Chapter 24

Warning: Big chapter.

Welcome back, to the days of thunder!

Welcome back, to the days where you were born!

Welcome back, to break the spell you're under…

Welcome back, to the days of thunder!

Welcome back, to the days where you were born!

Welcome back, to raise again your honour…

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He hadn't got much sleep at all. He had never slept much, and as he had gotten older he had found that habit to stay with him. In a way he was glad for it, as he thought he would be rather annoyed at sleeping most of the day away. On the other hand, he often wished he could sleep for an extra hour. Yet no matter how tired he was, no matter how much his joints ached and his eyes burned at the sight of the morning sun, once he was up, he was not going back to sleep again. He hated mornings, he was not a morning person, yet he had to endure them every day. Danny sat on the step of the Seventh Heaven bar and stared blankly at the eastern wall of sector 7. Today they were planning to leave the Sector. After the incident with the Turks, they had little chance. It was likely the Turks would be waiting for them once they reached Sector 6… but they would deal with that problem when they had to. For now, Danny was content to sit in silence and become lost in his thoughts of what may be, and what may never be.

"You're up early." Aeris said, stepping outside and sitting next to him. Her voice was subdued. He knew what she was thinking about… so was he.

"I always am." Danny replied neutrally, with a slight shrug. "I miss seeing the sun rise. I used to watch it often in Kalm."

"From the church… I thought you would hate getting up early." Aeris said with a chuckle.

"I do." Shaking his head, Danny leant back and glanced at the artificial lighting that always shone on sector 7. One of the lights was burning out, extremely dim. The others were buzzing rhythmically and dimming briefly every so often only to come back seemingly twice as bright, almost their own act of defiance. One day they too would fade out.

"Oh…" Aeris bit her lip, clearly wanting to ask Danny about whether anything new had developed with Jerad but afraid he would react angrily. She knew too little about him to judge what he would do, and she was especially nervous after the events of the previous night.

"You're worried about Jerad." His voice was toneless.

"No… I'm worried about you." She said with a sigh. "I know Jerad's strengths... I don't know yours. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Sometimes… you don't have a choice." Danny stood up, stretching. "In life obstacles are put in your way. You either get past them, or you run from them. If I don't fight Jerad I'll never get anywhere. If he wants to fight me then so be it. I'll give him my all, and if it's not enough, at least I'll have tried."

"This is just for your stupid pride!" Aeris stood up, glaring at him. "Who cares about pride! You don't have to grovel on your knees to him! Just refuse to fight! I'll make sure he doesn't touch you!"

"Aeris… it's not just pride… it's something else. I don't think I can make you understand. Something unique, part of my personality, you could say. I will not back down." He rested his hand on her shoulder and tried a smile. She scowled at him in return and stormed into the bar. Once again he stood alone outside. He sat back down on the step and, as he preferred, was left alone with his thoughts once more.

Much of the day passed without incident. Danny had a few drinks from the bar in the morning, after Aeris had left without a glance towards him, possibly the last drinks ever served at Seventh Heaven, and spent most of the day wandering rather aimlessly, lost in his thoughts. He hadn't delved as deep into his mind ever before, yet nothing was being unearthed that he thought could explain what was happening to him. His fight was Jerad was firmly at the back of his mind, if it had to happen, then so be it. Life would go on one way or the other. He saw Jim as he walked around the sector speaking with various women, seemingly flirting with them. That was Jim, alright. Even when they were in one of the most dangerous situations of their lives, he still found time to flirt. He found it quite odd that Jim had never tried it on with Tifa, but then again, she was pretty intimidating. It would take a brave man, he imagined, to try and romance her. Danny found himself wondering if Tifa had been in any relationships since she had left five years ago. It was likely she had found somebody, met with enough people, to conceivably have a relationship deeper than friendship. The thought of it didn't make him jealous, exactly, but slightly uneasy that he wasn't there… just to watch over her in case something went wrong. On the other hand, she was perfectly capable of handling herself five years ago… he assumed so she would be now. Perhaps more so.

He noticed as he walked past the bar for the sixth or seventh time, he'd started to lose count, that there were sale signs on the door. Twenty per cent off beer, spirits and wine. Ten per cent off food. He noticed another sign on the door which announced all ages were welcome. Peering inside, Danny noticed quite a few teenage boys who certainly looked to be under nineteen, which was the age limit in Midgcar. Now that they were fighting the very organisation that made the rules, he supposed it was pointless adhering to any of them anymore. Barrett and Cid needed to make as much money as possible and sell as much stock as possible before they left. Some of the stock would be packed and taken with them, at least to last them until they got to the ALIEN building. From there, it was unlikely they would need anything else but an extreme amount of luck.

Aeris had been absent ever since she had left the bar. Danny did not dare try to find her, he had already experienced far too much female anger for his liking. He decided he would rather just walk another circle around the sector. It took him about forty minutes to go in a full circle, and this would be around the eighth time he had done it. He didn't feel tired, nor did his legs ache. The only craving he had was for food, he was, as usual, hungry as hell. He decided he would grab something to eat from the bar once he had completed this walk. He had expected to encounter Jerad at some point during the day, but the young man had been as absent as his sister. Danny had ventured over to the hideout at one point, he was not there. Danny half-expected the Turks to come charging into the sector at any second with the ALIEN army behind them. His rational mind said this would be far to extreme for a few rebellious citizens. The more unorthodox part of his mind reminded him these were the same people that slaughtered thousands who refused to agree with them. How can you predict what such ruthless people will do? His eighth walk around seemed to last a very short time, before he knew it, he was back at the bar. However, this time things were different. Jerad stood outside the bar, arms crossed, a slight grin on his face as he saw Danny approaching. It was time.

"I was beginning to think you'd done the smart thing and ran for your life." Jerad said contemptuously. Danny gave a shrug, standing a few feet away from him.

"I don't run from people I don't fear."

"Oh, you'll fear me soon enough." Jerad crackled his knuckles, stretching and preparing to fight. Danny shook his head and thought about drawing his sword, but that probably wasn't the kind of fight Jerad had in mind. He had at least made it sound like he wanted Danny to walk away, albeit in shame. Barrett and Cid had quickly emptied the bar after Jerad had shown up and closed it, temporarily at least, until the fight was over. They both stood on the steps leading up to the bar, watching both fighters curiously. Jim too had appeared and was standing next to Barrett and Cid, looking far more concerned than the other two, who in contrast looked like they were prepared to see a good fight. Tifa and Aeris were nowhere to be seen.

"Let's just get this stupid thing over with." Danny took a fighting stance he had learnt in the army, a technique he couldn't remember, (or pronounce, if he recalled correctly) the name of, but knew the basic moves behind it. He figured in hand-to-hand combat this was his best option. He heard the bar door open, briefly looking over he saw Tifa and Aeris now standing and watching with the others. Neither had any readable expression on their faces.

"Ready?" Jerad smiled, taking a stance of his own. Danny nodded, and as Jerad leapt forward, he knew he was in for the fight of his life. Jerad's first attempt at a punch was blocked by danny but his second landed directly underneath his ribs, driving the wind out of Danny. Stumbling backwards, Danny tried to control his breathing but before he could look to see where Jerad was he had been kicked in the face and sent sprawling along the floor. He was up on his feet relatively quickly, but felt a rain of blows ranging from his head down to his kneecaps and shins pummel him. He lost his balance, falling backwards only to be kicked square in the gut by Jerad and instead of falling onto his back he fell to his knees, breathing heavily and feeling his own blood dripping from his forehead down across his face. His vision had become disjointed and fuzzy. The dizziness he was experiencing made it hard for him to concentrate. He felt a strong hand take grip around his neck and squeeze, pulling him up off the ground and tossing him a few feet towards the bar. Danny rolled across the cold concrete floor of sector seven and lay there for a few seconds, feeling battered and in a lot of pain. His body instinctively told him to get up and once again, though struggling immensely, he did so. Wobbling slightly as he regained vertical status, he glared at Jerad, remarkably neither of his eyes had sustained any damage. The blood dripping down them however made them appear to be cut.

"Well, now we're done warming up. Let's start for real." Jerad gave a slight, cruel laugh. Danny took the same fighting stance before and prepared to defend. Jerad ran at him and performed as uppercut that broke right through Danny's arms and connected with his chin with plenty of force. Danny flew backwards and landed hard on his back, gasping and groaning from the pain that shot up his spine as he landed on the solid, unforgiving ground. He tried to move a little but his spine, through waves of agonizing pain, forced him to stay where he was. Desperately, he used his arms to push himself up into a sitting position. He saw Jerad again running towards him, his face contorted in a sick kind of pleasure from inflicting pain. Jerad swiped at Danny's face with his hand, causing another explosion of pain inside Danny's head as he rolled back a few metres with another gash on his cheek from which more blood flowed. Danny pushed himself up into the same position, his breathing had become ragged, his ribs, spine and legs were now throbbing with pure pain. His arms less so. His head felt groggy and his sight was distorted. He no longer saw one Jerad but three running towards him. As Jerad came closer, there was a sudden change from within him. It was something primitive, something foreign that he felt was in some unexplainable way a part of him, rising up, flowing into his blood as it had done the night before, trying to take him over, to control his mind. The barbaric fury he dreaded overwhelmed him, and with a fearful scream he let go of his defence and allowed it to engulf him.

Jerad stopped running and held his arms up to his face as an invisible force pushed him back, it seemed to be emanating from his opponent, who was shrouded in an odd glow of light. Jerad gasped as his feet left the ground and he flew backwards, landing at least twenty metres away, square on his shoulders. He rolled onto his hands and knees, he was in some pain but he was confident nothing was broken. He took another look up and saw Danny was now on his feet. His head was facing downwards, as if he didn't have the power in his neck to hold it up. His right leg appeared to be about to buckle, as he jerked to one side as his leg began to collapse, then straightened up again, this happened a few times before Jerad slowly got to his feet as well. He looked over at the others. They stood on the steps of the bar with shocked looks on their faces, Aeris had a mixture of fear as well. He knew why. It was just like the night before. It had happened again, as he came under serious threat, Danny Whise was seemingly able to conjure up a power from within himself that enabled him another chance. If it wasn't for the words he had spoken last night, Jerad may also have been confused by such a power. However, he knew… he didn't know how Danny Whise was the same as him, but he knew… they were alike in that they both had power that no ordinary person seemed to have. The only difference was Jerad knew how to control his power, and he knew Danny could only summon his up in desperation, after which he lost ability to control himself.

A shot of strange white light, similar to electricity, seemed to briefly appeared around Danny's body at random times, as he continued to tremble, falling to his right hand side but never actually going over.

"Ready for round two. Huh?" Jerad yelled, walking towards Danny. The aching in his shoulders was getting worse. It wasn't the fall that had hurt him, he realised, it was the force with which Danny's power had knocked him back. Danny had now lifted his head and it had shocked Jerad enough to stop him where he stood. Danny's eyes were now pure white, almost shining. He had a scowl set on his face, and with blood still dripping from his forehead and right side of his face, he was a rather scary sight to behold. It reminded Jerad of the night before, but far more extreme. For the first time in the fight, Jerad was feeling truly apprehensive and weary of his incensed opponent. The night before, Danny's eyes had not lost their pupils as they had now. He looked like some kind of zombie, as if such things existed. Jerad nearly laughed for even coming up with such an idiotic comparison, but it was in some sense true, particularly as Danny looked so battered.

Danny let out another primal yell and turned his head to the sky. Another wave of energy crashed into Jerad, he held his arms up and was able to stand his ground this time. The blast was not as strong as before, but it was still incomprehensively strong. As Jerad felt the wave subside he lifted his head, which he had held behind his arms to protect, and saw Danny flying towards him. Danny was in fact apparently literally flying through the air, or performing an astoundingly massive leap. Before Jerad could even begin to react Danny had given Jerad a punch twice as hard as the night before. He felt himself shooting backwards, his body crashed against and smashed straight through the wooden steps Barrett, Cid, Aeris, Jim and Tifa had been observing from, shattering the wood into a million splinters. The group had now pulled back so that they were watching from the entrance, mostly out of fear and also for their own safety. Nobody had said anything since the fight had started, other than shocked cries and gasps, there had been a complete silence.

Danny stood in position for a few seconds, observing Jerad's body. As the young warrior began to move, Danny bound forward, his speed unnatural and chilling, and with a firmly placed foot kicked Jerad square in the ribs as he tried to regain vertical status. There was a crunching sound and a strangled cry from Jerad a she tumbled backwards. It seemed the tables had now turned. Jerad clutched his ribs, which were on fire, and stared in terror at Danny, who was once again advancing, again dropping to his right side briefly. Another brief crackle of white light shot around his body. Danny picked Jerad up by the scruff of his neck and began swinging him around, getting faster and faster until finally releasing him into the air. Jerad's flailing body soared into the sky, flying up to an impossible height and then beginning to fall. Danny leapt up after Jerad had fell half way down, and draped his body over his shoulder. Danny turned so his head was facing the ground and with a mighty swing tossed Jerad to the ground below, which cracked as Jerad's body hit the pavement with a sickening thud. Danny landed perfectly a few metres away and began to advance again. Jerad did not move. Blood poured from the back of his head and from his left cheek too, where he was cut rather badly. His body was twisted in an abnormal position. As Danny prepared to give Jerad another swift and devastating kick, a body suddenly chucked itself in front of Jerad. It was Aeris. She held her arms out, stainding directly in front of Danny with tears falling down her face. She trembled as she faced Danny, scared but not willing to let him end her brother's life.

"Please stop… this is enough!" She sobbed, noticing how much bigger Danny's body had grown since the fight had swung in his favour.

"Ashbe' esfru'colla mo'hi'be'." Danny said, in a rough voice that was so deep it was almost indistinguishable.

"Geko'!" Aeris screamed back at him. Danny drew back his arm, preparing to strike Aeris. She closed her eyes but bravely held her ground. A hand grabbed Danny's forearm just before he struck. The bloodied fighter turned round and stared furiously at Jim, who was holding him back.

"What's wrong with you, Danny!?" Jim growled, letting go and stepping back towards Barrett, Cid and Tifa, who were standing behind him, looking somewhat scared but ready to fight nonetheless. Instead of replying, Danny's face became filled with rage. He turned back to Aeris, looking at Jerad's prone and beaten body on the floor. Dropping to his knees, he screamed in absolute fury, letting off a final wave of power which shook the ground, causing everyone around him to fall to their knees, after which he himself fell flat on his face and lay still. His body returned to normal before their eyes, losing the extra muscle and density. Aeris lay on the ground for a few moments, regaining her breath. She pulled herself up slowly and turned to face Danny, checking for movement. He was not moving at all. She slowly crawled over to Jerad and began to cry again as she saw his bloody face, and the pool of his own blood he was laying in. She felt for his pulse, and breathed a shaky sigh of relief when she found a relatively strong pulse. However, she knew if she didn't stop the wound on the back of his head bleeding, things could get a lot worse.

"Do you have medical supplies in the bar?" Aeris asked Tifa, who had ran over to help her.

"Yes, come on, let's hurry." Tifa helped Aeris lift Jerad, but they had difficulty, as he was nothing but dead weight. Cid quickly came over to assist them, as Barrett and Jim cautiously rolled Danny over onto his back. Jim opened one of Danny's eyelids. His pupils and cornea were back. Feeling relieved, but still very uneasy, he nodded an affirmative to Barrett and they lifted Danny off the ground and walked towards the bar with him. Danny looked in a similar state to Jerad, except with perhaps slightly less blood loss. Whereas Jerad's attack had lasted longer, Danny's had been shorter but far more powerful. Both were badly beaten, in any case, but by being the last man standing, Danny had won the fight. Though the winner of the fight was certainly not on the minds of anybody. As Jim entered the bar with his destroyed friend's unconscious body leaning on his shoulder, he wondered just what the hell they had gotten themselves into.

In the sky, unseen by anybody, Sephiroth hovered. A smirk set on his face. He had seen the fight from beginning to end, and had even predicted the eventual outcome perfectly. Yes, everything was just as he had thought. Events were now in motion, and now his son had released his power, it would only grow stronger.

"In you, my son, the fire still burns strong." Sephiroth began feeling a little dizzy, it was time to recharge. With a final glance at the Seventh Heaven bar, he turned from this location and headed towards the nearest exit, where more guards would meet their untimely end.