The approached the oddity cautiously, but Zell began to rush forward as he realized one of the figures out there was Lina. Indeed, the three girls were joined by hands in a circle, a thin lady standing in the middle. She seemed to be muttering some sort of incantation in a low murmur foreign to any of the guys. In front of each girl stood a marble pedestal, holding a bowl partially filled with crimson blood. Next to the bowls lay a sword, different for each person.
Zell jumped in without thinking, reaching out as he neared to pull Lina out of the frightening circle, but as soon as the white light touched his hand, he was thrown back some ways. Frustrated, he attempted communication, "Lina! Lina, stop! What's going on!?"
"She can't hear you," Seifer appeared from no where right behind Zell, his gunblade in his hand. Zell turned around and held his fists up in a stance; Seifer's familiar smirk always had a propensity to make Zell recall previously abated anger. Abrasive behavior would mean nothing from here on. Zell raged towards him in an angry wrath, grabbing Seifer by the shirt and cursing loudly.
"YOU! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO HER?" Zell demanded to know, but Seifer just smirked and looked away coolly like it was none of his business. "TELL ME!" Zell pulled a fist back to punch, but Seifer broke free and dusted himself off before Zell could execute a move or render him unconscious. Zell glanced in Lina's direction desperately, but she was completely immersed underneath the light and therefore untouchable.
"They're under a spell, if you must know," Seifer muttered as Squall and Irvine caught up with Zell. "The process is almost complete and I would appreciate if you didn't interrupt." Zell stared at him incredulously, but his smirk did not falter. "Soon, they will be under absolute control." Seifer laughed as if this was the most hilarious thing he'd ever heard, and with Zell, who was a good two inches or so shorter than Seifer, so fired up about it, it very much might as well have been.
"I'M GONNA BEAT YOUR ASS!" Zell yelled as he lunged and crashed a knuckled fist right into Seifer's face. He recoiled and looked up--his eye was black and blue just like that. Seifer gripped his gunblade and slashed away mercilessly. Irvine and Squall stood to the side, watching the two duke it out, quite shocked at Zell's aggression and Seifer's dirty tricks.
"Hey Squall. Correct me if I'm wrong, but um... shouldn't we be helping?" Irvine asked Squall. For a moment there was no response, but then Squall shrugged and strode into the fray with his gunblade out casually. Irvine followed shortly after with Exeter in hand. Soon enough, Seifer was being ambushed.