Cloud was aware that he was moving, though obviously not through his own doing. He could hear everything as though he were on the other side of a wall. Muffled, distorted, far away. Zack was the only constant. He was not aware of how long it had taken him to recognize the cheerful tone of the older man's voice, but even well before he recognized it, he clung to it as a lifeline. When he first became aware of his consciousness, the blonde could not have found the words to describe how it felt. Before he could feel, there had only been blackness, and nothing before that. No matter how hard he tried, there was no recollection of anything before the darkness. The only thing he knew, even before he had the presence of mind to recognize he was a physical being, was that there was a friendly, albeit unintelligible voice grounding him to existence. Awareness was fleeting at best, the seconds, minutes or hours in between each instance of knowing were filled with darkness. Each time one of these moments of comprehension came to him, they rode on the back of comforting sounds in that same tone. Even though he could not comprehend its source or meaning, the sound on the other side of the wall of consciousness brought with it a warmth he did not feel within the dark prison. Eternity perhaps, was too powerful a word to describe the imprisonment inside his mind, but stars could have died and been reborn, the universe could have succumbed and reset, and Cloud would have had no greater awareness of anything within this void. Anything but the voice.

He did not have any concept of how many times he had heard the voice before he could understand who it was, it could have been the first time, it could have been the last, his memories did not seem to work in a linear fashion. Zack. There was no image that could be joined with the voice, just emotions when he thought of the word. Zack meant happiness. Zack meant sadness. Zack meant fear. Zack meant hope. The litany of emotions did not cross his consciousness is any concise or understandable manner; they simply were and were not at all times associated with the sounds. Still no words could be deciphered through the dark walls of his prison; but the sounds began to become akin to dreams, even when his consciousness was buried deep. The longer he listened, the clearer the sounds became, and he could eventually determine words. It was slow at first, the sounds still came through to him in a muffled and distorted manner, but occasionally a word would ring clearly. His name was the first clear word he could recall, and though at the time he did not understand that he was Cloud, the word clearly meant a lot to Zack, therefore it meant a lot to him. It could have been minutes, or it could have been years, but Cloud and Zack were the only two clear words in his mind as he struggled to gain some sort of understanding of what he was. Dare he say who? Though there were other words that would eventually come to him, if only because Zack would often use them with as much fervor as he would the word Cloud. SOLDIER. Aerith. Angeal. Gongaga.

There were moments of clarity when Zack would relay stories to him, telling him fantastical tales of absurdity and heroics, that distilled within a sense of hope and helped paint a picture at the kind of person Zack was. There were other stories too, complex and painful, that caused pain when Cloud tried to hold onto the words which slipped through his mind. Throughout all this though, the most powerful word was one that filled Cloud with fire and pain; and whenever the SOLDIER spoke of it, it was said with great sadness and bitterness. Sephiroth. It was through this word that Cloud finally became aware of his body, it caused such pain in his mind that he physically reacted to it, and all of a sudden, he became aware of the cool breeze that kissed his skin, the heat from the sun above, and even the hard earth below him. This awareness did not last long; but that insight provided him with more ground, gave him something more to fight for. Every day the outside world became clearer to him. No longer did it sound like he was trapped behind a veil that prevented him from hearing the outside world; things came in clear, and as inane as some of the chatter Zack would have with his comatose body could be, he absorbed every word of it. There were moments of darkness, when he would succumb to unconsciousness, but those were becoming fewer and far between. There was still no control over his body, but his awareness was elating, after such a long time trapped within the deepest recesses of his own mind, to feel the sun and the breeze and to hear the world around him was simply a comfort. His vision was still clouded, as though staring through frosted glass; but shapes and colors were apparent to him.

The heat had become unbearable as of late, he could feel it burning the back of his neck, which hurt enough from the bumpiness of the ride. Initially, Zack had been holding onto him so that he would not be bouncing around, but after a while, he had been left to his own devices as the blurry figure of the SOLDIER First Class stood with one foot up against the side of the truck bed and a handheld over his eyes to shade them from the sun. He was gazing out over the wasteland talking loudly about all his plans when they were going to arrive in Midgar. They were going to start a mercenary business, he was going to teach Cloud everything he knew about being an honorable fighter, they were going to travel the world. Of course, this was all after he met up with Aerith and took her out on this date he always spoke about. Normally, the cheerful tales of his companion would lift the weight of his situation from his shoulders, if only temporarily, but today he felt different. Though the overwhelming heat of the sun bore down upon them; the air was heavier, and the humidity seemed to make each breath unbearable. There was a storm coming. If Zack noticed, he did not show it, simply carrying on in his usual laissez-faire manner, his hair whipping wildly in the wind as the truck continued its path. The last thing he had recalled before he had ended up in the truck was Zack carrying him, the arms of the smaller man wrapped around his neck, they were travelling at night, or maybe underground, the darkness and damp smell could have been indicators of either. Zack had been solemnly explaining the situation to Cloud as they traipsed onward. Four years of experimentation and torture under the watchful eyes of Hojo, a name the blonde did not recognize, but even if the vitriol had not been present in his companion's voice, Cloud would have known to hate it.

The two syllables brought him great pain; his head throbbed violently as images flashed through the darkness of his mind. A blank face, broken only by two black holes that stared at him endlessly, the pale flesh colored green by whatever it was that filled the tank that contained him. The image faded, accompanied by a mad giggling laughter that filled his head while a bright light began to push away the darkness, blinding him. He wanted to close his eyes, but they were being forced open by some sort of metal that dug into his cornea, tears unconsciously blurring his sight. His lungs were filled with liquid, they burned endlessly as he tried to draw in breath, the figures moving in his peripheral vision did nothing but watch him struggle against the bonds that restrained him. No matter how hard and fast he tried to draw in breath, he remained on the verge of unconsciousness as the liquid prevented him from drawing in enough oxygen. Their cold conversation was buzzing in his ears as he tried to scream for help but could not find the air or energy. Each breath, more of the liquid was coughed from his lungs, some spilled down his cheeks, most was inhaled once more as he drew in his panic. He felt the cold bite of a scalpel entering the pectoral muscle above his heart, as he bucked his body against the pain of the blade and the lack of breathing, he felt the surgical instrument scrape against bone and he could hear the disapproving murmuring of the scientists that surrounded him. The blank face moved over his own, Cloud stared into those endless voids and lost himself as the image faded again accompanied by the sound of metal scraping against bone as a new image began to form. The flickering fluorescent was so dim, if it were not for the shape blocking the light, he may not have noticed it. His body refused to listen to his commands, he could not even move his eyes to look directly at the figure, but he knew the voice.

"It'll be alright Cloud, I got you"

The words rang in his ears and the image faded into light this time as the image of Zack with one foot against the truck bed came back into view. Cloud could feel his heartbeat in his ears as he tried to fight off the anxiety and fear that had come with the faceless man. Hojo. His insides writhed at the thought of the name again. As quick as the memories had come, they began to fade, he was struggling to hold those pictures in his mind as they slipped away, only a sickly pale blank face, eyeless holes forever staring remained. The black-haired SOLDIER First Class appeared to notice the discomfort in the body of the blonde, as he removed his foot from the edge of the truck bed and squat down next to him, concern filled his voice.

"Hey Cloud? Nightmares? I can't do anything about that, but let me tell you about the time I met Aerith..."

As the SOLDIER First Class spoke, the anguished emotions caused by the memories began to fade. He listened intently to the tale, riding the emotional wave of the tale as he spoke of Angeal and his transformation and eventual fall, and then of his own fall into the slums. Cloud was unsure of whether or not the fall was one of those embellishments that he suspected Zack to be so fond of when he told these stories, but he was impressed by his storytelling, nonetheless. Any feelings of loss that had been in his voice when he last spoke of Angeal were erased when he described opening his eyes. Zack had described Midgar many times to Cloud over the course of the past year on the run. The smells had always been something of a sticking point for him, as the entire city smelled overwhelming of sewage and mako, and for someone with heightened senses, he maintained that this was overwhelming for him, and felt as though he was walking around incomplete, as "a good SOLDIER uses all of his senses to maintain awareness". There was an amused authority to the inflection he placed on the voice when he spoke that last sentence. When he awoke after the fall, he thought he had died. The usual acrid smell of the city was gone, instead the aromatic perfume of flowers made his nose twitch before he ever opened his eyes. He was in pain, but he felt calm and at ease. He hesitated to open his eyes to see what the other side looked like, but an angelic voice called out to him.

Hey... Are you going to sleep all day? You're going to have to help me clean this up

Zack practically vibrated with energy as he talked about paying Aerith with a date, and he quickly veered off from his story about what happened when they met into how excited he was to see her and what he was going to do when they met up again. For a moment he soured, asking himself what he would do if she had met someone else, but then he quickly pivoted back into excitement saying it would not matter, and that he would easily win her back. Cloud had been in a coma for a few years now, and somehow Zack still managed to make him feel tired. He moved his hands excitedly, until his left hand snapped back to the hilt of his Buster Sword, and he looked off into the distance. With his free hand, he slapped the roof of the truck waiting for the farmer who was driving them to roll his window down.

"Hey old man, pull over here, I feel like taking a walk"

His tone was neutral, but Cloud had been listening to the SOLDIER for long enough to realize this meant trouble. Zack was an expressive person, be it good or bad, he was over the top and reactive. For him to be so far removed from his usual self so quickly was a concern. The blonde felt hands shuffle him from his position to a standing position, one arm wrapped around his side. Zack pulled him from the truck, and they watched the truck drive off into the distance, the sound of helicopters could be heard echoing across the wasteland. All things considered, Zack moved carefully, attempting to keep them out of sight and moving. A few of the helicopters followed the truck as it kicked up dust on its way to Midgar, they were likely going to arrest the driver, for which the SOLDIER felt a little guilty, but his attention was reigned back in as he heard the voices of troopers overhead. The next few minutes from Cloud's perspective were confusing and frightening, his companion did his best to ensure that his comatose body was well protected from the environment, but the jostling and movement could not be helped. The voices of troopers rang out as the pair was discovered as Zack dragged his comatose friend up a rockface. A helicopter shone a light down upon the two as troopers began to descend to the plateau.

"Ah well, time to be a hero"

As Zack pulled the two of them up to the top of the cliffside, he found himself a large boulder and gently placed cloud down with his back against it as the ShinRa troopers began to surround the area, the transport helicopters evacuating to a safe distance now their charges had been dropped off. Cloud stared directly ahead. Zack was close enough now for him to get a good look with his usually blurred vision. It was only a moment, but the blonde took his chance to memorize his features, from each individual spike of black hair to the scar on his left cheek. Even with the odds stacked against them, the older man had a smile on his face.

"Stay right here Cloud, I'll ask them nicely to leave us alone"

The sound of retreating footsteps slowly faded, and Cloud heard nothing for what felt like an eternity. He flinched hard as a cool drop of rain splashed against his nose. His eyes focused for a moment as he crossed them to look at his nose, feeling the strain of moving them for the first time in a long time. His arm twitched, then with extraordinary effort, he managed to bring a shaking hand to his face to wipe away the rain drop. Countless more began to fall, each cool drop on his skin fueling him as he tried to make his body work, the sounds of combat and death that surrounded him completely ignored. He stared at his gloved hand. Things were coming into focus now, he could see the fine detail in the leather, the weather-worn material patterned with wrinkles and tears from the abuse suffered over their lifetime. His eyes wandered from his raised hand down to his body. He was wearing what appeared to be Zacks clothes, the dark purple SOLDIER Second Class uniform, likely a holdover from years ago. His thoughts on Zack brought a sharp gasp out of him as his awareness of the sounds of battle behind him grew. His muscles too weak to support himself just yet, he pressed his back against the stone behind him and slowly pushed himself up to his feet, ignoring the pain and weakness in wracking his body. He slumped back to the earth as his feet found loose dirt, sending them out from under him, and with no strength to recover, he hit the ground with a weak cry. The sound of fighting filled his ears, the heat of fire and light from explosions all reached him behind the rock, but he could not yet see the battle as he crawled back to his hands and knees, slowly dragging himself up the boulder as the cries of troopers grew fewer.

By the time his bleary eyes caught sight of the battle before him, all that was left were piles of bodies, three standing but injured troopers, and a grievously wounded Zack Fair. He stood tall, his shoulders heaving with the effort of holding the enormous Buster Sword and breathing at the same time. If there was a any part of him that was not covered in blood, Cloud could not tell. The troopers advanced, but the SOLDIER First Class did not falter, quickly dispatching of the two troopers approaching him with their swords out, but leaving himself exposed to the final trooper, whose rifle reported loudly, the bullet hitting Zack straight in the chest, forcing him to take a step back before a second shot sent him falling backwards on the ground, his chest heaving as he tried to draw in breath, his weapon falling aside. The trooper staggered forward, rifle trained on the fallen SOLDIER, and Cloud felt the adrenaline surge through his traitorous body. A bloodied weapon fallen from the hands of one of the troopers lay on the ground before him, he dropped to the ground, with both hands he grasped it as tightly as he could, feeling so weak he was unsure if he would even be able to pull the trigger. He raised the rifle, shouldering it, trying to keep the shaking sight trained on his target as the trooper approached his fallen best friend. The rain clouded his already fuzzy vision, and his exhausted body strained desperately to keep the sight still, but as the trooper raised his weapon, Cloud pulled the trigger with all of his strength, the report deafening him, and the recoil of the weapon throwing his back against the stone of the boulder.

The trooper made a choking noise as the bullet struck true, and he collapsed near Zack, who lay deathly still on the earth. Cloud pushed himself up against the stone again, hoping he was not too late. The smoking rifle still in his hands as Zacks head slowly turned to face him, one bleary eye opening to stare weakly at Cloud.

"Zack... Please..."