Violet Shadows (FF7)

36) Retaliation

Cid's voice is the sound that wakes me up. Not the most pleasant awakening, but in suppose it's better than having three weirdos staring down at you after sleeping in a coffin for thirty years. Don't look at me like that, you know it's true.

"Vin, Vi, get yer behinds down to the bridge!" I groan and Vincent shifts, eyes opening slowly.

"Cmon Vin," I stand, stretching. We've gotta get our behinds to Cid." He takes a deep, tired breath and stands, following me down to the cockpit.

"Alright," Cid starts once we've made it to the small group of our allies. "Our old buddies and the remaining WRO squads will lead the ground assault..."

"While we launch our attack from the air," Yuffie finishes, holding a bag of water to her forehead.

"Right," Cid nods. "So Reeve, ya ready?"

"Yes."

"Commencing synaptic net dive," Shelke's voice echoes through the room. "In three... Two... One..."

The room goes black a moment before the globe in the center of the room explodes into a million lights, the illusion of my sister's mind coming to life. The room bursts into color, stars and nebulas everywhere. Cid looks around in amazement.

"What the.. Are we in..?"

"I think so," I murmur back.

"What? What?!" Yuffie cries, utterly confused. Vincent's crimson eyes scan the room, absorbing all detail and David, a few feet off, touches one of the lights, jerking back when his hand goes right through it. Lucrecia's voice suddenly echoes through the bridge.

"Just as we return to the planet when our lifelight has faded..." The illusion rushes past us, clouds of light whooshing around us. I glance at Cid, the pilot who dreamt of space looking like he's in heaven. I resist the urge to smile at his excitement and pay attention to the visuals. "So does the planet return to the cosmos when her time has come."

"Wow," Yuffie gushes. Vincent glances at me before looking over at the illusion again.

"Anything that has definite shape will one day cease to exist." Except for me and Vincent because we're freaking immortal. "The same is true for this world. Before she tales her final breath.."

"Gaia," I whisper as we zoom out on our home planet.

"The pure Lifestreams that flow freely beneath her crust will be brought together as one." Green tendrils of light flow over the surface of the planet and gather together in a ball of bright energy.

"By Omega, the ultimate life form. His purpose? To gather all life, sentient and non, and lead it into the sea of stars where it will embark on a fabulous journey along a road untraveled. However, when Omega has lifted the life from this planet, all that will remain will be an empty shell destined to die silently in the limitless void of space." The energy shoots off the planet like a comet, leaving the planet as an empty ball of brown. It breaks apart, dead as everyone else will be when the time comes.

The illusion fades and the lights come back on, Shelke's voice replacing my sister's.

"Omega is the same type of life form as the weapons we encountered three years ago." Vincent sighs and leans back against the wall, arms crossed over his chest and one leg twisting over the other in a casual position. "The planet gave birth to these creatures to protect itself, just as it will give birth to the ultimate weapon, Omega, when the world is imminent. In essence, Omega is an elaborate safety mechanism designed solely to maintain and protect the flow of life. Normally, Omega poses no threat to us. It only manifests when the planet detects something that may cause it danger."