The dark skies drenched the earth with rain from above. A small black truck darted down the mudded road as rain stroked the windshield. There were four people inside the truck. A Shinra Trooper by the name of Cyan drove the vehicle while Sephiroth, Zack, and Cloud seated themselves in the back wearing their respective uniforms.
The screeching of the windshield wipers and wheels digging through the mud echoed in the silent truck. Cloud sat on a box suffering from motion sickness. Zack walked back and forth in the truck like a caged animal. Sephiroth did nothing but sit silently. He hadn’t said much since their mission began.
“Sure is raining hard,” Zack said aloud. He looked to Cloud who was ill, “Hey, you doing alright?”
“I’m alright,” Cloud murmured.
Zack was restless. He didn’t like being cooped up in an enclosed area for a long period of time, and they’ve been riding nonstop for days. Zack began doing sit-ups on the floor to keep himself occupied.
“Hey, settle down,” Sephiroth said slightly annoyed by Zack’s incessant fidgeting.
Zack got up from the floor dusting the bottom of his pants.
“They gave me new Materia. I can’t wait to use it,” Zack said excited.
Sephiroth lowered his head and mumbled, “…Just a kid.”
Cloud didn’t understand Sephiroth’s comment. Was he implying that Zack was acting immature?
Zack scratched his head, “So, you going to brief us about the mission?” he asked.
“…This isn’t just a typical mission,” Sephiroth said.
Zack grinned, “Good!”
Sephiroth looks to Zack, “Why do say that?”
“I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you,” Zack began to say, “But by the time I made First Class, the war was over. My big hopes of becoming a hero like you ended with the war. That’s why I always sign up whenever there’s a big mission. Kind of a way to prove myself.”
Cloud sat listening to Zack and realized they mutually sought after the same dream. Cloud wanted to join SOLDIER for those exact same reasons, but failed. Now he wore the disgraceful dark blue uniform of a Shinra Trooper.
“Say, how do you feel mister Sephiroth?” Zack asked
“I thought you wanted a briefing?” Sephiroth said.
Zack shrugged his shoulders, “Okay then.”
Sephiroth stood up and looked at Zack and Cloud with his eerie glowing green eyes. His voice was very sharp and definite, “Our mission is to investigate an old Mako Reactor. There have been reports of it malfunctioning, and producing brutal creatures. First we will dispose of those creatures. Then we’ll locate the problem and neutralize it.”
“Brutal creatures…Where?” Zack asked.
Sephiroth said, “The Mako Reactor at Nibelheim.”
With that last word said, Cloud’s eyes widened with shock. He had sworn he would never return home to Nibelheim as a result of his failure of not being accepted by SOLDIER. His humiliation ran deep. Cloud wondered what his mother and Tifa would think about his unsuccessful attempt. Would they be disappointed? Would Tifa care about him any less? Cloud ran his fingers through his hair desperately trying to weed out the appalling thoughts.
“Nibelheim,” Cloud said faintly, “That’s my hometown.”
“Is that so?” Sephiroth said.
The car skidded to a stop tossing the passengers to the floor. A loud roar like thunder recoiled outside in the dark rain. Everyone lay feeble on the floor hearing the pounding footsteps of some gargantuan monster circling the vehicle. Another thundering roar is heard from outside.
“What is that?” Cloud asked lying on the floor.
Sephiroth, holding his Masamune Sword in his hands, got to his feet saying, “That’s our creature.”
Zack flung the truck doors open as he held his Buster Sword, an enormous and broad weapon. Sephiroth and Zack swiftly glided out of the truck to face the dragon blockading the road.
They both stood directly in front of the towering creature. Its eyes were bright yellow and its ghastly grin was filled with fangs that resembled a thousand little knives. The dragons green scales glistened in the night rain.
Sephiroth stood balanced and ready to take down the enormous beast with Zack to some extent in the rear. Zack had never faced a monster such as the one before him. His heart pounded in fear, but Zack exterior was calm and focused. He was a member of SOLDIER and was more than skilled enough to annihilate a dragon.
The creature pulled its head back and inhaled. With a quick jerk of its head, flames came spurting from its mouth. Sephiroth stood unblinking as his body was engulfed in the flames. Cloud, who was watching from afar, looked on in horror as he saw Sephiroth’s body disappear in the brilliant yellow and red fire. As the blaze dispersed, Sephiroth was standing tall and unharmed with no signs of damage. Cloud gawked in disbelief. No ordinary human could’ve survived the dragons’ assault. Sephiroth leapt into the cold air, and with a sudden white flash of his Masamune Sword, the dragon was reduced to nothing. The creature had no time to scream as its torso split in half. The blood exploded from the severed body like a geyser. The rain fell from the dark skies mixing with the dragons fleshy tissue left in the glacial mud. Cloud’s mouth lay unhinged as he saw the event disclose. Sephiroth’s power was unreal.
