BREAKING THE MIRROR
Disclaimer – I don't own any of the FF8 characters etc, but I do however own some original characters that are going to be included in this story, and the imagination I have to give them life. Hope you like it…
Chapter 6 – Seifer's Story
'Memories, the greatest evidence of all'
(Rinoa - The Tower)
Rinoa surveys the carnage in the room. Slowly, she moves her head, taking in the scene. Every window on the floor has been smashed out. Glass litters the floor. There is a huge crack in the wall opposite her, and there is a door too. The floor just in front of that is ripped up, and is strewn across the place. A wind blows some glass out of the building. Her instincts were right, there was a battle here. Slowly, she levels her eyes on Seifer, who is standing somewhat, holding his ribs. His gaze does not leave hers.
"Seifer" she says quietly. "What have you done?"
Seifer says nothing at first. He merely looks down at Squall, lying unconscious at his feet. Looking back up, he notices that Irvine, Selphie, Quistis and Zell are all armed and ready, to pounce if need be.
"Please, hear me…" he coughs, blood comes out of his mouth.
"Get away from him," says Irvine sharply. Seifer decides to obey, but rather than walk, he simply falls over, dropping his weapon on the ground. He notices Squall stir slightly.
"Squall," says Seifer but is shut up as Irvine moves up and places Exeter against his head. Please Squall, wake up…
Rinoa crouches down and places a hand on Squalls head. Squall murmurs something, but Rinoa cannot make it out.
"Curaga," she mutters, a lovely greenish-blue glow emanates form her and surrounds Squall, before absorbing into his body.
"He should be fine in a few minutes" she says, and walks over to where Seifer, now in a kneeling position, is located. Suddenly she grabs him and, with unknown power, hauls him off the floor with one arm and yanks him up. Holding him up higher than she is, she glares at him. Seifer looks down at her, from his blurry eyes.
"What did you DO!" she booms at him, a shockwave of wind causes everyone to move back a bit.
"Please, Rinoa, it wasn't…"
"No! It never IS you is it! I know there was a battle between 3 people here, and it looks like your friend got away, but well seeing it took both you and them to get Squall down, I swear when I find your friend…"
"Put him down Rinoa!" shouts Squall, sitting up. Rinoa spins round and sees him, leveling his gaze at her.
"Now Rinoa, what you are doing is wrong."
Rinoa looks at him oddly, watching him as he gets to his feet. She puts Seifer down gently. Seifer, unable to stand up, collapses. Squall walks over to him. Bruises and cuts are still visible on Squalls face and body. He crouches down to Seifer, looking up at him.
"Thanks…man" he splutters, as Squall places a hand on his chest and mutters 'Curaga'. The same sensation that ran/appeared on Squall now happens to Seifer. Seifer blinks, and then proceeds to stand up. But as soon as he does so, Irvine immediately places Exeter to his head again. Squall glares at him, his whole expression telling the gunman to drop it. Irvine obeys.
"Would someone kindly tell me what is going on?" asks Quistis, who remained strangely silent throughout.
Squall looks at Seifer, Seifer nods.
"Let's get out of here first, I have a feeling our way home is going to be difficult" says Squall.
"No no, I'll take us back, it's faster" Rinoa replies.
"Him too" says Squall, pointing at Seifer. The others look at him oddly, watching him as Seifer collects his gunblade.
"But…why?" ask Zell and Selphie. Squall rounds on them.
"Because he is the one who can tell us everything! Thank shit I woke up and was healed in time to stop you lot from destroying him. Next time, don't judge a book by its cover!"
The others simply stand there in shocked silence. Even Seifer. Rinoa decides to cut to the chase.
"Come on guys, let's go." She makes them all lightweight again and takes off for Garden.
As they leave, a man and a boy look up and watch them go.
"They were tougher than you thought?" asks the man, lighting a cigarette.
"No, and yes. In terms of fighting skills, I can outmatch them, both at same time. But what Squall did was… unheard of."
The man puffs for a minute. "We need him. We need to know what else he can do. This is a very serious problem. And on that note, I have an assignment for you."
(Squall – Balamb Garden)
Squall sits at the head of the desk, saying nothing. He refused to change out of his clothes, so they are still spattered with blood. Even with the Curaga, he still feels parts of him hurting, some of them majorly. Sitting there in silence, he waits for Seifer to start. All of the SeeD's are here, including Nida, Xu and Cid. As soon as Cid saw Seifer, he immediately placed a 'discretion rule' on all of them. No one was to say that Seifer was here and what was to be said in this room.
The other SeeD's sit equally quietly as Seifer paces the room, gathering his thoughts. Finally, he speaks up.
"Right guys. This is… a fairly unusual story. Please, some of it might seem incredible, but what I saw really happened, it will also clear up what happened to Zell, and more importantly, myself and Squall."
"See? None of you would have heard any of this if you destroyed him" snaps Squall, glaring not only at Rinoa but t the other SeeD's too. They say nothing, merely hang their heads. Seifer again, is taken aback by Squalls attitude. He sits down at the table, opposite Squall, and begins to talk.
"I went to the Galbadian City of Deling City under the orders of a party I am not about to disclose" Squall immediately narrows his eyes, but Seifer puts a hand up. "Only because I was told not to say anything, but also to get help if needed. Again, I must admit, I thought I could do it myself, until I saw what I was up against," he falls silent for a minute.
"Simply put, this is what happened."
(FLASHBACK – Seifer's Mission)
Seifer, in disguise given to him by his employees, sits quietly on the train. Luckily for him, the compartment is empty. So he says nothing, merely thinks to himself.
Nice of them to give me this gear, but hey, free clothes is always good, plus they let me keep my old stuff, he thinks, patting his suitcase. He glances at his watch.
14 hours to go.
Seifer rests his eyes, and thinks of the reward he will receive should he thwart, or even find out what their plans were. Fuck, the guy promised him what he wanted most should he be successful, and he would be damned if he screwed this up.
The train stops in Deling Central Station. Disembarking and swiftly moving towards the hotel, he uses his fake name and ID to book into the Galbadian hotel. Once inside, he throws off his new clothes, and immediately places on his jacket.
"Damn, that feels good, but I can't go out like this" he mumbles. He grabs a body-length cloak and tosses it on. Feeling the comfortable weight of everything he needs, he looks out his window, and looks at the structure being built.
So that's it, some kind of tower. Hmmm they told me not to bother going up, the told me it might be under it… I'll take their hints. If this guy has the kind of stuff…hopefully the counter effect will hold…
He breaks off as he notices a huge lorry, gleaming white and emblazoned with the Galbadian insignia, rolls up to the gates of the Palace, after a few minutes, the lorry disappears.
What the hell was that? That sure as hell wasn't a Galbadian lorry. It looked too, new or something.
He checks his watch again. 22 minutes.
Time to go, hopefully I will be in and out before they know it.
He leaves the hotel, feeling the reassuring weight of his Gunblade at his side, under his cloak.
Moving swiftly, he dashes behind some trees and scales the wall. Quickly vaulting over it, he lands cat-like on his feet and takes off. Dashing for the presidential palace. Looking to his right, he sees what must be hundreds of Galbadian workers, all working on different aspects of the tower. He turns away and goes into the back door of the palace. He immediately hears voices and races down a corridor to his right. Swerving round a corner, he comes to a lift. Entering it, he looks at it. Buttons lead down to a 'Lab' of sorts. He smiles, but also the thought 'this is too easy' comes into his mind. This thought is verified when the lift stops and he gets out. A boy stands there, waiting for him. Seifer, on impulse, attacks with his gunblade, but is floored when the boy disappears and levels a kick to his gut. Seifer falls to the floor. As he looks up a man shoots a tranquilizer dart into his chest. He falls unconscious.
He wakes up, and finds himself strapped to a table. Looking around, he notices hundreds of various vials and equipment. The lab, he thinks. Saves me looking for it I suppose. A man walking over to him interrupts his thoughts. Wearing an impeccable suit and smoking a cigarette, the man bends over him.
"Seifer Almasy, oh how we are glad to have you here. Now, the fun begins."
An oxygen mask is placed over him, and he blacks out.
Seifer watches a man practice bare-fisted combat in a huge room. The room is like the inside of a black cube. The walls and floor are covered. Only one window allows light in. The boy flips and punches as if there are a hundred people around him. His speed and agility are quite impressive. Seifer maintains his stony silence. Studying the boy fighting. I've seen Zell do a few of those moves…
"As you can see Mr. Almasy, I am showing you this to mock you. Simply put, we have all the data we need on the 6 of you, now all we need is actual proof. But why am I saying this? You will forget soon enough."
Seifer says nothing, pretending to act dumb. He doesn't know the counter-effect is working. Neither do the scientists.
Slowly but surely the effect of the counter begins to ebb, he knew he may get captured, hell, was prepared to get captured, as he planned his escape down to the tee in his cell. He was already to go when…
His cell door opens, and the man comes in.
"It seems that some people from an old place you used to call home have attempted to try to rescue you and your friend.. How sweet. I don't know if you did something, maybe left an ultimatum date for them, but hey, they were just as daft as you. So come, I will show you what happens to those who try to cross me."
Friend? He thinks but has no time to dwell. 2 guards grab him and turf him out. He is bundled into a van and is driven off to some location. The drive takes a good 3 hours. Thinking they would never stop, Seifer is startled as it does stop. The back opens and the man says "Out, Seifer."
Seifer obeys and immediately surveys the situation. They are at the Tomb of the Unknown King. There are too many to take out to try to escape, plus that boy he saw practicing was there too. Seifer squints and sees 6 SeeD's. Pretty high-ranking ones. He notices a '27' on one of their badges of rank. For some reason they are not tied up, merely standing there, though armed guards flank them.
"Now!" shouts the suited man. "Here we have some SeeD's. Balamb Garden ones, the best of the 3 Gardens. Yes, even the shithole you commanded Seifer, why my father ever funded that place is beyond me…"
The SeeD's are startled by Seifer's appearance. They think that Seifer is on their side, but Seifer sends them a 'not me, them' signal that he was trained in Garden. Slowly wink and move eyes to the target. The top SeeD recognizes this. He immediately uses hand signals to do the same to the others.
"But anyway," finishes the man. "To the point. You 6 tried to get this guy and his friend here right? Or rather, try to find out what we are doing. Well, I'll tell you. After that, I will let you fight for your lives. Rest assured, it will be the 6 of you against one person. Should you win, I will let you go."
The SeeD's exchange uneasy looks.
"What you have here gentlemen, is the product of your utmost top training of anything and everything rolled into one." He gestures to the boy, wearing a long coat. "He is your opponent. Meet the perfect assassin folks."
And on that note, Seifer looks on horrified as the boy flies into them, using his head, he quickly smashes headfirst into the face of the top-ranking SeeD. The SeeD does not know what hit him, and his nose cracks right into his skull, killing him. The other 5 are suddenly thrown weapons. Their own weapons, as they were being held by some guards. Disorganized, they quickly come to as the boy stands still, looking straight ahead. The man in the suit comes up to stand alongside him. Seifer maintains his 'blank' look.
"See what he did?" he hisses to Seifer. "Take out the leader, put them in disarray, but even so, he is letting them organize. Makes it more interesting."
Seifer watches as the boy pulls out a sword. That looks like…a Lionheart! Squall?
The boy goes for the seeds. One SeeD, with a gun starts to fire, but he barely registers 3 bullets before his head is severed from his body. In the same fluid movement, the boy flies backwards, skewering the SeeD directly behind him with the sword. Kicking him off the sword, he spins in a circle, stopping what seemed to be in mid spin and piercing one of the SeeD's hearts with the sword. He too drops dead.
Only 2 SeeD's remain. Seifer watches, trying to keep his face straight as one of them, he too with a sword, goes for him. The boy seems unimpressed, letting the boy try to hit him, all of a sudden, he adopts the boys fighting technique, as if he knew it all along. The SeeD, confused, makes his last mistake. The boy stabs his 'Lionheart' through the SeeD's stomach, before turning it upward and pulling his sword up, the boy is neatly sliced in 2 as his body separates.
The last SeeD just stands there. Seifer looks on with sadness, he knows the SeeD cannot beat him. The boy with the Lionheart just surveys him, shakes his head, and then merely takes his head off to. The SeeD, standing there, ready for the blow, simply closes his eyes before it happens.
"Now you know what we have, Almasy. I will have this world soon. And my father's vengeance. Over her."
Seifer was bursting to turn and face him, but kept his stoic look.
"Take him back, make him forget this."
Seifer wakes up on the table again. The images of those SeeD's playing through his mind, he hoped that they have been found OK. He closes his eyes and pretends sleep as the doors open. He hears a body being dumped onto a table next to his, not far away. The doors close. Seifer chances to open one eye. There are a few doctors, but they are not at him. He looks slightly to his left and opens his mouth in shock, as he sees a needle. A needle being pumped into Zell Dincht.
Zell!
Suddenly a doctor rushes over and gasses him again. He could have sworn he saw Zell look at him…
(FLASHBACK END)
Seifer says nothing after that, merely stares out of the window. He hears a few sniffs from Selphie, who cried when he told them in perfect detail about what had happened to the 6 SeeD's.
"So that crap they stuck in me caused me to forget, but you didn't? How?" asks Zell.
Seifer grimaces. "I kinda knew that was the first question you were gonna ask me. But to answer, yes I could. Only because I was given a serum that counter-effects it. Actually, it boosts my memory so I can remember things for a longer period of time."
"Who gave you that?" Rinoa asks him.
"I… I can't tell you" Seifer says. "I'm sorry."
"I think I know who did, and I know who has hired you," says Squall. Everyone stares at him. Seifer splutters.
"You… you do?"
Squall nods his head. "It was Esthar you are working for isn't it? And I would guess that Dr Odine gave you the serum."
Seifer stares at him dumbfounded. Finally he sighs. "Yes, you're right, Squall."
"How did you know that?" asks Cid. Squall looks at him.
"I overheard that guy and a doctor talking. He spent a good deal of money and resources to have the memory-forgetting serum stolen from there. I know this because I remember sending a SeeD to investigate where this stuff went. That SeeD in question was the high-ranking one that was killed by Mirror."
Seifer looks at the floor. "Yeah, you're right. I was sent by Esthar, but please, don't say anything about that. You're not supposed to know."
No one says anything. Xu speaks up.
"What shall we do now?"
"Easy" says Selphie." We take that place apart, get as much as possible about this guy Mirror and the guy in the suit, and then try to get them."
"We could wait till after the new President is elected," says Cid. "According to Caraway, he thinks that whoever is elected is the one doing this."
Squall says nothing, he thinks about the fight with Mirror. Suddenly a surge of anger hits him. He gets up and smashes his fist onto the table. The others look at him startled.
"You're right, we hunt them down, and mainly Mirror. He is the biggest priority. By far."
"Is he that strong?" asks Irvine, looking from Seifer to Squall and back.
Seifer and Squall exchange looks. Before Seifer answers, Squalls face twists into one of hate, and he stalks off out the door, banging it as he goes. He limps slightly, but doesn't seem to notice.
"What the hell was THAT about?" asks Zell to no one in particular.
Rinoa gets up and follows him.