Chapter Three: A New Battle
“Squall?” Quistis said with some measure of shock. She had spent a lot of time fighting with their silent leader. She hadn’t seen Celes in action. How would she stack up?
Headmaster Cid spoke. “It’s not a life or death struggle Quistis; it’s just a test. Besides, I’m sure Squall will know not to push himself too hard.”
‘So Cid’s voting on Celes to win.’ Quistis felt some measure of comfort. Cid may have been out of the fight for a while, but he was known for being an excellent observer.
Celes smiled at the voted of confidence. “I will do my best to display my skills. When will the exercise take place?”
“Would after dinner be okay?” Cid was politely offering to work with her schedule.
“That would be fine.”
--
The training grounds were surprisingly clear at 6 o’clock. The monsters had apparently taken a cue after Zell, Fujin, and Selphie had taken down 2 T-Rexuars. They were promptly assigned to keep students out, which lead to a curious group gathering outside. The Trepies had instantly set off the gossip chain. They were quite concerned with the happenings of their favorite instructor and “that woman,” as they had begun to call her with frustration. It was so difficult to catch Ms. Trepe’s attention these days.
Cid, Rinoa and Quistis stood at the entrance, leaving Squall and Celes the full range of the training grounds. It would probably be required.
Squall was checking his gunblade over carefully. The Lionhart gleamed with its usual light blue haze. He had elected to wear his leather jacket and pants to the battle, mentioning in his usual deadpan: “It’s more comfortable.” A familiar ring dangled from a silver chain around his neck. Every few moments he would glance at his opposition.
‘So she’s a general… How come I’ve never heard of her?’ He recalled his earlier conversation with Headmaster Cid.
--
“Squall, I’ve called you in for a request,” Cid said with some trepidation.
“Sir?” Squall raised an eyebrow.
“There’s a promising young woman I need to test. I want you to duel with her.”
“Excuse me?” He had lost all sense of military discipline, replaced with open shock. “Why would you want to me to test a recruit? And a woman? Wouldn’t that place her in danger?”
Cid shook his head. “Squall, I thought you’d learned not to underestimate women…” His tone was mildly scolding. “This isn’t a cadet. She’s a woman with battlefield experience. A general, to be precise.”
“How long has she been out of battle?” Squall figured a general wouldn’t see much action.
“Actually, she was the one who fought off the Ochu who nearly killed Quistis. Not to mention, she carried her back to Garden even though she was completely exhausted herself.”
Squall felt the realization sink in. “So I shouldn’t hold back?”
“I think not. This will also be to test your skills. It’s been too peaceful. I know you’ve tried to keep strong, but you need a real opponent.” Cid stopped and looked him directly in the eye. “You’re going to have to give it your all. Look into her eyes. She’s not an amateur by a long shot.” He waited until the young commander looked as if he fully understood. “Dismissed.”
Squall saluted and left.
--
Squall noticed the look in the woman’s green eyes. There was an absolute sense of confidence in them, as if there was nothing she couldn’t face… as if she had already faced everything. She had only taken only one look at him and he felt like she knew everything about him. There was a definitive grace in her movements that spoke of long experience and confidence. ‘This should be interesting.’
--
Celes calmly waited for her opponent to get ready. She had already sized up his physical strength. Quistis had talked about Squall’s ‘gunblade’ to some detail. It was a curious weapon. It was obviously heavy and slightly unwieldy. However, Squall had spent many hours training with the difficult weapon. ‘That shows he’s dedicated, or at least stubborn.’
Celes had returned to wearing her green bodysuit. It left her with far more mobility than pants or a skirt. It exposed all of her legs, but she had gotten used to that. Few had managed to get away with lewd comments and gotten away unharmed. She could tell Quistis took a few glances at her. She didn’t mind. She had also taken the time to shine her shoulder guards, which gleamed nicely. Her ivory cape settled comfortably on her neck and shoulders. Illumina was sheathed at her waist, resting gently on her hip. Her headband held her long golden strands out of her face.
Her last important thought was a prayer. ‘Terra, if you’re watching me… This battle’s for you. Give me the strength to protect those around me.’ She thought of Selphie, Rinoa, Irvine, and, lastly, Quistis. A mild amount of adrenaline entered her system. ‘I love you, always and forever. Would it be alright to share that love with someone else?’ There was a warm feeling from Illumina. The magic flowing through her veins… warmed and then cooled. ‘Thank you for being so obvious. You always did understand me so well…’ She thought of Terra laughing and smiling at her. Her anxiety flew away. All that was left was peace.
--
Quistis anxiously looked on. She was mildly distracted by Celes’s choice of clothing. ‘How did I not notice how much it revealed before?’ She blushed. Rinoa giggled. “How can you be so relaxed?” She said to the brunette.
“Because I have faith that they won’t get hurt… They know their limits. Or at least I know I can tell Squall’s limits.” She laid a comforting hand on Quistis’s shoulders. “Besides, worrying won’t solve anything. I’m just going to be ready in case someone needs healing.” Rinoa wasn’t nervous about Squall’s health. Secretly, she was more worried about her growing sorceress powers.
All concerns left their minds as Squall stood at ready. Celes responded drawing her sword. Illumina shone a bright white,radiating power, as did the Lionheart. Celes brought her sword in front of her face in an old salute. Squall merely nodded.
Quistis observed a change come over Celes. The warm green eyes changed. They hardened. The temperature of the room dropped several degrees. She remembered that Celes had mentioned literally having magicin her blood. Now, she fully appeared to be a general, a woman to be feared.
Squall decided that he might as well begin. He charged and went with a strong start. Celes barely put any effort into the dodge. ‘It’s too slow.’
Squall was re-assessing things. ‘She’s fast. Gotta focus on speed.’ His swipes became shorter and swifter. The general still dodged. Then, finally, their swords collided. There was some energy expelled from the two magical weapons.
Squall inwardly cursed. ‘I’ve got to get an advantage quickly. She’s going to out pace me.’ He quickly attempted a blind spell.
‘Magic, already? He’s trying to disable me somehow.’ Celes just smiled. ‘You’re only going to make me stronger, but you don’t need to know that…’
The spell was cast and instantly absorbed. Squall was already charging before he realized that the spell didn’t work. He redirected his charge with a retreating swipe. ‘What happened? Blind almost always works for me.’ He instantly decided to use Blizzaga. ‘Might as well do some damage.’
Celes noticed the ice spell. She felt a familiar tingle in her veins. ‘He’s using ice on me? I wonder when he’ll figure it out.’ The spell was absorbed and she felt stronger, more than one-hundred percent. It was a perk of being unnatural.
‘What the hell? She’s not even phased. Does she have a barrier?’ Squall decided that perhaps physical assaults would be a more certain alternative, with some difference. Squall promptly re-junctioned for speed and agility. ‘Maybe this will close the gap.’
Celes watched the brunette charge again. ‘He must have altered his abilities. Interesting.’ She blocked his first attack. ‘He’s still not as fast, but I can’t dodge this speed. However, he’s lost some of his strength. Too bad.’
Their swords met and she shoved him back. She unleashed one of her fastest combos. Squall felt a sting on his arm and neck. ‘How did she get by my defenses?’ He noticed a faint aura around the woman. ‘Haste? But Cid didn’t mention a GF…’ He cast his own haste spell and the battle became slightly blurry to their observers.
Quistis stood in awe. ‘She’s that strong?’ She watched the lady general’s grace and was amazed. ‘She’s beautiful.’
Rinoa had originally cheered Squall on, however she didn’t want to distract him once things got serious. ‘I’ve never seen him lose. Well, except hand-to-hand against Zell, but that’s a pretty good exception.’
Squall was starting to get worn down. The gunblade wasn’t meant for long, high-energy battle like this. Not to mention, the general’s defense was impenetrable. And she never ceased to amaze him with an encyclopedia of rhythms and techniques. ‘I’ve got to do something drastic.’
He jumped back and began to summon Bahumat, hoping the King of the Dragons would lend his support. Magical energy swirled and gathered in the form of clouds. There was an earthshaking rumble that could be identified as a growl. Then, suddenly, the Dragon King swooped in.
Celes observed with some awe. ‘So that’s a Guardian Force. It feels different from the Espers.’ She noticed him charging up. ‘No time to compare notes. Let’s see how strong it is.’
Quistis saw Celes just standing there. “Run! Don’t just stand there!”
She started to run forward, but Rinoa caught her. “Don’t. She’ll be fine.”
Quistis looked at her oddly. ‘I suppose I should have faith. Apparently she does.’
Bahumat unleashed a devastating blast upon the spot where Celes stood. Dust and debris flew up. Squall coughed while looking for a sign of his opponent. Then, he saw it. There was a bright line of light. It was Celes’s sword. The dust settled once again. She was covered in dust, but completely unharmed. ‘How in the… There’s no way!’
Celes smiled. It had been a while since she had absorbed so much magical energy. She was practically glowing. She noticed an outraged growl from the dragon. He reared back for another attack. She didn’t need any more of his energy.
“Avalanche of the Heavens… Meteor Storm!” She yelled out, unleashing her spell. A rock hit Bahumat on the side of the head. Then, more stones pounded into him, knocking him to the ground. They pelted him until he disappeared.
Squall grunted as he clutched his head. It wasn’t often that Bahumat could be repelled. Having him beaten hurt, physically. He quickly refocused on his opponent, but she was gone. He heard movement to the side. Before he could respond he felt a blunt pain in his gut. He dropped to his knees. The next instant there was a sword at his throat.
“Do you yield?” Celes asked, coldly.
“Whatever…” Squall replied instinctively, caught off guard. The flat of the glowing blade tapped his chin sharply. “Fine, I yield.”
The blade left his throat. He was surprised by warmth flooding his body, healing him.Then, a strong, but tender hand helped him to his feet. “Nice battle. It’s been so long since I’ve fought an opponent with an actual brain. Nice job with the re-junctioning. It shows adaptability.”
Squall felt like he was being lectured. He tried to be polite and shook her offered hand. “Thanks.”
Quistis was at Celes’s side swiftly, checking for injuries. Celes grabbed Quistis’s wandering hand. “I’m all right. I’m unharmed.” Quistis blushed at the affectionate tone.
Squall was fighting off Rinoa’s attempt to heal him. “She hit you pretty hard… Are you all right?” He attempted to stop her with one of his blank stares, but she kept poking him.
He looked over at Celes and Quistis, who was blushing slightly. He sighed. “So I guess this means you’re the new commander.”
Celes looked almost repulsed. “No, I lost the ability to send other people to their deaths. I still know how to fight and I know that my experience can benefit the cadets here.” She stretched slightly. “Besides, I’m out of shape. Too much soft living with…” A sad feeling arose at the thought of who she had been living with. Quistis hugged her.
Squall’s knees balked. ‘What the Hell? She’s out of shape?’ Squall mind instantly began pondering a new training regiment.
Cid was applauding. “Excellent work.”
--
Seifer and Raijin were standing in a hallway “monitoring” the students passing by.
“Hey, Seifer,” Raijin said, trying to sound casual. “You know Fujin hasn’t been hanging out with us much, ya know?”
“Don’t put too much thought into it. She’s probably found something important to take care of…” Seifer waved it off nonchalantly. He knew exactly what was going on. ‘Find something good to hang onto and don’t let go, Fujin.’
--
A short time later, Quistis, Celes, Selphie, and Fujin were seated in the school cafeteria enjoying ice cream. Due to the sudden nature of the test, Selphie had been saddened that she couldn’t come up with a better celebration for Celes’s victory.
“Well, we can always double date later…” Selphie said with glee. She promptly squeezed Fujin next to her, making the pale woman miss her mouth and smearing vanilla on her cheek. “Ooo! I’ll get that!” She began to lick the blushing woman’s face. Celes and Quistis tried to occupy themselves with some other view. They ended up looking straight into each others’ eyes.
Quistis coughed, as she noticed Selphie going back to her own bowl of chocolate. “You know Selphie, I wish you would have discovered that you were a lesbian earlier... I would have loved to go out with you before, if I had known…” She looked over at a Celes. “…and I weren’t currently seeing someone.” Celes blushed.
Selphie grinned broadly. “Well, I didn’t really know until Fu saved me.” She snuggled into Fujin’s arm, causing another embarrassing miss. This resulted in Selphie having a little more vanilla. She turned back to the two blondes. “Besides, you’ve got your white knight and I've got my silver knight.”
Quistis couldn’t argue with that. Celes next to her groaned. “Is something wrong? Are you hurt from the strain of battle?”
“Oh, my head…” The general said with discomfort.
Selphie nodded in sympathy. “Ice cream headache.”
Fujin winced. “EAT...SLOWER…”
Quistis began to laugh. She could see them all hanging out like this for a long time. The very thought made her so happy that she hugged Celes. The woman leaned her head on the instructor’s shoulder. “Why won't it stop?”
Quistis handed her some water. She liked taking care of the general. ‘We really need to start planning for classes.’ She glanced at a recovering general and a laughing Selphie. Even Fujin looked in better humor. ‘That can wait.’
End Chapter 3
I hope I didn’t upset any Squall fans with that battle. I’d hate to take it logically step-by-step to explain my reasons for Celes’s clear victory. Let’s just say she has more experience and Squall’s doesn’t have much field experience. However, we don’t know the extent of Quistis’s training and battle experience. Besides, she got all the way to the rank of general.
I’m going to spend some time working on the villains soon. A real first for me. I hope it works well.
Please, review! It'll keep me warm and fuzzy!