Just wanted to make a little note about the Cosmo Canyon section. Whenever I've played Final Fantasy 7, I have always renamed Red XIII 'Nanaki'. I've only played it once where I kept him as Red XIII, so I've only seen once the whole 'name change thing'. So if I there are speeches where I call him one name and it should have been the other, try to ignore it. I'm doing this bit on assumption, so don't criticise me too much if I make a mistake here, okay?
Final Fantasy VII: The Story 2nd Instalment
Emerald Princess of Vernea
Chapter Three
Everyone was extremely relieved when Cloud returned from the reactor and they could finally leave the village of Gongaga. The misery that enveloped the town was unreal, and everyone they had spoken to had a tale to tell about the tragedy that hit them and took so many lives and ruined others. Friends, family, every single person in Gongaga had lost somebody close to them.
By the time they emerged from the forest and climbed back into the buggy, they had all been affected by it as well. Gongaga, like Corel, was another town that had had sorrowful dealings with the Shinra, and it became clearer than ever that the Shinra was to blame for most of the pain in the world.
As they drove on away from the forest they began to head towards the west, beginning their route round to the other end of the continent. In an attempt to distract themselves from the memories of Gongaga and Corel, and the fact that there may be a spy amongst their group, they focused their attention on other things, such as sorting out the collection of materia they had gained so far.
So while Aeris drove on, after insisting that she drive the buggy across the plains, Cloud and others sat in the back of the buggy and laid out all the materia they had collected. Only Yuffie refused to give up her materia, but no one bothered to force it out of her. Since the money incident at the Gold Saucer Yuffie had become even more uptight about sharing her belongings, although she eyed the rest of the materia with hungry eyes.
"Hands off," Tifa snapped harshly as she saw Yuffie's hand edging towards one of the many summon materia balls they had collected during their journey. Yuffie looked at her before she moved towards the back of the buggy and pulled her knees up close to her chest, looking away moodily.
As she sat there with a frown on her face, Tifa glanced over at Cloud, who rolled his eyes and shook his head. "There's no point arguing," Cloud said simply. He turned back down to the materia. "Anyway… I think it best if we try and split the materia equally amongst us. Each person has a summon, support, offensive…"
"One problem," Tifa pointed out. She reached out and picked up one of the green balls. "We have only one restorative between us. That's not going to be much help if we get split up and someone gets hurt."
"No worries," said Cloud. "If we come across a place that sells, we can always buy more. Besides," he said as he took the ball from Tifa and looked into its lightly glowing green centre. "If we keep using it like we have, it'll probably develop on its own. Then we won't have to buy any."
Tifa nodded, and everyone watched as Cloud began to divide the materia between them all. There was more than enough for everyone, and everyone was able to get some sort of offensive materia to add to their weapons. There were only five balls of summon materia between the seven of them, but no one was worried about that. If they kept finding materia like they were doing, there would be plenty for everyone eventually and they would all have summons of their own. Once he was done the others picked up their divided materia and equipped it into their weapons and armour. At last their materia was equally divided and sorted.
With all that done the buggy drove on across the countryside, passing close to the perimeter of another larger forest that grew alongside the tall, rocky mountains that rose all around the centre of the continent. On the other side of the buggy they could see the shoreline in the distance, as well as the distant see. If they were to head further south it would take them another hour to reach the ocean, but they had no time to waste right then. Enough time had been lost getting out of the Gold Saucer, and with no sign of Sephiroth anywhere, they had to use all their time trying to catch up with him before the Shinra did.
About twenty minutes after they finished sorting out the materia they had to turn north and drive right around the perimeter of the forest. The end of the continent sharply turned north and ran close to the edge of the forest, forcing them north towards the river where the ocean water flowed in and was dispersed around the rest of the continent. Driving across the river and up into the next part of the continent was no problem at all, but the next problem was still to come.
Now they were on the next part of the continent they were right up close to the mountain range, and the only way they could continue on would be to drive right through the mountains. Although there was a path that they could use leading into the range, it was very rough and jagged, with many bumps and curves and sharp bits of rock sticking up out of the ground. Aeris slowed the buggy until it stopped at the entrance of the range, and they all got out.
"I don't think we can drive through that," Aeris said. "It looks a little rough."
"Does this mean we'll have to abandon the buggy?" asked Tifa.
She turned and looked over to Cloud. He was standing ahead of the group his arms folded, eyes scanning the mountains as he summed up their options. He didn't look particularly keen on the prospect of abandoning the buggy, either. Because of the buggy the had been able to pick up on a lot of the time they had lost, and they would be more likely to catch up with Sephiroth in the buggy rather than on foot.
"That will not be necessary," Red XIII said suddenly, and everyone turned to him. He nodded his head and bounded forward towards the entrance of the mountain path, where he turned back to the others. "I know this area well. The mountains are rough to travel through, but there are sufficient places for the buggy to ride without being damaged severely."
"Are you sure?" Cloud asked him.
Red XIII nodded his head confidently. "I am positive," he replied, looking directly into Cloud's eyes. Then he turned to Aeris. "Do not worry. I will guide you through."
And guide them through he did. As they set off again through the mountain range and across the precarious mountain path, Red XIII showed them every safe twist and turn so the buggy avoided all the major ditches and rises in the ground that would damage the buggy and leave them stranded again. Running alongside of the buggy, Red XIII was glad to be out of the cramped buggy and stretching his legs.
He certainly did know the area well. As he led them on the path moved further up into the mountains, carrying them far away from the ocean and into the rocky mountains. Red XIII guided them on step by step throughout the jagged mountain path without faltering even once. Although the buggy did occasionally bounce up and down on the rocks, there was nothing so extreme that would damage the buggy, and leave them to climb the mountains on foot.
Cosmo Canyon
They soon came across their next destination, surprising Cloud and the others but not surprising Red XIII. In fact he even deliberately swerved around and motioned for Aeris to drive the buggy after him, heading towards the rather strange looking set of structures ahead of them.
The strange sight ahead of them was actually a village of sorts, and was built alongside one of the tall walls of the rising mountain. It spread across a fairly large area of flat space that must have been carved artificially, although there were no signs of machinery or anything mechanical.
There were a fair number of huts scattered around, built of strong wood that could withstand the rain and other extreme weather conditions, and roofs made of thick pliable green wood, smoothed down to perfection so the rain would slide off with no damage to the structure. The majority of huts were built against the mountain wall, while others were built up on wide ledges higher up the wall, accessible by long wooden ladders. Some houses were even built inside the mountain itself, carved into the mountain wall and only visible by small wooden doors leading inside the wall.
It seemed impossible that such a natural-looking town could have no form of machinery. The houses and shops that were built inside the mountain wall could only have been made by machinery, but as Cloud and the others approached in their buggy they could see absolutely nothing. There was also no sign of a Mako Reactor, which was another good sign.
Red XIII picked up speed and ran on ahead of the others, stopping at the bottom of a long set of stairs that were carved perfectly into the rock leading up into the canyon. He turned back in time to see Aeris slow the buggy to a stop a few metres behind him, and the others all piled out. They looked up in awe at the mountain village, for it looked so beautiful from where they were. Secretly grinning at their reactions, Red XIII turned away and began to dart up the rocky stairs, barking at the others to follow him.
There was a man standing at the very top of the stairs, leaning against one of the two wooden poles that stood firm and guarded the entrance of the canyon. He was clearly a guard, although he certainly didn't dress like one. He also looked quite bored, staring at the floor with a single leaf stalk twirling in his hand, until he heard a voice calling out to him from the stairs and made him take notice.
"I am home! It is I, Nanaki!"
The man looked up and glanced over towards the stairs. Seconds later his eyes widened in total surprise and a look of recognition spread across his face, followed by a huge smile of happiness and relief as Red XIII bounded over and stopped right in front of him. The hound was almost bouncing on his paws, unable to keep still as he shifted about in front of the guard, completely unlike anything he'd acted like before.
"Hey, Nanaki!" he exclaimed, dropping the leaf stalk onto the ground as he walked over and gave the hound a soft pet on his furry head. "You're safe! Come on, and say hello to Bugenhagen!"
Red XIII nodded and complied quickly, running past the guard as he stepped aside to let him through. Cloud and the others had just reached the top of the stairs and stopped as they saw Red XIII run inside the village. They saw him bound up almost excitedly towards more rocky steps that were built alongside the mountain wall, leading to more inner houses.
"…Nanaki?" Cloud repeated, confused.
"Red XIII seems different, doesn't he?" said Tifa, whispering in Cloud's ear.
Cloud nodded back in reply, and looked up at Red XIII. The hound was perched on the top of one of the steps with his head held high, looking up towards the top of the mountain. Cloud looked up, too, and saw what Red XIII was looking at.
At the very top of the mountain there was a fairly large tower that also combined as a house. It had a rounded roof and a balcony running around the outside – and was that the tip of a telescope he could see poking out of the top of the roof? There was a large slit in the roof paved over with thick glass, barely visible from the bottom of the mountain, but Cloud could just see the tip of a black oval on the inside. It had to have been a telescope. And here, in the middle of the mountains, far away from any major city, the view of the stars must surely have been incredible.
He was broken from his gaze as Tifa nudged his arm, making him remember that they were still standing outside of the village and looking up like an idiot. Cloud fought the flush spreading on his face and hurriedly marched forwards, walking right up to the entrance guard who was waiting for them.
"Welcome to Cosmo Canyon," he said to them cheerfully, greeting them with a smile that was not as excited as it had been when he saw Red XIII. "Are you familiar with this land?"
Cloud glanced around at the others, who slowly shook their heads. "No," he answered, turning back to the guard.
The guard nodded, understanding. "Let me explain," he said. "People from all over the world gather here to seek the Study of Planet Life." When he spoke it was almost automatic, as though he had said it many times before. He turned away and looked inside the canyon, before he turned back and groaned loudly. "Ummgah! It's full capacity at the moment, so I'm afraid I can't let you enter."
As he finished speaking, Red XIII came running back down the rocky steps towards the entrance, overhearing what they were saying. "They helped me when I was on the road," he said to the guard. "Please let them in."
He then turned and ran off again, leaving the guard to consider his words. He turned back to Cloud and the others and looked them up and down, eyeing up their weapons and armour. "Oh, is that so?" he asked. "You helped our Nanaki?" He tapped his foot for a moment, before he finally made up his mind and stepped out of the way of the door. "Please, come in."
"Who is Nanaki?" Cloud asked, confused.
The guard also looked confused. "Nanaki is Nanaki," he said, speaking as though it was the most obvious answer in the world. "That's his name."
With the entrance clear, Cloud and the others all walked slowly into the village known as Cosmo Canyon. They looked around with great interest, for Cosmo Canyon was one of the most spectacular places they had ever seen. There was even a small fire in the centre of the canyon, for where people would gather and talk about the things they had seen in the village.
In contrast, Cosmo Canyon was the total opposite of Midgar. Midgar was a city built entirely of metal, surrounded by dead land that was growing darker and more dead as the days went by. Cosmo Canyon was on the other end of the spectrum, built entirely from nature without damaging the surrounding land, and the land around it, although rocky, was still filled with life. The people they could see walking around looked happy, a change from the miserable faces they had seen in places like Corel and Gongaga.
Red XIII was waiting for them halfway up the first set of stairs. He certainly did seem different now that they were in Cosmo Canyon, although most of his almost childlike excitement had died down now. He was still finding it difficult to keep still, however, even when he sat back on his haunches and tried to keep his legs firmly still.
"Here is where I was… I mean, …this is my hometown," Red XIII said. He could barely even speak properly. "My tribe were protectors of those who appreciated this beautiful canyon and the Planet. My brave mother fought and died here, but my cowardly father left her……" He raised his head and looked up the sky, which was growing dark rapidly. "I am the last of my race."
"Cowardly father?" asked Cloud.
Red XIII lowered his head and looked at the ground. He suddenly seemed almost ashamed, but at least his excited quivering had ended now. "Yes," he said finally, his voice quiet. "My father was a wastrel. And so the mission I inherited from my ancestors, is to protect this place. My journey ends here."
"Hey! Nanaki--! You're home!"
The hound's eyes lit up brightly at the sound of the voice calling out to him from somewhere above them. Red XIII jumped to his feet, his tail straight and firm behind him, and looked up to the top of the mountain. "Coming, Grandpa!" he called, before he turned away from the others and ran off up the steps, turning to run up another set until he disappeared through an open door leading inside the mountain wall.
He left the others feeling a little shocked, although really they should have been expected it. Red XIII, or Nanaki, as he was known in Cosmo Canyon, had said when they escaped from Midgar that he would leave them once he returned to his hometown. And Cosmo Canyon was his home, so it was only natural that he would leave them at this point. It still came as a bit of a shock, especially after travelling with them for so long.
"Let's rest for a bit," said Aeris suddenly, and everyone turned to look at her. She shrugged. "There are some things I want to find out about anyway."
Cloud slowly nodded his head, and everyone sighed heavily. After the hours of driving and being cramped up in the back of the buggy, everyone was relieved to have a bit of a break. The night sky was falling in fast now, and surely within the hour it would be completely dark, and no one wanted to sleep in a cramped buggy, even if the night sky did look nice.
So as Red XIII went off to find his grandfather, the rest of the group parted ways and went off to explore the mountain village of Cosmo Canyon on their own. At this particular time the village was quiet and there were not many people walking around, although the campfire in the centre of the village still burned strongly.
As the others went off to explore different parts of the canyon on their own, Cloud just sat down on the rocky stairs outside the main part of the canyon in silence. He unhooked his sword from his back and laid it out on the steps beside him. The large silver blade glinted a little, the two balls of lightning and elemental materia shining only slightly with the coming night.
Seeing their sparkle, Cloud turned his gaze up towards the sky. It was another clear night, and the first bright stars were just becoming visible. Pretty soon they would all be out, along with all the other sights that could only be visible in the country. He couldn't believe that only a day had gone by, and they had travelled so far. He had expected it to take a day or two at the least to get so far, but thanks to the buggy the trip had been much faster.
As Cloud sat there looking up at the sky, a faint sound hit his ears. It was the faint sound of music – drums and string guitars, and was that a flute? He couldn't see the musicians, but the music was clear and could be heard throughout the canyon. He couldn't see any of the others either, although he was positive that they could hear the music, too. Picking up his sword and placing it back on his back, Cloud stood up and headed up the steps towards the inner part of the canyon, wanting to know for certain if Red XIII was planning to leave them.
There were more people inside the canyon than outside, but with night approaching it was much quieter than it would have been during the day. There were shops and houses all carved inside the mountain, although they all seemed homely enough. The majority of the people wandering around were coming from one of the back rooms on the first floor, which Cloud presumed from a quick peek in that it must have been a library of sorts.
As Cloud headed up to the second floor he thought he saw Yuffie slinking into one of the shops. He presumed it must have been the Materia Shop, for she had a superior look of smugness on her face. Instead of following her to see if she was up to her sneaky pinching tricks again, he tried hard to pretend he never saw her and carried on looking around.
There was a young kid standing ahead of him, looking up at a metal door that was peculiarly built at the end of the hall, along with a strange machine that looked somewhat like a scanner. With the exception of the observatory on the top of the mountain, this was the first sign of anything artificial throughout the canyon. The kid seemed enthralled by it, standing up on his tiptoes to try and see the scanner. It seemed as though Red XIII wasn't on this floor either, and with the only exit leading out to small viewing balcony, there was only a ladder left for Cloud to climb.
The ladder led to the very top of the mountain, where a thin tunnel had been carved as the only way out. Cloud climbed out of the tunnel slowly, careful not to catch his sword on any loose bits of rock from the tunnel. When he climbed out he looked around, and was surprised by what he saw.
There was a house built on top of the mountain, with the tall, cylindrical observatory built alongside and joining onto it. He was also surprised by the amount of technological equipment there was lying around – it was almost hard to believe that he was in the same place.
As Cloud looked around, he saw that the lights were on in the main house and the door was ajar. He could just about hear voices talking inside, one of them he recognised as Red XIII. Or did he want to be called Nanaki from now on? Cloud shook his head, confused. That was a problem that could be sorted out later. For now, he just walked up to the door and slowly peered around it.
It was a quaint little house, and there was more signs of electrical equipment inside as well. He saw Red XIII standing ahead of him, talking to an elderly man who was standing by the table.
He was a rather peculiar looking man, with a bald head and white beard, his body covered up by a long blue cloak that hung over his hands and his feet. His face was old but definitely kind, and many wrinkles appeared on his forehead and around his mouth as he smiled at Red XIII. What was most peculiar was that the man's feet didn't seem to be touching the ground – the cloak that covered his feet just stopped a good few inches away from the ground. It was as though he was floating, but from what Cloud had seen so far he figured it was another electrical device of some kind. After all, the old guy couldn't really be floating by himself. Could he?
Hearing the door creak open, Red XIII turned and saw Cloud standing in the doorway. There was definitely an almost childlike smile on his face, which looked very odd on the hound.
"Cloud," the hound said, motioning to Cloud to come in further. "This is my grandfather, Bugenhagen. He is incredible. He knows everything."
Cloud walked further into the room, shutting the door behind him and looking around. There were many strange things inside the strange house, with a ladder going up towards the observatory, and another metal door at the side, although it looked to be locked.
"Ho Ho Hoooo," Bugenhagen laughed cheerfully, making Cloud jump a little. He had a rather jolly voice, although it carried a faint hint of seriousness as well. "I hear that you looked after Nanaki a bit. Nanaki's still a child you see."
"Please stop, grandfather," Red XIII said, looking down. "I'm 48."
"Ho Ho Hoooo," Bugenhagen said again, laughing in his weird but surprisingly jolly way. He saw Cloud looking confused, and slowly nodded his head. "Nanaki's tribe have incredible longevity," he explained. "So you see his 48 years would only be equivalent to say that of a 15 or 16 year old in human reckoning."
Cloud jumped back violently, his eyes opening wide in complete astonishment. "15 or 16!" he exclaimed. He stared intently at Red XIII, who was flushing slightly. He had always though of Red XIII as the oldest of them or at least near Barret's age, but to be the equivalent of a 15 or 16 year old meant he was closer to Yuffie's age in comparison. He had never guessed, and probably would never have thought that without being told directly.
"He's quiet and very deep," said Bugenhagen. "You thought he was an adult?"
Red XIII lowered his head and looked at the ground sheepishly, seeming rather embarrassed to have his true age revealed. "……Grandfather. I want to be an adult," he said. "I want to grow up to be able to protect you and the village."
"Ho Ho Hoooo. No Nanaki," said the old man, suddenly sounding a little bit more serious despite his laugh. "You can't stand on your own yet. To do that now would destroy you in the long run." He looked upwards and raised his arms towards the ceiling. "Reaching up into the heavens, threatening to snatch the very stars from the city of Midgar. You've seen it, haven't you? Well, that's a bad example. Looking up too much makes you lose perspective."
He suddenly floated upwards, making Cloud stare in even more surprise as he moved without walking and stopped above the table. He very nearly leant over to see if there was a device making him float, but he was too entranced to move. Bugenhagen was definitely a very peculiar man indeed. "When it's time for this planet to die, you'll understand that you knew absolutely nothing," Bugenhagen added as Cloud stood there.
"……When the planet dies?" asked Cloud. He found himself tilting his head slightly, completely baffled by the old man's ability to float. He couldn't hear any machinery beneath his long cloak, so how could he be floating?
"Ho Ho Hoooo. It may be tomorrow, or 100 years from now… But it's not long off," he replied, stroking his beard softly.
"How do you know this?" Cloud said.
"I hear the cries of the Planet," Bugenhagen told him.
Cloud was about to ask what he meant when a strange sound suddenly echoed throughout the house. It was similar to the sound of a gushing winds blowing all around them, although there was no wind blowing inside the house at all. Cloud looked up and around to see what was making the sound, but he couldn't find the source. He was sure the sound came from somewhere upstairs, but it was as clear here as it would be up there.
"What's that?" he asked.
"The sounds of the stars in the heavens," Bugenhagen replied. He was also looking up, his eyes closed as he listened to the whirlwind sound blowing around him. He almost looked entranced. "While this goes on, planets are born, and die."
At that moment another sound joined in the echoes of the wind – a less pleasant sound that made Cloud step back and sent a cold chill straight down his spine and made him shiver. It sounded almost like a scream – a painful, anguished scream of a thousand peculiar voices wailing madly. The scream seemed to vibrate all around them – off every wall and through every nook and cranny, clutching at the hearts of Cloud, Red XIII and Bugenhagen as they stood and listened to its cry.
"What was that?" Cloud asked. He was surprised to find his voice shaking a little. Something about the strange cry had shaken his soul hard, and he could almost feel his soul wanting to cry along with it.
"Ho Ho Hoooo. That was a scream from this planet," replied Bugenhagen. "Didn't you hear it? As if to say… I hurt, I suffer…"
Cloud slowly put his palm flat against his chest, feeling the mad beat of his heart as it pounded away inside of him. He could hear the cry, and even as it died down around them he could still hear its echoes in his mind. If that was a scream from the planet then it truly was in pain. He looked up at Bugenhagen, who was looking down with a look of sudden sympathy on his face. Sympathy and sorrow for the planet.
"They have come here on a journey to save the planet," said Red XIII. "Why don't you show them your apparatus?"
"Ho Ho Hoooo," Bugenhagen laughed as he floated slowly off the table to rejoin them on the ground. "To save the planet? Ho Ho Hoooo! But, then again, I guess it wouldn't hurt to show him."
Again Cloud was about to as a question about what Red XIII and Bugenhagen were talking about, when the door behind them suddenly flew open and a man ran hurriedly into the room. He looked very anxious and nervous, Cloud noticed, panting hard as though he had run all the way up to Bugenhagen's house.
"Bugenhagen!" the man exclaimed. "Several odd looking people have come."
"The whole place has gotten busy all of a sudden," said Bugenhagen.
"He brought friends too," Red XIII said, looking up at the old man. "I'll go get them." He began to walk off slowly across the floor, past the panting guard, when he suddenly stopped and turned back to Cloud. "Cloud, please call one of them. Only three people can fit into grandfather's machine."
Cloud crossed his arms and thought for a moment. If he could only take one person into the machine… it would probably be best if it were Aeris. As an Ancient she was connected to the Planet anyway, although she hadn't said much about the planet talking to her since they left Midgar. She would probably be most interested in whatever it was Bugenhagen planned on showing them.
Whatever it was.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHORESS
I really should stop butting in, but I just wanted to let everyone know that now I'm back at University, I won't be putting chapters up as quickly. I will still try and get a chapter a week up. I also have my own novel to work on and a chapter a week to write (I'm writing it by hand, what am I thinking?), as well as play my new game. So please bear with me if the next chapter isn't up within a week or so. I will try my hardest for you.