The Sea of Time

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Glittering in radience, the sun slowly rose into the brightening morning sky, casting it's golden glow across the quiet town of Kalm. The first morning rays peeked in through in the dreamy haze that surrounded him. The nightmare that had overtaken him was gradually lifted, and he awoke to see a beautiful face staring at him, brow furrowed in concern. "You were supposed to be up an hour ago!" The concerned expression faded, only to be replace by mock anger Cloud jumped out of bed as if possesed by a demon and hurriedly headed for the door. Tifa shook her head nonchalantly.

"I already opened the bar an hour ago." She commented wryly.

"Oh. Uh...sorry." Cloud sat there, face reddening in embarassment as he turned away.

"You don't think you are getting off that easy do you! You owe me one now." She stood there a moment, as if deliberating his punishment. Then she suddenly smiled.

" I think this going to cost you.... say.......a walk out to the cliffs tonight." Tifa grinned wickedly. Cloud sat there for a moment, trying to keep a straight face, then smiled in return.

"You got a deal." He answered, smiling.

Tifa walked back down to the bar, buried in deep thought. Desperately unsure of herself and what she was about to do. So deep in thought in fact that she nearly failed to notice an old man sitting patiently at the end of the counter. There was something familiar about the man. Perhaps it was his expression, or possibly it was his searing confidence and yet humbled modesty which seemed to emanate from the man. Whatever it was, she was certain she had seen him before.

Before she could take his order however, he got up and walked away, leaving her bewildered in puzzlement. However the many other customers in the bar rapidly took her attention as the day progressed, and she forgot about the odd individual.

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Cloud locked the doors tight and began to pick up all the remaining glasses and plates. It had been a busy day, busier everyday. Once word had gotten around of the excellent food and drink, customers had flocked to Seventh heaven faster than the pair could find seats for them. Finished with the dishes, Cloud was about to head upstairs when something caught his attention from the corner of his eye. He turned to see a small red orb laying mysteriously at the end of the counter, next to a crumpled sheet of paper. He picked up the orb, materia he thought, different in some way, but still recognizable. He picked up the small note:

"In the times ahead and the times behind, this alone has the power to end the core of the future. And restore the present."

-Adm. Stryker, M. L. S.

Odd. Cloud picked up the small red materia, he could feel it's strange power, almost reminescient of the deep energy of the Black Materia, yet skewed somehow. Different. As if this had a similar power, yet in a different realm. Unsure of what to do with the orb, he placed it in his pocket along with the odd note. Not wanting to disturb Tifa on the verge of thier walk, he decided not to tell her of it yet. Sephiroth was dead, Shinra was gone. There wasn't any threat to their safety. And this would only serve to worry her on the verge of perhaps the most important time for them. He walked slowly upstairs towards Tifa's room, the red materia all but forgotten as his thoughts drifted to her and what he knew had to be said.....

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They walked out towards the ocean, silence forming a deep chasm between them, a canyon of emotion neither dared to break. After more than an hour of silence had passed, Tifa reached for his hand and turned to face him, eyes misted in sadness.

"There is....something I have to say." Cloud waved his hand and stopped her, the chasm between them broken.

"No, I have to tell YOU something...." He paused, gathering himself for what he was about to say.

"I.....I....love you Tifa." His eyes met hers, as tears streamed down her cheeks. Gently he wiped them away. He clutched her hand an led her to the wind swept cliffs by the sea.

They lay there arms intwined staring up at the cloudless sky, at the stars which pulsated with light from far away in the vast sea of space. Cloud faced her and smiled as he pointed to a small cluster of stars glowing faintly over the horizon.

"Hey that one looks like a chocobo."

Tifa chuckled softly and drew him closer. There lips met in a soft kiss. Cloud looked at her face, that same beautiful face he had seen before, but now saw with a different perspective. He held her tightly, wishing that the moment would never end. Time would have a different plan for them however. Behind the pair, the chocobo shaped stars twinkled softly.

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3 Days Later:

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Cloud and Tifa sat together in the rolling hills above Kalm, hands held tightly together as they admired the view in mutual silence. A shadow came over the sun, and Tifa looked up to see a storm off in the distance.

"It is going to rain tonight." She stated simply.

The sky paled as the clouds obscured the sunlight above, a sea of vapor blotting out the light. The winds began to change, shifting currents in the air. Rain was coming, endless tears from the heavens. Cloud released Tifa's hand, unknowingly doing so for the last time.

"We had better get going before that storm gets here." It had been a pleasent afternoon, they had spent a great deal of time here, admiring the view from the hills as the sat together. Yet the weather had turned against them. Even now, Cloud could here the thunder in the distance. Power. The raw, untamed power of the natural world. Yet the clouds seemed to move too swiftly, the currents too strong. Fear gripped Cloud for reasons he could not fathom.

"Are you OK?" Tifa asked worried and fearful herself. "Let's head back."

Yet it was too late, the storm was already upon them, ominous black clouds of death, blotting out all light, all hope. Lightning slammed into the ground in a blaze of light, another bolt followed, and another throwing the soil into the air. Unnatural blasts cratered the landscape, the noise was deafening, a constant roar that peaked with a flash of light in front of them. Fear gripped the pair, yet Cloud found the strength to draw his sword, Tifa stood fists held at the ready. A man stepped out of the blaze of light, all swagger in confidence, yet searing with hate.

"Who are you?" Cloud demanded. No answer was forthcoming, the only identifying mark on his clothing was a samll patch with the name "Exeter" stiched into it. This unexpected intruder glared at the pair threateningly, the hate nurished from many years of pain rising within him. A flood of pure malice overcame him. He held his railgun tightly at his side, he stepped towards the pair. Cloud stepped protectively in front of Tifa.

"You let her die." Exeter glared at Cloud with narrowed eyes. For a moment, those eyes flashed with something that resembled a deep and lingering pain, then the hate returned.

"I never saw her, Aeris......my child. YOU WILL PAY for her death!" Exeter cocked his Railgun and and pulled the trigger. Cloud wasn't sure what happened next, Tifa's motions were a blur. At the same instant the projectile left the barrell of the Railgun, Tifa twisted around protectively in front of Cloud. Before he could react, before he could even think, Tifa slammed backward into his arms from the force of the projectile traveling at one quarter the speed of light. He felt the weapon pierce through her and slam into his armor, but by then it's speed had slowed from its passage through her body. Cloud fell to the ground unconscious as Tifa rolled limply to the side.

Exeter's eyes burned with rage as he stood triumphantly over Cloud and Tifa, his weapon held at his side. When niether Cloud or Tifa moved, he pulled out a small control, tapped it and was gone in a flash of light. The storm faded, yet the rain remained, a deep cloud of tears pouring from the heavens softly. Tap tap tap. The rain continued to fall. Slowly consciousness returned to Cloud. What had happened? He remembered Tifa and turned to face her. Why was she not moving? He tried to stand, but suddenly doubled over in pain. He looked down to see a two inch deep indentation in his armor and realized he must have broken a few ribs. Despite his pain, he had to help her, he reached over and shook her gently. "Tifa." When she didn't respond, Cloud forced himself to his feet and shook loose the final tumblers in his mind. He remembered. Exeter....Tifa. Fear dropped like a stone into his heart, filling him with utter dread. He leaned over her, oblivious to his own pain. He saw the the blood stained grass around her and his dread turned to horror. For a moment he thought she was already dead, then he noticed her chest rising inconsistently and saw her gasping for air. She tried to speak, but it only came out a barely audible whisper.

The tears rolled down Cloud's cheek, mixing with the rain, as he realized she was going to die. "Cloud I....love..y..y...youuuu." Unable to speak, Cloud kissed her bloodstained lips as the life faded from her. A single tear dropped from her right eye as her body relaxed in his arms, she had sacrificed herself to save HIM. It wasn't supposed to happen like that. Just a few hours ago, he had been sitting with her, absorbed by her, fully in love....now she was gone. For a moment Cloud sat there in denial, Tifa's body cradled in his arms. Then as if possesed by a demon from the very gates of hell he screamed in despair.

"Noooooo!" His mournful tone echoed across the deserted landscape, like the cry of the lone wolf seperated forever from the pack. Tears rushed down his cheeks in a never ending flood that drowned out all else. Even the rain had to compete with his excessive tears.

For hours he sat by her grave, consumed by grief, driven by hate. Her earrings lay in the palm of his hand. In one final gesture, he placed one on top of her grave and the other on a small strap around his neck. Then he turned towards the far away horizon and walked slowly, mournfully away. Tifa's earring glistened in the twilight on top of that soft mound of earth that was her final resting place. Behind Cloud, the last rays of light dissappeared over a careless horizon, drenching the world in a sea of darkness and despair.

How long he walked alone he couldn't remember. All he could see was her smiling face. His heart ached with pain and sorrow. His sadness was so deep, he couldn't even cry any more, having long ago exhausted all his tears. He smiled for a moment as he thought back that night she lay at his side before fighting Sephiroth. He remembered her smiling face, always there to help, always there for him and the smile dissappeared. For the second time in his life, he had failed to protect someone close to him. "Cloud I....love..y..y...youuuu." The words echoed in his mind, the echoes of love.

After days of wandering, he came to those same cliffs where only days ago they had declared their feelings for each other. The tears returned, pouring down his cheeks in a never ending flood of despair. It seemed like lifetimes ago. How could this happen? How could someone just appear out of thin air and take away all that was his life? Why would anyone hurt her....

The wind howled mournfully across the great cliffs standing defiantly against the waves, against the winds of time. Cloud stood atop the ancient rocks, eyes searching in question over the endless sea. Only the stars stood with him, glowing softly from the vastness of space and time, twinkling faintly in the cloudless sky.

Cloud turned away from the raging seas, his cape billowing in the soft winds as he walked towards the horizon, toward one singular purpose. Indecision stopped him and he paused and stared up at the sky, his eyes searching for something in the great void of stars. His tear laden eyes stopped on a familiar patch of stars close to the horizon, for a moment his eyes glowed with rage and a deep unhealed pain, then it was gone. Behind him, the raging waves pounded the cliffs once more.

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He lay there staring up at the distant sea of stars, pinpoints of light which sparkled softly in the vast ocean of darkness. The stars swirled endlessly above him, forming shapes and patterns in his mind. Her face, her smile. He could see her there, watching him from afar. The moon dipped below the horizon leaving the great bands of stars above him in a sea of darkness, briefly pierced by the her light. Voice's echoed across the darksome plain, echoes from another time, what seemed as another life.

"Hope is not lost." Another voice echoed in his mind, and he turned unsure if he was dreaming. A figure swirled in front of him, waves traveling through her as a reflection in the turbulent seas of time.

"You cannot give up now." Cloud squinted trying to clear the haze, trying to pierce the world of his dream. yet focus would not come to him. He looked up to see the moon shining high in the sky again, the stars still swirled about, tracing paths lazily above him.

"Hope is not lost." The figure repeated. Ghost-like the figure slid around him. She pointed out towards the dark oceans looming beyond, the gentle waves and the moon's soft glow reflected among them.

He walked towards the oceans with unatural speed, stepping across the waves in silence. Flying above the dark waters beside her.....Aeris. He was certain of that now. An island faded in from the dream mists, two great mountain peaks reaching high for the star filled skies it could never touch.

"Change the present and only the future will change, change the past and all is changed." Aeris's voice echoed indistinctly as if from a great distance. A building faded into view, it's dark presence looming above Cloud as he stared up at it's surface, a skin that reflected all light, to let none inside. Slowly Cloud passed through the titanium walls to see a man working feverently inside. Exeter. Yet he seemed younger somehow, different.

"This is your present time, but his past. Destroy his past, and his future dies with him. Only here can he be stopped." Despite the indistinctness of her voice, Cloud seemed to hear her sadness at proclaiming the fate this man.

"You have encountered this man from the future, but not from the present. Destroy him before his work is completed and the timeline will be restored. He came back to this time to rescue.....someone.....he could not save. He can never return to the time before meteor, the past beyond that point is forever closed to him. But he can destroy the future of this world. He must be stopped......." The apparition floated towards the heavens, fading into the background of stars.

Cloud stared up at the sky once more and found himself still laying on his back. The moon was gone again, only the twinkling stars remained, still swirling about the sky, he turned to the horizon just in time to see the first rays of light pierce the dark sea that was the sky. Remnants of his dream still lingered in his consciousness as he he began to walk once more towards one goal, one hope. Above him, the darkness gave way to morning, the dawn of hope. Slowly the watchful stars faded into the ever brightening sky.

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Cloud walked into Barrett's home, dripping with rainwater, shivering in the frozen winds. Barrett took one look into his eyes and there was a sort of unspoken communication between them. Something had happened to her. That much Barrett knew for certain. Water dripped from Cloud's face, whether they were tears or just rain water, Barrett couldn't tell.....

2 Days following:

Cid pilot the highwind in silence. Even he seemed profoundly affected by Tifa's unexpected death. Cloud merely sulked by himself, nourishing his pain. He fumbled with the small red materia in his pocket, curious of it's power, fearful that he would somehow give it away as he did with the Black materia. He no longer trusted himself after what he let happen to her....only death came to those he loved, only hate could rule his life.

"Where do i go from here?" Cid asked quickly.

There is a complex two miles south of here." He commented without even looking outside. His hate grew in anticipation of the battle to come. The rest of the group sat in silent puzzlement, unsure of what was come. The answer came a moment later.

A flare of light passed beside the craft, exploding in a shower of sparks, sending the craft jolting out of the sky ina deadly spiral. Cid worked the controls feverishly and barely managed to slow the Highwind's inevitable descent. The cabin jolted with the impact as the highwind slammed into the ground. The group climbed out of the wrecked craft only to stare down at the complex.....and the massive army which surrounded it.

"We have to get to the complex!" Cloud screamed. By some stroke of luck, the army was postitioned to defend the complex from sea attack, not air assault and thus was unable to prevent them from reaching the building. However the massive titanium doors were sufficient for that task. They loomed over the group, taunting them in thier invincibility. Cid and Barrett got to work on the doors as the rest of the group prepared to fight the onrushing attackers. The first waves began to fire.....

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........There were simply too many of them. Endless waves of them assaulted the small group. Yuffie and Red dissapeared under several of the defenders, likely dead or dying. The rest huddled in front of the titanium doors, defending Cid and Barrett as they fevershly worked to get the doors to the complex open. Wave after wave of the enemies asaulted their postion.

Reeve took a mortar blast in the chest and was thrown back with such force his spine was snapped instantly. Without Reeve, Cait collapsed in a useless heap. Cloud cast lightning on several of the aggressors in reprise, only slowing their relentless advance. Another blast and another. Smoke blanketed the landscape in a cloud of death and destruction. Cid turned around to see the situation degrading, he drew his spear and tossed a stick of dynamite into the mass of attackers now within meters of their postion. Cloud cut apart the remaining straggelers, yet even as their comrades fell, more enemies approached. They began to smell the sent of defeat around the small group. The control panel sparked and the doors opened a few inches as Barrett and Vincent applied all their strength to the massive doors.

Explosions rocked the ground, sending Cid to one knee. Another wave of fire smashed into him, vaporizing him in a brief flare of incandescent light. Vincent fell, blood streaming from his mortal wounds. Barrett shoved Cloud into the complex and slammed the massive door shut behind him in a surge of inhuman strength.

"NOOOO!" Cloud screamed. He heard gunfire, explosions and then dreadful silence. He pounded the massive titanium doors in frustration. It had cost him so much, he couldn't fail them now. He choked back the tears and started forward, detirmination in his stride, despair in his heart. Only the small hope that the timeline could change all of it kept him going. He saw Exeter working a small control panel. The complex quaked measurably as the CORE loomed in front of him, humming with energy. Cloud drew his sword, all he saw was her dying body, her final words, her smiling face. A series of computer monitors slammed to the ground as the complex quaked violently, Exeter turned in surprise to see Cloud standing there, his sword held in front of him, uncontained fury in his eyes.

Exeter drew the plasma weapon and fired, but Cloud was already gone, doging the balsts and rushing towards Exeter with preternatural speed. The complex shook so violently, Cloud fell to his knees and Exeter was knocked back onto the control console. Two huge steel girders broke loose and slammed to the ground, smashing through several levels of catwalks on their way down. The CORE flared with energy drawn from beyond the realm of reality. Cloud staggered to his feet, and pulled out Knights of Round.

"Ultimate End!" Cloud expected to see Exeter stagger to the blows of Knights of Round. Yet nothing happened. The air swirled around the CORE as Exeter stood, his long hair blowing in the swirling winds of the CORE.

"You fool!" he screamed above the roar of the wind, and the crashing of several catwalks. Cloud picked up his sword once more and rushed towards Exeter in blind rage. Even as he neared Exeter, he knew it was too late. The cloaked figure opened up with the Plasma weapon at point blank range. Cloud staggered back with the impact. He couldn't fail now! With what seemed an incredible effort, he continued forward. Exeter stared in disbelief. He fired again and again, power streaming from the device, sweat dripping from his brow. Blood dripped from Cloud's chest, yet he still inched forward weakly.

"Tifa.....I ......c...c...c.can't...fail you nowwww." He whispered as he tried to stand, tried desperately to fight, he collapsed to the ground in a heap of sorrow. Her face was there.....he had failed again, one last time. Exeter turned away and left Cloud to his mortal wounds.

The complex shook violently with raw power. Supports crashed down in a shower of sparks and broken equipment. Yet Exeter continued to apply power to the device. Electric energy streamed over and around the Fusion CORE, bathing the complex deep blue light. Behind Cloud another support crashed, this time into series of computer monitors which exploded outward in a spray of glass and sparks. Despite his fatal injuries, he crawled toward the CORE. He had to save her, to save them all. It had to end here. All he saw was her face.....Tifa. He would save her. "In the times ahead and the times behind, this alone has the power to end the core of the future. And restore the present." The words drove him forward.

Only his strength of will was keeping his battered body alive as he inched towards the CORE. Electrical discharge from the CORE slammed into him, but he continued inexorably forward. Exeter swiveled around to face Cloud one final time. He pulled out his plasma gun and took careful aim as to not hit the CORE and pulled the trigger.

Cloud knew he was as good as dead, but with one final gasp of energy, he hurled the Red materia into the CORE. The plasma bolts slammed into him a millesecond later, and he slumped down, eyes glazed in the finality of death. A single tear rolled down his cheek, the last testament to his life. Tifa's earring glistened in the artificial light of the core as it slipped from his neck.

Exeter breathed a sigh of relief as he turned back to the main console. He twisted the knob to full strength, the CORE began to shimmer with the power of Space-Time. Exeter turned back to his console, and stared at the monitor in horror and disbelief. Something was terribly wrong. He faced the CORE once more, only to see soft red glow emanating from it's interior. The electrical energy streaming around the core suddenly flared out in a violent tentacle of power. Exeter's console erupted in sparks and warning lights flared all over the board. Electric power flared all over his console and the indicators exploded.

"Warning inertial field failing. Evacuation of the complex is recommended. Structural limits exceeded. Inertial fields at 143%......187%........212%. Primary shield failure in 3.....2.....1.....0" The computer's monotone voice reported a moment before it too shorted out in a fantastic light show.

A gigantic metal girder slammed into the CORE, accelerating it's now ineveitable demise. The lights in the complex winked out, only the glow of the CORE remained in Exeter's vision, an imprint in his mind that would last the rest of his life, however short that may be. He brought himself to his feet and staggered towards the door, hoping against everything that he could make it. Another girder slammed in front of him as he hurriedly jumped out of the way. The complex's foot thick titanium doors reinforced with state of the art inertial fields taunted him with safety. He could make it, he could build another CORE, this was a mere setback he thought.

Another support broke loose overtop Exeter, and slammed into him with it's full force. The doors still loomed in front of him, nothing had changed, except now he was pinned, unable to move. He tried with every fiber of his being, every muscle, all his willpower to lift the girder. After several minutes of ceaseless effort, he gave up the useless struggle. He stared at the doors, at the safety that he could never reach. He turned his head and glared at Cloud's body, laying there, taunting him, laughing at him.

How long he lay there, he did not know, but after a considerable time, the CORE began to overload. It had been his best work, and had held out this long against the fury of the red device locked inside, but it was over. Somehow acceptance calmed him. He was going to die soon, that much he knew for certain. All his work would be lost to the winds of time. He would be forgotten, time itself woud erase his existence, and they would be together, those who had defeated him even in death, those who had killed her. So close to immortality, so close to ruling the world, indeed many worlds.....The CORE flashed with red tendrils of energy, the battle was almost over. The inertial fields around the CORE failed, and peices of titanium plating crumpled inward as the CORE began to implode. Gravitational power began to distort the CORE's shape, platform supports collapsed INTO the CORE, and were quickly smashed into microscopic sizes by the immense gravitational power of the CORE. Objects began to inch towards the CORE, even as more plating crumpled into the device. Red energy suddenly burst from the CORE, an incredibly bright light flared from the device as it imploded on itself. Objects rushed towards the pulsating red ball of incandescent energy which lit the remains of the complex in it's brilliance. "Ifalna, it is so beautiful." Exeter commented a moment before the distortion overtook him and reduced his body to the size of a grain of sand.

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The very first rays of sunlight pierced the brightening horizon, the hallmark of morning and the doom of night over the quiet town of Kalm.

Cloud awoke with a start, rage in his eyes, fear in his heart. He ran towards her room and barged in on a startled Tifa. Cloud quickly scanned the room for any threat.

"Are you okay? You don't have to open the bar for another hour!" Tifa inquired worriedly.

Cloud seemed to calm down measurably. "Ya, just a..um...bad dream."

"Oh." Tifa paused for a moment, then smiled slyly. "Well how about we take walk out later tonight?" Tifa asked, relieved. Cloud turned to face her again, puzzled, them suddenly he smiled whole heartedly.

"To the cliffs? Sure!" Cloud answered quickly.

"Uh...ya....how did you know i was going to say that? Are you sure you are okay?" Tifa asked, worried again.

"Ya! Just a good guess." Cloud turned away and couldn't help but smile. Yet one question remained in his mind, He remembered the note from his dream....or his reality. Who was Admiral Stryker...and what was M.L.S. His thoughts drifted back to Tifa again, and he smiled, he was so preoccupied with thoughts of her, he didn't notice an old man smiling ruefully outside the bar.....