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Cloud's Review

Cloud Strife was born in the small mountain town of Nibelheim. Shortly after he was born, his father was killed in a work-related accident building the Mount Nibel reactor. Leaving his mother to raise him alone. As a child, Cloud was an outsider, never having many friends. He was always picked on because he was small and because he didn't have a father.

Not all of the kids in town were mean to him, however: One day, Cloud met a girl named Tifa Lockheart. Tifa was the most popular girl in town, and always had a group of friends with her wherever she went. And, although her friends would always tease Cloud, Tifa herself was always nice to him the few times that they spoke with each other. Cloud began to think of her as his only friend, and after a while he began to develop strong feelings for her. He became jealous of Tifa's friends and began to resent the time she spent with them.

One day, Tifa's mother died of a sudden illness that had befallen her only a few weeks earlier. When Cloud heard this news, he decided to go to Tifa's house to try and cheer her up. He was a little nervous, because he had never been to her house before (even though he lived next door to her) and had only talked to her a few times in the past. As he walked towards her house, Tifa suddenly opened the front door and walked right past him with her friends following behind. Cloud was puzzled by her behavior, and followed her. Tifa led them up to Mount Nibel. As she followed the winding mountain trails, her friends got scared and turned back one-by-one, until only Cloud remained. Cloud continued following her, though, because he was concerned for her safety. As Tifa and Cloud crossed a narrow bridge that joined two cliffs, the bridge broke, and they fell down into the canyon below. Cloud only suffered a few bumps and bruises, but Tifa was in a coma for a week. The townspeople blamed Cloud for what happened, and soon Cloud began to blame himself for Tifa's condition, even though it really wasn't his fault. This event changed Cloud from a shy loner into an aggresive boy who would always pick fights with the other children.

He was now under the impression that everybody in the town hated him, he also believed that he wasn't good enough or strong enough for Tifa. As a result, he was anxious to leave Nibelheim as soon as possible. One day, while reading the newspaper, Cloud saw an article about Shinra's elite fighting force known as SOLDIER. Cloud read about the adventures of the great Sephiroth, who was the greatest swordsman in the world. As Cloud read more about SOLDIER, he found out that they started training as young as age fourteen. Cloud knew instantly what he wanted to do: If if he became a great hero like Sephiroth, maybe Tifa would like him, and the townspeople would respect him. Cloud's mother wasn't happy that her only child would be leaving town, but she accepted his decision and wished him luck.

Before he left, Cloud wanted to say goodbye to the only person in town, besides his mother, that he really cared about. So one day, Cloud approached Tifa and asked her to meet him by the town well after sundown. Cloud wasn't expecting her to show up, because he thought that Tifa hated him (Cloud didn't know it, but she had feelings for him, too). So he was a little surprised when she arrived at the well like he asked her to. As they sat under the starry sky that night, Cloud told Tifa of his plans to join SOLDIER. He explained to her that he was going to become a great warrior like Sephiroth. Tifa surprised Cloud by asking him to come back and save her if she were ever in trouble. He was reluctant at first, because he believed that he had failed to save her on Mount Nibel, but Cloud agreed. A few weeks later, Cloud left Nibelheim for Midgar to begin his training for SOLDIER.

Fourteen year-old Cloud was put in a class with over a hundred kids his age. The competition would be fierce, and only a few of them would be selected to join SOLDIER. During his training, Cloud shared a dorm room with another young recruit named Zack. The two quickly became best friends, and helped each other in their training.

Cloud quicky rose to the top of his class, and his instructors couldn't help but notice how impressive his fighting skill were. They saw that the young boy had the potential to become a great SOLDIER, maybe even as good as Sephiroth. As Cloud approached the end of his training, he was given a Mako Infusion: a procedure which greatly increases a person's physical strength, speed, and endurance. Therefore making them even more dangerous in combat, it also gives their eyes a slight glow.

However, Cloud's dreams of becoming the next Sephiroth were dashed one day when he got in a disagreement with one of his instructors, the argument soon turned physical. Cloud's enhanced strength gave him a big advantage in the fight, and his instructor received several injuries. As a result of this exchange, Cloud was kicked out the SOLDIER training program before he could graduate.

Cloud was very upset over this, and he fell into a deep depression. Since fighting was the only thing he had ever been good at, he joined the Shinra Army and became an infantryman. His friend Zack, however, graduated and became a SOLDIER, and whenever Zack was sent on a mission, he would make sure that Cloud came along with them. It was during one of these missions that Cloud first met Sephiroth...

Sephiroth immediately took notice of the Mako glow in the eyes of the young infantryman, but didn't say anything at first. After observing how skilled Cloud was in combat, though, Sephiroth approached the young man and demanded to know where he learned to fight. Cloud told him the story of how he had tried to join SOLDIER, and how he had been kicked out mere weeks before graduation. Sephiroth gave Cloud his apologies, and told Cloud that he would help him become a SOLDIER, but in exchange, Cloud would accompany Sephiroth on missions to find out just what it meant to be a SOLDIER.

For the next year, Cloud went with Zack and Sephiroth into combat zones all over the world. Sephiroth soon became not only Cloud's master, but also a good friend. Until one day when it was reported that they would be going to Nibelheim on a mission...

Sephiroth told him and Zack that they would be heading to Nibelheim to investigate strange monster sightings, which were probably the result of a malfunction at the Mount Nibel reactor. Cloud, who was now sixteen years old, wasn't thrilled about going back to his hometown, because he still hadn't made it into SOLDIER, but he agreed to go anyway.

As Cloud, Zack, Sephiroth, and another infantryman approached Nibelheim, they saw Tifa sitting at the entrance to the town. Cloud quickly put his helmet and mask on before Tifa could notice him, because he was embarrassed at his failure to become a SOLDIER. With the exception of his mother, Cloud didn't let anybody in town know that he had returned.

They spent the night at the Inn. The next morning, Sephiroth told them that a guide would be taking to the reactor at Mount Nibel. That guide turned out to be Tifa. Cloud was shocked, but kept his disguise. Tifa led the group up the mountain, as they crossed the bridge, it collapsed. Cloud, Zack, Sephiroth, and Tifa were all uninjured, but the other Shinra Infantryman who had accompanied them was never found.

They continued their trip up the mountain until they reached the reactor. Cloud and Tifa remained outside ( Tifa still didn't know that she was with Cloud because he kept his mask on), while Zack and Sephiroth entered the reactor building. For more than an hour Cloud and Tifa waited outside, Tifa tried to converse with the young man waiting with her, but Cloud never responded because he was afraid she would recognize his voice. Finally, Sephiroth and Zack came out. Cloud could see right away that Sephiroth was quite upset over something, but decided it would be better if he held his tongue and asked Zack about it later.

Immediately upon returning to Nibelheim, Sephiroth told his men to rest at the inn. Sephiroth disappeared, when lights were seen in the basement of the old Shinra mansion, Cloud and Zack decided that it must be Sephiroth. Zack told Cloud about the monsters that were being created in the Mount Nibel reactor, and how Sephiroth believed that he may have been created the same way. Cloud and Zack then entered the mansion and searched everywhere, but couldn't find Sephiroth. Finally, Zack found a hidden door in the upstairs bedroom, he told Cloud to remain upstairs, and then Zack went down.

When Zack found Sephiroth downstairs, Sephiroth was reading books from the massive library in the basement. Sephiroth only talked briefly to Zack before dismissing him, and Zack returned to his friend upstairs.

For the next three days, Sephiroth never emerged from the basement. He read dozens of books and journals kept by the Shinra scientists that used to inhabit this place. After reading everything of interest and finding out the truth about his past, Sephiroth's mind cracked and he went completely insane.

Sephiroth stormed out of the basement and proceeded to start fires in the small town of Nibelheim, within minutes, the whole town was ablaze. Anybody who managed to escape from the flames was promptly slain by Sephiroth's sword. Among those killed was Cloud's mother.

Cloud and Zack arrived to late to stop Sephiroth from burning the town, upon looking at the destruction Sephiroth had caused, Cloud and Zack agreed that he had to be stopped. They grabbed their weapons and followed Sephiroth up Mount Nibel.

When they got to the Mount Nibel reactor, they briefly saw Tifa kneeling over the body of her father, Sephiroth's sword sticking out of him. After a few seconds, Tifa grabbed the sword and charged into the reactor room, Cloud and Zack following quickly behind.

Cloud and Zack arrived just in time to watch Sephiroth slice his sword across Tifa's chest, the girl tumbled down the stairs, and Sephiroth then walked casually into the JENOVA room. Cloud was stunned at the sight of what happened to Tifa, but Zack raised his sword above his head and charged after Sephiroth. A few seconds later, Zack flew back through the door and landed hard on one of the Mako tanks. At the sight of both Zack and Tifa lying injured, Cloud felt a sudden rage. He quickly picked up Zack's sword and ran into the JENOVA room after Sephiroth.

Sephiroth never heard Cloud coming, and was caught totally by surprise when Cloud appeared behind him and stabbed him through the back with Zack's sword. Cloud assumed that Sephiroth was done for, and returned to help Zack and Tifa.

As Cloud looked down at Tifa, the seriousness of her injuries were clear. She had a long, deep cut running along her chest and a bleeding gash on her head from where she had fallen down the stairs. Cloud picked up her unconscious body and rested it against a wall, he than put to use the basic medical training he had acquired during his training. All he could do was use his only phoenix down to stabilize her injuries and hope for a miracle.

After a few minutes, Sephiroth emerged from the Jenova room, carrying Jenova's head. Sephiroth was barely able to walk from the wound Cloud had inflicted on him, but Cloud was surprised that the man had survived at all. Only Sephiroth's inhuman strength had saved him. Sephiroth walked right past Cloud and Zack as he headed towards the exit of the reactor. Zack looked over at Cloud and told him to kill Sephiroth. Cloud didn't need to be told twice.

Cloud pursued Sephiroth to the bridge over the liquid Mako. After challenging Sephiroth, Cloud charged at the wounded man. Suddenly Sephiroth spun around and ran Cloud through with his sword, Sephiroth than lifted Cloud off of the ground with the sword and prepared to kill him, when Cloud suddenly descended back to the ground. Sephiroth was too shocked to do anything as Cloud suddenly lifted Sephiroth off of the ground and threw him into the Mako below. Cloud looked off of the edge and watched Sephiroth fall screaming into the energy-rich liquid below, where he vanished under it's bubbling surface. After which Cloud removed the sword from his side and crawled back into the room with Zack and Tifa, where he lost consciousness from his injuries.

Shinra troops had arrived later, and were horrified at the destruction they saw. They found Cloud and Zack up in the reactor, when Zack told the troops what had happened, Shinra immediately decided to cover up the incident; If it were ever to come out that the heroic Sephiroth was a psychopathic murderer, nobody would ever put their trust in SOLDIER again. Instead, Shinra devised a plan: Cloud and Zack would be charged with burning Nibelheim and assassinating Sephiroth, afterwards they would be executed.

But a scientist named Hojo had a better idea: Zack and Cloud would be given to him, and he would attempt to clone Sephiroth in their bodies; After all, if these two kids could defeat Sephiroth, they must possess great power. A lab was constructed in the basement of the Shinra mansion, and Cloud and Zack were put into stasis tanks. Meanwhile, anybody who had witnessed Sephiroth's rampage was quietly 'taken care of' by the Turks, and Shinra re-built Nibelheim exactly as it had been before and even hired actors to pretend that they were townspeople. As far as anybody was concerned, Nibelheim was never burned, and Sephiroth had died gloriously defending the small town from monsters.

In the following weeks, Zack and Cloud were subjected to numerous painful and humiliating experiments, including being injected with Jenova cells. One day, however, a careless lab assistant forgot to re-activate Zack's stasis tank as he left the lab, that whole night, Zack slowly got his strength back and thought of an escape plan. When the assistant brought them their food the next morning, Zack jumped the man. After breaking free of his tank, Zack recovered his sword and freed Cloud.

Cloud was not doing nearly as well as Zack was, he was unconscious most of the time. He was also suffering memory loss as a result of his injuries, the shock of his home town being destroyed, and the cruel experiments being performed on him. But still Zack carried Cloud out of Nibelheim and they escaped from Hojo's lab.

For the next few weeks, Zack and Cloud slowly made their way eastward. At some point along the trip, Zack decided that he would become a mercenary, meanwhile Cloud remained in his ill state. Zack decided that they should go to Midgar, because that would be the best place to find mercenary jobs. Little did they know that Shinra had found out about their escape and were looking for them.

As Zack carried Cloud to the top of the cliffs overlooking Midgar, tragedy struck; Zack and Cloud were ambushed by a Shinra Army patrol. Zack fought bravely, but he was killed in the end. When the Shinra officers saw Cloud's unconscious form, they decided to leave him for dead. Mere moments after they left, Cloud regained consciousness for the first time since he had collapsed in the Mount Nibel reactor.

Cloud's mind was shattered from the trauma of what had happened in Nibelheim, and the belief that he had once again failed to save Tifa. Many important memories were forgotten. Cloud began to construct new memories which were a mixture of stories that Zack had told him and his real memories. When Cloud awoke on the cliffs of Midgar, he saw a dead young man laying near him. Cloud crawled over and looked at him, not recognizing his old friend. Cloud picked up the large sword on the ground next to him, and remembered that he was a mercenary and an ex-SOLDIER (memories that were not his own, but ones that he had gained from Zack's nonstop talking).

Over the next five years, Cloud traveled around the world, taking jobs from whoever would hire him. Occasionally, Cloud would suffer severe headaches, sometimes to the point of losing consciousness. One day, while he was in Midgar, at the Sector 7 train station, he began to feel a headache coming on. Cloud sat down on the ground to rest. As he sat there, a girl came over to help him up. When he looked up at her, Cloud saw a face he hadn't seen in years but recognized intantly: Tifa Lockheart. After greeting her excitedly, she kindly helped him up and took him to the bar she owned in the Sector 7 slums.

Cloud soon learned that Tifa was part of a resistance group called AVALANCHE which was organized to fight against the Shinra Corporation. Tifa told Cloud that they could use a good fighter like him, but Cloud wanted money if he were going to fight with them. Cloud met their leader, a man named Barret Wallace, who never fully trusted Cloud, but decided to hire him anyway because they needed somebody to help them destroy a Mako Reactor. Cloud agreed, both as a chance to earn some gil and strike at Shinra, and that is where the story begins...