What was lost can be found (Shade and Fury)

The repetitious waves came at a gentle roll against the sandy beach with a soft lull to the ears as the subtle breeze from across the ocean caressed around the solitary form standing there. It was still morning, yet the sun was close to it's afternoon setting in the sky, but thankfully it's beaming rays didn't bare too much heat to leave the cloudless day pleasant and relaxing. Such was a rareity for Shade to find, as well as a quiet solitary moment to herself. But things of late have been weighing upon her mind heavily, be it buisness related, wordly affairs, and even personal matters. She took rare moments such as this to hopefully clear her frazzled mind and recalculate her priorities, as well as rejuvinate her sense of self and confidence to tackle the daily chaos that crossed her path every waking moment.


Lately, that's what was beginning to wear heavily on Shade's nerves. Before hand, all Shade had in her life was misssions, before and after she came to these realms. Then taking on her own planet's affairs when they were abandoned. And now there were several other worlds to take into consideration now that they were all connected. The strain of politics alone was maddening, let alone continuing to aid others when they came to call for her help. One of whom came into her life with an astounding revelation that completely shook Shade's sense of control over her life. She had a brother all along.... a brother taken from her life before she was even born. And now, it felt as if all the strains of her responsbilities were trying to tear the two siblings apart again. Fury had his own goals and duties he still had to fullfill, as did Shade, but so much so that the two were merely granted few hours to acknowledge their newfound, startling revelation before running off into missions again. What rare moments the two were given to speak personally, their own emotioanl challenges slammed the walls between them every time, leaving Shade and Fury with that mutual silence of acknowledgement to wave the awkward moments away. Most likely, that's the way they were always going to be....


But what if things were different?


The breeze came again just as Shade released a weary sigh. For the entire duration she stood upon the beach below the cliff of the crumbling legendary lighthouse her father was raised in, Shade's hand had been clutched deeply within one of the pockets of her military pants. She didn't need to remove the object to be reminded of what it represented, but it had been a complete mystery to her during her whole life until recent events brought the truth to full circle. And again, the same question came to mind..... what if things were different?


True, if Fury was never taken, his fate in life may not include Alivia or Serenity at all. Two priceless treasures Shade wouldn't trade for the world, let alone altering their timelines....even if such a thing were possible. But it was still a lingering question since the day Fury revealed the truth of his discovery. Would they be different at all? Would Shade even be as strong as she was? Would Fury have followed the same sort of path as he did in Cacoon? Or would the two of them have even more scars than they did now had they grown up together? And what if the Fringe never came upon their home world at all? How would their lives have been? Just the typical sibling relationship one sees day to day? Could Fury have had a life that never included the military scene at all? Would Shade have dared to even get close to someone as Fury had with Jesse?


Enough of this! Why are you torturing yourself!? This is exactly why you should never take a moment of solitude! Your mind starts thinking the most rediculous crap!


With a violent shake of her head and her brooding scowl returned, Shade released the object in her pocket and turned upon her heel to march across the sand with purpose and head back to mindless grind of responsibilities before her heart even had a chance to weep for what was already lost and would forever be.

Fury jogged lightly across the warm sands of the beach on his daily run. The warm sand licked his legs as his trot kicked it up with each step. The gentle breeze off the rolling waves kissed his sweat covered face as he continued on towards the lighthouse. As he ran toward his goal, his thoughts wandered. The site of the lighthouse took him back to the day he had traveled through time and space only to find his own time aflame. The once bright, sunny sky faded to a dark red one in his mind’s eye and the field of flowers leading towards the lighthouse became choked with smoke and fire. As he ran, he could see the shape of a man standing on the edge of the cliff. Fury increased his pace as he recognized the man as his would be father. A man he had never even gotten to speak to, let alone be raised by. He wanted nothing more than to actually speak to the man.

But fate had other plans.

The vision was but a memory and Fury already knew the outcome. He tore down the beach faster than he even knew he could run. He moved with a fluidity that made it seem as if he were flying across the sand. He reached the stairs leading up to the building and black wings burst forth from his back, spreading out and propelling him up toward the lighthouse. He landed just where he had stood before and watched with horror as he saw he was too late. The beast bound forth and tackled his would be father from the cliff. He launched himself after, but as he reached the cliff, he saw that they were nowhere to be found. Fury fell to his knees and punched the dirt in disgust.

The world around him faded back to the realm of the real. His wings hung low and draped across the ground as he sat broken again. His red eyes glimmered with anger as he thought of his failure again. He roared in anger and drew his gunblade from his sheathe and slashed at the air, trying to force the memories away. His blade struck the air and seemed to cut through it, slicing away at the fabric of reality with one deft swing. He shuddered and slammed his sword back in its sheathe as he stared at the tear in time. He had not seen one of these since the time he had gone back. He tilted his head curiously as his wings draped down around him, creating a cloak over the gold an purple armor that now adorned him.

He turned away from it deep in thought. Maybe this one would take him back to when he failed. He never knew with these things. As he thought, he noticed Shade standing there, a scowl crossing her face. He looked at her with his ruby eyes and said, ”Do you know what this is? This is our chance. This could lead us to when it all started. We… we could fix it all right now…”

Thinking about it, he realized it was what they had to do. He looked at his sister with an apologetic stare before spreading his wings and tearing through the portal.

He arrived in a field that was much like the one he had just been at, but there was a slight difference. The lighthouse that had stood long abandoned now stood as good as new. It seemed as if there were still people who lived there. Fury looked around in disbelief and decided to wait there at the tear to see if Shade in fact decided to join him.

When Shade was rounding the corner at the base of the cliff, she paused in step at the familiar form she never expected to see upon the beach. For some unexplained reason, her left foot took a step back, as if Shade felt she had intervened upon Fury's casual jog across the sand. What she witnessed afterwards was truly confusing at first, yet Shade stayed clear from her brother's sight through her confusion as her steel hues widened in alarm when watching Fury tear up the stone staircase as if giving chase to something. Her first thought of panic was the girls.... Did he get a call that something was wrong? Did they follow him without his permission and somehow he knew? She flinched with concern when his ebony wings erupted from his back without any warning, and with such force, even the air itself seemed to tremble with fear. The further Fury put distance between them, the swifter Shade followed to keep him in her sights.


Halfway up the staircase, even Shade found herself now breaking into a full run after her brother as her mind raced frantically with countless questions from his actions. It wasn't until she reached the very top of the staircase that Shade came to a dead standstill when finding him a short distance away upon his knees. Now her tactical mind came into play, assuming Fury must have hurt himself somehow. She began trotting towards him with a deep scowl and prepared to snap something sarcastic in regards to him being careless until Fury's sudden outburst led her pace to come to dead stop once again. Her widened hues watched with startled shock, but it was at that moment, Shade realized the truth from the very moment Fury broke into that full run upon the beach and staircase when his powers ignited without warning....


He's chasing a nightmare.....


Shade knew it for what it was.... having chased so many of her own, only brought back to the painful reality she was powerless to change. Yet her thoughts veered off course when she witnessed his blade produce a mysterious effect within the air from his slash of frustration. As her slow approach came up from behind him, it was clear by Fury's stance and tilt of his head that this was not something purposely done, but possibly by his power's own will. Perplexed and at a loss for words to the enigmatic abnormality now before them, Shade could only scowl upon her brother with unsettling confusion.


When he spoke, even through his powers and within his crimson gaze, Shade could still hear and see the hope within him. Where the two siblings found themselves so much alike, this was where the two stood opposite of each other. Shade no longer hoped. She learned to take in only the facts and stone cold reality and accept the cards she was dealt with. Hope only crushed you with defeat when it was demolished time and time again. Yet here Fury stood as sound proof against Shade's hard core reasoning. Hope gave him life outside of battles and war. Hope gave him Alivia and Serenity. Hope gave him the ability to strive for the truth and seek it out through the impossible all on his own. Hope gave him the ability to claim such a possibility for dramatic, life changing events right at their fingertips.


And then he was gone.....


She stood there simply staring. Her conscious mind went completely silent and her body felt cold and numb, yet her limbs were trembling. Every instinct Shade was drilled with screamed frantically not to follow her brother, but she couldn't find the reason as to why. Deep down, Shade knew she was terrified. What if.... what if beyond the rift, they came upon a dimension of their home world far, far worse than they could ever imagine, and finding themselves yet again, completely helpless to do a thing..... What if they perished within that rift or dimension? Where would that leave their own, or the one they struggled to live in now? Shade gave her head a violent shake and came to one solitary conclusion. Whatever was beyond this time rift, she refused to leave her brother to endure it on his own as he did when searching about his true identity.


Her gloved hand gripped onto the hilt of her sword, and with a firm hold, she unsheathed her blade from her hip and slowly ventured into the rift in pursuit of Fury, and maybe....just maybe there was a flicker of hope beginning to burn.

Fury studied his sister as she stepped through the rift. She seemed uneasy and lost, this experience would no doubt weigh on her already tormented mind and Fury frowned at the thought. He didn’t mean to cause this much stress on his sister, especially knowing all the stress that was placed on her by practically the entire universe that they lived in, but he couldn’t just let this go. They had a chance to fix it! Being here was proof of that. If they could just reverse what was supposed to be then maybe, just maybe, none of that stress would befall them. Maybe they could be normal…

Fury spread his wings and stretched before pointing his sword at the lighthouse and saying, ”It’s changed, but not what I thought. It appears unmolested and that someone still lives there. No better place to start than there.” Fury started off towards the lighthouse, his wings folded and creating a cloak around him. He crept up on one of the nearby windows and peered inside. What he saw stopped his heart beating in his chest cold.

It can’t be…

The room was large and decorated for the holidays, there was a fire place opposite the window and a large staircase that spiraled upward into the tower of the lighthouse. A lone dog lay by the fire, sleeping it’s time away peacefully. But what really stopped Fury cold was what was sitting on the staircase. There was the young Shade Leonhart he had seen when he had gone back in time. She sat there wide eyed, staring down at the presents underneath the tree. A moment later he was shocked again to see another familiar form run past her and run down the stairs. The boy laughed as he dove for the presents as his sister yelled at him for not waiting for their parents. The boy was himself.

Fury shook his head in disbelief as both his mother and his father came strolling down the stairs after them, both wearing their night robes and holding a mug of coffee. Rinoa was smiling and laughing at the two kids as Squal gave the youger Fury a look. The boy’s smiling face quickly went pale and he dropped the gift he had in his hands and half unwrapped. He reached down and picked up a gift with pink wrapping on it and a big purple bow. He handed his sister the gift and she took it with a scowl at him. She slowly unwrapped the gift, making sure not to tear the paper, and revealed a small stuffed Moomba. Her eyes went wide and she pulled the Moomba tight to her chest before looking to her parents and saying something enthusiastically that Fury couldn’t make out.

He stood there transfixed on the scene. They hadn’t come to the world that they needed to save, they came to the perfect world. This world seemed unscathed by any and all harm that had befallen their worlds before. The sight brought a lone tear down Fury’s face. There was a chance… he could have… and it was all…. Taken away from him… The thought completely numbed him. He looked to his sister for support and asked, ”Well, what now?

Fury seemed so calm..... was he as scared as she was? Or just burying the fear as Shade always did to her own? She didn't question him, but instead followed him in her usual silence with a nod of acknowledgement, yet totally uncertain of their findings just as Fury was. Her steps were cautious as every muscle and instinct tensed up in preporation for the unexpected. She knew the two of them would appear hostile to anyone, be it foe or an innocent, and either would most likely retaliate against her and her brother and ask questions later.


Her gut was nagging at her with each step bringing them closer to the lighthouse. It looked far to perfect, too pristine, and it unnerved Shade to the point that she nearly pulled Fury back even without a reason to give. Instead, she pressed on, somehow knowing that whatever they were to find beheld a purpose to them being here in the first place. Yet with all the training Shade had endured over the years, all the impossible feats she struggled through in life and in battles, nothing ever prepared Shade for what she was about to witness....


Peering slowly around Fury's cloaked shoulder, her heart came to a slamming stop when her gaze found the dog lying on the floor sleeping peacefully. She knew that dog.... who was in reality, long dead years ago. Yet how.....? Then she saw the child upon the stairs and her throat clenched against what breath was left within her lungs. Her steel hues widened with disbelief, then confusion, when the young boy came dashing down the staircase with an abundance of excitement. The entire scene played out right before her eyes as if it were a dream, and as Shade witnessed it all, seeing her parents alive, seeing Fury with them all, her mind was screaming for reason, yet not wanting one at all, all at the same time.


Fury's voice broke through her state of shock, and as Shade raised a trembling hand, her voice scratched through her constricting throat, yet her eyes never blinked or left the scene playing out in front of her. "Wait... please just wait.... I want to see... just a bit more." If this were a dream, Shade couldn't break free from it now if she even tried... if she even wanted to. After watching her younger self squeezing her Moomba gift, the younger Shade then got up and shuffled in her over sized fluffy slippers toward the younger Fury who was now beaming with pride while holding up a shiny toy model of the Ragnarok. Yet when Shade tugged on his the hem of his pajama shirt and pointed under the tree with a bounce in her stance, Fury quickly, but carefully set down the toy airship and dove under the tree through mounds of presents until only his feet stuck out.


Meanwhile, Rinoa and Squall were left to look at each other questionably, then back at Fury's feet, then at Shade who felt it was necessary to keep a free hand clamped tightly over her mouth. Finally, with a cry of victory that could even be heard through the window the older siblings were watching through, Fury scurried and shuffled himself out from under the tree pulling out a large, yet thin, rectangular present. It appeared as if it were wrapped with various patterns of giftwrap, and obviously done by an unskilled set of young hands. His beaming expression of pride returned as Fury carried the gift to his parents with Shade now at his side. Their mother graciously took the gift and unwrapped it carefully as if it were the most fragile gift, only for a shocked expression to cover her face. When she turned the gift around for Squall to see, it was now also in view for the spying eyes outside to also view.


In a rather large makeshift picture frame of small twigs and seashells and other small random decorations only a child's mind would find crafty was a grand collage of photos. Photos of them, all of them, as a family....even Angelo. All in an array of patterns, some over lapping each other, and scattered throughout the photos were small items or other pictures that represented a memory from certain pictures taken. Obviously, the children had some form of adult help with their project, most likely Selphie, or Edea, but by the expressions over young children's faces, they did the majority of the work themselves. And by the stunned shock over Squall and Rinoa, their children pulled off a successful surprise.


Within moments, the family was upon the couch together as a whole and encased with loving embraces. At that moment, the adult Shade leaned away from her brother and the window with her jaw clenched tight and the usual stone cold expression returned across her face. Her mind frantically grasped and clung to the only frame of thought she knew was solid and dependable. Being tactical over any given situation in order to keep her sanity intact. "Obviously, there's no threat here, or perhaps one is about to happen that we're meant to prevent. Yet another dimension distorted that shouldn't have been.... Perhaps we should..."


But before Shade could finish her suggestion, their surroundings began to shift and change around them. There was no sound as everything began as a blur and into a steady haze, until every substance around them became distorted and now appeared almost liquefied. Neither of the two moved a muscle as the scenery twisted around them and slowly reemerged back into a solid state, now revealing an entirely different place, yet one all too familiar. Balamb Garden's cafeteria.... The young Fury stood beside a table and looking rather angry at the 3 SeeD students in front of him. They looked to be only a year or two older than him and fully garbed in uniform, where Fury was in regular clothes, perhaps due to still being shy of the age requirement for joining the program. Whatever the reason, it appeared it was unimportant to the 3 confronting Fury about something that didn't please him at all.


One dared to give Fury a shove against his shoulder, yet Fury stood firm against it, glaring even more furiously at the trio. It was obvious, even without hearing a single word exchanged among them, Fury wasn't about to shame his family name by stooping to their taunting level. Shade, on the other hand, wasn't as self controlling as her brother. Where ever the hell she came running from, she caught sight of what was done as her five year old self came charging straight at that boy and swung with all her might to nail the SeeD student square in the genitals with a sound punch, dropping him instantly to the floor.

Fury watched his sister as she watched intently at the scene within the lighthouse. She was entirely transfixed by the scene and he could see she was trying to gain hold on her emotions. He knew how difficult it was for her to face these visions, for they were just as hard for him to face, but he did not expect her to be so stalwart about it. Yet when she spoke for them to wait just a moment longer, she sounded frail, like she was going to break any minute. It was an unnerving thing for him to hear from his sister, especially since she was so strong in every other aspect. He knew he had to be strong for her now. He clenched his jaw and gave a short nod before peering through the window again to watch the rest of the scene unfold.

His brow furrowed when he saw his younger self dive under the tree, though, not knowing what was happening because he could not hear the words spoken. It wasn’t until his younger form emerged from the tree did Fury truly understand. They had a present for their parents. Fury’s jaw shifted into a relaxed position. He hadn’t had a Christmas since both his parents were together when he and his brother were both so young. The sight of them all actually together gave him a calming effect that confused him. He expected himself to be angry because this chance was taken away from him and his sister, but he wasn’t. Instead, he felt happy that throughout all the universes and parallel dimensions at least one was found where they could find peace. And for that, he was glad and looked on with a smile on his face.

But as his sister spoke, it all faded away. The world around them fell away and Fury stood there with an eerie calm, he had experienced this before while deciphering his past. Each time the worlds changed it was different, a new way that the rifts were opened up each time. So when the lighthouse liquefied, Fury just closed his eyes and accepted it. When he opened his eyes again, they were standing in the Balamb Garden cafeteria, but it was nearly empty. All that stood there was his younger form, the little Shade, and three boys. His smaller form stood in front of his sister, somewhat hiding her from the three older men.

God, I can’t be more than nine here…

Fury’s jaw locked up when the older kid who looked like he had eaten too many hotdogs shoved him and the others laughed at him. He could see that his younger self was holding himself back, he didn’t want a fight there, but he obviously wanted to punch the kid square in the face. What Fury wasn’t expecting, though, was a five year old Shade darting around her brother an punching the kid in the nads. He smirked as he glanced to his actual sister before looking back to the scene just in time to see the other two goons grab the young girl and start hitting her. That was the breaking point for his other self. Young Fury leapt forward and punch the one holding his sister square in the nose before turning on the one hitting her and jabbing him in the gut, doubling him over. Little Shade took two steps and sent a kick straight into the first idiot’s side as he was trying to get up.

But the older kids quickly regained their senses. The plump one, whom Shade had just kicked, reached up and tripped Shade while the other two double teamed Fury and held him down. The plump one walked over to where he was being held and started hitting Fury repeatedly while he thrashed and kicked back. A moment later, one of the Garden instructors rushed in and broke the fight up. The instructor rushed all the children through the door and Fury and Shade followed. Stepping through the door, they found themselves in the lobby in front of the Headmaster’s office instead of the hallway Fury had expected.

Another time jump, but these seem different than before…

Fury and his sister sat across the room from the three boys who had picked the fight with them. Angry voices could be heard from the Headmaster’s office as all the children nursed their wounds. The plump boy held a bag of ice over his genitals, the skinny one who was holding Shade held a bloody tissue under his nose, and the one who was hitting her had nursed nail scratched along his right cheek. Across the room, Shade sat staring at them with one eye as the other held an icepack over her eye. Fury, on the other hand, just sat there, seemingly unscathed. He glared at them with an intense fury as they did the same to him. A moment later the shouting in the room stopped and Fury gave them all a big toothy grin. That grin, however was completely mangled, with two teeth missing and the others blood-stained. The door opened and the parents of the three boys came out of the room followed by Squall in his SeeD uniform. The look on Squall’s face was grim as he said, ”Again, I am very sorry this has happened, and I assure you we will get to the bottom of this and punishments given accordingly” At these last words Squall turned to look at Fury and the young boy’s smile quickly faded and he looked down. As the parents filed out of the room, Squall walked over slowly and sat down in between the two siblings…

Shade could only blink in confusion by the scene unfolding before them. Thus far, her mind couldn't grasp the purpose of them witnessing the events thus far, as she still scanned their surroundings for an expected threat she and Fury were brought into this dimension to contain. She struggled to ignore the overwhelming emotions spiraling out of control. Part of her wanted to turn away. Seeing one event of what could've been was enough to wrench the heart, but she didn't expect another one, and now she feared there would be even more.


For now, Shade remained dumbfounded within her silence while watching the wild scuffle carry out right before her eyes. Before long, she found herself following Fury, who seemed interested in the outcome of their younger selves as the Instructor hauled all of the children involved off to be reprimanded. Now standing within the closed foyer before the Headmaster's office, Shade's eyes narrowed at the office door where the shouting could be heard rather than watching the silent taunting faces being being thrown across the room between the children. What were they doing here? What was the purpose of all of this? As Shade struggled through her mind for a logical explanation, all went silent until a few moments later, grumbling parents left the Headmaster's office with their children in tow, leaving the younger Leonharts alone with their father.


Watching their father sit between them led Shade's heart to lurch again. Her adult mind already knew what was to come, having been lectured about her brash behavior in her youth so long ago. Her own hues drifted to the floor, just as her younger self did the same with a childish pout as Squall began to speak calmly to them both. "There's no need to tell me what happened.... you're both very lucky that the security cameras within the Garden were enough to reveal the truth." He looked over to young Fury first, seeing himself in those young eyes who smiled up at his father again as if the boy were so proud of his now missing teeth. Squall paused for a moment, slowly shaking head with a heavy sigh and a chuckle. "Your mother is going to kill me....then ground you for life, you know that don't you?" He reached up and ruffled Fury's hair before turning serious again over the matter at hand.


Now turning to Shade, Squall could only think of how his own temper at such an age got the better of him so many times against Seifer when the two grew up together in the orphanage. "Now Shade...."

"They started it!! Her grey hues were ablaze as she looked up and glared back at Squall before he could continue.

Still, Squall kept his calm and tried again. "Just listen, Shade..."

Her other hand shot out and pointed at the door where the parents and bullies previously left. "They hit Fury!"


Seeing that his daughter was still too emotional over what happened, Squall gently took her by chin and leaned close with a stern look that clamped the little girl's lips tightly shut. "Are you going to listen now?" He asked quietly to see Shade now nodding her head with a blush rising to her cheeks. He released her chin and straightened himself, yet still kept his eyes firmly locked with hers. "I understand why you did what you did, Shade. I know it was because you only wanted to protect your brother. But that doesn't mean it was the right decision to make. You could have very well got an older cadet or an Instructor while Fury was handling the situation just fine on his own." Seeing her bite down on her bottom lip and fighting back her tears nearly did him in, but Squall remained firm in order to get his point across. "Remember Shade.... there's times when you have to think with your mind, before you act with your heart..."


After she nodded, Squall turned back to Fury, who immediately revealed his missing teeth again with the same proud open smile. How could Squall not smirk? "As for you.... after the video proved you did nothing until having to defend your sister after she was hit, the parents pretty much dropped their arguments. Seeing two older boys gang up on a five year old girl was a hard pill of reality for them to swallow. But the fact still remains there was a fight, and you were involved regardless of the reason why, or even though you were legitimately excused from classes today and not in cadet uniform. You must still behave accordingly, Fury. You know that..." Fury's young face dropped, and with a heavy sigh, he too, nodded with a silent knowing that he could have just drug his sister out of there and gone to the nearest adult rather than flying his fists around in revenge for his sister.


Now standing on his feet, Squall ushered his children into the Headmaster's office for them to recuperate before Rinoa arrived to pick them up. He didn't even want to think of her initial reaction when she would first lay eyes on their injuries.... Yet before he closed the door, the older Fury and Shade would hear him speak one last time. "But between you and me, I'm still very proud of you both for looking out for another..."


When the door closed, their surroundings began to shift again, just as before from the lighthouse to the Garden. Shade looked over at her brother, finding it rather ironic that the two always seemed to look out for another since the day they met, even before knowing they were related at all. Whether it was by chance, or by some instinctive nature between them, it was always the case, and would always be so. "I don't think.... we're here to stop anything, Fury. I think...." She paused and watched everything fade away around them only to see the liquefied setting begin to take form again. Her voice fell weak and cracked through her throat when she struggled to speak again. "I honestly don't know what to think...."

Fury watched the scene involving his younger self and his sister receiving a scolding from their father dumbfounded. When he was a child and did something wrong, he was beat by his father. He knew that others never had to deal with that, but he had never in a million years thought that there was a possibility that he would be able to live like them. Seeing that scene made him feel left out, like he had something so simple taken away from him. But he held against those thoughts, what was done is done and in the past. He had to move forward.

…I’m still very proud of both of you…

The words slammed Fury like a truck as the world melted away again. He locked his jaw as his sister stuttered to voice her thoughts. This was difficult for both of them, but it was probably even more difficult for her. Fury had never had anything remotely close to this growing up, where she had gone through memories very similar to these, if not the exact ones. Fury nodded to her and said, ”So, I was wrong. What else is new?”

Fury walked over to one of the walls that was now a liquefied mass and reached out to touch it. His fingers grazed across it, feeling the jelly-like substance beneath his fingers. The swirls and blurred shapes danced about as Fury wrestled with his thoughts. Finally, Fury turned away from the wall and said, ”I don’t have any control over this… We’re just going to have to ride it out and hope.” As he spoke the world began to materialize once again. They stood in the large ballroom at a formal event. While everyone danced out on the floor Shade, Jayda, Vex, Brix, and Fury all sat off to the side talking. Fury chuckled at the sight. Even when they were supposed to be normal, the group found a way to set themselves apart from everyone else.

They all wore their SeeD uniforms and sat around in a circle, except for Brix, who had her back turned to the group as she entertained another student. Jayda, Vex, and Shade seemed to be discussing something while Fury sat with them and stared off into space, deep in thought, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows in an attempt to get more comfortable in his uniform. While the others were obviously enjoying themselves and having a good time, Fury kept a serious expression across his face. Vex must have told a joke because the others burst out laughing, even Brix stopped what she was doing to turn around and laugh. Fury, though, continued to stare until Jayda slugged him in the arm and he turned and faced the group and allowed a smile to crack across his face.

At that moment, the song that was playing stopped and the next song began. The older Fury chuckled to himself as he heard that it was a slow song. He raised an eye-brow at her when he saw that her younger self get asked by Vex to dance. After a moment of hesitation, the young Shade gave in and grabbed Vex’s hand and took off for the dance floor with him…

While still remaining fixed in place and watching their surroundings twist and mold in mid air around them, Shade gasped and nearly lunged after Fury when he reached out and touched the foreign substance. What if he were shifted to another time rift apart from Shade? How would they find each other, or return to their own? Yet when she saw he remained, her breath came out in slight huff as the usual brooding scowl returned to glare at the back of his head until the unexpected scene took form before their eyes....


The Garden ball room.....? Her brow pinched up in confusion as Shade looked up and all around the grand scale room that she last remembered was completely obliterated during the initial attack when she was a child. The section of the Garden was reconstructed as an addition to the weapons department since there would be no reason to have a ballroom ever again for years to come, or if ever.... But the scene before them now was exactly how Shade remembered the place from her earliest memories, but she never expected to see a bit younger version of herself within it, or especially laughing and appearing so carefree....


When hearing her brother chuckle, Shade gave him a momentary look of confusion before looking back to the group where their younger selves were sitting. She didn't see what he found so humorous as she watched them all together.... the way it should have been.... but said nothing of it while watching the group from a distance. Of course they all laughed at whatever Vex said.... he had such a knack for that, making anyone laugh, just as his sister had that gift of making anyone around her feel welcomed and light hearted. But the next moment literally made Shade flinch a bit. Where was she....? Oh hell no..... and Fury may have thought she didn't hear him chuckle a second time beside her, but she most certainly did.


Without a thought to her actions, the older Shade quickly dodged tables, chairs, and other people to quickly follow her younger self and Vex until she too, was on the dance floor. For a moment, she paused, as if expecting her appearance to draw unwanted attention until she realized again she couldn't be seen at all. Even with that knowledge, she still stormed up to the dancing couple, standing right up beside them and glaring at her younger self while hissing through her teeth. "What the HELL do you think you're doing? I don't 'dance'! WE don't dance!" Of course her younger self never knew she was there, or heard a thing, while continuing the slow dance with a polite smile on her face as Vex was talking to her. Growing more frustrated, Shade now glared up at Vex and hissed in the same manner. "You should be dancing with Brix, if with anyone.... you always liked her...."


After several moments of getting nowhere, and finally realizing she never would, Shade growled at the both of them with her eyes narrowed before storming off back to Fury. If it were possible, she would have thrown a chair....


Now back at his side, all Shade could do was stand with a horribly foul brood across her brow and her arms crossed, knowing Fury was going to say something cynical or sarcastic at any moment, so she kept her gaze averted and back at the table where now only the younger Fury and Jayda sat alone as Brix snagged her partner to the dance floor as well. It seemed Jayda chose to remain persistent at keeping Fury smiling, or at least keeping him from staring at wall all night as she now began waving her hand up and down right in front of his eyes with a smiling giggle.

Fury let a smirk curl onto his face as his sister looked at him skeptically. She obviously needed to get out more often because it wasn’t until her younger self was dragged out onto the dance floor that she realized what was happening. Sometimes she could be completely clueless, especially when it came to issues like the one they were faced with. She stormed off in their general direction like a bat out of hell, leaving him standing there with a dumb grin on his face. She acted like she hated the idea, like she wanted nothing to do with any of this, but he knew that deep down that this was what she wanted. He threats to herself weren’t because she was angry, they were because she was frustrated. He knew how she felt about things like that, even if they would never speak of it, he could tell by the way she acted around his girls.

Chuckling to himself as he watched her explode on her younger self, Fury glanced back over to the table where his own younger form was sitting. What he saw puzzled him even more. He saw Jayda sitting off to one side of his younger self, waving a hand in front of his eyes and saying, “Yoohoo,” to him trying to grab his attention. Seeing the look on his face, Fury could tell he was deliberately ignoring her. His face twisted in a scowl as he slid across the room over to the duo to listen in on what was happening. He came in just in time to hear Jayda say, ”And everyone else is having fun. C’mon, Fury let’s dance.” She stood up in front of him and pulled on his hand trying to get him to move. He just stared up at her, unblinking, and didn’t say a word.
Fury shook his head angrily. ”Listen to her you big dumby. Quit being such an ass, this is a party.” Fury swung his hand out to slap his younger self across the face several times, each time his hand flew straight through without meeting any resistance. A moment later, Fury stood there huffing and puffing while his younger self sat there staring at Jayda, who obviously wanted to go have fun. The younger Fury held her gaze for a long pause, almost as if he were contemplating something before standing up and saying, ”Leave me alone,” and walked out of the ballroom.

Fury followed himself straight up to the door, yelling at him to quit being an ass and to go back there and talk to the damned girl, but it was no use, the youth could not hear him. Finally, he turned around and scowled as he walked back to where his sister was. He looked at her, now sharing the dark brooding mood she was in. The world once again liquefied away, leaving everything blurred out. He breathed a sigh of relief, nothing could be as bad as what they had already seen…

Shade could only stand silent while watching her brother chase down his younger self while yelling at him as Shade had done to the younger version of herself upon the dance the floor. Naturally, he found the same results as she had, being completely unseen and unheard. As her steel gaze returned to Jayda, the hurt was obvious over the Kinneas' girl's face, yet the gunner swiftly hid it behind a fake smile when Brix returned to the table questioning her, only to hear the young Jayda wave off the incident and playing off a sincere lie for Fury, stating he was feeling ill and went back to his dorm.


When glancing back at her brother approaching her, his eyes spoke volumes alone, yet what confused Shade was this dimension's version of Fury. The brother she knew was far more hard core, beaten, battered, and often known to be ruthless when it came to dangerous missions, or even in his sarcasm when dealing with someone he didn't particularly like. Yet no matter how bad of a mood Fury was in, he would never have been so rude to Jayda, or even with Shade for that matter. So why was it that his younger version, who's life was obviously far less traumatic in this dimension than the life he endured as they both knew it, acting as harshly as his older self? Before she could ponder over the matter, the scene liquefied once again, yet this time, no words were exchanged between either of them as they awaited for the next scene to unfold.....


Shade found herself standing within the dark shadows at the top of a staircase, yet Fury wasn't there.... It took a moment or two for her to recognize the stairs layout from their first encounter at the lighthouse, and just a few steps down, hunched behind the wooden poles of the railing, was Shade's younger self in pajamas again, appearing afraid and upset to whatever she was watching transpire below. Knowing she couldn't be seen or heard, Shade took the few steps down and crouched next to herself, who now seemed no more than ten years old. Through the poles, she could see most of the downstairs was pitch dark, giving off the sense that it was terribly late, yet a soft glow of light illuminated through the shadows from the far side of lighthouse home. Voices could be clearly heard, as well as the specific conversation.....


"Mr. and Mrs. Leonhart, we assure you no harm would ever come to the boy, but these risks were known by all of us, even you, when Fury was just a fetus. Now by the results of his last physical, his blood work obviously shows spikes in certain areas of concern...."

"I don't give a damn about what spikes showed up where...." Both the young Shade and her older self widened their eyes by the familiar voice of their father that now sounded deadly with his threat. "You so much as lay a hand on my son and you're going to see MY version of an apocalypse. Do I make myself clear?" The tone in Squall's voice should have been enough to scare off whomever he was angry with, yet the previous voice replied with the same authoritive calm as before, and with the same persistence to his cause.

"With such a delicate situation as this, Mr. Leonhart, I can assure you I do not need your permission when this planet's very existence is at stake by the mere hands of a boy....."


With that said, the younger Shade gasped and quietly tore back up the steps and down the short darkened hallway only to barge into one of the bedrooms, unknowing to her older self following with the same haste at her heels. Shade came to an abrupt halt as she watched her young form frantically shake her brother out of his sleep while struggling to keep her voiced hushed from the rising panic. "Fury! Wake up! Please wake up! They've come to take you away! We have to go! Please! Please wake up! We can run away while Daddy keeps them downstairs!" Upon seeing her brother open his eyes with a startle, his little sister tore off to his closet and yanked out a couple of old school packs and tossed them quickly to the bed before yanking open the dresser drawers. "We can hide in those caves we found, Fury! I have it all planned out.... They won't find us.... I won't let them take you away... but you have to hurry!"


The older Shade could only stand there dumbfounded. Where was her brother!? What could she possibly do to stop this? And even if she could do anything.... should she? But before another thought could cross her mind.... before her younger self could begin packing their things, a tremendous, thunderous crash came from downstairs and piercing screams followed....

Fury closed his eyes again as the world began to focus. The sight of everything bending always made him feel a bit nauseas. He could feel the world leaving its liquid form on his finger-tips. Finally, he opened his eyes only to be confused by the scene before him. He was again in the living room of the lighthouse, his mother and father stood near the fire, staring at a man who sat on the couch. If looks could kill the stare Squall was giving the man would have cleaved him in half. Rinoa, on the other hand, seemed scared as she clutched to her husband for support.

Fury’s eyes shifted to the man sitting on the couch. The man wore a straightforward black business suit and tie. His black leather shoes shone brightly in the flickering flames, reflecting them and giving the look that they were on fire too. The man’s face was truly what unnerved Fury, though. His sickly pale skin was made worse by the gauntness of his facial features. He hid his beady blue eyes behind large, wire-rimmed glasses and they seemed to sink into his head, giving the man the look of a skeleton. The top of his head was bald save for the few gray tuffs of hair that were kept patted down so it looked like he had more hair. His mouth was twisted in a wry smile as he spoke to the couple.

Fury’s mouth slacked open as he heard the unimaginable conversation take place. This couldn’t be happening. They couldn’t be taking him away from his parents, not after being allowed a normal life for so long. He wouldn’t allow it. He had to do something, anything. Fury’s fists clenched as the weasel of a man spoke, his words like nails on a chalk board to Fury. He could hear the stern resolution in his father’s voice when he spoke. Neither of them wanted this to happen and neither of them would let it happen.

When the scientist ceased, Fury’s eyes were like gemstones, each emerald orb was filled with tiny specks of gold. He couldn’t hold in the anger anymore. His wings burst forth from his back, sending a shock-wave of flames through the room, which Fury didn’t even notice actually effected the time and space they were in. In a flash, he scooped the scientist up in his left hand and held him in space. Squall shielded Rinoa from the flames as she screamed in shock. Both looked on in terror as Fury began beating the man senseless.

”You think you can fuck with this family?” Fury sent his right hand slamming into the man’s nose, shattering the cartilage there and the man’s glasses. All around him the flames swirled around the room. His wings were outstretched and the tips were burning a red-hot flame. He grabbed the man by his shirt collar and threw him through a nearby wall.

Fury walked into that room through the newly formed doorway and said, ”You think you can tear this family apart because you are afraid?” He reached down and grabbed the man by his throat again and drew his knife. He held the knife closely to the man’s face and leaned in close to whisper, ”You have no idea what fear is…” Fury swung his knife back in an arcing motion and skewered the blade into the man’s stomach. The resulting force sent the man to the ceiling. The blade pierced through the man and stuck into the ceiling, pinning him there. The man cried out in pain as he grasped the hilt of the knife. Fury angrily pulled out his Deadmaker revolver and aimed it at the man’s head. ”Let me show you…”

Whether it was by her own powers homing in on another, or be it simply instinctive, Shade just knew that her brother had something to do with the commotion downstairs before she even reached the stairs. By the time she reached the room where the argument had taken place, the man was already bleeding profusely from ceiling with Fury aiming his pistol straight for the head. Somehow he managed to cause some form of effect within this time rift where they couldn't do so before hand, but Shade immediately came to the conclusion that Fury's awakening powers were the cause. Yet her brother's actions came as no shock to her at all. If anything, deep down, Shade welcomed it. But her attention was mostly drawn to Squall and Rinoa's reactions. Obvious shock as well, was etched across their faces while expecting to see her father go into a defensive stance to shield Rinoa from any potential harm, but what Shade also came to realize was that neither of them were looking at Fury at all..... It was as if their eyes were still searching for the cause as to what attacked the man and what mysterious force had him pinned and bleeding profusely from the ceiling.


She slowly approached Fury from his side with her jaw clenched, feeling the same rage as he did coursing through her veins at what nearly transpired here. They were going to take him away again.... just as they did from their own time dimension. And as she slowly paced around Fury's ebony wings, her own piercing gaze returned to the man still pinned into the ceiling while he continued choking on his own blood. Her steel hues matched the same intensity to that of Fury's, and as she parted her lips to speak, a barrage of soldiers and other suit dressed men came exploding through the front door, and by the echoing sounds through the rooms, more were coming through the back door of the home. Weapons and guns were aimed, shouts of demands were ordered from all directions, then the youthful cries rang out from the middle of the staircase. It all transpired so fast, just in a mere second or two, and when the back up reinforcements witnessed their cohort viciously strung from ceiling, the guns were aimed directly for Squall and Rinoa, as one fool made the drastic mistake at aiming for the children....


Then all hell broke loose as Rinoa screamed and ran for the young Shade and Fury just as Squall unleashed his Gunblade with a roaring shout above all the others while charging upon the threat. But guns fired far more quickly than a human could move.... the thundering echos exploded violently to mingle with even more ear piercing screams....


What followed wasn't even willed. Shade's sudden eruption of panic awakened her own powers with such intensity, her scream virtually shook the very walls and foundation of the lighthouse as the stark white wings exploded from her back with a violent crack through the air and her hands instinctively shot out against the threats throughout the room. The air immediately went still and silent as all motion came to a dead stand still, including the bullets already fired. As Shade's eyes went aflame over her steel hues, they illuminated even brighter as her palms concentrated heavily on the ammo slowly spinning in place upon their appointed targets. Her left hand reached in the direction of the 3 bullets centered upon the children, one nearly touching the young Shade's neck as two other bullets were nearly grazing against young Fury's head and chest. There was a fourth bullet about to strike Rinoa at the side of her skull and two more trying to drill through Shade's powers to plunge into Squall's chest, yet Shade's left palm centered on those as well. There was a strong sense of pressure as some movement started to breach through the effect of warped gravity and a sense of static began to ripple through the air. But as bodies began to slowly regain mobility, the bullets suddenly flew at lightning speed into Shade's palms where she clenched them all into her fists until they disintegrated into liquid form and drained through her squeezing fingers to drip onto the floor.


The air now beheld an ear shattering ripping sound as the pressure increased, almost painfully, yet Shade found that she and Fury could still move easily. But to prevent the foreseen deaths was not Shade's only goal. It didn't matter if Shade and her brother destroyed them all to save their family in this particular dimension, Squall and Rinoa would still get the blame.... they would forever be hunted now... unless the true source of the effecting powers were revealed. With her concentration now centered upon the time rift within itself, Shade's fists now drew back slowly toward her body, forcing the rift to acknowledge their physical existence through time compression as those who truly belonged were gaining more of their mobility. Through the struggle of forcing their physical selves to combine into the rift, Shade forced her words through the strain of concentration for their forms to now be seen by those within the house. "Show them, Fury.... without them knowing who we truly are...." Her blazing amber eyes slowly opened and now locked with his as she hissed through her teeth. "Make sure they never come near this family ever again...."

Fury held the pistol to the man’s head with a trembling hand. He slowly pulled the hammer back on the revolver, readying the shot to the man’s head. He could see the fear in the man’s eyes, the total hopelessness that came to a man who knew he was about to die. Fury could feel the power coursing through his veins. It called to him. It told him to kill the weeping whelp and be done with it. The primal voices in his head told him to kill, kill, kill but that shred of humanity told him to stop. There were some lines that even he refused to cross.

He was slowly pulling the pistol away when the front door exploded and several men in suits armed with rifles and pistols. He snapped the pistol around to aim at them just as his sister screamed, releasing her powers. He paused as time slowed to a halt, investigating all that was going all around him. He saw the bullets hanging in the air just inches away from his family. His father was suspended in the air above one of the men, his arms raised up to bring his gunblade down on the suit and his mouth open in a roar of anger. His mother was reaching out to grab his younger self and his sister look of fear for them etched across her face. Then there were the two themselves. The two kids stood there wide-eyed at the sights before them, bullets hanging all around them. It was a sight Fury would never forget.

He looked to his sister. She was standing there, arms and wings spread outward, with a look of set determination on her face. She was doing all of this. He watched as she called the bullets to her hands, melting them with her raw power. He could see that she couldn’t hold it much longer so when she spoke, he only gave her a curt nod. He would make sure no one ever gave this family trouble ever again.

He turned to the wall of guns aimed at all of them and hurtled his revolver at one of the men. It stopped right before the man’s eye, caught in Shade’s field of suspended animation, the under-barrel blade nearly going into his eye. He slowly drew his gunblade out as the world slowly started to move again. He walked over to his sister and pulled the Wolfsbane from its sheathe on her hip. He gingerly held it in his off hand, inspecting the blade for a moment. He walked back to the center of the room and gave a nod to his sister once more, letting her know he was ready.

As the world came back to full motion, Fury pulled his wings in tight around him. The revolver went the rest of the way, crashing into the man’s skull. Squall finished his swipe, slashing down into the man while Rinoa wrapped her arms around her children. Fury could have sworn that Shade had stopped time again because the whole room held its breathe. Fury slowly turned around to face the wall of guns aimed directly at him and as he did so, his wings unfurled and fire shot out all around him. Fury’s dead-pan look swept across the group of agents. He could hear one of them say, “Hyne save us.” He held their stares for a moment longer before he flicked his wrist and activated the teeth on the Wolfsbane.

In that moment, he launched himself forward, his wings propelling him at speeds he had never been at before. The world seemed to slow as he drove both blades into two different men’s chests. Stopping seemed to bring the world back to full speed again, though because all the guards snapped their rifles towards him. He began moving again and everything slowed. He ducked and slashed out with his gunblade, catching one of them on his Achilles tendon. At the same time his off hand shot upward, burying the point of Wolfsbane under the chin of another. The blade easily punctured up through his skull. He exploded upward and slashed the blade free of the man in a spin. At the end of the spin, he brought the Wolfsbane down on the man he had just tripped with his gunblade, splitting him in half.

Fury’s wings blew out from his back, knocking two more guards back against the wall, knocking them unconscious. He brought both of his blades forward and catapulted himself at the remaining guard situated in front of the door. He crashed into him, both blades spearing straight through, and went out the door. He rolled as he landed and noticed that there were even more men outside that were all grabbing all their guns to aim and fire at Fury. As he completed his roll, he brought both of his swords forward, flinging the body skewered at the end off of them towards the group now massing to charge him. As the guard’s body finished leaving his blade, Fury stopped time again. He reached down and threw a grenade at the man’s gaping mouth and pulled the pin. He then delivered a kick to his chest and allowed time to catch up again. The body went flying into the group of soldiers before exploding, killing or maiming them all.

Fury looked on at the scene of destruction through heavy eyes. This was taking a lot out of him. He slammed his gunblade back in its sheathe and slowly walked back into the house. He raised his hands and then lowered them, and as he did so the fires went out. His wings lay dragging across the ground as he ignored the stares he was receiving to walk over to the man he had pinned to the ceiling, now the only man left alive. He swiftly pulled the knife from the man’s gut, dropping the guy to the ground. He flipped him over onto his back with his foot and stepped down on the suit’s throat and said in a calm, weary tone, ”Hyne… Hyne is watching this family…. Stay away. Now go, and spread the word…” He stepped off the man’s throat and watched him limp out the door.

He smirked at his sister and walked over to a wall, drawing out a cigar and his lighter while he leaned up against it. He slowly slid down onto his butt as the smoke began to fill the air…

Shade's flaming hues kept a keen strict eye upon Rinoa and the children, prepared to keep any stray bullets, or soldiers, from reaching them should they even try as she continued to concentrate on her powers to keep the stability of the time rift safely balanced throughout Fury's attacks as he used it to his advantage with every move and strike he dished out upon the many. His form continued to flicker through through the natural passing of time, being that his alone flowed to a different balance due to his ignited powers. She caught sight of Squall delivering the finale of his successful blows upon the first target at hand, but when he saw Fury's flickering form slashing away at the others, the Leonhart began to take cautious step back towards his family to keep them protected as he spared a sharp skeptical gaze in Shade's direction. Clearly, Squall had no idea what was going on, and the first most priority in his mind was to keep his own family safe.


During the entire brawl of onslaught, Shade continued to focus her powers upon the rift, until she took notice of what was thought to be a fallen soldier hoisting a dead body off of him. Her eyes flickered to Fury, who was currently taking down two foes simultaneously as two more were charging straight for him. Those who barged through the back way of the house were now rounding the corner of the opposite doorway into the room were now having to face Squall, which was an easy feat for the experienced Leonhart. But the one who managed to scramble escape from beneath his fallen comrade was now charging for the staircase.


Shade's lips snarled back into a sneer as her right hand flinched to infuse more of her power into it, solely focusing her attention now on him alone. His movements slowed only a bit, but he continued inching closer, and now looking directly at Shade with a knowing glare that she was the cause of his delaying struggles. At the very instant, the floor beside her foot began to liquefy, causing a jolt of panic to surge through Shade's mind.... they couldn't be pulled away now! Not when the lives were still threatened here! She wouldn't allow the rift to pull her and Fury away now! But the scene never changed around them as it did before when they were torn away. Instead, the pool at her feet now produced an object that slowly rose up from the liquid until the cold steel of the foreign hilt glided into Shade's hand all on its own. Her amber hues never left her impending target as her fingers gripped onto the weapon with a vice grip, and by instinct alone, her arm shot out with the weapon firmly held for an explosion to travel right through the twin golden blades and straight for soldier. His body was ripped from the floor with a piercing scream by the impact, and was dead before his body went soaring back to slam against the wall.


Her weapon's aim now turned to the mob still attempting to get through Squall, and with her glare slowly narrowed, the brilliant hues came aflame within her gaze as the sword fired once more, this time capturing three of the soldiers and sending their forms to crash through the wall that was facing the cliffs to the ocean outside. Only their drifting screams could be heard to ensure they were swallowed up by the waters far below. As the final foe ran from the home with what little was left of his life, Shade slowly turned to see her brother entering back into the house and appearing quite exhausted as he extinguished the flames of his powers and addressed the agent still pinned to the ceiling. She made sure the man witnessed the flames within her own eyes as Fury gave him their verbal warning and released him to flee. Her rage still engulfed her senses as she watched the man disappear, yet seeing her brother virtually collapse to the floor vanquished her anger and her left her trembling from the adrenaline still coursing through her veins. Now realizing her sword was still held in her brother's hand, Shade suddenly remembered the one in her own and looked down upon it in complete shock.


Then a small voice broke through the stifling silence. "Father? Who are they?"


Shade's head snapped back to attention, now staring upon Squall and Rinoa and their younger selves, who were obviously in the same state of shock. Rinoa remained on the stairs with both of her arms wrapped protectively around the children who appeared more curious and confused, rather than scared. But it was Squall who finally began to approach Fury and Shade with tentative steps, tilting his head slowly while studying Shade over with a studious gaze, yet his steps bringing him closer to Fury. With his Gunblade still in hand, he kept it lowered with the tip pointing at the ground to show no hostility, yet still on his guard. Finally, he crouched slowly just a few feet away from Fury's side and now studied him over just the same. It was eerie silence, one could actually feel choking their lungs, until Squall spoke for only the two of them to hear. "I may not understand the insane logic to this.... or how you two came to be here..... But I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume you shouldn't be." He braved a single hand to rest on Fury's weary shoulder and paused for a brief moment, knowing full well who those eyes belonged to. "I can't thank you enough.... I can only hope somehow I did in your life...."

Fury lay there, slowly falling into a slumber. What he had just done took everything he had. His fatigue crippled him to the point where he didn’t even want to raise his head as Squall made his way over. His head pounded like a full marching band and his vision swirled as he stared at the ground in front of him. He gingerly reached down and pulled out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth before reaching for his zippo and started striking away at it. He released a chuckle at the fact that he couldn’t even get the damned thing to light. It felt like he didn’t even have the strength to keep trying.

Fury looked up, though, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was the only warning he had noticed that Squall was even still in the room, let alone right next to him. Fury’s brow furrowed as Squall spoke. He knew he should be able to understand what he was saying, but he just couldn’t focus enough to understand it. He held Squall’s gaze for a long minute. He had the same eyes as Fury’s sister and was looking at him with that calm, passive look Fury had always seen in her eyes. It was a numbing feeling. He took a long breathe in like he was going to say something, but then turned away and continued to try lighting his zippo up. Finally he gave up and lit the damned thing by creating a flame at the end of his thumb by snapping his fingers together. His body screamed at him to stop using the powers, which they were slowly draining him into oblivion, but if he was going to face this, he was going to do it with a smoke, damnit.

He turned again to face his father after releasing the smoke from himself. He looked at him for a long, hard minute before saying, ”You did everything you could… He took another drag from his cigarette and said, ”I… I am proud to call you father…” He then staggered up to his feet, using the wall as a crutch, and then began to walk towards his mother and the younger versions of himself and his sister. He collapsed to his knees before the smaller Shade and said, ”Don’t grow up too fast… and don’t be afraid of being a girl sometimes. It can be good for you.

He then turned to his younger self and said, [color]”Don’t… don’t make the same mistakes I did… You and your family come before your responsibilities… Whatever you do… don’t forget that…”[/color] He then struggled back to his feet and turned to walk away. That’s when someone reached out and grabbed his hand. He turned around to see Rinoa standing there, on the verge of tears. She pulled him in for a hug. At first, he didn’t know what to do, so he just stood there awkwardly for a moment as she hugged him. Then he finally broke down and hugged her back, his wings wrapped around her in a hug and he whispered, ”I love you…

Naturally, there came a lurching pain in Shade's heart to see her brother in a such a weakened condition and having to face such an emotional moment he wasn't expecting all at the same time. She nearly took a step towards Fury when seeing him struggle to his feet, yet held back with the knowing as to how he felt about showing any signs of weakness. Instead, her hooded gaze followed him as he made his way slowly toward the staircase with the end of his ebony wings trailing against the floor behind him, much like a heavy tattered cloak at his back rather than the majestic sign of power they previously appeared to be.


Knowing Fury's heart and suspecting his intentions, Shade averted her gaze and found he had left her Wolf's Bane sword resting against the wall where he once sat. With her weary hues directed toward the floor, she too struggled to walk with trembling limbs as the weight of her own white wings carpeted the floor behind her. It wasn't until her hand reached out and wrapped around the hilt of the blade that Shade also felt the weight of one's stare also upon her. Just a brief flicker of her gaze confirmed Squall was now closely studying her in silence, yet she couldn't meet his eyes directly. All she could do was just.... stand there, while staring at the floor and trying to place her weapon back onto her belt at her hip as if she just completed any random normal battle. When hearing Fury's low tone drift through the room, her head tilted a bit to hear him better, yet his words were so soft spoken, Shade couldn't make them out clearly. Perhaps it was for the better that she didn't. He needed this moment, or so she felt he did.


"I know that look.... "


Hearing Squall speak snapped her head back to attention, yet she wasn't expecting him to be standing closer to her. Out of instinctive nature, Shade took a cautious step back while her guarded stare watched for any further movement. She didn't dare allow a single wall to crack now. Her body remained stiff and her expression ridged until he spoke again with a knowing hint in eyes. "I've worn that look enough in my life to know it when I see it.... so what ever it is your blaming yourself for.... you need to let it go." He dared a step closer as his gaze grew more intense, even though his voice softened with sincerity. "Let it go, Shade... before it eats you alive like it almost did me..." Her eyes widened by those words, but her head began to shake slightly with only a whisper to her words since her voice mysteriously chose to abandon her at that very moment. "....I can't" She literally had to choke her breath into her lungs in order to force herself to breath while still shaking her head with brief pause in between. "I can't.... I can't let it go..."


The young eyes were watching the entire scene play out around them during the eerie silence. Young Shade looked up to her brother for any hint as to what was going on, or who these strangers were. Meanwhile, the young Fury beheld a more studious eye after the soldier man had spoken to them and was now embracing his mother. When hearing the words spoken, the young boy blinked with widened eyes before slowly sitting upon the stairs and quietly tugging his sister's arm to sit as well while motioning her to be quiet.


What the current Fury wouldn't realize was that the truth of it all was revealed within Rinoa's mind during that embrace. How could either he or Shade have predicted it? Yet in this dimension, it was Rinoa who still beheld the Sorceress powers, and by touch alone, she witnessed far more of Fury's memories than she ever expected to behold within those brief seconds. Her doe brown eyes widened in shock as she forced the lump rising within her throat back down with a hard swallow and embraced him even tighter. She knew.... now, she knew she was never in his life to tell him those very same words, but she could be just this once, for him to take and keep with him where ever he was meant to be.... "My heart goes with you," She whispered through the rising tears. "A mother's love is always there whether you see her or not. I love you... never forget that..." She released him reluctantly and gave her most confident nod through her fallen tears while trying to hold onto her own strength, because if she didn't, Rinoa knew she would never let him go.

Fury held his mother for a moment longer, taking strength in her words. The hug felt warm and embracing, like this is how it was supposed to be. That thought also bolstered his strength, thinking that his world was just a perversion of the truth. His eyes slowly opened, though, and he saw the world melt away near the door of the house. It was time for them to go.

Fury reluctantly pulled himself away from his mother and slowly walked over to the portal. As he passed Shade he placed a hand on her shoulder to let her know it was time. He didn’t want to go. He wanted nothing more than to stay here forever with his parents that never were, but they had a responsibility to so many others. They had to move on to find their way home. Maybe if Simon found a way to hone their abilities into a viable portal, they would be able to return. That hope was all he needed to push himself to leave.

Fury walked over to the portal with his sister and stopped just before going through. He turned around and gave a wave to the family once more and then stepped into the tear in the world. He silently paced in the limbo-area that they were in as their powers played Russian roulette with their lives. He looked to Shade, he wanted to speak, but he couldn’t bring himself to. Finally, he looked upon her with heavy eyes and said, ”Why? Why is it that no matter where we go we’re faced with death and pain? Are we so damned that we can’t even enjoy our other forms’ lives without being the harbingers of pain?”

Those questions would go unanswered, though, as the world rematerialized around them. They stood on top of a tall building in Delling city. At least, that’s what it looked like. He spotted two corpses nearby on the ground wearing Balamb SeeD uniforms and across from them near the edge of the roof were a group of Delling soldiers firing at something on the ground in the middle of the square. He could see smoke rising from the plaza. Fury heard a crackling from one of the SeeD student’s and he went over and picked up the radio set that was there.

”…This is 1st class SeeD Fury Leonhart requesting immediate assistance at the Deling City Great Gate. Our Ragnorak has been shot down and we have multiple wounded including myself. Casualties are as followed… Shit…” Automatic fire could be heard over the radio as someone began firing back at the advancing troops. ”Casualties are as followed: 1st class SeeD Jayda Kinneas, wounded in crash. 1st class SeeD Brix Dincht, burn wounds. 1st class SeeD Vex Kinneas, multiple gunshot wounds, critical state. 1st Class SeeD Shade Leonhart, she’s got a piece of debris sticking out of her leg… COVER THE LEFT SIDE!!! COVER THE DAMNED LEFT SIDE!” Even more sounds of gunfire could be heard over the radio. Damnit! And I’m fucked up too! Listen we need help now!

Another calm, and very familiar voice could be heard over the radio. ”This is 1st class SeeD Simon Crowly of Balamb Garden Air Command, We are currently routing all available SeeD units to your position, but you must understand that they all have their own responsibilities and problems. The soonest they can be there is ten minutes. We suggest you dig in and wait for reinforcements. ”

”Thanks for the advice! I was thinking we’d go for a walk, but now that you mention it, staying put does seem like a good idea! Listen, we don’t have ten minutes. You need to get those people here NOW!!!” and then the radio went silent.

Fury turned to the wall that housed the Deling soldiers and spread his arms out. Fire erupted from his hands sending a wave of fire towards the soldiers. They were all charred instantly down to their skeletons. Immediately following, Fury fell to his hands and knees and his wings fell away. He struggled to keep crawling forward before Shade reached down and helped him to his feet. ”Put me over by the wall…”

As they approached the wall, they looked down into the plaza with horror. There was a lone Ragnorak crashed up against the massive gatehouse. The metal form was twisted and mangled around the stone frame of the gates. Fury could see sporadic gunfire burst from the cockpit towards the onrushing waves and waves of Deling soldiers.

”Put me down here,” He said as he reached for his rifle. ”We have to help them or they’ll never make it.”

He set the rifle up on the low wall and looked through the scope. He could see Jayda in the cockpit, firing her rifles as fast as she could. She appeared to be pinned in place. He also saw Brix performing CPR on an unconscious Vex in the middle of the Ragnorak. Then, on both side of the ship were Fury and Shade. Fury crouched behind a piece of debris while he sporadically fired his assault rifle at the on-comers. Shade, on the other hand, stood with a snarl on her face as she fired her crossbow at the troops with one hand and stabbed and slashed her sword with the other. If they didn’t get help soon, they were going to be over-run.

Fury looked up from his scope to Shade and said, ”I’ll do what I can from here. You go do your Sorceress thing and keep them alive. Don’t let them see you, though.”

His eyes narrowed slightly by her words before Squall turned his head slightly to see Rinoa embracing who they both knew was Fury, then slowly slid his intense gaze back to Shade. A moment's sigh escaped him before he finally spoke the truth they both knew. "You can't?.... or you don't want to?"

It was the first time Shade ever felt the truth come at such a blow, nor did she realize just how words could stab straight through the heart far more painful than any blade. She showed no sign of defiance, or agreement to Squall's words, but her weary gaze could no longer meet his own as her head bowed away as if in defeat. It was enough for him to know. Enough for him to lift her chin and force the eyes so much like his own to return and accept that truth. "Then stop punishing yourself..." He said nothing more as he released her chin to embrace her quietly in his arms as Shade simply closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the front of his shoulder. At that moment, she could feel the heaviness of her near life long burden slowly lift away with a trembling sigh. So many have told her those exact words, only for them to fall upon deaf ears. How could they ever understand.... Yet hearing them spoken from whom she always felt she wronged now broke away the dams of self blame....

When they parted, it was then Shade felt her brother's hand upon her shoulder. Yet another unspoken sign that she had more inner strength when Fury was with her. He didn't have to say a word. She knew, she felt, it was time to go.... Looking up at Squall, he gave her a solemn nod before stepping aside for her to follow Fury. She turned, just as her brother did, although unable to wave, but her eyes spoke enough for both of them to see her reluctant farewell. As the portal swirled around them, Shade still felt shockingly numb by it all as her heart wrenched to go back. She heard Fury's frustrated tone and venting words, yet her gaze was still locked to where their family once stood. She was about to tell him her own beliefs when their surroundings suddenly solidified around them, snapping her out of that momentary shock. At first sight, it appeared as if they came into some war zone, and in a matter of seconds of scanning their surroundings, her first suspicion was confirmed. Hearing the same static sounds as Fury did, she followed him as he went to retrieve the radio found next to fallen bodies. As they both listened to the all too familiar voices and names listed, Shade's own hand drifted against the neck of one of the fallen SeeDs, already knowing he was dead before she checked for a pulse to be sure. Even through the chaotic situation and demands for assistance, she felt a numbing calm fall over her, as if her body and mind were detached from all of this somehow. Shouldn't she be in a rage by this point? Furious that their “other” selves were in such danger and so close to death? Or had the emotional toll through the rifts drained her completely from feeling anything at all?

The following eruption of power snapped Shade back to attention, turning to see Fury release a final wave of flames that completely depleted what was left of his powers before collapsing to his knees to see his wings slowly disintegrate into the wind. She immediately rushed to his side to grab a hold of him and help him move through his stubbornness to keep fighting, situating Fury against the wall where they both now witnessed the horrific scene below. Not only were there masses of soldiers surrounding and firing at the crashed and crumbled Ragnaork, but several of the BGH251F2 tanks were maneuvering into their selective positions to fire upon the airship and the crew within. Shade's mind frantically scrambled for any form of reasoning. How could this have happened? She knew this couldn't be the dimension she was born from.... when the Fringe invaded her world, every nation within the planet had no choice but to unite for the sake of any chance at survival. There were never any further discrepancies among the nations or their leaders, where as the scene below confirmed this was of some in-worldly war going on.



She remained standing as Fury situated himself and his weapon in preparation to fire. Looking down at him as he spoke, Shade lightly rested her hand on his shoulder without a word, conjuring the multiple protection spell over him as she looked back the scene below. Not only was she not about to leave him unprotected while weakened, but should she collapse in exhaustion as well, or if something should go terribly wrong, Fury would need all the coverage he could get if it were up to him to get the both of them out of here safely when the rift would shift again. She gave him a solemn nod before leaving his side and headed toward the edge of the roof with her wings slowly coming to rise while casting her Evanesce spell over her form to become invisible to the naked eye. Now standing upon the very edge of the roof, Shade gazed down below as her eyes slowly shifted to their amber hues and igniting what strength she had left of her powers. The Iron Tanks were charging in preparation to fire all at once upon the Ragnarok.... the relentless fire power from the enemy soldiers came in endless waves.... then Shade heard the static of the radio again with her brother screaming for the reinforcements that would never make it in time. She had limited strength left after their last ordeal, not enough to ground every action again as before.... So her hands ignited with power and did the only thing she knew she could possibly do.


Her arms shot out as did her wings, lifting her body into the air as a bolt of energy swarmed over the Ragnarok. The airship lurched, startling the soldiers on the front line from continuing their fire, yet the others continued as the Tanks canons were nearly fully charged. With her jaw clenched, Shade groaned through her teeth and strained every ounce of power as her wings gave another downward swoop against the air to raise her up further, and in doing so, her powers forced the Ragnarok to follow. It's mangled shape struggled against the gate entangled within the broken wings as metal whined against metal and slowly ripped apart by being forced off the ground. Some of the forces were wise enough to turn and flee, others intensified their fire, and the canons were now glowing red to fire at any given moment. Shade gave one last swoop of her wings with a determined scream and gave the airship one last pull with her powers to tear the airship free from the gates and elevated up into the air just as the massive Tanks fired their canons. Their blasts missed the very bottom of the airship as it rose away, only for the blasts to now strike the Tanks positioned opposite of each other, causing multiple explosions to quake the foundation of the entire city.

Fury looked up to his sister as she placed her hand on him. He knew she was placing spells on him, and he didn’t care. At this point in time, he would take every ounce of help he could get. He hoped that she still had enough energy to protect herself too. This was a dangerous time for both of them, and if he was already drained of energy, she had to be close behind. He hoped that she would be able to hold onto her powers long enough to find a way to get them home. For at that point in time their race to find their home world was in her hands. He looked back to his rifle as she stepped to the edge of the building and then disappeared.

Fury brought the scope up to his eye and began to fire at all the troops that were pouring in towards the crash-site. Men dropped and screamed as the bullets flew from both his rifle and the weapons of the people inhabiting the crash. He was so focused on slowing them down, that he didn’t realize the Ragnorak was moving until he heard the loud screeching of metal on stone. He looked up from his rifle to see the ship shaking and straining to pull free of the gate. That was when Fury noticed the tanks charging their canons to fire at the ship. He quickly went back to his rifle and began firing even faster. Each bullet he fired ended the life of another soldier without Fury even knowing it. He fired and shifted to the next target without even confirming he killed the man.

Fury looked up from his rifle again, though, because he heard the screeching of metal again. The Ragnorak lurched free of the gatehouse and up into the air. Fury steadied himself against the low wall he was sitting by when the city shook from the explosions. The explosives that didn’t hit the opposite tanks struck the gatehouse. The house groaned and moaned as it strained to stay standing after the massive blow. Eventually, the building began to sway and falter under the stress. It crumbled under its own weight before fully falling upon the troops who stood transfixed on the view. Dust and debris were thrown in all directions from the impact of the enormous gatehouse.

Fury activated the thermal computer on the rifle’s scope and zoomed in on the gatehouse. He could see the shapes of wounded soldiers trying to get free of the enormous dust cloud. There were still some who tried to push towards it, though, intent on finding the crash site and finishing their mission. Fury aimed for those and began firing again. Eventually, there were only a handful of them left. They realized they were being thinned out and couldn’t see so they too turned and ran. Fury looked up from his scope in time to see the world around him melting away like before. They were traveling again…

Shade could only hear the endless gunfire ringing in her ears as she struggled with every ounce of what was left of her powers to keep the Ragnarok rising out of harms way. The terrifying thoughts that Fury would be sighted and shot ran rampant through her mind, but her gut slapped her focus back to attention. Even if they could be seen in this particular rift as they were in the last one, he was far too smart to be spotted... she knew that....


Even through the strain of keeping the Ragnarok elevated and slowly moving it to safety, Shade could hear the shouts of panic from within the ship through the random broken sections of the aircraft. From her aerial view, she finally caught glimpse of the reinforcements heading their way as Fury relentlessly continued to pick off the guards from the rooftop just as the SeeD version of himself blew off one of the hatch tops of the Ragnarok to climb through far enough with his own weapon to then fire down upon the enemy as well.


Even before the gunfire came to a stop, Shade could no longer keep hold of the massive ship for very long. But with the enemy dropping like flies and help along the way, she managed to set the shambled Ragnarok down within the outskirts of the city just as the first of reinforcements arrived. It appeared like some foreign land vehicle that resembled a high tech tank, but Shade didn't have the strength to remain and watch what transpired once the vehicle reached the wreckage and came to a stop. Had Shade turned to look, she would have witnesses the young Fury scrambling out of the Ragnarok to storm right up to the young Simon for quite the painful confrontation just before Shade found the rift beginning to liquefy once again right when she landed in a crumbling heap next to Fury.


As she lied on her back gasping for breath, her head turned to watch the shifting of their surroundings play out as they have repeatedly in the past. She began to fear that they were stuck within this rift for eternity as her strength continued to disintegrate even as the new scenery began to solidify around them. Upon opening her eyes again, what came into focus struck a hard core fear deep within her gut as the towering Sorceress Memorial came into view. Now ignoring her exhaustion all together, Shade struggled against her screaming limbs as her widened hues remained fixed upon the structure she once destroyed herself not that long ago. And as she finally managed to stagger back upon feet, it was then a convoy of black military vehicles slowly approached the tomb to then park right at the entrance.


The drivers and few passengers that got out of the vehicles stuck an odd cord of resemblance to Shade, but it wasn't until she saw what else they pulled out of the lead truck that the memory came at a hard blow, sending Shade back on her knees again in disbelief. It was her younger self.... no more than six years of age.... blindfolded and later discovered that she had been drugged in order for the authorities to bring her to the Memorial quietly and with minimal damage to even herself. "Fury....." Even the trembling could be heard within her voice as Shade watched on in horror as her own memory played out right before their eyes. "I remember this.... they tried to have me sealed.... just as they tried with our mother..." Her child form was carelessly held in the grasp of a man in a grey suit before a few of the scientists came outside to greet them. "They said I was too dangerous.... That no child could behold such power... That I was a risk to the planet...." By this point, Shade could feel every fiber of her being beginning to shake from the rage as her eyes slowly narrowed while rising to her feet once more. Her tone no longer shook, but beheld an eerie, dead flat tone as she began to approach the group of men, not caring at all if they saw her or not. "They tried.... they failed.... and now I know why...."


The suspicions had always been that it was Shade's youthful powers that dealt the carnage left behind that day, even though she was found still unconscious by the Balamb search team led by Cid Kramer. They presumed it was the powers alone that acted like a self defense mechanism when the host was threatened, since Shade was far too young to wield or control the Sorceress Powers on her own. But now the time had come full circle. True, it was Shade's doing.... but by the older, far more powerful version of herself that was to deliver a sound message to them all for tearing her family ruthlessly apart. First it was taking Fury away for their own means.... then with her, trying to seal her away....Now, it was time to collect....


With her wings erupting with a sound crack through the air, her hand extended out once more for the ground below to dissolve and produce the golden blade as before to lift slowly into her palm as her narrowed gaze erupted into luminous flames. Before venturing further, Shade paused in step and turned slightly to await for her brother, both knowing what had to be done. "The Memorial is mine....do what you will to the others..."

Fury laid his rifle down next to himself. The end of the barrel was still red-hot from him firing it so fast and so much. Glancing around at the pile of brass casings around him, he realized this was the first time he ever actually went on a mission he didn’t have enough ammo for. He looked on as the ship tilted and flew off away from the danger and towards the reinforcements. Shade was really doing it. He grabbed the rifle and used it to help prop himself up more just as Shade crashed on the ground near him.

He looked at her as the world melted away again. Seeing Shade in a heap on the ground, gasping for breath, made him a little angry and frustrated. If they couldn’t hold their powers together long enough to deal with these few encounters, how would they be able to stand against the entire Fringe army? They had to find a way to control these powers better or they would be the death of them. His fear of the magic that they wielded meant that the job would fall to his sister and her current condition showed that she would indefinitely push herself past her limit. It was a scary thought that he could lose her just like that. In the blink of an eye.

The world had already reformed around them when Fury was still running these thoughts through his head. He blinked once when he saw his sister push herself up through her pain and stare at the line of black SUV’s down near the Sorceress Memorial. Could it be? Did they really break through to their own world? The thought renewed Fury’s hope in the previous matters afflicting him, but it was when he saw the grim look on Shade’s face that he knew that the time for celebration was not then.

Fury struggled to his feet as he listened to his sister speak about what they did to her. It was just like what they had done to him, only she had been able to consciously remember the traumatizing event, he didn’t. He stared at her from the corner of his eye, searching for anything that would tell him that she wasn’t okay, but all he could see was the silent strain of determination etched across her face. He stood there a moment more after she let loose her wings again and started towards the memorial. She was truly a fore to be reckoned with and Fury knew that whoever was in that memorial site was going to suffer ten times as much as anyone he was going to face.

He rushed after her then, pushing through all the screams his muscles hurled at him to stop and rest. His sister needed him then and he was not about to allow his little sister to face this enemy alone. He followed her as far as the front door of the compound and then turned to face the crowd of security guards out front that hadn’t seen them yet. He drew out his revolvers and slowly loaded each one while he waited for the alarms to sound. Once they were loaded, he reached down and grabbed his smashed package of cigarettes and placed one in his mouth before lighting it with his zippo.

A moment later there was a massive crash from inside the memorial and Fury knew it would start in a minute. He looked out at the crowd of security guards who were all now scrambling towards the door and nodded. He knew what he had to do. He grabbed the cross around his neck and tossed it of the low balcony that he stood on. George burst from the ground and surveyed the guards who now all stopped dead in their tracks. Fury looked to the giant who in turn looked to him. ”Looks like we’re on another suicide mission, George. Let’s make the best of it.”

George spurred his horse forward and charged the group of guards while Fury let out a war-cry and began raining lead down on them with his revolvers...

Shade knew there were risks. She knew this was of the worst kind, even having lectured Fury so recently of the consiquences to one's actions when dealing with such a delicate balance of time. Had it not been for this mysterious rift throwing them about to and fro between random dimensions, most likely Shade would have stuck to her original morals. It was obvious by now they were meant to intervene, even if they didn't belong. Any doubts Shade may have had left were now extinguished by this very moment.


As she forced her straining legs to carry her closer to the entrance, her presence was spotted. At this point, Shade no longer cared if she could be seen or not. A handful of the suited men, along with armored guards came running towards her from the vehicles with their weapons aimed and shouting orders. With a casual swing of her arm, an erupt gust of winds blasted against the ground in front of them and threw their bodies several yards away without Shade even sparing them a glance as their screams faded off into the distance. By the time she reached the entrance, the commotion already brought what guards within to scramble for the multiple glass doors, only to stop and aim their weapons directly at her. This time, Shade did give pause to her step.


With the same free hand, she raised her arm and gave a dismissive flick of her wrist for all of the glass to explode into the Memorial with a thunderous crash sending thousands of shards into the barricade of guards. As they all lied screaming across the floor and squirming like dying fish in their own pools of blood, Shade stepped over whatever bodies lied across her path to reach the main chamber that beheld the tomb. By the explosions outside, she easily assumed her brother had summoned his Guardian knight which would buy her the time she needed. Once standing before the enormous glass dome that served to seal whomever beheld the sorceress powers, Shade could only glare with raw rage. It boiled her blood as the adrenaline rushed through her veins, igniting her own powers that sent a painful pressure about the room and sent what remaining scientists scrambling and screaming for escape.


She kept her focus on the tomb alone as the thick glass began to crack from the amount of gravity she summoned into the room. The ripping sounds echoed throughout the massive room as the cracks spread throughout the dome like multiple raging rivers that reflected against her illuminating glare now glowing a bright amber hue. Her stark white wings slowly rose up high and spread wide as each feather began to seep into an ebony black the more powerful her magic grew. The Golden Gunblade within her hand also resonated its own fierce glow as it was brought to rise and aimed for the dome. Just when there was barely any glass left untouched by immense pressure her powers inflicted, Shade released a single piercing scream as her weapon shot a powerful bolt of energy against the tomb that sent the seal and the entire room to explode through the ceiling like a erupting volcano.


How much time had passed, it felt as if each second were several hours.... as if time slowed greatly around her while standing in place as the rubble and debris fell around her. She felt herself sway from the weakness washing over her, but found it odd that her entire body felt completely numb. With her limbs trembling, somehow Shade managed to direct herself out of the shambles while staggering her way for the exit. Fury was still out there.... she had to get to him... her younger self was still out there.... she had to... But her knees came crashing to the ground and her palms hit the floor as she struggled for breath. How she managed before loosing consciousness, she didn't know, but the Griever pendant was tossed from her pocket just as her body fell into the rubble.


Within moments, the massive lion Guardian was emerging through the shambles of the entrance as his enormous form casually shoved through what remained in order to to emerge outside with Shade's limp form draped over his back.

Fury leaned up against the low wall and watched as George danced amongst the onslaught of soldiers that were charging the tomb. The summon dipped and slashed his sword in a swirl of death while his horse kicked and bucked soldiers that he missed into unconsciousness or into the air for George to swipe with his massive sword. The summon moved with an impossible grace for something that size through the men as bullets pinged and ricocheted off of his metal form. Where-ever his sword passed, it was followed by a trail of crimson that would paint his surroundings a sickening red, including the other guards.

But not all of the guards were focused on the eidolon. A few had seen the destruction that Shade had caused at the front door and were rushing Fury’s position, trying to chase his sister and stop her from ceasing what they came there to do. Fury aimed his revolver with a shaky hand at the lead soldier and fired. The bullet struck the man in the throat, ceasing all his forward momentum and sending him flying back into the man behind him. He fired five more times, striking three more guards with bullets and dropping them to the ground.

A guard got a lucky shot off, though and Fury felt three burning sensations along the right side of his body as three bullets tore into him. One struck him just above the hip, another grazed his ribs, and the last punctured straight through his right shoulder, causing him to drop his pistol in that hand. He snapped his left hand up and shot the man who had shot him twice, leaving him four more shot before he would have to reload. There were too many guards coming towards him and not enough ammo. He fired his last four shots off, taking down three more approaching guards, before sliding down behind the wall.

He lay there, slowly fading in and out of consciousness as he watched guards run past him towards the tomb. He reached up with his left hand and felt the warm sticky liquid that was slowly pouring from the hole in his shoulder. He was going to die. His mind raced from everyone depending on him. Shade, his girls, the team, all of Balamb, all of the eighth world, heck even the other worlds he works in. All were in peril now that he was going to die. And yet, the cold embrace of death felt so good. He slowly slipped back into unconsciousness.

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Private Pablo Vegas hated these damned scientists with a raging passion. They brought a damned kid to the fucking Sorceress Tomb to be sealed away like some animal in a zoo. He didn’t care how unstable and powerful the kid was, the whole situation was fucked up.

But he kept his mouth shut. He needed the money from the job to help pay for his kid-to-be. He was going to be a fucking dad! I mean, this was incredible! All he had to do was continue working for these scumbags for just a little longer to save up enough money for the hospital bill and then he could quit and find something more morally aligned to his own moral compass. Hell, maybe he’d even try becoming one of those guys who operated the tram-ways in Esthar. What were they called? Oh, yeah, conductors. He could go to work all day driving those big-ass trains and then spend the night with his beautiful wife and his baby boy.

And now it was all gone to shit.

Just after they got out of the cars, shit started exploding. First a winged lady showed up swinging her arms around and causing all sorts of chaos, then a giant-ass metal man blew up and started going Zell Dincht on their asses, and now he and his squad were charging at a guy with a gun who didn’t seem to be able to miss no matter how hard his buddies tried to dodge.

The corporal slapped him in the back of the head and pointed towards the tomb. ”Vega, Cap’n hit the sonofabitch, we’re moving into the tomb after the crazy-lady.” Vega peeked his head out from the cover he was cowering behind to see the Captain waving the rest of the team towards the building. Great, now they got to go save all the scientists from the she-witch that went in after them. Vegas grabbed his rifle and ran to catch up with the rest of his team.

He stopped when he reached the low-wall that the man who had been shooting at them was behind. He looked down at the man, entranced by him for some reason. The man looked strangely familiar. The man stirred, looking up at him with confused eyes. How did he know that this man was bad? Hell, this man could be just trying to get his daughter back for all he knew! Maybe Vegas was the bad-guy here? That made him think: How far would I go to save my kid?

Talk about a mind-fuck!

Holy Hyne! Why was he thinking like this! His head snapped up when he heard the captain yelling at him. ”Vegas! Just shoot the fucker and get your ass over here!”

Right. This was a job, not a psychologist’s office. He had a job to do and if he was going to get home to his wife and unborn child he had to get this over with fast. He raised his rifle to aim at the man’s face. The man didn’t resist in anyway, but Vegas could see the fires of defiance in his eyes. Sorry, shitface, today is not your day…

Vegas’s head shot up towards the tomb as it erupted in an explosion, engulfing his team in fire and debris.

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Fury slipped in and out of consciousness a few more times. Each time he did, something else changed. First it was the soldiers, at first there were none in his vision, but after a few times there was nearly a dozen standing by the door, staring back at him. Then it was another soldier standing next to him. The man just stared at him, unable to just put him out of his misery.

Fury hated the man.

He couldn’t just kill him and allow the suffering to end. He had to draw out the moment, causing Fury more pain. Why was he doing this? Was he trying to impress his friends? Or was he just reveling in the pain he was causing him? No, neither could be true. There was nothing in the man’s emerald eyes that spoke of malice. No, there was a tinge of pity there, but nothing else.

Which made Fury even angrier.

He was not going to die like this. He couldn’t leave everyone behind. He couldn’t leave his daughters behind, not when they were still so young. He had to make sure they grew up right. He couldn’t leave them in Dusty’s hands, that was for sure. Heck, he still had to go shoe shopping for them with Jayda.

Jayda.

He stared defiantly down the barrel of the soldier’s barrel. He was not going to die now. Not when he had so much left to do. By the grace of some deity, though, he was granted that wish. The tomb erupted in an explosion and the soldier’s eyes turned to see it. Fury shot his hand up towards the man and his hand glowered a bright light. His hand grasped the bright white pistol in his hand and pulled the trigger, sending a bullet up into the man. The man toppled to the ground, spurting blood onto Fury as Fury blacked out again.

When he came too again, Griever and George both were standing above him. George reached down and scooped him up in his arms as Griever showed him that Shade was safe upon his back. Fury nodded weakly to both of them and they turned towards the portal that was forming before passing out again.

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Vegas lay in a pool of his own blood. He didn’t know how he had been shot by the unarmed man, but he now had a hole in his throat. Fuck, that hurt! He reached up and grabbed at his vest, trying to pull the small picture from its spot in the pocket just above his heart. Pulling out the picture, he looked down at the image of his wife. There were blood stains all over it from where his blood had seeped down into the pocket, but he could still see her face. She was more beautiful than he remembered, an angel to in a human’s clothing. What he would give to see her face one… last… time…

Vegas lay still in the chilly evening air. His chest rose and fell for a while longer, but soon even that ceased. A strong wind blew past, threatening to pull the picture from the deceased man’s grasp. Vegas’s hand was a vise-grip, never letting go of his one true love.

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When he came to again, he was lying in a hospital bed. He looked around and found that Shade was in the bed next to him. They had finally made it home.

Brix kept an insomniac vigilance on the sibling pair from the very moment Shade and Fury appeared at the Balamb Garden doorstep nearly dead with exhaustion upon their Guardian Forces. She gave each of them a sound lashing of words throughout the duration of their examinations and treatment, hooking them up to every damn medical mechanism in order to to be sure she knew every diagnosis since there was no other way for her to get any answers. For the next 72 hours, it was an annoying waiting game as several visitors came to call to check over their progress.


At one point, just as Brix left the room simply to use the restroom, she returned to find Dusty had arrived and was leering a bit too close to Fury which led her suspicions to sound the alarms off in her head. "Just what the hell are you doing to my patient!?"


Fury's comrade leaped nearly three feet from being unexpectedly startled, and when he whipped around to face the buxom blond physician, he failed to hide the bright red Sharpie marker that was in his hand as he tried to give Brix a flirtatious smile to distract her attention. That failed as well as Brix approached him with a stern look and held out her hand for the marker until she came to abrupt stop when she saw Fury's face. With her jaw hung to the floor and her bright blue eyes about to pop out of their sockets, all she could hear was Dusty chuckling. Finally she glared at him only to see a rather smug look on his face in return as she hissed through her teeth so not to awaken either Shade or Fury. "Do you realize what he'll do to my clinic when he sees his face? He'll blame ME, you idiot!!" She rushed off to the medical cabinets and rummaged through the stock of supplies for the antibiotic wipes only to have Dusty give chase and whispering back as well. "No wait! Wait! Wait! You gotta let me get a picture first!"


Brix turned abruptly with disbelief just in time to see Dusty with his cell phone in hand and clicking the button repeatedly for several pictures of Fury's face drawn up like a cat before she could chase him out of the room entirely, throwing wipes at him as she did so, only to hear him laughing his ass off as tore off out of the Infirmary....


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It wasn't until Fury and Shade were now stable that Brix allowed Jayda to visit. Although she knew the Kinneas girl was the strong sort, Brix just had a strong hunch her friend would go mad with worry and stress if she witnessed the two Leonharts in the condition they were in when they first arrived. And with Fury's girls solely in Jayda's care while he was recuperating, Jayda needed her wits and emotions in check in order to be strong for his concerned daughters.


For the longest time, Jayda just stood in the middle of the foot of their beds with her silent gaze slowly looking at the both of them, and with her arms wrapped around herself as if she had no idea what to do, or what to say. Only the gentle ticking of the wall clock echoing throughout the room could be heard until she finally released a long drawn out sigh with a weary expression across her tired face. First, Jayda approached Shade's bed side, slowly looking over her friend from head to foot and all the machines Shade was hooked up to before raising her hand and giving her slumbering friend a slight smack to the forhead with her fingers. "That thar is fer bein' stupid.... Yew know bett'r than tah strain yer powers layk ya did, Shadey.... yew know it's tew darn risky!" After glaring down at her friend to see that Shade slept soundly through the scolding, Jayda gave a sniff before bending over and giving her comrade a gentle hug. "An' that's tah help ya hurry up an' geyt bett'r..."


Now turning and approaching Fury's side, Jayda's scowl appeared to deepen some what. His face was already cleaned up of any evidence of Dusty's prank as she also studied Fury from head to toe just as she did with Shade. And just as she did with Shade, Jayda gave him the same smack on the forhead, yet maybe with a little more force than she did with her childhood friend. "That thar's fer scarin' meh, Mr. Fury.... an' worryin' meh.... an'....an' Ah shulda leyt Dusty keep those darned pictures o' yew all drawn ov'r just fer yew scarin' meh layk ya did...." She gave a soft sniff and instinctively wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand from the sting of tears that threatened to fall while trying to choke out her next words. "Can't loose mah drinkin' buddy, ya know...." After regaining her composure, Jayda took a deep calm breath when looking down at Fury again, then gave a swift glance at the door to be sure Brix wasn't nearby before giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "An that's tah help ya hurry up an' geyt bett'r...."


She tore out of the room faster than a rabbit just as Brix was about to walk in with new IV bags, leaving the physician with a worried look as she heard Jayda sniffling out the clinic door....


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"You sure daddy's sleeping?"

Alivia rolled her eyes at her younger sister from across Fury's bed as he remained in his unconscious state and replied with a sarcastic tone. "Noooooo..... he's just so bored he has nothing else to do but keep his eyes closed so we THINK he's asleep...."

Serenity's eyes were the only thing that moved, sliding from her father's slumbering face to give her older sibling the "oh shut up" look before lifting her hand over the side rails of the bed and giving Fury a light poke against his arm. "Maybe cause no one's tried to wake him up yet.... and what's the difference between sleeping and uncun...oncon...uncon-chess- ness?"

Alivia's face relaxed with a slight shrug of her shoulders as she snuck her own hands in between the bedrails on her side to hold her father's hand in both of her small ones while keeping an unblinking vigilance on his face; mentally willing him to wake up. "I dunno.... Jayda says it's just a deeper sleep that's harder to wake up from sometimes.... She says it's because daddy's just extremely tired from whatever mission he went on...." But Alivia knew better than that, but was wise enough not to speak of the concerns to the younger Serenity. She had to be brave for her younger sister.... Daddy would want her to be brave.... Just like him....

When seeing Serenity now nudge their father's arm a bit more, Alivia hissed at her to stop just as Brix walked in to check Shade and Fury's vitals for the umteenth time of the day. She came to a skidding stop and stared wide eyed at the little girls as they scrambled away from Fury's bed with silent guilt spread over their small faces. Brix narrowed her eyes just a bit, but more out of curiosity, rather than anger. "Just where do your instructors think you are right now?"

Serenity shuffled discreetly behind her older sister as Alivia gave a little shrug, but boldly met Brix's gaze with a firm upper chin. "It's recess.... we snuck over here when everyone was too busy at the cafeteria getting lunch." Seeing her sister being brave gave Serenity the courage to speak up as well. "We just wanted to see him for a minute, Miss Brix.... Miss Jayda said he would be okay.... but we missed daddy and just wanted to see him.... just for a minute..."

Brix had nothing else left to do but facepalm herself because the cursed cute look on the two adorable little girls faces already did her in. After peeking through her fingers and seeing Alivia looking as stubborn as her father, and Serenity's fingers fidgeting with her clothes, Brix sighed in defeat. "Alright, alright.... I won't tell a soul... but you two better get your butts back with your class before your Instructors sound off an alarm when they find you two missing!"

With eager nods, both girls rushed back to their father for each of them to give Fury a quick kiss to his cheeks before tearing out of the clinic to rejoin their classmates....


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At first.... she felt as if her entire body was spinning.... then the furious pounding within her head.... followed by a heavy groan as she sensed a bright light against her eyes without even opening them yet. When Shade finally managed to pry open her right eye, seeing a very tict off Brix above her was the last thing she expected. Her physician friend had her own right eye narrowed and twitching as the left appeared as if it could shoot daggers before Brix scolded her with a hushed voice through her teeth. "Well good morning, dumbass..... I sure hope you feel like shit after all the worry you put me and everyone else through!"

Shade simply closed her eye again and turned her head away as she struggled to lift up her hand to give Brix a weak dismissive wave. But Brix wasn't having it. Her arms crossed over her chest as she gave Fury a scant glance to be sure he was still out cold before continuing, but leaning down closer to Shade so she could whisper her words. "I'm dead serious, Shade.... You went too far this time... The markings were on your skin when you got here.... the same as Ultimecia's..... luckily for you, not as many and hidden by your clothes! You're going too far with your powers having no stability to support you!"


Shade groaned again, yet with more force this time when bringing her hand to her face and slowly rubbing her eyes. She managed to speak, but her voice sounded as if it were drug through sandpaper. "Stop whining already, Brix... I'm fine..... and Fury manages with his powers.... so I can as well....."


Brix reached down and had the audacity to use her hand to force Shade to look back up at her, looking far more serious than Shade had ever seen before. "That's because your brother has those girls to keep him stable, and you damn well know it! .....Stop playing the tough act with me, Shade. Either you wisen up.... or this is going to kill you like you know it will. I will NOT stand by and do nothing while you pull off some suicidal stunt!"


With that.... Brix stormed right out of the room, leaving Shade to dwell with the inevitable truth on her own.....