Disclaimer: This storyline and some of the characters involved are of my creation and cannot be used without my permission. Seifer Almasy, Rufus Shinra, Algus Sadalfas, and all the other mentioned Final Fantasy characters belong to Squaresoft.
Started: June 26, 2000
Finished: June 27, 2000 (I swear, I couldn't stop writing this chapter!!)
Chapter 13:
To Save A Soul
They watched the scene together -- the third's temper had finally lessened at the sight of Seifer Almasy squaring off against one of his closest friends. He turned slightly to smirk at the second. "I must commend you for your shrewdness," he said lightly, green eyes glowing in the dark. "Capturing the mortal and putting Almasy in this position must have taken planning."
The second shared the same amused look the third currently sported. "Actually, it was a spur-of-the-moment-type of thing," he admitted.
Only the first was not in a good mood; he scowled at the second. "I don't believe it was worth it," he remarked. "We lost Paryes to obtain the mortal girl, and I doubt Almasy will hesitate to kill her."
"Ah, but the human heart is a fickle thing," reminded the third. "Despite his ruthlessness, Almasy cares for the two mortals he calls his 'posse.' He won't kill her." He paused, thinking of the death of the Head Enigma of the Immortal Council. "Paryes died foolishly; he underestimated Almasy's demon side and allowed him to touch him."
"Touch him?" repeated the first, his voice sour. "Almasy tore his throat out with gloved hands, then ripped the eyepatch from the mortal girl. He doesn't care about her."
"Don't be so sure of yourself," the second interrupted. He gestured to the screen they watched. "See for yourself. . ."
* * * * *
"Fujin, what the hell--"
"DIE!!" Fujin's arm came up in the familiar motion of a Zan attack, her shuriken flying from her hand and tearing through the ground at Seifer. The ex-Knight cursed and leapt from its path, watching as the weapon spiraled through the air before returning to Fujin's awaiting hand.
"Fujin!!" Seifer shouted, unsheathing Hyperion but not raising it into a battle position. "Stop it!"
"NEGATIVE!" Fujin snarled, kneeling into a crouch before springing into the air. "ARASHI!" She let loose her shuriken again, the weapon flipping and spiraling as it torpedoed at its victim.
Seifer tensed, his eyes on the deadly weapon as it came his way. He raised his gunblade and swung, shock coming to life as the shuriken continued to spin down across his gunblade's surface, striking his hand with such ferocity he dropped his blade and staggered backwards. His left hand came up protectively, grasping the bloody hand painfully.
"Fujin!!!" What's going on?! Why is she attacking me?! Did. . . Did the Immortals get to her? He gritted his teeth as Fujin landed, backing off to think. I can't use Korimyr or that other magic I have; it'll kill her! He frowned, reluctantly reaching for the sphere in his pocket. Tritoch, I guess I'm gonna be using you again.
"SEIFER, FIGHT!" Fujin shouted, comfortable with fighting from afar. Normally, Seifer would have shifted the odds in favor of him by advancing forward threateningly, but that usually ended with the death of his opponent. "SCARED?"
"Oh, hit the bad nerves, Fuj," hissed Seifer, drawing several Curagas from the girl and stocking them. He decided to risk another draw, taking from Fujin a few Tornado spells before diving under her thrown shuriken. "Blizzara!"
The ice spell stunned Fujin for only a moment, her hand coming up for another throw. "ZAN!" Again, the shuriken sped along the ground, aimed at Seifer.
Seifer, recovering quickly from his dive, feinted to his right, the shuriken's wicked blades tearing into his leg. He cursed and fell to his side, squinting his eyes as he tried to focus on casting Curaga. As the green glow encased him and healed the wounds on his hand and leg, he heard the unmistakable sound of Fujin's shuriken tearing through the ground again. He rolled out of the way, spotting his gunblade only a few feet away from where he lay. He dashed, hitting the ground and snatching his gunblade up as the circular weapon flew past him again. Seifer was on his feet again in seconds, Hyperion held in a defensive position as he clenched the hilt.
"HONOO MIKAZUKI!" Fujin flung her shuriken, a hissing sound filling the misted air as a layer of fire engulfed it.
Now, why didn't she use these moves against puberty boy? wondered Seifer, deftly dodging the enflamed projectile and watching it spiral upward. His eyes widened, however, when the shuriken spun around again, coming down on him with a whistling hiss. It tore into Seifer's left shoulder, wrenching a scream from the young man as blood burst from the wound.
Fujin's eye was on him the whole time, the scarlet eye glinting strangely in the misted noontime. "SEIFER, WEAK," she taunted, a cruel smile marring her pale face. "DESERVE DEATH." She caught her shuriken as it returned to her, the fire dying away in her grip.
"What'd they do to you, Fujin?" Seifer questioned, wincing as he summoned up another Curaga. "What'd those bastards do to you??"
"SHUT UP," Fujin ordered, raising her weapon to attack.
"What about Raijin?" the blonde pressed, forcing himself to his feet. "They killed him, you know. They're controlling you! To get at me! Fujin, c'mon, you've gotta hear me in there!"
Fujin hesitated, a flicker of confusion falling over her features. It was swallowed up quickly, to Seifer's despair. "RAIJIN, WEAK!" the albino screeched. "LIKE YOU! WEAK MUST DIE!!" She sprang into the air, spiraling and flipping with natural talent. She landed before Seifer, locking her eye to his two as she ground out the next word.
"SAI!"
Seifer shut his eyes to the extreme pain that wracked his body, gritting his teeth to keep another scream from escaping his throat. Fujin's shuriken bit into his skin again and again, shredding away flesh and leaving rivers of cascading blood in its place. He could hear the tearing of his trenchcoat and feel the agonizing pain that should have rendered him unconscious. 'Wonder if Squall felt this way during torture. . .? he couldn't help but think, not wanting to imagine what he must look like.
He only opened his eyes when the agony subsided, almost ready to begin begging to that crazed God out there to end his existence now and let him burn in Hell like he deserved to.
"Stop the pain and just let me die. . .!!"
Lost in his own torment, Seifer wasn't able to tell if the scream was his own thought or Rufus' or Algus'.
* * * * *
". . . You can hear him screaming out there."
The third looked away from the screen, noticing for the first time that the second was staring into the darkness. "Shinra?" he questioned. "The High Talisman is angry for losing one of his Council. He wants to take his rage out on something."
"But must it be your chosen?" retorted the second. "He should put his rage to good use."
"Hmm." A thoughtful look crossed the third's face. "That sounds like a plan in development."
The first was far ahead of them, already grinning at the unfolding plan. "How long has the High Talisman been at the head of the Immortal Council?"
Identical grins were turned toward the first. "Too long," the second and third intoned in eerie unison.
* * * * *
Kiros frowned as he walked with Laguna and Ward, shaking his head and sighing all the while. "I'm making a mental note to myself to never allow Laguna near a vacuum trash dispenser," he declared. "I hope you're doing the same, Ward."
Ward nodded silently, smiling wryly at the memory of the incident. Laguna had decided upon new gear for the trip, picking clothes that were almost, if not completely, identical with the clothes he had worn during his journey to save Ellone more than seventeen years ago. While throwing away the tags and garbage that came along with every new clothing purchase, Laguna had allowed his hand too far into the vacuum trash dispenser and consequentially gotten his hand -- followed by his whole right arm -- stuck in the vacuum of the trash dispenser. It had taken over an hour -- plus six men -- to pull the President of Esthar from the obtrusion.
Laguna, not at all vexed by the whole incident, had his hands buried in his pockets as he strode down the hall of the Presidential Palace. He stopped whistling to speak to his two "presidential aides." "Hey, you two, we're behind schedule!" he said, as if realizing it for the first time. "Seifer's probably really pissed off by now! Let's go!" He began to jog down the corridor.
His two closest friends hung their heads simultaneously, sighs escaping their lips. "He's the reason we're behind schedule," Kiros grumbled. ". . . I've always wondered why we haven't lost Esthar yet. . . Laguna's so clueless."
Just then, Laguna ran back into sight, stopping in front of his friends. "Come on!" he ordered, hands on hips as he stood there. "Do I have to repeat myself? I'm not gonna baby you two and drag you around, you know!" With that said, Laguna grinned and ran out of view.
Ward gave Kiros a meaningful look, which caused Kiros to sigh yet again. "Okay, okay, I admit it," he conceded, "he's persistent. He wouldn't give up Esthar if it cost his own life."
* * * * *
Seifer wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing that he was still alive. He stared at Fujin through a glaze of severe pain, still amazed that he had managed to stay on his feet through the whole assault. The Sai attack had left him in a bent, weary position, Hyperion dipped and touching the ground as blood trickled down his forehead and dripped from his chin. Multiple cuts lined his body, red liquid spilling out of each one.
Fujin stood only several feet away from him, glaring down at him vehemently. "PATHETIC," she growled, her face a mask of undefined ire. "WEAK. PATHETIC. BASTARD. LOVELESS. UNCARING." Each accusation was like an additional stab, striking Seifer more deeply than any physical weapon. "FAILURE."
". . . . . Now, that's where you're wrong."
The blue-suited ex-DC member blinked in genuine surprise, unable to believe that the Insane still had the strength to speak. He was barely holding himself up!
"You can . . . say all of those things about me," hissed Seifer, panting heavily with exertion, "but I'm . . . not a complete failure. If I was . . . I wouldn't be here right now . . . would I? I'd be dead in a ditch somewhere . . . getting eaten by all those damn rats in the world. . ." He coughed and slowly straightened, his eyes burning like cool, blue fire. "I haven't given up yet. . . I've thought about it, but I really don't plan to give up. . . Not for a long time. Never, actually."
Seifer stood at his full height, raising Hyperion in his offensive battle position. Fujin took an involuntary step back, holding her breath. "Get ready, Fuj," Seifer said, clenching and unclenching his left hand, "'cuz this is gonna hurt." With that, he thrust his left hand forward, fire bursting over Fujin with a mental thought. With that, he began to unleash the Limit Break he had never been able to summon forth since his days as Sorceress Ultimecia's Knight.
"Demon Slice!"
He swung his right arm in a circular motion, building up Chi energy that grew apparent with the streams of the green that engulfed his gunblade. Then, pulling his whole body into the motion, he spun around, his features becoming swept up as he became a living tornado. He sped at Fujin, slashing into her as his weapon became a storm of blades that hit her continuously and without mercy. Then, upon his last turn, he pulled the trigger of his gunblade, an explosion ringing through Esthar as he leapt backwards into the air and landed in the exact spot he had began his Limit Break.
Almost immediately, Seifer dropped Hyperion, breaking into a sprint towards Fujin, who stood stunned as yellow streams of power left her body. He reached the girl just as her legs buckled underneath her, sending her falling to the ground. Seifer caught her in his arms, staring at the face he had managed to leave unmarred in his onslaught. Tears sprang to his eyes as he saw the tears already dripping down Fujin's face.
"Seifer. . ." Her voice was . . . so weak, so small.
"Don't speak," he gasped, swallowing hard. "Save your strength. . ."
Fujin's eye sparkled with emotion, more tears spilling forth. "I'm so sorry. . .," she whispered. "I-- I didn't mean any of it."
Seifer nodded. "I know you didn't." He grinned in that charming way he always did for his friends. "You're too good to me for that."
"Seifer. . ." Fujin smiled weakly for him. ". . . I love you. . ."
For a moment, Seifer couldn't speak. When he finally shook himself out of shock, he chuckled softly and gathered Fujin up in his arms. ". . . You do realize you can't die on me now, right?" he said, even as he began to falter in his balance. "By saying that, you can't leave until I tell you that in return. . ."
"Sei . . . fer. . ." The girl shivered in his arms, moving to rest her head on his shoulder despite the blood. Seifer half-noticed that his body was so numb he couldn't feel any pain at her action. Then Fujin shuddered once more, her eye falling shut and her body going limp.
". . . Fuj?" Seifer blinked in shock, staring at the silver-haired girl in his arms. "Fuj?" His voice was quickly growing smaller -- more fearful. "Fujin?" When no response came, Seifer began to tremble.
Oh, God, no. . . I couldn't have lost her again. . . No, God, no. . .! I just had her back! Don't take her from me now!! The numbness he had barely noticed suddenly gripped Seifer, causing him to topple backwards and sprawl on the concrete street. I've lost a lot of blood. . ., he realized. I may die. The thought of dying didn't scare him. Not when his two best friends had already crossed over.
"I'm coming, Fujin . . . Raijin," he whispered, trying to see the sky through the mist. The sunlight was visible, but not the blue that his eyes searched for. "I'm coming."
And he held Fujin close as he lay there, ready to meet death.
As he had suspected all along, his end didn't come in light.
So he greeted the darkness.
Umm, I wanna apologize. This ended up being a really short chapter, and I was hoping to accomplish a lot more than just one battle. . . Actually, I'm proud of myself for having such a lengthy battle. I'm even more proud of myself that I managed to give Fujin a real battle description; I can't think of one fanfic where Fujin's actions in battle are described in some detail -- even if my detail wasn't very much.
But I still wanted to apologize.
. . . Oh. I should explain Fujin's attacks, shouldn't I? I'm sure FF8 fans would have noticed that not all of Fujin's special moves are actual moves from the game. Er, I thought she deserved more than two different attacks, so I gave her two more. Of course, I have more in mind for her, and possibly Raijin. I could use them for other stories. . . Now, onto the descriptions and, for those that don't know any Japanese, the translations of the attacks.
Zan [Cut/Slash/Slice] -- This is her more common attack in the FF8 game; she throws her shuriken and it skims along the ground before rising and striking the enemy.
Sai -- There's no translation because I believe the attack name is derived from the Japanese weapon, which is a small bladed weapon used in close combat. Fujin uses this move infrequently in the game, content on using Zan or casting magic at your party. When she does, she jumps at one opponent and strikes in close range, reducing that person to one HP. (I hated this move! She would always hit Squall with it and Raijin would follow up with his Raijin Special! ARGH!!)
Arashi [Storm] -- This is the first of the two new attacks introduced in this chapter. Fujin leaps into the air and throws her shuriken, which spirals around as it flies, unlike the other attacks. Because of the extra spin, her shuriken can't be deflected by a weapon; as seen in this chapter, her weapon spun along Seifer's gunblade to strike him in the hand even after he tried to strike it out of the air.
Honoo Mikazuki [Flame Crescent] -- Don't ask about the name; I just liked the sound of it. In this move, Fujin throws her shuriken in the same action as Zan, fire bursting along the weapon's surface as it speeds at its victim. Unlike Zan, the shuriken will come around for another strike, hitting the enemy twice before landing back in Fujin's hand.
If other fanfic writers would like to use my created attacks for Fujin, an e-mail of permission would be appreciated. I feel possessive, even if they are just made-up moves for a video game character. ^_^ But I think Fujin's special.
Do you like cliffhanger endings. . .? They're my specialty. *grins*
Onto Chapter 14
Back to Chapter 12
Back to The Insane