Hey, what's up, guys, Flipkicks here. Today, I bring you a new chapter for Final Fantasy 7 called "Rewrite." Thank you guys for checking out the latest story and what you guys thought of the previous chapter.
Reviews:
Clem (Guest): Unfortunately, no, we won't be seeing Denzel in the story.
Guest: Cloud's dress will be up for people to decide, along with the girl's dress.
Guest (2): Yuffie will be out of the harem since she's 16.
I do not own the series.
The Chance EncountER
Sector 7/8 Intersection
"One less reactor sucking up Mako energy," Biggs said, gazing up at the ceiling of the cramped tunnel the five of them were currently trapped in. Their path to Sector 8 was choked off with debris, forcing Jessie to improvise an explosive suitable for clearing the tunnel… preferably without incinerating the group. The brunette was sitting at the foot of the pile of stone and garbage, wounded leg stretched in front of her, fiddling with the device in her hands. The rest of them stood a way back, wary after the premature detonation of Jessie's last bomb.
Wedge nodded, barely visible in the dim glow of Jessie's penlight. "Right!"
No one else said anything. Cloud leaned against the tunnel wall, heedless of the uncomfortable lump of the Buster Sword against his back, arms crossed. Behind his eyelids, whenever he blinked, he could see the fire and the damage caused by AVALANCHE's bomb. It had been far more potent than he had imagined from the first go around. He could sense the others were also taken aback by the destruction they had caused besides Barret.
The ex-SOLDIER felt a twinge of guilt, but he smothered it by recalling Nibelheim burning to the ground, by remembering Zack – his chest a mass of bullet holes – breathing his last on the plateau near Midgar, by reliving his long, lonely imprisonment, exiled to a transparent tube for five years while Shinra scientists did experiments on her. No. The score was far from settled. The Shinra still had much to account for.
"Okay," Jessie said from where she sat. "I made this one so the force of the blast will project out instead of, you know… burning us to a crisp." She pulled at the debris, trying to find leverage to get back on her feet. Before Cloud could react, Biggs was at the brunette's side, helping her stand and limp further down the tunnel. The dark-haired young man glanced at Cloud as if to warn her back, and the ex-SOLDIER shrugged. "Close your eyes and plug your ears," Jessie said.
Cloud could hear the explosion even through his hands, but no damage was done besides a rush of heat. More importantly, the tunnel was now open. They leaped through the circle of flame one at a time, Biggs still insisting on carrying Jessie rather than marking the exit so Tifa could touch her again.
Barret glared around at his crew to assess their condition. "Let's get out of here. We'll take the train back home. Biggs, stay close to Jessie." Biggs nodded at the big man while Jessie looked away. The three AVALANCHE members moved off, and their leader made to follow.
"If it's like before, we'll meet back on that train."
"Should be and if..."
"You'll see her again, merc." He lightly punches Cloud's chest, "If we do have a chance to change everything, we'll do whatever it takes."
"Right. See you on the train." Barret nods as he runs ahead, leaving the Ex-SOLDIER by himself. Cloud would look at his hands and see the nerves getting to him. The image of Sephiroth stabbing her in the abdomen has replayed in his mind. 'I will save her this time.' He clutches his hands tightly and heads out into the somewhat ruined streets of Sector 8.
One minute, Aerith Gainsborough had been strolling down LOVELESS Avenue on her way to the train station, a basket of flowers under one arm, and the next, the evening sky had lit up like daytime as an immense fireball appeared from the direction of Reactor 1. For a moment, all the old fears – the result of a lifetime spent beneath Midgar's upper plate – had returned in a rush… the sense of the open sky reaching out to consume her, to suck her up and swallow her in its endless vastness. The first few seconds were eerily quiet, the other pedestrians stopping to gaze up at the spectacle.
Then, the sound of the explosion reached her. Windows shattered, and the plate shook like it was about to drop onto the slums below. The screaming started soon after, terrified voices rising above the ringing in her ears. People began running in all directions, though Aerith wasn't sure where they thought they would go or what they would do. The panic was contagious, however; she might have joined their purposeless flight if she hadn't been uncertain.
As the fireball faded to a red glow behind the plate divider, her initial alarm receded, though it didn't disappear completely. What had happened? Her natural curiosity eclipsed the lingering fear. Should she investigate? It would be foolish… who knew if there would be follow-up explosions. This wouldn't be the first time Midgar had been attacked. Even as the thought formed, a smaller blast made the ground beneath her booted feet tremble.
Nonetheless, Aerith took a few tentative steps towards the border, staring past the scattering citizens in the direction of the explosion. A frantic pedestrian she didn't see coming slammed into the slender flower girl, knocking her onto her backside. She grimaced, rising to her feet with unconscious grace and a small sigh, brushing off the pink dress and rose-red bolero jacket she wore. She raised her head and saw…
Her heart seemed to freeze in her chest. At first, only colors and shapes were registered. A long mane of dark hair partially covered the uniform and the sword. But it wasn't him. She knew that glow—and the uniform. And the sword.
She noticed something must have spooked him like he had seen a ghost or something. The flower girl took a hesitant step forward as the other woman approached. "Excuse me," she said, struggling not to stutter and flashing a nervous smile. The question she meant to ask died on her lips, a casualty of an uncharacteristic awkwardness. "Are you okay?" she asked, lifting a pale hand toward Sector 1.
The mako-colored eyes narrowed briefly. Aerith shivered as the unsettling gaze considered her, flicking down and up again. Then, a brief quirk of her mouth. "I'm fine." The young man looked up at the sky and tried to walk away, but she took a few steps ahead.
She takes a few flowers from her basket and is about to hand them to Cloud. "Here, these are for you."
"Flowers?" Cloud raises an eyebrow, still playing along for their first meeting.
"That's right. It's a gift. For scaring those things away." Cloud instantly knew what she was talking about.
'Seems the whispers of fate are still here...' "What things?" He asks her, raising an eyebrow.
"Nevermind. Think of it as a memento."
"..." Cloud's heartache as the memories of the past timeline and everything goes word for word to how they first met. "How much?"
"Well...that depends on the customer." She glances at the flowers before looking at Cloud. "In your case...It's on the house." Cloud didn't expect to hear that from her as it had cost him five gil for her flowers. "Lovers used to give these flowers when they were reunited." She puts the flowers on Cloud's right strap.
'Yeah...' He looks at the flowers, and the memories of spending time with her and her flowers instantly come to mind. 'I will save you this time, Aerith.' "Thanks, uh..."
"Aerith. Aerith Gainborough." She introduces herself to the SOLDIER.
"Names Cloud, and thank you for the flowers, Aerith." He says with a slight smile, to which Aerith can't help but smile. "You should be getting home. It might be dangerous to stick around-" She drops her flower basket, but Cloud catches it and knows what is happening as she tries to swat something away.
"Help me!" She grabs Cloud's hand, and he sees what she is trying to swat away: The Whispers of Fate. Soon enough, several Shinra infantrymen with rifles pointed at them.
"Get going!" Cloud returns her basket, "They're after me." He takes out his Buster Sword from his back.
"You're probably right," Aerith said reluctantly. "You be careful, too." The SOLDIER nodded, and Aerith brushed past him, walking toward the station. More than once, she almost turned back. There were things she would've liked to ask the man in the SOLDIER uniform, but it was too late now. It wasn't until she was on the train that she remembered the coin she had been given. Her fingers spread open, flower-like, revealing the gil mark the woman had handed to her.
It was a five-gil coin. Aerith smiled the entire way home and wondered something about the SOLIDER. There was this idea that she had met him before but not the person she wanted to ask him about. Something was telling her that meeting this SOLDIER guy was always fated to happen. She also begins to think that his reaction felt different when he first saw her.
'So...I guess it's a redo.' A tear comes from one of her eyes, 'You're still the same Cloud Strife I know...'
"Guess Cloud won't be joining us..." Wedge says to the group, hoping the merc will join their cause.
"There's no need to assume the worst. He's a one-person army like most SOLDIERS," Biggs retorted his round friend.
"Mhmm. You think he's a keeper?" Jessie asks the group.
"That depends on him." Barret said, "After all, he's a merc."
The train was already pulling away when Cloud reached it, the flower he had purchased still dangling between his fingers. He quickened his pace, carefully pinning the stem behind his belt, hoping he wouldn't crush the delicate blossom as he ran for the door of the final car, the luggage car. It was already closed, but Cloud leaped onto the side of the train and clung there like a fly, gripping the corroded iron with nimble fingers. The train whistle howled in his ears, and the clunk-clunk of the wheels clattering over the track grew louder.
He reached out to grip the sliding door of the luggage car and—with a grunt of effort—pulled it open. Just as the train was about to enter a narrow tunnel, the ex-SOLDIER yanked herself into the compartment.
They were all waiting for her as she entered: Barret, Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge, letting out a collective gasp at her entrance.
Barret was the first to recover from his surprise. "The hell are you doing? Didn't you realize I meant we were taking this train?"
"I got distracted," Cloud explained, giving a careless shrug.
"Distracted'?" The big man sounded amazed. "Our big, bad mercenary got 'distracted' walking to the train station?" He shook his head. "I oughta' take it out of your pay, SOLIDER boy." Cloud stared at the AVALANCHE leader, putting his hands on his hips. "Whatever," Barret said, turning away. "Everyone looks alive… we're gettin' outta' here." Suiting action to words, he leaped over a pile of freight and through the door leading to the last passenger car. Wedge followed, giving Cloud a shy smile before he went. He looked like he wanted to say something but was too embarrassed to spit it out.
Biggs helped Jessie to her feet, but the brunette pushed him away rather than let him help her. The young man made a face but went without her, nodding to Cloud on his way out. Jessie limped closer, sliding the side door closed again, blocking the pattern of alternating lights lining the tunnel and the more significant part of the train noise.
The short brunette glanced down, unable to meet Cloud's eyes. "Hey… thanks for helping me back at the reactor."
"It was nothing."
Jessie impulsively grabbed the other man's arm, looking up into the ex-SOLDIER's face with a pleading gaze. "It wasn't 'nothing'. I almost screwed up the entire mission. Barret had to save me from the grunt I fought. I was slow enough to get shot by the robot guard, and you had to put your own life on the line to carry me out." She looked away again, covering her face with her other hand. "And then the bomb going off prematurely… I could've killed all of us." Her hand released Cloud's arm. "It was my responsibility, and I messed up. I'm sorry."
For a moment, it wasn't Jessie that Cloud saw; it was her younger self. She recognized the guilt and the blame and knew them all too well. Those emotions had been dogging her for her entire life, driving every decision since she was eight. The more petite woman was shuffling past her, but Tifa reached back to take her wrist. Jessie froze, looking over her shoulder shoulder morosely.
"You'll learn from this," Cloud said. It'll make you stronger so you can't make the same mistake again." The lie burned in his throat, but false or not, it was his philosophy—the philosophy for which he had traded her childhood.
It worked. Jessie's mopey expression changed gradually into one of determination. "You're right… thanks." She mustered a small smile and limped into the passenger car. Cloud let her go. "Here." She removes a green materia from her pocket, "You can have it. For saving my life."
"Healing materia. I'm surprised that you have something like this." Cloud didn't remember her having this.
"I...kinda forgot about it before we got here. I used it earlier but am still suffering from the injury."
"Well, I'm glad that at least it helped. I'm just doing my job. Nothing to it." She puts the materia in his hands.
"Still, I'm lucky that you were there."
"Survival can be a matter of luck or skill. You can't always rely on luck." Cloud says a bit sternly to her.
"Words to live by. I'm going to need a moment alone for a bit. I'll catch up with you guys once we arrive at our location." He nodded his head and proceeded to move up to the carts ahead. Jessie looked at her wound, and a slight headache got her. She clutched her head and looked around to see she was in the cart like before. "Wait, what..." She looks at the small window on the door and sees Cloud walking ahead, "Cloud!?" She looks at her hands and wonders how she can return alive after what she and her friends have done. She looks around to find herself back at the cart after their bombing mission of Reactor 1. 'I got a second chance at life; I'm not gonna mess this one up, and maybe if fate was to allow it, I could have that moment with Cloud...'
Several hours later, They arrive at the slums of Sector 7.
There was the sound of gunfire, and Cloud jumped, his mind still back on the plateau, imagining Zack's last stand. His eyes lifted from the filthy ground, and he saw the noise. It was just Barret firing off his firearm to announce himself as he entered the 7th Heaven restaurant and bar. His indistinct shouting could be heard from here, and – on cue – a stream of people exited the building. The big man emerged again, letting loose with a few more choice threats and imprecations to ensure no stragglers.
Cloud shook his head. Barret was about as subtle as the bomb that had destroyed Reactor 1. Not that he had a choice in this case. The structure wasn't just a bar; it was also the secret base of AVALANCHE. Better to annoy the patrons than allow the wrong person to see a meeting of the terrorist group. There was a certain familial closeness among the people in the slums, a camaraderie born of a population in a collective struggle to survive in this terrible city. Still, that very desperation made almost every person below the plate suspect. Very few could be trusted.
He approached the cozy little pub, glancing at the neon sign above the door. Barret greeted him with an overly cheerful grin. "Oh, hey, Cloud! It's good to see you here… and on time, too! Didn't you get 'distracted' by some shiny thing and wander off?"
The mako-eyed colored merc glared up at the dark-skinned man. "I should've raised my fee."
Barret's smile faltered just a little, and he stepped aside. "Go on in."
"Aren't you coming?"
"I gotta' make sure no one gets too curious. Get goin'."
Cloud shrugged and brushed past the broad figure of Barret, climbing the small set of stairs and entering through the saloon-style doors. The other three AVALANCHE members were already gathered around one of the tables, eating and drinking. Their near-death experience had heightened their appetites.
"Papa?" a small voice called from behind the long bar lining the back wall. A little girl ran around the corner and almost smacked against Cloud's shins. The ex-SOLDIER couldn't help the faint smile that curled his lips. He still recalls Marlene being afraid of him when he first met the adopted child of Barret.
He knelt to bring himself to eye level with the child. "Sorry, kiddo. It's just me. Your dad will be here in a minute, okay?"
Marlene took a step back, looking down shyly. "O-okay." The single word seemed to use up her entire reserve of bravery because the little girl ran back to a corner and half-hid behind the worn-out fridge, taking up most of that space. She peered out at Cloud as the young man rose back to his feet.
"Well, hey there, Stranger," called the woman still cleaning glasses behind the bar. "I knew you'd make it back."
"Tifa," Cloud said, acknowledging the head to the bartender.
"You getting along with everyone?"
Cloud leaned back against a nearby wooden table, crossing his arms. "More or less."
The smile returned, a little teasing this time. "That's a surprise. What do we have here?" She points to Cloud's flowers on his strap, "Where'd you get that from? I can't remember the last time I saw a real one." Cloud would remove the flowers from his strap and present them to Tifa, which she didn't expect from her childhood friend. "How sweet. When did you get so thoughtful?" She asks him.
"A guy can change. It has been five years," Cloud replies. He doesn't know whether she has gotten her memories of the future like both him and Barret. For now, he would still have to act the same.
The following awkward silence was broken as Barret barreled through the saloon doors, his footsteps loud on the wooden floor. Marlene emerged from hiding upon seeing the big man. "Welcome home, Papa!"
"That's right, Daddy's home," Barret said, using a silly sing-song voice Cloud would never have imagined he could. "Were you good today?" Marlene gave an exaggerated nod. "That's my girl!" He picked up the girl quickly, even though he only had one hand, and lifted her onto his broad shoulder. He looked back at the rest of the group. "Let's go; we're startin' the meeting." He walked to a nearby pinball machine and felt around the left edge. There was a loud grinding sound, and the machine and the section of floor under it sank below the floor.
With a lack of concern that displayed how often they had done this before, the other three eco-terrorists leaped down into the secret room without even waiting for the hidden elevator to return. Cloud made to follow.
"Hey, hold up, Cloud," Tifa said, still behind the bar. "It may take a while, so how about a drink?" She asks the blonde-haired merc.
"Something hard and bitter." Cloud replies to the barmaid, "I'm sure you got something in mind."
"That I do." She replies, "One of our top sellers." Tifa would remove one of the liquors from the shelf and begin making a drink for the merc.
'Have to admit, Tifa always had a cute smile whenever the chance arises.' Cloud says to himself. Tifa finishes making his drink, and she slides it to him.
"Well? Most people have something sweet to say right about now?" She teases him as he takes a sip of his drink.
"I'm sure they would." He grins right back as he takes another sip of his drink.
"Ahh, but you're a more discerning customer, right? Which in that case..." Tifa begins making another drink for Cloud. "Our house specialty." She pours the liquor from her shaker, revealing a red liquid into the cup, "The Cosmo Canyon." She sets the drink in front of Cloud.
"Beautiful." Cloud picked up his drink and saw the red liquor gleaming with the light, comparing it to Tifa's red eyes.
She would smile at the comment, "Enjoy your drink." She leaves the counter and proceeds to head down for the meeting.
With them both downstairs for their meeting, Cloud continues to wait for the rest of the group to arrive while he continues to drink. 'So far, things are the same. Barrett has memories of the journey, so knowing what we have all been through should be easier. Jessie is still the same, along with the others, but Aerith...' His thoughts trail to the florist.
He still couldn't help but think of her. If it weren't for Aerith, he wouldn't have gone through this journey to figure out who he really was. He would still be the personality of his best friend, Zack Fair. She was the closest person to help him besides Tifa. He still knows, even after the two years after their journey, Cloud still couldn't help but feel that he couldn't get over the deaths he could have prevented.
He knows that Zack's death was all Shinra's fault from the Nibelheim Incident, with Sephiroth being a lab creation of the Alien Jenova and a human woman named Lucrecia Crescent. With him learning about his true heritage, Sephiroth decided that humanity should die as he was chosen to lead the planet. To think that he used to look up to Sephiroth as a legendary hero of Midgar and one of the best SOLDIERS.
The one that plagued his mind was Aerith's death. He could have saved her and stopped Sephiroth from impaling her. That moment has stuck with him since, and he couldn't help but feel that he wouldn't be able to have a family with Marlene, Tifa, and Denzel. Sure, he did manage to heal from this trauma and is learning to overcome all of his trauma, but he still felt that he could have done better.
While still thinking, he would hear the door open, revealing that the trio of Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge had arrived.
"Hey! Did you hear the news?" He turns around to see Jessie with a grin on her face, " 'The Reactor bombing was the work of the eco-terrorist group avalanche.' Public enemy number 1! Gets your heart racing, doesn't it? They don't know our faces, so we're in the clear for now, but we're gonna need to keep this momentum going." Jessie couldn't help but feel that they are making a change for the better with this mission.
"You gonna be joining us, Cloud?" Wedge asks the Merc.
"That's all on Barret and for the right price," he replies to Wedge as he sips his drink. The trio hits the pinball machine and goes down to their meeting. 'Barret will keep me on for three days until the next bombing mission. I can use the time to take on some odd jobs for funding, and I will need to get more materia for the mission.' He takes out the materia in one of the slots of his Buster Sword, 'Gonna need an Elemental materia or two for that Air Buster machine. Jessie's healing materia should be fine with the current level, but gonna need to make it stronger.' He puts the materia back in the slot and puts his sword on his back.
Twenty minutes later, Cloud heard the pinball machine coming up from the hidden floor, and the gang would leave the machine one by one. Tifa would hit behind the bar and fix herself a drink while Jessie grabbed one of the drinks from the fridge.
"We'll be having another mission in three days." He hears Barret walking towards them, "Since you used to work for Shinra, we'll be hitting Mako Reactor 5, and you can help us with the layout." He brings out a part of his original payment, "Right now, we're a bit short on the funds, but Tifa will help you find some odd jobs here. Once you finish those jobs, that'll be the rest of your payment and a bonus." Cloud knew Barret was partially lying to him. He had his full memories.
"That's fine. Two thousand is what we agreed on." Cloud pockets the 1,050 gil and stands up. "I'll leave you guys for the night. Is there any place where I can rest up?" He asks the leader.
"I'll leave that to Tifa." Cloud nodded, and Tifa would put her drink on the bar.
"Follow me." Cloud let Tifa lead them to the motel rooms that she currently occupies, leaving the group to celebrate their first mission accomplished. While the rest of the group celebrated, Jessie began to wonder how she came back to life. She sets her drink down and heads outside for some air.
'Just what's going on? I don't remember Barret giving Cloud the okay to join us for the next mission and the flowers. I know I just returned my life, but has Cloud and the others returned in time?' A million questions are going through her mind, and maybe during one of these days, I can ask them whenever or not they come back in time as I have.'
While Jessie continues her train of thought, Cloud and Tifa arrive at the Stargazer Heights Motel. She shows him their rooms on the second floor, where room 201 is hers while room 202 is his. Since it isn't much for a motel room, Cloud finds it enough for his stay.
"The landlady says it's fine for you to stay here until you decide to leave again for another job."
"I appreciate it, Tifa." He rolls and stretches his arms and shoulders. "Guess that's my queue to call it quits for the day."
"Before you head in Cloud..."
"?"
"You weren't thinking of leaving Midgar any time soon, right?" She asks the blonde-haired merc.
"Well, seems that this old friend of mine is at a tight spot, so... a long time ago, I made a promise to her." A smile forms on her face as Cloud intends to keep the promise between them.
"I'm glad to have you back, Cloud. Really glad." She stretches her arms, too.
And that ends the chapter, guys; Jessie regains her memories and a little hint with Aerith, too, being added. While keeping some of the scenes a bit like the remake and the original, I figured I would change part of the 'scheduling' of the bombing between reactor 1 and 5 so that the side missions would take place and give Cloud a chance to work things out with the group before the second bombing mission.
The main party: Cloud Strife, Barret Wallace, Tifa Lockhart, Aerith Gainsborough, Yuffie Kusanagi, Red 13, Caith Sith, Vincent Valentine, Cid Highwind, Jessie Raspberry, Biggs, Wedge
Potential members: Lucia Lin, Cissnei, Sonon Kusukabe
Antagonist added: Glenn Lodbrok, Matt Winsord, Genesis Rhapsodos, Nero the Sable, Weiss the Immaculate.
I hope to hear what you guys think of the chapter and as always, I'll talk to you all later.