Broken Wings - Chapter Forty
The alarm went off at six in the evening.
Zack was used to the blaring lights and the siren, but he was annoyed that they had gone off just as he had settled down for some relaxation. Moving instinctively, he grabbed his sword and sprinted down the hall to see what the commotion was. From the end of the hall, he could see Sephiroth had made similar preparations and was speaking to a Turk.
Reno seemed to have finished narrating the situation to him just as Zack came within hearing range, and Sephiroth ran off to take his position wherever he had been posted. Rolling his eyes at having to tell it all over again, Reno began speaking.
"Avalanche. Sephiroth's guarding the southern building where the President and Rufus are. You're in the east. Meet them as they come and take out as many as you can. Don't let anyone through."
"Got it."
As he left, he saw Aralyn coming down the hall, clearly confused. She quickly moved the contents in her hand behind her back, shielding it from his view. "Going to take care of it?"
"Yeah. Sephiroth's gone to the south," he added, noticing how she kept glancing toward the door to the general's apartment.
"Oh, that's okay. I'll wait for him."
Deciding that she would be safer waiting than seeking him out, he nodded a curt farewell and ran toward his post.
The numbers were pathetically few. He had been expecting at least ten, but there were only three young, beat up snipers. He turned to the soldier beside him. "What's going on?"
"Not sure. They think this is a distraction, but we can't do anything about it until we receive word on what their plans are."
Frowning, Zack nonetheless took his stance. For five minutes, all was quiet except for the occasional distant burst of gunfire.
He didn't even get the chance to raise his sword before the radio at his side whirred to life. "Zack," the President's voice said. "They're attacking the living quarters. I think everyone's managed to evacuate, but we need you to get the civilians away from the building. We think Avalanche has planted a bomb in there and you have approximately three minutes."
"I'm on it."
It was an easy job, and everyone was a hundred feet from the building when the bomb went off. A sound like thunder tore the air as an entire section of the building was blown to pieces. Glass from shattered windows fell to the ground like falling stars, and afterward it was deathly quiet.
"Did the other two groups get out all right?" Zack asked the radio.
"Everyone except for one," the President confirmed. "A wonderful success! Avalanche has retreated for now."
"Except for one?" Zack asked.
"One person. Apparently she refused to leave. Name's Aralyn. Oh well, if she didn't have the sense to evacuate then I guess she deserved…"
Zack didn't hear the rest. In his mind he could see Aralyn, standing innocent and peaceful before Sephiroth's door, her gift cradled in her hands as she patiently waited for his return. Before him was the building, an entire side removed, making it horribly unstable, and the rest rapidly being consumed by flames.
"President," Zack said, fighting down the panic. "I need to speak with Sephiroth. It's urgent."
A/N: Forty chapters? Is it possible? On Microsoft Word, it is single spaced, Times New Roman 12 pt font, and nearly 70 pages! I will write more soon!