Start Date: May 24, 2023

Windwillow

After the Novelization: The Calm after the Storm

Chapter Five: The Mercenary and the Martial Artist

Scene One

Meteorfall and the demise of Shinra had left deep scars on the Planet. Shinra had controlled the world's economy for decades, and with its downfall the world almost collapsed entirely. Their monopoly broken, Shinra's many protectorates began to splinter into their own nation-states and demanded that they be recognized on an international level. Junon had already organized its own parliament, while Nibelheim and Gongaga had voiced their intention to form independent states. In all the chaos, if every town and village declared independence, the only result would be international anarchy. And if every new nation printed its own money the value of the Gil would drop to zero and the entire world's economy would be plunged into a new dark age.

The emergence of the World Regenesis Organization revolutionized the world in amazing ways. Cities and villages agreed to pool their resources into the new organization, one that was dedicated to not only regenerating the Planet but also to unify the world as a new, central authority. Shinra had ruled with money and fear, while the WRO brought a new sense of cooperation and hope that, it was hoped, would bind the world back together in a way that no one could have ever dreamed of only a few months earlier. To the world at large the existence of the Lifestream was now revealed. Now realizing the magnitude of the situation most areas put a moratorium on the usage of Mako energy, but the sheer amount of energy needed to make the world function required that some Mako be used. Instead the usage and development of new fuel sources became a top priority for the world over and the WRO in particular.

North Corel had been driven into poverty with the deterioration of coal as a power source. However, with the need to power the world in new and innovative ways the people of North Corel were faced with the reverse of the situation: between the influx of capital from the newly reopened Gold Saucer and the widespread demand for coal for all across the globe, North Corel's economy exploded fantastically. Mining coal, however, takes considerable effort and labor. Additionally, finding and establishing new mines would take time, money, and much work. Wutai had its own traditional fuel sources, but the rest of the world quickly adapted to using solar, steam, and wind power to power their cities and towns. The situation of Midgar was a fickle one. With the descent of Meteor much of the city had been left uninhabitable, and without Mako there was simply no way to power the countless homes inside the doomed metropolis. Instead, the city had been dissected and picked apart for resources and raw materials and used to construct the nearby city of Edge, which is sponsored by the WRO and receives much of its funding from charitable sources. Slowly, steadily, Shinra's capital has been cut apart and restructured into a new, vibrant city full of people determined to find a new way to live their lives.

Two in particular settled here: the mercenary, Cloud Strife; and his childhood friend, Tifa Lockhart. These were former members of the anti-Shinra insurgency AVALANCHE, and together with several other individuals they'd brought peace to the world. Now the task was to find peace for themselves.

Scene Two

Midgar was a ghost town, complete with the skeletal remains of a society that had now been dismantled completely. Its buildings and structures were taken apart and reconstructed into the new city of Edge, just to the northeast of Midgar's ruins, the final home left for those displaced during Meteorfall. The village of Kalm, also to the northeast, could only support so many people before they were forced to construct Edge. Cloud and Tifa also settled in the new city. The first several months were the hardest, given that they had to deconstruct Midgar and reconstruct Edge from nothing but Midgar's scraps. Slowly, however, Edge began to take shape and a new economy began to flourish, with shops and schools opening all across the city to take the place of Shinra's own sponsored businesses. While they'd both assisted in rebuilding their lives, Cloud and Tifa hadn't yet decided to settle down. Although Cloud asked her several times, Tifa chose not to join the WRO and instead decided to rebuild Seventh Heaven.

Once Edge was more or less complete Tifa began to procure funds to build her new bar, although finding funding was a bit difficult at first. Slowly, however, it took shape, and Seventh Heaven opened only a few months after Edge was completed. Tifa again acted as barmaid, mixologist, and bouncer, but without people to run the place there wasn't any hope in the first place. With manpower in short supply she quickly built up her bar by offering free booze for labor and to act as employees.

At first Cloud and Tifa had been the only employees at the new Seventh Heaven, but that quickly changed as Tifa's advertising brought in dozens of new faces and fresh ideas to expand the bar like it had never had a chance to in the slums of Sector Seven. Tifa again acted as her own establishment's bouncer, and once word spread of the few incidents that had actually happened - which sometimes involved broken bones - by and large Seventh Heaven became a very safe place for citizens and orphans to hang around at. It also acted as a de facto orphanage for the children left destitute from Meteorfall, though the spread of a strange new sickness had already begun to ravage the populace.

Scene Three

The doors of Seventh Heaven opened and a young man entered the bar. He was tall and muscular, dressed in black leather with several straps and belts all across his clothing. As he passed through the now-thriving establishment he quietly advanced towards the bar, where he pulled up a seat and shuffled onto the bar stool. Cloud quietly laid his hands on the bar and rapped his knuckles against it, which caught Tifa's attention almost immediately. With a warm smile he slid a few bills of Gil across the bar. "Do you have anything hard?" he asked softly. When he received a glass of milk, he shot a nasty glare Tifa's way. "Funny. I didn't know milk was considered hard..." Cloud muttered dryly.

Tifa, who had also finished mixing several cocktails for other patrons, smirked and leaned towards Cloud, her elbows propped up on the bar with her chin in her hands. "It's good for your health... and a fine cow sacrificed its time and energy to make you healthy," Tifa said smilingly. She pushed the glass towards Cloud again, who smiled and snatched it up. "You look like you're settling in well..." she grinned.

As he took a soft sip of the milk, Cloud quietly nodded his head. That was a lie, though. He was unemployed, had only a modest apartment, and remained wracked with guilt over the events that had taken place only a few short months ago. The death of so many people, several that he cared about, had already taxed his feelings nearly to the limit.

"So much has happened since this all started. I started as just another cocky son of a bitch, but for some reason I ended up being the leader of a bunch of misfits and freaks that somehow managed to save the world," Cloud said with a shrug of his shoulders. He leaned forward and laid his face in his hands, half in stress and half through simple despair. "All the battles we fought... all the blood we shed... it makes me wonder if it was really all for this. I never intended to end up the way I am now..." he muttered.

"Stop acting so sour," scolded Tifa. Cloud's head snapped up immediately and found that Tifa had taken back his milk and slid a glass of vodka towards him. As he stared dumbly, Tifa returned the milk to her freezer and turned back to Cloud with a solemn stare. "If you want to get all gloomy... I guess I'll give you something hard," she sighed. "We'll talk later tonight..." Tifa said, a bit more forcefully. Meaning, it wasn't a request.

Scene Four

Cloud's apartment wasn't very showy at all. It largely consisted of a bed, several desks, and a small kitchen with a single shower located far in the corner inside a simple bathroom. As Tifa slid the door open and entered, she noted that there were blueprints on one of the larger desks that depicted a sleek, well-designed motorcycle design that had nearly been completed. Tifa turned to Cloud with a soft smile and she pulled up a seat to sit beside him at the dining room table. Noting that there were two open beer cans, Tifa took one of them and silently sipped from it before setting it back down as Cloud wordlessly drank from his can. "I see you've expanded into mechanics," she said wryly. "You're a man of many talents, but I never thought you'd be able to build a damned motorcycle."

As he took a swig of his drink, Cloud narrowed his eyes at Tifa. It certainly didn't seem to bother her much. "It wasn't me... I gave some input on the design, and some of the more amenable mechanics agreed to build it free of charge. At this point, it's more or less done..." he said softly with a shrug of his shoulders. He laid his hand over the sheet of paper and smiled. Fenrir would be a great partner once it was finished. "These are the final blueprints. Once I finish looking them over, I'll send it to the machinist shop to build it."

Tifa looked carefully at the motorcycle's blueprints. It was far more futuristic than the one he'd hijacked to escape the Shinra building, much sleeker and sturdier. The more she looked, however, the stranger it seemed: there were several odd compartments, seemingly haphazard, surrounding the cycle itself. "And these are?" Tifa asked, raising an eyebrow.

Wordlessly Cloud snatched up the blueprints for the motorcycle and returned them to a large cabinet, where he also withdrew another blueprint that he slammed down on the dining room table for Tifa to examine. Although there were several different components and bizarre blade structures, she immediately recognized what the finished puzzle would end up as.

"Six swords put together... Stack them up and you can see what the end result is. I've got several weapon smiths working under contract for it... Reeve called in a few favors," said Cloud quietly. Before Tifa could react he slid into his chair and snatched up his drink. "And yes, before you say it... I'm making these so I can give him his sword back."

Tifa smiled warmly, a twinkle in her eye. "Over five years ago... and we're still picking up the pieces, eh?" she muttered. She thought back to the ordeal at Nibelheim, the aftermath, and all the chaos that had followed in their globetrotting journey. After all the battles, all the blood that was shed on the blade, it only seemed right to mark Zack's final stand with the only grave marker that would cut it. Nothing else but that sword could do. "The sword's come full circle... I guess it's time to let it rest..." Tifa sighed.

Cloud nodded. "Mmm... That's why I ordered those six swords. If I need to fight again I'll need a weapon, but using any normal sword just wouldn't feel right in my hands... It's been a hell of a journey..." he murmured, turning his eyes to the ceiling and staring at the fan high up above. "But if you want me to settle down, the answer's no."

"I didn't come here to ask for a date, dummy..." Tifa groaned. "I came to ask what you're going to do next." Cloud stared back at her silently, almost coldly, so she folded her arms over her chest and sighed. Cloud finally gave up and dropped back into his seat with a hard grunt, then took another drink of his alcohol. Tifa sighed and put a hand to her face. He was just so damned stubborn.

"Beats me..." said Cloud harshly. "I don't think I can settle down in one tiny little desk job and live out my life like that. But at the same time, I also don't know what I can actually do but fight..." he muttered. True enough, all he really knew how to do was fight. He couldn't build or mix drinks, couldn't sketch paintings or write novels. All he had in his repertoire was his innate talent to kill anything he wanted to kill, and it was far from an ideal skill during times of peace.

Tifa turned her nose up and huffed, and Cloud averted his eyes. He'd seen that look often enough that he knew not to push what would come next. She slowly sat down in his seat, right across from where Cloud lay on the ground, folded her arms over her chest and leaned towards him with a gentle smile on her face. Perplexed, Cloud was content to remain prone on the floor.

"Traffic around the world is hectic. Between monster attacks and trade disputes there aren't many reputable courier services that could cover the whole world. But, let's say that a certain former mercenary finishes his motorcycle and needs something to do..." said Tifa flatly, which caught Cloud's attention. "Shinra's mail system's in ruins, so someone who delivers mail from around the world - fighting back monsters, covering areas far and wide - might be able to make a nice living. Say, for example, that he's got a boss that has her own bar... who goes fifty-fifty and adds in a few drinks between missions... Call it the 'Strife Delivery Service'... What would that look like for a day's work?" she asked slyly.

The idea had merit. Even with international trade flourishing there were still wide spans of area that were too dangerous for normal caravans to travel. Taking advantage of the market, by quickly crossing monster infested areas and otherwise daunting terrain, could make for a pretty solid lifestyle. There weren't many people, after all, who could beat down monsters and cut through jungles and wastelands without batting an eye. A smile formed on Cloud's face and he tightened his fingers, stretched them out, and met Tifa's own knuckles with a fist bump.

Author's Notes

Here ends the story of The Jenova War. It's been a long year since I started working on the project, and I hope you guys have gotten something out of what I've produced. I want to thank everyone who's stuck with me through all of this... and even if the epilogue wasn't up to snuff compared to the main story itself, it's still important world-building for my next story - The Andromeda War - which is already up and has its third chapter posted. Please read and review! I've been hoping for some critical feedback for quite some time, both for this story and for the next war. Next, a new threat will arrive and a new hero will step up to fight for the Planet. Her name is Hanako Chiba, student of Red XIII and a very special young lady in her own right.

Even Aerith thinks so, after all.