[Disk Three]
Robert sighed lightly and nodded…
"Yes…I'll go…who knows, maybe
Monolith can absorb it…the blast, I mean. I'll try my best…to save him…" Robert whispered. Rik and Ian immediately threw their arms
around him in a tight hug.
"Thank you, Robert," they both
chimed. Robert nodded lightly.
"Robert…I…I…" Cai whispered softly.
"…Don't worry, Cai…" Robert
responded, pushing Rik and Ian off of him for the moment and embracing her
tightly. "…But I need to be sent back
now…"
"…I…I know…" Cai whispered, leaning
up a bit to kiss him lightly on the cheek.
Robert began to shine with a silver
glow. He let go of Cai, looking at his
hands. He began to take on a ghostly
shape—he could see straight through to his feet, then to the floor—becoming
translucent. Then, starting at the
feet, he began to fade into nothing. The transparence of his lower section continued as it moved up to his
middle.
"Cai…" he murmured, disappearing now
at the shoulders. "I love you…"
And then he was swallowed up into
nothing.
[Begin FMV]
Robert appeared, zooming through the
very fabric of time, a swirling violet and black vortex all around him, his
eyes closed. The movement sent his
short hair blowing a bit behind his head.
He suddenly slammed into a barrier,
causing it to shatter…
?????: Robert…?
His eyes opened slowly…
[End FMV]
Robert turned to look at the person
who had beckoned him—Rik.
"Th-there it is…" Rik murmured.
"I know…" Robert said with a yawn,
standing.
"What do you mean?" Ian asked him, a
puzzled look on her face.
"Nothing…" Robert replied as he
followed the rest of the HEROs gaze to look at the monster he had already seen.
[Begin FMV]
The giant WEAPON was in the shape of
a long serpent, with a dragon-like head larger than the ship. Two huge wings stretched out from a bit
below the head, looking almost skeletal. The WEAPON's bone-white body was easy to spot in the distant light of
the Sun, and large, three-fingered claws hung down on long arms. As the spaceship drew closer, the giant
sheets of white plating moved, the beast still preparing its giant bombardment
of energy on the Planet.
Huge gold eyes flashed, and the
spaceship drawing near the WEAPON suddenly stopped, frozen in place.
[End FMV]
"…Alright…here's the plan…I'm going
to head out there…no matter what happens…I want you to follow…I want to destroy
it even if something bad happens to me, alright?" Robert asked, pulling on his
helmet.
"Robert, you sound like you're
planning to die," Charlie said with a laugh. Robert shot a look at him.
"…Robert…" Cai murmured.
"…Fly far away, until you know it's
time…" Robert instructed, leaving through the airlock.
"Well…I guess we'll wait…" Anikken
muttered.
Eternal WEAPON felt the arrival of a
challenger, turning its ancient neck to face him, glaring at him with its
humongous eyes.
It opened its mouth, giant fangs
able to be seen now. A giant orb at the
top of its mouth was glowing—charging energy. But an amazingly tiny orb on the bottom of its mouth suddenly let out a
small ray of energy—a continual ray, which flew towards the human.
As the spaceship moved away, Robert
drew his Monolith, raising it in front of him vertically, with the sharp part
of the blade pointed towards the blast.
The huge blast was smashing at him,
pushing him backwards, though with the Monolith collecting the energy rapidly
it didn't hit him. The Monolith began
to glow bright green as the energy continued to blast. It strained against Robert's hands as though
it was a fishing pole with a hooked fish swimming behind him. The tension rose, and Robert struggled to
hold the Monolith in front of him as he was continually blasted backwards. After several seconds, the Monolith was
radiating energy, and extremely bright. It flew from Robert's right hand, shooting behind him while held by his
left hand, dragging him along.
Suddenly, the blast hit Robert,
dragging him into it. Time froze. Robert was surrounded by the gold blast.
~ HUMAN. WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO PROVE? FIGHTING WITH ONE LIKE MYSELF IS WORTHLESS. I AM THE ETERNAL WEAPON, THE MOST POWERFUL BEING IN THE SOLAR
SYSTEM. I CONTROL THIS SOLAR
SYSTEM—PROTECT IT. I KNOW YOU, ROBERT
ARCANE. I KNOW YOU'VE SEEN HOW THE
FUTURE SHOULD HAVE BEEN, WITH THE IMPOSTER WEAPON AND THAT CLONE OF YOURS BEING
DESTROYED ALONG WITH THE PLANET. SOMETIMES THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES TO OUR ACTIONS. THE CONSEQUENCE OF MY ACTIONS WAS THE DEATH
OF INNOCENT BEINGS. THOSE BEINGS WILL
NEVER SEE SNOW, OR THE BEAUTIFUL SUN, OR THE SMILES OF THOSE AROUND THEM. THAT RUINED THE LIVES OF BEINGS WHO HAVE NOT
YET BEEN BORN. BUT IF I HADN'T, YOUR
CLONE WOULD HAVE. WHAT DO YOU SAY TO
THIS, ARCANE? ~
Robert winced at the loudness of the
voice in his head. "I…we're going to
destroy my clone…and that WEAPON…we're gonna bring peace to our Planet."
~ MANY HAVE CLAIMED THAT. BUT MANY WERE WRONG. IS IT NOT TRUE THAT BRINGING PEACE WAS THE
PURPOSE OF THAT 'AVALANCHE' TEAM MANY YEARS AGO? I HAVE SEEN THIS BEFORE. I HAVE SEEN ALL BEFORE. WHEN
THIS SOLAR SYSTEM CAME TO BE, SO DID I. I HAVE SEEN HUMANS LEARN HOW TO CREATE FIRE. IS WHAT YOU'VE SEEN AND SAID ANYTHING THAT WILL CHANGE MY
MIND? NO. I RESPECT YOUR BRAVERY, THOUGH. YOUR FRIEND WAS NOT THIS DETERMINED. I WILL POSTPONE THE DESTRUCTION OF YOUR PLANET, BUT I MUST FIGHT YOUR
ALLIES. IF THEY ARE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO
DEFEAT ME, THEN THEY WILL BE POWERFUL ENOUGH TO DEFEAT ROBBY ARCANE. AS FOR YOU—YOU WILL BE ABSORBED INTO TIME. ~
"…What's that?" Robert asked.
~ YOUR ALLY CHARLIE STRIFE WITNESSED
IT IN THE OTHER FUTURE. YOU WILL BE A
GHOST OF TIME, MOVING THROUGH WITHOUT AFFECTING ANYTHING. WITHOUT FEELING ANYTHING. WITHOUT BEING ANYTHING. YOU WILL MERELY BE WATCHING. ONLY THE KEY MAY LET YOU FREE, BUT AS YOU
SHOULD HAVE FIGURED OUT BY NOW, THE KEY IS GONE. YOU ARE VERY BRAVE, ROBERT ARCANE, BUT NOT EVEN THE BRAVEST LAST
COMPARED TO THE WISEST. ~
And with that, the beam disappeared,
and Robert hung still as his body was ripped apart and sent into the flow of
time…
Robert materialized into a circular
room, where an old Mog sat, a giant book in its lap.
"Ah, Robert Arcane, son of Lett and
Andrea, brother of Janus and Emanuel…yes…I see you on the list…" the Mog said,
looking at its book.
"Where am I?" Robert asked the
creature, noticing the Monolith was still in his hand, though no longer
glowing.
"Put simply, you are in the
Crossroads," came the Mog's reply.
"…And that is?" Robert questioned,
sheathing his Monolith.
"Oh please…your ally Charlie was
smarter than this. This is the center
of all time, where the ends of time meet. No, there is no way back into your reality."
"…Wait…this isn't real?" Robert
asked, confused.
"Is your world real? Is anything real? Maybe we're all just the Master's dream. Maybe when he wakes up we all die, and maybe
a new world is created when he goes to sleep. Maybe we're the ones dreaming. In terms of solid places, yes, this place is real. In terms of actuality, this place is just in
your mind, unleashed by the Eternal WEAPON. You see, everyone comes her sooner or later. The ends of time—think of this as the information desk before the
afterlife."
"…" Robert remained silent. "Wait a damn minute…Charlie came here? But…Cai sent me back in time! Charlie never came here!"
"…Jeez, you're slow. First of all, Robert, Cai did not send you
here. She can read your mind—if you
recall. She knew that you would believe
her if she said she was sending you into the past. But instead, she let you unleash your Mystic abilities, changing
the world around you—reversing your timeline for a moment."
"…Didn't I change the future,
though?" Robert questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"…Every little thing that anyone
does can change the future, Robert. Sure, your group changed the future monumentally when you fled a battle
and the Planet was destroyed, but that's not much compared to what I've
seen. But the futures will still
exist."
"…You mean…somewhere out there,
Charlie is alive, yet somewhere out there he's dead and the world is
destroyed?" Robert asked.
"That's correct. Though none of them are linked to the full
timeline. You see, all timelines
intertwine to form a…rope, if you will. A huge rope made up of everything living. Like a rope made from twine, so many tiny fibers will hang out,
no matter what. These are the lost
futures. And though you did turn that
'rope' of time into a lost future by regenerating the universe and re-creating
the rope, the futures like the one you left will still exist. For instance…" Mog continued…the area around
them became a serene landscape, plants growing everywhere, more primitive forms
of Raptor's species frolicking, men and women running about happily. "This is what the future would have been if
the beast from the sky, Jenova, had been destroyed long before coming to the
Planet. Funny how things turn
out—sometimes lost futures are the most worthwhile."
"…So you're saying that somewhere,
frozen in time, the Planet is destroyed?" Robert demanded, shaking his head in
disbelief.
"That's correct. Numerous threads end with the Planet's
destruction, actually. If the AVALANCHE
team hadn't destroyed Sephiroth and freed Holy, then…well…" Mog murmured, the
area around them changing to form a half-destroyed Planet that was rapidly
being consumed by destruction. "Let's
put it this way…Sephiroth didn't get into the Lifestream anyway in this future.
"But thinking about it, there are
infinite possibilities of a loose thread every day on your Planet alone! If one person dies who, in the future is to
take over Shinra and helps to save the Planet, then that future is lost. Lost but not deleted. Beings don't have any fate—fate is
make-believe. Beings have choices. Whether they choose right or wrong depends
on them."
The surrounding room became a
pitch-black area, now, with a glowing light in the center.
"Now, you have to walk into the
light. It is your time," Mog
instructed. Robert started towards it
cautiously, but stopped and turned around.
"So I'm dead, right?" he asked. Mog nodded. Robert sighed. "Hey wait…if this
is the end of all timelines…where's everyone else?"
"…Not all of them are as stubborn to
accept their fate as you, Robert," Mog laughed.
"…That's funny. I thought you said there was no such thing
as fate. Trust me, I'll be coming back
here some other time. I'll be coming
back when it truly is my time. I'll see
you soon!" Robert laughed lightly before the Mog ran up and shoved him into the
glowing light.
"…Robert!" Anikken shouted from
inside the spaceship. Excluding Cai,
the other HEROs were all in a state of shock. Cai stood.
"…Look…I know what's going on
here…and though…well…that happened to Robert…we…we have to fight that
thing," Cai murmured.
"What? Are you crazy? Did you
see what it did to Robert?" Charlie exclaimed, outraged.
"Look, believe it or not, he did it
to save you. To save all of us—to
save every being on the Planet," Cai growled.
"How do you know?" Rik asked her,
trying to remain calm. Cai was saddened
by the tragedy, but she kept herself strong.
"I…read his mind. I supposedly sent him from a future where
the Planet was destroyed due to our lack of personal strength. So this time, we can't run. We have to go back and fight," Cai
explained, looking at the other six HEROs.
"The hell? Do you even care about Robert at all?" Anikken snarled at her.
"Excuse my language, Anikken, but
you don't know what the #$%& you're talking about. I love Robert…but I also love the
Planet. We need to save the Planet…we
can worry about Robert later."
"I suppose she's right…we need a
plan," Ian commented. Rik nodded
lightly.
"I say we attack it from two
sides. One person will lead a party of
three to its back and one will lead a party of four to its front, where its
defense will be higher," Rik ordered. "So who will lead us?"
"…Damnit. Well…I'll take Cai, Caity, and Ian and attack from the front. All of us except Ian have long-range
weapons, and Ian could use magic…" Anikken suggested.
"…Speaking of magic…" Leela began,
bringing up the large bag full of materia that Anikken had taken from his home
in Wutai and left on the rocket.
"Hey—wow! You got it for us!" Anikken exclaimed with a grin. Leela smirked, tossing it to him. Catching it winded him, sending Anikken
falling on his behind.
As Anikken opened the bag, the
summon materia he had placed in his old Lesath so long ago—given to him by
Raptor before Robert and Raptor headed up to the Gold Saucer to fight
Jenova-CRISIS, and moved to each new Lesath following it—began to glow. Five other summon materia shot up from the
large stash of materia in the bag—two newer, three older.
"…Bahamut…?" Cai asked herself as
Anikken slid back in amazement, letting his Thorn go as the glowing summon
materia removed itself. It rose up, the
five other summons starting to rotate around it.
"…Bahamut, Neo Bahamut, Bahamut
ZERO, Red Bahamut, and Bahamut HELL…" Anikken murmured the names.
"…That's the materia I gave you,
right Anikken? So that's why it didn't
work…it was incomplete…it must be merging…!" Raptor exclaimed.
The Bahamut materia began to glow as
well, suddenly shooting into the center materia and becoming one with it. Neo Bahamut and Bahamut ZERO followed the
same move, Red Bahamut and Bahamut HELL doing it as well. As six bright lights became one, they let
out a flash, and in the place of the six was one faintly glowing materia.
A booming roar emitted from the
materia, and a group of voices emitted from inside of it. "Infinity Bahamut has been born."
Anikken smirked, looking to
Raptor. "…Well, now that this is out of
the way…we have a WEAPON to fight!"
Cai nodded lightly, grasping the Summon
materia on her necklace for good luck…
Four warriors hung still in the
air-less darkness of space, facing the monstrosity of the galaxy. Meanwhile, many miles away, three other
warriors watched the monster from behind it, ready to strike.
A brilliant ring of light suddenly
shot outwards from this Eternal WEAPON, colliding with the HEROs but affecting
them not, simply sending a ripple of cold through their bodies.
~ YOU HAVE CHANGED. NOT LONG AGO, YOU RAN AWAY IN FEAR AFTER A
DEATH OF AN ALLY. YOU ARE APPARENTLY
STRONGER NOW, AND FOR THIS I GIVE YOU MY GRATITUDE. FOR, AS A GUARDIAN OF THIS SOLAR SYSTEM, I DO NOT WISH TO DESTROY
THAT WHICH I HAVE BEEN CREATED TO PROTECT. BUT IF I DO NOT ACT IN AN APPROPRIATE MANNER TOWARDS THE BEING KNOWN BY
YOU—HUMANS AND NON-HUMANS—AS ROBBY, THEN ALL WILL BE GONE. IF YOU DARE TO CHALLENGE ONE SUCH AS MYSELF,
I WILL GIVE YOU THAT OPPROTUNITY. NOW. NOW IS THE TIME AT WHICH I
WILL BATTLE YOU, TO TEST YOUR STRENGTH. IF YOU TRIUMPH, I WILL BLESS YOU WITH ABILITIES FAR MORE POWERFUL THAN
THOSE YOU ARE USED TO USING. BUT I
SUPPOSE IT WOULD BE EXTREMELY UNFAIR IF I WAS TO SIMPLY EXPECT YOU TO FIGHT ME
HEAD ON, NOW WOULDN'T IT? SO I SHALL
GIVE YOU A TRIAL. IF YOU CAN DEFEAT THE
STRONGEST OF MY SERVANTS…ONE WHO'S SIZE WOULD BE MORE MATCHED TO YOURS…THEN I
SHALL LET YOU CHALLENGE ME. SO WHICH OF
YOU SHALL FIGHT MY SERVANT? ~
The current HEROs winced slightly at
the booming presence in their minds. Before Rik or Charlie had a chance, Anikken shouted out…
"I will!"
~ A VOICE IS HEARD—OR A
THOUGHT. EITHER WAY, THE PORTION OF
YOUR TASK FORCE BEFORE ME HAS VOLUNTEERED ITS POWER. AS FOR THOSE PLACING THEMSELVES BEHIND ONE SUCH AS MYSELF…YOU
MUST NOT INTERFERE. THE CONSEQUENCE
WILL BE THE FUTURE THAT EXISTED, THOUGH IT WAS UNSEEN BY YOUR EYES, PERSAY. ~
Another ring of light emitted from
the Eternal WEAPON, and a huge, looming skeletal wearing a red cloak appeared
in front of the team of four. Bones a
dark gray, it was over fifteen feet tall, and in its literally bony hands it
held a large scythe, with dried bloods of many slew beasts staining the
blade. No teeth filled its jaw, but
from either side of its chin came a short spike, which went down about six
inches.
It let out a bellowing roar against
the eternal silence of space—an actual sound carried through. Like the beast that it was, it was
howling. Its cloak suddenly began to
swirl about before seemingly splitting in half and moving to form two ragged
wing-like appendages. It flapped these
against the non-existent resistance, gliding forward towards this team of four,
using two hands to bring the scythe back behind its skull like an axe as its
clawed feet tucked up to its ribs.
Cai shook her head under the
helmet. "Skeleton—meet
technology." She smirked, holding down
the trigger of her left Capsule, raising it towards the swooping beast as
particles of light were condensing around the slightly exposed barrel of the
advanced gun.
Cai released the trigger, sending a
large orb of power flying towards the being. It struck, sending clouds of dust through space as the energy caused the
bones to disintegrate as the scythe, too, disappeared.
~ I AM ASTOUNDED BY YOUR
ABILITIES. I HAD PREDICTED THAT YOU
WOULD BE DEAD—AND YOU WOULD NOT SEE WHAT WOULD HAVE TO BE DONE TO YOUR
WORLD. BUT I SUPPOSE I SHOULD HOLD UP
MY HALF OF OUR…BARGAIN. WE SHALL
COMPARE STRENGTHS—BUT BE WARNED, THIS SHALL NOT BE EASY. I WILL GIVE YOU THE OPPROTUNITY TO RUN AWAY
FROM THIS BATTLE, AND RETURN TO YOUR PLANET BEFORE IT MUST BE DESTROYED. ~
A chorus of laughter arose at this
comment, from all of the HEROs except Cai and Caity.
"Not likely," Charlie replied.
~ AND YOUR THOUGHTS ARE TELLING ME
OTHERWISE. VERY WELL THEN—WE SHALL
FIGHT. I SHOULD REMIND YOU, THOUGH,
THAT THIS IS WHERE YOUR LIVES WILL EXPIRE. ~
"We've defeated the WEAPONs of the
Planet. We can defeat the WEAPON of the
Sun," Rik growled out.
~ HUMAN, I AM NOT A WEAPON. WEAPONS WERE CREATED ON YOUR PLANET AFTER
THE BEING KNOWN AS JENOVA CRASHED DOWN TO YOUR PLANET. YOUR PLANET CREATED THEM AS A LAST RESORT TO
DESTROYING JENOVA. BUT A TEAM OF THE
CETRA DID SO, AND YOUR WEAPONS WERE PUT TO SLUMBER UNTIL THE NEED AROSE. NOT ONLY DOES THE BEING KNOWN AS ROBBY EXERT
ENOUGH POWER TO CONTROL THESE WEAPONS, BUT ALSO HE EXERTS ENOUGH POWER TO
CREATE THEM. THE "WEAPON" CREATED FROM
THE MERGED JENOVA BEASTS IS, IN ACTUALITY, NOT A WEAPON, BUT AN IMPOSTER, WHICH
WAS THE TRUE REASON WHY THE REAL WEAPONS AWOKE. THE JENOVA WEAPON, IN TRUTH, IS LINKED WITH ROBBY ARCANE. BUT I, I AM SIMPLY ETERNAL. I WOULD QUESTION AGAIN IF YOU STILL WISH TO
CHALLENGE ME, BUT I KNOW YOUR ANSWER. SO LET US FIGHT. ~
The Eternal beast released another
ring of energy, which slammed into the HEROs and sent them into a single
backwards spin. The extreme power of
the energy ripped the outer spacesuits off of the HEROs, leaving them in the
skin-tight under-suits they were wearing at the space station.
But their weapons, armor, and
materia remained.
Anikken's eyes widened—air! They need air! He opened his mouth to shout…involuntarily inhaling the sweet air
that had somehow filled the area.
~ YOU QUESTION THE OXYGEN I
PRESUME? YOU WOULD BE AT EVEN MORE OF A
DISADVANTAGE WITHOUT YOUR AIR SUPPLY. I
AM PROVIDING IT FOR YOU. ~
Anikken closed his eyes, focusing on
the Barrier-All materia combination in his Imperial Guard armor. He quickly let a [Wall] spell loose on
himself, Cai, Caity, and Ian, the invisible magic and physical barrier forming
around them.
Ian, with her W-Magic and Cure-All
combination in the right Angel Feather, cast [Regen] on the same four members,
then—using up all of her magic supply—she quickly used her Time-All materia on
the group, casting [Haste] and speeding them up drastically.
Caity pulled Moogle's fists in the
direction of Eternal, launching giant orbs of energy from the Capsule-like
weapons on the end of its hands. The
energy hit the beast and fizzled out. Caity growled lightly as Cai looked thoughtfully to the White and Black
materia in her left Capsule…
Cai, determination pumping through
her arteries, pointed her hand towards Eternal, casting [Holy] through the
White Materia. A white mass of energy
collected around her, surrounding her completely.
"The prayer…for Holy…" she
murmured…the energy suddenly shot through her and out through her hand, a
column with a huge diameter. It slammed
into the Eternal, which let out a giant roar through its dragon-like head.
"And the Meteor's bane!" Cai
shouted, now focusing through the Black Materia. A giant red-and-black orb, surrounded by flames with a tail of
fire, shot down from the space around them, smashing into the Eternal and
causing it to let loose another roar. The ear-splitting noise caused the HEROs to cover their ears—even Caity,
whose sensors picked up the booming noise all too well.
Eternal let loose another ring of
energy, this one immense, which hit the un-protected HEROs and knocked them
back farther.
"Ow…shit…" Ian murmured.
"Damn…" Anikken muttered.
"Gah…my gears hurt…" Caity said
meekly.
"…Anikken, are you worried about the
other members?" Cai questioned.
Anikken nodded, "Yeah, a little."
Rik let out a groan, glaring at the
back of Eternal.
"Today's the day of reckoning," she
muttered. She concentrated on the Ifrit
materia in her Aegis Bracelet, causing the three HEROs on the other side to
disappear as a bull-like monster appeared from nowhere.
[Hellfire]
It snarled, opening its mouth as it exhaled a cloud of fire before
immersing itself in the flames and shooting at the Eternal, crashing into it as
the HEROs reappeared.
"Yeah…lets get old-school on its ass!" Charlie shouted, concentrating on
the Shiva materia.
The three HEROs faded away and an ice nymph appeared where they had been,
floating in space.
[Diamond Dust]
Shiva pointed her hands toward Eternal, launching a huge sheet of ice at
it, which covered it before shattering and causing Shiva's disappearance, and
the reappearance of the HEROs.
Cords of energy flew from Eternal. They slammed into the HEROs on both sides and attached to their chests
like the tongues of chameleons. The
seven HEROs were dragged through space and towards the serpent-like beast. It let out a roar and—using its long arms
and claws, slashed the HEROs as it made a circular motion, sending all seven
shooting back before hitting the end of the cords. Rik, Charlie, and Raptor quickly were illuminated in the red glow
of their auras.
Before the fury overtook him and he began his shift, Raptor managed to
quickly cast a [Aero3] spell on Charlie's axe.
Raptor let out a beast-like roar,
his fur becoming the same color white as flour. His [Holy Raptor] transformation taking form as he sucked the
aura into himself, angel's wings unfolding out from his front shoulder blades,
covered in feathers. A golden ring of
light grew over his head—his halo.
Charlie began his chain attack, slicing down and to the right, then down
and to the left for [Devastator], the [Aero3] spell on his axe causing huge
arcs of force to fly from the moving blade, which grew before striking against
the far-away Eternal beast. Charlie
then began the [Courage] sequence, bringing the axe over his head and swinging
downwards, sending another huge arc at Eternal before Charlie used the next
part of the combo'—fumbling as he did so, as using [Rain of Blades] in outer
space would cost him the loss of his weapon and no damage done to Eternal.
Instead, Charlie used [Hero's
Sacrifice], stabbing himself with his axe, death coming to him as instead a
[Full-Cure]-like spell was used on himself, Raptor, and Rik. Charlie moved forward a bit, beginning the
[Heaven's Fury] attack, as he slashed madly in front of himself, sending eight
giant arcs spiraling at Eternal and slicing into it. Charlie's eyes flashed red, and he ended his technique…
With the yelling out of "[Cirrus
Maximum]!"
Charlie spun around on his heel in
the empty space, rising upwards with his axe as though he were a human
helicopter. This sent out a continuous
spiraling arc, which drove into Eternal's ancient body. Charlie suddenly dropped back down, level
with Rik and Raptor as, once again, he sliced madly through the air around him,
this time sending ten long arcs at Eternal, causing it to roar out in fury as,
instead of getting a chance to counterattack as Charlie's aura faded, Rik
stepped forward, aura blazing.
"[Skydive]!" she exclaimed, bringing
her Triple Assault back over her head in nearly the same position as that which
Charlie used for [Courage], the two lower blades on the spear suddenly glowing
with energy. Rik swung the spear
forward, and the energy flew from the blades, growing to immense proportions as
it did so, crashing into Eternal as Rik shot up into the air and spiraled down,
spear held out in front of her as she spun around cork-screw style and slammed
into Eternal. She pulled her spear out of
the giant's armor, kicking off and flying back into alignment with Charlie and
Raptor.
Raptor, in his Holy form, used a new
attack for this shift…"[White Lightning]!"
Raptor's white-furred body crackled
with energy as he became absorbed within a bright ball of light, launching
himself at and into Eternal, slamming straight through the ancient guardian and
out through the other side, all the way to Anikken's team…
As Raptor stopped in their lines,
Anikken snarled at Eternal, holding his Thorn so hard that blood was trickling
down his palm.
"[Star Crash]!" Anikken called out,
holding the Thorn out in front of him. The blades shone a bright gold, power pulsing through it. He brought the Thorn back over his shoulder
before flinging it at Eternal, straight and true, the energy-coated blade
slicing through the beasts right wing, up and over it, and back to Anikken, who
caught it deftly as his aura left him and he was drained of his energy.
Her technique useless, Ian instead
focused her aura into her Contain materia, snickering as she cast an immensely
powerful [Flare] spell, a huge ball of red flames growing and exploding in
front of Eternal.
Caity sighed…she was going to have
to use the new skill Rik had provided her with so long ago.
"[Jack-In-The-Box]!" Caity
exclaimed, climbing out of Moogle. A
jack-in-the-box shot out from a compartment on the metal Moogle, and she caught
it, turning the crank, the opening of the box pointed towards Eternal.
A shadowy demon suddenly shot out
from the box as it popped open, and—halfway in the box—sprung forward to lean
close to Eternal, growing huge. With
claws of shadow, it slashed away at the beast before slipping back into the box
as Caity's technique ended.
Cai raised her right hand up into
the air, the gun barrel of its Capsule retreating into the metal shell.
"[Elixir Stand]!" Cai called out,
opening another compartment on the Capsule as green and white sparks flew from
it, coating the HEROs on both sides, replenishing both their health and their
magical abilities.
And Anikken knew it was time.
With his magic power at full, he
concentrated on the Infinity Bahamut materia in the Thorn.
All seven HEROs faded away…
[Hydra Flare]…
The area around Eternal became
pitch-black as planets, the Sun, and the stars were shadowed out. An earsplitting screech echoed through the
area, as a giant two-headed dragon dropped down a ways away from Eternal, only
a bit smaller than the beast. The
Bahamut dragon's silver chrome outside flashed brilliantly. Smaller forearms clenched their claws as
large legs hung down loosely along with a thick tail. Humongous wings spread out from Infinity Bahamut.
The two heads faced Eternal, long
necks stretched out, their mouths opening in a synchronized motion as each
began to form giant energy orbs. A
flash of brilliant light split the darkness of the area, and the two heads
multiplied into four, all four charging up energy orbs. Another flash, eight heads charging
energy. A final flash, leaving sixteen
heads with fully charged orbs of energy. Eternal roared a challenge to the Infinity Bahamut.
All sixteen heads reared back…
And then swung forward, flinging all
sixteen energy orbs at Eternal. Battering into Eternal one at a time, they slammed against the beast of
the Sun, bashing it into a near-unconscious state.
And with a flash of light, just as
that which had brought forth the multiple heads, the Infinity Bahamut was gone,
and in its place all seven HEROs had been brought together. The shadows faded away, the stars shining
brilliantly.
The bone-white beast was covered in
scorch marks, craters, and cracks. It
roared…
~ PLEASE CEASE YOUR ATTACK—I
SURRENDER. I THOUGHT IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR
THOSE SUCH AS YOUR TEAM TO BRING THIS BATTLE AGAINST ME TO AN END, AS THE
VICTORS. I COMMEND YOU. AND NOW, I MUST KEEP MY OATH…I ENTRUST THE
WORLD TO YOU. SAVE IT. PROTECT IT FROM ROBBY ARCANE AND THE JENOVA
WEAPON. IT'S UP TO YOU…WHAT? WHAT ARE THOSE THAT YOU CARRY? ARE THEY THE 'EXTREME ABILITIES'? ~
Cai realized what Eternal was questioning—the
crystal sheets they looted from their clones. She nodded.
~ THEN I SHALL ENABLE YOU TO LEARN
THEM…GIVE THEM TO ME… ~
Cai, Anikken, Rik, Ian, Charlie, and
Raptor removed the crystal sheets they had in their item pouches, raising them
up ward. They began to float towards
the Eternal, but stopped, transforming into spheres of light. They rushed back into the HEROs from which
they had come.
(Charlie learned [Zodiac Brave]!)
(Ian learned [Flash Kick]!)
(Anikken learned [Pinwheel Blaze]!)
(Raptor learned [Carnage Raptor]!)
(Rik learned [Judgment From Above]!)
(Cai learned [Cetra Shoot-Out]!)
~ …RETURN TO YOUR WORLD, AND CONQUER
THOSE WHO THREATEN IT. FIGHT TO THE
DEATH! ~
Eternal flapped its skeletal wings,
flying off towards the Sun…
Anikken stumbled out of the escape
pod, which was embedded in the snow. Raptor and Charlie soon followed, and then came Cai, Rik, Ian, and
finally Caity.
"…We're in the North…" Caity
muttered.
"…Yeah…well, Rik, call your
father—it's time for us to take control of Midgar!" Anikken exclaimed.
"No, Anikken," Cai interjected. Anikken looked at her quizzically. "We need to take care of our main worry
first…that's Robby."
"…But what about Jenova WEAPON?" Ian
questioned.
At the controls of the refurbished
Sister Ray cannon, Saphie and Merri were working feverishly. After hours of labor, the outcome was an
operational gun.
"For years, I have remained in
slumber, in order to one day reign supreme over this city. I'm not going to let a few mutinous Turks
change that!" Cassidy Shinra shouted, running at the duo with a dagger. At the last moment, Saphie swung out her
fist, the metal knuckles connecting with Cassidy's face and sending her flying
over the railing and into the wreckage of the never-revitalized Sector 7.
"…Shut up, bitch…" Saphie muttered.
The Sister Ray cannon fired…
[Begin FMV]
The blast shattered the energy
shield around the city, disabling the green glow as the shot struck the Jenova
WEAPON.
[End FMV]
The WEAPONs scorpion-like body shattered
in places, sending black blood dripping across its shell. It shrieked in the manner of humans, and
began to scurry backwards. It leapt
back suddenly, landing in the water. It's many legs pushed it forward with amazing speed, towards the North…
As the seven HEROs neared the top of
the crater, the Jenova WEAPON came up to the shore…
And the seven pulled themselves over
the edge, looking down into the dent caused by the original Jenova. The Crater had been reshaped after Holy
blasted through it, and now the labyrinth was gone, leaving the bowl-shaped
crater completely smooth, with the exception of a hole right in the middle…
And Robby stood before the hole, two
swords in hand, regenerated fully.
Two events happened one after the
other. First, Robby brought the
ultra-powerful, glowing Goliath up over his head, closing his eyes and
concentrating. The setting sun suddenly
began to stretch in shape…it pulled upwards, towards the zenith point in the
sky before going back to the transforming blob in the horizon. The seven HEROs watched transfixed as the
sun began to be pulled again, this time directly to the zenith point. Now beams of energy were falling from
directly above them, draining straight into the Goliath. The Sun was being ripped out from above!
And then the world was plunged into
darkness, save the light from the hole and the extremely bright Goliath.
"…We're too late…!" Anikken shouted.
"…No…if we can defeat him quickly
enough, we should have enough time to—somehow—get the Sun back into space
before the world either freezes over or spins completely off of its orbit…" Cai
murmured.
"Well…let's do it!" Rik shouted.
The second event that occurred was
the arrival of Jenova WEAPON, which leapt over the edge of the Crater towards
Robby. The clone's eyes widened…
"…No! It's too soon!" Robby shouted as both collided, immersed within
light.
The HEROs covered their eyes,
waiting for the light to dim. Floating
in the air of the Crater was an eight-foot-tall being. It was a light gray, and plated with a
shell-like armor over all of it. With
no mouth, its only facial feature was it's midnight blue eyes. It had humanoid features, with fairly long
arms and legs, it's right arm holding the Masamune and it's left holding the
Goliath. A long scorpion-like tail
ended with a barbed stinger, and segmented spikes stuck out from its shoulder
blades and curved on their segments so that they were eventually pointed
downwards.
It's voice ripped through their
minds, but it was almost as if it was actually speaking. "Allies of Robert Arcane—welcome to the
Northern Crater. Your journey ends
hear—I am the Jenova-Robby!"
Anikken looked to the other
HEROs…they all nodded. All seven leapt
from the edge of the Crater, towards the beast that would determine the outcome
of all life…
And the seven encircled the monster.
Jenova-Robby laughed amongst their
heads. "I shall take you to the depths
of Hell!"
Cai glared at him, casting a
[Meteor] spell. A large sphere of
burning stone and ice fell from the sky, crashing into Jenova-Robby. It shattered on impact, causing the monster
no damage.
Jenova-Robby swung out with the
Goliath, sending a wave of flames at Cai, crashing into her and sending her
skidding to the ground…
Anikken hurled his Thorn at the
being, but it caught it deftly. It
hurled it back at him, then leaping forward, swinging its Masamune across
Anikken multiple times and sending the boy back, the Thorn scraping across his
arm. Anikken snarled, leaping back to
the Thorn and picking it up as Jenova-Robby stabbed its stinger into Rik's
mid-section and slashed into Charlie with the Goliath. Both were sent toppling to the ground from
the impact. As this occurred, Caity Sith
(in her Moogle suit) leapt at Jenova-Robby, but with its instinct it stabbed
backwards with the Masamune, which cut through Moogle's metal body.
Jenova-Robby slashed Goliath through
the air, sending a beam of flames at Ian, who slammed into Raptor as the beam
continued hitting her.
And all seven HEROs were laying on
the ground in agony…
"Too easy, these beings…"
Jenova-Robby echoed through their minds. Anikken pushed himself to his feet.
"…No…we aren't going to…let down…the
creatures of the Planet…" he murmured, his voice thick with pain.
Cai pushed herself up as well, "We
aren't going to…give up on our Planet…"
And Charlie managed to get to his
feet, helping Rik and Ian up as well.
"We aren't going to give up on our
families…" Charlie growled.
"Or…our friends…" Ian muttered.
"Or ourselves…" Rik added.
"We're here…to save our Planet…"
Caity whispered, climbing out of the malfunctioning Moogle.
Raptor pushed up onto his four
legs. "Guide us, Planet…Guide us,
Eternal…"
Seven blazing red auras burst up
around the HEROs, surrounding Jenova-Robby.
Charlie took in a deep breath. Like his sister, with the arrival of his
Extreme Technique, Charlie's chain attack had been melded into one.
"[Zodiac Brave]!" Charlie shouted,
his aura blazing as he leapt forward, slamming the blade of his axe into the
ground. A long crevice grew, ending at
Jenova-Robby. Charlie lunged at it,
eyes blazing red. He slashed with his
axe, the symbol for "Aries" flying through the air as he made the cut. He slashed again, leaving the symbol for
"Taurus". A third slash left a symbol
for "Gemini". The fourth, the symbol of
"Cancer" left in its wake. And a fifth
slash, leaving the symbol of "Leo". He
moved quicker now, slicing three more times with the symbols of "Virgo",
"Libra", and "Scorpio". Even
quicker—four slashes leaving "Sagittarius", "Capricorn", "Pisces", and
"Aquarius". The twelve symbols of the
Zodiac in the air around him, Charlie leapt up into the air, bringing the
Hellraiser behind his head as if it were the [Courage] attack, the twelve symbols
spinning into the double-headed blade. A light shone over it as he slammed it down into Jenova-Robby.
Charlie dropped back, his aura gone
as his sister leapt forward.
"[Flash Kick]!" Ian shouted. She suddenly went into a flurry of
fast-moving kicks that crashed into the Jenova-Robby, her legs barely visible
as they moved about. A bright light
grew over her unseen legs and suddenly she froze in midair, her foot a few
inches from Jenova-Robby's jaw. And
then she moved once more, her foot slamming into its jaw and letting out a
bright shining light. She spun back
from it, landing on her feet with her allies.
Cai leapt forward, her aura
surrounding her.
"[Cetra Shoot-Out]!" she cried,
bringing her Capsules together to form one, which she removed her left hand
from. She pointed the double Capsule
into the air, firing off multiple shots before leveling it with
Jenova-Robby. She swung her hand around
back and forth, firing at the beast as she did so. The shots connected, and with her free hand she snapped, sending
beams of light from the stars down on all seven HEROs, revitalizing them. Cai leapt back as the shots fired into the
air dropped down, slamming into the Jenova-Robby.
And it was Raptor's turn.
"[Carnage Raptor]!" he growled. He became larger than his [Colossus Raptor]
form from long ago, his fur becoming a darker red. His eyes became blazing red orbs, and his tail's fire grew
extremely large. As his shift was
completed, his aura began to diminish, a portrayal of how much time he had left
in the shift.
He leapt forward, a crimson ball of
fire now, and slammed into Jenova-Robby, causing the beast to recoil as it
remained motionless. Raptor then
snarled, his claws humongous as he slashed across Jenova-Robby…and then he
reverted back to normal. Without his
aura, Raptor darted quickly back into the front ranks of the HEROs' lines.
Rik leapt up high into the air,
shouting "[Judgment From Above]!" as she did so. She pointed her spear downwards, at Jenova-Robby, a spiritual
version of the Midnight Revenge appearing in the sky, firing rounds and rounds
of ammunition into the amazingly powerful being.
Rik dropped down, the "Midnight
Revenge" fading into nothing along with her aura.
Caity pulled her jack-in-the-box
from the wreckage of Moogle. "[Jack-In-The-Box]!" she shouted, turning the crank. Music played for a moment from the box, and
then it popped open, a boxing glove on a spring flying out and colliding into
Jenova-Robby before recoiling back into the box, which Caity tossed away.
And then it was Anikken's turn.
"[Pinwheel Blaze]!" he shouted as
the Thorn began to glow. He let it go,
holding his right hand out, palm towards Jenova-Robby as the Thorn spun and
grew to twice its normal size. Anikken
squinted his eyes as the Thorn grew even brighter before suddenly launching a spinning
beam of energy from the very center, which spread out to every edge of the
spinning Thorn, the end spreading out as well to completely cover Jenova-Robby
and then some.
As Anikken's aura faded and his
attack ended, there was another being in Jenova-Robby's place.
Twenty feet tall and forty feet
back, it was built like a centaur, with black fur on the horse-like part of the
body and a giant version of Robby's waist and up as the torso. Violet hair swirled in the night, and the
swords Robby carried were now immensely huge.
"I…am Robby WEAPON…prepare for
destruction…!" it shouted, echoing through the Crater.
"…Nah, I'd rather not…" Anikken
murmured sarcastically, holding up his Thorn, the Infinity Bahamut materia
embedded inside. The seven HEROs faded
away…
The immensely large dragon then
dropped down through the atmosphere, the world already dark as it loomed over
the crater. It's two heads roared, and
with a flash became four. Another flash
brought the total to eight, and the final flash of light bringing the head
count to sixteen. This time, though,
the energy growth began later. The
sixteen heads worked together to create one giant orb of energy as the words [Hydra
Flare] echoed through the minds of the HEROs. The sixteen heads launched the giant energy ball…
It slammed into Robby WEAPON and the
Crater, causing the Crater's bottom to crumble away. Robby WEAPON dropped down onto a giant, floating shard of stone
as Infinity Bahamut faded away, the seven HEROs all appearing on one smaller shard
of stone as it spun around a core of light, which in turn was surrounded by
the…
"…Lifestream?" Cai asked. She sighed lightly, pulling the summon
materia off from the necklace she wore.
"…It's time for me to summon…the
Hero," she murmured. She let the
materia activate with her magic, draining her, before throwing it into the
core.
Robby WEAPON faltered. Cracks began to grow over its flesh body, an
odd sight, cracks that spread out all over it. Robby WEAPON was now covered in cracks as it looked towards the HEROs.
And then the cracks exploded
outwards with a burst of light.
[Begin FMV]
Robert and Robby hung in the area
that Robby WEAPON had once occupied, floating on air, each holding both of his
swords. Their eyes opened at the same
time.
[End FMV]
"Robert!" came the chorus of shouts
from the HEROs.
"…Cai, Raptor, Rik, Anikken, Ian,
Charlie, Caity…leave this place…this is my battle…" Robert murmured, looking to
Robby.
"What the @#$%?" Anikken
shouted. "Hell no! We're gonna help you!"
"…Leave…" Robert murmured.
"…Robert…" Cai whispered…Robert
turned to look at them.
"I'll be finished soon…" Robert told
his friends…then their shard of stone lifted up over the edge of the Crater…
"Robert Arcane…I knew it would end
with this…I would have defeated your friends in my previous body if not for
your intrusion…"
"…I don't thinks so…they're stronger
than you…" Robert said, glaring at his clone.
"Clone versus original…care to place
a bet?" Robby questioned. Robert shook
his head.
"Why bet when you know the outcome?"
he asked.
"…You're right. Robert! It's time…" Robby snickered. Robert dropped down to the shard of stone, holding his swords still as
Robby continued to float.
"It's time…for you…to meet…FATE!"
Robby shouted, dropping down suddenly and swinging downwards with both of his
swords.
With both of his swords, Robert
parried the blow and knocked Robby back. The clone landed deftly on his feet, and the two stared into each
other's eyes.
"Beings don't have any fate—fate is
make-believe. Beings have choices. Whether they choose right or wrong depends
on them…" Robert replied.
And the two rushed at each
other. Each strike that Robby made,
Robert parried. With each clang of the
swords, they grew more tired, and with each swing of the heavy blades they grew
weaker. Robby suddenly leapt back,
swinging to the right and down and sending an arc of fire at Robert, knocking
him backwards.
"…You're wrong…I am fate…I will
choose who lives and who dies! I will
choose how to destroy this world!" Robby snickered.
Robert leapt to his feet…his aura
shot up around him.
"…Robby…this is the end of the
line…you're mine now…[Forever Arcane]!" Robert growled, leaping at Robby with
both of his swords, slashing and stabbing into the clone despite the clone's
futile efforts to block the flurry of sword slashes. Monolith and Ultima Sabre together were a duet of might as they
cut into the clone. Robby raised the
Masamune in defense…with a strike from the Monolith, the blade shattered…
Robert, still in his fury of sword
attacks, slashed across Robby's shoulder, causing the clone to release the
Goliath, which went flying into the Lifestream. Robert leapt into the
air, bringing Monolith over his right shoulder…the blade now almost pure light…
He dropped down, slashing downwards
through Robby, slashing straight through him and dragging a spirit similar to
Robby's own form out from him as he stabbed forward through Robby's chest with
his sabre.
And his aura was gone, Robby backed
up on the shard's edge.
"Please…have…mercy…on…me…" Robby
whispered, blood seeping from all over him.
"…Mercy is for the weak…" Robert
growled. He slashed in an "X" with both
the sabre and Monolith, sending Robby flying off of the shard and into the
thick Lifestream. A hand stuck up from
the spirits of those long dead, but was soon covered by the green glow.
And the Lifestream began to churn…
[Begin FMV]
The Lifestream shot out from the
Crater and into the sky, the Sun's energy contained in it, which had now been
absorbed by the Lifestream.
Robert lay in the snow of the North,
exhausted. The seven HEROs ran down the
Crater's side to their friend.
Robert: Did we…do it?
Cai: Yeah…we did it…
Charlie and Rik exchanged a tight
embrace and kiss, as did Cai to Robert. Ian tackled Anikken playfully into the snow, hugging him tightly.
Raptor looked to Caity, extending
his paw. The lion-like cub and robotic
cat shook hands.
Robert: It's over…it's over, Cai…the Sun will be
restored…the world will be saved…we can get married…have kids…
Robert whispered to her.
Cai: Robert…I started with you…to find my
family…but I've known where my family was all along…in the
Lifestream…Robert…I…I have to say goodbye…I need to go to my family…
Robert: …No…Cai…no…
Cai climbed up and began to run back
up the Crater side. Robert stood as
well, and the other six HEROs remained behind, not wanting to interfere with
the affairs of Cai and Robert. Reaching
the top, Cai turned to smile at Robert…she blew him a kiss before dropping
backwards into the Lifestream…
Robert: Cai! No!
The red-haired warrior dropped to
his knees, knowing Cai wouldn't want him to pursue her…
Anikken: Wait a second…the Lifestream is heading back
into the Planet…but…where's the Sun?
Ian: …Don't be dumb…it's nighttime, you idiot!
Anikken: Good point…
The two lay in the snow, gazing at
the stars…
Charlie: Rik…there's something I've been meaning to
ask you…Rik…will you…marry me?
Charlie held out an open velvet box
containing a diamond engagement ring. Rik smiled as he slipped it onto her finger.
Rik: Hell yeah! I mean…Yes, yes I will…
The two embraced tightly…
Raptor: …What now?
Caity: Well, I suppose we could take desk jobs…
Robert remained at the top of the
Crater, watching as the Lifestream sunk back into the Planet.
Robert: I'll never forget you…Cai…
Suddenly, the Lifestream stretched
upwards, depositing five forms on the other side of the Crater…
…
Old Man: Is that the Desert Rose and the Earth
Harp? I've been looking for those for
years! I'll give you a golden Chocobo
and the Master Materia in exchange for them!
Robert: That was the idea…
Robert handed the two items to the
old man, who gave him a small pouch and the reigns of the Chocobo they were
standing next to at the stables of Kalm Town. Robert climbed up into the saddle of the Chocobo, holding it's reigns.
Riding the gold Chocobo, he rode off
across the grasslands…
Aboard the Midnight Revenge, Charlie
and Rik were exchanging their wedding vows the week after their final battle
with Robby Arcane. Raptor and Caity
Sith, not particularly interested in the wedding, were looking out over the
railing of the upper deck, down at the land as their old friend rode across the
grassy area of Kalm.
Caity: Do you think we'll ever see him again?
Raptor: 'Course. Why not?
The two were silenced by a glare
from Ian, the bridesmaid. Anikken
rolled his eyes at her, causing her to smile lightly in his direction.
Robert pulled his Chocobo to a halt
at the shore close to Junon. Five people
stood before him…
Robert: Janus? Emanuel? Luke? …Mom? Dad?
Three Years Later…
The bride strode up the aisle in her
dress. Emanuel, Robert's best man,
nudged his brother lightly. Robert
averted his attention from the bride to look out at the people attending the
wedding…his mother and father, Caity Sith, Raptor, Charlie, Rik, Charlie and
Rik's baby son, Anikken, Janus, Luke, Ian…The bridesmaids were doing likewise
until the bride stepped up next to Robert and the priest…
Robert smiled at her, going through
the whole wedding, with his own vows as well…then…
Priest: You may kiss the bride…
As the smiling onlookers watched,
Robert removed the bride's veil…