"New Enemy"
Gold Saucer was packed and full of excitement for the circus. Tifa, Denzel, and Marlene were finally seated on the fourth bench. "Are you excited?" Tifa asked the kids.
"Yes!" they both answered. Within an hour the area was already filled up. The lights shut off and the kids in the audience screamed and cheered.
A red light flicked on the staged as smoke was spewing out of the vents. Howling and whispers echoed in the room and pop goes the ringmaster. Everyone cheered for him. He bowed and magically grabbed a microphone from his hat. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Boys and Girls! I welcome you all to my circus performance!" The crowd roared vibrating the walls in the room. "Today I will show you all performances that are out of this word."
As the ringmaster, Stryker is talking Tifa phone vibrates. "Hello?"
"Tifa! You must leave the circus now!" Cloud warned her on the other end shouting.
"What? I can't hear you."
"Tifa, step outside the building."
"Huh? Are you here? I thought you had to work today."
"What?"
"Hello? Cloud?" no answer from him and she looks at her phone worried.
"Tifa, look! It's Nanaki!" Marlene pointed. She looked and it was indeed Red XIII.
"Maybe he joined the circus."
Cloud rushes himself to Gold Saucer and found his friends running up the stairs to the station. He runs up the stairs with his sword in his hand.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE CABLE CAR DOES NOT WORK?!" Barret shouted
"Sir, we're going to need you to calm down. We had more than 100 people going to Gold Saucer attending the circus." Said the female worker.
"Ma'am innocent lives will be killed if you don't get that machine fixed. Better yet let me look at it." Cid pulled his shirt sleeves.
"Sir, you cannot fix the ferry. The tools you need fixing it are not here."
"What the fuck you mean the tools ain't here?!" he shouted at her.
"You're not helping the situation shouting at her." Said Vincent.
"He's right we're not." Yuffie said walking to the counter to meet the woman face to face. "Look here, if you don't get that cable-ma-bob fix in 5 minutes I'm going to cut yo scrawny ass."
"Yuffie!" Vincent pulled her back.
"Securi-"the female worker panicked.
"Can it! Is there another one stationed anywhere. If so where? How long will it take?!" asked Cloud.
"It'll take 30 minutes to get here."
"Shit! We can't wait 'dat long." Barret huffed. Propellers sounded and the group looked up and saw Reeve in the helicopter. He drops the rope to let everyone on board. Cid was the last person to get in the copter.
"I had a feeling you guys would be here. I tried calling you all and I didn't get a word." They checked their phone and they did get a call from Reeve. "Yeah, bad reception in this area."
"No wonder I couldn't get Tifa." Cloud answered.
"Hopefully we can make it on time." Vincent added to give Cloud and the others some faith.
"Let's all pray. We should be there in no time."
Inside Gold Saucer, the circus the ringmaster, Stryker begins to speak on the microphone. "Now, we're going to play a game with you guys. Do you all see this recording box above me? I have it recording on each section in this room. With that in mind, I am going to hypnotized all of you with this giant watch. You must look at it in order to work. When I count to three, you all with act like animals. I will count to three again to release the spell and every last one of you will be back to normal. So who's ready!?" The cheered once more. A giant ghost clock appeared in thin air, making the female monk worried what was going on.
"How did he do that?" she said freaked out. The clock got everyone attention attention. Tifa refused to look, but was drawn in. Her pupils dilated.
"I have you all under my spell. Each and every last one of your souls belong to me!" Everyone in the audience soul arrived out of their bodies and into his own. "Oh oh oh oh oh, what marvelous souls I had devoured. Oh, it seems that someone I sucked up was a special one."
Cloud and the gang made it to the entrance of Gold Saucer and ran inside the play theater where the circus was being held. The halls where quiet. Everything was quiet. No one said a word, they rushed to the room and found everyone in the room slumped over.
"We're too late." Reeve leaned heavily against the wall.
"Maybe not. Look for Tifa and the kids!" Cid shouted. They all split up and looked for them. Vincent skimmed the area and found her.
"Tifa?" he shook her. Small mumbles left her mouth. "Cloud! I found her." Cloud rushed over.
"Tifa!" he held her. The young woman mouth was moving, but no words escaped. "Tifa…"
"Cloud..I'm sorry." Her words ended followed by her last breath.
"No."
"NOOOO! MARLENE!" Barett whined. "My baby girl. No!"
"The young boy too." Cid brushed Denzel's hair.
Cloud cried softly to himself while holding his best friend. "Tifa. I failed. I failed to protect you too. I should have gone with you." He buried his face in her shoulder. Vincent put his hand on Cloud's shoulder, he knows the feeling of losing someone you love. But for Cloud, he lost three people he ever cared for.
"I see some of you are still alive." The others looked at the stage and saw the ringmaster, Stryker sitting on stage with his legs crossed. "You should have looked at the clock."
"Son of a bitch!" Barret fired at him. Red XIII jumped from behind Stryker to attack Barret. Cid intervene and blocked his sharp teeth and claws with his spear.
"I got ya covered! Go get that fucker!"
Vincent leaped on stage and transformed into a demon hound. With rage, he charged at the ringmaster. Stryker sat there calmly as he charges him and lifts his hand forcing Vincent to change back to normal. "Impossible!"
"Very impossible. I don't like the way you look-" He waved his hand again and he heard footsteps coming from behind.
"Get your hands off him!" Yuffie threw her giant shuriken. Without much to do, he leaned his head back slowly dodging it.
"Oh, I see you have material. It'll be a shame if I take them from you." Her material vanished and she dropped to the floor. The next opponent was Cloud and he was furious one out of the crew. He jumped swinging his sword down for one blow, but missed.
"You look like a problem." Stryker pulled out his whip from his waist.
"Who the hell are you? And return the souls to these people in here you bastard!"
"Sorry. I need these souls to create my own world circus. The world needs a better ringmaster and it's not the president, Rufus or his henchmen."
"Give it back!" the angry swordsman gripped his sword glowing blue. The ringmaster looked deeper into his soul.
"You poor man. You had a terrible past."
"Shut up!"
"You watched those that were dear to you, die right before your eyes."
"I said shut up!" Cloud strikes towards Stryker who floats in the air. "The hell."
The ringmaster laughs loudly while hovering in mid-air. "This is the power of gathered souls, and once I gather more. I will be unstoppable." He faded away along with Red XIII. Cloud watched in silence as he leaves the room. Reeve runs down the stairs to meet up with his friends.
"Cloud?" He slams his sword into the wooded floor. "Cloud?!" His friends gathered together to meet with the broken ex-SOLDIER. His hands and arms were shaking. Droplets of tears hit the floor. Reeve climbs on stage to meet his friend. "Cloud, hey. It's not the end friend."
"The hell it is! How the fuck can we kill something that's already dead! What happens when we defeat him? Will he give everyone their souls back?!"
"Cloud?" Yuffie shivered in fear of his outburst.
"Denzel, Marlene, and Tifa are all gone because of me! I wasn't there for them."
"You didn't know any better, you just wanted them to enjoy themselves. It was inevitable." Vincent stepped forward. Cloud looked at his friend in tears. His eyes pink from the crying, he broke down. He fell to his knees and cried. Vincent held his friend to comfort his loss of their love ones.
"It's all right to let it out, Cloud." Cried Barret. He felt a pat on his shoulder and it was Cid looking at him.
"Let it out, man." Barret let his tears stream down his face. Everyone in the building shed their tears for Tifa, Marlene, and Denzel. After an hour, they carried their bodies with them onto the helicopter. Silence ensued until they got to the Shinra towers. Cloud carried Tifa, Barret carried Marlene and Cid carried Denzel. They laid their bodies on the cold metal tables and put a sheet over them. Barret and Cid left the room while Cloud looks at Tifa cold, lifeless body one last time. The spikey haired young man stepped out of the room and Yuffie followed.
"Hey, Cloud." He stopped walking. "You're not alone anymore, remember that. You're not going to leave us again are you?"
"No." he turned to face his young friend. "I'm going after him."
"Don't go running by yerself. Didn't she just say that you're not alone?" Cid lit his cigarette.
"Yeah, we're going to get that mother fucker and make him pay for what he did to our friends." Added Barret.
"I'm sure you need one more person to accompany you." Vincent swung his cape.
"Well then, it looks like we're off for another adventure." Reeve stepped out of the corner. Cloud looked around at his friends.
I'm not alone. They forgave me, they understand what I'm going through. My friends Barret, Vincent, Cid, Yuffie, and Reeve." Thank you everyone." He swings his sword in the air and puts it on his back. "Now, let's move out!"