Ch18 – Grieving And Revelations
Squall watched as Azel walked through the portal, his body burning with the effort to keep back, to stay his hand. He knew that he would be defeated if he attacked the Heart now, his mind swamped with anger as it was. He would not fight at his optimum in his condition, and to tell the truth, showing the skill Azel had just shown…the Commander of Balamb Garden was uncertain that he could beat him.
So he watched as his enemy disappeared into the portal, the portal flashing away without so much of a blink of light – before Squall screamed, throwing the LionHeart straight through the Arch to lance into the stone wall behind it, the shimmering blue blade cutting deep into the marble and slamming to a stop at the adamantine hilt.
The gunblade's hilt quivered slightly in it's position as Squall turned and walked out of the destroyed building, his face as impassive as ever.
* * *
Moving back to where the others had gathered, he looked over them, not knowing what to say.
Rinoa had managed to wrestle herself out of the Stop and had fallen out of Angel almost immediately, knowing instantly that she had failed to stop Azel. She now sat with her back to the small pedestal where Emily had placed Zell's head, weeping softly.
Veronica had managed to finally revive Julius, who was now consoling her at the edge of the forest, the two of them in each other's arms, Veronica sobbing uncontrollably as Julius stared back at the shock of blond hair poking out from the pedestal, his eyes saucer-wide.
Emily, for her part, didn't seem all that perturbed by Zell's death – she simply sat next to Trish, who was lying on the floor, spent from exerting all the anger she could muster at her surroundings, and simply stared at the head, tracing her fingers slowly through Trish's golden hair, not saying a word.
Squall walked over to Rinoa and sat down with an ungraceful thump in the dust. The Sorceress looked up at her Knight with tear-streaked cheeks, who looked back as impassively as the day they met – before she threw her arms around his neck, bawling loudly.
It wasn't the fact that Zell was dead. Zell had been dead numerous times, sometimes from accidents created by them.
No, it was the fact that he couldn't be brought back.
Gaian's were unperturbed by death, simply because most of the causes were reversible with a Life or a Full Life. Only the severing of a limb for prolonged periods of time was irreversibly repairable by Cure magic's. Disintegration of the body was the only way known that could really kill a person...that and extreme old age.
Azel had effectively killed Zell when he had decapitated the head – but he had destroyed any chance of revival by destroying the body.
They all sat like that for a second, not saying a word, everyone knowing the horrible truth. They would never see Zell again. Never hear his voice. Never talk to him. He was dead – and it shook them to the very core.
It was Squall who, finally, spoke up, his arms around Rinoa as she continued to cry into his shoulder. "We'd…we'd better bury…" His voice trailed off as Rinoa wailed even more, her nails digging into his back as he patted her on the back uncertainly, not knowing what to do.
Julius walked forward to stand before the head, his face passionless as he reached down tentatively to pick it up in both hands. Lifting it up, he spoke softly to it, hoping his words would be heard in the afterlife. "You gave me back something that was ungivable, pal. And you gave your life to protect it, and us, all. We wont forget this...and we'll make sure that no one back home will forget this…"
He sighed, his words cut short as his voice cracked, and moved over to the centre of the clearing. "C'mon…we can at least send him properly."
The other SeeDs rose to their feet weakly and moved over to join Julius, watching as he placed the head down next to the Uber Ehrgiez Gauntlets. Biting his lip, he lifted his hand – and blasted a small hole into the ground, the Blizzard making a small, ice covered grave for them to place the head in.
Emily stepped forward and, reaching down and gripped the head by the hair, hefted it slightly before tossing it into the grave, the head landing with a loud plop.
"Hey! Don't treat him like that!!" A tearful Rinoa shouted as she stepped forward, her hand slashing through the air – to be arrested instantly by Emily's hand, the fingers snaking around the wrist of the Sorceress tightly.
"Don't you ever raise your hand to me again, do you hear me?" Emily growled, throwing the hand away before stalking over to the edge of the clearing.
Trish looked at the others SeeDs quickly, before running to join Emily, the Goth pushing her away as she reached her. Squall watched as they exchanged words, the exchange seemingly brutal, before they disappeared into the woods.
Rinoa was ropable, unable to contain the anger she felt for Emily's disrespectful action. "That fucking bitch! When she gets back here I'll do more then raise my hand!! I'll…"
Squall stepped forward and embraced her, stopping Rinoa's words with his chest. Rinoa remained rigid with anger for a second as Squall continued to hold her…before she went limp, the tears falling again.
Veronica finally looked up from her look at the ice-covered grave, pulling her eyes away from Zell's face, and frowned. "Hey…why don't we just…you know, go back to the Immortals? They ought to…you know, revive him?"
Squall looked up, his voice emotionless. "I highly doubt that they have the ability to completely remake a human body, Veronica. And besides…the trip would take us days. Days we don't have." He looked down at the grave. "He gave his life so we could go on. So that's what we'll do."
Julius looked up at the gunblader, narrowing his eyes. "So…you're leader now, is that it?"
Squall turned his dead eyes to the hacker, his voice chillingly impassive. "You're welcome to the job, if you want it."
Julius blinked…before looking down. "No…I don't deserve it." He whispered.
They were all silent for a second, the only sounds being Rinoa's sobs and the wind blowing through the trees…before Rinoa sniffed and pulled away from Squall's chest, wiping her nose and turning around to face the grave. Close her eyes for a second, she turned Angel, her wings extracting themselves slowly from her back, her eyes smoking white as they opened once more, the tears turning a silvery white as they trailed down her cheeks.
She held her hand out towards the grave, the air surrounding them suddenly chilling – before ice formed all around the head, covering the hole and lifting the gauntlets up, twisting and spiking as it flowed through the air, solidifying around the metallic gauntlets, the icy tombstone marking the grave. Her job finally done, Rinoa retracted her wings, sniffing once more as she watched the ice begin to smoke, the sheer coldness of the magic causing the water in the air to become more dense and waft into the sky. "This ice…will never melt. It's my tribute…to my friend."
* * *
Emily continued to stalk through the woods, unable to contain her anger much longer. The wildly reacting emotions that had been plaguing her for the last few days had suddenly reacted wildly when Trish had tried to take on Azel, Emily seeming to want to…protect the thief, something that she had never felt before.
And then, when Zell had died, all the emotion had gone away. It was like someone had flipped a light switch when Zell's head left his body, turning all her feelings off abruptly. She had welcomed the emptiness, the comfortable and recognisable feeling of not feeling. She had reacted as she would have usually reacted, her body moving the way it usually moved, and she had welcomed it all.
She registered Trish walking beside her, talking her words, her mouth moving but nothing seeming to trigger anything into her mind. She had looked at the blond thief with the same confusing feeling of contempt and want before – now she just looked at a woman.
"Dammit, how could you be so cold?" Trish yelled, the words suddenly making sense to Emily.
"He's dead. He can't care." Emily replied.
"We cared!" Trish shouted…before frowning, confused. "What's…what's happened to you?"
"I've woken up." Emily said coldly, her voice glacial. "I will complete the mission and return home. No more will I be weak, with these 'feelings'."
Trish shook her head. "No…no you haven't woken up. You've fallen asleep. You've shut out the feelings, Emily, the things that made you human."
Emily narrowed her eyes. "Leave me alone." She growled, before moving away…to pause as she heard Trish's words come clear into her ears.
"No."
Emily paused in her stalk – before spinning, her hand lashing out across Trish's face. "I said leave." She ordered as Trish regained her balance.
Trish spat out a little blood from the spilt lip she had just gotten, tears forming in her blue eyes – before standing to her full height. "Make me."
Emily grimaced, stepping forward, her eyes glowing blue as Trish lifted up in the air with a telekinetic pulse – to stay there.
Go ahead. A part of her muttered deep within her brain. Do it. You can rip her limbs off and beat her to death with them. Who's going to stop you?
But…I don't want to. She meekly retorted.
Of course you do! All you've got to do is go that extra step! Then you can finish off the rest!!
No! I don't want to!!
Something within her mind snapped, causing Emily to squeeze her eyes shut painfully. You must set her free from the pain! Just like the other set you free! Give her freedom! GIVE THEM ALL FREEDOM!! NOW!!
Emily clenched her fists and sank to her knees, doubling over…before throwing her head back, screaming out. "Nooooooo!!"
The dirt around her suddenly blew outwards, wind blasting from her body as something ethereal was forced from her body, Emily using every magic and Blue she could muster to push whatever it was out. She screamed shrilly as a transparent black smoke wormed its way from her ears, nose, mouth and eyes, forming a dark cloud before her which twisted and turned…to form arms, a head, teeth…
Emily looked up, exhausted, to watch the smoking cloud suddenly grow burning red eyes, which turned to look down at her. "A…A monster…" She mumbled, trying to push herself to her feet, but unable to summon the strength.
You're a failure. The demon growled psychically, lifting it's transparent claw high into the sky. For that you must die.
The demon paused suddenly, turning with it's burning red eyes wide with shock – as it spied a winged creature with burning white eyes float/walk towards it, it's beautiful face emotionless. You are what I sensed…amazing that you were able to hide within my comrade so easily. Oh well, you'll die now.
The demon suddenly threw it's hand out, the claws shockingly stretching out to stab directly at Rinoa's heart…before they were arrested not an inch from Rinoa's chest, Rinoa's eyes narrowing slightly in the effort to lock the demon's attack dead still.
Rinoa cocked her head to the side, the smoking white eyes locked onto the demon's red ones as she watched it's transparent face twist in surprise – before she pulsed a charge of psychic energy into the cloud, the pulse travelling easily along the sharp fingers into the smoking black cloud, where there was a small flash within.
The creature shrieked a banshee-like wail – before puffing into nothingness.
Emily sat back on her haunches as Rinoa dropped to the ground, her wings retracting and her eyes losing their Sorceress power – to look down on the Goth sadly, pity in her voice. "You put up with that demon within you for so long…no wonder you act the way you act."
When Emily looked up, breathless, her face was twisted into a snarl. "You have no idea what it was like…to know something was within you, but to deny it's existence…"
"I know. I know all too well."
The two women looked at each other sadly – before Rinoa shook her head and turned around. "We'll be leaving soon, so make sure you're ready. I wont tell anybody about this – only because of Trish. She seems infatuated with you, for some reason." She began to walk away – before pausing. "One last thing…"
"Just spit it out." Emily said, exasperated.
"You owe me, Zell, and Trish a really, really big debt. Don't you ever, ever forget that."
Emily snorted as Rinoa walked away…but watched the woman go with a look of contempt.
* * *
Rinoa exited the forests feeling a little more then shaken. What was that thing? I've never felt anything like that before…it felt like a GF, but it wasn't…could it have gotten in her in one of the other Universes? Or was it from Gaia? Are there more in the others? Is there one in me?
She blinked suddenly as Trish ran up to her. "Is she okay? Tell me she's alright!!"
Rinoa smiled a small smile and placed a hand on the thief's shoulder. "She's okay. She might not say so, but she needs you right now."
Trish nodded, before running off in the direction in which Rinoa had come from.
Rinoa watched her go, before sighing heavily. I didn't sense anything in her…but how am I supposed to check the others?
"Rinoa…" Squall said, walking over to her, gathering her attention. "Is everything okay? We heard some pretty weird noises, and Trish was babbling about some kind of monster?"
"It was nothing, Squall." Rinoa said quickly. "I just had to calm her down a little. That's all. Trish probably say some kind of freaky Blue that Emily has. You know how weird those can be." Rinoa watched as the gunblader nodded, but she could see the doubt in his eyes. Moving over to him, she gathered him up in her arms, holding him close. "We're…all stressed right now, because of Zell. But…we need to keep moving. You know that. I know that. And although it's hard…we need to do it."
She felt him nod slowly, before disengaging himself from her grasp and walking over to the Arch building, gesturing Julius and Veronica to follow, the two standing at Zell's tombstone shuffling after Squall slowly, not leaving each other's side for a second.
Rinoa watched them go, before turning back to the forest – before sighing and following after Squall.
* * *
Trish walked slowly through the woods, her arms hugged tight around her chest as she actively searched for Emily. She knew that she could simply teleport near to her location – her magic training she and Emily had done during their time in the Immortal Universe had grown to such that she could almost pinpoint certain energy signals – a person's personal Chi field – but she also knew that in doing so, she would most probably scare the woman.
So she continued to walk, not bothering to call out Emily's name – simply searching blindly, moving slowly around the moss-covered trees and across the grass-covered ground.
She finally found the Goth sitting on a tree-trunk of a that must've fallen eons ago – the trunk was as thick and wide as a building. Trish looked up, way up, to see the woman dangling her legs over the edge, her face blank as usual – except she seemed to be thinking instead of impassively observing.
Trish meandered over to the trunk slowly, taking her time before speaking. "You want some company?"
There was no reply.
"So…you wont mind if I come up?"
Again, no reply.
A very brief concentration later and Trish was standing next to the Goth, looking down at her as she looked away into the trees. Approaching her slowly, Trish sat down next to her, making sure not to get too close.
And thus they sat, not saying a word, simply drinking in the beautiful surroundings. The treetops danced elegantly as a breeze passed over them, causing light to splay out into the ground-line, making spots of white dance over the grass like wood-nymphs playing amongst themselves. The occasional leaf fell from the sky, floating down in a graceful dance that made elegant ballerinas seemed like clumsy fools. Trish noticed a small yellow worm-esque thing emerged from a small knot-hole in the wood of the tree trunk, the worm worming it's wormy way out of the wood to sit on the mossy bark like it was exhausted – before it's skin suddenly split and a small, winged creature flew out of the body, flapping it's quickly drying wings erratically for a second – before fluttering off into the distance, disappearing into the woods like a multi-coloured shadow.
"I have no excuse for my actions." Emily said suddenly, making Trish start with surprise.
"N-no excuse for what?" Trish asked, blinking to regain composure. She had gotten used to the serenity.
Emily didn't seem to hear her. "I was abandoned by my parents when I was around five, for the better I suppose. They never treated me right. The Galbadian SeeDs took me in almost immediately, probably for my Blue's. Even when I was that young I was able to use them, and use them I did. But as I trained and grew stronger, it became apparent that I wasn't interested in helping people – I was only interested in hurting people, in making sure that they got what they deserved, even the ones that didn't need my deservance."
"So Master Martine decided to…loan me to the Galbadians. I was given a mission – to train alongside the Galbadia Army's elite – and report back to Martine in case anything seemed suspicious. I think I was about eleven at the time. Of course, everything we did was suspicious – but I didn't care. I was having the time of my life. Killing people who I wanted to, not taking crap from anybody…I was in control. For once, I was in control. No instructors, no tests, no rules – just wits, skill, strength and you."
"But when Edea showed, everything went to the shit. The Galbadian Army was up in arms more then ever, every soldier more trigger-happy then they had ever been. Deling had died, Seifer had taken control of the show…and there we were. This rag-tag bunch of super-soldiers, not doing anything, simply sitting back and watching as the world tore itself apart thanks of Time Compression. Nobody thought of using us. Edea regarded us as a joke, Seifer couldn't care less of us…we were alone."
"Then, of course, Squall, Rinoa and the other SeeD idiots saved the day – barely – and the world simply shut down. What was once a planet dripping with tension and poised to rip each other's throats out was suddenly in peace times again. President Justice came into power, flaunting his peace treaties and his budgets cuts for the military…and we were quickly made redundant."
"Sure, we were used every now and then – you think President Justice got where he needed to go with nothing but a kind word and a smile? People got what they needed…but only the unjust. Only the evil. And something within me burned for the days of wanton destruction, craved the days where I could simply point at a person at random and his head would burst like an over-ripe tomato…but the day never came."
"Finally, Carpenter arrived. Saying things like 'you're coming home', 'you've been waisted by Martine and Deling', and giving me the 'grand plan' to see if I could humble the great Hunter. And I jumped at the opportunity. I was so sick of being cooped up with nobody but those other three for so long…"
"But, like the others, I was swatted aside and Zell just kept on going. By that time I was deep within Deling's little own little mercenary army – the Defectors, they called themselves – and was prime to deliver the final strike in-case Zell failed. I knew Sam's weaknesses – he was, after all, my own brother. He could have never stood up to my Blues. But no."
"Carpenter pulled me out. He told me to protect Justice – the one person who I despised the most. Acting all high and mighty – but in the end, just like Deling. Using us for his own selfish ends. And, although I followed the order, there was a second where I just wanted to reach down and crush his already frail windpipe for having kept me in that hell…"
"But I didn't. Because something held my hand. Something told me that I wasn't going to pull myself down to that level, even though I had been there and beyond so many times. And as I walked out of the hospital room, something within me began to grow weaker."
"It was then that I found that my Junction abilities were beginning to wear thin, my Blues only working if I concentrated harder. Before everything was so…easy, so simple. I just let my rage out, and my power flowed along with it. But now that I had found compassion…it had begun to eat away at me."
"So that's why you've been acting so tough…" Trish whispered, her voice meek with shock. "…You've been trying to regain what you lost."
Emily lowered her head dejectedly, her voice now carrying a twinge of sadness within it. "It was only with the death of the Hunter that I finally realised that…it wasn't me who was wanting to kill. It was the thing you saw. The demon within me." She looked up at the leaf-filled sky, and Trish could see the tears rolling down her cheeks. "But now it's left it's mark within me. It's scarred me in a way I don't think any magic can heal. I don't think I can feel anymore. I can't feel anything…not a thing."
Trish reached forward and wiped a tear off of the woman's face, showing her the droplet poised on her fingertip. "This is feeling. This is what you still have. This is what you have been showing the past weeks."
Emily looked down at the tear on Trish's finger…before hanging her head, allowing the droplets to flow freely, a lifetime to oppression and torture releasing itself in one long purge. Trish shifted over, wrapping her arms around her lover's shoulders, burying her head in her shoulder and allowing Emily to cling to her.
She had been a murderer, a terrorist, an assassin, and worse…but it was all in the past. Every day revealed something new in the life-cycle. And nothing was able to change that.
* * *
"They've been gone a while…" Julius muttered as he re-set up the laptop from where it had been flung during Azel and Zell's fight. Amazingly it had remained intact and seemed to be operating perfectly.
They've got much to talk about… Rinoa pulsed to him, looking down at him with her smoking white eyes. Aren't you done yet?
"Hang on, hang on…there. Go for it."
Rinoa sighed a psychic sigh, and stepped/floated forward towards the Arch, beginning to cast and store the magic's needed.
As the light of the magic began to fill the room, Emily and Trish walked in, Trish leading Emily slowly and holding her by the hand. All eyes were fixed on Emily, and the looks she was being given weren't all nice – but Trish simply took her to the side and gave her her pack before slinging her own on. "Don't worry about them, hon. They'll get over it."
Emily was obviously distraught – but her warrior spirit still remained. "They'd better…" She mumbled as she shouldered her pack.
"There you go." Trish said with a smile before kissing her on the forehead gently and moving over to stand next to Squall.
Squall looked down at her, his face remaining impassive. "Is she alright?"
Trish blinked, looking up at the gunblader. "Yeah…she's fine."
"Good. I'll need everyone in top condition from now on. No more stops to admire scenery. We're on a mission now."
Trish rolled her eyes. "Gee, holidays over huh?"
Squall looked down at her for a second – before looking back up at the Arch. "Whatever…" He muttered as the Arch finally exploded into life, the welcome blue of Rinoa's signature portals lighting up their surroundings healthily. Rinoa dropped out of Sorceress easily and was handed her pack by a shell-shocked Veronica, who had watched the whole procedure with muted amazement, and turned to Squall.
"What now, hon?" Rinoa asked. Speech time. She pulsed to him.
Squall moved forward to place his back to the Arch whilst looking at the others as they all stood together. He sighed, looking down at his feet…before looking up. "I know…Zell's gone. And I know that we wont see him again. But that doesn't mean we don't have a job to do. We need to put what happened here behind us and move on. We're all stronger from it, and we are all prepared for the worst now. Zell would have wanted us to do it this way…I know it."
Running out of words, Squall got serious. "Right, lets get a move on. Emily, Julius, take the rear, Rinoa and Veronica, you stay in the middle, Me and Trish will take point. Move out."
Trish blinked for a second – before Emily whispered in her ear. "Oh, he want me on the front…" Trish muttered to herself as she ran up beside the tall gunblader.
Taking a deep breath, Squall stepped forward, one hand on his gunblade hilt, the other outstretched to be enveloped by the warmth of the portal as he moved into the Arch…
* * *
And straight into a wall.
There was a loud bang that echoed around the room as Squall took a step back, rubbing his nose painfully. "Dammit…" He muttered as he stepped out from behind the Arch and looked around, the blue glow of the Arch bathing the room eerily.
It looked like a bunker of sorts, the south side made entirely of a steel door which retracted into the roof, and a small window sat near the ceiling at the east side of the room. Squall couldn't see what was behind the window – but he could see various different statues and relics piled high around the room.
Some kind of storeroom… Squall thought to himself as he looked around, taking his pack off and letting it drop to the ground slowly. I wonder what kind of place this is…
There was a loud bang followed by a yelp, and Squall turned to watch as Trish walked out from behind the Arch, rubbing her nose, her eyes brimming with tears. "That hurt…" She mumbled as she looked at the Arch, before kicking it angrily. "Whose idea was it to put it up backwards?! Idiots!!"
Squall couldn't help but smirk, quickly veiling it as he turned back to his inspection of the room. "Keep quiet for a second whilst we scout the area out."
Trish muttered something that could have been an insult, but Squall wasn't listening as he stepped forward, walking into the stacks, moving like a ghost, quick and silent.
Weaving his way through the stacks of items and relics he realised that, in their three minutes since their arrival, Trish hadn't made a sound. Must be the stealth training she's been given…Squall thought to himself – as he turned the corner to bump into someone, knocking them down to land with a surprised yelp.
The LionHeart was out in an instant, the blue blade flashing to life and sizzling through the air – to stop at Trish's neck, the edge only just stopping as Trish looked up at him from where he had knocked her down.
She looked scared for a second – before seeing as he had made a mistake. Anger crept into her features as he reached down and gave her a hand up, mumbling an apology. "Yeah, you ought to be sorry! Waving that thing around like a freaking maniac! You could've taken my head off with that thing!!"
Squall sighed and turned around, walking back to the Arch. "I'm beginning to wish I had…" He muttered as he blocked out Trish's angry retorts and stuck his arm into the Arch, beckoning for the others to follow, seeing as nothing had harmed them so far. They all piled through the Arch one at a time, each one getting a rude introduction to the new universe – except for Emily and Julius, whose backs bumped into the wall thanks to their backwards entrance as the Arch finally sizzled out, an annoyed Rinoa rubbing her nose as she switched the magic off.
Almost immediately they were plunged into darkness, causing Rinoa to shriek. "Hey! Who turned the lights out!! Squall, where are you?!"
"Hey! I'm not Squall!!" Julius yelled
"Who's touching me!" Trish suddenly cried.
"It's me." Emily's voice said calmly.
"Oh. That's alright then…"
Squall activated his LionHeart again, the shimmering blue blade shedding light to the situation. Holding it up for them to look around with, he spoke quietly. "We seem to be in some kind of abandoned warehouse. There are statuettes and tablets regarding the winged race we've been seeing around the Arches. Rinoa, Veronica, look these over and see if you can figure anything out. Trish, Julius, there's a large door on the south wall with no knob or activation stub I could find. Open it. Emily and I will keep watch over the Arch, in case we get surprised again."
Orders given, the team spread out, each going to their designated task. Trish and Julius walked over to the door and began to look it over, checking the edges, looking over the seams it was built in as the room was suddenly bathed in Fire-light cast by Rinoa, the Fires hovering at regular intervals around the room.
Rinoa and Veronica walked amongst the stacks, looking over the tablets and statues. Many were of women with wings, their eyes smoking, each set in an almost god-like position – reverence or illumination. As Rinoa walked through them she brushed her fingers lightly over the small statues, her face growing grimmer with each tiny woman she touched. Veronica looked over them all, wondering just what it all meant. She was, to say the least, feeling rather confused.
Suddenly Rinoa stopped still at a large six-foot slab leant against the wall, Veronica ramming into her, causing both girls to stumble forward. Rinoa threw her hands out to protect herself as she flew into the slab, her hands slamming into the dusty rock –
"Demons are only made in the physical form when there is enough spiritual, emotional or Chi energy for them to do so. A demon, or monster if you will, can never be really killed. You can only destroy the corporeal body enough for it to revert back to it's original form – a ghost, a phantom. And hopefully, after you've done this, the demon will move on."
Rinoa stumbled back, blinking as she fell back wards onto the ground, looking up at the slab with wide eyes. "What the hell was that?!" She breathed.
* * *
"They came through the Archway, sir. They've secured the area with military precision and have began to make a more thorough sweep. It seems the have two working on the door."
"Set up a perimeter around the door, infantry only, no traps. We want them alive. Anything to suggest that they pose a threat?"
"Well…the guy dressed in the black leather is carrying some kind of lightsaber, and they've seemed to lit some kind of invisible candles around the edges of the warehouse to give them light to work, but apart from that, they don't seem like much harm."
"A lightsaber, you say?"
"…Yes, sir."
"…Very good, Corporal Biggs. I'll be with the team when we are ready to go in. Open the doors at my signal."
"Yes Major Almasy."
* * *
"Are you alright?! I'm so sorry…" Veronica said, reaching down and helping the shell-shocked Sorceress up.
Rinoa got back to her feet and dusted herself off, composing herself. "It's alright. I just…wigged out when I touched this tablet. I sensed something…but now it's gone."
Veronica looked at Rinoa with worry on her face. "Does…this happen often?"
Rinoa smiled at her. "Not often."
"Oh…"
Rinoa watched as Veronica looked down and tightened her grip on her staff and felt a small drop of pity for the girl. She had been rudely taken from the world and had been resurrected at the worst time. All Rinoa could do was give her shoulder a friendly squeeze. "Don't worry. We'll be home in no time. You'll see."
Veronica smiled at Rinoa nervously. "It's not that…it's just that, everyone is so changed. Zell had changed, Julius has changed…even Squall has changed, although I had only met him once, I'm talking to a Sorceress who us SeeDs are sworn to destroy, and to top it all off, I got a killer headache."
Rinoa couldn't help but laugh out loud at the poor girl. "Not having a good time, hey?! Well, never mind, I feel exactly the same way honey."
"It's helpful to know that, Rinoa…thankyou."
"Don't mention it." Rinoa said, dropping the subject as easily as she had started it and turning back to the tablet. "Just…watch out if anything else happens, okay?"
Veronica nodded, stepping back to give Rinoa some room.
Rinoa waked forward slowly, approaching the tablet with something bordering on caution. The presence she had felt earlier had left now, and whilst that made her feel slightly relieved, the feeling of worry was stronger. What was it? and more importantly, what was the voice I heard babbling about? Does it have something to do with Emily's demon?
Reaching out cautiously with a trembling hand, Rinoa pressed her hand against the stone, feeling it's smooth, cold texture and nothing else. She let out a small sigh of relief, before lifting her other hand up, the palm bursting into flame as she began to examine the symbols.
* * *
"Major Almasy, we're ready to execute entrance procedures on your command."
"Remember, I want them intact and alive if possible. Shoot to maim if you have to – but no kills."
"Sir…we don't even know if a shot to an arm will stop these creatures. Hell, we don't even know if our bullets will stop them!"
"Sergent Zone, I am giving you a direct order! We will not kill these creatures, do you understand me!!"
"Yes Major!"
* * *
Julius turned to Trish as she examined the small button pad on the left side of the door. She was rubbing her chin and pressing in different combinations as Julius cleared his throat – before throwing her arms up into the air in frustration. "I give up, I don't even know what the symbols on the buttons mean, let alone be able to…" She paused as Julius gripped her arm. "What? What's wrong?"
Julius' voice was quiet, his face stone cold serious. "I think…I hear something."
Trish frowned. "And what, exactly, can you hear? Can you be a bit more specif…"
Julius quickly pressed a finger against her lips, shutting them. Trish looked extremely pissed off as he withdrew the finger, but decided to keep quiet as the look he shot her was one of importance.
He looked around at the others, spying Rinoa and Veronica talking quietly amongst themselves at the other end of the room, whilst Squall and Emily stood watch next to the Arch, each looking like statues as their eyes didn't waver from the stone doorway – before turning to Trish, whispering delicately. "Do you have a stethoscope in your pack?"
Trish blinked at the question – before nodding. "My safe-cracking stethoscope. I use it to hear the tumblers as I turn the dials. What do you need it for?"
She spoke as she reached into her kit, giving him the apparatus gently, as if the motion was too noise. He accepted the apparatus equally gently, but spoke silently. "As SeeDs, we're trained to hone all our senses. Sight, smell, hearing, even our taste-buds are…'trained' to note any differences in food to see if it's been poisoned. I could probably hear things you've never heard in your life, although I'm pretty sure you've been given the same kind of training for your safe-cracking skills."
Trish nodded, her attention fully drawn to him as he placed the ear-buds in his ears and lifted the plate to the door, placing it firmly against it. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he listened hard, trying to feel the vibrations of sound move through the air through the door and into the stethoscope, travel up the plastic tube and into his ear.
He narrowed his eyes further as Trish began to speak – but held his hand up to silence her. "Wait, wait…I think…I think…"
He stood suddenly, grabbing Trish by the shoulder and kicking his pack out of the way. "Squall!! We got people on the other side of the door!!" He yelled.
* * *
"Sir! I think he heard you from the other side, sir!"
"Shit! Okay, open it, go go go!!"
"Opening hanger door, sir!"
* * *
Almost immediately the gigantic door slid up, harsh white light pouring in, causing the soft light of the Fires seem like lit candles in a brightly lit hallway. Julius and Trish, blinded as they were, quickly stumbled back and away from the light, ducking behind a stack quickly.
A phalanx of armed men, dressed in dark black fatigues, dark black boots and a dark black ski-mask, their military webbing clattering with the noise of spare clips, grenades and radios. Their short, stubby sub-machine guns were up and trained in all directions, long red laser beams streaking out from a little underneath the gun barrels, cutting through the darkness of the room as the flames suddenly snuffed out.
"Sir! Entrance secure, sir!!" One man shouted, his dark black machinegun sweeping across the room as he crouched down a meter away from the entrance.
A tall man, dressing in military green fatigues, walked slowly into the room, his arms clasped behind his back. He looked across the room with a cold glare, his eyes a shatteringly icy blue. He briefly flicked his blond hair back form his eyes with a flip of the head, before pressing down on a small radio ear-piece, activating the all-command. "Fan out, sweeping pattern, I want each man partnered. If you spot a foreign element, make sure you radio in the contact. Keep well away from them, get them cornered, do not make any physical contact, I repeat, do not make physical contact."
He narrowed his cold blue eyes, the action causing the scar running across the bridge of his nose to crinkle slightly. "Move out."
* * *
The team had moved into the furthest corner of the room, the four SeeDs taking formation in front of Trish and Rinoa in a semi-circle. Squall watched, crouched down, as the men began to span out from the doorway. "Advanced military techniques. These guys are good."
"What do we do, fearless leader?" Emily asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She hadn't enjoyed how Squall had pulled her roughly from advancing into the men, his hand firm on her shoulder as he had switched off the energy blade.
"No! No hostility!"
Squall looked down, his mind clanking and whirring as the cogs and wheels churned. He looked up, watching the commander of the unit whisper orders into a microphone, the silhouette of the man framed by the light pouring out of the door. The stance of the man was confident. "They're professionals, but they're not Hearts. I think they'll be wanting to capture and interrogate us – but from the way he spoke I don't think they'll mean us any harm."
"How do you know that?" Trish whispered, her voice full of fright. "How could you hear his voice?"
"I've got good hearing. Look – when they find us, simple stand and make sure you have your hands visible. They're using some kind of projectile weaponry. No magic either – I think they'll be scared if we use it."
"And what happens if they catch us and decide to hand us over to the Hearts, like the Crisps?" Emily muttered, her stance not wavering.
Squall narrowed his eyes as the soldiers seemed to melt into view from the darkness into view, their bodies seeming to just…come into focus, their guns trained on the SeeDs, each man seeming to stop and crouch just at the edge of the stacks, not moving. "We'll just have to take that chance."
* * *
Zone crouched down just five meters away from the group, his P-90 rifle trained on the man nearest to him. He narrowed his eyes as the man stood slowly and lifted his hands high. Taking his hand away from supporting the bullpup-style rifle, he keyed his radio microphone attached to his shoulder, talking into it softly and succinctly. "Major Almasy. We've located all six of them. They're near were they entered the building, in the north corner. I've isolated the leader. He seems to want to speak."
"Has he said anything yet?"
"No sir. He's just standing there. He's a cold motherfucker, though. He's got the iciest stare. Much like…"
"Like who?"
Zone cursed inwardly. "…Like you, sir."
There was a chuckle at the other end of the line, before Major Almasy spoke again. "Don't do anything, just keep him in your sights. I'll get Biggs to turn the lights on and I'll come and meet him."
* * *
Squall watched the man speak into the bulky-looking microphone attached to the shoulder of his fatigues, narrowing his eyes slowly as the words came out of his mouth. He shot a look down at Julius beside him. "Did you get that?"
"Nope. Couldn't understand a gods-damn thing."
"Emily?"
"No."
Veronica spoke quietly, her grip on her staff tightening as it hung limply by her side, her voice wavering. "Do…you reckon they're friendly?"
Julius shot a look down at her, his eyes full of worry. "Don't worry, hon. If they were going to do something they would have done it by now. I'm sure everything will be…"
They all jumped suddenly as the lights in the roof flashed on, bathing them in white light.
* * *
Emily, the tension and the shock suddenly getting to her, heard the frightened cry of Trish behind her and sprang into action, seeming to move on auto-pilot.
Stepping forward quickly towards the closest soldier, she grabbed the barrel of the gun and pulled it up, the barrel blaring red fire as the man jerked his finger on the trigger in surprise. The sound was deafening to Emily – who slammed her palm into the man's chest, sending him flying into the nearest stack, his body folding like a house of cards as he rebounded off the stack to fall limp to the floor.
"Dammit Emily!! Stand down!!" Squall screamed as the Goth flicked her hand out to the neck of the soldier next to her, the fist smashing straight into his face and sending him tumbling away.
* * *
"Shit!! Man down! Man down! Open fire!!" Zone screamed – before opening up with his P-90, the tracer-rounds slashing red fire through the air towards the group as they suddenly seemed to unfold, the crouching, almost terrified looking bunch of kids seeming to span out, ducking and flipping past the bullets as they pounded into the wall behind them.
His team-mates followed suit, pressing down on the triggers on their guns and pressing down hard. Tracer rounds ripped through the air at stupefying speeds, sending a network of red lines through the air which spider-webbed around the small group of kids, their bodies seeming to simply…twist through the networks, flying straight around and through them as if the bullets…weaved past them.
"Parker's down! So is Banner!! What the fuck is going on!" Zone heard Wayne scream over the sound of the gunfire. The woman with the earrings in her face had moved through her first three men like they were nothing at all, her strength seeming to defy logic as she sent Kent flying through a metal shelf and into the concrete wall, the wall crumbling beneath him.
The woman with the staff suddenly appeared before him, spinning the staff with unreadable speed and knocking the P-90 out of his grasp, the gun ending it's long splurt of hot lead with a loud brapp as it clattered to the floor behind him. The end of the staff was suddenly shoved into his stomach, and he felt himself be lifted up and over the girl's head to crash into the ground, his back seeming to explode into fire as he felt the concrete crumble underneath him.
* * *
Squall's mind was burning with a mixture of anger and contempt for Emily as his gunblade roared into life, the energy blade seeming to sing as he swung it up and across a man's body, skidding forward and under the string of gunfire as he sliced the weapon in his arms in two!
The weapon suddenly split down the middle, cutting in half across the middle and simply falling to the ground, the man falling down with it to stare up at Squall, his eyes wide within the ski-mask as he desperately retreated.
Turning and slicing a barrage of bullets out of the air with unerring accuracy, Squall quickly threw his hand out at the man firing at him, the Aero blowing the man off his feet and through a stack of relics – before turning to the next one closest to him, holding his hands out. "Wait!! Don't shoot!!" He screamed – before the man turned on him and opened fire.
Squall, unprepared for the sudden burst of gunfire, stepped back as the bullets were stopped in mid-air by a bluish-green screen, the Protect flashing with each bullet slamming into the screen of adamantine-hard magic.
He watched as the man cocked his head to the side in confusion and seised fire, lowering the gun in his arms slowly as the Protect formed around Squall to envelope him completely. Squall turned to see who had cast it – to see Rinoa smile at him, her hands held out from where she stood – she hadn't moved a muscle when the shooting had started.
Squall looked over, realising that the gunfire had stopped – to see that all the SeeDs were covered in a Protect, the soldiers stopping their fire and retreating back towards the entrance of the room, their smoking guns still trained on the SeeDs as they backed away to a safe distance, abandoning the men who lay still.
Julius looked over to Emily and promptly head butted the man who was struggling in his grip, the man going limp before the blond hacker dropped him to the ground and spoke up. "What the hell was that, Emily?" Julius muttered.
Emily looked away form the group, her face impassive as usual. "Sorry." She muttered.
Trish suddenly appeared in a puff of smoke, dropping to the floor gently next to Emily. She had instantly teleported to the top of a stack as soon as the gunfire had started, and was now looking very relieved. "Well, so much for first impressions, hey?" She said with grin – but instantly removed the smile as she saw the look Squall gave her.
* * *
Zone retreated back to the doorway as he was instructed by the Major, his handgun trained on the group of…things as he moved through the opening into the corridor behind it. Looking down at the gun in his hands, he realised that it was shaking along with his hands, and he lowered the weapon slowly.
A hand suddenly dropped onto his shoulder, causing him to jump and spin, his gun suddenly whipping up – to train into the face of his young commander, the scarred face not seeming to flinch as the high-powered Desert Eagle was suddenly shoved into his face.
Major Almasy reached up slowly and placed a finger on the barrel of the shaking pistol, slowly lowering the gun and speaking with an ice-cold demeanour. "What the fuck happened in there, Sergent."
"The…the lights, sir. I guess…it spooked them."
"I gave you a
direct order not to fire."
Zone blinked. "I-I'm sorry, sir. The girl took down Parker, so I…"
His words were stopped as Major Almasy walked past him, his voice ice cold. "I'll hear your excuses later, Wedge. I'm going to talk to them…now."
* * *
"What do you think they'll do?"
Squall deactivated his LionHeart and clipped it to his belt, his voice edged with malice as he spoke. "We talk. We apologise. We make sure we get across that we mean no harm. Does everyone understand that?" He growled, looking directly at Emily as he spoke.
The Goth snorted, but nodded all the same.
"Do not attack again unless I give the order. We do not want to make them scared of us. We need to find another Arch to pass through, and so far all the signals gesture towards not being able to pass through unless we fight. And we don't want to do that right now. We don't need a whole universe after us."
Squall stopped talking as a single man emerged from behind the stacks, moving forward slowly, his hands held out in an obvious show that he wasn't armed.
Rinoa's eyes widened slightly as she saw his face, the shock of blond hair, the scar across the man's face. "Squall…it's Seifer."
"I know, Rinoa. I know."
* * *
Major Seifer Almasy approached the group of people slowly, his hands held out before him in a show of peace. He heard them speak in a dialect that he had never heard before, frowning slightly. They looked like normal human beings, university students at best – but had displayed signs of strength and speed he had never seen before. Not only that, but the woman were all stunningly beautiful – especially the raven-haired beauty who had seemed to speak to the one in black leather.
He looked over at her, and realised that she was staring at him with a look that somehow bordered on shock and recognition. He frowned at the look – but shrugged it off. Looking over at the man who had wielded the blue light-saber, noting that he had clipped the weapon to his belt, he spoke up. "Oi, you."
He gathered the man's attention, the man turning his head to look at him. There was almost a dead expression on his face, not seeming to show any emotion whatsoever. "Yeah, you. Do you come in peace, or are you here to kick our asses?"
The boy narrowed his eyes, before shaking his head. Seifer looked down at the floor and lowered his hands in exasperation. He doesn't understand me. Shit. He turned to look behind him. "Zone! Get your ass over here!" He yelled. "And leave your webbing behind!"
* * *
Squall watched as Seifer spoke. "Od uoy emoc ni ecaep, ro era uoy ereh ot kcik rur sessa?"
Squall frowned at the garbled dialect. There was an evident Galbadian accent to the man's voice, but the words were crazily strewn. He had no idea how to answer the doppelganger of his former enemy, so he simply shook his head, unable to think of any other way to get his incomprehension over.
He watched Seifer sigh and turn, barking out an order. This made Squall smile a small smile. Just like Seifer to get someone else. He never had a lot of patience.
He watched as one of the men dressed in black peeled away from the group standing at the entrance and pulled off his webbing, dropping it to the floor along with his large pistol, before walking over to Seifer slowly, taking his time to walk through the stacks.
As he approached the doppelganger, Squall watched as Seifer turned to the man. "ekat ffo rouy ksam, Eonz. Ew t'nod tnaw ot eracs meht erom neht ew evah ot."
The man paused as he walked up behind Seifer, before reaching up and pulling off his mask, revealing a cute face and a shock of brown hair.
Rinoa gasped as she saw who it was.
* * *
Zone watched as the pretty girl in the back gasped and raised a hand to her lips as she watched him rip off his mask, before looking up at Seifer cautiously. "What was that, sir?"
"Mmm. She did it with me, too. The leader as well. It's like they've recognised me. You too, it seems."
"What now?"
"They don't seem to understand English. You know a few languages. Give it a whirl." Major Almasy watched as Zone blinked in disbelief, before gesturing him forward. "Just get on with it, Sergent."
"O-okay, sir." Zone muttered, stepping forward and looking over the group.
* * *
Squall watched as the man stepped forward and began to speak hesitantly, first in the same garbled language as Seifer had uttered, before trying another language, sounding more light and less guttural as the first, but still incomprehensible none-the-less. Squall placed a hand on his hip and watched the man with a tired look as the man blanched and tried another language that Squall couldn't understand.
The man seemed to be running out of languages as Squall turned to Julius. "Get out your laptop, see if you can get a reading of their language. I think I have an idea. Everyone put on your Walkie Talkies."
* * *
Seifer watched as Zone finally gave up, turning around with an aggravated expression on his face. "I've tried Japanese, Chinese, Hindu, Pakistani, Finnish, German, French and even a little Swahili. They don't understand, Sir."
Seifer nodded slowly – before watching as the leader turned to the other male, the tall blond nodding and pulling off the shiny backpack that was lashed to his back and, placing it on the ground, opened it to pull out what looked like a laptop.
He narrowed his eyes as the rest of the bunch suddenly reached into pockets or folds of robes to pull out ear-pieces and wrist-bands, the man in black leather walking slowly forward and handing Seifer an ear-piece before gesturing for him to put it on, pointing at his ear.
Seifer looked at Zone, before pushing the ear-wig into his right ear. The leader spoke softly in his strange language, the reception coming in nice and clear. Seifer gave him a thumbs up, and the man turned to the other one.
* * *
Julius tapped in a few commands, before looking up at Squall. "Rightyo, all set. All you need to do now is to get them to speak for a few seconds. Anything will do. I can pull out the basic lingual vibrations and convert them to Gaian easily after that…I think."
"Good." Squall said, before turning back to Seifer, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Now how do I get them to speak for a few seconds…
* * *
Seifer stood still, waiting for the man to make the next move. Obviously he was trying to do something to rectify the lingual situation using some kind of radio equipment, but he wasn't so sure. Now the man stood before him with a thoughtful look on his face, as if he was thinking of what to do next.
Suddenly the man moved, gesturing with his hands, flapping his fingers open and shut like a quacking duck as he spoke in his own strange language slowly.
Seifer frowned. What the hell is he on?
* * *
"Can…you…say…something…for…me?" Squall said slowly, using his hand to sign language a mouth talking. It was something that Zell did a lot whenever someone talked too much – Squall thought the same idea would be applied here. After all, it was…universal. Zell even managed to make it…mildly amusing.
But the man before him simply cocked an eyebrow and frowned, obviously not understanding. Not only that, but the others were giggling at him, Rinoa having to put a hand over her mouth to stop herself.
Squall turned and shot them all a deadpan look. "Well, if you can do something better, you can go right ahead." He muttered, walking over to Rinoa.
Rinoa was instantly sorry, rubbing Squall's shoulder as he leant against the wall next to her. "Oh, we're sorry baby. I'm sure he'll get the idea if you try again."
This brought a fit of giggles from Trish and Veronica again, and even Emily smiled at the thought of Squall doing the embarrassing thing again. The reaction that Seifer had given him had been priceless.
Squall sighed and grimaced, turning his head away. "No."
Veronica sighed, before stepping forward. "I'll try then."
Julius watched her go. He hadn't said anything about the attack on Trabia yet – she still didn't know that Seifer had been the one to issue the order to launch the missiles. And he was pretty sure that if she had known, she would have approached the tall scarred man more differently.
* * *
Seifer watched as the young woman walked up to him, her robes flowing around her elegantly as she approached him slowly. He looked down at her with a cold stare, cocking his eyebrow. Now what? He thought to himself.
He blinked when she suddenly reached out with a hand. "M'i Acinorev. S'tahw rouy eman?"
He frowned. Is she…introducing herself?
"I think she wants you to do that same, sir." Zone said quietly, gesturing to the woman's hand.
Seifer chewed on his lip thoughtfully – before reaching out with a big paw and engulfing the tiny hand presented to him. "My name is Major Seifer Almasy of the United States Marine Corps. Welcome to Area 51."
* * *
"Ym eman si Rojam Refies Ysamla fo eht Detinu States Marine Corps. Welcome to Area 51." Seifer's voice said over the earpieces in the SeeD's ears, suddenly understandable halfway through the sentence.
Julius gave Squall the thumbs up, and everyone breathed an exasperated sigh of relief as Squall walked forward, extending his own hand. "I am Squall Leonhart of Garden. My rank is A Grade SeeD. We come in peace."
* * *
Welcome to Earth, people!!
Quick question – how many figured that it was earth before it was made obvious? And don't answer, Matt, you tit!!
As for the 'answer my question' tool – if you can't be arsed asking me the question again, I'm not going to rifle through the 100+ reviews just to find it!! Just ask it and get over yourself, okay?
Sorry for the delay of chapter – my life is a busy one, and it took me a while to figure out what to do after Zell's death. Trust me – he will be coming back…but not for a while!!
