Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy 7 characters, places and things all belong to Squaresoft and other involved companies. I own none of them. This fanfic is purely for the fun and enjoyment of myself and others. I make no money from it.
WHERE ANCIENTS FEAR TO TREAD
CHAPTER 4
Tifa moaned in pain as she slowly rose her head up from the ground. She made a grimacing face as she whipped the wet slime from her right cheek and elbow.
"What the hell?" She mumbled to herself, shaking the last vestiges of sleep from her mind. She anxiously rose up to her knees and looked around to scan her area. She found she was in an entirely new surrounding now. The caves were still dark brown but now there were traces of lime stone etched into the wall's at some areas. And on top of that, she found that the area she was in was extremely damp.
'Wait a minute…' She thought to herself in confusion. 'This cave shouldn't be damp unless…'
Her eyes widened and she suddenly looked down to see that she was sitting in a large pond of neon green liquid of some sort.
"Shit!" she seethed, jumping out of the liquid quickly. Suddenly she heard a noise from behind.
"Ughh…"
She whipped her head around swiftly to find an unconscious Red13 lying not too far away from a similarly unconscious Aeris. Tifa almost cried out in alarm at their appearance. They both seemed as if they had been tortured as beads of sweat poured down their faces.
"Hey…" Tifa cried out, running towards them as fast as possible. "Are you guys ok?"
She promptly dragged them both out of the green liquid then knelt by Aeris, slapping the young woman lightly on the face. "Hey, c'mon wake up Aeris! Don't die on me."
She then shifted towards Red13. "You either Red. Wake up will ya? Come on! Don't let me down now!"
Slowly the tiger stirred slightly then his single eye fluttered open slightly. Tifa was overjoyed even if it was a slight reaction.
"That's it Red! Wake up!"
The tiger slowly focused his eye on the dark haired woman. "T…Tifa? So weak… get… help…"
"What? Red what are you saying? I don't even know where we are! How am I going to get help?"
Red's eyes flickered a bit more then rolled into the back of his head and his lids promptly closed shut.
Tifa crew frantic once more. "Red?!? Red talk to me! Come on don't do this!" Tifa quickly grabbed Aeris. "Come on Aeris! Snap out of it! I know you can hear me! Don't let this thing get to you!"
Tifa was beginning to lose hope as neither of her companions responded to any of her pleas. She lightly lowered Aeris quiet form back onto the earth next to Red's.
'No matter what.' She thought to herself in determination. 'I've got to get them out of here!'
She rose up to her feet and once more scanned her surroundings, searching for an exit of any kind. Anything that would aid her in this moment of peril. Her eyes rested on a single darkened exit.
Tifa balled up her fists and boldly walked into the alcove. Remembering to keep her mind focused on the present she slowly walked deeper and deeper into the darkness. She could almost feel a new heat now. A sort of intensifying breeze of hot radiation. She angrily shrugged it off and continued forth.
Within a matter of minute she finally reached the entrance of a new room yet this one was darker then the rest. She slowly felt along the walls and took a single step forwards into the unknown. Suddenly, as if triggered by her footsteps, a blinding neon light, similar to the liquid she and the others had fallen into, glistened right into her face.
Tifa brought her hands to her face, shielding her eyes from the intense light. "Damnit!" She hissed, gritting her teeth.
Lowering her arm slightly, she took a glimpse at what was beyond the brightness. Slowly her eyes began to adjust more and more and before long, her hands were resting casually by her side once more. She stared into the center of the room mesmerized by what she now saw. Floating in the very center of the room was a single crystal green orb with some sort of creature inside. Tifa darted her eyes left and right, searching for any particular traps laid out for her.
She could find none. She anxiously reached her arms out and embraced the crystal with both hands. Suddenly the light burst forth knocking her right into the side of the wall. The crystal shard came to life, exploding with intense fury.
Tifa winked in pain then rose to a sitting position. Her breath caught in her throat as a new image suddenly materialized before her very eyes.
The green mist shifted and molded into the form of a man she definitely didn't want to see at this particular moment.
"Sephiroth…" She breathed in shock.
The green mist shaped SOLDIER smirked ruefully as he looked down towards the trembling form below him. "Ahh… I understand completely now. This was not something I would have expected."
His words breaking her out of her stupor, Tifa's eyes quickly narrowed into angry slits. "You bastard! What have you done to my friends!"
In one complete motion, Tifa leapt from her position on the ground and delivered an air kick towards the transparent figure. Her eyes widened in shock however, when she completely passed through him and landed painfully on the other side of the room.
Loud, maniacal laughter filled the room, making her blood boil.
"Poor girl. Do you not know the difference between what is real and what is not?"
"What do you want you f#cking bastard!"
Sephiroth stopped his laughter now and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "It seems I have underestimated the resourcefulness of your two companions. I never would have guessed they would have the foresight to bring one of you along in their recent state of mind."
"What are you talking about?"
"I led them here. I suppose you could call it a wild goose chase. It was a simple matter really. I easily killed all the chocobo's in this once lively cave leaving only an orphan baby chocobo behind. After that I let it live simply so I could capture its essence and encase it in this mako orb. It was an ingenious plan. I used the Mako energy to enhance its cry for help and synchronize it with that of the planet. As you may already know, your two companions are already closely tied down with the planet as we speak. It was easy to let its power overrule their actions and lead them to this area. Little did they know that while the infants call was leading them here, the mako shell I had constructed was slowly sucking their life-force, draining all of their energy."
Tifa gasped visibly. "Are… are you saying that Aeris and Red are… Dead?"
Sephiroth smirked once more then gave a quick shake of the head. "No. Unfortunately, the mako orb I had created was of low caliber. It only has the ability to drain three fourth's of their energy. However, I am not without a backup plan. Even though I could not kill them with my Mako Shard, I still have my triumph card. You may yet spoil my plans if you are able to pass the test. In any case, I have learned a great deal from this experience. I will simply have to find another more subtle way to get rid of your two friends but if push comes to shove, I'll just annihilate them both with my own two hands."
Once again, maniacal laughter filled the room and Sephiroth's form slowly dissipated back into green mist.
Tifa blinked in confusion. There were still many questions Sephiroth left unanswered for her. What exactly did he mean about Red and Aeris being connected with the planet? How were they able to hear its cry and not her? And most puzzling, what was this test he spoke of?
As if in response to her last mental question, a Huge jagged arm suddenly burst from the mist charging straight towards her. By sheer reflexes, Tifa jumped back, dodging the blow deftly.
"What the hell?!?" She hissed, assuming a fighting stance.
The green mist cleared to reveal a huge monster. It was huge, rising at two times her height and burley as well. It had a dark green/brown color tone to it and was reinforced with hard rock shell armor. Its huge jagged sharp teeth emitted foul green fumes as it leaked open and its blood red eyes narrowed dangerously towards her. It had sharp spikes protruding from every angle as it came more into focus.
Tifa took a single gulp and fastened her fingers into her palms forming tight fists. She narrowed her eyes to match its own. "I won't let you harm my friends. Even if it means my life, you won't get through."
In reply, the creature swung with lightning speed. It was all the young woman could do to hold her arms close into a blocking position, hoping to let her arms absorb most of the impact. Unfortunately this wasn't the case, as the momentum of the blow sent her careening into the wall taking the very breath out of her lungs.
Tifa stumbled blindly to the ground falling on one knee while keeping an arm still tightly fisted. She vigorously shook her head to clear it, still glaring at her opponent.
"I… is that all you got? You overgrown, walking trash factory!"
The creature roared in anger then charged towards her once more. Again, Tifa found herself at a loss for the creature's speed.
Once within range, the beast swung again. Tifa quickly ducked below the attack then delivered one of her own. Charging from her crouching position, she rose up with lightning speed and power, performing her dolphin kick.
The monster's head snapped back from the intensity of the kick however unfortunately, it still wasn't phased much. Still floating in the air, Tifa felt hard sharp coils wrap around her ankle as the monster grabbed her leg. A light scream was all she could get out before the creature swung her about like a rag doll, ramming her into wall after wall. Tifa tried her best to use her arms to protect her head yet it was all in vain as the intensity of the impact was growing stronger and stronger. Along with her head and back, Tifa's loud screams of agony reverberated off the walls continuously until drifting into a low dull as she soon began to lose consciousness and blood.
It was over before it had begun and now the monster stood poised, holding the bloodied woman up by the leg, while she dangled upside down. Her face was a bloody mess and her arms and back bore the signs of her rough treatment.
With a low gruff, the monster dropped its arms to its sides letting Tifa hit the floor full force. Still holding firm to her leg, it then began its trek towards its two primary targets, dragging the poor woman along as if she were a mere toy.
::::::::::To Be Continued::::::::::
Author's note: Thanks for reading and please stay tuned for chapter 5.