A/N: 2024.11.11
The title is inspired by the Star Wars tracks, "Duel of the Fates" and "Battle of the Heroes".
Chapter 3: Duel of Heroes
Cloud and Squall engaged in battle, which started off with some basic strategies from both warriors. After the initial couple of minutes, Squall and Cloud moved into more creative attacks, including the use of magic. Cloud was surprised to see no sign of materia use by Squall, though that did fit in with what Reeve and Shelke mentioned before. Squall was wondering what the mysterious glows he was seeing coming from Cloud's armaments; Squall quickly determined the glows must've been his opponent's world's own form of magic. They each launched a Lightning magic attack, which collided and resulted in an explosion. Squall and Cloud moved around the smoke of the explosion and collided their blades against each other again.
As they struggled, Squall and Cloud had to admire each other's skill.
Cloud was astonished. This guy wasn't on Sephiroth's level, but that didn't mean he wasn't deadly and dangerous.
Squall couldn't lie. For a single opponent, especially one that wasn't a GF, this may have been the strongest person Squall ever faced.
After another exchange, Squall and Cloud clashed swords then they jumped back, entering defensive stances. Both warriors had heavy labored breathing yet managed to stand tall.
'Jeez!' Squall thought. 'He's definitely one of the toughest guys I've ever fought. Hell, I don't think Seifer hits this hard!'
'What's with this guy?!' Cloud pondered. 'He just won't go down! He's barely even given me an opening!'
Watching from the Ragnarok's bridge, Zell and the others winced with every clash Cloud and Squall made. They were amazed there was someone else who could go one-on-one with Squall.
"Should we do something?" Irvine asked.
"Uhh…" Quistis groaned. "I don't know, I don't know!"
"I haven't seen anyone fight Squall like this since Seifer!" Zell noted.
Quistis watched this fight but something about it made her feel like they shouldn't interfere yet. "Let's… let's give it a minute. So far, Squall's holding his own."
"Yeah, but, Quisty…" Selphie said, nervously.
"I know, Selphie. I know…"
World of Gaia. Corel Valley.
Tifa and the others stood staring at the portal.
"Now?" Barret asked.
"I think now should be good," Cid agreed.
Suddenly, Tifa and Red XIII perked up, feeling a presence among them.
"Wait!" Tifa said.
"For what?" Yuffie asked.
"We…" Red XIII said. "…we should… wait a bit longer."
"What?"
"Why?" Vincent asked.
"Red's right," Tifa agreed. "Just… a little longer."
World of Destin. Balamb Garden.
Rinoa was sitting at Lukas's bedside when she felt a strong presence. "Mm," she groaned and pressed her hand to her forehead.
But this time, she could feel something. Or someone. Rinoa slowly moved her hand and looked around the room. "Is…" she whispered as she stood up, "is someone there?"
"Yes," the kind voice said. "I'm sorry. But we need your help."
"My help?"
"Yes. I know this may not make any sense right now, but… all of this will help Lukas."
Rinoa stopped. "You got my attention."
"You're Rinoa," the voice said. "Zack and I can tell how much of a friend you are to Lukas. That's good. He'll need all the support he can get."
"Ellone told us about you guys," the other voice said.
Rinoa froze again. "Ellone? You talked to Ellone? What's going on? Who are you?"
"My name is Aerith," Aerith answered. "The other voice you're hearing is Zack."
"Hi, Rinoa," Zack greeted. "Nice to… meet you, I guess."
"Uh, yeah," Rinoa replied. "Same."
"Rinoa, I'm sorry," Aerith apologized. "I know this a lot to take in, but time is critical. There's a lot happening right now, but you must stop Squall and Cloud! Stop them from fighting. There's something coming. For your world, for our world. Something worse than anything any of us has ever faced! Cloud and Squall! They need to help each other. Cloud has friends, too. On the other side of portal! You'll need them, too! All of you must help each other. No one can win this fight alone. His name is Cloud Strife! Tell him Zack and Aerith need his help!"
Feeling the connection end, Rinoa grunted and stumbled back. She looked up, still comprehending what she heard, but she knew there wasn't a lot of time for that and hurriedly grabbed her phone. She considered calling Squall but, given Aerith's words, she knew better. She selected Selphie's number.
After two rings, Selphie answered, "Rinoa, this is kinda a bad time!"
"You have to stop Squall!" Rinoa said, hurriedly.
"What?"
"What'd she say?" Zell asked.
"Hold on." Selphie was quiet for a second. "Okay, Rin, you're on speaker."
"You have to stop Squall!" Rinoa repeated.
"Rin—" Quistis began.
"The guy he's fighting! His name is Cloud Strife! You guys have to stop them! Now!"
"Why?" Irvine asked.
"This is bigger than we thought!" Rinoa informed, quickly. "It's on Cloud's world, too. He's not the enemy! Him and his friends! We need their help and they need ours! Something really big is happening! Tell Cloud Zack and Aerith need him to stop!"
"Rinoa, how do you know all this?!" Quistis asked.
"Aerith! She spoke to me! Like in my mind. UGH! Look, we'll deal with that later! Just stop 'em and get everyone back here!"
Two Miles Away from the Centra Ruins.
Cloud and Squall separated, using their blades to keep themselves propped up. They were starting to hit a first level of fatigue, but it was nowhere close to the level of giving up. They charged at each other again.
"GUYS, WAIT!" Quistis got in between them, using her whip to prepare to block both attacks. "STOP!"
Squall and Cloud rushed to a stop before they struck Quistis, leading her to let out a quick sigh of relief.
"What?" Cloud asked. "Who're you?!"
"Quistis, move!" Squall ordered.
"No, Squall!" Quistis argued. "He's not the enemy!"
"What are you talking about?"
"Rinoa called. She… spoke to someone. Doesn't matter right now." Quistis looked at Cloud. "You're Cloud! You're Cloud Strife, right?"
Cloud studied Quistis for a moment, "Lady, how the hell do you know my name?"
Quistis took a breath. "Aerith told our friend, Rinoa. Her and Zack need you both to stop! They need your help. All of our help."
Cloud's eyes widened. He slowly lowered his sword, "Aerith? A-and Zack?"
"Yes." Quistis looked at Squall.
Though he was still unsure, Squall slowly lowered his gunblade.
Quistis looked back at Cloud. "Something's happening, Cloud. Not just on your world but ours, too. Something bad is coming. The only way we survive it… is if we all work together. You, your friends, and us. Cloud, please."
Cloud studied her then shifted his gaze to Squall. "Okay." He looked at Quistis, nodding, "Okay. Let's talk."
"You better be right, Quistis," Squall declared.
"Name one time I was wrong about something like this," Quistis replied.
Squall paused. He couldn't. He looked at Cloud, "So, Cloud, right?"
"Yeah," Cloud replied. "Squall?"
Squall nodded.
"You… you're pretty good."
"Back at you."
Cloud sighed. "Uh… I have some friends. They're waiting for me."
"We need them," Quistis insisted. "We have to all meet up. Back at the Garden."
"'Garden'?" Cloud asked.
"Oh, this is gonna get complicated," Squall groaned.
"'Get' complicated?" Quistis raised an eyebrow.
"Fair."
"Uhh… okay." Cloud looked at the portal then back at Squall and Quistis. He sheathed his sword, "Give me a minute." He headed for the portal.
World of Gaia. Woodlands Area.
Tifa and the others looked up quickly when they saw Cloud walk through the portal.
"Cloud!" Tifa rushed up to him.
"You're okay!" Yuffie smiled.
Barret noticed signs of a fight on Cloud. "You mean, kinda okay. What happened?"
"I met someone from the other world," Cloud answered. "We need to go there. All of us."
"Why?" Cid asked.
"Because… for some reason… someone there talked to Aerith."
The group froze. "What?" Tifa whispered.
"That's impossible!" Yuffie shouted.
"Cloud, why should we trust 'em?" Cid asked.
"No, I…" Tifa began, "I think, we should."
"I agree with Tifa and Cloud," Red XIII admitted. "If this is happening on their world and Aerith spoke to someone there… then this is bigger than we thought."
Vincent considered that. "If you three agree, then I'm with you."
"Yeah," Yuffie nodded. "Okay. I'm in, too."
Cid and Barret looked at each other then at the others. "Alright," Barret said. "Let's call Reeve and let him know what we're doing."
World of Destin. Two Miles Away from the Centra Ruins.
After standing for a few minutes while studying the portal, Squall turned to Quistis, "Think they're gonna come back?"
Quistis considered her answer. "Yeah. After what Rinoa said… I think those names did a lot to convince them."
Squall looked back at the portal, "Let's hope so."
A moment later, Cloud and the AVALANCE team walked through. They carefully approached Squall and Quistis.
Yuffie studied them. "So, Cloud, was it the guy or the girl who kicked your ass?"
Cloud groaned while Quistis tucked her lips in to keep from smiling. Squall smirked a bit.
"I fought him," Cloud pointed at Squall.
"So, he kicked your ass," Yuffie nodded. "Got it."
"He didn't 'kick my ass'."
"You're the one with bruises."
"He's got some, too," Cloud replied.
"To be fair," Squall shrugged, "he left a few marks."
"Someone left you a worse one!" Yuffie noted, referring to Squall's scar. "Yikes!"
"Yuffie," Vincent chided.
"Alright, alright!"
"It's nice to meet you all," Quistis nodded. "I'm Quistis. Quistis Trepe. This is Squall Leonhart."
"Nice to meet you," Tifa nodded. "I'm Tifa Lockhart." She introduced the rest of the group.
Cid looked at the Ragnarok. "Now, that is one impressive ship!"
"You a pilot?" Squall asked.
"Best you'll ever met, youngster."
Squall almost chuckled. "You'll like Selphie."
"I think she'll like her more," Quistis pointed at Yuffie.
"We need to head back," Squall said. "We have a lot of questions."
"Same here," Cloud agreed.
They all went on board the Ragnarok. They entered the bridge where Selphie, Zell, and Irvine were.
"Hi," Zell waved to the group.
"Hi," Tifa waved back.
"So, they look a little scary but seem nice," Selphie noted.
"So far more nice than scary," Quistis smiled, causing Tifa and Yuffie to giggle a bit.
Yuffie laughed. "Hey, Red! Check it out! They don't think you're scary!"
Red XIII smiled and chuckled.
"They're probably callin' Vincent scary," Cid sneered.
Vincent groaned. Selphie and Tifa laughed a bit.
"Hey, so, he can talk?" Zell pointed at Red.
"Indeed, I can," Red XIII nodded.
"Huh! That's cool!"
Everyone proceeded to introduce themselves.
"Okay, so, if they're all nice," Selphie looked at Squall, "why'd you fight him?" She pointed at Cloud.
"He wouldn't lower his sword," Squall shrugged.
"You wouldn't lower yours," Cloud countered.
Cid snickered and looked at Cloud, "Is that seriously why you fought this guy?"
Tifa groaned. "Cloud…"
"What?" Cloud defended. "He didn't lower his sword."
Barret groaned, "Dammit, Cloud!"
"You would've done the same thing."
"Squall, dude, you're not any better!" Irvine laughed.
"Seriously!" Zell agreed. "If we had done that, you'd give me that disapproving glare you're always using."
"Hold on, is it quiet, unrealistically intense, and look like this?" Yuffie forced her face to become a completely immutable scowl.
"Hey! That's it, like, exactly!"
Yuffie blinked. She looked at Cloud then pointed at Squall, "Is this guy like your long-lost brother or something?"
Cloud glared at her.
Yuffie put her hands up in defense, "Just askin'! By the way, that's the exact glare I'm talking about."
"Wow!" Irvine blinked. "Squall, he really does look a lot like you when you do that!"
Cloud and Squall both set their jaws and let out irritated groans.
"I can't wait to tell Rinoa about all this!" Selphie sneered.
Squall grumbled, "Let's just go!"
"Where are we going?" Vincent asked.
"Our base and home. Balamb Garden."
"We need you to meet Rinoa," Quistis explained. "She spoke to Aerith."
"Again, that should be impossible," Yuffie said.
"Why's that?"
"Aerith…" Cloud began, "…died… a few years ago. Zack, too."
Squall and the SeeD team looked at each other, concernedly.
"Uhhh… sorry to hear that," Zell said, sincerely, looking back at AVALANCHE.
"Thanks," Barret nodded.
"Hold on," Irvine said. "Then they're right! How did Rinoa talk to them?"
"Let's get back and start putting this together," Squall said. "Take us back, Selphie."
"You got it!" Selphie turned to the controls.
"Mind if I see how you operate this thing?" Cid approached the pilot's seat. "I'm a pretty good pilot!"
"No problem, mister!" Selphie replied, happily.
Zell blinked. "Wait. Your name's Cid, right?"
"That's it!" Cid smiled.
"We know a Cid."
"They're not the same person, Zell," Squall preempted.
"I wasn't saying that," Zell defended. "Just… like… what are the odds?"
"Zell. Shut up. Let's go, Selphie."
"There's the glare again," Zell pointed out.
"Yeah, okay, it really does look the same," Tifa noted.
Lukas didn't know how but he somehow knew he was still asleep. He could feel his body was stationary, but he felt he inside his own mind. It reminded him of his dreams, but this wasn't a dream.
He was in his mind. And he wasn't alone.
"Lukas…" Aerith whispered.
"What?" Lukas asked.
"I'm so glad you're still alive."
"Who… who are you?"
"My name is Aerith," Aerith answered. "Me and Zack—"
"You're the ones who helped me with that…" Lukas stopped. "…whatever that was!"
"Yes. We need your help. Everyone needs your help."
"Me?"
"Yes," Aerith confirmed. "Things are… they're happening too fast. You have to find us."
"Find you?" Lukas asked. "I… I don't understand."
"I know! I'm so sorry. It's… all so confusing. But find us. We need to start putting the pieces together. We can only do that together. If it helps…you won't be alone. I promise."
Lukas managed to, somehow, keep his calm. "Okay. Okay. Where… where do I find you?"
An image flashed before Lukas. An island in the ocean. Lukas recognized it.
"We're here," Aerith said. "We… managed to force a few things. But we've only been able to go so far. We need your help now. Find us. Please."
"I will," Lukas replied. "I promise."
"Thank you, Lukas. Stay strong. You can do it. I know it."
Balamb Garden Infirmary.
Lukas gasped as he woke up, sitting up immediately.
Rinoa looked at him in shock, "Luka?!"
Lukas caught his breath and looked at her. "Rinoa?"
"Hey, you okay?"
"Uhhhh… yeah, I… I think so."
"That's a relief."
"What are you doing here?"
Rinoa smirked a bit, "Expecting someone else?"
Lukas's eyes widened. "Uh…"
"I'm kidding. Just so you know: Quistis was here the entire time. She only left because something came up. But, trust me, she didn't want to leave."
Lukas paused. "She was here the whole time? She… didn't want to leave?"
"Yeah," Rinoa smiled. "She was really worried about you. She'll be really happy to see you awake."
Lukas smiled at that, but the smile fell away as he thought about what Aerith just said to him. He leaned over and pressed his hand to his forehead, gathering himself. "What's going on?"
"Some stuff happened after you passed out. Actually… I think they're the reason you passed out. Do you remember anything?"
"Just some voices."
"You heard voices, too?" Rinoa asked.
"Yeah. They spoke to me, just now, too. One of them belonged to a lady named—"
"Aerith?" Rinoa asked.
Lukas looked at Rinoa in shock. "You heard her?!"
"Yeah. She talked to me a little while ago. But she talked to you, too?! So it's not just a Sorceress thing!" Rinoa blinked. "Which, of course, it wasn't! It all started with whatever happened to you in the first place. Sorry, Luka. I'm being really dumb right now."
Lukas chuckled, "No, you're not. This is all really weird."
"Tell me about it! Whatever's going on is affecting Ellone, too."
"Ellone?"
"Yeah."
"Did you hear another voice?" Lukas asked.
"I've only talked to Aerith and Zack," Rinoa answered. "Why? Who else did you hear?"
"Not sure. It was before I passed out. Someone… something… more sinister."
Rinoa felt a chill go down her spine. "Let's tell the others. They'll be relieved you're awake."
"Where are they?" Lukas asked.
"Office. We have some new visitors."
"Okay. You… go on ahead. I'll be there in a minute."
"You sure?" Rinoa asked.
"Yeah." Lukas smiled. "Thanks for sitting with me, Rinoa."
Rinoa smiled. "Anytime, buddy. See you up there."
"Right."
After Rinoa left, Lukas gathered himself. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed. Something was happening and his mind was beginning to spin. Then images flashed.
A mountain town. A wooden bridge. A strange bright green liquid.
After letting another minute pass, Lukas took a few breaths, steadying himself. He looked up and collected himself again. Whatever was happening, he wasn't going to solve it here. Maybe he would get answers by meeting these new visitors.
Rinoa entered the office, finding everyone congregated there and talking.
"There you are," Squall said.
"Sorry," Rinoa smiled. "Was making sure Luka's okay."
"He's awake?!" Quistis gasped.
Zell, Irvine, and Selphie fought back grins.
Rinoa smiled. "Yeah. He's headed up."
"Cool." Squall looked at Cloud then pointed at Rinoa, "This is Rinoa. My girlfriend. She spoke to Aerith and Zack."
Rinoa walked up to Cloud, offering her hand, "Nice to meet you."
Cloud shook Rinoa's hand. "Same." He then introduced AVALANCHE.
"Wow. A lot of you guys."
Tifa giggled, "We could kinda say the same."
"That's fair."
"Rinoa, where's Lukas?" Quistis asked.
"On his way," Rinoa answered. "He just woke up. I think Aerith spoke to him, too."
"Wait, what?" Irvine stopped. "Oh, no, wait. Given how he ended up unconscious, that makes sense."
"How does Luka factor in?" Vincent asked.
"We haven't the slightest idea," Squall answered. "This was literally the first time we've ever seen anything like what happened to him."
"And, of all of us, we didn't think Luka would be the one it would happen to," Zell said.
"How come?" Cid asked.
"Luka's a regular guy. I'm not making fun of him. I'm just saying… dude's the calm presence. Not the… lightning rod of trouble."
"Yeah, he's not even a Sorceress," Rinoa noted.
"Sorceress?" Yuffie asked.
Rinoa paused. "Oh, wow, this is gonna be complicated, isn't it?"
"'Going to be'?" Quistis raised an eyebrow.
Rinoa stopped. "Good point."
The office door opened, and Lukas walked in, "Hey, all!"
The second Cloud and Tifa locked eyes on Lukas, they came to a dead stop. Their eyes slowly widened, their jaws gradually fell open, and all words left them.
It was impossible. There was no way what they were seeing was real.
But it had to be. He was older, but it was definitely the same person. His eyes never changed; they even had the same kindness in them, leaving no doubt about his identity.
Lukas Gideon. Their childhood friend from Nibelheim.
Quistis hurried over to Lukas, fighting every urge to hug him, "Lukas! You…" She cleared her throat. "You're… okay."
Lukas smiled at her. "Yeah, uh… sorry if I worried you."
"No, not at all. Just… glad you're okay."
"Thanks."
"Luka, my dude!" Zell greeted. "Good to see you up and about!"
"Yeah," Lukas rubbed his head. "Sorry for scaring everyone."
"It's cool. This is a crazy kinda day."
"Well, let me introduce you to the new faces." Squall looked at AVALANCE, motioning toward Lukas, "Everyone, this is-"
"LUKAS?!" Tifa and Cloud shouted, simultaneously and matching astonished tones.
The whole room stopped.
Lukas stared, confusedly, at Tifa and Cloud. "Uhhh… hello? Who are…" He paused. "Wait." He felt a headache come on. He grunted and grabbed his head as the pain increased, causing him to groan and drop to his knees.
Despite the agony, he saw it again. The mountain town, the one from his dreams. But this time, he knew its name.
Nibelheim.
All the times he'd dreamt about this town, he couldn't remember its name. Now, he was ashamed he ever forgot it. His home. The place his parents raised him.
But, now, he could clearly see it. Including his last day there.
The day Nibelheim burned to the ground.
He could still feel the heat of the fire. He saw the blade swing, killing his father.
A blade wielded by Sephiroth.
He remembered looking all over for Tifa. He thought he saw her head for the Mako reactor and went to find her. He remembered the bridge.
His foot slipped.
He fell.
Then crashed into the Lifestream.
Then, Lukas remembered waking up on the shores of Balamb Island.
Gasping, Lukas's eyes flung open. Then, with staggered breath, whispered, "Oh, my God!"
Cloud and Tifa rushed over and knelt down next to Lukas. "Lukas!" Tifa said, still stunned.
"Lukas, say something!" Cloud implored.
Lukas looked up, staring at his childhood friends. He slowly stood up as did Cloud and Tifa. "Cloud," Lukas whispered. "Tifa! It's you. I…" He took another shaken breath. "It's really you! You're… you're both alive!"
"Us?!" Tifa smiled, excitedly, as tears fell. "Lukas, you're alive!" She hugged Lukas as hard as she could.
Lukas hugged Tifa back, letting out a relieved exhale. "Tifa… it's really you!"
"You're alive!" Tifa sniffed. "Oh, my God, you're really alive!"
Quistis nervously rubbed her arm, looking away from the scene briefly.
Tifa and Lukas separated, and Lukas looked at Cloud. "Cloud…" Lukas whispered out with a smile. "Oh, my God!"
"Lukas." Cloud put his hand on Lukas's shoulder, unable to come up with anything else to say. He huffed. "Man. I thought… we'd never see you again."
Lukas smiled, holding back tears all he could. He and Cloud clasped hands and hugged each other. They broke the hug and chuckled softly.
"It's really you!" Cloud said, almost still in disbelief.
"Yeah," Lukas whispered.
Cloud groaned. "Did you have to get taller than me?"
Lukas laughed. "Told ya I'd outgrow ya one day!"
Cloud laughed, softly. "I can't believe this. You're alive. After all this time."
"We…" Tifa said, "we thought you died in Nibelheim!"
"No, I…" Lukas paused. "When Sephiroth attacked, I…" His eyes widened. "I remember now."
"You do?!" Quistis, Selphie, Irvine, Zell, and Rinoa said, simultaneously.
"Yeah. Yeah! Sephiroth! He… he attacked Nibelheim. Then… I ran for the mountain… trying… trying to get away and find Tifa, and… I ran… onto the bridge. And I fell. I fell far and…"
"You must've fell into the Lifestream," Cloud surmised.
"Lifestream?" Lukas asked.
"Oh! Yeah. You don't know. Lifestream… that's what Mako energy actually is."
"Mako is Lifestream?" Lukas paused. "Mom told me stories of things like that. Saying… it wasn't just an energy source but… more. She was right…"
"But how did you get to this world?" Tifa asked.
"I don't know but…" Lukas stopped again. "Aerith and Zack!"
"You know them?" Tifa asked.
"Yeah!" Lukas replied. "I mean, no, but yeah! I… I talked to them!" He remembered the island Aerith showed him. "I know where they are!"
"You do?!" Cloud and Tifa asked, simultaneously.
"Yeah!" Lukas looked at Squall, "Squall, we need to use the Ragnarok. Please."
"You sure, Luka?" Squall asked.
"Positive."
"Where are they, Lukas?" Tifa asked.
"On this world, it's called the Island Closest to Heaven," Lukas explained.
Yuffie blinked, jerking her head back. "…the hell?"
"Lukas, how are people from their world here?" Quistis asked. "And on that island of all places?"
"I don't know. Uhh… yet. I… feel like I should, though."
"Luka, you're starting to scare me," Zell admitted.
"Man, I'm freaking out, too," Lukas replied. "I'm just trying to hold it together."
"Let's get going," Squall ordered. "The sooner we get some answers, the sooner we can figure all this out."
A little later, the Ragnarok landed close to a cave opening on the Island Closest to Heaven. They were fortunate enough not to run into any monsters at the moment as they headed for the cave.
"How long has this cave been here and we never knew it?" Selphie asked.
"We're too busy trying not to be killed by monsters to find it," Rinoa reminded. "Or even look for it."
"True."
Lukas led everyone deep inside the cave, finding two giant crystals. Inside the crystals, Aerith and Zack were situated, seemingly slumbering. The AVALANCHE team came to a complete stop at seeing Aerith.
Cloud couldn't even force himself to blink. "This is impossible," he whispered.
"No way," Tifa exhaled. "No way!"
"Luka, how'd you know?" Squall asked.
"She told me," Lukas stared at Aerith.
"She did?" Tifa asked.
"This is raising far too many questions," Vincent noted.
"You ain't kiddin'," Yuffie agreed.
Selphie looked around, awkwardly, "Soooooooooo, how do we get 'em out?"
Lukas walked forward, stopping just before the crystals.
"Lukas?" Quistis asked.
"I… Let me… try." Lukas held his hands out and steadied his breathing then his eyes began to glow. The same glow then appeared on his hands. He sent out a wave of force that cracked the crystals. Lukas sent out another wave then one more, shattering the crystals open and freeing Zack and Aerith.
"What the?!" Zell shouted.
Cloud, Vincent, Tifa, and Yuffie rushed forward, helping Aerith and Zack sit up. Cloud and Tifa propped up Aerith while Vincent and Yuffie helped Zack sit up.
"How the hell…" Cid whispered.
Lukas sank to his knees, his body suddenly feeling very drained.
Quistis hurried over to Lukas, "Are you alright?"
"Yeah," Lukas exhaled. "I think so. Just… tired."
"Aerith…" Cloud whispered. He looked at Zack, "Zack!"
Zack coughed and looked at Cloud, smiling, "Hey, buddy!"
Aerith groaned, getting Cloud and Tifa's attention. She opened her eyes, looked at Cloud, and smiled, "Cloud." She turned toward Tifa, "Tifa!" She looked at the rest of her friends, "Barret! Red! Everyone!" She looked at Lukas. "Lukas! You did it!"
"Yeah, but…" Lukas said, "…what did I do? How did I do it?"