Title: Promised Land
Warnings: Mild violence/gore and minor character death.
Music: "Take It All Away" by Red. (optional)
Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy, nor am I Square Enix. I only use them for my own entertainment.
Notes: Not quite sure when happened when I was writing this. I'm checking it out well over two years later (2015) and I'm still uncertain about lots of parts in here. I guess if you want something sort-of impromptu and not really good, read on! Basically Zack is his cute annoying puppy self and when he, Cloud, and Sephiroth are sent on a mission to the Nibel mountains and wind up stranded, he tries Seph's patience and the big guy goes nuts. Hope you like! c;
Zack bounced eagerly around the agitated General, his random outbursts beginning to grate on the normally suave man's nerves. He pinched the bridge of his nose in a very un-Sephiroth type action as Cloud stood by quietly, watching his hyperactive friend torment the 1st Class with his constant questions. Finally, the older man snapped.
"Zackary! I swear, if you do not shut up this instant, I will pierce your chest with my blade! Now be silent so I can go over our mission's interface with the both of you!" he growled fiercely, cat-like eyes gleaming dangerously.
Zack stopped, his face morphing into a woeful puppy pout, his blue eyes big and wide with sadness.
"Aww Seph! Don't be such a meanie all the time! You need to get out more, I tell ya." The 2nd Class whined.
Cloud giggled quietly from his spot against the light grey walls, causing Zack's attention to turn on him. The cadet backed away as best he could as his best friend began stalking closer, but found himself trapped as the puppy smirked down at him-whether dangerously or playfully, he couldnt tell. He closed his eyes as Zack's hand rose up, waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, he opened his eyes cautiously, which triggered the ruffling of his gravity-defying hair via Zack's hand. The blonde grumbled under his breath, causing Zack to bend down and put a hand behind his ear.
"Sorry, what was that?" he teased, playfully mocking Cloud's soft voice. The boy in question's face flushed slightly in embarrassment.
"I said I'm not a kid." He murmured, a bit louder.
Zack twitched his hand a little. "Sorry, what?"
Cloud sighed impatiently. "I said-"
"That's enough."
The younger ranks looked up at Sephiroth, the general eying them in mild annoyance. "I have our mission interface." He turned to look down at the papers on his desk briefly before facing them again.
"We're going to be sent to the Nibel mountains. That's near your home, Cloud," he stated, looking at the blonde cadet, who nodded stiffly.
"There have been reports of a large group of powerful and bloodthirsty fiends residing in the area. Our objective: Take them out as quickly and cleanly as possible. We have no motives for causing unnecessary deaths for the townspeople." He looked at his two comrades, ignoring the continuous hyperactive responses he received from Zack. The man was a 2nd Class, he should have more restraint. His eyes narrowed.
"Come. We have to leave in 20 minutes." The general said, turning on his heel and leaving the room, Cloud and Zack trailing after him.
Once they reached ShinRa's main hangar for their aircraft, a pilot waved them over to a large black steelwork helicopter. paying the pilot no mind, Sephiroth entered the aircraft, dragging a bouncing raven behind him whilst Cloud paused to give the pilot coordinates and following the other two men. The pilot entered the helicopter was well, starting it engine and flying out of the hangar.
The six hour flight went by exceedingly bad, in the case of Sephiroth. While he had no fear of heights, nor was the ride bumpy, the puppy would not start complaining about how awful the air ravel was and Cloud was looking a little green from his motion sickness. The General grit his perfect white teeth as Zack whined loudly in his ear, asking about when they were going home. Before he had time to answer, however, the excited raven turned his attention on the poor blonde at his side. Cloud shrunk back in his seat as Zack chattered nonstop in his face.
Sephiroth, about to reach his limit, grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, and tossed him in front of the door. "Zackary, shut up for a minute and let us get a break from your constant idiocy. We dont need a moron on this trip, no matter how powerful he is." he stated coldly, glaring down at the puppy-like SOLDIER. Zack, completely unaffected, grinned up at him. "Dont frown Seph, it makes you look old!" he crowed, snickering madly. Before Sephiroth could attack the insolent male, the pilot called from the cockpit, "We're almost there!"
Cloud and Zack crowded around the windows, Cloud having a look of guilt and anxiousness on his face. Sephiroth didn't know why, but he would not pry into the teen's mind. It was the boy's problems, not his own. He crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, waiting for the bumpy landing.
It wasn't allowed the chance to reach them. Zack, having a sense of foreboding in his small inattentive mind, ran to the side hatch and swung it open. Cloud looked at him in confusion.
"Zack? What are you gonna do?" he cried, blonde hair flying wildly around. Sephiroth watched the young male stiffly, also wondering what Zack was doing.
The raven looked behind them outside of the helicopter, before turning to the pilot. "Hey! You're engine's caught fire!" he said urgently. The pilot gasped lowly just as the helicopter swerved violently. Zack went over to Cloud, picking his friend up with ease. "Sephiroth, we need to go!"
The silver-haired man nodded, walking over to the hatch and leaping out into the bitter cold. Zack looked over at the pilot, who was staring fiercely at the blizzard-covered terrain in front of him. "Do you want to come with us?" he asked, eyes narrowed with concern.
The pilot shook his head with a grin. "No man abandons his ride! I'm going down with this baby, I'm sorry SOLDIER." he said loudly over the keening whine of the dying engines. Zack nodded to him.
"Good luck." He yelled, before leaping out of the flaming aircraft. The pilot allowed himself a last, bittersweet smile before the plane smashed into the icy ground, a mountain of smoke and flames escaping it as shrapnel flew through the air. Cloud watched the plane's untimely death with a pang of sadness, but knew the loss would save their lives. Zack crashed landed into a large hill of snow, the cold wetness cushioning their fall.
Sephiroth appeared at their sides, helping them up in a bout of kindness. He looked around as the two friends brushed the snow from their uniforms. He lifted his PHS to his face as it buzzed, and stared in shock and mute anger at the screen. Cloud, noticing his anger, looked at him expectantly. "What's the verdict, sir?"
The silver-haired general clenched his fist and anger, but his voice remained cool as his face was stoic. "It appears our reservations for food and lodging were cancelled, for some reason I cannot possibly fathom." he growled. "And... I believe we are quite a ways away from our destination. Well over a day's trek, at least." he informed them.
Cloud stared at the man in shock while Zack just shrugged, beginning to do his bout of self-entertainment and exercise: squats. "Well, I see nothing bad about this!" he cried between each squat. "It gives us a time to bond, right Seph?" he said, grinning madly. The general looked at him with bland contempt.
"Yes, I suppose so. But I, however, cannot stand dawdling around like you can, Zackary. Let's get this mission over with." He answered coldly, turning and walking towards what he presumed where the mountains.
After some time of walking in the icy wilderness with Cloud being of no help, since he had never journeyed this far when he was a child, and Zack being a hyperactive nutcase even in the bitter weather, Sephiroth was losing his mind. He desperately wanted to shut the young raven-haired male up, although he kept his body in a firm, unaffected state. But after six hours of walking with nothing but cold and annoyance to keep him company, the man finally snapped.
"Zackary! I am sick and tired of hearing you complain of nothing of importance! Quit screaming like a dying child and shut up once in a while!" He yelled, unsheathing Masamune and launching himself at the shocked 2nd Class, who barely had enough time to react before he was cut along his arm by the cold metallic katana. he stumbled back in surprise, staring at Sephiroth in mute shock before grabbing the standard sword he was issued with when he became a SOLDIER. He squared his shoulders, charging back at the fuming man.
Cloud could only watch in shock as his friend was thrown to the ground, covered in cuts. His militia sword, unequipped to handle the legendary Masamune, lay in two pieces in an icy drift. Sephiroth, in his rage, had thrown off his pack, which contained the Buster Sword. Without stopped to wonder why Angeal had given Sephiroth his most trusted sword, he ran for it, grabbing the hilt of the heavy, thick blade and leaping backwards in a way only a true SOLDIER could achieve.
Sephiroth, not seeing him, stalked forwards towards the bleeding student of his best friend. He raised his blade, about to strike when sparks flew from it. He stared down in muted shock at the sight of the scrawny little blond, holding the raised Buster Sword against the slim katana. No one had ever been able to wield such a heavy blade, aside from Zack and Angeal. He narrowed his eyes, pulling Masamune away before slicing towards the blond at breakneck speed.
He was agile, and leaped into the air, blocking the silken Masamune with a quick parry and a flash of brilliant dark grey. He held the blade at an angle, charging his idol and cutting towards with a horizontal motion. The elder parried the planned attack, cutting wildly but with practiced movements at the inexperienced blonde. But the cadet held his ground, blocking each attack with the flat of the Buster Sword.
Sephiroth placed magic into the Masamune, casting Thunder within it and cutting at Cloud, who was unready for the attack, and was sent flying through the air. he landed beside the cold form of Zack, who had stained the snow around him a brilliant, yet horrifying crimson. Their eyes met, and Zack nodded slightly.
"Beat him... Cloud." he whispered, not being able to heal with his enhanced SOLDIER abilities due to Sephiroth's infused katana. Cloud nodded, the usually quiet blonde looking up through thick bangs at the man in front of him. Even with the harsh conditions of the blizzard, the teen showed no signs of hesitation. His sky blue eyes narrowed dangerously as he cried out, "This is for you, Zack!"
Sephiroth only had time to blink before he was assailed by an onslaught of attacks, the barrage of thought-out swings never ceasing. he was amazed at the blonde cadet's stamina, and was barely able to parry each blow. Since Hojo couldn't stand his creation not being prefect, his had no trouble switching to his other hand once his right was sliced open from the Buster Sword. Being ambidextrous had its uses.
Cloud fought with a fierce intensity, putting all his weight into each blow, yet restraining his strength so he had energy to continue his repeated attacks. He could sense Sephiroth was at him limit, even if the man didn't show his exhaustion through his perfectly cold features. With a final, devastating blow, Cloud knocked the man off his feet and into a nearby tree, knocking him out from the powerful blow to the head.
The teen dropped the sword in a flash as he heard a low groan from Zack, his eyes frantic with worry as he knelt beside his bleeding friend. He lifted the puppy-eyed man's head up, placing it on his leg to brace him as he looked the SOLDIER over. He frowned uncertainly as he saw the extensive injuries, eyes dark with worry.
"You're gonna need some medical treatment, Zack," he said quietly into his best friend's ear. The young man grinned tiredly.
"I know, Chocobo. Good job fighting Seph... I'm proud of ya." he murmured, his eyes showing pride and happiness clearly to the cadet, who grinned in return. before he could say anything back, the noise of helicopter blades were heard, and both of them looked over in surprise as a familiar redhead stepped into view.
"Reno!" Cloud called in happiness and surprise, waving the Turk over. Said redhead grinned, walking over and looking down at the injured Zack.
"Damn man, what have you been rolling in? I get a call that you three were stranded in the mountains, but I didn't expect to find ya half dead, yo." The man chortled.
Zack rolled his eyes playfully. "Jealous?" he teased.
The Turk smirked back. "Of you? Hell no." He retorted. Cloud shook his head at their antics.
Reno looked at the two of them, then glanced over at the unconscious Sephiroth. "Alright Spike, you get Puppy over here to the chopper. It's back there beyond those trees." He said, pointing behind him. "I'll get Mr. Smiles and Sunshine and get him into the chopper after you." he said. Cloud nodded and gingerly lifted the raven up, who winced at the pain of his wounds. He leaned heavily on the blonde's shoulder as they stumbled over towards the waiting helicopter.
Reno sighed as he walked over to the unconscious General, grabbing Masamune and the Buster sword and putting them in the carelessly dropped pack. He hoisted the general up against his shoulder, dragging the bag in one hand before taking the both into the chopper. Cloud lifted Sephiroth and the bag inside before closing the door, Reno jumping into the cockpit and closing his as well.
"Alright, let's get back to ShinRa!" he crowed, turning on the engine and lifting off, flying back towards their employer.
Once they arrived, scientists swarmed the two SOLDIERs, shoving Cloud and Reno out of the way. Reno grabbed the hesitant Cloud's forearm, leading him into the building. He walked into the elevator, hitting his desired floor and letting the doors close before turning to Cloud. "Yo Spike, I bet you're gonna get a promotion for this." He said, grinning.
Cloud looked at him in surprise. "What?"
"Well, you just beat the great General Sephiroth, didn't ya? No doubt Lazard is gonna trip head over heels and give you what you really wanted: bein' a SOLDIER." Reno said matter-of-factly.
Cloud blinked, bemused as he pondered those words. Would Lazard really give him a promotion? He didn't have time to think over it when the elevator let out a soft ding, letting the two men out into the busy corridor. They wet straight for Director Lazard's office, where the man waited eagerly behind his desk, and looked up with a warm lack of surprise when they entered.
"Cloud Strife!" the man cried happily, leaping up and shaking the poor blonde's hand eagerly. "So pleasant to meet the one who defeated the mighty General, eh?" he said excitedly. He leaned against his desk as he grinned at the young cadet. "So kiddo, wanna be a 2nd Class SOLDIER?" he asked bluntly.
Cloud stared at the older man. "Really?" he asked. Inside he reeled with shock and hopefulness, but he managed to school his face into an impassive mask.
Lazard nodded while Reno leaned against the door frame. "That is correct. A fitting promotion for the cadet who defeated Sephiroth!" the Director exclaimed.
Cloud just nodded dumbly. "Ah... sure, I suppose..." he murmured.
Lazard leaped up from his place against his desk, he brunette grinning wildly again. "Fantastic! I'll just switch you forms and then we'll all be so happy!" He cried, ushering them out the door and slamming it in their faces.
Cloud, still in mild shock, looked at Reno, who grinned wickedly. "How's that for a promotion, eh Spike?" the elder chortled, turning on his heel and walking away.
Cloud, realizing he was leaving, followed after him. "W-Wait, Reno!" he called.
Maybe things were looking up after all.