What actually happens to people, consciousness, and reality when worlds merge?
If you’ve read the previous explainers about how world merging works, Sephiroth’s plan, and the different worlds, you know that:
- Worlds are merging in FF7 Rebirth
- The process is violent and causes suffering
- Sephiroth wants to merge all worlds into one reality under his control
We have evidence that merging is happening. We see Cloud witness it. We know it’s traumatic. But the specific mechanics of what happens to everything within those worlds? That’s where things get speculative.
Let’s explore the different theories.
What We Actually Know
Before diving into theories, let’s establish what we can say with certainty based on what we see in Rebirth:
Cloud witnesses worlds merging through a Lifestream portal. What accompanies this merging? Screams. Violence. Suffering. It’s clearly traumatic and painful.
The merging process generates immense suffering. Sephiroth describes it at the Forgotten Capital: “A confluence of worlds and emotions. Loss, chief among them.”
People are affected. The screams Cloud hears indicate that conscious beings within those worlds experience something during the merging process.
It’s not peaceful. Whatever happens, it’s not a gentle blending or harmonious integration. It’s violent.
That’s what we know for certain. Everything beyond this is interpretation and theory.
Theory #1: Total Erasure
The Concept:
When worlds merge, everything within them – people, consciousness, memories, experiences – is completely erased. The spiritual energy returns to the Lifestream, but the individual forms, identities, and distinct existences cease to be.
Think of it like ice cubes melting back into water. The ice cubes were temporarily distinct forms, but once they melt, they’re just water again. The individual shapes are gone. You can’t get those specific ice cubes back.
How It Would Work:
The Lifestream created these worlds by materializing consciousness into distinct realities. When worlds merge, the Lifestream reclaims that energy, dissolving the materialized forms back into raw spiritual energy.
Everyone and everything in those worlds returns to the collective consciousness of the Lifestream – not as individuals, but as energy. Their memories, experiences, and identities dissipate and become part of the general flow.
Evidence Supporting This Theory:
Sephiroth’s “homecoming” language: When describing how worlds fade, he says: “It is not death but a homecoming that awaits them. In the planet’s embrace, all life is as one.”
“All life is as one” suggests individual distinctness is lost. Not “all lives continue” or “all beings persist” – but everything becomes unified, merged into oneness.
The violence and screams: If merging were transformation or continuation in some form, why the terror and suffering? The screams suggest people are experiencing something catastrophic – like their very existence being dissolved.
Simplicity and stakes: Total erasure is clean, straightforward, and raises the stakes to maximum. If worlds merging means complete annihilation of everything within them, the threat is absolute. There’s no ambiguity, no “maybe it’s not so bad.”
Narrative weight: The story treats world merging as an existential threat. If people just transform or continue existing in some other form, it undercuts the gravity of what Sephiroth is trying to do.
Why This Theory Makes Sense:
It’s the simplest explanation. It aligns with how the Lifestream works (energy flows, materializes, returns). It explains the suffering (beings experiencing dissolution). It maximizes the stakes (complete annihilation vs. survival).
Theory #2: Transformation/Integration
The Concept:
When worlds merge, people don’t cease to exist – they transform or integrate into the unified reality. Consciousness persists but in a different form or state.
Maybe multiple versions of the same person merge into one being with combined memories. Maybe everyone continues existing but in a transformed state. Maybe consciousness integrates into the Lifestream but retains some form of individuality.
How It Would Work:
The Lifestream doesn’t erase what it reclaims – it transforms it. When worlds merge, the spiritual energy reorganizes rather than dissolves. People might:
- Merge with their alternate selves (all Clouds become one Cloud with combined experiences)
- Continue existing in the unified world but changed somehow
- Become part of the Lifestream while retaining individual consciousness
- Transform into a new form of existence we haven’t seen yet
Potential Evidence:
Omni-Aerith exists: We know there’s an Aerith within the Lifestream who can intervene across worlds and take control of other Aeriths. This suggests consciousness can exist within the Lifestream while retaining individual identity.
The Lifestream preserves memory: The Lifestream contains “all the knowledge of all the creatures that ever lived on it.” If memory is preserved, maybe individual consciousness is too?
“Homecoming” could mean reunion: When Sephiroth says “all life is as one,” maybe he means unified but not erased – like many becoming one without losing their essence?
Why This Theory Has Problems:
It’s more complicated and introduces questions: How do multiple versions merge? What form does transformed consciousness take? Why the screams and suffering if they’re just transforming?
The transformation theory requires more assumptions and doesn’t explain the violence and terror as well as total erasure does.
Theory #3: Selective Erasure
The Concept:
Maybe it’s not all-or-nothing. Maybe what happens depends on the person, their connection to the Lifestream, their spiritual strength, or other factors.
Some people might be erased. Others might persist. Some might transform. The outcome could vary based on individual circumstances.
How It Would Work:
- Strong-willed individuals or those with special abilities (like Cloud, Aerith, Sephiroth) might survive merging
- “Normal” people without special connection might be erased
- Connection to the Lifestream might determine who persists
- Consciousness might be selectively preserved based on some criteria we don’t understand yet
Why This Theory Exists:
We see certain characters (Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith) operating across multiple worlds or perceiving things across realities. Maybe there’s something special about them that would let them survive world merging when others wouldn’t?
Why This Theory Is Problematic:
It’s the most complicated theory with the most assumptions. It requires:
- Unexplained criteria for who survives
- Different rules for different people
- No clear evidence supporting the selective mechanism
- More narrative complexity without clear purpose
There’s no evidence in Rebirth that merging affects different people differently.
Theory #4: Context-Dependent Outcomes
The Concept:
Maybe what happens depends on how the worlds merge. Natural fading vs. forced merging. Merging with the main world vs. merging with another divergent world. Different methods, different results.
How It Would Work:
- Natural fading (worlds returning to Lifestream on their own) = peaceful dissolution
- Forced merging (Sephiroth actively combining worlds) = violent erasure
- Merging with main world = integration
- Merging with other divergent worlds = erasure
Why This Theory Exists:
Sephiroth describes some worlds fading naturally as a “homecoming,” which sounds peaceful. But Cloud witnesses violent merging with screams. Maybe both happen but under different circumstances?
Why This Theory Is Speculative:
We don’t have enough evidence to distinguish between different types of merging or different outcomes based on context. It’s possible, but purely theoretical.
My Take: Total Erasure Makes the Most Sense
Full disclosure: This is my personal interpretation, not confirmed canon. But here’s why I lean toward the total erasure theory:
It’s the Simplest
The Lifestream creates worlds by materializing consciousness. The Lifestream reclaims worlds by dissolving them back. Simple cycle: energy flows out, energy flows back. No complicated transformation mechanics needed.
It Explains the Violence
If merging meant transformation or continuation, why the screams? Why the suffering? Total erasure – experiencing your existence being dissolved – explains the terror perfectly.
It Maximizes the Stakes
If world merging means complete annihilation, then Sephiroth’s plan is as threatening as it can possibly be. There’s no “well maybe it’s not so bad” or “maybe people survive somehow.” It’s absolute.
The story treats world merging as an existential threat. Total erasure delivers on that threat level.
It Aligns with Sephiroth’s Language
“All life is as one” sounds like individual distinctness being lost. Not preserved, not transformed – merged into undifferentiated unity. That’s erasure with spiritual language.
It Makes Narrative Sense
Part 3 needs maximum stakes. “Stop Sephiroth or everyone in all these worlds ceases to exist” is about as high as stakes can go. Anything less undermines the urgency.
It’s Thematically Consistent
The whole story is about fighting for the right to exist as individuals with agency. Sephiroth wants to collapse all possibilities into one reality under his control. Total erasure of alternative worlds fits that theme perfectly.
What We Still Don’t Know
Regardless of which theory is correct, major questions remain:
What happens to multiple versions of the same person?
If Zack’s world merges with Cloud’s world, what happens when there are two Zacks? Do they both get erased? Does one survive? Do they merge into one Zack?
What role does consciousness play?
Does being conscious vs. unconscious matter? Does awareness affect the outcome? Is there a difference between awake Aerith and unconscious Aerith when worlds merge?
Can merging be selective?
Could someone with power over the Lifestream (like Aerith or Sephiroth) protect certain people during merging? Or is it an all-or-nothing process?
Is there a difference between worlds merging together vs. worlds merging into the main world?
Does the “destination” matter? Is merging into the Beagle timeline different from two divergent worlds merging with each other?
What actually happens to spiritual energy?
If consciousness is erased, does that energy truly disappear or just lose individual form? Is there a difference between “erased” and “returned to Lifestream as undifferentiated energy”?
Why This Matters for Part 3
Understanding what happens when worlds merge determines what the party is actually fighting for:
If it’s total erasure: They’re fighting to prevent the complete annihilation of countless people across multiple worlds. The stakes are absolute survival.
If it’s transformation: They’re fighting to prevent forced transformation/integration. The stakes are about preserving current forms of existence.
If it’s selective: They’re fighting to protect those who can’t survive merging on their own. The stakes are about who gets to continue existing.
If it’s context-dependent: They’re fighting to prevent violent forced merging vs. natural fading. The stakes are about method rather than outcome.
Each interpretation changes what victory and defeat mean.
The Uncertainty Is Intentional
The game doesn’t spell out exactly what happens during world merging. The ambiguity serves the narrative:
It maintains mystery. Part 3 can reveal the truth as a major plot point.
It preserves tension. Not knowing exactly what’s at stake keeps us uncertain and worried.
It allows interpretation. Different players can have different theories about what they’re trying to prevent.
It makes the screams more haunting. We hear the suffering without fully understanding what’s being suffered.
Part 3 will presumably answer these questions definitively. Until then, we theorize based on the evidence we have.
The Evidence Is Ambiguous
Here’s the honest truth: the evidence supports multiple interpretations.
The screams could mean erasure OR transformation OR something else entirely.
“All life is as one” could mean loss of individual existence OR unified consciousness OR spiritual reunion.
The violence could indicate annihilation OR traumatic transformation OR forced integration.
We’re all working with the same fragments of information and drawing different conclusions based on what makes sense to us narratively, thematically, and mechanically.
Why I Still Lean Toward Total Erasure
Despite the ambiguity, I keep coming back to total erasure because:
- Occam’s Razor: Simplest explanation is usually correct
- Maximum stakes: Highest possible threat level
- Narrative weight: The story treats it as ultimate threat
- Thematic consistency: Fits the themes of control vs. freedom, singular vs. multiple
- Explanatory power: Best explains the violence and suffering
But I fully acknowledge this is interpretation, not fact. Part 3 could reveal something completely different.
Your Interpretation Matters
This isn’t a situation where there’s a “correct” answer we’re all trying to find. Until Part 3 reveals the truth, these are all theories based on incomplete information.
Maybe you find transformation more compelling. Maybe selective erasure makes more sense to you. Maybe you have a completely different theory.
The important thing is engaging with the evidence and thinking through the implications. What happens when worlds merge changes what the entire story means.
Want More Analysis?
This article focused on what happens during world merging. For related topics:
- How Does World Merging Actually Work?
- Sephiroth’s REAL Plan Explained
- The Invisible Terrier World: How Is Aerith Hidden Here?
- The Third White Materia: Sephiroth’s Blind Spot
- Comprehensive Guide to Different Worlds
TL;DR: We don’t know definitively what happens when worlds merge. Theory #1: Total erasure – everything dissolved back into Lifestream energy. Theory #2: Transformation/integration – consciousness persists in different form. Theory #3: Selective erasure – some survive, others don’t. Theory #4: Context-dependent – outcome varies by circumstances. Evidence is ambiguous and supports multiple interpretations. I lean toward total erasure (simplest, highest stakes, explains violence best), but Part 3 will reveal the truth.
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