Ok, this is my first attempt at a Final Fantasy VII fanfic so... Well go gentle on me.
This story takes place 2 years after Dirge of Cerebrus.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Final Fantasy VII or any of it's characters, this is created for fun.
Final Fantasy VII
Return to Arms
Chapter 1: Reunion of Friends.
A desert plain... Barren and deserted. Dry, hot wind swept over the plains, kicking up sand. Aside from some reptilian lifeforms, nothing stirred. Except for a blonde man wearing an indigo sweater, loose trousers and brown boots who was trying to get his motorcycle to work.
"What a great place to break down..." the man said as he wiped the sweat of his brow.
The 26 year old Cloud Strife sat down and inspected other parts of his bike, not knowing what was wrong.
"Why didn't I listen to Tifa when she said to get you checked Fenrir..." Cloud said.
He sighed and got back up, taking his cellphone.
"Lets see now... I hope he's awake..." he said while he looked around him.
After the third beep, a rough manly voice cracked through the phone. "Yellow! This is Cid Highwind speaking."
"Ah! Cid! It's me, Cloud."
"Cloud? Haha! How are you doing my boy?" Cid answered, joy reflecting in his voice.
"Well, I'm doing pretty well... But-"
"Still in the delivery business?"
"Yeah, but-"
"That's good. Say how's Tifa? I haven't really heard much from her past 2 years... It's been since Vince's battle with that WEAPON!"
"She's alright, but Cid, listen... I've got a question."
"Really Cloud? Well shoot!"
"Um... Could you pick me up? My bike has broken down and well... I'm stuck in the Desert."
"... Why didn't you say that immediately?! I'll go and get Barret, I think he'll like to see you too! Where exactly are you Cloud?"
"In the Desert near Cosmo Canyon. Past the Crater that Ultimate Weapon left."
"I'll be there in a jiffy! See ya Cloud!"
The line was disconnected and Cloud put away his phone.
"Well... Now all I have to do is wait..."
He sat down on his bike and stared at the rock faces before him. A cold shiver shot through his spine, something that was quite impossible in this heat. He clicked open the Sword Carrier on Fenrir and grabbed one of his blades. He could feel something was looking at him, just behind him.
He turned around, only to be pushed to the ground by something strong, big, hairy and... Red?
"Ah! N-Nanaki?" Cloud uttered as he saw the bestial head before him.
"Hm... This is rare! Catching the one and only Cloud Strife off guard."
"Well, this Desert might do that to you when you're not used to it!" Cloud laughingly said.
Nanaki got off of Cloud and sat down next to him.
"So, what brings you to this barren place Cloud? On Delivery Service?"
Cloud sat up and chuckled. "Yeah, but my bike broke down. Cid is going to pick me up and give me a ride. He'll know what to do."
Nanaki nodded and stared at the sky. "You know... I had a feeling that I'd bump into you today... Don't ask me how, but I knew..."
"Developing psychic powers?" Cloud jokingly asked.
"Doubt it... But I've been feeling restless... As if something is about to happen."
Cloud stared at the ground. "Lets hope it ain't bad..."
"I'm hoping the same Cloud..."
"Well, it won't be Sephiroth... I've taken care of him."
"That's what we thought last time Cloud... But don't forget... He has a tendency to return."
Cloud nodded and sighed.
"We've been through a lot Nanaki... I hope we don't have to go through anything like that again."
Nanaki smiled. "If you're this planet's defender... Then you'll have to honor the Call to Arms."
Cloud nodded and got up. He picked up his blade that had been flicked away after Nanaki had jumped on top of him. He put it back into the Carrier and shut it.
"It's been a while since I've used these... Heh, maybe I'm getting out of shape."
"All you need is a little spar to get your spark back... Care for a little fun and games Cloud?"
Cloud grinned. "Alright. No weapons, hand to... Paw only. Sounds good?"
"Great."
Cloud stepped away from his bike. "Come on then!"
Nanaki jumped over the bike and followed Cloud. They stood before each other, a cocky grin on both of their faces. Nanaki lowered his head and got into a pouncing position.
"I'm not going to go easy on you Cloud."
"Same here Nanaki."
The red Wolf-Lion jumped towards Cloud, who nimbly dodged and tried to grab Nanaki's tail. With a spin, Nanaki got his tail out of Cloud's reach and landed before him. He rushed at Cloud, trying to run him over, but a the Ex-Soldier rolled out of the way.
Nanaki was trying to find some weakness in Cloud's defense but saw none. Suddenly, Cloud disappeared out of Nanaki's sight.
"What the-" the Wolf-Lion exclaimed as Cloud reappeared in the air above him. He extended his finger and gave Nanaki a playful tap on his head.
"Tag, you're it!" he said, somersaulted over the beast and landed behind his friend.
"Seems like I didn't lose my abilities!" Cloud exclaimed, grinning.
"No..." Nanaki answered. "But you have become... Much lighter in spirit. I'm amazed Cloud."
"Well... Let's just say that I... Came to terms with my past. I wasn't able to save Zack or Aerith... But I was able to save this world... Twice even!" Cloud said, as he looked up to the sky. "Both Zack and Aerith would have been very angry at me if I chose to save them instead of this place. They're happy together... In the Lifestream. So, why shouldn't I be happy here?"
Nanaki nodded and walked up to him. "The Sins of the Past cannot be undone, but they can be forgiven."
"Yep." Cloud said, and he grinned widely. "The world has changed for the better..."
He walked back to his bike and sat down. "Well... What I do like to know Nanaki... You see Vincent more than us, right?"
"Probably, yes. Why?"
"Well... How is he?"
"He's fine... He fights crime now... Like a Hero some sort."
Cloud smiled. "A Hero? Heh, and I half expected he'd be sleeping in a coffin again."
Nanaki shook his head. "She wouldn't let him do that."
"She? Who's that?"
"Well..."
"Evildoers tremble in fear! The Heroine of Wutai, the amazing Yuffie is here!" The 21 year old yelled as she struck a pose, thrusting her oversized Shuriken into the air. Her black hair moved in the wind as she grinned widely. She looked down from the branch she was standing on and sighed.
"As always..."
She jumped down and landed next to a man with black hair, a red bandana and a red coat covering his black clothes.
"Hey, Vincent, lighten up!" she says as she looked down at the silent form of Vincent Valentine.
He doesn't respond, doesn't even move.
"Hey, don't play dead with me Vincent! I know you're immortal!"
Vincent finally opened one of his eyes and looked at the cheery girl next to him
"For your information... I was sleeping."
"Sleeping?! You didn't even see my new move?"
"Don't tell me you've been practicing Victory Poses again..."
"Yes, as a matter of fact I did! And it's much better than anything you could think of!"
Vincent closed his eyes and shook his head. "I don't do Victory Poses Yuffie..."
"What? That's the best part of being a Hero!"
"I'm not a Hero!" Vincent replied irritated as he got up. "I just help those who need help."
"Like a Hero... Just say it: Hero."
"I don't know why I let you tag along with me."
Yuffie gave Vincent a naughty smile and replied. "My unbelievable will and passion? My smarts? Or is it..." She bends towards Vincent, in a challenging, provocative pose. "Because of my dazzling womanly features?"
Vincent looked at Yuffie, without any emotion. "I think I just remembered... You're stealthy and an excellent information gatherer."
"Ah-um... Off course!" Yuffie replied, slightly embarrassed.
"Lets go Yuffie. We need to- Gah!" Vincent fell to his knee, a loud screaming sound booming through his head. "WHAT... IS HAPPENING?!"
He clutched his head, face torn in pain.
"Vincent?!" Yuffie dropped her Shuriken and rushed towards him, but before she got to him, she fell to the ground, the same loud sound tearing through her head.
"What... is... THIS?!" she exclaimed.
But as soon as the sound started... It disappeared. Both Yuffie and Vincent were breathing heavily, out of breath.
"Y-Yuffie? Wh-What did you see?"
"Huh?"
"What did you see? Did you have a vision?"
"Y-yeah... I saw... The City of the Ancients... The... Pond..."
"Is it a sign?"
"I... Don't know. But I saw Cloud and the others too."
"Maybe we have to find them... And tell them this?"
"Yeah..." Yuffie replied as she fell to her butt. "Ouch... My head hurts."
Vincent got up and a smirk appeared on his face. "That's been a while since you had a headache... Not since the AVALANCHE celebration party..."
"Okay, I was drunk... Stop laughing at it."
Vincent sighed. "I think it'll be the best if we travel by Shadowstepping."
"Wh- What? Shadowstepping?! No! Please Vince! No!"
"Sorry kid." Vincent replied as he helped her to her feet. "But that's the fastest way... And you know it."
"But..."
"No buts."
"Ow..."
He carefully held her, as if hugging her, as his cloak started to rustle. With a puff of smoke, they disappeared...
"So... Vincent and Yuffie? Let me say this Nanaki, I'm not surprised!" Cloud exclaimed.
"Well, they're not together like that... They're just helping others and helping each other."
"If it's up to Yuffie in one than more way!"
They both started to laugh, since the stoic Vincent Valentine and the outgoing Yuffie Kisaragi were quite the odd couple.
Cloud's laughter was broken off suddenly as he clutched his head.
"Ouch! God...! What the hell?!"
"Cloud? What's the matter? Gah?!"
"Stabbing pain in your head?" Cloud asked, opening one eye.
"Yes..." Nanaki replied.
"Visions... It's been a while since I had one of those..."
"You've seen something too?" Nanaki's eyes widened.
"Yes... The pond at the City of the Ancients..."
"I've seen it too."
"What does it mean? Do we... have to go there?" Cloud said as he stared at the ground.
"I wonder..."
The rest of the time, Cloud and Nanaki were silent, thinking about what had happened. Not too long after that, the soft humming sound of the rotors of the Shera. Cloud looked up and saw the silvery ship closing in on his position.
"Well, seems like Cid's here... Finally." Cloud exclaimed as he got up and dusted off his clothes.
"Hehe... I think I'll give 'em a scare... Worked on you." Nanaki chuckled as he hid behind Fenrir.
The large airship positioned itself as it landed, blowing up dust as it got closer to the ground. As soon as it touched the ground the doors opened and Barret stormed out, waving as he closed in.
"Cloud! How've you been?" The big dark man yelled. A big grin was splayed across his face.
"I'm good Barret... Slight headache though." Cloud replied as he shook hands with his old battle comrade.
"You too? Hm... Must be the desert heat!"
"What do you mean, 'you too'?"
"Ah, it's just that Cid and I had a weird flash during our flight here. Now, the both of us have a headache... Could be the desert thought."
Cloud's squinted his eyes. "What kind of flash?"
Barret scratched his head. "Well... I don't know... I thought I saw the Pond of the Ancients... But that could have been an hallucination... Though Cid said something about that too..."
"The Pond of the Ancients... Seems like that makes four of us." Cloud replied as he bit his thumbnail.
"Four of us?" Barret's face was concerned.
Nanaki stepped out from behind, "I've seen it too."
"Well I'll be! Red!! Um... I mean Nanaki."
"Haha, no need for excuses Barret! I've grown accustomed to both names."
Barret let out a relieved sigh. "So... All of us have seen it? What is it? A sign? Like the one you told us about? Aerith calling for you 'n stuff..."
Cloud nodded. "I think so... It had the same feeling..."
"Then we're off to The City of the Ancients?" Barret asked.
Cloud nodded and started to push Fenrir towards the Shera. Nanaki followed him, stating that he had a feeling that all of them we had been summoned by Aerith.
Inside the Shera they met with Cid, who gave them the normal greeting full of curses and grunts.
"So... Off to The City of the Ancients then?"
"Not yet." Cloud replied. "We need to get Tifa and then we have to find Vincent and Yuffie."
"No need for that." A soft voice said.
They all turned around as Vincent and Yuffie appeared. Yuffie uttered a quick 'Hi!', but then sprinted towards the toilet.
"She always has that when we Shadowstep." Vincent explained dryly.
"YOU BETTER NOT MAKE A *%¨°) MESS IN THERE!" Cid yelled towards the toilet, where Yuffie was making vomiting noises.
"I think you got the memo as well?" Cloud asked as he looked at Vincent.
"Yes... The Pond of the Ancients, if I'm not mistaken." Vincent replied as he walked past Cloud and looked out of the window.
"Alright... Then we only need to pick up Tifa in Edge. Everyone ready?"
They all nodded.
"Okay Cid, take it to the sky!" Cloud said as he looked at the blonde man behind the wheel.
"... Yeah sure!" he replied, though he added in a whisper "Still as cocky as he used to be..."
Twenty minutes later, they had picked up Tifa and headed towards the City of the Ancients. Cloud's eyes were locked upon the horizon, wondering about what Aerith wanted to tell them. To call upon all of them, it must mean something big was afoot... All of them thought it, though Cloud was the only one to let the word slip through his lips. As in a sigh he spoke "Sephiroth..."