What Lies Beneath

Chapter 15

The Final Victor

The wind rustled his spiky locks, blowing them into his blue eyes. His eyes stared out over the walls of Midgar and into the vast horizon. The sound of footsteps echoed along the stone bridge he was standing on as he shifted his eyes to his side.

"I've come to challenge you," Cloud said, slowing his pace.

Zack smirked as he turned to face Cloud. "So you finally have a weapon."

Cloud stared at him while his sword rested in his right hand. The two stared at one another and then Zack turned back to face the horizon.

"What makes you think the outcome will be any different?" Zack asked. "Last time you didn't even last a minute against me."

Cloud grasped his sword with both hands as he took his battle stance. "I made a promise to Aerith. I will protect her."

Zack let out a long breath before he took his own sword in his hands. He turned to Cloud and closed his eyes. When he opened them, they narrowed and Zack took his own battle stance.

"Only if you beat me."

Swords collided with loud clanks as the two men brought their swords crashing against each others. Both men moved swiftly, almost if they were dancing as they tried to outmatch the other. Cloud took the defensive first. Zack's attacks came swiftly and with such force that Cloud found himself at a disadvantage. Zack was bigger and more muscular. It was clear that he was also much stronger than Cloud. Cloud could tell just by the force of his swings. Yet, Cloud had one advantage that he knew he would have to take to win this fight.

He was fast than Zack and his sword was lighter and easier to wield. As Cloud parried around an attack he ran the length of the bridge, needing to gain some space to maneuver. Zack followed taunting him as he ran.

"Afraid to lose?" He shouted to Cloud. "Running won't save you!"

Cloud ignored him and vaulted over the banister of the bridge and landed down on the rooftop of a building. He looked back to see Zack coming down after him. Cloud rolled out of the way to dodge Zack as he crashed down onto the rooftop. Cloud swiped at him but Zack narrowly escaped. Cloud tried again but Zack flipped off the building to get away.

Cloud carefully moved over the edge and peered over. After only a second, Cloud spun around and brought his sword in front of him to block Zack attack. The sword crashed down causing Cloud to nearly loose his footing. Zack then delivered a front kick before hitting Cloud off the rooftop and soaring onto another one. After smacking into a wall, the blonde haired man shook his head to shake the blurry vision just in time to see Zack charge at him. Cloud dove out of the way.

"You're fast," Zack chuckled. "But you'll never win with speed alone!"

"I don't plan on it," Cloud retorted.

Zack ran at him, as Cloud hoped. When he reached him, intending to slash downwards with his sword, Cloud slid down, blocked his attack and used Zack momentum to flip him off the rooftop. Cloud got back up and looked at Zack falling off down but instead of crashing to the ground he grabbed onto a street lamp. Zack used his strength to rock himself back and forth and before letting go and landing on bridge that was covered in train tracks.

Cloud jumped from lamppost to lamppost before jumping on the railing of the train bridge. He ran along the bridge toward Zack. He jumped off sending his sword at a diagonal strike. Zack back flipped out of the way and counter with a sideways strike. Cloud blocked the attack and the two began a battle of strength. The muscles in Cloud's arm began to flex as Zack applied more pressure to hopefully cause the blonde to slip. Suddenly, their battle of strength was interrupted by a well timed train.

Both men saw the train coming. At the same time they pulled away from each other and ran opposite ways. Each man ran up one of the support beams as the train whipped past them. Together they landed on one of the trains cars. Zack turned to face Cloud but to his surprise he was at him ready to attack. Cloud flipped into the air bringing his sword crashing down. Zack eyes widened as several shards of light traveled at him. Defensively, Zack brought his sword to protect him. The force of the wave hit him and knocked him off balance.

As Zack wavered to get his balance, Cloud saw his moment and dashed at him. He slid across the train car and kicked him in his leg. Zack fell off the train car but he landed low to the ground. He went to get back up but Cloud was there again his time knocking the sword completely out of his hands.

Zack's sword went flying into the air before landing into the ground. Zack looked back at his sword. Then as he turned to look back at his opponent he felt cold steel against him. Cloud was holding his sword to his neck. The two men stared at each other, their sky color eyes locked. After a moment, Zack held up his hands signaling his defeat but Cloud was not going to take any chances. Zack frowned.

"Going to kill me now?" Zack asked.

Cloud kept his sword near the man's neck. "I don't have to."

The darker haired man wondered what he meant by it but it was obvious. Zack's eyes widened in surprise. He then gave Cloud a smirk before leaning back on his heels and placing his hands behind his head. He knew the truth but how did Cloud know?

"Figured it out?" Zack guessed.

Cloud shrugged, "Maybe... not all of it though. I would ask you but I'm sure the only person who knows the answer to everything is Aerith."

The smirk on his face vanished. Zack sighed and turned around, ignoring the fact the blade was at his neck. He slowly walked toward his sword, his hand finding the hilt, however he did not pull the sword from the ground. He stood there for a moment his hand gripping the hilt as if he intended to pull it out but he never did.

"You should go to her," Zack suggested as he felt a breeze tug at his hair. "I can't..."

He stumbled on his words. He tilted his head down and his grip on his sword loosened.

"I can't protect her anymore," Zack admitted, a hint of pain in his voice. "She's at the church... waiting for the victor, for you. Go protect her and..."

Cloud lowered his sword. He stared at Zack's back as the wind tugged harder at them. Cloud noticed green wisps surrounded the raven-haired man. He noticed his body was slowly fading away.

"And tell her... it wasn't her fault."

When the green wisps dispersed all that was left was Zack's sword, still planted firmly into the ground where it had landed. Cloud looked at for a minute, a small frown on his face. When he turned around he noticed his motorcycle waiting for him. He moved to get on it and as he began to start it he noticed the tattered sleeve of his shirt. He grabbed the fabric and with a quick rip, he exposed his arm. On his arm the pink ribbon Aerith had given him was still there.

Cloud looked down at the ribbon, remembering the moment he got it. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He started his motorcycle up. The engine roared to life.

Before riding off Cloud whispered to himself, "Aerith... I'm coming."

He was off, leaving a trail of a dust in his wake. When the dust settled around Zack's sword, all along the ground were yellow and white flowers.

Author Note- Unedited Version. I hope everyone is enjoying this. About 2 more chapters and a epilogue to go.