Damn, this is really annoying. I had this really kick ass chapter for this story and what happens? My computer has a nervous breakdown! Also, I do apologize for the tardiness of this chapter…time is 02.38 in the morning and I have just gotten off some damn horrid back shift…two hours ago.

Yuffie Kisaragi2: I'm glad you like my other fic. That was my first ever ff7 fic, it actually was planned to be a yaoi but then I figured nah.

Paine of Spira: how else do I get you guys coming back for more eh? And you love it really ;p

Kenny: I really don't like cloud and plus, you hardly ever read them being bad guys. Sides, not all of them are bad!

Sweet Seventeen: Really? Damn spell checker. It's probably names of places and character names right? If not, I feel a Cid Highwind 'Kick-the-crap-out-of-it-and-swear-til-it-works' moment. Anyhow, I'm glad ur enjoying this.

Edenblack: don't worry, he'll….oops! don't wanna give away anything!

spike strife: actually, i would update IF ff.net actually worked in a blue friggin moon. Sorry, glad you are enjoying it.

For all my fans so far! Chapter 9 for your inspection.

Balamb Garden

Irvine Kinneas held his breath in the small space he had been forced to hid in. His eyes squeezed tightly shut as he tried to block out the images he'd just witnessed.

Trying to block out the deaths of people he had grown to love and care about, his friends had been slain right in front of his eyes. There was no way he could take on the entire army that were rampaging through the Garden.

Slowly, he cracked an eye open, opening it just in time to see something flash by the small crack and startle him. The smell of death threatened to make him gag, the smell leaving a foul and bitter aftertaste filtering through the wooden cupboard he had crammed into.

Because of his weapon, he had little room to move. Tightly and protectively, he held onto the shotgun, taking some small childlike comfort from the reassuring cold metal.

What would Squall do? Irvine thought, Oh yeah, frown and think about the problem until it runs up to him and starts slapping him about before he even bats an eyelid.

He paused as he heard a laboured breath pant outside his makeshift hidey hole, he could smell it. Any thought of his heroic companion left his mind and was replaced by cold fear.

"Sir, we have had no luck in trying to locate the SeeDs that you seek," it panted, "None of the children want to betray the locations."

Irvine heard a voice a few feet away from him, muffled by the wood. The tone was one of pure frustration and anger. It had so much coldness to it, devoid of any real compassion.

"Not good enough. I want them found," it hissed, "Find the guy called Kramer and bring him to me. In a few hours, we heard for Balamb and then Esthar."

What do you want with Kramer?" the first voice asked.

"We take someone they care about, say that old bastard and then beat the fuck out of him. The kids will come running out of whatever rock they're hiding and come to the rescue," the second voice replied honestly, "Failing that, I hear Balamb's nice this time of year, we start killing…"

"Yessir," the first voice faded away from Irvine's hearing.

The cold chill of the second voice froze Irvine's blood, he had met some pretty nasty characters in his short life but that guy? No way.

A part of the sniper wondered as to where the SeeD security forces were, another small part wondering as to where the hell Xu was. Shouldn't she be heading the forces in some form of counter attack?

What the hell did that guy mean by 'I hear Balamb's nice this time of year, we start killing…'

Killing…they were planning on slaughtering the sleepy sea side town? No…no way. He couldn't allow that, no way no how. Try as he might though, the will needed to leave the safe confines of his refuge, failed him time and time again.

Arrgh…I can't believe this, he rested his head gently against the wooded side, failure seeping through him like a virus, I should be able to jump on outta here and kick some ass but instead, I'm cowering like a girl.

"Shh," it seemed like the second voice hadn't left and had heard something, Irvine prayed that it wasn't him.

"It's just some damn dog Spike," a third gruff voice entered the silence, "No need to get your pants in a bunch."

"You know Barret," the voice named Spike hissed, "If you had hired at least some competent people, we might actually have them by now. But no, you had to let sentiment get in the way."

Something cocked outside of the cupboard and Irvine's trained ears recognized the sound almost instantly. A large gun, the third man, Barret had pulled out a gun and was probably aiming it at Spike.

"If you had kept an eye on that damn vampire," Barret suddenly was silenced but something Spike did.

"Speaking of that freak," Spike moved closer to Irvine's place of refuge, little realising the teen inside.

"Where is Vincent?" Barret finished.

"Hmm," Spike agreed, "It doesn't matter. This place is going to be blown up sky high anyway."

The sharp shooter had to bite back a startled cry of surprise and shock, feeling the cry painfully close to his Adam's apple. Where was Squall when you needed him?

Outside the Garden….

Reeve gingerly took a sip of water from the canteen he held in his hands, no matter how hard he focused, he couldn't stop them from shaking. He tore his dark eyes from the peaceful and serene sea he had been gazing at to the black smoke billowing from the once proud sea blue pillars of the Garden.

He hated what he had become, hated what he had allowed over the years. The things he had witnessed and no matter how much he tried, nothing could redeem him. Nothing, apart from their deaths and having their souls scattered and to exclude them from the Promised Land.

Part of him wanted that, to have his soul punished and have the small chance to atone for his sins.

Tears welled in his eyes as he brought them back to the sandy shore. Perhaps he could make up for some of his sins and rescue at least some of the innocents in the Garden?

He stood up, his heart filled with some new importance and mission. Right, it may not be much but to him, it was something. A step closer to the very faded and dim light that they had turned from a long time ago.

"REEVE!" a voice bellowed, the voice had shock, horror and anger laced throughout.

Reeve turned round at the sound of his name, his eyes blinking away at the tears and the reflection of the now rising sun in his eyes. He barely made out two figures running towards him, one was slightly shorter than the other but the blonde was unmistakable. Just like the voice.

Cid? Reeve thought was a small but growing smile, suddenly, his heart stopped, No…No! Cid, this is not the time! Yuffie and Red are in the nearby area!

Cid seemed to ignore all types of warning that Reeve was mentally throwing at him. The dark haired man could only watch as his one time ally grab the smaller blonde travelling with him by the scruff of the collar and protectively push him behind.

"Reeve," Cid enquired in a much more pleasant type of voice, the tone reserved for those who you knew would cut off your hand rather than shake it.

Reeve stood wide eyed, the man in front of him had healed well. He looked well, his frame muscular but tensed for battle. The clothes hung of the blonde like they were made for him, part of him. For lack of a better word, if he didn't know Cid as well as he had, the drawl of a voice and those sky blue eyes, he would not of even recognized him.

"You…You look great," Reeve offered him a large honest smile, "I mean, really."

Something made Cid look away, did he see the honesty in the smile or was he just killing time to ram something down the nervous Reeve's throat. Fearful of the latter, Reeve kept out of reach.

Reeve's eyes twitched when he saw who the man was protecting behind his back. It was one of the SeeD's that Cloud was hell bent on killing. At least a few of them might survive the encounter, then it might not of been in vain.

What's he staring at? Zell's eyes darted back from Ma's friend to the smaller dark haired man.

"You ain't getting this one Reeve," Cid hissed, "I'll break your neck if ya come one step closer."

"It's not that…" the man called Reeve spoke, "Cloud and the others are in the Garden. Red is currently mopping up any…escapees."

Reeve watched the anger flash through the man's eyes. The wounds from Cloud's betrayal were still quite near the surface for the former Shin-Ra pilot.

He hated how big the young teen with Cid eyes went and how pale and sickened he looked. The facial expressions tore at his heart strings and he quickly broke eye contact with Cid.

"Take a damn good look Reeve," Cid grabbed him by the chin and forced him to look at the Garden, " Open your damn ears and listen to the screams. This is what ya'll be listening to for the rest of your life."

"You don't think I hear them already?!" Reeve struggled in the strong grip, "I'm sorry!"

Zell spoke for the first time since he arrived, "Cid…you know this guy?"

Nothing was said for a long time. A quiet ringing broke the silence that had settled, Reeve being the first one to move as it was his phone doing the ringing.

Reeve slowly pulled the handset out of his inside pocket, "Hello…"

"Reeve…" a cool voice filtered through the handset, "I have her and the boy."

Reeve quickly ended the call as he heard his name being shouted by yet another one of his friends. He moved partly to see who the intruder was.

"You two better run," Reeve whispered over his shoulder, "Cid…I'm so sorry. You too Zell, just hope ya can forgive us…"

Cid frowned, "Just tell me where she is."

"Vincent has her," Reeve whispered, "I'll see what I can do about the others."

Zell pushed his way forward, only to be stopped by the older Cid. He struggled against the strong grip, trying to break free.

"My friends are in there!" he cried out, "I have to help them!"

"You won't help them if ya get killed," Cid attempted to sooth the teen, sympathy evident in his voice.

"I can't help them if they're dead!" Zell's voice broke.

Cid pulled the martial artist away from the scene, silently thanking his one time ally. No matter what he tried to do, the man always seemed to follow the orders of a madman. Shin-Ra, Rufus…Cloud.

"I don't wanna leave my friends…" Zell tugged against him, "I gotta…"

Cid stopped and pulled the teen to him, "Trust me on this. They would kick your ass in two seconds flat. If their as smart as I hope they are, they'll hid. Disappear from the face of the planet."

"Hey, I can handle my own," Zell spat, "I don't need help from you."

"Mate, against these guys, Sephiroth looks like a damn gothic babysitter who really needs to get laid," Cid warned.

"How do you know so much bout these guys anyhow?" Zell's eyes never left the Garden or the back of Reeve as he walked away from them.

Cid had a pained look on his face, it hardened to anger.

"That…I'd rather not. All you need to know is that even Adel feared them," Cid offered cryptically.

Reeve turned round to see Cid and Zell running slowly off into the wooded area. He shook his head sadly as Zell had to be pulled away. His heart really did go out to the teen.

If he could save maybe at least three of the group…mentally he cursed himself for even thinking such a thing. How could saving six redeem his soul? It couldn't and wouldn't.

Perhaps these six…if they survived, would finally break the cycle that had went on for years, end all the senseless killing that had happened over the years?

Nervous hope sprang in his heart. No one could ever match Cloud for sword skills, but he had heard that Squall Leonheart was something of an expert with a blade. The teen had defeated that sorceress from the future…

"There you are," a voice broke through his musings, "I was worried about you."

"You lie like my grandmother," Reeve breathed softly.

Cloud's face hardened, "Well, as long as you don't lie to me."

A cold shiver ran up Reeve's spine, "No. Never."

A sadistic smile crept on the sword wielding warrior, "So who were you talking to?"

"No one. No one important," Reeve lied through the back of his teeth, knowing full well that Cloud probably didn't believe him.

The proof he wanted arrived in the form of a short and painful punch to his face. He span to the ground, unprepared for the unprovoked attack. Blood filled his mouth.

"Let's try that again shall we?" Cloud knelt down beside the fallen Reeve, slowly pulling out a delicate dagger.

Reeve spat the blood out on Cloud's boot, "Screw…you. I've decided that…I kinda like hav…having a spine."

The former SOLDIER pouted, "Aww, did Cid tell you to say that or did you think it up all yourself?"

It hurt like hell when Reeve smiled, he had never once had the balls to look Cloud in the face. Never once had he said no to him.

"Well, one of us had to grow a brain cell. It didn't look like you were going to anytime soon," Reeve couldn't believe it when he found himself laughing.

Any form of patience Cloud had had, quickly fell as the spikey haired blonde caressed the dangerous looking danger. His eyes caught the dangerous and almost demented look on the man's face.

The cold smile Cloud had on his face turned to one that could of chilled the very core of the sun, "I was kinda hoping you'd say something like that."

******

The two blondes stopped running, the older man stopping first when the scream reached their ears.

Cid could feel Bahamut Zero shake in the silver bracelet, he could sense how eager it was for revenge. For the betrayal it had suffered at the hands of it's brethren.

He rubbed his wrist lightly, "Don't worry, I know how ya feel…"

Zell looked at him darkly, "Doubt that. You aint letting me help ma…"

Cid sighed, "I was taking to my summon, not you."

"Your what?"

"Summon," Cid turned to face the woods, his blue eyes narrowing.

Zell frowned, Ma's friend had more questions than answers to him. One, the fact that he knew his mom and he was only…what? Thirtyish. Two, that weird bracelet he had and the weird crystal. Three, the one that he didn't want to talk about, the most important one right now.

He knew what the hell was happening. What did he mean, "You aint getting this one."

"I'll show you," the words broke Zell's train of thought.

"Huh?"

"Bahamut Zero, the kick ass dragon of the family," Cid smiled, "The only summon more powerful to this is Knights of the Round. You can keep Bahamut and Bahamut Neo, gimme the daddy of the dragons any day of the week."

Knights of the Round? Bahamut Zero? They were supposed to be a myth, like a huge asteroid that supposedly threatened the planet thousands of years ago. Zell raised an eyebrow, not entirely convinced that Cid was barking with all his dingoes.

Cid took a large step back and closed his eyes before muttering something under his breath. He focused all his energy into summoning the mighty dragon, always hating how drained he felt after calling it.

Zell stood slacked jawed as Cid called the silver dragon. Amazed at how elegant and graceful it appeared. The sun glinting off the metal plates and the huge wingspan casting a long shadow across the forest. Watched in amazement as it gathered energy for an attack.

The dragon ascended to the heavens, spiralling all the way to the stars. It's wings protectively gathered around. There was no enemy, however, it wanted revenge.

Cid felt the anger wash through him, all the years of hurt the dragon had suffered and the decades of betrayal. He could end it all. End the terror and death that AVALANCHE had caused.

The mighty dragon reared it's silver head, peering at the smoke billowing out from the Garden. It could feel the draw of it's brothers, could hear the taunts and jeers. It waited to see what the human who had summoned him would do.

Zell regained his senses and slowly edged towards the motionless Cid, treading carefully. It seemed like an internal battle was going on in the man's mind.

"Cid…? Hey man, back to reality," Zell gingerly outstretched his hand, pushing back a cold chill.

"I could end it…right here…I could save her," the words came out choked, "Stop this damn madness."

The martial artist grabbed Cid and shook him, breaking the connection between Cid and the dragon. Zell could see pain and anger flash quickly across the blue eyes of Ma's friend.

"Killing them isn't the answer," a voice came from the shadows, "As much as I would like it to be."

"Who the hell are you?!" Zell could feel the entire reality he had built for himself slowly crumble away. Summons, ancient dragons, his friends being slaughtered and his home being burnt to the ground was slowly eating away at him.

"Me?" the voice laughed, "I'm a very long story."

************************************

So, who is our mysterious guest? Will Cid crack and go nuts? Is Squall and Quistis okay? Is Rinoa alive? Will Irvine come out of the closet? (u can take that anyway want ;P) where the heck is Selphie? What will happen to the nice Reeve? More importantly, when will I update and put us all out of our misery?

Answers on a review marked: Enough Already! Update!