Welcome to my most recent, and fantastically revamped, Final Fantasy VII fanfic.
Disclaimer: None of the Final Fantasy characters belong to me, but my originals (Izaak, Kyoko, Lujah, Kuro, Disota) belong to me. Thank you! Please enjoy.
Final Fantasy VII: Shadows of the Past.
Chapter 1
Two young figures walked down the hallway of a large building. They looked like they had a reason to be in that building, but were making no signs of being in a rush. The young man tilted his head slightly toward the girl. "We're almost there. I hope you're prepared." He said in an almost mocking tone.
The girl looked up at him sharply. "I'll be fine, Izaak. I don't need your concern." She snapped back. The boy, Izaak, smirked and then paused in front of a door that seemed to lead into an unnamed room. The girl stopped beside him, clenching her hands into fists.
Izaak nodded at the girl, and she kicked her leg out in a swift motion, taking the door off it's hinges. Izaak pulled his sword out of the sheath quick as lightning, but saw there was nothing in the room. At least, from what he could see from the doorway.
He lowered his sword slightly and walked inside. "Well done, Kyoko." He commented as he walked inside the room. He glanced here and there cautiously, keeping his sword slightly raised.
Kyoko frowned at him and followed him in, keeping her fists up and ready. Izaak glanced around the room, then in a sharp, quick movement he looked up into the corner of the ceiling and saw a strange beast hanging there.
Without a word he jumped up towards it, slashing with a wide motion. The creature looked like some sort of demented wolf. It's teeth were long and stained with blood of other victims.
Kyoko spun around quickly and gasped. "Izaak! You can't fight it alone! Come on!" She shouted, sounding annoyed. He always seemed to take the first leap, leaving her behind.
Izaak ignored Kyoko, as usual, and managed to cut the creature down it's back, but the wound wasn't deep enough. Izaak pushed off the wall and flipped backwards, landing on his feet. The creature fell to the ground with a thud, but scrambled back up to his feet and lifted it's large clawed paw to slash at Izaak and Kyoko.
Kyoko evaded easily, but Izaak blocked the paw with his large blade, and then thrust at it in a quick motion.
The beast roared in the shock of pain and reared up on its hind legs. Kyoko ran forward, leaping into the air and kicked powerfully.
"Kyoko! Get out of the way!" Izaak shouted. Kyoko glared at him, but quickly got out of the way. Izaak then unleashed a powerful attack that took the beast down.
Izaak smirked triumphantly and twirled his sword once before replacing it in its sheath. Kyoko crossed her arms, frowning. "Why didn't you let me help you? You did everything but knock down the door. It's not fair, Izaak, we're supposed to work together." She said. He always seemed to like to do things his own way, and he never gave her a chance.
Before Izaak could answer the room suddenly seemed to disintegrate around them and they were in a much smaller room that seemed almost like a steel box with a glass door and windows on one end.
A woman walked into the room, shaking her head. "What do I have to do to get you to work with Kyoko, Izaak?" She asked. She looked very serious and she crossed her arms over her chest. She seemed displeased about what she had witnessed.
Izaak crossed his arms in response. "She's useless when it comes to those beasts. A few swipes of my sword and it's down. I don't need her." He said matter-of-factly.
The older woman sighed and tilted her head. Her blonde hair moved with the motion and revealed an eye-patch across her left eye. She had a serious look in her other eye, however. "One day you'll realize how important it is to work with a teammate. Even if that day is the day you die, Izaak. Which is completely possible." She said firmly. She disliked having to be so brutal with her students, but Izaak was refusing to learn this one important lesson she taught all her students.
Izaak's brow furrowed. "That doesn't make any sense, Lujah. If I'm dead, it won't help me." He replied in that defiant way he always did. He wasn't a big fan of authority, it seemed. He had at least made that evident.
"She'll have to clean up your mess, though." Lujah stated. Then she pointed at him. "And what if you only got injured, but it was impossible for you to contribute to the fight? It would leave that entirely up to Kyoko, and no matter how strong she is it could end horribly. That would be on your shoulders. Until I say you can work alone, Izaak, you are to practice working with Kyoko."
Kyoko huffed. "I can defeat anything in my way, too. I'm not helpless." She said. She sounded genuinely insulted.
Lujah reached out and put her hand on Kyoko's head. "I know you aren't. You both have your strengths and weaknesses." She said as she glanced at Izaak. "Some are becoming more evident than others."
"I'm going to make it so that one day I have no weaknesses." He said firmly.
"Every warrior has his weaknesses, Izaak. It's just how things are. Everyone cherishes something, and losing that something is usually their undoing." Lujah explained. "But most of the time those "weaknesses" can also be our strengths. Something that leads us to fight ever harder."
"I don't need your lectures. I've heard them all." He cut her off as he began walking toward the door to leave the training facility.
"Izaak Strife, I'm your trainer. I'm a weapons master. I've seen almost every warrior in action because of all the wars that have taken place here, and I've fought in most of those wars, too. Don't think that you know everything so soon." Lujah said with a frown. She couldn't take his defiant attitude much more.
Izaak looked back at her. "Then why don't you tell me more about Sephiroth? He's the one I want to know about. The one I want to learn from." He said. His tone changed a bit here. It was less sharp and maybe a little more sincere. That always disturbed Lujah.
Kyoko frowned. "Sephiroth's bad, Izaak! He's hurt Mom and Dad many times!" She shouted. Why was it that he never understood the pain that Sephiroth caused to the world?
"They're not even my real parents, Kyoko. Like I care." He snapped.
"They're not my real parents either, Izaak! But they're taking care of us and we should be grateful!" Kyoko said. Her tone was very upset now.
"Kyoko. Izaak. Not now." Lujah said. Then she looked at Izaak. "If you really want to learn how he wielded his sword and how he fought, perhaps I can teach you some of it. I could teach you the basics of wielding such a sword, anyway. However, the rest you will learn on your own by finding your own style."
Kyoko's eyes widen in utter shock, and Izaak smirked. "That's all I ask." He said.
"Fine. I really doubt you'll find another sword like Masamune, so you will have to make due with what you own. But if you ever do come upon a sword as long as Masamune was, perhaps you'll be able to actually use the fighting style." Lujah said. She shook her head a bit. "It's pretty useless without such a sword."
Izaak blinked, then unsheathed his sword and looked at the length. It was nowhere near Masamune's length, and was broader. He sighed. "I'll find a sword long enough, then." He said. Then he walked out of the room.
Kyoko opened her arms in a gesture of surprise, and perhaps annoyance. "Master Lujah, how could you tell him such things! He's going to hurt people…he idolizes Sephiroth!" She exclaimed.
Lujah smiled weakly. "I know, Kyoko, but I can't refuse to teach him a fighting style. It's only a fighting style, after all. Under other circumstances Sephiroth could have been a great man. But I won't get into that right now. What I mean is that Izaak can use this for good. I think he has a good heart…he's just losing confidence in Cloud." Lujah explained slowly.
"Dad's a good man! He's done everything to help this planet!" Kyoko exclaimed.
"You don't need to tell me that, Kyoko. I know his deeds. I've witnessed a few of them." She said with a shrug. Then she looked at the young girl. "But tell me, what do you want to do with your life? Do you have a goal in mind?"
Kyoko scratched her head. "Well…I'd like to become an accomplished fighter like my Mom." She said.
Lujah smiled slightly. "Ah yes. Tifa is a good, strong role model." She said with a nod.
"And…I want to be strong like Dad too." She added quietly.
Lujah patted Kyoko's shoulder. "I know you'll end up being strong like they both are." Lujah chuckled softly. "You'll be just fine, Kyoko. Don't let Izaak put you down."
Kyoko smiled. "I won't! Thanks Master Lujah!" She said. Then she walked out of the room.
Lujah stared after her and sighed. "This is going to be interesting." She muttered. Then she turned and walked off into her dojo room area. It was time to let off some steam.
Please leave a review. Thank you! - Nethwen.