Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII. I depend on my daughter, Neku the Last Reaper (the author formerly known as Angeal Valentine—yes, my daughter changed her name again!), and on Bjanik for all my information on the subject.
A/N—I'm back! I'm sorry I haven't posted since January. For five months I couldn't stand sitting at my computer with Word on the screen. Just the thought of opening FanFiction made me cringe; no it was worse than that, it made me actually run away from my computer (as if it were going to chase me or something—haunt me maybe)! Finally in early May, I felt I could at last read what I'd written. I was surprised: some of it—maybe most of it, though not all of it, true—was pretty good. Late May found me reorganizing this and the next chapter and adding new text. I decided that before I posted again, I wanted to be five chapters ahead; I'm there now, and I intend to maintain that buffer.
No promises on a posting schedule. I'll be posting when I think a chapter's ready, and I'll not be rushing to post just to meet a self-imposed deadline.
Let's see. Where were we? In Chapter 37, Tessa and Cloud survived the attempt to kidnap her from Mideel Base Hospital. Dr. Caperton's skull was cracked in the struggle, and he's been rushed to surgery. Sephiroth is anxious to chase Hollander and Hutchins' getaway helicopter ASAP. That was 6:00 am to 6:30 am.
BUT BACK ON THE RV IT'S JUST 6:00 am, and all that the Turks know of the fight is that Sephiroth has demanded they get to the base ASAP as the hospital is under attack, the bad guys' target is Tessa, and Hollander may have escaped! …And poor Zack is dying. Hm…
(6:00 am, Mideel—On a highway west of Apple Town and east of Mideel Base; 8:00 pm, Wutai; 4:00 am, Midgar; 12:00 noon, Gongaga)
Light.
Ugh… Light filtered through Tseng's closed eyelids, and he scrunched his face to protect himself. Damn. Morning? Is it already morning?! Tseng's time sense came online. Damn. It is morning. He felt as though he'd been asleep just a few minutes. Every muscle in his body ached, especially those in his chest and neck and shoulders and back... Uh… Everywhere…
Tseng opened his eyes. Ouch! Light stabbed him, and he crushed his eyes closed once more. In that instant of brightness Tseng realized why his upper chest hurt even more than the rest of him. A blond head was pillowed over his heart—Elena!—and his left arm was draped around her shoulders. Memories of the previous night returned, and Tseng slitted open his eyes. His body was stuffed in a back corner of an RV as he and his Turks moved toward Mideel Base.
Two male Turks were asleep on the other side of Elena. One of them had his head pillowed on the girl's back. Poor kid. Tseng didn't want to disturb her, but he needed to get up, find out where they were, what was going on… Tseng sighed with regret. They had just slept together—and he'd awakened holding her!—but this was all wrong! Damn. Couldn't be helped now, he supposed. He rotated his left hand slowly to catch a glimpse of his watch. Nuts. He'd been asleep less than an hour!
Tseng kissed the top of Elena's head and smiled slightly. Even after having been covered in a rubbery Turk hood for much of the night, Elena's hair was soft—bits of it played about his chin. He lifted his left arm from around the girl's shoulders, wriggled out of his slot, and sitting up, leaned Elena into his corner. He had a moment of regret at the single-piece, Turk night-ops suits they both wore; he couldn't leave her his suit jacket to pillow her head. Elena mumbled and flung out an arm as Tseng repositioned her. The corners of Tseng's lips crinkled. She was reaching for him! Tseng then did the one thing he could do to make her more comfortable; he punched the Turk who'd been lying on her and forced him to shift away from the girl. There. Better for all concerned.
Standing, Tseng surveyed the rest of the RV. A few people were awake, but most looked as though they were avoiding the sun. Hm. Verdot's daughter had fallen asleep with her head in the president's lap, and in turn, he was lying with his head pillowed on her hip; that couldn't be comfortable. They were both going to be stiff—just like him. Then Tseng caught a glimpse of Rufus' open eyes and the slight smile on his face. The smile caught Tseng's attention; it didn't look like longing or have a sexual edge to it. It did look thoughtful, almost happy?! Strange. Tseng hadn't thought Rufus could look like that—well, not without money being involved anyway.
Looking across the RV from the couple, Tseng caught Valentine scowling at him then he saw that Verdot was standing over Rude's shoulder at the wheel. Uh, oh. Something was wrong—well, more wrong than it had been. Stepping carefully to avoid people, Tseng made his way to sit next to Valentine. With a nod of his head toward the front of the RV, Tseng whispered. "What's going on up there?
Rarely relaxed, Valentine seemed more tense than usual as he looked sharply at Tseng. "… The base hospital is under attack." Tseng's eyebrows rose to his hairline. "It seems Rhapsodos' allies weren't done trying to kidnap my grandchild. Hollander may even have escaped."
Tseng's eyebrows slammed down below his chakra. "Are they still in the vicinity? Are we about to have to a fight on our hands?"
"…Probably…"
Glancing out the back window of the RV, Tseng realized that half the caravan was no longer behind them. "Where are the military trucks?"
"Rude's pushed the RV up to its top speed. The base trucks are probably ten miles back by now."
Tseng nodded. "All right. What about weapons? Ammunition?"
"While you were herding vehicles back in Banora, Verdot conducted a weapons and ammunition check. Supplies are adequate for a fight—as long as it doesn't go on too long."
"Fine." One less concern. Tseng turned to look to the front of the RV. Verdot had turned away from his position at Rude's shoulder and was walking toward Tseng and Valentine. Pausing, Verdot reached down to shake the shoulder of a First Class Soldier dozing over the wounded.
Half-drawing a knife, Alex Niven jerked awake. With a nod at Verdot, Niven sheathed the knife, pressed a finger to Zack Fair's throat to check his pulse, then raised one of Fair's eyelids. From the expression on his face, Tseng could tell Niven was not happy with Fair's condition. Fair, who had initially lain quietly on the floor, was now twitching and jerking, even occasionally reaching. What was going on in the Soldier's mind anyway? Did he know how ill he was?
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Lifestream
Wake up, Zack. Dark. Tumbling. Spinning. Why can't I wake up?! What is this? The Lifestream maybe? Am I dead?! Dying and going to the Lifestream was nothing like being in bed with Seph and Tess! How could this have happened? One minute I was walking through that blasted orchard with Alex, and the next I'm here…
For a very long time Zack Fair had tumbled through darkness. He was breathing fast, almost panting, but was there air here? Air?! Suddenly there was a tightness in Zack's chest—the beginnings of panic—something he hadn't felt in years. What's going on? Where is everyone? Alex? Seph? Seph, where are you?! Seph!!
Zack tried to reach for something—for Seph!—but nothing came to his fingertips, nothing touched his body.
Stop. Listen. Feel what's about you. Look. Use all your senses, Zack.
Yes, it was dark, but dark as in a fog under a slivered moon, dark. A taste of dampness came to Zack's tongue, and with the taste, a feeling at his back—a feeling as of a flow, a direction in the fog. All right. So be it. If there's a current here, then go with it.
Suddenly a roar shrieked across Zack's mind. Zack grabbed his ears and pressed his arms tight against his head, but his arms and head didn't touch! Ouch! There was nothing to stop the pain from the sound! Zack felt himself pulled—sucked!—in the opposite direction from the flow.
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While Niven examined Fair, Verdot awakened the Turk medic, Wickles, and Vanessa-7, who was sleeping curled in a ball at Fair's feet. With a meaningful glance at the medic, Niven rose to give directions onto the base to Rude. Wickles pulled their mastered cure materia orb from a medical pouch and, once again, performed a Cure3 on Zack Fair then checked Fair's eyes, pulse, and breathing for himself. Vanessa-7 laid a hand on the medic's arm. Turning to her, Wickles shook his head. The girl bit her lip and sighed in resignation.
Tseng's lips tightened in a grimace. Damn it all. Now was not the time for a change in Soldier's command structure! Almost worse, the death of any First Class Soldier was mourned in the Shinra world, but especially within Soldier. The death of the popular Zack Fair would hit many people outside Soldier hard as well. Tseng knew it would disturb many of his Turks, especially Reno who was asleep lying near the first class and now was being examined by Wickles. Indeed, how would Sephiroth take it?
Joined by Verdot, Tseng questioned Valentine. "Does Sephiroth know about Fair's condition? How will it affect him if we lose Fair?"
"… I don't believe my son knows, but he will function."
"Good… If you happen to hear from him, would you let him know that I am requesting some communications help from him." Tseng had phrased his request to utilize Sephiroth's secret worldwide instant communications system carefully. Verdot looked at Tseng startled—he wasn't certain what Tseng was referring to—but Valentine didn't blink. Unsurprisingly, Verdot realized Valentine knew many Soldier secrets. Hm… More future reference material.
"Midgar?" Valentine barely breathed the word.
Tseng nodded. Valentine gave a curt Turk nod in acknowledgment. Verdot raised an eyebrow and stared intently at his old friend Vince; he'd have to question Valentine about that exchange later when they were alone.
Tseng and Valentine both laughed slightly. Tseng pulled a pistol from one of his multitude of pockets, ejected the magazine to check his ammunition—empty, he grimaced—and looked back at his cohorts. "Well then, gentlemen, let's wake everyone up and get ready to fight."
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Lifestream
Pain! Screaming!
Suddenly pushed from behind, Zack felt pain rip across his back. What?! Falling forward into the grass stubble of a hayfield, Zack rolled onto his back (ouch!) to see what had attacked him and found himself face to face with a green dragon! Hot breath dripped from the creature's open jaws and teeth, sizzled on his clothes, and burnt holes through the fabric. No! It was going to eat him! Get up!
Zack understood then; he was reliving an event from his past. He'd been fourteen, just an ordinary poor farm kid from Gongaga when this had happened. He'd been pitching rectangular, fifty-pound bales of hay from the ground onto the flat bed of a wagon for transport to the barn of his family's tenant farm along with his father and next two younger brothers. The planet often generated monsters in farmers' fields, but today it was the turn of the field where members of the Fair family were working!
Zack reached behind him to crab-crawl away from the beast above him. What the…? As he moved his hand, Zack suddenly realized his fingers still held his hay hooks. Yes! An eight-inch-long metal hook ending in a wickedly sharp, curved point rose from between Zack's fingers from wooden frames in each of his palms. Usually used to sink into the sides of the hay bales in order to pick them up, the hooks might just make good weapons! Of course, they're rusty—good for giving the monster an infection. Just can't wait that long for it to die, though…
Scrambling away from the monster, Zack got to his feet to face the creature. Go for its eyes as it comes for you. Might get a good puncture—doubt you can kill it though…
As Zack tensed his legs to jump for the creature's face, suddenly from above him, a broad gleaming sword crashed into the dragon's neck, and the creature's blood fanned out from a long slice. Flesh and bits of bones scattered across the ground. The maddened dragon roared in pain then turned its attention to the side—away from Zack.
"I'd run if I were you, kid!"
Following the creature's gaze, Zack spotted two men with swords attacking the dragon. One of the men had shouted at him. Zack took two halting steps backward then stopped and felt his jaw drop in awe. Soldiers! These leather-clad men with swords, they had to be Soldiers! Zack had heard of Shinra's Soldiers. Soldiers fought the monsters generated by the planet; he'd seen them on television, but he'd never seen one in real life before. The Soldiers were cutting furiously at the monster, but they didn't seem scared. In fact, they were enjoying themselves! But this was their job, after all! Wow. They're strong! And fast! Zack, the best young wrestler in the Gongaga area, appreciated both qualities. Got to help them!
Zack hefted his hay hooks and took several steps toward the combatants. Suddenly his father's hand came down on his shoulder and halted him. "No, Zachary. Leave this to the pros!"
"But Dad! They saved my life! I've gotta help 'em!"
"You'd just be in their way! Come on! Help me with your brothers! They're scared outta their minds!"
Zack gave a small sigh, hung his hooks in the side loops of his overalls, and turned to see what had happened to his family. Zack's next younger brother, twelve-year-old Garth, had been on the flat-bed trailer pushing hay bales into position while Dad had been walking, picking up bales, then pitching them onto the flat bed, as had Zack from the wagon's opposite side. Ten-year-old Wes, the tractor driver, had halted the machine that pulled the trailer and was staring open-mouthed at the fight with the dragon. Garth had the bales in order and neither of the younger boys seemed terrified, honestly. Zack turned back to look at the fight.
Suddenly the bleeding dragon turned to run from the Soldiers—straight at Zack and his family. "No!" Zack pulled a hook into his right hand and charged to meet the creature.
"Zachary! No!" Sorry, Dad. I won't let it get Garth or Wes... or you.
The dragon charged with its head lowered, and great gouges shot blood in several directions. Whether it still wanted dinner or just to escape from the Soldiers, Zack wasn't sure, but its head was near the ground and coming toward his family. That position was all he cared about; Zack sprang into the air and wrapped his arms and legs about the creature and hung under its neck. Keep out of its line of sight; if it's a carnivore, it won't have almost-360 vision to let it see nearly behind it. Holding tight, Zack squirmed his way forward. While the hook had a sharp point, it had no cutting edge, and he wouldn't be able to slice the creature's throat with it; probably the best he could do with the hook was puncture something. Sliding the curved metal along the monster's throat, Zack jerked the hook into the creature's eye—the one spot where a puncture would do real damage—then twisted the hook to scrape the tissue. What? The eye was soft, like an egg…
Roaring at this new attack, the dragon slowed, shook its head violently, but Zack clung tightly. Just then Zack again heard the sickening sounds of the Soldiers' swords as they bit into the dragon's flesh. The dying dragon collapsed; Zack felt his ripped back hit the ground. The dripping hay hook was still clutched between his fingers.
"Good job, kid! You okay?"
Suddenly a half-fingered, begloved hand appeared before Zack's face. A tall, thick-bodied Soldier with longish dark hair was attached to the hand. Zack looked up at the man. With the sun directly behind the Soldier's head, Zack couldn't make out his features. Vaguely, Zack noted the man's muscles and decided he'd be a great challenge to wrestle even if he did outweigh Zack by at least thirty pounds. Zack stared.
"I'm Angeal Hewley. Are you hurt?"
"Some. Maybe. It tried to eat my back… Mister, are you a… Soldier?" Zack let the hay hook fall from his fingers then grasped the proffered hand before him. The Soldier pulled him easily to his feet, and Zack could finally see the man's grinning face and his shining eyes.
"Yeah… You ever think of becomin' a Soldier, kid?" Zack felt an answering grin stretch across his face. Angeal Hewley…
Grayness worked its way from the edges of Zack's vision until it covered everything but Angeal's face, then that too was gone.
Boda! This had to be the Lifestream! No memory had ever been so vivid for Zack. Dead then… Sadness… Seph…
The clammy darkness had returned…
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Kamui woke with a jolt. What? What was that? A push on her shoulder? Slitting her eyes open, she found she was lying on her side with what felt like two very hard poles under her head. Looking down, Kamui saw that the "poles" were black-clad thighs. Someone else was standing before her and shaking her shoulder—gently. Hunh. How about that…
"Hey, sleepyhead, wake up. Time for breakfast." As Kamui pushed herself to an angle, a few strands of her silver hair fell across her face. It was then that she realized that Verdot, her father, had awakened her; he was bent over before her with a Banora white apple in his hand. She took it and had the apple half eaten before her brain came online. Wait a minute. If that was Dad in front of me, whose legs were those I was lying on anyway? Twisting with a snap that caused her ragged hair to whip about her shoulders, Kamui was dismayed to learn just whose legs those had been… Rufus Shinra's!
"That was you…?!" Yikes.
"And good morning to you too." Rufus smirked and arched an eyebrow at the girl's consternation. He'd rather enjoyed her sleeping on his lap, though he could think of other things he'd like to have her do in that position. From the look on her face a similar thought had crossed her mind as well; Kamui's face was turning red. Rufus watched with interest as the pink color started under her eyes and slowly spread across her cheekbones then ran down into the hollows of her face. Very late, it even spread across the bridge of her nose. Interesting. He raised a hand to trace one of those cheekbones; such lovely bone structure she had—much more interesting than the General's. Hm. Of course, it was the same as Sephiroth's; it was just far more interesting as Kamui's face.
"Ye-ah. G'morning." Kamui turned away from the man and tore into her apple. Verdot and Vincent Valentine, her "other dad," were sitting across the RV from her. She could see that Tseng, the leader of the Turks, was moving from body to body and shaking the passengers awake. Funny. As far as she could tell, she was the only one eating. Just as well, though, if she didn't eat immediately upon awakening, she was as grouchy as… as grouchy as… Kamui's imagination failed her, then she realized why. "Grouchy" just wasn't the right word for what she was when she woke up hungry. "Violent" was probably closer. The Boss was taking care of her—again. She sighed, lowered the apple core to her thigh, and leaned back disheartened against the wall of the RV. Dad had remembered her need for food first thing in the morning. Why couldn't she remember these things for herself? Take care of herself on her own? With a barely breathed, "oh, Dad," she raised the remaining bit of apple to her mouth and rent it viciously with her teeth.
Rufus leaned forward and tried to see around Kamui's curtain of silver hair to her face. He'd just caught a whisper with the word "dad" in it. He looked away from her and out an RV window at the lightening countryside beyond it. "Dad" was a word he also had issues with.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. I guess." The girl seemed determined not to talk.
"It's funny, but we do have something in common." At Kamui's sharp glance at him, Rufus smiled slightly. "Fathers are hardly my favorite topic either."
Kamui blinked. Just sitting next to him, it was hard to remember that this was the Rufus Shinra of paparazzi fame. According to Rufus, he was the most important man in the world. Yeah in your own head, buster. Still, she supposed he was the most powerful man in the world. After all, Rufus' father had held that power too until his death a few months ago. What must that have been like anyway, growing up in that situation? "O-kay. Tell me about your father…"
Considering, Rufus too blinked and sat back against the RV wall shoulder-to-shoulder with her. What was there he could tell her? "Well… I always thought the word 'asshole' was invented to describe him."
Kamui sputtered. "Yeah, okay. I've heard that. I've also heard that word used about you too."
Rufus felt his mouth fall open slightly, and he forced it closed. "O-oh!? Are you saying I come by it naturally?!"
Kamui laughed slightly and shook her head. He was something—she just couldn't decide what. "If the shoe fits…"
"Oh thanks." Rufus looked away from the girl and returned to his study of the grasslands and farms outside the window. "You know, you don't have it so bad."
"Hm?"
"That's right. My father didn't want much to do with me, beyond having an heir to take over the company. I think he grew up the same way. Just last year I learned I had a half-brother, Lazard, but he died soon after. Just last night I found out I had a half-sister too—like you have a 'sort-of' brother.
"My father liked to keep the pot at Shinra simmering—near boiling—all the time. He played half the company off against the other half constantly. If he had a project going, he was certain to have a similar project headed by someone else, somewhere else on the planet. That way he kept people competing, ripping each other's throats out. Even after he left to come to Mideel to live, he kept the craziness going. It was then, after I took over the day-to-day management of Shinra, that I realized what he'd done and how unproductive it all was."
"Sounds like a jerk."
Rufus nodded. "Pretty much… World's full of 'em, I suppose, but he fostered their production." Rufus turned his head to look at the girl again. "I know you don't want to hear this, but you're a product of his pot stirring, too." At the way her muscles clenched in her jaw, Rufus could tell she didn't want to listen, but… "Father had two scientists leading programs to produce super-Soldiers. Their names were Vester Hollander and Hojo… Funny, I don't even know if 'Hojo' was the man's first or last name… You're a clone of the one super-Soldier Hojo actually produced."
"Sephiroth." Kamui sighed. She'd always rather admired the General. At least he had hair like hers—different from everyone else's she'd known at school.
"Sephiroth. The General." Oops. Rufus realized he was off track; they were supposed to be discussing fathers. "My father manipulated everything and everyone around him to make himself richer, more powerful, and more secure. In the end it was the products of his manipulations, Sephiroth, and even me, who killed him." Rufus paused at the girl's sharp glance. "Yes, I know. Supposedly my father died of 'heart failure.' That was the story we gave to the press…" As Kamui looked away, Rufus sighed. "At least you have someone who cares about you enough to want to be your father." Rufus followed her gaze across the RV to where Verdot and Valentine were presumably discussing the upcoming battle. "Indeed, you may even have two such people who care about you like that." He looked back at the girl. "Give 'em a chance." The corner of Rufus' mouth crooked into a half smile. "And while you're at it—give me a chance too, all right?"
Kamui felt her jaw drop. She hadn't realized someone, maybe more than one someone, cared about her. She had always been different from Verdot, different from everybody at school. Suddenly she wondered whether that mattered at all. At least within Shinra she had a "brother," who was extremely like her, and a "dad" too. If what she'd heard was correct, then she was about to have a niece who just might be a whole lot like her as well.
"Okay, Rufus Shinra," Kamui raised her right pointer finger, "one chance."
Rufus' face lit with a real smile. One chance. Good. That was all he needed.
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Lifestream
Across the dark mist, an angry voice reached Zack Fair's ears.
"No, Zachary. Your father and I have discussed this. We will not allow you to join the Soldier Cadet program. You are finishing school then working on the farm. That's final!"
"Bu-ut… Mom!"
"No 'buts,' young man. You've finished your chores, so go to your room! You have homework…"
A swift retreat was in order—good military phrase. Zack turned on his heel and marched—not ran—from the kitchen and his mother's presence. I'm not going to be a farmer like Dad! Tenant farming was not going to be his life! His father was not much more than a hired hand working some other man's piece of property! His family lived in a house abandoned by the owner—just barely livable. Something better was waiting for Zachary Fair!
Zack had talked to the Soldier recruiters, and they had liked what they'd seen. Zack shook his head. He was a three-time regional wrestling champion of Gongaga—a well-muscled, well-conditioned, large-bodied, intelligent teenager and, according to those Turk recruiters, excellent Soldier material. He'd be fifteen just in time for the cut-off for this year's recruiting class. Soldier could be a way out … He could even send money home to his family—maybe even enough to help them get their own farm. Why couldn't they see it his way?!
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With Tseng awakening the Turks on the RV and Verdot re-checking his weapons, Vincent Valentine was left with his own thoughts for a minute. He mulled his son's words once more: "The base is under attack—their target is probably Tessa."
The baby. Again. That poor child. Not again…
Since the minute a pregnant woman had pounded on his box and demanded he help her fight monsters, Vincent Valentine had been forced to return to the land of the living when all he'd wanted to do was die. Literally. For years. Chaos and the others had forced him to continue to live—then Tessa, and Sephiroth, had given him living, breathing reasons to live. Since his sojourn in the Lifestream with Chaos, however, he found himself having to deal with the possibility that he was still alive for a reason—a reason beyond being a grandfather.
"Vincent Octavian Valentine… You have a touch of destiny about you." That was what the woman in the Lifestream—the Lifestream?!—had said. Chaos had called her "Lady Minerva." Was she truly "the goddess" revered by Gaians? Vincent's jaw clenched. He wasn't sure he wanted to be the object of divine attention—especially not with four mako-entities inside him. And if that had been the Lifestream and Hojo had been there, where was she?
There had been a day when Sephiroth had screamed, and Vincent had seen two tiny infant faces then hers behind them. On that day Vincent had known that in some way Lucrecia still existed. And earlier that very morning Sephiroth had pleaded for his help in calling for her to help save Tessa. Old pain was being given new life…
So what was this "destiny"? Somehow it was all rolled together: himself, his son, and his grandchild. What did it all mean?
Well, nothing if the baby died, apparently. And what if the stagnant mako hadn't been swept from Tessa's body? Much of this would have been in vain.
There was only one thing to do. Get there—as Sephiroth had demanded.
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Lifestream
"Za-ckie?" A sing-song version of his name said by a childish female voice reached Zack's ears. Charlie?! "What's wro-ong?
Zack sat at a rickety desk in the room he shared with two of his brothers. His math textbook was open, but his notebook paper was completely clean. His left hand clutched bunches of his unruly dark hair while the pencil in his right hand wasn't cooperating to finish his homework. Twenty odd-numbered problems—who cared about algebra anyway when there were monsters to fight? People's lives to save?! Mom and Dad just didn't understand…
"Za-ckie?"
Zack glanced at the door. Hanging on the doorknob with both hands, Zack's jean-clad, younger sister swung with the door. Charlie, Charlana properly, age seven, was a dark-haired, bright-eyed, female version of Zack; unlike with the five Fair sons, their mother fought a never-ending battle to tame her daughter's long hair. Charlie's braids swung about her in time with the door.
What was Charlie doing here anyway? She must have snuck away from supper. Damn it, little sisters were annoying. With four other brothers, three between them, why was Charlie a girl, anyway? Zack didn't treat her like a girl, after all. He taught her wrestling moves—well he tried to, anyway. She fought him like an animal and used every weapon available to her. Just last week she'd bloodied Zack's nose and ripped the skin of his arm with her teeth. Hardly legal wrestling moves!
"Charlie, what? I told you to stay out of here!" Zack turned with his anger to the door. He knew she didn't deserve to be his target, but she sure was convenient.
Charlie narrowed her eyes and watched Zack closely; she knew just how far she could push her oldest brother before she had to run. He was fast, but he'd probably throw a pillow at her first. "Mom say 'no' again, Zackie?"
Zack growled and glared at the girl. He hated being called "Zackie," and she knew it; probably why she did it—just to irritate him. Zack sniffed and wiped his nose on his sleeve. His little sister might be annoying, but she was the only one in the house he could talk to, and she knew his problem. "Ye-ah. Third time this week…"
"Sor-ry." Charlie continued to swing on the door. "When's the…" What did the Soldiers call it again? Not a meeting. Ah…"drill?"
"It's not just 'drill,' Charlie. It's shipping out to Midgar… to be a Soldier—for real." Nuts. Zack hung his head in misery and tossed his pencil to the desktop. "Day after tomorrow."
Wait a minute... Zack grabbed his satchel off the floor beside the desk, ripped it open, and pulled out the crumbled Soldier Cadet permission slips. A parent or guardian had to sign the forms. Zack smiled, narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, then looked at his sister. "Charlie, your name's 'Charlana,' just like Mom. You could sign my forms."
Charlie glared daggers at her brother. He was going to get her in trouble. Like always. But then again… "Hm. Just what'll you give me, Zackie? Mom won't like it…"
Crap. How much was it going to cost him anyway? "Four cookies from the Nestor shop, and I'll fix your slingshot I broke last week."
Charlie was now hanging by her hands gripping both the inside and outside knobs. Her feet were near the edge of the door, and her stiff body angled out from the door's edge. Charlie's thoughtful face was turned toward the ceiling with her lips pursed. Zackie wanted her help, and she was going to make him pay. "Nope. Not enough. Baker's dozen of the big Nestor chocolate chip cookies—and Tommy Siddens."
"Hun-uh! No way! Six big cookies, and what do you want with Tommy anyway?" Tommy Siddens was Zack's best friend. Zack knew Charlie had a crush on his freckle-faced friend, but this was silly.
"Yup. Thirteen cookies, and Tommy takes me to pick them out. You pay. Tomorrow after school."
Sheesh. Zack stared at the girl. Calculating little… better not go there since he wanted her help, then he sighed. Was Soldier really worth all this? It'd better be. In his mind's eye, Zack could still see the two Soldiers who had rescued him last summer. Their names had been "Angeal Hewley" and "Genesis Rhapsodos." Angeal in particular had talked to Zack, smiled at him, shaken hands with him, had even asked him if he'd ever thought of becoming a Soldier. Until that day Zack hadn't, but he sure had since. Zack smiled at the memory. Those Soldiers had known how to handle themselves. He really wanted to be like them.
Zack glanced at the forms again. He supposed he could sign them himself, forge his father's name, but that would just be dishonest. Having Charlie sign them at least gave the semblance of his family's permission. He knew she sympathized with him and his dreams. He'd caught her gazing at the Soldier poster he kept rolled up under his bed, hidden from their mother; none of their brothers would have done such a thing—would have wanted such a thing. At least Tommy wouldn't be a hard sell. His parents had already signed his permission forms, and he wanted Zack to go too.
"Okay, Charlie. You got it."
The gray mist returned.
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As Kamui lowered her finger from before Rufus Shinra's face, she noticed the two injured patients lying on the floor of the RV farther ahead of where she and Rufus were sitting. One was that obnoxious red-head with tattoos under his eyes who'd tried to introduce himself to her back in the orchard. He had a long ponytail splayed across the floor that a few people had purposefully stepped on. The other was a Soldier with black spiky hair fanned behind his head and a huge sword tilted against a wall behind people's legs.
"What the…?" Kamui gasped. "Oh my goddess!! That's Zack Fair!?" Her mouth had fallen open.
Rufus looked at her side long around her hair. "Who? The Soldier? Of course, it's Fair. Sephiroth's second." The girl had pressed her knuckles to her teeth seemingly to keep from screaming. She was even shaking. What the hell was wrong with her?
Kamui grabbed Rufus' upper arm and tugged on it excitedly. "It's him! It's him! It's really him! Wait'll I tell my friends!" She rose and took a step toward Fair, but the RV lurched sideways, and Kamui landed in Rufus' lap.
"What're you doing? Though I don't object…" Rufus wrapped his arms around the girl and was happy to hold her in place.
Kamui turned her head to Rufus and smiled broadly. "It's Zachary Fair! He's the best! The cutest Soldier there is and, after Sephiroth, the best Soldier there is! Sure, lots of my friends think the other Triumvirate members are tops, but I'm a member of the local Zachary Fair Fan Club! I'm even one of the moderators of the Zack Fair fansite! After all, Hewley's dead, and Rhapsodos disappeared. They shouldn't even have fan clubs anymore, right? Zachary Fair is number one! Well, number two!! I've got to get his autograph! Do you have anything to write with? Hm. I wonder if he'd sign one of my swords?! Yey!"
After this outburst, Wickles put his face between Kamui's and Rufus' and angrily shushed the girl. "Can't you see there's a man dying here? Please be quiet!"
"Oops. Sor-ry! Wait. He's dying?! What's wrong with him?!"
"I'm sorry, miss, but Lt. Col. Fair has been poisoned. We're rushing him to Mideel Base Hospital as fast as we can. Now please be quiet."
Kamui wriggled off Rufus' lap and back into her seat, but she didn't take her eyes off the dying Soldier. After gazing at her in horror for another minute, Rufus rose and moved to the front of the RV and nodded Tseng to join him.
"What was that? Soldiers have fan clubs?!" Rufus looked incredulous at the head of his Turks.
"Yes, sir. There are several Soldier fan clubs."
"Soldier as an organization? Or individual Soldiers?"
"Some individual Soldiers have personal fan clubs. Cults of personality, I suppose you could call them. The members are primarily teenaged girls, though there are some male members." The horrified expression on the president's face hadn't changed.
"Which Soldiers have clubs?" Rufus shook his head. He had to compete with a Soldier for the girl's affections?! Turks like Reno he could run off but a Soldier though…?! Until that moment, Rufus Shinra hadn't realized he wanted Kamui's affection in addition to her body. Oh how he wanted her! Especially that wriggling thing in his lap!
"Well, initially it was just the General, Rhapsodos, and Hewley, but more recently the clubs have expanded to include Fair. The Hewley clubs largely disbanded when he died, and with Rhapsodos in hiding his clubs have shrunk." Tseng paused. Where were the president's questions leading anyway? "I've heard that there's a push to start more clubs, probably with Bill Wallace Jr. or Marcus MacArthur as the focal points. Handsome young First Classes are popular."
"How did this get started?"
Tseng shrugged. "It was the PR department's idea during the war. Of course, they're now under Reeve Tuesti's management."
"And I don't have a fan club?"
"Not that I know of, sir."
"Hm… Do you have a fan club, Tseng?"
Tseng shook his head and smiled slightly. "No Turks have fan clubs, sir. Fan clubs don't synch with our image, but they do help promote Soldier and army recruitment." Tseng paused and shivered. "Although, Cissnei is the president of the entire, planet-wide Zachary Fair Fan Club. She'll be very upset—probably with me—when she finds out that he's been hurt."
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Lifestream
Through the mist another sound reached Zack Fair's ears. It was a sound he knew well now but was a new sound back then—helicopter rotors. He along with four other boys from the Gongaga region, including his friend Tommy, stood at attention with their gear in the school yard. It was just past dawn. From here they would be flown to Gongaga Base then taken by a regular military transport to Junon and later on to Midgar. This was it. The Turk recruiters had looked at the boys' paperwork, and the two, blue-suited men had smirked to themselves, half-laughed at his. Well, Charlie's signature hadn't looked terribly adult.
Behind the boys sat their gear in two suitcases each. Farther behind were anxious-looking parents and families, mothers sniffling. There were family members present for each boy—except for Zachary Fair.
"Za-ckie!!"
Suddenly a crying shriek rang out from behind them! Zack knew that sound. Charlie! He jerked around and spotted his little sister, in her pajama top and jeans, her sneakers untied, and her wild hair unbraided running toward his small group. Zack grimaced. It probably wasn't very military, but he wasn't a Soldier just yet, he supposed… Zack broke ranks and ran. Scooping the child in his arms, she pressed her face into his chest, and locked her thin arms tight around his neck. She sobbed as if her heart were breaking.
"Charlie, what are you doing here, kiddo? How'd you get here anyway?"
Her muffled voice barely reached him. "Za-ckie! Don't go!"
"Sweetie, I've got to. You helped me, remember?"
"Yeah, but…"
"Honey, I'll be back soon. You'll see."
Charlie leaned back to look at her brother. "Promise? Promise you'll come back?!"
"Promise… And you'll have to work on that new hold I showed you. Remember it?"
"Uh hun." Her hair bobbed frantically.
"Well, there you go, right?"
"When will you be back, Za-ckie?" Zack could feel Charlie shaking. She was on the verge of hysteria.
"Soon, sweetie. I promise." Zack kissed her cheek and handed the girl to Tommy Siddens' mother. Tommy's parents had agreed to talk to his folks, take a letter to them from him. They'd take Charlie too.
The last Zack had seen of his sister had been her waving frantically at their retreating helicopter—waving as though her arm would fly off any second. "Bye, kiddo." Zack's eyes were not the only ones on the chopper that were suspiciously bright.
Zack had known it would be a long time before he would see Charlie again; that his "soon" was a bit of a lie. "Someday" would have been more correct.
How could he have ever left that little one behind? But he'd been fifteen with his whole life ahead of him…
Gray mist swirled once more. Charlie…
A/N—The first of July marked the second anniversary of Bjanik's publication of the first chapter of One Stroke. I remember reading it while Neku and I were at the week-long, national taekwondo championships in Florida in 2007. Before that week I'd never heard of FanFiction or even knew that Bjanik wrote. During the first week of July 2009, Neku and I again attended the national championships (she received two bronze medals in forms and sparring, and started a new story, Awakening; I got my second gold medal for forms—I don't fight anymore). In celebration of the anniversary, I re-read One Stroke at the championships and picked up a few tidbits I'd forgotten—it's good to review the original! It's still better than its imitator (oh well)!
On this anniversary, I wanted to say "thank you" again to Bjanik for four reasons: (1) for writing One Stroke and for letting me continue it; (2) for letting me borrow Soldiers from The Other Way Around and The Scenic Route when I needed troops for my war; (3) for letting me use Charlie and Zack's other family members even before she's put them on FanFiction; and (4) for harassing me when I stopped writing (by the way, I'm still waiting for that three-way, B!). Thank you.