Chapter 14 part 2: Adel's Final Battle.
"Seifer! Stop it! Haven't you done enough? I know you're not like that!" Rinoa shouted while Seifer forced her along, his gunblade against her neck.
"Can't go back now! I can't go anywhere! The sorceresses as one! That is Ultimecia's WISH!" Seifer spoke with a strange tone, it wasn't comforting.
"...Seifer. No more... Please?" Rinoa pleaded, planting her feet to try and get him to stop.
For a moment, it seemed as if he would. "Rinoa…"
Squall charged in to the room one level above where they were from behind the two along with Zell and Irvine. "Seifer! NO!"
Seifer just looked at him arrogantly. "Rinoa and Adel! The sorceresses as one! Watch closely, Squall!" Seifer pushed Rinoa towards the waiting Adel, waiting by the broken fragments of her seal, immediately using her powers to Junction with Rinoa.
Rinoa was trapped, her body imbedded in Adel's chest, an almost complete Junction, certainly a physical one.
"I guess this is it, the only thing keeping us from Time compression is her." Irvine raised his gun over his shoulder, casting a Regain spell on Rinoa who looked to be in a considerable amount of pain.
(Squall, choice your attacks very carefully.) Ifrit warned. (Using curtain magic, or carelessly attacking could mean the end of Rinoa.)
'Right.' Squall nodded, clinching his blade and charging for Adel. He placed a carefully aimed slash above Rinoa's head, just bellow her neck. Adel lifted her hand and pushed him back, casting a Thundaga spell.
An unusually strong pillar of lighting came down on Squall from the sky, knocking him off his feet from the outward moving force.
'Come on Cerberus. I'm really going to need you help now.' Irvine prompted GF, and almost a second afterwards, thanks to high compatibility, three pillars of light came shooting through the ground from under him, casting double and triple on the group.
Zell weighed his chances, his attacks were most powerful when sent to the midsection, and Adel was too tall to attack her head effectively. Any magic he cast would probably hit Rinoa with his luck. 'Oh man, I'm screwed.'
(Zell, let me handle it.) Carbuncle pleaded.
Why not. 'Go for it.'
Just then a swell of fire from Adel washed from up from under them, covering all three of them with a wave. She was powerful, and her attacks hit all so they couldn't afford to cast reflect.
Irvine countered with a well placed shot from his gun, aimed at Adel's neck, leaving an impacted bruise and causing her to wince though it didn't penetrate. Then, with a pull of the slide to clear out used shell casings, fired another round in to Adel's arm. The sorceress only absorbed HP from Rinoa to help heal herself.
A hole appeared next to Zell and Carbuncle climbed through, jumping on to his shoulder. "Ready?" The small GF asked.
Zell cast a Scan spell on Adel to try and form some type of strategy. "Yeah, let's go." Carbuncle started by using magic, casting Reflect on Rinoa.
Squall attacked with another well placed slash on Adel's body, but just as his sword lowered and he tried to move back she grabbed him by his neck with a strangling hold and his body ignited with flames. "Uhggaaaa!" She then tossed him painfully aside, absorbing more HP from Rinoa while he sprawled on to the ground rolled to a stop relatively close to his previous position.
Irvine continued to fire, shooting another round at Adel, this time striking her legs.
"Her goes nothing!" Carbuncle cast a flare spell that struck Adel and reflected off of Rinoa, sending another similar red combustion at Carbuncle. The small GF was thrown off of Zell's shoulder, rolling dizzily to the ground... he shook it off though. "Don't worry about me, go."
Zell took a step back for a small boost and ran at Adel, jumping in the air and delivering a powerful spinning kick to the side of her head.
Adel used a Demi spell, causing an oppressive black wave to force them painfully to the ground. Irvine used triple to cast Cureaga on everyone, while Squall went in for another attack, managing not to get countered this time.
Adel lifted one hand, sending a literal wave of fire at them. It stopped just in front of them, Carbuncle used his powers to shield them. trying to push it back. Zell helped, using triple to cast three water spells and dispelling the wave.
Zell charged at her again, jumping up to substantiate the height difference and throwing a hard punch across her face. Adel caught him as he descended, grabbing him by the neck and using a Flare spell on him. He was caught in the center of an the explosion of red energy, but Adel still had him, casting a second Flare spell. This time sending him flying back out of her grip and doing enough damage to knocking unconscious out.
"Come on Zell! We gotta keep going!" Carbuncle quickly cast a Full-Life spell on Zell.
Irvine used triple to cast a set of 3 Firaga spells on Adel, erupting a series of up shooting gushers of flames. Squall did the same casting 3 Thundaga spells and sending three repeating bolts of lightning on to the sorceress. It was working, She was starting to wear down.
Carbuncle cast a Demi spell, reflection a part of the spell from Rinoa on to himself but took the damage in stride, it would be the only way to hit Adel with large attacks.
Irvine used his limit break, firing a barrage of quick shots from the shot gun into different parts of her body but managing not hit Rinoa.
"This is over!" Zell delivered the final blow, charging at Adel, jumping up above her head and thrusting a swift kick to her head. With a strange outcry the sorceress was knocked back to the ground, and some where doing the process Rinoa slipped out of her body, unjunctioned and Adel's powers absorbed. Ultimecia did as expected, possessing Rinoa right after
Laguna ran in to the room hastily with Ellone not far behind, apparently as an escort to protect her. "Ellone, now's your chance!" Laguna told her, she wasted no time making her way over to Rinoa, seemingly cast something on Rinoa and sending her, Ultimecia and Adel back in to the past.
This was it, Time compression was about to start.
Zell looked at Carbuncle, who flashed a smirk before rejunctioned himself. (Don't worry Zell, your thinking about it to much.) Carbuncle told him, sensing his nervousness easily.
(We'll make sure you get there.) Bahamut reassured him.
(We were supposed to go to Edea's house right?) Carbuncle asked.
(Yes.)
(Just checking.)
Zell lifted his hand to his forehead, feeling his stomach turning into knots and his breathe growing heavy 'Oh man...'
"Ok, Ellone." Laguna directed. "Just get Rinoa back."
A few seconds later Rinoa woke up with a started. Looking around, she knew exactly what was happening. "I...was inside Adel... The young Adel………" She told them with a shutter.
"Ultimecia's inside Adel. Exactly as she wanted." Laguna told them, he took one last look around before he decided to get out of the line of fire. This wasn't his fight, he was too old, this was better left to his son, "Ok, this is the showdown folks! Time compression is about to begin. 'Love, friendship, and courage'! Show'em what you got!" It was time like these, Laguna showed everyone that he could be more then an idiot. He honestly wanted to fight with them, but he couldn't, he had other things to do. Like getting Ellone out of here, with all the solders that had been put out of commission the Lunatic Pandora was heading strait for the ground.
(Ok, This is it Squall, are you ready?) Ifrit growled, he apparently was anxious to do this.
'Yes, what about you?'
(As ready as I'll ever be.)
'...What do you think is going to happen?' Squall withdrew his sword, standing ready as he saw the air around him begin to distort.
( I don't know.)
'How can you be so confident about this?' Squall asked 'We have no clue what's going to happen.'
(Don't be so worried.) Ifrit grunted (We won't know until it happens, so there's no use worrying about it now. We're going to get through this, both of us.)
! - ! - !
! - ! - !
"Oh man! Oh man!" Laguna move as fast as his situation would allow him to, a firm hold on Ellone's arm as he ran through the strange halls composing the Lunatic Pandora. The ground was shaking horribly, almost to much to keep balance on.
"Are we lost!" Ellone called forward in a tired voice, panting heavily as she just barely kept up with her father. It seemed as if they had been going through corridors way too similar for much too long.
"No! I know this place like the back of my hand." Laguna tried to sound confident and reassuring, the truth was that he'd known only one definite path, which had been blocked by out bursting flames and explosions. He had no idea where he was going.
"Ahhaa!" Ellone screamed in fright, crouching her head lightly to pass under an explosion of flames raining down from the ceiling, she stumbled, just barely making it past a rain of steel pillars with a sharp pull from her father.
"Are you ok?" Laguna stopped, turning back and planting his arms on Ellone's shoulder to look her over.
"I'm ok." She lifted her hand, crouching over in attempt to catch her breath. "How much farther?"
Laguna was tempted to lie, but he flinched when another explosion shattered through the facility, causing the ceiling above them to swell with flames. "Ok, I'm not going to lie to you." Laguna crouched down, pulling Ellone down to the ground with him an in attempt to evade the flames sending embers raining down on to them. "We're!"
"!"
The ground beneath them suddenly collapsed, dropping the two of them out of the level, through a rush of flames and debris. "Ellone!" Laguna reached outward and grabbed on to a protruding steel beam, catching Ellone's wrist before she landed on to a section of buckled ground where jagged metal's waited to impale. "Are you ok?"
"I'm fine..." Ellone looked down... "I think I can make it, just swing me to the left!"
Laguna complied, swing her to the left and letting her go, thankfully she landed one solid ground safely out of reach of the jagged pile. Then he dropped down, landing next to her. "That was close!" Laguna let out a deep sigh, then coughed from the smoke, they couldn't stick around. "Ready to go?"
Ellone nodded "Yeah." She took Laguna's hand and continued running through the tunnel, only to take a few steps and be knocked over by an explosion bursting out of the ground. "Ahhaaa!"
"Ellone!" Laguna landed hard on his back a few feet away from her, his head slamming painfully against a wall. Ellone landed relatively safely, falling upon her hands and knees, she didn't seem to notice what was coming behind her. "Ellone! Move!"
Ellone looked over her shoulder and gasped when she saw a large Wendigo above her with it's fist hammering down on her. It was already in motion, she didn't have time to do anything except flinch "!"
"Ellone!" Someone came out of nowhere, a boy around Squall's age, ramming the large monster with his shoulder hard enough to knock it off balance and send it sprawling to the ground, more easily knocked over on account of the earthquakes. This boy was dressed in a Garden school uniform, neat brown hair with blue eyes and though he was about Squall's height Ellone knew him to be younger.
"Nida!" Ellone smiled thankfully as Nida helped her up, she immediately wrapped her arms around him with a tight hug. "You saved me!"
Laguna, rubbing his head furiously, used the wall to help himself on to his feet and made his way over to the two, his head low under the hanging wires. "Thank you...let me guess your a SeeD?"
Nida shook his hand with a nod. "Yeah I'm a SeeD from Balamb garden, I didn't think either one of you could fly the Ragnaork."
"He's the pilot for the Garden." Ellone explained "I haven't seen you in a while Nida, Thank you so much." Ellone knew him since Nida was always in the Library, during her short stay at Balamb garden she'd become acquainted with him. She also knew that he wasn't the fighting type, which meant he had to be brave to come in to a place like this.
"I really don't think this is the place to talk." Nida softly removed Ellone's arms and prompted her and Laguna onward. The three of them ran through the tunneled pathway, staying low under the inflamed ceiling until they made it to the end.
It was a large gate blocking their path, labeled emergency exit. It couldn't be opened by physical means. "Oh man, we have to go back." Laguna sighed, still trying to pry it open.
"No, that's not it." Nida walked over to a panel laying beside the door "This panel opens the!" Nida flinched when the panel burst apart in a flash of sparks, right before lights dimmed and cut out. The only illumination they had was from the flames above them. "Uh..."
"Now how do we!" Ellone was cut off, her voice cutting off in to a startled gasp when the ceiling collapsed.
"Ellone!" Laguna dived outward, pushing Ellone to the ground and covering her with himself. He took the full blunt of the falling weakage, protecting her from the impacted and the heat.
"President Laguna!" Nida ran over to where the man was buried, pushing away the debris that covered him and trying his best to avoid the flames. When most of the weight had left him, Laguna managed to push through, leaving Ellone unharmed.
"Dad!"
"I'm fine, I'm fine." Laguna reassured her, even though that had just hurt like hell. "How are we going to get out of here? We can't go back..."
"Don't worry about it." Nida reached behind him, drawing a small radio from where it was clipped to his waist. "Cho, it's on to plan b...and remember it's the second red button." Nida looked back to Laguna and Ellone, placing one foot back to keep from falling on the increasingly shaky ground. "You two may want to get down."
They didn't even have time to comply before the door exploded, the force was enough to knock Nida, being a person standing closer, on to his back... "Damnit Cho..." He mumbled, watching the smoke clear "I thought the plain was to wait 15 seconds..."
"What was that?" Laguna grabbed on to Nida's arm and pulled him to his feet, feeling a small gust of wind from the open door.
"Our way out." The smoke cleared away with the small gust, revealing an alternate entrance to the room where the Ragnaork was lodged into the side of the Lunatic Pandora. That explosion had to be some type of gunfire or missile. Nida jumped through the shattered windshield into the cockpit while Laguna helped Ellone inside. "Your too anxious Cho." He scolded.
He was directing it toward a young boy sitting in the pilot seat, with messy brown hair and matching eyes. He wasn't wearing a garden uniform, but a long sleeved yellow shirt with a large black stripe across the center and a pair of blue jeans. It was Chocoboy, who Nida knowingly called him Cho, and his real name was Maru. "I broke the door didn't I?" He said with a smirk.
"Your going to have to learn to pay attention." Nida told him to move out of the seat, starting the engine just as Ellone and Laguna made it inside. "Oh man, this thing is going down...We better get out of here.
