My goodness, I certainly did pop out with a few new changes in the previous two chapters that differ from the original, huh? Well, I hope everyone enjoyed it because now I have yet another chapter that I have pulled out with some new knacks here and there.Thanks again to those who have reviewed. Now, on with the show.
Quick Note: (for all chapters)
Italics – thought / dream sequence / flashback / emphasis
Bold italics – Gaea / JENOVA / anything ethereal
The Complete Opposite
Chapter IV
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Cloud gave a low groan as he slowly regained consciousness, his brain picking up on the last events he knew from his memory. Mother Gaea... Lifestream... blacking out... then…
Opening his eyes, Cloud remembered exactly what it was that he last saw. He wasn't quite sure if he should believe what his memory was telling him or push it aside as an emotional disorder that he simply went through that fucked up his mind. For all he knew, it could've been neither. Still, he kept thinking about that last memory and pushed himself into fully awakening.
With a sigh he stretched and allowed his hand to fall over the side of the bed as his thoughts circled one another in his head.
...Wait.
Suddenly averting his train of thought, he focused on his surroundings and picked up the odd feeling of a soft bed underneath his body. Why was he in a bed? How did he get there in the first place? Carefully bringing himself up onto his elbows he looked about him and spotted the bearings of a simple room probably best suited for one who used it only for sleeping. It almost reminded him of the low-class military barracks he read about long ago as a kid when learning of the history of Midgar's first army. There was nothing here that wasn't necessary. Even the mirror hanging from the wall was only so big, just enough for you to see your face and what you were doing.
Taking in the initially inconspicuous box in the far top corner of the room that almost seemed innocent, if Cloud didn't already know that that was where most cameras were put to monitor rooms, the blond figured he was being monitored.
Snorting at the hostility of this room, he focused instead on the rest of his surroundings, taking in the unsettling motion of his body, the pull of gravity uncertain as if he wasn't glued to the ground. Ignoring the knots and kinks in his body, he pushed out of the bed and made his way to the small window opposite of the door that he could've guessed was locked.
The sight before him was not exactly what he expected, but didn't allow himself to be fully thrown off by the reality of it. Thousands of feet above the ground was this room in which he stood. Thousands of feet above the ground was probably an aircraft that hosted this room. How did he get here? The question repeated in his mind. Hearing and feeling the thrum of the aircraft's engine let him guess the type of aircraft this was. The smooth movement through the air... it most likely was a larger aircraft, probably a plane of some sort. From what he could see, hear and feel, Cloud guessed once more that this plane was engineered by someone to Cid's skill or higher.
But surely this couldn't be the Highwind? Cid was good in engineering and quite smart, but this ship surpassed the man's current level of knowledge, not to mention the quality of material. Frankly, Gaea was in poor condition and the Highwind was not capable of being built by such fine materials. Running a gloved hand over the surface of the wall, Cloud noted the smoothness of the metal. If he remembered correctly, Highwind was such a piece of junk that there were several bumps in the melding of the metal. This ship however was nothing of the sort. It was a work of art, in his opinion.
Caught up in the fine detail of the crafting of the airship, Cloud didn't hear the near silent movement of the door opening behind him. He didn't hear the near silent step of boots come and stop just feet inside, awaiting his attention. He didn't notice anything outside of his thoughts until he picked up on a pair of eyes trying to bore a hole in his back. Turning cautiously, he nearly stumbled in shock as his eyes widened on a nightmare like no other. Immediately warning signals went off in his head, each one accompanied by malice, hate and great shock. So many questions ran through him. His hands itched to grab his sword and run it through the body of this monstrosity. He-- ... Wait, where was his weapon? Yet another fear came to life as he realized his sword was missing. He felt empty without that reassuring weight against his back. Where did it go? Who touched it?
Cloud took a step back as all these thoughts overcame him, bumping the small of his back against the bottom frame of the window. It was instinctual, an instant movement. He cursed at himself for showing weakness firsthand with his enemy, trying to balance it out with glaring back at the green-eyed man. Even from far away his figure loomed over his, making Cloud feel like he should move back even more to try and shrink into the wall. Of course, his pride and warrior instinct conflicted with his fear, steeling him. He wouldn't move any farther away (not like he could anyway).
"You're awake," came the low rumble of the green-eyed man's voice, raising the fear in Cloud and causing his gaze to waver just slightly. He hadn't heard that voice in such a long time...
He didn't know if he was supposed to answer or not. Say something to this man – this monster – or stay silent and continue this game against himself as well as ... Sephiroth. The name sent a shiver down his spine. It was a name that caused his rage to burst and fear to wash over him. It was a constant overflowing sense that wouldn't leave him alone. Fight or run? He normally took the former decision but there wasn't an encounter where he thought it would've been a good idea to run first.
"... Where am I?" Cloud finally managed to mutter thought it wasn't what he really wanted to ask. He sounded so stupid...
The green-eyed man narrowed his eyes just slightly at Cloud's voice. He took in the other man's defensive posture as well as the insecurity that he picked up from the expression ghosting over his features. After a pause he too managed to say back, "Sierra." (1)
At that, Cloud thought, 'So then I'm not on the Highwind after all. ...But then--?'
Thought failed the blond as the green-eyed man known as Sephiroth took a step forward, startling him into attention. Automatically he raised a hand to take the hilt of his sword but found air. He cursed at himself for forgetting and brought his hand back down at his side, clenching his fists.
He hated being caught off guard, and being in the presence of this man wracked his nerves. Holding back a sigh Cloud tried to release the tension between his shoulders and feign relaxation against the window behind him. He felt anything but relaxed, though. Just staring at Sephiroth brought the knot back into his muscles. He was ready to spring if ever the need rose.
Blue eyes locked on the green-eyed man as he moved once again, settling into a chair by the door that Cloud hadn't noticed before in his scan of the room. The man had carefully rested his sword against his leg as he crossed them, his eyes never straying from Cloud either. The fierce glow of green was still there; Cloud remembered every detail of Sephiroth in his mind from when he was still human and sitting before him now was exactly that, plus a few minor changes that he was sure weren't there before. The Masamune, he sword, was sheathed in a scabbard that was not completely black as he remembered; instead a golden phoenix laced its way up the length, the beak just inches from the mouth of the sheath, Wutaian characters engraved in the same gold accompanying that empty space instead. Cloud assumed that since it was relatively small it was probably the signature of the maker of the design. He never imagined anyone to touch Sephiroth's sword, even the sheath, yet here it was, printed on. Dressed in his normal outfit, Cloud could not pick out any differences; he did, however, notice the finely toned muscle underneath.
The phoenix on Sephiroth's sheath was the only major difference he could see. Anything else like mentality, power – Cloud couldn't pick up on, let alone want to anyway. It was still too shocking to know this man was alive and breathing before him to begin with. He didn't know if he'd ever get over the shock; was this a dream and would he wake up? It felt like a nightmare, too unreal.
Knock knock.
Trying not to freak out, Cloud's eyes dared to stray from the green-eyed man and settle on the door as it opened. The door was mainly electronic; was that knocking out of courtesy or warning? Cloud didn't know if his mind was playing tricks on him and he'd find himself waking up on the floor of the City, or if this was really happening and he had actually dreamt about killing Sephiroth. --No, that wasn't right. There wasn't a thing in the world that would ever make him forget the pain he felt from all that destruction and death eight years ago. Nothing could cover up the sorrow that overwhelmed him that fateful day.
A mass of red and black emerged from the door, lightening Cloud's heart. There! This was just a dream! Vincent would come to him, walk past Sephiroth as if he wasn't there – he wasn't, he was NOT – and talk to him as if nothing was wrong. He would wake up from this hallucination any moment now. He never went down to the City and talked to Gaea – a figment of his imagination he was sure – and everyone was still together. Cid built a new ship and the whole phoenix thing was just something his mind made up. Yeah.
...But then why did Vincent suddenly turn to Sephiroth and address him, not with malice or hate, but as close to open and friendly as he could manage, as if Sephiroth was a comrade?
'By the gods... Gaea, let this be a dream. Tell me you're just playing tricks on me right now,' he kept saying to himself, as if it would make the situation any better.
"Sephiroth?"
Cloud didn't know if he could stand the smooth lure of Vincent's voice as he spoke to the man in the chair that wasn't part of his imagination.
"Yes?"
Too shocked by the interaction of these two men, Cloud couldn't stand looking at them, averting his gaze to the floor. He barely picked up on the same smoothness of Sephiroth's voice as he answered the man with unfamiliar kindness and neutrality.
"The others are getting impatient."
"..."
"Anything you propose we do?"
The interruption of another voice made Cloud look up again only to have his heart sink just a bit lower when he saw that yet another comrade was befriending Sephiroth. The red lion came through the still open door and sat beside the other two men.
"I believe taking him to Grandfather would be a good idea," spoke the lion.
Sephiroth gave a quick glance at the lion before returning his attention on Cloud. "Tell Cid to change our course. Junon can wait."
Cloud didn't know whether or not to feel devastated to learn that yet another comrade had traded sides. Was this still a nightmare or was this some sick and twisted reality that Gaea was showing him? It was a wonder why the world didn't disappear from under him just yet.
"Certainly."
With that, Red dipped his head and left the room, closing the door behind him. That left Vincent and Sephiroth to look over him. Cloud felt the knot in his muscles tightening just slightly, lowering his gaze back to the floor.
Out of his range of hearing, Vincent bent down to Sephiroth and whispered to him.
"He is different from before."
The comment was simple, yet Vincent could tell by the small twitch in Sephiroth's hand that it unsettled him.
"You agree with Nanaki?" Sephiroth whispered back, his mouth seeming not to move. He didn't need to look up at the ageless man to sense his nodding. At it, he replied simply with, "Perhaps."
Vincent glanced up at the blond before them and looked him over, taking in the man's altered features from last he remembered. "You still believe he is JENOVA?"
Sephiroth's features ghosted a frown, the only break in his emotionless mask that he allowed. He had gone through a state of shock when he first laid eyes on him amidst the sea of dead monsters. Alive. Alive. It was the only word that rang in his mind at the time. ALIVE. He had steeled over his emotions, steeled over his hopes and crazy dreams when he realized just whom he was talking about.
Vincent opened his mouth to say more, about to note on the blond's seemingly state of sanity when he was suddenly jerked off balance, catching himself before he could fall to the floor. His eyes whipped around the room, settling on the blond man who was bracing himself against the wall by the window. It was a moment before something flew past that same window, dangerously close and dark in color.
"What--?"
Sephiroth grunted as he righted himself and the chair, standing up. He didn't catch that large mass passing by the window, but he did guess where was going on by the sudden jerking of the plane.
'Cid!'
The electronic door behind him opened before he could properly curse the blond pilot. In came Nanaki, strolling at a leisured pace despite the sudden jolt.
"Is it Him?" came his first words.
Vincent shook his head. It was his initial thought that perhaps it was their captive that was causing this – whatever it was – but for the moment he doubted that. He wasn't quite sure why, but he felt more at ease than the other two around the blond.
A voice suddenly echoed out in the halls: "Attention! This is an emergency! All AVALANCHE members to the bridge! Repeat: all AVALANCHE members to the bridge!"
Sephiroth recognized one of Cid's handymen making the announcement. He dared to take a step toward the door but didn't move too far when he turned back toward the blond by the window. There was no way he would leave the room now with him here, yet he was being called to the bridge. A battle, most likely.
"I'll stay," said Vincent, cutting off his thought. He had answered his question without him asking it in the first place.
"I as well," supplied Nanki.
Sephiroth nodded and walked out of the room.
Vincent turned to the blond, wondering if he would make a move now that it was just the three of them. Without Sephiroth nearby to counteract the danger that this man brought, Vincent and Nanaki were at a bit of a disadvantage with just the two of them as bodyguards. There was still no say on how stable Cloud was, even while he chose not to make and movements at all while under their watch. It was strange seeing him the first time, and even more so while he was fully awake, unmoving and not speaking. Where devious plans running through his mind right now? Were the creatures he saw out the window just a decoy for his escape? And without a weapon... how powerful was he bare?
Vincent narrowed his eyes. He positioned himself before the door as Nanaki bravely approached the blond. The lion sat on his rump, his tail curling around his legs as he stared up at the man. His eye caught sight of another dark mass passing by the wonder behind the blond.
"It would seem that there are quite the number of monsters out there," he said idly, turning his gaze on Cloud.
The blond only stared back blankly, emotions hidden even from his eyes.
"You... are Cloud Strife."
It was more of a statement than a question. Nanaki knew this man's name even if he had denied it, yet here he was finding himself wondering if this man was really who he thought he was. Keen to his other senses and the voice of the Lifestream, Nanaki was curious about the strange feeling he got from the man as well as the strange feeling he got from Gaea and her indecipherable messages. Was he a threat or not? Were her cries one of fear and hate or not; and if so, were they directed at this man called Cloud Strife or something else? Who or what else could possibly cause the Mother to wail in terror? Nanaki did not like or understand the messages he was receiving.
"I am."
Cloud's reply was soft, a gentle scratch to his voice, similar to that of a boy only just past the stage of puberty. It was different from what Nanaki had last remembered as the man's voice before it was distorted by the poison within him. Perhaps this was what the man would have sounded like if he had not been possessed by JENOVA?
Nanaki 'hmm'-ed a moment, his eyes roaming over Cloud's length. "No, I do not believe you are quite right in that answer..."
A frown was Cloud's reaction to that.
"You indeed him: Cloud Strife, yet not entirely so," continued Nanaki. He made a 'hmm'-ing noise again. "The physical appearance is accurate but everything else is off."
The frown deepened. There were many questions that Cloud wanted to ask about that. How could he not be himself? Mentally he was still here – mostly – and physically he still had all his body parts. What in the world would Red mean by something or everything being 'off' with him?
"Do you know where you are?" spoke Vincent from his station by the door. His voice was soft as always; it almost made the tension in Cloud's body disappear if not for the question he proposed.
"On an airship?" answered Cloud.
Vincent grunted in affirmation.
"I wonder – how about why planet?" Nanaki questioned.
Cloud looked down at the lion he knew as Red XIII, his confusion heightening once more. "On Gaea. ...Aren't I?"
Nanaki chuckled, an odd sound coming from the animal. "Yes, that's right." He peered up at him with a grin on his face, lips pulled back unnaturally to show multiple razor-like teeth. "Wouldn't you know?"
"Know?" repeated Cloud, ignoring the jerk of the plane as he did so. He simply righted himself as he stared down at the red lion. Would there be a reason why he wouldn't know if he was on Mother Gaea's earth or not? There was only one earth as far as he knew or was concerned with.
Nanaki opened his mouth to answer the blond' question when a voice suddenly sounded overhead from the PA system, cutting him off.
"Nanaki. Vin. Come to the bridge. ...And bring that shithead with you."
Nanaki instantly recognized the gruff voice speaking to him. With a nod, though there was no one there to respond to, he returned his attention to Cloud who was staring at him.
"It seems we are needed up front," he said politely. It was as if he didn't see Cloud as an enemy, which lightened the blond's heart some. He was unnerved by the hostility he was given by his former comrades. He didn't want to know what it would be like if he encountered all of them at once.
And also... Cid – he recognized the voice as well – had called Red 'Nanaki.' Why? Cloud knew Red as given, and only heard the name 'Nanaki' when the lion's grandfather was speaking about him. Otherwise, they had all agreed to continue to call Red as they knew him: Red XIII.
"I fear for your mentality," said Red – Nanaki... whatever name he was going by – bringing Cloud out of his thoughts. "...Now, let's go."
The lion made a motion with his head toward the door. Cloud was still a little confused on the change of name for the lion so his feet moved before his mind told him to stop and question the command he was given. He was already in between Red and Vincent when he realized he had moved and followed without conflict.
The trio headed down the hallway, Cloud stuck between the two warriors, Vincent as the lead. The interior, Cloud noted, was just as sleek and new as the room he was confined in. The metal was smooth and shiny, speaking of its expensive quality. This certainly was no ship of Cid's, yet apparently he was here as well. ...Was this his ship? Where did he get all this fine material and the money to build it? And why were his comrades siding with Sephiroth of all people? Everything was far too strange and complicated for Cloud to take in at once. His mind was still numb from the shock of just seeing Sephiroth back in the flesh; never-mind finding out his friends were no longer such.
Each step down the hallway bounced off the pristine walls, making Cloud taking in its detail and the high maintenance. Cameras donned the wall every so many feet, catching every movement whatsoever. Cloud stared up at one, wondering slightly if he was being watched right now. He frowned and the likeliness of him being so and focused his attention on the space in front of him. He concentrated so much on the dark fabric of Vincent's cloak that he missed the moment where they turned a corner, then entered the main part of the aircraft where a majority of everyone was. Vincent broke off the line and set off to the side, standing near Cid who turned from the steering wheel to glare him down. Behind him, Red – should he call him Nanaki now? – nudged him forward a few more steps with a butt at the back of his legs before joining the circle of AVALANCHE members, in the center of it all being Sephiroth.
Cloud's gaze strayed after Red and passed over the faces of his comrades lined up to greet him. Certainly this 'greeting' wouldn't be friendly but they still kept him the center of their attention, the majority glaring at him for reasons unknown to Cloud. He wanted terribly to ask what was the matter with everyone but his tongue wouldn't move. All he could to was haunch up his shoulders as the only defensive action he could perform, the only thing he knew to do in a situation like this with all the confusion running through him and freezing his heart.
As his eyes took in the different features of his former allies, he was able to ignore their hostile looks. However, what he was not able to ignore was the gaze of two particular people. Their presence not only completely froze his heart, they broke it into a million pieces as surprise and the lack of ability to fathom just what he was seeing tore at him. No expression surfaced to his beautiful face; no word escaped his parted lips; no emotion burned in his eyes. He simply stared quietly at the people he knew – he KNEW – were dead.
'Aeris... Zack...'
"Thank you, Nanaki."
Cloud's eyes did not move from those two figures.
The lion simply dipped his head in response. He looked at Cloud who he could sense was experiencing many conflicting emotions right now. One glance at the leader of the team told him that the man had sensed it as well. It was probably why the man spoke the blond's name in such a commanding tone.
"Cloud Strife."
The blond tore his eyes from the two people he knew were deceased, just like the man who addressed him, and held his gaze. He didn't have to say anything to question the man as he took liberty of beating him to it.
"Do you know where you are?"
This was already the third time he was asked if he knew where he was. Holding back his confusion and a sigh, Cloud nodded.
"Then it would be appropriate to ask you if you knew where She was."
Okay... come again? What? Who was he talking about? Cloud frowned.
"JENOVA," Sephiroth clarified. "Where is she?"
Cloud's frown only deepened. He had no inkling of where that beast was. She had been dead long before he even got here – wherever this really was. And why was Sephiroth of all people interrogating him over something so strange? Wouldn't Sephiroth know where his own mother was, not Cloud?
Barret raised his arm gun in warning when Cloud couldn't think up of an answer. Cloud glanced at him, knowing the man wasn't much of a threat if he knew anything about him. Barret he knew he could maneuver around, he was no worry, but if Sephiroth suddenly pulled free his sword... Without a weapon of his own Cloud was at a great disadvantage. He hoped it wouldn't come to that. And if he judged correctly, following even Barret's instruction was enough to keep himself alive for another moment because any suspicious movement would probably set Sephiroth off. Cloud would be, anyway, if the situation was reversed.
"I don't know what you mean."
While that probably wasn't the smartest thing to say, Cloud figured it was better than keeping silence and leaving himself open for attack. He kind-of doubted it, though...
"Rat bastard!"
Cloud was right in thinking it wasn't the best thing to start out with in this predicament.
Barret cocked his gun and readied it at him, blue light emitting from the barrels. "I'm just going to fucking kill him right here and now! Shit to trying to talk with him!" The blue light intensified.
Cloud didn't dare move until the gun was fired, relaxing while at gunpoint, timing how long it would take before the large man finally set it off.
He didn't expect, though, for Red to interrupt them, standing up and approaching him, circling him widely. Cloud looked down at the animal and followed his movements with his eyes.
"Just a moment, Barret," said the lion. "We shouldn't be so brash."
The large gunman snorted, cursing. "You had better not be going on about that shit again."
Red stopped before Cloud and sat on his haunches, a physical denial toward bloodshed. The blond behind him didn't know whether this was a good thing or not. There was, after all, the option of risking a battle with all of them where he knew all their weaknesses and strengths and could easily outmaneuver them and perhaps jump out a window and freefall out of there, as well as the other option of standing still and waiting to be bombarded with absurd questions until he eventually had to resort to the first choice and jump out of there in order to escape the madness.
Cloud figured just staying still was as best of an option as any. It was better than risking getting his brains splattered on concrete or a mountaintop. Staying behind Red as his shield was as good as any.
"Barret."
Cloud looked up from the lion to Sephiroth who had spoken.
"Put it down."
"Please, Barret," came the soft voice of Aeris, drawing Cloud's eyes toward her instantly, his attention magnetically attached to her. "I do not think we should end his life so quickly. Mother, she..."
The dark man snorted and sported a devious grin as he righted his gun arm on Cloud again, blue light lighting up again. "Oh, slowly then? All the better. I'd love to show this bastard how much pain we've gone through."
Red sighed and shook his head, standing his ground before Cloud.
Aeris approached the large man, laying a gentle hand on his arm, just above the metal. "No, Barret. Mother doesn't want it done. She is..." She frowned, pausing. "I don't know. But do not kill him."
There were only two people that Aeris ever labeled as 'Mother' and one Cloud knew the woman wasn't talking about. Ascertaining his guess, Sephiroth said, "Gaea, Aeris?" His eyes landed on the woman in question.
Aeris frowned up at her leader. "She has something planned for him."
At that Sephiroth turned his gaze on Cloud, locking with the man's crystalline blue eyes. Cloud tried not to glare at the man who stared at him, wondering what he could possibly be thinking behind that cold mask. Cloud was curious as to what Gaea had planned for him, especially when she had just asked for him to go and save her sister, yet he didn't know just what exactly it was he was supposed to do or where he was supposed to be. Was this the place was supposed to be at in order to carry out her favor? Cloud really didn't know what to do; he was at a loss especially with so many changes, like living dead people and altered features of living ones – like Yuffie for example. When did that girl grow out her hair? It looked like it reached the middle of her back, but with it stuck in a braid it was probably a little bit longer.
Speaking of which, the girl spoke on cue. "But what does she want?"
Aeris shook her head at the girl's question. "I can't tell. She won't say."
Yuffie, true to her nature (as far as Cloud could tell), gave a whine and puffed her bangs. "Well then, how are we supposed to figure it out?"
Silence was her answer.
And before anyone could even think of one to give her a methodic beeping as well as the call from one of the assistants signaled their arrival to their destination. Cid turned away from the group and stared at something, talking with the copilot before turning back to Sephiroth, swiping his thumb over his nose.
"Well, we're here."
Sephiroth kept his eyes on the blond as he nodded. "Land us, Cid."
'Bugenhagen will want to interrogate this man himself.'
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AN: End! And to be continued in the next installment, of course. Hopefully, everything makes less sense than before and everyone including Cloud is having a bloody hangover from all this mix up and confusion. Off we go to Cosmo Canyon, yay! Well then, I hope to see you there! Ta--
(1) Remember when I said AC had not plot part in here? I never said there weren't any aids. I really am lazy at time (tis guilty all the way!) so you can guess where I got this name. Love it.