(Author's Note: WARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is not, I repeat NOT the real ending to this story! Doing 2 endings was Rueh and my idea so here is the tragic ending…READ AT YOUR OWN WILL!!!!!!!)
Disclaimer: We've been through this before…don't own, don't sue! Cassandra is mine!
Chapter 17
Next morning…
Cassandra sat on the foot of the bed waiting for Sephiroth. It was only a few minutes before he came out of the bathroom.
"What's up?" she asked seeing the look on his face.
"…maybe you should stay here," he said with a frown.
"What do you mean? I can take care of myself," she said.
"I know that but…I just have a bad feeling about going into the mountains," he said.
She stood and walked over to him putting her arms around his waist. "Everything's going to be fine," she said.
"I wish it would be as you say," he said and put his hand on the side of her face.
For a moment her vision blurred. "No! Don't!" she managed to say.
"Sorry…but you should stay here…that way you won't get hurt if anything happens," he said and picked her up. She shook her head trying to throw off the sleep spell. He laid her down on the bed.
"Don't…" she whispered as her fight against the spell was lost.
"I'm sorry," he said softly and kissed her cheek. She was already asleep. He crossed the room to the door and picked up masamune. He looked back at the sleeping form then quietly closed the door behind him. He walked down the stairs and outside of the inn. Zack and Cloud were waiting for him already.
"Mr. Sephiroth!" a man said running up to him.
"Yes?" Sephiroth asked.
"Please take care of my daughter," the man said as a young girl ran up to them.
"You're Tifa Lockheart?" Sephiroth asked.
"Yep! I'm supposed to be your guide through the mountains," Tifa said.
"Don't worry Mr. Lockheart. I will make sure your daughter is returned back here safely," Sephiroth said.
"Oh thank you!" the man said.
"Hey!" another man called.
"Yeah?" Zack asked.
"Can I get a picture of you before you leave?"
Sephiroth rolled his eyes impatiently. "Make it fast," he snapped. Zack stood next to him. Tifa stood between both of them. Cloud didn't realize what was happening till the picture was over. "Now can we please get going?" Sephiroth asked.
"Yes sir! This way!" Tifa said and lead them to a trail. They followed the path for about an hour when they reached an old wooden bridge.
"Are you sure this thing is safe?" Zack asked.
"Oh yes! I've walked across it lots of times!" Tifa said and started across. Cloud was behind her followed by Zack then Sephiroth. They were halfway across when there was a cracking sound. They all froze.
-Spilt second later-
"I thought you said this thing was safe!" Zack snapped.
"It was but there must have been too much weight on it and that caused it to break!" Tifa said grabbing Cloud's hand to keep him from falling. Zack cursed and tightened his grip on the wood plank. Sephiroth tightened his grip and managed to brace his feet on another one.
"You're too heavy! You'll have to climb up!" Tifa said as she felt herself slip a little. The ropes that held the bridge were starting to snap as Cloud moved to try and grab a hold of something to pull himself up. He had just grabbed a plank when the ropes completely snapped…
****
Sephiroth pushed himself to his knees sometime later. He put a hand to his head hoping to soothe the headache he had. 'Glad I put her to sleep so she didn't get hurt,' he thought as he remembered Cassandra who was still under the spell. There was a groan from nearby. It was Zack. Tifa and Cloud were a few feet from him.
"Is everyone all right?" Sephiroth asked as they started to stir.
"I think I'm in one piece," Zack said.
"I'm all right," Tifa said.
Cloud simply nodded.
"Is there another way to get to our destination?" Sephiroth asked looking up.
"Oh yeah! We'll have to go through some caves but I know how to get to the reactor either way!" Tifa said.
"Very well," he said and pushed himself to his feet. After a few minutes they were on their way again. They walked through a series of caves until they came to the path. They followed the path to the reactor. "Ms. Lockheart you will need to stay here," Sephiroth said as he climbed the stairs with Zack behind him.
"But I want to see what's in there!" Tifa said.
"No. SOLDIER keep her out here," Sephiroth said and entered the reactor.
"I'm going in," Tifa said. Cloud shook his head and blocked her path.
****
"Whoa…so this is what's like to be in one of these," Zack said turning in a full circle to see everything. Sephiroth didn't comment. "Hey…What's in these pods?" Zack asked trying to see into one. He yelled and jumped back when he finally saw. "What is that…that…THING!?"
Sephiroth calmly walked to another one and looked inside. "Apparently they used to be human or something and have been exposed to too much mako," he said.
"Yuck," Zack said and shivered.
"Hmm…is this…how I was created?" Sephiroth mused.
"What?" Zack asked.
"Nevermind. Let's just fix this problem and get out of here," Sephiroth said looking around. He noticed a door at the top of the staircase. There was a label above it…Jenova.
'My son…help me…'
He shook his head and looked back at the creature in the pod.
'They only want to enslave you and cause you even more pain and suffering…'
'Was I created the same way as these?'
'Help me and you may get your revenge…'
'Was I…the same way…' Sephiroth suddenly spun around.
"Hey! Where are you going?" Zack called after him. Sephiroth didn't answer as he ran from the reactor and back towards the town.
****
"I don't know what's gotten into him," Zack said as the 3 entered the town.
"Look! There's a light on inside the old mansion," Tifa said.
"Maybe you all should stay out here," Zack said and walked up to the door. He disappeared inside. He looked around the ground floor until he found a set of footprints in the dust on the floor. He followed them upstairs and into a room then to the wall where they disappeared. Zack pushed a barely concealed button. The wall lifted and revealed a staircase that spiraled down.
He followed it. He entered a basement. He walked down the hall passing a door that was locked and then entering a lab like room. There was another hall leaving this room and light at the other end. He cautiously walked to the light. In this room he found Sephiroth pacing back and forth as he muttered to himself and read from a book.
"…Sephiroth?"
Sephiroth looked up at him and stopped his pacing. "Traitors…"
"What?" Zack asked taken aback.
"Traitors…all of you! You enslave me! A creta! And my mother!" Sephiroth said.
"I don't understand you," Zack said.
"Out of my way! I'm going to see my mother," Sephiroth said and breezed past Zack.
****
'Why? Why did you put me to sleep?' Cassandra thought as the spell wore off. She sat up and looked around. The room had a red tint to it and outside she could hear people yelling and screaming. She jumped up and ran from the room to the outside. All around her houses were on fire and people were lying on the ground.
"Sephiroth!" she yelled and ran to him when she saw him. He didn't turn to face her. "What's going on?" she asked when she reached him.
"Traitors…I'll kill you all," he said.
"What? Look at me," she said putting her hand on his shoulder. She gasped and staggered back a step and looked up into his eyes to find a crazed look in them. "Why…what did I do wrong…? Is it something I did…?" she asked as she fell to her knees.
"Dirty traitor," was all he said. He jerked on his sword and freed it from where it was buried in her chest.
She shuddered and collapsed at his feet. "Did…I…do…something…wrong…?" She heard his insane laughter as he looked down at her. A few seconds later he walked away from her lifeless body still laughing…
****
