Things don't look good for our heroes. As the darkness moves in to envelope the last speck of light, we take a trip to the past to learn why this all happened. The key to understanding the present is in the past. Remember if you have any questions, comments, suggestions, reviews, concerns, etc. don't be afraid to send them to me. I love hearing feedback. Enjoy!

"In the beginning there was Void. Then four spirits came together in this Void...The crystals were born and the world was created. Thus, Hope gives the earth blessings, Courage lights the flames, Kindness makes water the source of life, Pursuit lets wisdom ride the wind. When the time comes that Void shall again envelope the world if within people live the four spirits, Light shall again be born. Four spirits, Wandering through Void Shall once again give birth to light."

-Final Fantasy V epilogue

"He who does not punish evil, commands it to be done."

-Leonardo da Vinci

"All that is necessary for the triumph of Evil is that good men do nothing."

-Edmund Burke

"There's a connection. Everything is connected. I can feel it."

-Yuna Final Fantasy X-2

Chaos lowered his head. Closing his eyes he tried to suppress his tears. Only one thought raced through his head at the moment……how did all this happen?

Chapter 9: Good Men

As a sit here at the edge of the end, all I see is darkness. I don't know where it leads and I don't know where it will all end up. At this moment, like many I've had before, all I can see is the past.

Billions of years ago………………….

A young, green haired man sat against a tree trunk scribbling into a thick leather bound book. The young man wore a simple black cloak with the hood down. His eyes were as pure white as the clouds that hung in the sky over head. The clouds themselves were perfectly framed in a vast, clear blue sky and bright sun shining down on the grassy planes. In the distance was a vast city dotted with many marble buildings.

The buildings weren't very tall, the largest one being only 4 stories. But what they lacked in size they made up with life, vines growing down the sides. Potted plants in almost every window sill, roof top gardens filled with a wide, colorful, vibrant spectrum of flowers. The man stopped writing for a moment to look up at the city.

In the beginning we were one people, one purpose, one ideal. The Varis….that was our name. We're not quite sure who it happened, but from the moment of our existence we were charged with the responsibility of guarding a great power. We realized what the mausoleum meant…what the Nexus meant. But we choose to uphold our duty, revere our sacred responsibility. And we were rewarded for it…and also unfortunately we thought ourselves better for it.

The young man's attention turned back to his writing. Suddenly an apple fell from the tree above landing on the young man's head. Letting out a yelp of pain he rubbed his head and looked up to see his laughing friend sitting on a branch of the tree. The man's friend had dark purple hair, with the same white eyes, wearing a similar black cloak.

I've spent a great deal of time watching things, trying to make sense of the world. What I've found is that evil is born from choice. Some choices we make ourselves, some we have no say in what so ever.

"What do you want Martyr?" groaned the young green haired man.

"The council meeting is about to start. They sent me to get you Chaos." Martyr replied.

"Was the apple drop necessary?" Chaos sighed shutting the book and standing up.

"Not really but I need to do something to snap you out of it. What do you right in there?" asked Martyr.

"It's a diary..."

"Diary…..okay Mary-sue."

Chaos shot Martyr a disapproving look for his joke.

"Okay then it's a journal. I record interesting things I see in the mausoleum."

"You've been in there?"

"With Amano, he's taken me in on a couple occasions. When you see just truly how many worlds there are, each different, each giving a different perspective….it makes you realize how truly grand reality is."

"Also makes you realize how fragile it is. One bad guy in there and we're all screwed."

"Let's hope it never comes to that."

"I hear that."

The two men began walking toward the city.

"What's today's meeting about?" asked Chaos.

"Same as yesterday's and the one before that, and the one before that." Sighed Martyr.

"The splinter group."

"Yeah, I'm getting tired of all this. I don't know why we just can't come to an agreement already."

"Some people just think differently…you can't help that."

"Everyday more people join their group and everyday the argument's just get more intense. Enix even talks about war."

"Sh*t….Things have been good so far. If it comes to war…I'll stand where I've always stood." Smiled Chaos.

"Then let's hope it doesn't come to war…because you suck in a fight. Just because you're named after a god doesn't mean you can kick ass." Snickered Martyr.

The two men burst into laughter, lightly pushing each other as they entered the city.

I was an idealist….sheltered was more like it. Raised on the teachings of our people. Admiring the stories of great heroes. Life was good for me….why would I want to rock the boat. At that time I didn't see why people wanted things to change. There was just no point to it in my opinion.

Chaos and Martyr soon arrived at set of marble steps leading up to a large pair of double doors of an even greater marble building. Martyr pushed open the door to reveal a immense room with seats set up all around with hundreds of people seated in them. At the very end of the room was a large throne at the head of a great stone desk. The two men took their seats shuffled away to the side of the throne.

Martyr was a man driven by duty. He was always loyal to his people, his teachers, his superiors and his friends.

The doubled doors burst open, sounds of awe filled the room as a group of people dressed in white robes wearing silver pins on their chests strode in. Among the whispers the group to their seats to the side of the main desk.

The Garrick, we were the same people, only our ideals differed. Because we could not reconcile our differences they felt the need to branch away from the rest of us and chose a new name for themselves.

The atmosphere was palpable as the doors opened again. In walked a procession of men wearing black robes with silver trimming holding elegantly crafted gold staves. At the end of the procession walked a elderly man in a black robe trimmed with gold wearing a deep red head band. The procession led the man to the desk where he sat down in the chair. One of the men in the procession handed the elder a gavel then joined the others to stand behind the elder. The elder forcibly banged the gavel bringing silence and order to the gathering.

"Now presiding over this counsel meeting Grand Councilor Uematsu." Announced one of the silver trimmed guards.

The Grand Councilor rubbed his temples before bringing his fingers down over his wrinkled face. He then folded his hands taking a look at those assembled before him.

"Before we start I must make one thing clear. Even though there is a lot of animosity between both sides, we must remember that we are still one people. And as such we must remember to listen to each other and try to come to a consensus for the good of the entire Varis race. That being said…..chairman Nojima of the Garrick may speak first." Announced the Grand Councilor.

One of the white robbed men stood up. He had black spiky hair and wore glowing red goggles over his white Varis eyes.

"I would like to make a point to the entire counsel that we have been a non violent faction and I would like to keep it that. But I will also like you to know that we will not bend. We believe that with great power comes great responsibility….and there is no greater power than the nexus. So it is our responsibility to use this power to better the worlds around us. We….Varis….as it is now…..have a duty to bring our enlightenment to the darkness of the mortal worlds. To sit on this duty and do nothing is to allow the proliferation of this darkness." Explained Nojima.

Uematsu gave a nod to the Garrick leader then motioned toward the Varis representative.

"Chairman Kitase speak now on the behalf of the Varis league of Order." Commanded Uematsu.

The Chairman arose; he was a tall lanky man, dressed in a simple black cloak. He had thick blonde hair parted down the middle.

"We of the league of Order hold nothing but respect for Garrick. But though their intentions maybe…..noble…..they have no right or reason to presume that they have the moral superiority to decide what is just and what is wrong. Because that is what they are doing. We've sat through weeks of these council meetings and one and one thing is clear. The Garrick believe that they are the absolute authority."

"OBJECTION!!!!!" Nojima angrily bolted up.

"SILENCE NOJIMA! You were given your say." Responded Uematsu.

"This is slander. They're just trying discredit us." Explained Nojima.

"Grand Councilor may I please continue….uninterrupted." asked Kitase.

Uematsu nodded in agreement. Nojima begrudgingly sat down.

"And there are the facts. The Garrick are prone to rashness and idealism. Not understanding the ramifications of their actions. We Varis have existed in peace for centuries, guarded the Nexus and preserved reality. That is what we should continue to do." Kitase sat down with a smirk.

The deliberations went on like that for hours. Each time becoming more heated. It actually became quite insufferable to watch. Finally in the middle of the proceedings the Garrick walked out. They reasoned that if the Council and the League of Order wouldn't let them have a voice, it was not worth it to speak at all. Their leaving caused quite a stir, after the meeting Martyr and I headed to the only place where we could take our minds off that nerve racking affair.

The sun began to set on the city. Street lamps started to light up the various alleyways and sidewalks. Martyr and Chaos sauntered down the sidewalk.

"Who just up and walks out of a Grand Council meeting?" Chaos shook his head.

"Very pissed off people." The two men walked up to a small yellow building with a bright red door. "But now we chill out. Because dealing with that stuff all the time would drive us crazy."

Martyr gave his friend a pat on the shoulder then knocked on the door. The door opened to reveal a beautiful, faire skinned woman with the same pure white eyes as all the Varis. She had long flowing raven hair and wore a knee length black dress with a purple vest. She smiled at the two men giving them each a hug.

"It's so good to see you guys." The woman invited them in.

"After today it's good to come here for a little sanity." Martyr removed his cloak placing it on a hanger in the main hall. Martyr wore an all black outfit with a white vest.

"Believe us it's always a joy spending time with you Jenova." Smiled Chaos.

Chaos hung up his cloak as well revealing that he was wearing white pants with a black shirt. Jenova led the two men to her dining room.

"Sit down, I'll get some tea." She smiled back.

Martyr slumped down in his chair, while Chaos watched Jenova leave the room.

"You know you're quite pathetic." Laughed Martyr.

"I'm just waiting for the right time." Chaos responded as he took a seat.

"Nothing just happens, you do things yourself. She's a wonderful woman."

"And I'm me."

"Yeah and you are a council member. Respected by the entire community."

"Yeah and I haven't got my power yet."

"Neither have I or even her for that matter. It's not like you haven't hit puberty yet."

"You make feel so much better."

Martyr had a small laugh at his friend's expense when Jenova entered the room carrying a tray of tea and cakes. She laid the tray sown then took a seat at the head of the table. She poured everyone a cup of tea then took a deep breathe.

"Guess what." She could hardly hold back her excitement.

"What?" Martyr raised an eyebrow.

"I got my power today!" she squealed.

Martyr burst into laugher throwing an arm around her.

"That is amazing. You know I've always been proud of you. Being like a sister to me I always knew you were going to go far." Smiled Martyr.

"So what is it?" inquired Chaos.

"I call it Full Body Control. I am completely in control of my genes. You guys need to see the things I can do now." She told them.

Chaos lowered his head.

"That's wonderful….you're wonderful." Chaos responded.

Jenova place her hand on top of Chaos' and looked into his eyes.

"Don't worry about. You'll get you power soon. There is a reason for everything. And I have a feeling that when you get your power there will be a grand reason behind it." She assured him.

Chaos looked up at Jenova and smiled. Just as their eyes met and explosion rang out in the distance sending a rumble through out the city. All three Varis rose to their feet. Heading out the door with great urgency the ran down the streets until they reached massive fire spewing from one of the cities government buildings.

"What happened?" Chaos asked a cloaked Varis.

"The Garrick…..they blew up the south court house. 9 people are dead. They say the Varis laws don't apply to them anymore. Then those cowards ran to Tristam City." The man replied.

"Son of a………" Martyr couldn't take his eyes off the fire.

That was the beginning. The lines had been drawn, we were at war. Anyone with a power was instantly drafted to the army. Everyone else was up for volunteering. Martyr and I enlisted as fast as we could. 12 more attacks occurred while we trained. Men, women, children... they all died, while we watched. Martyr took to the training like a fish to water. It was more of a steep hill for me, but I remained in it. Everyone else around me was taking up arms, I couldn't let them down.

When the time came we were thrown into battle. The first time a took a life I shook for hours. Martyr stayed strong, he had to. The more fighting we did the more unnerved I became. I was glad to have had Martyr there with me. Jenova and Martyr were the two things that kept me going. Slowly they started to change; Martyr fell into his roll as a soldier. And over time, I noticed Jenova's smile slowly start to fade. She was getting sick of war, she never liked it to begin with; she just wanted it to stop.

1 billion years later…….

It was the dead of night as the two men ran through the massively lush forest. Pushing past brush, stepping through vines, weaving about between the giant trees the two men ran for their lives. Out of no where and explosion hit near he runners almost knocking down the green haired soldier. Both men were wearing silver tunics with black armor on their chests and legs, complete with silver arm guards, shoulder pads and helmets. The purple haired man, Martyr, had a gold broad sword on his back complete with two hand guards. The Green haired man, Chaos, Carried a simple Dual Dao Sabre at his hip.

They kept going as more explosions sounded in. One of the explosions touched down near Chaos, the shockwave sent Chaos reeling flying into the trunk of a tree. He groaned in pain pulling off one of his gloves to reveal a huge gash along the length of his forearm, blood flowing down to his fingers. Chaos held up his trembling hand for Martyr to see.

"The wound opened up again…" Chaos panted.

Martyr bent down ripping off a piece of his tunic then wrapped it around Chaos' arm.

"We're almost to base camp. You can keep going." Martyr encouraged him.

Martyr started to help his friend up when several blasts of energy whizzed past his head colliding in to the trees to the left of him. Martyr looked up to see a group of soldiers wearing black tunics and red armor.

"Freeze…you're coming with us." Ordered one of the soldiers holding up a glowing red rifle at the two.

Martyr let go of Chaos raising his hands into the air.

"If you guys don't let me take him to safety. I'll just have to take you all down. Now let me go or else." Martyr informed them.

"Yeah right." Laughed the soldier.

The lead soldier aimed his rifle at Chaos' head. Before he could pull the trigger flipped over on his side firing a blast of green energy at the rifle forcing the soldier to tumble back. Martyr drew his sword slashing another soldier's arm off. Two more soldiers came at Martyr spears in hand.

Martyr broke his broad sword in two and with a few quick swipes cut them to pieces. The one armed soldier rushed at Martyr in retaliation. Martyr spun around jamming one of his blades into the soldier's chest then sliced off his head. Martyr then walked over to the lead soldier, put his swords back together. The soldier laid on the ground burned and scared from the energy blast. Martyr put his foot on the soldier's chest placing his broad sword at the soldier's throat.

"I warned ya." Martyr then jammed the sword into the soldier finishing him off.

Martyr sheathed his sword then rushed to Chaos' side. He helped his friend up then started leading him back to the came.

"Was that last bit really necessary?" panted Chaos.

"He deserved it. Besides could leave him to call for back up, we can't afford anymore distractions." Replied Martyr.

"Thanks." Chaos smiled.

I had been injured in the battle of Lea Monde. Our whole squad had been wiped out. Thanks to Martyr we were all that was left. When we returned to base camp I spent two days in the infirmary.

Inside the main tent of the base camp, Martyr stood side by side with General Belel. Martyr, the General and his aides stood over a map of the surrounding area.

"We should move through the south plains." Suggested one of the aides.

"Jenova's detachment is around there. But we can't move, because the Garrick have moved all their non-fighting citizens to that area." Informed another aide.

"The enemies' attack is getting stronger from the Southeast mountains. We're just going to have to pull back and form a strong defense at the base, while we send Jenova's group around the plains and try to flank them." Martyr proposed.

"That would take forever!" spat one of the aides.

"Then we'll just have to bite the bullet. Going through the plains innocents might be hurt. And we can't let this war take that route. We go with Martyr's plan. Make sure everyone has the correct comucite before we head out. We need proper communication." Commanded the General.

A few days later the South west defense fell. Jenova's detachment got held up in the plains by a small but resourceful Garrick Militia. 1,000 people died from our side.

It was night and Martyr sat on a crate a few feet away from the main campfire. Chaos approached his friend handing him a cup.

"What is it?" Martyr somberly asked.

"It's cold; it has alcohol, drink it up." Chaos chuckled.

"I screwed up. I let my heart get the best of me and our people suffered for it." Martyr sighed.

"Don't think like that. You did right. Your heart has already made you strong. You can't let one mistake get to you like that." Chaos assured his friend.

"Any word from Jenova?" asked Martyr.

Chaos lowered his head.

"Nothing since the south east fell. She took it hard. I'm proud that she's become such a capable leader in all this." Explained Chaos.

Just then the entire camp seemed to break in to an uproar. Soldiers started scrambling around. Chaos and Martyr ran towards the crowd to see what was going on. What they found was Jenova being dragged into camp by a group of guards kicking, screaming and thrashing about covered in blood. Chaos pushed through the crowd coming to Jenova's defense. He pushed away the guards then wrapped his arms around her.

"Leave her alone! Tell me what's going on this minute!" Chaos demanded.

"Sir release the prisoner. She is under custody for taking illegal mind control of his squad and slaughtering an entire village of innocents." Informed the guard.

Chaos' eyes widened.

"No…" his lip trembled.

"She even killed her entire squad to try and hide the evidence. We're only lucky that one survived long enough to tell us the truth." Snickered another guard.

"Jenova…." Chaos looked to her.

She slowly raised her blood stained face up to look at him with a devious smile. Chaos let go allowing her to be dragged away again. Slowly a big lump in his throat and stood up looking down at the blood on his hands. Martyr clenched his fists then rushed toward Jenova. He pulled her off the ground by the collar of her tunic. With a glare he looked right in to her eyes.

"Why?" he growled.

"It's war; I have the power, why not. People die…..in war….my power….my nature…control….destroy…" she broke into a crazed laughter.

Martyr turned his head away in disgust and allowed her to be dragged away to lock-up. Martyr looked back at Chaos to see him standing there motionless, his eyes still fixated on the blood from Jenova's clothes. He then looked down at his own hands to see stains of blood as well.

A cease fire was agreed upon by both sides while Jenova was tried for her war crimes. It took two squads and a two pairs of Nethicite shackles to retrain her. The trial went fast. I attended, I needed to know why? The Jenova I knew would never had done something like this. Martyr didn't even show up, he said he didn't care about her reasons. Jenova didn't even defend herself. She stated that since she joined the war effort they treated her like a weapon so she did exactly what they told her to do….destroy the enemy.

Grand Councilor Uematsu presided over the trial.

"Jenova, for the misconduct of your powers, the deaths of innocent people and your comrades….you are here by striped of your immortal status as a Varis and banished to the Mortal realm to wander for all eternity.

Chaos watched as they lead Jenova out of the court house and down through the streets of the city. They ended up in front of a large mausoleum. Three men dressed in red robes approached the doors of the mausoleum opened them up to reveal a huge swirling black and purple vortex. The striped her of her clothes then wrapped her in a simple black cloth. They then hooked her chains to a large rock binding her to it. The red robbed men then surrounded her.

"Jenova you have betrayed your people. You are now banished from this world and sentence to wander the mortal universe. Never coming across another living thing again." The man raised his hands up then brought them to face Jenova's chest.

He let out a pulse of white energy that hit her body like a ton of bricks. Jenova screamed in pain as her skin slowly started turning blue. Her raven black slowly shifting into sliver locks. Chaos could barely hold back his tears. In the distance Martyr watched the event from on top of the roof of a nearby building.

"Jenova of the fallen…..good bye." The robed men combined their energy, surrounding the rock.

With one final pulse from all three men the rock was sent hurling into the vortex. Chaos looked down at his tunic his eyes focusing in on the soldier pin he was wearing. Chaos plucked it of his tunic tossing it the ground. On the roof, Martyr watched his friend walk away. Martyr placed hand on the hilt of his sword at his side and began walking back to the army base.

A member of the Varis clergy was put in charge of keeping an eye on Jenova to make sure she never came across another living thing and wandered the cosmos. But after a hundred years the War hit a fever pitch. Things became even more ugly, battles more intense, morals….more flexible. Both sides started to do things that Jenova and a couple of other war prisoners did.

As the war intensified Jenova became forgotten. The people assigned to watch her went on to more important things. Even in her imprisonment she grew stronger, gaining more control over her power, and losing control over her mind. It was long before she went off course. She touched down on a planet, used her power to drain it of life, destroyed it then moved on. It began her wave of destruction; the rest as they say was history.

200 years later…………….

Chaos stood in front of General Belel. Belel was suited up in his armor while Chaos wore a simple black shirt, white pants and a Black over coat. Chaos' armor and weapon laid on the general's desk.

"After all these years, it's going to be a shame to loose you soldier, even if you never got your power. I mean, just last week you took out two battalions by yourself." Sighed the General.

"To be honest General we've all know it's been a long time coming. I'll be better off in the clergy." Chaos replied.

"Have you told Martyr yet?" asked the General.

"We haven't exactly seen each other in 50 years." Chaos answered.

"His regimen should be coming back to the city in two weeks. They just have a small tour of the Agito Flats." Informed the General.

"Thank you." Chaos gave the General one final salute then headed out.

Meanwhile in the Agito Flats, Martyr and his team hunkered down behind a small cliff face as explosion rang out all around them. He held his broad sword firmly in hand as he peered over the side of the cliff. Below them were 6 soldiers firing their rifles at Martyr's pinned down group. Martyr lowered his head back down to face his men.

"I'm going in. Gunners up to the front and give me cover." He ordered.

"That's suicide." Warned one of the soldiers.

"We have no choice, I'm the strongest one. I'll take them down." He shot back.

"You don't even have a power." One of the soldier scolded him.

Martyr grabbed the man by his collar and shoved him away.

"Power or not…..these people are evil. They've done unspeakable things and driven us to do the same. This war is tearing our world apart, you stand with me and believe we can put it back together, or you join them and get the hell out of here." Martyr angrily warned the squad.

Martyr leapt over the cliff and rushed down the hill side. Breaking up his swords he began slashing away and single handedly devastated 5 of the soldiers. The 6 one tried to run away, but Martyr kept focused on him following him through the trees until the grabbed a hold of them. Martyr pulled the man back then delivered a spin kick to the side of his temple. Blood flowed down the man's head. He thrust his hands upward to fire an energy blast at Martyr. Martyr placed his swords together again and used his broad sword to cut through the man's blast and slice him in half.

Martyr stood there trembling, breathe labored. His body shook, his veins felt like they were on fire. He had never felt anything like this sensation before. His body became surrounded in a dark purple aura. The aura extended from Martyr's body into the corpse of the man he had just killed. The man's power flowed from the dead soldier's body into Martyr's. The purple aura started to flame around Martyr's body.

More Garrick soldier started to approach. Martyr turned to smile at them He held up his hand fired a massive blast of dark energy killing two soldiers. The energy began to flow out of their bodies as well. Gripping his sword he charged at the remaining soldier. Martyr's squad arrived a very minutes later to find Martyr covered in blood amidst a swirl of flaming dark purple aura.

Martyr became what the Varis council had hoped for. The perfect soldier. An unstoppable War Machine devoted to their cause.

Two weeks later……….

Chaos sat inside the duty living room of what used to be Jenova's apartment. He sat at the head of the table scribbling away into his leather bound journal. He heard the creaking of the floor boards and looked up to see scruffy looking Martyr leaning against the door. He looked thinner than usual, his skin was pale, bags under his eyes, but still he had a smile on his face.

"You look god awful." Chaos reached into the pack at his side and pulled out a sandwich he had wrapped up. "Here eat this and sit down."

Martyr took a seat, but he waved away the sandwich.

"No thank you I'm not hungry…..just tired." He responded.

"You going to be okay?"

"Yeah……I heard you quit."

"I did."

"Was it because of Jenova? I don't blame you, that bitch betrayed us all. She gave in….it was the fighting that made her crazy."

"It wasn't like that."

"How do you know….Nobody knows or cares what happened to her. Did you hear the 'Great Hyne' of the Garrick has quit and self banished himself to the mortal realm."

"Didn't they used to say that he was the Martyr of the Garrick."

"Used to. Zilart from our side, Garland, Kan, Mojiko, Sensjito, they've all left as well. Like rats fleeing from a sinking ship."

"Don't you think a billion or so years is enough for a war?"

"I don't care how long it takes I just want a resolution. It's hard being out there in the thick of things."

"I'm sorry I can't help you….but I just can't be out there fighting anymore."

"I got my power."

Chaos sat up straight looking at his friend.

"What is it?" Chaos asked with much trepidation.

"Death….I gain power from death. At first it was just the people I killed, but now all death gives me strength. In the past two weeks alone I wiped out two enemy bases with only one squad to back me up." Martyr's voice nearly fell to a whisper.

"Are you okay?" Chaos looked away from his friend.

"I don't….know. When death happens…I gain strength. But the feelings around the power also seeps into my brain. It hurts, I only see flashes, horrible things, images of death in my mind. I'm so tired……." Martyr laid his head on the table.

Chaos stood up and walked to the door.

"I have to go now. But we'll talk about this later. I'm still your friend." Chaos assured him.

"I know…" Martyr replied.

Chaos lowered his head and walked out the door, leaving martyr behind.

The truth was that I didn't have any where to go. I just couldn't stay to see him like that. I was frightened. Another part of my world was crumbling. Here was a man I looked to as a pillar of strength; vulnerable, bearing his soul to me. Jenova a kind and gentle soul, became a monster. Martyr a man of conviction and strength, falling to pieces in front of my eyes. My people were at war. And I couldn't do a thing to help any of them.

The next day Martyr waited for me, I didn't show. He continued to wait for a week before he was sent out to war again. Meanwhile I hid. Anyone else in Martyr's place would have cracked a lot sooner. But it was his strength that kept him going. Even though his heart was racked with pain he continued to fight. His strength allowed him to endure, but in the end I believe that it was his strength that drove him to do what he did.

Martyr sat in the darkness of his tent. He was breathing heavily, beads of sweat rolling down his fore head. He tried to keep his hands from shaking, but it was no use. He looked over at his sword laid against his bunk. It hadn't even been clean since the last time he used it, still carrying the stains of blood and dirt. The tent flap lifted as General Belel poked his head in.

"Geez, you look like sh*t. You sure you're up for this next raid. These B*stards stomped through a village burning it to the ground. You're justice kid….don't forget that." Belel patted Martyr on the back. "I'll see you out there in a few minutes."

Belel headed out leaving Martyr alone again. Martyr took a deep breathe then reached under his cot to pull out a small metal box. He opened it up and removed its contents….a piece of comucite.

"Chaos….can you hear me…we need to talk…Chaos…." Martyr through the comucite into the box then angrily shoved it under his cot. He picked up his sword then headed out the tent.

When he was gone a crackling sound came from the box.

"Martyr…..buddy are you there?" Chaos waited, but there was no answer.

Inside the city Martyr stood by the Mausoleum along with a man dressed in red robes. Chaos sighed putting away the comucite.

"You're never going to become a full fledge clergyman with a spirit in so much turmoil. Don't you think your skills would be in better use somewhere else?" smiled the man.

"I don't think so minister Rezmec. I'm not a fighter anymore, never really got a taste for it. I remember some of my happiest days were of Minister Amano taking me on a tour of the Mausoleum. Showing me the great adventures and noble deeds of heroes. Then I would write about what I saw in my journal, so I could remember and hope to be like them. But Amano died in the early raids and I stopped coming." Chaos confessed.

"All answers are contained in the nexus, but some are best discovered from within. I'll see you later." Rezmec patted Chaos on the shoulder then left.

When Rezmec was out of sight, Chaos took his journal out of his pocket. He flipped it open to a page that contained a picture of him, Martyr, Jenova and Minister Amano all smiling happily. Chaos slammed his hand against the door of the mausoleum.

"Is there an answer?" he whispered.

I was lost.

Martyr stood amidst a field of flowers surrounded by a legion of Garrick soldiers. His hands were still shaking as he took sword in hand. One by one the soldier engaged Martyr. He blocked each of their sword strikes smashing their blades to pieces in the process. Martyr let out a roar and quickly drove his blades in to the hearts of four of the soldiers. Five of them came charging at Martyr all together. Each of them fired a blast of energy at Martyr.

Martyr could already feel the strength flowing into his blood from the fallen warriors. He slashed away their blasts sending out one of his own. He spun around creating a crescent wave of energy with his second sword. The energy wave collided with the five killing them instantly. The rest of the men dropped their weapons and ran away from Martyr.

The rest of Martyr's squad arrived in time to see the retreat. Martyr started running after the fleeing soldiers when he was held back by one of his squad members.

"Where are you going?" asked the squad member.

"If we let them go, they'll just return and continue to fight." Martyr shot back.

"They're running back to a village. There's innocents there."

"And how's that different from how everyone else is fighting?" Martyr spat.

"You said it yourself….we don't fight like that."

"Where's the answer then? There's just no end. They'll come back." Martyr punched the squad member in the face.

The squad member went flying back landing on the ground with a thud. Martyr then ran full blast in the same direction as the soldiers. He soon reached the village breaking past its defenses with relative ease. Villagers began to crowd around him. He sheathed his weapon scanning the village for the soldiers.

To his surprise the soldiers came running at him. They carried pitch forks, clubs and anything they could get their hands on. They approached Martyr cautiously.

"Where does it end?" Martyr leapt into the air and fired out multiple blasts of energy from his palms. The blasts flew out colliding into the soldiers killing them.

Martyr looked over the entire village to see the horrified faces of the women and children looking up at him. He looked down at one small crying boy standing over a body.

"It won't end. That boy he'll get angry, he'll grow, he'll fight." Martyr's eyes then focused in on a woman also crying "She'll give birth to more and fill her children with hate. The Evil is all over this village!!!!" Martyr cried out.

Martyr held out both of his palms and fired a massive blast of energy. The blast touched down in the center of the village. In an instant everything was engulfed in flames and blown away. When Martyr landed he used his power to blow away what was left leaving him standing alone in an empty crater.

Martyr's squad members arrived to find him standing in the smoking crater. Their jaws hit the floor. Carefully they moved toward him. Martyr was breathing heavily looking down at his hands.

"What…..did…." The squad member couldn't even finish his sentence.

"I see it now…..it will never end. They fight, we fight. Death begets death. The evil is everywhere." Chaos stammered.

"What they hell are you talking about?" inquired another squad member.

"If I let you go. They'll banish me and continue fighting. You'll go on and continue killing. That's how it always is….all the death….murder…..Where is the answer?"

"He's losing it. We better call in back up."

Martyr turned to face his fellow squad members with a smile.

"I see it now, what she saw. They made their weapon of evil. The answer is….wipe out evil." Martyr powered up balls of energy in his hands then tossed them at his fellow squad members blowing them to pieces.

It was days before they brought Martyr in. The scene was familiar, I raced through a crowd of people gathered around as they dragged him in. But unlike Jenova he didn't struggle. He walked through the city, shackled, with an eerie calm.

Martyr sat on a chair in the middle of a dark cell. The doors opened allowing Chaos to step inside and confront his friend.

"Why Martyr? " Chaos asked.

"Tell me Chaos what's the answer. Show me. Why do people do such horrible things? It will never end until we wipe it all away." Martyr replied.

"Are you crazy….After what Jenova did you pull this. Why Martyr, your not like this.:

"I can't stand by anymore. I'm not going to lie…..what I did was evil. But if it takes evil to wipe evil out I'll gladly sacrifice my soul."

"They are going to banish you, maybe even execute you."

"Show me then. You're the only Chaos. If there is anything in this or any world that's good or worth preserving then show me. If you can't then I'll wipe it all out with my own hands."

Chaos turned away from his friend.

"I……have nothing to show you. I don't have the power to show you anything. I'm just a no talent man who has to say good bye to another friend." Chaos headed out the door leaving Martyr alone.

Martyr's trial went fast. He gave no other defense other than claiming he was doing what he always did….uphold justice. Like Jenova before him he was walked through the streets, shackled, all the way down to the Mausoleum.

The ministers rolled in a banishment rock behind Martyr.

"Do you have any final words to say?" one of the minister's asked.

Martyr looked down at his hands taking a deep breathe. He then looked up to face the crowd. Chaos slowly approached the gathering making sure to stay near the back of the crowd.

"Don't you see what's going on? The problem is everywhere. The Garrick were right in their assumptions, but wrong in their scope. Changing one person, one person, one event isn't enough. The Evil has infected every level of this reality. It exists even in us. It all needs to go, evil is like a virus and it has already spread everywhere." Martyr replied.

"Then you do not feel any remorse for your actions." Stated one of the ministers.

"I feel remorse…..remorse that there is no longer anything that can be done to save this reality. It has to be me……I was give the power to rule over death. I've seen the worst of this reality….the horror….the tragedy. The Garrick's sin was misguidedness, The Varis' sin is arrogance. Just because you have the greatest power ever sitting in your backyards you choose to lord it over the mortal worlds, considering yourselves the moral superiority. But you know what, you now what it's like for the guys in the trenches, those mortals you don't give a thought to……..THE WORLD IS SH*T!!!" Martyr rushed forward tackling into one of the ministers.

Martyr rapped the chains of his shackles around the throat of minister, pulling it just tight enough to send a warning to everyone around him.

"Nobody come any closer. These chains may zap me of my power, but I have enough physical strength to snap his neck." Martyr warned the crowd.

"Don't do this. It doesn't have to be this way." One of the ministers tried to calm him.

Martyr looked through the crowd to see Chaos, standing there in shock.

"Dose it?" Martyr looked over at Chaos.

I wanted to say something, but I just couldn't. I was afraid, I had no power, and I felt worthless and insignificant. What I didn't know at the time…..or what I should have known was that despite everything Martyr still valued our friendship. He considered me the epitome of a good man. That day he looked toward me he put good on trial……I just wish I had a better answer.

Chaos opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. He closed his mouth looking down to the ground. Martyr nodded at this and began laughing.

He was looking to me to fight with him, or even tell him what he was doing was wrong. He was just looking for me to act. To show him that there was still some good left to stand up to the darkness. My sin was inaction.

"I have to do this." Martyr pulled his chains hard slicing off the minister's head and snapping the chains in the process.

Martyr stood there panting heavily, his breathe labored. He craned his head up at the clear blue skies of the Varis home world. The sun shone down on his face forcing him to close his eyes. Guards started moving toward Martyr, weapons drawn. Martyr felt the cool shadows move over his face. Opening his eyes he looked up to see clouds pass over head casting darkness on everything.

"I'm just so tired….." he sighed.

Martyr let out an almost primal scream as his body became enveloped in a dark purple aura. The aura melted away his shackles. Martyr stripped away the shoulder pads of his armor along with the metals he had received with his service. One of the guards pointed his gun at Martyr and fired. Martyr held up his hand and shot out a blast of energy that enveloped the bullet, continuing on to collide with the guard blowing him to pieces.

I could feel the people rush past me in terror. I would like to say he acted like a mad man as he tore through guard after guard. But at that moment, I don't think his mind could have been any clearer. It was his emotions that were out of control. What he saw was the end result of all the death he had seen. Carried out by torrent of anger, sorrow, betrayal and internal strife.

When sense finally did return to me, I ran. I ran as fast as my feet would allow. Pushing past the people scurrying about I could hear the screams behind me. I could feel the tears running down my own face. I don't know why I was crying and even now I couldn't say. And I especially didn't know where I was running too. But some thing deep inside me thinks that it was no accident where I did eventually end up.

As another explosion sounded out, Chaos turned down an alley way. He continued down until he slipped on a puddle. With a tumble he fell out of the alley and on to his back. He let out a groan looking up at the cloudy sky. Chaos pushed himself up to a seated position to find himself lying in front of the Mausoleum.

I never really thought much of it. It was always something I was taught to respect and safeguard. I always thought of it as a inanimate object. But as I sat there staring at it. I felt angry….like it was a person. A person I could blame for all of this. Like it was alive and I could heap all my frustration on to it.

Chaos pushed himself up and ran up the steps of the mausoleum. He tackled into it's door and began pounding his fist against its stone surface. Tear streaming from his eyes, skin tearing from his blows, blood flowing down his fingers, Chaos punched away at the mausoleum.

"It's all your fault. All the fighting was because you piece of sh*t! Answer ME! GIVE ME AN ANSWER!!!! WHAT DO I DO!!!!!" Chaos broke down in front of the doors of the mausoleum.

The screams behind him reached a deafening fever pitch. Chaos cupped his shaking, bloody hands on his ears to drown it out.

"I'm afraid…..AHHH!!!" he cried out.

To his surprise the doors began to slowly creak open. From the opening a bright light started to poke out. Slowly Chaos became enveloped in the light, until the doors flew wide open sucking him in.

As the light washed over me, I felt my blood start to boil.

Chaos looked down at his own body to see himself become surrounded in a green aura the mixed with the pure white light of the nexus. As the doors closed behind Chaos he looked forward, deep into the light of the nexus.

What I saw that day, I don't think I could describe. But what happened to me was a different story. For one brief moment I became one with the nexus and then for every moment after that I became its voice.

It had been days. Martyr stood in the middle of the burning city watching the last remnants of it crumble away. He began walking, his mind blank, almost as if he was possessed. Soon he found himself standing in front of the mausoleum.

"It's over. Soon I can rest….First I just have to set things right…." Martyr reached out toward the Mausoleum.

As he extended his hand he met resistance in the form of a barrier of intense energy. The barrier sent a jolt of electricity through Martyr's body, flinging him back several feet. He pushed himself up from the ground and watched as the doors of the mausoleum doors opened to reveal an intense, blinding white light.

Martyr's jaw opened wide as he witnessed Chaos stepping out from the light. Chaos brushed some dust of the lengths of his new silver coat. With a smile he strode over to the edge of the barrier to face Martyr.

"I got my power today. Wanna take a guess what it is?" Chaos revealed.

"Stand aside….I really don't want to have to kill you." Martyr smiled.

"I'm not letting you through………ever. It all stops here….you're done." Chaos warned.

"Are you going to kill me?" laughed Martyr.

"No….I'm the guardian of the nexus. And as long as I live you'll never enter. I hope you got an eternity."

"As long as I live, I'll search for a way in. And I'll keep growing stronger as time goes on. I still have an entire planet to destroy and lifetime of death to gain strength from. I'm afraid friend that your too little too late."

Chaos turned away from his friend.

Martyr continued his rampage. First he destroyed all of the Garrick, then he turned his sights on the remnants of the Varis. When all life on the planet were gone except for me and him. He turned his sights on the planet its self.

Surrounded by an intense dark purple aura Martyr dug his hands into the ground. A stream of Shadows burst forth from the ground. The shadows spread up into the air and slowly began to wrap around the entire planet.

Chaos watched as the shadows closed in toward the Mausoleum. Raising his own hands up the barrier around the structure burst into a bright mix of white and green and intense display of swirling energy. The ground crumbled around it as it lifted up a large chunk of rock, containing the Mausoleum, into the air.

As Martyr's anger spread across the Varis home world. Twisting and bending it to his own design. I did the only thing I was good at. I ran…using my newly acquired powers I took Mausoleum off the planet and brought it out of his reach forever. And there, that mile long piece of rock in any direction, remained circling around the dark planet.

Martyr stood alone on his newly created Dark Planet. We walked up the steps to the massive doors of his throne room. Pushing the doors open he triumphantly strode down the grand hall over to the throne. Sitting down he placed and in head.

On the chunk of rock, Chaos stood alone staring up at the shadows covering the dark planet. With a sigh he sat down on a rock and lowered his head.

And there we remained for billions of years. Then one day Martyr found another way in. And from there he began his plan. Forcing his way through the levels of reality with his power. Pulling together a group of like minded individuals to fulfill his plans. And I……decided to bring in some of those heroes who I had watched over the years. Hoping they could solve this problem for me. It is only now I realized, that it was always my problem.

Present Day………………

The Projection of Martyr stood on the chunk of rock watching Chaos hold back his tears.

"They'll still stop you. They'll win, I know they will!" Chaos declared.

Martyr bent down to look at his friend face to face.

"It's good to see you finally standing against me, but do you remember what I told you all those years ago?" Martyr asked.

Chaos nodded his head.

"Everything is too far gone." With a flash of light the projection disappeared.

Chaos took a deep breathe. He then flopped back and laid down on the ground looking up at the dark planet. His eyes felt heavy, slowly then began to flutter until, his eyes shut.

There's nowhere left to run.

To be continued……………………………..