Two worried forms sat looking over their slumbering friend. One, a giant man with a gun for one arm, another a kind but fierce looking girl with long, dark brown hair. Barret Wallace and Tifa Lockhart had barely had time to recover from the horrific incident at the Temple of the Ancients before having to rush an unconscious Cloud Strife to the nearest town with an inn: the ill-fated Gongaga Town.

"You look like you was havin' a nightmare," Barret said as he saw Cloud's eyelids flicker. "How are you feeling?"

Cloud blinked. "I seem to be okay."

Barret sighed, but with relief. "That's good. Man, I didn't know what was gonna happen." His head turned toward the entrance of the room.

Tifa stood there, arms crossed. "You know, Cloud. Aeris is gone."

Barret nodded, moving away from Cloud's bedside. "Everyone's out looking for Aeris."

".....City of the Ancients. Aeris is headed there." Cloud murmured.

"By herself?! Why did she go by herself?!" Barret exclaimed. He took Cloud's odd behavior into consideration in his response. The guy's just too weird to be wrong, he thought. I feel I gotta believe him. "Hey, we're goin' too." He rose to leave.

Cloud's hand left his side and reached out toward Barret. "Only the Ancients, only Aeris can save us from Meteor..." he called weakly, as if he were reminding Barret of his incapability in the entire matter. That it was completely out of all of their hands. Saving the Planet was not a job for a limited, rag-tag group of individuals. There was nothing special about any of them. Any of them, of course, except for Aeris.

"Then we must go!" Tifa persisted, her eyes pleading for cooperation. "What'll we do if something happens to Aeris? If Sephiroth finds her, she's in trouble."

"Sephiroth...already knows." Cloud's report came lazily, as if he were still lost in the sanctity of his dreams and not at all back in reality. His hand covered his eyes and gradually shifted to massage his temples.

Again, Barret turned to leave, but was held back by Tifa's hand on his arm. He immediately turned and glared at Cloud. He stopped his foot angrily, causing the room to shake. "Hey! Why are you still sittin' around?"

"Let's go Cloud," Tifa pleaded emptily.

But Cloud shook his head. "No. I might lose it again. If Sephiroth comes near me I might...."

Barret clenched his fist so tight his knuckles began to pop. "Yeah, godammit! It's 'cuz of you that Sephiroth got the Black Materia in the first place. It's your damn fault!"

But the ex-SOLDIER responded coolly with a single raised eyebrow. "My fault?"

Barret ignored him, throwing up his arms and rolling his eyes. "I know you got problems...hell, we all do. But you don't even understand yourself." He shook his head in disgust. "But you gotta understand that there ain't no gettin' offa this train we're on, till we get to the end of the line."

"Cloud," Tifa said softly, "We came this far...Aren't you going to settle up with Sephiroth?"

"No...I'm afraid. If this keeps up, I may go crazy! I'm afraid..." Cloud's voice broke off into a whisper. The very tone of his voice seemed forced from a core of immense internal suffering and chaos.

"Just a damn jackass, that's what you are..." Barret said indifferently. "Jes' think about it...How many people in this world do ya think really understand themselves? People get depressed in life because they don't know what's up. But, they go on living. They don't run away...Isn't that how it is?"
Nice, Wallace, very nice, Cloud thought. If only you knew what I was going through...

"Cloud...you'll come with us, right? I believe in you." Tifa's voice seemed to perk up with encouragement.

"What...am I supposed to do?" Cloud demanded out of desperation. He seemed to be speaking more to the empty air than to his companions. "Pull out of here? Pull out? ...To where?"

"Cloud..." Tifa attempted to calm him.

In a strict, father-like movement, Barret took her arm and pulled her toward the door. "Wait a minute, Tifa. Give him a little time. He has to decide this on his own. You believe in Cloud, right?"

Cloud was not rewarded with hearing an answer from Tifa, however, as they soon left, leaving the door open. It was a like a portal of opportunity. It was Cloud's choice, and his alone, as Barret had said, to remain here and die of misery and overwhelming confusion, or to continue on, pursuing what his heart told him was the direction of righteousness.

He rose, and walked out the door, muttering, ".....I'm afraid to find out the truth...? But.....why?"

"Have you decided?" Barret asked him as soon as he met up with them outside. "We leave as soon as you're ready. The others are jes' outside the town."

Cloud bowed his head. "I'm ready to go now. Let's go find Aeris." He trudged past them and onto the path that led out of Gongaga. "Come on."

"And Cloud," Barret stopped him in mid-step. "If you go crazy again, if it happens, it happens. Jes' don't worry about it. Tifa and I will set you straight."

An evil cackle of laughter resounded throughout the small town, accompanied by a hissing voice. We'll see, Human...how you compare to my power when it comes to controlling that pathetic creature...we'll see...