Not Dead. Not Yet.

[Zack Fair]

"This is not the world you know."

Those words, above all the others, echoed in his mind.

Zack opened his eyes, letting out a yell of surprise as he materialized at the fountain. He stepped back instinctively, bringing his left hand to his eyes and his right hand up to grip the Buster Sword's handle. He noted that the sword was comfortably on his back like normal.

"What the hell?" Zack asked aloud to no one in particular.

Slowly it all came back to him. He had been battling for his life in the wastelands of Midgar, for hours on end. He rubbed his eyes and dropped his hands down to his side. It had been a long battle, and he'd managed to eliminate a sizable portion of the ShinRa military. All of his dreams and memories had flashed before his eyes as he collapsed. In another reflex move he quickly brought his right hand up and gripped the handle of the Buster Sword once again, to make sure he had it. It was there, yet he clearly remembered handing it off to Cloud in his dying moments.

Apparently not, he mused, looking around in disbelief. He then looked down at himself. Not a wound on him, or even a tear on his clothes. He was completely intact. Although his first instinct was that he was dead and in heaven, he somehow knew that simply wasn't the case here. He shook his head as he looked at the fountain.

"Omniverse...omnilium," Zack said to himself as a smile crept onto his face. It sounded like another adventure. It sounded like fun.

[Zack Fair]

Zack walked around the fountain a bit, looking into the distance at the far off gates as well as observing some of the people milling about this area. At first, he was confused because everyone looked so different that he couldn't quite get a feel for the culture of this place. After a second, he realized that was because he wasn't the only one to arrive in such an unceremonious manner. Duh.

He stopped and looked out into the expanse, putting his hands on his hips and sighing. It had been a fun stroll around the fountain, but he had no idea where to go next. Figuring there was no better alternative, he figured he'd head straight into the distance towards one of the gates. As he dropped his arms to his side and took a step towards the one he was looking at, a voice suddenly stopped him.

"I wouldn't go to that one."

Zack turned around, looking at three men in armor. One man stood in front, closest to Zack, while the other two were several steps behind him on each side.

"All of these portals and you're telling me I pick the bad one?" Zack asked in response.

"That will take you to Coruscant," the soldier explained. "It's a dark and dangerous place. We're soldiers from Camelot. If you come with us, we can help you understand the Omniverse a little better."

Zack crossed his arms, and tilted his head a little bit. He was interested, but he didn't respond just yet. Sensing his hesitance, the soldier continued.

"You're a Prime, that means you were chosen by Omni himself. You can make use of Omnilium, which makes you a target for some very bad people in this world," the soldier continued. "I implore you to come with us. The Nexus can be dangerous."

Zack suddenly started laughing, taking a half step backwards as he did.

"I appreciate it guys, really," Zack said as his laughter died out some. "But one thing I learned where I came from is that you can never really tell who the good guys are."

"Sir..." the soldier said, stepping forward.

"Thanks, but no thanks," Zack said as he turned around and resumed his stroll towards the portal.

As he took a few steps, though, he suddenly stopped. Deciding that it might be best to at least heed some advice from these strangers, he made an abrupt right turn and began walking towards the northern most portal instead.

[Zack Fair]

It took him almost two hours of non-stop walking, but Zack finally made it to the portal on the northern end of the Nexus.He looked it up and down, noticing that it was literally smoking it was so hot.

"You've got to be kidding," Zack mumbled as he walked to the side a bit, studying it from a slightly different angle.

He put his hands on his knees and crouched a bit as he intently studying it. It's not like he figured that would help him see anything different, but he was really just stalling while he thought it over. Finally, after a few minutes, he stood all the way back up. That Omni thing told him not to worry about death, so what did he have to lose by stepping into this thing? It sure was an easier suggestion than practice. He just knew it would be a shame to accidentally kill himself by not understanding this new universe right after he just fought so long and hard against the ShinRa troops he'd managed to be spared from certain death.

"All these people are getting here from somewhere," Zack mused aloud. "Might as well be one of these things."

Convinced as he would ever be, Zack stepped forward. He quickly disappeared into the portal, destined for the Ashen Steppes.