October 11th, 2010
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - a Fan Novel
Hello and welcome to my long running work. I managed to finish this game a few days ago and decided I would write a novel of the game. I will of course add in my own dialogue, envision my own fight scenes, and many other things to bring to life this wonderful story for others. but without further waiting, here it is.
It was a late, quiet night in Midgar. The citizens were sleeping soundly in their beds. The mysterious Shin-Ra building nestled dead center of the vast metropolitan dwelling. The quiet setting one would expect to be in a children's story, or some mystery novel, and the clichéd beginning would always attract some restlessness. In Midgar, there is always someone working. Someone awake in the dead of night performing some menial task that must be done for themselves or some employer. Whether it's a Mako reactor engineer tending to the valves and switches, making sure to get the necessary amount of the ghostlike liquid, or some criminal trying to rob an empty bar, only to be caught by SOLDIER security due to bad timing on their part.
Yet, in this setting, there is some activity that desires attention. As the ringing of the train bell makes its constant dinging, a red light indicating it to stop, a passenger locomotive speeds its way through, running the red light and breaking the safety bar in the process. A Shin-Ra helicopter hovers overhead in chase of the runaway train.
“Wutai troops have hijacked Shinra Express MK93 II,” says the pilot through his radio. “The train is currently headed to Midgar Sector 8. A SOLDIER operative will be inserted to neutralize the situation. We are to proceed as scheduled. Commence mission in 3. 2. 1. Mark. Begin mission. Operative is ready for insertion.”
One of the helicopter's doors opens as a man with jet black hair, sticking up in spikes leans out, assessing the situation. The young man was dressed as if he were ready for intense combat. Shoulder pads, combat boots, and a sword on his back. His shirt was of a deep purple color, thick as a sweater, but without the sleeves. His jeans were of the same, if not similar, color. Though they may have been a bit too baggy, looking loose around the knees down. His belt looked to be far to big for anyone, but was necessary for the attached suspenders which doubled as a strong magnetic sheath.
As he looked down at the train, looking for some kind of target, or planning out his objectives, a clear voice of a man behind him clarifies to him, “The train has been overrun by Wutai troops. Eliminate them and regain control of the train.”
“Oh yeah!” he declares, turning his head to face his superior.
“Get serious!” But the warning may have come too late because the young operative leaps out of the helicopter, diving for whole moments towards the train below. He lands on one knee, striking a pose for the fans in his head. He raises his head, checking for any opposition before coming to a full stand.
“Zack!” says the superior. Zack turns to see his commanding officer drop onto the train then walk toward him. The superior is dressed in the same clothing as Zack's, only it's as black as his hair, which is combed straight back. He has a seemingly over-sized sword on his back, which is not the regulation weapon for SOLDIER operatives.
“Zack, focus! There are no Shinra troops on this train. Understood?”
Zack simply nods once before turning around, making a fist and punching it into his open hand. He makes a haughty grunt before dashing along the top of the speeding train, jumping the gaps between cars. He is suddenly surprised to see bullets flying from under him after landing at the back of a car. After dancing around not to get shot in the foot, he then stumbles from losing his balance, only to be nearly shot once more.
“Hello to you, too!” he calls down before attempting to continue on his path. Even more bullets come shooting up from underneath as he runs along, this time, hurdling over a construction bar. Along the way, he sees infantry troops piling out on top of the train. “Come and get it!” he yells, drawing his sword. His sword looks to be of an average length, double-edged, and a quarter guard between the blade and handle.
The troops get themselves ready, some on a knee, other standing. They open fire towards Zack as he gets closer to them, blocking any bullets while others simply pass by, completely missing him. Zack cuts a few down before making a leaping slash to several that were grouped together, opening his path ahead. Before he gets a moment to think, he is met with more bullets flying past his head. Some troops had climbed out of the car ahead and opened fire just as their predecessors did. Zack runs along, cutting a few more down before making a superhuman leap over a widespread group, then landing in front of the last 3 or 4. He takes them down with ease and comes across a new challenge. Now, the troops are setting themselves up with mini rocket launchers.
As Zack continues along, contemplating how he's going to face this challenge, he looks overhead and sees a tunnel-like opening in the construction ahead. Getting his idea and putting it to use, he squats down, quickly gathering his strength only for a moment, then leaps through the tunnel just before getting hit by any rockets. The rockets hit the train behind his previous location as the troops look above in awe at Zack flying through the air.
After crashing through the end of the tunnel, Zack gets his sword into a down stabbing position, yelling, “SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack, on the job!” He descends down and stabs his sword into the coupling of the engine and cars, separating the two. Then, he leaps up once again and looks back at the cars as they fall behind with their passengers. He turns and sheathes his sword, walking along the engine, waiting for it to stop.
Up above, the pursuit helicopter hovers still, the pilot reporting in, “Train MK93 II re-routed to Sector I near Mako Reactor I. Proceed to mission phase 2 and change surveillance rank.” The train engine slows to a stop at the station. Zack handsprings off the engine to the platform below, then proceeds forward to his next destination. In the luminescence of the streetlights, one can clearly see the faint, bright glow of his blue eyes. They give a gentle, earnest feeling to those who would look at them. Zack hears his cell phone ringing, then answers his call.
“Zack speaking.” he greets his caller.
“Making progress, Zack?” says the voice of his familiar superior.
“What's going on, Angeal? Why are we fighting Shinra troops?”
“They're Wutai troops in disguise. Now, head to the open area above.”
“Towards Sector 8?”
“Yes. But first, you have to clear a path.”
“Clear a path?”
“You'll see what I mean. Be careful.” As Angeal says this, more troops come piling out of the open doorway onto the platform. They open fire upon Zack as he turns around, still on the phone, and the bullets flying past him, showing the Wutai's weakness for aiming.
“So I can cut loose, right?”
“Use some discretion.”
After hanging up on Angeal, Zack gets his sword in hand, declaring, “It's showtime!”
Zack soon finds these troops are slightly more skilled than the ones in the train, but they are still very lacking compared to his training. Following Angeal's approval of “cutting loose”, he then calls upon one of the Materia he has equipped and unleashes a highly concentrated ball of fire from his hand. The fireball then splits into three and flies toward the closest enemies. Zack gives chase behind the fireballs, passing the three victims who fall upon the explosion of the magic. As he rushes forward towards more opposition, he studies each of the impostor SOLDIERs, looking for any signs of hesitation or fear in their movements. Once he gets within striking distance with his sword, he cuts through 2 of the remaining troops, looking at the last one before seeing more SOLDIERs piling out of the doorway.
“I guess things just can't get very easy, can they?” he asks himself. “But luckily, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.” He then calls upon another of his Materia, only this time, he fires a bolt of lightning from his hand, knocking down 2 of the troops in a straight line. The followers dart around their fallen comrades and take positions to fire on Zack. Zack swings his sword around and holds it in a defense position as he charges forward, ready to strike. Before he gets too close, he drops down and slides towards his foes like a baseball player on his way home. He trips one of the SOLDIERs with his foot and another using his sword. Then he handsprings behind the remaining forces and cuts them all in the back, knocking them all out with one strike. With his way clear, the proceeds through the open doorway into the city beyond.
Zack gets on his phone to report in to Angeal. “Not too bad,” was Angeal's evaluation.
“Piece of cake! I'll make 1st in no time!”
“Go up the stairs at the end of the platform.”
“You got it,” Zack replies as he walks his way to the door. As Zack ascends the stairs, he notices a lot of night owls running in the opposite direction. 'What's got these people so spooked?' he wonders to himself. He reaches further above and runs into what looks like the origin of the panic. When he reaches one certain intersection, he sees the cause, and good reason why people should run for safety. A large monstrosity was standing betwixt the buildings, causing a ruckus. Zack looks the beast over and decides he's going to try and take it down.
Once he gets close to the beast, he recognizes it fully what it is. “A Behemoth? I may have gotten in over my head here,” he says to himself. He draws his sword, challenging the Behemoth. The Behemoth turns to face him, its muscular body showing signs of massive strength. Strength far greater than any living human can possibly imagine. The beast's body was covered in purple fur except for the top of the head and neck where it was a red-orange color, similar to a lion's mane in appearance. It had a webbed fin along its back, suggesting it could possibly swim with the ferocity of a shark, if not greater. The end of its tail had spikes protruding out, showing it can severely damage anything it hits. Yet, one part of its features struck a bit of fear in Zack's heart; the large, black horns that came out and pointed dead forward from its head.
The beast roars ferociously at Zack, accepting his challenge, its yellow glowing eyes looking into his. Zack charges forward and gets between his horns, making a few strikes to the beast's face before getting pushed back. The Behemoth swings its head left and right, attempting to slash its horns into Zack's chest. Zack jumps back with every swing of the monster's head. When he gets backed into a wall, he leaps up and presses his feet against the wall, summoning more of his superhuman SOLDIER strength. He then leaps off the building, cutting his sword across the back of the Behemoth. His sword gets caught in the creature's back, its muscles tightening to keep him in place. The Behemoth shakes and rolls its body around, trying to throw Zack off and into a place where it can try more damage. Zack grounds his feet into the beast's back, summoning more strength and pulls his sword out of the monster's back. He leaps off and gets behind the monster and makes more slashes on its carcass. The Behemoth swings its tail, knocking Zack to the side. Zack manages to bring his sword up to its tail, blocking the blow, but still nearly gets knocked into the next building. Zack brushes the rubble off his shoulders, chuckling at his situation.
“Looks like the 'discretion' Angeal suggested has gone out the window,” Zack surmises. He then closes his eyes in meditation, summoning forth all the strength he can, an aura of pure, raw strength surrounding his body. He charges forward, almost flying, and cuts deep into the Behemoth's hide. He combos that with even more deep gashes, slashing all over the beast's face, and even chipping off parts of its horns, then finishes that with a forceful downward strike down the middle of the Behemoth's face. The Behemoth roars in pain and finally drops to its side, defeated. Zack swings his sword around, slinging the beast's blood off the blade before setting it on his back.
Before he gets a chance to breathe, the tip of a katana reaches next to his head from behind. “Showing your back to the enemy... Overconfidence will destroy you,” says a stern, cold voice from behind. Zack raises his hands in surrender and turns around, his head lowered. He picks his head up, recognizing at an instant the man before him.
“Wh-What is this?” Zack asks. The tall silver-haired man in the black duster jacket grunts at Zack, his piercing smile striking a bit of horror in Zack's heart. The man rotates his longer-than-normal sword into a upward blade position, stabbing into Zack without warning. Zack turns around as quickly as possible, using his sheathed sword as a guard from the assault. Zack grabs for his sword, swinging it precisely to block the black and silver man's continuous attacks, their swords creating a spark of light with each clash. The attacker swings his sword down, attempting to perform a fatal blow to Zack, before Zack blocks that as well. Their swords are caught in a stalemate.
“Damn it, you're not the only hero!” Zack says to the man before him. Zack looks into the man's glowing green eyes.
“It's over,” the attacker says. Zack struggles even more to keep his opponent from striking down, only to have his sword sliced in half. Zack then leaps to the side, abandoning his only means of survival. Zack is left lying on his back, too tired to go any further.
“Impossible!” says a nearby Angeal, hearing of Zack's condition on his phone. He hangs up with his caller and rushes to Zack's aid as fast as he could.
The silver-haired man walks over to Zack, looking down upon him and chuckles. He places his sword over Zack's chest, pulls back, and swings with full force. A blinding light envelops Zack, so he closes his eyes, fearing his demise.
There was nothing. No pain, no puncture wound. Nothing that could have ended his life on this day. Zack slowly opens his eyes, fearing what he may see. Zack looks at only the attacker's blade, struggling against something to reach him. Zack follows the blade down, seeing his chopped-in-half sword stopping the attack. But why would his sword be here? Surely, he discarded it when he dodged that final assault. Zack looks to see the sword's wielder and recognizes the face of his superior, Angeal. Angeal only looks at Zack for a moment before retracting the sword. The silver-haired attacker pulls his sword back and only stands aside, like a marionette waiting for orders.
Zack gets up on his elbows, struggling to catch his breath. “Thanks, Angeal,” was all he could say at the time. Angeal gets up and looks at the cold man standing over his subordinate. He then pulls out his cell phone and presses a few buttons as he views the menu. He chooses one option for “Abort Mission” then puts his phone away.
Electronic buzzings and whirs can be heard as the world around the three men disappear. Soon after, the silver-haired man also disappears along with the environment. Angeal walks away from Zack before turning around.
“Training's over,” says Angeal, looking down at Zack.
“Wha-? Why?” Zack protests, getting up, now wearing a never-before-seen eye mask. On the VR helmet, Zack can see the message “MISSION ABORT”. Angeal holds up the chopped-up sword to Zack's face, showing him his fatal error. “You serious?” was all he could muster. “I was just getting warmed up!”
Angeal moves the broken sword in his hand and holds it to give it to Zack. Zack takes it and looks at it solemnly, sighing at his failure. “Zack,” Angeal starts, “Embrace your dreams.” Angeal starts to leave the training room.
“Huh?”
“If you want to be a hero you need to have dreams... and honor.” He leaves Zack alone to ponder his words.
The Shin-Ra building was a tall skyscraper. More than 60 floors tall, with a deep cavernous basement that ran deep underground. The oddly shaped structure looked somewhat like a wine bottle in design, but it served a major purpose for the citizens of Midgar. Adorned on the front and all throughout the building was the company name: Shin-Ra Electric Power Company. The building stood in the very middle of Midgar. The city itself was an almost perfect circle that was segmented into eight sectors, much like a pie or pizza. At the head of each sector all around the city were the Mako reactors. These reactors were the stepping stone to Shin-Ra's rise to power and success in providing electricity to the citizens. However, perhaps unbeknown to the residents, these reactors drew their energy source from what is known as Lifestream, the very life force of the planet itself. So in all honesty, Shin-Ra is killing the planet to help the people of Midgar, not to mention their wallets.
Shin-Ra had an elite army called SOLDIER. The members of this group start as infantrymen, but the select few who rise in the ranks take on an entirely new class. These become the 3rds, then the 2nds, and the top dogs, who were known as 1sts. These higher ranked members go through a special surgery in which their bodies are infused with Mako energy, making them stronger, faster, and some say, smarter. The only obvious side-effect of this surgery is a faint glow in the eyes of the recipients. The SOLDIERs usual training and common area was on the 49th floor of the Shin-Ra headquarters, where Zack was found performing his normal ritual of squats by the window.
“Hey Zack, you seem a little on edge,” says a fellow 2nd class SOLDIER who walks up to him.
“Can you blame me? All this training and no assignments,” says Zack, still running his ritual, “Like they're hanging me out to dry. You must be pretty busy with everyone off-base.”
“Off-base? Wait, haven't you heard? There's been a mass desertion at SOLDIER.”
“Huh?” Zack stops his squats at this.
“It appears one of the 1sts deserted. He took a bunch of 2nds and 3rds with him, too. Nobody knows why he left, or what he's up to. This mass desertion's the reason why your training's on hold.” They both hear footsteps approaching and turn to the origin. “Heads up, a 1st!” says the 2nd class as Angeal walks into the common area.
“Zack, new assignment.” says Angeal.
“Woo! Finally! Some real action!”
“This will be your show.”
“Yes!”
“Report to Director Lazard. We'll give you the details.”
“Later, Kunsel,” Zack says as he follows Angeal to the Briefing Room.
“Bye, Zack,” says Kunsel.
In the Briefing Room, Zack walks in and sees a man sitting at the head of the large desk. The desk was V-shaped, with chairs and computers placed for a maximum of 7 occupants. Each of the active computers would display the same image, as well as the large monitor on the wall, so all members would view the same subject at once.
The man sitting at the head was Director Lazard. He is an executive at Shin-Ra, and the head of SOLDIER. To Zack, he seemed to have an air of nobility around him, whether from his childhood or from etiquette classes. The director had blond hair, cut short and combed to the side and thin glasses across his nose. He wore a business suit, the jacket was striped in 2 shades of blue, with his shirt and slacks a platinum color. Zack couldn't take notice of his shoes, but only the man's gloves. Zack couldn't tell if this was further cause of the man's nobility, training, or if he was simply a germophobe.
Lazard stands to greet Zack. “Zack. It's good to finally meet face to face. Lazard, Director of SOLDIER,” he introduces himself, offering his hand.
“Heya,” Zack greets, shaking the man's hand. Lazard chuckles before crouching to his computer, then takes his seat.
“On to business.” After typing a few keystrokes, an image pops up on the large monitor for Zack to see. A profile layout of a brown-haired man is shown, detailing his general info; name, age, etc. Flashing at the bottom of his picture is the message Missing In Action. “SOLDIER 1st Class, Genesis,” Lazard explains, “A month ago, he went missing during a mission in Wutai. Know anything about this?”
“Not a clue!” Zack replies, believing this is the man Kunsel spoke of.
“The mission is currently stuck in limbo. That's why we've decided to send you.”
“Uh, to Wutai?”
“Yes, this war has gone on long enough.”
“I've recommended you for 1st,” says Angeal. Zack looks down at his superior with utter surprise and joy, then hugs Angeal.
“Angeal! I love you, man! Angeal--”
Angeal pushes him aside, “Don't make me regret this, Zack.”
“Sir!”
Angeal stands and looks at Zack, “Once you're packed, you'll leave at once. The operation will begin immediately upon arrival at Wutai.”
“I'll be joining you as well,” says the director, “I'm counting on you.”
“Sir!”
“By the way, what is your dream? 'To become 1st'... is it?”
“No... To become a hero!”
“Ah, good! Unattainable dreams are the best kind.”
“Uh, thanks?” Zack looks at Lazard, puzzled.
Wutai was a small village in the far west, on the northern part of the west-most continent. Devoid of electricity or the sins and wiles of other residents of the world, they prided themselves on tradition and the old ways. The Wutai tribe followed the ways of the samurai and ninja, dealing in espionage, thievery, assassination, and the like. They also had a strong sense of duty to their fellow people. Nearly every resident of the village underwent harsh training all their lives, preparing themselves for a long going war.
Zack and Angeal make their way to the village, following a mountain trail from the south, along Tamblin Mountain.
“Fort Tamblin is straight ahead,” informs Angeal. “Let's hurry, B Unit is standing by.”
Before the two SOLDIERs even get a chance to move, a Wutai soldier movies in and spots them. “You two! Identify yourselves!” He is then joined by 2 comrades. Angeal starts to react, but Zack walks in front of him, drawing his sword.
“Just leave it to me!” The Wutai troops surround Zack. Each was wearing traditional samurai armor, wielding halberds as their standard weapon. However, these halberds had a special surprise that Zack didn't know about. One of the soldiers swings his weapon around and holds it with the pommel aimed at Zack, but the pommel was hollow at the end. Zack recognized immediately that it looked like a rifle, so he runs to the side, narrowly escaping the man's fire. Zack then runs to one of his opponents and slashes him across the chest, immediately killing him. The other two soldiers look at each other then charge Zack together. Zack chuckles at the situation and easily blocks the attacks. He leaps over their heads to get behind them, then swings his sword into one of his opponents with enough momentum that he sends both attackers into the mountainside. Zack then runs up to them and knocks them out with a punch to the head.
“All right, next!” he yells out, waiting for the next challenge.
“Just calm down, Zack,” says Angeal, taking the lead.
“No can do. The director is watching from somewhere, right? I have to make a good impression.”
“Zack. Do you know about dumbapples?”
“No, what is that?”
“Unbelievable. How can you not know about dumbapples? You'll never make 1st at that rate.” Angeal starts walking off on his own.
“Whoa, wait! What are dumbapples?” Zack calls to his C.O., who left him behind without a word. Zack chases after Angeal, meeting a bit of opposition along the way. Zack easily deals with each of his foes without batting an eye. Zack eventually catches up, to further inquire Angeal.
“So Angeal, what's the deal with 'dumbapples'?”
“The official name is Banora White. The trees bear fruit at random times during the year. Because of that, the townspeople affectionately call them dumbapples. The local farms had plenty of them to spare.”
“Oh really? So you stole them.”
“We were poor, Zack.”
“Nice excuse!”
“But even then, I had my honor. The largest Banora White tree grew on a wealthy man's estate. It was rumored that those apples tasted the best. But I never stole from that tree, because the wealthy man's son was my friend.”
“If he was a friend, you should have just asked for some!”
Angeal smiles at Zack and responds, “Honor can be quite a burden at times.”
Zack tries to think it over for a second, “...And what exactly does this have to do with me?”
“No story is not worth hearing.” Angeal walks off, leaving his student behind, laughing all the way.
“What? That's it?” Zack starts chasing again, “Yeah, well, thanks a lot!”
Outside Fort Tamblin, Angeal and Zack crouch behind a wall, surveying the area.
“B Unit will set off an explosion,” Angeal explains. “That's our cue.”
“The diversion will allow us to infiltrate.” Zack understands.
“Right. I'll set the bomb inside the fortress. You'll charge the front gate and...”
“Uh-huh, and? And? And? And?” Zack asks excitedly.
“Indulge yourself.”
“You got it! That's what I do best!” Without hesitation, Zack gets restless, “Come on, B Unit.”
Angeal takes his sword and looks it over. The handle long enough for 3 hands, and the blade as long and wide as his body, but thick as a finger or two. Angeal's weapon was one of his most cherished possessions, hardly ever seen with it off his back. He takes his sword and bows his head to it, as if in prayer, then quickly places it back on his back.
“You know, I've never actually seen you use that,” Zack chimes in. “Don't you think it's sort of a waste?”
“Use brings about wear, tear, and rust. And that's a real waste.”
“You're serious, aren't you?”
“Yeah. I can be pretty cheap.”
“Yeah, no kidding.”
At that moment, a bright light and loud explosion can be heard within the fortress. “Begin mission,” Angeal says to Zack. Zack brushes his nose before dashing off to the fortress. Angeal waits a few moments after Zack's departure before he moves in for his own mission.
When Zack reaches the gate, he is met with more than he bargained for. The gate was guarded with several soldiers, with 3 stationed up high, like archers. Zack knows he can't fight as well as he did in the training room. The Materia he had on hand then was taken away until he can find or buy a better selection on his own. All he had on hand was a single Fire and Blizzard spell, as well as a Cure spell for when he gets injured. Zack could tell the Fire spell would definitely take a single enemy out in a single hit, but that was limited. The Blizzard spell can take out several at once, but takes a while to charge, leaving his opponent ample time to escape. So he started off drawing his weapon. He charges into the fray, leaping high into the air. As he got as high as he could, he casted a Blizzard spell, taking out 4 or 5 enemies at once, nearly half of his opponents. Zack descends and lands in the middle of his fallen foes, pointing his sword to the next one. Zack runs to a Wutai sergeant, but is soon stopped by one of the archers, firing at his feet. Zack chuckles at this and uses a Fire spell, taking him out. In that time, his surrounding enemies close in at once, but Zack was ready for it. He gets down on one knee then leaps across the ground, slicing his sword along the legs of his enemies as he closes in on the gates. He turns around, his back to the gate and fires a few Fire spells, taking out the last 3 enemies, before doing the same to the last 2 archers.
“All right! Piece of cake!” he says, before walking into enemy territory.
Inside the fortress, Zack manages to take out a few guards before Angeal calls on his phone.
“Were you able to get inside the fortress?” he asks.
“Piece of cake! I could have done that blindfolded!”
“Don't get too careless. I've heard that Wutai keep a large monster for anti-SOLDIER purposes. It should be somewhere inside Fort Tamblin.”
“If I take it out, do you think I'll make 1st?”
“It depends on the quality of your work. Your main duty is to draw the Wutai troops to you by running amok. Do that well, and the director will give you a favorable evaluation.”
“Oh, that'll be easy! Just leave it to me!”
The Tamblin Fortress was made of stone. Its corridors were serpentine like a maze, but had a few trap doors in the walls that one could use for a shortcut. Zack's mission was to work his way to the central area of the fortress, taking out as many foes as he possibly could. Along the way, he would run into a collection of as many as 3 or 4 opponents at once, but they would be easily dealt with in a short amount of time. Eventually, Zack would take a look at one of the walls, noticing it had what appeared to be talismans scattered across it. When Zack took a closer look at it, the wall turned like a spinning door, revealing more foes in wait. Once Zack was done with all the foes he could find, including the Sergeants in the towers, he opened a stone doorway, revealing a large building that looked like some sort of shrine or training hall.
“Guess this must be the central area,” Zack says to himself. As he walks around and heads to the large structure, he hears an odd voice coming from somewhere around him.
“One, avoid unnecessary training! Two, protect Wutai at all costs! Three, ugly Shinra SOLDIER dudes... must be PUNISHED!” Suddenly, a young girl appears from a cloud of smoke on the stairs.
“Who are you?” Zack asks.
“I'm Wutai's greatest warrior! If you wanna go further, you have to go through me!” says the young girl. She was dressed in short shorts and a gi. Black chin length hair and a bandanna around her head.
“A kid?” Zack asks himself. “You shouldn't be playing here, it's dangerous! Go home to your parents.”
The girl leaps over Zack's head and lands behind him. “You're the one who's going home!” she calls. “If you insist on going further, you'll have a fight on your hands!” The young child runs to Zack.
“Oh, man... What am I supposed to do here?” Zack wonders to himself.
The girl runs right up to Zack and makes punches at him, making no contact whatsoever, “Whap! Pow! Bam! Take that, bad guy!” she cries out. Zack just looks at the girl and decides to play along.
“Arrrgh! Noooo! You got me!” he cries out, dropping to a knee.
“There! That'll teach you to mess with me! Once again, I've brought peace to Wutai!” The girl turns and runs away, victorious.
“Boy oh boy... You gotta admire that energy. Well, back to work, I guess...”
Inside the building, Zack sees that it looks to be a training hall with a stone floor and four support pillars holding the ceiling up. Once he walks to the center of the room and looks around, dust falls on his head. Instinctively, he jumps back as the ceiling opens up and a large monster falls through. The beast was found wearing armor and wielding a large axe. Suddenly, another beast wielding a bladed club drops in behind it, making it a duo.
Zack draws his weapon, “You must be the anti-SOLDIER monsters I've been hearing about.” Zack runs to the side and strikes one of the large creatures in the side. The wounded monster roars and joins its arm with its brother. The two monsters perform a forceful swing of their weapons, knocking Zack into the wall.
“Okay, did not expect that,” he says, getting back up. He realizes if they're together, they can do a lot of harm to him, or perhaps each other. Before he gets a chance to contemplate a plan, one of the creatures charges towards him. Zack leaps up on top of it and grabs its horns, riding it like a bull. “Yee-haw!” was all he could come up with as he turned the beast around to look at its friend. “Come on, big guy, let's have a little fun!” he calls to the other. The monster he's sitting on reaches up to grab him. “Hey! No touching!” Zack cries out, using his sword to cut the hand away from him. Zack stabs his sword into the monster's neck and jerks it around, making the beast move this way and that. Eventually, he gets it to rush forward, to its ally. The monsters collide, with Zack managing to control one with his sword. The 2nd beast tries to break free, but keeps getting wounded by the random flailing of its friend. It then decides the only way out is to stop his friend. Permanently. Zack watches the creature as it brings its hands together and rears back. Zack puts 2 and 2 together and pulls his sword out, jumping back off his steed just as the killing blow drops down, killing one of the monsters.
“One down, one to go,” he says. The remaining monster pushes its fallen friend aside then throws its weapon forcefully at Zack. Zack gets hit hard and gets once again knocked to the wall, this time losing his sword. The monstrous weapon pinning him against it. “D-Damn,” Zack grunts. He struggles to summon some of his SOLDIER strength to push the weapon off him, then uses a quick Cure spell, lightly healing his wounds enough for him to keep fighting. Just as the creature bounds up to retrieve its weapon, Zack takes the opportunity to run up the monster's weapon, arm, and shoulder, grabbing the beast's horn. Zack fires a point-blank Fire spell from his palm, making the creature disoriented. Zack jumps back down, grabs his fallen sword, and plunges it into the monster's belly, where it has no armor. He then swings up to stand on his sword, using it as a platform, and uppercuts the monster from underneath. It felt as if bone met a brick wall when Zack made contact. The monster grabs a hold of Zack and throws him to the ground. It then pulls his sword out of its belly and tosses it into one of the nearby support pillars. Zack struggles to get back up, realizing he can't get his sword unless he can get past his foe, which wouldn't be easy.
That's when he notices the gash he made in the beast's belly. Zack watches the creature carefully, waiting for the moment to strike. The monster charges quickly, swinging its club around. Zack somersaults backwards, keeping away from the blows. When Zack gets pushed up against the wall, the monster swings its weapon down. Zack dodges to the side and rushes in. He clenches his fists and hits away with a flurry of punches to the monster's open wound, making it worse. The beast roars in anguish with each hit to the abdomen. Zack's near broken hand getting worse with each use of it. Zack hits the monster hard enough to open the wound bigger than it was before and in the process, worsens his hand to near uselessness. He then digs his off hand into the monster's belly, grabbing whatever he can and ripping it out of its stomach, killing the beast. The monster howls in pain before nearly falling on Zack, with him running to keep from getting crushed.
Zack uses another Cure spell on his hand, mending the bones and bruises to be as good as new. He then walks to his sword and pulls it from the pillar and takes in a deep breath to relax. Just then, his phone rings.
“SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack, victorious once again!” he answers.
“Good work.” Angeal's voice answers. “Now, get out of there quickly. There's only 5 minutes until detonation.”
“Understood!” Zack hangs up and looks around, expecting to see someone. “Director Lazard, are you watching? Hehe, gotta move!” he cries, heading out of the building.
He notices a shadow appearing on the floor and dives to the side as a third monster falls from above. This one wielding a chain mace.
“No time to play!” he cries out, ready to get his sword. He looks up at the beast swing its weapon above its head. Zack dodges to the side just as it strikes, the large rock tearing up the wall. Zack backflips away and draws his sword. He leaps into the air and strikes a forceful swing to the monster's head, hard enough to knock it out. Zack walks up to the monster, swinging his sword leisurely. Just as he thought it was safe, the monster gets back up, backhanding Zack in the process. Zack barely manages to block the blow as he gets knocked into the pillar behind him. Zack felt a hard hit to the back of his head upon impact. He drops to the ground, almost feeling as he'll soon lose consciousness. He keeps himself together and backs himself into the pillar, pointing the sword desperately to the beast.
“Not good,” he says. Zack and the monster stare at each other, with Zack struggling to catch his breath. The monster pulls its weapon back, preparing to strike. Suddenly, a flash of light can be seen, and the monster stops. It falls dead next to Zack.
“Huh?” he asks. He looks up and sees Angeal's figure, holding his sword in hand, proof that he delivered the killing blow.
“That's one more you owe me.” he says, smiling at Zack. Zack shakes his head, trying to get himself together mentally. “You lost your focus,” Angeal says, walking up.
“Uh, yeah?” Zack says, still a little disoriented. “Oh, sorry if your sword got a little wear, tear, or rust on it.”
“You're a little more important than my sword,” Angeal replies, sheathing it. “...But just a little.” Angeal offers his hand to help Zack up.
“Thanks!” as Zack takes his hand.
Later that night, Zack and Angeal manage to catch a breather, taking a break from the long mission as Lazard runs up to them.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm not used to being on site,” he uses as his excuse.
“You didn't have to come,” Angeal says.
“The operation will bring an end to the war. I have to see it through personally.” He then turns to Zack, “SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack.”
“Sir!” he responds.
“Your performed your duties admirably at Fort Tamblin. I saw it with my own eyes.” Zack ponders how that was possible since he didn't see the director anywhere on site. “Frankly, my evaluation of you is...” he pauses, collecting his thoughts. “You are a frightening individual. Not any man could annihilate an entire enemy force by himself.”
“I was taken aback myself. You really have grown into a fine warrior,” Angeal comments. Zack starts rubbing his head, a little embarrassed.
“Your bravery during the Wutai war will be remembered for generations to come,” Lazard continues. “It seems your dream of becoming a hero has already come true.”
“Let's not get carried away, Director. Zack still has a lot to accomplish,” interjects Angeal.
“Ha ha, I suppose you're right. Zack I hope you continue to excel.”
After the trio chit chats for a while, Angeal speaks up, “Now, let's hurry. Sephiroth is waiting.”
Zack recognizes instantly, “Sephiroth!? The SOLDIER hero?” Angeal and Lazard head off on their own. “Wow! I get to meet a hero!” Just then, three mysterious figures appear and dance around Zack, taking him by some surprise. The figures all looked the same: form fitting clothing, a helmet covering their face, black shoulder pads, and short swords in each hand.
Zack draws his weapon, sensing danger from the figures. One of them tries to attack Zack from behind. Zack moves his sword behind his back, blocking it. He spins his body around, using the momentum to swing his sword hard enough to pull his opponent's weapon out of his hand. Zack then shifts his sword to hold it in reverse and punches his foe in the face, using the handle to make for a harder hit. He manages to knock the helmet up a bit to see part of his enemy's face. Zack notices it to look somewhat familiar, but can't place it. Zack then hears footsteps running up from behind. He holds his sword in both hands, still in reverse, and plunges it into his opponent's stomach, without taking a scratch. Zack switches his handling of the sword to proper use and pulls it back out, using that same motion to cut across the first attacker's chest. Zack looks around for the third one, who seems to have disappeared. Zack then looks up and sees him in a tree, trying to take him by surprise. Zack leaps up to his foe, slicing through the branch, making it and his opponent fall to the ground. Using that moment, Zack positions himself in midair for a downward thrust and dives down, plunging his sword into the middle of his last foe, killing him instantly.
“Zack, come on!” he hears Angeal calling. Zack runs and catches up with him and the director, seeing that they ran into the same foes. They all hear a noise from behind and turn to see even more coming from the bushes. Angeal walks in front of Zack, “Take the director to a safe place.”
“Then contact Sephiroth,” Lazard protests.
“Zack is more than enough,” Angeal clarifies. “Now, go.”
“Follow me, Director,” Zack says. The two run off, leaving Angeal behind. They eventually run into a couple infantrymen.
“Thank goodness you're safe, Director Lazard,” one says.
“I should be fine now, Zack,” Lazard says. “Go and assist Angeal!”
“I know, I know!” he accepts, running off. Once he gets to the spot where he left him, he calls out, “Angeal? Angeal!” He looks around, but only sees 2 of the fallen foes. He walks up to get a closer look at them, realizing they're quite different than what he thought. “What? These guys aren't Wutai troops...” he says to himself. He looks up and sees a floating red sphere. He shields his eyes as the sphere unleashes a light and creates a circular pattern in the air. A bright light engulfs him. All he can see is white.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
A Fan Novel by Monty Hays
Chapter 1
A Fan Novel by Monty Hays
Chapter 1
It was a late, quiet night in Midgar. The citizens were sleeping soundly in their beds. The mysterious Shin-Ra building nestled dead center of the vast metropolitan dwelling. The quiet setting one would expect to be in a children's story, or some mystery novel, and the clichéd beginning would always attract some restlessness. In Midgar, there is always someone working. Someone awake in the dead of night performing some menial task that must be done for themselves or some employer. Whether it's a Mako reactor engineer tending to the valves and switches, making sure to get the necessary amount of the ghostlike liquid, or some criminal trying to rob an empty bar, only to be caught by SOLDIER security due to bad timing on their part.
Yet, in this setting, there is some activity that desires attention. As the ringing of the train bell makes its constant dinging, a red light indicating it to stop, a passenger locomotive speeds its way through, running the red light and breaking the safety bar in the process. A Shin-Ra helicopter hovers overhead in chase of the runaway train.
“Wutai troops have hijacked Shinra Express MK93 II,” says the pilot through his radio. “The train is currently headed to Midgar Sector 8. A SOLDIER operative will be inserted to neutralize the situation. We are to proceed as scheduled. Commence mission in 3. 2. 1. Mark. Begin mission. Operative is ready for insertion.”
One of the helicopter's doors opens as a man with jet black hair, sticking up in spikes leans out, assessing the situation. The young man was dressed as if he were ready for intense combat. Shoulder pads, combat boots, and a sword on his back. His shirt was of a deep purple color, thick as a sweater, but without the sleeves. His jeans were of the same, if not similar, color. Though they may have been a bit too baggy, looking loose around the knees down. His belt looked to be far to big for anyone, but was necessary for the attached suspenders which doubled as a strong magnetic sheath.
As he looked down at the train, looking for some kind of target, or planning out his objectives, a clear voice of a man behind him clarifies to him, “The train has been overrun by Wutai troops. Eliminate them and regain control of the train.”
“Oh yeah!” he declares, turning his head to face his superior.
“Get serious!” But the warning may have come too late because the young operative leaps out of the helicopter, diving for whole moments towards the train below. He lands on one knee, striking a pose for the fans in his head. He raises his head, checking for any opposition before coming to a full stand.
“Zack!” says the superior. Zack turns to see his commanding officer drop onto the train then walk toward him. The superior is dressed in the same clothing as Zack's, only it's as black as his hair, which is combed straight back. He has a seemingly over-sized sword on his back, which is not the regulation weapon for SOLDIER operatives.
“Zack, focus! There are no Shinra troops on this train. Understood?”
Zack simply nods once before turning around, making a fist and punching it into his open hand. He makes a haughty grunt before dashing along the top of the speeding train, jumping the gaps between cars. He is suddenly surprised to see bullets flying from under him after landing at the back of a car. After dancing around not to get shot in the foot, he then stumbles from losing his balance, only to be nearly shot once more.
“Hello to you, too!” he calls down before attempting to continue on his path. Even more bullets come shooting up from underneath as he runs along, this time, hurdling over a construction bar. Along the way, he sees infantry troops piling out on top of the train. “Come and get it!” he yells, drawing his sword. His sword looks to be of an average length, double-edged, and a quarter guard between the blade and handle.
The troops get themselves ready, some on a knee, other standing. They open fire towards Zack as he gets closer to them, blocking any bullets while others simply pass by, completely missing him. Zack cuts a few down before making a leaping slash to several that were grouped together, opening his path ahead. Before he gets a moment to think, he is met with more bullets flying past his head. Some troops had climbed out of the car ahead and opened fire just as their predecessors did. Zack runs along, cutting a few more down before making a superhuman leap over a widespread group, then landing in front of the last 3 or 4. He takes them down with ease and comes across a new challenge. Now, the troops are setting themselves up with mini rocket launchers.
As Zack continues along, contemplating how he's going to face this challenge, he looks overhead and sees a tunnel-like opening in the construction ahead. Getting his idea and putting it to use, he squats down, quickly gathering his strength only for a moment, then leaps through the tunnel just before getting hit by any rockets. The rockets hit the train behind his previous location as the troops look above in awe at Zack flying through the air.
After crashing through the end of the tunnel, Zack gets his sword into a down stabbing position, yelling, “SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack, on the job!” He descends down and stabs his sword into the coupling of the engine and cars, separating the two. Then, he leaps up once again and looks back at the cars as they fall behind with their passengers. He turns and sheathes his sword, walking along the engine, waiting for it to stop.
Up above, the pursuit helicopter hovers still, the pilot reporting in, “Train MK93 II re-routed to Sector I near Mako Reactor I. Proceed to mission phase 2 and change surveillance rank.” The train engine slows to a stop at the station. Zack handsprings off the engine to the platform below, then proceeds forward to his next destination. In the luminescence of the streetlights, one can clearly see the faint, bright glow of his blue eyes. They give a gentle, earnest feeling to those who would look at them. Zack hears his cell phone ringing, then answers his call.
“Zack speaking.” he greets his caller.
“Making progress, Zack?” says the voice of his familiar superior.
“What's going on, Angeal? Why are we fighting Shinra troops?”
“They're Wutai troops in disguise. Now, head to the open area above.”
“Towards Sector 8?”
“Yes. But first, you have to clear a path.”
“Clear a path?”
“You'll see what I mean. Be careful.” As Angeal says this, more troops come piling out of the open doorway onto the platform. They open fire upon Zack as he turns around, still on the phone, and the bullets flying past him, showing the Wutai's weakness for aiming.
“So I can cut loose, right?”
“Use some discretion.”
After hanging up on Angeal, Zack gets his sword in hand, declaring, “It's showtime!”
Zack soon finds these troops are slightly more skilled than the ones in the train, but they are still very lacking compared to his training. Following Angeal's approval of “cutting loose”, he then calls upon one of the Materia he has equipped and unleashes a highly concentrated ball of fire from his hand. The fireball then splits into three and flies toward the closest enemies. Zack gives chase behind the fireballs, passing the three victims who fall upon the explosion of the magic. As he rushes forward towards more opposition, he studies each of the impostor SOLDIERs, looking for any signs of hesitation or fear in their movements. Once he gets within striking distance with his sword, he cuts through 2 of the remaining troops, looking at the last one before seeing more SOLDIERs piling out of the doorway.
“I guess things just can't get very easy, can they?” he asks himself. “But luckily, I have a few tricks up my sleeve.” He then calls upon another of his Materia, only this time, he fires a bolt of lightning from his hand, knocking down 2 of the troops in a straight line. The followers dart around their fallen comrades and take positions to fire on Zack. Zack swings his sword around and holds it in a defense position as he charges forward, ready to strike. Before he gets too close, he drops down and slides towards his foes like a baseball player on his way home. He trips one of the SOLDIERs with his foot and another using his sword. Then he handsprings behind the remaining forces and cuts them all in the back, knocking them all out with one strike. With his way clear, the proceeds through the open doorway into the city beyond.
Zack gets on his phone to report in to Angeal. “Not too bad,” was Angeal's evaluation.
“Piece of cake! I'll make 1st in no time!”
“Go up the stairs at the end of the platform.”
“You got it,” Zack replies as he walks his way to the door. As Zack ascends the stairs, he notices a lot of night owls running in the opposite direction. 'What's got these people so spooked?' he wonders to himself. He reaches further above and runs into what looks like the origin of the panic. When he reaches one certain intersection, he sees the cause, and good reason why people should run for safety. A large monstrosity was standing betwixt the buildings, causing a ruckus. Zack looks the beast over and decides he's going to try and take it down.
Once he gets close to the beast, he recognizes it fully what it is. “A Behemoth? I may have gotten in over my head here,” he says to himself. He draws his sword, challenging the Behemoth. The Behemoth turns to face him, its muscular body showing signs of massive strength. Strength far greater than any living human can possibly imagine. The beast's body was covered in purple fur except for the top of the head and neck where it was a red-orange color, similar to a lion's mane in appearance. It had a webbed fin along its back, suggesting it could possibly swim with the ferocity of a shark, if not greater. The end of its tail had spikes protruding out, showing it can severely damage anything it hits. Yet, one part of its features struck a bit of fear in Zack's heart; the large, black horns that came out and pointed dead forward from its head.
The beast roars ferociously at Zack, accepting his challenge, its yellow glowing eyes looking into his. Zack charges forward and gets between his horns, making a few strikes to the beast's face before getting pushed back. The Behemoth swings its head left and right, attempting to slash its horns into Zack's chest. Zack jumps back with every swing of the monster's head. When he gets backed into a wall, he leaps up and presses his feet against the wall, summoning more of his superhuman SOLDIER strength. He then leaps off the building, cutting his sword across the back of the Behemoth. His sword gets caught in the creature's back, its muscles tightening to keep him in place. The Behemoth shakes and rolls its body around, trying to throw Zack off and into a place where it can try more damage. Zack grounds his feet into the beast's back, summoning more strength and pulls his sword out of the monster's back. He leaps off and gets behind the monster and makes more slashes on its carcass. The Behemoth swings its tail, knocking Zack to the side. Zack manages to bring his sword up to its tail, blocking the blow, but still nearly gets knocked into the next building. Zack brushes the rubble off his shoulders, chuckling at his situation.
“Looks like the 'discretion' Angeal suggested has gone out the window,” Zack surmises. He then closes his eyes in meditation, summoning forth all the strength he can, an aura of pure, raw strength surrounding his body. He charges forward, almost flying, and cuts deep into the Behemoth's hide. He combos that with even more deep gashes, slashing all over the beast's face, and even chipping off parts of its horns, then finishes that with a forceful downward strike down the middle of the Behemoth's face. The Behemoth roars in pain and finally drops to its side, defeated. Zack swings his sword around, slinging the beast's blood off the blade before setting it on his back.
Before he gets a chance to breathe, the tip of a katana reaches next to his head from behind. “Showing your back to the enemy... Overconfidence will destroy you,” says a stern, cold voice from behind. Zack raises his hands in surrender and turns around, his head lowered. He picks his head up, recognizing at an instant the man before him.
“Wh-What is this?” Zack asks. The tall silver-haired man in the black duster jacket grunts at Zack, his piercing smile striking a bit of horror in Zack's heart. The man rotates his longer-than-normal sword into a upward blade position, stabbing into Zack without warning. Zack turns around as quickly as possible, using his sheathed sword as a guard from the assault. Zack grabs for his sword, swinging it precisely to block the black and silver man's continuous attacks, their swords creating a spark of light with each clash. The attacker swings his sword down, attempting to perform a fatal blow to Zack, before Zack blocks that as well. Their swords are caught in a stalemate.
“Damn it, you're not the only hero!” Zack says to the man before him. Zack looks into the man's glowing green eyes.
“It's over,” the attacker says. Zack struggles even more to keep his opponent from striking down, only to have his sword sliced in half. Zack then leaps to the side, abandoning his only means of survival. Zack is left lying on his back, too tired to go any further.
“Impossible!” says a nearby Angeal, hearing of Zack's condition on his phone. He hangs up with his caller and rushes to Zack's aid as fast as he could.
The silver-haired man walks over to Zack, looking down upon him and chuckles. He places his sword over Zack's chest, pulls back, and swings with full force. A blinding light envelops Zack, so he closes his eyes, fearing his demise.
There was nothing. No pain, no puncture wound. Nothing that could have ended his life on this day. Zack slowly opens his eyes, fearing what he may see. Zack looks at only the attacker's blade, struggling against something to reach him. Zack follows the blade down, seeing his chopped-in-half sword stopping the attack. But why would his sword be here? Surely, he discarded it when he dodged that final assault. Zack looks to see the sword's wielder and recognizes the face of his superior, Angeal. Angeal only looks at Zack for a moment before retracting the sword. The silver-haired attacker pulls his sword back and only stands aside, like a marionette waiting for orders.
Zack gets up on his elbows, struggling to catch his breath. “Thanks, Angeal,” was all he could say at the time. Angeal gets up and looks at the cold man standing over his subordinate. He then pulls out his cell phone and presses a few buttons as he views the menu. He chooses one option for “Abort Mission” then puts his phone away.
Electronic buzzings and whirs can be heard as the world around the three men disappear. Soon after, the silver-haired man also disappears along with the environment. Angeal walks away from Zack before turning around.
“Training's over,” says Angeal, looking down at Zack.
“Wha-? Why?” Zack protests, getting up, now wearing a never-before-seen eye mask. On the VR helmet, Zack can see the message “MISSION ABORT”. Angeal holds up the chopped-up sword to Zack's face, showing him his fatal error. “You serious?” was all he could muster. “I was just getting warmed up!”
Angeal moves the broken sword in his hand and holds it to give it to Zack. Zack takes it and looks at it solemnly, sighing at his failure. “Zack,” Angeal starts, “Embrace your dreams.” Angeal starts to leave the training room.
“Huh?”
“If you want to be a hero you need to have dreams... and honor.” He leaves Zack alone to ponder his words.
Chapter 2
The Shin-Ra building was a tall skyscraper. More than 60 floors tall, with a deep cavernous basement that ran deep underground. The oddly shaped structure looked somewhat like a wine bottle in design, but it served a major purpose for the citizens of Midgar. Adorned on the front and all throughout the building was the company name: Shin-Ra Electric Power Company. The building stood in the very middle of Midgar. The city itself was an almost perfect circle that was segmented into eight sectors, much like a pie or pizza. At the head of each sector all around the city were the Mako reactors. These reactors were the stepping stone to Shin-Ra's rise to power and success in providing electricity to the citizens. However, perhaps unbeknown to the residents, these reactors drew their energy source from what is known as Lifestream, the very life force of the planet itself. So in all honesty, Shin-Ra is killing the planet to help the people of Midgar, not to mention their wallets.
Shin-Ra had an elite army called SOLDIER. The members of this group start as infantrymen, but the select few who rise in the ranks take on an entirely new class. These become the 3rds, then the 2nds, and the top dogs, who were known as 1sts. These higher ranked members go through a special surgery in which their bodies are infused with Mako energy, making them stronger, faster, and some say, smarter. The only obvious side-effect of this surgery is a faint glow in the eyes of the recipients. The SOLDIERs usual training and common area was on the 49th floor of the Shin-Ra headquarters, where Zack was found performing his normal ritual of squats by the window.
“Hey Zack, you seem a little on edge,” says a fellow 2nd class SOLDIER who walks up to him.
“Can you blame me? All this training and no assignments,” says Zack, still running his ritual, “Like they're hanging me out to dry. You must be pretty busy with everyone off-base.”
“Off-base? Wait, haven't you heard? There's been a mass desertion at SOLDIER.”
“Huh?” Zack stops his squats at this.
“It appears one of the 1sts deserted. He took a bunch of 2nds and 3rds with him, too. Nobody knows why he left, or what he's up to. This mass desertion's the reason why your training's on hold.” They both hear footsteps approaching and turn to the origin. “Heads up, a 1st!” says the 2nd class as Angeal walks into the common area.
“Zack, new assignment.” says Angeal.
“Woo! Finally! Some real action!”
“This will be your show.”
“Yes!”
“Report to Director Lazard. We'll give you the details.”
“Later, Kunsel,” Zack says as he follows Angeal to the Briefing Room.
“Bye, Zack,” says Kunsel.
In the Briefing Room, Zack walks in and sees a man sitting at the head of the large desk. The desk was V-shaped, with chairs and computers placed for a maximum of 7 occupants. Each of the active computers would display the same image, as well as the large monitor on the wall, so all members would view the same subject at once.
The man sitting at the head was Director Lazard. He is an executive at Shin-Ra, and the head of SOLDIER. To Zack, he seemed to have an air of nobility around him, whether from his childhood or from etiquette classes. The director had blond hair, cut short and combed to the side and thin glasses across his nose. He wore a business suit, the jacket was striped in 2 shades of blue, with his shirt and slacks a platinum color. Zack couldn't take notice of his shoes, but only the man's gloves. Zack couldn't tell if this was further cause of the man's nobility, training, or if he was simply a germophobe.
Lazard stands to greet Zack. “Zack. It's good to finally meet face to face. Lazard, Director of SOLDIER,” he introduces himself, offering his hand.
“Heya,” Zack greets, shaking the man's hand. Lazard chuckles before crouching to his computer, then takes his seat.
“On to business.” After typing a few keystrokes, an image pops up on the large monitor for Zack to see. A profile layout of a brown-haired man is shown, detailing his general info; name, age, etc. Flashing at the bottom of his picture is the message Missing In Action. “SOLDIER 1st Class, Genesis,” Lazard explains, “A month ago, he went missing during a mission in Wutai. Know anything about this?”
“Not a clue!” Zack replies, believing this is the man Kunsel spoke of.
“The mission is currently stuck in limbo. That's why we've decided to send you.”
“Uh, to Wutai?”
“Yes, this war has gone on long enough.”
“I've recommended you for 1st,” says Angeal. Zack looks down at his superior with utter surprise and joy, then hugs Angeal.
“Angeal! I love you, man! Angeal--”
Angeal pushes him aside, “Don't make me regret this, Zack.”
“Sir!”
Angeal stands and looks at Zack, “Once you're packed, you'll leave at once. The operation will begin immediately upon arrival at Wutai.”
“I'll be joining you as well,” says the director, “I'm counting on you.”
“Sir!”
“By the way, what is your dream? 'To become 1st'... is it?”
“No... To become a hero!”
“Ah, good! Unattainable dreams are the best kind.”
“Uh, thanks?” Zack looks at Lazard, puzzled.
Wutai was a small village in the far west, on the northern part of the west-most continent. Devoid of electricity or the sins and wiles of other residents of the world, they prided themselves on tradition and the old ways. The Wutai tribe followed the ways of the samurai and ninja, dealing in espionage, thievery, assassination, and the like. They also had a strong sense of duty to their fellow people. Nearly every resident of the village underwent harsh training all their lives, preparing themselves for a long going war.
Zack and Angeal make their way to the village, following a mountain trail from the south, along Tamblin Mountain.
“Fort Tamblin is straight ahead,” informs Angeal. “Let's hurry, B Unit is standing by.”
Before the two SOLDIERs even get a chance to move, a Wutai soldier movies in and spots them. “You two! Identify yourselves!” He is then joined by 2 comrades. Angeal starts to react, but Zack walks in front of him, drawing his sword.
“Just leave it to me!” The Wutai troops surround Zack. Each was wearing traditional samurai armor, wielding halberds as their standard weapon. However, these halberds had a special surprise that Zack didn't know about. One of the soldiers swings his weapon around and holds it with the pommel aimed at Zack, but the pommel was hollow at the end. Zack recognized immediately that it looked like a rifle, so he runs to the side, narrowly escaping the man's fire. Zack then runs to one of his opponents and slashes him across the chest, immediately killing him. The other two soldiers look at each other then charge Zack together. Zack chuckles at the situation and easily blocks the attacks. He leaps over their heads to get behind them, then swings his sword into one of his opponents with enough momentum that he sends both attackers into the mountainside. Zack then runs up to them and knocks them out with a punch to the head.
“All right, next!” he yells out, waiting for the next challenge.
“Just calm down, Zack,” says Angeal, taking the lead.
“No can do. The director is watching from somewhere, right? I have to make a good impression.”
“Zack. Do you know about dumbapples?”
“No, what is that?”
“Unbelievable. How can you not know about dumbapples? You'll never make 1st at that rate.” Angeal starts walking off on his own.
“Whoa, wait! What are dumbapples?” Zack calls to his C.O., who left him behind without a word. Zack chases after Angeal, meeting a bit of opposition along the way. Zack easily deals with each of his foes without batting an eye. Zack eventually catches up, to further inquire Angeal.
“So Angeal, what's the deal with 'dumbapples'?”
“The official name is Banora White. The trees bear fruit at random times during the year. Because of that, the townspeople affectionately call them dumbapples. The local farms had plenty of them to spare.”
“Oh really? So you stole them.”
“We were poor, Zack.”
“Nice excuse!”
“But even then, I had my honor. The largest Banora White tree grew on a wealthy man's estate. It was rumored that those apples tasted the best. But I never stole from that tree, because the wealthy man's son was my friend.”
“If he was a friend, you should have just asked for some!”
Angeal smiles at Zack and responds, “Honor can be quite a burden at times.”
Zack tries to think it over for a second, “...And what exactly does this have to do with me?”
“No story is not worth hearing.” Angeal walks off, leaving his student behind, laughing all the way.
“What? That's it?” Zack starts chasing again, “Yeah, well, thanks a lot!”
Outside Fort Tamblin, Angeal and Zack crouch behind a wall, surveying the area.
“B Unit will set off an explosion,” Angeal explains. “That's our cue.”
“The diversion will allow us to infiltrate.” Zack understands.
“Right. I'll set the bomb inside the fortress. You'll charge the front gate and...”
“Uh-huh, and? And? And? And?” Zack asks excitedly.
“Indulge yourself.”
“You got it! That's what I do best!” Without hesitation, Zack gets restless, “Come on, B Unit.”
Angeal takes his sword and looks it over. The handle long enough for 3 hands, and the blade as long and wide as his body, but thick as a finger or two. Angeal's weapon was one of his most cherished possessions, hardly ever seen with it off his back. He takes his sword and bows his head to it, as if in prayer, then quickly places it back on his back.
“You know, I've never actually seen you use that,” Zack chimes in. “Don't you think it's sort of a waste?”
“Use brings about wear, tear, and rust. And that's a real waste.”
“You're serious, aren't you?”
“Yeah. I can be pretty cheap.”
“Yeah, no kidding.”
At that moment, a bright light and loud explosion can be heard within the fortress. “Begin mission,” Angeal says to Zack. Zack brushes his nose before dashing off to the fortress. Angeal waits a few moments after Zack's departure before he moves in for his own mission.
When Zack reaches the gate, he is met with more than he bargained for. The gate was guarded with several soldiers, with 3 stationed up high, like archers. Zack knows he can't fight as well as he did in the training room. The Materia he had on hand then was taken away until he can find or buy a better selection on his own. All he had on hand was a single Fire and Blizzard spell, as well as a Cure spell for when he gets injured. Zack could tell the Fire spell would definitely take a single enemy out in a single hit, but that was limited. The Blizzard spell can take out several at once, but takes a while to charge, leaving his opponent ample time to escape. So he started off drawing his weapon. He charges into the fray, leaping high into the air. As he got as high as he could, he casted a Blizzard spell, taking out 4 or 5 enemies at once, nearly half of his opponents. Zack descends and lands in the middle of his fallen foes, pointing his sword to the next one. Zack runs to a Wutai sergeant, but is soon stopped by one of the archers, firing at his feet. Zack chuckles at this and uses a Fire spell, taking him out. In that time, his surrounding enemies close in at once, but Zack was ready for it. He gets down on one knee then leaps across the ground, slicing his sword along the legs of his enemies as he closes in on the gates. He turns around, his back to the gate and fires a few Fire spells, taking out the last 3 enemies, before doing the same to the last 2 archers.
“All right! Piece of cake!” he says, before walking into enemy territory.
Chapter 3
Inside the fortress, Zack manages to take out a few guards before Angeal calls on his phone.
“Were you able to get inside the fortress?” he asks.
“Piece of cake! I could have done that blindfolded!”
“Don't get too careless. I've heard that Wutai keep a large monster for anti-SOLDIER purposes. It should be somewhere inside Fort Tamblin.”
“If I take it out, do you think I'll make 1st?”
“It depends on the quality of your work. Your main duty is to draw the Wutai troops to you by running amok. Do that well, and the director will give you a favorable evaluation.”
“Oh, that'll be easy! Just leave it to me!”
The Tamblin Fortress was made of stone. Its corridors were serpentine like a maze, but had a few trap doors in the walls that one could use for a shortcut. Zack's mission was to work his way to the central area of the fortress, taking out as many foes as he possibly could. Along the way, he would run into a collection of as many as 3 or 4 opponents at once, but they would be easily dealt with in a short amount of time. Eventually, Zack would take a look at one of the walls, noticing it had what appeared to be talismans scattered across it. When Zack took a closer look at it, the wall turned like a spinning door, revealing more foes in wait. Once Zack was done with all the foes he could find, including the Sergeants in the towers, he opened a stone doorway, revealing a large building that looked like some sort of shrine or training hall.
“Guess this must be the central area,” Zack says to himself. As he walks around and heads to the large structure, he hears an odd voice coming from somewhere around him.
“One, avoid unnecessary training! Two, protect Wutai at all costs! Three, ugly Shinra SOLDIER dudes... must be PUNISHED!” Suddenly, a young girl appears from a cloud of smoke on the stairs.
“Who are you?” Zack asks.
“I'm Wutai's greatest warrior! If you wanna go further, you have to go through me!” says the young girl. She was dressed in short shorts and a gi. Black chin length hair and a bandanna around her head.
“A kid?” Zack asks himself. “You shouldn't be playing here, it's dangerous! Go home to your parents.”
The girl leaps over Zack's head and lands behind him. “You're the one who's going home!” she calls. “If you insist on going further, you'll have a fight on your hands!” The young child runs to Zack.
“Oh, man... What am I supposed to do here?” Zack wonders to himself.
The girl runs right up to Zack and makes punches at him, making no contact whatsoever, “Whap! Pow! Bam! Take that, bad guy!” she cries out. Zack just looks at the girl and decides to play along.
“Arrrgh! Noooo! You got me!” he cries out, dropping to a knee.
“There! That'll teach you to mess with me! Once again, I've brought peace to Wutai!” The girl turns and runs away, victorious.
“Boy oh boy... You gotta admire that energy. Well, back to work, I guess...”
Inside the building, Zack sees that it looks to be a training hall with a stone floor and four support pillars holding the ceiling up. Once he walks to the center of the room and looks around, dust falls on his head. Instinctively, he jumps back as the ceiling opens up and a large monster falls through. The beast was found wearing armor and wielding a large axe. Suddenly, another beast wielding a bladed club drops in behind it, making it a duo.
Zack draws his weapon, “You must be the anti-SOLDIER monsters I've been hearing about.” Zack runs to the side and strikes one of the large creatures in the side. The wounded monster roars and joins its arm with its brother. The two monsters perform a forceful swing of their weapons, knocking Zack into the wall.
“Okay, did not expect that,” he says, getting back up. He realizes if they're together, they can do a lot of harm to him, or perhaps each other. Before he gets a chance to contemplate a plan, one of the creatures charges towards him. Zack leaps up on top of it and grabs its horns, riding it like a bull. “Yee-haw!” was all he could come up with as he turned the beast around to look at its friend. “Come on, big guy, let's have a little fun!” he calls to the other. The monster he's sitting on reaches up to grab him. “Hey! No touching!” Zack cries out, using his sword to cut the hand away from him. Zack stabs his sword into the monster's neck and jerks it around, making the beast move this way and that. Eventually, he gets it to rush forward, to its ally. The monsters collide, with Zack managing to control one with his sword. The 2nd beast tries to break free, but keeps getting wounded by the random flailing of its friend. It then decides the only way out is to stop his friend. Permanently. Zack watches the creature as it brings its hands together and rears back. Zack puts 2 and 2 together and pulls his sword out, jumping back off his steed just as the killing blow drops down, killing one of the monsters.
“One down, one to go,” he says. The remaining monster pushes its fallen friend aside then throws its weapon forcefully at Zack. Zack gets hit hard and gets once again knocked to the wall, this time losing his sword. The monstrous weapon pinning him against it. “D-Damn,” Zack grunts. He struggles to summon some of his SOLDIER strength to push the weapon off him, then uses a quick Cure spell, lightly healing his wounds enough for him to keep fighting. Just as the creature bounds up to retrieve its weapon, Zack takes the opportunity to run up the monster's weapon, arm, and shoulder, grabbing the beast's horn. Zack fires a point-blank Fire spell from his palm, making the creature disoriented. Zack jumps back down, grabs his fallen sword, and plunges it into the monster's belly, where it has no armor. He then swings up to stand on his sword, using it as a platform, and uppercuts the monster from underneath. It felt as if bone met a brick wall when Zack made contact. The monster grabs a hold of Zack and throws him to the ground. It then pulls his sword out of its belly and tosses it into one of the nearby support pillars. Zack struggles to get back up, realizing he can't get his sword unless he can get past his foe, which wouldn't be easy.
That's when he notices the gash he made in the beast's belly. Zack watches the creature carefully, waiting for the moment to strike. The monster charges quickly, swinging its club around. Zack somersaults backwards, keeping away from the blows. When Zack gets pushed up against the wall, the monster swings its weapon down. Zack dodges to the side and rushes in. He clenches his fists and hits away with a flurry of punches to the monster's open wound, making it worse. The beast roars in anguish with each hit to the abdomen. Zack's near broken hand getting worse with each use of it. Zack hits the monster hard enough to open the wound bigger than it was before and in the process, worsens his hand to near uselessness. He then digs his off hand into the monster's belly, grabbing whatever he can and ripping it out of its stomach, killing the beast. The monster howls in pain before nearly falling on Zack, with him running to keep from getting crushed.
Zack uses another Cure spell on his hand, mending the bones and bruises to be as good as new. He then walks to his sword and pulls it from the pillar and takes in a deep breath to relax. Just then, his phone rings.
“SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack, victorious once again!” he answers.
“Good work.” Angeal's voice answers. “Now, get out of there quickly. There's only 5 minutes until detonation.”
“Understood!” Zack hangs up and looks around, expecting to see someone. “Director Lazard, are you watching? Hehe, gotta move!” he cries, heading out of the building.
He notices a shadow appearing on the floor and dives to the side as a third monster falls from above. This one wielding a chain mace.
“No time to play!” he cries out, ready to get his sword. He looks up at the beast swing its weapon above its head. Zack dodges to the side just as it strikes, the large rock tearing up the wall. Zack backflips away and draws his sword. He leaps into the air and strikes a forceful swing to the monster's head, hard enough to knock it out. Zack walks up to the monster, swinging his sword leisurely. Just as he thought it was safe, the monster gets back up, backhanding Zack in the process. Zack barely manages to block the blow as he gets knocked into the pillar behind him. Zack felt a hard hit to the back of his head upon impact. He drops to the ground, almost feeling as he'll soon lose consciousness. He keeps himself together and backs himself into the pillar, pointing the sword desperately to the beast.
“Not good,” he says. Zack and the monster stare at each other, with Zack struggling to catch his breath. The monster pulls its weapon back, preparing to strike. Suddenly, a flash of light can be seen, and the monster stops. It falls dead next to Zack.
“Huh?” he asks. He looks up and sees Angeal's figure, holding his sword in hand, proof that he delivered the killing blow.
“That's one more you owe me.” he says, smiling at Zack. Zack shakes his head, trying to get himself together mentally. “You lost your focus,” Angeal says, walking up.
“Uh, yeah?” Zack says, still a little disoriented. “Oh, sorry if your sword got a little wear, tear, or rust on it.”
“You're a little more important than my sword,” Angeal replies, sheathing it. “...But just a little.” Angeal offers his hand to help Zack up.
“Thanks!” as Zack takes his hand.
Later that night, Zack and Angeal manage to catch a breather, taking a break from the long mission as Lazard runs up to them.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm not used to being on site,” he uses as his excuse.
“You didn't have to come,” Angeal says.
“The operation will bring an end to the war. I have to see it through personally.” He then turns to Zack, “SOLDIER 2nd Class Zack.”
“Sir!” he responds.
“Your performed your duties admirably at Fort Tamblin. I saw it with my own eyes.” Zack ponders how that was possible since he didn't see the director anywhere on site. “Frankly, my evaluation of you is...” he pauses, collecting his thoughts. “You are a frightening individual. Not any man could annihilate an entire enemy force by himself.”
“I was taken aback myself. You really have grown into a fine warrior,” Angeal comments. Zack starts rubbing his head, a little embarrassed.
“Your bravery during the Wutai war will be remembered for generations to come,” Lazard continues. “It seems your dream of becoming a hero has already come true.”
“Let's not get carried away, Director. Zack still has a lot to accomplish,” interjects Angeal.
“Ha ha, I suppose you're right. Zack I hope you continue to excel.”
After the trio chit chats for a while, Angeal speaks up, “Now, let's hurry. Sephiroth is waiting.”
Zack recognizes instantly, “Sephiroth!? The SOLDIER hero?” Angeal and Lazard head off on their own. “Wow! I get to meet a hero!” Just then, three mysterious figures appear and dance around Zack, taking him by some surprise. The figures all looked the same: form fitting clothing, a helmet covering their face, black shoulder pads, and short swords in each hand.
Zack draws his weapon, sensing danger from the figures. One of them tries to attack Zack from behind. Zack moves his sword behind his back, blocking it. He spins his body around, using the momentum to swing his sword hard enough to pull his opponent's weapon out of his hand. Zack then shifts his sword to hold it in reverse and punches his foe in the face, using the handle to make for a harder hit. He manages to knock the helmet up a bit to see part of his enemy's face. Zack notices it to look somewhat familiar, but can't place it. Zack then hears footsteps running up from behind. He holds his sword in both hands, still in reverse, and plunges it into his opponent's stomach, without taking a scratch. Zack switches his handling of the sword to proper use and pulls it back out, using that same motion to cut across the first attacker's chest. Zack looks around for the third one, who seems to have disappeared. Zack then looks up and sees him in a tree, trying to take him by surprise. Zack leaps up to his foe, slicing through the branch, making it and his opponent fall to the ground. Using that moment, Zack positions himself in midair for a downward thrust and dives down, plunging his sword into the middle of his last foe, killing him instantly.
“Zack, come on!” he hears Angeal calling. Zack runs and catches up with him and the director, seeing that they ran into the same foes. They all hear a noise from behind and turn to see even more coming from the bushes. Angeal walks in front of Zack, “Take the director to a safe place.”
“Then contact Sephiroth,” Lazard protests.
“Zack is more than enough,” Angeal clarifies. “Now, go.”
“Follow me, Director,” Zack says. The two run off, leaving Angeal behind. They eventually run into a couple infantrymen.
“Thank goodness you're safe, Director Lazard,” one says.
“I should be fine now, Zack,” Lazard says. “Go and assist Angeal!”
“I know, I know!” he accepts, running off. Once he gets to the spot where he left him, he calls out, “Angeal? Angeal!” He looks around, but only sees 2 of the fallen foes. He walks up to get a closer look at them, realizing they're quite different than what he thought. “What? These guys aren't Wutai troops...” he says to himself. He looks up and sees a floating red sphere. He shields his eyes as the sphere unleashes a light and creates a circular pattern in the air. A bright light engulfs him. All he can see is white.
Posted by Hayato_Matsuo | Oct 11, 2010 12:50 PM | 6 comments
March 2nd, 2010
Favorite Vids
Own Little World
Real Men
SHIRANUNOGAESHI!
John Williams is the Man
The Final Fantasy
a couple Diabeetus AMVs
Hatsune Miku - Yukkuri Shiteitte ne!!
Lemon Demon - Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
Denkare - Raison D'etre
Tsukihime Retard Edition
Key the Metal Idol English Opening Full (In the Night)
More to come.
Real Men
SHIRANUNOGAESHI!
John Williams is the Man
The Final Fantasy
a couple Diabeetus AMVs
Hatsune Miku - Yukkuri Shiteitte ne!!
Lemon Demon - Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
Denkare - Raison D'etre
Tsukihime Retard Edition
Key the Metal Idol English Opening Full (In the Night)
More to come.
Posted by Hayato_Matsuo | Mar 2, 2010 7:53 AM | 2 comments
February 22nd, 2010
My Family/Friends
Me and Raven, my love
Posted by Hayato_Matsuo | Feb 22, 2010 1:57 PM | 26 comments
December 6th, 2009
Member Cards
Pretty Girl Squad
Anime Theme Songs FC
Girls w/Guns FC
Ecchi 4ever Club
Girls w/Blades FC
Kingdom of Weirdness
MidnightSky FC
Bring Back the Side Panel
Huggle Club
Mikari Academy RP
Girls with Glasses FC
Anime Theme Songs FC
Girls w/Guns FC
Ecchi 4ever Club
Girls w/Blades FC
Kingdom of Weirdness
MidnightSky FC
Bring Back the Side Panel
Huggle Club
Mikari Academy RP
Girls with Glasses FC
Posted by Hayato_Matsuo | Dec 6, 2009 1:33 PM | 0 comments
About Me
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Posted by Hayato_Matsuo | Dec 6, 2009 1:30 PM | 2 comments