Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Finding Sanctuary ❯ The Captured Pawn ( Chapter 8 )

Sub-seven D," whispered the female intruder. The door in front of her opened almost instantly with a unified hiss of the hydraulics. The locking mechanism behind the door clapped so loudly that it startled her.

"Don't worry. Nobody heard it," assured an unseen presence with an odd-sounding female voice that only the intruder could hear.

General Chere took a deep breath of relief. She did not fully trust Guardian, but she believed her that time. She walked into the darkened facility that the door hid from prying eyes so carefully for many unbroken years. Her blue eyes would soon be witnesses to the wonders that the "Devil's Laboratory" held.

The room was huge but very dim. General Chere quickly glanced around her, finding herself uninterested at the huge machinations at work. At the very center of the lab was a tall column covered with tiny red lights that blinked incessantly. The column hummed with strong electrical current as it slowly rotated. At that, she thought it wise to move on quickly without delay.

"I'm in a fryer!" she said angrily, recalling the term from when Cid gave her a quick tour of his lab. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"This is a low-level irradiated area. Short exposure is harmless," explained Guardian. "Proceed to the west exit at once."

General Chere hurried as directed, carefully stepping over the cables. She passed several of the glass vats that contained various live specimens. She noticed that they were different kinds of animals in some kind of stasis. Some of them were impossible to identify with a quick glance.

"Sub-seven D-west," she read the stenciled sign above the exit out loud.

The door opened again emitting the same hissing sounds and claps of the locking mechanism. The door slid open revealing a brightly illuminated room. She quickly stepped inside, and then closed the door behind her. The floor was different. It was tiled white like the walls and ceiling.

Same insipid tessellation! I welcome the day when I see a more creative way to tile floors, she thought. "I'm in. Now what?" she asked impatiently.

"Take the other exit," Guardian instructed.

General Chere saw the door opposite of where she came in from. It was a normal looking door made of strong wood with a thick glass window that allowed her to see what was behind it. She strode over to it and peered through the window. Behind the door was another steel-clad corridor. She looked at the knob that opened the door. A keypad was installed beside it. Apparently, an access code was needed.

"It needs an access code," General Chere said in the same impatient tone of voice.

"I have control of doors now, Celes. You need no access codes."

A confirming beep was heard, and the lock clicked open. She turned the knob, and the door swung open allowing her to leave the locker room. She felt like she was back to where she came from because of her metal surroundings.

"Go south. Enter third door on the right."

General Chere moved quickly. No patrols were about for now. "How am I doing in time, Guardian?" she asked worriedly.

"Two minutes before reactor overload. Don't worry. You are very close," promised Guardian.

General Chere reached the next door that was like one before except this time it didn't have a keypad for access code. She turned the knob and just entered without a whit of trouble. The room was very dark and was drowned by the humming of various machinations that were oddly distorted. The sounds echoed horribly and reverberated all together into a unified droning note. Above that was a distinct rhythmic sound. One would have to shout above the sound to be heard by another human being within ten feet.

"You are on a plank. Don't wander off--"

"I know where I am," General Chere said, annoyed. Even with very little light, General Chere could see sufficiently around her. She crossed the plank without even turning on the light. She reached the door across and opened it. She went through it and found herself in another darkened section. It was much quieter this time.

"This is it," Guardian announced.

General Chere looked around her. Dim lights were all around her like differently colored stars. She assumed that they all came from sleeping computers. What really caught her attention were the odd-looking glass pods hanging from a support beam at the ceiling in rows, barely touching the metal floor. She regarded the pods with anxious curiosity. The pods seemed to be filled with clear bubbling liquid. Moreover, the pods contained odd-shaped figures--shadowy and enigmatic.

Her visual acuity was above normal. With the little light that she was receiving, she could make her way around the room. But it was still impossible for her to identify what were inside the pods. Then she remembered what she came for in the room. She reprimanded herself for getting distracted. "I did everything you told me. What do I do now? How do I stop the overload?"

"I lied. There is no overload."

Then all the lights blinked out completely.

**********

"What?! You double-crossing bitch!" I whispered loudly. The first idea to come to mind was to hide. I hated it. I looked around. There wasn't much to find in the darkness except vague figures that seemed to play tricks on me. One was strangely shaped like a Magitek drone. But I knew it was not a drone because it would've been operative if it were. Still, I paced uneasily, letting her arms and hands do the navigating in the dark. I scaled the nearest wall sideways for a light switch. At any moment, the guards could come in and discover me. Then I would be in trouble for trespassing. I knew from the start that my rank would not be able to save me, and I was sure that Guardian knew it, too. Breaking and entering in restricted areas were inexcusable offenses. Vector was very thorough and systematic when it came to clearances. Even more so when it came to the internal investigations which, ironically, was what I was supposed to be doing. I could get caught and be punished as a traitor, and Guardian would still be sitting pretty at her hiding place.

I reached the corner of the room without finding the light switch. I dared not venture further. I stood at the corner, eyeing the exit keenly for activities. The fact that I settled at the corner was unnerving. I pondered at the logic or the psychology behind the hypothetical safety of corners. Corners provided no cover. Corners were the worst things next to a dead end. I felt vulnerable. The whole room was the proverbial corner of the entire complex. It was where Guardian wanted me to be. That is, if she were after me. "Why did you lead me hear?"

"I want you to meet someone," Guardian replied. It was frustrating to just hear her with the synthesized voice. I could not tell whether she was voicing that in a threatening way or not at all. But my reaction was founded. Guardian led me to where she wanted me to be, and now she was going for the kill… or so to speak.

My eyes widened in alarm. I was afraid. I was angry. I was led to a trap that I foresaw, but I had no means of avoiding it. The risk was too great. "Don't you dare!" I whispered harshly. "If they discover me in here, I swear I will find you, and I will make you pay!" It was an empty threat, and Guardian knew it. I had no idea where to start looking for her.

A light source finally lit up, but it was not for the room's illumination. One of the capsules that hung on the ceiling moved. It descended from the massive support beam through the help of giant mechanical clamps. The light came from the clamps themselves. It was a beacon light--bright yellow and in constant rotation as a signal to everybody to get out of its way. The light was not enough to penetrate through the capsule's thick and tinted glass to identify what was inside. But after remembering what Guardian said last, I knew that something--or rather, somebody alive--was inside.

I held in my breath in anticipation. Though I was in no immediate danger, the thought frightened me. What would anybody be doing inside a small encasement such as that? It looked like an upright, semi-transparent casket. No intelligent living being should be held inside such a thing for any reason. It was unnatural.

The capsule was now completely detached of the support above. A hiss of escaped air broke the silence for a split of a second. I flinched at the sound making me feel irrationally embarrassed. The capsule was suspended in-between the floor and the ceiling by the giant arms. Another light beacon lit up, coming from a hole on the floor that I had not noticed before due to the lack of light. I walked closer towards the hole, surrounded by a protective railing to prevent the workers from falling over the edge. The beacon was red this time, and it blinked rather than rotated. The beacon was part of a short column rising to connect with the suspended capsule. It was a base for the capsule.

Another horrible metaphor entered my imaginative mind. When the base finally connected with the capsule, I felt that I was looking at a giant novelty snow globe.

"Who…" I heard myself say. My voice trailed off after the first word. It was so obvious now. I looked at the figure inside the dimmed capsule. The base hummed to life, and a soft, warm light inside the capsule illuminated the figure within. It was a girl. She was around my age. Naked and trapped in that thick encasement filled with clear but unknown liquid. A mask that seemed to provide her air covered her mouth and nose. Her eyes were closed, and her hair… green--eerily floating freely in its immediate weightless environment like a torch's flame in slow motion. "It's her," I uttered after finding enough strength and courage to trump the anxiety building up within me. "It's her, isn't it. That's Terra!"

"Her name is Tina Branford. Rank: Second Class of the Third Infantry."

Did she mean that this was not Terra, and the real Terra was somewhere else? Or did she mean that her real name was Tina Branford? I could not tell. Too many possibilities. Too many things I did not understand. Too many lies brought about to cover up… something.

"Terra was an Empire soldier?" I asked. The wall of lies breaks now.

"Affirmative," she answered. A single reply that answered many questions, and opened more questions.

"So she is a traitor!" I asked in confirmation. I was told that Ter--Tina Branford was a rebel. Perhaps a half-truth.

"The terms traitor and treason hold no meaning when the very allegiance she had sworn to protect and fight for conspired against her. Tina Branford was not the betrayer. The Empire was."

Rebel. Soldier. Traitor. Saboteur. Murderer. Victim. Was she one or many of them? Was she all?

"Why is she here? What have they done to her?"

"She is in stasis. The capsule is meant to keep her alive. At the same time, it protects her from all harmful external factors and aging. The process is painless. It is like a deep sleep--much more effective than cryogenic stasis. This process is backed by magical energy."

Safe and protected. Like me? I didn't have much time. I had to ask as many questions as possible. "Why is she being kept here?"

"That is for you to find out on your own, Celes. If I tell you now, your judgment will be muddled with doubt."

"Her hair… it's green." The question had nothing to do with the investigation, but I had to admit that it was very unusual.

"It is a reaction to the presence of magic around her," answered Guardian. I was sorry I asked.

My hair stayed the same color after the infusion. Why should hers react differently? "Reaction? Since when did magical recipients react like that?"

Guardian's answer was an enigmatic "Never."

Next question. "What is that on her head?" It was a thin golden band--a circlet. Besides it and the mask, it was the only thing on her. Hence, it was pretty hard not to notice it. Guardian's answer took me by surprise yet again. Her answers were prompt. I was glad of that, at least.

"Currently one of the only two fully functional slave crowns."

"A slave crown! But the emperor said it was an untested technology!"

Finally! Something useful.

"The emperor lied."

I was not surprised. "What do they want of Branford?"

"The same thing they want of the next crown slave." Prompt, yet mysterious.

"And that would be…?"

"…a kind of information that would cost you. In any case, this is why you were not granted access to the Devil's Lab. It's why you weren't authorized to interrogate her."

I looked around. Everywhere else was dark. The present light from the capsule and its base were still not enough to see the whole room. The other capsules still hung from their supports. I wondered whether there were more people inside them. "What or who else are they hiding in here."

"Secrets."

The light inside Branford's capsule blinked out, and the mechanical clamps whirred back to life. The base detached itself from the capsule again, and it started to retreat back down to the lower level. The clamps lifted the capsule quickly and attached it back up to its original support slot. Then the beam itself started to move, carrying with it the capsules. In a single file, they moved to the east wall and through a suspended door just big enough to accommodate their sizes. When the last one of them was through it, the door closed with a sliding panel.

There was something about the peculiar atmosphere of the lab that made me summon up strange and disturbing images. This time, I likened the whole thing to a row of butchered meat hanging from meat hooks, being taken away by means of suspended rails to be processed. I shuddered at the thought and reprimanded myself once again. Still, I wondered in sheer morbid curiosity at how accurate my metaphor was to what really was.

"What's going on?" I asked nervously. My voice quaked, I noticed. My imagination got to me more than I had anticipated.

"They have discovered the unconscious guards outside. The lab is in yellow alert. They are going to do a quick inspection of the place to make sure nothing inside has been compromised."

"What am I going to do? There's no place for me to hide!"

"Are you claustrophobic?" Guardian asked.

"What?!" I asked back incredulously. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Are you?" she repeated. It was a lesson learned when I dealt with Guardian. Answer the question to find out why it was asked.

"No!" I answered back.

"Against the south wall there is a small magic infusion chamber primarily used for short-term infusion. Hide in there."

Again, I had no choice. I followed her advice. The door was already unlocked. I wondered if Guardian was responsible for it. I entered the chamber and shut the door just in the nick of time. The door had a small rectangular viewing window. I could see what was going on outside. The lights in the room turned on with such intensity that one would think it was natural sunlight. I could've used that light a few seconds ago. But now, the capsules were gone. Hidden. Protected.

The room was immense. The walls weren't ordinary walls. They were computer banks. The floor I was on was nothing more than an observation deck. I realized this when the light in the room provided enough illumination to see the hole where the base of the capsule retreated to. The hole was bigger than I thought. It had row after rows of the same base for the capsules, all connected to individual massive supercomputers. What they were for was a secret. I've always fancied Cid's laboratory to be elaborate and intricate. His lab was nothing compared to this. The rest of the lab was out of my line of sight.

The two exits opened at the same time. And also at the same time, two teams of Fanatics entered through them. They were all dressed in dark green cloaks. Their faces were all painted black, each with unique white symbols on their cheeks as if for identity's sake. The symbols weren't anything I've seen before. They looked like ancient alphabets.

The Fanatics spread out and began their search. Some went over to the terminals to check whether the computer system had been damaged. Some searched the corners with sharp, unblinking eyes. They had no weapons with them. They didn't need to carry one. I heard that all cult members were privileged magic-users.

"Fanatics. Where are the guards?" I thought out loud in hopes that Guardian would have the answer.

"The Devouts run this place primarily under Kefka's supervision. During your investigation, you will discover that his cult comprises a great portion of the elaborate scheme of secrecy in Vector."

Because the cult itself was a riddle, I was not surprised that they would be the sentinels of secrets. But why, Vector's secrets? The cult was not military. It wasn't even a legitimate part of the Empire's jurisdiction. Did the emperor forge a partnership with the cult? Why?

The Fanatics were methodical in their search. They left no nooks and crannies unchecked. If there was a stone lying about, I was sure they would turn it before they would question why it was there.

"They are headed this way," I gasped as I shrank away from the window. The chamber was as small as a walk in closet, and it was bare. "I am trapped!"

"Be silent, Celes, and do not move. Trust me."

What could I say? I had no choice.

The walls of the chamber began to glow blue. The intensity grew with every second. They were no ordinary walls. I've seen the kind of wall before during my very first infusion with the Heal and Safe magicks. I looked at them again in marvel as black marble turned blue to bright white in a matter of seconds. I was forced to shut my eyes just like last time.

"What are you doing?! They'll see me! Stop!"

The process was done in just a few seconds unlike my first infusion which took minutes. I opened my eyes. Everything was black again. A familiar tingling sense lined my spine, making my skin crawl all over. Hurriedly, I looked out through the small window again and saw that the Fanatics were converging to my location. They had seen the light coming from the inside. I was done for. Guardian had betrayed me. It was checkmate no matter how I looked at it. I was about to utter my last empty threat at her when--

"If you value your life, Celes, don't make a sound. They may not be able to see you, but they are certainly not deaf."

I shrank back down to the farthest wall which was not at all far. The door flung open, and immediately, I saw the silhouette of four Fanatics with their fingers pointed at me. I don't know what kept me from attacking them. I could've surprised them when they opened the door, possibly taking down two or three of them in the first attack. Instead, I followed Guardian's advice.

I was glad that I did.

The Fanatics just stared inside the chamber. Their eyes all blinked in confusion. It was not the type of reaction that I was expecting from them. Then I heard Guardian speak… from a computer just outside the chamber. Her voice passed for one of those automated voice announcements coming from computers to report.

"Magic-infusion chamber diagnostic test complete. System is functioning at peak efficiency. Next scheduled auto-diagnostic test: thirty-five hours, fifty-one seconds and counting."

The Fanatics lowered their arms and closed the door. They split up once more and started scouring the rest of the room. I was dumfounded, to say the least. I had no explanation to what had just happened until Guardian spoke in my ears again.

"The invisibility magic will wear off in an hour. You have more than enough time to evade this inspection and exit the building."

Invisible! That explained it all. Guardian had programmed the chamber to temporarily infuse me with the Vanish magic. I drew closer to the window that was the only source of light. I lifted my right hand and touched the glass. I could feel the glass. But I could not see my hand. I felt eerie and thrilled at the thought of being invisible.

"Is the coast clear?" I whispered to Guardian.

"Yes. Leave fast."

And so I did. I stepped out of the chamber and closed the door without making a sound. In the light, I took a good look of myself. Rather, I tried to. My body and my clothes were all invisible. I touched my nose with my finger successfully during my first try. I was relieved to find out that the process did not compromise my vestibular and kinesthetic senses.

It was such a wonderful, unnerving, and exhilarating experience that I wished I could stay invisible forever. I was tempted to walk over to one of the Fanatics, and slap them at the back of the head. But that was way too risky. Perhaps I could just trip one of them as they walked pa--

"Make haste, Celes. The package is almost delivered."

The package! I had completely forgotten all about it. Cid's life was still in danger. I started to move as fast as stealth would allow me, watching the floor carefully for things that I could kick or trip over accidentally. After a few meters, the first challenge posed itself to me in the form of a set of thick cables, bundled together across the floor, terminating in various computer consoles against the west wall. Easy, I thought, but as soon as I lifted my foot over the cables, I saw it--my boot was slowly becoming visible again. The invisibility aura was rapidly wearing off starting from my foot. It was like light chasing away the veil of shadows from Vector's cityscape at sunrise.

I shrank back from the cables before the visibility line got to my knee, and I was completely invisible again in an instant. I glanced around the room to see whether somebody noticed me. The Fanatics were all busy scouring the rest of the room behind me.

"Be careful. Those machines are no ordinary computers. Small amounts of various magical energy signatures flow through those cables to be analyzed. You do know the significance of that, don't you?"

I didn't. But I was glad to have learned that lesson fairly quickly.

"Invisibility magic is a form of magical barrier that warps the visible spectrum of light around the sphere of effect, making the recipient of the magic, undetectable to the naked human eyes. However, it becomes highly unstable in the presence of a different magical signature. The barrier may waver or completely dissipate. Therefore, you must stay away from these machines and Magitek drones," Guardian lectured.

"Shut up and tell me which way to go," I whispered.

"North exit. Turn right and straight out."

I hopped over the cables nimbly and proceeded to the North exit in haste.

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Author's Notes:

You may have noticed that the first part of this chapter is very similar to the very first chapter of "The Terra Episode." In fact, it's almost verbatim, but with one major difference--it's now happening to Celes instead of Tina. I did this to make several points. Besides the basic plot development, I wanted to show 1.) Guardian's strong manipulative ability, 2.) Celes's twist-of-fate, 3.) comparison between Tina's actions and Celes's reactions, 4). the past ("The Terra Episode") and the present ("Finding Sanctuary"), 5.) I was feeling too lazy to rewrite the same events for Celes. =P

Also, I did some hurried proofing before I uploaded this chapter. I'm almost sure that I missed a few. If you find an error please tell me.

Author's Responses:

"The switch from first to third person is the only error I can think of..." ~Golden Lady Serenity

I appreciate the help very much. The sudden switch of person in narrating is due to my careless conversion. I wrote the chapters that I have so far in the third person, but as an experiment in writing (and as a challenge given to me by Dragoness) I've been converting some of them to first person.

It's quite an interesting approach. My narration became more personal in relation to the protagonist. However, I quickly learned the obvious disadvantage of first-person narration--it's inherently biased. I have to switch between first- and third-person narration on scenes where they apply. I'm not saying that it's bad. I'm just saying that the future fics will most likely revert to impartial narration.

"It will be interesting to see Celes as the second Terra!" ~Joe

You're either psychic or you actually opened up the file I sent for you to proofread! =P

Anyway, now that Celes has seen Tina, I think it would only be logical for her to prevent herself from having the same fate as Tina's. The next chapters will have an atmosphere of a mystery novel to it. This is where first-person narration would really shine! Thanks, Dragoness!

"Oh, one other thing. I don't *think* I've mentioned this, but I like your character development. You keep the game characters IN character, and your original characters have actual personalities, rather than just being moving, talking scenery for the key players. I have to commend you on that." ~Golden Lady Serenity

Thank you! Although, I think I have to exercise a bit of caution from now on. I recently had to zap an entire written chapter from my beta version because I thought I made Celes un-Celes-like on it. Admittedly, I get carried away sometimes.

"I hope to see more in the near future, whether Celes decides to become Superm-er, Superwoman?" ~Dragoness

Superwoman? I dunno about that. But I haven't exactly gotten to the part about her Runic sword ability just yet. Not to mention her Ice magic. Both have been hinted at in the previous fic, but those were just vague introductions. One of these will come into play later in this fic. The other will be on the next fic. So which do you think will come first? The Ice or the Runic blade?

"We shall find the true identity of Guardian by the time we get to umm the game, right? Perhaps..perhaps not..." ~Dragoness

The true identity of Guardian will be revealed. But not in this this fic. Perhaps not even in the sequel to this one. I will leave clues, however. Right now, I advise all of you to just take Guardian as she (or he) appears to be and not be bothered too much about her real identity. Guardian's function in the story is sort of deus ex machina-ish. She's the one who makes big things happen but we know so little about.

For those of you who have read "The Future is Written" three or four years ago, I'm telling you now that the Guardian conceived then is completely different from the Guardian now. I've totally rewritten her identity.

"Though, despite Guardian actually being pretty spiffy (...I want to bypass government and military security codes too!), part of me wants to find whoever's the real her, and have it rain scalding hot coffee on her. :D She's just a bit too smug and ambiguous." ~Golden Lady Serenity

Guardian: It's the voice, isn't it? I sound smug because my fake voice reveals no emotion. Well, I can't help it. You don't even know me. You are so mean. Boo-hoo-hoo. Even my sobs sound like I'm mocking you. How can you really tell?

"Are we gonna see Jennina again?" ~Dragoness

It's a small FF6 world. Who knows? =)

"Now to have my soul devoured by the next chapter." ~Golden Lady Serenity

The soul is the last thing to go. Pace yourself. =)