Chapter 5

"Come on Cid...!" Tifa called out as she ran into Wutai. She skidded to a stop and turned around, looking for Cid. He finally came into view; his arm wailing around in the air frantically. Tifa let out a giggle when she saw him running. Cid stopped as soon as he heard her laughter. He slowed down to a walk as he began to take deep breathes of humid air.

"Well, give me a break..I lost my cigarettes and I had to look for them..!" Cid proclaimed. Tifa shook her head a few times as she began to walk into the city.

"I doubt that...there is the buildings!" Tifa exclaimed, pointing to the sky. They both saw smoke clouds mixing into the air with their fluffy cousins. Tifa quickly sprinted towards the houses; Cid right behind her as his arms began to wail all over again. Soon, they reached the scene. Cid and Tifa looked at the smoldering buildings, the terrible smell filling their noses. Tifa turned away from the house, where she spotted a group of people around a building. Tifa grabbed Cid's sleeve and tugged him a bit.

"Ack...hey, what's going on?" Cid asked as he turned to see what Tifa was looking at. Tifa's face was turning a ghostly white.

"Something is going on..." Tifa said as she slowly stepped over to the circle, trying to look the crowd of people. Cid closely followed behind her. Suddenly, Tifa peered through the crowd. Her eyes went wide as she put her hands to her mouth.

"Oh my...!" Tifa cried out as she turned away quickly, covering her face. Cid blinked but quickly rushed forward and took her spot. He blinked a few times, gasping.

"That...that's Yuffie..." Cid muttered as he looked down at the body on the stretcher. The face and hair was matted red; it looked like she was wearing face paint. Her normally black hair had dark red stains in it. Her eyes were puffy and swollen; Cid could not tell if she had them open or not. He felt a small shove and moved aside and Tifa moved back up, looking down at the stretcher. Paramedics moved people out of the way as they pushed the stretcher towards the local doctor. Most of the group of people followed behind it. Cid and Tifa kept looking forward, however, at the area where Yuffie had been lying.

"There is so much blood...so much..." Tifa said, her voice cracking. Cid took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"I hope it's all a coincidence..." Cid muttered slowly as he stared into the pool of blood. Tifa nodded a bit as she clenched her hands together in front of her. She coughed a few times.

"I hope so too...but it's not...it can't be...no one else does things like this..." Tifa stated slowly; her voice filled with sorrow and pain. Cid nodded once, his eyes fixed on the pool of blood.


The water retreated to the sides as the ship cut into its territory. The big steamboat pushed forward, leaving a trail of clouds in it's wake. The ship moved forward, not worrying one bit about disturbing the water. No one paid much attention to the ship; the dock workers were already back to work on the next ship. The foreman, however, had stopped and was looking out at the ship, watching it drift into the horizon.

"What ship was that?" Phoenix asked from behind him. The foreman blinked and turned around, eyeing him up. The foreman crossed his hands and tapped his clipboard against his body lightly.

"This is no place for kids" the foreman spat. Phoenix's eyes narrowed a bit as he glared at the man.

"What ship was that?" Phoenix repeated. The foreman just shrugged and looked back out at the sea. He slowly glanced down at his clipboard. The foreman chuckled a bit.

"Look kid, get out of here. It's just a freight ship, it's none of your concern" The foreman stated, tapping the clipboard against himself. Suddenly, the foreman watched the dark navy blue of the ocean replaced by the light blue of the sky. He dropped the clipboard to the ground as the boy pushed him up from underneath him.

"What ship was that?" Phoenix snapped at him quickly. The foreman's eyes went wide.

"It was a steamboat heading for Bone Village..!" The foreman screamed loudly, kicking around a bit. The boy hoisted him into the air high, like he was lifting dumbbell filled with weight. He then dropped him behind him as the man slammed into the wooden dock.

"Umph..!" the man groaned as he hit the surface. Phoenix bent down and ripped the clipboard from his hand, then scanned it over. He glanced down at the foreman.

"When is the next ship to Bone Village; it is not listed here" Phoenix snapped at him. The foreman slowly pushed himself up to a push-up position, then fell back down on his face.

"Urgh...not sure..." the foreman said as his mouth rubbed against the wooden dock hard. The boy bent down and grabbed him by the throat, lifting him up by the neck.

"You are not being very useful to me!" Phoenix snapped as he clenched his fist tightly around his throat. The foreman's feet kicked at the boy uselessly.

"I'm not sure...at least not for two more days...!" The foreman said as he grasped for air as hard as he could. Phoenix suddenly spun around and slammed the foreman down hard into the dock. The force caused the wood to shatter as the foreman dropped to the unwelcoming sea below. The man plunged into the water, then quickly swam to the surface. He struggled in the sea's grasp.

"Help..!" he called out. He paniced around in the sea, searching for safety. Finally, he saw a white thread of hope. He grabbed the rope as a few of the dock workers pulled him out. The foreman quickly got to his feet and looked around, his body shaking violently.

"Where is he...?" the foreman screamed as he felt his knee gives out under him. He slumped to his knees, then fell flat to the ground; his face smacking into the dock again.


"Can we rest...?" Reeve called out impatiently. Cloud and Red turned to face him, then looked at each other.

"I dunno..." Cloud teased him as Red eased down to the ground.

"Yes; we should. We are ahead of schedule" Red pointed out as he waved his tail around. Cloud put down the computer and sat down beside.

"Gee Reeve; I'm doing all the heavy-lifting. How come you're the one who is tired?" Cloud mockingly asked him. Reeve quickly flopped to his butt. He looked at Cloud, then looked down.

"I'm not use to this..." Reeve muttered under his breathe. Red looked over at him and grinned.

"We both know that Reeve" Red assured him. Cloud shrugged a bit as he began to smile.

"Yeah; we both know you're so busy with paperwork you never get the chance to work out" Cloud said, chuckling a bit. Reeve's face turned to tomato as his eyes grew large.

"Oh come on! Without me, you guys wouldn't know which computer to grab" Reeve stated in his defense. Red yawned a bit as he closed his eyes.

"I know that Reeve. Cloud does too; he don't got Tifa or Barret around to fight with, so you win" Red said, as he opened his eyes and looked at Cloud, who was nodding. Reeve threw his arms into the air.

"Oh come on! I mean, why not Red?" Reeve questioned, looking at the two of them. Cloud looked over at Red as Red blinked a few times then closed his eyes again. Cloud shrugged and smirked at Reeve.

"Because Red is pretty smart and will defend himself. You're smart but you get blustered pretty easy, Tomato Boy" Cloud stated as he pointed at Reeve's face. Reeve crossed his arms as he looked to the side.

"I do not get that red!" Reeve defensively said. Red slowly opened his eyes again and chuckled a bit.

"My-my Reeve; dare I say you look more red than I do" Red said as a smile crossed his face. Cloud blinked a few times, then began to laugh loudly.

"Burn! Reeve, you just got burnt by Red!" Cloud screamed as he fell to his side, laughing. Reeve looked over at Red with wide eyes.

"Hey! Red, that's not fair!" Reeve screamed as Red slowly chuckled.

"Oh, I'm only joking with you Reeve. Don't worry; soon Tifa and Cid will be back and we can go back to making fun of them instead of you" Red stated, looking upwards at the sky. Reeve followed his glance upwards, looking at the oncoming night sky.

"You think they already are heading back already?" Reeve asked as his face slowly returned to its normal state. Red nodded a few times then slowly laid his head back down on the ground.

"I'm fairly sure; how long can it take to talk Yuffie into going on an adventure?" Red asked rhetorically. Reeve nodded once as he looked over at Cloud, who was still laughing. Cloud slowly stopped laughing and looked over at Reeve.

"Oh man, Red called you red" Cloud said, a huge smile on his face. Red and Reeve looked at each other, then both rolled their eyes. Cloud blinked a few times.

"What...what I do?" Cloud asked, looking at them both.


"Damnit!" Cid screamed as he patted his whole body over. Tifa stopped and looked back at him.

"What's going on Cid?" Tifa asked quickly, looking around. Cid reached into his pockets and yanked them out. They hung in the air like elephant ears as they whipped around in the breeze. He looked all around the ground, stepping as if he was afraid of a mouse.

"Damnit!" Cid screamed again, looking all around. Tifa blinked a few times; with each blink her eyes grew larger.

"What's wrong Cid? Did you lose something...?" Tifa asked quickly, looking down at the ground. Cid stomped around as small dust clouds gathered over the soil.

"God damn! I lost my only pack of cigarettes!" Cid screamed, throwing his arms into the air. Tifa's eyes narrowed quite a bit as she focused on him, stomping towards him.

"Cid, we need to take Yuffie to Junon General and all you are worried about are your cancer sticks!" Tifa screamed in his face. Cid blinked a few times, then took a step back.

"Look Tifa, it's not like Yuffie can be moved; we need to wait until she is stabilized anyways" Cid pointed out. Tifa flung her arms into the air as she turned away from him.

"I know! I know! I just feel like we're wasting time!" Tifa screamed as she slammed her fists into her sides. Cid sighed a bit.

"Look Tifa, we need to be alone I think...you head back to the Highwind; I'll be there as soon as I find those damn cigarettes" Cid stated as he turned around and looked at the ground. Tifa took a deep breath.

"Well....promise you won't take long" Tifa said to him with sadness. Cid chuckled a bit.

"Tifa; even Yuffie is worth more than my cigarettes" Cid stated as he strolled along, looking through the grass. Tifa nodded a bit, then turned and ran back towards the Highwind quickly. She slowed down as she reached the rope ladder.

"Why am I so jumpy...calm down Tifa" she told herself as she began to climb the rope ladder upwards. She stopped as she reached mid-way up and looked to the setting sun.

"He won't be able to look in the dark; he'll head back then regardless...Cid's a big boy, he'll be fine. I'm the one who is worrying so much...why am I talking out loud..." Tifa asked as she closed her eyes. She let out a deep sigh as she gripped the ropes tightly.

"It's going to work out...don't worry Tifa...it's gonna work out..." she repeated, over and over, as she climbed up the ladder.


The darkness was setting around Phoenix, stealing the sunlight away for the moment. The humidity still stuck to the air, causing it to a form an unseen cloud. There was little light out now; the darkness was choking it away. Phoenix marched over to the base of a mountain, dropped his huge back-pack, then leaned against the rocks, his body moving down them until he was sitting there, looking out into the darkness. He clenched his fists as he looked out.

"Damn her..." he muttered, looking out. That girl, Yuffie, had delayed him quite a bit more than he expected. Now he would have to wait until the next ship to Bone Village came in to leave this worthless continent. He realized there was nothing else he could do for now. He sighed as he put his hands on his knees, then placed his chin on his hands, looking outward. The tall grass was whipping in the wind, waving at him. He stared into the darkness, realizing how much of a waste of time this was.

"Damn her" he repeated.


"There...! Finally found em!" Cid exclaimed as he bent through the tall grass, grabbing the pack of lost cigarettes. He snatched them up and looked around. He felt the cold breeze hit him, sending his hair into a dance. He gently smacked the underneath of the pack and pulled a cigarette out. He held his hands in a cup as he lit the stick. He put it in his mouth and took a long drag of it, then blew some smoke into the air.

"Ah...that's the stuff" Cid said as he turned and began to walk back towards the Highwind.


Words slammed into Phoenix's eardrums. His eyes opened widely and glared around. Suddenly, something blazed into Phoenix's view. He lunged to his feet, looking outward. He saw a red flame moving in the distance; it was moving across the field. The waving grass teamed with the darkness to hide anything else from his view. Phoenix sneered as he put his hands at his sides in a cup-shape.

"He must be searching for me...well, he finally did find me...Kamehame..." Phoenix began as a ball of silver energy began to form at his side.


Cid stopped as the silver light hit his eyes. He twisted his neck quickly, looking at the silver light. The cigarette flew from his mouth, causing it to blaze through the air.

Phoenix's eyes followed the falling flame, then thrust his hands forward.

"Ha!" He screamed, sending the silver wave of energy right towards the cigarette, flying right through it. The energy wave nearly hit Cid, missing only by a few inches.The energy wave kept going, finally colliding into a mountain side a mile away, sending off a huge silver explosion. Both of them looked at the explosion, then quickly faced each other as the light died down. Cid quickly pulled out the Venus Gospel and ran forward, swinging down hard where he had saw the figure, but he almost fell over when he hit nothing but the ground. Cid quickly turned around.

"You little ass! I finally found you" Cid declared as heard the sound of something metal smacking a rock. Cid looked outward, breathing heavily. Suddenly, a soft silver light lit the area.

"Let the battle be joined" Phoenix replied, the silver ball of energy glowing in his hand, illuminating his face.


Tifa leaned down on her hands a little harder as she glared out the window. She sighed a bit as she looked back at the doctors' securing Yuffie, then looked back out.

"I knew he'd be late. I just knew it" Tifa said, pushing away from the ledge. She threw her arms into the air as she walked up to the deck of the Highwind.

"I told him to forget them, but no, he had to go!" Tifa screamed as she halted. In the distance, she saw a fire burning. She blinked a few times.

"That's in the middle of no where...I mean, the only way there would be fire there is if someone was camping there. Or if that kid...oh no!" Tifa screamed, running over to the rope-ladder as fast as she could.


"Quit hiding in the dark!" Cid screamed, holding the Venus Gospel tightly in his hands. To his left, Phoenix landed on the ground and swung his staff as hard as he could, hitting nothing but air. Cid heard the swing and quickly turned to face him. The boy's face became illuminated in silver light again as he held his hand up.

"I'm right here. Where are you?" Phoenix spat out, glaring to his left. He barely made out Cid's body in the light. Cid lunged forward, swinging at Phoenix as hard as he could. Mid-way down, Phoenix slammed his staff into Cid's ribs as hard as he could. Cid gasped as he fell to his knees. Phoenix spun around and slammed the staff into his back, causing Cid to fall forward in agony. Phoenix swung again, but Cid ducked down and then rolled forward. He quickly got to his feet and looked back. Cid gasped for breathe.

"You think you little light-show can scare me?" Cid gasped. Suddenly, a ball of energy flew past Cid's face, forcing him back a step. Cid spun to the left and looked at the direction the blast came from. Cid held the Venus Gospel up in a guard position.

"Why are you searching for me?" Phoenix spat out as a soft silver glow illuminated his face. Cid took a step back One of his hands peeled off the staff and held his chest as he looked at the boy. He tried to calm his breathing down, but he stilled exhaled loudly.

"You punk! You shot that blast at me!" Cid spat out at him. Phoenix let the silver light die out as the darkness covered them both again. Cid quickly rolled to the side and looked upward. He gasped for his breathe even more.

"You were searching for me" Phoenix responded as he rushed forward, swinging his staff at where Cid had been. Cid quickly leap back to his feet and swung with all his might, but Phoenix put his staff up to block. Cid pushed hard against his staff, but Phoenix pressed harder, knocking Cid onto his back. Cid rolled to the side again and held up the Venus Gospel in a block position.

"I was looking for my cigarettes! Why couldn't we find you before, when we were looking for you?" Cid screamed at him, then instantly clamped his mouth shut. Cid looked around, but he saw nothing. He slowly got to his feet and looked around.

"Come on out kid! No sense hiding...I'll find you!" Cid screamed, gasping for his breath still. The wind blew into him, sending a chill down his spine. Cid grasped the staff even more, looking around in a semi-circle. Ahead of him, he saw light flash. Cid hit the dirt at once, then looked up. The light was beginning to get closer and closer. Cid lunged to his feet, swinging his staff downward. The light fell from the person's hand as Cid went to strike again. He heard a female scream as the person hit the ground. Cid stopped in mid-motion and looked down.

"Who's there?" he screamed as he jabbed the staff into the person's belly. He heard a slight groan, then felt the staff pushed aside.

"It's me Cid!" Tifa screamed as she stood up, dusting herself off. Cid blinked as she bent down and grabbed the light. Tifa shined it right in his eyes, causing him to blink a bit.

"Stop it Tifa; turn that thing off!" Cid said as he pushed it aside with one hand while the other hand covered his eyes. Tifa blinked a few times as a cold chill ran down her spine.

"You ran into that kid...didn't you?" Tifa stated, feeling short on breathe. Cid nodded a bit, looking around.

"I've lost him out here...he's here somewhere...I thought you were him..." Cid stated, then slowed to a stop. Both of them looked around as the cold wind smashed into their sides. Tifa crossed her arms.

"How did he find you out here...forget it. We can talk later. Let's get back to the Highwind and get out of here" Tifa stated as she grabbed Cid's arm and gently tugged him towards the Highwind. Cid panted as he walked along.

"Slow down...he is really quick; we don't know where he went..." Cid said as he took deep breathes, holding his ribs with one hand. Tifa gulped as she looked around.

"I hate this...he's like a shadow...he's always around us. Then he shows up and just...urgh!" Tifa screamed as she slammed her arms into her sides. Cid strained to take a deep breathe.

"I think we all hate this...let's just get going...we're leaving tonight; we can worry about resting once we finish all this bullshit" Cid stated as they trudged back towards the ship with caution.


The silver energy flickered around his fingers, dancing in the dark night. The energy glowed off, giving his face a silver shadow on it. Phoenix thought over what that man had said.

""We had been looking for you'...who is the we" Phoenix thought as he stood up on the hill. However, as the attack had almost reached its peak, the energy began to disappear into the night sky. Phoenix glanced down at them, once again his own face covered in darkness.

"That voice sounds familiar. Regardless of that, they're leaving. Leaving on something..." Phoenix said, then quickly jumped off the small hill he had climbed and sprinted back to where he left his backpack. He skidded to a stop, then grabbed his backpack and swung it onto his back. He bent down and picked up the sword and looked where he had been. He sneered a bit as he began to run back, his body ripping through the tall grass. He skidded to a halt.

"That voice is from that girl at Junon. The one who was with the man with the sword" Phoenix said, as he eyes lit up. The sneer was slowly replaced with a smirk as he began to sprint again.


"Do you wonder who he is?" Cid said as he took Tifa's hand and helped her onto the deck of the Highwind. Tifa got up and looked back down. She took a deep breathe.

"You know Cid, the moment I saw him, I swore it was Sephiroth..." Tifa responded. Cid blinked then looked down as well.

"I don't know about that, but to be fair...it sounded alot like..." Cid began, then stopped. He did not want to open up old wounds. Tifa just nodded and turned towards the door.

"It's alright Cid...it was a lot like that. I mean...a lot...well, let's go Cid. I wanna get back to the others as soon as possible" Tifa stated as she disappeared into the ship. Cid turned and went to walk, but heard something below. He quickly back down.

"Hello, anyone there? Guess not...I'm getting paranoid" Cid stated as he walked into ship. Down below on the ground, Phoenix grabbed onto the rope-ladder and looked up.


Cloud dragged the stick along the ground through the dirt while his other hand kept his face from falling over. He kept going around in circle for a few moments, then finally looked over at Red.

"So what do you think is keeping them?" Cloud asked as he looked back down at the dirt. Red glanced over at him, then back forward towards Reeve.

"Cloud, we did find the computer very quick. Perhaps they decided to stay the night in Wutai or went to visit Barret before they came here" Red mentioned. Reeve turned around from his spot and looked at Cloud.

"You're not worried are you?" Reeve asked, his eyes focusing on the stick. Cloud looked up at Reeve and glared a touch.

"Of course I'm not! Why would I be worried? What is there to be worried about?" Cloud asked as he looked back down and began to drag the stick around again. Red closed his eyes and wagged his tail around while Reeve looked at the computer. Behind them both, the stick snapped. Cloud jumped to his feet and stomped on it a few times, dust flying into the air. Red and Reeve both turned around and looked at him. Cloud looked at them and sighed a bit as he sat back down.

"I'm not nervous...! I'm just bored, ok?" Cloud stated as he looked down into the palm of his hands. Red rolled his eyes a bit and smirked.

"I think you just miss Tifa. I would not worry Cloud; they'll be here enough" Red said. Cloud leaned back and laid his back across the ground.

"Not soon enough" Cloud murmured as he looked up into the cloudy sky.


"Hey Barret...wakey-wakey" Tifa said as she stood at the foot of his bed, leaning down a bit. Barret slowly opened his eyes and looked up at her.

"Hey Tifa. Did I sleep for a week or something? You guys already finished?" Barret asked as he leaned up a bit. Tifa sadly nodded her head.

"No. Actually, we had to bring someone else here" Tifa started as Barret's face covered in confusion.


"This job can be so dull" the guard at the airfield said to himself as he walked around the Junon Airfield. His footsteps were the only sound that could be heard on the ground as he marched around. He stopped when he reached the Highwind.

"I've always admired it. Shame I never got to go in it" the guard thought to himself. Then, he saw someone beginning to come down the ladder. He blinked a few times, then pulled a small tablet out of his pocket. He flipped it open and read the inside. He kept all the names of people who were from a ship and who was authorized to be on it. He looked back up as the person was about half way down.

"Hey...hey you! What's your name?" The guard called out. The person kept coming down the ladder. When the person was closer, the guard called out again.

"Hey, who are you?" The guard called out. The person turned around and looked at him. Suddenly, the person threw his backpack down towards the guard, then a long package. The guard blinked and reached for his gun.

"Hold it you!" the guard called out as Phoenix jumped off the ladder and landed on the guard's shoulders in a sitting position. Before the guard could react or even fall over, Phoenix's legs tightened around his neck as Phoenix flipped backwards, sending the man flipping into the air. Phoenix picked up the sword and the backpack, then looked over his shoulder at the guard.

"I am someone you do not wish to know" Phoenix remarked as he began to jog across the airfield.


"And yeah...that's what happened" Tifa finished, looking down at the ground. Barret stared at her for a few moments, his mouth moving but no words coming out. Finally Barret stopped moving his mouth and took a deep breathe.

"So, you're telling me he beat you guys over to see Yuffie, beat the snot out of Yuffie, fought with Cid in the nighttime...and he's still out there?" Barret asked. Tifa nodded slowly.

"Yeah. The doctors think Yuffie will recover with time...she was in bad shape" Tifa mentioned, looking out the window. Barret nodded.

"The brat was always tough if a pain in the ass. Have you had the chance to talk to her yet?" Barret asked. Tifa sighed as she watched people walking outside.

"Not about anything except how she felt and so forth. She wasn't stable or anything until we got her here" Tifa noted. Barret rubbed his chin.

"What about her father, what's his name? Did you guys talk to him?" Barret asked. Tifa blinked her brown eyes a few times as the images blurred outside.

"You know, we didn't. Well, we did, but we only told him we were bringing Yuffie here. We didn't ask him about the kid" Tifa noted, looking back at Barret. Barret nodded a bit, then looked at the doorway as Cid walked into the room.

"Hey Cid...how's the brat?" Barret asked. Cid sighed a bit as he crossed his arms.

"She's got some badly bruised ribs. She may need some plastic surgery to fix her face. There not sure about that. She had a pretty severe concession, but it's not as bad as they originally thought. She's going to be ok in time" Cid spoke softly. Suddenly Tifa jumped up and pointed out the window.

"There he is! There he is!" Tifa shrieked. Cid quickly ran over to the window and looked out as Tifa pointed. Cid blinked and looked out the window as Tifa ran towards the door. Cid quickly turned as Tifa stepped out.

"Tifa, stop! I don't see anything!" Cid called out. Tifa looked back at him, then at Barret.

"He's probably running or something!" Tifa said, looking at Cid again. Cid raised his eyebrows a bit as Barret looked into Tifa's eyes.

"Tifa, I think you need to calm down" Barret said. Tifa's arms drooped to her sides.

"But guys, I swear I saw him..." Tifa started, then looked down. Cid looked over at Barret. Barret sighed and nodded.

"Hey Tifa, I think we better see if the others found anything" Cid said walking towards her. Tifa kept looking down. Cid patted her shoulder, shrugged towards Barret, then walked out of the room. Barret slowly laid back down on the bed.

"Tifa, it's just some stress...get going, hurry up now. You know Cloud is missing you" Barret stated. Tifa instantly looked up and looked at Barret.

"He's not missing me!" she stated as her cheeks begin to fill with color. Barret smirked and waved his hand.

"Get going you; go ahead" Barret said. Tifa waved and backed out the word, giggling a bit.

"We'll be back as soon as we can" Tifa said as she turned and followed Cid. Barret closed his eyes and sighed.

"She always falls for that one" Barret said.


"Oh..." the dock worker said as he watched his donut drop from his hand.

Phoenix threw his backpack into the air, then quickly leaned down and slide the sword along the ground. He ran forward and began to backflip on the hard wooden dock. Phoenix grabbed the sword off the dock as he leapt into the air, where he grabbed the backpack with his free hand. As he landed on the back of ship, he already had the backpack on his back and was walking forward.

"Crap" the dock worker finished as he watched the donut hit the ground and roll around.


"That sounds like the Highwind" Cloud stated as he stood up, looking behind him. Red and Reeve both stood up and looked at it.

"Funny; it's coming from Junon" Reeve stated calmly. Red looked up at Reeve, then back at the Highwind.

"They may have visited Barret. Or possible the weather could have forced them to take a different route" Red added as he sat back on his hind legs. All three of their heads turned as the Highwind blew past them and slowed a bit away, floating in the air. Cloud walked over and picked up the computer.

"Let's mosey" Cloud mentioned as he began to walk towards the ship. Red followed closely beside him.

"See, you were worrying over nothing" Red mentioned as he looked up at Cloud for a moment then forward. Reeve jogged up behind them.

"I wonder if everything went alright" Reeve asked as he walked beside them. Cloud chuckled a bit.

"You can always tell by how Tifa looks. If she looks happy, that means it went well. If she looks like nothing is wrong, than it is. If she looks upset...well, you get the idea" Cloud mentioned. Reeve laughed a bit.

"I bet you get that upset look a lot" Reeve said. Cloud glared over at Reeve, who quickly stopped laughing and turned forward. As they got closer, they saw one person standing on the ground while another person was climbing down the ladder.

"I only see two of them. Yuffie must have decided not to come" Red stated as they walked closer. Cloud sighed softly.

"I was hoping she would come. She can be a brat, but I do miss her" Cloud said. Red chuckled lightly.

"Don't waste those wonderful compliments when she's not around" Red stated. Cloud glared down at Red, then over at Reeve quickly.

"Why is everyone picking on me today?" Cloud asked, looking at them both from side to side. As he did, he stumbled, nearly dropping the computer. He steadied himself, then looked at Red.

"It's too easy sometimes" Red said as he smiled and shook his head. Cloud just smiled as they continued forward. Soon, Tifa and Cid were in there range. The smile on Cloud's face disappeared the moment he saw Tifa. Cloud stopped and put the computer down, then looked her in the eyes.

"Something is wrong. Really wrong" Cloud said.


"So what do you think Kevin? Is this what you expected?" The older man said to the teenager standing next to him. The teen looked up at the man and grinned.

"Well, it's not a stuffy desk job Dad, that's for sure" Kevin said, looking up his father. The father messed his son's hair all up as they stood on the back of the ship and watched as waves blew past.

"No, it certainly is not boy" the father responded. From the distance, sitting on top of some boxes, Phoenix watched them. He then pushed himself around to face forward, looking at the sea ahead. He took a deep breathe, then looked down to his left. There, covered, was the sword. He untied the string holding the covering on it, then looked at it. He gently lifted it and twisted his wrist around while the last beams of sun for the day caught the blade. Phoenix gently placed the blade down then recovered it. He then looked forward again.

"Soon...very soon" he murmured as he placed his elbows on his knees and rested his face on his hands.


"Miss Kisaragi...you have visitors" the nurse said, looking down at the bed-ridden Yuffie. Yuffie looked up at her and cringed.

"It's not my father, is it?" Yuffie replied. The nurse shook her head.

"No...it's your friends" The nurse stated. Yuffie sighed and leaned up.

"Send them in" Yuffie said as she propped herself up and waited. The door opened slowly Cloud and Tifa entered the room. Yuffie blinked at them.

"Boy do you two look down in the dumps...I mean, more than normal" Yuffie stated. Tifa walked over to the side of the bed and sat down, looking at the ground.

"How you feeling Yuffie?" Tifa asked calmly. Yuffie took a tentative sigh and looked at her.

"I'm doing alright. I'll be doing great once I get my hands on that punk though. I'll teach him for wrecking my Wutai!" Yuffie screamed, then winced as she grabbed her side. Cloud stood at the head of the bed and crossed his arms.

"Yuffie, what happened? I mean, at Wutai" Cloud asked. Yuffie leaned into her pillow and made a face.

"Well, I went to go bother my dad about something, I forget what. So I got there, and the guards were knocked out. So I ran to see my father, and that kid was beating him up. He wanted some materia..he kept calling it "Green Materia". I mean, just plain Green Materia. So anyways, I tricked him into going into my basement like I tricked you guys that one time. He fell for it too...but then he blew up the cage! Like, stuck his hand out and just blew it away! Well, then we started to fight. He got some lucky hits in on me, then he start blowing up buildings until I told him where I hide my materia. Then, he let me go...what he did after that, I have no idea" Yuffie explained to them. Cloud sighed as he closed his eyes.

"It's the same as always. It doesn't add up" Cloud remarked. Tifa blinked and looked at Yuffie.

"What was that about materia?" Tifa asked quickly. Yuffie sadly shook her head.

"He kept asking about Green Materia. I dunno if he meant a specific one or just the materia in general" Yuffie replied. Cloud opened his eyes and turned to the wall, slamming his hands into it.

"This isn't making sense! What is he doing?" Cloud screamed as he slammed his head into the wall. Tifa jumped up and ran over to Cloud, grabbing him by the shoulders.

"Calm down Cloud! Don't worry, Reeve is gonna figure out what's going on! And then, we'll know what we need to do" Tifa said between gasps for breathe. Cloud gently pushed her aside and walked out into the hallway. Tifa looked over at Yuffie, who bowed her head. Tifa sprinted out after him, nearly slipping on the floor. Tifa ran up behind him and grabbed his shoulder then turned him to face her.

"What's the problem?" Tifa said harshly as she pushed him into the wall. Cloud grabbed her hands and pushed off the wall.

"Everyone is getting hurt! Barret, Yuffie...it's like Sephiroth! At least we knew what he was doing! And I can't help anyone if I don't..." Cloud began, but Tifa pushed him back.

"She's dead Cloud and it's not your fault!" Tifa screamed at him. They stared at each other directly in the eye in combat.

"Hey guys...we need to talk" Reeve piped in suddenly.


"Land" Phoenix murmured as he watched the approaching shores. He stood there; the cool morning wind pushing his jacket into the air behind him. The waves were crashing all around the ship, which caused the ship to tilt up and down a bit. The morning sun shined brightly on the sea, giving it an orange tone. Phoenix stared forward; his eyes never wavered off the shores until the ship reached near the shore. He looked down at the passing docks. He took a deep breath then jumped off the mast, landing on the dock with a hard thud. He looked around then walked down the dock.

"It's almost time..." He murmured to himself as he held the sword tightly in his hand.


Everyone had gathered in Yuffie's room; Yuffie was still laying in her hospital bed. Cid stood in the corner of the room, while Red sat next to him. Cloud stood in corner, while Tifa stood next to him. Barret sat near the doorway in a wheelchair. Reeve stood against the other wall, looking extremely nervous.

"Ok guys, I opened up the computer files. Man...oh man, there is a lot of information there" Reeve began as his teeth chattered a bit. Cid chewed his gum loudly.

"Well Reeve, out with it" Cid said between chews. Reeve whipped his brow as he began.

"Alright, here we go. Project Re-birth is actually a sub-project of Project Parturition. Project Parturition was started around twenty years ago by Professor Hojo. It seems Sephiroth and Jenova cells weren't all the genetics Hojo liked to mess with. Phoenix was apparently started by Hojo to see if not only could he inject someone with Jenova cells, but to 'enhance' them to improve the person's abilities. Except for his first few tests, though, I can't access anything on those files..." Reeve stammered, looking around. Everyone's eyes got big.

"It makes sense...Hojo loved to mess with genetics" Red mentioned from his position. Cloud nodded then looked at Reeve.

"Are you going to be able to access those files Reeve?" Cloud asked. Reeve nodded very quickly.

"I will be able to with some time. I'll need to hack to get into them, but I will be able to" Reeve mentioned. Tifa tapped her fingers off the wall.

"Go on Reeve" Tifa stated. Reeve nodded as he picked up a few notes cards.

"Alright...so Project Re-birth was started around four or five years ago. I'm not sure at this time why it's a sub-project of Parturition, but it could do with that boy's name being Phoenix. Phoenix means "re-birth" and parturition means birth" Reeve mentioned. Tifa tapped her fingers rapidly now.

"I was about to ask that Reeve...so that boy could be genetically engineered" Tifa stated. Reeve let out a deep breathe.

"I'm thinking the same thing, but no proof as of now....anyways, Project Re-birth was one of Hojo's personal projects. He apparently had been reading about the Lifestream and began to wonder if he could pull out part of the Lifestream...and give someone their life back. The project seemed to be insane; Hojo had three people killed for objecting to work on the project. Anyways, I checked out some old newspapers to see why Hojo may be interesting in death..." Reeve began, but Cloud's eyes lit up.

"That's when Sephiroth was suppose to be dead...!" Cloud screamed, turning towards Reeve. Reeve solemnly nodded.

"Yeah...that's my thinking too" Reeve responded. Cloud gasped as everyone looked at Reeve.

"So what happened Reeve?" Cloud asked. Reeve took a deep breathe.

"Hojo worked on the project like crazy; he tried just about anything possible. He explored areas of high Lifestream, he examined almost every type of Materia, he consulted any books he could get his hands on. Most of the files I got are from one of his assistants. And they're journal entries, not lab ones. The files for Project Re-birth are locked even tighter than Project Parturition. I did get some information though" Reeve stated as he began to stutter over words. Cid looked around at everyone, then spit out his gum into the trash can near his feet.

"Spit it out Reeve!" Cid screamed over at him. Reeve leaned against the wall as his teeth chattered loudly.

"Anyways, Hojo eventually focused on Materia. He felt he had the best chance using it. Anyways, I'm not sure if he ever tested it or even if it worked, but he apparently tried a few times" Reeve stated. Cid glared over at Reeve.

"That's not helpful Reeve" Cid mentioned. Red glared up at Cid and stomped on his foot. Cid's eyes went wide as he bite his tongue.

"Go ahead Reeve" Red said calmly from his position. Reeve took a huge breathe.

"Well, Hojo gave up on the Project when he began to realize that Sephiroth was not dead. Hojo decided not to chance anything, though. He took four materia pieces he felt would be useful to the process and spread them apart so no one could get them. There was a Blue Materia, a Red Materia, a Purple Materia, and a Green Materia. Apparently, he ordered a materia dealer in Kalm to hold the Blue one, someone in Junon to hold the Red one, someone in Costa-Del-Sol to hold the Purple one, then someone in Wutai to hold the Green one. They were told if they were sold, they would be killed within twenty-four hours. There was also mention of something to put the pieces in, the Nifix Device, I believe. The materia were 'built' from pieces of materia; each piece is like a super small materia. The Nifix Device, it would seem, was meant to focus them all at once to bring someone back to life" Reeve stated. Tifa was now slamming her open palms into the wall.

"Well, we saw him in Kalm and Junon. We also know he got the Green Materia, or at least looked...so we know who is trying to complete Project Re-birth" Tifa replied. Cloud grabbed Tifa's shoulder. Tifa took a deep breathe as she stopped slamming her hand into the wall. Cloud looked at Reeve.

"Reeve, where is this Nifix Device?" Cloud asked. Reeve shook his head.

"The files didn't say. My best guest would be in a lab in Midgar" Reeve stated. Red sighed deeply.

"He possible already has it then. Some of the labs did look like someone had just been there. Although most of them seemed like treasure hunters, it's possible Phoenix got it" Red stated. Barret looked over them all.

"So that screw-job Hojo wanted to bring Sephiroth back from the dead. And now, some punk kid who looks like Sephiroth is running around collecting the pieces to try it? And we're just sitting her?" Barret stated, looking around the room. Suddenly, everyone began to talk at once as the air was filled with clutter. Cloud looked around, then held his arm into the air.

"Shut up! Everyone shut up! Alright, Reeve, where could this kid could be headed?" Cloud asked. Reeve blinked, then looked down.

"Well...we're not sure if he was in Costa-Del-Sol yet. We need to check there. Now, as far as where Hojo suggested to try the machine...well, he suggested the City Of The Ancients. He felt that was the best place to connect to the Lifestream" Reeve stated. Cloud quickly looked around the room.

"Ok, here is what we're going to do. Reeve, you get back onto that computer and try to hack into files. Barret, you're almost healed. You stay here and help out Reeve anyway you can. Plus, if that brat shows up here, you'll be here. Cid and Red, I want you two to go to Costa-Del-Sol and see if you can find out if our man was there or not yet. And Tifa, me and you are going to the City Of The Ancients and waiting for that punk to show up. Are we clear on all that?" Cloud stated. Everyone looked at him and blinked.


"It looks like it is glowing" Phoenix remarked as he looked down upon the City Of The Ancients. The sunlight illuminated it; giving it a life of its own. The boy gently pulled the sword off his back and held it up to the light, once again letting the light reflect onto his face. He smiled as he studied his own reflection.

"Almost time...soon....soon we will be together at last..." Phoenix stated as his grip on the sword tightened. He slowly pulled the sword away from his face and began down the path to his destiny.