Sector 6 Slums—Gate...

After regaining consciousness, Cloud found Tifa nearby. He waited for her to come to. Luckily, she awoke a few minutes later. He helped her to her feet before searching around for the other members of their party. Ducking under a pile of debris, they could hear Barret shouting in the distance. "Hey! Anybody out there?!"

"Barret?!" Tifa gasped. "I think I hear him up ahead!"

"Hey! Can anybody hear me?!" the brute continued to holler.

Cloud and Tifa pushed some debris out of the way and found Barret standing in front of a large pile of wreckage.

"Marlene... Marlene! Marlene!" He yelled his daughter's name. "Marlene! Biggs! Wedge! Jessie!" When he received no response from anyone, he couldn't hold back his anger and sorrow. He punched the rubble repeatedly. "Goddammit. Goddamn you! Goddamn you all!" He cried at the top of his lungs. His voice carried a broken and melancholic tone. "Marlene... Marlene..." His strength vanished. Resting his fist on the rubble, he hung his head.

Tifa, unable to stand seeing him in such a state, walked up to him and gently put her hand on his back. "It was us. We did this," she spoke guiltily.

After a short silence, Barret denied her acccusations. "No. You can't think like that. Whatever came before, it was Shinra that pulled the trigger today. Am I right?!" Feeling her hand slip from his back, he turned to see how tightly she was clenching her fists.

Tifa couldn't meet his gaze. "...Yeah," she muttered.

He took one of her clenched fists into his hand. "Hold on to this. This...anger. Okay?" He let go of her hand and gave her a gentle hug.

Cloud couldn't stay silent any longer. He took a few steps forward. "Barret. Marlene's fine. Aerith found her."

Barret released Tifa, surprised at the news. "Aerith? Is that the girl they took?"

"Yeah. That's her," Tifa answered.

He was confused. "The hell's going on?!"

"I asked Aerith to find Marlene and take her somewhere safe."

The brute glanced at Cloud. "And she did? You sure?!"

The ex-SOLDIER said nothing and walked away.

"Hey! Where you going?!" Barret shouted, taking chase.

"To find Lailah," Cloud replied.

The man froze, having witnessed what happened to the girl. "Y'mean, you didn't see?"

The blonde stopped and looked over his shoulder at him. "See what?"

Barret was a little hesitant to tell him what he saw. He glanced over at Tifa, who also had the same perplexed expression as Cloud.

"Barret," Tifa jogged up to him. "What aren't you telling us? Did something happen to Lailah?"

The brute sighed, knowing he needed to tell them. "She's the reason why all of us are standin' here. She protected us from a large piece of debris and was knocked out of the sky."

Tifa gasped in horror, covering her mouth with a hand. Cloud's calm expression morphed into shock and horror. Neither he nor Tifa saw her take the hit or plummet from the sky. Feeling his heart rate increase as panic set in, he ran as fast as he could and searched the area. He shouted Lailah's name over and over again, hoping she would respond.

Barret and Tifa joined him in his search for the shapeshifter. They didn't leave any area unchecked, performing a thorough inspection of everything.

Remembering where he saw her fall, Barret led Cloud and Tifa to another area close to the Sector 6 gate. The three continued to shout Lailah's name.

Eventually, Barret spotted a figure laying face down. Their body was trapped under a pile of rubble. Seeing the snowy locks, he only knew one person with such a unique feature. "Over here!" He rushed over to Lailah. As Cloud and Tifa caught up, he saw the girl's snowy locks were tainted with blood. Not only that, he saw she was lying in a pool of blood. "Shit..."

Cloud and Tifa were relieved to hear Barret had found their childhood friend, but the relief vanished the moment they saw the blood.

"Oh, god..." Tifa gasped in fright. She felt tears forming from seeing her best friend's state.

Cloud too was horrified at the sight. He couldn't stop his erratic heartbeat. Dread started to engulf him, but he desperately tried to fend it off as he rushed to Lailah's aid. He got to work removing the rubble with Barret's help.

Once they were able to free Lailah, Tifa gently turned her over to see the extent of the damage. She inhaled sharply after seeing a piece of rebar lodged into the girl's abdomen. Blood stained the area around the rebar and almost every other part of her shirt and skirt. "What... What do we do?" she asked shakily.

Cloud gingerly took Lailah's body into his arms. Her head lulled against his shoulder while he searched for a pulse in her neck. His panic was growing with each passing second, but he found a small dash of relief when he detected a pulse. "She's still alive, but her pulse is weak."

"Will a potion help?" Barret asked.

Cloud shook his head. "Not until we get rid of the rebar."

"Then let's pull it out!"

"No," he stopped the brute. "If we pull it out, she'll bleed out before we can get her proper help."

Tifa saw the amount of blood Lailah's lost. "She's already lost so much blood. Will she be okay until we find help?"

Cloud wanted to say yes, but he didn't want to give himself or Tifa false hope. "I don't know..." he mumbled sadly.

Tifa combed a few snowy strands out of Lailah's face. She got a better look at her pale complexion. Although she too felt a sense of hopelessness, she wanted to cling to hope. She used a few potions —regardless of what Cloud said—on the girl to help in any way possible. Once using the curatives, she jumped to her feet. "Then let's hurry."

Cloud knew the perfect place to go. However, he just hoped it wasn't too far. "Hang on," he whispered to Lailah as he scooped her up into his arms. Not wanting to waste any precious time, he started walking in the direction of Sector 5. Barret was hot on his heels with Tifa in tow.

Halfway down the S7-6 Road, Barret asked, "Where you going now?"

"Aerith's house," Cloud replied without stopping. "It's in the Sector 5 slums."

"And that's where Marlene is?"

"Where we hope she is."

Barret stopped. "Tell me she is! Give me something to hang on to!" He ran ahead and stood in the ex-SOLDIER's way. "Even if she's not. I won't blame you for it, I swear!" It only took him a few seconds to retract what he said. "Who am I kidding. I'd probably try to tear your head off." He turned his back to him and walked ahead.

Tifa saw Cloud adjust his hold on Lailah. "I could carry her for a little while."

"I've got her." Cloud refused to let anyone else carry Lailah, even Tifa. He didn't want to think about the possibility of losing her and veered the conversation to a different topic. "Know anything about "Ancients"?"

"I know I've heard of them at least." Tifa glanced at the unconscious girl he was carrying in his arms. "Maybe Lailah would know something."

Barret overheard them talking and told them what he knew. "They come up in planetology books. Meant to be the original stewards of the planet. Could even "commune" with it. Talk to it and stuff."

"That must be why the Turks wanted her so badly," Cloud said.

"It sounds like these "Ancients" are kinda similar to the Children of Gaia," Tifa commented. "Lailah is the daughter of Gaia, meaning she's a direct descendant of the planet. She must know more about the Ancients. Maybe we could ask her once she's better."

The ex-SOLDIER stopped in his tracks. He heard how hopeful Tifa was for Lailah's recovery. On the other hand, he was hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.

Suddenly, Cloud was overcome by a headache. Even with the head-splitting pain, his hold on Lailah never faltered. He could hear Sephiroth's voice in his head. When the pain subsided, he saw the man standing before him. He was horrified to see him.

"You have failed again, I see," Sephiroth said.

Cloud was too frightened to speak. He felt a cold sweat wash over his body. Regardless, he kept a tight grip on Lailah.

In the blink of an eye, Sephiroth appeared next to Cloud. He placed a hand on the ex-SOLDIER's shoulder. "But through suffering, you will grow strong. Isn't that what you want?"

Sephiroth vanished.

"Cloud?" Tifa worriedly called out to him.

Realizing the man was just a vision, Cloud calmed himself and returned to his stoic self. "It's nothing. Let's go."

"Are you sure you don't want me to help with Lailah?"

"I'm sure. Let's just hurry."

Not long after, they arrived in Wall Market. Fortunately, their presence didn't draw any attention. Everyone was too concerned with what happened to Sector 7.

When they walked through the central area of Wall Market, they stopped at spotting two security officers paatrolling the area.

"What the hell are they doing here?" Barret hissed.

"Their jobs, probably," Cloid responded. "Just focus on seeing Marlene again. Nothing else."

They avoided the officers and quickly made their way through the sector. They reached the S6-5 Road and Barret asked, "You guys run into Jessie at the pillar?"

"Yeah...Biggs too. They were both in pretty bad shape. But Wedge wasn't up there with 'em. He got out," Tifa told him.

"All right."

Walking down the road, they head in the direction of Sector 5. They passed a stablehand and his frightened chocobo along the way. Not too far down the road, Barret stopped them. "I've been thinking, y'all... We gotta go find the others."

"Huh?" Tifa hummed in confusion.

"If we don't look for them, who will?"

"...Right."

Barret focused his gaze on the blonde. "Hey, Cloud. Gonna need your help with it too."

He nodded. "Right."

Then, the brute looked at the seemingly lifeless girl in the ex-SOLDIER's arms. "But first, we've gotta get the little lady patched up."

They continued down the road.

A few minutes later, they were stopped by a figure standing in the middle of the road. A woman with ivory locks with tips the color of emerald blocked them from continuing forward. Green markings stretched across her face and neck. She wore a grim expression when she saw the state of Lailah. With a sorrowful sigh, she walked towards them. "Oh, my sweet girl..."

Tifa didn't need for the woman to explain who she was. She could tell this was Laurel, or Gaia, the mother of Lailah. Her best friend looked just like her mother. "You're...Laurel, right?"

The woman placed a hand on her daughter's cheek as she responded to the girl, "Yes." She then looked between Tifa and Cloud. "You must be the two my daughter grew up with. Thank you for watching over her when I could not."

Tifa clenched her fists. She could no longer meet the woman's gaze and hung her head with a melancholic frown. "It's because of us she's...she's..."

Laurel shook her head. "You have done nothing wrong. My daughter is strong. I know she will make it. Let us hurry to Elmyra's house. She will be able to tend to Lailah."

With Gaia herself now a part of their group, they continued on to Sector 5. There, they walk around the large crowd gathered around the large screen that was displaying the aftermath of the Sector 7 Plate dropping.

Laurel acted as their guide and led them through the slums. She took them past the Leaf House and directly to the beautiful house just on the other side of the tunnel. "We are here," she announced.

Barret wasted no time and ran toward the house. "Marlene! Marlene!"

Cloud, Tifa, and Laurel caught up just as he barged into the house.

"Where's Marlene?! Is she here?!" The brute shouted, startling Elmyra. She wound up stumbling out of her chair out of fright.

"Barret!" Cloud shouted.

Realizing what he'd done, he quickly apologized and explained why he busted in. "Sorry. I'm Barret. Marlene's my little girl. Marlene—she's got short hair. She's cute as a button, with the heart of an angel. She was wearing... Uh...pink! She was wearing a pink dress today!"

"She's sleeping upstairs," Elmyra explained.

Barret was relieved. He really wanted to see Marlene and ran for the stairs.

"I said she's sleeping!" Elmyra shouted, stopping him.

The man paused.

"A father is simply worried for his daughter," Laurel said, stepping out from behind Tifa and Cloud. "Go to her, but do not disturb her slumber."

Barret proceeded quietly up the stairs.

Elmyra was stunned to see the woman and gasped. "Laurel, you're here..."

She smiled apologetically. "Forgive me for not visiting sooner. It is good to see you again, my friend."

It was then Elmyra realized the unconscious Lailah being carried by the ex-SOLDIER. She ran into the kitchen and grabbed the first-aid supplies. She returned and swiped everything off the table. "Put her down here."

Cloud did as he was told. He gently laid the girl on the table. "You're doing this now?"

"Laurel protected my daughter," Elmyra said as she got to work tending to Lailah. "It's my turn to protect hers."

"What can we do to help?" Tifa asked.

"We have to take the rebar out of her body. Once we do, cover the wound and put as much pressure as you can. And you," Elmyra looked at Cloud. "Your job will be to keep her calm if she regains consciousness before we're done patching her up. Can you do that?"

Cloud wasn't good at consoling people, but he would try for Lailah's sake. "Yeah."

"Then let's begin." Elmyra grabbed the piece of rebar lodged in Lailah's abdomen and used all her strength to pull it out. When the steel bar was freed from her body, blood spilled from the wound and she was awakened by the pain. Her eyes flew open and she choked on a gasp. When Tifa put a towel over the wound and pressed down to stop the blood flow, she tried to squirm away.

Cloud saw she was awake and attempting to break free from Elmyra and Tifa. He wasn't good with words, but he hoped he could calm her down. He grabbed the hand she was using to try to push away Tifa's hands from her wound and squeezed tightly. "It's okay," he whispered to her.

Hearing his voice and feeling his touch, Lailah calmed down. She allowed Elmyra and Tifa to continue tending to her wound. She bit her bottom lip and did her best to fight against the pain. She would grip Cloud's hand tighter whenever the pain was excruciating.

"We're almost done," Elmyra said.

As she started to stitch up the wound, Lailah felt her consciousness slipping. Her hand slowly lost its hold on Cloud's, but his grip tightened and he held on.

Cloud glanced between the wound and her face. It wasn't until he noticed how still she became did he call out her name. "Lailah?" He scanned her face to see her eyes were open but unblinking. Her skin was pale as a ghost and she wasn't breathing. His eyes widen in horror.

"She's not breathing!" Tifa shouted.

Elmyra froze after seeing Lailah was lifeless.

Laurel stepped forward. "I am not losing her!" She used what little mana she has left to send a powerful electrical shock to her daughter's heart.

Lailah was revived and she gasped for air. She saw her mother and felt tears forming in her weary eyes.

Laurel smiled sweetly at her and kissed her on the forehead. "Sleep, sweetheart. When you wake up, I will still be here."

Trusting her mother, Lailah closed her eyes and rested.

While Elmyra finished stitching and bandaging the wound, Cloud met Laurel's gaze. "Can't you heal her?"

The goddess shook her head with a regretful frown. "I am too weak to use healing incantations. I was barely able to restart her heart." She gazed into his mako-infused orbs. "Elmyra is an excellent medic. I trust her to take care of my daughter. Once Lailah wakes up, I am positive she will be able to heal herself. For now, we shall rely on curatives and Elmyra's herbs."

After a few minutes of silence, Elmyra sighed. "I've done all I can." She looked at the blonde. "Take her upstairs to the spare room."

Cloud said nothing. He picked Lailah up off the table and carried her upstairs to the spare room with Tifa following him. He gingerly laid her down on the bed. Finding a small stool, he placed it by the bed and sat down.

Tifa patted his shoulder. "I'll leave Lailah to you. I'm going to see Marlene."

She left.

Cloud remained by Lailah's side. He would often take her hand or comb a few of her snowy locks. Every now and then, he would make sure she was still breathing. He couldn't stop thinking about how she had died on the table and was only brought back to life because Laurel was there.

After an hour, Cloud needed some fresh air because of all that happened. He stepped out of the spare room, only to be stopped by Laurel. She gestured for him to follow her up to the balcony and he did.

On the balcony, Laurel leaned against the railing and gazed at the flowers. "The last time I saw you, you were a child. Seeing you now, I do believe Claudia would be very proud."

Cloud, who was standing behind her, froze. With wide eyes, he tried to question her. "How...?"

The ivory-haired woman turned to face him. "After Tellus was attacked, I had no choice but to return to the planet. Once I was strong enough to travel, I returned to search for Lailah. It took me a while, but I soon found her in Nibelheim. While you two were enjoying each other's company, I spoke with the woman who was taking care of my daughter. Hearing how much Lailah was enjoying her life in Nibelheim, I couldn't bring myself to take her away and entrusted her with your mother. But, it seems like Claudia wasn't the only one taking care of her. You were as well. Even now, you're still taking care of her. I can't thank you enough, Cloud."

The ex-SOLDIER met the woman's gaze. "She's the one who's been taking care of me."

Laurel laughed. "I am happy to see you both together. I don't have to worry about her when you're by her side."

Cloud felt the guilt resurfacing. "You should be blaming me for—"

"Oh no," Laurel interrupted him. "I won't allow you to blame yourself. What happened to Lailah was not your fault nor your friends. If you want to blame someone, blame Shinra. They are the ones who dropped the plate. What matters now is she's safe and resting. She'll be back on her feet in no time. She's much stronger than her old momma," she smiled.

Cloud found the woman's smile to be contagious, just like her daughter's. Now he knew where she got it from. He accompanied her back inside after a couple of minutes and headed downstairs with her. There, they found Tifa, Barret, and Elmyra.

"Shinra has my daughter now," Elmyra said.

"I'm sorry," Cloud apologized.

Tifa approached the woman and took the blame. "No. I'm the one who asked her to go get Marlene. We'd only just met, but she was so kind and helpful. I...took advantage of her."

Elmyra shook her head. "It's not your fault. It was only a matter of time before she ended up back there."

"I will not allow this to stand," Laurel spoke up. "I know Lailah feels the same way as well. They were close when they were little. The Ancients were the Children's closest allies and dearest friends. Shinra won't get away with what they've done to your daughter and mine, Elmyra."

Elmyra glanced at her friend before deciding to explain everything to Tifa, Cloud, and Barret. "Aerith is an Ancient. Probably the last one living. She's not my daughter. Not by blood, I mean. If that's what you were wondering..."

Laurel stepped toward her. "You do not need to explain to them if it's too painful. I can do it in your stead if you'd like."

"Thank you, Laurel, but I'll be fine." Elmyra sat down and shared the story with the others. "About fifteen years ago... My husband, he'd been shipped off to fight on the front lines. But then I received a letter saying he'd be home for a bit. So when the day came, I went to the station to meet him... But...he didn't come. I couldn't help fearing the worst, even then...but I told myself his leave must've been postponed, that he'd been delayed. Every day I went, to wait, and to pray...

And that's how I met her. Her and her mother. I thought maybe they'd run away from Wall Market. Or that they were topsiders fallen on hard times. I'd seen that sort of thing a lot. "Take Aerith somewhere safe." Those were her mother's dying words. My husband had been away for so long, and I was lonely. So I convinced myself the safest place for the girl was with me.

It took no time at all for her to start feeling like family. She was a real chatterbox. She told me strange stories... Like how she and her mother had escaped from some sort of facility... And how she wasn't sad because her mother had just..."returned to their planet with help from the Children"."

"Their planet, huh? Yeah, that sounds about right," Barret commented.

Elmyra continued. "I didn't understand any of it at the time. When I asked if she meant the one in the sky... She said no, this one. Right here. I mean...what can you say to that...?" She then told them about how Aerith knew of her husband's passing and told her not to be sad. "I didn't believe her, of course. And then, a few days later, I received a letter saying my husband had been killed in action. Things like that, she'd just know. It was a lot to deal with, but we were happy. And then came the knock."

Laurel noticed Elmyra beginning to struggle. "This was the time that Turk came to visit, correct?"

"Yes," the woman replied. "He told Aerith she was a descendant of the Ancients. I had no idea what he meant, so I said, "Who are the Ancients?" And he told me just that."

Laurel decides to help her dear friend with the story. "This Turk proceeded to ask Aerith about the voices she hears even when she's alone, but she denied it."

"But all three of us knew that wasn't true. That man knew exactly who Aerith was, where she'd come from, and what she could do. It was after his visit that I decided to do more research about these "Children" Aerith spoke of. A few months later, we were visited by none other than Laurel and her husband, Silas. They had brought along their little girl with them as well."

"That must have been Lailah," Tifa said.

"Yes," Elmyra responded. "Aerith and Lailah got along so well and played together while I spoke with Laurel and Silas. Ever since then, they would visit every couple of weeks to check on Aerith and allow Lailah to play with her. That all lasted until, well..."

"Tellus was attacked," Cloud concluded.

Elmyra clenched her fists tightly in her lap. "I fear their visits may have been how Shinra was able to locate their village. I feel it is my fault Tellus is gone."

Laurel intervened. "You are not to blame for the destruction of Tellus, Elymra. Silas and I visited you not only to check on Aerith but to allow Lailah to have a dear friend as well. Being one of the Twelve did not allow her to play with other children within the tribe or the village. With the bond Aerith and Lailah forged, we had hoped it would be enough to reignite the union between the Ancients and the Children. Because of this, we were careless and our home paid for it. I believe the Turks were keeping tabs on not only Aerith but also us. Once Tellus was gone and our visits ceased, I fear the Turks increased surveillance on Aerith."

"They knew where she was, but they didn't just take her?" Cloud asked. "Doesn't sound like the Turks I know."

"She had to come willingly, otherwise it wouldn't work, they said," Elymra answered. "That's why...even if they did take her away, I'm sure she's still being treated like a guest... And that they'll send her straight back home once they get what they need."

"I doubt it." Cloud marched toward the doors.

Elmyra jumped out of her seat. "You're not planning anything, are you? Don't make things worse than they already are. If I lost her too, I don't know if I could... if I could ever... Just don't." She collapsed back into the chair.

"Cloud," Tifa began. "Maybe she's right about this. Maybe they'll let Aerith go when it's all over. Maybe...we'd be better off waiting a little while."

"Let's head back to Sector 7. Got things to take care of. Like...checking up on the bar," Barret said.

Tifa nodded in agreement. "Yeah."

Cloud was silent. He contemplated about going after Aerith before deciding to listen to Elmyra's plead. "Okay."

They were about to walk out the door when they heard a voice. "Wait."

Everyone looked at the stairs to see Lailah leaning against the wall.

Laurel sighed at seeing her injured daughter. "Sweetheart..."

Cloud spedwalked to the stairs. "You should be resting."

"You're not thinking about joining them, are you?" Laurel asked.

Lailah smiled weakly at her mother and boyfriend. "No. I just wanted to see you all before you left. Please, be careful when you return to Sector 7."

Cloud stared into her golden eyes. "We will. We'll be back soon. Don't push yourself while we're gone."

"I won't," she reassured him. "There's also something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?"

"Could you look for Poncho? I know there's a possibility that he didn't survive, but I don't want to abandon him if he did."

Although he wasn't a fan of animals, especially cats, Cloud wanted to do this for her. "We'll look for him."

"Thank you, Cloud."

Laurel intervened when she saw her daughter's smile falter. "All right. You're going back to bed, missy." She allowed Lailah to lean against her. She then looked over at the blonde. "I'll see her back upstairs. We'll see you soon, Cloud."

The ex-SOLDIER watched Laurel help Lailah back upstairs. When they were out of sight, he left with Tifa and Barret.