-Clears throat awkwardly; Surprise?

To Zexy: I would never. You've been with me since the start. Thank you.

Words: 2,684

The next morning we were moving. I pretended as if I hadn't even heard his whisper, deciding that I was happy just to have him finally know. Zack led us towards a main road in hope of finding transportation.

"Zack we're avoiding these roads because Shinra is patrolling them."

"Eves, they're going to catch up to us if we don't hurry up." I said nothing in response, only shuffling Cloud on my shoulder for a moment. I took a deep breath and a familiar wave hit me. My eyes widened in surprise and I grabbed for Zack.

"Zack!" I gasped, Cloud's weight was suddenly too much for me. I fell down, with Cloud on top, but he was soon pulled away. An arm was holding me up and I could feel Zack's hesitation. He had a limp body and then me going into comatose like Cloud. The time I spent awake was barely longer than before.

The burning scent of Mako filled my nostrils. "Not… again," I mumbled.

"Evie! Stay with me! Come on Eves, I need you right now." The last of my control was gone and Zack's words fell on deaf ears. I watched his lips move and I shook my head to show I couldn't comprehend his words. Sea green filled my vision. The poisoning was returning… was it from Banora?

I fought for as long as my body and mind could manage before being dragged into the poisoning. The last thing I saw was Zack.

I could sense Cloud again. His thoughts became fully intertwined with mine this time. Like something was trying to connect us together. I could hear all of his wonder and doubts. I assumed he could hear all of my reassurances. Reassurances, I myself didn't believe. Zack was all by himself with two limp bodies to do nothing with.

The same feeling as before came. I could occasionally see things, and feel them. I saw yellow and my feet next to Zack's. His voice was whispering to me, but I couldn't make out what. My heart ached to be with him, and usually Cloud would leave me and my thoughts as alone as he could around these times.

There's nothing we can do. I returned to Cloud's thoughts and waited silently, albeit impatiently, for this to wear off. It was all I could do I figured.

Nothing bothered me more than the feeling in me now, to know how useless I was. To know that I wasn't strong enough to fight off the sea of green invading my vision and the poison spreading through me. There had to be a way to combat it, there had to be a reason that it kept returning. Midgar was close, and if Zack and I were lucky we'd find someone who might help...

My thoughts backtracked as I practically scoffed at myself. Who would help fugitives? Who would help people running from arguably the most powerful company in the world? No one, that was who.

There was an immeasurable amount of time that passed before I felt Cloud's thoughts break away from mine, only to come back moments later. I saw what he had just seen. Zack shaking his hair, and dropping a long kiss on my dark tresses before walking off.

My heart squeezed itself desperately wanting him to come back, to stay close. Fear rose in me powerfully turning my thoughts frantic. I needed to focus, to pull myself together and find out where he went, and what had happened.

The same whispering voice, the one from before, pulled Cloud from me, pulled me back to the same place I had left. The voice was whispering and I was becoming a form of Sephiroth. I watched my body transform, not into Sephirtoh, but into a female replica. From Cloud's body Sephiroth formed.

I relived the events of Nibelheim, but this time watched as I personally cut down children and the old couple I had talked with. Watched Tifa scream at me for killing so many, fought Zack and practically killed him.

My real thoughts were reeling, the voice was trying to weaken me, and it was working. Now I was in a fight for control. I didn't want to be what Sephiroth was and I certainly didn't want to be his little pawn.

Suddenly there was an echo. Echoes of noises hit my ears. I was trying to reach them. The noises. I couldn't find them. I couldn't feel or hear where they were coming from. They were everywhere at once.

The whispering grew persistent, and even bothersome. I fought against the images, the voicing.

A face appeared, one that I now remembered had left. Was that why there was so much noise?

Zack.

New images flashed by. Zack the first time I saw him after becoming a SOLDIER. Zack with little Yuffie. Zack and Tseng at Banora. Zack and I with Angeal. Zack crying. Zack's new haircut. Everything was of Zack and I in chronological order of when we had met for the very first time. Something was reminding me. Maybe I was reminding myself. I saw the old me, the me that would have never had this Mako Poisoning issue. The mentality I had back then wasn't so stained with death of those I cared for.

Angeal was alive. Sephiroth was the same. Cloud was alright. Aerith was so sweet. Tseng was still so uptight. Pain in the ass Yuffie still bothered us. Tifa hadn't lost her father so terribly. Lazard wasn't a copy. Rufus was still the brat I watched. Shinra wasn't out for our heads.

All of those things had completely tore my mentality apart. I'd never be the same, but I could fight my way out of this poisoning. I was a SOLDIER. I was a 1st Class SOLDIER and all this time I was doing nothing but scolding myself into trying to be one. It was damn time I acted like one.

There was a build up. The voice could no longer be heard. I saw the whisp trying to catch my attention, but I was focused. I pulled my thoughts in. Sorted out the fake images from what I knew was real. I tallied together every hard moment I ever had to face, and brought myself back together. I needed to remember what I fought for. Why I was fighting. Who I was fighting for.

Zack came back to my mind. His face, his voice, his scent, his smirk; everything I could think to admire about him came to mind. I couldn't let him leaving us worry me. Not now. I needed to get rid of this poisoning.

I joined SOLDIER to find the dearest thing I had. I left SOLDIER, not of my own accord, but to save people who had become important to me. Those people needed me now and I needed to let go of the one thing I had before SOLDIER. I needed to do this desperately.

Even as I was remembering and concentrating, the noises from outside of my mind grew louder. My mind fought to think about what they were, but the answers to the question only caused worry and fear to raise in me. Feelings that I need to push away in order to concentrate. I had no other hope of getting out of this state, but to try this.

As my focus increased, the cloudiness brushed away, this time it felt permanent. A choked scream reached my deafened ears and more noises that I slowly recognized as gunfire. My heart raced, frightened beyond belief.

There was pattering against my skin. Rain?

My place of solitude within my mind was quiet. Cloud… was gone...

My eyes blinked, the green was melting away. I blinked faster, trying to wake my whole body up. I smelt iron… I took a deep breath, my body being shocked by the scent of everything. I glanced beside me and there was a muddy trail leading from where Cloud had sat beside me.

My limbs failed to respond to me properly and I fell as soon as I tried to stand. I crawled slowly and used the rock formations that Zack had hidden us in to try and keep us safe.

But where was Zack? My heart began racing, adrenaline pumped through my limbs and I fought to stand up. Harpenger was too heavy. I unhooked my sword and dragged it along the ground as I stumbled to find Zack. Then I saw it. A helmet upside down… then a sword barren and forgotten. My eyes followed the trail to only find more swords and more helmets and many guns. In a trail leading just around a bend that looked close, but felt so far away.

My fight continued as I growled and hissed at my limbs to stand up and move. I needed to know what happened, where the trail led, where Zack was, where Cloud was...

I stumbled around one last rock and fell to my knees. My whole body shook from the wave of emotions striking me all at once.

I couldn't breathe, there was a choking feeling overwhelming me. Something hot and wet was falling down my face, tears. My brain couldn't think, couldn't process the blood. My eyes fluttered, slow shaking breaths filling me to be exhaled in choking sobs.

This couldn't be happening… Not him. There was no way. I was crying uncontrollably and it was all I could do. I hadn't even noticed Cloud. Who was crawling towards the limp body.

I shook my head, my tears mixing with the rain water. Zack was dying. My Zack was dying. This couldn't be happening. "Anyone but him," I sobbed.

Cloud's voice reached my ears and then… breathing. Hope filled me and my eyes snapped to him and I scrambled to move to him, falling into the mud and splattering myself as my heart pounded with a small hope. I didn't stop to wipe at the mud, but got to my knees and crawled towards him. I pushed myself up to my knees again, my eyes getting a good look.

Hope drained from me as fast as it had pooled. He had holes everywhere. I searched for something to help him with. We had used our last potion… A cure without the strength behind it would either be useless or kill me trying to save him. I could barely move, let alone cast it long enough to save his life before mine ended.

My heart stopped, a weight filling my limbs as my last drop of hope fluttered away with the wind and the sobs returned, clouding my vision and dripping down my chin. My nose began to run and my crying only became worse as the realization of my loss hit me again.

A hand touched me, and I wiped my eyes quickly, Zack spoke, "Don't." I choked, the sobs getting uncontrollable. His voice was a strangling sound, weak and barely louder than the rain. I was scared to touch him, my hands were shaking and I wiped at my nose viciously. He talked to Cloud with difficultly but I could only stare at his face, blood running down it.

I wanted to say something, anything. It seemed to take all of his energy just to talk and move. I had never been so scared to lose someone in my life. More tears fell from my eyes and I covered my face with a muddy glove, trying to hide my pain from him. It was beginning to feel physically painful to watch him.

A larger hand covered mine suddenly, pulling at it without the strength to move it, but I dropped it anyways, my lips quivering with the effort to smile at the man dying before me.

With a hitched breath, he pulled his other arm around to pull me to him, the same motion he had gone through with Cloud. The burning scent of flesh and blood hit my nose. My tears only seemed to double in strength as I lifted a shaking hand to cover the mortifying wound.

"Keep him… safe Eves…"

"Promise," I whispered back with a small nod. I glanced to his face where he smiled softly, and I lifted my head. His blood staining my face, as the hands from before pulled me to his eye level. One hand dropped as the effort to keep it became visibly difficult and the other wrapped around the back of my neck. I allowed him to pull my head down, pressing my forehead against his as softly as I could. My eyes closed, unable to see him so comfortable with leaving me.

I felt my tears drip from my face and I fluttered them open, my hands moving to hold my weight up as I locked eyes with him.

"I… love you Eves…" He murmured with another tiny smile. His chin tilted ever so slighty, I leaned closer to him. Our lips pressing together, his cold ones against my trembling ones. His arm fell from the back of my head, and his chin fell away, his lips disconnected from mine. Another smile pulled at his lips, as if trying to assure me that it was okay. I pulled away to watch his features entirely. I watched as his chest rose... but never fell. The empty feeling in me too powerful to try and focus on the sound of a heartbeat. I took a shaky breath in and covered my mouth just as Cloud screamed.

My shoulders sagged with defeat as I sat back. My whole body shook the tight feeling in my throat feeling unbearable. It was too much. My crying only continued, worse than before, if possible.

I could feel something akin to my heart tearing to shreds, my stomach was jumping as though it was going to implode on itself. My chest felt heavy, my breaths were short and ragged, like I myself was dying with him, despite the pain and tears to remind me I was alive.

I felt so small; there was nothing I could do. The one person I cared about more than anything in the whole world; gone. The blood was pooling closer to me and for once I was so sick of the red color I almost threw up.

I was in denial, I couldn't accept the pain. I felt broken and now even more alone than before. My ears were pounding with blood, my body fighting to coat the pain with something.

Even as the rain came to a stop, my tears continued and I looked at the smiling form with despair. I had finally got my happy ending, the ending no SOLDIER got and it was pulled from me. Rage filled my being, mixing with my despair causing my tears to become angry desperate crying.

My voice escaped me, but I thought of all the things we would never do now. Loneliness consumed the hole as my crying began to subside. Not because I wasn't upset, but because I had nothing left. My body was drained, as if pent up despair had finally released itself, leaving me permanently empty.

I watched his hair blow with the breeze. Midgar looming beyond his corpse…. Corpse. I heart thudded violently at the word. I swallowed thickly, ripping at my muddy, bloody glove to let my hand reach towards him to brush some of his hair away from his cold skin. My hand felt so warm against his skin and I brushed at his flesh lovingly, my voice coming to me in a raspy croak. "I love you too Zack."

As the sun became brighter, I watched as his body began dissolving slowly, the familiar green specs floating into the sky with a swirl flowing around me as if to say goodby one last time. I choked a bit, my lips trembling as empty tears filled my eyes as they followed the specs.

I watched as his life force rose up and combined with the Lifestream. My Zack... gone. Forever.

I'm not sure if this conveys the complete and utter heartbreak that Evie feels. This is the moment in her life that shifts her world because no one else meant as much to her as he did. This moment shapes her into a different person.

Welcome to the end loves. Of Crisis Core at least. - HQ16