Final Fantasy VII Web Novels

The Story

On a planet somewhere in space, in a side alley next to the bustling streets, a long brown haired girl in a pink dress was carrying a basket of flowers. She was bending down slightly, looking at some machinery in a wall. Small circles of green light floated about her illuminating her face. After a few minutes she soon got up and headed back out into the busy streets. Bright neon signs glowed and cars went zooming by while everyone else went about their business. High up in the sky, thick smogs of smoke could be seen being pumped into the air from the reactors near and far in the city of Midgar.

A train was speeding steadily into a station full of guards. Nothing seemed suspicious at first but suddenly, a group of people burst out and knocked them out. There were five of them. Two of them were very distinguished. One was a large muscular man who had a dark complexion and an arm attached to a machine gun, another was a young man with spikey blonde hair carrying an enormous sword. The others all had a red ribbon tied around their heads. The young man was signalled to follow them as they headed deeper into the area. He looked up and could see one of Shinra's reactors with the huge number 'one' stuck to it. That was where they were heading.

The young man seemed to be new to the team and at the gates, he introduced himself as Cloud, a former Soldier from Shinra. The other members Jessie, Biggs and Wedge were surprised that an ex-Soldier would be joining their group, Avalanche in this operation. Soldiers worked for the Shinra and they were their enemies. As they worked to decipher the codes to the gates, the dark skinned man arrived. He was Barret, the one leading Avalanche. He hired Cloud to help them out.

The codes were soon cracked and the gates slid open. The team rushed in and headed deeper into the reactor. Barret seemed angry as he and Cloud descended in a lift. He explained to Cloud that these reactors of Shinra harvested Mako energy from the planet, providing everyone with power but at the same time, they were taking away the planet's life. Cloud wasn't concerned at all and only cared about finishing the job before the security heightened.

After the elevator stopped, they soon arrived at the core of the reactor. They were going to blow up the First Mako Reactor and Barret wanted Cloud to set the bomb. He was still distrustful even though Cloud was an ex-Soldier now. Cloud didn't care. He went up to the reactor and started setting up the bomb. Suddenly, a voice sounded in his head. It warned him that it wasn't just a Mako reactor. Cloud shook his head and hesitated for a moment before finally setting the bomb in place.

The alarm sirens go off and with the bombs ticking, they race out of the building. Many robotic enemies blocked their paths but they make it out using their planned escape route. Just as they exit the reactor, the bomb goes off. The sound of the huge explosion echoed through the air and could be seen from all over Midgar. Barett orders the team to split up and rendezvous on the Sector Eight train.

Cloud is left alone walking through the streets now filled with panicking people. Street lights were blinking furiously, rubble was lying everywhere and sparks of electricity could be seen running along the power lines. In the midst of chaos, a girl carrying a basket of flowers get knocked over by someone. She brushes off her pink dress and approaches Cloud to ask what was going on. After a quick answer, Cloud moves on making haste. Shinra soldiers were everywhere on the lookout.

Soon, Barett and the others managed to get on the train. Cloud still hadn't arrived yet. They were all beginning to wonder if he was killed...Just then, there was some tapping noise from the roof of their carriage. Barret and rest of the team looked up and gets a surprise as Cloud comes swinging in through the carriage doors. Everyone was so worried about him (even though Barret doesn't show it) but Cloud again, reacts like he didn't really care. Barret gets a little angry saying he never thinks about anyone else. Then they decide to move on into the next carriage where there were some seats.

Right at the sight of Barret, a few of the passengers go running off to another carriage. Barret takes a seat as Jennie calls Cloud over to show him the railway system of Midgar on one of the terminals. She explained that Midgar was a big city built on a land made of steel known as the Plate. It was supported by a pillar fifty metres above ground. Besides that, the city was also split into other lower cities now referred to by their sector number. They used to have names but everyone's forgotten what they were. The train they were on now followed a track that spiralled around the central pillar leading downwards to Sector Seven, the slums.

Barret was not impressed. It was because of the giant plate that the people living on the ground surface could not see the sky or daylight. What made it worse was the amount of pollution under the Plate. Many wanted to move onto the Plate but were too poor to do so or they just loved their homes so much they didn't want to leave.

Before long after bypassing a quick security check on the train, they finally reach Sector Seven. Everyone was to headed back to the Seventh Heaven where Marlene, Barret's little daughter and the bar tender, Tifa was waiting. Marlene jumped into her dad's arms as he lifted her onto his shoulder. Tifa was glad to see Cloud back safe but he wasn't staying for long. He was just going to collect his money and go.

As he walked out of the bar, Tifa stopped Cloud. She wanted him to join their team and asked if he forgot about their promise. Cloud bearly remembers the time when they were young children and he wanted to join Soldier. He wanted to become as strong as the Great Sephiroth. Tifa also made him promise that he would come save her if she was ever in trouble. She was also just as concerned as Barret and the others about the planet dying. Just then, Barret comes out of their hideout and throws Cloud a bag of money. Using the money wasn't enough as an excuse, Cloud decides to stay.

The next morning, Tifa and Barret were already up ready to head onto the next reactor, the fifth one. Tifa was coming with them this time. Barret handed Cloud the Materia they found from earlier since he didn't know how to use it. They were also a product of Shinra, small balls that gave people certain powers if they're used correctly. Since Cloud was a Soldier, he knew how to use them. With that, they headed out of the bar towards the train leaving Marlene behind.

Jumping onto the train, it started to move off heading to Sector Four. Everything seemed to be going fine until the security alarm went off. They never expected the ID scan to be so early. Being caught off guard, they were spotted and a lockdown of each carriage was commencing. With Jessie leading the way, they all rushed through the carriages to the head of the train. Jessie, Biggs and Wedge were already disguised ready to sort things out as Barret, Tifa and Cloud jumps off the train.

After some navigating in the tunnels, they finally reach the core of the Fifth Mako Reactor. Suddenly, Cloud collapses onto his knees as a flashback comes to mind. He sees Tifa crying in front of her dead father. A long sword laid next to them. Cloud hears her shouting out Sephiroth's name and that she hates Shinra, Soldier and Mako Reactors before he comes back to reality again. Setting the bomb like he did last time, Cloud and the others make their way out of the reactor.

Just as everything seemed to be going according to plan, a large group of Shinra soldiers block their exit. A plump man appears from another direction and Barret recognises him as President Shinra. Cloud goes up to greet him but the president seemed to have forgotten his name. But he knew that Cloud was exposed to Mako by the look in his eyes. Barret wasn't going to just stand there and let the president get away. But as he ran towards him, a huge robotic soldier Air Buster appears and attacks them.

It wasn't long before the bombs were going to go off. As they made quick work of Air Buster, it blows up leaving a gaping whole on the bridge they were on. Cloud could bearly hang on. There was nothing Barret or Tifa could do. Tifa really wanted to do something but was helpless. The reactor goes off with a big bang and the force knocks Cloud down into the depths of the reactor.

Moments later, Cloud regains conciousness. It seemed a voice was talking to him inside his head but he didn't know who or what it was. Another voice was calling to him from outside. Opening his eyes, he found himself on a flower bed in what seemed like an old ruined church. Standing next to him was the flower girl he met earlier during the first reactor they blew up. She was glad Cloud was all right. The roof and the flower bed must have broken his fall.

Thinking that the flower bed belonged to the girl, Cloud apologizes. The girl said she didn't mind because the flowers in the church bloomed steadily. Flowers and grass never bloom in Midgar but for some reason, they were blooming here. She wondered if he had any Materia. She said she had one that was passed down to her from her mother but it didn't seem of any use.

As the girl introduced herself as Aeris and asked if she could have a little talk with him, a man in a dark suit came in. It was Reno, one of Shinra's spies along with a few Shinra soldiers. He recognised the signs of Mako in Cloud's eyes in an instant. They were here to get Aeris. After being asked to be her bodyguard in exchange for a date, Cloud decides to help her escape and they both run out the back exit. Aeris didn't want them to fight inside the church because it would harm the flowers. Reno goes after them with the soldiers but he warned them to be careful and not to step on the flowers.

Cloud and Aeris runs upwards towards a hole in the church's roof and manages to escape. The sound of gunfire could be heard from the soldiers and something like, "the Ancient is getting away!" could be heard. As they made their way across the roofs, Cloud explained they were the Turks. A Shinra organisation who done all of Shinra's dirty work besides scouting for people who could be fit for Soldier. Cloud didn't understand why they were after Aeris, though. She joked she must be fit for Soldier.

As agreed, Cloud escorted her back home. It was a beautiful, neat house surronded by bright yellow flowers and a waterfall in the background. Her mother Elmyra was glad she was back safe but was not happy at how she was being bothered again. Aeris explained what happened and Elmyra thanked Cloud. Now that Aeris was home safely, it was time he got back to Sector Seven where Tifa and Barret was. He asked Aeris for directions and she offered to show him the way. They would have to go through Sector Six though so it was going to be a long trip. For now, they let Cloud stay for the night.

Elmyra asks Aeris to go make the rooms. Once she was out of sight, Elmyra asked Cloud if he could just go alone during the night. She mentions something about how she doesn't want Aeris to be hurt again by Soldier. She too recognised that glow of Mako in Cloud's eyes.

Clouds goes up to the room they made for him and lies on his bed. The voice came back again. It's been so long since he's slept on a bed like this and he starts dreaming about his home. It wasn't long before he woke up again. He knew he couldn't put Aeris in danger again so he decided to sneak out while he had the chance. Aeris wasn't going to let him slip away though and was already waiting for him outside. Before Cloud could say a word, she rushed off ahead. He had no choice but to take her along.

Before long, they reached what looked like a playground. There was a gate they had to go through to get to Sector Seven. For now, they decided to take a break. There was a slide. Aeris climbed on up and invited Cloud over. She asks Cloud what rank he was in Soldier and he answers he was first class. Aeris' first boyfriend was also a first class Soldier. Even though she wasn't serious, she liked him for a while. Just as Cloud was asking what his name was, a carriage with a girl in the back came through the gate. Cloud looked round and recognised it was Tifa. Aeris thought something was wrong and follows the carriage. Cloud tries to stop her again but it was no use.

After walking around Wall Market for sometime, they find out at Honey Bee that Tifa's been taken to Don Corneo's mansion. The only problem was, he doesn't let anyone but girls in so they had to come up with a plan to get inside. Fighting his way through would cause too much commotion. Aeris volunteers to go in alone but it was too dangerous. It wasn't the sort of place for girls. Just then, Aeris comes up with a plan to get Cloud dressed up as a girl.

Once they found what they needed in town, they finally got inside. They find Tifa in the cellar and needless to say, she was surprised at the way Cloud was dressed. Not to mention that she seemed a little jealous that he was with another girl. Tifa introduced herself to Aeris as Cloud's childhood friend and nothing more. It turns out after she and Barret got out of the reactor, they came across a strange man lurking around who mentioned Don Corneo's name when they were trying to get some information from him. That was why Tifa was dressed up here, trying to get information from Don. Don was always looking for a bride and once again, she was going to pick one out of three girls. Despite Cloud's warning, Aeris offers to help. Now no matter who he chose, they would get the information from him.

Soon, they got into Don Corneo's room and forced the information they wanted out of him with a little threat. He was ordered by a man named Heidegger, head of the Peace Preservation in Shinra to find out where Barret was. They were planning to wipeout Avalanche by destroying the supports in Sector Seven so that they would be crushed by the plate above them. Hearing that, Tifa and the others were about to rush out the room but Don wasn't going to let them go so easily. With the hit of a switch, a trap door opened beneath their feet.

Meanwhile back at Shinra HQ, Heidegger came to report that the Turks had completed all preparations to the president. Another man in a suit was there. His name was Reeve, the head of the Urban Development Department. He urged the president to reconsider and that surely only a few people would be needed to take out Avalance. Heidegger did not care and neither did the president it seemed. He was up to something.