The next Time Gate turned out to be deep inside the crater known as the Deep Sea Research Center. Despite Laguna's warnings of unknown monsters, there didn't seem to be much of a threat down there.
"From what Squall told me when he visited this place, the ruins at the bottom sea-level floor formed a dial with several markings. He counted 11 and a pedestal in the middle." Laguna said.
The party marched down the set of stairs that led deeper into the bowels of the center. The place looked like a giant aquarium compared to other places they had been to before.
The metallic walls sprawled out and turned into massive colosseum ruins.
"Who would've thought that such a place existed under water?" Alma marveled at the area, but Delita was silent.
"What's bugging you?" she asked in an apparent surprise to him.
"I'm having a bad feeling about this place, the glyphs on the walls, the ancient pillars, I really don't like this place." Almost as abruptly as she had asked him he stepped in front of her and drew his sword.
"Keep an eye out, I'll guard your frontside." The sternness was there, but this was unlike Delita, being so protective, especially considering how he hadn't shown any particular feelings for her previously, that is, before Esthar.
Aeris was clutching her staff nervously when a sharp tap on her shoulder made her jump. Her spin met the gaze of a familiar Mako-eyed warrior.
"That's not funny! I should clobber you!" she yelled.
"Just testing your reflexes, besides we all need to be cautious around here." He smiled at her and walked further down. Growling at him in disgust she disdainfully marched down the spiraled staircase.
Further in the back of the procession, Beowulf was marching in stride with Reis, yet neither had spoken for some time, then Reis spoke up.
"What will you do....when the war is over?"
"Hmmm?....Oh, I suppose I'll go back to being a bounty hunter, I've got no reason to be a temple knight anymore, not that I ever really wanted to be one....I only wanted to be...with you."
"Hmmm......that's nice, but what if they need you?"
"I've no other priorities to attend to, and bounty hunting is always something I've enjoyed, if not for the money, then the sport of it."
"You didn't answer my question, what if they need you?" she pointed at the rest of the party.
"I guess I'll fight for God then, but only if they need me."
"Only if they need us." She finished, satisfied.
Backing the rear, Sephiroth and Seifer were silent for the most part, despite Seifer's shiftiness.
"Heh, to think all this time the dangerous gunbladesman wasn't a man in black, but a man in grey, I find that amusing."
Seifer shot a glare at the silver-haired warrior and asked.
"What's that supposed to mean? You talking about me or Squall?"
"Or maybe he still is dangerous, but let you win because you were a brave."
"Hey! You wanna test that theory on me or something? Cause I'm more than ready to take on your cloak-and-dagger ass!"
"Ha ha ha, so quick to get angry, don't you ever trust in your own reputation, even when others are famous?"
"Maybe I am, so what? I've got my own reputation. What of it! Hey!"
Sephiroth simply quickened his pace leaving Seifer behind asking questions.
"Reputations are important, but they don't mean anything unless you can back them up in a battle, kid, you better not hinder us." Sephiroth said under his breath.
As the party marched further down the sets of spiraled staircases, and the depths got darker and darker, they could only think of their homes, their lives, and getting back to them.
They had a long fight ahead of them, and for dreams like theirs to be fulfilled, 13 warriors had to be found, and a fallen angel had to be destroyed.
Then again, what of their friendships? Most would go their separate ways, in their own eras. Cloud worried the most about Aeris; he didn't want to lose her again. She was as part of his life as he was hers. He would exist in another time if he had to just to be with her. And no one, not even God himself would stop him.
The lone warriors, they had their dreams too, Agrias only wished to follow God, but this only seemed to fill part of a hole in her life. When all the fights were over, where would she go?
Sephiroth was simply drawn from one battlefield to another, carrying his Masamune as if it kept him from being lonely. But everyone could see, it was all he had left of whatever home he came from. Seifer was a lost cause, his dreams had dissipated when Squall and Rinoa became a GF, but he had no regrets. The only dream he had left was to slay a demon.
The party finally reached the bottom and found a large stone gate etched with a language ancient.
"Abandon All Hope. Ye who enter here."
Ramza tried to read the strange glyphs, "I can't make it out, Delita, can you?"
"Not a word, anyone here have any idea what it could mean?"
Everyone was silent for a moment as the gate seemed to give an omnious warning. Aeris was the one to step forward and glance at the glyphs in suprise.
"I don't believe this! The letters are worn and broken down, but I believe it's an ancient dialect of the Cetra!"
"The Ancients?" Cloud said in astonishment, "How could they possibly have lived down here?"
"I'm not sure, if there were any, they've long gone, now..." she replied.
"So what does it say, we don't exactly have time on our hands to do research." Delita scowled at the thought of more delays.
Aeris winced after reading the old language, "I hate to say this, but it says, 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here...'"
"Why does that sound like I've read that somewhere?" Zidane asked, somewhat unnerved.
"Who knows, regardless, let's be cautious." Delita seemed in a hurry to get this over with, and with the help of the other men in the party, pulled back the large doors.
Inside, there was a massive black creature, with an immense sword and black wings.
"I AM THE HERETIC OMEGA, I AM THE SOLE GUARDIAN OF THE GATE OF TIME IN THIS ERA, IN ORDER FOR ANY TO PROCEED, THEY MUST FACE AND DEFEAT ME IN MORTAL COMBAT."
"We accept your challenge Omega! My sword will cleave you in two!" Delita's words were a boast, but they worked.
The men engaged the monster directly in battle, slicing and cleaving with their large swords. Oddly though, Sephiroth's Masamune which had killed nearly everything it touched in one swipe was very weak in this battle.
"Ah-ha! A death-beast! Finally! A challenge!" Sephiroth had a wild look in his eye as he leapt high in the air and cut a swath of black blood into the monster's hide.
The beast groaned and knocked him off with the butt of its hilt, sending Sephiroth sprawling to the floor. Cloud's fury instantly filled to maximum as he formed his Omnislash stance, his sword gleaming in the darkness.
He charged and executed a repetitive combination of 20 sword cuts to the beast, doing incredible damage. But a massive Solar Beam Blast knocked the Ex-Soldier unconscious.
Beowulf pointed his sword at the beast and cast a Meltdown on the monster.
"That should reduce your vitality!" But the monster simply cast Haste and Swiped at Beowulf cutting away at his defenses.
Alma's hands intensified with a massive light. "Being of Darkness, be Illuminated, Holy!"
This was followed up by Agrias, "Sword of Light touch and destroy the minds of Evil, Holy Explosion!"
The two massive beams of light appeared to injure the beast, but it still moved about, and at an incredibly fast rate at that.
Ramza and Delita glanced at each other and nodded, the first time they actually fought in tandem in years.
"Ready?"
"No better time than now!"
"Chaos Blade, strike with Ultima!" A massive green blast erupted from Ramza's sword and hit the beast, stunning it, setting Delita up for the main attack.
"Legend, I drive thee into the heart of evil! Power Break!"
The monster roared in pain, the remaining power of the beast could be seen draining from it. But it still had its stamina.
Seifer had seen enough, now he wanted a piece of the action. His gunblade raised high he proclaimed, "Blasting Zone!" and a large beam launched from the gunblade tearing and searing the flesh of the beast, but it still stood.
"YOU THINK YOU CAN BEST ME WITH YOUR LIMIT BREAKS? VERY SOON I SHALL REVEAL MY OWN..."
"We have to destroy this thing quickly!" Beowulf yelled to Reis, who instinctively jumped high out of view. Ready to pounce with her large Dragoon Lance.
Omega struck.
"YOU SHALL SUFFER FOR THE PAIN YOU'VE GIVEN ME...tErRa BrEaK..."
The monster leapt at a staggering height, causing the space and physical plane the braves were standing on to shatter, which caused them to have the sensation they were floating in space. The monster channeled whatever power it had left in its dark hands and fired it upon its intended targets. The pain was not pain that they felt, but pure darkness. Darkness that enveloped them and tore their lives to pieces.
"I AM THE LAST.....I WAS, I AM, AND I WILL ALWAYS BE."
"DID YOU FORGET TO LOOK UP?"
"WHAT..."
Sure enough Reis had surprised the beast with a leap, driving her spear deep into its skull.
Black blood erupted from what seemed every pore of itself. The strike paid it's toll though as a black electricity seemed to travel it's way up Reis's spear into both her arms and ribs. The pain was unbearable, but she refused to let go of her spear.
In an eruption of black putrid light, the beast writhed and rolled about in confusion, then dissipated into a black smog leaving Reis panting on her knees, in the darkness....
In half-wheezed gasps she called out every party member's name.
No answer.
She crawled towards the form of what looked like Beowulf..
It was. But, he was dead; the cut from Omega had gutted him.
Tears came falling like rain from her face, yet she uttered no words nor cried out.
Her knight was gone.
Using an unknown strength, and leaning on her spear, she trudged over to every body. No one had survived.
