Hi everyone! Sorry for the slight delay! My dang office expired and I had to download a new trial. Maybe someday ill be able to buy one instead of downloading the trials all the time. posted the last chapter real early, hope you all aren't impatient with me! Anyways, thanks for all the reviews, I appreciate them! Glad to see I have so many avid readers! Well lets get this new one started! In this chapter: "the greatest way to describe a troublesome rock…" –Annubis

The Decision Between Life or Death:

A Second Chance

Chapter 21

Soft music played through the speakers of the dashboard. Zack listened intently to the soft beat, feeling the tiny bumps and vibrations of the car. He could feel the warm air from the vent blowing gently across his face, like a ghostlike breeze. Tiny flakes of snow pelted against the glass next to his head. Ultramarine eyes traveled along the glass toward the seat in front of him. He stared at the back of Tifa's head. She was driving while Cloud sat in the passenger seat intently listening to the music, staring absentmindedly out the windshield. His gaze fell upon the sleeping woman next to him in the backseat. Aeris was snuggly buckled in, wearing her thick red coat. She was breathing softly; a small smile crossed her face.

"Is she sleeping again?" Tifa asked quietly. Her brown eyes questioned through the rearview mirror.

"Hm." Zack nodded.

There was a bump in the road, shaking the car. Aeris stirred from her sleep. She gave a soft moan as she stretched and sat up straighter in the seat. Her eyes blinked a couple of times, taking in the scenery.

"Sleep well?" Zack asked. The woman glanced at him, a sheepish smile on her face. "You've been sleeping a lot lately. You feeling alright?"

"I'm fine." The woman glanced at the two sitting in front of her. "I just like to sleep."

"Funny, you were always one to get up early and stay up late." The man repositioned himself to get more comfortable. He hated riding in cars for this long. He would have rather ridden by plane but there was no airport near Gongaga. Besides, Tifa had insisted on taking them herself. She thought a road trip sounded like fun.

"Actually…" the woman cleared her throat. "I've had a lot more dreams lately, and I think that they are memories resurfacing."

"Really?" Zack raised his eyebrows.

"At least, they seem so real. I can't tell which ones are real and which ones are not." The woman twirled her hair. "But I still like to sleep because it gives me the sense that I am remembering and I feel a bit more whole. Some stick with me and others don't. I think the ones that do are the real memories, but I guess I'll never really know." She shrugged sadly.

"Why don't you tell me some of them? Maybe we can tell you if they were real or not. Have you had any dreams with any of us in them?" the man suggested.

"I've had some." She nodded.

There was a loud explosion, the whole city vibrating violently. Aeris shivered at the thought of what it could have been. She hoped everyone was alright. Crowds of people came rushing from the small stores and businesses hurrying home. The young woman rushed about, trying to gather some information.

"Excuse me! Sir!" they all rushed past her, ignoring her calls. "Miss, Um, excuse me…Do you know what…happened?" she looked from side to side as she trotted across the street. She could smell the scent of something burning and in the distance she could see a orange glow, as if something was on fire.

'Did something blow up?' she held her hands against her chest, the woven basket slung around her arm.

"Oomf!" she fell hard on her behind onto the brick street. She huffed as she lifted herself from the ground and brushed herself off. She noticed a man with blonde hair walking around the corner. He had glowing blue eyes, something that was rare to see anymore. He had on a familiar uniform. The woman had the urge to talk to him, to see if he knew what was going on and to possibly learn more about him.

"Excuse me." The woman started. The man turned to her, when he saw her she thought he had a look of recognition in his eyes. It had quickly faded into a blank look. "What happened?"

"…Nothing…" He hesitated. "Hey, listen…"

She tilted her head at him and gave him her best smile. He rubbed the back of his head nervously. His eyes darted to the flowers in her basket.

"Don't see many flowers around here." He changed the subject.

"Oh, these? Do you like them? They're only a gil." The woman said cheerfully. She lifted one delicately from the basket to show him. She was ecstatic when the man stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out a golden coin.

"I'll take one, then." He gave her a boyish smile.

"Oh, thank you!" she hopped with excitement. "Here you are!" She gave him the best flower of the bunch.

"You better get out of here." The man looked over his shoulder at the rushing soldiers and civilians. The woman nodded quickly and headed down the street. She looked back once but the mysterious man was already out of sight.

She was curious as to why his eyes held that glow. They seemed awfully familiar to her. His mannerisms also sent chills down her spine. Her heart ached a little at the thought of a man she had once dated so many years ago.

"Sounds like when you and I first met." Cloud nodded his head in recognition.

"I thought we first met in the church?" Aeris leaned forward.

"That's when you joined me on our journey. Before that you and I had a small run in on the streets in the city. I bought a flower from you and we parted. That was pretty much it. Then I fell through the roof. You asked if I remembered you and I did. Then the Turks came in to take you to Hojo's lab. I helped you escape and the rest's history." The blonde explained, never tearing his eyes away from the view before the car.

"I see…" Aeris thought a moment. "So I really remembered something!" she grinned widely. "I'm so happy!" she squealed.

"How bout with me?" Tifa asked hopefully. "You remember anything with me?"

"Let's see…" the woman poked her chin.

Her and Cloud ran up the stairs of Don Corneo's mansion. The carpet was extravagantly decorated in gold and red. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the walls were decorated with wonderful pieces of art. Cloud lifted the heavy blue dress as he tried to climb the last step. The res sash around his waist threatened to be stepped on. He shoved his way past the door and into a dark chamber. Aeris gasped.

'Is this…a torture chamber!?' the woman bit her lip. She looked around the room. In the corner was a woman waiting impatiently. She had long dark hair and a very revealing blue dress with a deep neckline. Aeris wondered how that dress could support her at all.

"Tifa?" She whispered to the woman.

She lady turned her attention to Aeris. Her eyes gave her a questioning look. She did not recognize her at all. "…And you are?" She spoke up after a minute. Tifa eyeballed the other woman in the room. She looked a bit strange with her blonde pigtails and thick makeup.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Aeris." The Ancient held her hand out to the other woman. "Cloud's told me a lot about you." She gave a rather large grin.

"Hey! You're the one with Cloud in the park!" Tifa pointed.

"Right, with Cloud…" Aeris stared at Tifa's chocolate brown eyes, the young woman downcast them.

"Oh…" Tifa looked a bit sad. Aeris felt bad. She shouldn't be competing with this woman.

"Don't worry, we just met. It's nothing." Aeris waved her hands quickly.

"What do you mean, 'Don't worry'...about what?" Tifa gasped. Her cheeks turned a shade of pink. "No don't misunderstand." The woman laughed nervously. "Cloud and I grew up together, nothing more." She grinned awkwardly.

"Poor Cloud." Aeris shook her head, giggling. "Having to stand here and listen to us both call him nothing." She turned toward the third woman in the room. "Right, Cloud?"

"Cloud!?" Tifa jumped to the side, staring at the woman in the dark blue dress. She looked her up and down with interest and stopped on her face. She had brilliant blue eyes and her face was red with embarrassment. "CLOUD!? Why Are you dressed like that!? And what are you doing here!?" she jumped and grabbed the man's shoulders, shaking him. "Forget that! What happened to you after the fall!? Are you hurt!?" her eyes about popped out of her head.

"Hey, give me a chance to explain." He rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I'm dressed like this…because there was no other way to get in here. I'm alright. Aeris helped me out."

"Oh, Aeris did…" Tifa sent a sideways glance to the woman in red. Her long curly hair was to die for and her eyes were such a beautiful jade. Tifa couldn't help but feel a little envious of the other woman.

"Tifa, explain." Cloud folded his arms. "What are you doing in a place like this?"

"Yeah, Ummm…" she looked back at Aeris again.

"I'll just plug my ears…" Aeris cleared her throat. She walked to the opposite side of the room and acted like she plugged her ears.

"I'm glad you're okay." Tifa sighed.

"Thanks, what happened." Cloud's gaze pierced through her.

"When we got back from the Number 5 reactor, there was this weird man." Tifa glanced behind her at Aeris. She lowered her voice. "So Barret caught him and squeezed some information out of him."

"That's when the Don's name popped up." Cloud added. She nodded quickly.

"Right, Don Corneo. Barret told me to leave the lech alone…." She hesitated. "But something's been bothering me."

"I see. So you wanted to get the story straight from Don Corneo's mouth." Cloud nodded as he spoke.

"So I made it here, but now I'm in a bind." There was a long pause. "Corneo is looking for a bride. Every day he gets three girls, chooses one of them, and then…well…" she fidgeted uncomfortably. "Anyway, I gotta be the girl…or I'm out for tonight."

Aeris turned around and approached the two. "Sorry, but I overheard. If you know the three girls, then there's no problem, right?"

"I guess so, but…" Tifa looked from Aeris to Cloud.

"We have two here, right?" Aeris pointed at herself and then at Tifa.

"No, Aeris!" Cloud slapped his forehead. "I can't have you get involved."

"Oh? So it's alright for Tifa to be in danger?" the woman in red placed her hands on her hips.

"No, I don't want Tifa in…" He sighed. Tifa approached the other woman.

"Is it alright?" she asked Aeris. The two turned and headed for the door.

"I grew up in the slums…I'm used to danger." Aeris informed. She faced Tifa. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes. Thank you Miss Aeris." Tifa nodded.

"Oh! Just call me Aeris!" the Cetra laughed.

A yelling voice sounded as they left the room and entered the lobby. The receptionist was angry they had wandered off.

"I probably don't need to ask but the other girl is…" Cloud asked quietly. "Me…right?"

"You're right." Tifa shrugged. "There was no need…" she and Aeris looked at each other.

"…to ask!" they giggled.

They ascended the stairs toward Don Corneo's room. Little did Aeris know she would be drug into a full out war with her new friends.

"Ahaha!" Tifa slapped the steering wheel. "You have no idea how happy that makes me that you remember that particular situation!"

"So I was right?" Aeris beamed.

"One hundred percent!" the woman cackled. "You even got every detail of Cloud's dress right!"

"…Yeah…So glad you remembered that." Cloud huffed.

"Well, what about me?" Zack nudged the woman. "Anything at all?"

"Hmm…." Aeris tore her gaze away. She shook her head solemnly. "Not much more than what I learned last night."

"Ah, that's okay. You'll remember in no time." Zack gave her a reassuring smile.

"Almost there." Tifa interrupted. "I can see the dock."

Tifa was taking Zack and Aeris to the ferry boat. She and Cloud would drop them off there. Zack and Aeris will ride the boat to the coast near Gongaga. There Zack and Aeris will make the short journey by foot to Zack's home.

"Oh man! I can't wait! Mom's gonna be so surprised!" Zack hopped in his seat.

"Is…she nice?" Aeris stammered.

"The best lady in the whole world! She's gonna love you! I warn you though; she's going to be constantly feeding you." Zack sighed. "Makes lots of cookies and huge meals! You're never gonna wanna leave, it's all the best food!"

"Oh!?" Aeris giggled. "I hope I don't get fat."

"I wouldn't worry about it. You can eat anything and not gain an ounce." The man waved at her dismissively. "But if anyone could do it…it'd be mom."

The car drove up the small ramp toward the dock. The ship was massive; something Aeris had only remembered seeing on TV. She was awed by the majesty of the transport.

"Here we are." Tifa stretched as she got out of the car.

"Thanks for the ride, Tifa. I appreciate it." Zack gave her a small hug.

"Sure thing! Wouldn't want you two walking in the snow! That'd be awful!" the woman laughed.

"I'll miss you." Aeris whispered as she gave the other woman and man a hug.

"Come visit us soon." Tifa said.

"We'll be opening the bar. Maybe we can get everyone together for a round of drinks." Cloud leaned against the car. He glanced toward the large structure in the distance. It was Fort Condor. A lot had happened there as well. The battle against Shinra was a close win. Many people had lost their lives. Cloud took a deep breath. He was glad those days were over. There was too much pain and suffering.

"Sounds like a plan!" Zack patted the man on the back. "We'll be seeing ya'!" he grabbed Aeris suitcase and made his way toward the ship. It was going to be a long ride but at least he and Aeris would have some time together to talk about things. Maybe he could help her remember something from their past.

The sound of the foghorn was a noisy welcome, but Aeris was excited to ride on the ship. The ocean was a deep grey, covered by a thin, transparent fog. Tiny droplets of sleet made the scene a bit dreary but she thought it was still beautiful none the less.

"Good morning, Kadaj." Shelke muttered. "Did you sleep well?" she asked politely.

"Hm." He shrugged. "Don't sleep much anymore. You?"

"Not really." She shook her head. "I've always had a bit of an insomnia problem."

The man plopped in the chair next to her. He looked over her shoulder to see what she was reading.

"What's that?" he asked nosily.

"Some documents about the procedure done to me by Hojo." She said without looking at him. She turned a page with a delicate hand. "I'm trying to find a way to get out of this body."

"Out of your body?" Kadaj asked. "Why would you want that?"

"Look at me, Kadaj." Shelke turned in her chair. "I'm twenty-two."

"…" the man lowered his head. "Hojo was a bad man, wasn't he?"

"Horrible." She mumbled and turned back to her book. "I don't necessarily want to change bodies, but I would like to find a way to age. Hojo had the bad habit of making his victims ageless. Vincent, for example, he's a lot older than he looks."

"Will I age?" Kadaj asked.

"Who knows?" Shelke sighed. "If anything I would at least like to appear to be in my twenties. Then I wouldn't be treated like a child."

"I wonder how old I'm supposed to be." Kadaj leaned back in his chair, his arms behind his head. He stared at the stained ceiling.

"Jenova…" a voice sounded from the corner of the room.

"Huh?" Kadaj turned his attention.

"Clones." Shelke stood from her chair. "I wonder how they got in here." They shivered and wobbled. Their faces were hidden underneath the hoods of their cloaks. They looked frail and weak, like starved children.

"What are you doing in here?" Kadaj questioned.

"Cells…Zack…." One clone muttered. He ran into the book shelf repeatedly in front of him.

"Was I…that stupid?" Kadaj wrinkled his nose.

"Zack?" Shelke poked the clone on the shoulder.

"Reunion! Zack's reunion!" it hobbled.

"Zack's reunion?" Shelke looked at the silver haired man next to her.

"Zack? The one with mother?" Kadaj asked. "Why would he have a reunion?"

"Sounds like something we need to look at." Shelke watched as another clone entered the room and tossed books from the shelf. "They sure are troublesome."

"What does he have to do with this?" Kadaj asked one of the clones.

"Br, brother." It reached out.

"Eh, don't call me that." Kadaj lowered his head. He thought of his other brothers; they were dead, not alive like him. Why did he come back? Why was he here and not the others? Maybe they were and he just hadn't found them yet.

"We should survey them closely. Come, let's go upstairs. I think there are some boxes in one of the rooms with the surveillance cameras. We can set them up and watch them." Shelke jogged out of the lab. Kadaj followed after her.

"Zack's reunion…" One clone cried out.

"Need…Jenova's cells…." Another clawed at one book. A shelf slid open, revealing a small room.

"Reserve…reserve." They hopped into the room cheerfully. They went to the back and slammed their hands against a small padlocked metal box. The lock melted into silver liquid as their fire spells ignited. The two clones smiled at each other and lifted the lid. The box held many tiny tubes of green ooze. Their spidery fingers twisted around the glass containers. One by one the last test tubes of Jenova's blood were plucked from their case and placed into the clones' cloaks.

"Leave…Loz…" one Clone tugged on the other's arm.

"Go…Yazoo." The other laughed stupidly.

"Whew, time changes always screw me up." Zack yawned loudly. "Good thing you slept in…took a nap in the car…and slept on the boat." The make teased the other woman.

"Sorry." She blushed. "I've been sleeping too much lately and it keeps me sleepy." She stared at the tall grass around her.

The two had just left the ship off the coast a few miles from Gongaga a little over half an hour ago. Aeris felt like the journey would never end, but much to her surprise she was in pretty good shape. She decided it must've been from her previous journey with her friends.

"Man, it's a lot warmer here than it was in Edge." The woman tugged on her sweater. The hot sun was still overhead sending its heat down onto the planet.

"It's always pretty warm here, especially this time of year. We rarely get cool enough weather for snow. If it does get cold, we mostly just get ice and blasting winds." The man sighed. "Not the best weather here but it's my home. I love it more than any other place I've lived."

"It's a small town, right?" the woman stared at her feet. The grass was a bright green and came up to about her knees. A gentle breeze blew through, rustling the blades. They moved like small waves in the sea. She liked it out here. It was peaceful and quiet.

"Real small." The man nodded. "But it's nice. You can do pretty much anything at any time of night or day without the fear of being mugged." He chuckled.

"Sounds lovely." She smiled.

"That's the one thing I miss most, privacy. Though it may not seem like you have a lot of privacy in a small town, you have the opportunity to be by yourself more than you would in the city. And not everything's polluted. You can just walk out to the edge of town and lie in the grass all day and never worry about a thing." He took long strides, staring at the poofy white clouds in the sky. He chewed on a long straw-like blade.

"Can we have a picnic?" the woman asked cheerfully.

"We can have a picnic everyday if you like." He looked down at her. The blade bounced between his teeth.

"Really!?" the woman radiated.

"Would I ever lie to you?" He snorted at the end of this statement. She gave him an accusing look. "How 'bout, I promise?"

"Deal." She nodded.

The two came out into a clearing. The green grass died out and the ground became a hard rocky surface covered in a layer of dirt. Zack raised a brow at the sight. He didn't remember the vegetation being dead in this area. It would take some large animals to clean this place out. He glanced ahead. About a quarter mile away was the beginning of the forest surrounding Gongaga.

'What could've done this?' he squint his eyes, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. A low guttural sound came from the line of trees.

"Oh…my…" Aeris gasped.

There was a loud snapping sound as a group of trees were plowed over. Three large Behemoths came rushing out into the clearing, all mooing and grunting as they stampeded toward the two. Aeris jumped behind the man. He felt her small hands grip his arm. Zack's hand instinctively went to the hilt of his sword strapped to his back.

"Shit!" He cursed.

Behemoths were unusual for this area. Judging by amount of vegetation that was missing, they hadn't been here very long. Behemoths could eat about three hundred to four hundred pounds of food a day just for an average sized monster. These beasts are also Omnivores. All three of them were larger than usual, all seemed to be male. These things would consider three hundred pounds a snack.

"Aeris! Get to a safe place!" the man put a hand between him and her, pushing her a little so he didn't cut her when he drew out his sword. The Behemoths came closer and closer, each horn bigger than his body.

Zack shoved the woman to the other side of a boulder just as the behemoth's head came lurching forward at the two.

"Zack!!" the woman screeched. She curled into a ball, covering her head. She was sure he was hit, but then she heard the man grunt and the sound of metal scraping against something hard was heard. She popped her head around the corner and watched.

Zack leapt into the air, sword crashing down against one Behemoth's head. It stuck inside the monster's horns, splintering it. He struggled to free his sword as another beast charged forward. The black haired man let go of his weapon and ducked down. The charging beast's head crashed into the others. The first's horn shattered and Zack's sword flew into the air. There was a loud howl of pain from the 

Behemoth now missing one of his horns. Dark liquid trickled from the wound over the monster's face giving him a taste of his own blood. The ex-SOLDIER tugged on the second monster's horn, which was knocked off balance after the collision. He hoisted himself up onto its back and jumped from its head to the others. He ran along the triangular spines down the bleeding monster's back and soared into the air, grabbing his sword. He flew downward preparing to slice at the beast's neck.

"Watch out!" Aeris screamed.

The third monster darted in, its tail flipping. Zack didn't have enough time to cover. He was punched by the enormous scaly tail and sent sprawling across the dirt. The monsters danced around each other trying to get at the man. Zack struggled to his feet, wiping at the blood on his lip.

'Damn, these guys are rough…' He picked up his sword and ran forward.

He leapt over the first attack of a flinging tail. The snaking appendage glided toward where Aeris was. She was trapped between two boulders. She ducked, the tail cracking the rocky surface. She hopped forward to get out of the way just as another Behemoth's tail scraped against the dirt at her feet. She watched in horror at the sight before her. There was no way they were going to survive.

'Please…I don't want to die.' Her mind prayed.

She watched the man swing his sword, batting another tail out of his line of sight. He ran sideways along one of the beast's torsos and spiraled at the one in the back who now only had one horn. The blade sliced at light speed. As Zack landed in the dirt, sliding and twisting to prepare his next strike the monster fell dead to the ground, its head severed. Aeris covered her mouth at the gore. She made her way to another set of boulders opposite of the battle. The other two monsters growled in response to Zack's actions. They may have been cheers of joy, more food for them when this was over.

"Who's next?" Zack mocked the beasts as he lunged forward. The two lined up, as if team working, one behind the other. The first ducked low, its horns ready to impale and the second rose to its feet.

'This doesn't look good…' Zack frowned.

He gave a juke, spinning around the front animal just as it drove it's blades of bone toward him. He brought his sword down upon the beasts neck, put it wasn't enough to kill it as its tail collided with his back. Zack found himself pinned to the side of the monster and its tail. He groaned at its strength.

'How'd they get so strong?' He gritted his teeth.

Twisting its head to face the man, the beast seemed to smile. Its evil eyes were a glowing green, a color that sent chills down his spine. These beasts normally had yellow eyes didn't they? A loud roar sounded from overhead. Zack had forgotten about the second monster on its hind legs. The beast fell downward its feet stomping into the other monster below. It was trying all it could to get Zack for himself for a meal, even if it meant killing the other beast. Zack shoved away, ducking and rolling from the monster. He watched as the beast continued to crush the other, kicking and stomping it further into the ground. The beaten monster screeched in pain and writhed beneath it. It tried to free itself but couldn't muster the strength after the blood loss from Zack's blade. The man got to his feet, he had to strike now. The 

attacking Behemoth pulled its head downward, impaling the second beast with its horn. It was killed instantly, it's spinal cord severed. It was very unnatural for a Behemoth to kill another of its own kind. Zack gaped at the sight. The last one standing pulled its horn from the others body. Dark blood dripped and pooled onto the ground below. It gave a guttural growl. Its lust for blood now heightened.

"Come and get me you sick bastard." Zack growled back. He waved his sword, the blood on the blade splattering onto the ground.

'Oh Zack, be careful…' Aeris held her hands over her ears. She swayed back and forth, frightened more than she ever had been in her entire life. She stopped when she felt the vibrations.

'Oh no!' Zack's eyes widened. Instead of coming after him, the beast turned away and ran toward the rocks where Aeris was hiding. "Stay away from her!" he shouted.

The beast continued further, its horns lowered on the ground, scraping into the hard surface. He bulldozed toward where the woman's hiding spot was.

'Run! Run, run run!' Aeris got to her feet and sprinted as fast as she could. She could smell the creature's rotten breath as it neared. She could feel the hot air as it huffed and scooped the boulders into its horns. She felt something hard crash into her back and was sent flying a few yards from where she was just running. She felt her hands scrape against the dirt, her shoulder popping when it hit the ground.

"Aeris! Aer-…" Zack stumbled to a stop. The monster turned around, boulders in its horns. It wasn't after Aeris, it was after the large rocks.

It gave a low moan as it heaved the massive stones into the air. Its horns tore through the items, making them smaller in size but multiply in number. One by one the rocks flew higher and higher into the air and toward Zack.

"Oh…shit…" he watched as the meteor shower came tumbling toward him.

'SLAM!'

'CRASH!'

'BAM!'

'THUD!'

Each thundering sound signaled Zack barely escaping his death. He darted from side to side, ducked, jumped, slid, rolled, flipped and belly flopped as best he could to survive the attack. The monster growled at the sight before him. Zack was getting closer and closer. The man couldn't help but smile at the satisfaction it gave him to know the Behemoth was frustrated with him. Zack was an ant interfering with the monster's lunch. The Behemoth ran forward. The last boulder fell from the sky. Zack grunted, pushing his legs to move faster and faster. He had to get past this last one. If he didn't it would mean his death. He ran and ran and ran his breath nonexistent. He felt his muscles ripple and pull. His arms 

pumped faster and faster. His legs were barely touching ground. He was almost there. His sword was drawn. The blade was swinging. He was lunging forward and...

"#!" the man cursed.

He tripped. One measly rock, a pebble, a grain of salt had caused him to tumble and fall. Zack, SOLDIER, first-class, tripped over a minute, isolated, projecting mass of mineral material. He felt like he could just die. No matter, he would be in the next nanosecond. He did what he always learned when he was a child. Stop, drop, and roll. He covered his head, took the fetal position and rolled.

'BOOM!' vibrations all around. Zack felt as if his head exploded. Thought it had, actually, until he opened his eyes. All he could see was brown…dark, grainy brown. The rocks rounded surface was millimeters from crushing his head. Why had it stopped? Before he could think that, he rolled again and got to his feet. He wobbled a moment staring in disbelief. There was a long silence.

"AHAHAHA!!" Zack pointed and laughed. "Look at what you did!"

Underneath the monstrous boulder was the Behemoth's face. It was so set on getting Zack for its dinner; it didn't take into consideration the last falling boulder. The monster would have survived if it weren't for those troublesome horns on its head. The force of the boulder sent the pointed bones backward into the monster's skull.

"Zack!" Aeris cried out. He felt small arms wrap around his chest. "I was so scared! I thought you were dead!" she sniffled.

"No sweat." The man breathed a nervous laugh. "It was nothing…" he stared at the monster beneath the rock. If it weren't for that animal, he would've been squashed. But then again, if it weren't for that animal he and Aeris wouldn't have been stuck in this mess to begin with.

"You can't die…I wouldn't be able to live…with myself." She hid her face in his shirt.

"I'm not gonna die." He held onto her. "Why would you say something like that?"

"If I hadn't been so helpless I could have helped you." She mumbled.

"Jeez, Aeris. Even if you could have helped, I wouldn't have let you. I'd be too worried about you." He pulled her away. "You alright? You took a nasty fall back there."

"I'm fine!" she nodded quickly. "Nothing a little cure spell couldn't cure."

"Good." Zack sighed. He glanced at the forest up ahead. "Now, what do you say we go to my place?"

"Sounds like a plan!" Aeris giggled. "…I thought you said this was a peaceful place."

Emerald eyes glared at the couple striding through the forest. A dark, gloved hand clenched around a nearby branch, cracking it into pieces.

'I thought you said you would kill them!'

'It's not my fault your powers aren't what they used to be, mother…'

"I'll get them…don't worry…" the dark shadow dropped to the forest floor. "I'll start with her…"

Well that's the end of this chapter! Sorry again for the delay! I hope you all enjoyed this one, plenty more to come! Thanks for reading and reviewing! -Annubisno matter he wock...al. -class, tripped over a rock#!" screamed. The blade was swinging. He was lunging forward and... legs to move faster and faster. He had to get past this l