Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Where the lost ones go ❯ Bloodbath in paradise ( Chapter 19 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Sulphurya 
Wait! We can't just leave everyone behind!
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.17.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.3K | Visits: 261 | Status: Completed
Wait! We can't just leave everyone behind!
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.17.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.3K | Visits: 261 | Status: Completed
19. Bloodbath in paradise
Aeris rolled over on her side, gazing emptily ahed. It didn't really seem like any point of getting out of bed just yet.
Closing her eyes, she smiled softly as she remembered dancing with Sephiroth. How handsome he was in his formal uniform. The small smile at the corner of his lips. How his arms had felt around her.
How he'd instinctively caught the bouquet when Tifa had tossed it right at him without knowing it, and the silver haired general had stared wide eyed at it before more or less throwing it away with a yelp.
Aeris giggled silently, remembering vividly Cid's laughter and Rufus' teasing.
Her smile quickly faded however, and she opened her eyes again. Things could change so fast. An evening filled with laughter and happiness, only to be followed with a morning with a march towards war and death.
No, she had to believe that Sephiroth would be alright. He'd said so, hadn't he? When he'd been sitting on her bed, her hands in his, and telling her that an attack had been launched on Costa del Sol and he was leading the counter strike. He'd said he would return to her.
All she had to do was to believe in him.
Aeris rolled over on her other side, her fingers digging into the sheet she was clutching underneath her chin.
Why did this have to happen? Why did anyone have to die? Why did the fighting have to continue? Hadn't enough blood been shed?
Finally sitting up, Aeris realised things wouldn't get any better with her just lying there anyway. It wouldn't bring Sephiroth back to her, and it would most certainly not stop any war that was raging to claim innocent lives. It was always the innocent who suffered, with the guilty ones who started the war far away in the safe places.
Clenching her hands, Aeris walked out to the bathroom.
She couldn't stop this from happening, but she could fight as well. She hadn't closed her eyes against the threat from Jenova, so she would not close her eyes this time either. Aeris was going to fight!
Maybe she wasn't any great general like Sephiroth, or a sword fighter like Cloud, or even as strong as Cid, but she could fight too! There were many ways to fight, and Aeris was going to do her share. Maybe the war would end quicker that way? Maybe she could ease the suffering of a single soul, and her efforts wouldn't be in vain.
An hour later, she knocked on the door to Rufus ShinRa's office and held her breath.
"What?" Was the snapped reply, and she heard Cloud's voice scolding Rufus for that tone.
Opening the door, Aeris drew a deep breath and entered to find a small group of people looking puzzled at her. Cloud, Cid, Vincent, Yuffie, Reno, Rude, Elena, Reeve, Jessie, Seto and Tifa was all there by Rufus' side and obviously failed to see what she was doing there.
Aeris walked over to stand in front of Rufus' desk and held his eyes while trying to ignore the others. "I... I want to help too..."
Cloud's face softened and he moved over to place a light hand on her shoulder. "Aeris... I understand that, but..."
Sending him a harsh glance, Aeris straightened and held his gaze firmly. "I can fight too, Cloud. I proved that a long time ago. I have things precious to me too, why shouldn't I be allowed to help?"
Stuttering, Cloud knew if he said that he just wanted her to be safe, it would be exactly what Aeris didn't want to hear.
Rufus leaned back and sent her a dry look. "Are you telling me you want to join SOLDIER or the infantry?"
Blushing, Aeris shook her head. "I'm saying that shooting guns and swinging swords isn't all there is in a war. My powers might have diminished, but I'm more than capable of helping the people."
Reeve leaned over to tap a finger on a mark on the map, just outside of Costa del Sol. "Chopper 5 is leaving soon for Leviathan 2."
Casting a quick glance at the map, then at Aeris, Rufus finally got up and called for the attention of the flower girl. "You want to help? Alright. The number of injured is approximately one third more than calculated, and Leviathan 2 could use the help. Think you got the stomach for it?"
Aeris exhaled relieved, then nodded. "I know I can make a difference. Thank you."
Rufus shook his head. "Don't thank me yet." He wondered if Sephiroth was going to kill him for sending his girl to the front, even if the ship was most likely a safe spot from the battles happening on land.
A Fire3 spell engulfed the soldier on Sephiroth's left side, and he was endlessly relieved as there was no scream of pain due to the fire-absorbing ring on the soldier's hand. There were enough screams in the air.
Fire and smoke had greeted Sephiroth when the transport ships finally reached the beaches of Costa del Sol, and it was almost impossible to think that the burning mayhem had once been a languid vacation resort. Craters marred the once so white beaches and most of the buildings were reduced to ruins. Bodies were scattered all over the place, and never ending screams had replaced the cheesy music from the radios that had once stood in the windows.
Yelling out orders, Sephiroth guided his team towards one of the huge monsters towering behind the ruins of a small house.
Six hours, six long hours, with this and it didn't look like it was going to end some time soon.
Dodging a shower of bullets, Sephiroth sent a Earth3 in return towards the guilty enemy soldier. The troops could deal with the enemy soldiers, but the two monsters raging impossibly tall were a different matter. He motioned for this team to continue towards the other monster, while he jumped up onto the remains of a building with the Masamune ready to finish off the monster nearest them.
The legendary sword easily cut through the dark and leathery skin of the monster, but Sephiroth knew it would take a lot more to kill it.
The monster was something between a Velcher Tusk and a Black Dragon, only many times bigger and luckily slower. It wailed furiously, slamming a heavy paw on the pile of rubble Sephiroth had been standing on seconds before.
Sephiroth landed easily on top of the paw and sprinted up the leg, the Masamune aiming for the vulnerable throat.
It took all his strength, but Sephiroth knew he had succeeded as the sword impaled straight through the long neck and protruded at the other end. The monster's wails turned into choked gurgling sounds and it swayed before crumbling lifelessly towards the ground, giving Sephiroth barely time to pull the Masamune free and jump into safety.
An Ice3 spell bounced off him, and Sephiroth absently congratulated himself on wearing the Reflect Ring as he merely ran towards the second monster as well.
It couldn't be too long before the reinforcements from Junon would arrive...
Sephiroth barely managed to avoid getting hit by the debris as the bridge collapsed when the remaining monster backed into it, and it's tail sent huge parts of the bridge flying through the air. And despite it's horrible appearance and strength, Sephiroth was somewhat relieved to find that the monsters weren't getting any smarter as he kept running into them!
Crouching down behind the remains of a wall, Sephiroth caught his breath again while taking in the situation.
Casualties were heavier than expected, but not bad enough to give room for concern. A strange jolt went through him as Sephiroth came to that conclusion, and he could almost feel Aeris' disapproving look.
No, there was no time to think like that. Aeris wouldn't like his cold behavior, but she wouldn't like for him to get killed in trying to save everyone in vain, would she?
His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as something called for his attention, something close by that was dangerous enough to make Sephiroth himself to tense. Scanning the battle field with his reptilian eyes, he knew it at once when his gaze fell on a tall, blonde man in the middle of the fighting.
That man.
Sephiroth straightened, absently slashing the air with the Masamune, just as the man turned to look his way as well.
The silver haired man felt every muscle tense as he got ready for a real fight, sensing the power and urge for violence radiating from the blonde man.
What was it that separated this one from the others? Hard to say, but Sephiroth knew he was different. Maybe in the same way that made the blonde man recognize Sephiroth as the most dangerous of his group. An alpha male recognizing the other.
Blonde hair and blue eyes, the man was startlingly different from Cloud. His hair even fairer, like wheat, and shorter with military neatness to it. And his eyes were bright blue, not radiant like Cloud's mako eyes or Cid's cerulean blue eyes. No, these eyes were cold and pale.
Sephiroth took a step forward, the other man following his example, but then a grenade landed somewhere between them and when the smoke cleared, Sephiroth realised the man was gone and Cloud had arrived with reinforcements!
"She what?" Sephiroth exclaimed furiously, clenching the Masamune tightly.
Cloud merely turned his face away, gazing out over the now silent ruins of Costa del Sol. "You know how she is. Try persuading her otherwise when she's made up her mind is impossible."
Sephiroth sheated his beloved sword in an agitated motion, glaring at the blonde. "You should have stopped her! She's going to get herself killed!"
The arrival of Cloud and the new troops had given Sephiroth enough to drive out the attackers and the fighting had finally halted completely a mere hour after. It was a short while after that Cloud could inform Sephiroth that Aeris had been placed on one of the ships anchored outside of Costa del Sol's beach to tend to the wounded. By her own request.
Cloud started as Sephiroth marched pass him, straight towards one of the helicopters aiming to bring several more wounded to the Leviathan 2. "Hey, where are you going?"
"I'm going to shake some sense into that little brain of hers!" Sephiroth sneered, yanking up the door to the helicopter.
Cloud trotted over as well. "Sephiroth! You can't just leave! What about the troops?"
Sephiroth glanced back at him. "I'll return in a few hours. You can managed until then." And the door was shut before any objections were heard, only Sephiroth's concern for Aeris keeping him from laughing at the panic-stricken look on Cloud's face.
But the 10 minute long ride out to the awaiting ship was awfully long, and Sephiroth jumped out of the helicopter before the crew dared to approach due to the whirling blades above the machine. He marched straight towards the door when a voice called out his name.
"Sephiroth! What are you doing here?" Jumping out of another helicopter, Cid gave him a little wave as he walked over.
Raising a dry eyebrow, Sephiroth halted and waited for the pilot. "I could ask you the same."
"Heh, told Rufus that either he could let me fly one of these choppers or I would sneak out on the battle field. Can't stand doing nothing, you know?" The blonde man grinned, pushing his flight goggles slightly higher.
Sephiroth motioned for him to follow him inside. "Yeah, I hear there's a lot of that attitude going around..."
"Ah, you're here for Aeris, then?" Cid placed a cigarette behind his ear for later use while lighting up another. "You think she's gonna listen to ya?"
Pushing up the door to the closest infirmary, Sephiroth peered inside to scout for a familiar figure. Nope, not there. "I'm not going to give her any choice." He marched on to the next room.
Laughing silently, Cid puffed merrily on his cigarette as Sephiroth gazed into the second infirmary with equal lack of luck in finding Aeris. "Well, good luck to ya! She sounded like she'd pretty much made up her mind to me."
The silver haired man snorted, gazing into a third room. "If she wants to get herself killed, that's too bad, because I'm not going to let her!"
He exhaled relieved as he saw the flower girl helping a wounded soldier drink some water from a glass she held to his lips. Pushing up the door, Sephiroth stalked inside and Cid followed with a slight grin. This was going to be interesting, the pilot just knew it!
"What the hell do you think you're doing ?" Sephiroth snapped, halting by the wounded soldier's bed and stared harshly at Aeris.
Gasping surprised, Aeris gently lowered the soldier's head to his pillow again before putting the glass on the small table and rush over to the annoyed general. "Sephiroth! You're unharmed!"
Sephiroth grumbled lightly as he returned the hug she was crushing the air out of his lungs with, then placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her slightly away without releasing her. "Answer me! What are you doing here?"
Blinking confused, Aeris gazed uncertainly at him. "I'm helping out. What does it look like?"
"It looks like you've got a death wish!" Sephiroth tightened his grip on her shoulders slightly, "Aeris, this is dangerous!"
As the green eyes narrowed and Aeris drew a deep breath, Cid sat down on a chair by a bed nearby. Yeah, this was going to be interesting, but his money was on the frail flower girl!
"THIS is dangerous?" Aeris asked in a dangerously silent voice. "And what you're doing is not?"
Sephiroth turned his face away. "That's different! I'm a soldier!"
Aeris was surprised to find herself growing angrier by each word he spoke. "And because you're a soldier, you cannot die? Is that it? Because you're a soldier, I shouldn't worry? You running around in the middle of the fighting is less dangerous than helping the ones who fall under your command here?"
Releasing her, Sephiroth groaned with frustration. "You're twisting my words! That's not what I meant!" He shook his head to regain his firmness and set his eyes on her. "You're taking the first ride back to Midgar."
Aeris crossed her arms. "No."
Sephiroth took a step towards her, taking a hold of her arm. "Aeris, this is not open for discussion!"
Glancing at his hand, then at his face, Aeris lifted her chin slightly. "You're right. It's not." Her eyes narrowed. "I'm staying!"
As Sephiroth drew a deep breath to object, Aeris quickly placed a light finger to his lips, halting the angry words. "Sephiroth, just listen to me, ok? Hear me out." He closed his eyes, and she exhaled relieved before explaining. "I understand that you're just worried about me, but I worry about you too, Sephiroth. You're not an immortal. You bleed and you can die like everyone else. But I understand that you can keep this war as short as possible with the knowledge the ShinRa company has imprinted into your brain since childhood, so I accept you have to be here even if I hate it." She stroke a soothing hand up his arm, trying a faint smile as he finally would look at her again. "I want to help too, Sephiroth. These soldiers, they have families and their chosen ones too. If I were to loose you, I would die, but there is also someone who feels the same about these soldiers. I'm not a talented soldier like you, Sephiroth, but I can help the one's who's already been marred by war. I'm a healer. Let me do what I can?"
Sephiroth's shoulders sagged slightly and he sighed. "I just want you safe, Aeris."
"I know," Aeris said silently, taking his hands in hers. "But if you want to do something for me, then take care of yourself out there. Don't take any chances. Be careful. And make sure you come home to me."
The silver haired man managed a ghost of a smile, gazing down at their hands. "I'm not going to be able to convince you, am I?"
Aeris shook her head, smiling as well.
"Told ya!" Cid sing-sang from his seat, meeting the glare he received from Sephiroth with a cheerful wink.
Giggling, Aeris glanced up at Sephiroth again. "But I'm very glad you came to see me."
Sephiroth sighed, pulling her into a warm embrace. "Yeah, well, I gotta leave again in an hour or so. Better make the best out of the time."
Cid got up, tapping the ashes of his cigarette under Aeris' correcting gaze. "That's my cue to leave the little love birds to themselves!" He gave a small salute to Aeris, a knowing look to Sephiroth and was about to saunter towards the door when a scream pierced through the air.
Now, screams weren't unusual with all the wounded on board, but this one was different. And followed by several of it's kind.
Screams of fear, followed by screams of pain.
Sephiroth quickly drew the Masamune, pushing Aeris to stand behind him. "Something's wrong. Aeris, you stay here! Cid, you too!"
The pilot cursed himself for leaving the Venus Gospel in the helicopter and could only nod to the general's request.
Aeris grasped a hold of Sephiroth's upper arm as he took a step forward, meeting his eyes with an intense gaze. "Be careful!"
Nodding, Sephiroth then vanished out the door and ran down the hall.
Something about this situation made a chill run down his spine, like he could scent the unnatural in the air.
New screams, and now from a different direction. Halting, Sephiroth hesitated briefly, only to hear a scream from inside the door he was standing next to. Quickly yanking it up, he darted inside, only to come to a sudden halt.
Reptilian eyes widening in disbelief, and Sephiroth stared numbly around the room as he found himself unable to move due to the shock.
Aeris glanced over at Cid, trying to keep calm despite the horrible screams that just seemed to multiply. "You don't think it's anything... really bad, do you?"
Shifting uneasily, Cid shook his head. "Wish I could say I didn't, little lady, but no one screams like that without a damn good reason...!"
Swallowing hard, Aeris knew the pilot was right and nervously wrapped her arms around herself. Only hoping that Sephiroth was not hurt.
Suddenly the door slammed open, and the two started violently, only to relax as it was one of the ShinRa soldiers leaning heavily against the door frame.
His uniform was blood soaked, and the bandages had started to unwind to reveal the gaping wounds underneath them.
Gasping, Aeris ran forward to help him, but halted abruptly as metal emerged from the center of his chest and the soldier gave an inhuman moan while staring at the flower girl with empty eyes.
The Masamune was yanked out again, and Sephiroth stepped forward as the soldier fell without gazing once at him. The silver haired man was covered in blood as well, but Aeris somehow knew it wasn't his own. And even stranger, she knew Sephiroth had just saved them. "Sephiroth! What is going on?" There was a heavy tinge of hysteria in her voice, but at that moment Aeris didn't care!
Breathing hard, Sephiroth opened his mouth to explain when suddenly there was a look of fear on his face and he shot forward. "Cid!"
The pilot had barely time to start violently, before hands clamped on his shoulders and a violent pain shot through him as teeth dug into his shoulder.
Aeris spun around as Cid screamed, covering her mouth with her hands to muffle her own scream as she saw the ShinRa soldier attacking the blonde man. Blood was already staining Cid's jacket as Sephiroth shoved the soldier away, ending the threat with a lash from the Masamune.
Clutching his shoulder hard, Cid was trembling and staring wide-eyed at Sephiroth. "What the fuck is going on?"
Sephiroth shook his head, seeing several of the other wounded ShinRa soldiers sitting up in their beds as well. "Later! We gotta get out of here!"
Aeris stuttered something about tending to Cid's wound, but stumbled along as the two men grabbed each of her hands and ran towards deck.
People were screaming from every direction, and Sephiroth lashed out the Masamune towards any ShinRa soldier who came stumbling towards them. "The helicopter! Hurry!"
Slamming up the final door, the three ran out on deck and Aeris would have fallen to her knees in shock if the two hadn't yanked her along.
Everyone was dead.
No. Someone was still moving. The soldier's she had comforted and who's wound she had tended to, were now walking around like they were sleepwalking and the blood on them were now not just their own.
The sound of the helicopter starting woke Aeris and she realised they were about to take off. "Wait!" She gazed from Cid to Sephiroth. "We can't just leave everyone behind!"
Sephiroth stared down at the ship as the helicopter slowly rose up into the sky. "Trust me, we're not leaving anyone alive behind..."
Aeris felt sick. She felt like throwing up. She felt so scared...
Cid swallowed hard as he maneuvered the helicopter to set course for Midgar, only to bit back a small grunt of pain. His shoulder was throbbing infernally.
"Cid, are you ok?" Aeris scrambled over to gently place her hands on each side of the wound.
The pilot forced down a scream, sweat breaking out. "Hurts like fucking hell! The fuck was that guy's problem?"
Sephiroth watched numbly as Aeris pulled out her ribbon to make a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding. "I don't know. The soldiers were attacking everything that moved... For no reason... They just went crazy... I've never seen anything like it..."
"Why would they do something like that?" Aeris asked in a trembling voice, starting to realise that all those nurses and doctors she'd barely gotten to know were now dead as well. Tears were slowly running down her cheeks as she tightened the ribbon.
Cid gritted his teeth, the pain threatening to knock him unconscious. He'd never had a wound that ached like this! It was almost like a cold numbness was starting to spread from it, trailing down his arm and towards his chest.
What had just happened?
Yuffie was walking toward the ShinRa tower and had just turned a corner when she felt it for the second time.
Grey eyes narrowed slightly as she pretended to be unfazed, but in reality she was boiling with anger.
Who the heck thought they could sneak up on the almighty Yuffie without her noticing? Idiots! But then again, she longed for a real fight. Anything to unleash all the pain she had bottled up inside her, and Rufus had refused her to join the soldiers in Costa del Sol.
Damn ShinRa, calling her a child!
Clenching her small fists, she halted in the middle of a broad street and waited.
A few seconds passed, then she felt her follower step into the street as well and she had to give him credit for his silence, but it wasn't good enough when it came to her.
A hand slowly moved over to take a hold of her weapon, and then Yuffie spun around to face her attacker. "All right, you moron! Let's do it!"
Grey eyes flickered with shock briefly as she saw the ninja outfit, but then he attack and Yuffie was more focused on punishing the idiot for trying to attack her and while wearing her ruined hometown's uniform!
The usual taunts were gone as the young girl was merely focused on venting out all her frustration and anger, leaving her slightly relieved that her opponent didn't go down too easily. She would have hated to have gotten all worked up for nothing!
But in the end, the would-be assailant ended up on one knee and panting with pained defeat.
Placing a hand on her slender hip, Yuffie glared angrily at him. "Well, are ya gonna show your face before I smack you around some until yer ancestors cringe?"
The unknown ninja hesitated, then slowly reached up to pull off the ninja mask and revealed dark hair and slanted grey eyes.
Yuffie started violently as she instantly recognized the Wutaian face, and her heart didn't calm as several more figures emerged from the shadows to stand behind their unmasked leader. "W-what in the tap-dancing Sephiroth's name is going on here?"
The beaten ninja finally got up again, pulling a hand through his dishevelled hair. "Forgive me, lady Yuffie, but it had to be done."
"What had to be done?" Yuffie shrieked, staring at them like she was seeing ghosts. There had to be 25-30 ninjas there now, each revealing a Wutaian face as they removed their masks. "What do you want?"
The leader took a step towards her. "My name is Hawk. I left Wutai a year ago, seeking fame and fortune, leaving my family behind. I received the news of the attack, but when I got back it was too late. Everything was gone."
The other ninjas faces turned pale with sorrow and loss, revealing them to be in simular situations.
Yuffie eyed them suspiciously. "Ya still haven't said what do you want? Why did you attack me?"
"I heard that the Lady had survived, so I came looking for you. On my journey, I met others who'd suffered the same loss as me." Hawk took another step towards her, grey eyes dark with anger. "We want to avenge our families, Lady Yuffie. It was destined for you to take over leadership over Wutai after your father's resignation, and you just proved yourself worthy. Wutai will be avenged, and we want you to lead us."
For a moment, Yuffie was staring numbly at them. Her brain still scrambling to catch up.
It was true, she wasn't the only one who'd left Wutai in search of glory, and suddenly she realised that her hometown wasn't completely erased after all.
Wutai was alive in every man and woman in front of her.
The fighting spirit was burning in the grey eyes so simular to her own, and she was not alone anymore.
A slow grin spread over Yuffie's face, as she could almost feel her father scolding her for taking so long before taking command. Lifting her chin, the young ninja girl nodded towards Hawk. "You guys wanna kick some ass? You wanna avenge Wutai and show the world not to mess the best ninjas ever? Fine, it wont be easy and I wont take no griping from you!"
Hawk managed a smile as well, seeing the energy and stubbornness in the young Lady that they were all going to need to accomplish their revenge. She was her father's daughter alright. "Our lives are in your hands, my Lady."
Yuffie felt the weight of every Lord and Lady before her time as the remaining Wutai ninjas went down on one knee in front of her. "And revenge will soon be ours."
Rufus was staring at the reports in front of him. "What the hell happened?"
Cloud shook his head. "I don't know. No one has ever seen anything like this." He was still having trouble believing it himself.
A helicopter had landed and Cloud trotted over to complain to Sephiroth as he saw the general exit, but froze mid-step as Aeris followed. His surprise didn't lessen as the two helped a clearly weakened Cid out of the helicopter as well.
Sephiroth had yelled for him to evacuate the soldiers, leaving the wounded behind.
Cloud had refused.
Then... things had started to happen... The wounded had started attacking the other soldiers, biting and tearing at whatever they got their hands on.
The battle that followed had been one of the worst experiences in Cloud's life.
"It appears that the soldiers were infected in some manner," Reeve offered silently, gazing at some reports he'd just finished reading.
Sephiroth drew a deep breath from where he was staring out the window. "They just went crazy... And the one's who were attacked by them is now sick themselves..."
Rufus started violently, gazing abruptly over at the silver haired man. "Cid?"
Rubbing his eyes, Cloud had to fight to find his voice. "Not good. They're keeping him contained, but it's not looking good. His wound wasn't life threatening, but..."
But that just meant it took a little while longer for Cid to loose his mind and start attacking anything on sight...
Slamming a hand on the desk, Rufus was a little surprised to find that the loss of the pilot was affecting him more than he would have thought. Dammit, he liked Cid!
Sephiroth glanced over, just feeling empty inside. All they could do now was wait. Wait and watch as Cid died a little more each hour.
That was when pain rammed into his head and Sephiroth barely managed to hold back a scream. Clutching his head, he stumbled a step as the voices of the ancients ravaged his brain. Far away, he heard Rufus and Cloud call his name, but pain quickly blocked out everything.
Falling to his knees, Sephiroth finally managed to draw a breath as the pain eased and blood was trailing from his nose. He realised that both Rufus and Cloud was kneeling beside him on each side, but all he could muster was whisper what the ancients had screamed at him. "Sends... Help... Redeem himself..."
Having seen these attacks before, Rufus realised the ancients had interfered once again. They were sending help? Someone who wanted to redeem himself?
A bright light blinded them, and only when it slowly diminished and they shaded their eyes with their hands were they able to see a person appearing in the core of the light.
Then just as sudden, the light vanished, leaving a golden chain around an ankle that belonged to the person who was staring icily at them.
Silence.
"Well, if gawping is all that you can do, it is no wonder I am forced to help you!" Hojo sneered, lifting his chin slightly.
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Aeris rolled over on her side, gazing emptily ahed. It didn't really seem like any point of getting out of bed just yet.
Closing her eyes, she smiled softly as she remembered dancing with Sephiroth. How handsome he was in his formal uniform. The small smile at the corner of his lips. How his arms had felt around her.
How he'd instinctively caught the bouquet when Tifa had tossed it right at him without knowing it, and the silver haired general had stared wide eyed at it before more or less throwing it away with a yelp.
Aeris giggled silently, remembering vividly Cid's laughter and Rufus' teasing.
Her smile quickly faded however, and she opened her eyes again. Things could change so fast. An evening filled with laughter and happiness, only to be followed with a morning with a march towards war and death.
No, she had to believe that Sephiroth would be alright. He'd said so, hadn't he? When he'd been sitting on her bed, her hands in his, and telling her that an attack had been launched on Costa del Sol and he was leading the counter strike. He'd said he would return to her.
All she had to do was to believe in him.
Aeris rolled over on her other side, her fingers digging into the sheet she was clutching underneath her chin.
Why did this have to happen? Why did anyone have to die? Why did the fighting have to continue? Hadn't enough blood been shed?
Finally sitting up, Aeris realised things wouldn't get any better with her just lying there anyway. It wouldn't bring Sephiroth back to her, and it would most certainly not stop any war that was raging to claim innocent lives. It was always the innocent who suffered, with the guilty ones who started the war far away in the safe places.
Clenching her hands, Aeris walked out to the bathroom.
She couldn't stop this from happening, but she could fight as well. She hadn't closed her eyes against the threat from Jenova, so she would not close her eyes this time either. Aeris was going to fight!
Maybe she wasn't any great general like Sephiroth, or a sword fighter like Cloud, or even as strong as Cid, but she could fight too! There were many ways to fight, and Aeris was going to do her share. Maybe the war would end quicker that way? Maybe she could ease the suffering of a single soul, and her efforts wouldn't be in vain.
An hour later, she knocked on the door to Rufus ShinRa's office and held her breath.
"What?" Was the snapped reply, and she heard Cloud's voice scolding Rufus for that tone.
Opening the door, Aeris drew a deep breath and entered to find a small group of people looking puzzled at her. Cloud, Cid, Vincent, Yuffie, Reno, Rude, Elena, Reeve, Jessie, Seto and Tifa was all there by Rufus' side and obviously failed to see what she was doing there.
Aeris walked over to stand in front of Rufus' desk and held his eyes while trying to ignore the others. "I... I want to help too..."
Cloud's face softened and he moved over to place a light hand on her shoulder. "Aeris... I understand that, but..."
Sending him a harsh glance, Aeris straightened and held his gaze firmly. "I can fight too, Cloud. I proved that a long time ago. I have things precious to me too, why shouldn't I be allowed to help?"
Stuttering, Cloud knew if he said that he just wanted her to be safe, it would be exactly what Aeris didn't want to hear.
Rufus leaned back and sent her a dry look. "Are you telling me you want to join SOLDIER or the infantry?"
Blushing, Aeris shook her head. "I'm saying that shooting guns and swinging swords isn't all there is in a war. My powers might have diminished, but I'm more than capable of helping the people."
Reeve leaned over to tap a finger on a mark on the map, just outside of Costa del Sol. "Chopper 5 is leaving soon for Leviathan 2."
Casting a quick glance at the map, then at Aeris, Rufus finally got up and called for the attention of the flower girl. "You want to help? Alright. The number of injured is approximately one third more than calculated, and Leviathan 2 could use the help. Think you got the stomach for it?"
Aeris exhaled relieved, then nodded. "I know I can make a difference. Thank you."
Rufus shook his head. "Don't thank me yet." He wondered if Sephiroth was going to kill him for sending his girl to the front, even if the ship was most likely a safe spot from the battles happening on land.
A Fire3 spell engulfed the soldier on Sephiroth's left side, and he was endlessly relieved as there was no scream of pain due to the fire-absorbing ring on the soldier's hand. There were enough screams in the air.
Fire and smoke had greeted Sephiroth when the transport ships finally reached the beaches of Costa del Sol, and it was almost impossible to think that the burning mayhem had once been a languid vacation resort. Craters marred the once so white beaches and most of the buildings were reduced to ruins. Bodies were scattered all over the place, and never ending screams had replaced the cheesy music from the radios that had once stood in the windows.
Yelling out orders, Sephiroth guided his team towards one of the huge monsters towering behind the ruins of a small house.
Six hours, six long hours, with this and it didn't look like it was going to end some time soon.
Dodging a shower of bullets, Sephiroth sent a Earth3 in return towards the guilty enemy soldier. The troops could deal with the enemy soldiers, but the two monsters raging impossibly tall were a different matter. He motioned for this team to continue towards the other monster, while he jumped up onto the remains of a building with the Masamune ready to finish off the monster nearest them.
The legendary sword easily cut through the dark and leathery skin of the monster, but Sephiroth knew it would take a lot more to kill it.
The monster was something between a Velcher Tusk and a Black Dragon, only many times bigger and luckily slower. It wailed furiously, slamming a heavy paw on the pile of rubble Sephiroth had been standing on seconds before.
Sephiroth landed easily on top of the paw and sprinted up the leg, the Masamune aiming for the vulnerable throat.
It took all his strength, but Sephiroth knew he had succeeded as the sword impaled straight through the long neck and protruded at the other end. The monster's wails turned into choked gurgling sounds and it swayed before crumbling lifelessly towards the ground, giving Sephiroth barely time to pull the Masamune free and jump into safety.
An Ice3 spell bounced off him, and Sephiroth absently congratulated himself on wearing the Reflect Ring as he merely ran towards the second monster as well.
It couldn't be too long before the reinforcements from Junon would arrive...
Sephiroth barely managed to avoid getting hit by the debris as the bridge collapsed when the remaining monster backed into it, and it's tail sent huge parts of the bridge flying through the air. And despite it's horrible appearance and strength, Sephiroth was somewhat relieved to find that the monsters weren't getting any smarter as he kept running into them!
Crouching down behind the remains of a wall, Sephiroth caught his breath again while taking in the situation.
Casualties were heavier than expected, but not bad enough to give room for concern. A strange jolt went through him as Sephiroth came to that conclusion, and he could almost feel Aeris' disapproving look.
No, there was no time to think like that. Aeris wouldn't like his cold behavior, but she wouldn't like for him to get killed in trying to save everyone in vain, would she?
His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as something called for his attention, something close by that was dangerous enough to make Sephiroth himself to tense. Scanning the battle field with his reptilian eyes, he knew it at once when his gaze fell on a tall, blonde man in the middle of the fighting.
That man.
Sephiroth straightened, absently slashing the air with the Masamune, just as the man turned to look his way as well.
The silver haired man felt every muscle tense as he got ready for a real fight, sensing the power and urge for violence radiating from the blonde man.
What was it that separated this one from the others? Hard to say, but Sephiroth knew he was different. Maybe in the same way that made the blonde man recognize Sephiroth as the most dangerous of his group. An alpha male recognizing the other.
Blonde hair and blue eyes, the man was startlingly different from Cloud. His hair even fairer, like wheat, and shorter with military neatness to it. And his eyes were bright blue, not radiant like Cloud's mako eyes or Cid's cerulean blue eyes. No, these eyes were cold and pale.
Sephiroth took a step forward, the other man following his example, but then a grenade landed somewhere between them and when the smoke cleared, Sephiroth realised the man was gone and Cloud had arrived with reinforcements!
"She what?" Sephiroth exclaimed furiously, clenching the Masamune tightly.
Cloud merely turned his face away, gazing out over the now silent ruins of Costa del Sol. "You know how she is. Try persuading her otherwise when she's made up her mind is impossible."
Sephiroth sheated his beloved sword in an agitated motion, glaring at the blonde. "You should have stopped her! She's going to get herself killed!"
The arrival of Cloud and the new troops had given Sephiroth enough to drive out the attackers and the fighting had finally halted completely a mere hour after. It was a short while after that Cloud could inform Sephiroth that Aeris had been placed on one of the ships anchored outside of Costa del Sol's beach to tend to the wounded. By her own request.
Cloud started as Sephiroth marched pass him, straight towards one of the helicopters aiming to bring several more wounded to the Leviathan 2. "Hey, where are you going?"
"I'm going to shake some sense into that little brain of hers!" Sephiroth sneered, yanking up the door to the helicopter.
Cloud trotted over as well. "Sephiroth! You can't just leave! What about the troops?"
Sephiroth glanced back at him. "I'll return in a few hours. You can managed until then." And the door was shut before any objections were heard, only Sephiroth's concern for Aeris keeping him from laughing at the panic-stricken look on Cloud's face.
But the 10 minute long ride out to the awaiting ship was awfully long, and Sephiroth jumped out of the helicopter before the crew dared to approach due to the whirling blades above the machine. He marched straight towards the door when a voice called out his name.
"Sephiroth! What are you doing here?" Jumping out of another helicopter, Cid gave him a little wave as he walked over.
Raising a dry eyebrow, Sephiroth halted and waited for the pilot. "I could ask you the same."
"Heh, told Rufus that either he could let me fly one of these choppers or I would sneak out on the battle field. Can't stand doing nothing, you know?" The blonde man grinned, pushing his flight goggles slightly higher.
Sephiroth motioned for him to follow him inside. "Yeah, I hear there's a lot of that attitude going around..."
"Ah, you're here for Aeris, then?" Cid placed a cigarette behind his ear for later use while lighting up another. "You think she's gonna listen to ya?"
Pushing up the door to the closest infirmary, Sephiroth peered inside to scout for a familiar figure. Nope, not there. "I'm not going to give her any choice." He marched on to the next room.
Laughing silently, Cid puffed merrily on his cigarette as Sephiroth gazed into the second infirmary with equal lack of luck in finding Aeris. "Well, good luck to ya! She sounded like she'd pretty much made up her mind to me."
The silver haired man snorted, gazing into a third room. "If she wants to get herself killed, that's too bad, because I'm not going to let her!"
He exhaled relieved as he saw the flower girl helping a wounded soldier drink some water from a glass she held to his lips. Pushing up the door, Sephiroth stalked inside and Cid followed with a slight grin. This was going to be interesting, the pilot just knew it!
"What the hell do you think you're doing ?" Sephiroth snapped, halting by the wounded soldier's bed and stared harshly at Aeris.
Gasping surprised, Aeris gently lowered the soldier's head to his pillow again before putting the glass on the small table and rush over to the annoyed general. "Sephiroth! You're unharmed!"
Sephiroth grumbled lightly as he returned the hug she was crushing the air out of his lungs with, then placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her slightly away without releasing her. "Answer me! What are you doing here?"
Blinking confused, Aeris gazed uncertainly at him. "I'm helping out. What does it look like?"
"It looks like you've got a death wish!" Sephiroth tightened his grip on her shoulders slightly, "Aeris, this is dangerous!"
As the green eyes narrowed and Aeris drew a deep breath, Cid sat down on a chair by a bed nearby. Yeah, this was going to be interesting, but his money was on the frail flower girl!
"THIS is dangerous?" Aeris asked in a dangerously silent voice. "And what you're doing is not?"
Sephiroth turned his face away. "That's different! I'm a soldier!"
Aeris was surprised to find herself growing angrier by each word he spoke. "And because you're a soldier, you cannot die? Is that it? Because you're a soldier, I shouldn't worry? You running around in the middle of the fighting is less dangerous than helping the ones who fall under your command here?"
Releasing her, Sephiroth groaned with frustration. "You're twisting my words! That's not what I meant!" He shook his head to regain his firmness and set his eyes on her. "You're taking the first ride back to Midgar."
Aeris crossed her arms. "No."
Sephiroth took a step towards her, taking a hold of her arm. "Aeris, this is not open for discussion!"
Glancing at his hand, then at his face, Aeris lifted her chin slightly. "You're right. It's not." Her eyes narrowed. "I'm staying!"
As Sephiroth drew a deep breath to object, Aeris quickly placed a light finger to his lips, halting the angry words. "Sephiroth, just listen to me, ok? Hear me out." He closed his eyes, and she exhaled relieved before explaining. "I understand that you're just worried about me, but I worry about you too, Sephiroth. You're not an immortal. You bleed and you can die like everyone else. But I understand that you can keep this war as short as possible with the knowledge the ShinRa company has imprinted into your brain since childhood, so I accept you have to be here even if I hate it." She stroke a soothing hand up his arm, trying a faint smile as he finally would look at her again. "I want to help too, Sephiroth. These soldiers, they have families and their chosen ones too. If I were to loose you, I would die, but there is also someone who feels the same about these soldiers. I'm not a talented soldier like you, Sephiroth, but I can help the one's who's already been marred by war. I'm a healer. Let me do what I can?"
Sephiroth's shoulders sagged slightly and he sighed. "I just want you safe, Aeris."
"I know," Aeris said silently, taking his hands in hers. "But if you want to do something for me, then take care of yourself out there. Don't take any chances. Be careful. And make sure you come home to me."
The silver haired man managed a ghost of a smile, gazing down at their hands. "I'm not going to be able to convince you, am I?"
Aeris shook her head, smiling as well.
"Told ya!" Cid sing-sang from his seat, meeting the glare he received from Sephiroth with a cheerful wink.
Giggling, Aeris glanced up at Sephiroth again. "But I'm very glad you came to see me."
Sephiroth sighed, pulling her into a warm embrace. "Yeah, well, I gotta leave again in an hour or so. Better make the best out of the time."
Cid got up, tapping the ashes of his cigarette under Aeris' correcting gaze. "That's my cue to leave the little love birds to themselves!" He gave a small salute to Aeris, a knowing look to Sephiroth and was about to saunter towards the door when a scream pierced through the air.
Now, screams weren't unusual with all the wounded on board, but this one was different. And followed by several of it's kind.
Screams of fear, followed by screams of pain.
Sephiroth quickly drew the Masamune, pushing Aeris to stand behind him. "Something's wrong. Aeris, you stay here! Cid, you too!"
The pilot cursed himself for leaving the Venus Gospel in the helicopter and could only nod to the general's request.
Aeris grasped a hold of Sephiroth's upper arm as he took a step forward, meeting his eyes with an intense gaze. "Be careful!"
Nodding, Sephiroth then vanished out the door and ran down the hall.
Something about this situation made a chill run down his spine, like he could scent the unnatural in the air.
New screams, and now from a different direction. Halting, Sephiroth hesitated briefly, only to hear a scream from inside the door he was standing next to. Quickly yanking it up, he darted inside, only to come to a sudden halt.
Reptilian eyes widening in disbelief, and Sephiroth stared numbly around the room as he found himself unable to move due to the shock.
Aeris glanced over at Cid, trying to keep calm despite the horrible screams that just seemed to multiply. "You don't think it's anything... really bad, do you?"
Shifting uneasily, Cid shook his head. "Wish I could say I didn't, little lady, but no one screams like that without a damn good reason...!"
Swallowing hard, Aeris knew the pilot was right and nervously wrapped her arms around herself. Only hoping that Sephiroth was not hurt.
Suddenly the door slammed open, and the two started violently, only to relax as it was one of the ShinRa soldiers leaning heavily against the door frame.
His uniform was blood soaked, and the bandages had started to unwind to reveal the gaping wounds underneath them.
Gasping, Aeris ran forward to help him, but halted abruptly as metal emerged from the center of his chest and the soldier gave an inhuman moan while staring at the flower girl with empty eyes.
The Masamune was yanked out again, and Sephiroth stepped forward as the soldier fell without gazing once at him. The silver haired man was covered in blood as well, but Aeris somehow knew it wasn't his own. And even stranger, she knew Sephiroth had just saved them. "Sephiroth! What is going on?" There was a heavy tinge of hysteria in her voice, but at that moment Aeris didn't care!
Breathing hard, Sephiroth opened his mouth to explain when suddenly there was a look of fear on his face and he shot forward. "Cid!"
The pilot had barely time to start violently, before hands clamped on his shoulders and a violent pain shot through him as teeth dug into his shoulder.
Aeris spun around as Cid screamed, covering her mouth with her hands to muffle her own scream as she saw the ShinRa soldier attacking the blonde man. Blood was already staining Cid's jacket as Sephiroth shoved the soldier away, ending the threat with a lash from the Masamune.
Clutching his shoulder hard, Cid was trembling and staring wide-eyed at Sephiroth. "What the fuck is going on?"
Sephiroth shook his head, seeing several of the other wounded ShinRa soldiers sitting up in their beds as well. "Later! We gotta get out of here!"
Aeris stuttered something about tending to Cid's wound, but stumbled along as the two men grabbed each of her hands and ran towards deck.
People were screaming from every direction, and Sephiroth lashed out the Masamune towards any ShinRa soldier who came stumbling towards them. "The helicopter! Hurry!"
Slamming up the final door, the three ran out on deck and Aeris would have fallen to her knees in shock if the two hadn't yanked her along.
Everyone was dead.
No. Someone was still moving. The soldier's she had comforted and who's wound she had tended to, were now walking around like they were sleepwalking and the blood on them were now not just their own.
The sound of the helicopter starting woke Aeris and she realised they were about to take off. "Wait!" She gazed from Cid to Sephiroth. "We can't just leave everyone behind!"
Sephiroth stared down at the ship as the helicopter slowly rose up into the sky. "Trust me, we're not leaving anyone alive behind..."
Aeris felt sick. She felt like throwing up. She felt so scared...
Cid swallowed hard as he maneuvered the helicopter to set course for Midgar, only to bit back a small grunt of pain. His shoulder was throbbing infernally.
"Cid, are you ok?" Aeris scrambled over to gently place her hands on each side of the wound.
The pilot forced down a scream, sweat breaking out. "Hurts like fucking hell! The fuck was that guy's problem?"
Sephiroth watched numbly as Aeris pulled out her ribbon to make a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding. "I don't know. The soldiers were attacking everything that moved... For no reason... They just went crazy... I've never seen anything like it..."
"Why would they do something like that?" Aeris asked in a trembling voice, starting to realise that all those nurses and doctors she'd barely gotten to know were now dead as well. Tears were slowly running down her cheeks as she tightened the ribbon.
Cid gritted his teeth, the pain threatening to knock him unconscious. He'd never had a wound that ached like this! It was almost like a cold numbness was starting to spread from it, trailing down his arm and towards his chest.
What had just happened?
Yuffie was walking toward the ShinRa tower and had just turned a corner when she felt it for the second time.
Grey eyes narrowed slightly as she pretended to be unfazed, but in reality she was boiling with anger.
Who the heck thought they could sneak up on the almighty Yuffie without her noticing? Idiots! But then again, she longed for a real fight. Anything to unleash all the pain she had bottled up inside her, and Rufus had refused her to join the soldiers in Costa del Sol.
Damn ShinRa, calling her a child!
Clenching her small fists, she halted in the middle of a broad street and waited.
A few seconds passed, then she felt her follower step into the street as well and she had to give him credit for his silence, but it wasn't good enough when it came to her.
A hand slowly moved over to take a hold of her weapon, and then Yuffie spun around to face her attacker. "All right, you moron! Let's do it!"
Grey eyes flickered with shock briefly as she saw the ninja outfit, but then he attack and Yuffie was more focused on punishing the idiot for trying to attack her and while wearing her ruined hometown's uniform!
The usual taunts were gone as the young girl was merely focused on venting out all her frustration and anger, leaving her slightly relieved that her opponent didn't go down too easily. She would have hated to have gotten all worked up for nothing!
But in the end, the would-be assailant ended up on one knee and panting with pained defeat.
Placing a hand on her slender hip, Yuffie glared angrily at him. "Well, are ya gonna show your face before I smack you around some until yer ancestors cringe?"
The unknown ninja hesitated, then slowly reached up to pull off the ninja mask and revealed dark hair and slanted grey eyes.
Yuffie started violently as she instantly recognized the Wutaian face, and her heart didn't calm as several more figures emerged from the shadows to stand behind their unmasked leader. "W-what in the tap-dancing Sephiroth's name is going on here?"
The beaten ninja finally got up again, pulling a hand through his dishevelled hair. "Forgive me, lady Yuffie, but it had to be done."
"What had to be done?" Yuffie shrieked, staring at them like she was seeing ghosts. There had to be 25-30 ninjas there now, each revealing a Wutaian face as they removed their masks. "What do you want?"
The leader took a step towards her. "My name is Hawk. I left Wutai a year ago, seeking fame and fortune, leaving my family behind. I received the news of the attack, but when I got back it was too late. Everything was gone."
The other ninjas faces turned pale with sorrow and loss, revealing them to be in simular situations.
Yuffie eyed them suspiciously. "Ya still haven't said what do you want? Why did you attack me?"
"I heard that the Lady had survived, so I came looking for you. On my journey, I met others who'd suffered the same loss as me." Hawk took another step towards her, grey eyes dark with anger. "We want to avenge our families, Lady Yuffie. It was destined for you to take over leadership over Wutai after your father's resignation, and you just proved yourself worthy. Wutai will be avenged, and we want you to lead us."
For a moment, Yuffie was staring numbly at them. Her brain still scrambling to catch up.
It was true, she wasn't the only one who'd left Wutai in search of glory, and suddenly she realised that her hometown wasn't completely erased after all.
Wutai was alive in every man and woman in front of her.
The fighting spirit was burning in the grey eyes so simular to her own, and she was not alone anymore.
A slow grin spread over Yuffie's face, as she could almost feel her father scolding her for taking so long before taking command. Lifting her chin, the young ninja girl nodded towards Hawk. "You guys wanna kick some ass? You wanna avenge Wutai and show the world not to mess the best ninjas ever? Fine, it wont be easy and I wont take no griping from you!"
Hawk managed a smile as well, seeing the energy and stubbornness in the young Lady that they were all going to need to accomplish their revenge. She was her father's daughter alright. "Our lives are in your hands, my Lady."
Yuffie felt the weight of every Lord and Lady before her time as the remaining Wutai ninjas went down on one knee in front of her. "And revenge will soon be ours."
Rufus was staring at the reports in front of him. "What the hell happened?"
Cloud shook his head. "I don't know. No one has ever seen anything like this." He was still having trouble believing it himself.
A helicopter had landed and Cloud trotted over to complain to Sephiroth as he saw the general exit, but froze mid-step as Aeris followed. His surprise didn't lessen as the two helped a clearly weakened Cid out of the helicopter as well.
Sephiroth had yelled for him to evacuate the soldiers, leaving the wounded behind.
Cloud had refused.
Then... things had started to happen... The wounded had started attacking the other soldiers, biting and tearing at whatever they got their hands on.
The battle that followed had been one of the worst experiences in Cloud's life.
"It appears that the soldiers were infected in some manner," Reeve offered silently, gazing at some reports he'd just finished reading.
Sephiroth drew a deep breath from where he was staring out the window. "They just went crazy... And the one's who were attacked by them is now sick themselves..."
Rufus started violently, gazing abruptly over at the silver haired man. "Cid?"
Rubbing his eyes, Cloud had to fight to find his voice. "Not good. They're keeping him contained, but it's not looking good. His wound wasn't life threatening, but..."
But that just meant it took a little while longer for Cid to loose his mind and start attacking anything on sight...
Slamming a hand on the desk, Rufus was a little surprised to find that the loss of the pilot was affecting him more than he would have thought. Dammit, he liked Cid!
Sephiroth glanced over, just feeling empty inside. All they could do now was wait. Wait and watch as Cid died a little more each hour.
That was when pain rammed into his head and Sephiroth barely managed to hold back a scream. Clutching his head, he stumbled a step as the voices of the ancients ravaged his brain. Far away, he heard Rufus and Cloud call his name, but pain quickly blocked out everything.
Falling to his knees, Sephiroth finally managed to draw a breath as the pain eased and blood was trailing from his nose. He realised that both Rufus and Cloud was kneeling beside him on each side, but all he could muster was whisper what the ancients had screamed at him. "Sends... Help... Redeem himself..."
Having seen these attacks before, Rufus realised the ancients had interfered once again. They were sending help? Someone who wanted to redeem himself?
A bright light blinded them, and only when it slowly diminished and they shaded their eyes with their hands were they able to see a person appearing in the core of the light.
Then just as sudden, the light vanished, leaving a golden chain around an ankle that belonged to the person who was staring icily at them.
Silence.
"Well, if gawping is all that you can do, it is no wonder I am forced to help you!" Hojo sneered, lifting his chin slightly.
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