Author's Notes: Well, this is the chapter that starts the first Ultimecia battle of the Final Battle, along with Ultimecia's big long speech. As always, I do not own Ultimecia, Squall, Zell, Rinoa, Griever, or any of the other Final Fantasy VIII characters, GFs, or terms. They are respectively Square/Square-Enix's creations and I'm just using them. I do, however, own the storyline, along with Seth, Geoff, the four evil SeeD people, Tempest and Kali. So uh...please Square, don't sue me! Well, I hope you like it. . .





Chapter 4

End it at Eight

Ultimecia's PoV







Somewhere below, the sound of the Master Room door opening awakens me oncemore. I stare down in hatred as, one by one, six teens assemble below my throne. My face is hard and uncaring, ready for what comes. As the last young man enters the room, I looks down at the group of SeeDs that are here to take her life.

Somewhere not far off, I hear a clock begin to chime the hour. Somehow, I knew it was the chime of the clock tower just outside the Master Room doors. Yet, it had never chimed before this moment; the clock had been forever frozen at the time when, ten years ago to this day, my knight sacrificed his life for me.

The clock chimed then, as the SeeDs assembled themselves below. Once. Twice. Three times. Four. Five. Six. Seven. I let out a slight gasp as the chime ended. . .

At eight.

It was then I remembered the thought I had ten years ago the day. I glared down at the SeeD, my voice inaudible to those below, but just loud enough for me. The words were wistful and whispered.

"Your Final Fantasy Ends at Eight. Breathe Your Last Breaths, Children of Fate.""

I looked on as they glared up at me. I raised my voice then, my voice venomous and hateful. Ready.


"SeeD."

**************

I sit high on my throne, staring at the SeeDs collected before me. On the right-most edge stands a short light brown haired girl in a yellow dress of some sort. Beside her stands a slightly taller blond boy in cargo jeans and a black T-shirt and red and grey vest. Next stands a darked haired boy in black jeans and a white T-shirt, a heavy looking leather jacket with a fur collar hanging on his frame. Beside him stands a dark haired girl in blue; a sort of dress or robe over black shorts. Standing with his left side slightly behind him stands another boy, one with light brown hair, dressed like a cowboy with a tan-coloured trench coat, chaps and a cowboy hat. Lastly, standing to the far left, stands the last, a blonde girl in a pink and orange dress-like ensemble, her right side slightly out of line with their battle line. I smile down evilly at them as I extend my hand and draw it back.

"SeeD......SeeD......"

"SeeD, SeeD, SeeD!"

It is then that I put on my false accent. I had developed it over the years, trying to distance this self from my true self. I changed my physical appearance as much as possible, began wearing the typical exotic-type clothing characteristic of a sorceress, and went to the trouble to keep my hair permanently styled as it was. There was only one thing else to change; my voice. Thus, the odd sounding Germanic-like accent.

"Kurse all SeeDs."

"Swarming like lokusts akross generations. You disgust me."

"The world was on the brink of that ever-elusive time kompression."

I gesture once again, my hand extending and withdrawing in a single movement.

"Insolent fools!"

"Your vain krusade ends here SeeDs."

"The price for your meddling is death beyond death."

"I shall take you to a dimension beyond your imagining."

I gesture again. I glance slowly down to my neck, where, set in a golden necklace, lie three crystals. Each represent one part of temporality. One for the future, one for the past, and one for the present, that shall not last. The leftmost represented the past. The middle, present. The right, future. Two of the three crystals glow a pale blue light. The present and future were mine, their crystals sending off the faded light. All I needed now was the past and my ultimate desire, Time Compression, would be a reality. I watched as the glow from the middle and right gems slowly began to spread into the left-most. I smiled, staring down at the gems again. That was how it always started.

"There, I will reign, and you will be my slaves for all eternity. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA."

Slowly, in a slow fluid movement, I stand high above them, looking down at the accursed SeeD. The black angel wing raising and falling gently, like the beating of a heart.

"Whom shall I exterminate first!?"

My eyes quickly swept over them. Four of the six seemed to stand out more then the others. I knew though I would be better to take them on three at a time. I made my choices, the three that seemed eerily similar to me, yet I had never met these children before in my life. My Dark Angel Wings beat slowly in time with my breathing. I smile again, knowing that soon I would have achieved Time Compression, and all my worries would be over.

"I''ll start with you three!"

And with that, I jumped from the throne above them, the yellow dressed girl backing off to the corner in fear, and a well-placed Aero spell pushing the cowboy and the blonde out of my way. Soon, I was left with my choices, the three children whose lives I would end first.

Squall. Zell. Rinoa.

I did not know their names, but I had already classified them. The boy in the jacket was the Leader. The blond punk in the jeans the Warrior. The girl in blue the Sorceress. They stood before me, drawing their weapons. The Warrior raised his fists, glancing over to the others quickly. The Sorceress raised her winged projectile weapon. Standing between them stood the Leader, drawing his glowing blue gunblade. I recognized the blade immediately.

It was Lion Heart.

Seth's favourite gunblade.

I drew back and watched them ready themselves. I move my hands around myself and cast Tornado, sucking the three teens high into the air and dropping them with force. It damaged each for around 500 HP. I watched as the Sorceress prepared her magic and the Warrior ran towards me and unleashed a fury of punches. I took each with stride, still with triple the HP of all my enemies combine.

The Leader ran at me with that blade and made an upward slash. He was strong and hit for maximum damage. I was about to retaliate when the Sorceress jumped in with Scan.

I felt my vital statistics displayed before them:

Ultimecia

A sorceress trying to change the world by compressing time and taking power from all the sorceresses.
Level 65 HP: 28000/43000 Weak against Poison, No Affect: Holy

I sighed as the effects of Scan wore off, knowing now that the SeeDs knew my weaknesses. I threw a Holy spell at the Leader, damaging him.

The Warrior used up his turn administering an Elixir on his Leader, and the Leader used his to cast Haste on their Sorceress. On her next turn, the Sorceress used Ultima, removing around 1500 HP in damage from me.

Sighing again, I cast Dispel, the effects of the spell negating the Haste effect on the dark-haired sorceress. The blond boy punched at me again and the Leader and Sorceress use their turns for healing.

I realized my HP was over half depleted now, and I stopped to cast Curaga, replenishing my HP to a healthy 30000.

The Warrior again proceeded to punch me, but I evaded his attack by floating backwards, and waited for the next. The Leader came this time, and took yet another slash with his blade, this time depleting just less than maximum damage. I was back down around 20000 HP again, and watched as the Sorceress casted Meltdown on me, drastically lowering my Vitality.

I knew now that the only way to end this battle quickly would be to play tit-for-tat. I was one-against-three, but I had tricks up my sleeve...

I whispered softly, probably unheard by the SeeDs but not caring. "Enter my reality. . .

Maelstrom!"

The spell was gravity-based, dragging the three teens into a vortex and releasing them with only a quarter of their HP remaining. I grinned at the effects; three dying teens crouching before me.

I was about to take my next turn when the Warrior suddenly reached into his pocket and pulled out a Megalixir, using it on himself, the Leader and the Sorceress. It was as if the powerful gravity spell had never taken place.

I watched in horror as the Leader Scanned me again. I knew what my HP was.

21000/43000.

The Sorceress leisurely let her projectile fly, bringing forth the steady flow of my crimson regret. The blood tainted my silver hair pink, bolded the tattoos that adorned my paling skin. I knew what was coming now. They were too strong.

It was my Final Fantasy that would End at Eight. . .