Duel of Fates

by Omega Gilgamesh

Complete. A new student in the Garden with many secrets becomes entangled in something greater, and in the end, must choose between his fate, or that of the Garden's.

7. A New Power Awakened

Disclaimer: I don't own FFVIII. If I did, you would be seeing this story on your PS2 instead of on your computer.

Chapter Five: A New Power Awakened

Hideo jumped back, doing a flip to avoid the Grat that was flailing at him. As the monster closed in, he started spinning his translucent blue sword in vertical circles, from left to right, knocking away the flailing arms. The Grat's leathery skin made it hard to cut those tentacles off, as they were batted off like ribbons.

Just a little longer…he thought.

It was funny watching the behavior of monsters. This one was a berserker, attacking relentlessly, while his friend stayed close behind, obviously watching for a opening thanks to his reckless friend.

Hideo quickly turned, and jumped off a stump, flipped in the air, and landed ten feet away. Just a couple more seconds…

The large ferns he jumped over slowed them down for the time he needed.

Hideo smiled. "Crush of the Abyss." He whispered. His body vanished, yet he still saw everything that happened. Everything within ten feet of the first Grat grew dark, until only it stood there.

Out of the darkness beyond the Grat, a giant squid undulated forward through the air as if it were in water. It's rubbery skin flashed different shades of blue across it, like the sand under the crashing surface of a beaches surf.

Krakken then turned it's arrow-shaped head upward, it's full twelve-foot length revealed. His lone, gigantic eye focused on the Grat, and then shined a bright turquoise. The ground under the monster turned blue, and shot up, surrounding it in a sphere of water.

Krakken's ten arms fanned out, then shot straight down. The sphere of water holding the Grat suddenly compressed, crushing the monster. Green blood and other bodily fluids mixed into the water, cloaking the monster's body. Krakken then disappeared, light returned to the surroundings, and the sphere of water hit the ground, leaving the Grat laying there like a broken sack of meat.

Hideo's body returned to the physical realm, just in time to hear the intercom turn on. Hideo Masters, please report to the bridge.

Before Hideo could turn to leave the Training Center, four leathery arms wrapped around him, pinning his sword to his sides. The other Grat, the methodical one, turned him around, and dragged him towards it's Venus Flytrap like mouth.

"Clever girl." Hideo mumbled, realizing the monster had used the death of it's friend to get behind him. As soon as it lifted him up to be swallowed, the intercom finished off. I repeat, Hideo Masters, please report to the bridge.

One look at the monster's insides, and Hideo grumbled, knowing he was not going to be presentable when he reached the bridge.

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Squall looked back at his watch. "I'll give him another thirty-seconds before I'll make another announcement." He said to the headmaster.

"I'm sure we just caught him in the shower or something." Cid commented.

Then, the doors to the bridge opened, and Hideo walked in. His black jumpsuit and blue trench coat, with their matching gold and silver dragon designs, were covered in green blood and gunk, with some entrails of Grat intestines.

"I see we may have caught you at a bad time." Cid commented.

In no small part thanks to your impeccably timed announcement. Hideo thought, keeping his comment silent. As soon as he was standing before them, he saluted and stood at attention. "I guess you could say that. Is it okay if we make this quick?"

"Absolutely." Cid walked over to a desk, and pulled up a file. "I've been told by many of your instructors that you're…quite knowledgeable in computer handling. We've been hired to go to a lost mobile research laboratory, recently discovered, and download their memory banks. SeeD is a group of combat specialists, so computer specialization is somewhat rare within our ranks."

"Sir, why are we going and not a tech specialist team." Hideo already knew the answer, but he wanted to act as ignorant as possible. After Prime Minister Seagill's threats, he had done what he could to 'remind' his instructors of all those times he proved his superior computer knowledge and skill, and it seemed the 'reminders' proved successful.

"That's why the station was lost in the first place, because it was overrun with monsters. Seeing as you seem to know more about computers than our own maintenance crew, I'd like to assign you to this mission. It'll be good to break you in."

Hideo nodded. "Sir, when should I be ready?"

"You are to depart at O-six hundred hours tomorrow morning. You may want to bring a book, it'll be a long flight."

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It was a long flight. The Ragnarok was made more for space travel than atmospheric flight. As such, they would depart early morning, and be arriving at the station by early afternoon. Hideo had stored his portocomputer and Fly in an air suit compartment, the last place anyone would need to be, the last place anyone would look.

"So, what are you reading?" Ashwin asked Hideo in the passenger lounge, taking a break from his Occult Fan Magazine.

"Vengeance of the Marquis." Hideo answered. It was a political thriller involving members of the Dollet aristocracy; a book Delta recommended for him.

Hideo put the book down and gazed up to the early morning sky. He wished Delta had been put on this mission, she had been avoiding him since their talk on the balcony. It must be tough for someone who had everything growing up to try and sympathize with someone they cared about who grew up with nothing.

Hideo thought about that. Cared about…yeah, she probably cares about me. It slightly surprised him to find himself admitting that he cared for her as well. And not for the first time, he wondered why someone like her would want to join SeeD.

He sighed. Now he really wished she had been assigned to this mission as well.

"Hideo Masters, report to the bridge." Commander Leonhart's voice said over the speakers.

"I wonder how many more times I'll hear that." He jokingly mused.

A minute later, the elevator lifted him to the bridge. "Sit down here." The commander ordered, pointing to the seat next to him.

After Hideo seated himself, the commander continued, "I'm going to teach you how to fly this thing."

"Huh!" Hideo asked, surprised. The stone cold, monotonous, virtually friendless, often-called-a-jerk, Commander Leonhart had to be making a jest of some kind.

Well, it had to be possible at least.

"Standard operating procedure: whenever the Ragnarok is commissioned, there has to be at least two SeeDs or Garden members onboard capable of piloting."

Hideo became really anxious. He had never been one to want to fly, but now that he had the opportunity, he felt a new exhilaration at the idea.

"For right now, hold the wheel still. Move it slightly to adjust course, don't move it any more than that unless we need to make sharp turns." He then showed him how to operate the pedals, which adjusted the individual outputs of the two engines, working in a similar way to a rudder, and about the acceleration and deceleration controls, what the different gauges were, and so on.

For the first few hours of daylight, the commander let Hideo fly the craft. Surprisingly, it was very uneventful. Indeed, he barely had to move the wheel to adjust course. If he moved the wheel a whole inch to the side, he could have noticed the change if he were asleep. It was uneventful, even a little boring, yet it's own exhilaration to it, mild as it was.

As soon as the sun was well above the horizon, Squall took back the controls, and explained, as best he could, the process of taking off and landing. Shortly after that, Hideo left to the passenger lounge, where the five other SeeD members had their seats leaning as far back as they would go, trying to get a last hour or two of sleep.

As he lay there, he wished, more and more, that Delta was there with him.

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As Hideo walked out of the refresher unit, he saw Marlon leaning against the wall, reading Ashwin's Occult Fan. "Hey." He greeted, not looking away from it.

Hideo greeted him back before heading towards the cargo hold.

"Hideo." Marlon said, making him stop. "You ever read these?" He asked, referring to the magazine.

"No, I'm not into tabloids." Hideo answered.

"Well, you wouldn't believe some of the crap these guys come up with. You've heard of the Black Behemoth? That multinational crime syndicate? Well, they say they have, get this, a sorcerer in their ranks! A sorcerer, as in male! HA!"

Hideo couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Yeah, that is ridiculous."

Then, the door the to main hallway opened up, and Marion, Marlon's older sister, walked ran in. "Hey, the lab is in sight!"

Hideo and Marlon quickly followed her to the passenger lounge, where they could see the approaching research center.

"They didn't say anything about it being in the middle of the ocean." Hideo said.

"They aren't from Esthar," Marion said, "something that size can only be mobile on water."

"Kinda looks like an oil rig, don't you think?" Marlon asked.

"Yeah, it kinda does." Hideo didn't bother asking what an oil rig was. Esthar stopped using fossil fuels decades ago.

"So what's this place called?" Hideo asked.

"It's the Deep Sea Research Center, also known as Battle Ship Island."

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After they had landed on the remains of the station's heliport, all the SeeDs met up in the docking bay. After being briefed on what monsters to expect, and the general design of the station, they discussed strategies of entering, monster extermination methods, and the chain of command, with Commander Leonhart and Zell Dincht at the top.

Then, Squall pressed the button to lower the ramp. For the dozenth time since he grabbed them, Hideo casually checked his pocket to make sure the Fly was still there, safe and secure, and equally casually scratching his arm to feel the portocomputer. Just one glance at the right angle, it could be seen, and if he didn't come up with a good excuse real fast, he would be exposed.

"Hey, Esthar dude." Zell said to Hideo, making him jump slightly. "Since you're the junior member here, I thought I'd give you this, you'll need it here." A GF sphere materialized in Zell's hand, and he handed it to the young Estharian.

As Hideo absorbed it into him, he felt a new rush as the GF's immense power flowed into him. This GF was far more powerful than both of his GFs combined!

"What is this?" Hideo asked.

"That's Bahamut, baby! And yes, as in THE Bahamut."

"The king of dragons!" Hideo couldn't believe it. Right at that moment, he was the host of one of the most powerful GFs known! He felt the eddies and eases of Bahamut's power coursing through him, dwarfing his other GFs. "Where did you get him?"

"Funny enough as it is, we found him here." Zell answered.

"What, the Ragnarok?"

"No, this research station." Zell answered. "They contained him here to do experiments on GF research."

Hideo felt a hard pulse from Bahamut, one that resonated with anger and contempt.

"Everyone." Squall spoke up a moment after that, addressing all the SeeDs present. "Be on your guard at all times, report everything that's even imaginarily suspicious, keep track of each other and watch their backs, and be prepared for retreat. Understood?"

A few of them gave their affirmatives, but Ashwin asked, "Sir, why the extra precaution? All reports indicate this place is only a Class B danger zone, and most of us have been through such places before."

Hideo was thinking the same thing. Deling City was classified as Class B as well, and with this mission also involving heavy monster populations, they were very similar. But the commander seemed hesitant, even a little spooked.

Commander Leonhart looked away from the group, off into empty space for a moment, then looked towards the ramp, where the station lay, deep thought showing behind those eyes. Deep thought and worry. "There's…something there. Something we don't know about, but it's definitely there. And I don't want any surprises."

There was some unrest visible within the group at these words. Some of them felt the unrest from Squall's warnings, the rest worried that he was losing it.

"Is he always this paranoid?" Hideo asked Zell in a whisper.

"No." He answered, his tone deadly serious. "I was here when we discovered this place. There's definitely something here. You may not feel it now, but you will soon. Trust me."

For a moment, Bahamut's power within him spiked, and Hideo got the distinct feeling that he was being watched. The feeling was so powerful, so palpable, it was almost as if the whole planet had laid it's eyes upon him. For a moment, two blue eyes, surrounded in gold, filled his vision, freezing him in place, gripping his heart in it's grip.

The experience lasted but a moment, and it was gone. The thought came to say something of what he just saw, but the thought left him as soon as it came, as well as the moment of the experience, as if swept away by a current.

Then a loud thud resounded, distracting Hideo from his seemingly blind confusion. The gangway had hit the tarmac. "Move out!" Squall ordered.

Shaking the feelings of fear that he couldn't remember the cause of, Hideo took a deep breath, then pulled out his sword and a gun. He held his sword across his body, ready to swing in a moment's notice, while keeping the gun trained forward. He was to hold the group's left flank as they traveled through the station.

As they crossed the ruins of the landing pad, Hideo felt Bahamut's power…blooming, in a sense. The GF knew battle wasn't far off. His power and pride became one with his own, and all the anxiety and fear he felt evaporated.

As they entered the main building, Hideo saw the inside was as overgrown with vegetation as the outside. This place looked like it had been abandoned for decades in the middle of a jungle. 'What happened here? How could plants like this have grown in a place like this? How did they even get here?' He wondered.

The Commander held up his fist, signaling the others to stop. He and Zell stepped forward. They looked around, like there was a ghost constantly staying at the edge of their vision. They looked at each other, and it was obvious they knew they both were thinking the same thing.

"Don't let your guard down." Squall reminded. He signaled for them to continue on. He then lead them to a cascade of large wires and cables that went down a large hole in the ground. "I'll go down first. Follow when I tell you it's clear." He announced before jumping down.

Immediately, the familiar screams and roars of smaller monsters were heard down there, along with a few yells from the commander, and a couple ear shattering booms of his gunblade going off. In under twenty seconds, all went silent, save the howling winds from the outdoors and the distant crashing waves against the station's hull. "Clear!"

Zell nodded to Kayla, who grabbed onto the cables, and climbed down. Marion went down next, followed by Hideo. As he jumped the last few feet, he saw the basement levels were circular around a huge tank full of amazingly clear water, or whatever it was. He could think of half a dozen chemicals that were that clear.

Ashwin and Marlon touched ground soon enough, and finally Zell joined them. "Listen up!" Squall announced, in a half whisper. "From now on, no unnecessary noise, and only explosive rounds are to be used, absolutely no penetration rounds! We don't want to puncture the tank." He motioned towards the windows. "We don't know how strong the windows are, and I don't want to test them. Even with explosive rounds, don't fire unless absolutely necessary, and only if you're sure you will not hit the tank if you miss. Is that understood?"

The group gave a synchronized 'yes, sir'. "The main computer is on the bottom floor. We have five more floors to go down." Squall then motioned for them to follow in formation. After circumventing a quarter of the tank, they found the hatch to the next level.

Squall touched a panel to open the nearby door, and as the large pressure doors opened, they found themselves staring at a half dozen Grendals.

"No discharges!" Squall ordered before getting in a defensive stance. Hideo moaned and quickly holstered his pistol. The instincts of the King of Dragons took over, and flopped backwards onto his back as one of the dragons jumped at him. He shot his foot up, knocking the beast up. As the monster hit the ceiling, crushing cables and girders, Hideo did a kip-up, then as the beast fell down, he grabbed it by the hackle, and with one hand, tossed it at another Grendal that had knocked over Ashwin, sending them both crashing into the far wall, crushing their bones.

Damn! This GF is powerful!

Hideo then pulled out his pistol, and fired a round into another Grendal's small head. He turned and watched Commander Leonhart decapitate one and Marlon skewer the last one on his spear.

Squall swung his gunblade to shake off the blood. "Don't relax yet, there are plenty left out there."

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It took them some time to make it to the bottom of the facility. There were a lot of monsters that slowed them down, but slowing them down was about it. Squall Leonhart, the Legendary Mercenary, was every bit as good in reality as he was in the stories, and Zell Dincht was very impressive in his own right. So even though they were getting into constant fights, they usually got over quickly and without injury.

Hideo couldn't believe how strong Bahamut made him. It seemed like there was no end to the depth of his power. But rumor had it that the commander had an even more powerful GF, though it seemed little more than a rumor.

After finishing off a trio of Anacondaurs, Squall punched in a code to an apparently high security room. "This is it." He announced as the door opened. "Zell, you keep Marlon, Marion, and Kayla out here, don't let the monsters get close to the door. If you are in desperate need of assistance, pound on the door three times fast. Ashwin, Hideo and I will download the files."

Zell, Kayla, and Marlon saluted. The four of them stayed outside the door as the other party entered the room and shut the security door. Hideo walked over to the main terminal, sat down in the chair, and booted up the system. "I'm surprised the power's even on." He mentioned.

"This place was built to last." Squall explained. "It was state of the art ten years ago."

Finally, after what felt like far too long for any piece of digital equipment, the words 'enter code' came on the screen. "So, did our client supply an access code?"

"Only the head scientist here knew it, and he never left. That's why we brought you along."

"Okay, but first I'll have to get on the inside of the machine for a second." Hideo got out of his seat, and pulled open a panel to access the wires. He pretended to inspect the circuitry, but while he blocked the others' view, he put the Fly in it, and pressed a short-cut button on his portocomputer to start downloading.

He then sat himself back in the seat and started working on bypassing the code. It took a few minutes, as Hideo had to adjust to this kind of simplistic computer software, but he got in. "Okay," he said, "so where's the recorder?"

Squall reached into their supply bag, and handed him a container of twenty or compact disks. "We were told to get everything, even personal, private files."

Hideo looked at the CDs, and finally figured out what the inferior contraptions were. "Wait, these things don't record the entire mainframe at once. This means I'll have to bypass into every system individually to record everything. That could take hours!"

"We're not paid to do easy jobs, Masters, so unless you can think of something faster, you're just making this longer." Commander Leonhart pointed out.

He had a point, Hideo didn't know any faster methods at his disposal other than exposing the Fly, and everything else along with it. "Okay, but I hope you brought something with caffeine in it."

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Three hours later, Hideo inserted the last floppy disk he would need. "Finally." He mumbled. There were well over a hundred scientists working here, each with his or her own field, research, and private files. The downloading process was incredibly slow, especially for Hideo. Not only was the technology ten years old, but so were the computers themselves, and he was sure they've decayed in that time.

So slow were the downloads that Hideo had bypassed every code-required program in the system by the time the third disk was downloading. It didn't help that he had to download the core programming on every disk so that it wouldn't just get a series of 1's and 0's. Even Squall looked like the waiting was getting to him.

Knock, knock, knock!

Like a cat, Squall went from leaning against the wall, looking half asleep, to springing at the door panel to open it. Zell looked at him from the other side. "Hey man, did ya hear that?"

"Hear what?" Squall asked. Then, a roar that sounded halfway between an elephant and an elk bugle could be heard. "Ah shit." He swore glumly.

"I think we could use some help out here, 'cause he's definitely coming this way." Zell added.

"Hideo, how long until the download is complete?"

The Estharian sighed anxiously. "At least fifteen minutes."

"All right, stay here until then. Ashwin, you're joining us, so warm up fast, and junction you GF." As soon as Ashwin was on the other side of the door, Squall said to Hideo, "When it's done, wait for us to return. I don't think you're ready for a Behemoth."

"A Behemoth!" Ashwin croaked, his face becoming a little whiter.

"The six of us will be more than a match for it, now move!" Squall closed the door, and left Hideo alone.

Sighing, he check the computer to make sure it was downloading properly before getting up to retrieve the Fly. As he sat back down, the thought crossed his mind to check the information now and see if there was any information about Operation SEED in there. Then, that thought became a strange impulse.

After a moment of contemplating this strange feeling, he asked out loud, "Why do you want to know, Bahamut?" He realized it was the GF's desire and not his own. Each GF was a sentient being, and some of the advanced ones could communicate with their host, but only occasionally and willingly.

Your kinsmen caged me and did things I do not comprehend, and tried to do the same to Eden. We deserve to know why.

"Eden?"

She is a brethren of mine. Your scarred kinsman took her from Ultima Weapon many moons ago, down in the depths. In an attempt to stop your kinsmen from doing terrible things to us, we summoned what you call monsters to this artificial structure to purge them.

"That was you? You're responsible for all those scientists dying?" Hideo asked, shocked.

Yes. You all have a very queer nature. You are very diverse, some care for nature, some are rats that steal what they can, and every shade in between. You are unpredictable, and that makes you dangerous. I rage at the notion that my life was at their mercy, and so, soon, would be Eden's. We had to do something, the Ultima Guardian couldn't protect her forever. The scarred one proved that.

"What were they trying to do to you?"

That's what you are to find out. Do not underestimate me, or my brethren. We are submissive by choice, yet it is the submissive one that is truly in control. We let you use our strength, you have no real control over us, but we have power over you that you cannot see. Now, find out what they were doing to us!

Hideo's body convulsed, and his body flung itself against the computer. "Okay, you win." Hideo groaned. That hurt more than it would have normally. The GF truly was able to retract it's power at will.

He started digging into the computer. After a few minutes, he changed tactics and did a system wide search for the words 'Operation SEED'. A few seconds later, a match came up. Opening the file, the first thing that came up was confirmation.

Sentience in

Evolution by

Elemental

Deification

"This is it." He said. After digging in, he soon came up with his answer. He couldn't believe it. "They're trying to fuse man and GF!"

He felt Bahamut's power shoot through the roof, and rage filled every inch of his being.

Does the greed of humans know no end?

Hideo tried to say something, but all he could say was, "Why?"

Why else, human? To gain what all humans unanimously covet: control. You controlled crops, then you took control of the potential iron had for weapons, then you controlled the rivers and streams with dams, then you became lords of the ocean with boats, then the sky, and then you coveted our strength, and finally you covet the greatest of them all. There truly is no end to a human's lust.

"What good would fusing with a GF do?" He was in way over his head. "What would that accomplish?"

A silent roar reverberated throughout his whole body, Bahamut's rage filled him to the point where he thought his body and mind would burst!

I will show you, and you will understand what your kinsmen desired.

The roar intensified a hundred fold, and Hideo lost all sense of reality and control.

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The massive purple beast jumped out of the way, avoiding the last of Squall's elephant bullet sized explosive rounds. Damn you!

Ashwin was injured, and Squall was trying to distract the monster while Kayla and Marlon used curagas on him. The beast backed up on his haunches, snarling.

"Come on." Squall said in a low voice.

The beast jumped, and Squall, as fast as he could, launched an ultima spell. As the green energy lanced from his hand, the Behemoth turned in mid air as best it could milliseconds before it hit it, and exploded, blasting both it and Squall back.

The SeeD hit the wall hard, and as his senses came back, he saw the Behemoth getting up from the ground, it's right shoulder and head still fuming from the burns.

Then, a massive falchion flew across the room and imbedded itself in the monster's haunch. He spared a glance over his shoulder and saw Ashwin back on his feet, looking ready to take on an army alone.

"Ashwin, readjust your GF to empower your magic, and be on support." Squall ordered. "Marlon, you circle around the left, I think it's right eye has been blinded. Kayla-" He didn't finish the order, as…a wall, that's the only way to describe it, a massive wall of mental energy slammed into him, knocking him down onto his knees, the most simple thing he could perceive turning to complete chaos.

The final thing he could make out before blacking out was the Behemoth backing up, and for a second, seeming to bow down, as if in submission.

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His mind was a jumble. He drifted in and out of unfocused confusion. Eventually, what could have been seconds or hours later, he was able to focus enough to realize his body was moving outside his control.

What are you doing to me?

You will see. It is only fair, now that I know your kin's true nature, you shall know ours.

Hideo's senses came back to him slowly, gradually. He recognized the halls of the Deep Sea Research Center as Bahamut made his body walk through it. Eventually, he walked into a massive room. In it, he saw Squall and the others, lying motionless on the floor.

Do not worry, they merely sleep right now, and no harm will come to them.

Hideo then saw the huge Behemoth across the room, very much alive, with cuts and gashes and burns littering it's body. It was hunched over, it's head inches from the ground in a bowing pose.

Are you doing this?

You wouldn't understand the answer.

He was becoming impatient. Yes or no! He demanded.

Not only your lust, but simplicity as well. You think the world too much in absolutes. Evil and altruistic, stupid and intelligent, black and white, this is how your kin's minds seem to universally interpret the world. You all are too blind to see the darkness in the light, the light in the darkness. Opposites aren't separate, they are one, sides of a coin, you humans say.

Enough of your bullshit, are you trying to confuse me? Stop avoiding the question!

Not only do you fail to defend yourself, you help confirm my convictions. It is of my will these Bastards retract, but it is not of my hand. Does that satisfy your curiosity?

Hideo didn't respond.

You have yet to surprise me.

Onward his body went, it's pace never yielding. More monsters were passed, yet they were all still. Time started to wander, once again, from him. He noticed himself passing from tunnels of steel to tunnels of living rock. The aquatic blue of the water and red of emergency lights faded to the pale green of crystalline formations and archaic ruins.

Is this…an excavation site?

Yes, that is what you humans called it. They sought not the mineral nor the relics found here.

Relics?

Look on, young one.

Hideo's head turned, and he saw stone columns, stone archways, all signs of ancient civilizations.

Your kin of the long lost past were faithful to us. They treasured us as their protectors from the Bastards.

You call monsters bastards?

Monster is what you call them. Monster is an opinion, it is not what they are. But Bastard is what they are.

Yes, your kin once worshiped us, and we lived in harmony. They took not from us, we took not from them. But your fathers and mothers of the past became lazy, wanting to take and not give. They raped the land, pillaged the planet's blooms, and gave nothing back. Eventually, they forgot about us, and proclaimed themselves the superior race of the planet.

And I suppose you deserve that title.

He could feel Bahamut's laughter. We're not so foolish. Again, you think in light and dark, superior and inferior. They are not separate, they are interconnected. Inferiority and superiority are merely sides of perspective, but you cannot see that, can you?

Enough! What do you want from me? Hideo mentally yelled.

You are young. If you existed since the birth of life of the planet and the moon, you would learn patience.

Hideo then noticed him passing three fully grown Ruby Dragons. They buckled and bugled, as if they were physically restrained. He soon passed snarling Behemoths, then Iron Giants. Finally, he reached the ground floor, where a pond lay.

Alas, times have changed since then. Along with the change of your people, this shrine's entrance once reached above ground, before the waters rose. It was long, long ago. So long, even one as old as I yearn for those days.

What did you want me to see?

Hideo then found his body kneeling before the pond.

This shrine goes deeper than you fathom. The cries of the moon have reshaped the land so much, this is far deeper within the planet than you realize.

'Cries of the moon'? The Lunar Cry?

Yes. See, now, our lord and mother!

All water in the pond shot out, a blinding golden light emanated. Its source rose, like a pond all its own. Though it shined blindingly bright, Hideo could not blink or wince.

A shape came into being within the light, the distinctive curves of a woman's body. Two blue eyes shown through, surrounded by the golden light. A voice, one more beautiful than Hideo had ever imagined, spoke to him.

"Young one, Bahamut has told me of what your kind attempt to recreate."

"Recreate?" Hideo repeated entranced.

"Time stretches farther than you can ever perceive. Even I, as old as the planet, cannot truly see its depth. Yes, it has been done before."

Hideo felt tears coming down his face. Her voice was like the most beautiful song, and so much more. He could barely convey his next words. "Who are you?"

"I am of the Shepherds, the entities you call Guardian Forces, but I am something else. A mere shard, yet more than they. They are my brethren and subordinates. As for what I am, you must find yourself content with knowing you can never fully understand who or what I am."

She reached her arm out, and her hand, made out of purest light, cupped his cheek. Her skin, if that's what it was, was searing hot and incredibly soothing.

"The Shepherds were made to round up the Bastards, the bastard children of the moon. It has been done in the past, humans gaining our essence while remaining flesh, in order to control the Bastards, to rule them. Humans live such short lives. There is so much they never see and cannot understand. They become so subjective. That is why it is so seldom done, they often turn humans even more against the longevity of the planet, destroying her sacred balance. It has already happened again."

There were so many things he wanted to say, things to ask. All he could manage was one word. "What?"

"The Darker Great Ones have done it, all of their own. But it is not of the Shepherds of Mother Earth, it is of the power of the moon."

"The Darker…Great Ones?"

She retracted her hand, and loosely pointed upward. A roar emanated.

"A Behemoth?" Hideo said. "The Darker…The Black Behemoth?"

Those blue eyes vanished. "Yes. They have created a Bastard Shepherd. The cogs are set in motion, and soon, nothing can stop him, other than one who can match his power. It is a dangerous thing, but it is now a necessity."

Ironic, Bahamut said, that your kinsmen will have their work done for them after their deaths.

Hideo inhaled sharply as he felt the connection to his GFs deepen, quickly dwarfing anything he had ever experienced. Suddenly, he found himself…in a tunnel, his soul moving forward across infinite distances towards a light. What's going on?

The light came closer. Stop! STOP!

It was closer now, and he could feel it's energy brushing his spirit. NOOOOOO!

Suddenly, he was engulfed in it. He felt his spirit becoming lost, cracked. This power was so immense, so infinite, he was becoming smaller and smaller, and he felt his soul stretch and contort. He was losing himself!

"NO!" He finally regained control of himself, withdrawing from the light, and was back in his body, back in the depths of the Deep Sea Deposit.

The woman was gone, the pond was just a pond now. "What was that?" He said out loud. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" He shouted to the dark ceiling.

He heard the woman's voice once again. "Hurry back to your kinsmen, for I cannot hold the Bastards from them for long now."

This was too much, way too much. His world was spinning out of control, he couldn't hold it together. What was that power he experienced? What did this all mean? Why him, what was happening to him?

His friends, he had to get back to them. Suddenly, he felt the fire ignite in his body, and he used the Shadow Run to get back to the station, back to the others.

This is too much…this is too much. What the hell is happening? Hyne, please…help me.

0000000000

After what felt like an eternity, the screaming receded, and Squall became aware of where he was: on the floor, in the Ragnarok's passenger lounge.

What am I doing here? Squall wondered. He knew he should be somewhere else, but he couldn't remember where. He looked around the room and found Zell and the others with him there. The Deep Sea Research Center, that's where we were. Then he realized that Hideo was missing. It occurred to him that, with everyone else here, the Estharian must have been flying the ship.

Squall got onto his unsteady feet, and pushed Zell with his foot. "Hey, wake up!"

Zell moaned, then opened his eyes, looking like he had a hangover. "What is it?" Then, the look in his eyes showed him remembering what had just happened. "How did we get back here?"

Squall motioned for him to get up and follow him. Right outside the lift to the bridge, they found a trail of blood and some entrails, some pieces of monster skin and various innards, leading onto the lift.

Squall pressed the lift call button. Good thing I taught him how to fly. He thought.

The lift hit the ground with a light thud, showing a small, lightly dried puddle of blood. Zell inhaled slightly at the sight. He hoped it wasn't Hideo's.

Once the lift brought them to the bridge, they saw Hideo's translucent blue crystal sword on the ground, smothered in blood, and a disheveled blonde head bending forward at the pilot's chair.

"Hey." Squall called out, but the figure didn't react at all.

He stepped forward, and stuck his head between the chairs to see Hideo. The Estharian's skin was almost white, and he was sweating profusely. His blue coat and black jumpsuit were torn and bloodstained, and his whole body was shaking.

"Hideo!" Squall said, louder.

Hideo didn't move a muscle except to say, "Squall." It sounded as if he were just acknowledging he was there.

"Hideo, tell me what happened back there." Squall said, trying to make his voice as calm and soothing as he could. He had seen green SeeDs who couldn't handle what they go through.

This time, Hideo started shaking more, and he seemed to scrunch down, more into a fetal position. He wasn't even looking out the view port anymore.

"Hey, hey, calm down." Squall urgently said.

Hideo then looked scared, and started hyperventilating. His next words were heavily wheezy. "I can't breath." His breathing became labored, then panicky.

"Zell! Take over the controls!" Squall ordered. The tattooed SeeD was in the station in an instant. Squall then pulled Hideo out of his seat, and laid him on the ground. "Hideo, look at me. Look at me!"

The Estharian hands shot out, and grabbed Squall's forearm in a death grip. The SeeD commander put his other hand on Hideo's chest to hold him down, and cast curaga on him. The cuts that littered his body healed, and more color returned to his face, but Hideo continued to panic, grabbing onto the arm that held him down so tightly that it made Squall winced.

"Hey, Hideo! Listen to me!" He shouted, trying to get the younger man to calm down. He then used esuna, hoping that would help. Hideo became less frantic, and then, his body went limp, but his breathing continued, shallow and rapid.

Squall took off his gloves and pressed his fingers to the younger one's carotid artery. His pulse was fast and strong, but over the course of a minute, it slowed down.

"Zell, how far are we from Balamb?"

"GPS says we're 'bout three hours away." Zell answered. "Damn, that guy really flew us far in his condition."

"As soon as we're in range," Squall continued, "send the Garden a distress signal saying we've got a SeeD in need of medical attention." He looked back down at the Estharian, laying on the ground covered in blood and sweat, looking like he was in the middle of a nightmare. "Try and keep an eye on him while I check on the others." Did he carry all of us back to the Ragnarok on his own? It seemed likely, considering the many wounds he had sustained. What happened back there?

0000000000

Delta stepped out of the van and onto the early evening Alcauld Plains. There, looming over her, was Balamb Garden. She saw the Ragnarok was back in it's docking berth. I hope Hideo's first mission went well.

She felt guilty, not only for avoiding him, but not even wishing him luck before he left. She knew she was naïve, never knowing of desperate living besides second or third hand stories, and to find her friend had lived such a horrible life, one she couldn't start to imagine. She was especially guilty that, as she pitied him for his past, she was equally afraid that he had hated her for the life she was privileged. She couldn't face him, knowing that he very well might.

Taking a deep breath, she started up the stairs leading into the Garden entrance. Soon as she was in the main hallway, one of her friends, Ellesa, ran up to her.

"Hey, you're back!" She exclaimed.

"Uh, yeah." She seemed unusually excited to see her. "I just went to town to grab some stuff and send off some mail, so what's going on?"

"Well, that SeeD group your Estharian friend was in got back about an hour ago. It seems the mission didn't go well, and I don't know who, but one of them is in intensive care."

Delta inhaled sharply. No! She turned and ran at full sprint to the infirmary. Please Hyne, don't let it be him.

As soon as she entered through the door, she came to a quick halt. Commander Leonhart was there, talking with Doctor Kadawaki. They both looked at her as she bound in.

"Do you need help?" The doctor asked. "This is kinda important."

Delta didn't respond, only barged past them and looked at the patient bed. There, laying still as a corpse in a hospital gown, gauze strips covering his arms and what was visible of his chest, was Hideo. His face was white as paper, and there was a damp cloth on his forehead. There was a breathing tube down his throat and an IV drip in his arm.

She couldn't speak. Why? Of all them, why you?

"So what's happened to him?" Squall asked the doctor.

"Well, aside from the wounds inflicted and loss of blood, he's physically exhausted. He really exerted himself getting your butts outta there."

"That didn't seem to be what was happening to him in the Ragnarok." Squall said, slight impatience.

"That's only the physical side. From what you told me, it seemed he had a panic attack. Besides that, he seemed to be in sever shock. Whatever happened back there, it scared the hell out of him. It wouldn't have had such a harsh toll on his body were it not for the wounds and exhaustion."

Delta knelt next to the bed, looking at him. He almost looked like he was dead, his chest barely moving as the respirator pumped air in and out of his lungs.

Talk to me. She said, silently. Tell me something, anything! Tell me how to hack a computer, tell me what Esthar looks like, tell me how annoying Vicks is, just say something! Show me you're still alive!

Tears started to roll down her cheeks. Tell me you don't hate me.

"Is he going to recover?" Squall continued.

"He's in bad shape. Between the wounds and the physical exertion, the panic attack really drained him. I'm putting him on medical leave for at least a week."

"He'll probably need it." Squall commented.

"And also, you can't question him until at least tomorrow, and not until I say so."

Squall sighed. "Okay. Inform me immediately of any change in his condition."

Delta took his hand, and squeezed it tightly. I'm here with you. You don't have to be alone.

0000000000

Hideo was pushed roughly through the door, and Tetsuya closed it behind them as quietly as he could without slowing down. The blonde twelve year old Estharian shivered. If anyone saw you beating up a rival gang member, the word would get out, and there would be hell to pay. The Chimeras were smart; they never killed unless no one was around. And there was no one around tonight.

Tetsuya turned from the door to look at their surroundings. They were in some kind of maintenance closet next to the street. There were a few brooms and buckets. Nothing sharp or good for bashing. The sixteen year old cursed, and checked the door to see if there were any locking mechanisms. Nothing, not even a keyhole. It would've been a waste of money. Who would steal brooms?

Hideo sat down and hugged his knees. He loved his brother, but sometimes he had no idea why he did the things he did.

Tetsuya sat down across from him. "Hopefully they won't notice this door." He said, trying to calm his younger brother.

"They'll see us." Hideo said. He didn't say it out of fear or pessimism, he knew it was true. He had noticed how easy it was to spot the door, and the Chimeras weren't that far behind them.

Tetsuya sighed heavily. He knew it was true. Even an idiot would think to check this spot. "Hideo, we're going to get through this one. We've been in worse spots, right?"

Hideo didn't respond, he didn't even look at his brother.

Tetsuya looked at him with his gray eyes through his black bangs. "What is it, bro? Why you angry?" He asked.

"Why did you do that?" Hideo asked, not looking at him.

"Do what?"

"Why did you tell them to jack off?" Hideo said, almost shouting. "You're always telling me to watch what I say, and look what you did! Now they're going to kill us!"

"Hideo, they were trying to kick us out of our apartment, what was I supposed to do?"

"Goddamn it, Tetsuya, it was a fucking apartment! You're going to get us killed over an apartment!"

"Hideo, it was our home! Even if it's rat infested, it's still your home. That's something no one has any right to take away from you!"

"What good is a home if you're dead?" Hideo said, tears starting to fall down his cheeks. "There's no way they won't look here. Why are we even trying?"

Hideo looked up at his brother for the first time that night. Tetsuya looked deep in thought. He had been asked if he was even his real brother. Hideo had wondered that himself for a long time. They didn't look a thing alike, and whenever Hideo tried to talk to him about their parents, he would just go silent and be angry for hours. He was afraid to ask him if they were actual brothers.

Tetsuya closed his eyes, and nodded slightly, like he had made up his mind. He knelt down in front of Hideo and started talking. "Listen to me, little brother. There are some things in this world that are worth risking your life for, even dying for. I know you don't understand that now, if you live long enough, you'll understand that someday."

Tetsuya that grabbed his little brother and hugged him fiercely. "I love you, bro." He then quickly spun him around, and put him in a sleeper hold.

"What the hell?" Hideo croaked. "Tetsuya, don't! Please, for Hyne's sake, don't!"

Before the darkness took Hideo, he could hear Tetsuya's soft voice saying, "I'm sorry."

The next thing he knew, Hideo was getting himself off the grime covered floor with a pounding headache. As soon as he remembered what Tetsuya had done to him, he grabbed the door and ran out into the alley street. There, he saw the dead bodies of four of the six Demon Chimeras that had chased them, and Tetsuya. He was laying on his back, his chest and face covered in blood.

Hideo sat up quickly, waking up from his recollection. He laid back down, feeling the tears forming in his eyes. Soon after that night, he snagged a gun from one of his friends, and raided the Demon Chimeras' nightclub hangout. He had butchered them like animals that night, and it felt so righteous, so justified. And ever since, he felt like a drifting ghost.

Don't dwell on the past. Both Liam and Tetsuya had told him.

Hideo started to sigh, but groaned as sharp pain shot through his sides. 'What the hell?'

He tried to remember what had happened to him. A woman made of light, Bahamut, the Deep Sea Deposit. He gulped as he remembered how he dragged the rest of his party back with him to the Ragnarok. Even with Bahamut, protecting everyone from the endless monsters alone had nearly killed him. He remembered very well as the blood seeped through his wounds, how he started becoming woozy and realized he might not make it. The monsters seemed to never end, and the return trip through the station seemed to take forever. Eventually, time ceased to exist. For an eternity, he existed only to take one more step, one more breath.

He had used the Shadow Run to make it all the way back to his friends in just under a minute. He had never held it for that long. Did it have something to do with that woman? Who was she? What power did she wield to leave him enraptured by her mere presence? What the hell was that light, that…power? For some reason, that power scared the life out of him. From the moment he touched it, it felt like his soul would be crushed.

He then noticed he wasn't in the dormitory, but in the Infirmary with an IV in his arm, from what he could tell from the dim moonlight shining through the window.

As his eyes adjusted, he noticed a figure sitting on the stool next to him. Delta was asleep, leaning on the wall with a blanket over her. Hideo smiled, knowing she hadn't abandoned him.

On the table between them was a large paper cup of water and a bottle. He reached as far as he could without moving the rest of his body to grab the bottle. His muscles felt like they were made of lead. He instantly recognized the label as painkillers, specifically prescribed to him.

Well he was feeling like shit at the moment, and his mouth was parched. He reached for the cup, but it was a whole foot out of his reach. When he tried to move his body across the bed, blinding pain shot through him. No wonder he was prescribed pain medication.

Goddamn you, get over here! Hideo silently cursed while reaching for the cup. Then the cup wiggled, and ungracefully skidded across the table to him.

When it got in his grasp, he nearly squeezed all the water out of it. Oh Hyne, what did that woman do to me? What was that light?

He then remembered Bahamut's words. Ironic that your kinsmen will have their work done for them after their deaths.

Was that power him nearly fusing with his GF?

You're not as stupid as I had accused you of being.

Hideo grabbed his head tightly. GET OUT! I DON'T WANT THIS!

My words of your foolishness were justified.

He wanted to scream, to do something. He unequipped Bahamut, and as the sphere appeared in his hand, he wasted no time in throwing it as far away from him as he could, pain or no. The voice was gone.

Did that do it? He wondered. He thought about that light, and all of a sudden, he was back there, in that infinitely long tunnel going towards that light. He instantly broke it off, and took off both Krakken and Ixion, but unlike Bahamut, he pushed them away to the foot of the bed. Did THAT do it? He reached for the tunnel again, and it wasn't there.

Now, he was certain that light, that source of power was the Guardian Force Matrix, the power source all GF shared. That power had nearly destroyed him. He was not going back there. He didn't care about the power it might give him, he was NOT going to let himself be destroyed by it.

With what little water was left in the cup, he swallowed a pill, and laid back down. It was several hours before sleep claimed him once more.

End of Chapter Five

Author's Notes: Yes, I plan on putting one of these at the end of every chapter. Anyways, yeah, the whole 'Lady of the Lake' thing was kinda spur-of-the-moment, and so I made some revisions to this chapter so it wasn't so sudden.

Also, I HAVE flown a plane before, my psudo-uncle is a pilot, and it's pretty much just like what I described it.

I guess I'll use this opportunity to talk about a few of the changes I've made from the first draft of Duel of Fates I wrote back in 2001. First off, Hideo was WAY overpowered. He beat Squall in a duel, he totally creamed the Knights of the Round GF (yes, all thirteen knights) instead of Ixion, he was smarter battle-wise than any of the instructors, and he was an official agent of Esthar, not some criminal they guaranteed a pardon. And finally, that whole Operation SEED thing is completely new. In the original, Hideo turned into a sorcerer as his limit break, and also, it turned out Laguna was Hideo's illegitimate father, and Squall was his half brother.

…………Please don't laugh at me, it was my first fanfic.

Anyways, sorry for the long chapter and the ridiculously long author's note.