Chapter Eight: The Boat (Lookit the Pretty Waves!)
Luis and Cloud split up in the cargo bay, each searching for their own friends. Luis finds both Jessica and Terrell in a corner on the top deck near a lopsided Shin-Ra soldier, moving as if he were either drunk or seasick.
Jessica: Ugh.. I feel like crap…
Terrell: What? You're seasick!
Jessica: (nod) Er…..
Luis: (walking up) Aww, poor baby.
Jessica forgets her seasickness.
Jessica: Mommy!
Luis: Hi sweetie. We're not feeling well, are we?
Terrell: She's got a bit of a weak stomach.
Luis looks at her and pokes a finger into her bellybutton, whispering something in Draconic and pulling away.
Luis: Better?
Jessica: (blink blink) Yeah.. how'd you— (remembers) Oh. Nevermind.
Luis: Anyway, why don't we sit here for a bit? Cloud still needs to find his friends and fight that Jenova-thingy.
Jessica: (blink) Aren't we going to help them?
Terrell: (looks at Jessica) No.
Jessica: You're so mean!
Terrell: We've got our own shit to deal with right now.
The three of them look out over the side of the boat, watching several huge ripples in the water, heading toward them.
Jessica: Sea serpents…
Luis: Actually, larger Bottomswells. It seems they can sense my Draconic energy.
Terrell: Well, that just sucks.
Luis: Oh well, that's life, what are you going to do?
Jessica: We can't just turn it off, can we?
Luis: No.
Terrell: Looks like Cloud found the others.
The three of them look up as Cloud and his group gather in the center of the ship's deck. Then he, Tifa, and Nanaki slip into the bowls of the ship. The others run in different directions, disappearing.
Jessica: They're going to fight the Jenova-thingy?
Luis: Yep.
Terrell: Yeah, well, we've got our own problems.
Four Bottomswells, each much larger than the first, rise out of the water and tower over the three crouched in the corner.
Jessica: Ah, shit.
Terrell: Well. This is fucking beautiful.
Luis: Actually, it's about to get a lot more interesting!
Jessica: What are you going to do!
Luis: For starters… (creates a ball of energy in his hand and throws it into the water) Grand Earth Rise! (a small island forms beneath the serpents) Well, now they can't use water attacks!
Jessica: (stare) …
Terrell: You still scare me sometimes.
Luis: (hands Jessica the Lionheart) Here, have fun. Go at it. I want it back though.
Jessica can only keep staring. One Bottomswell snaps at them, its teeth coming dangerously close. They shakes themselves out of it, turning to the four creatures and preparing to fight.
Cloud, Tifa, and Nanaki watch as Sephiroth flies out from wherever they are, his hair slightly disheveled, and one black eye glaring at them. He laughs maniacally and leaves behind a piece of Jenova—Birth.
Cloud: We have to kill it!
Tifa: Eeeewww…
Nanaki: Why don't we use the T/S Bombs?
Cloud: You do that. Tifa, cast support magic. I'll attack.
Sephiroth rises from the innards of the ship, looking around at the battle he's just popped up into, literally.
Terrell: Fire Pillar!
A huge pillar of fire (as the name implies) engulfs one Bottomswell and strikes it over and over with huge fire spells. It falls onto the sand of the tiny island, dead. The rest of Cloud's group notices the bright flares and the loud explosions, and stare in disbelief. Sephiroth looks at the sleeping Luis, then at the Lionheart-wielding Jessica.
Sephiroth: Wow, they look… kind of familiar…
She jumps up into the air, the blade glowing red.
Jessica: Renzokuken—Lionheart!
She leaps up into the air, instantly hasted and berserked, swinging the blade at blinding speed, hitting each Bottomswell with fifteen strikes of 9999. As all three fall, her last swing of the sword falls on Sephiroth.
Sephiroth: ARGH!
He goes flying. Jessica falls back to the deck, panting.
Jessica: What…was that?
Terrell: (watching Sephiroth fly off into the distance) Nothing.
Luis snickers in his sleep. The others stare. At that moment, Tifa, Cloud, and Nanaki trudge back up on deck, covered in green slime and looking rather disgusted.
Cloud: Well… at least we beat it.
Tifa: Eeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww………….!
Nanaki: Blasted thing didn't want to die.
Yuffie: So how did you end up killing it?
Cloud: Uh, there was this scream from outside—it sounded like Sephiroth—
Luis and Terrell: (snicker)
Cloud: —and the Jenova-thingie looked up and then I got it with my new sword… (holds up shattered pieces of the Force Stealer)
Jessica: Well, you can get a new sword at Costa del Sol (motions to the beach just ahead)
Barrett: We're there already?
Aeris: My, what a fast boat.
Luis: (cackles maniacally in the corner and wakes up) So what's up? Ahh, nice nap.
Yuffie: Weirdo.
Luis: I love you too, sweetie. (looks at the sword pieces) What happened?
Cloud: (tells him) So yeah. No more sword.
Luis: Aww, I can fix it. Give it to me.
Cloud hands him the pieces.
Luis: Anyone have any leftover bits of Jenova on them?
Tifa: (making a face) Eeewww… I do.
Luis: Good. (scoops up a handful of Jenovaness from Tifa's leg; looks up at Jessica and Terrell) You two, follow me.
Luis, Terrell, and Jessica move back into the corner of the ship where Luis was sleeping. He takes the pieces in one hand and the Jenova stuff in the other.
Luis: I'm going to teach you both a new technique.
They watch, wide-eyed, as Luis shoves the metal into his mouth, then slurps up the Jenova slime, and chews avidly.
Terrell: (watching in disgust and awe) Man, now I know that's unhealthy.
Jessica: Oh yuck, eww, gross! (runs to throw up over the side of the boat)
Luis chews a little longer, then blows outward, a grayish bubble coming out of his mouth and forming the roundish shape of a blade. He keeps blowing a bit, then pulls the entire thing out of his mouth, shakes it off, and hands it to Terrell. Terrell inspects it, touching it as little as possible, as Jessica comes back from being sick.
Terrell: (amazed) It's… a real sword…
Luis: Well, duh. I wasn't going to send Cloud into a fight without a weapon, now was I?
Jessica: How did you do that?
Luis: That's one of our special abilities. We can make any type of weapons we want; we just need the material for them.
Terrell: So, what's it called?
Luis: Rebirth Stealer.
Jessica: Rebirth… ugh! (goes to throw up again)
Luis takes the sword back and walks to Cloud, handing it to him.
Luis: Here. Take care of it. It'll be your best sword for a long time.
Cloud: Thank you. How did you do it?
Jessica: (yelling from out of sight) Don't ask! Just don't ask!
Tifa: Eeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwww.
Terrell: Well, I guess I won't be chewing gum anytime soon.
Nanaki: The boat's docking now.
Barrett: So what's the plan, Cloud?
Cloud: Um, we'll group in Costa del Sol for a night, and after that, we'll search for a clue on where Sephiroth went.
Luis and Terrell: (snicker)
Jessica: What's so funny?
Terrell: My god, you did it and you missed it. How blind are you?
Jessica: HEY!
Yuffie: I… don't get it.
Aeris: (shrugs) I don't ask really.
Tifa: CAN WE LAND SO I CAN WASH THIS SHIT OFF ALREADY!
