waited in tense anticipation for the airship to appear. She hoped that Makhir had managed to get Nida to help her, but she knew that Nida was a stick for rules . . . She had already taken another three shots, luckily all in unimportant places that would still allow her to fight. As soldiers started to close in on her, she shot the very last of her ammo into the hearts of two Galbadian soldiers. She flipped the twin pistols around, ready for hand-to-hand combat, and looked up to the sky to check one last time.
She breathed a sigh of relief as the welcome sight of the airship, complete with hanging rope ladder approached. "Thank you!" she prayed quietly. She didn't think an airship would ever be so inviting.
She briefly heard Makhir's voice in her earphone, "We're only going to be able to make one pass, so don't miss that ladder!"
She smiled at the irony of that last statement, then caught hold of the ladder as it came by. As soon as she had a firm grip, Nida raised the airship higher, out of range of the soldiers who were still firing at anything in their reach.
Zephyr spoke into the microphone, "Hey, Makhir, I have another favor to ask. Could you come down and help me? I don't think I can climb up . . ."
Makhir glanced at Irvine, who was kneeling beside him at the open door. "Did you see how badly she was wounded?" he asked the candidate. "She could hardly even stand, but she was still fighting. And now, look! Her grip is starting to slip, I can see it. You better get down there and help her, or I'm not going to be the only one mad at you!"
Without responding, Makhir scrambled down the ladder like a monkey to Zephyr's level. He grabbed her around her waist and held her close to him. "Thanks, Makhir. I owe you one," she said quietly before she passed out.
Makhir took a quick glance out towards the ocean before yelling up at Irvine to haul the ladder in. He saw a car clocking more than 70 m/h drive out onto a fishing dock. At the last second, the driver jumped out and rolled onto the dock before jumping up and running towards where the ship was stationed at the beach. Several seconds later, a huge mushroom of water sprayed up from where the car had driven off the dock.
Mission complete.
Author's Note: Mwahahaha! Take that, evil Galbadian army. You got creamed again! Mwahahahaha! Hope you all liked! What's gonna happen? Who's going to pass? Speculations to the answers of these questions, and anything else you might think will happen is greatly appreciated in your reviews! See ya, and have a happy easter!