Chapter 10: Everything Will Change

My phone exploded with missed calls and messages. The majority of them from Zack, of course. When I didn't show up to meet him, he thought maybe I would be with Myrna, so he messaged her and then she blew up my phone too. Cloud tried hard to convince me to go get checked out in the infirmary. Thankfully, he waited until my panic attack was over before trying to take me there. I opted to just go home, and after a heavy debate, he agreed to accompany me. He didn't hide his worry for my wellbeing the entire way. If I so much as took a step wrong, he was right there to make sure I didn't fall over. I couldn't be mad at him for any of it because I'd be just as concerned if I'd have found him lying in the middle of the street at the dead of night. Once we made it to my door, he asked a million and one more times if I was really ok. I don't know how many times I assured him that I was, and that he should not worry about me so much. I barely made it through the door when Zack tackled me in a bear hug, his arms crushing my ribs.

"Are you ok?! Where have you been?! What happened?!" He flew questions at me one after the other, not breathing between any of them. "Why didn't you call me? Are you hurt? Let me see."

"Zack… breathe. I'm ok." I gasped.

That didn't stop him from checking me over head to toe, looking for any sign of an injury. I lightly pushed him away to get him to stop smothering me. He was worried, I know. I was MIA for almost twelve hours. His tone changed from worried mother goose, to stern older brother who needed answers.

"Where were you?" He asked seriously.

"In the slums." I answered as I kicked off my boots.

"For twelve hours? You said four hours tops and you'd meet me for-"

"I know I know I know… I'm sorry. I was reckless." Taking a breath, I met his stare, "I got bit by a wererat and didn't take an antidote in time to stop the venom. I passed out down there."

Not my best excuse, but at least his eyes softened from the stern stone face. With a deep sigh, he shook his head and hugged me a bit lighter this time.

"You should have called me when you woke up. I thought something serious happened to you. Myrna and I were about to tare the city apart looking for you. Myrna! Shit, I need to let her know you're home!" Zack fumbled with his pockets to fish out his phone.

"I'll call her, don't worry about it. I'm sorry I worried you."

Zack crossed his arms and hung his head.

"I'm just glad you're alright." He said solemnly, "We were worried about you."

"I know Zack. Luckily Cloud found me and got me home in one piece."

Without a word, I walked away.

"Yeah thats- wait… who's Cloud?!" Zack asked in slight shock.

I only laughed and closed the door to my bedroom. Just a little something else for him to think about other than how worried he was about me, which in turn might cause a whole new row of worries, but that situation would be easier to deal with than him thinking I'm dead somewhere. Stripping off my uniform and putting on more comfortable clothes, I plopped onto my bed and prepared myself for Myrna lecturing me about being more careful and blah blah blah.

"Senna! What the hell, what happened to you?! Zack was worried as shit and so was I!" She screamed immediately after picking up. I had to hold my phone away from my ear to protect my hearing.

"I know I know." I huffed into the phone, "I already got it from Zack. Be more careful yada yada. I'm fine, I'm home, you can breathe now."

There was a pause on her end. She was likely contemplating on what to yell at me, or rewording her argument because I didn't give her the answer she expected. I could picture, clear as day, the annoying way she bites her lip when she's thinking, and how her brows nearly touch as she concentrates.

"I could kill you myself for being so reckless and irresponsible." She lectured, "I just get promoted and you go and give me a heart attack. We're supposed to be climbing the ranks together, remember?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Yeah I remember. 1st Class or nothing, together or not at all."

"Please don't scare me like that again." The sadness in her voice almost brought me to tears. "I don't know what I would do without you."

I choked down my tears, "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Except for bed. I am going there. Will you be ok without me for a few more hours?"

I needed to joke with her a little bit. Otherwise we would both be an emotional mess over the phone for hours. She did manage a lighthearted chuckle, and her spirits sounded like they picked up a little bit.

"I don't know." She sighed dramatically, "Maybe I should sneak over and watch you sleep."

"Ew. Don't be weird." I laughed, "See you tomorrow."

"Bye bitch!" Click.

I sat my phone on my chest, idly tapping it against my collarbone. I didn't feel nearly tired at all, probably because I spent the whole day unconscious somewhere. That reality disturbed me. I lied to Zack and Myrna because they were already worried as it was, I couldn't make it worse for them. Trying to recall even a sliver of a memory gave me a migraine. It was something I should have definitely reported as soon as I came to, but I wanted to find out the answers for myself, not have some company-wide manhunt for whoever managed to kidnap a SOLDIER and get away with it. How could I have been so reckless? Why didn't I notice anything off in my surroundings? My focus has been severely off lately. Not something that a 2nd Class SOLDIER should have a problem with. Would I get demoted, or worse… completely thrown from SOLDIER entirely?

"Ugh!" I groaned. "Stop thinking. Just relax would ya?"

Yes, that's it Senna. Talk to yourself like a crazy person, that will solve all your problems. As if I didn't have enough of them already. With a couple more taps to my chest, I pulled my phone in front of me again.

'Hey. I don't think I've ever actually thanked you for helping me home so many times. Especially today. If you could just keep that between us for now? I don't want anyone to find out.'

I hesitated before I hit send, rereading every word like it would change my life in some significant way. After a few seconds I deleted the whole message.

'Thank you for today.'

Short and simple. Nothing too complicated. Before I could overthink it, I hit the send button, immediately slammed my phone shut, and hid my face under my pillow. The few minutes it took to feel the buzz of my phone felt like an eternity.

'If you need help, let me know what I can do.'

Before I could reply, Cloud sent a follow up message.

'And you're welcome. Even though I'm against it, I won't say anything about where I found you. It's your business, I'm sorry for pushing.'

'You're a good friend, Cloud. I'm happy to have met you.'

'I'm happy I met you too. Get some rest.'

I closed my phone with a smile. My heart fluttered in my chest as I repeated his last message in my mind over and over. I used that serenity to calm my mind of the stresses of the day, and forced myself to sleep.

Two Months Later

"Focus."

The simulation charged at me, blade drawn and aiming for my throat. I stood strong as stone, prepared to defend the oncoming attack. The clash of our blades echoed across the metal walls of the simulation. Sparks flew by my face as I pushed against my opponent.

"Find an opening."

"I know!" I yelled in annoyance and twisted my blade to knock the simulation off balance. The second their form was broken, I took my chance and swung my blade down on them.

There was a split second between my blade clashing onto their neck, and before it made impact, the simulation fell to the ground and kicked my feet out from under me. I caught myself on my forearm, using that momentum to flip backwards away from them, but they were on me in an instant. My feet hadn't even touched the ground when they slashed their blade at me. I couldn't attack from midair, not like this when I didn't have a strong stance at all. The ringing of our blades vibrated my ears with each successful block, but they didn't let up at all. I had to do something quick, otherwise I was done for. When our blades clashed again, I slid mine off, sticking it to the ground to give me a solid base, and kicked them away from me.

Pulling my sword from the ground, I charged while their defense was down. Without breaking a sweat, the simulation blocked every attack I threw at it, even while being off balance. It sidestepped my downward blow and in one fluid movement, punched my jaw, sending me soaring until my back collided with the metal wall. Stars flashed across my eyes, then I was face to face with the steel tip of the simulation's blade. It faded away into a mess of code and pixels, along with the room. I threw the helmet across the chamber in aggravation.

"You did very well." Sephiroth said from the other side of the glass.

"I didn't do well at all. I lost." I pouted.

Sephiroth opened the door to the chamber and pulled me to my feet.

"That simulation wasn't meant to let you win. If you had beaten the computer I would have thought the exercise was too easy." He said.

"Then what was the point of the exercise?" I crossed my arms.

"To prepare you for 1st." He said matter of factly, like I was supposed to know that from the beginning.

My entire attitude turned on a dime, and I felt the smile growing on my face.

"1st!? Seriously?!" I exclaimed and bounced on my feet.

Sephiroth held up his hand, a silent command to calm down and listen.

"I haven't decided if I want to recommend you for 1st yet." He said, making my heart sink, "We'll see how the next few months of training and assignments look, and then we'll revisit this topic."

"How are my chances looking so far?" I clasped my hands in front of me, a smile still spread across my face.

Sephiroth shook his head, chuckled, and walked out of the training room. I was quick to follow after him, but he beat me to the elevator.

"You're not even gonna give me a hint? A small crumb of encouragement? Nothing?! Come on, Sephiroth! I deserve an answer!" I hollered after him.

The elevator door closed. Blocking Sephiroth from my pestering questions. There was no doubt in my mind that he withheld his answer just to get a rise out of me. He never actually told jokes or played pranks, but he had an odd sense of humor that he used when he wanted to act mysterious. I honestly found it quite annoying at times, especially now when he got my hopes up so high, just to make them crash back to earth.

"Bastard." I mumbled, and stomped off to the lounge area down the hall.

I plopped myself onto the couch, kicked my feet up on the back, and flipped open my phone. No new messages. It's been ages since I heard from Myrna. I figured that Genesis was keeping her very busy with training, learning her habits, strengths and weaknesses, and figuring out where to go with her training from there. That was just a guess based on what Sephiroth started me with. Regardless, though, she always replies to me, and can barely go a week without seeing me.

'Hey lady! I miss your stupid face. Call me already! I need to hear all about your training. Love you xx'

Send. I closed my phone and shoved it back in my pocket. I was starting to get worried about her, this was completely out of the ordinary. When my phone went off, I wasted no time opening it, but it wasn't Myrna who was calling me.

"Senna here." I answered.

"Hey, you busy?" Cloud asked from the other line.

"Busy getting comfortable." I joked and sat up, "No I'm not busy. What's up?"

"We're going out for BBQ if you're interested."

"Cloud." I said in a serious tone, "If I ever say no to BBQ, assume that it's an imposter."

He chuckled, "Noted. We'll see you-"

"You're paying for yourselves this time!" Noctis yelled in the distance, "You assholes cleaned me out good the last time!"

"So Noctis is paying for us again? Did I hear that right?" I laughed.

"Yup. That's exactly what he said."

"No I didn-"

"We'll meet you there in an hour."

"Sounds good. See you there."

Cloud and Noctis waved me over when I walked inside the restaurant. With a smile, I bounded over to the booth and slid in the spot next to Cloud.

"Hello boys." I greeted.

"You know," Noctis started, "everytime we go out somewhere, you always sit next to Cloud. Is there something wrong with me?"

I glanced between the two, noticing the slight pink tint on Cloud's cheeks that he tried to hide by turning away from me.

"Well for starters, Cloud is a gentleman and I trust him." I answered.

Noctis faked offense by putting a hand to his chest.

"Oh. So that's the thanks I get for willingly getting put on house arrest while defending your honor?"

"All you really did was punch a guy in the face and yell obscenities as security pulled you out of the building." Cloud shrugged.

"Alright, wise guy. You punch him next time since it's not that big a deal." Noctis sat back and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Alright guys. Let's not fight about punching people." I chuckled, "Noctis, thank you for giving the ugly pup a black eye. Can we order our food now? I don't know about you two, but I'm starving."

With mumbles of agreement, we all scanned the menu and placed our order when the waitress came around with glasses of water. Cloud and Noctis fell into a conversation about the Security Department that I couldn't quite follow along with, but I paid attention nonetheless incase they gave me a juicy detail I could go to Zack about. SOLDIER and the Security Department we're always butting heads about which one is better and should get more funding. The Security Department believes that too much of Shinra's budget is put towards SOLDIER for our weapons, materia, and training simulations. While in SOLDIER, we don't really care what the budget is going towards, but it's always fun to get a rise out of some of the Security members. Being friends with Cloud and Noctis was a welcomed step away from the norm. We never fought over who gets the best stuff.

"Did you hear about what happened in SOLDIER?"

Two Shinra employees took the seats behind our booth, their voices were hushed, but I could still make out what they were saying. The mention of SOLDIER piqued my interest considering I haven't heard of anything happening lately. I kept my eyes focused on Cloud and Noctis, but my ears were open to the conversation behind me.

"Yeah, a lot of 2nds and 3rds just up and left, right? I wonder why. It's not like they don't get paid enough."

Que subtle eye roll from me. It has been rather quiet and empty lately. I assumed they were sending more people to Wutai since we were making headway in the war. My heart skipped when I thought about how I haven't seen Myrna for months. No… no she wouldn't desert SOLDIER. Not in a million years.

"You didn't hear who led the desertion? It was a 1st class. Can you believe it? A SOLDIER elite abandoned Shinra and took half the staff."

My fingers started drumming on the table. None of this sounded good, and too many things lined up that a part of me was still desperately hoping wasn't true. Cloud seemed to have noticed my sudden nervousness as he abandoned his conversation with Noctis and lightly elbowed my arm.

"Hey. You ok, Senna?" He asked.

I didn't answer him. I needed to hear more of this desertion and which 1st Class led the rest of my companions away.

"I just assumed it was one of the not well known 1sts since nothing much was mentioned in the news bulletin."

"No. The leader of the desertion was-"

Please don't say it…

"Genesis Rhapsodos."

The world around me crashed to a halt. My heart beat like a snare drum in my chest and I struggled to control my breathing. The drumming my fingers idly did on the table stopped as I balled my hand into a fist. My mind argued with the information it was just given. Myrna wouldn't leave. She wouldn't desert me or SOLDIER, not after how hard she's worked to get as far as she has. No. No no no no NO NO NO!

"Are you feeling ok, Senna?" Cloud's voice broke through my internal conflict and I realized that in my effort to control my breathing, I had stopped all together.

"You went white as a sheet. Like you saw a ghost or something." Noctis chimed in.

She wouldn't leave. She wouldn't leave. She wouldn't leave.

"I gotta go."

My legs bumped the table as I abruptly stood up. The glasses of water shook, droplets spilling out the top and landing on the table. Cloud steadied an almost tipped glass.

"We didn't even get our food yet, Sen." Noctis said.

I fished a handful of gil from my pocket and dropped it on the table, not bothering to count it.

"Split mine, or throw it out. This should be enough to cover all of us and a tip. Talk to ya later!" The words flew out of my mouth like a jet as I fast walked out of the restaurant.

Once the door closed behind me, I broke into a sprint towards Myrna's apartment building. People in the streets yelled obscenities and general insults as I shoved past them without so much as an excuse me. My eyes were just tunnel visioned towards my destination, there was nothing else in the world around me. I burst through the door to the lobby and ran up the stairs, skipping every other step, until I got to the third floor. My pace finally slowed when I got to her door and started pounding on the old wood.

"Myrna! Myrna open the door!" I yelled, "It's Senna! Please just open up!"

Nothing but silence on the other side. Not even a creak of wood settling into place. I didn't stop banging my fist on the door.

"Myrna!"

"Would you keep it down girl!" The neighbor across the hall shuffled out her door, curlers in her white hair and dawning a fuzzy pink bathrobe with matching open-toe slippers. The epitome of "cranky neighbor".

"I'm sorry." I apologized, taking a breath for once in the last few minutes, "I just need to talk to my friend. It's kind of urgent."

"Well she's not here. Turned in her key weeks ago."

"She what?" I asked dumbfounded.

"Yeah. She left. If you were her friend, you should have known that. Now keep it down." Shuffling back into her apartment, she slammed the door and locked it.

I looked back to the door to Myrna's apartment, practically willing it to open with her on the other side cracking jokes about her neighbor, but it stayed closed. With a huff, I reached into my pocket and pulled out my key ring. We both had a spare key to the other's apartment incase of emergencies, or if one of us got locked out. This situation definitely falls under an emergency, so I unlocked the door and flew it open.

Empty. Dark. Barren. Completely void of anything that was Myrna. The string lights she had hanging all over the walls were gone, as well as her colorful furniture that was really uncomfortable, but she insisted on having every color in the spectrum to liven up her place. There was nothing left but the bare beige walls and worn in grey carpet. Looking to the counter, a folded piece of paper caught my eye. My heartbeat quickened with every step I took towards it. Myrna's handwriting stood out like a sore thumb, even from a distance. I unfolded the note and read the only four words scrawled across the paper.

Don't search for me.

-M

Everything was moving in slow motion around me. My legs felt heavier with each step as I scraped my boots on the pavement. I wanted to head home, and I might be going in the right direction but I wasn't paying attention at all. The street lights buzzed in the silence of the back streets of Midgar. The only sound I could clearly hear. I tried to focus on it, to drown out the repeating thoughts running circles in my mind. She really left. Abandoned Shinra, SOLDIER, me. Just took off with Genesis with no rhyme or warning, only a note telling me not to look for her. Why? Why? Why did she leave? Why doesn't she want me to look for her? Why didn't she say anything to me?!

Tears welled in my eyes. I refused them the right to fall down my face by lifting my head and rapidly blinking until the tears dispersed. This was such a mess. Shaking my head, I pulled out my phone.

'Hey. I need some company. Are you free?'

Send.

Only a few seconds passed until the reply came through.

'Meet at the fountain?'

'Be there in five.'

I looked around for the nearest street sign and made my way towards the fountain.

Cloud's blonde hair stuck out among the crowd as he stood by the fountain holding a foam container. His eyes met mine and a smile crawled across his face. I couldn't stop myself from smiling back at him. The white noise and circling thoughts in my head slowed to a muffled halt as I approached him. He held the container out to me.

"We saved your food for you." He said, "Didn't feel right to eat it since it's your favorite and you basically paid for all of us."

"Thanks Cloud." I took the container, the food inside was still warm and I could smell the BBQ sauce inside.

"So, are you...ok?" He asked shyly and scratched the back of his head, "You left in a bit of a hurry. We were worried about you."

I avoided his eyes and flicked my fingers along the corners of the container, the circling thoughts slowly returning.

"Uh..yeah. Yeah I'm alright I just…"

I couldn't form a valid excuse that would sound like it was true. With a heavy sigh, I looked at him.

"No actually. Um.. something really bad happened today and I don't exactly want to talk about it right now if that's alright."

He nodded his head, "Yeah. No pressure."

I sat down on the edge of the fountain, awkwardly drumming my fingers on the container. Cloud sat next to me, his leg shaking up and down like he was nervous about something. I chuckled at his change in attitude.

"Are you ok?" I smiled.

"I was wondering." His leg stopped bobbing, but he kept his gaze to the ground. "If you're free sometime next week, if you'd wanna..do something together?"

"Something together? Like what?" I pushed, my cheeks turning a slight shade of pink.

Cloud coughed and cleared his throat. He mumbled a little to himself, I didn't catch what he said. He took a deep breath.

"I'd like to take you out...on a..date."

Finally he looked at me. His jaw was clenched shut, his eyes wide and searching my face for any sign of an answer. I sat there slightly slack jawed, my mind going blank. His face turned a darker shade of red with each passing moment that I didn't answer. With the day I've had so far, a date offer wasn't something I anticipated. Cloud looked away from me and stood up.

"I understand if you don't want to." He said quickly, "You probably have a lot going on and I shouldn't have asked, but I just-"

"Yes." I interrupted him before he could talk himself out of it. He went silent and stared at me. This whole exchange was awkward and not well planned, but a part of me wanted to do this and get to know him more. "Yes, I'd like to go on a date with you."

"Great." He nodded and slightly smiled. His cheeks were still red, but his eyes sparkled with excitement. "Next week then."

"Next week." I repeated, the smile never leaving my face.

"Yeah." This conversation wasn't getting any less awkward at all, but oddly enough, I was enjoying it. Just seeing the stars in his eyes and his smile drove away all the dark thoughts from earlier. I half wondered what was going through his mind right now. "Uh I gotta get going, but...next week."

"Bye Cloud." I giggled.

"Bye Senna." He looked at me a little while longer before turning to walk away.

I didn't want to look away from him, but my phone going off in my pocket forced my hand. I flipped it open, seeing Sephiroth's name flash on the screen.

"This is Senna." I answered my standard greeting.

"We leave for Wutai tomorrow. Be ready." He said coolly, his usual tone these days, and hung up the phone.

Shit… that's right. I've been so in my head all day that I forgot we were assigned to a mission in Wutai. Hopefully the last mission to Wutai. The war has gone on for so long that it almost seemed like a dream that this could be the end of it. I took one last glance in the direction Cloud went, seeing his yellow hair mold into the crowded street, then made my way home to pack up supplies.

The Next Day

The west gates of Fort Tamblin we're beautiful. Large stone pillars holding up two massive wooden doors with intricate designs carved into them. The fiends of their area stood as statues near the base, probably to ward off the actual thing, or to pose as a warning to outsiders meant to cause harm to their people. Such a beautiful structure. A piece of my heart ached as myself and another member of my group set hidden bombs around the perimeter. She was a 3rd Class, likely brand new by her attitude. We were probably everything that Shinra could scrounge up with what was left of SOLDIER. She stood guard for me while I set the timer on the bombs, a ready hand always by her weapon. I could hear the trembling in her breathing as she struggled to keep calm.

"Psst," I quietly called to her, "if you breathe any louder you're going to give away our position."

"S-Sorry." She stuttered, "It's my first real mission and I'm just nervous."

Clicking the last few buttons on the command pad, I quietly sighed. I understood her fear. The first mission is always the hardest. It's the defining moment in your career as SOLDIER, whether you'll be worthy of a promotion, or be stuck at the bottom cleaning up whatever mess Shinra wants you to. Once I closed the cover on the command pad, I turned to her, keeping any signs of sympathy out of my eyes.

"You're afraid, and you should be. This is war. It's violent, brutal, and depressing. That sucks that it's your first real mission, but you are SOLDIER. You're trained for this and you know what to do. If your enemy sees that you're afraid, you're dead as soon as they charge at you. Now take a breath, calm yourself, and be the SOLDIER that you were trained to be." I kept my voice low, but used the same tone that Sephiroth used when he lectured me. Out in the field there's no time to coddle someone until they feel ready. They have to be ready as soon as they step off the helicopter, but I couldn't stop myself from smiling at her and saying, "I got your back if anything goes wrong. You'll be alright."

She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath through her nose. Her trembling slowed, and her breathing became more even than it was before. I put my hand on her shoulder for some extra reassurance.

"We have one more to set up, and I need to count on you to have my back. Can I trust you?"

She only nodded, her eyes emotionless and focused. Just how they taught us in training. I was starting to see why some people in the slums called us dogs. We can react on command, change our personality with a snap of our fingers, and be as cruel and heartless as fiends. That's the price you pay when you want to be a member of the elite.

We continued along the gate, placing the last bomb behind a flower bush. A patrol unit passed by us while we were setting it, but they never looked towards the gate, only at the treeline opposite their territory. You would think they would have their heads on a swivel, but they were lazy and unfocused. This might not be as tough a mission as I thought if these were my opponents. Once they disappeared around the corner, I tapped my comrade's shoulder, a silent command to move, and we cautiously moved to the cover of the trees, where Sephiroth and the rest of B Unit was waiting. A small group of us, another 2nd class stayed close to Sephiroth, and another 3rd class next to him. While Zack and Angeal infiltrate the front gate, us five will be here making sure the brunt of the Wutai forces are after us.

"The bombs are set?" Sephiroth asked once we were safe in the shadows.

"Set and ready to go on your orders." I held the remote towards him, since he was the leader of our unit, it was his responsibility to hit the trigger.

He took the remote and waited. I'm sure Zack was getting antsy by now and was itching to get to work. I wish I could see his reaction right now. If he was doing squats to pass the time, I wouldn't put it past him. At least he had Angeal to keep him in line. I hadn't spent much time with Angeal, just the occasional chat if I passed by him somewhere in the building. Zack adored him though, talked about him all the time like he was his lifelong friend. A part of me wished that I had that kind of relationship with Sephiroth, but he was very clear on where we stood as mentor and student. He did warm up to me sometimes though.

The patrol unit rounded the corner. Sephiroth held his hand up behind him and I readied my sword, the others following my lead. The two Wutai troops laughed amongst each other, none the wiser as to what was about to happen as soon as they got close enough to the gate. I counted their steps, reaching fifteen when Sephiroth hit the trigger to the bombs, and the great wooden gates of Fort Tamblin were blown sky high in a fiery blaze. The aftershock rumbled the ground beneath me, threatening to throw off my footing.

"You know your orders. Take out any Wutai troops, no prisoners." He unsheathed his sword and once the dust settled, charged into the oncoming swarm of soldiers.

We followed behind him, blades raised, and only seeing our objective ahead of us. The Wutai troops fired their guns, showering us with bullets. One by one I blocked and cut through the metal spheres, continuing my charge. A group of six surrounded me, their spears aiming for my head and chest. As they closed in on me, I changed my grip on my blade and in one swift move, spun on my heel, and cut down three of my surrounding enemies. The remaining three charged me, their attacks coordinated and filled with fury. Sparks flew between our blades as they clashed, ringing in my ears. One strike after another, they showed no signs of letting up, and I couldn't stay on the defense forever. With the next attack, I swung my blade down on my opponent's, and grabbed the handle. In an instant, my palm filled with lightning, the electricity shocking the blades wielder. The shock forced them to let go of the blade, and I used it against them to strike them down, along with my own blade. Wielding both, I made quick work of my enemies. I dropped the stolen blade onto the bodies, and moved to my next battle. I put my materia to good use, taking advantage of slow and haste to take my enemies down faster. Some of them were able to counter my attacks by casting dispel, and I narrowly avoided the return spells. More and more Wutai troops came from the rubble, followed by their trained fiends. The fiends roared as they charged, teeth bared, and claws itching to cut me open. I took the fire materia from my arm and placed it on my sword. The blade covered in flames, I slashed down the fiends and any enemy in front of me.

Eventually, the sound of clashing blades faded into silence. Blood soaked my uniform and dripped down my blade. I stood still as stone for a while, just looking at the ground. With a quick breath, I turned back to my comrades. Everyone seemed ok, no major wounds, but there was a face missing. The 3rd class that guarded my back while I set the bombs. I walked over the rubble, careful to avoid stepping on the deceased laying all around me. I scanned their faces, their armor, hoping that she wasn't somewhere here. I stopped next to a broken sword, the same as mine. Shinra makes them in bulk for all the members of SOLDIER, unless you had the money to get a custom one made. Bullet holes covered her torso, and one large gash left open on her neck. Her eyes remained open, dull and lifeless, but still held the fearful expression she had before the end. I closed my eyes and looked away from her.

"Don't look away." Sephiroth said behind me.

"I didn't even know her name." I said solemnly.

"Probably for the best that you didn't." He lightly grabbed my shoulder, "We all meet our maker someday. It's no use wasting time on what could have been done or said. It's done. She's gone. There's nothing else you can do."

I huffed, shoved his hand off of me, and walked away from the rubble. He was right, even if I didn't want to admit it, there was nothing I could do for her. She fell in battle, a fitting end for any SOLDIER. I just wished it wasn't her very first mission outside of Midgar.

A flash of movement from the trees caught my attention. Three figures, covered in shadows, ran into the forest. That had to be more Wutai troops. I took off after them. They were fast, dodging the branches and exposed roots like they've done this hundreds of times. I almost couldn't keep up with them, until the treeline disappeared and exposed an open dirt road. They waited for me there. Helmets covered their faces and they carried strange curved blades. Two faced me, standing at the ready for a fight, the third kept their back to me like they were the leader of this trio.

These weren't Wutai troops.

The two charged me, no hesitation in their attacks, but they moved clumsily like rag dolls. I could spot every opening for a counterattack, but I made sure to keep a wary eye on the third figure that just stood there. What were they planning? The brief second I took to look towards the third figure gave one of the two attackers a chance to swing at my middle. I jumped back to avoid being cut, but also broke my stance. In the blink of an eye, the third figure appeared in front of me before my feet could even touch the ground. They carried a sword, almost like the one I had, but modified smaller for faster handling. I barely had enough time to block the oncoming blow with my sword, the impact threw me to the ground and I slid along the dirt and rocks. I quickly got back to my feet just in time to block another incoming attack from the third figure. The other two rushed me from the side to corner me in. Repeating my counter attack from the Wutai troops, I switched the grip on my sword and held it out as I spun on my heel. The two got the full force of the impact, falling to the ground in a sloppy heap. The third had blocked my attack like they knew it was coming. I pushed them back and swore I saw a lock of cherry red hair peek out from the helmet my opponent wore. Once they landed, I studied their stance, how they moved, what method of attack and defense they used. My heart stopped.

"Myrna?"

They stopped mid attack, the tip of their blade a centimeter away from my throat. I dropped my sword and tears fell from my eyes.

"Please tell me it's you." I whispered.

The blade lowered from my throat, leaving a tiny scratch behind. Ever so slowly, they removed the helmet, and long locks of red hair swayed in the breeze. I broke into a sob as Myrna looked at me.

"Oh my god.. I was so afraid that you were hurt!" I cried, "What are you doing? Why did you leave?"

I stepped towards her, and she stepped back. There was no emotion in her eyes as she stared at me, like she was a phantom.

"Myrna please. Talk to me." I begged, "What's going on?"

A tiny smirk spread over her lips. Before she could say anything, a gunshot sounded through the forest next to us. She blocked the oncoming bullet and took off into the trees.

"Myrna!" I yelled.

"Senna!" Sephiroth came out of the trees, followed by two infantrymen, "We need to leave."

"Why did you shoot at her?!" I ignored him and set my sights on the infantrymen.

The two looked at each other, unsure of what to say. I stepped towards them, my hands balled into fists at my side. They backed away, remaining silent.

"Senna!" Sephiroth boomed, a tone he rarely uses. "It's time to leave."

"But Myrna-"

"Is gone. She ran off, and she was going to kill you." He said matter of factly.

"No she wasn't. She would never…" I trailed off. This wasn't real, it couldn't be real. Myrna would never hurt me, let alone kill me, but the way she fought… it was almost like she did want to. No, no not Myrna.

"Your brother is waiting for you by the helicopter. I suggest you don't keep him waiting."

I nodded silently, and walked to the helicopter with my head hanging low.

Zack was sitting in the helicopter when I got there. He was slumped over in the seat and didn't say a word to me when I climbed on board. The pilot took off and headed back to Midgar.

"Angeal is gone." Zack said lowly.

I couldn't find the words to say. I know how you feel wouldn't be the best choice, so I just laid my head on his shoulder.

"Myrna is too." One last tear fell from my eye.