Author's Note: This is the last chapter. Sorry for the delay, but you know how school and life is. Thanks for all the support and the reviews. I really do value each one. I'm just curious, why do people think I mind if they add me to their favorites' list? I don't bite, I swear! Lol, be my guest if you want to add me to your favorites =)
Chapter 16: Home at Last
Rinoa nodded, knowing he would tell her when he was ready. "So . . ."
Squall raised an eyebrow, prodding her to continue.
"What's the next course of action?"
It was priceless, as the sorceress looked to her knight for guidance, placing her trust in his hands. It was the way the bond should have been for generations, but just newly forged.
"I want to see how much training the rebels have first off . . . If they're as prepared as I hope they are then we'll leave immediately."
"What for?" Rinoa asked, confused.
"We're going to attack Ultimecia head on."
"So we're basically going to sneak into the Garden, find Ultimecia, defeat her and then take over Balamb Garden?" Zell asked incredulously.
Squall nodded, as he looked out of Ragnorak's window.
"Dude, are you crazy?!"
"No Mr. I-Believe-in-Wild-Hot-Dogs, that's your department," Squall remarked dryly.
Zell's mouth hung open. He wasn't sure whether to be more shocked by Squall making a joke or the fact the ex-mercenary didn't believe in wild hot dogs.
"What's going to rest of the mercenaries from killing us after we hypothetically defeat Ultimecia?" Irvine interrupted.
"They'll obey another sorceress," Squall replied matter-of-factly.
Selphie and the others still looked doubtful. Power corrupted sorceresses, or so the legend went. She turned from the cockpit to voice her objections. "But what about the power?"
Rinoa felt their fears and smiled softly. "You don't have to worry about me. Only the sorceresses without a knight for a long period of time have become what you are familiar with today."
The Trabians nodded.
"I still think we should just charge in there and blow the place to smithereens!" Selphie said enthusiastically, pounding one fist into her other hand for emphasis. Her companions looked scared. "Five minutes until we land," she added cheerfully from the front of the Ragnoräk.
Zell cracked his knuckles and stretched. Releasing the seatbelt he stood up and practiced a few moves.
Irvine patted Exeter lovingly, admiring the sheen of the gun. "It's just you and me now darlin'."
Selphie raised her eyebrow at the cowboy.
"I was talking about you!" Irvine exclaimed nervously, seeing his girlfriend's look.
"That's good," Selphie said nonchalantly. "Otherwise you would be spending a lot of time alone with Exeter," she said sweetly.
Beads of sweat formed on his brows and he gave her a weak smile.
Rinoa closed her eyes, taking in the peace of the moment to relax as much as possible. She hoped she would be able to control the very people she had been taught to fear her entire life.
Squall checked Lionheart along with the other weapons he had strapped along his person. The daggers were secured along the side of his boot while extra bullets for his gunblade were hidden in his cloak. Five minutes and they would be there. How could the fate of so many be determined within such a short amount of time?
A soft, familiar voice filled with amusement interrupted his thoughts. "Brooding again?"
"Is there something else to do?" Squall retorted.
"You could talk to me," Rinoa suggested.
"And I'm not doing that now?" came the sarcastic reply.
"This isn't exactly talking now is it?" Rinoa sat with a smug look, settling down in her chair while Squall just shook his head. "Are you . . . ready?" The question was filled with a deeper inquisition than it seemed.
Squall mused upon his answer to her. Was he ready to go back – to face the very place and people he had spent years avoiding? Could he fight without memories of his parents haunting him?
Before he could form a coherent reply Selphie cheerfully shouted, "We're here!" The perky brunette tucked her Morning Star into the back pocket of her yellow dress.
Everyone looked to Squall for the next set of directions. He sighed at being the appointed leader. "Alright, make sure you have your weapons equipped, as well as the GF I gave each of you earlier. We have to move fast. Ultimecia knows we're here. Irvine, Selphie, and Zell will follow our lead and fight off the mercenaries guarding the door to her room. Rinoa and I will go straight in. Hold off anyone trying to get through." He looked over all of them, making sure they were prepared. "Questions?"
No one spoke a word. The ex-mercenary nodded. "Let's go then."
"Diablos, cloak us please," Squall asked his GF.
"As you wish Master."
The entire group vanished under an invisibility spell the GF had cast around them to avoid all enemies. They could see each other though. Squall pressed the button to open to the door and took a deep breath upon seeing his former home.
The Garden seemed to sparkle with supernatural delight upon feeling its best mercenary return. Squall shook himself from his thoughts and walked determinedly towards his former home. Sparing a glance at the gate-keeper he hoped over the bar and motioned for the others to do the same.
The gunblader strode confidently to the elevators, making sure no one was around to accidentally bump into them. The doors opened with a ding and the five walked in.
"I've heard about these things!" Zell exclaimed excitedly.
Squall pushed the button for the third floor. "Yes, it's called an elevator Zell."
Zell ignored the sarcasm while the others chuckled. "No man! I meant doesn't that button lead to a secret floor? I thought all Gardens had them." He pointed towards the unmarked hidden button close to the others.
The ex-mercenary nodded, impressed. "How did you know about them?"
"Tch. Just listened to the rumors about the academies is all."
The elevator doors slid open as it reached the third floor and the quintet stepped out, each one having their reason for being there, none less valid than the others. Two mercenaries stood guard at the door, looking edgy and weary. They had been alerted of the betrayer's presence.
Squall nodded towards the Trabians and they stepped out of Diablo's protection.
"Intruders!" one of the SeeD's shouted before twirling her staff into a battle stance.
Zell charged first, leading the battle with a heel drop and quick punches. The black-haired woman fell surprised, but regained her position.
While the SeeD's were distracted, Squall led Rinoa into the room behind the mercenaries. Sliding Lionheart out, he held his gunblade in front of him. Ultimecia rose from her chair with a saccharine smile. A long red cloak trailed her feminine form to the floor, and excessive amounts of beads and jewelry decorated her hair. On her shoulders was a pair of black ravens, keeping watch over their mistress. Her gloved black hands lay perfectly still at her side with unseen power.
"Welkome home, Squall," she told him in a smooth lightly accented voice. Behind her tone was suppressed anger. No one would betray her and go unpunished. Especially not the best of her 'children.'
"This was never home," he growled at the richly dressed woman.
"And I suppose the civilian world was?" she mocked. "Did they welkome you with open arms Squall? Or did they hunt you like the animal they thought you were?"
"Shut up," he growled, swiping an arm through the air. "I came here to end this now."
Rinoa stood behind him for support, looking slightly anxious as she felt the powerful aura emanating from the sorceress. But that wasn't all . . . there was someone else here, with a similarly powerful aura. Her eyes widened in fear as she felt a surge in the magic of the room, which could only mean one thing.
"Shield!" Rinoa screamed, saving Squall from a particularly nasty shot of lightning coming from behind Ultimecia.
The ex-mercenary couldn't see the second source of magic and glared at Ultimecia. "Fairness was never your strong point."
"Neither was weakness," she smirked, clasping her hands together. The sorceress called for Griever. "Goodbye Squall."
A dark figure emerged, a hybrid of a lion and a dragon. Large gray wings adorned the body of the massive GF. It was a thing of deadly beauty. Its wings stretched out as it stretched out its large body. Ultimecia faded into its plane of protection as it narrowed its eyes upon Squall and Rinoa.
Giving a thunderous roar, Griever shook itself from the chains of its current master. "No longer will I serve the unrighteous! I serve the Leonharts in their time of greatest need and never will I go against them!"
The Guardian Force roared as Ultimecia struggled to hold her power upon her slave. Rinoa spied the sorceress coming back into the current realm and the small dark orb that held Griever's spirit around her neck. Squall was in a trance, as his life was being added to that of the Guardian Force in its quest to break free.
Rinoa knew Ultimecia would have a field of protection around her, one of an Otherworldly nature, but she also had an idea of who could overcome it. Concentrating, she held her own dark sphere. "Angelo! Come to me!"
The dog leapt from its plane of existence, looking towards its mistress.
"Fetch it for me Angelo," Rinoa asked, nodding towards the dark orb.
Her faithful companion bounded and leapt across the room, and snatched the trinket easily. Angelo returned quickly to Rinoa, who placed Griever's spirit in Squall's palm.
And then at once, both the warrior and its protector were held still. Lightning rained down on the room as an ancient power was unleashed upon the sorceress.
"Traitor!" she screamed at her ex-slave.
Griever seemed to smirk. "No, thou were the one that used an excuse to betray thy charges, the Leonharts, to take me from their family. Thou art the traitor, witch!" The giant GF shook in anger and opened its mouth at Ultimecia, casting its most potent form of magic.
"Shit!" Squall yelled, finally recovering, and seeing the Shockwave Pulsar spell about to be cast, he slammed onto Rinoa, covering her.
The earth seemed to tremble, and an enormous beam of red light shot out of Griever's mouth. Ultimecia gave a terrible scream, trying to cast Shield in vain.
The pulse hit her hard, making her fly back into the wall, bleeding from several wounds, but still barely alive, as Griever faded to rest in his plane of existence.
He spoke a few words to his keeper. "The battle rests in thy hands young Leonhart. Fare well with thy courage."
"You won't beat me boy," the sorceress snarled, pointing a hand towards the young warrior. "Hell's Judgment!" she shrieked.
The spell hit Squall hard, forcing him to his knees as Rinoa too fell from weakness. She recovered enough to cast a healing spell, at the same time Squall leapt at Ultimecia with fury in his eyes.
He had reached his limit break. "Renzokuken!" His very muscles strained to keep up with his determination. He slashed at her triggering his gunblade perfectly. "Lionheart!" he yelled with the last squeeze of his trigger. Bloodied brown hair flew around his face, as he leapt with a warrior's grace, driving his blade into the sorceress's heart. Screaming she fell lifeless upon his glistening white-blue gunblade. It was done. Her blood was splattered over the once pristine white walls and onto the forest-green carpet. But her spirit would not be in peace until she passed on her powers.
Squall panted, leaning heavily on his sword and yanked it out of her dead body. Her spirit had passed on. "You got it Rin?" he asked quietly.
She shook her head in confusion and then she felt it. It was the same source that had tried to hit Squall with a lightning spell. "Squall," she whispered frightened, getting to her feet quickly. "Get up, get over here. There's someone else in here."
"What?" he asked as confusion set in. The blood loss hadn't helped his thinking any, but he began to walk over to his sorceress. The warning in her voice was enough to make him hurry, until another voice stopped him mid-step.
"Aw, no hug for me Squall?"
He almost forgot to breathe as the voice that had been haunting him for years reached him.
"Who is she?" he heard from Rin telepathically.
A tall figure that could have been mistaken for a weak girl stepped from behind the curtains. She was innocently pretty, but it was in her innocence that peril laid. A simple white skirt and blue top with a flowing green scarf to complete the look of innocence. But she was lost innocence, lost to her hunger for the power of ancient sorceresses. She was the one that had received Ultimecia's power.
"No hug for your sister?" she taunted. Squall slowly turned around to look at the person he had called family so many years ago.
"You stopped being my sister years ago Ellone," he managed to say finally, swallowing hard. He had been prepared to face Ultimecia and the entire Garden full of mercenaries, but had forgotten about the sister he once had.
"Could you really kill me though brother?" she emphasized, knowing that his pain was his weakness. She was a part of him, his parents. Ellone knew he wouldn't hurt his sister, so she walked calmly and slowly to him. She stopped until she was standing a few feet in front of him, easily within striking distance of his blade. Ellone held her arms out in front of him, leaving her heart wide open.
Squall shifted his weight nervously, his hand sweating but steadily holding the blade.
"Why can't we be like we were before?" she asked in a sweet voice, luring him into the security of family that he had missed for so long.
"Squall," Rinoa called from her mind, as she still stood weak a few feet away from Squall to the side. "Don't listen to her. Please, you have end this now. She'll just be another-"
The ex-mercenary shut her out from his mind, wanting to listen to the entreaties of his sister. He needed reassurance; he needed family and the love he had so long ago. "Did you . . . why Sis? Why did you turn them in?" he asked, feeling betrayed all over again.
Ellone smiled. Squall was too easy to manipulate. She had known that from the beginning. "She made me do it Squall. Ultimecia said she knew that our family was hiding a secret and she would kill you if I didn't tell her. I had to pretend, Squall, that I liked doing it. I couldn't let her hurt you, brother."
"She's lying to you Squall!" Rinoa said from the side, marching up to yank him away from Ellone's tricks. She had him in a thrall – she must have! Squall wouldn't, couldn't believe her, not of his own free will!
The short-haired brunette easily stuck one hand out, and used magic to shove and silence Rinoa back to the wall. She was a pesky little thing that couldn't interrupt her plans.
Squall kept his ice blue eyes on his sister, feeling at peace with himself and the world. He had found his long lost family. "Sis," he choked out. "I thought-"
"Shh . . . I know," she said in a soothing voice, opening her arms to him.
He stumbled to her and she lifted one of her hands to her hair, pulling out a wicked knife that Squall didn't see.
"Come here Squall – it's been too long," she said in a sisterly fashion.
Rinoa tried to scream at Squall but to no avail. The force holding her down was too strong, but she couldn't let him die. She refused to let Ellone win. They had come this far damn it! He wasn't supposed to die this way. Struggling from her invisible bonds, she leapt at Squall, clinging to him as they both fell and as the knife came down.
"NO!" Ellone screamed as Rinoa took the hit.
Squall broke the trance he was in as his sorceress fell into his arms, bleeding.
"Rinoa?" he called softly.
"I'll be okay," she choked out. "Please, finish this for the sake of the world. For my sake Squall."
He got up, furious as he turned towards his sister. Bringing Lionheart down in an arc, he easily slashed her arm.
"Squall!" she snarled, angry. "Blizzaraga!" she shouted.
Shards of ice encased Squall, but Ellone hadn't known that his favored goddess was Shiva. The ice refreshed Squall and healed some of the young warrior's wounds. His eyes glittered dangerously, as the power of ice flashed through him. "Diamond Dust!" he shouted.
The beautiful ancient goddess appeared in a wall of ice as he boosted her power. Ellone gasped and stepped back, tripping over the rug. The ice goddess opened her eyes as her beautiful garments flowed around her. She looked almost maliciously at her opponent. Summoning rows of dazzling but deadly ice around the girl she clasped her hands together and all of it smashed into Ellone.
The queen of ice disappeared after the damage was inflicted. Ellone breathed heavily, and cast a healing spell. But it wouldn't save her as Selphie's voice commanded her limit break.
"The End!" she said with a determined glare.
Ellone never knew how she died. She found herself in a field of flowers and butterflies and then suddenly nothing.
Her dead body slumped to the floor as her spirit was separated from it in another realm.
Squall ignoring his immense fatigue turned to the woman he was forever bound with. Selphie rushed over, but Squall wouldn't let her near as he cradled Rinoa in his arms. Blood flowed slowly but steadily from her shoulder blade where the knife was still lodged. He didn't dare remove it for fear it would make her bleed even more.
"Rinoa," Squall choked out.
Her eyes glazed over as she forced herself to focus on the only pair of ice-blue eyes in the room. "Squall," she coughed weakly. "I love you." Then she closed her eyes from the tiredness in her soul and the pain in her body.
"Rin!" Squall shook her. "Selphie! What the hell is wrong with her? It's just a flesh wound right? Tell me it's just a scratch!"
The brunette looked sadly at Squall, spotting the tell-tale signs that suggested it was not just a scratch.
The dagger had been poisoned.
"Damn it! Rinoa! Come on! You promised . . . you promised you wouldn't leave me!" he yelled, shaking her shoulders. Tears fell from his eyes. "Please . . . you promised," he cried.
Her body seemed to mock him as little by little life left it. She wanted him to understand that she tried, but she didn't have the strength to fight the darkness. "Please forgive me Squall," she whispered into his mind.
The warmth began to leave her body long before Squall did.
There was a small funeral held for those wanting to respect the dead sorceress. It was a way for them to move on from the past and to rejoin the new goal of the future. Some of them wept, others said nothing, paying their respects from their silence. Squall did neither; he just watched on as the new Headmaster of Balamb Garden. He retained his cold exterior to those who would dare speak a word with him. He was grieving as well.
But nonetheless there would be a party later that evening to celebrate the hope for the coexistence of mercenaries and civilians.
She would have wanted it that way.
He had to hand it to his newfound friends – Irvine, Zell, and Selphie. They were taking care of most of the tasks needing to be done around the Garden, giving him time to adjust. It was strange to realize that she was truly gone.
The handsome gunblader sighed and left silently to be alone.
Everyone seemed to be adjusting to the new ideals, and their presence at the party was proof of their at least tolerance of it. Then again, maybe they were just teenagers who just wanted to enjoy the pleasures of a party.
He watched them – Selphie and Irvine dancing happily on the ballroom floor, Zell with a newfound acquataince, trying to prove his manliness by consuming the most hotdogs. Squall let a small smirk reach his lips – too bad Zell never took his stomach into consideration. He watched Zell turn a slightly putrid green and run over in the direction of the bathroom. Shaking his head he turned towards the sky.
A blaze of white light caught his eye as a star fell from the heavens to touch the earth before fading into oblivion.
"Beautiful isn't it?" a delicate feminine voice commented on the balcony.
Squall turned his wintry gaze upon her, giving her a large contented smile. "Want to dance?"
"I thought you'd never ask," she laughed as he guided her into their own private music away from the crowd in the ballroom.
He realized that he owed Griever more than just Rinoa's life in that moment. He owed him his eternal happiness with this beautiful woman by his side. Squall felt a pang in his heart at the loss of the family guardian as Griever had given his soul and life for Rinoa's. So much had been lost, and so many had been affected. But perhaps the small number of people that had shown up for Ultimecia's and Ellone's funeral had been proof that most of them didn't support her ideals. There was still hope for the world after all. If even the outcast of society could be the world hero, he could only imagine what hundreds of determined mercenaries and civilians alike could do.
Squall had finally found his place in the world, in the arms of this beautiful woman. He was no longer an outcast, because he had been accepted into her heart. And that was what mattered most to him. He was finally at peace, and home.
"Squall?" Rinoa asked, wondering what Squall was thinking about this time.
Gazing down at this wonderful woman whom he treasured infinitely, he dipped her and kissed her deeply.
The End