Storm Clouds
Chapter 3: Tears in the Paint
Cloud was done with his breakfast. Even with his cigarette that lay smoldering with a lasting coil of smoke from the table. But he wasn't done with his story.
No. I'm not done. Not even close. You can say it was only the prologue for my tragic fairy tale, my 'once upon a time'. My kingdom and princess was found, well actually, my prince; but the dragons haven't come yet.
I was promoted into SOLIDER within my second year. Pretty quick and young I was to be acceptable with all the life-threatening tests you had to take. I caused a bit of a stir within the company for a few days before fading out, but I didn't give a damn. Life seemed perfect for those four months. I had Zack, Sephiroth and importantly, myself. If there was ever a time when I knew who I was it was then. But I couldn't possibly have known that it was the exact opposite.
I used to write to Tifa, but then Mother died and there was no use in connecting with anything from home. It only made me cry harder. I guess it was the absence of the memories that made me lose myself. The only thing that I knew was my friends and mission. The mission always came first.
Yah I killed. Hundreds of rebels who might as well been innocents defending their lives. But Sephiroth told me to do so and I did without hesitation. I remember my first kill of a human life. Sephiroth told me of course, he didn't leave my side when we ventured into the weathered building. We were searching the hallways and doors, making sure that no survivors were hiding out in a closet somewhere. It was then that I literally stumbled upon him.
He looked like my age, 15 and scared shitless as I was when I held the gun towards him.
"Drop it or I'll swear to whatever god you pray to, that I'll blow your fucking brains out of your ears!"
Such harsh words. Them alone could scare me off but it was his eyes that made me not fear him. The shit head was trembling harder then me. His brown eyes were wet and I could sense there were no more bullets. This kid was as good as dead with nothing but his words to slash at me. I felt sorry for the punk. I thought of letting him go—he wouldn't go off and do the same mistake twice!
"Shoot him." I turned, baffled and dumb-founded to Sephiroth's words. "Shoot." He repeated silently. My lover stayed placid; almost to the point that he didn't really give a fuck that he was ordering me to end a 15 year old life. But what's more disturbing is… that I did.
His brains were thrust back from the large bullet shell, making the cramp closet a decorated splatter of blood and reason. Some of it sprayed on me, staining my perfected skin of innocence. Droplets skimmed across my rose bud lips. I tasted them; I tasted the one who I killed. And I walked away, not caring what would happen to the carcass and only cared if there were more to be done with.
So that was my life in SOIDER if you'd cram it in a nutshell. Sex, blood, and fun. I didn't care about anything else. That was until Zack got me alone to talk to him. It was hard to be alone when Sephiroth wanted nothing else but you 24-7. Lately that time, Seph was being really attached to me those last couple of months. I even asked him about it but I never found out until a week after I killed him. Guess it was too late.
"Cloud, please understand! Innocent people are dying everyday of this—"
"Then we help them! That's our job isn't it? What else does Shinra do?"
"Shinra is the one that kills them in the first place. It must be stopped."
I couldn't understand until I began noticing the signs. False accusations, prejudice trials, merciless killings, corrupted power. Even my outlook towards Sephiroth began to dim darker and darker. And God knows how I tried to blind myself from that. It was the realization of Sephiroth that I betrayed him. I joined AVALANCE.
Tifa was there but I didn't know her. My memory of her was gone and all I knew that that I was being hugged continuously by this hot chick. Barret was a large man with a gun for an arm. Cid was a man with a gun for a mouth. He could kill with the words he said. Zack was in the group and Yuffie, a sweet little ninja (when she wants to be). Vincent Valentine was another that stuck on me. Out of all of them, something about him was captivating. And Aeris. I never really fell in love with a girl before.
Aeris' connections and how she came into play with his rebel group is too complicated to tell. But to sum up her purpose it's this: She was useful, got to close and bold, died because of it.
Cloud slammed his fist on the wall, causing a nearby painting to crash to the ground. It came with the apartment.
Actually, I killed her. As I did Zack. N-not entirely, I didn't hold the sword or fire the gun. Sephiroth did that for me. I just sat there and watched in horror, which alone proves I'm as guilty as Sephiroth. I should have gone down with him. Like two sinned angels being hurled into hell together.
I killed my lover because he killed my love, and in doing so I killed myself. From the moment I took the chance to end his last breath, I die with him. So…Cloud Strife is up there with Zack and Aeris, or maybe even with Sephiroth.
But when I officially popped out of existence was during the collapse of a building. The surviving AVALANCE group was searching for survivors of the ruined city. We've been doing this perhaps 4 months and the look of rocks and pebbles sickened me. The building was expected to come down but just not then and yah I almost died. I thought, as I laid there under the stones, that they would never stop until they find me. And if they found me then I'm alive.
However I didn't want to be alive. I wanted Zack, I wanted Aeris, and I even wanted Sephiroth in my arms. Cradling them all like a family of ghosts. That was my happy ending. The same one which I still long for. Yet I wasn't dead.
Cloud died that day but I dug myself up and ran north, out of the town into the next. From there I hit Costa del Sol then to Chippo before finding myself in Guinness. It's a crumbling city with more blood then rain and I helped supply that blood on the streets.
My name is Gabriel. Gabriel Peeress. Nice to fucking meet you.
PLEASE REIVEW! I decided to name him Gabriel after the arch-angel of God. From what I gather is that Gabriel is bit of a traitor among the angels.