The Dark Phoenix
By Aerith/Daphne Sy
Part 8- The Northern Crater
Chapter 34- As Black as Ebony
It wasn't until the last day of the blood moon that Cloud and Aerith finally wrestled free from the heavy embrace of slumber. They woke at the exact same time, startling to life in each other's arms. But even in consciousness, the struggle to power both mind and body was taxing, and the fact that their energy poured from a shared source didn't help. Aerith closed her eyes once again, pressing her mind firmly into Cloud's.
"Lie still… we must regain our strength. Trust in them… they will take care of everything."
He was too tired to really consider what she said, so he answered with a barely audible grunt, absorbing his wife's warmth. They lay in a stupor for a long time, drifting between worlds in a half-sleep, reality blurring with wild dreams…
"Cloud…" rang a voice from the distant haze, "We've finally found her…"
"Where… who…" he thought back, his mind lost in the sea of memories, doubly jumbled with the addition of his wife's.
"It won't be long…" he felt warm breath tingle in his ear, "I promise you that." He heard a sliver quiver in the tone as footsteps began to retreat. Consciousness matched the voice to Tifa's just as another presence interrupted his thoughts.
"You realize that after all these years, she still loves you?" it said slowly, almost sadly. Aerith…
"…I know… I realized that a long time ago, and I've been sorry ever since. But that could never change the way I felt for you… the way I feel now. I knew that I'd see you again… that's why I waited. To say that I loved her would be dishonesty, only causing more pain… I think that in the end she'll learn to understand, and she'll be happy she never got involved with someone like me."
A note of hesitation marked the voice that echoed around his mind. "…Are you sure that this is what you want? We can still turn back…"
"--No! Never! I… I've been waiting 17 years to be with you again, and there's no way I'd turn back now! I love you… I asked you to stay by my side a long time ago, and that still goes today, as long as you're willing."
"Of course I will…" she replied softly, "There's nothing I'd like better…"
"Then there should be no argument. It'll be you and me forever… we'll be together until the day we die and beyond." He could feel her near him, the gentle warmth of her cheek shifting onto his shoulder in willing agreement.
"Do you think we should try to get up?" he suggested after a little while, realizing that his mind was the clearest it had been during the week.
"It's up to you… I think we might be ready though. Don't push it though!" she warned wisely, and Cloud cast her a mental smile.
Cloud took a deep breath, feeling the air rush into his lungs, increasing the pressure in his chest. His eyes snapped open, meeting a pair of polished emeralds that pierced through even the blur of his tired sight. He braced his body, tensing all the muscles he could muster, feeling the pain of stiffness as he pressed closely against his wife. Using a burst of energy, Cloud rocketed into a sitting position, his back afire with a pain similar to when one has lain still on a hard surface too long. His vision cleared to reveal that he was richly dressed-- the smell of decaying blossoms seemed to rent his nostrils, and he blanched visibly in response. He felt his wife struggling with her feeble body, and his hands reached down to support her as best as he could, taking hold around the slender waist and just behind her neck, hoisting her so she was resting upright against him.
It was then that he realized that she was clothed in the black mourning dress and veil of one who has only recently perished… desperation crept through his mind as frantic senses examined the room.
The walls of the chamber were simple, grave stone, smooth and gray in appearance. Silence chilled the room… it was generally dark except for the trailing smoke of smoldering incense and a row of candles lit before the ebony bier upon which they laid…
She felt the chill dance down her spine at the same as he, for they looked up at each other, eyes wide with terror, fingers stroking the crimson stain that was their deathbed…
Aerith felt the urge to scream well up within her, but she forced it back, instead burying her face into her husband's dark musty tuxedo. Cloud clasped her close against his chest, dumbfounded by this mistake that could have pronounced them both dead…
They both sat unmoving, clutching to each other's warmth, frightened by the overhanging silence, stunned into complete immobility. Even as they heard the reassurance of boots and paws clattering down the hallway towards them, they could hardly trust themselves to move.
"To think that it'd end like this for the both of them…" sighed a wizened voice. "At least we can bury them together now, just as they'd have wanted."
"I'm sorry… But I think… I think I need to see his face one last time," Tifa whispered solemnly in reply. They heard her pause just outside the doorway, followed by the flare of a torch being lit. With a final sigh, Tifa rounded the corner into the make-shift morgue, ready to say her final goodbye to her best friend of many decades.
Within the few seconds between the instant Tifa's fingers began to loosen and the moment her torch sputtered across the floor, millions of thoughts burst through and between the three minds in the room. At the hallow noise of the piece of wood striking stone, a concerned Nanaki rushed in as well. It seemed like several minutes of silence passed before any words were able to penetrate through the heavy tension.
"Cloud…?" Tifa's lips barely managed to form the word, breaking the strange trance. Aerith clutched close to her husband, her eyes squeezing shut to block out the horror of her surroundings. Cloud arched his back as if to shield her as he clambered unsteadily from the coffin, lending his support to his frail wife. Hardly able to stand, they both collapsed onto the stone floor as Nanaki rushed forward, throwing himself beneath them to break the fall.
"Get help! NOW!" he growled while struggling under their dual weights. Cloud wrestled to his knees and crawled off of his friend, easing the load on Nanaki's back. Tifa took a few slow steps backward, and then began to sprint towards the renovated observatory, her voice ringing off the sheer edges of the cliffs.
[i]"He's alive! Cloud's alive!!!"[/i]
---
"You're lying!" Sephirah growled in suspicion and anger, her hand flying instinctively to the hilt of the Masamune.
"What?! What'd I say?" Calvin protested, grabbing his own Buster Sword in defense. Within seconds, Sephirah noted the movements of his arm as she flew to his side, the edge of her blade hovering threateningly before his throat.
"Not a good idea! Now tell me who you are, and what kind of tricks are you trying to play on me? Did Sephiroth send you?!" she hissed softly in his ear.
"Sephiroth? He's still alive?" the genuine incredulity in his voice caused her to lower her blade.
"Then you aren't sent by the planet's bane?" She was honestly surprised… the occurrences at all parts of her journey had taught her to beware against simple coincidence.
"No! I swear it! Now put that sword down, please!" Calvin ducked, rolling out of her way, and she didn't stop him. "Now I don't know what your problem is… I just asked you about Aerith-- that's all!"
"Aerith… are you sure that's her name?"
"Yeah, Aerith Gainsborough… it's not a very common name, so I'm sure it's the one."
Sephirah sighed. "So let me get this straight. You're claiming to be my dead mother's ex-boyfriend?" Zack stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to say before the smile of recognition flared across his features.
"That's why I saw her in you… You have the same face! The heart-shape is characteristic of her people--" he clapped a hand over his mouth instinctively, but then he resigned it with a shrug. "I suppose that it doesn't matter anymore, since Shinra's gone anyway. You have Ancient's blood in you anyway-- I've seen enough of Hojo's laboratories to know that he was looking for people with those rare kinds of face shapes to use in his experiments because he felt that they were closer evolutionarily to Ancients."
"Then perhaps you really aren't lying…" she considered in slight incredulity. It seemed to ridiculous that this man could be claiming all that he was… the experiments with the mad scientist, his death and return to life, his connections with her mother… but the absurdness of it all was what made her believe him in the end. She sighed, plunking heavily down and resuming the position she had taken just before Calvin's arrival.
"Why is it that all the stuff that my parents did seems to come back and bite me in the ass?" she groaned as she buried her face in her arms, long silver hair spilling onto the forest floor. She twisted a handful of it distractedly I her hand before her face reappeared, brilliant eyes glaring at Zack.
"Hey, I didn't know! Don't blame me!" he shrunk from the woman's intense stare. "…So you said she's died? Would you mind telling me what happened to her if it's not too much trouble?"
"Which time?"
"Which-- what?! What do you mean 'which time?'"
"You wanna know how she died… so which death?" Sephirah said with cold sarcasm.
"…Perhaps you should be telling me…?" he replied in confusion. "If you wouldn't mind, I would like to hear what she was up to since the last time I've seen her… so please tell me everything you know about her, if you can. Maybe that would explain this 'multiple deaths' thing…"
So the tale began, and it would carry long into the night, until Calvin's face was heavy and drawn with grief for his former lover and Sephirah was simply too exhausted to continue. She fell victim to slumber while propped up against the log, a fire from Calvin's materia radiating warmth into their bodies. He had too much on his mind to succumb to sleep, however, and he stayed the night up deep in thought, lost in memories that were only now flooding back into his tortured mind. He stared at the sharp lines of pain that marred his companion's youthful face, recalling the peace he had seen dancing upon similar features long ago. She was the same, and yet so different…
When he looked at her, he felt a fatherly warmth flood through him, as if this child of his beloved was also his own. He knew now for certain that she really was the daughter of Aerith… there was no mistaking the features that genetics had passed to the last of the Ancients. But who was her father…? That question seemed to perplex him. He could detect the chill presence around her, that strange familiarity that he just couldn't manage to pinpoint. And so, as Calvin examined the stranger child before him, he knew from deep within him that he would stay by her side as her protector, no matter where her journey would take them.
Sephirah awoke to the sweet smell of a stew bubbling the next morning. Her stomach growled in anticipation as she rose and stretched her slender frame towards the canopies, which filtered the daylight into fuzzy, seemingly tangible beams of shimmering gold that showered over the entire forest. Cal smiled when he saw that she was awake, his eyes sparkling as he used a drinking dipper to ladle out a steaming bowlful of the concoction.
"Eat up! We've got a long day ahead of us!"
She stared at him incredulously. "What do you mean, 'we'?"
"I've decided to come with you," he chirped cheerily as he continued tending to the cooking pot.
"But you don't even have a clue where you're going!" she protested.
"No worries-- You'll be explaining that on the way there," he grinned cheekily, and Sephirah resigned with a sigh of frustration.
"Fine… whatever! I just don't care anymore. It's not my fault if you get yourself killed though, remember that!" Externally furious but inwardly admiring his courage, Sephirah approved the company of her newest companion with a reluctant welcome.
By the end of the morning the pair was ready to set off for the City of Ancients, Sephirah's fingers caressing the black materia from where it hung in the pouch around her neck. She spoke of her travels the entire way there, her voice the only wave of interruption piercing through what seemed like a world of green silence.
Chapter 35- Destiny
After traveling for another day, the last stretch of forest seemed to part before the two travelers, revealing that they were at the edge of a hill that sloped steeply downward into a valley shrouded in mist. The distant peaks of what appeared to be enormous, iridescent snail shells twisted up into the silver sky, radiating magical energy like beacons for those who knew to follow their signals. Sephirah knew that she was attracted by these pulses-- the very blood in her seemed to be pulling towards the buildings, as if yearning to return home. Without the tree cover a chill wind began to whisper, penetrating through Sephirah's skin, expressing a warning for those who wished to disturb the peace of the hallowed place. Zack's eyes widened in an attempt to absorb all that he saw before him; he knew that this ground was not meant for the impure of heart to tread upon.
She took a slight step forward, hearing her boots crunch over new frost. How long had they been in the forest? Only a few days had passed, she was sure of it, but this land on the other side of the sacred forest seemed to belong to a different time, if not another world altogether. When she had left the Bone Village, the tinges of vermillion were only beginning to appear on the fringes of leaves, while in the ancient forest there was a strong enchantment preserving the illusion of perpetual summer. But now, as she stepped into the crisp new air, she could feel the chill of winter coming, the white crystalline cloak that would envelope the world in a sunless, numbing haze. She knew that it was because she was so far north that the effects of this were already so amplified, trading the luminous blue in the sky for a more somber silver that cut far to the distance in every direction. Sephirah drew her tattered clothing closer to her body, unable to stop her teeth from clattering in her skull. Zack noticed this and quickly produced a gray wool coat from his knapsack, tossing it to her.
"I figured you were gonna be heading north, so I packed some heavier clothing for the both of us," he winked at her, and she smiled gratefully in return.
"I can hear it…" she murmured to herself, lifting her face into the coming wind. "Watch yourself down here. This is a sacred place… don't do anything to upset the spirits, or we might never make it out. They don't appreciate me bringing more humans down here… They said that the last ones, a few decades ago, nearly wrought havoc and destruction upon the entire Planet. It was only the bloody sacrifice of one of my kind that could redeem this world." As if in a trance, Sephirah began to walk like an automaton down the hillside, into the valley where the city of silence lay. The progress of the descent seemed to reward them with warmer temperatures as they pushed on towards the city gates, where a pair of statues seemed to stand sentinel over the peaceful streets.
"This must truly be the City of the Ancients," Zack said in awe, absorbing Sephirah's conformational nod. "…I wish it wasn't so empty…"
"…Empty? What do you mean?"
"It's empty… as in no one around," Zack puzzled, furrowing his brow at her. She paused to look at him, as if with great incredulity.
"Can't you see them? There are people everywhere!" She knelt as if to pat the head of an invisible child. He blinked hard for a moment then shook his head. Nothing.
"I see… that's what she meant when she told me that humans are blind and deaf to the true nature of the world. Even the Ancients have a hard time seeing while away from the Promised Land, but now… my vision is clear." Zack peered curiously at her, noting the serenity in her face, the way her eyes stared vacantly past her surroundings.
"Are you alright? Who is 'she'?"
"'She' is the Mother, the essence of the Planet. She has guided me from the beginning now, brought me to this place of seclusion, and shown me the desperation of her situation. I am the last of her children, or at least I was. She is the reason that through my tragedies, death has never truly reached me. It was she who whispered to my father the secret of the Dark Phoenix's feather in order to revive me," she said distantly, her fingers tracing in the dirt.
"Sephirah…?"
"Follow me, human, and perhaps you will gain a greater understanding of our world." She whirled automatically and led him down the winding paths towards the central beacon of brilliance. It was monolithic for a shell, spiraling high into the glistening fog like a silver knife stabbed into the heart of the sky, bleeding white cotton over the world. An arching cavern confirmed that it was indeed hollow; by the size of the structure, Zack was able to deduce that it had once been the central meeting hall for the city. Without once looking back, Sephirah made her way through the gaping mouth of darkness, emerging into the low, indigo light of a crystal lined passageway. The hall seemed to stretch deep into the interior of the shell, the length of the corridor obscured by the glaring lights. A strange radiance seemed to pulsate from the opposite entrance, making their shadows dance across the frosty blue walls. After what seemed like ages of trudging, Sephirah finally stopped in the entrance to the next room.
Zack squinted against the brilliance of his surroundings, his arm acting as a poor shield against the thickness of the light, which seemed to encircle him like a robe of luminance. After a moment, his eyes adjusted to the glare and he lowered his arm to find Sephirah staring at him with an air of amused curiosity. She turned from him and took a few tentative steps towards the eerie blue pond that lay pristinely in the middle of the room.
"You once asked her the story of her mother…" the voice said softly, born of Sephirah's throat, but not her mind. "Many years ago, that daughter of mine spilled her blood across my altar in the sacred temple beyond this room. It was only the unjustly bleeding heart of one of her kind that could complete the summoning rituals for Holy, the greatest of white spells. He who loved her once laid her here to be buried, entombed in the peace of my own lifeblood. It was by her own choice that she followed the turbulence of Jenova's ways over returning to unity with my being. I wasn't sure if I should return her myself or not, but she has since brought forth a continuation for her people. This body, born of my simple child, does not know that the blood of the accursed one also flows through her veins. It is better if she stays ignorant-- the shock might destroy her already traumatized mind." She turned to Zack, her eyes shimmering fiercely green.
"And you… before I return this body, I beg of you to take care of Sephirah. She is the last of the Ancients, and has yet to weave the final threads of her destiny. Protect her with all of your might, for it is she who will end the struggle against the Crisis. She will deal the final blow to end the cycle of destruction…" Her voice seemed to melt into the mist, leaving the woman still standing in a trance-like state, her beautiful eyes fogged over as if deep in thought.
Then, without warning, she crumpled to the ground, her eyes rolling up into her skull.
Zack bounded forward and caught her limp form, tossing her over one shoulder with a heave and a sigh. Climbing back into the dusty old residence, he laid her on the faded remains of the bedding and left to explore the area. He ran his hand over the smooth part of his skull as he emerged into a transformed city.
The fog had disappeared-- it was replaced by the cold, bright sunshine characteristic of winter. The mystery of the place seemed to have faded along with the mists, but he could now see the gently iridescent sheen that exploded from the walls of every structure in the town.
"This," he concluded in awe, "is truly a work of art!" He laid his hand tentatively on the side of one of the houses, feeling the gentle crackle of magic sizzle through his fingers. He laid his hand flat on the material, and he could feel the energy that thrummed through him. He startled in realization, and then let his face sink into a smile.
Materia! The entire shell was at least coated in a thick layer of the substance, if not completely composed of it. Perhaps he was staring at the remains of some ancient beast that once used to dwell in the Lifestream, he thought in awe, running his fingers along the smoothly worn ridges, tracing from one color to the next. A feeling of dizziness seemed to wash through him, and soon he was sprawled across the grass, promising himself that he'd only take a short nap…
---
A pair of clouded blue eyes gazed up at him, their brilliance glimmering off into the distant sky, broken only by the rough jolts of the trucks wheels grinding over bare road. The disconcertingly vacant stare belonged to a boy clad in blue with a rugged mess of gold perched upon his head like the crest of a male chocobo. Zack quickly recognized the second man in the plum-colored uniform as himself, young and strong, the Buster Sword strapped across his back as he flexed his arms in restlessness. He had experienced this particular flashback many times, but watched carefully for the revelation of a new hint to his past. He was shocked to hear sounds carry through the silence for the first time.
"I know what I'll do," his own voice said with youthful enthusiasm, "I'll go back to Midgar and stay with her. Then I can be a mercenary! What do you think about that, Cl--?"
"Zack!"
---
He came awake with a pair of wide green eyes dominating his vision.
"Hey, Zack!"
He startled visibly, nearly falling to one side with fright at Sephirah's abrupt appearance. "You scared me! Jesus, woman…" he grumbled.
"What were you doing?" she seated herself next to him with a smile. "You looked like you were sleeping with your eyes open or something…! Must've been some trance because I've been trying to wake you up for a couple of minutes now. What's up then?"
"Eh? Oh, it's nothing… just another weird dream. I'll figure it out in a few nights or so."
"Why don't you tell me about it?" she pressed gently. "Maybe I can help?"
He grunted softly. "Well, all I can really remember is being on the back of a truck with a friend… I think we were on a long trip, cross-country maybe, because I could remember feeling a bit restless, so I stood up and was moving around… Now that I think of it, I think I was heading back to the Midgar continent, and so we were planning on catching the ferry in Costa Del Sol. Yes, that must be it! I remember hearing myself say something about returning to Midgar so I could stay with "her" and become a mercenary. But I already know about all of that. What bothers me is this friend of mine. Who was he? All I can remember is that he was just sorta staring at me half-consciously with these dull, chilling eyes. I suppose that was from the Make poisoning."
"Do you remember what he looked like?" she probed hesitantly.
He paused for a moment, then shook his head. "No, I can't. It's like his face is a blur. All I can remember about him are the colors…"
"Which were?"
"He had really yellow hair, kinda like a chocobo's. He was wearing a soldier's uniform… and his eyes were sapphire blue! That what stands out about him most. Come to think of it…" Zack paused for a moment, and then turned to Sephirah. "Wait a sec… look straight at me for a moment."
"W-what?" she complied, her wide green eyes glimmering at him in worry.
"Green…!" he looked at her strangely, and she returned his gaze with confusion. "Since when have your eyes been that green?"
"They're not! They've always been a sort of aqua color, a mixture of my father's blue and my mother's green," she replied.
"That's what I thought…" he groaned as he struggled to his feet, his aging bones creaking beneath his weight. He hustled quickly into the house where they had stored their sacks, and after rummaging hastily through them, he produced a hand mirror, which he presented to her. "Take a look for yourself."
Sephirah held the mirror up to her face, her hand trembling as the refracted light revealed an unmistakably brilliant shade of green shimmering through her irises.
