One Minute Until The Firing Of The Gauntlet Of Zeus

Panting, soaked with fresh cold sweat, Ragnar slowly backed up. He held Ragnarok in front of him, trying to put it between himself and the creature nearing him. Although he was no longer in the room full of debris, moving back was still a problem. This part of the Dome didn't have smooth floors…but only more pipes and metal gratings. Yet falling backward was only a small problem on his mind. Moving fast enough to survive this monster was the main concern.

A rotting tentacle whipped out. The youth didn't even see it move before he was lashed across the face with something that felt both like a club and a whip. His body was flung back like so much chaff, and after crying out he landed hard on his back on more metal. He arched his spine in pain and grit his teeth, feeling the agony through him. That blow would have even hurt his former self…so his mortal body was naturally that much worse off.

The young general rolled forward…just in time to see another foul appendage sailing for him. His eyes widened for a moment, but then he grasped his sword and brought it up. As it came in close enough to strike him, he lashed out with Ragnarok. The bit of alien flesh was neatly severed from its main stalk, and as it gushed out purple blood it fell to the ground, flopping like a fish out of water. Unfortunately…the creature was attacking him with more than one tentacle. Another one rushed in a moment later and angrily slapped his hands. It was a stinging, painful blow…and Ragnar cried out as his sword was struck out of his hands. He barely had time to react to the pain before a third tentacle lashed out and wrapped around his neck, cutting off his air. Ragnar reached up for it and tried to pull it off, useless as it was. But the thing didn't want to throttle him. Instead…it yanked him up into the air and flung him twice as hard away from it, to the nearest solid-looking pipe. Ragnar's arms flailed down and trailed behind him as he sailed head-first for the strong metal…

Yet he never reached it. Abruptly, a warm, softer body leapt up in his flight path. He crashed into it seconds later. His body made a painful impact before flying back off and falling to the ground again, sprawling out face first. It wasn't the easiest of saves…but it was a save. Ragnar's heart was pounding as he landed from the fear of annihilation. The monster was reminding him of exactly how weak his regular body was, and he knew at this point that if he had hit that pipe at that speed he could have kissed the bones in his back goodbye…

His savior touched down a moment later. Ragnar turned and looked to him, as he glared at the hideous alien in front of them both, slithering closer again. Despite how much stronger he now was than Ragnar, Cloud was sweating profusedly and panting in between clenched teeth. He was struggling to hold up against this thing. It didn't help that he had to hold his sword over one shoulder when not using it. His other arm was still useless and hung limply at his side. Fighting one handed was not something he was used to. In addition, Ragnar realized with some frustration at himself, Cloud was constantly being distracted to save him. This monster was attacking with such speed and power that it could kill him in seconds. Only Cloud still had enough strength to fight and take its blows.

Jenova was full of rage and primal fury as she assaulted them. She had been trying unceasingly to kill them both for the past few minutes. For the most part…she was succeeding in beating them down. Although the two of them had cut off countless tentacles, she always seemed to have more. And she wasn't slowing down in the least from the trauma or blood loss. Based on the amount of power she was putting out…Ragnar began to fear that Sephiroth hadn't just hid his intentions from Bahamut. He had hid the power of Jenova. This monster was starting to rival Sephiroth in some categories…

And if such was the case, they were doomed.

The monster grit its sharp teeth and lunged for Cloud again. Despite his one arm, Cloud nimbly sliced off the first two tentacles that came at him. He managed to dodge another one aimed for his head, and then leap over a fourth trying to hit him from below. He swung his sword down and around to take off both of them next. Unfortunately, he had already burned himself out fighting Sephiroth. He wouldn't be able to perform Omnislash or anything else again for some time…time that they didn't have.

Jenova's eyes blazed as she grew annoyed with the ex-mercenary. Abruptly, she halted one of her tentacles and pointed it at Cloud instead. A moment later and a ray of red light suddenly projected from the end…burning like some sort of laser. It shot through the air in an instant before touching Cloud's bicep on his good arm. Immediately, a spurt of blood blasted through the opposite side as the laser tore through his limb. Cloud's eyes shut as he cried out…the pain distracting him.

The monster used this. Tentacles erupted for Cloud again, but not from right in front of him. The thing had been sliding them underneath the rubble and pipes toward him. Now, they ripped out and immediately lashed around his legs, locking them together and immobilizing them. Cloud was jerked, and he forgot about his arm as he looked down to what had happened to him. That was all he had time for, before Jenova suddenly ripped him off of his feet and flung him with incredible power and speed away from its body and across the large chamber, until he struck the opposite wall of the place. Machines broke around him from his impact, and as he limply fell off the wall and began to fall to the ground, pieces from them joined him on his descent.

The thing sneered at Cloud for a moment…before it suddenly squealed. An eruption of flame struck the side of its head. Giving a screech of rage, it snapped around to the source. Its flesh was partially roasted from that hit, further deforming its features. But its eyes still worked enough to look back on its opposite side and see Ragnar, standing again with his sword pointed at the thing.

While Cloud had distracted it, Ragnar had recovered enough to drag himself a short distance away. His weapon had been knocked aside, but all he had to do was extend his hand and call to it for it to slide back into his hand. And unlike Cloud, he had been rejuvenated by Bahamut when the junction was broken. He was able to unleash his own special techniques…for all the good they did him. He seemed only to make the monster angry from that latest blow. And now it orientated its entire body toward him…beginning to slither toward him instead.

Ragnar swallowed as another bead of sweat rolled down his brow, and prepared for further pain.

"Ms. Aerith? What's wrong?"

To Aerith, that voice of concern was distant and faraway, like at the end of some long tunnel. Even if it wasn't, she wouldn't be able to answer at the moment. But now, both of the children saw that something was distinctly wrong, and Vincent's own eye had been caught. He was now looking at her while the Turks continued to banter behind him.

The Cetra was sweating again. It wasn't a cold nervous sweat…but hot and profuse, almost as much as when she had been fighting for her life. She was no longer calmly seated, but rather had her legs twisted behind her as she sat on the ground. She was trembling all over. Her hands were against her head, as if she had some sort of migrane or severe headache she was struggling to withstand. Her eyes were wide open and her pupils were small as she stared at the metal floor.

But Aerith wasn't looking at the floor…and she wasn't hearing or seeing the people around her. She was watching something else…feeling it throughout her.

The dark presence that had been Sephiroth was gone…but his death only served to fuel the power and anger of another. One that affected her far more foully. The Cetra blood within her recognized Sephiroth as being part of her natural enemy…but both her flesh and spirit hated the mother of the man far, far more. Her increasing power only made it more obvious…seeing the destroyer of her race pulled back together and present right here within this very building. It was nearly impossible for Aerith to not detect the thing…or sense it so sharply that she could almost see it even with her eyes open…

Yet that wasn't all she could sense.

There was only one other kindred Cetra alive…and Aerith had married him. He was a person she loved and recognized, both in body and spirit. She felt an especially strong bond to him from sharing blood, lives, and destinies. Now that she was free of all other distractions and concerns, she could feel him. Both his spirit and the spirit of her friend. She couldn't see them as distinctly as Jenova…but they were there. They were right next to the alien's.

And they were growing weaker with every passing moment.

The thing was killing them.

Normally, Aerith would have been filled with fear and dread. She would have pulled herself together and gone after them as fast as she could, to offer whatever help she was able. Weakened as she was, she would gladly do so for her friend and husband. Unfortunately…Aerith had a new battle to wage at this moment…and she was currently grappling with all of her might.

The dark side of her saw what was going on. Until now, it had gone dormant. Aerith had suppressed it with much effort in the fight with Aleron, and it had taken time to come out again. But now that she had relaxed and the persona had reemerged…it did not like what it was seeing. It knew that Jenova was down there, and that she was killing them. They had to be too worn out from fighting Sephiroth. They were easy prey by now. That made it angry… The thought that the monster was its natural enemy only fueled its anger. But most of all…it hated being confined to this lowly, injured body. It hated this meeker, softer personality holding it back. It wanted out. It wanted to engage in more primal yet more intense emotions. It wanted to save them…and deal with Jenova in the worst way…

Aerith tried telling it that it wasn't possible…that they'd be killed. Yet somehow…she found herself not really believing that. She felt an inner confidence. She felt that she had something slumbering inside her with her dark half represented…and that it had more than enough power and might to do the job. A force unlike anything ever witnessed before or ever again…power of life and death rolled into one package…just waiting for her to let it go.

The Cetra feared this power. She knew what she did when she was out of control. Whatever this was, it was far greater than what she had done to Hoeng's henchmen. It made her feel as if that was nothing more than a child slapping an adult. That much strength she knew would be too much for her to handle. And yet…as the dark personality began to trickle into her brain…began to exert its wants and desires…something within her was excited. With that much strength…she could do anything. She could put an end to this all in moments. The desire to use it started off small…but it was growing quickly.

Until now, Aerith had refused to let her dark side speak. But now this was flaring up even stronger. It refused to be silenced again. It demanded that she hear it. And it spoke with the voices of thousands upon thousands of enraged Cetra…ones who had been brutally slaughtered…seen their children warped into monsters…felt the pain and fear of being hunted down and destroyed… Their anger would not be held back any longer. They had a vessel for their rage, and they demanded that she take up their cause. Let her be their way of waging their vengeance on this world and all who lived in it. And when her rational, good self refused…they started to appeal to her base, animal desires. They let their hate start flowing into her and exciting her. And as she felt this…she began to feel energized. The passion felt good…and made her subconsciously crave more…

Aerith grasped her head tighter, her face warping between fear and anger every few moments. It was as if she could push that persona back into her mind. She tried to tell it not to…not to lose herself to this hate and anger. But it didn't care for others that might be hurt. It only wanted to satisfy itself. It was tempting her with the same urge…telling her to lose herself to the feelings. And she was weakening. Soon…it wouldn't matter if she gave into it or not. It would be strong enough to take her.

The woman didn't know what to do.

She only had to hope that something would happen soon.

Ashiah grinned and snickered as she gulped down the miniature wine bottle. She had helped herself to Leers' personal store. After all, he didn't need it anymore. And this was a special occasion. She toasted the images she was watching at the command desk. She had patched herself into the security systems at this point. By now, she was the only one left watching them. All the other security personnel were either dead or surrendering. But the Dome was automated enough for her to hold out here for the precious few seconds longer that she needed.

The office was relatively clean and quiet, aside from Leers' dead body. It had rumbled quite a bit under cannon bombardment during the past few hours, and dust had rained from the ceiling more than once. But the walls were special reinforced steel. Not even plastique explosives could get in here if she didn't wish it. She had already locked the front doors to the office, leaving her here and protected with her precious command desk.

Several monitors were displayed on the screen. One showed a platoon of New Shinra soldiers being led away. Another showed a Planet Protector Army troop moving through a hall filled with wreckage of sweepers and bodies. Yet another showed a special PPA team cutting through a bulkhead. A fourth showed a PPA hacker getting into the outer defense systems from one of their terminals, ordering all low security doors to open and low security systems to shut down. Across the board, the Dome was falling to the enemy. She reached over and pressed a button on the keyboard. The security cameras disappeared and revealed a new map of the technical layout of the Dome. Half of it was now flashing red, showing enemy presence. Half of what was left was solid red, showing that it was in imminent danger of falling. The rest was yellow, showing it was at risk.

Too bad none of this matter, you little brat. Ashiah thought with a grin as she threw the wine bottle over her shoulder, letting it shatter against the wall behind her. You lose. Wutai and Midgar burn. And then I'll kill each and every one of you. I'll have the Gauntlet of Zeus blow up this Dome with you all inside it. So much for your total victory, eh?

Ashiah turned to another important device…the phone built into the desk. This was the final piece now. The time was over. The Gauntlet of Zeus was finished, loaded, and ready. All she had to do now was reach over, pick up the phone, dial a special number, and give them clearance to fire. After that, she got to drink to her own health and to the death of her enemies.

The woman grinned as she reached over and snatched up the receiver. She dialed three of the seven numbers she needed.

That was as far as she got before she felt something hard and steel pressed against the back of her head.

Ashiah froze, and her smile evaporated. The receiver and her hand over the dialing buttons turned to stone. She twitched her eyes up, and looked to the front doors of the office. They were still shut. She had been staring at them for hours. Nothing had moved to make them open. That was the only way in or out of the office. Hence…she was soon rather shocked. She was smart enough to know what had just happened. Someone had pressed a gun to the back of her head. But how? No one had come in here… No one could get in here… This wasn't possible.

No… The woman thought. Not now…not when I'm seconds from victory… This can't be. No one can get in here. I'm totally sealed off. How did they do it? The doors were shut… Just a few more numbers…a few words…and it would have been over… Not now! Just one more minute!

Even as Ashiah lamented this, and tried desperately to know how someone could have gotten in here, some hand reached down and slowly grasped the back of her chair. Very slowly, it began to turn it around. The gun pulled back just enough to let her head swivel. Ashiah's eyes moved, but the rest of her body stayed frozen. She could have gone for her own gun…but her mentality wouldn't allow it. It was still too aghast at what had happened. How? How could anything be here? How could one have gotten in?

Whoever it was let go at the last moment, letting Ashiah turn the rest of the way to face him or her completely. Once she spun the last remainder of the way, and looked out with panicked and overwhelmed eyes to see who it was…her pupils shrank. Her flesh turned white. Her lip began to tremble…and she pushed back in her chair.

"No…no, no… It's not possible… It can't be you… You're dead…"

She was looking into the smiling, crafty face of Colonel Maritza, pointing a gun to her head.

Ashiah couldn't think of moving anymore or resisting. She was paralyzed as she stared at Maritza. She had blown up months ago… She couldn't be here. She was in a watery grave…burned up into nothingness… But…who else would have done this? Who else wanted to hurt her so badly? Why else had more and more traitors appeared after her death? Why else was she stopped now on the moment of her greatest triumph? Only Maritza hated her so much…only she wanted her dead so badly…

But the Admiral soon received another shock as Maritza opened her mouth and spoke.

It was General Leers' voice.

"Seems you've been a very naughty girl, Ashiah. I'm going to have to correct you most harshly."

Ashiah turned whiter yet, and her trembling doubled.

"No…no… I killed you!" She whined as the last bits of her sanity crumbled. "I killed you!"

In her warped brain, it all began to make sense to Ashiah. They had come for her…Maritza and Leers. They were back from the dead, rolled back into this one persona. It was just like in the horror stories. She had been alone and secure in the office. There was no one there to help her or hear her scream for help…and yet she had felt totally safe. She was about to do something that would benefit her immensely. She was about to engrail her name into history once and for all. She was about to defeat those who hurt her. But then…those who hated her had come back to life. And now they had come for her…come to carry her away into Hell with them. And though she had locked the doors…they had still come in. For nothing could stop them now…

Maritza smiled wider…but Ashiah no longer saw Maritza. She saw some hideous demon in her flesh. She could almost see it wearing her skin…talking with Leers' voice… She saw it slowly pull the trigger…

And when she did…a paintball erupted from the end of the gun and smacked onto Maritza's forehead, immediately erupting and showering her skin with red paint.

"Bang. You're dead." Leers' voice sounded.

Then, with incredible force, Maritza yanked up the end of her gun and smashed it into the side of Ashiah's head. The woman looked terrified for a moment longer…before her eyes went glassy and her body limped. She gave out one moan before losing her balance and slumping over in her chair. She was out cold.

"Tsk, tsk." Maritza said, her voice now seeming warped…altering between Leers' and her own. She put her gun back into her pocket once again. True enough, it was a paintball gun. But it was one made from a converted pistol. It had enough iron in it to make an effective bludgeoning weapon, as she had just demonstrated. However, once it was back in her pocket, she reached up to her neck and dipped her fingers under her collar. She shifted a small box that had been tied around her neck to her larynx, making sure that it had better contact.

"Testing, one, two, three…" She said after she was done. Perfectly in Leers' voice this time. She smiled at the result, and looked back down to Ashiah.

Very strange…suddenly becoming a mother again. Until this moment, she thought she would have liked nothing better than to turn Ashiah's brains into jam. The woman wouldn't have hesitated to do it to her, after all. And yet…seeing Leers' dead…seeing her paranoia and delusions…seeing her unable to figure out the simple fact that Maritza had long since built a secret entrance into the main office when she constructed the Dome…she realized it was hardly worth it. She had a much better plan in mind…

Yet that could wait. There was business to attend to.

You really owe me for this one, General.

Whistling a bit, Maritza reached out and grabbed the shoulder of Ashiah. With an easy tug, she ripped her out of the chair and let her fall on the floor none too gently. She plopped herself into the chair instead. She took up the receiver that Ashiah had limply released, and then placed it against her head as she turned back to the phone. She dialed a few more numbers, and then leaned back. She raised her legs and propped them up on the table's edge. She held up her hand and rubbed her nails a bit as she waited for someone on the other end to pick up. And after a few moments, someone did pick up.

"Commander Torunga? This is General Leers. The situation over here has changed."

So…that was it.

Torunga looked out blankly as the last of Leers' explanation rang in his ears. He had been rather comfortable over the past few hours, although he had been busier than he had in a long while. The command center for the Gauntlet of Zeus was complete, including power and heat. It was rather pleasant inside for him and the gunner crew. They were all at their consoles now, having finished up all of their final checks. Yet he and the gunners were the lucky ones. Nearby…covered with frost and half frozen…some of them having actually lost fingers or toes from the recent cold snap…was the final gun checkup crew. They had run into the command center to personally report that the final manual check was done, and the first shot had been loaded. Torunga let the crews come in and tell him personally now. It was so frigid outside that they needed all the warmth they could get. Even now, they were shifting and wincing as their limbs thawed. Yet they, like the rest of the gunners, were focused entirely on him.

And there he stood. He hadn't taken the command chair, although it would be his responsibility for the first usage of the cannon. Yet the hotline to the Dome was built into the chair, and he had answered it when it finally rang. And now, as the commanding officer, it was his duty to report the verdict to his crew.

He had not expected what he had heard.

The past few weeks had been hell. The weather had suddenly turned horrible. It was colder than winter. Storms flashed constantly. They were battered by icy winds day and night. Darkness shrouded the area. Workers succumbed to frostbite and hypothermia on a daily basis now. Lightning actually struck two poor guys. Torunga himself had a large bandage over his nose and cheeks. He got that a week ago, when some young worker had collapsed during a blizzard. After an hour, most had abandoned him for dead. Torunga kept looking. He found him buried up to his neck in snow at last, so frozen he couldn't move. Torunga threw him on his back and dragged him back. His life had been spared…but now the poor kid would go through the rest of his life with only the lower half of his legs.

Yet no one had given them relief. They were short on food and medical supplies, and yet the storm kept them from getting any more. And rather than listen to his requests for a rest or reprieve, Leers had only called in time and time again, telling them to work faster and keep on schedules despite the constant loss of manpower. If they were off schedule by even two hours, he blasted them with a tongue lashing. He didn't care anything about Torunga's complaints…that the crew was half dead. They were starving and frozen. No force had been subjected to such hellish conditions by their own commanders in nearly a century. Yet Leers dismissed them as excuses…and threatened to give them worse if they didn't continue.

And so…they had worked to build his cannon. They had sweat, bled, endured the elements, toughed through hunger, and had one workplace hazard after another. Three men froze to death at their stations…but they got his platform built. Two men were crushed when some of the cables snapped…but they put his gun barrel in. One man was slowly dying without so much as a drop of morphine to ease his pain as mako poisoning slowly killed him…but they had gotten his ammunition bunker built and the shots secure. The path to getting his precious weapon built had been paved with one life after another…lives that wouldn't have been lost if only they had been given a day to warm themselves…or a half day to double check for safety…or even so much as one extra shipment of supplies. But they built his cannon.

Then there was the past few days. The ones where he had worked them like dogs. The storm had died down enough to send up a transport. But there was no food, no medicine, and no space to carry their wounded out. There were only fresh soldiers who hadn't spent so much as two days out in the ice and snow without a good meal or warmth. Now if they fell back by so much as thirty minutes…the slowest worker, who usually was half dead already, got five lashes. Torunga, for a reason he didn't fully understand himself, had to work hard to suppress a revolt. Probably because they were certain to all die if they tried. They were numb, sick, and starving. The soldiers who had come up had fresh weapons that weren't frozen up, and were strong and well fed.

They had left yesterday night, once again taking advantage of a break in the storm to pull out. They were so pitiful by then that the pilot himself gave them the first aid kit from the chopper as well as three basic ration units that he had. The sad part was…those were actually the biggest blessings they had received in weeks. Then it was back to the slaving.

And now, this morning, at the time at which Leers demanded that they be done…it was over. Despite all the pain…all the hazards…all the cutbacks…and all the torture they had endured…it was finished. Never before had Torunga built something so fine. The facility was top rate. The reactor operated without so much as a waste fluctuation. There wasn't a speck of dust on any piece of equipment. Not one joint wasn't oiled and anti-freeze treated. It would do everything that the designers and officers had dreamed it would do and demanded, no matter how impossible. Despite how much it had taken from them…it was beautiful.

After over a year of endless misery, Torunga had stood here as the last checks were performed, and waited to at last give the Gauntlet of Zeus its one purpose. To show all of the officers the masterpiece that he and his crew had given everything for. All he needed was the one call.

And that one call came.

The words that he had heard seemed to ring through his brain like church bells in an empty arena.

"We have just surrendered to the PPA. Disarm the Gauntlet of Zeus and return to base for decommissioning as soon as possible."

Just like that.

No congratulations. No job well dones. No accredations. Nothing…just two little sentences.

For months they had given everything they had to get this done, and received nothing but anger and whips on their backs. They were treated like swine every day of the week building his cannon. And now that they had finally finished it…he just as simply told them to abandon it. He didn't even offer some crappy apology for having put them through this all for nothing.

It was an insult. It was a slap in the face. They had been human garbage…and now they were being thrown away. That's all they were to him. Some set of machines he could turn on and off. He didn't think about their feelings…about their toiling and misery… He only thought of what he wanted and what was good for him. He had never cared one button for their welfare. They were just nameless numbers to him, ones that he had been angry because he had kept snapping his fingers and they hadn't been able to jump. All he ever cared about was what he thought should be done. Whatever didn't get it done could be easily replaced with something that did. They were nothing to him.

At that point…Torunga hated the New Shinra and General Leers more than anything else in the whole wide world. What he thought next and what he did next truly had nothing to do with the Planet Protector Army or the Wutai Gold Navy. It had only to do with his anger and sense of betrayal and exploitation. It crowded out his ability to think about innocent people or an end to war. He thought only that Leers had given him one final order and expected him to snap to it like a trained monkey. He couldn't reach Leers. He couldn't get face to face with him. He couldn't hit him or slap him or discredit him or insult him. There was only one way he could, in some small measure, get even with him. And that was by telling him to take his direct order and shove it.

Torunga's eyes narrowed, and he spoke in a tone that desperately was containing the urge to scream at him.

"…I'm sorry sir. Your message is breaking up."

Without another word, Torunga turned and slammed the phone down angrily on the cradle.

His crew actually pulled back a bit, surprised at how violently their commander had ended that call. They had the sense that something rather bad had to have happened. Yet they stayed silent, and waited for Torunga to tell them. The man himself put his hands on his hips and glared down at the phone. He wanted to tear that man's heart out at this moment. But he couldn't. He was here…and here was the only place he had to work with. He calmed down ever so slightly now that he was free of Leers' voice. So the war was over. That meant no more building or toiling. Why this couldn't have happened so much as a month ago ran through his head…when it could have saved them a lot of labor and pain. At any rate, this was over. They'd be going back soon…and away from this icy hell forever.

But one thing remained.

His crew had died to make this cannon.

By God…they would see it fire.

Torunga turned up and looked to the crew.

"…Before breaking off…General Leers gave us the full go ahead to fire on Midgar."

Ragnar crossed his arms over his head before impact. Doing so saved him a fractured skull, at the price of spraining his arms. Even so, his face smashed against the ground a bit later, splitting open his chin. His body continued to run across it, scraping up more in its wake. He ground to a halt seconds later.

Quivering, weak, and losing his strength rapidly, Ragnar began to put his hands underneath him to push up again.

He never got the chance. Jenova lashed a tentacle around him. Invisible suckers…or perhaps stingers…pierced into his flesh, making him wince in pain. That was nothing compared to the agony he felt a moment later, as Jenova flung him around and smashed him against a wall. His body was rattled so severely he felt a car had struck it. His organs were mashed inside of his body. He coughed up a wad of blood. Moments later, and the tentacle snapped him back off of the wall with enough force to jerk his neck painfully, preparing to smash him into something else…

Suddenly, the tentacle lost its feeling and power. While still being thrown, it went limp and began to descend with Ragnar on it. The youth couldn't move. He was too dazzled. The world was swirling and turning black. It only swirled more when he crashed to the ground a second later, tumbling into more junk and debris that drove itself into his sides and back before coming to a rest like a limp rag doll. He became a sprawled out, motionless body.

Ragnar heaved, letting more blood drip from his mouth. His eyes weakly looked up…but he couldn't focus anymore. He was too battered. He felt like something was broken in more than one place inside him, and after that latest blow he hoped that it didn't include his back. Somewhere in his swirled vision, he saw that Cloud had once again saved him by chopping off Jenova's latest tentacle.

But as his vision cleared, he saw that he had made a costly mistake. Cloud was now being bashed around like a toy. His body was flung against the ground three times, each one smashing him so hard into it that he coughed and spasmed. Jenova was making sure to throw his body against a pipe or valve sticking out of the floor to make metal dig into him each time. The man was rather bloody at this point. Ragnar had a few lashes from tentacles and blood in a few spots…but Cloud was taking the far brunt. He had to. He could only get Jenova away from Ragnar by making himself a better target. And since he was doing most of the fighting, he took most of the damage. His back and front were covered with lacerations now, his shirt having ripped off long ago. His head was bleeding and soaking into his blond hair from a particularly nasty wound. Ragnar winced at the sight. He wished he could have been helping him…but at this point he was only a liability. Cloud had to make himself open to attack again and again to save him…to the point where Jenova started to use him as bait to get Cloud to drop his guard.

Ragnar, by now, had tried to flee. Although he knew Cloud couldn't beat this monster by himself, he wasn't helping. He had long since been bashed around so soundly that he lost the ability to summon Ragnarok back to him. The sword was lost somewhere in the debris. Yet Jenova always stopped him. No matter how many appendages Cloud knocked off, there were always more. More than either of them could deal with. Ragnar was out of strength…and Cloud was following up quickly.

After smashing Cloud down one last time…Event Horizon toppled from his grasp and onto the floor. Jenova paused for the briefest moment here. Cloud didn't notice. He was dazzled and bleeding now as well. He raised his head and saw his sword just in front of him. Weakly…he moved his hand out to grab it…

Then Jenova moved. She yanked him back and proceeded to smash Cloud's head into the ceiling two more times. The first time, Cloud flailed about a bit. After the second, his limbs went limp. Satisfied with that, Jenova flung Cloud down against the ground again, only twenty feet from Ragnar's own position. It was so hard that he bounced on impact before settling. When he did that, he hacked up more blood, letting it splash on his face. His eyes were closed and he barely looked conscious. Now they were both defenseless.

Ragnar saw him for a moment, his own barely aware eyes grasping what had happened. Useless as it was, he tried to push himself up…tried to do something…

Jenova stopped him by lashing out with her tentacle and slapping him off the ground again, and Cloud with him. Both flew backward a few feet before hitting the ground again, this time both sprawled out over junk and limp as dead fish. They went still for a moment, both of them panting and trying to recover from the pain they had just withstood.

Despite his body protesting, Ragnar tried to push up again.

When he did…he felt the worst pain yet. Two needle-like stabs entered his abdomen.

Ragnar's eyes opened, and he cried in agony. But his cry wasn't alone. Cloud did the same from where he was. The youth didn't look to his friend at the moment. His eyes looked out in front of him to see what had happened.

One of Jenova's tentacles was hovering just feet in front of him. Something had happened to the end of it. It had split open…revealing what looked like some sort of branching vein or artery that was so full of blood that it became rigid and firm. It extended down to him until it was about a foot away from his body. After that, it broke into two pieces to form a fork before embedding itself in his gut. Now he was pinned on the end of Jenova's appendage like a piece of food on a utensil.

It wasn't enough for that to happen though. His blood didn't seem to run out from the wounds, and the tentacles didn't pierce his body through. Rather, their ends sat just under his flesh. Nevertheless, he felt strange. As they sat inside him…he felt his lower stomach began to grow cold. It was like they were somehow sucking the heat out of him. He began to feel short of breath although neither his lungs or diaphragm were impacted. He was already dizzy from being beaten so badly…but now he felt dizzier yet…almost faint. He realized what was happening. The vessel or nerve was sucking the life out of him. Not enough to kill him, but more than enough to take what fight was left him him out of him.

The youth turned his head at last to Cloud. His friend was pinned in the exact same way. He actually was reaching down and grabbing the forked bit of flesh, trying to yank it out again. Ragnar, on his part, didn't have the strength anymore. At any rate, he didn't get far. The thing was able to overcome his strength and keep its body inside his. And now…he heard the wet smacking sound again as it drug more of its body forward. He turned his head back around to face forward.

Jenova oozed and sprawled its way toward the two of them. Her rotting scent filled their nostrils as she pulled into a halt just about ten feet away from both of their bodies. Some of her tentacles were severed and flopped uselessly around at her sides. But none were bleeding anymore. The rest of them rose and pointed themselves like lances at the two fallen men. Her own arms stayed on the ground, although she pushed her wrists up on her fingertips. She darted her misshapen head from one to the other. She continued to hiss and seethe.

"Do you hurt, little boys?" She mocked, but not nearly as biting as she could have been. Too much of her voice was overrun with anger and hate. "Are you in agony? Misery? You should be. You killed my children…but I still live. And the Gauntlet of Zeus will still fire. Your deaths will release the Sorceress. I lost my chance to make a new race…but I'll still be nourished with more than enough power to leave this world and find another.

"I doubt that I can make you feel as much pain as you have made me feel…but I shall do my best. You feel the ends of my nerves inside you now. In a few moments, I will make them expand and branch out, piercing you from the inside out in over a hundred places. As you die horribly…I will feed on what's inside you to gain more power for myself."

Ragnar couldn't help but turn a bit pale at this. Bold and brave as he was, he was in considerable pain and had sustained heavy injuries. Now he realized what Jenova was going to do. He had seen it before. She had branched out her tentacles in a similar fashion to anchor herself to the pipes of the Dome. Now it appeared she would do the same to them. But there was nothing more he could do. He couldn't even call Ragnarok anymore. Once again…he needed Cloud to help him. But the ex-mercenary could do nothing either. He could only stare and look defiant in his final moments…

Jenova hissed, and then began to open its mouth to speak again…

Yet at that moment, Ragnar caught a blur in his vision. He turned and looked…and only faintly caught sight of something leaping up into the air and then down again behind the alien. But when it did…he saw something silvery flash. Cloud, meanwhile, on the other side, saw a large deal of purple blood fly from the back of the thing and splatter against the ground. Jenova did open its mouth…but it was only to give another hideous yell. Its tentacles flailed about in pain as it finally sustained a hit to its main body. It nearly ripped the ones it had in Ragnar and Cloud out. However, Ragnar was somewhat glad that it didn't. Doing so would have been so wild it would have opened even larger wounds inside them. As it was, when it thrashed around it moved some of the nerves within them, giving them further pain.

Both men were still able to look up and watch the creature. It calmed down and stilled its appendages again. After doing so, it angrily snapped the bulk of its body around behind it. It slithered back a bit as it did, allowing Ragnar to see what had just done that to the monster.

He couldn't believe his eyes.

Azure, panting and clearly nervous, held the Masamune in front of him and glared at the alien. It was stained with her blood. He was making himself look as bold and fierce as possible.

Cloud saw as well, and blinked in disbelief. "Azure…?"

Ragnar was likewise overwhelmed. "How…how are you…?"

What Ragnar meant to ask was "how are you here". The youth had realized that slaying Sephiroth supposedly removed all hope of ever getting Azure back. After all, it was his body that Sephiroth had transformed and taken. Yet in retrospect, he realized certain details. Sephiroth hadn't nearly bled as much as he thought he would have. He seemed to cease and "hang on" to his remaining fluids. What more, if he had truly been finished…he would have abandoned the body, and it would have reverted back to Azure then. Yet Azure certainly didn't have any chest wounds or neck wounds. He was dressed in the same clothes he was the day he left, and they had no bloodstains or tears on them. The youth slowly began to realize that Sephiroth might not have been dead. Perhaps he could regenerate even from what he had done to him. But perhaps, while he was out…something had made Azure's personality take control again… Apparently…he was on their side.

Yet Ragnar never got to finish asking the question because of Jenova's shriek cutting him off.

"You worthless boy! How dare you strike your mother!"

Although Ragnar knew none of this, the fact was that when Azure had faced off against Jenova inside himself, it had only been against the Jenova that was within him. Normally each individual portion was linked to all others. But Sephiroth had been "dead", and as such the cells were temporarily cut off. As a result, Jenova was most surprised to see one of her offspring actually drawing a blade against him.

Likewise…Azure was far more nervous now, and far more fearful. Inside himself, he had been the master of his environment. He could have been mightier than anything else. Here…he was back in his physical body, which was far inferior even to most other Sephiroth clones. That was one big downside of being back to his old self. Yet he was determined now, and kept the Masamune pointed at the monster.

"Stay away from them." He flatly stated.

The creature hissed, and turned its tentacles up and toward Azure instead.

"Wretch! They are your enemy! Have you forgotten how they hated you and spurned you? How I took you in? Accepted you for what you were?"

"I've already had this argument before." Azure answered, not changing his position. "So I'll just tell you what I think of you. I don't care what you wanted me to be. You're a monster. I like this world and I like who's in it. I'll fight anyone who tries to hurt it. You may have made me, but you don't control me. All you've ever done is trick me into doing what you wanted. I'll never listen to you again. And if you don't back away…I'll kill you."

The creature's needle-like teeth were barred as she filled with even more hate than before. Absolute hatred at one of its own offspring rejecting her influence.

"FOOL!"

A tentacle went out for Azure. The boy vaguely began to respond by bringing up his sword…but he was far too slow. The thing lashed out and seized his wrists, and ripped them away and off of the blade. They crushed inward as well, making Azure cry in pain. Two more tentacles went out and grabbed his ankles, crushing them in too. The boy was next ripped off of his feet and into the air. Once there…the tentacles broke and let out more nerves, which immediately pierced him in his arm and leg muscles. This time, the monster let blood flow freely out. Azure's eyes closed as he screamed. Despite what he was…he was still just a child. His agony was horrible to another human's ears.

The monster next raised a mass of tentacles and aggregated them together right in front of Azure's torso. Ragnar and Cloud saw as the ends began to turn red…

"No!" Ragnar cried.

"Azure!" Cloud yelled.

It was too late. The ends of the tentacles fired…and red light shot forward and struck the boy. His screams were cut off as he was enveloped by the deadly energy. The sound of them burning cut off all other noise. The men watched in horror, but were unable to do anything as they saw Azure ripped off of the ends of the tentacles and blasted back into the darkness of the sublevel. His body was limp before it vanished into the red energy…and then into the blackness that he was thrown into. He soon vanished. His echoing scream faded to silence.

Ragnar and Cloud snapped back to the creature. Both of them glared in fury at it, helpless and futile as it might have been. Ragnar had barely known Azure. However…he had just been a kid. That slice that he gave was total luck. There was no way he could have fought her, and she had to have known it. Besides that, he had been Jenova's own offspring. Yet she blasted him as if she hated him even more than them. The parasite truly cared for nothing but itself. Even its "children" meant nothing to it if they didn't help further its welfare.

Until now…Ragnar had thought in some light that Azure was like Sephiroth. He had believed that deep down inside he had become the dark man because it was his nature. His destiny and desire was to become a pawn of Jenova. But now he realized he had been terribly wrong. The boy had defied his own fate so that he could do what was right. He displayed more character than many blue-blooded humans, even though he was half alien himself. He had tried to save them…going as far as to attempt to kill his maker…

Azure…

…I'm sorry I didn't try harder to save you.

The monster seethed a bit more toward where it had blasted the boy into oblivion, before snapping back around to its other victims. The bloodlust in its eyes increased.

No…

He was just a child…

He was your child!

Aerith knew that Jenova truly cared nothing for Azure the whole time. Yet still…seeing her strike him down without pity or love… The boy had truly been wretched for having been forced to have that monster for a mother. But he had found peace and love. He had found a new family for himself. And he had given himself over wholly to fighting for what was right. He had the hope of living peacefully and happily for the rest of his life…

And that monster had just cut it off so heartlessly…

The dark side again asked Aerith for blood…and this time she didn't say no right away.

The lights in the chamber began to flicker. A tremor went through the ground. Denzel and Marlene looked around themselves in puzzlement at this, wondering what was going on now. Soon thereafter, however, they turned back to Aerith. The air around her had seemed to grow warmer…and they could almost feel a breeze coming off of her.

Vincent didn't look away. He glared at Aerith coldly now…realizing that something was definitely happening to her that was not right. And now, the Turks themselves gazed about in puzzlement as the lights continued to flicker. They looked over to Aerith too, and felt a breeze beginning to blow against them as well. The rest of the room seemed to be dimming now…but not around Aerith. Around her…everything seemed far lighter…far sharper…far more…livid.

Aerith's hands were clutched so hard against her head that blood began to ooze from openings in her skin. She was shaking violently now…sweating bullets on the ground below her. The sweat was beginning to smoke and sizzle as it hit the ground. Far above her…a metal catwalk was beginning to shake and pull…as if she was somehow drawing it to herself. What more…it was beginning to warp somewhat, as if turning into a new object…

Aerith's eyes were still wide open.

They weren't filled with just fear anymore…or anger.

Something else was creeping into them.

"I won't kill you both together. That will waste too much suffering. So who first?"

The creature turned its head to Ragnar. The man glared back at it, weak but showing no fear. He tried to put his own hands on the nerves to pull them out. On touching them, his own hands began to feel icy and slimy. Yet he pulled none the less.

"You're the one who's responsible for Sephiroth's death…and your wretched mate killed Aleron. You are the enemy of my race and it would be a pleasure to watch another one of you die…"

The thing whirled around to Cloud next. The man glared back at it defiantly.

"But you…failure of a clone… You've caused me countless amounts of misery. And you have enough power in you to make a decent meal."

"Screw you." Cloud sneered in response. "Burn in hell."

Ragnar turned his head over to his friend. The ex-mercenary showed no fear. He glared back just as hatefully and strongly at the monster. It seemed to irritate the creature. It grit its teeth, grinding them over one another for a brief moment. It flicked its head over to Ragnar. The youth would be lying if he said he didn't feel fear. He knew what it was planning…knew what it would do to him. But he was determined not to show fear. He made himself just as bold as Cloud. A few seconds of silence ticked by.

At last, the monster snorted.

"I've decided."

It flicked its head back over to Cloud.

Moments later…the man went rigid as at least a hundred separate needle-like nerves erupted from all over his chest and back.

Ragnar felt like he had just been stabbed in the heart. All reality seemed to fade into black as he stared out and saw Cloud's defiance turn to pained shock as he began to bleed in dozens of spots. He couldn't sense Jenova or the Dome anymore. He only saw Cloud…and that final moment as the nerves of the thing burst from all around him.

"Commencing primary ignition sequence."
"NO!"

The lights in the room shattered. The entire chamber was plunged into darkness…save for one area. Aerith herself was radiating light now. Rather…a pocket of light seemed to be carried around her…and it was growing brighter. The tremor turned into a quake…and a strong wind began to push against Denzel and Marlene. Both of them shielded themselves, but continued to stare. Vincent and the Turks stared on as well, but the latter of the two were now growing rather astonished.

"What the hell…?" Reno voiced through clenched teeth.

Aerith didn't hear that. She only saw something of what Ragnar saw. She could sense that Jenova had moved…had gone out and attacked. And it had attacked Cloud's own powerful aura. Once it did…that aura immediately began to fade, just as Azure's had done before it. She knew what that meant.

It was killing Cloud.

Aerith's mind went blank. All thoughts of resistance and control were wiped away. She only saw Cloud…the mercenary that had helped her years ago. The grim yet lovable warrior…the man who seemed so cold but had such a noble and good heart… A man who had given of himself time and time again to save this world and protect others… She had tried so hard to help him…to make him live up to his potential… He had come so far… He had done so much for her…for all of them. He fought without any concern for himself…just for helping the world… They weren't lovers…but after Ragnar, he was her best friend…

Now he was dying. The same monster that had killed all the other members of her race…killed Azure…even killed her…was taking him. And it would take Ragnar too. It was taking everything away from her…making her feel as much misery as possible…before it took the world from her too…leaving her with nothing but hopelessness and despair… And here she sat…helpless and unable to do anything…

Slowly, her dark side crept up and offered its services one more time.

This time…she welcomed it in.

She had been right…the power was immense. Far greater than anything she had ever dreamed of. Now it poured into her body like a waterfall pouring into a bucket. It felt great…wonderful…almost intoxicating, like a high from a drug. Her dark personality relished it as it nestled itself firmly inside her brain, taking full command of the situation. The vengeful spirits behind it cheered in joy as they realized their day had finally come.

Right before she let her personality be overwhelmed…Aerith let two words slip between her lips to the children around her.

"Run…away…"

Denzel and Marlene looked back in confusion, not understanding.

"What?" Marlene answered.

Then…the world shuddered. It was like something huge had been dropped into it. The quake immediately tripled in power, and now became harsh and violent. The catwalks began to shudder. The platform itself began to rock. The metal fixtures around them in the facility began to break, and pieces started to rain down from them. The children cried out as they suddenly began to get thrown one way and another by the lurching of the floor. Luckily…Vincent had caught what she had said. With what power he had recovered, he dashed forward, grabbed both children around the waist, and then yanked them back.

It was a good thing too…for now the light around Aerith began to turn green…green with heat and the energy of the Lifestream. Her sweat evaporated on the ground, but now also on her brow. Once that was done, the heat continued to build, until before the eyes of the astonished Turks and others the floor around Aerith began to turn red. After that, it slowly started to melt. The wind began to grow more fierce as well…whipping around Aerith with force that rivaled that which had been around Ragnar not long ago. The winds blasted against those watching and yanked at their clothing and bodies, seeming to try and push them aside and away… Combined with the quake, they were soon hard pressed to stay on the platform. Unable to do anything else, they began to back away further, making their way toward the rickety catwalk. Dangerous as it was…it was the only way out. Yet they all kept their eyes on Aerith…in growing fear.

The wind surged around the woman, breaking the ribbon in her hair. Her long brown mane began to thrash about in the gale. Moments later, she began to slowly pull her hands away from her head. She wasn't trying to hold anything back anymore. Her back was to them now, and they couldn't see her face or any changes on it. But now she suddenly seemed confident…and secure within the chaos around her. Pieces of metal continued to rain down around her, threatening to crush her body in an instant. One large valve and pipe broke off and sailed toward her, appearing that it was going to do just that. It fell until it reached about three feet above her head. Then…an invisible hand seemed to stop it…crumple it into a ball…and toss it away.

One piece of metal was different. Far overhead, the piece that had begun to twist and warp earlier had not fallen. But it was still changing…now turning hot so that it could remold itself. The ends of it became long and broad. The top of it began to arch out. The front grew two long, irregular, metal spikes. The whole thing shuddered…seeming to want to not just fall but go to Aerith…

A gale of wind and heat whipped by. With that, Aerith's clothing was ripped from her body. As soon as it left her, it was incinerated. It turned into ashes, and the ashes were carried in the gale that surrounded her. They soon formed "orbits" as they flew around her body. Now that her flesh was exposed, those watching gasped. Something was moving through Aerith's blood vessels…turning them dark and purple as it slowly snaked through her body. But it wasn't in some set pattern. It was almost like they were covering her with some sort of runes as they formed…or war paint.

Calmly in the midst of what was happening to her, Aerith began to rise. She was no longer stiff or rigid. She seemed to be fully content with what was happening to her. Once she was fully standing, she extended a single arm out from her body. She straightened the fingertips on the end, and the nails lengthened and shaped until they became sharp. Her hair was rearranging itself, seeming to aggregate into long spikes and sweep behind her head. At the same time, the ashes of her clothes darted inward and attached themselves to her skin. But it wasn't in some random manner. They arranged themselves and changed as they hit her, seeming to piece themselves back together in a new arrangement.

The metal above her, forming into its final orientation, shuddered fiercely and then ripped off. Moving like a straight missile, it shot straight for Aerith's back. Seconds later…the two irregular metal spikes pierced the soft flesh. They drew no blood, however, and as soon as they were inside…they began to melt and change, wrapping around Aerith's scapula, grafting the arrangement to it…

The woman tilted her head back and screamed.

Those huddled away covered their ears to block the pain as all three cylinders shattered.

The sound had caught in Ragnar's throat. His lip trembled as tears welled up in his eyes. He ineffectively reached out his hand to his friend…nowhere near close enough to touch him, let alone help him.

Blood was coming from all of the wounds now. Ragnar could only imagine in horror how many times Jenova had branched out her nerves, piercing his insides in so many horrible ways… The man stiffened and gagged, looking up to the ceiling of the sublevel. He twitched, but did nothing else. He couldn't.

Ragnar's lip slowly turned into a sneer, but his sadness remained. He was dying. His best friend was dying. He had known Jenova was going to kill them…but now seeing it actually happen was something else. He grew desperate. He had to do something…anything to help him. He seized the ends of the nerves again and pulled at them with strength he didn't know he had. It did no good. They wouldn't budge. His throat tightened and his heart began to feel cold. But for all of his pulling, he could do nothing. He looked on at Cloud, beginning to feel himself gasping, seeing what was going on with him.

His twitching was ceasing. His body was starting to turn pale.

"Hmm…you are a great meal… At least you served some useful purpose to me."

Ragnar's sadness vanished, replaced with rage. He wheeled around to the monster.

"You damn bitch! Let him go!"

The youth received a painful, brain-jarring tentacle slap to the side of his head in answer, smacking his head down. The world whirled and faded between black and color. A ringing went out in his ears.

"Wait your turn, Cetra! He'll be dead in a few more moments."

Fresh blood was leaking from Ragnar's nostrils. Despite the tremendous anger and sadness he felt inside him, he couldn't show any emotion as he turned his head back to Jenova. He was too dazzled. He had to wait for the ringing in his ears to stop, and for the world to shift back to normal. After a moment or so, the world did stabilize again. The blackness went away, and the swirling ceased. But the ringing was still in his ears. It faded momentarily, but then stabilized and began to come back. Ragnar began to think Jenova had finally slapped him one too many times…

A moment later, and he truly felt that as he saw the world flicker between darkness and light in front of him. Now his vision was going out too? The ringing continued to increase. He thought he was losing his mind, that all of his senses were going haywire. Maybe Jenova had started to kill him too…

Then he suddenly noticed it. His senses were only sharpening. His hearing was growing better, and the world was stabilizing more around him. He realized that he wasn't seeing and hearing things. The ringing noise was really in the room…and it was growing louder. It wasn't like in his ears. It sounded like…metal. Thousands of pieces of metal smacking against each other to make the ringing. And the world was flickering black because the lights were flickering. The power looked like it had a short in it. Soon he started to realize why. The ground beneath him was starting to rumble. And it was picking up. This time, it wasn't Jenova who was doing it. The monster itself paused in its work and looked up and around it, seeming to notice the same things and wonder why they were suddenly happening. The noise continued to grow as the quake picked up…soon surpassing what the monster itself had done.

The youth glanced around him, seeing as what hadn't already been torn down or wrecked began to fall as well. But it picked up far greater than that soon. The foundations of the floor were starting to buckle. Where the steel floor was still uncovered began to twist and warp. Some of it started to break up in places, revealing fractured concrete beneath prying upward. The lights continued to flicker faster and faster…until an electronic whine and snap went out as one of the bulbs burst. The others soon began to follow suit, and the darkness began to return to the chamber.

What was this? An earthquake? That was all that Ragnar could picture causing this building havoc. The ringing was now banging, and he was shaking so much that he was going up and down on Jenova's nerves. That was rather painful, but he didn't focus on it. He was starting to feel a breeze coming down from the ceiling as the last bulb popped, plunging him and everyone else into blackness. Then he finally realized the truth. When he did, even more fear flooded his mind.

It's not a quake…

It's her.

The power awakened.

Another large cracking sound went out. It sounded like what had happened with Jenova minutes ago when she punched through the wall. Only now it was overhead. He wasn't able to focus on the sound itself for very long…for another one of his senses was aroused. Light was starting to come from overhead. He looked up to the ceiling, and with him the monster in the chamber.

The ceiling was indeed breaking apart. It was another huge section again, the same size as the one that Jenova had punched through. He was able to see it, because some burning green light was beyond it. It looked like mako, and for a moment he actually thought the pits were eating through the floor, about to bury them in a deluge of waste. Yet as he kept looking and the light got closer, he noticed that this light was far more concentrated and pure. It was more like Lifestream… What more, debris wasn't rained down on them. As each piece broke off, it was swept into what looked like a tornado, and thrown back up above higher in the ceiling. What he was feeling right now was just downwind of it. Yet as it grew nearer, he continued to feel the wind blow stronger…

Ragnar's concentration was suddenly interrupted as he felt Jenova suddenly yank her roots out from his body. He stiffened and gagged a bit from the painful movement, and some blood did begin to flow after that. Yet the wounds weren't serious. He didn't see it, but it retracted its nerves and yanked them out of Cloud as well. He didn't react. She pulled them back to her and began to turn her full body toward the coming light. Ragnar calmed down and looked on, and realized why she was doing this. He slowly started to flail his arms out to push himself up, but it was still going to take a few moments to rise…

While he watched, the last of the ceiling was blown away. The full green radiant light shone down.

Then…she came.

Winds were whipping around her, creating rings of smaller debris, and she seemed to be radiating the burning green light from herself. Still, both Ragnar and Jenova were able to look on her. It wasn't like some light bulb which becomes blinding to look at. Ragnar could see her clearly and with progressively more detail as she seemed to ride the wind down to the ground…

As her fingers flexed, each one tipped with a long black fingernail, he could see her body covered with some sort of runes or design which appeared to elevate from underneath her skin. Her old clothing was gone. Now, she was dressed in black…more specifically, a long black gown. It seemed to adhere closely to her flesh, almost as if it was part of her skin. It exposed her bust region, although the dress around that area seemed to form roots of its own that almost appeared to anchor the clothing against her. Most conspicuous, however, was a large pair of metal wings that were attached to her back. He couldn't see what was attaching them. Spanning across the two wings on an arch was some sort of design that had spires and points, like a crown only behind her…

The head disturbed Ragnar most of all. He could barely see anything of the woman she once was on it. Her hair had gone free and rigid, becoming a flowing mane of spikes behind her that draped between the metal wings. Some sort of tiara of steel held the hair back. The edges of her face showed more of the blood-vessel-like design, which seemed to come up to her actual face before fading. Like her nails, her lips seemed to wear black lipstick…unless it had turned black of its own accord. Finally…there were her eyes.

Ragnar had once thought Aerith possessed the fairest, most beautiful, most gentle and kindest eyes in the world. It was hard to believe that these had once been those. The soft look was now burning and fierce, charged with the same terrible green radiance that surrounded her. It was cruel and pitiless, brimming with power far above and beyond Sephiroth's glare. Even if she wasn't looking at you…it was nearly impossible to bear that horrible gaze. If she stared at you, it was the closest anyone on Gaia could come to bearing the stare of God in His full wrath.

She didn't land. Apparently, flight was now also in her power. She came to a halt twenty feet in front of Jenova, suspended a few meters in the air so that she was head-level with the monster…although at this point it was hard to tell who was the more fearsome creature. There, she glared at it with a look of burning hate and righteous anger. Her face itself didn't change. Just the eyes. The wind died down and the quake ceased, but her garments continued to float and move in the wind.

Sorceress Aerith had come.

And on seeing her and realizing this, the alien merely grinned.

"About time."

"Safety locks disengaged."
Aerith didn't answer. Both she and the alien were still, staring at each other. Ragnar looked from one to the other, not sure what to do now…or what to fear. All he knew now was that he had failed. After all he and Bahamut had tried, it just wasn't enough. The timeline hadn't been prevented. It had only been delayed a little while. Now what would happen?

Until now, Ragnar had entertained the notion that Bahamut may have not known what he was talking about. Aerith was kind and gentle, after all. Yet he couldn't see any trace of that personality on this woman's face. It was just like when Krystea had turned into Aleron…like she was possessed by something else. Hopefully this woman wasn't the same, or they were doomed.

"You're brimming with the power of the Lifestream." Jenova said as she looked at the woman. "When I devour you, it will be almost like crashing into this world all over again. How wonderful."

The Sorceress didn't even narrow her pupils.

Jenova began to move all of its tentacles forward, so that it would aim at the woman instead. Aerith didn't react. She allowed the alien to move them all into a facing position, and once she had come that far allowed her to begin to surround her with them. After all, Aerith was above the ground, and slipping some beneath and behind her was easy.

Ragnar saw this, and despite what Aerith had transformed into felt his heart race.

"Get away from her, Aerith! She's going to try and absorb your power!"

If the Sorceress heard Ragnar, she didn't react. She seemed to almost be a statue, save for her clothing slowly blowing in the wind she generated. Jenova took advantage of that until she spread her tentacles completely around her, leaving only the top unguarded. Yet Aerith made no move to fly to safety. The tip of each one pointed toward her. There had to be at least a hundred making a sphere shape around her body. Ragnar didn't know exactly what he could do, but now he was growing deathly afraid for both Aerith and what this monster would become if she absorbed the Sorceress.

"Aerith! Get out of here!" The youth insisted, as he forced himself to start putting his arms underneath his body to rise.

"Don't bother." Jenova flatly answered. "I'd never let an individual like you escape. Even if you weren't about to feed me, I'd love to rip you apart simply for what you did to Aleron. You won't be coming back this time, Cetra…or Sorceress, whichever you prefer. You're all the same to me…a thorn in my side to be removed and crushed."

At last, the Sorceress' lips parted to speak. It was a strange voice. Very, very vaguely…he could detect Aerith's tone. Yet it was far louder and more stern, fueled with passion and grim demeanor at the same time. It seemed to resonate and echo with the air, not clearly coming from anything but reverberating from everything.

"I won't ask you to stand down or surrender." She calmly said. "Even if you begged for pity at this point, I would not give it to you. Today, you d-"

"Please be quiet." Jenova cut off in her own calm voice…as not one but three nerve-like tendrils erupted from three different tentacles and rushed straight for Aerith's mouth.

Ragnar's eyes widened. For a moment, he thought it was over. He was only sitting up at this point, not even with legs underneath him. He thought of calling for Ragnarok, but it would be too late. The things were headed straight for her head, meaning to go down her throat and pierce her inside and out just as they had done with Cloud. Then they'd suck the life out of her too, and the world would be doomed…

The nerves came forward until they reached a foot from her face.

Then they stopped.

Jenova's grin vanished. Ragnar's fearful look turned to puzzlement. What had just happened? The tentacles with their spear-like tips were headed straight for the Sorceress, and then they halted just in front of her. What more, they didn't appear to be straining at all. Aerith hadn't even lifted an eyebrow to Jenova's assault. Her burning green eyes were still focused on the mutant. The thing itself raised its rotten nose, exposing more teeth. It was then that Ragnar realized something. The nerve ends were quite calmly held still in front of Aerith, but about five feet away they were flailing madly. They looked to be writhing and struggling to push forward, but not getting anywhere. They even grew new branches and attempted to send them to the Cetra…only to have them be immobilized as soon as they reached the same distance.

The monster cracked one side of its mouth open and snarled. Moments later, each and every tentacle burst forward with nerve ends. A hailstorm of red roots rushed inward with the speed of striking snakes, looking to pierce Aerith from every way imaginable. But just like the first, they all halted as soon as they got close. Making a horrible wet whipping sound, all of the tentacles of Jenova thrashed about wildly, struggling to push the ends forward. It did nothing. The ends remained as calm and still as Aerith herself.

Ragnar was amazed. He had forgotten to rise the rest of the way at this point, though he had brought his legs underneath him. What sort of power was Aerith using against it? It appeared that she had made some sort of magical barrier around herself. Yet that was unusual. Barriers were usually visible, and they never completely held physical damage back. They just made it harder on the enemy to attack. Jenova hissed, and her anger grew. She thrashed about more madly than ever. She began to snap her neck and stretch it around. On seeing this, Ragnar realized something more surprising. The Sorceress wasn't just keeping the tentacles from hitting her. She was keeping Jenova from pulling them back.

"You damned wretch!" The thing hissed. "If I could only touch you, I'd wipe that damn look off your face!"

To this, to Ragnar's surprise, Aerith smiled…wickedly.

"What's the matter? Can't even lay a finger on the helpless Cetra? If you're going to whine about it, why not run home and cry in your mother's lap?"

The thing's hideous eyes shrunk for a moment, before its hideous flesh turned red. It spat out drool from its mouth as it elevated its massive claws off of the floor. Screeching out in rage, it drove all of its razor-tipped talons for Aerith's heart. It didn't care for energy now. It only wanted to kill after that insult.

Just like all the nerves before it, the hands halted and went still before reaching the Sorceress. They were still frozen in that moment of cruel desire, twisted and ready to curve into Aerith's body. Yet they could not move anymore. Hissing and screeching again, the thing thrashed about madly. Its six legs smacked against the ground as it roared and struggled to yank itself away.

Aerith seemed to actually enjoy Jenova's attempts to pull back for a few moment. Then the sound of its voice seemed to irritate her. Her smile faded as her dark look returned.

"Enough."

Jenova froze herself here, and looked back to the Sorceress. She seemed to wonder what she had meant by this. A second later, her mouth opened in total surprise as she saw exactly what Aerith meant. Ragnar looked much the same.

Starting at the tips of the tentacles and moving down…Jenova was turning to stone. What had been immobilized and calm by Aerith's power before now became so by turning into lifeless rock. The effect was spreading out from Aerith's central body. All of the immobilized limbs, in a perfect enlarging sphere shape, were turning gray, cold, and lifeless. When it reached Jenova's arms, it began to do the same thing.

The monster was flabbergasted. It stammered and gaped at the Sorceress. There wasn't a magic power on the face of Gaia that had been able to ever turn her flesh to stone. Yet Aerith was above and beyond even the mightiest wizards now. The powers of the Sorceress outdid even that of the Ettecan's biotechnology. All on Gaia were mere insects to its might. Jenova's face turned to rage…although it was one that now masked growing fear…and shoved forward with the few remaining tentacles it hadn't already aimed at the Sorceress. As she drove them in…they immediately began to turn to stone as well as soon as they touched the expanding circle. Hissing, the monster pulled them back…only to gape and make a horrible gasping sound of fear and shock. Its non-immobilized tentacles continued to turn to stone even once away from Aerith. In fact…they were spreading faster. They were halfway rock in instants. Having no other choice, the monster quickly snapped them back as hard as it could, breaking the tentacles off before they could reach her body.

Yet that didn't help her immobilized tentacles. Try as she could to remove them, she could not pull them back. She thrashed about and yanked, but that did nothing. As the circle continued to expand, soon the thrashing ceased as mobile pieces began to turn to stone as well. The creature was slowly turning into a statue…

Again, it had no other option. Hissing in pain and misery from doing this, the thing made red lights appear at the "shoulder" region of each of its tentacles and its two arms. Ragnar looked and realized that the thing was activating its energy beams again, only doing it within its limbs now. As the hissing gave way to a scream, the foul flesh of the creature made a sickening "blort" sound in numerous places as the tentacle ends erupted into flesh and foul fluid, before snapping off and hitting the ground. There, the ends continued to gush fluid and flop around until Aerith's wave passed over them. Once that happened, they hardened into stone and went motionless.

Now, Jenova was feeling genuine fear. The monster had to slither back, not willing to see if the wave would do the same to its body once it reached it. Ragnar himself was about to move away as well, not wishing to get in the path of the stone circle. However, once all of the tentacles had turned to stone, it seemed to cut off. Aerith was still locking gazes with the monster, who was losing more and more confidence all the time. She watched it bleed from its new wounds for a moment.

Then, her power released. Each one of the stone tentacles that were hovering in the air fell to the ground. On hitting, they shattered into thousands of pieces.

"There is no escape." She flatly told the thing.

Jenova was at a loss, it seemed. The thing thrashed its six remaining appendages and ground its teeth, but these were only attempts not to show its fear. Clearly, it had never thought that the Sorceress would keep her from touching her. After a few moments, it finally reacted. Its "forefoot" rose, and pointed its clawed digits at Aerith. Each one glowed red and then erupted in a burst of fiery light.

The Sorceress didn't move, and the beams that resulted never struck her. Though the magical barrier wasn't obvious, it was present. The attack harmlessly bounced off without even upsetting a hair on her head. Jenova fired desperately again several times, but all with the same result.

"Damn you!" It swore. "Why are you even here? You're dead! My son killed you!"

Aerith paused, and then replied simply. Yet what she said chilled the alien's blood, for it was hauntingly familiar to what Sephiroth had said not long ago.

"It's too late to regret starting this. Now death is your only escape."

The creature actually stammered, if that was possible. She gaped at the Sorceress for a moment more. Its jaw quivered, and its neck rippled. It breathed deep a few times. Then, having no other choice, it clenched its teeth and stiffened. Its limbs stretched out and slapped onto the ground, grabbing it and holding as firmly as possible. Its lips parted as it formed one final angry look. Its muscles tightened as it summoned all remaining power within itself. After that, it opened its mouth wide. Ragnar looked and saw into it. Burning green light was inside, similar to Aerith's and yet different. He knew what it was…the ultimate attack of the creature. He had heard the story from Cloud. It was Ultima…power that negated any barrier to strike the flesh on the other side. At this point, it didn't seem like it would do much good, unless it provoked a final attack that could be absorbed…

Jenova's head snapped forward, and a whine rang through the room as the blast began to come forth…

In answer, instants before it erupted, the Sorceress calmly rose a hand and snapped her fingers.

"Main barrel clear."
Ragnar was blasted off of the ground and swept back as the tidal wave of burning Lifestream seemed to appear from nowhere and sweep over Jenova's mutated form in a deluge. He couldn't watch. The light was too blinding. Even as he flew back and landed, he had to cover his eyes and cry out in agony from it being too bright. Even then, he could feel the outside of his skin growing warm and burning, like being in the sun too long. He was powerless to look and see what had happened. But instantaneously, without so much as batting an eye, Aerith had summoned an Ultima attack a thousand-fold greater than the most powerful materia was capable of. Jenova never even got hers past her lips.

The creature squealed, but the air that it used to make noise was consumed by fire long before it left her lungs. She couldn't even thrash around. The wave pinned her body back. It completely washed over her entire body, legs included as well as head. The heat vaporized the metal that she stood on, and yet somehow held her body there…let it take the full power of the blast.

Jenova was a creature that absorbed the Planet's energy in its raw form. Yet she could only take so much in an individual cell at a given rate. Her body was soon being overloaded and flash-fried. Her consuming cells couldn't keep up with it. It wasn't long before they began to lyse and turn to ash. The edges of her flesh peeled off and burned away, the ash itself turning into vapor, and then atoms as it blew away. The metal portion was gone in instants. The biological part followed. Her torso was ripped off and the organs beneath began to vaporize soon after. When they were gone, the creature's skeleton was still frozen in that final moment of shock, a statue like the rest of the body. Then it burned away as well.

The Sorceress alone looked into that energy and watched. It waited until it saw every last fragment of Jenova be destroyed. Once there wasn't so much as a single cell remaining, she lowered her arm. The green wave immediately disappated. It didn't keep traveling, plowing a hole into the ground or Dome beyond, but simply cut off. It faded into nothingness, the energy breaking down and being reabsorbed by the Sorceress in instants. The sound died, the heat faded, and all returned to blackness once again. Only Aerith continued to hover, bathed in the light of the Lifestream. That and a few burning pieces of consumable material that had been caught in the blast.

Ragnar slowly peeled himself up, already feeling a bit tender on his front. His eyes continued to see spots even though he was shrouded in darkness for a moment. Now, he put his arms against the ground and pushed himself back up. Although he was sore and in pain, he managed to get to his feet. He looked over where Aerith had annihilated Jenova. All he saw was a few fires and an indentation in the floor from where Ultima had vaporized the metal. Nothing else was left. Jenova was completely destroyed.

The youth didn't know what to do for a moment. He simply stared out and at Aerith, who continued to hover in midair. The green energy continued to burn around her, and the wind continued to blow. Yet nothing else happened. In truth, Ragnar waited for her to make the first move. He really didn't know what was going to happen from here. Would she revert back to herself? Would she obliterate this continent just like the last one? Would she just hover there until she saw someone else threatening something? However, his questioning didn't last long. With Jenova gone, he remembered what had been his concern before the Sorceress arrived. Cloud was bleeding and dying. He looked over to where he had been before, and saw that other than being pushed back a bit from the Ultima attack, nothing had changed. He was still breathing at the moment, but for how much longer?

Ragnar turned back to Aerith, and was about to venture something…

However, the Sorceress cut him off. Abruptly, she extended her arms around her, and stretched out her fingertips into the darkness. The youth snapped back, half expecting some new deadly attack to strike him. However, while she did this, she spun in one circle in midair. It wasn't fast, and her piercing gaze was able to look out at all around her. When she passed by Ragnar, however, she didn't even appear to notice him. She was looking behind him to something. Once she completed the circle, she stayed in midair and kept her hands extended.

For a moment, nothing happened. Ragnar wondered what all of this meant. But then…he heard something. Some sort of low whine rung out. It started very quietly, but then began to increase in strength, becoming louder and sharper. It wasn't just in his area. It was stretching throughout the entire sub-basement. The youth became confused. He started to look around, trying to see what was the cause of this change.

He didn't see it immediately, but it slowly began to become clearer as time went on. Lights were coming on throughout the sublevel of the Dome, breaking the darkness. But they were red lights, not the industrial ones. It took a moment to find the source, but when he saw it he was surprised. The support girders throughout the area were starting to glow red, as if some fire source was heating them. He looked around a bit more, and saw that it wasn't just in his area. It was everywhere in the sublevel. They began to glow more, spreading throughout them and getting brighter.

It took Ragnar a moment, but then he realized what was going on. The thought made him begin to sweat and fear all over again. The Sorceress had just destroyed one of her enemies. But she had many more, including the ones who created the mako reactors. The one in the Dome was still operational. So she was going to destroy it along with its creators. She was heating up all the structural supports. Once they became hot enough, they'd start to deform into a semi-solid…and the entire Dome would collapse and destroy everything inside. It seemed she was strong enough to do even this now.

Even as Ragnar thought of this, the ceiling began to creak. The supports weren't weak enough to deform yet, but the added weight was starting to sink on them. A bit longer, and the weight of all of the upper floors would be dropped on the bottom. This had to stop now.

The youth turned back to his wife. "Aerith, stop it!"

Again, if the Sorceress heard, she didn't acknowledge him.

Though a part of him told him he was nuts for doing this, he began to walk toward her. "Jenova's dead! You can stop now! You'll kill us all if you keep this up!"

Aerith neither looked nor acted like she heard. It didn't seem like she was deaf…so much as it was like a person in the middle of doing something not paying any attention to a microscopic ant nearby. Ragnar grew afraid at this. What if changing had altered her personality? What if this wasn't an impulse, but was her now? Thinking of that would achieve nothing…and so he had to keep trying.

He was halfway to the Sorceress now.

"Aerith! Snap out of it! Cloud's down here! All of your friends are up above! You'll kill them if you destroy the Dome!"

Still no change.

Ragnar broke into a run. He had no time to walk the rest of the way. The ceiling was creaking again, and almost all of the support girders had turned red. The center was turning even brighter. Soon, he had reached the same area as her. Despite his body's protests, he passed into the green energy field surrounding Aerith. A burst of energy ran through his body, exciting his clothing and hair and making his skin crawl.

Yet that wasn't all. Voices…distinct…sharp…and passionate…ran through his mind.

Ruin it…

Burn it…

Kill them all…

Avenge me…

Tear it…

Make them perish…

Rend the world…

Melt it…

Freeze it…

Bring the end…

Ragnar was forced to freeze momentarily. He staggered on his feet for a moment as the loud…even vicious…voices ran through his mind. It was a sound that only one other person alive could detect, but because of his Cetra blood he heard it. He had listened to the Planet before now. It had taken much of his focus to listen to individual voices. Yet now…they were screaming. Without even trying, he heard them all clear as day. All of them were talking at once…most of them in angry voices. They were filled with rage…anger…a sense of vengeance. They were filled with the memory of good lives shattered…relatives murdered…injustice upon injustice… And they were all so chaotically talking on each other that he could barely stand it…

Yet now he began to understand. This was what was going on. It wasn't the power of the Sorceress…it was them. The first Sorceress had been filled with rage and despair at her unfair life. All of the spirits of mankind and Cetra that had been wronged by that evil age must have used her as an outlet. They must have been drawn to each other's hate and anguish…formed some sort of entity…and then went to one who would listen. Now Aerith had been reborn with more power than ever. They saw her, and they flowed into her. Alone they couldn't have done it, but together they must have used her negative feelings of what was happening to those she loved. They influenced her to accept them, and once they were inside they took control.

Knowing this, Ragnar turned bold again. He walked forward a few more steps, until he was standing right in front of the hovering woman.

"Aerith…you have to stop this."

At long last, the Sorceress noticed Ragnar. It turned its eyes down…and the burning gaze sank into Ragnar's. The youth felt his body cower away, his very flesh and bones fearing that look. But he forced himself to keep staring at her.

"…Do not interfere." Aerith flatly answered, merciless and cold.

"Aerith, there's nothing more to fight for. It's over." Ragnar answered. "You'll kill innocent lives if you do this. I know you don't want to."

"They will suffer for what they did to my people." The Sorceress answered simply, and was about to turn away.

"Aerith! This isn't you!" Ragnar yelled back. "This isn't your anger! It's what's controlling you! It's the power! You don't want to kill anyone! You don't want to kill your friends!"

The Sorceress' jaw tightened, and, to Ragnar's sudden surprise, she turned her hand and pointed a finger at him. Ragnar's spine ran cold, and his eyes widened as he thought it was over. No matter what spell the Sorceress put out, it would shatter him like glass if it hit him. Yet Aerith didn't fire.

"I warn you one last time, half Cetra…get back."

Ragnar now knew his life was taken into his own hands. She was serious. The anger inside her wasn't going to be denied. If what he said next didn't somehow get Aerith to exert her control…then he'd be dead. And with him, everyone else in the Dome. There was only one way he could try to reach her now…and it was the worst way.

Swallowing hard…Ragnar forced himself to look up and into Aerith's eyes.

"Aerith…it's me." He slowly said, his voice much calmer. "It's Ragnar. You know me."

The Sorceress didn't change. However…neither did she obliterate him. With this in mind, he kept speaking.

"I said I'd defend you once. I'm going to defend you now. I'm going to defend you from yourself. You're angry…but this isn't you. It's the anger of others. They're turning you into something you're not. They're warping your soul. I know you. I know you're kind and loving and gentle. I know you want to give life, not take it. And I know you're strong…too strong to let anything use you. That's what attracted me to you. That's why I love you."

The Sorceress heard these words. As they sank in…her cold look slowly began to shift. It turned very slightly…into one of confusion. Her hand trembled a bit, as if unsure whether or not to lower it or keep it pointed at Ragnar.

The young man smiled weakly…and held up his hand. The mood ring was still there.

"Remember this?" He asked innocently.

The Sorceress looked more confused. Her hand finally pulled back, so that her other hand could reach out and touch her finger in the same place as Ragnar showed the ring. She still looked confused, like she was slowly remembering something. There was no ring there now. The transformation had melted it. And yet…seeing that absence there only seemed to make her a bit more distressed…

"I love you, Aerith. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You said the same thing to me. Don't you remember?"

The Sorceress' mouth began to hang open, showing herself truly confused now. Her eyes very slowly began to lose their burning look…

Ragnar held out a hand to her. "The battle's over. Let's go home. Let's go home together. We can go back to the garden. We can sit and listen to the Planet. We can even dance on that dumb game. We can have a long life together."

The Sorceress looked down to Ragnar's hand, then back up to him. Slowly…the look turned from confusion to sadness. Aerith's lip began to tremble. Very hesitantly, she began to raise her own taloned hand over to Ragnar's. The youth smiled and waited. As he did…the light dimmed in Aerith's eyes. Her body slowly lowered to the ground, and then let out two clicks as her feet touched. Quivering more…she let her hand slowly come over Ragnar's. He held his, but didn't take hers. He let her do it. And finally, she swallowed and put her hand down on his. He clasped it firmly.

When it did, the rest of her memory returned, and her personality was restored. The light in her eyes finished fading until they looked like the same soft stare it had once been. The rest of her body was still transformed, and her flesh was bathed in the green light. Ragnar could still hear the angry voices around her…and if anything they had grown angrier. But that didn't matter. He realized Aerith was back. Slowly, the woman looked up into his eyes again. A pair of tears ran from them. She was still trembling.

"It…it's so much…Ragnar…" She nearly whispered. "I lost myself to it… The power…it just…felt so good… I didn't feel scared…or nervous… I felt like I was totally in control of everything… And…I just couldn't stop being angry…I didn't…"

Aerith trailed off. She looked to the ground again, hardly able to believe what she had done and nearly done. The girders slowly began to quiet down again, the red light fading back to gray. Ragnar kept his smile for a bit longer. He reached out and placed his hands on Aerith's shoulders, trying to be warm and comforting. Yet even now…he realized how little it could do. She had changed so dramatically… Only the eyes were what they had once been. She continued to stare even when he tried to support her, her mouth open and feeling bewildered at what she had nearly done.

"It…feels almost…like I'm drunk…in a stupor…" She went on. "I still feel it now… It's so…overwhelming… It wants me to use it…"

Ragnar heard this, and then his own smile faded as he stiffened.

"Then use it."

Aerith looked back up into Ragnar's face, her look puzzled now.

He stared back for a moment, but then turned to a side and gestured behind him. Aerith looked, and soon she saw Cloud's motionless body…bleeding all over. The moment she did, she gasped somewhat, and then cupped her hand to her eyes and turned away. Her teeth grit as more tears began to flow from her eyes. Ragnar turned back to her, and was somewhat confused. He knew she'd be sad to see this…but when she looked on Cloud, it was almost as if she had looked in a basilisk's eyes, and turned away as soon as she realized it.

"I…I can't…!" She gasped. "If I look at him…I only get…angrier…!"

Ragnar paused here. Now it made sense to him. After all…she had to have sensed what happened to him before. That was what made her turn into this. However, now was not the time. Though it was a risk he didn't want to take, he leaned in closer.

"Aerith…you have to heal him. He's dying. You're the only one now. With your power, you could do it easily."

Aerith lowered her hand from her face. She looked to the ground again, her mouth still hanging open and looking unsure. Then, she turned and looked back to Ragnar. Her face full of sadness and regret…she slowly shook her head.

"…I can't."

Ragnar's face immediately became confused.

"This power…I can only destroy with it." She went on. "That's what it comes from…anger and hate… I can't even remember any healing spells with it running through my brain…"

A new fear went into Ragnar's heart at that. He had never expected that. Yet the Sorceress had only ever been an agent of destruction, not of giving life. He supposed it made sense. But that didn't help them at all. If that was the case…then Cloud was dead.

"Then pull it back. Turn back into your old body."

Yet Aerith's eyes were still full of fear and desperation as she shook her head again. "I can't… It's too much… It's me against hundreds…thousands of spirits… They're fighting me now…wanting me to go back to my dark side…"

Ragnar felt his own heart begin to race, not only in fear for Cloud but for his wife. He gripped her shoulders more firmly, and tried to think of something else.

"Aerith…" He began.

"…Kill me."

Ragnar immediately went rigid. "What?"

Aerith began to cry again as she looked up into his eyes. "Kill me now. Kill me while I'm in control."

The youth's face filled with aghast horror. "Aerith…why…?"

"I can't hold it back forever, Ragnar. The power's a part of me now. I can't close what I opened. They want me. They won't leave me unless I do what they ask…or unless I'm dead. I can't control them. You have to kill me. If you don't…it will break loose again. You may not be able to call me back next time."

A few moments of silence went by. Ragnar stared into Aerith's eyes, his own face a mixture of shock and fear. Aerith looked back at him, her own eyes pleading and filled with her own fear. Fear of herself and what she could become. In the balance was her life and Cloud's. The energy whipped around them, the voices growing angrier and angrier. They were going to be ready to surge forward again before long. Cloud was still dying…assuming he wasn't already dead. Everything hung on the next decision.

"Core temperature rising."
At last…Ragnar's fear and shock vanished. His face suddenly became solid and firm.

"No."

Aerith, still panicked and trembling, went still herself at this answer.

"I won't kill you."

The woman's face tightened. "Ragnar, it's the only-"

"No, it isn't!" Ragnar nearly yelled back, cutting Aerith off again. "I know you too well, Aerith! I told you! You're the strongest woman I know! You have the greatest, purest spirit I've ever seen! Even when I see the other spirits in the Lifestream, yours shines out so much stronger than everyone else's! I know you're greater than what's trying to control you!"

Aerith clasped her lips, growing anxious again. "There's too many…"

But Ragnar gave her a hard shake to snap her out of this.

"What about with Meteor? Holy itself became a part of it, and you stopped that anyway! You healed the poisoning of this world and every other child without hurting them! That eruption was going to destroy all of Midgar but you stopped it! None of that was ever too much for you! It was because you knew you had to in order to save people! You knew that people were counting on you!

"Aerith…I'm counting on you! I can't live without you! The only thing I have left in this world is you! Nothing on Gaia makes any difference to me without you there! If you truly believe I need to kill you…then I'll kill myself right after I'm done! There's nothing else left for me if you're gone! The only reason I've come this far…the only reason I fought Sephiroth so hard…the only reason I wouldn't give up for Jenova…was because I knew I had to save you! And I know you can do this! Even if you don't believe it yourself, I believe in you! I never would have come this far if I didn't believe you could do anything! You can stop this!"

"…I believe in you too, Ms. Aerith."

Both Ragnar and Aerith alike were surprised to hear another voice. Both of them turned around to see who it was...and were amazed.

His chest was burned and he was holding it tight, and he limped a bit as he moved. He looked very beaten and sore. But somehow…Azure was dragging himself back over the debris he had been smashed through. A bit of blood was in the side of his lip, and a gash was on his head, but he managed a weak smile.

"You told me there were people there for me. There's people there for you too. A lot more. Everyone at home loves you. I threw off Sephiroth to come back. If I can do that…you can throw off these ghosts and come back."

Aerith's tears dried up. She was amazed at first to see that Azure was still alive. Yet his words of confidence sank in far more. She turned back to Ragnar. He was still firm, but he smiled now. He was soft like he was before. Suddenly…he leaned in and kissed her on the lips. Just like every time before, it felt good. But now, it showed her Ragnar's faith in her…filling her with his own overflowing confidence. It made her feel stronger…made her have more faith in herself, just as she once had for everything else when she fought to the death for it. In short order, she began to return the kiss.

After holding a moment, Ragnar broke off. He didn't release her, but he went back to where he was before. Aerith's crying had stopped, and her face was no longer sad. The voices around her were furious. They only screamed and fought more. Yet she was calm now. She looked up and into Ragnar's eyes. As she did…she slowly stepped backward. Ragnar's hands slid off of her and fell back to his sides. She continued to step back, however. He heard the voices as he passed through them again. They were nearly subhuman now. Yet soon they vanished as she continued to back up. Now both he and Azure were outside of the green aura. Aerith stood apart. She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. After that, she crossed her arms over her chest and focused.

The aura responded immediately and angrily. It suddenly began to make a burning sound, and started to attack Aerith savagely. The woman snapped her head back and cried out, and buckled on her knees. Ragnar reacted with fear. For a moment…he thought it was already over. But then, Aerith slammed her mouth shut, grit her teeth, and kept pushing. The aura reacted back, and soon she was wavering on her feet. Sweat began to break out on her brow, but she kept going. The wind picked up and grew more violent, and Ragnar began to feel heat again. For a moment, the two sides struggled. More sweat began to break out on Aerith's head, and she buckled more and more…

Finally, Aerith screamed again as she uncrossed her arms and seized her head. Staggering on her feet, she seized her metal tiara. As if it was anchored to her scalp, she began to pull at it. Her muscles tightened beneath her dress as she did so. The voices grew louder and louder. Then…it suddenly gave. With what sounded like a rip…and actual blood running down the sides of her head…the crown gave way. She flung it aside angrily, and continued to stagger and grab her head. The blood slowly sucked back in, and whatever wounds were made healed. She next seized her own hair, and ran her hands along it. Very slowly…it began to unspike.

Before it was even fully done, Aerith grabbed the sides of her head again. Gritting her teeth and grunting, she strained until her face turned red. Before Ragnar's eyes…the runes alongside her head seemed to fade and return, coinciding with the fluctuation of the energy around her. Then, giving one mighty yell…the runes peeled back from her face, and her skin became normal again. She staggered here, dropping to one knee. Her hair began to spike again. The crown on the floor started to pull toward her, as if magnetic…

"Don't give up, Ms. Aerith!" Azure cried.

"Don't stop! You're beating it!" Ragnar yelled.

In answer, Aerith arched her head back and cried out again. With a defiant scream, the runes peeled down her neck and her hair smoothed. Using her taloned fingers, she seized the top of her black gown and ripped it off of her skin. As she tore two large shreds out from it, she threw it into the cloud surrounding her. Immediately, they were incinerated, and turned into ashes that encircled her for a brief moment. While they were still doing so, she frantically started ripping at the rest of her gown. None of it came off in one piece, but only in shreds. Each part was thrown into the "fire". However, after circling for a few moments, the ashes returned to her body at the top of her neck…and reformed into what looked like the collar of her army jacket.

Ragnar didn't know what to do. Part of him wanted to run up to her and start helping her rip away at her clothing. Yet this was a personal battle. The clothing and effects were merely represenatations of the struggle within. Both sides were fighting for control of the body. Parts of her gown rematerialized and formed after she ripped them off. Others reverted back into her own clothing. Aerith was soaked with sweat and kept getting more soaked as she fought. She rose and fell several times, continuing to rip away and force the runes back into her body. It wasn't long before she screamed again, caught halfway between the dark Sorceress and the good Cetra.

Yet slowly but surely…she was winning. As she reached the lower dress, she seized it and ripped it into two long halves. When she did, the green energy around her seemed to split as well. A large bit of it suddenly went dead. It continued to burn up the threads of her garments as she threw them in, but it was also dimming. She was exhausted, quivering from the amount of power she was putting out. She gasped and struggled as her hair smoothed back again, pushing out the last bit of strength she needed. She ripped off the last thread from her legs, just as her boots began to reform.

Only one piece was left. With all the strength she had left, Aerith reached up with her now-normal hands and grasped the arch of steel built into her metal wings. Then she pulled as hard as she could. She twisted her body into a ball and cried out again. As she turned around, Ragnar noticed in shock that the wings weren't a dress…but were actually attached to her back. Yet she tore at them none the less. Even when blood splurted out and began to run down her, she continued to pull. The green cloud was almost gone. It was exerting its last bit of strength here. Yet slowly and surely…the bloody ends began to pull out from her back…

Then, at last, it yanked out. Aerith gave a cry of agony and exhaustion as she threw the metal array against the ground. When she did, the green cloud vanished. The voices screamed one last time before vanishing into the oblivion of the darkness. As the last of her boots reformed, Aerith, clothed as she had been before, and quite human-looking again, staggered about on her feet. She was moments from collapse.

Yet just as she began to fall, strong arms held her up. Out of physical strength, she let her body fall against the body that the arms were attached too. She swallowed, and weakly looked up. Ragnar looked back down on her. He rushed to her side the moment she was free. And despite the pain and agony he had seen Aerith in, he now felt overjoyed. She had done it. She had defied the fate that Bahamut said was to be hers. She beat it. Another dark cloud had passed. From where he was, feeling weak again and forced to fall on his stomach, Azure himself looked up weakly and smiled through tired eyes.

But before Ragnar could congratulate her, encourage her, or even hug or kiss her…Aerith weakly motioned over to the side.

"Cloud…" She choked out between gasps.

Ragnar immediately went straight on hearing that. Of course. He didn't drag her. Despite his current weakness, he felt stronger than ever even with the wounds. And he felt like carrying her. And so, he bent over and picked her up with both arms. After that, he quickly turned and brought her over to Cloud's side.

By now…the ex-mercenary was very pale. As he approached, he watched him. The blood seemed to have stopped flowing from his chest…and he couldn't see it rise or fall anymore. He began to feel cold on seeing that. His stomach began to drop. Had they been too late? Had their run of good fortune finally gone dry? They had already saved so many… Would this be the price?

Aerith showed no fear, but she was too worn out to show anything. And she still had one last thing to do, exhausted as she was. Ragnar reached Cloud's side, and quickly set her down next to him. Once she was down lying next to him, she drew herself up and stretched out her arms over his body. He didn't move or react. Ragnar, tired as well, crouched down next to him. He was sweating again too…but now it was cold. He looked up and over to his wife. Aerith swallowed and took in a deep breath.

"…I'll do all I can."

With that, she closed her eyes and concentrated. Ragnar earnestly watched and prayed. It took a few moments. She was too worn out to bring forth anything at first. It took a few precious seconds before she was even able to begin her green aura. But once she did, she began to shower down the same mist and sparkles over her friend that she had done so many times before. She was still panting, but she managed to relax more as she stiffened her neck and stretched her head high. The lights continued to move over him, increasing a bit as they went. Ragnar looked down and watched hopefully. He reached out and took Cloud's hand and clasped it as he waited. The flesh was like ice already… Jenova had really drained him.

A few moments went by…during which Ragnar continued to look. At first, the edges of the wounds began to slowly expand and grow out again. Some of the blood that was still flowing stopped. However…once that had ceased so did everything else. Ragnar continued to watch and hope…but no more of the wounds sealed. They stayed open and dead. His flesh stayed pale. His chest did not rise and fall. Aerith visibly tried to increase the power…but it was no good. Nothing was improving. Ragnar continued to stare, continued to think he was seeing something changing… But that was only a fool's hope. The light did nothing.

Slowly…the healing aura faded. Aerith's hands formed palms, and slowly lowered to come to a rest on top of Cloud. Her own face was calmer now, but now her eyes stayed open as her mouth hung slightly.

"I can't heal him."

Ragnar's head snapped up to his wife. Yet that didn't change the look on her face. It wasn't really sad…so much as realizing something with great disappointment. She had struggled so hard to get free of the dark side of herself, but now that she was free she found it was too late. Cloud had passed her ability to heal…the ability of anything to heal. His injuries were too much, and had been in him too long. Ragnar looked back down to his body, his own mouth loosening. His throat tightened as he stared down at his friend's cold, lifeless form. Slowly, the realization of what this meant began to sink in. It made him feel cold again…far colder than what Jenova had done.

Cloud was…

"…There's only one thing left to do."

This voice, not nearly as sad as he would have thought, alerted Ragnar and made him look back up to Aerith. Much to his surprise, she was actually smiling again. Her look had become soft, gentle, and knowing again…just like it had been before any of this had happened. She turned her head up and met Ragnar's watering, fearful gaze with her own calm and confident one.

"…I'll have to become the Sorceress again."

Ragnar reacted in shock to that.

"Aerith…I thought you said-"

"It's alright now." She said confidently. "The power was a lot…but I can handle it. It was their spirits that made me lose myself. I led them back to the Lifestream when I put the power back. I can control it now."

Ragnar was hesitant. True, he had begun to get the idea that it was only because of the vengeful spirits behind the power within Aerith that she had turned dark. But what if he was wrong? What if that much power was simply too much for a mortal to handle? He had just gotten Aerith back. He didn't want to lose her again immediately. He opened his mouth to protest.

Aerith's soft smile stopped him. She reached out her hand and touched him on the side of his head. Just like older times…it felt so warm and wonderful…so comforting.

"Trust me. Just like you believed in me just now."

Ragnar opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He held and stared at Aerith for a bit longer. Yet the woman looked back…and seemed to reassure him that everything would be alright. He couldn't refute that look. It made him feel peaceful…that everything would indeed be alright. His mouth slowly shut, and he simply looked back at Aerith.

The Cetra removed her hand a moment later. Still smiling, she turned her head to the sky. She closed her eyes, and stretched out her arms around her.

"Power levels maxed. Retracting barrel."
Ragnar didn't know what to expect. He almost thought that the green wave would return, making her endure the same painful transformation as it had last time.

As a result, he was a bit surprised when something far softer happened.

It started as a light. A white ray of light suddenly began to shine down on Aerith. It was, in many ways, like the light that Jenova had projected over him and Cloud. And yet…this didn't seem harsh or industrial. It seemed…almost natural. Purer. Clearer. He was only close to it, and he felt warmer and lighter. Aerith appeared to enjoy it, drinking it in and basking in it as it bathed her in its glow. Something slowly began to drift down in the light. Ragnar looked to it, but couldn't tell what it was. Petals? Feathers?

An instant later, and Aerith began to rise again. It wasn't under her legs, but through whatever power was helping her. She appeared to push up at first, but it was only because she let her limbs trail behind her. But once she was past her height, she was carried above and beyond into the air. Her arms stayed out at her sides, held up and ready…seeming to take in this power. Whatever was fluttering down began to increase. Ragnar couldn't tell what it was, for it was bathed in the same soft, white glow. He only knew that he continued to feel warmer and lighter as the light shone down. Seeing it…he already knew something in his heart. This wasn't going to be dark and terrible like before. This was going to be something far more majestic…

Aerith rose a bit higher…and then ceased. She inhaled deeply. When she did, once again a wind swirled around her. But it was a fair and pleasant breeze, one that fills a person with clean, fresh feelings and they enjoy let running through their hair. It surrounded her body, and carried up the white particles with it. When they came around, Ragnar looked and saw that they were indeed petal and feathers. A mixture of both…but both the purest white.

As the petals came around…they suddenly began to adhere to Aerith. They didn't just stick anywhere, but placed themselves where her clothing was. Once there, they began to meld together. Two petals became one large one. Four became a square of petals. They continued to merge, and continued to bind to her. They slowly formed a new gown…one long and white and shimmering like fine silk. It draped from Aerith's shoulders all the way down past her feet, where a small train hovered above the ground. It was beautiful…dazzling to behold. Just as the dark gown had, this too let her bust lay exposed. But no horrible runes or dark veins were there…only smooth, perfect skin that seemed so radiant and pure now that it indeed looked like an angelic being's. Part of the petals turned into a white stole that rested around her arms and back, seeming to suit her position perfectly.

Aerith's hair began to lengthen, changing once again. It went down all the way to her heels before it stopped growing. It was already smooth and fine…but now as the light struck it the brown seemed to turn to shimmering bronze. Some petals rested on her head, combining and changing until they formed flowers. They seemed to tie themselves into her hair, holding it back over her head.

Finally…the feathers gathered behind her. They started on her shoulder blades and then collected, forming new structures like the last ones. These were not metal, cold, or harsh…but warm and soft and alive. Slowly, not two but four wings took shape behind the woman. They were not just ornaments either, but living, powerful structures. They flexed and extended, taking in more light.

Aerith's eyes opened…and they had become such a vivid, wonderful shade of green that words couldn't describe them. As she looked down and looked into Ragnar's eyes…every painful moment, every scar, and every terrible experience melted away and was forgotten. He felt totally and completely at peace. No fear or anger rested in his heart anymore. And yet, it was impossible for him to feel anything negative or evil in front of the radiant creature that Aerith had turned into. Where the Sorceress before had been a personification of wrath and judgment, this one was an embodiment of grace and mercy. The evil in one's heart seemed to shrink away from her radiant light on seeing her, leaving only purity behind.

The Sorceress was not cold, but warm and inviting. Where before the Sorceress looked on humanity with cruel indifference at their pitiful state, this one looked full of pity and love, seeing humanity as not lower creatures but rather poor, wretched ones that were too beset by pain and anguish…and she was eager to deliver them from it. She turned her gaze to Cloud's lifeless body next. She could see that he was not yet truly dead…but that the last spark of life within him was dying fast.

Aerith was neither afraid nor worried. Slowly, seeming like some angelic spirit, she floated down to his body. Her clothing gracefully fluttered around her as she did. Once she was to the ground, she went all the way and kneeled. Once here, she clasped her hands together and pressed them against her heart. She then brought them to her lips and blew inside them, as if she was storing some of her own life breath within them. Once that was done, she slowly extended her body over Cloud, bathing him in her warm glow, and put her hands up to his lips, covering his lower face with them.

Cloud was still for a moment longer…but then suddenly stiffened. The fire of life within him had just been fed and had flared up. He gasped and then began to breathe. His heart began to beat again. His hand clasped Ragnar's, and the youth, nearly mesmerized by the Sorceress, leapt up in his spot before turning back to Cloud. The man was now clearly alive. His skin was pale and his wounds began to bleed again, but he lived.

Aerith, still smiling softly, moved her hands over to his chest next. She pressed them over his heart. In answer, Cloud gasped and stiffened again. Before Ragnar's eyes, each wound drew what fresh blood was still on his chest back into it and closed. Within two seconds, each one was gone without a scar. Cloud's body went from pale to warm and pink again.

The Sorceress removed her hands and looked on at Cloud. Ragnar himself looked to his friend's face, and waited in eager expectation. In light of Aerith's new radiance, he felt a sense of childlike wonder and excitement come over him. Cloud closed his mouth and swallowed once. Then, his lips slowly parted. His eyes cracked open and then widened. Though Aerith's white glow was bathing over him, he could open his eyes wide. Soon the same warming, soothing effect of her aura began to wash over Cloud as well. He became far more relaxed and peaceful. Yet he also had no idea what had happened.

The ex-mercenary opened his eyes wider, and got a better look at what Aerith was. At seeing how she obviously looked, he turned over to Ragnar. His friend was now smiling and happy to see him, and tears of happiness began to roll from his eyes. He turned back to Aerith after a moment more. His face was regular and plain for a moment before he cracked his own smile.

"…Are you going to keep me this time?"

Ragnar and Aerith couldn't help but laugh.

"Firing in 3…"
Aerith's smile suddenly vanished. She didn't look upset, but she looked far more serious and earnest now. She turned her head back up to the ceiling, as if looking beyond it to something far away.

Cloud, still confused as to what had happened, began to put his arms underneath him and push up. Ragnar himself looked over to Aerith, noticing the change. He felt more annoyance than anything on seeing this. He was moments from asking, "what now?".

Before he could, however, Aerith said a simple sentence.

"I have to go."

"2…"
Neither Cloud nor Ragnar were able to protest before the Sorceress suddenly took off into the sky. Her wings rustled and flapped once powerfully behind her, scattering her white feathers. At a speed beyond anything they could see, she was soon in the air and to the ceiling. Ragnar looked up to her…and saw a brilliant white flash a moment later. He pulled back slightly but did not look away. The flash died down soon after…and the radiance was gone. A few white feathers were drifting to the ground, but that was all.

The Sorceress had vanished.

"1…mark."

As the crew of the Gauntlet of Zeus watched and braced themselves, the massive barrel within the turret slammed forward. The sky had already grown pitch black from the additional energy it had absorbed to fire the materia shell within it. Yet that darkness was soon shattered as the barrel hit its stop. When it did, a massive bolt of pure energy erupted from the end of the weapon. The power of the weapon caused a massive backlash against the mountain, and the entire facility shook. A few minor equipment pieces broke, but it stayed solid for the most part. It had been built too well. The people only had to hold on as the power fired out, beginning to streak across the cloudy sky for its destination.

And yet…just as it did this…another flash lit up the sky. It was much smaller, and in the light of the massive beam it was hard to spot. But to those in the control room, not having to shield their eyes from cold, they caught a white eruption, even brighter than that of the beam, fire out in the sky just to the left of the path of the weapon. After that, they saw something move. Something dazzling white. They only caught a glimpse of it, but it looked almost like a living thing with white wings… Yet it soon vanished as it went in front of the beam's path. For a moment, there was nothing.

Then, to the surprise of all in the facility, the backlash suddenly doubled in intensity. More pieces than were expected began to break and fall. Torunga, sitting in the command chair, lost his cold look and turned to surprise as he looked about himself. His crew grabbed on harder as they were shaken more than before. A few fell to the ground and rolled, unable to get back up again. As they did this, a massive sound was heard. It sounded like some sort of cosmic ripping and torsion, echoing out like a thunder blast. It lasted a second before an even louder, ear-splitting noise went out. It was like a shattering. As it died down, new sounds filled it. It sounded like energy blasts, but much smaller…and in increased number. The crew looked back to the cannon.

Something dazzling and wondrous was happening.

The beam was still firing, but it wasn't moving forward anymore. When it struck the object that had come before it, the beam broke. It was turned back inward and thrown back the way it had come. But it wasn't cast into the facility. Instead, hundreds…thousands…tens of thousands of rays of light were sent back into the sky, and now showered over it as it poured back to the north. All of the crew members stopped and looked to the sky at this amazing sight.

They weren't alone. Those gathered at the Dome heard the same sound. They turned and looked…and miles away they saw the beam of the Gauntlet of Zeus. However, they only faintly saw it, and to the point where it shattered. After that, they saw the rays of light. They spread out and filled the sky, streaking across it and over it as far as the eye could see. Though the PPA was in the midst of securing the Dome, each one of them paused and looked up in wonder. Though the NSA was surrendering, hurt, and broken, they too forgot about their fates and looked to the heavens. It was like some sort of mystical rain was falling, streaking across the firmament. It seemed almost like a heavenly host was displaying for the world. As everyone looked on it, the pain and struggle of the battle was momentarily forgotten. Each one was captive to the sense of wonder it brought.

Yet something else happened. As the light streaked through the sky, the storm broke. The clouds were driven away by the light, as if it feared it. When the streaks passed it, the clouds actually seemed to be cut in half, and then fade as if they were nothing more than vapor. The lightning and thunder vanished in the sound of the rays streaking across the sky. When that happened, not only here but all over the world the cold was shattered. As the army stood there, they felt the icy chill destroyed, and pleasant warmth began to roll over them. Back in Midgar and the rest of the world, the snow at last began to melt as the cold breeze faded. Trees held captive in ice shook free of their captors…and before the eyes of everyone who saw, the buds began to grow and break open. It was as if they had been waiting for this moment, and now were coming forth with all the more vigor.

As the clouds continued to shatter, the sun at last broke through. Its rays began to shine down on the world below, bathing the people and living creatures in its pleasant light. Snow continued to melt and shrink back, and the grass beneath seemed to reach out to greet it. Day had broken at long last on the Northern Continent. As the light continued to increase from the loss of clouds, the people below basked in its glow. They couldn't help but smile. It felt more than relief. It felt as if it was renewing themselves and the world with it. It grew so warm that people actually began to unzip their winter clothing despite being in the Icicle Inn area. Gloves fell off and hats were cast aside.

The rays traveled far to the north, far above and beyond where the final battle was taking place, all the way until they reached the Great Northern Crater itself. Here, where it was always dark and cold, the lights came down and struck the soil in the midst of it. The power that had been meant for destruction now filled the earth with its new life instead. Up north, there was no change. The heavens parted slightly to let in a few rays of light before closing, but that was all.

Yet to the south, there was far more.

As rivers of snow and ice melted, giving way to a long overdue spring, the grass burst forth all the way to where their limit for the warm season was. Yet it didn't stop there. It continued to melt, revealing barer rocky ground that hadn't seen life for ages. For now it was dead…though that would change before next winter. Already lichens and mosses were seeing room for expansion. The warmth continued to spread, turning much of the Icicle Inn area back into warmer ground again. The frozen earth beneath at last began to thaw. It surpassed the Dome's area and went all the way to Icicle Inn, where after covering it and reaching the last downhill path it stopped. The snow continued to lessen from that point on, but it vanished no more.

The lights at last died down as the final portion of the beam gave out. The crew of the Gauntlet of Zeus was left standing in wonder. Never before had it been so warm in this region. It was still cold, but it was now far more life-permitting compared to the biting chill from before. And now, the sun had broken and gave forth its glory even when the light faded. The soldiers couldn't move right away. They forgot about the war and their weapon, and just drank in the light.

Soon after, however, as their weapon's energy disappeared, they saw a new light. Torunga and the command crew saw it most clearly of all, and their mouths hung open in wonder.

There was what had done it. Some sort of radiant angelic being flew before them, her own light shining far greater than that of the sun, the Gauntlet, or the rays. She flew on four white wings, hovering in the air and looking back to them. Though she was far, they were able to look and see her face. It was smiling…soft and pure. Her green eyes shone with such vivacity and life that it looked as if that color had formed when the world was new. It didn't take long for all in the room to be captivated by her. The rest of those outside looked and soon were the same. Every crew member, from the softest heart to the hardest "bastard", were immobilized.

And as she looked at him…Torunga felt his anger fade. At last he thought of what this weapon meant. It was an engine of destruction…of death on the largest scale imaginable. It had meant to shatter not thousands but millions of innocent lives at once in one cruel stroke. The war was now over. Firing it at this point would be the work of a butcher. Despite how much he and his crew had been wronged, he realized now that his anger and resentment was hardly a fair trade for burning up innocent children playing, or mothers about to give birth holding the hands of their husbands. This weapon should never have been built in the first place. Perhaps it wasn't just the environment and fate being cruel to them as they tried to make it. Perhaps it was some higher power trying to tell them that it was never meant to exist.

One by one, the other crew members felt the same. They felt they had wasted their time trying to build this monster. Yet it wasn't the sort of self-loathing that brings anger. It was more a feeling of realization, and one that they were glad to have before they could have used it again. They couldn't feel hate or anger toward their officers or the PPA in the light of that glow. They only felt a sense of inner peace and clarity. The war was over. It was time to put an end to this for good.

Then, as suddenly as she had came, the woman let out another white flash and vanished into nothingness. She was soon gone, but the dawn and warmth remained. So did the feelings within each one of them about what they had been doing and what they had yet to do. It took a few minutes, but at last those in the room turned and looked back to their commander one by one. It was his choice now. Already they knew what they wanted, but it was up to him to make it official.

Torunga took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair.

"…Disarm the cannon. Radio the air ferry to get us out of here."

Cloud was now better than ever. He had been healed, while Ragnar retained his own injuries. As a result, he was able to get up and start walking much more easily than his friend.

However, as Ragnar began to get up again himself, he saw Cloud rush forward and try to hop onto a piece of metal. When he did, he fell far short and banged his ankle instead. Immediately he pulled back and grasped it in pain. The youth saw this, and saw a mixture of confusion and agony on Cloud's face. It was then that he began to understand something even if Cloud didn't. When Jenova had drained his body of energy, she must have taken the power of the mako infusion with it. When he had healed, that extra power wasn't his naturally. As a result, it didn't come back. It looked like both of them would have to settle for being above average humans instead of demigods.

Cloud recovered quickly though. When he did, he got on top of the metal and ran over to the fallen Azure. The boy had exhausted himself with dragging his body over to Aerith. When they had gone to Cloud, he had passed out again. He wasn't dead though. He had begun to weakly look up again and try to move.

Before he could, however, Cloud was next to him. Without hesitation anymore, he reached down and picked the boy up with both arms, holding him in a cradling position as he lifted him off the ground. The silver-haired child, the only remnant of Sephiroth and Aleron left, turned his head to Cloud and looked to him.

Despite the fact he had been controlled, Azure had obtained the memories of Sephiroth once he had finished him. He could see himself killing others, hurting Cloud, and fighting him to the death. It was because he had given in to Jenova's temptation that all of this had happened in the first place. Because of that, his face looked uneasy and sorrowful.

"Cloud…"

"Don't say anything." The ex-mercenary cut off. "There's nothing to say."

Azure swallowed. "This was all my fault…"

"No it wasn't." Cloud immediately answered, without a hint of deviation or room for argument. "Any more than it was my fault that Meteor came. Even if it was, you atoned for it. You had a very hard life, Azure. I had forgotten just how hard that one day. And Aerith had been right…I had no right to do that to you. A father is supposed to punish children, and I wasn't your father. If I was, I would have shown you more love and less fear. I wouldn't have let my own past get in the way of my judgment. I drove you to Jenova more than anyone else."

Azure didn't answer. But he didn't look angry or hard either. He just looked back to Cloud.

"That's going to change." Cloud said after a pause. "Denzel and Marlene aren't the only ones who want you back. I want you back. I'd like to see you live and grow up under our roof. I'd like to see you playing with Denzel and Marlene every day. Most of all, I want to make up to you everything that I never gave you that you should have received. I grew up without my father as an outcast. I want you to come live with me so that you'll always be around people who love you, and I want to give you the support you need to become whatever you want to be with your own destiny…just like you chose your own destiny today. Can you forgive me enough to let that happen?"

The boy looked back silently. His face showed amazement. Ragnar could tell that he had thought he was the one who would have to beg for forgiveness from Cloud. He never thought that he himself would be asking it from him. Yet Ragnar knew that was a good move. It made Azure feel that he didn't have to prove himself or earn his way back into his life. And that feeling is at the core of the foundation of love. He didn't have to pay a price for it or earn credits. He was welcome back whenever he wanted.

Realizing that, the boy who had been miserable and alone for so long began to feel truly, totally happy. He smiled back at Cloud…before gathering his strength enough to lunge up and hug him.

Ragnar stared back and began to smile as well. Things were looking better than they had in a long, long time.

A flash of white erupted behind him. The youth's smile faltered, and he turned behind him to see the source.

There she was. The angelic form was gone now as well. She was back to how she had been before. Even her ribbon had returned. She stood right before Ragnar, and gave her that smile. Even if she wasn't in her Sorceress form, it made him feel warm and happy to see it.

"It's completely over." Aerith told him. "Azure's back and Sephiroth is gone. Krystea's back and Aleron is gone. Jenova is destroyed. The Gauntlet of Zeus has stopped and the New Shinra surrendered."

Ragnar looked back to her. He drank in her gaze. He heard her words, and each one made his heart seem a little less weighed down. Amazing. That morning the whole world seemed on his shoulders. Now it had faded. Everything had come together for good in the end after all. The world was safe, and the last of their enemies were gone. Now there was just the two of them…and a long, peaceful life ahead of them without fear or doubt ever again.

There was only one thing Ragnar could do.

The youth seized Aerith in his arms, swung her around once in the air, and then kissed her.

To be continued...

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Some of this chapter might seem a bit disjointed or strange. That's because of the following. Right down to the beginning of last week, I was planning to have Cloud die in this fight with Jenova. In my originally planned ending, Cloud would have still be stabbed as he was before. Aerith would have reverted back to herself, but lacked the power to heal the severity of Cloud's injuries. In this version, she wouldn't have been able to change into the "Angelic Sorceress" until she sensed the spirits gathered in the firing Gauntlet of Zeus, and she would have been willing to surrender herself to the power again to stop it. Cloud would have then said his goodbyes, etc...

Then something occured to me.

"You know...I complain all the time when I'm reading fanfictions or seeing movies that they have crappy endings. I say...you know, life's painful enough as it is. Why not have everything end happily in fiction at least? And yet, look what I'm doing. One of my old reviews said that I end all of my stories with tragedy. I'm the exact same way. You know what...to heck with it. I'll let Cloud live. I'll have to rethink some of my next saga, but it will work out."

Enjoy my happier ending. There's only two chapters left in "The Aleron Saga".