By a Fraction of a Degree
A FFVII Fanfiction work by findthetiger129
Rated T for Violence and Language.
I do not own Final Fantasy VII, or any of the characters, trademarks or likenesses from Final Fantasy VII or its spin-offs That honor goes to Square-Enix.
Part II: Reunion
Chapter 32, The Call of Chaos
December 27th [ ν ] – εуλ 0007
It was getting close to mid-morning when Vincent reached Junon, though miraculously the storm hovering out over the sea had not yet made landfall. The wind was blowing hard against the window shutters in the beleaguered lower city, and he couldn't help but be aware of a muted sadness about the place. He remembered in his younger days, when Junon had not yet been as built up as it was now, the beach nearby had still been visited by tourists, though now he could smell the pollution and the dejected temperament of the place clung to him as though it were a physical presence.
He walked down to the beach, avoiding anyone who might ask him unnecessary questions, making note of his surroundings. The cliffs that rose up to support upper Junon towered above him while an electricity tower stuck out of the surf, pointing the way up. He was quite confident he could get up there if he had an updraft, but he'd probably have to walk around a bit to find one.
With this in mind he walked further out onto the sand, the salty wind blowing in his face, wafting the putrid smells of the ocean into his nostrils. He was about halfway along the strand when he noticed something to his left. A small shrine had been erected, decorated with shells, flowers, and notes. It had been placed up on a rock ledge, high enough so that it wouldn't wash away. Some of the larger offerings had notes saying things like "We miss you" and "Good bye." A child had apparently died here. A young one too, judging by the toys some of the people had left.
"Can I help you with something?" He looked behind him to see an older man standing on the path back to the city.
He almost didn't answer him, but upon noticing the red rose the man carried with him, he decided to speak, "I was just passing through."
"Oh. Well there isn't much of interest on this beach." The man walked to the shrine and laid the rose on the rock in front of the shrine.
"What happened?" Vincent asked.
"My granddaughter died here a little over a week ago…" the man said. "She liked to play with this dolphin that used to swim nearby, but on that day, a monster attacked and she ended up washed out by the waves it caused. The only thing we found was the whistle she used to use to call the dolphin…" The man knelt by the shrine, apparently overcome by emotion. "It's a terrible thing, friend… I had hoped I would go long before she did…" He bit back a sob. "But it seems the Planet had other plans…"
Vincent was silent for a while before looking around and spotting a large seashell that had been washed up on the beach. He walked over to collect it with his gloved hand and then returned to respectfully place it in front of the shrine. He then walked away to give the grieving man some privacy. He was almost to the end of the beach when he heard a squeaking sound to his left. When he glanced over, he suddenly noticed a dolphin propelling itself on its tail fin to stay out of the water. If he didn't know any better, he could have sworn the animal had been watching him, and when he looked over at it, it dived into the water and reappeared in the shallows, holding something it its mouth and squeaking insistently.
It was when Vincent caught the red glint that he realized it was a materia. Walking close enough to see, he watched as the dolphin's tail rose out of the water like a catapult, sending the materia flying through the air. Next to it where it landed, Vincent could see another shell. He was surprised by the dolphin's apparent intelligence, but even more surprised to see that it was using its head to gesture towards the shrine. Finally, something deep within him understood.
He picked up the materia and then the new shell, taking the second of these offerings back to the shrine, which the grandfather of the deceased child had left by now. At that point he checked the materia. A summon, he believed, and judging from the icy chill he felt down his spine, it was probably Shiva. When he looked up to see what the dolphin was doing, it too was gone. It was all right though, he decided. He had his own business to attend to.
Sticking the materia into one of his pockets, he walked to a place on the beach where he'd felt an updraft and folded back into his cloak, sailing up on Junon's polluted winds.
He hoped there were planes ready for takeoff at the airport.
Freya stood by the window in the room she usually shared with Cissnei, with her arms folded. Her former partner had walked in on her just at that moment, and there was no way she could miss the tell-tale signs that he had something on his mind.
"All right Tanjuu, what is it?" Freya asked.
"I wanted your assessment of the risk Zack and Cloud pose," the former gangster said.
"Zack's fine. He knows what to look for, so he can fight it off, and he won't let anything happen with Cloud. He cares too much about him to let him hurt anyone," Freya insisted.
"And what if he can't prevent it?" The gunman asked. "We all know what Dr. Rayleigh found. If whatever it is that is manipulating the other clones manages to get control of either of them, it could make things difficult. Zack is a powerful fighter, and if what you've told me is true, then even though Cloud lacks the long term experience, he's not only a natural swordsman, but he's also very strong. With that power behind someone with skills of Sephiroth's caliber, it could be a serious threat."
"It is true," Freya said. "But I don't intend to let that happen."
"Even though they could destroy everything?" Her partner frowned disapprovingly.
"Zack would never do that." Freya's tone was calm, but Tanjuu had known her far too long not to notice the glimmer of annoyance at his questioning of her logic.
The gunman looked out the window as he considered his words. "We still need to be prepared, just in case."
"If it really turns out that there's no other way," Freya began, "I will kill them myself. But, do you remember that mission I took with Zack to Icicle Inn?"
Tanjuu nodded and she continued. "On that mission, there were two other SOLDIERs named Essai and Sebastian who Zack was good friends with. Fuhito captured them and tried to make them into Ravens, but Zack did everything he could to call them back, because he believed they were still trapped in their heads somewhere. He was right too. They apparently did return to themselves in the end."
"Your point?" Tanjuu asked.
"My point is that I intend to explore every other possible option before I make that choice, because if anyone can fight this, they can. One thing I'll never do is just write them off again, like I did in Nibelheim…" She paused at that.
Tanjuu raised an eyebrow, before observing "You never were quite the same after that."
Freya smiled sadly. "No, I guess not."
It had been relatively easy to look around the airport and find a plane that was fueled and ready for takeoff. The hard part was going to be getting out of here. He'd selected an old propeller plane, not unlike one he'd flown back before they trained Turks to fly in helicopters. The idea of simply stowing aboard the aircraft was quickly dismissed as the minimal crew would mean sneaking aboard unnoticed was virtually impossible. That left taking it on the ground and being quick enough the guards wouldn't see. He could do it. He was already past the checkpoints most normal people went through, and there were only two technicians and the pilot to worry about.
He checked his ammunition and then crept forward to the nearest man while their backs were turned, putting an arm around his neck to cut off his air supply. It only took a quick tightening of his enhanced muscles and a few seconds before the technician was limp in his arms. He knew he only had a few more seconds before the man recovered when he dropped him on the ground, and he sprinted to his next victim, doing the same thing before jumping through the cargo hatch to get at the pilot running flight checks in the cockpit. The man hadn't noticed anything was up yet, and with any luck, he wouldn't until he was missing a plane.
He did manage to catch the pilot before anyone noticed anything, but he was in the process of carrying the unconscious man out to dump him on the tarmac when he noticed two figures nearing the plane. They were wearing black cloaks, and one of them was already approaching.
Dropping his burden, Vincent went for his gun, and fired, though to his surprise, the Clone dodged out of the way. That was when something else got his attention. A third man in black had also appeared, shuffling in his direction, but this one that had just dodged him… When did Sephiroth clones have tentacles such as the one this particular figure seemed to be using to hold onto the boxes it had used to pull itself out of the way?
He only had a split second to contemplate this mystery before this new abomination released the box and came at him again. He rolled out of the way before firing twice. Both shots hit, but this new 'not-Sephiroth-Clone' didn't even flinch as it rammed into the bulkhead of the plane, causing it to wobble slightly on its landing gear. If anything, it seemed to be growing. The first of the two technicians started picking himself up at that moment and his eyes widened in surprise, which was quickly replaced by horror at the sight before him when the being with tentacles divested itself of its cloak and started changing, until Vincent could see it transform into the form of a woman with a gaping hole in her stomach and splayed across the front a membranous sphere that was skull-like in appearance. The technician ran in the opposite direction, leaving his comrades and Vincent alone with this thing.
Not good, he was probably going for SOLDIERs. Vincent fired Quicksilver again, dodging out of the way as a Bio spell was released in his direction. He evaded the poisonous goo, but only just, before he got to cover, feeling his cloak pull slightly at the edges, just barely whipped past by one of the tentacles.
"Black… Materia…" He whirled around to see the second real clone approaching him and it lunged forward before he shot it, grazing one of the man's arms. This could not last long. It would mean disaster if it did.
He aimed for the crippled clone's forehead and fired again, and the man lay still when Vincent turned and sprinted across the tarmac to better cover, firing a flurry of bullets at the gigantic thing that had now turned to follow him. If he could get the thing away from the plane just long enough, he might be able to get away.
It was at that moment when the second technician pulled to a sitting position and looked around. Unfortunately for him, that was also the moment when the giant thing with tentacles (another form of Jenova perhaps?) rushed at Vincent, knocking the other man to the ground again. Any other person might have winced at the painful crunch, but the red-cloaked gunman fired off two more bullets before dodging again, this time to avoid a devastatingly powerful spell this iteration of Jenova had cast, which destroyed the crates behind him. He'd barely managed to avoid the blast radius. The remaining pilot and the prone technician had not been so lucky. At least the pilot was unconscious when he went.
Pain lashed across Vincent's chest when the monster attacked again with its tentacles and he was thrown backwards. When his back connected with the steel support of one of the nearby hangars, he winced, picking himself up. He could see Jenova advancing on him and things were not looking good.
Feeling the Black Materia hanging heavy in his pocket, he stood straight, aiming his gun while he prepared to run again, but desperation was beginning to overtake him; he could feel it. This monster was strong, and his bullets alone were only minimally affecting it as things were. He dodged again, only barely avoiding Jenova's tentacles. This time however, he found his way blocked by the first Sephiroth Clone that had appeared on the scene.
He shot at the Clone but it didn't move, and without warning, he felt his body changing again. The gun in his hand was changing as was his body. He could feel himself growing taller and his face becoming obscured by a mask. When awareness returned to him again, he found himself holding a chainsaw, and a crazy grin spread across his face behind the mask as he revved it, approaching the Sephiroth Clone that blocked his path. Carelessly, he ran the blade of the chainsaw through the creature before turning around. He leaped over top of Jenova, leaving a slicing wound across the top of the abomination before racing into the cargo bay of the plane and slamming the hatch closed.
Fortunately he was still fast, and though he could barely fit in the cockpit, he was able to activate the controls and hurriedly push the throttle forward. He didn't bother to check if the runway was clear. He was far too busy trying to tamp down on his inner demon's urge to keep fighting until Jenova was dead to care. It took every ounce of control he had to carefully send the plane airborne off the runway and into a stable flight path. After engaging the autopilot, he stood and leaned against the bulkhead, warring with himself until he finally felt his body shrink back to its normal size and saw the golden gauntlet return to his left hand. It was an act of will not to collapse on the floor of the plane…
"We're here boss!" Tseng was waiting by the helicopter when Reno and Rude appeared with Elena behind them. She was checking the ammunition in her gun when they stopped in front of the chopper. He didn't need to ask if they were ready. They were Turks.
Rude pulled his gloves slightly tighter on his hands as they stopped in front of him. Reno slouched, holding his EMR rod over his shoulder. Though for some reason, Tseng couldn't shake this feeling of foreboding. He'd felt it before, but his intuition had no bearing on their orders.
"So we're really headed into the belly of the beast, huh?" Reno interrupted his thoughts.
Tseng nodded. "Our goal is to investigate the Northern Crater and then report to the President what we find there."
"Got it," Elena said.
"…I'll fly." Rude walked past them to climb into the helicopter, and without a word, everyone followed him. The helicopter departed soon after, leaving no one on the helipad but the guard who had been on duty.
Cloud was somewhat surprised that afternoon when Zack asked him to come out and train at the clearing where they usually kept the helicopter, but even as he'd questioned the wisdom of it, he knew he would go. "We can't let ourselves get slack, after all we've still got to take care of Sephiroth, right?" Zack had said insistently.
"It's true," he had agreed. On the one hand, he was slightly worried that something might happen again, but part of him was glad. It meant they were still moving forward, and that meant that life was not on hold. This was good, because he felt restless and sitting around doing nothing went against his very grain. It was already wearing on Zack too, and they had to find some way to dispel their unease. Kunsel walked with them and he also noticed that Freya and Tanjuu had apparently decided to come out to watch. Then again, he thought with a sinking feeling, the Turks rarely did anything without purpose. He placed his swords down in a spot that would be within easy reach when he was ready to get started before walking into the center of the clearing.
He stopped near where Kunsel was working out to begin his regular set of warm up exercises. The familiar regimen of squats, pushups, and various stretches were strangely calming. Zack was also warming up nearby, finishing up his own set of squats before moving on to pushups, and Kunsel, having completed his own routine, was working slowly through a series of sword techniques a safe distance away while he waited for them. If he didn't know better he might have thought they were only out here on a normal day in preparation for another monster extermination job.
A couple of minutes later, Zack retrieved the Buster Sword from where he'd leaned it against a tree and began practicing with it while Cloud finished. On completing the very last pushup, he retrieved his broadsword, deciding to focus on his primary weapon. When Zack saw that he was done, he walked to the center of the clearing followed by Kunsel and waited for him to join them. He did so in short order and Zack shouldered the Buster Sword as he considered what they'd be doing.
"How about we start with a short spar before we go into drills?"
"I'm fine with that," Kunsel agreed. "What's the order?"
"I'll watch first, and then I'd like you and me to go at it a little before you switch out with Cloud. We can try a free-for-all again after that," Zack decided.
Kunsel nodded and once Zack walked off a ways to observe, Cloud reached for his broadsword and took stance. The hazel-eyed SOLDIER also readied his own blade and waited for the word to begin. Zack raised his hand in the air and began to count down. "3… 2… 1… Go!" He brought his hand down and Kunsel went in for the first strike. Cloud countered with a block before parrying and returning with another thrust which his sparring partner dodged to avoid. He couldn't help but notice the other man was watching him warily. Was he nervous that something was going to happen? He tried to ignore that thought and stay focused on the current exercise.
Kunsel was an interesting opponent to spar with. While Cloud had started to notice his own strikes were more powerful, like Zack's, the brown-haired SOLDIER was light and quick. He was not to be underestimated and he proved this by attempting to rush in from the side to catch Cloud's broadsword before he could raise it. Cloud just barely managed to roll out of the way before catching the other man's wrist. Kunsel's eyes widened in surprise before he backed away to prepare for the second round. "That was good. You're getting faster," he said approvingly.
He grinned and resumed a ready stance before they went into the second round. They continued for a couple of minutes and he found himself starting to relax when Zack signaled he was ready to trade places with him. He glanced over to the path and noticed that Cid had appeared and was talking to Freya about something while she sat nonchalantly in the shade.
He turned his attention back to watching Zack and Kunsel for a while. Zack ducked and rolled away when his friend swung at him before bringing the Buster Sword around in a carefully angled strike. Kunsel dodged before returning with a blow, but Zack blocked. The two were in perfect rhythm with each other. He wasn't sure why they even needed him. He hadn't even been able to fight Sephiroth's will. Why did they even think he should still be here, when he posed so much of a threat?
"Sometimes we just can't help but hold onto ghosts."
He almost jumped out of his skin. He knew that voice, and he could already feel the familiar prickle of a headache coming on. "Sephiroth…" Though the recognition wasn't uttered aloud, he was sure he could hear a low chuckle from the deepest recesses of his mind. He frowned. "What do you want from me?"
"Perhaps you should really be asking what he wants from you, 'Cloud'." Somehow, he found himself looking at Zack and he knew that was who Sephiroth was talking about.
"I don't understand." He tried his hardest to stay aware of anything Sephiroth might try to do.
"I suppose you wouldn't. What do you know of his struggles? Or the truths he can't accept. Should I show it to you?" Cloud watched intently while the other two continued to spar. Their swords clashed again and again, glistening in the afternoon sunshine.
"It'll just be an illusion…" Cloud thought.
"Quite the contrary, I want to show you the truth… The part of you that wanted to give me the Black Materia that day… Because 'Cloud', all you are, and all you will ever be…"
"Shut up!" he said, pain was becoming worse and he was starting to hear something buzz in his ears… That was when he noticed the sound of swordplay had stopped.
"Hey Cloud? You ready to trade in?" Zack asked.
"…Is a puppet. A copy of a failure; Hojo never even gave you a number to identify you…"
"Shut up!" The pain had become too great, and Cloud sank to his knees, cradling his head in his hands and gritting his teeth, willing it to go away, not realizing he'd shouted his last words aloud. His sword clattered to the ground next to him.
"Cloud?!" He heard the sound of the Buster Sword being thrust into the earth and Zack running towards him. The buzzing sound was slowly dying away, but that didn't matter. The world still spun and he curled up on the ground, before he felt the familiar sensation of someone trying to lift him to a sitting position, and his heart, which he was sure couldn't possibly sink any lower, sank a few more inches. The next thing he saw was Zack looking down at him with a somber expression. "It was him again, wasn't it?"
He was in too much pain to do more than lean into Zack and shut his eyes again, silently cursing his own uselessness and wishing his friend wouldn't look at him that way.
It was late afternoon when Vincent realized the mountains he was flying over were starting to look very familiar. He had crossed over the Corel Desert and into the Corel Mountain range about an hour ago, and was now flying over the snow-capped peaks and valleys that would eventually give way to the grassland south of Nibelheim. Had he been further north, he would have been able to see the Nibel Mountains off in the distance, but here, it was just the rocky crags and ancient forests of the Corel region. A river flowed to the east at his left, and it frolicked over the rocks and rapids, careening around bends and over waterfalls.
He forced himself to stay awake, grateful that the windows were tinted against the glare of the setting sun lowering into the western sky. Fortunately the plane he'd hijacked to escape from that thing he assumed was a piece of Jenova had been provisioned with a full tank of fuel, but even that wouldn't last forever.
Off in the distance, he was surprised to see a valley opening before him and his breath caught in his throat. It was the same valley from his dream. He knew it to be true for the river flowed out through a great gash in the cliff side and off to his right, in shadowed relief under the dying sunlight was a ledge peeking out from a huge waterfall. He had been alert for any pursuers over the last few hours but had seen none since crossing the ocean, and so he brought the plane in for a landing on a strip of flat grass by the river, just long enough for a runway. Pulling open the rear hatch and climbing out, he looked around the vast expanse, which appeared to be uninhabited, with bewilderment. The location itself was pristine and beautiful, with forests and grassland marking the areas around the river but none of that explained why he had dreamed about it.
Finally, he decided to investigate the ledge. Perhaps his answers could be found if the cave was truly there. It took him several minutes to get to the waterfall, and upon reaching it, he began climbing. In the deepening gloom of evening, with the shadows of the surrounding cliffs rising higher above him, he hopped from ledge to ledge, sometimes capitalizing on a good updraft to fold into his cape and get up to the next boulder. Mostly however, he maintained a steady pace, grabbing onto branches and rocks to lift him further up the precipice. Finally, he came to the ledge, jutting out from behind the waterfall and looked out over the valley. The sun was now level with the mountains, sending a burning pyre across the tips of the eastern cliff side. He squinted, and then turned around to walk into the overhang behind the falling waters. Looking around at the cave he now found himself in, he could hear faint noises up ahead that sounded like sobbing and his mouth fell open behind his red collar.
"Sephiroth…" That voice… It couldn't be…
He knew it well… It had been branded into his memory so deeply and lovingly, even thirty years of slumber could not erase the remembrance of it… He quickened his pace, not bothering to listen to his surroundings anymore.
At last, the tunnel opened out and he found himself in a room constructed almost entirely of mako crystals. The fading light reflected down from a hole in the roof, illuminating a small pool of rainwater on the cave floor, as well as the largest crystal contained in the center. "Lucrecia…?" He glanced around the room with his blood red eyes, searching for the origin of the voice.
"Vincent…?" The bodiless voice echoed around the chamber and right in front of him, Lucrecia's body, frozen in mako, hung suspended in the central column. Before his eyes the woman, as he remembered her, appeared as a transparent image curled on the floor at the base of the mako pillar. The image looked up at him, her face contorted with sadness and guilt.
"Lucrecia!" He hurried forward as she swooned, ready to take her in his arms but she held up a hand.
"Stay back!" she commanded.
How could he? All those times, before as a Turk, when he had held himself back from her, because he'd thought that if she was happy, it would be all right. Even after Hojo used her to give birth to Sephiroth, from whom he now kept the Black Materia. Too late, when her health had begun to fail, he'd gone to that evil man to put an end to it, but Hojo had shot him through the chest. That should have killed him, but somehow instead he had been cursed with this nearly immortal body full of monsters as punishment for that sin. He tried to step forward, but it was then when he saw the warning in her eyes.
"Lucrecia… You're alive…"
Tears were streaming down her face as she looked upon him. "I wanted to disappear… I couldn't be with anyone… I wanted to die… But the Jenova inside me wouldn't let me die…" Her image pulled itself to its feet, though she remained hunched, hugging herself as she looked away from him. "Lately, I dream a lot of Sephiroth… My dear, dear child. Ever since he was born I never got to hold him, even once… Not even once. You can't call me his mother… That… is my sin…"
She heaved a sob and Vincent tried to approach her again, but she spoke sharply. "Back! Stay Back!"
He was but a few feet away from her, trying his best to remain in control, even as he watched her pain.
"Vincent… Won't you please tell me?"
"…What?" he asked.
"If Sephiroth is still alive?" She had calmed slightly, but was still on the verge of tears. "I heard that he died five years ago. But I see him in my dreams so often… And I know that physically, like myself, he can't die so easily. Please, Vincent tell me…"
Vincent considered his answer carefully. She was obviously in a state as it was, and telling her about what Sephiroth or what Jenova in Sephiroth's form, whichever it was, had been up to would hardly help her already fragile mental condition. Finally, he said "Lucrecia… Sephiroth is dead…"
Better to give her news she had already known about and resigned herself to, than news that would no doubt drive her further over the edge with guilt. Lucrecia smiled sadly, as another tear streamed down her cheek before her image faded from view. "I'm so sorry…" With that, the cave became silent.
Cloud looked around him and couldn't dispel the sense of dread overpowering his thoughts. He found himself surrounded once again by that oppressive burning green he could now associate with memories of Hojo's mako tubes. He tried to look around him, but his gaze was fixed as another figure moved in front of the tube, barely able to walk in a straight line and hit the button to let out the mako. The man, whose name he could not recall in his muddled mind, allowed him to fall into his arms, whispering a name he could hardly recognize as his own… "Cloud…"
"You never carried that name…"
"What do you mean…? That can't be right… He just said it, I'm Cloud."
He could almost hear the malevolent chuckle again. "He did say that indeed, and you certainly look like you should be, but are you certain?"
He was now standing next to the operating table in Hojo's laboratory, and upon looking down at his left elbow, he saw the report he'd found there. One word blared out from the paper, cascading through his mind like a gunshot through an echo chamber "Failed…"
…His eyes opened and he found himself in the room he shared with Zack. It took him a while to orient himself but in that time he felt his head aching again, though not as bad as it had this afternoon. He moaned softly, but found himself distracted by sounds from the bed across the room. "Hojo… he can't take much more of this… why…?" Zack was mumbling in his sleep again. It wasn't very loud, otherwise Kunsel might have been awakened by it, but the brown-haired SOLDIER had not moved from his position under the covers.
Cloud took a moment to organize his thoughts and awaken fully. "What are you trying to say? That I'm not Cloud? That's stupid. Rayleigh would have been able to tell, wouldn't she? And I know my memories are a little off in places, but I remember the important things."
The throbbing intensified, until he was curled up on the bed. "Do you now?" Sephiroth's voice reverberated through him. "As much as Zack told you about clones copying the appearance of the original, did you never consider the idea? Why do you think most of your memories of your time in the lab are blank?"
"I remember a little..." It would have been impossible to grit out the words, but somehow he managed to get the idea across in spite of the agony he was currently in.
"What Rayleigh and Zack told you…" The voice paused, and he could almost detect a smirk in the man's voice. "Is there anything from that time you truly remember on your own?"
Cloud tried to think, but in his current state, he kept coming back to the memory of Hojo, and how it corroborated Rayleigh's assessments, while his memories of being with Zack and escaping did seem to match pretty closely with his account. He heard a faint chuckle. "I'll leave you to ruminate on that."
Almost immediately, the pressure inside his skull seemed to dissipate, and Cloud turned his attention back to Zack, but in the time Sephiroth had decided to leave, Zack had apparently moved on to a quieter, less Hojo-related dream. Exhaustion nagging at him, he finally lay down, though it was a while before he was willing to let himself fall asleep again. He could still feel the shock of that one terrible word echoing through his mind. "Failed…"
December 28th [ ν ] – εуλ 0007
Vincent spent the night with his back against the wall of the tunnel leading to Lucrecia's cave, sleeping peacefully for the first time in a while, though he chalked it up to physical exhaustion more than anything else. He awoke early, and walked to the entrance of the cave, considering what he needed to do. He'd done some thinking the previous evening and it occurred to him that this valley wouldn't be a bad place to hide the Black Materia, not to mention it was a place to which he could easily return to check on it. He would also have reason to come back and check on Lucrecia too, now that he knew where she was, so all that was left to do was find the right place.
The wind blew his cloak back behind him dramatically as he strode out into the sunshine from behind the waterfall, and pulled the materia out of his pocket to look at the small, black, crystal. The first Cait Sith's remains were probably still within it, crushed deep inside its interior, and while he hadn't known him much longer than most of the others had, he was not going to let a comrade's sacrifice be in vain. He cast around the ledge, thinking carefully about how he would do this.
He had heard an ancient proverb once that the best place to hide a leaf was in a forest. From that philosophy, the best place to hide a black crystal would probably be in a pile of other crystals, or polished stones. There were plenty along the riverbed, but Vincent didn't think that would be good enough. It would be too easy for such a thing to be jostled loose in a flood or earthquake, not to mention the idea of hiding a doomsday materia along a riverbed was just asking for trouble. He was not about to hide it in Lucrecia's cave either. Too obvious.
After a moment, he replaced the materia in his pocket and folded into his cloak, allowing the wind to carry him down off the eastern side of the ledge and once he landed at the base of the waterfall, he started walking along the edge of the cliffs surrounding the valley. He had already passed a couple of smaller caves when he happened upon a stand of trees at a point where the river bent its way especially close to the eastern wall. He was almost to the other side of this grove, when he found himself at the entrance to another particularly large cave and here, he decided he would enter.
It was dark and for a while, his path was only lit by the blood-red glow of his Mako-infused eyes, but then, he found himself in a dimly lit chamber, the walls aglow with luminescent moss, fed by the dripping of rainwater through cracks in the ceiling. With his enhanced vision, he saw across the chamber, a pile of innocuous looking dark stones, some as dark as opals, and others simply grey granite. Reverently, he walked over and knelt before them, pulling a few away from the top and commenced arranging them to his liking, placing the materia in the base of the pile. A casual traveler would not have been able to tell it was even here, and to Vincent's eye, none of those ever came through here. There were no paths or other signs of habitation to indicate anyone nearby and he felt secure in that knowledge.
Once he was finished, he walked back towards the ledge leading to Lucrecia's cave and it was around late morning when he finished climbing to the top. His mission now accomplished, he walked back into the chamber where Lucrecia remained, if only to see her once more. Her image did not appear in front of the crystal again, but as he approached and stepped into the water, he saw something at the base of it where she had stood. It was a small rifle, intricately inlaid with silver filigree along the short barrel. He knelt to inspect it and upon drawing closer, he saw inscribed into the ivory handle the words "Death Penalty." At almost the same moment, he wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt a shiver run through his body, as though something inside him had just become much more… awake? It was unsettling, but he pushed that thought aside, reverently picking up the gun and inspecting every inch of it.
"Lucrecia…" he said softly, once more casting his gaze upon the woman enshrined in crystal before turning and leaving the way he came.
Zack awoke that morning, to find he was the last one up. After Sephiroth had attacked Cloud again during their training, he'd been able to get a little about what their enemy had tried to do out of his friend, but most of it had been the conclusion that Cloud wasn't exactly sure what Sephiroth was trying to gain from it. It sounded like he was trying to tell him something, but the most Zack had been able to do was tell him not to listen and hang on until they could figure out where Sephiroth was.
The prognosis had not looked good. Even the best painkillers Rayleigh had at her disposal could not act fast enough to counter the headaches and the last one had been gone before they could do anything about it. They could deal with the after effects, but aside from that and just being supportive, there was little else that could be done. Zack clenched his fist into the sheets of his own bed. He was powerless to protect Cloud from this and he hated it. It was the lab all over again. Hours, days, sometimes weeks of waiting for the next trauma to strike, not knowing when it would hit, and yet being unable to do anything to prepare for it and only being able to offer words of encouragement as he watched him suffer. Sure, they were in a safe place now, but they couldn't even fight back. How could they when their attacker wasn't even physically there?
If only they knew where Sephiroth was! There had been no word from Vincent, though apparently Tseng was going north. That was not a lot of information, he admitted. North from Junon could be anywhere from Icicle Inn to some isolated cave near Modeoheim. He hadn't heard anything from Cissnei yet, but she, Mao, and Liz should have arrived on the Northern Continent by now. He hoped they were all right, but more than anything, he hoped they would find something. Just a clue even, as long as it was something that would bring them closer to finding where Sephiroth was so they could make this stop.
He pulled himself out of bed, seeing that Kunsel was awake too, and left the room to go downstairs. Upon entering the living room he could see both of them out on the porch, and so, he walked out to see what was up. To his dismay, Cloud looked more exhausted than when he'd gone to bed. He sat on the step watching Marlene try to play ball with Nanaki and Yuffie while they waited for breakfast.
Barret was nearby along with Freya and Cait Sith. His father was also sitting on a chair nearby, nursing a mug of coffee, and it was his calm demeanor that made him remember that the sun was shining today. There was hardly a cloud in the sky, and to his relief, no Meteor. Wherever Vincent was, he seemed to have succeeded thus far in keeping the Black Materia safe.
He sat down next to Cloud. "How're you doing?" he asked.
"I'm all right. Just tired…" the blonde-haired swordsman answered.
"We'll take it easy today then," Zack decided. After a moment he gave his friend a questioning look. "He hasn't been bothering you anymore has he?"
Cloud didn't meet his eyes. "Don't worry about it…"
"What kind of friend would I be if I didn't? I don't want to wake up one morning and find out he gave you an aneurism or something. And you're not fooling anyone. What did he do this time?"
Cloud sighed. "If I wasn't the real Cloud, Rayleigh would have known, right?"
Zack raised an eyebrow. "Sure she'd know. I mean, if you were a copy or something, then what about your scars, and your memories all fit in the right places don't they? We can ask when she gets back from work if you want, but that sounds kind of out there to me."
"You're probably right…" Cloud muttered.
It was early in the afternoon, Vincent found himself looking upon an ancient city. He had landed the plane just north of Bone Village, slightly beyond the forest and had decided to go north until he could find a boat from Icicle Inn. The more confused Sephiroth/Jenova was about his movements the better. He seemed to have lost them when he'd taken the plane, but if he was dealing with Shinra's former general, then it was best not to take chances. He walked along the path, seemingly built of stones, past the various houses constructed of ancient shells, bones, and driftwood, wondering absently if this was a city Lucrecia had mentioned once when they'd talked about the history of the Ancients. It was certainly old enough.
Off in the distance he could see a conch shell with a small lake in front of it, noting the distinctly blue color under the unearthly half-light filtering through the white barked trees shading the place from the chill northern sunlight. It held a quality as unearthly as Lucrecia's cave.
Then he looked ahead of him, and found himself thinking of some of Barret's more colorful word choices.
Two white-haired figures divested of their cloaks flanked a gigantic floating object resembling the form of a woman, emblazoned across the brow of a skull with two huge tentacles. It was the piece of Jenova he had encountered in Junon. He stopped, his red eyes meeting with the two men in turn before he regarded the giant floating object with a quick glance. Not even half a second later, he fired his gun twice before fleeing back down the path. He could already hear the two Sephiroth clones behind him and making use of an updraft, he folded into his cloak to land on one of the larger buildings, thanking Gaia the shell roof could still support his weight. He ran along the swirl of the conch, even as he heard the distant sound of something hopping to try and catch him here, but he was not about to let those creatures overtake him.
He glanced behind him upon reaching the edge, before hopping back down to the ground, firing the Death Penalty and hitting one of the clones right between the eyes as he went. The man dropped dead next to the building but he was already fleeing into the stand of trees by the lake. The close quarters would go to his advantage, and as he used his cloak to land neatly on one of the ivory white branches, he could already see the other clone scrabbling to climb after him, Jenova not far behind, trying to push its way through the trees. He leapt and swung to a larger branch that would support his weight, flipping around in midair to fire three more rounds from Death Penalty just before landing in a crouch, taking a moment to reload. The second clone was unaffected, but Jenova seemed to have started bleeding slightly. Vincent turned, folding into his cloak again, flying like a leaf on a breeze to another tree further away from his pursuers. Materializing back into reality near the central trunk he fired again and the final clone fell to his death.
The muted sunlight reflected through the forest as the monstrosity that now chased him whipped out one of its tentacles, knocking trees askew. They were getting deeper into the woods surrounding the old city, and Vincent leaped across the canopy, swinging from limb to limb, occasionally gliding when he felt a draft. He vaulted over another branch before turning in midair to shoot three more rounds, but Jenova was drawing ever closer, a force that was becoming more and more difficult to escape.
He was almost to the edge of the forest when a tree branch he landed on collapsed and he fell to the ground, Jenova hot on his heels. But suddenly he felt himself changing. Two wings sprung from his back as his bodysuit and cloak gave way under the guise of black skin and bulging muscles. Red wings sprouted from his back and he felt an incredible rage overtake him. One he could not control. He turned on the monster chasing him and lunged with all his might, roaring with rage and tackled Jenova's form with all the vigor of a lesser god.
In his desperation the monster within him had all but gone berserk and it clawed at his attacker mercilessly. Jenova did not make a sound but flicked out with its tentacles. It was a clash of two titans as several more trees crashed to the ground, sending echoes of the fight throughout the city. But even this was not enough. Vincent gave a final slash with both his claws, before the monster within him seemed to realize that alone it could not withstand the might of its attacker and he turned to flee, pumping for altitude with his gigantic leathery wings, but it was too late. He felt something lash across his back, and his left wing snapped, sending him crashing into the forest below. The last thing he saw before his world went black was the ground rushing up to meet him…
Well, it looks like we're ending this one on another cliffhanger folks. Things are certainly not looking good.
In the original timeline, it's date night at the Gold Saucer. Aerith told Cloud she wanted to meet him for real (or one of the other date scenes, take your pick), and Cait Sith stole the Key Stone, gave it to Tseng, and held Marlene and Elmyra hostage to keep Cloud from doing anything about it. Phew, we've really stepped on the accelerator here, haven't we?
See ya next week!