I sat alone on the curb of the street, shivering. My short black hair trembled in the calm breeze. The autumn air was crisp and cold and I longed to be somewhere warmer, be it Costa del Sol or even just the small village of Corel. Anywhere but here, in the cursed shadows of the ruined city of Midgar. The remains of the evil Shin-Ra headquarters stood high above Edge, a constant reminder of the terrible disaster that had terrorized the planet.

The scent of blood came over me and I heard what sounded like light footsteps. I scoured the area for whoever –or whatever- was here with me. I saw nothing but a small shadow, but after a moment I realized that it was a pitiful Kalm Fang pup creeping towards me, its body trembling. It choked on its own snarls and I smiled weakly. "It'll take a lot more than that to scare me," I whispered, holding out my hand to the small monster.

It whimpered again, drawing closer to me cautiously and tucking its tail between its legs. "Wan! Wan!"

Between the canine's bony body and its weak bark it wasn't hard to see that it would die soon. Its grey fur was faded and the streaks of purple were barely visible. Some may have taken pity on such a creature, but I didn't. Feeling bad for him wouldn't make him strong.

It watched me for a brief moment before trying to bite my outstretched hand. I tensed and drew back, instinctively reaching for the weapon that I wasn't carrying.
"You're dying too, aren't you? Was your mother killed?" I asked after I had calmed myself down, hoping that my voice wouldn't scare the beast away.
It responded with a pitiful whining sound. "Maybe you have time to listen to the story of a man who made too many mistakes."

It gazed up at me with its grey clouded eyes and I began to speak:

"It was a cold day like this, about fourteen years ago. I was a member of the Shin-Ra Company's elite SOLDIER unit, 2ndClass. One day the president offered me a promotion to a place called DeepGround. It was a rare occurrence, getting such an offer from Julius Shin-Ra himself.

"Naturally, I went along with it and I became a DeepGround soldier. But I didn't know at the time that DeepGround itself was built in a huge pool of mako energy. I quickly became addicted to the powers of mako, so badly that I couldn't live without it.

"I tried once to stop using the mako, knowing that the result could be deadly. But it's strange- I couldn't; my body refused to allow me to be free of the planet's stream of life. At the time, that was my greatest worry. But what I didn't notice is that I was lacking the symptoms of mako poisoning; I could move, speak- think. I didn't know that I was part of some disgusting experiment."

I stopped as a light rain began to fall, the sound of the heavy drops reminding me of bullets being fired on a quiet battlefield. I felt it roll down my face like the tears I hadn't shed in so long. I stood up apathetically and the Kalm Fang watched me in confusion. "If I die, I don't want to be here in these streets. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Wan! Wan-wan!"

I began walking with the monster at my feet towards a small building near the outskirts of the town. I wasn't sure what made the creature want to follow me- in the back of my mind I wanted to believe that it could understand what I said to it, but it was simply a dying monster. There was no way that this could be true. I was headed for a little bar known as Seventh Heaven, the home of two of the heroes who had helped to save the planet four years ago; Tifa and Cloud Strife.

I didn't know either of them personally –I don't know many people personally- but I knew them well enough that my canine companion and I would be welcomed there.

"It wasn't long after that that I heard of a group of elites within DeepGround known as the Tsviets. I was told to do whatever I was ordered by them, as they had been assigned leadership over the soldiers by the President himself. They were Shelke the Transparent, Azul the Cerulean, Rosso the Crimson, Nero the Sable, and Weiss the Immaculate.

"I didn't concern myself with the business of the Tsviets; I simply did what I was told. It was hard to tell how much time had gone by.

"Life in DeepGround revolved around battle training, but even so we had personal time. I myself had few friends- I have all but forgotten their names by now, in fact, I have forgotten my own name now. But there is one that I will always remember- her name was Kairi. We spent nearly every moment we could together. How odd, that I may have found my only love three hundred feet below the planet's surface."

We reached the bar in a short amount of time and I walked to the front door. The pup still followed me and I almost smiled at its loyalty, the grin lost on my cracked lips. "Don't have such faith in me," I told him, fighting back the sense of happiness I was feeling.

"Wan?" Its bark sounded as though it was trying to ask, "Why not?" I bent down and stroked the monster hesitantly before looking at the door. Its matted fur felt rough against my skin. A sign proudly displayed 'Open', so I walked in.

"Huh? Oh, hello." Tifa smiled warmly, although I'm not so sure she appreciated having my canine companion in her bar.

"I apologize for bringing a… pet, in here." I wasn't sure what I would call the Kalm Fang.

"It's perfectly fine."

Nodding slightly, I sat down. The beasts claws clicked against the wooden floor and it sat on the ground beside me. I doubted this was true- I'm sure she'd fought a lot of monsters like the pup before and it probably made her uncomfortable- but I also doubted that she had the heart to tell me this.

I had no home, and I'm sure it showed. But I was far from self-pitying; I deserved the life I'd received.

"Before I knew it, ten years had passed. Ten long years of nearly endless battle training. I needed neither food nor sleep."

As I spoke I saw Tifa look at me out of the corner of my eye. She seemed interested in my tale too, setting down the glass she had been drying off to listen, although why someone from AVALANCHE would want to hear the story of a Shin-Ra monster was beyond my understanding.

"And on a fateful day in the coldness of late autumn, a pathway to the world above had been opened. We knew nothing but to kill, to fight, and to stain the land with blood.

Tifa had walked over to the table I was sitting at. I glanced up at her and she smiled somewhat awkwardly. "I'm sorry," she said. "I hope I'm not interrupting you."

I shook my head. "No, it's fine."

Ignoring her, I looked back at the canine and continued my story.

"Kairi and I were both amongst the high-ranking officers that led the attack on the world above; we killed everyone that was still in the streets of Midgar. And then we moved on to Edge, built in the shadow of the ruined city.

"The WRO- the World Regenesis Organization- tried to fight back when they learned of our attack. We had no trouble with them until one former AVALANCHE member came along; Vincent Valentine was the world's only hope at that point.

"But we needed something only he had: the protomateria that belonged to Chaos. With that, we could control Chaos. Under orders from the Tsviets, we began to capture those who weren't affected by Geostigma and kill them with the mako that was stored in DeepGround itself. The Tsviets never told us why, but we did what we were told without question."

Tifa seemed somewhat alarmed at what I had said, so I looked up at her. "Don't concern yourself with this," I told her. "This is all in the past now." She nodded half-heartedly and I looked back at the dog. I didn't realize how much time had passed. It had already stopped raining outside.

"Where are you headed?" she asked me as I stood up.

"Nowhere in particular. I plan to see as much of the world as I can until I die."

"You're planning on dying?" Her face showed something I wasn't familiar with. Was it sadness? No, I believe it was concern. "But-"

"Don't worry about me," I said before she could finish her protest. "I've lived a long enough life. To return to the Lifestream would be the only way to erase my sins."

Without another word I walked away, leaving the bartender alone. The sound of a motorcycle broke the silence as we left and I thought how lucky Tifa was that she had someone that would always return to her. Perhaps I would have found such happiness if not for Shin-Ra. I silently cursed myself for my terrible decision so long ago.

The small wolf began to fall behind and I stopped every so often for it to catch up. He whimpered and I was tempted to carry him so that he wouldn't get lost in the great expanse of trees that now surrounded us, but I didn't. Finally he collapsed on the leaf-covered ground. I watched him for a moment, regretting taking him so far away from the city before crouching down beside him.

"Don't give up on me now," I said to him. "I haven't finished my story." He looked up at me, and the look in his eyes seemed like he was asking me to finish it before he drew his final breath.

"When AVALANCHE defeated the Tsviets, there were very few left from DeepGround. I was one of only four, and I watched as my comrades took their own lives. Among those was Kairi- the most harrowing thing I'd ever witnessed had been watching her as she fired the last bullet in her weapon at her own heart. I too was tempted to take my own life, but something held me back. I've been alone since that day, waiting for death to finally reach me."

I heard growling as I finished speaking; a deep rumbling sound that would have driven fear into the heart of any normal human. I stood completely still, watching the small wolf tremble with fear.

An enormous behemoth flew out of the darkness, gripping my weak body in its jaws. I cried out in agony and the pup watched in terror. I watched as my blood pooled onto the ground, seeping from my body. The creature roared viciously, drawing its lips back in a snarl as it threw me onto the forest floor with a loud thud. I tried scanning the area for something I could use as a weapon- anything would work- but my eyes were burning from the stench of the beast's breath and I could hardly move besides.

My vision went blurry- so bad that I could barely make out the shapes of the two monsters- but I watched as the minute smudge of color that was the Kalm Fang leap at the huge monster. I couldn't stand to watch the pup as it fought while hardly being able to stand up at all.

Everything was over in a matter of moments. I felt the pup press its warm body against mine, whimpering softly. The behemoth made no sound, and I thought perhaps that the wolf had killed it. I lifted my hand slowly, shaking as I stroked the canine's head lightly. "You didn't… give up on me… after all," I muttered, summoning all of the strength I had left to choke out the rest of my words. "Thank you, DeepGround."

It whined softly in confusion, and for the first time in ten years I smiled. "That is your name. DeepGround."

What a pitiful sight it must have been, a dying soldier that had once terrorized the planet and a small monster-both covered in blood- lying on the ground together. I watched DeepGround until his last breath left his body, waiting for my end to come. I saw a small white speck fall on the wolf's fur before I closed my eyes. "Just like that day…" I whispered to myself.

I could feel my body as it returned to the Lifestream. I had failed so many people in my life- the Tsviets, Kairi, DeepGround- even myself- and I knew that there was no place in heaven for me. But even so, one day I would be reborn. Only then would I find the salvation I had been seeking. And until that day I would cling to my memories of the two friends that had kept me alive for so long.

A/N: This is told from the POV of an OC from DeepGround. I edited this from an earlier version (which can be found on my website .com if you want to read it (it's on the category "Empire of Sin"/Other Stories/Fanfics under the same title). I must thank TheVulpineHero1 for being patient enough to beta-read this for me :D So yes, thank you XD

Please review~ Tips and such are welcome, as I am particularly proud of this piece and I would like to edit it and make it as good as possible. DISCLAIMER: I don't own Final Fantasy VII