Part two, dear god. Epilogue to follow, eventually. Enjoy
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13.
It had taken him about a week to adjust to having an unfamiliar entity in his head, but once he had, he didn't think that he would get used to it not being there.
I am not an 'it'.
Squall's lips curled up in a vague smile as he entered more information on the computer, copying parts and pieces of it and imputing it into a single code for another environment on the computer. 'Apologies. I know you're not an it.'
As you should. Do you still seek the information you did earlier?
'Do you even need to ask?' he asked with a snort, double clicking on a certain part of the program. 'What do you know?'
I've lived for many hundreds, thousands of years and I've seen much. Light and darkness twine around the worlds, fighting for dominance yet remaining the same. Those who linger beneath your castle will lie in-between, yet choose to fight for the darkness. They seek what they can't have; thus, they begin to thirst for it. And, when the thirst becomes too great, the drive to get it overrides all else and they will stop at nothing.
'You're talking about the scientists that Ansem's working with?' Squall's eyes widened at the idea that the assistants might be more dangerous than they had come across as- he'd suspected it, but it had never gone beyond that.
Indeed. The darkness they breed may very well overwhelm your world, and others, if someone does not find a way to stop it.
'Do you know how? You said you had information, do you know how to stop what they're doing?'
No. I can aid you, but I do not hold the knowledge of how to defeat them.
Squall sighed heavily, dragging a hand through his hair harshly as he tried to think about what he was going to do.
14.
"Snooping again?" Dilan asked with amusement, walking uninvited into the computer room knowing that Squall was used to his intrusions now and that everything he did would be kept confidential. "Did you find any nifty little tidbits lying around?"
Squall tapped a button twice more, smirking when it chirped in reply and a list of information popped up in neat little windows all over the screen. "I broke another one of the codes." He glanced back, noting the brief look of surprise on the other man's face. "Took forever, but I did. I don't suppose you want to explain what some of this means, do you? I thought you might want to explain something, since you've been oh-so-helpful up to this point."
The assistant walked over, scanning the screen quickly with a sense of growing dread- the boy wasn't supposed to have found anything out; the codes were unbreakable, or so it had been claimed. "Whole bunch of gibberish, probably a distraction while the codes reset," he lied swiftly, reaching out as if he were going to lean on the desk, fully intending on pressing the power button- on accident.
"Don't." Squall pushed the hand away, glaring up. "I've already created two backups with my own encodings just incase of something happening. I'll find out what everything means eventually, but it might be easier if you just explain to me what the giant secret is. 'But wherever there is light, doubtless there is darkness lurking.' And, 'the darkness in human hearts'." The teen scanned more of the report that seemed to have been written by Ansem himself. "Firstly, I will carry out experiments… Xehanort volunteered as a test subject… he was found collapsed in a street and taken in and 'became a youth that serves me well'?"
"Squall, listen to me. You don't want to read the rest of this, I'm telling you that right now. You don't need to know what is going on here; it's not worth it- let it go." Dilan grabbed one of Squall's shoulders tightly, turning him around so he could meet blue-gray eyes. "Ansem is trying to protect you from this for a reason."
Squall shook his head, pushing Dilan's hands away from him quickly and glaring up at the older man with all the anger he could muster. "He's performing experiments on human hearts below the castle, isn't he? That's what all of this is about- this is why all of you are here, to help him with that." Squall turned to the computer, his fingers flying over the keys to bring up more information now that he knew the code for it. There was no date on any of the information, but it was the next entry that made his stomach twist into a harsh knot.
I have made a grave error. The research plans I made about the "darkness in the heart", beginning with meager psychological experiments, have rapidly grown immensely. As enthusiastically advised by my youngest disciple Ienzo, I have prepared a grand-scale research laboratory below the castle.
Unbeknownst to me, my six disciples gathered a great amount of test subjects and began dangerous experiments into the darkness of the heart.
As soon as I found out about this, I gathered my disciples and ordered a stop to the research, and to discard the results thus far.
What has happened to the hearts of the six who were once my loyal disciples? While pursuing the mystery of the darkness in the heart, did they themselves lose their way in the darkness? And the most foolish thing is that it was I who originally began these experiments. Whatever the reason, the depths of the human heart should not be meddled in by others. I despaired in my own error. It was a visitor from another world who cured my grief-stricken heart. A small king named "Mickey" carried the legendary key in his hand. Yes, it was the "Keyblade" which was said to have brought chaos and prosperity to the world a long time ago. He had a great amount of interesting knowledge, and we had enjoyable lengthy discussions, growing closer.
On his advice, I decided to re-examine the data from the underground laboratory.
And I discovered the "Ansem Reports".
They carried my name, but the only one that I wrote was Number 0. Number 1 through Number 8 were written by that man of his own volition.
By the first test subject of my foolish experiment.
"You're… you're one of them, aren't you?" Squall asked quietly, saving and backing up the files he had just uncovered, unable to read any more right then. It hadn't occurred to him that anything that had been going on would be this serious- but from the looks of it, this had been going on for months. "Six loyal disciples- you, this Xehanort, Ienzo, and three others are mentioned here. You're continuing the experiments without his permission, and-"
Dilan leaned forward jerking the chair around so he was towering menacingly over the sitting teen. "Squall. Stop this right now. You weren't supposed to find out about any of this; there was an order that any who did were to be killed on sight." The man's hands gripped the edges of the chair tightly. "I like you, but if you try to stop any of this, then know that I won't hesitate in killing you. Go about your life as it used to be, and don't get involved."
Squall stared up into Dilan's violet eyes, his jaw clenched as he debated on what to do. Ansem was aware of what was going on, but obviously couldn't take care of it himself. The 'Mickey' mentioned was just as useless, and now he was found out- no doubt Dilan would be watching him like a hawk to make sure that he had no further involvement in what was going on.
"You're going to keep killing innocent people for your experiments?" he demanded, ignoring how his voice cracked on his last word. He should have known. He should have been more aware to everything that was going on, should have paid more attention to the glaring signs, shouldhaveshouldhaveshouldhave. "You are, aren't you." It wasn't a question; Squall could practically see the answer reflected in the cold violet eyes of the older man.
Dilan smirked, and leaned forward so his lips were pressed to Squall's ear, "There isn't anyone who is innocent and while some are more innocent than others, everyone is going to die sometime."
15.
"Have you seen Cloud, lately?" Squall asked suddenly, looking up from the soup he had been stirring absently up until that point. "Both he and his friend, Zack, have been missing apparently; Aerith's really worried about them."
The blond man shook his head and took a small bite of his sandwich. "I haven't heard anything about either of them, actually. You know how they are; always looking for adventure- I'm sure they'll show up eventually."
Squall didn't respond right away, instead choosing to take a sip of the wine that normally came with dinner. Something wasn't sitting right in all the events that had occurred recently, but with no way to prove it right then, he decided that he would check it out later. Ansem was bending over to the side and coming up with a slender package wrapped neatly in blue and green- his birthday present. "I hope you enjoy it," Ansem said with a smile, pushing it across the table for Squall to grab. The teen froze for a moment, already recognizing the package for what it was; there was nothing else that was the same length and width as what he wanted.
He slipped his fingers underneath the wrapping paper to tear it neatly before pulling the slender wooden box out and setting it before him on the table. The clasp slipped open easily, revealing the glowing blade that he had been eyeing for months now. Picking it up carefully, he tested the weight, swinging it lightly, away from the table. It was perfect- that was the only word that could describe it. Just as carefully, he set the blade back down and circled around the table to wrap his arms around the older man in a tight hug. "Thank you," he managed, unable to keep the idiotic grin off of his face. "I can't wait to try her out."
Ansem laughed quietly, hugging the boy back just as firmly. "What are you going to name it?"
"Lionhart, I think," Squall said, feeling the hum of agreement from Shiva at his decision. "Lionhart," he said again, testing the word and liking how it rolled off of his tongue. "Thank you."
Ansem nodded again, patting the teen's leg. "I've something to attend to after dinner, but why don't you take that time and try out your blade? I'll meet you down in the simulation center in a bit and you can show me what she can do."
Squall didn't bother fighting off the grin anymore, he only nodded, pushed in his chair and headed to the simulation chamber as fast as his legs would take him without fully running. Maybe things would be different now, maybe the research would come to a halt and Ansem's time wouldn't be as filled as it was before.
Still excited, he set up a moderately hard level and couldn't hold back the startled laugh at the way it practically sang through the air. The weight was perfect for someone of his height and build- just heavy enough where he would be able to build up his stamina and it wouldn't tire him out needlessly.
After fifteen minutes of working with it, he found his eyes turning to the doorway every few seconds, waiting for the rush of air that signaled the door opening. When it finally did, Squall whirled around all too excited, only to pause when he saw it was not Ansem, but Dilan. Hiding the disappointment at that fact, Squall lowered his blade. "Computer, disengage." He glanced around the room a final time to make sure the program had shut off completely and then made his way to where the older man was standing. "What are you doing here?"
Dilan shrugged elegantly, his hands in his pockets as he moved across the room to where Squall was standing, still holding Lionhart. "What, you don't trust me?" he asked, honestly not expecting an answer from the suspicious teen. "Fine, then. I'm not staying long, I just brought something for you- you're sixteen now, right?"
"…Yeah," Squall answered, watching the black haired man carefully.
"So suspicious for your age; I remember when you used to be happy to see me come in here." Dilan laughed, his hand closing around something in his pocket. "Here, kid." He reached out with his left hand and grabbed Squall's free one, turning it palm up. "To go with your shiny new weapon."
Before Squall could say anything, Dilan had walked back out of the room just as swiftly as he had entered leaving the teen to stare at the object in his hand. A shiny necklace lay there, the pendant a head of a lion roaring. Swallowing hard, the brunet tried to ignore the nagging little voice that said that the gift was a goodbye. Clasping the necklace around his neck, he ran his fingers over the solid weight of the pendant before moving back to the machine to turn it on.
After a half hour, the program was turned off again and Squall debated on if he should go find Ansem. An hour later, he was searching the rooms with growing alarm as the feeling that something was wrong kept growing.
Squall didn't see Ansem again.
16.
Shiva was singing a warning in his head, telling him to not go down there, to stay out of the business of those who worked beneath the castle. Lionhart held firmly in his right hand, he ignored her and kept going on to his destination, the computer lab. The corridor was freezing cold and deathly silent save for his breaths and the soft clicking of his booted feet. The entrance to the hallway had been locked but with a few quick strikes from the gunblade it had creaked open and admitted him. 'Shiva, you have to be quiet, I don't know what's down here and I can't afford to be taken by surprise- everything's changed now.' And everything had changed- Ansem was still missing, Dilan was nowhere to be found and the castle was humming with dark magic- all of this in the span of two days since his last conversation with Dilan.
The keypad to get into the main computer room was locked again- Squall didn't bother with trying to crack the new code. With a rush of Shiva's frost and ice, he froze the panel and was able to pry the door open with ease and slip inside. Two minutes after that he was inside the computer mainframe, relieved that the backups he had created were still far enough encoded that whoever had been rewriting the computer files had missed them. A few more keystrokes and he had accessed Ansem's own reports, opening the latest one.
The "chaos" has spread to too many worlds, not just this one.
My apprentice Xehanort has, in the "Ansem Reports" which he wrote under my name, hypothesized about the process of the terrible experiments that he carried out and the "door" that appeared in the underground darkness.
Every living being has a heart, and in the depths of every heart there is darkness.
The same is true for "worlds". If you consider that a world has one life, it hides a great heart... And in its depths, an immense darkness.
Is Xehanort trying to understand the "door" to make contact with the darkness in the worlds? No, not just Xehanort. It seems that the other five disciples, have become enveloped by the darkness as a result of their fixation on it for their research. Even, Ienzo, Braig, Dilan, and Elaeus...they have ceased to be human. And I have lost everything, exiled to a nonexistent world. Having exiled me, what could Xehanort be aiming for? Have everyone's smiling faces gone?
As the light of hope has faded, I will now walk along with the darkness. In the world of nothingness to which I have been exiled.
Darkness within nothingness. "Darkness in Zero"
Therefore, I will take the name "DiZ". I will cast aside the exile's name "Ansem"...and have my revenge.
Ansem was gone. Ansem was gone. He had been exiled by the very people who had been working under him and one of the people was Dilan- so it was true then, what the older man had said. He didn't want to know the truth about what was really going on, because how was he supposed to change it? Ansem hadn't been able to do anything and now he was somewhere in the darkness. How was he supposed to see the man again? How was he to even know if Ansem was alive anymore?
"Squall."
Startled, the teen whirled around, reaching for the hilt of Lionhart only to find that he was too slow. The breath rushed out of him when his back struck the metal desk, leaving stars dancing in his sight and his right arm numb. With as much strength as he could muster at that point, Squall kicked out, relived when he hit something but it proved to be pointless when a hand clamped on his throat sending his head back against the cold surface of the desk. Shiva was shrilling in his mind, wanting to be let out and fight. It was useless though; at that point he couldn't summon the concentration to do anything more than reach up and try to pry off the hand that was preventing him from breathing.
"What part of 'don't get involved' didn't you get?" The man demanded. "I tried to stop you but you wouldn't listen to me, even after I told you that I would have to kill you."
"T-then don't," Squall rasped, recognizing the voice instantly. With renewed vigor he fought, striking out again with his booted foot, relieved when it connected, even if it was only a slight bit. As he expected, he was shaken hard and left choking at the tight grip as his head slamming back again, sending stars flickering through his vision.
"By all means, continue fighting, though it will get you nowhere," Dilan drawled, taking the teen's blade and throwing it across the room with a clatter. "Xemnas wants me to kill you- I'm supposed to, the moment I see you. He's not pleased that you've figured this much out, even with Ansem gone."
Squall drew in as deep of a breath as he could manage, relieved when he could feel the pain of his right arm finally coming back to life. Quickly, he grabbed the wrist of Dilan and slammed his other hand down on the desk, letting Shiva's icy strength run though him once more. Distantly he could hear the man curse, no doubt from finding his hand frozen solid and his feet fixed to the ground with ice. His gunblade, he needed his gunblade before Dilan could break free from the ice. Stumbling forward, Squall scrambled past some of the miscellaneous items that had been spilled on the floor, grabbing onto Lionhart and then rolling away to put the wall to his back. "You're not Dilan," He panted, using one hand to keep him steady as he crouched, waiting for the other man in the room to attack.
"No. Very good, Squall. Dilan is dead, now, as are the rest of them. For the short time you live, you may as well call me Xaldin." Xaldin met the blue-gray eyes of the teen, a smile curling his lips when he broke free of the ice fairly easily. "Dilan was weak, but though his weakness I exist. You understand nothing of what is going on and there is nothing you can do to fix it."
Swallowing hard, Squall shook his head, ignoring the way the world spun after that. "How could you do all of this? What about all the people here, what do you think will happen to them?"
"It's none of my concern. If they have strong hearts, then they will maybe end up as a Nobody, but it's doubtful. I could see you as a Nobody, regardless of how young you are." Xaldin drew closer, ignoring the glowing blade the teen held. "Very shortly, this world will fall into darkness. Its ruler is gone and the Heartless are hungry- there is nothing you can do."
With a wordless cry of rage, Squall launched himself forward using Shiva's power to enhance his strength. He didn't know what he hoped to accomplish, if everything that Xaldin had said was true, then there was no hope for anything in this world, but he was damned if he was going down without a fight. Swinging his gunblade down in a glowing arc, he drew in a sharp breath when it was blocked by a spear he hadn't seen before. It wasn't just one either; with a flick of Xaldin's hands, there were six spears hovering in the air around them, each with a wickedly sharp tip that Squall was sure wasn't just for show.
There was no finesse now, in what he did. It was a hopeless battle- Dilan was dead, Xaldin had powers that Squall himself probably would never be able to compete with, and what more did he have to fight for?
You have life.
Squall jerked back, stumbling behind the desk in order to avoid the spear that had been hurtling toward him.
Aerith. Tifa. Cloud.
Bringing his gunblade up in a quick, almost panicked move, he felt the rush of air that told him yet another spear came too close to where his head had been. Xaldin wasn't even fighting at full strength, Squall realized dimly. The Nobody had acquired so much power that he was barely even attempting to fight; he was simply humoring Squall until he wanted to kill him. 'It's hopeless.'
Aerith. Tifa. Cloud. Yuffie. Cid. Ansem. Are you willing to simply lie down and let them die?
'Do I have a choice?' Squall demanded, hissing as a spear sliced through the leather of his pants leaving a stinging line behind. 'They're probably already dead, anyway.'
He could feel Shiva's disappointment at that, but what was he supposed to say? It was probably true- if the experiments had gone as far as he thought they had, then there was no chance that the inhabitants of Radiant Garden would have survived.
"You're not even trying," Xaldin growled, stalking forward with quick, deliberate steps. Squall didn't answer, instead trying to move back and get his back to a solid surface that would provide at least a little protection from the spears. In a quick gesture Xaldin flicked one finger and the teen suddenly found himself thrown into the air. There was a brief moment of panic before his stomach flipped and then he fell back down in a painful heap on the table with his entire body throbbing. He'd been cut, Squall thought distantly, feeling the hot wetness seep onto the table and soak the side of his shirt. "Why aren't you trying? Aren't you angry, furious with me? I'm part of the reason that your world is going to be swallowed whole, soon."
Squall shook his head hard once, knowing that Xaldin was right in a way, but unable to actually feel it. Instead of the rage he should have been feeling, it was only a sense of resigned acceptance, guilt, almost.
I had not realized you were a coward, Squall Leonhart.
'I'm not,' Squall returned, his mental voice acidic. Slowly, he rolled over and attempted to back away from the shadow he could see out of the corner of his eye. A lance whirled past him and sunk into the edge of the table, catching the hem of his leather coat and pinning him to the table. Shit. Before he could react, three more imbedded into his clothes and left him struggling to free himself from the metal table, with no luck. "What are you doing?" he snarled, yanking at one of his wrists even though he knew that it was futile. "Let me go, Xaldin!"
The older man did not respond instantly; instead he sent one more spear to pin the collar of Squall's black bomber jacket to the wall, smirking at the startled look on the boy's face. "It's interesting, you know. You still look at me like I'm him," Xaldin purred, easily grabbing Squall's ankle when he kicked out in an attempt to fend the Nobody off. It was with sadistic pleasure that he squeezed a little too hard, a smile curling his lips at the stifled noise of pain and nearly frantic struggle that erupted. There would be a brightly colored bruise on the teen's barely tanned flesh, of that much he was sure and it was with that small thought that he pushed Squall's leg to the side, holding the other one down just as easily. "I'm not, Squall, I'm not him anymore and it would do you good to remember that."
Squall glared up at Xaldin with as much hate as he could muster, his entire body tense and practically humming as he waited for an opportunity, some kind of slip so that he could get away or at least fight back. When Xaldin's free hand rose up, Squall tilted his chin up a little more, keeping his angry gaze on the older man and refusing to flinch or be weak again. Instead of the strike he expected, the hand tangled into his hair, clenching hard and pulling. A startled gasp escaped him –what was he doing—and then Xaldin's lips were on his, hot and hard, the kiss having nothing to do with being romantic and everything to do with dominance. Fingertips curling around one of the spears lodged in the metal, Squall writhed, trying to find a way to escape because it wasn't Dilan.
"Squall!"
Squall's eyes flew open in shock at the same time as the Nobody growled out a curse, waving a hand in a gesture that Squall had come to recognize as a wind attack. "No! C-" he managed, finding his leg freed for a brief moment. A hard kick was aimed at any open part of Xaldin's body, relief and satisfaction flowing through him when he felt his boot connect with Xaldin's stomach. "Cloud, watch out!"
Xaldin stared at Squall for a quick moment, his face unreadable, before turning around to deal with the blond teen who had rushed into the room. "Another intrusion?" he asked rhetorically, sweeping his eyes over the slender boy with growing amusement. "You escaped, I see."
Cloud didn't respond; instead he slid into a battle-ready stance, his feet shifted evenly as he watched the room for any sign of the spears.
'His eyes,' Squall thought with shock, 'they're…'
"Squall?"
The teen tore his gaze away from Cloud, instead focusing on the new person, one who he had only met once or twice. "Zack?" he breathed, taking note of the same glowing eyes that Cloud seemed to have mysteriously acquired. "What-"
"Shh, stop. Don't ask any questions right now. We've gotta get out of here before this entire castle is overrun with those… things. Move your arm; I don't want to cut you when I take this thing out." Zack reached over, curling one gloved hand around the spear and pulling hard; the spear slid out as if it were only a knife in butter. "Next one, hold still."
Squall obeyed and another spear was drawn out and tossed aside, leaving only a few more keeping him pinned. Over the older man's shoulder he could see Cloud wielding a sword that looked too large for him, yet it seemed that he was doing fine with it. Better than fine, Squall realized, watching the blond rush forward in a swift move, bringing his sword up and swinging it down, just missing the Nobody. "What happened to you?" Squall whispered, barely noticing that he was finally free. "Zack, what's going on?"
The black haired man didn't respond instantly, instead choosing to push aside the red-stained shirt and place a hand over the wound, whispering a Cura spell. The wound closed up, healing quickly, just as the throbbing in his head and the rest of his body stopped. "Thanks," Squall managed, glancing around the room to see where Lionhart had landed and not realizing that his questing had been ignored. The spears that had been removed just a few minutes earlier suddenly flew up and toward where Xaldin and Cloud were still fighting. 'Shiva!'
Summon me fully, little one.
Squall glanced up to Zack. "You might want to move away."
Zack obeyed without more than a questioning look, stepping back and leaving Squall to release all of Shiva's energy. Breath frosting in front of him, Zack kept a watchful eye on the entire room though he was unable to keep his gaze from returning to the guardian that had appeared in a flash of ice and glittering blue mist.
"Finally," she said with amusement, waving a hand in a graceful movement, sending shards of ice flying toward the hovering spears. With sharp clinks, the weapons were weighted down with the ice, falling to the floor a moment later. Xaldin slid back a step, turning his attention to where Squall was standing, his hand placed on the wall to steady him and his eyes glowing silver and blue as Shiva manifested through him.
"Nice trick," Xaldin allowed, dodging Cloud with a quick sidestep. Shiva followed him, her hands shining with pale blue light as she drew closer to the Nobody. One quick blast sent him flying back to the wall and another froze his body to the very same wall. Oddly enough, the Nobody did not struggle; his attention wasn't even on the guardian. Instead it was on the brunet teen who stood in the open and unprotected.
"Shall I kill him?" Shiva asked, her voice low and clear.
"X-"
There was no time to react, as a flash of black and silver flickered into the room and then Shiva was kneeling on the ground clutching herself with rage clear on her face.
"Sephiroth!" Zack hissed, stalking forward with his own weapon at the ready, just as Cloud's was. The silver-haired warrior gave no indication he had heard them as he swung his sword once more and then Shiva was gone, back inside Squall's mind terribly weakened.
Xaldin was free almost a second after that, the spears breaking free from the ice a moment later. "Vexen hasn't been doing his job as well as I hoped, has he?" He drawled, examining Sephiroth. "How did you escape, then?"
"I've no business with you nor am I a pawn that you can manipulate," Sephiroth growled, his cat-like green eyes fixed on both Cloud and Zack. "I will not hesitate in killing you if you are to get in my way."
'The words were so familiar,' Squall thought with a swallow. What had been going on while he had been so blind? He'd just assumed that Cloud had other things to do, but obviously there was something more than what he had discovered earlier- more than he could ever imagine. The test subjects that had been spoken of… 'Cloud...'
There was no more time for him to ponder on what had really been going on- the battle began quickly, with Sephiroth blurring as he attacked, black feathers floating down in a crazed rush of air. At the same time, Xaldin turned his full attention to Squall, a small smirk on his face. "Again?" he inquired, not giving the teen a chance to respond before he attacked.
Cloud was alive. Zack was alive. Hell, even Sephiroth was alive and that meant there had to be more still- there was a reason to fight, now. All of Squall's attention focused on Xaldin and Leonhart was brought up swiftly, knocking aside the spears as he stalked forward. "This ends, now," Squall said lowly. "All of it."
Xaldin didn't respond, he only rushed forward, holding one spear while the rest floated around him at the ready. One swift strike was blocked by Squall, who in turn slid forward and twisted his torso, very nearly hitting the Nobody's leg with the sharp tip. The Cura still humming through him, Squall fell quickly into the rhythm of battle, blocking everything else out. He was doing fine, until the nearly frantic cry of, "Zack! No!"
Squall froze, his eyes moving to where Cloud was leaning heavily against the wall, blond hair damp with sweat, his glowing blue eyes wide and panicked. Sephiroth had a pleased smirk on his face, blood spattered on his face as he looked at the black haired man pinned to the wall with Masamune right below his ribs.
"No, no nononono." Cloud stumbled forward with a cry, swinging his own blade down as hard as he could. Sephiroth drew the sword out of Zack with a wet noise, disappearing for a minute and then Cloud gasped, dropping his blade as fire erupted through his body. Choking, he gripped the blade hard, his feet dangling inches from the ground. Fighting back the rush of pain, he pulled himself forward, noting the surprised look on Sephiroth's face. "I won't…won't let you get away with this…"
Xaldin laughed shortly, bored with the battle and already knowing how it would end. Squall was pale, obviously torn between going to help his childhood friend and fighting Xaldin himself.
"Xaldin, I believe we have other thing to worry about; let Sephiroth finish them off." A voice called. The owner appeared a moment later- a scarred man with only one eye. "We've got bigger and less amusing problems in the lab."
Before Xaldin could respond the man was gone, vanishing in a portal of darkness. Squall had taken that moment to rush forward, gunblade at the ready and then Sephiroth staggered, finding the edge of the blade protruding from his own stomach. It was all a rush from there: Squall withdrew, staggered away and it was just enough time for Cloud to attack once more, sending Sephiroth flying away as he drew the older man's sword out of his body with a broken cry.
Everything was going downhill from what he had planned, Xaldin realized with a scowl. There would be other times to fight the brunet teen and no doubt, the next battle would be much more interesting- it wouldn't do for one of the other Nobodies to get to him, of course. Squall was his, without a doubt. His to take, his to kill. With that in mind, it took only a gesture and command to a spear and then Squall was on his knees, clutching his face with blood seeping between his fingers. "Remember this, Squall," Xaldin said loudly, drawing the attention of all who were in the room. "This mark proves it. You're mine, and when the time comes, I'll be the one to kill you."
A portal was summoned a second later and Xaldin strode forward with the intent to throw the bleeding teen in.
"Cloud!" Squall scrambled forward, catching the other teen as he swayed and then collapsed to the ground, blond hair dark with sweat and a smear of blood on his cheek. Neither of the boys was expecting the kick that sent them tumbling back and then they were falling into darkness.
17.
"Cloud!" Squall awoke with a strangled gasp, one hand searching for his blade, panicking even more when he found that it was nowhere within reach. He was tangled in something and he couldn't get out and-
"Shh, Squall, relax, it's just me," a voice soothed, cool hands cupping his cheeks and stroking back his hair in a decidedly motherly gesture. Squall looked up, meeting soft green eyes. "Relax, okay? You're safe here, I promise. We're safe right now."
"A-Aerith?" Squall croaked, allowing her to push him back into the bed and tuck him in again. "What…"
The brunette woman shook her head, reaching over to grab a glass of water and then holding it to his lips. "Drink, you're probably thirsty after sleeping for so long."
Squall obeyed after a moment of examining her again to make sure she was real. The water was blessedly cold, soothing the desert-dry feeling in his mouth and throat. "Thanks," he rasped once he could speak again. "Where…"
"We're in a place called Traverse Town- Merlin—do you remember him?—he's letting us stay here." Aerith combed her fingers through his choppy bangs, her expression oddly sad. "There… It's just you, Merlin, Cid, Yuffie, and I, here. We haven't found anyone else and we don't even know how we got here. I… don't know where Cloud is."
'Cloud…Zack… Xaldin.'
Squall nodded slightly, his fingers clenching the sheets tightly. He was right. He wasn't strong enough to protect them, he hadn't been able to save Cloud, Ansem, or Zack and now they were trapped on some random world –or dead, all because of him.
As if she could read minds, Aerith let out a small 'tsk' of displeasure. "Squall, it's not your fault." Aerith placed a finger under his chin and tilted his head to the side. "I know that look. None of this is your fault."
"Leon," he said quietly, moving to sit up once more.
"What?" Aerith leaned forward to help him, the confusion evident in her voice. "Who?"
Squall drew in a shaky breath. He was no longer 'Squall'; he couldn't be, not if he wanted to set things right again. The name 'Squall' had too much blood and death attached to it, and this was a new world. "My name is Leon, now," he said firmly, looking at the stone walls of the room. Aerith didn't say anything for a moment; she only drew her arms around him in a soft hug.
"A new start?" she asked softly, already knowing the answer. "Shall we call you Leon Leonhart, now?"
Squall nodded at that, catching sight of his reflection and the new scar on his face in the mirror hung crookedly on the other side of the room. He'd set things right again, or he would die trying- he owed them that much at least.
--
Epilogue to come when I get some other stuff done. Also hope to have the second chapter to Equivalence out eventually.