------ON THE HORIZON-------
A KINGDOM HEARTS FANFICTION
Rating: M for language, sexual refernces and NON YAOI sex scenes. OMG SHEWT MEH AT DAWN
So this is my story. I know there are typos in here somewhere so if you could be so kind as to point them out it will be appreciated.
just tell me the sentence and the chapter it is from and I will know where it is and fix it.
Reviews are appreciated... no flaming though. I don't put flaming reviews on your stuff so please don't do it to mine.
A friend of mine read this and said it was actually good so please at least give it a try!
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CHAPTER I
-The heart… an entity within us all… not a physical organ, more like a soul that embodies all the emotions we feel.
Anna Blinked
-Within every heart there is darkness and there is light. The heart thrives on both. An imbalance between the two is common, however it seems there is always more dark than light when this occurs. If the amount of darkness is…
Anna snapped the notebook shut. This was all just a bunch of rabble to her; she couldn't understand it at all. Her mind was occupied with other things as well. She didn't have the patience to look over her father's notes right now.
She looked up into the tree above her. Her light, ocean green eyes reflected the branches that seemed to be extending into the heavens from where she sat. The sun was high in the sky above her and hot on her skin. She brushed her bright orange hair out of her face. Must've been about noon… She was sitting below a blossoming fruit tree in the orchard, where she had always loved to spend her time, even as a child.
She had wasted half her day sitting under this tree looking over her fathers main research notes. Something he had constantly encouraged her to do for the past couple of years. He wanted her to know just as much as he did when she took his place as the leader of their people. Anna thought she had plenty of time for that, her father was getting on in his years but he certainly wasn't old. He still had as much energy as he did for as long as Anna could remember. However, Anna was twenty four now and needed to get a move on with learning how to become a good leader. She had very big shoes to fill. Her father wasn't called Ansem the Wise for nothing.
…and what was she called? Anna the tramp? Anna the thick? Anna the not so wise? She wasn't a tramp! She wasn't thick! But they knew… it was all covered up but they knew… they all knew; whispering behind her back… "Pregnant at fifteen? Tsk tsk tsk… what has Ansem the wise raised?"
Anna shook her head. It had all been covered up… her son was taken to a better family… nobody knew… she didn't know why it had been bothering her so much lately. It was an accident too… not like it was some random guy… she loved him… but her now deceased mother forced her to stop seeing him… because of that she broke his heart… she couldn't face him again… she was too ashamed…. it had been nine years! Why was she still dwelling on it? Why wouldn't she let another man so much as gaze at her since? That was easy… She still loved him… she knew she did… The loss of her son still hurt too. She would have kept him but she passed out after giving birth and when she woke up he was gone.
Anna sighed and stood up. She placed the notebook in her bag and headed towards the castle. She paused and turned around to survey the scene behind her. The castle was perched atop a hill. Surrounding it was many gardens as well as a large wall at the edge. There was a small river that flowed through these magnificent gardens. It also flowed through the city beyond. This city was known as Radiant Garden. The city was a marvel of architecture. Everything was clean yet beautifully crafted. The streets were paved with lightly colored stone and the river flowed right through the town square where a fountain rose up two stories high in the center. Beyond the city was another large wall and beyond that there was a large forest that circled the city around back but broke in the front. Then there were various far off farming villages, and beyond that… was nothing. The fields of grass stretched far to the ocean, then the desert, then the ocean again, then the fields of grass again, and then back to the city.
The human population was small in their world. It had once circled the entire globe. A royal family reigned supreme over all mankind. It was said the royal family were god-like human beings, descended from holy entities that formed the world in ages past; their hearts the purest of all. It was said that life back then was good and prosperous thanks to these great rulers.
Then "It" happened… something that destroyed the population of the world. For some reason, only the populace of Radiant Garden and the few surrounding hamlets remained… the rest was wiped clean from the surface of the world. "It" was known as the Calamity, but everyone referred to it verbally as "It". There were few books in the castle library that recounted what happened, but Anna did read the few that did. It was considered her only history lessons… back when she was still in schooling. The rest of history was obsolete. Very little was still known about the old world. The Calamity referred to an invasion of a great dark force that destroyed the old world. Only the great ancient knights were able to stop it before it destroyed all humanity. Who these knights were, they did not know. Some accounts state that they came from other worlds. These men were said to excel in all aspects of swordsmanship and fighting overall. They also possessed magic powers that practically dwarfed the powers the modern day wizards wielded. It was also said that one of the knights remained in this world and one day a descendant of his would become a hero to the people. This was all tales recounted by elders passed on through generations; none of it was actually concrete fact. The royal family was also said to have died out. That was when Anna's family took over leading the people. They did not consider themselves royalty. They emphasized the fact that they were servants of the people and world and they did everything they could to help both.
It was difficult having such a hazy past; however, the technological revolution that had started not long after the calamity subsided had given birth to a whole new way of life for the people. Thanks to Ansem the Wise's newest computer inventions, they had tight security and better information storage facilities within their city. Recent Gummi ship technology had also made transportation to farther places much easier than actually walking. They were also good for exploring space as well, but no one seemed inclined to explore the outer reaches of the universe; or at least not yet.
Anna continued on the path up to the castle. Halfway there she was ambushed by a little girl with deep red hair and beautiful blue eyes who ran up to Anna and hugged her so fast they both nearly tripped and fell.
"Kairi!" Said Anna, laughing. "What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be in class?"
Kairi giggled
"Nana let me out early!" she said grinning up at Anna.
Nana was Anna's grandmother. Since Anna's mother barely even treated her like a daughter Anna always looked to Nana as a mentor for support. Nana was also Anna's school teacher when she was Kairi's age as well. Nana was getting very old but still seemed inclined to be a teacher to Kairi.
Kairi, on the other hand, Anna treated like her own daughter. She was eight years old and full of energy. Anna had found Kairi orphaned on the streets of Radiant Garden just a few years back and due to the fact that her son was taken away from her she felt almost inclined to take the poor child out of the cold and into her family. This was when Anna's father noticed Kairi had, in her possession, an ancient royal ring. Kairi was the last of the holy, royal family. Ansem agreed to allow Kairi to stay with them in order to study her and her heart.
For some reason Anna felt that Kairi completed their broken family. Anna's mother died a year before they found Kairi. Ansem was always locked away in his study his apprentices didn't even go near Anna. Not after the fiasco with Xehanort anyhow. He had tried on several separate occasions to court Anna but since her heart belonged to only one man she continuously refused him.
Anna had always found Xehanort cold and brooding anyway. She disliked his passion of studying the darkness of the heart. Not even her father was that obsessed with it. He was handsome though… she gave him that, but that wasn't enough.
Speaking of the apprentices… Anna noticed while trying to unhinge Kairi from her hip, all of her father's apprentices, excluding Xehanort were rushing up to the castle from the courtyard rather quickly.
What are they in hurry for? She wondered, frowning. She looked up and saw Xehanort watching her from the window near the door to the courtyard to which the apprentices were heading. His orange eyes fixed on her. She stared back, curiously looking over his tan face and his white, shoulder-length hair.
He was up to something… she knew he was. He and the apprentices… they had been hiding something from her father for a long time now she couldn't prove it because she couldn't find it… but she knew… she had a suspicion that they were conducting unauthorized experiments with the heartless creatures that had only recently started appearing around the castle. Anna wasn't quite sure what they were but her father seemed to know and he did not like them. He had forbidden Xehanort from testing certain troubling theories, involving these creatures, on actual people… but Anna had a sneaking suspicion that he was doing it anyway. Every week Auron, the chief of the Radiant Guard would report to Ansem and Anna about missing people. It made Anna sick looking into Xehanort's eyes, knowing he was doing something awful to these people in secret without any remorse, and she was unable to stop him.
Anna realized her curious gaze had turned to an acid glare. Xehanort shot a contemptuous look back at her and turned to meet his fellow apprentices as they arrived in the castle. Kairi had gone dead silent too when she realized who Anna was looking at. Kairi never seemed comfortable around him either.
Then suddenly Anna's bag slipped off of her shoulder. She looked down in alarm and realized Kairi was holding it. She grinned.
"Come on Kairi give that back!" she said bending down to snatch it from Kairi's grasp.
Kairi smirked and jumped out of her reach. She was in a phase in which she liked to steal things from Anna and play keep away.
"Come on Kairi…" Anna said laughing and approaching her.
"CATCH ME! CATCH ME!" Kairi shouted and bolted around the side of the castle in the direction of the main entrance.
Anna rolled her eyes and ran after her. She caught Kairi not far from the front drive and tackled her to the ground.
"I got you!" Anna sneered in a fake evil voice. Then she began to tickle the child gleefully.
Kairi screeched with laughter trying to fight Anna off. When Anna suspected Kairi had had enough she grabbed her bag and stood up, helping Kairi up with her by the hand.
"I'm hungry" Kairi said looking up at Anna.
"Well let's go into the kitchen then, and I'll make you some lunch." Said Anna starting to lead Kairi towards the front door to the castle. They had castle servants to do the job for them but Anna preferred to make her own meals sometimes. She never really was comfortable with too much pampering.
"YAY!" Exclaimed Kairi attempting to skip with Anna. This was difficult at the pace Anna was walking.
They reached the front doors and walked into the entrance hall. There were three men standing near where they had entered conversing. Ansem, Her father, Auron, The chief of the Radiant Guard and… Anna froze at the sight of the third man. He was Auron's former understudy, the General of the Radiant Guard and was considered the best fighter in the world. He was also the reason Anna never allowed another man to look at her. He was tall; although slightly thin he was also quite muscular. His hair was silver, very long and sleek and his bangs were parted perfectly in the center, but raised over his face and fell to his neck on one side and his chin on the other. His face was flawless, not a bit of facial hair, with crystal green eyes that entranced Anna every time she looked into them. His skin was light and yet he never seemed pale. She noticed how in the past nine years since she had really gotten a good look at him he had grown into quite a breathtaking man. Sephiroth… that was his name… a name that had burned itself in her very being. When he turned to look at her as she and Kairi entered, Anna felt his gaze pierce trough her eyes into her soul. Her fathers following words seemed like a garbled message in her ears while she and Sephiroth stared at one another.
"Ah! Anna darling!" Ansem said. "Auron here was just giving me his weekly report!"
"Yes…" Auron grunted "Unfortunately there have still been more disappearances."
Anna tore her gaze away from Sephiroth's and looked at Auron. He was shorter than Sephiroth and much rougher around the edges. His dark hair was untidy and flecked with grey. His face bore a few scars as well as stubble. He always wore rounded sunglasses though they were at the tip of his nose a lot so Anna could still see his dark eyes.
He was once considered the greatest warrior in the world, but after being Sephiroth's teacher for a period of time Sephiroth surpassed him greatly in only a year. Now he was the chief of the Radiant Guard; not so much a fighter but more of a coordinator.
The Radiant Guard was the best known military force in the world. They patrolled the streets of Radiant Garden. They were security for the castle. They even branched out to the small farming villages. Since there was never any war they were mainly in charge of killing the dangerous beasts that dared to leave the forest and attack the city; once even a dragon attacked the city from high in the mountains. Sephiroth became famous for fighting off this terrifying creature in a great battle. All the young men in the world wanted to be a part of the Radiant Guard. Most, however just became grunts that preformed simple patrol tasks. Few got to part take in the great battles to protect the city. Only the truly skilled were assigned to such tasks.
Anna couldn't bring herself to say anything. She was still in shock from being thrown in the midst of the last man she wanted to face. She hurt him… she didn't deserve to even be in his presence.
"Yes it's a shame…" Said Ansem after an awkward silence. "I'm sure you both will get to the bottom of it sooner or later!"
"Thank you sir…"Said Auron turning back to face Ansem. Sephiroth, however, didn't follow suit. His gaze remained fixed on Anna. She felt like she was going to crumble under it.
"How are you, Anna?" he asked softly.
"F-Fine!" Anna stuttered in an unusually high pitched voice. It must have sounded very strange because everyone was suddenly looking at her again. She looked down at Kairi and blurted out the first thing to pop into her head.
"I'm going to make Kairi and myself some lunch! If you want I could whip something up for everyone!"
"No thank you Lady Anna…" Said Auron "We must be going now. We have much to do. If you'll excuse us Master Ansem…"
"Very well, Auron." Said Ansem. "Good to see you again!"
Sephiroth opened his mouth, almost as if he was going to protest leaving but reconsidered and shot Anna an apologetic look before following Auron out the door.
When they were gone Ansem turned to Anna and looked at her questioningly.
"He still loves you…" He said
Anna shook her head.
"Even if he did I don't deserve him…" She mumbled looking away.
"How so?" Said Ansem, almost in alarm "You're going to be the leader of these people one day!"
"Because I listened to my mother!" Anna spat at him, and she yanked Kairi through the door to the left of the entrance hall. From there they crossed the dining room and stormed into the kitchen. Almost at once she felt bad for what she had said. It wasn't his fault... but he could have stopped her mother a lot of times when she did those things and he never did… "Listen to your mother Anna…" "Listen to your mother…" Anna realized that she was banging the dishes around and that tears were running down her face. She stopped for a moment to wipe her eyes then she realized Kairi was standing against the wall crying too.
'I'm sorry you had to see that baby…" Anna said massaging her forehead with her hand and leaning against the counter.
Kairi ran up to Anna and hugged her. Anna kneeled down and returned the hug. Kairi was still in tears, so Anna hummed a small tune in her ear, stroking her hair. That song was sung to her by Nana when Anna was little and she loved it so much she sang it to Kairi whenever the child was upset. The tune had a strange calming effect that soothed both of them. After a few minutes Kairi calmed down and looked up into Anna's eyes. She looked very serious.
"Don't cry anymore…" Said Kairi. "It makes me scared…"
"I won't sweetie." Said Anna stroking her hair some more.
Then she stood back up. She placed her hand on the counter and looked at it for a moment, lost in thought.
"I should say I'm sorry to him shouldn't I?" She finally said.
"Who?" Asked Kairi.
"Her father no doubt?" Said a curt voice coming from the door to the dining room.
"Hello Nana…" Said Anna turning to the lunch she had started to prepare to finish the job.
"Hello dearies!" Said Nana, her tone lightening up as she hobbled into the kitchen on her cane. "How about I finish this for you? Then you may talk to your father."
Nana was a short woman. Her hair was an untidy grey, almost white colored and tied back in a loose bun. She had a near ancient charm bracelet around her wrist that Anna had adored since childhood. She also wore the same dark red shawl all the time. She was Ansem's mother and although being a tutor she was stern sometimes she never had any negative intentions and sometimes was the only person that kept Anna sane in her years of growing up with the worst mother a girl could ever be forced to abide by.
"Alright, thank you Nana." Said Anna, abandoning her efforts and leaving the kitchen.
She walked into the entrance hall and entered the door right across from her. from there she walked down a long hall, some stairs, more hall and finally she reached the door to her father's study. She knocked on it gently.
"Come in." Came her father's voice.
Anna opened the door and walked in. Ansem was sitting at his desk, like usual, toiling over notes and research.
"Dad I…" Anna began but Ansem cut her off.
"It's alright Anna." He said looking up at her. "You've been under a lot of stress lately… and I know… some things your mother did were wrong… and I apologize for never stopping her…"
Anna smiled. Her father always knew exactly what was on her mind but…
"Why didn't you?" Anna suddenly asked, the smile vanishing from her face.
"I think you of all people should know what it's like…" Said her father gingerly. "When you love someone so much… you are blinded by it…"
Anna thought that was a rather rash way of putting it but who was she kidding? She knew he was right. She leaned against the doorframe and nodded, looking at the floor.
"So it was her…" Anna said.
"Yes…" Said Ansem looking down at his paperwork. "Your mother was responsible for your son being taken away… but…"
"But what?" Anna asked looking back up at her father.
"I did not lie to you Anna…" Said Ansem, sighing. "I carried out your mothers orders and took the child away myself."
Anna felt a painful throb in the part of her heart that held her grief over losing her son.
"It's all over now…" Said Anna standing up straight. "No sense in dwelling on the past…"
"My thoughts exactly!" Said Ansem standing up. "But don't you think the General of the Radiant guard would be a perfect suitor for you? You're a grown woman now Anna… even if your mother had forbidden you from seeing him again I think you both have grown up and are responsible now… Besides, you need to think about settling down!"
"All the history though…" Said Anna glumly. "Even if we both still love each other do you think it will ever be the same?"
"Hearts are unpredictable Anna." Said Ansem walking up to her and putting his arm around her shoulders. "Who knows? It may even be better then before, but you will never know until you try!"
Anna smiled.
"How about some lunch, dad?" She said opening the door to the hallway up again.
"Sounds wonderful!" Said Ansem grinning back at her, and the two made their way back to the entrance hall.
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Sephiroth sat in his office. He didn't like it. Four walls… a desk… a chair… lots and lots of paperwork… A pen in hand… his other hand supporting his head as he stared blankly at the words he had just written down. The paper was atop a stack of others… first draft… second draft… He cursed and threw the pen down on the desk. It rolled onto the floor. He knew it must've been laughing at him.
He was still young for lord's sake! He shouldn't be stuck inside with a friggin report, on the recent increase in heartless creatures around the city, to do! He craved the outdoors and wide open spaces! He wanted to fight! There was nothing more exhilarating to him than swinging his long masamune around, slicing through the opposition and never even receiving a scratch…
He looked at the sword. It was propped up against the wall. It had been spending more time there than fighting these days… being the General of the Radiant Guard was harder than he thought, and the fact that he was only twenty five made him twice as antsy to get outside and actually do something. He joined the Radiant Guard specifically so he wouldn't have to do paper work…
He looked out the window. The streets of Radiant Garden were unusually quiet for this time of day. The very earth itself seemed to be holding its breath. There weren't even as many heartless crawling in the shadows of the alleys there normally were. They did not dare step into the sunlight. It was unfortunate that in the past year the heartless had grown so numerous and violent that all citizens were to stay indoors after twilight. When they fist started appearing many years ago they were practically harmless too. Sephiroth feared it had something to do with the scientific endeavors of their leader, Ansem the Wise, or at least one of his students. They had all been acting shady lately too. Not so much Dilan, Even, Braig, Ienzo or Elaeus but mostly Xehanort. The man was even acting like a heartless. He saw the students congregated at the fountain just outside the castle gates once and he couldn't help but notice how Xehanort seemed to remain in the shade the entire time.
Sephiroth heard a girl singing down the street just out of his sight. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to the cool glass window, trying to make out the lyrics of the song.
"Lay Down…
…Your sweet and weary head.
Night is falling.
You've come to journey's end.
Sleep now.
…And dream of the ones that came before.
They are calling…
…From across the distant shore."
No that wasn't what she was singing at all! Sephiroth realized that he had just made himself hear those lyrics. He wanted to hear them sung to him again so badly…the last time he heard that song… the only time he heard that song… She sang it to him. He fell in love with those words… and the lips they came from. He had had an emotional breakdown… he was an orphan his whole life… his only purpose, it seemed, was to fight mindlessly. He smashed a few things in his piece of junk apartment then she arrived… sang him that song and…
Sephiroth's eyes flew open. His heart was beating unusually fast. The little girl's singing had stopped, and Zack was calling him from the hall. Sephiroth groaned. He had just returned from the castle with Auron and was not in the mood to talk to Zack. He had nothing against the young man but he seemed to talk quite a lot. Sephiroth's mind was racing and he was in no mood for an endless friendly chat. He had just seen the love of his life up close and face to face after years of not even daring to go near the castle grounds. She reacted to the sight of him quite strangely, he thought. The look in her eyes was a mix of surprise and sheer terror…
"SEPH! How's that report coming?!"
"Awesome…" Said Sephiroth sarcastically still leaning against the window as Zack waked into the office and plopped himself in a stray chair.
Zack Laughed.
"Well the first class Grunts have been having trouble too." Said Zack "Those heartless are getting a little bolder… we saw one attack someone in broad daylight today. They're getting stronger to-"
"Don't even!" Sephiroth interrupted him with a bark. "You get to fight in the streets and protect the people, exactly what you joined the Radiant Guard for. I'm The one who's stuck in here writing reports and going over paperwork like a damn accountant!
He wheeled around while saying this and completed his statement by pounding his fist on his desk angrily.
Zack seemed so taken aback that even his long, spiky black hair seemed to wilt.
"Well aren't we in a snippy mood today!" He said coolly.
"Yep! Said Sephiroth flatly and with a flick of his hand an invisible force knocked Zack's chair over so hard he was sent skidding into the hall.
Another flick of Sephiroth's hand and the door slammed shut.
"Fine be that way!" Zack shouted through the closed door.
"I will!" Sephiroth shouted back.
That had certainly lightened his mood. He even felt slightly compelled to continue writing the blasted paper so he sat down and did just that.
When he, at last, finished the report the sun had already reached the danger zone in the sky. In other words, it was twilight. At last it was his time to patrol the streets. He jumped up from his chair, grabbed his sword and hurried out into the hall. Zack and the first and second class Grunts were waiting for him at the exit. Sephiroth approached them, clapped a hand on Zack's shoulder and looked over his squad for the evening.
"Let's go!" he said simply, and with that they all marched outside.
The fresh Air filled Sephiroth's lungs as they reached the open stone street, almost like new life in him. They spread out, half of the second class grunts and half of the first class grunts went in one direction with Zack while the rest followed Sephiroth then spreading out more with each street. Eventually everyone was with an assigned partner patrolling a certain area in pairs. Sephiroth's partner this evening was a young, second class man named Squall. Their route was through the back streets of Radiant Garden, the closest thing they had to a slum.
This was where orphans normally resided. They made homes for themselves within these shady buildings with barely any adults resided. As a result, this was where the heartless struck the most. These children had no adults to enforce the curfew so a few brave souls would attempt to stay out at night, never to be seen again. For when the heartless attack a person they leave no corpse, no markings, nothing to identify where their victims were attacked or who their victims were.
Once the two had separated from the rest of the group they had barely rounded the corner when they heard a loud yelp. Squall readied his weapon as did Sephiroth and they charged towards where they had heard the sound. When they reached the originating point they found two girls, one who looked to be the same age as Squall with brown hair tied neatly back in a ponytail and green eyed, the other looked to be a few years younger with black short hair and was unconscious. The two were under attack by a heartless clad in shaking clanking armor. Sephiroth stood back and allowed Squall to take care of this one. These breed of heartless were stronger than normal but they still were nothing a Radiant Guard couldn't handle. As Sephiroth predicted, Squall sliced directly through the creature with his gunblade and it disappeared in a black wisp, leaving behind something pink and glowing that disappeared almost instantly.
"Sir!" squeaked the older girl. "Can you help us?"
"What's wrong?" Asked Sephiroth. "What happened?"
"My friend Yuffie wanted to fight off some of those…um…heartless things…" Said the older girl. "I tried to stop her and we ended up here and we don't know our way back and…"
She burst into tears.
"Calm down!" Said Sephiroth. "It'll be okay."
He turned to Squall.
"Can you get them home?" He asked. "I'll finish up the rounds for tonight quick."
"Kay…" Mumbled Squall.
He walked up to the girls and picked up the unconscious one. The other one followed him as they disappeared back around the corner. Sephiroth prepared his sword and walked carefully through the darkened streets. To his surprise they were oddly quiet. He began to pick up his pace. He was reminded of all the times he took Anna back here… all the lives they saved… all the lives they failed to save... he had spent all that time shaping her into a perfect warrior; teaching her everything Auron taught him, and then some.
His footsteps quickened.
They snuck around as two wild warriors; partners in justice. Auron didn't know, Anna's parents didn't know. They were an unstoppable team!
He broke into a run.
Then he just HAD to develop feelings for her! He just HAD to act on them… he just HAD to kiss her that one moment… if it had been any other moment maybe it wouldn't have lead to what it did…. But it was that moment… that particular time when their emotions were high and they threw caution to the wind letting their instincts get the better of them and…
Sephiroth came to an abrupt halt. Was that screaming he heard? Yes… now that he listened he heard numerous screams coming from all over the city.
"What the…?" He said to himself.
Just then, a huge heartless appeared out of nowhere next to him. It had a hand like a giant mace, which it was swinging heavily in all directions. Sephiroth swung at it. The heartless wrapped its arm around Sephiroth's sword but it was unable to disarm him because Sephiroth reacted quickly with a hard kick into its body. He freed his blade and attempted to slice through the heartless but instead of the usual non resistant sweep he was used to experiencing, the blade come across some friction. It was almost as if the darkness this creature was comprised of was thicker and jagged. Sephiroth actually had to strain his arms to cut through its massive form.
When the heartless vanished he felt a sudden shaking below his feet. The shaking grew greater in magnitude with every second. Sephiroth fell to his hands and knees preparing himself to dodge falling debris; however, as soon as it started he massive quake stopped. Sephiroth stood up and heard even more screams now with the sounds of breaking glass and even loud creaking sounds… like pieces of houses being torn off. He took off in the direction he came. Heartless were springing up all over the place. Sephiroth slashed through them with ease but he prayed that he would not be confronted with anything bigger than what he encountered before. If there was one like that here… there must've been more in the main areas of the city; even the residential places.
He finally reached the main streets and was subjected to a terrifying sight. Smoke, fire, houses burning, larger heartless than he had ever seen ripping through buildings and attacking every human it saw. Sephiroth looked up into the sky and his heart sank. There, atop the castle, was a great dark hole in the sky from which heartless were pouring and dark bolts of lighting shot out across the darkening sky, hitting everything. Suddenly a loud booming voice echoed across the streets of the city, making Sephiroth jump out of his state of shock. It was the voice of Ansem the Wise, talking over a citywide announcer system.
"ATTENTION ALL CITIZENS! ATTENTION ALL CITIZENS! OUR WORLD IS UNDER ATTACK! I REPEAT: OUR WORLD IS UNDER ATTACK! I ADVISE EVERYONE TO HURRY TO THEIR DESIGNATED GUMMI SHIP HANGAR FOR EVACUATION! ALL PILOTS REPORT TO YOUR ASSIGNED GUMMI SHIPS IMMIDIATELY! ALL FAMILIES STICK TOGETHER! ALL SOLDIERS PROTECT FAMILIES DURING THE EVACUATION BUT BE SURE TO REPORT TO YOUR DESIGNATED HANGAR AS WELL. ALL GUMMI SHIPS MEET IN THE DESIGNATED EVACUATION AIRSPACE IN ONE HOUR! DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BRING ANY MEANINGLESS POSSES…
The system suddenly shut off with a bang and squeak of a microphone.
"OH GOD!" screamed a nearby mother with her children "HE'S DEAD!"
Sephiroth leapt into the street and began fighting off heartless with the other Soldiers feverishly. Unfortunately there seemed to be no end to them in sight. Sephiroth managed to guard the woman and her children until she reached her Gummi Hangar. Gummi Hangars were only big enough to hold two to three Gummi Ships, but they were placed everywhere in the city. If it ever came under attack, the enemies would have to search for and destroy each one which was far more time consuming than a single hangar.
The pilots were already set to go in this particular hangar which made Sephiroth feel better about the evacuation. These men had been trained in this field of action non stop since Ansem the Wise began this program upon the arrival of Gummi ship Technology. When Sephiroth left the hangar he watched the Gummi ship take off, and then continued through the streets. His mind was buzzing but he couldn't help but feel a deep fear in the pit of his stomach that something terrible had happened to Anna, she was alive… but suffering…. He wanted to go to the castle and find out just what was going on there.
It wasn't long before he saw the back of Zack's head in a mass of heartless, fighting them off with a blonde haired, blue eyed young man by his side. It was Zack's patrol partner, Cloud.
"ZACK!" He called out. "CLOUD!"
The two turned to look at him. Sephiroth charged forward and cleared the majority of the heartless out of the way with one sweep of his sword.
"Oh man am I glad to see you!" Said Zack as Sephiroth reached them. "This whole thing just came out of nowhere!"
"I know." Sephiroth panted, wiping sweat from his brow. "Have you seen Squall?"
"Yeah!" Cloud piped up. "I saw him just a few minutes ago! He was taking Aries and Yuffie to their hangar…."
"Oh!" Said Sephiroth. Cloud must have been referring to the girls they had found. "Have you seen the royal Gummi cruiser pilot heading to the castle at all?"
"What? Cid?" Asked Zack. Cleaving a few approaching heartless in half with his massive Buster Sword. "No, he was helping Squall with the girls…"
"Dammit!" Sephiroth cursed out loud. "That no good, son of a…"
"Seph… if yer gonna trash talk bout me, least be kind enough not to do it behind ma back!" Shouted a voice behind them. Cid had been fighting his way to them for the past few minutes without them even knowing. He was a little older than Sephiroth, with short, dirty blonde hair and a cigarette always hanging out of his mouth. He was the best pilot in Radiant Garden, but had always had a weak spot for fighting instead of doing his duty. He was far too compassionate for his own good in Sephiroth's opinion. His weapon was a long javelin spear which he currently had stuck through three heartless at the same time.
"Cid!" Shouted Sephiroth with rage. "Why the HELL aren't you up at the castle?!"
"What'd you think I've been tryin' to do?" Cid Shouted back. "If a person begs for yer help you don't just pass 'em by!"
He looked up at the castle behind him and wiped some sweat from his brow.
"Shit I don't think I can make it up there…" He said gesturing to the terrifying looking heartless patrolling the castle grounds and gardens.
There was a loud crash and all four men turned in the direction it came from. A giant heartless comprised entirely of ice and another of rock were smashing their way though the city, knocking down houses and Gummi ships attempting takeoff.
All four men said a different curse at the same time.
"We can't keep this up…" Zack moaned. "I can't take on a thing like THAT!"
"I bet we can do it all together!" Said Cloud trying to cheer Zack up.
"Not with all the heartless between here and them we cant!" Said Sephiroth. He was getting tired too. They had to smack away larger and larger amounts of the foul creatures even as they stood there.
"I think the only way for us all to survive this is to get to that castle cruiser…" Said Cid. "I know a back way in… so we don't gotta go through the castle"
"NO!" Said Sephiroth. "We have to check the castle for survivors!"
He was getting more and more worried about Anna with every agonizingly slow second passing him by.
"Seph'roth we need to be outta here in twenty minutes or that big 'ol black thing in the sky is gonna swallow us all up!" Said Cid anxiously.
"You go get the Gummi ship ready!" Said Sephiroth to all three of the men. "I'll go search the castle for anyone alive and if I'm not on that Gummi Ship in fifteen minutes leave without me!"
"No way I'm letting you do that alone!" Said Zack "I'm going with you! Cloud, you stay with Cid!"
"NO!" Said Cloud shaking his head. "I'm going too!"
"Well I aint goin there alone!" Said Cid waving his spear in the air. "Guess I'm coming too!"
"Fine!" Said Sephiroth "But don't blame me if you all die!"
"Nah!" Said Zack, grinning. "It'll be fun!"
There was a large explosion not far behind them and all four young men looked over the city one last time. The sun had set and everything was illuminated by the flames that spread all throughout the city at this point. There were no more Gummi ships attempting to take off. No one in the city had to be alive anymore at this point, thought Sephiroth. Anna though… he knew she was still alive, he could feel it. Or maybe he merely wanted her to be alive so badly that he was triggering a false sense of hope within himself. Either way, the castle was the only place to run to at this point, and run they did.