As far as I can tell the gore was used on Tifa to show that she was beaten the heck up. 'Twas sad but I wonder what this twist is about. I am thinking the whole feather thing is hinting at Rinoa's hand in the whole thing. As far as I can tell she is the only one using heavy magic, quite possibly the one who sent Tifa away in the first time.

Also, Yuna turning into High Summoner Yuna for a bit was awesome. SHIVA WAS RIDING IXION! Was a really cool scene.