15 - Back in Midgar

[Shadow Phoenix]

Bax tossed and turned in his sleep. He was only partially asleep and was trying hard to make sure that he kept his head-flame under control. He remembered as he laid down that the material of these beds were probably not fireproof. As his mind raced about everything that was going on, his mind also treaded along the banks where he stored all of his memories. It was becoming harder and harder to concentrate at all. His mind had been erratic the entire day, but he'd done his best to hide it. He was certain that Prodigi or Zack would hear him tossing and turning except for the fact that Zack was snoring lightly and Prodigi appeared to be quite still with sleep. Unless they were light sleepers, Bax's movement in the somewhat squeaky bed probably wouldn't wake them. But Bax's slight paranoia still served to aggravate him about it.

Prodigi seemed to be quite a tortured soul. He wasn't sure of a lot of his own facets and that sort of disturbed Bax. The way that he had suddenly changed and flew at Bax had shocked Bax so much that he froze up completely where he had been standing. It actually reminded him of the sudden change in Sephiroth when he just lost it after having a nightmare and attacked Bax. Bax wasn't used to being attacked out of the blue and it still surprised him. Then, the way that Prodigi had frozen him and fallen out of mid-air...was it schizophrenia? Or something much darker and deeper?

Then there was the way he just randomly found Zack. Bax had no idea how he arrived at the very building where Zack had been moments before he sent his target flying out of the window. It was absolutely amazing, and Bax didn't know what to make of it. These new acquaintances of his were surprising him more and more every day.

Bax opened his eyes and looked at the table where he had put Zack's "birthday gift" to him as he walked into the room. The red umbrella certainly meant more to Bax than it probably would to most people. The very thought of it, an effort to protect Bax from the elements of this planet...it meant a lot to Bax. Bax only wished that he could somehow return this favor. Bax smiled a bit and closed his eyes again.

Why wouldn't sleep come?

And for that matter, where had Lynx disappeared to? Bax hadn't seen him since he had left the hospital earlier that day, and then...

A flood of realization swept over Bax. What if Lynx had gone back to the hospital and they weren't there? He may have thought that they abandoned him or something. Bax was suddenly worried about their feline companion. Bax wondered if he had perhaps gotten into some trouble. What if he was staying at the hospital? Bax decided that he would go to the hospital upon waking up. Wandering the streets at this time of night probably wasn't the best idea. Besides, he was too exhausted from all of this thinking. He needed to sleep.

And he finally did...

And as he did, he dreamed...

* * *


"So, what is his name gonna be?"
Bax looked anxiously at his older brother, Drax, who had a beaming smile across his face.
"Trenix. Trenix Firago."
Drax seemed to blush a little bit. Bax smiled again and threw his arm around his brother's shoulders, "Powerful Firestorm, eh? I'm glad you finally chose a name. Especially since he's going to be born in a few hours."
Drax threw his head back and laughed, "Gamina and I have been trying to decide on his name for a while. Trenix just seemed right."
"My little nephew...I'm gonna be an uncle!"
The two brothers looked at each other again and laughed. Drax spoke through his laughter, "And I'm gonna be a daddy. At 20. Wow."
Both of them leaned back in their chairs and sighed deeply, practically imitating each other. It was clear that they spent far too much time with each other. They both chuckled lightly.

After a few moments of silence, Bax turned his head, "Are you sure you don't want to go wait with Gamina? You don't want to get her angry do you?"
Drax rolled his eyes, "My wife kicked me out before. If she wants me, she will-"
The PA system cut Bax's older brother off, "Attention: will King Drax Firago please report to the Queen's room? I repeat, will King Drax Firago please report to the Queen's room?"
Both of them sat there for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Speak of the devil," Drax quipped sarcastically. "I'll let you know when you're an uncle, Bax."

Bax watched his brother walk down the hall. He was suddenly very happy. Granted, he had lost his father 3 years before and his mother less than a year afterwards, but all of that now seemed to be overshadowed by these happy events. He had not been this happy since the last time his father had been on Auralis. He had barely been happy at all. But being with his brother, his sister-in-law, and (soon) his nephew just seemed to make everything all right. At least for now.

Bax stood up and walked to the window at the end of the hall. As he looked out at the gorgeous view of the palace, he reminisced of the days when he had been happy with his life. Why had everything become so hard? He hoped that they would now be looking up...for good. He didn't want to suffer any more loss until he was old and decrepit and came to expect it. That was how the universe was supposed to work, wasn't it? Your loved ones were not supposed to be robbed from you at such a young age when they themselves still had their entire lives ahead of them...were they? And not in succession, one after another. Bax didn't want this pain in his life, when he would have to deal with it for such a long time...it simply wasn't fair...

Bax collapsed to his knees their at the end of the hospital and cried silently.

* * *


Bax opened his eyes slowly. He smiled. That had been one of the happier times in his 28 years. When his nephew had been born. Bax missed Trenix terribly right now. He would be 15 in a few weeks. Bax just wished that he could be there to celebrate with him. It was ironic - Bax had bought him something on Kebrosk Filii. It had probably been destroyed in the crash, Bax reckoned. He couldn't remember grabbing it before the cruiser crashed...so, most likely. A tear traced a thin line down Bax's cheek as the memories of that awful crash came back to Bax. He blinked the memories away and sat up slowly. He looked at the bed and smiled. He had been able to keep his concentration enough so as not to make any burns. He was proud of himself.

But now he had to find Lynx. Bax righted his agenda and stood up, preparing to leave. As he pulled on his boots with certain ferocity, he wondered if he should wake Zack and Prodigi. He wasn't sure at all...they seemed to be sleeping so peacefully and Bax would have hated to wake them unnecessarily. After all, he was just going to the hospital. He would probably be back before they woke up anyway.

So, he decided to write them a small note.

Zack and Prodigi,
Gone to hospital to look for Lynx. Be back soon.
~Bax


Bax laid the note in plain view and carefully left the room without making too much noise. His swords made some light clinking and clanking sounds and the floor squeaked a bit with each step, but he seemed to be doing all right. Satisfied that he hadn't done too much to wake his companions, Bax left the cheap inn and took off towards the hospital. He had no idea what he was about to get himself into.

[ZaCloud]

Zack cautiously opened his eyes and looked around without moving. That was how one avoided being bitten by rattlesnakes or stung by scorpions in the morning; often these creatures would huddle against a sleeping body for warmth, so checking carefully for them was an important part of waking up. Except he realized that he was under shelter, where these animals did not venture, and was covered by a blanket. He yawned and stretched wide out, then curled up on his side, with much of the blanket now clasped in his arms. He sighed contentedly, releasing the breath in the form of a quiet, one-noted happy-hum, reveling in the soft warmth around him. His first time waking up in a bed, with a blanket and pillow.

I could stay like this all day, he thought, feeling so cozy and safe.

But then he remembered that he had a lot of exploring to do, even in their small room. He had only given the place a quick bout of ogling and poking yesterday, as he had been very tired and eager to try out the bed. He smiled at how fun it had been to jump on the bouncy, soft furniture piece, though he couldn’t do so anymore to avoid breaking the springs.

Looking over at Prodigi’s bed and seeing that he was still asleep, he was extra quiet as he uncovered himself and sat up, stretching once more, then rubbing his eyes with an index finger. He then perked up and began to closely examine everything in the room with more concentration than before. Yesterday, he had run around like a child in a candy-store, blurting out things he recognized from old magazine clippings or fifth-hand accounts, switching lights on and off with amazement and amusement. Bax had had to explain a few things to him. (Of all the aliens in the group, he, Zack, had been the one who seemed like the alien!) Now he had to be more quiet, though his excitement was still at a high level. He had never dared to truly believe he could be in such a place. And this was only a cheap hotel!

Bax was clearly not there anymore, and he saw a note on the Phoenian’s nightstand. Zack approached and did his best to read the note. “…Zake-k… er, Zack… (oh so that’s how it’s spelled!) … and… Pro die guy… (wait, ‘Prodigi’ maybe)… Go knee, toe, hoe spite lee… Man, I guess he can’t write in English.” He gave up on the efforts, and touched the mattress where the Phoenian had lain. It was almost completely cold, so he had been gone a while.

Maybe he went to the hospital to look for Lynx, he reasoned, and that’s a little far off, so he’s probably still on his way. He shrugged, and resumed finding out more about how things were for the civilized.

After a while, however, he felt the need to use the bathroom. He couldn’t help but giggle quietly, for now he would quite literally use a real bathroom. Upon entering the room, his senses were once more bombarded with strange objects. At least he had seen pictures of a toilet before, so he used the right thing for the right function. The sink was also easy to identify, but washing his hands was not so easy. He stuck them under the faucet, but no water came out. He tried bumping his knuckles against the water outlet, then finally poking a finger into it. He then puzzled over the (H) and (C) valves. He tried poking, then pushing, then pulling. Then he twisted the one labeled (H) to the left. It got too hard to do. He tried to the right, and finally water came out.

“There we go!” he said in quiet triumph, rubbing his hands in the small stream of water. But it began to get hotter, and hotter, until it was downright painful. Jerking his hands from the sink, he blew on them and cocked his head in puzzlement. “What the heck? Why’d it get all hot? They tryin’ to limit water usage or somethin’?” He turned it off, then tried out the (C) valve. Cautiously, he stuck a finger into the stream. It was warm for a bit, then it turned very cold. Blinking, he then smiled. “Ahh, now I see.” He then messed with both valves until the water temperature was pleasant.

Then, he remembered that there was no sand to scrub with, and that most civilized people used some mysterious entity known as “Soap”. Right on part of the sink, he saw a wrapped up rectangle with text on it.

“…Hoe… Teel… So Ap?” he tried to read. “Is that one o’ them old foreign languages or somethin’? Maybe Bax asked for something in his language? Oh well, it almost looks like it says ‘soap’, so that must be it.” He unwrapped it and rubbed it on his hands, but soon it slipped from his grip and fell into the sink.

Giggling, he picked it back up and tried again. Once more it slipped out, this time upward and into the mirror, leaving a white bubbly smear in the upper left corner. Zack tried to wipe it off, but smeared it more since his hands were covered in suds. He then realized his reflection was far more clear and vivid than in water. He smiled back at himself, then narrowed his eyebrows for a good self-stare-down. Then he rinsed off his hands so he could use them in a bout of constructive face-making, stretching his mouth or eyelids or nose in various exaggerated positions.

After enough of this fun, he realized he had been running the water for too long and turned it off, saying, “I’m sorry,” to the sink. He instinctively dried his hands off in his hair, before remembering that was what towels were for. He sighed. “Oh well, I’ll get used to it eventually,” he resolved.

Then he remembered that civilized people always considered it bad manners to leave a used toilet unflushed. He knew that to flush something meant to drain it. But he saw no cup with which to scoop, and didn’t think that would have been a very efficient or pleasant way to deal with it anyway. “Hmm… Maybe if ya do somethin’ to the shiny thing, it drains?”<br>
He poked, wiggled, then finally pulled down on the “shiny thing”.

The sound of the flushing toilet wouldn’t have woken Prodigi up… but Zack’s startled yelp did. He jumped out of the bathroom backwards (having not closed the door since it had slipped his mind), hands to his face, eyes wide and worried. Prodogi meanwhile had sat up quickly, looking around in confusion until his eyes lay on the source of alarm.

“I broke it!” Zack fretted, “Oh crap, I didn’t mean to! All I did was pull down the shiny thing!”<br>
Prodigi blinked, then sighed and shook his head. “All you did was flush the toilet,” he said with both slight irritation and mild amusement.

“…I did? That’s what they’re supposed to do?”<br>
“Yes, Zack. It’s fine.”<br>
Zack sighed with relief, then laughed breathlessly, rubbing the back of his head and blushing. “Heh, oh man, I was worried. Uhh, sorry I woke you up.”<br>
“That’s alright… It isn’t very early anyway.” As Prodigi stretched, Zack sat back down on his own bed.

He felt a bit uncomfortable with what was on his mind, but he knew this was probably the best time to bring it up.

“Umm… where’d you put the ‘Wanted’ posters?”<br>
Prodigi opened the nightstand drawer and handed them over. He himself felt a bit tense at that point, wondering…<br>
“…You saw it, right?” Zack asked.

Prodigi put his left hand discreetly under his pillow, where one of his Desert Eagles was. “…Did I see what?”<br>
Zack saw the motion, but did nothing more than put down the papers and raise his empty hands. “Guess you did. Well, please don’t worry about me. I wouldn’t take you in, especially over somethin’ that’s not even a crime!”<br>
The small outlaw relaxed a bit, but still couldn’t help but remain alert. “Even for that much reward money?”<br>
Zack chuckled, folding his hands behind his head and raising his bare feet off of the floor, holding them straight out in front of him. “If I did that, I’d hafta have a poster of my own for the same crime!” He tapped his big toes together twice. “Both me, and Bax. We think everyone should hate the Senate!”<br>
“…Is that so?”<br>
“Hell yeah! They beat the crap out of us, an’ manage to scare even me! Plus they’re just plain evil. They’re tryin’ to get somethin’ really important an’ powerful. I feel like I’ve tried to stop ‘em before, an’ should try again, though I dunno how reasonable a wish like that is.” His expression suddenly became grim and dark. “They even turned a possible ally against us, changing his manner to suit their own. They believe he can help them find what they seek.”<br>
His expression then jerked back to silly once more. “Somethin’ like ‘The Valley of Prospicity’ or ‘The Element of Promise’ or somethin’ weird like that.”

[Shadow Phoenix]

Bax had kept a light jog the whole way down the streets of Midgar on his way from their hotel to the hospital. The stale morning air was still quite refreshing to Bax as he carefully jogged along his route. He couldn't afford to let his guard down in this city. He had taken a brief look at the wanted posters and could easily see how many dangerous criminals there were in this city. He didn't want to meet up with one of them when he wasn't expecting it at all. He didn't want to lose his life here on Earth, least of all to a random serial killer. Bax wanted to die an old man on Auralisian soil with all of his loved ones around him to bid him farewell. There was no way he would be picked off and added to some sick kill count. So, he kept his guard up even though the atmosphere was relatively peaceful. The city had not yet awakened. That was fine with Bax.

Bax took a deep breath as he rounded the bend towards the hospital. Slowly, as he did so, his steps all but ceased until the echo rang out, bouncing off of all of the walls of this street corner. He exhaled sharply as he stared at the gigantic hospital looming there before him. It was most definitely not the same hospital he had left with Prodigi the day before. The hospital seemed normal from the outside, but it had a certain presence to it. Bax felt evil coming from the hospital. He couldn’t explain it. But it seemed as though the early morning light was bouncing off of the windows. There was no light coming from the inside of the hospital for that matter – from any window at all. It was unnerving. Bax had spent enough time around hospitals in his day to know what they were supposed to look like. And feel like. This just wasn’t right.

Then there were the two chalk-marked body outlines before the hospital. Bax looked above and saw two broken windows far above. Two people had been thrown out of the windows. And if Bax was correct, one of the windows led to the room that Prodigi had been kept in during his recovery. A chill ran down Bax’s spine. Had someone come in to find Prodigi and then killed some people. Bax narrowed his eyes and looked at the two windows to gain a hint of whatever was going on. He could just barely see inside, but his enhanced Phoeniyan vision, though unbeknownst to him to be sharper than a human with 20/20 vision, allowed him to see inside the room fairly well. What he saw disturbed him even more. Everything inside was smeared with blood and corroding. The room had definitely not been like that before. And if Bax was not mistaken, the corrosion seemed to be spreading from the room to the window. Already, the area directly around the window seemed to be falling apart. The rest of the building appeared to be normal and as it had been the day before, save for the windows.

Bax carefully made his way to the doors of the hospital and stared ahead at them. There was no mistaking it. Something evil had happened inside of this place. Evil incarnate now dwelt inside. Bax lifted his head and looked the entire structure up and down. Again, a chill rand down his spine. He couldn’t help this sharp feeling of fear. Fear of the unknown. The inevitable unknown. Bax licked his lips lightly and felt that they were chapped. He bit his bottom lip and shivered a bit. There was definitely something wrong with this hospital. Bax couldn’t put his finger on it, but…<br>
It was almost as if he was being called inside. Beckoned.

Bax looked down the street again towards where he had come from. Should he find Prodigi and Zack again before venturing in? No, he had said he would be back soon in the note. He had to keep his word to that, as strange as it was to say that. He felt compelled to continue on in this twisted venture.
“Here go nothing,” Bax murmured to himself as he stepped forward towards the doors. They were exuding the demonic aura stronger than ever and it disturbed Bax to no end. But with a deep breath, Bax harshly opened the doors, noting the effort he had to exert to accomplish the act and pressing forward. Instantly, a revolting stench overcame him. Rot. Decay. Evil. Death…<br>
It was everywhere. Bax almost stumbled back outside from the wave of odor that overcame him. But he steadied himself and tried to blink back the tears that came as a result of the hideous scent. Bax’s view was blurred momentarily as his nose twisted and turned and his eyes bled their tears. It was absolutely awful. Bax covered his mouth and nose and his face twitched a bit there. After a moment, he uncovered his face and tried to breathe the air. It was infinitely worse than the air on the street. He coughed, sneezed, and hacked as he expelled the air out. What the hell had happened in here?

Bax wiped the tears from his eyes and looked around. Everything was corroded and decaying completely. Blood was splattered everywhere. And it appeared as if some things had…skin…stretched over them. What kind of grotesque twisted tapestry was this? Screams and sounds of scraping resounded throughout the halls. It was too vivid to be a nightmare, but Bax slowly lifted his hand to his arm to pinch himself. He just had to make sure.

After a sharp bit of pain that forced Bax’s eyes to close shut as he winced lightly, he forced them open again, hoping to find himself back at the hotel. Unfortunately, he had no such luck…he was still there in the demonic halls of the hospital. Perhaps it was a better idea to go find Zack and Prodigi…<br>
Bax turned to leave the doors and found them mysteriously closed. The thing was, Bax hadn’t closed them. His eyes widened and he ran to them and tried to yank them open again, but only hurt his arms. After a few moments, he stepped back and summoned up his powers, blasting an intense flame towards the doors. It had no effect, however, and Bax finally gave up. Slumping to the floor, he realized that he had inadvertently passed the point of no return. Now he had to find another way out.

And hopefully find Lynx in the process.

[The Waffle King]

"What am I up to?" he said in his resonating voice. "I'm only occupying myself untill the time is right. Seeking out those who are fit to test my strength upon. And I think I may have found another." pointing to Lynx.

Pyramid Head's attention snapped to another part of the building, someone else has come to visit. This presence too was strong, but still not the man he was after. "It seems as if we have another guest." He focused back on the immediate task on hand. A scraper jogged out from one of the halls behind PH and sized up Lynx. It hissed then ran at him full speed, blades ready.

[ForeverZeroUltima]

Lynx held his scythe in a defensive position, seeing as how fast the "scraper" was. He dodged its attack at the last second, then whirled around and attempted to slice it.
It jumped over the blade and lunged at him again. Lynx lowered his head and "backflipped", kicking the scraper away. He then thought about PH's last words before the fight: "It seems as if we have another guest."
Lynx blinked while focusing on the scraper. another guest? He sidestepped before channeling his energy. Another powerful energy, seemingly different from mine...a fiery red one...Bax!
Lynx grinned and sprinted forth to attack again. The scraper did likewise, and they clashed at the center.
The scraper's left blade reached out to go around the scythe, and Lynx pushed himself away while holding his weapon still.
"not bad at all, but it ends here!" Lynx outstretched his left hand and extended shadows across to wrap around the scraper. When the shadows receded, the scraper was gone.
PH watched amusingly. Lynx turned and faced him. Bax should be here soon, he thought. but i dont think i really need him to help me. This guy...*glares at PH* he seems to have about the same power as i do, more or less.
Lynx held his scythe ready and inched towards PH. He didnt want to have to fight, but if it came down ot it, he would give a merciless (and quite bloody) fight.
It came down to what PH wanted to do...or what Bax would do, once he got here.

[The Waffle King]

As Lynx moved closer Pyramid Head focused every bit of consiousness he had on to him. Just then he sensed something in the air; a burning, sterile smell, like acid inside of his head. Then the thoughts rushed back; the room, the five cloaked men, and that sealed cell he had escaped. This intruder had met with the Senate. Pyramid Head backed away slightly and pointed at Lynx again. "You....you've been with the Senate! Have they sent you to retrieve their 'puppet'? Did the hire you or make you like I was?"

[Shadow Phoenix]

Moments after Bax gave up trying to get out the way he came, he stood up again with renewed determination. He was still a little scared, but his inhibitions wouldn’t stop him now. He kept reminding himself that he had been through so much and that turning back and giving up had not been an options since he had first crash landed on this planet forever away from his home. He had befriended both Sephiroth X and Zack, and then fought Sephiroth in the wake of his deadly nightmare. The Senate had kidnapped all three of them and tortured them to what seemed like no end until they finally got what they wanted from Sephiroth. They then proceeded to drop Bax and Zack in the desert where they struggled to survive in their many trials and eventually came upon Sephiroth who was ordered to attack them. With the introduction of Bax and Zack’s latest companions, Lynx and Prodigi, it was clear to Bax that he was most certainly here for a reason.

He just had to keep reminding himself of that because his heart ached to be with his family and his people once more. It felt so easy to simply give up and succumb to the forces all around him that seemed impossible to control. Bax didn’t want to feel this weakness, this undeniable inevitable power that waited with bated breath to strangle the life and determination from his body and extinguish his life’s flame.

Bax raised both of his hands and looked at them with sorrow in his eyes. Slowly, his eyes narrowed with determination once more and the flame atop his head began to burn more rapidly. Flames began to flicker up all over his hands and grow slowly. Bax would keep his flame burning no matter what. For Zack. For Sephiroth. For his wife and son. For his people. For himself. Nothing on this planet would hinder him as long as he kept this determination.

Bax took several steps forward and then broke into a run, rounding a corner and taking off. To where he didn’t know, but it seemed like adopting Zack’s method of letting his feet carry him to the right place was a good idea. His eyes scanned the entire area, still taking in all of the horrors that he was delving into. There seemed to be dead bodies (or at least parts of bodies) everywhere. Everything was caked in blood, rust, and God knows what else. Bax probably didn’t want to know anyway. As it was, if he spent too much time dwelling on all that was around him, he would probably be so overwhelmed that he would be unable to continue. So, he pressed forward and tried not to feel too disturbed.

A low growl rumbled on from up ahead and Bax slowed down a bit until he finally came to a complete stop. He peered into the shadows and waited for whatever made the noise to come out.

Thump…thump…thump…<br>
Bax took a step back and heard the thing seem to moan.
“Who is there?” Bax said simply.
Another moan greeted Bax and he shuddered a little bit, unsheathing his Star Fighter and holding it in front of him.
“Come out,” Bax commanded. A twinge of fear rose from his chest to his throat and he narrowed his eyes as the thing began to come out of the shadows.

The creature seemed fairly tall, but was hunched over. It had two gigantic arms that were swinging down before it and was just slowly coming Bax’s way. Bax wrinkled his nose as he looked at this thing and then raised his sword a bit. The thing stopped for a moment and appeared to look at Bax. They stood at a standstill.

And then the thing ran full throttle towards Bax.

[ForeverZeroUltima]

Lynx stopped. His eyes flickered like black flame candles.
"What? You've met the Senate too? And what do you mean? I have no intention of serving them, nor letting them do anything to me. I will destroy them later, but now I have you to deal with..."
His grip on his scythe tightened slightly, then loosened a little. He didnt know what PH was trying to do, prying into his past, but he was pretty sure it had nothing to do with what his REAL intentions were...and what was about to take place.
"And you...I don't know your story behind the Senate and their corrupted hearts, but it has nothing to do with me!"

Still uncertain whether to fight or not, let alone attack, Lynx took one step back and let this determination of FATE fall into someone else's hands, for the time being.

[The Waffle King]

Pyramid head stood still, contemplating, for a few seconds. Then he lowered his sword and relaxed himself. "So you plan to destroy the senate? I will let you try and take your revenge or whatever it is your after. For I know how sweet revenge tastes. I have my own reason for hating them, so I have no quarrel with you. That is unless...your here to drive me from this place."

[Shadow Phoenix]

Bax was a little taken aback when the thing first charged him, but he kept his wits about him and stepped to the side of the thing's attack and swinging around behind it. It grunted, shrieked, and turned around. Bax swung his sword around and both of them took off at the same time. The thing swung it's right arm around towards Bax's head clumsily and Bax ducked down, sliding to the thing's right and flashing his sword to the left to meet the creature about halfway down it's form. Bax felt it's sticky blood spray out from the gigantic wound and continued on past it, turning around and watching both halves of the creature fall to the ground. It writhed there on the ground, moaning, whimpering and shrieking the entire time. Bax flicked the thing's blood off of the sword onto the ground and raised it, sending a small flame to consume the dying creature's remains. He had some pity for the creature, but he knew he couldn't slow down for too long.

Bax walked over to the ashes once they burned out and knelt down next to them in a prayerlike fashion. He could tell the thing was a demon, and it was his race's custom to kneel over the ashes of a demon to bless them so the soul could find peace. He spoke to the ashes in Phoeniyan.
"My apologies for your fate. May you find peace, now, in death."
Bax blew on the ashes and then stood up. Lynx was definitely somewhere in here, and wherever he was, Bax would find him.

[prodigi]

“Somethin’ like ‘The Valley of Prospicity’ or ‘The Element of Promise’ or somethin’ weird like that.” Zack paused and scratched the back of his head. Prodigi pondered the words for a moment, shrugged his shoulders and then slowly stood stretching his arms and legs. Zack went over and sat down on his bed and picked up the pillow.
"These things are awesome!" Zack said finally, "they're so fluffy!"
Prodigi looked across at him and cocked an eyebrow.
"Mine's even better," Prodigi said picking his up, "You wanna see it?"
"Yeh!" Zack said enthusiastically.
Prodigi slowly drew back his arm and then hurled the pillow at Zack, catching him in the head. The force of the pillow caused him to fall backwards onto his bed. He stood up slowly shocked to find Prodigi across the room laughing at him. He narrowed his eyes slightly and then burst out laughing as well.
Finally he said, "Did you see the note Bax left?"
"No..." Prodigi said.
"It's over there," Zack pointed to the table.
Prodigi went over and read the note, pondered it for a moment, and then turned to Zack to ask a question only to receive a pillow to the head. Zack threw it so hard that it knocked Prodigi off his feet and across the room, (but maybe that's just because he's so small ^_^).
"Oh crap!" Zack yelled out, running across the room to see if Prodigi was okay.
Prodigi was lying face down on the ground. Zack's eyes widened. I didn't throw it that hard, he thought. Suddenly Prodigi's tail whipped to the side and wrapped itself around Zack's ankle, yanking him sideways causing him to lose balance and fall to the ground. Prodigi and Zack sat up and looked at each other, and then fell back rolling around on the ground laughing hard.
“Hey man, waddya wanna do?” Prodigi asked finally, “You wanna go after Bax? Or you wanna go hunt some more evil bastards?”

[ZaCloud]

Zack slowly finished laughing to ponder the question. But already occupying his mind was how nice Prodigi was, and in this short time knowing him he could already have fun with him. It had already seemed a miracle that one person could be trusted as a friend… The thought that two such people existed in Zack’s time had barely dared to occur to him. But here he was, entrusted with part of a decision by a very nice person.

Deciding to be more proper and answer the question first, he thought for a bit, index finger and thumb curled around his chin and lips pursed. “Hmmm… Well, I think we’ve got plenty o’ money for now, so there’s no real need to go after the bad-guys just yet. Besides, we did come here for vacation. I almost wanna say just hang here for a while…” His face fell serious, and his gaze slightly distant. “But… I dunno. I’m not exactly worried about Bax, but I feel like we prolly should see if we can meet up with him.”<br>
Prodigi nodded, his gaze also looking distant for a moment. He then blinked hard, looking slightly puzzled.

“Huh? Somethin’ wrong?” Zack wondered.

Prodigi shook his head. “No, it’s fine.” What bothered him, was that upon trying at least a casual sweep of Bax’s location… he felt like he had hit a wall dividing the two of them. And the wall felt familiar in a way that he did not like one bit. But since he didn’t know what it meant, he tried not to worry about it, and decided it wasn’t worth making Zack worry either.

“Well, I guess we should get goin’ then, but not move outta here for now. I’m sure willing to spend more time here.” Zack popped to his feet almost effortlessly, and offered a hand to help Prodigi up.

While the small one didn’t really need aid in standing, he accepted the help gratefully anyway. “Thanks, Zack.”<br>
“No problem,” Zack answered, “And please just ask if you ever need anything. That is, if you don’t think I’d mess it up…” He was poking the tips of his index fingers together with his head lowered, his manner now seeming very humble and unworthy. Zack did not want to lose this chance of having another friend, but much of him now felt unworthy of such a wish, or incapable of such an achievement.

Prodigi paused at this change, then just smiled and said, “Same here.”<br>
Zack beamed, returning to his confident, carefree self. “Aw, thanks! Oh, and does this mean that I guessed right about the note? That Bax went back to the hospital to look for Lynx?”<br>
“Guessed? Well, yes that’s what the note said. You can’t read?”<br>
“Oh uhh…” Zack scratched his head. “Well, I thought I could… I can some words… I guess I’m just rusty if that really was in English.” ^_^;;

Prodigi sighed with a grin. “You do have a lot to learn. But let’s get going now.”<br>
Zack nodded. “Right. Oh, an’ maybe if any bounty hunters bother you, I’ll act like I’m takin’ you in or somethin’? I dunno if that’d work… I just hope nobody comes after you on the way there.” He meanwhile donned his armor segments and put Fjalar on his back.

Prodigi also armed himself as he answered, “I guess we’ll worry about that only if it happens… I have a way of disappearing when I need to.”<br>
***

As the two walked along, the subjects of conversation jumping around as a testament to Zack’s lack of social experience, aspects of their personalities became known and they began to understand each other better. Zack enjoyed getting to know someone this well; it gave him something of an anchor, a consistency he could count on in the new and uncertain world he had found himself in. Two anchors heightened his sense of security beyond his expectations, and this joy manifested itself in his excited manner and extra big smile.

“Sometime today, after we find Bax, I’m gonna finally try a hamburger!” he announced at random, “Everyone talks about ‘em like they’re just common things, but I’ve still never got to try one yet!”<br>
Part of Prodigi wanted to vote for him to go try one now… Something in him actually wanted to avoid arriving at the hospital. But another part pulled with the importance of getting there quickly. He compromised by just nodding and agreeing with what Zack had elected. “Right. After we find Bax…”

But then Zack’s steps slowed, and he looked off to his left. Another impulsive interest, Prodigi figured. Just in the while they walked, Zack had been dashing off at random to look at stores or sift through the trash for anything valuable or just say “hi” to a random stranger before jogging to return on their journey.

Indeed, Zack felt compelled to check something out, though he could not place why. His curiosity was a strong driving force, leading him to good, bad, or ugly alike, as they all could be interesting.

All he saw, when he felt he had reached his temporary destination, was a cloaked man sitting against a wall, perhaps asleep.

Zack cocked his head and an eyebrow, not sure what had brought such interest about this person. Maybe it was another Red Lister? Hmm… I dunno… There is something dark about him… and… man, either my imagination’s runnin’ away with me or he just reeks of power. Guess I was just curious… I’d better just let sleeping dragons lie.

He turned away to go back to where Prodigi stood some distance off, his giant sword facing the figure as his light steps began to carry him away.

“Wait.”<br>
Zack froze in place. It had not been a plea. It had not been a command. It had just been… said. Like a dispassionate dictionary reading itself, with no personal opinion of the word, no reason behind it other than to convey what it meant.

He looked over his shoulder slowly, then turned to face the cloaked figure. The head was slightly raised, and enough of the hood fell back to reveal black hair with red streaks in it, over a face as blank as a generic mask. The combination of this blankness, and the power exuding from the being conveying it, had enough impact on Zack to, for once, render him absolutely speechless.

Finally, after moments of moving his mouth open and shut like a fish out of water, Zack finally found his voice and queried quietly, “…y…Yeah? Uh… Sorry? I mean… uhh… Hi?”

[ForeverZeroUltima]

Lynx took another step back in surprise. PH was gonna let him go if he didnt want to fight? He twitched a whisker again and asked, "What's it in for me, if I leave without causing you any trouble?"
PH raised his sword a little. "I will spare your life."
Lynx's eyes flickered again. "And if I choose the other option?"
PH glared down at him. "Then I will cut you in half."
Some choice, Lynx thought. But something tells me that I will have to fight him, sooner or later...His life force seems to be drawing to mine, since they're both made of dark energy...
Lynx drew his scythe back a little. He felt that Bax was getting closer to where he was. If Bax arrived, he knew that they would be able to beat PH. But to do so, he would have to draw Bax to where he was, somehow...
Lynx held his scythe in a vertical position, with the blade pointing to the right. He focused his energy, and the slightest darkness seeped out from under him and spread out, unnoticably. Once it was out of sight, it would grow on the edges, until it was noticable even to the untrained eye. But it would still look the same where he was.
He then focused his eyes into his scythe and brought to his mind an image of Bax. As long as he knew his life force, he could beckon to him and draw him to where he was.
Finally, Lynx held his scythe in a diagonal position, ready for anything...

[CursedDragoon]

“…y…Yeah? Uh… Sorry? I mean… uhh… Hi?”<br>Dragoon stood up, his hood falling all the way off. he took a few steps towards Zack. "You are one of the people attacked and captured by the Senate the other night, correct?"
Zacks looked at Dragoon with a suprised expression. "Ummm...who are you, and how do you know that?"

"You can call me Dragoon, and I watched you guys get you butts kicked, and hauled into the helicopters. I follwed them to where ever they went. I was curious about who you were, and why they wanted you, so I broke in. I did not find you, so I left."
He had left out his meeting with the Senator, for obvious reasons.

"Errrr, ok. Well my name's..." Dragoon interupted him.

"Zack. I already know your name. *Dragoon looks at Prodigi* Who is this, and what happened to the other 2 you were with?"

[ZaCloud]

Zack looked up at Dragoon, not sure how to handle an encounter like this. He felt nervous about the atmosphere around the man, despite how calm he seemed. In fact, maybe that was what felt so creepy about him.

“Uhh,” he finally said, scratching the back of his head, “I don’t think he wants to go around saying his name, and… Well I don’t know you very well, so I really don’t know about blurting a bunch about the others.” Then, hoping to perhaps gain another ally, he said, “Except they turned Sephiroth, the silver-haired guy, against us. Those stupid Senate jerks.” He then cocked his head, blinking his wide blue eyes. “Hey, how’d you get away from their notice, anyway?”