Here it is everyone! The longest chapter yet! I apologize for how long it took me to update. I have started a new job about a month ago (in the real world) and it's been taking up a lot of my time. However, I am getting more adjusted to it, so hopefully I'll be able to finish the story before too long. Enjoy!!! Let me know what you think. I really worked hard on this chapter. Special thanks goes out to Psyjester.

Chapter 27

Rinoa? Kona?! Fujin blinked. There was no mistaking it—it was definitely them. Even from across the street, she could easily spot the pretty brunette who had caused her so much pain and despair. But why is she blindfolded and what the hell is Kona doing with her… She saw that Rinoa's hands were tied behind her back as she was being directed toward a black windowless van. Dear Hyne… he is the kidnapper! The realization nearly knocked Fujin off her feet, her mind frantically trying to paint a plausible scenario for what she was seeing. How could he be the kidnapper?! The thought seemed preposterous. All this time there was not a slightest indication of him being involved… Or was there? Was the scene in the bar a set up to get closer to me… to get closer to Seifer? She suddenly remembered the phone conversation she overheard while staying in Kona's apartment for a couple of days. He talked of tactical units… I should've known something was up then…He mentioned killing someone… but whom? Sensing that there was no time to waste,Fujin quickly crossed the street and hid behind a parked car, just outside of the range of Kona's peripheral vision. She heard voices and what she thought could only be a soft moan, probably from Rinoa.

"C'mon, Jed," said Kona quietly, "we gotta do this quickly. No mistakes. This is our last chance."

"This had better work, with all the trouble she's worth," mumbled Jed unenthusiastically.

"It will… it has to," Kona said firmly.

"LET HER GO."

Kona stopped and turned on his heels, his heart beating mercilessly against his chest at the sound of her voice.

"Fujin. What are you doing here?" he said trying to keep his composure.

"I SAID, LET HER GO." Fujin repeated aiming her Shuriken at Kona's neck.

"No," Kona said taking a step toward Fujin. "Jed, hold her," he ordered pointing at Rinoa.

"What are you going to do, Fujin? Kill me? Go ahead," he said calmly, unbuttoning the first few buttons of his shirt, revealing his neck. Fujin's eyes rested briefly on a small claw-like amulet that hung on a black leather cord around his neck. It looked so familiar. . She saw him wear a claw-like earring the night he saved her life.

"LET RINOA GO. PLEASE," she implored lowering her weapon. Rinoa let out another moan of confusion and desperation through her gag and was immediately shushed by Jed, who placed his hand firmly over her mouth.

"Hyne, Fujin. Things could have been so great between us under different circumstances," he said sadness punctuating his every word. "But I won't stop. Not now. Not even for you. Rinoa comes with me. Let me pass, Fujin," he finished and made a firm step toward the van.
Why this? A part of her wanted to let Kona have his way. Who cares if Rinoa gets killed? Didn't she hate her? Seifer cares… He'd never forgive me…

"Don't kid yourself, Kona," Fujin responded, making her decision. Before he could say another word, she moved forward past him, landing a painful blow to Jed's face as he reeled backwards, his nose bleeding profusely. Sensing it was time to make a move, Rinoa elbowed him hard in the stomach, but lost her balance and fell to the ground. Narrowly avoiding Kona's reach, Fujin cut the ropes that bound Rinoa's hands using the edge of her Shiruken. She let out a growl of pain and frustration as Kona brought his knee firmly on top of her chest, pinning her to the ground. Without hesitation, he grabbed the Shiruken out of her outstretched hand and tossed it a few feet away. Writhing like a snake, Fujin scratched and fought against his hold. "Now, don't move, Fujin," he ordered angrily, bringing her arms above her head, immobilizing her completely. "Jed, get up! C'mon, get up. Rinoa is getting away!" It was too late. Freed from the restraints, Rinoa ran as fast she possibly could, hardly looking to see where she was going. Her only thought was to get away. Fujin would be able to take care of herself. Kona let out an angry snarl, and Fujin unwittingly turned her head to the side, preparing for a blow. Yet Kona simply pulled her to her feet and held her firmly in place.

"It's no use, Kona. She's gone," said Jed, trying to catch his breath, sweat and blood pouring down his face.

"Well," he said his voice shaking slightly, turning Fujin to face him until she was looking him straight in the eyes, "looks like you are coming with us."

Rinoa's head was swimming and she could barely breathe due to painful burning and prickling in her side, but she kept running, not looking back to see if there was anyone in pursuit. The only thing she could think of was finding someone she knew as soon as possible. She realized that someone was following her only when a heavyset man suddenly got out of a car right in front of her and grabbed her roughly around her waist, pulling her inside. She screamed, banging her fists on the window.

"Shut up, you bitch," he yelled, slapping her hard across the face before revving the engine and driving away. Bleeding where his ring had cut her cheek and her face stinging from the blow, Rinoa cried softly and tried to gather herself. This is not happening… This is not happening. Hyne, please! Help me! Seifer, where are you, please, I need you…She made a grab for the door as the car slowed down at a turn, but the stranger slapped her again and forcefully shoved her head down under the seat. "Stay put, or I'll kill you," he said, flashing a long hunting knife. Shaking and crying, Rinoa desperately tried to figure a way out, but nothing came to her exhausted mind. She stole a glance at her captor's face—it was ugly and scarred practically beyond recognition. "I will make her pay for it… I will make her pay for it…" he kept repeating as the car made a sharp turn and came to a halt just a few blocks from where Fujin had given Rinoa the key to her short-lived freedom.

The ocean breeze blew softly through Seifer's hair as he stood facing the water at the Deling City docks. His gaze was directed toward the horizon, where a large red orb was rising slowly over the water. The final preparations have been made, and Seifer was scanning the harbor for any signs of the enemy's ship. He had spend the last half an hour trying to convince Caraway to let him personally attend the welcoming party that had been especially prepared for Rinoa's kidnappers, but the General was relentless. Thus, Seifer had to content himself with making sure that the two armed men that were placed into the boat instead of the prisoners could effectively free themselves from the bags that now covered their faces to avoid initial recognition. A tarp that was placed strategically inside the boat served as a hiding place for two more armed men, ready to spring into action at the first sign of trouble. Finally, Seifer chose a sturdy looking soldier to be the oarsman with instructions to make sure that Rinoa gets back safely even if the other men had to be abandoned. Exactly at 6 am, Seifer ordered the boat to leave the harbor and follow the coordinates that were specified by Rinoa's captor in a conversation with General Caraway. Now that there was nothing to do expect for wait, Seifer paced back and worth nervously along the dock, his eyes never leaving the boat that grew progressively smaller until it became nothing but a dot. Being away from the action gnawed at his insides and his overactive mind already came up with a dozen scenarios that ended in failure, all because he somehow allowed Caraway to steer him away from overseeing the operation personally. On Kona's assault boat that was treading water behind a large protruding reef a mile offshore, the atmosphere was no less tense. A lanky young man with long auburn hair approached Kona who was busy shining his sword with a deceptively detached coolness.

"Kona! I just talked to Seth over the radio… For whatever reason, Rinoa never made it back to Caraway after she escaped from us. We monitored her hideout because we thought she might try to get in touch with Zone and Watts. Caraway's mansion has been under close surveillance since her escape, and she never showed up there. Blair was able to hack into Caraway's internal communications line. As far as Caraway and that son of a bitch Seifer know, Rinoa is still with us. There's no way to confirm visually what's going on inside of Caraway's command center right now. They have blocked off the dock with a barricade. But our field operatives indicate that everything appears to be in order. They have spotted two people being escorted to the dock earlier this morning who appeared to be handcuffed and had bags covering their faces," he finished. Kona breathed a tiny sigh of relief. He was beginning to think that Caraway wasn't able to get the prisoners back after all. But where the hell is Rinoa? The sense of alarm immediately returned to his insides as the tiny smile that played on his lips at the thought of seeing Laine and Joshua quickly vanished.

"I say we kill that one eyed girl after we get Laine and Josh back. It will serve Caraway right for torturing Laine and Josh for two years. We should send back her corpse with the rower to show them to never cross us again," the young man continued fervently.

"No," said Kona in a tone that indicated that the topic was not up for discussion. However, he sensed from the people that were now intently trying to catch every word of their conversation that some explanation was necessary in order for them to obey him. Many of them have suffered terrible losses at Caraway's hand and would not easily pass up an opportunity for revenge.

"As much as I'd like to avenge the death of our comrades.. of Sirun…" he said lowering his eyes for second, "killing Fujin isn't the answer. Caraway does not know Fujin and her murder would be completely senseless. Even though Seifer is Caraway's right-hand man, we still don't know how much influence he actually has with Caraway. She serves a much better decoy since we no longer have Rinoa." He gave Jed a brief look to gauge his reaction, knowing that Jed was perfectly aware of the true reason behind Kona's disposition toward Fujin.

"Kona is right, "echoed Jed immediately. Caraway will pay for what he has done, but not yet. We want to make absolutely sure that we succeed and making rash decision out of anger will not help our cause," he finished steadfastly.

"Jed, keep lookout. Don't let them come upon us unannounced. I have a feeling that son of a bitch Caraway won't make things so easy," he said gravely. " "Everyone, prepare for battle. Keep your wits about you… just in case." Satisfied that Fujin's life was not in any immediate danger, Kona went down to the main cabin where she was tied firmly to a chair. She glared at him.

"I am sorry, Fuu," he said quietly. "You didn't give me much choice. Listen… Rinoa never made it back to Caraway…"

"YOU CAUGHT HER?"

"No, all that I know is that she hasn't attempted to make contact either with her resistance group or her father… It is if she has vanished."

"WHY TELL ME?"

"Because I never meant to hurt Rinoa. You have to believe me, Fujin. It was the only thing I could do to get Laine and Joshua back. I haven't seen them in two long years. They have been tortured, beaten, and starved. I had to do everything I could to get them back. Do you understand me, Fujin?" he said with a plea his voice. Fujin remained quiet, but Kona caught a glimpse of relief that flickered in her amethyst eye.

"Anyways, the reason I am telling you this is because I think something happened to Rinoa. I had my men follow everyone she knew in Deling City, so that we could intercept her before she was able to get back to her father or Seifer, but we haven't found any trace of her whereabouts. When I release you today after getting Laine and Josh back, I want you to tell Caraway and Seifer what has happened to Rinoa. They should start looking for her immediately. I have a feeling something bad must've happened to her."

"SUCH CONCERN," said Fujin sarcastically.

"I am really not as bad as you think… I…I care for you, Fujin. I am so sorry that I had to bring you into this. Rinoa is gone and I can't help that, yet I can't allow one of my own people to serve as a decoy for her. After I get Laine and Josh back, you'll go back to Seifer. Isn't this what you want after all?" he said with a trace of bitterness in his voice. "Please, Fujin… please, try to understand why I am doing what I am doing. You have to know that I would never let anyone hurt you," he said his voice shaking slightly. Fujin looked into his eyes. He seemed so sincere.

"OK," she said simply. He untied her hands and brought her close to him until her face was only a couple of inches away.

"Fujin. I pray to Hyne, that when this is all over, you will still talk to me. Whatever happened between us before, I don't care. Even if Seifer is from Galbadia Garden… It doesn't matter to me anymore. I… I can only hope that maybe… one day you could feel even a third for me what I know you feel for Seifer," he said softly. Fujin stared at him, her face betraying no emotion although her heart was racing.

"DON'T HURT SEIFER," she finally managed. Kona's heart twisted painfully. Seifer is the only one she cares about…

"I won't hurt him, Fujin. I give you my word." He would have said something else, but at that moment he heard an alarm sounding from the upper deck. A boat is approaching… This is it.

"Wait here, Fujin. I don't know how much you heard of what Konstantin said on the upper deck, but I swear to you Fujin… While I am still in command of this boat, no one will lay a finger on you." Taking one last look at her, Kona quickly made his way to the upper deck. He immediately saw a boat just off the port bow that contained two tied up people with covered faces and one rower who was signaling the crew with a white handerchief.

"Are you the leader? General Caraway sent me with the prisoners. Where's Rinoa?"

"I'm the leader. Uncover their faces first," Kona said without a hint of hesitation.

"That's not my orders. Bring Rinoa to the deck, and then we'll talk.

"Take a look around you. You are completely at our mercy. There is nothing stopping us from taking the prisoners from you by force and letting your dead body be fish bait." The man swallowed hard, but remained calm.

"We had an agreement. Rinoa for the prisoners," he stated.

"Then, be so kind as to uncover their faces," replied Kona with polite mockery. All of the sudden, there was a commotion, as Jed quickly took out his sword and jumped right in front of Kona, shielding him from view.

"There are men under that tarp! It's a trap!!!" he yelled urgently. No sooner than he had uttered these words, Caraway's boat suddenly came alive as fully armed men emerged from under the tarp. Jed looked on in horror and disgust, as the two so called prisoners removed the bags from their faces and pulled out their weapons.

"Die you treasonous pigs!" someone yelled before a large flash of light followed by an earsplitting explosion enveloped Kona's boat in a shower of mangled metal and wood.

"What the hell are you doing, moron?" yelled another voice through the thick, suffocating smoke. Rinoa's still on this boat! Are you trying to kill her too?" Coughing and trying to shield his eyes, Kona ran as quickly as he could to what he knew to be the command post, although he could not see it through the smoke. In the back of his mind, he knew that the bomb had landed somewhere close to Fujin, but the lives of his men were at stake, and there was not a second to lose. Raising his sword high into the air, he yelled, "Men, listen to me! There are only five of them. Eliminate them by any means possible! A little bit of smoke will not deter us from our objective. Think of your fallen comrades!"

"Kona, behind you!!!" he heard Jed yell through the smoke, before hearing yet another sound—a sound that chilled his blood. Jed fell at his feet, his skull fractured by a heavy blow to his forehead.

"NOOOO!" yelled Kona, slicing the man's neck neatly in two as he fell overboard.

"Jed! Jed! Oh Hyne, no! Jed! Jed! I am so sorry! I am soo sorry! This is all my fault. On Hyne, why Jed?" Black tears streamed down his face as he held the lifeless body of his most trusted friend.

"Kona! Oh Hyne..." The man stopped and turned away.

"Did you get them, Konstantin? Please, tell me you killed them!"

"Four are dead, one is still hiding somewhere on the ship. The men are looking for him. I…I can't believe that Jed is dead." The young man shuffled his feet, and wiped away a tear determined not to let his Commander down in the time of such need.

"Bring him to me, Konstantin. Bring him to me so that I can tear him apart, piece by piece! Also find Jed's brother. Go now! Oh Hyne, Why?!!!."

"Yes sir!" said the young man, taking one last look at Jed, who was sill bleeding from his wound. Alone once again, Kona held Jed in his arms, pain and despair suffocating him so much that he no longer noticed the stinging, stifling smoke. He didn't notice as Fujin came up from behind and leaned over at this side.

"LET ME."

"Fujin, you are alive. Thank, Hyne. He's dead… Fujin, he is dead. I killed him," he stammered. Fujin felt his pulse. It was very weak, but he was not dead.

"HE'S ALIVE."

"What?!" said Kona hardly daring to believe what he heard. Get it out Fujin. His life depends on it.

"Jed is alive. He has a pulse." She raised her hands to the sky, then touched them to Jed's temples. Blue orbs of light enveloped Jed's mangled skull, stopping the bleeding. "He needs immediate medical attention if he is to have any hope of surviving at all."

"What the hell?" Kona was shocked.

"Garden," was Fujin's only reply.

"Kona, the motor's still working. Jake is getting us out of here right now. The boat's letting in water… Oh Hyne…" The young man stopped and collapsed to the ground. "JED! Dear Hyne, what have they done to you? I'll kill you, you bitch, this is all because of you!" he yelled, pushing Kona aside as he grabbed Fujin around the neck. Not wasting a second, Kona immediately pulled him off and shook him. "Ian, stop! You brother's alive. She saved him!"

"What?" The young man was shocked.

"No time, to explain, there is another motor boat on the lower deck. Take it and take Jed with you. A hospital is the only chance he's got left."

"I will do anything to save him!" He carefully picked Jed's mangled body off the ground and with a backward glance at Fujin, quickly went downstairs. Konstantin was back.

"Here's the last of these bastards," he stopped and looked around. "Where's Jed?"

"Hospital. He might live yet," replied Kona with a faint smile. "Now, as for you," he said addressing the prisoner. I should kill you right now. You aren't even worth feeding to the dogs. However, I will spare your life." Kona's men started murmuring in surprise but he held up his hand to silence them.

"I will spare your life," he continued, if you take back a message to Caraway regarding what you saw here today. Tell him that he will pay dearly for what happened today. For every drop of blood spilt by my people at his hand, I will collect from him tenfold." He stopped as if to consider something. Rinoa's innocent of what happened here today. She tried to help Laine and Josh… "Tell him also, that Rinoa is not on this ship, but he should look for her immediately somewhere in the vicinity of Fortune's Alley as she might be in trouble. She escaped during the early hours of the morning and vanished. For now, you can tell him that my insurance is this ugly one-eyed doll, he said pointing at Fujin. I think there is a certain young man named Seifer, who would be most concerned about her well-being. If Joshua and Laine are executed, I will kill her. Double cross me again, I will kill her… and you. If Jed dies, I will not rest until I hunt you down and rip out your heart. His men clapped appreciatively. Kona stole a quick glance at Fujin. She seemed to be playing along. His heart twinged painfully. He wanted to let her go immediately because now he knew that whatever Seifer's secret might be, one thing was certain—he was not on Caraway's side. But would his word be enough to convince his men? Kona sighed. Letting Fujin go was simply not an option. There was of course another reason why Kona wanted Fujin to stay, but that he would not even admit to himself.

Never taking his eyes off the water, Seifer clenched and unclenched his fists. Another minute, and I will take a boat out there myself and see what the hell's taking so long… The thought of Rinoa in danger just a mere mile offshore drove him completely insane. He could not shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong. He found himself wishing that Rinoa was safely back in his arms on the deserted beach where they made love. Save the fantasies for later, Almasy. You've got work to do. His anticipation levels reaching a crescendo, Seifer got up and threw a small rock at a nearby seagull that rose in indignation over the water and squawked reproachfully. His heart stopped for a second as he saw the approaching boat. The boat got closer. Horror clenching his muscles together, Seifer realized that Rinoa wasn't not on the boat. Throwing caution to the wind, Seifer waded deep into the water that was green and foamy from the morning tide. As soon as the boat was within reach, he grabbed the man by the neck and shook him roughly.

"Where is she? Where is Rinoa?!" he demanded. Already speechless from his ordeal and frightened by Seifer's unexpected fury, the man sputtered and coughed.

"Please… let me go… Rinoa not there. She.. was not on the boat." Seifer slapped him hard on the face.

"What do you mean, she wasn't on the boat? Answer me before I kill you!" he demanded, his voice boiling over with anger and frustration. Caraway followed Seifer into the boat. The sight of the General completely took away the man's any remaining ability to talk.

"Where's my daughter, you fool?!" he screamed. "What in Hyne's name happened to the others?"

"Dead. Too many of them. They've got a girl. He said they kill her," he muttered incoherently. Seifer picked him up and threw him against the boat. A small trickle of blood slowly rolled down the man's face.

"What girl do they have? Tell me before I splatter your good for nothing chicken brains all over this boat!"

"Please, sir, no.. please, sir don't hurt me! Fujin, they've got Fujin." If there was anything that Seifer was prepared to hear, this wasn't it. He dropped the man and stared at him, his eyes wide with shock and disbelief.

"Did you say Fujin?" he inquired slowly as if trying to make sure he had heard correctly.

"Who the hell is this Fujin? Where is my daughter?!" chimed in Caraway.

"Fujin is my best friend," said Seifer in a hushed voice. His world was being turned upside down and he was completely powerless to stop it.

"Your best friend? How the hell did they get your best friend and why? Aren't you here as a bodyguard?" Caraway inquired with the air of a man who was just told that the sky was green. Seifer somewhat regained his composure.

"She was visiting me," he responded automatically. Fujin is in trouble. He wanted to scream.

"There's more, sir," continued the man, encouraged by the temporary cessation in yelling.

"Then what in Hyne's name are you waiting for, you scum, tell us!" screamed Seifer again. He wanted to strangle the man with his bare hands. Preempting another blow, the man started talking quickly, stumbling over his words.

"Their leader… I saw him… He told me to tell you he didn't have Rinoa. Look for her around Fortune's Alley. That's what he said, sir. He said she might be in trouble."

"What kind of trouble?!" Seifer fought the desire to rip out the man's tongue.

"Please, sir… I don't know… He said she vanished…. Escaped sometime during the night.. Please, sir, believe me." He started crying. Seifer looked away from him in disgust. Caraway looked stupidly at the man.

"You mean my daughter was abducted again?" he said with disbelief. It was Seifer who responded.

"No, General, he means she took a vacation! Now, listen to me carefully. What did the leader look like who told you about this?"

"What the hell are you talking about? Didn't you hear? My daughter has been abducted!" Seifer turned on his heels and gave Caraway a withering look.

"What makes you so sure this isn't some kind of a ploy to delay us more?"

"Please, sir, he sounded sincere. He..he had reddish brown hair, Young, about your age, sir. Not as tall as you though, but similar build."

"Oh, well, that just about narrows it down, doesn't it?" said Seifer sarcastically.

"I could be wrong, sir, but I think during the fighting, I heard someone refer to him as Conan."

"Conan?" said Seifer quizzically, looking at the equally blank look on Caraway's face. Then, it suddenly came to him. Kona! It has to be! But I thought Fujin was dating him? Seifer felt like ramming his head against a concrete wall. Both Rinoa and Fujin are missing… and it's all my fault. But, which one do I try to find first?!

(TO BE CONTINUED)

Be on the look out for some Seifer/Rinoa goodness in the next chapter. Poor Rinoa. She just can't seem to catch a break, hehe. Thanks to all the people who reviewed! Thank you, Seifoa, for the nice comment! I appreciate your support.