Spoiled Yet Selfless
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy characters are owned by Squaresoft and not by me yadda, yadda, yadda. I you are reading this, then I pity you.
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#On That Day, Five Years Ago - Final Fantasy 7#
The lonesome general continued his path toward Nibel, the quiet town already in his sights as he left the mountains. The night was dark, and chilly; sew winds washed over him, freezing him to the bone. Yet, he welcomed it. Never before in his days of insanity did he feel such cold. It reminded him that he was sane.
Another thing I don't deserve.
Masochistically, he was keeping a list of everything in his mind he shouldn't have. It was harsh, but oddly comforting.
What a paradox. By having the things I don't deserve, it makes me depressed, yet by reminding myself I shouldn't have them, I feel better. Makes me wonder if the Planet's on my side or not.
He shook his head, scolding himself. The Planet had blessed him with this new chance of redemption. It wasn't in his place to question it.
Sephiroth entered the quiet town. Everyone was in for the night, thankfully. He passed silently through the town.
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#Anxious Heart - FF7#
The young maiden watched as her knight walked away, sighing with passion. Every time she saw him now, his eyes simply swept her away. The deep crystalline blue with the soft but true green glow was mystical in every way. As the battle had ended, she had watched her former team mates battle her new companions. She knew she needed to have Ranez and Lodia test out their powers, so that A: They could get a feel and understanding of AVALANCHE' 's strengths and weaknesses, and B: so she could see just how much stronger they had become since her demise. Still, it pained her to see them fight.
A heartbroken feeling crept through her chest as she watched Cloud follow his teammates. At times, she even wished that she was still by his side, just like the old days had been before…
She sighed, the feeling still there. It had taken time for Aeris to push the coldness inside of her away as much as she could, but now this feeling…
As the quadruple began to disappears down the mountain side, she closed her eyes, pushing tears away. No, she was stronger than this, but he broke her inside. So close, yet he was so far away….
And if I love him so much… Why… Why am I doing this…?
She blinked, clearing her mind. This was not for revenge. Well, it sort of was, but that was just the added bonus. She need to show him, as well as the rest of the world, just how deceived they were, how the Planet was playing them.
And then, her mind, filled with emotion, explained to her, you and Cloud, forever until the death of eternity, living in supreme happiness. No more troubles, no more distance, no more tears of pain…
She sighed again, this time dreamily. She gazed up at the moon, the stars twinkling in the heavens…
And the heartbroken pain intensified, so much she partially doubled over, her breaths becoming ragged and harsh, and she fell to her knees. It ran through her like a thousand jolts of Bolt 2. Then, as soon as it started, it began to slow down to a thud.
Wha - what was.. .that!?
It was nothing she had ever experience before. As the pain began to reside, the cold feeling swept through her.
God damn the Planet! All of this…. I'm so tired of the anguish! Why can't it leave me alone…?
Behind her, footsteps echoed through the mountains. Trying to catch her breath, she forced herself to stand, just as her three partners came up from the stairs.
"Just as you expected, he is very powerful," Ranez explained, knowing Aeris would want to know as much about him as possible. "He cut techniques are unique, nothing I've ever seen. The other, Barret, was very skilled with his gun."
"Not as much as that Vincent guy," Lodia muttered, rubbing her arm where she had taken a slight shot from the ex-TURK. "That guy's got aim. Kept distracting me from that stupid god damn Tifa bi-"
"LODIA!" Ranez scolded. "Not in front of the mistress! Remember of her friends."
"Sorrrry!" the lady in red whined. "But she can actually fight me! And you know how I hate to lose…"
"Wish I could've been there to see the cat fight," Avian smirked, who then doubled over after receiving a punch in the stomach by his female warrior. "OW!!! Wh.. What? She was... *cough* hot…."
"Whatever!" Lodia growled, then sighed passionately. "I give points to Vincent, he was kind of cute."
Under the shadows that hid his face, Ranez twitches, giving the slightest sign of jealousy. All the while, Aeris sweat dropped, then grinned.
"Right," she smiled. "Anyways, what did you find out, Avian?"
"Just as you thought," he informed. "He was there. Had to fight him, and he's good enough to knock me back a bit. Didn't have time to search the place."
"Right," Aeris grinned darkly. " Boys, and lady, we have a trip to make."
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#Corel theme -FF7 #
Corel was amazing. The once run down village was now well built and beautiful. There were small streams running through the green mountain sides, flowers thriving in the sweet-smelling dirt, and homes that were almost as grand as Aeris's had once been. There was a market area, full of people, and the debris was gone.
When Cloud, Barret, Vincent, and Tifa had arrived the night before, Cid and the others were already asleep at the inn. When morning had come, they all talked about the night before. Only, Cloud left out the seeing Aeris thing out. At times he wondered if they all thought he was crazy…
"We gotta hurry," Tifa began as they started their meeting. "I doubt those people even sleep."
"Indeed," added Red. "We don't even know why these people are searching for the materia."
"Let alone which one or ones they're trying to find," added Cloud.
"Dammit! We need some god damn answers!" Cid shouted.
"The old man's got a point," Yuffie smirked. "We can't do much except try to hold them off for now."
"#$^^!!!"
"!!!" Yuffie took of running, Cid dangerously behind her with his Venus Gospel.
"Er, anyways," Cait began, sweat dropping. "All we know is that there are three of them, maybe more, they're hella strong, and they might be hunting some sort of special materia. What now?"
"Stick to da ole plan o' course!" Barret ordered.
"Barret's right," Cloud agreed. "We need to figure out what they're doing, but until then, we gotta follow them and hold them of as long as we can. We need to head to Gongaga ASAP. Let's move out!"
He turned to head out..
"Damn! Again!? Stop saying it like such a wimp! Can't you say, 'Let's Mosey' or something!?"
"What the..!?"
"Heh heh…"
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#Queen of the Abyss - FF9#
The four approached the gates to Gongaga. It had been rebuilt finally, and looked much better than before. Aeris was glad that it had been cleaned up. Zack would have liked it…
"We need to hurry…" Ranez started. "We can't let them see you just yet."
"They might have a lead on," Avian added. "Heh, surprising enough. Still, they might know where we're goin'."
"They already do," Aeris stated, stepping forward from the group, reaching out of her thoughts. "Still, it's not a disadvantage for us. We can handle them for now…"
"My lady," Lodia interrupted. "With all due respect, we, well, we did have to sort of struggle with them. They're not easy targets. What's worse is that they keep getting stronger, and not only that, but the link between this Planet and the Overlord is still very weak…"
"Yes… He keeps in touch through our souls, but the connection has yet to strengthen," Ranez added thoughtfully. "It will go better in time, and thus so will we…"
"But we gotta worry about AVALANCHE getting stronger faster," Avian sneered, not liking the idea.
"Fear not, my friends," Aeris smiled. "Once we find it, we won't have to worry about such trivial things. Now come, this place brings back too many harsh memories for my liking. Let's search this place."
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#Mako Reactor - FF7#
Their footsteps echoing through the calm of the late afternoon, Aeris and the others entered the destroyed reactor of Gongaga. The sun was up, but was the verge of beginning its retreat behind the horizon. As they approached the center of the rubble, Aeris nodded to Avian, who grinned. As he stepped forward, green energy began to shine around his fists, the glow rippling from him. He raised one hand, and a shot of the energy fired out, causing the rubble to explode. As the dust clear, Aeris approached, waving her hands apart as if to cause the air born particles to clear from her path, of which they did. Looking down, she noticed a ladder, a greenish white mist rising up from it.
Lifestream.. She thought. This is it… The second to last place…
Ranez followed her steps, but she shook her head.
"No," she whispered, "they're coming tonight. The time isn't right. I'm going to need you to hold them off when they get here." Her voice held assurance. The three nodded, Avian no longer grinning. "Do what you must, but don't harm them, especially Cloud." With that, she hopped down the chute, not bothering to climb the ladder. The three turned to each other, staring as if to have a silent argument, until Ranez jerked his head toward the entrance and walked off. Avian shrugged to Lodia, and the two followed, while the sun died in the sky.
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#Queen of the Abyss - FF9#
It was a red dusk when Cloud and the rest reached Gongaga. Most were out of breath, excluding Yuffie and Red and Cait Sith, who were fine, and Cid and Barret, who looked as if they had seen better days. Cloud hunched over for a moment, slowing his breathing., then stood straight.
"We've got to be at least ten minutes behind them!!! We'll have to split up, just in case they aren't at the reactor. Barret, take Cait Sith and head to the village! Tifa, take Yuffie and search the forest. Vincent, Cid and Red, you're with me. Let's go!" With a nod, everyone split ways.
Sprinting, the quartet headed into the reactor. Reaching the entrance, Red slowed to a walk, sniffing the air.
"Someone's here.." He growled quietly.
As if by nature, Vincent, Cid and Cloud glanced around anxiously.
"Shadows," Vincent hissed, pointing at three human-shaped shades that flowed over the ground. The four backed up, back to back, as three persons dropped to the ground, surrounding them.
"Back for more I see," Lodia smirked.
"Yeah, and I see you brought a friend," muttered Cloud, eyeing Avian.
"Just to make things more interesting," added Avian.
"Enough %#$&* chit chat!" Cid shouted. "Just what the hell do you people want?"
"It does not concern you.. Yet," said Ranez. "Well, it doesn't concern all of you anyway." Instinctively, the dark warriors turned toward Cloud. Soon after, the rest of his team mates did as well. Confusion swept over him, and he would've blushed under their stares if it weren't for the fact that these people were trying to kill him.
"W - What?" he stuttered.
Ranez took a few steps toward him. "We shall give you an option," he told Cloud. "Either leave now with your friends, or agree to come quietly with us."
"How about C," Cid interrupted. "We kick you $$&&**# asses!"
"No dice, Ranez, was it? Don't let the hair fool you," Cloud hissed.
"Well, it seems like you have a decent memory now, Cloud. At least you're thinking straight, no longer mixing up other people's pasts with your pathetic one, or so I heard-"
Ranez barely had time to block with his rapier as Cloud attacked like lightening. They struggled for a bit, trying to overcome each other, when Cloud was suddenly with a red energy blast, giving a cry of anguish as he flew off of Ranez.
"Cloud!" Red shouted, who made to move, but stopped as Avian took a shot at him, holding him in his place.
"Don't move unless you wanna join blonde boy," Avian smirked. Cid cussed in return and Red backed down.
Meanwhile, Ranez stood up, sword out, approaching Cloud, who was on the floor, groaning in pain from Lodia's shot. She stayed behind Ranez, powered up, ready to fire again.
"Oooo, set of the bomb, didn't I?" He teased. "You know Cloud, you shouldn't let your anger get the best of you; that's when accidents happen."
"What do you want?" Cloud hissed, pushing himself up to his hand and knees.
"Listen closely Cloud. We've got plans, plans for you, for our mistress, for our Overlord, for this Planet. It would be best not to get in the way yet, until we need you. So why don't you be smart and just go back to Corel until later."
"No way… If this has something to do wit the planet, then it involves everyone," Cloud said, his head bowed down to the ground, face hidden. "And I don't know what your true plans are, but I can figure they're not for the better!" With a sudden burst of energy, he lunged at Ranez, slashing forward. Caught off guard, he gave a shout of pain as Cloud's sword nicked him across the chest. The ex-mercenary was about to go in for a killing blow, but was forced to maneuver away from one of Lodia's blasts. It was then that the fight was on.
Giving a war cry, Red dashed into battle, knocking down Lodia, while Vincent turned on Avian.
"The reactor, Cloud! There's some one in there! I can smell her!" Red shouted over the commotion. Cloud nodded, sprinting off toward the glowing chute as Red turned back toward Lodia, who was preparing for round 2 with the beast. As Cloud was almost there, Ranez pushed pass him, blocking the way.
"Going somewhere?" he whispered dangerously.
"He is, but not with you!" Came Cid's voice as he charged into Ranez, who clashed weapons with him. "Cloud, go!"
Cloud wasted no time in passing the fighting duo. Reaching the shaft, he turned and loosely grabbed the ladder, sliding down it. With a thunk, he hit the metal grating floor. It was a small catwalk over Mako, that went on toward a large platform in the distance. The mist was so heavy in the air, it even made breathing hard. Putting a hand over his mouth, he started forward slowly, not wanting to exert himself.
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# No Music#
She found comfort in the whining of machinery, for it stopped the endless thoughts that swam through her mind. She kneeled on the side of the platform, eyes closed, concentrating to find any sort of energy wave. She could feel the faint one from before, but it was stronger now, just barely.
Not even close, which means it's either in one of two places. Nibelheim, or….
She swallowed. Northern Crater was the last place she wanted to go, knowing that the voice of the Planet would be strongest there…
It's too northern to be Nibelheim… So it must be in the crater… No matter, I still have to stop at Nibelheim anyways-
Suddenly, she felt a headache come on, blurring vision and making her dizzy.
Child, you must think clearly……. Come back to the light..
"Shut… up……" She hissed. Struggling, she pushed the voice out of her mind successfully, but the Planet still had left its mark. Luckily, she was able to hear the slow footsteps coming her way. Even as her vision cleared, even with the mist up, hiding the person from view, she knew who it was.
No time…
Standing, she rushed the man, powering up a Sleepel spell as he headed toward the center of the platform.
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Suddenly, fatigue hit him, and Cloud lost all energy or motivation to continue forward.. As he dropped to his knees, he could see a pinkish blur pushing past him.
"Aeris….?" He called out unconsciously, before hitting the floor, sound asleep.
AN: Ok, for starters, you can't get mad at me for not updating. Why? Because I told you to remind me if you wanted more :P. BTW, I hate trying to get Alexander. I spent 3 HOURS TRYING TO FIND SNOW! Though I did find that cool ice chute that takes you back to the world map, and it was fun snowboarding.
As a side note there is a dog outside my house that won't stop barking, and I'm about ready to take a stick to it. -_-
Also, if you people have ANY QUESTIONS on what's going on in the story, do me a favor and ask in a review. I need this for later, and it's hard to think of questions, when you kinda already know what's going on. :D Plus, this also helps you.