After The Storm

[06.12.00] » by Vincent Alexander

When he woke up, Cloud was sore beyond his own belief. He slowly lifted himself off of the metal flooring. He could feel the blood that had dried on his face. Ouch, he thought, remind me never to go flying with Cid when he's not sober! Cloud took a moment to glance around the bridge of the Highwind. Much to his expectations, he seemed to have been the first to arisen. Cid lay sprawled across the deck near the aft end of the bridge. Yuffie and Vincent, too, were on the ground near the back. Red XIII was lying slightly bloodied just to the side of one of the control centers. The mechanical Cait Sith, however, had been knocked from his mog perch and had snapped in half upon the plated decking. Some of his metal innards had rolled towards the observation window. Barret and Tifa were both within three feet of Cloud, who had fallen near the railing in front of the main observation port. Barret was snoring lightly. Cloud ran a quick check: everyone was breathing, except, of course, Cait Sith (who may have never been breathing in the first place). None of the others seemed wounded badly, although Red XIII seemed a little beaten up and, well, you could just never tell with Vincent.

Only after assuring himself of his friends' health, did Cloud take a few minutes to assess his situation. I guess that in itself is proof of how far I've come, Cloud thought, So much for the uncaring ex-SOLDIER. Not that I was ever in SOLDIER. Cloud glanced around the bridge of the Highwind and was astonished at the amount of damage the airship had taken. Broken glass lay everywhere, wires hung from the behind panels usually closed, and lights that had glowed steady in the past now flickered weakly. A frown crept across Cloud's features.

"What the hell happened he--" In a sudden flash the events of the night before bubbled to the surface of Cloud's mind. The unholy Meteor, holding itself together with what could only be described as the ultimate apocalypse magic.The blue flare of Holy, compounding the damage being wrought by the energy radiated from the massive sphere. The invasion of the lifestream, the bright flash as lifestream overwhelmed Meteor, and the world. That purifying light; was he mistaken, or had he really seen Aeris's face in it? The sudden pitch of the Highwind as it was thrashed about in the turbulence of Lifestream. The memories were too much. He collapsed, holding his abdomen, afraid of heaving up the contents of his stomach onto the deck of Cid's airship.

Not that it's much of an airship anymore, Cloud thought. He regained his composure and stood up. The glass from the frontal observation port was missing in its entirety, leaving Cloud with unrestricted access to the outside world. He stepped onto the loose soil that had been plowed up in the wake of the airship's crash. Walking ten meters from the craft, he looked back and was shocked by the appearance of the ship.

There's even less left than I expected, Cloud thought. The craft barely resembled the original dirigible. Over three quarters of it was missing. Having instead gone for a look similar to the Gelinkas, the Highwind had sprouted wings. Cloud just shook his head.

"It's all over," Cloud whispered to himself.

"And for the better, I might add," came a jovially light voice from behind Cloud. Cloud turned to face a man in a tee-shirt and khaki shorts. He had medium length black hair with a thin beard and mustache. Walking hand-in-hand with him was Marlene, a look of pure fascination on her face. Cloud looked over their shoulders in the direction they had come and could see the high walls of Kalm.

"Sephiroth is dead," the man continued, "the danger to the world has been averted, the people of Midgar are safe, more or less, and those who delivered us from danger are safe." Concern flashed across the man's face. "They are safe, aren't they, Cloud?"

"Reeve," Cloud replied. "Yeah...they're all okay. I think, anyway. They're all onboard the Highwind." Cloud walked over to Reeve and offered his hand. "Thanks Reeve. You came through for us there in the end. It was wonderful having you along." Reeve smiled.

"You're gonna have to fill me in on the whole story," Reeve said as he took Cloud's hand. "I lost the transmission just as that life stream hit."

"No prob---"

"Daddy!!!" cried Marlene as she broke into a run for the Highwind. Cloud turned and watched the burly Barret gingerly pick his way down from the obsevation deck to the soil. He grasped Marlene and hugged her. For once she didn't even complain about the inherent roughness of Barret's face.

Cloud turned back to Reeve with a smile. Reeve's smile slowly faded as he locked eyes with Cloud. Cloud frowned, picking up on Reeve's worry.

"What's the matter, Reeve?" he asked.

"Have you looked into a mirror lately?" Reeve asked.

"In the past twenty-four hours, no," Cloud replied, "I've been a tad busy."

"It's all gone, Cloud," Reeve whispered.

"What's all gone, Reeve?" Cloud asked, urgently. "Midgar? The slums? The people?" Reeves shook his head.

"Mako," he answered.

Cloud looked down at his armlet, and was surprised to see his Materia missing.

"It's all gone, Cloud," Reeve repeated. "I think that stream sucked the planet dry..."

"That doesn't make sense," Cloud replied. "We wouldn't be here if it were all gone. All of the life forms would have dried up."

"I know, Cloud," Reeve continued in hushed tones. "But all of the machines stopped. Everything; the reactors, the cars, my remote control for the CS unit, even the Highwind. People are abandoning the city in droves."

"But that just doesn't make sense!" Cloud said angrily.

"Yo, Cloud!" Barret called. "Whatchu foo's talkin' 'bout so hush-hush over there?" But his consternation vanished with another glance at his daughter, who he lifted onto his shoulder before walking over. "Hey! I think Cid needs to rename this piece o' junk the 'Lowwind!' What's ya' think?"

Cloud smiled as the large man approached.

"Hey! Ya' know wha--- whoa Cloud, your eyes," Barret said. Cloud frowned. "Well they ain't got that glow-boy look goin' on no more." Cloud turned to Reeve.

"My eyes have lost the SOLDIER tint?" he asked. Reeve nodded. Cloud looked at the ground.

"You know, she's here," Marlene whispered.

"Who?" Cloud asked.

"The flower-girl," Marlene answered, her eyes glistening.

"Aeris?" Cloud asked.

"Yes, Aeris," came a voice from behind. A coldly familiar voice. Cloud turned to see a man with short silver hair and bright blue eyes in the habit of a priest beside a man with similar colored, long hair and a long, black cape. Sephiroth.

"Yo!" Barret shouted, "I thought we capped yo' skinny, alien-f@#%(@#$ ass!"

Sephiroth simply smiled.

Cloud reached for a sword that was noticeably absent.

"Aw, shit, Cloud." Cloud looked at Barret, who was holding up his hand. The hand that shouldn't have been there. And we just noticed it? Cloud wondered.

"Your weapons were removed when we brought you here," the robed boy said. "As were your life-draining machines and stolen knowledge."

"By knowledge you mean materia, right?" Cloud asked.

"Yes," the boy answered.

"And you cleansed me of mako exposure and Jenova cells?" Cloud asked.

"Yes," the boy repeated.

"So where are we?" Reeve asked.

"You are now in a world completely contained within Lifestream."

"The promised land," Cloud whispered.

The boy smiled.

"That is what some have called it, yes."

"So that means we're all dead?" Barret asked.

"We would never die, daddy," Marlene whispered. "We all live forever."

"Wise beyond her years," the boy said. "And no, you are not dead, you have just been moved into a seperate plane of existence."

"The entire planet?" Barret asked.

"Alas, no," Sephiroth replied. "The promised land is finite. We only saved the continents. The oceans were destroyed by Meteor."

"And why's this foo' here?" Barret asked. "Talkin' all big."

"I think you know the answer to that, Cloud," the robed boy said to Cloud.

"They reclaimed him," Cloud answered. "They purified the evil from his soul."

"But that bastard tried to take out the whole planet!" Barret said angrily.

"All according to our plan," the boy said.

"I was the puppet all along," Sephiroth said to Cloud.

"So are Wedge and Biggs and Jessie here, too?" Barret asked. The boy nodded. "And Dyne and---"

"Yes," the boy answered. "All of those who died at Corel are here."

"But I thought that when people die, their souls dissipate to form new souls," Cloud said.

"Their life energy does," the boy answered. "Their actual souls... their personalities is a better word, come here."

"So are they at Corel?" Barret asked.

"No, Barret," the boy answered. "What is left for them at Corel? They are here at the promised land, just not on the mega continent that was your world."

"And my mother?" Cloud asked. The boy nodded. "And my... father?"

Both Sephiroth and the boy looked down at the ground.

"This may be a little difficult for you to hear, Cloud," Sephiroth said. Cloud nodded grimly.

"You see, Cloud," the boy stated, "you are the illegitimate son of Mayor Lockheart of Nibelheim."

Cloud's jaw dropped.

"I'm Tifa's... brother..." Cloud stuttered.

"Half-brother, yes," Sephiroth answered.

"That's a new one," Barret said. He blew a thin breath through his lips.

"No wonder Dad always tried to keep us apart," came a feminine voice. The group turned in unison to face Tifa. She smiled at Cloud and then hugged him.

"Oh!" the robed boy interjected. "I haven't properly introduced myself, have I? You have met me before, though I doubt you would remember me. I was one of the spirits who helped guide you through the temple of the ancients. My name is Liamlee."

Cloud nodded to him.

Yuffie stood on her tiptoes and whispered into Cloud's ear: "Hey, the Ancient's kinda cute." Cloud laughed. He turned and saw that the rest of the group had congregated outside. Vincent had a strange look in his eyes; they were brown, not red. But the smile on his face was almost as foreign. Red XIII was limping rather badly.

"You okay, Nanaki?" Cloud asked.

"Don't worry about me, Cloud, I've already out lived you." Cloud smiled.

"Are you saying I won't reach my forty-eighth birthday?" he asked.

"Not after you find out that you can't be with Aeris until your physical body dies." Cloud froze. He slowly turned to Liamlee.

"Is that true?" Cloud asked.

"Yes," Liamlee answered. "You will not be able to interact with those whose bodies are dead until yours die."

The smile vanished from Vincent's face.

"Is Lucrecia's body... alive?"

"No," Liamlee answered. "She had returned to Midgar when the end came, and was in the sixty-eight floor of the Shinra building. She, as well as those you knew as Reno, Rude, and Elena were all lost." Vincent drew the silver rifle from his belt. He turned to Cloud.

"You first?" he asked.

"How did you...?" Cid asked.

"It was forged by the ancients during the battle against the terror from the skies," Liamlee answered. "As such we didn't catch it."

"Yeah," Cloud answered. "I'll go first. You coming?" he asked Barret.

"You crazy?" Barret asked. "I got a daughter to raise. I'm in a hurry to see them all, but they can wait the fifty years I have left."

"What about you?" Vincent asked Tifa.

"I have nothing to leave for," she answered. "But I will miss you both. I'll see you on the other side. Go find her, brother."

Cloud took the gun.

"Hold on, now!" Barret cried. "We got kiddies in the house. You two go do that in private."

"Get a room," Cid said, laughing at his own joke.

Cloud smiled and walked over to Barret. Then he threw his arms around the man.

"Bye, Barret," he whispered. "Good-bye, Marlene," he said. Marlene waved.

"Aw, shucks now," Barret said. "Get yo' spikey hands off of me!"

Cloud walked over to Reeve and shook his hand. Then he crossed to Tifa and kissed her on the lips. She smiled as he pulled back. He then knelt and kissed Red XIII on the forehead. He stood and shook Cid's hand. Then he roughed Yuffie's hair.

"Hey! Don't I get a kiss?" she groaned. Cloud just smiled.

Vincent had already walked over to the Highwind.

"Bye Vinny!!!" Yuffie cried out.

He turned and smiled.

"You always were my favorite," he called. The shock on Yuffie's face was priceless.

Cloud jogged to catch up with Vincent. They entered the Highwind and went below decks. Vincent seemed preoccupied with his newly repaired hand.

"Finally corrected, Cloud," he spoke, his dark monotone still present without his bizarre implants, "and we're not even taking time to enjoy it."

"At least we know," Cloud said. "Not everyone has ever had that privilege."

"Perhaps," replied the dark man.

"Knowing kinda takes the thrill out of it," Cloud said as he placed the gun to his temple.

"Nothing is certain, Cloud," Vincent replied.

"I'll see you on the flip side, then," Cloud answered. He pulled the trigger.

She was waiting for him.

The End