Cloud is an epicenter of the story told in FFVII. Seemingly, at first sight, such an unartful theme: a character with a loss of memory. However, rules of the world of the Game and story events come to the fact, that is their context Cloud is a phenomenon, chosen as a center of the story because of his unique particular qualities, and exactly from this point the story mostly totally and thoroughly reveals itself. That is why Cloud is not just a typical main character; he is a core of the narration, a point of intersection of the global events with the particular. His personality can not be interpreted separately from the story, every his quality is defined by some events or regularities. Cycle of articles about Cloud is an attempt to collect together all information about him, to analyze story lines coming to him, to understand who he is and why exactly he was chosen as a man, fighting with a space threat to all living - and winning.

Notable fact, that again and again returns a player to Cloud's personality, is the fact that Cloud is often addressed by the phrase "I can't remember your name/who are you?":

Didn't catch your name...

...Cloud.

.......Who are you?

You don't remember me!? I'm Cloud!

Why can't I remember your name?

I'm Cloud, and don't forget it!

And it is like this during the whole Game.
If we ask an average player "Who is Cloud", almost everyone will recite a collective phrase from these answers: "Cloud, ex-SOLDIER 1st Class, born in Nibelheim, Tifa's childhood friend, went to Midgar to be hero like Sephiroth", thus much Cloud faces with a necessity again and again repeat who he is.

At first sight everything is simple and clear, isn't it? It might, why is it needed to repeat the same things many times? However, Cloud is not a SOLDIER 1st Class and is not a Tifa's childhood friend: these two facts lay on the surface and straightly explained in the Game. Probably, if we gather everything that we know about Cloud we will get totally different story, far more complicated? And this almost obtrusive refrain "Who are you - I'm Cloud" is a call to focus attention on Cloud's personality because this question is very important?

This, opening the cycle, article is devoted to mysterious and tangled atmosphere around Cloud. Here we will examine various discrepancies and strange happenings that concern Cloud to give to readers an idea about complexity of his story.

For a start, lest remember Cloud's appearance in the outline of a story.

Shortly before the Game events Tifa finds on train station a man feeling very bad. This man, to her surprise, recognizes her, but after that he begins to talk nonsense and behave strange. Tifa takes him for her childhood friend, but there are points in Cloud's speech and behavior that give her no rest. She decides to look after him and brings him in the Game events to make the situation clear for him and for herself. Tifa introduces Cloud to AVALANCHE members and recommends him (from his words) as SOLDIER 1st Class fought in the ranks of Shin-Ra army and now withdrawn from business.

But a player receives in his hands not a SOLDIER 1st class, not a professional elite warrior, but a character named Ex-SOLDIER, of 6th level, scarcely managing his sword…

In future this line of inconsistencies, when Cloud talks about himself, develops, and more often other character will notice discrepancies in Cloud's words and actions. By way of their reaction inconsistencies will be noticed by a player. Thus, in Kalm, during Cloud's tale about Nibelheim, about him with Sephiroth fighting with dragon on the way to Nibelheim, Aerith in response of his diffuse description of Sephiroth's power will say: "So... Where do you come in?". Cloud will not be able distinctly answer this question: why him, SOLDIER 1st Class, just "was mesmerized by the way Sephiroth fought", although, by his words, "after working with Sephiroth on several missions, we became friends". That is to say, Cloud already had a possibility to see Sephiroth in action, so why his behavior in the battle with dragon is like he sees fighting Sephiroth for the first time? RedXIII will not believe in any word from this Cloud's story.

The way, Tifa lately defines the situation in, is very clear: Cloud doesn't know many things he should to know, but knows things he shouldn't. Tifa says this applying to his tales about events in Nibelheim, but various characters in different contexts comes to the same conclusion: by some reason Cloud's words can not be trusted. And that means, that all parts of phrase "I am Cloud, ex-SOLDIER 1st Class, born in Nibelheim, Tifa's childhood friend, went to Midgar to be hero like Sephiroth" must be verified by the facts coming not from Cloud. What from that is true and what is not - only detailed analysis of whole Cloud's part in the story will show.

Also it is interesting that Cloud is always taken for some other person.

Girls in Honeybee Inn give him diametrically opposite characteristics. During the whole Game in certain moments related to Cloud's personality, Cloud has to answers: one is shyly-modest, and the other one is roughly-cool. The first-one - "mesmerized by the way Sephiroth fought". The second-one - "we were friends with Sephiroth". Usually in RPG with different variants of answer id specified line of conduct of a character, which affects plot and relationships between other characters. In FFVII if a character will not receive expected answer to his/her question, he/she will be surprised and will tell about Cloud's "oddities". At that, Cloud at the stage, when he realizes, that there is something wrong with him and his memory and already does not tell tangled stories about himself, says in the Forgotten Capital following phrase: "There's something inside of me. A person who is not really me".

For now without asking question "Who and why people see in Cloud?" lets ask at least, which line of conduct is his real one?

All complicacy and complexity of the substance that Cloud is, was shown during being of Cloud and Tifa in Lifestream. At the time of this scene we see 6 Clouds - 6 components of his subconsciousness.

Let's briefly review each of "Clouds" that we see in Lifestream.

- Cloud sitting next to the Nibelheim entrance

This Cloud imagines himself in Zack's place in Nibelheim, he tells well-known story about Nibelheim. (This is Cloud's memories about Zack).

- Cloud sitting near Nibelheim water tower.

(This Cloud is false Tifa's memories about promise given by Cloud on the water tower.)

- Could sitting next to Tifa's house in Nibelheim.

(This Cloud is false Tifa's memories about Cloud of Nibelheim as about her childhood friend.)

- Teenage Cloud.

This Cloud comes from the outside and tells to Tifa the real story of their childhood. Also we see this Cloud after collapse of Temple of the Ancients, when he prevents Cloud from giving Black Materia to Sephiroth's copy. (The real Could of Nibelheim).

- dark Cloud.

This Cloud materializes from Cloud sitting near Tifa's house. He suggests Cloud answers to Tifa's questions. (Jenova cells inside Cloud)

- Big Cloud that is situated above everything taking place.

He is half-transparent and fully of suffering holds his head. (This Cloud is the one, which we see during the Game events, a result of several Clouds underneath.

What so special in the limits of the Game story could have happen with a man, that created from him a point of intersection, an outcome, a mix from memories of different people?

Starting point of the Game story line is the mission in Nibelheim. This mission became an impulse to all subsequent events and turned destinies of all its participants and people connected with them. Since Cloud is in epicenter of beginning story, it is logical to assert that the fatal mission affected his life more global and more important than anything else.

We know that after events in Nibelheim's reactor Cloud finds himself in Hojo's laboratory as an experimental. From the reports wee know, that among the experiments operations with Jenova cells were taking their place. We also know, that consequences of these experiments were very sad for him - what Hojo considered as a fail, in fact was a success. Despite the fact that Cloud did not get a number, he was a very-first sample of Sephiroth's copy.

Jenova cells works in the following way: if by some reasons one's will-power is weak, they are able to change appearance and character of their carrier and also suggest to him motivation and line of conduct convenient for Jenova. From Ifalna's words we know, that when Jenova meet Cetra, she changed her look and became to look like Cetra, and they took her for a friend.

A copy, transformed into Sephiroth near North Crater, says that Cloud was created by Hojo. This statement often calls indignation from the Game fans, leaning on the fact that there are no technologies in the game allowing creation of people, an this is correct in come way. However, the case in point is far more thin matter - about creation of new consciousness of a man. We see actually created "Cloud", a personality, formed under influence of Jenova cells making him a doll, a dummy ready to accept any imformation. Events after Nibelheim just define exactly which information marionette will accept. And during the Game events under pressure of circumstances the real Cloud burst through - knowing nothing about himself, but realizing falseness of his composite personality where one its part conflicts with another.

After events in Lifestream, when Cloud in Tifa helped each other to separate true and false memoties, Cloud is stars search of himself, begins to disjoint obtained from his own, and this is his main line in AC. That is why "Cloud" in the Game and Cloud in AC are absolutely different in their characters and appearance, again - as if different people. Because they are really different people. We see the real Cloud as he is only in the end if AC, after his resurrection. Everything we saw before in the Game and in the movie - is a long way of returning to his personality, how Cloud instead of "I am Cloud, ex-SOLDIER 1st Class, born in Nibelheim, Tifa's childhood friend, went to Midgar to be hero like Sephiroth" beginning to talk only "I am... Cloud".

I'm...... Cloud.

......the master of my own illusionary world.

But I can't remain trapped in an illusion any more......

I'm going to live my life without pretending.

We can only imagine how does it feel if you don't know yourself, to understand that all your words, manners, gestures, skills, memories belongs to other people, and each moment of showing your worth - is it word or pose - is falsity, plagiarism. That is why Cloud in AC causes compassion and respect, as a man fighting with dictated line of conduct for the right to be himself - and winning this fight.

Why exactly this, lost in other's memories and images creature and its way to itself is a center of the story? What uniqueness of this search and return for the world of FFVII is in? Why somebody else is not appropriate for the main part in described events? The answer is very simple. After injection with Jenova cells the one who gets them has two ways: either one's will power neutralizes Jenova cells and he becomes a SOLDIER (as, for example, Zack, that is said in Hojo's reports: "cells do not working") or Jenova cells neutralize man's will-power, his personality collapses and he becomes a Sephiroth's copy. In AC we clearly see the distinction between ones resisting Jenova and surrendered: those who resist have geostigma, those who surrender are Sephiroth's spirits, either or the other - there is no third way. And everyone can surrender in each moment (we see how it happens with exhausted by geostigma children in forgotten capital).

However, Cloud was a Sephiroth's copy in the Game, but in AC he has geostigma, and spirits call him "a traitor". That means, that he is among those who resist Jenova. This is unexampled.

In the world there is no any such case when a man returns from Jenova's marionette to a real himself. Cloud is the only Sephiroth's copy that defeated Jenova's will inside himself. That is why he is the main hero. Cloud by his will power is the same as Sephiroth, who was able to fight with Jenova despite he is her son. That is why exactly there two men are in epicenter of the narration. They are united and connected by one: for both of them it was more difficult to fight Jenova than for other people, and both of them has defeated her, began from defeating her inside themselves.