As Balamb Garden's extravagant gold gates loomed into sight, Quistis gave Squall instructions to change into his uniform and assemble in the first floor lobby, ready for the SeeD exam. As she turned off, heading towards the Faculty room, Squall made his way down Garden's walkway, into the main area, heading for his dormitory.
Squall had lived in the same dorm for the entire time that he had attended Garden. It was actually the only home he remembered being in. He was so young when he first came to Garden that he couldn't remember any previous homes.
Squall was an orphan, as many students of the Garden were. But he was orphaned at such a young age that he couldn't even remember his parents. None of the Garden staff seemed to know who they were either. This didn't actually bother him too much, though. He had a home, and he thrived on the rules and discipline that Garden had provided for him. He adored the strict, academic atmosphere, and had learnt to become extremely independent at a young age. He always relied on himself, never turning to others if he had problems.
Squall's dorm wasn't particularly large, but big enough for all his belongings. His comfy bed lay against one wall, with his desk directly opposite. On the desk were weapons magazines, class textbooks, and various scraps of paper with notes he had written on while in class. Leant against one leg of his desk was his gunblade case, although he rarely put it away, and hanging up on the curtain rail of his small window was his SeeD cadet uniform.
Squall took off his leather jacket and gloves, replacing them with his cadet jacket. Then, removing the belts around his waist and on his legs, he changed his black trousers for the navy blue ones.
After he had dressed, Squall looked in the mirror. It was a uniform he was proud to wear, but after today's exam, he wanted to put on the outfit that represented his goal. To become a SeeD. To wear the SeeD uniform.
In the main foyer, by the directory, Quistis was waiting for Squall. She looked impressive in the SeeD uniform; its yellow and silver collar teamed with her hair color perfectly. She saw Squall arrive and called him over.
"Squall! Over here!"
Squall walked over calmly.
"I'll be announcing the squad assignments for the exam now. Let's see...You'll be with..." she looked at the papers attached to the clipboard in her hand, "Zell Dincht. Quite a lively fellow."
Although the group assignments were handed out at random, Quistis thought that Squall might benefit socially by having a more outgoing partner for the exam. So she was glad when Zell Dincht was picked to be in Squall's group.
"Lively?" Squall scoffed, hand on one hip. "He's just loud. Can't I switch members?"
"I'm afraid that's not possible." she replied with a tiny smile. She then looked over Squall's shoulder and saw his partner. "Over here, Zell!"
Behind Squall, Zell Dincht, age seventeen and standing at a rather short five feet and five inches, was practicing some martial arts fighting moves on the air around him. Looking up when he heard Quistis' voice, he headed towards the two, doing a handless cartwheel and two backflips, before landing perfectly and giving a thumbs up teamed with a big grin.
Everyone in Garden knew that Zell was an expert at hand-to-hand combat. He did not employ, nor did he need, any weapon. Only gloves. His spiky blond hair was gelled up and back, so that everyone could see the intricate black tribal tattoo running down the one side of his face, right from the top of his forehead down the middle of a cheek.
Zell was a local student from Balamb, now in his forth year at Garden, having started at age thirteen. Zell had worked hard to pass the SeeD requirements since he entered Garden, and all that was left now was to pass the final exam. Zell aspired to become like his grandfather who was once a solider, but tended to act on impulse rather than reasoning. He also had little tact and tended to blurt things out without thinking about the consequences of his actions. At heart, however, he was an honest and dedicated young man.
Zell approached Squall, then looked at him and reeled back in surprise.
"Whoa!" he shouted, very loudly. "I'm with you?!"
Giddy with excitement, Zell rubbed his hand on his pant leg, spat on it, then offered a handshake to Squall.
Squall folded his arms and gave Zell a quizzical look.
"You don't get along with Seifer, do you?" Zell asked nosily, unfazed by Squall's cold greeting. Squall didn't reply.
"Heard he whooped you pretty bad this morning!" Zell continued, positively beaming at his new team member.
"We weren't fighting," Squall retorted quickly. "We were training."
"I bet you he doesn't think so," Zell replied, not seeming to listen to Squall.
"As if I care what you think," Squall thought with a glare.
"Look," Zell began, matter-of-factly. "Seifer's just being a pain in the ass. All you have to do is ignore him."
"…Thanks for the advice," Squall grunted sarcastically. He didn't really appreciate some pint-sized hyperactive idiot telling him who to ignore and why. "But it's none of your –"
"Business!" Quistis blurted out, without being able to stop herself. She was getting very used to predicting Squall's sentences now, and it just came naturally to her.
"Ahem. Excuse me, but…" she gathered herself, a little embarrassed, and the two boys looked up at her. "That Seifer you're talking about...he's your squad leader."
"SAY WHAT!?" Zell screeched in disbelief, jaw dropping to the floor.
"It can't be changed," she sighed with a shrug, just as disappointed as the other two. She then looked around the lobby. "Seifer! Are you here?"
Seifer Almasy heard Quistis call and walked slowly up to her from where he had been lounging around in the lobby. His 'posse', two rather odd students by the names of Fujin and Raijin, trotted along behind him like little lapdogs.
"Fujin and Raijin tagging along as usual," Squall noted. "Guess that makes up the whole disciplinary committee."
There were several student-based committees around Garden, to encourage social relationships and extra-curriculum activity. Seifer and his posse had volunteered to develop a disciplinary committee, in which they would help the staff to enforce the rules at Garden. The headmaster had no objections, but that was because he didn't know that Seifer just used it as an excuse to push people around.
"You're the squad leader," Quistis told him with a false smile, obviously not pleased at the decision. "Good luck to you."
"Instructor," Seifer began in a sarcastic, mocking tone, "I hate it when people wish me luck. Save those words for a bad student that needs them, eh?"
Quistis admired Seifer's abilities, but his attitude got on her nerves. He wouldn't show any respect for her, and he had trouble with following orders; he was just too cocky, too sure of himself. Seifer wasn't even wearing his cadet uniform, like Squall and Zell. He was dressed casually in his trench coat and vest. No one said anything though, probably because Seifer had taken the SeeD test so many times, and failed, that no one actually cared anymore.
"Ok then," Quistis said breezily, flicking hair from her eyes. "Good luck, Seifer."
Seifer scowled at Quistis, then swung his hand back and stopped it abruptly.
"Add Instructor Trepe to the list," he said menacingly to his committee.
"The list?" Squall wondered. "What is it?"
"Well then," Quistis carried on after rolling her eyes at Seifer's empty threat, "You three make up Squad B, and I'm the Instructor in charge. Remember, teamwork is of the utmost importance. Let's get through this exam, everyone!"
"Listen up!" Seifer chimed in. "Teamwork means stay out of my way. It's a Squad B rule. Don't you forget it!"
Zell, angered by Seifer's bossiness, turned and shook his fists at him, but stopped when he suddenly heard the voice of Headmaster Cid.
"Everyone here?" The headmaster asked, in a fatherly voice, approaching the team from the elevator. The headmaster, who was in his forties, short and a little podgy, always gave a speech to the students leaving for the field exam. He wanted to encourage them first-hand. Cid was a very dedicated Headmaster and all the students respected and admired him, even Seifer, to a degree.
"It's been a while everyone. How are you all doing?" he asked warmly. "This exam will involve 12 Garden students from squads A through D. You will be proceeding to a real battle field. Obviously, the battles are for real. Life and death. victory and defeat, honor and disgrace - each of these go hand in hand. There's only one way, or the other."
He stopped a moment, squinting his eyes a little, and leaned forward, peering at the three over his glasses.
"How about it? Are you still up for it?" he asked, smiling a little. Of course he knew they would be. "You will be accompanied on this mission by 9 SeeD members. Should you fail, these members shall get the job done. They always do. So, that's one less worry on your minds."
He raised his arms and spoke louder now, raising his red vest over his stomach slightly as he did.
"The pride of Balamb Garden! The elite mercenary force, SeeD!" he said proudly. "Learn from them, obey their commands, and accomplish the mission. Prove yourselves worthy of becoming a member of SeeD!"
"Best of luck," he concluded with another warm smile.
Seifer, seeing that Cid was finished, turned and walked towards the Garden's parking lot, followed by his posse. Zell left as well, leaving only Quistis, Cid, and Squall at the directory. Cid leaned over to Squall and put his hand on Squall's shoulder.
"We've never had a gunblade specialist in SeeD before. That's why I'm hoping you and Seifer will join us," he said, hope filling his voice. "Now go."
Quistis looked over at Squall and smiled.
"Let's get a move on!" she said encouragingly.
Squall made his way to the parking lot, followed by Quistis, and they pilled in one of the Gardens vehicles, along with Zell and Seifer. They were on their way to Balamb town, where they would mount a transport, and then be briefed on the upcoming mission.
In the car, Zell became restless quickly. He tried to initiate some conversation.
"Yo, Squall. Show me your gunblade, will ya?" he asked hopefully.
Squall had his gunblade safely encased beside him, but he wasn't the type to show off, and he ignored Zell.
"Come on man!" Zell insisted with a whine. "Just a peeeek?"
Squall, becoming annoyed at Zell's childish manner, continued to ignore the spunky cadet. Zell finally seemed to give up.
"Tch, fine," he tutted with irritation, then just muttered to himself while bouncing one of his feet anxiously. "Yeah, yeah..."
After another minute or two of awkward silence, Zell decided to give it another shot.
"Why you bein' so selfish? Scroooge!" he teased Squall, but still got no response. "Say somethin' will ya?! W-What's on your mind?"
Quistis looked over at Squall with a private smile, seeing that he was at his breaking point now, and knew what he was about to say.
"Nothing," Quistis and Squall replied in unison.
Quistis laughed a little, and Zell looked at her with a raised eyebrow and a face of confusion. Zell began to get even more nervous, and he got up and began hoping around the car, sparing with an invisible opponent. Squall was relived that he had found something to do, rather than bothering him, but Seifer found it irritating.
"Stop that," Seifer requested bluntly as Zell bounced around him. "It's annoying."
Zell stopped, glaring at Seifer, who just smirked back.
"Chicken-wuss," he mocked quietly.
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!" Zell yelled angrily, raising his fists and shaking them violently at Seifer, who chuckled to himself. Seifer loved winding up Zell; he was such a loose cannon.
"That's enough!" Quistis shouted, rising to her feet. She was worried that the two boys might start a fight in the vehicle. "Knock it off!"
Zell plopped down, still fuming at Seifer, and Quistis gently returned to her seat, shaking her head at their childish behaviour. Suddenly, Squall remembered something that had happened in the Infirmary.
"Instructor..." he addressed Quistis respectfully.
She turned her head to face Squall, signaling him to continue.
"Who was that girl in the infirmary this morning?" he asked wonderingly, hoping that she had seen the young woman.
"Was someone there?" Quistis asked, slightly surprised. "I didn't notice anybody. Why, is there a problem?"
"No, not really," Squall replied, a little sadly. A mysterious girl that he didn't recognize was just another worry in his mind that he didn't need.
"This is great," Seifer shook his head in disbelief, and chuckled again to himself. "I have chicken-wuss, and a guy who just reached puberty in my squad!"
Zell shook his fists again, while Quistis just shook her head and Squall said nothing, staring at the floor.
They reached the town of Balamb shortly, driving down the town's main street. It was a peaceful harbor-town, and the SeeD vehicle caused quite a commotion as it zoomed down the road.
For the most part, the people of the small town of Balamb enjoyed the academy's presence in their country. Balamb was a peaceful area, and only a small group of armed forces was needed, but they felt better knowing that Garden was nearby, ready to defend them if it was necessary. Garden would not let its hometown be taken over.
The car carrying Squall, Zell, Seifer, and Quistis reached the harbor and parked. Squall got out from the car and looked around. The air was fairly silent and calming; the only sounds being chirping seagulls circling the sky above and the waves splashing up against the wall of the harbor. Balamb was a popular area, with its luxurious hotels, useful shops and train station, but all the time it remained quiet and peaceful. The students from the military academy seemed a little out of place, as did the dark, menacing and high-tech submarine-style vessel that was sat in the docking bay.
"That's the vessel we're taking? " Squall asked, looking over at it as Seifer stepped out of the vehicle.
Seifer looked over at the sea vessel, equipped for both underwater and above water travel, and primarily used for short ocean voyages by SeeD, but didn't have time to respond to Squall, as a SeeD instructor called them over.
"Hey! You guys are the last! Hurry up and get in!"
"Ain't no turning back now," Seifer told Squall, quite sincerely, while placing his hands in the pockets of his coat and raising an eyebrow. "You worried too?"
"Huh…?" Squall was too shocked to reply to Seifer's sudden friendly question.
"Come on, move it!" Quistis interrupted impatiently, ushering them forwards with her hands.
"Don't disappoint me now," Seifer teased privately to Squall with a grin, returning to his cocky personality and slapping his squad member on the shoulder.
Squall, Zell and Seifer ran over to the ship and clambered through the entrance hatch. Quistis followed after her students, and the vessel's engines started. The group sat down in the conference area of the vessel waiting to receive their instructions. A few minutes later, Xu appeared from the ship's upper portion.
"Hi, Quistis," the brown-haired woman greeted the Instructor, who nodded back to her politely.
Xu was a very important member of Garden, a deputy Headmistress of sorts. Loyal, trustworthy and a brilliant all-round fighter, Xu was an integral part of Balamb Garden. She advised Headmaster Cid on decisions made within Garden, and helped him a great deal with any paperwork or problems that needed sorting out.
"Well, these are the members of Squad B," Quistis told Xu, trying not to giggle. Zell, Sefier and Squall looked a rather odd group when they were together.
"Pleased to meet you," Squall greeted her professionally with a salute, as Zell tapped the side of his head twice then pointed it to her with a wink.
"Nice to meet ya!" he exclaimed.
Seifer sat opposite his two team members in silence, and Xu looked over at him, expecting a greeting, although she knew she probably wouldn't get one.
Xu had met Seifer on four formal occasions, and all of them had been SeeD exams. There was a SeeD exam for each season of the year, and so far Seifer had failed all four, which was why he was a year older than the other students in Quistis' group.
"Seifer, how many times has it been now?" Xu asked impatiently with a sigh. She was very professional, and had been a student at Garden herself. She absolutely hated it when students didn't take their education seriously. Seifer didn't know how lucky he was, to have been accepted into Garden in the first place.
"Oh, I just love these exams," Seifer sneered sarcastically. Xu ignored him.
"I'll explain the current situation, and the mission," she began, making her way over to the monitor display on the wall, and officially started the briefing. "Our client for this mission is the Dollet Dukedom parliament. A request for SeeD was made 18 hours ago. Dollet has been under attack form the Galbadian army since approximately 72 hours ago."
The computer screen showed a map of Dollet. Little red lights closing into the center of the map represented the enemy forces.
"49 hours into the battle, Dollet abandoned their position in the inner city," Xu explained. "Currently, they have retreated into the nearby mountains and are reorganizing their troops. That's the current status. Now, onto the mission objective. According to our reports, the Galbadian army is mopping up the Dollet troops in the mountain region."
The computer screen zoomed in on a more specific location.
"We're to make a landing at Lapin Beach, and eliminate the remaining Galbadian army within the city and liberate it A.S.A.P. After that, SeeD members will intercept any Galbadian army forces trying to make their way into the mountain region."
"So, what are we supposed to do?" Seifer interrupted, looking bored.
"SeeD candidates are to eliminate Galbadian army forces inside the city," Xu replied simply.
"Sounds important!" Zell beamed with delight, leaning forward in his chair and licking his lips with excitement.
"Sounds boring," Seifer rolled his eyes, then turned to Xu with an accusing frown. "So what you're saying is, we do all the little dirty work."
Xu ignored him again – she found that pretending Seifer wasn't there made him a little more bearable.
"Oh, and it hardly needs to be said, but the order to withdraw takes priority," Xu reminded the group. "Don't forget that. We should almost be there, and we anticipate a battle as soon as we disembark. So just be prepared."
"That's all," she concluded. "If you have any questions, talk to Quistis."
Everyone was quiet as Xu left the room, but Zell was squirming uncomfortably, even though he was sitting on his hands, to try and control himself. He finally spoke.
"My first real battle," he said slowly in realization. "I'm getting pretty nervous."
"Better not piss in your pants," Seifer smirked.
"Hah! You talkin' to me?!" Zell snorted.
Seifer just chuckled to himself again. Zell was getting really angry at him now.
"...Bastard," he mumbled.
"Okay, enough talk!" Quistis said sternly. 'We'll be landing pretty soon, so get ready."
"Roger," Zell replied, checking that the straps on his gloves were secure, and checking his shoelaces. One had came loose, so he tied it back up.
"Yeah, yeah..." Seifer said lazily, then yawned and stretched his arms up high above him. "Well then, Squall, go see what's going on outside."
"Okay," Squall agreed reluctantly. He hated having to take orders from someone who less than a day ago had ruthlessly attacked him and given him a scar that would last all his life … but Seifer was the leader, and this was an exam.
"Good," Seifer said bluntly, smiling smugly to himself. "Because it is MY order."
Squall didn't reply and went to the submarine's upper level, feeling the sea breeze very suddenly on his face as he climbed out onto the deck. The salty hair blew his hair around wildly, and his jacket fluttered in the breeze. Squall stayed out there for what seemed like hours, happy to get away from Seifer, and out into the calm surroundings. Finally, he saw Dollet in the distance, and he knew that the battle was going to begin shortly.
From the Dollet shoreline, he heard explosions and gunfire abound. He reached into his jacket pocket and took out a map with a transparency overlay. He held it up to the town in front of him, comparing the two. The usually peaceful town of Dollet was different now. It was a battle field.
The several SeeD vessels rode up to Dollet's shoreline quickly and violently. They crashed onto the beach, with SeeD cadets and SeeD members alike swarming it immediately.
Squad B's vessel crashed onto the coast last and the doors opened automatically. Seifer ran out, followed by Zell and Squall. Quistis began to issue their orders.
"Ok, you are to secure the Central Square!" she shouted over the noise of gunfire. "Be sure to equip your GF before you head into battle!"
"Let's move out!" Seifer said dramatically, facing the city.
He ran up a flight of stairs from the beach to the streets of Dollet. Squall and Zell followed him quickly, quite surprised at how roughly and suddenly they had been thrown into the action. As they reached the top of the stairs, two Galbadian soldiers rushed at them. Squall and Seifer drew their gunblades, and Zell stood with his fists up, poised to attack.
"These are Dollet's reinforcements?!" a soldier gaped in shock, looking at the team. "They're just kids!"
Squall attacked, shredding part of the soldiers uniform as he barely dodged Squall's blade.
"Wahh!" he yelled. "Retreat!"
"Just kids!" Zell spat as the soldiers disappeared. "Hah! We sure showed 'em."
Squall was about to point out that Zell hadn't actually done anything yet, but Seifer hurriedly led Squad B down the lit-up city streets, hearing the sounds of battle all around them. Seifer stopped in the middle of the road, turned around, and smiled.
"Having fun yet?" he asked with a delighted grin.
Suddenly, two Galbadian soldiers jumped from the overpass above their heads.
"Be careful, these are SeeDs!" one yelled.
"What?! They still look like kids!" the other one said.
Seifer finished off the soldiers quickly, leaving them nearly dead in the street. He ran ahead to clear the way.
"The Central Square is up ahead," he told his group as he ran. Then suddenly, he yelled out up into the sky. "Hey, all you Galbadian cowards out there! C'mon and show your faces! Don't leave me hangin' now!"
"What an idiot," Zell muttered so only Squall could hear him.
Squall remained silent, and followed Seifer up to the central square. When they reached their post, Another Solider appeared. Squall fought him off quickly. Seifer scoped his surroundings.
"There may be more," Squall said to him, looking around carefully.
"Alright then," Seifer replied. "I want you guys to scout the area for enemies."
Squall moved down the street a little, and spotted a solider spying on them from behind a car. Zell rushed the soldier, knocked him out, and threw him into the alley. After scanning the rest of the area, Squall was satisfied.
"That's all of them, I think," he reported back to Seifer.
"Well then, we're on standby until the enemy comes." Seifer said. "Standby...puh! How boring."
Seifer paced back and forth, bouncing his gunblade on his shoulder. After a few minutes had passed, they heard loud explosions off in the distance.
"Sounds like it's starting," Squall said, rubbing his hands together, trying to keep warm. Although it was late spring, the evening was quite chilly.
Seifer looked at him.
"Bring it on," he boasted, showing off as usual.
A small dog that had been following the trio came up and sniffed Seifer's leg, whining.
"Get outta here!" he yelled at it, "Scram!" he swung his gunblade at the animal, scaring it off. He then ran over to the far side of the town square, yelling.
"Hey, Galbadian soldiers! What are you waiting for?! Show me what you got!"
The dog barked and howled at Seifer's yelling.
Squad B waited anxiously for Galbadian soldiers to come in. After 15 minutes, nothing had happened. An hour... Nothing.
Zell was pacing back and forth nervously, wondering if they had made a wrong move somewhere. Seifer just stood up on a wall, his foot tapping, and his weapon up and ready to attack.
"The HELL!" Zell shouted in a sudden outburst. "Man…Now this is what I call boring. It ain't right man!"
Seifer was still tapping his foot, ready to kill something with his sword.
"Still keeping us waiting...?" he asked no one in particular.
The dog was still there, whining, and Seifer couldn't take the wait anymore.
"That's it!" he exploded with frustration. "What is this? Some kind of dog training?!"
The dog ran over to the far side of the central square, howling at something. Several Galbadian soldiers came skulking through the square.
Seifer was already hidden from view, but Zell and Squall had to quickly duck behind the fountain to avoid being seen. There were too many soldiers for them to take on.
After the soldiers had crept passed them, Squall returned to his upright position.
"It's the enemy," he whispered, wondering why the soldiers had been moving around so sneakily.
"Where the hell are they going?" Zell whispered back, a little shakily.
All three looked up to the mountain range, where the soldiers seemed to be heading. They suddenly noticed a large tower of some type up on the mountain.
"Hey! What's that up there?!" Zell said, pointing.
Seifer thought for a moment, pausing for effect, then smirked. He pointed his sword down the street the soldiers had went down.
"Our next destination," he announced.
"But that's against orders!" Zell replied instantly.
"Weren't you just saying how bored you were?" Seifer reminded him.
"Squall?" Zell looked over to his fellow squad member for some support; he couldn't believe what Seifer was suggesting.
"I stand by the captains decision," Squall replied firmly, after taking a quick glance up at the mountains.
"Captains decision?" Seifer repeated, surprised, then walked over to Squall.
"You want to wreak some havoc too, don't you?" Seifer taunted as he squeezed him around his shoulder.
"It's a good opportunity to test out my training," Squall retorted, brushing him off in annoyance. He didn't feel like giving Seifer the satisfaction of openly agreeing with him. "Thanks to you, I feel like I can take on anyone. Even if they do fight dirty... like you."
"You'll thank me when the time comes," Seifer said mysteriously.
Zell, standing behind the two, was confused by their conversation.
"What the hell?" Zell said thoughtfully. "I thought you guys didn't get along? You're, like, all buddy-buddy now."
Squall and Seifer said nothing. They really didn't like each other, but they respected each other's skills. It was the only reason that they had ever gotten along at all, which happened rarely anyway.
"Listen," said Zell, getting back on the subject. "This ain't no ordinary battle. It's an exam. An important one. I'm tellin' ya, we have to stick to orders!"
"Then you stay here. I don't need any boy scouts," Seifer spat mockingly.
"What was that?!" Zell yelled.
"Don't take him too seriously, Zell," Squall offered. He then turned to the rebellious Squad leader. "Seifer, if we're gonna go, let's hurry."
"The enemy is headed for that facility up there. We, Squad B, are to secure the summit," Seifer ordered professionally. "Move out!"
"Tch...fine," Zell gave in. He didn't want to be left alone in the dark while there were Galbadian soldiers about.
The squad crossed a wide, lit-up bridge leading into the mountains. As they crossed, they saw the bodies of several Dollet soldiers lying on the pathway, which ran further up the mountain.
"What happened here?" thought Squall, turning his gaze away from the injured soldiers. It made him feel quite nervous.
Squad B moved up the path to a flight of stairs. Halfway up, they heard a rustling in the bushes, and quickly poised ready for battle, until they realised it was just another injured Dollet soldier crawling out.
"Ahh! Who are you three?" he asked, frightened.
"Don't worry," Squall assured him. "We're SeeD candidates. We've been dispatched by Garden."
"What's going on up there?" Seifer asked, pointing upwards with his gunblade.
"The Galbadian soldiers have entered the communications tower. We don't know why," the soldier explained breathlessly, clutching at a wound on his arm. "On top of that, this area has always been a nesting ground for monsters. If you guys are going up you'd better be-"
The poor solider was interrupted by a loud hiss and was yanked back into the bushes by a giant snake with a scream.
Squall recognised this snake from one of his textbooks at Garden - it was an Anacondor. A huge terrifying snake, with natural tones and large fangs with had inside them a poisonous, but not deadly, venom.
With no hesitation Squall took a swipe at the Anacondor, and it released the Dollet soldier, who scuttled away in a hurry. As the giant reptile took a lunge at Squall, Seifer quickly sliced the side of it's body. It hissed in pain, then wrapped it's scaly tail around Zell's body and tried to choke him.
"H-Help!" Zell tried to shout, but it came out as a squeak. He squirmed around in the snake's coils, punching and kicking the enemy, but it was no use.
Seifer and Squall teamed together and both attacked the Anacondor simultaneously, Seifer slicing down the center of it's face and Squall shooting it through the heart. The snake immediately loosen it's grip on Zell, and he tumbled to the ground and rolled safely out of the way as the Anacondor gave one last his and coiled itself into a neat ring, dead.
Squall wiped the blood from his gunblade and the sweat from his forehead.
"Monsters huh?" he said, out of breath. "Great."
"This situation sucks," Zell agreed, rubbing the back of his neck, which was a little sore from where the Anacondor had been strangling him.
"Just means more fun for us!" Seifer cried pleasantly, apparently unfazed by the battle and the drips of still warm blood on his coat. "Come on."
"Fun?" Zell echoed as Seifer ran off once again. "Puh-lease!"
Making their way to the top of the mountain, Squad B stopped on a cliff which overhung the communications tower. From it they could see the front doors to the building, and three Galbadian soldiers were talking there. They had to listen carefully, but Squall, Zell, and Seifer could just make out what was being said.
"The generator is up and running!" said one.
"No problem with the boosters," said another.
Squall listened, but none of it made sense. It sounded to him like they were just fixing it.
"The hell are they doin'?" Seifer whispered. His team members didn't answer as they all waited eagerly to hear more.
"Cable disconnection confirmed! Beginning exchange process!"
"Roger."
"Repairs?" Squall wondered aloud.
Seifer decided that it wasn't worth trying to figure out. He wanted some action, and he was going to get it.
"Who cares?" Seifer snorted impatiently, ready for a fight. "This must be your first real battle. You scared?"
"I don't know," Squall shrugged, realizing that the question was aimed at him and not Zell. "I try not to think about it."
"I love battles. I fear nothing," Seifer boasted dramatically. "The way I look at it, as long as you make it out of a battle alive, you're one step closer to fulfilling your dream."
"What?" Squall raised an eyebrow, and nearly laughed. "Your dream?"
"You have one too, don't you?" Seifer asked, as if 'having a dream' was something to be expected of a person.
"Sorry, but I'm gonna pass on that subject," Squall said bluntly, crossing his arms.
"Yo! Let me in on it, too!" Zell demanded, not liking to be left out of any conversation.
"Mind your own business," Seifer replied coldly.
"Frickin' hell..." Zell took some loose shots at Seifer, shaking his fist again in anger.
"What's the matter Zell? Swatting flies?" Seifer mocked, then walked away.
"Damn you!" Zell yelled after him.
Seifer was walking along a curved path, heading to the communications tower. Squall and Zell were about to follow him when they heard a girl's voice.
"There you are!"
A female Garden cadet stood on a rock, beaming at them. She waved wildly and started climbing down, but she slipped and tumbled, landing on her knees in front of the two SeeD candidates. She giggled, then shook her head and winked, unfazed by her clumsy fall. Squall then realised that the girl was the hyperactive transfer student he had given a tour to. She sprung onto her feet and took a step over to him.
"Are you... Squad B? " she asked hopefully, with her hands neatly behind her back and shifting her weight from side to side.
Squall nodded.
"Heey, wait a minute!" the girl said delightfully. "You're the guy who showed me around, right? Thanks! I don't get so lost anymore. Oh yeah... I don't think I've told you my name yet! I'm a messenger. Name's Selphie, from Squad A."
"I'm Squall," he introduced with another nod. "What's the message?"
"Sorry," Selphie apologized, "But I was told that I have to give the message to the Captain first. It's protocol I guess. The squad leader is Seifer, right? Where is he?"
They heard footsteps down below. It was Seifer, and he was already at the doors to the tower. Seifer looked up at them.
"One of these days, I'm gonna tell you 'bout my ROMANTIC dream!" he shouted with a manic grin.
"That's him," Squall told Selphie, pointing down at his captain.
"This exam sure is tough," Selphie sighed, placing one foot on the cliff ledge in front of her. "Hey, Captain! Wait up!"
She suddenly lunged forwards and dived off the cliff, landing a little clumsily, and then shouted back up to Squall.
"What are you waiting for?!" she asked incredulously. "Come on!"
"Squall, you're not gonna - it's a cliff, man!" Zell blurted, as Squall eyed the cliff ledge thoughtfully.
"No," Squall agreed, not wanting to loose any points from his final exam mark. "We can go around."
They walked around the same way Seifer had gone, and once they reached the front, Selphie was still there, waiting for them.
"What took you so long!? It would've been much quicker if you'd jumped," she told them.
"Puh-lease!" Zell rolled his eyes. "People don't normally go around jumping off cliffs, OK?! Ain't that right Squall?"
Before answering, Squall took another look. The cliff actually wasn't that high, they probably could have jumped without getting hurt. Selphie had done it, and she was a tiny young girl. Squall felt a little embarrassed.
" I don't know, Zell - maybe only a chicken-wuss couldn't make it," Squall joked, but it didn't go down too well.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY!!!?" Zell shouted back, clutching his fists together.
"I guess you're the chicken-wuss, since you're so angry," Selphie said simply, bouncing slightly on the balls of her feet.
"WHY DOES EVERYBODY THINK-?" Zell burst, then calmed down a little. "I'm not a chicken, okay?! I just – okay, fine. I don't care anymore. Call me whatever you want..."
Zell's words trailed off and he turned his back to the two other students. Squall felt even worse now.
"Don't take it so personally, Zell," Squall offered anxiously.
"Tch," was all Zell said.
"Well, c'mon," Selphie said impatiently. "Let's get going!"
"So this is a communications tower?" Zell asked, glad that the teasing was over and that they could get back to the exam.
"It sure is big," Selphie said, gawking at the tall structure.
Before the trio could enter the tower, two Galbadian soldiers came running out of the door, screaming. Seifer followed them out, swinging his gunblade at them dangerously. After they had fled, he remained in the entrance.
"Cowards," he mumbled.
"HEY!" Selphie reached out to grab Seifer and get his attention, but he ignored her and disappeared back inside the tower. "The captains getting away!"
Selphie ran in after him, and Squall and Zell followed. They were in a room with no doors, no windows, and nothing else except for a pad on the floor which worked as a lift, taking people to the upper level.
"Did he go up...?" Squall asked wonderingly, peering around. There didn't seem to be anywhere else Seifer could have gone, so taking charge, he lead the other two onto the lift.
"Wow, this lift is pretty cool!" Selphie giggled, once they were on and it started to move upwards with a whirring noise.
"Don't get to excited, or you'll fall!" Zell warned as she peered excitedly over the edge.
"Oh, like I'm really going to!" Selphie scoffed, crossing her arms. Sure, she was clumsy sometimes, but she wasn't stupid.
Up on the top level of the structure, two Galbadian soldiers were preparing the tower's satellite system.
"Major Biggs!" one soldier in blue reported to the other. "There has been reports of a huge shadow moving around on top of the tower! Some of the men think it might be a monster..."
The soldier's commanding officer was silent, paying attention to the repairs he was doing.
"Major Biggs!" the soldier in blue said again.
"Be quiet Wedge! I'm busy!" Biggs barked, then began to mumble to himself as he worked. "This goes like this, and ...Geez, what's with these old crappy tools? And, and - Why do I have to make all the repairs!"
"Uh, sir, I'll check around while the repairs are being done," Wedge walked away nervously. Biggs didn't even acknowledge him.
"Let's see... hmmm... Put this here, and..." Biggs continued quietly under his breath.
The lift carrying Squall, Zell and Selphie, finally reached the very top of the tower after a long journey. As they stepped off cautiously, the floor beneath them began to shake.
"There, it's done!" they heard the red soldier in front of them say.
Machinery began clunking and whirring to life all around the communication tower, and a tool wobbled and fell through a gap in the flooring, landing right down at the bottom of the tower with a bang. Levers were switched on automatically, turbines started moving, and a huge pillar shot up from the center of the tower. Squall only just leapt out of the way in time for it to shoot up past him and not knock into him.
Shocked by the massive contraption, Squall blinked in disbelief as the pillar then spread out, forming a circle, and curving itself slightly inward, forming a huge satellite dish.
The floor stopped shaking, and it seemed that the communications tower was now fully operational.
"What do you think you're doing?" Squall blurted out to the Galbadian soldier in red.
"HUH?" Biggs reeled back in surprise. "Likewise, mister! What do you think you're doing? Hey! What happened to all the soldiers down below?"
Squall, Zell and Selphie didn't answer as they took out their weapons and stood in their battle poses. Squall held his gunblade up in front of him with both hands, ready to attack the enemy and also guarding himself, Zell raised up his gloved fists and Selphie cracked together her nunchaku – two strong wooden sticks linked together with a silver chain.
"WEDGE!" Biggs called out nervously. "Take care of these twerps!.
There was no answer, and the three students each took a step forwards.
"Wedge?" Biggs called out again, looking around. He was totally surrounded with no backup. "Well... I, uh... Seem to be done here so I'll just be on my-"
As his speech distracted the three, he whipped out a gun and pointed it to them.
"I'm leaving!" he shouted, barging them out of the way with his weapon. "Move it! Move! Move!"
But as he neared the lift, Seifer came up on it and swung his gunblade at the soldier, knocking the gun from his hand.
"Sorry to crash the party," Seifer grinned, showing off to the max.
"AHH!" Biggs yelped, clutching his wrist, although it wasn't cut. "Are you CRAZY?!"
"Just shut up," Seifer spat, still holding up his gunblade. "Galbadian scum."
"SCUM?!" Biggs roared. "You're gonna pay for that! Prepare for the worst, you little brats!"
Unluckily for the group, Biggs also had another weapon concealed about his person – a sword. But before had a chance to use it, Wedge ran to his side.
"Have you finished the repairs, sir?" Wedge asked calmly, then looked at the four students. "What is the enemy doing here!?"
"WEDGE! Where were you?!" Biggs demanded. "No pay for you this month!"
"...Should've stayed home!" Wedge sighed to himself.
Before the fight could get off the ground, a huge gust of wind swept over the communication tower and Biggs and Wedge were picked up into it, like a mini hurricane.
"AAAGGHH!!!" they both screamed and disappeared from sight.
Suddenly a huge figure dropped down from above, it was one of the monsters that the Dollet soldier had told them about. A particularly nasty one at that - it was a huge flying Elvoret. The Galbadian soldiers had probably disturbed its nest while fixing the tower, and now it was turning on Squall, Zell, Selphie and Seifer, attacking with strange wind-magic.
"Look out! " Squall warned, as the huge purple colored beast attacked, its red eyes gleaming with anger.
Selphie whipped her nunchaku at the monster, and it cracked over it's eyes. Seifer jabbed his gunblade into its large wings. But the monster, annoyed more than hurt, simply slapped them away with ease. Squall was almost knocked down, but he came to just in time to dodge another attack from the beast.
The monster opened its arms, taking in a deep breath, and Squall saw his opportunity to attack. He lunged his gunblade into the beast's chest, piercing the flesh while also shooting a bullet into it. The monster's eyes widened, and it howled with pain. It stopped flapping its powerful wings, and fell down. But it wasn't dead yet. The Elvoret grabbed suddenly at Zell.
Zell dodged, and attacked the beast with all the might he could contain in his fists. He finished off the monster with several powerful blows to its head.
Squall sighed with relief. He cast a couple of cure spells on himself, Zell, Selphie and Seifer just to regain their strength.
Selphie ran perkily over to Seifer.
"Squad B captain?" she addressed him politely with a salute. "S'cuse me! I have new orders! All SeeD members and SeeD candidates are to withdraw at 1900 hours. Assemble at the shore!"
"Withdraw?!" Seifer repeated. "But there are enemies still around!"
"I know, but I'm just a messenger," Selphie explained.
"An order to withdraw takes priority," Squall put in. "I don't want to miss the vessel."
"What time d'you say?" he asked Selphie, crossing his arms.
"Like I said," Selphie sighed impatiently. "1900 hours!"
"1900 hours," Seifer rolled up his sleeve to look at his watch. "We only have 30 minutes!"
He looked at Squall, and started backing off quickly.
"You got 30 minutes to get down to the shore! Better run!" he told the others as he ran onto the lift and descended to the bottom of the tower.
"Hey! Wait for us!" Selphie called after him, but it was too late.
"Who the hell does he think he is?!" Zell complained.
"Why don't you ask him?" Squall answered Zell's question unhelpfully with a shrug. "Come on, let's go."
After the elevator had come back up from Seifer's trip, Squall, Zell, and Selphie boarded it. As they went down the elevator Major Biggs, barely conscious from the monster's attack, pulled out a remote control from inside his uniform and began pressing the buttons on it wildly.
"Those little twerps are the targets – now go and DESTROY THEM!" he gasped, then flopped onto the floor helplessly as the remote tumbled out of his hand.
Outside the tower, Squall and the others were getting ready to move quickly.
"Let's hurry!" Selphie jumped up and down nervously and began running.
Squall began to follow, but stopped suddenly when he heard something moving above him. They looked up and saw a large machine crawling on the bottom of the satellite.
"What now...?" he sighed.
A huge spider-like robot jumped down, attacking the group.
"What is that thing?!" Zell yelled in surprise.
The students didn't know it, but this Galbadia creation was an X-ATM092 – a spider-like mechanical robot with 8 thick legs, a powerful central cannon and a pulsating red 'eye' which could home in on enemies.
"It doesn't matter! Let's just take care of it and get out of here!" Squall commanded, then summoned his Guardian Force, Quezacotl.
A lightning bolt from the sky shot down, and a swirling mass of blue and green energy spun around over Squall's head. It stopped spinning and spread out in the shape of a large, magnificent, bird.
The featureless foul hovered above the group, blue streaks of lightning flowing in its body. It threw its head back and then attacked. Through what would be its beak, the bird shot forth massive amounts of electrical energy at the Galbadian machine. The robot shook and then collapsed, wires hanging out and fizzing with lightning.
"Let's get the hell out of here!" Zell cried, spinning on his heel and stumbling a little as he scrambled back up the winding path onto the cliff ledge.
Squall couldn't have agreed more. As far as he could tell, they had maybe 20 minutes left, if they were lucky, and they still had to make their way through the whole of the town.
The three remaining members of Squad B ran down the road as fast as they could, but they felt the ground shake beneath them, and heard a metal clanging. Something huge leapt right over their heads and stopped them in their tracks. It was the X-ATM092 again!
"I thought we busted that thing up?!" Zell cried over the loud clanging noise, then raised up his fists ready to battle the robot for a second time.
"Forget it!" Squall instructed, deciding that since Seifer wasn't around, he would be the leader for a while. "Let's go!"
They found their way through the mountain's path that they had ascended earlier, and finally made it to the streets of Dollet again. But the robot was following closely behind, it's metal legs clanging faster and faster. The machine was quick, especially for its size, and it could leap incredible distances. It had no trouble keeping up with Squall and the others.
As the mechanical beast followed them down the streets, Squall cast a Thunder spell on it as he ran, trying to slow it down. But it wouldn't stop, and began chasing them even more mercilessly.
Squall turned a corner. He was pretty far behind Zell and Selphie, who were both quite small and could run faster than him. They also weren't weighed down by their light weapons, but Squall's gunblade was heavy and not exactly designed for running with.
Suddenly Squall stopped. He couldn't hear or see the X-ATM092 anymore.
"Hey, you guys!" he called out to Selphie and Zell, but they had just turned a corner and didn't hear him.
Squall was about to shout to them that the robot had gone, but it caught him by surprise, smashing suddenly through a building from the opposite side of the street. After effortlessly piercing a parked car with it's pointed claw, it then began to chase Squall again.
Squall's face was now red with intensity, and his legs ached from running so far so quickly. The exam had become more dangerous than he'd expected. Galbadian soldiers were one thing, but this unstoppable machine was quite another.
He had ran through the city's main roads in a matter of minutes, skidding slightly on sand that had been picked up on people's shoes from the beach, and was thankful when he finally saw Lapin beach loom into sight. But some of the vessels were already leaving.
Squall was about to cry out for them to wait, but before any words could escape his mouth, the X-ATM092 caught him on the back of his legs and he tumbled over a wall onto the beach.
He rolled to soften the impact, then just as he climbed to his feet he saw Selphie and Zell look back with concern, but they didn't stop running.
X-ATM092 leapt down and landed hard on the sand as Squall continued to run. Thankfully, it didn't seem to be able to move so quickly on the uneven sand. But then again, neither could Squall. He slipped and stumbled many times, but managed to regain his balance.
Selphie ducked under the open hatch of the vessel and climbed in, as Zell got in after her, then waved his hand wildly at Squall as if to say "Hurry up!"
When the ship's pilot saw the X-ATM092, he decided to pull out from the shore slightly to avoid getting attacked. But they were still waiting for Squall.
Worried that his group would abandon him, Squall ran even harder now, his lungs painfully inhaling and exhaling. The robot had almost caught up to him, and it sprang forwards to attack. Its sharp-ended legs would have impaled Squall in that instant, but seemingly out of nowhere, rapid gunfire knocked the machine to the ground.
Squall, still running, only yards away from the vessel now, looked up. Quistis had saved him.
She was on the submarines upper level, attacking Squall's pursuer with a machine gun that had been mounted on the ship. Multiple firings pushed the robot back again and again, until finally it collapsed, and the red pulsating eye went blank.
Squall leaped from the shore as the X-ATM092 exploded, throwing shrapnel across the beach. He barely caught the edge of the vessel, and pulled himself in. Quistis, seeing that he had boarded safely, instructed the vessel's captain to close the rear doors, and to move out. The vessel began to zoom away.
Squall peered through the closing double doors, and as his heart pounded rapidly, he took one last look at Dollet. The exam that would give him the chance of finally being a SeeD - and it had been total chaos.