Barrett turned to Cloud and the others, opening his mouth to speak.
"Do what you want for now, but don't take too long. I'll be waiting inside the inn." With that said, he ran off into the inn. Regret blew her long hair out of her eyes and crossed her arms, examining the area around her.
"There are a few shops around here." She said, her tone bored and dull. "It would be best to stock up on items and armour while we can." Regret said, leaving the group and heading towards a small shop to the left of Kalm. Aerith placed a hand on her chin and quickly glanced around, her bright green eyes widening as she spotted a certain store. "I think we should stock up on some materia." Tifa nodded in union and grabbed Aerith's arm in a friendly manner. "Let's go shop for a bit." The two followed in the direction of Regret and disappeared from sight, leaving Red, Cloud and Ivan on their own.
"I think I shall rest for the time being." Red said, trotting towards the inn. He stopped short and turned his head to look at Cloud directly. "Take care of Ivan." Cloud nodded and turned to Ivan, who was lying tiredly in his arms. Her pale, dreamy eyes were staring at the sky tediously. A long sigh escaped her lips.
"It's no fun not being able to do anything…" She trailed off, her lip jutting out in a pout. Cloud chuckled and shook his head. "Well then, do you wanna walk for a bit?" She nodded her head furiously, her mouth exploding into a grin. Cloud slowly released her and set her on the ground, his fingers slowly withdrawing from her body. She wobbled slightly and quickly shot her arm out to Cloud for support. He instantly grabbed her shoulder and steadied her, his face contorting to one of worry.
"Maybe, we should take it slow…" He patted her back lightly and began to lead her forward. "You know what we could do?" Ivan piped up. "We could buy some clothes for me." Cloud raised an eyebrow and looked at Ivan. "I mean…I kind of need some clothes before these ShinRa rags dissipate into nothing." She mumbled, blushing slightly as she pulled at the tattered cloth covering her body. "Right." Cloud nodded, leading Ivan towards a small store to the left of Kalm. "And shoes…" He said, pointing to her bare feet that were dirty and wounded.
"Right-o!"
"Aha! I like it." Ivan said, looking herself up and down with a grin. After ploughing through masses of clothing and shoes, Ivan finally settled on one outfit suitable enough for the rough journey ahead. It was a short yet oversized brown jacket with an orange trim. On her legs were matching boots and scrunched pink socks. "Thanks Cloud." She said earnestly, sending a grateful smile his way. Cloud returned the gesture and placed an arm around her shoulder to help Ivan walk.
"This journey is going to be dangerous…" Ivan stated, casting her eyes downwards. Cloud simply nodded in response, his spikes seemingly undisturbed by his head's sudden movements.
"Someone could get hurt…" Cloud furrowed his eyebrows.
"I don't know where you're going with this." He cut in, stopping Ivan from walking. "Of course someone is going to be hurt, but it's also preventable." Ivan focused her eyes on the cobblestone path beneath her, her mouth twitching.
"Am I…am I going to be a liability? I don't want to burden the group." She shot her eyes up to stare intently at Cloud. Without giving him a chance to respond, she immediately started talking again. "I think I'm gonna head back home…yeah! That's what I'll do. I'll be cheering from the sidelines, so don't let me down. Okay?" Ivan held her hand out in front of her, her fingers spread out in a high five action. Cloud raised his hand in response, however instead of returning her high five he intertwined his fingers with hers and pulled her forward. He wrapped his free arm around Ivan's shoulders and held onto her tightly, his head falling into the crevice of her neck.
"No." Cloud whispered, his breath tickling her skin. "You're not going anywhere. I'm not letting my little sister out of my sight. Not for one minute." Ivan let out a dry laugh and slapped Cloud on the back playfully.
"I'm not actually your sister. You can't use that phrase on me." Cloud let his mouth fall into a smile.
"Well you are now." He smirked, pushing Ivan lightly. "And your not going home. Remember how you took apart that ShinRa weapon? We could use your expertise. Besides, all we have to do is buy you a weapon and your all set, I mean, your wounds are already healing." Ivan threw her arms around Cloud's neck, a genuine and true laugh escaping her throat in the process.
"Alright, I'll stay…big brother."
"GODAMMIT! Where is that chocobo head?" Barrett yelled, waving his fists angrily at random objects in the room.
"Shut Up." Regret demanded harshly, her long and slender fingers massaging her forehead. "You're giving me a headache."
"But he's fucking late!" Regret withdrew one of her swords and threw it in the direction of Barrett, a low growl escaping her lips as she did so. The sword skimmed past his head, and lodged itself into the hard, wooden wall of the inn behind him. Barrett took in a sharp breath and raised his eyebrows, shock overcoming his large body.
"Did you mean for that to hit…the wall?" He asked, his voice distinctly showing fear.
"No. I missed." Regret stated simply, sitting back down and placing her head in her hands, letting out a long sigh of frustration.
"I'm sure Cloud will be here soon." Aerith said, placing a reassuring hand on Barrett's shoulder.
The floorboards let off loud squeaks and creaks as Cloud and Ivan ambled forward. Cloud was his usual cool and composed self while Ivan grinned sheepishly, her dainty fingers pulling at random strands of hair.
"And where have you two been?" Tifa scolded, wagging her finger at the two.
"Cloud bought me a few things." Ivan said, flashing her new weapons smugly. Strapped to both of her legs were dual pistols, and strapped to her back was a peculiar looking gun.
"What's that ya' got there?" Barrett inquired curiously, his hands prodding the fine piece of metal handiwork that sat against her back.
"It's a mana gun." She said, swatting his wandering hands away. "It absorbs Mako energy and parts of the Lifestream. The two combine to create substances similar to materia within the gun, and then POW! You have you very own gun that can shoot various elemental attacks. Pretty cool, huh?" Barrett awed in admiration and inched closer to the gun, but Ivan quickly slapped him upside the head.
"We've wasted too much time. Stop stuffing around." Regret said, cracking her knuckles.
"Right. So let's hear your story…you know, the one about Sephiroth and the crisis facing the planet. Let's hear it all." Barrett sat on the edge of one of the beds, placing his chin in the palm of his hand.
"I used to want to be like Sephiroth. So I joined SOLDIER. After working with Sephiroth on several missions, we became friends." Barrett scoffed.
"You call that a friend?"
"He's older than me, and he hardly ever talked about himself. Hmm, I guess you could call him a war buddy. We trusted each other, until one day…five years ago, I was sixteen."
Loud rain slamming against the old ShinRa truck was all that could be heard in the quiet atmosphere that had enveloped the ShinRa SOLDIERS.
"It sure is raining hard. Hey, how are you doing Regret?" Cloud turned towards a ShinRa SOLDIER who was lazing against an empty crate in the back of the truck. She had her helmet hanging from her left hand, swinging it carelessly back and forth. Her long blonde hair was tangled and sweat matted her face.
"I'm all right." She responded, turning her head to the side. He then turned to the other SOLDIER who was leaning out the side window, breathing heavily, his eyes closed in irritation.
"You got motion sickness Sergeant Cross? I've never had motion sickness before, so I wouldn't know what it's like." The SOLDIER pushed himself up and spun on his heel to face Cloud.
"I don't have motion sickness." He said, pulling off his helmet. He had auburn hair, with one pale blue eye and one dark brown eye.
"I'm just worried. I haven't left my sister alone for this long before. Ya know, I'm all she has. I can't wait until this mission is over so I can see her again."
Cloud nodded, and made his way back to Regret, who now had her helmet on.
"I'm so excited." He said, clenching his fist tightly before her.
"Hey. Settle down." A SOLDIER with unusual long silver sent a stern look towards Cloud, who simply brushed off his command.
"They gave me some new Materia. I can't wait to use it!" Cloud held up a shining orb of Mako infused power, his eyes gleaming in awe. Sephiroth rolled his eyes, and turned away from the young SOLDIER.
"Just like a kid." Cloud approached Sephiroth and stood behind him.
"I hope you're prepared." Sephiroth said, his voice harsh and deep. "This isn't a typical mission."
"Good!" Cloud replied, a grin breaking onto his face.
"Why do you say that?" Sephiroth shot a disapproving look in Cloud's direction.
"I joined SOLDIER so I could be like you. But by the time I made First Class, the war was already over. My big hopes of becoming a hero like you ended with the war. That's why I always sign up whenever there's a big mission. It's kind of a way to prove myself. Say, how do you feel, Mister Sephiroth?" Sephiroth let out a prolonged sigh. "That is irrelevant. Maybe I should brief you on our mission. We are to investigate and old Mako reactor. There have been reports of it malfunctioning and producing brutal creatures. What we're to do is locate the problem and neutralize it."
"Brutal creatures? Where?" Cloud asked, his eyes widened with curiosity.
"The Mako reactor at Nibelheim." Cloud's mouth fell open slightly upon hearing the town's name.
"Nibelheim. That's where I'm from. I-" Cloud's sentence was cut off with a loud rumbling noise, originating from outside of the truck. The ShinRa vehicle reeled forward coming to a skidding stop. Sergeant Cross stumbled forward, his face deathly pale.
"S..Sir. Something just crashed into our truck."
"That would be our monster." Sephiroth unsheathed his sword and jumped out of the truck, launching himself at the fiend with killer intent.
"Sephiroth…nobody could compare to him." Regret mumbled, cutting into Cloud's story.
"He is far stronger in reality than any other story you've heard of him." Cloud stated, leaning back against the chair he was occupying.
Ivan let out a small 'humph' noise from where she was comfortably laying, and raised her eyebrows. "I've…never heard stories of this Sephiroth person. I didn't know who he was up until know. But…now I'm kind of frightened. It's like hearing stories about the bogeyman, ya know?" She buried her head into Red's mane, letting out a small whimper. "I don't like where this story is going…" She whispered, her sentence coming out as muffled words. Regret eyed Ivan, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, as if she was contemplating saying something. However, she shook her head and remained quiet.
"The whole time I was mesmerized by the way Sephiroth fought." Cloud continued. "Then, we reached Nibelheim."
"How does it feel? It's your first time back to your hometown in a long time, right? So, how does it feel? I wouldn't know because I don't have a hometown…" Sephiroth trailed off, his gaze travelling towards the sky.
"What about you parents?" Sephiroth's attention returned to Cloud, his stare unfaltering.
"My mother is Jenova. She died right after she gave birth to me. My father…what does it matter?"
"Yo! Wait a minute!" Barrett interrupted. "Isn't that…um, the name of Sephiroth's mother, its Jenova. That's that damn headless spook livin' in the ShinRa building."
"That's right." Cloud confirmed, nodding his head.
"Barrett, could you please not interrupt…" Tifa asked, placing a hand on her hip in annoyance. "Okay Cloud! You can continue!"
"I've hired a guide to take us up to the Mako reactor. Once she gets here, we head out." Sephiroth informed the rest of the SOLDIERS, who were impatiently waiting.
"Is that her? Seems a little young, don't you think?" Regret whispered to Sergeant Cross, who simply eyed the girl walking over to them.
"Let's hope she doesn't slow us down. I'm hoping to get this mission over as quickly as possible." Regret smiled, and patted him on the back.
"You really miss your sister, don't you?" Sergeant Cross let out a deep breath and reached into his uniform pocket, his hands clasping around a small and square photograph of his sister.
"She's only twelve and I left her. I paid Dio, the owner of the Gold Saucer to look after her and allow her to stay at the Ghost Hotel for as long as it took me to come home." Regret let a chuckle escape her mouth, and she smiled at Sergeant Cross, who raised his eyebrows at her amusement.
"If she's your sister, then she'd be just like you. She'll probably be giving Dio hell right now. I'm sure she'll be fine."
"SOLDIERS, over here." Sephiroth called out, waving his hand in a come hither motion.
"I'm Tifa, nice to meet you." A girl held out her hand for the SOLDIERS to shake; yet nobody responded. She withdrew her hand laughing nervously, and then turned towards Cloud, a small smile on her face.
"Tifa? You're the guide?" He questioned, his face showing bewilderment. "It's too dangerous."
"There will be no problem if you protect her." Sephiroth said, placing a hand on Regret's shoulder. She looked down, letting her hair fall into her face to hide her blush.
"Umm, excuse me, Mister Sephiroth? Please let me take one picture for a memento." A nervous man held up his camera with shaking hands. Sephiroth nodded and ushered the group into a tight line. Tifa and Cloud stood on the end, accompanied by Sergeant Cross. Sephiroth stood next to Regret, his arm draped over her shoulder comfortably.
"Great! Thank you! I'll give you each a copy when it gets developed." With that said, the man ran off and back into town.
"Let's go."
"We finally made it! We sure took the long way." Tifa stated, leading the ShinRa SOLDIERS towards the Mako Reactor. It was large, and stood alone, in a vastly empty area.
"Tifa, you wait here." Cloud ordered, gently pushing her to the side. She swatted Cloud's hand away and frowned.
"I'm going inside too! I wanna see!"
"Only authorized people are allowed in. This place is full of ShinRa's industrial secrets." Sephiroth said as he walked up the steps the led to the entrance of the Mako Reactor, his eyes focused on the door before him.
"Sergeant Cross, Regret. Take care of the lady." Sergeant Cross grunted in response and folded his arms. "Fine…Yo, lady. Stay in my sight." He said, sitting on the ground lazily. Regret sat down next to him, folding her arms and closing her eyes.
"Jenova is in there, right?" Cloud asked himself, examining a door that was tightly sealed. Above the door hung a sign with J E N O V A engraved on it.
"Over here Cloud. This here is the reason for the malfunction. This part is broken. Cloud, close the valve." Cloud reached forward and with much difficulty and straining, closed the valve. He lightly massaged his arms afterwards, jutting out his lip in pain.
"Hmm. This system…" Sephiroth mused; investigating the surrounding area, which was filled with pods containing Mako energy. "These pods condense and freeze Mako energy. You do know what Mako energy becomes when it is condensed, right?" Cloud place a gloved hand on his chin in thought, then pointed his finger upwards in revelation.
"It becomes Materia!"
"Right, normally. But Professor Hojo was here. That is why the valve was open. He put something else in those pods…take a look." Cloud leaned forward, placing his hands on the Pod for support. He peered inside the window, and in reaction to what he saw he jumped backwards. Inside the Pods were what seemed to be human beings, seemingly mutated by the Mako energy that surrounded them.
"What…what is this?" Cloud asked, his voce racked with fear. Sephiroth let his eyes travel towards the Pods, and unreadable expression on his face.
"Normal members of SOLDIER are humans that have been showered with Mako. You're different from others, but still human. But, what are they? They've been exposed to a high degree of Mako, far more than you."
"Is this some kind of monster?" Cloud ran a hand through his spiky blonde hair, his chest heaved as he tried to steady his breathing.
"Yes. Hojo of ShinRa produced these monsters. Mutated living organisms mutated by Mako energy. That's what these monster's really are."
"You said…normal members of SOLDIER. You mean you're different?" Sephiroth clenched his fists, the sound of leather tightening echoed in the silence that overtook the two.
"N...no. Was I?" Sephiroth unsheathed his sword, Masamune, and took a step back. He lowered his sword and struck the Pod with brute force.
"Was I created this way too?" He yelled, striking the Pod again. "Am I the same as all these monsters?" He groaned in despair and struck the Pod once more.
"I always felt different from others, even when I was small. But…not like this." He mumbled, gripping at his hair.
"Damn ShinRa! The more I hear, the more I hate em!" Barrett shouted, punching the wall behind him in rage. Tifa let out a sigh and shook her head.
"Who would have ever thought the Mako Reactor held a secret like that…" Aerith coughed uncomfortably. "ShinRa likes their secrets…"
"Obviously. What did you expect to find in the reactor, Tifa" Regret asked, leaning forward diligently.
"Anything but that." She whispered, casting her gaze to the floorboards.
"Well, after that, we returned to Nibelheim." Cloud continued, shifting in his chair. "Sephiroth disappeared. We found him inside the biggest building in Nibelheim. The ShinRa mansion…"
Cloud walked into the basement of the ShinRa mansion, giving the room a fleeting look. Books littered the small room, tossed carelessly from their place on the shelves and pieces of broken, splintered wood were strewn across the floor. He manoeuvred his steps cautiously in attempt to remain undetected, however luck turned against him and his foot caught on a stray book, causing him to stumble forward which created a loud noise that reverberated off of the stone walls of the basement.
"Ha! Who is it! Humph…Traitor."
"Traitor?" Cloud questioned, confused at Sephiroth's abnormal behaviour. Sephiroth let a dark smile pass his lips as he lifted his eyes to meet Cloud's.
"You ignorant traitor. I'll tell you. The Cetra were an itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the planet, and move on. At the end of their harsh and hard journey they would find the Promised Land and supreme happiness. But there were those who chose to stop their migration. They took away what the Cetra had created, a land of peace without giving back one whit in return. Those were your ancestors." He raised his sword and pointed it towards Cloud accusingly.
"Long ago, disaster struck this planet. You're ancestors escaped, they survived because they hid. The planet was saved by sacrificing the Cetra and your ancestors continued to increase. Now all that's left of the Cetra is in these reports." Cloud frowned and crossed his arms and looked at Sephiroth sceptically.
"What does that have to do with you?"
"Don't you get it Cloud? An ancient name Jenova was found in a geological stratum 2000 years ago. It was named the Jenova Project. The Jenova Project's goal was to produce people with the power of the Cetra. I am the one that was produced." Cloud took a step back in disbelief, now afraid.
"P…produced?" Sephiroth smirked and began to approach Cloud, each step echoed loudly.
"Yes. Professor Gast, he was a genius professor. He worked on The Jenova Project. He produced me. Now, out of my way. I'm going to see my mother." Sephiroth pushed Cloud away with force and exited the ShinRa building, laughing manically. With haste, he rushed after the silver haired warrior, unleashing his Buster Sword as he did so. He exited the ShinRa mansion but stopped in his tracks as he took in the site of his hometown. Flames licked the sides of buildings, engulfing screaming townspeople in its red-hot depths. Those who were lucky enough to escape the burning houses unfortunately met their end by the flames that were awaiting them outside. Cloud widened his eyes in utmost fear as he saw the culprit of so much tragedy walking through the flames towards the Mako Reactor, throwing a smirk over his shoulder, no remorse in his eyes.
"Sephiroth…what have you done?" Cloud's grip tightened on the hilt of his Buster Sword, his footsteps slapping loud on the ground beneath him as he followed Sephiroth to the Mako reactor.
"Cloud?" A woman's voice sounded, catching his attention. Regret sat on the steps of the Mako reactor holding Sergeant Cross tightly in her arms; tears running freely down her face.
"Sergeant Cross tried to stop him…he tried. S…Sephiroth…he…" She cried out, her voice breaking near the end of her sentence. "I tried…we both tried. Cross didn't make it. T…Tifa, she's inside." Cloud remained silent, his vision focused on his fallen comrade. "Cloud, go, please." Regret pleaded with a distressed tone. He simply nodded and sprinted inside, Buster Sword at the ready. Sephiroth had gone too far.
"Mother, I'm here to see you. Please, open this door." Sephiroth was standing before the door that led to Jenova, and Tifa stood behind him with his sword in her hands.
"Sephiroth! How could you do that to my father and all those townspeople?" Tifa screamed. She raised his sword and ran to him in a bid to gain revenge, however Sephiroth's skills overshone hers and with quick reflexes, he grabbed his sword from her hand and slashed his Masamune, the cold metal coming in contact with her skin. She let out a pain-filled scream and stumbled backwards, falling down the stairs inside of the reactor.
"TIFA!" Cloud yelled. He took a few small steps forward and caught the girl in his arms. She groaned in pain and gripped her stomach.
"C…cloud." She whispered, unconsciousness slowly overtaking her body. Cloud lifted Tifa up and carried her to a corner, placing her down safely. He then rushed up the stairs and into the room Jenova was being contained in, where Sephiroth stood.
"Mother." He yelled, raising his hands. "Let's take back the planet together. I've thought of a great idea. Let's go to the promised land."
"SEPHIROTH!" Cloud interrupted, his stance defensive. "My family, my hometown. How could you do this to them?"
"Ha. They've come again, mother. With her superior power, knowledge and magic, Mother was destined to become the ruler of the planet." Sephiroth began to walk up to where Jenova was being held, his face showing no emotion.
"Those worthless creatures are stealing the planet from you. But now I'm here so don't worry." He reached forward and let his fingers grasp the metal covering of the Jenova organism. With one swift motion, he ripped it off and tossed it to the side, revealing Jenova, a mutated creature suspended in a tube of liquid.
"Sephiroth, what about MY sadness? My family…my friends…the sadness of having my hometown taken away from me? It's the same as your sadness."
"My sadness? What do I have to be sad about? I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to be the leader of this planet. I have orders to take this planet back from you stupid people for the Cetra. What am I supposed to be sad about?" Sephiroth let out a dark chuckle, and pointed his long sword at Cloud menacingly.
"I trusted you. No, you're not the Sephiroth I used to know!" Cloud raised his sword offensively and stalked forward, ready to strike.
"And that's the end of my story." Cloud concluded, stretching his neck from side to side.
"What a damn minute! Ain't there more?" Barrett exclaimed, waving his arms around frantically. Cloud placed a hand on his hand and let out a sigh.
"I don't remember."
"What happened to Sephiroth?" Aerith asked.
"In terms of skill, I couldn't have killed him."
"Official records state Sephiroth is dead. I read it in the newspaper, but ShinRa own the newspaper, so you can't rely on that information." Tifa said. Aerith shook her head, her brown locks falling into her bright green eyes in the process. "So many things don't make sense. What about Jenova? It was in the ShinRa building, right?"
"ShinRa must have shipped it from Nibelheim to Midgar." Cloud stated.
"Someone carried out Jenova from ShinRa then. My bet was that it was Sephiroth." Regret said, running her hands through her hair in exasperation.
"DAMN! Don't none of this make sense! That's it, I'm outta here and I'm leavin' the thinking to you Cloud." Barrett threw his hands up in the air and stomped down the stairs of the inn, leaving the room.
"I…the Ancients, Cetra, Jenova, Sephiroth and myself..." Aerith followed in Barrett's footsteps and left the room. Tifa let out a sigh a followed Aerith down as well.
"What a fascinating story…" Red murmured from the corner of the room he was laying. "Yeah…but, I kind of feel sorry for Sergeant Cross. You know, he never got to go back home to his sister." Ivan said as she scratched her head and untangled herself from Red's hold, directing her vision to Regret and Cloud.
"You don't remember anything about your childhood, do you?" Regret asked, placing a hand on Ivan's shoulder. She shook her head no and looked down at her feet shyly.
"The only memories I have are of my Grandpa and Red in Cosmo Canyon, and being kidnapped by ShinRa of course. Professor Hojo said I'm suffering from memory loss. The lobe on my brain responsible for memory had taken quite a blow, and the impact messed with my mind. Well, that's what I was told."
"Sounds logical enough. Well anyway, Red, why don't you take Ivan downstairs and join the others." Red nodded and tugged at Ivan's sleeve, leading her down the stairs carefully. Regret turned to Cloud and let out a breath. She placed her fingers on her forehead and began to rub circles.
"You do realise what we have to do, right?" Cloud's blank expression made Regret roll her eyes. "I'm talking about Ivan…don't you think she looks familiar?" Cloud nodded, his eyes slowly widening as realization settled in his mind.
"Sergeant Cross…Ivan was his little sister. She…she doesn't even know."
"Exactly. And we can't tell her. Not yet at least. We have to wait until the time is right, when she is ready." Cloud hummed in response and turned towards the stairs, turning his back on Regret.
"Right. We won't dwell on it for now. So, let's go."