Seifer and Fujin boarded the train at Balamb, securing themselves within SeeD's private car. Neither one relaxed until the train started to move.
As they rolled out of the station, Fujin put her arms around Seifer, holding him tight.
"THANKS," she murmured.
"No biggie, babe," he said, placing his hand on the back of her head. "Sorry it took so long."
He held her for a moment and then took a step back.
"They hurt you?" he asked.
"NEGLIGIBLE," she replied. "INCONVENIENCES."
"Good." He crossed the train car to one of the wall compartments, pulling it open and looking inside. "Change of clothes in here," he said. "Your uniform's seen better days."
Fujin glanced in the compartment and found a uniform that fit as Seifer took a seat and started thumbing through a magazine, his mind still racing. She changed into the new clothes, dropping the old on the floor. This done, she took a seat next to Seifer, stretching out and placing her feet on his lap.
"Feel better now?"
Her nose wrinkled as she glanced at her discarded clothes. "RIPE."
"I'll bet it's good to get to a decent seat, too," he added. "The detention center wasn't built with comfort in mind."
Fujin sighed, content and relieved. As the adrenaline wore off, she lapsed into a light slumber, Seifer watching over her, feeling more like a Knight than ever.
As the train started across the Horizon Bridge, the sunlight gleamed off the ocean, shining into the cabin. Fujin's eye fluttered open and she stretched her arm over her head, the motion languid.
"WINDOW?" she asked.
Seifer shook his head. "You're like a cat," he said. "Give you a place to stretch out and you're dead to the world."
Fujin smiled at him, the sight sweet after long separation. She purred in contentment, taking pleasure in their familiar dialogue. The patter diverted their minds from bigger issues – Scarlet and Quistis, Mallis's plans to revive Adel. They could discuss these in ample detail on their return to Esthar Garden, but for now, basic conversation served as a comfort.
Seifer sighed, moving Fujin's feet and standing, "Captured and imprisoned by a madman and now you can't even open a window by yourself? Lazy, lazy, lazy."
He objected for the sake of objecting, nothing more. He crossed to the window and slid it open, turning to Fujin at the same time.
"There," he said, bowing low.
"Fresh air and sunlight. Is
milady happy?"
"ECSTATIC."
Seifer's eyes glittered as he opened his mouth, but something held him back.
"You hear that?" he asked.
Fujin's ears perked up, listening. She heard the same thing. Over the rhythm of the train, the sound of wind rushing by, came a low roaring. As the sound intensified, the sunlight receded, blocked out by something huge.
"What the hell?" Seifer mumbled. He and Fujin turned as one, Seifer brushing aside the curtains.
Black and red metal gleamed out the window. Fujin's eye widened. The shape slowed, allowing the train to advance on it. To their horror, glass appeared, and behind the glass, the face of General Mallis.
"Fun time is over," came Mallis's voice, broadcast from a loudspeaker aboard the Apocalypse. "Time to come home."
"Son of a bitch," Seifer cursed. He glanced down to the panel beneath Fujin's seat, delivering a swift kick. A hidden drawer sprung open, and Fujin saw a gleam of silver. Seifer crouched, donning a bandolier and slinging a rifle over his shoulder.
"WHAT?" Fujin asked.
"Mallis pulled this after the fall of Balamb Garden," Seifer said. "So I added an insurance policy."
As Seifer moved, Fujin got a good look at the bandolier: pulse ammo. He moved to another compartment and produced two headsets, fitting one to his ear and throwing the other to Fujin. Next, he tossed her his ID keycard.
"Get on the line with Garden," he instructed. "Have the duty officer call Xu. Tell her you want to disconnect the train car. She'll walk you through the process."
"UNDERSTOOD. YOU?"
"I'm going to even the score," Seifer said, speaking through clenched teeth. He slid open the door to the cabin and headed outside.
Fujin placed the headset in her ear and opened the channel to Garden. Xu's voice came through at once.
"Seifer? Is that you?" she asked.
"FUJIN."
"Fujin!" Xu exclaimed. "Good to hear your voice. What's the situation?"
"The Apocalypse is attacking," Fujin explained, the stress of the situation prompting her to full sentences. "I need to disconnect the train car."
"Give me a second," Xu responded. "I'll scramble the First Team, and then we'll get on it."
Xu went offline for a minute, and then the line reopened.
"Okay," she said. "You need a level five access card for this. You ready?"
Fujin glanced down at Seifer's ID card as it danced between her fingers.
"READY."
* *
Seifer opened the door to the train car, gritting his teeth at the sudden wind. He swung out onto the ladder, climbing atop the train. At the sight of him, the Apocalypse swung away from the train, gearing itself up for an attack run.
"All right, you bastard..." he muttered, loading the pulse ammo into the rifle. He listened to the humming as the rifle drained power from the energy crystal. When the light turned green, he shouldered the rifle. The Apocalypse roared towards him, focusing its sights on Seifer.
"Time to die!" he roared, pulling the rifle into firing position. The pulse rifle discharged, a burst of white light flaring out from the muzzle.
Mallis saw the flash an instant too late. He banked, but not soon enough, and the blast caught the Apocalypse on one of its fins. A glancing hit, damaging but insignificant. Mallis broke away, circling into the distance.
"If that's what it takes," Seifer growled. "One shot at a time."
Seifer pulled back the bolt, and the ammo ejected, flying into the distance as the train moved. He slammed another cartridge into place, listened to the sound. No sign of the Apocalypse. He watched. Scanned the sky. Saw a glint of light on the horizon as the ship's wings caught the sun.
Seifer raised the rifle, aiming in the direction of the spark.
* *
"...okay, Fujin," Xu said. "Last step. Swipe the card through the reader and you're disconnected."
"AFFIRMATIVE," Fujin said, doing as instructed. The SeeD car lurched as it separated from the rest of the train.
* *
The ship materialized out of nowhere, unhesitating, unleashing a volley of missiles. The car's speed dropped, the rest of the train rocketing ahead as the car ran on pure momentum. The sudden change in speed forced Seifer to one knee, but the missiles went wide, flying over the bridge in front of the car.
"Your mistake, boy," came Mallis's voice on the loudspeaker. "You should have kept moving."
"Keep talking, asshole," Seifer said, knowing Mallis couldn't hear him. "Keep talking."
From his kneeling position, Seifer fired again, the shot made simpler by the fact that no longer had to account for the train's motion. Mallis's reaction rate still helped him dodge, but the shot hit closer to home this time, puncturing a hole in the ship's wing, further hindering its mobility.
Seifer ejected the spent cartridge and loaded another, readying himself for the next attack run, feeling the crosshairs centering on him.
* *
The boy hovered in his sights. Seifer might manage to squeeze off another round, but Mallis could kill him here and now. A delicate shot, having to destroy Seifer without damaging the train car. Another corpse, another body to add to the pile. One more death in service to the Great Queen. The prospect of spilling blood delighted Mallis, and he foresaw a glorious day ahead of him.
He pressed the engine, racing forward to meet the boy, where he could pick him off using the machine guns. At this distance, they'd each get one chance. Seifer could do real damage with that pulse rifle.
Mallis's lip curled into a snarl. How would the child fair against 30mm ammunition? The main guns of the Apocalypse could deliver over 600 rounds per minute each. More than enough to stop one errant SeeD.
A ping sounded in the cabin. Without looking, Mallis flipped open the communications channel.
A voice sounded in his ear, familiar and thrilling.
"Apocalypse. This is Ragnarok. Break off your attack at once."
Mallis smiled, bared his teeth. A glorious day, indeed.
"Squall."
* *
Squall knelt in the cockpit of the Ragnarok, sandwiched between Selphie and Quistis, pilot and co-pilot. He used their chairs to steady himself as he spoke into the microphone.
"I repeat: break off your attack at once or we will shoot you down."
"Squall!" came Seifer's voice, carried over the headsets. "Welcome back to the land of the living!"
"This is familiar, isn't it Squall?" asked Mallis. "The two of us, a train car, your inability to fire on me. Or have you forgotten the IFF lockouts?"
"Hit him," Squall said to Quistis.
Quistis lit fly with a burst of machine-gun fire. The bullets crashed into the Apocalypse's armor as Mallis banked.
"I'm not screwing around," Squall said. "We disabled the IFF system."
"Not bad," Mallis replied, nonplussed. "But by the time you shoot me down, your friends will be dead."
"Nida," Squall commanded.
The Ragnarok slowed to a stop, hovering in midair, as its cargo bay opened. A burst of silver exploded out of the ship as the Discovery emerged, rainbow metal glittering in the sunlight. It flew like at the Apocalypse like lightning, flying fast circles around the larger ship.
"That's mine!" Mallis roared. "I built that ship! I designed it! Mine!"
"Hit him again," Squall instructed.
"With pleasure," chirped Irvine.
The wings of the Discovery started to glow blue as it built up its energy. The light moved from the wings into the ship's needle nose. It discharged in a brilliant flash, lancing through the sky and lopping off one of the Apocalypse's claws. The metal appendage fell into the ocean with a splash.
Mallis howled in agony.
All three ships came to a halt, hovering in a tense standoff.
"Well done," Mallis said, voice grave. "But all I have to do is broadcast a distress signal from this vessel, and my troops at Garden will execute the hostages."
Selphie and Quistis turned to Squall.
"Say the word, Squall," Quistis murmured.
The Discovery shimmered with accumulated power, another blast ready.
"I've got him in my sights," Irvine said. "We can end this now."
"Fujin?" Seifer asked over the headset. "Is he bluffing?"
"NO."
Squall looked long at the Apocalypse, its weapons bristling. The ship itself looked eager for a fight.
"Run," Squall said, voice dark. "Before I reconsider."
"Good form," came Mallis's voice as the Apocalypse banked away, retreating into the distance. "Be seeing you."
"Bastard," Irvine muttered as the channel with Mallis's ship closed.
Everyone mourned the lost opportunity, but no one voiced it.
"Discovery, come back," Squall commanded. "Seifer, ready the car for docking."
Seifer kicked open the roof hatch on the SeeD car and dropped inside. In moments, a series of attachments emerged from the roof of the train car, allowing the Ragnarok to pick it up off the track. The dragon-ship turned for Garden, the SeeD car clutched beneath it.
* *
Seifer stepped out of the train car to find the rest of the First Team waiting for him. He offered Fujin a hand and helped her down, turning back to the group and smiling. Only Selphie smiled back. Everyone else looked to Squall.
"No speeches," Squall said. "No lectures. This is why I wanted you in SeeD in the first place. You're the one who can take these kinds of risks. It paid off. Fujin," he nodded to her, "welcome back."
"THANKS."
"Take the afternoon to rest. Everyone, dinner in my office at 1800. We'll debrief then. I want reports on everything that's happened in my absence."
Squall turned to leave, still unsteady on his feet. Rinoa stood at the end of the hangar, and put her arm around him for support as he neared.
Quistis moved first, walking in long strides. She approached Seifer and stopped in front of him. One eyebrow arced up from behind her glasses. Quistis opened her mouth to say something but then, thinking better of it, just shook her head. She punched Seifer lightly on the shoulder and gave him a hug.
"Thanks, blondie," he said. Then, after a moment, "We really need to talk. There's something you need to know."
"Later," she said, glancing over his shoulder. "Someone else has first crack at you."
Seifer pulled away. "Is he angry?"
She gestured with her head. Seifer turned to see Zell watching him, a mixture of rage and relief and worry and frustration racing through his eyes. Seifer crossed over to Zell, stopping short of him.
"Zell, I..." he began. "I'm sorry."
Zell nodded, slow and deliberate. "Don't do it again," he said. He grabbed at Seifer, pulling him close. "Don't do it again."
"Come on, everyone!" Selphie chirped, her voice carrying across the room. "Cheer up -we kicked ass today! Fujin's home! Best of all," her eyes sparkled. "Party at Squall's place!"
* *
The Apocalypse landed in the hangar. Scarlet watched it and, had she not known better, she might have thought it empty. None of the soldiers waiting to repair the vehicle dared approach.
After fifteen minutes passed, the gangplank extended. Mallis stalked down, and she saw the rage burning in his eye. She didn't approach him. Soldiers started sliding past Mallis on the gangplank and heading for the ship.
Mallis's left hand flew to his head, covering the empty socket as he sank to his knees. His mouth opened in a scream of pain, but no sound emerged. One hand flashed out, grabbing the nearest soldier and throwing him on the ground. Mallis struck the man, vicious, the sound echoing through the empty room. He hit the man again, and once again, then grabbed his head and slammed it onto the metal gangplank. The man's skull cracked with a sickening thud.
"Squall!" he roared.
He rose, moving in a flash, grabbing another soldier's head with both hands, twisting the man's neck at an impossible angle.
Scarlet moved. One death she could stand, anything more entered the realm of sentimental nonsense.
"Stop!" she commanded. Mallis dropped the corpse he held and turned on her, advancing in a blur.
He seized her face in one hand, lifting her off the ground by her jaw.
"What did you just say?" he hissed.
Scarlet moved, too fast for the General to follow, her foot slamming into his stomach. He dropped Scarlet, falling to one knee in surprise.
"I said 'stop,'" she said, voice level.
Mallis stared up at her, danger in his face. "You forget your place," he said.
"You forget yours," she countered. "You are a servant of the Great Queen, and this is how you demonstrate your loyalty? By losing control at the first setback? By slaughtering her troops?"
Mallis did not answer.
"Stand up," she said. He rose, towering over her. "Did Adel teach you nothing?" she asked. "Control of self precedes control of others." She looked at him, waiting for a sign of recognition. "You taught me that. Remember?"
He breathed, nostrils flaring as he did so.
"You have a plan?" he murmured.
"They've shown their weakness," she replied. "You threaten one, and the others come to the rescue. You want Seifer, you threaten Fujin. You want Squall..."
A slow smile spread across Mallis's lips.
* *
Ambassador Shackleton entered his office, the promise of a new day stretched out before him. The reception had gone well, he had received nothing but praise from Laguna, but he couldn't afford to rest on his laurels. If he wanted to ensure Esthar's place in the diplomatic world, he had to keep working.
A phone rang. Not one he used for everyday circumstances. The special phone. His boss called.
He produced a key from his pocket and unlocked a desk drawer. He pulled out a cellular phone, small and sleek, almost too small for his hands. He flipped it open and held it to his ear.
"Sir?" he asked. "Yes, sir. Everything's well, sir... They'll be here when?"
Shackleton nodded.
"I understand, sir. By the end of the day. Of course, sir. I am, as ever, a humble servant of the Great Queen."
The line went dead in his hand. Shackleton snapped the phone shut, replaced it in its spot, and locked the drawer.
He leaned his head out the door, calling down the hall.
"Rinoa, dear, could you come here for a moment?"