This thread contains open spoilers for the entire game. If you do not wish to be spoiled, leave this place at once.
Let's mosey.
I am attempting to develop straight-forward FAQ to some of REMAKE's confusing elements but to root all answers within the LORE of Final Fantasy VII OG. Feel free to critique as I am trying to understand the story as correctly as possible. I also think rooting these answers within the Lore of the original game makes the game a lot deeper and satisfying.
What are the Whispers, and what do they have to do with Destiny?
If the Whispers are "Voices of the Planet" as the game states, why are we fighting them? Aren't we fighting for the Planet?
- REMAKE explicitly states that the Whispers, also known as Arbiters of Fate, are voices of the planet. They protect a particular course of events decided by the Planet. The Whispers are drawn to events and people that make [seemingly significant] changes to these particular events. It seems that Cloud and the party have a major role in shaping the Planet's future, and so the Whispers appear at periodic points in the game to preserve those events.
It appears that the Whispers cannot be perceived by normal human-beings unless they purposely manifest themselves, or if normal human-beings are touched by someone who has knowledge of them. To provide a few examples: Rufus Shinra appears to see them surround the Shinra building, though it is not clear if he was given this ability by the Whispers themselves or if he was touched by someone who could see them, such as Cloud. Aerith in Chapter 2, for example, touches Cloud resulting in his ability to see them. After Avalanche is attacked by the Whispers in Chapter 4, the civilians wonder in confusion as to why Avalanche and the party were firing their weapons into the air for no reason, implying the residents of Sector 7 could not see the Whispers.
Aerith in Chapter 18 states that the Whispers are those who are born and die on the planet, implying that some or all humans are actually Whispers in their afterlife. This may imply that some or all people who have returned to the Lifestream therefore partake in the shaping of destiny and are in the service of the Planet's will.
In Chapter 17, after Aerith transfers to Red XIII some of the profound knowledge she has, he explains what "Destiny" is in the lore of REMAKE. He says, "[Destiny is t]he flow of the great river that is the planet, from inception to oblivion." When asked by Tifa if Destiny is fixed, he says, "Yes. For it is the will of the planet itself." This seems to imply that the so-called "Destiny" that the party fights at the end of Chapter 18 in the form of the Whisper Harbinger is a manifestation of the Planet's will. Here, Aerith convinces the party that they should disagree with what the Planet has decided, and fight it to put an end to the future that the Planet has willed to bring about. "Sephiroth" (the Final Fantasy VII REMAKE Ultimania states that the nature of this Sephiroth is not known, as it is not a Clone nor Illusion) creates a purple glowing "tear" in the wall of Whispers that float at the end of the highway, who appear to be blocking the party, or perhaps Sephiroth, from leaving Midgar. Aerith then does some sort of spell that turns the tear from a purple color to a bright yellow. They then walk within to do battle with the Whisper Harbinger, and after its apparent defeat, they fight Sephiroth who seems to now have some control over these Whispers, who even hurls them at the party at the end of the battle. After so-called Sephiroth is defeated, he spews out as a plethora of Whispers.
The game states that the Whispers are not good nor evil, nor are they with or against the party. They simply implement the will of the Planet regardless of how that impacts humankind. In Chapter 18, after being saved from a helicopter explosion, Barret asks, "So now they're on our side?" Red XIII clarifies, "The Whispers intervene not to defend us, but to preserve the flow of destiny." There are times when the Whispers hinder the party (for example, when they hurt Jessie's leg in Chapter 4) and there are times when they actually assist the party (for example, healing Barret when stabbed by [the Clone of] Sephiroth in Chapter 17). The Planet appears to prioritize what is good for itself, rather than its inhabitants. Barret says in Chapter 17, "So if we're destined for a bleak future, these Whispers will try to keep us on that course?..."
The Whispers are connected to all the threads of time and space that shape the planet's fate, as per the description of the Whisper Harbinger. Therefore, these Whispers can influence the present as well as the past. This fact may hold the clue as to how the fate of Zack Fair may have changed by the party defeating the Whisper Harbinger.
Some speculate that the Whispers, particularly the Whisper Harbinger, are another form of the WEAPONS that exist in Final Fantasy VII OG (such as Emerald and Ruby Weapon). Another speculation is that the Whispers are a meta-commentary by the developers of REMAKE. They suggest that these Whispers are symbolic representations of zealous fans who want nothing but a REMAKE that is entirely unchanged from the Final Fantasy VII OG, since the Whispers appear to want to preserve the original timeline of events found in Final Fantasy VII OG.
- The response to this question is entirety speculation. Aerith seems to have received premonitions of the future. The Planet may have provided these premonitions to her in her ambiguous conversations with it, perhaps as a way to make her a Steward of the Planet's will. However, many have speculated that Aerith has disagreed with the path that the Planet wishes to take, a path that seems to lead to the end of humanity itself, something that may have been seen in the post-credits ending of Final Fantasy VII OG. In OG, Bugenhagen also states:
Many have interpreted the ending of Final Fantasy VII OG to be a "bad ending", as stated above. However, there are script documents of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children that seem to imply that the 500 Year Later scene with Red XIII actually features human-beings. It is unclear as to how Remake will interpret these events and establish canon.
So Aerith and Sephiroth both align in that they have decided to remove the meddling of the Planet on their fates, while doing so for entirety different reasons. Perhaps she believes that we can find a better way to save the Planet and defeat Sephiroth. Therefore, Aerith is not fighting the Planet except as a means of taming it and influencing it towards a brighter future for itself and for humanity.
What is the Whisper Harbinger that you fight at the end of the game? Did defeating him create a new timeline?
Does Sephiroth have control over the Whispers? What other powers does he have?
- The Whisper Harbinger is an enemy the party fights at the end of Chapter 18. It is simply an accretion of Whispers (a detailed account is provided above). The in-game description of the Whisper Harbinger reads, "An accretion of Whispers, the so-called arbiters of fate. The creatures appear when someone tries to alter destiny's course. They are connected to all the threads of time and space that shape the planet's fate." Within the body of the Whisper Harbinger is a bright purple glow, the purpose of which is not explicitly explained in REMAKE. The Whisper Harbinger has movesets that thematically align with its role of keeping destiny on the course decided upon by the Planet; examples include "Correction" and "Intercession". The Whisper Harbinger also makes use of 3 Whispers to directly battle the party: Whisper Croceo, Whisper Rubrum, and Whisper Viridi. At one point in the battle, these three Whispers combine to become Whisper Bahamut.
The in-game descriptions of the three are as follows:
- Whisper Croceo: An entity from a future timeline that has manifested in the present day. It fights with guns to protect the future that gave shape to it.
- Whisper Rubrum: An entity from a future timeline that has manifested in the present day. It fights with a sword to protect the future that gave shape to it.
- Whisper Viridi: An entity from a future timeline that has manifested in the present day. It fights barehanded to protect the future that gave shape to it.
There are theories that suggest the purple glow within the Whisper Harbinger is symbolic of a type of cage that contains and limits the influence of Sephiroth whose body is speculated to be within the Lifestream as it is in OG. The purple color would be a reference to JENOVA, whose blood appears as a glowing purple. These theories suggest that once the Harbinger is defeated, Sephiroth is no longer caged by the Harbinger within the Lifestream and can now influence destiny to a greater extent. This is perhaps symbolized by Sephiroth appearing to absorb the Whispers into himself during the start of the battle against him in Chapter 18 within the Singularity. He also appears to use the Whispers as weapons against the party at the end of the battle. Finally, after Cloud delivers the final blow against Sephiroth in the Singularity, Sephiroth disappears into a cloud of Whispers and and lets out a bright purple and white explosion. Some surmise that this means that Sephiroth no longer has influence over the Whispers, or perhaps the Whispers are destroyed as well. Regardless, both the party and Sephiroth are now seem to be free of the influence and meddling of the Whispers and can now chart their own path forward.
Some speculate that the destruction of the Whisper Harbinger is the reason for a creation of an alternate timeline, which is hinted at during the Zack Fair cutscene at the end of the game that showcases an alternative design for the dog Stamp, the Shinra Mascot. However, others suggest that this is not an alternate timeline but simply a symbol for the removal of the influence of the Whispers whose former influence led to Zack's death and Stamp's design. It is unclear what direction REMAKE will take: a change of one timeline, or the creation of multiple timelines.
The Whispers are connected to all the threads of time and space that shape the planet's fate, as per the description of the Whisper Harbinger. Therefore, there defeat may mean that they are now removed from all moments in time that they interfered with. Thus, with the Whisper's influence now gone, Zack and the Artist for Stamp the Shinra dog mascot were perhaps able to chart their own course without the Planet's interference. Many questions remain, however, such as how Cloud received the Buster Sword if Zack is still alive? There are other ways that Cloud received this iconic weapon that REMAKE will hopefully address in the next game.
- This answer will involve heavy speculation. Some have surmised that Sephiroth has some degree of influence over the Whispers. Since in OG his body is encased within the Lifestream, he has some ability to corrupt those within the Planet. While most of the Whispers are gray in color and are given the label "Mysterious Spectre" by the game, there are a few that are purple in color and are given a different label "Enigmatic Spectre." Some believe that the purple ones are representative of Sephiroth's (and therefore JENOVA's) corruption and influence, as evidenced by Sephiroth's imagery during the final battle, as well as JENOVA's blood and "smoke" and "power of illusion" (and even creates an entire environment as an illusion in President Shinra's office as stated by RedXIII) experienced during chapter 17. Sephiroth appears to have control over those who have Jenova cells within them, as seen during chapter 17 when he uses Marco's body (who sported Tattoo #2) to manifest an illusion of himself.
This may also explain why Sephiroth has control over [some of] the Whispers in the final battle, who hurls them at you in the final scene of the battle, and why he disappears into an array of Whispers after he is "defeated" by Cloud. Throughout the game, it does not appear that Sephiroth has full control over all the Whispers although he does not appear to be influenced by them in the least.
How does Sephiroth have this power? In Final Fantasy VII OG, Ifalna, Aerith's mother, states that JENOVA was a deceitful creature who had the power of illusion as well as the ability to infect them with a virus. "
Final Fantasy VII Advent Children also expands on this lore introducing GEOSTIGMA, which many surmise is this same JENOVA infection that many on Gaia suffer from directly after the events of Final Fantasy VII OG. Therefore, Sephiroth's influence over the Planet, Lifestream, and the Whispers is likely the same as these JENOVA infections.
However, some theorize that Sephiroth now has full control over the Whispers once the party has defeated the Harbinger, but this leads to many confusing questions: Why would Aerith want to capitulate control of such a power to Sephiroth? Why wouldn't Sephiroth just do this himself? Is Sephiroth unable to enact his will upon the Planet on his own? If so, how then does have power to influence some and not others? It appears that him being limited in power and influence is a more reasonable assumption in the absence of clear evidence.
Why is Cloud not being upfront with the party about his visions and hallucinations of Sephiroth?
What is the location of the place where Cloud and company fight the Whisper Harbinger and "Sephiroth"?
- Cloud constantly avoids revealing the reasons for his headaches and his hallucinations. This does not yet have an explicit answer in REMAKE. However, those who are familiar with the Final Fantasy VII OG will know that there are explicit story explanations that can help us understand why Cloud is acting the way he is in REMAKE. First, Cloud contains within him JENOVA cells, which influences him to be part of the "Reunion" whereby all pieces of JENOVA inherently desire to come back together again. In Cloud's case, this influence was subconscious. In OG, Cloud says after being possessed by Sephiroth/JENOVAto give Sephiroth's Mako-encased body the Black Materia, "I wasn't pursuing Sephiroth. I was being summoned by Sephiroth. All the anger and hatred I bore him, made it impossible for me to ever forget him...." The implication is that there is a JENOVA-induced subconscious loyalty Cloud has towards Sephiroth despite his intense hatred for him. In fact, his desire for revenge (literally, "settling the score" as stated by OG) plays directly into his desire to meet with him and keep his memory alive. Secondly, Cloud is a broken personality who both consciously and subconsciously does not want to reveal weaknesses about himself. Revealing his fears is not in-line with the personality constructed for him by JENOVA and Sephiroth, as is explicitly shown in OG.
What is the Edge of Creation?
- The game refers to this location as the "Singularity." It can only be speculated that this is a realm within the Lifestream, as you get hints of imagery that resembles the Lifestream immediately after defeating the Harbinger. This location begins to transform and you see Sephiroth producing visions of meteor and seemingly absorbing the Whispers into himself. The implication is that these major ending battles do not happen on the Planet but rather in a realm within it.
Are the Whispers dead now that the party defeated them at the end of REMAKE?
- The Edge of Creation is the realm that Cloud, or perhaps his consciousness, meets Sephiroth in the REMAKE. Some speculate that this location is the same location that Cloud fights the Sephiroth at the end of Final Fantasy VII OG. The imagery in the Edge of Creation seems to resembles the location where Bizzaro Sephiroth is fought in OG. It is not clear if this location is a spiritual realm within the Lifestream or somewhere else, though many speculate the former. Some have even suggested that this is a location beyond the Planet, within a Lifestream that courses through the Universe at large, an idea alluded to in Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus.
Why is the ending so confusing and different?
- This appears to be unclear in REMAKE. Even after defeating the Whisper Harbinger, it appears that Sephiroth now has control of some or all of them since he casts them at the party toward the end of the battle. You can also see Sephiroth explode into a number of Whispers after Cloud delivers the finishing blow. The fate of the Whispers therefore is unclear, but it does appear that their influence is now gone or diminished, since they "disappeared" in the Zack Fair cutscene at the end of the game, implying that he along with everyone else is free to chart their own future unabated by the meddling of the Planet and the Whispers.
Why are Aerith and Sephiroth so much knowledgeable in REMAKE than in OG?
- In many ways, the ending of Final Fantasy VII Remake plays out very similarly to OG, in that the party now begins a quest to follow an enigmatic character named Sephiroth who they know very little about except that Cloud believes he is a threat and also seeks revenge for the evils he committed in the past against him. There is not a lot of perspective offered at this point in the game, and so one can be charitable to the developers by assuming they hoped to create a sense of mystery and wonder as to who Sephiroth truly is and what may happen next. These mysteries begin to resolve themselves within hours of leaving Midgar in OG. However, because REMAKE's next installment may not be released for many months or years, it is understandable that many feel frustrated by the enigmatic ending to REMAKE even if in some ways it is faithful to the original. If you can make sense of the Whisper Harbinger battle within the Lifestream, then you can likely see that nothing has fundamentally changed about the lore of the story, apart from certain characters now being alive, such as Zack Fair.
Did Sephiroth already have the power to summon Meteor while facing the party in the Singularity, after they defeated the Whisper Harbinger?
- This appears to be unclear in REMAKE. A reasonable speculation would point to her being a Cetra and having the ability to speak and hear the voices of the Planet (in REMAKE, these are manifested as Whispers). However, even within OG there are clues that suggest Aerith had a powerful inner-drive that motivated some of her decisions on how she was to stop Sephiroth and save the planet. One example is found in a mysterious dream sequence in OG featuring Aerith, Cloud, and Sephiroth, Aerith says, "It's only a matter of time before Sephiroth uses Meteor. That's why I'm going to protect it. Only a survivor of the Cetra, like me, can do it. The secret is just up here. At least it should be. ... I feel it. It feels like I'm being led by something. Then, I'll be going now. I'll come back when it's all over." Therefore, her prophetic knowledge may fundamentally similar to what she knows in OG, and remake would feature only an expansion of her knowledge.
By analogy, Sephiroth has similar knowledge to Aerith. One can assume that his presence in the Lifestream has allowed him access to its knowledge which he now uses to pursue his ends.
Are there multiple Sephiroths?
- This answer will involve speculation. Some have speculated that after the Harbinger was defeated by the party, Sephiroth now has some degree of control and influence over the Whispers beyond what he had before. This is symbolized by his absorbing of the black whisps that swirl around Meteor. It is surmised that this Meteor summoned by Sephiroth is not the real one, but rather an image or an illusion. This illusion may be typical of the powers inherited from JENOVA, who can create intense illusions that appear very real. In OG, Professor Gast speaks with Ifalna, Aerith's biological mother. There she speaks cryptically about JENOVA, saying, "When the Cetra... were preparing to part with the land they loved... That's when it appeared! It looked like... our... our dead mothers... and our dead brothers. Showing us spectres of their past."
For more insight and evidence regarding Jenova's powers of Illusion, see the question, "Does Sephiroth have control over the Whispers? What other powers does he have?"
- In Final Fantasy VII OG, there were not multiple Sephiroths. There was one real Sephiroth who was born into this world through the events that took place at the Nibelheim Incident 7 years ago, was thrown into the Lifestream by Cloud Strife. This Sephiroth ended up encased within Mako near the Northern Crater. If indeed Sephiroth is influencing things within the Planet, this is the locus where it all happens.
Sephiroth, by means of the powers granted to him by JENOVA, can influence those who have JENOVA cells within them. He can cause them see visions, he can summon them (also crypically known by the game as the "Reunion"), and he can at times directly control their actions depending upon the amount of their JENOVA infection and the weakness of their will (This is the primary reason for his desire for Cloud, as he is seemingly one of the JENOVA clones that is most capable of being influenced by him while also being fully capable of carrying out his tasks. Cloud is both weak-willed and yet remarkably strong due to the influx of MAKO and JENOVA that courses within him).
The implication is that the various other "Sephiroths" you see throughout both OG and REMAKE are three: illusions, memories, and manifestations of the form and will of Sephiroth. They are not the real Sephiroth. The real Sephiroth, both his body and consciousness, is still within the Lifestream. In Final Fantasy VII OG, you never encounter Sephiroth except at the end of the
The Final Fantasy VII REMAKE Ultimania confirms the above with one added exception. It reads that there are actually 4 "Sephiroths" which appear in REMAKE:
The last one which is labelled as a question mark is currently a mystery. The implication is that the Sephiroth you fight at the end battle is not an illusion, memory, or a clone. Theories exist as to the identity of this Sephiroth. Some suggest that it is simply the Sephiroth of the Lifestream who can now manifest, and is the same one that Cloud meets at the Edge of Creation. Others suggest that this is a Sephiroth from a future who has somehow come to the past, and point to his profound knowledge and "Advent Children One Wing" as evidence. Others say this is a Sephiroth from another timeline, who gained this power through his infecting and gaining influence over the Whispers. We will have to see what future installments of REMAKE have in store.
Let's mosey.
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