Disclaimer- None of us like getting sued. Thus, I have to say that all FF8 characters and plot items belong to Square. However, everything else is mine, and can be marketed accordingly... -grin-
The hum of insects welcomed the SeeD hopefuls into the Garden's training center, the site for that week's combat demonstration. Many of the cadets arriving in the center were first-year students, which meant that they were not allowed to engage in combat of any sort, and had not chosen a weapon specialization. Combat demos were not mandatory, but it was suggested that all students attend a few during their educational career. Yet, very few students missed the chance to see two full SeeDs in direct combat, and, unbeknownst to Garden faculty and alumni, an efficient gambling ring was headed by an entreprenurial group of SeeD cadets. In the center of the slowly growing mass of students stood Instructor Trepe and the Co-Headmaster of Garden, Squall Leonhart. Squall looked at Quistis and a frown creased his brow.
"You sure you want to do this, Quistis?" Squall said, uneasily.
"Don't go soft on me now, Squall," Quistis said with a grin, "I have to do this every week. And you know that the students need to see how we fight."
"Yeah... but it seems so awkward... I'd be killing you..." Squall stated, continuing his frown.
"Kinda presumptuous to think you'd beat me, eh?" Quistis said, chuckling and narrowing her eyes in mock hatred. Squall seemed to ease up a bit. "And if you do happen to beat me, do you think that I'll be in unsafe hands with Dr. Kadowaki?" Quistis said, "She's saved your life a few times, I remember. I'll be fine, Squall. Trust me on this."
Trust you? You want me to kill you? How does Nida put up with doing this every week?
"You've got that look again," Quistis teased, "Drifting off into your own world again?" Squall rolled his eyes at his former Instructor. "Ease up! Have some fun for a change! Whaddya think would happen if Rinoa saw you getting beat by a girl?" Squall blushed slightly in response.
***
Timshel and Lirian stepped into the first section of the training center, late as usual and avoiding the eye of their instructor. Instructor Trepe swiveled around, almost as if she could smell tardiness on her students.
"Ah, Cadets D'Ischai and Tianni. Fashionably late, I see." Quistis said, with a scrutinizing glance at the two.
Lirian, always quick on the draw, retorted, "I always try to look my best for -your- class, Instructor." A giggle shot through the crowd. Lirian was in his element.
"I see," Quistis said, "but it appears that Cadet D'Ischai did not make the same preparations as yourself,"
Damn, Timshel thought, why couldn't I just grow a pair and ask Aly for something to cover this bruise? More giggling ensued. Timshel slunk down into his seat, assisted by Lirian's hyena-like laughter. Quistis raised her right arm in a dignified motion and the crowd grew silent.
In a more solemn and magisterial voice, Quistis began the session. "I would like to welcome all of you to this week's combat demonstration. Please keep in mind that all students of rank five or lower are not allowed to participate in one-on-one combat. This session is meant to show you how to fight against an equally-skilled opponent, not how to beat each other up." A few interdispersed laughs broke out, but were destroyed by Quistis' cold stare. "As many of you have noticed, Nida is not here as my sparring partner. Subbing for him is Squall Leonhart." A few girls batted their eyelashes at the silent Squall, and the upperclassmen, a minority in the group present, cheered. "At the end of this spar, if you have any questions, feel free to ask either one of us." Quistis grinned and an uneasy smile fell over Squall. "Without further adieu, we will begin. Any questions before we start?"
Timshel glanced around and saw five hands shoot up at once. He rolled his eyes as he noticed that those hands belonged to the members of the self-proclaimed Trepe Fan Club. Seeing this, Quistis smiled and nodded at the five, and their hands fell as quickly as they had shot up.
Good move, Instructor... Timshel thought to himself, I hate seeing them make fools of themselves...
Quistis stepped forward to face Squall. Both bowed ceremoniously and drew their weapons. Quistis unfastened her whip from her belt and gave it a crack. Squall loaded his gunblade and tightened his grip around the curious weapon. Silence fell over the crowd. Tension hung thick in the air. In the blink of an eye, Squall dashed forward to strike his opponent. Expecting the attack, Quistis dextrously entangled the blade in her whip, flicked her wrists, and flung the weapon from Squall's grasp. A cheer rose from the Trepe Five. Quistis quickly uncoiled her whip and unleashed a strike at Squall, who rolled out of the way and quickly turned to face Quistis, his arms outstretched. Squall rapidly murmured a few words, and his eyes flashed red. A burst of flame flew from his palm, enveloping Quistis in arcane fire. Quistis, stunned from the attack, could not react as the gunblade master dove and grabbed his weapon. Squall rapidly blindfired four rounds from his blade at the burning instructor. Quistis dropped to the ground to avoid the deadly bullets. The young instructor then dug her fingers into the dirt, recited an incantation aloud, and was covered with green tendrils of curative magic. The green veins passed over her body and extinguished the flames. Quistis concentrated harder, forcing the magic to flow to her wounds, restoring the burned flesh.
Squall's mind raced in the heat of battle as he watched his opponent rise from the ground. He leaped forward and attemped a second strike. Quistis looked straight at Squall, dropped her whip, and focused her will into her hands.
As he dashed forward, Squall began to feel the tug of time at his body. He suddenly felt very fatigued. His motions slowed to a crawl. He felt his feet go leaden. His arms ceased to move. The last things his mind processed were the white ribbons of light rippling away from Quistis' fingers. The students looked on in awe. Squall appeared as if he were a living statue. His cheeks were still full of life, but his body did not move. Quistis then spread her arms out and glanced skyward. After a few seconds, she was enveloped in a great mass of ethereal ice.
Quistis had felt this before. Her body was not her own. She felt increasingly distant as the Guardian's spirit displaced hers. Soon enough, Quistis had been removed from her physical shell and took a glimpse at Shiva manifesting within the ice. Quistis never liked this state of disembodiment; she felt so powerless, so weak. Quistis began to hear soft whispers around her. She knew what this was.
Guardian feedback.... she remembered. These voices are pieces of my forgotten past, pieces that I gave up to use the GF...
What were once unintelligible mumblings had now become a broken song, uttered by the heavenly voice of a woman. Some words of the song rang through clear, while others drifted away into nothing. For the fleeting moments in which Quistis heard the words, she basked in their beauty. Suddenly, the song stopped. The beautiful voice was silent for what seemed like an eternity. Quistis felt a longing to hear the voice again, and in the silence, she felt truly alone. The voice started again, but this time, the words did not carry on in a beautiful song. Instead, they came back as shouts, which Quistis recognized as her own.
Life... Death... Love... A pause in the words occurred, followed by one more, louder than the rest. ....Squall....
***
Squall's mind returned to him slowly, his thoughts processing as if they were flowing through syrup. His eyes refused to move, and he was just gaining control of his limbs. By the time he was somewhat conscious, he found himself staring into Shiva's cold eyes. The Guardian's gaze permeated Squall's being, looking straight into his soul and making it tremble. He watched the graceful goddess' lips move, and the sound that accompanied them registered in his mind.
"Die..."
-This chapter was a bit harder for me to write... and I'm still looking over how I want this story to flow... expect a lot of edits... the third chapter should clear up some questions that were posed in the first and second chapters. As usual, please R&R if you have the time to do so -
The hum of insects welcomed the SeeD hopefuls into the Garden's training center, the site for that week's combat demonstration. Many of the cadets arriving in the center were first-year students, which meant that they were not allowed to engage in combat of any sort, and had not chosen a weapon specialization. Combat demos were not mandatory, but it was suggested that all students attend a few during their educational career. Yet, very few students missed the chance to see two full SeeDs in direct combat, and, unbeknownst to Garden faculty and alumni, an efficient gambling ring was headed by an entreprenurial group of SeeD cadets. In the center of the slowly growing mass of students stood Instructor Trepe and the Co-Headmaster of Garden, Squall Leonhart. Squall looked at Quistis and a frown creased his brow.
"You sure you want to do this, Quistis?" Squall said, uneasily.
"Don't go soft on me now, Squall," Quistis said with a grin, "I have to do this every week. And you know that the students need to see how we fight."
"Yeah... but it seems so awkward... I'd be killing you..." Squall stated, continuing his frown.
"Kinda presumptuous to think you'd beat me, eh?" Quistis said, chuckling and narrowing her eyes in mock hatred. Squall seemed to ease up a bit. "And if you do happen to beat me, do you think that I'll be in unsafe hands with Dr. Kadowaki?" Quistis said, "She's saved your life a few times, I remember. I'll be fine, Squall. Trust me on this."
Trust you? You want me to kill you? How does Nida put up with doing this every week?
"You've got that look again," Quistis teased, "Drifting off into your own world again?" Squall rolled his eyes at his former Instructor. "Ease up! Have some fun for a change! Whaddya think would happen if Rinoa saw you getting beat by a girl?" Squall blushed slightly in response.
***
Timshel and Lirian stepped into the first section of the training center, late as usual and avoiding the eye of their instructor. Instructor Trepe swiveled around, almost as if she could smell tardiness on her students.
"Ah, Cadets D'Ischai and Tianni. Fashionably late, I see." Quistis said, with a scrutinizing glance at the two.
Lirian, always quick on the draw, retorted, "I always try to look my best for -your- class, Instructor." A giggle shot through the crowd. Lirian was in his element.
"I see," Quistis said, "but it appears that Cadet D'Ischai did not make the same preparations as yourself,"
Damn, Timshel thought, why couldn't I just grow a pair and ask Aly for something to cover this bruise? More giggling ensued. Timshel slunk down into his seat, assisted by Lirian's hyena-like laughter. Quistis raised her right arm in a dignified motion and the crowd grew silent.
In a more solemn and magisterial voice, Quistis began the session. "I would like to welcome all of you to this week's combat demonstration. Please keep in mind that all students of rank five or lower are not allowed to participate in one-on-one combat. This session is meant to show you how to fight against an equally-skilled opponent, not how to beat each other up." A few interdispersed laughs broke out, but were destroyed by Quistis' cold stare. "As many of you have noticed, Nida is not here as my sparring partner. Subbing for him is Squall Leonhart." A few girls batted their eyelashes at the silent Squall, and the upperclassmen, a minority in the group present, cheered. "At the end of this spar, if you have any questions, feel free to ask either one of us." Quistis grinned and an uneasy smile fell over Squall. "Without further adieu, we will begin. Any questions before we start?"
Timshel glanced around and saw five hands shoot up at once. He rolled his eyes as he noticed that those hands belonged to the members of the self-proclaimed Trepe Fan Club. Seeing this, Quistis smiled and nodded at the five, and their hands fell as quickly as they had shot up.
Good move, Instructor... Timshel thought to himself, I hate seeing them make fools of themselves...
Quistis stepped forward to face Squall. Both bowed ceremoniously and drew their weapons. Quistis unfastened her whip from her belt and gave it a crack. Squall loaded his gunblade and tightened his grip around the curious weapon. Silence fell over the crowd. Tension hung thick in the air. In the blink of an eye, Squall dashed forward to strike his opponent. Expecting the attack, Quistis dextrously entangled the blade in her whip, flicked her wrists, and flung the weapon from Squall's grasp. A cheer rose from the Trepe Five. Quistis quickly uncoiled her whip and unleashed a strike at Squall, who rolled out of the way and quickly turned to face Quistis, his arms outstretched. Squall rapidly murmured a few words, and his eyes flashed red. A burst of flame flew from his palm, enveloping Quistis in arcane fire. Quistis, stunned from the attack, could not react as the gunblade master dove and grabbed his weapon. Squall rapidly blindfired four rounds from his blade at the burning instructor. Quistis dropped to the ground to avoid the deadly bullets. The young instructor then dug her fingers into the dirt, recited an incantation aloud, and was covered with green tendrils of curative magic. The green veins passed over her body and extinguished the flames. Quistis concentrated harder, forcing the magic to flow to her wounds, restoring the burned flesh.
Squall's mind raced in the heat of battle as he watched his opponent rise from the ground. He leaped forward and attemped a second strike. Quistis looked straight at Squall, dropped her whip, and focused her will into her hands.
As he dashed forward, Squall began to feel the tug of time at his body. He suddenly felt very fatigued. His motions slowed to a crawl. He felt his feet go leaden. His arms ceased to move. The last things his mind processed were the white ribbons of light rippling away from Quistis' fingers. The students looked on in awe. Squall appeared as if he were a living statue. His cheeks were still full of life, but his body did not move. Quistis then spread her arms out and glanced skyward. After a few seconds, she was enveloped in a great mass of ethereal ice.
Quistis had felt this before. Her body was not her own. She felt increasingly distant as the Guardian's spirit displaced hers. Soon enough, Quistis had been removed from her physical shell and took a glimpse at Shiva manifesting within the ice. Quistis never liked this state of disembodiment; she felt so powerless, so weak. Quistis began to hear soft whispers around her. She knew what this was.
Guardian feedback.... she remembered. These voices are pieces of my forgotten past, pieces that I gave up to use the GF...
What were once unintelligible mumblings had now become a broken song, uttered by the heavenly voice of a woman. Some words of the song rang through clear, while others drifted away into nothing. For the fleeting moments in which Quistis heard the words, she basked in their beauty. Suddenly, the song stopped. The beautiful voice was silent for what seemed like an eternity. Quistis felt a longing to hear the voice again, and in the silence, she felt truly alone. The voice started again, but this time, the words did not carry on in a beautiful song. Instead, they came back as shouts, which Quistis recognized as her own.
Life... Death... Love... A pause in the words occurred, followed by one more, louder than the rest. ....Squall....
***
Squall's mind returned to him slowly, his thoughts processing as if they were flowing through syrup. His eyes refused to move, and he was just gaining control of his limbs. By the time he was somewhat conscious, he found himself staring into Shiva's cold eyes. The Guardian's gaze permeated Squall's being, looking straight into his soul and making it tremble. He watched the graceful goddess' lips move, and the sound that accompanied them registered in his mind.
"Die..."
-This chapter was a bit harder for me to write... and I'm still looking over how I want this story to flow... expect a lot of edits... the third chapter should clear up some questions that were posed in the first and second chapters. As usual, please R&R if you have the time to do so -