Change of Fate
He hadn't bothered to keep track of how many days they had been running. Even if he did he would lose count, for the days all seemed to blur together. Now, out in the wilderness, miles away from hell, Zack was focused on the most important mission of his life: escape. He and Cloud were getting out of this alive, or they'd die trying.
He was tired, traveling every day without fail until his limbs gave out from exhaustion. He couldn't stop for more than a few hours, or they would find him. So he kept going, one foot in front of the other, one step at a time towards Midgar, their final destination. All his thoughts and dreams of Aerith kept him going. She was still there, hopefully still waiting for him after all these years.
They traveled through most of the day and much of the night. Zack draped Cloud's limp arm around his shoulders, and they trudged on. His luck had run out. Cissnei, one of the Turks, had helped him out by loaning him a motorcycle with passenger accommodations. He didn't know where she got it from, but it had gotten them far. Unfortunately they had to abandon it once they moved onto another continent, so they were back to walking on foot again.
They were able to hitchhike a ride on a old beat up truck, which would save loads of time. Things finally were looking up for them. He could see Midgar on the horizon, and he smiled knowing he was so close to finally getting home, so close to seeing her. He stood up and took a breath of fresh air. Suddenly, he heard a loud pop, the sound of a sniper rifle.
"Pops, park us over by the rocks!" he told the driver as he picked up his comatose friend in his arms.
"Ride's over Cloud."
He jumped out of the truck and placed Cloud behind some rocks so he would be safe from harm. He smiled as he ruffled his hair, then silently walked away to face them. He failed to notice his friend reaching out to him in an attempt to stop him from leaving.
He couldn't help but shake his head when he saw how many of them there were. He knew ShinRa was after them, but to send an entire army of infantrymen?
"Boy oh boy, " he said. "The price of freedom is steep"
He raised the Buster Sword in front of him and bowed his head respectively, a tribute to his late mentor Angeal.
"Embrace your dreams, and whatever happens..."
He slowly began to lower the sword as he finished.
"Protect your honor, AS SOLDIER!" he shouted as he began to charge.
"COME AND GET IT!"
Then all hell broke loose.
Zack sighed as he took the keys out of his motorcycle and killed the engine. To think that it had only been two years since that battle, it felt much more than that at times. He put the kickstand up with his foot as he got off, then looked around at the dry barren wasteland where that battle had taken place.
There were no signs that a battle had taken place anymore, but in his mind he still saw all the corpses of the men he killed that day. Hundreds of men slowly bleeding to death from the sword wounds he had given them, and then Cloud...He saw the same thing over and over again: His best friend getting shot, and then dying in his arms.
It was over, or at least he thought it was. He was actually surprised he was still standing. It was pouring rain, he was completely out of energy, and was marred with myriad wounds. He was covered in blood, much of which wasn't his own. The smell of it, and the sight of all the bleeding corpses along the field made him feel sick.
He was panting heavily, and his Buster Sword was slipping from his grip because he had used all of his energy and more. Then he heard therhythmic thwop of propellers overhead, the sound of another ShinRa helicopter. Helooked up to see three more infantrymen walking towards him with their guns. He barely had the strength to lift his sword, but he did it anyway. He had to win this fight. He had Cloud to protect, and Aerith was waiting for him in Midgar.
'Just three more. You can do this Zack,' he told himself.
He resumed his fighting stance as they took aim at him. Just, when he was about to charge, (comma)a sharp pain from a previous bullet wound surged up his left leg, causing him to lose his balance and fall. He heard them cocking their guns, and knew that he was going to die.
"ZACK, NO!"
A single shot rang out, but he was never hit. He looked up to see that one of the soldiers had taken aim at another target. Then it finally hit him: Cloud. The soldier had shot at him thinking he would be a threat. He quickly glanced behind himself, only to see the his friend gushing blood. He screamed Cloud's name, hen bolted up as he grabbed his sword and charged.
"YOU BASTARDS!"
He killed them all quickly before they could any more damage to either of them Then, he dropped his sword and ran over to his dying friend.
"Cloud! Cloud talk to me!"
He had been hit fatally in the chest and was bleeding out fast. If he didn't do something immediately to stop it, his friend was going to die, but what COULD he do? They were literally out in the middle ofnowhere, and still hours away from Midgar. He was already very weak from the Mako poisoning, and his body couldn't take much more. Now he just had to accept it: Cloud had moments to live.
"Z-Zack," he said weakly. "Can you do me a favor?"
He nodded silently, holding back tears. First Angeal and now his best friend. Why did those closest to his heart have to die?
"Live for me, enough for the both of us, and if you ever see Tifa, tell her I love her. "
Zack nodded, and he could feel water running down his cheeks, but he couldn't tell if it was the rain, or if he had started crying after all.
"I will, " he said, "I promise".
Cloud Strife slowly closed his eyes for the last time, and Zack let out an ear piercing scream.
"Hey, " he said as he stood in front of Cloud's grave.
He had buried him right where he had died that night, behind the rocks, conceivably safe from harm. He never thought that he would wake up like that, especially with his serious condition. There were a few flowers that had been placed on it recently, perhaps the work of Tifa She was heartbroken when he gave her the news along with Cloud's message. Apparently , she had been in love with him too.
"I came to visit again. "
A gust of cold wind blew by, and he sighed. Part of him actually wished that he had died instead of Cloud, then maybe, just maybe, Aerith would be alive too.
"If you see Aerith, tell her we miss her, and say hi for me"
She appeared in his dreams frequently and they often talked, but he wondered if it was really her, or just his imagination.
When Zack got to Edge, he slowed down to the city's speed limit and pulled up at Tifa's bar. He cut the engine again and pocketed the keys. He, barely had enough time to put the kickstand up and get off before he was suddenly assaulted with a hug.
"DADDY!"
He chuckled. This always, happened when he came to pick her up and take her home.
"How's my little Angel?" he asked cheerfully as he picked her up and put her on his shoulder.
Two years ago, when he made the long trek back to Midgar, he was shocked to find that he was the father of Aerith's unexpected daughter. But he promised he would take responsibility and help raise her.
"Zack"
He remembered the tears of joy in Aerith's eyes when he walked into the church that day. He gently pulled her into a hug to let her know he was real, and that he was back for good.
"I'm sorry I've been gone for so long" he said softly, his voice cracking as held back tears.
He had finally made it back after all this time, but at a steep price.
"I thought you were dead," she said softly as she wiped her tears away. "Did you get my letters?" she asked.
"Just the last one."
"Then...You don't know..."
His heart skipped a beat. Know what? All he could remember was that it said she was ready to move on. He glanced down at her hands, and was relieved to see that she wasn't wearing an engagement ring. That meant there was still a chance for him to make things right.
"Do you remember what happened the night before you left?" she asked him.
"Y-Yeah," he said, blushing a bit.
Then he got her hint. He was suddenly very pale, as if all the blood had drained out of his face.
"Zack...I know this is sudden for you, but you have a five year old daughter. "
He stood there, silent, as it sunk in. He nearly fainted. However, after a few minutes he finally calmed down and was able to speak.
"Can I see her?"
"Of course silly! You ARE her father after all."
They took their time as they walked back to her house, relishing in their newfound time together,catching up on everything that he had missed. She explained that she had actually called him when she found out she was pregnant, but he was busy with work at the time, so she then decided to just tell him in person when he returned from his Nibelheim mission. However, when months passed without any sign of him, she began writing him letters. He never answered, but she kept writing. In her heart she knew, but she wouldn't believe.
She told him that the birth had gone smoothly, and she had borne a strong healthy baby. She kept talking about their daughterin the letters, and even sent him a few pictures, but he still never wrote or called back.
She named her Angel. Angel Ifalna Fair. Ifalna was the name of her birth mother that she only vaguely remembered from her early childhood, and since Zack had called her his angel a few times it seemed to fit.
"I'm really sorry Aerith, I should've been there."
He thought about telling her what happened at Nibelheim, and what happened afterword, but it was just too painful for him to talk about. She frowned when she noticed the pained expression on his face, and gently squeezed his hand to let him know that she was there for him. It wasn't hard to guess that something terrible had happened.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" she asked softly.
He shook his head silently, and she decided it would be best to just drop it for now. She was never mad at him for leaving, and knew that he had his reasons.
"Wait a minute," he said when they reached her house. "Does Elmyra still like me?" He really didn't want a stern lecture from her. "And Angel, will she know who I am?"
"You'll be fine. Mom still likes you, and I've showed Angel a few pictures of you. She actually asks a lot of questions about you."
Zack nodded, a bit calmer now, but still nervous.
"MOMMY!"
"Angel, this is Zack, your father"
Zack squatted down so he could meet her at eye-level, and get a better look at her. She had her mother's green eyes, but her father's black hair. It was rather short, just below the ears, and it was a bit spiky, like her hair couldn't decide in which direction to go. He thought it looked cute on her, but knew that being a girl she was probably going to hate it when she got older.
"Hi Angel, " he said softly as he reached out and gently cupped her cheek..
"Mommy says you've been gone a long time."
His eyes softened, and he started to tear up, but he put on a smile so she couldn't tell.
"I know sweetie, but I won't leave again ok? I promise."
He kept his promise. The only problem was that now she had to grow up without a mother.
"AERITH!"
His eyes were wide with fear as Sephiroth's sword pierced her chest and a growing stain of red started to form around the wound. He gently caught her in his arms when she fell, and knew that she only had moments left to live.
"No," he whispered as he held back his tears. This isn't happening, this can't be happening! I can't lose her too!
His memories of Cloud's death came flashing back to him; he couldn't fail to save someone close to him again.
"Z-Zack" she said weakly between labored breaths. "Take care of Angel,"
She paused to take a breath, and placed her hand on top of Zack's. He was keeping as much pressure on the wound as possible in attempt to slow or even stop the bleeding, but it was no use.
"I love you Zack, I always have."
His mind was racing, trying to come up with a way to save her, but then she slowly closed her eyes she and died right there in his arms.
"Don't go..." he whispered, his voice cracking from the tears that now fell on to her clothes.
He held her tighter, as if he was trying to hold onto whatever life might still be in her, but she was already gone.
"Daddy?"
Zack blinked as Angel's voice brought him back to the present.
"Sorry," he apologized.
He had zoned out for a few moments and hadn't listened to what she had been saying.
After the Meteor incident Zack had become a mercenary just like he said he would be. He took a lot of odd jobs and didn't really care what he was doing as long as he got paid enough to take care of himself and Angel. Sometimes it took him out of town, but he never went anywhere too far away, and Tifa took care of her while he was away. Whenever he left she put up a fuss, but didn't give Tifa any trouble. She had Marlene and Denzel to play with after all.
"Daddy, I heard mommy today."
He stopped walking for a moment and looked up at her in astonishment He knew that she was part Cetra, like Aerith, and could sometimes hear and talk to the planet, but this was certainly a first.
"She says she misses us too."
Zack nodded silently, not sure what to say. "I know," he said as he gently stroked her hand.
She had been the one hurt the most when he gave her the bad news, and he often blamed himself for not being able to save her. Just like Cloud…
"And Cloud says thanks for keeping your promise."
He smiled, and suddenly felt a bit lighter. Some of his guilt had finally been taken off his shoulders.
Author's Notes
Alright first fic of the new year! I've actually had this laying around for a bit, but I didn't like the rough draft so I asked Chibipinkbunny to beta read this and she helped A LOT (Again, Thank you). So I've heard a few people who really didn't like the fact that Zack died, and say things like "Cloud should've died instead!" and when I saw this: http: / / deviantart .com / art / Change-Fate-Commission- AX-08-91374913 I figured I'd write a fic about it. Labrat-seph is also working on a fic based on the same picture if you wanna check it out, but ours are completely different. Please Review!