A/N: Hello again, friends! …Wow, I have waited forever to update this time…don't kill me! Anyways, this is another chapter in the FF8 world, and hopefully I'll get around to explaining a little about these unknowns and why Squall and Rin disappeared. Don't mind too much if this chapter is a little happy in some places, that's what 3 hours of straight Jpop does to ya.
Chapter Seven: Premonition
"Dammit, we've got to move!" Irvine yelled, ushering the group into a van provided courtesy of Balamb Rentals. Zell and Raijin lifted Seifer into the back seat, breathing heavily. Selphie sat beside him, exhausting her reserve of curing magic on her fallen ally.
Zell, Raijin, and Fujin filled the middle row, Irvine occupied the passenger's seat, and Quistis took the wheel. She was about to insert the keys into the ignition when a loud bark was heard from the back seat.
"What the heck…" Everyone turned to face the back seat, where an extremely frightened Angelo was sitting in Selphie's lap.
"How'd she get in?" Zell asked, frowning at the dog. If Angelo had made it back to Balamb, why hadn't Rinoa done the same?
"Never mind, let's just get back to Balamb!" Quistis shouted, glancing back at Seifer one last time. She turned the key, slammed her boot into the gas pedal, and they were off.
Rinoa…where are you? Where am I? What happened!
Wait…I'm bound to some sort of table. Is this a torture room? A laboratory? The infirmary?
Squall Leonhart opened his eyes for the first time in days, slowly absorbing the information racing through his head. He remembered striking Ultimecia down…telling Edea about SeeD…falling through a vortex…meeting his friends in Balamb…finding out that Rinoa was missing…fighting the cloaked people…getting stabbed. Wait a minute; if he were stabbed square in the chest, shouldn't he be dead? He glanced down at his torso. Surprisingly, he could not find any trace of an injury, and he felt no pain. How long had he been asleep?
"Ah, so the SeeD is awake." The voice came from his left. Squall turned his head and was greeted by another black cloak.
"What do you want with me?" Squall asked, his voice monotonous and cold. His slate gray eyes scanned the room for any clues to his situation. Other than the black-cloaked person, he spotted a projector screen, a projector, some weapons mounted on the wall, several bookshelves, and the door.
"It is not what I want that matters, but what you want." The voice responded stealthily. Squall could almost imagine the sadistic smirk on the cloaked person's face.
The black-cloaked person chuckled, pressing an orange button on one of the olive walls. Suddenly, the projector roared to life, displaying a familiar image on the screen.
"Rinoa!" Squall attempted to reach for her image, restrained by his bindings. There she was, falling through the vortex of time compression alone. She appeared again, casting spells furiously against another black-cloaked person (BCP). In the next scene, she was laughing and dancing with a group of teenagers that Squall did not recognize. They appeared to be superheroes, wearing the traditional spandex.
"We have been tracking you for quite some time, Commander Leonhart." The BCP continued, shutting off the projector. "You and Miss Heartilly possess a strange energy that we seek."
"What are you talking about?" Squall questioned, wondering what the hell this "energy" thing was about.
"The energy that we seek is a special force that provides human immortality."
"So you're saying that I'm immortal?"
"You were immortal, yes. A great guardian of spirits protected you from death on several occasions."
"A guardian?"
"He took the form of a lion, symbolic of the courageous spirit that rests in the hearts of warriors. His name was Griever."
"Griever is a guardian?" Squall glanced down at his shirt, immediately noticing that his treasured Griever necklace was missing. He turned his gaze to the BCP, who was fingering the silver lion medallion resting against his cloak.
"Yes. I do not know how you came to acquire Griever, but no matter. His protection is now mine."
"And you want Rinoa because she has the ring, right?" This was not looking too good. He didn't know anything about the BCPs or their motives, and what would they do with immortality?
"You're a perceptive one, Leonhart. The trouble is, both the necklace and ring are required to achieve immortality. You had the necklace, and she has the ring. Since you share a strong bond of love, the immortality was shared between the two of you. However, I must acquire both items."
"What are your demands?" Squall could see where this was going, and he didn't like it at all.
"You will not attempt to stand in my way, you will not warn any of your friends about us, and you will assist me in beating Miss Heartilly into submission."
"Why should I help you attack Rinoa?" Damn, he wished he could escape. Maybe that "instant ninja" training course Zell had rambled on about last week would have helped him now.
"If you do not, I will force you to kill her along with all of SeeD!"
"How can you force my free will?"
"Simple, I will possess your body using an ancient spell."
"Which I will promptly break."
"Don't get cocky, Leonhart. Remember, you have no choice in this matter. She will die!"
BCP retreated into the black corridor, chuckling madly.
Damn…this guy's a crackpot. Immortality…ancient spells…but what's Rinoa doing? Are those snapshots real? And who were the spandex freaks?
"Nida, we've got an emergency situation!" Zell sprinted down Balamb Garden's main hall, racing toward his comrade.
"Zell, it's great to see you back again…what's up?" Nida asked, watching as Zell's companions arrived behind him. Quistis and Selphie were leaning over, panting for breath. Raijin and Irvine carried Seifer in their arms, who had lost consciousness. Fujin hovered over Seifer worriedly, and Angelo raced around in circles, barking obnoxiously.
"Where's the commander?" Xu asked, appearing behind Nida. She carried a mountain of paperwork in her arms.
"He was stabbed in Balamb and vanished." Selphie stated matter-of-factly, her eyes fixed on the floor.
"Rinoa was lost somewhere in time compression." Irvine continued, holding his hat in his hands.
"Who stabbed Squall? Is Ultimecia gone? Why did Rinoa disappear? Is there going to be another war?" A random junior cadet asked, racing towards the group gathered in the lobby.
"There's no time, our buddy's dying, ya know?" Raijin declared, glancing solemnly at his friend.
"HEAL." Fujin demanded.
"Seifer?" Xu asked, shocked to see the blonde back again. She closed her eyes at the sight of his grave condition. "Okay, I'll take over as commander for now. Take him to Dr. Kadowaki, Irvine."
"Yes ma'am." He and Raijin started toward the infirmary, Seifer in tow.
"Quistis, I need you to describe the people that stabbed Squall. Fujin, help Dr. Kadowaki with Seifer. Zell, Selphie, go inform the younger students about what's happened. Tell them everything because they need to know. Nida, plot a course for Esthar. We have to inform President Loire. We've got to do something before another war starts."
"Commander!" Everyone saluted Temporary Commander Xu and raced off to perform their assigned tasks.
A/N: Whew, that was a rough chapter to write. I'm really sorry that it took so long, 8 should be out much sooner.
