I heard a faint, male voice. “Revive.”
I groaned. Revive? How about ‘fullcure’ followed
by traction? My body hurt, my hair hurt. Geez,
after a fall like that even my clothes hurt. I tried to get
up. A cold metal hand stopped me. “No, don’t try
to get up. You’re probably broken up in many places.”
The same voice.
“My eyes?”
“One looks swollen shut, the other is bleeding very badly.
Don’t try to open them yet.”
“Vincent?”
“Yes?”
“The Turks?”
“Gone.”
“Sephiroth?”
“Same.”
“Tseng?”
“Killed by Sephiroth.” I didn’t want to ask about
my pilot, I already knew. He went down with his plane.
“Who’s the ShinRa informant?”
“Cait Sith. Who he actually is we don’t know.”
“Make him tell Rufus I went with the plane. I’m going
to need a short amount of freedom.”
“Cloud’s coming with a cure materia, we’ll have you up shortly.”
“My gun...”
“Found it with your bag.”
“Enemy-Skill. Use Angel Whisper.” It
took a good half hour for it to full work. When it did I only
felt stiff. Not like I was dropped a few hundred feet through
razor blades. “I’m going to skin Sephiroth alive.”
“I thought you were married to him.”
“Yep. ‘Til death do us part. Well...it’s
time to part.” He laughed. “By the way, why was
Hojo allowed to grab you? It’s extremely rare he’s allowed
to mess with the Turks.”
Vincent visibly stiffened before he replied. “I’m
against human experimentation.”
“Oh. The irony.” Oh boy.
If looks could kill the one he gave me would have scorched me to cinders
instantly.
“When this is over you and I are going to go a few rounds.”
“Be nice to me Vincent. I know where Lucrecia is.”
He froze. I gave him the most beautiful smile I could muster
then trotted off towards Aeris. “How are you feeling?”
“Worried. Sephiroth has to be stopped.”
“I know. The question is how?” She smiled,
she had a plan.
It didn’t take too long to reach Bone Village. When
we got there the majority of us went to sleep.
I ended up sharing a tent with the lion. They called
him Red. He was an interesting companion. He was
quite knowledgeable about a great many things concerning the Ancients and
the Promised Land.
I awoke early. I had an empty feeling about me.
I peeked outside and caught a glimpse of Aeris running towards the Sleeping
Forest. I closed my eyes in dread. ‘No, not
alone. He’s too dangerous.’ I woke up Red and Cloud
then soon enough all of us were racing after Aeris.
Upon reaching the Ancient City we were forced to split up.
There was too much ground that needed to be covered quickly.
I ended up with Cloud, Red and Vincent. They were the only
ones that remotely trusted me.
We found her kneeling in prayer. Cloud began to approach
her as if he was going to strike her down. After much yelling
from the three of us he started to back away.
It seemed that time had stood still, all four of watched as Sephiroth
dropped in. Seconds before Masamune connected and sliced through
her Aeris looked up at us and smiled.
It was gruesome, steel tearing flesh. In seconds
the dais Aeris was on was a pool of blood. Cloud raced up to
cradle her in his arms.
I didn’t hear the conversation that passed between them, my mind
was frantic. This was my chance, it was the real him, again.
I could feel it, the voice that had pegged itself as Jiminy Crickett was
screaming for me to save him.
Vincent, Red and Cloud were getting ready to attack Sephiroth,
but I knew he wouldn’t hang around for a confrontation. I finally
spurred myself to action when Sephiroth levitated up to teleport out of
the city. It was my only chance to find out where the hell
he was hiding. At full speed I charged, gracefully leaping
over the pillars that led to the dais, on the last pillar I lept towards
Sephiroth with all the strength I had. I dropped my gun (the
only weapon I brought). I was successful.
I caught him and with the physical contact I was teleported along with
him.
I hadn’t realized that I had been knocked out, but as I awoke
I took in my surroundings. I was underground, locked in a make-
shift crystal- like cage. From what I could tell I was in the
same place that my first bizarre dream took place. I looked
towards the ceiling, and there he was. As in my dream he was
cased in crystal, eyes closed, but no smile. I panicked and
looked at my clothes. I hadn’t changed, but my weapons were
gone. A female voice sent chills through my body.
“Nice tie Anne.” I looked around trying to locate
the source of the voice, there was faint movement in the shadows.
“I always thought that people who purposely tied a noose around their neck
were kind of...stupid.”
“I didn’t get to pick my uniform.”
“The choice is yours as to whether or not you wear it.”
I had to nod in agreement, God knows I hated uniforms and had been remanded
repeatedly for failing to wear it. “Here, Sephiroth brought
this for you...” She materialized from the shadows with an
ornate formal gown draped over her arms. My jaw dropped...
the dream... it was the same gown from the dream, but it was also the gown
I wore the first night I met Sephiroth.
More importantly I saw her, in the flesh. Resurrected,
very alive and very powerful. My heart sank.
We would never beat Jenova. She would forever be
a plague, a virus that kept manifesting itself as time goes on.
More importantly I realized this, she was no Cetran... at least not like
any Cetran I had ever seen. She was something else, something
we had never seen before. Something that was unbeatable in
the arenas of this planet. Whatever she was planning was going
to catapult her to the status of a god. My mind began screaming the
only survival tactic I could fathom... ‘join them.’ I slammed
my eyes shut. If I joined them the blood of the people of this
fair planet would be on my hands. ‘But you’ll survive.’
“Give me the gown Jenova.” She smiled and handed
it to me, then made a hasty retreat and reclosed my strange cell.
Something clicked in my mind. ‘Why did she hurry from your
presence?’ That question kept floating in my mind... then it
fell into place, as simply as a child’s’ puzzle.
She was afraid of me. I smiled and repeatedly chanted
that in the recesses of my mind. ‘She’s afraid of me... afraid
of ME?’ The inevitable question struck...Why?