Introduction Finale
By Daredevil3181
All the contestants had been slowly feeling their way around the city known as Grandis Somnium. Whether it was going to the local bars, aimlessly meandering down its streets, or devoting themselves wholly to the training center, the combatants enjoyed the amenities this place had to offer in one form or another. All of them except for one.
"Terra! How nice it is to see you," said a matronly woman with a smile on her face.
"I'm just glad I can help," responded the half-esper girl.
"The children are grateful for all the time you've put in here. Some of the families in this city work really hard to make ends meet. If it wasn't for us their kids would remain unsupervised and who knows what tragedy could strike." The woman looked saddened at this last statement.
'She's remembering her own child,' Terra thought to herself. 'Exhausted after working one night, she collapsed upon her bed. A fire broke out in the building. No matter how much I reassure her she'll keep blaming herself.'
"You've done so much good, Marie," Terra said, as she placed her arm on the shoulder of the older woman. "I'm really happy to make a difference here in the short time I have."
Both women grimaced at this last statement. Try as she might, Terra wasn't really a fighter and both of them knew that. Neither wanted to be reminded of it, but it wouldn't be too long before Terra headed back to her own dimension.
"Tewwa! Tewwa!" a young girl yelled as she ran up to her, still wiping the sleep out of her eyes.
"Hey, Casey!" the green-haired woman grinned as she bent down and picked up the toddler. "Look who's the first to awaken. What were you up to today? Causing trouble again?"
"No Tewwa!" the young girl shouted. "I was a good girl!"
Terra looked over at the daycare area that was a complete mess. There were half-eaten crayons, building blocks all over the place, and cereal decorating the floor. 'Somehow I doubt that,' she thought to herself. 'Can't fault them for having a childhood, though. It's something I was never really offered. I sure won't let anyone deny them this opportunity if I can help it.'
"I hear the contest is starting tomorrow. When will you be competing?" Marie wondered.
"Not for another three weeks," Terra replied. "I'm fighting against someone named Dante. He seems to have a general unpleasant attitude. On top of that, he's a half-demon…"
"You can't lose to that meanie, Tewwa!"
Terra couldn't help but laugh at the little girl. "OK, I'll win just for you. How does that sound, Casey?"
"Yay!" laughed the girl. "Nobody can beat Miss Tewwa!"
'Three more weeks,' sighed Terra. 'At least I can make myself useful here in the meantime.'
One by one, the other children began to wake up from their naps. Each one of their faces lit up with surprise and joy when they saw the green-haired woman. Very soon she was mobbed by an army of little people.
"Who wants to play some duck-duck-goose?" Terra asked.
"Me!" all the children shouted at once.
"OK, we need to form a circle. And let's see, who should I start out with…Tyler! You can be 'it' first."
The kids sat down and began to start the timeless game. Terra even allowed herself to join in once or twice, playfully hugging the little ones as she tagged them back. Marie just looked on in silent appreciation.
'Three weeks,' thought Marie. She turned quickly before any of the group could see a small tear forming at the corner of her eye. 'But thank you lord for even this small amount of time. It's good to know you really are looking out for some of us.'
-----
While a higher authority may have been granting its favor to the half-esper girl, there were some people that were beyond redemption. One man in particular was robed in a green cloak, his face painted in a macabre parody of a jester's visage. Laughing to himself about anything and nothing, to call him crazy would be an understatement.
'Look at everyone walking around down here,' thought Kefka as his lip curled in disgust. 'Moving around like little ants. They should only be so lucky to have someone like me as their champion.'
Speaking of ants, the clown suddenly felt a sting on his upper thigh. Glancing down, it soon became apparent that he was standing right in the middle of a red ant pile. Eyes going wide, he leaped to the side and immediately collected some power into his hands. Flames shot out as the ant pile was incinerated.
The man wasn't done yet, though. He then grabbed a nearby stick and began whacking the burnt ground with a wild fervor. With each pounding the ground took he snickered at how much those annoying bugs would pay for attacking him. After a minute or two he peered at the ash intently for any signs of life. To his surprise, a single ant still crawled around in an attempt to get away from the gruesome carnage.
Kefka's face flushed with rage. 'These creatures have the audacity to live after I offered them a most glorious death! How dare they!'
"Destroy, destroy, destroy!" the jester cackled as he danced on top of the lone living insect. A few locals walked by and just stared at the man in wonderment. The ones that knew better pulled their children closer to them and left the lunatic to his own madness.
"Dead ant…dead ant…dead ant, dead ant, dead ant, dead ant…" the clown sung in a little impromptu song. Looking at the miniature carnage, he grinned in sadistic glee.
"Cower, you dogs!" Kefka called out to no one in particular. "Soon you'll know what it's like to have a true ruler!"
A lone figure surveyed all this with a cool façade. His eyes were hidden from view by a pair of thick sunglasses. With his arms crosses over his chest, he couldn't believe
this one's sheer insanity.
'If you were to rule the world, it would definitely wind up as some kind of perverted, ruined place,' Albert Wesker thought to himself. 'I, on the other hand, don't destroy things merely for the sake of destroying. Everything serves a purpose in life and sometimes in death as well. It's just up to the superior ones, like myself, to find out what that purpose is and exploit it.'
Kefka began walking around in circles and muttering obscenities to himself under his breath. Every twenty steps or so he would then bend down to wipe some imaginary substance off his boots. After a few more minutes Wesker could stand it no longer.
"I really don't like to play favorites when it's none of my concern," Wesker said to himself. "But I really hope that gangster gets rid of this blight. His very presence absolutely sickens me."
Sighing to no one in particular, the former STARS leader adjusted his glasses, ran his hands through his cropped hair, and made sure his tight shirt looked presentable. With one last glance at the jester, he started the walk back to the hotel.
'I used to worry about zombies being contagious,' Wesker thought. 'When that proved to be true and that it could be manipulated, all was well. Now I worry about his insanity catching. Not because I couldn't overcome it, but because there would be absolutely no value in controlling it.'
Kefka just laughed a maniacal howl as Wesker began to put distance between himself and the green-cloaked madman.
-----
"So, let me guess this straight…" began Ocelot. "We bring you this thing and you'll grant us power?"
"That's correct," Sephiroth replied. "Power that not only can be used here, but can also be carried back to your home dimension."
"How do we know we can trust you?" Big Boss asked, doubting the man's supposed sincerity.
"You can't," the silver-haired man stated flat out. "But on that note, how do I know I can trust you to not steal the artifact for yourselves?"
"Point taken," Big Boss conceded.
"What's this worth to you anyways?" Ocelot demanded.
'Watch who you're addressing with that tone,' Sephiroth thought as he shot daggers at the older man's lack of respect.
"Oh, it's sentimental value more than anything," Sephiroth explained. "Swords take many different shapes and forms throughout the dimensions. I am what you would call a collector. This one in particular bears a strange similarity to my own. As such, it should be mine."
"I'm not someone's errand boy, kid," Big Boss said. "This power better be worth the risk."
Before the final word has left Big Boss' mouth, he was shocked to find himself suspended by his neck a good foot off the ground. He squeezed down hard on the fingers the tightened around his throat, fighting for air. Finally, he was released and fell to the ground in a crumpled heap, wheezing for breath.
"The strength you both shall be granted will be worth far more than any trouble this assignment proves to be," hissed Sephiroth. "On the other hand, you don't have too many options. I am a judge here and no one would consider it strange if one of our contestants met with an unfortunate 'accident'. There's already enough crime in this city as is."
"Sonuva…" Big Boss trailed off under his breath.
"Don't worry about him," Ocelot interjected, trying to calm the sinister man's rage. "You just keep up your end of the bargain and we'll keep ours."
"Splendid," the imposing figure said, again through his obviously hollow smile. "You may now take your leave."
Ocelot didn't need to be told twice as he briskly walked out the door. Big Boss looked at Sephiroth with a glance bordering on hate. What seemed like an eternity passed before he finally broke it off and turned around. There was a look of disgust on his face as he stormed out of the suite. The door slammed with barely suppressed rage.
As the footsteps grew softer and softer, Sephiroth mentally reviewed the day's plans and took a seat at his large, ornately-decorated desk.
"You don't plan to keep your word, do you?" a voice asked from inside the shadows.
"Of course not," Sephiroth answered, not even bothering to glance up from his papers. "Well, not entirely. They will gain power…just not in the way that they were expecting."
"Excellent plan," the hooded figure agreed. "Couldn't have done it any better myself."
"Do you have anything else to say or will I have to forcibly request you to leave this room too?"
"Gather your power," the person cryptically hissed. "He already starts to amass his own players and to devise strategies of his own."
"All for naught in the end, I'm afraid. There can only be one victor when this contest is over. And I'm not talking about our so-called 'champion'. The real battle will rage afterwards. It's not one I intend on losing."
"Just be careful," the person warned. "Overconfidence has been many a failed conqueror's downfall."
"How nice of you to worry about my safety," Sephiroth said slowly, mock sincerity mixed into his words. "And another thing, you never told me exactly what you get out of all this. Why aid me in my plans?"
"One shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. Besides, can't an old soul have a little amusement in this world from watching interesting events transpire?"
"I suppose so," the former SOLDIER said. "But I'm sure you have another agenda. Just remember I'll be keeping my eye on you as well. And I don't react too well to traitors who have wronged me."
"Fear not," the cloaked one gurgled. "The only person you should worry about now is your eternal opposition. After he is out of the way, then you can broaden your horizons and implement your true goals."
"You know nothing of my real plans," Sephiroth coldly stated. There was a pause that seemed to make the air as thick as molasses. "Now get out of my presence. Your stench disgusts me."
Bowing in an exaggerated manner, the figure retreated back into the shadows and disappeared. The hooded one wasn't the only one to leave the room, though. A certain figure heard all that had transpired and wasn't pleased one bit. It was a good thing that he had taken what he needed from that Princess. The time for him to once again play that haunting tune would come a lot sooner than he had hoped. With a slight shudder, he quietly slipped out through a back window. A faint breeze was the only thing that marked his passing as Sephiroth took note of a draft that had begun to ruffle his papers.
"Damn that cloaked one," Sephiroth hissed. "The least he could do is close the window after he leaves."
