Chapter 8: Homebound Heroes
The forty heroes did what Aeris told them and returned the orbs back to their rightful places. A day and a half had passed since they defeated Zael and Raimuz all of them gathered at the Capcom base since the Square base was so trashed.
(* Here are a few of the conversations between the characters)
"No when you kick a blitzball you gotta follow through all the way! Now let's practice a few running drills, ya"
Wakka tried to coach a few of the others in the courtyard on how to correctly play blitzball.
"Hustle boys!" yelled Wakka.
"Dude seriously, do you train your team back home this hard!" said Zell.
Zell was exhausted and so were Hayato and Kou.
"Can we take a break?" asked Kou.
"Yeah, for about two minutes?" asked Hayato while breathing really hard.
"No, I'm gonna make champion blitzers out of you yet! Now more hustle!"
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I got 50 gil that says Volt can take him" yelled Seifer.
"Whats gil?" asked Ken.
"Its money . . . never mind . . . forget betting Volt just show him what you got."
Volt and Zangief locked hands and prepared to arm wrestle.
"You're going down" said Volt.
"No my friend you are the one who will lose. I am Zangief . . ."
"The Red Cylcone yes we know that" interrupted Volt.
"I got winner" said Strider as he walked up.
They all stopped and looked at him for a moment.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'm sorry I called you a prostitute with wings" said Quistis to Morrigan.
"Oh it's ok. I'm sorry I said you had an ugly face. You're actually quite pretty, but you should let your hair down. I have a feeling it would look much better down than it does up. Just try it.
Quistis untied her blonde hair and it hung down past her shoulders.
"See that looks much better" said Morrigan.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'm sorry I kicked your ass and made fun of your sidekicks" said Cid to Captain Commando while lighting up a cigarette.
"I figure since everybody is apologizing and stuff I should probably apologize for that."
"Umm, its ok I guess" said the Captain.
Captain Commando and Cid shook hands and then talked about machines.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Ok this is going to hit the staircase, bounce off the high wall, ricochet off that rock over there and hit the can right in the middle" said B.B. Hood as she aimed a pistol.
"If you can make that shot I'll eat my hat" Irvine.
Irvine and Vincent watched as B.B. Hood shot the pistol. Sure enough the bullet hit the staircase, bounced off the high wall, ricocheted off a rock and hit the can right in the center.
"She's good" said Vincent.
"Want a little salt to go with that hat?" said B.B. Hood.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Hey guys watch a true ladies man at work" said Hoover
"He's going to embarrass himself like always" said Jennety.
"Of course he is" said Sho.
"Ok we'll see what you say after I land that hotty over there."
Hoover pointed toward Aya who was talking with Jill.
"Yeah right" said Sho.
Hoover walked over in his robot suit. As he walked up Jill and Aya stopped their conversation and stared at him.
"Excuse me toots. But I saw you standing there and I said to myself "Now that's the kind of woman I need."
"The kind of woman you need for what? To change your diaper?" said Aya.
Jill and Aya burst out into uncontrollable laughter. Hoover looked back at Sho and Jennety and they just shook their heads.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"You're a really good fighter. One of the best I've seen" said Sion.
"I appreciate the compliment but I continue to learn more with everyday that I train. It's an ongoing process. When you think that you have learned all there is that's when you stop yourself from increasing your skill" said Ryu.
"That's so true man"
Rikku, Selphie, Yuffie, and Sakura sat a few feet away from Ryu and Sion.
"That Sion guy is pretty cute don't you think?" said Yuffie.
"He isn't bad" said Sakura.
"Oh I see, but he can't compare to your sweet little Ryuuuuu!"
Yuffie teased Sakura and Sakura's face turned beet red.
"I . . . do . . . not . . . like him like that!" said Sakura.
"Your red face says something different" laughed Yuffie.
"I guess Ryu's cute but he seems so serious" said Selphie.
"Yeah from what I hear you like suave guys like Irvine" said Rikku.
"Who told you that!"
"I'm not tellllliiiinnngggg!" said Rikku.
"I bet it was Zell I'll kill him" said Selphie.
"What are you girls talking about?" said Sion.
Sion and Ryu had been watching the girls as they made such a huge commotion.
"Umm, girl talk. Boys please stay over there" said Rikku.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Red, I'm sorry but what are you exactly?" asked Guy.
"I am what I am I can say no more" replied Red.
Red walked off and stretched out on a cool spot in the courtyard.
"He's a mysterious one" said Maki.
"Yep, sure is" said Guy.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"She's a very adorable girl" said Cammy.
"Yes, I'm very proud of her. She's the reason I keep on fighting. I want to make the world a better place for her" said Barret.
Barret showed X and Cammy a picture of his daughter Marlene. Barret's eyes began to water as he thought about not being able to see her again.
"It's ok. We'll find a way out of this place. You'll see your daughter again" said X
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"That was an awesome attack you pulled on that thing. Knights of the Round you call it? I'd hate to have you use something like that on me" said Dante.
"Well, it probably wouldn't work on you. It takes so long to charge that you probably would have killed me while I was preparing it" said Cloud.
"Any ideas on how we can get back to our homes?" asked Chun Li.
"I can't think of any" said Guile.
"There must be a way" said Squall.
"Hmm, we've saved our universes, but we killed our only way back" said Rinoa.
"Are we stuck here forever?" asked Tifa.
"No you are not stuck here forever" said a new voice.
Everyone looked to see two beings that looked similar to Zael and Raimuz.
"Oh damn! More of 'em? You want some of us too!" Cid was ready to attack them too.
"We, mean you no harm. We know it will be hard for you to trust our kind after all you have been through but please hear us"
The one that spoke was a female of whatever race Zael and Raimuz belonged to. Her voice was gentle and seemed to soothe even Cid's raging temper. Her skin was teal and her long hair and eyes were white. The other one was a male with orange skin and short white hair and eyes. The male spoke next.
"There is much that we must tell you. First let us introduce ourselves. I am Kaz and this is Azelia"
Azelia bowed her head to the group and Kaz went on.
"We are of the same race as Zael and Raimuz but our intentions are not the same. We will send you home but first I want to tell you about this place and about us."
The group of heroes sat down and listened to Kaz.
"Our race is known as the Watchers of the Universes. Our sole purpose is to observe and record the events of the many universes that exist. Our code is to never use our power to interfere with any of the events of a universe or world. Of course there are a few rogues."
"Like Zael and Raimuz" said Dante.
"Yes, they abused their power and used it to entertain themselves. The results of the games they play have been disastrous in the past" said Kaz.
"If they were so dangerous then why didn't you stop them?" asked Guile angrily.
Azelia answered Guiles question.
"We believed at the time that it was not our place to interfere. It would break our code."
"Code! You let them run amuck and destroy whole worlds just because you didn't want to break some code?" yelled Yuffie.
"We understand why you are so angry with us. In fact we are ashamed of ourselves. We saw the bravery and the unselfishness that you all showed to save your universes and it inspired us. No more will we stand by and watch as rogue's abuse their power. We have the power to stop them and from now on we shall use it. Our first act will be to send you all home." said Azelia
"What is this place?" asked Cloud
Kaz answered Clouds question.
"This dimension was created eons ago, but let me start at the beginning of the story. Scientist from two separate universes found a way to communicate with each other. Over several years their technology evolved into transporting objects then they moved on to people. The two universes that I am talking about are yours. Trade routes began to open transporting goods from one universe to the next. Some people traveled to each universe on a regular basis through portals that they had constructed."
"The pictures in the tower showed several people walking through portals" said Tifa.
"Precisely, the people used the portals so much that they did not see the damage that they caused. The portals began to break down the dimensional fabric of the two universes. To explain it in short the universes began to merge as one and overlap one another. The problem with this is that many of the realities and worlds would cease to exist if they were joined with another world. To stop this, the scientists used their technology to open up a dimensional rift between the two universes. They imported land forms and buildings from different places and made this floating island. I'm sure you saw the picture of this floating island in the center of the two universes?"
"Yes, we did" said Rinoa
"To hold the universes in place and at the same time keep them separate they used those orbs of power. The source of their power is unknown even to us. It dates back far beyond our records. Each of them placed the orbs at a focal point on the island their power was enough to keep both universes separate. They set up this place and then used the portals one last time to leave it. After that they swore off using the portals. Of course as you have seen several creatures were left behind on this island. They are the descendants of the animals that lived on the landmasses of this island so many millennia ago. Over time they all have mutated because of the power radiated by the orbs."
"Wow that is a very interesting story" said X.
"Indeed" replied Red.
"Well are there anymore questions?" asked Azelia.
No one raised their hand they were all pretty much ready to go home.
"Well, our first act as Guardians of the Universe is to send you all to your rightful places" said Kaz.
The heroes said their final farewells. They shook hands and hugged the people who were once enemies and now friends. Kaz and Azelia opened up a huge portal.
"You will automatically go to your rightful place" said Kaz
As many of them entered the portal and returned home Azelia praised them.
"Farewell heroes you have done well. Your bravery will be remembered eternally in our records. Go now and continue to make your worlds a better place."
THE END
Well people that's the end of the story. I really hope that you enjoyed reading it because I really enjoyed writing it. I'm thinking about maybe doing a sequel to this if people like the story. Feel free to leave any comments, concerns, or complaints if you want. Hopefully the comments aren't too harsh, but a little constructive criticism is always good. If you leave me signed reviews I'll be sure to read your stories and leave reviews for them.
Update* I added an epilogue. So if you stuck with me through this story for this long then just take a look at the really short bonus chapter and get a taste of things to come.
The forty heroes did what Aeris told them and returned the orbs back to their rightful places. A day and a half had passed since they defeated Zael and Raimuz all of them gathered at the Capcom base since the Square base was so trashed.
(* Here are a few of the conversations between the characters)
"No when you kick a blitzball you gotta follow through all the way! Now let's practice a few running drills, ya"
Wakka tried to coach a few of the others in the courtyard on how to correctly play blitzball.
"Hustle boys!" yelled Wakka.
"Dude seriously, do you train your team back home this hard!" said Zell.
Zell was exhausted and so were Hayato and Kou.
"Can we take a break?" asked Kou.
"Yeah, for about two minutes?" asked Hayato while breathing really hard.
"No, I'm gonna make champion blitzers out of you yet! Now more hustle!"
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I got 50 gil that says Volt can take him" yelled Seifer.
"Whats gil?" asked Ken.
"Its money . . . never mind . . . forget betting Volt just show him what you got."
Volt and Zangief locked hands and prepared to arm wrestle.
"You're going down" said Volt.
"No my friend you are the one who will lose. I am Zangief . . ."
"The Red Cylcone yes we know that" interrupted Volt.
"I got winner" said Strider as he walked up.
They all stopped and looked at him for a moment.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'm sorry I called you a prostitute with wings" said Quistis to Morrigan.
"Oh it's ok. I'm sorry I said you had an ugly face. You're actually quite pretty, but you should let your hair down. I have a feeling it would look much better down than it does up. Just try it.
Quistis untied her blonde hair and it hung down past her shoulders.
"See that looks much better" said Morrigan.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'm sorry I kicked your ass and made fun of your sidekicks" said Cid to Captain Commando while lighting up a cigarette.
"I figure since everybody is apologizing and stuff I should probably apologize for that."
"Umm, its ok I guess" said the Captain.
Captain Commando and Cid shook hands and then talked about machines.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Ok this is going to hit the staircase, bounce off the high wall, ricochet off that rock over there and hit the can right in the middle" said B.B. Hood as she aimed a pistol.
"If you can make that shot I'll eat my hat" Irvine.
Irvine and Vincent watched as B.B. Hood shot the pistol. Sure enough the bullet hit the staircase, bounced off the high wall, ricocheted off a rock and hit the can right in the center.
"She's good" said Vincent.
"Want a little salt to go with that hat?" said B.B. Hood.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Hey guys watch a true ladies man at work" said Hoover
"He's going to embarrass himself like always" said Jennety.
"Of course he is" said Sho.
"Ok we'll see what you say after I land that hotty over there."
Hoover pointed toward Aya who was talking with Jill.
"Yeah right" said Sho.
Hoover walked over in his robot suit. As he walked up Jill and Aya stopped their conversation and stared at him.
"Excuse me toots. But I saw you standing there and I said to myself "Now that's the kind of woman I need."
"The kind of woman you need for what? To change your diaper?" said Aya.
Jill and Aya burst out into uncontrollable laughter. Hoover looked back at Sho and Jennety and they just shook their heads.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"You're a really good fighter. One of the best I've seen" said Sion.
"I appreciate the compliment but I continue to learn more with everyday that I train. It's an ongoing process. When you think that you have learned all there is that's when you stop yourself from increasing your skill" said Ryu.
"That's so true man"
Rikku, Selphie, Yuffie, and Sakura sat a few feet away from Ryu and Sion.
"That Sion guy is pretty cute don't you think?" said Yuffie.
"He isn't bad" said Sakura.
"Oh I see, but he can't compare to your sweet little Ryuuuuu!"
Yuffie teased Sakura and Sakura's face turned beet red.
"I . . . do . . . not . . . like him like that!" said Sakura.
"Your red face says something different" laughed Yuffie.
"I guess Ryu's cute but he seems so serious" said Selphie.
"Yeah from what I hear you like suave guys like Irvine" said Rikku.
"Who told you that!"
"I'm not tellllliiiinnngggg!" said Rikku.
"I bet it was Zell I'll kill him" said Selphie.
"What are you girls talking about?" said Sion.
Sion and Ryu had been watching the girls as they made such a huge commotion.
"Umm, girl talk. Boys please stay over there" said Rikku.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Red, I'm sorry but what are you exactly?" asked Guy.
"I am what I am I can say no more" replied Red.
Red walked off and stretched out on a cool spot in the courtyard.
"He's a mysterious one" said Maki.
"Yep, sure is" said Guy.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"She's a very adorable girl" said Cammy.
"Yes, I'm very proud of her. She's the reason I keep on fighting. I want to make the world a better place for her" said Barret.
Barret showed X and Cammy a picture of his daughter Marlene. Barret's eyes began to water as he thought about not being able to see her again.
"It's ok. We'll find a way out of this place. You'll see your daughter again" said X
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"That was an awesome attack you pulled on that thing. Knights of the Round you call it? I'd hate to have you use something like that on me" said Dante.
"Well, it probably wouldn't work on you. It takes so long to charge that you probably would have killed me while I was preparing it" said Cloud.
"Any ideas on how we can get back to our homes?" asked Chun Li.
"I can't think of any" said Guile.
"There must be a way" said Squall.
"Hmm, we've saved our universes, but we killed our only way back" said Rinoa.
"Are we stuck here forever?" asked Tifa.
"No you are not stuck here forever" said a new voice.
Everyone looked to see two beings that looked similar to Zael and Raimuz.
"Oh damn! More of 'em? You want some of us too!" Cid was ready to attack them too.
"We, mean you no harm. We know it will be hard for you to trust our kind after all you have been through but please hear us"
The one that spoke was a female of whatever race Zael and Raimuz belonged to. Her voice was gentle and seemed to soothe even Cid's raging temper. Her skin was teal and her long hair and eyes were white. The other one was a male with orange skin and short white hair and eyes. The male spoke next.
"There is much that we must tell you. First let us introduce ourselves. I am Kaz and this is Azelia"
Azelia bowed her head to the group and Kaz went on.
"We are of the same race as Zael and Raimuz but our intentions are not the same. We will send you home but first I want to tell you about this place and about us."
The group of heroes sat down and listened to Kaz.
"Our race is known as the Watchers of the Universes. Our sole purpose is to observe and record the events of the many universes that exist. Our code is to never use our power to interfere with any of the events of a universe or world. Of course there are a few rogues."
"Like Zael and Raimuz" said Dante.
"Yes, they abused their power and used it to entertain themselves. The results of the games they play have been disastrous in the past" said Kaz.
"If they were so dangerous then why didn't you stop them?" asked Guile angrily.
Azelia answered Guiles question.
"We believed at the time that it was not our place to interfere. It would break our code."
"Code! You let them run amuck and destroy whole worlds just because you didn't want to break some code?" yelled Yuffie.
"We understand why you are so angry with us. In fact we are ashamed of ourselves. We saw the bravery and the unselfishness that you all showed to save your universes and it inspired us. No more will we stand by and watch as rogue's abuse their power. We have the power to stop them and from now on we shall use it. Our first act will be to send you all home." said Azelia
"What is this place?" asked Cloud
Kaz answered Clouds question.
"This dimension was created eons ago, but let me start at the beginning of the story. Scientist from two separate universes found a way to communicate with each other. Over several years their technology evolved into transporting objects then they moved on to people. The two universes that I am talking about are yours. Trade routes began to open transporting goods from one universe to the next. Some people traveled to each universe on a regular basis through portals that they had constructed."
"The pictures in the tower showed several people walking through portals" said Tifa.
"Precisely, the people used the portals so much that they did not see the damage that they caused. The portals began to break down the dimensional fabric of the two universes. To explain it in short the universes began to merge as one and overlap one another. The problem with this is that many of the realities and worlds would cease to exist if they were joined with another world. To stop this, the scientists used their technology to open up a dimensional rift between the two universes. They imported land forms and buildings from different places and made this floating island. I'm sure you saw the picture of this floating island in the center of the two universes?"
"Yes, we did" said Rinoa
"To hold the universes in place and at the same time keep them separate they used those orbs of power. The source of their power is unknown even to us. It dates back far beyond our records. Each of them placed the orbs at a focal point on the island their power was enough to keep both universes separate. They set up this place and then used the portals one last time to leave it. After that they swore off using the portals. Of course as you have seen several creatures were left behind on this island. They are the descendants of the animals that lived on the landmasses of this island so many millennia ago. Over time they all have mutated because of the power radiated by the orbs."
"Wow that is a very interesting story" said X.
"Indeed" replied Red.
"Well are there anymore questions?" asked Azelia.
No one raised their hand they were all pretty much ready to go home.
"Well, our first act as Guardians of the Universe is to send you all to your rightful places" said Kaz.
The heroes said their final farewells. They shook hands and hugged the people who were once enemies and now friends. Kaz and Azelia opened up a huge portal.
"You will automatically go to your rightful place" said Kaz
As many of them entered the portal and returned home Azelia praised them.
"Farewell heroes you have done well. Your bravery will be remembered eternally in our records. Go now and continue to make your worlds a better place."
THE END
Well people that's the end of the story. I really hope that you enjoyed reading it because I really enjoyed writing it. I'm thinking about maybe doing a sequel to this if people like the story. Feel free to leave any comments, concerns, or complaints if you want. Hopefully the comments aren't too harsh, but a little constructive criticism is always good. If you leave me signed reviews I'll be sure to read your stories and leave reviews for them.
Update* I added an epilogue. So if you stuck with me through this story for this long then just take a look at the really short bonus chapter and get a taste of things to come.
