Disclaimer: I only own Alessa in this story so far. There may be others later on in the story but not right now. Final Fantasy, the characters, its story and otherwise belong to Square soft (Lucky gites) and upon suing me you will get nothing but the clothes off my back (I mean literally) so please don't
Author's notes: Ok this story has slightly changed outlines to it that the actual storyline of Final fantasy, these are for artistic license so please don't hate me. I'm not taking too many liberties.
Chapter 1: Bound at every limb
Cloud looked around Hojo's lab, amazement written clearly over his features. There seemed to be all sorts of oddities here. It was whilst observing one of these oddities that he walked into clear plastic chute. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to what he was seeing and when they did the others knew about it.
There was a crash and the sound of metal clashing across the floor as Cloud stumbled backwards into a small table of delicate instruments. Some of them grated painfully across his back but he ignored the pain…focusing only on what was in the giant test tube in front of him. There was a woman he dimly recognized and had hoped they had finally put her to rest. He shook his head as every single memory of this young woman ran through this head causing his head to swim. Here in this place of obscenities was the one person who had fought for their right when he was in soldier and before. His commander until he became first class.
-Flashback-
The black haired woman hung back lazily on the chair her face upturned to catch the evening breeze coming in through the window. It has been uncharitably hot this year and out of all of the people Cloud knew she seemed to have suffered the most. She sat with her hands on her lap eyes closed and her head towards the fan that was near the window. She had purposefully set this up so she could feel the maximum cool. Her eyelids where closed and held pale flecks of silver dust that were part of her skin and not make-up. It intrigued them as to how she got it.
There had often been rumors of her and what she was which she down right ignored…or if anyone was foolish enough to tell them to her face got a bloody good kicking in the ass. She was bested only by the great Sephiroth in this place and though she would never admit it was in Soldier and not the normal core of the army. She enjoyed being unnoticed and had only told Cloud and his friend that she was as close to the great general as one could get.
Her lips where pale right now proving that the heat was becoming a little too much for her…she was probably going to be ill tomorrow. Cloud hoped not. He wanted her there at his First class Initiation. He wanted just one friend there. She turned to him and opened her pale eyes that shifted colour every so often. "So how you holding up?"
-End flashback-
Cloud stared up at the woman hanging in stasis in front of him. She was almost the same, her skin pale by comparison to any he had ever seen. Her hair had grown longer and still held its beautiful silky shine that he had always wanted to stroke when he was young. Her body was so slim but still held the curves of a woman. Her arms where bent around her body as if trying to protect herself from something. Her head was tilted upwards and she seemed to be in a very strange position. She was wearing a Soldier dress of deep blue purple. It was as he'd remembered it, slit up the sides of her legs so she could run and maneuver without getting caught up in the outfit and with a very low dip in the front that just showed the start of her pale round breast. He stood quickly and stepped up to the glass again. Reaching out a hand to touch the glass he felt a wash of sadness run over him.
"What have they done to you Alessa?" he whispered.
Cloud was broken out of these thoughts when another crashing sound was heard. Glad to know I'm not the only clumsy one, Cloud thought with grim satisfaction. Yuffie was bumbling around the room seemingly intent on finding something of value. Her green eyes glittered intensely with childish pride as she pulled and old material out from behind a bookcase.
He returned his gaze to the glass and saw Tifa looking at him from the other side. Her crimson coloured eyes held shock as she looked up at the woman in the tube that was hooked up to about 15 different machines around the huge cave room. He smiled at her through the glass hoping that she understood that he was here for her if she wanted to talk. There was another crash, this time accentuated by the screams of a young girl. The roaring of a huge beast and gun shots from both Vincent and Barrett closely followed by hurled obscenities. Yuffie raced across the room shrieking as she did so while trying to spin her shrienken at something that was following her.
A large red breast raced through the halls trying to breathe fire at the three fleeing figures before it. Tifa, Cait Sith, Red and Cloud all stood next to each other trying to get weapons out in this small area. The four held their ground as the others raced past to give supporting fire. "What the hell did you touch this time Yuffie?" Cloud yelled at the top of his lungs.
"It wasn't anything important!" she replied indignantly.
"It was the power button." Vincent's stotic voice added as the beast burst into the room.
As the beast raced into the room the four standing at the front where hit by its massive bulk and where thrown back against the three behind them, Tifa was caught by Vincent and a look crossed the twos faces that made a spark of jealousy snap into Cloud's body. Aerith appeared from behind her corner and ran to Cloud's side.
Cloud had no more time to analyze this strange turn of events, as a shattering sound was heard. It wasn't the clean shattering of glass, but rather more like the shattering of… plastic. Cloud turned to see Alessa standing, a feral snarl written across her beautiful features. She looked almost not to be human at that point, rather some animal that had stumbled out of the swamps a hundred or more thousand years ago. Her hair was slightly knotted from being drenched in water and her eyes where open slightly larger than normal. She glared at the creature with a pure malevolence that Cloud had never seen in his matron protector.
With a snarl that sounded more like that of a dragon roaring she leapt at the creature. Long delicate looking nails slashed and stripped the beast of its eye. It snapped large jaws at her head that she barely managed to duck. Tifa let out a startled shout for the young woman who spun on her heels obviously disorientated. She went to launch herself at the members of the group, but was stopped by the beast, who was roaring whilst charging straight at her. She easily grabbed hold of its neck and flipped herself onto its back, whilst tightening her hold on the creature.
She held it there, and held her position on the beast's back, even as it slithered underneath her, trying to dislodge both her and her hand. She held on, even as the beast's death throes quietened until the body wasn't even twitching anymore. Then she stood too quickly, and staggered, placing her hand firmly against the wall. It was clear that she was confused.
"Alessa?" Cloud asked, disbelief in his voice.
"Back off." Alessa snarled, turning to the group.
"Alessa, we're here to help you." Cloud reassured. She stared around at the group fear and pain written across her face.
"Cloud? What are you doing here? Where is here?" she looked up at her surroundings, seeing Hojo's experiments around her for the first time, her face took on a deathly hue, "
"Where is here?" she asked quietly.
"You're in Hojo's lab. At Nibblehiem, it's been hidden for years now Alessa. And so have you!"
"You're…you're lying…Hojo wouldn't…he daren't…I know you people." Her eyes widened to large for her face she stares at Cloud, Tifa and…Vincent. Panic took on full form.
-Flashback -
Alessa stood only a few meters from the man she loved, she was happy and there was nothing more that she could want at this moment in time. He'd done what he'd wanted to do and now they could leave here. They could get away and live how they wanted, not bothering with the strict régime of …who was it she worked for?
She blacked out from that memory and awoke on another one. He was holding her and she was panicking. She was terrified. There where gun men facing her and as she looked on in disbelief they fired their rifles at them. She shrieked and tried to hold onto her love.
-End Flashback-
She grabbed her head as if in pain and stumbled backwards into the table that Cloud had knocked over earlier. Her hand slipped out from under her as she fell, landing hard in the remains of some glass test tubes. Her hands hurt and blood dripped across her skin and she reached up to stare at her pale hand.
-Flashback-
There was blood everywhere. Sephiroth stood over her laughing. She managed to parry a blow and maneuver around him. In a wild panic she slashed out at his hand. Tifa shrieked at her as the blade hit the girl's father instead of its intended target. Alessa stared at the man for a moment entranced by something fuzzy around his face. Then his sword hit her. She let out a scream of her own before falling into darkness.
-End Flashback-
Cloud watched her with a look of pure confusion on his face. "Alessa it's me! It's Cloud. Don't you remember me?" he took a step forward with his hand over his heart trying to work out what must be going through her mind right now. She seemed hurt and confused as she stumbled around trying to get her bearings. With every step he approached she backed off faster as if he was the source of all her problems.
"The last time I saw you I thought you where dead." She was up on her feet now incredibly quick. He heard the sounds of everyone behind him getting ready to fight and saw the look that pasted through her eyes. "Still a survivor underneath." He whispered to himself as he held his hands out. She could most likely kill at least three people in this room before dieing herself. He glanced over his shoulder and looked at her most likely targets. He knew she would take out the long range attackers first and at this moment in time her eyes where trained on Vincent who stood behind him in plain sight.
Anger had flared across her pale features with another look Cloud had hoped to never see on her face again, recognition. Either Vincent had done something to her or his father had. He saw her eyes turn a bright vibrant red as she eyed up her prey. In turn he heard a click as Vincent took aim. Turning slightly Cloud caught sight of a slightly started gunslinger, a look which quickly passed away. Right now he knew he had to diffuse the situation. He didn't want her dead.
To block her view he sidestepped in front of her intended target and her eyes immediately slid to his. Her eyes changed to an eerie green he remembered all to well. "Don't worry I won't harm you." He said as if to a child. She responded for a moment relaxing as his voice reached her ears.
You might not harm her but I will!" Barret snarled as he pointed at her again. Cloud glared at him and then took out his sword placing it on the floor before she could get the wrong idea. She stared at it and then smiled before a nervous trigger finger got set off and fired a line of bullets just above her head. She growled and launched herself clear over Cloud. Although Barrett had fired she was intent on catching the other gun user before he got her. Another shot was fired and chaos erupted across the room.
Alessa landed hard against Vincent who managed to get a shot off into her shoulder, apparently fear held a painkiller as she didn't even flinch. She rode him down sinking her nails into his shoulder as she did so and eliciting a pained gasp from the usually silent man. Tifa watched as the man next to her went down and then aimed a blow at the woman's head. Alessa ducked below it and reached up with one of her hands, grabbing the girl and throwing her off balance. Her reply to the fist was a kick in the chest that brought Vincent half way up off the floor and sent Tifa into the air. Red jumped her and managed to pin the offending leg in his jaw, eliciting a scream from the pale lips.
Barret took aim and shot at her hitting her in the stomach. Cloud could very well see her being killed right now. "Vincent Grab her." Although this sounded like a strange command the Turk did as he was told. He reached up with the arm that she hadn't pinned and grabbed her neck. It caused her to release her grip on his other shoulder and allowed him to shift position beneath her. Tifa clutched her stomach and tried not to be sick. Red let go of Alessa's leg and backed off slowly trying to keep out of the way of the woman's failing legs. Her other hand was free only a moment longer before Vincent had both hands behind her back and holding her close to himself.
Cloud noticed that there was no fear in the man's crimson eyes just confusion. Then an idea seemed to spill into his head and Cloud swore for once he could see the cogs turning in the gunslingers mind. Slowly he pulled her into him until there was no room to struggle no room to move, nothing. She was tense even if she knew she could not move. His mouth was next to her ear and Cloud watched as his lips started to move. First the tenseness in her shoulders left her, and then she stopped trying to pull on her arms to break free. Then her head rolled backwards and rested on Vincent's shoulder as she fell into a deep sleep. Vincent didn't let go of his death grip but looked up at Cloud. "She'll sleep till the morning. I think that's all she really needed in the first place."
"What do you mean 'in the first place'? She should bloody well be in an insane asylum for this." Tifa gasped trying to keep what was left of her stomach contents down. "I mean she just bloody well attacked us!"
"Not really." Aerith said, "We woke her up. Imagine waking up and not knowing what's going on." She waved a hand over a Vincent and the limp form.
"That would be one hell of a wakeup call." Tifa admitted, scratching the back of her head.
"Well I would like to know what we're going to do with her." Barrett butted in.
"We can't leave her here." Yuffie interjected, "Not with all those monsters around and her all on her own."
"She can take care of herself." Vincent stated matter-of-fact tone in his voice, "I'm sure she could handle a few monsters."
"I'm not so sure." Cloud said, "Going rampant like that only happens to recently re-awakened SOLDIERS. Other wise by the time she's awake, with no materia and no healing? She'd be dead." He walked over to Vincent and took the limp form into his own arms. "No matter what right now she's coming with us."
Author's notes: This chapter is written with the help of my dear little sister and friend Elfsire. Please go and read her works they are great. Anyway I hoped you enjoyed. I might put up the next chapter if people review. Flames as always are welcome as long as they are constructive.