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After taking about five hours to reach the town, the party had been walking for nearly fourty minutes. And Genesis had been quoting LOVELESS for the better part of the journey.
"Legend shall speak of sacrifice at worlds end. The wind sails over the water's surface, quietly but surely..."
"Genesis, give it a rest," Sephiroth had a hand to his temple. "If having everyone memorize the poem was what you intended, I'm sure you've long succeeded."
To help show that what Sephiroth said was true, you cleared your throat, causing looks of horror to flicker across nearly everyones face. "There is no hate, only joy, for you are beloved by the goddess. Hero of the dawn, healer of worlds, dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul. Pride is lost, wings stripped away, the end is nigh."
Genesis beamed at you, and nodded his head in approval. "LOVELESS, Act II."
"Titan's balls, what have you done!?"
"I only did what needed to be done, Zack. The epic story of LOVELESS deserves all the attention it can receive," Genesis looked rather pleased with himself.
And as the little scene continued to play out, you gave it your all to hold in your laughter.
...
When everyone arrived at the facility, you decided to split into two groups. Sephiroth and Genesis were together, while you were with Zack and Angeal. When the teams were made, you went separate ways. The room you were in had a big platform with pipes on the walls with occasional steam coming out of said pipes. Following Angeal and Zack down a ladder, you stepped onto another platform. This one was rather wide, expanding to lots of areas and more ladders that lead below.
"In facilities like this, information is usually stored at the lowest level," Angeal walked to another ladder with Zack and you following in suit.
The farther down you went, the more brighter everything became in a blue, green light. When you got to the lowest platform, you went over to the edge, and looked down to see mako and something floating in it. What is that...? Wanting to get a better look, you leaned in. That looks like a person... but he's slowly changing into something, you uneasily stared at the dead body.
"Angeal, Zack, I found something," you called, never taking your eyes away from the corpse. The SOLDIERs came over to have a look.
"That's one of the 1st class we lost contact with..." Angeal furrowed his eyebrows, and Zack slowly shook his head at the sight. That's a 1st class? Whoever did this must be pretty strong then...
Zack walked away to a door and tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge.
"There's a terminal to open it," Sephiroth came down the ladder with Genesis.
"Oh..." Zack scratched the back of his head. "Well did you find anything?"
"Yes. We found one of the 2nds and an infantryman," Genesis answered. "And you?"
"Just this guy down here..." you motioned for them to come over. When they did, you pointed to the mako as they looked down.
"He's... changing," Sephiroth said as you slowly nodded your head.
"Do you know where the terminal is?"
"It should either be on this platform or the one above," he turned, glowing hues glancing carefully around the area. You began looking around as well.
"I'll look on the one above," Zack moved to climb up the ladder while the rest of you looked around for the terminal on the lower platform, but were unable to find it. The four of you only had to wait about a minute more until Zack returned.
"You can open it now," he climbed down the ladder, rejoining the group.
"Good job, puppy," at the displeased look on the 2nds face, Genesis only smirked at him.
Sephiroth opened the door and went in first, scanning the room with his eyes. There were papers and books all over the ground along with some bookcases tilted over with blood in several places as well. Looking in the corner of the room, Zack saw a bookcase that fell on what looked like to be something... or someone. When he got close enough, his ears picked up the slight breathing.
"Hey, we got a live one!"
Everyone quickly came over and lifted the bookcase off whoever was under it. Once the bookcase was off, your eyes landed on a somewhat crushed man covered in blood. Weakly, he opened his eyes and stared at the closest one to him. Zack. The dull gaze had as he looked at your friend brought you to still. With this being the first time you came across a man in his final moments, you could only watch in silence.
"You have to... get out of here..." he coughed up some blood. "They will come back..."
"Who will come back?" Angeal kneeled beside him, bringing the man's eyes to him.
"Wu-Wutai... they had materia... to summon..." he then breathed his last breath and his head fell back, signalling his passing.
"...I'll inform the Director of the news," Angeal pulled out his PHS and brought the device to his face after tapping into it. When he finished telling Lazard the info, he put his PHS away. "He said to remain here until further notice," Angeal explained as he crossed his arms, and lowered his gaze.
Taking in the room from the scattered papers and books, to blood on the ground, and finally to the crumpled, lifeless man, you spoke. "I'm going in the other room," taking leave of the room, you found the facility in general to be somewhat creepy. I don't like the feeling I get here... pressing yourself against the wall a little ways away from the door, you slid down it, sitting. Soon, the others walked out of the room and went to different parts of the platform, keeping watch. The room was filled with silence until Genesis took out his book, LOVELESS.
"My friend, the fates are cruel. There are no dreams, no honor remains. The arrow has left the bow of the goddess," the red SOLDIER murmured softly, and you stared at him for a moment.
His expression looked the most at peace when he read his book. Then you looked at his eyes, slightly lowered to the page with a soft glow emanating from them. It made you remember what you thought of them that first day you saw him. Even now, those eyes are still kind of hypnotizing. At that thought, you shook your head before deciding to take your PHS out to look at the time. 4:52 pm.
You crossed your arms on your legs, and rested your head against them. Closing your eyes, you played with the thought of dozing off while things were still quiet. What if I have a dream again and I talk in my sleep or I wake up crying? After a few seconds, you let out a quiet sigh and closed your eyes again. Since you didn't have as much mako treatments as the others had, your ability to stay awake wasn't on the same level as the past day, you only had about three hours of rest, and knowing you had to stay here until who knows how long, helped you make a decision. Finally, you allowed yourself to rest.
...
Slipping out of the alley, you went further into the town looking for the market. This wasn't too difficult since all you had to do was roam around until you caught the aroma of food. Stomach growling even more at the smell, you carefully looked around. Like any other market, it was filled with people, so it would be easy to hide when you got something. Pondering for a moment on where to go, you soon decided to head over to a bread shop, and went in the door. It was sort of crowded in here, so you made way to the front, and waited for the worker to look away, which he did when he was talking to a customer.
Wasting no time, you took three breadsticks from a basket. Unfortanately, as you were removing them, an oblivious customer bumped into you, causing you to accidentally knock everything over the floor. Gaining the attention of the worker and people due to the noise, you flinched. Keeping your hand low, and holding your them behind your back, you slid the bread sticks up your sleeves. Then you gave the man the most apologetic look you could muster.
"I'm sorry. It was an accident."
Kneeling down to start picking up the bread, you put it back in the basket and handed it to him. Seeing you at least try and clean up without him telling you to had the man's hardened gaze weaken slightly. He sighed, and took the basket out of your hands and instead told you to leave. You obeyed. Keeping up the expression until you were a safe distance away from the store, blending in with the crowds, you smirked. That actually went better than you thought it would, and was probably one of the most successful steals you had.
...
After taking the blow to the head, your ten year old body fell back into the brick wall with a cry. Nursing the area with a hand, you glared at the boy. That was definitely going to leave a bruise. Pushing off the wall, you lunged at him with a punch, which he dodged by stepping to the side. And grabbing your outstretched arm, he pulled you forward before maneuvering it behind your back.
"Let go!" You shouted, grimacing at the pain.
"You should have just gave what you had. This didn't have to happen," he told you, moving his free hand into your pockets. He was probably about two or three years older than you.
Pulling out some gil and a breadstick, he only stared for a moment, and furrowed his brows. "Geez, you really did have nothing."
"Just let go of me already, you jerk!"
Complying, he pushed you into the wall near him before running down the alley.
...
Coming to, you placed a hand on your head where the injury use to be for a moment. Despite the dream having ended, you could still remember the soreness as if the bruise still remained. You were relieved you only woke with this feeling. It was better this than the waterworks. Thinking back to the first part of a dream, you idly wondered if it was a bad thing that you still felt happy with how you handled the situation.
When what felt like an hour had passed, the sound of footsteps on the higher platform was heard. Each of you readied your weapons, waiting until the enemy was within range to attack. Looking up, from here you could see there were about fourteen or fifteen of them. Stopping at the platform above yours, they dropped several cannisters with smoke shooting out from both ends to your level. The smokescreen engulfed the entire platform in a matter of seconds, and before you knew it, the cling of steel against steel was heard. Then suddenly, a kunai flew past, grazing your arm.
Pressing against the wall, you narrowed your eyes, scanning through the thick smoke as best as you could. You had to focus. Seeing a small, dark object quickly approaching, you jump rolled out of the way, causing the kunai to hit the wall. When you got back to your feet, you bumped into a Wutai Soldier. He made the first move by striking his lance at you which you evaded by stepping back, then aimed your sword for his side. Missing the blow, he then swung at your leg, but you jumped over it, and kicked him in the head.
As you landed, you caught sight of a Wutai troop trying to move behind you, and aimed for your head in a jabbing motion. Side stepping once more, you watched as he cut into his own comrade. This made him curse angrily, and stick a hand in the pouch at his side. Having to slightly wince to see what he was doing, when it clicked, you tried to throw yourself into another roll. Not being fast enough, one of the kunai embedded itself into your leg, and with a grimace, you breathed in sharply. Now crouched, you went low before lunging at the man, and stabbed your blade into him. Removing the weapon from his chest, you watched as he fell back against the metal platform.
This was the first time you killed a human.
Beginning to feel your fingers slightly tremble, you clenched them tightly around the sword's hilt before lowering the steel. Taking in a breath to calm yourself, you then listened as the sounds of fighting continued around you. Cautiously moving forward, you flinched when you walked on your bad leg. Gripping the kunai's handle, you pulled it out, and tossed it aside. As you continued moving, the fighting died down, and a confused look slowly made way to your face. Why does it suddenly feel colder?
The temperature just continued to drop, which puzzled you even further. It didn't take much longer until you had an answer as to why this was occurring. And as the smoke continued to gradually disappear, you noticed a bright blue glow becoming all the more brighter as the seconds passed.
"Careful, there's a summon!" Zack called out.
At this point, the smoke had thinned out enough for your comrades to see each other, as well as what was in the middle of the platform. Large spikes of ice had appeared on the ground, sticking out in all directions. As the five of you moved to surround it, it shattered. Lifting your arms in front of your face, you shielded yourself from the shards. When you thought it was safe, you hesitantly lowered your arms, and looked to where the ice once had been. A pale, blue skinned woman floated gently in the air with that glow you saw from earlier radiating from her. Specks of ice even seemed to glitter about her form.
"Shiva," Sephiroth muttered.
Staring at her in awe, the slight pain of your injury seemed to become distant.
Her hair reached to her thighs and was held up in a ponytail. It was just as blue as her skin was. She wore a small purple cloth that wrapped around her chest and crossed at the front, while two long pieces of cloth dangled from the back, swaying lightly behind her. The lower part had two cloths as well, but these hung at the sides.
She was beautiful.
Lifting her head, she opened her eyes, briefly regarding each of you. Putting her hands together, she made a ball of ice slowly begin to form, and raised her hands above her head as it continued to grow in size. When large enough to her liking, she shot it at Sephiroth, which he dodged with the utmost ease. Now twirling in the air, she rose higher, a frosty blue aura swirling around her. When she came to a stop, her hands lowered, and a large block of ice appeared over Angeal, Zack, and your heads.
Dodging the attack, you jumped to the side, eyeing it warily. Once it crashed into the ground, a circle of ice rested over the platform, and expanded in size as the seconds dwindled by. With three of these ice traps scattered about, it made little room to avoid the summon's attacks. Genesis took to reigning fire down on the woman while Sephiroth and Angeal still got close enough to strike her. Zack managed to find a way as well, and struck the woman with his broadsword. With your handicap, this wasn't the most easy thing for you to do. Luckily, the ice seemed to fade after ten or so seconds of you trying to find a way to near her while watching your step.
Going forward, you joined in the attack, and gave a series of strikes to her. After receiving another blow of fire, she floated up slightly higher. And with a wave of her hands moving outward, a sword of ice swirled to fruition in her palm. Turning, she then made to attack Genesis. When she was about to make contact with him, he ran his hand along his sword, bringing it to crimson before blocking her. Removing a hand away from his weapon, he shot fire in her face, causing her to scream. Sephiroth and Angeal quickly attacked her from behind while you and Zack went for her sides, making her scream again, but even louder than the last time.
Within seconds, she disappeared in a flash of blue light and ice and turned into materia. Floating in place for a moment longer, it then dropped to the floor. Everyone returned their weapons back to place, and went at ease.
"I'll call the Director," Angeal flipped out his PHS.
"...Shiva, huh?" Zack looked down at the materia and picked it up to examine. Shifting the softly glowing orb between his fingers, he passed it to you. Accepting it, you held it carefully in your hand.
So that's what fighting a summon is like... But where can summons be found? After voicing this question, Sephiroth was the one to reply.
"Summoning materia usually appears in areas where the lifestream is close to the surface of the planet. Mako springs and materia caves to name a few."
"And summoning materia isn't the only thing possible to find in these locations, but other materia of the rarest nature can be discovered as well," Genesis joined in, crossing his arms. "These places are hard to find, so they're considered to be very special."
"Oh..." Needless to say, it was obvious you were intrigued by what you had just learned. "What kind of rare materia is there?"
The materia specialist that was the first to respond this time. "There are rumors of certain materia being able to duplicate attacks. Instead of wasting mana by casting each attack alone, using this materia can leave the user with lots of energy to spare."
A little after that was said Angeal finished informing the Director of the mission, and put his PHS back into his pocket. The SOLDIER then turned to the group. "The Director said we can go back to town, but we'll have to wait until tomorrow to go back."
Nodding at these words, everyone went on on the move. Slipping out your PHS, you looked at the time. 6:38 pm. Climbing back up the ladders and headed for the exit of the building. When you made it outside, you realized the sun was beginning to set. When a few minutes of walking in silence had gone by, Genesis looked at Zack, then to you.
"Not going to race each other?" Zack only shrugged while you said nothing but looked at the sky. "Still always so lost in thought," he waved a hand in front of your face.
"Hm? Oh, I'm not sure," glancing over at Zack, you could tell that he was tired, just as you were. Also taking note of the injury, you were surprised that it wasn't effecting your walking speed too badly. With only two mako treatments, your body was already getting stronger. This had you smile.
After a few minutes, Genesis pulled out his book to read, and you glanced at it, quietly wondering why he was always so invested in it. Moving a little closer to him, you decided to read some of it, not realizing that at some point he was briefly watching you for a time.
Okay, so it's about the gift of the goddess... but why is it called LOVELESS when it's not about love? You then decided to voice your confusion, catching his gaze.
"You wouldn't ask that if you took the time to read more of it." From the silent questioning look you were giving him, he sighed. "LOVELESS is about three friends searching for the gift of the goddess. One becomes a hero, another a wanderer, and the last, a prisoner..." Quietly, you peered up to him as he spoke. "The prisoner eventually meets a woman of the opposing nation who saves him, and... I'm sure you can see where this is going?" You nodded your head.
"So there is love in there... but loveless? Does one of them die?" Genesis smiled at your curiosity.
"I'll leave that for you to find out on your own," seeing you frown had him smirk.
"Oh gaia, he's still trying to convert her!"
Genesis narrowed his eyes at Zack. "Shut it, puppy. You speak as if that's a bad thing."
"Because it is! One LOVELESS fanatic is already enough!"
Sephiroth joined in. "I'm with Zack. There's no need to increase the chances of having another sprout LOVELESS."
Smiling, you reassured them. "Don't worry, I don't think I'll ever get into it enough to do that."
"That's good. One Genesis is already more than enough to handle," Angeal chuckled.
Genesis shook his head at the four of you. "It's only a matter of time until you all start to see things differently."
Raising a brow, you glanced at him, doubting that would happen as Zack spoke.
"But I don't want to-" Genesis hit Zack in the head with his book, silencing the 2nd. Zack yelped and ran away from him, making the rest of you chuckle at the scene.