Mount Nibel/Caves

[Amnesty Lazuli]

"Of course not," Joey said quietly. I didn't see you die before... Jared's uncles got us out before the troopers broke the lines. But it still wasn't easy, hearing that I'd never see you again... She looked at her EMR. And when I got this, and I heard the person it used to belong to was never gonna use it again... I thought I wasn't gonna survive.

She sat down and began to concentrate again... the room was filled with the pre-battle tension and all was still as death...

Reno stood out in the antecavern with the legends. "Uh, kid... what am I doing out here? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'd sooner get a piece of the action than hang around waiting for something to happen... but..."

Jared glanced at him. "You really are different... how long have you known about your powers?"

"Uh..."

"I thought so. Don't underestimate yourself. Anything the girls can do... you taught them how to do it." He stood poised to begin the battle at the first sign of an approaching enemy... he could barely spot his concealed uncles, also waiting at their assigned ambush points...

[*~Nikkole~*]

nikky nodded and lingered around a bit, she was feeling slightly anxious now....

kamen yawned and leaned on his sword, which was propped and sticking out of the ground. he had lessened the shields for his own stability and was hoping he wouldn't have to fight much... he wasn't sure how much energy he had left. he felt weaker, tired... but not enough for him to back out.... he couldn't back out. not now....

[matt]

Unknown got up, ignoring the gun pointed at him. He wouldn't be able to do much damage with bullets. Oh well, I'll play along for now. "So, What are you going to do now?". He took a step towards Kadaj with his hand on his sword ready to deflect any shots fired. He was also careful to avoid any traps.
Asuka facepalmed herself. This is not going to end well...
Blood picked up his final blade, ready in case of a battle. "Don't worry... I'm not looking for a fight". Still he was prepared to draw his gun, and still had his sword in his grip.

((( Unknowns Bio is on the charecter profiles, So Is the clone, and it isn't Sephiroth its a clone whose constructed from DNA of different people, who was given the structural description of Sephiroth. I cut out the last bit anyway.)))

[Amnesty Lazuli]

The brothers converged towards the area where Unknown was waiting for them. "That depends," Yazoo answered. "Who are you and what do you want?" He kept his guns steadily trained on this invader.

"We're here to hold our position against the Seraphic Army," Kadaj put in. As Jared had explained to him earlier while Joey and Nikky were conversing, this was the name the army had given itself in an effort to reclaim its extra-terrestrial heritage, as the true name of their species had long been lost. "They are here to interfere with the natural flow of history... something I doubt you would want, no matter whose side you happen to be on." He kept his sword at ready, and Loz stood silently, waiting for Unknown to make a misstep...

[matt]

"Yeah that does sound bad." Unknown stopped walking before stepping on a trap. He glanced over at Asuka, and than Cloud before responding again. "I guess I could help."

[Amnesty Lazuli]

Jared felt a dark vibe from these visitors. "Be careful with those time-release traps... they don't go off until the people they are meant for come, but they are still a bit... risky to just toy around with." He observed this warrior narrowly-- something about him didn't sit right with him. "We'll need all the help we can get, so you're welcome to stand with us... if you're not afraid of being killed."

He sent a message to his uncles. But nonetheless, I don't trust this guy. Be careful.

Kadaj stepped forward. "You still haven't answered my question. I make a point of knowing the names of my allies." This is assuming you're even an ally of ours at all...

((Ack, I'm character swamped... and now I have permission from Lutz to take over Cloud and Vincent until tomorrow... d**n my everlasting commitment to character development...))

Cloud was increasingly agitated by the bizarre situation he found himself in. Forced to work WITH the Remnants... and they were saying they wanted to fight AGAINST Jenova and Sephiroth... who once again had risen from the grave and were coming to make his life miserable. You'd think they'd get tired of trying to kill me.

He kept finding his hand twitching for the handle of his sword whenever one of them got too close. Amnesty had SAID they changed, that they weren't the same men he'd fought nearly a year ago... but considering her heritage, he wasn't sure of whether or not to trust her, either. If not for that ribbon in her hair... He shook himself. There is no way I will ever even pretend I trust them, but for now, I'm going to have to take my chances. This is possibly the most dangerous battle I have ever prepared to face-- now is not the time to be mulling over old grudges. He glanced at Vincent. I can't help wondering what's on his mind... he was the one who rescued Tseng and Elena from them, so he knows possibly better than anyone what they are capable of. One thing I can tell for sure... he doesn't trust them any more than I do.

Kadaj sighed. Apparently, no answer was forthcoming from this new visitor. He resolved to watch his back around him-- he was more and more doubtful of the decision to include him in their numbers every minute. He headed back to his post in waiting for the Army's arrival.

Cloud intercepted him with an iron hand clamped on his arm. "This is the first and last fair warning you get from me. Right now we're all stuck in the same mess, and it looks like working together is the one way we are going to get out of it alive. But if you make one false step... if for even one second I think I have reason to, I will cut you down without looking back. Understand?"

Kadaj looked down at his hand. "You're cutting off my circulation, Cloud."

"Ask me if I give a d**n. Better yet, answer my question first."

Kadaj rolled his eyes. So much for diffusing the situation. "Understood, Cloud."

Cloud backed off and let Kadaj go. The young Remnant paused. "Hey."

Cloud turned, hostility all too obvious on his face. "What?"

Their eyes met. Kadaj smirked flippantly. "You have GOT to get a sense of humor, Strife." He turned and got back into place.

Cloud had to physically restrain himself from cutting Kadaj's diseased head off. He went back to the monotonous waiting, the calm before the storm of battle...

[matt]

For now I guess I am. " I myself do not have a name, for my creator did not give me one." Asumming their next question would involve his creator, or what he was, he continued. "My creator was Hojo of Shinra. I was a special clone intended to hold more energy than the human body could, even with Jenova cells. It was intended that I would be created from Sephiroth cells, and the cells of a summon." He paused for a moment and turned to Cloud. "But you dealt with Sephiroth before Hojo could get a reliable sample. But your cells would seem to be equally as good, if not better than Sephiroths. The summon your cells were fused with to create me was known as Bahamut Zero."
Unknown stopped to look at Asuka. "She is a human fused with the DNA of Kadaj, the closest relative to sephiroth available. She was also fused with a summon known as Siren. I have inherited the geostigma from you Cloud, but Asuka was created without it."
"But thats enough for now." Unknown sat down by Asuka and handed her a pendant. "I told you I'd keep it safe." He said quietly.

Blood had been thinking too much. About what would happen to himself. Or the others. What if what Jared had told us came true? What if something worse happened? He sat down near Amnesty and said to her. "I'm scared..." He was new to emotions, and this was the first time he had felt fear. It was nearly overwhelming. "...Of what might happen... If we fight." He stopped. For the first time he was finally acting his own age. He had always tried to close people out, even though he was only fourteen. "...Of what might happen... If I lose you guys.", Am I crying? Why am I so afraid?

[Amnesty Lazuli]

Yazoo began to wonder if he'd sounded the alarm too soon. He knew Jenova had their location... what was taking her so long? Is she toying with us? I wouldn't put it past her... "Mom" always was incorrigibly sadistic.

He heard a fainting pinging noise... Kadaj drumming his fingers on the blade of his sword restlessly. He only did that when he got uneasy, and it took nothing less than a declared emergency to make him raise an eyebrow (unless you knew EXACTLY how to push his buttons). Kadaj overheard Unknown discussing his and Asuka's origins and mulled over the implications... I can't say I'm overwhelmingly surprised. Hojo was one nutty SOB. He eyed Unknown. So, he has the stigma... wonder why he never got hold of the cure for it like Ami did, and how he's survived carrying it for so long. And as for Asuka... He tilted his head in amusement. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I'll be sure to pursue a discussion with her later.

Yazoo felt a tap on his shoulder, and he reflexively whirled around, pointing his pistols at the source of the-- he lowered them and relaxed. "Ami. Never sneak up on your brothers. For one, it's not nice, and for two, in certain cases, it CAN get you killed."

She grinned. "Loz said something along those lines already. But I had to be quiet to get past the kid. This Jared... he's not exactly his father's son, but he's definitely just as hard-a** as his old man. He'd flip out if he found out I got past the bottleneck... but there's something I forgot to do earlier." She opened her left hand... three keys lay in the flat of her palm. She took one and handed it over to her brother. "I was hanging onto this for you... deep down, I think I always knew you'd be coming back for it someday."

Yazoo looked at it, and then back at his sister. He smiled. "Thank you, Ami." He gave her the first embrace she'd gotten from him in nearly two years... she couldn't help the ironic grin that came across her face as she considered whether or not the fact that he had not put his guns aside first was a telling indicator of his personality. She pulled back and clapped his shoulder. "Welcome back, brother."

She moved off towards her youngest sibling as Yazoo nodded. "Good to be back, sister."

Cloud observed the interaction, but turned away when he noticed Loz glaring at him. So, she really IS their sister. I have to admit, for a moment I was beginning to wonder if she was just putting me on. He shook his head. Although I still don't buy her story about them leaving home to help her. They didn't exactly come off to me as altruists last time we met. He gave Unknown a long, hard examination. And I thought Kidd's existence was a disturbing notion... me plus Bahamut. Now THAT is a frightening combination. All right, so it still isn't as disturbing as Kidd's template was... me plus Jenova cells... but G**, is there any end to how depraved the Shinra scientists were? He glanced at Vincent, who simply shrugged and retreated into his customary reticence. No, I guess there isn't. He would have consulted Unknown further, but he got the feeling now was not the time...

****

Ami returned to the cavern behind the bottleneck and took the sniper rifle from Rude as he strapped on the Sacrifice. She checked to be sure it was loaded and ready for action as Blood addressed her. "No need to get nervous, Blood... you took out the Calamity once, remember? You can do it again, piece of cake." She gave him a closer look... and paused. She'd never seen him act so human before. Are those... tears I see? She scooted closer to him and draped an arm over his shoulders. "Hey, Lucky... you've been taking care of yourself just fine ever since I met you. There's nothing for YOU to be scared OF."

She looked around to make sure no one was watching, and when she was satisfied no one was, she gave him a warm hug. "But just the same... you aren't gonna lose us, kid." She looked him in the eyes. "Why am I the only one who remembers a strange young boy who destroyed fifty Survivors in one fell swoop back at Midgar?" She ruffed his hair affectionately. "Seems like that's your M.O.: Whenever we're down on our luck, you come and turn it around for us." She pulled back and got to her feet. "Old Jenny's going down for good... you can count on it."

She winked at him and got into the bottleneck, staggering herself with Jared and Rude-- Jared lay on the cave floor, his rifle trained on the entrance, while Ami got to one knee and placed the rifle against her shoulder, and Rude stood behind her with the Sacrifice in his hands, set on Electric Ram mode.

Joey turned to her sister and gave her a nod... Annie stabilized the teleport envelope and held it constant as Joey concentrated on the monster pens and began mentally agitating creatures within, riling up them up to near frenzy...

Cloud heard the monsters' growling and snorting take on new urgency, and took it for a signal to raise his sword into offensive position... Vincent observed this and removed the safety on the Cerberus, lining up the sights... Fruxas, sulking in his cage, perked up and reached out with his mind to find out just how close his sister was... Very close, and getting closer... whose presence is that with her? A strong, even overbearing presence... and very dark... He'd felt her coming earlier but had known his uncles would detect any surreptitious psychic signals from him and so had waited until he could be sure she was too close for them to stop her... he sent out a message to her. Get me out of this h**l. I want to see our mother again.

Two voices, speaking in unison, echoed in his mind. As you wish.

****

Kadaj heard the exchange and suddenly went tense as a spring. "C**p..." he hissed.

That was all he had time to say before a detachment of clone troopers poured into the cave entrance. She disguised their proximity!

Several time release traps engaged at exactly that moment, unleashing a barrage of bolts, bullets, and the acid from Ami's guns on the initial wave. But still more floods of troopers were on their way...

At the back of the onrushing horde, Jenova unleashed a crone's cackle. Victory is all but assured against these pathetic defenses... it is merely a matter of time.

Cloud prepared to charge into the melee, but Joey's voice in his mind halted him-- Not yet!

The time release springs engaged on the pens and the monsters were released, tearing full-force into the charging troopers, killing a few instantly and scattering all but the most doggedly stubborn of the others.

Kadaj broadcasted a message to all the others-- Jenova's primary objective is Fruxas. Don't allow her to get her hands on him at any cost. This said, he cut off his connection before anyone could bother replying (he was not eager to get Strife's opinion on his presence in his head) and moved into action, renegade brother against a mob of suicidally faithful sons. Interesting... their strength and speed is not exactly equal to those from whom they were copied... probably a measure implemented at Rufus' insistence, in case of an uprising. But then, Xima could just have easily made the suggestion herself... she's just as Machiavellian as he ever was. Nor are their creative thinking capacites quite equal... there are at least a few factors in our favor. He reported his findings to his sister and brothers, engaging a division of S6 clones... They seemed absolutely undeterred by him at first, but after a few moments of sustained combat, it surprised him to see how easily they fell... Yazoo had similar success engaging a division of S12s, and Loz against some S9s...

Jared began sniping at any troopers that got too close. "Hold the bulk of your fire until they get past the monster pen barricades."

Ami nodded, but Rude didn't capitulate to the tactic... the Electric Ram would be best put to use now before the body of the troops dispersed and before too many of the heroes were mixed into the mob. He aimed right down the cented of their columns, staying away from the periphery where the brothers were fighting, and let go a blast that punched a tunnel through the horde...

[mistervillainman]

Sephiroth gazed at nothing in perticular as his troops rushed into battle blindly in obediance to his commands. These clones could be very useful in destroying this planet after the heroes were vanquished... Speaking of which, he sensed Amnesty AND Cloud nearby... VERY nearby. It was time to end it once and for all... He drew his over-sized blade and headed towards their signatures.

[Amnesty Lazuli]

Ami ducked as Rude let the energy charge sear over her head. "Holy--! Rude, what part of 'hold your fire' do you not get?!"

Jared paled. "We got bigger problems than that, Aunt A."

She saw a disturbingly familiar silhouette in the cave mouth.

Ami almost froze. "Oh, s**t..." She got past Jared and made her way to Cloud, who was currently carving his way through a few troopers. "Cloud, three guesses on who's strolling in the door."

"Jehova witness?"

"I wish."

He followed her eyeline and noticed the silhouette to which she was referring. "I'm thinking of four words."

Ami nodded. "Here we go again."

They started making their way through the crowd...

[matt]

Unknown looked up for a moment, tosee the hoards pouring in. Casually getting up he waited as one of the clones attacked him. It was cut down by a shadow clone, of Unknowns own image. Not as strong, but it would do. He stepped into the crowd as three more of the shadows appeared around him, and began pierceing into the enemy clones. One slash one kill.
Blood, backed away from the crowd. There were so many of them. What was he really afraid of? It wasn't the clones. It was whta Jared had said. He didn't want them to die. He wouldn't let them die. Blood Charged into the crowds covering Amnesty and Cloud from behind. Asuka stood a distance from the clones and took out any that came near Fruxas's cave, with her kunai. Looking at Kadaj once, she struck down another clone. There were too many here. She picked up the cage, and headed deeper into the cave, firing back at a clone that followed her. She would get Fruxas to a safe place, and than keep on fighting.

[Amnesty Lazuli]

Fruxas thrashed against the cage bars wildly as Asuka tried to move him. Jenova, can you still hear me? He spotted the teleportation envelope, and Annie holding it open... He sent the image to her in a psychic flash. If she gets me over there, they win.

Jenova's eyes went steely. "Then she will not survive long enough to do so."

She concentrated on sending a barrage of mental attacks into Asuka's mind... the level of Jenova cells within her made the transmission extremely effective. She forced her to go into wild convulsions, dropping the cage...

The stone did not break when it hit the floor, as Fruxas has hoped it would, but it did fracture. He began working at this flaw in his container, prying at the molecules, trying to make them seperate far enough to let him out...

Joey failed to notice this--- her entire focus was concentrated on giving her comrades superior speed, an advantage they were sorely in need of. There were so many allies to support, and countless enemies for them to defend against. She could already feel the power pumping out of her at top capacity, and she knew she would soon be totally drained... To keep up her efforts for long would take a miracle...

Jared felt the suspicious vibration from his position in the bottleneck and turned to try stopping them, but an order from his "sister" quickly brought a clone towards the opening to intercept him-- Rude and Ami shot at it, but it merely dodged and grabbed the boy, throwing him into the thick of the fray... Jared quickly found his mental resources totally engaged in keeping himself alive...

Reno moved in to help him hold his ground, but briefly wondered if he had lost his sanity... they were surrounded...

[Amnesty Lazuli]

Reno dodged to the side as Cloud and Ami cut a swath throught the clone troopers. "Whoa!"

They had bigger fish to fry.

They emerged from the cave mouth, leaving the melee behind, directly confronting the Nightmare himself.

"Third time's the charm, isn't it, Sephiroth?" Cloud challenged, setting the Buster sword in a forward two-handed grip.

Amnesty spun her glow blade in her right hand and drew it up over her shoulder, her opposite arm held outward, bracing herself. Attack, Kenobi, she thought with a grin.

[mistervillainman]

Sephiroth smirked at the two before him and flipped his sword around a few times expertly.

"Indeed... and Its nice to have the family back together Amnesty... And I have a gift for you." He said.

Suddenly, within the blink of their eyes, he covered the entire distance between him and them and swung his blade sideways, aiming for their midsections in one swipe.

[Amnesty Lazuli]

They leapt away from the Angel's blade in opposite directions, Cloud taking the left and Ami the right, each landing respectively on a tree and a rock formation near the cave mouth.

"Let me guess... despair?" Cloud shook his head, seperating his blade into two. "Get some fresh material."

He shoved off, splintering the tree trunk, bringing both his blades in towards Sephiroth's neck. Ami sprang a half-second later, fracturing the rock behind her, swinging the Puppeteer blade in a wide arc at her Template's back. "GAME ON!"