Chapter One
Cid's Lab
"Beautiful, beautiful!" General Lesank murmured. "Emperor Gestahl will be pleased! Marvelous work, Cid!"
"Thank you." Cid muttered, focusing his attention on filling out some paperwork.
"What are you doing?" Lesank asked, suddenly.
"Paperwork. I want to get it done befo-"
"STOP IT!" Lesank snapped. "Give me that."
"Bu-But-" Cid stammered, handing Lesank the papers.
"We don't want any records of this incident, do you understand?" Lesank growled, crumpling the papers into a ball. "This never happened. These children have simply been raised by us since birth, that's all."
"Bu-But-"
"QUIET!" Lesank snapped. "You are so very brilliant, Cid, but so very STUPID! You've created four beings with incredible power! You created them from SCRATCH, Cid!"
"Well, not quite scratch-"
"If word gets out," Lesank continued, ignoring the nervous Cid, "that humans can be created, think what might HAPPEN!"
"Yes, sir." Cid said, nervously.
"Good. Just so we understand one another." Lesank sighed, heavily, and looked around the room. "So, what are the names?" He wondered.
"Well, the blonde girl is Celes. She is the element of ice."
"Brilliant." Lesank murmured.
"The sickly looking boy is Kefka. He is the element of fire."
"He does look sickly." Lesank said, slowly, looking at the child that floated in a test-tube filled with artificial magic energy. "What's wrong with him?"
"He may be harder to control, that's all." Cid replied. "His power is great, though, greater than the others!" Cid looked even more nervous. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to run some more tests on him. They will slow his growth a little, but-"
"But what? We don't want him to slow down, we need his power as soon as possible!" Lesank rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. "No, no, don't hold him back, let him grow."
"But-"
"But nothing!" Lesank growled. "He is left to grow normally, that's that! Continue! Who is the other male child?"
"Leonardo." Cid trembled.
"Leo, hmm?" Lesank muttered. "The element of earth?"
"No, he-he is the element of lightning." Cid gulped.
"I see. Who is the last one? The sickly looking female?'
"Gwen." Cid answered. "She is the element of earth. She needs to be held back as well, like Kefka was supposed to be, I mean. She-"
"No holding her back!" Lesank growled.
"But-"
"NO holding ANY of them BACK!"
"She has very little POWER!" Cid yelled. All was quiet for a moment, and Cid gasped, realizing what he had just done; realizing he had just yelled at one of superiors. Lesank didn't seem to care, for once.
"What did you say?" The general asked, quietly.
"She has no power. Her will power is very weak, making her easy to control. She will do anything she is told to do, but because of that, her will power being low, I mean, her power is very low."
"I see." Lesank turned away, deep in thought. Finally, he turned back to the quaking Cid. "Is it possible to raise her power?"
"Yes."
"How?"
"Well," Cid began. "We would keep her in the lab and grow her to adulthood, but she would remain unawake, in a sort of coma."
"I see."
"All this time she will be injected with power. Her will power will grow steadily over this time, making her stronger. She will, of course, once completed, be harder to control...."
"Who cares." Lesank declared, matter of factly. "We have ways of taking care of that."
"Should we not consult with the emperor first?" Cid wondered.
"We will, as soon as he gets back. Or, let me rephrase that....I will consult him. Until then, do as we have decided. Raise the girl in the lab, make her more powerful than the others put together. Understand? Good. It is settled! They all will be raised naturally, except for the earth girl....What was her name?"
"Gwen." Cid whispered, hoarsely.
"Very good." Lesank said, and was gone. Cid stood, rooted to the spot for a moment. Then, he slowly turned and walked over to four giant test tubes, each with a small child inside. He loved each one of them so much. A thought crossed his mind. Perhaps he ought to kill them, save them the agony of having to live a life ruled by the empire. But no, he would never be able to bring himself to do it.
He was about to leave the room when there was a beeping noise, signaling the opening of a door. It was one of the lab assistants, Mari.
"Cid?" The girl asked.
"Yes, Mari?" Cid didn't turn to face her; he had a headache.
"Emperor Gestahl has returned."
"I see. Was he-"
"Successful? I believe so. He has returned with a specimen for you." Mari sounded nervous, so Cid turned to face her.
"Only one?" Cid was worried that Emperor Gestahl would be in a bad mood.
"Yes. It is more useful than an esper, however." Mari assured Cid.
"More useful than a- What is it?"
"It is a human child, a girl. It has great power, yet is natural looking, as I understand. Not only that but since she is still young, but a baby, she ought to be easy to control."
"What is she, Mari?" Cid asked, fearing the worst.
"She is-" Mari hesitated. "Half human, half esper." Having delivered her message, the dazed Cid told Mari she was free to go. Then, tiredly, he looked around the room. There was the ball of paper on the floor. The paperwork about the four children he had created. Gwen's paperwork was the only he had been able to finish. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to save it, he thought. Carefully, he took the wadded up paper and placed in in the bottom drawer of his desk. No one would care if they were to find it, except, perhaps, Lesank. And right now, Lesank was the least of Cid's worries.
Cid's Lab
"Beautiful, beautiful!" General Lesank murmured. "Emperor Gestahl will be pleased! Marvelous work, Cid!"
"Thank you." Cid muttered, focusing his attention on filling out some paperwork.
"What are you doing?" Lesank asked, suddenly.
"Paperwork. I want to get it done befo-"
"STOP IT!" Lesank snapped. "Give me that."
"Bu-But-" Cid stammered, handing Lesank the papers.
"We don't want any records of this incident, do you understand?" Lesank growled, crumpling the papers into a ball. "This never happened. These children have simply been raised by us since birth, that's all."
"Bu-But-"
"QUIET!" Lesank snapped. "You are so very brilliant, Cid, but so very STUPID! You've created four beings with incredible power! You created them from SCRATCH, Cid!"
"Well, not quite scratch-"
"If word gets out," Lesank continued, ignoring the nervous Cid, "that humans can be created, think what might HAPPEN!"
"Yes, sir." Cid said, nervously.
"Good. Just so we understand one another." Lesank sighed, heavily, and looked around the room. "So, what are the names?" He wondered.
"Well, the blonde girl is Celes. She is the element of ice."
"Brilliant." Lesank murmured.
"The sickly looking boy is Kefka. He is the element of fire."
"He does look sickly." Lesank said, slowly, looking at the child that floated in a test-tube filled with artificial magic energy. "What's wrong with him?"
"He may be harder to control, that's all." Cid replied. "His power is great, though, greater than the others!" Cid looked even more nervous. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to run some more tests on him. They will slow his growth a little, but-"
"But what? We don't want him to slow down, we need his power as soon as possible!" Lesank rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. "No, no, don't hold him back, let him grow."
"But-"
"But nothing!" Lesank growled. "He is left to grow normally, that's that! Continue! Who is the other male child?"
"Leonardo." Cid trembled.
"Leo, hmm?" Lesank muttered. "The element of earth?"
"No, he-he is the element of lightning." Cid gulped.
"I see. Who is the last one? The sickly looking female?'
"Gwen." Cid answered. "She is the element of earth. She needs to be held back as well, like Kefka was supposed to be, I mean. She-"
"No holding her back!" Lesank growled.
"But-"
"NO holding ANY of them BACK!"
"She has very little POWER!" Cid yelled. All was quiet for a moment, and Cid gasped, realizing what he had just done; realizing he had just yelled at one of superiors. Lesank didn't seem to care, for once.
"What did you say?" The general asked, quietly.
"She has no power. Her will power is very weak, making her easy to control. She will do anything she is told to do, but because of that, her will power being low, I mean, her power is very low."
"I see." Lesank turned away, deep in thought. Finally, he turned back to the quaking Cid. "Is it possible to raise her power?"
"Yes."
"How?"
"Well," Cid began. "We would keep her in the lab and grow her to adulthood, but she would remain unawake, in a sort of coma."
"I see."
"All this time she will be injected with power. Her will power will grow steadily over this time, making her stronger. She will, of course, once completed, be harder to control...."
"Who cares." Lesank declared, matter of factly. "We have ways of taking care of that."
"Should we not consult with the emperor first?" Cid wondered.
"We will, as soon as he gets back. Or, let me rephrase that....I will consult him. Until then, do as we have decided. Raise the girl in the lab, make her more powerful than the others put together. Understand? Good. It is settled! They all will be raised naturally, except for the earth girl....What was her name?"
"Gwen." Cid whispered, hoarsely.
"Very good." Lesank said, and was gone. Cid stood, rooted to the spot for a moment. Then, he slowly turned and walked over to four giant test tubes, each with a small child inside. He loved each one of them so much. A thought crossed his mind. Perhaps he ought to kill them, save them the agony of having to live a life ruled by the empire. But no, he would never be able to bring himself to do it.
He was about to leave the room when there was a beeping noise, signaling the opening of a door. It was one of the lab assistants, Mari.
"Cid?" The girl asked.
"Yes, Mari?" Cid didn't turn to face her; he had a headache.
"Emperor Gestahl has returned."
"I see. Was he-"
"Successful? I believe so. He has returned with a specimen for you." Mari sounded nervous, so Cid turned to face her.
"Only one?" Cid was worried that Emperor Gestahl would be in a bad mood.
"Yes. It is more useful than an esper, however." Mari assured Cid.
"More useful than a- What is it?"
"It is a human child, a girl. It has great power, yet is natural looking, as I understand. Not only that but since she is still young, but a baby, she ought to be easy to control."
"What is she, Mari?" Cid asked, fearing the worst.
"She is-" Mari hesitated. "Half human, half esper." Having delivered her message, the dazed Cid told Mari she was free to go. Then, tiredly, he looked around the room. There was the ball of paper on the floor. The paperwork about the four children he had created. Gwen's paperwork was the only he had been able to finish. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to save it, he thought. Carefully, he took the wadded up paper and placed in in the bottom drawer of his desk. No one would care if they were to find it, except, perhaps, Lesank. And right now, Lesank was the least of Cid's worries.