Laguna
was still deep in thought when the Ragnarok landed; he barely noticed the
slight bump it made onto the garden platform. He stood up and stretched then
joined the others from the pilot’s deck and headed straight to Quistis’s office.
After
arriving Quistis did a short briefing on the rest of the mission, they were to
leave at 4:50 to the Ragnarok, that left them about 10 minutes. Once they
arrived at the Deep-Sea Research Center they would land and Balamb Garden will
make a diversion so the perimeter group has time to kill of the outer-soldiers.
He
watched Squall whisper something to Quistis then Squall left. He figured he was
going down to tell Kiros and Ward what was going to happen next then say
goodbye to Aurora… in case anything happened.
Laguna
stood up and walked to the balcony and looked out into the sky, the storm had
completely let up and it was becoming sunny and nice out. He thought about
Ellone, and Rinoa and what they must be going through.
“How
are we going to pull this off?” he muttered under his breath as he heard
Quistis direct Irvine and Selphie back to the Ragnarok then Zell to follow
after he tells Nida to head in the direction of the Deep-Sea Research Center.
Some
minutes later he heard Squall arrive back in the office, holding his Lionheart
in his hand as if someone was about to attack him with full force. Laguna
walked slowly back inside and followed Quistis and Squall back out to the
Ragnarok, not a word said.
(Raine…
if only you could see us now…) he thought as they went up the elevator.
Aurora
waited quietly in her room, she awaited Dawn’s arrival, and the Ragnarok would
be leaving soon. Just as she stood up and was about to call Dawn when she heard
the faint sound of a knock on the door.
She
heard Dawn’s voice sounding panicked as she told Kiros and Ward that somebody
was in trouble, they were in the other end of the dormitory. (Clever move….)
She thought as she pulled on her boots.
She
heard both Ward and Kiros run down the dormitory now was her chance, they would
never know. She ran out of her room after laying pillows in her blankets in
case they came in, they would think that she was just asleep.
She
closed her door then lightly as she could she stepped out of the dormitory room
and hid in the shadows, she waited until Kiros and Ward came back with Dawn
muttering something about a stupid practical joke and she heard them shut the
door.
“It
worked!” she whispered so that Dawn could hear her. She walked out of the
shadows to join Dawn who was walking out of the dormitory. “How are we going to
get on the Ragnarok, though. I’m sure they’re out nearly out there, they’ll see
us!” he said quietly.
“I
found this magic… in a book. It can turn you temporarily invisible. Only for 5
minutes so have to wait until we’re almost there… then we can get on.” Dawn
answered.
Aurora
nodded and they headed towards the Ragnarok. Once they got there she heard Dawn
mutter something that she couldn’t quite understand. She looked down and he
body was no longer there. She tried to look at Dawn but couldn’t see her.
“Grab
my hand!” Aurora said trying to find it. Once they found each other they ran
towards the Ragnarok in a hurry, just as they reached the platform Aurora heard
voices Quistis, her father and grandfather were headed towards the Ragnarok.
The other three were already on board.
She
pulled Dawn onto the Ragnarok and they hid in a room below the stairs to the
cargo hold. They stood in there waiting for the Ragnarok to take off and just
as it did they begin to reappear.
(Are
we doing the right thing?) Aurora thought then said out loud but in a whisper,
“There’s no turning back now.” And she said Dawn’s face drop a bit… and Aurora
immediately regretting getting her into this.
Rinoa
lay curled up in a ball in her cell. The new sunlight was filling the room so
she could see around it clearly. She sat up and held her knees tightly,
remembering the message she sent… hoping it would be delivered.
(I
wonder if I should have sent that message into Aurora’s head… I know she’s a
sorceress but… will she know to tell Squall? She must have recognized those
guards… I brought her to see that I wouldn’t be here in this cell once they
came…) she thought as she once again curled up and tried to sleep. Her once
shiny black hair was dull and stringy from the air in the cell, and she had
several rips in her clothes.
After
what seemed to be forever she heard the distant sound of something big coming,
it sounded like the Garden. (Yes! They’re coming! There may still be a chance…)
she thought but just as she sat up she heard the locks on the door being
removed and two green soldiers came in.
She
watched them closely was they walked towards her and the next thing she knew
was that there was the back of a gun handle coming down on her head. They
knocked her conscious and dragged her out of the cell.
Ellone
looked around the dark cell. It was pitch back and even with the small window,
which was surrounded by water she couldn’t see anything. She looked around the
cell, wondering what would happen and if Rinoa was ok.
The
locks on the cell door opened and two green soldiers came in, carrying Rinoa
who seemed to be limp. They dropped her on the floor then walked out without a
word said.
Ellone
stood up and walked over to Rinoa and checked if she was ok, she looked to be
knocked out pretty bad… the top of her head, closer to her forehead was
bleeding heavily. Ellone ripped of a bit of her shawl and put it on her head to
try and stop the bleeding, hoping that Rinoa’s powers would kick in soon and
heal it would heal it.
She
felt a tingle in her hand and lifted off the piece of shawl; Rinoa’s head was
healing itself. Rinoa opened her eyes slightly and smiled at bit at Ellone.
“You ok?” she said faintly… and closed her eyes a bit.
“I’m
fine… but your not, you need to lie down.” Ellone whispered as Rinoa opened her
eyes fully and sat up looking at Ellone while rubbing the back of her head.
“Thank you.” She whispered.
Ellone
looked at her kindly. “For what…?” she said as Rinoa lay down on the floor.
“For everything… you’re the one that brought Aurora here… her consciousness so
she could see that I wouldn’t be there…Thanks to your power we may be saved…”
Rinoa whispered.
Ellone
nodded and brushed Rinoa’s hair off her face, “Your welcome… now rest… you know
they’re going to come… if only we had sent the message sooner.” She said softly
as Rinoa who was looking at her, “They’re coming… now… I heard them…” she
whispered.
Ellone
stared at her… a mixture of happiness and worry came over her but she smiled to
comfort Rinoa. “Of course they are.” She said quietly as Rinoa drifted off to
sleep.
Aurora was sitting silently, clutching her hands which were drooped over her knees. Her eyes were partly closed and she allowed her hair to hang loosely around her.
(I
wonder if we should have stayed back… I mean, this is so dangerous.) She
thought as she looked up at Dawn who had her legs crossed and her head slumped
back and she was looking at the ceiling. Aurora figured that Dawn was thinking
the exact same thing as she was but stopped her thoughts when she heard an
announcement over the microphone system in the Ragnarok.
“Laguna…
come to the flight deck NOW… we’re almost there, we have to get this thing on
the road!” she heard Selphie say. Aurora stood up and walked over to where Dawn
was sitting, she seemed to be muttering something to herself. Aurora crouched
down beside her and looked at the ground.
“Look,
You don’t have to come if you want… you got me here, on the Ragnarok, all I
need you to do now is help me get into the place, put that invisibility spell
on me again, but make it longer.” She said still looking at the ground.
“Oh
no… I can’t just let you go alone! I have to come… I’m brave enough, I’m gonna
be a SeeD!” Dawn said suddenly as she tilted her head forwards but something
about the look on her face told Aurora she was still scared out of her wits.
Aurora
looked at Dawn slowly and said, “No… Dawn, this is what I wanted to do… it
doesn’t involve you. You’ll much more of a help to put the spell on me and stay
here, and be here when I get back.”
She
looked at Dawns sad face but Dawn nodded slowly, “Just… stay out of trouble,
ok. What are you going to do in there anyway?” she said frightfully. Aurora
looked at the ground, something struck her. (What am I going to do?)
Before
Aurora had the chance to say anything she stopped and heard the Ragnarok
accelerate and then stop in mid air. They were about to land. “Dawn, when we
land, be ready! As soon as that cargo hold opens I need you to put the spell on
me, I’ll run out with the rest of them and while their distracting the soldiers
I’ll go inside!” she said quickly watching Dawn nod.
They
both rose and waited for the Ragnarok to land.
Laguna
had just reached the flight deck as the Ragnarok stopped. He stood behind
Squall and Irvine, Quistis sat in the shooter seat and Zell sat in the
Co-Pilots seat next to Selphie.
He
listened as Selphie was transmitting with Nida in the Garden, he heard Nida
saying that the soldiers had taken a notice to the Garden and were watching it
approach. Laguna focused his attention out the window at that.
From
not to far away he saw the Garden approaching the Deep-Sea Research Center
rapidly. It moved straight towards it and lifted from the water to go over it,
just as the Garden was directly over the Research Center Laguna saw several
soldiers pointing their guns at the Garden and shooting, which barely had any
affect what-so-ever on the bottom of the Garden.
“You’re
clear to land now, get goin, we can’t keep’em occupied for much longer before
they notice you guys!” he heard say through the radio transmitter and Selphie
took off from their mid-air stop and headed to the Research Center that wasn’t
too far away.
He
looked around at the ground and noticed several soldiers drawing their
attention to the landing Ragnarok and began shooting at it. He felt the jolt of
the landing and immediately moved aside as Selphie, Zell and Irvine got up from
their seats and ran as fast as they could out the door.
Laguna
looked out the window and watched as Selphie and Zell ran out onto the platform
defeating many soldiers in their way. He saw Irvine dash to a hidden space
before anyone saw him and he loaded his gun.
Soldiers
fell everywhere, with multiple attacks from both Zell and Selphie. Unsuspecting
soldiers fell to the ground as Irvine shot them from his hiding place. Laguna
drew his attention to something most peculiar.
He
looked at the opening into the Research Center, the doors were closed but one
was opening a crack, but nothing was there. Right before the door shut again he
saw a glint of blond hair appear out of now-where, but it was gone as the door
shut right behind it.
He
quickly shook off his suspecting thoughts as he saw Selphie and Zell signal
them out, all the outdoor soldiers were dead. It was time to go. He turned on
his heel and followed Squall and Quistis off the flight deck and out the cargo
hold. They ran to the opening of the Research Center and stopped beside Zell
and Selphie, Irvine ran out from his hiding place and joined them.
“Ok!
Time to get this done, first part was successful, however, we mustn’t get
excited yet…” Quistis said. “Now you three” she said pointing at Selphie, Zell
and Irvine. “Please stay in the Ragnarok, we’ll come and retrieve you once
we’ve got Rinoa and Ellone. Until then, good luck and see you.”
The
three of them nodded and ran back towards the Ragnarok and Squall, Quistis and
Laguna opened the door and entered the Research Center wondering whether this
was the end.
Zell
ran alongside Selphie and Irvine towards the Ragnarok and noticed how quickly
the sun was setting. He saw the Garden hovering nearby but far enough away to
stay out of any immediate danger. He followed the two into the Ragnarok and
they closed the cargo hold.
“I’ll
be right there, I just want to look around for awhile, I mean, when’s the last
time we were on the Ragnarok? Fifteen years ago!” he said and they both nodded
and continued walking.
Zell
walked around the Ragnarok until he reached the corridor with stairs. Something
was odd though, it seemed that the door beneath the stairs stood slightly open,
barely but slightly. He walked over and opened the door totally, took one look
and began to close the door but wiped his head back around.
A
young girl, about the age of Aurora, sat on the floor with her head down and
she looked up at him. A spasm of horror crossed her face and she stood up
quickly. Zell stared at her, unsure what to say, or what to think.
From
behind him he heard people running towards him so he looked to see that Selphie
and Irvine had arrived, neither of them bothering to look into the room behind
him.
“Aurora…
she’s gone! Kiros and Ward just contacted us, they don’t know where she is. The
last time they saw her she was…” Selphie explained but stopped as she looked
over Zells shoulder at the girl in the room.
“Alright!
What the hell is going on?” Zell heard Irvine mutter as he noticed the girl in
the room, with a look of guilt and horror on her face.
Zell
turned around and looked closely at the girl and thought maybe she knew what
was going on. “Its ok… just follow us. We need to talk now.” He said softly and
moved aside to let the girl out of the room.
They
all walked in complete silence straight to the passenger deck, Selphie sat
beside the mysterious girl and Irvine and Zell stood in front of them. “First
of all… what’s your name, hun? Selphie said. “Dawn…” the girl said but her face
was not scared anymore, just guilty.
“Dawn,
we need you to tell us what’s going on, where’s Aurora? You need to tell us,
she may be in danger.” Selphie said softly. Zell watched as the girl gulped and
listened as she began to talk.
She
told them about how they were friends and that they made a plan to come,
Aurora’s plan. They snuck onto the Ragnarok then Aurora got off again when they
landed, she went inside the Deep-Sea Research Center.
Zell
stood there, shocked and angry, Aurora had gone in to save her mother… by
herself. “What!” he retorted loudly that shocked Dawn and made her shudder a
bit. “I’m… sorry…” she said softly looking at the ground.
Zell
looked at her kindly then, “It’s ok… its not your fault, I’m sorry for blowing
up like that… It’s Aurora’s fault… Squall is going to so angry.” He said softly
moving towards the door and beckoning Irvine to follow him. “C’mon, we’ll to
the flight deck.”
They
left Selphie and Dawn talking and went on the lift and onto the flight deck.
“Is there any way to communicate with them? There’s got to be we’ve got to tell
them that Aurora is in there, in danger. Is she stupid or something?” Zell said
harshly as Irvine gave him a look of ‘stop that, your letting your emotions get
high again. As always.’
Zell
suppressed his anger and said quietly, “Sorry, its just that she knows that her
life is in danger yet she still goes in there…” He saw that Irvine was frowning
now but turned to face the panel and looked out the window.
“Zell…
her mother and her aunt have been taken. You know that Squall is like that too,
he just wants them back. Aurora has got a lot of her father in her; I noticed
it when I met her, her quietness, her shyness and that attitude. You know that
Squall a lot like that but more closed off.” He said softly. “I’d do the same
if my mother and aunt were taken…”
Zell
frowned but nodded, knowing that he was right. “So, there’s no way we can talk
to them, can’t we go in after them?” he said louder. “No… we have to follow
orders, Zell. We can’t go in, and there’s no way of communicating with them.”
Irvine said still looking out the window.
“Why
can’t we… go in?” Zell said impatiently and Irvine spun around. “Because Zell,
just because… we may be killed if we go in now, we have to wait…”
Zell
stared at him trying to suppress his anger. “So we’re just supposed to wait and
let Aurora die!” he said hastily.
“No,
Zell… we don’t wait for her to die, but for her to live. She’s a sorceress
remember, we’ve just go to hope that she learns to use her powers… we’ve got to
hope.”
Irvine
said as he turned and looked out the window at the bright orange sky.
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