Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while! I've been really, really busy. I'm sorry!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything. However, I made up Super Space Starship. I don't think it actually exists. But if it does... wow.
WARNING: Angeal OOC and Seph x Cloud reference, like usual.
Enjoy! ^^
Cloud knew he had a problem.
He was pretty sure it wasn't any good for his health. Obsessions usually never were. But despite his numerous attempts, or Zack's constant nagging, Cloud just couldn't bring himself to quit.
The object of his obsession?
"Are you playing that stupid game again?" The door to Cloud's room burst open and Zack stormed in, a disapproving look on his face as his eyes rested on Cloud.
"H-huh?" Cloud mumbled, shooting a brief glance at Zack before returning his attention to the computer screen.
Zack groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead. "Cloud, you really gotta stop this. The only time you come out of your room anymore is for training! There's other stuff to do besides this. You…"
Cloud listened to Zack's lecture for about ten seconds before slowly tuning him out until his voice was reduced to a faint hum in the background. He had to save the galaxy now!
"You're not listening, are you?" Zack sighed, shaking his head. It was more of a statement than a question. At his wits' end, Zack finally marched over to Cloud's computer.
Cloud was too wrapped up in his game to notice anything as he maneuvered the spaceship on the screen. He dodged asteroids, obliterated UFOs, and collected all sorts of items along the way as he traveled through the universe.
Suddenly, Cloud gasped in delight and urged his spaceship on faster. The final checkpoint! He was almost at the end of the level. He jammed his finger onto the arrow key with so much force that he thought he would push it straight through the keyboard. But that was the least of his concerns now.
Almost there, Cloud told himself. Almost there…
And then the screen went blank.
"Zack!" Cloud shrieked, shoving Zack's hand away from the power switch. "Why did you do that?"
"Because you've done nothing but play that dumb game all week!" Zack snapped, folding his arms crossly as he frowned down on his friend. "Enough is enough. Take a break already."
Cloud stared down at the carpet, his lips pulled into a frown. Zack rolled his eyes, fed up with Cloud's attitude.
"Oh, come on!" He groaned, forcing Cloud up from his chair. "Let's go to lunch. You need to get the heck out of here."
By the time they had gone through the lunch line and gotten their usual table, Cloud's mood still hadn't improved. He took large, aggressive bites of food and chewed angrily, his frown now seemingly permanent on his face as he continued to glare at Zack.
"Man, is Cloud pissed!" Angeal slid into his seat across from Zack, dropping a tray loaded up with food to the table. "What'd you do to him, Zack?"
"He's just mad because I made him stop playing that new online game," Zack explained, briefly pausing to take a sip of cola. "Super Space something. I forget."
"You mean Super Space Starship?" Angeal asked, perking up. Zack eyed him suspiciously. Genesis came over to the table and took his usual seat, looking curious.
"Yeah, that's it," He grumbled, feeling the chills from the cold glares Cloud kept shooting at him. "Would you knock it off already, Cloud?" He snapped, slamming his hand down on the table. "Seriously." But Cloud's glares only became more intense.
"I love that game!" Angeal cried excitedly. Zack couldn't believe his ears.
"What game?" A curious Reno asked as he passed by the table.
"Super Space Starship!" Angeal answered enthusiastically, and Reno's face immediately lit up.
"I LOVE that game!" Reno nearly shouted. "It's like, my favorite game ever, yo!"
"Me too!" Someone called from another table, followed by several other responses. To Zack's horror, a chain reaction had been fired off across the cafeteria. Soon, the whole room was buzzing with talk about the hottest new game on the Internet.
Zack sank into his seat, too weirded out to come up with a witty comment as Genesis joined the table, and was immediately sucked into the conversation like an amoeba. Freaks, he though, horrified. I'm surrounded by freaks.
"You don't play Super Space Starship, Zack?" Angeal asked in disbelief.
"No," Zack responded, still trying to avoid Cloud's menacing stares. It wasn't easy. "Why would I?"
Angeal and Genesis gasped in unison. "Whaaat?"
"It's like, the greatest game ever! You're crazy, Zack," Angeal concluded, absentmindedly waving a French fry around in the air.
"If you say so," Zack muttered. No way in hell was he ever going to play that stupid game.
He groaned as Genesis, Angeal and Cloud started an in-depth discussion about the game. Zack couldn't keep up with the nerd talk. He looked around the cafeteria, eager to find a table that wasn't obsessed with the "greatest game ever." But dread filled him as he realized that the entire cafeteria was buzzing about it.
Defeated, Zack sank back into his seat slowly, wondering if the stupid new fad would ever end.
Cloud slammed the door to his room hard and bounded over to his computer excitedly. Training had been cancelled for the afternoon thanks to yet another monster mishap. Cloud was sure that somewhere within the building, Lazard was currently giving Hojo yet another strict telling-off about keeping his goddamn monsters under control. And the word going around was that the next time it happened, Hojo was getting fired. Zack had come up with the perfect plan to make that happen as quickly as possible.
No training for the afternoon meant Cloud had five extra hours until lights-out. Five whole hours of quiet, uninterrupted free time. And he knew exactly how to spend it.
Cloud plopped himself down into his desk chair and reached over to turn on his computer. The ancient machine wheezed and sputtered to life, and the dusty screen flickered on wearily. Cloud drummed his fingers on the desk, sighing in irritation. As soon as he saved up enough money, he was replacing his geriatric computer and buying himself the best model available.
Yeah, so Zack had made him swear not to play Super Space Starship all afternoon. Bad-for-your-health and all that. However, it seemed Zack had a headache from all the "nerd talk" in the cafeteria and needed to be alone "away from all the nerds."
And he thought Cloud had a problem.
Once the computer had finished starting up, Cloud opened his favorites menu and clicked on the little spaceship icon. Several agonizing minutes later, the Super Space Starship homepage finally finished loading, one small section at a time. Cloud had to restrain himself from ripping out his spiky blonde hair in frustration.
Cloud logged into his account and checked the news of the day, his usual habit. His mouth fell open in shock as he read the page.
Last night, the legendary Player X had beaten all of the records previously set by the administrators in one game. In the world of Super Space Starship, that was unheard of. But then again, Player X was the top player on the entire site. Every other player, Cloud included, worshipped Player X with a feverent, undying passion. As far as Cloud was concerned, Player X was the god of the MMORPG world. Or at least, the god of his world.
"Wow," Cloud gasped softly, scrolling down the lengthy list of new records set by Player X. There had to be at least 20 or so.
After a few more moments of admiration, he started up where had left off in his game. Well, where he had saved last before Zack had shut the computer down. Now he had to re-start level 53 all over again.
Cloud didn't understand what Zack had against him playing Super Space Starship. He had only played for at least 3 hours so far that day. Compared to the previous weekend, that was nothing. No matter how much Zack bugged him, or how many unsuccessful interventions he had tried to hold, nothing would ever make Cloud part with his beloved game.
As the afternoon progressed, Cloud completed level after level until his eyelids began to droop. Five hours later, with a hand still resting on the mouse, he slumped forward and fell into a deep sleep, his dreams filled with alien-hunting and asteroids.
The following day, an unhappy Cloud was again torn from his game, dragged down to the cafeteria and plopped into a seat against his will.
"You promised!" Zack frowned as he took a seat at the table. Zack hadn't been at all pleased when he discovered Cloud sleeping in front of his computer that morning. "You really need to take a break from that game."
"He's only human, Zack," Angeal pointed out as he took a bite of his pizza. But Zack sent him such a chilling glare that Angeal clammed up and stayed out of the argument.
"Anyway," Zack continued, "Seriously, Cloud. You gotta stop this."
But Cloud was no longer listening; he and Angeal had started up a conversation about Super Space Starship, much to Zack's dismay. He groaned in irritation, which went unnoticed by Cloud and Angeal. How could the most popular game in the online universe have such a lame name?
"So, did you see the score charts last night?" Angeal chirped excitedly, drowning out Zack's irritated mood that hung over the table like a wet blanket. "Player X is the best, dude. I can't even get close to his scores."
"Yeah," Cloud agreed, tearing the foil wrapping from his sandwich. "I-"
"GUYS!" Both turned to find Genesis running towards the table, his eyes bulging and his jacket flowing behind him as he ran. He finally skidded to a stop and slammed his hands down on the table, breathing heavily.
"Dude?" Angeal raised his eyebrows, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
"I was going to tell you earlier but Lazard's been making me take all this crap everywhere all day and-" Genesis started babbling incoherently.
"Hang on," Angeal interrupted. "What is it? What happened?"
Genesis took a deep breath, a crazed look still burning in his eyes. "Player X is here at ShinRa!"
Cloud could still hear the faint echo of Genesis's shout throughout the cafeteria. The entire room was dead silent except for the sound of Zack slurping his soda. Everyone turned to stare at Genesis, their mouths hanging open. Even the cafeteria workers poked their heads out from behind the counters to gape at him.
Angeal leapt from his seat. "Are you serious?"
Genesis nodded violently. "I was going by the computer lab last night and I looked through the window, and I saw someone sitting at one of the computers logging on to Super Space Starship," Zack groaned at the name, "and then their account page came up and… it was Player X!"
The entire cafeteria gasped in unison. Cloud nearly spit out his drink. Zack twisted his hair around his finger, looking extremely bored.
"Did you see his face?" Cloud asked, his eyes still wide in disbelief that his hero was somewhere within the building. Player X was at ShinRa. It was almost too much to handle.
"No," Genesis sighed. "The lights were off inside. And whoever it was, they locked the door. And then I was late for a meeting so I had to go." Suddenly he slumped down onto the table, fists clenched. "GODDAMN IT!"
"Holy crap!" Angeal boomed, an incredible expression on his face. "That means… Player X could be in the cafeteria right now!"
There was silence for a few moments. Then the cafeteria erupted into chaos, and accusations were flying everywhere. Never in Cloud's life had he heard so much noise in the cafeteria before.
"It's Reno!" A shrill voice screamed.
"Dude, I wish!" Reno answered back. "It's not me, man."
"It's Tseng!"
"What?" Tseng called, clearly annoyed. "I would never play that game."
"YES!" Zack screamed from the back of the cafeteria, throwing his arms into the air before running off towards Tseng. Finally, someone that understood him.
"It's the General!" Someone in the back bellowed.
Dead silence.
"Pfft!" The entire cafeteria burst into maniacal laughter.
"Oh, c'mon! Seph's too mature for video games." Angeal teased, rolling his eyes. "Like he'd ever waste his precious time playing Super Space Starship." Several SOLDIERS snickered at this.
Cloud pouted, unpleased to hear his idol being talked about in such a way.
"It's the President!" A 3rd class SOLDIER screamed, but no one seemed to agree with him.
"Nah, he wouldn't play," Genesis answered.
"It's Hojo!"
…
"Oh, HELL no!"
After several more intense minutes in the cafeteria, with accusations flying through the air in such a way that Cloud was starting to feel as if they were trying to uncover a serial killer rather than find out Player X's identity, the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch break. Everyone in the cafeteria was immediately silenced and proceeded to the door, as if they had not all been in a crazed frenzy only moments ago. Cloud shook his head. This place was weird.
"HOLD IT!"
Genesis elbowed his way through the crowd and bolted to the front of the cafeteria, and spread his arms out wide to block the doorway. "NO ONE LEAVES UNTIL WE FIND OUT WHO PLAYER X IS!"
Everyone in the cafeteria grinded to a halt, gaping at Genesis.
"Commander Rhapsodos, there you are."
Genesis's blood ran cold. That voice was all too familiar. Slowly, he turned to peek over his shoulder and found that unfortunately, his suspicions had been correct.
Lazard stood behind him, a seemingly innocent smile on his face. But Genesis knew better.
"I've been looking for you this morning," he continued, and Genesis winced. "I thought I might find you here. You see, I still need quite a lot of help planning this week's meetings." He adjusted his glasses, observing the crowd and the fact that Genesis was clearly blocking their way out. "I assume you are not busy now?"
Damn. "No," Genesis sighed, trying not to sound too disappointed. Lazard thoroughly enjoyed tormenting reluctant workers with extra work whenever he could.
Lazard smiled again, and Genesis felt a sharp chill run down his spine. "Let's get started, then." He turned to the crowd. The Director then turned on his heel and headed for the elevators, a reluctant Genesis following behind him.
The crowd still hadn't moved, exchanging glances with one another. Then the chaos began once more.
"Yeah, it's gotta be!"
"Somebody go find out!"
Cloud scratched his head, unable to find what the Director could have done to make the cafeteria group believe that he was Player X.
"Okay, okay!" Angeal's voice immediately silenced the crowd. "Let me handle this." And with that he marched out of the cafeteria and towards the Director's office.
It was only after Angeal left the cafeteria that the crowd began to disband; some followed Angeal to find out the truth for themselves, and others returned to their offices, afraid to be caught slacking off lest the Director unleash his merciless wrath upon them.
By the time Angeal came to the Director's office, he had twenty or so brave followers behind him, eager to find out if their boss really was the famed Player X.
Angeal raised a hand to the door and knocked, trying to hide his anxiousness from the crowd. Things could go wrong in there. Horribly wrong. But he had to know.
"Come in," a faint voice called from inside, and Angeal pushed the door open slowly to find a beaming Lazard standing by his desk, typing on his computer. "Genesis, when you're finished copying those, I have another few boxes of documents to file, if you would please." He called over his shoulder. A wide-eyed Genesis trudged by the desk, a massive tower of papers clutched in his hands.
Angeal nodded and disappeared into the office. Lazard caught a glimpse of the crowd hovering outside of his office, and his smile disappeared just as the door slammed shut.
The crowd flocked to the door and pressed their ears up against it, eager to hear the conversation. Cloud struggled to get to the door, but no one was willing to budge. Pouting, he waited off to the side of the door, his arms folded tightly across his chest.
Not even a minute had passed when the door was flung open, startling the crowd, who tripped and stumbled over each other in an attempt to get out of the way. Angeal emerged from the office, backing away and holding his hands up.
"Sir, I'm-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… no, really-" Angeal's garbled words were soon drowned out by an angry Lazard who had suddenly appeared by the doorway. He stormed out into the hall and gave the crowd the most chilling glare they had ever seen. "If there is some reason why all of you are not working right now, I can assure you there is plenty of work to be done in here. I'm sure Mr. Rhapsodos would appreciate the additional help." Genesis appeared in view of the crowd, carrying a larger pile of notebooks and papers to the copying machine. "Run," he mouthed to them, his eyes frozen in horror.
The crowd split, everyone scrambling to get as far away from the Director's office as their legs would take them. Cloud spun around and bolted for his dormitory, not wanting to get in any more trouble than he already would be if Lazard remembered he had been in the crowd outside his office.
"Cloud," Angeal suddenly appeared next to him, a look of terror still frozen on his face. "It's not the Director."
"Come in."
Cloud took a deep breath and gently pushed the office door open, being careful not to drop the papers grasped in his hands. He shut the door with his foot, closing it so that it would not slam shut.
He stopped breathing momentarily as he searched for the gorgeous man that resided in the office, but he was nowhere to be found.
"Just a minute," Sephiroth's voice came from the desk in the center of the room, and Cloud bent over to find his adored General underneath the desk, plugging several cords into the wall. It took Cloud a minute to realize that he was setting his computer up.
Several moments later, Sephiroth popped up from under the desk and slid into his seat, tossing his silver hair behind one shoulder. He adjusted his glasses and looked into Cloud's eyes, a faint smile on his lips. "How can I help you, Cadet?"
"Uhh…" Flustered by Sephiroth's beauty, Cloud tried to remember why he was in the General's office in the first place. He got nothing. Then he looked down at the pile of papers in his hands and everything came back to him. "T-the Director sent me here to ask if I could use your copying machine." Lazard had remembered Cloud among the crowd that had been outside his office earlier in the afternoon, and he hadn't been let off the hook. The Director was still in the process of hunting down the rest of them.
Sephiroth gave him a puzzled look. "I thought the Director had a copying machine in his office."
"Commander Hewley broke it," Cloud explained. "Again."
"Ah. I see." A smile played on Sephiroth's lips as he switched his computer on. "I wonder when the Director will learn not to let him near copying machines again."
Cloud chuckled, feeling a rosy tinge start to burn on his cheeks. Sephiroth's smile grew wider, and his gaze lingered on Cloud for a few intense moments.
"Anyway," Sephiroth continued, logging onto his computer. He turned in his chair and began reading over a document on his desk. "The copy machine is over in the corner. If it doesn't work, just smack the side a few times and it should be fine."
Cloud cocked his head to the side, not quite sure if he had heard that last part correctly. "Umm… okay."
Sighing, he made his way across to where the copy machine stood by itself in the corner, as if it were an outcast in the room. He put the heavy stack of papers down and grabbed the first few off the top.
This is going better than I expected! Cloud thought happily as he lay the papers on the copier. He glanced over his shoulder at the General, who was furiously jotting notes down as he read over the document. He felt bad for him, having to be subjected to such work. Then Cloud remembered that he wasn't much better off than him.
"You don't mind if I leave the sound turned on, do you?" Sephiroth called to him over his shoulder. "I just want to make sure it works correctly."
Cloud turned around as the machine began copying the first few pages. "No, sir. It's fine." He paused. "Did something happen to your computer, sir?"
Sephiroth sighed. "One of the monsters that escaped last week broke into my office and damaged it. I just got it back from the technology department this morning."
"Oh," Cloud replied, fighting an urge to run down to the Research lab and beat Hojo with whatever he could find. A wrench would do nicely. "But… how did you get all your work done this week, sir?"
"I've been using the computer lab," the General answered, not sounding terribly happy.
"Hm," Cloud said softly, then loaded up the copier with the next batch of papers. From the looks of the pile, he was going to be here until Sephiroth closed his office for the night.
Cloud glanced over at the clock hanging above the desk. It was just after two 'o clock. He sighed happily.
"Cadet, may I ask a favor?"
Cloud's daydreams came to an abrupt halt. "O-of course, sir." What could the General possibly need from him? Coffee? A newspaper? His hair brushed? A massage? Cloud smiled to himself, his cheeks turning a rosy pink color. He'd be happy giving the General any of those, particularly the last two.
Sephiroth was now scribbling away on a notepad as he read over a report that was spread out over his desk. "I'm terribly sorry to give you more work, but would you mind making a copy of my notes? I need to get these to the President's office in an hour."
"Yes, sir." Cloud hid his disappointment, but still didn't care the slightest little bit that the General's notes would only add to his copier machine hell. It was the General, after all.
"Thank you very much," Sephiroth replied, turning in his chair and sliding himself over to the computer.
A few moments later, Cloud heard an extremely familiar electronic-sounding song from Sephiroth's computer. He spun around, eyes bulging in disbelief. The computer screen confirmed his suspicions.
"Y-you play Super Space Starship?" Cloud gasped, unable to hide his amazement as he came up to the General's desk.
Sephiroth turned in his seat to face Cloud and shrugged. "It's just something I've been doing in my free time."
The homepage flashed across the screen, and the game's famous monotone voice boomed through the speakers, reading off the General's game stats for the week:
"TOTAL GAMES PLAYED THIS WEEK: THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY SEVEN."
Sephiroth shifted uncomfortably. "Um…" An awkward silence followed.
"Here." He shoved his notes at Cloud, trying to cover up his obvious embarrassment. Cloud got the hint and hurried back over to the copier machine, notes carefully cradled in his arms.
Th-these are the General's notes! Cloud thought happily, carefully laying each page down under the lid of the copier machine. He gave a small smile as he looked over the pages. The General's elegant handwriting filled up almost every space of the paper, not even a smudge of ink anywhere. It's so… perfect!
He couldn't believe his idol actually played Super Space Starship after all. Take that, Angeal!
Cloud froze. Suddenly, Genesis's words in the cafeteria flashed back to him, and he was now suspicious. Genesis had seen Player X in the computer lab. The General's computer had been broken until this morning. Was it just a coincidence? Or was the General really…
Pshh! Cloud rolled his eyes at himself. Angeal was probably right; It just couldn't be the General. Although with his talent, he could probably pull it off. Cloud shook his head as he carefully removed the notes from the copier. But the more he thought about it, the more everything started to make sense.
Cloud whirled around just as the General completed the level he had been playing through. The familiar automated voice blared through the speakers.
…Could he be…?
"PLAYER X, DO YOU WISH TO PROCEED TO THE NEXT LEVEL?"
Thanks for reading! ^^