Fire-Cross Knight

Squall looked at Seifer with the same blank look that he looked at everything in his life. He absorbed Seifer’s presence, noted the fact that every last thing about him was exactly as it had been the last time they had met, right down to the tattered hem of his favorite jacket. He watched Seifer look Raijin and Fujin over, his eyes taking in their state almost impassively, though Squall knew what they meant to him.

“Protect…?” Squall began, confused. He had honestly thought that when Ultimecia had died, she had taken her knight with her. Of all the things he had expected to see here in the Fire Cavern, Seifer was by no means in the scope of what he had come prepared for.

“Yeah.” He walked a few steps forward, and Squall realized that Hyperion was in his hand. Squall briefly ran a check of all of his available magic, his junctions; everything he had to fight with. He seemed to be in good shape, but he was still reluctant to fight Seifer alone. “I’m not who I used to be.” He began walking to the side of Squall- a very loose shuffle, and Squall kept up with him. He wouldn’t let Seifer take the upper hand so easily.

“…” He didn’t feel much like talking. Instead, he was too busy observing Seifer, trying to determine if he had been training while Squall tried to keep his own abilities honed on weak monsters and simple missions. If he had…

“Are you the same?” Seifer asked suddenly, the tilt of his head held no arrogance. When Squall realized that, he filed it away as unimportant battle information, but that small difference almost unnerved him.

“…No,” Squall answered, and it was true. He was a bit more outspoken than he had been previously. He was also a great deal lonelier, now that Rinoa had given him the knowledge of what he had needed in his life, only to move back to Galbadia.

“…Good,” Seifer said, closing the space between them in two steps of his longer legs.

They were locked in battle.

Seifer hadn’t been lying when he said that he had changed. His fighting style had become less about showmanship and much more about striking swiftly and with all of his strength. Something about this battle told Squall that it would be a true fight to the death, like none before; Seifer was fighting with a desperation in his frame Squall had never seen before. They shot apart and came together again, dancing as they had so many times, but now, an edge lay between them, some new element Squall couldn’t quite grasp.

When Squall was certain he was winning, Seifer shot back suddenly, standing four feet away. Squall held his blade, ready for any trick Seifer might use- but none came. Seifer drew a circle in the air before him with his blade, and suddenly fire burst through the floor.

It seemed to have something in common with a limit break, but this was wholly new- Squall had seen all of Seifer’s limits and none looked any like this. While the ground shook, and flames rose all around him, Seifer drew a cross in the air between them. The cross, made of red energy, stayed etched before him, when suddenly a matching cross of rock rose behind Squall. He turned to look at it only briefly, and in that moment Seifer began to move. Faster than light, he struck Squall in the chest with his palm, pushing Squall against the cross- and Seifer drew bonds of that same fire energy to hold him there, crucified.

Alarms were sounding in Squall’s head; he hung in the same position he had once been in, as Seifer’s prisoner at the D-District prison. The Guardian Forces were silent, watching as though this was normal, but Squall had never seen an attack like it before. He couldn’t free himself, and it didn’t matter, because in a moment Seifer was cutting him over and over. None of the cuts from his blade seemed to actually connect with Squall- his clothes even remained intact- but the cross-motioned slicing struck his skin over and over with a fire-like quality. Only Squall’s flame junctions saved him, then, as he felt each and every mark blossom under his skin. Blood dripped from his hands, his jaw clenched, and he wondered if he would die.

After what felt like years of assault, but what had, in reality, only been a brief few moments, Seifer leapt back again, and the rock that Squall had been held to shattered, freeing him. He landed on his feet but fell to a crouch, blood staining his shirt in a million crosscut patterns. He looked up to see Seifer still looking at him, blade raised, ready to attack, and forced himself to his feet.

Squall began his circle-step again, his first intentional act a quick cast of Curaga. The few moments it took him to ready his spell let Seifer score another hit on Squall’s arm- but the Curaga washed it away, even as Squall knew it would scar. Once he felt as though he could fight again, Squall began looking for openings. He gestured in one brief movement and cast Scan to see exactly where he stood.

And though Squall never showed surprise, his mouth fell open ever so slightly.

He saw that Seifer was, in fact, almost defeated, though Squall had only managed to injure him slightly. It seemed that living in the caves had not been good for his health in any way. More importantly, Seifer’s name did not appear in his classification, though Squall knew that was whom he faced.

Where he had expected to see Seifer Almasy, instead, the reading only said, “Fire-Cross Knight”. Seifer seemed to know from Squall’s expression what he was seeing, and he clenched his jaw, tightening his grip on the hilt of Hyperion. He attacked again, but Squall was ready for him, and fell in. He had the advantage now, knowing fully that Seifer was not going to last.

To the onlooker, the following battle would have appeared as though Squall was toying with Seifer. He would fall back at almost every attack Seifer would make; any advances would send Squall away. But the truth was that Squall knew now that he knew nothing about Seifer. This battle was with someone completely different, in every way, from the sparring partner he had had as a younger man. Squall knew that if he failed, he would die, and Seifer would be burying him in the lava. Seifer may no longer be himself, he may be someone completely different, but Squall still knew that face, those eyes, and the light in them told him that this battle was final. He couldn’t afford to make even one mistake- he wasn’t even certain he could survive another one of those horrendous limit breaks.

After another long period of dancing against one another, feinting and twisting, Squall saw his chance. Seifer lunged forward and Squall brought his blade up and into Seifer’s stomach. Seifer choked, his face down and blank as Squall looked down at him. The battle was over, but they both lived.

After a few moments of silence, Seifer’s blood dripping along the bright blue length of Lionheart, Squall stepped back, pulling the blade from Seifer’s stomach. Seifer leaned onto his knees, coughing blood, wiping his mouth. Without looking up at Squall, he spoke softly.

“I’ve never… been defeated…” He said, and Squall heard a sound, familiar and far away. Like two blades coming together. Shiva whispered a protest in his mind, something soft, something demanding. When Seifer spoke again, his voice was stronger, but the words were strange. “I will help you…”

Squall did not hear the rest. He had heard this strange speech several times, and he found himself taking a step back. The computer system that he used to manage his junctions was flashing, now, demanding his attention. In his mind, Shiva and Diablos were forced to make room.

When he opened his computer, a frighteningly familiar screen flashed before him.

“Give Fire-Cross Knight a different name?” it asked him cheerily, and he found himself looking down at Seifer, who was finally looking up at him. His eyes burned as something of his old arrogance glittered there, and when he straightened, his wounds were evident but no longer bleeding.

“What…?” Squall began, though he did not know what question it was he wanted to ask.

“Do I have to spell it out for you, Leonhart?” Seifer asked, obviously defensive to hide his personal emotions. “You’ve defeated me in battle. And now I’m one of your Guardian Forces.”