"Eyes on Me"

                                   -Part 3

                               "My Final Heaven"

                                 by Angelwing




The latest instalment of my first Final Fantasy 8 story is 
dedicated to all my new-found friends at Fantasy Square! 
It's especially dedicated to Zell's Girl who has been full of 
suggestions and even agreed to join me in the story as a 
fellow character! 
                            Happy reading everyone!




	The white Gryphon disappeared as quickly as it had 
appeared, taking with it the confused form of Zell. A blinding 
flash of white light later and they were gone; the only thing 
that remained was a swirling circle of autumn leaves to 
indicate their previous position. No-one spoke, nobody was 
able to speak. Rinoa was the first to break the astonished 
calm.
	"W..." she began, "Where's Zell?" Squall looked down 
at her; she looked so 
frightened. He placed a comforting arm around her 
shoulders and squeezed.
	"Don't worry," he whispered, "we'll find him." No one 
else spoke. Many were remembering age-old stories about 
the White Gryphon. What was generally known was that it 
only appeared in connections with Sorcerers. Some said the 
Sorcerers had the unique ability to transform themselves 
into this mythical monster, others said it was gift given to 
them, passed down through the generations to call upon in 
times of need. Does this mean that they live in a time of 
trouble? And perhaps the most baffling question of all...Why 
the hell do they want Zell?! 
	Confusion and disquiet settled on the hearts of all 
present, no one could quite understand what was happening 
and why. Squall frowned, unsure of what his next course of 
action would be. They were all looking at him, expecting him 
to answer all their questions and lead them to victory. He 
felt pressured, in the spotlight and...scared. After all they'd 
been through he still didn't want to make these kinds of 
decisions for the group. He could feel Rinoa's expectant eyes 
on him, waiting for him to turn round and tell them all that it 
was going to be all right. But was it? How could they find 
Zell now? Where would they look? Do they continue with the 
SeeD training or report to the nearest Garden? What if 
there's no saving Zell now? Irvine shifted his weight onto his 
other foot.
	"Squall? I think I speak for the rest of us in saying that 
standing around here like this isn't going to find Zell or bring 
us any closer to understanding what just happened." Several 
nods followed this statement and Squall could only sigh.
	"Alright," he began, "let's start off by establishing what 
that thing was. This is how I see it." He paused, they all 
expected him to give them a definitive answer, but he didn't 
know one. Rinoa noticed his unease.
	"Well, why don't we start by seeing what WE all know, 
then you can tell us what you think Squall." Squall smiled at 
her, she always managed to dissolve the most 
uncomfortable of situations and set his heart at rest. Quistis 
stepped forward.
	"I'll start. As far as I know, up until now, the White 
Gryphon is a beast of myth and legend only, it has never 
been thought of as really existing, just an old-wives tale to 
assure people we're safe and if anything really bad 
happened, we have something to fall back on." Selphie 
snorted.
	"So where was it when Ultimecia was kicking the 
world's butt?"
	"Exactly," replied Quistis, "that's why people think it 
doesn't exist. In the Ancient Tales, only one Sorcerer of each 
generation was entrusted with this marvellous gift. It was 
passed down through generations as a kind of powerful 
Guardian Force, invincible and always on the side of good." 
Squall nodded in agreement.
	"That's pretty much what I heard," he affirmed, "but 
that doesn't explain why it appeared now, it's not a time of 
great need." Mishka thought for a moment.
	"Unless something's going on at home we don't know 
about. I know we've only been gone for a day, but as you all 
know, a lot can happen in a day."  The others considered 
this, it seemed about the best suggestion. Gabriel piped up.
	"Maybe we should make it back to Trabia, even if 
nothing's going on in the wide world, we really should report 
the disappearance of Zell." Squall nodded but Aurora looked 
furious.
	"Will you all listen to yourselves! We've just lost a team 
member and to our knowledge he's still alive. I for one am 
not going back until I find him!" Mishka put her hand on 
Aurora's shoulder as a means of comfort.
	"Aurora," she said, "think about it, we don't know 
where Zell is, he's probably not even still in this dimension, 
how would you find him?" Aurora narrowed her eyes at 
Mishka; she was the last person she wanted to disagree with 
her.
	"I thought YOU would understand Mishka, I thought we 
were mates. If it was you, you know I'd fight tooth and nail 
to help you, despite the odds. If you felt the way I do..." 
Aurora stopped, realising that she'd already said too much. 
Gabriel, ever the voice of sense interjected once again.
	"And just how do you intend to find him?" Aurora 
glared at him.
	"I don't care..." she muttered, "all I know is that the 
Gryphon appeared once, it might appear again and I'm 
going to wait around until it does." Realising that she wasn't 
going to change her mind, Squall sighed and eventually 
nodded in resignation.
	"If you're determined to stay out here, then I for one, 
will stay with you and help you. Zell means a lot to all of us, 
he's an invaluable member of the SeeD team and we'll do all 
we can to help." Quistis and Rinoa smiled, he was so right. 
Irvine thought for a moment.
	"What are you going to do Mishka?" She smiled.
	"I'm going to help out my bestest buddy here. Of 
course I'll stay with her, I wouldn't leave her here on her 
own, she's done enough for me over the years." Mishka 
stopped as she remembered confiding in Aurora when she 
first came to Trabia. She had told her everything and Aurora 
had listened and understood. She'd never told another living 
soul and had always been there when life got on top of 
Mishka and she needed a shoulder to cry on. Irvine nodded.
	"In that case," he sighed, "count me in." Gabriel 
frowned unhappily, he didn't really agree with it but was 
determined not to be the only one returning to Trabia alone. 
Squall put away his gunblade and walked over to the array 
of beds scattered on the forest floor.
	"Well then, I suppose we'd better rest for the 
remainder of the night. Hey! Who's put a dirty big ol' 
footprint on my pillow!" Rinoa smiled sheepishly.

                   
******************************************

	No one liked to admit it but...they were scared. Selphie 
clutched the corner of her blanket and huddled close to it. 
All she could think about was where Zell was and who would 
be the next to disappear under the cover of darkness. She 
closed her eyes tightly, blocking out the horrific images 
invading her mind and even her night-vision. She was 
frightened, what she needed was to lie down next to 
someone she loved and let them hold her and assure her 
she was safe. Someone like Irvine... 'It's too late for that', 
she thought sadly, 'I was the one to break it off.' Selphie 
sadly contemplated the fun she and Irvine had had in the 
early days. He used to really make her laugh. He was so tall 
and she was so short and yet she still had him wrapped 
around her little finger which was in fact, very little. She 
loved the feeling she had when she knew she could 
command him as much as she liked, but those feelings were 
gone. All that was left was space...miles and miles of 
space...not so muc!
!
h as happy prospect to lighten the dark or warm the cold. 
Although she would never openly admit it, at that precise 
moment in time, she would give anything to have him back 
and fill his heart with love. But, he didn't love her 
anymore...he didn't want her. He wanted someone else... 'I 
wonder who'. She contemplated this for a while, lying there 
gazing at the sky. The stars had disappeared and she could 
vaguely make out the onset of dawn. She knew the 
sequence; she'd watched it so many times with Irvine. On 
the distant horizon she would gradually see a warm array of 
reds and oranges lighten the cold dawn. A bright and crisp 
atmosphere would progressively settle on the land and tiny 
drops of morning dew would splash delicately from the 
leaves of all trees and plants and even the grass. The 
morning chorus would sound and she would hear the 
comforting and refreshing sound of the wood pigeon's call. 
"I wonder what it's calling for," she would ask the 
melancholy Irvine. He would smile at her and answer, "It's 
singing....because it's happy. Perhaps it's found the love of 
its life and wants to tell the world." Selphie would feel a 
flush of love wash through her and she would gaze up at 
him. 
"I wish I could sing so beautifully and then I'd tell the world 
about you." Irvine would reach down and caress her face 
with his hand. 
"I don't think I could do that," he smiled, "I could never find 
the right beautiful words to do justice to you." Selphie would 
then turn away and gaze contentedly at the brightening 
horizon. Irvine used to always compare the horizon to their 
lives. While sometimes it would be dismal and bleak, you 
always knew that the next morning it would be fresh, bright 
and optimistic once gain. 
"Whatever happens Selphie, just remember that life will be 
bright again soon. The horizon's always changing, it has to, 
it can't stay bright all the time, not during the night-time. 
But you're always sure that the next morning will be bright 
and warm once again."

                      
*****************************************

	The dawn wasn't quite the spectacle Selphie had hoped 
for. There was no morning chorus and no warmth in the air, 
just a bleak and dreary start to the day. Even the birds knew 
better than to venture out that day and remained safely 
tucked away in their warm little nests. 
Quistis slowly opened her eyes to the grey clouds and 
groaned. She felt bad enough as it was, Mother Nature sure 
knew how to make a person feel worse. Squall was already 
awake and buffing up his gunblade to give it a bit more 
shine. He mindlessly rubbed it with his leather rag and 
contemplated the events of the night before. He'd woken up 
hoping the whole thing was just a dream but Rinoa's frantic 
expression as he opened his eyes had assured him that 
there was a BIG situation going on. Rinoa watched Squall 
shining the gunblade; his mind 
looked like it was on something else, like his mind was flying 
in the clouds, away from his body. Despite her recent 
suspicions, Rinoa couldn't help but pity Squall. She knew 
that the whole group depended on him to get them safely 
home and to find Zell. She wandered over to him and parked 
herself on a rock next to him. 
	"You okay?" She enquired, bending down a little to 
catch his downward gaze. Squall caught sight of her 
concerned expression and smiled gratefully.
	"Yeah," he croaked, "just thinking, that's all." Rinoa 
nodded and looked down at the forest floor.
	"I think we've all been doing the same," she mused, 
"are we just going to carry on today? You know, as if we're 
tracking the other SeeDs." Squall considered this but shook 
his head.
	"No, I don't think so. We're going to head back to 
Trabia, hoping we run into the Gryphon again before we get 
there. That way, when and if we do encounter it, we'll be a 
little closer to help if we need it." Rinoa placed her hand on 
Squall's and smiled at him.
	"Squall," she began, "I...I'm sorry if I've been a bit 
offish with you lately. I'm just..." She paused, how could she 
explain to Squall that she was jealous of the attention he'd 
been giving Quistis? As she planned the words in her head, 
it sounded ludicrous. 'Oh well.'
	"I guess I've just been a little jealous, that's all." Squall 
raised his eyebrows and looked at her.
	"Jealous," he whispered so no one else could hear, "of 
what?" Rinoa shrugged her shoulders.
	"I...don't really know," she replied. This wasn't a lie. 
She really didn't know why she was jealous. There had 
never been a doubt in her head that Squall belonged to her, 
despite what they'd been through. He'd always gone out of 
his way to assure her of his eternal and honest love and 
she'd never had any reason to doubt it...until now. It wasn't 
that Squall wasn't acting differently, it was more Quistis. On 
several occasions Rinoa had caught Quistis looking at Squall 
secretly, thinking no one was looking. Rinoa would see this 
and ignore it, but 
not any more. If there was something going on, she wanted 
to know about it and she wanted to be the FIRST to know 
about it.
	"It's nothing I guess...I was just a little concerned." 
Squall placed his hand on her shoulder to comfort her and 
smiled.
	"Rinoa...I think we need to talk when we get back to 
Balamb....there's some things I need to clear up with 
you....and a few things have been weighing heavy on my 
mind." Rinoa nodded as he said this. This was what she'd 
been waiting for...a confession of feelings...or just Squall 
opening up to her and sharing his heart. Their relationship 
had started wonderfully but Rinoa was concerned that they 
didn't talk anymore....It was ruining everything. Rinoa finally 
smiled weakly.
	"Okay," she whispered, "I think we need it."

                  
********************************************

	"Selphie, I swear to the Gods if you even so much as 
TOUCH my knife once more I'm gonna rip your arms off!" 
Mishka scowled angrily at Selphie. Selphie pulled a face.
	"I was just looking, don't get so uptight...MOODY!" 
Mishka jumped up from her rock-seat.
	"That's it!" She screamed and ran in pursuit of the 
ever-disappearing figure of Selphie. She had starting 
running as soon as she'd said the words and yelped as she 
realised Mishka was a lot faster than she'd given her credit 
for. Sunlight was finally beginning to warm up the day, 
creating dappled shadows on the forest floor where the gang 
had pitched. From this soothing location, Irvine watched the 
commotion smiling. He knew that the two didn't really hate 
each other like they made out; deep down they'd like to be 
friends but he knew neither of them would ever admit that. 
'Selphie doesn't have it in her to hate," pondered Irvine. He 
watched as the two figures in the distance clashed. Mishka 
grabbed hold of Selphie's hair, pulling her off balance and 
landing her square on the floor. 'Ouch,' thought Irvine. 
Although the two were just figures in the distance, Irvine 
could hear Selphie's less than angelic screams as she was 
held down by a persistent Mishka. 
	"OH THAT'S DISGUSTING!" Mishka had picked up a 
huge bug and landed it on 
Selphie's squirming face. She giggled, as the many-legged 
creature made it's way over Selphie's features and towards 
her the opening of her mouth. Once it got close enough and 
she'd had her fun, Mishka picked it up and placed it on the 
grass, watching it scurry off. She jumped up and held out 
her hand to help Selphie up. Selphie scowled but accepted 
the help anyway, brushing down her dress to check for grass 
stains on her butt. Mishka smiled triumphantly, wearing a 
look of warning on her face implying that she might do it 
again.
	"So, do you have anything else to say?"  Selphie shot 
her an evil look and considered this for a moment.
	"Yeah, I think you're totally MEAN!" Mishka laughed.
	"Hah! That's what they all say." She picked up her 
fallen knife and went to clean the blade on the grass but 
noticed that a big fat slug had slithered onto it. Sensing the 
opportunity for more fun she held it up to Selphie's terrified 
face.
	"LUNCH-TIME, SELPHIE!"

                        
***************************************

	Squall surveyed the scene and finally realised that it 
would be up to him to tell everyone to leave. He whistled for 
attention. Everyone stopped what they were doing and 
looked up at him.
	"Sorry to be a kill-joy," he began, "but we really should 
be moving along now. We're going to head back to Trabia in 
the hope that we encounter the Gryphon again along the 
way." Aurora wasn't happy with this but realising that she 
wouldn't get a better deal, she nodded her head.
	"Okay, so is everyone ready to leave?" Several people 
held up their packed rucksacks as evidence of their 
preparation and Squall smiled. "Okay then, let's move out."
	Irvine hoisted his rucksack on his back and checked the 
forest floor for evidence that he'd left something behind. 
Mishka slung her bag on her back and hooked her arms 
around both straps. She glanced over at Irvine and noticed 
the glum expression on his face.
	"Is everything alright Irvine?" He nodded his head 
slowly but it was obvious his mind was elsewhere.
	"Yeah, I'm fine thanks, it's just...well I was really mean 
to Zell last night and....I feel kinda guilty for it." Mishka 
shook her head.
	"Irvine, you had nothing to do with Zell's 
disappearance, besides, he was mean to you first, right?" 
Irvine couldn't argue with that.
	"I guess so...I just wish I hadn't done it." 
	"I understand but don't worry, we're going to find him 
and when we do, you can apologise to him in person and 
demand an apology back!"

                   
*******************************************

	The comrades couldn't help but feel disheartened 
because they'd seen all the scenery once already in the last 
day and they were now doomed to wearily retrace their 
steps. Even the monsters couldn't be bothered to come out 
and fight and they only encountered a few Gaylas and a 
handful of Blue Dragons. The latter of which had provided 
the most fun when everyone had watched Rinoa happily skip 
off into the trees at the side and watched as she ran blindly 
out again, pursued by the huge beast. Once Irvine had 
finished laughing he went to tackle it, followed closely by 
Quistis and Gabriel. Gabriel's impressive harpoon gun 
attacks were surprisingly potent against the dragon and his 
use of Blind had meant that the Dragon was having a hard 
time seeing to attack. Irvine knew where he was with GFs 
this time and summoned Shiva once again, this time having 
a more destructive effect on the enemy. It wasn't long 
before the giant reptile was cowering defeated on the floor. 
For some reason, ba!
!
ttling wasn't quite as fun as it had been with Zell. He always 
seemed to spice it up and make it enjoyable rather than 
routine. These thoughts circulated the minds of each present 
but no-one mentioned anything, it was best not to under the 
circumstances. 

	It wasn't long before everyone was extremely bored 
again, none as bored as Mishka. She ran off into the 
distance ahead and when they finally caught up with her, 
they saw she was hacking a tree to pieces with her knife. 
Aurora saw her opportunity and skipped over to greet her. 
	"Watcha carving, Mishka?" She peered inquisitively 
over Mishka's shoulder. "What does it say? 'Mishka loves 
Irvine forever'?" Mishka shot her a wicked grin. 
	"Wouldn't you like to know!" She finished her 
dismantling of the tree and went to join the others, Aurora 
hot on her heels.
	"MISHKA! Wait!" Aurora panted as she speedily 
followed her friend. "I need to talk to you...seriously." 
Mishka raised her eyebrows slightly.
	"You? Be serious? Ha! That's a good one girl!" Aurora 
displayed the expression of mock hurt and jumped in front 
of her to block her way.
	"Hang at the back with me," she said, "I want to ask 
you a few questions." Mishka didn't like the sound of this; it 
sounded too searching for her liking. She nodded her head 
anyway and followed Aurora to the back of the advancing 
group. Aurora smiled and began whispering out of earshot of 
everyone else.
	"Mishka...you're not stupid...I know that...so you must 
have noticed the interest Irvine's been paying you." Mishka 
frowned; she didn't like this conversation already. She 
shrugged her shoulders.
	"So? What are you saying?" Aurora rolled her eyes.
	"I'm SAYING, do you like him?" Mishka DEFINITELY 
didn't like the conversation now and she contemplated 
whether to answer this extremely nosy question. 'What the 
hell,' she thought, 'it's only Aurora, I've trusted her with a 
lot of things over the years.'

	"If I tell you will you get off my back?" Aurora held her 
hands up.
	"Sure, sure!" She smiled. Mishka took a deep breath 
and turned to her friend. 
	"The answer's kinda...yes." Aurora squealed with 
delight.
	"You do! I knew you did! I gotta tell Irvine the answer's 
'yes'!" Mishka's expression changed.
	"Hey! You never said anything about telling people, 
especially not HIM!" Aurora rolled her eyes again.
	"Chill out, Mishka, I was kidding, of course I'm not 
going to tell him. I just wanted to know. So are you going to 
accept an offer if he presents you with one?"
	"Aurora...you know me better than anyone...you know 
that I couldn't..." Aurora nodded.
	"I know Mishka but...not ever? You have to get over 
this some day. What's it been now 5 years...6 years? I lost 
count. You can't let that determine the rest of your life." 
Mishka looked at the floor as she was walking. She knew 
Aurora was right, but she couldn't understand the fear she 
felt and the pain she'd endured. Despite this, though, it was 
obvious that Mishka was allowing the dire event to ruin her 
life, as much as she tried to deny it, it was true. She didn't 
mean to, but something like that does it for you, you can't 
really control it unless you're strong. Something Mishka 
realised she wasn't. She sighed.
	"I don't know if I'm strong enough to put it all behind 
me. There's a lot I could never forget...it...it's not easy 
Aurora, I need to be sure in myself." Aurora nodded as she 
listened intently to Mishka's thoughts. It wasn't that she 
didn't understand, she just wanted her to be happy in every 
possible way. She squeezed her friends arm warmly and 
smiled.
	"You take your time...no-one's gonna rush you. Make 
sure it's what YOU want." Mishka glanced sideways at her, 
her eyes silently thanking her for her concern and 
appreciating their friendship.

                           *****************************

	Finally the day wore thin and the sun completed it's 
course over the sky and decided to calmly settle on the 
distant horizon. A relaxing warm aura filled the air, allowing 
contentment to settle on the hearts of the wanderers. It had 
been a long day, there had been nothing new to see, they 
had trod this path the day before. On his right, Squall 
noticed what seemed like a cosy opening in the forest, 
surrounded by trees and perfect for a large group to settle 
for the night.
	"How about over there?" Squall pointed to the place in 
question and Quistis nodded.
	"It seems as good as any other place. Shall we stay 
here then?" Squall nodded and turned to the rest of the 
group.
	"We're going to stay here for the rest of the night if 
that's okay." He gestured with his hand to the opening but 
received no real acknowledgement or agreement from the 
rest of the group. They were all indifferent to where they 
stayed, as long as they could stop soon. Some, like Rinoa, 
felt like they could sleep on a clothes-line and wake up 
refreshed. Following Squall, the weary comrades veered off 
to the right and entered the cool and tranquil spot, allowing 
their heavy rucksacks to fall to the floor and breathing a sigh 
of relief. Mishka rubbed her tired eyes and slumped on the 
forest floor, getting a mouth full of dirt in the process. Squall 
surveyed the weary team and smiled, they weren't going to 
like what he was about to say.
	"Er..." Squall cleared his throat. "Don't get too 
comfortable tonight...it's best to stay dressed in your normal 
clothes in case we encounter the Gryphon again. In fact, it's 
probably best if we have a watch posted during the night 
because there's no saying how dangerous it'll be. I don't 
know if it intended to hurt any of us or whether it was after 
Zell and Zell only. This 
leads us to question whether it will return at all. It may have 
what it wants." The group realised the validity of this and 
their hearts sank further than before. Mishka sighed.
	"Let's just take the chance, but I can't guarantee I'll be 
awake enough to fight in the middle of the night."
	"Me neither," groaned Selphie. Aurora snorted.
	"Hah! What a loss to the team THAT would be!" Selphie 
scowled at her and folded her arms. Squall held back his 
smile, he didn't want to upset Selphie but these two were 
like a comedy act at times.
	"Enough of that," he mumbled, "let's just bed down and 
get something to eat, I'm starving."

                 
*****************************************

	The calm they had experienced the previous night was 
no longer evident in the night sky as no-one slept but gazed 
up at the twinkling stars. Quistis couldn't sleep. She had 
been trying so hard to keep her feelings concealed for the 
past two days that it was literally killing her. Her gut 
wrenched every time she saw Squall and Rinoa kiss or 
exchange the words of lovers. She hadn't realised the extent 
of her feelings until now and she realised that they were 
becoming too potent to just ignore. She couldn't dismiss 
them as being irrelevant, to her they were VERY 
relevant...and very painful. She calmly watched as a star 
seemed to move position and shoot across the dormant sky. 
She smiled, 'I'm not going to make a wish, in case it comes 
true.' She moved her head as she glanced at Squall, lying 
peacefully near her, Rinoa in his arms, breathing 
contentedly. Her smile faded and was replaced with more 
than a hint of torment as she contemplated what to do. 
Maybe she should talk to Squa!
!
ll...but what did she expect him to do or say? What could he 
do? 'He's in love with Rinoa and he's not going to appreciate 
a disturbance.' Quistis closed her eyes and allowed the 
searching fingers of sleep to seize her.
	Irvine took off his hat and placed it at his side for safe-
keeping. He lay back and closed his eyes. He could hear 
Mishka breathing heavily nearby, already succumbing to the 
drowsiness of sleep. Irvine smiled and turned over onto his 
side, content to listen to the relaxing sound all night.

			
	**************************************

	Aurora jumped, a faint rustling sound was being 
emitted in the trees on her right. She sat bolt upright and 
put out her hand to take hold of her mace. Feeling it's cold, 
metallic touch sent shivers up her spine and she opened her 
deep brown eyes. She was ready to tackle this beast, alone 
if necessary...no-one would take Zell away from her. She 
silently and effortlessly leapt to her feet and proceeded to 
tiptoe towards the sound. Mishka opened her eyes and 
noticed the figure of Aurora wander into the trees. She 
rolled her eyes and grabbed her dagger from the rucksack 
next to her, pretty sure of what had woken Aurora up. 
Strategically stepping over the mass of sleeping bodies, 
Mishka followed Aurora's shape before accidentally standing 
on Irvine's chest. He let out a muffled yelp and sat up 
quickly, his hair ruffled. Mishka opened her eyes widely and 
leapt down to put her hand over his mouth.
	"Shh," she whispered, "don't wake everyone up. I'm 
following Aurora, I think she heard something. Come with 
us, we'll probably need your help." Irvine looked slightly 
dazed but nodded anyway and picked himself up, putting his 
hat back to conceal the mass of tangles. Mishka giggled.
	"Hah!" She whispered, "now I know why you always 
wear that hat!"

	Irvine and Mishka cautiously followed the direction 
Aurora had gone in, reaching a clearing in the trees. They 
stopped short, mouths open and eyes staring in disbelief. 
Aurora was there swinging her mace wildly while the 
Herculean frame of the White Gryphon towered menacingly 
over her. Mishka swallowed hard and beckoned Irvine to 
follow her.
	"Aurora! Did you really think we'd let you fight this 
thing on your own?" Aurora turned round and an expression 
of relief and gratitude washed over her.
	"Mishka...I'm always glad to see you...but never more 
than I am now!" Aurora turned back to face the Gryphon 
and swung her mace, hitting the beast powerfully on it's 
beak. Mishka followed suit and slashed it's chest, inducing a 
screech of pain on the Gryphon's behalf. The Gryphon began 
to fade as it had done the previous night. Irvine noticed this.
	"Quick!" He screamed, "Grab hold of it!" Aurora and 
Mishka each clasped hold of an enormous wing and Irvine 
took hold of a plume of feathers behind. A brilliantly blinding 
flash of light followed and silence ensued. There was no-one 
left but six running figures, sprinting to the site of the 
disappearance.

                 ***************************************

	Zell's eyes opened into barely noticeable slits. The 
searing bright light was painful to his raw eyes and he lay 
still for a moment in silent contemplation, unsure of what to 
expect. There was no movement in the shadows surrounding 
him, what was he supposed to do now? Minutes of uneasy 
silence followed and Zell opened his eyes fully to take in his 
surroundings. Nothing special...in fact...nothing. He was 
bathed in an array of light but around him there was merely 
darkness and quiet.
	"No sense just lying around," he murmured to himself. 
With little effort despite the headache he was experiencing, 
he hoisted himself off the cold, stone ground. Still no 
movement or sign of life.
	"Ah, you're awake." The eerie and hauntingly familiar 
voice caught Zell off guard and he swung round to see the 
owner. The owner of the voice wasn't behind him, he was all 
around him...omnipresent. He heard the voice emit a drawn-
out, melodious laugh. 
	"Stop looking Zell, you won't see me. You're scared and 
you're angry aren't you?"
	"Who the hell are you?!" Shouted Zell, directing the 
comment to the air around him.
	"Don't screw with me, man! I ain't the type of person 
you want to be messing with...if you know what's good for 
you." The voice laughed again.
	"Or, you'll do what?" The voice enquired tauntingly, 
"You'll hurt your poor old father?" Zell narrowed his eyes as 
the figure of an ageing man materialised before his eyes.
	"Do you remember me, Zell, do you remember when 
you were little and how we used to play?"
	"I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HELL YOU'RE TALKING 
ABOUT! Just tell me who the hell you are!" The man was 
clothed in black velvet, reaching the floor. He held in his 
hand a staff that boasted beautiful and mysterious 
craftsmanship. He smiled at Zell and held out his hand.
	"I'm your father," he said solemnly, "if you don't 
believe that, don't accept my hand. If you do believe it, take 
hold and come with me." Zell felt a strange urge sweep 
through him, willing him to believe this withered old man. 
He placed his hand in the hand of the stranger's. Why was 
he doing this? He couldn't understand it but he felt the need 
for gratitude...a feeling of belonging...
	"Zell," the man began, " I've never had much to do 
with you as you were growing up but I come to you today to 
pass on the heritage that is owed to you." Zell shrugged his 
shoulders and shook his head to convey that he didn't 
understand. He squinted slightly and gazed into the eyes of 
this old man...in them, he saw himself...it was a 
reflection...not it wasn't, it was real. Zell shook his head 
furiously.
	"PLEASE!" he screamed, "I deserve an outright 
explanation!" The old man sighed. Suddenly a loud hissing 
noise filled the air. Zell jumped and looked up as the figures 
of Irvine, Mishka and Aurora came hurtling towards him.
	"Oh sh..." was all Zell could say before he was flattened 
to the ground. Mishka was the first to jump down and after a 
quick smile of apology directed at Zell, she drew her knife 
and aimed it in the old man's direction. He seemed 
undisturbed by the interruption and made no move. Irvine 
scrambled down off the pile of bodies, straightened his hat 
and pulled out his gun. Aurora would have been quite happy 
to stay there all day but she realised that in order for Zell to 
breathe, she'd have to remove herself from him.
	"Ah-hah, sorry Zell. Just dropping by!" She began to 
giggle hysterically and then stopped noticing the fact that 
Zell wasn't moving.
	"Oops!" she yelped and pulled up Zell's head by his 
hair.
	"You okay!" she yelled down his ear. He opened one 
eye and winced with the pain.
	"I would be," he muttered, "if we could stop meeting 
like this...I only ever seem to be looking up to you straight 
after an injury." Aurora giggled.
	"The way it should be..." she began, "seriously though, 
are you okay, where are we, who's that guy over there?" 
She pointed at the unmoving figure of the caped sorcerer 
who was staring rigidly at Zell.
	"Zell...we never finished our little conversation." 
	"WELL FINISH IT NOW!" Screamed Mishka, slightly 
unnerved by the change of surroundings and wholly 
suspicious of this magic-wielding weirdo. He laughed.
	"Patience my child," he grinned, walking towards Zell 
and putting out his hand to help him up. Zell ignored the 
hand and wiped the blood that had began to pour from his 
busted lip.
	"Just tell me," he croaked, "I don't want to stay here, 
tell me why you brought me here." The man sighed and 
nodded slowly.
	"It's very simple...I am your father...you are my 
son...and..." he paused, sadness filling his eyes, "and...I'm 
dying." Zell looked up at the man, confused and startled as 
to what to do next. 
	"I..." he began and then stopped. He didn't know 
whether to believe that this man was his father...but if he 
was, he was losing him.
	"I'm sorry to hear that," mumbled Zell, "but I have no 
reason to believe that what you are saying is true. What 
proof have you got to show me you're my father?" The man 
thought for a moment.
	"I don't know if you'd remember because I gave you up 
when you were very young. I do remember though taking 
you out to camp on the plains and looking up at the stars 
with you. I showed you the different constellations and...you 
made one up aswell. You saw Orion and I told you it was a 
mighty hunter so you called it... 'My heaven'. That's what 
you wanted to be Zell, a mighty hunter." Zell's eyes widened 
in disbelief. He recalled vague memories of the past when he 
used to love staring at the stars in the open fields 
because...it reminded him of his father. Zell swallowed as he 
felt tears rise up inside him.
	"Father..." he mumbled.
	"Son," his father whispered, "I've missed you." What 
followed was indescribable. The three onlookers watched as 
father and son took each other in their arms and hugged. 
Tears began to stream down Zell's cheeks, falling to create a 
small puddle on the floor. The old man held the boy tightly, 
never wanting to release this grasp. He'd been waiting to 
meet his son for so long. Finally they pulled away and Zell 
wiped his eyes furiously, ashamed to let the others see him 
show emotion. Aurora shook her head quietly and wandered 
forward, handing Zell a tissue. Zell looked up in surprise and 
cautiously took the tissue. Aurora smiled and nodded her 
head slightly, ushering him and his father to continue their 
reunion. Mishka sighed contentedly, this was truly a 
beautiful moment, she could feel everyone coming 
together...it made her wish... Irvine gazed down at her and 
smiled, he could see the effect it was having on Mishka, her 
eyes were slowly filling with tears or sentiment, almost ov!
!
erflowing and blurring her vision. For a reason he didn't 
know, he reached out his hand and placed it on her 
shoulder. She didn't jump or become startled, instead she 
moved close to him and put her head on his chest.
	"Father," Zell continued, " why have you waited till now 
to look for me?" The man cast his gaze downward.
	"I wasn't allowed to see you...until now, I was viewed 
as dangerous to your upbringing, you were meant to make 
up your own mind, choose your own path...without my 
influence." He looked directly at Zell. "I'm dangerous to you 
Zell." Zell's confusion heightened and he shook his head in 
confusion.
	"Wha? I don't understand. You're not 
dangerous...anymore. I'm grown now." The old man nodded 
his head and after a while found it within him to speak.
	"No, because I'm going to make you do something 
now...something you might not want to do." Zell took a step 
back and eyed his father suspiciously.
	"What exactly?"
	"You know that me and your Grandfather never got 
on...and I never approved of your aspirations to be like 
him..." Zell nodded his head as he remembered vaguely the 
stories of his father and grandfather's hatred for one 
another.	
	"I don't want you to follow your Grandfather's path...I 
want you to follow mine. I am dying, I may only have a 
matter of days to live and this sorcerer-hood is owed to you 
as my heir. Take this staff and take my place as a sorcerer, 
make me happy before I die. I have to pass the heritage 
on...or else my soul may never rest. Please." Zell frowned 
worriedly, he couldn't possible give up his whole life, 
everything he's worked for, for this.
	"I...I'm sorry..." he stammered, "I can't...if you want 
me to take that then you'll have to make me." The old man 
nodded his head as if he'd been expecting to hear that.
	"Very well," he whispered, "then I have no choice...I 
must pass on my powers by force." The old man cast back 
his velvet cape and seemed to grow before Zell's eyes. He 
was taller and more menacing. He grinned and readied 
himself for combat.
	"Please father," whispered Zell, tears forming in the 
corners of his tortured eyes, "Don't do this...I don't want to 
fight you...I couldn't hurt you." The man looked down at 
him.
	"You have wishful thinking if you think that you'll be 
able to inflict pain on me! I am one of the greatest sorcerers 
in history. BEHOLD! The glory of Heresetus...the most 
powerful sorcerer of your day!" He raised himself off the 
ground and the dark room was now illuminated with a 
brilliant blue colour. Flashes of gold glinted from his finger-
tips as if summoning an awesome power. Zell straightened 
himself up and took a sad step forward.
	"Then I have no choice," he said with regret. Aurora, 
Mishka and Irvine stepped out of the shadows wielding their 
various weapons.
	"You'll never be alone Zell," whispered Aurora, "we'll 
stand by you every step of the way." Zell's face filled with 
gratitude and sentimentality. Irvine stepped forward and 
patted Zell on the back.
	"Let's put the past few days behind us...we're standing 
here as friends...united and proud."
	"Till the end," added Mishka stepping up behind Irvine. 
She put her arms around Zell and squeezed him tightly.
	"We're here for you," she said as she pulled away. Zell 
sniffed and restrained a tear.
	"Thanks you guys..." Sorcerer Heresetus became 
impatient and struck Aurora's hand with a fire attack, 
causing her mace to fall to the floor and for Aurora herself to 
fall down after it screaming with pain.
	"THAT'S IT!" Screamed Zell he stepped further forward 
followed by his comrades, "We settle this now." Zell punched 
his hand hard, Irvine readied his gun and Mishka helped 
Aurora off the floor. They ran to join the combat line.
	Zell's eyes glinted with fire and sadness.
	"I'm sorry Father," he muttered, before launching 
himself at the levitating figure and striking his body.		
	
  



                               TO BE CONTINUED.....

I realise that this one's not perfect but I'll welcome any 
comments, suggestions and criticisms (I can take them!)Just 
drop me a line and tell me what you thought! Part 4 will be 
with y'all shortly!
                                Rinoa@angelic.com