13
CHAPTER 13 – HOMECOMING
"Sis," the boy mewled with his head hung, eyes downcast to the woolen blanket over his legs. "Come back… please, come back… please… I miss you."
A rattling at the door broke him from his self-pity. His head shot up just in time to see it swing open.
"Hello…?" he nervously squeaked.
His anxiety receded as a familiar head of dark, flowing hair passed through the door frame. It was a stark contrast to her gentle, pale features, as was her plain, drab attire. Her green eyes settled on him. They looked fraught with worry, though seemed to light up as she made her way over.
"Rise and shine, sleepy-head," she beamed. "Come on, let's get you up. Everyone else has been awake for hours."
"Matron," the boy muttered with unease. "Is… is he gone?"
"Is who gone?" his caretaker asked as she knelt down by the bedside.
"Th-that man," he stammered. The terror crept back into his mind as he pictured him again. "The one with the swords. The one who… he took Sis away, didn't he?!"
He jolted upright in bed. Matron reflexively seized hold of him, wrapping her arms around his tiny figure.
"Squall, calm down," she cooed to him. "It's okay. It sounds like you were just having a nightmare. Everything's alright."
She softly stroked his hair. Slowly but surely, he began to relax; Matron had no reason to lie to him. Something so horrifying had to have been a figment of his imagination. No matter how hard he tried to convince himself however, the terror had been too real.
"Matron," he whimpered. "I… I'm scared. Where's Sis? Where'd she go? I… I don't wanna be all alone."
"You're not alone," she told him, and finally released her tight embrace. "You have me, and the others."
"But someday they'll all have to go away too, right? And what about when I have to go? I'll never get to see any of them again… or you…"
He started to cry. Matron raised herself from her knees, and seated herself on the edge of the bed. Feeling a hand lightly clasp his shoulder, the boy raised his teary eyes up to hers.
"You're right," she said. "Someday you and the others will all have new families, and you might not get to see each other again for a long time. But the bonds you share, the memories you've made… those are forever. It's the same for you and your 'Sis'. I know how badly you want to see her, and how lonely you must be without her, but you have to believe me. She's doing fine. She's going to be alright, and so are you. But you need to learn how to be okay with that loneliness, and fight through it. You need to be brave, to have a strong heart, like a lion. Promise me. If you can do that, you'll find her again."
The boy kept his eyes locked to hers. He knew she meant what she'd said.
"Really?" he sniffled, bringing his arm up to wipe away the tears.
"Really," she swore. She raised her own arm up with her pinky outstretched to him. "Promise."
With his hope restored, and his sadness momentarily overcome by Matron's comfort, he locked his own pinky with hers.
"I'll try," he murmured.
"I know you will," she said, pulling him into another loving embrace. "I believe in you, Squall, and I can't tell you how proud I am of you. You're special. You were born to do great things. I know it."
SeeD's departure from Fisherman's Horizon came two days following the Garden Festival. With repairs complete, the concert stage had been disassembled, and moved back aboard. The newfound camaraderie between both parties continued to surprise Squall; their eventual parting was even bittersweet for many students and townspeople who'd become fast friends. Xu had attempted to negotiate with Mayor Dobe to leave a small detachment of troops behind, in the event Galbadia were to send in another battalion. He'd respectfully declined. And so, after a week spent moored at the quaint waterside settlement, the Garden cast off back across the sea.
A return to Balamb was deemed the best course of action. Besides their still dwindling food supplies, there were still the students who'd evacuated ahead of the missile strike to attend to; they'd been left stranded in town for more than 3 weeks already. Irvine had informed the headmaster of a planned invasion he'd picked up on. Accordingly, they'd adjusted their course to steer as far east as possible, allowing the Garden to come ashore on the far side of the island, well out of visibility from the town. From there, a scouting party would be dispatched, supplied with uniforms procured from the troopers at Fisherman's Horizon.
All of this had been made known to Squall on the first night of their expected 4 day voyage, in the midst of his first instructional session with Xu. He'd likewise managed to predict just who would be charged leading said scouting party before the order left her mouth. The rest of the lecture consisted of an overview of the Garden's operational procedures, and the duties expected of the commandant. While Squall had more or less come to terms with his appointment, he still struggled to picture himself stepping up when the time came; he would be only 18 by then, younger than Xu when she'd first taken on the role. At Rinoa's behest however, he'd made a commitment to set aside his concerns for the time being. She'd even offered to postpone her training sessions with him to relieve some of the stress; she would instead seek to better her GF control on her own, or with Quistis if her schedule allowed.
Organizing his scouting party was a simple task. He knew Zell of all people would have a personal stake in seeing his hometown safe from harm. Moreover, his mother's house would give them a base to operate from should the mission span longer than a day. Predictably, he'd leapt at the idea when Squall brought it up to him in the cafeteria on the second morning. It was then that the eavesdropping sharpshooter made his presence known, and insisted for a spot on the team. Squall had initially been considering Quistis, but with no excuse as to why Irvine couldn't come along instead, the decision was effectively made for him.
The academy ran ashore in the early morning hours of Friday, March 26th. The gargantuan flotation ring below kept their course steady as they gently surmounted the beach. Hugging the east end of the Gaulg Mountains, the Garden slowed to a stop, and gradually descended. The ring continued to rotate all the while. It finally made contact with the soil, and began churning through the earth. Dirt kicked up on all sides as it carved out a massive hole in which to plant itself. The ring slowed, and ground to a halt once the Garden came to a rest on the surface; it stayed sunk into the newly incised moat, acting as a platform to be used for disembarking from ground level. That the Centrans had been capable of constructing such a technological marvel was stupendous, a staunch reminder of what had been lost to the world with the end of their civilization.
Squall and his entourage assembled in the parking garage shortly after; they were already suited up in their Galbadian disguises, with backpacks containing their civilian attire. The tunnel connecting to the main highway had been left behind when the Garden had taken off. As such, the garage's exit had been reduced to a wide automated doorway leading out onto the surrounding patch of land. Zell took the wheel of their transport, and they started off across the makeshift bridge that was the lowered flotation ring. The journey quickly devolved into a patience-testing foray; there was no clear-cut roadway for them to follow. Numerous detours were necessary to circumnavigate the many rocky plateaus and patches of forest.
Squall's thoughts soon turned to the unsettling familiarity of his uniform. It had been almost 4 weeks since his last experience in Laguna's body, unsurprisingly coinciding with his and Ellone's brief exchange. Whatever it was she'd hoped to accomplish, the visions had ceased altogether. On one hand, he certainly had no desire for them to start up again. On the other, they would at least give him some assurance that she was still out of Edea's reach. Clearly, this gift of hers was the reason the sorceress sought her so desperately. And yet, had the missile strike been successful, she too would have died in the blast. It seemed to have been a severe tactical blunder on Edea's part; surely she wouldn't have ruled out Ellone being moved to the Garden in such a time of crisis. But then, as the headmaster himself had expressed, none of this was characteristic of the woman he'd loved.
It was roughly 2 hours before they met the highway, and likewise passed by the massive crater where the Garden once stood. The wide, concave expanse of scorched earth was easily the diameter of Fisherman's Horizon's solar array. Irvine let out a whistle as they passed. Zell stayed completely mum; aside from a handful of cursory glances, he kept his eyes on the road. Squall could hardly blame him; though the fate of the Garden was accounted for, the same couldn't yet be said for his mother and hometown.
They arrived on the outskirts after another 20 minutes or so. Deviating from the road well in advance of the town's arched gateway, Zell pulled just inside the neighboring woodlands. Although their uniforms were Galbadian, the vehicle was not. The three filed out, and continued down the rest of the road on foot. Their disguises would be unnecessary were the prospective invasion yet to have begun; if so, it would only require a quick double-back to change into their casual wear. As they drew closer however, Squall could see their precaution had been warranted.
A pair of soldiers outfitted in silver and blue uniforms like their own stood guard on either side of the entrance. Squall momentarily slowed. He let Zell and Irvine pass him by as they drew closer so as to maneuver himself to the rear; it was imperative he keep his gunblade out of sight. Much to his surprise, the left-hand guard waved them on through without asking to see their ID cards. Irvine provided a courtesy wave in return. Together, the three continued on down the cobbled stone road, entirely free of traffic both pedestrian and vehicular.
"Phew!" Zell exhaled once they were out of earshot. "Figured we'd have it a little harder than that."
"Not like we coulda come from anywhere but here," Irvine reasoned. "Far as they know."
"Everything looks like it's in one piece," Squall hummed. He swept his eyes across the stout sandstone buildings on either side of the road.
"Yeah, but way too quiet," Zell muttered. "Guess everyone's too afraid to come out of their houses. C'mon, my ma's place is right down this way."
He indicated left at the coming intersection, towards the shoreline. Squall followed after as they turned the corner. The side-road was equally sparse, save for a small cluster of soldiers approaching. Though he could rationalize the lack of civilians out and about, he had no explanation for where the displaced SeeDs and cadets could be. They'd ought to have established a defense against the Galbadian forces, no matter how outnumbered they'd been. The streets showed few if any signs of a struggle; aside from the occasional abandoned shopping bag or purse lying on the ground, there was nothing to indicate so.
They passed the group of soldiers without incident. Zell then gestured down another stretch of cobbled road heading west.
"Just a couple more blocks," he assured them. "It's the house right before the road starts dipping down, across from the hardware store. Man, I hope she's al-"
Zell stalled in his speech as he turned the corner; he stood completely still. Squall quickly came to his side with Irvine, and stared along the street with him. Roughly 30 feet ahead, in front of a shuttered local cafe, a group of four stood engaged in conversation. All wore uniforms roughly the same shade of dark navy blue. And yet, only two among them were Galbadian infantry. The other pair opposite them wore no visors, nor did their attire sport the standard armored plating. Theirs were the uniforms of Balamb Garden cadets, complete with the SeeD crest adorning either shoulder.
Neither party had drawn their weapons. There appeared to be no animosity whatsoever. Suddenly, one of the cadets clapped his hands together, and turned away down the road. His comrade and the two infantrymen promptly followed. Still, the troops did not draw their firearms, nor did the cadets seem intent on outrunning them. One after another, the four rounded the corner up ahead.
"What the hell?" Irvine finally broke the silence. "Those were two o' yer guys, right? What're they doin' workin' with the troops?"
"Lets tail them," Squall spoke up, taking the lead again. "We need to find out what's going on here."
They started down the street after the four. Squall turned onto the avenue they'd ducked down, catching sight of them just as they swung onto another street. He reflexively picked up the pace; if it were perfectly normal for his targets to move so hastily, then passing patrols would pay little heed to another group of soldiers doing the same. The gunblade at his side could still potentially give him away. With this latest development however, he now had enough information to come up with an excuse if need be.
He and his comrades tracked the wayward cadets and their accomplices for several more blocks. What other soldiers they did pass paid them no mind. Neither did another pair of Garden operatives standing at the side of one particular road they traversed. Squall instinctively ground to a halt as he noticed them; a large halberd and katana were strapped to their respective backs. The two faced away from him with their eyes trained to the nearest house. Following their line of sight to the front steps, what Squall then witnessed unfold came to fully command his attention.
A middle-aged man and woman, as well as a third cadet, were marched out the front door and down the short flight of stairs. The soldiers to their rear kept their assault rifles fixed to their backs all the way down. One forcefully prodded the sobbing wife forward the moment she slowed to a stop; she stumbled down the last two steps, and fell to her knees in despair. The captured cadet, young, brown-haired, and green-eyed, shot an unmistakable look of disgust at the other two.
"I hope you're real proud of yourselves!" he growled as he was escorted forward to face them. "Was it worth it to turn your backs on everything we've ever known?!"
"Don't be a sore loser," the one with the katana mocked him. "It's nothing personal. We just decided to get on board with the winning team. You had the same chance, and you blew it."
"I always knew letting them build that damn Garden so close was a mistake!" the man of the house lashed out. "Some 'force for good' you brats all turned out to be!"
"Shut it!" one of the soldiers ordered from behind. He whacked him with the butt of his rifle, forcing him to his knees with his wife. "It was your decision to harbor him, and now it's going to cost you. You three! Help escort this fugitive to the commander for interrogation."
Squall's heart leapt into his throat. He snapped into his best attempt at the Galbadian salute just as the traitorous cadets turned around.
"Yes, sir!" he affirmed. "And what of the family that sheltered him?"
"What do you think?" the infantryman scoffed. He brought the barrel of his rifle down just over the kneeling man's head.
The gunshot erupted before Squall could fully process the soldier's reply. He jolted in place. Another shot followed the very next second. His eyes widened in shock as a pair of bodies fell limply from their feet, and collapsed on the house steps. It took a moment for him to realize that they'd in fact been the soldiers; the hunched-over man and woman were completely unscathed. Broken from his trance, he whipped his head to one side. Irvine stood there with his own weapon raised, smoke wafting from both barrels.
The familiar sound of a sword being drawn from its scabbard whisked his attention back to his front. Acting on reflex, Squall drew his own, and blocked the katana as it struck. The clanging gave way to the unpleasant grinding of steel on steel as they stood locked in place. He then deduced a second incoming attack out of the corner of his eye, released the parry, and narrowly sidestepped the halberd's thrust. It whooshed on by just between him and the swordsman. Reaching down with his left hand, he activated the sphere clipped to his belt. His eyes darted every which way to make an assessment of the situation. Zell moved in behind the duo to escort the rattled couple and the cadet out of harm's way. Irvine stood a ways off to the side; his weapon tracked the turncoats' every move.
"Go on with them," Squall ordered the sharpshooter. "We'll rendezvous you-know-where."
"Rodger."
Irvine cautiously circled around the confrontation with his weapon still drawn. The katana and halberd wielders followed him with their eyes. So did Squall, until he and the others passed from his field of vision.
"I should've noticed that gunblade from the moment you strolled up," the swordsman menaced.
"What's going on around here?" Squall demanded. "Why are you siding with the enemy?"
"What are you, stupid?" the one with the halberd snorted. "Well, I guess you'd have to be if you're still gonna fight for that coward, Cid, after all we know now."
Squall hesitated. Just what did he mean? The only thing he could think of was the misinformation spread by Norg's administration, that the headmaster had sided with the sorceress. It stood to reason that the conflict between both factions might have continued among those left behind. Still, it made no sense; why, if these students truly believed that Cid had sided with Edea to sell them out, would they ally themselves with her army?
"It was an easy choice to make, and you chose poorly," he derided him.
He lunged forward with the halberd outstretched. Squall brought his sword up to deflect, backing away from the sharpened tip, and sidestepped as it was thrust past him. He defensively placed the blade between himself and his opponent's to guard from the incoming sideswipe. Their weapons clashed as it came. He pushed off to free himself from the parry just as the katana wielder dashed in. Their blades met several times in quick succession. Squall was content to remain on the defensive as long as he was able; his aim was not to win, but to stall for time.
A ruckus of shouting erupted from further down the street; a freshly arrived platoon of soldiers charged onto the scene. Recognizing it was time to disengage, Squall backpedaled away. He focused the wind energy into his legs, quickly sheathed his gunblade, and bolted back along the road to build up speed. After about 3 seconds, he leapt for the nearest rooftop, soaring high into the air. He landed gracefully atop its shingled roofing, and burst into a sprint across to the next. Gunfire erupted from behind. The thought of conjuring an energy shield barely registered to him, so single-minded was his determination to escape. Neither was he willing to attempt doing so while on the run.
He bounded from one rooftop to another, soaring over the desolate streets below. He frantically scanned them for any sign of a hardware store, or otherwise a decline in the road as Zell had mentioned. After what seemed to be enough blocks back to where they'd been, he finally spotted the shop in question. It was situated on the curb of a small, three-way intersection. One path branched off from the town proper, and down a gradual decline towards Balamb's renowned waterside hotel. He quickly scanned for guards, leapt down, exercised the flotation buffer technique to break his fall, and approached the house on the end opposite the hardware store.
He rapped hard on the door twice. Moments later, a heavy-set, middle-aged woman answered it. She wore a plain, white button-up blouse with a cream-colored apron thrown over top. Her wrinkled brown eyes stared into his visor with obvious apprehension.
"What do you want?" she grumbled.
Squall reached up and removed the helmet from his head. Although they'd never met, he could only hope the show of deference would help put her at ease.
"My name is Squall Leonhart," he introduced himself. He performed the SeeD salute with the helmet tucked under his free arm. "I'm a Balamb operative working undercover with your son. Is… is he here?"
"What the holy hell kind of nonsense is that?!" she scoffed. "The nerve! If you think I'm going to buy some two-bit charade like that and let you just waltz into my home, you've got another-"
She stopped in mid-sentence. Her eyes went wide as she redirected them past him. Squall craned his neck back to see the group of five had just arrived at his rear. Zell had removed his helmet in advance.
"Ma," he bashfully grinned. "It's great to see you're okay. You've got to let us in, right now. It's urgent."
Without another world, Mrs. Dincht vacated the door frame to let them through. Squall took the lead. He cast his gaze all around the house's domed central hub as he stepped inside. The circular antechamber spanned roughly 15 feet in diameter. Its windows were drawn open, letting sunlight stream in across the tiled stone floor. Three additional entryways had been carved from the sandstone interior; they led to a small kitchen, a staircase, and a multi-purpose room which doubled as a living and dining area. It was a perfectly cozy and humble abode for a family of three or four. He imagined it would be a tight squeeze for seven.
"Zell!" the boy's mother finally gasped as she closed the door behind them and locked the deadbolt. "What's going on? How did you get into town? Are you alright? I was worried sick when the missiles hit. I went down to the waterfront every day to see if you were there with the others."
"I'm alright, Ma," he insisted. "I'll tell you everything in a little bit. These folks here have been through a lot. Could you help them get settled, and maybe put some tea on? And… it would probably be a good idea to close the curtains."
"Sure thing!" she acceded. "Please, make yourselves at home in the living room. I'll bring the tea in as soon as it's ready."
"Th-thank you so much!" the woman whimpered in gratitude.
She took her husband's arm as they gingerly hobbled into the adjacent room. The cadet started to follow after, when Squall abruptly seized him by the wrist.
"We need to talk to you," he told him before turning back to Zell. "Is there somewhere we can speak in private? Like your room?"
"I… guess," Zell hesitantly assented. He motioned to the stairs. "But no touching anything up there. It's sacred ground, you hear?"
"Sure thing," Irvine said. "Not like bein' in a guy's room's gonna get me all excited, anyway."
Squall motioned for the cadet to follow. The twisting staircase curved up to the second floor landing, which amounted to only a pair of doorways on either side with a bathroom straight ahead. Zell led the way into the left-hand room. The moment Irvine stepped in after him, his prior quip was suddenly recanted.
"Holy shit!" he blurted out. A set of hurried footsteps across the wooden floorboards followed.
"Hey, I said no touching!" Zell angrily protested.
Squall stepped in with the unsettled cadet, taking an obligatory glance around the room. A bed rested to one side near the shuttered windows, with both a speed bag and punching bag further along. Turning his attention to the other side, the object of Irvine's exhilaration became apparent. Three rifles hung above the dresser drawers, and above them, a framed picture of a decorated war veteran in full uniform.
"Man, these are old-school!" the sharpshooter lit up. "They sure don't make 'em like this anymore."
"They were my grandpa's," Zell explained as he sat himself on the bed. "He fought in the war before I was born. He was the guy I always looked up to the most, and the one who inspired me to become a SeeD in the first place."
"That so?"
Irvine's face seemed to take on an uncertain look for a moment; perhaps Zell's sentimentality for his grandfather had managed to set him straight for once.
"Let's get down to business," Squall announced. He gestured for the cadet to take a seat on the bed, next to Zell. "Your name is?"
"Collin," he muttered, apprehensively taking his place.
"Listen to me, Collin. We're with the rest of the survivors aboard Balamb Garden. We just got back this morning. Everything's going to be alright. We're going to get you and all the other stragglers out of here, but first I need you to tell me what's happened since we've been gone. Why are so many of the other students siding with Galbadia?"
The young man's eyes seemed to swell with hope for moment at the mention of the Garden's return. He then turned them to the floor, and sucked in a deep breath.
"That day… when the missiles came… me and a lot of the others got the news from a couple who were making the rounds. We dropped what we were doing, and followed them into town, like they told us. Most of us had nowhere to go, so the mayor had basic provisions and tents sent down to the waterfront for us to stay there. It was like our own little refugee camp."
"Did this conflict start because of the uprising in the Garden?" he asked bluntly.
Zell's face took on a puzzled look. It only then occurred to Squall that his two comrades knew nothing of the incident in question.
"Not really," Collin continued. "I mean, the tensions were still there, under the surface. There was a little bit of in-fighting here and there, but nothing major. Most of us were just happy we'd managed to get away in time. Relationships seemed like they were on the mend. It really felt like everything was going to be alright, after all. And then, five days ago… they showed up…
The clamorous whirring of heavy machinery roused Collin from his slumber. He raised himself from the cot that had served as his bed for the last 3 weeks. He rubbed his eyes, and gazed around at his tent-mates; they too had awoken. As the noise drew nearer, so did the ground beneath his feet start to rumble. A sudden gust caused the tent's flaps to whip wildly.
"What the hell's going on?!" Bram shouted over the din. He was a cadet roughly his own age, who he'd become fast friends with since being stranded.
"You think it's the Garden coming back?!" another responded.
Collin bolted upright, and rushed outside. The state of panic had spread to every corner of the camp. Cadets and SeeDs shot from their respective tents, racing up the waterfront towards the source of the disturbance. With a single glance over the water's edge, the cause was made clear.
Just off shore hovered a gargantuan crimson battleship larger than any he'd ever seen. Its size easily matched Balamb Garden's. As it drew closer, a similar whirring flotation ring rose up out of the shallows beneath. Indeed, having already witnessed his own home's transformation as it had made its way out to sea, its identity was made all the more clear to him. It was Galbadia Garden, mobilized in an identical manner.
Legions of students stood motionless on the pier, seemingly unfazed or no longer cognizant of the whipping wind. Others ran for whatever cover they could find. Most immediate were the rows of SeeD assault boats moored at the docks; without the keys, or any means of hot-wiring them, they'd been of no use. The floating academy gradually slowed, and came to a halt just before the ring made contact with the shoreline. Minutes passed in dread anticipation. The gathered survivors all murmured to one another, anxious as to what the Garden's arrival could mean. Had they come to rescue them? Collin desperately hoped so; the mysterious beige-clad operatives who'd briefly pulled into port on the first day had already refused their plight.
"Look!" Bram suddenly gasped from his side. "Up there!"
Collin followed his pointing finger to the height of the Garden. A small swarm of hovering mechs, roughly 15 in all, dispersed into the air. His ears picked up on their whirring turbine engines as they descended, drawing closer to where he could make out their sleek aquamarine color schemes. The pilots were all strapped upright into their safety harnesses, with both hands fixed to the controls on either arm. His heart sunk as he noticed their uniforms. Only the one who led the pack was not clad in the regal blue and silver.
It was he who touched down before the crowd first. He swiftly unbuckled the harness, and stepped forward. His long grey coat trailed to the dock beneath his black boots. His hair was a neatly trimmed blonde, his face beneath it stern. A scar ran across the bridge of his nose from just above his left eye. The crowd's murmuring intensified at his approach.
"Seifer!"
The raucous bellow drowned out all other commotion. Collin turned to see a bulky, muscular man fighting his way through the crowd. Cadets and SeeDs parted at his behest, wary of the very real risk of being bowled over. Behind him, a significantly shorter, silver-haired woman shadowed his every step. Collin recognized them both; they were same two who'd scoured the Garden to inform everyone else of the missile strike.
"Safe?!" the woman belted out as they reached the fore of the crowd.
"Yeah, Squall was tellin' us you got captured and killed, y'know?" the tanned muscle-head blabbered. "We knew it had to be a load o' crap, y'know?"
"So, he's already been here, has he?" the blonde smirked. One of the soldiers handed him a megaphone from the side. "I wonder what other vicious lies he's been spreading. It's good that you're here. I've got an important job for you two."
"Whatever you say, y'know?"
"Committed!"
Seifer turned his attention back to the crowd before him. None among them dared so much as breathe. He clicked the megaphone on, raised it to his lips, and began to speak.
"My fellow students!" his voice boomed across the waterfront. "It's been a while, hasn't it? Did anyone miss me?"
The murmuring kicked up again, unnerved and confused. Collin didn't personally know him; he looked to be 2 or 3 years his senior. All the same, he did not take kindly to the snide tone of his voice.
"I'm sure it's been a trying time for you all. To be forced out of your home, and left to seek refuge on the streets. You've no doubt lived these last few weeks in despair, longing for the day when help will arrive. That day is today. I am here to offer you salvation, and the promise that this sad turn of events will be a blessing in disguise… for those among you who choose to believe. For years we've toiled in the Garden, training to fight for a man who cares nothing for us. A man who would turn an entire army of brainwashed children against his own wife, the very woman who established SeeD to begin with. That's right… it was not Cid Kramer who founded SeeD, but the woman who loved him, and was betrayed by him, Sorceress Edea!"
The crowd had fallen completely silent. Collin shifted his eyes every which way; a similar look of shock was plastered on every student's face. That the sorceress could possibly have been the headmaster's wife, much less the one who'd started SeeD, was beyond the pale. It was impossible, and frankly unbelievable.
"You've all been led astray by this serpent of a man, your minds corrupted, blinded to the truth for so long. We've been raised all our lives to become mindless cogs in Cid's war machine, built for a single purpose: to destroy the sorceress. To stamp out his own wife, because she possesses a power he can't understand."
In a flash, Seifer reached into his coat with his free hand. It re-emerged a moment later with a gleaming silver sphere.
"Do you see this?! This sphere and all of its kind are an abomination. A bastardization of that power, obtained through illegitimate means, and mass produced to create an army of super soldiers. It is a forbidden power that was never intended for normal humans like you and I to wield. You've all tasted it, and in turn let your minds be tainted by it."
There was no sound but the crashing of waves against the pier. Collin's tongue had become leaden; he couldn't utter a peep if he wanted to.
"Make no mistake," he assured them, returning the GF to his coat. "It is not your fault. We've been propagandized to for our entire lives by that man, for his own selfish ambitions. And it's for that reason that I've come to absolve you all."
Just as quickly as he'd pulled out the sphere before, a gleaming ebony gunblade sliced through the air. Those at the front gasped in alarm, and stepped back. He brought the blade to a halt, raised high up into the midday sky.
"Swear your allegiance to Edea," Seifer commanded. "Turn your backs on the lies you've been fed. For your bravery, you will receive even greater power, as a Sorceress' Knight. Make your decision now. Who will you follow? Our benevolent founder? Or the cowardly thief who stole it all from her, and left you here to wither away?"
Collin was utterly dumbfounded. He'd seen the sorceress publicly execute the Galbadian president on live TV, and survived the missile bombardment that had surely been intended to kill them all. Regardless of whether she were indeed SeeD's original founder, she was a power-hungry tyrant who posed a very real threat to the world. There was nothing that could persuade him to join her. Nor could he imagine any of the others doing the same.
"Count us in, y'know?"
"Allegiance!"
Seifer's two lackeys both took a knee, with their heads bowed in reverence. Collin watched on with awe as the blonde brought his blade down to knight them on either side of their heads. His face was wrought with the sickest satisfaction as he did so.
"Your sins are forgiven," he passed judgment. "As a reward for your unwavering loyalty, I'll be placing this town under your jurisdiction. You may rise… Commander and Captain."
The two raised themselves back to their feet, both positively radiant with pride. Seifer turned back to address the crowd again.
"All those who wish to swear fealty, step forward. The rest of you… we'll deal with shortly."
Seconds passed in silence before two cadets in the first row moved forward to be knighted. Several more followed, forming a proper queue. One by one, cadets and SeeDs alike fell in line. Collin looked on in amazement. His mind refused to believe what his eyes were seeing, nor would it let him throw aside his morals and join them.
"Come on," a voice spoke from his side. He turned his eyes to meet Bram's stare, stern and unwavering. "Let's get in line. You heard him, this is our chance for a new beginning."
Unable to stomach the thought any longer, Collin turned and bolted, never looking back.
"So, now you're telling me that jackass has started his own damn cult?!" Zell blurted out. "And what's this crap about the sorceress being the headmaster's wife?!"
"It's true," Squall said; there was no point in keeping it hidden from him. "We learned about it after we got back to the Garden. It doesn't make any sense, but the headmaster himself confirmed it for us."
Zell's jaw dropped, and stayed perpetually hanging in place. Collin, seated at his side, looked no less rattled from having recounted his tale. The sharpshooter casually leaned back in the opposite corner; he'd removed his helmet, and set it down on top of the dresser. His eyes were trained to the floorboards. With the benefit of hindsight, the lack of a reaction from him didn't surprise Squall in the slightest.
"After that, they split the knights up," the young cadet continued. "About half went with him aboard the Garden. The rest stayed here to search for loyalists like me. The Galbadians hot-wired all the assault boats, and took them out of the harbor. Mr. and Mrs. Pascal said they'd heard from one of the guards that they're searching for something out on the ocean."
"Ellone," Squall deduced immediately.
"You know?!"
His eyes shot to Irvine in the corner. The gunman stared intently at him with the most stark look of surprise Squall had yet seen.
"You know?!" Squall threw the question back at him.
"I heard it from a guy at Fisherman's Horizon," he explained. "It's the whole reason they were gatherin' everybody up in the center o' town that day. I told Cid about it, an' he said everythin' was taken care of."
"Uh, I'm a little lost here, guys," Zell interrupted. "Who's this 'Ellone' you're talking about?"
"She's a girl the sorceress has been hunting down," Squall began; he only hoped he could adequately explain given how little he still knew. "She was in the Garden before the missiles came. The headmaster sent her away on a boat the next day, with some special branch of SeeD."
"And why would she go to so much trouble just to find this one girl? Who the hell is she, anyway?"
"I… don't really know. I only met her briefly, when she was being taken aboard the other ship. All I know is that she's been under SeeD's protection for a long time. Because she has some kind of… special power that Edea must be after."
He'd deliberated whether or not to mention Ellone's strange ability. Considering the kind of power Edea had already made use of right in front of them however, he realized it might not be too far-fetched to believe after all. He braced himself for the incoming questioning.
"You don't know who she is, huh?" Irvine piped up from the sidelines. "Man, I really hope you didn't say that to her."
"What?"
Squall's head shot up. The statement had completely caught him off guard. What's more, Irvine's accent had fallen away yet again.
"You… know something about her?"
"Plenty," the sharpshooter answered calmly.
"And that's not all, is it? You also knew about Edea that night! That's the reason why you wouldn't pull the trigger, wasn't it? How do you know all these things? Answer me!"
Squall kept his eyes locked in a stare down with Irvine. Neither wavered for a moment. As opposed to his own glare, the sharpshooter's reflected a stern yet solemn look; it was akin to those he'd seen from many an instructor in his cadet days, sizing him up before the day's first training assignment. Finally, Irvine sighed, and straightened himself out from his casual lean.
"Look," he started as he made his way over. "I know we had a bit of a falling out that night. I thought you knew who Edea was and just didn't care. It was wrong of me to presume, and I don't blame you for it. Or you, Zell."
"Huh?" the blonde cocked his eyebrow. "What do I have to do with any of this?"
"More than you know. These last few weeks have given me time to do some thinking. And after listening to this kid's story just now, I'm pretty sure I know what's going on. But it's something the girls need to hear, too. I'll tell you everything you want to know some other time, when we're all together. Right now, we should focus on liberating this town, and getting all the stragglers back to the Garden. This 'commander' and 'captain' he was talking about… by the sound of it, they're the same two who came to Galbadia Garden the day we met, right?"
"Yeah," Squall affirmed. He was unsatisfied with the answer he'd been given, but ready to hold him to it should he conveniently forget.
"Any chance they can be reasoned with?"
"Wouldn't bet on it," Zell scoffed. "One's a meathead, and just getting the other to talk is like trying to draw blood from a stone."
"The way they follow Seifer, I doubt they could be persuaded," Squall agreed. "But if they're the ones running this town now, then we need to find some way of dealing with them. Collin, do you have any idea where we can find them?"
The young cadet, having been ignored for so long, abruptly craned his head back up.
"I… I know the commander rarely leaves the Balamb hotel," he stammered. "But that's where the army's housing all the soldiers and knights. Just walking in there would be suicide, especially after what you guys pulled today. They're sure to be checking IDs from now on."
"And what about the 'captain'?"
"Supposedly, he spends a lot of his free time fishing on the docks. Sorry, that's really all I can tell you. I've spent the last week hiding out in someone else's house. Everything I know comes from what they've heard."
"Well, it seems like it'd be easier to focus on him," Irvine concluded. "Sounds like he's not the brightest bulb, so maybe we could use him to draw out the other one. We'd just need to get his attention somehow, and lure him into a trap."
Squall concurred with the idea, but had no idea how they could accomplish it. Raijin was an exemplar of physical fitness; outrunning him would be no small feat. Stunningly, the answer came to him with a cursory glance at Zell and Collin's feet. It rested just behind, sticking out ever so slightly from under the bed.
"What's that under there?" he broached the question.
Zell glanced down. He maneuvered a single foot below, and slid it out. Squall's eyes bulged at the sight of it; he'd almost sworn it had been a mirage.
"I thought that was confiscated?" he blurted out.
"And that's why you always build two," Zell flashed him a sly smirk. "We're right across from a hardware store, remember?"
Squall's lips curled into a smirk of their own. He recalled the blonde's protestation when the first had been ripped from his grasp by the Thorn that evening. 'This thing could really come in handy on a mission someday!' he'd pleaded. That day had arrived.