Just A Dream?
Cloud blinked himself awake. He was, for some strange reason, standing straight up. Instead of seeing the familiar sight of the field, the train, and the forest, he found himself gazing at something completely new and strange.
He was in the center of a burning city.
The heat from the flames was almost unbearable, the smell of the smoke clogging his nostrils and nearly making him choke. The scene was familiar, but the buildings around were completely different then the memory in his head. Instead of the small country houses of Nibelheim, they were towering stone constructions. Well, at least they were.
He could see that he was standing in the center of a brick road, the flames somehow devouring the sidewalks beside him. He couldn't see the familiar light of the blue sky from the black smoke. The fire must be taking over the entire city. Cloud couldn't exactly tell where he was due to the blackened fiery appearances of the architecture but it was strangely familiar. He spied burning carriages littering the road, giving him an idea of where he was at.
Definitely somewhere in Equestria... But where?
It took him a moment to notice that he had his sword gripped tightly in his right hand. Had he been fighting something? Or was he the cause of all this destruction? Whatever the case, he was completely clueless on what had happened. He didn't have to even take a step forward to find out, however. The answer was right behind him.
"Quite a familiar scene," The deep, cold voice taunted, "It's only lacking are screams."
Cloud snapped his head back, his teeth grinding against each other. A tall shopping building had crumbled down onto its side, its stone body now wrapped in flames. Standing on its side, a few stories above Cloud, was a tall dark figure. It's eyes were a menacing green, a detestable smirk upon its face as its hair waved calmly through the air. A huge, almost unrealistic curved sword was held lazily in its left hand.
Cloud was a calm fighter, but even he had to hold himself down. His emotions were blaring, his eyes burning with the rage that had been lying dormant since his last encounter with that monster. His huge sword felt lighter, and he quickly assumed his usual battle stance.
"Sephiroth..." Cloud snarled, "What did you do?!"
Sephiroth kept his grin as he gazed down at Cloud, "What did I do?... The question is, what did YOU do?"
"Don't toy with me..." Cloud leaped up high into the air, his sword raised behind his head to strike as gravity pulled him down onto his most hated enemy. He had dropped his composure, ripping away his hesitance to attack.
The two blades clashes, sending a sharp sound throughout the air as a mini shockwave burst out from the contact. The flames danced from the blast of air as Cloud remained suspended in air above his nemesis.
"Toy with you?" Sephiroth grinned, "That's all I've done with you." Cloud released a grunt as Sephiroth slashes back, sending the blonde warrior flying down the road and over the raging fire. He managed to land onto an area free of fire, but his safety was short lived.
Sephiroth magically dashed out of the inferno, a smile across his face. Cloud noticed last minute, and managed to jump back to avoid the horizontal slash. He nearly landed into the hot flames, but had to quickly brace himself. Sephiroth quickly advanced, his sword slashing almost too fast for Cloud to react and see.
The two began a deadly dance. Sephiroth's rapid one handed attacks had Cloud completely on the defensive. His silver haired enemy wasn't giving him any opening, and he looked as though he didn't plan on it. The fire blazed around the two expert fighters, their swords flashing a bright blue with every parry.
The two blades locked in the center of the street, sparks shooting off as Cloud glared hard into the green eyes of the murderer.
"You've gotten soft..." Sephiroth smirked, adding in extra force as he forced Cloud to take steps back, "Your new friends doesn't suit you at all..."
"You don't know what you're talking about!" Cloud raged, finding a strange burst of strength as he managed to launch Sephiroth off into the sky. The silver haired SOLDIER landed gently onto a tall flaming building above.
"Oh, but I do... " The villain chuckled, his sword spinning in his hand, "To think that the man who defeated me has befriended what could have been created out of a little girl's dream... It's embarrassing to say the least."
"Shut up!" Cloud roared, his sword flashing blue as he fired a powerful blue beam from his sword.
Sephiroth smirked, leaping into the air as the attack smashed into the building, causing heavy debris to drop into the flames below. Cloud sprinted and jumped, landing on each falling chunk of rubble and leaping off of it as he chased after the man who took away the most precious things in his life.
Cloud landed roughly onto the roof of what looked like a giant theater. Sephiroth was standing just a few meters away, his smile unfaltering.
"Cloud" Sephiroth chuckled, pointing his sword at the hero, "You are what you always had been. A weak, poor little country boy that couldn't save the love of his life..."
"Stop..." Cloud growled, his sword beginning to emit a blue aura.
"Not to mention a military failure....," Sephiroth taunted.
"Shut... up..."
"And best of all, you're a sad little puppet that-
"ENOUGH!" Cloud roared, sprinting at Sephiroth, the blue light surrounding his sword shimmering intensely. Sephiroth grinned, his own sword starting to be engulfed by a red flaming aura.
"Time to face it, Cloud!" Sephiroth charged straight forward, "It's time you face what you could never defeat!"
When their swords clashed, the roof surrounding them practically exploding. Stone debris was tossed everywhere, the powerful shockwave ripping the large structure apart as the flames fire out around them. Their swords were so bright that it was blinding. Then, in a matter of seconds, the light exploded, blowing away the fire, the theatre, and every building within the city walls. The last thing Cloud could see was a castle being toppled and eradicated by the raw power and destruction that he and Sephiroth created.
And then, it occurred to him. He was in Canterlot.
Cloud wasn't one to jolt awake. His eyes cracked open, and he immediately groaned. His chest felt like it was on fire and his exhausted bones were screaming at him to just keep laying down. But that's just not how Cloud went about his business.
He glanced over to see where he was. He guessed that the ponies had managed to drag him somewhere safe, seeing how they were all sprawled out and snoring. He was in a cave of some sort, and smoke rising from a pile of burnt sticks and ashes proved that they had managed to make camp for the night. He was surprised to see his sword lying on the ground since it weighed more than all the ponies in the room combined.
He felt something stir on his arm, and he found the peaceful form of Fluttershy snuggled up against him. Her breath was gentle and warm, her hooves grasping his arm gently. She reminded him of Marlene, when the young girl couldn't sleep because of a thunderstorm or a nightmare. He managed to resist the immense cuteness and glanced over to the other fuzzy lump on his left.
Rainbow Dash looked the opposite of Fluttershy. Her head was tucked into his armpit, drool leaking onto his black shirt. Her hooves were up in the air, her wings twitching as she stayed absorbed in her dreamland. Cloud groaned silently, leaning his head back as he stared up at the ceiling. He didn't want to wake the ponies like this, but he didn't want to just stay there like a sitting duck in case of an attack.
He finally made his decision, gently slipping his arm out of Fluttershy's grasp and gently setting Rainbow Dash's head onto his bed of leaves. His sore leg muscles ached as he stood up, nearly causing him to make a grunt. After successfully navigating the sea of pony bodies, he grabbed his sword and left the cave.
It was early morning, the sun peaking through the small holes the leaves created as they hung from the trees. The air was chilly and the dew was still fresh on the grass. Checking the area briefly, he discovered that it was pretty well hidden. There was a small stream nearby, and the trees and bushes covered up the place very well. It would be very difficult for any of those strange monsters to find them here.
Taking a deep breath, Cloud slowly made his way to the stream. His heart was beating heavily from the dream he had, and he wanted to wash that horrible feeling away as soon as possible. Taking a small puddle of the cold water into his hands, he splashed it onto his face. The water was like ice.
"You trying to be sneaky?" A familiar girlish voice giggled, "I saw you leave the cave at the last second." Twilight made her way down the small grassy slope before coming up to Cloud as she watched him was his face.
"What happened?... " Cloud asked, wiping his face with a small black handkerchief. He already knew the answer but wanted to confirm it.
"Well... " Twilight started, kneeling down, "You passed out from blood loss and exhaustion. We had to carry you into the forest and get you somewhere safe to treat you. Fluttershy found this cave, and we each made sure that you were okay. Pinkie and Applejack somehow managed to drag your sword here, so they deserve quite a bit of credit... "
"I see... " Cloud answered, watching the small stream before scooping up a handful of water to take a light drink from. Satisfied, he sat back onto the slope and tried to ignore the fiery pain on his chest. It wasn't working.
"How are you feeling?" Twilight asked, feeling a bit awkward at his silence.
"Like hell... " He replied, "My chest hurts and my muscles are sore. I'll make it, though. Everyone- I mean... Everypony else okay?" He would never get used to that.
Twilight giggled again, "Yes, thanks to you. Rainbow Dash, however... She's taking your injury pretty harshly. She's blaming herself for it... "
Cloud replied only with silence, and Twilight decided to press on, "Maybe you should talk to her when she wakes up... "
"... Yeah... " Cloud answered, getting back onto his feet, "We need to move soon anyway. It's seems like we've got quite a ways till we reach Canterlot."
Twilight nodded, "Sounds good!" She hastily got up and followed after the taller human. By the time they made it to the cave, everybody was awake and looking a bit worried. When they saw Cloud, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
"I knew you'd pull through!" Applejack smirked, punching Cloud playfully in the thigh, "You're tougher than anypony I'd ever seen!" Cloud winced at the contact but gave her a silent nod. Fluttershy hovered up to his chest and inspected his wound as she muttered quietly to herself and the blond human. Cloud gave her a nod and took a spot in the center of the cave.
"Okay, " He began, "Our goal is to reach Canterlot by tonight. It might be dangerous, so let's keep our eyes forward and ears open." Rarity grumbled lightly to herself as she examined her face in a hand held mirror that she seemed to pull out of nowhere.
"Sir yes sir!" Pinkie replied, a military helmet on her head as she saluted, "We're ready to move out Lieutenant Cloud!"
Cloud, of course, was the group leader who walked in the front. Twilight was behind him, her eyes constantly inspecting the surroundings for any signs of danger or anything helpful. Spike was riding lazily on her back. Behind her was Pinkie Pie who was wearing her military helmet with camouflage painted on her face and a bandoleer filled with pies wrapped around her torso. Behind her was Fluttershy, who was taking shaky steps forward. Rarity was wearing a sun hat, and made sure to avoid any puddles of mud or other kinds of filth on the trail. Applejack was bringing up the rear, her saddlebags filled with apples for the long trip.
Rainbow Dash was up in the skies as she surveyed the landscape. But in reality, a part of her was trying to distant from the rest of the group. It was something they all noticed but said nothing about. Cloud would definitely have to do something about that.
"Okay, " He stopped and faced the ponies, "We've been walking for about an hour so far. Let's take a five minute break."
"Finally!" Rarity sighed, "My hooves hurt and my coat is collecting dirt! Oh, how dreadful!"
"C'mon, Sugarcube," Applejack snickered as she laid back against a tree, "If it's like that now, wait to see what you look like in a few more hours!"
As each of the mares had plopped down to rest, Cloud zeroed in on Rainbow Dash. The blue pegasus was seated up in a tree, her back against the trunk of the tree. Cloud watched her for a bit longer, trying to gather up his thoughts to prepare him for what was needed to be said. Taking a deep breath, Cloud walked towards her.
The trees in the forest were tall and thick and the branches were high above the ground. You almost had to have wings in order to climb up into the branches. Fortunately for Cloud, having no wings was no problem for him. He bent his knees and launched himself into the air. His jump was incredibly high, and he quickly grabbed the first branch on the way up that was behind Rainbow. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice him sit on the branch behind her.
"Thinking about something?" Cloud asked, nearly spooking Rainbow out of the tree. The pegasus gave him a shocked looked before gazing towards the forest floor.
"... No... "
"So nothing is bothering you."
"That's what I said."
"And that's why you aren't being yourself."
"... "
"I know what's bothering you, Dash."
"Me too!" Rainbow growled, crossing her forehooves, "Cloud, I... I... " Rainbow would never admit that she messed up in any occasion... And that is why it was hard for her to talk about what had happened.
"Look, Dash... " Cloud started, "It's alright. I'm fine, and everybody- er, everypony is okay."
"So... " The pegasus sniffed, "I doesn't mean it can't happen again... "
Cloud thought silently for a brief moment, "Look, Dash... I don't blame you. None of us do. Now tell me... Should the great Rainbow Dash be like this?... "
Rainbow blinked and looked at Cloud, "No... "
"Should Rainbow Dash feel sorry for herself?"
"No!"
"Should Rainbow Dash let one little mistake hold her back?"
"NO!"
"Is Rainbow Dash going to get right back up again?"
"NO! Wait- I mean YES!"
"Good." Cloud nodded, "We're going to need you." Rainbow thought she could see the most minuscule smile form on Cloud's face before he dropped onto the ground floor below.
Cloud was about to call everybody in when he noticed the purple dragon talking pleasantly with Rarity. Spike's crush was completely obvious and even Cloud found it sad that the dragon thought that everybody was clueless. Cloud was staring at him because of these thoughts though... Something was bugging him. Spike told them that he had followed close behind when he found out they left by asking the other ponies. But no other pony knew that they left that early in the morning... Was there something Spike wasn't telling them?
"We ready to move out?" Applejack asked, tossing the human an apple. Cloud caught it with his left hand without looking.
"Yeah. Let's go." He took a bite as the ponies and the one dragon gathered up.
Chapter proofreaded by LyonAzakura.
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Booya. Now that I've read this, I have another 27 battles to fight in order to get Aerith's Great Gospel Limit Break. So far, I think that she has the highest level out of anyone on my file.....Hold on, Imma check something.
Ok, Yes. I've had her equipped with the same materia since I've gotten her, and keep in mind I've only just beaten the Gold Saucer. Here's Her Setup.
Parasol
Shinra Beta
white Cape
Fire 3
Enemy Skill
Cure 3
Ice2
The remaining slots are Sense Materia
You see what this story has done to me? I'm attempting 100% a game I haven't played in a year and a half....Excuse me While I go Max out Her Power by morphing those Rhino Tank things into Power Sources...for the next 3 hours.
You may want to read through the story again or have the proofreader double check. A few "unfinished" words here and there.
1435724 huh, i just recently started playing VII, right now I'm trying to get the keystone for the temple of the ancients.
Find should be Found, yes?
Tenth paragraph after Cloud's dream.
I think Spike is Sephiroth in disguise.
1435863 it's in Dio's showcase room if you didn't know.
1435724 I have 2 100% save files i have gotten everything and my time on the game is I think 70 in one and the other is 80 hours.
1436362 yeah i just got it, as I'm typing this I'm in the middle of the date scene, got Tifa.
1436388Including Aeris's Limits, All Weapons, and a 100% complete Item/Steal Checklist? What about Mastering Every Materia? Filling out every single Enemy Skill materia with every possible skill?
1325822 Or "Reduced to ashes"
leave the typos
they made ff7 fun
This guy are sick
Awesome cover art dude, give my compliments to Robsa990.
1436434 Memories of what?
1436547 yup I just checked my time 87 hours and 38 minutes are you proud of me.
1436393 ha I just remembered how to get Barrett to ask you on a date.
1438703... Yes. Yes I am.
1438720 hehe. I just got to disc 2 today.
Destruction not distraction, I suspect.
What if... Spike is Sephiroth in disguise!? Like with Clear Skies!
I want Sephiroth nao!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry for my outburst...
wow
epic... as... hell
great story so far and im looking forward to more, final fantasy is my favorite game and cloud is best final fantasy character.
Please write MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eh personally my fav FF character is a tie between Firion and MInwu
Damn, this is awesome.
One thing I'm defiantly looking forward to is. How Twilight, the rest of the elements and the princesses react when they see more of Cloud's past. Specifically Arieth and Zack's death. I hope you decide to continue this soon.