This story will be set in no particular time after the meteor incident. All characters are still alive that were at the end of FF7. R&R to your hearts content.
I: The Arrival
The stocky, largely built, dark-skinned man strode out into the crimson valley that surrounded Cosmo Canyon. His constantly narrowed eyes scanned the area carefully as he walked, the torn green shirt he always wore rustling slightly in the wind. His boots made soft thuds every time they made contact with the hard earth below. Occasionally, the man would stop and gaze all around and above him. More than once, his attention would stay fixed on the strangely colored, pinkish sky. Being used to the dark, gloomy hues of Midgar's atmosphere, this weather seemed strange to him, though with each passing day, he grew slightly, ever so slightly more accustomed to it.
He walked a ways away from the village until the huge, eternally burning bonfire was only a slight spark, easy to miss. At last, after what seemed like a small eternity (he was a very impatient man), his feet touched green, lush grass.
He sighed contentedly. He did not have that many chances to get away from the red environment, and he sorely missed greenery. He was about to relax, when his innate battle senses took hold of him and he saw something move out of the corner of his eye. As stealth was not exactly his style, he immediately leapt into a battle position, raising his hand toward the movement, ready to fire at a moment's notice.
The attack came suddenly and swiftly. Had he not been fighting for his life since he was practically born, the large catlike hunter would have easily slain him there; but he would not be taken down that easily. His gun already ready, he fired out several quick rounds, nailing the beast in the heart and head. It fell in mid-air with a gasp, bleeding to death quickly.
He was about to let his guard down, but was forced to bring his gun back up as about a dozen more of the beasts sprinted out of the surrounding bushes, surrounding him, crouched down.
A regular man might've taken a second to gaze around the area, to consider his options, maybe even toss down his weapon and admit defeat.
But this man didn't waste a minute and he knew he only had one option.
Plus, it was physically impossible to let go of a gun that you used as a second hand.
The rounds fired out in short, furious flurries. 4 of the animals were down before they realized that this would be a fierce opponent, and then they attacked.
The closest one launched himself into his side, making a light gash. The huge man used his gun-arm to bash the thing on the head hard, cracking its skull open with ease. He quickly kicked out with a heavily muscled leg, knocking the wind out of another that was trying to bite at the side of his chest. He was about to finish the creature off with another flurry of shots, but he was knocked to the ground from behind, landing hard on his stomach. He struggled to knock the beast on his back off, and just barely managed it, but by this time the other cat-beasts had assessed the situation and realized that they would win for sure. His vision clouded over slightly as he began to get gashed deeply, losing blood, feeling the pain of a loss…
…when suddenly he felt the weight of the creatures leave his body. He felt the sharp claws and fierce teeth stop making contact with him. From a few yards away, he could hear whimpers of pain, as if they were being attacked…surprised, he managed to roll over on his side.
He saw a figure there, wielding two strangely small, curved knives, battling the creatures with expert slices and strikes. His battle grace was exceptional; each new attack was performed with swift, smooth flicks of the wrists, arms, legs, and overall body. He could see the unfamiliar figure's deep green eyes – wait, one was green and one was blue! Periodically, one of the eyes would flash red, but only for a split second; the rest of the time, the eyes remained cool and confident - almost arrogant – while his body did the work.
After a few minutes, all of the beasts were dead, their throats cleanly slit. The man disdainfully wiped some spattered blood off his silken robe. He then turned to the dark skinned man, still lying on the ground with over a dozen gashes to mark the battle that had just taken place. The man with duel colored eyes raised one hand slightly in the big man's direction, muttering something under his breath. A greenish light surrounded the wounded man, slowly patching up his wounds until no more blood flowed, leaving only light scars.
The big man stood, not taking his brown eyes off the other man. He nodded and said, in his characteristic gruff voice, "Barret, of Corel."
The other man returned with a bow, expertly crafted. "Radek De'Loku, son of the Planet. A pleasure it is to meet you."