Chapter 1 - In the end

          “The first person I ever truly loved was SOLDIER”
Zack shook his head lightly and regained himself. The sun was setting behind the tall mountains in the distance making the area surrounding rather dull. There was a light wind, more like a cool breeze. It was a nice afternoon to relax and gaze at the orange tinted sky and the fluffy shaped clouds but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case for Zack and the other SOLDIERS. A small village was situated in the middle of a grassy plain surrounded by hillsides full of wild flowers. It was a quiet village. You wouldn’t expect anything big to happen but just simple families living simple lives. Small children would play together and pick the wild flowers while the elders would harvest their crops ready for the long winter, but surprisingly gunfire was heard. Harsh cries of terror and agony blew in the gentle breeze towards the SOLDIERS. What was going on? Zack paid close attention to the battle but it was barely visible due to the distance they were from the village. He turned around to face his fellow comrades who were preparing for battle.           
          “Angeal” he said calmly.            
          A fairly tall SOLDIER with short black hair stopped what he was doing and paid attention.           
          “Pass me the binoculars. I want to take a closer look at the village. I think the enemy is armed with rifles.”           
          Angeal went over to a small supply bag and shuffled through it. He took out a pair of jet black binoculars with a single cord attached to the middle piece and threw them to Zack.            
          The gunfire got worse and the screams got louder. The wind picked up blowing the near by trees vigorously. Zack pressed the binoculars to his eyes and peered out over the village. He could see soldiers wearing dark navy uniform equipped with rifles and machine guns. They treaded through the village killing anyone they could find, even their own men by accident. Angeal knelt down next to Zack. “What do you see?”           
          “A blood bath” Zack replied pulling the binoculars away from his eyes.          
          “Let me take a look.” Angeal took a look for himself and gasped when he saw a jet black motorbike come into view; zipping past soldiers. “Zack, a blonde haired man carrying a buster sword has entered the battle field.”           
          “Blonde haired… CLOUD!” Zack raced down the hillside with his sword in hand and screamed out. Angeal and the SOLDIER’s behind him shouted out warnings but he took no notice.            
          Upon seeing Zack, the enemy began to retreat. They fled up the hills and into the forests; many of them dropping their guns on the way.
          “Are they afraid of me or something?” he thought to himself. It took only 10 minutes for the enemy to clear out of the village. It almost fell quiet but a single scream of pain was heard in the center of the village. The remaining town’s people crowed around and whispered among themselves. Zack zipped through the small houses and streets till he finally made it to the center. He followed the sights of the villagers and looked to the man lying on the ground, clenching his chest tightly.
          “Cloud…” Zack said softly now in awe. 
          Blood dribbled between Cloud’s fingers. He was dying. An old lady walked up slowly to Zack with a damp cloth and bucket.
         “This is your friend, no? You take care of him” The old lady handed him the damp cloth and headed back into the crowd. Zack moved closer to the center and knelt down next to his injured friend. The town’s people watched him move Cloud’s hand from the wound and press the damp cloth fairly hard in its place. Blood dribbled down sinking into the soil and staining it.
          “Z-zack?” Cloud tried to sit up but only made it a few inches before collapsing back down. His body started to shake and his face went pale; almost white.
          “Hang in there.” Zack said softly. But before long, Cloud fell into a state of unconsciousness.
          Zack thought the worst for Cloud but didn’t give up until he was sure. He turned around and could see faintly his fellow comrades rushing through the hills of wild flowers. One of the SOLDIERS carried a small first aid kit in their left hand and shouted out something that Zack was unable to hear. 
          The wind died down and the village fell quiet. Once the other SOLDIERS reached the village, Zack lifted up Cloud and carried him out to the border of the village where the young SOLDIER with the first aid kit stood and laid him down gently.
          “This looks serious” said the young man.Zack said nothing but sat down and hid his face from the young SOLDIER’s view. He whimpered slightly and closed his eyes letting a small tear run down the right side of his cheek. He couldn’t let his best friend die. He wouldn’t.
          The young SOLDIER looked to Cloud and knew there was really no hope in bringing him back. He looked up and could see faintly the tears falling off Zack’s face and bouncing off the hard earth below. “Sir” the young SOLDIER started. “Maybe we should take him back to head quarters.”  
         Zack quickly rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and nodded. “We need to call a helicopter. Head Quarters is too far for me to carry Cloud”
          Before the young SOLDEIR could reply, Zack too out his mobile phone and started to dial a few numbers. He waited impatiently as it began to ring. 
          “Hello, QSR head quarters. How may I help you?” 
          “We have a SOLDIER down and need helicopter assistance immediately” Zack said almost screaming.
          “Yes sir right away. Give us 5 minutes and it should arrive soon. We are you SOLDIER?”
          Zack looked at the surrounding area before replying with, “We are east of Midgar in a small village over the hills.”
          “Thank you. The helicopter should arrive soon” 
          Zack hung up and placed his phone back into his pocket. Now all he had to do was wait.
          “Don’t leave me Cloud… not yet…”

I was tried when I wrote this so sorry if it isn't great but don't worry. You will find out what happens to Cloud and Zack in the next chapter so keep reading!

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