I'm playing through FF7 for the second time and I'm trying to fully understand the story as best as I can so I can get the most from the game.
So far there is one bit I'm not quite sure I understand. When Sephiroth and Cloud go to fix the reactor at Nibel Reactor in Cloud's story at Kalm there is one bit of text that goes..
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Sephiroth
"Normal members of SOLDIER are humans that have been showered
with Mako."
"You're different from the others, but still human."
"But what are they? They've been exposed to a high degree of
Mako, far more than you."
(Cloud gets to his feet.)
Cloud
"...Is this some kind of monster?"
Sephiroth
"Exactly. And it's Hojo if Shinra that produced these monsters."
"Mutated living organisms produced by Mako energy. That's what
these monsters really are."
Cloud
"Normal members of SOLDIER? You mean you're different?"
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How does Cloud conclude Sephiroth was talking about himself not being a normal member of soldier when, to me atleast, if you read the first part again,
--------------------------
Sephiroth
"Normal members of SOLDIER are humans that have been showered
with Mako."
"You're different from the others, but still human."
"But what are they? They've been exposed to a high degree of
Mako, far more than you."
---------------------------
It sounds as if Sephiroth is saying Cloud is different to normal members of Soldier, not that he himself is different.
I hope I've made what I'm trying to ask clear.
Oh and one final small question, what is the story behind the monsters being produced in the pods at the Nibel Reactor?
Thanks!

I agree that when Sephiroth is saying "you" he is referring to SOLDIERs in general.

i.e. You're different from others, but still human [when you're a SOLDIER].

The monsters are experiments that Hojo is carrying out, presumably. They are just twisted and tortured creatures meant to add to the list of the players' reasons to be horrified with ShinRa.

In terms of the story, Sephiroth is looking at the monsters in the tanks and is questioning his own humanity as a member of SOLDIER. He is horrified because he can relate to the monsters, as he too is someone who has been treated with Mako by Hojo.

In a way, he is rationalizing that he is still human, whereas the monsters are far gone; yet he is also implying that perhaps as experiments, he isn't so from the monsters different after all.

Sephiroth at that time is already considered to be a legendary SOLDIER, he is the best they got and his abilities are superior to those of other 1st Class members so he probably also considered himself to be the best.

Sephiroth had probably been subjected to Mako many times but yet he remained human while others transformed into monsters so he probably understood that there was something different in his body, that´s why he does not consider himself to be a normal member.

Yeah, in a nutshell, he's referring to Cloud as a SOLDIER in general. And himself as someone higher.

But isn't that also the scene when Sephiroth realizes that he's in fact very similar to the monsters, and it sends him on his rampage? I really think Sephiroth was trying to convince himself that he wasn't a freak like them, but in the end could not believe his own lies. And that was what drove him mad.

I'm sure the monsters came with the Jenvoa invasion. I think the experiments [i]were[/] just that - experiments, that were probably still in statis as FFVII ended.