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// Aeris took his head in her hands and prayed. Tseng was unaware of this angel, yet slid in and out of conciousness, in pain and in ending. As the last pulse beat, he slipped from her touch. Aeris slowly stood from her kneeling position and crept away. If the others had known of the mysterious connection...what would they have thought?//
For some strange reason, Aeris felt a unique connection between their life
forces. It was not on the romantic level she felt with Cloud. and it certainly
could not be called friendship - he had already attacked her, even if he
did take a bit of a liking to her.
Rather, this connection was more of an understanding. Perhaps both knew
what it was to be isolated because of their individuality - after all,
even though the last remaining Cetra and the Head of the Turks were two
different people, each knew the pain of an unfulfilled lonliness.
Tseng had known, just like she, what it was to be "different". All emotion
was forced out of him, replaced with a stone facade. He took orders on
everything, and had something forced upon him that he could not change.
It paralleled Aeris to a point, and it was a bit frightening.
Now as she sat mourning on that hill, the world seemed to blur and a new
vision was showed to her. Yet it was all so unclear...
Cloud had been in a coma ever since Sephiroth had taken the black materia...for
whatever reason, Sephiroth's presence caused Cloud to spasm into a seizure.
It deepened Aeris into a further pain - to see her beloved lose control.
Everyone seems to be losing it,
she thought. What am I to do? Will I end up just another puppet of
my past?
She shook her head, causing her braid to fall over one shoulder.
It had become disheveled, so she reached up to fix it... Her hand grazed
over the tiny marble of magic. The white materia - Holy. Aeris silently
cursed herself for being too weak to use it. She knew that by having it,
she was bestowed a great power. However, from the moment she was born she
began to die, and Time was not so kind as to reveal this power yet.
To feel helpless, lost confused, depressed...it's utter Hell. Aeris struggled
to supress these feelings. There had to be something she
could do to redeem the soul of her spiritual Brother and the sanity of
her love.
Night fell cold upon her. She thought long and hard. The Planet's screams
didn't help - where normally they gave her an answer, this time they only
cried in a sick, unjustified warning. She tried to shut it out to concentrate,
but alas, it was useless.
And then it struck her.
All the answers melted together. There was a place where she could gain
all answers of her past and learn of her power. This place could heal the
souls of any and all at will. It possessed all secrets, knowledge, and
force of mystery. All the Key needed to do was click the lock out of place...
Aeris took a deep breath - she had to be brave for the sake of her and
Cloud. She knelt in front of Cloud's bed; his form, still unconcious, was
perfection and beauty in her eyes. His plae skin was glowing in the moonlight
- he was an angel.
Slowly, she began to pray. Please, give him sweet dreams...make him
understand what it is I need to find... Her beseechment was sealed
and sent to the ancient Heavens. And with a blessing, Seris' form appeared
in Cloud's dream, explaining her mission.
Aeris hurried off as fast as she could manage toward the Ancient City.
If she could find the Holy Altar, and pray for peace in her soul, then
maybe she could finally fathom her ancestoral heritage, and even save the
souls of her friends, and the Planet.
The forest seeemd endless to get through. Aeris hurried in a panicked adrenaline
rush. She always felt like someone was behind her, chasing her - really,
it could've been Cloud and the other members in search of her - but no,
this figure, as inscrutable as it was, had intention of harm. Instead of
trying to convince herself otherwise, Aeris hurried on. Just over the horizon
lay the lost world. The warm breeze swept by like a ghost. And ever-so-distant,
she could hear a faint, eerie hum of music weave into the atmosphere with
injurious intention...
She had knelt there since the beginning of time. She would continue to
be ever-present against any circumstance.
There was a beautifully spiritual connection at that Holy Altar. Aeris
had been kneeling on the cold marble for hours, but time had no relivance
- it was as if she felt the many generations of Cetra flow through her
own life force, and unify.
The meditation was heavy, concentrated, undisturbed. Instead of the Planet's
cries, Aeris heard only the whispers of knowledge being slipped into her
mind through a semi-concious haze. Also during that ime, she had prayed
for Tseng's soul - the Ancient Ones understood the sanctified connection
- and she prayed for her lover. Cloud meant a lot to her, because she saw
in him the kindness and altruism that could shine through the hurt, dreary,
even morbid shell that was cast in his shadow. She peacefully sent her
heart with each word. The Warmth spread across her...
She knew it would happen. She was found. As she felt his presence, Cloud
stepped up to the altar, catching her eye.
God he's beautiful, she thought. They both held so much love
and respect in that one gaze. He knelt next to her. She could feel the
heat radiating from his body, they were so close...
Being in her state of serenity, she felt no pain. As the flash of cold
metal of a black-hearted sword ripped through her, she still felt nothing.
Only disappointment could be identified. Aeris knew that her stab wound
would be fatal. And she was disheartened that her time had come. She still
knew nothing of her power - she could see the piece of Holy slip out of
her hair as she hung like a rag doll across the blade. All of her prayers
ceased - the miracle was gone, the altar was tainted. She fell into the
arms of her love for the last time.
As she took her dying breath, she could feel his touch - it was so pure
and gentle, untaintde by hate, even though it was blatant - Cloud sent
none of that through when he handled her, only comfort some sadness, but
also as much love as one's heart could feel. He weeped over her perishing
body.
Her soul, unsatisfied with it's unanswered questions, slipped from her
form. It was so young, she had not yet completed her mission. Yet it sank
into the green mist and mixed with equal amounts of confusion and an unparalleled
finale of wisdom...
The cries came soft around her. Everything was slow-motion.
Aeris could feel a heat blasting on her face. Yet when she opened her eyes,
all she could see was the blackness of the Lifestream.
Strange, she thought, it's as if I have a physical form...
In the distance, something began to glimmer. It grew - no, approached
her - until all monotonous space was replaced with a scene. The heat was
from Meteor, although it was true that she lacked a body of any sort. The
scene showed the city of Midgar, being engulfed in flame and devastation
by the giant comet. Aeris recognized the situation...
But why am I seeing this? There must be some medium...
And then it was shown to her - Cloud, in the Earth's core, and
then on the airship. They were all in danger.
My prayers hadn't been answered after all...
Yet a white light glowed at the edges of the picture. Her spirit
floated, away from the Lifestream. The light gloriously crescendoed...
With a sidden burst, her hands thrust forward and the rest of her jolted
back. Holy poured from every part of her spirit. The Lifestream combined
with it, and clashed with Meteor in it's own course.
Aeris knew that Cloud could see her - her face and image were still fresh
in his mind. This image projected onto the intense white light, in a proclaimation
that her prayers had sill always been alive with them.
And Aeris' mission was complete. Her dying breath had not been taken in
vain after all...