'Par Un Sourire (By One Smile)
Bonjour Tristesse' (Hello Sadness)
La Vie Immédiate. P Éluad.
Final Fantasy Eight
BY ONE SMILE
JetNoir
CHAPTER FOUR
"and all the graven images of her gods
he hath broken unto the ground…"
Isaiah, 21:9
I stayed in the cave for as long as I dared, but soon enough, it was evident that there was nothing to be gained by lingering. Wiping the tears from my eyes, I headed out towards the sand.
Sunlight was beginning to rise, slowly, its reaches lighting up the sky, and pushing the darkness, pushing the moon away. I climbed down from the entrance, and walked steadily towards the car.
It was a while before I pulled in at my house. There were no lights on, so as I strolled in, I made sure I was as quiet as humanly possible.
There she was. Illyana. Asleep, her purple shift distorted, breath gently inhaling and exhaling. I leaned over and kissed her gently on the cheek. She stirred, mumbled something unintelligible, and went back to sleep.
Dropping into a chair, absolutely exhausted, I switched on the computer, to find a message, in the bottom corner of the screen: 1 MESSAGE(S) WAITING.
Dear Sir,
We at the Council of the University have deemed you must be summoned to an emergency meeting. Your presence is required at three hours past midday on the second day of the week.
Yours,
The Council of the University of Galbadia.
I knew that a summons such as this could bring nothing but bad news, but even I could not have foreseen what was to come…or rather, I knew what might happen – but I certainly could never have conceived of it.
The Beach
"Irvy," said Selphie, "I don't understand. What you've been telling me…sexually charged…dark…but, a nightmare?"
Irvine Kinneas shook his head, and stood up, shaking sand from his trousers.
"Oh, believe me Selphie…it's about to get a hell of a lot worse."
The Story
The University's tall spires broke the beautiful blue sky into a multitude of aquamarine triangles and squares. The sun lit the back beautifully, and I stood for a moment, gazing at it, wordlessly.
"Dr?" I heard someone call my name. I responded and turned: "It's time, isn't it?" The man nodded:
"Follow me," he said, and I did.
The darkened hallways smelled of wood, and dust – a place of learning, that no place anywhere on the planet could surpass. I realised that I loved this place, and that I had missed it, terribly.
As I walked into the Head's office, I saw that the entire council had been convened, and their faces were all grim.
"Thankyou for coming before us," said the Head, "…and I have no easy way to say this. The Council has decided that the work you have been doing for the University has not been productive. Dreams. Paintings. Lost Cities. Where have these theories taken you? Nowhere. Sir…I respect your believes, and I respect your work, but you are an unnecessary drain on our rapidly dwindling resources. Therefore…we revoke your position of Doctor…and we are closing you down. Effective immediately."
Note: Well, the harrowing conclusion comes next chapter. Hope you enjoyed it, and please review!
Disclaimer: All the characters are copyright to Square Enix; and the story to me. This story has been written on the understanding that you may read it and print it out; but you may not pass it off as your own, hire it out, or sell it for money. You also may not put it on your own or any other web page without my express written permission. Thankyou!
JetNoir
