Chapter XV

Flashbacks and Rebirth

"Gwandoya…" Bergljot whispered when they got into the house. She slumped into an armchair, wrapped her cape tightly around her and sobbed. "Why did he do that? He shouldn't have had to die."

"He did it to protect us," Anselm said, voice cracking and tears streaming down his face. "He really cared about all of us and wanted us to live so we could defeat Ansem. He knew that you were the one who had to live, not him."

"I still don't understand why he did it," Sephiroth whispered, gazing out the window at a gathering storm. "Why would one risk his own life to save another? There is no reason. We all die eventually. Why would one want to die sooner?"

"You've never felt love, have you?" Bergljot asked. Sephiroth stopped and tightly shut his eyes as if remembering a past pain. "Gwandoya sacrificed himself for us because he loved us. When you love somebody as much as Gwandoya did, you would do anything for that person. I know I would have done anything for him, if I had the chance. I almost died for Anselm shortly after we slept together the first time. Remember?"

"Yeah. I've never again been as scared as I was that day."

"What happened?" Sephiroth asked.

================

Bergljot walks into the studio. Classes are finished, and she is going to spend the day with Anselm. He is sitting in his office waiting for her.

"And how are you today?"

"Hey, sweetie," Anselm replies as Bergljot walks in. They walk into the workout area and sit on the floor.

"You look tired," Bergljot points out after they talk for a few minutes.

"Yeah, it's been a long day," he says. She begins to massage his back, then begin making out. They start getting more into it as somebody walks into the studio.

"Master Hammond!"

"Thanatos, what are you doing here?" Anselm says hurriedly as Bergljot rolls off of him.

"I suspected you were screwing one of your students. The way you look at each other. It's sick," Thanatos begins toying with them. He reaches into his jacket. "That is why this affair must end before she gets pregnant."

He pulls a revolver from his hidden pocket. Bergljot stares in fear as Anselm stands to face him.

"Shoot me if you want, but leave her alone."

"Anselm," Bergljot whispers. He looks at her sadly and mouths 'I love you.'

"Take your best shot," Anselm commands bravely, turning to face his attacker. The safety is disabled on the gun as it is pointed at Anselm. Bergljot loses it as the trigger is about to be pulled.

"ANSELM!" she screams. She pushes him out of the way as several rounds are fired upon him. They fall together, Anselm shocked to find blood on the floor and dripping on his stomach.

"Bergljot!" he cries. She is lying on the floor next to him, breathing with difficulty and holding her hands over her abdomen. Blood is pouring from between her fingers and onto the mats.

"Anselm…" she gasps.

"My god," Thanatos whispers as Anselm leans her against him and holds her hand. "I had no intentions of shooting her in the first place. I would never shoot anyone young. I'm terribly sorry. I still have one bullet left. I hope this makes you feel better."

"Ah," Anselm turns away as Thanatos sticks the barrel in his mouth and pulls the trigger. Blood spatters the walls as Thanatos falls to the floor in a heap.

"Bergljot?" Anselm mutters as Gwandoya walks in. He drops the box he is carrying and stares at the bloodied walls, floor and bodies.

"Shit! What the hell happened?"

"He's already dead. She's been shot, but she's still alive. Call an ambulance."

"Right," Gwandoya answers as he runs into the office to make the call.

"Bergljot, can you hear me?" Anselm asks.

"Yeah," Bergljot replies quietly.

"Why did you do that?" he sobs.

"Because I love you. People do crazy things when they're in love," she whispers. She smiles a little. "It doesn't even hurt anymore. It's just wet and cold. It's just a tingle, like it fell asleep. I don't feel any pain."

"Can you feel my hand?"

"Yes," she replies softly after a moment. Her eyes close and her breathing becomes shallower. "I can feel your tears on my lips, too."

"They'll be here any minute," Gwandoya says as he walks out of the office.

"Hear that? You're going to make it."

"No," Bergljot is speaking in what is barely a whisper. "I'm not."

"Yes, you are," he sobs as she falls unconscious. He hugs her as the sirens blare right outside. "Just hold on. Hold on… Hold on…"

"Hmm…" Bergljot moans. She opens her eyes slowly. The ceiling is a bright white, and a figure is sitting next to her. "Anselm?"

"Thank god, you're okay," he sobs as he wraps her into a bear hug. He lets go at a cry of pain from Bergljot. "Sorry."

His eyes are bloodshot, and he looks as though he has had no sleep in several days.

"What happened?"

"After you went unconscious, the paramedics put you into the ambulance. You've been out for four days."

"Oh, man."

"You almost didn't make it."

"Why?" she asks as she adjusts her hospital bed so she's sitting up.

"You lost a lot of blood. You needed seven pints. You're body couldn't reproduce the lost blood fast enough," he explains.

"I got the blood, right?"

"You almost didn't. Did you know you have a rare blood type? It's so rare, they didn't have any stored away."

"How did I-" Bergljot began. Realization hit as Anselm smiled.

"Yes. We have the same blood type. You have eight pints of my blood running through your veins. I asked if they could put one pint of your blood in me. I don't know what I was thinking at the time. I guess I want us to remain connected. Forever."

"My god. Thank you so much," Bergljot sobs as they hold each other.

"I'll never forget you," Anselm whispers into her ear as he kisses her neck.

"I'll never forget you, either, my love."

================

"That is amazing that you would do that for somebody," Sephiroth whispered in awe as she finished. "I have only felt that way about one person. After she died, I never loved again."

"Who was it?" Bergljot asked curiously.

"Her name was Kalliope. She had the most beautiful voice I have ever heard. We met before I became a member of SOLDIER. That was the army back when my world was the only one we knew of," he reminisced sadly. "She and I became very close. I cared for her so much, I asked her to marry me. My father… no, not father. My creator, Professor Hojo, did not want me to become soft. He wanted me to be strong, and he needed me for the Jenova Project. Jenova was my mother. Shortly after our engagement, Kalliope was asked to go to the lab to meet Hojo. He tried to inject Jenova cells into her. I learned from one of my creator's fellow scientists that he was going to try and kill her, and went in search of Hojo and my lover. I found him trying to inject more cells. I killed him."

"What happened to her?" Anselm asked, although he already knew the answer.

"The cells were too much for Kalliope's body to handle. It was too late for me to save her. She died in my arms mere minutes after Hojo's death. I was devastated. A few weeks later, I decided to stop crying over it. I chose to forget my past and never love again. I then became a member of SOLDIER."

"I'm sorry," Bergljot said, walking up behind him and giving him what seemed to be a much-needed hug. He shrugged her off.

"I do not need pity," he muttered. "Years after joining, I discovered who I was. I did not know about the Jenova Project before. I always thought that he injected poison or something into her. I tried everything to save her, but nothing worked. After I found who I was, I tried to find the Promised Land. I never found it. Cloud Strife defeated me temporarily, but I merely disappeared. He found me a few years later, after Hades summoned me. That was when I battled Sora. Cloud challenged me right after the fight. I was defeated. I was still alive, but very, very weak. He knocked me unconscious and sent me to be chronologically frozen by his friend, Cid. It seems I was put in that cave to wait for the day when I would be revived. I regained my strength since then."

"You also killed a woman named Aeris," Anselm pointed out. "You forgot that part."

"How did you know?" Sephiroth asked in shock.

"She's still alive. She goes by the name of Leilani and has been reborn for the past thousand years," Bergljot explained. "She wants to challenge you to a fair fight."

"Do you know why I killed her?"

"She told us that she had been praying for a way to defeat you when you stabbed her in the back," Anselm said simply.

"It wasn't just that," Sephiroth hesitated. "I was beginning to have feelings for her like the ones I had for Kalliope. I was scared of those feelings, so I eliminated the reason for those feelings. Kalliope… She was a lot like you, Bergljot."

"She was?"

"She looked a lot like you," Sephiroth smiled. "I don't suppose you can sing like she did?"

"I used to sing, but my band retired a year ago," Bergljot explained.

"Sing something," Sephiroth commanded.

"Yeah, I haven't heard you sing live since the last concert you played here," Anselm agreed.

"I will if I can think of anything," she told them.

"We'll wait," Sephiroth said, sitting on the sill and watching her.

"Let me think," Bergljot whispered. Several minutes passed. Sephiroth and Anselm finally got tired of waiting.

"I'm going to go fix dinner," Anselm announced. Sephiroth stood to leave the room. They both stopped when they heard Bergljot whispering.

"Ooh, ooh. Ooh, oh. Paper flowers. Ooh, ooh. Ooh, oh. Paper flowers," she sang louder and more passionately as she picked up her guitar and played. The two men sat slowly. Anselm sighed as he listened to her voice for the billionth time while Sephiroth listened in awe. "I linger in the doorway of alarm clocks screaming 'monsters coming my way.' Let me stay where the wind will whisper to me. Where the raindrops as they're falling tell a story. In my field of paper flowers and candy clouds of lullaby, I lie inside myself for hours and watch my purple sky fly over me. Don't say I'm out of touch with this rampant chaos- your reality. I know well what lies beyond my sleeping refuge, the nightmare I built my own world to escape. In my field of paper flowers and candy clouds of lullaby, I lie inside myself for hours and watch my purple sky fly over me. Swallowed up in the sound of my screaming, cannot cease for the fear of silent nights. Oh, how I long for the deep sleep dreaming, the goddess of imaginary light. In my field of paper flowers and candy clouds of lullaby, I lie inside myself for hours and watch my purple sky fly over me. Ooh, ooh. Ooh, oh. Paper flowers. Ooh, ooh. Ooh, oh. Paper flowers."

"You are like her," Sephiroth whispered when she finished the chords. "I never thought there was anyone…"

"You should hear the whole band," Anselm suggested as he stood to make dinner. The three of them suddenly stopped what they were doing.

"What was that?" Bergljot asked as a scratching sound was heard at the door.

"I'll check. Sephiroth, keep her back," Anselm whispered as he drew his staff and approached the door. Sephiroth pulled Bergljot behind him and held his arm in front of her. His other hand reached for his sword while Anselm slowly opened the door.

There was nothing outside. Bergljot lowered the blades, but Sephiroth and Anselm refused to relax. Not a minute passed when a human-sized shadow appeared in front of the door. It shrunk so that it was a pool of black on the floor and blew past Anselm before he could react. Sephiroth stared.

"It's a Heartless. Kill it. What the hell are you doing?" Bergljot whispered. Sephiroth began stomping on the pool, not harming it a bit. "You can't beat it that way, stab it!"

It was too late. The Heartless rose in front of Bergljot as Sephiroth stopped his embarrassing assault. It slowly raised its head and drew a circular weapon. Bergljot suppressed a gasp when she saw his face.

"G-Gwandoya?"

His yellow eyes glowed as he charged at her. Bergljot screamed as she jumped out of the way. The shield barely missed her.

"Get away from her!" Sephiroth yelled. He slashed at the creature, slashing open his leg. Black smoke poured out, but he was not destroyed. Sephiroth swung again, this time aiming for the head.

"Stop!" Bergljot yelled, slamming her blades against his. "He's a Heartless, but he's also my brother. I might be able to bring him back. Try to get him to leave his chest vulnerable."

Sephiroth nodded as he and Anselm attacked. The three of them tried several attacks together, none of which left room for Bergljot to strike. Sephiroth finally nicked his throat.

"FIRE!" Anselm called right after. Flames shot at his brother, engulfing him and seeping through the wounds.

"RAH!" Gwandoya hissed. He blew the fire away with his spinning attack and knocked the other men out of the way. Bergljot ran up to Gwandoya and pleaded.

"Please, stop! I know you're still in there. Listen to my voice. I know you can hear me. Please, come back," she sobbed. "Follow my voice out of the darkness. Don't do this."

The man stopped for a moment. He stared at her. He finally took his shield in hand, put it away, and leapt at her throat.

"AH!" they both screeched. Bergljot was knocked to the floor while he was thrown to the other side of the room. Sephiroth stood above her, sword in hand and anger on his face.

"I understand that you want to save him, but it's too late. Just like Kalliope."

Bergljot stood and approached the monster as it drew the shield again.

"Let my brother go," Anselm growled. "Thunder!"

Bolts shot at the shadow and surged through his body. He spread his arms in pain, giving Bergljot the opportunity she waited for. Without hesitation, she took the blades and jabbed them just below the monster's 'skin.' Gwandoya screeched as he sank to the floor.

"Let him go," she repeated. She turned the keys ninety degrees and pulled them out.

"Hah…" the shadow hissed. It sank to the floor in a heap. The body glowed as the others watched. The black on the skin melted away to pink flesh and the eyes closed. Gwandoya lay sprawled on the floor for several minutes. Bergljot finally began to walk towards him as he moved.

"Huh?" he sighed. Gwandoya opened his eyes halfway and slowly began to sit up. He looked over at Bergljot, Anselm and Sephiroth. He chuckled a little and collapsed once more.

================

"I think he'll be blind for the rest of his life."

"Shut up! You'll wake him up and scare him."

"He's already waking up."

"Gwandoya?"

"Gwandoya!"

"Uh."

Gwandoya awoke to three faces peering down on him. His eyes were slightly clouded over. Looking around, he saw that he was in his bed. He laid back.

"I remember darkness," he muttered.

"It's okay," Bergljot whispered. She wiped his face with a cold washcloth.

"Welcome back," Anselm smiled. Sephiroth only stood by the window and watched.

"I was surrounded. I couldn't see or hear anything. I could feel my body moving and fighting," he stopped and laid his hand on Bergljot's cheek. "I heard you calling me. I tried to follow your voice. The next thing I knew, I was being electrocuted and I felt the blades in my chest. I saw a glimmer of light and when I got to it, I woke up to find you."

"It's done. Don't dwell on the past," Sephiroth said from the window. Gwandoya ignored the comment and looked worriedly at Bergljot.

"My vision's blurry. Do you really think I'll be blind?"

"Maybe. You may not lose your sight totally. At least, not for a while," Bergljot explained. "Can you do blind fight?"

"Yes."

"Then we'll be fine," Anselm nodded.

"I can't be blind," Gwandoya whispered. "I want to see your child. I don't want to have to fight blind."

"Relax. Stay in bed a few days," Bergljot laid a hand on his shoulder as Gwandoya tried to sit up. "You're going to have to regain your strength."

"I'll go fix you something to eat," Anselm said as he walked out the door. Sephiroth followed.

"I'm hungry, too."

"Bergljot?" Gwandoya called as she prepared to leave the room. "Thanks."

"I was really scared when I watched you…" Bergljot held back tears.

"I wish I didn't have to put you through that. I don't hear the voices anymore."

"Good," Bergljot smiled. They hugged for the first time in almost one year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yep, he's back. Oh, and just to ease Kizna1200's mind, I am not killing all my characters. It was just a joke since I've killed Bergljot's mother and cat, her father, the innkeeper in Ogden, Gilda, Zita, Omega, Gwandoya (even though he was just revived…), and I'm going to kill Someone, A Person, and others in the future. And to L4by4- IF BERGLJOT DIES HOW CAN THE STORY CONTINUE, SMART ONE??????????????????????????????? Slaps L4by4 Thanks for reading, anyway.

Ahem. I have two disclaimers:

1- The song in this is Imaginary by Evanescence.

2- The story of Kalliope and Sephiroth belongs to me. Hojo, Jenova, and the Jenova Project are copyrights of Square-Enix.

The story should pick up again either chapter 18 or 19. How do you all like Sephiroth being a good guy? Summer vacation just started Friday, so expect to be receiving a lot of author alerts over the next three months. Please note: I will be gone at the end of July and beginning of August, so you'll all have two weeks of freedom from my wrath. Thanks again for reading everyone.

Hugs Everybody Is clawed by Soul Vagabond in response Gags in pain Dies

At the Farplane: Damn claws of the Soul Vagabond…

(In-joke between us…)

NINJA MAGE