Chapter 8: Ancient City

It is two weeks later, and Sephiroth's leg has healed remarkably well. He has the sheath that he found in the Ruins of Midgar. He has told Cloud about the encounter with Aeris, and his need to go to the City of the Ancients. Cloud agrees to go along with him. He also wants to know why Aeris wants to show something, especially right now, and like this. So he calls Cid to pick them up and help fly them in the Highwind.

"Hey Sephiroth…I just spoke with Cid this morning." Cloud says as he hangs up the phone.

"Cid... Cid... Guy with a dirty mouth?" Sephiroth asks as he remembers the name.

"Yup, ha-ha. That's him hey, did you know him?" Cloud asks, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Heh, I haven't seen him since…I guess it'd be 10 years ago." Sephiroth smiles and leans back in his chair as Cloud sits down across from him. Tifa steps in with a tray full of glasses. "Oh, thank you Tifa." Stretching out his arm, he takes hold of one of the soda-filled glasses.

"Oh yeah, thanks hon." Mutters Cloud, taking a soda for himself from the tray. Tifa smiles and sits down at the table between the men.

"You're both welcome, what are you two talking about?" Cloud pauses to take a long drink from his glass,

"Valeria was about to tell us how he knew Cid before, I didn't know that guy got around so much." Sephiroth drank quickly from the glass, downing the soda in record time. He pauses a moment while setting the glass back down, and looks dazed for a moment.

"I don't remember it having so many (Burp) bubbles." His cheeks flush a light red as he covers his mouth. Tifa giggles, taking a small sip from her glass.

"You're not supposed to drink it so fast hone-...Valeria." Cloud shoots her an alarmed look and raises an eyebrow, now both Sephiroth and Tifa are blushing at the table. There is an awkward silence for a moment until Sephiroth speaks.

"Erm, back on topic... Cid used to be a trainer for beginning pilots. He piloted that small airplane, the Tiny Bronco I believe, before he designed and built the much bigger Highwind. He flew us over to Wutai when a battle was to be waged. Shin Ra and Wutai are horrible enemies. But I saved a bunch of Wutaians since the Shin Ra soldiers didn't expect me to be there, fighting for them. How is he?" Sephiroth smiles.

"Well, Cid is the same old man who uses dirty language as often as possible. And, of course, he still loves Shera's tea." Cloud chuckles as he scratches his head.

"Heh…nothing new." Sephiroth smiles then hears the roar of an engine over the town.

"Ah, that'd be him," Cloud says as he gets up and walks to the door, grabbing his bag along the way. "Let's go." Sephiroth nods as he gets up and walks out of Cloud's house along with Red and Tifa. The Highwind sets down just outside of town and waits for Sephiroth's team to get in. Sephiroth hears a voice from the Highwind, "Cloud! Get your fuckin' asses in now before I make ya pay for gas!" Sephiroth chuckles as he climbs into the Highwind. Cloud stares at the Highwind as though he's never seen it before. The Highwind has been changed a lot since Meteor. The Highwind seems like it has been combined with the old buggy and the Tiny Bronco to form an insane monstrosity of a vehicle. Cloud finally climbs into the Highwind.

"Who the fuck are you!" Cid points at Sephiroth. Sephiroth smiles as he lowers Cid's hand down.

"Hello, Aya!"

"What...! How the fuckin' did you know my middle name!" Cid blinks at Sephiroth.

"What…you don't remember? We used to ride on that little airplane over to Wutai, around 10 years ago?" Sephiroth chuckles as Cid's eyes widen.

"Only two people know my middle name are me and--" Cid pauses as he remembers the only person that always called him by that name. "No fuckin' way! You are fuckin' not him!" Cid's mouth drops open as he stares at Sephiroth.

"Cloud! Are you fuckin' out of your mind! What is Sephiroth doing in MY Highwind!" Cid screams at Cloud before starting to wheeze. He grabs a cigarette from his pocket and puts it on his lip. He lights it up and inhales heavily then coughs out a stream of blue smoke. The smoke trails out in front of Sephiroth.

"Aya…relax, man. I'm just plain ol' Sephiroth. The person you fought was just a clone of me created by Jenova. Call me Valeria now, gets less attention." Sephiroth pats Cid's back as he continues to wheeze.

"I can't fuckin' believe this!" Cid slowly stops coughing as Cloud scratches his head and clears his throat.

"Hope you went before you got on, I ain't stopping." Cid mumbles as he turns a dial and sends the airship up on a roar of air. Tifa slips close and pokes Sephiroth,

"Aya is Cid's middle name?" Tifa whispers in Sephiroth's ear. Sephiroth nods and snickers softly.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP! I don't want those people to know my fuckin' middle name!" Cid screams back at Sephiroth through the shrieking winds.

"…Sorry," Sephiroth smiles then whispers, "…Aya." Cid growls at Sephiroth and open his mouth to speak, just as they hit an air pocket that sent him back to the controls to steady the ship. The green lands below rush by at a dizzying speed, then settles down to land next to the ancient city.

"I'll be waiting for you guys." Cid says, glaring at Sephiroth.

"Ouch, Aya…er Cid." Sephiroth snickers, "Well, let's go." He steps out of the Highwind along with Red, Tifa and Cloud. Sephiroth looks around the area that seems to have not changed since the last time he was here. The four of them walk to the middle hut and step inside. Sephiroth looks at the illusion fish and reaches out to touch it, but picks up a scent and looks around.

"What?" Cloud looks at Sephiroth.

"Familiar scent…let me guess…Vincent?" Sephiroth searches for Vincent. Vincent appears from nowhere and walks toward Sephiroth's team.

"Yes…it is me," Vincent says as he looks at Sephiroth, "Mind if I join you?" Sephiroth nods as he looks back at the Illusion fish and speaks in an unknown language. The illusion fish begin to disappear and a path appears before them. They walk down a long path that ends at a pool of sacred water. (A/N: This is where Aeris was carried, and dropped into the water.) Sephiroth solemnly steps into the hut next to the water.

Suddenly, a white aura begins to glow around Sephiroth; as the light intensifies, it blinds everybody. Sephiroth shields his eyes from the brightness and feels the wind calm down. He opens his eyes once more and finds himself in... a forest. He looks around, puzzled.

"Cloud! Tifa? Guys?" Sephiroth yells as he looks around. He finds that he is alone…again.

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Cloud, Tifa and Red open their eyes and find themselves in the land along the water. Cloud looks around and finds that Sephiroth is nowhere to be seen. Vincent has seemingly disappeared also.

"Sephiroth! Vincent!" Cloud yells. Tifa hugs Cloud and whispers that she is scared. Red sniffs the air to see if he can find any scents, but to no avail.

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Vincent opens his eyes and looks around. He finds himself in a town. (A/N: I couldn't remember what town it was where Vincent and Lurecica were together before she left him.)

"What the," Vincent's voice trails off as he remembers this place as the town where Lurecica left him. Suddenly, a figure wrapped in a white aura walks out of an alleyway toward Vincent. He blinks at the figure, stunned and trying to see who the figure is. The white aura fades as the person steps closer to reveal...

"Lurecica!" Vincent whispers as he stares at the figure.

"Yes, Vincent." Lurecica smiles as her body become real, solidifying before his eyes.

"It can't be! You were lost to me!" Vincent looks away from Lurecica, unsure of what to do.

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Sephiroth hears noise through the thick trees, and follows the sound. He starts running through the forest as he realizes there is a white light shining out through the thick foliage. He runs into a clearing and stops in his tracks; a bunch of people are fighting against monsters.

"What the hell!" Sephiroth blinks. The people don't even realize that Sephiroth is here. It's as if he doesn't exist to them. Sephiroth sees that a tall man with black hair stands by a silver haired man's side. That black haired man looks like…Vincent? Sephiroth blinks again and he thinks he must be imagining all this. "Did I bang my head on that rickety old heap of Cid's?"

"Sephiroth…as you see them, their battle was started two thousand years ago. The Cetra fought against Jenova and her monsters." The figure's voice seems like it's coming from far away, even as it walks toward Sephiroth. He spins around and sees the person, and is once again blinded by the light.

"…Aeris!" Sephiroth is shocked. He hasn't seen Aeris for long time, since she was a child, in fact. He stares at Aeris, thinking that she is a beautiful woman now, amazed at how she's grown since being a child.

"Yes, Sephiroth. It's so wonderful to see you again." Aeris smiles.

"What is this? Who are those two people? They look just like me and Vincent." Sephiroth points at the two men, locked in a fierce fight against a horde of monsters. Aeris looks at the two people and sighs.

"You see, they are not Vincent or you. They were heroes who once stopped Jenova. However, their power was not enough to cleanse Jenova, so they decided to seal Jenova by sacrificing themselves." Aeris explains. Sephiroth nods and notices the long sword the silver haired man is holding. "Masamune…he pulled the Masamune out!" Sephiroth points at the silver haired man.

"Yes, it is the same Masamune you use. It is over four thousand years old. You can see why it is called The Legendary Masamune. You just know how to use it without training. Do you know why?" Aeris looks at Sephiroth as he shakes his head.

"That silver haired man is named Alludar. He chose you, and his soul transferred into your body when you were born. You were re born to use the Masamune against Jenova and you had a chance to once again kill Jenova while she slept in the chamber. But you failed somehow." Aeris explains as her voice seems to echo from far away.

"The one with Alludar is named Alex, his brother." Aeris answers. Sephiroth looks up at the mirrored version of himself and then looks back at Aeris.

"Of course, Vincent Valentine is not your brother. Alex, on the other hand, had chosen Vincent Valentine to be his avatar in order to be with Alludar and kill Jenova." Aeris explains. Sephiroth remembers losing the Masamune to the clone of himself before Jenova transferred her soul into his body.

"My Masamune…it might be in the crater where the clone was destroyed…" Sephiroth looks up as Alludar raises his hand and watches as it begins to glow with a strange aura that then flows into the Masamune, allowing it to develop the power to slaughter monsters, "Whoa…what's that white aura?" he stares at Alludar. "Those two, are neither humans; nor Cetra." Aeris answers.

"What are they?" Sephiroth asks as he was beginning to wonder about the history of Cetra and Jenova.

"Dragons. Dragons that incarnate a human host to bring their influence into this world. Alludar was a silver dragon known as the Holy Dragon. Alex was a black dragon known as the Death Dragon. They were able to combine their powers in order to take the release Jenova's hold on this place. Together, they saved the Cetra and stopped Jenova. It was a terrible cost, many people died fighting for their world against Lord Jenova's rule." Aeris explains.

"Wait a minute…Jenova was…male?" Sephiroth blinks at Aeris. The scene around them swirled like a mist in a strong wind until they were within a stone throne room. The harsh sound of steel rang out through the room as two men fought savagely nearby. Sephiroth saw the silver-haired Alludar duel with a darkly robed man.

"Demon! Your reign ends now!" Yells the warrior, his Masamune a blur of attacks on the robed man. Lord Jenova carried no weapon, but smirked as the Masamune's blade was turned away by a magical force with each stroke.

"Pathetic fool, your might is as grass pounding upon rock. How eagerly you rush to your death!" The air shimmered around him as the magical energies protecting him shot out, throwing Alludar to the floor.

"Now brother! The shield!" Alludar yelled as he fell, his arm twisting into a gruesome position from the fall. Without a sound, Alex leapt out from the shadows and stabbed his blade through the magical field, weakened from its attack on Alludar. A hiss escaped the lips of Lord Jenova as blood stained his brown robes.

"Yes. Jenova was embodied within a male before he was defeated four thousand years ago. The Jenova here perished, but was reborn inside a woman. That woman was Alludar's wife, Diane. Jenova took over Diane's body and controlled her." Sephiroth's view fades again as the scene around him slides into the living room of a nicely kept home. Alludar comes into focus, weeping and cradling the body of a seemingly dead woman. His tears fall onto the fresh bandages that cover his arm. As he weeps, the woman's corpse begins to stir.

"Please, please let it be true!" His hand takes hold of his wife's as a soft smile covers her face. An unnatural, dry laugh escapes Diane's lip that sends shivers down Alludar's spine. The sound is like the sound of leaves crunching, made into a hideous laugh. She throws Alludar backwards and gets to her feet in a smooth motion. Speaking in an unknown language, a black aura begins to form around her body. Her hair turns silver from brown. Her eyes turn silver from green. Her body shifts and molds itself from a human state to that of a monster. Sephiroth nearly covers his face in disgust.

The door slams open as the dark-haired Alex steps through, gasping at the horrible transformation.

"Al, we have to seal her before she finishes the call for Meteor! We must sacrifice ourselves to form the seal and protect the world." Alludar's face seems to go blank as he nods.

"You're right. We don't have enough power to kill this Jenova. It's the only way." Alludar says as he closes his eyes. Alex closes his eyes also, and reaches out to take his brother's hand. They speak another unknown language, their words forming a vapor in the air that seem to drift onto Jenova. Alludar's body is covered by a silver-white aura, the light glows from within his body and quickly encompasses his entire body. Alex's body is also consumed, his aura darker than the pitch left after a fire. Their auras form into one, and move to encompass Jenova as well.

"What? No, NO! NOOOOOO!" Jenova screams as the two Dragons' aura's cocoon her body. The Dragon brothers seal Jenova's body within themselves as the swirling aura fades in the room, leaving only a dark lump of rock behind. The armies of Jenova scattered, and degraded into mobs of robbers and bandits. Meteor, which could faintly be seen, disappeared. The Cetra cheered for their victory, but could not explain the loss of their heroes, or Diane. Searching their home, they discovered the small lump of rock within their old home. They decided to seal the black materia at the Temple of the Ancients. Another flash blinds Sephiroth, forcing him to shield his eyes. He hears a roar around him, from a great wind that keeps him from breathing. He opens his eyes as the wind dies down and finds himself back at the Temple of the Ancients.

Cloud, Tifa and Red find themselves on the top of a large hill. The sun beams down on them warmly, as the three look around.

"I hope Sephiroth and Vincent are okay." Tifa says as she peers over the side of the steep hill. "That's a huge drop!" She whispers, stumbling backwards to get away from the near-vertical cliff side. Cloud holds her shoulders to steady her as he looks down into a sea of fog. The land below is covered with a sea of white mist, blending with the sky as Cloud squinted to find the horizon. Red sniffs the air and shrugs.

"Well, we were just whisked away from the City of the Ancients, least now we've got a better view." Suddenly, a white aura glows in front of them, forming form the blades of glass blanketing the hilltop. The aura wavers a moment, and seems to struggle to grow brighter. Finally, a weak voice floats out from inside the light.

"Cloud?"

"Aeris!" Cloud cries, the voice unmistakable. Tifa gasps, a stunned look on her face. Red's eyes narrow into slits of suspicion as he sniffs the air again.

"Cloud, Tifa and Red. I am here to tell you something very important…" The voice within the apparition seems to flicker, each word sounding as if echoed back from a far-off wall.

"What is it?" Cloud asks.

"Sephiroth…"

"What about him?"

"Sephiroth must be protected. Avoid allowing him to transform into a dragon. Please, protect him. If he transforms, his dragon heart will be vulnerable to Jenova. He may be the only one that can save the world now." The flicker of a sigh is heard; Cloud, Tifa and Red look at each other for a moment in disbelief, then back towards the white glow.

"Yeah, we will try. We'll protect him." Cloud says.

"If Sephiroth rage is stirred, you must calm him down somehow. The transformation is only possible through an intense rage." Cloud scratches his head. Aeris's spirit begins to fade out, its voice growing more distant.

"Remember, protect him, and do not let him be angered!" The white glow fades before them, leaving them staring at the open sky surrounding them once more. Cloud heard a whisper begin around his ears that grew to a roar as the wind blew around them. Terrified of falling off the open hilltop, the three dropped to the ground and hung onto the thick grass. When the wind stopped, they found themselves clutching the grass growing in the field of the Ancient's City.

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"What? You…he…" Vincent stammers, completely shocked. Lucreica looks down, away from Vincent.

"Yes…he is your son. I'm sorry that I couldn't tell you in front of Hojo. If I tell Hojo that Sephiroth is your son, he will kill you instantly! I can't stand to think of that happening. So, I kept it a secret and made him think that Sephiroth is his son." Lucreica smiles a bit.

"Why…? Why did you do this!" Vincent's normally calm voice nearly cracked with emotion.

"It was the only way to keep you alive. I had no choice. I'm sorry you have to look that way now, but the important thing is you're alive. Please forgive me; I forgave you a long time ago. You're the one who should forgive me." Lucreica starts crying and sobbing into her hands. Vincent frowns and steps up to hold the woman, burying his face in her hair.

"Lucreica…how can I tell Sephiroth that I'm his father? Look at our ages; I'm 29 years old and he…he seems almost 30!" Vincent whispers at Lucreica.

"I'm sorry, Vincent…I was already pregnant by you before I went with Hojo. I'm sorry that I slapped you; I'm sorry for everything! The whole thing was a mistake! Forgive me, please before I leave…" Lucreica steps back to meet Vincent's eyes.

"Lucreica…I'm sorry too. I I forgive you. I know I'm angry, but it's better now that you've told me whole truth. I still remember that you forgave me long a time ago. I I'll love you no matter what." Vincent reaches out to hold Lucreica again, but she fades away from him into the darkness.

"Tell him when the time is right." Lucreica calls out from the darkness. Vincent's eyebrows narrow, unsure how to reply, or even what she means. Another blink and he is once again in the City of the Ancients.

"Vincent!" Cloud calls as they walk over, Vincent looks up at them and sighs.

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"What am I doing here?" Sephiroth says as he looks up at the Temple of the Ancients.

"This is the Temple of the Ancients where the Black Materia was kept after the war. Cait Sith, gave his life so that we could have the Black Materia instead of your clone." Sephiroth blinks as Aeris appears.

"Cait shouldn't have done that…if he hadn't; my clone would be dead in there instead. Dammit." Sephiroth sighs. Aeris look down away from Sephiroth. The illusion around him fades into the Mt. Nibel Reactor.

"One more thing you should know…" Aeris says as she walks toward the Reactor. Sephiroth hesitates a moment, then follows her in.

"What is it, Aeris?" Sephiroth asks when Aeris stops on the bridge that leads to the door. Aeris looks at Sephiroth.

"Are you sure you want see this?" Aeris asks before she starts to show him. Sephiroth looks at Aeris and nods.

"Very well. It's about Cloud…" Aeris says as she looks around and watches. Sephiroth sees himself walking out of the door, holding Jenova's head and his Masamune. Cloud dashes out of the door and yells.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud raises his sword and runs toward the clone. The clone stops and looks back at Cloud, in a smooth motion he swings his Masamune and slashes through Cloud's upper hip.

"Ugh…" Cloud chokes, dropping his sword. The clone raises the Masamune, along with Cloud, into the air.

"What a fool…" The imposter Sephiroth laughs. Cloud locks eyes with his attacker, He grabs the handrail alongside the platform and forces his feet back to the ground.

"Sephiroth…" Cloud's voice breaks, staring unblinking at the clone.

"No…That is impossible!" stammers the clone. Cloud grabs the Masamune and jerks it to the side; the clone is thrown off balance, struggling to hold onto his sword. He trips on the handrails and falls screaming into the Lifestream below. The Masamune slip out of Cloud's hip as he slumps to the ground moaning and holding his wound. The blood flows freely between his fingers as his breathing becomes labored and shallow. Sephiroth gasps as he watches the real Cloud Strife die in front of him. He kneels down slowly and his voice breaks; "Cloud…"

"That was the real Cloud Strife. He died 7 years ago, after he killed your clone. You see, the Cloud who rescued you; he is a clone as well. However, he has retained the real Cloud's memories, so he thinks he is the real Cloud Strife. With his cloning, he was implanted with Jenova's cells." Aeris whispers as Sephiroth struggles to understand all that has happened.

"Wait, what? Are you saying that Cloud has Jenova's cells! I can't believe this!" He breathes heavily and closes his eyes, balling his fists. Aeris sighs sadly.

"Sephiroth, calm down…Now, you know the difference between the Real Cloud and the Fake Cloud. You MUST watch for him since he now has Jenova's cells within him. He could be taken over and controlled by Jenova's cells at any time. If this happens, you MUST throw your holy blood on him. That's the only way to kill Jenova's cells inside of him without killing Cloud himself." Aeris explains while Sephiroth climbs back to his feet.

"What if it doesn't work?" Sephiroth looked down at Aeris.

"Jenova must be stopped, either by killing the cells inside, or the host." Aeris says as she sighs; Sephiroth's eyes widen.

"Kill Cloud?" Sephiroth looks away from Aeris, "Throwing my blood onto him must work Aeris. It has to!"

"That is all I can show you. Now you know the full history of Jenova and Cloud. You know what you must do, protect the world and rid it of Jenova's cells, however you can." Aeris's spirit begins to fade out with an unearthly glow, "And Sephiroth, don't tell Tifa about Cloud. That would only upset her. Also, do not tell them about the real Jenova." Sephiroth nods as he understands. The illusion changes back to Ancient City, where he was supposed to be. He blinks a few times,

"Why can't I ever get an easy way to save the world?" He mutters, seeing Tifa and the others walking up the path toward him.

"Valeria!" Cloud calls out, "You okay?" Sephiroth waves and smiles.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sephiroth looks away from Cloud and joins them walking towards along the path. Cloud scratches his head when he hears Sephiroth's deep voice.

...To be continued. Chapter 8 coming up!