Re-Creating Hell
Chapter Five: Search & Destroy
By: PasifikStar
The front door of the palace burst open and several heads looked up. The front lobby of the palace was a place of leisure for numerous relatives, mainly male vampires playing chess while listening to classical music. They looked up and saw their leader's son walking in, blood staining the fluffy white collar of his leather jacket as he held an unconscious sorceress in his arms.
"Squall!!" a voice screamed from the hall way to his left. He turned his head and saw Ellone drop whatever she had been holding and ran forward. Her short brown hair waved around her face as her black shawl fell off her shoulders, past her teal shirt and long black skirt. "Squall, what happened!?" she asked in a panicked voice.
She checked Squall quickly and then moved on to study Rinoa, whose hair, body, and clothes were splattered with dark red. Squall shook his head. "It's not our blood," he assured her. "We were at Al Bhed."
Ellone's eyes went large and she frowned disapprovingly. "Al Bhed!" she hissed. She looked around, aware that everyone was watching. Narrowing her eyes, she waved for him to follow. "Bring her upstairs."
"Whoa! What happened?" Zell asked as Squall carried Rinoa up the stairs behind Ellone.
"Call her friends, tell them where she is." Squall stated.
"Is she all right?" Zell asked. "What happened?"
"I'll tell you later!" Squall snapped. He turned the corner and disappeared into the upper halls.
"Bring her in here," Ellone instructed as she opened a door. Squall nodded and entered one of the spare bedrooms reserved for visiting company. "Just put her on the bed, I'll go get some clean clothes and have the servents bring in some warm water and towels to clean her off."
Squall nodded and placed Rinoa on large, soft bed with the blood red sheets as gently has he could. He sat down on the edge of the bed and bent forward, running his hands through his hair as he let out a heavy sigh. *Hyne...I completely forgot about the Blood Rain at Al Bhed...shit, how can I forget something like that!?*
He felt the bed move and turned his head quickly. Rinoa was slowly turning her head, her eyes shut tightly as her lips opened and she mumbled something incoherently. Then her twisting became more rapid and violent, moving the sheets around. Her hands gripped the sheets tightly.
"Rinoa?" he asked quietly. "Rinoa-"
Her eyes flew open and Squall jerked his head back. Rinoa's eyes were all white. The pools of chocolate brown that captivated him had vanished and her wild thrashing batted away his concerned arms. Her breathing became heavy and he began to shout her name to try and break through her haze.
"Rinoa! Rinoa! Stop it! It's me! Rinoa-"
"AHHHHHHHH!!!!"
Downstairs, Zell looked up from the phone he had been holding. He dropped it from his hand as he turned his head sharply. With a worried look on his face, he ran down the hall and up the stairs, following the sound of the piercing scream that echoed off the walls of the palace.
"Hello?" the person on the phone said. "Zell? What's going on? Zell!?...QUISTIS! He's not answering! I heard a scream!!"
"Get into the car!" another voice shouted. The phone hung up.
Ellone had been walking back, with clothes in her hands, froze for a second as the unearthly wail rattled her to the core. She took to a mad rush for the room Rinoa and Squall were in.
Laguna had been going over some paper work in his office on the second floor, in the wing across from the wing where Rinoa and Squall were. Upon hearing the scream, the papers flew out of his hands and he jumped up off the big leather chair he had been sitting on.
The door opened and Kiros and Ward were waiting. "What was that!?" Laguna asked.
"It came from down the hall!" Kiros said. Laguna nodded and rushed over, tripping over the carpet in the center of the room and falling on his face. Kiros let out a heavy sigh as Ward shook his head.
The President of Esthar and leader of the most renowned vampire clan in the world struggled to get up, stumbling a few times, before finally making his way to the door. The three of them ran down the hall where they heard someone sobbing in a room. Stopping and looking in, they found Zell and Ellone standing there, unsure of what to do, as two servants in white, one with a basin of water and the other with some towels, stood behind them.
On the bed, covered in blood, were Rinoa and Squall. His arms were wrapped around her shaking body and he was desperately trying to calm her down as she shook her head against the crook of his neck and tried to speak in broken sobs.
"What happened!?" Laguna shouted in shock as he saw his son covered in blood.
"Calm down, uncle," Ellone said gently to the older vampire. She had called him that even when he and Raine adopted her. "They just went...somewhere..." She knew Laguna disapproved of Al Bhed and that Squall would be in big trouble if it was discovered that he went. And with Rinoa.
"Where? Are they all right? Do we have to call a doctor for Rinoa?" Laguna asked frantically.
"We're fine," Squall hissed, getting annoyed with so many people in the room. "Sis, can you just leave the stuff?"
Ellone took a deep breath and nodded. She looked at the servants and motioned for them to leave the things on the table as she placed extra clothes on one of the chairs in the room. Turning around, she ushered the others to leave. Zell looked at Squall before leaving reluctantly.
"I called," Zell said. "They might come."
Squall nodded and turned his attention back to the shaking sorceress in his arms. The door closed behind Zell, leaving the two of them alone once more. "Rinoa..." his voice seemed to grow ten times softer when he spoke to her. His hand cupped her chin slightly and pulled her away so he could look at her. "Rinoa, what's wrong?"
"Blood..." she whimpered. Her eyes were staring past him to the wall across from the bed. "There was so much blood..."
"I'm sorry, Rinoa," Squall said, pulling her head against him. He closed his eyes and slowly caressed her hair. "Hyne, I'm sorry for bringing you there..."
"It was everywhere..." she gasped out. Her eyes darted around the room wildly, as if seeing what she had seen in her dreams all over again. "Why was there so much blood...?"
Hyne, how it hurt Squall to hear her voice shaking in horror. He didn't know what else to say. Her hands were gripping his clothes and he gently pulled away. "Rinoa..." he said intently as he cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look up at him. "Let's get you cleaned up first, all right?"
Still shaking, she nodded weakly.
The gates to the presidential palace opened and two cars sped into the compound, screeching to a halt in the front steps, the red Porsche and the navy blue BMW 330i stopped. Right behind them was another car, a convertible, being driven by a brown haired cowboy.
The sports car and the BMW's doors opened. Seifer, Fujin, and Raijin came out of his red car while Quistis and Selphie stepped out of Rinoa's 330i, a birthday present from her father.
"Selphie!" a voice shouted behind them. The green eyed brunette turned around, a worried look still on her face as she saw Irvine jump out of his car and rush over towards them.
"Irvy!"
A gun was cocked and suddenly the tip of a black gunblade was held against Irvine's neck, stopping him from coming any closer. Seifer narrowed his eyes. "I told you to stay the hell away from my sister."
"Seifer, stop it!" Selphie shouted. She grabbed his arm and tugged it down before standing in front of Irvine. Seifer glared daggers at the lycan cowboy as Selphie turned around to look at him. "Irvy, what are you doing here?" she asked, her voice shaking.
"Zell called and said that Squall and Rinoa went to Al Bhed," Irvine gasped out. His eyes darted from Selphie to the gunblade held tightly in Seifer's hands. "They just got back but Zell said that they were covered in blood-"
"Covered in blood!?" Selphie and Quistis nearly screamed.
"Get the door!" Seifer barked angrily. Raijin nodded and rushed up the rest of the stairs, mutating into a dark colored lycan as his claws dug into heavy wooden doors.
"Wait!" Irvine gasped, taking a step forward and raising his hand to stop him.
It was too late, Raijin tore open the large double doors, growling viciously as the vampires within stood up. Almost immediately, fangs were blared as several vampires prepared to engage in a fight.
Selphie darted up the stairs after Quistis and the others as they entered the doors. Quistis held her whip in front of her, daring anyone to step forward. Seifer eyed the nosferatu with narrowed green eyes as he held his gun blade up. "Wait!" a voice was shouting from the side.
Selphie, who had been standing behind her brother and Quistis , with fire spells ready in her hands, turned and saw a brown haired woman running down the stairs. *Whose she?*
"Wait! Don't attack!" the woman gasped. She reached the bottom of the stairs. "My name is Ellone. I'm Squall's sister."
"Where is Rinoa!?" Seifer growled, directing a harsh glare at the vampiress.
"Let me explain!" Ellone gasped, fully aware of the raging energy that the group was giving out. Now she knew why the leader of the clans had selected them.
"We want to see Rinoa!" Selphie said, shaking her head tearfully. "Where is she!?"
"Sis," Irvine said as he ran up behind them. He squeezed his way past the group and made his way to Ellone. "Just take them there."
The brunette looked from Irvine to the group and nodded hesitantly. Irvine let out a relieved sigh and waved for them to follow her. Ellone slowly lead the group up the stairs with Irvine behind her. Raijin and Fujin covered the flank of the group as Selphie and Quistis walked behind Seifer, who was ahead of them.
On the second floor, they made a right and walked down a dim hall lined with Loire clan portraits. Zell was leaning on the wall across from the door and straightened when he saw the group. Ellone nodded her head to the door and Zell nodded. He stepped aside and allowed the others to go through.
Ellone walked in first, followed by the group and found Squall sitting in the middle of the bed, leaning back against the head board. Rinoa was coming out from behind the changing screen across the room, now dressed some comfortable black pants and a big white T-shirt.
"Rinoa!" Selphie and Quistis gasped as they ran to her.
The brunette's eyes went wide and she tilted her head. "What are you guys doing here?" she asked quietly as Selphie and Quistis engulfed her in hugs.
"We heard you were here and then Zell suddenly dropped the phone and we heard a scream so we came over as fast as possible and then they said that you were covered in blood and we were scared! What were you thinking going to Al Bhed!? You know that it's dangerous for us-"
"Selphie, Selphie..." Rinoa said, gently prying the petite girl off of her. She held her friend at arms length. "Calm down...take a deep breath."
"Rinoa, we thought we were badly hurt," Quistis said behind her. Rinoa turned around and saw Quistis' concerned frown. "Hyne, we thought we might've lost you."
"What happened?" Selphie asked. She sniffed Rinoa's hair slightly and narrowed her eyes. "Human blood...?"
Irvine looked over at Squall from where he stood on the door way. "You got caught in the Blood Rain, didn't you?" Irvine asked, shaking his head disapprovingly.
Squall turned and gave him a silencing look. His lip curled upward in a near snarl as he tilted his head towards the open window that revealed the darkness of the night. "Whatever..."
"What's a Blood Rain?" Selphie asked quietly as Quistis checked Rinoa for any actual wounds, despite the brunette pushing her away.
"It's the reason that I didn't want her to go," Seifer hissed. All eyes turned to him as he kept his eyes on the vampire sitting on the bed. "That club was created strictly for lycans and vampires...and only the pure ones."
"How do you know?" Selphie asked, still clinging on to Rinoa as if the sorceress would disappear at any moment. Rinoa was trying to get back to the bed and sit down.
"Classmates went missing, ya know," Raijin mumbled quietly as his body returned to it's normal human form. "After going to Al Bhed, ya know..."
"Killed." Fujin whispered. The white haired woman closed her eye and turned her head away from the group. "No bodies...found..."
"What are you talking about?" Quistis said with narrowed eyes. "Why would people just go missing?"
"It has to do with the music played in the club," Irvine explained. "For some reason, vampires and lycans hear it like they would normal music, but the more they hear it the more they zone out...it's like they're on a high."
"But for shifters, sorceresses, hybrids, and humans, the music immediately lulls them into a dream like state," Zell said. "And once every week, they have something called a Blood Rain."
"And what's that?" Quistis asked, sounding slightly indifferent.
Irvine looked at Squall, who still had his head turned away. He took a deep breath. "When the fifth floor holds a feasting and the blood is kept and stored. The night of the Blood Rain, they open the glass sky light and pour the stored blood of dozens of humans into the mass of dancing vampires and lycans."
Quistis and Seifer looked disgusted as Raijin and Fujin turned their heads away. Rinoa and Selphie paled at the thought and Rinoa bit her lip. She had practically bathed in human blood.
"At that point," Squall said as he scooted to the edge of the bed and stood up. "The vamps and lycans are already in the state of euphoric bliss and welcome the rain of blood. Lycans turn into their werewolf form and all the blood and music allows for the vampires to loose themselves in a blood lust. Any non lycan or vampire on the dance floor will fall victim and be devoured or sucked dry."
"And you TOOK her to this place?" Quistis said, her voice shaking in fury as she glared at Squall. "You KNEW about this and you TOOK her to it?"
Squall looked at her and narrowed his eyes. "I forgot about the Blood Rain," he told her seriously. "I never thought that she'd actually mingle with the rest of them below-"
The group gasped as Quistis' hand hit Squall's face, leaving a nasty red mark on his left cheek. "I should kill you right now," Quistis told him bitterly. "We TRUSTED you with her! And you put her in danger!? What the FUCK where you thinking!?"
Tears of anger were falling form Quistis' face was Squall diverted his eyes. He was ashamed. "I never meant to put her in danger," Squall mumbled. "It was an accident. I thought she'd be safe with me-"
"They thought she'd be safe with you, too, but you did nothing but put Rinoa in harm's way!" Seifer hissed. His eyes glowed green as his breath shallowed. His body sounded with cracking as his bone structure began to change and he morphed into his werewolf form.
Still gripping his gunblade, Seifer stalked over to Squall. "Seifer, stop it!" Rinoa screamed from behind Selphie. She tugged her arm away and managed to escape Selphie's embrace. Running, she grabbed Squall and put herself between the two males. Her hands were on Squall's shoulder as she put her head under his chin.
"Rinoa!" Quistis gasped in shock. "Get away from him!"
"No!" Rinoa cried out. "It wasn't his fault!" she told them tearfully. "He told me to stay where it was safe. He told me not to move. But I didn't listen!" she exclaimed. "I'm the one who followed those two vampiresses to the dance floor. I'm the one who got us caught in the Blood Rain! NOT Squall!"
"He's the one who brought you there," Seifer replied bitterly, his voice gruff and more of a growl than anything else. "You could've died!"
"But I didn't!" Rinoa said. She narrowed her own eyes and looked up to meet Seifer's fierce glare. "You have to get used to me putting MYSELF in DANGER. I'm not a little girl any more, Seifer! I'm fighting just like the rest of you!"
Behind Seifer, Quistis lowered her whip and looked away. Selphie did as well. *She has a point.* Both females thought to themselves.
Seifer turned his glare to Squall and slowly turned back into his human form. Hyperion still in his hand, he pulled Rinoa away from Squall and against him. He gave her a tight hug with one arm. "If you EVER do that again, princess..." he threatened, hiding the concern in his voice. "Hyne, we were so fucking worried."
"I'm sorry..." Rinoa whispered.
"Rin," Selphie said quietly. "Let's go home okay?" Rinoa nodded slightly.
Quistis turned to Squall. "None of this gets out, understand?" she hissed. "Caraway won't be at all too happy." She shrugged out of her jacket and put it around Rinoa's shoulders.
Zell stepped aside to let them through. As soon as Rinoa was out the door, Seifer turned to Squall. "If anything ever happens to Rinoa, you better pray that you're already dead." he warned. The tall blond turned around and walked out of the room with Fujin and Raijin.
Squall kept his eyes at the window. It over looked the drive way. After a few moments, he saw them all get into the car. Selphie seated Rinoa in the passenger's seat and Quistis started up the car. Blue eyes peered down and met brown ones that looked back up at him. A pale hand was placed on the glass window of the car as it began to move. Squall slowly placed his own hand on the window, his look softening as he watched her leave the compound.
"Why, Squall?" a voice asked behind him. "Why did you bring Rinoa there, KNOWING that she could get hurt?"
The brunette heard his sister's voice behind him and shook his head. "I don't know," he mumbled. "I completely forgot about the Blood Rain... shit, that was so stupid..." He leaned forward and lifted his arm, putting it against the glass as he rested his head on his forearm.
Irvine tilted his head slightly and smiled underneath his cowboy hat. "You forgot about something important..." Irvine said casually. "You did something so incredibly stupid that it almost caused Seifer to kill you..." The cowboy looked over at Zell and Ellone and smiled even wider. "Sounds to me like you're in love, Squall."
The vampire's reaction wasn't big. He merely stiffened, but to the others in the room, they knew exactly what he was feeling. Squall didn't say anything and just kept his eyes on the spot where the car had been parked.
"Squall, are you love with Rinoa?" Zell asked quietly. He wasn't really surprised, but then again, growing up with Squall did make it hard to believe.
The vampire still didn't reply. Irvine grinned some more. "I think he is."
"Will you shut up, Irvine?" Squall snapped, annoyed. "I don't want to hear it." He pushed himself away from the window and headed for the door.
Ellone, who was leaning against the door way studied him as he passed. As he turned the corner and headed for the stairs, Ellone called out to him. "You know, she never once blamed you for bringing her and she even stood in the way of you getting hurt," Ellone said. Squall kept walking, trying to ignore her. "It makes me think that she's in love with you, too."
Rinoa blinked her eyes open. The sun was filtered slightly through her light blue curtains and through the white blinds, but it still hit her. She winced as she turned her back to the window and pulled her sheets over her shoulders. Something caught her eye before she closed them again that forced her up.
Laying, neatly folded, on the seat of her chair was her favorite light blue duster. The one she was sure she had left behind at the palace. She quickly kicked her sheets off and rushed to her chair, running her fingers along the material.
Her footsteps could be heard running down the stairs as Quistis sat on the kitchen table, still going over research material that was scattered all over the table. Selphie was laying on the couch with her yellow slippered feet hanging off the arm as she watched anime.
"Did you guys put this in my room?" Rinoa asked, trying to hid the heightened expectation in her voice as she held up her duster.
Quistis looked over and shook her head. "No, but since you're here, I've come up with a little theory," Quistis said. She pointed to the seat across from her. "You better have a seat."
Rinoa quietly took a seat across from Quistis. "What is it?"
"It's about the clones," Quistis explained. She removed her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I don't think she can control a whole army of you, Rinoa. Personally I think that's impossible."
"So what do you think she's going to do?" Rinoa asked.
Quistis looked at her. "I think she's going to clone you in order to harvest your magic for herself."
Rinoa paled. Her eyes slowly squinted as she looked down at the table littered with books and papers. "So...she's going to re-create me so she could consume my magic from each clone?"
Quistis nodded. "Which means that if she succeeds, she'll have...INFINATE powers."
"We have to stop her!" Rinoa gasped. "Before she starts! We can't let her go through with it!" She jumped off her seat and Quistis stopped her.
"Rinoa," she began. "We can't let you go..."
"Why?" the brunette asked incredulously. She frowned. "I thought we already went through this, Quistis! I'm fighting just like you guys! I don't need to be protected-"
"Rinoa, just listen!" Quistis gasped. She stood up and looked the shorter girl in the eye. "For one second, just put your pride aside! No one is doubting your strength or courage. No one is saying that you should be hidden away. All we're saying is that we can hold off on using you for a while. We don't want to INVITE the threat of getting you killed!"
Rinoa bit her lip. *She's right...* She took a deep breath. "Then who is going to go?"
"We'll talk to the guys tonight," Selphie said from the couch. She waved the phone in the air. "I'll call Seifer!"
Quistis raised an eyebrow. "What happened to Irwin?"
"IRVINE!" Selphie shouted.
Quistis looked at Rinoa and gave her a snide smile. "I just said it to annoy her."
Rinoa smiled back weakly, acknowledging her attempt to lighten the moment. "I was wondering when you'd fight back."
"Irvine and I are on a little time out right now," Selphie sighed tiredly as she stood up and walked over to them. She was still dressed in yellow shorts and matching pajama shirt with trains across her chest. "We were talking last night and think we should take a break from each other."
Quistis narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "For how long?"
"We cancelled tonight's date." Selphie told them, sounding as if it were a long time. Quistis and Rinoa just stared at her.
"I'm going to call Squall." Rinoa mumbled as she turned around and headed back up the stairs, leaving the blond and the green eyed brunette standing there.
Quistis looked at Selphie. "She's got it really bad, huh?"
"You can't say you don't blame her," Selphie agreed. "I mean...you saw him in those leather pants."
Rinoa closed the door, barely catching the end of Selphie's 'leather pants' comment. She sighed and lifted her duster out of it's folded position to hang it up in her closet. A small white piece of paper fluttered down to the floor and she paused to pick it up.
Brown eyes calmly read the piece of paper with the black ink writing. Upon reaching the end, the paper fluttered to the floor, Rinoa standing there dumbfounded. Heart now racing, she turned and dove for the phone on the night stand on the other side of her bed.
She landed on the soft mattress and grabbed the black cordless phone, dialing a number she had memorized upon seeing it. It rang once. Twice. Five times. Voice mail. Swearing, she hung up and re-dailed another number. After two rings, it was answered.
"Hello, this is Ellone."
"Is Squall there?" Rinoa asked, her voice rushed.
Ellone blinked. "Rinoa, is that you? Squall left a few hours ago with Irvine and Zell. Do you want to leave a message?"
"Oh, Hyne!" Rinoa gasped. She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head. "No..." she whispered. "I...I have to go..."
"Rinoa, are you okay?" Ellone asked. "We can send for a doctor-"
"No," she cut off the vampiress. "Sorry...bye..." She pressed the 'end' button the phone and let it fall to her side. Getting off the bed, she headed to the piece of paper that had fallen from her hands and slowly re-read it.
She crumpled to the floor, clutching her knees to her chest as she held the paper. Downstairs, her two friends heard a loud thump and ran up the stairs. They threw her door open and found her leaning against her bed, with her head cradled over her arms.
"Rinoa?" Quistis whispered. "What's wrong?"
The sorceress lifted up the white piece of paper and Quistis read it. "What is it?" Selphie asked.
"He went..." Rinoa whimpered quietly. "He sneaked in here last night and left my duster and THAT was inside," she sniffled. "And then he went to the lab."
"Holy Hyne..." Selphie whispered quietly. "He's going to destroy the clones."
Seifer stood up from where he was sitting on a large gray rock. Fujin and Raijin were not there. His red sports car was parked several blocks away and looking behind him, he saw a sprawling laboratory compound behind a tall chain fence lined with barb wire. He sighed. The sun had just set.
The buildings were one story, all around, with many one sided glass windows that reflected the outside like dark mirrors. The buildings were also built with heavy stone and had heavy metal, sliding doors.
There was something that bothered him about the compound. And it was it's lack of guards. He had spend his first hour there, right after he received a message from Squall studying the laboratory's surroundings. One of the things he had learned at the Garden, the military school they attended, was to know their surroundings.
It had surprised him that Squall called his private line to tell him that he was going to the laboratory to destroy the data and any clones that might have been made of Rinoa. Suspicious, he asked Squall why he was telling him this.
"Is she or is she not important to you?" Squall had growled, annoyed at the fact that Seifer was questioning him. "There is a laboratory located here..."
After the information and time had been given, Squall hung up abruptly. Although filled with suspicion and extreme dislike for Squall, Irvine, and Zell, he felt he had to come. He loved Rinoa. Not romantically, as in how he often joked, but like he loved Selphie.
Seifer grinned. Quistis, on the other hand, was a different story. As he waited there, he let his mind wander back to five years ago when Selphie and Rinoa had entered a gifted finishing school. He was helping them move into a dorm and Quistis was their next door neighbor.
Their personalities clashed immediately. Quistis with her bossy, authoritative personality and Seifer's inability to follow orders. The first two hours they were moving in, he and Quistis were at each other's throats, leaving Selphie, Rinoa, Fujin, and Raijin to move their things in.
It was from that incident that Quistis got the impression he was lazy ass. An impression Rinoa and Selphie firmly insisted was the truth. It seemed that Quistis didn't get along with her roommate and spent the majority of her time with Rinoa and Selphie, resulting in a sisterly bond between the three of them.
When they were sixteen and got out of the school, they had lived in Galbadia running recon missions just after the war for Rinoa's clan. Then at eighteen, they moved to Esthar to serve as mediaries for the Galbadia, a sorcerer country, and Esthar, a vampire country. Only recently, with Rinoa's formal introduction to Esthar's leaders, have they technically started this 'official' job.
Rinoa had just turned nineteen, along with Selphie. Quistis was about to turn twenty, his age, and he wondered what he should get her for her birthday. Last year's joke present was some lingerie that sent Quistis through the roof and left him with several whip marks.
He grinned. *Worth every single one.* As he thought about getting her a new whip, he heard footsteps approaching and stood up, whipping out Hyperion.
"I can't believe you actually called him," a disgusted voice said as three figures appeared under the light of the street lamp. Zell looked immensely displeased with the situation. "Hyne, Squall, were you high?"
Squall sent him a glare. "Do YOU know magic?" he hissed. Zell frowned and shook his head. "Then shut up, Zell."
"For once I agree with him, chicken wuss," Seifer smirked as he looked at them. "All right, what's the plan?"
"The plan?" Zell mocked. "Oohh...we must be special! Seifer is actually willing to listen to us."
"Zell, will you just let it go," Irvine sighed. "Let's just get this over with. And stop messing with my future brother in law."
A gun was heard locking and Irvine smiled weakly as Seifer pointed his gunblade at his head. "Call me that again and I'll kill you." Seifer said behind gritted teeth.
"Heh heh...sure thing!" Irvine smiled.
"We aren't here to argue," Squall said. "We're here to destroy that thing."
"Destroy it?" Irvine asked, looking confused. "I thought we were just going to destroy the data and stuff."
"That's not enough," Squall mumbled. "We don't have time to go through the whole thing and pick out all the information on cloning Rinoa. We need it all gone, fast."
"How?" Zell asked.
Squall lifted up some cards. "These."
"Holy shit, Squall," Irvine mumbled. "We're not using GFs."
"It'll be fast-"
"What about the memory loss?" Zell asked.
"It's only short term memory-"
"Correct me if I'm wrong," Irvine said, frowning. "But haven't you only known Rinoa for a SHORT time." *Not to mention that I'VE only known Selphie for a short time. It was a GREAT time, but a short time, none the less.*
Squall didn't flinch. "This has to be done."
Seifer shook his head and plucked the cars from Squall's hand. He threw the deck into the air and shot a fire spell at it, turning the cards to ashes.
"What the hell are you doing!?" Squall growled, glaring at Seifer.
"So you think that forgetting about Rinoa is going to help her?" Seifer asked, angry. "Do you know who she was crying for last night in her sleep? YOU. Rin would never forgive me if I let you forget her. Neither would Selphie. And neither would Quistis. So I'll be damned if you get all three of them pissed at me!"
Irvine looked back at Squall, trying to hide a smirk. *Looks like the king of jerks has a heart after all...*
"Then how do you purpose we do the job?" Squall said.
Irvine took this has his cue and lifted up his shot gun, putting it over his shoulder. "No worries, man. We'll just do it the old fashioned way."
"Yeah!" Zell said enthusiastically as he punched the air in front of him. "Bring it on! I'm set!"
Seifer strode over to the main gate and brought his gunblade down on the locked and chain that held it closed. It sliced through the metal lock like butter and the lycan witch pushed the door gates open. Thunder sounded in the distance.
"Let's go."
"Fujin," Selphie said as she lifted the phone to her ear. "Do you know where Seifer is?"
"Out." the female shape shifter said. Fujin was standing in the kitchen, looking into the fridge. Behind her, Raijin held a wok and chopsticks as he moved noodles around the pan skillfully.
"Since when?"
"Five," Fujin said. The white haired woman. "Wait...note..." She walked back to their circular kitchen table and picked up the yellow piece of paper held down by a half full can of soda. Seifer's decrepit handwriting was on it and Fujin read it. "Got call...had to go...be back tomorrow."
Selphie repeated what the note said to Quistis, who as shoving her feet in her boots. "Can they trace his car?" Quistis said.
"Fujin, this is an emergency," Selphie began. "We think he went with Squall and Irvy and Zell to Adel's lab to destroy Rinoa's clones!"
Fujin opened her good eye wide as she turned to Raijin, who was still ignorantly stir frying. "Affirmative!"
"Can you trace his car and send us the information?" Selphie asked.
"Affirmative!"
"Send it to Quisty's cell!" the petite brunette as she grabbed her nunchuku from where it was hanging on a hook by the door, along with her jacket. "Then meet us there!"
"Bye!" Fujin hung up and Selphie tossed the phone on to the couch. She put on her shoes and slammed the door behind her.
It was almost seven when three motorcycles arrived at the gates of the presidential palace. Selphie looked up and frowned. It was going to rain. There was particular smell in the air that always was there right before it would rain.
Rinoa took off her helmet and pressed the button. "Ellone!!" she shouted impatiently. "Ellone! Open the gates!!"
"Rinoa, what-"
"Ellone, PLEASE!" Rinoa said. "It's about Squall!"
The gates opened and they rode in. Ellone opened the front door and rushed out looking worried. Behind her, Laguna and his two companions also emerged. "What is it!?" Ellone gasped. "What about Squall?"
"He went to Adel's lab to destroy information on Rinoa!" Quistis gasped. "There is a BIG problem!"
"What?!" Laguna asked fearfully.
Quistis reached into her jacket and pulled out her cell phone. She pulled up the coordinates that Fujin had sent her once Seifer's car had been tracked. "I checked all of the property Adel owns. All those she sub owns or leases, everything!" she gasped out breathlessly. "This is where they are. That lab as been abandoned for three years!"
"Did they bring new equipment into the lab?" Ellone asked.
"No! No sightings of new equipment," Quistis gasped. "The thing has been vacant for three years!"
"I don't understand..." Laguna mumbled, shaking his head.
Rinoa nearly screamed out. "Don't you GET it!?" she shouted. "It's a TRAP!!"
"Squall...you sure this is where Kuja told you to go?" Irvine said.
The brunette nodded. "Adel's old laboratory...she used it before she moved to a larger location - the labs were Rinoa was taken." Squall explained.
"Something's wrong..." Seifer said. "I can SMELL it."
"No..." Irvine mumbled as he narrowed his eyes. "It's what we CAN'T smell."
Squall held his gun blade tighter. "There aren't any guards." he mumbled.
"So?" Zell asked as he held his fists up, ready to fight. "That's good right?"
"Hyne, chicken-wuss, are you THAT stupid?" Seifer snorted.
"Zell," Squall said as he stopped and held his gunblade up. "If there aren't any guards...that means there isn't anything to guard."
"Meaning there is nothing here..." Seifer concluded.
"So why would Kuja send us here?" Irvine asked. "He's never been wrong before."
Squall looked visibly angry as he hit the wall with his fist, putting a hole into it. His eyes flickered red. "I'll kill him..."
"You won't have to do that." a voice said. The group froze and looked around the dark hall way they had been walking in.
"There's no scent," Irvine said as he sniffed the air. "It's probably a speaker."
"I thought that only Squall would show up," a voice chuckled viciously. "I didn't think that all FOUR of you would. To think...Balamb Garden's best students all in one place at one time..."
"Who are you!?" Zell shouted. "Where's the data!?" Behind him, Squall narrowed his eyes. He knew that voice. It belonged to the vampire that had kidnapped Rinoa.
"The data?" the voice said. "You SERIOUSLY didn't think that they were actually here...in this abandoned building, did you?"
"It's a fucking trap..." Squall hissed. He whirled around. "Get out of the building!"
The four men turned around, running towards the stairs they had descended to get to this lower level. In the silence of the hall, where their foot steps echoed, they heard it. The mocking ticking. They tore up the stairs to the first level.
"Hyne, they're going to blow this thing up!" Irvine shouted as they ran.
"Let's just get out of here!" Zell yelled back.
"This is all your fault, Squall!" Seifer shouted. "Why the hell did you bring us here!?"
Squall was lost in his own thoughts, plagued by visions of the one person he couldn't bare to let down. Her eyes. They were wide, filled with fear as clear liquid ran down her face. He knew that HER face was the last face he would see.
*Rinoa, I'm sorry,* Squall thought as he ran towards the heavy metal doors that they had broken into. *I'm so sorry.* They were rushing towards the final door when they heard the final tick.
Rinoa's motorcycle slid to a stop at the front gates of the abandoned laboratory. She tore off her helmet just as Selphie and Quistis arrived next to her.
Tick.
The building exploded and intense white light poured out of every crack that appeared in the low building as the cement crumbled and the metal skeleton was blow apart.
They shielded their eyes from the white light as the sound of explosions and crashing material fell to the ground. Rinoa brought her arm down, her face now wet with the rain, diluting her salty tears that fell from her eyes as they laid eyes on the distraction before her.
Her heart stopped.
"SQUALL!!!!!"