Vincent took his only child's life. He never tried to change him. Everything he ever did was to hurt the child. He couldn't even complete Lucrecia's final request before she died. Vincent was too weak. He let his son be controlled by the sickest man he ever knew. Professor Hojo ruined Sephiroth. No, if there anyone he hated more than Hojo, it was himself. He let this happen. The guilt that surfaced into Vincent's mind was far greater than that of the guilt that he suffered through his nightmares for thirty years. Thirty years... for thirty long years, he let his son be abused by the world. For what he had punished himself for for all those years turned out to be yet another sin added to his long list of failures.
Vincent sighed, breathing hard with the thoughts of bad memories. His long, black hair had grown even longer in the past month. And he still wore the same attire. A red bandana to cover his greatest scar. The rest was black clothing beneath a red cloak. The dark colors represented his failure to himself. It had nothing to do with being a Turk... Turks... black symbolized his mourning, and red to the blood of the innocent. He'd never be caught wearing blue. Never again.
Perhaps it would be better to go back to the beginning to truly describe why he was such a devil. No matter what Vincent seemed to do, it always hurt others. He was born on October 13th to be exact. It is said that six is the number of the devil, and seven is that of holy. If that were so, than he would be the six and Lucrecia would be the number seven. Not only was date of birth unlucky, but the place he was born turned out to be truly ironic. He was the Wutain Prince, set to succeed his father.
Yet things didn't turn out the way they were supposed to. Vincent was at the age of twelve when his father was murdered by the Kisaragi faction. Wutain politics were complicated. Back then, Shinra was not quite a world power yet. The Kisaragi faction, however, had great foresight in the events to come. They felt the need to start more aggressive policy towards the world and its own empire. The royalty known as Kasana believed that the empire had finally entered an era of peace and stability. Thus, rebellion broke out.
Lord Godo slaughtered Vincent's parents in front of his eyes that night. He hid... he was pathetic His parents were murdered and all he could do was cry silently inside the closet. If he made the slightest noise, he probably would have died too. But he felt at the very least that he could've something... but he did nothing. Another one of his sins. Sometimes, he wished that he had gone with his parents, or fought against the Kisaragi family. But... that is the past.
Men are known to do anything to achieve their ambitions, but it is also known that the ends do not always justify the means. In this case certainly, the ends justified nothing. Wutai declared war on the corporation known as Shinra several decades later. It was looked upon as quite possibly the most moronic move that any kingdom ever made. Shinra produced weapons, and that was it. They were not a country until after the war. The Kisaragi family brought destruction upon its own great empire by poor economic, social, and foreign policies. Small disputes would occur between Shinra and Wutai for many years. However, it would be ten years after Sephiroth was finally born before the would the war actually begin.
It could be inferred that had the Kasana family continued to rule over Wutai and kept peaceful relationships with the world around it, Wutai would have been able to suppress the Shinra organization when it got too aggressive. However, a combination of economic, political, and foreign policy problems all signaled the failure of Wutai to organize an army powerful enough to stop the reign of Shinra. Shinra, through trickery and deception, gained the alliance of most people around them. The Kisaragi family was not trusted for their selfish policies. Even though Wutai was the most powerful country in the world at that time, it had no alliances. As a result of caring only about itself, the people rose against it.
This marked not only the demise of the Wutain Empire, but the rise of the most powerful country ever known to man. Shinra, Inc. would become the absolute super power of the world. However, it is also to be emphasized that the war was not without casualties on both sides. In fact, one might say that the war was extremely even in the first five years that it was fought.
During the initial ten years after the rise of the Kisaragi, Vincent would escape Wutai to the only people who would accept him because they did not know who he really was: Shinra. During this time, he learned to shoot a gun. He had a damn good shot, really. The details of his escape are unknown except for the fact that he was accompanied by a man with long blonde hair. His last name... damn... can't remember. Flash. Midgar.
Vincent parted with this man about a week after he arrived at Midgar. He was a nice guy. He said he wanted to go back to the western continent. Not Wutai. Just the western continent, away from all the troubles. He wanted to settle down. Never heard from him again.
Vincent developed quite a reputation very quickly. He changed his name to Valentine. Ah, yes... that's where he got his last name from. The man with long blonde hair was called Valentine. Anyways... Vincent developed the reputation of a tough character. He was bitter about his parents deaths and how weak he was back then. His personality was as cold as ice. He once had an incident in a bar. A thug grabbed his wine right after he paid for it. He left three holes in his head, and drank it as if nothing happened. This sort of behavior attracted the attention of a rogue organization known as the Turks. Over the next decade, it would grow into one of Shinra's most powerful assets. To put it bluntly, they were spies. However, there was a lot of dirty work on the side.
Vincent quickly became ranked very high in the Turk organization and delved deeper into the sanctums of Shinra. For four years, he steadily built up his reputation as one of the deadliest men alive. However, he slowed down quite a bit in the four years after that. He met his lover, Lucrecia. However, such love was star crossed from the start. She was the only person he ever loved, yet at the same time, it could never work out.
Lucrecia and Hojo. A flash of light leading to deeply discomforting memories. Memories of pain, failure, and crying. He could still hear the crying of the boy she named Sephiroth.
Lucrecia was a faithful wife to Hojo. Even though she truly loved Vincent, she could not leave Hojo. He was abusive, and yet... he promised her things. He told her they'd have a child. That they'd settle down and have a family. Ha, ha, ha. What a bunch of lies. What he truly wanted was to inject Jenova cells into an unborn child. He was using her... he used his wife! Yet she was too blinded by the false promises to see clearly.
Angered was an understatement when Lucrecia found out about the proposed injection. She didn't want to go through with it. She said she wanted to have a regular child. Vincent tried to convince her to leave with him, but she couldn't leave her husband. Perhaps it was fear, or perhaps... no, she couldn't possibly have loved that jerk. Hojo promised her that their child would be completely normal. The injection was to give him immunities to diseases. Ha... it would do much more than that. Another lie. So many promises.
Nothing would ever change with Hojo. Everything was a lie. Weeks before the birth, Lucrecia had to accept that fact. She had to accept it and ask for help. Yet it was several months too late. Lucrecia was in no condition to run from anything. She asked Vincent to save Sephiroth. "Take him away, Vince. Raise him as our son... please..."
Lucrecia's last request and Vincent couldn't grant it. He didn't care when people said it wasn't his fault. It was kind of like... Sephiroth needed results and not excuses. Excuses did nothing for him. Excuses and lies turned Sephiroth to insanity.
Sephiroth was the one reason he could not just die. He still felt attached to this world because of him. Yet his only choice... hah... the choice he made was to kill him. Vincent was trash. He never tried to talk to his son. His last words were, "Now it is time for your nightmare to begin." Instead of... something to try and save Sephiroth.
Now that everyone was dead, what really kept him attached to this world? What could keep him going? Why was he here...? Why did Vincent care about what happened to the Planet now that everyone that was important to he and Lucrecia were dead?
Every few hours, he would think of suicide. Today was the day that Vincent was supposed to go back and fight Shinra. What would Cloud think if he found his body dead. He gripped the revolver again.
"Why am I here anyways..." Vincent shakily held the gun that pointed to his face. Suicide... what would they think?
"I'll be gone from this world anyways... their thoughts won't even matter! I hate this world... I've failed everyone I've ever loved..." Vincent dropped to his knees, water filling up in his eyes. It was pure torture trying to keep them in. Even alone, he tried to keep himself from crying. He didn't want to cry in his last moments.
The gun... the trigger... he continued to shake it. All he had to do was pull the trigger and it would all be over. He'd have no more thoughts, no more feelings. He'd merely become part of lifestream. A flowing river of life, held together by the Planet's thoughts. If the others were angry or sad at him, he'd feel no guilt. All his sadness and remorse for his failure would... disappear.
"One..." He shook the gun even faster, fearing the afterlife, but unable to escape the fact that being on this world would forever be painful. "Two..." The pain was unbearable. He couldn't take it any longer. The number three marked the removal of his guilt.
There was nothing stopping him from it. This was the time to do it, if there was ever a time. And every man must die, therefor... there would have to be an eventual time of death. This was it. Even if Sephiroth wasn't his son as he had thought for so long... even if Hojo was his father... he still failed. He still could have saved Sephiroth. It did not matter if Hojo or he was the father... It was Lucrecia's son. There was no excuse... no room for excuses. There was only room for results. Vincent failed.
"...." The number three. It was so hard to say it now. Three... why couldn't his mouth move to say it. His clothes were already red... the blood would merely blend in. Why was it so hard to just pull the trigger.
So many memories flashed back. It was as if the memories were trying to save him, yet they only brought him torture. They were having the opposite effect. Vincent Valentine was being killed by his own mind. If he didn't do it now, he'd eventually go insane. "I... have... nothing... to...live for..."
"TH-R----EE!!!!" His hand shakily pulled the trigger.
The sound of the shot blasted through the room.
Vincent's eyes blurred, the ceiling above him was collapsing... Black spots slowly took up every part of his vision. The pain... he was bleeding at an uncontrollable rate. The blood poured out of his skin. The place where the bullet buried itself... held Vincent's last thoughts. Pain.
Yet at the same time, the pain was taking him to a better place. Everything was black, and he started feeling numb. And finally, Vincent fell unconcious. The era of pain and guilt was over. Vincent Valentine was dead.
The voices of two could be heard in the darkness of space. One was full of evil joy and carelessness, while the other was serious, saying few words. It was infact so dark, no descriptions could be made of anything.
The sound of laughter could be heard. "It looks like one of our enemies is...incapable of fighting at the moment. What do you think about that?" A glimpse of red hair could be seen.
A deep, cold voice replied to the careless one. "It doesen't matter..."
"Of course it does. That just makes things alot easier for us, does it not?" He sounded like a young boy, naive and thoughtless. He was just a shadow to the other voice.
"The one you speak of does not matter." Cold and serious. There was no happiness in the voice at all. Like he had no soul. And yet, there was a soul... otherwise, he would have no energy to remain on this world.
"He's one of the stronger fighters, you know." The boy tried to make a point to his apparent master, but to no avail.
'"There were only two that I ever cared about. And they are both dead." It was also apparent that this person was very strong. He feared no one.
"Why is it that you care about them? They died... that means they are weaker than the others." The naive boy spoke again. He still foolishly tried to make a point to his master.
"They were the only ones capable of using High Materia." High Materia...
"What is High Materia?" The boy had very little knowledge, as well. Although he knew quite a bit compared to most Cetra.
"High Materia is Materia filled with Cetra lifeforce. Many Cetra sacrificed their lives making High Materia capable of battling the Calamity From the Skies. Yes, the Calamity from the Skies was a Jen. High Materia is made of stronger Mako than that which was used to cultivate the Planet. I'm not suprised you asked... but you should have looked it up after Meteor was called." He sighed. He needed more competent people to work with.
"So... anyways... I guess I have some bad news."
"Yes?"
"I've detected the energy of a High Materia user walking the Planet again."
"Which one?"
"The one who summoned Meteor." Sephiroth. The man in the black cloak. The man with the "thirteen" tatoo. The world's strongest soldier.
"He alone does not matter. Although he will eventually need to be taken care of." He truly feared no one.
"So... should I send another Jen to take him out? Or should I do the honors myself? Hehe..."
"I doubt someone with such feeble power could take him out. If you'd like to try, go ahead. I'd rather him enter the tournament and die there."
"What tournament?" The boy asked in curiosity.
"You are dismissed."
"I will go dispose of the High Materia user. I'm quite a bit stronger than I let you know, Master." Pop. His energy traces disappeared from the room.
"Few can hide their energy from me. The caller of Meteor is stronger." He let out a short chuckle. "I have much bigger plans for you, my friend..."
Another presence entered the room.
"Certainly you do not plan to let Nasami try to kill Sephiroth." An evil laughter could be heard, with much more confidence than the boys laughter. This one was truly a fierce warrior.
"Nasami is indeed wreckless. Too wreckless to remain in my service. I see it a fitting death. He will die trying to please me. Haha... as if I'd reward him for something that could be done so easily by myself."
"That is what I thought. Yet, you know he has a chance. What if he somehow wins?" Light started to fill the room on the side of the new stranger.
"Please keep the light away from me. And if he wins, I will kill him." The darkness stayed on the side of the Master.
"Are you afraid the light will burn you?" The stranger could finally be described. He had light blue hair reaching down to his shoulders. Thin and wavy. His attire was all light blue. In fact, his skin was the same as well. A katana could be seen in his hand with a glint of blood at the tip. If he was human, he'd be in his mid-twenties.
"..." No response.
"You know, I think I have a better idea. Why don't I kill Nasami next time I see him?" He cackled gleefully. A pleasurable kill, no doubt.
"His life has no meaning to me. Do what you will." Pop. The stranger disappeared just like that.
Sephiroth neared Mount Nibel. It was there that he died for the first time to Cloud Strife. And beyond that... was the key to his insanity. The Jenova Project and the burning flames of Nibelheim were just over that mountain. Ah, yes, the tragedy of Nibelheim.
Back then... after Sephiroth discovered what he really was. He was produced by Professor Gast. Not born. Or was he...? What he did really know about who he was? Everyone always told him that Jenova was his mother. Could such a thing give birth to him? Who would be the husband of that creature? It made no sense. Would he not look a beast just like her if she was truly his mother? None of it made any sense.
After he discovered the artificially produced humans, Sephiroth retreated into the depths of the Nibelheim library in the Shinra Mansion. He studied the reports. He could faintly remember what he said that day.
"...an organism that was apparently dead, was found in a 2000 year old geological stratum. Professor Gast named that organism, Jenova... X Year, X Month, X Day. Jenova confirmed to be an Ancient ...X Year, X Month, X Day. Jenova Project approved. The use of Mako Reactor I approved for use... My mother's name is Jenova... Jenova Project... Is this just a coincidence? Professor Gast... Why didn't you tell me anything? ...Why did you die?" Sephiroth laughed at the irony of his life, and continued to read. For days. There was not a single instance in which the lights in that library went out.
Several days later, he came to a conclusion. There is no doubt that the poisons of Jenova had reached out into his mind at this point. At this time, Sephiroth was undeniably influenced and no longer completely responsible for his actions. A spiky haired kid came to check on him. Annoying kid. He was dressed in the standard blue Shinra uniform, but lacked the helmet. Silly fools. They wasted their time bothering him. "Ha, ha, ha...... Who is it!? Hmph... traitor." His voice was cool and raspy.
The soldier looked baffled. "Traitor?"
Sephiroth laughed coldly again. "You ignorant traitor. I'll tell you. This was an itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, then move on... At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the Promised Land and supreme happiness. But, those who stopped their migrations built shelters and elected to lead an easier life. They took that which the Cetra and the planet had made without giving back one whit in return! Those are your ancestors." Sephiroth unsheathed his Masamune and sliced the table in half, laughing louder than before. His voice was no longer cool, but full of malice and fury. It was distinct change worth noting.
"Sephiroth..." The soldier was stunned with fear.
"Long ago, disaster struck this planet. Your ancestors escaped... They survived because they hid. The Planet was saved by sacrificing the Cetra. After that, your ancestors continued to increase. Now all that's left of the Cetra is in these reports."
"What does that have to do with you?..." Completely shocking. The once calm, cool, collected soldier... totally shocking.
Sephiroth glared at him with vigor. "Don't you get it!? An Ancient named Jenova was found in the geological stratum of 2000 years ago. The Jenova Project. The Jenova Project wanted to produce people with the powers of the Ancients...... no, the Cetra! ...I am the one that was produced." His voice calmed down now. It was back to normal. Cool and raspy.
"Pr...produced!?" Was it possible to produce human beings? Could people be "created'?
"Yes. Professor Gast, leader of the Jenova Project and genius scientist, produced me." He laughed harshly.
"How...how did he...? Se...Sephiroth?" He stared in disbelief.
"Out of my way. I'm going to see my mother." There was a strange look in his eyes. It was as if he was disconnected from reality. This was the beginning of the tragedy. Ironic, however, was the fact that no one ever knew about it. It was covered up. A malfunction in the Mako reactor. Shinra was good at covering up things like that. However, reguardless of who knew about it, it was one of the most horrible atrocities ever known. Innocent people, kids, men, women, there was no prejudice to those that Sephiroth killed.
You could hear the fire crackling from miles away. The entire town was being burned to ashes. Not a single home was left unscathed by this disaster. Everything was just... burning... so horrible. Sephiroth stood in the middle of the town laughing. "Traitors! Ha, ha, ha! You shall all repent for the sins of your pathetic ancestors!" He thrusted his sword through an old man's body, lifted it up, and threw it with such force that the poor man's body was smashed into the raging fire. One by one, he killed every person that he could see.
Sephiroth slaughtered innocents without remorse. Another slash. The child was disemboweled. He grinned, and thrusted forth into a pregnant woman. "Every death repents another sin. Yet you must all die before the sin is completely repented for!" He had become a maniac killer. Crackle. The screams of the poor people being murdered senselessly could barely be heard over the crackling of fire. The village burned... burned to ashes.
Sephiroth turned his back to the flames with a grin of true malice. He no longer felt emotions or pain. He would purge the Planet of such traitors. Yet he musn't keep Mother waiting. Sephiroth began walking towards the reactor where Jenova was supposedly sealed.
Sephiroth walked across the steel pipe bridge that would lead him to Jenova. Yet a foolish man stood in his way.
"How could you do this to our town, you bastard? Have you no remorse?"
Sephiroth shrugged his shoulders. "I won't ask you to move." He was immediately impaled by the force of Sephiroth's mighty blade. Sephiroth walked right by the corpse, leaving the Masamune to lie in the wound. He would get it later. Ah, the crimson staircase! He walked up the stairs as his cloak steadily waved behind him. So close, so close!
"Mother, I'm here to see you. Please, open this door." Locked. Sealed. She would open it soon.
"How could you do that to papa and all the townspeople?" It was the guide. The moronic girl was carrying his blade. Silly girl. He would kill her too. "Fuck you!" Tifa ran up the stairs and with all her energy and might, slashed the mighty blade at Sephiroth. Yet it was not enough. He snatched the sword right out of her hands and laughed. What a moronic girl. Didn't even know how to hold it.
"Because..." His eyes flashed a darker shade of green. "I hate them." He slashed Tifa across the chest and the strength of it threw her all the way down the stairs. Most likely fatal. Most definitely. He grinned as the door magically unsealed itself.
"Stop!!" Another moron. Why was everyone trying to stop him? Ha, ha. It mattered not! Just another person to slaughter. He turned around grinning.
"It all ends here, Sephiroth. I will kill you. Do you not see what a plague you have become?" Black hair. Soldier... he was the soldier who originally accompanied him to the reactor.
"Traitor." The kid ran up to him, just like Tifa. And just like Tifa, he slashed him with great force and he fell down the stairs with a similar fate to the guide.
"I am here, Mother dear."
"Mother, let's take this planet back together. I've thought of a great idea. Let's go to the Promised Land." Supreme happiness... to take back what was his! But... someone was there. Who disturbed him at his moment of triumph? Who would dare!?
"Sephiroth... My family! My hometown! How could you do this to them!?" The damn traitor! That pathetic little soldier... his bones would litter the floor soon enough.
"Ha, ha, ha...... They've come again, mother. With her superior power, knowledge, and magic, Mother was destined to become the ruler of the Planet." He looked up at the mechanical recreation of Jenova, his Mother. Ha, ha. What a silly machine to keep her trapped. He would rip it apart and free her.
"But they... Those worthless creatures are stealing the planet from Mother But now I'm here with you so don't worry." He grabbed the upper part of her armor and lifted it up off her. Blood spewed onto Sephiroth's black cloak, he did not care. You could see her now... Jenova. Her skin was blue from being frozen for many years. She was a fragile, alien looking woman. So fragile... her body parts were like a normal human beings, but they were distorted and unproportional. It was strange.
The air was uneasy. The boy... Cloud, was it? Yes, Cloud. Little Cloud drew a sword against Sephiroth! "What about MY sadness!? My family... friends... The sadness of having my hometown taken away from me!? It's the same as your sadness!"
Fool. "Ha, ha, ha... my sadness? What do I have to be sad about? I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to be the leader of this Planet. I have orders to take this planet back from you stupid people for the Cetra. What am I supposed to be sad about?"
"Sephiroth... I trusted you... No, you're not the Sephiroth I used to know!" Cloud assumed a battle stance, ready to fight Sephiroth. He was far too weak to even hope to overcome Sephiroth. What... what a fool.
"Die, miserable wretch!" Sephiroth slashed him aside with his monolith Masamune. "You plan to kill me, yet you cannot lay a single blade on me? Insignificant fool. Ha, ha, ha. Let us go, Mother! Let us seek the Promised Land." He ripped her head off. He... ripped... her... head... off... With his left arm, he held her head in his hand. Blue skin, disproportionate eyes, and a huge red stone glared out of her. Yet she did not bleed. In his right, he carried his great blade.
"Mother, I will help you regenerate soon. For now... to the Temple of the Ancients? Yes... yes... I will." He continued walking down through the pod room, down the crimson stairs, across the pipe that lead to the exit. But... No, no one would just leave him alone. They all wanted to die, apparently. Yes, he would kill them all.
"Sephiroth!!" Cloud.
...Sephiroth didn't waste his breath on anymore words. He immediately stabbed Cloud deep into his chest. "Don't... push... your luck..."
Yet Cloud didn't die. Sephiroth missed. Cloud was holding the blade with his bare hands. They were bleeding deeply, but the pain didn't matter to him anymore. "You... this is your retribution!"
"...It can't be!" Sephiroth was being lifted into the air by his own sword. No... this was... the end...
Sephiroth was thrown into the reactor... into the Mako. No one... no one could have survived that fall into pure Mako.
X Day, X Month, X Year: Sephiroth dies in reactor accident. Little or no damage to the town. No deaths aside from Sephiroth.
Sephiroth passed through Rocket Town easily enough. He was thought to be merely a wanderer. He had to give most of the credit to his black cloak. Because he went unnoticed, he found out some interesting things.
He had seen the Highwind leaving East. There could have only been one reason for that. They were regrouping to fight Shinra. He did not know why it went East, though. Southeast would have been the quickest route. Heading to Cosmos Canyon, and then East seemed much more logical to him. Then again, Sephiroth was a psychopath...
Sephiroth was not wounded at all in his travels. The monsters stayed away from him. It was a very tiring journey, however. He needed more rest before he could navigate Mount Nibel. Physically and more importantly, mentally. The memories of the first time he came in contact with Jenova were powerful.
The first time he fought Cloud Strife.
And lost.
Quickly, Sephiroth headed to the forest right next to the entrance of Mount Nibel. It was there that he burned a small portion of the forest to scare any monsters away and give him some warmth during the cold night. He slept once again, but like the many nights before, he had dreams of painful memories.
Tomorrow was a big day.