Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy 7 characters all belong to Squaresoft and other involved companies. I own none of it. This fanfic is purely for the fun and enjoyment of others and myself. I make no money from it.
SHARDS COLLIDE
CHAPTER 15
Aeris shuddered slightly as she opened her eyes amidst the cold breeze brushing against her shoulders. Everything was a blur. Pushing herself up into a sitting position, she stared at her surroundings in mild interest.
"Uhhh…"
The noise came directly beside her. Looking that way with eyes still blurry from just waking up, she could see the outline of a spiky haired man lying next to her. Aeris gasped as recollection seized her.
"Cloud… Cloud is that you?"
To her misfortune, as her vision began to focus more clearly, she noticed the man had black hair instead of Cloud's golden blond. Aeris rubbed her eyes vigorously, desperately trying to remember what had happened to her. Why wasn't Cloud here? Why was she in this cold place with this stranger. Although… he wasn't a stranger. She knew him she just couldn't figure out from where.
'The last thing I remember was… We were fighting against Shinra.' Aeris looked down in sadness. It was no surprise to her. One way or another, Shinra always found a way to ruin her life.
She roughly slapped her face. 'No Aeris! Stop feeling sorry for your self and just think!' She told herself mentally. 'Try to remember where you are…'
Aeris looked up once more into the cloudy sky, trying to find some vague reminder to cling to; something that would trigger her memory. However, all she got was a ruined mako stench drifting through the air along with the billowy smoke of a previous fire.
'…Smoke…Smoke! That's it! We were fighting Shinra! There was lots of smoke. We were too busy fighting the robots to notice it at the time. The robot… Oh God! Cloud! Cloud fell over the edge! We fell too… Me and Zack… Zack?……ZACK!!!!'
Aeris quickly broke out of her reverie and trained her eyes once more on the black haired man lying next to her.
"ZACK! Oh God! Are you ok!?! Wake up! Wake up please!"
Anxiety began to fill her voice as she continued looking at the dark haired mercenary. His face was completely matted in blood. His shoulder and arm were both broken in several places and it seemed that he was bleeding internally.
Aeris desperately clutched his shoulders and shook him violently. 'He must have absorbed most of the fall when we landed! To save me!'
"Wake up Zack! Please!"
Aeris was now trembling with fear. She was terrified. She had no idea what to do. He was badly injured. And to make matters worse, there was no sign of Cloud anywhere. She snapped her head up, tears trailing down her soft cheeks.
"CLOUD!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "CLOUD WHERE ARE YOU?!? PLEASE TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE!"
…No answer.
She began to fall into a fit of sobs. She didn't know what to do. Cloud could be in trouble. Maybe in even worse shape then Zack and here she was lying around with no way to get to him. And then there was Zack. The very sight of him now made her blood run cold. 'I… I don't know what to do… There's so much blood… what can I do? What can I possibly do?'
Aeris lifted her head up once more. "SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP US! PLEASE!"
…No answer.
She bowed her head, weeping even more in her endless turmoil. 'What should I do… What should I do…'
'…Aeris… Aeris listen to me…'
Suddenly, Aeris opened her eyes to find herself in a completely dark area. The saw a soft green glow directly in front of her and Zack, slowly descending to become even closer. Aeris recognized this glow immediately. It's warmth and kindness would never leave her heart. She eagerly reached out towards it.
'Mother?!? Mother it's so dark… so cold! Why can't I see you?'
'Shhh… Aeris don't cry honey. Listen to me… you must use your gift.'
'My gift? But mom I can't! Remember! I promised to never use my gift again! You made me promise you, that day… that day you died…'
'I know honey… but sometimes you need to do what you know is right. This young man needs you now. You must use your gift to save him…'
'Mom…'
'You must hurry! He will not last much longer!'
'Mom…what about Cloud. H- he needs my help too! I can't just abandon him!'
'Nor can you afford to abandon this man either. Aeris you must do what you know is right. You have a power now, a power in you capable of saving this man's life. The choice is yours whether or not you use it… Aeris do what you know is best… Do what is in your heart…'
Aeris began to shake, breathing in the ice cold air around her. She didn't know what else to do. She was lost… she was alone again.
'No Aeris… You will never be alone… I will always be with you. Remember that sweety… Your mother will always be with you…'
The glow slowly engulfed her in a soft light, temporarily dousing the cold breeze that had been assaulting her. A surge of light softly invaded her being causing a sharp intake of breath.
'Feel the power of the Ancients Aeris. Feel the power of our people! This is my final gift to you. Use it wisely. Only you can determine your own destiny. No one else can do that for you...'
The wind softly caressed her cheeks and suddenly everything was back to the way it was again. The same dirty streets, the same billowy smoke and ultimately the same menacing Shinra building hanging high overhead in the horizons. Aeris gently brushed the last tear from her eye, new confidence now suddenly taking over from within her. '…Ok Mom… I'll do what you want… I'll do what is best…'
Aeris closed her eyes and gently placed her hands on Zack's chest. In a matter of seconds, their bodies began to glow in a dull green light. A single thought constantly passed through her mind. 'I shall do what is best…'
****
The ground burned brightly under the ruins of the sector 4 reactor. Metal was melted down into its basic components from the sheer heat of the fire. Nothing could have survived such a catastrophe.
However, almost in defiance of that law, a figure did slowly emerge from the burning wreck. Like a blazing phoenix, the figure ripped itself free from the confines of rubble and fallen wreckage to emerge victorious once more. That phoenix…was Cloud.
Cloud stood at the top of the mound, looking over at the area around him with bleary eyes. 'How did I get here?' He thought to himself. 'How did I survive? I couldn't have survived such a fall. I couldn't have…'
Cloud quickly scanned himself to check if he was bleeding or had some other form of injury which his body hadn't yet registered. His black cloak was all but non-existent now, with only shreds hanging loosely from the clasp around his neck. His dark red pants and black muscle shirt where also similarly torn. Only half of his shirt still clung to his body and his pants were severely ripped at one side and had several holes on the other.
His body was similarly wrecked. Blood was dripping freely from the several deep gashes and cuts on his chest and arms. Blood also ran down onto one side of his face from the cut he received at the top of his head. His legs were also badly cut.
However, Cloud ignored all of this as he slowly trudged from the burning wreck. One thought constantly assaulted his fading conscience. 'How did I survive? Why am I still alive?'
Unfortunately, the answer to that question never came as he found himself slowly drifting; his mind too clouded and hazy for him to even see the ground as his face crashed into it.
****
President Shinra was furious. He was now sitting upright in his chair glaring daggers at one of his most prestigious agents.
"What do you mean they're still alive?! How the hell could they be alive after that explosion.!?! Nothing could have survived that!"
The agent merely shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Well apparently they did."
"DON'T GET SMART WITH ME TSENG!" Shinra seethed, bolting out of his chair in an angry fit. "Remember who pays your bills!"
Tseng smiled and shrugged again but said nothing. Shinra glared at the other men standing beside the agent. Aside from him and Tseng, there were two other men in his room. Shinra now glared pointedly at the scientist.
"And what do you think about this whole matter Hojo? I allowed you the view the vid cameras of their fight. What do you think would be the best way of dealing with this nuisance?"
Hojo cackled with glee. "What do I think?" He asked in a condescending tone. "Sir if I told you my own humble idea's, you would surely be adamant in rejecting them."
"Just spit it out Hojo! I have neither the time nor the patience for your riddles today!"
"Very well sir. I have viewed the video cams and have come to the conclusion that the best option would be to apprehend our annoying enemies."
Shinra rammed his fist on the desk in anger. Hedigger, the fourth man in the room, flinched from the impact.
"What makes you think I should allow those trouble makers anywhere near my complex? To what purposes are you scheming Hojo. I know you well enough to figure out when you're planning something."
Hojo smiled. "Ahh you know me too well sir. I have noticed something special about two of the Avalanche agents in particular. Something intriguing!"
Shinra chuckled and sat back in his chair, lighting a cigar. Though he would never admit it, he found Hojo's evil scheming highly admirable. He found the man's capacity for cruelty astonishing and always interesting to watch as his evil plans worked themselves out.
"I would assume one of these 'intriguing agents' is a certain green eyed ancient in which you have been rambling on about?"
"Not entirely sir. The ancient still merits my attention, of that you can be certain. However, there are two others who hold my immediate attention."
"I am positive it cannot be their leader. The fires of vengeance fuel that man and nothing more. He is a waste of time and resources. The other three who follow him are equally as useless. Thus, you must mean two of the three others who fought the last autonoid on the bridge before the reactor erupted."
"Indeed I do. The two men who fought in mirror patterns of each other. They intrigue me to no end."
"Ahh I am beginning to see you're pattern here. More test subjects for your continuing experiments I presume?"
"Indeed… My dear president, do think about the way they fought… does that style of fighting not remind you of someone else?"
Shinra cupped his chin in thought as he recalled the image of how the two mercenaries fought before the explosion. Suddenly it came to him. Shinra's eyes opened wide and his hand fell limply to the table.
"But you can't mean… Not 'him'!"
"Ahh but it is. Their fighting style is painfully similar. There never existed any other whose skill could match that of the great Sephiroth but these two men come noticeably close wouldn't you think? If I could continue my research with such specimens and make the necessary enhancements, we could once again continue the plan which we thought burned to the ground in Niblehiem eight years ago."
At the mention of Sephiroth's name and his connection to the two mercenaries, Tseng became visibly nervous and apprehensive but remained silent.
'They can't mean that… No they couldn't do that! He's not worthy!'
Shinra watched Tseng's unease with mild interest then turned his attention back to Hojo.
"Your plan has great merit Hojo. Very well, we shall carry out your idea. Heddiger, I want you to devise and assault plan. Destroy sector 7! All of it! I want every single Avalanche member killed! However, make sure to capture the necessary targets as well. The ancient, and the two mercenaries. Everyone else is expendable. Dispose of them in any way you like just get them out of my hair. Tseng, I want your group specifically in charge of the apprehension." An evil smile formed on his face. "Be sure not to damage them… too bad…"
All three men nodded their heads and began to file out of the room.
"Tseng!" Shinra called, just before he exited the room.
"Sir?" He asked, still feeling somewhat troubled over his own recent revelations.
"You seemed to be disturbed over Hojo's idea for some reason. I want to know why!"
Tseng began to squirm nervously. "Uhh sir it's a long story."
"And I expect to hear it!" Shinra was silently amused at the Turks unease. Yet another helpless soul to torment. "I expect to hear all about it, upon your return. I expect you to have a full report ready for me within the day."
Tseng let out a shaky breath. "Very well sir."
"Dismissed." Shinra barked in a flat tone. Once the Turk was gone from his room he smiled to himself in pleasure. Once again he would be at the very top of the world. Hojo's plan would ensure his complete victory over the entire world and his final ascent into the fabled promise land.
Shinra leaned back in his leather chair with a satisfied grin. This called for a celebration. He turned to his desk terminal and pressed a button.
"Yes sir may I help you?" Came the female reply.
Shinra smiled evilly. "Yes Janice… I believe you can. Come to my office at once. There are… things I wish to discuss with you…"
::::::::::To Be Continued::::::::::
Author's Note: Thanks for reading and please stay tuned for chapter 16.