The other two SeeD teams had arrived and were making their way through the city to their meeting place in the center. None of them had seen one another, or anything for that matter, except for Squall's.
Hundreds of "Shadows" had appeared all around them, but they didn't move right away. They all rocked back and forth on their feet, as if they were sensing the SeeD's strengths. Squall glanced between his teammates, who were looking unsteady, Rinoa especially. As his head was turned towards the Sorceress, one of the beings lunged for him, causing his head to quickly swivel around and bring the gunblade to follow it.
As his sword cleaved through one of them, it dissolved into nothing. In doing so, a small, crystalline-looking heart shaped object escaped the dying creature and floated into the sky before fading away. The other creatures took this opportunity and started to swarm towards them. Rinoa released a Thundara spell while Zell began to crush the creatures with his fists.
Each SeeD seemed to be faring well, but the creatures were not abating in ferocity or number. Squall glanced over at Rinoa again, who was firing her Pinwheel through a group of monsters. He felt a sharp pain in his arm and realized that a creature was digging into him with its claws. Squall aimed his other hand at it and cast Blizzard, decimating the creature from such a short range.
He killed the pain with a Cura, but the wound didn't seal itself. Should have brought Curaga, he thought briefly. He readied his gunblade with his good arm and continued to attack.
"Leonhart!" Seifer's rough voice came into Squall's ears, and he looked up to see the fellow gunblade user run towards him, flanked by his Disciplinary Committee. They were destroying creatures as they proceeded, until they reached Squall.
"Are you all right Leonhart?" Seifer held his blade above him and ducked slightly as a Shadow lunged on top of him, getting destroyed in the process.
"Yeah. Have you seen Rinoa?" He slashed behind him, eliminating an encroaching creature.
"THERE." Fujin said, firing her Blaster Edge through a black being towards her. Squall followed the trail of her weapon to see his girlfriend besieged by Shadows.
"Leonhart, give me your magic." Seifer demanded, destroying another.
"Why?" Squall jumped aside as one tried to dive on him. He kicked it clear as it touched the ground.
"I used it up on the way hereā¦" Seifer said, slightly embarrassed. He bent over as a creature flew over his back. Squall destroyed it as it sailed towards him.
"Fine, just take it." He stepped forward after the strike, grabbing the man's hand as he did. The spells drained away from him along with his Junctions, and he felt slightly weaker. He quickly left Seifer and ran towards Rinoa, hacking through the creatures as though they were dense undergrowth.
"Rinoa!" As he ran, he tried to Draw off a large-bodied creature that had wandered onto the battlefield, in hopes of getting some useful magic. The spell rebounded, so he struck it with his gunblade, pulling the trigger to release an explosive force. As he bounced off the creature he noticed the large deep cut accompanied by a round scorch mark before successfully attempting the Draw again.
The waves of energy that usually accompanied a Draw spell were black, but Squall did not hesitate. As he absorbed the spells, he felt a sharp pain in his chest, causing him to double over.
He looked up to the black-haired woman, who began to run towards him. As she did, a large glimmering portal appeared behind her. She turned backwards to see a tall green-skinned woman with a long black cloak and horns on her head emerge, floating above the ground. She lifted the staff in her hand as a green glow emanated from the crystal atop it. Rinoa rose into the air, paralyzed, and floated towards the portal.
"RINOA!" Squall screamed, but his voice didn't come out. The pain in his chest began to spread outward; a cold numbing sensation paralyzing him as well. He collapsed on the street, unable to move at all. As the numbing spread up his neck, he could feel the ground buckle underneath him. He was ripped from the ground and flung helplessly towards a large ball of dark energy before completely blacking out. His last sight was his true love being taken by a black-robed witch.
