History Recap / FinalFantasyVIIRemake

''Final Fantasy VII Remake'' is, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin as suggested by the title]], a remake of a game that came out 23 years prior, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII''. That game has [[Recap/FinalFantasyVII its own Recap page]], and consumers may wish to visit that page: ''This'' page will focus primarily on the additional content added to the remake.

-->'''Aerith:''' I miss it. The steel sky. [[note]]In the original Japanese release, this is actually "The sky... I hate it." which has a completely different tone and implication[[/note]]

On the 60th floor, they find a museum detailing Shinra and its employee's history. On the 61st floor, they find a dazzling holographic presentation on the history of the Ancients, but just as it ends, the hologram suddenly changes to Midgar being destroyed by Meteor, then Cloud sees Sephiroth killing Tifa and Barret before the hallucination ends. They are all shaken up by what they saw. Meanwhile, Palmer, head of the Space Program, is walking down the halls when he is horrified to see Sephiroth in the flesh. Sephiroth just walks past him.

Corneo is ''very'' enamored of Cloud, who uses his BadassBaritone regardless, and picks him as his bride, giving Aerith and Tifa to his men, but the two fight their way past the don's goons (being given back their regular clothes and weapons by Corneo's treacherous assistant Leslie Kyle) and gang up on him in his bedroom. Under their interrogation (and under the threat of [[GroinAttack losing his balls]]) Don Corneo reveals that Shinra are planning to stamp out Avalanche by dropping the Sector 7 plate on the Sector 7 undercity... which will result in countless civilian casualties. Tifa, horrified, resolves to hurry home. However, Don Corneo has one last trick: he pulls a trapdoor, dumping his three "brides" into the sewers.

Escorted by Johnny to protect her from gawkers, Aerith catches Cloud in front of Don Corneo's mansion in her new dress. While she was having her character model altered, Aerith had a bright idea: Chocobo Sam and Madam M have both entered a contestant in the night's audition, but Andrea Rhodea has not, and Cloud caught his eye when he was watching their matches in the Colosseum. So she takes Cloud to the Honeybee Inn, where Cloud is asked to participate in a DanceOff against Andrea. He wins, and Andrea agrees on a DudeLooksLikeALady makeover, proclaiming that "True beauty is an expression of the heart." This guarantees that Tifa can get the information she needs, since all three of Don Corneo's potential wives are Avalanche members (or allies, in Aerith's case -- though with her "LoveYouAndEverybody" attitude, the distinction may be academic).

Jessie has taken her friends to her parents' house. While she and the other [=NPCs=] distract Mrs. Rasberry (yes, that is actually Jessie's canon last name) with a social visit, Cloud is given instructions on how to burgle the house: Jessie's father is in a coma after Mako overexposure, and Cloud steals his Shinra keycard. This gives Jessie access to a local Shinra supply depot, whence she procures the supplies for her next bomb (lacking faith, after the results of the Reactor 1 bombing, in the ingredients she ordered over the [[Machinima/FinalFantasyVIIMachinabridged Shinternet]]). To distract the guards, Cloud, Biggs and Wedge are ordered to [[StormingTheCastle charge the front gate]] and make a bit of a kerfuffle. Cloud is somewhat distracted -- having a {{flashback}} to when he left town with plans to join SOLDIER, and then promised he'd come back to help Tifa were she ever in trouble -- but is shaken out of his reverie by the fact that their kerfuffle has GoneHorriblyRight, with dozens of guards and some {{Mecha Mook}}s pouring out of the barracks to oppose them. All of this is interrupted by Roche, who wants a rematch and shoves everyone out of the way so that he can DuelBoss Cloud. Afterwards, a ''second'' DeusExMachina saves Avalanche's ass via ChandlersLaw: in comes... Avalanche, the original organization which rejected Barret's splinter group for being too extremist (Biggs notes bitterly, before pointing out that the "less extremist" group is now bearing front-line assault rifles and using hardened military tactics). Whatever the case, Jessie can now make the bomb, and go on the mission to Reactor 5, as planned. (Eagle-eyed players will recall that Jessie ''did not'' go on this mission back on the [=PS1=].) They return to the Sector 7 slums via parachutes.

As it starts to rain, Aerith looks up at the wide open skies without the plates of Midgar to block them...

Cue the CreativeClosingCredits as a rendition of Aerith's theme begins playing...

Nothing makes this altered destiny more clear than a series of {{flashback}}s throughout the chapter, depicting an important part of the backstory, last seen during ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'': the return of a SOLDIER 1st-Class, Zack Fair, to Midgar. He and his friend Cloud[[labelnote:Spoilers!...]]In the event that you're new to the franchise, you should probably close this Note again. If you ''do'' want to know what's going on, here's what's going on: Cloud has an affinity for Sephiroth and JENOVA because he was subjected to Hojo's experiments, infusing him with JENOVA cells, five years ago. Hojo did this because Cloud was ''not'' a SOLDIER 1st-Class; in fact, he wasn't a SOLDIER at all: he was a fucking ''RedShirt'', one of the guys with the three-red-eyes helmets that you've been beating up with abandon. He went FromNobodyToNightmare at Nibelheim after Sephiroth turned it into a DoomedHometown, when Cloud defeated Sephiroth against all odds, which is probably why Hojo was interested in him. Zack, who was also getting experimented on, escaped, taking his best friend with him, limping back to Midgar in the hopes of finding safety -- and maybe seeing his girlfriend, a flower peddler named Aerith Gainesborough. Unfortunately, he was slain in the scene we're about to watch. All of the above is the IncitingIncident of the entire franchise: Cloud not only has the JENOVA cells, but he was compelled to not only TakeUpMySword but BecomingTheMask, wearing Zack's clothes and imprinting Zack's personality atop his own and stopping only short of renaming himself "Zack Fair the Second".[[/labelnote]] have escaped, but Shinra attempts to bar their path with such overwhelming force that a BolivianArmyEnding is inevitable. Zack draws the Buster Sword and surges into the fight... and '''''is SparedByTheAdaptation'''''. As he and Cloud, refugees from an AlternateTimeline (made clear by a [[NoticeThis slow-motion]] shot of a marketing mascot who is different in the continuity we just spent an entire game in), limp towards Midgar, they pass without seeing each other Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, Barret and Red XIII, setting off into a world of plants and rain and absolute uncertainty, with nothing -- not even Aerith's spoilerific knowledge of the future -- to lead them.

Leaving Midgar after her failed mission, Yuffie notes that if she is going to take the fight to Shinra, she needs a lot more than Wutai's finest, she needs a team. Simultaneously, Cloud and company are walking to Kalm not far behind her, originally planning on walking the whole distance, before deciding to hitchike with Chocobo Bill to the city of Kalm. Even more simultanously, [[BackFromTheDead Zack Fair]] finds himself in Sector 5, just outside the church. He dramatically opens it, finding it full of refugees from Sector 7. He has two questions, just what has happened here, and [[SequelHook where is Aerith?]]

This alerts her elite fighters - [[VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus Deepground]] - who awaken one of the Tsviets, Nero the Sable, and send him to rescue Scarlet. Scarlet [[JustBetweenYouAndMe reveals to Yuffie]] that Shinra are going to drop Sector 7 on Avalanche, to Yuffie's horror. She races to help Sonon, who was ambushed by Deepground soldiers, and the pair are forced into a corner room. Nero traps the ninjas in a VR simulator and forces them to fight waves of enemies, to make them suffer as per Scarlet's orders. Once the duo break out of the sim, Nero engages them directly, using his mastery of dark energy to inflict heavy damage on the two. After a long and arduous battle, they are successful in defeating him, but he does not stay dead for long, rising from the shadows to attack Yuffie as she leaves. Sonon notices and [[TakingTheBullet blocks the attack]], with Nero impaling him straight through the chest, to Yuffie's abject horror. [[GoOutWithASmile Sonon smiles]] and tells her to get Shinra "for them", implying vengeance for him and Melphie. Yuffie, marked with tear stains and Sonon's blood on her face dashes outside through the crowd, only to discover she is too late - the plate falls, and all she can do is collapse to her knees in utter heartbreak.

Leaving Midgar after her failed mission, Yuffie notes that if she is going to take the fight to Shinra, she needs a lot more than Wutai's finest, she needs a team. Simultaneously, Cloud and company are walking to Kalm not far behind her, originally planning on walking the whole distance, before deciding to hitchike with Chocobo Bill to the city of Kalm. Even more Simultanously, [[BackFromTheDead Zack Fair]] finds himself in Sector 5, just outside the church. He dramatically opens it, finding it full of refugees from Sector 7. He has two questions, just what has happened here, and [[SequelHook where is Aerith?]]

#Nuisance in the Factory: A scrap dealers asks them to deal with three Lesser Drakes that are nesting in the abandoned Talagger factory.

Nothing makes this altered destiny more clear than a series of {{flashback}}s throughout the chapter, depicting an important part of the backstory, last seen during ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'': the return of a SOLDIER 1st-Class, Zack Fair, to Midgar. He and his friend Cloud[[labelnote:Spoilers!...]]In the event that you're new to the franchise, you should probably close this Note again. If you ''do'' want to know what's going on, here's what's going on: Cloud has an affinity for Sephiroth and JENOVA because he was subjected to Hojo's experiments, infusing him with JENOVA cells, five years ago. Hojo did this because Cloud was ''not'' a SOLDIER 1st-Class; in fact, he wasn't a SOLDIER at all: he was a fucking ''RedShirt'', one of the guys with the three-red-eyes helmets that you've been beating up with abandon. He went FromNobodyToNightmare at Nibelheim after Sephiroth turned it into a DoomedHometown, when Cloud defeated Sephiroth against all odds, which is probably why Hojo was interested in him. Zack, who was also getting experimented on, escaped, taking his best friend with him, limping back to Midgar in the hopes of finding safety -- and maybe seeing his girlfriend, a flower peddler named Aerith Gainesborough. Unfortunately, he was slain in the scene we're about to watch. All of the above is the IncitingIncident of the entire franchise: Cloud not only has the JENOVA cells, but he was compelled to not only TakeUpMySword but BecomingTheMask, stopping only short of renaming himself "Zack Fair the Second".[[/labelnote]] have escaped, but Shinra attempts to bar their path with such overwhelming force that a BolivianArmyEnding is inevitable. Zack draws the Buster Sword and surges into the fight... and '''''is SparedByTheAdaptation'''''. As he and Cloud, refugees from an AlternateTimeline (made clear by a [[NoticeThis slow-motion]] shot of a marketing mascot who is different in the continuity we just spent an entire game in), limp towards Midgar, they pass without seeing each other Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, Barret and Red XIII, setting off into a world of plants and rain and absolute uncertainty, with nothing -- not even Aerith's spoilerific knowledge of the future -- to lead them.

It's the flower peddler from the opening movie: '''Aerith Gainsborough''', final playable party member. (To recap, playable characters are: Cloud, the LightningBruiser; Barret, the LongRangeFighter; Tifa, the FragileSpeedster; and now Aerith, the SquishyWizard.) Aerith explains that Cloud fell through the roof into the church of the Sector 5 slums. She claims that her flowers broke his fall -- which is pretty ridiculous, but then the fact that Aerith can make anything grow at all suggests she has something of a GreenThumb, so maybe she can make her flowers extra-springy. Whatever the case, the meeting is interrupted immediately by Reno, a member of the Turks, QuirkyMinibossSquad and Shinra enforcers. Aerith asks Cloud to protect her and promises to go on a date with him. When Cloud introduces himself as a former SOLDIER 1st-Class, Reno laughs calls him a liar. Cloud duels Reno, and wins -- which is a marked change from the source material, in which this boss fight did not occur at all. However, when Cloud is about to make Reno [[OffWithHisHead shorter by a head]], which would ''definitely'' throw the plot OffTheRails, the grey-ghost things intervene, ''physically dragging'' Cloud and Aerith to the back room of the church whence they will make their escape, and slamming shut the door to ensure they FollowThePlottedLine. They also save Aerith when she's about to fall off a balcony. Reno calls off pursuit, claiming his partner will make the arrest.

The next morning, Cloud and Tifa unite for an explanation of how Square Enix managed to turn 6 hours of plot into a 60-hour game: {{Padding}}. The two scurry around completing {{Side Quest}}s, on the pretext of Cloud attempting to make his name as a local PrivateMilitaryContractor. Their landlay Marle adores Tifa but dislikes Cloud. After raising the money for Cloud's payment by changing water filters around town and defeating a few monsters, they do a few odd jobs. These include:

The team ascends to the 68th floor, where Hojo keeps his most prized possession: the headless woman Cloud envisioned earlier, whom Aerith calls "JENOVA." Cloud has a {{flashback}} to Sephiroth calling someone named JENOVA "Mother", and then Sephiroth shows up in the flesh, not a hallucination because everyone can see him. Cloud attacks him, but Sephiroth destroys the bridge they were standing on, which dumps them into "the Drum", Hojo's dungeon for experimenting on advanced technology (or so the fellow himself proclaims over the loudspeaker system). Red XIII explains Hojo wants to study JENOVA, "the cataclysm that came from the stars." The experiments in the Drum have all been injected with JENOVA's biological data, and Hojo will pit his subjects against the group to facilitate their growth. It being a video game, Hojo finds that the party are the stronger combatants, ending with them defeating creature called the Swordipede.

To accomplish this, Cloud must once again jump through a bunch of {{Side Quest}} hoops: Aerith can enter the audition, but she needs to the attention of one of the Don's three sponsors: Chocobo Sam (an {{expy}} of Creator/SamElliott in ''Series/TheRanch''), Madame M (a KimonoFanservice Lady who runs a massage parlor) and Andrea Rhodea (TheDandy who runs the Honeybee Inn nightclub; by the way, Ms. Folia works as one of his dancers at night). Sam is already out -- his entrant is Tifa -- and they can't get an appointment with Andrea within the next few years, so the two appeal to Madame M. ''She'' is willing to sponsor them... ''if'' Cloud buys a massage from her and then they win the TournamentArc at the Colosseum. Johnny, who heard what happened and wanting to save Tifa, attempts to enter but quickly loses. So Cloud and Aerith enter, fighting three rounds: first against a Beastmaster and his two Bloodhoods, second a rematch with Beck's Badasses, third against a Cutter and Sweeper, and emerging at the top -- and then a surprise ''fourth'' round (to Madame M's fury) against, no joke, a HauntedHouse called the Hell House that attacks using photorealistic chair missiles and can grow rocket jets and suck people into it. (The line between NarmCharm and plain old {{Narm}} is apparently photorealism; this enemy seemed way less goofy on the [=PS1=], when everything was low-poly and chunky, and you were clearly not intended to take everything literally.) In any case, Madame M takes Aerith in for her makeover, leaving Cloud at loose ends and free to pursue even more {{Side Quest}}s.

Meanwhile, Reno and Rude are licking their wounds and regretting droping the Sector 7 plate. Tseng says if they didn't do it, someone else would have. Tseng offers to let the two go on a vacation, but he receives a phone call and says the Vice President needs them.

They are interrupted by a call from outside Shinra. Wedge -- who is back on his feet -- has allied with both Mayor Domino and Avalanche HQ and are attempting to bust them out, or at least cause a big-enough distraction that the party can escape. Exclusive to Hard Mode, the team runs into Chadley on the 66th floor, who offers to let them train in his virtual reality simulator. If all 19 Assess-related missions were completed and all the virtual opponents are defeated, Chadley will reveal he is a cyborg slave of Hojo. By using the data the team collected, he was able to disable the RestrainingBolt keeping him bound to Shinra and is now free. He thanks them and says he doesn't know what he will do now, but it is nice not knowing something for once, before escaping.

The team ascends to the 68th floor, where Hojo keeps his most prized possession: the headless woman Cloud envisioned earlier, whom Aerith calls "JENOVA." Cloud has a {{flashback}} to Sephiroth calling someone named JENOVA "Mother", and then Sephiroth shows up in the flesh, not a hallucination because everyone can see him. Cloud attacks him, but Sephiroth destroys the bridge they were standing on, which dumps them into "the Drum", Hojo's dungeon for experimenting on advanced technology (or so the fellow himself proclaims over the loudspeaker system). Red XIII explains Hojo wants to study JENOVA, "the cataclysm that came from the stars." The experiments in the Drum have all been injected with JENOVA's biological data, and Hojo will pit his subjects against the group to facilitate their growth. It being a video game, Hojo finds that the party are the stronger combatants.

An Avalanche helicopter appears to offer the team egress, but is shot down by a Shinra copter with the Turks onboard... as well as Rufus Shinra, the president's son. Cloud buys time by engaging in a DuelBoss fight with Rufus, while Barret, Red XII and Aerith descend to the ground floor to try and secure a new exit route, dealing with yet another boss along the way, "The Arsenal". Wedge attempts to assist them, but the Whispers attack him and hurl him out a window, leaving his fate uncertain. They reach the bottom and find themselves surrounded by Shinra security... but Cloud arrives on a motorcycle and raises a ruckus, allowing Tifa to arrive in an old pick-up truck. The party vanishes into the night, with Heidegger screaming for his forces to follow.

As they race down the freeway, Cloud, from atop his motorcycle, helps defend the truck from various Shinra attackers, culminating in a giant boss. Finally free, the group contemplate their fate. In the original game, this was when they shimmied down a rope and walked off into the Overworld map. In this game, it's where things go ''truly'' OffTheRails.

On the other side of the portal are a trio of Whispers that have to be fought, which are apparently homages to the trio of villains from ''Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren''; and then the central Whisper Harbinger. During the fight, the party experiences visions of the future. First, one of Red XIII wandering the wilderness with his cubs, which confuses them. Second, one of Meteor descending on the planet. Third, one of Sephiroth killing Aerith. They are all horrified and motivated to kill the Whispers, hoping to stop such a bleak future from happening. And then... the party fights Sephiroth, because it's ''[=FF7=]'' and you can't have a game in this franchise where you don't fight Sephiroth. You win, but it's not the end; Sephiroth is in no way gone for good. What ''is'' clear is that NothingIsTheSameAnymore; destiny has been derailed, and the once-written future is now unwritten. The party must put up with Sephiroth gloating: if destiny is gone, then he has another chance to win. Cloud pursues Sephiroth into another portal and they find themselves in a twisted, barren landscape that Sephiroth calls The Edge of Creation. Sephiroth makes an offer for Cloud to join him so they can defy destiny together. Cloud refuses and they duel once more. Sephiroth effortlessly disarms him, but says he will not kill him yet. He leaves after a cryptic message, "Seven seconds till the end. Time enough for you. Perhaps. But what will you do with it? Let's see." Cloud returns to the others and says he failed. Aerith says Sephiroth is a threat to the planet and the party agrees to hunt him down.

#Wavering Heart: The trio visits Jules' gym to find Andrea Rhodea working out. He challenges Tifa to a pull-ups contest, which she wins.

#Corneo's Secret Stash: Damon talks about how Don Corneo's treasures are up for grabs and that he thinks the Angel of the Slums stole the key. Traveling all around, the trio use the key to find a ruby, diamond, and emerald tiara. They decide to give them to Marle, who promises to use them to fund Sector 7's recovery. Damon is changed by everything that's happened, and although he still doesn't know who the Angel is, he decides to be their ally instead of enemy. Since the key is needed to unlock the treasures and the emerald tiara is in the sewers, this side quest cannot be completed without doing "Tomboy Bandit" and going to Don Corneo's mansion.

Despite a sneaking mission that goes poorly when Barret accidentally falls off the roof of the truck they're riding, Cloud, Tifa and Barret succeed at infiltrating Shinra HQ. They figure that Aerith will be in Professor Hojo's lab on the 65th floor... which they will have to ascend to on foot, as the elevators stop at the 59th. (As with the original, players may choose whether to ride the elevator, which involves some fights, or to manually climb 59 flights of stairs.) Meanwhile, Reeve is doing his best to put Midgar back together after the self-inflicted disaster; apparently he's the TokenGoodTeammate on Shinra's C-Suite. [[{{Foreshadowing}} This will be important later.]]

They enter Don Corneo's mansion to find it ransacked. They find his henchman Kotch tied up and he explains Shinra raided the mansion as revenge for Corneo leaking the plan to destroy Sector 7, forcing Corneo to flee. They run into Leslie and explain that they need to get topside. He says he will help them if they help him get Corneo, who fled down his trapdoor into the sewers, since Leslie is not a fighter. As they explore the sewers, a monster steals Leslie's necklace. After they get it back, he explains that it belonged to his fiancee, but one day, Corneo chose her as a bride and then she disappeared, so he's wanted revenge and pretended to join Corneo, waiting for his chance. Leslie eventually finds Corneo alone and pulls a gun on him, only for Corneo to disarm and punch him down. Corneo monologues about how Shinra is planning to abandon Midgar for a new city built in the Promised Land and invited him in, but since he leaked the plan to destroy Sector 7, there are now many survivors, so they've put him on a hit list. He attempts to kill Leslie for betraying him, but the trio arrive in time. Before they can interrogate him, Abzu and its children attack, allowing Corneo to escape. After killing Abzu, Leslie wants to go after Corneo again, but Tifa urges him to let go of revenge and instead look for his fiancee, because there is a chance she could still be alive.

With the help of [[TheMole Mayor Domino]], Shinra's puppet mayor, the group reach the 64th floor and learn that Shinra will be holding a staff meeting, during which all the main villains -- excuse me, upper executives -- will be AFK. At one point, the trio run into a faceless mook who doesn't sound the alarm because he recognizes Cloud as an old friend of his. Sadly, Cloud doesn't recognize him and they move on. They take this opportunity to abduct Professor Hojo, who they believe is holding Aerith, and force him to let them into his lab. They not only retrieve her, but also gain the allegiance of another of Hojo's specimens, a talking red-orange catdog with a flaming tail, '''Red XIII''', who has the odd distinction of being DemotedToExtra: while he officially joined the party at this time back on [=PS1=], with his own LimitBreak, weapons and Materia, today he becomes something of a TagalongKid, contributing to fights using the game's ([[ArtificialStupidity abysmal]]) AI but not becoming controllable at any point. Hojo suddenly recognizes Cloud and says he is not a SOLDIER, but before he can say more, the grey-ghost things drag Hojo away. Finally complete, the party resolve to bust their way out... though Cloud has to stop with an overwhelming headache when he envisions a test pod with a headless woman inside...

#Chocobo Search: An employee of Chocobo Sam says three of his Chocobos are missing and asks for help. When they are all found, Sam thanks them by giving them a lifetime pass for his services, allowing for fast travel between Sector 5 and 6.

Despite a sneaking mission that goes poorly when Barret accidentally falls off the roof of the truck they're riding, Cloud, Tifa and Barret succeed at infiltrating Shinra HQ. At one point, they run into a faceless mook who doesn't sound the alarm because he recognizes Cloud as an old friend of his. Sadly, Cloud doesn't recognize him and they move on. They figure that Aerith will be in Professor Hojo's lab on the 65th floor... which they will have to ascend to on foot, as the elevators stop at the 59th. (As with the original, players may choose whether to ride the elevator, which involves some fights, or to manually climb 59 flights of stairs.) Meanwhile, Reeve is doing his best to put Midgar back together after the self-inflicted disaster; apparently he's the TokenGoodTeammate on Shinra's C-Suite. [[{{Foreshadowing}} This will be important later.]]

With the help of [[TheMole Mayor Domino]], Shinra's puppet mayor, the group reach the 64th floor and learn that Shinra will be holding a staff meeting, during which all the main villains -- excuse me, upper executives -- will be AFK. They take this opportunity to abduct Professor Hojo, who they believe is holding Aerith, and force him to let them into his lab. They not only retrieve her, but also gain the allegiance of another of Hojo's specimens, a talking red-orange catdog with a flaming tail, '''Red XIII''', who has the odd distinction of being DemotedToExtra: while he officially joined the party at this time back on [=PS1=], with his own LimitBreak, weapons and Materia, today he becomes something of a TagalongKid, contributing to fights using the game's ([[ArtificialStupidity abysmal]]) AI but not becoming controllable at any point. Hojo suddenly recognizes Cloud and says he is not a SOLDIER, but before he can say more, the grey-ghost things drag Hojo away. Finally complete, the party resolve to bust their way out... though Cloud has to stop with an overwhelming headache when he envisions a test pod with a headless woman inside...

They are interrupted by a call from outside Shinra. Wedge -- who is back on his feet -- has allied with both Mayor Domino and Avalanche HQ and are attempting to bust them out, or at least cause a big-enough distraction that the party can escape. Pursuant to this, the team ascends to the 68th floor, where Hojo keeps his most prized possession: the headless woman Cloud envisioned earlier, whom Aerith calls "JENOVA." Cloud has a {{flashback}} to Sephiroth calling someone named JENOVA "Mother", and then Sephiroth shows up in the flesh, not a hallucination because everyone can see him. Cloud attacks him, but Sephiroth destroys the bridge they were standing on, which dumps them into "the Drum", Hojo's dungeon for experimenting on advanced technology (or so the fellow himself proclaims over the loudspeaker system). Red XIII explains Hojo wants to study JENOVA, "the cataclysm that came from the stars." The experiments in the Drum have all been injected with JENOVA's biological data, and Hojo will pit his subjects against the group to facilitate their growth. It being a video game, Hojo finds that the party are the stronger combatants.

They enter Don Corneo's mansion to find it ransacked. They find his henchman Kotch tied up and he explains Shinra raided the mansion as revenge for Corneo leaking the plan to destroy Sector 7, forcing Corneo to flee. They run into Leslie and explain that they need to get topside. He says he will help them if they help him get Corneo, who fled down his trapdoor into the sewers, since Leslie is not a fighter. As they explore the sewers, a monster steals Leslie's necklace. After they get it back, he explains that it belonged to his fiancee, but one day, Corneo chose her as a bride and then she disappeared, so he's wanted revenge and pretended to join Corneo, waiting for his chance.

Even Better Grappling-Hook Pistols. Barret makes it clear that this is a PointOfNoReturn: once Cloud ''et al'' begin to ascend, they will be cut off from the WideOpenSandbox portion of the game and enter the story's third act.

Escorted by Johnny to protect her from gawkers, Aerith catches Cloud in front of Don Corneo's house in her new dress. While she was having her character model altered, Aerith had a bright idea: Chocobo Sam and Madam M have both entered a contestant in the night's audition, but Andrea Rhodea has not. So she takes Cloud to the Honeybee Inn, where Cloud is asked to participate in a DanceOff against Andrea. He wins, and Andrea agrees on a DudeLooksLikeALady makeover, proclaiming that "True beauty is an expression of the heart." This guarantees that Tifa can get the information she needs, since all three of Don Corneo's potential wives are Avalanche members (or allies, in Aerith's case -- though with her "LoveYouAndEverybody" attitude, the distinction may be academic).

#Corneo's Secret Stash: Damon talks about how Don Corneo's treasures are up for grabs and that he thinks the Angel of the Slums stole the key. Traveling all around, the trio use the key to find a ruby, diamond, and emerald tiara. They decide to give them to Marle, who promises to use them to fund Sector 7's recovery.

#Tomboy Bandit: Johnny says Kyrie stole his wallet. The trio corner her and she says she got in trouble for stealing the key to Don Corneo's secret stash. She was challenged to a match at the Colosseum, but the trio go in her place, defeating the Beastmaster and his Hellhound. When they return to her, she refuses to return the goods, but Mireille, who turns out to be her grandmother, arrives and scolds her, so she gives the trio the key and Johnny's wallet. Mireille reveals she is the true identity of the Angel of the Slums. They return Johnny's wallet and after a heartfelt goodbye to Tifa, he leaves Midgar.
#Corneo's Secret Stash:

In the morning, Elmyra has relented, and Avalanche set off to get topside, with Barret sadly saying goodbye to Marlene, but she encourages him to save Aerith. The only problem is, they have no idea how: all the normal routes are sealed in the wake of the "terrorist attack" that resulted in the plate dropping. Tifa suggests they go to Don Corneo. Midgar is claiming that Avalanche worked in conjunction with the enemy nation of Wutai, with whom Shinra have a cease-fire. They see a girl named Kyrie Canaan spreading anti-Avalance propoganda, but ignore her. Along the way, they do some side quests:

#The Power of Music: Betty wants to cheer up the people, so she asks the trio to find three unique music samples for her to play on a jukebox.
#Secret Medicine:
#Tomboy Bandit:

#Subterranean Menace:

The next morning, Cloud and Tifa unite for an explanation of how Square Enix managed to turn 6 hours of plot into a 60-hour game: {{Padding}}. The two scurry around completing {{Side Quest}}s, on the pretext of Cloud attempting to make his name as a local PrivateMilitaryContractor. After raising the money for Cloud's payment by changing water filters around town and defeating a few monsters, they do a few odd jobs. These include:

#Chocobo Search:
#Malicious Goons:
#Wavering Heart:
#The Power of Music:

Even Better Grappling-Hook Pistols. The Player is also given the opportunity to complete yet another set of {{Side Quest}}s all over Sector 5 and Sector 6. Barret makes it clear that this is a PointOfNoReturn: once Cloud ''et al'' begin to ascend, they will be cut off from the WideOpenSandbox portion of the game and enter the story's third act.

After leaving Wedge in Elmyra's care to recuperate, Cloud announces his intentions to attack Shinra HQ and rescue Aerith. Elmyra suggests that this is a bad idea, hoping that Aerith is being treated kindly -- Shinra ''do'' have an incentive to keep her cooperative, after all. Cloud believes no such thing is happening. Elmyra decides that she needs to think about it overnight, and the team takes a nap; Cloud awakens during the night and finds (depending on RelationshipValues) one of his party members outside, ruminating. (If it's Aerith, she appears as some sort of spiritual projection.)

In the morning, Elmyra has relented, and Avalanche set off to get topside. The only problem is, they have no idea how: all the normal routes are sealed in the wake of the "terrorist attack" that resulted in the plate dropping. (Midgar is claiming that Avalanche worked in conjunction with the enemy nation of Wutai, with whom Shinra have a cease-fire.) In the end, they need to talk to Leslie, one of Don Corneo's henchmen, who leads them into the sewers (and, for that matter, to the don's hideyhole) to procure them some Even Better Grappling-Hook Pistols. The Player is also given the opportunity to complete yet another set of {{Side Quest}}s all over Sector 5 and Sector 6. Barret makes it clear that this is a PointOfNoReturn: once Cloud ''et al'' begin to ascend, they will be cut off from the WideOpenSandbox portion of the game and enter the story's third act.

Cloud apologizes to Elmyra for letting Aerith be captured and failing in his duties as bodyguard, but Elmyra tells him that the day was inevitable. She explains that Aerith is indeed the last "Ancient", a race of {{Precursors}} who inhabited the world before humanity. Elmyra adopted her (Aerith) when she found her (Aerith) and her mother, Ifalna, at the train station, Ifalna dying and begging that someone, anyone, look after her daughter. Supposedly, Aerith, as an Ancient, knows the way to "The Promised Land," a place of infinite Mako -- which Shinra, who burn Mako to produce salable electricity, have extreme business incentives to find.

Avalanche leave Marlene with Elmyra and return to the ruins of Sector 7, helping in the search for survivors. What they find instead is a mysterious underground lab, run by Shinra. They also find Wedge there, held captive. Despite being split up, the three succeed at defeating whatever bioengineered horrors were being created there and freeing Wedge. ''All of this is already a deviation from the StationsOfTheCanon'': back in '97, Wedge's role in the story ended when he fell hundreds of feet off the pillar, Cloud asked him if if he was okay, Wedge said "[[CaptainObvious NO!!!!]]," and then [[KilledOffForReal died a lot]].

The sewer exit leaves the three at the Train Graveyard, where old trains are left in piles. Supposedly, the graveyard is haunted. Tifa becomes incredibly jealous when she sees Aerith latching onto Cloud's arm and grabs his other arm possessively. The graveyard is indeed haunted by some benevolent and some malevolent ghosts. They check an old train radio and intercept a message between Reno and Rude, confirming that Corneo was telling the truth. at Sector 7... where Shinra helicopters encircle the pillar that holds up the plate, exchanging gunfire with Barret, Wedge, Biggs, Jessie and whoever else Avalanche could drum up.

It's AfterTheEnd of Sector 7. Barret mourns for Biggs, Wedge and Jessie, but is informed by Cloud that Marlene is safe (or, at least, was, according to Aerith, who was yelling it over vidcom while Shinra bundled her away). They travel through Wall Market to Aerith's house, where Elmyra indeed has custody of the sleeping child.

Cloud apologizes to Elmyra for letting Aerith be captured and failing in his duties as bodyguard, but Elmyra tells him that the day was inevitable. She explains that Aerith is indeed the last "Ancient" -- or, to use another term, the last "Cetra", a race of {{Precursors}} who inhabited the world before humanity. Elmyra adopted her (Aerith) when she found her (Aerith) and her mother, Ifalna, at the train station, Ifalna dying and begging that someone, anyone, look after her daughter. Supposedly, Aerith, as an Ancient, knows the way to "The Promised Land," a place of infinite Mako -- which Shinra, who burn Mako to produce salable electricity, have extreme business incentives to find.

Avalanche leave Marlene with Elmyra and return to the ruins of Sector 7, helping in the search for survivors. What they find instead is a mysterious underground lab, run by Shinra. They also find Wedge there, held captive. Despite being split up, the three succeed at (defeating whatever bioengineered horrors were being created there and) freeing Wedge. ''All of this is already a deviation from the StationsOfTheCanon'': back in '97, Wedge's role in the story ended when he fell hundreds of feet off the pillar, Cloud asked him if if he was okay, Wedge said "[[CaptainObvious NO!!!!]]," and then [[KilledOffForReal died a lot]].

Down in the sewers, Cloud, Aerith and Tifa are awoken by very loud roaring: there's a large monster, Abzu, living down here, which seems to explain where the Don's brides go when he's done with them. After beating it up for a bit, Abzu escapes, so the three fight their way out of the sewers. They are not sure if Corneo was telling the truth, but they must return to Sector 7 to make sure.

The sewer exit leaves the three at the Train Graveyard, where old trains are left in piles. Supposedly, the graveyard is haunted. Cloud, Tifa and Aerith fight their way through, emerging at Sector 7... where Shinra helicopters encircle the pillar that holds up the plate, exchanging gunfire with Barret, Wedge, Biggs, Jessie and whoever else Avalanche could drum up.