Chapter 7
Squall turned to the rest of the gang, a grim set to his face. They all knew what it was: his poker face. Game on. "We should split into two parties to cover more ground and find it faster. There were no rules or warnings against doing it, so why not take advantage of their mistake?"
"So who's with who?" Quistis asked, glancing between the people assembled, her crystalline blue eyes flickering with barely concealed excitement. She idly fingered her whip, hoping to have it stained with some unfortunate monster's blood by the end of the day.
Squall observed the gang and judged them for a moment before he spoke. "Quistis, Irvine and Selphie, you guys take the east side of this forest. Zell, Rinoa and myself will take the west side. We meet up at the Garden in an hour." Everyone nodded and turned to leave, but Squall motioned for them to stop. "Just remember this: no rules for us also means no rules for them. Watch each other's backs."
A note of exhilaration had left the company and the east trio nodded solemnly before slinking off into the woods, only the softest snapping of twigs telling of their presence within the trees. Those left looked to Squall, hoping that he might have an internal compass of some kind to lead them to the flare.
"I think we should go slightly northwest," Rinoa said quietly, and both of the males present turned toward her with quizzical looks on their faces. She cast her eyes downward, and scuffled her toes in the dirt of the forest floor. "I just . . . I have a feeling." She raised her head and saw Squall nod as he shouldered his gunblade, shifting the weight.
"Lead the way." Squall gave her a look of understanding, and Rinoa felt a moment of animosity toward the man she loved. He doesn't understand, but how could I expect him to? How could I expect him to know what I fight against every time I feel the sorceress powers rising to try to get me to break down? He couldn't, but all the same, he should.
Rinoa merely nodded, and then start walking in what she felt was the right direction. The air smelled of the soft yet slightly dry earth underneath, and more than once all present had to cross small streams that wound their way through the forest. The woods had fallen silent when they had noticed the numerous visitors prowling in its borders, and Rinoa felt unease settle it's awkward weight upon her shoulders.
Someone finally said something when they took a short breather from their hurried pace about 20 minutes after they had started out. "It got really quiet in here, but there aren't any monsters," Zell started out, squatting over a patch of short, scrubby grass, "They usually are attracted to areas that they can hear people in."
"Maybe the flare scared them off," Squall observed dryly as he took a swig of his water bottle, wiping his lips off with the back of his hand when he was done.
Zell looked puzzled and glanced back and forth from Squall, to Rinoa, back to Squall. "You think it could do that?"
"I don't know."
Rinoa was only listening with half of an ear when a sudden slap of pain shot through her mind, causing her to kneel and clutch at her head. Squall and Zell were over to her side in an instant, Squall, attempting to awkwardly wrap his arm around her while Zell hovered above her small form, watching in every direction seemingly at once and jumping back and forth on his toes.
"It's close," she whispered, turning her face to look at Squall's own. A concerned look shone in his blue-gray eyes, and he knew that this was something that only Rinoa could deal with, and he could do nothing to help her pain.
"Any idea what it looks like?" Squall brushed a lock of hair out of her face and watched her intently, hoping for a sign that somehow this pain wouldn't come back. But for some reason, down in the very marrow of his bones, he knew it would.
The brunette closed her eyes and concentrated, trying to sort out the feeling that was threatening to overwhelm her senses. The effort made pain blossom in what seemed like every crevice of her brain, and it was a miracle that she didn't pass out. "It's . . . it's hard to explain. I know what it is but . . . it's also more than words, you know? It looks like . . . a large crystal ball, only coloured red."
"You mean this thing?" Squall and Rinoa craned their necks to glance behind them, and they saw Zell several feet away, toeing something on the ground. A cold wave of dread went through Rinoa's body and she began to shiver uncontrollably. Zell lifted in his hand a large crimson orb, only just fitting within the palm of his one hand. The depths within the glass ball swirled and danced like a desert sand storm coloured red and to Rinoa it seemed alive.
"Don't touch that!" an unfamiliar voice screeched from the brush behind Zell. The blonde duelist jumped in surprise, but managed to maintain his grip on the orb and stared defiantly at the creature emerging from the shrubbery.
It was an old woman who appeared, her back hunched over and her face a map of wrinkles. Her hair was long, gray and piled on top of her head and secured with a clip to keep it from falling over and spilling on her shoulders. She wore a long woven shawl, made from what Rinoa could only guess was the fur of monsters.
"Do you normally go around and pick up things that you know nothing about?" the old woman scolded, circling Zell with movements that were faster than what seemed possible for a woman of her age.
Squall frowned and stood up, crossing his arms in front of his chest and trying to make himself look as threatening as possible. And when Squall wanted to look threatening, you could damn well be sure that he was a scary beast to behold. "Who are you?" he demanded, moving his position slightly so that he was between the old woman and Rinoa.
"No one to be concerned with," the elderly person answered, not bothering to look at Squall but instead gazing into the depths of the orb, seemingly transfixed with it. Squall followed her gaze and felt himself also being seduced by the same object, but he then tore his eyes away from the un- earthly thing, refusing to fall under the influence of its spell.
Rinoa gazed at the old woman and studied her, noting the intelligence that flashed within the depths of her dark eyes. "Are you the Keeper of the Orb?"
The old woman snorted in laughter and averted her stare from the ball for a moment to glance at Rinoa. "The Keeper isn't here. He resides elsewhere, and would send others before risking himself." With that she turned her attention back to the glowing sphere, her eyes raptly enjoying the beauty of it.
"Who's the Keeper?" Zell asked, looking confusedly over at Rinoa. The young resistance member could only shrug her shoulders and shake her head. She had had no idea where the idea had spawned. It had just seemed right to ask.
The old woman ignored their banter and gazed fixedly at the orb, her eyes drinking their fill of the sight. After a few moments, Squall cleared his throat rather loudly, which snapped the woman out of her silent reverie.
She gave the group a crooked smile and then cocked her head to the side. "Do you hear that?" The entire body assembled strained their ears, but even Rinoa's supernatural Sorceress hearing couldn't pick up what the old lady was talking about.
"I don't hear anything," she said, a frown descending on her features.
The old woman's face lit up with a triumphant smile and she beamed at the young Sorceress. "Exactly. The monsters are being bred out of these areas. The world is renewing again, and the cycle goes on and on."
"I don't understand," Rinoa started, getting up to stand face to face with the woman when a loud crashing was heard from the bushes. The old woman disappeared into the forest in a flash, and Rinoa turned slightly peevishly when she saw Quistis, Irvine and Selphie standing there staring at the orb.
"What is that?" Selphie breathed, reaching out to touch the glimmering sphere still held within Zell's palm.
The duelist jerked his arm back violently, not letting Selphie's fingertips getting in reach of the shining orb. "Don't touch it," he growled, his teeth grit and ready to bite off the nearest offending finger.
Selphie yelped and pulled her hand out of Zell's reach, and Irvine stepped forward angrily, wanted to get a word in with the man who had threatened his girlfriend.
"What's your problem Zell? She just wanted to get a look! You don't have to be so damn selfish!" Irvine yelled, his eyes flicking back and forth between Zell's eyes and the orb held within his grasp.
Quistis tried to step in, being the voice of reason within the group. "Guys, c'mon, it's just a trinket some gypsy probably left behind," she started to argue, but even the strong teacher couldn't waver her eyes from the ball of crimson that was less than a few feet away from her.
Rinoa swallowed hard and then reached her hand out, palm up toward Zell. "Give me the orb Zell. None of you can withstand its power. Please, let me try to deactivate it."
The blonde duelist seemed to become incredibly angry at this statement and began to scream at the raven-haired Sorceress. "And why the hell should I? Just because you think you're all big with your Sorceress powers? To hell with you bitch!"
Rinoa recoiled like she had been slapped and Squall stepped forward to defend her, carefully keeping his eyes averted from the orb. "Zell, Rinoa knows what she's doing. As your Commander, I order you to hand over the orb."
Zell slowly began to obey, his face twisted into a grimace of displeasure as he did so. His arm trembled as he dropped the orb into Rinoa's hand, and the young Sorceress almost tumbled from the magical weight of the thing. Looking at the orb, Rinoa began to shiver again. This was bad. Very bad.
Squall turned to the rest of the gang, a grim set to his face. They all knew what it was: his poker face. Game on. "We should split into two parties to cover more ground and find it faster. There were no rules or warnings against doing it, so why not take advantage of their mistake?"
"So who's with who?" Quistis asked, glancing between the people assembled, her crystalline blue eyes flickering with barely concealed excitement. She idly fingered her whip, hoping to have it stained with some unfortunate monster's blood by the end of the day.
Squall observed the gang and judged them for a moment before he spoke. "Quistis, Irvine and Selphie, you guys take the east side of this forest. Zell, Rinoa and myself will take the west side. We meet up at the Garden in an hour." Everyone nodded and turned to leave, but Squall motioned for them to stop. "Just remember this: no rules for us also means no rules for them. Watch each other's backs."
A note of exhilaration had left the company and the east trio nodded solemnly before slinking off into the woods, only the softest snapping of twigs telling of their presence within the trees. Those left looked to Squall, hoping that he might have an internal compass of some kind to lead them to the flare.
"I think we should go slightly northwest," Rinoa said quietly, and both of the males present turned toward her with quizzical looks on their faces. She cast her eyes downward, and scuffled her toes in the dirt of the forest floor. "I just . . . I have a feeling." She raised her head and saw Squall nod as he shouldered his gunblade, shifting the weight.
"Lead the way." Squall gave her a look of understanding, and Rinoa felt a moment of animosity toward the man she loved. He doesn't understand, but how could I expect him to? How could I expect him to know what I fight against every time I feel the sorceress powers rising to try to get me to break down? He couldn't, but all the same, he should.
Rinoa merely nodded, and then start walking in what she felt was the right direction. The air smelled of the soft yet slightly dry earth underneath, and more than once all present had to cross small streams that wound their way through the forest. The woods had fallen silent when they had noticed the numerous visitors prowling in its borders, and Rinoa felt unease settle it's awkward weight upon her shoulders.
Someone finally said something when they took a short breather from their hurried pace about 20 minutes after they had started out. "It got really quiet in here, but there aren't any monsters," Zell started out, squatting over a patch of short, scrubby grass, "They usually are attracted to areas that they can hear people in."
"Maybe the flare scared them off," Squall observed dryly as he took a swig of his water bottle, wiping his lips off with the back of his hand when he was done.
Zell looked puzzled and glanced back and forth from Squall, to Rinoa, back to Squall. "You think it could do that?"
"I don't know."
Rinoa was only listening with half of an ear when a sudden slap of pain shot through her mind, causing her to kneel and clutch at her head. Squall and Zell were over to her side in an instant, Squall, attempting to awkwardly wrap his arm around her while Zell hovered above her small form, watching in every direction seemingly at once and jumping back and forth on his toes.
"It's close," she whispered, turning her face to look at Squall's own. A concerned look shone in his blue-gray eyes, and he knew that this was something that only Rinoa could deal with, and he could do nothing to help her pain.
"Any idea what it looks like?" Squall brushed a lock of hair out of her face and watched her intently, hoping for a sign that somehow this pain wouldn't come back. But for some reason, down in the very marrow of his bones, he knew it would.
The brunette closed her eyes and concentrated, trying to sort out the feeling that was threatening to overwhelm her senses. The effort made pain blossom in what seemed like every crevice of her brain, and it was a miracle that she didn't pass out. "It's . . . it's hard to explain. I know what it is but . . . it's also more than words, you know? It looks like . . . a large crystal ball, only coloured red."
"You mean this thing?" Squall and Rinoa craned their necks to glance behind them, and they saw Zell several feet away, toeing something on the ground. A cold wave of dread went through Rinoa's body and she began to shiver uncontrollably. Zell lifted in his hand a large crimson orb, only just fitting within the palm of his one hand. The depths within the glass ball swirled and danced like a desert sand storm coloured red and to Rinoa it seemed alive.
"Don't touch that!" an unfamiliar voice screeched from the brush behind Zell. The blonde duelist jumped in surprise, but managed to maintain his grip on the orb and stared defiantly at the creature emerging from the shrubbery.
It was an old woman who appeared, her back hunched over and her face a map of wrinkles. Her hair was long, gray and piled on top of her head and secured with a clip to keep it from falling over and spilling on her shoulders. She wore a long woven shawl, made from what Rinoa could only guess was the fur of monsters.
"Do you normally go around and pick up things that you know nothing about?" the old woman scolded, circling Zell with movements that were faster than what seemed possible for a woman of her age.
Squall frowned and stood up, crossing his arms in front of his chest and trying to make himself look as threatening as possible. And when Squall wanted to look threatening, you could damn well be sure that he was a scary beast to behold. "Who are you?" he demanded, moving his position slightly so that he was between the old woman and Rinoa.
"No one to be concerned with," the elderly person answered, not bothering to look at Squall but instead gazing into the depths of the orb, seemingly transfixed with it. Squall followed her gaze and felt himself also being seduced by the same object, but he then tore his eyes away from the un- earthly thing, refusing to fall under the influence of its spell.
Rinoa gazed at the old woman and studied her, noting the intelligence that flashed within the depths of her dark eyes. "Are you the Keeper of the Orb?"
The old woman snorted in laughter and averted her stare from the ball for a moment to glance at Rinoa. "The Keeper isn't here. He resides elsewhere, and would send others before risking himself." With that she turned her attention back to the glowing sphere, her eyes raptly enjoying the beauty of it.
"Who's the Keeper?" Zell asked, looking confusedly over at Rinoa. The young resistance member could only shrug her shoulders and shake her head. She had had no idea where the idea had spawned. It had just seemed right to ask.
The old woman ignored their banter and gazed fixedly at the orb, her eyes drinking their fill of the sight. After a few moments, Squall cleared his throat rather loudly, which snapped the woman out of her silent reverie.
She gave the group a crooked smile and then cocked her head to the side. "Do you hear that?" The entire body assembled strained their ears, but even Rinoa's supernatural Sorceress hearing couldn't pick up what the old lady was talking about.
"I don't hear anything," she said, a frown descending on her features.
The old woman's face lit up with a triumphant smile and she beamed at the young Sorceress. "Exactly. The monsters are being bred out of these areas. The world is renewing again, and the cycle goes on and on."
"I don't understand," Rinoa started, getting up to stand face to face with the woman when a loud crashing was heard from the bushes. The old woman disappeared into the forest in a flash, and Rinoa turned slightly peevishly when she saw Quistis, Irvine and Selphie standing there staring at the orb.
"What is that?" Selphie breathed, reaching out to touch the glimmering sphere still held within Zell's palm.
The duelist jerked his arm back violently, not letting Selphie's fingertips getting in reach of the shining orb. "Don't touch it," he growled, his teeth grit and ready to bite off the nearest offending finger.
Selphie yelped and pulled her hand out of Zell's reach, and Irvine stepped forward angrily, wanted to get a word in with the man who had threatened his girlfriend.
"What's your problem Zell? She just wanted to get a look! You don't have to be so damn selfish!" Irvine yelled, his eyes flicking back and forth between Zell's eyes and the orb held within his grasp.
Quistis tried to step in, being the voice of reason within the group. "Guys, c'mon, it's just a trinket some gypsy probably left behind," she started to argue, but even the strong teacher couldn't waver her eyes from the ball of crimson that was less than a few feet away from her.
Rinoa swallowed hard and then reached her hand out, palm up toward Zell. "Give me the orb Zell. None of you can withstand its power. Please, let me try to deactivate it."
The blonde duelist seemed to become incredibly angry at this statement and began to scream at the raven-haired Sorceress. "And why the hell should I? Just because you think you're all big with your Sorceress powers? To hell with you bitch!"
Rinoa recoiled like she had been slapped and Squall stepped forward to defend her, carefully keeping his eyes averted from the orb. "Zell, Rinoa knows what she's doing. As your Commander, I order you to hand over the orb."
Zell slowly began to obey, his face twisted into a grimace of displeasure as he did so. His arm trembled as he dropped the orb into Rinoa's hand, and the young Sorceress almost tumbled from the magical weight of the thing. Looking at the orb, Rinoa began to shiver again. This was bad. Very bad.