SOLDIER of the Planet
Chapter 1: The City of Nightmares
Alone in a dark alley, a young girl in a bright pink dress gazed deeply into a blazing fire. If one were to have peered down the alley at her, they would have seen her lips moving, but with no sound escaping. She nodded, shook her head, and whispered something to herself. With a sigh, she got up off the ground, brushed the loose, wet gravel off her knees and picked up the woven basket of flowers she carried.
She headed to the mouth of the alley and was just about to cross the street when a pair of loud motorcycles flew past her, pouring steam and rotten gas fumes into the air. The girl wrinkled her nose up at the horrible smell and coughed. Several more people brushed past her as they moved along the sidewalk, and a rusted out, old, blue car followed the motorcycles. She wondered why she tried to bring color to this black city selling flowers, when she realized she had just answered her own question.
Far above her, belching noxious green clouds of burnt mako energy, stood the massive Shinra Tower, surrounded by the eight mako reactors that sucked energy out of the living earth and converted it into usable electricity. The huge column of glass and steel hung ominously over the city like an angry parent standing over a grumpy child; looming and imposing.
And thus, the greatest adventure of all time, for the life of the planet, began.
Meanwhile, across the next sector at the train station, a train had just come screeching to a halt. The coolant systems on the engines and wheels sprung to life, bathing the hot parts with chilly foam, filling the air with the smell of burning rubber. The two guards at the station coughed and spat, trying to wave the stink away.
The first guard suddenly fell back against the wall and slumped to the ground as a heavy leather boot smashed into his nose. The other guard saw his buddy fall to the ground and a tall, slender man jump off the train. Before he could react though, he felt a pair of slender arms grab his helmet and flip him over onto the ground. He saw a third form wearing blue overalls move his huge weight onto his chest and clobber him senseless.
When both guards were down, a huge black man dressed in a loose vest and worn out pants stomped out from between the engine and first car. He looked around for the signs of any more guards, and when he saw none, he motioned for the others to go on ahead of him.
"Come on, newcomer!" he snapped in his gruff voice. From the other side of the train came a bright flash of silver light followed by two screams. The ex-SOLDIER, dressed in his purple military outfit, stepped out from between the two cars and shrugged as he swung his massive sword over his shoulder and snapped it into its magnetic locks on his back. "Business as usual," he said flatly, running his hands through his spiky blonde hair. The black man snorted. "Yeah, whatever. Jes' follow me." He took off down the same way the first three had gone, followed by the ex-SOLDIER.
After going through the checkout station, the ex-SOLDIER found the first three in front of a security lock. The heavy guy in blue overalls was looking around nervously, while the girl was squatting in front of the panel with a tool pouch, trying to disarm it. The tall, slender man nearly fell to the ground when the guy in the blue overalls backed into him.
"Damn it Wedge! Get your fat ass off of me," the tall, slender man said.
"I'm sorry Biggs, but someone is coming," said Wedge with a look of concern on his face.
Biggs peered down the alley to see a form heading towards them. Fear started to grip him, especially when he saw the silhouette of the huge sword the shadow was carrying. Fear turned to relief however, when the form stepped into the light and it was the ex-SOLDIER who was joining them on this mission.
"Wow, you sure are SOLDIER material all right!" Biggs said with a grin. "It's not every day you find one in a group like AVALANCHE, though."
The girl stopped for a second and craned her neck around to face Biggs. "SOLDIER? Biggs, I thought they were the enemy!"
Biggs shook his head. "Not this time, Jessie. He's on our side, and for some good money too, I hear. What's your name, friend?" The ex-SOLDIER gave Biggs a cold, hard stare. Biggs suddenly felt very open and exposed, but he managed to keep his nervous smile. "Cloud," the ex-SOLDIER said sharply. "And I don't care what your names are. Once this job is done, I'm outta here."
Just then the black man came stomping back into view from a side exit and glared at the four members of AVALANCHE sternly. "What the hell are you all doin'!" he snapped. "I thought I told you never to move in a group! Hurry up with that door and get moving'!"
Jessie snipped the wire in half as soon as the black man yelled at her, and the door sparked for a second before sliding open. AVALANCHE ran into the corridor, except for the black man, who stopped Cloud with a hand on his shoulder and frowned. "I heard the others. Ex-SOLDIER, huh? I don't trust you..."
"Barret! Hurry it up!" Biggs yelled from inside.
"Keep yer goddamn pants on!" Barret roared back. He turned back to face Cloud and scowled. "Still, we got an important job to do tonight, so if you got any ideas 'bout turning on us..." Barret raised his right arm to reveal the large Gatling gun that had been grafted to his right forearm. "I'm gonna be the guy who wastes yer ass." Cloud simply gave Barret a hard stare, and followed him into the corridor.
The catwalk above Sector 8 led into the mako reactor, but also branched off the side. Wedge set himself in front of the large door labeled 'EMERGENCY EXIT' and cast a nervous glance around. Cloud followed the others into the reactor entrance.
Cloud saw Jessie and Biggs next to a security door again with Barret watching the entrance. Barret saw Cloud approaching them. The young pup had gotten this far without turning on us, Barret thought to himself. He knew that the chances of getting Cloud to join AVALANCHE full-time were probably slim to none, but having a former Shinra employee in their ranks would give them some great intelligence on the inner workings of the company. Barret realized though, he did have a trump card waiting for them back at their hideout. If the kid knows what we're fighting for, maybe his conscience would make him join our ranks, Barret thought to himself.
"Yo, this your first time in a reactor?" he asked Cloud when he came in. The ex-SOLDIER shrugged. "No, after all, I did work for the Shinra, y'know."
"Mako's the lifeblood of the planet," Barret explained, "but the Shinra keep suckin' it out with these weird machines, and..."
"I'm not here for a lecture," Cloud snapped. "Let's just get a move on and go home." Barret's ears turned scarlet, but he nodded to Jessie, who swiped a key card through the magnetic lock and swung the door open. She swiped another lock with the card, which led to an elevator. Jessie boarded the elevator, and Cloud and Barret followed, leaving Biggs behind.
As the elevator dropped down to the service levels of the reactor, Barret spoke up again. "Little by little, the reactors will drain out all the life. And that'll be that."
Cloud shook his head and gave Barret the same hard stare. "It's not my problem," he said flatly. Barret snarled and punched the wall. Who did this little freak think he was dissin' on his ideals like this? "The planet's dyin', Cloud!" he yelled.
"I don't care," the ex-SOLIDER sighed. "All I care about is finishing this job before the guards show up." If the elevator hadn't stopped right there, and if Cloud hadn't jumped off at the last second, Barret just might have whacked the mercenary Cloud right there. Barret jumped off the elevator and left Jessie behind to cover their escape.
Cloud and Barret crossed the platform, and then bounded down a set of stairs until they reached a twisting set of stairs and ladders that ran down to a thick pipe. Across the pipe was a thin ladder that led down from the pipe to a long catwalk. The narrow trail hung over a bubbling, steaming pit of raw mako energy. The smell from the stuff wafted up through the entire chamber and exited through the huge hole in the ceiling, filling the once clean air with toxins of pure mako.
At the end of the catwalk lay the mako valve, which controlled the flow of mako from the planet to a degree. This was AVALANCHE's target. Once this thing was gone, the entire reactor would go up with it. Barret shoved a black bag into Cloud's arms and pointed him at the valve. "You set the bomb," he snapped.
Cloud spun around and jabbed Barret with the bag. "Shouldn't you do it?"
Barret hurled the bag at Cloud, sending the ex-SOLDIER staggering back. "Jes' do it!" he roared. "I gotta make sure you don't pull nothin'!" Grumbling, Cloud took the bomb out of the black bag and stuck it to the valve.
Wait! A voice shouted in his head. Cloud stopped punching in numbers and looked around for the source of the voice. A sharp, stinging pain suddenly ripped through his head and made his eyes water. A thin red haze swept over his vision as he crumpled to his knees and grabbed the sides of his head in agony. This isn't a normal reactor!
"Hey, what're you doing over there?" Barret asked. "You okay?"
Slowly, the voice and pain fled from Cloud. After his head stopped ringing, he crawled to his feet and nodded. Where was he...? Right. The bomb.
Cloud hit the final number on the access panel and set the bomb's timer. "This thing's set, let's go!" he shouted. Suddenly, the klaxons went off and a bright red light flooded the room. Barret grumbled to himself as he spun around, looking at the catwalk. A huge shadow suddenly fell upon the both of them, causing both men to look. "What the hell is that," Barret screamed at the top of his lungs.
From the shadows above descended a huge mechanical scorpion, twin rifles set on top of its head and a sizzling laser on its tail. As soon as its legs hit the floor, it turned its sights on Barret and targeted him. Barret responded by popping open the clip to the gun grafted onto his right arm and loading it full of shells. Cloud, meanwhile, pulled his massive sword from its magnetic locks on his back and held it out before him. He hated the way the blade shook in the hilt; the screws were coming loose. He'd have to find someone to fix that someday.
Barret let loose with a wave of ammo from his Gatling gun, but the shells bounced off the guard scorpion's tough armored hide. Again and again Barret fired, until his clip was empty. Cursing, he stepped back. "Shit, this thing's tough! We gotta find some way to punch a hole through its armor so's I can put the hurt on it!"
"Leave that to me," Cloud said sternly.
Suddenly, the green orb in Cloud's sword flared to life. Swinging the sword in front of him, Cloud reached deep inside the materia for the fires that burned within. Grasping onto them tightly, he swung his sword back into its magnetic locks and thrust his fists forward. Shimmering green light burst from the ground at his feet, and his hair rose into the air. From the skies above, a thin spear of lightning shot down through the roof and crashed into the guard scorpion, blowing a huge chunk of its armor to shrapnel.
"Woo boy!" Barret cheered. "That's some handy stuff you got there. But lemme show you how we do things in AVALANCHE!"
Barret removed a shell that was easily the size of his neck and popped his gun open. Shoving the shell inside, he locked his chambers shut and sighted the guard scorpion. Just as he was about to fire, though, the mechanical monster spun the end of its tail and let loose with his laser. A thick beam of blue light ripped through the catwalk, sending flecks of molten steel everywhere. Backing up, both Cloud and Barret found themselves about to tip over the edge of the world and into the steaming pool of mako.
"I hope you got a backup plan," Cloud said flatly.
The guard scorpion advanced on Cloud and Barret and stood over them, each rifle choosing a target. Barret scowled and aimed his gun at the cameras of the robot. His forehead became dotted with sweat as the targeting on his gun flicked on and sighted the guard scorpion less than four feet from Barret. He braced himself as a large ball of flame burst to life at the end of his gun barrels. "Target this, ya sorry excuse for a blender!" he roared.
Screaming, Barret launched the shell at the guard scorpion. The robot took the brunt of the blast in the face and was flung back against the edge of the catwalk. The blasted section slowly began to peel away from the solid catwalk, and the guard scorpion clung to the edge for dear life. Barret and Cloud ran to the edge and looked down at the robot, whose front had been blown to shreds. Its cameras hung in tangled piles of junk, while its two guns were gone completely. "Barret, can you do that again?" Cloud asked. Barret snarled and shook his head. "Man, how many of those d'ya think I can carry? That was the big one."
Cloud sighed. "I was afraid of that." Raising his sword high above his head, he jumped down on the robot's face and swung, severing a claw. Cloud scrambled to the other edge of the guard scorpion as it lurched to the left and chopped the second claw. The guard scorpion plummeted to the mako pool far below, leaving Cloud dangling by one of its still grasping claws. The ex-SOLDIER flung his sword up onto the catwalk and had Barret help him up.
"Ha! We ain't gonna have too much trouble from him anymore," Barret cheered. "Cloud, how much longer have we got on that bomb?"
"Well, I set it for a nice long time, so right now I'd say about..." The bomb beeped and clicked as the display jumped down from a half hour to ten minutes. "About that long." Exchanging glances with each other, both Barret and Cloud spun around and fled for the exit.
Up on the floor above, Cloud spotted Jessie, who was pulling on her leg and shouting for help. When Cloud came up to investigate, she blushed and grinned. "My...ah, foot got caught..." she stammered. Cloud grabbed her ankle, twisted, and pulled. Jessie shook her foot to get the circulation going, smiled, and flew up the stairs to the elevator.
After Cloud and Barret got in, she looked at the two of them and grimaced. "What happened to you two?" she asked. Both of them looked at her and said, "Long story." Jessie blinked, and didn't ask again.
The elevator dinged happily as the doors slid open. Cloud looked down at the watch under his bronze bangle and made a choked yelp. "One minute...and it's going fast!"
"Shit!" Barret roared. "Let's scram!"
Barret barreled past a startled Biggs, who was grabbed by Cloud and dragged outside, followed by Jessie. At the entrance to the reactor, Wedge was still waiting by the large sewer doors. He gave a deep sigh when he saw Barret and flung the doors open, making hasty get moving motions. He jumped inside, followed by Barret and Biggs. Cloud had to push Jessie along before the reactor exploded in her face.
All across the vast city of Midgar the explosion could be heard. For miles around, even in Kalm, it was seen. The massive fortress of steel and mako erupted with an earth shaking explosion and a fireball that rose for miles into the sky, lighting up the perpetual night that hung over Midgar. Sector 8 blacked out, and high in the Shinra Tower that loomed over Midgar, President Shinra watched the fireworks from his top floor office. A stern look crossed his face has he stubbed his cigar out on the window.
In the sewers, Jessie was bent over a pile of moldy rubble, setting a smaller charge. Wedge shifted nervously and managed a small smile. "That should keep the planet going...for at least a little longer." Barret simply nodded.
"Okay, everyone get back!" Jessie shouted. She pushed everyone else into the back of the tunnel as the charge went off. A thick wall of fire burst to life on the trash in the sewers, forcing Cloud to make a running leap from the tunnel and into a back alley. Barret followed him, followed by Jessie and Biggs, and finally, Wedge.
Barret counted heads and nodded again. "Awright, we done good, team. Meet up at the train station, an' don't be late!" The members of AVALANCHE nodded and scurried away into the darkness. Just as Barret was about to leave, though, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. The big man turned around to face Cloud, who was about to ask a question. Barret cut him off, though. "Look, if this's about the money, save it 'till we get back to the hideout!" He ran off, leaving Cloud alone in the alley.
Cloud plodded up the stairs leading out and hit a bundle of confusion and panic. Several stores and tents had been shattered, leaving their residents out in the streets. He saw rotted posters for the play "Loveless", which was supposed to be a smash hit. That was why it had been playing for forty years straight. The last actress to play the lead, though, was caught in an apartment fire.
Cloud bumped into a girl standing in the street and stumbled back. He caught her by the wrist just as she was about to fall, though, and set her back upright. Smiling, she dusted the front of her pink dress off and picked up her flower basket. "Ah...thanks. I guess I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."
Cloud shrugged. "No...It was my fault."
They stared at each other for a minute, not saying anything. Cloud was instantly lost in her shimmering green eyes that hung in front of him like crystal pools. Her voice was sweet music, and her smile was a blinding light in the darkness of this city of nightmares. Cloud racked his brain for something to say, and came up with..."Uh...you don't see too many flowers around here."
The girl smiled and picked a bright pink one from her basket. "Oh, you like them? They're only a gil."
Cloud dug around in his pocket and pulled a small silver coin out that was split almost down the middle by three ridges. He let it slide through his fingers for a minute, forgetting why he had it out until she spoke again. "Well...? Are you going to buy one?" Cloud jumped and handed her the coin. Smiling, she handed Cloud the pink flower. "Maybe I'll see you again sometime. Midgar's not as big as it seems." With that, she turned and walked away.
Cloud's head was swimming. Where had she come from? Creatures like her didn't exist, least of all in places like Midgar. Still, there she was, or had been anyway. The ex-SOLDIER twirled the flower in his fingers and sighed. The others were waiting for him at the train station.
Cloud spun on his heel and ran through the downtown square that was covered in AVALANCHE fliers and anti-Shinra propaganda. Adding insult to injury, AVALANCHE had spread their logo in peeling blue spray paint across a Shinra billboard along with another anti-Shinra message.
Uptown, though, was an entirely different scene. Well built brick houses with lush shrubbery lined the clean cobblestone streets, with black metal fences adding to the calm and well placed scene. The streets were slightly damp with the evening chill and yesterday's rain, and a thin fog hung around the street lights. Cloud sighed. He wished he could have lived a normal life like this, with a normal wife, normal kids, having a normal job; the life of a mercenary wasn't the best. Not like he had thought five years ago.
His train of thought was interrupted by a sudden shotgun blast from behind that tore a chunk out of the street. Jumping in surprise, Cloud spun around to face two Shinra guards in blue uniforms holding assault weapons. "Hey, that's the guy from the warning we got! Blow his head off!"
Cloud backed up into three more guards, who grabbed him by the shoulders and held him tight. The first two approached with a pair of sticks, but never got the chance to use them. Cloud kicked up and slammed his feet into the front two guard's ribs. He then brought his fists together and drove his elbows into the guts of the guards behind him. The last got a roundhouse kick to the head and hit the ground, moaning.
The ex-SOLDIER made a break for freedom, but was stopped again by three more guards. Backing away, he looked behind him and found the edge of a bridge laid with railroad tracks. One of the guards coughed and pointed his weapon at Cloud. "Th...That's as far as you go!" he shouted.
"I don't have time to be dealing with you clowns," Cloud snapped. Just then, he heard the whistle of the train blowing. He snarled when he realized that the train was pulling out of the station! And it was a long hike back to Sector 7.
There was only one thing left to do. Cloud waved his hands in an elaborate series of motions and began to mumble. The guards immediately backed up and lowered their weapons. "Crap...he's got materia on 'im! Watch out!"
Cloud smirked to himself. It had worked! Now, if only the train would arrive on cue.
The whistle blew again, closer than ever. Cloud hopped up onto the edge of the bridge and waved a fond farewell to the stunned guards. As the train passed beneath him the ex-SOLDIER jumped onto the speeding train and hunkered down low as it passed beneath another bridge and rapidly descended into the slums of Midgar, far beneath the upper levels of the city.
"Cloud never came," Wedge sighed.
Biggs looked out the window at the speeding wall and folded his arms across his chest. "Cloud...do you think he was killed?"
"No way!" Barret snapped. "The guy was in SOLDIER, remember? He'll take care of himself. 'Sides, he's got his cash and his girl to come home to."
"Yeah, but do you think he'll really fight to the end with AVALANCHE?" Biggs asked. Barret thumped a crate next to him and grumbled. "What do I look like, a mind reader? How the hell am I supposed to know?"
Wedge nodded. He dug his hands into his pockets and looked up at a scowling Barret. "Hey, what about our money?" he asked. Barret thumped on the crate again and shot a look at Wedge that made him wish he had never said anything. "Uh, never mind..." Wedge muttered softly.
Jessie perked her ears up at the sound of something falling onto the roof. Looking up, she followed the sounds of heavy footsteps thudding across the ceiling and over to the door. She got up from leaning on a box and was about to slide open the doors when they flew open by themselves. Jumping back in surprise, she made room for Cloud, who swung in and made a neat landing in front of Barret. AVALANCHE jumped to attention and stared in disbelief.
"Looks like I'm late," Cloud said smugly. One could literally see the smoke pouring out of Barret's ears as he punched a hole clean through the crate. "You're damn right you're late! Comin' in here, makin' a big show like you don't care 'bout nothin' but yerself!"
Cloud looked up at Barret and chuckled. "Ah...so you were worried about me! You big, squishy lug, you."
Barret roared and kicked Cloud, who slid to the side and grinned. "That does it! I'm takin' that outta your money, hotshot! We're movin' out, so this time, keep up!" With that, he spun around on a booted heel and stomped angrily out of the car and into the first passenger's area.
Wedge smiled at Cloud after Barret left. "Hey, nice job back at the reactor," he said, and followed the big man out. Biggs clapped Cloud on the back and rubbed the back of his neck. "Barret's okay, but you shouldn't rile him like that. Watch yourself." He followed Wedge.
Jessie put an arm on Cloud's shoulder and spun him around. She pulled a cloth from one of her many pockets and began to rub at Cloud's face. When he started to complain, she snapped his jaw shut and grinned. "You're covered in soot," she said. After several minutes of wiping, she put the cloth away and smiled. "Now you're clean. And...Thanks for helping me out at the reactor. I owe you." She slowly made her way out to the passenger car.
Cloud shut the door and sighed. After that, he slid open the door to the next car and stepped inside.
Attention all passengers, Midgar rail system number five will be arriving in Sector 7 in exactly five minutes. The current time is 11:43. Thank you for riding with Shinra, and have a nice day.
The PA bleeped off, and Cloud looked around for a seat. Finding few unoccupied, he opted to stand next to a window and watch the world go by. Jessie called him, though, and sat him next to the rail map. "I love this kinda stuff...bombs and monitors. All the flashy stuff." As the green wire map flicked on, she grinned.
"This is a map of Midgar at a 1/10,000 scale. The top area lies fifty meters above the slums, and is home to the 'haves' of Midgar...that is, people with real houses. The mako reactors also sit on the top plates, along with the center Shinra plate. Each of the eight plates is held up by a tall support pillar in the center of the slums, including the Shinra plate, which has a huge pillar in the middle of Midgar. The train we're on now goes around the center pillar and most other pillars."
"Phew...this is next..."
"At each sector there is a system ID check station. It checks the identity of everyone on board by means of a special magnetic card that is scanned and cross referenced with the Shinra central data banks in the Shinra Tower. Each sector also used to have a name, but it's been so long that nobody remembers them. Instead, we refer to them as numbered sectors. That's the kind of place this is."
The map flipped off, and the car was bathed in a soft red light. "Speak of the devil..." Jessie muttered. "This's one of the ID checkpoints. Anyone could tell that we're suspicious, though, so I've supplied everyone with fake IDs." The lights shut off, and Wedge began grumbling. "This sucks...this's why I hate the dark. I'm seein' spots."
"Quit your moaning," Biggs said sleepily. "Besides, we're almost home."
Cloud moved back to the window and looked up at the bottom of a plate that loomed far overhead. Barret snorted as he looked with Cloud and jumped from his seat. "That damn plate...if it wasn't there, we could see the sky. This place ain't got no day or night, y'know. An' it's because of that goddamn 'pizza' that the people in the slums are sufferin'!"
Cloud blinked, but didn't take his eyes off the pillar. "Then why doesn't everybody move onto the plate?" he asked. Barret shrugged and turned his back on the ex-SOLIDER. "Dunno," he said softly. "Maybe 'cause they ain't got no money. Or maybe because they love their land, no matter how polluted it gets."
The ex-SOLIDER nodded. "I guess it's a lot like this train. It can only go where its rails can take it."
Barret turned around and put on a wry grin. "Well, I never expected anything like that outta you." Cloud glanced up at Barret, who smiled back and shook his head. "Man, you jes' fulla suprises." Cloud looked back out the window and said nothing. In the car that sped towards Sector 7, the only sound that was heard was the wheels slamming against the tracks, echoing through the hollow steel cavern of the Midgar slums.