SOLDIERs were seldom scared of the dark. Mako eyes illuminated things, both in the literal light they gave off and the fact that their very enhancements made it easier to see in the dark, so it was never the dark itself that scared you once you were enhanced.

It was what hid in it.

Nero's darkness was both deeply freaky and also oddly cool, in the way that things that warped your impression of reality were cool right up until you got sucked in to them. It was like a dark version of standing in the Lifestream. Everything was black, there was no up or down or sense of real grounding because even the tendrils of energy wisping past weren't at any vague 'floor level' or even just below the waist. One passed by Benji's cheek and he held a gloved hand up to feel it.

It was bitingly cold, enough that he was almost surprised not to see frost on his glove when it passed.

Another cut straight through him like a winter gale and he shuddered, swearing under his breath. Okay, unpleasantly cold even for a First? Yeah, nah. He was getting out of here.

Had to find the others first, though. At least one of them would be easy.

Benji didn't talk about his soulbond unless he already deeply trusted the other person. It wasn't that he didn't have one, or hadn't found his soulmate - in fact, if he mentioned he'd found his soulmate the vast majority of people making a guess would be right.

It was plain as day he and Drew had a connection that went beyond the common connection of friends. Just, y'know. He didn't want to date the man, let alone hop in bed with him - they'd tried, because that was what they'd grown up expecting from a soulbond, and it had been an awkward night that had ended in laughter because no, that wasn't them. At all.

Blessedly, his bond was not the blessing-curse Kunsel and Zack had, where they could feel out each other's wellbeing, be it comfort or pain. They didn't actually have the telepathic bond that Cloud and Aerith did, either. They just had what Benji called a link, which was sort of the same but also different.

He always knew where Drew was, at least relative to where he himself was. He teased him sometimes that Drew was his north star - and he had been, more than once when he'd gotten lost. Normally, Drew was home and safety. But now he had to be that anchor, that safe point.

He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and followed that pull to Drew, running blindly through the endless dark. This was a place made of magic, which meant that it had a different set of rules than being out in the 'real' world. Magic was shaped by willpower, and right now Nero had control.

He had to take it back.

He'd been in this church only once that he could remember, coming down with Kunsel for moral support one time when he'd come to comfort Aerith after Zack's reported death. As he thought about it, things began to take shape, his eyes adjusting to this darkness like someone had just turned off the lights. It wasn't that they had been taken somewhere entirely different, it was that Nero had warped the reality they'd been existing in into a form that was not immediately understandable. Especially if you didn't think outside the box like a mage was trained to.

Benji lived outside the box. This was creepy as hell and deeply uncomfortable, but he'd be fine.

He walked forward through the darkness, following the pull of Drew's presence, and had the weirdest thought that this was like… cold humidity. It clung to you the same way, with a similar oppressive pressure. It wasn't wet exactly, but it lingered unpleasantly like some sort of film on his skin as he passed through it and it felt almost like the first few moments of breathing in a mako tank, your lungs freaking out that they were breathing something other than air and your mind trying to process that no, you weren't drowning even though every other sense said you should be. And even through the protective shell of his Wall it had a burning tingle from the coldness, like the threat of pending frostbite even though he couldn't actually detect that kind of damage settling in.

So weird, and he couldn't wait to get his people and get out.

He found Drew first, his figure hazy as if it wasn't quite real where it stood frozen. Benji swore softly and moved, slogging through the thick darkness and grabbing him.

The moment he made contact, Drew took in a gasping breath, and started coughing, leaning heavily into him.

That was when he noticed the way the darkness was gripping him, deep violet ropes of energy holding him in place, around his chest and arms and legs and face and no wonder he hadn't dared to move. Benji snarled, and called his magic to bear. Lightning crackled around his Wall, and some of the darkness retreated. Emboldened by his success, he reached for Drew's hand. "C'mon, buddy. Come back to me now."

"…Ben?" Drew's voice was careful, with a tint of anxiousness.

Benji didn't give that time to gain ground. "Of fucking course it's me. I swear, if I had a gil for every time I'd saved your ass we could retire."

Drew squeezed his hand. "He got you?"

"As if. I came in here to get you idiots out," Benji informed him. He assessed the ropes of energy around Drew, and decided to take the risk. He reached out and tore it away from Drew's eyes, and made a tiny sound of shock.

They were green.

Not 'I'm about to lose my shit' greening green, like a SOLDIER got on the cusp of a high limit, though. Lifestream green.

"The fuck," Benji said softly, a thumb brushing under Drew's eye.

"Benji, your eyes -" Drew said, almost at the same time.

"Green?" Benji said, mind whirring.

"Yeah," he agreed.

"Lifestream green?" He checked. He wasn't worked up enough for a limit, though that would have been a welcome advantage.

"…yeah, maybe?" He admitted, clearly confused.

"Something's going on," Benji said. "Not sure I like it. Let's get you out of these ropes and into my bubble so we can find the others."

"Others?" He paled, barely noticing as Benji tore away the dark restraints. "How many of us are here?"

"Oh, y'know. All of you idiots who were in the church," Benji said, a little distracted realizing he didn't need to apply magic to tear through the bindings. His hand was glowing, radiating light that just… went through it like wet paper. Something going on indeed. It seemed to be in their favor, at least?

"All of us?" Drew sucked in a breath, looking around. "We've got -"

"To find them, yes, that's the plan. And if you suggest we split up, I will hit you," Benji informed him. "And I don't mean a love tap. Here, you're good. Can you move?"

Drew took a step forward tentatively, and grimaced. "Oh, that's… that's weird."

"Yep. Get in the bubble." That was not actually a request. Benji bodily hauled Drew into the cover of his sparking Wall and hugged him tight a moment. "Okay. C'mon. Time to follow my lead, no questions asked."

"Oh you're loving this," Drew accused.

"Loving getting to be in charge, yeah kinda. Less that this is a thing." Benji scanned the dark, hazy landscape. There were points of light, odd almost-windows that he wasn't sure what to make of. Those would be investigated last. Right now, they needed to find the others. Starting with Zack, who had the brightest magic signature and would be the easiest to sense.

With Drew at his side, it was easier to differentiate what he was feeling, the other pulls of familiarity. And one shone far brighter than the rest, almost overshadowing them. Zack. Had to be.

"This way," Benji said, and started moving towards the blazing energy. The closer they get, the brighter it got. And hotter.

"I don't like thiiiiiiis," Drew singsonged quietly.

Benji felt a prickle at the back of his neck, the distinct feeling of predator, and spun, lightning crackling in his hand,ready to attack only to falter in confusion.

There was a figure there, the darkness almost recoiling from them, unable to coexist with the brilliant light radiating from the armored form.

It reminded him fleetingly of having once witnessed someone summoning Odin, the overwhelming sense of power-beyond-mortal-knowing. He wasn't as tall, but wore similar armor, covering his body entirely. The face, much like Odin's was sculpted and he knew that face, even if he'd only half expected those Lifestream-green eyes.

The Buster Sword in his hands cinched it.

Benji took a slow breath, and let it out again as he let his magic go. "…Zack?"