V
Stakeout


Skywalker residence, Oregonia
As night was creeping in, the party reached Duncan's house. In the distance, some fifty meters below them, the sea crashed against the cliffs.
« So, this is Duncan's house. » Rinoa said silently when they had arrived. Skywalker opened the door. He stopped in the hallway and listened for any sign of his wife and kids' return.
Nothing. Not a sound.
He sighed and went in, followed by the others.
« Nice place. » Zell said and plopped down in a stuffed chair in the living room. Skywalker looked outside through the balcony windows at the dark sky and the distant sea. Rinoa came to stand beside him and placed a reassuring hand on his arm.
« We'll find them. Don't worry. »
« I know that. » he said, still looking out the window. « I'm wondering who could be behind all this. »
« I think that schedule of a plane heading to Neron Continent has something to do with it. » Quistis put forward.
Neron Continent that's East flashed through his mind. Already a row of potential enemies rolled before his mind's eye. But which one is it ?
He turned and went to fetch a torch. Then, he opened the door and went outside, carrying the torch he'd just lit. When he reached Charlene's grave, did he stop before it.
« What the hell do I do now, Charlie ? » he asked silently. The glow of the torch cast the immediate surroundings in a ghostly flickering look. « Someone kidnapped Moira and the kids and I don't know what to do. Again, I'm faced with the same helplessness as the one I experienced when you died. » He kneeled before the grave. « What do I do ? What do I do ? »
« What we can do is get some rest and see what tomorrow brings. » a voice came from behind him. Duncan turned and saw Selphie a few paces away. « So this is your first wife's last resting place. »
« Yeah. » he turned back.
« Come on. Get some rest. »
He got up and went back in with Selphie following. A few minutes later, all lights went out, casting the house in darkness.

Tevarion's hideout
The central section of the hideout was like an anthill. Several engineers were running around, tending to various systems. Cables and other connecting apparatus were lying on the ground. Obviously, something big was going to happen. Tevarion was looking at the big viewscreen on the wall. On it, data was shown about a project called 'HYPERION'.
Several levels below, Moira and Lucas sat in a bare cell. The ride to the hideout had been bumpy but not as bumpy as the one where Cathy had fallen out the back.
Project 'HYPERION' involved the use of many satellites which had been outfitted with retractable mirrors. Most of them had already been launched and put in position around the world in a geostationary orbit. The satellites themselves had been outfitted with a cloaking system which rendered them invisible to any form of detection. Only Tevarion and his men could see them. On the screen, Tevarion saw a launch bay, which was hidden in a hill, open and a rocket shoot out. The rocket was carrying another mirror satellite. The vibrations of the launch made the Command Center rumble. After the rocket was launched, the launch bay closed.
« Rocket is on course. » he heard someone report. « Boosters have been jettisoned. » On the screen, the image of the rocket bloomed with fire as the four boosters were separated. Then, the second stage of the rocket took over. Moments later, the rocket left the atmosphere. « Separating satellite assembly. » Beeps confirmed the successful completion of the separation procedure. Another satellite in geostationary orbit. HYPERION's completion had just come closer by one step.
Jennai had had control over Neron Continent. But Tevarion would have control over the entire world.
HYPERION would see to it.

In their cell, Lucas sat next to his mother, not quite knowing what to believe. Moira, in turn, had an arm wrapped around her son, keeping him close and reassured.
« What do you think they'll gonna do ? » he asked.
« Most likely they're going to use us as leverage. » his mother said.
« Leverage ? »
« It's like in that movie we saw on tv a week ago. They used hostages to get the others to do what the kidnappers wanted them to do. »
« And these men are doing that to dad ? »
« I'm afraid so. » Moira sighed.
« D'you think he'll give in ? »
« No, he won't accept defeat so easily. He'll get us out. Count on it. »
« I'm worried about Cathy. » Lucas said, changing the subject.
« Me too. I hope she's somewhere safe. »

Dyenso Village
The next day, Talinn, Ringo and Nicky were up and ready before the crack of dawn. The three went out into the woods where Jeb had been on stakeout the day before.
They arrived a good half hour later and set up their stuff. Ringo took the binocs out of his backpack and took a peek.
« That is one dark hole. Are they really in there ? »
« Yep. » Nicky confirmed.
« Sneak's awfully edgy lately. » Ringo said, still peering through the binocs.
« Sure looks that way. » Talinn looked east where the sky turned orange with sunrise. The land was still cast in a gloomy twilight, making it almost impossible to see very clearly. She took a telescope out of her own backpack and added a light amplification device, or LAD in short. This made the surroundings clearly visible in a ghostly green hue. She peered through the telescope at the now greenish hole but couldn't discern anything.
« Well, looks like an ordinary cave to me no wait. » She saw two men come out and start to patrol the area near the entrance. « Looks like you were right, Nicky. Someone's down there. »
« I told you so. » Nicky said, finally satisfied they believed him.
« The question remains » Talinn looked at the two patrolling soldiers with her eyes. « Who's down there ? »
Ringo was sweeping his gaze over the immediate area. « You're not going to believe this, but we're close to the remains of Lakoya City. »
Talinn looked up at her husband. « What ? »
Ringo merely pointed at something in the distance. « Over there. Behind and above the opening. »
She adjusted the telescope and took a look. What she saw was a part of one of the many buildings which had once been the pride of Lakoya City, sticking out of the green vegetation and reflecting the rays of the now rising sun. « You think they're Jennai's people ? Those that are still loyal ? »
« Maybe. Who knows. » Nicky said.
« Oh great. » Ringo complained. « A perfectly good morning shot to hell. »
« We'd better warn the Chief. » Nicky suggested.
« Good idea. » Talinn agreed and packed their stuff. When they wanted to get underway, they heard a noise coming from somewhere near the destroyed city. All three covered their ears to try to withstand the terrible noise which was coming their way. While doing that, they saw a rocket soar up into the sky.
« We'd better get moving fast. » Ringo said when his hearing had cleared.
What they didn't know was that HYPERION had come another step closer to completion.

Catherine woke up when the first rays of morning shone down on her. A bit further, lay her newfound friend. The wolf also woke up with the first rays of morning. The wolf came at her and licked her cheek.
« Hey, knock it off. » she laughed. « We haven't really decided on a name for you. »
The wolf cocked his head.
« How about Jackson ? » The wolf laid down on the ground.
« Okay, not good. » She tried again. « Archibald ? »
The wolf whined a bit, as if trying to say 'Give me a break.'
« Archie ? »
This time, he looked up with clear eyes.
« Then Archie it is. »
She got up and moved off to the road with Archie in tow. Cathy wondered what village her father had mentioned a few months ago. Then she remembered.
« I bet you don't know the road to Dyenso Village. »
Archie lowered his head and started to sniff the ground, searching for something. He stopped and growled at some bushes. Cathy heard the distinctive whine of power drills and other machinery. Silently, she moved to the bushes and pushed them aside for a bit, enough for her to take a look. What she saw were the same kind of soldiers that had kidnapped her mother and brother. They seemed to be working on some kind of immense machine which was inside an open camouflaged bay.
« What's this ? » she wondered.
The soldiers moved off and got in a truck. It drove off to get another part which they couldn't bring along with the earlier load of parts. Taking the chance, Cathy jumped out of the bushes and ran to the visible part of the machine. A catwalk ran to the circuitry assembly where the access panel was still open. It stood in the middle of the bay. She peered inside at the jungle of wires and silicon computer cards. A single bright red card got her attention.
« I bet this thing's critical to whatever this is to function. » she said and yanked out the red card. Then she pushed some wires over the place where the red card had been. After that, she got out of there.
The soldiers came back and continued to work.
Well away, Cathy kneeled in the bush and examined the red card she'd taken. It was a simple red silicon computer card. On it stood in white letters : HYPERION CONTROL CARD.
« This really has to be important. » she mused and put the card away. A good thing she'd covered up the gap where the control card had been. They'd only discover it when they ran a test or when it was too late.

Back at Dyenso Village, Talinn, Ringo and Nicky stormed through the gates. The three immediately ran to the Chief's house.
« Well ? Find anything ? » he asked.
« Nicky was right all along. » Talinn said, catching her breath. « Someone's down there. »
« Do you guys know the exact location ? » the Chief asked.
« Believe it or not, » Nicky said. « it's close to the remains of Lakoya City. »
« Lakoya City ? » the Chief nearly fell off his chair. « Are you sure ? »
« We're as sure as we can be. » Ringo said. « We've seen two men patrol near the entrance to the underground area. »
The Chief rubbed his chin, thinking this situation over.
« So ? » Nicky wondered. « What do we do now ? »
« We sit tight for the time being. » the Chief finally said. « We keep on scoping out that entrance and see what's up. »
« By the way, whoever's down there, is planning something big. » Talinn added. « We saw a rocket launch out of some kind of underground bay. What it is, I don't know. »
« Better pray it's not something Jennai has left behind. » Nicky said.
« We'll see, Nicky. We'll see. » Talinn said.
« I'll send Jeb, Butch and Alex to replace you guys. » the Chief suggested.
« Good idea. » Ringo flapped out. « Now we can get some rest. »
The three moved off to get some rest, while the Chief went to inform Jeb and the others.



VI
The Search Begins


Skywalker residence, Oregonia
All seven sat at the table in Duncan's house. Already, the sun was climbing in the east. Everyone had had some breakfast and were now trying to figure out what to do next.
« What do we do now ? » Zell asked.
« I bet it's got something to do with that jet that had landed the day before yesterday. » Irvine added.
« What if we check out the nearby towns ? » Rinoa suggested.
« That might work. » Duncan said.
« Come on. » Squall got up. « Let's check out the towns. It's better to do that than to just sit here. »
Skywalker also got up. « Point well taken. Let's go. »
They got up and went to the nearest town after Duncan had locked the door.

Makobre Town
A good hour later, they reached the nearest town. It was similar to Oregonia but there wasn't any harbor which made the town look relatively quiet.
« Okay, we've reached the nearest town. » Zell pointed out. « What's next ? »
« Why don't we go to the inn and see what we can find out. » Quistis suggested.
« Good idea. » Squall amended. « The inn is the most probable place where a lot of information is shared. »
« Then what are we waiting for ? » Selphie said and headed for the inn. Along the way, they passed several stands where people offered stuff for others to buy. Clearly it was market day.
« Seems lively. » Rinoa said as they walked through the busy streets.
« It's the weekly market day. » Duncan pointed out.
« There's the inn. » Irvine pointed ahead.
« Howdy folks. » the innkeeper greeted as they entered. Then, he caught sight of Duncan closing the door. « Well well, Skywalker. It sure has been a while. »
« Sure is, Sam. » Duncan replied.
« So ? What can I get you guys ? »
They ordered a drink and sat down at a table in the corner. Sam took a seat next to Duncan.
« Well, what brings you here ? »
« Sam, I know you keep your eyes and ears open. » Duncan began. Sam only nodded. « Now, have you seen anything unusual in the past few days ? No matter what ? »
« Depends. » Sam replied. « What're you looking for ? »
« A truck. »
« A truck ? » Sam's eyebrows went up. « A lot of trucks pass through here almost every day. I'll have to dig into my memories for that. Why do you want to find a truck ? »
« Some assholes kidnapped my wife and two kids. » Duncan said.
« What ? » Sam stammered. « You sure ? »
« Sam, if I wasn't sure I wouldn't be sitting here. »
« Okay, yeah. Forget I said that. No offense. »
« None taken. »
Sam got up. « Look, I'll ask around and try to remember. Now, if you people will excuse me, I've got some more stuff to do. »
« Sure thing, Sam. We're not going anywhere. » Duncan said and took a sip from his drink.
« Hopefully something'll turn up. » Rinoa said, looking out the window.

From the moment, they had set foot in Makobre Town, one of Tevarion's men had them in his sight. Unnoticeably, he'd followed them until they had entered the inn.
« Target sighted in Makobre Town Inn. » he said in his radio. « Awaiting instructions. »
Tevarion's voice came back over the open comm link. « Stay on his tail. Don't let him get out of your sight. »
« Copy that. »
« Anything else ? »
« Target has six companions. »
« Law inforcement ? »
« Negative. »
« Forget them. Follow Skywalker. »
« Acknowledged. Out. »

« All we can do now is wait. » Quistis said, breaking the silence that had followed. In the tavern, the low murmur of voices echoed through the main room. They could see Sam move around, seeing if he couldn't find out something that would shed some light on Duncan's situation. Finally, he came back.
« Well, I've managed to scrape some things together. » Sam began. « Several people have seen a truck drive through here, heading due east. According to those few people I talked to, they didn't even stop for a snack for on the road, not even to refuel. »
« Maybe they didn't need any of it. » Selphie wondered.
« It's quite some distance from Oregonia for a truck to get here. » Duncan said.
« It doesn't make any sense. » Rinoa shook her head.
« It must make sense. » Duncan cut in. « Those bastards took my wife and kids for a reason. »
« This isn't getting us anywhere. » Quistis interjected.
« Let's see what we can find on our own. » Squall said. Duncan paid Sam and all seven of them left the inn.
« So ? Whereto now ? » Selphie wondered.
« I haven't got the slightest idea. » Irvine scratched the back of his head. Duncan wanted to add something but caught sight of the sun reflecting off a shiny object ; and that object seemed to move around the bushes.
« Squall, you, Rinoa and Irvine go right. Zell, Quistis, Selphie, to the left. There's someone in the bushes spying on us. Do it inconspicuously. » Skywalker said in a low voice.
« Yeah, why don't we split up. That way we can cover more ground. » Zell said rather loudly, but loud enough for the person in the bushes to hear.
« Good idea. » Squall agreed in an equal tone of voice. Then, they split up and moved to their positions. While the others headed for the figure in their circumventing movement, Duncan went to confront the figure head-on.
Whether the figure in the bushes had an early-warning system, they couldn't tell. When Squall got close, the figure moved back towards Selphie's group. When he saw Selphie, the person tried to make his getaway through the two groups but saw Skywalker head for him. Couldn't go that way.
When Selphie and Irvine wanted to grab him, he bailed and gave them the slip in the narrow streets.
Irvine came back a few minutes later. « Lost him. »
And Selphie another few minutes thereafter. « He gave me the slip. »
« Damn. » Skywalker swore. « Did you get a look at him ? »
« Not really. » Selphie shrugged. « He wore a uniform. Pitch-black. »
« And he got a helmet on too. » Irvine added.
A distant memory flashed through Duncan's mind. It couldn't be could it ? Jennai Soldiers ? He immediately dismissed the idea of Jennai Soldiers being involved. Jennai's facilities and Lakoya Ctiy had been destroyed several years ago. But to be on the safe side, he kept the idea in the back of his mind.
« So, if I understand what your friend Sam told us, » Rinoa began. « the truck we're looking for drove through here and didn't stop. »
« That's right. » Duncan nodded.
« Therefore there's nothing more in this town for us to find out. Let's follow the tracks should there be any. »
When that was settled, they got underway.
« She sure is clever. » Duncan whispered to Squall.
« Well, she has her moments. » Squall replied.
« And I like my girls to be total nitwits. » Irvine joked and got a kick against the shin from Selphie.
« Easy there, sniper-guy. » she hissed. « Or else I'll go tell the others you freaked out during the Sorceress Edea assassination mission. »
Irvine nearly fell on his knees, begging. « Please Sefie, don't do that. You'll ruin my reputation. »
« Then I'd suggest you watch what you're going to say. »
« Uhh, yeah, sure. I'll do just that. »
Selphie rolled her eyes. « Men. » she muttered. A bit behind her, Irvine wiped the sweat off his brow. « Gee, close call. »
« Hey, don't fall behind back there ! » Squall yelled from up front.
« Coming ! » Selphie yelled back and ran to the others with Irvine in tow.
Just outside town, Duncan inspected the ground in hope of finding some tracks. His blue-green eyes scanned every square centimeter of the immediate area surrounding him. And there it was. Perhaps half a meter long, but still clearly visible : an imprint of a truck's tyre. « Over here. »
« Nearly all of it is erased. » Selphie observed.
« Probably rain. » Irvine suggesyed, trying to make amends.
« Probably. » Selphie snorted.
« Come on. » Duncan got up and took point, following the direction in which the tracks pointed.

Zeoa Town
The tracks took them to the town of Zeoa. This town also had a port, like Oregonia. But not like the usual ones, this one was purely built for hovercrafts. Which was the first thing they got to see.
« What are those ? » Rinoa asked, pointing at three hovercrafts moored at their piers.
« Hovercrafts. » Duncan replied. « There are different sorts of those. The big ones can carry cars and cargo, the medium-sized ones only cars and trucks and the small ones can only transport people. »
« Well, this is the first time I see such a vehicle. » Quistis said. The others said so too. « How does that thing move around ? »
« A hovercraft utilizes a cussion in order to move around easily when it's on the water or the beach or another flat surface. It's being propelled by two big propellors you see on the aft section. Steering is done by the two fins behind each propellor. »
« So that's like a big bus on the sea. » Selphie flapped out.
« Sort of. » Duncan agreed.
A roaring noise came from the port where one of the three hovercrafts prepared itself for departure. The hovercraft rose up on its cussion and left the port. When it was clear, it sped to its destination at full speed.
« Man, look at it go ! » Zell stared after the hovercraft until it was out of visual range.
« We'd better get to the inn. » Squall looked up at the darkening sky. « Night is about to fall. » They ran to the inn and booked five rooms.
Not far away, another one of Tevarion's men radioed in.

Neron Continent
Cathy still roamed the forests, looking for a road which would lead her to where she intended to go. Beside her, Archie sometimes sniffed the ground.
« What's wrong ? » she asked. Archie kept his head low. Suddenly, the wolf brought his head up and listened attentively.
« What ? » Cathy wondered. « Is there some wild beast around ? »
She dove in the bushes, pulled Archie in beside her and told him to keep quiet. Archie had heard it minutes ago, and now Cathy could also hear it.
Voices. The question was : who did those voices belong to ?
She listened and tried to make out what they were saying. But the distance was too great and only shards could be heard.
« I think I hear those soldiers again. » she said silently. Catherine only heard fragments of conversations. A few words she was able to make out : HYPERION, satellites, ray, Lakoya and project.
« What does it all mean ? » she wondered.
To answer that, she'd have to find the village her father had saved several years ago. In a circumventing movement, she sneaked around the men and continued on her search.



VII
HYPERION's Completion


Tevarion's hideout
On the wall-sized viewscreen, all the data and the positions of the mirror satellites were displayed. All the satellites were nearly in geosynchronous orbit. The last one was on its way by means of its thrusters, positioning itself in the spot which had been programmed into the satellite's onboard computer core. When it was in position, all the icons which represented the satellites on the screen turned blue. Every single satellite of the HYPERION-project had been switched to sync-mode. The icons were scattered in a geosynchronous orbit around the entire planet. Every place could be reached and destroyed if Tevarion gave the order.
When he saw the last satellite slip into position and the entire project was synched, he couldn't be more pleased. If Jennai were here and given Tevarion the privilege to do as he saw fit, he'd tell him he'd done some impressive work.
« Time for a test run. » he said. Several engineers and technicians raced to their stations.
What followed was a jumbled mess of reports. « Power core online All systems go... No feedback loops Opening HYPERION bay. »
Not far away, another hill opened and a huge cilindrical object emerged. From up close it looked like a huge cilinder, but from afar and seen from a hill one would see that this was in reality a massive cannon. It had an output of five times as much energy as the Ki Ray cannon and three times as much as the Sigma Cannon.
« Targeting systems synched with satellites 7, 15, 20 and 27 Power levels nominal All set. »
« Begin test. » Tevarion simply said.
The last commands were given and the targeting officer hit the 'Fire'-control. Everything pointed out that all was going well, save for one thing. The HYPERION-cannon didn't fire.
« It's not firing. » the officer reported.
« Explain. » Tevarion barked.
« I have no idea, sir. Everything checks out fine. Only the cannon isn't firing. I believe the fault is in the cannon controls. »
« Check it out. »
« Yessir. » the officer got up and bolted out of the command center.
A few minutes later, the officer's voice crackled out of the comm system. « I found it, sir. »
« What's keeping the cannon from firing ? » Tevarion asked.
« A control card, sir. The red HYPERION control card is missing. »
Tevarion nearly exploded when he heard that. He'd personally break the neck of the one that had snatched it, if he'd ever laid hands on him or her.

Jeb, Alex and Butch were on their way to their usual place to keep an eye on that opening which seemed to lead underground.
« Wonder who's down there. » Alex began.
« Enormous ants ? » Jeb joked. His two companions exchanged a glance and rolled their eyes. « What ? » Jeb asked.
« Just keep going. » Butch said.
« Okay, okay. » Jeb groused. They came to the small clearing from which they had done their stakeout before Talinn, Ringo and Nicky had done theirs. Jeb stopped, making the others bump into him.
« Hey Jeb, what's with the sudden halt ? » Alex asked.
Jeb pointed in the distance. « That. »
« What the hell ! ? » All three stared at the visible part of the barrel of the HYPERION cannon.
« Where did that come from ? » Butch wondered.
« Looks like it emerged from some kind of sheltered bay. » Alex peered through his binocs. « From what I can make of it, it looks as if it's a cannon. »
« Great. » Jeb groused. « I knew it. It's something Jennai left behind. »
« Get a hold of yourself, Jeb. » Butch countered. « We don't know for sure if it's Jennai's work or not. »
« Easy for you to say, but I got a really bad feeling about this. »
Butch rolled his eyes and took a look using his own binoculars. « It seems they're testing the damn thing. »
« Testing ? » Alex lowered his binocs. « So that must mean it's not complete yet. »
« It looks that way. »
Alex wanted to add something but heard ristling in the bushes nearby.
« Alex, left. Jeb, right. » Butch ordered. The three spread out. A wolf charged out of the bushes and went for Jeb. The latter fell on his back and the wolf was on him in an instant. The others wanted to rush to Jeb's aid when they heard a voice.
« Archie, get back here ! On the double ! »
The wolf left Jeb alone and ran back. The three stared after the wolf and saw a young girl standing a bit further. Butch estimated her to be in her teens. She had a nasty dagger in her hand and eyed them cautiously.
« Who the hell are you ? » Jeb asked while getting up.
« I could ask you the same question. » she bounced back.
« C'mon, give me that dagger. You'll hurt yourself. » Alex went to her, trying to take the dagger. But she threw him over her shoulder back at the others.
« Whoa, sharp-witted and knows how to defend herself. » Butch said with a smile. The girl took a defensive pose.
« Hey guys, doesn't that stance remind you of someone ? » Jeb asked.
« Now that you mention it Duncan Skywalker, right ? » Alex said, while rubbing his back. He'd landed quite hard on the ground. They could see they had struck paydirt, because the look in the girl's eyes changed.
« What do you know about him ? » she spat.
« Well, he saved our village a few years ago. » Alex began.
« Not to mention almost completely had that city to be overgrown with vegetation. » Jeb added. A smile formed on the girl's face.
« So, what do you know about him ? » Butch asked.
« He's my father. »
Now it was their turn to stand there and gawk.
« Somebody pinch me. I must be dreaming. » Jeb said. Alex pinched him in the arm. « Ouch, maybe not. » Then he kicked Alex. « Next time not so hard. » he hissed.
« Wait wait wait. » Butch said. « Skywalker is your father ? That can't be, he said his wife died in a car-accident. »
« He remarried. » she said and put the dagger away. « My name is Catherine Luna Skywalker. »
« I'm Butch. » he pointed over his shoulder at Alex. « There's Alex and nitwit over there is Jeb. Better call him 'Sneak'. »
« Sneak ? » Cathy asked.
« Dammit, here we go again. » Jeb swore.
« Why is that ? » she asked.
« He hates being called that. » Alex said, half-laughing.
« You got that right ! » Jeb flared.
« Okay okay, settle down. Hold your chocobos. » Butch said. He turned back to Cathy. « So, what brings you to these dangerous woods ? »
« I'm looking for a village. Dyenso Village. »
« Well, ain't that swell. » Alex said. « We're from Dyenso Village. »
« Finally. » Cathy sighed.
« What's wrong ? »
« Can't tell right now. » Cathy looked around, clearly afraid of something.
« Let's head back to the village and there you can tell us everything. » Butch suggested. Catherine agreed. « Did you ever ride a chocobo ? »
« What's that ? »
« You'll see. »
A bit further stood three big birds with yellow feathers.
« Here they are. Chocobos. » Alex smiled and climbed onto the first.
« You ride on them ? » Cathy asked.
« Yep. » Jeb climbed onto the second. « You don't have chocobos at your place ? »
« No. »
« Too bad. » Butch said and lifted Cathy up and put her in the saddle of the third chocobo. Then, he hopped on and sat behind her. « They're kind-hearted. »
She rubbed the chocobo over its neck. The chocobo squeaked.
« Okay, let's go ! » The three chocobos took their passengers to Dyenso Village.

While the chocobos were on their way to Dyenso Village, several soldiers and engineers were assessing why the HYPERION cannon wasn't test firing. The soldiers stood guard in the immediate area while the engineers checked out the cannon's systems.
« Well, all the parameters check out fine. » one of the engineers said.
« Nothing seems to be malfunctioning. » another added.
« Wait a minute. » the first suddenly cut in. « There's something wrong in control node B-254. »
A few other engineers went to the place on the cannon where control node B-254 was located. When they opened the panel, they didn't notice anything at first. Until one of them shoved some wires aside. « The red control card is missing as that operator had said. »
« Can we bypass it ? » the head engineer asked.
« No can do. That control card has most of the firing presequence algorythms stored on it, which are vital to the proper functioning of the cannon. »
« What if we tried to simulate the card ? » another asked.
« What are you getting at ? » the head engineer asked.
« Well, we could dump all the firing presequence algorythms in the additional computer memory and see what happens. »
« We could try that hell, it might work. » the head engineer switched on his portable comm unit. « HQ, this is Damage Control. »
« Go ahead. » Tevarion's voice came back.
« The red control card is indeed missing. We're now gonna try to simulate the card by dumping all the firing presequence algorythms in the additional computer memory and test it. In theory, it should work. »
« How certain can you be ? »
« Can't say. It could short out the mainframe's hard drive and RAM memory. »
« Hmm. Then it's a shot in the dark. Proceed. »
« Yes sir. » He switched off his comm unit and turned to the other engineers. « Let's get moving, people ! »
A part of the bay wall slid aside, revealing computer consoles. The engineers sat down and prepared to dump all the firing presequence algorythms in the additional computer memory.
« You got a backup ? » the head engineer asked no-one in particular.
« Always. » The engineer next to him gave him a small optical disc. He put it in the disc-drive and everyone began to input the algorythms in the additional computer memory.
After fifteen minutes of intense work, they were done. « That's it. »
The head engineer took his comm unit again. « HQ, this is Damage Control. »
« Go ahead. »
« All done, sir. Ready for testing. »
« Acknowledged. Stand-by. »
They rushed back inside when the test began. The cannon angled upward and aligned itself with mirror satellite 7.
Back in the command center, everything was running smooth.
« Cannon core stable firing presequence algorythms loaded cannon aligned with satellite 7 all systems green. »
« Fire. » Tevarion said and mentally kept his fingers crossed.
The firing command was given and from the barrel of the HYPERION cannon a bright red ray shot up into the clear blue sky. The ray hit the mirror on satellite 7 and was reflected to satellite 15. Then from satellite 15, the ray was reflected to 20 and then to 27 which deflected the red energy beam into the interstellar void. The ray had just gone half-way around the world by means of the mirrors.
HYPERION was completed.



VIII
Alert From Lunar Base


Lunar Base
Between the planet and the moon hung Lunar Base. After the Lunar Cry a few years ago, the engineers of Esthar had rebuilt it and improved the station. The station's sensor matrices were aimed at the moon to check on the monsters which lived there. Should they begin to gather, the station would be put in Red Alert-mode and a message would be sent to Esthar City. And should those monsters, for some reason, begin to show signs that they would come to the planet, the station would get out of the way by means of its new thruster engines.
The commander of the Lunar Base stepped into the command center holding a mug of coffee. « How are things going ? »
« Pretty good. No activity on the moon's surface. » the sensor officer reported.
« Nice. Keep it that way. »
« That's all up to them. » the sensor officer joked. The commander grinned and sipped his coffee.
But then, the sensors freaked as the red beam fired by the HYPERION cannon shot past the station and seared the shields which were designed to avoid collision with space debris. The commander nearly choked on his coffee as the red ray vanished in the void of interstellar space.
« What the hell was that ? »
« Can't say yet, sir. » the sensor officer reported. « The sensors have been overloaded. We'll get them cleared out in a sec. »
« Good. Get those sensors online A.S.A.P. »
« Yes sir. »
The crew got to work and after five minutes of rerouting commands, the sensors came back online.
« Sensors picked up a mass of directed energy. Clearly it was aimed at nothing. » the sensor officer reported.
« Origin ? » the commander demanded and set his mug on the nearest console.
« Grandini Forest, sir. » The sensor officer turned in his chair, not quite believing it. « The laws of physics say that can't be. Light travels in a straight path. »
« Indeed. » the commander agreed. « Unless the ray was bent. »
« Sir ? »
« Never shone a flashlight at a mirror in a dusty place ? »
The sensor officer gave his commander a puzzled look, then he got it. « Orbital mirror platforms. »
« Bingo. I bet that's how they've done it. » The commander looked out the window at the planet. « Somewhere out there, in orbit, are several platforms. Must be. Scan for them. »
« Yes sir. » The sensor officers got to work, trying to detect the satellites of the HYPERION-project. But after a good while, they had to give up. Not one of the satellites gave its location away.
« Nothing, sir. » the sensor officer reported with a sigh. « There's no sign of any orbital platform capable of bending rays of directed energy. »
Sitting in the command chair, Lunar Base's commander rubbed his chin. « Better call the president. Put him on a secure line, encoded and scrambled. »
« Yessir. » The comm officer got to work, trying to establish a connection.

Esthar City
Life is great went through Laguna's mind when he was sitting behind his desk, looking out the big window behind him. Several months ago, Esthar scouts had seen the rockets launch which carried the essential instruments of Tevarion's HYPERION project into space : the mirror satellites. Not knowing what it meant, they reported it and they had deemed it to be experiments of a nation which was developing spaceflight. Little did they know it would be a weapon in due time.
He leaned back in his chair and nearly tipped over when the comm console started to beep. Annoyed, he got up and pressed a control.
« What ? » he barked.
« Lunar Base here, sir. Sorry to disturb you, but we have a situation. »
« This had better be good, commander. »
« Uhh of course. Not long ago, a ray of directed energy seared past us. Scans confirm it came from Grandini Forest. »
« That's near here. » Laguna deducted.
« Yes sir. We've tried to detect the orbital platforms which had bent the ray but no luck. »
« Orbital platforms » Laguna muttered. « Hey, wait a sec those rockets we saw a few months ago »
« I think so too, sir. There's no other way. »
« If we can find the location from where the rockets were launched, we find the ray's origin. »
« Excellent plan, sir. But how are you gonna organize it ? »
« I'm working on it. »
« Oh, I see. Well, I won't keep you. Lunar Base out. » The screen went blank.
« Lessee now. » he said silently. Kiros was busy with a matter that concerned the public transport systems and Ward was keeping an eye on the military forces of Esthar. « Damn. » He was looking for someone who he could trust. Someone who wouldn't disappoint him. Then, he got an idea. Maybe not someone, but some people. He turned back to his comm unit and established a connection to Balamb Garden.
After a minute, Cid appeared on his screen.
« President Laguna ! How are you doing, sir ? » Cid asked with a smile.
« Spare me. » Laguna sighed. « I still regret the day I got suckered into accepting this job. »
« I see. Anyway, what can I do for you ? »
« Is Squall around ? »
« I'm afraid not. He and the others went out to help their friend Duncan. »
« Duncan ? As in Duncan Skywalker ? »
« The same. » Cid confirmed.
« Where are they now ? »
« Honestly, I don't know. I'll call them and ask Squall if he can get back to you. »
« Right. Do that. » Laguna nodded. « Esthar out. »

Zeoa Town
When the sun had risen, all seven left the inn.
« Nice morning. » Rinoa observed, looking east at the rising sun.
« Indeed. » Squall confirmed.
« Hey, check this out. » Zell said from a bit furhter down the road. Everyone rushed over to see what it was Zell had found.
« Tracks. » he proudly announced. And added to that : « Of a truck. »
« They're the same. » Duncan said while examining the tracks in the muddy soil. « They seem to be heading for the hovercraft port. »
« Then let's get a move on. » Selphie ran ahead to the port with the others close behind. When they got there, another hovercraft left the port. This time, it was one of the big ones.
« Don't fall behind, guys ! » Selphie yelled over the noise of the hovercraft's propellor engines.
« We won't ! » Skywalker yelled back. « Keep moving ! »
« You got it ! »
They stepped in the registry office where all arrivals and departures were filed. Duncan asked the man behind the desk if there had been any unusual cargo's or transports in the last few days.
« Not that I know of. » the man replied. « No wait a minute. There was one truck that wanted to go to a certain area of Grandini Forest. Those guys paid big money just to get them there. »
« Where is that area ? » Duncan asked.
« I don't know. I got a lot to do here. I can't keep track of everything, y'know. »
Skywalker sighed. « Okay, thanks anyway. »
« No problem. » the man said as they left the office.
« Now what ? » Selphie shrugged.
« Why don't we go to the inn and booze up a little. » Zell said with a grin. In return, six pair of eyes gave him a stern look. « Okay, maybe not. »
« Let's head back. » Squall suggested. While they were walking back to the inn, the portable comm device he'd taken along beeped. Squall reached in his pocket and took it out.
« Squall here. » he said after activating it.
« Headmaster Cid here, guys. Listen up, President Laguna called me a few minutes ago. I said I'd get in touch with you guys. »
« Okay, what's up ? »
« Laguna asked if you could contact him. I'll transmit the frequency. »
« Will do. » Squall acknowledged. « Leonhart out. »
After he'd gotten the frequency, he pressed the 'activate' button. Within seconds, a connection was made to Laguna's office.
« Cid asked me to get back to you. » Squall said, immediately getting to the matter at hand.
« Yeah. » Esthar's president confirmed. « We've got a little situation here. »
« I'm listening. »
« Is Duncan there too ? »
« Yeah, I'm here. Fire away. » Skywalker said.
« Okay. Not long ago, a beam of directed energy seared past Lunar Base. From their vantage point, their sensors have confirmed that the ray had originated from somewhere in Grandini Forest. And get this : a few months ago, several dozen rockets had been launched from somewhere in Grandini Forest. Something stinks here, guys. »
« Well, we're having a little problem here too. » Duncan said. « My wife and two kids have been kidnapped by I don't know who. Our investigation has revealed that they've been taken away in a truck and that truck was on its way to a certain area in Grandini Forest. »
« Coincidence ? »
« Possibly. » Duncan said. « I won't quit till I find them. »
« I know. When you sink your proverbial teeth into something, you don't let go until it's solved. »
« You got that right. »
« We'll see if we can dig something up on that ray Lunar Base had registered. » Squall said.
« Deal. We'll try to figure something out about your wife and kids' whereabouts. If we can. » Laguna suggested.
« Thanks. » Duncan said with genuine appreciation.
« Don't mention it. If anything turns up, you'll be the first to know. Esthar out. »
The portable comm unit beeped once as the connection was severed.
« Hey guys, there's someone spying on us. » Rinoa hissed silently and barely noticeable indicated a patch of dense bushes with an almost unnoticeable jerk of her head.
« Again ? » Duncan wondered. « Well, he's not getting away this time. Let's rush him. »
« Agreed. » Squall said. « On three. »
At the count of three all seven charged the bushes. The figure tried to hightail out of there but Selphie dropkicked him from the side. There was a noticeable dent in his helmet. Skywalker grabbed him by the front of his tunic and hoisted him to his feet. When he got a good look at the person he was holding up, it felt as if ice was coarsing through his veins.
« A Jennai Soldier. » He yanked the helmet off the man's head. « Where are my wife and kids !? » He shook him like a toy. « Where !? Tell me, damn you ! »
The ony thing the soldier did was look to one side. Then, he jerked his head in the other direction as hard as he could. A series of cracks could be heard. The soldier went limp in Skywalker's grasp.
« He he broke his own neck ? » Rinoa asked, unable to comprehend what she'd just witnessed.
Duncan dropped the now dead soldier. « Yeah. »
« Well, we know that they were heading to Grandini Forest. » Zell said. « So let's hightail to Esthar Continent. »
Skywalker still stood staring at the body. His wife and kids were in the hands of Jennai Soldiers. His greatest fear had come true. There were indeed other squads of those guys on the loose.
As he followed he others to the hovercraft, he'd made up his mind.
He was going to see that the remaining Jennai Soldiers were eradicated once and for all.


IX
Destination Reached


Dyenso Village
A half hour before HYPERION's test shot, the chocobos rode through the main gate of the village.
« Here we are. » Jeb said.
« Final stop. » Butch set Catherine on the ground, before he himself dismounted. Catherine looked around with interest, taking in every detail. « We'd better get to the Chief A.S.A.P. » Butch went to the Chief's house with the others and Cathy in tow.
« Chief ? You in here ? » Alex asked when he arrived at the door.
« Yeah, come on in. » came a voice from the back. The four went in and found the Chief in one of the back rooms. « So, what did you guys find out ? » he asked while going to the main room and then taking a seat.
« Remember those rockets we saw a few days ago ? » Alex began.
« Yeah. » the Chief acknowledged.
« There's something else instead. » Jeb added. « Something you ain't gonna like. »
« It's a cannon, Chief. Still in its testing stage. » Butch added to that.
« What ? » the Chief nearly fell off his chair. « A cannon ? »
« Yep. » Alex nodded. The Chief sat back and rubbed his eyes. This couldn't be happening. The mess with Jennai had been settled long ago. There shoudn't be any activity there. He said so.
« We all know that, Chief. » Butch said. « But the fact is there's someone there. »
The Chief wanted to add something when he caught sight of Catherine hiding behind Butch. « Hello, and who have we here ? »
She peeked out from behind Butch's leg and looked the Chief straight in the eye with her blue-green eyes.
« Guys, those eyes remind me of someone. » he began.
« We know. » Jeb said with a smile. « She's Skywalker's daughter. Chief, say hello to Catherine Luna Skywalker. »
After a few seconds, the Chief realized he sat there gawking at her. He immediately sat up straight and cleared his throat a few times. « So, what brings you here ? »
« I'm hungry. » Cathy said.
The Chief got up. « Well, why don't we go to the kitchen and see what we can slap together. »
Sensing she could trust him, Cathy followed. But half-way to the kitchen, all five and a few dozen villagers heard the distinctive whine of the HYPERION cannon firing its test shot. The air was momentarily cast in a red hue which lasted for a few seconds.
Jeb rushed to the window. « What the hell was that ? » He looked at the remaining wisps of red dissipate.
« They just fired their test shot. » Butch said. « Whoever they are. »
Talinn and Ringo stormed through the door. « What was that al about ? » she asked.
« You guys were on stakeout. » Ringo said. « What's going on out there ? »
« They've stopped launching rockets and now, some kind of hidden bay has opened and one hell of a cannon is sitting there. That thing just fired its first test shot. » Alex explained.
« What ? » Talinn hissed. « There's another cannon ? »
« I'm afraid so. » Jeb said.
« Could it be that » Ringo began, wondering about something.
« Could it be what ? » the Chief asked.
« Y'know. » Ringo said. « Jennai Soldiers perhaps. »
« I'm not sure about that. » Butch cut in. « However, it would be prudent to assume that some of those bastards are still around. »
« We need to contact Skywalker A.S.A.P. » Talinn suggested.

In the underground command center, the mood was ecstatic.
« The cannon has fired. » the cannon operator reported.
« Firing presequence dump was a success. » another reported. « Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. »
« Good work. » Tevarion commented. « Now we have the weapon that will guarantee us ruling the entire world ! »
Jennai may have been mad, but Tevarion surely showed signs of grandeur and delusions of godhood. With the HYPERION cannon, he thought he could take on the world.
In its bay, the cannon sat cooling off from the heat the shot had generated. Everywhere, technicians and maintenance crews ran around like ants, tending to various systems of the cannon.

Zeoa Town
Squall and the others took the next hovercraft ride to the Esthar Continent. The craft sped out of the port and set course for its destination.
While looking out the large viewport next to him, Skywalker thought about what Cloud and the others had said when he and some friends of his had been transported into their reality. Memories flashed before his eyes.
A second Sephiroth Commander, you've got to stop him ! Sephiroth's dangerous That was when he'd recovered Rinoa's essence. Cloud tried to stop him.
We have to save Moira at all cost or else he'll go mad. Permanent madness Rinoa persuading the rest to come to the rescue.
Hang in there, Moira. Stay with me... Seeing her hanging in the belts in the Tomcat's cockpit, her shoulder badly injured.
He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment.
« Hey, we'll find them. Don't worry. » Quistis said.
« I know we'll find them. » Duncan said. « It's just the fact that there are still Jennai Soldiers around. »
« What are those anyway ? » Irvine asked.
« They're genetically 'assembled' and identical to one another. If they're given an order, they carry it out without hesitation and are relentless. They won't stop until their mission is accomplished. »
« Gives me the creeps. » Rinoa shivered.
« You and everyone else they came in contact with. »
« So where do we go to once we arrive ? » Quistis inquired.
« If they're in the hands of Jennai Soldiers, I've got a pretty good idea where they are. » Duncan said.
« You do ? » six voices asked at once.
« I have reason to believe so. » He told them about Lakoya City and Dyenso Village and their rebellion against Jennai. « Not far from the village, the remains of the city are located. It seems that someone else has taken Jennai's place and is leading the Jennai Soldiers into whatever he has planned for the world. »
Skywalker looked down at his right hand where on his ring finger a gold ring reflected the sunlight coming through the viewport.
I'm coming, Moira. Hang on, I'm on my way.

Dyenso Village
In the kitchen, the Chief stood looking at Cathy making her way through the room. Archie faithfully waited outside. She had found the fridge and was busy putting something together.
« A little bit of this and some of that and maybe this too »
A few minutes later, she had a nice sandwich with tomatoes, salad, rasped carrots, hard-boiled eggs and mayonaise. Within minutes, almost half of the sandwich was gone. She seemed to have one hell of an appetite after roaming the woods for so long.
« Can I have a bite ? » the Chief asked.
« Sure. » Cathy cut off a piece.
The Chief took a bite. « Not bad. A real kitchen princess, aren't you ? »
Cathy answered that with a smile.
They heard the door open and close. « Chief ? » a voice asked.
« Back here. » the Chief replied.
Nicky appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.
« Hey Nicky. What's up ? »
He wanted to reply but saw Cahty a bit further, munching on her sandwich. « Hey, uhh Chief, who's she ? »
« This is Catherine Luna Skywalker. » the Chief said.
« Skywalker ? » Nicky asked baffled. « You mean ? »
« Yep. She's his daughter. »
She finished her sandwich and opened the fridge to search for something else to eat.
« Whoa, I think that'll be enough. » The Chief said, closing the fridge. « If you keep eating like that, I won't have any food left. »
« Oh, okay. »
« Hey Nicky, why don't you take her on a tour of the village ? Let her see all the nice places. »
« Sure thing, Chief. »
Cathy was in her early teens but Nicky had grown up to his late teens, around 17, 18 years old.
The two left the Chief's house and went for a stroll through the village.
« Nice village. » Cathy said, looking around.
« Yeah, I know. And I'm glad your father came along some years back and saved us from Jennai. »
« He mentioned something on that event. » She shivered. « Sounded grisly. »
« It was. » Nicky said. « With that orbital cannon, threatening to wipe us out at any moment. »
« What's over here ? » she asked and looked through the open doorway of a rather large house with a workplace.
« This here is the blacksmith. I'm sure you know what he makes. »
« Yeah. » Cathy grinned. « Weapons. »
« Among other things. » Nicky corrected.
« Such as ? »
« Ploughs, a few pair of scissors, scythes for mowing the grass, axes, knives, you tell me. » Nicky explained.
« I see. »
« And of course weapons, such as arrowheads, swords, daggers, and so on. »
They moved on, touring the village for nearly the entire day.
« What's over there ? » she pointed at a rather large house. That place, had been occupied by Talinn's cabin several years ago. After they'd gotten married, Talinn and Ringo had torn down the cabin and built a house instead. Ringo sat on the roof, hammering away at a gap, trying to mend it so a leak would be gone.
« That's Talinn's place. »
« Who's that ? »
« Well, she's the Chief's daughter. » Nicky began but couldn't finish because Cathy ran to the house. « Hey, wait up. »
Just as Cathy reached the house, Talinn came out. « Hey Nicky. She your girlfriend ? »
« Gimme a break. » Nicky protested. « She's way too young for me. »
Talinn merely laughed. « Relax, I'm just yanking your chain. » She turned to Cathy. « I haven't seen you around here. Are you new here ? »
« Sort of. » she admitted. « My dad told me about this place and I was looking for it. »
« How come ? »
« My mother, brother and myself were being taken somewhere by force. I fell out the back of the truck and managed to escape. I have to let father know where I am. »
« My my. » Talinn said. « We'll see if we can contact your father. »
« He's looking for us. » Cathy said with a distant gaze. « He's coming. »
« And who is your father ? »
From the roof, Ringo was listening as well.
« He's been here before. » she said. « Duncan Skywalker. »
« What !? » Ringo didn't quite believe it. « Oh shit. Look out below ! » The hammer he'd accidently had dropped landed not far from Nicky who had ducked away. « Sorry about that. »
« It's okay. » Nicky tossed the hammer back up at Ringo who caught it.
« Your father is Duncan Skywalker ? » Talinn asked. « Then that means »
« That I'm his daughter. » Cathy finished for her. « My name's Catherine Luna Skywalker. »
« Well. » Talinn said, getting back to her senses. « Do you have a place to stay, by the way ? »
« I don't know. I dont think so. »
« Then you can stay here. And we'll expain everything to the Chief first thing tomorrow. »