Hello again, well what do u kno, the 2nd last act! :woot:
Ok, as I said b4, this is where things start 2 get worse

Im not so sure if what Tifa will say will b ok 4 the clean version but i have 2 use it coz its a clue
Speaking about Tifa...this chapter has the main reason y i apologize 2 tifa fans, but...what happens 2 daniella happens 2 tifa...sorry fans...

Enjoy!

Act IV
Chapter Fourteen: Precious Little Princess
Aerith quickly dived back away from Tifa’s attacks. Tifa missed her and collided into the chair and table, knocking everything to the floor. Taking this opportunity, Aerith quickly ran out of the small room and shut the door on Tifa. She jumped off the bookcase and her knees bent as both feet landed on the floor at the same time. Calling Cloud, Aerith stood up and the two ran across the library and out of the room. They ran down the long stairs and Aerith did not look back. The two made it back to the catacombs and they seemed to lose Tifa already; Aerith wasn’t sure if Tifa was following them, though.

Aerith leaned against the wall and sighed. “Azoth... That’s why she wants to kill me? For something she says is a source of life-...or lifestream...whatever that is. But what does this have to do with me? What does ANY of this have to do with me!?” Aerith frowned as she looked at Cloud before they made their way through the uncovered area. Obviously, ‘cleaning time’ was over so they had to move fast. She still couldn’t understand why all of this was happening to her. It wasn’t fair. She thought about the blonde man on the film reel. She wanted to know about his purpose. After all, all encounters with those she had met so far were never exactly welcoming. What did he want with her? But she had to be honest thinking that he was most likely dead now since that other man attacked him. She hadn’t seen him anywhere else around or knew anything of him lurking around someplace.
~*~

When they found another door, Aerith faintly gasped when they found themselves in what looked a little like a labyrinth. The room was vertically huge with many paths and stairs. Torture rooms were expected in a place like this but labyrinths!? They walked up the stairs on the path they were on. There were chains connected to the stone room with hanging metal figures of dolls and knights. All the way down below was a great deep hole with no flooring seen.


Aerith stopped in her tracks as she saw a pure white man-like figure standing up ahead of them. Its entire body was slimy and limp yet solid. The worst feature had to be the fact that he had no face! Just a small open mouth. The figure kept rapidly mumbling something again and again but the only word Aerith could understand was “Azoth”. “Maybe... if Cloud and I are careful...we can slip past without bothering him.” As Aerith stepped forward as quiet as she could, she heard him stop as though he caught a sense of smell. She stopped in fear as he turned to face her. “Uh!” Aerith looked down at Cloud for reassurance but saw him growl at the figure.

“...Azzzoooottthhhh....” the figure said heavily. Aerith looked up at him. “What do we do?” The figure began to walk towards Aerith and reached its arms out to her desperately. “Azoth!” As Aerith pushed herself backwards. The figure moved faster! “Azoth! Azoth!! AZOTH!!!” Aerith yelped as she back up against the wall but Cloud lunged forward with a growl and knocked the figure to the floor! When he jumped off...the figure didn’t move. Aerith blinked, unsure of what to do next yet she thanked her wolf for protecting her.

Aerith ran past and so did Cloud to catch up with her. They climbed up the next set of stairs and through the door at the other side.
Inside was a large hallway with a choice to go either left or right. To the right had a corner with stairs going down and to the left was a path with tall red windows with black patterns. They first went right and down the stairs. They walked through the hall but the single door was locked so they turned back and took the left path. During their travel through the new area, they walked through a small area with a desk and a large machine in the corner. It had a plate in the middle with writing engraved on it...

“Synthesizer
By separating the platinum half-pieceand then synthesizing it with the sacred white, a new spiritually infused substance is born. The path you are walking is ever so dangerous. However, if you do not want the sacred white to be fouled by blood, then you should give up the grand process here.”

“But isn’t this “entire” place dangerous in the first place?” Aerith questioned. “This machine looks spooky in this dark area. It looks like some weird device you’d see a mad scientist use. God, I miss home...” As they continued down a long, narrow corridor, there were large cages with rusty bard reaching to the ceiling. The two turned the next corner and went down the stairs and when they reached the next area, Aerith instantly recognized the machine right in front of her. It was that machine with the dial seen on the film reel. She went up to the door next to it but it was locked. She looked down and noticed a wire connected between it and the machine. Remembering what she had seen on the film reel, she figured she would have to turn the dial into the correct position like Hojo did.

She stood in front of the dial and placed her hands on the top cube above the two below it. “Ok... The first was...two halves...” Aerith turned it around until she recognized the image of a circle with a line going the middle and then lowered her fingers to the middle cube. “The middle was definitely a whole circle. That’s already in place...... And the last one was....um...three quarters? No- it was...” Aerith clicked her fingers as she scanned her memory of the dial’s combination. “Ah! I remember.” She turned the bottom cube to the circle that had a half with two quarters. When she set all three in place, the machine started to vibrate and she heard the door click directly afterwards.

Satisfied with unlocking the door, the two walked through and found another place like that well that connected the castle and mansion together. Looking up and down the spiral stairs they stood in the middle of, Aerith spotted a door down below with the planet sign “Mars”. She guessed that it would obviously be locked like the Saturnus and Venus door. “What happens twice, happens thrice” as they say. They walked up the spiral stairs and went through the door up top. As Aerith stepped inside, Cloud rushed past her and growled at the sentinel hall before them.The floor was stone marble but the middle had black and red hexagonal tiles.

At the other side was a creepy statue of a knight with a lowered crossbow in his hand. “Cloud has caught wind of something again... I’m going to say that his fur standing on end isn’t a good sign. Maybe I should send him to scout first?” Aerith pointed forward down the path. “Go, Cloud.”
Cloud nodded his head and slowly walked onto one of the tiles. He stopped for a moment, looking at her and then looked forward again steeping onto another. This showed Aerith that he was telling that some of the tiles held a trap but the tiles he stepped on were safe ones. She stepped on the first ‘safe’ tile and followed Cloud across the hall, step by step.

But half way through, she accidentally stepped on a ‘trap’ tile and she could hear something mechanical coming from the knight. Standing still on a safe tile, she watched the knight shake as his arm lifted the crossbow and aimed it at her! But as soon as the noise stopped, the knight remained still. Aerith gulped. “I hope this isn’t one of those “three-strikes-you’re-out” sort of booby traps!” Trying her best to be careful and more observant of Cloud’s steps, Aerith followed him across the tiles and made it safely to the other side. She praised him with the usually ear-rub. When she stood behind the statue, she spotted a button at the back of its head. She pushed it and the statue shook again before lowering the crossbow so she was happy to know that she deactivated the trap.

They walked through the next door and they were now standing on a large U-shaped floor above the library they were in not too long ago. There were the bookcases leading to the projector room. She was surprised to notice that there were a lot more books here than she thought; able to notice looking down. There was one more door up ahead to the left so that was where they went next.
~*~

This area was a little dark but the place above the stairs in front of them was a little brighter with the ceiling was made out of glass, allowing the moonlight to shine through. Upstairs was a beautiful blue hall with tall blue stain-glass windows. Above them held small yet simple chandeliers. At the back of the room underneath a dome-shaped part of the ceiling, there was a large circle mirror on the floor that was faintly glowing. Surrounding it were four, small yet long tracks with globes of the earth. One of each colour: red, blue, green and yellow.

Two of them were positioned on the end of the tracks closer to the mirror and were glowing. The other two were at the opposite side of their tracks. These ones were not glowing. Aerith looked up at the moon, admiring its misty glow. She looked back to the two non-glowing orbs and thought to herself. She wondered what would happen if they were at the opposite side of their tracks like the other two so she knew what to do to find the result. She moved up to one of them and began to push it along the track. It was indeed a struggle for someone like Aerith. She paused for a moment, bending her knees a little more and then pressed her palms against the side of the globe even harder. The action made it budge and she was able to move it across easier. When she got it to the other side, it began to glow and soon after the mirror on the floor glowed a little brighter. Aerith moved to the last one pushed it along the track.

She was almost done. The globe was literally a centimeter away from the end yet she stopped again. There was something about the moon that was distracting. She moved and stood next to Cloud and they both looked up at the moon. She smiled softly as she stared at it. She gentle feeling that the moonlight was feeding her was what she needed. But soon after Cloud’s legs bent and he started to pant heavier than usual. As soon as Aerith noticed that something was wrong by Cloud’s behaviour...

...tap...

“gasp!” Aerith turned her head Cloud stood in front of her and growled.

...tap...tap...tap...

Those footsteps. Aerith already knew it all to well. Behind the banisters, Tifa appeared in sight as she climbed up the stairs, smiling directly at her. Fear grew inside Aerith. As Tifa made her way closer to them with the glass held tight in her hand, causing her palm to bleed, Aerith began to feel her entire body tremble and her breathing started to falter. Tifa suddenly started to throw her head everywhere and was laughing maniacally. Aerith was more frightened than ever and felt her nails dig into her skin and she clutched her hands closed. Aerith knew her wolf was making his warning to Tifa more vicious but the maid couldn’t care less. She stopped laughing and stood in front of her. Tifa gave her a cruel grin and then “hissed” at her! Aerith was trying her best to stay calm but she could physically feel her self control slowly but surely fall within each second. She could see Tifa raise the glass but she couldn’t move no matter how hard she tried.

Tifa kept the glass up in the air and just stood still. Again she started to laugh at Aerith. Aerith was feeling so scared that she couldn’t tell who was losing it more. When Tifa was about to throw her hand down to attack Aerith with the glass but Cloud pushed up against his forepaws and bit the maid’s free hand. The small attack reacted Tifa to bend and lower herself as Cloud kept his grip on her hand with his teeth. Tifa kept on laughing and swung her glass everywhere.

Aerith was still shaking as she brought her hands close to herself and helplessly watched Cloud struggle, trying to keep Tifa away from Aerith whilst he kept moving to avoid the glass. He managed to drag her down to the floor. Tifa lied there with her face flat on the floor and her laughter slowly died down. “Cloud!” Aerith cried out to her wolf, still trembling. Cloud obeyed her and dropped Tifa’s hand out of his mouth but quickly moved closer to Aerith.

Tifa’s insane laughter vanished and she just lied there. The place remained silent. After a moment of staring, Aerith looked at the shard of glass in Tifa’s hand...the grip was loose. Maybe... if she could take the glass from Tifa... she could smash it into pieces... and it could make them at least more safe from her. Aerith swallowed the large lump in her throat and slowly took a step forward. Her hand was shaking a lot more than her body as she reached down but she forced herself to ignore it. Just as a single fingertip touched the glass, Tifa suddenly shot her gaze up at Aerith! Aerith gasped and pushed herself up away from her. Tifa laughed again she was slowly stood up. But gradually she stopped, taking in a deep before she glared daggers at Aerith with her sharp eyes.

“Blood. Flesh. Woman. You vile creature." Tifa began to walk but kept her eyes on Aerith. “Cetra blood courses through your veins yet you lure the man into your filthy body again...and agaaaaiiiinnn....” Aerith’s eyes widened yet no sound could escape her gasping mouth. “Wh-what!?” “And you are aloud to do that...because you are a precious...precious little princeessss...” Tifa’s breath started to deepen as her anger grew. “PRECIOUS....Precious... Precious little princess...” Tifa’s head twitched and Aerith whimpered as her fear just .

She didn’t know what to do. But the sight of tears of blood falling down Tifa’s white face pulled her out of her thoughts. Tifa turned the direction of her body to Aerith and laughed once again.
She then smirked at her and was on the move again. Aerith moved quickly backwards. “Cloud!” Tifa rushed faster to her target but Cloud lunged at her and pinned her to the floor. Tifa only growled in annoyance and tried to shove him off. Aerith noticed that Cloud wouldn’t bite her, but she could see that he made sure Tifa couldn’t get up. During their struggle, Aerith saw a key fall out of Tifa’s apron pocket. It was the Mars Key! When Tifa managed to lift her glass properly, she was about to slice the wolf but he jumped off her. Tifa got up but this time, she went after Cloud!

“gasp! Cloud! Look out!!” Aerith yelled. Cloud moved away from Aerith, as though to deal with Tifa at a safe distance where Aerith couldn’t get hurt. Cloud stood his ground and growled at Tifa. She stood in front if him and swung her glass down at him. “Cloud!!” Aerith yelled. Cloud flipped back and Tifa missed him. Then Tifa ignored the wolf and then turned to Aerith!

Aerith jumped back a little. “Ah!” Tifa swung at her but Aerith dodged sideways. This gave Tifa an opening to elbow her side hard! Aerith tumbled and banged the side of her head against the non-glowing orb! The pressure Aerith sent while falling over it made the globe slide into place and it started to glow; the circle mirror fully glowed afterwards.Aerith fell to the floor and her head pounded in pain. “Nrgg!” Tifa grinned and walked towards her. But as she stepped on the mirror, she stopped and looked down... there was her ‘reflection’ staring back! Tifa became stunned and started to scream. She shut her eyes tight and threw her head back as she prolonged her fearful cry. Her scream caused the glass dome above them to shatter!

SMASH

The sudden sound began to trigger Aerith’s memory! The pain was growing into a familiar one as it was making her body feel slow and drained at the same time.

... Screaming—CRASH!!!

As the falling segments of glass rained over them, Aerith’s memory visioned the glass flying everywhere inside the car.Tifa looked up to the falling glass and smiled. She let go of the glass and it smashed by her feet. Then she lifted her hands and started to twirl around. Aerith clutched her head and rolled onto her back. She tried to sit up as her face scrunched with her eyes closed in pain.

...that mysterious man outside was looking down at her...he started to laugh...

A big, long shard of glass broke off from the dome and fell down towards them. As Aerith felt her senses coming back around slowly, she felt Cloud behind her taking a hold of the bottom of her braid in his mouth...but at the same time felt two strong hands grab a hold of her underarms! But there was no one else in the room. The glass came down lower and Tifa stopped spinning to look at it.

SLICE

Aerith sight was black. Even though she could mostly hear her heart beating hard and fast in her head... she head a flesh piercing sound and then her father groaning out load in pain! “D...Daddy...?”
The man looked down at Aerith outside the car looking down at her. His face was hidden by darkness.

Aerith opened her eyes as she felt herself being yanked back... She saw a huge, long shard of glass stab Tifa right through the heart! Aerith screamed to the sudden sight. The glass pinned Tifa to the floor yet her body stayed standing with the support of her feet. Her upper body slowly slid down through the glass a little and the blood continued to spread. Her eyes stayed open and she faintly smiled as she drew her last breath.

Aerith felt as though she couldn’t breathe at all. Her lungs took in repeated split second breaths. As she watched Tifa’s blood spill down the glass and onto the floor, she wailed out in fear and quickly crawled backwards. She accidentally bumped into Cloud whilst doing so and he made a short growling sound as he shifted. Of course, it was not an angered growl.

Aerith sat up as she continued to panic on the spot. “She’s dead!! Oh my God, she’s dead!! She’s dead!!” She tried to look at Tifa again but instantly turned away at the slightest sight. “Oh God!!!” She buried her face in her hands. Her body was shaking faster. “She’s dead! This can’t be happening!! I didn’t mean for this to happen!!” Aerith suddenly stopped herself to the thought. “Is this... my fault?” Aerith covered her mouth in shock. She had never felt so guilty and remorseful before in her entire life. “Tifa’s dead... because of me... This is all my fault!”

It didn’t matter to Aerith if Tifa did try to kill her. Aerith felt as though she was the one to blame leading Tifa here. She had never been in this kind of situation before so she didn’t know what to do. She had never witnessed death before. Aerith stood up, turning herself, unable to look at Tifa. Her heavy panting calmed down but her mouth was dry. Tears filled her stunning green eyes. She walked away with her eyes closed and went down the stairs. As she reached the bottom, she leaned her side against the wall after her muscles started to feel tense. A tear fell down her face and she leaned her back on the wall and slid down to the floor.

“What am I going to do? How can I go on with this guilty conscious that I’m responsible for Tifa’s death!?” Aerith sat up and hid her face between her body and knees. She wrapped her arms around her legs and rocked herself back and forth in a pitiful attempt to regain control.
“I hate this place!! All of this stupid nonsense that I have to go through just to get out! And now a woman is dead!!” Aerith never thought things would go this far out of hand. She cried hard and threw her head up in the air. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry Tifa! I’m so SORRYYY!!!” The tears continued to fall rapidly down her cheeks. She hid her face again and she could hear Cloud coming down the stairs but she didn’t look at him...not until she felt him budge her.

Her watery eyes looked deep into his deep blue human eyes. He had something in his mouth and he brought his head closer for her to take it. Aerith lifted her hands and Cloud dropped the object into her palms and it was the Mars Key. As she looked at it, Cloud made a whimper sound to comfort her. Aerith sobbed and she continued to cry again. She could sense a strong emotion on his eyes as she stared at them. “...sob... Such a strange wolf you are, Cloud...” She sobbed again. “Even from the very beginning you’ve been so tame, obedient and protective for me. And even now you’re still here for me!”

Cloud stepped closer and licked her face before resting his head over her shoulder affectionately. This only caused more tears to fall. “...Thank you...” She embraced Cloud in a gentle hug and hid her face in the side of his neck, not caring if the fur tickled her. With that, she absorbed her friend’s comfort and cried again. Tears fell and soaked his fur a little.

Alone with Cloud... she wasn’t alone... He was there for here; no matter what they would face together...that was all that mattered...
~*~

Poor Aerith, of course we all kno its not her fault! Group hug!!
I also wasn't sure if the glass striking tifa would b ok but hey, if disney can get away with clayton getting hanged on tarzan and scar being ripped 2 shreads by the hyenas on the lion king i can get away with it too! lol

I watched the scene for Daniella's death on Youtube. Ironically, I think she was most beautiful at that point when she was dying and she smiled. The image of shattered glass raining down and Tifa/Daniella twirling and then stopping as she sees the large shard is really a wonderful scene. I think the gruesomeness of the stabbing is lost because of the beauty of the previous image. Any writer of poet would love it. Ah, forgive my rave, but I really do love that scene. I'm glad that you described it and added Aerith's flashbacks inbetween.

Tifa's words, I believe the ones you were worried about, point to what this act will be about, right? Rather chilling. The material in Hojo/Riccardo's part in the story will be quite controversial indeed. :P The evil part in me wishes that it could have been Sephiroth. But I expect his part comes in the last act.

Looking forward to the next part!

dw about it schala, i like that scene too, i actually see that scene in the same way as you do :fangirl:

yh, i do think sephiroth would b cool in riccardo's aswell as lorenzo's but we will soon c how the role 4 sephiroth fits in place ^_^

coming next...chapter 15, once again...
enjoy ^_^

Chapter Fifteen: Sly Hunter
Aerith felt low and miserable as she and Cloud walked down the spiral stairs to the Mars door. She unlocked the door (as she earlier predicted) but she looked at the key in her hand instead of walking through the door. Aerith was starting to feel exasperated with the faint spreading anger. “Locked doors. Puzzles and riddles... Why are these people making things so complicated!? Why are they making it so hard for me?” She clutched the key tight in her hand. “Why won’t they let me go!?” She whined and then threw the key to the floor. The Mars Key bounced off the ground and landed in the pool of water beside them. Aerith leaned against the wall as she sighed. She looked down at Cloud afterwards just by looking at him, she could see in his eyes that he was telling her “everything’s going to be alright”. Aerith smiled a little.

She opened the door but moved to let Cloud walk in first. They made their way through a trashed hallway. There was one certain part of the area that was very dark. That was why Aerith didn’t see a small, mutated flesh with a form of a head, arms and legs come running at her and grab onto her legs! “Ahh!” The creature squeezed harder and started to scream! “Arh! Get off!!” She actually felt this thing try to bite her legs whilst still screaming but he couldn’t get to her skin because of her boots. As Aerith struggled, Cloud dashed towards them and yanked the creature off with his mouth. Aerith fell backwards and she could see the thing hit the wall. When it landed on the floor, its arms and legs scrunched inwardly into its body and it started to disintegrate. Visible cells appeared all over it and gradually, the creature disappeared right before her eyes. “W-what was that thing?”

Aerith thanked Cloud and they were on the move again. In front of them down the hall was another white mumbling figure. Aerith ignored it as it ignored her. She looked at the choices of to go either forward down the path, turn to the nearby door to her right, or go up the stairs between the first two choices. The nearby door was locked, so was the other door further back so they went up the stairs. Aerith could see a small area at the other side of the narrow corridor even though there was some wood blocking the entrance. She kicked at it to remove the wood. Inside, Aerith found shoddy looking equipment scattered around one of the desks seen in the room. In front of them on the floor was a platform that looked like it could give away at any moment. Fortunately Aerith was light but she didn’t want to risk anything at time. At the back of the room was a machine that looked familiar. She read the writing engraved on the plate in the middle of the front of it...

“Decomposer
The initial step in this grand process begins with a manipulation of the primordial chaos. Deliver the Prima Materia to the extractor and the path to the Godstone and all of its righteousness whilst be known. Midway down the sacred path, if the result of one’s knowledge bursts into ash, return to this location. For man is a beast of many mistake sand more fortunately so, of many redemptions, thus all is not lost. Ash begets chaos. Chaos begets primordial life. Know that the grand process always begins here.”

“A device to analyze things, huh? Well, I’m hardly a techie, so a lot of this stuff is just too complex for me. But it would seem that this device is somehow related to the fact the room is corroding away.” She continued to investigate the room and found some notes on another desk. One of them caught her eye so she picked it up...

“Damn that foul beast of a wolf! He was irritating as a human and now he is even more so as an animal! With the above average level of his Azoth, (including the fact that his blood holds Jenova Cells and Mako) I believed that he would be worthy for one of my experiments. The results of physical form were a success, his body transformed into a wolf within two hours after the method fully sank into his system. The only human body part that did not change was his eyes. But he acted rebellious since his mind also remains human. Yet he escaped while transforming and the fool ran off with the Godstone Materia! I spent countless hours stabilizing the damn thing and he steals it from me! And now as a wolf, he found Aerith in her room! I can never understand how Sephiroth was able to raise such a nuisance!

However, I do not need to go running for the Godstone Materia. Of course, it is an important key as the materia of Gainsborough Mansion, but I have little need for it as I will soon have my hands on a far greater power... Ah, my sweet, sweet, beautiful Cetra Azoth. You are so splendid. A true masterpiece! I must have you. This infernal waiting grows rather tiresome. Rebel all you like “Cloud”. You can not keep her from me forever.”

Aerith completely shocked as she read the whole thing. She slowly looked at Cloud. “...Cloud.” She knelt down in front of the wolf with soft sympathetic eyes. “You...you were once human?” Cloud only looked back at her. Aerith bit her bottom lip as she wondered if he was able to understand what she was saying. This note did explain his human eyes. She couldn’t believe that someone actually experimented on people. And now before her was an example of a victim of these experiments. Most would not believe that this was possible because no one has the knowledge or equipment, but if this place was capable of creating ‘clones’... then this was no different. Aerith ran a more gentle hand through his fur as she looked at him. “Hmm...I wonder if you could be...” Aerith suddenly blinked and shook her head. “...No. I would just be getting my hopes WAY too high, there.”She looked at the note. “So, Cloud. You stole this ‘Godstone’ thing, did you? So I guess you can be sneaky when you want to, eh?” Cloud cocked his head to the side.

Aerith smiled. “Don’t you worry, Cloud! I may not know how this stuff works, but I’ll find a way to turn you back! Maybe... maybe Sephiroth can help us!” Cloud made a little sound to that last comment. “You’ve helped me a lot here. This will be my way to repay you.” And that was a promise made.
~*~

There was nothing else left here so they went out of the room and down the stairs. When they reached the bottom, Aerith noticed a green light to her left and when she turned to look, the nearby door was slightly open; allowing the green light to seep through. She went up to the door and pushed it open but took a step. She was shocked to see where the green light was coming from... she made sure Cloud was following her as she walked inside to get a better look...

Inside, in the middle of the room, was a large tank with a green glowing liquid inside. The worst part was that inside was a naked bald woman ‘sleeping’. The writing on the side showed the status of what was being done: “Lifestream/Mako Infusion Process – 67% completion”. Aerith stared at woman. She could actually see the woman taking in breaths as she slept.

“Miss Aerith...” Aerith gasped and spun around as Hojo entered the room. Cloud growled at him as he walked up to Aerith but she walked backwards in the same pace. “Now, if you would please come with me...” Hojo said to her. Aerith slowly shook her head. “...No. I don’t want to.” She looked at him pleadingly while whimpering in fear. “Please let me be! I want to go home!!” she sulked. “But Miss Aerith... You ARE home. This whole castle is all yours.” “...no...” Aerith didn’t see the machine connected to the tank behind her and she bumped into it. She couldn’t see his face because of the hood he was wearing but she could feel him smirking at her. “So, Miss Aerith does not wish to stay at her castle?”

Hojo was holding something and he lifted it up. Aerith gasped as he aimed a flintlock pistol in her face! Aerith cried out and ran away to the other door with Cloud following her instantly. Because she was panicking once again, she couldn’t get the door open! She heard Hojo’s voice loud and clear. “You ungrateful wench! You were born with the greatest gift of all and you don’t even appreciate it. I can’t believe the Azoth was wasted on a half Cetra like you!”

As he chuckled, Aerith finally swung the door open and she and Cloud ran through another part of the familiar labyrinth as fast as they could. “No! Now Hojo is after me! I can be the naive type but I’m not stupid! I know that the longer I stay here, the greater my chances are of me getting killed!” As they turned the corner of the path, Hojo opened the door and started to follow them! “Looks like I have no choice.” He mumbled as he loaded up his gun. He aimed his gun and fired at them! Aerith shrieked as the bullet blasted the wall powerfully behind her! Hojo fired again and Cloud jumped back to dodge the blast before running again. That was when Aerith realized it. “Wait! He’s not trying to shoot me... He’s trying to shoot Cloud!”

“...Rebel all you like “Cloud”. You can not keep her from me forever.”

“He’s going to kill Cloud to get to me!!” “Cloud! Come on!!” They ran through the next door and made their way through the place to try and lose him. There was one large hall room they past that looked like the entrance of the mansion. But obviously Aerith wouldn’t stop to look since Hojo was on their tail! Aerith didn’t know which way they were going but they didn’t stop running. The blast from the gun showed that Hojo was catching up with them! He took another shot at Cloud but missed! Cloud was a very fast runner, especially at full speed, but he only reduced his speed for Aerith and she could see that very well.

Hojo ran through the door he saw Aerith and Cloud take up ahead. But they were nowhere in sight. He looked around the room as he walked; tapping the gun repeatedly in his palm. Where did could they have gone to? The other door was blocked.

“GO!!”

At the sound of Aerith’s voice, Cloud lunged out of nowhere and pounced on Hojo’s back! “Garhh!” The action made Hojo lose his grip on his gun and it fell to the floor. While he struggled to get the attacking wolf off his back, he saw Aerith emerge from underneath a table, lifting the long table cloth over her head. She ran past them and pushed the crate that was blocking the door. When she got it out of the way and opened the door, she called Cloud back to her. At her command, Cloud let go of Hojo, yet pushed his legs against his back, sending the man to collide to the floor. He groaned with a bad temper and grabbed his gun as he stood up. As Aerith was shutting the door with both hands, Hojo aimed and fired again! He could hear Aerith scream as the bullet blasted the door!
Aerith and Cloud ran through the next corridor and she twisted the door knob of another door quickly. While opening the door, Hojo came in and looked at Aerith. “So this is where you have been hiding.” “Go away!!” Aerith snapped at him as she shut the door.

When Aerith turned around to face the new path, she found that she and Cloud were back at the corridor with the white mumbling figure they saw before with the green light from the machine in the other room. Thinking if this area and trying to think of a different route to take—a thought just hit her. She called Cloud to follow her again and they ran down the corridor but Aerith stopped to check on Hojo. Making sure that Hojo had seen her when he opened the door, Aerith dashed up the stairs and stayed near the entrance of the small room. Watching Hojo run up the stairs, she ran inside. Hojo thought that she was foolish running into a place she knew was a dead end. Aerith felt the platform creek under her feet and when Hojo ran across it following her... it collapsed and he fell down a deep hole with it!
~*~

Aerith waited for the eerie silence to come back before she would look down the newly made hole. She couldn’t see anything down below... but she knew the drop wouldn’t be enough to kill him. She jumped as she became startled to hear Hojo grunt and run away.
Aerith shifted back across the room and sat against the wall. She didn’t want this to go on. She couldn’t stand it. She frowned to the irony of her thought of the phrase “what happens twice happens thrice” about the keys.

Drifting her sight along the walls and saw a map of the entire region they were in. She stood up and read the map. Her eyes widened. “--!? Wha... The Northern Continent!?” Things just kept getting worse! The Northern Continent? How could she get all the way up here!? She remembered passing through... the Kalm Woods with her parents in the car. But the Kalm region was in the West Continent. Everyone knew all too well that almost of the Northern Continent was uninhabitable. Even with its well known mountains... it was impossible to pass. It did explain the odd weather for May. Her father told her that a meteor struck the planet over 2000 years ago, so the weather around the site became random. Even in this part of the Northern Continent, it never snowed since.... nor did it melt.

“The Northern Continent.” Aerith sighed. This was the perfect place for these people and the castle to hide in. It was obviously why Aerith and everyone else in this world had never heard of things like “Azoth”, “Cetra” or “luminessant”... or would ever expect to come across the possibility of cloning people or turning people into animals.
“How am I ever going to get home? Even if I get out and pass these mountains... I would have to find a way to cross an OCEAN to get back to Midgar!” Aerith started to weep. But she pushed her palm against her mouth because she didn’t want to cry again. Cloud moved closer to her and she leaned against him as she knelt down.

“Aerithanya.”
“--!?”
~*~

3 cheers 4 schala! Yep! cloud was once human, but he was turned into a wolf by experiments, not really enchanted but here's a treat 4 ya! lol
here's a video of me playin the daniella boss fight, enjoy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loyb-aANuGs
^_^

Yay! We should be moving quickly now that Aerith found about out Cloud being human. Hopefully he changes back soon. Hojo is showing his creepy side again. Well, at least you don't have to worry about messing up his personality like with Tifa, because Hojo is already a nasty character.

I am quite eager to see what happens next. The person who said her name has to be Sephiroth, right?

The Daniella fight was a little strange to me. Fiona doesn't attack at all and all she has to do is to call for Hewie to come and stall Daniella while she moves the boxes into the right spots? Must have been a very high scream to cause so much glass to break.

Man! I've been looking forward to this chapter! :dance:

Well, for that video of the daniella fight, fiona can kick and ram into the enemy, she can even throw small items like "anatomy" or drop something called a "magnesia" which explodes when the enemy treads on it, but its hewie that can influence the most damage on the game.

Enjoy this chapter, I did typing it ^_^

Chapter Sixteen: Checkmate
Aerith was snapped out of her thoughts and her head shot towards the unlit fireplace. “Aerithanya.” The weak voice said again. “--! Sephiroth?” She crawled to the fireplace and lowered her head to look through the hole found at the back of the wall to see him. She couldn’t see Sephiroth but she knew he was there. Sephiroth rolled something through the hole to Aerith. It was a piece of paper wrapped around a sphere shaped object. After that, she heard him move away. “Sephiroth!?” Aerith called. “Sephiroth, wait! I--”
Somehow, Sephiroth lit the fireplace from the other side and Aerith had to move back. She coughed and waved her hand in front pf her face from all that smoke that rose from the fire. Aerith sighed with annoyance. She wanted to ask Sephiroth many things but he disappeared again. She opened the gift that he had given her. She found a small, white orb with a faint peach colour. She looked at the crinkled paper which turned out to be another note so she read the message...

“Take this, the Godstone Materia, to the Mansion Entrance. Offer it to the marble Goddess and then you shall escape through Chaos Forest.”

“-!!” Escape? Did this mean that she could finally go home? But what about Cloud? Aerith looked at him as he was investigating the fireplace. It wouldn’t fair to go home and leave him as a wolf. She nodded to herself. “... We’ll go to this forest. And then maybe we can find something to help us contact Sephiroth. Or maybe he will find us there.” Aerith stood up and Cloud turned to look up at her. “Let’s get out of here.” But before leaving the room, Aerith threw the note into the fire.
Aerith knew just where the Mansion Entrance was. She remembered spotting a statue of a woman wearing a goddess-like dress in that large hall when running away from Hojo.

They rushed back to the entrance hall, with Aerith hoping that they wouldn’t be spotted by Hojo...where ever he was. Aerith spotted the statue. Directly opposite it, at the other side of the room, were two large doors. She got the chance to look at the statue properly and noticed it holding a pair of scales that hung from its uplifted hand. One of the trays was empty, when the other was filled with pure gold, off-setting the scales. She stood in front of the statue and then lifted up the Godstone Materia. “... I hope this works!”
She gently placed the smooth, shiny ball onto the empty tray and watched the scales tilt into balance. When both trays were in line with each other, she heard a loud ‘unlocking’ that made her jump. When she turned around... she watched the large doors creak and separated wide open right in front of her! In the background outside, she could hear the howling of the wind and could see a huge thick forest. Aerith smiled happily. At last! They were free! “Come on, Cloud! Let’s go!” Aerith said, faintly exited. Faintly, being the keyword.
~*~

They ran outside and down one of the side the steps. It was absolutely freezing outside but Aerith didn’t care. They turned right which led down to the path of the forest. Aerith looked up and she could just about see the white snow covered mountains up top. On a poorly constructed post was a sign that said “Chaos Forest”. Aerith’s attention was soon distracted when she heard Cloud growl again. “What is it?” Cloud was acting funny. He was stepping forward but trying to move back; like he was trying to restrain himself from doing something. “What’s wrong, Cloud?” Suddenly—Cloud just ran, charging forward up ahead! “Cloud!”
Cloud ran forward and disappeared after jumping through a nearby bush. Aerith slowed down her running pace after loosing sight of him. “Where did he run off to?” “Cloud?” she called.

......

“Cloud?” she called a little louder.

......

......

BANG!!!

Aerith jumped and covered her ears from the loud sound. Crows screamed out load and flew away from the trees when the silence of the forest was broken. When silence returned, Aerith looked up with serious worry in her eyes. “gasp!” “That sounded like a gunshot!!” “CLOUD!!?” Aerith yelled.

.......

“CLOUD!!?”

Nothing. “gasp! No!!” Aerith ran through the forest frantically. Calling out his name, praying that he would answer with any sign whatsoever! She turned to look in all directions as she ran. She called out to the wolf again and again. Nothing. She couldn’t find him anywhere and the dark night didn’t help either.
She was now panicking again. “Cloudiieee....” she whined. She turned and ran to search for him again. She didn’t know how long she was running for but she just HAD to find him! “Please, Cloud! Please just call out to me! Howl or something! I can’t go on without you! I can’t do this on my own! I just can’t!! Please let me know you’re ok!” Just then... somewhere nearby... she heard Cloud whimper in pain! She stopped instantly and looked around for him. “Cloud!?” She twirled around to try and catch sight of him. There he was! “Cloud!!”

Down below in a small trench was Cloud lying on his side. She ran down to him in a flash and knelt down beside him. “Oh, God! You’ve been shot!!” There above his upper left front leg was a fresh wound and blood soaked his fur. Cloud panted heavily with his eyes half closed. She moved his fur gently to get a good look at his wound. She could just barely see the bullet lodged under the opening of the wound, even though she wasn’t sure how that happened but that wasn’t important. “You’ll be alright...” she whispered to Cloud. She rested her arm, gently yet firmly over his neck and reached her spare hand to the wound.

Trying her best to be extremely careful, she slowly pulled the bullet out. Cloud growled in pain which made Aerith’s heart sink. Gradually, she removed the bullet and threw it away. She then pulled the ribbons out of her hair, allowing her hair to fall into its very long, natural length.
She discarded the smaller one and then straightened out the other in her hands. She shifted closer to him. “Here, this will stop the bleeding.” Cloud looked up at her but the pain caused him to lie back down again. Aerith wrapped her ribbon around his leg and tied it on with a good strong grip. When she was done, she ran her hand across his side soothingly. Soon after, she heard a twig snap somewhere close by!

“...... Hojo...!” Hojo was coming! He would kill Cloud if he found him here! No! Aerith wouldn’t let that happen! She turned back and looked at Cloud. “Cloud...” she whispered to him. “Stay here and rest. It’s me Hojo wants. I’ll distract him and lure him away.” Cloud looked up at and tried to stand up, despite his weak condition. “Lie down.” Aerith commanded. “You’ve been protecting me. Now it’s my turn to protect you.” She smiled and kissed his head between his ears before standing up. “When I lose him, I’ll come back. I promise.”
~*~

She inhaled deeply, preparing herself for another chase. She walked forward against the side, making sure her light footsteps were too quiet to hear. She stopped when she reached the corner and readied herself when she heard Hojo come closer and closer. At the right moment, she charged and pushed him out of the way with a loud yell and he fell to the ground. Not looking back, she ran at full speed. Faster than she ever thought herself capable of. Hojo saw her run up the nearby hill so he lifted his gun and aimed for her legs! Unfortunately, he missed and blasted the ground close to her feet. But the attack caused her to jump from shock and fall to the ground!

Before Hojo got up, Aerith pushed herself forward while rushing to get back on her feet. Again she ran. Aerith didn’t want to look back. She was too scared to see how close Hojo was when she heard him run after her. The forest was too dark since many trees were cramped together but it gave her a little advantage as well as a disadvantage. Her figure and stamina helped her swing past and between trees when Hojo could not because of his shape. Aerith didn’t want to run too far incase if she got too far and wouldn’t be able to find Cloud if she got lost. That was one thing she could not afford. But she also couldn’t afford Hojo catching her either. She tried to circle the part of the forest they were in but Hojo soon noticed her pattern.
So Aerith had to go deeper in forest. She tripped on a thick twig that was lodged into the earth. “Oh!” Aerith’s palms stung from where her palms scrapped against the rough ground. She turned and saw Hojo coming her way!

“Run!” She told herself while standing up and shoving her hair out of her sight. “Just keep running!” So she kept on running. But she was starting to get tired! She was slowing down, her chest was on fire and her tongue tasted like blood. She had been running for a long time. She tumbled again but used the support of a nearby tree to prevent her from falling again. Looking up, she saw an opening up ahead to her left. She turned around but couldn’t see Hojo anywhere. Did she loose him? She ran to the opening to see if she could lie low just to be sure.

She ran to the small area, which was only a cliff. Aerith stepped a bit closer to the edge to get a better look of the place. Down below was a larger forest surrounded by the huge mountains. The cold wind blew, carrying dry leaves with it as it weaved through her hair; making it dance gracefully.

BANG!!!

Aerith jumped with a yelp to the sound of the gunshot behind her. Still panting heavily from the run, she slowly turned around to face Hojo who had his gun aiming up to the air. He has her cornered. “You shot Cloud! How could you!?” “I have had enough of that idiot’s interference, Aerith. I will not allow him to get in my way anymore!” Aerith gritted her teeth together. Enough was enough! “Why are you doing this!? What did I do!?” she yelled. “You inherited your mother’s White Magic, her Holy powers and your father’s Azoth. THAT is what you did.” Aerith’s expression frowned. “Powers? What are you talking about? And what Azoth? I don’t even know what that is!” Hojo lowered his gun.

“That Azoth belongs to us, Aerith. Don’t you see? You are our child.” “STOP! I am NOT your child! I know exactly who my parents are!!” “But do you know what they are?” Hojo countered before lowering his gun. “Aerith, we are... or rather I am knowledge. I hold invaluable information from the dawn of time. I am a great alchemist. I will not die. I am Jenova Gainsborough and I— Look at me Aerith! Look!” Aerith’s voice trembled. “What?”
Hojo removed the hood over his head and she finally saw what he looked like. Her eyes widened as soon as she saw him. “GASP!!!” Both her hands slammed over her mouth. “His face!! No! It can’t be!!” Hojo smiled wickedly at her. “I am just like your father, Gast.” “D... Daddy...?” That was all she could say. Tears swelled in her eyes, blurring her vision. “How- No! Dad!?” How could this be possible? Standing right in front of her was a man with her father’s face! But his greasy hair was black and his expression was cruel and devilish compared to the way her father’s was always kind and loving.

Hojo’s smile grew. “We are clones.” He stated before he began to laugh. Aerith suddenly felt extremely dizzy. Hojo laughed again. “We are clones!” The same pounding headache attacked her again. This time it was far worse than ever! Her mind was swirling wildly and she was loosing balances. She clutched the sides of her head. The pain was too much! “That laugh!! I know it!” Just then—All in a flash—The missing pieces to the puzzle of her memory were falling into place!
~*~

Hojo began to increase the speed of the car he was driving when he caught sight of the Gainsborough family’s car.

Aerith yawned since it was late. Ifalna was sleeping and Gast looked at her in the reflection of the rearview mirror. “Tired, Sweety?” Aerith opened her eyes and smiled. “Yeah...” Gast smiled to the sight of his child. Thanks to the dark night, it made the car behind them easy to see in the mirror. His face looked horrified, recognizing the black car coming close to them. Aerith smiled in the reflection when looked at him. “You ok, Dad?” She asked innocently. Then, she heard her cell phone ring. She reached for her handbag that had it inside but it fell off the seat. Not aware of what would happen next, she undid her seatbelt so she could reach it. When she picked it up, she sat up, planning to put her seatbelt back on. Aerith thought that the black car next to them was a bit too close but thought nothing of it.

Hojo grinned before he suddenly rammed the side of his car into theirs! “AH!!!” Ifalna quickly awoke from her sleep as Aerith slipped from her position in the back seat. Gast turned as his glasses fell off and saw Hojo smirking at him in the other car.
Hojo bashed his car into them again and again. Gast tried to keep his best to keep the car in control to get away from their attacker. But Hojo was violently persistent. After ramming into them, the car was forced off the road and headed towards a stack of trees! Gast tried to turn the car out of the way but it was too late! All three screamed in unison.

CRASH!!!

The windscreen broke off. As the tiny segments of glass flew everywhere inside the car the crash caused Aerith’s body to loose all forms of weight. Light as a rag doll, her body swung and the side of her head bashed extremely hard against the back of Ifalna’s seat. Everything after that became still and quiet in a frightening way. Aerith was lying on flat on her back. The painful, dizzy feeling gushed through her head forced hr eyes to stay shut as she panting hard.

Hojo got out of his car and walked up to the remains of the other car proudly. He was satisfied to see Ifalna dead with the blood the poured down her face. He then looked at Gast who groaned while trying to get up. Hojo sat him upright before taking out a long dagger, with two blades that swirled around each other like snakes, out of his trench coat. He lifted it up and stabbed Gast right through the heart! “Grrg—ARG!!!”

Aerith’s sight was black. Even though she could mostly hear her heart beating hard and fast in her head... she head a flesh piercing sound and then heard her father groaning out load in pain!

Hojo jagged the blade through Gast’s chest roughly. So far that it went through the seat and the flowing blood dripped on Aerith’s leg. As Hojo jagged it one more time, Gast felt his ribcage crack! He opened his wearily eyes and looked at Hojo as he felt his life slowly drift away. His last thoughts were his fear for the safety of his only treasures... his beloved wife... his beautiful daughter... his precious family...

Watching Gast’s eyes close, he yanked the dagger back. “...nnuurrrg... D... Daddy...?” Hojo turned to the sound of that quiet voice. He looked in the backseat and saw the young woman lying there in pain. He stood outside the car where Aerith was and scrapped some of the loose glass with the dagger. There she was. Aerith Gainsborough.

Feeling a presence looking down at her, Aerith forced herself to open her eyes but the only did a little. Her eyesight was blurry but she could see a mysterious man looking down at her wearing a long trench coat and a hat. The darkness disguised his face. That was all she could see before she fell into her “over-a-week” coma.
Hojo eyed her body and looked at her lower stomach. Feeling victorious, he laughed.
~*~

Tears fell down Aerith’s face as her memory came back to her. Aerith knew she was going to faint again but she tried so hard not to. Her sight was turning fuzzy. “Gast is no more.” Hojo told her. “...urrr...” “I am the original.” “Uh!” Aerith collapsed to the ground but her conscious was light. She could hear Hojo walk up to her and then kneeled down behind her. He smoothed some of her hair from her eyes. “With that Azoth, I will finally be complete. You are about to give birth to me all over again.”
Aerith heard those words before she fainted. He carried her in his arms and took her away.
~*~


Cold. That was the first thing Aerith felt when she was waking up. She groaned and her long eye lashes fluttering as her eyes blinked. The next feeling was... squashed up. When she managed to fully open her eyes, she realized that she wasn’t in the forest anymore. She was in a cage! A lot smaller than the first one! She bashed against the fencing metal but then she noticed that she wasn’t wearing her white dress anymore. Everything was gone. Her boots, the dress, everything was gone! Instead she was now wearing a disgusting, dirty, creased up medical gown. Short material covered her front and back and it was tied on at her sides. “What’s going on!? What on earth am I wearing!?” She touched her neck and was relieved to feel that the choker was still on. “Where am I?”

The place was dark but she could see cylinder shaped machines around the place. “What happened!? The last thing I remember is...... Hojo!! Did that freak do something to me while I was asleep!? Cloud! My parents!!”—“Ahh. You’re up.” Aerith gasped and saw Hojo step out from the darkness. Aerith began to feel a tremendous amount of fear and anger at the same time. It was terrifying to see a man with her father’s face. He also wore glasses like her father’s. The only difference in feature was his black hair tied in a small ponytail and his moustache was shaven off. But her father’s face was still there. She trembled as her fingers entwined through the cage. “Cloud... Where is he?” Hojo smirked at her.

“I wish I could answer that question. After I settled you here, I went back to finish him off but he was already gone. I would say that he’s most likely searching for you now but he’ll probably die from blood loss.” Her emotions were getting the best of her and she knew it. “You MONSTER!!”. Hojo just chuckled at her. Furry flashed in her eyes. “It was you...! That night...... “SO SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR ACCIDENT!!!?” “She screamed, recalling what he had said to her before. Not even the slightest bit of guilt was shown from Hojo. Instead he looked proud. “You will get over it eventually.” Aerith was appalled. He was making this sound as though all he did was just spill her drink to the floor.

“Soon you will think none of this. Aerith Gainsborough, I’ve decided you shall give birth to me.” Now more fear replaced her anger, remembering what he said before she fainted. All she could do was just slowly shake her head; indicating a “no.” “Don’t worry. I do not intend to kill you... If you would just allow me to grow inside you.” Aerith’s mouth dropped in disgust. “Wwwhat?” Hojo grinned at her. “When you are pregnant with me, I shall be born again. This time, with your Azoth of BOTH the Cetra and Jenova.”

Aerith started to panic again. “...no. No. No! No!!” She bashed everywhere against the cage as hard as she could. “Let me out!! LET ME OOUUTTT!!!!” Aerith wailed out load as she tried hard to escape from her cage. She was trapped and now Hojo’s prisoner!

“Noooooo-------!!!!!”
~*~

Major cliffhanger there! Is Cloud dead or alive? Has Hojo won? (Believe me, u dont wanna know what Riccardo really says when Hojo said "if you just allow me to grow inside you"!) *shudders*

As for the medical gown, here's a link so you can see what it looks like:
scroll down to you see different costume's for Fiona and you should see 1 called "Surgical Gown"
http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=h...l%3Den%26sa%3DN
Also, here's a drawing I did of Aerith wearing it :blush:
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?...imageID=2690638

Sorry, I've been distracted by the wonderful game that is FF12. It's so much fun! :lol: Well, anyway, I was happy to see that there was plenty of action in this chapter. Hojo shows himself to be the Gast-killer he was in FF7, plus, he shot Cloud! Cloud won't die though. Hojo is a sad sad man. I didn't think that he was a clone of Gast though.

The one disappointment is that Sephiroth is still creeping around with the air of a deus ex machina. So far he's really quite un-Sephiroth-like, but that will change soon, yes? It's a minor thing, but Sephiroth wanting to help Aerith (trick or not) is just sort of... hard for me to see.

I saw the outfits. I guess the surgical gown is the one with the blood-stain. Not the most elegant, but in a story like this it's quite appropriate. Unfortunately, I couldn't see the drawing on MySpace since I don't have a log-in ID. Hope to see more chapters from you!

dw about it but arr! i wish i had ff12 >< lol

yes it suits well 4 hojo being gast's killer in this story

i just noticed that u cant see the aerith drawing due 2 that myspace thing but luckily i recently joind deviantart.com so im sure u can c it this time ^_^
http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/503394...me+-in%3Ascraps

yes it is a huge wonder y sephiroth is helping her, we shall soon find out y (very soon), hang in there!

Here is another chapter i made up except 4 2 scenes 1's called "Acedic Acid B" but 4 this version, we wont b able 2 c the other since its not suitable here *shudders* man i still find that scene sick, i think enough will b said when i say that its called "Invasive Exam" :puke:

enjoy ^_^

Chapter Seventeen: Futile Escape
Waking up once again, Aerith tried to open her eyes but the closed quickly when she saw the bight light in her face. She opened them again but she felt very weak. She slowly turned her head to see where she was. All she could tell was that she was lying on her back. She couldn’t see clearly but she knew she was in another place. It mostly looked white but she could see metal as well. She didn’t like the thought one bit. Whatever this place was... she was in for trouble far worse than before! Gradually, after a few minutes of waiting for her strength to build up...her sight cleared up and she was horrified to see where she was... a medical examination room! Aerith gasped and moved to get up but she couldn’t. She looked down and found herself strapped to an observation bed!

She tried to fight them, forcing her arms and legs to push against them. But the straps were tight and kept her pinned down. She quickly looked at the room and found small objects and tools around the place that made her face grow even more pale. This couldn’t be happening! She cried helplessly knowing there was nothing she could do. How long had she been out after that? It could have been hours, or maybe even a day or two! She was worried about Cloud. Where did he go? What if he was still out there in that forest? What if— She jumped when she heard the door open.

She lifted her head to the direction of the door and saw Hojo walk in. Aerith flinched and lightly struggled against the straps. Hojo smiled as he approached her side. The closer he moved, the faster her heart would beat and the more helpless she would feel. “Good evening, Aerith. How are you feeling?” Aerith glared at him. “How do you think I’m feeling?” Aerith couldn’t believe this was happening! THIS was why she was abducted and her parents were murdered!? Just so she would have a baby!? The thoughts reminded her of that wooden model of her in that music room. How could she forget about that? Looking back at it...the model was wearing the same medical gown she was wearing now!

“THAT, my dear, is what you will become in the future”

Her eyes followed Hojo as he walked across the room...arranging the equipment tools...the sight made Aerith whimper. The sound made Hojo laugh. “No need to fear, Aerith. I’m just going to run a few tests to see the current status of your physical self and your powers. We shall start with a simple blood test.” Aerith stated to shake. There came the tears again. “Please! Please Hojo! Just let me go! I swear I won’t tell ANYBODY about any of this!” Hojo raised an eyebrow. “Let you go? After waiting 17 years for this?” “S-seventeen years?” “Well, no one knew of your existence until your first year. Your birth surprised us all. Never before has there been a half breed of Jenova and the Cetra. You are the very first Cetra Azoth to have ever been born.” He smiled as she gently stroked his palm across her soft cheek. Aerith flinched. “Don’t... touch me...!” “Green eyes...” Hojo remarked softly before he pulled his hand away. “It is funny. You are the daughter of his clone yet you have inherited the eye colour of the original. Gast and I were born with brown eyes, as you can see.” “...?”

“Did your parents mention ‘nothing’ at all?” Aerith stared at him, unsure of what to say. Hojo groaned. “Damn your spiteful parents!” “Don’t you dare talk about my parents like that!” Aerith hissed. Hojo ignored her and turned back to the tools. “I can not believe they kept your incredible powers a secret from you. Not only that...they even sealed it! It explains why your birthmark’s colour on your left shoulder blade is lighter than it should be!” Her birthmark? She never thought anything of it before. Just that she got it from her father. Yes, it was true that his was darker than hers but that was it. “It will be hard for me to remove the seal completely but I already destroyed a small amount. When I first brought you here.” He turned his head over his shoulder, facing her. “You have noticed that your body has been healing a lot faster whenever you have been injured, correct?” Aerith didn’t answer him. Yes, of course she had noticed. Like when Tifa slashed her face with that glass. Hojo smiled. “That is just a small percentage of your powers. Can you imagine what else you can be capable of if you didn’t have this seal?”

Hojo placed a tray with some of the tools on the counter beside the bed. “This is why you are the perfect woman for my rebirth. I will be far superior when I inherit your powers. I will be greater than even that pathetic Sephiroth!” “......” Then Hojo looked angry again. This was another thing she didn’t like about Hojo. His changing expressions were making him unpredictable. “Why? Why did Gast have to be the better descendant? Why did Sephiroth allow him to be born with the Azoth and not me? We were born with the same DNA, the same blood...but Gast had to be blessed with the Azoth!” “Maybe because you’re too crazy?” Aerith humored, even though she didn’t understand what he was saying. To the light insult, Hojo grabbed her head under her chin and forced her to look at him. “Don’t push your luck, Aerith! I have said before that I won’t kill you but I WILL hurt you if you try to cross me!” He leaned closer and grinned into her face. “Hmm...Well, at least I no longer have to feel annoyance about the past. Because I have you at last. You are finally mine!”

The door opened again and inside came Debilitas. He was carrying extra tools for the room on another tray. Hojo took them from him. “Good. You can go now, Debilitas." Debilitas nodded and was about to turn and leave but instantly recognized Aerith who was bound to the observation bed. His huge eyes widened slightly and he quietly groaned. Aerith didn’t say anything but he could easily see her eyes calling out to him. “Please...” she silently begged. “Please help me!” Aerith wasn’t sure if would be able to understand with his infant mind but she tell that he felt uncomfortable seeing her the way she was. He looked at Hojo who had his back to the both of them, writing notes. Debilitas stared at Aerith for a moment...and then walked up to her and started to untie her! Aerith’s eyes shot up wide.

“No! What are you doing!? Hojo is right there!” Hojo stopped as soon as he heard the first strap unclip. He turned around. “--!!? Debilitas! What are you doing!?” Hojo marched forward and pushed Debilitas out of the way. At the same time, Aerith wriggled her arms free and grabbed a metal bowl on one of the counters next to her. Not wasting time, she quickly sat up and lifted it up and whacked it hard against the back of his head! “Arg!!” After Hojo fell out cold on the floor, Aerith took off the remaining straps with Debilitas’ help. “Thank you! Thank you so much!” Debilitas looked up at her. No one had ever ‘thanked’ him before. Now free, Aerith stood up and rushed to the door. She called to Debilitas to come with her as she opened the door but he grunted and waved his arm back and forth, signaling her to go. Aerith looked at him but she afterwards smiled, understanding. “Thank you.” She ran out in a desperate search to find Cloud.
~*~

A few minutes later, Hojo got up and rubbed the back of his head. He looked around the room frantically. Aerith was gone! Only Debilitas was there looking down at him. Hojo was infuriated. He stood up and started to beat Debilitas hard! “You idiot! You stupid moron! You let her escape!!” Debilitas bawled out and crawled to the corner away from his attacks. After letting the anger out, Hojo heaved and grabbed his gun, making his way to the wide open door. He glared at the cowering hunchback. “You better be grateful that your only excuse is that you are a failed clone.” After checking that his gun was fully loaded, he ran out of the room looking for what was his.
~*~

A young woman with raven coloured hair and crimson brown eyes sighed as she sat on the couch. She had been trying to do anything to keep herself occupied but nothing could help her forget what had happened. The memories of her home in flames...the memories of his long blade coming down at her...those experiments she went through. Even now she believed that it was a miracle that she escaped. But it still pained her that she could not claim the revenge she desired. The news appeared in the television, reporting an update about that car crash near Kalm three weeks ago. She wasn’t really paying attention since she was full of thought. Soon after, the door opened and two children walked in. The woman smiled at them.
“Hey, Marlene. I see you brought Denzel with you, eh?” “Yeah, is that ok, Tifa?” “Yes, of course it is.” “Can we change the channel to watch cartoons?” Marlene asked. Tifa was about to nod her head but stopped when she heard the name ‘Gast Gainsborough’. “Don’t change it!” Tifa suddenly cried, startling both of the kids. Tifa grabbed the TV remote and turned up the volume and stared at the television with an intense gaze. She listened carefully to the reporter. “Gast Gainsborough...has a daughter?”
~*~

Aerith panted as she ran through the unfamiliar place. The place was dark but the design told her that she was still somewhere in the mansion. Cloud. He was out there and she had to find him! Every time she looked into his eyes, she saw strength and that told her that was alright. Aerith didn’t know which way she was going but she didn’t stop running. Her bare feet managed to get used to the freezing cold floor. She knew Hojo would come after her soon but she didn’t know how much of a head start that she had. As she turned the corner, she found a big door and she pulled the ring-shaped door knob to get it open. Up ahead was a set of stairs and she closed the door behind her before running up. The previous area must have been the basement level of this place. The new part of the place had lots of windows and she could see and hear a roaring, violent thunderstorm outside. The leaves clung onto the branches of the trees as the wind howled through. Chaos Forest. If Cloud was still in the forest, she prayed that he was under shelter.

She dashed through the corridors and used the help of the windows to find the closest access to the outside.
Soon after, she found a small door leading outside and ran through. “Ah!” The icy cold gust of wind and heavy rain slammed instantly against her with a heavy force. One would be a fool to go out in this weather. Aerith pushed the door to close and jogged down the steps. Her hair clung to her body and her entire self became soaked the moment she stepped out. Reaching the bottom and running across the muddy puddles, she pushed herself through the storm, blinking her eyes from the rain splattering in her face whilst trying not to fall as she slipped. Up ahead, she could see a gate leading to the forest. Using the bars for support, Aerith moved to the gate to open it. But the thick, heavy padlock and chains crossing it showed that it was locked. “Damn it!” Looking up, the gate wasn’t that high.

Maybe she could climb over. Aerith knew it would be difficult since the bars were wet but she had to try. Holding onto the bars, she lifted her feet onto the brick near the bottom of the gate and then pushed one foot against one bar. She lifted herself up. “URG!!” Ready to lift the second leg, she positioned herself but slipped! When she fell, she felt her knee scrape against the sharp end of the padlock! “ARHHH!!!” she cried in agony before falling on the soggy ground. Blood oozed from the wound and gushed down her leg. The injury wasn’t seriously deep but the pain was too much for Aerith. She staggered up onto her feet and leaned against the gate. Looking around, she saw a second door around the corner. Despite the pain causing her leg to limp, she rushed through the door...unaware that Hojo spotted her through a window!

Aerith closed the door once she was back inside and found a lock connected to the wall. She locked the door and turned to look down another corridor. She tried to run again but her pace was slower...and not just because of the new wound on her knee. That storm did take weigh her down greatly. Her breathing was now heavy. Behind her left a trail of muddy footprints and blood. Her body was pleading to rest but she had to keep going. She leaned her hand against the wall and used this to help her move faster.
As Aerith kept on running, she turned the corner and walked through the nearest door, making sure to close it. It was just another small room. In other words: dead end. She was about to leave but she heard footsteps. She quietly kneeled down and saw Hojo through the keyhole! She was lucky that the place was dark so it wouldn’t be easy for him to notice her footprints but it was bright enough for her to see him. He was looking in different directions for possibilities of where she could be around here, tapping his gun in his palm like before. She prayed that he wouldn’t find her. After a moment of staring, she saw him sigh and walk away. Aerith sighed herself afterwards, but she decided to stay in the room for a little while until he was at a certain distance away so he wouldn’t catch her.

She stood up and looked down, disgusted to see all the mud on her; not to mention that that storm just made it worse as well as the blood that now stopped flowing. Probably her “powers” going into affect. Despite everything, she still wasn’t sure if she could believe that she had powers. Everything else was true but... Her thoughts were stopped when she saw a photograph of her mother on the wall. She walked across the room towards the image. She was stunned to see her mother trapped in a small dungeon looking frightened. Ifalna looked around her age and was wearing a surgical gown similar to the one Aerith was wearing. “...Mom...” she whispered. On a desk close by with a tiny red light, she found a journal which was no doubt Hojo’s. It was open and she saw her mother’s name written inside...

“March 5th, 1987
Today has indeed brought us an unforeseen discovery. When we believed that we had eradicated the last of those pathetic, planet-worshipping Cetra 10 years ago...it turns out that there has been a grand total of just one survivor left in this world: a 19 year old female Cetra named Ifalna. She gave my men and I a good FUN game of ‘Cat and Mouse’. Judging by the extraordinary powers of her White Magic that she used to defend herself, I am positive that she has a family bloodline of the rank of High Cetra. Gradually, we caught her and took her as our prisoner. Naturally, we would have normally killed hr but because of the Crisis we are facing... her healing and life-benefiting powers could be of use to us...I am sure our leader, Sephiroth, will understand.”

“Mom...” Aerith pursed her lips together. When Aerith looked back, she remembered how her mother looked a little down sometimes...thinking to herself. Whenever Aerith asked if she was ok, Ifalna would just put on a fake smile and say that she was just tired. Aerith usually wouldn’t ask further after that, thinking that it was none of her business, then she would see her father smile at his wife while placing his hand over hers. Ifalna would always smile gratefully to him. Everything about her parents that confused her was starting to make sense...even if she did doubt having powers. Whenever they always moved from place to place...like when they left Nibelheim when they said there was something dangerous... Aerith turned a few pages.

“September 28th, 1987
There is something odd about Gast’s behavior, even Lord Sephiroth has noticed. He seems to be fond of my Cetra specimen. Surely it can not be possible that he has “fallen” for her? Preposterous! How can us clones feel such emotion? A Jenova and a Cetra... how disgusting! If this continues, Gast could betray us. Yet this could be the perfect diversion that could distract our lord while I set out my plans to take over. Sephiroth has been growing weak since we are loosing the power of Azoth so he is aging fast. He can not defend himself so easily. However, I most not take him lightly. 2000 years of living under his shadow has already proven why...”

“Found anything interesting, Aerith?” “gasp!!” Aerith spun around and dropped the book and saw Hojo slam the door behind him. “You thought I didn’t know you were in here? I was wondering how long it would take you to come out.” Hojo smiled as he looked at both Aerith and the photo of Ifalna behind her. “You truly do resemble your mother, Aerith. Except Ifalna had blue eyes, right?” Through an eerie, long, silent, moment, the two stared at each other, waiting to see who would make the next move. Hojo smirked and stepped forward and Aerith instinctively moved back away from him. “Are you not exited about this great opportunity that I am giving you?” Hojo questioned. “You and I will both have what we want. I shall be born with the greatest power in the world and you will no longer be the last Cetra. Me rebirth will help save your race from becoming extinct.” “You can stuff yourself for all I care!”

Aerith spat, forcing as much courage as possible. Hojo’s wicked smile vanished and he stormed up to her. She tried to ran past him and grabbed her shoulders. She screamed before he slammed her against the wall! Aerith struggled under his grip but stopped when he slapped her hard across the face! “Ah!!” He grabbed her shoulder again and pinned her harder into the wall. “I will not give up just because ‘you’ do not wish to give birth to me, Aerith! I have been patient enough to wait for 17 long years.” Aerith sobbed as he moved her wet hair from her eyes. His gaze stuck deeply into hers as he towered over her. She felt weak and helpless. “You will give birth to me! I will do whatever means necessary...”
~*~

He trapped her between his arms and tried to drag her to the door. She kicked as she tried to struggle herself free. “No! Let me go!!” Hojo was already becoming a little more annoyed by her act. She managed to turn around and pushed both hands against his chest to force him back and then kicked him in the groin, giving her the chance to run away. She ran though the door and quickly shut it before running as fast as she could. She heard the door open again and shrieked after hearing a gun blast. She turned and saw Hojo holding his pistol with a furious face. “I guess I’m going to have to take out your pretty legs to prevent you from escaping, eh?” Aerith gasped and turned to run again. She cried as she felt once again more tears fall. She wished there was something she could do to make this nightmare end! She wished she had Cloud with her.

She shrieked after dodging a second gunshot and turned the corner and running up some stairs. When she ran into another hallway, she realized that she had been here before when she recognized those red windows. There was another door she saw that she didn’t go through so that was where she went next. It was another medical examination room! “Arg!” whined Aerith when she found herself in another dead end. Hojo was not far behind so he would come in here any second! She looked around to find anything that could help but heard the door behind her open! “gasp!” “Just grab anything!” She said to herself. When she turned and saw Hojo slowly walk in, she reached out for an object but didn’t see what it was. She felt a glass bottle and hid it between her muddy back and soaking hair. Hojo smiled and walked into the room.

Aerith walked sideways across the opposite side of the bed that was in the middle of the room. Hojo tapped his gun in his palm as he walked across the other side. They stopped at either side. “What have you got there, Aerith?” mocked Hojo. “Here!” Aerith yelled as she threw her weapon in his face! The glass smashed against Hojo’s arm that he lifted to protect himself and a dull green/yellow liquid fell from it. Some of the substance had spilt on his face but he didn’t seem affected by it at all. As the colored water spilled down his body, he smirked and licked some of it off his hand. “Acid, Aerith?” Aerith gasped as realized what she had just thrown. “Tsk, tsk, tsk... I’m surprised that some one like you would use that...” How could acid not hurt him!? It should be burning his flesh!

Aerith instantly dismissed he thought and ran for the door, Hojo rushed to grab her but she used the curtain screen that hung from the ceiling and reaching to the floor to force it into his face between them. The action pushed him back but Hojo reached out and grabbed her arm! He yanked her back to him and whacked the side of his gun across her head! Aerith cried out and then fell out conscious! Before she could fall, he grabbed her and lifted her into his arms. He sighed; glad to have finally been able to silence her. Just as rebellious as his previous specimen...that damn wolf! He placed her onto the observation bed and stared at her. Even on her sleep, she looked so beautiful... “It’s alright, Aerith...You are not ready yet. I understand. I know I can have a bad temper.”
~*~

After settling everything down, he took a sample of her blood and was satisfied with the results. Then he scanned her physical body and saw that she was perfectly healthy...except for a concussion on the side of her head that seemed to have been lasting for a while now. Obviously from when she must have bashed her head in the car when he attacked her and her family that night. He wasn’t too worried about that, it didn’t seem to affect her seriously, but he did noticed that it seemed to attack with headaches whenever her memories would recover as he had witnessed twice. Her automatic healing ability had already been working to heal it but had been taking its time. Because of that seal that was blocking her powers, he growled to the thought.
He jotted the results on a note board and then turned to look at Aerith who seemed peaceful once again. “It would probably take a long time to break you.” He said to her. He thought of the perfect idea. “Looks like we’re going to have to do something drastic.”
~*~

arg hojo that !@*$& :mad: lol
there u go tifa fans, the real tifa is still alive!

usually i would imagine ifalna with green eyes but on this vrsn she has light blue eyes

hope u liked that chapter
^^

Definitely get FF12! A bit lacking in story, IMHO, but the battle system is oh so fun.

Whee! I didn't expect to see the real Tifa; so that means the 'Tifa' that Aerith fought with was a clone of the real one. Oh... I thought she was a clone of Aerith or something, like Hojo was of Gast. It seems like Tifa has some connection with Gast...

Hojo... <_< Yes, it's a good idea not to go into the details. He needs to die soon. Seriously.

Just a question, does Aerith suspect that Sephiroth's motives are less than innocent after reading the journal entries? The picture on Deviantart was well-drawn (better than anything I could have done). Her arms and the stitches along the sleeves have nice details, although it's unnerving to see Aerith scared. Next chapter please!

Well i might get ff12 soon...i hope so...
thx about my aerith drawing

well, the last prt of chapter 16 was actually the 1st half of ending D on HG when Riccardo wins and Fiona becomes pregnant...
(there's 4 endings on hg but the 1st three r almost the same)
This is another made up and the last chapter of Act IV so let see if this affects Aerith's fate...

enjoy...

Chapter Eighteen: Give Up?
Aerith felt cold and numb as she was waking up, she was lying on her side. When she slowly sat up and looked around, she was in a small dungeon...the same one in the photo of her mother! She moved up to the door bars and wrapped her fingers around the rough, rust metal. Up near the ceiling was a small window with little bard between the bricks. She thought she could hear flowing water behind the walls. There was a table just outside the cage with an unlit lamp, an empty bottle of wine lying on its side...and the key to unlock her prison! “!”

She stood up and stretched her arm between two of the bars as far as she could. The key was too far out of reach! She grunted as she tried to reach farther. Her fingertips couldn’t even reach the side of the table! She was stuck in here! She sunk to her knees. She was beginning to pant and not because she was tired. The key she needed to escape was right in her face but it was too far away! She was trapped and there was still no sign of Cloud. Was this how it was going to end? “...no...” She started to cry and then stood up. “NO!!!” She began to scream at the top of her lungs and then lifted one of the small hollow wooden boxes she found beside her, throwing it against the bars.

She threw the other boxes at the surrounding walls. She yelled, kicking and slamming her fists against all that kept her trapped. After tiring herself out, she leaned against the wall under the small window, where a small amount of moonlight shown in. She lowered herself to sit down. She continued to cry helplessly to herself. There was nothing she could do but that. She couldn’t believe it. She had come so far, so far with her friend Cloud. She had broken her promise and it hurt her too much. She promised that she would come back to him. She promised that she would help to find a way to turn him back into a human. It was too late. What if he was dead? The terrible thoughts made her cry harder. He couldn’t of had abandoned her and escape on his own. What reason would he have to do so?

Minutes turned into hours and she still sat in the same spot. She felt goose bumps from head to toe. She was shaking because she was so cold. Her heart was aching from such loneliness. She had long ago stopped crying but tears would still fall. She was thinking about her home...her parents...her friends...Elmyra... She missed them all. And she had become convinced that she would never see any of them again. But she was dying to. Memories were coming to her on there own. She remembered the happiness she always felt growing up...

Little Aerith squealed with delight when her father threw her in the air and then caught her in his arms in a tight embrace. She wrapped her tiny arms around his neck “Aerith! My little princess! My sweet angel!” Gast sighed. Aerith pulled back and looked into his face. “Mommy says I’m her little princess and sweet angel too!” she commented. Her father chuckled. “Well that shows how much we love you. You know we do.” “I love you and Mommy too! Does that mean you and Mommy are my little princesses and sweet angels?” Gast laughed to her adorable question.

Aerith sat next to her mother’s lap and she finished practicing another song on the piano. “That’s really good, Aerith!” Ifalna hugged her daughter close to her. “I’m so proud!”

“Hey, guys!” Yuffie, Elena and Priscilla turned and all smiled brightly to see Aerith running up to them. She stopped and leaned over to catch her breath. “Sorry! Sorry I’m late! I’m so sorry!” Her friends laughed. “Calm down. Down you’re only 10 minutes late.” Aerith stood upright and smiled. “Come on!” jumped the hyperactive Yuffie. “Let’s go PART-AY!!!”

“Wow, Aerith! Those flowers are beautiful!” Elmyra said as she noticed Aerith’s work. “Thanks! These ones are late bloomers but they still look pretty.” “You should do this for a living!” “You mean like work in a flower shop?”

It was funny how moments like this could make memories flash before her. Yet...it was so cruel! Her normal life. Her family. Her friends. The way of life that she loved was taken from her in a flash to her. She was never going to see them again. Now these happy memories tormented her about it. Even the happiness he felt when Cloud first saved her from danger. She most likely wasn’t going to see him again neither. So she sat there in the corner, crying. She didn’t want to, but that was all she could do. Just sit there and cry. “...Cloud...Mom...Dad...” she sobbed, crying out the names of her loved ones.

Of all people this could happen to her, it had to be Aerith. After a long moment...Aerith thought why she could be in this position. “Maybe...maybe it is because I run away... That is why Cloud was shot...because I ran...It’s all my fault!” Could this be the reason? Aerith looked up to see the moonlight shine in before closing her eyes, crossing her arms and burrying her head in shame.
“I should just give up...maybe Hojo won’t be so cruel if I let him have his way. Maybe he’ll stop hurting other people to get to me. I did tell myself before that I would like to be a mother someday... but...I would be bearing a child that won’t be mine...I’ve come so far...just to give up?”

Aerith didn’t know what to do. She was so confused. She felt like she was holding on to dear life from falling off a cliff that was crumbling apart. She would have been happy enough to die right on the spot. That was probably the ONLY key to freedom...but other thoughts kept objecting...Hojo said she was the last of these ‘Cetra’ people... If her mother was one, would that be turning against her? But Aerith couldn’t take the pressure anymore. Looking at the bars, she crawled over to it. “Give up...or keep going...when there’s nothing I can do? Everywhere I go... No matter how hard I try... I’m always stuck here.” She was growing extremely tired and found herself unconsciously lowering and lying on the floor. “What should I do?” Aerith’s eyes slowly closed. “...somebody......anybody...! Please help me. I don’t know what to do...”

Gradually, a deep sleep had taken over her...and she failed to hear from a distance...a lone wolf howl in sorrow...
~*~

could this story lead 2 HG's ending D?
The upcoming FINAL act will provide the answer!

Ah, the final act is coming soon. Cloud should definitely come back soon; let's see how he likes Sephiroth. :P Aerith and Hojo still grosses me out. Hope he gets what he deserves in the next chapter. See you in Act V!