Grancrest oneshots

FF7 AU

3rd pov

In Midgar, all the talk was always focused on the SOLDIERS. Everyone wanted to be one, have sex with one, trap one or just talk with one. Some people got weird about it, forming clubs that are more stalker like than anything, just to get glimpses of the one's they wanted, while others just wanted to force a marriage by having sex with one and getting pregnant. There were a lot of types of people, but if you were to go under the plates, to the slums, you would find plenty of people who don't appreciate, like or really acknowledge the SOLDIERS, since they don't have any reason to. The slums people know they could be living better lives, but aren't just so others can feel powerful. The SOLDIERS are from above the plate, they have no reason to actually care or provide for those in the slums, so they don't, meaning they are left to fend for themselves.

Due to that, there are far more proficient and skilled fighters under the plate than above, if only because the monsters (and experiments, though good luck getting anyone to admit that) are allowed to roam free below, where the scientists don't care about human lives, simply wanting to get rid of the unnecessary garbage. Hojo is the one more commonly known for doing this, but Scarlet decides to take a page out of his book when the materia she's working out goes from it's dark red to a deep green, which is not what it was supposed to do. It was not supposed to go from a summon orb to a magic one.

So, when it appears to do nothing even with the change, she tosses it down to the slums, figuring they need some sort of support. (She will later regret this, but now it's just an easy means to an end.) The orb falls, clicking and chipping a bit, but never shattering, rolling as it goes. It stops under some debris, resting there for several years, the debris moving, shifted aside, but not enough for the green orb to be noticed, a space clearing out where monsters like to roam. Desperate fingers, encased in white gloves, reach between the small bits of debris, easily shoving them aside, and grasp the orb. The orb assesses her, noting the physical features only after taking note of her magical power.

The orb is more than happy to work for her, the magic she has is a welcome surprise, rather than feeling as if she's trying to rip him free, it's like she's offering him a hand. He gleefully accepts, emerging from the orb without hesitation. He takes a moment to feel the fresh air, lets the breeze run through his hair, and then gets serious, focusing on the enemy in front of him : an experiment, some kind of behemoth attempt, its weakness a simple fire one. He's grateful that he's so adaptable, easily recalling the magic he learned ages ago, before he and his council were forced into materia orbs.

He draws his sword, choosing to forgo his shield, at least for the moment, and jumps, encasing the blade in flames before he drives it forward, watching in amusement as it twists away, but it's not fast enough, a simple flick of his wrist decapitates the creature. He flicks the blood off his weapon without hesitation, disgusted by it, before turning to his summoner. He only gets a glimpse of her : blonde hair, purple eyes, and white armor, worn over a simple gray shirt and a plain silver skirt, a cut along her stomach bleeding onto the ground, as well as a bad wound along her forehead, leaking blood down into her eye, before she collapses, forcing him to return to his orb. He grits his teeth, unable to get out again without her help and not quite out long enough to gather enough magic to get himself out.

He wonders vaguely how she got his orb - after all, just to say fuck you to the assholes that forced them into materia, they set the parameters - since she didn't seem to fit any of the requirements. She wasn't in a deep sadness, let alone a depression, she had no real need for support, seemed to be doing good up until the end, she still could've won as well and she certainly was desperate, but not 'last-resort' kind of desperate. Or have times changed so much? He recalls the monster - thankful that his ability as a summon lets him know things automatically about them, such as weaknesses - and can't say he'd ever seen it before, not with the way it looked. Maybe things have changed far more than he thought.