Hahaha…. so many questions to be answered! Maybe they'll be answered in this chapter…maybe they wont. You'll have to keep reading wont you? R&R pretty please.

Chapter 2

For the illiterate

Something…is…wrong…

Three girls and two boys; their mangled bodies sprawled about the library floor, limbs mutated and bent at unreachable angles. Blood was splattered up the rows of bookshelves; one had fallen backwards, a boy's body laying face down upon the shelves. Books littered the room resembling a flock of birds that had just been shot down from flight. The former SeeD's faces were twisted in anguish, distorted in anger, their eyes glassy and staring.

One boy had a dagger lodged in his forehead, the other male had an axe protruding from his back, his jacket dark with blood which spilt over the books beneath him, staining their pages and making them illegible. Two girls had been shot repeatedly in the face and chest; one was without her left eye, the bone shattered and gleaming dully in the light. The third female was without a head; hacked off by the axe.

Selphie fell to her knees; the carpet beneath her was spongy with blood and made a squelch as she touched it. The smell clung to her nostrils relentlessly and she couldn't stop staring at them, she had known them, they had been her friends, but now their eyes were wide with anger and shock, their bodies bedded in a pool of their own blood-

Selphie vomited repeatedly. She couldn't help it. And when she was finished it wasn't enough and she shoved her fingers down her throat and was sick again and again and again until her throat burned and her breath was sour and all that came up was black bile.

But, Hyne, she was SeeD! She was trained for this: the deaths of comrades and friends, the sight of blood and hideous mutations from battle but this… this…

This is indescribable.

For a moment she was sure she would not be able to move again, sure that she could not continue. It wasn't possible. Selphie felt the queer sensation of being in a dream, witnessing everything from behind a sheet of glass, oddly detached from the situation. Everything seemed to drift before her eyes and the sound of Moeru sobbing and shrieking behind her came as an echo would: the parody of a voice, coming from nowhere and everywhere at once, eerie and unreal. But another sound joined Moeru's cries, and it was that sound that broke the glass that shielded Selphie from the horror.

She stood up and tried to regain some self-control. She looked for the source of the sound, almost inaudible but clear nonetheless. She freed her senses and listened more intently. It was coming from the library checkout counter. The brunette cautiously took a few steps towards the desk and she heard the sobbing louder than before. She quietly placed her hands on the mahogany surface and leaned over.

It was the girl with the pigtail that stared back at her. They were both frozen like that for sometime, staring intently at each other, judging each other, surveying each other until the librarian spoke.

'I didn't do anything! I swear! I swear! It wasn't me but I… I couldn't do anything! That's why I hid! Don't accuse me, okay? I didn't know… I did – I did-' Her voice, so angry at first, broke down into a series of frightened sobs. She hid her tear-streaked face between her knees, wrapping her arms around her body as she muttered: 'they watched the whole time. Those bastards. I saw them. They followed every movement, they did!'

Selphie swallowed. 'Who… Who watched?'

The SeeD pointed sharply at a camera that was surveying them, it's red light blinking, blinking, the lens staring directly at them.

'Do you know who put them there?' Selphie asked, hopping over the counter. Please, please know something.

The girl looked at Selphie with misty eyes. 'No. I have no idea.' She sniffed and wiped her wrist across her eyes. 'I woke up and…' she shrugged. 'I came here, looking for…well, anyone. And they were here. My friends. We waited for people to come and find us and… a-and someone did…'

Moeru had joined Selphie and the librarian behind the counter, her arms locked around Selphie's left one, her eyes darting nervously at the circuit of camera's that were monitoring them, their red eyes flashing.

'That-that girl… the new one; Natala, she came with all these weapons,' the librarian continued. 'She just strolled into the library and said she knew exactly what was going on. Selphie, she wasn't…normal. I should've known that something was wrong.'

Something was wrong

'But I didn't think. I…I was panicking inside, we all were. She had weapons and I was thankful but before we could take them from her she began laughing and began shooting and I ran and hid and hid and hid and I could hear them moaning and – '

'All right! All right, Aya that's enough! Please? I don't want to hear anymore!' Moeru begged through cracked sobs.

'But you didn't hear! You didn't hear the gunshots, Natala's crazed laughter,' Aya grabbed the girl's arm and Moeru's grip around Selphie's arm tightened. 'Something's wrong and I don't think we're going to live long enough to find out.'

Selphie's mind was grinding on sluggishly. She tried to put events in order, tried to put pieces of the puzzle together but the end result was pictures of her fellow students, mangled, bloody, dead. There was only one thing she was sure about: her original task. Find Squall and the others.

At least now I'm sure that there are more

(dead)

people in the Garden. I have to find Irvine and others. At least as a large group we might be able to find a way out of this situation.

'Listen, it's not going to do us any good staying here. We should go and look for other…survivors. Then maybe – '

'Nuh-uh. No way,' Aya objected immediately. 'I am not going out there with that lunatic roaming around with a machine gun and Hyne knows what else. I'm staying here.'

Selphie stood up, grimacing as she saw the dead SeeDs again. Moeru stood beside her and buried her face in Selphie's shoulder to stop herself from looking at the bodies. Selphie didn't say a word as she stepped over the confines of the counter and walked over to her deceased friends. Moeru let go of her arm.

The brunette picked her way through the gaps between their broken arms and legs, stepping in puddles of blood, red as the juice from a berry. She clambered clumsily over the fallen bookshelf to the boy on his front, the axe rearing its wooden body from his back.

'Selphie! What a-are you doing?' she heard Moeru hiss at her from behind the counter.

Okay Selphie you can do this. You can do this. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it do it do it doitdoitdoitdoit

Selphie gripped the axe handle with both hands and put her boot of the soft back of the former SeeD and pulled. The axe came loose with a horrific cracking sound that made Selphie grit her teeth and feel weak all over. A wave of dizziness passed before her and she tripped backwards over the shelves, falling onto the floor. She opening her eyes and saw the single eye of the dead girl staring accusingly at her. Selphie screamed and scrambled to feet, stumbling over another body and treading on the arm of a boy, making a sickening snap as the bone broke.

Free from the entanglement of dead bodies Selphie collapsed to her knees, axe still in hand and gagged, staring with disgust at her uniform, at the patches of red blood smeared across the front, and then at the gore covered axe in her hands.

Now, she thought, I have a weapon.

Moeru and Aya watched her wide-eyed along with the numerous cameras' that had silently adjusted their positions with the sudden explosion of movements made. Moeru let out a startled cry and leaped over the counter toward Selphie. Aya approached more hesitantly, keeping her distance from the armed girl, her demeanour both threatening and nervous like a cornered animal.

'It's okay,' Selphie spluttered, her heart hammering madly in her chest as she watched the blood ooze off of the axe's blade, falling with a quiet splat onto the floor. Selphie thought she had gone slightly mad as she repressed the odd urge to laugh.

'I want to find the others,' Moeru said, nodding feverently, brown eyes downcast. 'I don't want to stay here anymore, Selphie, please?'

Selphie felt the hard press of the axe against the small of her back, tasted the air; so full of blood and death and wondered how this had all occurred. Just yesterday she had been here, checking out a book to study, cheerfully waving goodbye to Aya. Now the brown-haired girl studied her with an apprehensive suspicion that unnerved Selphie, and made her shift nervously from foot to foot.

Selphie watched the girl opposite turn her stony gaze to the bodies of her friends, no doubt the gunshots and their cries of pain still ringing in her ears, Aya hastily announced: 'I'm coming with you.'

As they left, Selphie felt a strange sense of guilt accompany her for leaving her friends' bodies there; cold and uncared for, feared rather than mourned, still laying in a sea blood; their souls trapped within bodies; lonely and crying.

Why? Why is this happening? Wha-what am I meant to do now? Where – where do I go?

Have to find Irvine. Have to find out what's wrong. Cid. Will find Cid.

They entered the main hall cautiously; the last thing Selphie wanted was to run straight into the murderer of those Seeds. She had no inkling for what was going on but she at least wanted to live to find out, which years of experience would aid her in doing. It was pointless trying to keep a low profile in such an empty place where their footsteps could be heard from the other side of the Garden. Their only defence was speed and senses.

They kept their eyes open for any person, be they friend or foe, though Selphie wasn't completely sure who was friend and who was foe. Her mind was theatre of twisted thoughts and images, taunting her, whispering to her in the hollows of her mind where she was most vulnerable. These thoughts distorted her true outlook on her surroundings and her eyes began to play tricks on her. Was that a flash of yellow? Did something move to her right? Could she hear footsteps? No. No I can't. Keep focused. Or you wont live to see Irvine again, got it?

Moeru possessed amazing stealth and speed (though Selphie guessed it was due to her fear) and was quickly looking at the face of elevator, frantically pressing the button to summon it. Aya meticulously surveyed the area, her muscles visibly tense and ready for attack though Selphie wondered what action she would take if they were attacked, obviously she hadn't handled the surprise slaughter in the library very well.

Why is the elevator taking so long? Wait… Before we went to the library didn't it come down? That means… if it's taking so long it must have gone to another level. Someone else used it while we were with Aya.

The elevator doors slid open and the empty cubicle waited patiently for them to enter. They piled in, anxious to be away from open space, away from prying eyes. Or so Selphie thought.

'Oohh, even in here?'

Selphie turned and saw Aya staring with a flare in her eye at a camera; it's one eye watching them with a channelled intensity that couldn't be matched. Even in a tiny space like this someone was surveying them. What exactly were they watching for? And who were they?

'Selphie, smash it with the axe,' Moeru said, nervously hiding behind Aya who was glaring defiantly at the tiny machine.

But Selphie could hear it now, the smash, and the tinkle of glass that tumbled to the floor. She could see the naked body of it, it's wires poking out like veins, it's one eye shattered and broken on the floor. There was something about doing that that just didn't feel right. But why? Why would something like that be so important?

'Selphie,' Moeru persisted, her eyes burning like the sun, 'I don't like it. I don't like it watching us!'

The elevator hummed around them, the movement made her feel insecure. The camera made her feel even worse, being so close to one made her shiver and the axe burned against her back. But there was just something wro –

Ding

The elevator stopped. But…they weren't on the third floor, where Cid's office was. They were on the second floor. Selphie hammered on the button but the elevator obstinately refused to budge and continue its ascent. Second floor it is then.

As the doors hissed open she glanced at the camera, straining its little body around to follow their movements, as if it were a living creature, fascinated by what they were, where they were going, what they were doing. Yet it wasn't the camera that was fascinated: it was the person behind the camera, the sick bastard sitting safely away from the people and places, monitoring them and staring with eyes alight with glee and twisted interest at the suffering students. That's how Selphie imagined it anyway.

The corridor was empty, as she had expected, and they appeared to be alone. But Selphie saw clearly the one eye staring through her, heard the crisp crunch of the arm breaking beneath her foot, smelt the coppery smell of blood in her nostrils and wouldn't take any chances. So with those thoughts in her head she drew her axe and gripped the hard surface between hands. The handle was sticky with blood and she knew that when she pulled them away her palms would be smudged with the dark, congealing liquid. That thought made her feel slightly light headed and she thought she would have to sit down: until she heard the sudden hiss of a door nearby.

Selphie motioned for Moeru and Aya to stay motionless, edging to the right until she felt the cool press of the wall against her back. Slowly and silently she crept along it and peered around the corner to the corridor beyond. Empty.

Selphie adjusted her grip on the axe and hopped across to the adjacent classroom, being careful not to set the doors off and revealing her presence. Never taking her eyes off the door, she positioned herself so that she had her back against the wall to the right of the classroom and listened. She did what she had been taught and tried to detach and identify one noise from another. This wasn't hard as the Garden was insanely silent, and now she could hear everything. Her blood pumped noisily in her ears, she could hear the rapid breaths of Aya and Moeru, waiting anxiously for her return around the corner, she heard the steady hum of the fluorescent lights above her, and most importantly, she could identify muffled footsteps coming from within. There was someone just inches from her waiting form inside the classroom.

Selphie closed her eyes and tried to concentrate, concentrate on her attack plan. An axe wasn't the best of weapons when confronted with a gun. She would have to rely on surprise and hopefully get as close to the killer as she could. But would she kill the person? Shouldn't she question her first? But surely, if she was that dangerous and becoming a mindless killer, she should be exterminated before any more harm could be done?

The SeeD decided that it would be best to try and get into a position where the murderer could only be threatened and intimidated into talking. Selphie quickly prepared herself mentally.

I have to be quick and ready for anything that bitch pulls. I have to get there first, possibly try to disarm her. I can do this. I know I can. Surprise is-

The door flew aside and the classroom inhabitant was upon her, taking Selphie completely by surprise. The axe flew from her grasp and she was tackled to the floor before she could defend herself or even cry out. She struggled to grasp an advantage as she felt the attacker wrestle with her arms and pin them to the tiled floor that was harsh and cold against her milk-white skin. Selphie kicked and arched her back, trying to free her legs now as the killer pressed her legs down with their sheer body weight. Their face was so close to hers she could feel their hot breath against her cheek and hear them desperately panting in the effort to restrain her.

But then, amidst the confusion, she caught a flash of blonde hair. She strained to keep her eyes open under the pain that was spreading through her legs and saw a dark tattoo dance before her. Light dawned.

'Zell!' she screeched, 'Zell! Zell! Stop! Ah!'

Her attacker ceased suddenly and pushed himself up away from her so that there was space between their faces. She saw clearly now the face of martial artist, his blues wide with shock and sparking with adrenalin. His tattoo decorated his left cheek, which were flushed with his sudden effort of trying to pin a fully trained SeeD to the ground.

Zell leaped off her as quickly as he had leapt upon her and hurriedly offered a hand down to the brunette.

'Selphie, I'm so sorry. I-I didn't know it was you…' he laughed suddenly: 'I'm glad Irvine didn't see that; he'd be kicking my sorry ass right now!'

Hope y'all liked it! and guess what? More gore and mayhem and questions to come in the next chapter! Horray for mayhem! Death to all! MWHAHAHA!...man, I have eaten waayyy too much sugar today...R&R...even if you hated it!