Deliverance

[06.12.00] » by Soulhunter

Tripping over a dead Tri-face isn't exactly his idea of subterfuge. Clutching his chest, the middle-aged Headmaster allowed a few seconds to elapse while he tried to catch his breath. This used to be a lot easier, he thought, as he attempts to lift himself up and continue on with his frantic pursuit of the three youngsters who disappeared in the corridor in front of him.

Turning abruptly, Cid was mildly astonished at the sight of a grandiose amphitheater. Right in the middle of the auditorium, he catches sight of an alarmed Squall turning his attention to Rinoa. The SeeD commander had earlier contacted Quistis and told her to join them after instructing Rinoa to stay out from the impending encounter with Sorceress Edea. He could not risk endangering her safety after Seifer almost killed them all in a previous encounter. But Squall never expected the obstinate Galbadian princess to follow them.

And now, it's too late to do anything about it, as a bluish overhead glass panel shatters into a million pieces to herald the ominous arrival of the sorceress who's hell-bent on world domination. Squall hollered a final warning to Rinoa to stay back as he, Quistis and Selphie prepared themselves for combat.

"Squall… Edea… n-no…" was all Cid could muster from his lips as the four souls, who formerly shared a loving mother-children relationship more than a decade ago, now square themselves for battle, fully intent in taking no prisoners.

**********

"You're being too hard on yourself."

"Am I?" Headmaster Cid shot back. "After discovering about that accursed directive to murder my wife, and not doing anything about it, do you really think I'm just being hard on myself?"

Dr. Kadowaki didn't respond. Though she wants desperately to help her esteemed colleague, she had no choice but to admit to herself that in this situation, no amount of words could serve as enough consolation to douse the anguish burning inside Cid's heart. She silently wonders at the kind of mental ordeal Cid had to undergo to permit the execution of an order to kill his wife.

"And to top it all off, that weasel Martine had to use Squall and his crew to carry out the mission. How can you expect me to handle this?"

"Well, at least they failed." The doctor groaned.

"That's not the point. Listen to me. Edea is my wife. Squall, Quistis and Zell, I see them as my own children. How do think a husband – and father – would feel facing this kind of dilemma?"

"Then why didn't you stop it?"

Yeah… why didn't I stop it, Cid asks himself. He knows why, too damn well. He looks at Dr. Kadowaki, deliberating whether she's trustworthy enough to be given the skinny about a dark secret reaching far back as thirteen years ago.

Thirteen years ago…

"You did WHAT?"

"Cid, please don't be angry…"

"I'm not mad at you, Edea…" Cid lovingly assures his wife. "But… don't you think that was a trifle reckless? We don't know what's the effect of absorbing the power of two sorceresses. You might…"

"You know very well why I had to do that." was Edea's firm yet gentle response. "What if I didn't do it? What if the sorceress turns on the children? Would we rather have Quistis, Selphie or Aki take the curse upon themselves and carry it for the rest of their lives?"

Cid didn't answer. He hated the fact that of all people, it had to be his beloved wife who had to bear the burden of carrying the death-denying curse that is the power of the sorceress. Edea had already become an immortal ever since she first assumed this unenviable responsibility at the tender age of five. He can't fault her for that. She was young, far beyond the accepted age of rationality.

But this is definitely not the case now. In his mind, Edea should have known better than to open herself once more to the intrusion of Hyne's spiritual fragment. She must have thought it won't make a difference, he surmises. He desperately hopes that she's correct on this matter. But there are no assurances.

Yet still, it ultimately makes no difference. Cid loves Edea, with an affection that will shake the very pillars of life itself if need be. She has been a sorceress since she was five. He knew this, and he still married her. And in retrospect, her sorceress powers didn't really cause that much problem in the seven years of their marriage. They'll pull through eventually from this most recent twist in their life.

"Hey, it's okay." Cid gently assuages Edea. "We've lived with your condition for a long time now. It may not have been the most smooth-sailing marriage, but… I don't care."

Edea lifted her eyes up to her husband as he continues. "I love you. You know I do. And whatever side-effect this may have, I'm sure we'll be able to weather it."

"Thank you, Cid." Edea smiles. She appreciates this. As a matter of fact, she doesn't think she'd have carried on knowing that she bears in herself the burden of a deathless life, if not for Cid's unreserved love and support. Gently resting her head on his chest, Edea ponders. This is why she loves him this much. She knows he'll always be there for her.

A sudden tug reverberates from inside her. Edea's serenity was instantly replaced with dread, after she was reminded of the mysterious force that's been threatening to tear her mind and soul from her body. Consequently, the kindhearted Matron recalls the raw fear gripping her for the past few days.

She then remembers that boy from the future.

"Cid, about this Garden I mentioned to you earlier…"

**********

"Are you here to see the Headmaster?"

Cid arose with a start. He didn't even notice that he dozed off after what seemed like an eternity of crying.

"Yes."

"He's resting. He's got a lot of things in his mind right now."

"I'm alright." The Headmaster voiced out. "I think I'm done crying now."

Dr. Kadowaki looks at her briefly with an 'Are you sure?' gaze. Cid nods, after which the doctor steps aside to allow Squall, Quistis and Rinoa to enter the resting chamber.

Cid tosses uncertain eyes on Squall. "I feel ashamed. You've all seen me in such an embarrassing state. So… what do you want to talk about?"

Dr. Kadowaki silently sat on her desk, watching as Squall's face grimace in lieu of the astounding revelations being spewed forth by the embattled Headmaster. She lowers her head, wondering about the possible repercussions such discoveries would bring about to the SeeD commander's as-yet limited understanding of the glaring unfairness inherent in the world around him. The good doctor then looks up after sensing the departure of the three youngsters.

She turns her attention once again to Cid. He looks back with reddened eyes.

"You didn't tell them everything…" Dr. Kadowaki curtly mutters.

**********

"Let us help."

"No."

"If you don't let us help, all is lost."

"NO!"

"The Master Slayer will be displeased. His only wish is to free you from your agony. Why won't you let us aid you?"

"You are too powerful. I can never assume that responsibility in my hands."

A solid metal spike flashes in his mind's eye. Cid clenches his fists.

"Keep that mace to yourself."

The hollow voice retreats.

"Headmaster, it doesn't look good."

Cid subtly breaks his self-imposed trance and turns his attention to Dr. Kadowaki. He had earlier ordered her to survey the situation after Squall's booming distress alert resonated throughout Garden and warned everyone of the coming battle against Galbadia Garden.

"Where's Squall and the others?"

"From what I know, Squall, Selphie and Irvine are intercepting the enemies in the second floor classrooms. Quistis is working with Xu at the front gate while Zell is leading a Saber battalion in the Quad."

The Headmaster fell silent. Dr. Kadowaki, already antsy, felt she couldn't afford to tarry much longer.

"Cid, we have no time. They need you up there."

"I can't."

"What?"

"I can't help them. I won't be of any help to them."

Dr. Kadowaki felt herself being overcome by despair. She knows only too well the dreadful state besetting Balamb Garden as the Galbadian shock-troopers relentlessly stage one wave after another in an effort to completely destroy their home. She desperately wanted to lash out at Cid for his apparent lack of resolve, which had to come in a time when his students needed him most.

But she also knows she's got no more time for futile attempts at admonishing Cid to act.

"Okay, never mind. Tell me what I need to do."

Cid droops his shoulders. "Help Squall. I don't care how you plan on doing it. But just help him."

Dr. Kadowaki abruptly runs off to the elevator. Cid then breaks down. He's never felt so ashamed of himself after turning his back on the children who looks up to him for leadership. He has failed them. He has failed them miserably.

And the hollow voice is only too aware of the tormented Headmaster's ordeal.

"Let us help now."

**********

Selphie's lips burst into crimson globs after hitting the floor face-first. She moans in pain, yet ignores the hurt while trying to lift her bloodied form. Desperation unleashed her array of special abilities, and all she needs to do now is choose the appropriate spell. The Trabian exchange student was about to cast her chosen spell when Quistis and Squall likewise crashed on the hard embankment.

"Don't worry, guys. Help is on the way." Selphie thought while raising her Flail in the air. White ribbons of restorative magic engulfs all three of them as her potent Full-Cure spell negates the injuries inflicted on them by Sorceress Edea.

"Mighty bullheaded of you three." Edea wickedly exclaimed. "But that won't change anything, as you are about to see. Maelstrom!"

A torrent of malevolent energy erupts from a vortex in mid-air, engulfing the three warriors in accursed power. Squall, Quistis and Selphie almost instantly fell on the floor again, terribly weakened by the last attack. And before they could do anything, Sorceress Edea quickly followed up with another Tornado attack.

"Edea, no! They're… they're our children!" Cid hollered in his mind. Almost simultaneously, a familiar churning sensation emanates from his stomach. The beasts are calling out once more.

"Let us help."

Cid grits his teeth.

"Now."

He couldn't help it anymore. As Cid realizes that further delay will surely lead into tragedy, he consents on the clamor of the avengers for freedom to do battle. But at the last minute, he echoes one final request.

"...Don't kill her…"

He then closes his eyes, as the blinding flash of a Flare attack fills the room with it's terrible radiance, masking the presence of an avenging intruder. As the glare subsides, Cid begins to weep. On stage, Edea's body lay immobile.

An explosion of grief bursts forth from his heart. Grief mixed with helpless fear as Cid closes his eyes, unable to gaze at the apparently lifeless form of his beloved. He has failed again. After failing to defend his home, he has likewise failed to protect his wife.

Cid makes a resolution. This will be his last failure.

"Squall. Quistis. Selphie."

"Huh?"

"Irvine. Zell."

Cid lifts his head up, and stares unbelievingly at his the sorceress.

"You've all grown so much. And have become so strong."

She's alive! Yes! She's alive!

"I have waited for this day to come, and also feared this day would come."

Confusion starts to mix with revelry. What is this? Is Edea finally free from the enthrallment?

"Is today a joyous day? Or an odious day?"

He doesn't care. Not by any way conceivable. Cid couldn't care less about the day's state. All he cares about is his wife. Edea is back. And this time, he will do everything in his power to protect her. Or he will die trying.

"Edea…"

"Cid…?" Edea's face became awash with mixed emotions of burden and relief. She didn't really expect him to be here, especially after everything that has transpired. But… how immensely glad she is that he is. The world stood still as Cid and Edea held each other tight.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" Cid whispered.

"Sorry…?" Edea softly retorted amidst the sobs.

"I… I failed you…"

"No…" Edea smiled, tears still streaming from her eyes. "You didn't fail me. You never did. You're here. That's all that matters."

Forever seemed too short for the couple who were broken apart by the wiles of an evil entity. They would have claimed eternity in each other's arms if not for the sound of the beleaguered Quistis' voice.

"Squall, it's Rinoa."

THE END