CHAPTER 9 – The Mission to Assassinate a Sorceress

Squall and Shibiru had once again slept together. He'd explained to her what all Headmaster Cid had told him. She didn't like what she'd heard, but she understood what it was her dad had wanted. Soldiers stick by their buddies, I know that. I'd stick by mine. Wow, I am my father's daughter, ain't I? She wouldn't judge her dad for what he'd done. She was certain he'd weighed every decision. I had to be a hard thing to do to leave a nine year-old daughter and a five year-old Sorceress daughter with your friend.

When she woke up the next morning, the first place she went was outside. She watched the sunrise and remembered that that was exactly what her dad had done the day she was concieved. Have I come full-circle, dad? You weren't that much older than me when Ellone was born. Is it my turn? I hope not, even though I do want to have a family eventually, I'm just not ready yet.

She sat on the ground. The sun was beautiful early in the morning. She always felt better in the morning. She found it easier to think.

Until she was interrupted by Quistis. "Where have you been?" she asked. "Headmaster Cid called us into his office five minutes ago!"

"Huh?"

"You, me, Selphie, Shibi, Zell, Xu and that Irvine guy from Galbadia Garden."

"That's a lot of people."

"Yeah, C'mon, let's go!"

Squall got up and followed Quistis into the Garden. The rest of the team was already in Cid's office, awaiting their orders. One person that Quistis hadn't mentioned was along for the ride, too.

Seifer.

"All right, students, I've called you all here because we have a plan," Cid announced. He stood from behind his desk. "As you all know, Galbadia is under the command of Sorceress Edea. Our plan is to end her rule over the continent."

Seifer piped up. "No offence to Madam Squall, or anything, but why do we care what happens to Galbadia? They're the enemy."

"Yes, but even worse an enemy is Edea. I mean no disrespect, Squall, but Sorceresses are a grave threat to the planet. Right now, a Sorceress is in control of the largest and most militaristic country on the planet. We need to do something about this."

"So, what's going to happen?" Selphie asked.

"Several of you have met Mr. Kinneas over there. He's Galbadia Garden's top sharpshooter. He's what'll make this whole plan work."

Squall finally asked, "What's the plan?"

"The plan... is to assassinate Sorceress Edea. Tonight, at a celebration in her honor."

"Assassinate a Sorceress?" Irvine asked. "That's never happened before. Nobody even knows if it can be done."

"Sorceress schmorceress," Seifer grunted out. "Anybody can die. So just use some Kryptonite bullet, or something. Blow her goddamn brains out with silver, that outta work."

Shibiru said, "She's not a vampire, Seifer."

"You're just defending her 'cause you're fucking one."

"This ain't the time, numbnuts," Shibiru held Squall closer, "and Squall doesn't need to take that from you."

Man... Is this what it's like to have... a knight? Do all Sorceresses have knights? I feel so confused.

"Getting back to the subject at hand, please?" Xu said, stepping between Shibiru and Seifer. She turned and shot a look of disappointment at Shibiru. "Please continue, Headmaster."

Cid nodded. "Thank you, Xu." He cleared his throat. "The Sorceress will first address the citizens of Deling City in the square. After that, she'll get on a float and be taken through the city. The central gate is where we'll stop her so that Irvine can take the shot. Most of you will be charged with setting up the ambush. Seifer, Shibiru and Quistis will be escorting Irvine through the city to get to the rifle put in place by Headmaster Martine's people."

Zell asked, "Where'll the rest of us actually be?"

"You, Xu and Selphie will be in charge of making certain the gate goes down and locks Edea in place."

"Pbf! I get stuck with the girls."

"What about me?" Squall asked.

Cid sighed. "Squall... Both options get you too close to Edea. If you two get close... well, it's just not too good an idea for two Sorceresses to get close to one another." He scratched his head. "I'm sorry I couldn't elaborate more, but time is of the essence." He sat back down in his chair. "The vehicle Squall and Irvine arrived in will be your transportation."

Squall rested her head on Shibiru's shoulder during the flight. She wasn't sure she liked the implications she got from Headmaster Cid about her and Edea, but she figured he knew what he was talking about. Somehow, she thought that Cid knew Edea.

Why do I have that idea? What makes me think that Cid and Edea are connected somehow? So he knew my dad, that doesn't mean he knows her.

Seifer was sharpening his gunblade across from them. Zell was next to them, flexing his fingers. Quistis and Xu were next to Seifer. Both of them looked nervous. Selphie was next to her and Shibiru on Squall's side, her nunchaku wrapped around her waist. Irvine was constantly taking apart and reassembling his shotgun.

It was amazing what they all did when faced with impossible odds.

"Look, everybody," Quistis finally said, breaking the silence, "none of us is really ready for this. We're all nervous, we're all scared. Seifer won't admit it, but he is, too." Seifer just grunted. Quistis ignored him. "We're about to face impossible odds and we don't even know if this is going to work. We'll be lucky if we all come out of this alive. I think we just need to keep focus on that: getting out alive. No matter what."

"Don't worry, Quis," Seifer said, "we're all gonna make it. We're too damn young to die, y'know."

"Well, we just need to stick to Headmaster Cid's plan. Squall, General Caraway's sympathetic to our cause and is one of Headmaster Martine's friends. He said you could stay at his mansion until this all is taken care of."

"That's great. I'm sticking back while my boyfriend and all my friends are going off to a situation where they could die. Why did I even come along?"

"You've gotta have some part, too," Seifer spoke again. "Cid wouldn't have stuck you in with us if you weren't gonna be useful."

"Seifer, this is the most positive I've ever seen you. I mean ever. Is there something wrong with you?"

"Nah. I'm just happy to be out here doin' shit. Ya'll got to be SeeDs and get to go on missions, I had to get stuck at Garden doing jackshit."

"I'm not a SeeD," Irvine said, in a somber tone of voice. "I'm not even from Balamb Garden."

"I think, no matter what, we're all SeeDs now," Shibiru said. "No... We're more than SeeDs. SeeDs just go around doing clean-up operations. We're going to assassinate one of the most powerful beings on the planet, deep into enemy territory, and all of us," he looked at Squall when he said that, "have a part to play. We're more than SeeDs."

"I just hope this doesn't go bad," Zell sighed as he spoke.

"Me, too," Selphie agreed.

"Me, three," Xu piped in. "I'd really like to meet a nice boy some day."

Squall nuzzled closer to Shibiru.

General Caraway's mansion was quite large, but after seeing Galbadia Garden, Squall didn't think she'd see anything close to that size.

"Ms. Leonhart?" General Caraway walked into the room he'd set up for her. "Do you need anything?"

"No, thank you, sir."

"Your Headmaster is quite bold."

"I just want them all to come out alive. I wish I didn't have to stick back and wait."

Caraway laughed. "You have your father's determination."

Squall lifted her head. "You knew my dad?"

"Laguna Loire was one of my finest friends."

She lowered her head again. "Why is everybody friends with my dad except me? Why does everybody know my dad except me?"

"Your father was a friend to all. No one was below his notice."

"Except me..."

Caraway sat down next to her. "I have a daughter your age. She hates me every bit as much as you must hate your own father right now."

Squall shook her head. "I don't hate my dad. I just wish I knew why he left me and never came back."

"Certainly something important must have taken up his time. Contrary to popular belief, a man's daughter is not the only thing he thinks about, but Laguna loved both you and your sister greatly."

"And about Ellone, where the hell is she? How is it possible for your dad and your sister to leave you without being together? Headmaster Cid said that Ellone doesn't even know where Dad is."

"You remind me an awful lot of my daughter. If you could meet Rinoa, I'm sure you'd become fast friends."

"Rinoa? Rinoa Heartily?"

Caraway's face lit up. "You know Rinoa? Where is she?"

"I last saw her in Timber. She was trying to kidnap President Deling."

"She's a member of the Timber Resistance? Damn it!" He stood and slammed both fists into the wall. "I told her not to get involved. She and her mother both were like that—always waiting to think until the last possible option had expired. What she doesn't know is that's how her mother died."

"I'm sorry."

He waved his hand. "It's not your fault, ma'am."

Ma'am? I'm not royalty. "I'm sure she's okay. She seemed like a tough chick."

"Hmph. I didn't want her to have to be. I tried to get her into the best schools, yet all she did was turn me down. 'Father, I don't want this' and 'no, Father, not that'. Nothing I did pleased her."

"I wonder if I'd have been that way to my dad, too."

He laughed. "Laguna Loire wouldn't have raised you in the kind of environment that I tried to put Rinoa through. In the end, I suppose it is my fault."

So, in the end, the father of a rich kid gets hate, while the father of a Sorceress gets disappointment. Maybe I should treat my dad better. Maybe my kid's dad should treat their kid better. Maybe... Maybe I just don't know.

Four hours had passed. Nothing. The celebration with Sorceress Edea was less than an hour away. Shibiru watched as Irvine continued to do his hand exercises, while Seifer and Quistis were on the other side of the room.

He wondered how Squall was doing.

Quistis laughed at something. He didn't know what it was, but he assumed it was some kind of joke that Seifer had told. He almost considered going over and asking, but he didn't really want to know.

"Irvine," he said, "how's it going?"

"Oh, no bad. I mean, I'm about to attempt to kill a Sorceress, probably end up an enemy of the Republic, maybe even get taken out in a similar fashion to how I'm gonna take out the Sorceress. Who knows, maybe I'll even get batoned right down there once we come out of here."

Shibiru smiled. "Glad to see you're taking this well."

"Whaddya expect, man? I've got nothing. No family, no real friends, no girlfriend. They stuck me in this op because I'm expendable."

"No more than the rest of us."

"Nah, you guys are gonna make it out, I'm sure. You've got Squall, Seifer and Quistis over there are getting real cozy and I bet that Zell dick is banging both Selphie and that hottie Xu."

"That 'hottie Xu' is my sister, pal, and I wouldn't let Zell touch her with a ten-foot pole. And Selphie hits me as more like somebody who'd fall in love with you instead of him."

"Still, everybody here has somebody except me. All of you have reasons to get out of here alive, I don't."

Shibiru shook his head. "There's gotta be something you wanna do with your life."

"Yeah, meet a cool girl, settle down, have a family. The only problem, I haven't found one girl yet that I'd have a shot with. None."

"You'll find somebody, I'm sure. Hey, if it helps, it took me years before I ever had a girlfriend, and I'm not letting go of Squall unless I have to. She's far too precious to me."

"You sure that ain't 'cause of some Sorceress thing she's got on you?"

"No. This is way too much like love, on both ends."

"See? I can't find anybody I love. It's like I keep missing the bullseye every time I try to ask a girl out. And I usually don't miss."

"You better hope you don't miss this time," Seifer said, walking over to them. "Otherwise, you won't have time to try and bang a chick later."

"Thanks, Mr. Optimisim."

"Doin' what I can for who I choose, buddy."

Shibiru asked, "What happened to you, Seifer? You used to be a major cockbite."

"Meh, the end of the world became a possibility, so I decided to wise up. Besides," he leaned over to whisper in Shibiru's ear, "she's got a whip. Babes with whips score huge in my book, and I wanna score huge in her."

"Shhh!" Quistis said. She was looking outside. "They're starting early."

Squall awoke in a room that was mostly white. She didn't know how she got there, or even where 'there' was. All she saw in front of her was a black chair. She was facing its back, so if anyone was in it, she couldn't see them.

Okay... What's with the memory blanks? How did I get here?

"Your questions will be answered soon, young one," a voice came from the chair. It was a woman's voice, and Squall assumed she knew who it was.

Edea.

"You seem to know what I'm thinking," Squall said, standing. She realized then that her jacket was gone. Great, the one time that it's cold, I decide to leave my jacket behind and wear a skirt. Good thinking, Sorcer-genious.

"A good Sorceress can read the fragile minds of those around her. Too bad you have yet to master this ability."

"Why should I know how to read minds?"

"Because, an even better Sorceress can control the fragile minds of those around her. Even I have yet to master this ability."

"Well, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Perhaps you'll be my key to it."

"I seriously doubt that."

The woman in the chair stood, and Squall found she was right: Sorceress Edea stood and turned to face her. She'd only seen a picture of the woman before, and the face staring at her now scared her like none other. Edea's eyes had a look of pure hatred in them. "I'm glad I was able to steal you away from General Caraway for the grand show. How does it feel to be back on the continent of your birth? Winhill is only thirty miles to the south."

Squall concentrated for a moment. She could feel whatever power it was that connected Sorceresses. Edea radiated it far less than she did, but Edea also had a good forty or fifty years more experience with it. She was also holding nearly all the cards. Squall had no idea how she got where she was, and was still somewhat out of it, whereas Edea knew exactly what was going on and was in complete control of her sense.

Squall was outgunned in every way.

Edea continued speaking. "Interesting, you're gauging my power even now. You truly are as powerful as they say. It's a pity, really. You could have been the greatest of us."

"Us? There aren't that many Sorceresses out there. In fact, there are only two right here: you and me."

Edea laughed. "How utterly naïve you are, child. Tell me, how do you plan to escape?"

"Can I break your neck and use your corpse to dig my way out?"

There was that laugh again. "How do you think my dear, sweet Cid would think about that?"

"Dear, sweet Cid? Headmaster Cid?"

"None other, young one."

Squall's eyes widened in surprise. Headmaster Cid knew Edea? Knew her enough that she would call him 'dear' and 'sweet'? What the hell was going on? "How do you know Headmaster Cid?" she asked.

"Cid and I have been dear friends for many many years. And here's a surprise: your mother and I were as well."

Squall was angry now. She wanted answers and the old witch in front of her was giving her nothing but cryptic half-answers. Something inside her raged. She raised her hand and lightning spread from her fingertips directly toward Edea. Edea, however, swatted the bolts away as easily as one would swat a fly.

"My husband puts too much faith in you, girl. He thinks you and your little band of friends will be able to kill me. He's dead wrong."

Husband? You're Cid's wife? Just when Squall thought she'd figured out enough to keep going on normally, another brick hit her in the face. This bit of news shocked and surprised her.

Suddenly, something clamped Squall's wrists together behind her back. He legs were clasped together as well. An invisible force pushed her into the wall behind her. "I wish I could talk more, sweetheart," Edea said in a sweet, motherly tone that made Squall sick to her stomach, "but I've got a Republic to take control of. These imbiciles don't yet understand that they're giving me, an evil, hated Sorceress, the keys to the kingdom that I need to destroy Garden and SeeD once and for all."

"My friends'll stop you," Squall grunted out as another invisible clasp put itself around her neck, further keeping her attached to the wall. "They'll kill you, and we'll be heroes."

"I don't think so. I've seen the future, darling, and I know just what it holds for both me and for you." She smiled again. "Rest assured, this won't be the last time we meet."

Thank you, you've made me absolutely certain that I get out of here. Squall struggled against the nonexistant bonds that held her in place. Edea walked out of the room.

Selphie, Zell and Xu made their way back out into the street and into the crowd. They had planned to rendezvous with Squall back at Caraway's Mansion, but Xu noticed that the celebration had started earlier than expected. Now, President Deling was moving aside so that Edea could speak to the people.

Selphie wondered how Squall was doing, all stuck in the old man's mansion. Her question was answered by Caraway himself wandering through the crowd. He spotted Selphie and rushed over to her. "Squall is missing," he said.

"What? You were supposed to be taking care of her!" she shouted.

"I was knocked unconscious. I don't even know when it happened. One minute I was talking to her, the next I was waking up and she was gone."

"Dammit," Xu said, "Shibi's not gonna like this. If he finds out Squall's gone, he's gonna tear the city apart looking for her."

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Edea said through the speakers. "It is a wonderous occasion! All of you stupid hypocrites, giving the Sorceress you pledged your lives to hating control over your most important city! Well, I'm glad you were all so stupid to let this day happen, because now I shall give you what you truly deserve! The death of the most evil Sorceress in existance!" As if on cue, the doors behind her suddenly opened. Two wolf-like creatures escorted a brown-haired girl wearing a white tank top and black skirt out of the building.

Selphie shouted, "Oh my god its—"

"Squall!" Shibiru couldn't control his anger. He watched as the woman he loved was pulled out of the Presidential Estate by two odd monsters. "She was supposed to be at Caraway's mansion!"

Seifer held his hand in front of Shibiru's face. "Calm down, lover boy." He turned to Irvine, "Change of plans, cowboy, take the shot now so she doesn't have a chance to execute Squall."

"I'm not sure I can. This rifle's specifically calibrated for me to hit Edea when she's locked down by the two gates that Selphie, Xu and Zell are supposed to do. If the distance is any further or closer, I'm gonna be off too much and I won't hit her."

Shibiru grabbed Irvine by the collar and shoved him into the wall. "Just take the fucking shot!"

"Okay, okay!"

Irvine walked over to the window and opened it. He set the rifle's barrel on the windowsil and spent precious seconds taking aim. Shibiru wanted to go over there and pull the trigger for him, but he knew that if Irvine wasn't dead center on Edea's head, it wouldn't hit her. He had to wait. He had to watch as Squall was circled by two dogish monsters.

"Okay," Irvine said, "I'm taking the shot."

He fired.

Squall heard the shot even from as far away as they were. Then, it was almost as if it was traveling in slow motion. She watched the bullet edge ever closer to Edea's face, and then with the calmness that she'd swatted away Squall's lightning, she swatted the bullet as well. It hit President Deling in the center of the forehead. He fell down, and the two wolves went after his body like they hadn't been fed in decades.

"See, I told you it wouldn't work," Edea said, and for a fraction of a second, Squall was certain she could hear another voice.

One that sounded very familiar.

The binds that held her wrists together were suddenly gone, and Squall concentrated. She was getting better at calling certain magiks forward, and with her mind, she willed an icicle into existance. She threw it directly at Edea, then the slow motion effect happened again, and once more, Edea easily stopped Squall's attack. This time, however, she didn't deflect it or simply swat it away. This time, she grabbed the icicle and threw it back at Squall.

The sharp object pierced her chest instantly and then, Squall felt cold. Colder than the icicle had felt in her hands. The air was escaping her lungs not through her mouth, but through the gaping hole in her left breast. She looked down at it and watched as blood dripped down from the hole. The icicle simply vanished, as easily as it had come into existance.

Squall fell to the ground, and then the whole world went black.