Chapter 41: City of Dreams

"Welcome back to the land of the living," Irvine said as Squall rose groggily to his feet. He shook his head, trying to clear the sleepiness away, and still distinctly felt the warmth of Ellone's breath on his cheek. How strange it seemed to see her so perfectly as a child, exactly as she'd been in his distant memories.

"How long were we out?" Selphie asked as she began to stand up, helped by the gunslinger.

"About ten minutes," Quistis replied. "Which is odd, because the other incidents usually last longer."

Squall scanned his surroundings as Zell rose as well, shaking his head, and saw that they were still alone on the platform. Rinoa, he quickly saw, was still on the floor, where Quistis had set her down.

The peace didn't last long, as the heavy door they had been standing before slid open, revealing an open cityscape beyond, and framed in the center of the doorway, a large oblong teal-colored hovering vehicle. It floated onto the platform and rotated, the right side facing the group, and its side opened like a blossoming flower. A single man stepped out.

He was clad in long, full-body white robes, with the center of the robes over his chest and back a dark blue. His hands were hidden within voluminous sleeves, and his head was covered by a strange combination of a hood and a cylindrical hat, leaving only his face exposed. On his chest was the sigil of Esthar, consisting of a semicircle with a white dot in the middle, with white lines trailing down from it, ending in a single red teardrop at the bottom.

"Greetings," the man said, bowing his head slightly. He spoke with a slightly high-pitched, officious voice. "Welcome to Esthar. My name is Gerard Spark, Presidential Advisor on Foreign Affairs. I'm part of the Presidential staff, and was sent out personally by the President to greet you. It has been a while since outsiders have come to Esthar."

"I'm Commander Leonhart, Balamb Garden," Squall replied curtly. "These are my comrades, all SeeDs. And this," he gestured to Edea, "is Sorceress Edea Kramer."

"Ah," Spark replied, nodding. I see. Yes, you all do look familiar. May I ask what your business is in Esthar? Its protocol, even though we haven't had to use it in over a decade."

"I am here to see Doctor Odine," Edea answered. "I must consult with him about my powers as a Sorceress."

"Ah, yes, of course," Spark replied, nodding. "Perfectly understandable. These SeeDs are your escorts?"

"Yes," Edea answered. "Though we all come for another reason." She nodded to Rinoa, where Quistis had set her.

"I need to meet with Ellone," Squall stated quickly.

"Ellone Loire?" Spark replied, nodding. "Oh, yes. She is here in the country. Though I am afraid she is currently unavailable."

"What do you mean?" Squall asked, desperation returning. They had come all this way, through so many risks, just to be delayed again?

"Oh, do not worry," Spark replied. "She is perfectly fine. Come. We should go to the Presidential Palace, where I can arrange a meeting with the Doctor." He gestured to the car, which the group moved for after a moment.

"Can we all fit in there?" Selphie asked dubiously.

"Its much larger inside than it seems," Spark replied. "Unlike your gasoline-driven vehicles, Estharian engines are much smaller and lighter, making for far more passenger room. Please, step in."

The group piled in, and Spark did indeed seem to be right, as the seating was enough that all of them plus five more could fit inside the vehicle. Irvine and Selphie sat in the front, directly behind Spark, who took the driver's spot. Edea, Quistis, and Zell sat in the middle, and Squall, with Rinoa, moved into the back. Spark activated the vehicle's controls, which seemed to consist of a form of holographic panel similar to the one in the camouflage panel storage bay. The vehicle rose once more and rotated back toward the street and shot off immediately at high speeds, though the passengers felt almost nothing.

"Gravitational compensators," Spark explained. "Adjusts for high speed maneuvers for the comfort of passengers. You should feel lucky, as this vehicle is a Presidential transport, and as such is one of the most secured vehicles within Esthar. This vehicle could take a direct hit from a tank without being compromised."

They drove down the suspended road, high above the ground, which stretched out below, barely visible between the hundreds of skyscrapers. The road itself seemed to have been made of an unidentified transparent blue material, though they passed other roads with green or red coloring as well. They threaded between buildings, flying along the web of interlacing streets and tubes, packed with flowing cars, moving platforms, and hundreds of pedestrians. Semi-orderly lines and columns of hovering aircraft flowed above the level of the rooftops of the huge transparent structures. Everything was in pastel colors, glowing with an unnatural light. with the exception of Squall, who was focused on Rinoa, and Spark, who was used to this sight all the time, the members of the group were looking out the windows in wide-eyed wonder.

"How big is this city?" Quistis asked, amazed as hundreds of massive buildings flew past them.

"The capital sector of the metropolis is approximately one hundred and fourteen square kilometers," Spark replied. "The actual city itself is seventeen times that size."

"How many people live here?" Zell asked in wonder.

"Within the city itself, approximately three hundred and twenty-two million," Spark replied instantly. "Give or take a few hundred thousand."

"That's larger than the entire population of Galbadia," Irvine commented, and Spark nodded.

"We should be arriving at the Presidential Palace within the next few minutes," Spark added. "I came out as soon as I was aware that you were inside the city itself. I apologize for the wait, as I should have already been waiting for you once you penetrated the camouflage wall. But then, this type of thing hasn't happened in a long time. We are quite excited to have foreigners here for once!"

"How long did you know we were in the country?" Squall asked.

"Since you set foot in the train yard," Spark replied. "We've had passive sensors set up there for several weeks now, expecting someone to come, what with the war raging outside and all. I'm glad you didn't wait too long. Maintenance costs for those sensors are horrendous."

"Then you know the state beyond your borders?" Edea asked, and Spark nodded.

"The President has always taken an interest in what happened outside his territory. He is a very hands-on type of man," Spark stated. "He had the military on alert ever since the Sorceress incident in Deling City. We've been watching for quite some time, and we are quite pleased with how the war turned out."

"That's why your ships were in the Centra seas," Zell commented, and Spark nodded.

"The President has an interest in SeeD," he stated. "We still have something of a problem with Sorceresses ourselves, and we certainly hope to create amiable relations with Garden."

"Where is this President?" squall asked.

"He is currently in space," Spark replied. "He takes monthly trips to the Lunar Gate and into space to visit the Lunar Base. It is very important for him, as our greatest accomplishment is in orbit right now. Ah!" the car rounded a bend in the road, and the massive mushroom-like structure they had seen at the edge of Esthar came into view, even more titanic and overwhelming up close.

"That is the Presidential Palace, home of Esthar's government," Spark explained.

"Holy . . . ." Zell muttered. "And I thought Garden was big!" The others echoed his sentiments as the car cut through streets and between buildings, rapidly closing with the massive structure. Within minutes they had neared the building, driving past a heavily guarded gate manned by over a hundred men in the same insectile armor that Squall had seen in his dreams. The car was waved through, and cut into a wide doorway, moving into a parking garage, where it was secured twenty feet in the air within a gravity beam. An extendable bridge rotated out to their vehicle, and Spark led the way out.

"Welcome to the Presidential Palace," he stated as the last of the group exited the vehicle. Within an instant, the platform rotated away from the car, floating across and down to ground level, beside a door. Spark led them through the door and into a wide, softly-lit hallway. With the aide leading, they quickly moved through numerous corridors and plazas, and into an empty waiting room. Squall, carrying Rinoa on his back, paused outside the waiting room, looking up at a painting above the doorway. It seemed familiar somehow, depicting flower fields and a simple town nestled among hills. He didn't recall immediately what it was, and after a moment, the SeeD ignored it and moved inside the waiting room with the others. He set Rinoa gently on a couch at the far end of the room and stood beside her patiently as Spark left the room. He returned moments later, and trailing him was a tiny man.

Squall narrowed his eyes. Doctor Hans Odine looked exactly as he had in Laguna's flashback. His hair was grayer, and his skin was more wrinkled and a little paler, but he was, by and large, exactly the same as the doctor Squall had seen from before. That, more than anything else, proved to Squall that they were truly seeing the past in their dreams.

"Ja, guten tag," Odine stated with a wide smile as he walked in. "Ze Sorceress herself haz come to see me?" Edea nodded at Odine's question.

"I am Edea Kramer," she introduced herself. "I require your assistance, Doctor."

"Vat do you need from Odine?" the little scientist asked, obviously intrigued.

"The removal or permanent suppression of my powers," Edea replied. Odine blinked at that statement, before finally nodding.

"It can be done," he stated, reaching up with one hand and rubbing his chin, the fingers poking out of his wide sleeves. "Iz nothing Odine cannot do! Ve vill zimply exzorzize ze power from ze body! Simple and safe."

"You guys can do that?" Zell asked, surprised.

"Yeah, if we'd known you could, this whole war would have been over so much faster!" Selphie added. Odine shook h is head furiously.

"It iz not zat easy!" he replied. "Ze Sorceress must be villing and able to releaze her powerz. Ze process takez time az vell. It cannot yet be used on an unvilling Sorceress."

"Well, let us know when it can," Irvine added. "Make a gun out of it, too. All our problems will go flying out the window."

"That or a rocket launcher!" Selphie added, bringing a few smiles around the lounge.

As they had been talking, Spark had moved closer to Squall, unnoticed by the others.

"You wish to see Ellone, correct?" the aide asked Squall, who nodded.

"As soon as possible," he replied.

"You will need to head out of the city and toward the east," Spark explained. "We have a facility known as the Lunar Gate about a hundred miles past the city. Though it will take some time to get everything ready, especially on such short notice. Due to her . . . Condition, we may need Doctor Odine to prepare her for launch."

"Perhaps you should be talking to me like I'm not understanding anything you're saying," Squall said, crossing his arms.

"The Doctor was the one who engineered the Lunar Gate," Spark explained. "He's the best qualified for prepping people with unusual conditions for transit. The technology involved with the Gate is very advanced, while it allows for the transit of normal humans easily enough, people with unusual conditions need special treatment and preparation. The Doctor can do this."

"I'm still lost," Squall replied, and apparently, Odine must have overheard them talking, as he moved across the room.

"Ja, you need Odine for ze space travel," he explained, pausing next to Rinoa. He looked over her for a minute, before his eyes went wide.

"Yez yez yez!" he exclaimed, nodding emphatically. "I vill prepare ze girl for tranzit!" He rubbed his chin as he looked over Rinoa's still form. "Zis is vat happens? How fascinating! I have never heard of zis being recorded in all ze years of study."

"What are you babbling about?" Zell growled, walking over to them. Odine spun, a smile on his face.

"For Odine to know and you to find out!" he replied quickly. The Doctor turned back to Squall. "It vill take zome time to prepare ze girl for transit. In ze meantime I vish to perform some tests to analyze zis unusual condition."

Squall almost refused, seeing images of the doctor prodding and poking Rinoa with all kinds of instruments and Hyne knew what else. But before he could speak, Spark quickly interjected.

"You should do as he suggests, Commander," the aide explained. "It will take some time to get everything ready, especially with an unscheduled launch into space. In the meantime, I suggest that you go with your woman, if you are so insistent on protecting her." Squall considered that for a moment, before finally relenting and nodding.

"Alright," he replied. He narrowed his eyes at Odine and fixed him with a dangerous glare. "If anything happens to her, I swear-"

"Nothing vill happen," Odine assured Squall.

"Just in case," Quistis added, moving closer. "I'll go with you, Squall." He looked at her, surprised and a little confused, but said nothing, only nodding after a moment.

"I will accompany you as well, Squall," Edea added. "After all, I must continue to speak with the Doctor about the power-removal process. You may not wish to admit it, but you could use our support."

Squall remained silent, but he nodded once more, conveying his thanks to them.

"If that is the case," Spark stated with a gracious smile, and he turned to the others. "You three are guests of Esthar, and I have little doubt that you would wish to see more of our nation, correct?"

--------------------------

Odine had headed up to one of a dozen vehicle hangars scattered throughout the Presidential Palace, another aide pushing Rinoa on a hovering stretcher-like device. Squall was a step behind, always glaring at the doctor and never taking his eyes off either him or Rinoa. Quistis walked beside Squall, but was more relaxed than the SeeD Commander, watching their surroundings as they moved through the palace. Edea walked beside Odine, talking quietly with the man and explaining the situation.

In the meantime, Spark had led the other three SeeDs on a short tour of the Palace, showing them a holographic directory near their lounge, in a manner that was remarkably similar to the way Squall had conducted his tour with Selphie months ago. He outlined various facilities for heading dozens of agencies, as well as laboratories, armories, vehicle hangars, power generators, and the chambers where Esthar's High Senate and Representative Councils met, as well as an array of courts for Esthar's judicial body.

"Government is centralized in the Palace?" Irvine had asked as they walked down a corridor, and Spark nodded, smiling as always.

"Oh, yes," he replied. "The Palace is easily the most secure location in Esthar. Not to mention it is almost one hundred percent self-sufficient. It has a completely separate and secure computer network and servers, as well as its own array of AIs to maintain all operations. We even have an entire division of Estharian soldiers on standby to protect the Palace, as well as two air wings, automated defensive emplacements, and a high-powered energy shield that can deflect substantial amounts of damage. Three more fully armed divisions are scattered throughout the capital, on a constant state of alert. A single transmission and well over two hundred thousand men will converge on the Palace to repel any attack."

"Transmission?" Selphie asked. "You guys can use radios?"

"Burst-transmission only," Spark replied as he led them toward a large hovering seat at the end of the hallway, positioned before a long, glowing corridor. "We've recently made headway with a network of laser-guided line-of-sight transmitters, and we have a series of powerful radio transmitters ready as backup, much like the old communications tower in Dollet."

"Almost as old as you," came a remark from nowhere, and the group paused. A moment later, a transparent blue figure, about two feet all, formed out of thin air beside the group. It was apparently clad in a stylized version of insectile Estharian armor, but with no helmet, exposing a woman's face with long hair dropping past her shoulders. White and red code flowed up and down the figure's body as it regarded the group.

"Ah, Duran," Spark replied, grinning ever more. He gestured to the figure. "Duran is one of our AIs. Specifically, she is my personal AI and aide with foreign affairs."

"I'm the one who keeps this scatterbrain from forgetting every other appointment, too," Duran added, crossing her arms over her chest. "So, these are SeeDs? I thought they'd be more . . . Legendary. And not kids."

"You will have to forgive Duran," Spark added to the SeeDs. "She has a hard time grasping tact and protocol."

"Oh, I can grasp it," she replied with a smile. "I just tend to shut those subroutines down whenever I feel like it. So, Sparky's giving you guys the tour of the city, huh?"

"First ones, too," Irvine said. "Quite the honor."

"Oh, yeah," Duran replied, nodding. "Not everyone gets the Advisor of Foreign Affairs as a tour guide."

"Come, let us go," Spark stated, apparently not wanting to wait for idle chit-chat, and gestured toward the hovering seat. The trio of SeeDs sat down on it, as did the Presidential aide, and instantly, a purple energy shield materialized over the aerial vehicle, and it was suddenly whisked away. A blue tunnel formed of energy surrounded the vehicle as it shot down the hallway, and then out into a wide chamber of glowing blue and white lights, shimmering like an electronic waterfall as the hovercraft bounced down a series of drops and shifts in direction. Moments later, the seat shot through a portal and passed outside, onto the wide boulevard leading toward the Presidential Palace. Once Spark had waved them through the company of alert and armed soldiers at the front, they moved out on foot along the wide streets of Esthar.

"The red roads are for vehicles, and the blue roads are for pedestrian traffic," Spark explained. "Though they can be used by vehicles. In an emergency tones will sound that alert the people to get off the roads so emergency vehicles may pass. Come. It will be at least an hour or two before your friend is ready for transit, and there is much of the city I want to show you!"

Show them the city he did, leading the trio of SeeDs along the wide blue boulevard, gesturing to various skyscrapers and towers and squat residential complexes as they passed. The SeeDs themselves drew quite a few stares from the populace, who all wore variations of the full-body robes and headgear Spark featured. The group noticed quite a few soldiers moving among the numerous pedestrians as well, and Zell commented on this.

"Oh, yes," Spark replied. "This is the capital, after all. We have a large military presence here, but our army is also extensive elsewhere. We have eliminated the need for a police force by having our soldiers serve as an all-purpose response corps. They handle all emergencies of nearly any type."

"Useful for quelling riots too," came Duran's voice as they passed a holographic terminal. The AI's image appeared near the terminal, using the projectors built into the terminal.

"What kind of riots?" Zell asked, and Duran waved her hand as if gesturing to something frivolous.

"You get all kinds around here," she replied.

"Esthar is a peaceful nation, but we have our own troubles," Spark explained. "You can't have a city of over three hundred million without a few varying ideologies."

"Everything from disagreements on clothing types all the way up to those damn Neo-Adelists," Duran added with a shrug.

"People who still believe in the way things were under Adel's rule," Spark added quickly.

"Yeah, I got the impression she's not in power here anymore," Irvine commented, and Spark nodded.

"The President was directly responsible for the removal of Adel from power," he explained, and they started walking again. Duran vanished into the clear Estharian air as they moved away. "Since then we've been advancing steadily with all of our technologies. Both our military and non-military technology is far more advanced than those of the rest of the world, though as of late we've been focusing on the civilian sector as opposed to the military. There are those who want us to shift back, among them the Neo-Adelists, but that bunch are generally more intent of knocking the current administration from power."

"How strong are they?" Selphie asked, curiously.

"Laughable," Spark replied with a firm shake of his head. "No real power. Mostly a collection of old soldiers who had it better under Adel. Not very many people want to return to Adel's rulership, though some of the youth are expressing a slight interesting those ideals. It has made for some concern from the heads of our security forces. There are others who have problems with the way things are run as well. Did you know that a majority of older Estharians were very racist under Adel?"

"Nah, didn't know that," Zell answered, surprised, and Selphie and Irvine agreed.

"Oh, yes, there was a nasty superiority complex among our people a couple of decades ago," Spark stated. "The President helped to alleviate that, however. He's not from Esthar, actually."

"Sparky, are you trying to bring in tourist gil?" Duran suddenly cut in, reappearing using another holographic projector, materializing in the air before the group. Spark blinked, and looked around, and managed a laugh. He and his SeeD guests had ended up inside a long gallery of flashing lights and holographic projectors, set up along the wide boulevard. Dozens of Estharians milled about, looking at the screens and making selections among the various projected objects.

"Oh, I totally forgot!" Spark exclaimed. He gestured down the long stretch of terminals and holograms. "We don't have singular shops here in Esthar. Or rather, many of them. Those that are staffed by actual people are usually massive structures in the commercial district-"

"Ahem."

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry, Duran, I tend to babble sometimes. But yes. This is a shopping mart. Totally automated. Store owners simply rent a spot and set up a terminal where people can place orders for whatever they want, ranging from basic items to vehicles to vacations to weapons."

"They sell anything?" Selphie asked, and Spark nodded. "Teddy bears?" she asked, and he nodded again, smiling as always.

"Guns?" Irvine asked, and Spark nodded again.

"Oh, yes, antiques firearms like the ones you westerners frequent are quite popular among weapons collectors. We have quite the arms collector community around here in Esthar. Why, even our President likes to collect weapons. Just a few weeks ago he had a special model of gunblade commissioned, and I heard it had just arrived-"

"Hot dogs?" Zell suddenly asked, rubbing his hands together as he looked across the shopping mart.

"I beg your pardon?" Spark asked.

"Popular food, especially in Balamb," Duran cut in. "Terrible for your health, though I heard SeeD members love them almost religiously. There are a few shops here that sell them as a delicacy." It took a moment for the AI to realize that Zell had already taken off down the length of the shopping mart, toward one large terminal with a holographic projection of various foods, one of which was a massive hot dog dripping with condiments.

"Later!" Zell called over his shoulder.

"Umm, yeah," Selphie added with a smile. "He really likes his hot dogs."

"I can tell," Duran deadpanned, turning back to the group, which was getting smaller as Irvine drifted away, toward another terminal displaying a wide range of holographic weapons. The name "Don Juan's Weapons Emporium and Customization" hovered in the air above the images.

"And I thought women did all of the shopping in your part of the world," Spark commented.

"Normally we do," Selphie replied as she and Spark followed the wide-eyed Irvine as he approached the terminal, which immediately projected a wide-ranging list of various weapons before the gunslinger. He wasted no time looking over the list, which shifted to western script at his request, and found the listing of rifles and firearms without any trouble. As Selphie looked around the sharpshooter, she could see page after page of weapons flying by.

"Wow!" he commented, pausing at one very ancient looking bolt-action rifle. "They sell the old-school stuff here! Look, an M1903 Mark I .30-06 Springfield! I haven't seen one of those except in museums!" He checked the price, and frowned. "Ouch. Twenty thousand gil?"

"Quite the collector's item," Duran commented, her ghostly, armored form appearing to perch on his shoulder. "Don Juan is the biggest weapons supplier for the Estharian military. I thought you'd be more interesting in seeing what we the Don has in stock for your Valiant multipurpose rifle."

"Hmm," Irvine mused, and he paged through the menus, coming across ammunition types. "Pretty standard stuff. Buckshot, explosive tipped. Hmm, flechette. Nice. Incendiary, hollow points, armor-piercing tungsten, armor-piercing DPU . . . ." He paused, squinting. "Pulse? I've never heard of that."

"Very restricted," Spark cut in. "Only for military use only. Not allowed for civilian purchase."

"I'm sure we can bend the rules for a distinguished SeeD visitor," Duran commented. Spark huffed something and shook his head adamantly.

"Could be worse," Selphie added as she looked through a different screen. She paused at one weapon, and called up a full-size image of it. A huge, long-barreled rifle with a massive muzzle appeared, easily taller than Irvine. Spark paled.

"What is it?" Irvine asked, whistling at the cannon. "Hmm. Don Juan Arms Inc. Anti-Personnel and Anti-Vehicle Sniper Cannon, a.k.a. 'Halconnen.' Looks perfect for you, Selphie!"

"30mm, fires armor-piercing shells, incendiary, effective on anything up to and including main battle tanks," she read. "I want one!"

"Oh, no, certainly not!" Spark protested. "We can't have those sold to any non-military personnel at all! Why, you can't even use that weapon! Its restricted to cybernetic and power-armored soldiers exclusively. No one else can lift it!"

"You haven't met a Balamb SeeD, have you?" Irvine replied with a grin. "And certainly nothing like Selphie Tilmitt."

---------------------------

Spark had been right about the amount of time it would have taken Odine to prep Rinoa for transit. An hour after they had left the Palace, Zell, Irvine, and Selphie, along with a harried Spark (who was still adamant about keeping Estharian weapons out of the SeeDs' hands) arrived at what Spark had named the Estharian Airstation, a massive hub for the thousands of flying aircraft throughout the city. The Presidential advisor led them through wide terminals filled with hundreds of citizens and soldiers, and toward a sheltered segment of the facility for use by government officials. It was there that they linked back up with the others. Quistis and Edea were talking off to the side, while Odine was waiting impatiently in the middle of the terminal.

"Ze process vas zuccessful!" Odine proclaimed with a wide smile as Spark and his guests approached. "Zis has been a most fruitful day for ze rezearch!"

"How's Rinoa?" Zell asked as they entered the terminal.

"Fine," came an answer from Squall, who was standing beside the hovering stretcher she was laid out on, keeping a constant vigil over her.

"Odine completed the tests and prep work," Quistis added, breaking away from the conversation with Edea. "Though Squall was watching him like a hawk the whole time."

"We have also discussed the process of removing my powers," Edea added. "It shall take some time to complete, however. The Doctor requires many more tests."

"Yez yez," Odine replied, nodding. "But ve cannot vait much longer! Ze equipment iz ready for ven you return to ze lab. Now, Odine must be leaving you!" The strange little man made a quick nod to the rest of the group and quickly waddled off out of the terminal.

"Well, then," Spark stated, grinning now that Odine had left their presence. "There is an Corsair-class flying transport standing by to take you to the Lunar Gate. Shall we hurry?"

"Yeah, let's move!" Zell replied, nodding. "I like this place and all, but I want to get things done!"

"Same here," Squall replied quietly as a technician took Rinoa's hovering bed and began to push it toward a gravity lift at the far end of the terminal, leading up into the transport. He followed closely, with the rest of his comrades bringing up the rear and filing onto the transport craft.

It was large and roomy, clearly designed to carry passengers, but was far from comfortable. The inside was largely dark metal with benches lined with thin cushions. A single sliding portal led to the pilot's compartment at the front of the ship.

"I apologize for the accommodations," Spark admitted as he joined them. "This is a military transport, not a pleasure cruiser. Still, it is quite fast. We should be at the Gate in under an hour." As he spoke, the craft shuddered slightly, and their escort hastily moved to his seat. Moments after he had secured himself with a seatbelt, they were all pressed back into their seats as the transport lifted and sped off. The cityscape flashed past on holographic projectors positioned around their cabin, which Spark explained was originally intended for gunnery crews. Within minutes, they had passed the metropolis and were passing over rolling blue-green plains of thick grass.

Spark had a knack for estimates. Fifty-two minutes later they were swooping low over the structure Spark had tagged as the "Lunar Gate." The Corsair flew swiftly, circling around the structure, which for all the world looked like a massive revolver housed in a long, low bunker-like complex, with a series of long tubes extending outward from it, curving up and pointing at the distant moon hanging in the afternoon sky. An array of military vehicles were assembled around the facility, along with a range of civilian vehicles. The Corsair slowed down near an open patch of pavement marked for aircraft landing, and settled down to the ground. Side-mounted doors slid open on the aircraft, and the collection of SeeDs and their Estharian escort stepped out into the open air.

"Welcome to the Lunar Gate!" came a call from a soldier, one of a pair who moved up to greet the collection of foreigners an their escort. The other soldier quickly moved to take Rinoa's stretcher and guide it. "We've been briefed already on the situation, and we've gotten everything prepared for the transit. Please, follow us."

The armored men turned and led the group toward the bunker-like complex. They passed a well-armed security checkpoint before entering through a set of sliding electronic doors and entering a wide room that looked like an airport terminal. Estharian soldiers were scattered around the room, on guard duty or attending to tasks, but the majority of the people were clad in yellow and black jumpsuits with black caps, looking almost like westerners, and certainly not like the civilians back in the city. The soldiers led them through the terminal and to another chamber, within which was a team of technicians hunched over control panels, and a series of long, wide metal tubes against one wall, stretching up through the ceiling.

"Ah," came a voice, and one of the technicians looked up. He approached them, smiling. "You are the ones taking off to the Lunar Base, correct?" Squall nodded.

"Myself and Rinoa," he explained, gesturing to her body, on the stretcher.

"Of course," the technician replied. "I'll need to explain the process, first. These tubes," he gestured to them, "contain the launch capsules civilians use to reach the Lunar Base. Normal transit through them is impossible for humans to survive normally, but we'll put you through what we call a 'cold sleep' process. Essentially, you'll be put in suspended animation and buffered against the damage you'd normally take. Think of it as similar to your junctions." Squall nodded, understanding everything, more or less.

"What if the process fails?" Zell cut in, concerned.

"It wouldn't be good for us if we weren't protected during transit," Quistis added, agreeing.

"sensors will tell us if you are frozen or not. We won't launch until we know," The technician replied. "Emergency thrusters and grav compensators are built into the capsule if you start to come out of the suspended state during transit, and will cut your speed down to levels where you can survive. It won't be pleasant for you, though."

"What happens next?" Squall asked.

"Once you are confirmed to be in suspended animation, we load your capsule into the launcher," the tech continued. "Once we have completed the calculations, we launch using magnetic accelerators. The staff on the other end will take care of things from that end."

"Let's do it," Squall replied.

"Under normal circumstances we'd have a number of extra capsules for use, but the President and his staff just launched a few hours ago," the tech added. "We have room for only one additional passenger. Would any of you like to come with them?" the others looked between themselves for a moment, before Quistis finally spoke.

"I'll go," she said. "If that's alright with you, Squall." He nodded quickly.

"No one else I'd rather have with me," he replied, then glanced to the others. "No offense."

"None taken," Irvine replied, and Selphie nodded.

"Besides, we need someone to remain as my escort," Edea stated. "I cannot be left alone, even in my weakened state."

"Don't worry, Matron! Zell assured her. "I'll stay her as your escort!"

"Me too!" Selphie added quickly, and Irvine nodded.

"Someone needs to stay here to keep Matron safe anyway," he said. Squall frowned. Last time he checked, Matron wouldn't need protection. He hoped that the three of them would be bale to handle whatever came their way, regardless. Maybe he should leave Quistis behind?

No. He rejected that thought. These were his comrades, and his friends, as Rinoa had explained to him mere weeks ago. An important component of friendship was trust. Zell, Selphie, and Irvine were worthy of his trust. In their hands, Matron would be safe, both from outside threats and herself.

"Take care," Squall said, and turned back to the technician with a slow breath. "Get us ready."

-----------------------------

"All aircraft are ready, Sir Almasy," the commander in charge of the air wing reported, and Seifer nodded. He stood on a platform directly before the main viewport at the second-to-top level, and looked down at the landscape stretching below him, in all direction. Mostly it was simply ocean, but less than ten miles away was the Estharian coastline.

Heh, he mused. If they know we're coming, they must be shitting themselves.

"Ground forces?" he asked, and another officer spoke.

"All troops are standing by for escort and protection actions!" came the report. "Cyborg and mechanized units ready! Localized attack squadrons ready to destroy ground defenses! Internal defense units ready to repel boarders!"

"Guns?" Seifer called, tightening his cybernetic hand, the skin on it almost completely finished growing by now.

"Anti-air and anti-surface missiles standing by!" another report came. "Mounted machineguns and artillery ready to support ground troops!"

"Shields?" he asked, fingering his gunblade, in its sheath.

"Energy shield ready and powered!" came a report just below and to Seifer's left. "Hull is intact and no cracks or weaknesses are showing from the submerged period!"

"Ops?" Seifer asked, staring at the distant land and viewing the coming conquest.

"Engines online and receiving power!" came a call below and to Seifer's left. "Data readings from the crystal show its in working order!"

"Navigation?" he asked, fingers tightening further, readying for action.

"Course laid in, sir!" came a call from directly behind Seifer. "We'll cut directly across the city and head straight for Tear's Point!"

"All systems are go," Seifer hissed. He suddenly and fiercely drew his gunblade, leveling Hyperion at the distant Esthar. "Victory awaits us! Commence Operation Pandora's Box!"

He narrowed his eyes as the craft they were commanding lurched forward, gliding across the seas like a massive juggernaut of devastation, a harbringer of the apocalypse, casting its shadow for miles before them.

"Let's go, gentlemen."

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Phew! Bout damn time I got done! Heh. I put a lot of description into this part, didn't I? Sixteen pages of nothing but "Esthar is awesome!" Maybe I like Esthar a bit more than the ordinary FFVIII fan? Nah.

Halo and Star Wars references abound in this chapter. There's a million of 'em. Few Hellsing references in there, one of which was Seifer's line at the very end, said by The Major in the fourth volume of the manga.

Some not-so-obvious Halo references: Spark's personality was heavily based of the AI of the same name, 343 Guilty Spark. "Duran" was largely base doff Halo's other AI, Cortana, and her name was a shortened version of an AI from Marathon named "Durandel."

Spark and Duran themselves are other characters I imagined for the storyline, and are completely original. Well, maybe not entirely original. Spark is the same guy that meets the party at the entrance to Esthar, and plays the same roles as the "research assistant." Duran doesn't appear at all.

What else? Next chapter is gonna be big! Lots of action and combat, and not all on the ground, either. Expect even more Halo and maybe even some Star Wars technology to work its way in here. All I can say about the next chapter is . . . raise thy sword. XD

FOR GREAT JUSTICE! Shout-outs!

-Angelo Di Desiderio: Yeah, there were some differences. I would have liked to see Kiros and Ward kicking some butt before switching to Laguna, myself!

-Chris Ganale: plasma 'nades inspired it, but that was actually a different type of grenade. You'll see what it is in the next chapter. Hee.

-Final Heaven 9: I certainly hope your orgasmic twitching at my awesomeness is what's making that spelling so bad! XP More will come, never fear!

-Kaiser-Kun: Hmm. Now that I look at things that way, Squall seems more and more like a samurai now. Samurai were very protective of their katana too, after all.

No, I don't have GTA:SA. I might this summer, though, when it comes out on Xbox. Hee.

Never fear for the space arc of the story! There will be much awesomeness!

Oh, and concerning the last review you left for Synthesis . . . Who said Raine wasn't in that chapter? Heehee.

-JadeAlmasy: You love reading em, I love writing em! Eek. Chemestry. I have to take biology as part of my major soon, and on top of all those darn political science and economics courses.

-OniRazz: I wrote that without thinking about it, and then, I was all "BUGS BUNNY OOHRAH!" XD What's Ocelot's hand gesture?

-Monkeyhill: I don't know, things may stay the same with the Laguna vs. Adel encounter. I mean, how is Laguna, of all people, going to battle Adel? Heh.

-DBZ Fanfiction Queen: Heh. I knew someone would love Randolph!

Yes, I listen to lots of dirty old black cooks. XD That and they always have loud-ass gansta rap playing around them, which isn't really bad music, if you actually give it a chance. I wouldn't recommend that to everyone, though.

Bah. I like Anderson. He's all "AMEN!" and stabbity-slashy, and I like that. Hope you caught the Hellsing reference in this chapter, heh.

You want some badass manga? Try GANTZ. I quote a line from it: "GANTZ makes you black." XD The characters are so freaking awesome. In the future I'm going to model Zell after one of the heroes of it.

-Sherif: Bah. You have a better sex life than I do. XD (of all the things for me to comment on…)

-Xenogears: Well, your face is stupid! So there! :P

-Ange Sinistre: Always nice to see another new face. Part of the reason why I write this is so I can wear a cool gi, stand in a dojo, look at the people who post just-script versions and say "See! This is REAL writing! Your writing-no-jutsu is weak, now commit seppuku!" XD

I try my hardest, heh. Over eighteen months at this? Jeez, what have I been doing all this time?

Super Cobra! Yehaa! Though I'm probably not going to qualify, what with bad vision. But hey, there's always tanks!

-Anime Obsessed Fan: That scene always makes me crack up. XD

That all? Good. Now you ingrates can get offa my lawn! -cocks shotgun- I actually need to speed up the writing here, I won't have long until May. I ship off to boot camp then. Erg. I hate deadlines. So! Be cool, be safe, and be supercilious, my loyal fans, Wookiee warriors, and hawt elven concubines! (shit, did I say that out loud?)

Till next chapter!