I do not own any final fantasy character (7 or 8) that is mentioned in this story, Squaresoft does, not me.

Note: this is just before the last battle at the very end of the game, where Cloud and Sephiroth fight.  Words in bold are spells, while those in italics are thoughts.

Chapter one: The end : the beginning

It happened at the final fight, when Cloud and Sephiroth faced one another, swords raised, eyes locked, when suddenly Sephiroth smiled "You can give up the act now, Cloud, you've done well…now kill them." 

Cloud grinned, lowering his sword slightly "Sure Master, if you say so."

"Er…what's going on?" Tifa asked Barrett "Why is Cloud talking to Sephiroth?"

"I dunno" he replied confused "But more to the point why did Cloud call him Master?"

"Cloud?" 

Cloud turned and faced the Master's enemies  "…and now, traitors, you die."

"WHAT?!?!" shouted the rest of AVALANCHE, expect Vincent who preferred not to start shouting out loud at Cloud but did so in his mind.

"Cloud are you okay?  Why are you listening to Sephiroth?"  Tifa asked

"You want to kill us?" Cait mumbled to himself, not understanding what was happening

"Yeah Cloud, what're you doing?"  Yuffie said

"Cloud only answers to me, and he is doing what any good puppet would do, obeying me" Sephiroth answered for Cloud "he has done for a while now.  Haven't you traitors noticed?"  Both Mako infused men started to laugh at AVALANCHE's stupidity, eyes glowing cruelly, "I said kill them."  Sephiroth coldly said to Cloud.  Cloud started to advance, Ultima Weapon held in both hands, he stopped in front of his ex-friends and got into his battle stance. 

"Cloud, what the hell do ya think you're doing?" asked Cid

"You're first Cait" Cloud said, facing the stuffed toy, only choosing him to be the first to die because he was defiantly a traitor, even more so than the others, if that were possible. Cloud swung up Ultima Weapon and sliced the machine in two before Cait had even had a chance to cast protect on himself.  Nuts, bolts, wires, circuits and cogs flew about the room, everything that was Cait 'expect for Reeve, but does he count as a member of AVALANCHE?'

"NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" the traitors shouted as the cat and his mog were sliced in half before their eyes.  The small crown rolled across the floor and stopped at Barrett's feet.

"Cloud, what have you done?!" shouted Tifa to her childhood friend

 "…and now, Barrett"

"You wanna kill me, boy?" a shocked Barrett said "I'm sorry I called you a spiky-headed jerk, but come on man, you're not serious are you?"  Cloud let go of his weapon with his right hand and raised it to the one armed man, he grinned "Ultima!" and charged at the big man at the same time, sword held to the side to get a good sweeping blow of Barrett if Ultima didn't kill him first, it didn't. The others rushed in to help him with their own spells and weapons; a flurry of spells escaped their lips "Mighty guard!" "Full cure!" "Fire 3!" "Regan!"  But all were in vain, Barrett was dead, his head separated from the rest of his body, by Cloud's sweeping sword.  Barrett could never be returned, even by the great summon Phoenix, as the great life giving bird couldn't bring those decapitated back to life.  The task was beyond even her to bring those back who had died in ways like this, but this didn't stop Tifa from trying "Phoenix!" The bird appeared, Tifa, Yuffie, Cid, Red XIII, Vincent , Cait Sith and Barrett were covered in flames, they swept over the group, settling into Barrett's corpse and Cait Sith's broken machinery, nothing happened.  Tifa broke down into tears "Why?  Cloud, why?" 

Meanwhile both Cloud and Sephiroth were hit by the rest of the summon's attack, it didn't really affect either one, especially since they had HP plus materia equipped in their armour.  Tifa wept for her friends and for Cloud, 'We've been through so much together, Cloud how could you?  I thought you were our friend, maybe you really are Sephiroth's puppet, but does that mean that everything I saw while we were in the life stream was a lie?'  So many questions, but no answers.  'I love you'

Red turned his head away from his mutilated friends' bodies, he looked at the blonde leader, 'Is this really Cloud?  Yes it is, his scent is still the same…but there is something different about it too…the Jenova cells are stronger, the Cloud part of him is not so strong anymore'. "Tifa, I do not think that Cloud can hear you"

"No, no I can't, Red."  Cloud grinned rolling his glowing, blue eyes

"Erm…well…that not him Tifa."

"Well then tell me who it is if I'm not Cloud"

"…"

"Exactly"

"Cloud, don't you remember anything that we've gone through?  I thought you cared for us as much as we cared for you.  Don't you know that Sephiroth is insane?  He destroyed your home, don't let him control you again, you've fought it off before when you were about to kill Aries, you can do it again."

"I remember, but I don't care, that's the difference between us, Red."  Cloud said, choosing to ignore the last part of his little 'speech'. 

Yuffie had been staring at Barrett's body, 'there is so much blood, I've seen death before, but this is sick".  Some had splattered into her face, 'why won't it come off?' she thought as she repeatedly scrubbed her face with her sleeve, 'it won't come off!' she thought more desperately, bordering on hysteria.  Over the past few months that Yuffie had been with AVALANCHE she had grown to love every member of the group as though they were family.  Cait as the funny, younger brother who she could help play tricks on people with; people like Barrett, who was like her Dad, the one she always wanted, he had practiced his parenting skills on her until he got home to his daughter, Marlene, so that he would be the best dad on Planet.  'He'll never be coming home now, all because of that JERK Cloud, how could he do this?'  Yuffie pulled her eyes off the body, lowered her blood-covered sleeve, and looked at Cloud with a horrified expression on her face, he looked right back at her.  "You're next Yuffie." 

Vincent and Cid immediately stepped in front of her, blocking Cloud's view of her as Tifa and Red pulled her away and started to retreat out of Creator. 

"Enough" Sephiroth calmly said to Cloud.  Cloud put the sword back onto the strong magnets attached to the back of his navy, SOLDIER top.  He took a few steps back and stood next to the silver-haired man.  "I think they know what will happen if they anger me."  He turned to face the warriors, "You are now all my prisoners, and any who disobey me will feel the cold edge of the Masamune and Ultima Weapon.  Do you understand me?" 

Cid spat out his cigarette in disgust "You expect us too just give up and hand ourselves over to you?  You're as mad as Cloud told us you were."  Cid made a hand gesture at the Mako infused men

"They wont give up without a fight." Cloud stated coolly, inside he was desperate for some more action.

"Really?" Sephiroth said angrily "Then we'll just have to give them one, no magic, pure fighting skills, Silence!"  In an instant all magic was blocked, Cloud and Sephiroth charged as one into the remnants of the once mighty group, that was slowly dwindling down.  Cloud headed for Cid and Vincent, Sephiroth for the others behind the men.  Cloud skidded to a halt in front of his new 'play mates'

"Traitors" he spat

"Cloud, I don't know what the hell is wrong with you but I'm gonna sort out your punk ass for good!"  Cid heaved up the Venus Gospel as Vincent loaded the Death Penalty.  "I knew there was something fishy about you, you're too nice and wanted to get to Sephiroth too bad to have been up to any good, I can't believe I never saw it until now."

"He's right" Vincent quietly said "There is something not quite right with you, and now we know what it is.  You really are Sephiroth's puppet." 

"You'll pay for what you did to Barrett and Cait."

Each got into their battle stance, and soon the cavern was filled with the clashing of weapons and the bang of rounds from Vincent's Death Penalty.  Cid ran up to Cloud, lance held out, ready to skewer him through the chest, Cloud easily avoided the weapon, spun around on the spot and smashed in the back of Cid's skull with the flat side of his blade.   Cid fell to the ground unconscious, blood pooling around his head. 'I thought Cid was stronger than that, oh well, maybe Vinni will be a better opponent'.  Vincent was enraged; nobody took down a member of the group that easily without him saying anything.  AVALANCHE contained the only people on the Planet who didn't run away from him screaming "Vampire!" and for that reason alone he would stand up with them and fight, even if it was a loosing battle, 'well at least I'll get to see Lucrecia again' his mind thought as his body transformed into the beast that was Chaos.  Wings burst out of his back and Vincent rose slightly into the air, Cloud looked pissed off, as he now couldn't reach the Master's enemy. 

"Come down here and fight like a man!"

"ROAR!"  Vincent answered, he actually meant, "I am not a man, I am Chaos"

Cloud seemed to get the idea though; his blue eyes sparkled as he thought up a plan.  He kept still, waiting for Vincent to come down, Vincent swooped onto Cloud, ready to tear into him with his claws, but Cloud was ready and swung up the huge Ultima Weapon tearing a gash along the tender underbelly of Chaos, Chaos ripped into his left shoulder, ripping off the protective pad and slicing into the flesh beneath.  He could ignore the pain, but could Vincent?  Vincent howled in range and pain as he wobbled in his flight back up out of Cloud's range long enough for Cloud to rip a hole through the thin wings of the beast.  Cloud knew exactly were the weak spots of the enemy were, after all he had travelled with them all for quite a while.  Chaos turned back into a man, who then fell to the floor on the cavern clutching his chest that was covered in blood.  'Please don't let it be too deep' Cloud lifted up his sword and was about to kill another of the Master's enemies when he was suddenly flung through the air and crashed against a wall.  Dazed he looked around  "Wha…?"

"That's right, baby, Cid's back in action."  Cid had managed to get up and had jump-kicked Cloud away from Vincent.  Cloud's world spun as he tried to stand up, he failed, he tried again and once more failed.  He touched the back of his head, it was wet and sticky.  Cloud saw the ground rush up to meet him as he blacked out.

Vincent turned to Cid "I don't think we have to worry about Cloud for now, we have to help the others."

"Yeah…come on Vampi" Vincent sighed, even when they were in trouble Cid still managed to insult him, but that was his way, the only one of AVALANCHE who had the courage to call him that and stay around long enough to see how Vincent reacted.  Vincent felt into his pocket and pulled out a couple of X-potions, his last two, he handed one to Cid and together they took the potions and raced towards the two girls and Red. 

They darted towards Tifa and the others, just in time to see Red being stabbed by the evil weapon of Sephiroth: the Masamune.  The sword went straight through his body and out the other side, Yuffie thought she was gonna hurl.  Red fell, never to get up again; AVALANCHE was now down to Tifa, Yuffie, Cid and Vincent, how were they going to defeat Sephiroth?  In answer they didn't. 

In the end only Vincent was alive out of the AVALANCHE group, although badly beaten.  Kept alive in order to bring the unconscious body of Cloud onto the Highwind, and to direct the old Shin-ra employees to fly the ship to Midgar in order to see Meteor hit the Planet.  Sephiroth wasn't about to get his gloves covered with the Puppet's blood by carrying him himself.