Chapter 82: Denzel Redeemed
The chaos continued, with Bahamut Sin rooting through the rubble of its destruction.
A few feet away, Yuffie was laying half-conscious on the ground, still protecting Denzel.
And, suddenly, Denzel awoke.
And when I say awoke, I mean he was no longer under the remnants' control. He was back to his normal self.
The first thing he noticed was his unconscious guardian.
"Yuffie!" he exclaimed, as he tried to shake her awake.
He then turned, and saw Bahamut Sin.
He quickly deduced the reason he and Yuffie were on the ground.
slowly, the boy rose to his feet.
"You son of a bitch!" Denzel exclaimed as he charged toward Bahamut Sin.
Bahamut Sin noticed his new opponent, and turned toward him.
Yuffie sat up-too late-so see Denzel reach the monster. She cringed, preparing for the worst.
Bahamut Sin lowered its head, preparing to devour Denzel.
And then, Denzel felt a hand push him away.
It was a metal, prosthetic hand.
That hand suddenly turned into a machine gun, and opened fire on Bahamut Sin, who quickly backed away.
"You look after Yuffie!" Barret commanded.
"Barret!" Yuffie exclaimed.
"Starting the party without us, huh?" Jessie added.
Barret began to charge toward Bahamut Sin. Suddenly, Red XIII appeared next to him, with Cait Sith, sans moogle, on his back.
Red XIII lunged toward Bahamut Sin, sinking his teeth into the vile creature's face.
Bahamut Sin howled before taking off into the air, taking Red XIII and Cait Sith with it.
Barret fired his gun-arm, but the creature was already out of range.
"We cannae handle this!" shouted Cait Sith as he and Red XIII were carried through the air.
Bahamut Sin then soared to the ground, knocking Red XIII and Cait Sith into the street.
Suddenly, the creature's mouth began to glow.
Red XIII and Cait Sith managed to escape, just as Bahamut Sin fired a green energy beam from its mouth.
Then, Bahamut Sin began to bear down on Barret.
Barret began to fire his gun-arm, only for it to jam.
"Shit!" he grunted.
Bahamut Sin flew to him, and opened its mouth.
And then, a giant shuriken struck Bahamut Sin in the head, sending it off course.
Barret turned to see Yuffie standing triumphantly.
"You seriously thought I'd just stroll down the road?" she asked.
"Barret!" Denzel greeted.
"There's more!" he announced.
Suddenly, four more shadow creepers began to close in on Yuffie and Denzel.
Then, out of nowhere, Cid appeared and killed all four of them with his spear.
"Look up!" Cid announced.
Yuffie and Denzel looked up, just in time to see the Highwind overhead.
"Shera's piloting," Cid continued. "And we have a few more surprises, too!"
Suddenly, Vincent and Lucrecia appeared as well.
"Where can I buy a phone?" Vincent asked.
"At the phone store," Lucrecia replied. "Of course."
"Who's he?" Denzel asked.
"They're our friends," Yuffie replied.
Denzel was visibly amazed.
And then, he heard the sound of tires screeching.
Both Denzel and Yuffie turned to see Zack pulling to a stop on his motorcycle.
"Sage is safe," he said. "She's back at the apartment."
Yuffie was silent, but maintained eye-contact.
"I feel lighter," Zack continued. "Maybe I lost weight from dawdling."
"I'm going back to the apartment to check on Sage," Denzel announced. "We'll wait for you both."
He then trotted off before either adult could say anything.
Then he turned to face Zack again.
"I'll see you back there, right?" he asked.
Zack nodded.
He then turned to Yuffie.
For a few moments, they made eye contact, but nothing came out of either of their mouths.
Then, Yuffie mounted the seat behind Zack's.
"Yuffie…." Zack began.
"Zack," Yuffie replied, "we do have a lot to talk about. But now's not the time. We have a world to save."
Zack nodded.
Moments later, they sped off.