Quest

by scribblemoose

Frila gripped her gunblade firmly in both hands, and forced herself to look inside the cave.

It was just a cave. Big hole in the side of a mountain. Nothing special. Kind of like a room but without the carpet.

She took a deep breath, and stepped inside.

It was dark. Absolutely pitch dark, her eyes slow to adjust after the bright sunshine outside. She heard Squall's voice echoing in her head: you don't need to see your opponent. If you concentrate you'll know they're there. Quistis' voice: if you do this right, the most dangerous thing in that cave will be you.

Yeah, right. She didn't feel dangerous. Last night in that nightclub, dressed in her tiniest leather mini skirt and kick-ass boots, seeing off every man who dared so much as look at her with a Leonhart-trademark glower, then she'd felt dangerous.

Not so much now. Now she felt like a silly little girl with a gunblade that was far too big for her.

You died in a cave like this, her own voice told her. Just like this. Because you thought you were brave and unconquerable. You died.

She forced herself to take another step.

She'd made a promise. She couldn't protect Sanke if she didn't graduate, and this test, like all the others, was compulsory.

Her boots crunched on gravel, the noise echoing off the walls of the cave, a firm, reassuring sort of sound.

It didn't matter that she was afraid. SeeDs were probably afraid all the time, except maybe Squall. It wasn't how afraid you were. It was how much you let it get to you.

Just a feeling. She took a deep breath. So what if her stomach was curling in on itself and her hands were clammy and shaking, and her mind was screaming at her to run? It didn't matter. All she had to do was stand her ground and...

She'd spun and slashed and shot before she really registered what was happening. Picked up movement out of the corner of her eye, heard the unmistakable whirring hiss of a buel and attacked. Fire monster. She smoothly channelled ice magic down the length of her blade courtesy of the silent Guardian in her head. Killed it in a single blow. Caught the magic stone that fell from the sky where it vanished before it even hit the ground. Done. Quest accomplished.

She took a last look around the cave. Victory should be singing in her ears, vanquishing her fears, rendering her strong and whole.

She'd died in a cave like this.

Frila turned on her tail and fled.