Meanwhile, back at the desert prison, Seifer was pacing around the control room, talking to himself. It had been nearly two days since his opportunity to kill Squall had been denied by Zell and Rinoa, and he was mentally in a bad state.
"Ten more seconds..." he thought to himself. "Just ten more seconds and his head would have been mine. TEN SECONDS!" He brought his fist crashing down on the control panel, causing various lights to flicker as he mashed the controls, wildly. "And why'd it have to be HER?" He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, there before him stood Squall, gunblade in hand, taunting Seifer.
"You'll never be able to beat me," Squall said. Seifer picked up his gunblade and dived at his nemesis, only for him to vanish, and re-appear behind him. Seifer crashed to the floor in a heap.
"Come on!" The phantom Squall shouted. "Is that the best you can do?" Seifer picked up his gunblade and dived again, this time, emitting an animal-like growl as he did so. Again, Squall vanished, and again, Seifer was left floundering on the floor.
"You're pathetic," Squall said, kneeling down beside the fallen Seifer, "you're really pathetic, you know that? All this time, you try to beat me. I can't be beaten."
"I-I tortured you," Seifer said, defiantly, "You were going to give up!" Squall merely shook his head and laughed in Seifer's face.
"Don't you get it, loser?" The phantom Squall said again, "I have friends. I have back up. They'll always be there for me. You've spent your whole life turning away everyone who's ever tried to get close to you. And why? To be a sorceress' knight? Don't make me laugh!" Seifer stood up, and wildly started swinging at his imaginary adversary. Again and again, he failed to hit him, as again and again, Squall kept vanishing. Then, Seifer heard the voice from behind him that he once longed to hear.
"You're right," came the voice of Rinoa from behind him. He turned round to face her- she was wearing her usual blue dress, only she had Squall's jacket on over it. She continued talking.
"I don't know what I ever saw in him in the first place. You're more of a man than he'll ever be, Squall." She walked over to Squall, and kissed him passionately. When they were done, they turned to Seifer and laughed at him. Laughed... and laughed... and laughed until they were hoarse. Seifer sank to his knees, quivering in rage, and emotional pain. Then, one by one, all the other people he'd sided against came towards him. First, Selphie, the messenger girl he'd taken so much pleasure from poisoning.
"You're just a pathetic low-life," she said, spitting in his face. Seifer shook his head, close to tears. Then came Quistis.
"I always knew he'd amount to the nothing that he is," she said, slapping him in the face. All of them laughed as he slumped to the ground, crying.
"Chicken-wuss," he heard the voice of Zell say. By then, Seifer had broken down completely. And when he heard the voice of Irvine say, "Look at him, no-one likes him! It's no wonder he was an orphan- his parents died of shame!" Seifer had pretty much given up hope.
"You want to put that gunblade of yours to good use?" Squall asked Seifer rhetorically, leaning down beside him, "then put it in the ground, blade upward, and fall on it. Go on. It's not like anyone would miss you." Seifer started to nod, but he then saw Squall spasm, as if caught by electricity. He looked up, and saw Ultimecia standing behind Squall, projecting some kind of energy into his body.
"Go on," Ultimecia said, "kill him." Seifer, with his second wind, stood up, and picked up his gunblade. He pierced the helpless Squall with it, and the instant he saw the blood run down the blade, he felt like a new man. Rejuvenated, he pulled the trigger on the gunblade, and every time he saw Squall's body twitch as the bullet entered him, he felt more and more ecstatic, until he was almost orgasmic in his delight. He pushed Squall's lifeless corpse off the gunblade and watched it sink to the floor, before vanishing. Seifer looked at Ultimecia, confused.
"That was only a test," Ultimecia revealed to Seifer. "The real Squall is still out there. You must end his life. The time for torture has past. Kill Squall, my Knight." Ultimecia walked over to Seifer and stroked his beard. Seifer felt good to be alive.
"I will," he said, "and I promise you, it will be slow and painful." He watched as Ultimecia vanished, and the scene returned to that of the control room, empty, as it had been before Squall's arrival.
"Kill him..." Ultimecia's voice came into Seifer's head once again. Seifer nodded. He would kill Squall, or die trying.
Ultimecia had come into Seifer's life a few months earlier- after the whole incident involving her and compressed time had passed, he'd decided not to return to Balamb Garden. He had wanted to go back, but was unsure whether he'd be accepted there. Realising that just words weren't going to heal wounds, he'd packed up, and started travelling around the world. He'd visited Shumi Village, stayed briefly in Esthar, and eventually ended up in Fisherman's Horizon, where he was surprised to find his old friends, Fujin and Raijin. They'd left him when they were all aboard the Lunatic Pandora, but he didn't mind- he was amazed they'd followed him that far. He stayed with them for a couple of weeks, having fun fishing, until one day, he saw Balamb Garden float past. He watched it with longing- he still wanted to be accepted there, no matter how unlikely it was that they'd forgive him. Then, he saw the face that turned his mind- Squall, leaning over the second floor balcony. Suddenly, something inside him went wild. Squall… he thought. He'd seen television reports hailing Squall as the conquering hero, the leader of the SeeDs who'd beaten the sorceress. He hadn't minded that too much- after all, it was true. But what wound him up was seeing him in the flesh, looking down on him as if he was some kind of god. How dare he! Seifer had thought. How dare he look down on me as if I'm some kind of lowly peasant! He hadn't known where those feelings had come from, but they wouldn't go away. That night, he'd dreamt about Squall, about him standing on that balcony, laughing on him. He hadn't been physically laughing, but Seifer knew that was what Squall was doing, deep inside. Laughing at the man he'd squashed like a bug, then discarded. Before he could be consumed by rage, however, Ultimecia came to him, and gave him a new meaning of life.
"Take back what was taken from you..." she said. He was unsure what she'd meant, but then it hit him. All his life, Squall had taken what he'd had. Everything he had, Squall desired, and got. Hell, even Fujin and Raijin, his so-called "best friends" had been corrupted by Squall. Well, thought Seifer, that's all going to change. The following morning, he went up to Fujin and Raijin, and launched his blistering verbal attack on Squall, also indicting the two of them in his speech. He'd ended his rant with the word "payback", then stomped up to the room he was renting. Overnight, he left. He hadn't expected the two of them to actually believe what he said about "Mr. Perfect" Squall Leonheart, so he didn't bother to leave them an explanatory note or anything. He returned to the D-district prison in Galbaldia, and climbed up to the control room. There, memories came flooding back- his torture of Squall, watching him writhe in agony- it was too much to resist. He started abducting people off the street, and brainwashing them to serve him. He'd called his army "servants of the Almasy Empire", but in truth he wanted no power- all he wanted was revenge. He found himself in a position to carry out his threat when, on an undercover visit to Balamb, he'd abducted two students of Balamb Garden, which had apparently opted to root itself back in the ground, outside Balamb, where it used to be. He captured the students and brainwashed them, and when the time was right, secretly contacted them, telling them to destroy the Garden's training centre. He'd received intelligence that Squall was out on a mission, so that would be the perfect time. Along with a little message he'd videotaped for Squall, the bait was set. And Squall had gobbled it up beautifully. Unfortunately, he hadn't counted on Squall's friends. Even when he'd isolated him, his friends were somehow able to come to the rescue and save Squall. Still, at least he'd managed to torture Squall, almost to the point where he'd broken. But, Ultimecia had spoken.
"Kill Squall..." she'd said. And that was what he was going to do. If he had to go through Squall's friends, even HER, then he would. He went to his study and sat down at his desk, formulating a new plan of action.
"Ten more seconds..." he thought to himself. "Just ten more seconds and his head would have been mine. TEN SECONDS!" He brought his fist crashing down on the control panel, causing various lights to flicker as he mashed the controls, wildly. "And why'd it have to be HER?" He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, there before him stood Squall, gunblade in hand, taunting Seifer.
"You'll never be able to beat me," Squall said. Seifer picked up his gunblade and dived at his nemesis, only for him to vanish, and re-appear behind him. Seifer crashed to the floor in a heap.
"Come on!" The phantom Squall shouted. "Is that the best you can do?" Seifer picked up his gunblade and dived again, this time, emitting an animal-like growl as he did so. Again, Squall vanished, and again, Seifer was left floundering on the floor.
"You're pathetic," Squall said, kneeling down beside the fallen Seifer, "you're really pathetic, you know that? All this time, you try to beat me. I can't be beaten."
"I-I tortured you," Seifer said, defiantly, "You were going to give up!" Squall merely shook his head and laughed in Seifer's face.
"Don't you get it, loser?" The phantom Squall said again, "I have friends. I have back up. They'll always be there for me. You've spent your whole life turning away everyone who's ever tried to get close to you. And why? To be a sorceress' knight? Don't make me laugh!" Seifer stood up, and wildly started swinging at his imaginary adversary. Again and again, he failed to hit him, as again and again, Squall kept vanishing. Then, Seifer heard the voice from behind him that he once longed to hear.
"You're right," came the voice of Rinoa from behind him. He turned round to face her- she was wearing her usual blue dress, only she had Squall's jacket on over it. She continued talking.
"I don't know what I ever saw in him in the first place. You're more of a man than he'll ever be, Squall." She walked over to Squall, and kissed him passionately. When they were done, they turned to Seifer and laughed at him. Laughed... and laughed... and laughed until they were hoarse. Seifer sank to his knees, quivering in rage, and emotional pain. Then, one by one, all the other people he'd sided against came towards him. First, Selphie, the messenger girl he'd taken so much pleasure from poisoning.
"You're just a pathetic low-life," she said, spitting in his face. Seifer shook his head, close to tears. Then came Quistis.
"I always knew he'd amount to the nothing that he is," she said, slapping him in the face. All of them laughed as he slumped to the ground, crying.
"Chicken-wuss," he heard the voice of Zell say. By then, Seifer had broken down completely. And when he heard the voice of Irvine say, "Look at him, no-one likes him! It's no wonder he was an orphan- his parents died of shame!" Seifer had pretty much given up hope.
"You want to put that gunblade of yours to good use?" Squall asked Seifer rhetorically, leaning down beside him, "then put it in the ground, blade upward, and fall on it. Go on. It's not like anyone would miss you." Seifer started to nod, but he then saw Squall spasm, as if caught by electricity. He looked up, and saw Ultimecia standing behind Squall, projecting some kind of energy into his body.
"Go on," Ultimecia said, "kill him." Seifer, with his second wind, stood up, and picked up his gunblade. He pierced the helpless Squall with it, and the instant he saw the blood run down the blade, he felt like a new man. Rejuvenated, he pulled the trigger on the gunblade, and every time he saw Squall's body twitch as the bullet entered him, he felt more and more ecstatic, until he was almost orgasmic in his delight. He pushed Squall's lifeless corpse off the gunblade and watched it sink to the floor, before vanishing. Seifer looked at Ultimecia, confused.
"That was only a test," Ultimecia revealed to Seifer. "The real Squall is still out there. You must end his life. The time for torture has past. Kill Squall, my Knight." Ultimecia walked over to Seifer and stroked his beard. Seifer felt good to be alive.
"I will," he said, "and I promise you, it will be slow and painful." He watched as Ultimecia vanished, and the scene returned to that of the control room, empty, as it had been before Squall's arrival.
"Kill him..." Ultimecia's voice came into Seifer's head once again. Seifer nodded. He would kill Squall, or die trying.
Ultimecia had come into Seifer's life a few months earlier- after the whole incident involving her and compressed time had passed, he'd decided not to return to Balamb Garden. He had wanted to go back, but was unsure whether he'd be accepted there. Realising that just words weren't going to heal wounds, he'd packed up, and started travelling around the world. He'd visited Shumi Village, stayed briefly in Esthar, and eventually ended up in Fisherman's Horizon, where he was surprised to find his old friends, Fujin and Raijin. They'd left him when they were all aboard the Lunatic Pandora, but he didn't mind- he was amazed they'd followed him that far. He stayed with them for a couple of weeks, having fun fishing, until one day, he saw Balamb Garden float past. He watched it with longing- he still wanted to be accepted there, no matter how unlikely it was that they'd forgive him. Then, he saw the face that turned his mind- Squall, leaning over the second floor balcony. Suddenly, something inside him went wild. Squall… he thought. He'd seen television reports hailing Squall as the conquering hero, the leader of the SeeDs who'd beaten the sorceress. He hadn't minded that too much- after all, it was true. But what wound him up was seeing him in the flesh, looking down on him as if he was some kind of god. How dare he! Seifer had thought. How dare he look down on me as if I'm some kind of lowly peasant! He hadn't known where those feelings had come from, but they wouldn't go away. That night, he'd dreamt about Squall, about him standing on that balcony, laughing on him. He hadn't been physically laughing, but Seifer knew that was what Squall was doing, deep inside. Laughing at the man he'd squashed like a bug, then discarded. Before he could be consumed by rage, however, Ultimecia came to him, and gave him a new meaning of life.
"Take back what was taken from you..." she said. He was unsure what she'd meant, but then it hit him. All his life, Squall had taken what he'd had. Everything he had, Squall desired, and got. Hell, even Fujin and Raijin, his so-called "best friends" had been corrupted by Squall. Well, thought Seifer, that's all going to change. The following morning, he went up to Fujin and Raijin, and launched his blistering verbal attack on Squall, also indicting the two of them in his speech. He'd ended his rant with the word "payback", then stomped up to the room he was renting. Overnight, he left. He hadn't expected the two of them to actually believe what he said about "Mr. Perfect" Squall Leonheart, so he didn't bother to leave them an explanatory note or anything. He returned to the D-district prison in Galbaldia, and climbed up to the control room. There, memories came flooding back- his torture of Squall, watching him writhe in agony- it was too much to resist. He started abducting people off the street, and brainwashing them to serve him. He'd called his army "servants of the Almasy Empire", but in truth he wanted no power- all he wanted was revenge. He found himself in a position to carry out his threat when, on an undercover visit to Balamb, he'd abducted two students of Balamb Garden, which had apparently opted to root itself back in the ground, outside Balamb, where it used to be. He captured the students and brainwashed them, and when the time was right, secretly contacted them, telling them to destroy the Garden's training centre. He'd received intelligence that Squall was out on a mission, so that would be the perfect time. Along with a little message he'd videotaped for Squall, the bait was set. And Squall had gobbled it up beautifully. Unfortunately, he hadn't counted on Squall's friends. Even when he'd isolated him, his friends were somehow able to come to the rescue and save Squall. Still, at least he'd managed to torture Squall, almost to the point where he'd broken. But, Ultimecia had spoken.
"Kill Squall..." she'd said. And that was what he was going to do. If he had to go through Squall's friends, even HER, then he would. He went to his study and sat down at his desk, formulating a new plan of action.