Ch 13 – Tournament Postponed!!
When Rinoa and Zone finally came out of the room, they had dried their tears. Zone looked slightly lost, which was what he usually looked like.
Rinoa, however, looked more determined. Her beautiful face, red from crying, was set, her eyes hard.
Zell sat up from the seat he had taken and wiped his face with both hands. Rinoa walked over to him as he got to his feet. "Uhh…how you going Rinoa?" he muttered, wiping the last of his tears out of his eyes.
Rinoa smiled bravely, nodding and wringing her hands. "Yeah…I know Watts has gone to a good place…with his dad."
"Yeah…" He looked at Zone, who had walked off on his own, looking slightly lost. He cocked a thumb at him. "Is he going to be ok?"
Rinoa nodded, looking at Zone. "He'll be fine…he's known Watts for…well, forever…it hit him pretty hard." She sighed. "But he's tougher then he looks."
Zell nodded, lost for words. His words couldn't stop the wave of grief overcoming the both of them, just as much as he couldn't stop the grief that had taken over him. And hell, he had only vaguely known Watts. These people had known him their whole lives.
You didn't need to know the man in order to grieve him. A silent voice whispered in his mind. People in Timber will weep in the streets after hearing what he had to go through in order to declare independence.
You may be right, Siren… Zell pulsed back, watching as Rinoa walked down the ramp, following where Squall had gone. But they wouldn't have known the man. They would only know his deeds.
Deeds are what make us, Zell. You're actions show who you really are.
So are you telling me that I should stop the Tournament? Do I want to be known as a raging animal? Do I want people to know what I did to the Galbadian soldiers who stormed the Ragnarok? Do you expect me to turn around after all this and simply say 'I was only doing my job.'?
Deeds are what make us, Zell…
Zell shook his head and followed Rinoa.
* * *
He found Squall sitting by himself, with Rinoa crouched beside him, her arm over his shoulder as he stared into space. Zell walked up to them and crouched before them, looking at the ground. He knew that Squall should be the one to get the ball rolling – he just didn't know how roughly he wanted to hand it to him.
Squall didn't need any prompting, however. He simply spoke with his dead voice, like frozen stone. "All this time…and we thought he was ok."
Rinoa hugged him close to her. "There was nothing we could do about it."
Zell nodded. "She's right, man. We have to work through this. We have to continue."
Squall looked up at Zell, who returned the stare with equal glare. "Since when did you become so cold?" Squall muttered.
"What?"
Squall shook his head and stood, brushing down his coat. "Justice has been their target all along."
"What do you mean?"
"The Assassin…he's been shooting for Justice this whole time. The people who had Watts, they don't work for Galbadia. They're a terrorist group, looking to restore the Deling Regime."
Zell frowned. "What? Why? The Galbadian people haven't been happier since Justice was elected. I think there was some kind of vote for him a year ago…"
Rinoa nodded. "That's right. A vote for the reenlistment of Justice was held, and Justice won the vote nine-to-one against the other guy, some no-body from the east sector. I think the independence of Timber had been one of the reasons he had won so easily. The people simply loved him."
"But some other people didn't." Squall muttered. "The same sadistic people who had been under the control of Deling during the Sorceress regime."
Zell frowned. "but…I thought we had rounded them all up. They had been thrown in the slammer for war crimes."
Squall sighed. "Obviously we hadn't gotten them all."
Zell frowned suddenly, something coming back to him…
"…Well, lets just say you're not the only one with friends in high places."
"Biggs…" Zell muttered.
Squall looked up at him. "Biggs? You mean Commander Biggs? That weakling we took down during the Sorceress mission?"
"Yeah…he was at the selection process…he said he was the one who organised it…"
"Well, that explains the violent selection process."
Zell nodded, frowning deeper as he searched his memory. "Yeah…but I don't remember seeing him after that."
"Seeing you at the selection probably made him scared. He's probably hiding out somewhere." Squall muttered. "But he's not important. What is important is that we now know what the hells going on." He turned to Zell, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm on leave, effective immediately after we finish up here. And I think you'll be needing all the help you can get with the coming events."
Zell nodded with a smile. "It'd be good to have you around again…I was beginning to wonder when someone was going to step in and take over for me."
Squall nodded, before pointing up the ramp. "Wait for us upstairs. I need to talk to Rinoa for a second."
Zell nodded, and ran up the stairs in twos…before stopping just in ear-shot of their words. Sitting down on the steps, he listened in. he had a feeling what the conversation was going to be about.
Squall walked over to the edge of the railing, looking down at the spiral as it twisted into darkness below. Rinoa walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his chest, resting her head on his back, not speaking. They stood like that for a few minutes, not talking, simply allowing each other to be close, to feel wanted.
Squall finally drew in a breath, standing straight, forcing Rinoa to let go of him. He turned his back to the darkness and looked her in the eyes. "Rinoa…Timber is independent."
Rinoa smiled, looking up at him happily. "That's right. We finally won."
"Right…" Squall sighed. "And this means that the contract that Cid drew up for you, all those years ago, is null and void." He reached up and pushed a lock of hair from her face in a rare show of affection. "You don't need to hang around me anymore. You're free. Free as the air we breath."
Rinoa seemed to pause, frowning slightly. "Hey, you're right. The contract is dissolved when Timber reaches independence." She looked up at him. "But…what are you saying?"
Squall sighed. "I've realised how restless you've been getting lately. The news of Timber…when we heard it, you remember what you did?"
"I ran and told anybody who listened, I was so happy!"
"Right…and that got me thinking…" Squall sighed once more, looking down at his combat boots. "Maybe…maybe you don't want to be at SeeD anymore. Maybe you want to go and do your own thing now."
"Squall…"
"I mean, you have you're whole life before you. And do you want to spend it with me? A mercenary for hire? A job that can get me killed at any minute? A job that guarantees that I'll have to be looking over my shoulder all the time, never relaxing, never resting." His voice got a little quieter, and Zell strained to hear. "A job where I couldn't even speak to you for security reasons…"
"Squall…what are you saying?" Rinoa's voice sounded like it was made of thin paper – ready to tear at any moment.
"I'm saying…maybe you don't want to be with me." He choked on the final words, and Zell blinked when he saw Squall looked up with tears in his cold eye.
"Squall…just because I don't have to be legally with you, doesn't mean that I don't want to." Rinoa whispered, wiping a tear away from his face. "Do you think I've been hanging around SeeD for all these years just because I got free food and board?"
Squall shook his head at the comment. "I just want you to know…some of the things I might have to do…I might not come back from."
"I realised that when we went through the Time Compression. We lost you then. But I found you. And that's all that really matters." She took his head gently in her hands and kissed him gently, before hugging him tightly to her. "Besides, you're my knight. A Sorceress needs a knight, right? I'd be lost without you."
Zell shook his head and stood silently, jumping stealthily up the rest of the steps, out of earshot. Their relationships had their own problems. They had to sort themselves out. And Zell didn't need to hear what would happen.
* * *
When they finally came up, Squall looked slightly less cold then usual, a little colour entering his tanned cheeks. "You ready to go, guys?" he asked, his voice neutral but his arm draped over Rinoa's shoulder.
"Whenever you're ready, Commander." Zell said with a salute and a smile, Selphie and Irvine standing behind him.
"Right then. Let's go. Selphie, we're going to see Laguna first." They all turned to go, Zell moving to catch up with the gang when he felt Squall's hand on his shoulder. "And Zell…next time I tell you we'll catch up, we'll catch up, ok?"
Zell's blood ran cold, and he expected a quiet but very scary chew out right on the spot, but all Squall did was smile a pearly-white grin and move past him. Zell stood, shell-shocked, before blinking and running to catch up to the gang.
* * *
The giant red dragon had taken off and was soaring through the air. They were mobilised.
Selphie and Irvine were in the cockpit, piloting the Ragnarok, which meant Rinoa, Squall and Zell were left to sit in the leisure quarters, talking about the last few weeks.
Zell was regaling his two friends about his two wins, adding in extravagant words and waving his hands about with glee.
"And then I went flying through the shield!!"
Rinoa, gripping Squall's hand with excitement and bouncing on her seat, squealed with glee. "What next! What next!"
"Well, because of my astounding reflexes, I managed to flip myself back onto the top of the device."
Squall smiled. "Bad move. The barrier was there for a reason."
"Right. But I didn't exactly have enough time to think properly. So I land on top, and the barrier starts to burn my skin, so I fell off…"
Zell mimicked the fall, grinning with glee as he flipped on his side and rolled his body through the air, watching as Squall and Rinoa grimaced simultaneously when he landed. "Ouch, that would have hurt…" Squall muttered.
Rinoa shifted a little closer to him, looking a little scared. "What…what did you do then, Zell?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly at the thought of falling from a vehicle going at about Mach 1.
Zell picked himself up, smiling at their reactions. "Well, I was pretty banged up, so I had to use my last Curaga. Of course, then I was pretty pissed, so I…"
Selphie's voice came out over the intercom system. "Zell…we got a call for you…it's President Justice."
Zell paused in his showing of powering up for using Haste, and stood up straight. "That's funny…I expected him to call later." He looked up at the intercom box, his eye contact setting off the reply coordinator built into the box. "Ok. Selphie." He said loudly and clearly. "I'll take it in the leisure centre."
"Ok, Zell."
Zell smiled and turned to Squall and Rinoa. "I suppose you'll want to hear this?"
Squall stood, his attention to the story forgotten. "Absolutely."
* * *
Zell sat in a chair and pressed a button on the vid-screen. The red screen of the Ragnarok insignia flashed off to reveal a pale President. He sat up in his chair when he saw Zell pick up the line. "Zell! Where the hell have you been?! The sand storm died down, and the Ragnarok was gone!"
"Sorry, Prez! We had a little run in with some unsavoury types and decided that Centra wasn't the best place to be right now!"
Justice leaned back in his chair, his withered features seeming to realise something. "So…the White SeeDs were true. You were shooting for me."
"No. We had no intention to harm you."
"Then why run?!"
Zell rolled his eyes. "Justice! You sent armed soldiers in to kill us! I think that's reason enough to skedaddle!!"
Justice frowned. "No…you were to be detained. Not killed. I didn't order lethal force."
Zell frowned. "Well, when Selphie poked her head around the corner to take a look at our little stowaways, she near got it clean blown off!"
Justice leaned closer to the screen. "That's impossible, Zell. Those men are loyal and patriotic to Galbadia. They wouldn't go against orders, even such direct orders as those ones."
You're orders…or someone else's? Zell mused, but didn't say out loud.
Justice continued. "You were ordered to be detained and brought in for questioning…and not harmed in any way." He shrugged. "I figured SeeD wouldn't accept such a mission, but then the White SeeDs doubted you, so…"
"Well, you're boys were the ones who fired first, and we have the tapes to prove it." Zell muttered. "And we have reason to believe that the White SeeDs were misguided in one way or the other."
"Really? How?"
Zell leaned back in his chair. Squall was standing just behind him, and Zell reached up with a hand, touching Squall's hand.
In the milliseconds that the two pieces of skin brushed together, a whole GF conversation went on.
Siren spoke, her silent words echoing inside Squalls brain. Zell wishes to know if he can tell President Justice about White SeeDs current financial condition.
Tomberry replied, the cute but deadly monk monster's voice as misleading as ever, high and squeaky. Squall has no idea what you're talking about, woman.
Ellone hasn't been getting as much financial support as Balamb or any of the other Gardens have been getting. The ship has been going under for about a year now.
…Very well. Zell may tell the President. They were bound to find out sooner or later.
Zell leaned forward again. "The White SeeDs have been in financial trouble for almost a year now. I don't know if you know the costs for running an orphanage and a fully functioning ship, but it costs a lot. The White SeeDs entered the tournament in order to gather a bit of cash, in order to save their home."
"So what are you saying? That they were trying to kill off the competition?"
Zell shrugged and smiled lazily. "Something like that…"
Justice sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Well, there will have to be enquiries…I'm afraid the tournament will have to postponed until we figure out who this assassin was and why he tried to kill…whoever he wanted to kill!"
"He tried to kill me! Hell, he succeeded in killing me!" Zell said, gripping the edges of the screen. "Why don't you start there?!"
Justice frowned. "But are you sure…?"
"Of course I'm sure! The guy shot me six times after you left, Justice!! Whether it was a hired gun or a random event is something that you'll have to find out!!"
"No…that you'll have to find out."
Zell blinked. "Huh?"
"We'll hand him into your custody." Justice said professionally. "If he really wasn't going to kill me, then I suppose you would need to have the right to question him."
Zell leaned back in his chair. "Oh…ok." He said, slightly dumbfounded.
"Come back to Centra, and we'll hand him over to you." Justice saw Zell narrow his eyes, and chuckled. "You have my promise that nothing will happen to you. I see that you're intentions in the tournament are honourable now."
Zell continued to stare at the old man…before nodding. "Fine. We'll pick the geezer up in about one hour. No soldiers on the land zone except one guard, and only your people. I have a feeling that the guys who came on board our ship wasn't exactly with you're regime, Justice."
"What do you mean, Zell?"
Zell killed the transmission with a press of a button, and swivelled his chair to face Rinoa and Squall, who had crossed his arms and frowned. "You shouldn't have said that, Zell. He might get suspicious to why you're really here."
Zell waved a hand at Squall dismissively. "Bah. He doesn't know anything."
"He might know more then you or I will ever know, Zell."
"What do you mean by that, Squall?"
Squall sighed and looked down at his boots. "Remember when we went down to the bottom of the Research Facility to get Eden? And in one of the chambers were all those long tubes filled with goo?"
Zell frowned, thinking back.
A rusty door slid open. Stale air had wafted out. "This isn't the way." Zell had said, but he had quickly peeked in anyways. Long, green tubes had filled the room, lining the walls. Zell had walked up to one, tapping the glass…and jumping back in shock and horror as a body floated through the green murk, it's skull showing through tattered flesh, bits and pieces torn off here and there with age. Zell had run straight out of the room with his tail between his legs.
"I remember I scared the shit out of me…' He muttered, before looking up, his eyes wide. "No. Those guys were all dead. There's no way…"
"Yes there was." Squall replied, his voice deadpan. "As we came back up after getting Eden, I saw a strange glow come from the room, but we passed it. And you only saw one tube, Zell. I saw one man who was intact. And that was the man I just saw you talking to."
Zell's eyes widened as he remembered something the old man had told him when they had first met.
"I know about the side-effects of GF use, young man. Believe it or not, I used to be in the Galbadian army, and fought in the Sorceress war."
"Well, this explains a lot…" Zell muttered, before standing. "Well, we'd better tell Selphie to head back to Centra."
Squall frowned. "Wait, what about Laguna?"
"Squall, I got killed by this guy. I think I have the right to beat his skull in for a little while. Besides, now that we know that Laguna's out of danger, why would we need to go to him right now?"
* * *
Hey there, Zell fans! How's the story going? Good, eh? This is Kenny writing to you, the loyal fans of FF8 Tournament, and I hope you're enjoying this.
A few things I need to point out…
1. The competition is starting to come to a close! So keep sending in those votes! And please, only choose one person! It's not good when you write in and say 'ooo, I think it's Squall…but it might be Rinoa!' that's just confusing!!
2. Please, PLEASE put in you're e-mail when reviewing! I like to answer to all you lovely people who review my work, in order to get a better understanding of what you like. (And I swear that I will not spam you anything. As long as you don't do it to me, I won't do it to you.)
3. Grovelling will be accepted, as I have a VERY kind heart, and may in fact add in some other people as supporting characters. I've already added the lovely Goth, Emily Strange, as the next opponent for Zell, so try and feel lucky when I reveal the TRUE IDENTITY OF THE ASSASSIN TO BE YOU!!
4. As for the Commander character in the last, I can use a Codename (i.e. you're writing alias) if you wish – but I'd prefer real names, thank you.
5. Remember people, I haven't pre-written one scrap of writing that comes into FanFic. It's all spur of the moment kinda stuff! I just slap on some Limp Bizkit and let the art flow!! So remember, your reviews can influence the way I write the story!! Remember that!!!
Right! I've got an interrogation scene to write, so Semper Fi!
Keep reading and reviewing!!
Michael Kenny
