***Disclaimer: No, I still don't own any of the characters, places, things, etc. ....Damn Squaresoft lawyers.....
***The Bitter Truth: Part 1***
Death is perhaps the most frightening and painful thing you'll ever experience in life; it's also the last experience you'll ever have, the last thing you'll ever see, the last thing you'll ever feel. Death....is the end.
Dr. Kadowaki sighed as she sat down at her desk to go through the release papers for her most recent patients: Seifer and Quistis. They had left not more than five minutes ago after she made both of them promise they'd call her if anything was remotely wrong and that they'd be back next week for a check-up. She was just about to start filling out the first form when she heard a noise coming from one of the back store rooms. Frowning, she got up and went to investigate.
Dr. Kadowaki crept through the infirmary, making as little noise as possible, hoping to catch the vandal in the act. She passed the two patients' rooms and continued back toward the supply room. She was almost to the door when another loud noise erupted from the room in front of her. Gingerly, she reached out her hand to open the door and winced as the knob squeaked with each little me movement. Bracing herself, she flung open the door, ready for anything.
"What on earth are you doing?" she asked, instantly recognizing who it was. "If you're looking for Quistis and Seifer, they left a little while ago." When Dr. Kadowaki received no kind of response, she frowned and walked further into the room.
Dr. Kadowaki was very close now and asked, "Is something wrong? Are you all ri-" but she was suddenly and violently cut off as a scalpel was driven deep into her eye. Her scream of intense pain was muffled as a roll of gauze was stuffed into her mouth. She fell to the floor, her life starting to drain away. Through her haze of pain, she looked up into the eyes of her murderer just as she was beheaded with her own surgeon's saw and all connection with the living world was brutally cut off.
**********
"All right kids, this is the Training Center. All Garden students, SeeDs, and staff can come here to practice, train, and let out some steam. You however, will not be allowed in here until you're a little older or if you have an instructor with you. Any questions?" Edea smiled warmly at the five new Junior Classmen of Balamb Garden as she waited for their questions.
"What kinds of monsters do you have in here?" asked Samantha as she played nervously with her long, blonde hair. She was the youngest one and was still a little unsure of herself.
"Well," began Edea, "we have Grats, Bite Bugs, and a few T-Rexaurs."
"Ewwww!" wailed Alexandria. Although she was the oldest of the group, she was she was almost dwarfed not only by the others' sizes, but by her mass of auburn hair that went nearly to the ground. "I HATE bugs!"
Edea merely smiled at the little girl's look of disgust. Her attention was then caught by a small hand waving energetically from the back of the group.
"Yes, back there?" Edea asked, trying to see who it was.
A spunky little red-head ran to the front of the group and began to jump up and down excitedly.
"When do we get to fight the monsters, huh? When?!"
Edea gave a look of slight disapproval but couldn't help smiling inwardly at the child's eagerness.
"Now Amanda, I told you earlier that you won't be able to kill any monsters until you've begun training with a weapon. And *that* won't happen until you're older. You just need to be patient."
"*Ahem* Miss Edea?" asked a little girl quietly. She was probably the most interesting of the group. She had tiny little glasses over her innocent blue eyes and long black hair. At a first glance, she could have been the daughter of Rinoa.
"Yes, Meagan, what is it?"
"Um, I read once that T-Rexaurs are often very hard to kill. Do you allow the younger trainees to fight them?"
"Well, we can't exactly control *what* the trainees fight in here." Edea answered after some thought. She looked at the child, not quite understanding the question.
"But if T-Rexaurs are so hard to defeat, then how come you let in-experienced fighters battle with high-level monsters?"
"Ah, I understand what you're asking now," Edea exclaimed. "We can control each monsters' levels and abilities by a chip we have implanted in their brains when they're brought here. So if a younger, in-experienced fighter comes in here, we can make all the battles a little easier for him of her."
The little girl nodded now that her question had been answered.
"OK, any more questions?" Edea asked, looking from face to face. Samantha, Alexandria, and Meagan all shook their heads. "All right then, let's head to the Cafeteria for some lunch; I'm sure you're all starving!" Edea turned around to lead the children out of the Training Center. She didn't go more than three steps when an argument rose from the back of the small group.
"Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean that I can's kick your butt!" Amanda yelled. She was fighting with the only male of the group: an overweight little boy named Steven.
"As if!" he yelled back. He opened his mouth to give her an acid retort, but couldn't think of anything, so he simply stood there and glared at his nemesis.
"Hey, nice comeback! I bet you couldn't even tear the wings off a bite bug!"
"Oh yeah?!" Steven challenged, "Just watch me!" And before Edea could do anything, the little boy ran off, deep into the Training Center.
"Steven, don't go in there!" Edea yelled after him. She turned to the four frightened girls, "You girls stay here, I'll be right back." Then she ran off in search of Steven.
Edea ran through the brush, repeatedly calling out the boy's name; but to no avail, she couldn't find him. She was just about to start back to the entrance and go and get help when she entered a clearing just in time to see the young boy get swallowed by the biggest T-Rexaur she had ever seen.
"Oh God......" Edea whispered in disbelief. Steven hadn't even screamed, he was simply and suddenly taken from the world in the blink of an eye.
Even if Edea had not made a sound, she couldn't have prevented the monster from turning on her. With a terrifying roar, it charger. Edea barely had time to dive out of the way. She crouched low in the bushes, trying to plan out her strategy. But with a sudden jolt of helplessness, she realized that this was a fight she could not win. She was weaponless, the GF that she had junctioned to herself was far too weak to do any sort of damage, and all that she had for magic was Haste and a few Scans.
(All right, let's think about this Edea) she thought frantically to herself. (There's no way I can outrun a T-Rexaur, but I should be able to outsmart it. A T-Rexaur's intelligence is only as high as it's level and all monsters in the Training Center are kept at their lowest levels unless there's a training exercise going on. So all I have to do is--)
Edea's thought was cut off as the T-Rexaur's tail slammed into her, sending her flying through the air to land hard on the rocky ground. Edea tried to get up, but she couldn't. A sharp pain shot through her chest with every move. She looked up and saw the exit only a few yards in front of her. If only she could have moved faster...
Edea's scream echoed throughout the Training Center as the T-Rexaur clamped it's teeth over her legs, sending waves of pain crashing throughout her entire body. She could do nothing as the creature shook her like a rag doll. Then she found herself being catapulted into the air, end over end, and the last thing she saw was the T-Rexaur's glowing red eyes and it's open mouth before the monster's jaws sealed her in darkness forever.
**********
The Headmaster of Balamb Garden sat alone in his office, oblivious to the tragic turn of events elsewhere. He had been going through countless files of SeeD candidates and possible new student all morning and it seemed like it would never end. Then, mercifully, the sound of the telephone was able to tear him from his difficult task.
"Hello?........Ah! Hey there Laguna! How are you doing this lovely morning?.......What?!? You've got to be kidding!.....But who would want to blow up Esthar Laboratories? Were all the personnel in there when it happened?...........That's a pity about Odine, he was a genius, odd, but incredibly smart.......Yes, of course I'll send an investigative team to Esthar; it's important to get to the bottom of this......Yes, yes, they'll be over as soon as possible.....No, don't you worry about a thing, Mr. President.......OK now, Goodbye."
Cid leaned over his desk in search of the intercom, but dozens of files and papers prevented him from seeing even an inch of his desk. After a few minutes of searching, he was victorious.
Cid was just about to push the button when the elevator doors at the end of the hallway slid open. He peered through his open doors and recognized the newcomer almost at once.
"Ah, just the person I wanted to see. I want you to get a group together and head over to Esthar. There's been an incident and President Loire has asked Garden to investigate. You see, Esthar Laboratories has been-what do you think you're doing?" Cid looked at his visitor with mounting alarm as the room began to get hotter and hotter. Then, without warning, Firaga was screamed and Cid was enveloped in a ball containing the fires of Hell itself. Any cries he might have uttered were lost as his body was consumed in flame.
The killer stood a moment as the smell of burnt flesh permeated the air and then turned to leave, but not before the elevator doors at the end of the hallway began to open.
**********
"Ding, second floor, lingerie, ya know?"
"NOT FUNNY."
"Ow! C'mon Fuj, I was just joking!" Raijin cried as he clutched his shin.
"HURRY. APPOINTMENT." She replied, pointing in the direction of the Headmaster's office.
"Oh yeah! I can't wait to find out my SeeD scores, ya know?"
The inseparable duo headed down the hallway and stopped in front of the closed doors that lead to Headmaster Cid's office. Raijin was just about to open the doors when Fujin stopped him.
"SMELL?" she asked, wrinkling her nose in disgust.
Frowning, Raijin thrust his nose in the air and took a few whiffs. After a moment of thought, he shrugged and, with his back to the doors, opened them.
"Head master Cid probably tried to cook his own lunch today," he joked as he turned around, expecting a mock glare of reproval. But the charred corpse of his beloved friend and mentor stopped him short.
"Oh God, Fuj! How could this have happened?!" he cried, looking to his friend for answers. But she merely stood there, open-mouthed, staring at what was once Cid Kramer.
"I mean, holy shit, Fuj, you don't think that he was screwing around with magic or something, do ya?"
"No, idiot. I think someone killed him," she answered him quietly. "The Headmaster would never make this kind of mistake with magic."
Filled with grief, Raijin looked at his friend with tear-filled eyes.
"So what do we do now?"
"We go find Squall," Fujin answered without a moment's hesitation. She grabbed Raijin's arm and sprinted towards the elevator. Once inside, she pushed the button for the first floor.
The elevator had just begun to descend when it stopped with a sudden jerk. Both Raijin and Fujin gripped the sides of the elevator as it jerked again. They heard creaks and groans coming from the cables above them; neither could help the growing feeling of imminent doom.
Without further warning, the elevator dropped. Fujin barely had time to look at Raijin and say goodbye before the elevator landed deep in the bowels of Garden, crushing them both.
***The Bitter Truth: Part 1***
Death is perhaps the most frightening and painful thing you'll ever experience in life; it's also the last experience you'll ever have, the last thing you'll ever see, the last thing you'll ever feel. Death....is the end.
Dr. Kadowaki sighed as she sat down at her desk to go through the release papers for her most recent patients: Seifer and Quistis. They had left not more than five minutes ago after she made both of them promise they'd call her if anything was remotely wrong and that they'd be back next week for a check-up. She was just about to start filling out the first form when she heard a noise coming from one of the back store rooms. Frowning, she got up and went to investigate.
Dr. Kadowaki crept through the infirmary, making as little noise as possible, hoping to catch the vandal in the act. She passed the two patients' rooms and continued back toward the supply room. She was almost to the door when another loud noise erupted from the room in front of her. Gingerly, she reached out her hand to open the door and winced as the knob squeaked with each little me movement. Bracing herself, she flung open the door, ready for anything.
"What on earth are you doing?" she asked, instantly recognizing who it was. "If you're looking for Quistis and Seifer, they left a little while ago." When Dr. Kadowaki received no kind of response, she frowned and walked further into the room.
Dr. Kadowaki was very close now and asked, "Is something wrong? Are you all ri-" but she was suddenly and violently cut off as a scalpel was driven deep into her eye. Her scream of intense pain was muffled as a roll of gauze was stuffed into her mouth. She fell to the floor, her life starting to drain away. Through her haze of pain, she looked up into the eyes of her murderer just as she was beheaded with her own surgeon's saw and all connection with the living world was brutally cut off.
**********
"All right kids, this is the Training Center. All Garden students, SeeDs, and staff can come here to practice, train, and let out some steam. You however, will not be allowed in here until you're a little older or if you have an instructor with you. Any questions?" Edea smiled warmly at the five new Junior Classmen of Balamb Garden as she waited for their questions.
"What kinds of monsters do you have in here?" asked Samantha as she played nervously with her long, blonde hair. She was the youngest one and was still a little unsure of herself.
"Well," began Edea, "we have Grats, Bite Bugs, and a few T-Rexaurs."
"Ewwww!" wailed Alexandria. Although she was the oldest of the group, she was she was almost dwarfed not only by the others' sizes, but by her mass of auburn hair that went nearly to the ground. "I HATE bugs!"
Edea merely smiled at the little girl's look of disgust. Her attention was then caught by a small hand waving energetically from the back of the group.
"Yes, back there?" Edea asked, trying to see who it was.
A spunky little red-head ran to the front of the group and began to jump up and down excitedly.
"When do we get to fight the monsters, huh? When?!"
Edea gave a look of slight disapproval but couldn't help smiling inwardly at the child's eagerness.
"Now Amanda, I told you earlier that you won't be able to kill any monsters until you've begun training with a weapon. And *that* won't happen until you're older. You just need to be patient."
"*Ahem* Miss Edea?" asked a little girl quietly. She was probably the most interesting of the group. She had tiny little glasses over her innocent blue eyes and long black hair. At a first glance, she could have been the daughter of Rinoa.
"Yes, Meagan, what is it?"
"Um, I read once that T-Rexaurs are often very hard to kill. Do you allow the younger trainees to fight them?"
"Well, we can't exactly control *what* the trainees fight in here." Edea answered after some thought. She looked at the child, not quite understanding the question.
"But if T-Rexaurs are so hard to defeat, then how come you let in-experienced fighters battle with high-level monsters?"
"Ah, I understand what you're asking now," Edea exclaimed. "We can control each monsters' levels and abilities by a chip we have implanted in their brains when they're brought here. So if a younger, in-experienced fighter comes in here, we can make all the battles a little easier for him of her."
The little girl nodded now that her question had been answered.
"OK, any more questions?" Edea asked, looking from face to face. Samantha, Alexandria, and Meagan all shook their heads. "All right then, let's head to the Cafeteria for some lunch; I'm sure you're all starving!" Edea turned around to lead the children out of the Training Center. She didn't go more than three steps when an argument rose from the back of the small group.
"Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean that I can's kick your butt!" Amanda yelled. She was fighting with the only male of the group: an overweight little boy named Steven.
"As if!" he yelled back. He opened his mouth to give her an acid retort, but couldn't think of anything, so he simply stood there and glared at his nemesis.
"Hey, nice comeback! I bet you couldn't even tear the wings off a bite bug!"
"Oh yeah?!" Steven challenged, "Just watch me!" And before Edea could do anything, the little boy ran off, deep into the Training Center.
"Steven, don't go in there!" Edea yelled after him. She turned to the four frightened girls, "You girls stay here, I'll be right back." Then she ran off in search of Steven.
Edea ran through the brush, repeatedly calling out the boy's name; but to no avail, she couldn't find him. She was just about to start back to the entrance and go and get help when she entered a clearing just in time to see the young boy get swallowed by the biggest T-Rexaur she had ever seen.
"Oh God......" Edea whispered in disbelief. Steven hadn't even screamed, he was simply and suddenly taken from the world in the blink of an eye.
Even if Edea had not made a sound, she couldn't have prevented the monster from turning on her. With a terrifying roar, it charger. Edea barely had time to dive out of the way. She crouched low in the bushes, trying to plan out her strategy. But with a sudden jolt of helplessness, she realized that this was a fight she could not win. She was weaponless, the GF that she had junctioned to herself was far too weak to do any sort of damage, and all that she had for magic was Haste and a few Scans.
(All right, let's think about this Edea) she thought frantically to herself. (There's no way I can outrun a T-Rexaur, but I should be able to outsmart it. A T-Rexaur's intelligence is only as high as it's level and all monsters in the Training Center are kept at their lowest levels unless there's a training exercise going on. So all I have to do is--)
Edea's thought was cut off as the T-Rexaur's tail slammed into her, sending her flying through the air to land hard on the rocky ground. Edea tried to get up, but she couldn't. A sharp pain shot through her chest with every move. She looked up and saw the exit only a few yards in front of her. If only she could have moved faster...
Edea's scream echoed throughout the Training Center as the T-Rexaur clamped it's teeth over her legs, sending waves of pain crashing throughout her entire body. She could do nothing as the creature shook her like a rag doll. Then she found herself being catapulted into the air, end over end, and the last thing she saw was the T-Rexaur's glowing red eyes and it's open mouth before the monster's jaws sealed her in darkness forever.
**********
The Headmaster of Balamb Garden sat alone in his office, oblivious to the tragic turn of events elsewhere. He had been going through countless files of SeeD candidates and possible new student all morning and it seemed like it would never end. Then, mercifully, the sound of the telephone was able to tear him from his difficult task.
"Hello?........Ah! Hey there Laguna! How are you doing this lovely morning?.......What?!? You've got to be kidding!.....But who would want to blow up Esthar Laboratories? Were all the personnel in there when it happened?...........That's a pity about Odine, he was a genius, odd, but incredibly smart.......Yes, of course I'll send an investigative team to Esthar; it's important to get to the bottom of this......Yes, yes, they'll be over as soon as possible.....No, don't you worry about a thing, Mr. President.......OK now, Goodbye."
Cid leaned over his desk in search of the intercom, but dozens of files and papers prevented him from seeing even an inch of his desk. After a few minutes of searching, he was victorious.
Cid was just about to push the button when the elevator doors at the end of the hallway slid open. He peered through his open doors and recognized the newcomer almost at once.
"Ah, just the person I wanted to see. I want you to get a group together and head over to Esthar. There's been an incident and President Loire has asked Garden to investigate. You see, Esthar Laboratories has been-what do you think you're doing?" Cid looked at his visitor with mounting alarm as the room began to get hotter and hotter. Then, without warning, Firaga was screamed and Cid was enveloped in a ball containing the fires of Hell itself. Any cries he might have uttered were lost as his body was consumed in flame.
The killer stood a moment as the smell of burnt flesh permeated the air and then turned to leave, but not before the elevator doors at the end of the hallway began to open.
**********
"Ding, second floor, lingerie, ya know?"
"NOT FUNNY."
"Ow! C'mon Fuj, I was just joking!" Raijin cried as he clutched his shin.
"HURRY. APPOINTMENT." She replied, pointing in the direction of the Headmaster's office.
"Oh yeah! I can't wait to find out my SeeD scores, ya know?"
The inseparable duo headed down the hallway and stopped in front of the closed doors that lead to Headmaster Cid's office. Raijin was just about to open the doors when Fujin stopped him.
"SMELL?" she asked, wrinkling her nose in disgust.
Frowning, Raijin thrust his nose in the air and took a few whiffs. After a moment of thought, he shrugged and, with his back to the doors, opened them.
"Head master Cid probably tried to cook his own lunch today," he joked as he turned around, expecting a mock glare of reproval. But the charred corpse of his beloved friend and mentor stopped him short.
"Oh God, Fuj! How could this have happened?!" he cried, looking to his friend for answers. But she merely stood there, open-mouthed, staring at what was once Cid Kramer.
"I mean, holy shit, Fuj, you don't think that he was screwing around with magic or something, do ya?"
"No, idiot. I think someone killed him," she answered him quietly. "The Headmaster would never make this kind of mistake with magic."
Filled with grief, Raijin looked at his friend with tear-filled eyes.
"So what do we do now?"
"We go find Squall," Fujin answered without a moment's hesitation. She grabbed Raijin's arm and sprinted towards the elevator. Once inside, she pushed the button for the first floor.
The elevator had just begun to descend when it stopped with a sudden jerk. Both Raijin and Fujin gripped the sides of the elevator as it jerked again. They heard creaks and groans coming from the cables above them; neither could help the growing feeling of imminent doom.
Without further warning, the elevator dropped. Fujin barely had time to look at Raijin and say goodbye before the elevator landed deep in the bowels of Garden, crushing them both.