Never a Dull Moment

Sleep didn't come easy to Squall that night. Constantly, he reflected on the dispute he and Rinoa had earlier. What should he have said instead? What shouldn't he have said? He came to the conclusion he shouldn't have said anything. Every word out of his mouth only served to infuriate his girlfriend. He turned over to his other side, glimpsing at his clock. 2:34 in the morning. Great.

This had been the first time since the conclusion of the Ultimecia campaign that he slept alone. Rinoa had gone to Quistis and requested her own boarding for the night. Though Quistis was dying to know what happened, she knew she couldn't ask personal questions during an administrative request. She did let Squall know, though, that his girlfriend had stopped by, and wouldn't be sleeping with him that night.

Loneliness washed over his soul like a torrential downpour. His only source of comfort in these trying times had been Rin, and he found he actually enjoyed the physical act of cuddling. It allowed him to get to sleep much easier. Normally, it took him hours to fall into a comfortable slumber, as he frequently got too caught up in his thoughts. But when he cuddled his girlfriend, he slept like a baby. No concerns. No questions. No comments. He tossed and turned again.

What troubled him most was the subject of the argument. Was Rinoa truly unhappy at Garden? It just seemed to pop up out of nowhere. He recalled back to his first trip to Timber, when she requested he take her back to Garden to lay low following the assault on Deling. Once she got there, she seemed in awe of everything. She had gone so far as to wake him up and ask for a personal tour of Garden. She had no trouble in fitting in at all. Her positivity was contagious to everyone around her.

If she honestly didn't want to be there, what could he do? He had a responsibility to Garden. He couldn't just leave. But he also couldn't not be with Rinoa. He turned over again, placing his hand under his head. For his entire life, he thought his purpose was to become the best SeeD in history. His daily routine was eat, train, study, sleep, repeat. But when she came into the picture, it all changed. He changed. For the better, he thought. Multiple times, he disregarded his responsibility to SeeD in favor of Rinoa. Very few seemed to mind, thankfully.

Would he have to step down as commander if she wanted to leave? Is that what he wanted for himself? He enjoyed being commander. When he was first appointed to the position, it agitated him to no extent. He didn't want the responsibility. He didn't like that Cid made it sound like it was his destiny, something he always desired control over. But in times of adversity, maturity comes a bit more quickly, forcibly. Instead of merely accepting his leadership position, he completely conquered it. Under his command, Garden beat Galbadia in the "War of the Gardens", uncovered the xenophobic Esthar, and stopped a sorceress from the future. Ironically, it wasn't enough, as people kept asking for more and more.

He also found that, while the responsibility was a bit overwhelming at times, he enjoyed having a say in Garden's actions. If someone else were to have assumed the role, he might not have agreed with their decisions. Garden was his home. He never imagined living anywhere else. And every resident in a home wants to have some kind of say in the way their household is run. He was thankful that he had that.

The conflict within him was maddening. If Rinoa left, where would she go? Timber? He didn't want to go to Timber. There was nothing to do there. Then again, no matter what city he thought of, he couldn't imagine living there. Esthar was cool until he had found out about Laguna. He did not want to live within a fifty mile radius of that clown. Things were still incredibly awkward after they'd had a "paternal conversation" following the defeat of Ultimecia.

He wanted to turn over again, but he knew it wouldn't do any good. Every little thing was just frustrating.

'Maybe I should do some late night training? It might wear me out enough to get some sleep.'

He sat up, and reached under his bed to grab his boots. After tying them, he stood up and sheathed Lionheart.

'Alright, let's do this.'

He went to exit the room, and stopped in front of the door to examine his handiwork.

'Should've taken a shop class. Oh well.'

Right as he went to exit the room, an alarm on his desk sounded. This alarm was installed when the addition to the second floor hallway came about. The alarm meant that someone had somehow accessed the confidential hallway without permission.

'Caraway!' He rushed out the door, moving as quickly as possible to the elevator, Lionheart already in hand. The elevator seemed to take forever coming down from the third floor, even though it took the same amount of time it always did.

'We need to put in a staircase in case something like this happens again.' He thumped his foot impatiently while waiting. Finally, the elevator came down, and he rushed in and tapped the "2" button.

How someone was able to compromise the security door leading to the hallway way beyond him. He had no doubt, though, that this incident had something to do with Caraway. Damn. And before an interrogation could even be conducted. The elevator stopped, and he ran off. He rounded the hallway and saw that the door leading to the hallway was indeed open. No time to check for damage now, though.

He ran past a couple of doors towards Caraway's cell. To his surprise, Caraway was still inside, smiling very smugly.

"Alright, Caraway. Mind telling me what the hell is going on?" He glared through the bars at the Galbadian president.

Caraway didn't respond. He just continued smiling. Squall took one step towards the cell, about to tear Caraway apart for whatever was going on, when he suddenly heard a BANG. And then the world went white.

Seifer was pacing around back and forth. His comrades simply stared at him from their respective beds.

"So uh, Seifer," Raijin began. The former knight just kept pacing as if in some form of walking meditation. "Mind telling us what's on your mind, ya know?"

Seifer stopped in front of the large window and gazed out. "I think I've figured out what secret Caraway is hiding. And thus," he spun around with a smirk on his face, "where our next destination is." Both members of the posse sat up with inquisitive looks.

"So, I take it the meeting with Quistis went well, ya know?"

"Indeed. I think she provided the last couple of missing pieces to the puzzle."

"TELL." Fujin was getting impatient with everything getting drawn out.

"From what we've gathered, that scumbag is hiding something in the sewers, right?"

Both members nodded.

"So let's run through what we know and what possible connections could be made. Electronics are jammed in the sewers. Sound familiar?"

Raijin got a puzzled look on his face, but the quicker Fujin responded with no issue. "WORLDWIDE RADIO INTERFERENCE?"

"Yes!" he clapped his hands. "Now, what, or rather, who caused that?"

"I know this one!" Raijin raised his hand in pride. Seifer shook his head but called on him. "Esthar, right?"

"Very good, Raijin," Seifer mocked. "But, do you know why Esthar did that?"

Both shook their heads.

"Esthar's tomb for Adel, specifically, is what caused that radio interference. That's why there's been electronic jamming for years now. Now, also, Quistis mentioned that during their failed assassination mission, Rinoa came across an Odine Bangle in Caraway's bedroom. You guys know what that is?"

Again, both shook their heads.

"It suppresses a sorceress' powers. Or rather, that's what it's purported to do. I read in the library after my meeting that the effects are still unknown. While they do suppress magical powers, there's nothing to prevent the sorceress from just taking it off. So, it's not a permanent solution."

"Okay? So, where are ya going with this, ya know?" The wheels were turning in Fujin's head, but the last piece of the puzzle was still eluding her.

"Galbadia is trying to start a war with Esthar. They KNOW that their military is no threat to Esthar's supremely advanced technology. What could turn the tides of that battle in Galbadia's favor?"

There were several moments of pause before Fujin responded, her eyes a bit wide in shock, hoping she was wrong.

"SORCERESS?"

Seifer snapped his fingers and pointed to Fujin, smiling. "Exactly. And if you guys recall, our little birdies on the inside recorded a conversation with Caraway and one of his generals, before Caraway killed him. Do you guys remember what he claimed he had on his side?"

This time, there was no question, only an answer. "A sorceress…" Raijin answered, sounding frightened. "But wasn't that Rinoa?"

"No. My guess is this: he has, for some time, had a sorceress SEALED down there, much like Esthar sealed Adel. But only recently has he found a way to control her. This is why our electronics were jammed: he's using the same technology as Esthar to seal a sorceress. Why the Odine bangle? He wishes to control her. And why the sewers in the first place? Well, we've already been over this, to hide something."

The two took a moment to ponder this. Could that REALLY be what Caraway was hiding? What would that mean? Every time a sorceress had been involved, it always spelled trouble. For everyone. They swore off sorceresses after Ultimecia. And if a sorceress was aligned with Galbadia? They shuddered at the thought.

"So," Raijin looked up. "I guess we're goin' to Deling City?" He asked, afraid he already knew the answer.

"You got it!" He placed his hand on his hip.

"Man…I didn't want to have to deal with anymore sorceresses, ya know?" Seifer's comrade looked down, frowning.

"AGREED," the white-haired woman placed her hand over her heart for emphasis.

"Meh, it'll be fine, guys. We have the advantage now that we know what he's …" Seifer was cut off by a loud BANG. Each member of the Posse jumped, startled, busting their weapons out. They looked around.

"What was that, ya know?" Raijin, wide-eyed, inquired.

"GUNSHOT." Fujin replied, holding her weapon close to her face.

"It sounded like it came from the second floor. C'mon, let's go." Without hesitation, Seifer and his posse ran out of their suite towards the first floor elevator.

"Could…it…be…Caraway….ya know?" Raijin asked between breaths while running.

Seifer gripped Hyperion tighter. "I…don't know. Nobody's…usually out…this late," he huffed.

As they neared the elevator, they spotted two other people running towards it, from the opposite end of the circular fountain. One, dressed in blue, he recognized as Rinoa. The other, hilariously clad in duck pajamas, was Xu. Seifer tried to hide a chuckle, despite the seriousness of the situation.

The Posse reached the elevator first and packed in. A few breaths later, Xu entered the elevator as well.

"I don't wanna hear anything about my attire. Got it?" she said, giving a piercing look to the posse.

Raijin nodded out of fear, Fujin remained quiet and looked away. Leave it to Seifer to retort.

"Hey, nobody looks at your 'attire' in your pictures, anyway! After all, your duck face selfies are just sooo sexy," he winked. Xu kicked him in the shin, not amused. Raijin rolled his eyes. He loved Seifer like a brother, but that was a lame response. Then again, at this time of morning, it would've been difficult to come up with something more clever, he reasoned.

Rinoa reached the elevator, but hesitated for a moment, glancing at Seifer. She wasn't sure she wanted to be confined in an elevator with those three, especially Seifer. And especially after what he did to her. But, she quickly realized, there was no time for personal vendettas. Something was going on, and it most likely involved her father. Seifer noticed the glance and momentary hesitation and smirked. The young sorceress entered the elevator, and Raijin pushed the "2" button.

They didn't know whether the gunshot came from the second or third floor, but seeing as how Caraway was on the second floor, and he would be the man attracting such attention, the second floor was their best bet.

They bolted off the elevator as soon as it stopped. They rounded the corner where the 2F classroom is, only to see that the door leading to the "secret hallway" was wide open. Not slowing down they pressed forward, Seifer and Xu mentally checking their junctions, always prepared.

As soon as they came upon Caraway's cell, they all stopped and gasped at the sight before them. The cell was empty, but that wasn't the startling aspect of the situation. In front of the cell were three bodies. Two of them were the SeeD guards Squall and Quistis assigned to Caraway. The third body was Squall's, lying face down. There was blood everywhere. Rinoa immediately broke down, running over to him. Xu jumped into action, being the highest ranking SeeD present.

"Raijin, Fujin, check him," she pointed to one of the downed guards. "Seifer, be on guard." She ran over to the remaining guard. He was sitting limp in a corner, blood running down the walls behind him. She placed her finger on his neck for a pulse. None. She tried again on his hand. None. He was gone. She looked for the cause of death and it was quickly apparent. A gunshot wound to the head.

Raijin called out to Xu. "He's…dead…ya know. No pulse." Xu looked down and shook her head, starting to shake. Everyone in the area looked towards Rinoa, who had went to examine Squall.

Squall was face down, blood on the ground underneath his head. She rolled him over, getting blood on her hands. She quickly realized he had been shot in the head as well.

"HE'S GOT A PULSE!" she cried out. Everyone ran over to him.

"Rinoa, heal him!" Seifer instructed. Rinoa, without hesitation, tapped into her sorceress powers to muster a strong cure spell.

"NO!" Xu quickly yelled. "If you heal the wound, the bullet will be left in there!"

Rinoa was getting exponentially more emotional by the second.

"IF SHE DOESN'T HEAL HIM, HE'll DIE!" Seifer bellowed, not believing what he was hearing.

Just then, feet appeared behind them with simultaneous, loud gasps. There stood Zell, Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine.

"SQUALL!" Zell ran over and knelt down beside him. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?"

"Quistis," Xu began very quickly, "I know you're the ranking official here, but I feel the need to step in right now. We have a chance to save him," she looked down at everyone kneeling by Squall.

"Selphie, as quickly as you can, go get Doctor Kadowaki. Send her to the infirmary. Zell, Irvine, you need to carry Squall AS CAREFULLY AS POSSIBLE to the infirmary. Raijin, Fujin, accompany them to the infirmary in case of an attack on the way there. Seifer, stay here." Seifer grunted at being ordered around, but figured it was the best move at the moment. Though Squall's life was important, there were other pressing matters that he would be needed for, namely, Caraway's escape. "Quistis, go sound the Garden alarm to put all SeeD on alert." Quistis nodded and ran out towards the elevator.

"I'm going with Squall!" Rinoa claimed, quickly. Xu nodded, not expecting anything different. Selphie bolted off down the corridor with nearly superhuman speed. Zell and Irvine, still confused beyond belief at what was happening, did as instructed and lifted Squall up at an angle that blood wouldn't pour out as quickly.

Tears rolled down Rinoa's face, and her blue nightgown was now nearly soaked with tears and blood. She struggled to catch her breath in between sobs. Xu looked at her with empathy, praying Squall would be okay. Squall was such a good man and friend to her. She just hoped she made the right decision in not letting Rinoa heal him right away. Within mere moments, the scene became Xu, Seifer, and two dead SeeDs.

"Seifer, we need to check the immediate area for any clues or suspects."

"Affirmative, commander Daffy," he said, before running off. Xu rolled her eyes. Not much had changed, she guessed.

Seifer continued down the secret hallway, running past several sealed doors.

'Nothing out of the ordinary,' he pressed on. When he came upon the fourth door on the right, however, he noticed that the door had been blown to bits by a silent bomb.

'Who the hell would make all that noise with a gun, but then attempt to be silent with a bomb?' he thought. It just didn't make any sense.

He ran into the room and examined the mess that stood before him. On the ground was a man, dead, with blood everywhere. It only took a glance to see that it was another shot to the head. He raised Hyperion on guard. He figured that this room was struck after Caraway was released. Caraway would have higher priority than whatever was in this room. Which meant, if they had reached the crime scene with any speed at all, the suspects might still be in the room somewhere.

Seifer took in the surroundings. The room was actually very large. It was a laboratory. One whole side of the room was a supercomputer and panel. Throughout the room, there were crates full of weird objects, papers strewn everywhere, and a bunch of scientific looking equipment.

He maneuvered around the room, on guard. After several moments, Xu finally entered and glanced around.

"Find anything?"

"Nope. Just a dead guy."

'Well, that's a way to put it, asshole,' Xu thought, rolling her eyes yet again. Something about Seifer always rubbed her the wrong way.

"Is this a lab?" the former Knight asked.

"Let's check the rest of the hallway," she said, before running off again.

That piqued Seifer's fascination. Why would she just avoid that question? Was it because she didn't trust him? As interesting as this was, he knew there were more pressing issues at hand. He ran off towards Xu.

Continuing down the circular secret hallway, there were several more sealed doors. At the end of the hallway, Xu came out of the last sealed door.

"Area clear. No sign of the suspects anywhere in the hallway."

It was at that moment that the Garden alarm sounded.

"I guess Quistis got to the third floor without a hitch. Soon, SeeD will be scouring every inch of Garden."

Seifer nodded. "We should get up to the third floor, too." Xu agreed, and they ran off down the hallway. Xu resealed the door to the secret hallway upon leaving.

"We should check the balcony and classroom, too, since we didn't do that on the way up," Seifer suggested, always thinking strategically. Xu nodded and followed him. The classroom was empty, as kind of expected. An escaped criminal wouldn't go to the classroom. Still, better to be safe than sorry. They proceeded on to the balcony.

Seifer examined the area quickly.

'No sign of…what's that?' From atop the balcony, a small light caught Seifer's eye.

"Xu!" She ran over. He pointed to the light. From a distance, they could see a car speeding towards Balamb town.

"I guess we've found our escapee! C'mon, to the third floor!" she instructed.

While running towards the elevator, he supposed that it only made sense. If Caraway escaped, which he clearly did, the only way off Balamb was through Balamb town. Either via the port or the train station.

They got in the elevator and went up. As soon as they got there, they found Quistis in the office.

"Quistis!"

"Xu! Report! What the hell is going on?" Quistis said, her eyes red from crying. She was clearly worried about Squall.

"Quistis, he's headed towards Balamb town! We saw a speeding car from the balcony." Quistis nodded.

They ran up to the elevator leading to the bridge. Quistis went directly towards the intercom.

"Attention, SeeD! Attention, SeeD! Prepare for Garden to be mobilized! I repeat, prepare for Garden to be mobilized! Be prepared for battle at any time. I need an investigation squad to report to the third floor, immediately. Over." She hung up the mic.

As if on cue, the elevator came up once again, revealing Nida.

"Quistis! What's going on!?" he yelled, groggily. The commotion had clearly startled him from his sleep.

"First, get Garden mobile. Right now. I'll explain while you're doing it." Nida didn't bother with a salute, he went right to work with the controls. "Caraway has escaped and is heading towards Balamb. The two SeeDs guarding him are dead. Squall is…" she looked down, a tear rolling down her cheek. Nida froze and stopped what he was doing.

"SQUALL IS WHAT!?" his eyes started tearing up.

"Squall was shot in the head. He's alive, but needs immediate medical attention, which he should be getting right now," Xu explained.

Nida dropped to his knees and starting sniffling.

"NIDA!" Quistis snapped at him. "I understand how you must be feeling, but this isn't the time. GET GARDEN MOBILE!" He nodded and stood back up, working the controls again.

"Quistis," Xu began. The headmaster turned around. "The second floor laboratory was broken into. No idea what was taken, if anything, but the head scientist was killed. Shot in the head."

Quistis' eyes widened. Seifer immediately took notice. There was something they were hiding about that room. The feel of Garden moving began to stir. Within seconds, Garden would be on its way to Balamb town.

"Xu," Quistis began, "get on the phone with the mayor of Balamb. Tell him to stop all trains and boats leaving Balamb. That's an order from Garden." Xu saluted, and took the elevator down, getting right to work.

Quistis sighed, exasperated at everything that was occurring. There was much work to be done at the moment.

"Yo," Seifer finally spoke up. "You mind telling me what's up with that lab?"

"There's no time for this right now."

"Oh really?" Seifer began getting upset. "What have you got to do until we get to Balamb?"

"Excuse me? I have to mobilize SeeD to be ready to storm Balamb! That's what the hell I have to do! Don't belittle my position, here!" She yelled. Nida blushed. He felt uneasy being in the presence of confrontation.

"Do you STILL not trust me? Is that fucking it?" he punched the air.

"It's not that, Seifer, I promise! Not even the others know about the existence of that lab. I'll tell you all together. And NOW is NOT the time for that!" she snapped.

"Tch, fine." He took the elevator down, planning to go see Raijin and Fujin in the infirmary.

In ran three members of what he assumed to be an investigation squad. No doubt, they'd be tasked with cleaning up the bodies on the second floor. They took the elevator up to report to Quistis.

The scene on the first floor of Garden could only be described in one word: chaos. SeeDs were running everywhere, many in their pajamas and nightgowns. Weapons were being drawn, and Seifer could feel the magical energy in the area increase, meaning people were junctioning. Screams were heard coming from every direction, unaware and afraid of what was going on. It only made sense, Seifer thought. After all they've gone through in the past month, there's no telling what threat could face them next. And to top that off, that threat is coming in the wee hours of the morning. That's a rude awakening, if there ever was one.

When he finally reached the infirmary, the scene was a mess. Rinoa, whose wailing could be heard down the hall, was an emotional wreck. Selphie was crying as well. Raijin and Fujin were guarding the entrance. Irvine and Zell were conversing loudly, clearly upset at what was occurring. He spotted a room in the infirmary with the sheets closed, meaning it was vacated. Squall, no doubt. Kadowaki would surely be tending to him.

He walked up to his posse.

"What's the news?"

"Kadowaki's not sure if Squall will make it, ya know?"

Seifer felt a pang in his chest. He had hated Squall for the longest time, but he did feel a camaraderie with him. He now considered Squall an ally, and didn't wish for him to pass.

"ANGRY."

"Yeah, Rinoa is pissed with Xu, ya know? When Kadowaki said Squall might not make it, Rinoa began cursing like a Dollet sailor!"

Seifer sighed. "Xu was right, in hindsight. I understand how she feels, though."

At this moment, Zell and Irvine walked over to join the conversation.

"Seifer, you guys find anything?" Irvine asked, tipping his cowboy hat. Zell, who usually couldn't stand to be in Seifer's presence, put his personal feelings aside. Rinoa had told him that Seifer and his gang were among the first to respond and help out. Plus, he had helped save them in Deling, so he couldn't be mad at the moment. He had no problem knocking Seifer's lights out if he had too, though.

"Yeah. There was some lab in that hallway that was broken into. The head scientist is dead. And we found Caraway. He's on his way to Balamb, which is why we're being mobilized."

"That son of a bitch!" Zell gritted his teeth. "I'm gonna bash his skull in!"

Irvine, being the more logical at the moment, kept asking. "What if we don't get there in time? He could escape!"

"Xu took care of it. Balamb town is shutting down all trains and boats exiting."

"Oh…what lab?"

'So the bitch headmaster was telling the truth. They don't know.'

"Why don't you ask your dear 'Headmaster'? She wouldn't tell me. I was in the room, though, and didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Then again, I'm no scientist."

"Are you saying Quistis is hiding something from us?" Zell asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Welp, she said she'll tell all of us together, so I'm assuming so," Seifer smirked, putting his hand on his hip.

That wasn't like Quistis, Zell reasoned. Anything that goes on in Garden, they should know about.

About that time, the intercom came on.

"Attention, SeeD. Attention, SeeD." The voice was Quistis'. "Let me brief you on the situation. We are nearing Balamb town. Every SeeD level 15 and above will enter Balamb. Your target is Galbadian president Caraway. He has escaped our custody. Two of our fellow SeeDs are dead. And…Commander Squall was shot in the head. Caraway is to be apprehended dead or alive. There will be justice for our fallen SeeDs! No mercy! Every SeeD under level 15 is to remain in Garden and protect it against any possible threats. Any unusual people, behavior, or objects, are to be reported immediately. Over and out."

"Well, that's a hell of an announcement to hear at 3:16 in the morning," Seifer said.