"Now," Kether spoke evenly as he slowly reached for his weapon. "Take your sword in hand, Cloud Strife. This is it. I won't hold back this time, so I suggest you do the same...if you want to live."

The way in which he spoke rather unnerved Cloud, for it was almost as though the thought of death held no power over him.

Feeling far from calm, Cloud reached for his sword and slowly readied it. Fortunately for him, the familiar heft of his blade helped to ease his tension. The last time he fought Kether, it was in hand to hand combat, and Cloud felt confident he would fare better in his own area of expertise.

That did not, however, disqualify the possibility that Kether was as lethal with a sword as he was with his hands. Swallowing hard, Cloud planted his feet firmly on the ground and waited for Kether to make the first move.

It seemed that Kether had the same idea. He was certainly no fool- that much was certain. Having never personally seen Cloud's swordplay, it was only natural that he would be more cautious; however, when neither of them took the opportunity to deal the first blow, he let out a steady sigh.

"It seems we are at an impasse," he observed confidently.

"There's still time," Cloud said with a pleading tone. "We can both walk away right now- go our separate ways."

Kether smiled sadly. "You know, I almost wish..." he trailed off slightly before continuing, "...that it could be so. You're a bit misguided, Cloud, but deep down you're a good person. It's such a shame that it has to be this way."

"Don't patronize me," Cloud declared loudly. "You aren't so bad yourself, Kether, but if you fight me, that's not gonna keep me from killing you."

"That's good!" Kether replied with a show of energy in his voice. He quickly readjusted his sword in his hands. "That's the energy we need to get started! Get ready, Cloud!"

In reply, Cloud held his sword out in front of him- ready to take whatever defensive posture he needed.

Kether took a running step forward, but immediately vanished from sight.

"Shit!" Cloud growled. He'd forgotten how fast the kid was!

He turned around just in time to see Kether make a vicious swing towards his face, but he was able to bring his own weapon to bear in time to deflect the blow.

But Kether was unrelenting in his assault. He brought his weapon down once more, and Cloud was barely able to manage blocking it in time.

"Damn, if this keeps up, I'm a goner!" Cloud thought desperately to himself. He quickly leapt backwards, causing Kether's forward momentum to send him tripping forward slightly. Rather than using this opportunity to attack, though, Cloud closed his eyes briefly and stimulated the lifestream that flowed within his veins. His vision blurred slightly, but his eyes quickly adjusted to the new perception.

Kether certainly wasn't lying when he'd told him that his performance had been limited. He felt that he was now merely scraping the surface of his true potential! Feeling a bit more confident now, he held his sword up once more, ready to face whatever came next.

A swing from Kether's sword, though, quickly reminded him that no matter what he did, Kether would probably be able to match it. But at least now they were on par with one another.

Using his new speed boost to his advantage, Cloud quickly deflected an attack from Kether and pushed the man's sword aside with his own. Shifting his feet slightly, he turned his body to the side and rammed into Kether's chest with his shoulder. The force of the blow sent Kether soaring backwards, but he quickly rolled upon impacting the ground and quickly got to his feet.

It had to of hurt, but Kether showed no sign of pain. As soon as he was on his legs again, he dug his feet into the earth and propelled himself forward with his sword held ready to stab Cloud through his heart.

The two swords clashed together with enough force to cause a small shockwave that scattered the small leaves and rocks that were strewn about. Growling lowly, Cloud and Kether stood half a step apart, face to face, each trying to gain dominance over the other. In between them, their swords seemed to come alive, both of them crackling and hissing with an energy that had been spurred to life from within.

Cloud moved one of his arms from the hilt of his sword to the flat edge of the blade so that he could press down with greater force. At first, it seemed to be working: Kether's eyes narrowed, and he let out a heavy pant as he desperately redoubled his efforts to stave off Cloud's assault.

It was no use- the force was simply too great. With an irritated snarl, Kether's eyes became fierce as he let out a disparaging cry. There was a brief gust of wind that surrounded them both, but immediately Cloud realized that Kether had somehow just doubled his physical strength- with one arm, Kether managed to pushed him back with enough force to throw him off balance.

Though they were now pushed apart, Cloud could vividly see a trickle of blood flowing from Kether's nose and left eye. Only at this moment did Cloud realize why Kether had seemed to calm before the beginning of the battle.

When Aeris had been teaching him how to utilize lifestream, she warned him that prolonged use or excessive stimulation would blur the distinction between the physical and metaphysical aspects of the flesh, effectively dissolving the body's form. Kether had been so calm because he had been prepared to sacrifice everything in order to win this battle- even his own life.

The damnable thing about it was that Cloud would now have to follow Kether's example if he wanted to be able to survive.

Summoning the powers within him, Cloud let out a startled choke as he did so. His mind seemed to be reeling, and he could feel his organs twisting in pain. The distinctive taste of blood made its way into his mouth, and all the sounds coming from his left side suddenly became silent- probably a ruptured eardrum.

Nevertheless, the results were all he could've hoped for. When Kether made a move to attack him, Cloud brought his own sword to bear and met the blow with equal vigor.

Their swords now sparkled with blue and yellow energy that fluttered between the two blades whenever they passed near one another. They must've been receiving the effects of the lifestream's activity, too. Just as well, though, because under normal circumstances, Cloud was almost positive his sword would've already been snapped in two.

Now whenever their blades met the earth seemed to shake to its very core, and their clashing was as loud as thunder. The skies around them had turned black as night, and the wind howled around them as if to signal the end of the world. Things here were getting way out of hand. Who knew what kind of damage might because if they continued at this pace? What Cloud needed now was a plan.

One thing he'd noticed about Kether was that whenever one of his blows were deflected he always brought the sword back to a vertical position- most likely in order to be able to deflect an oncoming counter attack.

Of course, Cloud recognized this stance immediately. When he was training under Sephiroth all those years ago, he'd see him use that move on some of the other soldiers. When Cloud later asked Him about it, Sephiroth had confided to him that the stance, although useful in most circumstances, had one critical flaw: if one were to use it when an attack was merely a feint, then he would be wide open to an assault from both the left and right sides. As Sephiroth had explained it, an earnest attack would be too difficult to maneuver into a two-pronged assault, hence the vertical stance.

It was almost ironic. That same flaw would be used against one of His own pupils.

Cloud wasted no time in setting up his attack. He quickly dealt one blow after the other, all of which Kether effortlessly blocked with his sword. Each time, however, he briefly visited that same stance before he shifted to guard against another one of Cloud's attacks. If everything went well...

"Now!" Cloud thought desperately to himself.

He brought his sword back briefly and swung it widely, but only with minimal effort. Kether, of course, brought his own weapon around to guard against it, but when they made contact, Cloud's Buster sword merely bounced off of Kether's.

Instinctively, Kether brought his sword back to that same vertical stance, but his eyes widened in shock as soon as he'd realized his mistake.

Cloud still had enough control over his sword so that he was able to v-step to the side and, using the forward momentum of his movements, brought his weapon to bear in a horizontal slice that would've cut Kether in two had he not jumped out of the way just in time.

"Gah!" Kether cried out as he clutched the enormous gash in his side. He staggered backwards and stuck his sword into the ground so that he could rest on the hilt.

Cloud felt a great swell of happiness at his success, but his vision soon became blurry, and his hands, oddly, could no longer support the weight of his sword as it clattered to the floor.

In shocked disbelief, he slowly looked down at his own side and saw the same cut that he'd just given to Kether.

"N-No...way," Cloud gasped as he looked over to the smiling youth. "I-It...impossible..."

"Believe it, C-Cloud," Kether winced as he laughed slightly. "So now you know, don't you? All this time...it was you. I have come from you, Cloud."

Moaning slightly, Cloud's feet collapsed under him and he fell to his knees.

"Funny, isn't it?" an eerie voice cooed suddenly.

Cloud's eyes widened at the sound. Glancing up, he let out a startled gasp when he found himself staring into those same, unnatural green eyes from his nightmares.

"S-Sephiroth!" he breathed. "W...W-What are you doing here?!"

"You have crossed the threshold," Sephiroth told him with a slight grin. "Your body is beginning to become incorporated into the lifestream as a result of your constantly using it."

Kether painfully straightened himself and limped over to stand at Sephiroth's side. "You see now, Cloud, how you can never win," he spoke sympathetically. In a way, he seemed...almost sad. "Because I am a part of you, there is no way for you to win this fight. If you kill me, then you will die, as well."

Cloud's eyebrows lowered in anger. "Then if you kill me, you'll die, too, won't you?" he spat.

"No," Sephiroth said with a slow shake of his head. "Kether has come from you. You are tied to him as much as you are to any part of your body, but he is completely independent of you. He will not suffer in any way by taking your life."

Cloud tried to swallow, but his throat was too dry. So this was it. This was the end for him. If there was no way he could win, then what was the point in even trying?!

"Don't think like that, Cloud!" Aeris warned him.

Sensing her presence behind him, Cloud turned to see Aeris appear from thin air and kneel down beside him. Her arms rested reassuringly on his shoulders, but her voice remained firm. "Don't forget, you aren't just fighting for yourself. You're fighting for the entire human race!"

"You stay out of this!" Sephiroth bellowed. "Don't you see that it's completely useless? No matter what Cloud does, he will die, and the human race will be wiped off the face of the planet! Kether! Now is your chance! Kill him!"

Kether did not respond. His eyes were completely fixated on Aeris, as if he were in a trance. "I...it's you," he breathed softly. "Aeris...the flower girl, I know you!"

Aeris looked over at him with her piercing green eyes and nodded. "I know you, too, Kether. I've known you for a long time."

"You're the one that I see in my dreams," Kether spoke even more softly. "You're always crying, Aeris..."

"Kether!" Sephiroth spoke roughly. "What do you think you're doing?! Don't tell me you're going to quit now! Not when you're so close!"

"But...Sephiroth! What is going on? How can I know her? I...can't remember ever hearing of her from you!" he cried as he clutched his head. "You...what Cloud told me...Sephiroth, have you...lied to me? Have you been lying to me all this time?!"

"Kether..." Aeris spoke softly.

"It doesn't matter!" Sephiroth all but shouted. "I've raised you like one of my own! It was for this moment that I trained you, and I will not allow you to fail me here! Now fight! Kill him!"

Kether looked over at Aeris once more with tears in his eyes. He also looked down at Cloud, who had remained silent this whole time. "W-What...? Sephiroth, I trusted you! You were all I knew! You were my life! I would've done anything for you, and yet you lied to me!" His skin began to shine with a pale green light, but his rage continued on. "What do I believe in now?! Without you, what is there to believe in?!" With an inhuman cry filled with all of the rage, pain, and bitterness of one who is completely lost, Kether allowed himself to fully succumb to a majority of the lifestream's influence.

"Kether, stop!" Aeris cried. "You're going to kill yourself!"

"So what if I die?!" Kether screamed. "I'm going to fulfill my mission! But not for Sephiroth! No, I'm going to do it for myself! Because it was a decision that I made on my OWN!"

He leaped high into the air and siphoned all of his energy into his hands- energy from the lifestream, even his own life source- all of it, until he had the makings of an enormous green sphere. "Look at me, Sephiroth!" he cried indignantly. "By the time I'm finished with this place, there won't be a planet left for you to conquer!!"

"Uh-oh," Aeris said nervously. "C'mon, Cloud, no time to rest, yet! Get to your- oomph­- feet!" she shouted as she pulled Cloud up.

Even from here, Cloud could sense the enormous amount of energy that Kether had brought to bear against him. "A-Aeris, there's no way I can survive this!"

"You have to!" Aeris ordered. "It's for the good of everyone and everything!"

Kether didn't even give Cloud a chance to respond. Moving faster than the human eye could see, he flew down and, with all of his might, pressed his final attack against Cloud's body.

"Agh!" Cloud cried as he raised his hands in a vain attempt to catch it in his palms. The searing pain that shot through his arms was almost more than he could bear, but he somehow managed to endure it. "K-Ketheer!" he growled lowly. "I'm not gonna let you have your way!"

"You don't have a choice!" he replied with a hollow laugh. "Either way, I win!"

"Tsch!" Cloud grunted as he felt a surge in Kether's attack. Probably because of all the excess energy in the atmosphere, his mind flashed back to when he was submerged in the lifestream. All of those feelings from before, even the ones he had subconsciously forgotten came flooding back into his mind. "I remember now!" he suddenly shouted above the noise. "I remember that other feeling I had when I was in there- in the lifestream!"

"Like that even matters?"

Cloud ignored his comment and pressed on. "I remember feeling warm, but I wa also afraid! I was afraid because I felt like I was losing myself in the memories of others! Kether, before I couldn't quite put my finger on what was wrong with your idea, but now I know: even if a person seems content and happy in the lifestream, if you aren't yourself, then who's to say that you are really the one who's happy?! You might as well be dead, anyway!"

"Who cares?!" Kether cried indignantly. "That's where you're all going, anyway!"

"It's not!" Cloud shouted all the louder. "I understand now that it's not all about me! Yeah, I had some problems, but so does everyone else! It's time I took a stand and fought for others, just like I did before!" Cloud's own skin began to shine with a pale, green light as he spoke. "That's why I'm willing to put my life on the line, as well! But unlike you, I'm going to risk my life in order to save others, not destroy them!"

Kether clenched his teeth as he strained to withstand the renewed strength of Cloud's countering force. He felt himself slowly losing ground, though, and there was very little he could to do alter that.

"This is nonsense!" Sephiroth spoke up wildly. Appearing by Kether's side, Sephiroth held out his hands and added his own energy to the already massive sphere.

Cloud let out a painful cry as his gloved palms began smoking, and the flesh began peeling off the surface of his arms. He would've succumbed to the massive affront not half a second later if Aeris had not leaped to Cloud's side to help counter Sephiroth's intervention.

"C-Cloud!" Aeris shouted. "Do something! Everyone's gonna die unless you do something!"

"He's still holding back!" Kether laughed wildly. "He knows that if I die, then he will die along with me! I told you before: there is no way for you to win against me! Ha hahaaa!"

Cloud closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. His heart was beating so fast that it seemed about to leap out of his chest. All of his emotions that he had carried inside of himself welled up within him and threatened to spill over.

"Tifa," he thought to himself. "What...should I do? Vincent...do you have an answer for me? Could Barret or Cid say anything to help me? Am I ever gonna see Red XIII's village or Yuffie's smile again? No, I can't think like that...I made a promise just now...am I really willing to sacrifice myself in order to save others?"

The thought of Tifa laughing in her bar with Marlene standing close by; Red XIII and Yuffie standing proudly at their village gates; the thought of Barret studying his research and Cid enjoying a little free time with Shera, and Vincent living the life he could not two years ago...surely those were all something worth sacrificing your life for? Not only for them, but the rest of humanity as well?

Cloud opened his eyes slowly and let out an even sigh.
"Kether," he spoke calmly. "It's over for you."

His body's green light shifted to become a dazzling white that seemed to envelope everything around him.

"W-What?!" Kether cried in disbelief. He could feel Cloud surrender himself totally to the lifestream, and in turn his powers were magnified beyond anything that was humanly possible.

"Cloud, no!" Sephiroth shouted. "What are you doing?!"

"Something I should have done a long time ago," Cloud answered. "Sephiroth, I'm going to die here, but I will never forgive you for what you've done to Kether or myself. You've used others your whole life, and for that...there can be no forgiveness."

Impossibly, the white light grew even brighter, and the energy Kether had gathered was immediately repelled back at him, encompassing him in all of its destructive power. With a terrified cry, his body quickly disintegrated until nothing but smoldering ashes remained.

Cloud nodded approvingly before he felt his own body begin to fade. At least he would die knowing that he'd make the right decision. A single tear trickled down his face, and his last thoughts were of Tifa, and how she would be so mad at him for not being able to keep his promise.

FFVII

Cloud felt that he should've become one with the lifestream, and yet he was not. He hovered somewhere between life and death- a place he had never been to before. Looking up slowly, he saw Kether's body floating aimlessly in the empty space before him.

"You actually did it," came Kether's mellow voice. "You truly are amazing."

"What other choice did I have?" Cloud confessed slowly. "I know that I didn't want to die, but surely one life is nothing compared to all of humanity?"

"Heh," Kether laughed softly. "You were right all along, Cloud," he said sadly. "I could have listened to you, but I chose to blindly follow only that with which I was familiar. In the end, my naïveté was what killed us."

"You're not the only one who's like that," Cloud told him firmly. "Don't blame yourself."

"I wish I could, but if it wasn't for me, I'm afraid none of this would have happened."

"I don't blame you," Cloud argued. "I know what it's like to be under Sephiroth's spell, so I can empathize with you."

"Ignorance doesn't exclude you from being guilty, Cloud," Kether replied sadly. "But...there is one thing I can do for you, if you'll let me..."

"What's that?"

Kether closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I was born that same night that you were injected with Jenova's cells. I was the part of you that wanted to reject all of the sorrow in life...the part that wanted everyone to be happy all the time. I know now that it was merely a foolish dream. Life on this planet is never easy, and hardly ever happy, and yet...I wanted it to be that way more than anything. So much so, that I was willing to do anything. Cloud," he whispered, "if you can find it in your heart to forgive me...I would like to join with you once more. You were the man I was looking for, all along. The one I could look up to and follow after. The man I could never be."

"Don't say that," Cloud told him. "None of us are perfect, much less me. I mean, I've made a lot of mistakes in my life as well...but if you want to come back, I would be honored to have you as a part of me again."

"Really?" Kether smiled. His face was a mixture of joy and sorrow. "Thank you, Cloud. I will assimilate myself with you, and then I will use this blade," he said as he withdrew his sword from it's scabbard, "Orchrist, to revive you. I will unseal all of the lives that have been taken by it and use them to bring you back to life. How does that sound to you?"

Cloud heaved a heavy sigh of relief, yet a slight smile played across his face. "I think that sounds like a good idea," he smiled.

"Good," Kether nodded. "Cloud, can you do me one more favor?"

"Hm?"

"When you get back...can you please tell Tifa that I'm sorry?"

Cloud nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure, pal. I'll tell her."

FFVII

"Cloouud!" Tifa shouted with her hands cupped against her mouth. "CLOUD! Where are you?!"

"There's nothin' around for miles!" Cid gasped. "What the hell were they doing?!"

"They were goin' all out, that's what!" Yuffie commented as she experimentally tapped a black plant with her shoe. It disintegrated as soon as she did so, eliciting a slight shiver from her. "Boy, I'd hate to be on the receiving end of that."

"Guys, we're supposed to be looking for Cloud!" Tifa complained. She turned around once more and proceeded to belt out his name at the top of her lungs.

"T-Tifa," came a weak voice.

"Cloud?!" she shouted as she ran in what she thought was the right direction. She skidded to a halt when, as she came around the corner of a large boulder, she saw Cloud lying, face down, on the ground. His clothes were horribly burned and they had holes everywhere, yet his skin had somehow remained completely undamaged. "Cloud!" she cried as she ran over to him. "Cloud are you all right?!" She rolled him over and cradled his limp body in her arms.

"T-Tifa," he smiled as he looked up at her face. "I never thought I'd see you again. I'm so...happy."

Tifa let out a choked laugh that was cut off by a short sob. "Cloud! Don't you ever scare me like that again!" she ordered as she cried into his hair.

"Hey, don't worry. I always keep my promises, right?" he said in a half-hearted attempt at humor.

"Yeah," Tifa nodded with a smile. "You big, spiky headed jerk."

"Cloouuuwwed!" Yuffie cheered as she spotted him and ran over to where he lay. "You're alive! Hey, you know you should call every once in a while to let people know you're all right! This is the first time I've seen you in ages and you look half dead!"

"Better than all the way dead," Cid speculated as he came up and stood beside her. "Hey, Cloud, what happened?"

"It's over," he smiled. "We're all gonna be all right."

Cid and Yuffie let out whoops of delight as they danced around merrily on the barren battlefield. Tifa continued crying on Cloud's head, but that was all right with him. After all, they were alive.

"Aeris," he thought to himself. "My battle isn't over yet. I don't know how much time I have left, but don't worry. I'm gonna spend the rest of my life on this planet...living."