Hope sat up, the cool compress that had lain undisturbed upon his forehead tumbling, discarded, to the floor as the young teen dragged himself from the bed and into the arms of the older boy who had been waiting for him. Hope looked back as Squall caught his hand and halted his escape.

"Where you going?" The SeeD commander asked and Hope gently pried his hand free.

"I saw her. . ." He suddenly grasped his stomach, remembering with sickening clarity what she had done.

"Do not seek them out~"

Hope staggered back against the wall.

"Hey, sit down."

"I didn't see her," he muttered, not seeing the look of concern and turmoil on Squall's face. "It said 'them'. Don't seek 'them' out!" He rubbed his forehead as it ached. "It was a warning, because. . .because I know where. . .but I can't remember. . ." The ache became a staggering thump and before he could fight through the pain Squall shook him.

"Stop."

Hope blinked, seeing the commander's face as he knelt before him.

"But I need to find her! I need them back-"

Squall seemed shocked by this, his blue eyes seemed sad. "I know you do." Squall sighed and patted the bed beside him. "Sit down."

Hope hesitated, still shook up and desperate to get out there and look for his friend, but with a short breath he done as he was told.

"You know something, don't you?" Hope asked, studying Squall's expression closely. He reminded Hope of those early days with Light, before she opened up to him. Squall had those same sad eyes, that same invisible wall built up to keep people out.

"I do." Squall said after a lifetime. "A. . .friend of mine, she. . .she was taken too." Hope watched as Squall struggled to find the words. "I looked everywhere, even though I had no proof, I knew she was in trouble. When she finally turned up she was, different, distant, it was like she didn't know me anymore. She refused to tell me where she'd been and would disappear at night." Squall stood running a hand through his hair. "Then one night I followed her to this cove, she wasn't alone and she wore this, mask. Black with a symbol on the forehead, a dark star. They boarded a ship and I couldn't follow.

I don't know how I got to that cove, I've even tried retracing my steps the next day but it was like it didn't exist."

"Didn't you ask her?" Squall nodded and shot Hope a smile.

"Wouldn't you?" He sighed. "She claimed not to remember, so I decided to jog her memory. I was angry, I thought she. . .she met someone." The young man looked distraught, but did far too good of a job at covering it up. "She honestly didn't know and she was scared. We took her to a friend of mine who thought he could help. He made it worse. Rinoa slipped into a coma. It was like, whoever shut away those memories planted a fail-safe in her mind. Soon as she remembered it kicked in and made sure she couldn't talk. She's in hospital in Esthar, a phantom image of the mask appeared when she lost consciousness. She still wears it now, no one can remove it. It's out of phase with the rest of reality, in our world, but not. . .I can't explain it. The scientists tried to explain it to me, all I know is, Rinoa is in trouble and I can't do a damn thing."

Hope looked down at his hands, he felt sorry for Squall but had to wonder.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because Quistis saw a mask surface on you."

Hope blinked in surprise. "Me? But that means. . ."

"Yeah, that you've been rigged with the same fail-safe. If you finally remember where it is they're keeping your friend, you're not going to be able to help them anyway."

"But there must be a way." Hope clenched his fists.

"Believe me, if there was, I wouldn't be here. I'd be cutting down the bastards who did this."

An uneasy silence fell over the pair as they each tried to come to terms with their loss. Hope refused to accept it and stood.

"I don't care what happens to me, if there's even the slightest chance that I know how to get to where my friends are being held I want to do it."

Squall lifted his gaze from the floor and looked at Hope, a small sad smile in the place of his usual frown.

"I thought I wanted that too. But a good friend of mine would be upset if I let you."

"Squall-"

"The answer is no, Hope." Hope shook his head then turned away in frustration. "But that doesn't mean I'm just going to give up."

"So then what do we do?" He asked angrily. "It's not like you have any other leads." He turned back around to face the older teen. "I'm not like you; I'm not from this world! Maybe I can resist this. . .spell!"

"You're assuming its magic."

"What else could it be?"

Squall seemed at a loss for words but he was spared the need to answer when the tall cowboy came in, tipping his hat at Hope.

"Sorry to interrupt, Squall but we got a call."

"Where now?"

"Fisherman's Horizon."

"Damn-it." Squall looked at Hope who just gazed back stubbornly. "Okay, get a message to Zell, he can stay here if he wants to. I'll be on the bridge making preparations to leave."

"Hey!" Hope started after the SeeD commander who strode briskly from the room.

"The bridge isn't no place for a kid." Irvine stated and Hope shot him a glare.

"I'm not a kid!"

Squall chuckled. "He's fine, Irvine. I guess he needs to see this." Hope looked at each man curiously as he half jogged just to keep up with their stride, but he was used to such a pace thanks to his time with Light.

"What ever you say, Boss." Irvine smiled down at Hope before heading in another direction to carry out Squall's instructions.

***

Hope had to admit that once Garden got going it was way cooler than he ever thought anything ever could be. He stood right at the front of the bridge watching as the coast came and went and he could see for miles since it was situated right at the top floor of the Garden in what was formerly the principles office. Now they were on open ocean, cutting through the water and leaving a trail like the wake of a huge ship.

"This is the most incredible thing I've ever seen!" He squeaked and ran from his perch to the other side of the bridge to get a good look out of another window, spotting a pod of dolphins leaping alongside Balamb Garden. It was like they knew he was there and started performing more fantastic leaps, somersaulting and twisting gracefully in the air before tumbling back into the waves.

Hope was oblivious to the four older teens behind him. He might profess to being anything but a kid, but he was certainly acting like one and it brought a breath of fresh air into their day, well, except maybe Zell, who was still moping about his hotdogs.

"You know we might not get back to Balamb anytime soon, don't you?" Hope heard Squall say and he turned from the scene but sat still close to the window.

"I know." Zell was stood lent back against the wall arms folded. "But the repair crews have everything under control and my mom is a tough lady. Besides," He stood straight and started shadow boxing, as if warming up for a fight. "I wanna word with who ever KO'd my room! I had a first edition Warrior of Light issue one, the rarest, most expensive, most kick-ass comic ever!" Hope laughed quietly as Zell shook his fist, his frustration barely kept under control.

"Did you lose it in the fire?" Quistis asked trying to be supportive as she put an arm around the shorter teen.

"No, that's the crazy thing, our house wasn't even singed. All water damage. It was a mess!"

Hope suddenly felt his cheeks burn up as he realised that he'd been responsible for that. He sank back in the seat wishing he had been able to control the spell a little better, instead of just carelessly releasing it into the air.

"Wait a minute. . ." Hope closed his eyes at Zell's raised voice. "It was you wasn't it!?" Hope cringed trying to stammer out an apology.

"I…I'm sorry!" He blurted out slowly looking up at the excitable youth who just glared at Hope. "I really just wanted to help."

Zell's fist was still clenched a moment before he seemed to relax and with a sigh he sat down beside Hope.

"Ahhh," he growled before looping his arm around Hope's neck. "Don't worry about it." Hope gagged and then yelped as Zell then scrubbed the top of his head roughly. "Now we're even!" He joked and Hope laughed but still tried to get free of the hold.

"Guys." Irvine who was stood at the front of the bridge now looking out towards their destination, his tone was serious and it spurred Zell and Hope to cease their play fight and turn their attention towards what he was now seeing.

Hope had to climb up on the chair to get a good look and he partly wished he couldn't.

Great plums of smoke billowed out on the horizon where a kind of metal bowl of sorts sat alongside a metal railway line that continued far across the waters.

"Are we too late?" Quistis asked and Hope squinted trying to make anything out but it was Irvine with his sniper scope that confirmed it.

"Not if we hurry, I can still make out signs of fighting."

Squall turned to the pilot who increased the speed and Hope lurched from his perch only to be spared a fall to the ground by Zell who caught him before easing him down.

"What's the plan?" Hope asked scurrying to Squalls side.

"We go out there and show these bastards what real soldiers can do." Hope nodded and stood ready with the rest of the group, each lost in their own thoughts.

All sound became like white noise to Hope as he was eager to get out there and stop this attack, but more than anything he just wanted to find some clue as to where his friends were. He followed Squall as he left the bridge, leaving the bridge crew to sort out the docking procedure. Hope just stayed close to the group as they moved with purpose to the second floor balcony and out into Fisherman's Horizon.

SeeD tumbled out into the small port town, cutting down any enemy they encountered and it was no different for Hope. The enemy was easily identifiable by the black, eye-less mask they wore and it took Hope back to his first memory after waking up on this world, the huge marching Legion passing him by coming from the town they had almost destroyed.

"Quistis, Irvine - lead two groups down to the docks, Zell and I will take two others into the town centre, we should be able to cut them off from their escape route." Squall indicated the massive bridge leading out to sea in both directions.

"You think that's how they got here?" Zell asked as he and Squall started across a makeshift bridge into the heart of the town, while Quistis and Irvine headed down to the quayside. Hope stayed with the former, having to run hard to keep up.

"I don't see any boats, do you?"

"Good point." Conversation over the two SeeD ran faster than Hope had ever thought anyone ever could and it was a nightmare to try and keep up. Even Lightning had never gone this fast, so he had to improvise.

Every chance he could he would leap from a point to another, cutting out either a long flight of stairs or a slope down. Running with Light had given him plenty of practice and while he didn't possess her finesse, it done the job and it meant he was able to keep up with the SeeD as they charged into battle.

Squall cut down anything in his path and if it happened to still be standing, Zell would kick, punch or jump upon it. The masked soldiers went down easily under SeeD's advance, even Hope managed to stagger a couple leaving them open to be picked off. For the most part he would watch his new companions. He knew Light, Snow and Sazh, he knew their movements their habits and he knew when to cast and what. With Squall and Zell it was all so knew and he singed the latter's hair a few times because he was so fast and agile, but needing to be at close range, not having the same reach of a much taller Snow. Squall was a wild card, he moved slower than Light but his swings were powerful more so when he was angered.

The rest of the troop following Squall and Zell assisted civilians and cut a safe path for those stranded to retreat back into Garden where they would be treated for injuries. It was the most disciplined landing party Hope had ever seen and all for the sake of helping those in trouble.

Hope felt something inside him connect with these people and the world he now found himself a part of and he smiled. As lost as he was, he no longer felt alone and he knew, deep within his heart he just knew, he was going to find his friends.

***

They had pushed deep into the town of Fisherman's Horizon and had fought many of the masked soldiers. It had been easier than any of them first thought and Squall glared down at one of the unconscious forms at his feet. That accursed mask gazed right back at him and he reach down and plucked it from the soldiers face, wishing he could do that for Rinoa. He studied the adornment, it was different to Rinoa's, this one was plain and a different colour, an icy blue instead of a oppressive black.

The mask shattered in his hand as he pulled it clear, fragments of the mask tumbling away into the ether. The woman who he had pulled it from opened her eyes before she herself begin to fragment. The last thing he saw was her smile as if she had been freed from some kind of nightmare.

"Thank you. . ." Her strangely accented voice echoed faintly in his ears as the pieces of what was once her body floated up and out of sight.

Squall turned to look at Zell and Hope who both stood there in silent shock, the later looking a little frightened. He wished he could reassure the lad but it wasn't so easily done. It seemed anyone who bore one of these masks were doomed to an eternal sleep or apparent none-existence.

He kicked a discarded can and opened up a channel to all the SeeD. Each member of Garden had a communication device and he could relay instructions to every SeeD there.

"This is Squall, once defeated, remove the Legion's mask. They seem to be spirits, the mask is trapping them in this reality." He left it at that, he knew his troops trusted him, he didn't need to explain that when he'd removed that mask the person trapped beneath it had thanked him.

"Do you think she died?" Hope asked inspecting the area she had been lain.

"I honestly don't know." He admitted and started walking down to the next area where the fighting was still taking place. So far they had seen no one else but these drones. Easily defeated but their sheer number meant they had been able to over-run the town. "Come on, they must have someone or something leading their advance."

"Yeah, I mean as bad as they are, they don't seem to do an awful lot of thinking." Zell mused. "They just keep going."

"Like worker bees." Hope jogged along to keep up having kept up with the much faster duo for the most part and Squall had to wonder what kind of life Hope had led before stumbling into their world.

"So that must be the Queen." Squall stopped his march and held Hope to a standstill as their first look at the dock where Quistis and Irvine were struggling to round up a giant of a man in a long white trench coat and black woollen hat.

He towered over everyone, blocking every hit thrown his way and retaliating with the force of a tank, even Irvine's buck-shot failed to slow him down.

"Finally some worthwhile action!" Zell enthused but Squall's knowing smile was cut down as the boy by his side screamed.

"Snow!?"