Welcome to Gaia! ::

Bella went to the louge and all the other stayed away from her` One thing to know about is to stay away from her when she is pissed off. Bella watched the battle from the T.V and laughed.
“What a parlor trick. I learned that like last year”, snorted Bella. Streams of water started to surround Bella as she watched the battle.
“Hey you!”. Bella pointed at one of the SOLDIERs.
“Yes?”
“If anyone is looking for me...tell them I'm in town. I'm tired of this”, sighed Bella as she walked away

A SOLDIER who was watching the battle between Sephiroth and Blaze on the television, before Bella started watching, ran after her. "Ms. Bella, wait! There's something you need to know. Blaze didn't use the Sword of Flames against you because he forgot it in the lounge here! Don't you remember how when you two fought, he only had one blade sheathed on his side? Yet when he returned to watch your bout against Sephiroth, he had two swords sheathed on his side, the Sword of Flames in a more ornate sheath. Am I right?"

Sephiroth remained absolutely calm. "What's the worst case scenario if I'm hit by these two spells?" he inquired. The scarlet-locked boy held a determined look on his visage. "That sword of yours... it's a double-edged blade, isn't it?"

The boy nodded. "The Sword of Flames is a powerful weapon, but it draws its strength from its wielder. If I were to lose all my strength, all my energy, it's blade would be incredibly brittle, easy to destroy. It also saps my strength the longer I use it. That's another reason why I don't use it often, only as a last resort."

"Then why use it against me, or against Bella?" the silver-haired man asked. His emerald eyes gleamed with concern. "If it drains too much of your energy... it could kill you."

"Because... I'd be willing to give my life to pursue my dream! To get through life, you have to push yourself to your limits, and that's what I plan to do. If I didn't use it... I'd never know to rely on my own strength. The fact that it uses my strength to be strong shows that I rely on my strength, my experience, myself. Everything I have goes into this sword, and into my dream!" the boy raved. His sapphire eyes shone with sheer determination.

"Then I guess you didn't just hear what he said, huh? That sword drains his energy by using it. To the point that if he uses it too long, it could kill him! That's why he rarely uses it. Because it's a double-edged blade. Now who isn't being sensible? He uses it because of the fact that it requires his strength to power it, it's a good measure of how strong he truly is! Those aren't just tricks, it's a strategy he's developed, and a clever one at that," the SOLDIER shouted after her. His fists clenched in anger, his entire body shaking.

"He has worked hard for this. He's also lost so much for this! Every mission he's been on, even though he completed it flawlessly, his partners were always felled by the Wutai forces. And he was always helpless to save them," he continued. "He would be blocked off, captured, as his allies were slaughtered. It's made him reserved... unwilling to open up to anyone, to grow attached, because he can't face that sort of thing again. He'd draw that blade in anger, and after he would finish off the enemies, he'd collapse to the ground exhausted, the blade draining almost all of his strength. How do I know this? I'm one of the few people who went on his missions who actually survived, who he saved. I know him better than you ever could, Bella? And why's that? Because I'm his older brother, that's why!"

The 2nd Class SOLDIER raised his arm, as if about to strike Bella in his anger, but he threw it down and looked away from her. "No, you're not worth it... I don't care if you're a 1st Class... you don't act like it, throwing such a childish tantrum. That sword is also cursed. If enemies didn't kill his allies, the flames came to life and destroyed them on its own. The flames don't discriminate between friend and foe. That's why he didn't want to use it on you, because he considered you something of a friend. Why? I don't know, considering how you're treating him right now."

The SOLDIER removed his helmet, frustrated, and revealed his face. His short navy blue hair reached down just a bit past his ears, prominent bangs falling over his visage. His face resembled his brother's, though it was more aged. "I've been a member of SOLDIER for ten years now, I know the proper etiquette. So just because you're a 1st Class and I'm a 2nd Class, don't assume you've seen more than I have, because you haven't." He stormed off, frustrated with the girl.

"He probably thought of you as a friend, because he can sense the loneliness within you. And because he could feel the kindness within you that is concealed by your anger. Perhaps he saw it as a way of developing a friendship, one that wouldn't be torn from him by seeing you fall in battle," the 2nd Class answered. His royal blue eyes looked at the girl's visage as he turned to face her, his gaze stern. "I'm sure he'd want you to be there and watch his bout against Sephiroth."

Sephiroth chortled at Blaze's statement. "Well what do you know Angeal? Apparently your pep talks have created a second Zack!" He stepped back as the two fireballs came his way. "Well, I guess I'll simply evade and block them then." As the infernal spheres circled towards the black-caped man once again, he blocked them with Masamune's curved blade, only to be slightly surprised when the fireballs divided once again upon contact, creating four of them.

"It's no use," the sapphire-eyed boy stated. "They divide on contact, whether it's a block or a counter-attack."

"I'm sure he'll dread it, but hey, he's had to deal with worse things. He'd see it as a minor thing, probably," the midnight blue haired man stated. He looked at Bella and smiled. "Now come on, I'm interested in seeing how much of a fight my brother puts up against Sephiroth."

"So... you think you've caught me in a trap?" Sephiroth asked. He held still, Masamune's curved blade reflecting the light of the artificial sun. The fireballs came at him from all sides.

"Not yet but pretty close," Blaze answered. His sapphire eyes gleamed with amusement as he saw the silver-maned hero leap into the air just as the fireballs were about to connect. A quick movement sent the balls of flame at Sephiroth once again. "You can't dodge forever, you'll eventually slip up, eventually be worn out!"

A thought clicked into the black-caped man's head. "Then I guess I'll have to move onto the offensive." His slitted eyes narrowed as a burst of laughter escaped the boy. "What's so funny?"

"If you focus on me, you blind yourself to the threat of the fireballs. If you focus on the fireballs, you blind yourself to me. Neither outcome would be pleasant," the boy answered. His banter worked, it kept Sephiroth preoccupied with listening to him long enough to be struck by the fireballs. A small smile flickered onto his visage as he saw the 1st Class SOLDIER flinch slightly.

"Well, that was certainly the wake up call. My thanks to you," Sephiroth calmly stated. He brushed off the attack as if it was nothing, causing the smile to disappear from Blaze's face. "Please... just get on with your new limit break. At the rate this is going, using it will be the only way you'll impress any of us enough to become 1st Class."

The scarlet-haired boy crouched over, his hands on his knees as his breathing became heavy. The Sword of Flames was starting to take its toll on him, though he refused to give up. He stood tall, fighting back the fatigue that was plaguing him. "It'll probably kill me... since I'm nearly out of strength, but I figure that if I die, I might as well go down giving it my all!"

The midnight blue-locked man had already ran inside with the girl at his side in time to hear his brother's statement. "No, don't do it Blaze!" The man's face expression became grave as his brother merely smiled at him.

"Auros... I should've guessed you'd be watching this, brother. And I see you brought Bella with you," Blaze answered. His sapphire eyes closed, before opening once again. "Well, I guess you'll be hear to hear my swan song, to view my final performance."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as he looked upon Auros. "You, I know you. You're the one who turned down the offer to become a 1st Class SOLDIER. You had so much potential." His gaze returned to the boy he was testing. "You're really going you go through with it, despite the fact it could kill you?"

A curt nod came in reply from the 3rd Class SOLDIER. "I hope you're ready for this. Summons, I know, aren't to be used for such things. But limit breaks... well, that's a different story." The golden sword ignited, its blade of pure flame doubling in length. He quickly drew a circle above his head with the tip of the blade, before a pillar of flame came down upon the boy.

"What are you doing!? Don't do this, you can't!" Auros shouted, in disbelief.

"I can and I will! It's time I stop holding back, and give it my all!" the younger brother snapped. His voice was distorted by the roaring of the pillar of flames that enveloped him, though there was no sign of pain in his voice. The flames weren't affecting him, strangely. "Limit Break: Dragon's Fury!"

The elder brother turned to Lazard, Angeal and Zack. "You have to end the scenario, you have to stop him. He'll kill himself if he goes through with this!"

"I said there's a chance it could happen, it's not a given! But life's all about taking risks, the important thing is to take the right ones. And I know this is right!" the boy shouted. He went down on all fours, his silhouette visible in the flames.

"Dragon's Fury... this was inspired by the Bahamut summon, wasn't it?" Sephiroth asked. His gaze rested on the 3rd Class, and his eyes narrowed once more as he saw the boy's form change. Large, leathery wings sprouted from his back, his form taking on that of a scarlet and black dragon. "This is Hojo's work! He's created mutations before in his experiments. He must've experimented on you when you were in that coma six months ago, and he altered your DNA to allow this for when you chose a suitable limit break for its power to take effect!"

The 1st Class looked at Lazard and Angeal. "Does that man even have ethics!? Experimenting on someone who was in a coma!? When this is over, I'm going to have a talk with President Shinra about this."

The older brother looked at his changed younger brother, fear in his navy blue eyes. "Hojo... he did this to you? This... is reminiscent of Grimoire Valentine's and Lucrecia Crescent's work with G-Substance. He must have infused aspects of the Bahamut summon materia into your DNA," he thought.

"This obviously wasn't his intended Limit Break... his regular limit break would've been a large fire attack... not enough to drain his energy," Sephiroth stated. He saw the Sword of Flames lying still on the ground. "He doesn't have his grasp on the blade anymore... it won't drain anymore of his energy unless he uses it. But... this form could still cause him to die if he attacks. It'll only be a few more seconds before he reverts from fatigue."

Not long after he said this than the boy's form receded into his normal appearance, unfamiliar with the form he had just taken, and so unable to maintain it for long. The scarlet-haired 3rd Class dropped to his knees and placed his hands on the room's floor as the scenario at the Sister Ray ended. His breathing came out in short, ragged gasps. "What... what happened?"

The silver-locked 1st Class looked at him, sympathy in his eyes. "Professor Hojo, the new head of Shinra's science department, apparently experimented on you while you were in that coma six months ago. I despise that man... he's nothing but a mass of walking complexes." He turned his gaze to Bella. "I do have pity, Bella. Had I known what would happen to Mod if he was set to his full power, or close to it, I wouldn't have pressed the subject.

"And I also tried to convince Blaze not to go through with using the limit break when he said using it could kill him. My voice held uncertainty and concern..." he continued. He looked back towards the struggling adolescent. "I'd say, that with your determination and refusal to give up when it seems hopeless, coupled with the fact that you're willing to push yourself to your limits makes you capable of becoming 1st Class.

"You also kept thinking of new plans, and expanding upon ones that were working. A good trait to have. However... I advise you not to continue using that weapon except in the most dire of circumstances... proving your strength isn't worth getting killed over and causing grief to those who care about you. Find another weapon to use," the experienced SOLDIER stated. He looked upon Angeal, Zack, Lazard and Bella. "However, him becoming a 1st Class isn't just my decision. There has to be a unanimous decision among the 1st Class SOLDIERS and our director.

"What is your verdict?"