Part 62: Paradise Lost

Chapter 62 - Paradise Lost





Last time, the screen blanked as we progressed towards the center of the crater.



As we draw closer, our enemies' influence grow stronger, and we find ourselves in an illusion.



Cloud: "He's trying to confuse us. It'll be all right. As long as we know it's an illusion, there's nothing to be afraid of. Come on, let's keep going."

Tifa: "Yeah, you're right..."



In case you want a fresh reminder of where we are - we are in Nibelheim, five years ago.



I really liked this part the first time I played because something about the game always felt off.



HOLY SHIT IT'S NOT CLOUD.



So, yes, as you might have guessed, we're approaching the climax of the game.



Cloud: "What's... next"?



The moment where you understand that "the Big Spoiler" (Aeris' death) is pretty tame compared to the rest of the events. And, luckily, no one spoils them, possibly because there's no easy way to spoil (or understand) them easily. Hell, this chapter is a massive wall-of-text.



Cloud: "This is what actually happened five years ago. But..."



Cloud: "He's going to try and show us another stupid illusion."



Pretty much, prepare yourself for a huge wall of text I can't really sum up.



And, yea, we're pretty much in the twilight zone here.



And Tifa, more than anyone else, feels exposed.



Cloud: "As long as we know that it's just an illusion, there's no need to be scared."



Cloud: "That I wasn't in Nibelheim five years ago. That's it, isn't it?"



And the man himself appears. Or an illusion. After all this time, this is as good as anything.



Sephiroth: "Oh, is that so?"



Sephiroth: "How can there be any meaning in the memory of such a being? What I have shown you is reality. What you remember, that is the illusion."



So, according to Sephiroth, Cloud is as crazy as crazy goes.



Sephiroth: "I want to take you back to your real self. The one who gave me the Black Materia that day... who would have ever thought a failed experiment could prove so useful? Hojo would die if he knew."

Cloud: "Hojo!? What does he have to do with me!?"

Sephiroth: "Five years ago you were..."



If true, then these are some massive revelations.



Sephiroth could be lying, or speaking half-truths. Which happens a lot in this game.



Even his explanation is still a bit vague, but we know Cloud is crazy as shit and can be controlled by Sephiroth like the other "clones", so it all fits.



The fact that Tifa is freaking out isn't helping in the slightest.



For all we know she's been hiding something since the beginning of the game too.



Tifa: "Don't we have our memories together? Being kids together, starlit nights..."

Sephiroth: "Hahaha, Tifa..."





So, the curtain falls.



We know that Tifa's been hiding something since the beginning. She's a bad liar.



But we didn't have enough pieces of the puzzle. Hell, we still don't.



It's like every single time we find something new, more questions come up. We're watching Lost here.



Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.



So, yea, the curtain has been burned to the ground. Grab your popcorns and enjoy the rest.











And a lot of confusion stems from this. Is Sephiroth being literal? Is Cloud a frankenstein monster? Is he just an experiment? Was he the original Cloud before getting messed up or a new entity entirely?



Either way, we can't simply be someone with this original Cloud's memory - Tifa's noticed something was off and has been acting strange ever since. Something must have gone wrong since then. Something that we don't know yet.



Cloud: "Shut up, Sephiroth."

Sephiroth: "You still don't understand? Then..."



So what is it we're missing?



We don't know who the black-haired SOLDIER is. We don't know what happened to Cloud.



Even if we take everything they're saying literally, we're still left with some very fundamental questions.



Again, the black-haired SOLDIER. Other than that, he look somewhat similar to Cloud. Same gigantic sword which only Cloud uses.



At this point, Tifa just can't look. She knows it's all true. So then, we're left with even more questions...



Who's the black-haired SOLDIER? Why does he wear the same sword as Cloud or rather, why does Cloud wear the same sword as him?



Who's Cloud? What happened to this "Cloud boy" Tifa knew that spawned the man we know?



As for this, we know where this is going...



When Cloud first started telling us the tale of Nibelheim, we know he couldn't remember the end.



We also know he freaked out during the middle of the flashback, as if incapable of remembering something.



So enjoy as the veil of Gaia is uncovered.



Cloud finds himself troubled by his own plot holes.



And shit enters the fan at MAXIMUM SPEED.



THIS IS NOT GONNA END WELL.



This is why you're told to agree with everything crazy people say.



You don't want them freaking out later.



We're doomed.



NEXT TIME:

Shit! Fans! Object collisions! Angular displacement of movement! One of my favorite songs in the game!