Deliverance from Chaos

Chapter 17: Deliverance from Chaos is the seventeenth chapter in Final Fantasy VII Remake. It comprises events when Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Barret Wallace, Aerith Gainsborough, and Red XIII escape the Shinra Building.
Completing the quest unlocks the bronze trophy Emerging from Chaos. Several trophies can also be earned in the Shinra Combat Simulator during this chapter when visiting in Chapter Select.
==Story==
After falling unconscious near the elevator at Professor Hojo's lab, Cloud wakes up in a room with Tifa, Aerith, Barret and Red XIII. The others are glad he is up, Aerith explaining this was her room when she lived in the Shinra Building as a child with her mother. The room is unchanged from when she was last here. During their time here, Shinra Electric Power Company scientists would take her mother away every morning, leaving Aerith crying there alone.
Aerith is a descendant of the Cetra, the race Shinra calls the Ancients. The company believes her people's promised land exists, and have been searching for it for a long time. The company relies on Aerith to locate it, but she cannot lead them to the promised land even if she wanted to, believing that perhaps one day she will find it inside herself. Barret adds that even if she did find it, that land belongs to her and her people, because Shinra is only after it for the mako.
Barret asks Cloud, Tifa and Red XIII to escape with Aerith while he alone will "bust some Shinra heads", but Aerith objects as specters swarm the room. Barret thinks these weird ghosts are a Shinra science experiment, but Red XIII explains they are called Whispers, the arbiters of fate drawn to stop people about to change the destiny's course, the fixed flow from the planet's inception to its oblivion, representing the will of the planet itself. Barret worries these Whispers may be enforcing a bleak future, and wonders how Red XIII knows about the planet's will and the Whispers, calling him a Shinra lab rat dog. Red XIII denies being one, explaining that when Aerith reached out to him, he received the knowledge of the Whispers.
Aerith interjects that the Shinra Electric Power Company is not their real enemy, as the Whispers surround her. Even though the planet's crisis started with Shinra, there is a bigger threat out there. Tifa asks what Aerith is hiding from them, Aerith despairing that she is lost in a maze where every step is taking her further from her path. Every time the Whispers touch her, she loses a part of herself. She tells herself to follow the yellow flowers as she sees a vision of herself dropping one. The Whispers attack her, but Tifa drags her out and promises they will find a way out together. A loud sound rings out, the Whispers disappear and static appears on the room's TV screen.
Mayor Domino and Wedge reach out to the group via a video call, Wedge explaining he feels better after having some of Elmyra's cooking, and came to rescue them all with Avalanche HQ's help. Another explosion sounds, Wedge explaining the HQ is trying to "raise hell" and "flush out President Shinra". Domino takes the camera and tell the group the whole building is now on high alert, but the group can still move around Hojo's lab and get to the roof where an Avalanche chopper will pick them up. Barret doubts the HQ will help them, but Wedge says he asked them "really nicely". Tifa thanks Wedge as he logs off, telling the group to get going. Back inside Domino's office in the archives, Wedge grimaces from chest pain. Back in Aerith's old room, Barret ruminates he hadn't asked Wedge to do all that, but Cloud is glad he did. Barret wants to chew Wedge out later as the group leaves the room.
They need to take the elevator that Hojo took on the 66th floor. The group rides the elevator on the 65th floor and finds the next floor a mess. Unknown entities attack them, but Cloud, Aerith and Tifa defeat them while Barret and Red XIII clear the rubble blocking the control room. Barret wants to high five Red XIII who singes Barret's hand with his flaming tail, Barret asking what that was for.
The group makes its way to the control room. If the chapter is being replayed, Cloud can find Chadley here who wants the group to do some harder battle simulator challenges to free himself from Hojo. After completing all of them, Chadley explains he is a cyborg created to serve as Hojo's knowledgeable assistant but robbed of a free will. Chadley says he knew Cloud would be the one to break him free, as Cloud's combat data allowed him to enhance his functionality. Cloud asks what Chadley is going to do now, but he doesn't know, saying it is nice not knowing something for a change, and departs.
The group takes the elevator Hojo used on the 66th floor. As the door closes, Cloud glimpses a black feather drop on the floor. The elevator stops at the 68th floor, Red XIII explaining the floor is Hojo's treasure and Shinra's dark secret. When the group approaches the bridge they see a mutated-looking person in a tank across from them. Aerith explains the person inside is Jenova. Upon hearing the name Cloud grabs his forehead in pain and remembers Sephiroth call Jenova "mother" and plan to reclaim the world together with her. Cloud flashes back to the teenaged Tifa declaring she is sick of everything by her father's dead body.
Tifa asks if Cloud is okay, but then realizes Sephiroth is standing in front of them on the other side of the bridge. Cloud slowly and painfully approaches him, doubting if it is really him. Sephiroth tells Cloud to not deny him, and to embrace him. Cloud snaps and charges at Sephiroth who cuts the bridge, sending Barret, Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII plummeting down. Cloud jumps from the collapsing bridge to attack Sephiroth, who blocks him, and calls their meeting a touching reunion. He deflects Cloud's attack with his Masamune, who falls down as well. Meanwhile in a control room, Hojo admires the scene via the security cameras, giddy that his hypothesis was correct. He hopes Cloud will not disappoint him.
Cloud awakes alone at the bottom of the secret lab and uses switches to open up test subject pods to create a bridge to get across. He finds Red XIII and some rogue unknown entities. When the two reach another area with test subject pods, the switch is on the other side. Red XIII runs on the wall to cross the gap to activate the switch. Once Cloud makes it across, they enter a door to the 1st ward where they help Barret who is under attack from monsters created in Shinra's science experiments, who says they need to find Tifa and Aerith and head to the roof. The group exits the room as the door closes behind them, barring their way back. The group finds another row of test subject pods with Red XIII reaching the other side to open them while being attacked by unknown entities, but Tifa and Aerith save him by dropping a pod from above. The two tell Cloud and Barret they're coming down as Red XIII activates the switch, helping the latter group get across.
Once Cloud and Barret get across, Barret can't hear what Tifa and Aerith are saying, since they're behind a barrier. Cloud activates a PHS Terminal with Tifa activating another on her side, allowing them to communicate. Hojo announces through the speaker system that they're in the Drum, a dungeon filled with advanced technology, and says the group is honored to participate in his ambitious experiment. Should the group help him, he promises to open the 3rd ward. Red XIII sighs that they have no choice but to follow Hojo, since he won't let them leave otherwise.
Tifa and Aerith saw a ward a while ago and head there to check it out while Cloud and Barret stay put with Red XIII. Tifa worries that Cloud has been acting strange, but Aerith wants to know how Tifa is holding up. They find the 3rd Ward entrance locked, but Tifa activates a switch to open up a row of test subject pods to make a bridge across, also opening up a row next to Cloud's group, creating them a path. Tifa informs Cloud via the PHS Terminal that the door to the 3rd Ward is locked, as Aerith says a pipe attached to the door connects to the central terminal. Cloud's group can get across now, and he thanks Tifa and asks the women to stay put. 
With Cloud's group, Red XIII explains Hojo wants their help to study Jenova, the cataclysm that came from the stars to whose study Hojo has devoted half his life. The experiment in the Drum involves enhancing life forms and machines through the application of Jenova's biological data, and Hojo will pit his subjects against the group to facilitate their growth. Red XIII wants to put those subjects out of their misery. Cloud opens up a bridge to the central terminal that has four switches, one for each ward. Cloud activates the 3rd switch, which opens the door next to Tifa and Aerith. Cloud uses a PHS Terminal to inform them that they can enter the ward now, but warns them that Hojo's twisted creations could be inside.
Tifa and Aerith enter the 3rd ward and are ambushed by bloodhounds and spot a zenene eating an unknown entity. They climb a staircase and use pipes to cross the sleeping zenenes at the bottom. The pipe snaps, causing the pair to fall and wake up the zenenes. Tifa and Aerith defeat them and make it to the exit of the ward where the door closes behind them. Aerith disdains Hojo as the pair continues onward. Tifa opens a row of test subject pods to help them reach the PHS Terminal on the other side, while opening up a path to the entrance of the 2nd ward. Tifa informs Cloud's group via the PHS Terminal that his group can reach the 2nd ward now.
Cloud, Barret and Red XIII activate the 2nd switch in the central terminal and enter the 2nd ward where Red XIII and Cloud recognize more of Hojo's experiments. In the first room an announcement informs that tests are to commence and that all personnel must evacuate the area. The doors close, and the group fights off some zenenes. Hojo in the control room above hopes they're enjoying their experience. Barret invites Hojo to come down and tries to attack, but the control room window is bulletproof. Hojo marvels at the data he just collected and moves to the next room.
The group follows, and is again trapped inside and has to defeat a M.O.T.H. Unit and some drones. Barret asks if Hojo enjoys seeing his experiments get destroyed, Hojo saying he never tires of it. In the third and final room Barret fires at Hojo behind the bulletproof glass again, Hojo sighing that he will never learn. The door begins to close, but Cloud blocks it with debris, helping Red XIII get across to the control room to attack Hojo. Hojo's brain pod freezes him in suspended animation as Hojo leaves. Cloud and Barret fight off a group of sledgeworms and make it to the control room where Barret fires at the brain pod, saving Red XIII. The brain pod escapes, Red XIII apologizing for letting Hojo get away. Cloud says to forget about him as the group begins to make their way to the exit, but the brain pod is levitating the objects in the room to block their way out. The group defeats the brain pod and his duplicates and leaves the 2nd Ward, the door shutting behind them.
There is no elevator here as Cloud lets Tifa and Aerith know of the situation. The group arrives at the locked entrance to the 4th Ward. They need to return to the central terminal to activate the switch, but the exit of the 2nd Ward is now closed. They find another switch that opens the test subject pods and a PHS Terminal on the other side. Red XIII heads to the other side, but bunch of other pods also open and unknown entities emerge from them. Cloud and Barret defeat the unknown entities, while the other unknown entities attack Red XIII who falls to the same floor where Tifa and Aerith are on. Cloud runs across the test subject pods to the PHS Terminal and informs Tifa to go rescue Red XIII.
Tifa and Aerith fight off some enemies and reach Red XIII, helping him defeat the remaining unknown entities. Tifa asks if Cloud's group has found anything, and Red XIII explains they just found the entrance to the 4th Ward, but can't reach the central terminal anymore to open it. Tifa and Aerith wonder if they can reach the central terminal instead. Red XIII helps the two by opening up a switch on the other side that releases the test subject pods, helping them get across where they find an unmoving elevator. Red XIII thinks Hojo will not activate the elevator until the 4th Ward has been cleared, and they will need to rely on Cloud and Barret. Tifa opens up a bridge to the central terminal and activates the 4th switch, and uses the PHS Terminal to contact Cloud and Barret to update them on the situation.
Cloud and Barret enter the 4th Ward, Barret mentioning how Wedge is waiting on them to be saved. He lets Cloud know how much Wedge admires him, a friendly guy with a hard time opening up to people, much like Cloud himself. The pair passes through a tunnel into another, Barret hearing something as a swordipede arrives. Cloud tells Barret to run as they fall back into the area. The swordipede arrives as the gate to the second tunnel closes. After Cloud and Barret damage it, the swordipede goes out of control and flies away.
The swordipede heads to the central terminal where Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII defeat it. Hojo watches the spectacle from a control room, glad the group triumphed. He sees Cloud and Barret try open the door to the second tunnel, deeming he has gathered the data he needed and can move on to the next stage. He opens up a bridge and activates the elevator for Tifa's group when he spots Sephiroth carrying someone draped in black cloth on another monitor. He inspects the security camera footage more closely and laughs. Back in the central terminal, Aerith realizes the elevator is open and heads in. Tifa worries it may be a trap, but Aerith deems the elevator safe and Red XIII joins them.
The elevator stops at a floor that leads to a tunnel where banging noises emanate. Tifa activates a switch as Aerith pushes the door. Cloud and Barret on the other side realize the door is going to crush them and move. Aerith falls in as the door opens. The two groups reunite and take the elevator up, which still works, as Red XIII thinks Hojo is done having fun. The united group rides the elevator to the 68th floor, and finds Jenova missing from the tank and a trail of glowing purple liquid lead to the elevator for to President Shinra's office at the top of the building. At the 69th floor the group follows the glowing trail through the Executive Suite and arrives at the empty President's Office on the 70th floor. Aerith wonders where Sephiroth is.
The group hears someone yelling for help outside on the roof and finds President Shinra hanging from the building's ledge, promising Barret money if he helps him up. Tifa wants to help, but Barret stops her and tells the president he doesn't want money. The president lets go of the ledge as Barret grabs his hand. The president continues to make offers as Barret contemplates dropping him from 70 floors high. The president asks if Barret wants more, and Barret throws the president and catches him by the neck, strangling him. Tifa and Aerith tell him to stop as Barret throws the president onto the roof. The president flees to his office as Barret follows, ordering him to go on TV and tell the people Shinra dropped the Sector 7 plate and that Avalanche are not pawns to Wutai, but fight alone against Shinra for the planet.
The president runs to his desk and asks if Barret just wants Avalanche's name to be cleared, wondering if that is more important than shutting down the reactors and saving the planet. He pulls out a golden gun from his desk and says Barret is lying to himself and that truth, justice, honor, and freedom are vain indulgences. He asks Barret to picture a world without Shinra and mako energy, a stagnant and impotent world. He asks who will help the populace during a natural disaster and if the people will thank Barret for the new world. Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, and Red XIII enter the office, realizing Barret is in danger. The president asks Barret to reconsider what his principles are truly worth, and Barret in return asks the president for his vaunted principles. He says he knows what he wants and will simply take it without any sentimentality or guilt.
As he is about to pull the trigger, the president is impaled on Sephiroth's Masamune from behind. Barret reaches for Sephiroth when Whispers show up and attack him. Barret tries to fight off the Whispers as Sephiroth stabs him through the chest and he collapses onto the floor. Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII rush over as Cloud is too petrified to move. The Whispers flock to Barret to heal him as Sephiroth approaches the president's desk.
Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII check up on Barret as Sephiroth transforms into Jenova Dreamweaver, warping the entire office with an illusion. Aerith tells the group the Jenova Dreamweaver is the source of everything as Red XIII tries to calm the group down by saying they are in an illusion. The group defeats the Jenova Dreamweaver, who transforms into a black-robed man with the number 49 tattooed on his arm; he is Marco who was Cloud and Tifa's neighbor at Stargazer Heights in the Sector 7 slums. Marco disappears and the illusion breaks, sending the group back to the president's office.
Cloud realizes another black-robed person is lying on the floor, but Sephiroth appears and grabs the person: it is Jenova draped in black cloth. Sephiroth looks outside where the Avalanche HQ chopper is coming to extract the group. When Cloud looks back he sees Sephiroth outside fly off with Jenova. Cloud pursues him when the Whispers revive Barret, Tifa asking if he was hurt, Barret saying he is fine. Red XIII says Barret's death is not the one ordained for him by fate, and Barret thanks a Whisper for reviving him.
Cloud climbs a ladder outside to follow after Sephiroth who is up there holding Jenova. The person Cloud sees as Sephiroth, however, is actually the black-robed man #2 whom Cloud and Aerith met at the kids' hideout in the Sector 5 slums. A swarm of Whispers stops Cloud from reaching him, and the tattooed robed man jumps off the building with Jenova. Cloud comes back down and watches them fall.
Cloud returns to the group on the helipad with the Avalanche chopper hovering above. He confirms that Barret is okay, and informs the others that Sephiroth got away. Barret tells the group to get on the chopper, but another helicopter appears that fires at the Avalanche chopper, which begins to fall. The Shinra helicopter lands onto the roof, with Reno inside asking if his boss wants to do this personally. Rufus Shinra alights the helicopter with some soldiers, Barret recognizing him as the company heir. Rufus tells Rude to fly the helicopter away. Barret wants to kill Rufus to finish off Shinra, but Cloud tells him to escape with the others while he stays to buy them time. Barret offers to be the back up, but Cloud continues to tell Barret to escape with the others. Barret says that Cloud better be behind them as he begins to escort the others out.
Cloud attacks the Shinra soldiers approaching him as Rufus greets Cloud and asks if he is a SOLDIER, and thus Rufus's very own property, but Cloud declares he quit. Rufus orders his troops to go after the others, and when Cloud tries to stop them, the Shinra helicopter shoots at him. Cloud and Rufus and his attack dog are the only ones left on the roof. Cloud battles the vice president and his pet, as Rude on the helicopter deals with hostile air units from the Air Traffic Control. Cloud takes out Rufus's dog, who is healing him, telling Rufus it is just the two of them now, Rufus hoping their battle will be one to remember. Cloud defeats Rufus, who drops his gun. Cloud declares to end things right here, but Rufus says it is not the time yet. The Shinra helicopter returns to pick Rufus up as he declares that tonight marks a new beginning for Shinra. He orders the helicopter to fire at Cloud, who ends up hanging on a ledge as the helicopter pulls away. Tifa shows up and grabs Cloud, telling him he has to be better than this if he wants to play the hero.
Meanwhile, Red XIII, Barret and Aerith ride the elevator down to the first floor and see an explosion on the roof, Barret and Aerith hoping that Cloud and Tifa are okay. Barret wants to go back but Red XIII alerts him that something is coming. A Shinra war machine named the Arsenal rides the elevator in front of them and begins to fire at the group as they duck.
Meanwhile Wedge wanders the Conference Room on the 64th floor. He spots Barret and the others descend on the elevator and wants to help them. A swarm of Whispers stops him, Wedge still fighting to pull through. He declares this is for Biggs, Jessie, Tifa and Barret. He apologizes to Cloud as the Whispers push him out the window, hoping that he made a difference.
Barret, Aerith, and Red XIII find themselves at the Skyview Hall on the 59th floor. Barret makes sure Aerith is still in one piece, when the Arsenal also arrives on the elevator and fires at them. Barret grabs Aerith and Red XIII and falls to the Skyview Atrium on the 58th floor, with the Arsenal in pursuit. Barret attacks the Arsenal with his limit break, but three flying drones intervene. Red XIII, Barret and Aerith defeat the Arsenal, Barret glad they are still alive. Red XIII says they could die later tonight and that Cloud and Tifa could be dead already. Barret refuses this scenario, the group needing a way for all of them to escape. Aerith agrees and tells the others to get going.
Meanwhile, numerous helicopters and Shinra soldiers gather around the building. Barret, Aerith, and Red XIII arrive at the third floor via an elevator and get to the first floor lobby where they become surrounded by Shinra soldiers led by Heidegger, who demands the identities of the misfits gathering before him. Barret says he is Avalanche, Aerith introduces herself as the local florist, and Red XIII says that he is a lab rat dog. Heidegger asks for the others, Barret retorting "up your ass", Heidegger laughing that this is a poor choice for Barret's last words and orders the soldiers to secure the Ancient and kill Barret and Red XIII.
Barret thanks Aerith for saving Marlene and promises to return the favor by protecting her. Aerith tells Barret to stop as they hear an engine. Cloud arrives on a motorcycle stolen from the Shinra show room the floor above, and runs the soldiers over while Barret fires at them. Tifa follows on a blue pick-up truck and tells the others to get in. Heidegger yells at his soldiers to not let Cloud and the others escape, as Cloud rams the motorcycle at the formation, almost hitting Heidegger. Cloud tells the group to get going as Barret grumbles Cloud always steals the show. Cloud and Tifa drive through the third floor to a scared soldier by the windows. Cloud throws his sword, missing the soldier by an inch, cracking the window and scaring him off. Cloud drives his motorcycle through the window, grabbing his sword in the progress. Cloud and the group land at the Midgar Expressway and keep driving.
==Quests==
*A Way Out
*Find the Others
**Cloud
***Find Barret
***Use the Central Terminal
***2nd Ward
***4th Ward
***Rescuing Red XIII
**Tifa
***Research the 3rd Ward
***Rescuing Red XIII
***To the Central Terminal
***A Way Up
***Source of the Sound
*The Ominous Trail
*The Showdown
*The Great Escape
Category:Chapters in Final Fantasy VII Remake