Ch 5 – Preparations Are Over
The image on the screen was that of a tired looking, yet very pretty, secretary. She was dressed in the usual Estharian attire – long, flowing gowns of varying colours, hiding almost anything of value from prying eyes. From a SeeD point of view, it was also an excellent opportunity for concealed weapons – but since Estharians are peaceful people, they had no need to carry weapons on their person.
"Hi!" Zell said brightly at the image. "I was wondering if I could speak with President Laguna, please?"
The pretty secretary blinked, then looked down at a schedule before her. "Uhh…the President isn't seeing anybody right now. He's…he's in a meeting."
Zell rolled his eyes. "Laguna doesn't go to those meetings! Is he getting sloshed with Kiros and Ward again?"
The secretary blushed as if Zell had found out a national secret. "How did you…I mean, not at all! He's in a very important meeting, and can't be disturbed."
Zell grinned. "Just say that it's Zell on the horn. He'll know who it is."
The secretary hesitated, before reaching down and pressing a button. "Uh, Mr. President, there's someone on the vid-phone for you…no, sir, not you're mother…no, sir, not Hyne…yes, you are funny, sir…I'm sure that Kiros and Ward do think you're funny, sir…" she lushed and shot a glance at Zell, which screamed how embarrassing. "No, sir, it's a boy calling himself Zell…" she looked at Zell again. "Your last name, sir?"
Zell rolled his eyes. He must be really pissed. "Dincht. My name is Zell Dincht. I'm a friend of his son."
She looked down at something. "Dincht, Zell Dincht…he says he knows you're son, sir…no, he's not your son, he says he's someone who knows your son. Yes sir, right now. Very well, sir." She looked up at Zell once more, her hand releasing the button she had been holding down. "The President shall accept your call, sir. Please hold."
A cool blue screen with the words Esthar Presidential Suite came up on the screen for a brief instant, before it was rudely interrupted by Laguna's grinning face. His cheeks were red with alcohol consumption, and his eyes were slightly glazed over. His long black hair was pulled back in it's usual pony-tail, but a few strands were straying from the binding behind his head, making him look a little wild. "Zell!!" He cried, waving his arms about in the air, spraying the area around him liberally with the bottles of beer he held in each hand. "How are you going, son!?"
"Uh…not as well as you are, it seems."
Laguna burst out laughing, slapping his thigh and looking at Zell with tears streaming down his cheeks. "Is this kid a school act or what?!"
A slurred voice emitted from off screen. "I think itsssh…hic…class act. He'sh a class act…hic" It was obviously Kiros.
"Who's getting sued?" Laguna yelled back.
Zell shook his head and a hand through his blond hair. "Aiyaaa…" He muttered, shaking his head as he watched as the President of Esthar, the most technologically advanced nation on the face of Gaia, fumbled with the cap on a beer bottle.
Selphie leaned over, looking into the screen. "What's he doing?" she asked innocently.
"I am defeated by this bottle cap!!" Laguna announced proudly, before leaning back too far in his chair and falling over. "OWWW!!!"
Squall rolled his eyes and face-palmed, his face going red. They were in Zell's classroom on the second floor of Balamb Garden, and were calling to ask Laguna if they could borrow the Ragnarok to travel from destination to destination in the tournament. Squall and Zell had been kicking the idea around for a few days after Cid refused to use the Garden to travel to the different areas.
"Oh, come on, sir!" Zell had protested. "It'll give the students an excellent chance to train in all different situations…"
"He has a point, sir…" Squall had supported.
"I am not using the Garden to taxi you around the world for a fighting competition!" Cid had yelled, fed up with Zells pestering. "If you really want to travel cheaply, ask Laguna if you can borrow the Ragnarok, or something!"
C id's face had caved from annoyance to horror as he watched the two boys looked at each other, before saluting and leaving his office without another word.
So now Zell sat, given the task to ask, seeing as he was the one competing, to see if he could borrow a Ragnarok. Selphie was there to provide backup, seeing as she was pretty good when it came to piloting the gigantic air-ship, and Squall was there if Laguna decided to flatly refuse.
The trio hadn't figured on finding Laguna getting smashed with his buddies, however. That hadn't even been in the game plan.
"Aiayaaa…" Zell muttered again, watching as Laguna's hand pawed the desk to find purchase in order to pull himself up. "We'll never get him to even listen to us now…"
Squall leaned on the Desk with his back to the spectacle, arms crossed. "Maybe we can use this to our advantage…" He muttered.
"Yeah!" Selphie said. "If he's drunk, he ought to almost whatever you say, right?"
Squall frowned. "That's not what I meant…" But Zell ignored him and tapped on the screen, gathering a semblance of attention from Laguna, who had managed to put an arm on his Desk for support.
"Hey, Laguna…"
"That's PRESIDENT LAGUNA, YOUNG RABBIT!"
"…Right, whatever. We have something to ask you."
Laguna grabbed another chair and planted it before the screen, sitting down on it with a thump. "Sure, Zell! Anything for a friend of Squall!!"
"I was wondering…" Zell faltered, before turning to Squall. "What should I say?" He whispered.
"Just ask him! What's he going to say, no? He thinks you're a rabbit, for Hynes sake!"
"But…I feel like I'm taking advantage of him…"
"Of course you can borrow a Ragnarok to go joyriding in, little Selphie! Anything for a pretty girl!!"
Zell and Squall looked down at Selphie in shock and horror as she smiled sweetly at Laguna, pouring on the charm. "Ooo, thankyou Sir Laguna! I'll never forget this!!"
Laguna leaned forward, his face coming mere inches from the screen. He needed to grab hold of the monitor in order to stop from slipping from his chair again. "And when you come down to pick it up, you can come see me! I have all kinds of delightful stories to tell you…" He winked a wink that was subtle to him, and nauseating to the SeeDs.
"Uhhh…ok…we'll have to do that…" Selphie said slowly, backing away from the screen. "I…got to go…wash my hair now…" With that, she ran from the room with a red face.
"Pretty girl…very pretty…but short. Very…very short." Laguna muttered to himself.
"So, uh, Laguna, can we have the papers for the Ragnarok?" Zell asked, sitting in front of the screen once more.
"Hyne!!" Laguna yelled, reeling back with shock and horror. "Selphie! You've gotten so much uglier!!"
Zell gritted his teeth and fought the need to put a fist through the screen. "Laguna! The papers!!"
"Yeah, yeah, hang on…" Laguna looked down at something unde the screen, and with utmost care, pressed a series of buttons slowly, as if they would run away if he moved any faster. Zell looked at the paper port beside the Desk as it spat out a piece of paper. Pulling it out of the hole it was ejected from, he read it through, before looking up at Squall.
"It looks legit."
Squall nodded and turned, walking out of the room, his job not even needing to be done.
Zell turned back to Laguna, who smiled at him drunkenly. "Now just remember Zell; it's an Esthar ship, so we'd like it back in one piece after you've picked up all you're chicks."
Zell shook his head and, with a sigh, smiled. "Ok, Laguna. I'll try to remember that."
"Good boy. You're a good boy. Isn't he a good boy?"
"He's so good!!"
"Yeah! Kiros thinks you're a good boy, so you must be good!"
"…Mmmfllrgh…"
"Hyne, Ward, will you shut up for FIVE SECOND! I CAN'T HEAR MYSELF THINK HERE!!"
Zell frowned, remembering that Ward actually couldn't speak. He shrugged and held his finger over the end transmission button. "We'll be around in a week to pick it up, okay Laguna?"
Laguna looked at Zell suddenly, his eyes clearing briefly, the slur in his voice disappearing completely. "Zell…would you…would you say hi to Squall for me? And that I love him?" He looked at Zell with deadly seriousness in his eyes. "Do that for me, Zell."
Zell nodded solemnly. "I will, Mr. President." He replied quietly.
"Good boy." Laguna said, smiling. "Good boy."
He turned back to Kiros and Ward, the slur returning in his voice. "Now, where were we? Oh yeah…I'm going to beat you in Triple Triads if it's the last thing I do, you mute dummy! NO, DON'T DO THAT!! AAAHHH! NOOO!! OOOWWWW!!!"
Zell shook his head and chuckled as the last image on screen – the very large Ward giving Laguna the mother of all noogies – was burned into his mind before he cut transmission.
He leaned back in his chair, mulling over what Laguna had said before turning back to his friends. He had gone from dead drunk to dead serious – at the drop of a hat. Maybe he is capable of looking after himself… He shook his head and stood, putting his hands in his pockets and walking out the open door.
He was startled to see Squall waiting for him. Squall didn't even look up, he simply leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his face stern.
"Uh…Laguna said…"
"I heard."
"…"
"…"
Zell walked past his friend, moving for the elevator. He can handle himself. He thought to himself. He has to handle himself. For the good of the Garden.
* * *
"Hey! Hey, Laguna!! Laguna, it's us!!!"
Laguna Loire, President of Esthar, the most technologically advanced nation on the face of Gaia, paled slightly when he looked up from the paper work he was doing to see who was walking into his office with three security guards hanging off him. "Sorry, sir." One grunted as he tried vainly to pull the SeeD away from the President. "He just…walked in here!"
"Zell! Ah…what are you doing here?"
Zell cocked a thumb over his shoulder, inadvertently poking a guard's eye out. "We're here to pick up a Ragnarok…remember? The whole conversation we had over vid-phone? Don't tell me you forgot?!"
"Ah…maybe I did." Zell watched as the President of Esthar looked left and right nervously. "Do you have the permission papers?"
"Yeah…" Zell said. "Hang on." He pushed a guard out of the way and reached into a jacket pocket. He fumbled around in that pocket, before checking his other jacket pocket. Failing that, he checked his pants pockets. "Bugger. Selphie must have it." He muttered.
Laguna shrugged. "Oh well. I was starting to get bored anyways. Lets go see the gang." He stood, placing the pen he was using onto the table. A tiny robot emerged from what looked like a tiny box and dragged the pen into the box. It then began to organise the papers on the desk.
"I love that thing…" Laguna muttered as he and Zell walked out of the office, the guards still struggling with Zell.
They walked down Esthar's massive pathways, choosing not to take one of the flying disks. The city was still as blue and magnificent as Zell remembered, towering sky-scrapers, brilliantly polished walls, plants and bushes lush and green. It was like a new toy that had just been pulled out of it's box. You could hardly see the damage made by Lunatic Pandora, or by the masses of monsters the gigantic Luna Cry magnet had spewed.
The people were soft-spoken and pleasant, extraordinarily different from the people from Balamb or Timber. All clothing was either long, flowing robes with many different colours, or the simple trouser – tee combination that the Estharians had picked up from the SeeDs when they last visited.
When they reached the Ragnarok pad, the guards were still latched on. Zell seemed to not even notice them, ignoring them completely, but Laguna was becoming annoyed. "Lay off it, will you fellas?"
"You said protection, sir! We're trying our best!!"
"Well, obviously this boy is a friend of mine, so you can stop trying. He is more then capable for my protection."
The guards reluctantly let go of Zell, the one wrapped around his torso dropping off with a thud, before they walked off, dejected and defeated.
Zell cocked an eyebrow. "See what we meant?"
Laguna waggled a finger. "Now, those guys are only security guards. They're only paid three hundred gil a day, not even worth using as cannon fodder. The guys who will be really protecting me are a lot more difficult to get past, even in your standards." He announced proudly. "The best Esthar can gather. My 'special forces'."
Zell smirked and continued to walk.
They eventually made their way to the red Ragnarok, all the giant dragonesque ships lined up on a massive tarmac, where an Estharian stewardess was trying to calm down a hyperkinetic Selphie, overexcited by the train ride over and the prospect of flying the metallic dragon again.
"I want on! I want on! I want on!!" she chanted.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but unless you have the authorisation papers, you cannot requisition a Ragnarok until President Loire has authorised it."
"But we have authorisation! My friend has it! He'll be back in a few minutes!! I just wanna get in there and prep it for flight!"
The stewardess simply ignored the little girl. And if there was something Selphie despise the most in the whole world, it was being ignored.
Zell saw that Selphie was beginning to go red, and he sensed a sudden flare of energy flash from her. Her hand reached for her nunchaku, and he was about to step in when a cold clear voice rang out from over the tarmac. "Selphie…I wouldn't."
Zell, Laguna, Selphie and the stewardess all looked over to Squall, who was walking back from the elevator to the city limits. He moved over to Laguna and Zell. "Hi, Zell. Selphie left the papers on the train, so I had to go them." He looked over at Laguna, but said nothing, simply handing them over to his father before walking over to join Selphie.
Laguna was a bit surprised at the cold shoulder Squall had presented to him. "I take it that Squall isn't very pleased with me?" he whispered to Zell, his leg twitching a bit.
"From what I've seen, he had a good reason." Zell replied, a little harshly. Turning to Laguna, he looked him straight in the eyes. "I took in the scenery as I walked over to the suite. No guards patrolling, no obvious security…a good Firaga blast could blow through any of the doors I've seen…and I saw nothing from this 'special force'. It' just like it was during Ultimecia…too much peace, not enough security."
Laguna looked down at the papers. "When's the tournament start?" he asked, ignoring Zell's observations. He began to rub his leg absently as he went overt the papers.
Zell sighed and shook his head. "In one more week. The opening ceremony starts in two days, then we get paraded around for a whole day, rest for three days, then the fun starts the next Monday."
Laguna chuckled. "How do you think you'll go?"
"That's hard to say. I won't know for sure until I see the competition."
Laguna chuckled once more. "Well, I, for one, will be rooting for you." He handed the papers back to Zell. "These seem to be in order. I have no idea how you got them, but they're legit…" He paled again, running his leg a little more vigorously, looking over at Squall, who was trying to ignore Selphie running about around him.
Zell watched this with mild curiosity. "You nervous?" he asked. Thanks to Ellone's power to pass one person's essence into another person's in the past, Zell had found out that Laguna's leg always cramped up whenever he got nervous.
Laguna rubbed his leg s little more. "Just a bit." He looked at Zell, then looked at Squall again. He looked at Zell again. "Zell…you're Squalls best friend, right?"
"I like to think I am."
"Do you…do you think Squall…hates me?"
Zell cocked an eyebrow. "Laguna…he doesn't exactly think very highly of you right now…" He paused, unsure on how to put it into words. "But…I don't think he hates you…not really…" He shifted his weight to his other foot awkwardly. "Look, Laguna, I'm not really the person to talk to about this."
"Then who is?"
"He's standing right over there. Just talk to him."
"Are you kidding?! That reminds me when I couldn't talk to Julia…every time I go near him, it takes all my willpower not to fall over with pain." He rubbed his leg some more.
Zell shrugged. "Oh well. I guess you'll never know then." He walked over to where Squall was standing, and where Selphie was hopping from foot to foot in an over-excited fashion.
He gave her a look, before turning to Squall. "You wanna go straight back to the Garden, or test this puppy out first."
"Ooo! Oooo! Lets test it! Lets! Lets!"
Squall looked down at Selphie and rolled his eyes. "We'd better…hey!"
Selphie had grabbed the papers off Zell and had ran up to the stewardess, waving it in her face. "See! See! I told you!"
The stewardess sighed and reached into a pocket, removing the activation key. "Who's the pilot?"
"Me!"
The stewardess fell over with shock. Selphie retrieved the key from her trembling hand with a 'Teehee!' and ascended the ramp, scuttling up it before it even touched the ground.
Squall and Zell looked at each other as the gigantic dragon-shaped ship began to whine. Squall walked up the ramp, shaking his head, the roar of the afterburners blasting a test burst drowning out Laguna's cries of goodbye. Zell turned to the man, who pushed a lock of black hair from his face as the wind whipped it around, and forced a smile.
Zell returned the smile, gave him a finger-to-forehead salute, and ran up the ramp after Squall.
* * *
"You want to do what now?"
"I want to know if I can take Squall, Selphie, Irvine and Rinoa with me."
"But…but…why?!" Cid asked, his tone exasperated as he stood uneasily from his chair.
Zell shrugged. "Moral support. Trainers. Whatever you feel is a good excuse." He leaned close, placing his palms on the headmaster's desk. "But what I really want them there for, is to provide support if things get a bit…out of hand, if you know what I mean."
Cid scratched the back of his neck. "I thought you weren't gong to go against Laguna wishes."
"Who say I am? C'mon, sir. They all need a holiday anyways, especially Squall. Apart from when Laguna refused a month ago, he hasn't pulled out from work once. He barely had time to help me train, what with classes, marking tests and Commander duties."
Cid narrowed his eyes. "What about Quistis? Why isn't she going?"
Zell snorted. "She muttered something about being too busy. Besides, I couldn't convince her to go if I cast Confuse on her."
Cid sighed, and crossed his arms, moving around his Desk to move in front of Zell. "Zell. I've managed to rearrange you're schedule to go to the tournament, I've even allowed the Garden to sponsor you. I even suggested that you ask Laguna to use the Ragnarok to get from location to location. But this is way too much."
"Aw, c'mon, sir…"
"No, Zell! You said it yourself, this facility has never run as smoothly when Squall wasn't around to organise and allocate jobs and missions. Yes, as you said, ever since he became the Commander, he hasn't had much of a time to relax. But that's what comes with responsibility. As for Irvine and Selphie, they are busy with their own classes and other responsibilities. And as for Rinoa…well, we must keep her under close observation, unless her Sorceress powers manifest like they did on the space station."
"C'mon, sir. Please? I can't do this on my own! I'll need support!!"
"No, Zell! This is not a mission! And even if it was, it would be a mission needing that big a team! You would need…three people, maximum! You'll be perfectly capable on your own."
Zell crossed his arms and tapped his foot. C'mon, Dincht, think! What would be a good excuse? He snapped his fingers. "What if I only took…Irvine and Selphie? I'll need Selphie to pilot the Ragnarok anyways, and Irvine can do audience recon for me as I scope out the fighters."
Cid crossed his arms…and bowed his head in thought. Well, at least he's thinking about it… Zell thought. Although he might just be pissed with me. I've kinda been walking on eggshells with the whole tournament thing…
Cid looked up. "If you can find out a way to get someone to cover their classes, then I might consider letting them go."
Zell punched the air. "OOOOH YEAAAH! Thankyou sir!!"
"You're asking a lot of favours for this, Zell. I'll be
looking for back pay after all this.
You'd better win this thing."
Zell grinned crazily and gave the headmaster a finger-to-forehead salute as he trotted out the doors. "And I thought saving the world would have been enough!" he called over his back.
* * *
"So we are allowed?!" Selphie cried. "Ice cool!!" she squealed and hugged Irvine, who slugged Zell in the arm.
"Good going, dude." He managed to pull Selphie off him and rested his shotgun on his shoulder once more. "No all we have to do is find someone to take over our classes, and everything will be really cool…"
Selphie hopped from foot to foot. "Already done! Teehee! Way ahead of you guys!!" She smiled up at Zell. "We leave tomorrow, right? I'd better go pack!!" she skipped off with a wave to Zell and a blown kiss to Irvine.
Zell shook his head and scratched the back of his neck. "Maybe I should have invited Quistis instead…"
Irvine patted him on the shoulder. "Nah. Selphie will be fine. And besides, she's the only one out of all of us who can pilot the Ragnarok. She kinda comes with the whole package."
Zell sighed. "Oh well. I guess I should say my goodbyes and see to my classes then."
"Yeah, me too. I'll see Selphie tonight, so where do you want to meet tomorrow?"
"…We'll have to leave some time in the morning, so….ten hundred hours?"
"Sounds good to me." He tipped his wide brim hat in a gesture of farewell and walked off.
* * *
"But why me?"
"Because, Angel, you're the best in my class. Who else am I supposed to ask? Gregory? The guy has the strength, but no speed. Julia? She has the technique, but falls apart under pressure."
"So do I!"
"No you don't, baby, you'd be perfect for the job! All you have to do is go over the curriculum that I've set out for the next few months; everything ought to be there. I should be done in a couple of weeks – I swear."
"…You swear?"
"Yep. Very much so. So much I have to eat a bar of soap before I go to bed at night."
Angel giggled at the joke, so much so she almost fel off the rock in the Special Place, where students go after hours to hang out. At the moment, Zell and Angel were alone, except for a couple that were staring out at the stars, together. Zell absently recognised them as Squall and Rinoa.
"…I'll miss you…"
Zell smiled, looking down at the girl with chocolate brown hair and blue eyes. "And I'll miss you, baby…"
He drew her close into a hug, wrapping his arms around her, and she relaxed into his firm grip. He nestled his chin into her hair, her shampoo fragrance wafting into his nose. I'm going to miss that smell. I'm going to miss her touch. I'm going to miss the way she makes me laugh. I'm going to miss the times like this. The next few weeks aren't going to be a walk in the park…it's going to be very messy, and very painful.
He grimaced as a dark voice clouded in his mind. But that's why you're doing it, aren't you, Dincht. Sure, Laguna is an excuse – but you love the thrill. The feeling of a good blow connecting, the adrenaline rush as your opponents fist explodes through you're defences…the need to win. The need to survive. That's why we fight. That's why you do nothing but train all the time. That's why My Final Heaven is so good.
You know, Diablo, Zell pulsed to the Gravity God, I suddenly remembered one of the downsides of GFs. You can never shut them up.
Ifrit agrees with me, if you wish to ask him…
No. I know why I'm doing this…and what you say is partly true. I am a bit of a rush junky. But the goal is Laguna. If I need to drop out of the tournament to stop his assassination…then that's what has to be done.
Diablo didn't answer, and a cool, clear voice replaced the darkness. Zell, Siren said silently. Please make sure you can let Angel breathe.
Zell looked down suddenly, realising that Angel was going red in the face, his arms squashing her against his chest. "Oh, baby, I'm sorry, are you ok?" he asked quickly, concerned swimming in his voice.
"What…what happened? You zoned out for a second, and then you got really tense…" she gasped, trying to gather her breath.
"Sorry, baby, I'm so sorry…" He sat down, his back against a wall. "I was thinking of the tournament…and …I was thinking of how I'm going to miss our times together." He looked up at her. "I…I might be different when I return from this thing. This tournament is going to be brutal, and some of these guys might not let up until I'm a smear on the ring floor. So…if I seem changed in any way if…when…I return, you will tell me…right?"
Angel sat down beside him and rested her head on his shoulder. "I don't think you'll be changed one little bit. You'll still be same old Zell when you return…just with a few more scars, that's all." She looked up into his eyes. "But if you really want me to, I will tell you if I think something's different."
He kissed her forehead and pulled it down to his shoulder. "Thank you hon'…"
Darkness reigned sarcastically. Awww, how touching…Silence quelled the darkness. Shut up, Diablos. I think it's very sweet…
Warmth overlapped the both of them. I think you two have too much mortal sentiment in you…
Double voices overcame the warmth. we think it's sweet, do we not, brother?
WE SURE DO, BRO.
Zell rolled his eyes and tried not to sigh.
