Clash of the Gardens

Irony

Squall looked at the blade and saw Seifer bringing it down swiftly. Squall gripped his gunblade's handle and gave a loud cry.

Rinoa screamed and cried out, "Squall!"

In an instant, Squall rose to his feet and met Seifer's Hyperion. He growled as the steel of their blades clashed together. Seifer soon began to laugh.

"Squall, is it? I knew you wouldn't go down that easily!" He said and just as he expected, Squall was silent. "How long has it been, my friend?" Seifer stepped back and held up his Hyperion.

"…Too long." Squall said angrily.

"He talks!" Seifer laughed and he saw Squall's face become angrier. The laughter ceased and a strange seriousness took hold of Seifer's face, "…Just know this…One of us will die today. You or me."

"No more interruptions, you talk too much."

"Very well." Seifer spat and looked at Rinoa. He raised his hand up and Rinoa's struggle could no longer be heard. Squall looked back at her and found that she had been silenced.

"What have you done to her?"

"No more interruptions, you spoke of it yourself. Now…" Seifer charged at Squall instantly with an evil grin present, "You're going down!" He said while slicing at Squall, but Squall defended himself and pushed against Seifer's force. He then countered Seifer's attack with a swing of his own. The two men began to fight wildly.

"Selphie, no!" Hannon shouted, but Selphie had already thrown herself inside of his fight.

"Aaaaah!" She screamed as she had cast flare on the Galbadians. The men fell instantly and she turned to Kent with a smirk. "Hey, Kent! We've got big trouble!"

"Yes, I can see that, but why are you here? I thought you…died." He asked while catching his breath.

"Balamb is not our enemy! I don't know why you guys are attacking them, but they didn't do anything against us."

"Really! B-but what about Martine! They killed Martine, and they took the General's Daughter!" He glared at the sight of Balamb Garden behind Selphie and grunted, "They have to pay for what they did!" Selphie put a hand on Kent's shoulder and shook her head.

"Rinoa Caraway was given a place to rest in Balamb Garden. She ran away from her father and came here to seek shelter. Who told you those lies?"

"…Deling. We were…" He dropped his axe and kicked dirt from the ground. He yelled out angrily, and turned away from Selphie. His was heated with anger. "We were fooled…he knew we'd accept anything as long as he included Martine's name! I wondered why we were being attacked by Galbadia's forces…they don't even care that we're supposed to be allied with them right now!"

"We have to call back everyone." Selphie insisted.

"Right!" Kent grabbed his axe from the ground and held it high. "Trabia! Retreat!" The heads of Trabia's captains rose above the crowded men, and they all ran back to the ships on the shores. A few of Balamb's SeeDs who had still been fighting with Trabia's SeeDs began to cheer. Xu looked up from her surroundings and saw that Trabia was now leaving the battle. Quistis also saw this and smiled.

"Selphie's mission is complete." Quistis said while walking toward Xu.

"I guess so." Xu sighed in relief. "But our mission is far from over, look at all those Galbadian soldiers."

"Yes, I know. We have to get over there and help the others."

"What about Selphie?"

"She's not one of us, she's with Trabia. She'll have to follow her Commander's orders from now own."

"You're right. I only hope they will safely leave this area, no doubt that missiles are probably being targeted here."

"The missiles…? They wouldn't dare!" Xu shouted.

"They've launched those things on an innocent town, why would they hesitate against us?" Quistis said while folding her arms.

"Quistis, go find Squall and the others. I'll lead everyone who's in this area, to help aid everyone else fighting against Galbadia."

"Careful Xu, our forces aren't looking too strong out there. We've just begun to lose more than a few people."

"I know, but this has got to stop."

"Understood. I'm on it!" They saluted one another and parted. Quistis ran through toward the crowd and saw Zell taking on two Galbadians at once. She had to smile. Quickly, she drew her whip and whipped a few oncoming soldiers. They all screamed in agony, and knocked off Zell's attention from his own fight. Luckily, the soldiers hadn't recovered from his lethal punch. Zell smirked and looked at Quistis.

"Where have you been?" He asked her.

"Here and there, need a hand?"

"Definitely! Look up ahead, Galbadians are everywhere!"

"Then let's go!" They both nodded and charged toward Galbadia's line of defense.

Two rivals who barely knew each other's names were both sworn by destiny to fight until the end. Seifer's dream was finally happening, but Squall feared for the worst. Ever since Rinoa came into his life, he felt slightly handicapped in battle. He had escaped the Garden's Training Center that day in order to get away from her, and to properly prepare himself for war; however, she followed him and ruined everything. His thoughts weren't the same as they used to be while in battle; pain, confusion, and isolation were no longer as strong as they had been before. Was this a good thing? No, Squall relied on those negative feelings in battle. Without them, how else would he fight the good fight?

His arm began to shake when he realized that Rinoa was the source of all his problems. It was that crybaby that got him to soften his bitter feelings just a little. He could feel his anger increasing and his body shaking. Why was she trying to change him so badly? Was it because she knew that he was Seifer's rival? Yes, those two had worked together before, so why wouldn't they join forces again? Rinoa had already lied to him before, why was it so much harder to lie to him now? And the show that she and Seifer were displaying, Seifer casting silence and capturing her; what was it all for? Why had they chosen Squall to lash out at?

Squall's mind wandered from thought to thought as he managed to defend many close attacks of Seifer's blade. He realized his mind had wandered from battle and he had been defending himself with his natural instincts. Never had his mind wandered so much during any fight. Was this what she wanted? Rinoa, Seifer, and Irvine all are Galbadians. There was no doubt in Squall's mind that they probably planned this entire devastating situation. They had all in someway dropped a lethal bomb onto Squall's mind, and were playing mind games with him. Seifer's cold-blooded murders in the war against Esthar, Irvine's truth about Squall's mother, and Rinoa's guilt of betrayal had all played a vital role to cause Squall's mental breakdown. They were his enemies, and that Deling, how Squall just wanted to put the old man out of his misery, he led these imbeciles and caused this entire war!

Squall's eyes burned red and Seifer noticed the gradual transformation in his rival's face. Seifer felt his hand, wielding tightly the Hyperion, trembling because of his opponent's eyes. To hide the fact that he was becoming nervous, Seifer did the only thing he knew best, "What's the matter, little man? Why can't you fight me?"

"Shut up!" Squall said and swung his blade across, but Seifer stepped back. Squall quickly glanced at Rinoa, whose terror-stricken eyes were glued to the scene. He only growled and pushed Seifer with more force. Seifer felt his legs lose balance for a mere second, but he smirked at Squall and fought back.

The sky was growing a deep orange and pink. Darkness would probably come soon, but not soon enough. Both Squall and Seifer's eyes reflected the sky now, as the two men hadn't back down since they began. They were so drawn to their own battle, that they hadn't noticed the fighting surrounding only themselves had stopped. The soldiers now looked at two warriors fighting, one, a leader by chance and the other, a leader by choice. Both guilty of foul sins, and wanted only victory, but neither had a true understanding of why the rivalry had continued. Though they knew nothing of each other, except for the very fact that they were the only two to wield the Gunblade, they fought as if they had caused each other a lifetime of grief.

Rinoa felt the clinging pain in her throat caused by the silence spell, and it felt as if it would never go away. The pain in her heart had finally come to reality, and she had always been in this kind of pain. Having the words but never being able to speak them, only tears spoke for her. Guilt, anguish, betrayal, hurt, pain, and sadness: Squall was right; Rinoa was, indeed, a liar. She lied to everyone else with her smiling and laughing, but deep down, Rinoa always was sad. Although, she had tried before to convince them otherwise, she failed terribly. There was nothing that could ease her mind, but Squall.

Now, even he was in this horrible battle and there was nothing that she could do. She felt the urge to cry, and it was tugging at her eyes; but Rinoa shook her head, now was not the time for tears. Be quiet and quit your whining! He told her. You'll never get anywhere if you keep calling yourself weak! If you keep sobbing and crying everywhere, you'll only become weaker everyday. If you would just focus that energy somewhere else, you would have nothing to fear. So find something new, and protect it. That will give you determination! In the meantime…don't cry.

Never in her mind were his words so true. All this time she had been trying to help him, when it was he that was helping her. She was clueless and wrong to think that crying solved everything. Her eyes fell to the ground, no longer able to look at the scene that was taking place before her. She closed her eyes as she remembered her old promise to herself. I'll get them. I swear it. If it's the last thing I do with the last bit of strength in my body, I will defeat Galbadia. Only then, will I find true peace. For you all and myself, this battle isn't over yet! I will not die! How could she have forgotten? She took one mollifying deep breath and swallowed the lump in her throat.

No more tears. No more sadness, nor pain. If I focus that energy somewhere else, only then will I become stronger. I will pity myself no more, for my comrades, friends, and my family. For Squall…I will fight to protect them! Rinoa was now silently casting Esuna on herself. The effects were strong, and caused her to kneel slightly to the ground. Noticing that the young woman was becoming lighter to hold back, the soldiers looked down at her while questioning if she were still conscious.

The soldier that held her arm had finally released his grip, and when he did, Rinoa's eyes shot open. She turned loose from the others with a sly grin upon her lips, and punched the guard to the ground. Before the others could strike her, they were frozen by a blizzard spell she had quickly cast. She pushed them down and began to call upon an even greater thunder spell, Thundaga, which struck two soldiers at once.

She open heartedly laughed and held up her Pinwheel to shoot the Blaster Edge at another soldier who had run over to aid his comrades. With no mercy, she fired her blade at him and he fell without so much as a cry. Looking around, Rinoa saw that soldiers were everywhere. This is for you guys! Zone, Watts, and everyone else, this is all for you! Thanks Squall. I'll let you handle yourself for right now. I have a promise to fulfill! She looked back at Squall who was managing to keep up with Seifer. She smiled at him and ran away, but little did Rinoa know, Squall wasn't handling himself well at all.

Irvine had walked the outskirts of battle, and he even managed to find himself a good seat. The war was ongoing, and night would come soon. He wondered if these people would continue to fight. Irvine sighed and looked at his Valiant. He was contemplating on helping them or not. He placed his shotgun down beside him and looked at his hands as he moved them to his face.

"Okay…Trabia or Balamb." His hands became representations of the two Gardens. "Who's telling the truth? I wonder…" His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the growling of a canine nearby. When he turned to face it, there she was, the bold and dangerous, "…Angelo?" The dog's growl eased. "Ah…so you'll only growl to those who don't know your name, eh?" Irvine chuckled, "I guess I'll have to thank Leonhart for that one, won't I?" He reached for Angelo, but the dog snapped at his hand. "Geez, you have to learn to relax sometimes." Giving up on the canine, Irvine reached for his Valiant instead. As he did so, Angelo began to bark loudly at some vehicles approaching the battlers on the fields of Balamb. When Irvine's eyes finally saw them, he froze where he sat. "…G-Galbadia?"

He and Angelo had quickly run toward the scene. Irvine looked at the crowds and managed to see that Seifer was already engaged in battle with Squall. Irvine whistled when he remembered the first battle the two had had one year ago. Irvine was amazed to see that both of the men's fighting had only changed slightly, now with a little more force. Irvine's eyes then shifted to Rinoa, who was being held captive by a few soldiers.

Before he had a chance to think if he should help her or not, she had broken free. Irvine's eyes were glued when he watched all the soldiers dropping from the little woman's wrath. He found himself smiling until Angelo nudged her nose onto his leg, and then ran in after her owner. "Angelo!" He called to the dog, but she kept running to her master. He shrugged his shoulders, "Oh well, I'm sure the dog can make it." He snickered and held tightly the trigger of his loaded shotgun. Just when Irvine was about to aid in the battle, he heard what sounded like thousands of feet stomping and bashing the ground. When he faced that sound, he saw a huge mass of SeeDs charging in full force.

Quistis, Zell, and Xu led an entire mass of SeeDs from both Balamb and Trabia Gardens. Not too far away was another pack of Seeds, though not as big as the first, who were led by Selphie and Kent. Every last person who ran along with them had yelled at the top of his lungs, creating a frightening state of chaos to those whom opposed the mass.

Some Galbadian soldiers had turned around and ran the other way to escape, and when Seifer saw this, he stopped his current fight with Squall. Squall had also turned around to see his comrades charging in quickly, whether he knew it or not, a smile was on his face.

Seifer could spit at the fools that were charging at his army like heroes of some sort. He laughed softly and looked at Squall, whose attention still remained on the incoming crowd.

"…I'll show you why I'm feared." Seifer spoke as he walked away from Squall. Squall's smile vanished as he looked at Seifer approaching the crowd of SeeDs. "It's still too early for our battle, so I'll let you warm up first. Don't die on me yet."

"…No." He whispered into the wind.

Seifer took off running quickly while having the nerve to shout, "The SeeD Hunt begins now!" He engaged in battle and struck down SeeDs as they charged at him. Squall couldn't make himself move from the spot where he stood. This is what happened before, this is what he couldn't let happen again, and yet, it was a living reality once again. Squall looked at the scene and felt his heart quickening it's pace. He gripped the handle of his Gunblade and faced the Galbadian Soldiers who were coming to attack him. He growled and had begun walking, until his pace became a full motion run. He let out a battle cry from the top of his lungs, and with all of his might, struck across three soldiers at once.

The two lines of soldiers collided, the SeeDs and Galbadia, together created a huge fighting mass that was impossible to avoid. Quistis smiled as she skillfully lashed men with her stinging whip. She struck one soldier who was planning a sneak attack upon Xu, who had been busy fighting off more than a few soldiers on her own. Zell jump kicked one soldier straight into the gunfire of another, and the two men fell immediately. Xu cast a fire spell on the downed soldier and looked at Zell while shaking her head. "This is ridiculous."

"No matter how hard we fight, they'll just keep charging! It's endless!" Zell shouted and ducked to avoid some incoming danger. The vehicles shot the fire projectiles from their tops with a large cannon that had been equipped especially for this battle. More fire was catapulted onto the fighting mass, and soldiers from both sides cried out. Quistis looked around and saw that a few Galbadian soldiers were on fire as well, "They don't even care that they're hitting their own men."

"Such a greedy nation knows no allies…" Xu said while staring intensively at the Galbadian Vehicles stationed far away. Zell noticed where she stared and turned to her.

"What's up?"

"Those vehicles…we have to stop their attacks."

"One more wave of those, and it could be the end of us all." Quistis finished. Zell nodded and looked around.

"What can we do?" He asked and Xu looked at Trabia's vessels that were parked on the shorelines.

"…Do you think those vessels are equipped with explosives?"

"Maybe…" Zell answered. "Selphie! She'll know for sure!" He charged through the crowd of fighters and searched for Selphie.

Meanwhile, Rinoa was smiling while striking soldiers from left and right. She watched them approach her with grins of their own, but then she'd watch those same soldiers cry out for mercy after they challenged her. No way would she let Galbadia weaken her again; this was her own personal war. To destroy the enemy from which she once came; this was her true desire. Rinoa's magic usage was flawless, and every man that stepped into her path with a thought to destroy her, was obliterated on the spot. With her faithful companion at her side, she realized that this was her hour; Rinoa had found strength in her weakness.

She looked around and saw that Squall was doing the same thing, but he was no longer fighting Seifer. What had happened? Did Seifer die? If that were true, then the war would have been over by now. She noticed that he threw two Galbadians to the ground and stabbed them both with his Gunblade, and afterwards, he turned around and headed for his next target, as if all the blood in the world had not fazed him at all. She sighed when she realized she had been fighting in the same style as Squall. Rinoa looked at her Pinwheel and sighed. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Zell calling for Selphie on the plains. I have to help everyone else out now. She said as she ran off with Angelo at her side.

Selphie had cast flare upon the soldiers of Galbadia and watched them fall to the ground. Flare was her favorite spell to cast, it was always so explosive and left a devastating blow to her enemies; or as Selphie would say to herself, "It blows them to smithereens!" When she heard her name called from afar, she turned around to face Zell.

"Selphie!" He had to calm his panting before he continued, and when he did he pointed to the vessels that were stationed on the shoreline. "Do those things have explosives?"

"Yeah, the cannons only appear when we tell them to, but the captains of those ships need to be aboard in order for that to happen. I haven't seen them fired before but I do believe they fire at a long distance range, why?"

" Isn't it obvious? We need to use them, quick! See those tankers!"

"But how? They are so far away!"

"You just said the cannons are long range. Selphie listen to me, Xu, Quistis, and I have a plan; we could use those cannons to destroy those vehicles that keep striking us with all those explosives. I know they'll listen to you if you ordered it. Just call the captains back to the ships to explain the plan, and we'll have everyone move out of firing range, okay?"

"Zell…"

"Come on, Selphie! There's no time!"

"…Okay! Sure thing!"

Zell smiled and took off into the crowd once again. Selphie took a deep breath and looked around for Kent. Because he was too deeply involved in his own battles, she immediately took control. She ran toward the vessel with the yellow sail, and climbed aboard using the ladder that was attached to its side. She had only been onboard one of these for a few occasions; as a matter of fact, this was the very vessel she and her Headmaster traveled on when they went to Timber on that gloomy day.

Selphie ran through its tiny corridor and found the pilot's control room, which was the Captain's Station. At the captain's wing, she found a radio that would help her to get in touch with all the other Captains as they were on the battlefield and fighting. She cleared her throat and calmed her heart before she began to speak into the radio. "All captains, report to the vessels and order your forces to pull back also. I repeat, all captains report to the vessels and order your forces to pull back, A.S.A.P."

After the captains gave their orders to their men, they each met up at the vessels and saw Selphie jumping off the largest ship. "Guys, we're going to fire the cannons on those Galbadian Vehicles up ahead. Please, let's move quickly because they're coming in really fast!" The captains nodded together and ran to their vessels.

After a few moments, she watched the cannons appear at the sides of each of the ships. Selphie ran toward everyone who had been fighting and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Trabia and Balamb, this way! Take cover!" She said while running through, just as Zell had done, and Zell, upon hearing this, repeated her orders even louder than she had. All armies, including Galbadia, began to move back to the safest area in order to avoid the attacks.

Rinoa saw what was happening and decided that it was best to follow the crowd as well. She took advantage of a few Galbadian soldiers, whose back were turned and charging after her comrades, and defeated them. "Woo!" She shouted and continued to follow everyone else.

Squall saw a few of SeeDs struggling, and another bunch that was clueless about the battle. They seemed to have fighting talent, but weren't using their skills affectively. He observed as one young woman had cast Blizzaga on a soldier, but almost missed her target when someone jumped in front of her. A young man went slashing through, but he left himself wide open for an attack and was also injury prone. And the last person seemed to be multi-talented on the field, but was lacking speed because she was too afraid to do anything. Seeing this, Squall ran to them and hoped that they would heed his advice.

"You three! Mage, focus your attacks on the enemy and don't let their swiftness fool you, these weaklings will never dodge a magic attack. Defender, strike them soon after she casts the spell, catching them off guard is your advantage. Red mage, continue casting cure spells on your comrades, and also remember to shield them from the attack. Should he miss his attack queue, be on guard to strike in his place! Got that!"

All three of the soldiers nodded and as soon as they put his advice to use, they found themselves taking down numerous Galbadians exceedingly better than before. He saw them smile and continue their work.

"Trabia and Balamb, this way! Take cover!" He heard Selphie's voice and then Zell's over the rumbling crowd of soldiers.

"What are they doing!" He said while looking around himself for the incoming danger.

Fearsome gunfire was shot amongst the crowd by the Galbadian Vehicles, and Squall ran back to follow the crowd as well.

"Come on, get out of here!" He said before running, hoping that the others heard his words and ran for safety as well. He looked up and saw that they fled and were making safe progress away from the oncoming vehicles. The Vehicles were indeed charging in, and Squall dropped to the ground to escape the flying bullets.

"Idiots!" He yelled aloud and covered his head as debris clouded the air. Squall looked back and saw that the Vehicles were moving in quickly, and there was no way to stop them.

"Leonhart!" When Squall turned around, he saw Irvine was crawling on the ground and not too far away. Squall didn't answer him, as he was more concerned with the approaching Galbadians.

"This is crazy!" Irvine continued.

"They're your men." Squall snapped as he buried his head under his hands.

"You've gotta be kidding me. There's no way I'm a part of that."

"Oh really?" Squall said sarcastically.

"Really. …So why don't you just watch this." Irvine smiled and reached for his Valiant. After a few moments of concentration, a fiery glow illuminated their surroundings that came from his shotgun. Within seconds, a fireball shot from his Valiant and exploded one of the moving vehicles; ashes and crusts scattered across the grassy plains. "Woo!" He cheered from the ground and slid a finger across the tip of his hat signaling his victory.

"I'm impressed…but…" Squall pointed at the rest of the vehicles, which were up to thirty-five altogether.

"Yeah, I know." He ended his cheery frenzy and became serious again.

"There's no way we can take down all of them like this…" Squall sighed as he hid.

"I know what you mean, 'cause if they continue forcing everyone back, …they'll win for sure."

"Never!"

Just as Squall spoke, the Galbadians were running back toward their vehicles, followed by mini explosions, which sounded simultaneously upon the Alcauld Plains.

"Whoa!" Squall shouted and got to his feet. Irvine was right behind him, and the two ran with the Galbadians away from the SeeDs' threats. Up ahead, they saw the smoking remains of the vehicles that were once moving in firing range to attack everyone that got in their way.

"Where are those explosions coming from?" Irvine yelled while running, and Squall was brave enough to look back. He stopped running when he saw the big crowd of SeeDs gathered near the shoreline, and there was smoke rising from the vessels.

"Loose cannons!" He exclaimed while pointing to the large dark metallic colored ships.

"What!" Irvine said while stopping his run, and he looked back with Squall. "We're alive!" He jumped up and held his shotgun in the air, but when he realized Squall wasn't cheering with him, he stopped completely. He noticed that Squall's eyes were searching for someone in particular; either Rinoa or Seifer, Irvine knew both were on his personal search list. Because Squall was silent, Irvine quietly parted and headed for the ground forces of Galbadia. Seeing that they had decreased in forces, now was a good time to frighten off the remaining troops. "Duck hunt." He said with a smirk and held onto his weapon with great anticipation to the end of war.

Xu looked at the fleeing soldiers and smiled. She and the others had watched as the Commanders aligned their vessels with the Vehicles and fired their cannons. They all watched as the fire rained upon the Galbadians with haste and devastation. Zell laughed and cheered with Selphie, and the two excitedly hugged Quistis, who sat in amazement as she watched their enemies' forces turn to shreds. After all the dreadful hardship the team had gone through trying to explain their plan to the Trabians, the sight of their success was pleasing indeed. Quistis also saw Rinoa from where she stood, and Rinoa seemed to be lost.

"Quistis, what's the matter? Aren't you happy that we got rid of those vehicles?"

"Of course I'm happy about that, but it's just…" Quistis went quiet as if at a lost for words. When she saw Rinoa, she wanted to help her, but then the thought of the girl being the General's Daughter still bothered her. Although she was concerned for Rinoa's safety, something inside wanted her to just leave her be.

"It's Rinoa! What is she doing?" Zell said, and his voice snapped her out of her little thoughts. Quistis looked at Rinoa and sighed as Zell continued, "Guys, even though we've wiped out their firepower, that doesn't mean all these ground troops will disappear too!"

"Uh huh, we have to scare 'em off like we did in Dollet, right Zell?"

"Right!" He watched as the Galbadians bunched together and took on one SeeD at a time. He held if fist in a ball as he continued to watch. "Arrrgh, we have to get down there quick!"

"Rinoa looks like she's in danger too!" Selphie said while preparing to run in to aid Rinoa in battle.

"Come on!" Both Selphie and Zell said, but Quistis hesitated a second before she followed them into the danger zone.

In the midst of battle, Rinoa was searching for Angelo. She had lost the canine when the explosions first began. Her companion was at first tagging along with her every move, but after that last blast, the dog was nowhere to be found. She sighed and disappeared into the crowd of Galbadians, preparing herself to fend them off as well.