SO: A BETTER version of the "Say Goodbye When you Have the Chance", because the first one really did suck. I gotta thank the reviewer: Tiffany for that, since she put me in line. This is hopefully a better story.
Disclaimer: Don't own anything expect Gene.
Wrote this while listening to a few selected tracks that I downloaded and placed on a CD. They're mostly the piano, or really soft and light tunes.
I quickly pressed the restart button on my PS2, grumbling under my breath about how stupid everything was. I was mad. It was plain and simple and obvious. That damn soul cage had to show up and kill my crew off. Yes, I've gotten pass that game, and I had beaten it at least four times, but after having nothing more to do, I had quickly begun to replay it off of a save point I hadn't touched since the first time I ever played the game.
It was no wonder why I had made a separate file. These characters were too weak for anything! However…all the other files had been deleted while I was playing some of my other PS1 games.
"I'll just play it from the beginning." I said allowed, as if for the sake of my own understanding. I waited until the screen flashed with the 'Continue' and 'New Game'. I selected the New Game icon and then quickly bounced to my CD Player and placed in my homemade CD of FFIX songs I liked. L selected the Memories of that Day song and made sure that all other sound was blocked.
I then took a glance at my mirror that was atop my dresser. My short black hair, which was layered with the longest part in front and it getting shorter and shorter in the back, was shiny and clean. Sure, it was only Level 3 permanent die and would eventually start to fade, but I didn't care much, as long as I could re-dye it soon after. I was wearing my black camisole that went well with my blue Levi jeans. I was wearing this outfit from the night before, since I hadn't gone to bed, yet. Everything else was pretty much plain about me, except that the mascara and eyeliner were fading off and that my contacts were getting dry. I would have to get some re-wetting drops on the next FMV…
However, when I reproached my television and PS2, I noticed the screen was stuck on the FMV part where Zidane had just finished climbing down the pole. I shook my PS2, then began to rub it against one of my hands, trying to warm it up to get the CD to work.
"But the game disk isn't even scratched!" I shouted miserably. I rubbed my temples as I began to get incredibly frustrated…
I kicked my PS2, as if it were my computer that caught some new fatal spy ware after I downloaded emulators and roms that had taken hours to fully download. That's how pissed off I was at it!
"Ok…once more…!" I shouted, sure I was waking my parents. But I was just soo-----
There was white…everyone…surrounding me. I gasped in shock, and suddenly found it was getting harder to breath. I was hurting. The music from my headphones was fading off, and so were my senses. All the senses except for pain.
It felt like I was being ripped away, as if my soul decided to leave me forever of its barrier of protection against this world's pains!
I think I was being ripped…away from this plane of existence, anyway. The white was so overwhelming that, as my friend would say, "It's so white--it's black!"
I carefully opened my eyes, blinking a couple of times to only experience a huge headache from the source of light that came from the center of the room I was in.
Which reminds me--WHERE THE HELL AM I?
I sat up carefully, and for the first time noticed that there was someone leaning over me. Well, would have been leaning over me, if not for being so surprised that he backed away some.
But I think I was even more surprised as I stared into the face that greeted me. Zidane Tribal. Main character of Final Fantasy 9 and one of the only Final Fantasy members on the PS1 to get an acceptable ending by me.
"Zidane?" I nearly shrieked, something very much unlike me. Zidane just looked at me, and then scratched his head. "You know me?" he asked me, suddenly, or so it seemed, very suspicious.
"Uh…" I didn't know what to say. I was so shocked at meeting him, and I couldn't even think of an excuse--ok, Gene, be calm. Be calm.
"I saw you in my dreams." I replied suddenly. I don't even think I was thinking about saying that--or anything near that--before it slipped out. He looked even more surprised.
"So you're Gene Gerdes?" Zidane reached out his hand, and I took it. Well, might as well act like someone I'm not. I'm in a dream. They'll never remember it once I wake up. And in the next dream I'll ever have of them being in it, they'll be in a different situation, and in a different status about me.
Then it hit me about what he said. "Ok, how did you know I was Gene?" I demanded. He gave a smirk and nonchalantly threw my wallet at me. "What kind of contraption is that?" he asked.
"A wallet." I replied with annoyance. "It holds my money."
"But you have no Gil. You only have these weird green bills." he held up one of my $1 bills, and I grabbed it quickly, surprising him a bit. "This is my money. They're called American Dollars."
"Never heard of it."
I opened my wallet and placed the money in there. I looked in my mini-mirror placed on the inside of the wallet, and instantly the wallet dropped. My eyes…I could see perfectly, but my eyes…the Sclera were a dark gray, not white, and my irises were black, while my pupils were white. It's like…everything had reversed or something…
However, now I seem to be able to read things. Like I saw Zidane's next movements in just a second, and then he did his turn to look at me. I picked up my wallet. I liked these eyes…and, still, a dream is a dream.
Zidane began to look around the room. "Anyways, now that you're up, we need to head into the meeting. Are you up for it? Baku's real loud."
"Yeah, sure…" I took one step forward before losing my balance…Hey, wait a minute! I never put these boots on…I noticed all my clothes were different. I was wearing my black camisole, but it had four straps holding it on me, two around each shoulder. There was a metal belt right across my chest, as if protecting my breasts. And there was a belt going diagonally across my stomach area, the end stopping just above where the camisole stopped. Another metal belt was placed underneath it, one side of it attached to the diagonal belt. Around my upper right arm was something that resembled the gloves that Zidane wears. Around my upper left arm were another two belts that resembled the ones across my stomach area.
My pants were different, too. The right side of them was cut off like shorts, and a belt was around the front middle and back middle to hold up the bottom part of baggy black pants. On the left leg, the belt location was the same, but there was no separation like there had been on the right leg. Another belt was placed over the middle of the belt that went down. My shoes were black boots, and they just peeked out from the baddy pants. My belt that went around my waist (like they're suppose to) had two slashes diagonally right with one diagonal slash going left across the two.
I also black had fingerless gloves on, that came to my wrist.
Zidane grabbed me by my shoulders and he carefully help to steady me. "You sure you're up for it?"
"Compared what is to be coming, you have no idea how 'up for it' I am." I replied. I wasn't about to elaborate. He could figure it out on his own.
We entered into the room where the Tantalus team was waiting 'patiently'. The three, Cinna, Blank, and Marcus, looked at me as if looking me over to see if I was fine. Baku gave a big, hearty-laugh, which made Zidane's words popped back into my ear. "About time, you moron!" the boss shouted at Zidane.
I rolled my eyes, but remained silent. I may want to be recognized, but not at the price of being called a moron!
"Here's the plan!" Baku began, "Tantalus, the infamous band of daring thieves (that's us), is headin' to the kingdom of Alexandria... Our mission: to kidnap the heir to the throne, Princess Garnet!"
"You guys are idiots…" I mumbled, but it seems I was loud enough for them to catch that.
"Excuse us?" Blank asked. It was obvious he was getting annoyed.
"Well…" I saw all eyes upon me. Too late to back down with my big speech…damn. "Just because she's a Princess doesn't mean she has to like it. They got no privacy, being watched over constantly, and all. And when she does get her small moment of privacy, it's behind four enclosed walls. I mean, you can lead a user to his manual, but you can't make him read."
After becoming greeted with blanks stares over what I just said, I suddenly found myself pondering if they even have manuals here--or if they were just tutorials…
"Let me rephrase that: You can lead a person to the tutorial, but you can't make him review it." I just had to change the words around and--bingo! They finally understood as I was greeted with the nods of understanding.
"Either way, we're kidnapping her!" Baku said, and then began to laugh as if he had just said the most hilarious thing in this whole world.
I rolled my eyes. "What do I have to do…?" I asked meekly.
"Well, Blank and Zidane are going to be the ones who will be doing the actual kidnapping. You should go, too. Since you're a girl, you could persuade her if she starts running." Baku explained with a grin.
Being around a few of my guy friends too long, and seeing the expression on Zidane's face, I knew what he was thinking. "Oh my flippin' word…" I looked down, my hand on my forehead, before turning my head up to greet his. "If I was to 'persuade' any girl, it would be with someone a lot more sexier." I replied patiently, "and it would be for lots of Gil."
Zidane's eyes widened. Apparently, girls weren't suppose to talk like this in this era of time and place. Well, I'm foreign. I get to ignore the rules--at least to some extent. Like those stupid foreign drivers on the freeway, driving 40 mph in the fast lane!
A blush formed on his cheek, and I ignored him, as I now saw the rest of the crew was doing, as they continued their plan.
"Alright, so everyone goes on stage. After the small fight, Blank, Zidane, and--" Baku looked at me. He didn't know my name yet, I remembered.
"Gene."
"Gene will enter the castle through the side entrance. You guys capture the Princess and mosey over here!" Baku finished.
"I'm sooo glad I took Drama last year!" I gave a sigh of relief.
Baku exited the room, taking both the Brahne and Garnet dolls with him. Sick Bastard.
Everyone started talking excitedly about their plan. It was going to be foolproof. Everything was going to go right. Humph…idiots. Things always go wrong. It's, like, life's natural punishment to us humans for taking up it's time with our own meaningless existence.
I sighed. I shouldn't be thinking about things like this…I should be trying to remember the lines of what happens in the real play!
"Oi…" I said allowed without really thinking. When I'm in deep concentration, sometimes I talk out loud without meaning so. "We have to fight against Baku, Benero, and Zenero, right?" I asked. "Well…I don't really have a weapon…"
"We have some time before the play starts. I'll show you to the Weapon Shop and you can pick something up." Zidane told me. He smiled, and I rolled my eyes. He was probably going to try some stupid pick-up lines on me…I can tell…
SO: First Chapter completed, second one should come soon. Sorry if I'm still off on a few things. My friend is borrowing the game (how's it going, Tsuki aka Megan aka Neross aka whatever else you have as nicknames…like I'm on to talk, though, eh?)
