Sephiroth Posted March 7, 2002 Author Share Posted March 7, 2002 Cloud led them through two more rooms and down a flight of steps which led into yet another large room. He stopped for a moment to get his bearings. Then he pointed to the right. "The reactor core is right in there," he said. "The plans are in an office above them. C'mon, we're almost there." They took a few steps but then stopped. A sound came from their left. A rapping sound, as if someone was banging on metal. It was not loud, and seemed to be coming from a corridor that led off to their left. It went on for a minute and paused, then started up again. Barret looked at Cloud. "Should we go check it out?" he asked softly. Cloud stood listening for a few more minutes. The sound faded away, and this time did not return. He shook his head. "I think in this case we'd be better off leaving well enough alone," he said. "Let's just get the plans and get out of here." He led them to the right and into the next room. The opposite wall in the room was a convex semicircle. A large metal door stood on the wall with the words 'CAUTION: REACTOR CORE' in red above it. A metal stairway led up to another catwalk that ran along the wall above them. The upper portion of the wall was covered with windows of offices that lined the area above them. The glass in all the windows was smashed and scattered across the floor. The metal stair was bent and twisted, although it still looked serviceable. The dozens of machines that stood in the room were broken and in some cases torn to pieces. The door below the sign was dented and appeared to have large claw marks across it. The entire room was filled with debris. They looked at it for a few moments in shocked silence. "Whatever it was that came through here was real angry," Barret finally stated. "Yeah," Cloud agreed, looking around carefully. "But it doesn't seem to be around anymore. Let's get those plans and get out of here before it decides to come back." They made their way carefully up the stairs. Cloud was worried now that the plans would not be there. If whatever had come through had destroyed the offices the plans might be nothing more than twisted fragments of paper scattered on the floor. But when they got to the top of the catwalk he saw that the offices were relatively undamaged. They walked over to the third office and entered. Cloud quickly went over to the desk and started to rummage through it as the others kept an eye out for any visitors. With a grunt of satisfaction Cloud stood up, the plans in his hands. They quickly strode back along the catwalk and down the stair. He was sure that something would happen before they got out of the room, but they made it without incident. Cloud wasn't about to say so out loud, and they still had a long way to go, but in spite of that he was thinking that maybe for just this once their little mission would go off without a hitch. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Red was trying his hardest to keep track of the way back, but it was difficult. There seemed to be no pattern to Yuffie's meandering. She appeared to turn right or left as the mood took her. They reached another intersection and Yuffie turned left. "I think we're going in the wrong direction," Red said. Yuffie did not respond, but just kept walking. "Maybe we should just let her go on by herself," Cait suggested. "No," Red replied. "We better stay with her. I just wish she wasn't so stubborn." They entered another room that appeared to have no other exit. Red and Cait waited by the door while Yuffie wandered around. Maybe now they would turn around, Red thought, but his thinking was premature. Yuffie was at the far end of the room looking at a large piece of machinery. "It's looks like there's a door behind here," she said. "Give me a hand with this." Red walked over, followed by Cait. He could see the partial outline of a door behind the machine. Red looked around. There was a trail of scrape marks on the floor leading from the wall on their left over to the machine. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Yuffie questioned impatiently. "Help me move this." "Can't we just go back," Cait finally asked. "This seems like an awful lot of work just to get lost." "Nobody is stopping you from going back," Yuffie replied sharply. "But you sure aren't going to help the others that way." "It looks like somebody dragged this machine over here from the far wall," Red observed. "Why would they do that?" "How should I know," Yuffie replied. "And I don't really care. Now, are you going to give me a hand or not?" The three of them together moved the machinery with little difficulty, even though Red had a feeling that this was an extremely bad idea. He could only think that the machinery had been put there so that no one could get in or out of the door behind it. Once the machinery was out of the way they saw a solid barred metal door. Yuffie walked up and lifted off the bar. "I really don't think we should go in there," Red tried again, even though he knew it was hopeless. It was. Yuffie opened the door and walked in. The others waited a moment and followed. There was a large room inside. Yuffie stood a few steps in. She turned around and looked at them. "See," she said, "there's nothing to be afraid of. Now C'mon, you scardycats, lets go find the..." She stopped as she saw the look on their faces. Their eyes were wide, and they were looking up. She turned and saw... Knees? She looked up. Then she looked up higher. "Oh boy," she said softly. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cloud led them back as fast as he dared. With each step he expected something to leap out of the shadows at them, but they made it back to the coolant room undisturbed. "Looks like the place might be deserted after all," Barret finally said. "We're not out of here yet," Tifa said quickly, even though she had been thinking the same thing. They walked along the catwalk above the pool until they reached the point where it had collapsed. "Where are the others?" Tifa asked with some concern. "I don't know," Cloud replied. He had expected them to be waiting here. "I hope they haven't gotten themselves in some kind of trouble." No one spoke for a moment as they look across at the other end of the catwalk. They all knew the only way across was into the pool. "Well, we won't find out by standing here," Barret said finally and launched himself off the catwalk. He hit the water with a tremendous splash and headed for the platform. Cloud looked at Tifa, who was looking down at the water. It was a good fifteen foot drop. "Barret's right," he said. He grabbed hold of her. "No, wait, I'm..." she began, but then they were plunging downward. They hit the water and it was cold! She came up sputtering. "I wasn't ready!" she cried, but he was already swimming for the platform. She followed and Cloud and Barret hauled her up. "Now where the hell did they go?" Cloud muttered, walking out into the hall. He looked both ways as the others came out behind him. He was just about to complain about the fact that they hadn't stayed put when they heard sounds down the hallway to the left. Cloud felt relief when he saw Yuffie come around the corner, with Red and Cait not far behind. "Good, you're back, " Yuffie said, rushing right past them. "C'mon, lets get out of here. We don't have all day, you know." They looked at her for a moment, then turned as Red and Cait came up. "You have the plans?" Red questioned. "Yes," Cloud responded. "What's going on?" A deep growl echoed down the hallway from the direction they had just come. "I'm afraid something followed us home," Red said. Cloud had his sword out in an instant. A moment later he saw a huge clawed hand at the end of the hallway. It was attached to a gorilla like beast that growled again as soon as it saw them. Cloud took a step forward. "It's big, but it doesn't seem to be very fast," Red suggested from behind him. "Perhaps it might be wise to retreat." Cloud did not respond but stopped his advance. "Red's right, Cloud," Tifa said. "We've got the plans, let's just get out of here." He glanced at them, then turned to look at the beast. It was still a good twenty feet away. He took a step backwards, then turned and they ran down the hall after the others. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Yuffie, the next time we need directions somewhere, remind me not to ask you, " Barret said with a smile. "Very funny," she answered sharply. "I'm sure if it had been you leading the group we'd still be lost down there." "You may be right," Barret answered, refusing to be baited. "But I gotta take my hat off to you. I don't think anyone else could have led us straight to what was probably the only monster left alive down in that maze." Yuffie gave him a dark look, but said nothing more. "Well, no harm done," Cloud said philosophically. "I just hope that the next time I tell you to wait you'll do just that." "Yes sir, General Cloud," Yuffie muttered with a quick salute. They had been walking down the road to the dockyards, and now they stopped as they once more stood in front of the gates. A guard came over to them, different from the last one. They showed him their clearance from the Mayor and the guards swung open the gates. "That's more like it," Barret said with satisfaction. They walked out onto the docks. The sub was tied up at the second dock. The area was completely deserted. "Cloud, do you think you still remember how to run this thing?" Cait asked as they walked aboard. "We'll find out soon enough," he replied. He pulled on the main hatch and it opened with a grating sound. "Doesn't sound good," Barret remarked. "You know, it looks like this thing hasn't been used since the last time we used it. Must of been some interesting research they were conducting." "Yeah, I'm sure," Cloud muttered. They entered the sub and Cloud had to agree with Barret's assessment. The place looked completely unused. There were even cobwebs covering some of the instrument panels. A minor nuisance, but a short time later he discovered a real problem. The engines wouldn't start. He related that information to the others, and then he and Red went back to the engine room to take a look around. Barret sat down unhappily in the helmsman's seat. "I'll bet that lousy excuse for a Mayor knew the sub wasn't working all the time," he said angrily. "I think we should go back there and kick his ***." "Satisfying as that may be," Tifa replied, "it's not going to get us a working submarine. But let's not jump to conclusions. Maybe it's something simple and Cloud and Red can fix it." "Even if they can," Barret answered, "I'd still like to kick his ***." It was quite a while before Cloud and Red returned, and when they did they did not have good news. "I'm afraid it's beyond our expertise to fix it," Red said. "We just don't know that much about submarine engines." "So what do we do now?" Yuffie asked. It seemed they had come an awful long way to get stuck. "We need someone to help us," Red replied. "Someone who knows about engines." They all looked at each other for a moment. "Cid," Cloud, Barret and Yuffie all said at once. chapter should be up tomorrow, oh wait....tomorrow is MGS2 RELEASE DAY! WOOOO HOOOOO!!! ahem, sorry about that, I'll make sure I try my best to post chapter 6 tomorrow.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kain Posted March 8, 2002 Share Posted March 8, 2002 I liked it even though it took me three days to read.Post chapter6 you lazy *** bum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flash Posted March 8, 2002 Share Posted March 8, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by safer cloud [/i] [B]I liked it even though it took me three days to read.Post chapter6 you lazy *** bum. [/B][/QUOTE] Calling Seph a lazy *** bum? Heh, that's a privillage only Mods are allowed to partake in... Ain't that right Seppy, you lazy *** bum? *gets banned* *gets banned again* Oh yeah, nice story and stuff. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 8, 2002 Share Posted March 8, 2002 this is a great story don't stop now and one more thing calling you a lazy *** bum? is not right unless you diside to stop posting the rest of this that is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 11, 2002 Author Share Posted March 11, 2002 woo, chapter 6 is up....some of it.... ---- CHAPTER VI THOSE ANNOYING BATS They reached Rocket Town the next day. Like Wutai, it had grown, but not nearly as much. As they walked down the street they saw perhaps a dozen new houses. As they passed between two of them Cait stopped and pointed to the north. "Hey, look at that." They saw the top of a rocket poking out of the treetops. "He must be building a new one," Tifa said. "Let's go take a look." They turned and hurried north. As they came out of the trees they saw the new rocket in front of them. It looked quite similar to the old one, but was obviously still under construction and a long way from completion. There were still gaping holes in the hull, and they could see a dozen technicians working on the interior. The launch pad was covered with pipes, electrical lines and construction equipment. They worked their way trough the maze until they saw Cid talking to two other men at the base of the rocket. "Cid!" Cloud called. He turned and waved. They walked over to him. "So, how do you like it?" he said as the approached, waving his hand at the ship. "It's going to be a beauty! Twice as powerful as the old one. If all goes well we should be done with her sometime next year. You guys up for another trip into space?" "I'm not sure we're quite ready for that," Cloud replied. "Looks like you've been working hard. I guess one trip into space wasn't enough for you." "Ha!" Cid spate out. "That was nothing. That just gave me a taste and now I'm anxious for more. Who knows, with this baby, we might even be able to reach another planet!" "Where did you get the funding?" Red asked. "Well, we're still a little tight there," Cid admitted. "But I got a lot of investors once they saw that the first rocket actually worked. Plus, we're cutting expenses as much as possible. I've even used a lot of parts from the Highwind." "You took apart the Highwind?" Barret said in surprise. "Yeah, we needed the parts. Anyway, who needs an airship when you can have a spaceship. Besides, I've still got the Tiny Bronco." "But the Tiny Bronco can't fly," Cait said. "It can now," Cid replied. "Sounds like you've been keeping busy," Red observed. "Things couldn't be better, actually," Cid said. "So what have you guys been up to. I hardly expected to see you all back here together. Are we having some sort of reunion?" "Kind of," Cloud replied. He explained the situation. Cid nodded when Cloud had finished. "I see. Well, it s kind of busy here but I'm sure I can find the time to give you a hand. It shouldn't take too long. How about if we leave tomorrow morning?" "That would be fine," Cloud agreed. "Okay, then why don't you guys head over to my place. No sense in staying at the Inn. Just tell Shera to break out some extra cots. I'll be back as soon as I can finish up here, but it'll probably not be till late." Just then a man came running up, he seemed very agitated and was shouting Cid s name. Cid called and waved him over. "What s all this about?" he demanded. "Captain, you've got to come quick," he shouted as soon as he saw them. "The Turks have got Shera!" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Why the hell didn't she have the sense to duck out of here when she saw them coming?" Cid said angrily. The were all standing in the living room of his house. "I'm sure she would have if she had the opportunity," Tifa said. "Don't count on it," Cid replied. "She never did have much sense. I've half a mind to just let them have her." "You can't be serious," Tifa cried. "No, I suppose not," he replied grudgingly. "But we know it's not her they want. What do you think they'll do it we don't show up?" The Turks had left a message to meet them at the foot of the nearby mountains if they ever wanted to see Shera again. "It's the Crystal Materia they want," Cloud said. "And they obviously have either a trade or a trap in mind. Shera is just a means to an end to them, but that doesn't mean they would just let her go if we don't fall for it. They can be ruthless if they have to. Remember, it was Reno who set off the bomb that destroyed the Sector 7 slums." "We haven't forgotten," Barret said grimly. "So what are we going to do then?" Cid asked. They all looked at Cloud. "We'll have to go see what they have to say, at least," he said after a minute. "But not all of us. Cid and Red, you two come with me. The rest of you stay here. This way, if it's a trap, they won't get all of us, and you'll have an opportunity to try to get us out of it if we have problems." He walked over to Tifa, who did not look pleased with the plan, and took out the Crystal Materia. "Here," he said. "You better hold on to this. If we do fall into a trap we have to be sure this doesn't fall into their hands." She hesitantly reached out and took the materia from him. He turned and motioned for Cid and Red to follow him. "Cloud," Tifa said as he walked toward the door. He turned to look at her, and for a moment he thought she was going to protest. "Be careful," she said finally. "Later," he replied and led the others out the door. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- They headed south out of town. The mountains loomed in front of them, and it wasn't long before they were walking up a steep path that wound into the foothills. They came around a narrow turn and saw the Turks standing idly on the path in front of them. Cloud drew his weapon as the Turks turned to face them. "I told you they'd show up," Reno muttered to Elena. "Where's Shera?" Cloud asked grimly. "Give us the Crystal Materia and we'll let her go," Reno suggested. "I'm afraid my answer is the same as it was last time you asked," Cloud replied immediately. "Not likely." Reno smiled. "Where's the rest of your little party," he asked. "Sneaking around behind us?" "We leave the sneaking to you Turks," Cloud answered. "They're not here. We don't need their help to take on the likes of you." "Very arrogant of you," Reno replied. "Still, I think you may come to regret that. Shera is in a cave just down the path behind us. She's there for the taking if you can get past us. On the other hand, when we defeat you, the Crystal Materia will be ours." "Apparently I'm not the only one who suffers from a touch of arrogance," Cloud replied. "Shall we have at it then?" Cid and Red came up beside Cloud. This time Reno and Rude closed in immediately to battle Cloud and Cid, while Elena and Red stayed in the back and started out casting defensive spells. Reno knew Cloud's fighting skills well, and did not stand toe to toe with him, but instead dodged quickly in and back out, never giving Cloud a clear target. Most of the time Cloud's sword, fast as it was, cut only air. Even when he did get a hit, it was softened by the magical barriers, and Rude was quick to cast cure spells whenever one of his partners was injured. Still, Reno was spending so much time dodging Cloud's blows that he had little time to try to cause any damage himself. The others seemed pretty evenly matched as well. Cid and Rude were trading blows to Cloud's left, but neither one seemed to be getting the better of the other. Occasionally Red or Elena would attack one of the others, or the whole group, with a materia spell, but each time the other would counter with a defensive spell or a cure. They fought for some time, neither team seeming to get the upper hand. After a while they all were beginning to tire, with neither side seeming to gain an advantage. Cloud was just beginning to think that maybe he should have brought some of the others, when, as if by mutual consent, the Turks suddenly broke off the attack and turned and fled up the path. Cloud hesitated for a moment, surprised by the suddenness of the retreat, Then he was after them. Not even looking to see if the others were following, he ran up the path and around the turn the Turks had just disappeared beyond. Cid was right behind him. Red trailed a little behind. "That seemed awfully easy," he commented, but the others did not appear to hear. They came around the turn. There was no sign of the Turks, but a cave mouth loomed on the left ahead. "That must be the cave," Cloud said. "C'mon." He ran for the cave, the others following not far behind. About twenty yards in front of the cave mouth the ground suddenly opened up below them and they plunged down into darkness. Cloud hit the water with a splash. The others almost landing on top of him. He came up to the surface immediately. Not more water, he thought. He looked around. They had fallen into a pool of dark water in what appeared to be some sort of deep shaft. The was a rotting wooden platform to their left, and beyond it a tunnel that led into the darkness. He looked up to see a square of light perhaps thirty feet above them. Reno, Rude and Elena stepped out from behind some nearby rocks and walked over to the mine entrance they had so cleverly concealed. They looked in to see Cloud and the others looking up at them. "I guess I forgot to tell you to watch that first step," Reno said with a smile. "Cowards," Cid shouted. "You knew we were going to kick your ***. And I guarantee you we will as soon as we get out of here." Reno laughed. "I don't think you're in any position to make threats," he replied calmly. "We'd be happy to supply you with a rope, in exchange for the Crystal Materia, of course." "Still trying to negotiate?" Cloud answered. "We don't need your rope. We'll find a way out ourselves." Elena looked at them skeptically. "Not likely," she stated. "Have it your way," Reno said. "I didn't think for a minute that you would listen to reason. That mineshaft goes on for miles, but there is no other way out. If you go into those tunnels all you'll do is get yourselves hopelessly lost. You won't get far in any case. There's some very nasty creatures down there who don't like visitors. Say hello to them for us when you see them." Reno laughed again and the they turned and walked away down the path. As soon as they were away from the mineshaft he turned to the others. "We'll let them rot in there for awhile. It's likely that something down there will kill them all and save us the trouble. Then we can just go down and help ourselves to the Crystal Materia. In the meantime I think we might want to head back to Rocket Town. Cloud is no fool. It just might be that he left the materia with the others." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I'm sure they're fine," Barret said. Tifa did not reply, but continued pacing nervously around the room. She would have felt better if she had gone with Cloud. And she would have felt much better if he hadn't given her the Crystal Materia. For some reason just knowing that she had it filled her with foreboding. She wished he had given it to someone else. She had almost asked Barret to take it a several times, but had changed her mind each time. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. They all looked at each other. No one had any suggestions as to who it might be. Barret shrugged and walked over to the door. Cait and Yuffie went to either side as Barret opened it. "Well, I'll be damned," Barret said, suddenly breaking into a grin. "This really is turning out to be just like old times." He stepped out of the way as Vincent Valentine walked in. "Vincent," Cait and Tifa both said in surprise. Vincent looked at tehm all grimly as he came in. "It is good to see you all again," he said. "But I am afraid this is more than a social visit. It appears we both need each other." "What do you mean?" Barret asked. They walked over and all sat down around a table in the living room. "Cloud is walking into a trap. The Turks are going to lure him into an abandoned mine, then either finish him off or let the creatures in the mine do it. Then they'll take the Crystal Materia for themselves." Tifa shook her head. . "They can't get the materia from him." "Why not?" Vincent asked. "Because he doesn't have it," Tifa replied. "I see," Vincent said. "Then he'll have nothing to negotiate with. In any case, if he ends up in the mine he'll never get out by himself. The mine is a huge maze. There are ways out, but you have to know the way. I can get him out, but it's too dangerous to go by myself. I also know where they're holding Shera. If you come with me, I think we can get them all back safely." Barret was looking at Vincent with a strange expression on his face. "That's all well and good," he said, "but how do you know all this?" Vincent returned his gaze evenly. "I know because I know who hired the Turks. I know because it's someone I'm very close to, or was. I know because it's..." He paused, and for a moment Barret thought he saw a great sadness in Vincent's eyes. "Lucrecia," he said finally. "Lucrecia hired them." Yuffie looked at him with both puzzlement and shock on her face. "But why would Lucrecia hire the Turks to fight us?" she asked. "She didn't hire them to fight you," Vincent replied. "She hired them to get the Crystal Materia." "But why?" Tifa asked. Again he did not respond at first. At last he spoke the words as if it pained him to say them. "You want to use the materia to bring back Aeris. But if it works it can bring back any of the Ancients, or maybe even her son." The others looked at him in shocked silence. "Sephiroth?" Yuffie exclaimed finally. "She wants to bring back Sephiroth?" Vincent nodded. "I'm afraid she's not thinking clearly," he said sadly. "In fact, it may be that she is not in her right mind at all. She doesn't seem to realize that Sephiroth nearly destroyed the planet, and was only out for his own gain and would have killed her along with all the rest of us. She's obsessed with the idea of bringing him back. She told me of her plans, she told me all about it. That's how I know so much, you see. But she turned against me when I opposed the idea. She called me a traitor, said I didn't really care about her at all. I wanted her to stop, I begged and pleaded with her to stop, but I couldn't get through to her. She's even attacked you, my friends, to get what she wants. I can't just stand by and watch her do it, I have to try to stop her, no matter how I may feel about it." He ended lamely. The others looked at him sympathetically. All except Tifa, who was thinking about the Crystal Materia. She had never thought about the possibility that it could be used to bring back anyone but Aeris. It seemed to her now that obtaining it had been a foolish and dangerous thing to do, and their innocent quest to save her could turn into something dark and deadly, not just for them but for everyone on the planet. It would have been better if they had never found the materia, or if they just destroyed it. They would not be able to use it then, but no one else would either. She took it out and held it in her hand. It might be better for them all if she just smashed it right now. She knew she couldn't do that. Whatever might happen, she couldn't destroy their last hope of resurrecting Aeris. At least not without Cloud's consent. She would just have to make sure the materia didn't fall into the wrong hands, but now the burden felt twice as heavy. "So what can we do?" Barret asked. "Come with me into the mines. I know them well. We can rescue both Shera and Cloud that way, but it is too dangerous to try by myself. It will still be dangerous, but we may be able to make it together. In any case, we should leave right away. The others are in grave danger." "Good," Barret agreed. "But I don't think we should all go. Cloud wanted the Crystal Materia to remain here, and I don't see any reason to change that. Yuffie, you come with Vincent and me." He turned to Tifa. "You and Cait stay here. This way the materia is safe and someone is here to tell Cloud where we went, on the chance that he escaped the trap and comes back." "I don't want to stay," Tifa protested. "Don't argue with me," Barret retorted. "You know as well as I do that the materia has to be protected now more than ever. We just can't chance it." Tifa sighed but said nothing. She did not like this latest development one bit, however. "Okay, lets get going," Barret said. They got up and started out the door. "Take good care of things while we're gone," Barret said to Cait. "Don't worry," Cait replied. "We'll make sure nothing happens to the materia." Tifa said nothing, but just watched them walk out the door, more worried than ever. will post the rest later on, tomorrow probably :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 11, 2002 Share Posted March 11, 2002 great story just remember to post more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raiha Posted March 12, 2002 Share Posted March 12, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by steven [/i] [B]great story just remember to post more [/B][/QUOTE][COLOR=purple]Ych, he's a supermod, AND a married man. Don't expect him to remember anything.[/COLOR] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 12, 2002 Author Share Posted March 12, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Raiha [/i] [B][COLOR=purple]Ych, he's a supermod, AND a married man. Don't expect him to remember anything.[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE] sorry, was I supposed to be doing something? :p ------ "Well, it looks like we're not getting back out that way," Cloud said, looking up. They were standing on the wooden platform next to the water. Red looked down the tunnel which was the only other way out. Cid sat on the edge of the platform smoking a cigarette. "Do you think the others can find us here?" he asked. "I suppose," Cloud replied. "But it might be hours before they get here. I don't think we have the time to waste. We've got to try to get ourselves out of this." "So into the tunnels it is then?" Red asked. "Into the tunnels it is," Cloud agreed. The tunnel sloped slightly upward as they walked into it. Cloud was in the lead, his sword ready, Red behind him and Cid in the rear. Cloud didn't know whether the Turks had been bluffing about the creatures down here, but he thought it wise to be prepared for anything. It seemed unlikely that Reno would trap them down here without some sort of nasty surprise waiting. The tunnel turned sharply and then divided in two. The right hand side plunged downward while the left seemed to remain level. "So which way do we go?" Red said. Cloud peered down each tunnel, listening carefully. Finally he shook his head. "I guess we'll just have to pick one at random. We'll just keep making lefts," he decided. "This way at least we'll be able to find our way back." He led them down the left hand passage. It was narrow and twisted, so they could not see very far ahead. They passed side tunnels half a dozen times, and each time chose the left hand passage. They went on for quite some time this way, always on guard but seeing nothing threatening. Time seemed to crawl by. Cloud wasn't sure how long they had been down here, but it seemed like hours. He was just thinking that maybe they would have been better off waiting for the others when they came around a turn and saw a flickering light ahead. Cloud moved forward cautiously. He could see a large chamber ahead of them. It flickered with light that was obviously cast by fire. He edged up to the end of the passage and peered out. He could see fires burning brightly at either end of the chamber. In the center of the cavern stood a square wooden cage. Shera sat in one corner of the it, unmoving. At first he thought that, except for her, the room was deserted, but then a shadow flickered though the air. He looked up and saw that the ceiling was crowded with dark figures. He retreated back to the others. "We've found Shera. But she's being guarded by giant bat like creatures." He motioned for them to follow and led them back to the entrance so they could see for themselves, then they retreated again. "There must be dozens of them," Cid said. "I don't think we can take them all on." "If we can get Shera and get back into this tunnel we might be okay," Cloud said thoughtfully. "It's too narrow for them to use their numbers against us. They could only come at us one or two at a time. We could hold out a long time." "A long time," Red agreed, "but not forever. It's not going to do us much good if we get Shera and can't find our way out. We have to find an exit first." "We could spend hours looking for an exit," Cid countered. "And even then there's no guarantee that we'll be able to find our way back here, or that Shera will still be here when we do. I say we get her now while we have the chance and trust to luck to find the way out." "It'll be twice as hard to search for an exit once we have alerted these creatures to our presence," Red retorted. "And it doesn't look like Shera will be going anywhere anytime soon. The prudent thing to do would be to find the exit first." They both turned to look at Cloud. He looked back down the passageway. It would make sense to find the exit first, but he felt pressed for time. He wondered what the Turks were up to while they were trapped down here. It seemed in hindsight that perhaps it hadn't been such a good idea to split up the group. He had a feeling they had to get out of here as soon as possible. "We'll get her now and trust to luck," he said. "But there are too many of them to just run out there. We need some kind of diversion." They edged back to the entrance and looked out carefully. A narrow path led down from the tunnel they were in onto the main chamber floor. Shera's cage was perhaps thirty yards away, in the middle of the room with nothing around it. "If one of us ran out there and attracted their attention," Cloud whispered," the others may have time to get Shera out." "That's fine for everyone except the person who attracts their attention," Cid replied. "It won't do us any good to exchange one prisoner for another." "If he could keep moving, he might be able to get back to the tunnel after we get Shera out," Cloud said. "It's risky, but I don't see what else we can do." "So who's the poor fool who gets to go out there?" Cid asked. "It's my idea," Cloud replied. "I'll go. As soon as you see them come after me, get Shera, then get back in the tunnel. I'll circle around the chamber and join you here." "No," Red cut in. "I'll go. The job requires speed and agility more than strength. With my four legs I'm more than twice as fast as you. I'm the logical choice." Cloud hesitated. He had not expected anyone to object, but he had to admit that Red had a point. Finally he nodded. "Okay," he said. "You just have to keep their attention for a minute or two. As soon as you see us get Shera, get back here as fast as possible." "Right," Red replied. He crept up closer to the entrance and crouched down. He remained still, staring out into the chamber for a moment, only his tail twitching occasionally. Suddenly he leapt out as one of the bats flew by. He caught hold of it with his claws and they both tumbled to the floor together. Then he was up and dashing across the room. There was a flurry of activity above their heads and suddenly shadows began swooping down all around him. Cloud waited a moment to give Red time to get far enough away from the tunnel entrance. "Now!" he said, and ran out of the tunnel straight toward the cage, with Cid close at his heels. Shera looked up at the commotion when Red had run out, now she stood and turned toward them as she saw them coming. Two bats swooped down out the sky, but with a flash of sword and spear they fell to the ground. Cloud and Cid ran on until they were next to the cage. "Get back," Cloud said. Shera stepped back and Cloud swung his sword. The wooden poles of the cage where no match for hardened steel. In seconds the poles were kindling and Shera was free. "Now quickly, back to the tunnel," Cloud shouted. They turned and ran back. Cloud chanced a look over to see how Red was doing. He could barely make him out in the tangle of shadows across the room, but he could see he was still on his feet. Some of the bats saw them and came back to attack, but most of them still clustered around Red. The few that got in their way were quickly dispatched. They reached the tunnel and stopped safely inside. Cid and Cloud turned to see Red fighting for his life against more than a dozen bats at the far end of the chamber. They both pulled out materia orbs. Red scrambled along the wall, desperately trying to keep from being trapped. He knew the bats would overwhelm him if he had to stand and fight. He was quicker than they were, but their flying ability made up for that to a great extent. In spite of his speed he eventually found himself cornered. Just then a double flash of fire and ice blasted the bats that had blocked him in to the left. Clawing ferociously at the bats nearby he broke free in that direction, then dashed back to the relative safety of the tunnel, where he paused with the others, panting. "That wasn't as easy as I thought," he said. "It s not over yet," Cloud replied. "Shera, are you okay?" "Yes," she said. "I'm unhurt. Thank you." "Save the thanks for later," Cid said. "Right now We've got to get out of here. Which way?" "Like we said before, we have to trust to luck," Cloud replied. "Let's go." He led them back the way they had come as fast as Red and Shera could go. At the first turn off he headed in a different direction. At each turn thereafter he picked a tunnel at random. He tried to keep track of all their twists and turns, but it was just about impossible. Every once in a while a bat, or a group of them, would block their path, or come up behind them, and each time they had to stop and fight. Soon Cloud was acutely aware that they were completely lost. Even if they were lost, he knew the bats were keeping track of them. Though now they no longer attacked, he could hear the rustle of their wings behind them whenever they paused, and occasionally saw the red glint of their eyes. He knew the bats could not take them in the narrow tunnel, but how long would that last? They couldn't run around down here forever. He turned into another tunnel which led down a steep set of steps. At the bottom they stopped at the entrance to a large chamber, so dimly lit that they could not see the other side. Cloud stopped them and turned to look back up the stairs. He could see dark forms coming down the steps. He hesitated for a moment, unsure. The steps were safer, but they would have to fight there way all the way back. He looked around the chamber. It appeared empty. Perhaps they could get across quickly. "C mon" he said, and ran out into the room. The others swiftly followed. As they neared the center of the room he saw the dark outline of another tunnel ahead of them, but before they reached it a figure stepped out of the tunnel as raised it's hands. Instantly the cavern was filled with light as fires flared up to their left and right. They looked up to see that the ceiling above was literally crawling with bats. They halted and looked at the figure who stood in their way. In the firelight they could easily make out her features. "Lucrecia," Cloud said. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Would you sit down and relax," Cait said. "You're driving me crazy. I thought Barret was bad." "I'm sorry," Tifa replied, but she did not sit down. "I can't help but worry. It's so frustrating to be sitting here when I know the others are in danger." "I know how you feel," Cait replied. "But there's nothing we can do about it. I'm sure they'll all be fine." "I know," she said. "It's just that it seems like hours that they've been gone. Don't you think they should have been back already? How long do we have to sit here and wait?" Cait shrugged. "I don't know," he replied. "Even if they get into trouble, I'm sure one of them will be able to get back here. It could take them a long time. They weren't going on a picnic, you know. At any rate, I don't think it would help if we ran off as well." Tifa shook her head. What Cait was saying was true, but that didn't mean she had to like it. She just wished they'd get back! Cait was concerned as well. Even though he had confidence in his friends abilities, it had been a long time that they had been gone. "I'm worried too," he said. "But it s not going to help. Come and sit down and have a drink. Your nerves are shot, and it'll help you relax." Tifa didn't think it would do much good, but she was about to accept his offer when they heard footsteps outside the door. "Finally," she said. She started over to the door but stopped when it opened to reveal Reno and Rude. Cait jumped up out of his seat. "Run, Tifa," he cried. "I'll hold them off!" Tifa turned to run for the back door, only to see Elena coming from the kitchen behind them, cutting her off. Reno stood in the doorway and folded his arms across his chest. "You sure know how to make a person feel unwanted," he said casually. "What do you want?" Tifa questioned fiercely. "I think you already know that," Elena responded. "You're not getting the Crystal Materia," Cait said angrily. Reno looked at Rude. "I told you Cloud wouldn't bring it with him," he said smugly. Then he looked at Cait. "Thank you for verifying that for us," he said. "I'm afraid that you don't have much choice. You're no match for us without your friends. Hand it over and we won't be forced to hurt you." Tifa looked around desperately. Now that she realized what they were planning she knew she could not let the materia fall into their hands, but she also knew that they were probably right. She and Cait couldn't defeat them alone. Still, she knew she had no choice but to defend the Crystal at all costs. Without a word she slowly walked over to Reno, head bowed. A smile spread across his lips, but it disappeared as she suddenly launched a vicious kick at his groin. He dodged enough to take it on the hip instead, but it still knocked him off his feet. He stumbled back and fell to the floor. "We're more than a match for the likes of you," she said defiantly. For an instant he did not move, then he turned and slowly got up. He looked at her furiously. "You're going to pay dearly for that," he said. "I wouldn't be too sure about that," said a strange voice. They all turned to see a someone standing in the doorway. He wore a black cloak and was carrying a long sword, and for a moment Tifa almost gasped in shock because she thought it was Sephiroth. But looking at his face she saw it was not. The man had short dark brown hair and darker features than Sephiroth, though the same green eyes that glowed as the mark of SOLDIER. "Who the hell are you?" Rude questioned. "That's not really important," Tarkin replied, looking at Reno. "What is important is that you are interfering in something you do not understand. Things you cannot understand. None of your small minds can comprehend what you are really dealing with here. You are like children playing with a deadly weapon, and it's just a matter of time before you do something that will destroy you all." "What kind of nonsense is that?" Elena demanded. "It is not nonsense, " Tarkin countered. "It is deadly serious. It is also unimportant. It doesn't really concern me whether you destroy yourselves or not. What does concern me is the Crystal Materia. I am afraid I cannot let you take it. In fact, I can assure you that it would be in your best interests to just walk out the door right now and never bother these people again." "C'mon Reno," Elena said, "let's just kick his butt too..." She stopped as Tarkin turned and looked at her sharply. Tifa could almost feel the power emanating from him. She had felt the same feeling from Sephiroth, and she shuddered inwardly. Even though he didn't look like him, they way he spoke, the way he acted and moved, all reminded her vividly of their former foe. "I don't know who you are, but we don't need any help," she found herself saying, even though she knew it was not true. "Be silent," he said and turned to stare at her. The look hit her like a physical blow. He turned back to look at Reno. For a long time they just stood there, staring at each other, and Tifa could feel the power flowing between them. Finally Reno looked away. "Maybe this isn't the right time," he said slowly. He looked at the other two. "C'mon, let's get out of here." Elena seemed about to protest, but Tarkin looked at her again and she said nothing. The Turks turned and walked slowly out of the room without another word. Tifa felt totally lost. Who was this guy and where did he come from? How did he know so much about what they were doing? She wanted to thank him for helping them, but she had the distinct feeling that he hadn't done it for their benefit. In fact, she felt that she was in greater danger now than they had been when confronted by the Turks. She suddenly realized that she was slowly backing away from the man. He turned to look at her again, and laughed coldly. Even that reminded her of Sephiroth. "You have no need to fear me," he said softly. "At least, not yet." He looked over at Cait for a moment, then, still chuckling, turned and strode deliberately out the door. Tifa looked at Cait, but he said nothing. She quickly walked over to the door. She could see the man walking away. She closed the door, turned, and leaned up against it. "Now that was really weird," she muttered. Tarkin continued down the road, still laughing to himself. The irony of actually helping Cloud and his friends was just too much, he thought, shaking his head. Lucrecia was such a fool sending the Turks to interfere. She could have ruined everything without even realizing it. As it was she had forced him to reveal himself. He really didn't think that would matter now, but one never knew. The funny thing was that they were both working for the same goal. It wasn't enough to bring Sephiroth back, Cloud also had to pay for what he had done. But she was so shortsighted! Let them keep the materia, let them do the dirty work. She didn't see that in order for the revenge to be perfect, Cloud had to be the one to bring the materia into the lifestream. Cloud had to be the one to bring back Sephiroth! post the rest of chapter 6 tomorrow....probably Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 15, 2002 Share Posted March 15, 2002 come on pst more it is a great story and I want to see more don't forget about your fanfic after 5 chapters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 19, 2002 Author Share Posted March 19, 2002 the rest of chapter 6.... ---- Lucrecia looked at them darkly. "You have slain my son," she said. She spoke evenly, neither angrily nor sadly. "But you have also obtained the means to bring him back to me. You can redeem yourselves. You can right your wrong. Give me the Crystal Materia so I can have my son back." Cloud glanced up. There seemed to be hundreds of bats in this room. Many more than had been in the previous chamber, and they were out in the open, exposed. "Lucrecia," he said slowly. "We didn't want to hurt your son. But don't you see what he was doing? He was going to destroy the planet. He was going to destroy all of us. We had no choice." "He would not have done it," she answered sharply. "I know he did some things he shouldn't have. I know he had his problems. But they weren't his fault, and he could not have done all these things he was accused of. Now give me the Materia. I know you didn't mean to hurt him. I do not wish to hurt you, I do not wish to see any further death. But you must give me the Materia." Cloud looked at the others. "Should I tell her we don't have it?" he whispered. "I don't think she'll be too happy to hear that," Cid observed. "I suppose not," Red agreed, "but she's going to find out eventually." Cloud glanced around one more time, but there was no where to run. He decided to tell her the truth. "We don't have it," he said. "What do you mean?" she questioned. "We didn't bring it with us," he replied. "We thought it would be too risky. We left it with the others." Lucrecia stared at them, and Cloud saw a look of anger pass across her face. "I should slay you all," she said sternly. "But I will not kill you needlessly. You shall remain here as my prisoners. You shall never see the light of day again unless the Crystal Materia is delivered into my hands." "Lucrecia, stop this." They all turned to see Vincent, Barret and Yuffie walk into the cavern from a tunnel off to the right. Lucrecia stared at them, anger plain on her face. "I told you never to come back here!" she said sharply. "I'm only here to help my friends," Vincent replied. He walked over to Cloud, seemingly unconcerned by Lucrecia's anger or the bats flew restlessly above their heads. "Is everyone all right?" he asked. "We're fine," Cloud replied. "Good," he said. "C'mon, let's get out of here." "They must give me the Crystal Materia!" Lucrecia shouted. Vince turned and looked at her angrily. "Leave them alone," he said. "They did nothing wrong. Sephiroth would have killed them if they hadn't killed him first. Just like he killed all those other people." "I won't listen to you!" she cried angrily. "They must stay here. If you try to leave I will have my bats destroy you all!" "Your bats will not attack me," Vince replied evenly. "I have just as much power over them as you. They will not harm my friends while I am here." He motioned for them to follow and walked back over to Barret and Yuffie. "Vincent!" Lucrecia said. "Do not defy me. Help me. You cared for me once. Those feelings can't be all gone. You couldn't help me then, but do so now. Help me get my son back!" Vincent stopped and looked down at the floor. Slowly he shook his head. "Give up this foolish quest before it destroys you," he finally said. "I cannot," she replied. "It is all I have left." "If you believe that than you are already dead," he replied. "But I don't believe that. My friends and I are leaving. The only way to stop us is to kill us. Do you wish to add more blood to your son's legacy?" He motioned for the others to head back to the tunnel he had first emerged from. "Please don't do this," Lucrecia said, and now there was no anger in her voice, only sadness. They walked into the tunnel. Vincent last. He turned and looked back at her one more time. She stood unmoving in the firelight, no longer looking foreboding or evil, just very much alone. "It doesn't have to be like this," Vincent said. "Come with us. Help us attempt to heal some of the damage Sephiroth did. In the end you might heal yourself as well." "My wounds are too deep for that," she answered. For a moment more he looked at her, then he turned and followed the others into the darkness. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "So this guy just walked in and scared the Turks off without any explanation?" Barret asked. Night had fallen by the time the others returned. Now they were all gathered in Cid's living room. "That's right," Tifa replied. "It was the strangest thing." "And you have no idea who he was," Cloud said. "No, I've never seen him before. Have you, Cait?" Tifa said, looking at him closely. Cait shook his head. "Never." "Well if that don't beat all," Barret said. "Looks like we've got a mysterious benefactor on top of everything else." "Whoever he was, he was not our friend," Tifa replied quickly. "I'm sure of that. There was an unmistakable feeling of coldness about him. It seemed to me he wouldn't have thought twice about slitting our throats if he thought it necessary." "So then why did he help you?" Cid questioned. "I don't know," Tifa said. "I don't think he did it for us. For some reason, he did not want the Crystal Materia to fall into the Turk's hands. I think he has his own plans for the Materia, but what that might be, I have no idea." "If that were true, then why didn't he take it from you himself?" Cloud asked. "I don't know," Tifa said emphatically. "The whole thing just doesn't make any sense to me. I had the feeling that if he had wanted the materia, he could have taken it from us. I don't know what stopped him. I don't know what his plan is, but one thing I know for sure, he doesn't have our best interests in mind." They all fell silent, digesting this newest information. Cloud did not like this latest twist in their adventure. He had thought things were becoming clearer now that they knew who the Turks were working for, and what they wanted, but now this. What was he supposed to make of this? Who was this person? What was he after? Was he friend of foe? Tifa obviously thought he was a foe, and he had no reason to distrust her judgement. But if so what did he want, and how did he know so much about them? It disturbed him that he had no answers to these questions, but even with these new developments their mission was unchanged. "Irregardless of whether this person is working for or against us, we still have a mission to complete," he said. "Cid, you didn't get to tie up the loose ends on the rocket today as you had planned. Can we still leave tomorrow morning, or will we have to postpone it?" Cid shrugged. "We can go," he said. "I was just being a mother hen. The rocket is in good hands, and they can live without me for a few days. If we take the Bronco it shouldn't take much longer than that. Tomorrow morning will be fine." "Good," Cloud replied. "Well, I suggest we all relax for a while and then get a good night's rest. Whoever this mysterious person is, I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him. I've a feeling what he is up to will be apparent soon enough." Cid grunted in agreement and the gathering broke up. Most of the others went off into the rooms where they were going to be sleeping. Cid turned to look at Shera, who was cleaning up in the kitchen. "Shera, what the hell are you doing?" he asked . She looked at him questioningly. "Cleaning up," she responded. "Sorry I didn't have time earlier." "You've had a tough day," he said. "Go get some rest. You can clean up tomorrow." She put the cup she was holding down on the counter. "Okay," she said. "Thank you, for everything." "There's no need to thank me," he said quickly. "Now go on." She walked out of the room. Cid watched her go, shaking his head. "You're lucky to have her." Cid jumped. He turned and saw Vincent sitting in a darkened corner of the room. He had thought he and Shera were alone. "Her? What are you crazy?" he responded. "She's caused me nothing but trouble since the first day I met her." "She is devoted to you, and it is obvious you care for her more than you let on. Don't make the mistake of taking her for granted." "Oh please." Cid began, then "...is it really that obvious?" Vincent nodded. "Man, I must be losing my touch," Cid muttered. "I envy you, my friend," Vincent said slowly. "Oh stop it," Cid said. "My life ain't so great. And things could get better for you too. I'm sure Lucrecia will come around." Vincent shook his head. "I have little hope of that," he said sadly. "All I've ever wanted to do was please her, and something has always prevented it from happening. If anything the rift between us has grown, and now the gap is so wide that I am afraid no bridge can span it. She has been poisoned by life's bitterness, and the flower I once knew has grown withered and dry. Even if I were to grasp it in my hand now, it would merely turn to dust." Cid didn't know what to say. He never considered himself what you would call a deep thinker, and Vincent's philosophical bent usually went right over his head. This was way too heavy for him. Still, it didn't take a genius to see that his friend was in a darker mood than was usual, even for him. "I think you need to relax for a while and forget about your troubles" he said, walking into the kitchen. " And there's nothing better at helping you do that than a stiff drink." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Barret." He turned as he was about to enter his room and saw Tifa coming up to him. "What's up?" he asked. "I wonder if you can do something for me," she said. "Name it," he replied. She hesitated. "It's probably nothing," she said finally. "Just kind of a feeling I got. I wouldn't want to bother the others with it. And I certainly wouldn't want to spread any unfounded rumors." She stopped again, as if not sure how to continue. "Just spit it out," he prompted. She nodded. "I want you to keep an eye on Cait." He frowned. "What makes you say that?" he questioned. "Like I said, just a feeling," she replied. "He hasn't done anything to make me suspicious, not really. But he deceived us once when he was spying for Shinra. I would hardly say it's a stretch to think that he might do it again." Barret looked at her like he thought there was more to this than she was letting on, and indeed, that was exactly what he thought. If she had suspicions about Cait, why had she waited until now to broach them to him? In spite of her statement to the contrary, he must have done something. "Sure, I'll keep an eye on him if you want me to. I have to admit it's difficult to trust Cait after what he did in our last adventure," he said bluntly. "But in the end he helped us fight against Sephiroth and Shinra. Not to mention that he helped us find the vault at Shinra headquarters just recently. You didn t seem to harbor any suspicions then. Did something happen while we were gone?" She hesitated again, which made him sure he was right. The only question was whether she was going to share the information with him or not. "Like I said," she replied. "I don't want to spread any rumors. Especially since I could be reading this completely wrong. It's just that before our mystery man left, he and Cait looked at each other and I thought I saw something in the way Cait looked at him. There was something in his eyes. Something like..." Barret looked at her impatiently. "Like what?" he blurted out. "Recognition," she replied slowly. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Cloud." Aeris voice. He heard her as clearly as if she were standing in the room right next to him, and for a moment he almost opened his eyes to look. But he didn't. He knew the voice was in his head, yet he also knew that it was not from his own mind that the voice came. He had no doubt that the voice was her's, and her's alone, even though she might not be in the room with him but someplace far away. "Aeris," he said without speaking. "Aeris, we're coming for you." For a long time there was no answer, and he sensed some kind of hesitation or perhaps confusion. But her voice was calm and even when she spoke again. "It is not necessary." Now he felt confused himself. "Don't you understand?" he said. "We want you to come back." He sensed amusement. "But I haven't gone away," she replied. "I've been there with you all along, just as you have been with me. We are all part of the planet, no matter what form we take. You have no need to feel sorry for me, or for what happened." Cloud shook his head. "But I don't just want you to be here in spirit," he replied. "I want you here for real. I want to see you standing before me. I want to see you and touch you. I want to bring you back to this life and I think we may have found a way. Are you telling me you don't want to come back?" "Being there in spirit is real," she replied softly but emphatically. "Your senses tell you that is not true, but your senses can be deceived. But no, I do not begrudge you your quest. I just want you to be sure of your motives. You owe me nothing. What happened was my fault, if anyone's, but I chose freely, and I accept my fate. You must decide if you are searching for me or yourself." "I don't understand," he said. "Let go of your anger and your guilt," she replied, "and then do as your heart tells you." "My heart tells me to go on," he said immediately. "But your heart is troubled," he said. "and that prevents you from seeing things clearly. You do not see the road ahead, it is dark and dangerous, and going down the wrong path will lead you swiftly to disaster. You may find that it demands sacrifices you are not prepared to make. You must be sure of yourself." "We've been down many a dark and dangerous road before," he said. "Indeed, but this time..." Then there was silence. "Aeris?" Cloud waited, but he got no response, and suddenly he felt deeply troubled. He thought something had happened to her. Someone, or something, had abruptly cut her off, even as she had been in the middle of trying to tell him something important. What had happened? He called to her for some time, but there was only silence. Try as he might, he could not reestablish contact. Eventually, and inevitably, he fell into a fitful sleep. chapter 7 should be up tomorrow, if I can get round to it.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 19, 2002 Share Posted March 19, 2002 it is coming along great I can't weight to see the nrxt chapter:box: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 20, 2002 Author Share Posted March 20, 2002 finally, the final chapter, only some of it though.... ----- CHAPTER VII NOR PAR TELLEMAR... Cloud opened the hatch on the submarine and they all stepped out, looking around. They had surfaced in a large cavern. A pale green glow surrounded them, the unmistakable glow of the lifestream. It filled the air, growing stronger toward the back of the cave, which slowly shrank until it turned into a narrow but brightly lit tunnel. They had returned to the sub without incident in the Tiny Bronco. Cid quickly diagnosed the problem with the submarine and corrected it. And now here they were, late on the day after they left Rocket Town. "Looks like your vision from Aeris was correct," Vincent said, looking at Cloud. Cloud nodded. He had never doubted it. "So where do we go from here?" Cid asked. They turned to ask Red and realized for the first time that he had not yet come out of the submarine. But even as they noticed this he appeared. He looked at them soberly. "I have been attempting to translate the exact procedure we need to follow in order to successfully complete our mission," he said, walking over to them slowly. "And I am afraid I have discovered something extremely disturbing." They all waited for him to continue. Cloud knew Red had been working hard, and had spent almost all his time the entire trip with his nose buried in that book. "We can bring Aeris back," he said, "but to do it requires the sacrifice of someone else." "What?" Barret exclaimed. "It's not so much a resurrection as an exchange," Red said slowly. "In order for it to work someone else will have to die." They all looked at him in shocked silence. Standing beside Cloud, Tifa went deathly pale. "Are you sure?" Yuffie asked. "As certain as I can be," Red replied. "The translation is difficult, but I have analyzed it over and over, and it seems pretty clear. The procedure itself is relatively simple. We need to be in the lifestream, a step we've already accomplished," he said, glancing around them. "The next step is to find a flux, a place of power, which would manifest itself as something familiar to us." "What's that supposed to mean," Barret asked. "We need to enter the lifestream and look for someplace familiar," Red explained. "Someplace we know from the surface of the planet. It could be a town, or any familiar location. In this place will be a focal point, a bright area of intense light. This is the doorway. Standing there and holding the Crystal Materia, all the person has to do is ask for someone's return." "Just say, hey, bring back Aeris?" Cid asked. "Not exactly," Red said. "You must ask in the Ancients language. You have to say Nor par tellemar and then the name of the person. Then you are both transferred through the doorway." "Bringing the other person back and sending you...", Vincent said, "elsewhere." "Exactly," Red replied. "What were those words again?" Tifa asked. Red looked at her. "Nor par tellemar and then the person," he replied. "Then the exchange takes place. But if we continue with the mission, who would use them? I'm afraid this changes things drastically. I think the question now is, do we continue the mission at all?" The others were silent for a long time. From the looks they gave him, it was clear to Cloud they were waiting to hear his opinion. All except Tifa, who moved off by herself and did not look at him at all. So this must have been what Aeris meant when she had spoken of a sacrifice, he thought. She hadn't been kidding. This was a doozy. It seemed a shame to end the mission now, when they had come so far, but he knew he could never ask any of the others to make such a sacrifice. And even if he did so himself, would that be what Aeris wanted? Would she want someone else to have to die, even to save herself? There had to be another way. "Are you sure there's nothing else we can do?" he asked, not because he thought there was, but because he desperately needed another option. "I don't think so," Red replied. "There is still some more translating that needs to be done, and perhaps another option will reveal itself then, but it's doubtful." "Well then I think you should continue with your translating as quickly as possible," Cloud replied. "What we have now is unacceptable. We need another alternative." "I'll do what I can," Red replied. "But I don't know how long this will take, and it may be that there are no other alternatives." "We'll just have to face that when we come to it," Cloud replied. Red nodded, then turned and padded back into the submarine. "So what are we supposed to do in the meantime?" Yuffie questioned. "Sit down and relax," Cloud replied. "Looks like we're going to be here awhile." Barret grumbled. Cait strode over to Cloud. "I'm afraid we don't have much time," he said. "What do you mean?" Cloud asked. "Tarkin is here," Cait responded. "Who the hell is Tarkin?" Barret perked up and walked over to join them. "The man who stopped the Turks from taking the Crystal Materia," Cait answered evenly. "So you did know him!" Barret exclaimed. "You really are spying!" "No!" Cait said quickly. "Not exactly. I was just keeping him informed of where we were, and where we were going. But I was really trying to find out what he was doing so I could tell you." "What?" Barret said angrily. "I know he wants to use the Crystal Materia to bring back Sephiroth." "What?" Barret said again. "But that's the same thing Lucrecia wanted to do," Vincent said. "It that were true, why didn't he just let the Turks take it and give it to her? It seems to me it would have saved him some trouble." "I'm not sure," Cait replied. "That's what I was trying to find out. He has something else in mind. Something more. I don't know what it is, but I know it involves you, Cloud. He wants to make sure that you are the one who brings the Crystal Materia into the lifestream. But I don't know why. That's why he stopped the Turks, and that's why he's been sending you those dreams." "What?" This time it was Cloud's turn. "He has something called Influence Materia," Cait said, looking at Cloud sympathetically. "It works kind of like Manipulate. But with Manipulate you know you're being manipulated, and you fight against it, although you may not be successful. Although it can be used that way as well, Influence is usually more subtle, and can affect you without you even realizing it. With Influence, you think what you are doing is your own idea." Cloud stared at him for a long time. "And you're telling me that he's used this to make me think that Aeris is trying to contact me." Cait nodded. "I'm afraid so. I know he's been using it on you for a long time. It was given to him by Sephiroth, and I've a feeling Sephiroth used it on you as well, which kinds of puts everything that happened to us in our previous adventure in a new light. But the whole point behind his maneuvering was to get you here with the Crystal Materia. I pretended to spy for him because I wanted to find out exactly what he was up to, but now it's too late." "You say he's here," Yuffie cut in, "but how did he get here? Does he have a submarine too?" "No," Cait replied. "There are many entrances to the lifestream, if you know where to look." "Why didn't you tell us any of this sooner?" Barret questioned. "Because if he found out I told you, I wouldn't be able to find out what he was up to, now would I?" Cait answered sharply. "I don't know the full extent of his powers, I don't know what other spies he may be employing. I didn't want to show my hand before I found out anything, but now I'm afraid I have no choice. I didn't want you to run into him unprepared." Cloud looked at him for a long time. He felt anger, disappointment, and disbelief, and he wasn't sure which of these emotions to go with. Was it safe to believe anything Cait told them? Once a spy always a spy, hadn't he said that once before? How were they to believe him now? How were they to know that anything he said held even a shred of truth? The real truth, he told himself, was that he didn't believe the story, couldn't believe the story, because of what Cait had said about Aeris. Could it be that the whole thing was a lie? Could it be that he had been manipulated again, that this entire mission had been a farce, a charade caused by yet another Sephiroth clone? Could it be that he had not seen Aeris, not talked to her at all, but just some illusion that had been planted in his brain? Could it be that she was really and forever dead? He could not believe that. No way. Barret shook his head. "Looks like you were sort of right, Tifa..." he started to say. He stopped and looked around. Tifa was no where to be found. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The ground sloped sharply down in front of her. Tifa moved slowly down the tunnel. The lifestream flowed around her now almost like a living thing. She moved forward slowly, as if unsure of herself, and a few times she hesitated and looked back, but each time she took a deep breath, turned ahead once more, and moved on. As soon as she had heard Red she had been gripped by a deadly fear. She knew what Cloud would do, no matter how much he delayed, or how long they discussed it. There really wasn't any other choice. Which gave her no choice. She couldn't let it happen. She had to act before he did or it would be too late. She slowly took out the Crystal Materia and looked at it, thankful that he had never asked for it back. It glowed faintly with reflected green light of the lifestream. The best thing to do would be to destroy it, she thought once more. It was the simplest solution, and probably the easiest thing to do. But she knew she couldn't do it. She couldn't take away this chance on her own. Though it might be prudent it wouldn't be fair to Cloud or Aeris. She wished she could bring it back to Cloud to let him destroy it, but she knew that would never happen. The tunnel dipped even more steeply down, and suddenly she lost her footing. She felt herself sliding down rapidly. She grasped desperately for handholds but found none. The air around her grew bright and she found herself falling, much as she had in Mideel the last time she had been in the lifestream. She seemed to fall for a long time. She stopped falling and the bright green glow faded into blue sky and wooden thatched houses. She looked around and immediately recognized where she was. Nibelheim! She walked slowly into the center of the town, which appeared to be deserted. She looked around. One building stood out. It's windows were brightly lit with a greenish glow. It was the old Shinra Mansion. She walked swiftly over to it and entered. She followed the glow, which brightened perceptively to the right. She found herself walking though the secret door that led into the basement. The stairs down creaked and groaned as she walked down them, but they held, and nothing disturbed her as she walked down the now brightly lit corridor and into the old library. There she stopped. For in front of her was what appeared to be a circle of light, and she knew she had reached her destination. She stood there unmoving for a long time, looking down at the Crystal Materia in her hand. She couldn't let Cloud sacrifice himself. She couldn't live with that. There was no other choice. But still she did not move. She took a deep breath and with all the resolve she could muster started forward. "Foolish girl." She jumped and turned to see Tarkin standing a few feet away. "Stay away from me," she said, taking a step back. He laughed. "Don't worry," he said. "I have no intention of harming you as much as you seem to want to harm yourself. Foolish, and noble too, but your attempted sacrifice would have been useless. Apparently there are still some things you don't know. The Crystal Materia cannot effect a transfer unless both people are of the Ancients race or infused with Jenova's cells. It wouldn't have worked for you." "What do you want?" she asked, somewhat defiantly. She had gotten over her surprise. "I want to see the return of Sephiroth," Tarkin replied. "And revenge against the one that destroyed him. And I must say that your little escapade has played right into my hands. I'm sure he'll come running when he finds out you are gone. In the meantime why don't you just give me the Crystal Materia. Don't worry, I'll take good care of it until he gets here. I wouldn't want anything to happen to it." She stepped back again and felt her back touch the bookcase against the wall. "I don't think so," she said. "What, don't you trust me?" he said with a smile. "I assure you I have every intention of seeing that Cloud takes possession of it as soon as he arrives. It'll be the perfect revenge, don't you think?" "I don't know what you mean," she said suspiciously "Well, it's just so ironic," Tarkin replied. "Here Cloud has come all this way thinking he's going to bring back Aeris, when the whole time he's just been my puppet. And his one final act will be to sacrifice himself to bring back not Aeris at all, but Sephiroth!" Tarkin laughed again, and Tifa shrank back. She looked around, but he was blocking the only exit. "It'll never happen," she said angrily. "He'd never use the Crystal Materia to bring back Sephiroth. You can't make him do it. And even if you could, I'd destroy it first." She suddenly lifted the materia up above her head, ready to smash it to the floor, but he just laughed again. "I don't think you'll do that," he said casually. "Cloud will bring back Sephiroth, and you will hand over that Materia. I'm afraid you have no choice." He took a step toward her, and even as he did, the yellow orb in his hand flared to life. the rest of chapter 7 posted with demand, heh.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zero-Sama Posted March 20, 2002 Share Posted March 20, 2002 I,Zero,Demand that you,Sephiroth,Post the rest of this chapter or i'll get Midevil on your butt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 20, 2002 Share Posted March 20, 2002 I alson want to see the rest of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raiha Posted March 20, 2002 Share Posted March 20, 2002 [COLOR=royalblue]...I Raiha Graie Hellcat demand that you post the rest of the story!![/COLOR] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 21, 2002 Author Share Posted March 21, 2002 bah! I don't have to post anything you peasants demand! lol, I just like posting my stories :p ---- "Where the hell did she run off to?" Cid exclaimed. "I don't know," Barret said slowly, but he had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He looked over at Cloud, who was staring off into space, a peculiar look on his face. "No, she couldn't have," he said so softly that Barret barely heard him. He turned to look at the others. "We've got to go after her," he said sharply. "NOW!" Without waiting he was off, running down the cavern to the tunnel at the far end. The others were left with no choice but to pursue him as best they could. He reached the tunnel and plunged onward. Things had gone terribly wrong, just as Aeris had predicted they might, if it was indeed Aeris who had contacted him. He still couldn't bring himself to believe it had not been her. But that was unimportant now, he thought, shaking his head. He had bigger problems right now, much bigger. He had to get to Tifa before it was too late. He had to get to her before she did something they would all regret. He wanted Aeris back, but not like that! Didn't she understand that? And Tarkin, how was he going to figure in this? According to Cait, he was already here, could have been here for some time. Suppose he was lying in wait for them and she ran into him? He clenched his teeth at the thought of her confronting him alone. He could kick himself for not taking the Crystal Materia back from her, but who would have thought something like this would happen? If he couldn't trust Tifa with it, he couldn't trust anyone. The tunnel sloped down sharply, but he didn't slow. If he could just get there in time. He wasn't sure how much of a lead she had, but it couldn't be that much. It couldn't have been more than a few minutes from the time she left until it was noticed. Still, he knew that he had to reach her as soon as possible. He couldn't help thinking back to another time when Aeris had run off, and what had resulted from that. The ground dropped out from under him and he found himself falling. The green light grew around him. Looking up he could see some of the others falling as well, but he could not tell if they were all there. Eventually he stopped falling and the familiar background of Nibelheim faded in around him. It always seems to come back to Nibelheim, he thought. He looked around. Behind him he saw that the others had joined him, but he only afforded them a glance. He was looking for some hint to where Tifa had gone, and he was shortly rewarded when he saw the green glow of the Shinra Mansion. But even as he started towards it the Turks came around the corner of the Nibelheim Inn to his left, followed closely by Lucrecia. Cloud was not surprised at all. He had had a feeling they were going to show up somewhere along the line. They were nothing if not determined. He would have liked nothing more than to fight it out once and for all, but right now he just didn't have the time. Vincent came up beside him, obviously thinking much the same thing. "You go on," he said. "I'll handle this." "Not by yourself," Cloud said quickly. "Red and Barret, you're with me. The rest of you help Vincent." He turned to look at the Turks. "Sorry I can't stay and play, but I have more important things to do." He sprinted off towards the Mansion, not waiting to see, nor much interested in, the Turks response. Red and Barret followed closely behind. They entered the Mansion and followed the light down into the cellar. A few moments later they entered the library. The first thing they noticed was the glowing circle of green light in the center of the room. The second thing was Tifa She was chained to the wall on the far side of the room. Cloud felt tremendous relief. At least she's alive! A man in a black cloak stood next to her. Even though the man's facial features, except for the glowing green eyes, were striking different, the impression that he was looking at Sephiroth was so strong that it was almost overpowering. Tifa looked up at him with a peculiar expression on her face. "Let her go, Tarkin," Cloud demanded. Tarkin raised an eyebrow. "So you know my name," he said thoughtfully. "It appears my little spy has been indiscreet. But no matter. He did his job and got you here safely." He pointed to a small table near the glowing light. "There is the Crystal Materia," he said. "Take it. I will not interfere. Take it and finish what you came here for." Cloud looked at the table. The Crystal Materia was not five feet away from him, much closer than Tarkin was. "No," Tifa said, and when she spoke it seemed the words came out with great difficulty. "It's a trap." Tarkin turned in surprise and glared at her. "Be silent," he commanded. "Leave her alone!" Cloud said angrily, and suddenly his sword was balanced in his hands. "She is unhurt," Tarkin said quickly. "Take the Materia. Finish what you came here for." Cloud stood unmoving for a moment. "Let her go first," he said, finally. He pointed the sword menacingly at Tarkin. Tarkin's face darkened. "I said, take the Materia," he said sharply. Yellow light flared up in his hand, and Cloud suddenly felt an overwhelming desire to do just as Tarkin had said. He fought it, and for a long time he stood perfectly still, the desires balanced. But the power of the materia was much stronger than Cloud had thought. Slowly, and in spite of all he could do, he found himself taking a step forward. Even as he did so Tifa shook her head and then looked up, the alertness back in her eyes. "Cloud," she shouted. "Cloud, be strong. He wants to force you to use the materia to bring back Sephiroth. Fight it!" Cloud stopped again, forcing himself with every fiber of his being to remain still. Tarkin took a moment to glance over at her, but he was too involved with trying to master Cloud to do anything about her. He realized he had made a tactical error. He could not control them both at the same time. He should have killed her when he had the chance. No time to worry about that now. Summoning every power of concentration he had learned from his SOLDIER training, he bent all his will toward Cloud. Cloud fought, but again felt himself weakening. Tarkin was just too strong. In slow motion he took yet another step forward and now stood right beside the table. "No!" Tifa shouted. She pulled desperately on the chains and tried to strike out at Tarkin, but he was beyond her reach. She turned to the others. "Help him!" she cried. Red and Barret had been watching the process, not sure of the best course to follow, but Tifa's words galvanized them into action. Barret was not sure whether she had meant to help him mentally or physically, so he chose what came natural. He raised his arm and opened up with his gun. Tarkin stumbled backwards, dodging desperately out of the way. But he could not avoid the blast of lightening launched from Red's materia. Cloud felt his mind clear. Instantly he leapt forward and swung his sword. Tarkin cried out in anguish. He backed away from them, holding his arm as the yellow materia fell to the floor. He stood there for a moment with his back to the wall, looking at them with undisguised hatred. "Very well," he said grimly. "I tried to make it easy for you, but I see you are going to be less than cooperative. You force me to destroy your friends and drag you myself into the circle. So be it. Jenova rebirth!" Light flashed around Tarkin. His body changed, shifted, grew larger and monstrous. He towered over them. His arms grew long and developed great gleaming claws. Another set of arms sprouted out below them. His face elongated and formed a muzzle, long sharp teeth protruding from it. Only the eyes remained the same, the green glowing pits still filled with hatred. The creature let out a roar that rung in their ears and then there was a blast of green light. Cloud and his friends were thrown roughly back against the wall. Cloud immediately sprang up and forward, attacking viciously with his sword. Barret continued to fire, getting up more slowly. Red quickly cast cure on all of them. They had been caught off guard by the sudden attack, and it put them at a disadvantage. Tarkin, or the thing that had been Tarkin, seemed to realize this and pressed his attack against them. In quick succession he cast half a dozen strong attacking spells, at the same time attacking ferociously with the claws on all his limbs. Cloud found himself forced backward, and try as he might, Red could not seem to catch up defensively. Tarkin seemed to be one step ahead of him whenever he made a move. A clawed hand flashed out, and Cloud went down, thrown roughly back. He got up again slowly. Red cast cure on him again, but knew that he could not keep it up much longer. The constant casting of spells was exhausting him. There was another green flash as Tarkin hit them with Ultima again. They all went down one more time. Tarkin stepped toward Red, who was closest to him, and raised his claws. But as he did so he came into range of Tifa, who kicked suddenly and sharply at his knee. He stumbled and his blow went awry. Red got up and darted out of the way. Tarkin turned and swung at Tifa with the back of a huge clawed hand. She had no way to dodge. The hand hit her solidly and she slumped to the ground. Cloud saw red. He reached down and pulled out a materia orb. He concentrated fiercely on it until it flashed with red light. "Ultimate end!" he shouted. Sudden sparkling light appeared all around Cloud. Multicolored stars flashed in and out of existence around him. Then he faded from sight. The room darkened. Tarkin looked up suddenly. The ground around him seemed to bow downward. The room faded away into darkness. There was a rushing sound, as if the wind from a hurricane where whistling by him. Then a massive shape appeared out of the darkness. He saw bright glowing eyes, and then the flash of metal from a tremendous sword. He screamed in agony as he felt the sword bite. The world swirled about him. Eleven more times the massive figure appeared. Each time a different one, each time with a different attack. Each one doing great damage. Then there was a pause. He heard a rushing sound. Then, out of the darkness another pair of eyes. He could sense a tremendous bulk hurtling toward him, more massive than any of the others. The rushing sound grew until he thought a locomotive were bearing down on him. He saw the form of a huge knight glowering down at him from some great height. Another sword came up, then came crashing down. He felt himself falling, and then only darkness. The multicolored lights flashed again, and then Cloud stood once more in the library. He looked at the crumpled body of Tarkin on the floor nearby. Tarkin moaned and opened his eyes, looking at him slowly, still shocked from the attack. He no longer looked in the least bit dangerous. "It's over Tarkin," Cloud said simply. Tarkin shook his head to clear it. He slowly stood up, though he barely seemed to have the strength. He looked around. "You think you have won," he said slowly, "but it is not quite over yet." With his remaining strength he lunged for the table and grabbed the Crystal Materia. Before the others could stop him he scrambled into the center of the circle of light. He turned and looked at them triumphantly. "Stop!" Cloud cried, but it was too late. "Nor par tellemar Sephiroth!" the final part of the story posted whenever I damn feel like it, lol.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 21, 2002 Share Posted March 21, 2002 it is a great story hope you feal like posting the rest soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raiha Posted March 22, 2002 Share Posted March 22, 2002 [COLOR=royalblue]I'M NOT A PEASANT!!! I'm a mod, only one rank below you, Oh Demoted One.[/COLOR] :demon: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 25, 2002 Author Share Posted March 25, 2002 finally, the last part of the story.... ----- "It's going to be a pleasure to kick your butts," Cid remarked. "If you used your fists as much as your mouths you might stand a chance," Rude said. "And if you weren't for the fact that you have as many brain cells as you have hair, you'd realized that you don't," Yuffie quipped. "Enough of this nonsense," Lucrecia said. "Destroy them." The Turks advanced, and Cid, Yuffie and Cait faced off against them, while Vincent moved around them to reach Lucrecia. This time they did not wait for the Turks to attack, but struck first. They all felt they had to get this battle over with as quickly as possible. The Turks moved into their usual fight formation. Reno and Rude in front, Elena in the back casting defensive spells. Neither Cid nor the others in his party were particularly defensive minded. They all pressed the attack, and any one of them would cast cure or barrier depending on whether the situation warranted it. Most of the time they attacked with their weapons or cast offensive spells, even if it meant taking damage themselves. This seemed to be the quickest way to finish the battle. Cid glanced over at Vincent and saw that although Lucrecia was attacking him, he didn't seem to be fighting back. He didn't know what Vincent had in mind, or even if he had anything in mind, but he knew that was no way to win a fight. He felt more urgently than ever that they had to beat the Turks as quickly as possible. He stepped back, pulled out a red materia and concentrated. "Judgment Bolt," he said. Nearby he heard Yuffie cry, "Tsunami." And then Cait, "Tetra Disaster!" Multi colored flashes of light appeared around all three of them. Then the Turks were hit by a triple dose of summoning power. In quick succession they were blasted by a dazzling bolt of lightening, then pounded by a great wall of water, and finally they were caught in the upheaval of the very earth around them. When it was done they fell back, but they still stood. "Is that the best you can do?" Elena questioned. "You ain't seen nothing yet," Yuffie replied. A short distance away Vincent stood his ground while Lucrecia blasted him with spells. Instead of fighting back he continued to try to reason with her. Their encounter in the cave earlier had proven that he could get through to her, even if he could not win her over. But this time she seemed intent on turning a deaf ear to him. And as she continued to hit him with spells he felt anger rising unbidden inside him. "Please, Lucrecia, stop this. We are not enemies," he tried one more time. She hadn't answered him once, and this time was no exception. He reeled back as fire flashed all around him. Suddenly he felt his anger well up inside him uncontrollably. For a moment he tried to hold it back, but once set in motion there was no turning back this tidal wave of rage. It overwhelmed him and he lost all sense of reason. With a bestial howl his body suddenly transformed into that of a huge winged demon. It towered up over Lucrecia, a dark harbinger of death. It raised it arms, and huge flaming skulls appeared and shot through the air, striking Lucrecia again and again, until she was lost in the center of a blast of demonic flame. The blast got the attention of all the others, and they paused for a moment in their own battle to look over. When the smoke cleared they saw Lucrecia on the ground, looking up at Vincent standing over her. "You'll never stop me," she said, getting slowly to her feet. "The only way to do it is to kill me, and you won't do that. I swear to you I won't rest until Sephiroth is returned to me." "What's Sephiroth got to do with this?" Elena said. "That's why Lucrecia wants the Crystal Materia, you dolts," Yuffie answered. "She wants to use it to bring back Sephiroth." They all looked at Lucrecia, who looked back angrily at the Turks. "What are you waiting for," she said. "Finish them." "Wait," Reno said before the others could move. They looked at him. "I see now that perhaps it might have been wiser to delve a little more into the details of this assignment before we took it, and yes I realize that isn't ordinarily Turk policy," he said, looking at the others. "But there are exceptions to every rule. We all know what would have happened if Sephiroth had been allowed to complete his little scheme. I don't think I have any desire to give him a second chance at it." "What are you talking about?" Lucrecia questioned. "You're working for me, now do as I say." He looked at her sternly. "Not anymore," he said simply. "It's time for another Turk first. We quit." Lucrecia just stared at them for a long time with her mouth open. Then she turned to look at Vincent, and he could see defeat in her eyes. "You might as well just kill me now," she said slowly. "I can't live without him." "I think you can," he replied. "I think you are stronger than you believe. Come with us. Cloud still needs our help. There's still time to make things right." She shook her head, but she did not object when he took her hand and led her over to the others. "Now let's go see what kind of trouble Cloud has gotten himself in," he said. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The light suddenly brightened around Tarkin until they had to shade their eyes and turn away. For a long moment it blazed, then slowly faded away. Even after the light was gone Cloud hesitated to lift his head, knowing what he would see but not wanting to believe it could happen. He thought somehow that maybe something had gone wrong, that it hadn't worked. That if he looked up there would be nothing there at all. But then he heard the laughter. That chilling familiar laughter, which confirmed without looking what he already knew but longed so desperately to deny. He looked up. Sephiroth stood in the circle of light, looking from one to the other of them while still chuckling to himself. His gaze drifted to Cloud. "I get the impression you're not happy to see me again," he said. He laughed again, and the sound went through Cloud like a knife. "I admit I had hoped I was rid of your ugly continence for good," Cloud responded, attempting to sound casual. "But it looks like it didn't work out that way. Fortunately I see no reason why we can't quickly remedy that situation. We bested you once, I guess we'll just have to do it again." Sephiroth laughed again. It was bad enough he had to be back, but did he also have to be so damn cheerful, Cloud thought. "The mouse might have killed the cat once, but I wouldn't lay odds on it happening a second time," Sephiroth replied. "Besides, I've learned a few things while I was gone." He raised his arms. There was a flash of light and a tremendous explosion. The entire room shook and Cloud and his friends were flung backwards. Cloud hit the wall hard behind him and fell to the ground. "****," he heard Barret exclaim. Cloud got slowly to his feet, his ears still ringing, and held his sword in front of him. Even as he did so he heard someone say something behind him. He turned to see Cid, Yuffie and Cait enter the room, followed by the Turks, and finally Vincent and Lucrecia. When she saw Sephiroth she stopped and her eyes grew wide. "Sephiroth," she said softly. "My son." Sephiroth turned his attention toward her. "You, my mother?" he said dismissively. "You are not my mother. Jenova was my mother." "No," Lucrecia said. "I am your mother. I was the one that bore you." "You were a vessal, that is all" he replied disdainfully. "My mother was Jenova, it is her cells that gave me true life, not yours. You are just like the others. You are all of the race that stole this planet from my people. And now you will all pay for it!" Sephiroth raised his arms again and there was another thunderous blast. Again they were all thrown to the ground. "This is going to get tiresome real fast," Barret exclaimed. Cloud pulled out the Ultima Materia. "Let's finish this," he said grimly. Barret and Vincent opened up with their weapons. Cid and Yuffie closed in with spear and shuriken, while Cait attacked with his materia. After Cloud blasted Sephiroth with the Ultima materia he glanced over to see that even the Turks were attacking Sephiroth. Only Lucrecia remained unmoving. Red slipped around to the side of Sephiroth and came up beside Tifa, quickly releasing her. As they ran back to the others Red paused for a moment to pick something up. In moments everyone was letting loose at Sephiroth with everything they had, but it seemed he had grown stronger somehow, for he was brushing off their attacks with little difficulty. He was no longer laughing, but the condensending smile remained on his face. He launched his explosive attack twice more, and though Tifa and Red cast cure and wall as soon as they rejoined the others, the attack still did more damage than they could repair. Red came up beside Cloud, and Cloud felt him press something into his hand. He looked down to see what it was, and then at Red. They said nothing but Cloud nodded in understanding. Sephiroth launched his explosive attack again, and again they fell back. They got slowly to their feet, all except Elena who remained down. "We can't take much more of this," Reno said, standing over her. Sephiroth advanced on them slowly, realizing as well as they did that he was slowly overpowering them. As he advanced he suddenly noticed something lying on the floor next to him. He stopped for a moment and idly picked it up. Then he advanced again, stepping into the circle of light. He had been toying with them so far, but now he decided that playtime was over. He concentrated on his summon spell, and opened his mouth to utter the words. "Nor...." He stopped, and his mouth worked soundlessly for a moment. That was not what he had meant to say! He looked at Cloud and suddenly understood when he saw the yellow light blazing through Cloud's hands. For a long time neither one moved as they battled mind to mind. Sephiroth knew he was stronger now, much stronger, and now that he knew Cloud was trying to influence him, he knew this failed excuse for a SOLDIER could not force him to do this. Concentrating fiercely, he took one slow step forward. Tifa, who was standing to Clouds right, suddenly reached out her hand. While still concentrating on Sephiroth, Cloud slowly reached over and took it. Sephiroth suddenly felt the pressure on his mind increase. Tifa reached out with her other hand, and Red took hold of it. Slowly and without a word, the other came over. First Cid, then Cait and Barret, and then Yuffie. Sephiroth felt his mouth moving again and redoubled his efforts. Sweat dripped from his brow, but no words came out. Yuffie felt someone come up beside her, and turned to see Rude next to her. Slowly he reached out and she took his hand. Then Reno stepped beside him along with a now recovered Elena. Vincent took her hand and looked silently at Lucrecia. Lucrecia walked up next to Vincent, but she did not take his hand, instead just looked at Sephiroth. He stared back at her, concentration contorting his face, but for the first time they saw a hint of fear in his eyes. "You are my son," she said softly. "And I love you. But you've been very bad." She reached out and took Vincent's hand. "Nor.." Sephiroth said again. He shuddered as if he had been hit by a physical blow. His mouth twisted and a strange gagging sound came out. "Nor par tellemar..." his face contorted and turned red with rage. His eyes grew wide and veins bulged on his forehead. Finally the word came out in a gurgling croak; "Aeris." The light flared up, and once again they had to turn away. When the light faded Cloud looked up immediately, eagerly. The first thing he noticed were green eyes, but these did not glow with the mark of SOLDIER, these were kind and tender, surrounding by Aeris delicate features and long brown hair. "Aeris," he said softly, hardly believing it. She smiled and stepped down out of the circle of light. "It's good to see you again," she said, looking around at them all. "I'll be damned, we did it," Barret said. He turned to look at Yuffie, who was still holding hands with him and Rude. They all hastily dropped hands and looked away from each other. Cloud and Tifa walked up to Aeris, still holding hands. Cloud turned to. face the others and took Aeris hand with his free one, smiles on all their faces. "Mission accomplished," he said triumphantly. "Now let's go home.!" hope you enjoyed the story, I'm working on the sequel to it, should be finished soon, probably post up the first chapter in a few days.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted March 25, 2002 Share Posted March 25, 2002 that was a great story with a happy ending Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted March 26, 2002 Author Share Posted March 26, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by steven [/i] [B]that was a great story with a happy ending [/B][/QUOTE] thanks, but I can't say the same about the ending of the sequel to it ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudffx Posted March 30, 2002 Share Posted March 30, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Sephiroth [/i] [B] thanks, but I can't say the same about the ending of the sequel to it ;) [/B][/QUOTE] are you going to kill poor aeris again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raiha Posted April 1, 2002 Share Posted April 1, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by cloudffx [/i] [B] are you going to kill poor aeris again? [/B][/QUOTE][COLOR=royalblue]Poor Aeris my åss. That chick can hold her own in a fight.[/COLOR] :demon: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sephiroth Posted April 5, 2002 Author Share Posted April 5, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Raiha [/i] [B][COLOR=royalblue]Poor Aeris my åss. That chick can hold her own in a fight.[/COLOR] :demon: [/B][/QUOTE] and this is coming from someone who hasn't played the game? lol.... I should be posting up the next story in the series fridaay next week :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raiha Posted April 5, 2002 Share Posted April 5, 2002 [QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Sephiroth [/i] [B] and this is coming from someone who hasn't played the game? lol.... I should be posting up the next story in the series fridaay next week :) [/B][/QUOTE][COLOR=royalblue]I never said I didn't watch people play it....I only said I personally didn't play it. ;)[/COLOR] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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