Chapter 9

No one seemed to recall the events that lead up to the birth of the SHADOW Shin-Ra. The events that caused the birth of one madman called Sephiroth and the fall of the original Shin-Ra.

The planet had seen the rise of one of the evils that it feared and now, the awaking of the most feared being in the history of it's life. Sephiroth, one winged angel of death.

It had felt his presence in the life stream. Always looking for a way out of his prison, always trying to hope for a way out. Never once repenting for his sins against humanity. He believed that he had been wronged.

And in a strange way, he had.

His life was never truly, going to be his own. He was always living the life someone else had planned for him. He was abused from the very start. From when he was an embryo in his real mother's womb, injected with Jenova cells.

In the same strange way, he had every right to be pissed off at humanity.

The once almighty and great war general sat quietly, shivering in the small hut that had served as his shelter for the past few days. His long slender fingers were numb from the tips to the lower knuckles. Moving them was painful but the pain was something he found he enjoyed. It meant he was once again, alive. Once again, he was going to complete his dream.

He was going to become one with the planet, he was going to kill Cloud. Killing the former cadet wasn't important but it was the principal of the idea. The revenge was going to be sweet. After he killed Cloud, AVALANCHE was next on the menu. Oh, how he was going to enjoy harming each of them, he'd make up special and fun ways specially for them. No one crossed the great Sephiroth and lived to sing songs about it.

Though, his current location made it difficult to do anything but sit and shiver. He had watched the snow fall for the past few days. Absorbing the beauty and the simplicity of the flakes, he would try and grasp them, only to watch them melt slowly in his hands. He would never truly ever have a snowflake.

Watching the fluffy sub zero water droplets brought a smile to his lips, he had always enjoyed the white substance. It made him feel innocent. Something that was hard to come by if he remembered correctly.

"It's freezing sir! Can't we go in for a few minutes? It feels like my balls are turning into snow balls!" a spiked raven haired individual moaned. A huge sword quivered from behind him.

He simply stood still. Not caring if he froze. He tilted his head up towards the falling flakes and smiled, slowly, he out stretched his arms and turned in a circle.

"Take the time to enjoy the small things Zack. You never know as to when you will not be able to," he had whispered softly, "Life has a bad tendency of just stopping."

Zack fell silent for a moment but found his voice. That was a surprisingly simple thought out of his commander's mouth.

Life has a bad tendency of just stopping, Zack thought, it was nice in it's childlike innocence. It seemed like Sephiroth, famed for his merciless attacks on the enemy, was capable of expressing innocence.

"Life just stops yeah? That's kinda deep for you," Zack offered, his teeth chattered in the sub zero conditions that he had been ordered into.

Sephiroth just nodded, his amazing green eyes were barely open. His silver eyelashes were trapping the snowflakes and were beginning to melt them.

"Life is kind of like a snowflake. No one is identical, all return to the planet when the fall," Sephiroth continued his musing. His long black coat twirling as he turned round.

"So, you like snowflakes?" Zack asked, he didn't really know much about the man in front of him.

"…I guess," the general stopped turning round and looked at him, "Don't you?"

"When I'm watching it from a window and drinking something hot," Zack shot back.

Sephiroth smiled, Zack was always moaning about something. At least he wasn't chucking his load up like one Cloud Strife.

Ahh, young Cloud Strife, how he was going to enjoy his revenge.

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The airship landed heavily after it's brave battle with the life stream. The thick snow cushioned it's fall somewhat but the occupants still got rattled around in it's interior.

The blonde captain was thrown backwards, into the crates. A long curse came from his lips as he landed. Why was things going so bad for him? He had done nothing but help people since he got over his ego problem way back!

It wasn't fair, he was battered and so was his baby. Shera was going to kill him if he brought the airship back in the same condition he had when he saved the planet from Meteor.

She'd made him sleep in the garage for the week, only to relent when he came in sniffling from the cold and ended up having the flu.

His head still pounded and his body burned from the fever that seemed to of gripped his form. The planet seemed to of downloaded the entire Cetra encyclopaedia into his head and then decided it missed a few volumes. Voices were either screaming at him or were whispering way to softly.

One voice seemed to sound so familiar, one of his true friends.

You have to fight the fever Highwind. It will last for a few days longer but it will hurt. The planet felt it necessary to bring us back.

Vincent? Cid thought, The hell is it you?

Yes…though as to why I am here is beyond me. My body, I feel, is somewhere else.

Yeah, deep in the life stream, Cid slowly thought.

No. I'm very much alive. But I sense that I may not be for much longer. Cid, I need your help.

Cid laid his head back and looked out of the large front window that spanned the front of his airship. Snow fell gently down on to the battered and cracked glass.

I need a little time, the blonde thought, just, give me a few hours to get some sleep and then, I'll come to the rescue.

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Ok, sorry it took so long for nine to surface. Do all you people forgive me? Soo, cid can here Vincent's thoughts….and has the cetra knowledge in his head…there is a reason. Don't ask me why but there is one. I was going to do a Horton chapter but I just can't get my head into the whole bad man thing. Way to much of an AVALANCHE fan!

Remember people!

YOU ARE NOT A SALMON! If you've seen the kit kat advert then u'll understand why.