Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Until the End of Eternity, and Longer ❯ Chapter Thirty-Nine ( Chapter 40 )

LunaticPandora1: Basically, yes. His attempt at controlling an uncontrollable force, that force being Miss Jynx Arashi. Keep reading for more detail.

Lost Sorceress: thanks! Finally a new reviewer! Geez, I thought I only had like two readers for the last like twenty chapters. That made me sad. Blah.

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"Until the End of Eternity, and Longer"

by: Banshee Puppet

Chapter Thirty-Nine

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She remembered everything. After she had run away from Garden, when Ruvie had lost her memory, when she was in Caergen being nursed back to health and taught how to walk again, Caraway had commissioned a job to have her found. He was the one who wanted her to join Garden in the first place. "It'll be a good opportunity for you," he'd told her, and then Martine had come….

And after she'd disappeared, Caraway had ordered her found. Cid had agreed to it, and sent Martine to head a party to find her, since Galbadia Garden, which had just been built, was much closer to her home village. But she hadn't found this out until later, after she'd left Caergen and David. She had decided to, if only for a little while, go home again. Home to the only thing that held any sway over her any longer, home to her family, home to Shin… …but she had been too late.

*It would be too dramatic to say she returned to smoke and flame. The smoke and flame were long gone when Jynx had arrived once again in Shin. It was barren, nothing but burnt and charred remains. There was no one here now, at least it didn't seem so, but someone had buried the dead, and someone had marked their graves. It was in what had once been the town square. It was around the crumpled fountain. There were no names, and the ground was still damp from a recent rain, but small pieces of wood had been tied together to form makeshift crosses.

She was stunned, shocked. What could have caused this sort of devastation? A little pink dress caught the corner of her eye and she squatted down, picking up the baby doll with only a few blond curls remaining. She straightened the dress, staring at it for a few moments before carefully placing it back down.

A voice from behind her dragged her attention away and her head shot over her shoulder. "Welcome home Jynx," he said sadly, standing badly bandaged in the remains. "Sorry, didn't mean to sneak up on you like that."

"… …Mayor Westfield," she stated, acknowledging his presence as she stood. "You're injured." Some blood was seeping through his bandages, and she led him to a bit of fountain that served now as a passable bench while she changed the bandages soundlessly.

He said nothing at first. He smiled down at her. "You've always been a good girl, Jynx," he said softly, green eyes smiling sadly on her blank expression.

She just stared at him. What was this weird man going on about now? He was famous for non-sequiters, for comments that came out of nowhere.

"I was just remembering the day you found Mr. Samson."

"The bird. Sorry." She hadn't meant to…do that. Birds were just, such fragile creatures.

But the Mayor waved it off. "Your heart was in the right place," he said cheerfully. "Always has been, always will be. Sit with me a while?"

Jynx nodded, sitting down stiffly in the makeshift graveyard beside them. In truth, her mind was elsewhere. These graves. Were her parents here, what about her sisters, were Xu and Ruvie…

"All of the children who survived the attack were sent to orphanages," he said with a slight frown. "It's sad but, with all the adults gone, and Shin in this state…I'm afraid they wouldn't survive long here. Maybe I won't either, but I'd rather die here than somewhere else. Ruvie and Xu are okay. Xu has gone back to SeeD. She sent Ruvie to live with some cousin of yours in Esthar," he stated. "Shaken up. You're parents…were very brave. Very strong. But I guess I can't expect any less from a military nurse and an ex-police officer." He pointed to a pair of graves. That was them, her mother and father, right over there. He didn't need words to explain that.

"What happened?" Jynx asked finally, the shock wearing off and allowing the flow of thoughts to return more naturally.

"SeeD. They came looking for you, but you weren't here. Funny, a day later and things probably would have gone differently. Sorry, my mind is wandering a bit. That General Caraway who got you the application for SeeD was pretty upset when he found out you'd gone missing after what happened to Ruvie. Apparently Cid accepted the contract. Martine led the attack."

A day? Even for SeeD, only a day to do this much damage. … "A day," she stated.

Mayor Westfield nodded. "They had a GF with them. A massive dragon. I think they called it Bahamut. They just hit us over and over and over again. …" he sighed. "Jynx. Promise me you won't go back to SeeD. Never go back. Please?"

There was a pause as the information sunk into her brain. Cid. Martine. Caraway. SeeD and GF. These were her enemies.

She gave a curt nod.

"What are you thinking right now, I wonder," he said softly. "It's always so hard to tell, but it doesn't keep me from wondering."

"I'll avenge Shin," she informed him. "That's all. I'll avenge my people." She stood. "It's the only thing left for me to do."*

"It's the only thing left," Jynx said with a sigh as she opened her eyes, checking her watch and clicking the rifle together. She stared down the sight. She hoped her aim still held true. It had been a long time since she'd had to shoot a rifle, but she was sure it would be fine. After all, whatever else was true, her heart was in the right place. Heh. Mayor Westfield. You've always been far too forgiving a man.

~**~

The woman behind the front desk wore a red and black suit. Her short brown hair was curly and her gold name badge read, "Hello, my name is Silvia Roh."

"Yes, you said your name was Mr. Kinneas?" she asked, red fingernails tapping away at the keys. "Just one moment while I pull up your file. Alright, would that be Maximillian Kinneas the III?"

"Yes, thank you," Max said, the woman's strong perfume grating on his senses and his nerves. He looked at the clock. He'd gotten here at 3:37, as planned. Now it was 3:42. No Ruvie. Beautiful. She had to make it, because the longer he stood here, the more sure he was of one thing. This whole plan was a very bad idea. He'd just call it off, talk to Irvine, make him understand….yeah, that's all. It wasn't his fault. Nobody else had to die, right? Right?

When asked, he handed over the letter. "I'd like to reinstate my citizenship status. This is a letter from my doctor, saying I'm fit to be a productive member of society again…" he said. So if he decided to call it off, why was he still acting according to the script?

The door opened, and Max's head turned to see who was entering….

Jynx's eyes narrowed. 3:45. That meant Caraway was here, and as she looked over the ledge, sure enough. Well, show time then. She punched a few commands into a pocket computer, hit the "send" button and readied her rifle….

"Are you sure, Quisty?" Seifer asked as they approached the building.

"We are looking for information, aren't we? I can't think of a better place to find that than Deling City Hall."

"Good point," Seifer agreed with a sigh. "I hope she hasn't done anything stupid yet," he commented as Xu entered the door….

Ruvie ran. She'd gotten lost and now she was late. Late. Late. Late. Hyne-damnit!….can't I be punctual just this once???… Apparently that was too much to ask…..

"Hey, what the…?" Silvia Roh sighed at her computer. Why did it just freeze up like that. A flashing yellow light appeared in the corner of her screen. "Oh. Please hold on a moment Mr. Kinneas, Mr. Caraway. I'm sorry, it seems I've got an urgent call," she said as she clicked the flashing yellow light.

Huh?

"What the…?"

"Is something the matter, Ms. Roh?" Caraway asked, leaning over the desk.

"Is this a prank or something, what is that supposed to mean?"

"What does it say?" Max asked, curiosity peaked, forgetting why he was here for a moment.

"It just says, "Duck." Silvia answered. "Is this some sort of prank?"

'Duck'. Max mouthed the words just as the computer started beeping erratically and, well, ducked, as the whole damn thing blew to bits! 'Jynx! Goddamn insane masochistic bitch! You'll know. I am beginning to hate that woman!!!' he thought irritably. As pieces of the desk flew on top of him. He wasn't really sure what happened next.

As Xu, Seifer, and Quistis entered the building, there was an explosion. Xu, acting on instinct, pushed Caraway out of the way while Quistis dove at the woman.

But if that was all that happened what was that loud bang, and why was Xu bleeding so badly. Gunshot! It hit Seifer's mind like a delayed reaction. Sure, he knew that sound. Hell, he'd gotten shot at or shot by Irvine enough that he still had nightmares about loud banging noises.

Everything happened in slow motion then. Quistis rushed to Xu's side. Was she going to die? He didn't know. He looked up, spotting someone moving among the rafters. And then, a piercing scream rang out from behind him, as a panicked girl ran over to the two other SeeD.

"Xu!" Ruvie cried out. "Xu open your eyes!"

The shock wore off suddenly when something heavy slammed into the back of Seifer's skull and he went smashing into blackness and the lobby's tile floor.

Shit shit shit shit and double shit! Jynx's mind was cursing her out. It wasn't supposed to go like this! Xu wasn't supposed to get shot! She wasn't even supposed to be there! The shot was supposed to take out Caraway, then she goes in, takes Max as a hostage, Irvine, who's in the city would come at hearing that his father was under the custody of a madwoman, she'd get what she wanted, he'd get what he wanted….but what the hell was Xu doing here? Xu was supposed to be in Garden! And Seifer and Quistis…weren't they in Esthar? What the hell was going on? No, calm down, stay calm. Keep to the plan. This could still work….

Quistis and…was that Ruvie?!!!? Max you bastard! What were you thinking you damn inbred….grr!

That still left Seifer to get by though, and shit again! He just saw her. Doing the only thing she could think of, she grabbed something heavy from the rafters, which turned out to be a nicely sized rock, and threw it at him. Her mind winced as it clonked into his skull and sent him crashing to the ground. 'Sorry Almsay, nothing personal. I just…I have a people to avenge. Maybe someday you'll understand. I'm loyal to my home. That's all.

Jynx took a deep, calming breath, and leapt down from the rafters. It may not have been as organized as her original plan, but it would simply have to do.

B-Plan. Version One. For the power to kill GF, no problem.

~**~

Laguna, Irvine, and Squall had been watching soap operas while sitting in Deling Psych, trying to figure out what to do when something suddenly switched on the television.

***This is an urgent news bulletin! I repeat, this is an urgent news bulletin! Watching it as it happens is Channel 12 Reporter Donna Davidson. What's going on out there Donna?…

"Well, Frank, there's been a shooting at City Hall today. It looks as if General Caraway was the intended target, but a SeeD from Balamb Garden got in the line of fire! It seems as if she'll survive. A medical team just arrived on the scene. But the woman, still has a hostage in the building. Can you tell us anything Ms. Roh?"

"His name is Max Kinneas…I… I don't know who she is though! Such a scary looking young woman? Why would anyone do something like this?!" she cried. ***

The three men looked at one another and without the need for speech, ran out of the mental institution.

"Irvine!" Squall started to say.

"Already on it Commander. I've got Shiiva and Carbuncle. You?."

Squall nodded as he reached for his own junctions, "Ifrit and Leviathan."

"I thought you had Diablos?"

"Loaned him to Zell. Mission."

"I have one too!" Laguna announced, glad to be, 'in the loop' for once, like anyone could forget about Solaris. Solaris was a shadow that loomed over everything the three of them did these past days.

All Squall could grumble was, "let's hope it doesn't come to that."

~**~

well, there's another chapter down. We're closing in on the end boys and girls! I'm thinking perhaps one more chapter and an epilogue. Maybe. Or two more chapters and an epilogue…*chews lip* well, not much more anyway. ttfn.

Happy Haunting,

Banshee Puppet