The roar of the wind endlessly pummeled by the chopper blades…

The familiarity of it comforted him somehow. How many times had he sat next to the aircraft's open side and just let the breeze and the adrenaline blow by him. The weather had created one of his favorite kinds of days: that perfect mixture of warm sun and cool morning air that seemed to perform as the world's gentle alarm clock. His mission was over, and successful. He wasn't hurt, and really wasn't that tired either. The sky was blushing with the rose tint of waking sunrise. Everything acted as if it was supposed to be a good day. One thing was out of place however; one piece lost from this puzzle to spoil the whole picture. He was holding the empty, broken form of his best friend.

To Rude's eyes, the face half buried against his chest looked asleep. He knew what Reno would say to that…'how cliché'…but it was true. Over the years he had observed his partner in many phases of slumber. If the blood staining Reno's chest wasn't so total, the other Turk would have said his colleague had the look of exhausted sleep…not quite peaceful, but completely gone under. What he wouldn't give for that to be true.

Tseng sat opposite Rude in the belly of the chopper, watching the world go by in a vacant haze. He hated this. It wasn't that he had ever been particularly close to Reno; in fact the red head drove him crazy most of the time. But to lose a fellow Turk, a comrade, when there were so few of them left was a terrible injustice and a large pill to swallow. Not to mention that Tseng was unsure how Rude would react to all of this once the full blow hit him. The shaded man just sat there holding the body, expression set, staring at nothing that Tseng could see. His best guess: Rude wouldn't be working for a while. And for once, Tseng didn't mind. It was an understandable absence…one that he had foreseen if this, the unthinkable, had happened to either Reno or Rude. Always together when the chance was given them, it would have been a grave loss for one to lose the other. It just pissed him off now that he hadn't made it in time to be of any use.

Elena sat alone in the cockpit. She had opted to pilot rather than to sit in the back with Rude. Her fingers felt numb on the controls. Hot tears streamed down her face, and inwardly she wondered whether it was smart to fly a 'copter when you could hardly see past the moisture welling in your eyes. But she couldn't go back there and sit with Rude either; that would be too much, and then she'd really break down bawling. Being the only woman Turk had its drawbacks. When bad things happened, you weren't allotted time or room for comfort or grief. Life kept moving, and fast, and if you wanted to keep up you just lowered your head and carried on. But it was times like these she didn't give a rats about what she should do. A good friend had died today. Screw anyone who gave her a hard time for shedding tears about it.

The chopper trembled a little, cutting into an opposing wind current. Tseng tapped his headphones to activate them.

"Elena, contact emergency personnel. I want them there as soon as we land."

Not that it will do any good, he added mentally.

What really lit Tseng's fuse was the fact that of all the people who could have taken the life of Reno, it had been that idiot Ni. It was individuals like him that had always crawled right under the brazen red head's skin…the kind that talked a big game until blue in the face and yet stood back and handed the dirty work to those around him. Reno couldn't stand it when he wasn't right in the middle of the action, and the thought that some coward like Ni would take him out…it was ridiculous. Maddening.

The man had first shown up on Shinra's radar when he released his "Atonement" collection to the public. In general nothing was inherently suspicious about the pieces. An emotionally sensitive artist painting dramatic portrayals of the Corporation's reign of terror wasn't exactly what the new company would have liked, but it wasn't a crime. There had been a time when Shinra would have been on top of such a display like white on rice, but those days were gone now. Although it was annoying, it wasn't worth action that would lower public opinion that just happened to be dragging the ground as it was. So, the company did nothing.

The people were intrigued and stirred by both the art and the bold defiance of Ni, who had opened his public gallery right across from the small new Shinra offices. Old offenses were remembered and wounds reopened. The sense of general dissatisfaction turned to anger and frustration. It seemed that somehow this seemingly innocent man had wakened a sleeping fire within the heart of what used to be Midgar.

And that's when things started turning sour.

After the gallery closed, the artist's name showed up again, only this time in a bit of a different light. Flyers appeared announcing a series of talks to be given by Mr. Ni in an office across town. Once again, on the surface nothing seemed too out of place: the lectures were promoted as an answer to the question 'what now?'...a discussion of the past, a study of the present, and a glimpse of the future. All the same, the Turks kept their ears open, and it wasn't long before they heard something.

Mr. Ni thrived in metaphor and analogy; his speech was laced and tailored to perfection. His eloquence made the ranks of his 'students' swell almost overnight to a small army. Never did he say a word outright against Shinra, but one mention of 'The Master and his Dogs' set the whole room whispering the name in hateful tones. Convincing, charismatic, and unconventional, he soon won the hearts of the public. He was never too busy to debate or to discuss; nothing was more important than taking time for those who wished to know the 'truth.' In return for his dedication, the people matched it with their own 'displays of affection'.

The first ended in two Shinra employees beaten within an inch of their lives and left bleeding on the front steps of the company.

The second, sabotage of a major factory that had been contracted by Shinra to produce several new choppers and cars.

The third, a riot that soon turned violent outside Shinra…injuring both personnel and civilian alike.

The list went on and on, until finally Rufus had had enough. He paid a personal visit, accompanied by Tseng, and asked Mr. Ni to put an end to the madness he was causing. Rufus explained that Shinra was looking for new ways to supply energy…ways that would keep the planet in balance and not disturb the Lifestream. He told Ni that the new company had turned over a new leaf and hoped to keep violent retaliation out of the picture. But, if Shinra's people…not to mention the public…continued to get hurt, Rufus assured him that for the company not to take action would be unacceptable.

Mr. Ni had sat in attentive silence throughout the meeting. When he finally spoke, he apologized. The actions of his 'pupils' were unfortunate, he agreed. But to accept responsibility for an overzealous group's actions simply because they had attended his lectures…that was something he 'simply could not do.' He, in turn, assured Rufus behind a veil of metaphor and analogy, that as long as Shinra still existed, the violence would not stop. It was 'inevitable…as unfortunate as that may be.'

Both hands had been dealt, with one card remaining. Now, all that was left was to wait and see who would make the final move.

Within the week, the Turks discovered and disarmed a bomb planted beneath the Shinra building.

Rufus had given the order…the first assassination since the Jenova crisis. Tseng had delegated the mission to the two most capable Turks in that particular field. Sending both of them might have been borderline superfluous, but where one went, the other followed eventually. Reno and Rude had infiltrated Ni's headquarters and after a series of violent encounters had completed their mission.

Or so they thought.

*BANG*

*RENO!*

*Filthy Shinra…..dog.*

*….gonna…..miss me?*

*Yeah.*

Ni, in the end, had fired off one last parting blow as he died. That shot had cost Rude the closest thing he had to a brother.

The blood staining Rude's sleeves had long gone cold.

Reno was dead.

And for the living, one thing was certain:

Somebody was gonna pay.

"The building's just ahead," Tseng said. Rude didn't respond. "Be ready to let the medical teams ta-"

"He's dead." Tseng paused. The other Turk's shades were facing him now. "There's no point in getting medical involved." Uncertain of what to say, Tseng mentally scrambled for a professional response.

"Even so, they will want to make a record of things. They'll need to know the details…to put on file."

"You think he's gonna tell them?"

Tseng swallowed.

Bitter anger lurked beneath Rude's words. The Turk leader could feel the tenseness surrounding his comrade like a haze…sensed the raw emotion edging his control. Rude under these circumstances was a bit of an enigma, and for Tseng not knowing the minds of his subordinates complicated things severely. He hated the unknown.

"Just get ready."

Rude said nothing and looked away. The earpieces awakened to Elena's voice.

Hey, you guys…something's going on with Communications. I can't seem to get a hold of anyone on the other end.

"Have you tried the new frequency?"

Yeah but it's just silent. It's like it's offline.

Tseng frowned.

"Let me take a look at it."

Alright. Wait—I'm getting something now. It sounds like….what the…

FOOOM!

The helicopter rocked a little as a wave of hot air slammed into it. Tseng couldn't believe his eyes.

The Shinra building had just gone up in a huge fireball.

OH MY…NO!

"WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" Tseng snapped. This could not be happening. Not on his watch. Not ever. HOW? He had prepared! There are always repercussions after an assassination like this…when a popular man like Ni went down. So just before he had gotten the news about Reno, he had doubled the guards to the entrance of the building, and had made certain another group was on standby. The orders were given: no one was coming to or from the building by foot. If they had no choice, they would be escorted. All other entrances had been locked down, and he had personally seen to it that the president-

"THE PRESIDENT!"

This Is not happening…this can't be happening! Elena shouted brokenly in the earpieces. Tseng frantically searched his mind for a solution, something that made sense as to how on this good earth this had managed slip beneath his notice. Nothing came to mind.

What do we do now? Where do we go? Tseng!

"SHUT UP ELENA." He instantly regretted saying it, but Tseng didn't have the time for apologies right now. "Calm down. Just get us out of here!"

Nothing happened. The aircraft didn't seem to be headed 'out of here' in any particular direction. And certainly not very fast. Quiet sobs were the only sound heard from the cockpit.

"ELENA!"

"To the right!"

Tseng's attention turned to Rude who was pointing urgently towards Tseng's side of the chopper. The Turk leader followed the line of sight—directly to an incoming missile.

"ELENA MOVE!"

The chopper roared to life but it was too late. The tail section suddenly evaporated. Tseng was sent flying out of the side, debris raining down on him. In a last ditch effort he managed to grab on to the mangled landing skid. The aircraft spiraled downward, listing uncontrollably to the left.

TSENG!

Elena. Tseng couldn't reach his earpiece to activate it. Rude's voice cut in.

Find a clear spot to land! Focus…!

….Right!

As the ruined chopper struggled against Elena's control, Tseng prayed to whatever beings in the Lifestream that would hear him. He was slipping, and if something didn't happen and fast, he was a dead man. Not that he probably wouldn't be a dead man in a few minutes anyway, but freefalling wasn't the way he wanted to go. Hoping the wind wouldn't drown him out, he yelled out.

"RUDE!"

Suddenly a bald head appeared above him. Before he knew it he was hauled back into the belly of the chopper. The other cabin door had been shut tight…apparently Rude had had the good sense to protect himself from the same incident that Tseng had just endured.

"Thank you." Rude nodded.

The copter shuddered violently and tilted extremely left. Elena's voice hit their ears.

Hold on! We're going down!

There was nowhere to go. No place to find shelter. No way to protect themselves.

Rude met Tseng's eye.

It was over.

And just at that moment, there was a blinding flash and everything went black.