FFVII – Part 39: Temple with a Clock in its Walls

Summary: We work our way around the clock face. Good loot and cool monsters all around. Then the mural room, where we meet Sephiroth and learn more about his plan to ascend to power. Ominously enough, no Jenova sightings.


 
Clock Area

-I make it back to Clockland, and successfully reach the door marked “I.” It leads to a chest with nothing in it guarded by a frog woman named Jezmeny.

-Door “II:” blocked by rubble.

-Door “III:” monster chest with two Eye-moebas in it, who I first met back in FFII.

u guyz

-Fell off the clock again on the way to “IV,” and I have to go through the Escher maze. Again. This part which was once exciting is now boring. I get that the game wants to punish me for failing on the clock, but not sure what else to say. Boring.

[Later edit: I regret writing this, but it’s what I felt at the time so I’ll leave it in. If I had paid better attention to the second hand that knocked me off, and better attention to the path to get back to the clock, I would’ve done better.]

-Door “IV:” new Aeris weapon, “Princess Guard.”

Navigating the clock.

-Door “V:” “Ribbon.” Boo-ya!

-Door “VI:” a puzzle where we have to catch one of the bearded spirits. Took a while, but finally caught the spirit. He opened a door to let us proceed, but I want to finish the rest of the clock stuff first.

-Door “VII:” Trumpet Shell, a fantastic stat upgrade for Cait Sith but without materia slots. I give it to him because of the sheer quantity of the stat boost.

-Door “VIII:” Megalixir.

-Door “IX:” Rubble

-Door “X:” Where I came from.

-Door “XI:” Rubble

-Finally, Door “XII:” metal door that we can’t yet open. We’ll definitely be back here for something. For now, back to Door VI.

---

Mural Room

-This is where Sephiroth slashed Tseng.

-A blurry spirit Sephiroth appears.

“So cold.”
“I am always by your side.”

Chills. I think this is Sephiroth talking to Jenova.

-We move further a little bit, and there he is in solid form. “A treasure house of knowledge…” Then he jumps away.

-Further. The mural here shows a meteor crashing to earth. Given the logo for FFVII, I have a feeling this meteor crashing – a “calamity” from the sky, you might say – is important. Is that what Jenvoa becomes? A meteor?

-Still talking about becoming one with the earth, which is probably bad.

-When the planet is hurt, it gathers energy to deal with the injury. The greater the hurt…

OH SHIT THAT’S WHAT THE METEOR’S ABOUT

-Once he wounds the planet mortally, he’ll infuse himself with the energy as it rushes in to heal the Planet, and become God. Boy, the “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” parallels continue.

-Not Ultima, but “Meteor.” That’s what he wants from the temple. Power enough to wound the planet. Hopefully he pulls a Tellah and dies trying to cast it. My money’s on that not happening though.

-Sephiroth leaps away, screaming “Wake up!”

-Cloud starts… shaking? Laughing, maybe. “Ha ha ha… Black Materia.”

-This is SUPREMELY WEIRD. He starts doing what Sephiroth had been doing, moving differently from a spirit self.

-Aeris seems nervous. More than just learning about the meteor, I mean. Hm.

-And then a red dragon attacks. Boss time.

-Red Dragon goes down pretty smooth. And drop “Bahamut” materia! Holy shit!

-Black Materia is on the altar. What do we do?

-…what

-The entire TEMPLE is Black Materia. Aeris adds something about when we solve a puzzle, the materia shrinks until it can fit in the palm of our hand, but I’m pretty confused by that.

-Oh, the temple itself shrinks. But you can only solve the puzzles from the inside, so whoever solves them will be crushed. And die. (Please be Cait Sith.)

-Hey! Cait Sith actually chimes in that he can help. And it makes sense, since his body isn’t really his. IT’S JUST SOME POOR INNOCENT CAT’S WHOSE LIFE HE’S OFFERING TO SACRIFICE. GEE, WHAT A GENTLEMAN YOU ARE.

Unless he’s not possessing an actual cat and an actual MoogleCow, but rather an empty suit instead. That could be.

-Cait Sith keeps saying, “Trust me! Come on, buddy! Trust me!” I keep saying “NO,” but this option keeps coming up.

Guess I have no choice.

---

Next time: we finish the temple.

p.s. This doesn’t fit anywhere really, but I love the Odin summon graphics: