TWENTY-THREE
The ship's engine room was a high, enclosed place with an elevated catwalk along the walls. It was lined with pipes, dials, and levers, and at the far end on either side of a large control panel, two huge, cylindrical fuel drums stretched for almost half the length of the room. And there, in front of the control panel, was Sephiroth.
"Is it really you?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
"Sephiroth…" Jessie growled.
But he didn't say anything, not at first. He just stood there, his cold green eyes on us. Then he seemed to shimmer and ripple, flitting back and forth between himself and something else, something alien. Jessie and I both winced in pain, and I felt my head throb like it had done on the deck when I'd first sensed Sephiroth was on board. And as I stared at him, or what seemed to be him, I suddenly remembered the strange vision I'd had in the marshes when I'd watched him kill the giant snake. The shape I'd seen then was the same as now.
"Jenova…" Red breathed.
"The source of… everything," Aerith added, tightening her grip on her bladed staff. "The calamity from the skies…"
Still shifting between two forms, Jenova spoke in both Sephiroth's voice and her own harsh, feminine whisper. "My slumber has ended… the time has come… the time… is now…"
"Cloud!" Jessie gasped.
"And you…" Jenova's gaze turned on her. "A new factor… one that does not belong. I will have your strength."
I hefted my swords. "Not a chance! Sephiroth!"
He sneered at me, alone again within a swirling black vapor. "I am here, Cloud. As I always have been."
"What the hell do you want?" I demanded.
"To set you on the path," he taunted from within the dark mist. His eyes slid over to Jessie. "Both of you."
"No…" she breathed. "It won't happen!"
Sephiroth just laughed softly. "You know it will."
Jessie shook her head. "Shut up!"
"Back off, asshole!" I added, glaring darkly at Sephiroth as I hefted Buster and the Force Stealer. "And leave her out of it!"
Sephiroth pointed coldly at me with his katana. "No. The wheels of destiny are turning. And both of you will help me break this planet free from the shackles of fate. No longer will we be bound to an endless and unchanging cycle of conflict and death, doomed to repeat this journey over and over again. We will forge a new path."
"What path?" I growled.
He gave Jessie a cruel smile. "One soaked with blood."
Her face went pale. "You can't… I won't…!"
"The ripple grows larger, Jessie," Sephiroth said with a soft, wicked laugh. "And with each passing moment, we diverge further and further from what once was. All thanks to you…"
"Enough!" Aerith yelled.
I gaped at her in spite of myself as she swept quickly past Jessie and I and stood firmly in between us and Sephiroth, her green eyes blazing. She gripped her bladed staff tightly in both hands, and if her stare had been able to kill, he'd have been dead ten times over. I'd never seen her so pissed before. And neither had Jessie, it seemed. Her jaw hung open as if it had become completely unhinged.
Aerith stared Sephiroth down. "I told you before, you're wrong! All you are, everything you're trying to do. Our will is our own! It's not for you to decide which way the world goes!"
"Ah, but it is," he taunted.
"Wrong!" she snarled. "So just shut… the fuck… up!"
Sephiroth gazed coldly at her. "Make me."
"You know I can," Aerith snapped, her eyes just as icy.
"Then let's begin," he answered, raising his free hand above him as darkness swirled around him. "Consider this a taste of things to come. Mother is quite eager to greet you all…"
As we all watched, the darkness spread, engulfing the entire engine room and leaving it in a dim, eerie purple glow that seemed to enhance the gloom instead of alleviate it. The area also seemed to be larger than it had been before, but whether that was a trick of the shadows or some kind of illusion, I didn't know. And then I realized that something else had appeared along with us in this dark space.
It was huge, almost fifteen feet tall, its skin a mottled bone gray. A pair of winglike appendages sprouted from its back, and instead of feet and legs, the creature's body simply expanded down from its chest into a wide, bulbous, round blob. It didn't have arms, either. Instead, a mass of thick, writhing, black and red tentacles surrounded it, including two huge ones on its sides and a third in the back. And it leered down at us from the empty eye sockets of its skeletal head.
"Jenova Nascent…" Sephiroth said, gesturing toward the grotesque monster as if he were presenting it to us. "A parting gift, you might say. Farewell for now, my friends. We will meet again."
Then he vanished amidst the darkness, laughing softly. We braced ourselves for the attack, and Jenova struck, emitting pools of blackness that moved slowly but inexorably toward us. Jessie and I darted ahead, slashing at tentacles blocking our way to the monster itself. Red swiped at them with his claws as Aerith quickly spun her staff and struck them with a powerful tempest of magical energy.
The tentacles were tough and resilient, though, and didn't go down easily. Jessie and I spun and sliced, doing our best to avoid the pools of darkness as we fought, but they kept tracking us. I managed to get both swords up in time to block one, but Jessie got caught by another before she could do the same, bringing her to an abrupt stop. Jenova flared its wings and fired beams of black energy at both of us. I dove aside just as one of them blasted in the floor where I'd been. The other struck Jessie square in the chest, knocking her onto her back.
"Jessie!" I called, hacking at more whipping tentacles.
She grunted and sprang to her feet. "Shit! I'm alright, Cloud. Didn't move fast enough. What he said, I can't…"
Aerith's voice was firm and unyielding as she tore into the tentacles again with her magic. "Don't give up, Jessie! Whatever he's got in mind, you'll beat it! Sephiroth doesn't own you!"
"Yeah…" Jessie nodded, her voice firm and determined. "I'm not a puppet! And I won't let him hurt… anyone!"
"Same goes for you, Cloud!" Aerith added. "Fight him!"
I sliced through a tentacle. "Always!"
At the same time, Jessie slapped her right glove switch, her glowing eyes blazing, and launched herself at Jenova in a blinding blur of speed. I charged in alongside her, Red following only a step behind. With her spells, Aerith cleared us a path through the tentacles, her emerald eyes full of a fury I'd never seen before. As we struck at the terror before us, I knew that the battle had only just begun.
Belowdecks, Barret, Yuffie, and I hurried down the passageway for the crew quarters, rows of doors closed and locked on either side of us. At first, we didn't see anything, but then, as we drew close to the end of the hall, the lights dimmed and all but went out. Then we heard shouts ahead of us. Nodding to the others, I rushed ahead, tossing my helmet off as I did. No point hiding if there was a fight.
"Tifa, look!" Yuffie pointed.
I stopped at once, her and Barret on either side, as we entered what must've once been the common area, with the door to the galley on the far side. But now it was just a dark, gloomy, and otherworldly place full of twisting gray tentacles. They whipped and tore at the half a dozen or so soldiers and sailors trapped in here and were connected to a lumpy, misshapen thing maybe six feet tall with an eerie skeletal head. It was a terrible creature, an offshoot of the real Jenova, and I was sure that the others were fighting her at the same time.
I whipped up my fists and rushed in. "Come on!"
"Avalanche!" Barret yelled.
As he opened up with his gun-arm, I pounded the tentacles with a barrage of punches and kicks, ignoring the stinging hits they got on me at the same time. Yuffie flitted back and forth, pummeling the creature with her fists and feet in a dizzying whirlwind of Wutaian martial arts. As I struck the main body with a swift cartwheel kick and a true strike punch that blasted it with red energy, I spared a quick backward glance at the soldiers and sailors. Several were hurt.
"Go!" I ordered, hitting the Jenova spawn with a roundhouse kick and a focused strike. "Run! We'll handle this!"
They didn't hesitate, and while we kept the monster occupied, they rushed back down the hall. I ducked and wove, evading the tentacles as best I could while concentrating my attacks on the main body. Pools of darkness issued from it, nearly impossible to avoid, so I braced myself, crossing my arms in front me as it hit, and held my ground. The others did the same, but we barely had time to breathe before a flurry of black energy beams flew toward us. We scattered, diving aside as they hit the deck, then quickly got back to our feet.
While Barret shot up the tentacles, I stabbed my mythril claws into the main body again and again in a rapid string of shearing punches as Yuffie struck it with blasts of fiery ninjitsu energy. It was a bit different to see her fighting without her shuriken, but we hadn't had a chance to go to the cargo bay to get our things. Fortunately for me, my claws had blended in well enough while I'd kept them retracted up on deck. But I used them now, shocking the creature with a chi trap. Blasts of energy tore into it, Biggs' gift doing its work well.
Then the monster suddenly emitted a haze of gray smoke followed by a shockwave that threw Yuffie and I backward across the dark space that used to be the common area. We both landed on our feet, though, a little winded but not too hurt otherwise as Barret answered with one of his blazing orange fireballs. As it struck the main body, I ran back in and unleashed a blinding shower of punches and kicks while Yuffie hit it with a dizzying rush of blows. The terrible creature began to collapse under our combined assault but didn't fall yet.
"Almost there!" I called, dodging a few thrashing tentacles to slam the main body with a diving kick. "Don't let up!"
Yuffie snorted. "As if! Let's go!"
Barret flooded the tentacles with bullets. "We got this, ladies! Time to kick ass! Then we go find Spike an' the others!"
"Then shut up and fight!" she quipped.
"The hell you think I'm doin', runt?" he shot back.
Standing firm against another wave of black beams, we pressed the attack. I cut and slashed at the creature with my mythril claws, scoring hit after hit on its rubbery, burning hide and ignoring the small strikes the tentacles got in on me in return. With Barret covering me, I flipped backward through the air, landed lightly in a crouch with my arms out to either side, and glared fiercely at the monster.
"Now!" I yelled. "Take it down!"
Yuffie was a blur of motion as she unleashed her ninjitsu energy in a massive runic blast. And at the same time, Barret tore gaping holes in the creature with a high-velocity stream of bullets from his new Vulcan cannon. And in the midst of it, I raised my arm, focused on the Enemy Skill materia, and brought forth the magic.
A massive, flaming cyclone exploded over the Jenova spawn as we got out of range, searing it to a blackened husk just before it blew apart. The others and I lifted our arms and ducked, shielding ourselves from the blast. When the dust had settled, we looked up to see that the room had returned to normal. The creature's remains faded into a black mist and vanished as if it had never been there.
"Yeah, baby!" Yuffie smirked, punching the air.
"Celebrate later," I told her. "Cloud and the others need us. They're down in the cargo bay, so let's move!"
As I cut and slashed furiously at the hellish monster that was some horrible part of Jenova, I tried hard to keep Sephiroth's taunting words out of my mind. Both what he'd said… and what he hadn't. The terrible reminder of what he'd shown me in my dream, in my nightmare. Blood and pain, Aerith dead at my own hands. I couldn't let it happen. But as hard as I fought, I couldn't help the sliver of doubt that gnawed fiercely at me like a rodent. In the midst of Jenova's terrible darkness, Phoenix's reassurance felt faint and all too far away.
A loud, piercing screech suddenly split the air, and as I cut through another tentacle, Jenova spewed a grayish, toxic miasma that made me cough and double over. My skin burned like fire, but I kept on fighting as best I could. My hands were sweating inside my gloves, and I felt the speed boost from the FEX-01 wearing off. Every move was an effort as I tried to stay on my feet and the miasma spread. When I struck at the main body, Jenova fired back at me with a bright white beam of energy that caught me and blasted me in the stomach.
"Jessie!" Cloud yelled.
And there he was, roaring and slicing hard at that alien bitch as the star pendant glowed faintly around his neck. The miasma couldn't faze him, and as he struck at Jenova with a blinding triple slash followed by a spinning overhead chop, I felt a soothing breeze sweep over me as the dark vapor cleared away. Aerith stood her ground nearby and spun her bladed staff, her healing wind giving me the boost I needed. I sprang to my feet, still uneasy but determined not to give in. Tightening my grip on my weapons, I rushed back into the fight.
Just as I did, more tentacles suddenly shot up from out of the floor and hurled spells at us, powerful blasts of fire and wind. But Aerith was faster, turning in circles and conjuring one of her pink flower shields in the air to deflect as many of the attacks as she could. Even so, some still got through. And then Jenova whipped one her main tentacles around Aerith's waist and grabbed her, lifting her right up off the floor into the air and wrapping itself tightly around her.
"Oh, hell no!" I swore.
"Eww, slimy!" Aerith gasped, wrinkling her nose.
Growling, I launched myself at Jenova, spinning and slashing from one side while Cloud hacked away on the other. At the same time, Red did what he could to keep the tentacles at bay with his claws and blasts of lightning magic. I was not gonna let Jenova hurt Aerith. The sight of her struggling desperately free herself fueled my resolve to save her not only from the tentacle but from the terrible fate Sephiroth had in store for her. I was gonna protect her from both.
With a snarl, I cut through the tentacle holding Aerith. She started to fall but righted herself immediately and landed lightly on her feet as Cloud and I circled around Jenova, slicing and dicing and mixing it up with bursts of magic. But Aerith had only just picked up her staff when dozens more tentacles suddenly sprouted up all over the area in groups of threes and fours, each one of them firing nasty projectiles at us—red orbs, black beams, and tongues of fire. And amidst all that, a dark rain fell that sapped our energy a bit at a time.
"Shit! You've gotta me kidding me!" I growled.
Cloud slashed at one cluster of tentacles with his two swords while I tore into another. "We're surrounded!"
Aerith struck a third with her earth magic. "Looks like it!"
"Not for long!" a new voice called.
My heart leapt. "Tifa!"
Sure enough, there she was, fists and feet flying as she tore into the tentacles with a barrage of punches and kicks. And at the same time, a large and familiar four-pointed shuriken suddenly flew through the air, slicing through more of the slimy things as a hail of bullets ripped into Jenova herself. The alien monster screeched.
"Eat that, bitch!" Barret roared, still firing. "Don't worry, guys! We gotcha covered! Your backup's here!"
"Took you long enough," Cloud quipped.
Barret snorted. "Smartass!"
"Whoa, ugly!" Yuffie gaped as she quickly caught her shuriken and got a good look at Jenova. "Talk about a nightmare!"
"You're not kidding!" I agreed.
As she and I fought more of the tentacles, Cloud stabbed the Force Stealer into the floor for a minute and took hold of the amulet Priscilla had given him in Junon. There was a flash of red light and then, in the midst of a glowing ball of white energy, Shiva appeared. She was a tall, towering woman with pale blue skin, matching eyes, a topknot of long, darker blue hair, and pointed ears. Her clothes were scanty and looked like sapphire silk as she floated gracefully above the floor, wrapped in a chilly mist. Sparkles of energy surrounded her.
Shiva's gaze found Jenova, and with a wave of her arm, she hurled a shower of jagged icicles at her, blasting her and all the tentacles nearby. At the same time, Cloud picked up the Force Stealer and rushed in, his swords a blur as he struck at her again and again. I slapped the phoenix insignia on my belt, and as the energy barrier sprang to life around me, I slashed at another cluster of tentacles, letting the shimmering orange globe absorb most of the damage from their attacks. And soon, I found myself back-to-back with Tifa as we fought together.
"Let's show this prehistoric bitch how we do things in the slums!" I yelled, severing a tentacle with a crossing double slash.
Tifa punched another. "Right behind you!"
Red tore into a third one with his claws. "If we can destroy enough of these, it should weaken the main body."
"You hear that, Jessie?" Tifa said.
"Copy!" I replied. Then I had an idea. "Remember when we fought Corneo's thugs outside the bar that day?"
She laughed. "Yeah! Let's see who can score higher!"
"Now don't leave me out!" Aerith smirked.
"Ha! Eat my dust!" Yuffie boasted.
With that, she darted nimbly back and forth amidst another nest of writhing tentacles, appearing and disappearing in quick puffs of smoke as she cut her way through the pack with blow after blow. Her shuriken glowed brightly with ninjitsu magic as she fought until she unleashed a final blast of energy and leapt straight into the air.
Jenova shuddered, and I burned more tentacles with a burst of fire magic while Shiva slammed a massive block of ice down onto the main body. And even though those tentacles kept firing off more spells, both my energy barrier and the timeworn talisman Madam M had given me back in Wall Market kept them from doing too much damage. Rolling aside to avoid another black beam, I jumped into the air with my arms out wide as my Deadly Dodge materia kicked in, spun around, and hit all the tentacles with a circle of blazing energy.
While Barret continued to pour bullets into the main body at high speed, Aerith twirled her staff and struck the remaining tentacles with a tempest of magical energy. Pink flower petals filled the air, and at the same time, Red unleashed a storm of starry particles that scorched the writhing, ugly gray things. Two of Tifa's chi traps and a rapid shower of powerful punches and kicks took down even more of them, then Shiva froze the rest in a thick cocoon of solid ice before blowing them a kiss. Then both the cocoon and the tentacles shattered.
"Aw, no fair!" Yuffie whined. "Nobody told me the summon could get in on this, too! I think she won!"
I could've sworn I saw Shiva smirk as she vanished in another ball of light, and I reminded myself to thank Priscilla for her help if I got to see her again someday. In the meantime, Cloud was still slicing hard at the body. It was getting sluggish, and only its three largest tentacles, the ones directly attached to it, were still there. Then the front two quickly caught both of Cloud's wrists in mid-swing.
He didn't falter, though. Not a bit. With a cocky little grin that was just so hot, Cloud shook his head, then quickly leaped into a backward somersault, tearing himself free and stabbing both swords into Jenova's body as he flipped upside down, kicking her in her ugly, skeletal face as well for good measure. He landed in a crouch with his arms out just as one of Barret's orange fireballs flew over him and slammed into Jenova, the explosion searing the thing's thick hide.
"My turn!" I yelled, rushing in. "You're gone, bitch!"
Seeing not only Jenova but also the image of the terrible future she and Sephiroth intended for me, I charged, my blaze talons pulsing with power and my blood burning. I cut into her again and again, yelling as I did, spinning and slashing and leaving trails of blazing orange energy behind me. I struck as much at that hateful vision of myself murdering Aerith as I did at the monster itself, my rage growing with every blow. I had to stop it. I would stop it. There was no other choice, no other way. I would save us both from that dark fate.
With my blaze talons fully charged, I quickly backflipped away and stabbed them both into the floor. As soon as I did, a line of fire surged out from each of them and slammed into Jenova. Then, in the midst of the ensuing blast, I took out a special raspberry I'd been working on at Fort Condor. It was colored the same as the rest but was slightly larger and a whole lot more powerful. I'd been looking for a chance to test out this prototype, and Jenova was the perfect target.
I glanced at the others. "Get down! This is gonna be big!"
"Do it, Jessie!" Aerith called.
As she and the others backed off, I yanked out the pin, then tossed the raspberry up into the air. When it started to fall back down, I spun around and hit it with a high roundhouse kick, sending it flying across the area and straight into Jenova. The resulting explosion deafened me as I dove for cover, thunder erupting in my ears, and fire filled the area from one side to the other in a massive inferno. I felt heat washing over me, and in the midst of the flames, Jenova screeched and burned, then finally collapsed in charred, scorched heap.
As the explosion finally subsided and we picked ourselves up, I saw the area return to normal. We were back in the ship's engine room, and it looked like we were all more or less alright. The energy barrier from my suit had faded as well, its power spent for now, but I didn't mind. It had kept me safe and had done what I'd needed it to do. I ached a little here and there, but between my Restore materia and another of Aerith's healing winds, I soon felt better, and so did the others.
Then we stood around what was left of Jenova, or at least this part of her. The alien flesh lay there on the floor, burnt and blasted, parts of its tentacles twitching feebly. And then it faded away amidst a shadowy mist, dissolving into a black vapor until it was gone. For a moment, we all stared uneasily at the spot where it had been.
"Hey…" Barret frowned. "That was the same thing we saw back in the Shinra Building, right? That headless freak?"
Cloud nodded. "Yeah."
Yuffie took a step back. "Gross!"
"But not all of her," Aerith said. "This was only part of her."
"So the rest of Jenova's with Sephiroth?" I asked.
Cloud sighed uneasily. "Yeah… and no. It's complicated, Jessie. But I think I'm starting to understand a little."
Tifa looked at him. "I'm not sure I do. Can you explain?"
"Sure," he said. "I'll try. Five years ago, Sephiroth vanished back in Nibelheim. His aim was to go to the promised land and rule the world, but he disappeared instead. No one knows why. But now, he's back. He killed President Shinra and freed Jenova from her imprisonment. Or at least, that's what I thought at first. But now…"
"So you mean he didn't?" Yuffie wondered. "I don't get it."
It was Red that answered. "I believe that we've been misled, Yuffie. It isn't Sephiroth we've been chasing, but Jenova."
Cloud folded his arms in front of him. "Yes… and no."
"What do you mean?" Tifa asked.
"He's using her, isn't he?" I said, suddenly understanding.
Cloud nodded. "I think so. It's her, disguised as him, but… it's also him, influencing her and acting through her. Remember what he said? He wants to change his fate, like I changed yours. He wants to take this world on a different path than before, but one that suits him instead of the rest of us. And… you're a part of it, Jessie."
"I know," I sighed.
"Pretty cowardly if ya ask me," Barret grunted. "I guess he's jus' too scared to fight us himself. Knows he'd get his ass kicked. Hidin' behind that alien freak an' tryin' to use you to do his dirty work for him. Pisses me off jus' thinkin' 'bout it. Damn him!"
Just then, the captain's voice suddenly came over the speaker again. "Everyone, this is the captain. The intruder has left the ship now. Stand down from alert and return to your duties to prepare for docking. We'll be arriving in Costa del Sol in five minutes."
Aerith looked around. "We should probably hide somewhere until we can all sneak off the ship together."
"I don't think we should stay in here," Tifa agreed.
"Good idea," Cloud said. Then, as the others left, he caught sight of something laying near a broken supply crate. He picked up whatever it was, then turned and tossed it to me. "Catch!"
I did, my eyes widening when I realized it was a summon materia. It glowed red and was warm in my hands. I concentrated on it the way Cloud had taught me and sensed the fire spirit Ifrit. He'd be a powerful ally and a great way to torch my enemies.
"Thanks," I smiled at Cloud.
"Sure," he replied. Then he laid his gloved hands on my shoulders. "Jessie… I'm sorry. It's my fault you got pulled into this mess. I gave my blood to save you, and it did, but it also allowed Sephiroth to get to you like he does me and cause this nightmare."
I wrapped my arms around him. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you, Cloud. And I know you never meant for me to be in the middle of all this. Don't blame yourself, okay? We'll beat him."
Cloud looked away. "But…"
"Shh…" I said, touching my lips to his. "You're almost as bad as me when it comes to guilt, you know? But I'd rather be here and alive with you even in this mess than dead and not having this chance for life that I'd never experienced before, that you gave me."
"Really?" he asked.
I smirked. "You bet, Cloud. And besides, we totally kicked Jenova's ass! Sure it was just a part of her, but it's a good omen. Means we'll do it again and again no matter what she throws at us."
He nodded. "Count on it. And I'll protect you. I won't let Sephiroth hurt you or use you for his own ends like a puppet."
"Cloud…" I began.
"What is it, Jessie?" he wondered.
For a moment, I almost told him about the dream, what I'd seen. It still weighed heavily on my heart, and it would've been good to share it with someone. But I still couldn't help being afraid that if I did, I'd find myself squarely on the path to that moment becoming a terrible reality, that by trying to help me, Cloud and the rest would instead unwittingly cause whatever had happened in my nightmare to separate Aerith and I from them and bring us to that fateful point.
So I shook my head. "Nevermind."
"You sure?" he asked.
"Positive!" I said, manufacturing a snarky grin.
Cloud didn't look convinced. "You can tell me anything, Jessie. You know that, right? Whatever's on your mind."
I did, of course. "Yeah. Thanks, Cloud. I mean it. But anyway, we'd better get moving before someone finds us. And don't forget, we've got a day of fun and relaxation coming up! I think we've more than earned it. And tonight, you and I'll really celebrate."
"Celebrate?" he blinked.
"Had us a huge win today!" I giggled as I skipped toward the door. "Nothing like some totally hot victory sex to top it off, right? Especially with the soothing sounds of the ocean waves?"
Cloud followed me, not quite able to hide the eagerness in his step. "Don't plan on getting much sleep tonight, then."
I laughed. "You either, SOLDIER boy."
After giving him a quick kiss with a taste of tongue that promised a lot more later, I let him go ahead of me out the door into the cargo bay. But as I was about to head after him, I stopped, wincing in sudden pain and clutching my chest as my vision went dark for a minute and a cold, familiar voice echoed in my mind. It was Jenova, and her icy, feminine whisper chilled my blood and froze my heart.
You are mine.
Shivering, I hurried after Cloud.
