Chapter 4
"She'll be alright. Wonder where she was goin'. She decided to be here on Judgement Day, which is a hell of a place to be. Don't they know about Meteor!?"
"Quiet, Barret, probably just scaling the mountain. Doesen't matter, don't worry too much."
"Alrigh' Cloud, I'll leave it to you..." The man called Barret shrugged, he was a large, bulky black man with a gun gafted into his arm. It was strange.
"Alright, boys, it's time to make a lift-off. This kid is lucky we found her, lady luck is on her side, but now we gotta go. Shoot, we lost alot of time goin' back to Madeen for that special medicine. Looked like she went through alot. But I think she looks strong enough to move on."
"Enough with the speech, Cid, lets go." Cloud looked serious, his spikey hair and uniform looked just as strange as the man with a gun in his arm.
"Anyway, the point is...Since we lost alot of time...We're goin' to pull a little switch," he said with a smirk on his face. "Seems Shinra installed it, and I'll be glad to take advantage of their technology." He clapped his hands together, and put his hand on the lever. "Get ready boys." He pulled the switch, and the entire ship shook.
"Whoa, Cid! Look at the back of the ship! We've got boosters. We'll be there in minutes!" Barret sounded really excited.
"Calm down...." said a voice from the back.
"Guess it's not that exciting to be meeting our doom faster...but your right, I should calm down Vincent."
"Lets go kick some ass! The Highwind can blast through there now!" Cid also probably needed to calm down. But the excitement of Judgement Day was too much.
Yet far away, in the blackness of space lay the girl named Iris, truly unaware of Meteors presence. "Hey...it's...so warm here. Am I in heaven?" Iris curiously watched her surroundings. "We died together, so... Where are you Zex."
"He's not around anymore."
"Who....who are you!? How do you know!? Have you been listening to everything I've said!? So, where am I....Answer me!" Iris peered coldly at him, eyes of stone not moving an inch.
"He's somewhere in the afterworld." He chuckled.
"He's...dead...and I'm not? You...bastard. Why don't you just kill me too...I have...nothing to live for." Iris' eyes were in a fiery rage, red and wet, yet at the same time cold and dry.
"You still have things to...live for. You have your uses." He chuckled. Iris' eyes flared.
"I have my uses!? What uses. It wasn't my mission. It was his....who are you dammit!?"
"When referring to me, people call me 'The Master'. When they speak, they call me 'Master'. You may call me whatever you want, Iris."
"So....you know my name too... You know alot...Don't you...Well, Master....Tell me how he died! Since you know so much. Well?"
"What am I...gonna do...How will I get back...What will I do without him anyways....Whats the point of living on...I feel like dropping and never getting back up... Zex!!!!"
"So...you want to know how he died...I can't tell you that. You can tell Zex yourself."
"How....so...you'll respect my wish and finish me off too...I have nothing to live for...I can do the job myself."
The Master chuckled softly. "Don't sell yourself so short, Iris, you really shouldn't go killing yourself til you truly have nothing left. You've already got people caring for you on the ship. Don't let them down. Zex wouldn't want that either." The Masters shoulders shook, and his face became visible for the first time. It was unlike anything...it was perfect. Long, straight white hair. He had a light smile, his eyes were a dark blue...they actually looked...nice. He seemed so gentle. "Goodbye, Iris, I know you won't fail us."
"Who is 'us'," Iris asked, but before she could blink he was gone in a flash. With one last look into space, life had changed once again.
With a fist in the air, Iris proclaimed, "Zex, I'm not sure how you died, or how I'm supposed to know how you died without dying myself...But I will respect your death, you did not die in vain...I'll do it for you, Zex Marius...No one will stand in my way." The air around her froze cold.
"I almost forgot your power," a voice whispered from the shadows, and was gone as quick as it came.
"I...felt his presence leave...so...this is the power of Zex. Isn't it...I won't fail! Death has a new warrior to deal with, and I won't die easily. I'll kill you, Nightsaber."
"So, you're awake. Iris."
"It figures...everyone around here seems to know my name, how...typical." Iris, still depressed, moved on with rage pushing her forth.
"You told it to me. You do not recognize me, Miss?" His voice sounded suprised, and yet familiar. Of course she recognized it.
"Vincent. Of course...Of course...." Her voice trailed off into the distance.
"Well...hey...how are you doing....?"
"I'm doing just fine. Something wrong, Iris?"
"Nothing."
"Where was the boy you were with, that Zex? Did he tell you travel all by yourself?"
"Shut...up...It's none of your business."
"Oh...Sorry. I didn't mean to upset you by all means. Anyways....You do know where we are headed, right?"
"Sephiroth. Heh...I know exactly where you're headed. Let's go." She threw her head towards the door, her hair dancing with the darkness, a beautiful black strand lost within its own colour.
Iris walked towards the door in front of Vincent, although in unfamiliar territory, she did not want to be guided. Iris was proving her strength already, her need for vengeance was strong. Vengeance...upon Nightsaber. That fool dared to make her lose the only thing that she had connecting her with this world. The thing Iris wanted most was gone, and that bastard would pay... Iris slowly walked across the bridge.
"Almost there," Vincent smiled gallantly as they both walked into the huge vastness of the airship. "Hey there, what do you think of the ship? Pretty nice, isn't it...and all the advantages of Shinras technology we ripped off."
Beep...beep... "Hello? Yea, it's me. No....Damnit, I'll talk to you later then." He put his phone in his pocket with the flip of his hand, and looked around to everyone in the room.
"You must be Cloud, I remember you from a while back."
"Yea, nice to meet you, too. Anyhow, everyone....remember how I said something was missing from Junon? Well...they moved the cannon to midgar. Cid, turn the highwind around..."
"The $#@%!? Those stupid damn kids at Shinra are playing with their toy...Alright, boys, turn this thing around!"
Cid was a crazy one, his blonde hair flowing through the air of the Highwind. Iris had already figured she wouldn't see him without a cigaret for a while, either. Wreckless was also worth mentioning.
"Where to, Captain?"
"Where do ya think, jeez, I'd thought you'd been listening? We're headed for Midgar!"
"Captain...it's dangerous out there. We've recieved a global warning...."
"Yea, and whats that warning about? The cannon? We already know about it, and I have a feeling they aren't going to be very smart about using it..."
"No, sir. Thats...thats not it at all. Weapon is attacking!" The young pilot was stuttering in fear. Weapon...classified destruction.
"If weapon is attacking, then GET THIS SHIP TURNED AROUND NOW! I'm not losing anyone else. 'Specially not Marlene. Lets get moving!" The angry black man screamed with all his might, trying to contain himself.
"Relax, Barret. Elmyra said she'd take her somewhere safe. In the latter, though, if we don't stop weapon from destroying Midgar, more innocence will be lost." Tifa said thoughtfully, trying to be of help with calming Barret down. Tifa, a beautiful young lady with skimpy clothing. -
Destination Changed. Destination Changed. Destination Changed. Approaching Midgar in approximately 6 minutes.- "Looks like we're headed for Midgar...That weapon gives me the creeps." Cid shuddered.
The Highwind was a huge ship, its power was massive, and its greatest aspect was speed. Cid Highwind built it, his pride and glory lay within it. Before, it was thought to be fast. Before Iris had arrived. They had been delayed, and Cid put it to full power. Now, it had the ability to reach speeds unthought of by mere scientists. The blue engines burst with energy, as they travelled across the snowy fields in only a minute.
"We're already off the continent? My...the water surely does look beautiful, doesen't it?"
"Yes...it does.." Vincent smiled. "The serenity of it flows in you, doesen't it?" Vincent chuckled at Iris, and turned his back once again, his cloak magnificiently floating behind him.
"How sweet, Vincent. So, do you fight for these beautiful features? To protect them for the people?"
"Thats only how it is for truly great people...not mere puppets such as myself. I fight for revenge on Hojo for killing me...my love...and creating a monster like Sephiroth!"
"He created Sephiroth? How...?"
"Sephiroth was a normal boy...and Lucrecia was a normal woman. Hojo...had to go on with his novice experiments. He had to inject her...test the power of Jenova...." His voice trailed off, and he fell silent. Iris understood now.
It was true. Sephiroth was a normal boy. So what raged inside him? What kept him ticking...The jenova cells killed him, yet made him invincible. Stronger than others, he did not think of this as a blessing when he thought he found out the so-called truth...
"Sephiroth was not created," Cloud began, "I know your wondering what keeps him so crazy. I've told everyone else this story, but you might as well know too. It's a long one, but the jist of it is, he thought he found out who he was. He knew he was different, but not like how it was...Sephiroth always thought his mother was Jenova. This is only partially true. There had been monster reportings at the Reactor in my hometown. When I looked inside the containers...we both knew. Hojo had been creating monsters. Sephiroth knew this was the key to his power... Sephiroth was just a creation for his own greed. That day, Sephiroth went crazy. He called me a traitor, and burned my hometown. That is why I am killing him. I can still feel the flames...but now, I have even more. Aeris...died to him." Cloud told this story with more grief than anyone could imagine, his pain still felt as if it had just happened.
-Approaching destination in approximately 2 minutes. Prepare to dock.- "Better get ready." Cid shouted to them from across the ship.
"So....his mother...was your love?"
"Yes...his mother was Lucrecia. And he succeeded in his experiment. That is my sin." Vincent sighed with coldness and grief. There was no point inquiring him anymore, Iris needed to prepare mentally for a battle. She now had the power to fight...and Iris wasn't going to let herself get any weaker.
"Lets go...I'm already suited up."
"You sure you're going be ready to fight a weapon? Those things can kill. This isn't a game." A dog was talking..telling her this...How very strange it seemed.
"Yes, I am ready."
"By the way, the name is Red. Incase you don't know the other crew members, Tifa is there, Barret is there, and that is Cid. Although he should be the most obvious." He chuckled, and looked down to himself once again.
-Approaching midgar in 30 seconds. Please prepare for dock.-
The cool air was rising. The sun was no longer amongst them, only the huge rock in the sky known at Meteor. Once she had thought this to be the sun, but now she knew exactly what it was. The knowledge and power that the Master had given her flowed freely through her veins. Perhaps it is in every world of a persons eye, there is a grudge within. Cloud and Sephiroth already...Iris and Nightsaber...It was to be a truly miraculous battle when it came. Iris knew they would fight, there was nothing that could stand between their powers. They would all stand in awe of the brilliance of how excitingly she killed him. Haha.
"We've reached Midgar...docked...Landed...Alright, everyone who's ready to fight, lets go beat a weapon. Pilot, maintenance crew, I know you want to stay, and I want you to stay too. If we do get killed, pull out." Cid gave them an eye, and turned around.
"Yes, Captain!" Cloud, Tifa, Barret, Cid, Vincent, and Red all slowly walked outside. Iris followed, ready to release her grand power. Iris was not up to proving herself to others, only to herself that she alone could kill Nightsaber. Power of greed is one thing, but the power of vengeance is only so much more bitter.
The party walked through the halls once more, across the bridge, and onto the outside. There was a small ladder there, which Cid quickly through down, and they all jumped off. Iris did the same.
As she finally got off the ladder, and looked up, it was not the huge meteor she saw. Iris saw Weapon. It could tower skyscrapers with ease...This was what the planet had the power to defend with. It was enough to fear for life, however...No one had time to be afraid.
"It is our duty to defend Midgar. So let's defend it." Cid nodded to Vincent, grabbing his spear from his back, swinging it around, getting the feel, and pointing it towards Weapon.
"You're goin' down!" At that moment, the entire party ran up to Weapon.
Barret fired his gattling gun, the damage was unnoticable on the towering giant. "It's not taking much pain from this gun!" The gun gafted in his hand looked like it could blow up alot of things, so things were looking pretty grim.
Cloud grabbed his sword into action, shouting "Omnislash" right before the moment of destruction. Cloud, a spiky-haired sword user, was causing a destruction worth a warhead. He slashed it over and over, right to left, left to right, up and down. The white weapon was bleeding as Cloud jumped into the air. He seemed frozen as he stood in mid- air, sword raised high above his hair. Mere seconds after this freeze, he lead his sword down into the ultimate desecration of matter.
The weapon stepped back a few feet.
"That hurt him...but not enough." Iris was already impressed with his incredible fury, but she knew she could do just as well. The huge weapons foot was many times bigger than Clouds own body, as it kicked him into the ground. The weapon had created a new crater...with a human laying in his own blood.
"We're not getting anywhere like this...Clouds injured...Dammit...Tifa, get Cloud back. I'm going to use my Highwinds limits." Tifa ran back to Cloud, the monster had not thrown him far. But instead with force into the ground where he was.
"Tifa...you came... Again...Hows the battle going...?" He coughed more blood, looking into her beautiful eyes.
"Of course I came. We're not doing well. Cids summoning the Highwind. We'd better get out of here."
The moment she said that, the ground shuttered. The highwind had lifted off. Cid was giving it directions with his hands, and the pilots were obviously cooperating. "Fire!"
Thousands of tiny little missiles suddenly ejected from the ship, each bloodying the weapon more and more. Smoke rose upon the giant battle field. This battle was no ordinary fantasy fight.
"I've done considerable damage, just like Cloud, but it's not enough!" Runes appeared around
Cid, as he shouted another thing into the air, "Ultima!"
The land around him turned green, the air turned green. A bright, emerald green....not sickening at all... It was pretty, and yet destructive. It was summoning its peak...the green light gathered...and blew up all at once into a single area. The smoke rose once again, revealing the huge white ancient power standing just as it had been. Bleeding, yet not hurt enough to be weakened.
"Our magic, our physical attacks...nothing seems to do enough damage! Barret, Red, it seems to be hurt alot more by magic...our limits do good damage, but our physical attacks do nothing in comparison. So blast it with everything you've got!"
Runes glowed upon all three of their heads. "Lightning 3!" "Ultima!" "Flare!" All three spells intertwined, summoning massive lights and destruction. The green lights appeared once again, along with a thunderstorm raining lightning permanantly upon the Weapon...The fire burning into its body. It was so massive, yet it bled to this pure power. This time there was no smoke. Only a brilliant flash of light. It blinded Iris as well, and lasted for a long time...
"So, is he finally finished...that took too much...it must dead..." Yet when the light cleared, it proved them wrong.
"I'm tired of watching...that thing...is....going down."
"Do whatever you've got Iris... That things got me beaten..." Cid coughed, and dropped to the ground.
Vincent jumped into the middle of the battle scene, "I'll handle it, don't worry. Lock and load."
Vincent grabbed a gun out of his pocket, with his skilled hands, shooting the monster 5 times. Its huge foot kicked at him, but he swiftly evaded it. He performed this several times, his red cloak glowing magnificently. The speed of the battle was increasing.
"Take this, Weapon!" Vincent shot at it again, but this time fell to the ground coughing. A white beam hit him, and he was down. Barret and Red suffered a similar fate to Cid, both dropping down from the power it took to cast the mighty spells in unison.
Iris' eyes flared. No...Vincent was the only one now that Zex was gone. Vincent had been so magnificently kind to her, and she'd die before he was gone.
"Weapon. I challenge you. Let's go." Iris' body glowed within an aura. An aura of power...The purple lightning struck every inch of the ground around her. Iris' body was protected by powerful light, soon to cause more destructive damage than protection.
"Didn't you hear me Weapon!? I'm going to kill you!" Iris screamed in vain. "I just want to keep some of my friends alive! And you have to come and stop me!"
A voice swept through her head, indescribable in any manner. "I do not care. It is our duty to protect the planet. Not to concern ourselves with foolish human neccesities."
Iris' rage only grew. "I fear nothing now." She closed her eyes, power surging within her veins growing uncontrollable. She rose into the air, as if in a meditating position, focusing her power. Iris' black hair danced within her aura of power, no longer lost, but with a new beginning. A place to be remembered...destructions end was soon to be.
Iris' eyes awakened. "Well, I do care!" With this, she launched both her hands in front of her, gathering energy from the Aura. The purple energy formed its shape into balls, blasting huge craters into the area around her. "Heh...heh....heh..." Iris smirked at the Weapon, the causer of this foolish fight. It was then that she released this energy that lay within her hands.
"I have gathered enough energy...now suffer your fate." She laughed coldly without emotion, almost like Zex. She raised her hands into the air, the two enormous purple balls of lightning glowed like eyes, watching the weapon. Iris threw them both at Weapon.
The energy blasted through it, merely causing it to bleed a little more. It wasn't significant enough. "It seems you shall suffer yours as well now." The same voice wisped through her mind, but she merely laughed at this. The energy came back and blasted it again, back and forth, up and down, likewise to Clouds omnislash. The pure energy and power blasted it into true pain.
These blows caused more and more blood and anguish. Iris breathed hard, as the energy slowly disappeared. The weapon must be nearly dead now.
"That was everything I had..." The weapon slowly walked away from her.
"Cure 3 All!" All of a sudden, all the bodies upon the battlefield were cured. "Huh...what happened... Why is that damn piece of junk running away! Come back here!" Cid shouted out at it, as if it cared.
"It senses...murder." Vincent claimed from behind.
"It's not running. It senses murder. Something big is going on down in Midgar, and it knows it.
It's going to go protect something else...or something." Vincent was astounded, not sure what was going on.
"Yes... We need to get back to the airship." Red said from behind.
"Alright, boys, lets get going! Evacuate to airship!" They all nodded to Cid, and ran to high-ground. Cid waved his hands at the ship from far above. The pilots obviously saw this as a signal to pick them up.
The ladder was lowered, and they all climbed to above. They walked through the halls and across the bridge once again, to the main room.
"Well, now all we can do is watch from above whats gonna happen...dammit...I don't like this one bit." Cid laid back his head, puffing a few pieces of smoke.
"It's not good, but we're going to do what we can, alright?" Cloud said this more as a statement than a question, a statement with leadership.
"Yea..." The entire party agreed to this, as it would always be.
"She'll be alright. Wonder where she was goin'. She decided to be here on Judgement Day, which is a hell of a place to be. Don't they know about Meteor!?"
"Quiet, Barret, probably just scaling the mountain. Doesen't matter, don't worry too much."
"Alrigh' Cloud, I'll leave it to you..." The man called Barret shrugged, he was a large, bulky black man with a gun gafted into his arm. It was strange.
"Alright, boys, it's time to make a lift-off. This kid is lucky we found her, lady luck is on her side, but now we gotta go. Shoot, we lost alot of time goin' back to Madeen for that special medicine. Looked like she went through alot. But I think she looks strong enough to move on."
"Enough with the speech, Cid, lets go." Cloud looked serious, his spikey hair and uniform looked just as strange as the man with a gun in his arm.
"Anyway, the point is...Since we lost alot of time...We're goin' to pull a little switch," he said with a smirk on his face. "Seems Shinra installed it, and I'll be glad to take advantage of their technology." He clapped his hands together, and put his hand on the lever. "Get ready boys." He pulled the switch, and the entire ship shook.
"Whoa, Cid! Look at the back of the ship! We've got boosters. We'll be there in minutes!" Barret sounded really excited.
"Calm down...." said a voice from the back.
"Guess it's not that exciting to be meeting our doom faster...but your right, I should calm down Vincent."
"Lets go kick some ass! The Highwind can blast through there now!" Cid also probably needed to calm down. But the excitement of Judgement Day was too much.
Yet far away, in the blackness of space lay the girl named Iris, truly unaware of Meteors presence. "Hey...it's...so warm here. Am I in heaven?" Iris curiously watched her surroundings. "We died together, so... Where are you Zex."
"He's not around anymore."
"Who....who are you!? How do you know!? Have you been listening to everything I've said!? So, where am I....Answer me!" Iris peered coldly at him, eyes of stone not moving an inch.
"He's somewhere in the afterworld." He chuckled.
"He's...dead...and I'm not? You...bastard. Why don't you just kill me too...I have...nothing to live for." Iris' eyes were in a fiery rage, red and wet, yet at the same time cold and dry.
"You still have things to...live for. You have your uses." He chuckled. Iris' eyes flared.
"I have my uses!? What uses. It wasn't my mission. It was his....who are you dammit!?"
"When referring to me, people call me 'The Master'. When they speak, they call me 'Master'. You may call me whatever you want, Iris."
"So....you know my name too... You know alot...Don't you...Well, Master....Tell me how he died! Since you know so much. Well?"
"What am I...gonna do...How will I get back...What will I do without him anyways....Whats the point of living on...I feel like dropping and never getting back up... Zex!!!!"
"So...you want to know how he died...I can't tell you that. You can tell Zex yourself."
"How....so...you'll respect my wish and finish me off too...I have nothing to live for...I can do the job myself."
The Master chuckled softly. "Don't sell yourself so short, Iris, you really shouldn't go killing yourself til you truly have nothing left. You've already got people caring for you on the ship. Don't let them down. Zex wouldn't want that either." The Masters shoulders shook, and his face became visible for the first time. It was unlike anything...it was perfect. Long, straight white hair. He had a light smile, his eyes were a dark blue...they actually looked...nice. He seemed so gentle. "Goodbye, Iris, I know you won't fail us."
"Who is 'us'," Iris asked, but before she could blink he was gone in a flash. With one last look into space, life had changed once again.
With a fist in the air, Iris proclaimed, "Zex, I'm not sure how you died, or how I'm supposed to know how you died without dying myself...But I will respect your death, you did not die in vain...I'll do it for you, Zex Marius...No one will stand in my way." The air around her froze cold.
"I almost forgot your power," a voice whispered from the shadows, and was gone as quick as it came.
"I...felt his presence leave...so...this is the power of Zex. Isn't it...I won't fail! Death has a new warrior to deal with, and I won't die easily. I'll kill you, Nightsaber."
"So, you're awake. Iris."
"It figures...everyone around here seems to know my name, how...typical." Iris, still depressed, moved on with rage pushing her forth.
"You told it to me. You do not recognize me, Miss?" His voice sounded suprised, and yet familiar. Of course she recognized it.
"Vincent. Of course...Of course...." Her voice trailed off into the distance.
"Well...hey...how are you doing....?"
"I'm doing just fine. Something wrong, Iris?"
"Nothing."
"Where was the boy you were with, that Zex? Did he tell you travel all by yourself?"
"Shut...up...It's none of your business."
"Oh...Sorry. I didn't mean to upset you by all means. Anyways....You do know where we are headed, right?"
"Sephiroth. Heh...I know exactly where you're headed. Let's go." She threw her head towards the door, her hair dancing with the darkness, a beautiful black strand lost within its own colour.
Iris walked towards the door in front of Vincent, although in unfamiliar territory, she did not want to be guided. Iris was proving her strength already, her need for vengeance was strong. Vengeance...upon Nightsaber. That fool dared to make her lose the only thing that she had connecting her with this world. The thing Iris wanted most was gone, and that bastard would pay... Iris slowly walked across the bridge.
"Almost there," Vincent smiled gallantly as they both walked into the huge vastness of the airship. "Hey there, what do you think of the ship? Pretty nice, isn't it...and all the advantages of Shinras technology we ripped off."
Beep...beep... "Hello? Yea, it's me. No....Damnit, I'll talk to you later then." He put his phone in his pocket with the flip of his hand, and looked around to everyone in the room.
"You must be Cloud, I remember you from a while back."
"Yea, nice to meet you, too. Anyhow, everyone....remember how I said something was missing from Junon? Well...they moved the cannon to midgar. Cid, turn the highwind around..."
"The $#@%!? Those stupid damn kids at Shinra are playing with their toy...Alright, boys, turn this thing around!"
Cid was a crazy one, his blonde hair flowing through the air of the Highwind. Iris had already figured she wouldn't see him without a cigaret for a while, either. Wreckless was also worth mentioning.
"Where to, Captain?"
"Where do ya think, jeez, I'd thought you'd been listening? We're headed for Midgar!"
"Captain...it's dangerous out there. We've recieved a global warning...."
"Yea, and whats that warning about? The cannon? We already know about it, and I have a feeling they aren't going to be very smart about using it..."
"No, sir. Thats...thats not it at all. Weapon is attacking!" The young pilot was stuttering in fear. Weapon...classified destruction.
"If weapon is attacking, then GET THIS SHIP TURNED AROUND NOW! I'm not losing anyone else. 'Specially not Marlene. Lets get moving!" The angry black man screamed with all his might, trying to contain himself.
"Relax, Barret. Elmyra said she'd take her somewhere safe. In the latter, though, if we don't stop weapon from destroying Midgar, more innocence will be lost." Tifa said thoughtfully, trying to be of help with calming Barret down. Tifa, a beautiful young lady with skimpy clothing. -
Destination Changed. Destination Changed. Destination Changed. Approaching Midgar in approximately 6 minutes.- "Looks like we're headed for Midgar...That weapon gives me the creeps." Cid shuddered.
The Highwind was a huge ship, its power was massive, and its greatest aspect was speed. Cid Highwind built it, his pride and glory lay within it. Before, it was thought to be fast. Before Iris had arrived. They had been delayed, and Cid put it to full power. Now, it had the ability to reach speeds unthought of by mere scientists. The blue engines burst with energy, as they travelled across the snowy fields in only a minute.
"We're already off the continent? My...the water surely does look beautiful, doesen't it?"
"Yes...it does.." Vincent smiled. "The serenity of it flows in you, doesen't it?" Vincent chuckled at Iris, and turned his back once again, his cloak magnificiently floating behind him.
"How sweet, Vincent. So, do you fight for these beautiful features? To protect them for the people?"
"Thats only how it is for truly great people...not mere puppets such as myself. I fight for revenge on Hojo for killing me...my love...and creating a monster like Sephiroth!"
"He created Sephiroth? How...?"
"Sephiroth was a normal boy...and Lucrecia was a normal woman. Hojo...had to go on with his novice experiments. He had to inject her...test the power of Jenova...." His voice trailed off, and he fell silent. Iris understood now.
It was true. Sephiroth was a normal boy. So what raged inside him? What kept him ticking...The jenova cells killed him, yet made him invincible. Stronger than others, he did not think of this as a blessing when he thought he found out the so-called truth...
"Sephiroth was not created," Cloud began, "I know your wondering what keeps him so crazy. I've told everyone else this story, but you might as well know too. It's a long one, but the jist of it is, he thought he found out who he was. He knew he was different, but not like how it was...Sephiroth always thought his mother was Jenova. This is only partially true. There had been monster reportings at the Reactor in my hometown. When I looked inside the containers...we both knew. Hojo had been creating monsters. Sephiroth knew this was the key to his power... Sephiroth was just a creation for his own greed. That day, Sephiroth went crazy. He called me a traitor, and burned my hometown. That is why I am killing him. I can still feel the flames...but now, I have even more. Aeris...died to him." Cloud told this story with more grief than anyone could imagine, his pain still felt as if it had just happened.
-Approaching destination in approximately 2 minutes. Prepare to dock.- "Better get ready." Cid shouted to them from across the ship.
"So....his mother...was your love?"
"Yes...his mother was Lucrecia. And he succeeded in his experiment. That is my sin." Vincent sighed with coldness and grief. There was no point inquiring him anymore, Iris needed to prepare mentally for a battle. She now had the power to fight...and Iris wasn't going to let herself get any weaker.
"Lets go...I'm already suited up."
"You sure you're going be ready to fight a weapon? Those things can kill. This isn't a game." A dog was talking..telling her this...How very strange it seemed.
"Yes, I am ready."
"By the way, the name is Red. Incase you don't know the other crew members, Tifa is there, Barret is there, and that is Cid. Although he should be the most obvious." He chuckled, and looked down to himself once again.
-Approaching midgar in 30 seconds. Please prepare for dock.-
The cool air was rising. The sun was no longer amongst them, only the huge rock in the sky known at Meteor. Once she had thought this to be the sun, but now she knew exactly what it was. The knowledge and power that the Master had given her flowed freely through her veins. Perhaps it is in every world of a persons eye, there is a grudge within. Cloud and Sephiroth already...Iris and Nightsaber...It was to be a truly miraculous battle when it came. Iris knew they would fight, there was nothing that could stand between their powers. They would all stand in awe of the brilliance of how excitingly she killed him. Haha.
"We've reached Midgar...docked...Landed...Alright, everyone who's ready to fight, lets go beat a weapon. Pilot, maintenance crew, I know you want to stay, and I want you to stay too. If we do get killed, pull out." Cid gave them an eye, and turned around.
"Yes, Captain!" Cloud, Tifa, Barret, Cid, Vincent, and Red all slowly walked outside. Iris followed, ready to release her grand power. Iris was not up to proving herself to others, only to herself that she alone could kill Nightsaber. Power of greed is one thing, but the power of vengeance is only so much more bitter.
The party walked through the halls once more, across the bridge, and onto the outside. There was a small ladder there, which Cid quickly through down, and they all jumped off. Iris did the same.
As she finally got off the ladder, and looked up, it was not the huge meteor she saw. Iris saw Weapon. It could tower skyscrapers with ease...This was what the planet had the power to defend with. It was enough to fear for life, however...No one had time to be afraid.
"It is our duty to defend Midgar. So let's defend it." Cid nodded to Vincent, grabbing his spear from his back, swinging it around, getting the feel, and pointing it towards Weapon.
"You're goin' down!" At that moment, the entire party ran up to Weapon.
Barret fired his gattling gun, the damage was unnoticable on the towering giant. "It's not taking much pain from this gun!" The gun gafted in his hand looked like it could blow up alot of things, so things were looking pretty grim.
Cloud grabbed his sword into action, shouting "Omnislash" right before the moment of destruction. Cloud, a spiky-haired sword user, was causing a destruction worth a warhead. He slashed it over and over, right to left, left to right, up and down. The white weapon was bleeding as Cloud jumped into the air. He seemed frozen as he stood in mid- air, sword raised high above his hair. Mere seconds after this freeze, he lead his sword down into the ultimate desecration of matter.
The weapon stepped back a few feet.
"That hurt him...but not enough." Iris was already impressed with his incredible fury, but she knew she could do just as well. The huge weapons foot was many times bigger than Clouds own body, as it kicked him into the ground. The weapon had created a new crater...with a human laying in his own blood.
"We're not getting anywhere like this...Clouds injured...Dammit...Tifa, get Cloud back. I'm going to use my Highwinds limits." Tifa ran back to Cloud, the monster had not thrown him far. But instead with force into the ground where he was.
"Tifa...you came... Again...Hows the battle going...?" He coughed more blood, looking into her beautiful eyes.
"Of course I came. We're not doing well. Cids summoning the Highwind. We'd better get out of here."
The moment she said that, the ground shuttered. The highwind had lifted off. Cid was giving it directions with his hands, and the pilots were obviously cooperating. "Fire!"
Thousands of tiny little missiles suddenly ejected from the ship, each bloodying the weapon more and more. Smoke rose upon the giant battle field. This battle was no ordinary fantasy fight.
"I've done considerable damage, just like Cloud, but it's not enough!" Runes appeared around
Cid, as he shouted another thing into the air, "Ultima!"
The land around him turned green, the air turned green. A bright, emerald green....not sickening at all... It was pretty, and yet destructive. It was summoning its peak...the green light gathered...and blew up all at once into a single area. The smoke rose once again, revealing the huge white ancient power standing just as it had been. Bleeding, yet not hurt enough to be weakened.
"Our magic, our physical attacks...nothing seems to do enough damage! Barret, Red, it seems to be hurt alot more by magic...our limits do good damage, but our physical attacks do nothing in comparison. So blast it with everything you've got!"
Runes glowed upon all three of their heads. "Lightning 3!" "Ultima!" "Flare!" All three spells intertwined, summoning massive lights and destruction. The green lights appeared once again, along with a thunderstorm raining lightning permanantly upon the Weapon...The fire burning into its body. It was so massive, yet it bled to this pure power. This time there was no smoke. Only a brilliant flash of light. It blinded Iris as well, and lasted for a long time...
"So, is he finally finished...that took too much...it must dead..." Yet when the light cleared, it proved them wrong.
"I'm tired of watching...that thing...is....going down."
"Do whatever you've got Iris... That things got me beaten..." Cid coughed, and dropped to the ground.
Vincent jumped into the middle of the battle scene, "I'll handle it, don't worry. Lock and load."
Vincent grabbed a gun out of his pocket, with his skilled hands, shooting the monster 5 times. Its huge foot kicked at him, but he swiftly evaded it. He performed this several times, his red cloak glowing magnificently. The speed of the battle was increasing.
"Take this, Weapon!" Vincent shot at it again, but this time fell to the ground coughing. A white beam hit him, and he was down. Barret and Red suffered a similar fate to Cid, both dropping down from the power it took to cast the mighty spells in unison.
Iris' eyes flared. No...Vincent was the only one now that Zex was gone. Vincent had been so magnificently kind to her, and she'd die before he was gone.
"Weapon. I challenge you. Let's go." Iris' body glowed within an aura. An aura of power...The purple lightning struck every inch of the ground around her. Iris' body was protected by powerful light, soon to cause more destructive damage than protection.
"Didn't you hear me Weapon!? I'm going to kill you!" Iris screamed in vain. "I just want to keep some of my friends alive! And you have to come and stop me!"
A voice swept through her head, indescribable in any manner. "I do not care. It is our duty to protect the planet. Not to concern ourselves with foolish human neccesities."
Iris' rage only grew. "I fear nothing now." She closed her eyes, power surging within her veins growing uncontrollable. She rose into the air, as if in a meditating position, focusing her power. Iris' black hair danced within her aura of power, no longer lost, but with a new beginning. A place to be remembered...destructions end was soon to be.
Iris' eyes awakened. "Well, I do care!" With this, she launched both her hands in front of her, gathering energy from the Aura. The purple energy formed its shape into balls, blasting huge craters into the area around her. "Heh...heh....heh..." Iris smirked at the Weapon, the causer of this foolish fight. It was then that she released this energy that lay within her hands.
"I have gathered enough energy...now suffer your fate." She laughed coldly without emotion, almost like Zex. She raised her hands into the air, the two enormous purple balls of lightning glowed like eyes, watching the weapon. Iris threw them both at Weapon.
The energy blasted through it, merely causing it to bleed a little more. It wasn't significant enough. "It seems you shall suffer yours as well now." The same voice wisped through her mind, but she merely laughed at this. The energy came back and blasted it again, back and forth, up and down, likewise to Clouds omnislash. The pure energy and power blasted it into true pain.
These blows caused more and more blood and anguish. Iris breathed hard, as the energy slowly disappeared. The weapon must be nearly dead now.
"That was everything I had..." The weapon slowly walked away from her.
"Cure 3 All!" All of a sudden, all the bodies upon the battlefield were cured. "Huh...what happened... Why is that damn piece of junk running away! Come back here!" Cid shouted out at it, as if it cared.
"It senses...murder." Vincent claimed from behind.
"It's not running. It senses murder. Something big is going on down in Midgar, and it knows it.
It's going to go protect something else...or something." Vincent was astounded, not sure what was going on.
"Yes... We need to get back to the airship." Red said from behind.
"Alright, boys, lets get going! Evacuate to airship!" They all nodded to Cid, and ran to high-ground. Cid waved his hands at the ship from far above. The pilots obviously saw this as a signal to pick them up.
The ladder was lowered, and they all climbed to above. They walked through the halls and across the bridge once again, to the main room.
"Well, now all we can do is watch from above whats gonna happen...dammit...I don't like this one bit." Cid laid back his head, puffing a few pieces of smoke.
"It's not good, but we're going to do what we can, alright?" Cloud said this more as a statement than a question, a statement with leadership.
"Yea..." The entire party agreed to this, as it would always be.