Stolen
Chapter 29 - Past Mistakes
Stolen
Chapter 29 - Past Mistakes
"Just a few more steps, Laguna." The blond warrior called, his grip tightly on the president's arm to keep the shorter man upright.
"I'm not a baby..." Laguna mumbled, crying out as a stray branch scraped against his skin. Seifer chuckled to himself, using the Hyperion to slice effortlessly though the last of the growth before the beach.
"There they are." Quistis shouted, pointing to the break in the green. Almost instantly, a troop of SeeD soldiers ran to the two men, helping them both to the waiting Ragnarok.
"Welcome home." The majestic blonde whispered, turning back towards the airship before the men could see the tears form in her eyes.
It's hard to imagine that in the time I'd been alive, time travel would have been created. It's even harder to imagine that I'd be the third person in history to test it.
My mentor had of course been the first. After the death of everyone he ever loved, there was nothing else for him to live for. Is that why I did it too? Squall killing everyone I'd ever loved?
I know why Simon did it. He'd read the history books, and was there when Squall first attacked. He watched his parents burn to a cinder before his eyes...I don't thing anyone would be the same after that. If things had been different, it wouldn't have been hard to imagine him with bright hazel eyes, instead of the dead brown ones he has now.
I know I'm gonna be sending this kid to his death. If Drew hadn't made it back, what hope was there for us? Simon never looked nervous as he was given the Junction injection. The blonde kid was braver than me, for sure; I hate needles.
He damned near smirked at me when he finally vanished; his eyes black, almost dead as the machine removed him from the world. I didn't even know I could have stopped his death...
*
"Ifrit!" The shout came over the sudden explosions around the child. To his surprise, however, his usually loyal guardian force refused to show up, yet the smell of flesh burning and melting from bones filled the air, returning the pungent memory of his childhood to him.
Looking around in the scorched light from the sky, Simon spotted his leather-clad target. Without so much as a second thought, he ran towards the brunette, screaming silently with his dagger in hand.
The metal blade flashed as it passed blindly though the blonde, sparking against a pillar with the follow through.
Yellow-cracked grey orbs opened, looking down at the blonde's head; the child's face almost serene if it weren't for the hatred burned deep in his brown eyes.
Squall wanted to scream as he stumbled backwards, falling hard on his hands against the rocky ground.
He was just a child...
Light parted the blood-red clouds above him, a dark shape falling to the earth unnoticed by the SeeD as the rain began to fall. But even the chill against his adrenaline-heated skin was not enough comfort for the evil he'd just done.
He closed his eyes, no longer wanting to look at the world before him.
A strong, gloved hand grasped at his chin suddenly, but the SeeD didn't flinch. Perhaps it was someone there who saw what he'd just done, and had come to serve justice?
Or maybe it was...
...Warm. So very warm: all liquid heat and sympathy as the lips closed over his own. Perhaps he was dead, and this bliss before hell was his punishment?
He let his tongue wrap around his silent intruders, not wanting to open his eyes unless it was just his imagination, or something conjured by Hades himself to take his tortured soul to the underworld.
Thinking almost nothing of it, Squall deepened the kiss, trying to find forgiveness in its' depths. Soon, however, even with his eyes closed, the world went black, causing the SeeD to fall limply to the ground.
*
I hadn't expected anything like that. Kissing someone else like that...
And then there were the memories, flooding into me like I was watching a movie in fast-forward, transfer of power in the blink of an eye.
He had my memories. How the hell was that even possible? He even had the ones I thought I'd forgotten all those years ago. Uncle Kiros said I wasn't even four...
The tall man had made a promise to Pa'Guna before he died, that if I started showing signs of what they did to dad, he'd take me back to Odine. Every day while I was in that Hyne forsaken lab, he'd draw more and more of my blood.
But...Squall...there was something else he had hidden in his head.
I was no more than a year old. It was just a general check up, and of course with my parent's being who they were, Odine was the one called in. I don't remember crying at all when they took my blood the first time.
I saved that for when they put it into my father. He couldn't do anything to stop it...he was unconscious on the other table, supposedly doing tests on him as well. I outright screamed when Dad's eyes snapped open, and the soft blue I'd come to remember had been taken over by a sick yellow.
He practically tore through the Doctors in the room, not even looking back to see if I was okay.
I lost him that day, and the world gained a war.
"How is he, Quis?" The tall blonde asked, leaning on the doorframe to his companion's room. Looking up, Quistis smiled, motioning to Seifer to come further in.
"Dehydrated, but he'll recover."
"Any news on Squall?"
Frowning, the smaller blonde looked back at her report.
"I'll take that as a no then."
"I'm sorry, Seifer. He's still missing in action."
Tapping his fingers against the wall, Seifer cast his gaze to the ground, almost smirking at the horrible carpet the president no doubt chose.
"Don't stress, Quis. Get some rest."
Smiling lightly, the gunblader left the petit blonde to her reports.
He had work to do.