Days of Exile

I cannot believe it. I've made it this far. It's already Chapter 50 and it's finally Meteorfall!

Chapter 50 – Meteorfall

Previously on Days of Exile…

Meia had successfully defeated Samuel, gaining the full control to evacuate the citizens away from the Wall Market. Samuel's decision to blindly blame Shinra for his demise was a reminder to Meia that being a Turk often meant sacrifices, even after the job was over.

On the eve of Meteorfall, Jasper has returned to Midgar to aid the others in their work. And finally, the experienced, enthusiastic and illegal taskforce was back to get Midgar and the Planet through the worst crisis it has ever known…

21 January 0008 (Day of Meteorfall)

Cassie Windell felt a presence hovering over her, even when she was sleeping. She opened her eyes sleepily and saw Rod gazing at her. "Good morning," Rodzen Daisa gave her a lazy smile. "You slept like a log. Seeing the way you slept, nobody would've guessed that we have a heavy agenda today," he spoke a low voice.

The room was still dim and Cassie could sense the presence of the other girls who were bunking in with her. By some miraculous arrangement, they managed to squeeze all the girls into Meia's room. The boys shared Rod's room, spilling out into the living room.

"Rod, what are you doing here in the girls' room?"

"A good morning call from me." Rod leant forward to kiss her forehead. "Who knows if we would ever get a chance like this again."

"Goodness, what time is it?"

"It's 4 in the morning."

Cassie raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "Didn't you sleep at all?" Rod shook his head, saying that he could not fall asleep. Cassie snorted. "You're going to regret this. You are going to be too sleepy to handle the chaos if we were saved by AVALANCHE."

"And if they fail?"

She gave a cheeky grin. "Then, you're going to regret that you died with the world without enjoying a last good night's rest." Rod grinned. Even with the severity of the situation today, they could still make a joke out of it.

Beside Cassie on the bed, Meia and KK stirred. Meia sat upright immediately, as if remembering something. KK, on the other hand, groaned comfortably and fell back to sleep.

"Is Meteor here already?" Meia hissed. Cassie doubted if Meia knew who she was talking to.

"Not quite. But we've woken up early enough to see it happen," Cassie replied quietly.

Meia gave an audible sigh of relief. That was when she noticed the extra person in the room. She almost reached for her handgun by reflex. "Rodzen Daisa, what, in the name of Gaia, are you doing here?" she squeaked, annoyance filling her whole face and bed hair. She also pulled the blankets further up to cover herself.

"Spending my last few moments with Cassie," replied Rod with as much suaveness as he could muster.

"Sheesh," said Meia, rolling her eyes, though no one could see in the dimness.

"Sheesh yourself. Shouldn't YOU be spending your night with Reno? Which, by the way," Rod added with a hint of cheekiness. "I heard. Congratulations, little Meia. Glad to know that you've managed to enjoy some of the finest things in life before you die."

"Legend," hissed Meia. "That blabbermouth. Doesn't he have anything productive to do?"

"He did," said Cassie, her voice showing much amusement. "He announced to every one of us."

Meia resisted groaning in disgust. She wrapped her head with her blanket. "How could any of you keep a straight face last night? I swear I will toss him head first into Meteor."

Cassie and Rod chuckled. "Naw, don't be so grumpy about it. Isn't it good that we are up early and all?" Rod grinned. "We had time for a good laugh-"

"At my expense."

"Better than dying in your sleep right now."

Meia rolled her eyes, but she could not dispel that possibility. Beside the bed, Leia and Cissnei stirred by the voices in the room. They stared at Elfe, who was still sleeping soundly. Then, they noticed Rod, sitting by Cassie's side. Leia narrowed her eyes while Cissnei groaned. "If the two of you were doing anything funny, don't tell me."

"I'm not that sort of person to do funny stuff in a room full of people!" Rod made a face at Leia. "Geez, fine fine, I'll leave the room." He gave Cassie a peck on the cheek and walked out, sulking and muttering about "being ordered about in his own place."

It did not take long before all the exiled Turks gathered in the small living room in Rod's garage. Meia's eyes flitted from one person to another. Nobody could guarantee when she could see them altogether in one place, even if the Planet were to be saved. Everyone had returned once again to face the Planet's biggest crisis. After this, she could not stop anyone from leaving to return to their new lives again.

But as of now, the biggest importance would be to help Tseng and the current Turks with their evacuation, before Meteor destroys any chance of rescue.

This is bad. We barely have enough time.

Reno puffed and panted as he raced down the debris-filled streets. He glanced around him for a final check. "Evacuation of Sector Four, complete!" He declared proudly to himself.

"Reno!" He turned to where the voice was coming from and saw Rude and Elena running towards him from the other side of the street.

He waved and asked, "How are things?"

His partner and friend, Rude, replied stoically, "All civilians of Sector Two have been evacuated." There was no end to wonderment as to how he could keep his expression minimal. Even the pending destruction of a Planet did not faze him.

"Sector Three is also completed," added Elena.

Reno nodded. When it came to efficiency and speed, no one could outmatch the Turks. In just a few days, the four of them, Tseng included, had managed to evacuate most of the Midgar citizens in the upper sectors. It was not easy managing thousands of people. "That only leaves…"

"Sector Five," Elena finished the sentence for him.

"We have to hurry," Reno said urgently. Elena agreed. "Meteor will be approaching very soon."

They picked up their pace and began to run. It was a considerable distance from Sector 4. The trains and railways were obviously not working, so walking was the only way to travel anywhere in Midgar now.

Reno glanced at the Meteor above them. To say that Midgar was not affected would be a lie. Even though it was the late morning, the skies above them were dark as night. Meteor was extremely close to Midgar. Reno believed that if he flew his helicopter high enough, he might be able to touch Meteor. Temperatures had increased and buildings have begun to catch fire. The metal structure supporting the entire Upper Sector of Midgar was still standing strong, credit to Reeve's ingenious architectural design. However, Reno was not confident that it could last long.

The sound of Elena's voice brought Reno out of his thoughts. "I know we were not tasked to do anything about the lower plates but…" Her voice dropped such that Reno could barely hear her. "What about the Midgar slum citizens? We have been moving out the Upper Sectors, there's no way we'll have time for the slums."

"Reeve and Meia are working on that," Rude answered.

"Oh, that's a relief," said Elena cheerfully. "I… I was kinda worried that we won't be able to save our good old Sector 5 bar… you know? When everyone was still around and happy…" She trailed off, realising that she had stepped on a topic that both men did not want to talk about.

Reno wondered how Meia was coping with the evacuation of citizens in the lower sectors. She was incredibly tight-lipped about the details. Since she is working with Reeve, I'm sure Reeve would be able to pull out manpower anywhere he wants.

"You know, maybe my sister is helping them out," Elena was talking again. "For the last few days, she has not been at home. She wouldn't tell me what she was doing, though."

"For Gaia's sake, Elena," snapped Reno. "We are not interested in your family affairs. Leave us out of it."

Elena snapped out of her ramblings immediately. "I apologise." She said quickly.

The redhead glanced back to see Elena's face, stung by Reno's harsh comments. "… Nah, it's me too." Reno waved it off. "I'm not very good with remembering the past."

The three of them ran the rest of the distance in silence.

"Tseng!"

Tseng turned to see his subordinates running towards him. "Everyone!" He said in relief. He was getting worried when no one gave him any updates on the evacuation. However, seeing all of them together reassured him that they have done their jobs properly, and that they were safe.

"Where are the residents?" asked Reno, looking around.

Tseng gestured at the pile of rubble blocking the street. Right before he met them, he was thinking of how to get past the rubble quickly. Time was running out; they did not have much time to consider many alternatives. "They were left behind inside the rubble."

Reno stared at the pile of rocks and woods, his usually carefree face tightened to a determined frown. "I refuse to give up," he said. Dangerous or not, whether everyone had time or not, he would not leave anyone in the lurch anymore. His hands twitched slightly as he thought about the Sector Seven incident. No, he said to himself. No more. I won't let Sector Seven happen all over again.

Elena gasped. "Tseng! Behind you!"

No sooner did the words leave her mouth than there was an explosion right behind them. It was not a big one, but it made their situation worse. The building near them crumbled under the heat and pressure from Meteor. The rubble burst into flames as the building all but disintegrated into a higher pile of rocks and obstacles for the Turks.

Elena sighed, trying to keep her tears of frustration to herself. "This is…"

"Awful…" Rude mumbled.

Reno groaned and ran his hand through his hair. "This is too much for the people to handle…" Tseng did not know if Reno meant the citizens or the Turks.

The situation was bleak as it could be. Not everyone has been evacuated. The whole city was in chaos, overrun with falling rocks, unpredictable explosions and rampaging monsters. There has been no indication from anyone as to the situation in the slums, nor the situation with Meteor.

Tseng cleared his throat. As a leader, he could not show any signs of defeat in front of his subordinates. No matter the venue, the circumstance. Even if it was obvious that they were going to fail the mission to save everyone from Meteor. Even if they were to die today. "So far-"

"The duty of the Turks is to accomplish the mission without fail." There were goosebumps when Tseng heard that familiar voice. Tseng had never thought that he would ever hear that voice again. "You're not giving up, are you?" The man said in a half-challenging tone.

The four of them turned around at the one who interrupted Tseng. When Tseng saw him, it felt as though he had found someone whom he had lost, which was rightly so.

"Veld!"

Veld smiled. Tseng had not seen him for slightly more than a month, however, he looked different. Beside Veld was all the former comrades whom Tseng knew and thought he would never see again – Rod, Cassie, Alana, Jasper, KK, Kido, Mason, Cissnei, Leia and Haato.

Tseng was not the only one who was surprised. Reno's jaw dropped when he saw them. "Everyone!" He yelled in excitement.

"Sister," Elena looked at Alana in surprise. "You came!"

Veld looked at Tseng. "Sir, what's wrong? Hurry and give us our orders!"

Tseng blinked at Veld, confused. What was he talking about?

"Come on, hurry up!" Cassie urged.

I see, that's what they are here for. Tseng realized. Not to take over as the Turks, but to help us. His confidence grew. With that many people, evacuation will not be a big problem. "Turks! It's urgent that we evacuate the remaining civilians."

"Roger!"

"I trust that we will do everything to our best, because there is nothing-"

"That is too difficult for the Turks!" they cheered. Despite the dire circumstances around them, Tseng could not help but smile. For a moment, things looked like they were back to normal.

"Ah!" gasped Cissnei. "Tseng is smiling? I never thought that day would come!"

"There you are!"

Everyone turned to see Meia and Legend. Meia looked tired and relieved at the same time. Legend too, had a wide grin on his face. The reunited Turks greeted each other excitedly, as though they did not sleep together under one roof just the night before.

"Meia!" Reno cried happily. He rushed forward to take her into a fierce hug. "You did not tell me that everyone came back. Please don't tell me it's a dream, because it still feels like one."

Her face was innocent as she could muster. "Really? I guess I may have missed out on some details here and there… Maybe it's just a dream," she said cheekily. "Surprised?"

"Shocked would be a better word," he admitted.

"Alright, lovebirds," cut in Leia, glancing at Tseng and Veld. "As happy as this can be, we still have to get down to work. Better not waste any more time."

Jasper grinned. Trust Leia to always bring back the focus. "Or maybe we'll let Meia and Reno work together-"

"Of course not!" chorused Reno and Meia. Jasper stared at them in disbelief.

"We don't have to stick to each other like glue," explained Meia.

"Besides," added Reno. "My partner is Rude."

"And mine is Legend."

"If we became partners, I'll have a hard time keeping a lookout for her," Reno said, scratching the top of Meia's head. She moved as if to protest, but Reno continued, "I'm more than happy to let Legend babysit her."

"I'm not a baby!" Meia growled, folding her arms in disagreement.

"They're right," said Tseng, before the squabble got out of hand. "We don't have time to regroup anyway. I need your help, as much as possible."

Kido nodded. "No worries, Tseng. Just tell us what to do."

Rod scratched his head, sighing. He looked at the Meteor above them. "After this assignment is done, shall we go for a meal for something?"

"Clearly you are not thinking carefully," replied Alana, meticulous and tactful as ever (unless she wanted to be sarcastic). "Meteor will not have short-term aftereffects. Besides, we don't know if we can even succeed."

"Ah, ah, ah," said Haato cheekily, wagging a finger at the taciturn gun-user. "We won't know till we succeed, or die in the process."

Alana barely attempted to hide her annoyance. "I do not understand why you get on my nerves, and only my nerves."

"That's because your reactions are always the best!" grinned Haato.

Cissnei patted Alana's shoulder. "Believe me, you're not the only one annoyed with him."

"How's the evacuation in the slums?" asked Tseng.

Mason grinned and clenched his fists confidently. "We have been moving them to gather at the same place. You know," he commented to Reno and Rude. "I can't believe that I have to eat my words. It was just November that I said that I don't want to do another evacuation in another crisis like Zirconiade…" He sighed.

"… We'll make it through," said Rude confidently.

Reno agreed. "Just like how we did with Zirconiade."

"Alrighty!" said KK with a burst of new strength. "Let's get down to saving the Planet!" Everyone cheered in response.

Skies continued to darken as the glowing red Meteor loomed closer. As luck would have it, it began to rain and unnatural winds picked up at almost every direction.

"Not good, not good at all," muttered Meia under her breath.

"At least we've managed to get almost everyone into safety," assured Legend.

"Yeah, who would've thought that Reeve's mega-structure is strong enough to hold up the winds?" Meia grinned. "The people below have absolutely no idea how lucky they are."

Legend was not answering. Instead, he was looking up and above him. "Is that an airship I see?"

"What? That's ridicu…" She stopped when she squinted at the dark object in the sky. "It is an airship! What is it doing? It's dangerous up there!"

Apparently, the pilot of the airship thought so too. The airship swiftly and expertly landed, creating a cloud of dust billowing from beneath. The door opened and men ran out of the airship, shouting orders and covering themselves from the rain. Behind the men, walked two people whom Meia recognized.

She walked briskly to meet them. "Vincent Valentine?" She asked. Looking at the Wutaian girl next to him, she correctly identified, "Yuffie, right?"

"We know her?" Yuffie raised an eyebrow at Vincent.

"I know her… kinda." Was Vincent's simple reply.

"We've met," Meia explained. "On the airship escaping the Northern Crater. I was under the disguise of being the assistant of Hojo. Well, it's a long story." Meia quickly waved it off.

"Yet you remember my name and face?" Yuffie wriggled her fingers. "Creepy!"

"What are you doing here?" Meia asked. "Where's Cloud and Reeve?"

"Ah! About that, well, Cloud dumped the both of us at Junon so that we could pick up an airship to help out with the evacuation here. It was Cait Sith's idea, and nobody objected-"

"Great!" Meia said delightedly. "We really could use all the help we need!"

"Sorry, but who are you again?" Yuffie narrowed her eyes at the both of them.

Oh, we are not wearing Turk suits, of course, thought Meia. "We are under Reeve Tuesti… Cait Sith."

"Don't worry," said Vincent. "I know them."

Legend nodded at Vincent gratefully. "Most of the citizens are being taken to the slums by now, but there are some straggling survivors and more who are injured. We will need your help to transport the injured out of Midgar."

"Roger that!" Yuffie gave a small salute and the two AVALANCHE members strode off.

Meia pulled out the band that was holding up her ponytail and redid her hair. The rain was making them stick to her face and it made her uncomfortable. "With more help, I think we will be able to get everyone out of trouble."

"Well, AVALANCHE has got to hurry up," said Legend. "I doubt Meteor wants to wait any longer."

Then, her PHS rang, Meia could hardly hear its ring over the wind and rain. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw that it was Reeve. Carefully, she picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Hurry up!" Meia shouted over the wind and rain. Legend ran behind her, jumping as gracefully as he could, over the rocks and burning metal plates.

"Are you sure that AVALANCHE had really defeated Sephiroth? And that Holy thing?" asked Legend. Even over the howling winds, he sounded skeptical.

She sighed at her partner's remark. She was ecstatic when Reeve called to tell her that they had defeated Sephiroth – it would only be a matter of time before Holy comes. She had already disseminated the information to everyone. Now they had to find a place to hide and wait for everything to tide over. "I am positive. Why would you be doubtful, Legend?"

"Well, didn't you say that once Sephiroth is defeated, Holy will be able to stop Meteor?" Legend looked around him. "Not wanting to be a pessimist, but I ain't seeing anything that is helping us now. In fact, whoa!" He yelled as a falling piece of metal nearly hit him. "Is it me or are the winds picking up?"

Meia cursed and pointed to the sky. As Legend looked up, he saw the sky, dyed with splotches black and red. Little tornadoes ripped through the city of Midgar. The Shinra Building, the tallest building in Midgar and possibly the whole Planet, crumbled and fell apart. The tiles flew from the pavement in light of destruction. Vehicles and less sturdier objects were crushed.

When Meia looked closely, she saw that bits of the floor had fallen, leaving the slums exposed to the sky. Are the citizens below alright? She wondered.

Then again, she should be thinking for herself. Being in the Upper Plates was currently dangerous. With the powerful winds, things began flying everywhere. Cans, glass shards, metal pipes… One of the shards flew and cut Meia's face. "No!" groaned Meia, clutching her bleeding cheek. "Not my face!"

Legend pressed his jacket over her cheek to stop the blood from flowing. "God, you're such a girl," he said, rolling his eyes. "At this point in time, all you care about is your face? Watch out!" He immediately covered her with his body as a metal pipe hit him on the back. He groaned in pain. "Great," he muttered. "Choose to be a hero when crazy things are flying across the city."

"Are you alright?" Meia rubbed his back.

"Like I said, are you sure that there is really such a thing as-"

His words were cut as a bright flash of white light flashed across the sky. They covered their eyes from the blinding light. Immediately, the tornadoes ceased, bringing temporary relief. Meia released a sigh, staring into the sky as if in a trance. "Holy," she said, more to herself than to Legend.

Legend stared at the sky. Never again, he believed, that he will ever see that moment when that giant ball of red is surrounded by a wave of white light again. Holy covered the entire Midgar, filling it with its white glare. "Will it work?" murmured Legend, but not out of skepticism.

"No," said Meia, a hint of terror creeping back into her voice. "Holy… Holy is not working! Meteor is still pressing in!"

As Legend looked up, he found that what she said was true. Instantly, the place was hit with a red fog and the ground trembled under the pressure. Wasting no time, the two of them ran at breakneck speed. "I thought you said that Holy will stop Meteor!" shouted Legend over the chaos.

"I thought so too!" Meia shouted back.

Indeed, I thought that Holy was our answer, but Meteor was simply too strong… She squeezed out the tears of desperation in her eyes. I don't want to die like this! I want to see Reno again…

Reno!

As Holy and Meteor battled against each other, Reno and Rude wasted no time to seek refuge in whatever they could find. It was too far to seek shelter in the lower plates, and every other building had all but crumbled to dust. Their only choice was Shinra Building, the only building that still had some kind of decent structure.

"What an irony," laughed Reno dryly as they were running towards the lobby. "In the end, we still have to seek refuge in Shinra Building. The building that everyone wants to run away from initially."

"..."

"I wonder... I wonder if Meia is alright." Reno's tone dropped. The ground trembled and they almost lost their balance. They quickly regained composure and entered the dark building.

Rude was concerned - and he made it brutally frank. "Do you want to go and find her?" he asked.

The redhead stopped to look at him. Rude recognised the sadness in his partner's eyes - He had once seen it on his own face for many days when he had lost Chelsea (A/N: Please refer to "I Want To Be A Turk!" Chapter 30 on who is Chelsea.). Reno clearly understood that there was no way he could find Meia in the chaos outside. The PHS signals were all down, destroyed by the monster of Meteor. "Nah," he said. "Meia and I both knew that this was going to happen." He stared out of a broken window, where the massive forces were colliding each other. "If only I had ten more minutes to find her though. Why does it have to happen now?"

Suddenly, the building shook violently. Reno and Rude crouched low, steadying themselves as the ground trembled. Something was definitely not right but neither of them wanted to look out to see what it was. Whatever it was, its bright light burst through the broken windows like a flood. Walls cracked and peeled off while showers of dusts fell upon them. Nodding at each other, they ran to safety - the toilet cubicles.

What a way to die. He thought. Body of a first class, professional Turk, lifeless on the toilet bowl.

"This is my fault," said Rude in the next cubicle.

"What is?"

"If I didn't suggest we come back to collect the tool box then—"

"Forget it, man," Reno interrupted. "Now's not the time to feel sorry." Noticing Reno's voice was different from usual, Rude quietened down. The silence was too much for Reno, even though he knew Rude was not one to speak much. "Rude?"

As if he was expecting Reno to call his name, Rude grunted, "What is it?"

"We've been together for a long time."

Rude paused, knowing where this was going. "… Yeah."

"Partners, right?"

"... Yeah." Rude smiled, although no one could see. In the last few moments of his life, Rude was thankful and glad that he had Reno as a partner. Once upon a time, he was uncomfortable being the new partner of the young, wet-behind-the-ears redhead who thought too highly of himself.

"The best partners, yo?" echoed Reno.

Rude noticed that Reno was back to his usual self. Then, there was the sound of Reno leaving his cubicle. Almost immediately afterwards, the door on Rude's cubicle gets kicked down. Rude catches it and kicks it back. "What the hell!" Rude shouted.

Reno stood by the door with a big cheeky grin on his face. "My last present to my best partner."

Rude lifted the broken panel and stared at Reno in bewilderment. "A door?"

"A thrill. The sort of thing you like."

"… Not enough," Rude replied as he got out of his cubicle.

"Then why don't we take a look outside?" Reno gestured at the door. "I bet it's exciting."

At this point, there's no doubt about it. Rude thought. I can't believe that when the world ends, I'm actually going to die with this idiot next to me… He pushed his sunglasses against his nose. Not that I was expecting much else. "It's a festival." Rude smirked.

Both Turks sprinted out of the Shinra Building and into the lights outside. All thoughts of hiding somewhere while the world crumbled to pieces were long gone from their minds. If they were going to die, at least they want to see some flash and bang.

However, what greeted them was nothing that they had expected. Winds were still howling and whipping debris through the streets. Holy and Meteor were still pushing against each other, but there was a new force. Beams of cyan light coursed through the air and whizzed past and through Reno and Rude. Joining forces with the waves of Holy, the two energies seemed to make Meteor retreat.

"Woah!" yelled Reno, spinning around to admire the strings of Lifestream that wove through the air. "That was the Lifestream, wasn't it?"

Rude did not reply. However, he understood what was happening. The Lifestream is here to help Holy defeat Meteor. To help us. "Reno."

"What?"

Rude turned to his partner and for the first time in a long time, he grinned, "This is the best."

The Lifestream.

Brother Sunny, Tihan, Carmelle… This must be what you were talking about in that dream the other night, right? And the three of you aren't the only ones helping us… Sister Aerith… Brother Zack… Mommy… Daddy…

All of you are fighting for us too, right? From the Lifestream.

Meia looked up and saw the tendrils of light, soft but determined in their goal. Just by seeing the Lifestream, she could sense the determination, thoughts and emotions of people who had gone before her.

As the green streams of the Lifestream poured into the collision point between Meteor and Holy, Legend took a deep breath. There was a slight chance of winning, of surviving. "This… This is beautiful," he said with a tone of how a farmer might greet a noble and mighty king. He wondered how many people in the Planet are unfortunately privileged enough to see what he and Meia were watching now. Then, the collision slowly diffused. "… Watch out!" He shouted, grabbing Meia to the ground.

There was a mighty rumble in the skies. Meia peeked over Legend's arm and saw Meteor slowly disintegrating. The ground rocked under the immense surge of energy and then, there was a blast through the area. "Legend!" Meia shouted before her voice was drowned out by the roar of the blast and her eyes were blinded from the flash.

The rumbling and roaring lasted for only a few seconds, but it felt like a long time to Meia. She had no idea how long it would take, and how safe it was to open her eyes to see. So the both of them waited until the ground stopped trembling and that all that they could hear was the sound of fire burning in the background. Gingerly, they opened their eyes and instantly looked up into the skies.

The sky was empty again. There was no more suffocating atmosphere from a pressing ball of fire. For a moment, neither of them spoke a word in fear of breaking the delicate balance between fantasy and reality. Legend sat up first, pulling Meia up to her feet as he did so. He muttered unintelligible things under his breath and Meia was too stunned to respond.

Suddenly, she pointed up. From the sky, the remaining Lifestream rained on the entire city, like sparkling bits of fireflies.

We are saved.

Something warm slid down her cheeks and it also blurred her vision, but she did not care. For just this moment, nothing else before nor after mattered. All Meia could mutter was, "We are saved."

I'm so so glad that this chapter is over! For so many months, I had dreamed about scenes in this chapter, and finally they are all coming to pass! Anyway, scenes are taken and modified from Final Fantasy 7, the Case of Shinra and Before Crisis.

Argh, doing this chapter is horrible. I had to rewatch the FF7 ending, the Before Crisis epilogue, and read the Case of Shinra so many times. Initially, Reeve's call was to come in the wee hours of the morning and then meteor was finally destroyed by noon. But the ending of FF7 would not allow it, so I had to shift the events a little. That made the completion of this chapter longer than expected.

Reading this again gave me goosebumps though, which is kinda like complimenting myself. It's just that I cannot imagine how the people felt when they were in that situation. That's why I believe Meia would cry at the end, because no words could express how emotional one would feel at the conclusion that they were given yet another chance to live again.

The climax of the story has come to a close, but there are still some last things to tie up, of which I will explain in the new chapter.

Thank you for reading such a long chapter! Please read and review!