Sara stood still until she vanished in front of Sephiroth's eyes. The silver-elite narrowed his eyes, and he sensed a faint bloodlust coming from behind. Swiftly, Sephiroth swung his sword that clashed with Sara's sword producing sparks between their weapons. Both fighters pushed their swords with their strengths, having their blades grinding each other. Sephiroth pulled back and swung his sword again in Sara's direction in quick precision, leaving her no room to dodge. Yet Sara saw the incoming attack and blocked it with her sword. Both fighters knew that this was going to be an exciting fight. Sephiroth, an experienced soldier, was able to percept Sara's movements and attacks. Though an average soldier wouldn't see Sara's actions or attacks, it was hard to keep up with a naked eye. However, Sephiroth was able to see that, but it did not mean that the fight was easy. He could tell that Sara was not holding back, and neither was he.

Sephiroth pushed Sara away, sending her eight yards out before dashing towards her in a flash. In that split second, Sara flipped her whole body; her feet landed on a boulder and pushed off; when her feet went off, the boulder began to crack before crumbling to dust. She swiftly swung her weapon, and once again, her blade clashed with her opponent's.

The battle had turned into a deadly dance with the landscape changing. As Sephiroth swung his sword, a fatal wind gust caused the rocks to be sliced like cheese. But even Sara was also sending destructive wind gusts to crushing boulders whenever she used them as stepping stones. If this were to happen in real life, no one would survive, not even an animal. But if one were to observe the battle, it is evident that Sephiroth had the upper hand.

Sara had spent all her time trying to find an opening, but Sephiroth was not letting her find one no matter how hard she looked. It was starting to annoy her.

She heard Sephiroth chuckling before she felt a kick right in the chest. Sending her hundreds of yards away and landing on the ground creating a small crater. Sara was about to get up, but Sephiroth pointed a sword right at her chest; she froze.

"Hmph, not bad, but you still have a lot to learn," Sephiroth said.

He pulled his sword away and pulled out his cellphone. After pushing a few buttons, the virtual room started to change back into a plain room.

Sara got up, rubbed her neck, and turned to Sephiroth, who had his back facing her, "So how did I do?"

"You're strong, but," Sephiroth paused and looked at her, "You are nowhere near fit to be in the field of war."

Sara looked down at her feet; she knew that being on the war battlefield was different from hunting down monsters. Even though she had never experienced it, she wondered why Sephiroth said she was not fit for it. Did she show some hesitation? That's a possibility, or did she not give it her all? No, she did, and it was a good thing that the virtual room could withstand her strength.

Sara felt her mentor's hand holding her chin and bringing her chin up, allowing her to look into his eyes. Somehow, she found those eyes cold, but for the first time, she saw gentleness.

"However, I'll make sure you'll be well equipped to go when the two weeks is up. But be prepared; I won't go easy on you."

Sara nodded, understanding Sephiroth's warning. He let her chin go and walked towards the exit.

"Let's call it a day, tomorrow we'll start the training."

Sara was about to say something, but Sephiroth had already gone out the door. She sighed, looked at the clock hanging on the wall in the observatory room, and noticed that it was evening—time for dinner.

She left the virtual room and headed for her room; she decided to call it a night.

The following day, Sephiroth called her again, telling her to come to the virtual training room. After having a small breakfast, Sara headed her way to the training room, and when she arrived, Sephiroth was waiting for her.

"Morning," Sara said with a smile.

Sephiroth said nothing, but he went to the computer in the room after a few more types, the room changed. This time the virtual space turned into an open valley surrounded by mountains. The view was breathtaking to Sara; she had never seen such a beautiful landscape. The valley was filled with endless fields of grass and a small river that went through the valley. There was even a flock of chocobos running around along with other creatures.

"Enjoying the view, are we?"

Sara looked at Sephiroth, who had a smirk on his face. She felt a little embarrassed since she was admiring the view even though it was virtual, but she couldn't help but gawk at it.

"This is field is going to be our training field," Sephiroth explained, "From now on, do exactly as I say understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Sara acknowledged.

"If you have any questions or concerns, I want to know," Sephiroth added.

"Yes, sir!"

"Let us begin."

Sephiroth walked over to a large boulder; the boulder was as tall as a semi-truck and as wide as a small house. Sephiroth looked at Sara then gestured for her to come closer. She walked over and stood beside him.

"After fighting you yesterday," Sephiroth said, "I could tell that you're almost as strong as I am."

"Huh?" Sara looked at him, surprised. To think that Sephiroth would tell her that she was almost as strong as he was something that she never thought of.

Sephiroth chuckled, "When it comes to our strengths, you are almost as strong as I am, but when it comes to strategy and making wise combat choices. As I said before, you are nowhere near fit to be in the field of war. You are about as weak as a 2nd Class SOLDIER. It's no wonder why you have not moved up to 1st."

Sara looked down at the ground with a sad look. She knew that Sephiroth was right on that. She remembered some close calls that she made during their fight that could've killed her. It was by luck that she wasn't injured.

"That's why I'm here, to train and teach you."

"So, what's the first lesson?" Sara asked.

"The first lesson will be this..."

Sephiroth paused and drew his sword; his eyes stared at the boulder for a brief moment, and then he made one swift swing at the boulder. The long sword split the enormous rock in half.

"Taking out the enemy in one blow will be your first lesson," Sephiroth stated.

Sara was stunned for a bit, but then she looked at her weapon and began to wonder in doubt. Is it possible to take out the enemy in one blow without destroying her sword? Sephiroth made it look easy but was there some sort of trick to it? What happens if she broke her sword during a fight and had no other weapons at hand?

"Um, why take out the enemy in one blow?" Sara asked, "Wouldn't it be better if I were to take out the enemy in several hits and not risk damaging my weapon?"

Sephiroth frowned at her in disgust, "If you are worried about your sword breaking. Then get a better one; weapons can be replaced, but your life cannot. There are times when you may not have much choice but to finish the enemy the moment you arrive."

"Like if I had to capture someone or steal something from the enemy?" Sara questioned.

"That's right," Sephiroth nodded, "Time is of importance, and you need to learn how to use your strength and mind more proficiently; that way, you are using your time wisely."

Sara began to understand her mentor's words. She didn't think that time was of great importance on the battlefield. Sara only thought about killing the enemy no matter how long it took. Yet, she didn't realize how thinking like that could be a hindrance to some folk.

"Now, let's have you start by slicing that." Sephiroth pointed his chin in a particular direction.

Sara looked and saw that there was a similar boulder to the one Sephiroth cut. She walked over to the boulder and drew her sword while staring at the giant rock.

Sephiroth instructed, "Use all of your strength but be very quick."

Sara nodded at took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. She was feeling the grip of her handle and the slight wind blowing her face. She focused her strength into this one swing, and as soon as she swung her blade. The boulder was in half. Sara felt happy and proud, but that quickly went away when she saw her weapon. The attack broke it in half.

"Aw, man! I'd just got it repaired!" Sara complained.

Sephiroth walked over, grabbed Sara's broken sword, and examined it. He frowned as he noticed and realized why the blade broke. It's because that the material used to make the sword was not meant to withstand Sara's type of strength but only from someone in the army.

Sephiroth groaned, "This sword is a weak blade. You will get a better one."

"Yeah, but what will I use for now?" Sara asked; having a forged sword would take weeks or months to finish, and she didn't have time.

"For now, use the regular sword that members of SOLDIER use," Sephiroth answered.

Sara was not pleased to hear that, but she couldn't complain about it either. What made her heart feel sad was that weapon was her first, and the only weapon was given to her by her father.

"Now, since we don't have an extra weapon at hand. We'll start by using materia," Sephiroth pulls out a blue orb from his pocket.

For the next several hours, Sephiroth began to teach Sara how to use magic correctly, know when to use healing materia and what type of materia to use in combat. Though Sephiroth's training is simple enough to understand but doing the task was more complicated. After spending four hours in the training room, they would stop to have lunch and then hit the books. Sephiroth would ask Sara questions on tactics, which made her head feel numb. After finishing lessons on tactics, they went straight back into training, practicing swordsmanship. Once the lessons were over for the day, Sephiroth would dismiss Sara, and she would grab dinner then head to rest.

For the next several days, Sara realized that Sephiroth was indeed a strict mentor. He would test her knowledge and abilities in every training session. Not that she expected him to go easy on her, and she didn't want him to.

A week and five days had passed in a blink of an eye.

Sara held her long sword, which was the regular standard sword that all members of SOLDIER use. An enormous ice dragon stood before her; its yellow eyes glared at her while flaring its nostrils. She took a deep breath as the monster raised its claws, ready to attack. Sara's eyes opened, and she was already behind the dragon in a blink of an eye. The dragon, however, stood still before it collapsed to the ground, lying dead.

"Well done, Saraphina," Sephiroth commented.

Sara smiled as she put her sword to her back. The dragon in front of her became pixilated, and the whole virtual valley did the same. Sephiroth started walking towards the exit door.

"So, what's the next lesson now?" Sara asked.

"There are no more lessons for now," Sephiroth answered.

"Huh? But I won't deploy for Wutai until three days from now," Sara said.

"Which gives you enough time to hang out with friends or family. I suggest you do so," Sephiroth left the room, leaving Sara alone.

Although Sara was glad that Sephiroth was letting her spend time with her family, she also wanted to spend time with her mentor outside of training. Yet, she could never muster up the courage to ask. Perhaps it's because Sara could tell that Sephiroth drew a line between him and her that they were mentor and pupil, nothing more, and Sara respected that. But she had a glimmer of hope that they would be friends.

After training, Sara decided to visit her father. She took a shower and put on a cream-colored sweater with black skinning jeans and combat boots. After heading out of the Shinra building, Sara decided to hit some side shops to find a present for her mother's birthday. As she walked past a jewelry shop, Sara stopped and saw a lovely necklace with a silver one-wing charm.

"Wow, what a pretty necklace! I like it!" Sara exclaimed, but when she saw the price tag, she frowned and whined, "Awe! 3000 Gil! That's like buying a new Gothic Bangle, and I don't have that kind of money right now! Oh well, I guess maybe some other time I'll buy it."

Sara walked away from the store with a gloomy look.

After a few hours of shopping for a gift for her mom and buying a cute shirt for herself, Sara went over to her father's house. Once she arrived, Darius greeted her daughter with a hug. Darius knew that his daughter would come to visit since she'd be going to war soon.

"Dad, here's Mom's present, and I put a letter for her inside," Sara said as she handed Darius a pink wrapped box with a red bow on top.

"I'll be sure that she gets it," Darius smiled.

Sara smiled, but she looked down at the floor. Darius could tell that Sara seemed troubled.

"What's wrong?" Darius asked.

"Dad," Sara mumbled; she looked up with watery eyes.

"I don't want to go to Wutai," She sniffed as she continued, "I don't want to do such awful things. I know I'm not the only one who feels like this, and I'm not the only one who wants this war to be over. But why do I have to go? Why can't they just send someone else?!"

Darius grunted as he felt a slight pain in his heart. Seeing his daughter rubbing her eyes was enough to make his heart ache with sadness and anger. He hugged his daughter, who seemed fragile in his arms.

"Saraphina," Darius spoke softly, "There will be many things that we don't want to do and something that we regret doing. But remember this, your mother and I will always love you no matter what you do. That will never change."

Sara felt so happy hearing those words. She hugged her father tightly, and for the first time, she believed those words that her father meant what he said.

Darius looked at Sara and said, "I will see you off when you depart for Wutai. Stay strong and be brave, my little angel."

"Hmm!" Sara nodded; she liked when her father called her angel.

The day of departing for Wutai came too soon for Sara.

Sara walked over to the mirror in her room and stared at herself. She was wearing her SOLDIER uniform, along with having a SOLDIER's broad sword on her back. It was the same look Sara always had whenever she went out on a mission, but she felt different for some reason. Perhaps it was because she was going to war. They said that a person could change when they've gone to war, and Sara was no different. She was worried about what she'd become after coming back. After one quick look at herself, Sara left her room and went straight for the landing platform that was by the president's office.

When she arrived at the office, President Shinra, Lazard, Darius, and Sephiroth waited outside. There was a helicopter on the landing platform reading to move. As Sara stepped out of the building, the helicopter's blades began to rotate slowly before moving fast as the pilot started to turn on the aircraft.

President Shinra looks at Sara with a smile that seems as if he has won the war already. Sara gave him a stern look; when her eyes saw Lazard, they softened as Lazard gave her a slight nod with a smile. Darius's lips trembled as Sara walked past him, but a small tear fell on his cheeks. Darius's heart grew heavy as he did not look back to see his daughter. If he did, he might not hold back his tears. He had to be strong for her, but it was hard for him when his heart was screaming in agony. Sara was no different from her father, but she looked back to see her father's back trembling. She bit her bottom lip and looked away as she held back her tears.

She hops aboard the helicopter, followed by Sephiroth, who only gives the others a cold look. The pilot begins to steer the aircraft as they take off. Sara looks down at the platform below as she sees the other become smaller and smaller before the helicopter turns and heads for their destination. A few minutes had passed, and they reached Kalm as the aircraft flew over the small town. Sara began to search around the village for any signs of her mother. But she could only spot a familiar cottage house where all of her childhood memories began. Sara lifted her hand a made a small wave as a way to say goodbye. After Kalm was no longer in sight, Sara began to observe the view as she could see the landscapes changing the more they traveled. She felt Sephiroth watching her; when she looked away, he too had looked out the window. She said nothing but only went back to her observation.

After flying for five hours, Sara could see pillars of smoke ahead. She could hear thundering sounds from that direction. It was then she realized that Wutai was ahead. Sara looked at Sephiroth for further instruction; he turned to her and began to explain briefly.

"Once we've landed, we'll meet up with Heidegger, and he'll give us the details on what's the situation and tell us what we need to do."

Sara nodded as she looked ahead with her heart beating with nervousness.

She spotted a large military camp with Shinra mechs, numerous tents of various sizes lined up a few yards behind a large wooden wall with a few buildings throughout. As the helicopter began to land on an open area near the base, several foot soldiers lined up as they made a salute. Once the aircraft touched the ground, Sephiroth got out of the helicopter and began to stride into the camp. Sara quickly followed behind him as they approached a large tent nearby. When Sara went in, she saw several foot soldiers looking at computers powered up by generators. Several tables with piles of maps and books. At the center of the tent was a huge table that had a hologram of the map of Wutai. There were several dots in different colors scattered along with the map. Heidegger looked at the map appeared in deep thought. He noticed Sephiroth and Sara walking in and grinned.

"Sephiroth, I'm glad to see you," His eyes turned to Sara, and he frowned, "Is that the recruit that the President was telling about? Those Wutai dogs will tear her up to pieces."

Sara frowned; it was her first time meeting Heidegger. She had heard that the man uses strong words, but seeing the man in person gave her a new meaning. One that she did not like.

"She is more than capable, and that I can assure you," Sephiroth spoke confidently.

"Hmph! That remains to be seen," Heidegger dictated.

"What's the current status?" Sephiroth asked, getting straight to the point.

Heidegger turned to the map and explained, "These Wutai scum are fierce. They have weapons along with materia that can take on our best mechs and armor. Though we've managed to keep them on their toes, they're hard to defeat at the rate we've been going. We're losing quite a bit of men, and we're running short on supplies."

"Got any ideas on how to crush them?" Sephiroth asked.

"I've got a hunch," Heidegger said and pointed to a small red dot on the map.

"Somewhere around this mountain, there appeared to be secret weapons that can go up against SOLDIER. We've interrogated several Wutai scum, but they refused and committed suicide. So there's only one thing to do."

"To find and see if this rumor is true," Sephiroth finishes.

"Yes," Heidegger nodded, "Though I would hate to send our strongest SOLDIER to find out."

"Saraphina will be able to do the task," Sephiroth stated.

Heidegger narrowed his eyes doubtfully, "Her? Hah! She won't make it past their forces!"

"I assure you that she is more than enough," Sephiroth smiled confidently.

"You sound so confident. What makes you think that she's more than capable of doing it?" Heidegger questions.

"Because I trained her myself," Sephiroth answered.

Heidegger stared at the silver-elite; he doubted those words, for he didn't believe that Sephiroth would mentor a SOLDIER member. However, he didn't care who took the job as long as someone did it.

"Fine!" Heidegger shouted, "Have it your way, don't blame me if she dies out there with those dogs!"

Sephiroth guided Sara out of the tent as they headed to another tent that seemed smaller than the first one but still significant. As Sara followed her mentor in the tent, she noticed that the tent had a large bed with several trunks and a small desk. She guessed that this tent must be for Sephiroth only. Sephiroth walked over to one of the trunks and pulled out a black hooded cloak. He hands it to Sara, who takes it while looking at him curiously.

"You'll be needed that as you start your search," Sephiroth stated.

Sara nodded as she put the cloak on; Sephiroth also handed her a small bag filled with potions and dried meat. She took the bag as Sephiroth walked out of the tent but not before he turned to her.

"Wait here."

Sara nodded as her mentor left; she sat on the edge of the bed, munching on some of the dried jerky. She loved the saltiness of the dried meat, satisfying her taste buds while listening to the noises from outside. The camp felt more lively that she could hear what was going on. Mechs stomping on the ground, men chatting, Sara could even pick up conversations because of the tent's thin walls. Most of the talks were about food shortages or the loss of a comrade.

After a while of waiting, Sephiroth returned. Sara immediately got up from sitting on the bed and waited for Sephiroth to give her further instructions.

"I've already talked to Director Lazard," Sephiroth spoke, "And he's decided that you will go to the mountain and find out if these rumors about these secret weapons."

"Okay, but what if I find out that the rumor is true? Then what?" Sara asked.

"Eliminate the weapons," Sephiroth answered.

"Say what?!" Sara exclaimed.

"This is your first important task should you fail. It will cost us considerably."

Though Sara understood that much, she was unprepared to go out on a solo mission when she first arrived in Wutai. She had hoped that she would go out on missions with Sephiroth so she could gain experience. But that thought was fleeting.

"I will take you to your starting point. Once we're there, we'll part ways." Sephiroth instructed.

Sara felt sad when she heard those words. She had hoped that Sephiroth would at least help her out in the frontlines or any mission she was given. But it was clear that he was drawing the line between them once again. They were mentor and pupil, nothing more.

Sara followed Sephiroth out of the tent; he led her throughout the camp. They walked past several tents that seemed small enough for two people to share. There were many fire pits, tents, and training grounds for infantrymen and SOLDIER members. Everything around them seemed clean and in order, even ideally stored the weapons.

Sephiroth walked over to a large stable that housed chocobos that were all saddled up. The tall feathery birds noticed Sara and Sephiroth approaching, and they all let out a 'kweh.'

Sara chuckled as she patted a beak of a chocobo. Sephiroth climbed up on one of the birds, and Sara did the same. Sephiroth clicked his tongue while tapping the side of the chocobo, urging it to move. The yellow bird made a small chirp, and it dashed out of the camp. Sara also kicked her stead, and it too took off and followed its comrade.

The two of them traveled towards a forest that seemed further away from the battlefront. Sara could still hear the sounds of bombing for miles away, but she was glad to know that she wasn't near the frontlines.

"This is where we part," Sephiroth stated.

Sara said nothing, but she took a deep breath and urged her chocobo to move forward. She didn't look back, but she felt that Sephiroth might've been staring at her. But when she looked back, she noticed that Sephiroth was no longer in sight.

Sara sighed and stroked the long neck of her mount and said, "Guess it's you and me."

Chocobo," Kweh!"

"Heh, let's find out if these weapons are real."

With that, Sara went further into the deep forests of Wutai.

Though Sara had no idea where she would start, she figured that the best way to find out was scouting the mountain's base. Sara took her time while riding her chocobo that she called Kikki. In the daytime, she would ride and find a place to rest at night. Sara also rationalized her food while hunting for fish at nearby rivers or streams. For the past several days, she had found nothing, and she began to wonder if the rumors were false.

As Sara continued scanning the area, Kikki perked her head and looked around.

"Kweh?"

"Kikki, what is it?" Sara asked.

Kikki looked back and forth, then made several jumps and let out small panicked chirps.

"Wark! Wark!"

Sara could tell that whatever Kikki sensed was nothing good. Sara kept her eyes and ears open. Then she heard the sounds of leaves crunching and twigs snapping. Sara reached for her broad sword that was on her back as she stared ahead. Kikki took several steps back as she chirped nervously.

The noise was getting louder, and Sara could hear the sound of heavy breaths. She could hear the sound of her heart beating fast; her palms started to sweat. Sara had hoped that whoever was coming is a friend, not a foe.

At last, she saw a young man who happened to be a SOLDIER. But she could tell that he was heavily wounded as he was pressing on his side while blood covered his hand. But when she saw him, her eyes widened in horror.

"Genesis!?"

Author's Note

Hello, my fellow readers.

I wanted to apologize for not updating. I was on a huge writer's block on this chapter because I wasn't sure how to write a chapter that talks about war and battle. Plus, I've been spending time with my husband doing our favorite thing: playing PC games and taking care of my little eighteen-month-old boy, who has become quite a handful and a cutie. I wanted to let you know that I haven't given up on this book and still love to write. But being a mom and a wife, there comes a time when I have to focus on the important matters and put my pen down on writing. Anyways I appreciate the support and picking up this book to read.

Love you guys, Asuka.