9

Climbing back to consciousness wasn't nearly as easy as going under had been. I came awake, but was so groggy for a moment or two that if there had been any danger at that instant, I would have been helpless to fight it. Blurry vision, a sticky mouth, pain behind my eyes as if they had been exposed to sudden bright light despite the fact that it was pitch black were my companions as I once again joined the world of the living.

Of course, having my hands and feet tied down served to bring me awake a bit faster, especially when the bonds were as tight as these were. When your arms and legs are tied down at very peculiar angles, one tends to realize much more quickly that they dreaming.

"Ah, so she awakens. Very good."

I wasn't prepared to deal with any threats at the moment - heck, I doubted I would be with ten minutes to recuperate, I was still so out of it - so I froze. A faint chuckle from somewhere to my right indicated that I had amused the owner of the voice and the upwelling of annoyance further served to make me more aware of my surroundings. Only...at that moment, there *were* no surroundings, at least none that I could see. It was pitch black and utterly silent, the darkness almost suffocating; I had no idea whether I was in a broom closet or a huge warehouse. A trickle of impatience flowed up my spine and I asked the darkness, "Selphie? Squall? Seifer? Zell?"

"They're not here," a sultry male voice echoed through the darkness, a note of amusement evident. Then silence again.

It's not a pleasant feeling to be helpless in the dark, alone with an enemy you can't see; your mind starts to play tricks on you, making you think you see movements where there are none. I kept my eyes focussed straight ahead, determined to keep any uneasiness I might be feeling as far from the surface as possible.

Somewhere behind me the man clucked his tongue, making tsk-ing noises as if chiding a child. "My dear Quistis, there is no need to fear me. I am simply a messenger of news."

"How do you know who I am?" I asked, my voice neutral.

"Who does not know of the great Quistis Trepe?" he replied grandly, his voice moving around to my left. I could hear the very faint sound of clothing, and focussed on that. "You and your friends are, suffice to say, very famous nowadays."

"What have you done with them?" I asked coldly, testing my bonds yet again. They were tied securely yet not so tight as to cut off circulation, and seemed to be made of a soft fabric. The more I moved the less they felt like rope or wire, but that didn't make it any less sturdy of a fabric.

"You needn't worry about your friends, Ms. Trepe," he replied smoothly. "They are safe and sound far from here. To be quite honest, it was you who I was wanting to catch up with."

Instead of asking why, I remained silent. It wasn't very difficult to tell that he was baiting me, waiting for me to ask him for the reason we had been taken. I refused to allow him any upper hand; having me tied and, Hyne help me, helpless would be all I'd give him. In addition to that... I wasn't sure I could keep my words as composed as I had before; there was something very strange about his voice that gave me butterflies in my stomach.

The minutes stretched by as neither of us spoke, then I heard him chuckle to my left again. "I admire your stubbornness, my dear, but our time grows short. I must tell you something that will be of great importance to you later..."

"Then why attack us if you had only a message?" I interrupted, a little anger unwillingly leaking into my voice. I cursed inwardly, struggling to gain back control over myself. Something about the voice was ... was ... I don't know how to describe it, but my mouth had gotten suddenly dry, my brain felt like it was fogging over, my breathing was beginning to come in short pants...

"It wasn't I who attacked you." A bit of consternation had leaked into his voice as well, but somehow I knew it wasn't directed at me. "They are who you should be fearing, not myself. That they got past my guard so easily..." Clothing rustled loudly and footsteps could now be heard, albeit faintly, moving around my front and up to my right. Another rustle, and I knew that he had kneeled beside me. I couldn't see him, couldn't hear him, but I knew he was right there not three feet away from me; my heart wouldn't stop hammering. Him speaking seconds later confirmed it.

"For what is coming, you will need to be strong." His voice sounded as though it were mere inches away from my ear, yet I didn't feel any breath.

"W..what are you d-doing to me?" I murmured, my voice breathy and a great deal less forceful than I'd have liked. Ah Hyne, his coming closer had amplified the sensation, and I had to grit my teeth to keep from moaning.

He himself drew in a shaky breath and I had a sudden suspicion that, in spite of his own calm voice, he was being affected as well. Whether his being affected was less than mine or he had more self control than I did was unknown, but again clothes rustled as he drew away. The effect was that the sensations lessened but didn't leave, not by a longshot.

"It's an unfortunate side affect of who we are," he explained, his voice oddly strained. "Although I had not thought it would be like this so soon..."

"What do you mean, what we are?" The distance allowed me a moment to collect myself and my voice no longer shook, although it sounded strained to my ears.

Silence reigned, then my unseen captor let out a sigh. "I made a mistake in seeking you out so soon when I myself was not ready for this."

I had no idea what he was talking about, and repeated my question, "What did you mean by that, what we *are*?"

"All in due time, my dear Quistis," he murmured, his voice farther away now. "This meeting was premature, yet I don't regret meeting you. I should have waited though, I only sought to warn you..." His voice trailed off, then he began to murmured something in a language I didn't know. As I knew all the languages of this world as well as a few dead ones, this bothered me.

"I must wipe away this memory," he muttered, the sultry tone to his voice gone as he concentrated. "I only wished... Quistis, you must be careful in the coming days. Something is after you, and will stop at nothing to get to you and what you represent."

"Wha..." He had said the last bit very quickly, immediately picking up the chanting again. "You're not just a messenger are you? Wait, why do you... Don't--"

A burst of energy filled my chest as one of my junctioned Guardian Forces burst forth, called by the man before me. I was helpless to stop it; once a GF is released no force on this earth could stop it.

Quezacotle filled the room, his unearthly screech filling the space. The darkness was rent immediately by the GF's lightening, momentarily blinding me.

"If nothing else, remember to beware the coming danger," my captor's voice whispered behind me. "We cannot finish this if you are lost."

"What do you mean --" Any words I might have said stuttered to a halt as a gloved hand cupped the side of my face. Flames, both hot and cold, raced through my body and blanked my mind as my back arched out of the chair. I heard Quezacotle's answering roar, then nothing as everything once again went black.