By: Mags

Sephiroth cackled as he thought over the finishing touches of his scheme. The barrier was in place, a small diversion he created to distract those that still had some power so they would concentrate on destroying the barrier and the area within and not think that what they were looking for could be so close to them.

In fact the barrier was an energy net, a special magic he had discovered recently that would channel the kinetic energy that was produced by any forces outside the dome and transfer it to his essence. Should anyone try to destroy it with another Mako Cannon it would only serve to make him that much more powerful.

He laughed.

It was almost too easy.

All that was left now was to wait. Wait for the Ancient, the Cetra girl Aeris. Wait for his plans to come to fruitation. Wait for Meteor to crash. Just wait…

He hated waiting.

"Somebody give me a hand here," Vincent called as he carried the WEAPON into the cave.

Morrigan and Karen ran up to him to take the WEAPON from his hands.

Karen gasped as she saw the WEAPON’s wounds, the WEAPON falling from her hands to the floor with a thud.

"My god," she cried, "What could make these kinds of wounds?"

"Sephiroth," Vincent replied.

"What? Sephiroth was here?" Red cried, bounding out from behind the cave wall.

"No, he was not. This battle took place on the other side of the mountain. Sephiroth was badly wounded but would still have killed him had I not intervened when I had."

"Anyone good enough to wound Sephiroth is probably worth keeping around," Red figured.

"Exactly," Vincent agreed, "But not only that but the way he injured him. His attack was incredibly similar to our distant friend Cloud’s Omnislash."

Red was cut off before he could speak by the WEAPON.

"Ugh…" it groaned.

"Stay down, you needn’t exert yourself so. That was a brutal struggle you had with Sephiroth. You’re lucky to be alive, so…"

Vincent was interrupted.

"Sephiroth!" it cried, sitting up quickly, causing his wounds to tear open and begin bleeding again.

"Aaugh!" it cried in pain, clutching the puncture wound in his chest.

"You need rest," Red stated, "You’re wounds will never heal if you keep trying to move around like that."

The WEAPON just growled as it attempted to access it’s materia, but it didn’t have the power right now. It was just making it worse trying.

Finally it slumped back to the floor, and pointed to the third materia from the left on its right glove.

"Full Cure…" it gasped.

Vincent and Red’s eyebrows raised in surprise.

"I haven’t seen or heard of that materia in over 200 years," Vincent stated, detaching the small emerald from it’s glove. It flared to life in his palm.

"This is indeed Full Cure materia. I can sense it," Vincent stated.

"Well stop sensing it and use it, already. Can’t you see he’s in pain?" Morrigan cried.

"Quiet, I have to concentrate," Vincent growled.

He extended his hands and began to concentrate hard on the jewel. Arrows of green light escaped from the cracks in his tightly sealed fists as the jewel’s emerald aura increased.

Soon the prone body at their feet was enveloped in a sea of green light, encasing his entire body. The wounds closed and all wet blood was sucked back into his body. In another minute the only signs that he had even been wounded were the ripped areas in his clothes and the patches of dried blood around them.

"There…" Vincent gasped, the materia falling from his hand.

Before it could hit the ground and shatter, the WEAPON’s hand suddenly shot out and scooped it up, returning it to it’s proper place.

It slowly rose to its feet.

"You have my thanks," it stated, extending its hand to Vincent.

He returned the gesture and shook his hand.

"Without you’re timely intervention my mission would have failed," it explained.

"And just what is this mission?" Morrigan inquired.

The WEAPON quickly rattled off what it was and what it had been created for. To further assure them of the verity in it’s claims, once it explained whose soul it’s body harbored, it began speaking in Cloud’s voice.

"So you can see how dire the situation is, then," Cloud finished, having once again taken control of the body.

"Yes," Vincent replied, nodding.

He placed a hand on Cloud’s shoulder.

"Although you do not look the same as you once did, it is good to have you back, my friend. I only wish that we could have met once again under better circumstances."

"Were the circumstances not as they were then I would not be speaking with you now as I am."

"You’re appearance is a double-edged sword. It’s good to have you back but it heralds dire misfortune for all who dwell on the planet," Red recapped.

"Exactly, now we must… I…" Cloud dropped to his knees and clutched his head, screaming in pain.

"Some things never change, eh?" Red asked.

"No, Red. Something is amiss. There is no Jenova in this body. What is occurring is not from any of Sephiroth’s manipulation games. This is a much more powerful outside force."

"Like what?" Red shot back.

"We’ll just have to see," Vincent replied dryly.

Cloud’s spasms slowly subsided; his hair was matted red with the blood that had been released when his fingers had dug into his scalp.

He rose to his feet to find everyone staring at him with odd expressions carved onto their faces.

"It’s all right. That was the planet. A new player has just entered the arena. The Aeris clone has regained her memories and is headed for the Ancient Capital to summon Holy."

"So then what do we need to do, then? We can just kick back and watch the fireworks as Meteor explodes, right?" Red asked hopefully.

"Not quite," Cloud replied. "Sephiroth knows about her, as well. He is already on his way to intercept her. We must make haste to the Forgotten Capital and make sure the prophecy is not fulfilled."

"All right, that’s it! I’ve had enough of this! I keep hearing everyone talking about this damn prophecy and I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about! Please enlighten me so that I know what the hell is going on!" Morrigan demanded.

"Very well," Vincent agreed. He turned to Cloud. "Do you want to, or should I?"

"He’s asking you," Cloud replied.

"I’m asking anyone who knows, damnit!"

"Very well, I’ll start off and just correct me if I miss anything."

"Sounds fine," Cloud agreed.

"All right, heregoes," Vincent began, clearing his throat. "Don’t interrupt me," he warned Morrigan before he said another word.

"Anyway, it’s like this. A while back, I came across an ancient prophecy in one of the books in Cosmo Canyon. That was about 240 years ago, after Red had been kicked out but not before the books had been transferred to Nibelheim.

Well, to my amazement, I found that it prophesized the destruction of the human race at the hands of an unknown evil. I found that it had accurately prophesized all the major events that had surrounded our quest thus far, and that there was more to come, as well.

It said that approximately 3 centuries later the same evil would rise from the bowels of the planet, summoned by a man that…"

"Wields the power of history in his palm…" Morrigan interrupted. "I know that much."

"Right… anyway, after that, that man is supposed to die at the hand of the evil. After which the evil will bring the heavens down from the sky to the planet out of rage."

"That would be Meteor," Red interrupted.

"Exactly. Anyway, the heroes were supposed to be from the house full of strife, which I now realize could have several different meanings. It could mean Karen, who is a descendant of

Cloud Strife, it could be the WEAPON here, who in a sense is Cloud Strife, and it could also be me, whose family strife I disclosed to you earlier."

"So which is it?" Morrigan asked curiously.

"Does it matter?" Cloud replied. "We’re all here, ready to fight. For all we know it might actually imply all of us. We cannot be certain. Please continue, Vincent."

"Thank you," Vincent nodded. "Anyway, those of the house full of strife were to battle the ancient evil in the Crystal Palace of the Ageless, which sounds very similar to the Forgotten City. Well, depending on how things go, rather, if innocent blood is spilled on the altar of blood once again, then the world will end. If it does not, and the evil’s blood is spilled first, then the world is saved. Whatever that means, we don’t know who the innocent is. I would first assume it means Aeris but thanks to Malcolm, I doubt she’s that innocent or pure anymore. We’ll just have to wing it."

"So then let’s get going, then!" Cloud argued. "We can’t sit around here all day, so let’s saddle up and hightail it outta here! Sephiroth ain’t gonna wait for us. The planet tells me he’s almost there as it is!"

"Shit," Vincent muttered. "We’ll have to take Goldfeather there ASAP, but I don’t know if he can fit us all."

"Well do the best you can," Cloud replied.

"Always," Vincent replied, walking over to where Goldfeather rested. With a whistle he was on his feet.
"She’s big for a Chocobo," Cloud stated, "She might just…"

Vincent clearing his throat interrupted him.

"What?" Cloud asked.

"Goldfeather is a male and does not appreciate being called otherwise."

Cloud gave him an odd look but broke into a grin.

"All right, Goldfeather. I’m sorry for calling you a chick," Cloud stated, breaking into a round of laughter.

Karen and Morrigan stifled a laugh.

Vincent gave Cloud a look that would freeze hell over and turned to Goldfeather, who warked pleasantly.

Eventually, Cloud’s laughter subsided.

"All right, I’m done now."

"Good," Vincent responded dryly.

Vincent lifted himself onto Goldfeather’s back and hoisted Cloud up as well.

"Oh, we’ll all fit on her… uh… him easily," Cloud stated.

"What about Red?" Morrigan asked.

"Hmm…" Vincent murmured.

"I’m not going," Red declared.

"What?" they all cried in unison.

"Remember what I told Malcolm back at the ShinRa Tower? If Meteor was summoned I wasn’t going to risk my neck to save the human race again!"

"You can’t be serious," Vincent replied.

"Can’t I?" Red demanded, "I only went the first time because I had a duty to my people, the people of Cosmo Canyon. Those same people sent me into hiding only 50 years later because they feared me because I was… different!" he spat, putting sarcastic emphasis on the last word.

"But that was in the past. There is still time for them to see the error their ways, to redeem themselves. There is no telling what can happen if you try," Vincent pleaded.

"No," Red stated bluntly. "Humanity had its chance. You want to save it, then you do it without me!" Red turned and began to walk out of the cave.

"Traitor," Cloud growled, making Red turn around in surprise.

"What did you call me?" Red asked.

"Traitor," Cloud repeated, leaping off Goldfeather. "If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem. I deal with problems quickly and efficiently."
Cloud held out his fist and the Hades materia flared to life.

"No!" Vincent shouted, turning Goldfeather around. With a swift motion and a quick jab to Goldfeather’s side, Goldfeather gave Cloud a quick but powerful kick that sent him flying, interrupting his spell, and giving Red enough time to bound away out of the cave.

Cloud growled as he climbed to his feet.

"You were a fool to let him live," Cloud roared.

"You are not the Cloud we knew," Vincent stated.

"I told you before, I am part WEAPON now! And that makes my primary objection to destroy all threats to the planet. Anyone who is not fighting for it is fighting against it, and that makes them my enemy."

"That is insane," Vincent stated calmly. "Red just needs some time to cool his hot head off, he’ll come around. Save your strength for Sephiroth. You’ll need it. That much you should know already, considering how badly he kicked your ass before!"

Cloud’s eyes burned with rage, but slowly his features softened.

"Your right," he finally stated. "Let’s go, we haven’t a moment to loose. We can travel faster than Sephiroth with the Chocobo, but it won’t do us any good if he’s already there, so lets go."

He ran up to the Chocobo and leaped up onto its back. He helped Morrigan and Karen up and they were off. Morrigan held on tightly to Cloud, fearing for his life as they left the mountains behind them, but Karen seemed to be perfectly at ease with the speed they were traveling at.

After another fifteen minutes of sprinting over the Middle Ocean, land finally came into view.

They passed the ruins of the Icicle Dome and Icicle City nearby as they raced through the Sleeping Forest all the way to the Forgotten Capital.

The entire ride had taken only a half an hour, but in that time it had started to become dusk.

"Crap, its getting dark out," Morrigan complained, as they all jumped off the Chocobo.

"Good, then that means that the stairwell will be accessible," Cloud stated.

"What stairwell?" Morrigan asked.

"I told you about that the first time we were here, don’t you remember? It leads to the Crystal City."

"Oh yeah," Morrigan replied, "I don’t like that place, it reminds me of death."

"There’s a good reason for that," Vincent responded as the group raced towards the building at the center of the city.

"Oh? Why is that?"

"Because that’s where Aeris was killed by Sephiroth over 300 years ago," Vincent replied, racing on ahead, leaving Morrigan pale as a ghost.

He was almost beginning to regret coming.

He gulped and pressed on.

When they finally arrived, Cloud halted them before they went in.

He held his hand out towards the ground and the planet built him another sword.

"To replace the one I left behind," he explained as he sheathed it.

"I can do that, I just choose not to," Morrigan joked, causing Vincent to roll his eyes.

Get your weapons ready, people," Cloud hissed, "No telling when or from what direction the danger might come from. Be on your toes at all times and whatever you do, don’t hesitate for anything!"

"Right," they all whispered.

"Then let’s go," he ordered, storming into the room, weapons at the ready.

Nothing.

They slowly proceeded up the twisting ramp up to the small centerpiece that rested halfway up the ramp.

The fish was gone, replaced by the crystal stairwell.

"Walking the crystal stairwell down into the very maw of hell itself," Morrigan mused. "How fitting."

"Probably," Vincent commented, Death Penalty in hand, slowly descending the stairs.

Soon they were all down the stairs.

"All right," Cloud hissed, "Aeris is already here and you can bet that Sephiroth is, too. Be on constant guard and always have your weapons ready!"

Vincent raised his Death Penalty.

Cloud raised his Buster Sword.

Karen raised her Dragon Claws.

Morrigan raised his…uh…

"Heh," Morrigan laughed, turning several shades of red, "It would appear that my weapons are missing."

Cloud groaned and slapped his forehead.

Without a word he reached down to a nearby pillar and formed several medium sized knives out of the marble pillar.

"These will have to do," he said, then motioned for everyone to follow him down the stairs.

"Everyone follow me to the altar. I’m not making the same mistake that I did last time."

They nodded and he jumped from pillar to pillar, followed by Vincent, then Karen, and finally Morrigan.

They stood motionless in front of Aeris, who knelt before them, deep in prayer.

"So now what?" Morrigan whispered.

"We wait," Cloud replied.

"All this waiting is killing me, I…" Morrigan stopped, his voice fading away as a shadow began to descend onto Aeris from up above.

A split second later, Sephiroth came into view, sword poised to end Aeris’ life a second time.

Morrigan looked over at Vincent and Cloud, who stood there in a daze. Karen too was too transfixed on Aeris to move.

"You idiots! You said not to hesitate! Do I have to do everything myself?"

With that, Morrigan raced up to Aeris; the warning cries of the others drowned out by his own beating heart. He raced up the small flight of stairs and threw himself at Aeris.

His tackle knocked her out of harm’s way. He had done it! He had saved her. He had…

He stopped in mid-thought as Sephiroth’s sword plummeted into his back.

He tried to cry out in pain but it came out as a slight gurgle.

Vincent lowered his head.

"Such a waste," he muttered.

"Too damn impulsive," Cloud murmured, his sword drawn and ready.

In the corner, Aeris sat there, shocked at what had just occurred. She had never seen anyone do such a thing for her, or anyone else before. He had sacrificed his life to save her.

Morrigan looked up at Sephiroth, who stared back coldly. Sephiroth placed his foot on Morrigan’s back and pressed down hard as he withdrew his sword from his back.

Morrigan could feel himself dying, the life force draining from his body. It was over. He had lived his life and now it was over.

He felt something poking him in his side. He reached under his stomach to retrieve it.

It was one of his marble daggers. He could yet make good use of it.

With the last reserves of his strength, he lifted himself up partially with his other hand and drove the small knife directly into Sephiroth’s hip, causing him to howl in pain. Sephiroth brought his foot down hard on Morrigan’s back.

The last thing that Morrigan heard before darkness overtook him was the sound of his own back snapping.

Karen stood there, her eyes fixed on Morrigan, as he died right in front of her. Her heart felt as though it were on fire. Her soul began to well up with fury. Her eyes red with fire, she let out a piercing battlecry and launched herself at Sephiroth.

Even Sephiroth was surprised, giving her the advantage she needed as she began pummeling the crap out of him.

She began with a flurry of kicks and punches, following with a sweep and a roundhouse kick. Next came a powerful uppercut and a triple-suplex and piledriver. She finished it by carrying him high into the air and throwing him down hard. As his prone body bounced, she caught it and slammed his back over her knee.

She let his body fall to the floor, every bone in his body shattered in at least three places. His entire body was plastered with blood and wounds, both light and very deep.

She breathed heavily.

"Wow…" Cloud whispered, breaking the silence that permeated the deathly silence.

"That was almost identical to Tifa’s Combo Chain limit break," Cloud gasped.

"It should be, she’s her descendant," Vincent replied.

"That explains a lot, actually," Cloud spoke, more to himself than anyone else. "You’re ancestor would have been proud of you," he assured Karen, whose face was as crimson as Sephiroth’s, except that the blood that was rushing to hr face wasn’t spilling out of over thirty-some perforations like his was.

She flushed and as the blood finally reached her brain she gasped and ran over to Morrigan, whose body lay supine towards the corner of the altar.

She wept as she felt for a pulse but found none.

Her fists tightened into balls and she punched the marble floor, causing her Dragon Claws to bend.

She didn’t care.

All she could hear was laughter, Sephiroth’s laughter.

It was pounding into her brain, it was giving her a headache.

It wasn’t until the sword pierced her chest that she realized that the laughter was all too real, as well.

The wounds that cluttered the features of the fallen villain behind her slowly faded. Soon he was completely healed. With one quick motion, he picked up his sword and drove it into the back of the one who had hurt him so. The one who had been foolish enough to expose herself to him.

As Karen slumped down on top of Morrigan, as the blackness overtook her as well, the last thing she heard was… gunfire.

Vincent snapped to attention, his rage overcoming the weak force field that Sephiroth had placed over them to hold them down while he killed Aeris, or at least tried to.

It had stayed in place when he had killed Morrigan as well, but had released Karen in her fit of rage.

Now he too was free, he pointed his gun and fired several rounds before Sephiroth even had the sword out of the girl’s back.

Sephiroth merely held out his hand and the bullets slowed before they reached him. They froze in midair less than an inch from his outstretched hand. With a flick of his wrist they changed direction.

Vincent silently cursed as he ran away from the bullets as they pursued him. Finally, he just stood his ground and deflected as many as he could with his claw. He suffered a few minor wounds in his leg and shoulder, but the Jenova quickly cured him, expelling the bloody bullets from his body.

Meanwhile, Cloud had engaged Sephiroth in a rematch. Cloud battled furiously, but his anger was working against him. The same impulsiveness he had accused of getting Morrigan killed was now causing him to receive serious injuries.

He soon found himself solely on defense, looking for an opening to either get in an offensive strike or a chance to slip away and cure himself.

He got the chance when Vincent flanked Sephiroth, stabbing him in the ribs with his claw.

The pause gave him the time he needed to cure himself, but at the cost of Vincent receiving a nasty slash across the chest.

He was about to cure him as well but Sephiroth turned his attention back to Cloud.

Cloud went back to being on defense as Sephiroth pressed his advantage.

Every now and then Cloud would get an offensive blow in, and even less often it would actually connect, but he wasn’t doing enough damage to actually be effective.

Another powerful blow and Cloud’s sword flew from his hands, sliding across the marble floor. He tried to call to the planet to help him but Sephiroth’s evil influence was blocking his link with it. He was all alone.

Sephiroth raised his sword and prepared to strike a blow that would most certainly mean the death of him.

Instead Sephiroth dropped his sword and cried out in pain, falling to the floor.

Cloud looked up, expecting to see Vincent standing there, but instead stood Aeris, Morrigan’s knives in hand, and one embedded deeply in Sephiroth’s back.

She nodded and he thanked her and leaped to his feet, running for his sword. Once he had it in his hand, he quickly healed himself and Vincent, who leaped to his feet as well, ready to go once again.

Cloud growled menacingly as the trio approached Sephiroth, who still was on the ground.

Sephiroth looked up at him, and Cloud grinned.

Sephiroth grinned back.

He disappeared and materialized behind Aeris and grabs her by the neck and held his sword to her neck.

"Your death will serve as a testament to the fact that no matter how strong your will is, if you don’t have power you are nothing against one who does," he told her.

"I completely agree," came a voice from behind him.

As he spun around, Red pounced onto him out of the shadows and began to maul him.

"Get off of me you stupid feline," Sephiroth growled, picking up Red and throwing him against the wall. Red howled in pain but got back on his feet, shaken up, but no worse for wear.

Without a second thought he leapt back into the fray.

Sephiroth was busy holding back both Cloud and Vincent when Red leapt up and sunk his teeth into his side.

Sephiroth screamed and grabbed Red by the tail and swung him into Vincent and Cloud, sending them flying back off the altar and into the pool of water surrounding it.

Sephiroth laughed and readied himself for the next round of battles.

What a fun day it was turning out to be.

Rufus awoke with a splitting headache.

He looked around and found that he was in some sort of cave. He ran his hands over the surface and found that it was smooth.

He knocked on it.

A definitive clang sound was produced.

It was metal.

Suddenly it hit him.

He turned his head and ran to the exit, finding himself looking out over all of what was left of Midgar.

He was in the barrel of the Apollo!

Laughter could be heard echoing down the long barrel.

He turned to face its source, coming face to face with Xendel once again.

But now Xendel was no longer in his human disguise. He was now in his full cyborg outfit.

The only true skin on his entire body were most of his legs, his right upper arm, his lower left arm, and small patches on his neck and face.

He emitted a tinny sounding laugh again.

"Now you can see how badly I was burned in that lab explosion," Xendel stated, spreading his arms wide, plenty of space in the gigantic metal tube they were in.

"Great, it’s the tin man with delusions of grandeur," Rufus replied bitingly.

"Oh, much more than that. In case you’re wondering why I kept you alive, I just wanted to see the look on your face when I personally threw you off the edge of the cannon. It wouldn’t be nearly as much fun if you were unconscious."

Rufus noted how bad Xendel’s condition was. His head was still sparking, as was his lower right arm and left outer thigh.

He grinned.

"You think that you can beat me?" he said, reaching around for his shotgun, but not finding it.

"Looking for your precious shotgun?" Xendel asked, "If you want it you can save me the trouble of throwing you off the edge and just jump off. It should only be about 30 meters down or so."

Xendel laughed.

"You bastard, that was my best gun!" Rufus yelled, launching himself at Xendel, knocking him down.

Xendel kicked Rufus off of him and rose to his feet.

"Aw… did I break your little toy?" Xendel asked sarcastically.

Rufus answered with a right hook followed by two left jabs and an uppercut.

"No…" Rufus replied, as Xendel went flying. "I just happened to have liked that gun."

Xendel fired several rounds at Rufus, most of which hit him, but not seriously injuring him. His white suit was now mottled with small bloodstains that were slowly increasing in size as he continued to move about.

"S’matter, Xendy?" Rufus asked mockingly. "Why aren’t you fighting back?"

Xendel produced a small dart from his arm and fired it at Rufus, who grabbed the area that it hit.

He staggered forwards and collapsed near Xendel.

"Ha, that was one of the most powerful nerve toxins in existence. It won’t wear off for another three days, more than enough time to get rid of you!" he boasted.

Rufus looked up at him and grinned and stabbed Xendel in one of his fleshy areas with the dart.

Xendel looked at him in shock.

"Heh heh," Rufus laughed, "Psyche!"

Xendel grinned and rose to his feet.

"Very commendable, but it will do very little to me for obvious reasons."

"Shit," Rufus muttered.

"Well lets see how much this does to you," he cried, summoning all his strength into a powerful right jab that knocked Xendel backwards.

Xendel laughed.

Rufus had one goal right now, to stop the insane laughter.

Gun or no, weapon or no, he would find a way to do it.

Back on the surface of the Apollo, the large handful of remaining Sephiroth followers had just finished off the last of the guards and had rounded up all the scientists.

One large man with a black dragon tattoo running down his left arm stepped forwards.

"Bring da scientists forward," he demanded. The crowd parted and shoved through the four scientists that had survived the assault.

The man walked over to the first.

"I am Abbot Jenkins. Do as I say and you’ll live to see da sun rise!" he declared, cracking his knuckles ominously.

The scientist whimpered.

"What is your name, scientist?" Abbot demanded.

"Greg… Gregory Patterson…" the scientist stammered.

"Gregory, tell us how to operate da weapon," Abbot demanded.

"I… I don’t know how to do that… I just…"

He was cut off by the sound of gunfire. His limp body fell to the ground in front of Abbot, blood from his head wound flowing freely, forming a crimson pool around Abbot’s large foot.

"Next one," Abbot declared, walking over to the scientist next to him.

"Who are you?"

"I am Michael Kenneth," the scientist replied calmly.

"Do you know how to operate da machine?" Abbot demanded, pointing the gun directly between Michael’s eyes.

"Well, I…" Michael began.

Abbot fired.

"Yes or no answers only!" he roared.

He walked over to the next scientist, who had a large stain in the center of his pants.

"And what about you?" Abbot growled.

The scientist just glared up at him.

"I’ll spare us both da pleasantries. Yes or no?"

The scientist shook his head back and forth slowly.

He joined his fellow scientists on the floor.

"Useless," Abbot growled.

He walked up to the fourth and last scientist, a tall man with large glasses and a wire thin frame. In every way the stereotypical scientist.

"Got any last words, brainiac?" Abbot mused, reveling in the man’s fear.

"I know… I know how to operate the machine. Just… just don’t kill me," the man muttered.

Abbot’s features brightened and he hauled the man to his feet.

"All right then! You should’a spoken’ up sooner. Could’a saved me the three bullets I used to cap your buddies!"

The scientist shuddered as he cast a glance at the bodies the rest of the people were dragging away to throw onto the already massive pile of charred, dead, and dying bodies.

Abbot placed one of his huge hands behind his back and half-dragged half-walked him over to the large control panel that rested in front of the giant barrel of the Apollo.

"Do yer thing, scientist," Abbot instructed, shoving the scientist onto the metal platform the control panel rested on.

"My name is not scientist, it’s Dr. Fredrick Du…" he began, before a massive fist struck him in the stomach, causing him to double over.

"I don’t give a damn what yer name is, scientist, just get ta work!"

Dr. Fredrick grumbled as he lifted himself to his feet.

He walked over to the control panel and began rapidly typing in commands and coordinate information. Slowly, the cannon barrel twisted to the side, aligning itself with the shield that surrounded the patch of the Northern Continent.

He entered a few more commands.

"Full power… maximum penetration… rapid energy acceleration due to exceed all previous estimates… cannon energy output unstable… results of fire not predictable…"

He read the sheet as the computer printed out the information on the specifications of the shell launch he had just entered.

He smiled.

Even if the troglodytes that held him did kill him he would have his revenge. He would see them all in hell.

He pressed the final button, a large red button.

He turned to his left and turned a small key and the entire foundation began to quake as the cannon began to start up.

He hopped off of the platform with a satisfied look on his face.

"Is it done?" Abbot demanded.

"Yes," Fredrick replied truthfully.

"Well Bob?" Abbot asked, turning to man holding a bright yellow orb.

"He’s tellin’ the truth all right," Bob croaked.

Abbot nodded approvingly.

"Good."

He took out his gun and shot Fredrick in the head.

As his lifeless body fell to the floor, Abbot could not help but notice the content smile that was etched into his face.

The quaking increased.

All the lights went out as all power was drained to supply the Apollo with power, leaving Abbot and his crowd in pitch-blackness.

He had never felt so alone in his life.

Back down inside the cannon, the actions taken by those above had not gone unnoticed by Rufus and Xendel. They just didn’t care.

Their sole goal now was to kill each other before they themselves were killed by the firing of the Apollo.

And so the battle pressed on, neither one gaining much of an advantage for very long, though when one presented itself it was pressed to the fullest. No quarter was asked for, and none was given. It was a race against time to kill your opponent before you died. Either way, there was no escape. To stay meant death by the Apollo’s fire. To jump meant death from a fall of over 30 meters. If they were somehow able to get back up to the top, the fury of the mob above would quickly overwhelm either or both of them.

Life was not an option. It was how you died that mattered.

Rufus glared into Xendel’s eyes, and Xendel glared back. The ice-cold hatred between the two went much farther than Rachwell now; it was obvious that now neither of them could have it. It was about the ShinRa name. The ShinRa name was a myriad of both fear and respect. To find out who would uphold that name into the afterlife and who would wither and die in obscurity was what this was about.

They had only known each other under a week yet their bitter enmity ran as cold as the most ancient of foes. They were destined to die, and each intended to die the last.

Rufus pressed his advance quickly, leaving the more powerful but slower Xendel to twist his entire body around in an effort to catch him. Rufus landed a flurry of punches to Xendel’s face and any other fleshy areas that he might cause him pain in.

Xendel had lied. The neurotoxin that Rufus had injected him with had affected him. Although it had not put him to sleep, Xendel had visibly become much more sluggish and awkward in his attacks. It was an advantage Rufus pressed to its fullest extent possible.

Finally, Rufus knew that he had won. Xendel was down and he wasn’t getting back up. Rufus hoisted Xendel over his head and marched to end of the barrel.

"Goodbye, descendant," Rufus growled bitterly. "See you in hell!"

He let Xendel drop, intending to revel in the sight of him dropping to his death before he himself died. He was robbed of the chance.

The last of the power finished draining into the cannon as Rufus marched to the end of the barrel. With a roar more deafening than any storm or bestial growl, the energy-powered Mako shell of the Apollo raced down the barrel.

Just as Xendel left Rufus’ fingertips, for the split second he was weightless in the air, the shell slammed into them both, incinerating them instantly as it raced onward to the energy barrier on the Northern Continent.

The mob on the cannon waved goodbye to it as though it was a departing friend, wishing it a safe voyage across the face of the planet. Some even wept for it.

Less than a second later, the shell raced over the smoky ruins of Icicle City and the Icicle blister dome.

Less than a millisecond later, it met with the energy barrier. It was more powerful an energy than anything Sephiroth had anticipated. It ripped the entire barrier apart as it continued its path across the planet. Within the same second it was launched, it slammed into the back of Midgar, collapsing a greater part of the city.

People screamed as the supports around them collapsed and they fell over a hundred feet to their deaths.

Fredrick had had his revenge.

But when the dust cleared, a greater part of the mob yet stood, shaken up but not much worse. Most of the ShinRa Building still stood, amidst the ruins of the once great Mako Metropolis Midgar, which was now more of a ruin than ever.

The crowd gave a rousing cheer to honor their victory over Fredrick’s treachery.

But then one of them noticed the glowing control panel of the Apollo, spewing out printing madly, lights flashing all over the entire panel.

None of the crowd could understand the scientific jargon that filled the pages the computer was spitting out. Eventually, all the lights flickered out but one.

The only word they could understand was the one in large, black print that read ‘WARNING’. Slowly, their eyes fell on the one red light that remained, which flashed faster and faster every second. Fredrick’s final revenge was complete. The Apollo was going to explode, overload, because he had cut the vents to the generators, meaning that they could not cool down after being fired. All the flammable gasses that welled up inside them could not be ventilated, and would cause the generators to explode, spilling the gasses out into the Mako fusion chamber, where they would be mixed with hazardous chemicals and sparks of lightning, igniting the entire mix.

In short, Midgar was about to become a radioactive fireball.

Midgar exploded a second later with the force of 100,000 Air Tai Storms. All of what was left of the city was engulfed in radioactive fire. All things flammable were immediately engulfed. The jungle that had once surrounded Midgar was reduced to glowing ash in less than a second. The mob was literally blown apart, the force of the explosion from point blank range peeling each atom off of them one by one until they were reduced to nothingness. The Apollo itself was wiped from memory, the barrel melting under the intense heat, collapsing the monolith support structures that suspended it in the air, wiping out the last remaining plates that had stayed up.

Although the fate of Midgar was certainly more than fitting, Midgar itself was not consumed. The ShinRa had built their city well, and most of the more important structures remained standing and intact, despite the fact that all it was now was the skeleton of a city, a ghost city haunted by ancient evils, and sparks of hope that were just as old. The only thing that could breathe the fiery air now were the memories, which were all too soon, yet not soon enough, destined to be forgotten in the mists of time once again.

The air around him crackled and pulsed with almost unimaginable energy.

Although the barrier had been destroyed, Sephiroth had still managed to tap into a sample of the power that had destroyed his energy net.

It was more power than he had ever had in his life.

Each individual cell in his body felt as though it was on fire, burning with raw energy.

He glared down upon those who sought to impede on his plans; to stop him from having his dream realized.

Cloud, Vincent, Red, and Aeris gulped nervously in unison.

"That can’t be a good thing," Cloud murmured.

Red nodded.

Sephiroth just laughed.

"Do you now see how futile your quest is, little ones?" he asked.

"We don’t know the meaning of the word," Cloud shot back, stepping back and hurling his sword at Sephiroth.

"Never bothered to look it up!"

Cloud grinned, but it faded as Sephiroth held out his hand.

Sephiroth felt no desire to go with his usual theatrics that he had pulled with the ex-Turk’s bullets. Instead he simply used his phenomenal powers to destroy the sword before it even reached him.

Cloud stared in shock as his most powerful weapon his spirit had ever wielded in either of his lives was reduced to a few small grains of dust. That fell to the floor right in front of him.
Sephiroth laughed again, remaining suspended above them.

"Then I suppose it is my duty to teach you the meaning of…"

He incinerated Aeris with another wave of energy.

"Futility."

Cloud’s rage was overwhelming, but his body could no longer contain the fury that brewed beneath his skin. He had almost forgotten he was part WEAPON. That meant that he could use his powers a bit more… creatively.

His eyes began glowing red as the energies that lied within came to light.

Sephiroth had wronged him so many times. He had stolen Aeris from him twice. The second time there wasn’t even anything left to bury.

He had had enough.

So he opened up and showed Sephiroth his rage.

The fury of his onslaught was overwhelming. The water in the lake boiled and turned to steam in the wake of his ultimate attack. The shiny marble was burned away, plummeting them into a dark abyss, a large cavern that lay hidden beneath the city.

He consistently pumped his rage into Sephiroth.

Everything… his heart and soul were ripped from their positions in his chest and pounded into Sephiroth. Over 300 years of pent-up rage and negative emotions were scooped up from the deepest recesses of his mind and driven into Sephiroth like a sledgehammer.

All the way down he could hear someone screaming but the pain that was ripping through his body prevented him from distinguishing it from Sephiroth’s or his own.

Finally they landed, Sephiroth driven into his own personal crater about twenty feet father underground.

When the smoke cleared, there was nothing.

Cloud stood amidst the rubble and panted, sweat dripping down from his head and neck.

He waited.

If he had to breathe he’d be holding his breath.

As the blood was allowed back into his head, he realized that he might have accidentally killed his friends while undergoing his Soul Fire Assault attack.

He quickly began searching the rubble for any sign of their whereabouts.

The sound of rubble being moved caught his attention and he turned around, hoping to see any of their familiar mugs rise from the fallen boulders.

His hopes were quickly dashed as a powerful beam of energy shot out of the pile of rocks behind him. He jumped back and readied himself for the worst.

He was not ready.

Sephiroth rose from the rocks as fresh as ever. His attack had done nothing. Not even a scratch.

He gulped.

This was definitely a bad thing.

Sephiroth laughed.

"Do you finally see how futile it is when you have no power to back up your spirit?" Sephiroth demanded.

"I have more than enough power to back up my fighting spirit. You, however, have all power and no fighting spirit!"

Sephiroth laughed.

"The fighting spirit is what creates warriors like us. Although it is true that you need power to accomplish anything now, without that spark of violence to fuel the spirit, then the fighter will wither and die!"

Sephiroth held out his hand and several small rocks flew into his hand, forming the crude shape of a sword. A second later, it burst into flames and when they died away, his Masamune was restored. He whipped it around, leaving streaks of energy in the air before settling into his familiar battle stance.

"Now it is time to end this game! Prepare yourself as best you can, because I…"

Sephiroth’s final words were drowned out by a roar from within the earth itself, capturing both his and Sephiroth’s attention.

"It’s coming," Cloud whispered as the shockwaves from the explosion in Midgar ran past them. The results were catastrophic.

The marble city above them collapsed in on itself, leaving the only entrance out of the cave through the large hole in the ceiling.

As Cloud began dodging rubble that was falling on him, he watched in contentment as Sephiroth was destroyed by the one force that was beyond his power.

Fate.

Sephiroth had not even seen it coming until it was too late. A second after the shockwave hit, a large stalactite was dislodged from the ceiling of the cavern and impaled Sephiroth in the chest.

As he fell to the floor in a spray of blood, he couldn’t help but feel half-hearted contentment at Sephiroth’s fate. For one, he was glad that Sephiroth was finally gone. On the other hand, he wanted to be the one to bury him six feet under again.

He heard a cough from behind him and saw Red rise from beneath his rocky encasement.

Red staggered left and right, clearly injured heavily.

"Is it over?" Red asked wearily.

"Yes, my friend," Cloud stated, "It’s finally over."