Sorry this chapter is so late. I thought i needed to do a quick history chapter, since a new character is entering in the next chapter.. and i need a backup of why he's here. This is a basic account of how each of the Angel's Garland created were made and for what purposes. By the end of the chapter you'll know who's new. ^_~ (Also, thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, and to Kingleby, thanks for your ideas on the Iifa problem. ^_^)
Chpt 14 : The Angels of Terra.
The First Angel; Iifa : Angel of Darkness.
Garland had thought it through. In his entire career he had been smart enough to watch his own back. He'd protected himself against his old leader; Sirriai.. but lost his friends for it. What he did not want was another catastrophe. Garland remembered when he had found the files for Kronos's Assimilation Catalyst project in his desk. He hadn't actually bothered to look around his dead friend's desks in over fifteen thousand years, but when he did look in his best friend's draw he found the files... the notes, the structure, the mechanisms of the assimilation catalyst. In Kronos's last will and testament he had written that he wanted to save his project if anything happened, and if he did die before it's completion, he wanted to be a part of it. So that is what Garland did. Garland responded to his best friend's wishes by using Kronos's soul for the Assimilation Catalyst.. the Iifa tree. It was originally designed to channel the souls of Terra though Gaia, setting the path for the Assimilation. Garland quickly located the soul of Kronos in the soul path, and tried to insert it into Terran form. This, unfortunately didn't work. Time was running out... Garland knew the Assimilation had to happen soon. He had spent to many years preparing it, and the people of Terra would be ashamed of him. The only option was to insert Kronos's soul into the Iifa Tree itself, so the process of soul dividing would take less time. Garland had completed his first creation. The Iifa tree was the perfect machine for soul division. Designed by Kronos, built and maintained by himself. It was well able to protect itself and attack invaders. Kronos's soul had made it a deadly force to be reckoned with, whipping its vines and branches without warning in a rage filled storm. This had come from Kronos's bad habit of having a short temper, with explosive results. In a way, the Iifa tree had maintained Kronos's personality... this is why it was Garland's favourite creation, it just agitated him that his best friend's soul was not compatible with a Terran body... Had he been too clumsy when making the new batch of genomes? He could never tell.
The Second Angel; Kuja : Angel of Destruction.
Garland had a serious time problem on his hands. The assimilation HAD to happen soon, or the planets internal resources, without the help of stasis would die and run out. Something had to be done. Somehow he had to kill off all the Gaians on Gaia for a full resuscitation of Terra. Then only Terra would be left in Gaia's place. Terrans hated competition. Garland researched a little on Gaian behaviour, using Kaia's written studies when she visited and surveyed Gaia. He found that they were highly prone to wage war on each other, using magic and creatures called Eidolons. Terra also owned Eidolons.. not many though. Garland knew what he had to do. He would let Gaia's power grow, then trigger a war between nations. This would wipe out millions.. if not billions. Garland just needed someone to trigger a war, bringing him to the conclusion that he would need to create a second Angel. One with a conniving mind, one that could use plotting, lies and deception to start conflict. He went to his lab without second thought... and began to search for a soul that would help him achieve Gaia's downfall. Using his first Angel; the Iifa tree, to help him, he came apon a soul of wanted description. The Iifa tree isolated this one soul, while garland inserted it into a new body. Thus Kuja the second angel was born.
The Third Angel; Mikoto : Angel of Terra.
Kuja had turned out to be more trouble than he was worth. In his adolescence he smashed labs and went into teenage tantrums, complaining that he didn't have enough freedom. Garland had had enough of Kuja's disobedience. Kuja had fiddled with the Invincible more than once, nearly causing Garland's only memory of his companion Aikand to crash and burn, he had set and reset stasis of animals and plants, causing mutations and weird looking new species, he had also become jealous, saying that the Iifa tree was bigger and better than he was.. Garland only replied by pointing out that he had the freedom to move and talk, unlike his brother who was stuck in the form of a giant tree. Kuja has been aware of the power of his brother the Iifa tree from day one. They both shared a wary relationship towards one another, but on most days they ignored each other's existence. Garland had presently decided to let Kuja go to Gaia, for some field experience.. also to check on how many summons were growing. On arriving he found his way to Mandain Sari, village of summoners. He was met and guided round by a teenage girl named Mariah, who he fell for almost immediately. Thus began Kuja's visits to the village. He would return to Terra, with little work done, or none at all. Garland often wondered what he was up to down there. At one point Kuja had brought the girl back to Terra, without Garland even aware of it. At any rate, Garland's research into making genomes improved, finding that he could create genomes that would be able to sustain great powers. He began to spend most of his time in the lab, building a new and improved genome. Kuja, however was oblivious to this. His liaison with Mariah took his mind off his mission, Garland, even Terra. One evening Garland was horrified to find out that the Iifa tree had stopped responding, and the souls flowed at abnormal rates.. almost like it was unconscious. Garland rushed over to his first creation and did many tests, but no reason came to why it had stopped. A month later the soul flow returned to normal, by this time Garland had finished the new genome body but was still confused and depressed on the loss of life from the Iifa tree. He noticed the normal rise in levels from the soul path, and decided to examine the soul flow. Here he saw something that interested him... a pitch black soul. He caught this soul and was shocked when the tests proved that it was infact Kronos's Soul, which had gone through transformation under the influence of the Life Crystal. He was elated and set to work on transferring it into the genome body he had made. Later that year Kuja discovered the soul and the genome. He witnessed the soul enter the genome (who appeared to be around 9 years old) and breathe it's first breath of Terran air. Kuja panicked when he realised this could be his downfall, so he smashed the glass of his container and hid him from Garland for over five months. Garland became filled with rage and loss when his newest creation was stolen. Kuja was satisfied with his plan, but wasn't pleased to hear that this was his older brother in Terran form. It was Iifa. Kuja, with the help of Mariah, brought up Iifa (who at this stage, had no memory of being the Iifa tree) to like him, not to be jealous or servant to Garland. Kuja knew Garland had made the same mistake of making Iifa as disobedient as himself... with a little mis-nurture, Iifa could help him in later life. It was not to be. Garland discovered Kuja was the one who had stolen Iifa, and battled his second creation to near death. Kuja and Garland were badly wounded, Iifa staying beside Kuja until he fell into a death like coma. Kuja had used the last of his strength to teleport Iifa into his own body, where the vines created a cocoon to protect it's other body. Garland had fled to the other side of Terra, where his wounds healed. He had lost two, if not three creations. He needed help, not just for his health, but for Terra. Returning to the lab half a year later, Garland began work on another genome.. he would make sure the soul for this genome was obedient, if not, it would be restrained manually to fit requirements. He decided that Terra needed to be nurtured, and who better to nurture than a woman? Thus Mikoto, third angel of Terra was born.
******************
With Mikoto's help, Terra flourished with genomes again, while Gaia waged war... even though Kuja was dead.. or so Garland thought. Garland had found out Iifa's whereabouts, but feared to remove him from his prison just in case the Iifa tree reacted in a violent manner. It served no-one now, only itself.
So Garland sat down to his desk once more, and read some research on creating successful genomes, not soulless vessels, but Angels.. The key was not to make them too strong, but give them empathy, sympathy, a weakness to the helpless.. this Angel.. his Fourth Angel was going to make sure Iifa, or Kuja (if he was alive) never got on the wrong side of their creator.
Phew! I know this chapter was short, (i did try, y'know.. ^_^) but i can't write an essay.. i've been doing too many of those. The next chapter will be nice and long with plenty of action! There's going to be some competition between a certain two characters, I can tell you. Well, thankyou for reading, buh-bye! (Pleeeease review!!! :D) (By the way, Iifa does not REPLACE Zidane in this story.. he is just the oldest one. )
Chpt 14 : The Angels of Terra.
The First Angel; Iifa : Angel of Darkness.
Garland had thought it through. In his entire career he had been smart enough to watch his own back. He'd protected himself against his old leader; Sirriai.. but lost his friends for it. What he did not want was another catastrophe. Garland remembered when he had found the files for Kronos's Assimilation Catalyst project in his desk. He hadn't actually bothered to look around his dead friend's desks in over fifteen thousand years, but when he did look in his best friend's draw he found the files... the notes, the structure, the mechanisms of the assimilation catalyst. In Kronos's last will and testament he had written that he wanted to save his project if anything happened, and if he did die before it's completion, he wanted to be a part of it. So that is what Garland did. Garland responded to his best friend's wishes by using Kronos's soul for the Assimilation Catalyst.. the Iifa tree. It was originally designed to channel the souls of Terra though Gaia, setting the path for the Assimilation. Garland quickly located the soul of Kronos in the soul path, and tried to insert it into Terran form. This, unfortunately didn't work. Time was running out... Garland knew the Assimilation had to happen soon. He had spent to many years preparing it, and the people of Terra would be ashamed of him. The only option was to insert Kronos's soul into the Iifa Tree itself, so the process of soul dividing would take less time. Garland had completed his first creation. The Iifa tree was the perfect machine for soul division. Designed by Kronos, built and maintained by himself. It was well able to protect itself and attack invaders. Kronos's soul had made it a deadly force to be reckoned with, whipping its vines and branches without warning in a rage filled storm. This had come from Kronos's bad habit of having a short temper, with explosive results. In a way, the Iifa tree had maintained Kronos's personality... this is why it was Garland's favourite creation, it just agitated him that his best friend's soul was not compatible with a Terran body... Had he been too clumsy when making the new batch of genomes? He could never tell.
The Second Angel; Kuja : Angel of Destruction.
Garland had a serious time problem on his hands. The assimilation HAD to happen soon, or the planets internal resources, without the help of stasis would die and run out. Something had to be done. Somehow he had to kill off all the Gaians on Gaia for a full resuscitation of Terra. Then only Terra would be left in Gaia's place. Terrans hated competition. Garland researched a little on Gaian behaviour, using Kaia's written studies when she visited and surveyed Gaia. He found that they were highly prone to wage war on each other, using magic and creatures called Eidolons. Terra also owned Eidolons.. not many though. Garland knew what he had to do. He would let Gaia's power grow, then trigger a war between nations. This would wipe out millions.. if not billions. Garland just needed someone to trigger a war, bringing him to the conclusion that he would need to create a second Angel. One with a conniving mind, one that could use plotting, lies and deception to start conflict. He went to his lab without second thought... and began to search for a soul that would help him achieve Gaia's downfall. Using his first Angel; the Iifa tree, to help him, he came apon a soul of wanted description. The Iifa tree isolated this one soul, while garland inserted it into a new body. Thus Kuja the second angel was born.
The Third Angel; Mikoto : Angel of Terra.
Kuja had turned out to be more trouble than he was worth. In his adolescence he smashed labs and went into teenage tantrums, complaining that he didn't have enough freedom. Garland had had enough of Kuja's disobedience. Kuja had fiddled with the Invincible more than once, nearly causing Garland's only memory of his companion Aikand to crash and burn, he had set and reset stasis of animals and plants, causing mutations and weird looking new species, he had also become jealous, saying that the Iifa tree was bigger and better than he was.. Garland only replied by pointing out that he had the freedom to move and talk, unlike his brother who was stuck in the form of a giant tree. Kuja has been aware of the power of his brother the Iifa tree from day one. They both shared a wary relationship towards one another, but on most days they ignored each other's existence. Garland had presently decided to let Kuja go to Gaia, for some field experience.. also to check on how many summons were growing. On arriving he found his way to Mandain Sari, village of summoners. He was met and guided round by a teenage girl named Mariah, who he fell for almost immediately. Thus began Kuja's visits to the village. He would return to Terra, with little work done, or none at all. Garland often wondered what he was up to down there. At one point Kuja had brought the girl back to Terra, without Garland even aware of it. At any rate, Garland's research into making genomes improved, finding that he could create genomes that would be able to sustain great powers. He began to spend most of his time in the lab, building a new and improved genome. Kuja, however was oblivious to this. His liaison with Mariah took his mind off his mission, Garland, even Terra. One evening Garland was horrified to find out that the Iifa tree had stopped responding, and the souls flowed at abnormal rates.. almost like it was unconscious. Garland rushed over to his first creation and did many tests, but no reason came to why it had stopped. A month later the soul flow returned to normal, by this time Garland had finished the new genome body but was still confused and depressed on the loss of life from the Iifa tree. He noticed the normal rise in levels from the soul path, and decided to examine the soul flow. Here he saw something that interested him... a pitch black soul. He caught this soul and was shocked when the tests proved that it was infact Kronos's Soul, which had gone through transformation under the influence of the Life Crystal. He was elated and set to work on transferring it into the genome body he had made. Later that year Kuja discovered the soul and the genome. He witnessed the soul enter the genome (who appeared to be around 9 years old) and breathe it's first breath of Terran air. Kuja panicked when he realised this could be his downfall, so he smashed the glass of his container and hid him from Garland for over five months. Garland became filled with rage and loss when his newest creation was stolen. Kuja was satisfied with his plan, but wasn't pleased to hear that this was his older brother in Terran form. It was Iifa. Kuja, with the help of Mariah, brought up Iifa (who at this stage, had no memory of being the Iifa tree) to like him, not to be jealous or servant to Garland. Kuja knew Garland had made the same mistake of making Iifa as disobedient as himself... with a little mis-nurture, Iifa could help him in later life. It was not to be. Garland discovered Kuja was the one who had stolen Iifa, and battled his second creation to near death. Kuja and Garland were badly wounded, Iifa staying beside Kuja until he fell into a death like coma. Kuja had used the last of his strength to teleport Iifa into his own body, where the vines created a cocoon to protect it's other body. Garland had fled to the other side of Terra, where his wounds healed. He had lost two, if not three creations. He needed help, not just for his health, but for Terra. Returning to the lab half a year later, Garland began work on another genome.. he would make sure the soul for this genome was obedient, if not, it would be restrained manually to fit requirements. He decided that Terra needed to be nurtured, and who better to nurture than a woman? Thus Mikoto, third angel of Terra was born.
******************
With Mikoto's help, Terra flourished with genomes again, while Gaia waged war... even though Kuja was dead.. or so Garland thought. Garland had found out Iifa's whereabouts, but feared to remove him from his prison just in case the Iifa tree reacted in a violent manner. It served no-one now, only itself.
So Garland sat down to his desk once more, and read some research on creating successful genomes, not soulless vessels, but Angels.. The key was not to make them too strong, but give them empathy, sympathy, a weakness to the helpless.. this Angel.. his Fourth Angel was going to make sure Iifa, or Kuja (if he was alive) never got on the wrong side of their creator.
Phew! I know this chapter was short, (i did try, y'know.. ^_^) but i can't write an essay.. i've been doing too many of those. The next chapter will be nice and long with plenty of action! There's going to be some competition between a certain two characters, I can tell you. Well, thankyou for reading, buh-bye! (Pleeeease review!!! :D) (By the way, Iifa does not REPLACE Zidane in this story.. he is just the oldest one. )