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For some, it is the day of reckoning. It is the day that all things come to pass, that singular event that will define, or perhaps redefine, human existence in a single moment. Some would consider this to be destiny, a predetermined event that has been prophesied to come at the exact moment when it is required. It is seemingly unavoidable, a necessary good or a necessary evil that every human being must face when they near the end of their journey. Perhaps if anything, even if the event has been expected, the outcome sometimes is not. Everyone knows it was coming, everyone tried to prepare for it, but in reality no one knew what would come out of it. Would it bring sadness or joy, victory or defeat, life or death? It is the time, that moment, that requires one's all.
This is Judgment Day, that day when one's entire existence is called into question. Here he will face not only the end of his journey but also his entire being, to see if he is truly worthy of such an end. Judgment is nearly a universal idea in so many religions and philosophies. They may differ in most senses, but at their core they have that essential similarity: that final moment in time when the entire being of man is called into question. The final moment when man is given one last chance to evaluate himself for his final leg. He cannot afford to fail, for if he does, he will fail for all eternity.
The Fool himself is not directly judged, rather that Judgment Day heralds what is likely to be the single most important moment in his life. Judgment lies at practically the end of the Fool's road, the final hurdle of his travels. The Fool has one last moment to gather himself and his friends. Judgment is a one-shot deal, there is no room for error when everything is at stake. The time of reckoning is at hand for the object of his actions. He knows that every fiber of his being must be put into this final stand, this final battle that will decide not only his own life but the lives of countless others.
At this time, he must pass judgment on those who go against him, lest he himself be judged.
He admired him like a demigod. He was the reason he joined Soldier in the first place. He grew up a lanky, antisocial and alienated child who only wanted people to like him. He wanted to join Soldier to gain the fame and respect of his peers, in order to finally be accepted. Instead of that however, all he got was not only the shame of failure but the bodies of his friends in families among the burning ashes of his hometown. He respected him, admired him, but now Sephiroth was his enemy. Sephiroth will end in the Northern Crater what he began in Nibelheim so many years ago. He now faces him in the bottom of the crater, one on one, to determine the fate of the planet hurtling towards disaster. They stare at each other eye to eye, both knowing that this will be the last time they will cross swords. He readies his sword to strike at the man he once considered a friend.
And even then, should he slay him, will Holy truly come and save the planet?
When it all started on that fateful day of betrayal, they promised that should they need to meet again, it will be here at the waterfall where they took their leap of fate. In a way he thought that Jowy would never show up. The war is over, Highland is defeated, but he knew there was still a promise he had to keep. Both of them kept this promise when they met again at that waterfall. This time however, they meet not as friends but as enemies once again. They knew they had to fight. They were the leaders of of the land's two rival factions, destined by the Bright Shield and the Dark Sword to be locked in eternal combat until the day that both runes become one again. Conflict will not end until this happens, and this can only happen when one takes the other at the cost of the host's life. They knew this very well. They will have to fight the last fight, until there is a victor.
But Jowy was his friend. He wanted to believe that fate was not this cruel. He wanted to believe that, even at the end of it all, peace could be achieved without further loss of life. Will fate grant him his request?
Judgment Day is inevitable. It cannot be avoided. The Fool knows he must act one final time to make things right, to set things straight and to finally bring his goals to fruition. Still, at what cost? Can he say that his true wishes will come to pass? He may have defeated the final major hurdle in his way, but will this finally bring about the goal that he has shed blood and lives for?
Judgment may have come, but the one final wish, the one final desire in his heart has yet to be fulfilled. It can only come when things have returned full circle, when the beginning ends and the end begins. When he has not only succeeded physically but mentally as well. This is when he has finally learned what his journey is all about.
When that day comes, the World will grant his wish.
The Sun has shown the way. The time of Judgment has arrived.
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