Ch 22 – Failure

"Well, well, the Hunter shows his face." Grey said, standing with his arms crossed, dressed in a grey pair of slacks and a grey shirt. "We've been worried about you, Zell. Afraid that you might have been a little too chicken to show."

Zell smiled at the White SeeD. "Hiya Grey. Nice to see that you have enough fashion sense to dress to your name."

Grey grimaced at the counter, not bothering to return the verbal jab.

Zell looked over at the other three competitors. Clara Justice, dressed in blue track pants and a red shirt with some black sneakers – a pair of gauntlets on her hands and a cool look in her eyes. Zell walked up to her. "You know, in all the time we've been competing, I've never seen you fight. I didn't know you used gauntlets."

She looked down at the metallic gloves, flexing her fist. "This way I don't break my nails."

Zell frowned and blinked. "Was…was that…" he looked over at an imaginary panel behind his shoulder. "…Judges?…yes, I believe that qualified as a joke."

Clara smiled coldly. "Feel special Dincht. I'm only talking to you because you've beaten my counterparts…even if they didn't play fair. I assure you – I'm not a cheat like Sheran, and I'm not as easily beaten as Strange."

Zell smiled warmly, ignoring her sarcasm. "Ok, first off, Sheran was a bitch to beat, and second, Emily deserves more credit."

"Drop the holier-then-thou crap, Hunter." Grey muttered, Zell turning to face him. "They were defeated because you had more skill then them, plain and simple. 'The weak perish, whilst the strong survive.'" He quoted.

"Gretin Valdreos…chapter twelve, verse thirteen in the SeeD guide…the first SeeD to draw a GF."

"It's good that you know your history, Hunter."

Zell narrowed his eyes. "Please don't call me that. It's beginning to get old."

Grey smirked, but decided to let it go, turning away from the two of them and walking to the far end of the waiting area.

Zell shook his head and sighed. "Hyne, that guy shits me sometimes…"

"Don't feel too bad, Zell." A familiar voice said, and he turned to see July. "He's just afraid of you, that's all."

Zells was surprised to see the girl, blinking at her in confusion. "July…you…"

July simply smiled at his shock. "I'm better then you think, Zell."

She wore a red skirt and a black blouse, sneakers on her shoes. She also wore gloves, the bright white material covering her tiny hands. She smiled again as he looked at them. "I don't wanna break a nail either."

Zell smirked at that, before he saw someone move out from behind July. It was another girl, this one unknown to Zell. She had dark black hair tied back into a ponytail that only reached her shoulders, and had a slim build.

"I don't believe we've met…" Zell said, moving forward, holding out a gauntlet to shake.

"Dee Hunter." The girl replied, accepting Zell's metallic grip. She looked down at the gauntlets as they shook hands. "Nice gloves."

"The correct term, I think, is gauntlet…pretty cool, huh?" Zell said with a smile, taking back his hand and lifting it up to show off. "Custom made in FH by a friend of mine…there's not another pair in the world like em."

"Huh…" Hunter replied, lifting up her hands. Zell looked down at them, before widening his eyes.

"Hey! Those are…"

"Ehrgiez gloves. I made them myself." She said a little haughtily.

Zell couldn't help but grab her hand and turn it this way and that, admiring the handiwork. "Wow…these are really well done!"

"Thank you," she said politely. Zell narrowed his eyes as she looked into his. Her gaze simply screamed fight me, I dare you.

Someone cleared their throat, and all the fighters turned to see a tall man, his olive skin making him seem like a dark stranger in the Estharian robes, standing before them. Zell recognised the man immediately – he had had some strange experiences regarding him. "Kiros!!"

"Hello, Zell." The Vice-President of Esthar said, bowing his head slowly as a way of welcome. "It's good to see you in better health."

"Thanks man. I haven't seen you in years! How you been?"

Kiros smiled, the action lighting up his flawlessly smooth face. "I can't complain, if that's what you mean. But this thing will be starting in a few minutes. I just wanted to wish you all luck."

Kiros was Esthar's diplomatic ambassador to all the other countries – this was obviously a sign of politeness. Clara stepped forward, shaking the tall man's hand. "Thank you, sir."

Kiros received the handshake warmly, before nodding to them and walking off towards the back of the stage. Hunter and Clara turned to Zell. "How do you know him?" Hunter asked, curious.

Zell smiled enigmatically. "Lets just say we've had some weird encounters during the past."

Hunter narrowed her eyes, before taking a step back in surprise. "Oh! I didn't know you were that way!"

Zell's jaw dropped open, shouting at the incredulously inaccurate accusation. "I…I'm not gay!!"

Clara snorted. "Yeah right. Everybody knows the cute ones are gay."

Before the now-fuming Zell could retaliate, President Justice and President Laguna walked out from behind the curtain rigged up on the stage, moving to wards a podium which rose from beneath the stage. The fighters obediently gathered together near the two leaders of Gaia's largest continents, and waited to be called upon.

Justice walked up first, addressing the crowd, talking loud and clear into the microphone. "Ladies and gentleman, the Gaia Martial Arts Tournament is very close to its completion. One of these five fighters," he shouted, gesturing to the group of warriors, "Will soon be known as the supreme master of Duelling in the known world, and will net twenty million Gil in the process."

The crowd began to cheer when the President mentioned the money, and he smiled as they began to applaud. Laguna stepped up to the podium, placing a hand on Justice's shoulder with a smile and a nod, before approaching the microphone. "Ladies and Gentlemen, please…" he said formally, waving his hand to calm the masses. "We all know that we want to see some action! But, unfortunately, it seems that we've hit a snag. In the proceedings, President Justice, unwittingly, gathered forty fighters for a five-round tournament. Now, my math is a bit off, Justice, but isn't that a little odd?"

"Right, President Loire. It seems that we had one too many people. Therefore we are holding this announcement in order to see who is lucky enough to compete in the last two rounds."

Laguna smiled goofily, looking down at the older man. "Well, how are we gonna do that?"

Zell rolled his eyes and groaned. This was obviously staged and rehearsed. He hated it when infamous people were forced to act – just because they could run a nation doesn't mean that they were good actors. "Oh, shoot me…" he groaned out loud as Laguna and Justice continued to act - badly.

"Well, I suppose we better get these scores out here so we can let these fine warriors return to their rest for tomorrow's round, Laguna."

"Right, Justice. Well, who do we begin with?"

Justice reached into his dinner-jacket pocket, pulling out five envelopes. "Lets start with…" he said out loud, as if he was talking to himself. He flicked through the expensive envelopes, seemingly choosing one at random. "…Dee Hunter!!"

There was a round of applause as Laguna gestured for Dee to step forward, the crowd clapping politely as the girl walked up to Laguna. Justice opened the envelope as he spoke into the microphone. "Dee Hunter, an avid Do Shei practiser, hails from Centra. She's been training for this tournament ever since she heard from it, and is fighting for the prize money to pay for her sick mother's medical fees and tend for her family."

The audience 'awwww'ed collectively, and Dee blushed slightly, clasping her hands behind her back and looking down at her shoes. Zell looked at her with a new perspective. Before she had seemed a brash, sarcastic girl – overconfident of her skill, challenging everyone. But now he saw that it was a defence mechanism – stay on the offensive, keeping everyone else cowed and you'll do just fine.

Justice pulled the piece of paper from the envelope and held it up so he could read in the floodlights. "Dee scored an amazing 32 out of 40 for skill, 20 out of 20 for magic usage, and 25 out of 40 for endurance, giving her a grand total of 77 points out of 100! That's pretty high! Thanks a lot, Dee!"

The crowd cheered once more as Dee stepped forward to receive the letter and wave to the audience, before stepping back amongst the fighters, clutching the letter with a tight grip. Zell watched as she stood away from the others, staring down at the letter with wide eyes. He stepped up and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Good score, Dee. You sound like an exceptional fighter."

She nodded vacantly, still staring down at the letter in her tight grip.

"The next fighter is…Hirouminius Greyniminous, the White SeeD! What a name, ladies and gentlemen!"

Everybody cheered and clapped as Grey walked slowly forward, moving towards Laguna to shake him by the hand. Zell watched him move, slow and sure, and take Laguna's larger hand in stride. Laguna smiled in good nature as they shook hands. "Wow…that's some grip you got there, son."

Grey simply smiled an un-readable smile and said nothing, taking back his hand and clasping it behind his back.

Justice spoke into the microphone, missing the little trading of words with Laguna and Grey. "Grey, as he likes to be known…for obvious reasons…" The crowd laughed at that. "…Has wowed us with his quick and powerful manoeuvres, as well as his lack of showmanship in the battlefield. His attacks are quick and deadly, going for the throat and not letting go. He's a deadly fighter – excelling in almost all aspects."

He opened the envelope and pulled out the piece of paper. "40 out of 40 for skill, 10 out of 20 for magic usage, and 40 out of 40 for endurance, giving him a grand total of 90 points out of 100!!"

The crowd went wild, clapping and whistling as Grey stepped up to Justice to claim his letter. Zell found himself tensing as Grey reached for his prize – but all the White SeeD did was take the letter with a honourable nod of the head, before turning and walking back to the fighters, not bothering to acknowledge the crowd.

Justice blinked, before turning back to the microphone. "What did I tell you, folks! All business, that's Grey!"

Grey moved through, walking up to July, who patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "Good work, Grey." She said quietly, Zell only barely able to hear them over the crowd.

"Thanks July…"

"I only wish that Sam was here…"

"Fate decided his destiny, July. Nothing more."

July nodded and looked up as Justice began to speak once more. "Next up we have…July Grimale, another White SeeD. A round of applause, ladies and gentlemen!"

The crowd applauded July as she walked forward, waving and smiling to the crowd as she walked up to Laguna, who shook her hand with a goofy smile. "And how did someone so beautiful get into martial arts, may I ask?" he asked warmly.

July smiled shyly and shrugged. "I guess I like to beat people up."

Laguna laughed out loud at the reply, shaking his head with a sigh. "Well, at least you're honest!!"

Justice spoke as he opened the envelope. "July has struck the male part of the crowd with a strong blow, the only female contestant to draw a more male-orientated crowd. Her flowing style, smooth attacks and stunning beauty, as well as her tendency to wear white during battles, have people branding her as the White Angel, sweeping through her opponents with all the grace and elegance of the heavens." He pulled the letter out of the envelope. "The White Angel scored 34 out of 40 for skill, 20 out of 20 for magic usage, and 32 out of 40 for endurance, giving her a grand total of 86 out of 100!!"

There were loud cheers and wolf-whistles as July moved forward to claim her prize, and Zell smiled as she took it with a gleeful giggle, hugging it close before running back to show it off.

She ran up to Grey, who smiled down at her. "Good going, July."

She turned to Zell. "Zell! Isn't it wonderful! I'm sure to get into the finals now!!"

Zell's smile didn't waver one bit. "I'm glad for you, July. You deserve that eighty-six."

Justice cleared his throat for the next announcement. "Now presenting…Zell Dincht, Sorceress Slayer and SeeD!"

Zell looked to the podium as the crowd suddenly erupted, the wave of noise seeming to make his ears hurt as he stepped up to shake Laguna's hand. He looked out to the crowd nervously as he took the President of Esthar's hand and pumped it up and down. "Whoa, easy there Zell…I'll need that hand for later…" Laguna said hurriedly, taking back his hand before patting him on the shoulder. "For a guy as talented as you are, you should relax a bit."

Zell rolled his eyes. "And I suppose you go through this kind of treatment daily?"

Laguna smiled and leaned back, placing a finger on his bottom lip. "Hmmm…only on public holidays and special events."

Zell just looked at him with a deadpan stare.

Justice spoke into the microphone as he opened Zell's envelope. "Zell has astounded the judges and the audience with his skill and expertise. His devastating attacks and excellent use of magic, as well as his never-give-up attitude has given him an almost legendary status in the Tournament circuit – as if he didn't have enough of that anyways…" the crowd tittered once more as he drew the letter from it's sheath, flicking it open expertly. "Wow! An amazing 40 out of 40 for skill, 20 out of 20 for magic usage, and 40 out of 40 for endurance, giving Zell a perfect score!!"

The crowd went wild once more, people cheering more loudly then anybody before. Zell's spirit soared as he heard Justice's words, and he pumped his fist into the air with a  "Booya!!"

Justice raised his hands to silence the crowd. "However ladies and gentlemen…" he said into the microphone, the crowd falling quiet instantly, Zell pausing mid-punch. "…The judges have ruled that, because Zell used Forbidden magic to defeat Sheran Timlett, they had to half his score."

What?! Zell screamed in his mind, his body seeming to be sucked dry of all his previous energy as his mouth fell open. Laguna stepped forward, concern in his face as he looked at Zell's expression. "Zell? Are you all right? Is it the virus?" he asked hurriedly, moving forward with a hand out.

"I've…I've lost…" Zell muttered absently, blinking to clear his vision. No prize money…no stopping the assassin…I've lost on all accounts…beaten by my own foolishness…dammit, Dincht, why did you have to take out Sheran like that!!

In his peripheral vision he could see Grey smirking, his arms crossed, one hand still clutching his own letter, the one which said that he beat Zell. If Zell wasn't so shocked at his technical foul, he most probably would have walked right up to Grey and head butted him, just to see the smirk get wiped off in a blaze of adrenaline – but Zell simply looked down at his hands, as if he could find the answer in his shiny adamantine palms.

Justice watched Zell stand there, dumbfounded, in silence for a second, the crowd deathly quiet as well. You could hear a pin drop as he cleared his throat once more, every set of eyes save Zell's, whose was fixed to his hands, swivelling form Zell to him. "However…" he said slowly into the microphone, rattling the piece of paper as he read on. "…Because of Zell's defeat of the Guardian Force Diablos, as well as the re-acquirement of the GF, his score has officially doubled, giving him a perfect score once more!!"

Zell looked up with sheer shock in his eyes as Justice smiled whole-heartedly, walking forward to shake Zell's trembling hand. "Sorry about that, son. I couldn't help holding everybody in suspense like that."

Zell received the handshake with half hearted gusto, his chocobo-caught-in-headlights expression melting away to one of a cheeky grin. "You crafty old bastard…you really had me going there…" he muttered, barely holding back the glee in his voice.

Justice snorted a laugh. "Hell, it was worth the look on your face!"

Zell laughed out loud, snatching the piece of paper from the President's hand and clutching it gently, turning around to move back to the group of fighters. As he turned, he caught sight of Squall and the others – joined with two more people.

Selphie waved to him with hyper-kinetic excitement, one arm flung over Angel's shoulder as Angel waved too, Ma standing just next to Irvine with a hanky in her chubby hand, dabbing proud tears from her warm eyes. Zell smiled warmly and flicked them a peace sign – which caused the deathly silent crowd to explode once more, the cheers said to be heard all the way into Esthar City.

Zell walked back to the group, his stride a little more confident, his hands gripping the paper with a firm gentleness. July stepped forward, patting him on the back. "You should have seen yourself, you looked so shocked!!"

"Yeah, the old bugger sure gave me a good fright."

Clara walked up. "A prefect score, Zell. I hope that we fight soon. It'd like to test myself against you now."

"I'm pretty sure we'll find out wether or not you'll be able to now, huh?"

Clara nodded and moved past him, walking up to Laguna as her father cleared his throat one final time. "Well, I guess that leaves just one last fighter…Clara Justice, my daughter and the best fighter that Galbadia has to offer."

Clara moved towards Laguna, and he raised his hand with a smile. She nodded to him and shook his hand quickly, her hand slipping from his grip after one firm shake. Laguna leaned on his left leg and placed a hand on his hip, a smug smile on his face. "So, you're on of those strong, silent types, huh?"

"I guess so, sir." Clara replied formally.

"Why don't you relax? You'll never be able to fight all bundled into nerves like that." He said warmly.

"No offence, sir, but I'm fine the way I am, thank you."

Laguna's smile remained, but he rubbed his leg absently as turned to watch Justice as he spoke.

"Clara has ripped through the Tournament with all the gusto that a true blooded Galbadian could muster, giving it her all on the battle field. Her shocking attacks have left her opponent's dead, or wishing they were dead. Her expert usage of elemental and status magic, as well as her Blue magic, has astounded and shocked viewers everywhere." He pulled the paper out of the envelope, holding it up so he could see clearly. "Wow! Another great score, ladies and gentlemen! 40 out of 40 for skill, 20 out of 20 for magic usage, and 40 out of 40 for endurance, giving Clara a perfect 100!!"

The crowd cheered excitedly once more, Clara walking up to Justice to claim her prize. Justice handed the piece of paper over to her and smiled, chuffing her underneath the chin. "That's my girl." He said, fatherly pride evident in his voice, before they hugged.

The crowd 'awwww'ed once more, before Clara released her father and walked back to the fighters. She walked right up to Zell and stood before him, a smirk on her face and a hand on her hip. "Well…what do you think of that, Zell?"

Zell nodded his approval. "Excellent, Clara…couldn't have done it better myself. Although, you do know that these guys are only scoring on how flashy our fights are. Once we're in the battlefield, the thoughts of a good show vanish and its just you and the other guy."

Clara scoffed at his words, waving her hand at him. "Oh, come on! All you've been doing since you've been here is showcase! I've been actually fighting, and beating my opponents with skill worthy of a champion."

Zell shrugged. "Meh. Can't argue with you there."

Justice finally cleared his throat, before walking up to Laguna. They briefly exchanged words, before Justice handed Laguna a final envelope. Laguna took the envelope solemnly, and walked up to the podium, speaking clearly and professionally. "Dee Hunter…could you step forward, please?"

Dee, clutching her letter nervously, stepped out from behind the four other fighters and walked up to Laguna and Justice, Justice walking forward and placing his arm around her shoulder. Laguna turned to face her, taking the microphone with him. "Miss Hunter…you have scored the lowest of the five finalists, resulting in you dropping from the finals altogether." He bit his bottom lip as Dee lowered her head, small tears trickling down her face, Justice rubbing her shoulders soothingly.

"You're honourable contribution will not go unrewarded, however." Laguna continued, moving forward and placing a hand on her shoulder. "You're battle within the Tournament is over now, and out of all the contestants, your cause was the most noble, the most moving. Which is why I'm going to make sure that your mother is taken care of in the best hospital Esthar has to offer, completely free of charge."

Dee looked up, the tears in her eyes turning from tears of sorrow into tears of joy. "R-really? Y-you mean it?" she sobbed.

Laguna smiled. "That right. And not only that, you can move your whole family here while she gets better, all food and accommodations paid for by the Esthar government."

Dee suddenly threw herself at Laguna, hugging him for all she was worth, the tears now streaming down her face as she sobbed uncontrollably. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!!" she sobbed gleefully, Laguna laughing out loud as he patted her on the back.

The crowd began to clap, then cheer, then holler encouragement to her as he disengaged her from his neck and turned her back to the group, allowing her to walk back under her own steam.

She stumbled forward, moving into July's hug. "You did great, hon…" July whispered as Dee lowered her head into July's shoulder and wept. "you were excellent…"

Zell walked forward and patted her shoulder. "You're mother and family will be alright now, Dee. You achieved your goal."

Dee nodded into July's shoulder and stood straight, sniffing and rubbing her eyes. "I know…but it would have felt better if I knew I had gotten them help the honourable way. By winning."

"Are you kidding?!" Zell said, wide eyed. He placed a hand on Dee's shoulder and turned her to face the crowd. "They love you, Dee! What else could you want?!"

Dee smiled and turned to look up at Zell. "I suppose you're right."

Zell stood straight, his hands on his hips. "I know I'm right." He said confidently, the face he pulled causing the serious girl to giggle.

Laguna walked up to the microphone once more. "Well, now that that's over, I suppose we can get down to the partying, right?!"

Everybody hurrahed, and began to move from their seat. Zell watched as the fighters moved their separate ways, July and Grey silently exiting the stage first, followed by a half-struck Dee. He turned to see Clara talking to Justice and Laguna and walked up to them.

"Well, Clara…" Zell said, moving to stand next to Laguna. "It seems we're one step closer to the end."

Clara smiled. "Well…we'll see about that. I believe we're fighting each other tomorrow?"

Zell looked around nervously. "Uh…really?"

"Yes." Justice confirmed, turning to look at Zell. "The people with the highest scores are to fight each other tomorrow. I thought you knew that."

"I thought it was just gonna be random, like it's been before."

"Nope. You're fighting Clara tomorrow." Laguna said confidently, patting Zell on the back with good nature.

Zell frowned, concealing his surprise with mock-frustration. "Rats. I really wanted to clean Grey's clock."

Clara shrugged. "You might still get the chance…but you'll have to fight me first." And with that, she turned and walked off the stage.

Zell sighed and turned to the two presidents. "Well, thanks for the little piece of paper, guys. I'm sure Ma will want me to frame it and add it to my collection of stuff when I get home…" He suddenly stopped, remembering the smouldering rubble that use to be his home.

Justice stepped forward, shaking his head sadly. "I heard what happened to your house, Zell. Suffice to say, it's a miracle that you managed to get you and your loved ones out."

"How…how'd you hear?"

Justice rolled his eyes. "Zell! I'm the President of Galbadia, the most populated continent on Gaia! There's not much I don't know!!"

You don't know that there's someone gunning for your life…you don't know that it might be one of your people…you don't know that there are radicals in the Galbadian Army…you don't know a lot of things, Justice. "Well…touche, I guess."

"Are there any leads?"

Zell rubbed his chin. "Well, as you know I haven't exactly been paying attention to my surroundings since it happened…so I'll have to check in on that. But that's for your kind words. They help."

He heard a sound behind him, and turned to see Angel and Ma running towards him, Angel launching herself into his arms as she giggled with glee. "You did it, Zell! You're in the next round!!" she squealed as he lifted her up.

"I'm so proud of you, Zell…" Ma said, wiping a tear away with a damp hanky.

Laguna chuckled and waked over to where Squall and the others were climbing on stage, but Justice moved forward to address Ma Dincht. "You must be Zell's mother. I believe they just call you 'Ma'. Is that correct?"

Ma turned and smiled warmly. "Yes."

Justice returned the smile. "Well, I can see why. You radiate a mother's love."

"Why, thank you. And you are?"

Zell rolled his eyes as he tried to fend off Angel's kisses. "Ma! This is President Justice!"

Ma immediately raised a hand to her mouth, gasping in shock, before bowing low. "I'm so sorry, Mr. President…"

Justice chuckled and grasped her hand, raising her to stand. "Please…there's no reason that a beautiful woman such as yourself should stay with formality…and my name is Justice Delarn. Pleased to meet you." He raised her hand and kissed it, Ma blushing shyly.

Zell blinked, before turning Angel and him away. "I think we'll leave them to their own devices, huh?"

Angel fought of the giggles and hugged him harder. "Yeah."

*          *            *

Next chapter – Zell VS Clara! The battle of the titans! Who will win? Only a flip of a coin will tell…I mean time! Time!