Nibelheim. It was only an hour or so from Rocket Town so I decided to stop by and see Vincent. I was feeling apprehensive about heading to Nibelheim since the town was not only my hometown but also the place where all of this began in the first place. It was the place where Sephiroth slaughtered all those innocent people, where Zack and I were experimented on. I still had more deliveries to make but they could hold off for a little while I stopped by to see my old friend. I leaned back on my motorcycle and lifted my legs to let them rest higher on the bike as I sped along through the grassy field leading to Nibelheim. As the mountains began to appear in the horizon I revved the throttle to speed things along.

As I grew closer I had to fight the urge to turn back because of all the memories that came from Nibelheim. I was suddenly taken back to seven years ago when I was still a skinny kid with long hair. I was sitting atop the water tower waiting for Tifa Lockhart to show up. I wanted to talk to her and give her the news first before she heard it from someone else. I was going to be leaving to join SOLDIER and work for the Shin-Ra Electric Power Company to begin the next phase of my life. I sat out there for nearly an hour in the cool night and she finally showed up. As she sat down next to me I turned to look at her.

I was distracted from my flashback as I saw the city outskirts appear before me so I slowed the bike down and rode into the city at a slower pace. Just inside the city entrance I parked the motorcycle and stepped from it, choosing to walk in on foot to see everything and take in my former hometown through my own eyes. I drew my new sword from its shaft on the bike and slipped it into the case on my back. I couldn't bring myself to use the Buster Sword again but I had bought a new blade after hearing word of a band of thieves attacking travelers. I slipped the blade tightly into its new case and began my trek to the center of the town. I knew where Vincent was staying; it was the only place in the town where he could possibly be.

As I walked through I immediately noticed the town was empty. There were no lights in any of the houses and there were no people. No children playing in the streets, no adults in any of the stores. The town was abandoned. I slipped my hands into my pocket as my footsteps echoed trough the ghost town. As I passed by the old water tower I looked up to it and could actually see my younger self sitting atop it sitting next to Tifa. To think we were only kids back then, thirteen and fourteen years old. A smile came to my face as I remembered.

There it was, the old mansion surrounded by the old metal fence and sitting back giving it an old and creepy look. I took in the sight and suddenly my head began to throb with one of the fiercest migraines I had ever experienced. I literally dropped to my knees and clutched at my skull, trying to keep it from exploding as the pain blasted through. As my eyes began to bulge out and my body trembled things went white and I found it hard to breathe. As my body quivered it fell forward onto the paved ground and I blacked out. But it wouldn't last for long.

As a replay of my fight with Sephiroth at the Mako Reactor and my memories of floating in the test tube in the mansion basement wracked my body I let out a blood-curdling scream but it was only in my mind. When I finally came to I found myself lying on a bed in a room that seemed vaguely familiar to me. I sat up and clutched at my temples but the pain had sub-sided. It was another of my "Memory Spasms" as Reeve had labeled them. I looked around the room and it took me a moment to realize it was part of the mansion. Who brought me here? I spun my head around looking and I did it so fast my mind didn't pick up the image of the person standing by the door.

"Vincent!"

I jumped up from the bed and eyed the former Turk gunman. His appearance never changed. He was still dressed in black leather with a red cape wrapped over his shoulders, which hung down to cover most of his upper body. His long black hair obscured some of his face but I could still make out most of his features. He said nothing as he walked quietly across the room towards me. The blank look in his yellow eyes was a bit disturbing but I had known Vincent long enough to not be wary of him. He stopped a few feet from me and folded his arms over his chest. As I looked into his eyes a smirk came over his face.

"You never change. I found you lying outside the mansion. Still having the spasms?"

"Yeah. But they're less often now. I guess my mind is finally learning how to separate my memories from the false ones."

He turned away from me and began to walk towards the door; his cape swaying and falling after him. I watched Vincent walk out of the door and by instinct I followed him out. Being his usual self he was perfectly quiet as he led me through the mansion and into the basement. Even though this was the place where all the hell had begun five years ago I was okay. I wasn't having a Spasm and somehow I found this whole thing calming, as if coming back to this mansion was the cure I needed. Vincent stopped in front of the door that led to the library and turned back to look at me.

"In here. I know what to do."

"About what?"

"I was expecting you. I heard about the way you've been acting and that you were in Rocket Town earlier today. I knew you would come by here once you were informed I was living here."

"Wait a sec, you still haven't explained what you plan to do."

He walked into the library and I followed behind him. He stopped once he reached the large coffin that Aerith, Barret, and I found him in. He turned back to me and motioned towards it with his mechanical arm. He had grown more accustomed to not hiding the arm and began using it more often, but it was still something he did rarely. My eyes looked towards the coffin and then back to him, confused. As my mouth opened to question him he spoke again. His low voice carried through the large room giving the whole conversation an even more ominous feeling.

"If anyone knows about being a human experiment and having part of your life taken away, it's me. Tell me, Cloud. You have horrible nightmares don't you? Every night of sleep is one of horror as you relive moments you'd rather put behind you, lock in a chest and forget. You wake up in a cold sweat, your heart blasting away like it's about to explode and you have to ask yourself "Did that happen? Why am I remembering this now? Why won't it go away?" I know, Cloud. I spent twenty three years of my life in a state of suspended animation locked in a godforsaken box!"

He motioned towards the coffin again as he said that. His yellow eyes narrowed and he stared at me fiercely. He was right and he knew it. He knew that I was having nightmares and reliving moments I wanted to lock in a big chest, weight it down, and toss it into the ocean where it would lost forever. I found myself breathing faster and my hands starting to sweat. He just smirked at me from behind black locks of long hair because he knew. I stepped backwards, suddenly overtaken by an urge to leave the mansion. Moving at an inhuman speed Vincent stepped forward and grabbed me, locking his mechanical arm around my wrist to stop me.

"Let me go!"

"Answer me this one question, Cloud: Do you want it all to stop? For all of it to just go away?"

I found myself staring into his eyes as he said those words and nodded. He let go of me and as I looked down to my wrist I realized how powerful he was, there were red indentations along my wrist where his metal fingers had been holding onto me. I looked back to him and nodded again and he was already standing by the coffin, pulling the lid open. I moved to stand beside him and looked into it. Strangely, it did look comfortable with its plush velvet lining When I looked back I saw Vincent motioning towards it.

"Get in."

"Are you crazy? It's a coffin!"

"You said you wanted my help. Get in the coffin, Cloud."

"I'm not getting in there! I'm not a dead man!"

His voice grew angry and I could see a spark of something, a literal spark, flash through his yellow eyes as he glared at me.

"If you want my help and for your nightmares to stop, you will get in the damn coffin."

I wanted his help. I wanted the nightmares to stop, so I complied. I slipped into the coffin and lay back, feeling the soft material brushing against my skin. Vincent watched me for a moment and then spoke.

"Once I shut this lid you'll be closed off from the outside world. You'll be alone with your thoughts. Maybe you'll be able to confront your inner demons like I was able to. Good luck…Cloud."

With those last words the coffin closed and I could hear the heavy lid locking into place. I knew it would be dark inside a closed coffin but actually experiencing it myself I had no idea just what I was getting myself into. I let my eyes shut and suddenly found myself at peace. While the idea of being in a coffin should have been giving me the creeps and I should possibly be banging against the lid for someone to let me out, I was…calm. My body began to feel light as I was taken away and found myself alone with my thoughts. However this was supposed to work, I wasn't sure and right now nothing was happening. That all changed soon enough.

I was suddenly thrust into a field of nothingness. All around me for as long as I could see there was white, bright white and nothing else. No grass, no trees, not even a sky or a sun above me. I spun around looking but I was simply alone. I began to walk forward, feeling suddenly unnerved so I placed a hand on the hilt of my sword and held it there. Behind me I heard the sound of laughter and quickly spun around, sword drawn and ready to attack. There was nothing. From behind me I heard the same laughter and spun around again to face my tormentor but there was no one.

"You finally came."

To my right! I spun around and what I say nearly made me drop my sword. There, floating in mid-air was Zack. He was dressed just like he was the day he was murdered and his arms were folded over his chest. He looked at me with glowing blue eyes and a sneer across his face. My mouth was open and a feeling that I couldn't even begin to describe was ripping through me. It had to be an illusion! He had been dead for five years! He smirked at me and began to float towards me.

"Zack! I…. I can't believe it's you!"

"Here I am, Cloud. After all these years we finally get to see each other again. Tell me…how have things been in MY life?"

"Don't speak like that! It wasn't my fault!"

I felt my heart begin to beat as I heard the anger in my best friend's voice. His eyes had narrowed and he was floating towards me faster, his arms still folded over his chest. I was backing away but he was closing the distance between us quickly.

"You're a liar, Cloud! I saved you! I saved your life and you repay me by living my life for me and even taking Aerith from me? I thought we were friends, Cloud! How could you do this?"

"I'M SORRY!"

"LIAR!"

He suddenly thrust a fist at me and I found myself flying back as the powerful punch struck me in the jaw. I landed on my back a few feet away but kipped up to my feet, sword drawn. I ran towards him to attack but I just couldn't bring myself to actually do it. I stopped just a few inches from his face and Zack threw his back and laughed. Unlike before when the laughs were of a good nature now he was laughing malevolently at me. He spun in a half circle and swung his foot out, kicking me in the jaw and I staggered back, clutching my jaw and wincing.

"I've waited a long time for this day, Cloud! When I could finally get back at you for all you did! I'm going to enjoy killing you! I SHOULD HAVE LET YOU DIE IN THAT MANSION, YOU LITTLE BASTARD!"

"NOOOOOOOOOO! THAT ISN'T TRUE! NONE OF IT IS! IT WASN"T MY FAULT! I NEVER MEANT TO TAKE YOUR LIFE AND YOUR MEMORIES AND I NEVER MEANT TO TAKE AERITH! HOW COULD I HAVE KNOWN SHE WAS THE GIRL YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT?"

"Shut up! Enough of your lies! You die today, Strife!"

With inhuman speed Zack began to fly towards me and I found a new anger welling up inside of me. I felt angrier than I ever had before in my entire life I shut my eyes and with a battle cry I thrust my sword outwards and heard the grunt and felt the blood splash against me. When I opened my eyes I was expecting to see Zack but what I saw was far, far worse. There was Aerith, impaled on my blade. She was gripping the blade and staring at me with wide green eyes and blood running from the corners of her mouth. It was just like the day Sephiroth murdered her but now her shock was directed at me. I pulled the sword away and dropped it, letting it fall. As her body fell I caught her and pulled her close to me. I hugged her as tightly as I could and began to cry; freely letting the tears fall down my face.

"Good. You're every bit the weakling I remembered. You are so pathetic, Cloud."

I spun around and there he was. He walked casually towards me, his black trench coat swaying around him. I found myself looking into the eyes of Sephiroth and my hatred began to burn. I jumped to my feet and ran for my blade. As I grabbed it I heard her voice, I could hear Aerith speaking to me! I turned to look and saw her body floating in the air, her eyes closed, but her mouth was moving.

"Why did you kill me, Cloud? I only tried to help you and you killed me. You let me die."

Suddenly the voice was coming from two places. I looked behind me to Sephiroth and saw he was speaking the same words as Aerith. His lips were moving in sync with hers like he was a puppet master. When he realized I was looking at him he laughed.

"You're too easy. I've been manipulating your dreams just like I manipulated you into bringing me the Black Materia and betraying the others. Even when I'm dead I can still control your life. You will NEVER escape me, Cloud! I will always be in your mind…"

My eyes opened and I was awake. I could feel grass brushing against my face and it tickled. I pushed myself up and found myself standing in an open field out behind the mansion. As my vision focused I could see a figure standing under a tree partly obscured by the shadows. As I walked towards him my eyes went wide. I wasn't dreaming anymore but he had followed me. Sephiroth walked out from the shadows and drew his Masamune. As he held it up I grabbed my sword from my back and charged towards him. Our blades clashed because this time there was no protective force field around him. I brought my sword down multiple times and the skilled SOLDIER met every blow and parried them all with unnatural ease. As our blades clashed again at a high level above our heads I kicked him in the chest and ran after him, swinging my sword again. He met my attack and began to push back against me.

"Good, Cloud. You have the strength I remember. But now you will die! You can die knowing the truth! That Aerith and Zack lost their lives because of you!"

He kicked me in the face and ran at me, sword lifted. As I swung my sword out to meet his the mighty Masamune blade knocked my sword from hand and I took a powerful swipe to the chest. I jumped back holding my bloody chest and dove for my sword, rolling for it. As I snatched it up I ran at him and screamed.

"IT WASN'T ME! I DIDN'T KIL ZACK OR AERITH! THEIR DEATHS WEREN'T MY FAULT!"

I suddenly found myself fighting with an intensity I had never known. The sounds of blade clanging against blade filled the town on Nibelheim as Sephiroth and I fought. For every attack he blocked he laughed at me and taunted me. The last blow knocked the Masamune from his hand and I impaled him. Just like with Aerith he began to cough blood and fell to his knees. As I watched him wilt I narrowed my eyes and spoke in the coldest voice I could muster.

"Stay where you belong…in my memories…"

He looked up at me and smirked as if he was proud. He chuckled.

"I will never be…. a memory."

"Cloud…. the Materia.. It's inside my…"

This voice was new. As I stepped back I found myself staring down at Vincent, clutching his bloody stomach with both his hands. I dropped my sword, which was still dripping with his blood and knelt in front of him. I wasn't fighting Sephiroth outside of the mansion I had been fighting Vincent! I looked at his wound and saw the green glow from inside of his cape. He was using a Cure Materia. I sighed as slowly the bleeding stopped and after a moment he stood to his feet. He tossed his cape back and placed both hands on my shoulders.

"It worked."

It wasn't a question. I wasn't sure how I got from being in the coffin in the basement library to being in the backyard but I was here and I felt…lighter. I looked down at myself and then back to Vincent who had taken his normal pose of standing with his arms folded over his chest, leaning to one side.

"You feel the weight lifted. You had a vision didn't you, Cloud? And you got the answers you've been looking for?"

"I did… But how did you…?"

"I just know. Let's say it's at personal experience. I don't mean to force you out, but it's getting late. You may want to head home before night falls."

"Vincent."

"No need for thanks. Just enjoy your peace."

As he said those words and began to walk away I knew I had found it. I confronted Sephiroth in my dream and finally realized something, Aerith and Zack losing their lives wasn't my fault. Vincent was right about the immense weight being lifted but something was still missing. I couldn't place it but part of me was still looking for an answer. Overhead there a clap of thunder and then a light drizzle began to fall on me. Great, now I had to ride home in the goddamn rain.