Final Fantasy Chronicles of Exigo - Brave New World VIII

[Heartless Angel]

"As soon as possible", Squall answered. William took in a deep breathe, sighed softly. "Alright. I'll begin my preparations at once. You can come find me in my quarters when you're ready to set out.", he said, glancing towards his new team as he made his way for the elevator before taking it down alone.

He again closed his eyes and began visualizing combat scenarios with his new team during the short ride down. "Hmm... I'm really not coming up with any good team strategies for this group... Especially if I can't count on them being able to access the junction system reliably...", he mumbled. He held up one hand, as magic began to visibly swirl around it, forming into a small orb in his palm. "I may end up having to use THAT. This will be a good opportunity to test it out, away from Leonhart's prying eyes.", he said with a slight grin.

He hadn't been on an actual mission since his escape from NORG's facility, partly due to his fragmented memory, but more in part, at least in William's mind, to the fact that Squall didn't trust him. It made sense, after all, NORG had tried to brainwash him into a mindless slave who would kill his enemies on command, and he was only released because NORG sought to use him against Squall and his comrades. If not for the situation at hand, he likely would have spent at least another year before he would gain Squall's trust to go out on a mission as a SeeD, but with the Junction system failing all around the world, it would be foolish not to make use of the only solider he had who didn't rely upon it.

The elevator at last reached its destination, and William allowed the spell in his hand to dissipate before exiting, and making his way through the crowd towards the dormitories. A few girls waved or called out as he walked by, but he did his best to pretend he hadn't noticed. His students were annoying enough during classes, he certainly didn't want them involved in his off hours. He opened his door, and slipped into the dark room, closing and locking it behind him without a word.

He flipped the light switch, illuminating his austere living space. Everything in this room was dedicated to honing his craft. Several ammunition refinery machines lined one wall, each producing different types of ammunition. He opened a few up, and took what he thought he might need for this mission. "Let's see... 100 dark rounds, 20 fire, 20 demo, and 50 AP. That should cover just about any situation we could conceivably encounter.", he said, as he placed the ammunition in a pack on his bed.

He made his way over to a workbench in the corner of the room. This bench featured a pair of stands made to the exact specifications of his gunblades. He spent a good deal of time here, changing out blade attachments, calibrating his sights, or performing general maintenance on the weapons. "Hmm... I should probably stick to the anti-armor blades for this. Better to have excessive cutting power than insufficient. Even if they do slow me down and wear me out a little faster. Can't carry enough AP rounds to account for the number of armored enemies we're likely to run into, and my team should have sufficient options for dealing with quicker targets...", he said to himself, as he swapped out the standard blades on his weapon for a thicker, heavier pair with a wave-patterned edge, and a fine thrusting point.

After finishing maintenance of his primary weapons, he slid over to the other side of the workbench where his sidearms lay disassembled. "I'd better come armed to the teeth for long range combat, since none of the other carry long distance arms", he said, as he quickly cleaned and assembled the two 9mm pistols, and attached their holsters and another pouch filled with spare magazines loaded with fast rounds to his belt.

He leaned back in his chair, and looked towards the ceiling. "Well... May as well do some basic swordplay drills to kill a little time", he said, as he got up and reached for a pair of wooden practice sword he kept on a rack above his bed. He slipped the practice sword into the sheathes on his belt, and removed his leather vest, tossing it on his bed next to his pack. His chest and back were both covered in battle scars, mostly incurred from training with his fellow test subjects in the facility. Sometimes he was still haunted by flash backs of that place. Mostly when sparring with other people. Monsters were easy. No indication that they had friends, or families, hopes, dreams, or a reason to live. No feeling that obeying the gnawing voice in the back of your head, commanding you to kill was somehow wrong... That it was better to resist the urge, and feel the lash of the tormentors...

Kill... kill... kill...

"HYAAAGH!" He unsheathed the practice swords and exploded into a flurry of rapid strikes against the training dummy positioned in the middle of the room.

[Magi of Worlds]

As night descended over Deling City all of the street lights came on at once. Between these lights and the full moon shining overhead there was a cascade of brilliance illuminating most of the street. Passerby stopped and stared upwards towards the heaven's enjoying the view for it was also a cloudless night as well. Shops, bakeries and bars down the strip were either opening or closing for the night as a rush of people entered and exited. On one side of the street stands a luxurious hotel that is well known for it used to be the home of a famous songstress long ago. The restaurant and bar are still open but this songstress has long gone. Every night there are acts that try to equal or surpass her grace and beauty, but none have come close. Tonight's act happened to be a traveling violinist and pianist duo who were rumored to be married. Exquisite music swam over the dining room and many reveled at the duo's magnificent tune. That is, all except for one table in particular. The fellow at this table did indeed enjoy the music. It was just unfortunate that his mind was preoccupied elsewhere. He was waiting for someone to sit down across from him. Not knowing who the individual was that requested this meeting didn't exactly sit well with the young man either. I say young because for all intents and purposes this man looks to be nearly in his mid twenties. The truth was that this man was a decade older than he looked, with all the experience this entitled to him. He wasn't a normal looking individual to boot. His pale skin was unnatural in this part of the world and shone even brighter under the high powered lights near the stage where he was seated. The large scar above his right eye however was no where near remarked upon as his clothes were. No one in Deling City, let alone Galbadia had seen a genuine ninja's outfit. Not even a uniquely black one. The sword at the man's belt was also a rarity for wakizashi's weren't even heard of in this part of the world. No, this fair man was definetly a foreigner in everyone's eyes in the hotel as well as the city itself.

Arc Masters was the man's name, or The Shadow as he was usually called. He was a bounty hunter when the age of bounty hunting was starting to become obsolete. Who needed bounty hunters when there were schools that trained soldiers called SeeD's for much cheaper to hire? Instead of questioning why he was being hired, Arc preferred to reflect on the nature of his contractor. He literally knew nothing about the man from the note that he received telling him to go to this particular hotel in this particular city to wait on a representative. The letter wasn't even signed, apart from a single S at the bottom. Suspiciousness was one of the few things that kept Arc alive in this monster infested hell hole called a world, and his suspicious feeling was calibrated at a high ten at this point in time. As he reflected deeply in thought he noticed that the seat had been occupied across from him finally. He had blunk for a second and while it had been empty right before suddenly there was a black hooded figure sitting down afterword. "Are you The Shadow?" a cold voice hissed out from underneath a cowl pulled down low over the face to conceal it. Although the voice appeared very male and human it still sent a shiver down Arc's spine. "Yeah... And who are you?" The man gave no mention as to his name. He just nodded, pulled out an envelope from his robe and dropped it on the table. In another split second he was gone just as quickly as he had arrived. Blinking a few times to make sure he wasn't being played a trick on and that the man was indeed gone Arc finally let his gaze fall on the envelope. He gently picked it up and was surprised to find that it didn't feel as cold to the touch as it's former carrier seemed to be. Opening the envelope he was shocked to see that only another note was contained inside. He unfolded it and began to read.

Dear Mr. Masters,
I have a contract I would like you to fulfill if you're interested. You are aware of the strange phenomenon happening involving the lights I assume? The task is quite simple really. I need you to investigate them for me and report back when you have found enough information on them that I deem worthy. Upon your completion of this mission you will be awarded 1,000,000G! To accept all you need to do is stay the night in a prepaid for room. The clerk at the desk is in my employ.
Signed, S

Arc's mouth almost hung open at the amount mentioned in the note and he almost dropped it outright, but at the last second he managed to keep his cool. Yes this was a lot of money for such a simple job, but the question of who this mysterious S was still rocked around in the back of his mind. If the man who dropped the envelope was anything to judge by the actual contractor could be quite scummy. Arc was honest and straightforward and hated to work for someone that didn't share those qualities. Sighing Arc stood up and walked over to the bar and sat down. Hiding the note in a side pouch he ordered the strongest whiskey the bartender had and waited for it. He was weighing the pros and cons of taking the job when the drink was set down in front of him. He downed it in one gulp and ordered another. Four shots later he had made up his mind. He paid off his tab and headed for the lobby. It was clear this late at night so he had no trouble getting to the counter. "I believe there is a prepaid room for me?" he asked simply. Smiling the clerk handed him a key and motioned up the steps behind the desk. Heading up the stairs Arc glanced down at the key in his hands. A big 101 was in display in the middle. Finding the corresponding door he unlocked it and headed inside. After closing the door and relocking it behind him Arc chose now to turn on the lights. There wasn't a mysterious figure in the room like he had expected.

As a matter of fact, there wasn't much in the room period. A single bed with a nightstand and a chair by the window seemed to be all the decoration on display. Heading to the window Arc opened the blinds. Nothing strange outside the window either. He closed the blinds again and turned around back towards the bed. An item was sitting on it that his gaze had missed before. It was a small, black oriental lantern. Attached to it was another piece of paper. Picking the paper up Arc glanced through it.

I'm glad you chose to accept the job after all! This lantern is a mysterious artifact that summons the Guardian Force, Tonberry King. I know you don't use GF's but it may come in handy. Who knows for sure? Anyway, to start you should probably head to Balamb in the morning and have a talk with Headmaster Squall Leonhart. I hear he's putting together a task force to look into the phenomenon as well. I want that info before he gets it btw! Signed, S.

Balamb? Squall Leonhart? Damn... I'm in a mess I'd say! These thoughts passed through his mind as he passed out on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.