A/N: Aha, gomen nasai . . . This is possibly the longest gap between updates that we've seen yet. I suck. Yes, I know that already. And I left us in such a crappy spot last chapter too, what with the whole "Garland's about to nuke Alexandria" and the "Kuja's just been turned into a puppet . . . slave . . . thing" and, and, and yeah, all that and a bag of . . . er, Gysahl Pickles, too . . . (yay for the Pickle Lady!). But I definitely made up for it in this chapter with length. It's another long chapter, woot! And this one's very action-packed and fun. Not to mention there's lots of blood. You need lots of blood. Lots. Buckets. At least every once in awhile . . . shifty eyes. And some forgotten characters return. Did I mention the blood? . . . . . . . . . . . Shutting up now . . . . . . . . . . . .
Disclaimer: No puedo tener Final Fantasy. Necesito mucho dinero. Final Fantasy es para los hombres de Square. No es mío. Por qué? Porque la idea era crear a algo muy estupido. Yo sé que soy numero uno . . . Ellos no ya saben . . . Soy mejor . . .!!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
............................
"Loving is letting go . . ."
– Unknown
"Oh man! What'll we do, what'll we do?!" Eiko looked frantic, eyes wide with panic. "Oh, they're gonna destroy Alexandria!" She whined and danced in her spot as if she was bursting out of her skin.
"We have to go back . . ." Beatrix whispered, her one eye faraway and deep in thought.
". . . No . . . We can't . . ." Zidane bit his lip in desperation. "Th- that means . . . That means killing Kuja . . . You know I can't . . ."
"Zidane, we have to . . .!" Garnet clutched onto his hands, tears running afresh down her pale cheeks. "M-my people! YOUR people! Gaia . . . Everyone . . . Kuja wouldn't have wanted you to back down now for HIS sake!"
"No, it's not that . . ." Zidane was staring into the distance as if he were watching something behind his own eyes. "It's just . . . Demeter said Kuja gave himself up so that there would still be a chance of SAVING him . . . That way there would still be a way to bring him back to life . . . But if we kill him . . . Then it was all for nothing! Then he gave himself up . . . for NOTHING!"
Beatrix suddenly whipped in Zidane's direction, looking stern. "Then don't kill him," she said simply. "Avoid him, if you must, until we figure out what to do,"
"But if he attacks me – "
"Then you will find an alternative, will you not? Won't your love for him keep him alive?" Beatrix raised an eyebrow knowingly. Zidane fell silent. /Perhaps . . ./.
"Come on, let's go, then!" Lani shouted. "Alexandria's not just gonna save itself, ya know!"
"True, true . . ." the others were nodding, already heading for the airship. Garland had not had it sabotaged (though he knew of its whereabouts) most likely because he was luring them to Alexandria anyways . . .
But on the way through the labyrinth of the Fire Shrine, the unsuspecting crew met a rather . . . unusual . . . specter.
"Greetings," She seemed to come from nowhere. The team halted down a deserted passageway, paling in surprise. The small creature seemed to take some delight in their fear and giggled.
"Ah, so sorry to frighten you all," (there was a definite note of sarcasm in her tone) "I only appear before you now to complete my part as a, ah, neutral, I guess you could say,"
Zidane's eyes were narrowed suspiciously. "You're not working for Garland?"
"I am. But neutral means I work for you, as well,"
"And you're not a spy,"
"I spy only for myself . . ."
"I don't trust her," said Steiner. A hush fell upon the corridor. The small, oddly robed girl chuckled.
"You don't trust me, eh? Then I guess you don't feel it necessary to hear the TOP SECRET and HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL AND IMPORTANT TO SAVING THE WORLD advice that I have . . ."
"Steiner, shut up . . .!" Freya was looking impatient. "Let's here what this thing's got to say,"
Ignoring the rather impolite title of the "thing," the creature spoke. "When I say that I was the one that created the poisoned bullets that blinded the first Angel of Death, I do, indeed, expect much anger and hatred from you all,"
The crew radiated quite a bit of anger and hatred at that moment. Zidane, teeth bared, looked ready to hurl himself at the creature.
". . . You . . .! It was YOU!"
"Zidane, shh!" Garnet quickly pulled her fiancé back, trying rather in vain to quiet him.
"However . . ." the young girl continued to talk. "I also expect quite a bit of doubt from you all when I say that I did it in the best interests of everyone present . . ."
"And what the HELL is THAT supposed to mean?!" Now Garnet was finally beginning to seem pissed. Vivi was shaking his head.
". . . Ridiculous . . ." he murmured. The creature was most likely smirking, but her face was so shrouded in darkness that none could see it.
"Destiny works in . . . mysterious ways . . . I knew that the proper outcome to the adventure could not be achieved unless I delivered the bullets to Garland. But now you all must play your parts as well. This is all I'm going to say . . ." the anomaly lowered her voice dramatically:
". . . Don't judge a single action by how it appears . . . Everything that happens until this is over was done for a reason . . . And if that means taking or saving a life, so be it. And if that means watching SOMEONE ELSE do it, so be it . . . Use your best judgment. Decide what was prejudged and what wasn't . . . Only then will the pieces begin to fit together . . ."
And with that said, she turned and walked away. Zidane blinked several times, still absorbing her information, then charged forward.
"Wait, who are you – ?!"
But by that time, Triss was long gone . . .
.............................
Never before had an airship ride become lapsed in such horrible silence. It felt like the crew was flying steadily towards its own doom. Garnet, obviously concerned, had noticed Zidane sitting dejectedly in a corner of the Invincible, resting his chin on his knees.
". . . You alright . . .?" She sat down beside him, smiling nervously. Zidane didn't even look at her.
"Fine,"
". . . Zidane, I . . . I know what you're going through . . ."
". . . No you don't . . ." Zidane closed his eyes wearily, sniffing in disdain. Garnet lowered her gaze towards the floor, drawing circles on the steel tile with one finger.
". . . You don't remember, then, do you? Have you forgotten everything in the midst of your problems?"
Zidane opened his eyes slowly and turned his head to gaze blearily into Garnet's. There was no lie in them. They swirled, seeming to tell a story. Zidane felt his gut clench.
/. . . Queen Brahne . . ./ The genome lowered his head in shame.
"I-I'm sorry . . ."
Garnet sighed casually, now averting her saddened eyes to the ceiling. "No, it's alright. I know you're going through a hard time . . . I mean, I can relate, though it isn't EXACTLY the same thing . . ." she now looked into Zidane's pale face, taking his hand in her own and squeezing it gently. "But I know how it feels to have to . . . to have to . . . kill . . ." Garnet whispered fearfully, as if the word were some sort of swear. ". . . A member of your own family . . . Though my mother was not related to me by blood, the very idea of taking her life was . . . was so painful . . ." Garnet bit her lip, tears swelling in her eyes as old memories of bursting ships, dragons, and sandy beaches resurfaced within her mind.
"But you never had to actually kill her," Zidane said softly, refusing to meet Garnet's teary gaze. "My . . . my brother did it for you . . . But for me, there's no alternative. Even if one of you guys kill him, in the end it was all arranged by me. No opposing side is going to take his life, Dagger. Garland's not going to do it, the geonomes are not going to do it. WE are. And I am one of us . . ."
". . . Zidane . . ."
"Dagger, I made a promise to Kuja . . ." Zidane took a deep breath, the memory causing a terrible pressure to build up in his chest. "Do you remember, back on the Forgotten Continent . . . Right after Kuja scared Drakja away and we first realized Kuja was . . . Kuja was blind . . .?"
"O-of course . . ."
"Well, after Kuja told us he didn't want our . . . pity . . . I made a promise to myself and sealed it in my very heart . . ."
Fear flashed across Garnet's face. She knew what was coming. "A-and what was that . . .?"
". . . That I would save Kuja's life like he'd saved mine . . ."
Silence. Garnet looked, terrified, into her fiancé's face.
"Oh, Zidane . . ." She suddenly grasped him hard and pulled him into a desperate hug. "Oh, gods, I'm so sorry! I know, I know it's terrible! Horrible! Why must people do such things?!"
Zidane allowed himself to sink into Garnet's embrace. ". . . Terrible . . ." he echoed softly.
"You NEVER should have had to go through this!" Garnet cried, clutching Zidane as if letting go would kill them both. "You saved the world without having to destroy the culprit – your own BROTHER! And now . . . And now such a burden has been placed upon you!"
Zidane noted, miserably, that Garnet's "princess voice" returned when she was distraught. He thought back . . . three years ago . . . to the loneliest time in his life. In his mind's eye he saw every – vivid – detail. It was like the image had become tattooed into his skull. He saw the vines of the Iifa Tree stiffening and closing in about him. He saw Kuja's ruined body collapsed several feet away. Dirt in his silver hair . . . Blood splattered across the roots . . . He saw Kuja gasping for breath as the blood drained from every last broken bone in his body . . . And Zidane remembered . . . He remembered the hopelessness and despair . . . He remembered lying his own tattered form down next to his brother and just listening to Kuja suffocate on his own blood . . . He remembered crying . . . He remembered singing . . . He remembered being in pain . . . And he remembered Kuja laughing as they finally freed themselves from the tree.
/Flash/
"We did it, Zidane! My god! We did it!"
"Kuja, w-we're free! WE'RE FREE!!!"
"Aha! We're unbeatable!"
"We'll never be destroyed!"
/Flash/
". . . We'll never be destroyed . . ." Zidane whispered. "Never . . . Never . . ." He pulled away from Garnet, staring into her face. "What will I do, Dagger?! How will I go on without . . . without him . . .?"
". . . You still have me . . ."
"Gods, Dagger, gods, and I pray every moment that I will never lose you either!" Zidane pressed his lips gratefully against hers, sighing at the familiar warmth. When they pulled apart, there were tears streaming down his cheeks as well as hers. "I don't want to lose my family, Dagger," the genome sobbed. "Mikoto is being taken as we speak, and Kuja . . . Dagger, look what they did to him!" Zidane buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking with sobs.
"I worked so hard to protect him . . . And now . . . Now I must DESTROY him!"
"There must be a way!" Garnet shouted fiercely. "I think . . . I think you should take Beatrix's advice! Don't harm Kuja for now! Not until we can come up with something! This isn't the end, Zidane! There's always a way to do everything!"
Zidane blinked, his eyes shining at Garnet's powerful words. His face cracked into a weak smile.
"Then I shall try . . ."
.............................
Alexandria . . . was . . . a . . . mess . . .
Sirens blared, people screamed, soldiers ran for their lives. It was pandemonium. Buildings exploded without warning, flames roared into the sky, broken rubble crashed into the streets. Geonomes were looting everything in sight. Dead bodies were piled in the shadowy corners of the roads, people screaming as they ran for their lives, soldiers shrieking as they drove their blades through the enemies of Gaia. And in the blood- soaked sky, a silver dragon screeched as it dove through the rotten air.
"Oh gods . . ." Garnet stood next to the airship, gazing dazedly at the chaos with tears in her eyes. ". . . My city . . ."
"God damn you, Garland!" Zidane's fists shook angrily as he clenched his teeth. He looked back at the others. "We've got a BIG cleanup job to do . . ."
"We can't defeat them ALL!!" Lani stared at the floods of people in the streets with wide eyes.
"Well, we can't say that until we've tried!" Zidane snarled and charged forward, drawing his weapon. The others cried out, sharpening claws, releasing swords, preparing items and magic . . . Garnet grabbed Beatrix before she could attack along with the others.
"Beatrix, command the troops! This is war!"
"Yes, my queen!"
"We've got troops coming in from outside!" a soldier yelled, rushing past Beatrix. "Lindblum and Burmecia are expected to have soldiers arriving outside our border in TWENTY – MINUTES!"
"Got it!" Beatrix wrenched her sword from her sheathe. Her comrades had already vanished into the melee (including Garnet). Now was her time to shine . . .
.............................
"Stop that geonome!" Freya gasped, making a frantic grab for one of the culprits. The geonome shrieked, falling and getting squashed underneath her. Fratley laughed.
"Go, Freya, go!" He smashed another geonome over the head with his javelin, smirking.
Indeed, all-out war seemed to be the trend. There were hundreds of geonomes and hundreds of troops . . . It was more of a game of tag as the geonomes fought to destroy and the troops fought to destroy the destroyers.
"Nya ha!" a female geonome giggled as she cast a Fira in the middle of the streets. Several soldiers leapt out of the way just as a smoldering heap of . . . well, no one could really tell WHAT it had once been . . . crashed from the sky and splattered.
"Ugh!" one of the Alexandrian soldiers made a face, grimacing and falling on her rear.
"Hold your posts!" Beatrix shouted, charging by and slashing furiously at a geonome. It dodged her and teleported away. Beatrix halted and sighed.
"How are you two faring?" she glanced sideways at Freya and Fratley.
"Actually, this is rather enjoyable . . ." Fratley admitted. Beatrix knitted her brows at the Burmecian.
"I see . . . Well, I HIGHLY doubt you'll be saying that later. None of the lead geonomes have come by yet and, well . . ." Red flushed Beatrix's cheeks. Freya looked on dryly.
"And Kuja hasn't come to kill us yet . . ."
"Er, yeah . . ."
"INCOMING!!!"
A cry arose from the populace in the streets as something screeched through the air. Beatrix paled.
"Oh, no! DUCK!!!"
Freya and Fratley just barely managed to throw themselves to the ground before the flurry of chaotic white dove through them.
"Ah, it's coming back!" a woman down the road clutched her two children, blocking them as the incredibly large object hurtled down the street. Wings fluttered as the silver dragon took to the skies again. The rider, calmly, cast a jet of Thundaga upon the frightened people below.
"Nng!" Beatrix closed her eye, calling upon a spell as she charged forward. "BARRIER!!!" The general held out her sword, point to the sky, attempting to catch some of the waves of electricity that bore down upon the people.
CRACK.
The lightning caught on Save the Queen, exploding out into the street and popping up the sides of rubble. Beatrix stood firm her position, legs trembling as she held the magic at bay. Agony ran up and down her arms. But she couldn't catch it all . . .
Though most people – soldiers and citizens alike – had gotten safely out of the way, at least three bodies lay blood-soaked in the street. Electricity coursed through their torn figures, the magic still tearing apart their insides. Beatrix gasped, the magic expelling and vanishing. She slumped forward, exhausted, and stared at the bodies in sheer horror. Little blood- shed had yet occurred in this battle. She had known it would come, but . . .
"Not like this . . ."
Kuja had murdered more innocents . . .
.............................
"Oh man, it has been FAR too long since I've gone on a killing spree," Lulian laughed, darting through the air and watching the screams and cries of the Alexandrian citizens brushing beneath her feet.
"Ants, they are!" one of her minions chuckled below, yelling up at Lulian as she hovered a good twenty feet above his head. "You could squash them so easily!" To demonstrate this to his female master, the geonome suddenly gripped a woman by the collar whom had previously been hiding behind a dumpster (and was pretty sure she couldn't be seen). The woman was getting on in years and was trembling with fright. The geonome, teeth bared in a menacing grin, poked her in the shoulder whilst muttering an agitated spell. The woman screamed, flames bursting beneath her flesh. In a moment, she was nothing more than combusted ash clutched in her murderer's fingers. The geonome blew it into the street, laughing hysterically. Lulian applauded.
"Another soul for Master Garland!" She pointed back at the Indomitable, which hovered several miles away. Faint lights were drifting towards it, illuminated weakly against the blood-red sky. Soon, Garland would have just enough . . .
"Lulian, how many have you taken?!" A voice arose from down the street. Lulian glanced over her shoulder and smirked upon spotting Chikara.
"Chikara-san!" she practically melted in affection. "How wonderful of you to join us! How many for you?" She floated over to the powerful geonome and stared down at him in her bubbliest way. Chikara looked up at his woman-master seriously.
"I have only managed to take the lives of four people so far,"
"Four?" Lulian looked crestfallen. "But . . ."
"Troops from neighboring cities have begun to pour into Alexandria. This place is becoming a hazard-zone . . ."
Lulian harrumphed, folding her arms across her chest and chewing on her heavily painted lip.
"Well /I/ have managed to down fifteen already, Chikara. I expect better work from you. Good gods, what if Drakja finds out?! Hmm?!"
Chikara's face flashed with a momentary fear. "You would reveal me?"
"Aw, my poor wittle Chikara . . ." Lulian caressed the man's face with one hand, smirking, and then carefully scratched him under the eye with one of her killer, lime-green fingernails. He hissed with pain.
"That's for doubting my loyalty," she snapped, frowning. "And if you put your trust in me in question again, I won't hesitate to claw your eyes out . . ."
Snapping her tail in his face, Lulian whipped around and shot off down the street.
.............................
"This isn't good," Drakja mused, glaring out at the fiery city of Alexandria (he was rather proud of the "flames" aspect of the nation's destruction). "We've become outnumbered by heavily armed troops . . . Ummei, have you unleashed any of Garland's Machines yet?"
Ummei cowered at Drakja's side, staring over the bridge of the Indomitable right alongside his cruel master.
"Ah . . . Just the one you know of . . . B-but . . . But he's not activated . . ."
"Well, activate him, you moron!"
"Y-you know I can't!" Ummei's green eyes went wide with fright. "O-only Master Garland has that authority!"
Drakja's face twisted into a knowing grin. "You're in one of your smart swings right now, aren't you?" Ummei blushed.
"A-am I . . .?"
"Yes, you are . . . And whose idea was it to power the Machines?"
"Mine,"
"So who should control them?"
Ummei didn't respond. /Not me . . . Not me . . . Just leave me alone . . . Dear God, don't drag me into this . . .! Mikoto . . ./.
A cold, black-gloved hand dropped down on Drakja's shoulder. Drakja gasped, going white with fear.
"G-Garland!"
Garland's eyes flashed coldly in the putrid air. "That was a very treasonous thing you were just suggesting to Ummei . . ."
"Oh, forgive me Master Garland!" Drakja looked ready to pass out with nerves. Garland was much different than only a few hours before. The crimson light in his armor glowed and pulsated fiercely like flame and Garland's aura was increasing exponentially in strength. He would soon reach a higher form of being if he continued to gain such power . . . Drakja paled.
"I-I only wished for . . . for our experiments to become activated . . .!"
"And they will, dear Drakja, they will," Garland stared out into the city of Alexandria from his perch upon the regal airship. "As a matter of fact, I have turned our best ally on right now,"
"Y-you have . . .?" Drakja blinked. Garland sneered, chuckling.
"Indeed, I have. And I told him to kill every Gaian he comes across and . . . to save a special spot in his lust for Zidane . . ."
..............................
Slash, smash, dodge, parry. Zidane had to put all the skills he had ever learned to the test. Geonomes would seem to pop out of nowhere (in fact, some really did) and would immediately start to battle. Zidane, luckily, had sustained few injuries (save a nasty gash across his left arm). But that didn't make it any easier. He was already exhausted and knew that the battle probably wouldn't end in Alexandria anyways.
"Get away from that!" the genome practically whined, thrusting his blade at a geonome that, taking a break from fighting, had stopped to sink his teeth into the shoulder of a dead Alexandrian. The geonome shrieked – the dagger sinking into his side – and then shuddered before slumping over the body it had previously begun devouring. Zidane sighed, thankful that he'd scared most geonomes down that particular street away, and then went to retrieve his dagger.
"Since when have you freaks eaten human meat anyways?!" Zidane grumbled, bending over and wrenching the blade from the geonome's flesh. He was surprised when the creature, not yet dead, looked up at him with one glazed, green eye.
"Well . . . G-Garland doesn't . . . Garland doesn't exactly f-feed us . . . So w-we eat out of . . . out of Gaian garbage cans . . . when we have . . . when we have to . . . which . . . is almost . . . always . . ." Then it shuddered and lay still.
Zidane didn't know why, but for a moment he stood there in shock feeling very, very uneasy. Those words had disturbed him in some strange, possibly foolish way. But he didn't have time to dwell on that now. There were still more geonomes to fight. Thank the gods this alleyway was so deserted.
When Zidane had first gone down that street he'd found about seven or eight geonomes finishing off a couple of Gaians (all basically dead). Zidane had quickly tried to dispose of them but the geonomes, whose jobs were to kill as many people as possible, not pick fights, had quickly escaped. Zidane had nothing left to do in that alleyway now (since most other streets in Alexandria were almost full to bursting with troops, citizens, and enemies) so he began to turn to leave.
Then he felt that icy chill run like groping fingers up his spine . . .
". . . No . . ."
Zidane whipped around, knowing in his deepest heart that he didn't want to see what stood behind him . . .
White eyes glistened with malice, pale lips twisting into a deranged smile.
". . . Kuja . . . So you've finally come for me . . ."
Zidane had suspected – still suspected – that Garland had given Kuja special orders to destroy him in particular. /I need to get away!/
Zidane whirled on his heel, springing hard off his toes into a run. There was a whoosh and Kuja was running beside him, his face momentarily expressionless again. Then Kuja lashed out, smacking Zidane off to the side.
"Ngh!" the blonde genome tumbled and crashed into the street, groaning as fresh cuts opened on his hands. /Gods . . . I can't escape him . . ./
Kuja stepped towards Zidane but was too slow. In seconds the younger of the two was on his feet and making a mad dash down the street again. There was a flash and Kuja was in front of him. Zidane gasped, putting on the brakes and screeching to a halt before he could run into his brother.
"No!"
Another turn, another attempt to escape. Zidane was running, running, running from his sibling . . . Don't stop running . . . Don't stop running . . .
He'd only made it about two feet before Kuja was right in front of Zidane again.
"Wh . . . How did he . . .?"
/He's barrier transmigratory, the bastard! He ran right through me!/
Zidane felt fear bubbling up in the pit of his stomach. He realized a second too late that he was nearly backed up against the alley's dead-end brick wall. Zidane looked back to where it loomed several feet away, then turned to Kuja. Kuja was smirking.
". . . Oh no . . ."
BAM.
Kuja shot forward like a cannon, grasped Zidane by the throat, and slammed his back into the wall so hard that he heard the bricks crack and shatter against his bruised shoulder-blades (which had possibly broken and shattered as well). Kuja held Zidane's neck in one hand and had him lifted into the air, his feet dangling pitifully above the ground as Kuja showed off his newfound (and highly unnatural) strength.
Zidane was struggling, struggling for his very life.
"No . . . Kuja, don't . . . Please . . . Gods, it's me . . .! Aah . . .!"
Kuja's fingers tightened, cutting off his brother's air. Zidane gasped, feeling the blood running down his neck where Kuja's nails dug into his flesh. He couldn't breathe, everything was spinning . . . Kuja wasn't content just to suffocate Zidane . . . He was attempting to crush his throat . . .
". . . KUJA!!!" Zidane cried out as he heard a crack (and it wasn't the wall). The warlock only grinned madly, closing his fingers harder. Zidane's life was flashing before his eyes . . . Tears were pouring down his face . . .
But he wasn't crying for his own life . . . No, no, that had nothing to do with it. He wasn't crying because he knew he was about to die . . . He wasn't crying because it hurt or because the world was going to end . . . He knew if he tried hard enough he could struggle free . . .
That was the problem . . .
". . . Kuja . . ." Zidane gasped. "Kuja . . . Please . . . Don't do this . . . I'm not pleading for my life . . . Kuja . . . Please . . . Don't . . . Don't . . ." Zidane's eyes rolled up into his head as all his desperation and agony exploded from his very soul.
"Please . . . DON'T GIVE ME A REASON TO KILL YOU!!!"
WHAM.
There was a flash of color and the next thing Zidane knew, Kuja's fingers were wrenched off his throat and the sorcerer, taken off guard in his thirst to murder Zidane, was thrown sideways off his feet. Zidane choked and slid, dazed, down the wall still clutching his neck.
............................
"Drakja, honey!" Lulian gripped her partner tightly around the arms and pulled him into a passionate kiss (she was still floating several feet above the ground). He, stiffly, allowed her to have her way, then pulled back.
"Lulian, I don't think now is the time . . ." Drakja glanced around the alleyway nervously. "We're supposed to be out in the squares fighting . . . And besides, if Garland caught us . . . Y'know . . ."
Lulian grinned, lying down in the air and resting her head in her hand.
"That's a chance I'm willing to take . . ." Drakja stared at the low cut on her dress.
/Gah, stop thinking about beautiful women . . ./ the alpha-male chastised. /Back to the task at hand . . ./
"Lulian, I'm begging you . . . Slaughter twenty more Gaians and THEN maybe I'll think about . . . Giving you some fun . . ."
Lulian cheered. "Yay! I'll be back, don't forget!"
There was a pop and she was gone. Drakja shivered, shaking his head. "It's so wrong, but she is SO hot . . ." he hesitated. "Speaking of temperature . . . Is it just me, or did it just get really cold . . .? Oh . . . no . . . Not now . . ."
Drakja buried his face in his hands, groaning as he heard the familiar voice.
". . . You sure talk to yourself a lot, Drakja . . ."
Drakja peered up at the newcomer through his fingers. Yup. The great General of Shi was back . . .
"Saishoja . . . What the hell are you doing in Alexandria . . .?!!"
The silver-haired man cocked his head, leaning against the alley wall. The long ends of his black blindfold rustled in a faint, invisible wind. His shimmering aura seemed somewhat stronger than Drakja remembered it.
"Just thought I'd check up on your progress . . . I commend you . . . Your people are very thorough murderers . . ." Saishoja straightened himself and stepped carefully towards the geonome. The latter shivered, backing up until he was against the opposite wall. Saishoja grinned, placing an arm on either side of Drakja's head and leaning wickedly towards him with a cruel smile.
". . . Not that I didn't already know that . . ."
Drakja clenched his eyes shut, turning his head away from Saishoja's face where he should have felt breath but found none.
"Please . . . Stop tormenting me . . ."
"No, Drakja. I won't stop. Not until you remember . . ."
"R-remember what . . .?" Drakja had one emerald eye fixed fearfully upon Saishoja's pale, beautiful face.
"Not until you remember how you really died . . ."
Drakja felt a stab of fear in his gut. "But . . . But I know how Drakja died . . . And besides, I'm not him . . . Why should it matter . . .?! Go track down his soul and torture IT for Terra's sake . . ."
"Fool," Saishoja hissed, pressing his forehead against Drakja's and sneering. "I already did that . . . Garland is pathetic, is he not? Reusing souls . . . Sick . . . Never granting them their peace . . . I was fortunate to escape him . . . Gods only know what poor soul was given to Kuja . . . A soul that must wait through another lifetime before knowing the bliss of the after-life . . ."
"You mean . . . I . . ."
"Drakja . . . Hehe . . . It's been a long time . . ." Saishoja suddenly took the frightened geonome's face in his hands and smiled. "Eventually . . . You will remember everything . . . And the truth . . . You think you died during the war, don't you?"
"I-it was the radiation from the bombs that destroyed Terra . . . I died with my people . . ."
"No . . ." Saishoja breathed. "You died with me . . ."
Drakja could hardly speak with fear. His voice caught in his throat, his mind a white sheet. This . . . didn't . . . make . . . sense . . .
Y-you're a loony . . ." Drakja mumbled. "Years of being trapped on Gaia can do that to a person – er, soul . . ."
"I'm a loony, eh?" Saishoja queried. He smirked. "Then tell me . . . Do you remember THIS wound?!" Drakja didn't have time to react. He didn't have time to wonder what this could possibly mean for him. There was a sudden, intense pain in his stomach and the next thing he knew he was sinking to his knees, blood exploding and pouring from his mouth as he threw up his very life's contents. Saishoja stood above him, frowning, as Drakja clutched his abdomen in agony, glazed eyes rolling up into his head.
". . . It must be sad . . ." Saishoja murmured softly. "The afterlife could still be granted to you but only with another's aid . . . I will help you . . . When you die, I will take you to heaven myself . . ."
"Wh-wha . . . Ngh!" Drakja gasped as the blood seeped through his hands; bubbling between his clenched fingers and spilling like faucets from the impossible wound in his stomach. Saishoja looked bitter.
"The way you died . . . It was idiotic . . . You lost safe passage to the afterlife without my help . . . But I cannot save you . . . Until you remember . . ."
A gust of warm air blew by and Saishoja evaporated. Drakja choked as the pain vanished, the blood stopped flowing, and the wound closed up and sealed.
". . . What . . .WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!!"
.............................
Beatrix snarled furiously, pinning Kuja's struggling form to the ground as he kicked out dangerously near her stomach.
"Bastard, Garland!" she cried, knowing the overlord could hear her through Kuja. "You're not going to get away with this!"
Kuja hissed and Beatrix realized, too late, that he was muttering a spell.
"Ah . . . N-no . . ."
She winced, waiting for the blow, when a voice interrupted their desperate struggle.
"Kuja, cease your fire . . ."
Kuja blinked and went limp under Beatrix; his need to free himself now meaningless. The general stared down at him guiltily and rolled off, wondering how she could have attacked him when he didn't even know what he was doing . . .
Garland was standing several feet away, watching with a small smile on his face. Zidane was still dazed, but he was conscious enough to growl faintly as he rubbed his neck (the bleeding still hadn't stopped).
"G-Garland . . . L-leave him alone . . ."
The Terran overlord chuckled and beckoned something to his side. Beatrix and Zidane gasped as another, much younger genome stepped out from behind Garland's back and stood loyally and expressionless at his side. A sob escaped Zidane's lips.
"M-Mikoto . . .! No!"
Garland smirked, patting the young girl on her blonde head. "My second Machine," he said softly. "So loyal to me . . . But this one still has her soul. She was created much weaker than Kuja, so maintaining it will make her almost equivalent in strength"
"What the hell do you want?!" Beatrix demanded, standing up and holding Save the Queen's deadly point in Garland's face. The old man sighed at Beatrix's violent pushiness.
"I have come to inform you that I have completed all that I need done in Alexandria. My geonomes have now killed so many Gaians that my Indomitable can hold no more. In other words, we're leaving . . . And I've come here to retrieve Kuja, thank you,"
"You came here to gloat, is what you did . . ." Zidane hissed, stumbling to his feet and clutching onto the wall as the pain in his lungs returned.
"Mmm . . . Perhaps . . ." Garland's white eyes were twinkling. "Kuja, come, we must return to the Fire Shrine where the captured souls await me. All I need do is absorb them and I shall reach a higher, more powerful state of being . . ."
Kuja rose calmly to his feet and walked towards his master. A dark shadow fell across his pale body followed by a thud as the silver dragon, in a hail of feathers and a loud crash, landed at his side. Kuja grasped it by the neck and leapt on. Zidane couldn't help but notice, however, that the dragon gave Kuja a strange, uncertain look. Garland waved.
"Ta ta,"
A flash, and they were gone . . . Kuja, Mikoto, and all . . .
.............................
The team regrouped somewhere in the center of Alexandria. The troops of the other cities were busy cleaning up the dead bodies of geonomes and Alexandrians alike. The sky above seemed permanently stained with the color of blood. The Indomitable was gone and their chance of victory seemed to vanish with it . . .
"We have to stop them," said Beatrix. "We have to, that's all there is to it. We have to stop Garland . . .
"Th-then we're going back to the Fire Shrine?" Vivi queried.
"Seems so . . ." Garnet's eyes were heavy with sadness.
"And Kuja will die . . ." Zidane whispered, leaning slightly against Steiner for support (and ignoring the great strain this put on his typically bloated ego).
"We don't have any other choice," Fratley pointed out. "It's now or never. Garland's probably already absorbed those souls. We know what happens when fools gain more power . . . I believe you witnessed its colossal strength on Terra . . ."
Zidane winced.
/Flash/
"Yes! This is the power I've longed for! The mighty power of souls! They assault any threat that tries to destroy them! I shall rule Terra and Gaia with my unconditional love from now on . . . Should I kill you quickly to show my appreciation for all you've done? Or should I kill you slowly and painfully to show you my love . . . Oh, I've got a great idea! How's this? I'll make you pillars for my castle! You'll all decorate my castle as a symbol of my eternal kingdom . . . How do you like that?"
/Flash/
It was true. Zidane could still remember like a chant that ran day and night through his head that horrible time when Kuja had finally realized the wonderful drug of power. The horror he had unleashed . . . Ironically, he had done the same thing Garland was about to do: absorb souls from the Terran airships. Kuja had Tranced and gone insane. He'd been capable of mass genocide the likes of which dictators could only dream of. Then . . .
What would Garland be capable of doing with the same power . . .?
It was settled. They were going back to the Fire Shrine . . .
It was time to end this once . . . and . . . for all . . .
..............................
A/N: This is the fic that never ends . . . It just goes on and on my friends . . . Some moron, started writing without knowing what it was (that's not true!), and she will keep on writing this forever just because this is the – oh, screw that . . .
So let's see, what is this? Chappie forty-five, eh? Heh, my spell-check didn't like the word "chappie" and its first suggestion was "crappie" snigger. Anyways . . . Well, this was a rather interesting chapter . . . Something is amiss . . . Well, okay, a lot of things are amiss. But some things are more amiss than other things Of course, you peoples DO realize that the next chapter starts the FINAL BATTLE. That's right, after more than a year of production on this fic, the final battle has finally (no pun intended) come. I thought this story would make it to fifty chapters but now I'm not so sure . . . The final battle should take up AT LEAST chapters forty-six and forty-seven (maybe forty-eight if things take longer than I anticipated) then the epilogue and a bonus chapter when I finally have the WEB-COMIC LINK cough, nudge, cough And then . . . I guess that's that. Tears . . . welling up in eyes . . . Misery . . . increasing . . . Urge to kill . . . rising . . . (not really) Need for Gysahl Pickles . . . Priceless. There are some things money can't buy, for everything else, there's chocobos (kweh! Or, uh, "wark" if you played anything Final Fantasy VII or below. VIII too? I can't remember . . .). By the time the next chapter's posted, I'm gonna be out of my freshman year of high school (which is crazy, since I'm still not fifteen . . . In fact, I won't be fifteen for, uh, about three months . . . sweatdrop). . . . Bloop . . .
Ooh, bonus time! I wrotes me some poems 'bout Kuja. Cliché, ne? Everyone writes poems about Kuja. Well, I don't care! I almost never do, so I did a couple for, er, school. Um, yeah, I wrote these several months ago, forgot about them, and just found them yesterday. My teacher liked them (yay!). I almost NEVER do poems, so if these suck, I'm sorry . . . The first one was a "tanka" poem which is like an extended haiku. The syllabic count is off because part of it was written in another language ('cause I was bored) and then translated. It's not because I'm stupid (though, that's always possible). It's obviously a reference to Kuja in Trance finding out he will die . . .
AUTUMN
Dark leaves that fall here,
Like blood-red flower petals;
Masks of crimson plumage.
While knowing in my bitter plight
The days of my hall have ended.
And the second one here was a random poem I did while thinking about Kuja (and possibly a little bit of Naruto sweatdrop) referring to mistreated children.
YOU HURT
You knock me down
Push me around
You kick me hard
Catch me off guard.
You laugh with glee
Though you can see
That I'm in pain
It's just a game.
So why do I fall every time?
Pretending everything is fine?
Because no matter where I hide
I still think you have good inside.
This third one here I wrote in reference to Zidane's thoughts on Kuja. When I first started writing it I intended for it to be a Cloud reflecting on Sephiroth reference. Then I changed the perspective because I decided to write another one displaying Cloud a little differently. Here's the result . . .
HOW COULD YOU?
To me you were a god.
A monolith of strength.
The price I'd pay to be you.
I'd go to any length.
How could you?
When people spoke your name
It was preceded by a Great.
Such glory and such fame.
Why couldn't I have such a fate?
How could you?
I was blinded by your light
And shielded by your shame.
An inner horror fight.
A curse upon your name.
How could you?
Your silence should have told me.
A warning to my soul.
A million ways to step free.
To keep my spirits whole.
How could you?
And in the end you shined
With the darkness of your light.
And then became confined
In your future-present fight.
How could you?
You took everything I ever loved.
And everything I need.
You took my sanity and shoved
To seal away your deed.
How could you?
So in the end you vanished.
At least within my mind.
But you were never finished.
Only then my heart you'd come to find.
How could you?
You took everything from me!
You took my life my soul and heart!
Just because you're not free
You chose to tear my world apart.
How could you?
I'm left alone
I'm cold and lost.
Your hatred's grown
And built my frost.
How could you?
And when I finally saw you die
And witnessed a clear dawn.
It was then the truth enlightened me.
I was sad that you were gone . . .
How could you?
When I knew.
I hate you.
Now, this one here is probably my favorite poem I've ever written. This one has a lot of double meanings because it's a Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy IX poem where no matter which game you've played you can see where it fits as either Zidane's perspective or Cloud's perspective. And believe me, I know it's true 'cause I had two different people with those situations read them and it was funny how true it was. Well, obviously the Train Graveyard reference is VII. But this is interesting: both commented on the part about the burning flame. The VII person said it was Meteor in the sky. The IX person said it was Trance Kuja destroying Terra. Dude, awesome! I just liked it for the rhyme scheme, lol
FOG DEATH
I can't recall how long it's been.
This fog that's in my brain, like then
Is a cloud that settles in my head.
I should be dead.
On an eve so dark a blanket there
Had painted the black night-sky bare.
Trains that even death discard
Sleeping in the Train Graveyard.
Not a purpose, not a thought.
Knowing even then I ought
Have stayed behind and let lights dim
So they could claim both me and Him.
Can't remember, not a thing.
What do all these voices sing
Ever on inside my head
I should be dead.
I feel the earth beneath me cry
This song that says it soon shall die.
I cannot care, I cannot care.
Burning, burning, always there.
Swords that flash in crimson light
One wing falls from feather flight
A pained death-rattle on the night
Darkness ever grasps my sight.
What is it I left behind?
Something I'm supposed to find.
Colors always flashing red.
I cannot see the light ahead.
I should be dead.
A single flame burns in the east
Ever plastered on the sky.
Make him suffer, make him cry.
This time it's His turn to die.
Whee, that's such a fun poem, lol. And I guess that's a wrap! I hope those were a bit of a break from the excruciating destructiveness of this story, heh. Hope they don't suck eggs, either . . . I'm all excited 'cause I just came back from the Anime Central convention and I found a Sephiroth cosplay where the guy actually had just ONE WING! Dude! And I stopped a guy and took a picture of the back of his shirt 'cause it said: "Have you hugged YOUR Sephiroth today?" WHEE! But then I got pissed 'cause there was this FREAKIN' AWESOME Vincent Valentine model that I wanted. I asked the guy to convert the yen for me . . . ONE-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-FIVE DOLLARS!!! Okay, I had that much with me, but not to spend on ONE THING!!! ARGH, MONEY-GRUBBING BASTARDS!!! Anyways, I had fun. I'm doing Trance Kuja next year (no joke). I'm gonna drop twenty pounds and then go out and buy a twenty-pound bag of red feathers . . . Oh, the fun I'm gonna have, hehe.
REVIEW, OR SUFFER MY WRATH!!! (this is the longest chapter YET!) Oh, and the delay was my dad's fault, blame him. He was supposed to read this chapter before I posted it and he kept freakin' stalling stab ! I say we all gang up on him, lol. He said it was his favorite chapter so far, though, so that's a good thing . . . Still . . .
Disclaimer: No puedo tener Final Fantasy. Necesito mucho dinero. Final Fantasy es para los hombres de Square. No es mío. Por qué? Porque la idea era crear a algo muy estupido. Yo sé que soy numero uno . . . Ellos no ya saben . . . Soy mejor . . .!!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
............................
"Loving is letting go . . ."
– Unknown
"Oh man! What'll we do, what'll we do?!" Eiko looked frantic, eyes wide with panic. "Oh, they're gonna destroy Alexandria!" She whined and danced in her spot as if she was bursting out of her skin.
"We have to go back . . ." Beatrix whispered, her one eye faraway and deep in thought.
". . . No . . . We can't . . ." Zidane bit his lip in desperation. "Th- that means . . . That means killing Kuja . . . You know I can't . . ."
"Zidane, we have to . . .!" Garnet clutched onto his hands, tears running afresh down her pale cheeks. "M-my people! YOUR people! Gaia . . . Everyone . . . Kuja wouldn't have wanted you to back down now for HIS sake!"
"No, it's not that . . ." Zidane was staring into the distance as if he were watching something behind his own eyes. "It's just . . . Demeter said Kuja gave himself up so that there would still be a chance of SAVING him . . . That way there would still be a way to bring him back to life . . . But if we kill him . . . Then it was all for nothing! Then he gave himself up . . . for NOTHING!"
Beatrix suddenly whipped in Zidane's direction, looking stern. "Then don't kill him," she said simply. "Avoid him, if you must, until we figure out what to do,"
"But if he attacks me – "
"Then you will find an alternative, will you not? Won't your love for him keep him alive?" Beatrix raised an eyebrow knowingly. Zidane fell silent. /Perhaps . . ./.
"Come on, let's go, then!" Lani shouted. "Alexandria's not just gonna save itself, ya know!"
"True, true . . ." the others were nodding, already heading for the airship. Garland had not had it sabotaged (though he knew of its whereabouts) most likely because he was luring them to Alexandria anyways . . .
But on the way through the labyrinth of the Fire Shrine, the unsuspecting crew met a rather . . . unusual . . . specter.
"Greetings," She seemed to come from nowhere. The team halted down a deserted passageway, paling in surprise. The small creature seemed to take some delight in their fear and giggled.
"Ah, so sorry to frighten you all," (there was a definite note of sarcasm in her tone) "I only appear before you now to complete my part as a, ah, neutral, I guess you could say,"
Zidane's eyes were narrowed suspiciously. "You're not working for Garland?"
"I am. But neutral means I work for you, as well,"
"And you're not a spy,"
"I spy only for myself . . ."
"I don't trust her," said Steiner. A hush fell upon the corridor. The small, oddly robed girl chuckled.
"You don't trust me, eh? Then I guess you don't feel it necessary to hear the TOP SECRET and HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL AND IMPORTANT TO SAVING THE WORLD advice that I have . . ."
"Steiner, shut up . . .!" Freya was looking impatient. "Let's here what this thing's got to say,"
Ignoring the rather impolite title of the "thing," the creature spoke. "When I say that I was the one that created the poisoned bullets that blinded the first Angel of Death, I do, indeed, expect much anger and hatred from you all,"
The crew radiated quite a bit of anger and hatred at that moment. Zidane, teeth bared, looked ready to hurl himself at the creature.
". . . You . . .! It was YOU!"
"Zidane, shh!" Garnet quickly pulled her fiancé back, trying rather in vain to quiet him.
"However . . ." the young girl continued to talk. "I also expect quite a bit of doubt from you all when I say that I did it in the best interests of everyone present . . ."
"And what the HELL is THAT supposed to mean?!" Now Garnet was finally beginning to seem pissed. Vivi was shaking his head.
". . . Ridiculous . . ." he murmured. The creature was most likely smirking, but her face was so shrouded in darkness that none could see it.
"Destiny works in . . . mysterious ways . . . I knew that the proper outcome to the adventure could not be achieved unless I delivered the bullets to Garland. But now you all must play your parts as well. This is all I'm going to say . . ." the anomaly lowered her voice dramatically:
". . . Don't judge a single action by how it appears . . . Everything that happens until this is over was done for a reason . . . And if that means taking or saving a life, so be it. And if that means watching SOMEONE ELSE do it, so be it . . . Use your best judgment. Decide what was prejudged and what wasn't . . . Only then will the pieces begin to fit together . . ."
And with that said, she turned and walked away. Zidane blinked several times, still absorbing her information, then charged forward.
"Wait, who are you – ?!"
But by that time, Triss was long gone . . .
.............................
Never before had an airship ride become lapsed in such horrible silence. It felt like the crew was flying steadily towards its own doom. Garnet, obviously concerned, had noticed Zidane sitting dejectedly in a corner of the Invincible, resting his chin on his knees.
". . . You alright . . .?" She sat down beside him, smiling nervously. Zidane didn't even look at her.
"Fine,"
". . . Zidane, I . . . I know what you're going through . . ."
". . . No you don't . . ." Zidane closed his eyes wearily, sniffing in disdain. Garnet lowered her gaze towards the floor, drawing circles on the steel tile with one finger.
". . . You don't remember, then, do you? Have you forgotten everything in the midst of your problems?"
Zidane opened his eyes slowly and turned his head to gaze blearily into Garnet's. There was no lie in them. They swirled, seeming to tell a story. Zidane felt his gut clench.
/. . . Queen Brahne . . ./ The genome lowered his head in shame.
"I-I'm sorry . . ."
Garnet sighed casually, now averting her saddened eyes to the ceiling. "No, it's alright. I know you're going through a hard time . . . I mean, I can relate, though it isn't EXACTLY the same thing . . ." she now looked into Zidane's pale face, taking his hand in her own and squeezing it gently. "But I know how it feels to have to . . . to have to . . . kill . . ." Garnet whispered fearfully, as if the word were some sort of swear. ". . . A member of your own family . . . Though my mother was not related to me by blood, the very idea of taking her life was . . . was so painful . . ." Garnet bit her lip, tears swelling in her eyes as old memories of bursting ships, dragons, and sandy beaches resurfaced within her mind.
"But you never had to actually kill her," Zidane said softly, refusing to meet Garnet's teary gaze. "My . . . my brother did it for you . . . But for me, there's no alternative. Even if one of you guys kill him, in the end it was all arranged by me. No opposing side is going to take his life, Dagger. Garland's not going to do it, the geonomes are not going to do it. WE are. And I am one of us . . ."
". . . Zidane . . ."
"Dagger, I made a promise to Kuja . . ." Zidane took a deep breath, the memory causing a terrible pressure to build up in his chest. "Do you remember, back on the Forgotten Continent . . . Right after Kuja scared Drakja away and we first realized Kuja was . . . Kuja was blind . . .?"
"O-of course . . ."
"Well, after Kuja told us he didn't want our . . . pity . . . I made a promise to myself and sealed it in my very heart . . ."
Fear flashed across Garnet's face. She knew what was coming. "A-and what was that . . .?"
". . . That I would save Kuja's life like he'd saved mine . . ."
Silence. Garnet looked, terrified, into her fiancé's face.
"Oh, Zidane . . ." She suddenly grasped him hard and pulled him into a desperate hug. "Oh, gods, I'm so sorry! I know, I know it's terrible! Horrible! Why must people do such things?!"
Zidane allowed himself to sink into Garnet's embrace. ". . . Terrible . . ." he echoed softly.
"You NEVER should have had to go through this!" Garnet cried, clutching Zidane as if letting go would kill them both. "You saved the world without having to destroy the culprit – your own BROTHER! And now . . . And now such a burden has been placed upon you!"
Zidane noted, miserably, that Garnet's "princess voice" returned when she was distraught. He thought back . . . three years ago . . . to the loneliest time in his life. In his mind's eye he saw every – vivid – detail. It was like the image had become tattooed into his skull. He saw the vines of the Iifa Tree stiffening and closing in about him. He saw Kuja's ruined body collapsed several feet away. Dirt in his silver hair . . . Blood splattered across the roots . . . He saw Kuja gasping for breath as the blood drained from every last broken bone in his body . . . And Zidane remembered . . . He remembered the hopelessness and despair . . . He remembered lying his own tattered form down next to his brother and just listening to Kuja suffocate on his own blood . . . He remembered crying . . . He remembered singing . . . He remembered being in pain . . . And he remembered Kuja laughing as they finally freed themselves from the tree.
/Flash/
"We did it, Zidane! My god! We did it!"
"Kuja, w-we're free! WE'RE FREE!!!"
"Aha! We're unbeatable!"
"We'll never be destroyed!"
/Flash/
". . . We'll never be destroyed . . ." Zidane whispered. "Never . . . Never . . ." He pulled away from Garnet, staring into her face. "What will I do, Dagger?! How will I go on without . . . without him . . .?"
". . . You still have me . . ."
"Gods, Dagger, gods, and I pray every moment that I will never lose you either!" Zidane pressed his lips gratefully against hers, sighing at the familiar warmth. When they pulled apart, there were tears streaming down his cheeks as well as hers. "I don't want to lose my family, Dagger," the genome sobbed. "Mikoto is being taken as we speak, and Kuja . . . Dagger, look what they did to him!" Zidane buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking with sobs.
"I worked so hard to protect him . . . And now . . . Now I must DESTROY him!"
"There must be a way!" Garnet shouted fiercely. "I think . . . I think you should take Beatrix's advice! Don't harm Kuja for now! Not until we can come up with something! This isn't the end, Zidane! There's always a way to do everything!"
Zidane blinked, his eyes shining at Garnet's powerful words. His face cracked into a weak smile.
"Then I shall try . . ."
.............................
Alexandria . . . was . . . a . . . mess . . .
Sirens blared, people screamed, soldiers ran for their lives. It was pandemonium. Buildings exploded without warning, flames roared into the sky, broken rubble crashed into the streets. Geonomes were looting everything in sight. Dead bodies were piled in the shadowy corners of the roads, people screaming as they ran for their lives, soldiers shrieking as they drove their blades through the enemies of Gaia. And in the blood- soaked sky, a silver dragon screeched as it dove through the rotten air.
"Oh gods . . ." Garnet stood next to the airship, gazing dazedly at the chaos with tears in her eyes. ". . . My city . . ."
"God damn you, Garland!" Zidane's fists shook angrily as he clenched his teeth. He looked back at the others. "We've got a BIG cleanup job to do . . ."
"We can't defeat them ALL!!" Lani stared at the floods of people in the streets with wide eyes.
"Well, we can't say that until we've tried!" Zidane snarled and charged forward, drawing his weapon. The others cried out, sharpening claws, releasing swords, preparing items and magic . . . Garnet grabbed Beatrix before she could attack along with the others.
"Beatrix, command the troops! This is war!"
"Yes, my queen!"
"We've got troops coming in from outside!" a soldier yelled, rushing past Beatrix. "Lindblum and Burmecia are expected to have soldiers arriving outside our border in TWENTY – MINUTES!"
"Got it!" Beatrix wrenched her sword from her sheathe. Her comrades had already vanished into the melee (including Garnet). Now was her time to shine . . .
.............................
"Stop that geonome!" Freya gasped, making a frantic grab for one of the culprits. The geonome shrieked, falling and getting squashed underneath her. Fratley laughed.
"Go, Freya, go!" He smashed another geonome over the head with his javelin, smirking.
Indeed, all-out war seemed to be the trend. There were hundreds of geonomes and hundreds of troops . . . It was more of a game of tag as the geonomes fought to destroy and the troops fought to destroy the destroyers.
"Nya ha!" a female geonome giggled as she cast a Fira in the middle of the streets. Several soldiers leapt out of the way just as a smoldering heap of . . . well, no one could really tell WHAT it had once been . . . crashed from the sky and splattered.
"Ugh!" one of the Alexandrian soldiers made a face, grimacing and falling on her rear.
"Hold your posts!" Beatrix shouted, charging by and slashing furiously at a geonome. It dodged her and teleported away. Beatrix halted and sighed.
"How are you two faring?" she glanced sideways at Freya and Fratley.
"Actually, this is rather enjoyable . . ." Fratley admitted. Beatrix knitted her brows at the Burmecian.
"I see . . . Well, I HIGHLY doubt you'll be saying that later. None of the lead geonomes have come by yet and, well . . ." Red flushed Beatrix's cheeks. Freya looked on dryly.
"And Kuja hasn't come to kill us yet . . ."
"Er, yeah . . ."
"INCOMING!!!"
A cry arose from the populace in the streets as something screeched through the air. Beatrix paled.
"Oh, no! DUCK!!!"
Freya and Fratley just barely managed to throw themselves to the ground before the flurry of chaotic white dove through them.
"Ah, it's coming back!" a woman down the road clutched her two children, blocking them as the incredibly large object hurtled down the street. Wings fluttered as the silver dragon took to the skies again. The rider, calmly, cast a jet of Thundaga upon the frightened people below.
"Nng!" Beatrix closed her eye, calling upon a spell as she charged forward. "BARRIER!!!" The general held out her sword, point to the sky, attempting to catch some of the waves of electricity that bore down upon the people.
CRACK.
The lightning caught on Save the Queen, exploding out into the street and popping up the sides of rubble. Beatrix stood firm her position, legs trembling as she held the magic at bay. Agony ran up and down her arms. But she couldn't catch it all . . .
Though most people – soldiers and citizens alike – had gotten safely out of the way, at least three bodies lay blood-soaked in the street. Electricity coursed through their torn figures, the magic still tearing apart their insides. Beatrix gasped, the magic expelling and vanishing. She slumped forward, exhausted, and stared at the bodies in sheer horror. Little blood- shed had yet occurred in this battle. She had known it would come, but . . .
"Not like this . . ."
Kuja had murdered more innocents . . .
.............................
"Oh man, it has been FAR too long since I've gone on a killing spree," Lulian laughed, darting through the air and watching the screams and cries of the Alexandrian citizens brushing beneath her feet.
"Ants, they are!" one of her minions chuckled below, yelling up at Lulian as she hovered a good twenty feet above his head. "You could squash them so easily!" To demonstrate this to his female master, the geonome suddenly gripped a woman by the collar whom had previously been hiding behind a dumpster (and was pretty sure she couldn't be seen). The woman was getting on in years and was trembling with fright. The geonome, teeth bared in a menacing grin, poked her in the shoulder whilst muttering an agitated spell. The woman screamed, flames bursting beneath her flesh. In a moment, she was nothing more than combusted ash clutched in her murderer's fingers. The geonome blew it into the street, laughing hysterically. Lulian applauded.
"Another soul for Master Garland!" She pointed back at the Indomitable, which hovered several miles away. Faint lights were drifting towards it, illuminated weakly against the blood-red sky. Soon, Garland would have just enough . . .
"Lulian, how many have you taken?!" A voice arose from down the street. Lulian glanced over her shoulder and smirked upon spotting Chikara.
"Chikara-san!" she practically melted in affection. "How wonderful of you to join us! How many for you?" She floated over to the powerful geonome and stared down at him in her bubbliest way. Chikara looked up at his woman-master seriously.
"I have only managed to take the lives of four people so far,"
"Four?" Lulian looked crestfallen. "But . . ."
"Troops from neighboring cities have begun to pour into Alexandria. This place is becoming a hazard-zone . . ."
Lulian harrumphed, folding her arms across her chest and chewing on her heavily painted lip.
"Well /I/ have managed to down fifteen already, Chikara. I expect better work from you. Good gods, what if Drakja finds out?! Hmm?!"
Chikara's face flashed with a momentary fear. "You would reveal me?"
"Aw, my poor wittle Chikara . . ." Lulian caressed the man's face with one hand, smirking, and then carefully scratched him under the eye with one of her killer, lime-green fingernails. He hissed with pain.
"That's for doubting my loyalty," she snapped, frowning. "And if you put your trust in me in question again, I won't hesitate to claw your eyes out . . ."
Snapping her tail in his face, Lulian whipped around and shot off down the street.
.............................
"This isn't good," Drakja mused, glaring out at the fiery city of Alexandria (he was rather proud of the "flames" aspect of the nation's destruction). "We've become outnumbered by heavily armed troops . . . Ummei, have you unleashed any of Garland's Machines yet?"
Ummei cowered at Drakja's side, staring over the bridge of the Indomitable right alongside his cruel master.
"Ah . . . Just the one you know of . . . B-but . . . But he's not activated . . ."
"Well, activate him, you moron!"
"Y-you know I can't!" Ummei's green eyes went wide with fright. "O-only Master Garland has that authority!"
Drakja's face twisted into a knowing grin. "You're in one of your smart swings right now, aren't you?" Ummei blushed.
"A-am I . . .?"
"Yes, you are . . . And whose idea was it to power the Machines?"
"Mine,"
"So who should control them?"
Ummei didn't respond. /Not me . . . Not me . . . Just leave me alone . . . Dear God, don't drag me into this . . .! Mikoto . . ./.
A cold, black-gloved hand dropped down on Drakja's shoulder. Drakja gasped, going white with fear.
"G-Garland!"
Garland's eyes flashed coldly in the putrid air. "That was a very treasonous thing you were just suggesting to Ummei . . ."
"Oh, forgive me Master Garland!" Drakja looked ready to pass out with nerves. Garland was much different than only a few hours before. The crimson light in his armor glowed and pulsated fiercely like flame and Garland's aura was increasing exponentially in strength. He would soon reach a higher form of being if he continued to gain such power . . . Drakja paled.
"I-I only wished for . . . for our experiments to become activated . . .!"
"And they will, dear Drakja, they will," Garland stared out into the city of Alexandria from his perch upon the regal airship. "As a matter of fact, I have turned our best ally on right now,"
"Y-you have . . .?" Drakja blinked. Garland sneered, chuckling.
"Indeed, I have. And I told him to kill every Gaian he comes across and . . . to save a special spot in his lust for Zidane . . ."
..............................
Slash, smash, dodge, parry. Zidane had to put all the skills he had ever learned to the test. Geonomes would seem to pop out of nowhere (in fact, some really did) and would immediately start to battle. Zidane, luckily, had sustained few injuries (save a nasty gash across his left arm). But that didn't make it any easier. He was already exhausted and knew that the battle probably wouldn't end in Alexandria anyways.
"Get away from that!" the genome practically whined, thrusting his blade at a geonome that, taking a break from fighting, had stopped to sink his teeth into the shoulder of a dead Alexandrian. The geonome shrieked – the dagger sinking into his side – and then shuddered before slumping over the body it had previously begun devouring. Zidane sighed, thankful that he'd scared most geonomes down that particular street away, and then went to retrieve his dagger.
"Since when have you freaks eaten human meat anyways?!" Zidane grumbled, bending over and wrenching the blade from the geonome's flesh. He was surprised when the creature, not yet dead, looked up at him with one glazed, green eye.
"Well . . . G-Garland doesn't . . . Garland doesn't exactly f-feed us . . . So w-we eat out of . . . out of Gaian garbage cans . . . when we have . . . when we have to . . . which . . . is almost . . . always . . ." Then it shuddered and lay still.
Zidane didn't know why, but for a moment he stood there in shock feeling very, very uneasy. Those words had disturbed him in some strange, possibly foolish way. But he didn't have time to dwell on that now. There were still more geonomes to fight. Thank the gods this alleyway was so deserted.
When Zidane had first gone down that street he'd found about seven or eight geonomes finishing off a couple of Gaians (all basically dead). Zidane had quickly tried to dispose of them but the geonomes, whose jobs were to kill as many people as possible, not pick fights, had quickly escaped. Zidane had nothing left to do in that alleyway now (since most other streets in Alexandria were almost full to bursting with troops, citizens, and enemies) so he began to turn to leave.
Then he felt that icy chill run like groping fingers up his spine . . .
". . . No . . ."
Zidane whipped around, knowing in his deepest heart that he didn't want to see what stood behind him . . .
White eyes glistened with malice, pale lips twisting into a deranged smile.
". . . Kuja . . . So you've finally come for me . . ."
Zidane had suspected – still suspected – that Garland had given Kuja special orders to destroy him in particular. /I need to get away!/
Zidane whirled on his heel, springing hard off his toes into a run. There was a whoosh and Kuja was running beside him, his face momentarily expressionless again. Then Kuja lashed out, smacking Zidane off to the side.
"Ngh!" the blonde genome tumbled and crashed into the street, groaning as fresh cuts opened on his hands. /Gods . . . I can't escape him . . ./
Kuja stepped towards Zidane but was too slow. In seconds the younger of the two was on his feet and making a mad dash down the street again. There was a flash and Kuja was in front of him. Zidane gasped, putting on the brakes and screeching to a halt before he could run into his brother.
"No!"
Another turn, another attempt to escape. Zidane was running, running, running from his sibling . . . Don't stop running . . . Don't stop running . . .
He'd only made it about two feet before Kuja was right in front of Zidane again.
"Wh . . . How did he . . .?"
/He's barrier transmigratory, the bastard! He ran right through me!/
Zidane felt fear bubbling up in the pit of his stomach. He realized a second too late that he was nearly backed up against the alley's dead-end brick wall. Zidane looked back to where it loomed several feet away, then turned to Kuja. Kuja was smirking.
". . . Oh no . . ."
BAM.
Kuja shot forward like a cannon, grasped Zidane by the throat, and slammed his back into the wall so hard that he heard the bricks crack and shatter against his bruised shoulder-blades (which had possibly broken and shattered as well). Kuja held Zidane's neck in one hand and had him lifted into the air, his feet dangling pitifully above the ground as Kuja showed off his newfound (and highly unnatural) strength.
Zidane was struggling, struggling for his very life.
"No . . . Kuja, don't . . . Please . . . Gods, it's me . . .! Aah . . .!"
Kuja's fingers tightened, cutting off his brother's air. Zidane gasped, feeling the blood running down his neck where Kuja's nails dug into his flesh. He couldn't breathe, everything was spinning . . . Kuja wasn't content just to suffocate Zidane . . . He was attempting to crush his throat . . .
". . . KUJA!!!" Zidane cried out as he heard a crack (and it wasn't the wall). The warlock only grinned madly, closing his fingers harder. Zidane's life was flashing before his eyes . . . Tears were pouring down his face . . .
But he wasn't crying for his own life . . . No, no, that had nothing to do with it. He wasn't crying because he knew he was about to die . . . He wasn't crying because it hurt or because the world was going to end . . . He knew if he tried hard enough he could struggle free . . .
That was the problem . . .
". . . Kuja . . ." Zidane gasped. "Kuja . . . Please . . . Don't do this . . . I'm not pleading for my life . . . Kuja . . . Please . . . Don't . . . Don't . . ." Zidane's eyes rolled up into his head as all his desperation and agony exploded from his very soul.
"Please . . . DON'T GIVE ME A REASON TO KILL YOU!!!"
WHAM.
There was a flash of color and the next thing Zidane knew, Kuja's fingers were wrenched off his throat and the sorcerer, taken off guard in his thirst to murder Zidane, was thrown sideways off his feet. Zidane choked and slid, dazed, down the wall still clutching his neck.
............................
"Drakja, honey!" Lulian gripped her partner tightly around the arms and pulled him into a passionate kiss (she was still floating several feet above the ground). He, stiffly, allowed her to have her way, then pulled back.
"Lulian, I don't think now is the time . . ." Drakja glanced around the alleyway nervously. "We're supposed to be out in the squares fighting . . . And besides, if Garland caught us . . . Y'know . . ."
Lulian grinned, lying down in the air and resting her head in her hand.
"That's a chance I'm willing to take . . ." Drakja stared at the low cut on her dress.
/Gah, stop thinking about beautiful women . . ./ the alpha-male chastised. /Back to the task at hand . . ./
"Lulian, I'm begging you . . . Slaughter twenty more Gaians and THEN maybe I'll think about . . . Giving you some fun . . ."
Lulian cheered. "Yay! I'll be back, don't forget!"
There was a pop and she was gone. Drakja shivered, shaking his head. "It's so wrong, but she is SO hot . . ." he hesitated. "Speaking of temperature . . . Is it just me, or did it just get really cold . . .? Oh . . . no . . . Not now . . ."
Drakja buried his face in his hands, groaning as he heard the familiar voice.
". . . You sure talk to yourself a lot, Drakja . . ."
Drakja peered up at the newcomer through his fingers. Yup. The great General of Shi was back . . .
"Saishoja . . . What the hell are you doing in Alexandria . . .?!!"
The silver-haired man cocked his head, leaning against the alley wall. The long ends of his black blindfold rustled in a faint, invisible wind. His shimmering aura seemed somewhat stronger than Drakja remembered it.
"Just thought I'd check up on your progress . . . I commend you . . . Your people are very thorough murderers . . ." Saishoja straightened himself and stepped carefully towards the geonome. The latter shivered, backing up until he was against the opposite wall. Saishoja grinned, placing an arm on either side of Drakja's head and leaning wickedly towards him with a cruel smile.
". . . Not that I didn't already know that . . ."
Drakja clenched his eyes shut, turning his head away from Saishoja's face where he should have felt breath but found none.
"Please . . . Stop tormenting me . . ."
"No, Drakja. I won't stop. Not until you remember . . ."
"R-remember what . . .?" Drakja had one emerald eye fixed fearfully upon Saishoja's pale, beautiful face.
"Not until you remember how you really died . . ."
Drakja felt a stab of fear in his gut. "But . . . But I know how Drakja died . . . And besides, I'm not him . . . Why should it matter . . .?! Go track down his soul and torture IT for Terra's sake . . ."
"Fool," Saishoja hissed, pressing his forehead against Drakja's and sneering. "I already did that . . . Garland is pathetic, is he not? Reusing souls . . . Sick . . . Never granting them their peace . . . I was fortunate to escape him . . . Gods only know what poor soul was given to Kuja . . . A soul that must wait through another lifetime before knowing the bliss of the after-life . . ."
"You mean . . . I . . ."
"Drakja . . . Hehe . . . It's been a long time . . ." Saishoja suddenly took the frightened geonome's face in his hands and smiled. "Eventually . . . You will remember everything . . . And the truth . . . You think you died during the war, don't you?"
"I-it was the radiation from the bombs that destroyed Terra . . . I died with my people . . ."
"No . . ." Saishoja breathed. "You died with me . . ."
Drakja could hardly speak with fear. His voice caught in his throat, his mind a white sheet. This . . . didn't . . . make . . . sense . . .
Y-you're a loony . . ." Drakja mumbled. "Years of being trapped on Gaia can do that to a person – er, soul . . ."
"I'm a loony, eh?" Saishoja queried. He smirked. "Then tell me . . . Do you remember THIS wound?!" Drakja didn't have time to react. He didn't have time to wonder what this could possibly mean for him. There was a sudden, intense pain in his stomach and the next thing he knew he was sinking to his knees, blood exploding and pouring from his mouth as he threw up his very life's contents. Saishoja stood above him, frowning, as Drakja clutched his abdomen in agony, glazed eyes rolling up into his head.
". . . It must be sad . . ." Saishoja murmured softly. "The afterlife could still be granted to you but only with another's aid . . . I will help you . . . When you die, I will take you to heaven myself . . ."
"Wh-wha . . . Ngh!" Drakja gasped as the blood seeped through his hands; bubbling between his clenched fingers and spilling like faucets from the impossible wound in his stomach. Saishoja looked bitter.
"The way you died . . . It was idiotic . . . You lost safe passage to the afterlife without my help . . . But I cannot save you . . . Until you remember . . ."
A gust of warm air blew by and Saishoja evaporated. Drakja choked as the pain vanished, the blood stopped flowing, and the wound closed up and sealed.
". . . What . . .WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!!"
.............................
Beatrix snarled furiously, pinning Kuja's struggling form to the ground as he kicked out dangerously near her stomach.
"Bastard, Garland!" she cried, knowing the overlord could hear her through Kuja. "You're not going to get away with this!"
Kuja hissed and Beatrix realized, too late, that he was muttering a spell.
"Ah . . . N-no . . ."
She winced, waiting for the blow, when a voice interrupted their desperate struggle.
"Kuja, cease your fire . . ."
Kuja blinked and went limp under Beatrix; his need to free himself now meaningless. The general stared down at him guiltily and rolled off, wondering how she could have attacked him when he didn't even know what he was doing . . .
Garland was standing several feet away, watching with a small smile on his face. Zidane was still dazed, but he was conscious enough to growl faintly as he rubbed his neck (the bleeding still hadn't stopped).
"G-Garland . . . L-leave him alone . . ."
The Terran overlord chuckled and beckoned something to his side. Beatrix and Zidane gasped as another, much younger genome stepped out from behind Garland's back and stood loyally and expressionless at his side. A sob escaped Zidane's lips.
"M-Mikoto . . .! No!"
Garland smirked, patting the young girl on her blonde head. "My second Machine," he said softly. "So loyal to me . . . But this one still has her soul. She was created much weaker than Kuja, so maintaining it will make her almost equivalent in strength"
"What the hell do you want?!" Beatrix demanded, standing up and holding Save the Queen's deadly point in Garland's face. The old man sighed at Beatrix's violent pushiness.
"I have come to inform you that I have completed all that I need done in Alexandria. My geonomes have now killed so many Gaians that my Indomitable can hold no more. In other words, we're leaving . . . And I've come here to retrieve Kuja, thank you,"
"You came here to gloat, is what you did . . ." Zidane hissed, stumbling to his feet and clutching onto the wall as the pain in his lungs returned.
"Mmm . . . Perhaps . . ." Garland's white eyes were twinkling. "Kuja, come, we must return to the Fire Shrine where the captured souls await me. All I need do is absorb them and I shall reach a higher, more powerful state of being . . ."
Kuja rose calmly to his feet and walked towards his master. A dark shadow fell across his pale body followed by a thud as the silver dragon, in a hail of feathers and a loud crash, landed at his side. Kuja grasped it by the neck and leapt on. Zidane couldn't help but notice, however, that the dragon gave Kuja a strange, uncertain look. Garland waved.
"Ta ta,"
A flash, and they were gone . . . Kuja, Mikoto, and all . . .
.............................
The team regrouped somewhere in the center of Alexandria. The troops of the other cities were busy cleaning up the dead bodies of geonomes and Alexandrians alike. The sky above seemed permanently stained with the color of blood. The Indomitable was gone and their chance of victory seemed to vanish with it . . .
"We have to stop them," said Beatrix. "We have to, that's all there is to it. We have to stop Garland . . .
"Th-then we're going back to the Fire Shrine?" Vivi queried.
"Seems so . . ." Garnet's eyes were heavy with sadness.
"And Kuja will die . . ." Zidane whispered, leaning slightly against Steiner for support (and ignoring the great strain this put on his typically bloated ego).
"We don't have any other choice," Fratley pointed out. "It's now or never. Garland's probably already absorbed those souls. We know what happens when fools gain more power . . . I believe you witnessed its colossal strength on Terra . . ."
Zidane winced.
/Flash/
"Yes! This is the power I've longed for! The mighty power of souls! They assault any threat that tries to destroy them! I shall rule Terra and Gaia with my unconditional love from now on . . . Should I kill you quickly to show my appreciation for all you've done? Or should I kill you slowly and painfully to show you my love . . . Oh, I've got a great idea! How's this? I'll make you pillars for my castle! You'll all decorate my castle as a symbol of my eternal kingdom . . . How do you like that?"
/Flash/
It was true. Zidane could still remember like a chant that ran day and night through his head that horrible time when Kuja had finally realized the wonderful drug of power. The horror he had unleashed . . . Ironically, he had done the same thing Garland was about to do: absorb souls from the Terran airships. Kuja had Tranced and gone insane. He'd been capable of mass genocide the likes of which dictators could only dream of. Then . . .
What would Garland be capable of doing with the same power . . .?
It was settled. They were going back to the Fire Shrine . . .
It was time to end this once . . . and . . . for all . . .
..............................
A/N: This is the fic that never ends . . . It just goes on and on my friends . . . Some moron, started writing without knowing what it was (that's not true!), and she will keep on writing this forever just because this is the – oh, screw that . . .
So let's see, what is this? Chappie forty-five, eh? Heh, my spell-check didn't like the word "chappie" and its first suggestion was "crappie" snigger. Anyways . . . Well, this was a rather interesting chapter . . . Something is amiss . . . Well, okay, a lot of things are amiss. But some things are more amiss than other things Of course, you peoples DO realize that the next chapter starts the FINAL BATTLE. That's right, after more than a year of production on this fic, the final battle has finally (no pun intended) come. I thought this story would make it to fifty chapters but now I'm not so sure . . . The final battle should take up AT LEAST chapters forty-six and forty-seven (maybe forty-eight if things take longer than I anticipated) then the epilogue and a bonus chapter when I finally have the WEB-COMIC LINK cough, nudge, cough And then . . . I guess that's that. Tears . . . welling up in eyes . . . Misery . . . increasing . . . Urge to kill . . . rising . . . (not really) Need for Gysahl Pickles . . . Priceless. There are some things money can't buy, for everything else, there's chocobos (kweh! Or, uh, "wark" if you played anything Final Fantasy VII or below. VIII too? I can't remember . . .). By the time the next chapter's posted, I'm gonna be out of my freshman year of high school (which is crazy, since I'm still not fifteen . . . In fact, I won't be fifteen for, uh, about three months . . . sweatdrop). . . . Bloop . . .
Ooh, bonus time! I wrotes me some poems 'bout Kuja. Cliché, ne? Everyone writes poems about Kuja. Well, I don't care! I almost never do, so I did a couple for, er, school. Um, yeah, I wrote these several months ago, forgot about them, and just found them yesterday. My teacher liked them (yay!). I almost NEVER do poems, so if these suck, I'm sorry . . . The first one was a "tanka" poem which is like an extended haiku. The syllabic count is off because part of it was written in another language ('cause I was bored) and then translated. It's not because I'm stupid (though, that's always possible). It's obviously a reference to Kuja in Trance finding out he will die . . .
AUTUMN
Dark leaves that fall here,
Like blood-red flower petals;
Masks of crimson plumage.
While knowing in my bitter plight
The days of my hall have ended.
And the second one here was a random poem I did while thinking about Kuja (and possibly a little bit of Naruto sweatdrop) referring to mistreated children.
YOU HURT
You knock me down
Push me around
You kick me hard
Catch me off guard.
You laugh with glee
Though you can see
That I'm in pain
It's just a game.
So why do I fall every time?
Pretending everything is fine?
Because no matter where I hide
I still think you have good inside.
This third one here I wrote in reference to Zidane's thoughts on Kuja. When I first started writing it I intended for it to be a Cloud reflecting on Sephiroth reference. Then I changed the perspective because I decided to write another one displaying Cloud a little differently. Here's the result . . .
HOW COULD YOU?
To me you were a god.
A monolith of strength.
The price I'd pay to be you.
I'd go to any length.
How could you?
When people spoke your name
It was preceded by a Great.
Such glory and such fame.
Why couldn't I have such a fate?
How could you?
I was blinded by your light
And shielded by your shame.
An inner horror fight.
A curse upon your name.
How could you?
Your silence should have told me.
A warning to my soul.
A million ways to step free.
To keep my spirits whole.
How could you?
And in the end you shined
With the darkness of your light.
And then became confined
In your future-present fight.
How could you?
You took everything I ever loved.
And everything I need.
You took my sanity and shoved
To seal away your deed.
How could you?
So in the end you vanished.
At least within my mind.
But you were never finished.
Only then my heart you'd come to find.
How could you?
You took everything from me!
You took my life my soul and heart!
Just because you're not free
You chose to tear my world apart.
How could you?
I'm left alone
I'm cold and lost.
Your hatred's grown
And built my frost.
How could you?
And when I finally saw you die
And witnessed a clear dawn.
It was then the truth enlightened me.
I was sad that you were gone . . .
How could you?
When I knew.
I hate you.
Now, this one here is probably my favorite poem I've ever written. This one has a lot of double meanings because it's a Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy IX poem where no matter which game you've played you can see where it fits as either Zidane's perspective or Cloud's perspective. And believe me, I know it's true 'cause I had two different people with those situations read them and it was funny how true it was. Well, obviously the Train Graveyard reference is VII. But this is interesting: both commented on the part about the burning flame. The VII person said it was Meteor in the sky. The IX person said it was Trance Kuja destroying Terra. Dude, awesome! I just liked it for the rhyme scheme, lol
FOG DEATH
I can't recall how long it's been.
This fog that's in my brain, like then
Is a cloud that settles in my head.
I should be dead.
On an eve so dark a blanket there
Had painted the black night-sky bare.
Trains that even death discard
Sleeping in the Train Graveyard.
Not a purpose, not a thought.
Knowing even then I ought
Have stayed behind and let lights dim
So they could claim both me and Him.
Can't remember, not a thing.
What do all these voices sing
Ever on inside my head
I should be dead.
I feel the earth beneath me cry
This song that says it soon shall die.
I cannot care, I cannot care.
Burning, burning, always there.
Swords that flash in crimson light
One wing falls from feather flight
A pained death-rattle on the night
Darkness ever grasps my sight.
What is it I left behind?
Something I'm supposed to find.
Colors always flashing red.
I cannot see the light ahead.
I should be dead.
A single flame burns in the east
Ever plastered on the sky.
Make him suffer, make him cry.
This time it's His turn to die.
Whee, that's such a fun poem, lol. And I guess that's a wrap! I hope those were a bit of a break from the excruciating destructiveness of this story, heh. Hope they don't suck eggs, either . . . I'm all excited 'cause I just came back from the Anime Central convention and I found a Sephiroth cosplay where the guy actually had just ONE WING! Dude! And I stopped a guy and took a picture of the back of his shirt 'cause it said: "Have you hugged YOUR Sephiroth today?" WHEE! But then I got pissed 'cause there was this FREAKIN' AWESOME Vincent Valentine model that I wanted. I asked the guy to convert the yen for me . . . ONE-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-FIVE DOLLARS!!! Okay, I had that much with me, but not to spend on ONE THING!!! ARGH, MONEY-GRUBBING BASTARDS!!! Anyways, I had fun. I'm doing Trance Kuja next year (no joke). I'm gonna drop twenty pounds and then go out and buy a twenty-pound bag of red feathers . . . Oh, the fun I'm gonna have, hehe.
REVIEW, OR SUFFER MY WRATH!!! (this is the longest chapter YET!) Oh, and the delay was my dad's fault, blame him. He was supposed to read this chapter before I posted it and he kept freakin' stalling stab ! I say we all gang up on him, lol. He said it was his favorite chapter so far, though, so that's a good thing . . . Still . . .