"What am I doing?"
Zidane blinked and shrugged off the strange thought. He was in the midst of the greatest battle in the history of Gaia; he couldn't afford to be thinking about anything except killing his opponent. A thrust with his Ultima Weapon finished off the Lindblum soldier and Zidane quickly pushed his dead foe away to clear room for his next victim.
"What has happened?"
Zidane paused momentarily, wondering what was wrong with him and almost got his head severed off by the Alexandrian soldier that had sprung out nowhere! Reflexes born out of a lifetime of survival saved his life: the Ultima Weapon flashed up and parried the sword at the last moment. With both weapons locked up, both Zidane and his foe freed their right hands and punched the other as hard as possible! Zidane's head was rocked backwards, but the blow wasn't very effective, seeing as she was still only a mortal. His punch, on the other hand, sent her flying backwards and she was engulfed in a conveniently placed Firaga spell that Vivi had just cast. Zidane spat disdainfully on the soldier's remains, which was only a small pile of ashes.
"Report!" Zidane barked.
"Pinnacle Rocks has been stormed three times, but Amarant has our stronghold well defended. The five Genome divisions have carved up Gaia's armies, but they've suffered massive casualties as well. The battle is pretty much even at the moment."
Zidane questioned, "What about Freya and Fratley? Did they accomplish their mission?
Vivi shrugged and replied, "I don't know. Garnet and Eiko, as well as Beatrix were up on that cliff. I felt Eiko release a Holy spell a while ago, but I haven't felt anything else other than that. But then again, Freya and Fratley haven't reported to me yet, so I'm not sure what has happened up there."
A series of trumpet calls caught their attention and they whipped their heads around to face the new threat. The Alexandrian cavalry, composed of Alexandrian soldiers armed with lances atop battle trained Chocobos, had arrived. As they charged into battle, the Genomes, who were already hard pressed, were forced to start retreating. The Gaia Army quickly tried to press their advantage, but they were stopped cold by powerful blasts of Thundaga magic! The cavalry stopped short and pulled back to avoid being hurt, which is what Vivi was after in the first place. The lightning magic sent the Gaia Army reeling and the Genomes launched themselves on their vulnerable victims. Vivi quickly entered the fray and made his presence known, his magic decimating anything that stood in his path.
The Alexandrian cavalry, understanding that if they entered this battle, they would quickly be annihilated, searched for another opponent. They spotted Zidane standing by himself, gazing at the cliffs where Garnet and Eiko had been. He was instantly recognized as the leader of the Terra Army. The cavalry leader sounded the charge and fifty cavalry units sped toward Zidane, lances down and ready to gut the Terra leader. Zidane glanced over his shoulder at the charging cavalry and then looked back at the cliff. He could have sworn that he had seen a flash of black hair, but he wasn't positive.
"Die!" the lead cavalry unit screamed, his lance thrusting forward for the kill!
Almost calmly, Zidane spun around and deflected the lance with his pole arm! Using his momentum, he leapt into the air, spun around in a complete circle, drew his dagger and planted it in the back of the lead unit, all in the matter of a split second! The rider fell flat off his chocobo; he had died from the moment the dagger had severed his spinal cord and pierced his heart. Zidane narrowed his eyes at the remaining cavalry units and then vanished from sight!
All the cavalry could see was the brilliant flash of Zidane's gold hair as he dodged and weaved between them, striking down a dozen men in less than three seconds! No one screamed out in pain; they were already dead before they could feel the blow from his Ultima Weapon. Some tried to spear the blur that was Zidane, but the closest they managed to come was hitting his afterimage. Others tried to run, but they were easily struck down from behind. Within moments, terror gripped their hearts as they realized that they were up against something that was beyond anything any mere mortal could hope to handle.
30 seconds later, Zidane finally slowed to a halt over the body of a Chocobo. All around him, within the radius of thirty yards, laid the bodies of the Alexandrian cavalry. As started to secure the Ultima Weapon on his back, he saw a flash of black and purple on the top of the cliffs. Zidane almost grinned in spite of himself; it seemed that he would get in the final blow after all.
"What am I feeling? Why do I want to kill Garnet?"
Zidane grimaced and clutched his head, trying to force the foreign thoughts out of his brain. It was gone momentarily, but Zidane was starting to feel the slightest sense of unease. Was he going insane?"
"ARK!"
"MADEEN!"
Raising his eyes instantly to the cliffs, Zidane finally glimpsed Garnet and Eiko. They were standing at the edge of the cliffs and were summoning their most powerful summons. This time, Zidane actually grinned. He was going to enjoy shocking Garnet and Eiko with his new ability, and then he was going to kill them with it.
"Save them! Save me!"
Zidane quickly banished the thoughts from his mind again and ran off to find Vivi.
(Scene Change)
Ark was easily the most powerful of Garnet's summons; his power dwarfed even Bahamut, the King of Dragons. Only two summons could equal Ark. One was dead: the holy eidolon Alexander that was actually the holy eidolon that belonged to Garnet. The other floated next to Ark at the moment. Madeen was Eiko's holy summon, and he is currently the only summon capable of competing with Ark. The two most powerful Eidolons left hovered in the air over the battlefield, awaiting their instructions. Below them, the fighting had not ceased. In fact, it appeared that no one had even seen the Eidolons yet.
"Garnet?" Eiko questioned. "Are we going to do this?"
Garnet nodded and replied, "Let's just hope they know what to do."
Garnet and Eiko turned simultaneously to their Eidolons in the sky.
"ARK!" Garnet shouted. "ETERNAL DARKNESS!"
"MADEEN!" Eiko screamed. "TERRA HOMING!"
The two summoners shouted in union, "Combine your attacks and destroy Zidane!"
For a moment, the line between reality and fantasy blurred. Ark became Madeen…and Madeen became Ark. The two Eidolons became the other but retained their own unique characteristics. Then, they became one! Ark's cannon lowered onto his right shoulder and began to charge. But instead of a pinpoint of light, a seething globe of pure destructive power was formed. When it was finally formed, Ark/Madeen pointed the cannon at the battlefield and prepared to fire.
Garnet and Eiko watched with a mixture awe and fear. They were sure that nothing could escape this blast, not even Zidane or Vivi. On the other hand, that meant the entire Gaia Army would also perish. But in this case…the cost was worth it.
"FIRE!" They screamed. "DECIMATE ILLUMINATION!"
Right before the fused summons could fire their new attack, two bright lights surged on the battlefield. Zidane and Vivi had Tranced! But the two girls just smiled grimly. The boys, strong as they were, had nothing that could compete with Decimate Illumination. Grand Lethal and Ultima, incredibly destructive though they were, they were nothing compared to this new attack. Ark/Madeen braced itself in midair and fired!
(Scene Change)
"They're going to wipe out the entire battlefield!" Vivi whispered, staring up at the monstrosity that Garnet and Eiko had created. He and Zidane had both just Tranced simultaneously in order to pull off Zidane's newest attack, but Vivi doubted anything could take on the thing above them.
Zidane replied dryly, "I think that's the point. But it doesn't matter. Are you ready?"
"Zidane, are you sure this will work?" Vivi stammered. "If it doesn't, then you don't have to wait for Decimate Illumination to destroy you. Ultima will do it just as well."
"Vivi, trust me," Zidane said, trying to reassure the young Black Mage. "I know what I'm doing. Now do it!"
Vivi sighed and lowered his head. Immediately, he snapped it back up and thrust out both hands in front of him, palms out, straight at Zidane. Two Ultimas formed in his hands as Vivi concentrated all the power within him, straining for every ounce of power his body could give. Once his Ultimas were completed, his eyes flashed with incredible intensity and the two Ultimas leaped from his hands towards Zidane's body! His job completed, Vivi's Trance faded and he fell to his knees, completely exhausted. However, he was electrified by Zidane's next moves.
Zidane, the moment the two Ultimas rushed at him, braced himself and planted his feet firmly. Everyone watching thought he was about to die. But the explosions and death never came. Zidane, instead of being hurt by the Ultimas, absorbed them into his body! For a moment, there was silence.
Zidane simply stood there, clenching and unclenching his hands. His hair was standing on end; his eyes were wide with shock and awe. Every single cell in his body felt electrified.
"What power!" Zidane exclaimed. "I have never felt so strong in my life!"
Without warning, Zidane doubled up, as if he had been hit with a battering ram! The power of Ultima, in its concentrated form, was too much, even for him to handle. Quickly, he settled into the customary stance that initiated any of his Dyne techniques.
"Zidane!" Vivi called out. "Hurry!"
Zidane glanced skywards in time to see Ark/Madeen release Decimate Illumination. In response, Zidane tensed every single muscle, nerve, and cell in his own body and reached for the power now within him. He touched it and forced it out!
"GRAND ULTIMA!" he bellowed and released all the power within at once! Garnet was correct in believing that Grand Lethal and Ultima combined were not enough to overpower Decimate Illumination. But, when the two techniques were fused together, Decimate Illumination was the one that could not overpower Grand Ultima. Grand Ultima simply sheared straight through Decimate Illumination and struck Ark/Madeen dead center in the chest. The two Eidolons didn't even have to scream out. They were simply obliterated. The resulting explosion rocked the entire planet, sending everyone to the ground!
(Scene Change)
"Impossible!" Eiko gasped. "They fused Ultima and Grand Lethal together and overcame our combined summons!"
Garnet could not find words to express herself. She was angry that her plan had failed, in awe of Zidane and Vivi's newfound power, and scared to death that she was next.
Meekly, she crawled to the edge of the cliff to stare down at Zidane. She was expecting to see him standing proud and straight, ready to leap up the cliff and claim her life. It was completely opposite. He was kneeling on one knee, his head was bent, and smoke was rising off his body. Even his tail wasn't twitching.
"He's utterly spent," Garnet whispered.
Eiko replied back tiredly, "So are we. I can't even move a muscle."
"Good. I wasn't really in the mood to fight."
Garnet whirled around in time to see a fist in her face. It struck her straight in the chin and knocked her unconscious immediately. Eiko was just as easily dispatched. The attacker hefted Eiko onto their shoulder and grabbed Garnet around the waist. Then, he/she teleported away.
(Scene Change)
"Zidane," Vivi whispered. "That was incredible!"
Zidane didn't move from his position. The smoke was still rising off his body and his breathing was labored. Vivi tried to comfort Zidane by patting him on the shoulder, but he was immediately thrown backwards.
"Don't touch me!" he snarled. But, before Vivi could even formulate an apology, Zidane sank to his knees.
"I'm sorry, Vivi!" Zidane wailed. "I didn't do it!"
Zidane suddenly pitched forward on the ground and started screaming. His hands were clutching either side of his head and his whole body was shaking. Everyone around him was talking, but he didn't seem to take notice.
"Zidane! Get a hold of yourself!"
The talking ceased as the newcomer approached. Over one shoulder, the limp form of Eiko could be seen. In the right arm, Garnet was also being carried rather unceremoniously.
"Mikoto," Zidane gasped. "Help me."
"Here's the answer to your problems," Mikoto said calmly and threw Garnet down hard in front of Zidane. The pain from the fall woke her up and she moaned softly in pain.
Mikoto continued, "Here is the God of Life. I found her skulking up there on top of the cliffs. Kill her and the voice in your head will go away forever."
"You know about that?" Zidane said weakly. He slowly climbed to his feet. "How?'
"I know everything, Zidane," Mikoto replied evenly. "But I promise you, if you kill her, then everything you have worked for to this point will pay off."
Slowly, with everyone's eyes upon him, Zidane pulled the Ultima Weapon off his back. Even more slowly, he raised it over his head and took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry."
Garnet opened her eyes just in time…to see Zidane's sword slice downwards toward her. She closed her eyes and prepared to die.
(End Chapter)
A/N: My apologies for the (very) late post. However, school has finally ended, so now I can finally finish up this work. I don't know if I'll write anything after this, but we'll have to see. Thanks for sticking with me for so long, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you'll stick around for the ending, which will be either the next chapter or the one after it.