So recently I finished Crisis Core, after about 50 hours, completing all the missions, getting most of the godly materia and items and had a cakewalk with the final boss. Then the ending came on and I swear, it was like the only game ending where I actually cried. I mean I played FFVII and I didn't really care when Aeris died, for some reason. But man, Zack was a great guy and he gets way too little credit/exposure than he deserves. Zack's the 1st class Soldier that nearly defeats Sephiroth but Cloud gets credit for that. Zack's the guy who takes down a whole platoon of the Shinra army and effectively protects Cloud but Cloud's the only one that makes it out alive. Zack's the guy who tried so hard to see Aeris again and Aeris falls for Cloud, whom she admits to liking partly because he reminded her of Zack. I really think that Zack gets the short end of the stick. So I decided to have a whole bunch of one-shots dedicated to the one, the only Zack Fair. There will also be aspects of other relationships and characters throughout.
So, enjoy.
The two giggling, screaming kids ran into the living room, running around in circles before finally clambering onto the young man sitting on the couch, trying to watch T.V.
The man frowned, he had a very hard day and the last thing he wanted was the two bubbly, bags of energy clinging onto him.
"Isn't it past your bedtime?" he asked gruffly, brows furrowed.
"Story! Story!" the little pig-tailed girl on his right arm screeched.
The slightly older, spiky-haired boy on his left arm had a similar frown as the man, "Yeah it's supposed to be your turn to tell us a bedtime story."
The man sighed; it didn't look like he was going to get the peaceful, quiet evening he wanted. He shot a quick glance at the woman in the kitchen, cleaning up the dishes. It didn't look like he was going to get to wheedle his way out of this either.
He shook the two kids off his arms and made them sit on either side of him. He quickly scanned the room. Story...story...what story did he have that he could tell some kids? His eyes came to rest of the large buster sword set besides the T.V.
"Hey have you guys ever heard of the story of Zack Fair?"
The little girl giggled as she chewed on a finger, "Hey! He has the same first name as you."
The little boy named Zack frowned even more, if that was even possible, "Who's that?"
The man made a mock gasp of surprise, "You've never heard of Zack Fair?"
The two young children shook their heads, slowly, solemnly. "Was he a very famous person?" the little girl inquired inquisitively.
The man shook his head slowly, as if disappointed, "I don't know what they teach you in school if they've never taught you the exploits of Zack Fair. Famous? The guy was a hero."
The little girl looked at him with wide, gleaming eyes, "Is he famouserer than you, Daddy?"
The man chuckled, "To me, yes he is."
Zack frowned. He didn't quite believe his dad. How could this guy be more famous than his dad if he never even heard of him?
"Is he stronger than you?"
The man chuckled again, "Probably. In more ways than one."
Zack frowned again. From what he knew his dad was pretty strong, so it was hard to imagine someone stronger than him.
"So what did he do?"
The man smiled sadly now, "What did he do? We should start with who he was. Zack Fair was a country boy, very much like me, born and raised in Gongaga. He was a dreamer. He joined Shinra because he had hopes and dreams. He quickly climbed up the ranks and became one of the youngest to obtain the title of 1st class SOLDIER."
"SOLDIER?" the little girl interrupted, "Weren't those the guys that hurt you?"
"Yes but Zack was different from the people that hurt me. Did you know that before I became famous I was really weak? I never even made it into SOLDIER; I was just a lowly infantryman of the army. Everyday I would think of quitting and the only thing keeping me from doing so was the fear of failure. Even then I had almost reached my limits. Then I met Zack. When I first met him, he was already a 1st class SOLDIER. 1st class had always seemed like an unattainable goal for me. But Zack was different than what I expected. He was more down-to-earth. When he found out we were both country boys we immediately hit it off. I told him my hopes and dreams and he encouraged me, unlike my Academy classmates who ridiculed me when I couldn't even take my first mako injection. He was always telling me to just keep trying and how he used to be just like me. He was normal, someone you talk to about your everyday troubles, unlike the well-known 1st class hero Sephiroth."
"Zack knew Sephiroth too?" the little girl asked, playing with the ends of her hair.
"Yeah, in fact did you know that Zack nearly defeated him when he went mad?"
The little boy, Zach frowned, "But I thought you were the one that beat Sephiroth like three times."
The man frowned at this; he didn't like how little credit Zack was given, "The last two times were me and even then I had my teammates with me. But the first time was mostly all Zack. Zack was the one who wounded him and he would've won if Sephiroth didn't have the advantage of Jenova cells inside him. I just managed to give the final blow. If I had to fight Sephiroth with the skills and strength I had back then, I would've most definitely died."
"What happened after that?"
"I suffered a very deep wound from the confrontation and I collapsed, blacking out. After that was one big blur. I could only remember bits and pieces. Apparently Hojo and Shinra brought us back to this manor to perform experiments on me and Zach. These experiments went on for four years and would've went on for longer if Zack hadn't broken free of his test tube. He carried me, sick from mako poisoning out of that horrible place. Even though I was nothing more than a burden, he carried me everywhere, escaping the grasps of Shinra as he desperately tried to reach Midgar so he could see the girl he loved at least one more time."
He stopped suddenly, feeling a little choked up as he remembered the next sequence of events. He smiled faintly, "Hey did you know that Zack Fair brought down a whole army just by himself?"
Two small gasps, "Really?"
He nodded slowly, "Yep, he brought down a whole army, using just his sword. But even so, it was too much for just a single man. He suffered mortal wounds and I didn't, couldn't help him at all. But you know what? He never blamed me. Instead he said I was to live on, as his living legacy. He considered me, a useless weakling not only as his friend but even as his legacy. He made me into the man I am today. I grew strong in order to not shame his legacy."
By now the kids were starting to drift off, Zack mumbled sleepily, "He really does sound like a hero. I'm glad you gave me the same name. I just wish I could..meet...him..."
The man smiled wistfully, "Yeah. He was a good man. He even helped me get the girl I love." He glanced at the raven-haired woman who had finished washing the dishes and emerged from the kitchen to listen to him tell the story, remembering how Zack helped him get over his mental anguish from even beyond the grave. He smiled faintly at the woman and she smiled back.
"What happened to the girl he wanted to see?" The girl mumbled as she cuddled up to the man's side.
"They're together, somewhere. Somewhere where they can be happy together forever."
"I hope...I'll...grow up...to be like...you...and him..." the boy managed to say before finally dozing off.
"Zack Fair was a great man. He was strong, determined, optimistic and kind. He was a dreamer. He was a fighter. He was a hero. And most of all...he was my best friend." Cloud said, ruffling his sleeping son's spiky hair, "But I'm sure you'll grow up to be just as great as him." and he smiled down at his sleeping face.
And somewhere, somewhere Cloud knew Zack was smiling down at him.
Sigh...writing this reminded me of the ending which caused me to tear up again. Yeah, Cloud got over his whole isolationism stage and if you can't guess who the woman is then you shouldn't be reading this. Yeah, there is no little girl's name. I'll leave it to your imagination. You can guess but most likely you'll be wrong. Look forward to the next one I guess?