Second Chance

Reunion

Everything was in flames, houses, crops, trees, and anything that the greedy flames could get its hold on. And with all his pride and courage, Zack was shivering in fear at the sight he was exposed to. People were fleeing for their lives all around him while he stood motionless. When he finally got back to his senses, the flames had died down, and everything around him was pitch black. His eyes traveled the scenery around him, trying to find something, or anything for that matter, which could have survived the ashes. As he took a step forward, his leg got caught on a massive object that caused him to lose his balance and fall face-first into an oddly colored puddle. When he tasted the slight, unmistakable taste of copper in his mouth, he pushed himself off the ground as fast as he could and rapidly wiped away the liquid that was now covering his face. The smell had only reinforced his fears about what it was, but he still did not want to believe what his mind had already confirmed the liquid to be. He reluctantly opened his eyes after most of the fluid's trace was off his face; his composure paled at the sight of the red-colored puddle he had fallen into moments ago, verifying it to be warm blood. His eyes soon spotted a trail of blood leading behind him; he knew he would regret it, but he couldn't help but let his eyes follow the trail to satisfy his curiosity. Carefully following the path with his eyes, he soon found the source: a man lying face down in the muddy dirt. He did not need to see the man's face to know who he was. Zack's face drained of all color as the dead man's blonde Chocobo-like hair revealed his identity all too well in his mind, Could Strife. He quickly moved away from his dead friend in horror, but in his rush, he found himself tripping backward on another familiar corpse, Aerith.

The recent discovery filled him with even more fear and anger at what monster could have done such a thing to two of the people he cherished most. The answer soon came to him in the form of that heavy chuckle that he knew all too well. It was the same chuckle he heard on the night of the Nibelheim incident. That same night, his so-called 'hero' turned into a madman right before his very eyes. He slowly turned his head toward the chuckling, confirming his suspicion. The long silver-haired ex-SOLIDER with his long blood-covered Masamune to his side, his face had an evil and lifeless smile carved on it, and his bright green eyes were entirely focused on him.

In that very second, all Zack's fears drained away and were replaced with raging anger. The man in front of him had caused so much suffering for everyone he ever knew; he couldn't just sit back and let him cause more pain to others. With that resolve, he scrambled to his feet and picked up his Buster sword. He channeled his energy into it and steadily eyed his target, but the man just stood there with his smile growing wider.

"Still playing hero, aren't we? When are you going to give up and realize that you have already lost?" Sephiroth laughed; he made no indication will you right back, but Zack wouldn't let him get to him that easily. So instead, he charged forward, quickly closing the gap between himself and his former idol. But the madman disappeared just as Zack was about to attempt his Chain Slash. In his place was a Mako tank that was sealed shut as soon as he was in it.

Try as he might, his glass prison wouldn't retain a scratch. And soon, he spotted figures forming from the darkness around him gathering, all of which were enemies he had fought in the past. They all had that same evil grin on their faces, just as Sephiroth did a while ago. And in their hands, they revealed one by one to have a gun or rifle ready and aimed right at him. Zack didn't think much of himself being in harm's way because of the strong glass imprisoning him. But that soon changed. The tank broke apart, exposing him entirely to the enemies around him. His eyes widened at the sudden change, realizing that he had nowhere to either run to or hide at that very moment. His instincts took over from that point, shielding his face and shutting his eyes, praying for a miracle to save him the second the sound of the triggers being pulled reached his ears.