NEW CHAPTER
NEW CHAPTER!! Sorry it took so long to post the new one! Been real busy lately with classes and other poopy stuff. Well I devoted the rest of my night to writing and posting the new chapter. Hope you like it. Thanks for reading and the reviews. Also, thanks to those of you who checked out my art. I got another one up in scraps that I plan on coloring soon, hopefully it'll look better. Please have patience with me…right now I am a sloth. For those of you who haven't checked out the work go to this: annubis123./ :this should take you to my page. All right, let's get typing.
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, Squaresoft does.
Chapter Seven
Zack rushed his way up the stairs and to the upper floors of the ship that had taken him to Costa del Sol, cursing himself the whole time for his weakness. He passed many fallen guards who appeared to be killed by none other than the sword that Sephiroth would wield.
"How? How is that man still alive? I just don't understand how Sephiroth could've lived after the Nibelheim incident. Why did he show up now? Where has he been the last five years?" Zack ran across the grated floor and out into the open. No Shinra guard appeared to be in sight. He did not want to stick around to find out if any of them survived. Zack quickly hopped over the edge of the boat and darted across the port, heading for the beach. On his way, he noticed a rather large cruise ship ported next to the President's.
"That might explain why the bodies were left on the ship. Shinra didn't want to cause panic throughout Costa del Sol. Wouldn't want to ruin everyone's vacation…" Zack scoffed as he carried on towards the beach. There was a gentle breeze that swept through the area. Zack enjoyed the view; bright blue skies, large, puffy white clouds, the warm, tan sand, the crashing waves, and the young ladies clad in their bikinis.
"Yup…I could definitely get used to this place." Zack walked amongst the crowd of tourists. All of the beach bunnies walked by, staring at Zack. He could feel himself blush. "I need to find Aeris!" He quickly gave up on the beach, knowing that AVALANCHE would not be taking a vacation, but chasing after their fiend, Sephiroth. Zack rushed throughout the town, being brought to the exit. He wished he knew how long he had been on the boat. From the looks of it, they had not been around for a while.
"Did you hear!?" A young, tan woman ran up to her short, plump friend. "They say that Sephiroth was here!" The girl whispered to her friend.
"WHAT!?" Her plump friend jumped with surprise.
"SHHH! Keep it down! We can't talk too loud; they don't want the tourists to panic. He is long gone by know." The young woman waved her hand in front of her face.
"How did you find out?" The plump figure leaned in towards her friend.
"Well…there was this cute guy at the bar. He looked distraught about something and I happened to get it out of him. That is why I am not supposed to say anything. But it doesn't matter, the news was on and there were numerous reports of sightings. People are calling in, saying they have seen Sephiroth in the Mt. Corel/ North Corel region. I bet this place will go up in a panic any time soon. Maybe we should head back to our room! I don't want to be caught down here when people freak out, thinking the Great Sephiroth is going to appear and cause trouble." The young woman walked towards the Costa del Sol beach house. Her plump friend was by her side. Their constant chatter faded quickly and took on another subject.
"Mt. Corel…Looks like I have a long day ahead of me." Zack slid on his sunglasses and headed South East towards Mt. Corel.
Theme park music rang loudly into Sephiroth's ears. All the neon lights flashed across his face. He hated loud, bright locations. They reminded him of game shows. Sephiroth trudged towards the entrance of the dreadful park.
"Hello Sir! Welcome to the Gold Saucer! What type of pass will you like to purchase today?" A bubbly girl with blonde hair bobbed her head with every word she made. It made Sephiroth sick. Her small frame, blonde hair, and gestures reminded him of Scarlet.
"…Just passing through." Sephiroth walked right by the ticket booth and through the entrance.
"Wait!! Sir! You have to pay!" The girl ran towards the tall, dark man. Sephiroth quickly turned, pulling out his sword. He stood facing the girl, aiming his Masamune at her throat. He could see her gulp with fear. That look was priceless. He loved it when he put someone in their place. He loved the look of fear.
"Y-you're the Great Sephiroth, aren't you!?" The girl fell backwards, landing on his backside rather hard. She made a sound of discomfort as her rear landed on the cold cement. She looked like she was about to cry. "Please, Sir! I-I didn't know! I-I was just doing my job! I'll get fired if I…" She hung her head. Sephiroth rolled his eyes.
'Humans are so weak…' He sheathed his sword and turned on his heal, heading for his next destination. He made it to the round entrance that contained the tunnels that would take him to any location in the park. He looked around, searching for the right hole.
"GAH!" Sephiroth fell to his knees. He held onto his stomach and leaned forward. A loud screeching screamed into his brain. "Wha- What is this!?" He lifted his hands slowly to his head, trying to gain comfort from all the pain. The sound only got louder and his body began to ache feverishly. He looked around, seeing if anyone was near.
'I detect a disturbance within your thoughts…' Jenova's voice echoed as the screeching reached higher levels.
'Mother! Where…are you going?' Jenova's presence seemed to leave him. Sephiroth's eyes unglazed slightly. He felt like a heavy weight was being lifted from him.
'Don't you dare lose connection with me! You need me to survive! You're nothing without me!' Jenova hissed. 'There seems to be a stronger force approaching. It is getting stronger by the minute, I fear he will reach you soon… you must leave immediately! Go to Nibelheim. The clones will follow.' Sephiroth felt the pain dissipate and heard the screeching turn into a soothing purr. His eyes glazed over once more.
"Is the clone near? No…Cloud isn't that strong. He has never been able to do this! This is a stronger power…Another of Hojo's failed experiments?" Sephiroth slowly stood up. Strands of silver hair remained in his face. "It can't be..."
The sound of his boots echoed through the corridor and down the tunnel, towards the nearest exit that would lead him towards his next location, Nibelheim.
"I'm an Ancient…no one can defeat me." His laughter echoed throughout the tunnels, reigning over all the music that boomed through the park.
"Why don't you just get outta here!?" Barret was surrounded by the civilians of Corel.
"Yeah, don't you think you've caused enough trouble!?" Some of them held their fists out, getting ready to fight with the giant man. Barret stood in place, taking it all in.
"Hey! What the hell is going on!?" Cloud darted between Barret and the villagers. He held his arms out, pushing two men away from his friend.
"It's Ok….You heard 'em…it's my fault the town was…destroyed…" Barret hung his head.
"Barret, what happened?" Aeris put a delicate hand on the strong man's shoulder. He twitched under her touch.
"Sorry …" He shook his head. All the villagers left to continue their work.
"What happened?" Cloud folded his arms.
"My hometown used to be around here." Barret sunk even lower. He wanted to disappear.
"What do you mean 'used to'?" Red approached the man.
"It ain't here no more. Heard it got buried…in just four years."
"But how could those people say those terrible things?" Aeris shook her head.
"Ah…It's my fault. All my fault…" Barret sat down on the dust and rocks beneath his feet. "My hometown, Corel, It was a mining town. Small town it was. It was so dusty, calm and peaceful. It was the first time I heard the word 'Mako Reactor'." Barret continued his story. He told his friends of how Shinra wanted to use the reactor for Mako. Barret did not mind the idea at first because he wanted to take care of his wife, who was on her deathbed. Life was going to be easier. Shinra, however, blamed the people for an explosion that occurred, stating it was a rebel group. He and his friend, Dyne went through so much trouble. Dyne was killed by the Shinra soldiers. Barret was holding onto his hand, trying to lift him up from the edge of the cliff that he had fallen off of. The machine guns made contact with both of the man's arms, sending Dyne to his death. The entire town was burned down and Barret's wife had died.
"That's terrible…" Tifa covered her face.
"Well I guess that's true. But more than Shinra I couldn't forgive myself. Never shoulda gone along with the building of the reactor."
"Don't blame yourself. We were all fooled by the promises Shinra made back then." Tifa sat next to Barret.
"That's why…that's why I get so pissed off! Not only did they take advantage of me… but I lost my wife, Myrna, too…" Barret covered his face.
"Hey, everyone! If you want to get to the 'Gold Saucer' hurry and get on." The conductor of the Ropeway opened the doors. Everyone slowly headed for the blue vehicle.
"Dyne was my best friend. We was so close ever since we was kids…" Barret followed the rest of the group.
The propellers of the Ropeway spun quickly and sped off towards the Gold Saucer. The group sat quietly. Barret's story was not a happy one. And the fact that they were going to a theme park did not calm the mood since they were searching for Sephiroth. Everyone readjusted themselves in their seats, they all were apparently uncomfortable. Cloud stared out the windows and watched the bright lights as they lit up the sky. The neon pinks and yellows reflected off of his Mako eyes. The sound of music quickly rang into the silence of the cab. The sights and sounds were overwhelming at first. The Ropeway came to an abrupt stop. They all exited, Yuffie leading the way.
"Whoa! Check out this place!" Yuffie jumped up and down. "Oh boy! This is gonna be great!"
"It's not a vacation…" Red XIII rubbed against her legs.
"Party-pooper!" Yuffie stuck her tongue out at the creature. Red stared at her and then looked towards the ticket booth. Cloud purchased the one day pass, the other was more than everyone's gil put together.
"Robbery…" Cloud muttered to himself as he passed out the tickets.
"Wow! Let's have fun! I know this isn't the right time to do this." Aeris turned to Barret. "Hey Barret, cheer up!" Aeris hopped in front of the man and leaned forward.
"I ain't in no cheery mood. So jes' leave me alone." Barret crossed his arms and stuck out his chest.
"Really? That's too bad." Aeris turned away quickly and faced Cloud. "Let's go!" She wrapped her arm around his. Tifa approached Aeris.
"Wasn't that a little harsh, Aeris!?" Tifa whispered to her.
"Just act normal when this happens." Aeris whispered back.
"You think so…?" Tifa looked back at Barret with concern.
"Of course!" She yelled out loud. She looked back at Barret too. "We're gonna go play…"
"So PLAY! Messin' around &! Don't forget we're after Sephiroth!" Barret ran ahead to Wonder Square.
"I think he's mad." Aeris glanced at Tifa.
"He'll be fine. He seems to be doing a little better now. Be careful, Sephiroth might be around." Tifa turned and looked at the tunnels.
"I wish we could just forget everything and have fun!" Aeris looked around the room. Cloud and Aeris headed for the arcade. Tifa ran into the virtual fighter room.
"Hey you! What're you lookin' so down for!?" A giant Mog with a black and white cat approached Cloud and Aeris. How 'bout it? Want me to read your fortune!? A bright future! A happy future! Oh, but don't hold it against me if it's not a great prediction!" The cat yelled through a mega phone. He quickly brought it down and smiled at the two.
"Huh?" Cloud glanced at Aeris.
"Oh, so sorry. I'm a fortune telling machine. The name's Cait Sith!" The cat held out his hand.
"You can only read the future?" Cloud shook the cat's hand.
"You kiddin'?! I can find missing things, missing people, anything!" Cait Sith waved his arms through the air with enthusiasm.
"Then can you tell me where a man named Sephiroth is?" Cloud's eye's bulged out.
"Sephiroth, right!? Okay, here goes!" Cait Sith's giant Mog body swayed back and forth. A ticket popped out of the Mog's body with a pleasant 'ding'. He handed Cloud the ticket.
"…Ordinary luck. It will be an active fortune. Give into the goodwill of others and something big'll happen after summer. Wait…what's this!?" Cloud shoved the ticket in the cat's face.
"Huh? Let me try again." Cait Sith did his little jig again and handed Cloud the new ticket.
"Be careful of forgetfulness. Your lucky color is…blue?...Forget it." Cloud dropped the ticket to the floor.
"Wait, Wait give me another chance! Wait, let me try it again!" Cait Sith swayed even faster and gave Cloud the new ticket once again.
"What the!?" Cloud glanced at Aeris.
"What?" She looked at the ticket.
"What you pursue will be yours. But you will lose something dear." Cloud glared at Cait Sith.
"I don't know if it's a good thing or bad…This is the first time I ever got something like this!" Cait Sith grabbed the ticket. His beady, cat pupils dilated. He looked at Cloud. "Then, shall we?" He smiled and purred with delight.
"What're you talking about?" Aeris stared at the cat.
"As a fortune teller, I can't help but think about this. If I don't see what it leads to, I won't be able to relax. That's why I'm going with you!" The cat jumped up and down.
"What're we going to do, Cloud?" Aeris held onto Cloud's arm.
"I'm comin' with you no matter what you say!" Cait Sith pushed the two towards Battle Square.
"H-Hey!" Cloud looked back at the giant Mog. They jumped down the hole towards Battle Square. Aeris and Cloud lightened up a little.
'I guess it wouldn't hurt to have another with us. We'll need all the help we can get.' Cloud smiled at Aeris. 'No matter what the situation is, she stays so calm.' Cloud admired her.
Cloud's smile quickly faded. A Shinra troop came stumbling out of the building. He walked towards the group and fell at Cloud's feet. Cloud checked for a pulse.
"Dead…" Cloud shook his head. He clenched his teeth and darted towards the stairs. He was seething.
"What!? Why!? Cloud!? Where are you going!?" Aeris ran after Cloud. Cait Sith followed the group into the Battle Arena. The sight wasn't pretty. Dead soldiers covered the floor. Blood pooled from beneath them.
"Did Sephiroth do this? No, it's not him….They're all shot!" Cloud turned towards Aeris. "Sephiroth would never use a gun!"
"Ugh…" A receptionist crawled out from under her desk. Cloud ran to her side.
"Hey, what happened?" He helped her up.
"Ugh…A man with a gun…on his arm…" She held a hand up to her forehead.
"It can't be!" Aeris balled her hands into fists and held them against her cheeks. She was horrified.
"Hold it right there and stay quiet!" A Shinra MP ran into the room and pointed his gun at the group. More MPs followed, along with the owner of the Gold Saucer, Dio.
"Did you guys do this?!" Dio approached Cloud.
"N…No! It wasn't us!" Cloud looked around the room.
"Hurry and run, it's gonna get ugly." Cait Sith told Cloud. The three ran into the battle room, looking for a means of escape.
"Hold it! That's as far as you go!" Dio snapped his fingers. Robots entered the room and surrounded the small group.
"Wait! Listen to…" Cloud failed to get the man's attention. More robots entered as the MPs covered the exits. Cloud batted at them with his sword.
"There's no need to listen, pay for your crime down below!! Do it!" Dio pointed at the furthest MP. The MP pressed the switch next to him. The floor beneath Cloud, Aeris, and Cait Sith's feet opened up. They fell into darkness.
"Oh…What a dump." Zack finally made it to Mt. Corel. He walked across the train tracks. "I just hope that there are no trains. I don't think this thing could support one. And I certainly don't wanna encounter one." He took one last step before hearing a loud cracking noise.
'Oh, shit…'
Zack fell through the tracks. The fall seemed endless. There was no way he would survive the fall if he did not do something.
'No chocobo to save you this time!' Zack reached out and grabbed the ledge of one of the broken support beams of the bridge. He pulled and flipped upwards, balancing on the beam. He leaned against the vertical beam and rested his head against it.
"Whew! That was Close…now I gotta get back up there!" Zack whined. A low growling sounded from above. "That…doesn't sound good." Five large bombs flew towards Zack. As they ran into each other, they hit the beams next to them, starting many fires. The debris flew down along with them.
'Must've woken them up from all the noise I made.' Zack darted forward, jumping from beam to beam. The bombs ran into his sides, knocking him off and onto the beams below. Zack sliced and swung his sword, killing one of the bright red fire bombs. The other ones grew in anger.
"This is gonna be a pain!" Zack jumped up and grabbed a horizontal beam above him. He hoisted himself up just as a bomb flew towards his legs. It flew above him rather quickly. Zack jumped and kicked it across its monstrous face. The bomb flew back a hundred yards, breaking every beam in its path. It exploded upon contact with another bomb that had fallen behind, sending the other one to its death also. Zack mentally hit himself. 'I'm gonna end up bringing down the entire train bridge if I keep this up!'
"Ahh!!" A bomb hit the rafter beneath Zack's feet. It growled and spun beneath him. Flames burst through its surface, getting ready to sacrifice itself to rid the place of Zack. As fast as he could, Zack jumped into the air and reached for the overhead beam. He flung himself into the air, climbing upwards as the bomb exploded. The force of the blow sent Zack spiraling upwards. He crashed into the beams overhead, splinters crushed into his body.
"Ugh…Is it over yet?" Zack looked up and realized he had a few more levels to go before he made it back to the top of the train bridge. He looked around, searching for the fifth bomb. "Maybe it ran away in fear." Zack chuckled to himself as he quickly climbed the rest of the way to the top. He pulled himself up and looked around. No monsters were in view. Zack smiled and ran the rest of the way across the train bridge, skipping over the holes that would send him back below. He was almost across when the dreadful growl sounded once again.
"Where is it?" Zack looked around. The last bomb flew in front of Zack, blocking his path to North Corel. Zack glared at the bomb. "Son-of-a…" He realized that the bomb was full grown. It waited for Zack to attack so it could explode and take Zack down with it. Zack and the bomb stared at each other. Everything was silent. A gentle breeze blew, followed by the cry of a chocobo off in the distance, and that was the sign. Zack was sent sprinting in the bomb's direction. The ball of flames flew towards its enemy, growing even larger, getting ready to blow. Zack leaped into the air, flipping over the bomb, twisting and spiraling. He swung his sword behind his back as he landed, hitting the monster. As soon as his feet met the ground, he dove and somersaulted away from the bomb. In a split second there was a flash of light and the bridge and ground blew out from underneath Zack's feet, followed by a loud erupting sound. Zack flailed his arms in a desperate attempt to grab the ledge. He grabbed a nearby boulder that was protruding from the face of the cliff. He clung on to the rock for his life. He slowly pulled himself up, small embers falling behind and above him. Zack safely made it up the face of the cliff. He rolled over and flopped onto the grass.
"Wow…that was enough excitement for one day…" Zack pulled himself up and began walking the rest of the way to North Corel. "Can't rest yet, gotta keep on moving." Zack continued walking and whined out loud.
"WHY ME!?" He hung his head low. His black bangs hanging over his charred face. He had soot and black powder all over his skin. "I look like a mess." He made his way to the rope bridge that would take him to Corel. Zack cringed; he had enough of bridges for one day. He sprinted across it, avoiding any conflict that would have occurred if he took his sweet time. He did not dare to even look back.
"Finally!" Zack stumbled over the loose pebbles in the dirt of North Corel.
'Man…people actually live here?' Zack felt sorry for the villagers. He watched as they dug in the rock, their clothes covered with dirt and torn. He made his way across the tiny village, ignoring the rude looks and stares he received. He walked up to the platform of the Ropeway. The conductor smiled at him.
"Good evening sir. You planning on going to the Gold Saucer?" A short, thin woman with brown curly hair stared at him with her dull grey eyes.
"Yeah…I have to catch up with some friends." Zack leaned against the booth.
"Oh! Well you're in luck! This is the last trip the Ropeway will be making tonight!" The girl opened the doors to the cab. "All aboard!" She giggled. Zack gave her a friendly smile and got into the cab. He sank into the dark leather seat and sighed.
'I haven't had any rest all day.' The propellers started running and lifted Zack towards the amusement park. Zack closed his eyes.
"Might as well get some rest. Nothing I can do while I am in here."
Aeris was humming to herself while she tended to her precious flowers. Zack watched her quietly. She would be in the garden for hours, completely oblivious to the world around her. Zack watched her delicate touch. Her golden bracelets clanged together as she fed her beauties. Zack remembered the day he bought her those bracelets. It was for their year anniversary. She was upset because the Turks had been bothering her all day. He had hugged her and sat her on the bench next to her flowers and handed her a package.
'Her eyes lit up when she say the bracelets.' Zack smiled as the memory passed. Aeris had never received any real jewelry. Her mother never had much money and Aeris was always too modest to buy anything for herself. She always spent all her money on the flowers and on groceries for her and her mother. Zack wanted to give her something special.
"What are you staring at?" Aeris tilted her head at Zack. She stood up and walked over to him.
"Just you…" He watched her as she gracefully twirled before him. Her hair was up in a partial ponytail. The typical pink ribbon planted on top with the green orb present as well. Zack reached for Aeris wrist and pulled her towards him.
"Hey!" she giggled and glanced over her shoulder.
"You…Pay more attention to those flowers than you do me!" Zack gently placed her on his lap.
"They need lots of tender love and care! They are delicate. It takes a lot of work!" Aeris turned her head back to look at her boyfriend. She had a few strands of hair in her eyes. Zack brushed them away.
"I need love and care too…I'm delicate." Zack pouted. His blue eyes turned into glass as fake tears welled up.
"Oh you! You're SOLDIER First Class! Not…a flower!" She poked Zack on the nose. She admired his black hair. The dark colors brought out his pale blue eyes, accentuating his best feature.
"I am a wild flower!" Zack tugged at Aeris' gardening gloves. She helped him take them off and then leaned against his chest. Zack leaned forward, resting his chin on her shoulder. He closed his eyes, resting against her form.
"You're the rarest flower of them all…" Aeris turned and kissed Zack on the cheek.
The Ropeway came to an abrupt stop, thudding against the side walls. Zack sat upright. He heard no music. Everything seemed dead. He did hear the sound of loud voices, as if there were trouble brewing. Zack hopped out of the cab and ran towards the entrance of the Gold Saucer. He saw a girl at the ticket booth, talking with a bunch of customers and workers.
"What's going on?" Zack pulled off his sunglasses and slid them into his jacket pocket.
"Sephiroth! Sephiroth is here! And right after he showed up, this other group came and started busting up the Shinra soldiers! They killed them all!" The girl put her hands on Zack's shoulders. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you in. It's too dangerous."
"Tell me about the group that showed up. Was there a man with blonde, spiky hair and bright blue eyes?" Zack looked at the entrance.
"Yeah…there was. He had a large sword too and a weird dog-thing! It talked too! I didn't know what to charge it for admission!" The girl held herself upright. She looked like she was going to be sick. "Anyways, this group shows up and then all the Shinra soldiers are shot down and dead. The group was immediately arrested and is currently in the desert prison. You know them?" Zack nodded and walked towards the entrance.
"You can't go in there!"
"You're crazy!" All the customers and workers chased after him.
"Stay back! I don't need any conflict with you! I've had enough trouble today!" Zack glared at the group, his eyes glowing ferociously. He turned and walked inside the Gold Saucer, pulling out his sword.
'Looks like things are going to get worse from here on…' Zack tapped the sword against his shoulder.
Whew. Another chapter posted. Sorry for the delay. I still have tons of notes for this chapter but it was just going to take way too long! Ill continue in the next chapter. Don't worry, I'll post ASAP! Not as much humor in here as the previous chapters. Things may get a little more serious from here on. But please continue reading! I hope it is still interesting! Please Review! I like lots of reviews! Thanks for reading!