Half a dozen choppers were landing in the square, and about a dozen soldiers emerged from each. The soldiers spread out, sneaking. Dark ran straight to Tifa and Saria, and shook them awake. They too peered out of the window. Dark opened the window slightly, so that they could hear what the soldiers were saying. It only took the phrase "search for him" for Tifa to topple over backwards, her eyes wide with fear. "He-he's here," she gasped, scrambling backwards.

"Sephiroth?" Dark said. He grabbed his sword from under his bed, and began to walk down the stairs.

"Where're you going?" Tifa cried.

"Now's my chance," he said.

"No!" she yelled. "Not now! Can't you see? He's strong now! Right now you're no match for him- he's far too powerful!"

"What do you expect me to do?" Dark called back.

"Run now, fight later," she said. "Take Saria- there's a motorbike in the garage- and run, please!" Although it was Dark's destiny to avenge his parents, he knew that Saria's life lay in his hands.

"What about you?"

"I'll follow you later," there was a loud banging against the door. "Now!" Saria hugged her mother before climbing down the stairs. Luckily, there was a door through to the garage. Dark looked at the front door, as it began to bend with the force behind it. He went into the garage, locking the door behind him, and looked at the beautiful motorbike before him. He mounted it, and started it up with a large rumble. There was a loud crash- an indicator that the front door had been broken.

"Mum!" Saria cried, bolting for the door, but Dark grabbed her wrist.

"We've got to go," he said sympathetically. "Or else, we'll be next," Saria nodded, holding back tears as she joined Dark on bike and they rode off into the night.

It wasn't very long before they were a fair distance away. Smoke trailed from Nibelhiem, which was emitting an orange glow.

"Hey! There's somebody following us!" Saria said loud enough for Dark to hear over the purring engine. "Stop! It's probably mum!" Dark slowed down to a near halt, as the figure ran towards them. Whoever it was was running very fast, as it didn't take long for them to get closer. There was a silvery glint in the moonlight, and as the person got closer, they both realised that it wasn't Tifa running towards them, it was Sephiroth.

Dark accelerated as fast as possible, the speed gauge reaching it's limit.

"Faster, Dark! He's catching up!" Sure enough, Sephiroth was running at an incredible rate. A whirring noise came from somewhere behind. Saria turned, to see that not only was Sephiroth chasing them, but four choppers were also on their trail. If that wasn't bad enough, Sephiroth was extremely close.

"Sephiroth, please stop, come with us," a voice from a megaphone called. Sephiroth had obviously chosen to ignore them, as he continued his pursuit. He ran faster than ever, his arms and legs blurred. He grabbed Saria's hair, who let out a loud screech, and gripped onto Dark so tightly that he could feel her fingernails piercing his clothing.

"Let go of me, you bastard!" She whirled around, and punched his arm. He let go of her hair and grabbed her arm instead. "Get off!" She tried to push him, or withdraw her arm, but his grip was so strong, and tight that she could shake it off. As he pulled her arm, both her and Dark could feel the bike's front wheel being lifted from the ground. Sephiroth unsheathed his sword with his left hand, as Saria closed her eyes, waiting for the worst. There was a thud as the bike landed heavily back onto it's front wheel. Saria opened her eyes, but she had not been harmed. Sephiroth wasn't there. He was on the floor, blanketed by a net. He struggled about as the choppers landed around him, and he was surrounded by soldiers. Dark continued in the same direction, not looking back, whilst Saria collapsed with relief on him. Not too long after, the motorbike stopped, and Dark and Saria stopped for a rest. They were surrounded by mountains and on the opposite side, the sea could be seen, the sun just peeping from the horizon.

Dark sat in the grass, followed by Saria.

"Who were those?" he asked.

"Shinra," she said. "My dad works for them, although I haven't seen him in years," tears gathered in her eyes. " I have to go and see him, I have to go and tell him that mum's dead. He'll look after me,"

"I'm sorry about that- if I hadn't had been there, he probably wouldn't have come for us and you wouldn't be in this mess.

"No, it's okay. He's burned down villages before, and he would've then, even if you weren't there. I'm just glad that you were there to save me," she smiled, her eyes glittering with tears.

"No problem," Dark smiled back. "So, we're going to Shinra- but not yet. Cosmo Canyon isn't too far away. There must be stuff we can use there, and I was once fostered there, too," He stood up, and shaded his eyes using his hand. "It's just across that river. It's not too far, what do you think? Think we should set off now?"

"No way," she said. "I'm so tired, I want to sleep here, just for a while. If I can sleep, that is," she sighed. "What if he comes back?"

"I'll tell you what. I'll stay awake all night and keep watch," Saria smiled and curled into a ball. He couldn't help but feel sad himself, as he watched tear after tear roll down her cheeks as he slept. Now; more than ever, he felt angry and determined to get his revenge. He stared into the lightening sky, wondering whether he knew who he really was. What was his purpose? Now, he had a purpose. His purpose was to protect this girl at whatever the cost.