---___--- ---___--- ---___--- Dreams of the Morrow ---___--- ---___---- ---___---

---___--- ---___--- ---___--- Chapter 1 – My Friend, the Fates are Cruel ---___--- ---___--- ---___----

Dreams of the morrow, hath the shattered soul.

“Why bring me?” Emerald couldn’t help but ask as she looked at Zack. Her Intel had said that Zack had only been in Wutai at the end, that he’d only been on one mission at Fort Tamberlin, which had been an open and close mission, finished in less than half an hour. So what was he doing taking care of her?

Zack had walked her all the way back to the encampment and had demanded that she be able to go with him, not seeming to care that the director was there, that he was completely against Emerald going with Zack, but in the end, the second class SOLDIER had got his way, and Emerald had followed him and Angeal to the fort, while waiting for the first group (which Taniya knew was just Sephiroth), to set the charge.

Zack grinned at Emerald before shrugging, “You gotta see what being second is all about!” He explained, his tone something above joy. He seemed excited, probably intending to show off his ‘skills’ to Emerald, to see what she would one day become. If only he knew.

“Zack, concentrate!” Angeal scolded him, obviously not impressed that a third was coming with them. He shook his head and looked away, at the fort they were about to infiltrate. “The last thing you need right now is a distraction.” And with that, he pulled the Buster Sword from his back, holding it in front of his face in a trademark salute to honour. Emerald wished to do something similar with her own blade, but alas, she’d had to give it up, in order to keep up appearances. The last thing she needed was questions on how she was able to wield such a monster of a blade.

Instead, she just closed her eyes in her own silent acknowledgment, their silence only broken by Zack.

“You know, I’ve never seen you use that…” He pointed out to Angeal, his voice completely serious for once, his expression curious, just like the puppy he was said to resemble. “It seems kind of a waste.” He repeated Emerald’s earlier words, without seeming to realize it, and the young woman let a small smile grace her lips. Maybe Cloud was right, she and Zack were similar, which was surprising considering her heritage.

“Use brings about wear, tare and rust, and that’s a real waste.” Angeal’s words left a small pang in her heart as her mind flashed back to where she’d seen the massive sword, imbedded in rock, overlooking the wastelands, on a cliff, rusted and old. No. That wouldn’t happen. She’d stop it before it came to that.

All other conversation was broke off by the sound of an explosion. Sephiroth had been successful, and now it was time for Zack’s mission to begin. Since it was his mission, and his alone, she was to stay back with Angeal and wait for him to return, while the director watched from a safe distance. She wasn’t worried, she knew exactly when and where Zack was fated to die.

“Oh yeah!” Zack jumped up with a flip, bringing her mind back to their current situation, and she laughed slightly as he landed and ran excitedly towards the fort.

“He’s very excitable.” She commented, not looking at the first she was with. Cloud’s words rang in her head, respect and awe… respect and awe… She had to pretend to feel like she wasn’t worthy of being around SOLDIERs.

A soft chuckle from beside her caused her to smile and relax a little. “That he is.” Angeal mumbled, leaning against the wall as he looked at her. “So… why are you with him?” he asked, looking directly at her.

“Sir?” She questioned, not quite understanding the question.

“How old are you, SOLDIER?”

“Uh, fifteen sir.” She answered, completely honestly. Since the sign up age for the Shin-Ra military was fourteen, she found no reason of lying. “I signed up the day of my fourteenth birthday.” She was a little cautious about where this was heading, she had to be careful of what she told him exactly.

“I don’t remember any women in SOLDIER…” That was more reflective than accusing, but still, Emerald didn’t let her guard down. No. Nobody could know. She finally looked at him and gave him a nervous smile.

“I guess I’m the first.” She said to him, looking over her shoulder a little uncomfortably, hoping her manner would cause him to stop asking questions. She was right, and sighed in relief when he just chuckled and shook his head, looking forward while waiting for Zack to return.

Well, that certainly went well… After Zack had come back, it had been such mayhem, ending with her huddled in a helicopter with Zack, the director and Sephiroth.

General Sephiroth of the armies was sat directly opposite her, and she couldn’t help but feel completely petrified at the idea that he was sat there, looking completely calm, if not a little annoyed at her constant staring. She was hoping he’d think it was of awe, and not the fear and hatred that she really felt. It was all his fault. Everything, the reason she was here, the reason Cloud was so depressed all the time, the reason why she hadn’t met Zack earlier, as a child, the reason the planet was so injured, the reason everyone had been sick and so many had to die… it was all his fault. He was the reason. Sephiroth - the nightmare, the demon of Wutai. She swallowed, once again trying to hide the hatred that she’d grown up knowing. But she didn’t seem to be doing very well. Sephiroth was sat there, giving her strange looks, looking directly into her eyes.

What? Did he know what she was thinking? That was impossible… right? The materia that had got her there was unique, made by Cloud and the ancients, right? So he couldn’t know. She felt a little safer at that, and was kind of glad they were returning to Midgar.

Her clothes would never be the same. Since she’d seen that battle, killed so many, she was covered in blood, and dirt from laying on the ground. Not only that, but there were quite a few tares and holes covering her. She was kind of glad for the suspenders keeping what was left of her clothes on, if it hadn’t been for them, she may have been wearing considerably less.

She didn’t even want to think about the state of her hair.

The helicopter ride was a long one, having to go from one continent to another, and she was happy when it was finally over. It hadn’t been silent, not by any stretch of the imagination. It was very difficult to be quiet for a long stretch of time when Zack was with you after all.

She sighed softly and tore her gaze from Sephiroth, saddened at the fact that Angeal wasn’t with them. She knew why, having been told about this. She brought her knees up as she watched the sky pass her window, the exhaustion of the day finally settling in. Just a few minutes wouldn’t hurt…would it? Closing her eyes, she relaxed against the chair.

What felt like a minute later, she was being shaken, a smiling Zack above her, his face being revealed to her as she blinked her eyes open. “Hnn?” She blinked a few times, rubbing her eyes as she sat up. The helicopter was still now, causing the youth to be completely confused. “What?” She looked around, noticing that the other passengers on the aircraft were disembarking. “We’re back?”

“Yup.” Zack pulled away, giving Emerald a little space to sit up.

“I…fell asleep?” She asked, still a little dazed. She noticed Sephiroth leaving the roof, along with the Turk that had driven them there, and that left her alone with the second class SOLDIER.

“Yeah, but now we’re safe at home.” He grinned and got down from the vehicle, offering a hand for Emerald to take, to help her down. She took it, quickly removing herself from the helicopter and looking around, still in a daze. “We should go see Hojo.” Zack said, looking away from her and walking towards the roof entrance of the building, continuing speaking even after Emerald froze. “He’s gotta check us out, post mission regs and all that…” That was when he noticed that she wasn’t following him, just stood there staring at him, looking even more petrified now than when he’d found her in the battlefield.

“What’s the matter?” Doubling back, he waited for her to speak, looking down at her in concern.

“I-“ Her throat was dry, the organ not willing to let sound escape even as she swallowed and tried again. “I can’t go to Hojo.” There was no way she’d be able to survive a meeting with him. “I-I should go to Hollander…” swallowing again, she tried to stop her body from trembling.

“O…kay…” The confusion was written on Zack’s face, his eyes narrowing and his lips drawing into a single line. “Right then. We’ll get you to Hollander…”

He was smiling at her again, comforting her without even realizing it and she briefly returned that smile as they began to walk in the directions of the Beta labs. Once there, he grinned at her again, ruffling her hair before bidding her good-bye. “See ya around.” He told her, grinning and walking away. She couldn’t be sure, but Emerald thought she may have just made a new friend.

“Okay then…”

She waited until Zack was away before leaving, returning to the barracks that were supposed to be her home, keeping away from the labs. Slipping into the deserted rooms, she found a computer terminal, knowing this had to be done as soon as possible.

Thanks to her ‘contacts’, she was able to easily hack into the system, using the password and login of the president himself, knowing that nobody would dare check his logs. She worked steadily for half an hour before logging out and standing. She didn’t want to be found in here – sure, this was where she was stationed to be staying, but it was just too damn quiet, everyone having been killed in the battle where she met Zack.

She wandered around for a little while, curfew wasn’t for another few hours, so she figured she was safe. The sun was setting, causing her to wonder just how long it took for them to get back to Midgar, and if they had stopped along the way without bothering to wake her. That was a depressing thought, and more than a little terrifying. To be around Sephiroth, while unconscious was something that went against the base of her training. It was a bad idea, and she didn’t want to think she’d already let him down.

That thought gave her an idea of where she could go to pass the time, but it was way too late to do that now. She’d have to visit the church later, pay her respects to the girl that wasn’t dead yet, and possibly talk to the planet. Who knew, she may even make a connection this time.

While wondering, she hadn’t been too aware of her surroundings, or the people in them – so it came as a complete shock to her when someone cleared their throat. Jumping, she turned around and was faced by someone she would much rather not be. “G-General Sephiroth, sir!” She was instantly at attention, her eyes reading the man in front of her, watching his every move and waiting for him to do something. He just looked at her, a strange expression on his face.

“Who are you?” He asked, his tone making it clear he wanted no deception.

“E-Emerald, SOLDIER third class, sir!” She could only hope she had made the necessary ‘adjustments’ to the computer system in time, and that she hadn’t been found out already.

He shook his head, “That doesn’t tell me anything.” He told her. “Who are you?” He asked again, “I don’t want a name and a rank.”

“I-I don’t understand sir…” Emerald found herself saying while thinking on his question. If not for her name and rank…who was she? Her entire life had been devoted to doing this single mission, she’d trained day and night, almost died many times in the effort. She’d gone through a very rough childhood…just to be able to do this…but… who did that make her?

“You look at me with fear, not awe.” He was stood straight, staring down at her, “And your eyes… I thought I was the only one with eyes like that.”

She froze, her mind repeating the same word over and over as she tried to think of some way to explain that without telling the truth. ‘Shit! Shit, shit, shit!’ “I- I don’t know h-how I got eyes like this…” She told him. “I-I never met my parents…so I don’t know…” That was a lie. She knew full well where she got her looks, and as for the not meeting her parents…well…that was only partially right.

Sephiroth just shook his head. “You are lying.” He looked up, noting the sky and then turned around. “You may want to return to your room. Curfew is soon.”

The idea of returning there caused Emerald to shudder. The place was empty, the entire platoon having been slaughtered. “I don’t want to go back there…” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, and she looked away from Sephiroth. She could sense that he’d stopped and was looking at her again.

“How old are you?” He asked, curiosity in his voice.

“I’m fifteen.” Emerald answered easily, looking down at the ground. This wasn’t a lie…not really.

A slight nod from Sephiroth was all she got before he left. She remained where she was for a moment, wondering why the hell he would want to know that.

Soon, she had to return to the barracks, or else she’d be caught out after curfew, and she didn’t want any trouble at the moment – that was just asking for it.

The rooms were dark and silent, their lone occupant only now walking through the deserted corridors. The sound of footsteps echoed eerily off the solid concrete walls, making them sound louder than they were. Green eyes were glowing in the darkened rooms, the mako enhancements shining through the dark, negating the need for lights.

Slowly, Emerald moved through the barracks, wanting nothing more than to shower and change. She reached the room that she was assigned to and slipped in, reaching for the closet before slipping back out of the room.

Her shower took her twenty minutes, her OCD personality shining through as she washed over and over, trying to remove the blood and dirt that had long ago left her skin. But once the shower was finished, and she was clean enough, she dried and dressed before making her way back to her depressive room.

The lights never went on.

A surprise was awaiting her at her door, in the form of an infantryman stood awkwardly. “Sir,” He said to her as soon as he saw her, standing at attention. “General Sephiroth gave me orders,” He said, “I am to escort you to your knew room.”

Frowning, Emerald looked at the young officer, her breath catching in her throat as she realized who he was. Blonde hair was sticking out from under his helmet, his visor raised as he squinted, trying hard to see in the dark, his blue eyes searching for her outline. She stared at the younger form of the man who practically raised her, and found her mind wasn’t working too well at that point.

After a second, he tensed a little more, “Sir?” He asked, gesturing down the corridor with one hand, “A-are you coming?” He asked, and Emerald had to try not to smile at the absurdity of Cloud calling her ‘sir’.

“Were you given reasons for my transference?” She asked with curiosity, wondering why Sephiroth had organized this for her. Perhaps there was to be a new battalion come in.

“Yes sir. There’s going to be a new unit assigned here, and… well sir, the General had concerns that you wouldn’t feel comfortable in with another unit since you’re… well… a woman, sir…”

Emerald smirked slightly at that. Cloud was blushing up a storm, which was something she’d never seen before. She shook her head and turned the smirk into a small smile. “Alright, show me where I’m supposed to go.” She briefly wondered about her stuff, and then realized that the only possessions she had in that room were stolen uniforms. It didn’t really matter to her.

She followed Cloud as he led her to the elevators and up several floors. Since the unit Emerald had been assigned to were newly promoted thirds, they had still been in the housing for the cadets, but now that she was a SOLDIER, she was to be moved to floor 49.

It took them a long time to get there, but when they finally did, Cloud showed her through a door and to the front of another apartment style housing. “Th-this is it, sir.” He said, obviously not used to being around a SOLDIER operative.

“What’s your name?” She asked, even knowing the answer. This was so that she could cover herself if she accidently used it later on – such things had been known to happen.

“C-cloud Strife.”

“Thank you, C-cloud Strife.” Emerald said, unable to resist the temptation to tease him while he couldn’t hit her for it. He just blushed and bowed his head, waiting for a dismissal that Emerald gave him with a wave of her hand. She then turned and entered her new home.

It wasn’t exactly big, but it wasn’t the small room she was supposed to be in either. She looked around, noting that there was no personal items or anything like that, and the furniture was all new. This room had never been lived in before. She smiled softly and went to explore her new room.

For the next few days, Emerald was given down time, which she used to explore Old Midgar. The plate was explored first, her speed and training allowing her to walk on building tops without being seen, and thus allowing her to look around without being spotted. Sector Eight, Sector Seven, Sector Zero… She explored them all before moving beneath the plate. All the while, making sure to keep her phone with her.

On the sixth day without missions, Emerald found herself wondering around Sector 5, and soon enough, stumbling upon the church she had spent so much of her childhood within. Blinking, she took a breath before letting it out slowly and stepping forward, her boots lifting some of the dirt from the floor.

The doors creaked open slightly, and she let herself in, noting the lack of pool. She saw the flowers and smiled softly, heading towards them. It was only then that she saw the young woman that was stood there. “Hello.” The young woman said, smiling softly.

“Hello…” She stepped even closer to the flowers. “I’m sorry… I was just… exploring.” She looked at the flowers and shook her head. “You’re growing flowers? I thought it was impossible to grow flowers in Midgar, let alone under the plate…” Emerald knew the truth of course, she knew how Aerith was the only one able to do this, how the flowers grew in her holy place along with her home. Only the places to touch the ancient’s heart.

The young woman beamed and nodded. “That’s right.” She had been tending to the flowers, but after saying that, she stood and moved towards her. “I’m Aerith.” She introduced herself, smiling at Emerald.

“Emerald.” The SOLDIER returned the gesture, looking at the young woman before her. “It’s nice to meet you.” She looked past her, at the flowers and then back at Aerith. “Can I sit with the flowers…?” She asked, not wanting to impose, but knowing that the young woman wouldn’t think she was.

“Of course.” Aerith turned and sat back with the flowers, tending to them. “But be careful.” She added, “They don’t seem to like anyone else.”

Nodding, Emerald sat and watched, not touching the delicate plants as a small smile formed on her face. She could easily tell how both Zack and Cloud could have fallen for her – she was…something else.

They spent several hours there, just sitting and watching the flowers as the day went by and darkness began to decend. Once it became too dark, Emerald stood. “Thank you, Aerith.” She said to the young woman, meaning for more than the time she’d just given her to sit and relax…but for everything that she had done in the previous lifetime.

Aerith just smiled at her, her green eyes shining in the half light.

“Will you be alright to get home?” Emerald asked, looking at the hole in the roof. She had thought that had happened when Zack or Cloud fell from the plate…but it looked like it had been there for much longer. The plate above was shrouded in darkness, showing that it was late evening.

Aerith just stood and nodded. “Of course.” She said with a bright smile. “The monsters don’t attack very often, and everybody here is so nice to me.” She smiled and also looked up. “Will I… see you again?” She asked, and Emerald just nodded with a grin.

“You can bet on it.” She nodded, “I’ll come see you whenever I can.” And with that, Emerald returned home.

It had been nearly two months since Wutai, and Emerald had been put on standby – meaning she had nothing to do but train. She spent most of the time, trying to handle the short swords that third class SOLDIER’s were given. It was difficult for her, and it was frustrating her no end.

So, on a cold day, after dark, she snuck into the VR room, not realizing that there was somebody watching her. In her hand, she carried one of the General’s backup blades, the long length glistened in the artificial light as she moved into the training room, and set up a scenario.

When the first enemy appeared, she destroyed it instantly, easily, a small smile on her face showing the comfort of wielding the masamune rather than the short swords she’d been forced to handle lately. The enemy’s continued to appear, one after the other after the other, only to be easily removed by her skilful hand. Eventually, she was beginning to get bored from the level of challenge, and moved to the computer, making the difficulty increase. Because of this, she wasn’t too surprised when Sephiroth appeared behind her. She just smiled and raised her blade in challenge, looking directly into his identical eyes.

This would be fun.

It didn’t surprise her that he produced a masamune of his own, she had been expecting that. Her mind believed that this Sephiroth was the virtual reality equivalent of the General, and had no idea that he was in fact, the real silver General.

Their fight was fast, had somebody come to watch, they wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the swift movements as both SOLDIER’s moved, dashing here and there. After three minutes, the first hit was landed, a blow to the back of Emerald’s head. Sephiroth had teleported behind her and hit her with his hilt, a look of determination on his face.

She stumbled forward a little, cursing under her breath before turning around. That was one thing she’d never mastered. She could teleport like Sephiroth, but it had never been reliable.

“Most intriguing.” The man spoke, stopping his movements as Emerald’s gaze widened. Sephiroth only smirked. “Do you think me an illusion?” He asked, walking over to the computer and turning the simulation off. The dead bodies of the enemies Emerald had previously eliminated disappeared as she stared at Sephiroth.

His silver locks were dishevelled, no longer in the flawless state they generally sat in, and he was breathing slightly harder than normal.

Swallowing nervously, Emerald stared at Sephiroth before remembering where she was. She instantly dropped the sword and stood at attention, swallowing again so that she could speak. “S-Sir! I- I apologise…I thought you were part of the-“

He cut her off by raising his hand as he stepped forward and retrieved her blade, looking down at the weapon with an unreadable expression on his face. “Is this mine?”

“S-sir,” Emerald nodded, trying to keep the fear from her expression. He’d already caught her out on it once… “I-I borrowed it from the armoury sir… I apologise…”

He shook his head, lifting the weapon and handing it to her, automatically going to give it to her right hand. She took the blade awkwardly and transferred it to her left hand, to which, Sephiroth raised a brow. “You may have some explaining to do, Emerald.”

Taking a step back, Sephiroth looked at her with a calm expression. “Perhaps you should begin by telling me where you learned how to use that sword.”

“I-I’ve always used long swords sir…”

Emerald had gone pale. This was bad, this was really bad. He couldn’t know, she couldn’t tell him, and he’d see that she was lying. It was best to use half lies- to just neglect to explain a few things…yes… That would work…

“Yes, but who taught you? Hmm?” He continued to study her as she became more and more uncomfortable. As the seconds passed by, she felt more at risk, being alone in a room with Sephiroth.

“I-I taught myself.” She really wished she’d stop stuttering. “I used to fight… with my foster-father.” She told him, “He’d use a broad sword, and I a masamune…” She swallowed, hoping that he would believe that. He nodded, looking at her still.

“Who are you?” He asked, his voice almost silent.

“Sir?” She had already told him who she was… “I’m Emerald-“ Once again, he cut her off shaking his head.

“This does not matter.” He said, looking at the blade that was held limply in Emerald’s left hand. “You may keep the blade.” He told her, surprising her, “I have yet to break a sword and I have several in reserve. Though I must suggest that you get it shortened a little.” The weapon was definitely bigger than Emerald and should have been near impossible for her to use.

“You and I will have to practice again some time.” He told her, “It has been a while since someone other than Genesis or Angeal posed a threat.” He then surprised her even more, by giving her a soft smile. “Report to the briefing room first thing tomorrow.” He ordered, “You’ll be going on a mission.”

And with that, he left her, staring after him, in the training room.

“Well that was weird.” She mumbled, looking down at her new weapon.

---___--- ---___--- ---___--- Dreams of the Morrow ---___--- ---___---- ---___---

---___--- ---___--- ---___--- Chapter End ---___--- ---___--- ---___---

AN: Phew… Finally finished. Sorry it took so long… but I didn’t get many reviews, and I wasn’t sure if anyone was actually reading so I wasn’t that inspired x.x

Anyways… This chapter was pretty much just to introduce the well known characters and reveal a little more of Emerald’s personality and past – You’ll find more out later on. And I had to put Cloud in, even as a cameo at the moment.

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