Start Date: January 7, 2022
Windwillow
The bolded text is Cloud's inner voice speaking, responding to Cloud's words in italics. It felt weird writing the dialogue for that section...
Final Fantasy VII
Sephiroth has seemingly accomplished his goal of securing the Black Materia, with which he plans to summon Meteor in a crazed scheme to ascend to Godhood. Even worse, his strange hold over Cloud led to his near strangulation of Aerith at the Temple of the Ancients, and now, as he succumbs to the darkness and all hope seems lost, only a desperate prayer for forgiveness drives him forward. Will his prayer be answered? Or will damnation swallow him whole?
Chapter Forty: An Unimaginable Loss
Scene One
It was a darkness deeper and danker than a dungeon. Cloud's fear, and his regret, festered inside his heart and threatened to break it into pieces. The knowledge that he had almost killed Aerith made his heartbeat quicken, until finally he thought it would beat out of his chest. As he approached the breaking point, however, Cloud heard a voice that pierced the darkness: Aerith's. The puzzle pieces slowly stitched themselves together, and in the jumble Aerith's face came into view after what seemed like ages. Once he'd become lucid, Cloud's eyes snapped open and he gasped for air. Once it had again filled his lungs, he took stock of his surroundings: a beautiful, verdant paradise, with trees seemingly centuries old and a small river flowing through it until the water stopped cold. And, in that water, Aerith stood, seemingly watching his every move.
"Wake up, sleepy head! You've been out for so long! I've been worried!" tittered Aerith. She stood within the shallow water, water that reached to her feet and no further. Cloud quickly skittered to his feet, and Aerith's smile widened. "Welcome back, Cloud!" she chirped as she tilted her head.
"Aerith... Aerith?! I almost... Oh, God!" Cloud stammered, his eyes desperately latching onto Aerith and her eternal smile. And her smile was intoxicating, the same as usual, although something seemed different, oddly detached. "Are you okay? Did I cause any lasting damage?!" he choked.
"Ha ha ha! As you can see, I'm up and feeling fine! No worries, right?" tittered Aerith, her head tilting slightly. Even as her smile remained, however, Aerith's eyes seemed to change somehow. "I forgive you, and that's enough... right?" she said quietly. Seemingly gathering her courage, the smile somehow managed to widen. "Don't worry about Sephiroth! I'll take care of him!" Aerith said cheerfully.
"What?! Did I choke the oxygen out of your head?! There isn't a chance in hell you can fight that guy!" Cloud gasped. Even he, a trained warrior, had been beaten when Sephiroth glared at him. "You... You aren't planning on doing anything rash, right?" he asked quietly.
"Give me some more credit than that! I have a plan, and it'll work! I... I think..." sighed Aerith. As she spoke her smile faded, the knowledge that Holy required a sacrifice finally kicking in. "It may be dangerous, but it's a good plan!" she insisted, the smile returning. "But hey, I've made it this far, right? No sweat!"
"I don't believe you for a second..." Cloud said quietly. The way she'd spoke seemed to prove his fears, that there was real danger. As legitimate fear cloaked his thoughts, Cloud glanced around at his surroundings and tried to think. "But where are we, anyway?" he asked.
"Oh, this? They call this the Sleeping Forest, 'cause if you enter without a certain power, you'll wander around until you die," explained Aerith, much to Cloud's horror. "But I have that power, so don't worry too much!" she insisted. "It leads far to the north, to the City of the Ancients, where the... ritual... will take place."
"Ritual? What ritual? I do not like the way you said that..." choked Cloud, the words barely escaping his mouth. He'd told her not to do anything rash, and that sounded pretty damned rash.
"We don't have a lot of options right now. Sephiroth could summon Meteor at any minute!" Aerith protested. After seeing Cloud's reaction, it had cemented her feelings on the matter. "Only a Cetra can stop him, and since I'm the last Cetra, I've got to step up and do my part! So, say hi to the others for me!" she insisted, turning to leave. Suddenly, she stopped, and as she turned back to Cloud her gentle eyes reluctantly met his. "I know I asked you this a long time ago, but... What... What do you..." she began, hesitantly. Finally, gathering her courage, Aerith's face contorted into a forced smile. "How do you feel about me?"
"How do I feel about you? What kind of question is that?" Cloud asked forcefully. It seemed a simple question with a simple answer, nothing more. "You're one of my best friends... In fact, I'm closer to you than most of the team..." he said carefully, finally understanding the question he'd been asked and realizing the meaning behind it.
"Oh... I see... That's great! I'm so happy I'm your friend!" said Aerith cheerfully as she turned to leave. Truly, however, her heart snapped in two. She'd expected the answer, but had hoped for another. "I feel the same way, Cloud! You're one of my best friends!" she tittered. Though her words said one thing, her eyes indicated something different, and the implications began to resonate with Cloud.
"Do you love me, Aerith?" Cloud wondered aloud, startling Aerith and stopping her cold in her tracks and forcing the beginning of tears to form in her eyes. In some ways the question was welcome, but in others its implications hurt. "I want you to answer me honestly... I want to know..." he said hesitantly. "But... if you don't think that I deserve it, then..."
"I'll return when the ritual's finished, okay? So, don't worry!" she said cheerfully, although finally breaching the subject forced her to fight back her tears. Just hearing him speak the word 'love' broke her heart, knowing what would come next. "Seriously... Don't worry! I'll never be far from you guys!" Aerith insisted.
"You... didn't even answer the question. But, if you won't say now, say it when you come back!" said Cloud forcefully. "I don't have an answer now, but I will the next time I see you..." he insisted, extending his hand. "And I promise that I'll come for you, wherever you are... And that I'll protect you, so... Don't do anything you'd regret..." he murmured. "If you want me to beg, I will..."
Aerith abruptly turned to leave, determined not to show Cloud the tears she shed. She was fully aware of what would happen, and how it would happen, but she'd finally made up her mind. Aerith quietly walked away, ignoring Cloud's hand entirely, and vanished into the forest's mist. As he watched her leave, Cloud tried to run towards her, but felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around and came face to face with Sephiroth, his cat-like eyes glaring at him like some sort of feral beast, but somehow, he wasn't afraid. He was furious. And somehow, in that briefest of moments, he didn't care how strong Sephiroth was.
"I want you to listen to me, you piece of garbage, if you lay a single finger on her, I'm going to take your guts and rip them out of your throat!" Cloud snarled, grabbing Sephiroth by the collar and dragging him close. Sephiroth was legitimately amazed that Cloud had broken his spell, and though his face widened in shock, he said nothing. "I don't care how strong you are, and I don't give a damn if you are invincible. I'll keep my promise to her if it's the last thing I do!" he hissed.
"I see. Your resolve is... admirable, if not amazing," Sephiroth murmured hesitantly. Even in his weakened state he was shocked at Cloud's resolve, but chalked it up to the fact that they were so far apart. "Very well. I promise that I won't hurt her," he said plainly, a wicked sneer etched on his twisted face. The way he'd said it filled Cloud with such rage that he reared back and prepared to punch Sephiroth.
Scene Two
He never got to connect, however. As Cloud's eyes snapped open again and he sat straight up, the first thing he saw was Tifa's face, and the concern that she wore on it. Gathered around were all of his friends, save for Aerith, and upon realizing that it was more than a dream, he swallowed his fear and put on a brave face for the others.
If they knew... No. She and I are the only ones who need to know that.
"I... I can't remember anything, guys..." Cloud said, lying through his teeth. The thought of Aerith being mortal danger, and the feelings it would evoke in the others, had sewed his mouth shut. "Where am I?" he wondered as he put a hand to his head. "And how long have I been out?"
"You're in Gongaga... Cid came and found us, and we carried you both back here," explained Tifa. "Aerith... She didn't want any medical treatment, and then she left..." she said sadly. "You've been out for three days, and she's been gone for two."
"That girl's out of her mind! She still had your hand print on her throat!" snapped Yuffie. Seeing the horror on Cloud's face, she quickly shrunk back. "But hey, it is Aerith! Not everyone can sucker a hooker or have the guts to hog tie Red to Barret!" she insisted desperately. "I'm sure she's fine!"
"And it isn't because of lack of effort that we haven't found her!" exclaimed Red XIII, sitting down and curling his tail around his paws. "We've searched everywhere! Nibelheim, Rocket Town, North Corel... We combed the Gold Saucer and still came up empty!" he said sadly. "It's like she disappeared off the face of Gaia..."
"There's a good reason you didn't find her; she doesn't want to be found..." Cloud sighed. Even now, the dream still rang in his ears as a pounding nightmare, and Sephiroth's threat tingled the nape of his neck. "She's on the northern continent, at the City of the Ancients..." he said sadly.
"The northern continent?! No one lives there! And what the hell is the City of the Ancients?!" snarled Barret, his fist clenching. Quickly enough, he put the pieces together. "And how do you know that?" he asked pointedly.
"Aerith clearly knows more than what she said at the Gold Saucer," Vincent murmured quietly. "We have no way of knowing what's she's planning..." he sighed. The idea of the first friend he'd made since Lucrecia being in danger alarmed him greatly, more than he would admit. "But I'd wager it's something reckless," said Vincent, his eyes lowering to the ground.
"Reckless?! What the hell do you mean, reckless?!" gasped Yuffie, her face contorting in horror. "Reckless is a bad word! Why are you saying bad words about Aerith?! That's what I do!" she choked. As she turned and saw Tifa, solemn and quiet, Yuffie quietly stopped panicking and started worrying.
"She... she came to me in a dream. She said she was somewhere in the northern continent, and that she was headed to the City of the Ancients... Some of what we talked about is our business, but she said she was going to deal with Sephiroth herself..." Cloud said sadly.
"Are you kidding me?! She can't fight him, she doesn't have a prayer!" Tifa choked, the alarm on her face showing as if she'd been slammed into a brick wall. Suddenly, it hit her. "B-But that means that..." she gasped, not wanting to finish her sentence.
"Yeah... Sephiroth knows he's on to her, and he plans on killing her!" Cloud snapped. Still, it didn't seem to bother her. He kept his eyes low enough that Tifa couldn't meet them. "And she said she's going to perform some sort of ritual..." he sighed.
"She's out of her freaking mind!" growled Barret, the blood in his face draining white. Tifa was right, there was no shot. "Well, it's damn obvious what we do! We go after her and stop her!" he exclaimed.
"Yes, and no... Yes, we need to go to her and save her..." Cloud began reluctantly. Even if he had stood up to Sephiroth in his dream, there was still no telling what he might do to her, and although he didn't want to say what came next, he saw no alternative. "No, in that... I'm not going..." he sighed, shocking the others.
"Oh, the hell you didn't just say that! If I heard you right, I'm going to smack you upside your spiky yellow head!" snarled Yuffie as she clenched her fists tight, almost enough to draw blood. "You're the first person that needs to go! And if there was only one person that goes, it'd be you!" she hissed.
"You said it yourself: my hand print was on her throat!" Cloud yelled, furious enough to cause Yuffie to move back. "There are too many questions I can't answer..." he said sadly. "And there's no telling what I might do to her..."
Sephiroth said that he wouldn't hurt her... He meant that I would. I... I couldn't live with myself if I did that.
"Pull your spiky little head out of your ass and stop and think about what you're saying!" exclaimed Barret angrily. The idea that he would hurt Aerith made no sense, but he couldn't argue that he'd tried to strangle her. "You caused the problem! You solve it!" he snarled. "We're on a train, and until we reach the end of the line, we ain't stopping! A train only moves forward!"
"You sound like you're giving up... and I don't believe that for a minute!" Tifa said forcefully. "The man I know would never even think that!" she hissed. "If you want to quit, say it now! Right now!"
"My head hasn't been clear, because I've been hearing a voice. And if that voice is Sephiroth, then the whole time we've been going, he's been pulling my strings!" growled Cloud. "I don't know what might happen... and I don't know if I can live with what might happen!" he choked, holding his head in his hands.
"I think you're acting like a kid. Ain't a man on the Planet that really understands themselves! But we go on living 'cause that's all we can do!" argued Barret forcefully. "That's why people exist! And I know what you're talking about, 'cause I've been blinded by hatred!" he growled. "But now, the reason I exist is to protect Marlene! And if anyone hurt her, I'd rip 'em limb from limb!" Barret snarled. Tifa shot a sharp death glare at Cait Sith, who simply bowed his head in shame.
"Okay, okay! That's enough! Everyone's said their piece..." sighed Tifa, folding her arms over her chest, turning to Cloud with a somber look on her face. "So, you want to cop out and abandon Aerith, that's what you're saying? The man I believe in would never do that," she growled pointedly, causing Cloud to hang his head in shame. As she turned, Tifa's fists clenched tightly, tight enough to wrinkle her gloves. "Make your decision within a day," she growled, "or we move on with a new leader. And that's how it's going to be. You can argue at your own peril, Cloud..." Tifa snarled pointedly, her knuckles cracking menacingly as she angrily turned and left the room.
Scene Three
Tifa's words carved out a hole in Cloud's heart. Hard as they were, she was right; if he was truly the leader of the group, it was his responsibility to step up and save Aerith. If he did, he might redeem himself, but if he didn't? How could he ever live with that decision? He'd been hired to protect Aerith way back in Midgar, and while at times he'd questioned if she even needed a bodyguard, the fact remained that he was under contract.
This is hell... What am I supposed to do? I want to save her... But if I kill her, I could never live with myself! What would happen if Sephiroth makes me do his dirty work and he summons Meteor?
You need to calm down and think rationally. The man you are, the man you used to be, and the man you can be aren't so dissimilar.
How do you know how I used to be? Are you Sephiroth?! I want an answer! And this time, I mean it!
I'm not Sephiroth, and I hate him just as much as you do. You just aren't ready to know who I am... It might even be years before you are.
I said, who are you?! Answer me, dammit!
No. I'm sorry.
God, what a mess. I don't know if I'm talking with Sephiroth or arguing with myself. This is such a mess... But... If I really am talking with my guardian angel... What would that mean?
Cloud's thoughts were many and varied, as he systematically went over everything that had happened since he'd met Aerith in Midgar. He'd crashed into her church, she'd hired him, and she'd escorted him to Wall Market before conceiving the worst idea he'd ever had to manage dealing with. Dressing up as a woman was humiliating! But she'd helped save Tifa, and when push came to shove, Cloud had invaded the heart of Shinra to get her back. He'd been like an ant diving into a hurricane, but he hadn't hesitated then.
Aerith... She didn't say it outright, but she loves me. How should I feel about that? And what about Tifa? The more I think about it, the more I can see the tension between the two of them. Do I love Aerith? Do I love Tifa? Or do I just treasure them as friends? God, this is insane... At the Gold Saucer, the way I talked with Tifa... Does she love me, too? I don't know. I don't know anything. But I love them both as friends! I don't need to be their lover to care about them... If I chose, they'd both have broken hearts, and I couldn't live with either of them if I broke the other's heart. But... I guess the bottom line is, I promised her I'd protect her... Twice! I'd be a real jerk if I didn't step up, wouldn't I? I just can't do it... I can't abandon Aerith! I'm going to find her, and then, we can start talking about our relationship, but it can't end like this!
So, is that your decision?
You're the one inside my head. You tell me. Whoever you are, I don't care anymore. The only thing I'm thinking of right now is Aerith. So... Yeah, that's my decision. I will not let her die. And if I end up trying to hurt her, I'll bite my tongue off to bring myself back to my senses. This is not where it ends, and that's the bottom line!
Scene Four
Cloud's struggle was a fight to keep the group united, as if he left, they had no one to lead them. Maybe Tifa? She was the most morally sound person. Barret? After all, he did start AVALANCHE, so why not take it back up? Cid, Red XIII, and Yuffie didn't seem to be leader material by any stretch, Cid by his own admission. That left Cait Sith and Vincent, neither of whom wanted to lead. In fact, the two of them had good reasons not to want to interfere. Not that it stopped Vincent from speaking.
"I'm only going to say this once: Tell me what happened between you and Tifa or I'll wring this cat's neck like a wet rag," Vincent threatened, in a tone that, even miles away, frightened Reeve to the core. In fact, his hand was already around Cait Sith's throat, and Reeve's true body was in no mood to ever cross Vincent seriously.
"Okay, okay, okay! God, you're trying to kill me, aren't you?!" shrieked Cait Sith. Vincent's cold glare seemed to confirm that statement, and so he sighed and dropped to his furry seat. "I was the one who stole the Keystone and gave it to Shinra..." he confessed.
"Don't try to hide the truth from me. If it was just that, Tifa would have broken your cat's neck in three places, but she wouldn't be prepared to head to Midgar and slaughter you," growled Vincent. "So, out with it."
"God, I can't hide jack from you! Why the hell do you have to be so insightful?!" cursed Reeve, leaning back in his chair. With a sigh, he slowly put a hand to his face, and it crinkled up. "I... I kidnapped Barret's daughter to use as leverage..." he said sadly. "It's not something I'm proud of..."
"Release her. Now!" Vincent snarled coldly as he drew his gun and placed it flat on Cait Sith's face. As the mechanical cat pondered its fate, Vincent quietly cocked the trigger. "If you say you're done with Shinra," he said softly, "then it's time to start acting human again."
"I... I know, I'm ashamed of what I did... There's no excuse..." Reeve sighed. The more he thought, the more it began to affect him, and he began to shake before shedding a single tear. "But I haven't abandoned all my principles," he said resolutely, wiping the tear from his eye. "Aerith's mother has her, and I set them up in the village of Kalm in the finest house I could buy. They should both be well, even if I can't confirm that directly..."
"Are you serious, Reeve?!" gasped Vincent, his grip on Cerberus slightly wavering. That he'd kidnapped the girl and then acted as her protector seemed audacious at best, pitiful at worst. "You aren't lying, are you?" he wondered softly.
"Like you said, even after all I've done for Shinra, I'm still human," said Reeve quietly. "I prerecorded Marlene's statement, then had her and Aerith's mother Elmyra escorted to Kalm..." he sighed. "I secured a two bedroom house in the finest part of town, and left them enough money to last them for a year. It was the least I could do..."
"So, you're serious?!" Vincent asked, incredulous and slightly outraged. That he'd kidnapped the girl, then sent her on her way in a golden carriage, was indeed outrageous. But, insane as it was, it was one step closer to becoming human. "And do you intend on telling Barret?" he growled.
"I may be changing, but don't give me too much credit, Vincent," Reeve sighed. He silently poured himself a drink of liquor and sipped it, again leaning back and putting his face in his hand. "I don't have the guts to tell him," he said plainly. "I could never face him again."
"You're a spineless, gutless coward!" Vincent shouted, causing Reeve to drop his drink in shock. "But I want you to know: You owe these people now," he said flatly, drawing Cait Sith up to his face by the throat. "If you want to change, prove it with your actions. If you don't have the courage to tell them you've changed, then show it instead."
"You think I'm not aware of my obligations? I've already taken measures to help them..." Reeve said quietly. "I've been gathering intel for the last three days, but no matter what I do, I can't breach Rufus' inner circle. Heidegger and Scarlet are the only ones who have his ear," he growled.
"They might consider you a liability, even if it's only a possibility," said Vincent calmly. Reeve's words had finally began to struck him as being sincere. "Shinra won't share executive level decisions with someone literally embedded in their enemy's group," he said resolutely. "Immoral as they are, they aren't stupid."
"I'm fully aware of that, and I'll continue to look into their business," said Reeve softly. "I hear they've repaired the Highwind and plan to use it for an operation, but that's all I've got..." he sighed. "Chances are they know something that we don't. I'd also wager Hojo is back with the company - he's too valuable in dealing with his own messes to let him retire. But I give you my solemn word: Anything I can do to help these people, however slight, I intend to do. I'm ready to become human again..."
Scene Five
While Cloud did some soul searching and Vincent grilled Cait Sith, the rest of the party assembled in the center of town. None of them wanted to be the leader, and none of them wanted to broach the subject with Tifa being in the mood she was in.
"So... Is this going to be it?" wondered Red XIII, turning around and laying down meekly. The idea that Cloud would be gone was something he'd never considered. "Will Cloud join us again, or... well..."
"I don't want to give the son of a bitch a shred of credit," Barret snarled, folding his arms over his chest. Even if he were offered the position of leader again, he knew he wasn't fit for the job. "If he's a coward that gives up on Aerith just 'cause he's in his own head, then I don't want him..." he growled.
"Oh, the hell you didn't, you oversized chunk of muscle!" yelled Yuffie furiously. She grabbed Barret by the collar and dragging him close to her, and menacingly stared eye to eye with him. "Cloud's the only one I want leading us, and if he ain't doing it, I'm gone!" she snapped. "That jerk gave me a second chance I didn't deserve, and I am not giving up on him!"
"If the idiot's causing this much havoc in the group he's supposed to be leader in, maybe he ain't got the balls to do it in the first place..." Cid growled. As he snapped open his lighter and lit his cigarette, he angrily glared at Yuffie and Barret. "And don't look at me to be in charge, I'm too old to deal with that kind of crap," he snapped.
"If you ask me? I've got faith in Cloud!" said Red XIII resolutely. He'd been with Cloud since Midgar, and in all that time, he'd proven himself a capable leader that could tie together a bunch of misfits and freaks.
"Yeah, jerks! Show some freaking faith, why don't you!" Yuffie shouted, wildly flailing her arms. Back in Wutai she'd betrayed him, and he gave her the chance to make up for that mistake. She wasn't about to give up on him.
"We have a problem with Cait Sith..." sighed Tifa, putting her hand on her hip. The more she thought, there really wasn't a good way to tell Barret his daughter had been kidnapped. "He's a Shinra spy, the reason they got the Keystone, and he's holding Marlene hostage!" she snapped. Before Barret could move to murder Cait Sith, Tifa grabbed hold of his arm. "But, at the Temple, he said he was done with Shinra, and we could use a double agent in the enemy's midst... it'd make up for what he's already done, and he seems sincere..." she sighed. "As much as I want to throttle that stupid cat, if he really wants to help us, I say we take the opportunity."
"You folks are a spirited bunch, and I ain't got the energy to screw with you," Cid said plainly. Cloud had fought Shinra to protect the Tiny Bronco and fought for him, something Cid didn't intend to throw away. After thinking for a moment, he extinguished his cigarette. "But I believe in the little turd, too. And even if I don't trust the cat, I trust Cloud and Tifa more," he said with a sigh. "This can't be the way it all ends."
"Looks like everyone's said their piece. Barret, if you want to insult Cloud, go ahead. But we need to make a decision," said Tifa. "Everyone in favor of keeping Cloud, raise your hand!" she said sharply. When four hands and a paw lifted up, Tifa's face seemed to lighten for the first time since it had begun. "Then it's Cloud's decision. But, we won't take no for an answer!" Tifa said with a fist pump.
Scene Six
The entire party had waged war within their ranks. Cloud, uncertain if he had the right to continue as leader, had searched his soul and found the answer he was searching for. Cait Sith's true identity had made amends with Vincent, and the rest of Cloud's friends made their own decisions on the matter. Now, all that was left was gathering everyone to begin their search for Aerith.
"So... We've all been talking, and we've decided that we want you to stay with us and lead us," Tifa said resolutely, putting a hand on her hip with a sigh. Everyone had gone through too much for it to end. "And, incidentally, if you say no, I'm going to slap you!" she said plainly, a smile forming on her face.
"Ouch... Nice to know I've got options. Guys, I've thought about a lot of things, and I've decided..." said Cloud with a sigh. As a wide grin formed on his face, the others similarly smiled. "We're going to help Aerith, and if she doesn't like it, tough!" he said with a laugh. "But even with that decided, we have a problem: the northern continent. As far as I'm aware, it's been uninhabited for decades. All that there is there are mountains, forest, and snow."
"Great, we're headed into a total wasteland. Just my kind of place..." Cid said sarcastically. He lit his cigarette, took a deep puff, and exhaled slowly. "Once we get there, how are we supposed to find this so-called City of the Ancients?" he wondered.
"Aerith said that the City of the Ancients is beyond the Sleeping Forest, and we apparently need some kind of special power to get through it," explained Cloud. "I don't know how she did it, but I believe she left a way for us to get there. So... When we get there, then we decide how to proceed," he said plainly. Still, some of his doubts remained, and a second opinion seemed warranted, so as he spoke with his friends Cloud turned his eyes to the right of him, staring at the ceiling, waiting for an answer.
What about you? If you are my guardian angel, I want to know your opinion.
Does my opinion count? You've made up your mind and that's that, right?
Damn straight.
Scene Seven
With that decided, all that remained was to go to the northern continent. Everyone piled into the Tiny Bronco's travel compartment, and Cid ferried them to the northern continent. Sadly, the weather was awfully chilly. And, naturally, a certain member of the party had to make sure they all knew that.
"Oh, Gawd! It's freaking cold! Do any of you know how cold it is? In degrees?!" Yuffie screeched, shivering madly. As cold as the weather was for the others, with her stomach exposed, it felt like someone had thrown freezing water on her. "I need a coat! Anyone have a coat?! Someone has to have a coat!" she stuttered, shaking like a (very cold) leaf. "Come on, guys, throw me a bone!"
"Suck it up! None of us are enjoying ourselves!" Tifa snapped, causing Yuffie to recoil in fear. Still, her words had merit. Walking around in subzero temperatures with her legs showing tested all the willpower Tifa had not to light herself on fire for some sort of warmth.
Although affected by the frigid cold, the party crossed through the snowy wasteland into a forest which was, mercifully, much warmer than the surrounding area. After traveling for several hours daylight began to fade, and so they set up camp, complete with a fire for warmth. Once they'd put out the fire they continued on, eventually reaching a sign indicating that Bone Village was just ahead. This greatly pleased Yuffie, a pleasure which lasted until a huge red beast barreled out of the forest and slammed her into a faraway tree with its mighty tail, where she landed with a thud and was promptly knocked unconscious.
"We don't have time to deal with this dumb ass!" Barret roared, opening the hatches on his Gun-Arm. "I'm gonna pump it full of lead and get us out of this stupid forest!" he exclaimed. With that he proceeded to unload on the monster and peppered it with bullets, to no effect. "Oh, come on!" he shrieked, lowering his weapon in shock. "What kind of freak shrugs off a freaking machine gun?!"
The monster was a large, bipedal creature called a Vlakorados that resembled a kind of mutant dinosaur, with huge, thick legs and long arms that ended in nasty claws. It slowly opened its mouth wide, almost wide enough to dislocate its jaw, and a bright light began to shine inside it. The light expanded into a huge orb of lightning, at least half the size of the creature itself, that the Vlakorados then spat at the party. With lightning zooming towards them, everyone frantically dove out of the way as the Bolt Ball ripped through the forest, leaving a huge trail of broken trees in its wake. In the aftermath, the forest seemed like it had been ripped in two pieces, but the Vlakorados remained strong and menacing, its claws sharp and its fangs gleaming. Red XIII and Cid took point, and as Cid twirled his handmade spear and charged forward, Red XIII's eyes began to glow a deep crimson. His eyes snapped open with enough force to make the trees shudder, and Red XIII released his mana in a single, massive burst. The result was a barrage of elemental energy that burst from the ground, whirled, and converged on the Vlakorados. As it was bombarded by the consecutive blasts of the Earth Rave, Cid took his spear and thrust it deep into the Vlakorados' chest.
"Gotcha, sucker!" Cid laughed, sure of his victory. That belief was quickly put to rest as the smoke cleared and the Vlakorados, though battered and bleeding from its wounds, emerged with its mouth wide open. Cid shouted a word that can't be printed as the Bolt Ball began to form, but Tifa quickly lunged and threw it into a tree with a hardened kick. Cloud drew his weapon and dashed forward, and with a single swing he amputated one of the monster's arms and left a deep gash in its chest. As it fell back, Cloud was kept from finishing the job when Cid stood in front of him and barred his way. "Let me finish the sucker! Now I've got a beef with this jerk!" growled Cid, lifting his hand with his palm facing up. "Normally, I don't do well in confined spaces... I prefer using this ability to jump high into the air..." he began menacingly. "But my materia can put this bastard in the ground here, too!"
As he closed his eyes, Cid took in a deep breath, and as a slight wind formed around him, a tiny distortion formed in the center of his palm, like a mirage in the desert. Cid quietly took the hand gripping the orb and drew it back, then threw it forward with enormous force. The orb struck the Vlakorados' head and immediately it began to warp it, as if it were being sucked into a vacuum. Following a sickening sound created as the monster's head literally imploded, the Vlakorados fell dead to the ground with its head completely destroyed, having left only a bloody stump for a neck. As its corpse dropped to the ground with a thunderous crash, Cloud turned his attention to Cid, who stood casually checking his watch.
"It's in my wristwatch. The Void materia's a gravity elemental type of materia, which I usually use to jump off cushions of air to move high into the air... You know, like I said!" Cid boasted. "But it's got another use: compressing things 'til they go boom!" he laughed. He put a cigarette in his mouth, snapped open his lighter, and lit it with brash laughter. "Bet you're glad you got me around now, right?" Cid bragged.
"Okay, where is the son of a bitch?! Huh?!" Yuffie shrieked as she furiously stomped through the forest towards the party with her shuriken in her hand. "I'm going to rip its freaking head off!" she screeched. As she watched the party's blank expressions, Yuffie's attention turned to the headless Vlakorados, her eyes went wide, and she promptly dropped unconscious to the ground face first.
Scene Eight
Bone Village began as an excavation site, dedicated to digging up the treasures that the Ancients left behind. Miners and archaeologists the world over traveled there in search of things like lost technology and dragon bones, and over time, a small town came into existence, with shops, an Inn, and a Miner's Guild that oversaw all operations in Bone Village. Rumor had it that a certain treasure existed that could breach the Sleeping Forest's illusions, but no one had ever dug it up. Otherwise, you'd wander the forest until you either died or a stray monster mauled you to death.
"Excuse me, ma'am, but I have a question I'd like to ask you..." Cloud said politely as he stepped up to the front desk of the Miner's Guild, where a lovely young woman with deep green hair stood. "It's going to sound a little odd... But do you know where we can find the City of the Ancients?" he asked. "I hear it's beyond the Sleeping Forest."
"Well, aren't you direct! How rude it is to waltz up on a beautiful young lady and not even ask her name! Mind your manners!" snapped Jade, the receptionist at the front desk. When Tifa flashed her a bloodthirsty glare, Jade quickly changed her tune and became more reasonable. "Um... I don't know about a City of the Ancients, but the Forgotten City is rumored to be through the Sleeping Forest."
"Uh... First off, I apologize for my... um..." Cloud stammered, unsure of how to say he was sorry that Tifa had just threatened to throttle the receptionist. Finally, with a shrug, he decided to get down to business. "I've heard from a friend that you need some sort of special power to get through the forest..." began Cloud. "Do you know where I can find that kind of power?"
"The illusions of the Sleeping Forest are nothing to sneeze at, kid. There have been search parties sent out for the few idiots who went in that never came back... And the search parties never came back, either. But there is a rumor that the Lunar Harp can break the illusions," explained Jade.
"Lunar Harp, got it... Then, we need to find the Lunar Harp! Let's do it, guys!" cheered Yuffie resolutely, hoisting her arm high into the air and pumping it. The answer seemed obvious, until she realized no one had ever found it. "Aw, crap. Where can we find the damn thing?!" she wondered, panicked.
"You, uh... You could probably do without the caffeine, lady..." Jade muttered, much to Yuffie's fury. As Tifa held Yuffie back, she again felt a shiver run down her spine. "It's somewhere in the excavation site, but no one knows where it might be!" she said, throwing up her hands. "People have searched for years... Might be that it doesn't even exist..."
"Since we need it, it had better exist," Vincent said coldly, in a tone that caused Yuffie to stumble back in terror and that sent a chill down Jade's spine. After clearing his throat, Vincent put a hand to his chin to formulate a plan, and quickly came up with one. "Do you folks need a hand with your investigations?" wondered Vincent. Cloud and the others watched in dumb confusion, so Vincent sighed and folded his arms over his chest. "We have someone with earth elemental materia..." he began softly. "Would it be possible to use it to search for cavities?"
"Use it for what?! I've never heard such an audacious theory!" balked Red XIII. Upon realizing the magnitude of the situation, however, he slowly did a little thinking and arrived at a tentative conclusion. "There's no choice, so I'll do it," he resolved with a sigh. "Everyone's counting on me!"
Red XIII and the others stepped outside and into the excavation site, where they found a throng of archaeologists sweeping dust and digging holes, seemingly to no avail. So, the prospects seemed slim, but necessity is the mother of invention, and Aerith's life was in danger, so it had to be done. As he closed his eyes, Red XIII took in a deep breath and focused on both his Gaea and Form materia, using the Form materia to try echolocation with his earth magic in order to find cavities in the earth big enough for a musical instrument - not too big, not too small. Even as he did so, however, doubt filled his mind.
Is this even possible? No, it has to be. Everyone... I can do my part, too!
As Red XIII silently walked around the excavation site, his eyes remained closed. The eyes of the party, as well as the archaeologists, were solely on him, which unsettled him. Red XIII continued to breathe in deep breaths, exhaling softly to keep his concentration strong. He could hear the breath of the earth, and sensed where it had been disturbed. There were several small and large chasms, but he tried to narrow it down to a single object the size of a musical instrument. It took several minutes, but he finally and triumphantly slammed his paw down on a certain part of the ground and told the archaeologists to investigate it. Alarmed at the possibility of a breakthrough in their work they did, and after a half hour of investigation they unearthed a strange relic: a green, rune covered harp, somehow intact as it had been wrapped in cloth.
"This is... This is absolutely unearthly! Literally!" gasped the head archaeologist, his eyes widening like dinner plates. Red XIII had accomplished in thirty minutes a feat that for them would have taken several years. "You want a job?!" he breathed in amazement. "I'll pay top Gil! Every museum in the world could find treasures that would make an archaeologist pass out to obtain if we had you!"
"Uh... It's nice to know I have options, but I have to decline..." apologized Red XIII. Deep inside, as deep as the harp had been, he felt a sense of satisfaction like he'd never felt. "We have a friend we need to find, and this is our ticket to doing do!" he said proudly.
"Well, that was absolutely amazing!" exclaimed Tifa, as Barret and Yuffie began to celebrate rather unprofessionally, while Cloud quietly stood in amazement and Cid simply lit another cigarette. "Vincent, how the devil did you know that would work?!" she gasped.
"I didn't," Vincent said plainly as he shrugged his shoulders. Honestly, he was just as surprised as the others were. He was no archaeologist, so it was a fluke that he'd come to the conclusion.
Scene Nine
Beyond Bone Village lay the Sleeping Forest. There, the party found a large, sprawling forest filled with amazing foliage and huge, ancient trees that certainly seemed like they could have come from the time of the Ancients. Still, the mist that coated the area was, indeed, impenetrable. Trying to advance would probably lead to just the conclusion Jade had said.
"It looks fine to me!" scoffed Barret, folding his arms over his chest with a huff. In his narrow view, as long as the party kept their eyes trained ahead, there would be no problem. "Just use Fire materia to light the way and we're good!" he huffed.
"Yeah, yeah! Ain't no reason we can't go straight, right?!" Yuffie tittered, certain that she too had the answer. Then again, she had no navigational skills. "We just put one foot in front of the other and go!" she cheered.
"You two need to calm down. If all it took to reach the City of the Ancients was a torch, someone would have discovered it already," Cloud said flatly. He took in a deep breath and turned to Tifa with a soft smile, which startled her. "Tifa... Can you play the Lunar Harp for us?" he asked.
"Wh-What?! Me?! Why are you asking me?!" gasped Tifa. She had indeed trained as a musician, but only on the piano and only to a limited degree. "What makes you think that I can do it?" she asked. "I mean, I-"
"None of us have studied music at all. Barret and Red XIII obviously can't play it, and the others don't have the training you do!" Cloud explained with a smile. He'd heard Tifa play from down below her house a few times, and it had been beautiful. "I have faith in you!" he said cheerfully, to Tifa's shock.
"I... I'll... do my best..." stammered Tifa as she took the Lunar Harp and unfurled it from its wrappings. She examined the instrument, carefully noting its features. Tifa had never played a string instrument, and even her piano training had been limited to musical notes and a few basic songs. But the thought that Cloud believed in her slowly spurred her on. Tifa carefully pulled each string, repeating a few times in an attempt to determine each of their tones. Once she'd figured that out, she needed a song, and the only one she knew was a hymn that she'd learned from her mother. Reluctantly she pulled a single string, and a beautiful note was strung from it. As she closed her eyes, Tifa slowly pulled the strings in rhythm, creating a song that amazed her friends and pierced through their verdant surroundings like a sharpened blade.
"Oh, my Gawd! It's beautiful!" breathed Yuffie, putting a hand over her heart. Even if Tifa had never played before, the sounds she produced from the Lunar Harp had mesmerized the group. "But, is it going to work?!" Yuffie choked. While Tifa continued to play, she received her answer as a large column of light began to form in the center of the forest, and the Lunar Harp was stolen from Tifa's hands and floated into the circle, where it began to slowly rotate.
"Holder of the Lunar Harp, the Woods have awakened..." a voice spoke, a whisper that still managed to beat into their ears. The voice itself was piercing, almost as mesmerizing as Tifa's song had been. "In search of that which transcends belief, traveler, proceed!" it murmured softly. With that the column shattered into shards along with the Lunar Harp, and a thin line shot down onto the floor of the forest. The line quickly expanded into a long, glimmering road that shot forward into the forest, much to the party's amazement.
"That was marvelous!" Vincent gasped, with an intensity of emotion that amazed the others, as they'd never heard him speak with such positive emotion. As he stared back at his friends, Vincent simply shrugged. "What, you're surprised that I react like a normal human to beautiful music?" he asked softly.
"Hear hear, I concur completely!" trilled Cait Sith, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. Back in Midgar, Reeve was amazed at the sounds Tifa produced, far more beautiful than much of the professional music he'd listened to. "I've never heard a song so beautiful!" he gasped.
"Oh, come on, guys! Stop flattering me! It can't have been that good!" stammered a very surprised Tifa. Still, even she was surprised by the music she'd produced. She'd never dreamed that an old song her mother had sung to her would one day accomplish this.
"Stop being so modest! That was absolutely amazing!" Cloud said cheerfully. Tifa began to blush profusely, which surprised Cloud. He hadn't intended her to react that way, and upon watching her emotions, Cloud quickly attempted to rationalize his feelings. "I-I mean, it was really good, r-right?" he stammered. "Everyone agrees, right?"
"Still, as beautiful as the song was, this forest is just as fantastic! I've never seen a place so green!" sighed Red XIII, closing his eyes in wonder. Being used to the wasteland of Cosmo Canyon, it was even more amazing for him.
"We aren't looking for beauty," said Vincent flatly, startling the party. Much as he enjoyed the view, that wasn't the point. "Focus on the mission and forget the sight seeing," he scolded sharply, an act which caused Yuffie to break her calm and angrily storm forward with her fists balled.
"Listen, jerk! Show some humanity, why don't you!" exclaimed Yuffie as she pointed at Vincent dramatically. Upon seeing Vincent's cold reply, Yuffie quietly began to shake, her entire body quaking until it finally came to its ultimate conclusion and she flipped him off. "We may be on a mission, but being human isn't a crime either! So stop ordering us around! Let us look, and then move your sorry ass and we keep going 'til we find Aerith!" she scolded loudly. As Vincent and the others stared in mute amazement, Yuffie quietly took a breath and looked at Vincent with a gentle smile. "Finding Aerith is more important than being scared of you..." she said calmly. "I'm not scared of you anymore, and I won't freak out anymore, guys. I gotta grow up, and this is the time to do it!" declared a smiling Yuffie, much to the amusement of Vincent and the amazement of the others. Vincent couldn't help but smirk, and he barely suppressed a laugh at her audacity.
So, she can make adult decisions sometimes. Maybe she really can become a proper lady some day...
Scene Ten
The Sleeping Forest was full of flora, but no fauna. The party encountered no animals or creatures inside the wonderful, tree-lined forest. As they followed the shimmering road, Yuffie and Tifa were the ones who remarked most on the beauty, and Vincent remained silent rather than scold them. After passing through the woodlands the next area was a huge span of canyon littered with coral, where they encountered a few monsters, including a bunch of Hedgehog Pies and a titanic creature named the Acrophies, which was a huge hydra with a hardened shell. The Hedgehog Pies were dealt with easily, and with the combined efforts of the party they also defeated the Acrophies. Next they entered a huge, bone-like road that resembled the spine of a huge animal, and beyond that was a sprawling, abandoned city - the City of the Ancients. Cloud asked the party to fan out and look for Aerith, while he and Tifa participated in the search together. They eventually found a large structure, and as they entered, they found that it was a large library lit with what seemed to be Spiral Spheres. The more they explored the place, the more mystifying it felt to them, that the library held precious secrets that no human had ever learned.
"This place is amazing... I've never seen this many books! And the Spheres are brighter than Bugenhagen's!" remarked Tifa. She took a book from the shelf and began to page through it, finding that the language was familiar. "There's got to be hundreds of books... Man... This book is titled 'The End of All Existence'... Creepy..." she murmured. "It details something called the Calamity from the Skies..."
"Calamity from the Skies?! Did I hear you right?!" Cloud exclaimed, grabbing Tifa by the shoulder and whirling her to face himself. "That's what Sephiroth called Jenova!" he remarked excitedly. "Come on, read, read!"
"Oh, hold your water! I'm not that fast of a reader!" scolded Tifa, shoving his hand from her shoulder before returning to the book. "'The Calamity from the Skies is an unholy abomination... It acts as a two way conduit, capable of absorbing, dividing, and inserting cells from itself and between other creatures'... Wow..." she breathed softly. "'It steals both form and memory, twisting them to its own ends. Our own race has been reduced to a scant handful because of it...'"
"So, Jenova is some sort of monster! I suppose a demon like Sephiroth ought to have the Devil as a parent..." remarked Cloud sadly. But at least Sephiroth hadn't inherited the kind of abilities that his mother possessed. "Does it say anything else?" he asked.
"Let's see... This is the final chapter... Hmm... 'All we could do is contain it. Its power was too great to eliminate it...'" read Tifa. "'Anyone who reads this book, take heed: Do not trust your senses or even your own memories. Look deep into your heart to pierce its evil, though humans may have more difficulty than we Cetra...'" The more she read, the more alarmed she became. "It ends pretty cryptically... 'Never abandon hope, all who enter here in search of the truth. Without the light of hope, there is no chance of survival.'"
"Yeah, that's... pretty distressing... I wonder how they dealt with Jenova. They said they contained it, but what does that even mean?" wondered Cloud. "If this thing is that dangerous, at least we aren't fighting it... Unless... Oh, crap!" he gasped. "What we fought on the cargo ship! Do you think..."
"We didn't see a two way conduit, though, just a nasty freak. We didn't give it a chance to do anything to us, so we can't say for sure..." muttered Tifa, continuing to page through the book. "Whatever Jenova is, I just pray we never encounter it..." she murmured as she snapped the book shut.
Scene Eleven
While Cloud and Tifa investigated the city's library, the others fanned out and searched the rest of the city. Vincent took the hospital, and found that, while the medicine had gone bad, there were still a host of medical texts. As he paged through them he found that, as a scientist, the Ancients' level of medical technology far surpassed what the current generation had to work with. Yuffie and Red XIII looked around several different food pantries and restaurants finding, as expected, rotten food and sour liquor. They did find a few cookbooks that Yuffie considered keeping though. Cid and Barret searched the business district, and they found a host of businesses such as general stores, blacksmiths, and an Inn with a strange, coiling architecture to it. Other than that, as expected, they found no one, and they also never found a graveyard of any sort. It was as if the town had been abruptly abandoned in the middle of everything, that they just walked away.
"We had zero success, Cloud... There's no sign of her, or anywhere where a ritual might be held..." said Red XIII sadly. It wasn't for lack of trying, but they had nothing to go on and nothing to show for several hours of searching.
"There's an Inn, correct?" asked Vincent, which Cid and Barret confirmed. "Then we ought to get some sleep... Daylight is almost gone, and none of us are in any shape to fight..." he said sadly. The party took his advice and took residence in the oddly shaped Inn.
The Inn was fully stocked with beds, very comfortable beds actually, and there were enough for everyone to take their own bed for the night. Night time fell, with no success in finding Aerith. If there was any place in the city they hadn't looked, they didn't find it. They slept lightly; none of the group got much sleep, out of concern for Aerith. Finally, as midnight approached, Cloud's eyes snapped open and he stood up stock straight in his bed with a loud gasp.
"Huh?! What's that?! What the hell, man?!" Yuffie sputtered, flailing around until she finally fell off the bed. She angrily got to her feet and flipped off Cloud, her eyes wild and red. "What flew up your butt?!" she snarled. "At least I had a dream! For about a minute!"
"I felt it... I didn't dream it, I felt it!" Cloud exclaimed, clambering out of bed in a hurry. Deep inside his consciousness, somehow, he'd sensed Aerith's presence. "I know where she is!" he gasped.
"You do?! How can you know? It might have been a dream!" Tifa stammered as she stumbled out of bed. The way she'd slept, if you could even call it that, she'd prayed for a dream like Cloud had. "Did you hear her say something?" she wondered.
"I didn't hear her, and I didn't feel her either... It's a strange sensation..." Cloud said cautiously, looking around the room wildly, searching for the source of his vision. "But what that book said, about looking deep into your heart... I just know! It's hard to explain, but we've got to go now! Sephiroth is with her!" he exclaimed, which quickly awakened the party.
Cloud's vision led the party to an abandoned part of the valley, with only a large cliff to look at. He promptly lifted his sword and cut it in half, revealing a new path that led to a small lake with a large structure that resembled a huge conch shell. They proceeded inside, and found nothing but what looked like an ordinary house, just the same as the others in the city. Quickly, however, Cloud narrowed in on a large mirror. He closed his eyes and prayed with all his heart, begging for some higher power to heed his words. Finally, the mirror shattered to reveal a huge, crystalline staircase leading deeper into the complex.
"Be ready for combat at any moment!" warned Vincent, drawing his gun and cocking it. There was no telling if Sephiroth had an army of monsters waiting, or if he himself would end up fighting them. "This could be the final battle!" he said sharply. "Anything could happen..."
Do I really have it in me to murder your son, Lucrecia...?
Scene Twelve
As they passed down the crystalline stairway, the sheer beauty of the City of the Ancients struck the party. Down below, the architecture, while similar, appeared to be a bit older and a bit grander. Just beyond the city portion was another long staircase, this time made of stone. And in the back of the chamber was a large, ornate altar, which notably featured Aerith kneeling there in prayer, her eyes shut tight.
"I want to go alone... and I hope you guys back me up on that, okay?" Cloud murmured hesitantly. Though Barret moved to protest, Tifa held him back and silently nodded her head. Cloud silently ascended the stairs, each stone oddly lighting up as his foot touched it, until he finally reached Aerith. Although her eyes were closed, a smile was on her face even as she heard the clacking of Cloud's boots as he stepped up to the altar. "Aerith... I'm here," he declared hesitantly, coming to rest directly in front of Aerith. "I've come to keep my promise... It's time we talked."
Aerith's eyes remained closed, though a sense of calm quietly filled Cloud's heart. Somehow, in some way, he could tell that Aerith had been waiting for him. Suddenly, however, Cloud gave out a harsh scream and fell to his knees, gripping his head in both hands. His body began to convulse wildly, almost warping itself, until at last he got to his feet. Still trembling, doing everything he could to resist, his quaking hand lifted to his blade and his fingers tightened around the grip as he drew the sword and held it in one hand, before switching to two. As his body trembled, Cloud took his sword in both hands and lifted it high above his head, and as tears dropped from his eyes he swung down with all his might. The blade connected just to Aerith's left side, shattering a large portion of the altar, and Cloud fell to his knees in agony, his sword embedding itself deep into the altar.
"You... You beast! What the... what the hell was I about to do?!" Cloud screamed in horror, again gripping his head with both hands and curling into the fetal position. As Tifa and the others hurried up the steps to the altar Cloud turned his eyes to Aerith, who continued to smile. Aerith opened her eyes and her smile widened, though there was a strange resolve in her eyes. Slowly, to his horror, Cloud began to realize that Aerith's ritual was a sacrificial rite. She was about to sacrifice herself, something she was seemingly fully aware of. "Don't do it!" he screeched, although Aerith's smile only widened. "Oh, God... Don't-"
Aerith's smile ended abruptly as a thin dribble of blood dripped from her mouth. Through a look of struggle, she lightly coughed up blood and fell forward into Cloud's arms. Her ribbon, having been severed, came undone and a tiny, white orb fell from her hair. It slowly bounced from the altar, each step in turn, until finally it came to rest deep in the water, where its light began to grow. As she twitched softly in Cloud's arms, Aerith's eyes slowly glossed over and her smile disappeared as Sephiroth withdrew his sword from her stomach. Oddly, there was no blood on the blade, nor on Aerith's body.
"So ends the legacy of the Ancients, the final death knell that signals the end of their people," Sephiroth said triumphantly, tucking his massive sword under his arm, which caused it to silently dissolve into particles of light. "But tears are not necessary. When I ascend, her soul shall unite with mine!" he said proudly, theatrically throwing his hands into the air.
"Shut up... Or I'll rip the lips off of your face..." Cloud hissed quietly, a low intensity emitting from his voice that sent a chill down Sephiroth's spine, even miles away from the scene. At that moment, any control he'd held on Cloud faded away into an ocean of hatred and regret, and while Cloud gently cradled Aerith's lifeless body, tears began to fall from his clouded eyes. "I will never forgive you for this... Never..." he growled.
"Dry your tears, Cloud... Don't deceive yourself with false emotions and fake despair..." Sephiroth said coldly. He slowly lifted his hand, palm up, and a writhing mass of flesh began to form between his fingers. "Puppets cannot cry, Cloud..." he murmured quietly, dropping the mass and disappearing into a haze of black mist.
The flesh Sephiroth had dropped started to warp and expand, wildly convulsing as it began to assume a solid form like it had on the Cargo Ship. With his emotions heated and his heart broken, Cloud snatched up his blade and cut the growing form of Jenova in half. As its flesh continued to expand and convulse, Cloud's anger did as well and he viciously lashed out with his weapon, again and again, with the intensity of a man possessed. Within seconds Jenova was slashed to ribbons, only a deformed eye remaining. Cloud caught it, clenched his fist tight enough to make his fingers ache, and with a primal roar incinerated it in a huge blast of fire and lightning that burned open his glove and nearly scalded his hand, and he could feel the heat as it seared his fingers raw. As the final scraps fell limply onto the altar, Cloud furiously lifted himself up and he reared back, prepared to eradicate the remains and shatter the altar to pieces using all the strength he had left. He halted as he felt Tifa's hands cross his chest, embracing him with both love and regret, and Cloud's body went stiff and cold.
"Cloud... Stop... It's over..." Tifa sobbed, tears pouring from her eyes. Cloud's tears joined hers and he dropped his sword to the ground, soon followed by his body, sinking to his knees in despair. His limbs went limp, his body quaking with emotion, as Cloud took Aerith's body in his arms and embraced it tightly. Slowly, silently, his fingers shut Aerith's eyes for the final time.
Scene Thirteen
No words were spoken and no one moved a muscle as Cloud gingerly lowered Aerith's body to the ground. The tears they'd attempted to restrain broke through, and as the truth finally struck them, everyone began to cry, each in their own way.
Barret remembered the first time he'd seen Aerith, held captive in the helicopter when the Sector Seven Plate was destroyed. Through all the danger she was in, she took no action to save herself, choosing instead to trade herself for Marlene. He'd stormed the very heart of Shinra to take her back, fought with all his heart, and now stared at her lifeless frame with the eyes of a man whose debt would never be repaid. And it hurt.
I ain't ever gonna live this down...
"Why did it have to come to this?" sobbed Red XIII, dropping to the ground in tears. Even after all the mischief and mayhem she'd caused him, none of what she'd done could justify the sight of her lifeless body. All the pain he thought he'd felt then swelled in his chest, and finally that true pain struck his heart cold and forced his tears to bleed from his eyes.
You made life special... I'll never forget the light in your eyes, even when you made things difficult. You never wavered... Not once...
As Cait Sith's mechanical body stared down at Aerith's body, it could shed no tears. But, far away, Reeve did begin to cry, his body trembling with such intensity that his control over the cat broke and it fell limply to the ground, inanimate. Its true owner's hands shook, the weight of his actions and her innocence having broken him. True, he hadn't been party to Hojo's sins against her. But now the full weight of his own sins bore down on him like an oncoming storm and began to crush him with an incredible weight.
Why her? Why the purest soul in all the world?
"Oh, God! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry for all the times I yelled at you, and wanted to hit you!" shrieked Yuffie. "Everything... Please... Please forgive it all..." she whispered, falling to her seat and finally deteriorating into a hysterical state. Tears flowed, and through her agony and misery, she finally forgave Aerith for everything she'd done to her. All the anger she'd felt, all the screaming and cursing she'd given Aerith, was washed away into a sea of regret. As she grit her teeth and fought back the tears, a thin dribble of blood dripped from her mouth.
How do I move on after everything I said to you? Huh?! I wish now that I could take it all back...
As Cid looked down at Aerith's body, words failed him. True, he hadn't known her for more than a few days. True, he'd barely interacted with her, but silently, as the tears began to flow, he took the cigarette from his mouth and crushed it to ash in his palm. He felt the light from the fire lightly scald his palm, but he didn't care, and a single tear dropped from his eye.
If there was ever one person who never deserved this, it'd have to be you, girl.
Words failed him, and Vincent could only stare down at Aerith, her trademark smile vanished forever. She was the one who'd brought him into Cloud's circle of friends, and one of the few people who had been truly touched by Hojo's warped machinations. Slowly, silently, tears began to fall down his cheeks as his heart started to beat like a drum in his ears.
First I couldn't save Lucrecia... and now I couldn't save you. How much sin can one man bear...?
"Do you think that a person can just... die so easily? Just like that?" Tifa whispered quietly. Turning her memories back to all the times she'd spent with Aerith as the magnitude struck her like an oncoming train, the tears accelerated and her eyes watered. Trembling, greater than she ever had, Tifa quietly began to sob and she buried her face in her hands.
You never should have done it... You should have never given up, especially for us...
Slowly, silently, Cloud took Aerith into his arms and lifted her up. As her body lifted, the tears only intensified, and as he stared into her empty face, all he could think to do was one final act: he took her mouth and bent it slightly into her signature smile. He solemnly moved down the altar and through the city, down and up each rung of the crystal staircase and into the beautiful lake that lay next to it. As Cloud silently waded into the water, and as he laid Aerith's smiling body to rest, he finally lost it and broke down, while Aerith drifted to the bottom of the lake into her final repose.
"I never deserved your love, Aerith..." he whispered, barely loud enough for the others to hear. "And you deserved someone better to love. I never saw it... and I... I'm so sorry I didn't," Cloud murmured, staring at his hands with tears in his eyes. While he stood in grief, Tifa's thoughts turned to her own relationship with Aerith, and of the silent competition they'd waged for Cloud's heart. Her own feelings became blank, all her animosity vanished, and she began to openly cry as her mind drifted back to their discussion on the Cargo Ship.
I... I wish you could have ridden on Cid's airship with him. Even if it wasn't with me...
"I'm so sorry, everyone... for everything that's happened, and my own part in it..." Cloud choked. Part of him wanted to abandon their journey, the weight of it all seemingly ready to crush him utterly, but a new resolve slowly formed, a dim ember that swelled into a maelstrom of fire greater than any he'd ever produced. He turned back to the others, and with all the strength he could muster he brushed the tears from his eyes and narrowed them in resolution. "I should quit, but I won't. All of this will only end when I slaughter him..." he snarled softly. "I may not understand who or what I am, but... I swear that I'll do right by her one day."
Whoever you are, if you're my guardian angel, this has to be the first time I've wanted to hear your voice... Please, God, be with me. I will kill him, but... it feels like he's just killed me, too. Whatever force there is up there... Whatever God there is to pray to, please... If I could have just one wish... Please... Let her rest in peace.
Final Fantasy VII
Part Two
The World Beyond
Complete!
This concludes Part Two: "The World Beyond." Following it will be, as you'd expect, Part Three: "Destruction or Deliverance." I'm hoping that the build up to and through the Reunion will satisfy you. That one also had two drafts. Well... more like a draft and a half... The next two chapters were originally jumbled together differently. Two more chapters left until the scene changes entirely and the world turns upside down. From then on, hopefully I won't take another 28 chapters to finish Part Three.
I expanded the Gongaga segment considerably, because I wanted to make Cloud's decision have some weight to it, and somehow it morphed into everyone else infighting as well. Given the fact that we all know Cait Sith is Reeve I've played a bit loose with him and Vincent, so I hope no one will yell at me for breaking canon or something, if that's even the word for it at this point. I've zigzagged through canon and non-canon the whole time. And like I said up top, writing Cloud's segment was just weird. It kind of reminded me of Squall's monologues from Final Fantasy VIII... which I might do someday, if I ever get the gumption to go through this madness again.
Reeve prerecording Marlene's statement made the most sense to me, given that she went from being captured by Shinra to being in Kalm with Elmyra more or less unmentioned. I guess the other idea could be that Elmyra moved in with a relative in Kalm, but I'd think she would do that rather than reside in the slums in the first place. Besides, any redemption Reeve can find is well sought, and developing that part of his character is important to me. One of my major objectives is to take these people from 2-D to 3-D, like I've said before.
The Vlakorados fight was for two reasons: filling out the bestiary and showing Cid off. Now, I worked for a while on what to call his materia, and I had a few options I came up with: Grav, Jump, Leap, etc. in order to keep the four letter theme that I'd set out for no real reason other than I thought it was cool. I finally decided on Void because I gave him a gravity element, which I guess worked out better than something stupid like Jump. Hopefully once we pass the City of the Ancients I can give it a bit more of a Dragoon spin to it. I'm also oddly pleased that I managed to work Earth Rave in the way I did... I had no idea how I was going to incorporate his Limit Breaks, and this was an off the cuff idea I went with. Again, the best part for me was Yuffie's "contribution" to the fight... Causing her to fall unconscious from terror just sort of makes me happy... like Tifa destroying things. A writer's tic, I guess.
Dunno if the Gaea materia's echolocation makes sense, but I thought it was cool. How many times have I said that now? Won't be the last. Same with Tifa's performance... I winged it 'cause I don't know how a string instrument works, and I was too lazy to check Wikipedia. When I heard it was called a Lunar Harp, I assumed someone would have to play it, and since Tifa's Level Four Limit Break is found in her family's piano, well... There you have it.
I am satisified with Yuffie's piece in the matter, though. Having her stand up to Vincent was nice to write. Having her grow up every so often is something I find satisfying. I don't intend it to be a one time thing, either. Like I said a while back, I don't want these characters to just be stereotypes.
This is actually a complete redraft of what I'd originally wrote. Much of it had been condensed, and there had been a few dialogue changes, but after reading it I realized that I had to do better for this scene. I really hope that this version does her death justice. If I failed? Feel free to flame me... I really did do my best...