melodiesoflife | Final Fantasy || Melodies of Life

The Barkeep remained on the ground and looked down at Ramza. It would have been too easy to kill Kalki and have that fix everything, wouldn't it? They would have had to talk to the Calamity somehow, though he had expected it to involved less death.

And the old man would have volunteered if it hadn't been for the boy he promised to look after, for his wife waiting on Mars for five years, for the planet that needs someone to keep trouble out of. The universe was missing a powerful man.

He returned to watching Shakyamuni. "Guessin' those four of us are gettin' assimilated or whatever some galactic entity the Calamity is? And the rest of us, are we gonna return back to the normal world or are we stuck here forever?"

"... So that's how it is." Closing her eyes, a breath escapes Tear's lips that could almost be called a sigh. It was a heavy decision indeed, prompting her to look over every one of their number as she silently wondered who the four would ultimately be. They all had reasons to keep living, surely.

"We're so close to freedom. But would it really be freedom, knowing that once again we would leave it to another generation after just as the fight fell upon us? It doesn't seem right."

K'pandolu sat, heavily, stealing a few glances at the others. "… Life for life, then," she said, and shook her head. It made sense, but- she couldn't see it. Not for herself. But Tear was right, too- the Calamity had been the result of the Heran's actions, a burden left for so many to suffer. "It's not," she said quietly.

"The worlds of those opting to help us will be safe. For we need your help, but this is not the assimilation process designed by the Herans."

After having replied to Minato's question, Shakyamuni turned to Barkeep and answered his.

"You will be free to return to existence as you know it. Your fate shall no longer be tied to that of Narayana."

Sustaining silence for a while, Minato pulled out his good luck charms. Reminders of home: his red armband, and his evoker. He took a deep breath. Whatever he had left to say, he must say it now.

"Kharon was always a little suspicious, it wasn't too long after we met. When the Heroes' files about details of their lives were leaked, he read about me. He knew my world's own apocalypse would come within my lifetime... because many people wished it. Many people didn't care for the world; apathy was destroying it. 'This world is so horrible, it should just end'. They would look to the sky, some rejoicing and others in despair, as the unspoken wish would be granted."

The boy shakes his head.

"Dial back a few years," Minato smiled wryly. "I wouldn't have minded that myself. What has the world ever done for us? It gives and takes away-- I rejected even the eyes of real, sympathetic people because I convinced myself they were all the same, pitying me for my life situation. Nobody looked at me more than 'the orphan', I must exist to make others feel better about themselves, and no one would hesitate to push me onto someone else to deal with. I never matured until I met S.E.E.S., I never made connections. If I lived, nobody would care, not even myself, and so would be the case when I died."

"--I was wrong about that." Minato's world was colorless and empty. As his heart was touched, so were the tints and vibrance in what he could see. The blurs of people's faces came into focus, and he could remember both the smiles and tears as he became a handful of his friends' confidant. He recalled them one-by-one, their names and faces, the different forms that loneliness could take. In the end, they matured and made their decisions with his encouragement but without his input--he wasn't the best at that... And he recalled how some friends died. Didn't they all go, with smiles on their faces?

Was he strong enough for that? Could he say 'this is how it should be'?

"... But of course... when I first got here, my first friends were you guys, and that persistent, nervous Moogle. I'm um... sorry for refusing to wake up when I first got here." There's a sheepish scratching of the back of his head at that admittance, but he returns to being serious. "Kharon eventually told me in note form left in Aqures Ixen's lab after all this time... I'd win that battle against the end of the world, at the cost of my own life. And that he's sorry he couldn't admit so face-to-face. He didn't want me to be fatalistic. Yet, I never really expected to get out of this alive at first, I only kept myself going when people came to rely on me."

Sweeping his hair to clear his face, there's a gentle expression. Minato's voice is likewise peaceful. It's not like he wanted to go, but...

"If the Calamity needs to learn about death, I know what it's like to have wanted it, to have had him within me and... I'm already kind of a zombie. Hey, don't look at me with such a sad look; I'll go ahead and die twice. It's not like I have a lot left to lose or a lot of future plans, I just hope the Calamity accepts that. I'm grateful... I got to live a bit longer, thanks to Crystallis. My only regret is not having more time, but I'll gladly give that to everyone else."

Saving the Calamity.

In another world that notion would be consequential to Sephiroth at this point in his timeline, that was to say nothing of the irony in the current circumstances that drew forth an involuntary huff from the tall man as Shakyamuni mentioned it; the inevitable price needed to be paid in order to seal the salvation that the Heroes, en-masse, had sought to achieve.

But that discarded noise was softened and died in his throat some as the others began to discuss it around him. In particular, it was Kaji who instantly gained Sephiroth's attention; eyes risen immediately from the Avatar and across to look him over as if really seeing him for the first time. Perhaps it was the bitterness that was perceived in his words, perhaps it was the lead weight that dropped in Sephiroth's chest when Cloud was mentioned -the would-be Hero who had done nothing but step up to the plate in spite of everything hurled at them.

"No, he cannot." It was almost as if Cloud needed defending, so far that the sharp jolt of a statement should probably have been accompanied by the step forwards that he resisted to take.

"..."

Thoughts raced as he looked from Kaji, to Cloud, similarly looking over that familiar comrade as if truly seeing him for the first time. It felt, oddly, as if the weight of the fog he always carried around himself was starting to become lighter; realizations of his purpose, his duty...honor and all those things he'd so often teased Angeal for repeating ad nauseam.

As Minato spoke first, yet more parallels were tied up into the Silver Elite's own existence. That by his timeline he'd have already have been dead 5 years; not saved as any World's last chance. That he'd be the Calamity that Heroes had to fight. That perhaps millions of people would then pay the price for his continued attempts to make things right; indeed Kalki had been almost a mirror in his face, from which he'd turned determined to walk differently. Though he'd not ever found the path that fit to his steps. Sephiroth's tone softened, and he raised his head just enough for a calm smile to be seen through the shorter bangs of his hairstyle.

Perhaps it might balance out some karma; more likely there wasn't anything truly to balance out. Right. It made sense for this to be his part.

"Because...I'll do it." He didn't give a moment before following up. Words finally came out rather than being buried. "It's the least that I owe not only to all of those who would save this World, but all of those who have truly lived, even loved...myself included...and for those who by another timeline I would have destroyed rather than look for another way."

Cloud frowns, his lips pursed, his eyes staring off into the middle distance but his gaze is steel as he thinks through everything. Could he really sacrifice himself for the sake of this world? That's what he was always asking himself right? He could fight and die to save people, he'd put everything on the line for the sake of this world's future. What's one more thing? Just stepping forward and volunteering. It was easier, to be sure, and nobler too. And yet as he thought about it, it all seemed heavier. Harder.

No. He wouldn't back down. Being a Hero didn't matter. But making sure that others could live without fear of their future. That was the real thing. He looked to Kaji, ready to answer in the affirmative. And he was going to be honest. He could do this if called upon.

His mouth was already open to say so when Sephiroth preemptively voted him down he turned in shock. No matter how all of their time in Crystallis had gone, he still saw Sephiroth as his Hero. Even with everything he knew about their lives on Gaia and how things "should have been", this Cloud never lost his hold on idolizing the Silver Elite. He'd believed in him and his ability to make his own future from the beginning. He still did.

Cloud was 23 now. The Other Cloud and the Other Sephiroth would be fighting in the ruins of Midgar, destroying the buildings that still stood as their battle raged on. The Other Cloud would finally learn to forgive himself and to reach out to others for the help he needed, and the Geostigma would be cured. For a time, Sephiroth's influence would be removed from the Planet.

This Sephiroth was going the other way. Offering himself to the world and the Calamity to save it. Now, more than ever, he was the other side of the coin.

And as much as Cloud wanted to beg him not to, to tell him that he didn't have to, he could feel that this was the critical moment. This is where Sephiroth could choose to be a Hero for himself rather than following the path laid out for him since his birth.

"A-are you sure?" Either way. It could go either way. If Cloud could give himself up so that this Sephiroth could live and be happy, he'd do it for him. That Sephiroth was offering to do so in kind made him feel both weak and strong all at once. He wouldn't turn down that gift, but only if it was true.

The minute Selphie heard Minato, then Sephiroth offer their lives to the Calamity, her eye were widening in shock. Why did the Calamity need more lives? Had it taken enough already? Her head snapped up and locked directly on the Elite, shaking it in disbelief. Wasn't there another way? After all that they had all experienced together, this was the final answer? This entire scenario felt too visceral, too raw to be real. There had to be another way.

She'd run out of energy after the adrenaline had died down, kneeling beside Ramza as her emotions ran an obstacle course in her mind. The sacrifice was necessary to end things and it was just a few more lives needed to end everything. Yet, the 23 year old Selphie could scarcely comprehend just what Shakyamuni was asking. Her hands balled into tight fists at her sides as she let her outrage be known with a frustrated growl. How many more friends did she have to lose before all of this ended? Terra, Yuffie, Yuri, Rukia and Chrom to name a few were lost to her now.

The outrage ebbed away into the gnawing realization that this was truly the only way to proceed. She nodded slowly at Sephiroth as she felt her resolve start to crumble. The SeeD's lower lip trembled slightly before she bowed her head in defeat. Her shoulders slumped forward under the heavy burden that scared her more than anything else. There was no hiding her emotions now with the understanding that there was no stopping someone whose resolve was that firm.

She found herself respecting the Elite even more now than she previously had. Minato, whom she had never met or interacted with was falling into the same category. She felt the tears starting to well in her eyes as she let out a shaky breath she'd been holding back.

"This isn't fair," she whispered before uncurling her right hand and gently placing it on Ramza's shoulder. "But... it's the only way, isn't it?"

"So that's... how it is, huh," Sayaka should have known as much, really. Those stories where the heroes won, where they made the world a better place, where everything turned into happily ever after... She knew now that tales like that just didn't exist. She had lived— and died by those ideals, having foolishly clung to the hope that someday life might really turn out like that.

Back in her world, there was no place there for Sayaka anymore; she had no home to return to but a deep, cold, hole in the ground.

Crystallis was different, though. It could be different. The heroes of light had really made a mark on this place, not like where she came from, where it all probably would have ended in failure. Looking onward, though not to anyone in particular, she settled on a spot on the horizon. It would be too hard to meet anyone's gaze now, especially Kyoko's.

But from the girl who had somehow weaseled her way into becoming her closest friend, who had stayed by her all this time, she wanted only one thing. Reaching backwards, she moved to squeeze the red haired girl's hand. "I thought I didn't have any regrets when I died. But the truth is, when I woke up in Crystallis again, I was really happy. Because in the end, I did have one regret..." I missed you. "Now I know— I can leave it up to you, Kyoko. I mean, I always was a fool, right? Heheh..."

And with that, the magical girl drew in a long, deep breath, and stepped forward, relinquishing her grip on the lancer's hand, the gesture having given her that last kick of bravery.

With that hand pressed to her chest, she mustered the best, bravest smile she could come up with for Shakyamuni. "If offering my life is the last thing I can do to save this world and all the others, then— that's not so bad, I don't think."

Edited 2017-06-28 00:02 (UTC)

"What."

"What the SHIT?!" Deadpool was not happy at the slightest. "Are you kidding me?! After all we went through, all the hardships and all that crap, you guys decide to throw away your happy endings just so you can give that thing a happy ending?! Really?! You guys are the most idiotic people ever! I swear!"

Deadpool turned and stormed off, silently muttering "That should be me, not them..."

Duster watched the three that offered so far - Heroes he had seen around, and Minato who had woken up in the frozen wasteland with him. It worried him how seemingly easy it was for them to give themselves up to teach the Calamity about life and death. Yet it shouldn't, considering how earlier Duster told Kalki how life and death were necessary to be human. The eternity of the Calamity and the crystals had to be stopped.

Why should he complain, then? Even though it wasn't his fault, Duster felt a bit of shame just thinking of it earlier. That's what he got for standing up and making speeches.

"If the Calamity is gone..." Duster looked at the ground, thinking. "What happens to the Calamity that's already here? Will the monsters disappear? Will we lose our job crystals?"

If the Calamity represented eternity, what would it mean for those in crystal stasis?

Jaune frowns. Death, permanent death... It's a heavy price to pay for anyone. He could do it. He could step forward to save this world. But he has friends and family back home. He has Pyrrha. And he has the fall of Beacon to prevent.

He closes his eyes, a pained expression on his face as he hears others volunteering. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that. There are bad things that are going to happen to my world not too long from now that I can stop from happening. I'm really sorry, but I can't die. Not yet."

It hurts him to say it, to know that he's choosing his world over this one and letting someone else die in his stead, but it's a choice that he has to make. He can't let his home be destroyed, not when he has the power to stop it.

"You won't have to." The words directed at Jaune, long tresses of hair fell forward to shadow Tear's eyes when she turned away from where she had been standing before the crystal, bowing her head so she could undo the clasp of the chain around her neck. Catching some of Deadpool's declarations, the barest of smiles touched her lips. "And I suppose... we are idiots."

Breathing in, Tear knew she couldn't live with herself if it meant another person would make the sacrifice, and therefore take her place. Looking to the necklace now pooled in her hands, her gaze became distant—as if she were looking somewhere else, rather than the cherished object.

"In another future, I chose to sacrifice many if that was what it took to stop the Calamity from consuming everything. But I never offered myself first, even though I was ready to give my life for the cause. So, many died needlessly when I abandoned the hope of another solution. I swore I wouldn't allow that future to pass, with all the power I had. If we don't do this now, then it's possible that others in future generations will fight the same battles we just have, and they will suffer for it. To me, it would be the same as allowing that future to happen... So if my life, my future is the price that must be paid... Then I will offer it. It wouldn't be any different than when I began the mission to stop my brother from destroying the world, when I knew it would likely end with my death. I had accepted that."

Closing her eyes, she continued. "But then I met others who eventually committed themselves in that mission. An unlikely group of friends... Of family, who saw me as more than I thought I was. When a time came that I would have to give my life to save our world, they respected my decision. When one of them made a similar decision, I told him I would hate him if he went through with it... I wish I could hate him now, when I'm offering to do the same thing all over again. I'm sure he would berate me, call me a hypocrite, but this world... is my home. I can't give up on it. And I know I can trust everyone here with it, and that Auldrant will be taken care of. If a melody is what Narayana needs... then I think I understand better than most. The whole purpose of my family was to defend and uphold the promise to guide and protect the people of Auldrant to build a future of their own, and the hymns created by Yulia that are passed down from one generation to the next are the covenant of that promise. It symbolises her, our... my love, for all of it."

Opening her eyes again, she walked over to Jade—her most constant companion, from years and a world ago. "I know you aren't fond of doing work, especially if it's another person's errands, but... If you could, deliver this to Sein for me? He'll know what to do with it." Placing the chain into the colonel's hands, revealed would be the star sapphire Luke had worked so hard to give back to her, as well as a military tag, but not hers—the information on it was Ace's. "I'll leave Auldrant... and Luke to you. I'm sorry I won't be able to hold up my end of looking after everyone, after I called you out for it."

Stepping back, she bowed her head again before she moved back to the others offering their futures, stopping to pull on Minato's ear—gently. "We'll need to talk about all this, you both share too much in common. You're not alone."

Letting go, she glanced down at the golden feather wrapped around the ring finger of her right hand. Falling absolutely still, the tightness that had been growing in her chest since Shakyamuni confirmed their suspicions began to become unbearable. Compared to the experiences the others alluded to, maybe she wasn't the most qualified as someone who had not faced her death. But the decision had been made, and now she could only trust the people left behind.

Slowly, carefully, she slipped the ring off her slender fingers, only to pass it on to the one on her left hand. Her last declaration—...

I wanted to see you again.

Releasing one last shaking breath, she reached out to take hold of Minato's hand.

Jade watched in silence as his fellow Heroes volunteered to die -- Minato, Sephiroth (and Jade's chest stung quite hard at that one), that girl Sayaka. As much as he wanted to stop them, there was no other recourse they could take. Not if they wanted to see this through to the very end.

See it through to the very end... He had promised himself as much, after understanding the sacrifice Professor Nebilim had made for them.

It would be logical for him to volunteer. Those from Auldrant had become intimately familiar with death. Jade had been slow to truly comprehend the significance of it but in the end, even he had come to see the value in living... just as he was forced to watch someone dear to him choose to die for the greater good. If Luke could summon the courage to make that choice, wasn't following his example the least Jade could do? His life would be a small price to pay, all things considered.

He very nearly spoke up right then.

Fool. Jade's words became stuck in his throat. He could practically hear the disappointment in Rukia's voice upon learning he had been so terribly quick to throw his life away like it had no value at all. That alone might not have stopped him, only...

There was still Peony, waiting back in Auldrant. The idiot would be beside himself if Jade never returned. And there were the replicas, thousands of them, who still needed help -- the kind that only Jade was in position to give. To say nothing of his little ragtag group of a family...

He didn't want to die. The realization came as a shock.

The hesitation kept him silent just a moment too long. Before he was able to sort out the sudden turmoil inside his head, someone else came forward before he could.

"Tear..."

This time, Jade couldn't quite keep the pain out of his voice. He met Tear's gaze, his thoughts clear even when he didn't say them out loud. You're about to put me through that all over again, aren't you? Another part of the family was about to walk to her death. And just like back home, he was powerless to stop it.

Damn kids.

"Very well." He took the pendant without protest. Despite everything, he managed a small smile. "I suppose this means I'll have to keep living for a little while longer."

Shakyamuni directed her gaze to Duster as he asked for details, nodding as she replied to his question.

"With the Calamity gone, such monsters and animals that have been infected shall return to what they once were. And thus you shall lose your ability to wield multiple Jobs at once, for your second Job is held not by you but by the fragment of Calamity you have nurtured thus far."

Following this the little girl went silent, looking down and closing her eyes as the four Heroes of Light offered their lives. She looked saddened, a strange and unusual expression for one who had been nothing but expressionless so far, and she neither said nor did anything else whilst the four heroes who had chosen to give their lives bid farewell to their friends.

Once all was said and done, she looked back up with a neutral expression and Shakyamuni extended a hand to the four companions, wordlessly once again.

No. No no no. No no no, no no no.

As Tear spoke up, Minato's own voice was trapped in his throat. He couldn't wish it upon anyone else but-- Please, Tear, please be joking. He couldn't lose someone else in front of him. But the conviction in her voice and her eyes revealed that there was no talking her down from this. The calm previously in him was shaken to its core, and he couldn't do anything. The light in his eyes faded, up until he got affectionately treated like a child for perhaps the last time in this life... Actually, has that ever happened in the past ten years before Crystallis? Why did it feel so comforting to be reprimanded? He knew who she referred to, and he never learned of this. Of course he had kept his own secret; friends did that sort of thing too. How much had he missed? What else could have turned out different...

"Tear... you..."

She wasn't already dead like himself, Sayaka and Sephiroth. Because she had already defied it so many times in this world-- let alone in her lifetime, back in her own world with the stories he had never gotten to hear, didn't it still have plans for her? Didn't she want a life with their lost companion? Was she satisfied with this? No... Minato must have been thinking about his own feelings at this point. He watched her switch which finger her ring was on. Death comes for everyone, and to take his hand by one's own volition; actions spoke louder than words, and he nodded, face down. Blinking, he felt something warm and wet.

Ah, so they weren't completely gone after all. He knew he wasn't weeping for himself. That future's him never cried as his friends betrayed him, or died. He was wracked with guilt about it, even in that illusion. That he was actually crying... he was filled with happiness.

"Memento mori..." Minato whispered. Goodbye hurt. Getting attached hurt. But he wouldn't give it up for anything. Tear's hand in his, he tightened the grip.

He turned to Shakyamuni-- she reminded him of Pharos. And by extension, Ryoji. The retrace of those closest to his heart continued: Aigis, Yukari, Junpei, Akihiko, Mitsuru, Fuuka, Ken, Koromaru, Shinjiro... Those who all looked out for him: Ace, Kharon, Ira, Selen... and Duster, wearing such a guilt-ridden expression. Facing him with a small wave of his free hand to grab his attention, he shook his head, everything was going to be alright. That was a promise. Everyone who made it to this point, their worlds were alright. Life would go on, and they'd struggle through the rest of the challenges fate had in mind for them, but they were this strong already. If anyone could make it, it was these guys.

"If you can find it within you to like yourself... isn't it because you have friends to call your own?" Minato didn't know from where he drew this line out from in his memories, it was even vaguer and more dream-like than the rest of the fog and gray, but a faint smile lines his lips once more, before turning even brighter. Could his words reach far out, even beyond this place? He certainly hoped so.

"Thank you, everyone. And good luck."

Awaiting Tear's ready, he'll put his hand on Shakyamuni's at the same time she does.

Edited 2017-06-29 17:39 (UTC)

Sephiroth had a only a few specific goodbyes to tend to.

Those goodbyes led him eventually to Ramza's side, where Barkeep and a few others remained gathered. Having relieved himself of Masamune; harness, scabbard and all, for when Ramza would recover enough to be presented with it, Sephiroth turned and looked over the remaining Heroes that the four of them would leave behind.

He took a long, lingering breath, almost as if the garden were freshly in bloom, as if he were back a few months in the flower shop that Terra had run for much of her time in Crystallis.

"...I would have remembered all of this. I'd only ask that all of you would remember it in my stead. Farewell-"

The great silver cloak of hair turned it's back on the Heroes for the last time, swaying as it always did, as he stepped towards the little girl and extended his hand to her once more.

"You guys..." Duster looks at the four of them: Minato, Sephiroth, Tear, Sayaka. It was one thing to hear them willingly give themselves up to stop the Calamity but another to have them walk up to Shakyamuni, prepared to leave them was another. The gesture had gravity strong enough to sink Duster's heart.

"You're really doing this? We're never going to see each other again?"

It was hard to watch, these brave souls making the ultimate sacrifice while Albel was not -- could not. Not now. Not when he was needed at home to ensure that the future Fayt had seen would become reality.

Tear... Sephiroth. His superiors. His companions.

His friends.

He couldn't trust himself to speak. And he refused to dishonor their choice with any argument. Wordlessly, he gave them a stiff salute as befit their dignity.

Aoi doesn't really know what to do with the feeling of owing someone. So much of his life has been spent feeling like people owed him and his sister for all the shit they'd been put through. For a few minutes, he's just pissed. Who the fuck would...why would they...

Hearing Duster helps ground him. Yeah, he's pissed, because they've all worked hard, damn it, and they deserve better. And he's embarrassed, because these four are so much braver, and just better, than he'll ever be. But all of that is overwhelmed by something new. Gratitude. Aoi's got a chance at a happy ending because of these guys.

"You guys...what you're doing....We won't forget this. We owe you, and if there's a way we can...I mean, not that we ever could, but...if there's anything you want from us to repay you...we'll do it. I'll do it." He ends lamely, running his hands through his hair and pretending that he's not totally lame anytime he tries to talk about serious stuff. Fuck, this is hard.

K'pandolu stood, watching the others, trying to memorise every detail. If they were going to be the ones to do this, then- she owed them that much, at least. Even if Sephiroth hadn't asked-

"I'll remember," she said, quiet but fierce, blinking fiercely. "I promise- I wish-" She shook her head, tears beginning to fall, and reached out to them.

Mary's fingers rubbed at her hidden blade through her sleeve. The moment was thick with the weight of history, and she felt subconscious being here. This was not the stage for her. She might have offered herself up if there was the need, but that time in her life had come and gone. It had come and gone back in Jamaica and it had taken a long time to come to terms with that. The others might be speaking about their roles and a death with purpose but...

She glanced at Saori. If she had volunteered, then the pirate would have refused her the chance. Or she would have forced herself on the blade in exchange. The woman had a family to go back to it and it seemed simple providence that she'd hesitated while the others made their choice. And that's when Mary realized that she truly wasn't ready to die once more. Not when there was a possible Life for her somewhere.

These thoughts were always with her, but there are some moments that make them all the more vivid. Real. Alive.

She looked to the others and nodded, stepping up and giving them an old Naval salute she hadn't performed with any level of true regard for over a decade. "Not just Crystallis. As many worlds as we can muster will know what you've done. What we've all done and what you've chosen to do here."

She let her hand drop and her stance softened, "And someday perhaps we shall all meet again. The first pint will be on me."

Final Fantasy || Melodies of Life

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