SHADOW OF OBLIVION

II. Let there be Darkness…

The ruins of Midgar were extensive; for many months no one even dared to near the furthest outskirts. "Cursed," many whispered, along with the hissed name of "Sephiroth". Mantras of death and destruction seemed to follow the man, now hoped truly dead, and with him the remains of ShinRa Corp's dynasty. The body of Rufus had not been recovered in the initial search and casualty counts, the penthouse office at the crown of the company completely obliterated by WEAPON's final cry. The Turks had yet to be found, and Professor Hojo's mangled corpse lay almost protectively over the controls of the city's Sister Ray; it was still there, as none had wanted to go anywhere near it. In fact, almost nothing had been disturbed after Meteor's descent, and a thick layer of black dust overshadowed all that remained.

But had a soul been there to witness, they would see the fresh tracks in the fine black blanket; a man who walked alone within the desolate graveyard of stone and glass. Ebony hair, tied behind him with a bit of cord held little contrast against his surroundings, which a pair of curious brown eyes surveyed with calculated interest. An odd mist had lifted in the last hour, soon after the earth-shaking crash that had roused him from his sleep. What was it here, calling out for his attention? Why did he feel so drawn to this place?

Movement at the edge of his vision sent him whirling in pursuit, but nothing was there, save for a small cloud of stirred soot. Curious… Narrowing his eyes, he cocked his head to listen, but only the wind could be heard, its song even quieter than when it had first greeted him, here.

Interest had indeed been piqued, and so the man took small strides towards the disturbed stones, fully alert. Still no sounds, but the shadows themselves seemed to quiver at his approach, even those sheltered by the full moon's light. He neared a clearing, and suddenly stopped, paralyzed by some sudden, remarkable wash of anxiety.

Was he dreaming? Had he come here at all? The darkness shifted beneath his feet, swirling around him and congealing into some grotesque whirlpool of dark mist…

Our vessel… our key…

Yes, he will do…

Burning… he couldn't breathe! Falling to his knees, the man clawed at his throat, eyes shut and his mouth dropped open in a silent scream, it hurt…

Are you afraid?

A gasp – air! No longer caring about the strange clouds that blocked out the light, he raised his head in search of the disembodied voice, so flat and without empathy… it intrigued him.

Do you fear the darkness?

Of course not… had he not come in search of it? A laugh dropped from his lips between his gulps for breath, sweat breaking across his furrowed brow.

We will give you our knowledge… you need only surrender your heart. Give it to us!

The voice did not wait for his answer, as if it had asked while already knowing his reply. He felt his body sink into the earth itself, his body twisting in impossible ways, but he couldn't see it, only feel the changes, the cold that burned in the hollow of his chest.

The darkness consumed him, and the man knew no more.

.o.o.o.

The jeep kicked up quite a bit of dust as Cloud roughly shoved his boot on the accelerator, and the acrid stench of burning rubber seared his nostrils in protest to such abuse. He hadn't wasted any time heading for where that sky-borne shadow had landed – Midgar. The irony was all too eerie… strange things seemed to always end up there; even now it was called a cursed place. Nothing grew, and hadn't since even before Meteor… the first grasses appeared about a mile outside the main walls, as if the Planet itself had rejected the cruelties of President ShinRa and his mako reactors long ago.

But those days were over, and the city had fallen into ruin. Now, after two years, the blond mercenary hastened to return, anxious to meet whatever drew him there so adamantly. Cloud was, in many ways, a child of Midgar and its experiments with the Planet's secrets; his fate had been sealed the day he'd signed on for SOLDIER training.

He'd left his chrono back at Tifa's, and with it the PHS. He hadn't wanted to deal with explaining anything to her, having left before she even tried to insist upon going with him. This wasn't something she needed to get involved in – somehow, he knew that. They were close, though admittedly not as much as he knew she wanted. But he couldn't give her what simply did not exist – to do so would only hurt them both in the end.

The ruins were in sight, and he released the pressure on the pedal at last. He noticed immediately the strange, off-color mist, and swirling clouds of dark soot. Blue eyes quickly surveyed the fallen buildings, the crushed homes and torched marketplaces for any source, but he could find none. His mouth twisted into a scowl, one that often warned his friends that trouble would soon find them, and swiftly sent the vehicle into a barely-controlled, careening stop within the outskirts. Through force of habit he strapped his sword to his back, double-checking the materia before heading towards the center of the silent remains. Cloud could feel the hair on his neck stand on end, an unnamable fear descending over him with that first step into the mist. It was a different feeling than he'd experienced in the Crater – no, that was the sort of thing that had a name or a face attached; something, or rather someone, that you could point a finger at. But this… this had no name, and it unnerved the mercenary that he couldn't shake the anxiety like he normally would.

Occasionally he would pause mid-step, raising a hand to rub at one temple. His head was pounding with wordless cries, warnings to turn back, that danger was near – he was more than used to those, and they'd only grown louder since the falling black star only an hour ago.

A sudden scream broke him from the pain-induced trance he'd unexpectedly fallen into, and his blood froze as the sound echoed monstrously among the lichen-infested mounds of girders and concrete. The next moment found him running top speed towards the source, and he paid no heed to the growing density of the rancid fog around him.

He'd known this city well, when it still stood, both above and below the separation plate. Now it was a mere labyrinth of unfamiliar corners and shattered paths; he spared a thought of irony, at how it compared to his own past, and whatever the future had in store. Fate did enjoy her humor, and yet again it threw the youth through a mind-numbing loop as the shadows themselves seemed to sway in delight upon his arrival.

"What in the…" Automatically his weapon was drawn, but the blade drew no glint of light from the stars, or the bright moon of such a clear evening. Cloud stared at Ultima, perplexed, but another scream sent his gaze towards a massing pool of… void. That's all he could muster for a description. No reflection, no color. Simply a lack of anything, save for a consistency much like tar.

The pool seemed to move as if it were living, pulsing outwards and in again without any sort of rhythm or reason. More cries, and he acted quickly, slashing at the stuff without a second thought. To his horror the sounds only intensified, and he took a nervous step back. Suddenly the pool expanded even wider than before, and seemed to melt away, seeping into the dead earth beneath Midgar. Cloud raised his gaze at last, and nearly dropped his sword when he saw the creature that had taken its place. Only a foot in height, crooked antennae seemed to pop out of a rounded head without a face or any sort of expression. A pair of glowing yellow eyes blinked at Cloud without any outward signs of intelligence, and it muttered a series of hisses as it watched him. It extended a thin hand with tendril-like fingers, the entire figure blacker than pitch. A chill fell over the swordsman, who took another step back in confusion.

"What are you…?" he murmured, tightening his grip on Ultima's hilt. I've never seen anything like it before… His head began to pound, the sounds of the Planet nearly overwhelming now. But he refused to back down, standing his ground firmly against this… thing.

Sensing the danger, and perhaps the slight fear beneath his resolve, the creature leaped at him with a squealing sound. Digging his back boot into the shadowy soot, Cloud slashed reflexively, cleanly slicing it across its torso in mid-air. There was a light popping sound, and the thing vanished in a wisp of blackened vapor; the blond blinked in surprise, expecting something quite different. It definitely wasn't the reprise of hissing, as he turned to regard half a dozen more of the creatures lurking behind him.

"Heh… that eager for a beating, huh?" he lunged towards them before they had time to react, one swipe taking out two of them and leaving the rest to scatter.

After a few minutes, the swordsman realized all too late that the things only kept multiplying into greater numbers, and found himself surrounded in the clearing. Great job, Strife, what now? He bit his lip anxiously, analyzing the situation; if he could muster a decent charge, he could plow through them and head for the jeep. A glance at his weapon suddenly prompted him to sheathe it, and he reached instead for a glowing orb embedded in one of his gauntlets. It shimmered with his touch, activating it even as he chanted softly.

"Fire 3." He was running before the spell was released, heading straight through the closing circle of little black monsters. Spiraling flames surrounded him, arcing towards his enemies…

…and as they neared, promptly vanished. Blue eyes widened, but he'd gone too far to stop, already in the midst of tearing claws. Several leaped on him scratching and biting with teeth he couldn't make out in the formless faces. He fought back with kicks and punches of his own, but cried out as one landed on his shoulder, clamping down on it. A biting cold fell over him, and he tripped over a stone, landing roughly on his back with the creatures still crawling over him. The one on his shoulder squealed loudly, raising deformed fingers excitedly before plunging them through his chest…

Cloud screamed, his body paralyzed with chills. He swore he could feel a burst of light and heat within his chest, but it was slowly fading. He couldn't fight back…? Why…?

No, not …not like this… A cough broke from his throat, and with it the coppery taste of his own blood. Almost idly he wondered how he'd lost control of the situation, how he had been so easily overcome. He'd defeated Sephiroth, but lost to a pack of shadows?

Phoenix sure has one hell of a sense of humor…

A shot rang out, and the shadows suddenly dispersed. Sudden light blinded him, forcing his eyes shut. Thunder itself seemed to rocket past Cloud's ears, until finally the cold began to leave him. Strange, why didn't it hurt anymore?

"You know, for a hero, you're still quite a fool."

The mercenary's eyes flew open, and their gaze landed swiftly upon a gently silhouetted figure upon the remains of an old ShinRa monument, smoke still seeping from the barrel of a raised shotgun. It perched like a hawk, or perhaps a proud mountain condor, carefully studying its prey. The moonlight – when had the light appeared again? he wondered – caught the edge of a crimson cape, and matching, glowing eyes stared intently back at him.

"I'd have thought you'd become less of the solitary type, after Meteor."

"Vincent!" he exclaimed, sitting up with a bit of a groan. Disregarding the scornful comment due to the wash of relief at seeing his once companion, Cloud managed a grin. "Chasing shooting stars, too?"

"Apparently." He swooped down, landing soundlessly in the soot and dust-covered pavement. "Although a better assessment would be that we're chasing shadows."

"…was that a joke?" Cloud asked in disbelief, earning him a glare from the gunman. With no further answer, he rose to his feet, placing a hand over his chest with a strange expression on his face. There were no marks where the creature's claws had been – his clothes weren't even torn. But where had the pain come from? What had it tried to do to him?

"Are you all right?" This time Cloud winced; Vincent had a knack for making concern seem more like a razor-edged accusation.

"I'm fine," he answered, waving him off. "Just a bit dazed. I think I hit my head back there. Where did our friends go?" It hit him that the shadows had disappeared completely, and with them the mist that had hung stubbornly over the fallen city.

"They seemed disinclined to continue their assault, once I arrived."

Really. I hadn't noticed. The blond resisted the urge to roll his eyes, running a hand through his mussed hair as he recalled the battle. My materia didn't work… never seen anything like it…

Seemingly reading his mind, Vincent frowned, and went on. "It might be wise to inform the others about this."

Cloud was already heading back to the jeep, not even bothering to wonder how Vincent had known where he was, and how he'd arrived so quickly. "I'll drive. You want shotgun?"

The gunman sat in back.

Cloud grinned, and floored it.

.o.o.o.

Notes: Chapter 2 at last. I really enjoyed writing this one; Cloud's such a complex character and it's interesting to see what he does when pushed in certain directions. Hopefully he's in character – let me know!