#A Son of the Calamity {Angeal}

[nexus-of-sin]

“Don’t forget that I exist too~”

“And in multiple flavors.”

#A Son of the Calamity {Angeal} #Another Form of the Calamity {Angela}

[personalitynexus]

“Just a couple months to go until the Reunion... Might need to go preen my feathers and find a good tailor for the occasion.”

#A Son of the Calamity {Angeal} #look at that glorious HD icon

[depravednexus]

Does the Dryad get along with any of your other muses at all?

Hmmm? Do I get along with anyone else here?

Only someone who is as Alien to these humans as myself, isn't that right, Ang?

"Our goals are currently aligned, yes... And the breeders you break provide me with many valuable test subjects and entertainment."

And all the juicy little gifts you give me are an added bonus of course. After all, I don't think I've had access to such a wide array of pheromones before meeting you here.

#Nature Finds Her Way {The Dryad} #A Son of the Calamity {Angeal} #Another Form of the Calamity {Angela} #The alien freaks/hybrids tend to stick together

[holly-fixation]

Jenova is such an interesting creature/concept and is absolutely the reason this is the series I write fanfiction for. I have plenty of other games I've played for much longer yet the combination of Sephiroth, Jenova, the Cetra, and the Lifestream always keep me coming back.

So, for fun, here's the way I break down Jenova in my own work. Or what I like to call "the Jenova Mindset".

What is a mindset? I have yet to meet a single writer that doesn't immediately know what a "mindset" is even if they don't use the word. It's really the head space you need to be in to write a certain character. How they think, how they react, what their motivations are, what they want to do next vs what they need to do next, etc. I still find myself changing certain ways of thinking to fit characters more and more, even if I've basically solidified what they are.

Jenova is an interesting case for me.

I always stuck to rules for "Her", even when I first started. Jenova is the Calamity, the virus, the doppleganger, the first meteor. But Sephiroth did willingly go to her, so there must be some kind of draw, some pull. This draw is governed by the internal pull of Reunion and by "Her voice". But Jenova is an alien creature that consumes the life forces of planets. She doesn't sound like anything we would know or recognize or even understand. Not once do I describe Her voice with gender or pitch. Perceived emotions, intentions, dizzying feelings, and descriptions that do not exist for voices, that's what She would be. "Cosmic, astral, celestial, galactic, gravitational". I can go on all day.

Do I think She can speak in the games? Do I think she spoke to Sephiroth at Nibelhiem? I have no idea. I just like playing with potential draws of what She could say.

Now that She has a voice, what does she say? This is extremely difficult for me because every word must draw you in, give this feeling of concern and false care in your chest when you read. As a writer, this really difficult to pull off, but I try. How?

She is always kind to Sephiroth. Always. Ignoring whatever will happen when Evercrisis drops, we can easily assume he had a terrible childhood and a standoffish adulthood. Sephiroth is weird and sheltered and doesn't have a lot of common ground for normal conversation. He grew up in a cruel environment most likely controlled by Doctor Hojo. With a few words, she needs to make him feel accepted and cared for. She copies this perceived kindness from Gillian, Angeal's mother who canonically had Jenova cells implanted in her before his birth. She will only coax Sephiroth, she will never push. Drilling the same phrase into Sephiroth's mind is risky and is only used when there is no other option. If he is too far from Her or too distracted by his not-yet-completely-tragic life, small messages like 'come to me' or small feelings in dreams are Her best chance. Usually Her words spark Sephiroth's childhood desire for a mother, warm and comforting and uncomfortably safe. She speaks with a kindness he is not used to until he calls her 'Mother'. Only once he gives Her that title and unknowingly that power does She call him 'my son'. She fills that hunger within him with or without his title from then on.

Next, as you've probably already noticed, She should not feel normal. She should not seem the same as the other characters throughout the world, thus "She" and "Her" are always capitalized to give that subconscious feeling of Jenova having a greater presence in any situation. To aid in this, Her words are at minimum bolded. Maximum they are italicized and bolded, but this is usually reserved for telepathy. She does not speak in full capital letters. She does not lose her Temper, not anymore, not after failing to the Cetra. That's what Sephiroth's for. All she needs to do is point him in the correct direction. He is Her weapon. She is his support. They share one goal. She may be at Sephiroth's side, but by then he is already carrying out her legacy.

Lastly, (and silly me, I almost forgot), She will never lose. I make jokes about being "The Queen of the Nibelhiem Incident" because even when I'm given a scenario or set of steps where Sephiroth choses not to join her that makes perfect sense, I subconsciously take it apart, I analyze each detail before his decision is made, and I change the outcome back to its fiery course. Jenova will always be at Sephiroth's side and they will claim the planet. End of story. That's their goal. I've literally asked other writers for permission to make new endings for their own stories just because these plans never leave my head, and for SOME reason even the HAPPIEST, FLUFFIEST, NO FIRE ALLOWED writers say yes. Not every one of my fics ends or will end in flames, but there's a constant struggle between Her power and the will of the protagonists that I must keep in check. Though this isn't directly related to The Jenova Mindset, it's what constantly drives Her. She is a virus. She is a survivor. She is persistent. She is patient. She waited two thousand years to complete her goal and get revenge on the Cetra. She will use the last of Her control to use the son humanity gave Her.

I will never lose. I will never leave. Time is a precious resource. Use it well. Recover, build, control your puppets.

Claim what is rightfully ours when you're ready. Be patient. Be calm. Our time will come. Rest for now. Regain your strength.

That's what the Jenova Mindset is.

#jenova #jenova breakdown #fanfiction #writing #jenova mindset #ffvii #ff7 #final fantasy vii #final fantasy 7 #go to bed Holly #yelling into the void #this was a lot longer than I expected ngl #sephiroth

[ask-blackheartedangel]

Cracks

Cracks – prompt.

The cold didn’t bother Sephiroth. It never had done. It was just another of those things that affected everyone else but him. The Nibelheim Mansion was always cold. Unused as it was, the heat had leeched from the building many years before, never to be replaced no matter how much it was used now. The basement was the coldest part of the building. The fire in the grate had not been lit for many years, and some of the shelves that lined the walls had begun to exude the faint stink of damp.

Not that the general was bothered by it. His mind was too busy running over what he had learned to notice. He had cleared the huge desk so he could work and pushed the chair under it. It was a fine desk, the grain of the wood milled perfectly smooth. The varnish gave it a reddish hue, and he walked his gloved fingers over the pattern, determined to feel the pattern where there was none.

He had told the others to leave him well alone. Shut the mansion doors and locked himself away down here to think. What he and Zack had seen in the reactor had shaken him. Those former people, twisted by the effect of Mako and Jenova cells, had reminded Sephiroth of something Genesis had said. What was it? He could remember it as though it had been said moments ago rather than weeks. At the time he had dismissed it as jealous anger, but now?

Was he ‘the perfect monster?’ No. Surely not. It was a mere coincidence that his mother and that thing shared the same name. Wasn’t it. He clenched a fist. Genesis and Angeal… The clench reached his chest and he sucked in a hard breath. He screwed his eyes shut and let out the air out from his lungs. He had to know more. That was why he was here wasn’t it? To learn?

Relaxing his hand, Sephiroth got to his feet and began to scan the shelves. There were files here from decades before, gathering dust and mildew. Those he left well alone. They were irrelevant anyway. He had rough dates to go on, and enough time…

In the end, he found what he had been looking for. Information. Books were strewn all over; he had not been neat in his quest for knowledge. Those that were relevant were on the desk, those that were not he left in discarded piles on the floor. It was hardly the organised system he usually adopted; there was no time for that.

The more he read, the less he understood. One question burned in his mind more than anything else. Why hadn’t he been told? Why hadn’t they bothered to tell him his heritage. He had always known he was different from the other kids. Friendships had always been awkward and hesitant; there was a part of him that had been intensely jealous of Zack’s easy camaraderie with the others. That level of relaxed interaction had always been beyond his reach.

Now he knew why. Genesis had been right. He was a monster. Who wanted to associate with a monster? They may not have known, but they sensed it. Angeal and Genesis. He had believed they were friends. Glancing down at the page he was reading; he was surprised to find droplets of water on it. He grieved for them still, despite everything. Brushing the tears from his lashes with the back of his hand, he frowned and focused on the words. They were safer, stable. Unlike his thoughts, they were immutable. They were truth. They told him that Jenova was a Cetra – an ancient.

Why hadn’t they told him though? He pressed his lips together, picked up the report and walked back and forth along the aisle as he read. What harm would it have done to tell him? Why the lies? What didn’t they want him to know? Was he so dangerous that him knowing who he was put them at risk?

As he read, another truth dawned upon him. The Ancients had settled, found an easier way of life and neglected their duties. They had left the planet open to vicious attack from a Calamity from the Skies. Their abilities had waned, the planet was left weak and vulnerable. As Jenova was his mother, that made him her son. The last survivor of that race so long ago weakened by humanity. Sephiroth shuddered and let the report fall from his hands.

Not one of them would understand. Not Zack, not Cloud, none of them. The one who might have done was in the ground. Nothing more than a bitter memory and a hollow space. How could they understand that their ancestors had betrayed their ideals and left him so alone? No, they were not to be trusted. They had to be punished. As the sole survivor, it was up to him to do so. He had to put it right. He clenched and unclenched his fists.

A strange cackling made him look up. He was alone still. He was laughing. That bitter noise was his laughter. There was still so much to go through, so many reports that the traitorous scientists had written. He would go through them all, confirm what he had learned so far. It made sense, it all made sense. What was left would only cement what he already knew: that he had a destiny!

#my writing #drabble #ff7 #sephiroth #madness #the beginning of it #stretching the writing muscle

[aimeelouart]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Major Character Death Relationships: Zack Fair & Cloud Strife, Zack Fair/Aerith Gainsborough, Angeal Hewley & Cloud Strife, Genesis Rhapsodos & Cloud Strife, Angeal Hewley & Genesis Rhapsodos Characters: Sephiroth (Compilation of FFVII), Cloud Strife, Zack Fair, Aerith Gainsborough, Angeal Hewley, Genesis Rhapsodos Additional Tags: Calamity!Zack, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Time Travel, Dimension Travel, Age Regression/De-Aging, BAMF Zack Fair, Protective Zack Fair, Hurt Cloud Strife, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Fluff, Found Family, Fix-it of the make-it-worse that is Seventh Circle Ninth Sphere, Calamity Zack said NOT TODAY BITCH, Wingfic, Wings, Platonic Cuddling, This fic is a gift to everyone who wanted Seph to die a horrible death in 7c9s Series: Part 2 of Calamity Zack's Mandatory Vacation Club, Part 6 of Divine Comedy Summary:

He moves so fast that Sephiroth can only flinch before there’s a sword buried in his torso, pulled seemingly from nowhere. The umbrella is gone. Sephiroth chokes out a mouthful of blood, expression a rictus of shock. Masamune vanishes. His hands go to the sword buried in him.

“Enjoy hell, you Cloud-hurting son of a bitch,” Zack says pleasantly, and twists his arm.

 OR: Calamity!Zack wanders the universe, rescuing Clouds in need of rescuing.

#chapter update #Calamity Zack AU #Seventh Circle Ninth Sphere #ff7 #aimeelouwrites

[ao3-clack]

Obsidian

by RedXXI

Gaia died. Meteor fell and the Lifestream was powerless to stop it. Zack won’t forget the way Cloud lay crumpled nearby, torn apart by Zack’s own sword. Won’t forget the way that Sephiroth stood mere feet away, eyes wide and reverent and in awe of the sheer destruction he and his "mother" wrought.

“For the both of us,” Cloud had said, gasping out his last breaths. Zack knows that in another lifetime, those were his words.

 After failing to stop Sephiroth and prevent the collapse of Gaia, Zack is sent into a parallel universe where he is the son of the Calamity.

Words: 6282, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death

Categories: F/F, M/M

Characters: Zack Fair, Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Aerith Gainsborough, Sephiroth (Compilation of FFVII), Angeal Hewley, Genesis Rhapsodos, Kunsel (Compilation of FFVII)

Relationships: Zack Fair/Cloud Strife, Aerith Gainsborough/Tifa Lockhart, AVALANCHE & Cloud Strife, Sephiroth & Cloud Strife

Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Puppet Cloud Strife, Freeform, Violence, Body Horror, Angst, seriously it gets worse before it gets better, Multiple versions of the same character, Explicit Sexual Content, Hurt/Comfort, playing fast and loose with magic, no beta we die like zack

from AO3 works tagged 'Zack Fair/Cloud Strife' https://ift.tt/3w8MyyF via IFTTT

#clack #zakkura #zackxcloud #cloudxzack #zack x cloud #cloud x zack #kuraza #zack fair #cloud strife

[silly-bean]

Whumptober Day 8: Exotic Illness

Surprise! Muse has struck and delivered a day 8 for whumptober!

This one uses the prompt "exotic illness" and takes place in my Calamity Cloud AU, an AU where Cloud was part of the Jenova project in the womb and becomes Calamity's Son.

<- 7 | 8 | 9 ->

Read on AO3

Word Count: 1,217

Warnings: Illness, implied terminal illness

~~~~~~

It starts with a cough.

SOLDIERS don’t often get sick, the mako and alien cells making quick work of most viruses and bacteria, but occasionally, something will slip through. Zack remembers one such occasion shortly after he made 2nd Class where he’d spent a couple days bunkered down in his apartment and puking his guts up before Angeal had used his mentor privileges and broke in to drag him down to the infirmary. So, when he develops a slight cough, Zack just tells himself and others that it’s nothing to worry about and ignores the concerned look Sephiroth gives him. After all, it’s just a cough, right?

But it doesn’t go away.

It gets worse, a tightness in his chest that sends him into fits of wracking coughs that can last for minutes and causes his ribs to ache. He’s able to hide it, for a while, by keeping his breathing shallow and avoiding extended contact with his friends. He cites the increasing work of keeping the orphanage running, of his patrols through the bordering ruins to keep the growing city safe to keep his distance. He briefly considers going to a doctor, memories of the death of his grandfather via bronchitis which turned to pneumonia floating to the surface, but the mere thought of putting himself back in a formal medical setting sends phantom pains skittering across his limbs.

It’s actually Red that’s the first to know he’s sick.

He had been visiting the newly-built WRO headquarters on the request of Reeve and Zack had volunteered to let him stay the night in his apartment; he’d been doing better recently, hadn’t thought that anything would happen, but, then, he wakes up in the middle of the night with the worst coughing fit he’d had in months. At some point during the fit, Red manages to get Zack’s bedroom door open and come in to check on him.

“Zack, are you okay?” he asks, voice full of genuine concern.

“I’m fine,” Zack responds, still a little breathless. In the aftermath of the fit, there are little pinpricks of pain that shoot through his chest whenever he breathes.

Red hums, but seems to decide not to push the issue at the moment. “Don’t forget, Zack, that you have people who care about you,” he says.

More time passes. The pain doesn’t go away, sparking and stabbing and limiting his motion. He finds himself getting short of breath sooner and trying to push through bringing on another coughing fit.

Then, the black sores appear. Zack thinks they’re bruises at first. Maybe all his coughing has bruised or even broken his ribs? It wouldn’t be unheard of. But, something about the vividness of the color makes dread curl in his gut. It reminds him of something. He struggles to hide his deteriorating health from his friends, their worried gazes following him as he continues to pretend everything is fine.

Things come to a head when Sephiroth finds out.

The strange bruises have turned into oozing sores, the black, oily liquid leaving stains too dark to hide on anything but black fabric. He takes to wrapping bandages around his chest to cover the sores and help prevent them from getting irritated and leaking more vigorously. He’s changing them after a particularly vicious coughing fit had almost brought him to his knees on the stairs leading up to his apartment. He’s too wrapped up in what he’s doing to hear Sephiroth enter, to hear him move through the space and find him in the bathroom until the other man breathes in sharply behind him.

“Sephiroth!” Zack shouts, jerking away from the sink and bringing up his arms in an attempt to hide the black sores on his chest.

The other man just stares at him, eyes scanning up and down his form as he catalogs what he’s seeing. He lingers on the black staining his hands, his chest, and his gaze darts to the stained bandages in the sink before moving back to his face. A pinched expression comes across his face and it takes Zack a second to read it as hurt.

“Zack… when? Why?” Sephiroth asks, a hand jerking up as if to reach out to him before dropping back to his side.

Zack swallows and averts his gaze. Leave it to Sephiroth to hone in on the heart of the issue. As much as the other man doesn’t like seeing his friends sick - especially since it brings back memories of a certain failed relationship - he’s more concerned with what would bring them to hide their sickness from him. Zack knows Sephiroth hates being left out of the loop, hates secrets and all the trouble they bring, and the guilt of his actions begins to rear its head.

“I…” he starts, trying to find the right words to explain his reasoning. “It wasn’t that bad. Just a cough. SOLDIERS have been known to have worse, so I didn’t think anything of it.” He risks a glance back up at his friend. Sephiroth stands there in the doorway, standing straight up and keeping his hands stiffly at his sides with his fists clenched. “Then, well, I just didn’t want anyone to worry. Everyone had so much to worry about, so much to do. I just didn’t want to distract them, distract you, from what really mattered.”

Sephiroth moves into the room. He steps slowly, carefully, and inches his arm up to rest his hand on Zack’s shoulder so the other man has plenty of time to avoid the touch. He doesn’t. Zack stares up at his friend and drops his hands from where they still hide his diseased chest from full-view. Sephiroth’s eyes twitch, the closest he comes to flinching these days.

“Zack…” he says, taking his time as usual when it comes to expressing his emotions. “You matter, to everyone, to me. It… is important to let others know when you are hurting. You are not alone.”

Zack wipes at his suddenly-wet eyes and tries to swallow around the lump in his throat.

“You taught me that, Zack. We both are aware of what happens when someone keeps everything inside and has no one to rely on, the damage they can cause when everything erupts out of them. We can help you. We want to help you, no matter what.”

A moment of silence.

“Seph?” Zack asks softly. The man hums in acknowledgment. “Can I give you a hug?”

Sephiroth nods. Zack encircles him in his arms, holding him tightly. He feels his friend’s arms drape around his back and squeeze him back. He feels hope spring to life in his chest alongside relief.

Zack isn’t the only one who’s sick.

No one really knows when the first cases started, only that bodies riddled with those strange black sores begin popping up. Word begins to spread. It’s mostly children who are sick, though a fair number of adults also turn up at clinics everywhere seeking treatment. Nothing seems to work to treat it, no apparent cause can be found. People start to become afraid, to make assumptions and embrace superstition. People start blaming the Planet, saying that the disease is its punishment for playing a hand in killing it for so many years.

They start to call the illness “Geostigma”.

#whumptober2021 #no.8 #exotic illness #ff7 #ffvii #final fantasy 7 #fanfiction #illness #terminal illness #my fanfic #my aus #calamity cloud au #zack fair #sephiroth #geostigma #ff7 fanfic #final fantasy vii

[im-totally-not-an-alien]

Final Fantasy prompts #48

1. Jenova moms Cloud, but he doesn't realize it's Jenova.

Everyone else recognizes her in all her purple tentacly glory, but say nothing because Cloud hasn't looked this happy in years. Maybe its OK to let him live a lie, if only for a little while...

Also, they're kinda afraid of her

2. "Why do you live all the way out in the sticks?" Cid growled, munching on an unlit cigarette.

"Cause I can do this." He said, before whistling and promptly falling onto his back.

"What the hell are you even doing-" Cid began before they were both swarmed by dogs.

Big dogs, medium dogs, fluffy dogs, dogs with small tails so many dogs. Many of whom where licking the blonds face where he lay.

Aka Cloud owns a cabin in the woods for the sole purpose of getting swarmed by wild dogs and letting them lick his depression away.

3. Time traveler Cloud, but not quite.

Its a 12 year old escaped expirement created by fusing Clouds and Sephiroths DNA. S2, as he was labeled, kidnapped Cadet Cloud and kept the struggling blond with him as he traveled to the northern crater.

He keeps referring to Cloud as Mother and Sephiroth as Father, something that freaks Cloud out and made Sephiroth highly curious.

Upon closer inspection, the silverette saw peices of himself in the boy, in his eye shape, in his fighting style, and especially in his personality.

S2 dotes on his Mother, giving him everything he desires, everything but his freedom.

Cloud just has to get used to his life of semi-luxury...and being brodal carried by S2 and every gods damned SOLDIER he meets apparently.

4. RM Cloud wacking Sephiroth in the face with a broom. The silverette just stares at his puppet and says, "Really?"

5. Cloud finding Sephiroth in a moment of weakness and deciding a bit of revenge was in order.

6. Slightly unhinged time traveler Sephiroth x Slightly unhinged time traveler Cloud

7. Yuffie stalking different members of AVALANCHE out of boredom, only to wind up saving one of thier lives

8. Reeves Cait Sith dolls go rouge and declare war on the remaining SOLDIERS, believing that the living J cells in thier bodies were harming the planet.

Reeve doesn't want to hurt his sons. But Cloud has become something of a baby brother to him, and he would never forgive himself if something were to happen to the stubborn blond

9. Time traver Cloud coming to Aerith for advice after he lands, but she immediately sensed the Calamity from the Stars in him and started screaming bloody murder.

He had to fight Reno and Rude and easily defeated them, but by the time he was done, Aerith had escaped, leaving a confused and distraught blond.

He gives Reno an alias to protect his younger self and then promptly decides to GTFO.

Aerith winds up running into Tseng and Angeal, and she spills the beans about the Cetra and her heritage, as well as the Calamity and her child.

Angeal tries not to vibrate with excitement, after all, it looks like his lifelong dream of saving the world might be coming true. It seemed further reinforced by the fact the blond broke into the tower and freed several expiraments and killed many of the scientists. He was seen running off with a red lion-wolf creature before they lost track of him.

He, Aerith, Genesis, and Sephiroth wind up joining a party together to stop him. They essentially blackmailed the company to keep them off thier backs while they saved the world.

Cloud however, joined up with Nanaki and Vincent, but was also being targeted by the AVALANCHE of this time as well as thier own mad scientist, Fuhito, who's almost giddy that three of the esteemed professor Hojo's powerful expirements have escaped and are "Up for grabs"

Cloud may or may not also have a deal going with Jenova, who is offering him guidance with his new abilities as well as love. He knows she's manipulating him, but he feels so lost and vulnerable. He let her in and he wasn't even sure if he regrets it.

Also Jenova manipulating Sephiroth and his group by convincing them that she's "The Goddess Jenova" and revealed that she's Sephiroths mom. She convices them that the blond is evil and must be stopped. No one questions why she only speaks to them when Aerith is away.

Yeah, Clouds not having a good time. Kinda based off of another prompt of mine and I felt the need to expand on it. So, yeah.

10. The president, his son and the directors are killed off by Reeve, who has finally taken a stand and did a hostile takeover of the company.

11. Time traveler Reeve?

Better, Cait Sith gains sentience and time travels

12. Sephiroth revives again after the events of DeepGround and grabs up Cloud, embracing him like a lover as he flies into the air with him.

He basically tells Cloud that he's defeated him three times in a row, he's fascinated by him, and that Clouds going to be his bride.

Cloud is not okay with this

As it turns out, neither is Tifa, Clouds girlfriend.

The ensueing catfight is glorious

13. Cloud gets catcalled more often than anyone in thier little group. Apparently, he's a living creeper magnet, he couldn't tell you how many times people have just disregarded his personal space, bought him crap expecting a 'favor' in return, randomly touched his hair, bugged him for his number or a date, strait up tried to follow him home, ect.

The sheer entitlement both men and women seem to think they have over him is astounding. It's gotten to the point everyone has noticed and became protective of him. The blond himself? He's not afraid to make someone swallow thier teeth, regardless of gender.

14. Angeal loves photography, everyone knows that.

What people don't know is that he takes pictures of anything he deems beautuful. Birds, trees, flowers, clouds...406 pictures of the moon and even more of the stars. That was fine.

The problem arose when Genesis snooped through Angeals computer/apartment and found his secret photo collection. He swiped it and brought it to Sephiroths office to go through it with him.

Everything was normal, until they found a gorgeous picture of Genesis igniting his surroundings in flame.

Then they found some pics of Sephiroth standing in the moonlight with Masamune drawn. They were both extremely flattered by how lovely these were...until it got wierder. There were pictures of monsters, Cadets, Angeal's pup, Zack, several a few pictures of a blond trooper, an anthropomorphic cat with a cape and crown and...Turks?!

The worst part, however, was when they noticed that not a single person, not even themselves, where looking at the camera.

The fact they didn't remember having thier picture taken chilled them further.

Aka Angeal might have an addiction. Or an obsession.

15. Cloud has had a crush on Zack for a long time, but when Zack starts play flirting with him he thinks he has a chance and makes his move...and is promptly rejected.

Cloud plays it off as a joke and Zack buys it. The heartbroken blond finds a place to hide and quietly sob his eyes out.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, for him, he gets found and comforted by the Lord of Loveless himself, Genesis Rhapsodos.

Genesis had followed the subtle sounds of sorrow with the intention of either taunting the individual or reciting Loveless to them, as he adored a literal captive audience...but this...this was different.

He found himself rocking the pretty lovesick fool in his arms and mentally kicked himself for winding up in this situation.

On the other hand, he managed to score a date.

Bonus: Time traveler Sephiroth causing a scene by hard core flirting with CC Cloud and destroying a building and a man with a single swipe of Masamune, thus getting the attention of the entire Shinra army.

Fortunately the battle between the Sephiroths was cut short when Time traveler Cloud intervened with a spray bottle full of Aeriths holy water and essentially held him at gunpoint (spray bottle point?) as he retreated.

He fled before anyone could do much of anything, thus leaving everyone involved with so many unanswered questions.

#cloud strife #sephiroth #sefikura #zack fair #genesis rhapsodos #strifsodous #ff7 story prompts #ff7 prompts #ff7 #final fantasy 7 story prompts #final fantasy story prompts #final fantasy prompts #final fantasy 7 #angeal hewley #snack fair #cait sith #reeve tuesti #yuffie kisaragi #cid highwind #time traveler Sephiroth #time traveler Cloud #time traveler Reeve #ff7 crisis core #crisis core

[lovelesstobeloved-blog]

Saw your post about Gilgamesh, and I really want to learn more about the other Champions after him, and how they will play in your story.

Here’s the post the anon is referring to in case anyone didn’t noticed.

Gladly!

Do note in my headcanon/story: Gilgamesh was instructed by Diabolos, Minerva, and the observers to leave one drop of his blood in the mako pool (the only access to the Lifestream within his prison) at a specific time for his Champions to be born. Also, when the Champions died, they will be part of the reincarnation cycle. Once their reincarnate reach the maturity of age 18 (unless Gilgamesh can speed of the process… if he’s ever free…), the Champions will “awaken”, which would either result in either a fusion of two souls and minds, or two souls sharing the same body. However, “The One with Many Names” tried to foil their cycle, that the Devil successfully created “An Error” on the cycles (some Champions would reincarnate later rather instantly, or some reincarnate would died before the age of 18. Or in the distant future where the reignited “War of the Beasts” occurred, some would be too late to be reincarnated (the would be reincarnated a century later rather than instantly in their next lifestime), or Champion fail to “awaken” in time due to their reincarnate haven’t reached the age of Maturity. ALSO, Champions cannot “awaken” when their reincarnate have the “Legacy of the Calamity” within their blood stream)

Well, there are numerous Champions being born every generation after Gilgamesh’s imprisonment by “The One with Many Names”. Most of these champions of Gaia were inspired by both historical/mythological figures in our world and the Heroic Spirits of Fate/ series. Because there are numerous champions, I’ll list out the important one related to my stories along with some AU elements:

King Solomon

the Cetra “King” (Leader, but many children like to refer him as King)

Given Wisdom by Minerva, and learning Magic from Diabolos (in human form)

Help participate in the “creation” of the Omega’s Harbinger, Chaos, with Diabolos (who used one of his rib bones as a catalyst within the gathered tainted lifestream) by crafting the Protomateria with his magic to connect with Chaos (Yes, in my story/headcanon, Diabolos created Chaos, so technically, he is the “Father” of Chaos)

Solomon and the unborn Chaos form a spiritual bond and connection in hope to get the Harbinger to understand Mankind as “pact partners”and almost like “friends”

“The One with Many Names” manipulated a wayward Cetra of granting her wish for a new god to worship, so the Devil send out its second child (who is now know as Jenova, since Erebos is still weak from the aftermath of the War of the Beasts). Then Jenova descend to the Planet and you know what happens…

Solomon, not want to wait any further for the surviving gods and the Planet to complete the creation of the other WEAPONS, so he willingly sacrifice his life to seal Jenova.

In FFVII, his latest reincarnate is Grimoire Valentine (my headcanon that one of the reason to reseach Chaos and Omega, is because his fusion with Solomon’s wisdom, Grimoire is preparing to reconnect with Chaos in order to be prepare for reignited “War of the Beasts” in the future, but things didn’t go as plan when Chaos went beserk at the sight of Lucretia, sensing her as a “Threat”. Then Grimoire dies, and Chaos became distraught that he killed the reincarnation of his “friend” and one of Mankind’s Last Hope. And the reason his connection with Vincent is difficult is because Chaos is still guilty about what happen to Grimoire/Solomon that he feit unworthy to the son of his “friend” that he want to break free and such)

Alexander the Great

The conqueror with strong will

Instructed by Minerva to find the WEAPONs (still in statis) and “inherit their data“

His rival, by the name of Darius, became manipulated by “The One with Many Names” into creating the Black Materia to end Mankind and destroy the imperfect world.

With all the inherited data he gather, he was able to build “a moving fortress” and defeat Darius and his army

Sadly, the temple is indestructible no matter how hard he tried, so Alexander instruct his advisors (who are Cetra), with the help of the Blessing from Minerva and the Planet, to form a seal in the Temple to keep it hidden (but sadly, the seal will weaken in the distant future) while creating a countermeasure against the Black Materia, and thus the White Materia is created.

Learning from Diabolos that even though he is crucial for protecting Mankind, there may be a chance that his reincarnation in the distant future will died before the reignited “War of the Beast”, Alexander made a plan to split his soul in half  (having two reincarnations in every lifetime) in case one of them died, the half of his soul would go to his other half that reside in the other reincarnate. However, the effect of this would result with his two reincarnation being born in different time (ex. the second half of his reincarnate would be born 10 years after the first half)

As he reached his elderly age and slowly, he instructed his advisers to keep the White Materia safe and maintained, making sure that their descendants will keep it safe and use it if the Black Materia is ever discovered and used

In FFVII, his latest reincarnates are Angeal Hewley and a young boy living in solitude in Wutai. Alexander haven’t “awaken” when Angeal was 18 because of “Legacy of the Calamity”/Jenova Cells. When Angeal died, the half of his soul fused with the other half in the nine year boy in Wutai, who Cloud, Genesis, Dante, Neil and the co. will encounter that 17 year old man (nearly turning 18 soon) in my story.

Roland

A paladin that serve for King Charlemagne

Hero and great leader in the War

Given a blessed indestructible sword Durandal by Minerva

Many of his rivalry army and enemies (manipulated by “The One with Many Names”) desire for his sword and tried to kill him and his army for it.

Near the end of his last devastating battle, Roland, slowly dying from his wounds, tried to destroy Durandal to prevent anymore enemies from taking it and use it for bloodlust. But, the sword is still indestructible. So, not wanting Durandal to fall into the wrong hands, he prayed for Minerva to have the sword fused with his soul to keep it safe during the reincarnation cycle, which she did grant.

In FFVII, his latest reincarnate is Denzel, though Roland kinda reincarnate a little late as Denzel hasn’t reach his age of Maturity is during the time the reignite “War of the Beast”… unless Gilgamesh can help… if he’s free…

Joan of Arc

A saint (who is actually a Cetra) who hears and guided by the Voices of Minerva and the Planet.

An important figure during a War to serve the Goddess and her home country against a king of a rival county (who is manipulated by “The One with Many Names”)

She was then taken prison and being accused as a true enemy to Planet for formulating an endless war and was then burnt to stake.

In FFVII, her latest reincarnate is the Moogle Girl, but like Denzel and Roland’s situations, Joan also reincarnate a little late…

King Arthur

Gilgamesh, Minerva, and Diabolos believed him to be the destined “Champion to lead all Champions”

Diabolos help Uther on his role of becoming King by giving him an “inheritance of the Dragon (Bahamut)”, and later with Merlin help give Uther’s wife an elixer to drink (containing “Michael’s Legacy”) in order to give her unborn baby the “inheritance of the Saviour”. Sadly she died after giving birth to Arthur.

Similar to Arthur’s tale goes (From Sword of the Stone to inheriting Excalibur from Pontus/”Lady of the Lake” to Battle of Camlann)

As Arthur slowly dies from the mortal wounds he received from his illegitimate son Mordred, he prayed to Minerva to let Mordred return to Planet peacefully rather than let him fall into the hands of the Devil, and let himself keep on reincarnate in hope to reunite with his dear friend Merlin.

In FFVII, his latest reincarnate is Cloud Strife. He was so close to “awakening” when Cloud is almost reaching to age of 18, but was delayed when Cloud got injected by Jenova Cells… unless…

Also, though these three below aren’t Gilgamesh’s Champion, they still play an important role when it comes to reincarnation

Merlin:

The biological son of Diabolos and a Cetra woman. Diabolos gave his betrothed an elixer containing “Lucifer’s Legacy” in order for the unborn son to inherit it. She later died from Childbirh.

Merlin is the first ever Cambion to ever be born (half-human, half…”demon”) among the Planet

Cambions are both gifted and cursed: though they can utilize magic with their “Spiritus” (mana from their very souls) rather than Materias, they have a cursed existence. Their existence would cause misfortune around them, even themselves. Even if Merlin’s guidance would help Arthur become a successful king, Arthur and his kingdom are still destined to face downfall.

Making matter worse, when the Cambions dies, they are not allowed to return to the Lifestream, but are bound to the endless cycle of reincarnation with their misfortune following them throughout their lifetime.

After Uther’s Murder by the Devil, Merlin was forced to runaway with the infant Arthur by his father’s orders when Diabolos was found by “The One with Many Names”, who later devoured Diabolos and sent his soul to the corrupted Event Horizon, where he is tortured and reduced to Nothing there.

Merlin watched over Arthur, who is in care of Ector and Kay. and later made himself know when Arthur reached the right age and befriended him

Ever since Arthur pulled the Sword of the Stone, Merlin became his adviser throughout Arthur’s time a ruling… and slowly developed a romantic attachment and feelings for Arthur, but kept them to himself as Merlin has to make sure Arthur get together with Guinevere… despite what will happen between her and Lancelot in the future…

Before the Battle of Camlann happen, Merlin was found by Morgan Le Fay (who is manipulated by “The One with Many Names”). She killed him to prevent him from helping Arthur.

In FFVII, his latest reincarnate is Genesis Rhapsodos, and sadly cannot “awaken” due to the Jenova Cells…  unless…

Lucifer and Michael:

Disciples for Diabolos and Minerva respectively.

They were meant to be future Saviors for the Planet, but they both got Devoured by Erebos during the “Final Battle”.

“The One with Many Names” decided to make use of their souls to make them stray off their path as “Saviors” and lead them to bring destruction to the Planet and/or Mankind

Thus, waiting for the right opportunity, he send the souls of Lucifer and Michael to be reincarnated as Sephiroth and the new antagonist, respectively.

Not want to spoil just yet, but as Sephiroth fails three times for his revival. “The One with Many Names” then turn to my antagonist to wreck havoc among Mankind.

As for the Fate of Lucifer and Michael… you’ll see what happen to them in my story…

Phew!

#replies #anon #raison d'etre #headcanon #strifesodos #gencloud #cloud strife #genesis rhapsodos #and others #fan sequel #of #beloved

[nexus-of-sin]

What would Red, Diana, and Angeal’s dom marks be?

{XX}

Red’s is simple enough, the roman numeral for 13 surrounded by a paw mark. He’ll be kind enough to let those receiving it choose where it would be displayed, allowing them to make it as public or private as they desire.

Diana, however, will always have her mark appear just above the pubic mound, but never higher than two inches beneath the navel. Her mark would be twin “W”s, one stacked upon the other, bound together with rope, signifying their position in being bound to and by her.

Angeal, prideful and honor-bound as he normally is, will not hesitate to have his mark be known to the world. That mark is, despite what many would thing, not an angel’s wing or even that of his sword, but that of the iconic Meteor impact. His mark will always be displayed on a location that is not easily concealed, such as over the spine at the base of the neck, on the back of ones hand, or for the more daring and bold, the left or right cheek.

#Last of a Dying Breed {Red XIII} #Amazonian Godslayer {WW} #A Son of the Calamity {Angeal}

[personalitynexus]

@vibraea​

“But we do that nearly every day... Same with blacksmithing, leatherworking, carpentry, fishing...”

#A Son of the Calamity {Angeal}

[depravednexus]

"Sin Day ain't just about the tits, ya know?"

#A Son of the Calamity {Angeal}

[holly-fixation]

Ink Clouds: Chapter 25 (Finale)

Summary: Cloud is sent back in time by the calamity, and is now half squid that constantly spews ink that carries Geostigma. Over a month ago, he made a carving of Jenova in the Nibelhiem reactor, the reactor itself, and the waterfall Sephiroth's birth mother is in. But the calamity did not allow this, and has slowly infected Sephiroth's mind with events from his past self to call him to her. The Firsts decided who would go where on a coin flip. Was Cloud's resistance enough to save this Sephiroth from his terrible fate? Or does Jenova win, and her son carries out her planet destroying dream?

Based on the prompt by @im-totally-not-an-alien

Please Enjoy!

Chapter 25: Mother and J-E-N-O-V-A

Home. Finally home. Cloud let out an almost silent breath of relief as Zangan opened the doors to the back of the buggy. They could already hear the sound of stray dogs in the square, running and chasing each other for the bit of fun they made a day. All five of the passengers left the vehicle, standing just outside on the dirt road. It felt odd, being home after all this time. Through some…weird scenario, he did it. He made SOLDIER. He held his head a little higher than he did before, and then he looked up to the water tower. The promise. He hoped he could keep it. Although he also hoped he never needed to.

While Cloud was lost in thought, the two Firsts leaned against the back of the buggy like they were waiting. The creature in the tank was still inside the vehicle.

“Do you want some help?” Cloud asked the two Firsts hesitantly.

Genesis scoffed, but Angeal answered. “We’re waiting for the other buggy. Both drivers will keep onlookers away when we move the creature into the Shinra Mansion.”

“What’s the plan afterward?”

“If it will help you sleep tonight,” Genesis started. “We leave it in the mansion, feed it, and head up the mountain in two hours.”

“Although,” Angeal cut in, “It is highly recommended we leave first thing tomorrow morning to maximize daylight and minimize the chances of getting stuck in the mountains.”

The red head gave a short wave of his hand, but it seemed like he was considering the recommendation.

“Well,” Cloud mumbled, “If that’s the case…”

“Permission to explore the town: granted. Meet back in two hours and we’ll decide whether or not to head up.”

“Thank you, Sirs.” The boy practically ran to his old home, and the girl followed. Zangan was apparently long gone, already inside the inn to pay for a room.

Now it was just the two Firsts, leaning against the vehicle with the creature.

“Promise… Reunion…” It mumbled at nearly a whisper, its hands on its shoulders as it curled in on itself in a fetal-like position for a creature of its size.

“Are we sure it’s a good idea to take those kids?” Angeal asked a question they were both thinking first.

Genesis took a breath with a slightly raised brow. “That girl is already the most trained person in this town. She can handle being our guide.”

Now Angeal scoffed. “Because she trained under you?”

“Oh, I would love to take the credit, you absolutely know that,” He joked. “But no, Zangan taught her well, considering she snuck away from me.”

He laughed for a bit then sighed. “Yeah, that sucked for all of us.”

Genesis chuckled, then returned to his neutral expression. “For now, after we get the creature inside, let’s explore the mansion. Since it’s the only thing Sephiroth managed to get out of this deal.”

“‘Any information we find’,” Angeal repeated. “What does he think we’ll find here?”

“R&D’s dark secrets, of course.”

Another soft chuckle. “Then let’s hope for something good. Or at least something we can use.”

“Agreed. Let’s comb that mansion top to bottom, and learn everything we can if we can't leave until tomorrow morning.”

* * *

Come to me.

They were so close. Despite the massive number of monsters that somehow survived in such jagged and perilous mountains, despite how many battles they initiated in order to keep moving without transportation, the lake of the waterfall was below them. They were gliding along the final rock formation to the sparkling blue liquid. They were finally here.

My son, come to me.

He was so close. They were here. All they had to do was keep their balance and graze across the final cliff to the waterfall.

“Do you see anything!?” Zack yelled from behind over the vehement thunder of the gushing water ahead.

Come to my reunion.

He shook his head, but as he got closer, he noticed a dark entrance to what may be a cave. The creature was right. Sephiroth raised his hand to where Zack see it and signaled towards himself.

Zack didn’t need further instruction and hopped across the deposits to the silver general. Then they both made their way to the entrance of the cavern. He looked to his mentor, and saw the dark bags under his eyes. “Are you okay?”

Sephiroth shook his head again.

My son.

“It’s loud,” was the only explanation he gave as he held his head in his right hand.

“Should we take a break?”

“No.” He gave his apprentice a determined look, his inhuman eyes fierce with resolve. “We’re here. Let’s do this.”

“Are you sure?” He questioned with concern. “If you’re hearing it again-”

“This may be the only way to make it stop,” He spat, though he did not intend for the razor edge he spoke with.

“...Let’s hope you made the right choice…” The dark haired boy mumbled softly before they both turned to the entrance, and went in.

When they walked inside, they expected darkness, and they both had fire materia in hand for either light or an ambush if attacked, or both. What they did not expect was the myriad of crystals which guided their way deeper into the cavern with soft blue and white radiance. Columns formed by the connection of stalactites and stalagmites littered the ground and ceilings with curves and concave structures. But at the middle of it all, was an array of white crystals with the shadow of a woman projecting through it, and water around the array as if marking her place as the centerpiece of the cavern.

Come to me.

Sephiroth took a step toward the cluster of crystals slowly, his blue, cat-like eyes wide with…hope. As he got closer, he could make out more details of the woman: her long brown hair with spiked bangs like his own, the large ponytail she kept it in, the blue skirt and blouse she wore under her white lab coat, coats that had caused him so much pain before. Despite the peaceful surroundings within this hidden beauty, her sleep calmed face was full of silent sadness. The rest of her body didn’t show it, her face mirrored anything except peace in her mind.

Yet delicately, Sephiroth lifted a hand to the crystals after walking through the shallow water, studying the face within as his hand touched the formation. Was this really her? With every fiber of his being, he wanted it to be.

“Mother…?”

The crystals cracked. Both SOLDIERs stepped back, out of the ring of water protecting the woman. Then it cracked again. And again. And again. Until the crystals glowed with a blinding light, and shattered. The only thing left in the shimmering wake of reflective fragments was the woman inside, who was completely unharmed.

They watched in silence to allow her a little time to get her bearings, and her brown eyes opened as if from a deep sleep, her body continuing to stand balanced in the heels she was encased with. As her sight cleared, her eyes widened in terror and recognition, and she held her hands to her chest.

“Who are you?” She questioned, the general flinching at the high pitch voice, so quickly that neither one of them had a chance to respond. It wasn't the voice in his head. “You can’t be who I think you are,” She stated, staring at the silver haired man. “You would never be able to find me here.”

“...Who do you think I am?” He asked softly, carefully, as he refused to let his body take a step forward, a step towards the woman he prayed was his mother.

“My son…” Her tone was sad, not a hint of joy to be found if this first instinct was correct. “What is your name?”

“Sephiroth.”

They could see her heart break in her eyes. “What's your full name?” She repeated desperately.

What is she trying to test?

“Just...Sephiroth,” He answered honestly, and then his eyes met hers. He had to ask. He had to be sure, even with the hesitation clawing at his throat. “Are you...Jenova?”

Her hands clenched. Her entire body clenched in anger. “How do you know that name?”

His gaze went straight down. Was he wrong? “It’s the only thing I know of my mother…”

“Who told you that?” She questioned with a cracking voice. Was she about to cry? “Who told you that monster was your mother?”

“Monster?” Both of the SOLDIERs parroted.

“Who told you?” She repeated.

Sephiroth looked down at his gloved hands with his inhuman eyes. “...am I…-”

“The scientists at Shinra told him,” Zack answered the woman, as well as cut off his mentor’s dark train of thought.

She turned her head away as expected betrayal washed through her. “Hojo… that bastard…” She was shaking her head and holding it in her hands. “Was everything not enough for him...?”

Zack tried to be his mentor's voice as he asked what he assumed Sephiroth was thinking, “How do you know Hojo-”

“Do you really not know who I am, Sephiroth?!” She begged. “He told you that…thing, was your mother!?”

“What are you talking about…?” The silver general questioned without a hint on animosity, only the sad calm of a leaf drifting on a puddle of still water.

“What do you know about your mother?” The woman countered.

“She died giving birth to me,” though the creature already told me that was a lie. “And her name was Jenova...”

Her eyes were locked on him and her head slowly shook from side to side. “That’s not true. None of it is true.”

Sephiroth didn't speak, but the look in his eyes begged one question: what is the truth?

She took a breath, a deep one, as if she both never planned for this explanation or she spent so much time preparing and still did not know how to answer. “When I was in the Shinra Science Division, I was a part of the Jenova Project.”

Both of their eyes went wide.

“I was so devoted that I offered my unborn child to the project.” She continued with sorrow. “My child was injected with Jenova cells while in the embryonic stage, to see if the result would be a human-Cetra hybrid. And when delivery finally came...” She looked at him with tears pooled in her eyes. “They didn’t let me hold you. They didn’t let me see you. No matter how much I begged. I tried to…” She shook her head to hide the explanation, “But the Jenova cells in me wouldn’t let me die...”

“...What is Jenova…?” Sephiroth asked with the same tone as when he questioned the creature before seeing the drawing of Black Materia.

“Jenova was a corpse they found in the Northern Crater and believed to be an Ancient,” She shook her head softly. “It wasn’t an Ancient. No one knew what it was… But Shinra was so determined to find the Promised Land they gave every unethical experiment the okay and massive funding. None of my extreme pregnancy problems convinced them to stop. Those damn cells...”

Sephiroth was shaking his head as he tried to understand and found his hands on his eyes as he was trapped in thought. Zack tried to help him with a hand on his back and his arm, but Sephiroth pushed him back.

“Then what the hell was she?” He questioned suddenly, his tense open palms at his side. “She wasn’t an Ancient, then what was she?”

The brown haired woman gasped, and waited as she arranged her thoughts. “No.” she shook her head and took a step back. “Gods, no, if I tell you...”

He didn’t get a moment to respond when she continued in panic.

“I got these visions,” She got them too? “when I was pregnant, and they were all of you. Exactly as you look right now. Doing horrible. Horrible things… to people-”

Zack grabbed his mentor's arms and stood in front of him to act as a ground to the real world, as Sephiroth's sight clouded to another vision.

This time you won’t forget.

He felt a mass break out of his shoulder, and he launched the blonde man on the end of his blade into the air. With one jump and a flap of a wing, he soared to the human Cloud, and after two blows, stabbed him eight times on the end of his sword, enjoying every injury with ecstasy. The same locations as the stigma creature’s glowing wounds.

“To places-”

He saw all the flames. He felt the betrayal and rage. Not a single body in sight moved. Either stab wounds of drying blood, slices of leaking red, or burning the soulless bodies. None of them moved. He needed to do this.

“Did you do it yet?” She questioned in misery. “That village, did you destroy it yet?”

He took a step back as his sight returned to reality. He looked at Zack in dread, but the younger SOLDIER shook his head. Thank Gods, he didn’t do anything during the vision. And Zack let him go and returned to his side.

“I saw you. Looking exactly like you do now. Standing in a fire.” And he got the same message. “With anger. Violence. Utter betrayal.”

“Unforgiving malice���” Sephiroth finished her description.

“...did you just see it?” The woman asked. “Did you see what you will do?”

His hands were shaking. “I’ve seen so many…”

“Visions of a terrible fate?”

“...Are you truly my mother…?” he barely noticed the words leave his lips.

There was regret on her face. “I birthed you, but I can’t call myself your mother...”

“Please… try...”

She shook her head. “You deserve better than me...”

His heart pounded in his ears at the weight of her words. He would never have a mother, would he?

“And I know it is selfish of me to ask,” She began walking towards him, and he took a step back for every three she took forward.

He didn't want any more pain. This emotional, gripping, intangible wound in his chest which grew with each step.

Her arms wrapped around him and pulled him close. Her head was turned against his chest because of her smaller stature. He was frozen in her grasp, but she did not release him from her hug.

He wanted to reach for her in return, but her words…

“I need you to leave...”

Leave…?

Come to me.

“You need to leave this cavern and never return. You need to leave the planet. You can never see me again…”

Planet…?

Come to my reunion.

“You cannot die here without tainting the lifestream with Jenova cells…”

My son.

“You have to leave… You have to live until you can leave this planet...”

And one day we’ll find a new planet, and on its soil we’ll create a shining future.

“You must die on another world, for all of our sakes…”

You will not die on this planet.

You will rule it, my son.

The woman let go as he never returned the hug. “I know it’s selfish, but you must leave… I’ll be in this cavern, for the rest of time, alone… As punishment for what I did to you...”

My son. Come to me.

None of them spoke. It was silent for an eternity. Zack was trying to read Sephiroth, but all he could tell was that the general was the source of the dark aura enveloping the cavern. The woman had backed slowly into the remains of the crystal she slept in, but she couldn’t read the general either.

Silence.

…

“...I understand everything now,” Sephiroth finally spoke, and Gods the lack of emotion carried an edge that could cut the world itself in half.

“Sephiroth,” Zack called with a warning. He couldn’t see Sephiroth’s face or eyes through his silver bangs.

“We’re going to Nibelhiem. We’re done here.”

“No!” The woman yelled as he was already turning away. “You don’t know what’s there!”

“You asked me to leave,” He spat, no ounce of the innocence he carried earlier remained in his voice. “You asked me to die, because I’m your mistake.”

“I never said that! Sephiroth!”

Sephiroth turned to Zack. “We’re going to Nibelhiem. Now. Any objections?”

Despite the continued pleas from the woman, Zack couldn’t think of a way to fix the situation from within this cavern. Maybe his mentor just needed time. A lot of history unloaded like that would hurt anyone. It would take at least six hours to get to Nibelhiem. Maybe the other Firsts would have some ideas, because he was completely out of them. He knew it was the wrong decision to leave, but he couldn't trap him here without explanation. Sephiroth made every decision with logic, and if there was no logical reason to be here, it was time to go. He nodded, and they left the cave, but the moment they were outside, he asked, “Sephiroth, are you sure you’re okay?”

The ice cold tone in the response silenced the apprentice for the rest of the trip.

“Never, been better, Zack.”

Come to my reunion.

I am.

* * *

At the bottom of Shinra manor, in the hidden underground laboratory, sat the two Firsts designated for the mission. Both of them had a hand to their heads in frustration, fear, concern, and confusion. The bookshelves were empty, their namesakes on the ground in both cared for and scattered piles. Between the two of them, every page was read or at least skimmed. It was far too late to travel the mountain for the reactor. But that was the farthest thing on their mind.

“...Do we tell him?” Angeal broke the silence first.

Genesis wanted to deny it, claiming they couldn’t tell if these pages actually spoke of their friend, but he knew that was a lie. It couldn’t be anyone else. “What would we tell him?”

They both silenced.

“He’ll be here soon,” The redhead reminded. “We can’t pretend we don’t know.”

“He probably found something in the waterfall, that’s what the cadets told us. But he wouldn’t tell them anything else.”

“Yes. I was here for the report too, you know.” Genesis scoffed softly, trying to maintain his usual attitude about things. “We won’t know how to tell him until we know what he’s learned.”

“...Those visions make him lose control,” Angeal spoke with calm resolve. “If he does anything here, we have to take him down. Agreed?”

The redhead wanted to nod, but he didn’t. “Is it kill on sight?” He questioned with regret. He wanted to be the new hero, but if it ever came to that… not like that.

Angeal shook his head. “We have to give him a chance. He’s bounced back before. Let’s hope he bounces back again.”

Suddenly they heard rushing footsteps down the wooden spiral staircase. Someone was coming. They both kept their mouths shut until the door opened and the spikey blonde Second-in-training pushed the door open.

“Sephiroth will be here in five minutes,” Cloud explained. “R&Ds orders are to meet them at the entrance right now.”

Both SOLDIERs stood at attention and began walking toward him.

“What’s wrong?” Angeal asked first.

He hesitated. “Something’s… off. I just have a bad feeling about this,” He spoke as he lightly shook his head. “Do you know what happened at the waterfall?”

“Nothing more than you do. Let’s go.”

That instruction was all they needed as they all moved through the laboratory, the staircase, through the room they left the creature in as it continued its possessed groaning and mumbling. It never tried to leave the tank. It just kept speaking about Reunion and Mother. Nothing new. The poor cadets in charge of guarding it must be ready to lose their minds. But that was just a passing thought. They passed by the creature, then they finally left the mansion through the main hall.

Outside, the team had finally arrived. The Firsts met up with them at the base of the water tower.

“We’re going to the reactor,” Sephiroth spoke mindlessly with cold eyes.

“Hell no,” Angeal was the first to deny him. “Those mountains are too dangerous after dark.”

“Then don’t come,” The general spat. “But don’t stop me.”

“What happened at the waterfall, Sephiroth?” Genesis questioned.

“Everything.”

Suddenly a screech roared above them, and a dark green Nibel dragon flew above the town. Before any of them could react, it opened its destructive breath and set Shinra Manor on fire.

Sephiroth was the first to draw his sword, the rest of them focused on stopping the spread of the flames.

“The creature’s still inside!” Human Cloud yelled in panic.

They had to switch focus on the mansion first. The stigma without a cure was far more deadly than a late night fire in a backwater village, and townsfolk already rushed to the remaining homes to get people out. Thankfully, when the SOLDIERs finally put out the mansion fire, the creature and the two cadets were okay. The fire had spread across the path leading to the mountains and the first home on across the way, but everywhere else was safe. Then they realized the general was missing.

Sephiroth was on the other side of the fire, staring back at them, but something was wrong. They could see it in his eyes. They were cold, unforgiving… maliciously determined. The dragon was dead, but he didn’t join his old comrades. He turned away with his deadly sword suspended behind him as he walked into the darkness.

They didn’t matter. They would be fine. He ignored their calls, their yells for him to return. He needed to do this. Though he had never traveled these mountains, he maneuvered them like an expert. He followed the pull in his chest, the call in his head. She was waiting. He would find her. No more distractions. No more secrets. She would show him the truth. She had showed him the truth. But he needed more. He needed it all. Every vision. Every memory. All of it. He was on autopilot as he followed the feeling, no monsters daring to attack as he continued mindlessly. She wanted him. She wouldn’t push him away.

He entered the reactor like he had dozens of reactors before this. He slid his way down the remainder of a ladder, and stalked into a room full of pods. But he didn’t care, as he saw the marque at the top of his stairs with her name inscribed above a sealed door.

“Sephiroth!” He heard his apprentice yell from the bottom of the stairs, and only then did he acknowledge the other footsteps and voices behind him.

“...Let me do this,” He spoke softly.

“What are you doing!?”

“I’m going to see…my mother.”

Boom! The room filled with a blaring light, then smoke and debris. When the cloud finally cleared, Sephiroth was gone, and so was the sealed doorway at the stairs.

“Do we try to save him?” Angeal asked without thinking as he ran in with Genesis.

“We do whatever we can to save him,” Zack answered, and all three of the Firsts ran ahead.

The room was dark, and they could only see the platform they were standing on, and a pipe leading to some kind of winged metal doll, with Sephiroth standing in front of it, facing away from them.

“All my life I’ve felt different,” His deep voice echoed through the dark room, “like I’ve never had a purpose.” He grabbed the sides of the doll, “But now-” He tore the metal in half, the eyes of the doll leaking some kind of oil as he tossed it aside. “Now I know what I must do.” The lights began to brighten, and they could see a large tube full of some kind of liquid with something inside. “What we must do.”

His blue inhuman eyes met the creature inside as he reached forward. Her blue skin didn't concern him. Neither did the heart she rested on or umbilical cord from her stomach. The severed wings on her back. None of it bothered him as he read the nameplate: J-E-N-O-V-A. That was the only thing that mattered. It was her.

“Mother.”

I remember everything now. Everything.

“SEPHIROTH!” Zack was the first to yell, and he slightly turned his head in the direction of his apprentice.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Genesis called next.

“Have you completely lost your mind?!” Angeal questioned.

He could take them all down. There’d be somewhat of a struggle, but he would win without a doubt. This wasn’t just Zack, like it was in his memories. He made mistakes last time. He wouldn’t this time.

“...Mother and I, are creating a new world,” He spoke without emotion, without turning. “And no one will get in our way.”

Then there was a crash followed by the sound of rushing water and the tinkling of glass. Zack ran forward first, but he was too late.

Sephiroth had destroyed the tube and severed all connections the body had with the machinery around it in two slashes. Then he held his mother in his arms as it fell from the lack of support, and jumped into the lifestream below.

They only heard the splash when he hit the mako. All three of them stood there in shock. The greatest warrior at Shinra just committed suicide into the lifestream with an alien corpse.

* * *

Come.

That was the only command Cloud needed to finally break out of his tank and escape the mansion. No one was able to stop him as he slithered his way through the halls, through the town, through the roads, and past the plain that led him back to the ocean. Where all of this started.

For years, that was the last known report of the creature or Sephiroth. Without a trail of ink, they couldn’t find the creature in any ocean, and Sephiroth was labeled ‘killed in action’ on the official report. All of the firsts that saw what happened had a feeling this wasn’t over, but no one believed them, blaming the results on shock and grief.

No one worried, until a giant Meteor was spotted in the sky, and no man made weapon could destroy it.

He was so close to victory, all thanks to his favorite puppet from his memories. He didn’t need clones as he did before, every life infected with geostigma was a host he could control. Every attempted cure resulted in the same side effect no matter the result: eyes like his. It’s how he got the keystone. It didn’t take many lives to get the Black Materia on his own. He didn't bother with killing the Cetra. She couldn't travel the world on her own, but as a precaution, a few of his infected kept her within the slums of Midgar. He’d nearly won, but what was he going to do with the creature, Cloud? He could torture him more, but he’d already suffered enough, and this time he did his job so well, no matter how much he fought it. No, his torture was over. It was time for a reward.

Cloud existed in a state of constant calm, his thoughts much slower and much softer as he looked above at the red ball in the sky. He felt warm, completed, whole. That primal instinct to be close to his master never dissipated, but he would gladly wait in rocking tides for his body to be replenished at the Northern Crater. He stared up at Meteor with hope, not despair, though the moving water, his purple limbs bobbing as they always had in its wake. His sight was completely clear as no more ink clouds formed around him.

Sephiroth…

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The End.

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Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed!

#ff7 #final fantasy vii #cloud strife #sephiroth #zack fair #ffvii #jenova #final fantasy 7 #I hope you all enjoyed my first fan fiction #i started this chapter with a solid plan but then i had more ideas and kept going #look they changed lucrecia’s design in dirge of cerberus but ill be honest i though the lab coat fit a lot better than the white dress #I will gladly write a second ending #i have the entire thing planned out for both scenarios so just tell me if you want it #if not #enjoy your psychotically broken Sephiroth #also this was Not intentional but I think I can make a sequel to this #but focus on the remaining degrading Firsts trying to take down sephiroth #was not part of the plan but could be now #writing do be like this sometimes #and yes I totally stole the jenova lines from the abridged series but that series sent so many more chills down my spine dont judge me #holy god I wrote a lot of hashtags for this one but its the last one so im only a little sorry #this was a lot of fun!!! #also I have a headache because this chapter got Weird #expected though #this was a lot of fun so look forward to more! #possible … to be continued? #thank you so much for reading! #ink clouds

[aimeelouart]

I'm glad that you went the "who... the fuck... are you?" Route bc I genuinely thought you were going to go the Cloud wakes up possessed by Jenova & stabs Gen. Gen pulls himself along Cloud's blade, calling his name tenderly, stoking his face as he finally reaches the hilt telling him "You're my pupil Cloud... and my friend. I know you're strong enough to overcome this" and there's this flicker of recognition, but Cloud is so horrified by what his body has done, that he dissociates, and essentially ends up as two consciousnesses in one. One thats trying to track down the monster that killed his mentor, and one that's trying to resurrect/enslave Sephiroth & bring about Calamity route

Ouch! That's incredibly painful and I love it. I'm going more for the "torment Genesis (and Angeal by extension)" route here. What's worse than finally finding your son apprentice, only for him to a) not remember you b) have been turned into something...not quite human?

#is this an excuse for feral-feral Cloud? #you bet your buns! #ask #story asks #written reply

[jenovasangeal]

{Jenova} The Calamity leaves a covered crate on Angeal's doorstep with a note. "Train him well, my son.

At first, the man was perplexed. What could the note possibly have meant by ‘train him well’? Then, came the scratching from inside the crate, prompting Angeal to pry open the lid carefully...

“A behemoth pup?” Confusion and amusement were both evident on his face. He knew he wasn’t keeping training one of these a secret, but he hadn’t planned on starting from scratch with a pup. He’d have to track down Jenova and thank her for the gift. Then again, he knew she wouldn’t be hard to find.

#Answered #mythosdysmorphia #Message in a Bottle