Chapter 29
Fisherman's Horizon
Squall gazed out onto FH. He wasn't sure exactly where the mayor's house was located. The hut in the center of the solar panel looked like a good possibility… but it was so small.
"We might as well look around…" he thought.
Squall led Rinoa and Zell past the solar panels. He decided to look elsewhere for now.
The walkway underneath of them was a set of railroad tracks, long out of use. It circled its way down and around the solar banks, so that they formed a large cylindrical structure supporting the solar panels.
Zell kept his eyes fixed on the top of the cylinder. He scratched his head, wondering how they had put it all together. As the three passed a shop on the left, Zell bumped into one of the citizens of FH… a young girl in a black dress.
"Oh, s'cuse me" she exclaimed in shock. Zell blushed and began to apologize.
The girl merely shook her head.
"No.." she said, not wanting him to be so concerned. "You didn't scare me. You just surprised me."
Zell smirked nervously and she winked at him. The girl turned around and started off again.
"…Wow… she sure was nice…" Zell thought. "I wonder if everybody here is like that…"
Squall rolled his eyes at the situation, but continued on. Suddenly, a very loud and obnoxious voice boomed out.
"…I told ja. I AIN"T DRUNK!" A man sat outside of a shop with a bottle of rum in his hand. He was slumped over, his right arm laid sluggishly as his side, and mangy looking besides.
"AHH (hic) I'm through makin' my own booze. I'll take what people (hic) …give me."
Squall, Zell and Rinoa cautiously avoided making any kind of eye contact with him. They didn't want to ignite an altercation with anyone… Especially since the workmen had been so vehement about 'not tolerating belligerence'. Besides… the man looked peculiarly familiar…
The walkway veered off onto a small dock where a boatman was stationed, tying his boat to the pier. He observed the three newcomers closely, and as Squall came closer to his boat, he suddenly began talking with him.
"Say…" he called at them. "the master of Balamb Garden is NORG right? Did he evolve already?" the boatman asked inquisitively.
Squall eyed the man curiously, wondering how he knew about NORG… And why he was being so nosy about Garden affairs.
"What are you talking about?" he replied.
" NORG." The boatman said. "He's a Shumi, so he should evolve."
Squall shook his head. Now the man had lost him.
"Shumi…?" Squall uttered, clue-less.
The boatman looked at Squall with a surprised disgust.
"What?! You don't know diddly-squat, do you?" he said.
Squall frowned and turned away.
"Ah… don't worry about it" the boatman said. "You'll start gettin' it soon."
"What is that supposed to mean…?" thought Squall.
The boatman sighed, turned away from Squall, and began mumbling to himself.
"I wonder what NORGs gonna evolve into? It's a little scary thinking about it…"
Squall huffed, already beginning to become annoyed my FH's citizens, and continued pacing through the small town. They walked quite a distance before Squall decided to turn back.
"I think we should check out the town-center… That's probably where the mayor's house is" Squall said. Rinoa and Zell nodded in agreement, and followed him back to the top of the solar banks.
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Squall once again approached the top of the Solar paneling. There appeared to be a metal walkway which led straight down into the center of the giant glass structure.
A man in green vest was leaning upon the edge, gazing at the sight. He noticed the three teenagers beside him, all looking somewhat lost.
"There's the mayor's house. You see it?" he pointed out.
Squall nodded appreciatively, and started down the walkway.
"I thought so…" Squall said to himself.
After walking down the hundred or so feet radius of the solar panels, the three approached a large, circular platform, on top of which resided the mayors house. The metal stairs leading up to it were rusty, but stable.
Squall was about to walk into the large shanty that the mayor apparently resided in, but he noticed someone sitting along the edge of the platform; A middle aged man in a blue overcoat. He seemed familiar. Squall approached him curiously from behind.
"Is that… Martine!? Galbadia Garden's Headmaster? What is he doing HERE?!"
Zell took note of this as well.
"Yo! Squall!" he said loudly. "Isn't that…uh… Martine?!"
At this Martine turned his head back, and noticed the three. Squall grimaced slightly, but everyone remained quiet. Martine turned his head back to it's previous position, glaring down at the glowing panels beneath him. He started talking, but Squall wasn't sure if he was speaking to them, or to himself…
"A lot has happened since then." he said, memories of mere weeks past entering his mind at the sight of these SeeD members.
"Banished from Galbadia garden… Everything I built up, gone." Martine sighed heavily.
"After wandering around mindlessly…" he started again, choking back a sob. "The people of this town welcomed me with open arms. The townspeople encouraged me to start over. Very kind, even towards a man like me who has nothing."
Martine's voice shook as he released his emotions.
"I… I'm so ashamed!!!"
Martine pushed his face deep into his hands. He then ran them over his face, and through his light, thin hair, as he sniffled loudly.
Squall, Rinoa, and Zell moved away from him slowly. Leaving this dispirited man to wallow in his own self pity.
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Entering the mayors house warily, Squall began wondering about FH. For a an isolated harbor like this one, the people certainly seemed paranoid.
"Why did they feel the need to tell us not to 'engage in armed conflict'…? Is that a problem here?" he thought. "I wouldn't think so …I suppose we can ask the mayor…"
The first room of the house seemed small, and unassuming… and also a mess. Construction material was sprawled out over the floor messily, along with chalkboards, tools and other assorted items. There appeared to be no one there, but a flight of circular stairs led to an upstairs room.
As they approached the top, the gentle sound of a wind instrument floated through their ears. Squall looked up to see a large glass ceiling, littered with model airplanes, and decorative plants. This room was substantially cleaner, and much more appealing than the bottom floor. The soft music was coming from the center of the room, being played by a older gentleman in a flower print shirt and khaki shorts.
The man noticed the three and put down his large flute-like instrument.
"Please have a seat" he said. The man was sitting, cross-legged, on the floor, next to a middle aged blond woman, who smiled and sighed contentedly. This was the leader of FH, Mayor Dobe.
Squall, Zell and Rinoa all sat down on the floor, in front of the mayor.
"Allow me to get to the point. When are you leaving?" he asked abruptly, gazing at them audaciously.
"He's not wasting any time" Squall thought, somewhat offended.
" …We'll leave as soon as the Garden is capable of moving" he replied.
"Any idea when?" the mayor asked. He sounded impatient.
"I'm afraid not" Squall informed him. "We only discovered that our Garden is mobile a short while ago. Therefore, we don't even know how to move it. we're still in the process of understanding everything."
The mayor thought for a moment, and sighed.
"Our technicians will assist you. They should be able to repair and service everything. How does that sound?"
"That means we'll have to let outsiders into Garden" Squall thought. "I can't make this decision alone."
The mayor looked at him questioningly for a moment.
"Go consult with your leader if you don't have the authority" he said abruptly.
The room was silent for a moment, as Squall considered his options. He stood, and placed his hand on his chin. Suddenly, Rinoa, still sitting, pushed her hand forward.
"S'cuse me," she said, addressing the mayor curiously, "why do you want us to leave so bad?"
Squall grew immensely irritated.
"Please just keep your mouth shut!" he thought. "They must have their reasons. Who cares?"
The mayor smirked slightly at this. He shifted into a more comfortable position.
"We don't want any military organizations in FH. You rely on force to solve problems. That is in direct defiance of our principles."
The mayor of FH, Stuary Dobe II, was a strict pacifist. In fact, he'd made certain that the entire village would become a haven for those seeking political asylum from the more harsh, war-prone areas of the world. Violence was unwarranted at all times as far as the denizens of FH were considered, and very unwelcome.
The mayors wife, Flo, sitting next to him, concurred.
"We believe that any problem can be settled by discussion. If you reach a mutual understanding, there is no need to fight."
Rinoa nodded, seeming to understand. But Squall merely sighed at this.
"No argument there. Trite and dull as hell though."
Mayor Dobe continued in a somewhat pugnacious tone.
"Violence only leads to more violence. We believe your presence here will attract violence. That's why we want you to leave as soon as possible."
Squall became impatient with this talk. Not only was it boring, but he found Mayor Dobe's attitude towards them offensive. Squall turned his back to the mayor and his wife abruptly.
"Let's go back to garden" he ordered. He motioned for Zell and Rinoa to follow him immediately.
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"Man, that geezer pissed me off!" Zell cried as they walked slowly back up the metal walkway. "Squall, why didn't you tell him off!?"
Squall just shrugged at Zell's surprisingly intense response, and kept walking. But Zell was furious. He stomped his foot on the ground, as if demanding as answer. He'd kept his mouth shut inside the mayor's house, but he couldn't bare to be quiet now.
"How can that… that JERK, think that we're gonna cause trouble here… He doesn't even know us!" Zell thought.
Squall looked back and noted Zell's expression; He was merely standing there, gritting his teeth and shaking his fist angrily.
"Forget it" Squall said finally. "You can't expect everyone to welcome us."
Even Zell had to acknowledge this. They were, after all, soldiers. But Zell didn't like the Mayor's attitude. He still dwelled on the conversation.
"He acts like we're just… just… hostile warmongers or something, man…" Zell thought. He sighed and ran ahead, trying to catch up with Squall and Rinoa.
As they continued up the solar paneling, all with somber expressions on their faces, Squall heard some commotion up above. Someone came barreling down from the top, nearly tumbling over them as he got closer. The man seemed in a panic.
"G… G…G…G …Galbadian soldiers!' he stuttered, stumbling over them.
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Squall approached the top of the solar panels with caution.
"They tracked us here, huh?" Squall thought."…Dammit."
Suddenly, he heard a voice cry out after them
"Wait!"
Someone came running up to them from below. It was the mayor's wife. She came up and pointed her finger at them angrily. She yelled at them in an angry voice, between breaths.
"The Galbadians are here because of you, right? They're after you" she said.
Squall stood silent. "Maybe" he thought.
"You'd better take full responsibility! It's your fault!" Flo cried out accusingly. She sounded unreasonable, and frightened.
"Fine, we'll take care of them" Squall thought, nodding to Flo. "I don't like the sound of her tone though."
"We mustn't rely on them. They won't be able to do anything without fighting" a voice behind Flo said.
Mayor Dobe came up to them slowly, following his wife. He grazed past Squall and turned to Flo.
"Don't tell me he's going to try and reason with them" Squall thought.
Mayor Dobe sighed heavily.
"I'll go talk to them" he said.
"…he's dead" Squall thought, putting his hand on his forehead.
Mayor Dobe walked away from them. In the direction of the Galbadians. He was determined not to let this erupt into a war-zone.
Squall folded his arms, trying to decide what should be done. If they went and fought the Galbadian like he knew they should, Mayor Dobe might retract his offer to help fix the Garden. But if they didn't, there would be no telling what Galbadia would do, especially now that they were under the influence of Edea.
"Squall… should we go with him?" Zell asked. nervously
"He might get hurt…" Rinoa insisted.
Squall nodded. If they were going to get out of here, the Galbadian's were gonna have to leave first. And they sure wouldn't leave because of Mayor Dobe's 'non-aggressive' policies.
They walked down, along the same path they had followed earlier. Squall looked around fervently, trying to figure out where the mayor had gone.
The girl in the black dress who had bumped into Zell earlier, noticed them again. She approached Squall.
"I saw the mayor walking toward the station alone. Did you guys have anything to do with it?" she asked.
Squall nodded.
"Where is the station?" he asked.
The girl eyed him curiously.
"Just keep going straight and you'll run into it."
Squall ran past her, towards the station. Zell nodded to her in appreciation as they ran by. The girl simply gazed at them suspiciously.
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Squall, Zell and Rinoa approached a turn-around, which encompassed a paved circle, leading up the station. In the middle, Squall saw Mayor Dobe conversing with a Galbadian official, decked in red. The three teenagers squatted down against the tracks, in front of an old mechanic's shop to avoid detection.
"There he is" Squall thought.
"(It kills me to help that old fart)" Zell whispered, glaring in Mayor Dobe's direction.
"Why are they wasting their time with the old man if they're after us and our Garden?" Squall thought. "…I wonder what they're talking about."
Squall listened carefully.
" I already told you… I've never heard of this girl Ellone" Mayor Dobe said, trying to be calm. "There is nobody here by that name."
"Ellone?" Squall thought.
The soldier merely laughed.
"Fine. We'll just have to torch this city" he said.
Mayor Dobe's eyes widened in desperation.
"Wait a minute!" he cried. "I'm telling the truth! I've never seen this girl!"
The soldier laughed even harder now.
"It doesn't matter, old man" he grunted. "We're gonna burn this place anyway. Edea's orders."
The soldier chuckled as Mayor Dobe dropped to his knees.
"No please! I beg of you! Don't!"
The soldier looked down at the mayor with disgust.
"I'll start with you" he said, grinning wickedly underneath his silver helmet.
The soldier reached down and began throttling Mayor Dobe by his throat.
"Maybe we'd better go now…" Squall thought. It looked like Mayor Dobe definitely needed their help at this point. "…but why is Edea looking for Ellone? We'd better listen a little longer…"
Zell glared down at squall.
"Squall!" he cried.
" What are you waiting for!?" Rinoa whispered angrily.
Squall paused. "What am I thinking?"
Squall kicked himself up, and leaped down to the stone circle beneath. The soldier dropped the mayor as the three teenagers approached him.
"Who the hell are you?" he chided with disdain.
"We're Seeds." Squall informed him abruptly.
The Soldier took a nervous step back at this. He turned around and yelled.
"Seeds! Get the Iron clad over here!"
Squall bent down to Mayor Dobe, who was lying limp and exhausted on the ground.
"I'm sorry but we have no choice" Squall said. The mayor lay face first on the ground, shaking his head.
"Squall!" Rinoa cried out.
Suddenly, two Galbadian soldiers ran at them from behind, and began attacking. Zell ducked quickly as the first ran at him, and reached his fist up to grab the soldier's collar. Zell then flipped the soldier above his head, and onto the ground, finishing the maneuver with a rather blunt kick to his victim's stomach.
Squall, in an instinctual response, began summoning a GF. Shiva, the ice queen, appeared quickly, and broke through her bed of ice.
As the GF took note of the weakness of her opponent, she frowned with disdain, and glared back at her summoner. Shiva began to shake her head. As she did, Squall heard an indescribable voice echo inside his mind.
"Your Guardians are not playthings. You would do well to remember this, child."
The Galbadian fell to the ground in fear, glaring in horror and wonder at the being that had just appeared. He attempted to escape, but Shiva had already begun to thrust her slender arms forward, creating huge ice crystals which surrounded the soldier.
With a final sweep of her arms, Shiva dematerialized, and disappeared into the air.
Zell and Rinoa relaxed as the battle came to an end, Squall however, remained unnerved.
"What was THAT?!" Squall thought to himself. "Did I imagine it? …I've never heard of GFs actually… SPEAKING to their summoners… I didn't even know that they could communicate with us… Can they?"
Squall had no time to dwell on this. He came to attention as Rinoa cried out.
"Something's coming!" She said. A loud rumble could be heard coming from a distance. A large machine could be seen rolling along the train tracks, coming from behind the train station. The machine turned however, and somehow propelled itself up, and came smashing down onto the town square.
"We got a big one on our hands!" Zell cried out.
"Let's destroy that thing!" Squall said excitedly.
The odd machine was intimidating, and large. It was some kind of tank with six pier's coming out of it, except that they were nearly all broken. The machine was certainly big, but it looked as if it had undergone a lot of damage.
Squall was tempted to summon Shiva, or another GF, but he looked at the rickety, broken tank, and thought better of it. He decided to simply attack it as well as he could by junctioning Thundaga magic, which he'd drawn from a monster in the training center earlier.
Rinoa and Zell joined in as well. The machine hummed and buzzed loudly as they each attacked it, casting magic, or merely ripping it apart as best they could. It appeared to be warming up for some kind of attack.
The tank finally did proceed with it's assault, however it was so noisy that Squall and the other two heard it coming and got out of then way. The tank extended a small device forward, which began rotating and shooting at them.
Finally, Squall released all his energy on the machine in a flurry of strength. He sliced into it again, and again with his gunblade.
As he backed away, panting. Rinoa cast one last thunder spell on the tank. At that, it began to burst into flames, and roll backwards. Zell, Squall, and Rinoa all watched as it drove itself down, and into the ocean.
The three breathed easily, surprised that the Galbadian's would attack them with something that big that was so… crappy.
But a quiet sound caught Squall's attention. He thought that he heard voices, and footsteps approaching from beneath the square's platform, right where's the tank had sunk. He approached the edge cautiously, wondering what, or who, was beneath…
Before he could, however, three familiar figures appeared from the edge. A young woman decked in a pale pink outfit and blond hair came up, followed by a man in a long , leather coat and cowboy hat, and another young girl wearing a yellow overall-skirt.
Squall's jaw dropped as the three teenagers climbed up, brushing themselves off. His eyes went wide with delight at the sight of his team members.
Selphie looked up, and saw Squall gazing at them. She smiled widely and waved.
"Squall!!!" she cried out.
Quistis and Irvine looked up as well, and all five Garden students present saluted each other with respect.
Squall was elated. He hadn't let on, but he had become uncommonly worried about Selphie, Quistis and Irvine. he thought happily to himself, "Yes! They're alright!"
Squall gave a genuine, warmhearted smile.
"Hey Selphie" he said. "Quistis, Irvine. It's great to see you guys."
Irvine smiled as well, but the look on his face changed to one of worry as he suddenly remembered that they'd failed to stop the Galbadian missiles.
"Say, what happened to the Garden?" he asked, concerned.
Squall thought about his question. It didn't seem like it could be answered fully in just a few sentences.
"A lot has happened…" he thought.
" The Garden is safe." Squall replied, not knowing how else to put it.
Selphie grinned ear-to-ear.
"Really!!? Whoo-hoo!!!" she yelled. Selphie waved her arms up and down excitedly.
Squall took a good look at them. They'd obviously just come from the inside of that Galbadian machine, and their clothes looked sooty and worn out. Not to mention their faces.
"What happened to you guys?" Squall asked.
Zell butted in at this.
"Yo, let's talk about that later" he said, figuring that they would have about as much to explain to Squall and he would to them. He didn't want to stand here and listen to a whole story… he was getting tired.
"I guess" Squall thought, disappointed, but acknowledging Zell's hint.
Squall looked back to Zell and Rinoa, and then again at Quistis, Selphie and Irvine.
"Zell, Rinoa," he said. "why don't you guys take them back to Garden? I'll see you guys later, after I take a look around."
Everyone nodded, and complied with Squall's request. Zell led Irvine, Quistis, and Selphie back to where the Garden was docked.
"You guys are NOT gonna believe what happened, baby…" Zell said as they walked along. "wait'll you see Garden…"
Squall closed his eyes, deep in thought. He was trying to process everything that had happened within the last hour or so, and contemplating what to do next. He opened his eyes once again, expecting to be alone, but someone had stayed behind… Rinoa. Squall turned around and was surprised that she was still standing there, watching him.
"You know," Rinoa began. "you just surprised me. You looked and sounded so happy to see them."
"Huh?" Squall thought. He didn't understand what she was trying to say.
Rinoa saw his perplexed look ,and tried to explain.
"It was the first time I've seen you so honest" she said kindly. "It was… really sweet."
"Well… umm…" Squall thought, now realizing what she meant. He became embarrassed now, as he'd been caught letting his emotions get the better of him.
"…I… I guess I really was happy to see them…" he thought. However, as he realized this, Squall became indignant. He looked up at Rinoa with narrowed eyes. "I WAS really glad to see them" he thought. "There's nothing wrong with that…"
"I was just happy to see that they were alright. What's so surprising about that? Is there something wrong?" Squall asked, somewhat insulted.
Rinoa placed her palm over her chest defensively.
"No!" she cried. "There's nothing wrong! They're your comrades, but moreover, they're your friends" she said. She didn't mean to insult Squall… She just thought that it was nice that he was showing so much… feeling.
"'Friends' huh…?" Squall thought. He tossed the word around in his mind curiously, as if he'd never heard it before. He wasn't sure if he accepted her statement or not…
Rinoa smiled at him slightly. Then, her eyes widened as a thought came to her.
"Hey, Squall, would you have been worried about me, too? Y'know, if I were with them instead?" she said.
Squall was completely unprepared for this. He blushed furiously.
"What? Why is she asking me this? I don't know" he thought.
She stood there, gazing at him knowingly. Squall looked down at the ground.
"I….ahhh…I don't know. Umm… maybe… I don't know" he answered quickly.
Rinoa squinted as she noticed the pigment of his skin change drastically.
"Oh my gosh!" she cried out, startling him. She squinted to get a better look. "You're turning red!"
"What…? No I'm not" Squall thought, feeling his cheek with his palm… It was hot to the touch.
Rinoa giggled uncontrollably.
"You're so cute! Taking it so seriously!"
Squall was somewhat hurt at this, but he acted as if he was angry.
"The heck!? Why is she toying with me?" he thought, glaring at the giddy young woman before him.
Rinoa stopped laughing and winked at him playfully.
"Catch you later Squall!" she said cheerily. She waved to him, and ran off to join the others at Garden.
Squall just shook his head, and turned around. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. As he did so, Squall noticed a slumped over figure in the middle of the town-square. The man sat, his flower-print shirt rumpled, and his head hung low. Mayor Dobe sighed heavily as Squall approached him.
"I guess you saved my life" the mayor said. his voice sounded upset, and somewhat confused.
Squall felt badly. He'd fully intended to abide by the regulations of FH, but he couldn't possibly let the group of soldier's which has seemed to retreat for the time being, destroy the town.
"Sorry for butting in" Squall apologized.
Mayor Dobe looked up, and faked a smile.
"No..." he said. But he added , "But I'm not thanking you."
Squall shook his head.
"You don't have to. It's just that…" Squall stopped himself, unsure of what he was supposed to say. It was an impossibly convoluted situation. Squall had just fought for a man who was strictly against fighting, and now what? Should he be sorry? Should Mayor Dobe be thankful to Squall, for violating his policies? Squall put his hand to his forehead.
"Just what?" he thought. "What am I trying to say?" Squall frowned as he searched for the words to back his feelings.
"I guess… I want him to understand us" he said to himself. Squall then voiced his thoughts.
"I wish you could be a little more understanding about us. We're not just a bunch of warmongers" he stated.
Mayor Dobe looked up at Squall from his place on the ground, eyeing him inquisitively.
"Oh?" he said plainly.
Squall paused once again, still unsure of what exactly he wanted to tell the mayor.
"I don't know what more to say… I'll try…" he thought.
"It's hard for me to explain…" Squall told him. "I wish… everything could be settled without resorting to violence… And there would be no need for battles" Squall felt more comfortable with his thoughts now. He seemed to have a better grasp of what exactly he wanted to say.
"Like you've been preaching," he started again, "it would be wonderful if things could be settled by discussions. The only problem is that it often takes too much time. Especially if the others are not willing to listen" Squall sighed sadly at this inescapable truth.
"So I believe that fighting is inevitable at times. It's really sad" Squall said. Mayor Dobe listened intently to Squall's words, but could not seem to look at him any further. Squall hoped for a response, but nothing came. He decided to end it.
"That's all I have to say. I hope you understand someday" Squall said. He turned to walk back to Garden, but Squall felt the need to add one last statement.
"I think the world need both people like you and people like us. Thank you for all your help. Good bye."
With that, Squall walked off, leaving the mayor to his thoughts. He made his way back to Garden , pacing through the tracks of FH slowly.
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On his way back up to the Garden's deck, Squall passed by several of the workmen he'd met with upon his arrival to FH. He was walking to the inclinator leading to the rigging that Garden had crashed into, when a familiar face addressed him.
"So, you did fight after all…" the man said. The sound of his words drove deep into Squall's heart, not because the man was angry… but because he sounded disappointed, as if he'd expected 'better' of Squall somehow. But squall merely shot a nervous glance to the man, and quickly turned his head away, making his way quickly to the inclinator.
Riding up, Squall thought he heard someone's voice on the metal walk above. As he dismounted the platform, he saw Irvine Kinneas leaning up against the wall.
"The headmaster gave the ok to let the technicians in the Garden. They're in there right now" Irvine informed him
Squall nodded, happy to have his thoughts diverted.
"Ok" he replied. Squall walked past Irvine, ready to go back to his dorm and rest, but Irvine had other plans.
"Say…" he began.
Squall answered curtly. "Yeah?"
a but nervous, Irvine responded, "Uhh… I was wondering. Those technicians seem very handy. So like… would it be alright if I asked them to fix some other stuff?"
Squall frowned and squinted his eyes. What did he care?
"As long as it doesn't slow down the work on the Garden, go ahead" Squall replied, shrugging. "Try not to ask for too much."
Irvine shrugged his shoulder's in his usual, cocky manner.
"Yeah, of course" he replied.
At this, Squall turned and began making his way to the Garden once again. Irvine followed him, and after reaching the large crane which had been positioned onto the 2nd floor deck, Irvine began to say something, but Squall cut him off
"What?"
Irvine scratched the back of his head, and twisted his mouth somewhat nervously.
"Selphie's feeling down right now" he said. "I thought I would let you know, since you're… kind of like everybody's leader."
Squall placed his hand on his hip, impatiently.
"…That's IT?" he thought.
"I think you should go talk to her" Irvine said, a bit more confidently now. "I know you're a klutz when it comes to these things, so I'll back you."
Squall thought a moment. He had been worried about them, Selphie in-particular. As odd as it was for him, Squall did feel concerned about how she was feeling.
"Where is she?" he asked.
Irvine replied quickly
"She's hanging out at the stage by the quad."
Squall nodded, and started once more towards Garden. Irvine gazed about at the tools and industrial instrument's all rigged onto Garden's frame.
" Wow" he exclaimed. "I didn't expect all this heavy machinery."
Squall rolled his eyes.
"How else are they going to repair it? With hammers and nails?" he said sarcastically.
Irvine put up his hands in defense.
"Hey, hey, hey, this isn't my department" he said placidly.
Squall folded his arms.
"Then what is?" he asked abruptly.
Irvine smiled, sure of himself.
"…Guns and women, of course" he replied.
Squall sighed, irritated, and ignored the comment.
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Inside the Garden's quad, Selphie Tilmett gazed at the once impressive sight of the Garden festival stage, now in utter ruin. Pieces of steel equipment, lay broken and crumbled, crushing the wooden planks of the stage. The equipment was smashed, and most of the tools that had been left on the scaffolding was either lost or broken beyond repair…
The stage… the Garden festival… Selphie's dreams… All crushed in one fell swoop. Selphie stood in front of the spectacle, nearly in tears.
She heard foot steps approaching faintly in the distance, but paid them little heed. She sniffled and wiped her wet eyes as she realized that someone was coming. She looked back to see Squall and Irvine approaching the shambled stage slowly.
" Whew…" Selphie expressed sadly, "this is so bad."
Squall looked at the sprawled material's, impressed at the size of such a mess.
"Yeah" he lamented. "It's been crazy, with the Garden moving and crashing into FH. A lot happened."
Selphie sighed heavily, disappointed beyond anything she could've imagined.
"Y'know, I really wanted to see a band perform on this stage" she agonized. "I even had my eyes set on a few people, too." Selphie squatted down in front of the stage, and tossed a piece of wood into the rubble.
"Oh well…"
Squall gazed at her, arms folded.
"Man. She's really down" he thought. "What should I say…?"
" Come on" Squall encouraged, surprisingly. "I'm sure you can still do something."
Selphie wrinkled her nose and smirked oddly.
"…Squall… being sensitive?" she said. "That's weird. You're the last person I expected to cheer me up."
Selphie turned her face up to Squall's, revealing a saddened expression.
"I must really look depressed" she moaned.
Squall blushed and turned his back quickly. He walked away from Selphie, folding his arms.
"What's so weird?" he thought. "I care just like everybody else. It's just that there are too many things that can't be helped. So why bother talking about everything?"
Selphie stood up and gazed at him a moment.
"what is he doing?" she wondered. "…Oh no… he's all moody now… I wasn't trying to hurt his feelings…"
"Uh-oh!" Selphie cried. "There you go again into your own little world. And you're not gonna share anything, huh?" she asked.
"…yeah, whatever…" Squall replied apathetically, still not facing her.
"Why is she teasing me?" he thought. "I was just trying to help."
Selphie put her hands on her hips and smiled.
"Well, I think I'm feeling better" she said cheerfully. "Don't worry about me, Squall."
Squall was still embarrassed however. He turned around, only to walk past her.
"Irvine… you help her" he said. "I'm out of here."
Irvine tipped his hat.
"Alrighty" he replied.
Squall began walking away from them, and just as he did so, the Garden's Public Address system came on, ringing the familiar introductory melody. Headmaster Cid's voice came in clearly through the speakers.
"Squall, this is the headmaster speaking. Please come to my office."
Squall became irritated. He wanted to go to his room and just sleep.
"What now?" he thought. Squall shook his head, and continued out of the quad, to deal with yet another interruption. After he left, Selphie and Irvine examined the remains of the stage a bit further.
Selphie sighed, trying to cheer up.
"I guess there's no point in feeling blue" she said.
Irvine spoke up happily, wanting Selphie to feel better.
"That's right. Let's get the fun started!" he exclaimed.
Selphie eyed him suspiciously. What was he up to now?
"Fun? What fun?" she asked.
"I'm so brilliant" Irvine thought to himself. He'd contrived a, self proclaimed, 'great' plan for Selphie's festival.
" So like… first, we'll ask the FH technicians if they can fix the stage" Irvine started. "If they can fix the Garden, this should be a piece of cake for them."
Selphie's eyes widened with anticipation, but she remained wary.
"Hmm… Do you think they'll do it?" she asked, hopeful.
"Don't worry" Irvine replied. "I'll back you. I'm sure they'll do it."
Selphie lowered her eyes, thinking to herself. As she processed the information, a wonderful thought came to her.
"Hey. That means…!" she cried.
"Yup, you can have your band perform on the stage" Irvine inserted, grinning happily.
Selphie could hardly contain her joy.
"Whoo-hoo! Alright! Let's get this show on the road!" she said, throwing her arms up in excitement.
Irvine gazed at her mischievously.
"Score, baby!" he thought. "I'm all set to make my move…"
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The headmaster's office was quiet, but for the voices of two people, and the faint echoes of machinery from the outside. Atop the control platform, Squall and headmaster Cid were engaged in conversation.
" …That abut covers my report, sir" Squall said, completing his summary of the event's that had developed in FH.
" I see …" the headmaster replied. He nodded, making sure to take careful mental noted. Cid also remembered that Selphie, too, had reported to him.
"….. I also heard a report from Selphie just a moment ago." Cid informed Squall. "She said the online diary is open to everyone to see. Maybe you should have a look... I'm sure you can read about what happened at the missile base." The headmaster removed his classes and wiped them with his sleeve.
" …Also," he added, "I'll make sure that Xu knows that Quistis is back… She's been awfully worried about her."
Squall nodded, but remembered one more detail about his report.
"Oh, and one more thing…" he said. "It appeared that the Galbadians were searching for Ellone. That seemed to be their main objective in FH."
Squall folded his arms, and stiffened his voice.
"I believe that Sorceress Edea is behind all this" he said.
Cid's eyes widened at this, and he lowered his head. The information wasn't surprising, but it was disturbing nonetheless.
Squall thought to himself at this point, as well.
"Ellone has the ability to allow people to experience the past. Maybe the sorceress is after her for this ability. What other reason could there be?"
Cid sighed in frustration.
"So now the Galbadians are working for the sorceress, and were searching for Ellone in FH…" he stated.
Squall concurred.
"And regardless of whether they found her or not… they had orders to burn the city down." he said.
Cid smirked wryly.
"That would help reduce the number of potential places where she could hide" he said.
" …that's right." Squall thought. "Holy chocobos… What WON'T she do to find Ellone?"
headmaster Cid continued.
"Most likely, the sorceress will not stop this onslaught until Ellone is found. She will continue to hunt her, and burn everything in her path. …We can't wait any longer."
Squall raised his eyebrows curiously.
" …So he's finally going official. About time" he thought.
Cid turned around, and pressed a button on the control panel. As he did, the PA melody started, and he began to speak.
" This is headmaster Cid" he stated. "I have an announcement to make. I have important news that I must share with all of you."
Throughout garden, student's and staff listened intently. No one could recall the headmaster acting so serious about something before. It seemed a bit unnerving, but exciting as well.
"The garden is being repaired right now" Cid continued. "We'll leave FH immediately after it's finished. We're going on a journey."
Mumbles could be heard throughout the hallways. What did he mean? What kind of a journey? Cid explained shortly.
"…This is a journey to defeat the sorceress. Garden will now be used as a mobile base. The administration of Garden will be run by myself and the staff as usual." Cid cleared his throat. Preparing to state the following very clearly.
"This journey will involve many battles. A well-qualified leader is needed for this." Cid paused, and the tension around Garden built exponentially.
Cid continued in a proud voice.
"Therefore, I am appointing Squall Leonhart as your new leader. From now on, Squall WILL be the leader. He will decide our destination and battle plan."
Squall had never felt as close to fainting in his entire life as he did at that moment. The full impact of Cid's words didn't quite hit him until a few seconds after, but he certainly felt the jolting impression it left on his mind
"Are you serious?!" Squall thought to himself. Cid looked back at him, smiling. He then turned back to the microphone.
"Everyone, please follow his orders" he said.
"I can't believe this…" Squall thought. He began to sweat nervously. He could feel his hands starting to shake as Cid continued, even though his arms were folded tightly.
"If there are any objections, please come see me in person." Cid stated, ending the announcement.
"I don't even have a choice?" Squall asked himself. He knew the answer of course, but he felt desperate for some kind of alternative.
Headmaster Cid turned the Public Address system off, and turned his attention to Squall.
"Squall, we're under your command from now on" he said plainly.
Squall slapped his forehead.
Cid frowned at his response.
"This is your fate" he explained sternly. "It is your destiny to lead the way in defeating the sorceress."
Squall raised his head, and stared Headmaster Cid right in the eye. He twisted his mouth angrily, and swept his arm back in a burst of fury.
"Don't talk about this like it's been decided since my birth!" he cried.
Before Cid could reply, Squall huffed loudly, and activated the platform's elevator. Upon reaching the floor of Cid's office, he stormed out as fast as he could, tossing the doors open and stomping his boots loudly.
"I don't mind fighting the sorceress." Squall thought. "It's unavoidable as long as I'm a SeeD member." Squall mounted the Garden elevator, and slammed his fist on the 1st floor button.
"But I NEVER agreed to leading the ENTIRE garden…" he thought. He sighed heavily.
"I'll fight as long as I'm a SeeD, but…" He paused, taking his thoughts into careful consideration. "What? As long as I' m a SeeD member? What if I quit?"
He toyed with the idea. The resulting thoughts became disturbing.
"Quit… Then what? What do I have left?" he asked himself. He became afraid of what the answer might be.
"Don't even want to think about it. Just stop thinking…" he told himself.
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Roughly an hour later, Squall had partially come to terms with his assignment, by viewing it as just that… Another assignment… Another job. He lay in bed, easing his mind as best he could.
"I'll just have to do as I was told…" he thought. "Command the Garden and kill the sorceress."
Squall narrowed his eyes, and sat up from his bed. There were still a lot of issues to think about, and Squall wasn't entirely sure that Cid had thought his decision through. He rested his head in his hands.
"How does headmaster Cid expect me to take care of everyone?" he wondered indignantly. Squall merely rolled his eyes.
"It'd be best to go fight the sorceress soon, and end this nonsense" he thought. This seemed like a good idea. Get it over with as soon as possible, and get everything back to normal… back to the way that they used to be. But Squall was reminded of another disturbing fact, which threw any calmness he'd summoned up out the window.
"The sorceress…" he thought. "But isn't she the headmaster's wife!? He wants us to kill his wife!?" Squall felt as if the whole world had been turned upside down. He lay back down on his bed again, feeling a headache coming on.
"What does it feel like to give an order like that?" he wondered.
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End Chap. 29
Ya-hoo. Excitement abounds as Squall takes control of Garden… somewhat begrudingly…
Well, the next chapter is kind of cute. I hope you will enjoy it… it should be a LOT shorter than this one…
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