Zas: Baby, why don't we go, down to Kokomo!
Tori: We'll get there fast and then we'll take it slow-oh!
Zas and Tori: That's where we wanna go! Way down to Kokomo!
SA: (hefts a mallet) SHUT UP!
Saria: I WANT CHOCOLATE! (smacks at Tori with a ramen container)
Also, I'm trying something new for this story, namely a co-write. I don't want to give any spoilers, but my co-author is Organization 13 vi
zzzzzzzzzz
The idiot who yelled turned out to be Rod who Reno was already dragging away before Vincent was able to catch them. As our dark guard chased the loud mouths, Aeris and I cleaned my wound and tried our best to remove all of the dark matter but the damage was done.
"You… You might not get it," Aeris said, her voice trembling violently and I didn't need to look to know she was almost in tears. "I sh-should have…"
"We were focused on what we were doing, and that is what we were supposed to be doing," I assured her as I checked that my armlet was in place, more importantly that I had Hell Blizzaga equipped. "That fool should have known better than to yell the way he did."
"We should get her to the Seventh Heaven," Vincent ordered as he appeared again. "And from now on, if the Turks insist on guarding this site, they shall only send those who can be silent and keep their distance."
"Hate to tell you this, but Rude is scared of me," I informed him as I headed towards Aiden's carrier only for Aeris to grab the handle before I could reach him.
"You… might want to clean up first," she offered, her eyes cast downward and I glanced at my arm. Though my Restore materia had closed the wound my arm still had blood on it and I was certain that I could see several drops of the black pus.
We walked quickly to the Seventh Heaven and I found myself keenly aware of the blood on my arm and sleeve as we walked through the streets. Suddenly I was noticing all the people with Geostigma all over again. I had never been blind of them, but as I worked on the cure I had always thought they would be well soon. Now I wondered what they had thought when they first realized they had the stigma, how terrified it had made them.
Marlene attempted to run up and greet us when we arrived at the Seventh Heaven but she understood something was wrong the moment she saw our faces.
Not wanting to alarm the patrons of the bar, I headed for the back and washed my arm in the bathroom and the ever observant Tifa leant me a new shirt so no one would see the bloody one. Cloud and Zack weren't there at the moment, both of them out on deliveries which was too bad because I was severely tempted to have a drink right then and they were the best bet I had at people who could control me if I went overboard.
"What happened?" Tifa demanded as she collected my shirt and stuffed it into a garbage bag.
I glanced at Aeris whose eyes were cast downward while Vincent wasn't really looking in our direction.
"Aeris and I had an experiment today with the cure for Geostigma."
"Did it not work?" Tifa asked sympathetically.
"It worked, well enough that a Turk surprised us when we had an open sample."
Tifa looked confused then glanced down at the bag holding my shirt and seemed to pale a bit. "Did… did any get on you?"
"Yeah, right into a cut," I confirmed and Tifa swallowed thickly then moved into the bar area. She didn't come back.
"What now?" Aeris asked as the silence grew heavy.
"We continue with the research, I'm pretty sure I'll be highly motivated now." My smile was tight and false and I don't think it would have fooled even a gullible man.
Aeris was still blinking back tears though. "I-I should have capped the vial… Or paid more attention."
Surprisingly it was Vincent who reached out and squeezed her shoulder as Marlene entered the room.
"Tifa said to bring you this," she chirped as she set a tray that contained a bottle and several shot glasses on the table.
I stared at the bottle and the temptation was extremely strong to accept the liquor. Vincent snapped me out of the notion by placing Aiden in my arms.
"You need to stay focused and not do such thoughtless things," he chided as I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat.
"People are surviving months with Geostigma, and we know what to do now. We can probably get this finished in just a few weeks."
The mood for today was ruined though and we all knew it. None of us touched the bottle sent back by Tifa though I did glance at it several times. When Aiden began to fuss a bit, I used the excuse to get out of the room so I could change his diaper and when I came back, the alcohol was noticeably absent. Still wishing I could have had some, I prepped a bottle for Aiden only for Aeris to grab it when she realized that I was about to stick my hand into very hot water.
Zack arrived at the Seventh Heaven while I was feeding Aiden and Kunsel was with him. They were talking about the WRO and when Kunsel was supposed to start work. Aeris stood from the table almost immediately and rushed to him. I didn't think anything of it until a shout of "WHAT?!" came from the front and Zack came racing into the back.
I was ignored almost completely as Zack faced Vincent immediately. "What happened?"
"It was an accident," I called but Zack didn't even look at me, just kept his eyes on Vincent.
"A Turk surprised us in the church and caused an accident with a Geostigma sample," Vincent explained.
Zack's teeth gritted angrily before he glanced at me. "How much longer will this cure take to make?"
"Another week or two," I replied honestly.
"Then you may want to step up on this," he said quietly. "Cloud started acting a bit strange earlier today, tied a bandage over his arm. I think he's got it too."
"You might get it as well then. We know it is caused by Jenova."
Zack was quiet for a moment then nodded. "Yeah, I know."
"So, what're we going to do?" Kunsel asked from the doorway.
"I say we go Turkie hunting," Zack said as he turned to the door, his hand already reaching for his phone.
"That won't do any good," Tifa called from behind Kunsel.
"It'll teach them that they do have to face consequences now!" Zack yelled back.
"Rod will be firmly reprimanded," another voice called, one that I remembered as belonging to Cissnei.
We all glanced toward the doorway and just beyond Tifa's shoulder was a head of copper colored hair.
"A reprimand isn't enough!" Zack argued. "His actions have put the life of one of our friends in danger!"
"So beating him will make all the difference?" Cissnei asked.
For one of the few times since I had met him, Zack glared angrily.
"I'll call Reeve," Kunsel finally said to break the tension.
The Calamity
Her plan was a simple one, to infect the people of Gaia with her disease and corrode the Planet by corrupting the Lifestream, eventually taking command of it. She had tried it before when she first came to the Planet but had been stopped. Now however, with Holy having brought the Lifestream across the globe and most of her body being broken down into particles within the stream, she had been able to infest the Planet on a global scale.
Even now she was spawning children with her cells that would enter the Lifestream as she commanded and choke it.
Her revenge didn't seem like it could get any sweeter until it did, when that disgusting Cetra that had taken her son had joined her children.
She watched and waited eagerly as the foul being had gone through her day, caring for her own son, before heading to where she seemed to live with one of the others that had dared to oppose her. Both had seemed tense, possibly about the infection though neither said anything about it other than him asking if something was almost complete.
She waited until they went to sleep before reaching out for the woman and lashing at her but growled as her attempt to intrude on the woman's mind was blocked. She needed a better presence in this woman before she could find out how she knew so much.
It should be easy enough though for her disease to spread, the woman already knew she was infected after all.
Healin
Rufus bit back on the urge to scream as Reno attempted to explain what had happened that ended with him and Rod coming screaming back to Healin at top speed. Those women were so close and now this! He could only hope the sickness didn't slow down progress and that they wouldn't turn reckless in their quest to cure the Ancient.
"But I mean seriously, yo! He was just excited and they seemed to have finally found the cure!" Reno finished and Rufus shook his head. As intelligent as the Second-in-command of the Turks was, he did sometimes miss some important things.
"Why did they want a pool of water when they were just trying an orb?" Rufus demanded.
Reno looked confused for a moment and scratched his ear before his eyes widened.
"Why?" Rod asked. "They've got the cure now, that woman should be fine!"
"It was an experiment!" Reno realized aloud. "They were experimenting with something and it worked, but they don't actually have a cure yet."
Rufus nodded from beneath his blanket. "They found a way to treat Geostigma, but it might not be safe for humans yet."
Rod turned bright red as his hand brushed the back of his head. "Guess I jumped the gun."
"Worse, you may have alienated the entire group," Rufus replied before Reno's phone began to go off.
After a quick glance for permission, the Turk brought the phone up to his ear. "Cissnei? Okay, so they've calmed down some? Anything else to report?" Reno nodded several times then hung up and turned to Rod. "I suggest you don't go near any of AVALANCHE for at least a year after the Ancient is cured, yo."
"That mad?"
"The more level-headed and nice ones looked ready to tie you to the back of a train, yo," Reno replied. "And the guy we were initially running from is a former Turk."
Rod winced as he realized just how badly he had messed up.
Normal
When I woke up the morning after I had been infected, it was with a bit of a headache that caused me to stumble a bit. Reeve first thought I might be a bit sick but understood that I needed to get up today, that I needed to do something.
Aiden was oddly silent that day when I changed his diaper and fed him. It was as though he knew something was wrong and he was very still when I strapped him into the carrier.
It was April at this point and starting to get warm so although I tucked his blanket into my pack, I doubted he would need it.
Aeris was already in the church when I arrived and as was normal took charge of Aiden while I headed for the pool. The water was oddly reactive that day as I poured healing energy into it with a new sense of urgency. It retained a lot more of the energy which was odd and often I found myself checking the energy levels. Was it possible that Minerva was assisting now? She had been silent since I had visited Earth with the exception of when Aiden was "born".
I worked a lot longer than I usually did that day, pouring energy into the water until I was certain that I was about to collapse before stopping for the day. When I checked the energy levels in the water, I estimated it would take less than a week if everyday proved as productive as today, and I'd have to be careful with the levels or else a normal person would find themselves melting in this pool.
When I packed up with Aiden and departed that day, Aeris walked with me back to the house before parting ways.
The Calamity
She had watched that woman all day as she pushed her disease to spread, for her cells to multiply within this woman.
She watched the woman as she played around with that water until she tired. Typical Cetra playing around with water for their disgusting flowers. The other Cetra was there also and seemed to be watching and caring for the other's son.
As soon as the woman fell asleep, she reached out again and clawed at the woman's guarded mind but once again found herself blocked. No matter though, soon enough she'd be able to see everything this woman knew, she might even be useful.
Normal
Reeve woke me the next morning, declaring that I was pale and looked feverish. I could admit that I wasn't feeling well either but chose to get up. He had nothing else to do that day so when I packed Aiden into his carrier to head for the church, Reeve took the carrier and accompanied me to the church.
The weather was cloudy that day but the church was as beautiful as ever, the flowers seemed to glow in the almost gloom and the water had a shine to it.
"I can see why Aeris thinks this is a good place for the wedding," Reeve murmured before said flower girl appeared from behind one of the benches.
"Thanks, I think the healing pool does add something," the pink clad woman replied with a bit of a forced smile.
As I got to work with the water, Aeris explained her plans for the wedding to Reeve, pointing out where she wanted Zack and her to stand and explaining how she hoped the light would be that day.
After several minutes, Reeve spread a blanket over a small corner near the flowers and laid Aiden there then took turns with Aeris teasing him with a stuffed cat.
The water was once again very receptive of the healing energy, and if I wasn't mistaken, it seemed like there was more energy than there had been yesterday. It seems like Minerva was giving a helping hand now that we were close.
I wasn't able to go for long that day, quickly feeling weak and tired. Both Aeris and Reeve noticed and when Reeve helped me to my feet, he was quick to declare that my hands were cold. I was wobbling so badly that he had to help me walk back to the house and Aeris carried Aiden for us.
I went straight to bed when we got back to the house as the area where my arm was cut began to ache. Turning it slightly, I stared at the small rash that had begun to form. It seemed to be moving far too quickly and my symptoms seemed far more severe than what others who were afflicted experienced.
Though I was tired it was difficult to fall asleep, something nagged at me, warning me that I shouldn't. But I eventually did sleep.
Reeve
Aeris helped bring Aiden home while he had helped Rachas back to the house, even going so far as tucking him into his crib. The baby had seemed disturbed by something though and soon after Rachas had gone to get some rest, the child had started to cry loudly.
Lifting the boy and carrying him downstairs after checking his diaper, Reeve tried to calm the child using toys and a bottle but all were rejected.
"Shh…" he soothed as he walked the boy back and forth. "Your mama needs to rest." Aiden was inconsolable though and Reeve eventually broke down and carried the child upstairs, intent to see if being in the same room as Rachas would calm the child. The sight that welcomed him in their bedroom though almost caused him to scream.
Rachas was paler than ever, her breathing irregular, and sweat gleamed over her form. A rash on her arm was slowly expanding and expelling black pus onto the sheets.
"Rachas!" Reeve yelled as he raced to the bed and grabbed her shoulder, shaking her to try to wake her up. She didn't even stir.
Gulping, he turned and left the room, running to Aiden's room and settling the screaming baby in his crib again as he yanked out his PHS and dialed the Seventh Heaven. Tifa answered the phone after a very long minute.
"Hello?"
"Is Aeris there?" Reeve demanded immediately.
"No, is something wrong?" Tifa asked.
"It's Rachas, I think the Geostigma is affecting her too fast."
"Goddess," Tifa murmured. "Do you need help?"
"I think we need Aeris," Reeve replied as he raced into the bathroom and dragged out several towels, throwing some of them into the sink and turning on the faucet.
"I'll call around, see if anyone can find her," Tifa assured before hanging up as he dragged the wet towels into the bedroom and began trying to mop up the excrement from the rash.
With the pus gone, he could see the rash clearly now and it didn't seem that bad, but to have one now when her arm had been clean just that morning…
"Come on Rachas, you've fought her before," Reeve murmured as he used a clean towel to wipe at the sweaty, feverish face. "You can fight her again and win, you're on your own turf now."
Normal
There was something around me, preventing me from leaving my body, keeping me asleep. I was exhausted but I forced myself to stay alert as little by little the Lifestream seemed to fade from my grasp.
I already knew I was alone in my head and I understood why this was happening. This was Jenova's personal revenge against me for fighting her and rescuing Sephiroth. She was going to smother me by first cutting me off from my source of power and then torture me the way she had Sephiroth. My only defense was that this was my mind and I had received some training in how to defend it.
The first thing I decided that I needed to defend was Aiden so I gathered all memories of his "birth" and any time I had explained who he really was and pulled them as close as I could, burying them deeply. Those were followed by memories I had for Advent Children as well as the original story for Final Fantasy 7. Every memory I had of Earth couldn't be buried so I tried instead to bury the name itself and the fact it was another Planet all together.
The next step was in clearing my mindscape altogether, hopefully removing all other thoughts before forming my true defenses with what I could still manipulate. Realizing a solid structure would only allow her to guess where I was hiding my most precious memories if she targeted them more easily, I thought fast of what would take time to search and never leave any one place as obvious then settled on an asteroid field. It was hard to piece together but I did eventually have a scene for one, hundreds of rocks that floated around a fixed point, space dust obscuring the view of everything. My memories were hidden in one of the rocks so she would either need to search every rock or find me, and with everything in motion that would be time consuming, hopefully allowing me the time to think of a plan to defeat her.
Concealing myself amongst the rocks, I waited for the Calamity to reveal herself.
The Calamity
The time had finally come, her focus on the pathetic woman had caused her infection to spread and now the woman couldn't move any longer. Her time to attack had come.
She discovered quickly enough that the Cetra must have been expecting her because the filthy being had kept her mental shields up and seemed to have poured everything into the defense. But her everything would never be enough against her might!
It took two hard lashes before the shield cracked but it wasn't good enough for her, she wanted this woman to suffer! To feel just how low she was, how weak she was in comparison to her! Two more blows and a large hole appeared in the defenses and she triumphantly entered the Cetra's mind.
She wasn't expecting the defense that the woman mounted since most humans when they thought of defenses, even on the level of mindscape, thought of walls as safe, never realizing that those gave away so easily. This though, she could say that this sort of defense allowed a much more versatile and time consuming problem when it came to solving.
Striking at one of the asteroids, she was amused at the level of realism that had been placed into this mindscape as the asteroid shattered, adding large shards and dust into the already congested area.
There were two ways to win this game; either find the woman or find the goal that she defended with this field. And from the looks of this field, both would be mobile and could be easily overlooked or missed.
"Smart," she finally admitted before striking another of the mental rocks, restricting visibility even further. "But you're bound to the same rules here." Cut off from the Lifestream, the woman would have to rely on eyes and ears to track her, and if the woman stayed still then sooner or later she would drift close to her.
Grinning, she lashed out again and smashed a third asteroid viciously. The little heroine couldn't hide here forever and no matter how smart she was, she was only a human. She would fall before her!
Tifa
She tried calling Aeris's PHS but received no answer and the home phone number proved to also be ineffective. Uncertain of what to do, but knowing that Reeve would never call unless something extremely serious had happened, she began calling Yuffie, Zack, Kunsel, and Cloud, hoping the woman was with any one of them.
Cloud was near Junon which ruled him out pretty quickly. He was heading back to Edge though and agreed to join the search if they hadn't found her when he arrived.
Zack had a similar problem except that he was in Kalm and would take an hour to get back to Edge but he gave a similar promise.
Yuffie and Kunsel jumped to help though and split up, Yuffie heading for Aeris's house in case she was there and tending to her garden. Kunsel on the other hand headed for the church, he seemed certain that their friend would be there.
As for Tifa, she knew from the noise over the phone that something was wrong and Reeve probably did need help so she closed the bar and grabbed Marlene then headed for the house.
She heard crying the moment that she entered the house and ordered Marlene to stay downstairs as she headed up to where the screams were coming from and found a horribly distraught Aiden in his crib, his face red from screams and tears.
"What's wrong?" Tifa asked gently as she picked up the baby and tried to rock him but he continued to cry loudly.
Heading back into the hall, she walked to where the Master Bedroom should be and opened the door. Reeve was in there as well as Rachas and things didn't look good. Next to Reeve's feet were several towels covered in black pus and Rachas was too still, the rise and fall of her chest being the only movement.
"What happened?" she demanded as she stepped into the room and Reeve turned to stare at her, stress evident on his face.
"She was just tired and went to bed. When I checked on her…" the executive looked seriously troubled and Tifa understood. "W-why is this ha-happening so fast? She s-should have months!"
Tifa didn't know how to answer as she moved to the other side of the bed; Aiden's wails the only sound in the room.
Normal
Jenova was here and she felt confident, that much I knew. She was creeping slowly through the room, destroying the asteroids that I had imagined one by one, adding cloying dust and many smaller asteroids to the congestion of the room. Sneezing wouldn't be an issue, but visibility was rapidly being reduced as everything continued to slowly revolve around the center I had chosen for this field.
I wasn't sure how I could fight Jenova in this field though the best tactic I could think of was Guerilla Warfare. Hit-and-run in this kind of space where visibility was restricted and hiding places plentiful was the best option but it could just as easily be turned into an ambush. And with me being cut off from the Lifestream right now, I had very few weapons at my disposal.
The sound of another asteroid being destroyed reached me and I realized that she was indeed baiting me to either attack or try to move away from her. Staying hidden would only cause me to float closer which brought on the possibility of discovery, something I really didn't like.
There was the possibility that since she was in here now that I might be able to exit this plane and seal it into a form of prison for her if I could call on the Lifestream, but it would leave my memories to possibly being found until I could remove them while sealing this place. It was unfortunate, but at the moment it seemed like I was going to have to take that risk.
Waiting another minute, I prayed to Minerva as I passed the point where Jenova had seemed to be mere moments ago before releasing my hold on the asteroid I was using to hide and directed myself to the edge of my mindscape, listening as yet another asteroid was destroyed. I had no idea at the moment where my memories were, but I prayed they stayed safe for the next few moments.
My mental shields were still in place when I arrived at the edge of my mindscape and with a bit of focus, I began to lower them.
I didn't realize my mistake until it was too late. I had forgotten that Geostigma could in fact touch the mind and the only reason I had been safe from that was because of my mental defenses. Now though, with those defenses down the black stigma washed into my mindscape and caught me.
"Never expected this would be how I caught you," Jenova's cold voice announced from behind me and I glared at the Calamity that tried to pass herself off as a woman. Behind her my mindscape continued on its set path but because I had been caught, it didn't matter.
"This set-up is truly wonderful, it brings back so many memories of the cosmos," Jenova continued as the oily strands of black Geostigma continued to entangle my limbs. "There are some deficiencies though, but you'll be able to see them one day. As a part of me."
"Sick bitch," I replied. "I'm a part of Gaia, this Planet!"
"Not at the moment," Jenova replied, reminding me of how her filth was clogging my connection. "You've caused me a great deal of trouble with your meddling, kidnapping my son."
"He wasn't your son!" I shouted back as anger rushed through my senses.
"He had my cells; I gave him love, power!"
"Power isn't love."
Jenova's dark eyes narrowed slightly, crinkling her sickly blue skin. Her hatred was palpable.
"Power is all that matters, so let's see where you got yours."
The black tendrils of Geostigma held me tight as she reached out to pry at my actual soul and I didn't have the power to fight! Agony swept over me as she reached in and pulled at my memories, yanking out the ones I hadn't protected.
"Show me what you know," Jenova demanded as memories of my early childhood began to play before my eyes.
The Church
"She's not at the house," Yuffie reported over the phone and Kunsel picked up his pace, running full tilt towards the church.
"Check with the neighbors in case any of them have seen her," he told Yuffie before ending the call as he rushed through the doors of the church.
Aeris didn't seem to notice him at all as she kneeled amongst her flowers and jerked a bit when he ran up to her and caught her shoulder.
"Kun-"
"It's Rachas," he told her. "Tifa called to say something has happened, Reeve thinks they need you."
Aeris nodded slightly then glanced at the water in the pool before her. "Jenova and Cetra are natural enemies, it's only natural she would push harder for her disease to affect one of us. Call Reeve and tell him to bring Rachas here."
"The cure?" Kunsel asked.
"Not finished, yet."
Normal
Memories of my childhood raced through my head at fast forward, of how my mother and father promoted competition between my siblings and me, ruining any relationship we might have had with rivalries and rewards to the child who did best.
I had shined academically while one of my sisters shined athletically. The other four had their moments but when report cards came out I had always been the star, the one my parents had boasted about loudly as I moved farther ahead in school, graduating before one my older siblings.
Mixed in with these were the long visits that I had with my grandparents; gardening, cooking, camping in their backyard, and visits to bookstores. Things I intended to do with Aiden as soon as he was old enough.
Aiden…
I fought for control then as my thoughts turned to Aiden, I had promised to protect him, care for him. I had promised to be his mother! Letting this thing win would be a failure on my part.
The thought of failure triggered one more memory as I began to push back, a memory of my mother when I had dared to bring a bad grade on a paper home. She had put the fear of failure in me that day and I used that to my advantage today, fueling me to push back at this monster that was trying to invade my private thoughts.
My mind raged against Jenova's, shoving her back and away from my memories while her claws sank in deeper and she yanked hard. She was scattered throughout the Lifestream and in cells across the Planet, but she was still powerful, too powerful for a single Cetra.
She pried at my memories, trying to dig up the ones that I protected most diligently and I pushed her again, but I was being overwhelmed. For a human I was very powerful mentally, but this being was 2000 years old and seemed to be completely focused on mental power.
The Calamity completely ignored the memories of my journey with everyone else and sneered at the ones where I tried to find a cure for her disease with Aeris. She seemed to find the notion of us defeating her with water laughable.
I held her away from my guarded memories for as long as I could, pushed them as far down as I could, tried to clear my mind, but she dug deeper and forced her talons onto the memory of Earth.
"Fascinating…" she murmured as the concept of another planet was presented to her, a planet where Minerva had sent a number of Cetra to insure the survival of the species. I felt her sense of victory at that moment but still she tore further into my mind, trying to find what else I hid.
"To think that your Goddess would send children to another planet to escape me," Jenova whispered. "She has done so many things yet you consider her better than me."
"She is!"
"Yet she doesn't save you after forcefully bringing you here."
"Minerva can't intervene in everything," I snarled even as I felt like choking.
"And I actually aid my children," Jenova replied as she reached further, brushing at my memories of FFVII.
A rush hit then, one that I recognized instantly. It was faint but I felt the water that I had been working with and the healing energy that coursed in it. Energy that I called out to.
"What?!" Jenova howled as she was shoved away from my memories by the energy that coursed through me now.
It wasn't enough to wash her away, but I could feel the Lifestream again and called to it to aid in completing the water.
The healing energy flushed through me now, washing away the murk that was Geostigma and Jenova was forced away as her cells within me were eradicated.
I snapped awake as soon as I felt the Calamity was forced out of my body completely and found I was floating in the pool in the church, Aeris and Reeve also in the water.
"Rachas?" Reeve asked as I groaned and moved my stiff limbs.
"Hey," I offered with a smile as my feet found the floor of the pool. "Is it finished?"
"It is now," Aeris assured as she finally broke into a smile, the first authentic one I had seen since the accident.
"Aeris, don't tell me you-"
"I couldn't do nothing!" Aeris defended. "And you were the one to finish it just now."
Reeve took a hold of my arm then and looked at the spot where I had seen the rash right before falling asleep. My skin was again pale and unmarked.
A splash behind us signaled someone else jumping into the pool and we turned to see Cloud wading towards us, Zack, Kunsel, and Tifa stood near the edge of the pool, a carrier next to Tifa's leg.
"So, it's done?" Reeve asked, his hand never leaving my arm.
"Seems like it," Cloud confirmed as he unwrapped a bandage from his arm then grinned.
"Alright!" Zack shouted from the side of the pool as he jumped. Everyone laughed as his foot slipped and he tumbled into the water as well, splashing us all.
"You guys are having a pool party without me?" Yuffie shouted as she appeared in the doorway while Aeris was helped out of the pool by Zack. Reeve and I were struggling out also and Cloud easily extracted himself.
"Never a party without you!" Zack called out then noticed that Yuffie was holding a rope. "What do you have there?"
"Special delivery from Vincent!" Yuffie declared as she yanked the rope forward and hauled a cursing red headed man into the church. "He said this was the Turk who caused the accident!"
"Shit! I was just excited!" the man protested as he was dragged further into the church.
Cloud wore a rather sadistic expression at that moment and it was mirrored by Zack and Kunsel. "Your accident almost killed our friend," the blond swordsman stated.
"And caused Aeris a huge amount of guilt," Zack added as he cracked his knuckles. "So, who's up for some Turk hunting?"
"Sounds good to me," Kunsel said as he dropped his own sword. "But just some base rules, no weapons and no killing this guy."
"Means we can hit him longer," Cloud said as he also set his sword aside.
"OH! Can I play?" Yuffie asked as she bounced slightly, causing the rope to jerk on the Turk.
"Why not?" Zack asked jovially as he sauntered over to where the Turk was barely standing.
Yuffie yipped giddily, bouncing on her toes before pulling out her shuriken. Rod's eyes widened spectacularly as she brought it down and cut the rope.
Rod blinked for a moment then turned and took off. The three SOLDIERs and one ninja waited for a moment before taking off after the man.
"Think we should stop them?" I asked Reeve as we moved over to where Tifa stood vigil over the carrier that held a red faced Aiden.
"Maybe in a few minutes," Reeve replied as I reached down and lifted Aiden from the carrier. My son's tiny fingers seemed to latch onto my shirt as I held him against my chest, his head leaning over my heart.
"He was inconsolable," Tifa informed me. "Cried non-stop until you were put in the water."
Glancing down at Aiden's still red and tear stained face, I swore right then that I saw his first smile as his eyes met mine right then and I smiled back at him. He was safe and with this cure now made, Jenova would soon be eradicated from Gaia.
It was time though to come clean about something to Aeris, something she deserved to know.
"Tifa, Reeve, would you mind stepping out? I need to talk to Aeris," I asked and tried to disentangle Aiden but the moment I tried to settle him into his carrier, he began to cry again.
"Alright, I better go play referee for those four anyway," Tifa replied. "And I think he just wants to be held right now."
Sighing, I relinquished and kept Aiden in my arms and watched as Tifa headed for the door, Reeve pausing a moment before also departing, while Aeris stayed.
"What did you want to tell me?" Aeris asked.
"It's about where there might be other Cetra, and they might be coming soon," I told her and Aeris's eyes went wide.
"Other Cetra? You said you hadn't ever met any!"
"I actually said if I had then I never knew it," I corrected then glanced between them. "It's a bit of a story that starts about 2000 years ago, when Jenova first arrived on Gaia."
Aeris was silent with an intense expression right then.
"When the Calamity arrived and her disease began to spread, Minerva chose a number of Cetra that she sent away. And I don't mean to a different location on the Planet, I mean to another planet altogether so she could deal with the threat."
"Another planet?" Aeris gasped loudly.
"I've been there, I was born there," I explained. "Minerva's goal was to save as many of her people as she could and that gamble resulted in some Cetra being born over the years and eventually being brought back to Gaia, but when Shinra started snatching up Cetra for their labs, she stopped bringing them."
Aeris glanced down slightly. "Mother said that there were more Cetra but a lot died very suddenly."
"It was Shinra," I confirmed. "Minerva stopped bringing Cetra to Gaia because of them, and then when she saw how things were going to play out, she waited for the right moment to bring more. Now that most of the danger seems to be over, we'll probably be seeing more Cetra soon."
Aeris's face was blank for a moment before joy filled her eyes. "So, there will be more than just us."
"Yeah."
The North Crater
She screamed her rage at having her revenge stolen once again by those filthy, thieving Cetra! And to find out that that despicable Goddess they bent knee to had a whole other Planet that had Cetra on it was beyond maddening! Why could that disgusting Minerva have two planets while she wasn't allowed her one son?!
She wasn't done yet, that was for certain. She would have this pathetic Planet and then she would take that second one as well!
Another Side (Organization 13 vi)
I close my eyes, her voice whispering into my ears her presence corrupting my soul…
I am like a broken toy. I had so much potential to be great, but how do I end my life? I fell.
A week ago
"Damn it woman you argue and complain about every little detail!" he argued.
"Well you come home so late, why?" she asked.
'Don't they ever shut the hell up?' I thought. Their arguments rang through my ear buds. Apparently, One Winged Angel is not loud enough. I was clutching an acceptance letter from my school for a music program. I was overjoyed when I got the news and I thought that it could fix all this.
"Get off of my back you harpy!" he shouted.
I was not surprised, not one bit. They always argued over the pettiest things. We were once so happy but now it is just like this. The song came to a short but powerful ending his name echoed by the choir. "Sephiroth!"
Most people who hear the song find it catchy. Yet it truly talks about his wrath, his rage, and his destruction. I was musing over its true cryptic meaning when he broke down my door.
"Get out!" he shouted. My mother crying in the background, she was sporting a black eye.
"You monster!" I sprang to my feet trying to throw a punch at him. My fist connected with his jaw and he stumbled.
"You little shit!" he tackled me.
I felt like a feather for that instant as our little fight transferred into the living room. I lay there on the floor gasping for breath.
"Pack your bags now!" he commanded me while grabbing his drink. He thought the fight was over but I was not going to let that man hurt my mom.
"I am not done yet!" The look of defiance burned in my eyes. He was my stepdad so we were always at odds with each other. Moreover, that last act was the last thing I remember before he threw the glass at my face.
It brought back memories of better days before he came along and ruined my life.
Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Sephiroth
Sephiroth
When I woke up, I felt a bandage over my left eye and the cold but oddly familiar feel of handcuffs.
'Wow I am in handcuffs.'I lay there waiting for judgment.
"You're awake!" The nurse seemed surprised.
"Why am I in handcuffs?" My voice was hoarse from not being used.
"It is just a safety measure," she began to check on my vitals. "Your father insisted on it."
I lay there confused until I realized what he had done.
"You're going to be transferred soon to the Psychiatric wing of this hospital soon, so you'll just have to hold on," she told me.
It was his way of getting even with me. He knew that if I was gone he would have control of the house and my mom. I weakly clenched my hands and gritted my teeth.
"How long?"
"How long what?"
"How long was I fuckin' out?!" I snarled, scaring her.
"Three days." She was surprised by the tone of my voice.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," I whispered.
I felt a burning sensation in my left eye then realized my eye was bleeding.
"What's going on?" I was scared. If it were not for the handcuffs, I would have clawed at my eye.
"It's ok that is going to happen. You had a lot of head trauma and the glass shard might have destroyed your vision." The nurse started to change my bandages. I lay there in total shock at the realization that my life was over. He probably lied about me being highly unstable and violent. This is something he was known for, lying. The doctor soon arrived with a tablet in hand.
"Your name is Alex Bishop?" he looked at me. "Your hair color should be blonde, you must have dyed it, right?"
"Yeah," I nodded.
"Why?" he asked.
"Well, it would be weird with my skin color to have blond hair and blue eyes," I shot back.
"Interesting, why so defensive about it?" he laughed.
He was not the type of doctor that did ordinary checkups. I spent the next two days recovering my motor skills. It was the seventh day when my life changed.
Today was the day that I transferred from the General ward to the Psychiatric ward of the hospital. A storm was brewing along the horizon. The wind was beating against the reinforced windows of the medical building. The storm was creeping closer to the hospital and I heard a strange voice calling me.
"Now would be your time to escape," it whispered.
The lights flickered off for that brief moment and my restraints fell. I knew what I had to do. I punched one of the orderlies that accompanied me and took off. It felt good to be free again; I even found my clothes near the exit.
'Now what?'
The clouds grew darker and the storm was coming my way. I was drawn towards it.
"Alex…Alex," I heard its voice again. I wanted to stand there but I had to run, the orderlies were hot on my tail.
I cursed as I headed towards the city. My heart was pounding as my feet slapped against the pavement, sweat beading from my forehead. I was scared.
I headed for an old abandoned building that was facing the water. In a sense I was cornered with the only way left to go being to climb the flights of stairs to the top of the building. By then the storm was at its full force the wind screamed my name.
"Jump!" it hissed.
I could not go back to the life I had before, that was dead and gone. So were my dreams and hope for a happy family.
"Don't do it kid!" one of the orderlies shouted.
I stood on the ledge, the rain water hitting my face. I was scared but I felt no other option. And so I jumped….
I felt weightless for that moment, my life flashing before my eyes before slipping away into the darkness. I closed my eyes, waiting for the ocean to take me but I felt a warm embrace instead.
"Who are you?" She was beautiful, like an angel. She smiled before touching my left eye and a searing pain shot through my body.
"Ye whose life was forfeited now serve me." Everything was going dark as she transformed into something more horrifying.
"Alex is gone you are mine Tenebrous." I blacked out as those words were hissed.