Chapter 13: Only In Dreams

Chapter 13: Only In Dreams

Midgar Slums, Sector 7

Laeryn Chase calmly walked away from the body of man who'd just tried to rob her. She couldn't understand why he'd chosen her as a target to begin with; she owned nothing but her weapons and the clothes she wore. She had a few gil as well, but they were all spent on food. Laeryn was not bothered by the complete poverty in which she lived, seeing as it was the only existence she had even known. As a small child in North Corel, her family had barely enough money to live on. In Soldier, her only possessions were her weapons and extra clothes. As she ascended the ranks her salary increased, but even then she lived humbly; she simply didn't know what to do with such large sums of money. Prior to becoming a Grand Admiral, she wasn't even aware that a single person could possess so much wealth. After she fled Shinra, her bank account had been terminated, erasing any money she may have had. That was irrelevant to her; it wasn't as if she ever made use of her account anyway.

Laeryn adapted to the nomadic lifestyle she had fallen into since arriving in Midgar five years ago. She wandered the slums, fighting groups of thieves and criminals, in defense of herself and others. She had considered going to school, but that idea was quickly squelched upon finding that her back account had been erased. With no other alternatives, she joined the poverty-stricken droves of the slums, wandering aimlessly, earning a few gil occasionally from temporary jobs. As a result, Laeryn had done just about every type of hard physical labor imaginable over the course of the past five years. It suited her far better than the standard female professions. Laeryn was dismally lacking in the domestic skills necessary to become a maid-servant, cook, or nanny and had far too much dignity to become a prostitute. So instead she did things like landscaping, railroad maintenance and construction. Not the most glamorous jobs in the world, but they gave her enough gil to eat every day.

Laeryn was far from happy in Midgar, though. Memories haunted her every moment of the day, and warped her dreams every night. The loss of her family was still an open wound for her, and her hatred for Shinra burned as brightly as ever. The fact that she was so close to Shinra's headquarters yet unable to actually confront him frustrated her to no end. She thought of the weeks she lived in the wilderness after fleeing Shinra and the Turk who tried to kill her. She remembered going to Nibelheim and meeting Tifa. Where is Tifa now? Laeryn wondered. Laeryn hadn't seen Tifa in four years, and hoped that her friend was safe and better off than she was. Zack and Cloud had been in Nibelheim, too. Laeryn smiled as she remembered Zack's comical antics. She had been very happy to hear that he had been promoted to General. He seemed to be an excellent person for the job. She missed her friends terribly, and would gladly give any of her few possessions to see them again.

Her nostalgic sadness quickly escalated into despair when she thought of Sephiroth. Sephiroth, the only person she had ever really loved. And even though five years had passed since he fell into the Lifestream, she loved him still and refused any advances made on her by others. After the death of her family, Sephiroth was the only person she had left to care for. She remembered most vividly of all the night they spent together in Nibelheim and the promise she made to him, that she would always protect him. Laeryn felt personally responsible for his loss and was torn apart by guilt. I could have saved him, she thought every day, I could have tried to reach down with my other hand, I could have done something…He didn't have to fall…It was my fault. Laeryn curled up inside an abandoned car and let her depressing thoughts lull her to sleep.

That night was the first of the dreams.

* * *

Two thousand years ago, something had fallen from the sky and left a huge scar on the Planet- a giant crater. The Lifestream bubbled close to the surface in the crater. Mako energy swirled and condensed, creating awesome materia crystal formations. Fossils lay twisted in some of these crystals, gargantuan beasts from an age long past. One of them, however, still lived, in a state of complete hibernation, almost cryogenically frozen. This one had entered the Lifestream while still alive, and was strong enough to survive the massive amount of Mako energy to which he had been subjected. His body was perfectly protected inside one of the materia crystals, eyes closed, hands slightly outspread in an almost meditative posture. While his body lay dormant with hibernation, his fertile mind was hard at work.

"Sephiroth…" whispered Jenovah. It hovered before him, not even bothering to appear in any type of humanoid form, simply a grotesque mass of writhing black appendages and glowing orange eyes.

Sephiroth heard that whisper. Jenovah. Where am I? Am I dead, or dreaming? he thought.

"Closer to the latter, my son. Do you remember what happened to you five years ago?" asked Jenovah, staring intently at Sephiroth's inert form.

I fell. I fell into the Lifestream. I must be dead. Sephiroth answered mentally.

"You are not dead, my son, though you did fall into the Lifestream. You were strong enough to survive, though you became unconscious shortly after. The Lifestream carried you here, to this crater on the Northern Continent. Your body is in a state of advanced hibernation, perfectly preserved inside a materia crystal," Jenovah explained.

But five years have already passed?!? What's happened? That's a long time. Why didn't you show up to help me sooner? Sephiroth asked, bewildered.

"Five years have indeed passed. And don't start whining about how long you've been waiting. I've been waiting for two thousand years, ever since I landed here. First I was sealed in rock by a race of selfish, petulant beings that claimed they were protecting the Planet. Then I was finally extracted from the rock only to be sealed in that foul formaldehyde-filled tube. Most of the body is still in a tube like that somewhere. But anyway, to get back to the point. When you lost consciousness you also lost your grip on me. I've been searching for you these past five years, and have just now found you. I apologize; it must have been terribly boring stuck in there," said Jenovah.

How do I get out of here? I need to get out. Sephiroth thought frantically.

"Well, technically speaking, you can't get out. However, just because your body is stuck in there doesn't mean your mind has to be. Are you familiar with the concept of an astral projection, Sephiroth?" Jenovah continued.

No. Just tell me how I can at least communicate with the outside world, Sephiroth demanded.

"Patience! It's not polite for children to snap at their parents. You are talking to me using your mind, Sephiroth. You can communicate with the rest of the world this way, too. Using your mind, you can create an astral projection of yourself. This projection will be indistinguishable from your actual self. You will be able to interact with your surroundings exactly as if you were freed from this crystal. Think of it as a sort of very vivid dream, a dream that you can control," explained Jenovah.

How do I do that? asked Sephiroth, his patience beginning to wear a bit thin. He hated Jenovah and hated to talking to it, but right now he seemed to have no choice, as it held his only key to escaping from this crystal prison.

"Concentrate. Think of where you want to go and what you want to do. It's not easy. You will have to practice. Since this experience will be like having a dream, I would recommend that you stick with that motif and try exploring the dream world first, then the real world," said Jenovah.

Dream world? What do you mean?

"When people sleep, Sephiroth, they have dreams. Everyone. Whether or not they remember them upon awakening is a different story. Like I said before, creating an astral projection is exactly like having a very realistic dream. In fact, for you, it will be a dream. So naturally it will start out in the dream world, only able to affect people when they are sleeping. As you gain more skill in manipulating your astral projection, you will be able to interact with people even when they are awake," said Jenovah.

Interesting. But why are you helping me?

"What do you mean, 'why am I helping you'? You insolent boy! I'm your Mother. I need you, Sephiroth. I need you to help me take back what is rightfully ours; the Planet. And it's kind of hard to do that if you're helplessly trapped in this materia," ranted Jenovah, "Now concentrate. You'll only be able to get out of here if you work at it."

Sephiroth concentrated, his mind moving toward the subconscious. He forced himself to control even that dark, unexplored part of his mind that under normal circumstances only manifested itself in dreams. Suddenly he understood what Jenovah had been telling him.

Sephiroth was flying over the city of Midgar. Midgar? What am I doing here? I didn't end up here consciously… Curious, he slowly descended toward the plate. He touched down in Sector 7. Other people were all around him, but none seemed to notice. Many were doing absurd things; some were flying as he had been. I must remember that this isn't the real world. This is dreams. The moment his feet touched the ground Sephiroth felt that he was frantically searching for something… someone. He didn't know whom, but knew he would know once he found them. Somehow, he knew where to look. The slums. I must go there. Suddenly the surface of plate faded away and he found himself standing directly below where he had been a second ago, looking up at the dirty underbelly of the plate. He scanned the area, sensing he was very close to what he was looking for.

* * *

Laeryn turned restlessly in her sleep, deep in the throes of a very lifelike dream. She dreamt she was sitting about ten feet from where she slept, leaning against a pile of scrap metal, staring listlessly into the distance and… waiting. She wasn't sure what… who… she was waiting for, but knew she'd know once they found her.

Sephiroth turned and saw someone sitting against a pile of scrap metal, their face obscured. That was who he was looking for! He ran to the person and she jumped to her feet upon seeing him. The shadow that covered her face seemed to pass, and he recognized her. Ink black hair, pale skin, and deep red lips made her impossible to mistake for anyone else.

"Sephiroth!" she cried, throwing her arms around him.

This was what he was looking for. This, which he had lost five years ago in Nibelheim. Friendship, compassion, trust, kindness… love. Laeryn. He slid his arms around her waist and looked into her ice blue eyes, which were melting and running down her cheeks.

"I thought you were dead," she told him.

"So did I. My body is trapped somewhere in a materia crystal. But Jenovah told me I could communicate with the outside world using my mind. An astral projection," he explained to her.

"So is this real or a dream?" she asked.

"This is a dream. I don't have enough control over the projection to appear to people while they're awake, yet. I will soon," Sephiroth whispered. He ran his finger across her jaw line and traced her thin red lips before sliding his hand into her coarse black hair. She was so beautiful. If this is a dream, I never want to wake up.

Laeryn was having very similar thoughts. "Is it true that you never have the same dreams twice?" she asked, her hands roving over Sephiroth's back and mingling with the silky silver strands of his hair.

"No, not at all. I think we'll both be having this dream again," he murmured into her ear. Laeryn shivered and turned her head to kiss him.

The astral projection was exactly as Jenovah promised, as if he weren't inside the crystal at all. All of this was proven to him by Laeryn's callused hands on his skin and her distinctive taste of iron roses in his mouth.

Suddenly she pulled away and looked at him sadly.

"Sephiroth, I have to go…" She faded away slowly and Sephiroth stood alone.

* * *

Laeryn woke with a start to the sound of nearby gunfire. It passed after a few moments, but she cursed it vehemently nonetheless. The sound had torn her from a wonderful dream, a dream about Sephiroth. It had been so lifelike; she remembered every detail perfectly. Including his voice telling her that she was still alive… Sephiroth was still alive. The last time Laeryn had been this happy was five years ago, in Nibelheim. She had a job today, too, doing some repair work on a worn-out section of railroad. The owner of the railroad had made it very clear that it was imperative that it be fixed quickly, since the damaged portion was so near to the station.

Laeryn crawled out of the old car she had slept in walked about half a mile to the train station. Several workers were already there and had begun tearing up the old section of track. Huge orange 'caution' signs and yellow tape surrounded the area. She pushed passed them and jumped down to the tracks. A tall surly man approached her.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

"Laeryn Chase," she answered.

"Oh, right. You're one of those temp workers. Well get moving. We need to have all this track torn up by tomorrow afternoon so we can start putting in the new pieces," snapped. Laeryn grabbed a pickaxe and went to help the others.

Trains still came to Sector 7 every half hour, but they stopped short of the station. An impromptu walkway had been constructed to the station platform. And it wasn't as if the trains picked up many passengers in the slums to begin with.

* * *

Tifa Lockhart eagerly walked away from the bar/restaurant she co-owned with her friend Barret Wallace. Being a bar maid was more lucrative than she imagined; she hadn't expected so many tips. Of course, her relative financial stability came at a high price- her dignity. Initially Tifa hadn't wanted to be a bar maid at all. But she decided to give the job a try for the sake of Barret's eight year old daughter, Marlene. Marlene needed an education, and the money brought in by Barret's small restaurant wasn't enough.

Tifa met Barret by coincidence, in the very restaurant that she now worked for, 7th Heaven, shortly after arriving in Midgar. Tifa asked him if he was looking for some extra help and he acquiesced, telling her that he could never get enough people to work for him. They became good friends over the past five years, and Tifa acted as almost a surrogate mother to Marlene. Tifa soon discovered that Barret's restaurant was more than it seemed, however. After telling Barret the story of how she ended up in Midgar and professing her hatred for Shinra, he reciprocated and told her about North Corel. He also told her about the anti-Shinra organization he and a few of his friends had founded. They called themselves 'Avalanche'. Their sole purpose was to end Shinra's tyrannical reign. Tifa agreed to help Barret run the group, and met fellow members Jessie Chandra, Wedge Darklighter, and Biggs Ishmael. Barret had befriended all three of them since his arrival in Midgar and convinced them to join his cause.

Avalanche proved to be more sophisticated than Tifa had initially imagined. The basement of 7th Heaven, the stairs cleverly concealed by a pinball machine, was home to their base of operations, a nest of guns, computers, and partially completed explosive devices. Barret had acquired most of it through rather unsavory means. Now Avalanche was beginning to plan their first big move; the destruction of the Mako reactor in Sector 6.

Tifa had no idea she would become involved with such a group. She had to help them though, they were her friends. And she wanted to see Shinra toppled every bit as much as they did. Maybe when Shinra's gone we'll all be rich and I won't have wear this ridiculous outfit as a means of attracting customers so we can get more money, she thought hopefully. Since coming to Midgar, Tifa had made more use of her well-established martial arts skills than she had as a guide in Nibelheim She never went anywhere without her knuckle-dusters and studded boots. They served her well, seeing as being a bar maid in the worst part of town wasn't a very safe job.

She walked briskly toward the train station, a place she rather enjoyed because it was bit less filthy and had a slightly lower population of brigands and would-be rapists than anyplace else in Sector 7. She sat down on a bench and watched the construction on the tracks. One of the workers caught her eye. A tall dark-haired girl with alabaster skin… could it be? Tifa walked to the edge of the construction site and called out, "Laeryn? Is that you?"

Laeryn jerked her head up surprise. She wiped sweat from her forehead and looked at the young woman who had called her name. She had waist length brown hair pulled back in a low pony-tail and brown eyes with a distinct red tint to them.

"Tifa?" she asked incredulously, dropping her pick axe.

"Laeryn! You're still alive! I'm so glad!" Tifa exclaimed.

"Hey! You! Quit slackin' and get crackin'!" the supervisor snarled at Laeryn.

Suddenly he found himself staring down the barrel of Laeryn's handgun.

"I suggest," she said calmly, "That you let me do whatever the hell I want. There are a million other temp jobs in this town and I see no reason why I should limit myself to working for someone such as you. I'll be going now. Unless, of course, you have a problem."

"N-no, no, go right ahead. There's no problem," he replied shakily.

Laeryn slipped her gun back into her pants and leapt up onto the platform. Tifa ran over and gave her a hug.

"Tifa! What have you been doing for the past few years?" asked Laeryn.

Tifa rolled her eyes. "I work at a restaurant called 7th Heaven. I'm a bar maid and waitress there. I co-own the place with my friend Barret Wallace. I hate my job, actually. I mean, look at the hideous outfit I have to wear! I only do it because Barret's one of my best friends and he really needs the money to put his daughter through school," Tifa explained. Laeryn looked at her outfit. It was tacky. She wore a tight, cropped white tank top and low cut black shorts that left little to the imagination.

"Barret Wallace, you say? Is he from North Corel by any chance?" asked Laeryn.

"Yeah, he is actually. Oh right, you're from there too. You know him?" said Tifa.

"Yep. He was a friend of my parents' before… Shinra…" she trailed off, angrily gritting her teeth.

"I know the truth about that now. Barret told me. We've formed an organization that you might be interested in joining," Tifa continued, lowering her voice.

"Go on," said Laeryn, intrigued.

"We call ourselves Avalanche. Barret and I are the leaders. We have three other members as of now. Our sole purpose is to instigate the downfall of Shinra. Right now we're planning to destroy the reactor in Sector 6," explained Tifa, still speaking very softly.

Laeryn's eyes widened. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for ever since Shinra killed her family! "I'm in," she said resolutely.

Tifa was about to say something else when her attention was distracted by an incoming train. Both women watched as the doors slid open. A few moments passed and young man stumbled out, carrying a broadsword. He had unruly blond hair that stuck out all over his head and round blue eyes.

Tifa gasped in shock and took a step back. "I-it can't be… I saw him cut in two in Nibelheim five years ago!"

Laeryn was at a complete loss to explain the situation. The young man that had just stepped off the train and was now sitting forlornly on the steps certainly looked like Cloud Strife, but they both knew Cloud had died in Nibelheim five years ago. Unless some medical miracle had saved him…

Before Laeryn could say another word, Tifa walked over to him and sat beside him.

"Unngh…?" the young man grunted vacantly as she looked at him.

"Cloud is that you? Are you all right? You look terrible," she said, laying a hand on his forehead.

More memories entered the young man's mind. Yes… he was Cloud Strife. From Nibelheim. He hated Sephiroth. And he'd always had a crush on a girl named…

"Tifa?" he croaked weakly.

"Cloud! It is you!" Tifa exclaimed, giving him a powerful hug.

"Tifa," he stated again.

"I'm not even going to ask how you ended up here. The important thing is that you're safe now. You don't look so good right now, though. You feeling okay?" she asked.

"Yeah… just a little tired… that's all," Cloud replied distantly.

The two walked over to Laeryn. "My god. It really is Cloud Strife. Guess you somehow managed to survive being cut in half," she laughed.

Cloud looked puzzled. "Who are you?"

"Cloud, it's me, Laeryn Chase. I was the Grand Admiral of Soldier, remember? I was in Nibelheim with you, Zack and Sephiroth five years ago," she said.

Cloud just stared blankly at her.

"I guess he must still have some amnesia. That was a pretty nasty injury," said Tifa. Laeryn nodded agreement. "He'll recover in time."

"You living anywhere, Laeryn?" asked Tifa.

"Anywhere I happen to be at the time," smiled Laeryn, "I just wander around."

"Well, both you and Cloud ought to come back to 7th Heaven with me. I'll see what I can do about living arrangements and employment for you two. As well as what we talked about earlier, Laeryn," Tifa said.

"Sounds good," replied Laeryn. Cloud nodded and followed them away from the train station.