Chapter Sixteen

The Crater of Himitsu Shi

Aeris ran and ran along a path she could not see. All around her, she could see nothing but darkness. "Aireth! Aireth!" She screamed. She continued to run around in darkness, searching for her best friend.

"Don't leave me! Aireth! Don't let Lucifer take you! You're still my best friend! Aireth, wo negai!" "She cannot hear you, Cetra girl."

Aeris turned around. The silhouette of a man stood in front of her. He was as dark as the darkness surrounding them, except for his eyes, which were poisonous green. They flared at Aeris, and she felt as if she would get overwhelmed by fear any moment." "But……I have to see her!"

"My Shimobe, Aireth has left you forever. You're all alone now.

No one to be there for you anymore, Cetra girl." "NO! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" "Don't try to make yourself believe Aireth is still your friend. She does not want to be there for you anymore. There is nowhere for you to go, or no one for you to go to." The man spoke in a hoarse whisper, as if he hadn't used for decades. "You're all alone now. No one to care about you anymore. You're alone in the darkness, Cetra girl. " "NOOOOOOO!"

Aeris woke up with a start. She was trembling as if she'd been hit by another one of her best friend's sound attacks. She was lying among a whole bunch of smashed rocks. All around her, she saw the remnants of the mountain that had guarded The Reactor of Sealing before she ran amok with her Magical Power. She breathed rapidly, and her heart pounded as fast as Sleipnir's galloping hooves. Aeris lied there for several minutes, trying to calm herself. Her breathing calmed down, and after awhile, her heart went back to normal pounding. "That dream was scary. I've never had a nightmare like that before." She thought. Aeris got up. "Perhaps I should get back to Sleipnir." Aeris tried to follow what was left of the path down the mountain.

"What was that, anyway?" "That dream was just so realistic." Aeris stopped for a moment, closing her eyes, trying to push the nightmare out of her mind. But it didn't work. She couldn't stop imagining those horrible, green eyes." "Who was that, anyway?" She thought. "I mean, it's not like I've met a guy like that before in my life or anything, so it's not like I could've met someone to trigger something like that in my mind." Aeris started to tremble again.

"Come on. Think of something else!" Aeris mumbled, trying not to fall as she stumbled her way down the destroyed mountain path.

Aeris had finally reached the foot of the destroyed mountain, and stood there, looking at the ruined village of Nibelheim. She stood there for a moment, and ran over to what was left of Tifa's Zack's and Cloud's house. The house looked as if it had been bulldozed.

"No." She mumbled. "No. I didn't…." Aeris started shaking even worse than before, but out of fear of her bonds with Tifa, Cloud and Zack to be broken. She started searching among the ruins for her friends. "What the heck was that anyway?" Aeris jumped and turned around. Tifa, Cloud and Zack stood there. They were okay! Aeris ran over to them, and gave them all a massive hug. on, Aeris! Get a grip!" Cloud and Zack said muffled.

Tifa and Aeris started to laugh. The memory of the nightmare was no longer as scary and realistic as before, and Aeris could relax a little more. "What happened, anyway? Suddenly, the entire mountain came down, and we had to run out of the village." Zack said. Aeris fell silent for a few moments. "Sorry. I couldn't find Aireth, and I saw that she had accomplished what she'd set out to do, so I lost my temper, and used my Magical Power to destroy Mt. Nibel." She explained.

"Wow. So that was it. Didn't know you were that powerful, Aeris."

Zack said amazed. "What has Aireth accomplished?" Tifa asked concerned. "She has released one of the most powerful and dangerous enemies the Cetra has ever had. And if I don't hurry, she'll wind up into even more trouble." Aeris said, and her voice broke. She started to cry, shaking uncontrollably from the sobs. Tears poured from her eyes again. "Why the heck do I cry all the time nowadays?" She thought angrily. Tifa held her, letting Aeris cry on her shoulder. Cloud, Zack and Tifa stood there, not really knowing what to do, but to be there for Aeris when she needed them.

Tifa let her cry, without asking her to stop or anything, but let her take the time she needed. After awhile, Aeris's crying stopped. Tifa let go of her. They all looked at each other. "Do you want us to help you again, Aeris?" Cloud asked. "I think I want to take care of this myself. I don't want you guys to have to do more for my people. Aeris released her Magical Power again, and restored the Village of Nibelheim. All the houses were repaired, and everything looked as it had done when Aeris had stayed there a few hours ago. "There. Sorry about that." Aeris said, trying to smile. "I must go after Aireth. I have to save her before she gets into even a worse hell than she is already in." They looked at each other. "Thanks for being there for me. It means a lot. But I don't want you to do more than this. I've already asked for more than enough by starting howling like that." Aeris said. "C ya, folks."

Aeris went out of Nibelheim. She stopped outside the restored gates, and made the Seal of the Horse. "Sleipnir. I could do with some help here. I have to get back to Himitsu Shi." She thought. She lied down on the ground, looking up at the dark sky. "Where are all the stars, anyway?" She thought, frowning. "It's boring without the stars to look at."

After awhile, Aeris could hear the sound of eight hooves galloping towards her. She sat up, and watched Sleipnir approach her.

She got up on his back, and they galloped away, back towards the Cetra Village. In all the events that had occurred since last time she rode Sleipnir, Aeris had forgotten how it felt to ride the horse. She enjoyed everything of it. The rushing of the wind as they soared forward, the sound of Sleipnir's hooves as they touched the ground. All of it.

They rode for days. But even though it was partly the same journey as before, when she left her village for the Reactor of Sealing, the whole journey felt different, now that Aeris knew what her best friend had done. She felt assure of a certain thing which she didn't know what to think about before she saw the Reactor of Sealing unsealed.

That feeling made Aeris unsure of herself. And the feeling of happiness she had felt when she saw that Tifa and the others were safe, was evaporating fast.

When they camped after riding for two days, Aeris felt so depressed by this feeling she couldn't even remember all the happy times she'd had with Aireth. They had camped right next to a gigantic crater on a dead grassland. At the bottom of the crater, Aeris saw the remains of a gigantic snake. Its skeleton was soaked in dried blood. Aeris looked down at the gigantic snake skeleton. "I wonder who did that."

She thought. She moved away from the crater with the dead snake in it, trying not to look down upon the bloody skeleton. Every time she glanced down at it, out of a feeling she couldn't fully understand, she felt sick and wanted to puke. Aeris forced her mind to concentrate on something else. "I wonder what my village will be like when I get back." She thought. She tried to prevent herself from imagining Himitsu Shi in ruins, with all of its inhabitants lying dead among destroyed buildings. "Stop thinking about such things!" Aeris said to herself. She lied down on the ground next to Sleipnir, closed her eyes, and tried to sleep, but to no prevail. After awhile, she gave up, and looked instead up at the starless sky up there. "I don't want to fall asleep, anyway. I don't want another nightmare like that last one. I wonder if Aireth's journey to Lucifer was something like this."

Aeris thought miserably. She lied awake the rest of the night. Image after image involving more terrible things about her people flashing before her eyes.

Aeris sat up hours later. The sun hadn't shown itself yet. She could see shrouds of early morning mist floating at her feet.

Aeris Sealed her hands again with the Seal of the Horse.

"Let's go, Sleipnir. I want to reach Himitsu Shi today."

"I understand." The eight-legged horse replied. "We need to find Lady Aireth." Aeris got Sleipnir's back, and he thundered away.

After hours of riding, Aeris lost track of the time. She just sat on the constantly moving back of Sleipnir, feeling anxious to the bone.

They galloped across the sky, towards Himitsu Shi. After countless hours, Aeris couldn't find anymore happiness in riding. All she could think about, was Aireth, and if the Cetra of Himitsu Shi were safe.

Aeris had been sitting on the back of Sleipnir with her head swinging from side to side. She was half asleep. The only thing that still kept her awake, was the feeling of bumping up and down on the eight-legged horse's back all the time. Then suddenly, in the far distance, she thought she saw something in the middle of the sea. Aeris rubbed her eyelids, and stared more focused at the little dot far away. She made the Seal of the Horse with her hands. "Is that my village?" She asked Sleipnir telepathically. "Yes." The horse replied.

"But I have a feeling something is wrong over there. We'll see once we get there, Lady Aeris, but don't expect everything to be alright at the Northespole." "……I understand." Aeris said, and undid the Seal of the Horse. "Don't worry too much about what I said before you get to Himitsu Shi, and can see it for yourself." Sleipnir said, but when Aeris didn't have her hands Sealed, she couldn't hear him.

Hours later, they'd reached the Cetra Village of Himitsu Shi.

Aeris fell off Sleipnir in shock. She fell into the water, and when she got up, she stared thunderstruck at what was left of her beloved home.

A gigantic crater on an island in the middle of the sea. Aeris swam as fast as she could to the shore, and got up on dried land.

She could not believe what she saw. Her home was destroyed. The Cetra Village she and Aireth had grown up together in had been transformed into a big pile of rubble. Aeris fell to the ground, not able to stand any longer. Her whole body started shaking with a whole bunch of feelings mixed together. "My home…… My friends….." She mumbled.

"Aireth……I cannot believe it was you who did this.

I won't believe it." Aeris whispered. "This is not you, Aireth. I refuse to believe that." Aeris stood up. "Lucifer…..That inhuman bastard!" Aeris screamed into the night. "Aeris? Is that you?" Aeris gasped. And turned around. Ageha came over to her, followed by every other Cetra of Himitsu Shi. "You are all……." Aeris couldn't find words for what she was feeling. She ran over to Ageha, and flung herself into Ageha's arms, laughing and crying at the same time. The other Cetra joined in. they all hugged Aeris, beaming and laughing over happiness at having their friend back. Aeris let go of all the Cetra's she hugged, and stepped back, looking at all the happy faces she knew so well. She fell silent, looking into Ageha's big blue eyes.

She waited a little bit before breaking the silence now stretching over the entire island. "Don't tell me Aireth did this." She mumbled forcefully. Ageha sighed. A long, deep sigh which told Aeris how badly hurt she was. After awhile, she spoke. "It was. She stole Bahamut the Dragon King. When we tried to stop her, she summoned that gigantic flying beast, and destroyed our Village. She then flew away on the dragon's back. We've no idea where they went."

"Forgive us, Aeris. We tried to stop her, but she was just too Magical Powerful." A boy said. The same guy who'd tried to finish Aireth off.

"I already know how Magical Powerful she is, thank you, Tao Shi." Aeris said quietly, looking into the boy's narrow orange eyes. "Sorry, Aeris. You fought her. I should've remembered…..Sorry." The boy mumbled shamefully. "What about the Valkyries?" Aeris asked.

"We've had no word from them. Though they know where she was headed before she returned to the village, we don't know where she went after she stole Bahamut, so the Valkyries won't be able to find her now." Ageha said. "They will need time to get to the Reactor of Sealing. There's been more than a week now since they left to find Aireth, but when they would have to go to the Reactor on foot, they won't have reached their destination yet." "The Reactor of Sealing is no more. I saw to that. After Aireth left, I went after her. When I reached the Reactor, I saw it unsealed. When I realized Aireth wasn't at the Reactor and what she'd done, I destroyed the whole thing and the mountain surrounding it. Aireth has accomplished her objective. The Lord of Darkness has risen again, and will probably try to use Bahamut the Dragon King, and those puppets of his to destroy us." Silence greeted these terrible news. The Cetras looked at each other, horrified at what Aeris had just told them.

"So then…..The Valkyries will just arrive at a whole bunch of smashed rocks and a big pile of rubble that used to be the Reactor of Sealing?" Ageha said. Aeris nodded. " "By the way. Where is Toomy Hermaanius?" "He's sleeping. He slept through the entire showdown inside his house. I think he's alright though. It takes more than a beam from Bahamut to even wake up Toomy Hermaanius." Ageha said, and all the Cetras burst out laughing, Even though they were in an extremely tricky situation.