Bombing Mission

by Sylvane Mindune

An in-depth novelization of the first bombing mission from Final Fantasy VII. It's a one-shot, but you might find some references to the events that take place after the end if you've played the game. With the re-make being announced, this seems like as good a time as any to revisit the iconic opening of this lengthy and suspenseful adventure!

Final Fantasy VII

Bombing Mission

Cloud Strife. Ex-Soldier 1st class. He knew enough of his past to live on and enough of his future to live for-his life as a mercenary. A decision he made himself, influenced by his unexplainable hatred for Shinra and his desperate need for money.

The train he and his team had chosen to ride whistled noisily as it stopped at their destination. A brief commotion outside.

I guess Biggs and Wedge had no trouble disabling the watch guards, Cloud thought to himself. That meant it was go time. Cloud exited the vehicle and landed in a battle stance just in case Biggs and Wedge had failed to finish the job. It wouldn't have been the first time. However, the only people he saw were the rest of the team and Barret, the team leader.

"C'mon, newcomer. Follow me." Barret's orders were always followed. He was a large, tough guy whose arms looked like they could bruise an elephant. He could be really self-centered at times, sure, but if there were ever someone who had something to be prideful in, it was him.

Barret flew down the station without waiting for Cloud or any of the others to catch up. Everyone ran past Cloud, eager to begin the mission. Cloud, however, walked calmly over to the body of one of the unconscious guards. Reaching into the pocket, Cloud withdrew a small healing potion. This was why he could never permanently join this group. They just weren't smart enough to take on something as large as Shinra.

Cloud on the other hand…

He jogged to catch up with the rest.

The first thing he saw was Barret's arm gun. That thing had replaced Barret's hand long ago. How did he lose his hand? Ask him and he'll give you a different answer every time. Everyone was hiding behind a large train schedule sign. It didn't take long for Cloud to realize why. Patrolling the open space ahead was a lone Soldier member in a blue uniform.

Cloud saw Barret raise his gun when Biggs quietly voiced his concern, "Isn't there a silencer for that?"

"Isn't there a silencer for that?!" Barret responded, motioning toward Biggs mouth and pushing Biggs aside before repositioning his weapon at the Soldier.

Barret had always been an excellent shot, but it was time for Cloud to get out of there. Quickly and quietly, he dashed behind a dormant train. So far so good. He just couldn't be seen. What if they recognized him?

Barret aligned the makeshift gun's nozzle right at the Shinra Soldier's head and slowly pulled the trigger.

Suddenly, a second person came down a flight of stairs and started talking to the Soldier. Barret lowered the gun and cursed under his breath. All they could do was sit and wait for the pedestrian to move along. Maybe the Soldier would even follow him. They could overhear the Soldier briefly saying no trains would be departing Sector 7 today. Eventually, the man did leave, but almost as soon as he did, another replaced him.

Wedge groaned and Barret motioned for her to keep quiet. Cloud sighed. But wait, this wasn't a pedestrian. It was an infantryman. Barret seemed to notice this too and looked at his team then at Cloud. Cloud nodded and Barret raised his gun once more at the Shinra Soldier. Better to take out the stronger opponent while they still had the element of surprise. Despite the fact the infantryman had a gun and the Soldier just a sword, Soldier was an elite force and always gave Shinra the upper hand in battle. Once again Barret slowly pulled the trigger and aimed for the Soldier's head.

Bullets flew and everyone moved at once. At the last second, the Soldier had moved aside and dodged the bullets completely. Then the Soldier drew his sword and charged at Barret, but he never reached him. Cloud had stepped in front of the blow and blocked it at the last moment with his own blade. The Soldier just watched as Cloud raised his sword and moved it into a battle-ready position. Cloud gripped the blade that was almost as big as he was, ready to move at a moment's notice.

The Soldier withdrew and shouted to the infantryman, "Fire! He can't possibly move something that big very fast!" As a matter of fact, Cloud could move the blade at a very fast speed, but there was little need to as he blocked all of the incoming bullets by covering his front with the flat end of the sword-only needing to move it slightly to keep all of himself covered.

Meanwhile, Biggs and Wedge had been moving behind the infantryman at Barret's orders. Though armed with no weapons, Biggs and Wedge could pack a mean punch. However, the infantryman spotted them and moved his aim from Cloud to the new assailants. Both Biggs and Wedge jumped aside as a large boom echoed throughout the room. Slowly, Biggs and Wedge stood back up, and the infantryman fell to the ground, dead. Barret came out of his hiding place, gun smoking.

Enraged, the Soldier charged Barret again. But once more Cloud intercepted the blow. This time, Cloud didn't stop there. He swung again while the foe was off balance. The sound of steel on steel rang as the two combatants traded one blow for another.

The Soldier could tell he was losing.

As a last effort he grabbed the gun from his fallen comrade and started shooting wildly. Biggs, Wedge, and Barret took cover. Cloud hid behind his sword. Back and forth they went, Cloud slashing out then guarding again when the Soldier resumed his shooting. The Soldier shouted and repeatedly fired at Cloud, never letting go of the trigger. Secretly, Cloud withdrew from his pocket what looked to be a small shooting marble. Then, he placed the "marble" in a slot in his sword that seemed to be made just for it.

Then, the Soldier ran out of ammo. Rather than reload it, he let it hang by his side and pointed his sword at Cloud once more. Cloud stood tall and rested his sword on his shoulder.

The two men stared at each other.

"You're from…Soldier?" The guard asked Cloud.

Cloud simply responded, "Ex." Then the object he had placed in his sword started glowing and out of Cloud's hand shot a bolt of lightning straight for his opponent. It traveled through the Soldier's body and into the gun, igniting the gun powder and blowing it up along with its host.

Then, everyone relaxed.

After a brief moment, Cloud replaced his sword in its trusty sheath that hung on his back. He had just killed a man. But his past was full of killing, right? A Soldier First Class. So why was this feeling so… new? And why did he detest it so much?

As Cloud was pondering these new feelings, Biggs unexpectedly broke the silence by giving a big, whoop! With a slight hint of awe in his voice, he addressed Cloud saying "Wow, you used to be in Soldier all right!" Then he added, "…Not every day ya find one in a group like AVALANCHE."

Barret raised his eyebrow and turned to glance at Cloud. He hadn't known Cloud once worked for the very organization they were fighting.

"Soldier? Aren't they the enemy?" Jessie couldn't help but ask, "What's he doing with us in AVALANCHE?"

"Hold it, Jessie. He WAS in Soldier. He quit them and now is one of us." Biggs defended Cloud. Barret faced forward once again and moved towards a door the enemies hadn't come through.

"We can trust him," Biggs continued. Barret wasn't so sure of that. If this man had betrayed Shinra, what kept him from turning on AVALANCHE? He would have to keep a close eye on this newcomer.

Biggs meanwhile obviously trusted Cloud completely and continued to keep the conversation going, "Didn't catch your name…"

All eyes were on him.

Cloud scrunched his forehead and considered just not answering him. Cloud was only here for the money. If Shinra was beaten down in the process then that's an added bonus, but he didn't plan on making friends. His story was his own. This guy was only asking for a name, but any information shared might lead to more revealed and the last thing he wanted was to dwell on the past in the middle of an important mission. He would just shrug the question off and move on.

But when he looked Biggs in the eyes, he saw fondness. This guy didn't even know him, and already Cloud was his hero. Strange because when he was younger, the other kids would always…

Screw his childhood. That was the past and Biggs wanted an answer now. So Cloud decided he would give himself a false name. But when he opened his mouth, he found himself giving everyone his true name.

"…Cloud," he told them.

Biggs smiled, "Cloud, eh? I'm…"

That's where the line had to be drawn, "I don't care what your names are. Once this job is over… I'm outta here."

Without a pause, Barret addressed them, "This door is locked. Jessie, you're the lock expert- get this door open. Aint never been a door locked that there weren't something special behind it." Then he started down a different path and everyone but Jessie followed. They didn't get far, though, before Barret turned to tower over them, "What do you think you're all doin'?"

They stopped in their tracks. "Following you?" they answered.

"How many times am I gonna have to tell you never to move in a group! Our target's the North Mako Reactor. We'll meet on the bridge in front of it. Everyone, spread out!"

Everyone immediately went their separate ways. Cloud chose a path and followed it. Biggs started to follow him, but after a quick glance, Biggs caught the message and turned around to go another way.

All alone, Cloud was able to think without being interrupted. As he walked along the twisting hallway, he kept a firm grip on his sword's handle. Any minute, he could be ambushed and need to pull the blade from his back once more.

Suddenly, he stopped. Then he pulled out his sword to look at it. The glowing object he had placed in the slot continued to glow, still full of power. Materia, it was called. A solid form of the lifestream that gave its wielder the ability to control the very elements of the earth. This one granted the power of lightning.

…But that's what didn't make any sense. That big battle in the train station made quite a commotion. And with the Mako reactor so near… why didn't any soldiers come to investigate? Surely they could hear the yelling and gunshots…

…Then Cloud realized how that Soldier member had known to dodge that first bullet.

Shinra knew they were here.

Cloud continued to run through the hallway, cautiously checking for guards or security cameras, until it opened up into a large area. Across the room, there was a sign that read, "Shinra Employees Only" and a door right below it. Still no guards in sight. Shinra probably had them all waiting in one place to trap the unsuspecting team. Barret and the rest were walking right into a trap.

But he could be wrong, right? After all, he was slightly jumping to conclusions. Anything could have happened. Shinra had a lot of enemies, so maybe they were off fighting somewhere else…

…Or maybe Shinra's president had them all together, waiting for a showdown…

Suddenly, Cloud heard a stirring behind him as a door handle jiggled. Cloud dove behind some boxes, but it supplied minimal protection. Then the door opened and a Shinra infantryman walked in, making what looked to be his usual rounds. Relief flooded through Cloud's mind. He had never been so happy to see his enemy in the same room as him before! Still, if that guard looked his way, he'd most likely be seen. He took comfort in the sword still hanging on his back. That sword… was really important to him.

The gunner reached down and brought a radio to his lips, speaking into it without pressing any buttons. "All right men," he said with pretended authority, "Listen up. Lately I've heard you girls whining about your sleeping quarters."

Then he said with a high-pitched, almost mocking voice, "But commander, the Soldier members get comfortable beds, and their own floor in the building and-"

"That's because they're a bunch of sissies who can't go a night without sleep to protect the innocents of Midgar! Now, I am your superior commander and your all-powerful leader, am I not?"

Back in the latter voice, "Yes!"

"Yes, what?!"

"YES, SIR!"

"There!" He said with a chuckle, enjoying his fantasy immensely, though Cloud realized not once did he press the talk button. "Now, drop and give me twenty." He chuckled again, and Cloud risked moving a little. If he wasn't going to finish up soon, Cloud just might make that fantasy of his his final one.

The infantryman re-lowered his radio and sighed, "Time to report again. Honestly, what do they expect to happen around here? It's been as quiet as a cat at a dog show." Once again he raised his radio and spoke into it, actually holding the talk button this time, "All's clear on the bridge. Would you please reposition me? How 'bout the entrance where those sexy ladies know 'everything about you'?"

Silence.

Cloud was holding his breath. Maybe…

"Hey, you copy? Are you not even going to respond anymore? Well that's mighty… wait…" Then he looked at his radio closely, pressing the talk button a couple of times. "The radio's dead," he muttered. "Better check the PDA." Once he had pulled out a small device with a screen and read a message on it, his face turned pale. Without warning, he dashed out of the room, passing Cloud without even noticing the intruder. In his haste, he had dropped his PDA, and Cloud picked it up to examine it. The message read simply, "Experiment on the loose. Very dangerous. Everyone meet on 22nd floor. No exceptions."

Cloud exhaled briefly. What a stroke of luck! They weren't preparing an ambush. There was just a dangerous experiment on the loose in the building, that was all! What a relief.

So Cloud pocketed the PDA and continued to the bridge. He was safe… for now…

Once he was through the surprisingly unlocked door (though who but Shinra employees ever came this way?), he found himself outside, looking at the giant expanse of metal that was the Shinra building. The Shinra building was a symbol of power. A sign that showed Shinra's authority over the people. The residents of Midgar constantly argued about Shinra's government. Most proclaimed it wasn't a government at all, but a dictatorship, while others said they were safer with Shinra's army and better off with Shinra's developed uses of Mako energy. Cloud? Well, he couldn't care less about Shinra. He was finally rid of them.

Ahead of him was a bridge that lead away from the building and to the targeted reactor and his waiting comrades. Cloud started traversing across the bridge, and one of the team members (he couldn't quite tell who) pointed at him. Everyone turned to face him and moved in front of the bridge to greet him.

When he reunited with AVALANCH, Barret frowned at him, "What the heck took you so long?"

"I ran into trouble," was Cloud's reply.

"Well so did we, but we still managed to stay on schedule," Barret said back, pointing at a limp body in the corner.

Cloud didn't bother mentioning that there were four of them and their guard probably didn't take its own sweet time pretending he was someone else. "Let's just go," was all he said. Barret seemed to drop it at that and they all entered the North Mako Reactor.

Once inside, Jessie spoke up, "I found a security room behind that locked door back there. It had monitors everywhere, showing just about every place in the reactor and outside, so I turned off the security cameras. I also scrambled the channels of the guard's radios so they couldn't sound an alarm."

Cloud looked at her with surprise evident on his face. She did all that? And the message… was that her doing as well?

Soon they were walking again. When they were a little ways in, they reached a locked door, and Jessie got right to work on it.

"You didn't bother to look for a keycard or something while you were in there?" Wedge asked Jessie who just shrugged and kept working.

Meanwhile Cloud started studying his surroundings. It looked like any other Mako Reactor. Although this one might have been a little bigger than some of the others Cloud had worked in, he was pretty confident he could find his way around.

Barret turned to Cloud, "Yo! This your first time in a reactor?"

"No. After all I did work for Shinra, y'know," was Cloud's response.

Barret crossed his arms and shot Cloud a glare. "You know why we're here, newcomer?"

Cloud knew why he was here- to kick some Shinra butt and get the money he needs to carry out his plans. But he decided to humor the man and just shrugged.

So Barret proceeded to explain the purpose of AVALANCH, "The planet's full of Mako energy. People here use it every day."

Cloud sighed. He knew where this was going. It was a popular debate among the people and Barret seemed to really like letting others know where he stands.

Barret clenched his fist at Cloud's reaction and continued his lecture, "It's the life blood of this planet. But Shinra keeps suckin' the blood out with these weird machines."

Cloud's look of non-interest hadn't changed. "I'm not here for a lecture. Let's just hurry," was all he said.

Barret let loose a fierce growl. There was silence as Barret stared at his newest member. "You can't fight well if you don't have nothin' to fight for," he said slowly, pronouncing each word clearly, "When you're risking death and you need something to live for, don't expect money to fill that role." With that, he walked over to Jessie to see what was taking her so long.

Cloud remembered to breathe again. He wasn't afraid of that man. Barret just didn't know the whole picture. Cloud pulled out his sword and looked at it. He sighed against it. Yes, he had something to fight for. Something to keep in the back of his mind as an encouragement to keep going a little bit farther. But Barret's point of view would never see things the way Cloud did.

Then he put up the sword and joined the crowd around Jessie.

Jessie was at a loss how this lock worked. Luckily Biggs was able to figure out how to open it. "It obviously just needs a fingerprint scanning of someone who works-" then looking at Cloud- "or used to work for Shinra." They all looked at Cloud.

No problem. Soldier members could go anywhere. And since nobody came down here anymore, he could probably still open it. So he stepped up to the minicomputer and placed his finger on the scanner. The light moved over it, and a female voice was heard, "Access denied."

What?! Why didn't it work? The thing was covered in dust- it didn't look like anybody had changed its settings in a long while. The voice repeated itself, "Access denied. Access denied." Barret grunted. "Access de-" Then with one blow to the monitor, Barret broke the whole computer and shattered the monitor. "de-e-nieeeed…" the voice died off, and the door opened.

Barret just humphed and walked through without looking at anyone. Soon they all followed with Cloud taking the rear, wondering why it didn't identify his being with Soldier. Oh well. They probably just erased his information through a different computer.

Up ahead the path split in two, an elevator in view at the end. Barret naturally took charge and sent Biggs and Wedge down one path while Jessie, Cloud, and he took the elevator. "It ought to lead us to the reactor's heart where we'll place the bomb," Barret concluded. Once inside, Jessie got the thing working and rolling in the right direction.

There was an… uncomfortable silence during the ride. "How deep are we going?" Cloud wondered to himself. Eventually there was a jolt and they all fell forward. Jessie shook her head and asked politely, "Cloud, would you press that button over there?"

"This one?" Cloud asked her.

"Yea, just hold it down 'till we reach the bottom floor," She answered.

Cloud pressed and kept a finger on the button, and soon they were back to silence. Of course the one to break it was Barret. "Little by little, the reactors'll drain out all the life. And that will be that." He said to himself, though obviously for the others to hear.

"Here we go again," Cloud thought to himself, "Just let him talk, Cloud." Jessie looked over at the blonde. She gave him a look that said she was concerned for the same thing. "Now he's got her worried, too?" Cloud kept thinking, "Good. Then let THEM do something about it." Then he said in a barely audible whisper, "It's not my problem." After a pause, he looked up. He hadn't meant to say that out loud.

Barret had a sour look on his face. With a wave of his massive arms, he said, "The planet's dyin', Cloud!"

Cloud started to step up to Barret's face, but he remembered he was holding the switch keeping them going. So he just said, "The only thing I care about is finishin' this job before security and the robogaurds come."

Barret's face turned red. He was done talking to this uncaring boy. Barret turned around just in time for the elevator to arrive at their destination. Jessie came out of the corner and they all exited into a wide, open space.

They stood in awe. The reactor was even bigger than they thought. Good thing they brought the right bomb for the job.

Suddenly, Biggs and Wedge came through a door and joined them, panting like they had run a marathon. "Hey boss," some more panting, "That door… led to some stairs… you take the elevator?" Biggs gasped out. "We ran all the way down… all 54 flights… hah…"

Wedge doubled over, supporting himself with his hands on his knees, "You just wanted to see what was on the other side, right? You… you didn't know there were just stairs… next to the elevator… right? Boss?"

Barret said nothing and started walking. At this, Biggs fell on his back and Wedge exhaled heavily. "Why us?" Wedge asked his fallen companion, "What did we ever do?"

"Well…" Biggs started, but Wedge cut him off and helped him up. They started conversing, and Cloud started walking down the one of many ramps leading to the heart of the reactor.

This was easily the largest room in the reactor. Cloud had to ask himself why they were going down a flight of stairs when they had just exited an elevator. He guessed it was just Shinra's way of keeping the heart of the reactor safe… hm. More like just wasting people's time. He heard Biggs and Wedge discussing something of great importance.

"No, I dare you to slide down the rail."

"No, I dare you to slide down the rail."

"No, I dare you to slide down the rail!"

Cloud just rolled his eyes and passed them, but not before Biggs tried to get his attention, "Hey, Cloud, what was that thing you did earlier?"

"What thing?" Cloud gave in.

"You know, where you shot that bolt of lightning at the guard—that looked like magic!"

"Yea, this sword's got special slots in it for what's called materia. Materia is a solid form of the life stream, and it gives its wielders the power of magic."

"Wow, that's really cool, Cloud!"

Cloud almost smiled at that. For some unexplained reason, he suddenly had a desire to impress and be accepted by others, "This one I've got is a thunder materia—perfect for frying the roboguards if they come."

"Awesome, can I have one?"

"No! No, I've just got this one." At that, Cloud walked quickly up to Barret who was leading.

"You think you could modify my gun for some-kinda slot like that?" Barret asked.

"Probably. But it'll cost you extra." Cloud offered.

Barret chuckled, "The target's within sight."

"Hey," Biggs kept talking, "what's this?" He picked up what looked like a small, glowing rock. He immediately recognized it, "This is a materia! A materia and I found it! I almost tripped over it, but I found a materia!"

"That can't be good," Cloud thought, "Biggs with magic?" So he walked over to him and inspected the stone. Yep, it was a materia all right. "Nope, that's not a materia," Cloud lied, but only to protect Biggs… and everything around him.

Barret joined them, "I'd better hold onto it, though, just in case." He looked at Cloud. Even Barret could tell what it was.

"Um… well…" Biggs was unsure. Barret just stood up straighter and puffed out his chest. After that Biggs handed over the object, and Barret stored it in his pocket. "Good. Now we've found the target. Wedge, did you remember the bomb?"

"What?"

Barret sighed/growled and glared at Wedge, "Tell me, you brought the bomb, Wedge."

"Uh… I… oh, that's right! I left Wedge in charge of it!"

Barret turned his attention to Wedge, "Tell me, Wedge, that we did not sneak into the heart of a secure, highly-restricted, Shinra Mako reactor and risk our lives just for you to forget the bomb."

"I… I…"

"You're a lucky man, Wedge," Barret cut him off.

"What?"

"I saw you guys forget it and grabbed it before we left."

"You… yea?"

"Yea. But now it's up to you to activate it"

"You want me to place the bomb?" Wedge looked scared.

Oh please, even Cloud knew better than to leave Wedge in charge of that. Barret may be angry, but he knew better, right?

Barret calmed himself. "Cloud, would you do the honors?"

Wedge exhaled. Cloud stared at Barret, "Why don't you do it? You're the leader."

"Because I still don't trust ya. Stay in front of me and place the bomb," Barret commanded.

Cloud did as he was told. He grabbed the bomb and approached the reactor's core. He was almost upon it when his head reeled, and his sight went blurry. He doubled over and clutched his head. Then he heard a voice, but it wasn't one he recognized. "Stop," it said, "This is not a normal reactor."

"Ah!" Cloud doubled over and clutched his head. Lights flashed before his eyes, and something from the back of his mind struggled to come forward.

"Yo, Cloud, you okay?" It stopped. Cloud rose to see Barret staring at him, without much concern evident.

"Yea, I'm fine," Cloud muttered.

"THEN WHAT THE HECK YOU WAITING FOR?! Quit wastin' time and let's finish up here!" Barret exclaimed rather impatiently. Cloud shook it off and kneeled to place the bomb. "Remember, I'm watching you, so don't try anything."

"Go right ahead," Cloud said glancing at Barret through the corners of his eyes.

As Cloud worked at the bomb, Barret reveled in his victory. His goal was almost completed. Shinra was gonna pay! This was perhaps the most meaningful thing he had ever done. Well… except that one thing that caused him to lose his arm, but that didn't count. "Once we've blown this place-"

"Hello, boys," a voice came from out of nowhere.

"What the-?" Barret glanced all around. Cloud lifted his head, looking for where the voice could be coming from.

"I'm so glad you could make it," the voice announced, "I went to so much trouble to prepare this for you, I was worried you weren't going to get this far." The voice seemed to echo from everywhere at once.

"Cloud," Barret said without looking down, "Get that bomb ready. I'll handle this. Show yourself!"

"You think yourself so tough?! You think you're 'defending the planet'?! Well, I've got news for you." At this moment an army of guards poured onto the tiny bridge and started towards the platform holding the reactor and Barret's team. "The planet doesn't need you… except, perhaps… as fertilizer." Then the owner of the voice revealed himself. He stepped rather dramatically from the shadows into the light.

"Mister Shinra himself," Barret spat, "Worthless piece of crap."

"Ouch, that hurt, it really did," Shinra faked pain with a smirk, "but not as much as this will."

Cloud rose to his feet. "Barret, bomb's all set. Let's get out of here before it bl-" But Cloud didn't get to finish his sentence as the army parted and a giant, mechanical weapon stepped up to play.

It was shaped like a scorpion, tail and all, but Cloud could tell it would be a lot more dangerous. It shined some light on the party and released a "Target confirmed. Target acquired." and raised some machine guns, aiming straight at the small rebel team.

"Well, I'm afraid I can't stay any longer. I've got some important presidential business to take care of. Do smile for the camera though, won't you?"

Cloud ignored the scorpion mech for now and looked straight at the Shinra leader. "Nice to finally meet you, Mr. Shinra."

The man rolled his head along with his eyes then looked unamused at Cloud. "Do I know you?"

"Nah, I worked for this company when Director Lazard was still in charge-my how it's fallen-but you've probably heard of me." Cloud gripped the handle of his massive blade and made a stance, "The name's… Cloud."

At this the president tried—and failed—to suppress a laugh. "'Cloud'? Your name is…" then with a mocking stance and mimicking voice, "'Cloud'? What kind of a name is that?"

Cloud's anger boiled against the man. "It's not a fierce name, but you'll learn to fear it. I promise you that."

President Shinra suddenly got very serious. "I don't think so." He turned around and began to walk away, "We're done here."

In a two-story building, far away from the team, Tifa leaned against the counter of the bar and stared at the same man she had the misfortune of staring at for the past half-hour. The man had been trying—miserably might I add—to drop subtle hints at her for a while now, and frankly Tifa was fed up with it. "Look," she finally said, "You've got to be what? Eighty?"

The man sat up straight and looked back at her, "What? I'll have you know, I'm only sixty-seven."

"Nope," Tifa thought to herself.

"And I'm considered very attractive for my age."

"No way,"

"ALL the woman say so."

"He's lying,"

"So consider yourself lucky I'm even talking to you." He said with a satisfied nod.

"Yea," said the brunette, "I've got other costumers." With that she walked away. Normally, Tifa didn't have this kind of attitude, but it had been a really long day. She was tired, aggravated, but most of all, she was anxious for Barret, Cloud, and the rest of the team to come back. She always got this way when they went on those dangerous missions.

Approaching the new guests, she greeted them, "What can I do for you?" She tried to sound like she cared, but it didn't really work.

"Um, yes, well… what's the weakest thing you got?"

Tifa just looked back at him, "…water," she said.

"Well, yea, but… what's your weakest beer?"

"…Root Beer," she answered.

"Ugh, you know what I mean!"

"Hey, sonny!" the old man butted in, "You look like a fisher. I'm a fisherman myself—almost got a world record once! You wanna hear about it?"

"No, that's not ne-"

"Oh, it's a great story! See, it all started when I used to fish with my father." Tifa managed to slip away from the victim and his impending doom at the hands of this old man, but she was still very worried about Cloud and the others. Just come home safely, she thought, and soon. This was going to be a long night…

Meanwhile, Cloud faced off with an army's worth of soldiers. Luckily the scorpion mech was stupid and slow, so not only did it take a while to reach them, but it knocked troops off the bridge on its way. This gave Cloud and the others enough time to take care of any infantrymen that stood in their way. Bullets were flying everywhere, but Barret took charge and led his group through wave after wave of men without a single casualty. Cloud meanwhile went straight for the scorpion to keep it away from the others.

Now it was just him and the abomination of Shinra's "protection for the people." Cloud looked at his lightning materia. There was only enough juice left in it for maybe a few more blasts. Or one big one, Cloud thought. He increased his pace until he was running full speed toward the beast. The creature met his charge with a swing of spiked arms, but Cloud was faster—he jumped right as it reached him, soaring over it and aiming for the sensitive head. Unfortunately, he had underestimated the power of the mech's scorpion-like tail, which scooped him up and threw him back onto the ground.

The mech followed up with repeated laser fire before Cloud could recover. He was saved from the first blast by his ever-trusty sword coming between him and the deadly blast. He barely avoided the following shots by rolling quickly to his side—not easy to do with a giant sword on your back.

Okay, so it's tougher than I thought… Cloud thought. Some light shined on his chest, and he saw they were coming from the robot's targeting system. And more persistent! Once again, he jumped into the air to avoid a claw coming for his face, but this time he readied the lightning materia to let loose all the juice it had left. At the peak of his jump, he dropped his sword to his side, feeling the power flow through it and his body straight into his hand, and brought his palm back, glowing with electricity! He let out a yell and thrust his arm forward with intent to destroy… but the shot never came. At the last moment the robot had swung his tail around, slamming it right into Cloud and sending him flying into the wall.

It took a bit to get up from that blow, but Cloud just let out a grunt, gritted his teeth, and re-thought his "plan"—if you could call it that. All right, change of tactics… that tail has got to go! With a newfound fury, he charged right up to the mech, once again raising his sword. The mech—following its programed pattern—swung wide with its spiked claws, but this time Cloud was ready. He block the first swipe and quickly side-stepped the next. The robot was surprisingly quick for its size. Shinra had done well. Still not gonna stop me from tearing this thing apart. He dropped low as another claw dashed forward and used the momentum from his drop to spring back up and throw his sword over his shoulder, cutting off the first arm in the process.

The robot pulled back and swung its tail wide at its foe. Cloud pulled off a side flip and jumped slightly to increase the force of counter attack. His sword fell hard, barely missing the second claw.

The scorpion-shaped mech was enraged (as much as a robot can be) and started slashing wildly. Cloud dodged a few slashes then jumped backwards, skidding across the ground. Due to the power of mako energy all Soldier units are infused with, Cloud was only now breathing a little heavier. He let his sword touch the ground.

Squinted his eyes to study the bot.

Quickly formed a plan as it charged him once again.

The bot came fast, shooting and stabbing.

Cloud blacked the one shot that would have hit him and jumped onto the arm that was rushing forward. He ran along the arm until he reached the top, taking the time to slash its head before jumping behind it and letting loose a powerful blast of condensed mako energy. The lightning fell strong from the sky and pelted through the armor of its victim, tearing it apart and blowing it into pieces.

Smoke rose and all that remained was ashes.

After a quick twirl of his sword in victory, Cloud placed the blade back on his back and turned to see the rest of the fight. Barret's team had done a pretty good job against the infantrymen. What few were left made themselves scarce, scattering into different directions. Barret stood slowly, panting hard but smiling. He looked at Cloud and gave him a nod. They did it. The bomb was set, the enemy was defeated, and soon—

…

Oh my gosh! The bomb!

The whole team seemed to realize it at once and dashed for the exit. Cloud took a quick glance back at the bomb. It was blinking red now—they had less than a minute. Still, they might be able to make it as long as—

"HEEEELP!"

Oh, no… Cloud sighed as he faced the direction of the scream. "Not now… We don't have time for this!" He looked around, but didn't see anything until he heard a second cry. Jessie was trapped under a pile of rubble and was calling out for anybody to help. The rest of the team didn't seem to have heard anything as they frantically climb over each other trying to get out. Cloud looked back at the bomb then Jessie.

Ugh! Cloud groaned as he started towards her. Curse you still, small voice…

As he reached her, he saw her pleading eyes and just how trapped she was. Her leg was stuck under several tens of pounds of rubble. However, he wasn't just going to leave her here… he had to try…

"Thank you…"

Yea, that just makes it all better… Cloud thought to himself, enjoying the gratitude but denying it inside.

"Cloud! Hurry up!" He heard Barret call from across the bridge. He looked up and saw the doors were all locking down. Luckily for them, their escape route was closing much more slowly than the rest of the doors were.

"No time to lose," Cloud said to himself, attempting to lift the debris. "Help me!" He grunted out to Jessie.

"I'm trying!" She said through tears. Barret just looked on, practically hearing the fast-paced, dramatic music the moment called for. The door was half-closed when Jessie was finally freed.

"I can't walk!" Jessie cried.

"You have to try!" Cloud pushed, lifting her to her feet. Jessie walked a few steps then fell.

"It's broken," she said. There wasn't enough time to carry her there, and she certainly wasn't walking there on her own.

"Come on!" Cloud looked at the closing door, than Jessie, then the door once more. No time to think. Only time to react. In that moment, he made the decision.

"Okay, come here," Cloud lifted her and placed his sword on the ground. Then he placed Jessie on the sword—big enough for her to recline on—and pushed with all his might, sending her sliding down the way and through the door at the last second.

He exhaled loudly—that was close. Then turning to face the bomb, thought, not as close as this will be…

All of Midgar shook with the blast that followed. People miles around heard the explosion, but only Barret and his friends knew what had happened. After one hasty escape, Barret, Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge all sat down to catch their breath. They had snuck onto a departing train and finally seemed to be in the clear. Yep. That reactor was finished.

That's one step closer to a healthy planet, Barret thought to himself. The mission had been a complete success… well, except for the getting caught part. He could have lived without president Shinra seeing his face. Still, the entire team could rest easy now, and although Shinra knew who they were now, Barret was pretty sure this train was safe for now. At least until the security check further up, but Barret had planned for that, too.

There were other passengers on the train, of course, but although most if not all of them cast weary glances at the team and kept their distance, Barret managed to ignore them.

"This is what I get for working the late shift," Barret heard one of the passengers say under his breath, "All the bozos get on this train."

Barret chuckled to himself and approached an occupied seat. The man there quickly moved to the far end of the train, and Barret plopped down to relax.

Yep. A job well done—total success.

…

If only he could make himself believe that.

It was that newcomer. He saved Jessie's life, and fell behind for it. Barret figured he got trapped in the reactor and couldn't get out in time… it's not like he really cared for the guy. After all, Cloud had only just joined—probably couldn't be trusted either. "I barely knew the guy," Barret said quietly. The rest of Avalanche looked at each other then stared at the floor. Why was Barret getting so worked up about this Cloud character? He told himself it was because he lost a good fighter, but…

"Cloud never showed…" Wedge said aloud.

"Cloud…" Jessie almost shed a tear. There was silence for a while.

"Do you think he's dead?" Biggs broke the silence.

"No way!" Barret responded strongly. A little more silence.

"Do you think," Wedge spoke up again, "Cloud's going to fight to the end for Avalanche?!"

"How am I supposed to know? I'm not a mind reader!" Barret spoke back with frustration in his voice. He was done talking about this…

Then out of the blue, the train doors swung open, and in flew Cloud himself! He made quite an entrance as he swung through the sliding doors, from the roof of the moving vehicle, and sticking the landing with precision. Needless to say, the whole team was in quite an uproar.

"We thought you were dead!" one would say.

"Cloud! How did you—?"

"That was so awesome!" another would shout. Barret approached him with a smug look on his face.

"Did you miss me?" Cloud asked the man.

"No! Who do you think you are, jumping in like that and giving us all a heart attack?! You just come waltzing in here, making a big scene," Barret raised his voice at Cloud's uncaring look.

"It's no big deal-just what I always do. Guess I'm a little late."

"Darn right, you are! You don't care about nobody but yourself!"

Cloud just shrugged. "Hmm….." Cloud smiled, "You were worried about me!"

"Wha-?!" Barret took a half-step backwards, "I'm takin' it out of your pay check, hot stuff!" With that, Barret walked over to the door leading to the next car in line. "Wake up! We're moving out," he ordered before disappearing through the passage. All of Avalanche started moving in a hurry, but not without having a last word with Cloud.

"Hey, Cloud, you were great back there!" Wedge said. Hm, he's a child, Cloud thought to himself.

Biggs approached the man, "We'll do even better next time!" If there is a next time… we'll see.

Finally Jessie walked up to him. "Oh, Cloud, your face is pitch-black!" She said before taking the time to wipe his face off. …um… Cloud didn't have a response to that. "Thanks for helping me out back there, Cloud." Cloud nodded at her. Just stay away from the face, please, was Cloud's last thought before she, too, disappeared.

Now Cloud stood there alone, pondering his next move. He supposed he would go ask Barret about his money, then he would be headed home. Back home… to Tifa. He really wanted to see her again. But first, he had to endure a ride home with Barret—hopefully there wouldn't be any surprises. Somehow Cloud doubted that. The war against Shinra had just started. He would make them pay for what they took from him!

Before Cloud left, he glanced to a seat close by and saw his sword, cleaned and standing upright. He walked over and, grasping the handle, lifted it to look at it. Reunited with his best friend, he felt he could take on the world—he practically was with Shinra. Cloud then placed the blade once again onto his back, sure he would be drawing it again soon.

This wasn't over. It was only starting—but Cloud was ready.

Little did he know, he was getting into a much bigger adventure than he could ever imagine. One that would take him across the world, under the sea, meeting new faces, facing more creatures, and holding the balance of the world like a fragile materia in his hand.

The story continues in Final Fantasy VII