The Magical Mesh Mystery Tale
Chapter One: IN GAIA
"We're nearly near!" Cloud screamed, pointing to the centre of the Earth. It was just as the scientists back at Midgar had predicted, all those years ago…
Suspended above a circle of bright, yellow light, was a black diamond, humungous in size. The airship in which Cloud Strife and his compatriots rode was simply a speck compared to the enormity of the diamond, which revolved slowly, in a clock-wise direction.
"If Sephiroth stops the turning of this damn thing, what'll happen, Cloud?" Yuffie cried, staring in awe at the huge black monstrosity; the rumbling and the noise were mercifully softened by the airship's thick, lead exterior and asbestos lined hull.
"The world will simply stop turning, Yuffie." Cloud spoke, soflty. "All life will die."
"We won't let that happen." Barret interjected, raising his fist with piercing eyes. "Sephiroth is mine."
"God." Tifa laughed, "you're all acting like some weird losers today. Can't we just summon those Knights of the Round and kick his ass like last time? I'm missing my favourite goddamn TV show!"
Everyone turned away from the diamond to look at Tifa.
"That's not very team spirit, Tifa." Aeris whimpered, rocking back and forth with her hands in her lap.
"Oh, do shut up, lard ass!" Tifa spat, "I'm sick of your holier-than-thou bullshit!"
Everyone gasped in shock, except Cid, who had a secret smirk on his face which was hidden by his cigarette smoke.
"Look," she continued, "we've been waiting here for fucking days, and all we've spoken about is that bloody diamond. OK, so it's a diamond. It's perfectly natural for this to happen. Now, unlike you bozos, I have a life, so either Sephiroth turns up now or I start kicking ass!"
"Tifa, this is most—" Cloud began, only to be interrupted by evil laughter. It was Sephiroth!
"Look!" Yuffie cried, pointing near the diamond.
"Mwahaha, foolish mortals. You only thought you stopped me…" Sephiroth hissed, raising his Masamune sword toward the diamond. "I can never be stopped."
"Keep dreaming." Tifa interjected.
"This diamond will cease to be." Sephiroth continued, smiling erratically.
"Just cast Knights of the Round already, Cloud." Tifa nagged, punching Cloud in the arm.
"Ow! He hasn't stopped talking yet." He replied, rubbing his sore arm.
"Just do it, chicken shit!"
"Yeah, man!" Cid added, coughing up some phlegm. Dragging on his cigarette, he yanked the Knights of the Round material out of Cloud's buster sword and placed it on the end of his javelin.
"Hey!" Cloud protested, trying to grab a hold of Cid's long shaft. Cid was very dextrous, and no matter how flexible Cloud tried to be, Cid's shaft was just too erratic, and always escaped his grasp.
"Let me have it!" Cloud cried, tears forming in his eyes.
"You're such a baby, Cloud!" Tifa laughed, pushing him hard on his back; he fell over on his front, scraping his knees on the hard, unpolished wooden floor of the airship deck.
"Now look what you did!" Aeris moaned, as she knelt down to sooth a now-crying Cloud.
Whilst all this was happening, Sephiroth looked on in utter confusion. All he had done was travel a few thousand miles from the underworld to confront his greatest enemies and destroy the world, but now they were acting like children. God, how he loathed mankind. Thinking he would skip the End of the World Speech, he raised his sword above his head and then steadied himself ready to strike the diamond at the centre of the earth. This was it; the end of the world. With one quick dash, quicker than the speed of light, Sephiroth cut the diamond in twain, and in this future the world was to spin nevermore.