Blood, Fears, and Chocobo Tears

Jasmyne Jensen
Blood, Fears, and Chocobo Tears
The time had come. After hours beyond hours of fighting, flying, exploring, and breeding giant chickens which you race (also known as chocobos), I was ready to defeat the most popular villain in the video game world. Sephiroth of Final Fantasy VII.
I sat on the floor of my basement's family room, huddled under my big green blanket, only letting the light from the bathroom down the hall and the T.V. itself light up my Brady Games Official Strategy Guide.
My hands shook as I looked at the Great Crater . I watched in awe as the life force of the planet burst from the land. Pressing on the direction pad on the controller, I directed Cloud, the game's main protaginist, into the green abyss.
The monsters who dwelt in that area were disturbed by this blond spikey-haired young man entering their home, resulting in many attacking. With their constant onslaught, they reduced the journey to a slow crawl.
Many of the enemies were strong, and each battle hurt more than the last, but I still refused to use my ace. The one thing that would have guaranteed my victory.
After what seemed like an eternity, I found a safe place to set up a tent so my allies could rest. As the eight of them slept, I pulled myself from the game world and looked at the strategy guide I once considered godly (I now know it’s mediocre).
According to it there were two paths to take, and I could split my party sending some right and taking Cloud and two others to the left. When they had woken up, I bid a fond farewell to Barret, Cid, Red XIII, Caitsith, and Yuffie. Knowing it would be stupid to look back, Cloud went the opposite direction with Tifa and Vincent, the two who had journeyed with him from the moment they could.
After being stuck for ten minutes because of the game's (now) inferior graphics, I continued to the heart of the crater. When I arrived I noticed everyone else had somehow beat me to the goal (which is really odd considering the way they took is longer. Perhaps it was because I got stuck...curse you pre-rendered backgrounds!) and I watched as the game designers tried to add a moment of comic relief to the game.
"Alright everyone let's go." Cloud looked hesitantly at the path. Once they began moving again, the path would narrow and be difficult to just stay on.
"Sheesh man! Why do you have to say it like that? You sound like a wimp!" Cid berated his leader. Though I can't recall the words correctly, I am pretty sure his vocabulary was more colorful. "Why can't you say it cool? Like 'Let's mosey?'"
Cloud stared at Cid before nodding. "Let's mosey." I blame the translation.
But just as Cloud gave that anti-climatic speech a plethora of monsters began to attack. Yelling that they would hold off the monsters everyone told me to pick two people to take with me into the final battle. Without hesitating I selected Tifa and Vincent once again and shakily began the final stretch of land.
More monsters attacked here. Ones that I assume were the bullies in school. They were big and slow. I bet the other monster's finally couldn't take giving their lunchmoney to them and just left them there when they broke Cindy the Tonberry's glasses. I am basically saying that they hit hard and painfully and crushed Cloud and Tifa's ego (Vincent had my baltant fan cheering him on keeping his ego safe).
Just when it seemed the monster's would not leeve poor Cloud alone, their big bully leader showed up. One who Cloud and company had faced many times before. Jenova. How that alien being had plagued my journey. The last forty- something hours losing sleep over wondering when she/it would attack again...well, I would if it wasn't for the strategy guide.
I suddenly didn't care about saving it. Tifa stepped forward and called forth Knighs of the Round. I watched in glee as an onslaught of knights attacked. One after another after another. Each dealing a powerful and critical blow to Jenova and her...limbs. When the had Finished, not even a smudge was left of Jenova.
Yet the victory was short lived. From the chaos of the knight's attack the earth shattered beneath everyone's feet! The fell into not the green abyss, but a black one! Just as I thought they could fall no more, they stopped. Something had stopped them and was now letting them hover in midair...as if toying with them...could it be? My suspicions were correct as he appeared. Sephiroth. Cloud growled in anger and struggled to get free. Realizing it was futile he yelled "Sephiroth!" Letting all his emotions into that one scream. Hatred for manipulating him and tricking him into think he was a puppet, grief for his burnt down home, murdered friends and family, and pure unadulterated rage for murdering Aeris, the girl whom part of him loved, right in front of his eyes. Each one a entry next to Sephiroth’s name in Cloud's little black book.
Sephiroth laughed and unleashed a wave of energy, sending Barret and Caitsith flying. Recalling the power he formed a shied around himself and let everyone fall to the ground that had risen from nowhere. But they were now separated.
Cloud couldn't worry about the others though, he had other matters to deal with. Tifa called forth Knights of the Round again and Cloud took this chance to make sure everyone was okay. But it seemed that one round with the knights wouldn't be enough. He signaled to Tifa who had to call them again if they were to survive, and she did. The shield shattered.
Cloud looked up at the unshielded Sephiroth and bit his lip hard enough to make it bleed. In that shield Sephiroth had somehow evolved into a being of pure strength. Tifa was starting to get tired but she summoned the knights again. But alas, it wasn't enough, and the knights were done serving them and would come forth no more. Sephiroth smirked and summoned his own all mighty super special awesome attack. Supernova. The pain from the explosion was too much for Vincent, and my fanatic fan..ism...can only cure emotional pain. He transformed into a beast named Chaos. Unable to control his actions Cloud let him be. Vincent wouldn't attack his allies, even as this beast. Despite the form, he was still Vincent at heart (I know. I've played the spin-off).
Cloud jumped into the air and let his sword dig through Sephiroth. Sephiroth brushed it aside seemingly not even noticing the pain, though you could tell he was beginning to weaken. He focused on Cloud and turned him into...a frog.
Tifa, the only one left in human form decided to give it her all. She ran forward and began pummeling him. First hit critical! Hit! Miss. Hit! Critical! Miss. Miss. Critical! Finally Seventh Heaven AKA her final blow.
Sephiroth fell to the ground and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I sat back, relaxing my tense body and sipped my diet coke. I was ready to watch the final scene.