Showdown in the Forgotten City
Hot water spiraled under my feet, my makeup and all the powerful fragrant lotions and oils with it. I pushed my face into the spray, a heavy hot rain loosening my braids and knots until my hair was a wet mess, sticking to my cheeks and forehead. I pushed it all back with my hands, eyes closed, as I savored the heat of the shower. Steam rose, fogging up everything it touched, increasing the temperature of the little private shower room.
From behind, his lips touched my shoulder, edging closer towards my neck to kiss away the water, his wet bangs tickling along the way. I shivered, feeling his hands pull me into his wet body, the both of us under the shower.
"Thank you," Cloud whispered, and he kissed my ear until he decided to bite gently on its lobe.
"For?" I huffed, melting into him.
Cloud's hand wandered down my arms, pushing away more water. He sighed, kissing my wet neck, and I gasped to it. Every inch of me trembled from feeling any part of him, begging to be taken hostage.
"For inviting me," Cloud replied. I felt his shuddering breath down my back as he slowly moved his hands around my waist. I knew he was cautious, taking his time to feel his way towards my sensitive areas. My breasts tingled when he cupped them softly, the heavy spray of water tenderizing my sore nipples.
In Cloud's arms, I spun around, glad to have the water fall down my back, and I pressed into his chest. I reached, taking his wet cheeks in my hands, and pulled him in to have our lips mash together.
I was completely dazed by the intoxicating experience. The hot water, his hard, naked body slippery against mine, his warm tongue, the steam, how his hands pulled me in to swallow me up.
Cloud held me tight, trembling as his body grew hotter than the water. I saw him traced with the familiar blue light leaking from his pores. He closed his eyes to hide their glowing Mako state, and rested his chin over my shoulder.
"Aqua, tell me if I hurt you," Cloud breathed. His hands were the first to reveal how much he had to practice self-restraint, gripping the top of my buttocks to push me harder against his firm groin. The other dug into my hair, pulling my head back to expose my neck for his lips to take, teeth teasing across skin.
I thought of our time in the rain, our second kiss in Nibelheim's tears. Like before, my hands flattened across his chest, desperate to claw my way inside. Cloud's lips sucked hard at where my neck and shoulder met, sending vibrations down my back until I groaned into his wet hair.
It was a fortunate episode of our escape. Not very long, but grateful to squeeze in intimate time together as the rest of the gang retreated to their beds. There was this hidden knowing of an expected hectic time ahead, before Sephiroth. Cloud and I took advantage of what little time we had between showering and resting, aware that we were sacrificing sleep just to spend more hours awake.
I took a turn to explore him, my hands wandering while I, too, left a mark on his shoulder from my sucking lips. Cloud's neck quaked against my mouth when he moaned. In between kissing and exploring, I scrubbed throughout his body with a washcloth. I took his hand, spotting the red mark from where Stani stabbed him with a chopstick.
"Does it hurt?" I asked. My fingers traced gently over the mark, knowing it will eventually turn into a scar. I kissed it, and Cloud used that hand to cup my cheek.
"No, not at all," he replied, too distracted to get into what happened in Wutai.
He pulled my face towards his, and kissed me hard, my lips growing sore. One encounter with Cloud always did that to me, even if this was all we did. The water dribbled across my face, eyes closed, while thrilled to have him like this, pretending to be caught in a heavy downpour. Such wonderful sounds escaped his lips through the taps of warm rain.
Dizzy, I walked out of that shower achey, and yet, wanting more. Cloud didn't even have to go inside to make me feel delicate.
Tumbling into a bunk bed in an empty room, I used his chest as a pillow, closing my eyes to the dark.
Cloud stroke up and down my bare back, just looking up at the ceiling when we decided the top bunk was best this time.
"Aqua?"
"Hmmm?"
"At the Forgotten City, Rufus might be there. Are you sure you don't want to stay on the airship?" He asked, his tone flat. I heard his heart beating faster, and then his body warmed up, until I knew, he was going to saturate with Mako, his thought already imagining his fight with Rufus. I kissed near his nipple.
"I'm sure. I want to be there," I confirmed. My index finger aimlessly made little swirls across his chest, thinking about my trip into the Forgotten City. It felt lonesome, even when it was just with Aerith, her spirit drained each day from the journey we took together.
Aerith. Each time I thought of her, my chest tightened, and then my eyelids fluttered, burning up. If anything, I didn't want to go back to the altar because…
Flashes came, horrific images of Aerith's body sprawled on that altar, her ghostly smile and splattered blood burning my eyes. I used to be haunted daily by her ghost, always stuck in that gruesome state.
"I'm more concerned about revisiting a place where..." I swallowed. "Aerith died," I finished in a strained whisper.
Childish thoughts came. Will her ghost be there? What about the traces of her old blood, staining the crystal floor? I didn't even know my breath quickened until I heard Cloud whistle softly through his lips, hushing me.
"Aqua, it's okay," he whispered. His hand traveled up my shoulder, along my neck, and stopped on my cheek to rub. He kissed my forehead, and I suddenly felt safe.
I heard Cloud's long, tired sigh, his chest shrinking from it.
"I'm not fond of going either. None of us are," he reminded me. His other arm curled around my waist, and squeezed. I closed my eyes and sighed in his stronghold, knowing I wasn't able to sleep like this, but held on as long as I could. Exhausted, I felt heavier, and yet still thrilled to be against Cloud's naked body.
Unable to really sleep, we stayed quiet, just enjoying the closeness, our hands playful. After a long time, I shifted, not fond of falling asleep on Cloud's arm, and rested on my side while he planted his arm on top of my pillow. He rolled to face me, his legs slightly curled in until our knees bumped.
In the dark, his eyes filled with a faint blue light.
I extended my hand, reaching for his cheek, and whispered, "Cloud, I know it won't be easy, but try to get some rest."
He sighed extensively, his eyes not listening.
They only brightened.
"I'll kill anyone who tries to stop me from killing Rufus" he whispered sharply all of a sudden. I grew slightly tense, knowing that I could easily lose him if he focuses too much on the fight he longs for.
I propped on my elbow, and my eyebrows curved upward.
"Cloud…"
I felt his hand push my shoulder, until, suddenly, he climbed on top of me, his lips hard over mine. I gasped into his mouth, growing nervous when he became more aggressive. Cloud's hands pinned my arms down against the bed, hearing its cheap springs stress by our weight.
My body wanted his touch, but not like this. I was plagued with thoughts of Rufus, the fear taking over my desires. I knew the Mako partially affected Cloud, and that left behind emotion, leaving him running purely by instinct, and it made me uncomfortable. In the heat of his Mako flaring through his body, he could almost be a stranger, not a care how he handled me until he got what he wanted.
Before he had a chance to get it, I pushed against his chest, hard.
"Stop," I yelped, startling myself to say such a thing, but my anxiety blossomed, making me dizzy.
To my relief, Cloud stopped himself, hovering over me. I could see his Mako eyes searching mine. How could such eyes glow, and yet, appear as dark as this room? My numbing hands stayed on his chest, ready to push him away again if necessary, but he stayed put, breathing hard from holding back his thirst.
His spiky hair tickled my cheek when his head dipped.
"I'm sorry. I…." Cloud awoke from his lustful daze, pulled away, and retreated to his side of the bed, lying flat on his back to sigh hard at the ceiling. I could hear his hands rub his face roughly.
"I don't know what came over me," he justified.
My fingers glided across his chest, heading South, but his hand snatched my wrist to stop me before I were to consider helping him release some of his suppressed hunger.
"Don't," he demanded, even if it came out breathless.
My hand molded into a fist, stuck in the air with his hold to stop me from trying to please him.
"I want to," I whispered, feeling guilty for stringing him along this far.
"Not like this. I'll be fine," Cloud guaranteed, and he pulled my hand up to his lips to kiss it softly before letting go.
He rolled onto his stomach, temptations tucked away, rested on his elbows, and sighed while digging his hands through his hair.
I took a deep breath, trying not to think too much of it.
"You don't like it when I touch you?" I asked, seeking clarity to clear my anxious head.
"That's not it," Cloud whispered.
I rolled back on my side, and he rolled too, until we faced each other in the dark. His hand found mine, and our fingers slid together.
"I want nothing more than to hold you like that again," he revealed quietly.
"Like that night at Gold Saucer. If I have to wait, I'll wait," he ended.
Cloud's other hand reached, and found my belly, reminding me of what we made together that night.
I was already aware that's what Cloud desperately wanted just by the way he held me, or the way he looked at me. That unsettling and yet wonderful night, haunting him to the point of almost losing himself just now. His hand trembled, but then I realized it was his whole body, lightly quaking with restraint when I rubbed down his arm.
I wanted Cloud to hold me, too. I thought I was ready, but my anxiety lingered, acting as an awful shadow unleashing its mighty jaws whenever I was close enough with Cloud to feel complete.
A quiet apology slipped through my lips, and knew as soon as I said it, it seemed unnecessary.
"No apologizing, remember?" Cloud whispered.
I snuck a little smile, and fixed my head comfortably over my pillow.
"Right. No apologizing," I echoed. Nothing more was said on the matter.
I fell asleep to Cloud's soft stroking fingers along my arm, sensing him still fully awake, but he stayed quiet. He seemed to be lost in his thoughts, watching me rest. I thought nothing of it when he whispered delicately at some point, "I'm sorry, Aqua."
Such words hung in the darkness like smoke. Nowhere to go but dancing along the ceiling until it stretched its wisp hands around my neck lightly, ready to choke me awake when I will eventually discover what Cloud really meant by his apology.
—
I thought I awoke from a quake, still getting used to the idea of being inside an airship through sleep. We must've landed at some point, jolting my eyes to pop open to a ceiling in the dark. Behind the walls, there was the faintest humming of sounds that kept the airship alive, though the usual teetering stopped, and there was comfort knowing that the ship was still.
I sighed, turning my head over, and found myself to be alone.
My pounding heart rushed into my ears.
I sat up with a gasp, the top of my head an inch from the ceiling, and held still for a few breaths, checking the feel of the room for his presence.
Cloud wasn't here.
I tried not to think too much of it, taking to the four stepladder onto the floor, naked, the room still dark. I switched the light on, too bright white a light flickering to life in the center of the ceiling. Blinking a few times, I quickly scanned to see Cloud's clothing, armor and sword were gone, like he didn't exist.
My thoughts jumped to him leaving me behind purposely, him and the group already trekking through the Sleeping Forest.
No, they wouldn't leave without me, would they?
I pulled out a turtleneck dress and slipped it on quickly, its high neck not even adjusted properly before the morning sickness smacked me in the face.
One bathroom break later, I darted into the hall, still barefoot, and went straight for the bridge.
It was a lovely sight to discover Red walking down the humming hallway of pipes.
"Red!" I waved and stepped in front of him, and he bowed his head politely.
"Good morning, Aqua. Are you ready?" He greeted.
"Red, have you seen Cloud?"
Red's yellow eyes studied me.
"Not this morning," he replied.
"He's not on the bridge?" I asked. Red shook his head, ear ornaments jiggling gently along his furry red mane.
"Not that I've seen."
I rushed pass him before he were to ask what was wrong.
Cloud didn't go alone, did he? He wouldn't do a stupid thing like that, right?
I came to the bridge, the crew dropping their vests on hooks like they were done, and Cid walking along with Barret, ready to leave as they chatted. One look at me, and they stopped, staring at my disheveled state.
"Aqua, you look like you've woken up on the wrong side of the bed," Cid complimented, gawking at me.
I scanned all around the massive room, the day giving it enormous light through the glass.
"I can't find Cloud," I worried.
Barret crossed his arms and gave a smug smile.
"He's probably at the lounge. Don't worry, Kid. He won't leave without you," he assured.
"I hope you're right," I fretted, spinning to run back the way I came.
The door to the lounge slid open, and I stepped in to find Reeve sitting at the large table, sucking on ramen through his lips.
He turned his head, noodles dripping red broth into a styrofoam bowl.
"Aggua," Reeve grumbled, mouth full of noddles.
I looked around the lounge, not finding anyone else.
"Reeve, have you seen Cloud?"
Reeve loudly sucked his noodles, licking his lips after a large swallow. Broth and green onion splashed on his shaven cheek.
"No. Not this morning. Why?"
I sighed, the worst becoming more real.
"Nothing. I'm just worried he left on his own," I admitted.
Reeve tipped back his bowl to slurp up the broth, and swallowed.
"I don't think he would do a thing like that," he assured, but then he thought about it, a finger scratching his bare chin. "Would he?" Now he was uncertain.
"Reeve, what are you doing eating? Shouldn't we be ready to go?" I asked.
Reeve jumped to his feet, rubbed his hands across his white business shirt to smooth it out, and sighed when he was unsuccessful.
"Yeah, sorry! I wanted breakfast before getting my ass kicked," he sighed, making a joke.
I wasn't in the mood for jokes. With a roll of my eyes, I left him to finish his food, heading back to the sleep room to fetch my shoes, belt pouch, potions and bracer.
I clamped the metal bracer over my arm, snugged around my long sleeve. Just wearing it made me feel connected to Cloud again, but my stomach folded tightly like a paper fan, making me clutch to it with both hands.
The last place to look was the deck, but when I stepped foot onto it, I only found Bugenhagen. His back was to me, sitting comfortably in his lush dark violet robe and furs, the winds tossing his long white beard aside. He seemed to be watching a sleet coming down, or listening to the hectic sea, waves crashing into a dark rocky shore.
I was afraid to disturb him, thinking he might be meditating, but he must've known I was there because he mentioned, "Something troubles you, child."
I stepped closer.
"Bugen, I can't find Cloud anywhere on the ship. Have you…" I swallowed, strangely knowing that what I feared most came true without having to ask him.
"…Seen Cloud?"
Ice and rain blew sideways, hitting the deck until it smacked me in the face, tossing my hair one way, along with sea spray. Bugenhangen rested his hands over his folded lap, and shook his head.
"I have not seen him. His energy feels distant."
I pressed my hands over my chest, pretending to grip my heart to steady it as it began to pound hard. My breathing wheezed, and the deck of the ship suddenly appeared wobbly.
"We need to hurry," Bugenhagen added, turning around on his green orb. His hard gaze shifted to me, eyes of someone young again. They opened up more behind his tiny glasses, and he frowned deeply.
"To stop the portal to your world from opening because I'm afraid Cloud has a different objective," he warned.
I furrowed my brow.
To kill Rufus.
—
We all hurried through the sleet. Barret cursed at the pellets of ice hitting his face, taking his mechanical arm up to block the weather from soaking up his hard face.
He cried out, "Why the hell would Cloud just go on without us?"
"He wants to fight Rufus alone," I answered, yelling it through the patting of rain and ice against the dirt road. The path was too warm for the ice to stick, instantly melting into the earth until it made mud under our feet. The North Continent's dark sea grew farther as we made our way up to Bone Village, a one street dwelling that faced it's tiny South port.
"Of course, he does. Reckless asshole," Cid cursed, holding his spear close to his side. Reeve jogged next to me, panting in between words.
"Maybe he…..(huff) thought he (huff) could do the (huff) job alone and be….(huff) back before (huff) we noticed?" He tried, trying to add some positive insight.
But no one was buying it, shaking their heads.
"He's been wanting to fight Rufus since the day of the rocket launch," Cid shared, knowing where Cloud's motive began. He and I shared a look, and he blinked his light blue eyes away to his running boots, quickly collecting mud.
I wanted to say Cid was wrong. Cloud wanted to finish Rufus off since they first met on top of the Shinra building. It's been a slow burn of a calling in Cloud's efforts, hating Rufus as soon as he laid eyes on him. I stayed quiet, not wanted to correct Cid, and found myself lost to those earlier days in Midgar.
"The kid just wants to prove himself. Though this was probably a stupid idea, not having us come along," Cid added when no one said anything.
I stopped suddenly when I turned my attention to the docks.
Out there bobbing up and down, a large vessel of a seaplane with the Shinra logo sat, a titan to the little fishermen boats and rafts. It stood out too easily in such a tiny port, its size taking up a chunk of Bone Village's view of the grey sea like a ship.
There were a couple of uniformed personal loitering around the docks, their guns in their arms.
Could we be too late?
"Shinra is already here," I noted.
Barret glared at the giant seaplane.
"Damn it, Shinra. Who knows how long they've been here."
Red leaped to the hilly path towards the forest bed.
"Less talking, more running," he advised.
We all climbed the slow ascend into a cold, wet forest of pine and oak trees. The oak trees were leafless, their branches long and splitting in many paths over our heads like stiff blood vessels. The pine dripped with rain and ice, though, the higher elevation turned the sleet into snow. Soon, we stepped into a world of white, the soil hard of ice, and the trees covered with white powder.
Bugenhagen took a deep inhale and sighed a puff of white clouds from his breath.
"I can't say I don't miss this chill," he uttered to himself. Quietly, he smiled, the weather bringing him back to memories.
I hugged myself, cold from the sleet stuck to my clothes and hair, and huffed a white fog through my lips. It's like Wutai's weather followed us.
Winter seemed to be extending its icy fingers across the lands. I shivered, blowing hot air into my stiff, cold hands
As we trekked the forest, thankfully, the snow faded. The pine and oak transitioned into longer trunks and extensive limbs over us, glowing in white. The snow kept falling, but it never touched the trees, dissolving into nothing in midair like a barrier was protecting the forest.
Then the whispers came.
They flourished through the trees all at once like a current of wind, the Sleeping Forest already awake, and it was disturbed by its previous visitors.
He brings death.
There's so much hate.
Pain…
Selfish…
I slowly stopped to have a better listen, the others halting.
"Aqua?" Red gulped, padding close to my feet. All of them stared, waiting, as I focused on a glowing tree trunk.
Could the forest show me?
I touched a glowing trunk, surprisingly warm to the touch like putting a hand over a working lightbulb, almost smoldering.
The Forest slapped its most recent memories into my skull, and there was a glimpse of Shinra's army marching through here. There was Rufus, his shiny leather soles stepping patiently over the hard earth, his eyes scanning the glowing trees with slight interest.
"They don't like us here, do they?" he asked. The President dressed warmly in a long white coat with fur around his neck, his eyes glinting with supepremacy.
"Sir, they're trees. Who cares?" Heidegger grumbled.
Dr. Hojo considered the sky, taking a notice to the flurries unable to reach into the forest.
"Something is protecting this place, but I can't figure out how," the scientist shared. He walked limp next to Heidegger, a stick in comparison to the military man. To warm his cold face, Hojo breathed into his red scarf, his wrinkled eyes squinting ahead.
"It's a shame we couldn't bring the Ancient one with us," he dared mention.
Rufus said nothing, but he pressed his lips together in a tight line.
The turks followed. I saw Reno wrinkle his lips together after gazing at the endless land of glowing trees. Tall white ghosts with endless arms assembled behind an invisible line, and all of them stared at him with judgement. He hissed as he looked away, closing his eyes.
"I hate this place. Anything related to the Ancients just gives me the heebie jeebies. Why am I here again instead of at Tortoise Paradise?"
Heidegger turned around to glare at Reno.
"Because you wanted your fucking job back," he barked. Reno bit his lower lip and ducked his head.
Elena snickered next to him. Rude shook his head, hoisting Yuffie's bag of Huge Materia over his shoulder. Behind them, there were many armored personnel as backup: Shock troopers, most of them heavily armored in advance suits that turned them into walking mecha weapons. Their heavy footsteps crunched, stepping over glowing roots, saber swords slashing away at branches. But the forest retaliated, growing back its limbs without fuss. Behind the tanks of suits, followed elites, flame troopers, and infantrymen.
They were all just here. The forest told me it wasn't that long ago.
"Rufus, Hojo, the turks, Heidegger, they've already passed through here, and they brought a whole army," I confirmed to the group.
I blew a cold breath at the glowing trunk, and pressed my other hand to it. In less than a second, its magical current traveled through my fingers, into my hands, up my arms, my shoulders, and into my neck where it zapped my spine.
More images emerged.
I could feel my heart pulse at the sight of Cloud running through without hesitation, just a little ways behind Shinra. He held his sword out with one hand, the tip of it barely skimming the ground. His teeth clenched, and his eyes glowed bright with revenge.
Cloud, did you go alone to keep me safe? Why would you take that risk?
I shivered, my chest tightening as I withdraw my hands, palms hot.
"Cloud, too. He's not too far behind them," I finished.
Again, we hurried.
Bugenhagen floated next to me, and I felt the urge to ask him, "Bugen, are you sure you want to come with us? It could get dangerous."
The Elder nodded firmly.
"I'm aware of the dire situation. Alas, I've wanted to see this Ancient City before I die," he replied.
Red charged beside him. "Grandfather, please don't say such things," he insisted, seeing Bugenhagen as fit and young as any of us. Unless, of course, he just wasn't ready to accept that his grandfather had an expiration date, like we all do. Who would want to even think about that? Bugenhagen seemed comfortable bringing up his future passing, a sign that, perhaps, Red required to face reality.
The end of the path was in sight, a bright light for us to step through, and leave the Sleeping Forest behind.
I was expecting to stumble into the deserted Ancient City, the coral, and bone path waiting for us. But we were greeted by a horrific awakening. Cid and Barret were the first to slow down, until they couldn't even take another step, feeling the need to stop just to look at what was laid out along the barren streets.
Red caught up, and skidded to a stop. His tail zapped into the grey sky.
"This is awful," the creature muttered.
I finally got to the end of the forest, and bumped into Barret's arm, sumbling a step until I was able to catch my breath. Slowly, I looked up, and my eyes grew, warm hands gripping my cold cheeks.
I didn't even have words to describe what I saw, my stomach twisting up until I couldn't hold it any longer, and vomited behind a coral tree.
Bugenhagen grimaced at the horizon.
Reeve was last, huffing away, and stopped to take a few breaths.
"Why did we stop? Is somethig-" He swallowed, unable to finish after taking a glance. He took a turn to throw up his ramen breakfast into a large seashell.
I coughed, clearing my throat, and whipped a hand over a sheet of fresh sweat across my forehead before scanning the city again.
The Forgotten City, an abandoned place that's been untouched for a long time before Aerith and I step foot into it. The city mostly of white and soft colors fo coral, a pure place.
It was no longer pure. Blood tainted the city, its red vines easily spotted among the empty streets of bone, and splattered along the walls of seashell homes.
Blood everywhere.
Limbs, heads, bodies, many of them infantrymen, some shock troopers and a few mech, laid out in a bloodbath; a field of corpses.
Barret licked his lips nervously, bitting his lower lip.
"I hate Shinra, but god damn, man. This feels wrong," he whispered.
It happened very recently, their souls still returning to the planet in a green haze through the air. I heard their cries, the pleas and begging for mercy.
I was breathing too fast, the fallen's last thoughts swirling in my head until I slammed it into my hands, my eyes tight shut. Make it stop, please! I can't stand listening to them cry in agony. Many of them wobbled away, wounded and fleeing for their lives, but they weren't fast enough.
No one was spared.
Cid felt the need to take out his pack of cigs and light one, sucking it in a hurry to calm his nerves.
"Cloud did this, huh?" He asked any of us.
"I fear Cloud is berserk," Bugen warned.
"Well, let's hope he doesn't hack any of us," Cid grunted, keeping his cigarette in his mouth as he spoke. He blew smoke into the thin air, watching it disperse with the green sparkles of souls, lifting to the sky.
The voices faded, but I could hardly breathe, my heart beating too fast.
Alone, Cloud didn't have to hold back. He was a free as a berserk monster unleashed from its cage, committing a killing spree with only one goal in mind. Has the Mako taken over his body? His mind? Was he possessed? I feared this day would come, the many times I've seen him bathed in that Mako light, his eyes burning bright blue.
But Cloud always pulled through.
He always woke up when I came to him, and he would give me his hand, even if covered in blood. This was no different, right? He'll snap out of it, won't he?
"We didn't come here to create a war. We came to stop the portal from opening. Let's keep to that objective," Bugenhagen advised.
A hand startled me awake from my thoughts, but I could barely hear Reeve.
"Aqua? Are you okay?"
I ran, his hand slipping away.
"Aqua, wait up!" Reeve followed, along with the rest of the group.
I was stuck on this vision of a trail of blood along the hallways of Shinra's Headquarters.
Follow the blood, and it will lead you to Cloud this time.
Cloud, this is overkill.
I tiptoed around the bodies, heading straight to the holy chapel beneath the city.
"Aqua, we need to be careful," Cid began, jogging next to me. "Cloud may not be himself."
I already knew that. I thought this was over, the cells of Jenova dissolved from the young fighter, however, I have forgotten a more permanent problem. The Mako. It was a part of him, and I had hoped he could handle it, me having a front-row seat on his improvement over this whole adventure. Yes, Cloud loses himself sometimes, turning into that killing machine for which Mako gave its purpose, injected into boys like a vaccine for their weaknesses.
But he will pull through. This was suddenly more than stopping Rufus from opening the portal.
I ran through the narrow path, walls of tall, glowing white trees to either side, standing hundreds of feet tall like spines, arching high overhead.
What will I find at the lake? Will there be more death?
But my thoughts were interrupted when I stumbled upon another body lying in the middle of the footpath. Red galloped ahead to have a look. My running decreased to a hurried walk, coming closer towards the body to find that it was someone familiar in a navy suit.
Rude, one of the turks.
"Is he?" I stopped, watching Red peer into Rude's face with dots of blood. One of his sunglass lenses had popped off, showing one eye closed. There was a heavy wound to his chest, blood seeping through the stitchings of his navy suit to become a dark, wet spot. I could see into the deep wound, a penetrating blow into his chest cavity. It carved a clean, vertical line, cutting at Rude's shirt and skin, all the way down to the fatty layers, but thankfully, not to the bone. He was lucky.
Still alive, Rude coughed up blood, barely moving as he laid sprawled over the path in a pool of his blood. I noticed the deep slash marks along his forearms, a sign of defending himself.
"Should we help him?" I asked, already digging through my pouch for a potion.
"Hell no," Barret barked, passing me, but his forehead wrinkled, frowning deeply after he said those words.
Reeve stepped forward, a powerful healing potion already in his hand.
"I know Rude, so I got this. You guys go on ahead," he insisted.
We didn't debate.
Again, I ran, following Red, while Barret, Cid and Bugen were at the tail end.
The path forked towards the cavern where I knew the lake waited, but there was another body.
It was the girl Turk, Elena.
Her blond hair had been caked with blood from a deep cut that grazed over her skull, her breathing shallow and raspy.
Bugenhagen hovered to inspect.
"I shall stay here to tend to this one. She has some fighting spirit left. There's hope."
Barret pressed his teeth together, his gun arm aiming at Elena's battered body.
"Why?! Why does it matter? We hate, Shinra, remember?! They want to destroy this Planet, and yet, here ya'll are, acting like these scumbags are our friends!"
He was ready to shoot Elena into swiss cheese.
I pressed a hand to his chest to stop him.
"Barret, don't. She's not a threat anymore," I tried, feeling his heart beat fast in my palm. Barret squinted at me, his gun arm trembling to be brought to life. He looked to a wounded Elena, then back to me, and then darted his eyes down to Red.
Barret then closed his eyes tight, like it was too painful to pull back his gun arm.
"Fine," he sighed, and his body relaxed. His gun arm dropped to his side.
He glared down at Bugenhagen tending to Elena's wounds, ready to spit on her body.
"But don't think I care about Shinra or any of them," he finalized in a hiss, flames in his brown eyes.
I relaxed enough to peel my hand off Barret, and a part of me sighed in relief.
"Guys, let's go," Cid spat, already running.
"Grandfather, please get out of here," Red begged to Bugenhagen. The Elder nodded, pouring a potion into Elena's wound carefully. Potion leaked over her face like blue Kool Aid.
"I will go where I want to go, Red. Don't worry. You all keep going," he assured.
It was just me, Cid, Barret and Red. The four of us ran, heading straight into the lake.
I've lost track of who went where, too focused on getting to that altar as fast as I could. When we entered the lake, we discovered its waters rumbling viscously. Crystal clear waves crashed along a small, white sandy shore, fresh water splashing drops in all directions from the quaking earth.
I stopped to take what all the commotion was about, frightened to find the once placid lake rumble to life. There was quick movement across the air, like a bolt of lighting jumped pass me, though I was unable to trace what it was, only catching a blur of red and blond.
There was a thunderous clashing just above high rocks. I turned to catch its source, shaken by the booming noise.
It was brief, but in midair, Cloud had his sword hit the metal hand of Reno. I saw Reno grunt, his red ponytail loose and wild. The only image I could catch, was the Turk with horror in his eyes, and then he disappeared, darting away with incredible speed.
Cloud and Reno seemed to be in a death match.
Cid, Barret and Red stopped next to me to watch the battle. The trembling earth increased, though I couldn't tell if it was from the fight, or from the altar below the lake.
The lake began to glimmer in a green glow.
I sucked in a sharp breath.
Cid already knew before I had a chance to react, seeing how he spun at me, his cigarette spilling ash across his jean coat.
"Aqua, get to the altar! You know what to do!"
"I do?!" I panicked, hands to my chest.
I had some idea, but before I could consider such a thought, Cid pushed me.
"Go! I'll take care of Cloud. Barret, Red, you two go with her!" He ordered.
"Dude, I.." Barret hesitated, but as for me, I ran into the tower of the old concave shell.
"Aqua, do you have a plan?" Red asked me, running near my legs.
I almost tripped over the first step into the magic staircase.
"No!" I shrieked.
Red tucked his ears in, a sign that he was troubled by my honest answer.
Upon a spiraling descend, I observed our objective ahead, and found the altar surrounded by a wall of green light.
We were too late!
My chest ached from all the running, taking many breaths to help pump more oxygen into my legs. The magic had been unleashed, Rufus and his top members already inside its walls.
There was only one option.
Destroy them while you can.
Mother's advice echoed, but I didn't know how to follow it.
Ahead, Red charged. From a pillar, his hind legs pumped his nimble body through the air. Claws first, he aimed to cut through the green magic wall.
But unexpectedly, he crashed against it, bouncing back into a roll along a few joined columns, almost slipping off.
"Red!"
Barret jumped ahead to grab Red's paw, saving the beast from being plunged into the depths of the city.
"I can't get through," Red whimpered, licking his injured paws.
Barret shot bullets at the magic wall. He fumed when he discovered the bullets couldn't penetrate the barrier. Bullets fell, some of them hitting the steps, others falling below.
I kept going, running towards the magic shield as I jumped on top of a pillar.
"Hey, are you sure you want to go in there?!" Barret screamed, watching me. I jumped onto the next pillar, skipping over one after another like jumping over stones across a river, though if I fell, it would be a long way down into the shadows.
"I have to do something!" I shouted.
I was on the last step before taking the leap.
"Aqua, we won't be able to go in with you?!" Red cried, but I didn't reply.
I had no choice.
My right leg kicked forward, and I leaped towards the wall of green energy. I tightened my eyes shut, wincing for a painful blow or to be knocked back.
It was like stepping over flames, green fire dancing around my hand first, followed by my arm as I reached to get inside. I held my breath to stop from inhaling the heat, my chest on fire. A quick burst of heat plowed through, a second or two of terrible pain. It was the longest two seconds I could ever imagine, no choice but to keep falling forward onto the large crystal altar.
I landed without grace, falling on my hands and knees, and remembered to breathe again. One glance at my hands on the clear crystal floor, I began to wheeze, imagining Aerith's blood under me.
"Well, well, she came after all," I heard Hojo mutter dryly.
I looked up, seeing three figures glower down at me.
Heidegger in his green military uniform, his black olive eyes unwelcoming. There was Dr. Hojo, his eyeglasses reflecting the green light of the towering vortex of magic surrounding us.
And then, there was Rufus.
He and I locked eyes, and I couldn't make out what he displayed when he frowned. Disappointment? Pain?
It was like being beneath an active tornado, green magic swirling up to the surface of the lake.
Lightning and rough winds tossed at Rufu's hair and clothes violently. He had to shout through the howling green storm.
"You're too late, Aqua," he screamed, pointing up. I lifted my gaze, and the four Huge Materia hovered high over our heads, glowing bright in almost too festive a manner for such an event. Little red, green, yellow and blue suns gave a lightshow, bolts of lighting zapping between them.
I was sweating, feeling moisture collect in my palms when I pulled my hands in, and slowly stood up. Flares of wind and lightning slipped inside our circle, and I squinted at Rufus, not intending to give him the fear that he craved, but he must've seen it in my gaze.
He smirked.
What could I do now? My hands joined at my chest, pressing both fists hard into my sternum.
Through the chaos, Rufus let out his hand for me to take.
"This is your last chance," he shouted. His arm extended tightly, and the long white sleeve of his coat fluttered.
The altar shook. I could feel it, my body ready to be lifted away.
The lake, the temple, the altar, it was beginning to fade under our feet. I breathed fast, wheezing as I turned my head back and forth, from Rufus's hand, to the Huge Materia, and then, back to the altar. One more glance at Rufus, and I found him to have switched his hand to his special double-barreled sawed-off shotgun. The two barrels glared at me.
"You won't join me, then go as a corpse," he hissed.
Was he really going to kill me?
I looked into his eyes, not seeing hate, but something soul-crushing. Ice broke into pieces in those eyes. I held my hands up in defense, shaking my head at Rufus.
"Will you really kill me?" I asked in a tremble. Just one finger movement, and he could pull the trigger, though I could easily cast a wall to block the bullet.
"By the way, magic doesn't work on my bullets. They will penetrate your barrier easily," Rufus added.
Okay. Never mind. Forget the wall casting.
"I guess she comes with us after all. We got ourselves a guide," Heidegger chuckled in.
I was at a loss, falling into the worst possible scenario: To go to my world with Rufus.
No, anything but that.
Lights of the Huge Materia added a hue of different colors on the altar, beaming down through an expansive crystal ceiling. Rufus stood under the blue beam, his features sharper. Half of Heidegger glimmered in red. Hojo crouched under a green beam, appearing sickly. I felt the rays of the Command Huge Materia shower on me, turning my hands and arms gold like bright sunlight when I took a glance.
Again, I pulled my attention up to the glowing stones at work.
I thought of shooting magic at the Huge Materia, but knew better. That wouldn't be enough.
Whispers of the Planet collided with the energy vortex, an enormous amount of energy called upon for a phenomenon such as making a tunnel between worlds to manifest.
Rufus could hold his gun all day, keeping its barrel at my chest, but then I spotted his eyes squinting over my shoulder. Heidegger pulled out his pistol, and Hojo cowered behind a pile of luggage.
I heard a growl before I saw the sparks of green lighting sprout next to me, creating heat behind my shoulder. I turned my head, and stumbled back a step, seeing the tip of the Hardedge breaking through the barrier.
There was a blur of Cloud's ferocious face behind the green flames.
"Rufus!" He screamed, his eyes nothing but bright blue orbs, no pupils, no iris, nothing.
"Impossible," Rufus hissed.
He fired his gun, but Cloud's arm cut through, his skin charred as he lifted his sword to block.
Heidegger fired, but I summoned a barrier to stop his normal bullets.
Rufus grit his teeth, and sucked in a breath so sharp, he stiffened. For the first time, his eyes flashed fear.
Cloud pushed through the magic wall, crying out as he did through his teeth, everything of him sizzling.
Miraculously, he broke all the way through, and dashed across the air, straight for Rufus while his clothes burned to a crisp, parts of his skin red. The fighter swung his sword behind his neck.
Rufus put up a hand, and used Magic Materia to cast a Wall.
I had no time to watch, knowing Cloud has lost himself in his battle. Seeing his body covered in blue flames frightened me, and I knew if I didn't do something within thirty seconds, we were all going to get sucked into the portal.
Rufus managed to get two bullets into Cloud's arm, but the Mako warrior didn't flinch, possibly not even noticing it, stuck on a high. He did a vertical slice just as Rufus jumped back, and his shoulder cut open.
I closed my eyes, trying to focus.
If I couldn't destroy the Huge Materia, then what could I do?
Heidegger fired more bullets, startling me away from my plans, but before I was shot, someone lifted a hand, and blocked the attack.
I turned my head.
Able to cut through the barrier, Bugenhagen emerged, his hand up from summoning a barrier to block Heidegger's attack. He wasn't old, not anymore. I've seen this before, back in the caverns behind Cosmo Canyon. The elder morphed into a young, strapping man, his body all muscle. His purple robes ruffled behind him splendidly, exposing his bulging chest and abs as they glimmered in rainbows under the lights.
"Bugen," I breathed. I thought he stayed behind, but here he was, able to penetrate the barrier and ready for a fight alongside Cloud.
Heideger boiled, and fired again.
Bugenhagen moved faster than I expected, able to dodge the two bullets from hitting his head.
His lifted his hands to cast another barrier, keeping us protected.
"Aqua, destroy the Huge Materia, NOW!" Bellowed the Elder while his eyes settled on Heidegger.
I shook my head.
"How?!"
Growing weak and injured, Rufus leaned back against a marble railing, and green Materia glowed from his bangle. He cast a powerful lightning spell. Without effort, Cloud cut his sword through the bolts, letting the sparks fly in all directions and burn his arms with electric heat. His bright eyes flared down on Rufus, his sword sliding across the crystal floor.
Bugenhagen kept the loose lighting from hitting us when he kept his barrier up.
"Then destroy what can be destroyed!" He shouted at me.
Destroy what can be destroyed?
I looked down, catching the crystal floor becoming dimmer and dimmer.
Of course.
But this place was sacred.
I pressed both hands over my heart, and closed my eyes.
This is the only portal between worlds. Where Ancients would receive answers directly from the Planet.
I opened my eyes a little.
Where Aerith died.
Tiny prickles traveled through my shoulders and down my spine when the answer was obvious.
I knew what I had to do now.
I clasped my hands together, and gathered energy into my whole body, heating up hurriedly. Bugenhagen kept Heidegger occupied. Cloud was ready to finish off Rufus, while Hojo stayed hidden. This gave me the advantage to gather energy, growing hotter by the second. Cloud's bracer squeezed my arm, at its limit of storage, but I kept going, imagining the Planet's energy filling up every space inside my body, huddling between my cells like glowing green plasma. The Planet embraced me with its loving hands, its whispers giving me company.
I had no choice.
This place….
I opened my eyes a little, and tears leaked, lifting with my hair.
Hojo opened his mouth, the only one capable of watching from afar at what an Ancient could do, a rare sight to what I was about to unleash.
I wheezed, my throat closing up, too hot to breathe. I snapped my teeth together, trying to maintain it, and kept praying.
Did Cloud notice I was here? No, he was lost in his thirst, lifting his sword high over his head.
I gasped to the heat, shutting my eyes tight as green swirls of energy leaked, slithering around my body loosely as glowing specters.
This place had so much history.
But more than anything…
I was ready to detonate, my arms and legs about to spring apart. My legs buckled, the weight of the magic too much, and I dropped to my knees. I grunted, pushing my glowing green hands down onto the altar, and pressed heat into the floor.
This place was the only way back home.
I will never go back, even if I wanted to. The thought never occurred to me, quick to assume I wouldn't even consider such a possibility.
Cracks began to leak from under my hands, and they traveled across the crystal like quick growing weeds, branches extending off in chaotic zigzags.
What if I wanted to go back? Someday?
Mother's voice rang in my thoughts, the one who raised me.
That's when I knew, that fox was a guide from the Gods, a fylgia, and they guided us to you, as though you were born from that lake.
I pictured her warm smile, her eyes distant as she reminisced on that day finding me as an infant.
Mum. I will never see you again.
I couldn't breathe. I couldn't swallow. Everything of me curled into a tight knot, like being squeezed inside the fists of a giant.
More tears lifted.
Mum's shocked expression when she found me on her doorstep. Mum smiling to herself when we sat on that bench, overlooking the view of Iceland's beauty through a gentle snow fall.
The altar shook violently.
I shut my eyes again, forcing the images out of my head, and screamed.
"Break!"
The altar came to life, rocking violently as it cracked into thick pieces.
You'll never see your mother again.
Aerith whispered it, and I thought I could feel her wrap her arms around me from behind, to protect me with her spirit when I was beginning to fall through the cracks. I didn't think this far ahead, tumbling down into the depths of the city. The green vortex dispersed, and all that was left was the pieces of the altar. It cracked away, the earth tossing back and forth.
I did a stupid thing.
I looked at the lake above, seeing how it shrank, and reached for it.
And then I screamed.
Pieces of the city fell away, pillars falling apart to catch up with me. The whole under part of the city was crumbling into ruin, sinking away under the lake and left to be nothing more than a pile of rumble. A piece of history gone.
Was it for the best?
At the time, it didn't seem like it, the last few seconds of my thoughts on Cloud and the others. Were they trapped in the quake? Did they make it out? I didn't even think about my growing child. If I survived the impact, there was a high chance this would disturb my insides, a miscarriage. At the last second, I felt regret, and gasped from it.
Unexpectedly, from the heavens, a gauntlet hand reached, and I saw a glimpse of bloody fingers.
"Aqua!"
Cloud's face emerged behind a falling column, mouth left open after he screamed my name.
He woke up from his Mako phase, his natural eyes wide as he fell near me. His fingers curled close to my hand, ready to snatch. He missed.
50