Nida frowned as he adjusted the radio. It was in fine condition… The lights flickered as the power input decreased and the Ragnarok lost altitude… Nida pressed at the buttons frantically. This couldn't be… Death couldn't have come three times could he? Nida closed his eyes, as the view of a tiny island grew bigger by the second…
They were going to crash…
*********************
Headmaster Cid answered the phone and was shocked by the news… The Ragnarok had crashed on an island after getting struck by lighting. Search teams had already been deployed to find Nida and the temporary coffins that contained Squall and Rinoa's bodies.
Cid shook his head and glanced over at his wife. Edea was looking out of the giant window, as the sunlight pointed out the signs of worry on her delicate face. He knew that she partially blamed herself for what had befell Squall and Rinoa but there wasn't anything that could have been done.
Fate wasn't friendly at all…
**************
SPLASH!!!! BEEEEP!! Nida opened his eyes and discovered that he wasn't dead. No, he was far away from death… The Ragnarok's emergency program had ejected him from the cockpit and the pilot's chair had been parachuted down to the sandy beach of the island.
Nida sighed in relief – he was fortunate to survive. 'Wait…' thought Nida as the gears in his head started working after he recovered from the momentary shock of a face off with Death. 'Oh $hit!!!' He unbuckled the seat belt and looked around for the red spaceship but there weren't signs of it anywhere.
'Don't tell me… It crashed in the…' Before he could think it, a giant explosion occurred from the ocean – shooting water about 15 feet in the air. 'Oh shoot…' Half of him was scared to death…but the part of him that was SeeD brought him back to his senses.
"Ok, the temporary coffins were waterproof so… Garden should be sending a search team about now – since Esthar would have called them and they'll find the coffins and ship them to Esthar right?" Whispered Nida but he knew that since the ship blew, then… He didn't want to think about it.
Back at the Garden….
An underwater ship was launched and headed toward Nida's position. Zell adjusted the gears and set the ship on 'Autopilot' for the rest of the way. A few minutes ago, the people on the Ultimecia team hadn't known about the Ragnarok-Aqua except for Zell...
"Come on!" said Zell as he turned back and faced the rest of the inner circle that ran after the martial artist. "This way!"
Zell made a sharp turn into a barren part of the Garden.
"Zell, where exactly are you taking us?" asked Quistis as she paused near a pole to catch her breath.
"To find Squall and Rinoa." He replied.
The group arrived at a hanger and the doors opened to reveal a blue version of the Ragnarok. "Say hello to the Ragnarok Aqua." Said Zell. "It was modeled after the Ragnarok but this baby here was designed purposely for underwater missions."
"Let's go!" said Selphie.
Zell hoped that they didn't arrive too late…
"ZELL!" said Quistis. "There's something showing up on the radar screen." Zell glanced on the screen. They were nearing an island… BOOM! The Ragnarok-Aqua was thrown violently to one side.
"Hey, what was that?" asked Selphie as she clung onto Irvine.
"I don't know. Whatever it was, it seemed to be some kind of mine. There was a ship here and they don't want us to go in any closer."
*************
The shower of Ragnarok debris floated further and further down to the ocean floor. A sealed coffin drifted slowly toward the ocean floor as blue light began to emit from it.
Icy… Dark… Silence… Those where the only things that he felt. It seemed that he was freed from the mortal chains that held him in place but now he was falling. Falling from the reality that he once lived in. But a sense kept him in the middle.
A white light radiated from an unknown source but he was comforted by its presence. The light was good.
I've never let you down. I always wanted to protect you. But I have failed…
Rinoa…
It was like being trapped in a dark room and a shaft of light peeked in from the silhouette of the partially closed door. An angelic figure floated in front of him and bade him to go through the door. He followed the angel when a shadow appeared and took the angel away.
Flashes of a girl…
Screaming…
He wanted to help but it was so far away…
She was screaming for help… Tears…A part of him was missing… A piece of his heart… He wanted to feel the warmth of her aura but the icy touch of Death separated him from his light.
He was suffocating… A jolt of pain flashed… Feathers fluttered along with flames that followed.
A cry…
"Squall!"
He recognized that voice… ('Rinoa?')
"Squall! Wake up! You can't let her win!"
Her? Confusion.
A new voice coursed in his mind. "Awaken, child of Hyne…" His fingers twitched.
Hyne? Warmth surrounded him as a wave of white called to him. Tranquility… A force pulled him back…but broke as his will and love shattered the bonds of Death that separated him from his beloved.
A blue aura surrounded his body as his heart moved and blood raced through his veins. Drawing in a deep breath, oxygen filled his lungs as stormy eyes opened once more.
('I need to find her…')
*************
Nida froze in shock as more bubbles surfaced from the ocean. 'Oh don't tell me, the ship sunk down even further…' he thought. WOOSH! Water flew into his face as a blue version of the Ragnarok surfaced. 'What the…'
The hatch opened and revealed the rest of the Ultimecia Team.
"Hey Nida! You ok down there?" asked Irvine as he stepped off the ramp and ran over to the fellow SeeD.
"Yeah, but um… The Ragnarok didn't land on the island… It landed in the water." Zell took the hint and returned to the cockpit of the Ragnarok-Aqua. Quistis and the others followed as the hatched closed and the ship dove under.
"Wait, there's a coffin right over there." Said Selphie as she spotted an oblong shape on the ocean floor. Zell pressed a few buttons as a few clamps from the Ragnarok-Aqua clamped on and pulled it into the ship. Irvine and Nida carried it into the medical bay where they placed it on a medical bed.
"It seems light… Too light." said Irvine, "What gives?" Nida opened the lid and…
No one was there. The only thing lying in the coffin was a ring. The Griever Ring.
The team exchanged glances as Quistis picked it up and looked on the inner band. Etched neatly on the inner band was the name of the ring's owner. Squall Leonhart.
*************
The strength of the underwater current pushed him away as he tried to find her. His angel. A shaft of light shone through the surface of the ocean as a hand seemed to be reaching for him. Motivation swept over him as he swam toward the hand.
*************
On the
ocean near Fisherman's Horizon, a solitary large ship drifted on the lofty
waters. The name of the vessel was the
Dawnstar but it didn't really matter.
The owner of this ship never fished daily, or competed in race
events. No, the owner wanted
solitude.
Five years ago, he had screwed
up on a decision and now, it seemed to be the curse of his life. Seifer Almasy was the owner of the Dawnstar
but he only stayed on the ocean to stay away from the others that remembered
his name so well.
The Sorceress's Knight… Yeah, that screwed him over in the first place – it was by pursing that 'romantic' dream. Eventually, misjudgment had him serving a possessed Sorceress that tried to take over the world. And he, her knight stood by her side without taking a single action.
Seifer knew that his arch nemesis had everything that he wanted to be. Hell, Squall even became a Sorceress's knight and he was the Commander of Balamb Garden. He envied Squall – the soft-spoken one that didn't seem aggressive to win the game but in the end, he did.
Sighing, Seifer kicked back and placed his hand in the cool ocean water. Squall wasn't the whole reason he was here today; he only did so to get rid of some of the guilt.
After all, he had shoved Rinoa to the mercy of Adel. But Squall and Co. had gone to the rescue. Seifer remembered the tears that streamed down Rinoa's cheeks as she pleaded with him to reconsider his actions.
'It's not too late.' Said Rinoa. 'You can always turn back.'
Seifer smiled bitterly to himself. It was too late. He had waited five years too soon and look where it got him. Seifer wanted to go back but he wasn't sure if the others would accept him for what he did. And of course, his Almasy pride didn't make that easier on him.
Guilt got him though. The guilt of betraying the only two close friends he had. Fujin and Raijin. They stood by his side but he betrayed their trust. 'I'm sorry guys but it's too late now. I've damned myself.' He thought.
His emerald eyes glanced to the side of the ship as he felt his hand come into contact with something…or someone. Chills went up his spine. Why would there be someone in the water? 'Oh $hit!'
Seifer debated what to do but he grasped whatever it was and pulled up until… SPLASH! A person emerged from the water and fell on the planking of the ship's surface.
"Hey are you alright?" asked Seifer as the figure slowly got up and turned around. It was the last person Seifer ever expected to see... "Squall? What would the famous Commander of Balamb Garden be doing here in the middle of nowhere?"
Stormy eyes focused on the figure in front of him and a memory clicked in his head. Seifer. "I could ask you the same and why you declined all of the invitations from Balamb Garden." Replied Squall as he wrung the water from his jacket sleeve over the side of the boat.
"Uh-huh, don't try to change the subject. Here, let's get you cleaned up. You look like hell." Said Seifer as he led Squall into the cabin.
A few minutes later, Squall was completely dried off thanks to a few hairdryers and low power fire spells. He sat in a chair with a cup of tea in his hands as Seifer sat in the other.
"So what happened to you anyways?" asked Seifer. He was slightly curious since he had lost contact with Garden for 5 years.
"It's a long story." Replied Squall.
"I don't seem to be going anywhere."
"*Sigh* Fine. It started a few weeks ago. Rinoa and I planned to get married but… She lost control of her powers and we were sent to stop her. The mission was a success but she was too injured to live. The Sorceress powers were too integrated to her. I couldn't figure out a way to help her. Rinoa was placed in an anti-magic field and I went in to accompany her. Then, I only remember falling asleep and waking up and ending up here."
"Wow. But I have a feeling that you're keeping something from me."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't act Squall. I knew you at the Orphanage and at the Garden. There's something wrong with you and you're hiding it." Seifer watched as his archrival flinched and knew that some of his speculations hit home.
"Fine. I inherited Rinoa's powers."
"…" Was all Seifer could say. "You've got to be kidding." Squall has Sorceress powers? Now that was shocking.
"Sadly, I wish I was. That way, things would be less complicated and I wouldn't be here of all places."
"Ok, I have one question for you Squall," said Seifer as he looked at the brunette. "Where the hell is the real Squall you imposter!"
Squall shook his head. "People change." He replied forlornly.
Looking at himself, Squall had a better understanding now of that phrase. Rinoa was the only one that got to him and knew him. When he first got to Balamb Garden, he didn't mind the loneness but he wanted to die. Squall Leonhart…wanted to kill himself when he first joined SeeD. It didn't feel right and he almost succeeded until…
~*~Flashback~*~
Squall took his gunblade and made a gentle cut at his wrist. Blood spilled and pooled on the floor.
'So here I am… No one will miss me…' he thought as he felt himself get lightheaded.
'WHAT THE F!^@$ ARE YOU DOING?!??!' came a voice as someone snatched away the gunblade.
'Give me it back!' whispered Squall as his vision got blurry but there was no doubt that was in his room – Seifer Almasy.
'Geez, Leonhart you weren't going to follow it through were you?' asked Seifer as he grabbed an extra towel and mopped up the blood.
'What makes you think I wouldn't?' he challenged.
'Look, I know that I've been picking on you one too many times but still, you should be honored since I consider you as my level. Maybe even greater…'
'Won't you be glad that I died?'
'No, then I won't have someone worthy to spar with… Besides…' Seifer leaned over and whispered something into Squall's ear and left.
It was probably the only time that Squall ever saw Seifer act so caring. The words were forever in his life – 'If you kill yourself, I would win. You are a fighter aren't you? If so, prove it. Go the farthest you can go Leonhart.' From that point on, he strived to do the best. If not, Seifer would do better.
~*~ End Flashback~*~
"Squall?" His name pulled him back into reality. Looking up, he saw Seifer with a puzzled expression on his face. It was ironic that the greatest enemy he had seemed to be his best friend instead.
"Seifer, I need to get back to the Garden."
"Ok, have you finally lost it? If what you said about being a Sorcerer was true, why would you want to go back?"
"Because if I don't, something else will happen. Besides, you're coming with me."
"Me?"
"If I do lose control on the way back, kill me."
Seifer raised an eyebrow but made no comment as he went to steering and set a course for Balamb Garden.
~*~Comments~*~: Eeep! Sorry for the wait!
Yeah this chapter was a little weird but hey, Squall isn't dead. He's back! Or is he? *evil laugh*
Seifer seems too good in this chapter but I'm confused on his character persona. Throughout the game it portrays him as a bad guy and yet, there seems to be more of his character than what seems to meet the eye.
Thanks to Lily, 7427, Camilla, LimitBreak4Ever, remote mine, Cloud-123, Dara, squeakychris and Chibi Yunie for the inspiring reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter. I hope to post the next chapter up soon and it'll contain more explanation on this whole 'Squall-isn't-dead-yet' scenario. Laterz!
~ Ari