Disclaimer: Final Fantasy is the sole property of Square-Enix... lucky bastards.
This story has pretty much nothing but OCs but there will be lot of involvement from the characters from FFVII. Enjoy.
I - The Antoginist
The fields shone a lush green, reflecting the midday sun as it traveled across the sky. Wild chocobos playfully scampered across the emerald sea of grass, cawing as they ran in blissful ignorance. It was serene, a perfect dream that could not last. And it didn't.
The tumultuous sound of a thousand soldiers stomping through the field echoed throughout, scaring the wild chocobos to the southern shores. The army was well-equipped and ready for war; all they needed was an enemy, an enemy that would reach their quiet continent in less than a day.
General Asher led the force, clad in black atop his armored chocobo. His presence among the army meant that battle would be imminent. By his side was Balamb, a recognized figure throughout Midgar as one of the best warriors in the continent, maybe the world. Up until then, he was the best that the Shinra Weapons Co. had in the elite squad of Soldier.
The army had been defending the city by the western sea until the cannon, Junon, was completed. When Junon was constructed, they began their arduous journey to the eastern shore to build the city of Crimson, a city being built specifically for the protection of the continent. There, Junon's counterpart, Jupiter, would be built.
It would stand as a base of operation until the end of the war; after the war, it would be the second capital city, subsequent to Midgar. It would stand as a monument of the victory of Midgar over Wutai.
The importance of this city was obvious by the presence of the best general of Midgar and the best Soldier of Shinra.
"I don't see why we need a Soldier along for this." Asher said to Balamb. "My men are capable of handling any enemy."
"Shinra wishes to protect their interests." Balamb replied. "You didn't think that they'd build a city without having their elite present to oversee construction, did you?"
"Shinra should worry about keeping us armed." Asher said. "Not about fighting Midgar's wars."
"Shinra is Midgar, Asher." Balamb said. "You should know that."
Following closely behind were the leaders of the project; Luther, another elite of Soldier. Although not as superior as Balamb, he was still one of the best. Next to him was Ferric, lieutenant general and second in command to Asher. And finally, there was Ami, head of weapons development for Shinra Weapons Co.
"There's talk about Shinra taking control over the Midgar government." Ami said. "Soon, the Midgar Military will be the Shinra Army."
Asher glanced back at Ami with the malice of a man who hated the Shinra Weapons Co. But he could only weather it, as it was probably true. They continued to the eastern shore in as much silence as silence would allow.
When they finally reached the coast, the sun was already beginning to set. Balamb and Luther moved closer toward the shore and stopped only a few feet away from Asher. They listened and stared at the coast. Ami, however, immediately began plans for Jupiter. As he barked orders to his men, Asher moved beside the two Soldiers, unaware, but expectant, of what they were listening to.
"What do you see?" The old general asked.
"The Wutai Army is on the horizon!" Luther whispered to Asher as Balamb dismounted his chocobo and ran towards the shore. "Assemble your ranks."
Luther took off after Balamb, while Asher barked orders at the soldiers to assemble ranks and defend the coastline against the invading Wutai army.
The soldiers scrambled after Balamb, readying their weapons as they ran. They would kill as many Wutai soldiers as they could before the enemy reached the shore. Luther and Balamb stopped on the shore line and stared at the armada of ships that were closing in fast.
"What's your plan?" Luther asked.
"When they're close enough, use your Comet." Balamb replied. "And I'll use mine."
Luther had only been able to do the second level of Comet, while Balamb had mastered it, but both were devastating to any enemy they faced. When the Midgar army reached the shore, they instantly opened fire on the impending ships, and the Wutai army quickly returned fire with low level Fire and Bolt spells.
The Wutai army was only half a mile away when Balamb and Luther began their spells. The clouds above them parted while the waters about the coast rippled and unsteadied the Wutai ships. The sky darkened under the two immense shadows of falling Comets. Both spells struck two of the larger ships, and the ripples rocked the others to the point where the men aboard were falling over the railings into the sea.
"Again?" Luther asked.
"Save your Energy." Balamb replied. "We'll need it soon."
The Wutai army hit the shallow waters along the eastern coastline moments later, and charged forward off their boats onto the land, swords in the air and spells flying from the warrior's hands. Balamb and Luther unsheathed their swords and began their defense against the Wutai assault.
Asher and Ferric charged into the battle on chocobo, firing their rifles as they rode into the field of men. Both were well trained to fight on chocobo, and perhaps fought better while mounted. For completely regular soldiers, they handled themselves well against the Fire and Bolt spells that constantly barraged them from all sides.
Ami fled away from the battle, along with his team of Shinra engineers. There was no way that they would have been able to match the Wutai soldiers, so they fled until they were on a grassy hill within view of the carnage. At that moment, he was on his mobile, talking with president Shinra.
"No, we were too late." Ami said into his cell. "No, they're in battle right now… I'd say close to a thousand soldiers… No, they brought a hell of a lot more… Understood…"
Ami put his cellular phone away and turned back to return to Midgar, his engineers not far behind.
The once jade field was now a scarlet red, as more and more of the soldiers fell under the other. Fires and Bolts were cast, guns were fired, and every then and again, a high level spell was cast by either Balamb or Luther. But it was obvious who had the advantage. The Wutai had brought more warriors than Midgar had anticipated, and Midgar was quickly dwindling under their opponent's numbers.
Asher stopped his assault on the Wutai soldiers to look over the fields and saw what was happening to his army. He turned on his chocobo and saw Ferric on foot, handling the only weapon he had left, an emptied gunblade.
"Ferric, shoot the flare!" Asher yelled to him.
Ferric opened the chamber on his gunblade, loaded the flare into the barrel, and fired it into the air. The bright azure of the flare caught everyone's eye, and they quickly started to retreat into the west. But with no cover in the open grassy countryside, many Midgar soldiers fell under their enemy's hands.
"Balamb!" Luther yelled. "We need to leave!"
Balamb nodded and whistled at the air. His chocobo soon answered, charging through men, both Midgar and Wutai, to reach its rider. Balamb leapt onto his chocobo while Luther called his. He rode through the fields, swinging his blade as he went, dropping as many Wutai soldiers as he could on his way out.
Soon, Balamb was away from the battle, Luther not far behind him. He turned to see the carnage, but saw something else. For the briefest moment, he saw a single soldier, surrounded in flames, staring back at him with cold grey eyes. It was than that the pain began; a sharp pain that Balamb felt in his head, in his mind. He grabbed his head with both hands and yelled in pain, a pain that felt as if it was gnawing into his thoughts, clawing at his dreams.
For the first time in a long time, Balamb felt afraid. He lost his balance on the chocobo and fell to the ground, still grasping his head. The pain wouldn't stop. It was enough to make the Soldier faint.
Luther grabbed Balamb as he rode, off the ground and carried him away from the horde of Wutai soldiers.
The last thing that Balamb remembered from that night was the sight of the moon, the sounds of the Wutai army celebrating their victory and the vision of the silver-haired soldier.
End Of Part I