Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Final Fantasy Saga ❯ Revolution ( Chapter 5 )

Final Fantasy Saga

Chapter V: Revolution

"Old friend?" Rufus smiled and shook his head, chuckling just a little before giving Laguna a response, "I find it odd that you would call me such. We've been enemies more or less for the entire span of our acquaintance. Not to mention the fact that, at the moment, I'm at war against you."

"That means little in the long run," Laguna was smiling, he had been the entire time, as if he were happy that all this were going on, "You honestly didn't think I was dumb enough to let you come here, did you? If such is the case I'm quite worried that your skills may have grown dull Rufus."

"You were saved from my first plan by dumb luck, this was my fallback," Rufus explained, "So tell me, what are you hiding down there?"

"Don't be concerned with such things unless you beat me," Laguna replied as he drew his gun, a machine gun, "We'll finally get to have a fair match to decide who should lead this school."

"I accept your challenge," Rufus drew his gun, a shotgun, as well and let his smile turn into a smug grin. It was time.

* * * * * * *

Ark could feel the epitome of nothingness. His muscles were so drained that he could not move. His eyes were so strained that he could not open them. Yet at the same time Ark found himself unable to rest, to pass out, to submit, due to his worry for Eliza and his worry for Gren. Hearing Gren's battle, it was hard to tell who had the upper hand at the moment, but knowing that guy there was no way he would lose to Squall. What got to Ark more was Eliza, how was she going to stop Rufus? He was very afraid for her safety, he owed her so much and hadn't really done a thing to begin repaying the kindness she'd shown him.

"Eliza will be fine, Ark," he heard a woman's voice say gently, but Ark couldn't turn his head to see who it was.

"Who are you?" he asked, wishing he could see her.

The woman giggled softly and then continued, "I'm not here to tell you who I am. I'm here to let you know that you are done fighting for today. Eliza has a rare gift, she can handle herself thanks to it. Gren will defeat Squall. Laguna will stop Rufus." Although he never trusted people that acted this way, somehow Ark was feeling more at ease just listening to this woman's voice. He had a feeling she sensed this, and that the woman was encouraged by it, adding, "You will know my identity when the time is right. I will be watching, Ark d'Speare."

* * * * * * *

Squall had a very decent amount of skill, and a swiftness with the blade that few could match, and Gren found him to be worth spending some effort on. Their blades clashes over and over, in a repeated echo and song of battle, like the sound of two instruments in perfect harmony. Squall attacked repeatedly and Gren continued to dodge or block any of his hits, but it took an actual amount of focus to keep Squall in check. This was more than most could say while facing Gren, and he was very pleased to have found such a foe. It was a pity that once Gren began to counterattack, it would all be over in virtually the blink of an eye, but he had other things to do besides dueling with this one man. There was still Rufus to take care of as well.

Unexpectedly, though, as Squall performed one of his slashes and Gren blocked it, the blade of Squall's sword was stopped by his block just a few inches away from Gren's head. When this happened, Squall pulled a small trigger that was on the handle of his sword, and the blade seemed to become surrounded by a brief explosion. This blast sent Gren spiraling to the ground, dizzy and disoriented, with a small burn on the side of his face. His vision blurry, he looked to see Squall coming at him for another attack, and it was then that Gren figured out why it was that he found Squall's sword so unusual. It wasn't an ordinary sword, Squall Leonhart fought with a Gunblade. Struggling to his feet despite his disorientation, Gren blocked Squall's oncoming slash, only to again be slammed with a Gunblade blast. This one tore Gren's shirt in half, making it fall to his hips at the waist and expose his chest, burns crawling up his body as he slammed into a gym wall.

"Nice weapon you've got there," the injured Gren said as he leaned forward, resting his weight on his two swords as he sat on his knees, "It packs quite a punch."

Squall didn't say a single word, but instead took a fighting stance again and waited. Gren moved up to his feet, feeling a gentle trickle of blood come over the right side of his face from his forehead. He drove both his swords into the ground and left them there for a moment, cracking his knuckles and then picking them back up. Taking his own stance, Gren smirked slowly. His vision began to clear, the initial shock now wearing off, and he tensed his legs. Letting the tension build itself up, slowly and smoothly, Gren then let it snap and his legs began to move. Soaring through the air, Gren brought his swords towards Squall in a scissor-like pattern and slashed, cutting the Gunblade in half rather than attacking his opponent. After all was said and done, Squall stood no chance anymore.

"It's over, you don't have a sword and I still have my weapons. Resign yourself to defeat and allow me to go after Rufus," Gren wasn't playing games here, if Squall didn't cooperate then Gren would have to get a little rough with him. He could forgive the injuries, they weren't really anything, but to get between Gren and his goals was never a good idea.

"I gave you two swords when you had none, show me a similar courtesy and let our duel continues," Squall demanded, looking Gren right in the eyes with an icy confidence that Gren couldn't stop himself from admiring.

Out of sheer humor did Gren toss one of his two swords at Squall, and take another stance, "After this, the duel is over and you will have lost."

"Should you defeat me I will not fight against facts," Squall took a new fighting stance as well.

Gren assumed that Squall was going to use this chance to execute his Limit Break, as that was obviously his only hope at victory. However Gren would put all of his focus onto evasion rather than using his own specialty attack, not wishing to strain himself at this point in time when he had to fill in for Ark as well. It was only a few moments before Squall attacked, moving in as fast as he usually did and slashing at Gren. Much to Gren's surprise, Squall didn't use his Limit Break, but instead simply sent a barrage of slashes at Gren. Deflecting them all with great ease, Gren did a spinning slash and knocked the sword out of Squall's hand, stopping his blade just as it touched the edge of Squall's neck.

"It's over," said the victorious Gren, "Now, allow me to pass, and if you don't mind make sure my injured friend is cared for." His face still staying cold and unreadable, Squall closed his eyes and nodded in agreement. Needing only that, Gren picked up the spare short sword and ran out the door to try and catch up with Eliza.

* * * * * * *

"You went easy on him," the voice of an old friend uttered to Squall, making him turn towards a set of shadows to see exactly who he expected to.

"What does it matter to you, Seifer?" Squall asked, taking note that Seifer also had Fujin and Raijin with him.

Shrugging, Seifer explained himself, "You didn't go quite as fast as you could have, and you waited a rather long time to begin using the Gunblade properly. Not to mention the fact that you didn't use your Limit Break on him. Why is it that you held back against your own enemy? I just don't understand it."

"Rufus is right in his ways, and I doubt that Gren will be able to defeat him," Squall reasoned, "Also, unlike you I don't simply lash into things with everything I have. I keep several aces up my sleeve until the end of the game."

"So you don't believe this to be the end?" inquired Seifer as he stroked his own chin for a moment, "Most interesting, my friend."

"What will you do from here?" Squall asked, hoping that Seifer and his gang hadn't come here to cause trouble. They had somehow slipped away from Vincent, which Squall was impressed by, but he wasn't quite able to figure out why they were here.

Fujin decided to explain, rather than leave it up to Seifer or Raijin, in her commonly unique manner, "OBSERVE."

"I see," Squall smirked and shook his head, "Well I can hardly blame you for being interested in what may or may not happen."

* * * * * * *

Eliza looked from Beatrix to Rosa and took a moment to think. She didn't want either of them to get hurt, but at the same time she had to go and help whoever she could amidst the turmoil that now engulfed the school. Not to mention the fact that Odin was immensely powerful, and Eliza couldn't be sure that he wouldn't downright kill one of them should they fight. Looking over to Odin, her centurion and crusader, Eliza sighed a gentle sigh before letting her eyes close. There was little time for debate, and so she had to simply ask them, "Will you stand down and let me go? I don't want to hurt you."

"I always tell my students that when they do something, they have to do it until the very end, never letting go of their convictions," explained Beatrix, "If I do not do what I teach, why should my students listen to my words?"

"As for me," began Rosa, "I cannot do anything that has not already done. I have to walk down my own path and hope that the darkness before me is not an abyss, but a blessing. I will not yield."

"Then I apologize," Eliza felt sorrow for having to harm them, as they truly were just doing what seemed right to them, "Odin, defeat them…"

No sooner did she say it then did the knight leap into the air, soaring a good fifty feet above the humans below as he began to twirl his lance. Rosa and Beatrix both jumped towards Odin as he began to fall to the ground, hoping to catch him in midair. Beatrix intersected with Odin first, slashing at his chest, but her sword simply bounced off his armor and didn't seem to have any effect at all. When she landed, Beatrix looked up and watched Rosa try and attack Odin's face, only to have his sword blocked by the mammoth knights lance. Odin's feet met the ground now, and he stood with Rosa in front of him and Beatrix behind him.

"His head is vulnerable!" Rosa informed Beatrix, allowing her to note that although Odin wore thick armor, he did not wear a helmet.

Seeing this, the first move was promptly made by Beatrix, flying towards Odin from behind and attempting to stab him in the back of the head. Odin blocked this attack without even looking, just moving his lance behind himself and deflecting Beatrix's sword. Once Odin had done that, Rosa attempted to move in and attack the knights face while his lance was occupied, hoping to catch him off guard. It was to no avail, as Odin quickly brought his lance down onto Rosa's shoulder, shattering Rosa's armor around the arm and shoulder as well as his sword in one powerful swing. Falling to the ground defeated, Rosa was no longer in this fight, it was now just Odin and Beatrix.

Looking up at Odin as he turned around to face her, Beatrix commented, likely more to herself than anyone in particular, "Who'd have thought such a power existed?" Moving in for one final attack towards Odin's face, Beatrix used her Limit Break. "Climhazzard!" she cried out, spinning her blade straight towards the huge monster-like warrior. It was to no avail, as Odin quickly blocked the sword and brought his spare fist into the side of Beatrix's body. Flying through the air and slamming into one of the buildings, Beatrix seemed to be defeated as well by Eliza's summon.

* * * * * * *

Gren had no idea where it was that Eliza had gone, so he found himself running around the campus attempting to find signs of anything. He had no luck until he found himself near the administration building, where he saw a massive battle going on. Soldiers dressed in the Shinra family security uniforms were facing off against the Mana Academy security Moogles. It was a strange thing to see people Gren had interacted with on a day by day basis fighting, and he wasn't entirely sure how to describe what he was feeling. All that he knew for sure was that he had to do something to defend the school, and so this was his biggest chance. Having decided his course of action, Gren charged, running right into the massive battle going on in front of him headfirst, much like he imagined his foolish friend Ark would do. It was scary, how much sense the dumb animal was starting to make to Gren.

He tried his best not to seriously hurt the enemies he fought, attacking mostly legs and kicking people to avoid long-term injuries. Gren was amazed at how weak many of them were, he had no idea that he'd gotten so strong over the course of his life. Although he was always arrogant, he only had acted in such a way to keep fools away, and so now Gren found himself beginning to realize how strong he truly was. Gliding from person to person, defeating them instantly and then moving on, he cut the numbers of the enemies army down considerably as the Moogles and teachers around him fought as hard as they could. This battle was beginning to go their way, Rufus' army was losing. If they just kept going then eventually they were going to win the day once and for all.

Once it began to look as if things were nearing and end, Gren began to notice something very strange in how the enemy was fighting. As soon as they had begun losing the battle, the Shinra soldiers slowly retreating, in small numbers so that at first nobody would notice. Because of this Gren was certain that this was far from over, in fact he predicted a very dangerous sneak attack was coming in some way. As Gren had guessed, it was only a matter of moments before the Shinra soldiers did something. A large cage, made entirely of metal, was brought near the battlefield.

"Release it, let it wreak havoc upon them and bring them to death! To their destiny!" Gren heard Seymour, the general of Rufus' army, order.

As the cage opened, Gren saw what was inside of it, and he realized that this was going to be a much harsher battle than he had anticipated. Within the cage sat a Behemoth, one of the deadliest monsters that there ever was. It roared and leapt out of the cage, crashing into the middle of battle and beginning to maul soldiers. Swatting and biting at them with ferocity and a savage hunger that was astounding. Looking further, Gren saw that they were bringing in two more cages to the front, and had two more behind those. How many monsters had they brought to this battle? In the second cage was a Green Dragon, and in the third cage was a Tonberry. These three monsters alone would likely be enough to defeat the entire army, and they still had two more waiting. He closed his eyes and sighed, barring a miracle there was a good chance he could get killed on this day.

Charging in after the Behemoth first, as it was closest to him, Gren attacked the massive beast from behind, slashing at it's hind leg. The monster roared and turned to look at him, burning intensity in its eyes and a slight rim of blood surrounding its massive jaw and crusted in its jagged teeth. The monster was about the size of a bus, and so to the teenaged Gren it was considerably larger than he could comprehend himself defeating. But if nobody even tried, then there truly was no chance that these beasts would be brought into submission. With that in mind, Gren then went for the jaw, slashing his left sword towards the teeth while aiming his right sword at the chin. Both his attacks connected, and this sent the monster into a wild flurry of rage, slamming him with the back of its hand and sending Gren soaring through the crowds of the army until he slammed into a tree and stopped. Laying there, his body feeling like it had become a ragged doll, Gren saw the beast coming at him still. Likely he had gotten it very angry with his attack, and in doing so doomed himself. Just as the monster got to him, in a last attempt to buy himself some time, Gren drove his sword right into the creatures eye. This made the Behemoth cry out in agony, a blood curdling howl that pierced Gren's ears. The Behemoth then stood up on its hind legs, taking Gren's first sword away as it was stuck in the monsters eye. His other sword still in hand, he drove it as far into the monsters chest as he could, and was surprised as he watched the beast fall over and die before him. Shocked, it took Gren a moment to assimilate this information, and then he smiled as he stood up. Though he was injured, he could still fight, and he wouldn't give up. If he fought as hard as he could, then in a little while the Green Dragon and the Tonberry were going to be laying there right beside the Behemoth. He retrieved his swords and rejoined the battle, they didn't need a miracle to win, just determination.

* * * * * * *

Quistis opened her eyes slowly to see a young woman, the one who had been with Ark d'Speare in the gym, standing over her. She sat up and groaned, rubbing her forehead as she tried to remember what had happened. "Where am I?" Quistis asked, her eyes wandering to meet the young woman.

"We're near the science building," the girl sat down beside Quistis and felt her forehead, "My name is Eliza. Eliza Knight."

"And what happened to Rufus?" Quistis recalled now how she had at least left the gym, now curious as to why she wasn't being used as bait for Laguna.

Eliza pointed to a very huge man in armor and answered, "My guardian angel, Odin, saved you. Rufus ran off and left you behind, so I think you're safe now."

"I'm in your debt then, Eliza and Odin," Quistis stood up, she could hear a battle going on, things weren't looking good. She guessed that Rufus had started his war to take over the Mana Academy, and so she had to fight to help protect this school and its students.

"Worry not, it was merely the right thing," Odin replied to her, his voice very somber and calm, almost blank as if to have no emotion at all.

Eliza giggled as she looked back at Odin, and then turned to pay attention to Quistis again, "Feel honored. He almost never talks."

"I need to go join the battle against Rufus," Quistis explained as she began to walk towards where she heard fighting, "Since he's strong, we could use Odin's help in all of this."

"Odin and I are going to that battle in a moment, but I wanted to ask you some things first before we did so," Eliza explained and stood up from her crouching position, "Would you mind explaining to me exactly what is going on right now?"

"I suppose you do deserve an explanation," Quistis stopped and turned around, coming a bit closer before she continued, "This is a war for the right to run the Mana Academy. Ten years ago, when the academy was originally built, there were five founding members of the faculty who all played various roles in the schools creation. Laguna and Rufus were two of those men, the two that were most qualified to lead. Despite their differences of opinion, they worked very well together while creating this place. One day, it was to be decided that the winner of a gun duel would lead the school and become the principal. Laguna won, but spared Rufus' life. At the time apparently Rufus had been feeling ill, and so Laguna decided to tell him that at any point in the future Rufus could challenge him and he would accept. This entire war is Rufus' challenge to Laguna."

"I never even imagined," Eliza looked around a bit, "So all of this is happening with Laguna's consent?"

"He's a fair man, and believed Rufus deserved a fair chance some day," Quistis sighed, and shook her head, "I wish he'd not allowed it to come this far, but we do have to accept that things are only in the here and now. We can't change the past."

"Then I suppose we had better get to work and help this end forever, and make sure that the school gets back to times of peace again," reasoned Eliza, "But I have a different plan than yours."

"What are you talking about?" a puzzled Quistis wondered, she found herself wondering more and more about what it was this student was doing at the school. She could tell that Eliza was a student simply from her age, but something about the girl made Quistis believe her to be different from the other children.

Eliza then explained her plan, "I want you to go and get the students. For some reason they haven't been showing up to help, I think they're detained somewhere. Odin and I will go to the battle while you free them, I get the feeling Odin himself is enough to turn the tide of all this, but just in case I want you to free the students and have them come and help."

"Out of the question," a sigh made its way from Quistis, "I refuse to endanger any of the students for Laguna's cause. I'll give my own life for it, but they are better than that."

"It is the causes we choose that make us the people we are, Ms. Trepe. If you don't allow us to fight our battles then we will never grow as people," shot Eliza, and Quistis now found herself extremely shocked. "Ms. Trepe, Odin and I have found our cause. Let the rest of the students have the same chances as us, and you will be teaching them things that will then change their lives for the better."

Taking a few moments to think this over, Quistis was surprised at how wise this girl was. It was definitely right that the girl was in such a place, with the help of the Mana Academy she would likely move on to accomplish superb things with her life. Eliza Knight was a girl who deserved as bright a future as possible, and who might just make a difference, which was exactly what Quistis loved to see in students. After thinking about these things, and about the risks involved with letting the students take part in the fight, Quistis answered, "Okay, I'll go and get the students. Just make sure you stay safe."

Eliza once again giggled a bit and nodded at Quistis, "I promise you I will be. You've been very kind Ms. Trepe, thank you for being able to help. Odin's good, but he can't be in two places at once, so we really needed you."

"I'll see you in a little while," Quistis promised, and began to head towards the dorms. If Rufus really was keeping the children detained, that would be the easiest place to do so at. She hoped that Eliza would win her battle, and hoped that things turned out okay in the end. Quistis had faith in Laguna's ability to defeat Rufus, but she also feared that Rufus had even more underhanded plans awaiting them that would be too much for her friend to handle. They were the only two founding members of the school that had not left for one reason or another, and in the end Quistis felt that the place would most likely be worse off without either of them. As such she truly hoped that Laguna was right, that should Rufus lose fairly he would then recede back and be willing to simply remain as a teacher. It wasn't until Eliza's words of wisdom that Quistis truly understood how important this battle was. Rufus and Laguna had to see which path was the one the school was destined for, or else there was no way either of them could live on and be satisfied.

To Be Continued

Author's Notes: It's felt like such a short amount of time for me since I began writing this, and now here we are. The next chapter is the last chapter of the Treason arc, with the final confrontation at hand, who will come out with victory? Will winning come at a price? This is the decisive battle between Rufus and Laguna, and I have little else to say. If you're enjoying the ride, get ready, because it's time for the climax.

Seeing as the next chapter is the final one of this plot arc, there will be a much longer Author's Notes at the end of it. So I'll see you then! Don't you dare miss the next exciting chapter, Final Fantasy Saga Chapter 6: High Noon!