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Description
The Phoenix Eye
Chapter 11
Those Who Fight Further

-- Midgar, The Evacuation Zone, A Short Time Earlier:

Cloud watched for a moment as Reeve and the Turks left for the helicopters before returning his attention to the problem at hand.  Jenova floated in the air before them, watching them with patience… not the patience of the kind-hearted or the wise, but rather the uncaring patience of those to whom time is an infinite luxury.

“Ok, here’s the game plan.” Cloud said quietly to those around him.  “Keep up a constant stream of attacks, don’t give her time to breath, just tire her out.  And rotate fighters frequently, so everyone has a chance to rest and use healing magic.  No more than three fighters attacking at one time.  I don’t want us getting in each other’s way.  Barret, Tifa, and I will go first.”  Everyone present nodded in agreement, this was, after all, the same tried and true method they had used fighting Sephiroth.

Cloud Barret and Tifa advanced forward towards Jenova, while the rest of them formed a semi-circle formation a short distance behind.  Jenova smiled, and drifted down to meet them in front of the ruined reactor.  Silently her feet touched the ground, the trailing edges of her black wings sweeping the dust and rubble from the street, her protective energy shield remaining a perfect shimmering globe around her.  She was nearly as tall as Barret, though her frame was more slender than Cloud’s, giving her an almost skeletal appearance by comparison.

She opened her mouth and spoke.  And though her voice was soft, almost a whisper, each person heard it in perfect clarity, as if she had spoken it with her lips touching their ears.  “So you presume to fight me?”

Cloud answered.  “You are a threat to this planet and every living thing on it.  You give us no choice but to destroy you.”

“I, a threat to this planet?”  Jenova laughed.  “How can I threaten something which belongs to me?  …Which will soon become a part of me?  I destroy nothing!  All life will become part of me, as it is naturally meant to be, each consciousness joining me in a paradise beyond mortal imagination.  It is you who seek to destroy your god!”

“You waste your lies on us, Jenova!  We know what you are, and you are no god to us!” Cloud shouted back at the abomination before him.

“I was once.” Jenova said smiling to Cloud.  “There was a time when you headed my call.  And you could do so again.  Think of what I could give you.”

Cloud scowled low.  “There is nothing you could offer me that would make me betray my friends.”

“No?” Jenova said smiling.  “What about Sephiroth?  I could destroy his soul forever; you could have your ultimate vengeance by taking his place.  Claim everything he wanted to be.”

“No thank you.” Cloud replied sternly.

“If not him… what about her?” Jenova said pointing towards Tifa.  Cloud spun to face his wife, his eyes widening in alarm.  “I know what you have been dreading my child, it will happen just as you fear, unless you want me to do something about it…”

“Cloud don’t listen to her…” Tifa insisted.  “I am already yours, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”  Tifa tried to remain strong for Cloud, but she hadn’t understood what Jenova had offered, and something in her husband’s eyes told her that he hadn’t told her everything.  Jenova laughed again.

“That is what you want, right Cloud?  …To be with her forever.  I can do it you know.  I can make her just as immortal you are.  That is your greatest fear isn’t it, to remain young while she grows old and dies...”  Cloud looked to the ground in shame, as Tifa’s hand flew to her mouth, and tears flooded her eyes.  Why had he never told her?  “…Of course there will be no growing old and dying if you refuse my offer.  For none of you stand a chance of survival if you defy me.

Suddenly Cloud smiled and opened his eyes.  Tifa stopped crying as she recognized hope in her husband’s eyes.

“Jenova,” Cloud said carefully.  “You have never shown any charity or consideration for anyone before, even those who serve you.  You abandoned Sephiroth when he failed to defeat me.  You traded Kadaj like a pawn even though his only desire was to please you.  If fighting you is truly impossible, then why are you asking for my help?  Why try to bribe me unless you are afraid?”

Jenova was no longer smiling.  “Oh you of little faith.  If you will not serve the rightful god and ruler of all creation, then you will die.”

In a flash Jenova flew at Cloud, a blinding fire engulfing her naked form and extending from her hand like a weapon.  Faster than the blink of an eye, Cloud had First Tsurugi in his hand and blocked the thrust of Jenova’s attack.  As the flames faded from Jenova, she was now dressed in the deepest black armor, of a fashion never before seen.  In her right hand she held a black curved sword, longer than Cloud’s and nearly as wide, the blade of which was twisted and serrated in a diabolical design.

Jenova pressed her attack on Cloud.  And though his sword fighting abilities were superhuman, it took all his speed strength and skill not be overcome by the ferocity of the alien’s offensive.  In an instant Barret and Tifa sprang to Cloud’s aid.  Barret readied his cybernetic machine gun, and fired off burst shots at every clear moment in the fray.  Tifa, finding no way to get close, started casting spells to assist Cloud.

Jenova, however, was only just starting.  For while she was attacking Cloud viciously with the sword held in her right hand, she began to cast her own spells with her left hand.  Tifa barely dodged one magical attack which exploded the ruins behind her.  Barret, on the other hand, was hit square in the chest by a second eldritch blast killing him instantly.  Nanaki was on the spot in an instant and cast an advanced life spell to bring the gunman back to full functionality.

“We got your back spiky!” Cloud heard the familiar voice from behind him.  instinctively Cloud sprang back away from Jenova as Cid and Yuffie took his place in melee combat.  Cloud stopped right where he landed to catch his breath.  His eyes searched Jenova for any weakness in her defense.  Nearby, Tifa dodged another spell, and was replace by Cait Sith who began casting a summon.  Tifa quickly fell back to her husband’s side.

“She’s too fast.” Cloud said to his companion.  “…And she strikes with more force using one hand than I do with two!”

“None of my spells penetrated her energy shield.”  Tifa added.  “Come on Cloud… Think!  All enemies have a weakness.  What is she hiding?  What is she afraid of?”

Cait Sith finished his summon as Cid flew back dead.  Vincent caught the pilot in mid air with a life spell ready, and Shelke stepped into melee to prevent Yuffie from being overwhelmed.  Overhead, the summoned form of Bahamut prepared to unleash its fury on Jenova.  With a flick of her left hand Jenova summoned a creature of her own; bat-like and alien, with a tusked jaw and three pairs of talons.  The two behemoths collided in the air, and fell in a tangle of limbs and writhing magic.

Cloud got up and started approaching Jenova.  Taking First Tsurugi into his hands, he unlatched one of the fasteners and split it into two swords.  “My turn.” he yelled as he charged into combat.  Yuffie immediately withdrew, blood soaked and limping, though Shelke stayed in the fray.  Cloud quickly noticed that Shelke was actually fast enough to avoid most of Jenova’s attacks.

Though Cloud sacrificed parrying strength by using two swords and suffered several serious wounds because of it, between his two whirling blades and Shelke’s twin fighting knives on Jenova’s flank the two of them managed to get in a few hits on the hitherto untouched alien.  To Cloud’s disappointment, however, each of Jenova’s wounds began closing, even before the blade had finished slicing through the flesh.  Shelke began to tire, and Jenova took the opportunity to lay a power blow on Cloud striking deep through his color bone and rib cage.  While a normal man would have been killed by wound, Cloud merely staggered back, dropping one of his swords and using his arm to keep his chest intact.  Now facing Shelke alone, Jenova exploded a magical attack against the nimble fighter, crushing Shelke’s magical shield and killing her in a single blow.  No sooner was Jenova free of her melee attackers, however, than a loud roar was heard, and Jenova’s attention snapped upward to catch Vincent’s demon form Chaos descending in infernal fury.

Tifa rushed to her husband’s side, potion in hand, while Nanaki dashed for Shelke.  Another energy blast from Jenova, however, met Nanaki en-route, and killed him as well.

To Cloud’s surprise Tifa swore, a very rare occurrence for her, as she tossed Cloud the healing potion to administer to himself and began casting a spell.  Cloud downed the potion and felt the magic re-knitting his severed bones and flesh as Tifa finished summoning Phoenix, the magical construct in the image of the ancient god of new life.  Tifa began directing Phoenix to cast its life spell on those who had fallen, but Jenova countered the strategy with a summon of her own.  From Jenova’s hand sprang a massive fanged and tentacled beast, flying through the air towards the Phoenix summon.  Cid, however, met Jenova’s summon in mid air, and began attacking it with his spear, allowing Phoenix the time to restore Shelke and Nanaki.

Though Vincent’ demon form fought with great strength, even Chaos was forced to retreat after a time.  He was replaced by the combined forces of Tifa, Cid, and Cait Sith, trying to distract Jenova sufficiently to prevent her from casting her deadly magic.  The battle raged on.  Jenova caused many more injuries and deaths, which were countered by powerful potions, magics and phoenix downs.  But slowly, the fighters began to tire, and their supply of restorative items approached depletion, while Jenova regenerated all wounds almost instantly, and never once eased her pressing offensive.

Vincent walked over to where Cloud was resting, while other fighters took up the offensive.  “Are we beaten?” Cloud asked his friend without looking up.

“No.” the quiet gunman responded.  “I figured out how to break her defenses.”

Cloud stood up and faced Vincent with renewed hope.  “How?” he asked the gunman.

“I’ll need Yuffie.  And I’ll need you to distract her so she doesn’t catch wind of what I’m doing.”

Without another word Vincent left.  Cloud smiled to himself and hefted his sword, and with a fury he had not known since the battle started he threw himself again at Jenova.

Yuffie sprang back from Jenova as Cloud engaged in the fight. her breathing fast and hard.  She struggled to quickly consume a powerful healing potion, followed by an ether.  She felt more than sensed Vincent approaching behind her, but her ninja training told her it was not an enemy.

“We’re all going to die.  Aren’t we Vincent?” Yuffie asked without turning around.

“No.” he responded simply.

“Yes we are!” Yuffie argued.  “We can’t beat that thing and it’s all my fault!  If only I hadn’t been greedy and tried to keep the Phoenix Eye.  If only I had destroyed it like Nanaki had suggested.”  Yuffie clenched inwardly to keep from crying, but her eyes watered despite her efforts.

Vincent was silent for a moment.  “I’m not going to tell you it isn’t your fault.” he said quietly.  “I know little about such things.  But I do know that all of us were there, and none of us foresaw that touching the stone would complete the remnant’s spell.”  Yuffie settled her nerves and tried to listen to what Vincent was saying.  “Everyone here has made mistakes which we regret.” Vincent explained pointing to their teammates in various stages of combat.  “I let Sephiroth come into being when I knew it was wrong and might have stopped it.  Cloud let Jenova control him in giving the black materia to Sephiroth twice, and was unable to stop Sephiroth from killing Jenova.  Barret feels responsible for the destruction of the old Corel city… do I need to go on?”

“No.” Yuffie replied, her eyes on the ground.  “So what are we going to do?” she asked in hopelessness.

“Jenova still has the Phoenix Eye.” Vincent explained.  “She is using it to heal herself.  But if we can take it from her…”

Yuffie looked at the alien and wrinkled her brow in confusion.  “Where is she keeping it?”

“Behind her armor, on her chest.  I sensed it there while fighting her.  It is well beyond the reach of even the most nimble hands… unless of course those hands were using a certain materia which allows even unreachable objects to be removed.”

Yuffie stood up, her face beaming with cunning and delight.  “My Steal materia!” she whispered.  “Ok Vincent. How am I going to get close enough to use it?”

Vincent did not respond, but simply lifted the edge of his cloak to reveal the inside.

Yuffie watched him at first in puzzlement, but then the color drained from her face as she realized his implication.  “No!” she replied emphatically.  “No. no. no. no. no!  There is no way I’m doing that.”

“The only way you are going to get close enough without Jenova realizing you are there is if I hide you in the sub-dimension.”

“I can’t” Yuffie pleaded.  “You remember what Nero did to me?  I can’t go back in there!”

“Nero the Sable was trying to kill you.” Vincent stated flatly.  “I will protect you.”

“I can’t” Yuffie cringed away from Vincent.

“Are you merely a thief?”  Vincent demanded of her.  “Or are you a ninja of Wutai, heir to the Kisaragi name?”

Yuffie clenched her fists in rage and glared at Vincent, no longer trying to hide her tears.  “How dare you!”

“Few of us get a chance to correct our mistakes Yuffie.” Vincent explained softly.  “Can you do this… or do I go in alone.”

Yuffie slammed her eyes shut.  She knew Vincent was right.  She shouldn’t be mad at him, it was her own fear that angered her, her own self-doubt she needed to conquer.  She opened her eyes.  Vincent still stood before her, his cape drawn open to one side.  Yuffie took a deep breath and launched herself at Vincent, wrapping her arms viselike around his chest, her eyes squeezed shut against what she knew was coming.

Vincent drew his cloak quickly around the woman before him and began shifting halfway into one of his demon forms.  Gently he drew Yuffie into the subdimmension where he stored his own body when shifted.  As Yuffie slid into meta-existence Vincent could feel her begin to panic.  Vincent did his best to comfort the young ninja, his mind now communicating with hers directly.  And though Vincent had not had such calming thoughts himself in many years he somehow managed to convince Yuffie that she was safe.

“Prepare yourself, and watch for my signal.”  Vincent thought to her reassuringly.  Yuffie responded mentally in the affirmative while struggling to contain her discomfort.  Vincent rushed forward towards Jenova.  The less time Yuffie spent in the sub-dimension, he thought to himself, the more focused she would be on her task.  As Vincent closed the final distance he shifted partially into Gallian Beast, leaping into Jenova in a ferocious animalistic attack.

Cloud motioned the other fighters to back off, as he and Vincent engaged the abomination alone.  Vincent clawed and bit at Jenova relentlessly, while looking for the right moment but not wanting to let on about his plan.  Cloud pressed at Jenova’s other side, knowing that Vincent had something up his sleeve and trying to buy his friend the needed time.  The opening came.  Jenova launched a thrusting attack towards Vincent, but rather than dodge or parry, Vincent placed his left arm directly in the path of the blade.  Jenova’s sword pierced Vincent’s arm from elbow to palm, and continued forward through his rib cage, left lung, and out his back, splitting his shoulder blade in two.  But even though his hand was split at the palm, Vincent’s fingers gripped the black, blood soaked blade, holding it firmly in his chest.

In an instant Vincent began shifting back to regular form, and tossed his cloak open wide.  Yuffie sprang into existence right in Jenova’s face, her hand clasping to Jenova’s breastplate and activating her Steal materia before she had even materialized from the waste down.  The Phoenix Eye appeared in Yuffie’s hand and Jenova screamed in anger.  Yuffie planted her still forming feet on Jenova’s chest and sprang backwards with all her might.  Jenova raised her left hand to unleash a spell at the fleeing ninja, but Vincent caught her arm with his free hand.  Despite his wounds, Vincent had managed to transform himself into a different demon.

Jenova turned down from her intended target and released the spell on Vincent’s new form as she tried to pull her hand from his grasp.  But Vincent had chosen well.  This was Hell Masker, demon of suffering, and all the pain she inflicted only fed the demon and made Vincent’s grip stronger.  Yuffie landed a short distance off and began swapping one of her equipped materia for the Phoenix Eye.  She glanced up at Jenova Struggling with Vincent’s demon form Hell Masker.  Suddenly Jenova lurched forward, the tip of First Tsurugi protruding from her chest.

For the first time since the battle began, Jenova paused.  Then, screaming in rage, she tore her sword from Vincent’s torso, exploding his chest and arm as she swung the weapon into her other assailant, slicing Cloud in two.  She then lifted what remained of Vincent with her left hand and threw him through a nearby wall, his demonic grip taking a part of Jenova’s flesh with him.  With the force of her will Jenova expelled Cloud’s sword from her back, the blade clattering down near its dead owner.  The calamity from the skies stood tall and glared at the remaining fighters, challenging any of them to come forward.  What everyone noticed, however, was that Jenova’s wounds were no longer healing.

Yuffie activated the Phoenix Eye, secured firmly in a materia slot on her bracer.  Somehow she already knew how to use it.  Cloud returned to life, as his severed form pulled itself together and re-knitted the flesh.  Vincent, who had been forced back to his regular form by the extreme damage, felt all of his strength returning.  Everyone who stood against Jenova felt their wounds immediately healed as fatigue evaporated from them like dew before the morning sun.

Jenova turned towards Yuffie, murder and hatred burning in her eyes.  Screaming with unending fury Jenova charged the young ninja.  Yuffie shrank back in terror as her life flashed before her eyes.  The attack never came.  All of Yuffie’s companions had rushed forward in unison to block Jenova’s attack.

The dark goddess fought on with terrible wrath, surviving thousands of blows that would have felled a mortal foe.  But as long as Yuffie held the Phoenix Eye the planet’s defenders recovered from every attack, never tired, and never relented.  Though the first part of the battle had seemed an eternity, the last part was over in what felt like mere moments.  Jenova’s body lay on the rain-soaked, blood-soaked, magic-scorched ruins of Midgar, her form broken beyond function, as lifeless as an immortal entity can ever be.

“Is it dead?” Barret asked skeptically.

Cid stuck his spear into the charred corpse again.  “Well she ain’t movin’” he answered.

Yuffie came forward into the circle of her friends, her fingers tracing the Phoenix Eye held in the materia slot on her bracer.

“You ok Yuffie?” Tifa asked upon noticing her friend’s downtrodden expression.

“I’ll be fine.” the young ninja replied.  “I just wish I had never touched this stupid thing and caused all this mess to begin with.”

Tifa walked over and put her arms around Yuffie.  It felt odd to the ninja; her mother had been the only one who ever did that.  For a moment Yuffie considered pulling back, she was the Lord of Wutai, after all, she wasn’t supposed to need comforting.  But the stress and turmoil of the recent events, combined with her friend Tifa’s sincerity, soon melted her pride and she hugged Tifa back.

“You can’t blame yourself for what happened.” Tifa explained softly.  “No one could have known that touching it would have completed the spell.”

“But I was being selfish, if I hadn’t wanted to keep it this wouldn’t have happened.” Yuffie sobbed into Tifa’s shoulder, no longer caring if the others saw, knowing they would not judge her weak for it.

“Yuffie, think about it.” Tifa responded more sternly.  “Even if you had decided to destroy it you probably still would have picked it up out of that machine.  This didn’t happen because you were selfish.  The remnant took a gamble that one of us would touch it and none of us saw his trap.  You can’t blame yourself.”

Yuffie nodded and took a step back, stifling her sobs.  Tifa instinctually reached out to dry her tears but Yuffie batted her hand away.

“Sorry. I have kids, it’s a habit.” Tifa supplied in explanation.

Yuffie let out a half chuckle.  “You know Tifa… when I was using the Phoenix Eye… I felt so powerful.  So much energy was coursing through my body… I thought that if… I thought this is what Sephiroth wanted… He wanted Power.  I felt like a god.”  Tifa watched her friend carefully as Yuffie struggled to explain.  “That’s what Sephiroth wanted, unlimited power.  …And Samuru too.  He murdered to get this stone and to have it for… to use its power to restore an evil god.  I’ve always wanted to be powerful, so I could stop evil, so I could right the injustices in the world.  …but this is cheating.  Cheating death, cheating life… the way life is supposed to be.  How many people have suffered because other people sought power?  When I used the Phoenix Eye… it didn’t feel right.  It felt like I was becoming like him… like Sephiroth.

Yuffie plucked the obsidian stone from her materia slot, its coursing veins of red and green glowing from the energy that had recently passed through it.  Gently Yuffie set the stone down on a nearby piece of concrete.

“Cloud…” Yuffie said quietly.  “I want this nightmare to end.  Will you destroy it for me?”

“If that is what you truly want…” Cloud replied.

“It is.”

Cloud pulled his sword from his back, raised it over his head, and brought it down hard on the magical stone.  With a small explosion of fire the Phoenix eye fragmented into many pieces.  For a moment, each piece glowed red, and somewhere the cry of a great bird was heard.  The moment passed, and the pieces of obsidian grew cold and faded to black, never to glow again.

The triumphant fighters looked up, as the sound of approaching helicopters reached their ears.  Three WRO helicopters where coming in, silhouetted by the rising of the morning sun.  In a few moments the first of them had landed and Reeve came out to greet them.

“Is it over?” President Reeve inquired.

“It’s over…” Cloud responded.  “Is everyone else ok?”

“Yes everyone is fine,” Reeve told him.  “The strange illness stopped suddenly about ten minutes ago. We lost communication with Cait Sith, was the prototype destroyed?”

“Cait Sith probably just needs some repairs.” Cloud explained.  “You know Professor Gast’s version was able to be healed by cure spells…”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.  We’re working on that.  Did you manage to recover the Phoenix Eye?” Reeve asked urgently.

“Actually…” Cloud began to explain, but was interrupted by someone approaching from the second helicopter.

“The Phoenix Eye!  Did you get it?” Reno asked urgently.

“We destroyed it.” Cloud stated.

Reeve cast his eyes down.  Reno stared, unmoving and unblinking, and his jaw open.

“Reno, it was for the best…” Cloud started, but Tifa cut him off.

“Reeve, Reno… what’s wrong” Tifa asked, sensing that something had happened.

“It’s Rude…” Reno’s voice cracked.  “He’s dead.”

Description
The Phoenix Eye
Chapter 11
Those Who Fight Further

-- Midgar, The Evacuation Zone, A Short Time Earlier:

Cloud watched for a moment as Reeve and the Turks left for the helicopters before returning his attention to the problem at hand.  Jenova floated in the air before them, watching them with patience… not the patience of the kind-hearted or the wise, but rather the uncaring patience of those to whom time is an infinite luxury.

“Ok, here’s the game plan.” Cloud said quietly to those around him.  “Keep up a constant stream of attacks, don’t give her time to breath, just tire her out.  And rotate fighters frequently, so everyone has a chance to rest and use healing magic.  No more than three fighters attacking at one time.  I don’t want us getting in each other’s way.  Barret, Tifa, and I will go first.”  Everyone present nodded in agreement, this was, after all, the same tried and true method they had used fighting Sephiroth.

Cloud Barret and Tifa advanced forward towards Jenova, while the rest of them formed a semi-circle formation a short distance behind.  Jenova smiled, and drifted down to meet them in front of the ruined reactor.  Silently her feet touched the ground, the trailing edges of her black wings sweeping the dust and rubble from the street, her protective energy shield remaining a perfect shimmering globe around her.  She was nearly as tall as Barret, though her frame was more slender than Cloud’s, giving her an almost skeletal appearance by comparison.

She opened her mouth and spoke.  And though her voice was soft, almost a whisper, each person heard it in perfect clarity, as if she had spoken it with her lips touching their ears.  “So you presume to fight me?”

Cloud answered.  “You are a threat to this planet and every living thing on it.  You give us no choice but to destroy you.”

“I, a threat to this planet?”  Jenova laughed.  “How can I threaten something which belongs to me?  …Which will soon become a part of me?  I destroy nothing!  All life will become part of me, as it is naturally meant to be, each consciousness joining me in a paradise beyond mortal imagination.  It is you who seek to destroy your god!”

“You waste your lies on us, Jenova!  We know what you are, and you are no god to us!” Cloud shouted back at the abomination before him.

“I was once.” Jenova said smiling to Cloud.  “There was a time when you headed my call.  And you could do so again.  Think of what I could give you.”

Cloud scowled low.  “There is nothing you could offer me that would make me betray my friends.”

“No?” Jenova said smiling.  “What about Sephiroth?  I could destroy his soul forever; you could have your ultimate vengeance by taking his place.  Claim everything he wanted to be.”

“No thank you.” Cloud replied sternly.

“If not him… what about her?” Jenova said pointing towards Tifa.  Cloud spun to face his wife, his eyes widening in alarm.  “I know what you have been dreading my child, it will happen just as you fear, unless you want me to do something about it…”

“Cloud don’t listen to her…” Tifa insisted.  “I am already yours, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”  Tifa tried to remain strong for Cloud, but she hadn’t understood what Jenova had offered, and something in her husband’s eyes told her that he hadn’t told her everything.  Jenova laughed again.

“That is what you want, right Cloud?  …To be with her forever.  I can do it you know.  I can make her just as immortal you are.  That is your greatest fear isn’t it, to remain young while she grows old and dies...”  Cloud looked to the ground in shame, as Tifa’s hand flew to her mouth, and tears flooded her eyes.  Why had he never told her?  “…Of course there will be no growing old and dying if you refuse my offer.  For none of you stand a chance of survival if you defy me.

Suddenly Cloud smiled and opened his eyes.  Tifa stopped crying as she recognized hope in her husband’s eyes.

“Jenova,” Cloud said carefully.  “You have never shown any charity or consideration for anyone before, even those who serve you.  You abandoned Sephiroth when he failed to defeat me.  You traded Kadaj like a pawn even though his only desire was to please you.  If fighting you is truly impossible, then why are you asking for my help?  Why try to bribe me unless you are afraid?”

Jenova was no longer smiling.  “Oh you of little faith.  If you will not serve the rightful god and ruler of all creation, then you will die.”

In a flash Jenova flew at Cloud, a blinding fire engulfing her naked form and extending from her hand like a weapon.  Faster than the blink of an eye, Cloud had First Tsurugi in his hand and blocked the thrust of Jenova’s attack.  As the flames faded from Jenova, she was now dressed in the deepest black armor, of a fashion never before seen.  In her right hand she held a black curved sword, longer than Cloud’s and nearly as wide, the blade of which was twisted and serrated in a diabolical design.

Jenova pressed her attack on Cloud.  And though his sword fighting abilities were superhuman, it took all his speed strength and skill not be overcome by the ferocity of the alien’s offensive.  In an instant Barret and Tifa sprang to Cloud’s aid.  Barret readied his cybernetic machine gun, and fired off burst shots at every clear moment in the fray.  Tifa, finding no way to get close, started casting spells to assist Cloud.

Jenova, however, was only just starting.  For while she was attacking Cloud viciously with the sword held in her right hand, she began to cast her own spells with her left hand.  Tifa barely dodged one magical attack which exploded the ruins behind her.  Barret, on the other hand, was hit square in the chest by a second eldritch blast killing him instantly.  Nanaki was on the spot in an instant and cast an advanced life spell to bring the gunman back to full functionality.

“We got your back spiky!” Cloud heard the familiar voice from behind him.  instinctively Cloud sprang back away from Jenova as Cid and Yuffie took his place in melee combat.  Cloud stopped right where he landed to catch his breath.  His eyes searched Jenova for any weakness in her defense.  Nearby, Tifa dodged another spell, and was replace by Cait Sith who began casting a summon.  Tifa quickly fell back to her husband’s side.

“She’s too fast.” Cloud said to his companion.  “…And she strikes with more force using one hand than I do with two!”

“None of my spells penetrated her energy shield.”  Tifa added.  “Come on Cloud… Think!  All enemies have a weakness.  What is she hiding?  What is she afraid of?”

Cait Sith finished his summon as Cid flew back dead.  Vincent caught the pilot in mid air with a life spell ready, and Shelke stepped into melee to prevent Yuffie from being overwhelmed.  Overhead, the summoned form of Bahamut prepared to unleash its fury on Jenova.  With a flick of her left hand Jenova summoned a creature of her own; bat-like and alien, with a tusked jaw and three pairs of talons.  The two behemoths collided in the air, and fell in a tangle of limbs and writhing magic.

Cloud got up and started approaching Jenova.  Taking First Tsurugi into his hands, he unlatched one of the fasteners and split it into two swords.  “My turn.” he yelled as he charged into combat.  Yuffie immediately withdrew, blood soaked and limping, though Shelke stayed in the fray.  Cloud quickly noticed that Shelke was actually fast enough to avoid most of Jenova’s attacks.

Though Cloud sacrificed parrying strength by using two swords and suffered several serious wounds because of it, between his two whirling blades and Shelke’s twin fighting knives on Jenova’s flank the two of them managed to get in a few hits on the hitherto untouched alien.  To Cloud’s disappointment, however, each of Jenova’s wounds began closing, even before the blade had finished slicing through the flesh.  Shelke began to tire, and Jenova took the opportunity to lay a power blow on Cloud striking deep through his color bone and rib cage.  While a normal man would have been killed by wound, Cloud merely staggered back, dropping one of his swords and using his arm to keep his chest intact.  Now facing Shelke alone, Jenova exploded a magical attack against the nimble fighter, crushing Shelke’s magical shield and killing her in a single blow.  No sooner was Jenova free of her melee attackers, however, than a loud roar was heard, and Jenova’s attention snapped upward to catch Vincent’s demon form Chaos descending in infernal fury.

Tifa rushed to her husband’s side, potion in hand, while Nanaki dashed for Shelke.  Another energy blast from Jenova, however, met Nanaki en-route, and killed him as well.

To Cloud’s surprise Tifa swore, a very rare occurrence for her, as she tossed Cloud the healing potion to administer to himself and began casting a spell.  Cloud downed the potion and felt the magic re-knitting his severed bones and flesh as Tifa finished summoning Phoenix, the magical construct in the image of the ancient god of new life.  Tifa began directing Phoenix to cast its life spell on those who had fallen, but Jenova countered the strategy with a summon of her own.  From Jenova’s hand sprang a massive fanged and tentacled beast, flying through the air towards the Phoenix summon.  Cid, however, met Jenova’s summon in mid air, and began attacking it with his spear, allowing Phoenix the time to restore Shelke and Nanaki.

Though Vincent’ demon form fought with great strength, even Chaos was forced to retreat after a time.  He was replaced by the combined forces of Tifa, Cid, and Cait Sith, trying to distract Jenova sufficiently to prevent her from casting her deadly magic.  The battle raged on.  Jenova caused many more injuries and deaths, which were countered by powerful potions, magics and phoenix downs.  But slowly, the fighters began to tire, and their supply of restorative items approached depletion, while Jenova regenerated all wounds almost instantly, and never once eased her pressing offensive.

Vincent walked over to where Cloud was resting, while other fighters took up the offensive.  “Are we beaten?” Cloud asked his friend without looking up.

“No.” the quiet gunman responded.  “I figured out how to break her defenses.”

Cloud stood up and faced Vincent with renewed hope.  “How?” he asked the gunman.

“I’ll need Yuffie.  And I’ll need you to distract her so she doesn’t catch wind of what I’m doing.”

Without another word Vincent left.  Cloud smiled to himself and hefted his sword, and with a fury he had not known since the battle started he threw himself again at Jenova.

Yuffie sprang back from Jenova as Cloud engaged in the fight. her breathing fast and hard.  She struggled to quickly consume a powerful healing potion, followed by an ether.  She felt more than sensed Vincent approaching behind her, but her ninja training told her it was not an enemy.

“We’re all going to die.  Aren’t we Vincent?” Yuffie asked without turning around.

“No.” he responded simply.

“Yes we are!” Yuffie argued.  “We can’t beat that thing and it’s all my fault!  If only I hadn’t been greedy and tried to keep the Phoenix Eye.  If only I had destroyed it like Nanaki had suggested.”  Yuffie clenched inwardly to keep from crying, but her eyes watered despite her efforts.

Vincent was silent for a moment.  “I’m not going to tell you it isn’t your fault.” he said quietly.  “I know little about such things.  But I do know that all of us were there, and none of us foresaw that touching the stone would complete the remnant’s spell.”  Yuffie settled her nerves and tried to listen to what Vincent was saying.  “Everyone here has made mistakes which we regret.” Vincent explained pointing to their teammates in various stages of combat.  “I let Sephiroth come into being when I knew it was wrong and might have stopped it.  Cloud let Jenova control him in giving the black materia to Sephiroth twice, and was unable to stop Sephiroth from killing Jenova.  Barret feels responsible for the destruction of the old Corel city… do I need to go on?”

“No.” Yuffie replied, her eyes on the ground.  “So what are we going to do?” she asked in hopelessness.

“Jenova still has the Phoenix Eye.” Vincent explained.  “She is using it to heal herself.  But if we can take it from her…”

Yuffie looked at the alien and wrinkled her brow in confusion.  “Where is she keeping it?”

“Behind her armor, on her chest.  I sensed it there while fighting her.  It is well beyond the reach of even the most nimble hands… unless of course those hands were using a certain materia which allows even unreachable objects to be removed.”

Yuffie stood up, her face beaming with cunning and delight.  “My Steal materia!” she whispered.  “Ok Vincent. How am I going to get close enough to use it?”

Vincent did not respond, but simply lifted the edge of his cloak to reveal the inside.

Yuffie watched him at first in puzzlement, but then the color drained from her face as she realized his implication.  “No!” she replied emphatically.  “No. no. no. no. no!  There is no way I’m doing that.”

“The only way you are going to get close enough without Jenova realizing you are there is if I hide you in the sub-dimension.”

“I can’t” Yuffie pleaded.  “You remember what Nero did to me?  I can’t go back in there!”

“Nero the Sable was trying to kill you.” Vincent stated flatly.  “I will protect you.”

“I can’t” Yuffie cringed away from Vincent.

“Are you merely a thief?”  Vincent demanded of her.  “Or are you a ninja of Wutai, heir to the Kisaragi name?”

Yuffie clenched her fists in rage and glared at Vincent, no longer trying to hide her tears.  “How dare you!”

“Few of us get a chance to correct our mistakes Yuffie.” Vincent explained softly.  “Can you do this… or do I go in alone.”

Yuffie slammed her eyes shut.  She knew Vincent was right.  She shouldn’t be mad at him, it was her own fear that angered her, her own self-doubt she needed to conquer.  She opened her eyes.  Vincent still stood before her, his cape drawn open to one side.  Yuffie took a deep breath and launched herself at Vincent, wrapping her arms viselike around his chest, her eyes squeezed shut against what she knew was coming.

Vincent drew his cloak quickly around the woman before him and began shifting halfway into one of his demon forms.  Gently he drew Yuffie into the subdimmension where he stored his own body when shifted.  As Yuffie slid into meta-existence Vincent could feel her begin to panic.  Vincent did his best to comfort the young ninja, his mind now communicating with hers directly.  And though Vincent had not had such calming thoughts himself in many years he somehow managed to convince Yuffie that she was safe.

“Prepare yourself, and watch for my signal.”  Vincent thought to her reassuringly.  Yuffie responded mentally in the affirmative while struggling to contain her discomfort.  Vincent rushed forward towards Jenova.  The less time Yuffie spent in the sub-dimension, he thought to himself, the more focused she would be on her task.  As Vincent closed the final distance he shifted partially into Gallian Beast, leaping into Jenova in a ferocious animalistic attack.

Cloud motioned the other fighters to back off, as he and Vincent engaged the abomination alone.  Vincent clawed and bit at Jenova relentlessly, while looking for the right moment but not wanting to let on about his plan.  Cloud pressed at Jenova’s other side, knowing that Vincent had something up his sleeve and trying to buy his friend the needed time.  The opening came.  Jenova launched a thrusting attack towards Vincent, but rather than dodge or parry, Vincent placed his left arm directly in the path of the blade.  Jenova’s sword pierced Vincent’s arm from elbow to palm, and continued forward through his rib cage, left lung, and out his back, splitting his shoulder blade in two.  But even though his hand was split at the palm, Vincent’s fingers gripped the black, blood soaked blade, holding it firmly in his chest.

In an instant Vincent began shifting back to regular form, and tossed his cloak open wide.  Yuffie sprang into existence right in Jenova’s face, her hand clasping to Jenova’s breastplate and activating her Steal materia before she had even materialized from the waste down.  The Phoenix Eye appeared in Yuffie’s hand and Jenova screamed in anger.  Yuffie planted her still forming feet on Jenova’s chest and sprang backwards with all her might.  Jenova raised her left hand to unleash a spell at the fleeing ninja, but Vincent caught her arm with his free hand.  Despite his wounds, Vincent had managed to transform himself into a different demon.

Jenova turned down from her intended target and released the spell on Vincent’s new form as she tried to pull her hand from his grasp.  But Vincent had chosen well.  This was Hell Masker, demon of suffering, and all the pain she inflicted only fed the demon and made Vincent’s grip stronger.  Yuffie landed a short distance off and began swapping one of her equipped materia for the Phoenix Eye.  She glanced up at Jenova Struggling with Vincent’s demon form Hell Masker.  Suddenly Jenova lurched forward, the tip of First Tsurugi protruding from her chest.

For the first time since the battle began, Jenova paused.  Then, screaming in rage, she tore her sword from Vincent’s torso, exploding his chest and arm as she swung the weapon into her other assailant, slicing Cloud in two.  She then lifted what remained of Vincent with her left hand and threw him through a nearby wall, his demonic grip taking a part of Jenova’s flesh with him.  With the force of her will Jenova expelled Cloud’s sword from her back, the blade clattering down near its dead owner.  The calamity from the skies stood tall and glared at the remaining fighters, challenging any of them to come forward.  What everyone noticed, however, was that Jenova’s wounds were no longer healing.

Yuffie activated the Phoenix Eye, secured firmly in a materia slot on her bracer.  Somehow she already knew how to use it.  Cloud returned to life, as his severed form pulled itself together and re-knitted the flesh.  Vincent, who had been forced back to his regular form by the extreme damage, felt all of his strength returning.  Everyone who stood against Jenova felt their wounds immediately healed as fatigue evaporated from them like dew before the morning sun.

Jenova turned towards Yuffie, murder and hatred burning in her eyes.  Screaming with unending fury Jenova charged the young ninja.  Yuffie shrank back in terror as her life flashed before her eyes.  The attack never came.  All of Yuffie’s companions had rushed forward in unison to block Jenova’s attack.

The dark goddess fought on with terrible wrath, surviving thousands of blows that would have felled a mortal foe.  But as long as Yuffie held the Phoenix Eye the planet’s defenders recovered from every attack, never tired, and never relented.  Though the first part of the battle had seemed an eternity, the last part was over in what felt like mere moments.  Jenova’s body lay on the rain-soaked, blood-soaked, magic-scorched ruins of Midgar, her form broken beyond function, as lifeless as an immortal entity can ever be.

“Is it dead?” Barret asked skeptically.

Cid stuck his spear into the charred corpse again.  “Well she ain’t movin’” he answered.

Yuffie came forward into the circle of her friends, her fingers tracing the Phoenix Eye held in the materia slot on her bracer.

“You ok Yuffie?” Tifa asked upon noticing her friend’s downtrodden expression.

“I’ll be fine.” the young ninja replied.  “I just wish I had never touched this stupid thing and caused all this mess to begin with.”

Tifa walked over and put her arms around Yuffie.  It felt odd to the ninja; her mother had been the only one who ever did that.  For a moment Yuffie considered pulling back, she was the Lord of Wutai, after all, she wasn’t supposed to need comforting.  But the stress and turmoil of the recent events, combined with her friend Tifa’s sincerity, soon melted her pride and she hugged Tifa back.

“You can’t blame yourself for what happened.” Tifa explained softly.  “No one could have known that touching it would have completed the spell.”

“But I was being selfish, if I hadn’t wanted to keep it this wouldn’t have happened.” Yuffie sobbed into Tifa’s shoulder, no longer caring if the others saw, knowing they would not judge her weak for it.

“Yuffie, think about it.” Tifa responded more sternly.  “Even if you had decided to destroy it you probably still would have picked it up out of that machine.  This didn’t happen because you were selfish.  The remnant took a gamble that one of us would touch it and none of us saw his trap.  You can’t blame yourself.”

Yuffie nodded and took a step back, stifling her sobs.  Tifa instinctually reached out to dry her tears but Yuffie batted her hand away.

“Sorry. I have kids, it’s a habit.” Tifa supplied in explanation.

Yuffie let out a half chuckle.  “You know Tifa… when I was using the Phoenix Eye… I felt so powerful.  So much energy was coursing through my body… I thought that if… I thought this is what Sephiroth wanted… He wanted Power.  I felt like a god.”  Tifa watched her friend carefully as Yuffie struggled to explain.  “That’s what Sephiroth wanted, unlimited power.  …And Samuru too.  He murdered to get this stone and to have it for… to use its power to restore an evil god.  I’ve always wanted to be powerful, so I could stop evil, so I could right the injustices in the world.  …but this is cheating.  Cheating death, cheating life… the way life is supposed to be.  How many people have suffered because other people sought power?  When I used the Phoenix Eye… it didn’t feel right.  It felt like I was becoming like him… like Sephiroth.

Yuffie plucked the obsidian stone from her materia slot, its coursing veins of red and green glowing from the energy that had recently passed through it.  Gently Yuffie set the stone down on a nearby piece of concrete.

“Cloud…” Yuffie said quietly.  “I want this nightmare to end.  Will you destroy it for me?”

“If that is what you truly want…” Cloud replied.

“It is.”

Cloud pulled his sword from his back, raised it over his head, and brought it down hard on the magical stone.  With a small explosion of fire the Phoenix eye fragmented into many pieces.  For a moment, each piece glowed red, and somewhere the cry of a great bird was heard.  The moment passed, and the pieces of obsidian grew cold and faded to black, never to glow again.

The triumphant fighters looked up, as the sound of approaching helicopters reached their ears.  Three WRO helicopters where coming in, silhouetted by the rising of the morning sun.  In a few moments the first of them had landed and Reeve came out to greet them.

“Is it over?” President Reeve inquired.

“It’s over…” Cloud responded.  “Is everyone else ok?”

“Yes everyone is fine,” Reeve told him.  “The strange illness stopped suddenly about ten minutes ago. We lost communication with Cait Sith, was the prototype destroyed?”

“Cait Sith probably just needs some repairs.” Cloud explained.  “You know Professor Gast’s version was able to be healed by cure spells…”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.  We’re working on that.  Did you manage to recover the Phoenix Eye?” Reeve asked urgently.

“Actually…” Cloud began to explain, but was interrupted by someone approaching from the second helicopter.

“The Phoenix Eye!  Did you get it?” Reno asked urgently.

“We destroyed it.” Cloud stated.

Reeve cast his eyes down.  Reno stared, unmoving and unblinking, and his jaw open.

“Reno, it was for the best…” Cloud started, but Tifa cut him off.

“Reeve, Reno… what’s wrong” Tifa asked, sensing that something had happened.

“It’s Rude…” Reno’s voice cracked.  “He’s dead.”