Hyne's War

by Lady of the Phoenix

Six months after Time Compression the future is bright. Then a man steps forth to demand that the son of Vascaroon guide the chosen people, called the Zebalga to Hyne's body and magic, so that they might rule the world. The world's only option? War. Part One of the Legend of Vascaroon Series.

34. Chapter 29

Notes: Yet another day, yet another chapter. It starts to occur to me that this update schedule is hardly all that pleasant when one considers the months of November and December. None the less I strive to bring you more delectable updates. As it is this one shall be shorter than most due to the fact that it is, indeed, the holiday season and thus there are other demands upon my time. What can you do when family comes up, especially when you see them so very rarely? Well, anyway, here is what is obviously due the story: the next chapter.

I've also given Fujin and Raijin last names as of this chapter. I decided to keep with the theme of naming that was used for them. Fujin is named for Fuujin, a Japanese wind god, and Raijin for a thunder god. So I chose the names of Roman gods of wind and thunder for them.

And just so you know, I was considering a cliffhanger as the end of the chapter. You can probably even notice what it would have been. Then I decided that the iffiness of just when I'll be able to update again made me want to write you guys a serious chapter. Hopefully you can forgive me for giving you ~9k words.

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Hyne's War: Chapter 29

"Sir!" a voice called out from behind Nida as he made his way through the recently finished corridor that occupied what used to be, and might one day be again, the cargo hold. This was the third such call, and it took a lot for Nida not to sigh as he came to a halt and turned to face the voice.

It was, as with the times before it, a younger looking cadet whose insignia announced had been given the temporary rank of private during his stay with the Ragnarok. Like the others his eyes were wide, full of the same doubt and fear that Nida had learned to hide almost a year ago. Odd to think that the last war had been so recent, when the events of the last months had made time seem to race by. How young they had been then, were now, and there was nothing Nida could do about it. For all he knew this cadet and the others had been tested in the last SeeD exam or two, but did that make it any easier? Could that prepare them for what came next, if anything at all? Nida didn't think so, but that was in part because except for the battle between the Gardens few of these kids—for that was what they were in Nida's eyes—had ever seen a friend fall in a fight. Fewer had likely been asked to kill before. Not that any battle experience they might have had would prepare them for what came with manning the Raganarok. This was a whole different experience all together, one that Nida was certain not even a third of those students he'd taught as the flight instructor were truly prepared for, despite the fact that any which had passed the course with a satisfactory grade had also been given over into his hands if they were able to be spared from other duties.

There was one thing to be said for Garden trained personnel, though. This private, like the last one, snapped to attention the second Nida had turned to face him, throwing off a smart salute. The few crew members already present from the allied nations were still reluctant to see so young a man as Nida in a position of power over them. Galbadians barely bothered to show the respect due his position. The single Trabian woman had all but rolled her eyes when she'd encountered Nida. And the trio of Esthari who had come to Balamb to become familiar with Nida and act as his liaisons to the Esthari air forces still seemed at a loss for what to do about him. The only comfort was that currently the skeleton crew of the Raganrok was made up of enough Garden students to keep Nida comfortable, not that the ratio would hold long past their first stop, Esthari airspace. At that point Nida was going to have to do something, come up with something, to make sure that they listened to him whether or not they respected him. Too many lives were going to be in his hands to accept anything less than unflinching obedience.

Nida returned the student's salute with a slightly less formal one, and nodded in acknowledgment to him. "Yes, Private?"

"Sir, I was hoping to ask for a change of..." the young man, Private Winters his uniform marked him, started to say, only to be cut off by a dismissive gesture from Nida.

"No," Nida said, holding back a sigh. The same question as the last one. Seemed he was going to have to address this before they departed from Balamb later today. "You may not make a change in your bunking assignment. Unless a true problem can be determined to prevent it, those crew members hailing from Garden are to be bunked with more experienced airmen. Whether that means you're with a foul mouthed Galbadian or a Esthari who looks down their nose at you doesn't concern me. We're trying to foster cooperation among our people, Private Winters..."

"Yes Sir, sorry Sir," Winters said, half-shouted really, before looking down at his shoes. Nida was about to dismiss him when the youth spoke up again, this time lower and more nervous. "It was just that... Well, Sir, I didn't think I was going to be bunked with a..."

"A what, Winters? Spit it out."

"A woman."

There was a long moment there as Nida considered just what Winters had said. He was certain that there had to be some problems with the way things were currently set up, in part because Raijin had been worked past the point of fatigue trying to shuffle the vast number of recruits Fujin and Nida had narrowed down into their crew into the rather limited bunk space and still follow Nida's commands on how things should be arranged. Nida had expected something would happen, that someone would fall through the cracks, but he'd been expecting to hear that someone had not been assigned a bunk, not... well, this.

"Ah. I see," Nida said, trying his hardest to sound serious and respectable when the only thing he could think of doing was laughing. This was almost a ridiculous situation. Who would have ever thought he'd been standing here, in front of a private under his command, trying to figure out just what to do about cross-gendered rooming situations. "Repack your gear if you've started unpacking, then take it and yourself to Lieutenant Colonel Raijin Summanus. Tell him that I've ordered you there and that he is to find you more... suitable arrangements."

"Yes Sir!" the private said, already cheered. He didn't even wait long enough for Nida to dismiss him before turning on heel and ducking into one of the cramped, four person rooms that lined the hall.

With a sigh Nida turned in place once more and forced himself into a casual stroll down the corridor. As much as he just wanted to rush off and hide in his own small quarters until it was time to meet with Squall before departure, it just wouldn't do. For all that he didn't want a command, it was his and he had to deal with it appropriately. Running off to hide was hardly behavior befitting a general of any rank, especially at a time of war. Doing so in full view of half of his current crew who were currently settling in to their bunks would be disastrous. Too much possibly depended on them looking to him as a leader in a time of crisis for Nida to appear weak now. A little strength now would go a long way later, when strength would really be needed. Even if he didn't have it in him to be as strong as he needed to be, he had to fake it.

Well, at least at the moment he had the greatest tool to the appearance of strength that he could have wanted: Fujin. As much as Nida had thought Seifer had cleaned up well in a uniform, Fujin put him to shame. Sure, she wasn't in the SeeD uniform like Seifer had been, but the general uniform that was being assigned to Garden members were rather fitting for her. In truth, Nida was certain she looked better in her generic uniform, complete with the shining brass pips at her throat, than Nida did in his SeeD uniform. Even the eye-patch made her radiate authority. Next to her Nida seemed like a guy who was still trying to get used to his uniform, due in part to the fact that Kadowaki had forced him into a sling a few days ago, reprimanding him for over working a recovering wound.

"Sir, we still have a meeting with the engineering crew to attend to," Fujin whispered, leaning in just a bit so that only Nida would hear her. The effect of her shouting was powerful, and they had long since agreed not to have Fujin speak normally if she could help it.

"Of course," he said, sighing.

The engineering crew had held a monopoly on his time for the last week and a half of the renovations. The second that they had been brought in from FH and Esthar and passed through the best security review that Squall could conceive of (which mainly consisted of a bit of serious intimidation with Seifer's assistance), Nida had been at the beck and call of his crews. The Estharis had been set to going over all of the systems while the FH people had been working on converting the Rag to a carrier of people as well as supplies. Getting the place filled with enough bunks and yet also carrying crews for repairs and management and also to man the fighters that the Ragnarok now carried... And Nida had to be conferred with on every decision. Sleep hadn't really been much of an achievable thing these last few days between the planning, heavy lifting, and the strain he kept putting on his shoulder. In the end he still kept Elijah's sword with him, even now, too injured to really handle his normal weapon. Not that he would be expected to fight with it right now. Fujin was mainly there for that, and she openly wore chakram on both hips, not to mention two others strapped on her back. Already there was word going around that Fujin was the hard ass who would force obedience if it wasn't openly given. Too bad he couldn't let her loose on the engineering crews to get himself some sleep.

"Finish the review here," Nida said, though it was more of a request than an order. He'd learned rather early on that ordering Fujin around wasn't exactly the best of ideas if he didn't want a fight. She did what she agreed with, but the simple truth was the fact that she was there as much as a second as a guard, and wasn't about to let him get hurt for stupidity. He'd gotten used to saying orders, and not being sure whether or not she would obey. All he could do was hope she didn't disobey him in an open way.

"AFFIRMATIVE!"

With a nod Nida pulled away from Fujin and started purposefully down the hall. Luckily he'd ordered Fujin loudly enough that it was likely that the other men and women waiting to see him wouldn't bother him as he left. Sure enough he won free of the immediate demands of the crew members settling in, and finally found his way to the lift. While the engineering crew were to be bunked with the rest of the crew, in practice they spent most of their time waking and otherwise fluttering around the different parts of the ship that still needed their attention. At this point that was the main hanger deck, which was mostly intact and unchanged, except for its conversion to hold and rapidly deploy various fighters from the Gardens, Esthar, and Galbadia. For all of the time that had been assigned to this task, it was yet to be completed in part because of the vastly different styles used by the different nations when it came to fighter designs, meaning that it was a complex issue to get everything together and easily deployed when needed. The goal was to have it finished up by the time that Squall officially ordered Nida out to start gathering the men and women—and combat ships—that Nida had selected with the help of Esthari and Galbadian military leaders. In truth Nida was just hoping that the cradles made for the Trabian fighters would be functional by the time they were scheduled to load those planes in a bit under 24 hours.

He must have been delayed, or the engineering crew chiefs intent upon his arrival, because the second Nida entered the hanger he was met by the sight of thirty odd engineers, those associated with Garden and Esthar at full salute, and the FH men and women just rolling their eyes at their companions. Between them and Nida stood another pair of individuals, ones that Nida hadn't expected at all: Seifer and Irvine. The two nodded politely, Irvine even throwing a half-hearted salute as Nida advanced further into the room.

"Stand down," Nida said, resisting the urge to insist that his engineers at least never salute them. Many of those from FH and Esthar had taught him all he knew about the Garden and Ragnarok systems. Those who were associated with Garden had either taught Nida, were taught by him, or had worked with him so closely with him since the war that he knew them all by name. It felt odd to have to act like their superior, but he had to for the sake of discipline on the ship.

And this, Nida knew, was part of the reason he had never been tempted to join the military. Too much standing on protocol. Mercenaries like SeeDs could play things a bit more fast and loose. Sure, they were trained in obedience, but never in as rigid of a structure as a proper military required. How Squall expected him to cope with all of this was beyond Nida.

"Well then, let's get on with it. I'm sure we've all got far more important things to do than stand around here and talk our heads off," Nida said, at last coming within a few paces of his assembled engineers. He had to, of course, duck Seifer's attempt to whack him on the shoulder as a joke, though the motion he did it with was rather clumsy. Balance wasn't always easy when one of your arms was held tightly against the body.

"Sir," came the voice of the chief of the FH engineers, a man by the name of Daniels. Rather quickly he'd been elected as the unspoken head of the engineers and mechanics assigned to the Ragnarok. The men from FH respected his age and skill, the ones from Garden had often learned a lot under him in the last few years, and the Esthari couldn't help but be baffled by Daniels's quick and bemusingly simple answers to what others thought were complex problems.

"Daniels? How goes the progress?"

"Well, we've got about half the cradles up and ready for storage, and we think we've got a solution to the launch systems if you will look over them. Would take advantage of the fact that we can lower the entry ramp while at full speed..."

"Slinging the ships to flight speed by using our own motion to give them a boost," Nida said, nodding in appreciation. There had been suggestions along these lines before, but nothing that allowed for this to be done quickly and safely. "And your solution to..."

"It occurs to me that the fancy launching system that the Esthari used to get the Rag and her sisters airborne would be perfect. Set the cradles into recessed guide tracks, with a..."

Nida nodded and waved Daniels to silence. "If you and Lieutenant Yoriel have come to an agreement on how to get the system working, then it's fine in my opinion. Select a runner to send messages to get whatever you need. Whatever we can't get here quickly should be made available for us in Galbadia and Esthar. I'd rather see the system ready to work come our departure from the first airbase in Galbadia. See to it?"

With a curt nod Daniels took the implied dismissal, grabbed the arms of a younger SeeD mechanic and the Esthari Lieutenant Yoriel and strode deeper into the hanger to where they had work benches set up, and would start to come up with their demands. That done Nida turned his attention to the other high ranking Esthari officer in the hanger, one Captain Orphis, who was an expert in the offensive systems that were being loaded into the Ragnarok proper.

"Sir, my men have finished the overhaul of the offensive systems, and are ready to test out the defensive system we created that is based upon the shields used around Esthar. We can proceed at your earliest convenience and get the results back to you posthaste. I've also had the details on the new capabilities of the ship to your quarters for your review. The bridge crews are already being trained in how to handle the new systems, with training information and logs being sent to you at regular intervals. I'm also seeing to arranging training for battle stations for those in the hanger and whatever shall function as our flight deck once it becomes relevant. Finally, I have finished upgrading the command level consoles with holo-systems that are tied into the status systems of the ship with real time updates. You'll be aware of any damage or changes on the Ragnarok as they happen."

Again Nida nodded, thankful that this at least had happened quickly. There was always the chance that the Zebalgan forces, if there were any that could face the Ragnarok, would hit them long before they got the issues of the fighters worked out. Without a way to protect itself and its crew, the Ragnarok would become nothing more than a giant target, and potential coffin to carry all its hands to fiery or watery deaths. Now he could be sure of some level of defense. A level he hoped never to have to deploy.

"And the missile systems..."

That got more than just a few of his men to shuffle around a bit, staring at their feet in clear discomfort. No one liked the idea of the systems that Nida had commanded installed at Squall's insistence. Most of the weapons aboard the Ragnarok were for air to air combat, or air to sea if necessary. There were a few things meant to be turned upon ground based offenses, but nothing quite like the missiles. Galbadian designed things, ones that far too recently had been turned against Balamb and Trabia Gardens by Seifer's command. In fact, more than a few of the men were casting nervous glances at Seifer, who had arranged the attacks, and Irvine, who had been part of the three man team that had helped give Balamb the time it needed to get out of the way. The destructive potential of the items was extreme, and Squall had suggested them as not only an anti-weapon tool, but anti-personnel if it truly became necessary. Which made a lot of sense. Many people didn't quite understand what they were fighting for. Sure, the Sorceress War was big and showy, but it hadn't exactly been a thing a whole world could fight. This, though, was potentially world changing. If the power of Hyne did exist—and Irvine insisted that it did—and fell into the hands of the Zebalgans... Well... The plan was not to allow that to happen, but how often did wars go according to plans?

"Installed, Sir," the captain confirmed, after swallowing hard.

"Good. I've been looking over the conversions so far, and they are masterfully done. Good work, men and women. From what I've seen, you've managed to convert a machine built for one purpose into something useful for our immediate needs. Feel free to give yourselves all a good round of applause after I've gone. In the end of this know that you've done something almost unfathomable. So much work in so little time. Thank you all. Now... get back to work. I'm sure we're not finished here yet. Dismissed. Kinneas, Almasy, with me."

Nida didn't even wait long enough to see if he was obeyed. In his position the world worked more by assuming that the people around him did what was commanded of them without having to pay attention to it. So he turned on heel and started to stride out of the hanger, not even doubting for an instant that Seifer and Irvine were indeed following him. By the time he made it to the lift that would take him to the higher level and ultimately to the former passenger compartment that had been fortified and turned into three rooms and offices from him and his senior staff—weird to think that he had a senior staff—Irvine and Seifer had fallen into step behind him. It wasn't until the lift was in motion that he bothered to acknowledge the pair with him.

"I though Squall had shipped you out yesterday with Zell," Nida said, frowning at Seifer. "What's changed?"

"Nothing much," Seifer said, smirking. "They wanted Zell to have a night to get his command staff used to the idea that they'll be reporting to the Sorceress Knight again before unleashing them on me. In fact, I'm sure Irvine's been sent in part to tell you that you'll be giving me a lift to Galbadia."

"Squall does know that room is at a..." Nida started to say, turning to Irvine, only to have the gunner raise his hands almost defensively before himself.

"Don't look at me. I don't know what he's thinking. Few people do. Besides, from the way I understand it you won't be too pressed for room until you hit Esthar."

"Yes, but I hardly want to inflict Seifer's personality on my rather enthusiastic crew at this point," Nida sighed, shaking is head. All he had to do was look out of the corner of his eyes to see the way Seifer was smirking at that suggestion. "I want them to be useable in the long run."

"You could always kick Raijin in with someone and give me his room," Seifer suggested, still smirking.

"Not possible. The bunks aren't exactly equipped to... handle his bulk." Which was true enough. Raijin wasn't built like most pilots. If combat pilots were built like him there might be issues with fitting consoles into the cockpit with him. Not to say that Raijin wasn't capable as a soldier, just that he wasn't here to be a pilot.

"Oh well, you'll figure something out," Seifer laughed as the lift came to a halt. Then, with a half-mocking bow, he moved to raise the bar of the lift and gestured for Nida and Irvine to proceed him out onto the walkway.

"I'll have Fujin figure something out," Nida corrected. "There is one advantage to delegating responsibility, especially when you have an extremely competent second."

"Tell me about it," Seifer said, still smirking widely. Apparently he thought himself a competent second. Was he ever wrong. Zell had the potential for two different worst case scenarios. One being Seifer just overthrowing him for the sake of it, the other being mutiny because the men couldn't stand Seifer's smugness any longer.

"We don't have the time necessary to give you a lecture on being a good second," Irvine quipped, smiling as he stepped onto the walkway, soon followed by Nida trying his hardest not to laugh at the fake deflated expression Seifer had pasted on his face. "Squall's got me here to give you some final reports and go over a few things before your official meeting and depature."

"And Seifer's just here as an annoyance?"

"Pretty much," Seifer confirmed.

"Well then, gentlemen, should we retire to my office?"

"Oh, if only we could really retire before everything started to happen," Irvine sighed.

---

After an hour Irvine finally excused himself from Nida's office, leaving Seifer behind and Nida none the more comfortable with what was going on. Little was changing, not even the order that Nida was to be deployed in, but there was some initial reports coming in that didn't sound too promising to him. Or at least to his ability to stay out of the worst parts of this fight for once. There was word of a stolen prototype Esthari airship meant to rival the Ragnarok, as well as increased levels of possible activity in the area of Dollet. No one was sure what it meant, especially since the Duke Freizan was being rather uncooperative about everything. The other item that Irvine had raised was a brief flash in a dream that found Nida standing over a body with a bloody sword in his hand. There was no real idea of when it might happen, it had been a smoke dream at the very best, and might have been nothing more than a nightmare, which Irvine was willing to admit. After all, Nida was a rare character in the dreams of the Heir, probably kept separate due to their joint blood. Maybe Nida had some power to interfere in the futures presented in smoke dreams, just as Irvine did, which made him too chaotic of an item for their limited precognition to really process. Irvine had also pressed Nida for information about his own dreams, which meant Nida had been reluctantly forced to admit that he still hadn't had anything meaningful since Elijah's death. That he still dreamed of standing before his red clad opponent, weapon dripping with blood, and Boyce all but egging them on beyond the limits of his awareness. A smoke dream that wasn't possible because one of the main players was already dead.

Now though, Nida was left alone with Seifer, the blond oddly silent ever since he had taken one of the two seats across Nida's desk. They'd sat there now for several minutes in silence. It was starting to get frustrating, especially since there was a schedule Nida really had to conform to. Amazing, really, that now that he had more power and authority than he knew what to do with he was being forced to conform to schedules like he'd never known before. More demands on his time and less time to give to those demands, and here Seifer was asking for more than Nida could afford to give.

"Are you just sitting here to annoy me, or has Squall banished you from any reasonable range of his presence?" Nida asked at last, too exasperated to deal with the silence anymore.

"Just thinking. You're adjusting to your new position rather well."

"Not like I have much of a choice," Nida pointed out, pushing back from his desk and stretching his arms. "These people need to have someone to obey, and they won't have someone if I don't act like I can handle it."

"Can you?"

In truth? No. Would he have to anyway? Yes.

"What do you want, Seifer? I don't really have time to..."

"The journal?"

That deflated Nida rather quickly. "What about it?"

"Have you learned anything useful?"

Yes. No. Maybe. Nida really wasn't sure. Since the meeting that he'd been forced to abandon he'd gotten through maybe a third of the thing in his free time. Just like Elijah had indicated things had started to turn into letters directed at Nida, letters that were clearly never intended to be sent. Message of love, confusion, support. But in the most recent pages things had started to change. Or maybe it was more accurate to say that Elijah had started to change. The time in the journal had been rapidly approaching Nida's SeeD examination, and more and more often Elijah had been confiding his suspicions about the heir into the journal. His confusions over how Nida could handle him so easily in a sparring session one day, and not at all the next. The way that Nida seemed to appear with perfect timing when he was really needed. Apparently at one point Elijah had even tried to trace Nida's lineage to try and figure out whether or not he could be the heir, and managed to convince himself that it was impossible. And then Elijah's words had turned towards Boyce and the damage he saw his foster father as doing to their people with his decisions at times. His growing suspicion of the power the ruler of the people possessed, and the eventual confirmation of it. Yet none of it was useful enough to bring to Squall and risk losing not only his last link to Elijah, but having is secret out. Since, by some chance, Squall hadn't figured it out yet and it wasn't spreading, Nida was happy not to share it widely.

"Nothing more than I'd already learned and relayed to Squall. Trust me, if there was something..."

"The problem is that I don't trust you with this," Seifer admitted, frowning severely enough to rival Quistis in her most instructorly moods. "You aren't exactly in the position to be impartial with this information, Nida."

"You think I don't know that?" he demanded, glaring at Seifer. "I'm not an idiot. Quite the opposite. And who are you to question my decisions?"

"Your friend, Nida. Or near enough to it. Don't let your new authority go to your head enough that you forget that I'm trying to look out for you here. Once posse, always posse and always united. Get it?"

"I never asked to be a part of your..."

"I'm not getting into this fight again," Seifer said, shaking his head. "I've already got a headache from all the times I've thought and realized that I have to fucking report to Chickenwuss. You know the first few days are going to be him dicking around just because he has power over me."

"That isn't true."

"I know, but it's easier than admitting the truth that the people I've always seen as the kids I was raised with have grown up. Shit, things change fast don't they?"

"Too fast," Nida agreed.

"Well, that isn't about to stop just because we want it to, so don't hold your breath. Accept it and move on."

If only it was that simple.

I could... Siren started to say, only to be cut off by a mental gesture from Nida.

No. No now and no forever. I won't have you actively messing with my memories. So stop offering.

"They like to butt in where they aren't wanted, don't they?" Seifer asked, a look of something like sympathy on his face as he obviously read Siren's activity in Nida's mind on Nida's face.

"Like some blond gunbladers I've grown to know," Nida agreed.

"Don't you wish you hadn't found me?"

"Every night, Almasy."

"Aww, does poor little Nomura have nightmares about finding me?"

"No, just waking up with you next to me. I mean who wants that sight?" Nida asked, smiling viciously.

"Oh, you wound me," Seifer said, his tone the epitome of mockery. "How can I go on knowing that the little gay flyboy doesn't fantasize about me like every woman that every comes across me?"

"Who says every woman fantasizes about you?" Nida countered, shaking his head. "And next time you call me a 'little gay flyboy' I'll see to it that you're accidentally lost off the side of the ship while we're in flight. Got it?"

"Sensitive?"

"No, Seifer, surely I'm not bothered by the fact that I could be judged not only for fraternizing with the enemy, but for fraternizing with a male. Besides, it's more complicated than that."

"More complicated than what?"

"I'm bisexual, Seifer. My first crush was Alana."

That got silence for a moment. The whole expected cascade of amusement to shock to realization that Nida had expected to see as it really hit Seifer. That Nida had attempted to stop his lover from killing his first love. Failing. Yes, just another little irony that made everything so frustrating. But who could change the past? What did it matter.

"Don't even bother to say anything," Nida said, raising a hand to stop Seifer as he opened his mouth. "I've got business to do go about. I don't have time to spend playing 'guess Nida's secrets' with you. Get back to Garden and pack whatever you need. Then get back here and see Raijin. His office is at the end of the hall. He'll find you a place to bunk until we hit Galbadia. I'll call for you if I need you, and if you need to speak to me, Fujin usually finds me disturbingly fast every time I try to get some breathing space."

"She's good at what she does."

"She's also scaring a good part of the crew. How often does a man have to face down a woman with one eye, four deadly looking chakrams, and who shouts in your face seemingly for the fun of it? No, don't even bother to ask that. I've got more important things to do than hear your answer. Like getting my last reports in order to deliver to Squall. Dismissed."

Surprisingly enough, Seifer actually seemed to take the command seriously. He was immediately standing, saluting smartly, and turning on his heels to all but march out of the office, leaving Nida alone with several data pads that had to be sorted before he could copy them to share with Squall.

It took all of ten minutes of searching the piles before Nida realized that one of the reports he needed, the weaponry one that Captain Yoriel had mentioned, was supposed to have been delivered to his quarters, not his office. An odd oversight by Yoriel, but things were still falling into some semblance of order around here, and it was entirely possible that Yoriel had previously reported to a superior, or had been a superior, who preferred reports delivered to their quarters for review instead of their office. With a sigh Nida ordered the few reports he would need for Squall printed and then strode from the room to fetch the other from his quarters. He'd have to make it clear to Yoriel and the rest of the command staff later that he would prefer all reports that didn't go through Fujin or Raijin to be sent directly to his office rather than his quarters. That room was going to be the only shred of privacy he had, and considering the fact that he'd left Elijah's journal laying out in the open... Well, he wanted to keep that privacy.

When he entered his quarters they were dark even though Nida was certain he had left them on last time he'd left. And as the door rapidly slid closed behind him and he heard the lock click into place he couldn't help but marvel at the fact that someone had managed to slip past Squall and Seifer's careful security checks. There was just enough time to curse his abandoning of Fujin down among the rest of the crew and Seifer's timely departure before he heard the hammer of a gun click back into the ready position.

"Congratulations, Lieutenant General. They will be able to say that your position as an officer was the shortest in modern recorded history. Won't that be something to be remembered by?"

Yes, but it was hardly the thing Nida intended to be remembered for. There were a lot of things to choose from really. Like being stupid enough to abandon his security because he thought that no one would be able to get into his room without access codes. Not that this man, and a man it was from the sound of his voice, necessarily lacked the codes. After all, Yoriel had supposedly gotten the report into his quarters in the first place, or so he claimed. Really, though, if he was being done in because he hadn't found something to be a bit off about what Captain Yoriel had told him, that was going to be the worst part. No, that wasn't it. Not being sure if the Ragnarok was safe would be the worst part.

"Turn around. I want to see the man who betrayed Commander Zale."

Well, that at least explained a bit of what was going on, Nida thought as he turned around. Maybe it even gave him a chance, if he could figure out a way to use the information. But first...

Siren, he whispered in his mind, hoping that the darkness of his quarters would be enough to hide the expression that came with mentally communicating with a GF. Or, if he was really lucky, this guy wouldn't even know the signs when presented to him. I need you.

Whether it was the darkness, unawareness, or the clear agitation of the man with the gun, Siren slid easily into place in Nida's mind, and with her presence came the familiar calm and rush of energy that came from junctioning. Not that he hoped to have to use it. GF gifted speed could only do so much, and outrunning bullets had never been part of the package. Still, there were things he could do to distract the would-be assassin without having to rely on his guardian enhanced abilities.

"I didn't betray him," Nida said as he came to a stop, staring into the barrel of a rather impressive shotgun. Okay, so running out of range was hardly going to be feasible. Great. Just what he needed, another headache.

Not funny, Siren informed him, a mental impression of a scowl on her face crossing his mind. Everyone was a critic these days.

"You killed him!" the person with the gun shouted. "How is that not betrayal when he so clearly believed in you?"

"I wouldn't have killed him if Boyce hadn't forced my hand. Your so called ruler decided that the only way to win me to your cause was to nearly kill me. Since he knew I wouldn't hold back against him, he ordered Elijah to do it. He forced me to kill him."

"Liar!" the man roared. Part of Nida hoped that one day he'd manage to get someone to believe in him so powerfully that they were just maybe the slightest bit misguided.

"Don't tell me that it isn't possible. Surely you've done things for Megill that you never wanted to do. It's a power granted to him as the descendant of the Zebalgan King. Surely you must realize that..."

"I..."

Good, uncertainty. That was at least a starting point. Nida just shook his head and gestured with a thumb over his shoulder towards his desk. "Did you bother to check this room out? Elijah saw his journal into my hands before his death. Look through it if you want. It's all there. The unnatural power Megill uses to rule your people, Elijah's dreams for what you could be, his reluctance to even get involved in this hunt for power. He saw the Zebalgans as something more. Would you really destroy that chance he wanted to give you? Because you would be. Assassinating me in my own room would only start a witch hunt. Didn't that ever occur to you? Maybe Elijah wouldn't have wanted you to throw your life away."

"Shut up. Just shut up you fucking traitor! You even lied about being the fucking Heir. You're just some desperate freak clinging to whatever power you can grab. You don't deserve to live after killing our future king, after killing Elijah. You don't even deserve to be carrying his blade. I'll take it back with me as soon as..."

And that was the sign that nothing was really getting through to this guy. There was nothing else Nida could do except for try to survive.

"Lights!" he yelled, slamming his eyes closed and glad that he hadn't bothered to tell anyone that he'd spent several hours a few nights ago wiring his lighting system for vocal commands. Even as he spoke and closed his eyes he was falling forward into a tight roll, arm coming out of his sling to catch him as he hit the ground and keep moving forward.

There was a sound above him, the shotgun going off as the man desperately attempted to correct for stupidity. But by then it was too late. Nida was in arms reach of the intruder, and the second the gun went off he was leaping to his feet, drawing Elijah's sword, and pressing it against the throat of his attacker. The man—boy really because he couldn't have been more than fifteen—went very still, his bright green eyes filled with nervous energy, his pupils hyper dilated in response to the sudden light in the room.

"Dim lights to fifty percent," Nida called out to the room, resisting the sigh of relief as the light decreased to the point where he could look around without too much pain. Then he returned his full attention to the youth before him and the crimson blade pressed against his throat.

"I didn't want to kill him, you idiot kid. We were more than friends. Not that you'd understand. Now, either you surrender to me now or you will die. Which will it be?"

The answer came in the form of a knee to Nida's stomach, timed so that Nida just barely had time to get all of the air out of his lungs before the blow hit. It was enough, though, to knock Nida off of his feet. Still, he wasn't winded, which meant Nida was on his feet immediately, crouched low and Rupio in his hands. Fujin had been right, Nida realized, to insist on Nida wearing the sling even though Kadowaki had declared him fit enough for full combat the day before. It had made this boy assume he wasn't ready for a fight. Even now the youth was trying to reload the gun, a foolish pursuit when he's got a guy with a sword in front of him and it's not a pump action shotgun, but there was no telling him now. He only even managed one shell into the chamber before Nida was in range, the full strength of his arms slamming the pommel of Elijah's sword into the kid's hands. There was a cracking sound and a cry of pain as the boy dropped the weapon.

He wasn't finished, though, not by a long shot. Even as Nida opened his mouth to demand surrender once more the boy had a long dagger out, much like the one Nida had seen in the hands of Joshua—he still had phantom pains now and then from the damage the poison had done. But instead of turning the blade on Nida, the boy raised it and drew it across his own throat, long before Nida had a chance to stop him. All he could do was stand there for a moment in shock as blood gushed forth from the throat laid open by a single gesture. When the boy dropped the dagger Nida cast away Rupio and began fumbling for a Curaga.

A hand coming down on his shoulder was enough to stop Nida in the course of casting, or at least to change the spell to an Aero and direct it towards the latest intruder.

"Useless," Fujin said, moving into the range of Nida's peripheral vision. "Poisoned."

"I have to try," he insisted, returning his attention to the bleeding youth, only to see that he'd gone utterly still, despite the blood still flowing from his throat. "I..."

"Can't save them all," Fujin insisted, shaking her head sadly.

"All of them? Fujin, I can't even save one when it really comes down to it."

Her hand at his shoulder turned into a hand on his arm, pulling him away from the body. It was only as she turned him in place that Nida even noticed that Raijin had managed to sneak in as well. Or maybe not sneak in. Raijin probably had been in his office after all, and it wasn't that far away. He likely would have called for Fujin immediately upon hearing the gunshot and run for Nida's room. And if Fujin had been on her way back then them making it into the room even as the kid opened his throat would have been easy. If only they had been there earlier. Maybe one of them could have hit him with a sleep spell or something.

"You okay?" Raijin asked, though it was clear from the sound of his voice that he didn't think Nida would be.

"Just peachy," Nida snarled, jerking free from Fujin's grip. "Wonderful failure of security procedures. How did he even get in here?"

Fujin frowned, shaking her head, and Raijin had a rather guilty look on his face.

"He was an assistant to Captain Yoriel, ya know? He came up with a report for you, so I told him to give it to me. He agreed all fast like, and I put it into your office. I don't know what happened after that," Raijin confessed.

"The report wasn't in my office," Nida grumbled, staggering over to his desk, where there was indeed a datapad. "I want this ship locked down, and Captain Yoriel apprehended. He will be coming to see Squall with me. I'm getting to the bottom of this now."

"You're in no condition to..." Fujin started to say, and Nida just cut her off with a glare.

"That is an order, Colonel Venti," he snapped at her. "Are you questioning my orders now?"

"Only when they are made under duress," she said, narrowing her crimson eye at him. "Don't act like this. We get that you're under a lot of stress right now. But is striding into Squall's office covered in blood really the best way to deal with this?"

Blood? It took Nida a moment to look down on himself and confirm that yes, he was covered with blood. The blood of the kid that had just tried to kill him. Wonderful. Just wonderful.

"Just get the body out of here. And maybe get someone in here to clean this up."

Fujin just shook her head, and gestured for Raijin to proceed her out of the room. Nida was left alone in the room with the body and no real idea of what he was going to do next.

---

By the time he made it back to his quarters from a far longer than originally arranged meeting with Squall, the body had been removed from his room, and the floor cleaned. Even Captain Yoriel had been cleared of any real wrongdoing with the event, leaving only really Nida behind to deal with the fallout. Still, it had been useful for one thing, Squall had determined it was best for Nida and his forces to depart immediately. Which meant that as soon as Nida had changed into a clean uniform he would be free to go to the bridge and announce their departure for Trabia. His true authority would begin as soon as he stepped on that bridge, as soon as he picked up the PA microphone.

He could remember a moment like this in the past. Another bridge, another PA system, another leader, and yet he'd been there anyway. Stood by while Squall had spoken, had taken control of a force he'd never wanted to have look up to him. Now it was Nida's turn. Time for something he'd never wanted to do.

Nida had managed to strip off the worst of the bloody clothing and pull on a fresh pair of uniform pants when a small chirp announced someone's presence at the door. There was another thing he was going to have to deal with. The offices and rooms on this level would have to be accessible to senior level staff and advisers only, and even then he'd have to figure out a way to reinforce the security measures even they would have to pass through. DNA was out of the question, to easily acquired by duplicitous means. Even palm scans were difficult to make fully secure. Oh well, it would be something to make things better, but it was hardly something he could deal with at this moment.

"Enter," he called to the door, and listened as the door slid open. Of course he didn't say it before he had the dagger the boy had used to kill himself in hand. One wrong move from his guest and they would suffer the fate the nameless youth had intended to inflict upon Nida.

"Sir," Fujin's voice came, quiet but still piercing through the otherwise silent room.

"I'm just getting a new coat on," Nida said, replacing the dagger on the edge of his bunk. "I assume that everyone is assembled and waiting."

"Yes," she agreed. "Which means you should really hurry up, doesn't it?"

Easier said than done. Fujin had clearly never been asked to put on a SeeD uniform coat before, much less the new full length version of the dress uniform that was being issued to all the SeeDs taking positions as military leaders and advisers. It had taken Nida months to get used to working with the simpler version, and the fact that he could call the old style simple was almost enough to make him groan. The new uniform still had the same pants and tall boots, but the coat was what was overhauled. There was still the stiff standing collar that felt like it could choke you or tangle your fingers between the buttons and the fancy gold trim. The shoulder shields didn't extend so far past his shoulders anymore, but getting them buckled to his belt was frustrating, and the chain always got tangled. The major problem, though, was the length of the coat. It wasn't the kind of thing Nida would want to fight in, with the way that fell all the way to his knees. Really, was such a thing necessary?

He must have mumbled something, because before he could really get much further into fumbling with buttoning the coat—who designed a coat that buttoned from the top down anyway—Fujin had grabbed him by the arm and was spinning him around. Really, she was far stronger than her slight form ever betrayed, enough to make Selphie and Quistis look rather meek in comparison.

"MEN," she said, somehow managing to both shout and sigh in one word, shaking her head the whole time as she took in the rather pathetic appearance that Nida presented with his shirt in place but the coat only just in place, not a single button, bangle, or chain done up properly.

"You've never had to get this thing on in a rush," Nida countered. "The old ones were..."

There wasn't time to finish the sentence because Fujin's hands were at his neck, tugging the fabric of the collar together and deftly buttoning it together. Faster than Nida could really follow she'd worked her way down the coat, getting everything straight and buttoned without too much tugging, pulling, or having to shift the fabric around so that it was proper and professional looking. Every time Nida opened his mouth to protest he was treated with a smack upside the head, so by the third time she had done it Nida had just opted to keep his mouth shut. It was easier than trying to argue with a woman that clearly had no inhibitions when it came to striking her superior officer. Obviously there was something very wrong with the relationship right here.

So when she finished with the coat Nida said nothing as Fujin snatched the shoulder shields off of Nida's bunk and settled them in place about his shoulders. Not even the variety of belts, chains, and straps bothered her as she set his uniform to rights. Then, when it was finally in place, she nodded to herself in approval, a slight smirk in place.

"You think you're so smart," he couldn't help but say, smirking in response. "You fail to notice that I haven't managed to get my rank bars onto this thing yet. What do you think about that?"

"WHAT?"

"Didn't you notice? I've got the bars on my desk. I was going to put them on the coat when you came in. Now all of the work you have done is for nothing because I've got to take this stuff off to get them on the collar properly."

"NEGATIVE," Fujin countered, striding purposefully over to the desk and snatching up the pins that were necessary.

"You looking forward to stabbing me in the throat with those things?"

"MAYBE," she admitted, rolling her eyes as she grabbed him by the collar. The pins went into Nida's cupped hand as she gently teased the fabric away from his throat just the slightest bit so she could take the pins, one by one, and affix them properly. First one side, then the other, the whole time Nida utterly still as she worked. At last Fujin released him, took a step back, and nodded in approval at his appearance. A repeated action, but this time she was right to have decided that he was done.

"Happy?"

"Honestly I think it would have been more fun to remove it all, but what can you do?"

There were advantages and disadvantages to not having known Fujin for a long time. For one thing, by not knowing her longer he didn't really have to worry about her knowing much of his own past, just the bits she assumed due to Seifer's meddling. It meant that Nida didn't have to pretend to understand what vast concepts she was trying to convey with her single word exclamations. But it also meant that in moments like this he wasn't sure just what was going on. Was that a joking tone in her voice? Was it serious? How was he supposed to respond? Treat it like a joke? Ignore that she even said anything? Try to explain that...

But no, there was no chance to come to any decision. No sooner had Fujin said it than she had turned on her heels and started for the door. As much as he wanted to stay behind and figure out just what was going on, Nida had no choice but to follow Fujin and go out there and give a speech. Why could nothing ever be simple? Was that just too much to ask from time to time?

Apparently, because Nida had no choice right now but to follow her out into the hall, onto the lift, and up into the cockpit to speak. But, if memory served he was free to turn the bridge over to her and return to his quarters after the speech, to grab a chance to get his hair cleaned of all the blood and sweat of the day and get a moment or two of piece before being faced with more responsibilities in Trabia.

Hyne did he ever need that time to get some pseudo-relaxation going in his mind.