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I am Sephiroth.

[Though which Sephiroth is it? The ID number attached to the post reads S1297993 rather than S1727002, for those who know there are two Sephiroths, are familiar with those numbers, and take the time to notice. Then again, the tone of the post may also be a hint.]

I have been researching the monsters in the Tower. I am curious as to why they are treated so differently than we are, although they likely come from other worlds as well. They have no collars, and they roam freely. They are not wire constructs containing souls, as we are. They were not altered during the glamour failure. They appeared as normal. Many of them are absent during the day. Where do they go? What is their nature? Why are they here?

If you have any ideas or theories, I would be interested in hearing them.

Also, I have noticed that there is a discrepancy in my memories. If there is anyone capable of reading or altering memories, please contact me.

Thank you.

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Yes, they are different. That may be so. Yet during my months of research, I have encountered many of them, and their behaviors can be quite complex. Some of them speak.

[Sephiroth has been doing almost nothing but killing monsters for months, so he has encountered a great many of them.]

If any of us had been brought here differently, uncollared, would we be monsters? The fact that they are here without collars proves that it is possible to bring lifeforms here without the need for constructing new bodies for them. I have heard it theorized that they may be "mistakes", either warped souls or creatures brought here in error, but there is no proof of this.

I have too many memories, yet at the same time, they are incomplete. I remember things that I cannot explain. I possess memories that it is impossible for me to have. I do not know where they came from.

That's true... the ones I encountered may have been different. I try not to spend too much time around them unless I have to, so I haven't really seen a huge variety. I've never fought one that spoke before... what was it like?

...that's a good question, and it's hard to say. I hope not. Whatever the monsters are, I've killed enough of them that I don't want to think they might have been human once, or that a botched attempt at bringing one of my friends here might turn them into one... It might be worth asking the administrators, if you think anything they say can be taken as fact.

Hm. I can't alter memories, but I might be able to help you sift through them... [That's probably as close as she's going to get to saying "I read minds" in public.] If you'd like, that is.

I have been seeking them out in order to research them.

Monster type: childlike, wearing a gas mask. They speak about their mothers, asking to be reunited with them.

Monster type: mutated humanoid, exposed organs. They cry out for help or ask for the cessation of pain.

Monster type: humanoid, tall, masked and constantly bleeding. They travel in groups and appear to communicate with each other verbally.

Monster type: small, humanoid, goblin-like. They speak in rhymes, usually mocking.

Regardless of whether they were human once, it is acceptable to defend yourself. I will continue to research in an attempt to answer these questions, but my studies are hampered by the unreliable nature of the Tower.

I would ask the administrators, but they cannot be trusted. The object of my researches is to understand this place, and they have proven to oppose such aims. Any data received from them would be worthless.

Yes, I would like that. I would prefer to resolve this anomaly.

You've done a lot of research! That's very impressive.

I guess that's true. If we don't fight back... well, they'll just kill us. They won't stop. I hope you're able to learn the things you want to from them.

...I wish there were a way to verify whatever they tell us, but it doesn't seem like there is.

In that case, we should try and meet sometime. Where do you usually spend your free time?

I have. I have been studying a great deal.

Yes, there is no need to feel guilt for self-defense. It is natural and preferable to defend oneself, and if those monsters were once like us, they are no longer. I will keep searching. Thank you.

No, there is no concrete evidence.

I would like that. I can often be found in the library.

Are you in the library right now? I am - it's where I usually use the terminals from.

We may not have time to get started right away, but we can at least introduce ourselves in person. Then you'll know who to look for when you want me to try and help you with your memories.

[Sephiroth switches to video so he can more easily be identified.]

Yes, I am currently in the library. That would be satisfactory.

[Sheba switches to video for exactly the same reason, and observes Sephiroth's surroundings in the frame carefully to get a better idea of what part of the library to look for him in.]

Great! I'll come find you, then.

[He isn't hard to find. Even if he didn't have the silver hair and bright green eyes, Sephiroth would still be easy to pick out; there weren't that many children in the Tower, after all. When she finally does see him, she approaches.]

Sephiroth? We spoke on the network... I don't think I introduced myself, though. My name is Sheba.

Very well.

[Sephiroth waits for her, patiently, as she suggests. He nods politely as she approaches.]

Hello. Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you, Sheba.

It's a pleasure to meet you, too.

[He has good manners - better manners, in fact, than most of the people she's met here so far. Something about that strikes that as funny, but Sheba has better manners than to giggle.]

So... when did you start having these issues with your memories? Has it always been like this, or is it a recent thing?

I do not know how long the situation has been in effect. I did not notice there was an anomaly until I tried to concentrate on a particular memory. It was difficult to recall. I experienced a physical reaction, and as the details emerged, I realized they did not make any sense.

I now remember a number of things that I cannot understand.

A physical reaction...?

[Sheba's brows furrow in concern. She knows that sometimes unpleasant memories can make someone feel ill, especially if they're in regards to things they would really rather forget, but she hasn't thought that it would be common, and she can't imagine what sorts of memories would be haunting a child...]

Do you think it's because of something the administrators have done to you?

Yes, my head hurt, and I felt ill. While I can recall these memories, they are fragmented, and I have no context for them. Most of them are isolated images.

I do not know. It is possible. The memories are all regarding things that happened in my world. Is there any history of the administrators altering existing memories when people arrive?

I'm not sure if there is. I just know the administrators have said before that they've altered memories, though that was in the context of things going on here...

[She purses her lips, thinking. It could be the administrators, but what would be their reason for doing anything like that? As much as she wishes she could just blame them for it, she's not sure that's what's right. And they have quite a lot to answer for even if they're not modifying a child's memories.]

So it would be possible for them to do it, but I can't think of why they would. [If it started happening during a Jason month it might have been an experiment of some kind, though his experiments were usually on a wider scale...]

I cannot think why either.

There was also a time discrepancy, before I came here. I believed myself to be in suspended animation for more than twenty years, during which time I did not age, but now I believe I may have been incorrect, and these memories may come from that time.

I remember being an adult.

An adult...

[He remembers being like the Sephiroth she knows, then. She stops to consider that. Though she can't think of what would cause him to become a child if he's already gone through adulthood...]

Are they memories, or... [She frowns. Reverting back to childhood is nothing she's ever seen happen on her world, but there are other things. Some of which she's experienced herself.] Maybe you're seeing things from your future? Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between visions and things that have already happened, if they're really vivid.

I have never seen visions. As far as I know, that is not a power people in my world are capable of. I have never heard of such someone possessing such ab ability there.

The experience is exactly like a memory, only it is fractured and I cannot understand it.

It is unlikely that what I saw was the future. The memories contained things that have since been destroyed.

Huh...

[Well, she wasn't sure what to say then. If it wasn't the future, then it wasn't future. But it couldn't be the past, because if that was possible, the memories wouldn't be so disorienting to him. She purses her lips and considers that. She feels like she's missing some crucial bit of information, but she can't think of what it might be.]

If visions aren't possible on your world, what sorts of things are? [Maybe a better understanding of the world he came from would make this easier.]

Many things.

Magic is possible, but it is utilized through a substance known as Materia, which allows man to manipulate the natural world.

My world is also scientifically advanced. We are capable of holographic simulations and advanced genetic engineering.

Genetic engineering...?

[She knows the definitions of "genetic" and "engineering" from reading books in the library and talking to people in the tower, but she's never heard the two words used together before. Her expression is equal parts curious and thoughtful.]

What can you do with that?

You can alter the genetics of a person, to change or improve them.

You can augment talents or abilities or create traits and abilities where none existed.

What, really? That's amazing...

[She doesn't fully understand it, but to be able to create something from nothing like that - at least, that's how she thinks of it - sounds truly miraculous. Then something occurs to her.]

You don't think they did something like that to you, did they? Maybe what you're experiencing now is a side effect of them changing your genetics somehow.

[...well, it sounds like a good idea to her, anyway.]

I am a product of genetic engineering. My genes were altered before my birth. I have not had any such symptoms since arriving here.

That is not a correct interpretation of genetics. Altering someone's genes will not give them additional memories.

[If someone's genes are altered through exposure to radiation, the radiation could cause memory loss, but something like that wouldn't give him strange, vivid memories of being older when he clearly isn't older. Then again, he doesn't actually know what was done to his genes...]

This is the first time I have experienced this phenomenon.

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Sorry for how late this is! The infiltration ate my soul. OTL

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this is so late I'm so sorry OTL

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