The massive cathedral bells of Midgar broke the dawn early in the morning. Down in the courtyard of Phoenix's Cathedral, children ran around eagerly. Boys chasing girls, younger girls playing with dolls and younger boys play fighting with their wooden swords. It was a sight that Aerith and Zack enjoyed seeing when they came into the courtyard to sell flowers and entertain.

"It's Uncle Zack!"

"Uncle Zack!"

Aerith giggled as she began setting up her flower stall whilst the children flocked to Zack like sheep.

"Whoa, whoa, little knights!" Zack grinned as he picked up an eager boy to spin him around "Full of energy aren't you?"

"Uncle Zack, can we hear the story of Rosso the Crimson?" one girl asked shyly.

"We heard that story yesterday," an older girl sneered "I want to hear the tale of how Uncle Zack met Aunt Aerith."

"No, no soppy stuff," one boy pulled a face "I want to hear the battle of Weiss and Rosso!"

"Everyone know how that ends, you couldn't have picked a more boring story," one of the older boys huffed.

Zack laughed as the children argued and bickered, glancing around the bustling courtyard to decide what kind of story he should tell. The bells run again throughout the city as he looked up at the cathedral and grinned.

"Listen!" he said as he hopped onto the fountain ledge and cupped a hand over his ear "Listen to those wonderful bells! Aren't they magnificent?"

Most of the older children cottoned on to what story he had decided on and grinned eagerly. The younger children looked up at the cathedral, some of them shielding their eyes as the bells swung back and forth.

"They're really loud," one girl pouted.

"I don't think Phoenix likes the loud bells," her twin nodded.

"Ah, that is where you are wrong!" Zack grinned as he pointed to them "The bells symbolize life! Without sound, I wouldn't think life would be as fun or exciting!"

"How do the bells work?" one older boy prompted the story on.

"How do the bells work?" Zack laughed "Well, they certainly don't ring by themselves."

"They don't?!" chorused the younger children, prompting the older ones to laugh.

"Of course not!" Zack shrugged "They sound magical but they are untouched by magic."

"So who rings them?"

"Is it Rosso?"

"Is it Phoenix?"

"Is it Angeal?"

Zack laughed as the younger children bickered amongst themselves.

"Hush, hush," he soothed them down "I shall tell you the tale of the mysterious bell ringer. It involves…Chocobos…"

The children giggled as he did his Chocobo impression.

"It involves Alexander's and Bahamut's followers…"

The children booed and hissed and Zack hid his grimace.

"And…it involves…a most curious creature…"

It was dark in the night in the southern town of Midgar City. It was a few days after the New Year and as prophesied, a babe was born, a babe promised to bring about the end of the War Between Gods. Quick on their feet, a mother and father rushed through the streets, sheltering their child in their warmth.

"Ssh, ssh, little one," the woman cooed as the father wrapped his red cloak around her.

"Halt there!"

The father and mother stopped at the sight of Azul the Cerulean.

"The child," he said gruffly, holding his hand out.

"You're in Phoenix's territory, why should we give her to you?" the mother barked at him.

"She's right."

And from behind a proud figure on his black Chocobo stepped out of the shadows with soldiers behind him.

"Captain Sephiroth," the father murmured as he brought his wife closer.

"That child is ours," Sephiroth said as he held his hand out to them "Give her here."

"No, that child will serve under Alexander!" Azul barked as his minions sprung out of their hiding places.

The father took his cloak off to swaddle the child more as they stood in the midst of the conflict. He kissed his wife's head.

"Gaia be with you," he whispered before raising his gold encased hand.

"Seize him! He's a follower of Bahamut!"

"Run, Lucrecia!"

Lucrecia ran after he brought his gauntlet down and summoned a cloud of smoke. She ran through the streets, gripping the child close to her. She clutched onto the necklace she wore, kissing the pendant and gritting her teeth.

"Guide me, Bahamut," she whispered as she navigated her way through the city.

"Halt!"

Lucrecia ran faster as she heard Sephiroth's Chocobo catching up to her. She gasped as he overtook her at the courtyard of Phoenix's Cathedral and grabbed the child.

"No! Not my baby!" she cried.

"Silence, traitor!"

Sephiroth threw Lucrecia aside, gripping the child tightly. Lucrecia cried as she fell over in the fountain and broke her neck. At the sound of her neck snapping, the child screamed and Sephiroth stared at it in alarm. The Chocobo snorted as its rider let go of the reins momentarily to slide off and carefully peel the red cloak away from the child to take a better look at it. He dodged a clawed hand which grabbed his hair and began pulling.

"You're no child," he said as he covered the creature's face.

He looked around as the thing it his arms began roaring like a baby monster. He spied a well and marched up to it, preparing to drop it into the freezing depths.

"Wait!"

Sephiroth looked up to see Rosso in the distance, her blade fresh with blood.

"Is that the child?" she asked as she briskly walked up to him.

"It is no child," Sephiroth scoffed when Rosso arrived and he bowed his head slightly to respect her.

"…Give it here."

Sephiroth let her take the creature away from him and uncovered its face. She recoiled slightly, placing a hand on her heart as she stared at the monstrosity in front of her.

"This…this…"

She looked over to the dead mother and walked up to it, cradling the struggling creature with her strong grip. Putting her blade away, she grabbed Lucrecia by the front of her dress and pulled her out of the fountain, glaring down at the necklace she wore.

"Foolish Bahamut worshippers," she hissed as she dropped her carelessly "Of course they would believe that this thing would be…"

She looked down at the creature again. Hesitating, she licked the front of her teeth before covering the creature's face.

"It may be of use to us," she said as she walked back to Sephiroth to drop it into his arms.

Sephiroth caught it haphazardly and winced as the creature screamed again. Awkwardly, he bounced it up and down until it stopped and watched Rosso look up at the Cathedral.

"It'll live here," she decided and beckoned Sephiroth to follow "Phoenix will purge this creature of its darkness. Until he is finished, that thing must not leave the cathedral. Keep a close eye on it."

"Me?" Sephiroth narrowed his eyes as he cradled the creature to his chest as she opened the doors "I must take care of it?"

"The Archdeacon will retire soon and his son will take over," Rosso hummed as she stalked into the halls with him behind her "He will help you."

She turned to him and smirked.

"You did kill the mother after all."

Sephiroth hesitated as the creature cooed, its clawed hand trying to find something blindly. It found his finger and Sephiroth stared at it curiously as it squeezed it.

"The bell tower."

Sephiroth looked up at Rosso as they were greeted by the Archdeacon.

"It will stay in the bell tower and it will remain up there until it is purged," she said "It will be safe from the other gods that way."

"…Understood."

"And so, the creature was locked away in the bell tower, raised by Captain, now General, Sephiroth and Archdeacon Angeal."

Zack began spinning around the courtyard as the children began skipping in circles around him.

"And the years come and the years pass," he sung "the creature still lives up there in the bell tower to ring the Bells of Phoenix and sing the song of Midgar."

He began spinning faster.

"Sing for the bells!" he sung out "Bells, bells, bells of…"

He was cut off when a massive roar echoed through the city, drowning out the bells' song. The younger children shrieked and ran off whilst the older children giggled and ran off with them, leaving Zack standing in the middle of the courtyard, arms out like an idiot with the last word on his lips.

"…She could have had better timing than that."