Chapter 5


It was Aeris, but something had....changed. Her eyes, formerly green, had turned a

glowing red. She was 4 or 5 times her normal size, and her face glinted with a cruel glint. She

smiled cruely down on the party members.


"I'm free. Free to pursue the title which should have been mine so long ago."

She looked down upon Cloud, who shuddered and tried to avoid her gaze. "It's all your

fault. YOURS!"

Cloud looked up weakly. "What's my fault?"

"You failed at the one simple task I assigned you! I hired you to be my bodyguard, and

you FAILED! You let that fool Sephiroth destroy me! If not for that I could have been a GOD! If

not for you and your incompetance!"


Cloud's eyes bubbled. "G-God? But...But then why did Sephiroth kill...try to kill you?"

"Mortal fool! I was his a threat, a threat to him, and a threat to the world. Of course

he tried to stop me! I would of ended his dominance."

"But Sephiroth was insane! He said he wanted to be God. He would of if not for us!"

"You have such a simple mind, Cloud Strife. Sephiroth did want to become a God. But he

wanted to do it be being a hero to the people. Saving them from me would do that. But after

killing me in the City of the Ancients, home of my fathers, he sensed I was still alive. Sephiroth

was quite brilliant for a mortal. But after this he strayed from the truth." Aeris took a deep

breath, then continued, "Sephiroth took my continued prescence to mean that I could not be killed.

But in reality, I only lived on through your memories, Cloud, Tifa, all of you. Your remembrances

are what kept me from dying. Sephiroth didn't realize this of course. He thought the only way to

save the planet, and the universe from my subjegation, was to destroy it. He thought that destroying

the planet would destroy me too. But had Sephiroth defeated you in combat, my memories would of

gone too. And then he would of finally destroyed me and he would of realized from my lack of prescence that he had won,

and would not of had to of used meteor. He would have been a hero...the God he always wanted to

be. But when you defeated him...you eliminated my only true compitition. So I waited inside of

you, Cloud, and now that the time is ripe, I have returned to claim what is mine!"

Everyones jaw had dropped, and those from AVALANCHE especially couldn't believe what they

heard.


"Aeris please..." Tifa started to plead, but she immiedietly started screaming in pain.

Cloud couldn't see what exactly was effecting Tifa, but he saw Aeris' face break into a cruel smile.

(Aeris never used aggressive magic before) Cloud thought. (She doesn't even need to concentrate!

And I didn't think mental magic was even possible, only rumors) as he felt the first bits of fear

creep into him.

Tifa finally stopped screaming, and collapsed to the ground. Cloud panicked for a moment,

but saw she was still breathing. Aeris turned her attention back to Cloud.


"Now, it is time for you to die."