Chapter 817 - 817: Who is Zack?

For Ben, the biggest appeal of Final Fantasy was the richness of its characters.

Xenoblade, in comparison, felt more like a duet between Rex and Pyra/Mythra than an ensemble cast.

Characters like the tomboyish Melia, the otaku-ish Nia, the chuunibyo prince, and the always beloved Nia, didn't actually have as much depth as one might think.

But Final Fantasy was a completely different story, offering a much richer ensemble performance.

It wasn't just Cloud, the protagonist, but also Aerith, Tifa, and even Sephiroth, who were all described in great detail with excellent screen time.

Sephiroth, in particular, even though he had only appeared in flashbacks so far, created an immensely powerful sense of pressure when combined with the content from Midgar.

And the stories of the other characters were equally memorable.

Take Barret, for example. His fiery personality, his intense hatred for Shinra and Mako energy, and his constant talk of saving the Planet Mother.

He came across as a pure idealist with grand aspirations to save the planet.

But it wasn't until Cloud and his companions arrived at Barret's hometown, North Corel, that they understood the story behind Barret's past.

The Barret of the past was different from the one who now hated Shinra and spoke of saving the Planet Mother.

The former Barret actually believed strongly in Shinra, and he was the one who pushed for the construction of the Mako reactor in his hometown of North Corel.

He even convinced his best friend to abandon their hometown's coal mines and embrace Shinra's Mako energy.

In short, the former Barret was someone who was wholeheartedly close to Shinra.

But then, Shinra's actions gave Barret a painful memory.

The Mako reactor in his hometown, North Corel, exploded. And to cover up the safety issues of the Mako reactor, Shinra silenced the local town.

Not only did Barret's wife die in this disaster, but he also lost his right hand while protecting his friend Denzel.

Later, seeking revenge against Shinra, Barret fitted himself with a gatling gun.

As for his talk of "saving the planet," it was actually just an excuse, a way to get revenge on Shinra and make himself feel better.

"So, the members of AVALANCHE are truly a bunch of characters with broken lives!

Watching Barret open up, Ben couldn't help but be moved.

Thinking about the people who joined AVALANCHE, Jesse, who had already died, had a father who became a vegetative state after a breakdown. Tifa's hometown was destroyed and her parents killed. Barret lost his hometown, his wife, and his hand.

As for Biggs and Wedge, who also died, while the game didn't go into detail, Ben figured their situations weren't much better.

But what Ben found particularly interesting wasn't Barret's backstory in this particular segment.

It was the Gold Saucer, this unique amusement park, that was far more fun than Midgar.

The "box garden" style map design, the various mini-games, and especially the Chocobos, were all incredibly enjoyable. Plus, a new member, Cait Sith, the robotic cat, joined here.

As the story progressed, they reached a place called Gongaga, where a question that had been puzzling Ben was answered. Of course, this also brought with it even deeper mysteries.

In this town, abandoned due to Mako, Cloud and his companions met an elderly couple. From their conversation, they learned that they had a son named Zack, who was also a Shinra SOLDIER but hadn't returned home for many years. They asked Cloud if he had seen him.

Later, through a conversation with Aerith, they learned that this SOLDIER named Zack, like Cloud, was a First Class SOLDIER and Aerith's former first love.

'He was very popular with girls. Maybe he's found someone else?' Aerith stood by the rock, looking a little lost.

Aerith's former first love, Zack?

Ben was a little stunned watching this scene.

Who is Zack? A new character?

He's this important?! His identity is Aerith's ex-boyfriend, and more importantly, judging by their reactions, it's not just Aerith, but even Tifa knows about Zack.

Although Tifa claimed not to know him, her expression said it all. She definitely knew Zack.

"So Zack, is he a very important character? Related to two heroines, possibly even to Sephiroth and Cloud? But why doesn't Cloud know him?"

Watching this scene unfold, Ben's mind was filled with countless questions.

One question was answered, but more questions arose. He had to admit that Nebula Games was brilliant at setting up mysteries!

Like Ben, Cloud in the game also had many questions at this point, but more importantly than these questions was to continue their journey and search for Sephiroth.

Everything they saw and heard along the way showed them ordinary people harmed by Shinra's tyranny and Mako.

And the experiences of characters like Red XIII, Cait Sith, and Yuffie were gradually revealed on this journey.

Red XIII, who can speak human languages, is a Sacred Beast that protects the planet. His real name is Nanaki.

Red XIII was just a codename given to him by Hojo.

Red XIII, who had left his clan, always believed his father was a coward who abandoned his mother and clan to fight their nemesis, the Gi tribe. But when Cloud returned to the Cosmo Canyon, Red XIII understood everything after his grandfather explained it.

It turned out his father, Seto, was not a coward at all, but a hero. He fought the Gi tribe continuously, even as his body turned to stone from poison, and he endured the name of a coward to protect Cosmo Canyon.

As the tears of Seto, who had turned to stone, fell, Red XIII stood by his father's body and let out a long cry to the sky. This scene also touched Ben. Apart from the image of Sephiroth disappearing in a sea of fire, this was the second scene that deeply moved him.

There was also the lively, cute, and sunny girl from Wutai, who called herself a Materia hunter, Yuffie.

She was the daughter of the lord of Wutai. After Wutai lost the war with Shinra, it was developed into a tourist resort.

Yuffie was unwilling to see her homeland ruled by Shinra and considered her father, who obeyed Shinra, a coward.

So, she began traveling the world, aiming to collect enough Materia to revive her homeland.

Cait Sith, riding a strange machine cat called Mog, called himself a fortune-telling machine and joined the party under the pretense of witnessing Cloud's fate.

But in reality, he was a high-performance robot controlled remotely. His true identity was a spy sent by Shinra into Cloud's party. However, as he got to know Cloud's team, the controller behind him, Reeve, gradually came to understand and agree with their actions, and eventually became a double agent.

The depiction and development of these different characters made Ben feel that everyone in the main party had come alive.

Each of them had a past they couldn't bear to look back on and felt sad about. But during their journey, there were also many moments of vibrancy and humor, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

This continued until they reached the Sleeping Forest, Zack's map.

(End of Chapter)