He felt tears forming in his eyes. Felt them slip down his cheeks to sink into the dust and grime under his feet. Silently Cloud closed his eyes and turned his head away, ashamed at his own speed to get into the reactor and help.

'But Zack told you to stay put!' something inside him screamed. Despite is volume, Cloud still ignored that sensible voice. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. Tifa could die- Zack could die- and it would be all his fault.

'all my fault. If only I had been just a little faster in getting in here!' The blond slammed his fist onto the ground, trembling from head to toe in rage. He could he have been so foolish.

"Mother, come- We will take the planet back together…"

Cloud jerked his head up suddenly, the cruel but soft voice of the General drifting through his self-pity and pain. No. Sephiroth wasn't the general anymore. He was the enemy.

His soft blue eyes fell on Tifa, bloody and beaten, her breath coming in short, thin intakes that were hardly noticeable. Maybe if he couldn't save her- if he couldn't have moved any faster-

He spun around, rising as he did so, snatching up Zack's fallen sword. It was heavy in his hands, but one to many practice sessions with Ivy has gotten him used to its unusual weight. Lifting it from the ground he dashed towards Jenova's chamber.

Every thought, every movement, every breath was swiftly drawn from his body. His only thought was rage. Rage and revenge. He would not let Sephiroth get away with this. He refused to let him get away with this. First his home, then Tifa, then the only person who had ever been his friend- if he lost them all he would make sure Sephiroth wouldn't forget it, or the world forgot Sephiroth.

He didn't even realize what he had done until it was finished with. The Buster sword, its bulky blade driven into Sephiroth's body, the silver haired man kneeling in front of him, hands trying desperately to dislodge the blade from where Cloud had pushed it through.

"Aaarrrgh...…"

He gasped, green eyes for the first time filled with a sudden fear. His head jerked up to look at the guard in blue.

"Mom…"Cloud hissed through clenched teeth, gripping the swords hilt tighter. He sunk the blade a little deeper into Sephiroth's side, glaring from behind the helmet. "Tifa... my town... give it back!"

With a foul gasp of pain, the one hero worshiped general manage to gasp out "who... who are you?"

Cloud shook still, but managed to yank the blade from Sephiroth's body. His eyes filled with tears. All those things he had thought this man was-

"I had so much respect for you... I admired you…" He snapped, fighting a sob. Were all the tales lies? No. They couldn't have been. Sephiroth was just horrible inside. All the stories of his brave efforts in the war. All the tales of how he saved villages full of people, and how is men always trusted him- those were true. But it was just for fame and glory it seemed. Just for something to attach to his name. For the money Shinra dished out.

For his duty to Midgar and Shinra. Never for himself. If it was-

Those people would have died, as Cloud was dying inside.

He turned from Sephiroth, who almost coward under his eyes. He would let him die. He wouldn't finish it quickly for him. Let Sephiroth suffer and die. Let him feel what Cloud felt. Let him know this was how so many others experienced their ends just the evening before. Let him feel weak.

Cloud yanked off his helmet, sweat soaked hair plastered to his head. His eyes stared down at the blue item, his mind screaming. He shook his head, feeling the tears roll down his cheeks, dropping to splatter like his dreams onto the smooth, glossy surface of the helmet. So much like his dreams. Perfect and beautiful and flawless on the outside-

He dropped the helmet, walking back towards the first chamber, pulling off his gloves as he did so. He wanted nothing more to do with Shinra..

But just as the helmet was like his dreams, reality was hidden behind it. Shinra made the helmet. Shinra lied to him and so many people. Shinra sent death to his home, not hope. Not a hero. Reality destroyed all he ever had. Shinra destroyed all he had ever had.

He shook his head, trying to stop the flow of pain from his eyes. He needed to keep his head in the here and now. He couldn't slip into his tears.

And the moment his eyes caught sight of Tifa, everything was erased. His mind flew only to helping her. He rushed to her side, dropping Zack's blade out of the way, his hands swiftly wrapping about Tifa's motionless body. He lifted her gently, eyes on her frightened and strained face.

'If I had only made it into SOLDIER, none of this would have happened. If I wasn't so stupid as to go off and join SOLDIER , this never would have happened to you. If only…'

He swallowed hard, leaning her body up against the wall of the reactor, kneeling next to her. His hand brushed away strands of her dark chocolate hair, pushed the locks behind her ear.

'I'm sorry Tifa…I couldn't keep…Our promise…'

Cloud's eyes watched her face for a moment more, before they were torn from her to glance behind him. Shuffling feet on a dirty floor-

And Sephiroth emerged from the depths of the blue sheltered room. One hand gripped the masumane, dragging the blade along the floor. He limped, face screwing up in pain with every step. Cloud just watched him, eyes wide. How could Sephiroth even manage to walk after what he had done?

Sephiroth didn't even look at him as he limped by, but Cloud knew better then to think himself invisible. Sephiroth had always known everything that went on in a room. He had to know that Cloud was there. Cloud watched him a moment longer, just long enough to see him limp out towards the next section, and then he'd be at the door and-

'He's be free!' He couldn't let that happen. Cloud scrambled for his sword, running towards the door. Towards Sephiroth. But if the man could still walk, he could still use that sword of his. What if Cloud suddenly was going to be used as a new sheath?

"C-…Cl…" Cloud stopped his train of thought, eyes jerking to his right. Zack was trying to sit up, slowly, but he only gasped and fell back down. His face was scrunched up in pain. "Cloud…Kill…kill Sephiroth…"

And that made up his mind, pushing all his fears away. He'd do that. It was the least he could do. He'd avenge Zack. And Tifa. And all the people in his town. His mother.

He lifted the Buster Sword higher, racing into the next section of the reactor, stepping over the dead body of Mr. Lockhart.

"Sephiroth!"

The soldier stopped, and now Cloud could see clearly what he had been carrying in his other hand.

A severed head. The head of Jenova.

He didn't even have time to tremble or have fleeting thoughts. Suddenly Sephiroth's blade was a blur of silver in front of him, then jammed under his arm, pressed close enough against his uniform and body that if the young man sunk down just a hair he'd bleed.

He had meant to miss. If he had meant to strike-

"Don't-" Hissed Sephiroth, eyes full of fire-"Push-Your Luck."

Cloud swallowed. How was he going to get out of this?

'Kill Sephiroth…'

His hands grabbed the blade of the masamune. He watched as his own blood danced on the blades surface. He shook with pain and fear suddenly, but willed himself to move the blade, to push it from him. Sephiroth was weak-

"..it…It cant be-" Sephiroth whispered. Cloud ignored him. Ignored the pain in his hands. Ignored his sorrow. Ignored everything but Zack's words. He's do that for the raven haired man. Zack had done so much for him. Just the little things more then outweighed this request of Sephiroth's death. Just the little things. He'd fulfill Zack's request. He'd do it for the simple little moments. For all the moments. For all the smiles. If Sephiroth caused that to be taken away, Cloud was more then happy to have Sephiroth suffer as Cloud would.

With a cry, and a gasp from Cloud, Sephiroth suddenly was swung towards the edge of the thin walkway. His cry as he fell filled Cloud's head, and all the strength he had consumed to hold the blade and push Sephiroth into the mako bellow, and all the strength he had used to block his pain, died. His body filled with mixed feelings. Anguish , both internal and external, consumed him. He felt sick and weak all at once. The room spun from all that was happened. He just wanted to-

'I did it, Zack…'

He fell to his knees, then forward more, a gray film consuming his vision, the room spinning.

'don't…don't die, please…don't let me die…life…things have gotten so horrible now…but…I just want to sleep. I just want to dream. Dream of everything that has happened…Remember all those little moments…everyone's smiles…'

And as his eyes slipped closed, he saw a blur of purple and red rushing towards him. His first and last thought, before all freedom and thoughts of anything but pain were tosses away, was that this was Death. Death, coming to whisk him away to a place where he would never suffer from anything ever again. And as his dropped out of consciousness, he wished desperately that if this was his end, Zack and Tifa would join him in the sweet pleasure of a paradise. He didn't want them to suffer, and he didn't want to be lonely.