Title: Genesis Awakening
Author: RenoxRayne
Chapter: 1, The Agreement
Summary: Things around The Planet have been quiet and uneventful. Busy work has been given to the Turks, sending them on a mission to retrieve "ShinRa property" by any means necessary, without using excessive force while Reno drinks his days away in the bar. What happens when they realize this property is really a live human being?
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters but Fourteen. All the others are property of Buena Vista Games and Sony Computer Entertainment.
((A/N: Long time no see! This is part three, and the conclusion to the Thrice-Blessed trilogy. I wanted to mention the birthname that I gave Reno and why. In Crisis Core, Cissnei states that "Cissnei" isn't her real name. Well, Shireken isn't either. So, I figured that what they worked on being espionage and whatnot, that they were forced to give up their old lives and identities and assume another. Reno I named Alexander Sinclair. Sinclair because it's been deemed the most likely surname for him by fans and Alexander because of Axel. Nobodies had acronyms of their names (most of the time with an x added) so rearranging Axel gives you Alex. But since it would be Axxel when he was named, they just dropped the second x. And with Reno's ties to Axel's creation, there ya go! Sorry for the long explination! ))
"Excuse me?"
The voice, a male one with an almost sarcastically jovial tone to it, had startled the lone soul that floated in the darkness. She wasn't sure how long she'd been there, just floating. Time really had no meaning anymore; she had barely even realized that she was alone, the notion no longer dawning on her. But that voice, foreign although somewhat familiar, had beckoned to her and suddenly her entire being was alive with the feeling of needing human contact. What was he?
Come on, don't be that way. For someone who one claimed to be in love with me, you certainly don't act like you missed me all.
"Missed…you?"
Hadn't she been the one who'd been gone? The one who'd gone missing inside their selves and hidden so well that they no longer knew where the real world resided? The one who had been gone so long that they really knew little more about their selves other than their name.
There was a long pause since her rhetorical question and whether it was true or not, the voice seemed to act somewhat upset by the lack of her recognition. She felt bad, an urge to reach out and put a comforting hand on the disembodied voice washing over her suddenly. When had she gotten so empathetic?
Come on, Rayne. It's me, Axel. Got it memorized?
"Axel? Rayne?" She tossed the names around in her head, the first reminding her of…something, but the second didn't ring a bell at all. "I'm…sorry. I-I don't know you. Or Rayne. I'm not even entirely sure where we are."
A hint of a smirk fell upon the atmosphere, causing her to ponder just what it was that he was smiling about. He was just trying to get her to remember him, and telling him otherwise had made him…happy?
First him, now you. I guess that's the life of a Nobody…or unlife. Whatever.
"Don't call yourself that. Certainly, you do not believe yourself to be a nobody. I mean…we're both obviously lost in this dark void, but still…"
Why was she comforting him?
Alright, that's the Rayne I remember! At least, she had said similar things before to me!
What was he going on about? "Was Rayne your girlfriend? Is that who you're looking for?"
Another pause, a frustrated sigh sounded out. No, she was just a girl that was nice to me. I thought I'd found her, but I suppose I'm going to have to keep looking. The in-between gets lonely, ya know? He thought for a moment before speaking again. Lets you and me make a deal. You help me find Rayne, and I'll get you out of here. You want to get back to your world, right?
Well, that wasn't too bad of a deal, but even then, she didn't know if she could make good on her part. "I don't know who she is though. How can I help?"
You'll know her if you see her, I promise. You better hurry though…tick tock tick tock.
A flicker of flame illuminated the darkness at one end. It didn't give her a path, nor did it show her really anything. Just a little flame, like the end of a lighter, just hovering there as if beckoning her to follow. "Well…okay. But if you know the way out, why don't you just go out yourself and look for her?" She questioned as she started toward the light. It didn't move, but simply stood there as if it were waiting for her to catch up.
I've got no body to return to, jeeze. You really don't remember, do you?
"Huh?"
The closer she got to him, the more peculiar she began to feel. Heavier, tired, she couldn't breathe. But persistence and curiosity drove her own until she felt as if she were dragging her feet through a hundred pounds of sludge. Sweat beaded on her forehead, her muscles ached, her lungs burned.
And then she was falling.
This wasn't just your normal slip and fall. This was a crazy, oh-crap-I-just-fell-into-the-Northern-Crater-and-I'll-never-hit-bottom kind of fall. Complete with arms flailing, voice calling out, the feeling of the wind enveloping her in its tendril strands, warring with her inertia.
As soon as it started it seemed, it ended with just as much a sudden lurch. And for the first time in a year, she opened her eyes to the light of day.
Rude and Elena waited out in the waiting area of the small medical facility, waiting for whatever or whoever to be ready. The mission had been simple: Go to Mideel, and retrieve a piece of ShinRa property to bring back to the WRO headquarters. Don't use excessive force if you can get away with it, the package was valuable. Right. Retrieval filler missions were monotonous and basically just to keep moral from going down the toilet in months where business was slow.
While this was originally Reno's mission…
The red-head hadn't been into the fighting spirit in a year. He took missions when he knew he may lose his job, but nothing more than that. He spent long days and nights down at Seventh Heaven, drinking until Tifa had to call Reeve to send someone down after him. At first, it had been understandable. Now, it seemed more like a ridiculous habit. He went down there a lot of the times before he could even be assigned a mission, knowing he couldn't very well go on one drunk. He went down there, filled himself full of alcohol, and then was able to have a vacation from feelings from the rest of the day.
Rude was beginning to wonder if there was more alcohol than blood in his friend's veins anymore.
He missed him, the old him, the strong nuisance who didn't mind being a pain in the ass to get what he wanted. He missed his trouble buddy, the one who under no circumstance would leave him behind on a mission. Even if it meant that his chances for death were significantly amplified by coming back for him, he did. He had become a brother to him over the years, and to watch all that be washed away after one incident.
This is why the Turks were asked to give up their old lives in favor of a new one. Why they were given new identities with codenames that really meant nothing. It wasn't to protect anything or anyone, it was to dehumanize them and allow them to do their emotionally taxing work. Rude barely remembered his birth name anymore. Reno had told him his once…Alex. Alexander Sinclair. He had claimed that part of him died the moment he became a Turk…but something about Rayne had breathed life back into the former persona and he'd come back as if he'd never left at all.
"She'll be ready in a few minutes, she's getting dressed. I just…I don't feel right just releasing her like this. You guys aren't going to do anything to her are you?" The nurse questioned worriedly as she came out of the room. Rude and Elena exchanged looks. The package was a girl?
"Oh no! Not to our knowledge. We're just supposed to retrieve her and bring her back!" Elena spoke up quickly. Rude crossed his arms and nodded.
"Fair enough then. I'm just warning you, she's fragile. She's been in a coma for a year, no recollection of her past, and she just woke up this morning. If you're not careful, you could shock her into a catatonic state." She scolded starting to head back in the room.
"She will…be fine. That is why we are here. To insure her safety." She wasn't buying it, remembering the times ShinRa's lap dogs had caused trouble in the years before. After all, a leopard couldn't change its spots. Grunting, she waved off his comment and headed in to check on the girl.
"What do you think they want with her?" Elena asked in a hushed tone. Rude shrugged.
"Whatever it is, we'll find out when we get back. More work, though. More pay."
She smiled some, but her face was still scrunched up in confusion, her blue eyes trying hard to figure out what's going on. She only had a few moments to think though before the woman exited the room. At first glance, the reason the WRO would want her was a little more clearer.
Her SOLDIER 2nd Class uniform fit her tall slender form a little uncomfortably, looking as if she may have grown slightly in the time she'd been in a coma. The leather was scuffed, the cloth had cuts in parts. Her tan skin was scarred from an attack. Her green eyes shimmered with Mako energy, and Rude could almost already sense the trouble this was going to start. She looks just like Rayne.
"This is Fourteen, at least, that's what she remembers of her identification number. She didn't have a name when she came here nor records, I trust you'll be able to help her with that?"
Rude shrugged. "HQ burned up. Most of the records with it. What didn't, Meteor destroyed."
The girl huffed, stretching a little uneasily. "Then why is it that I'm going with you?"
They had no answer. "I just know they're worried about you. We're headed to World Regenesis. There's concern about the Mako energy infused in you."
She rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to be a lapdog again."
"You don't have to!" Elena piped up. "Just let our doctors check you out and they'll probably let you go."
She knew better. But if there was concern, it was probably concern of her becoming a threat to them. She could use that to her advantage. Agreeing to go with them, she thanked the nurse who'd cared for her for the past year and gingerly made her way to the helicopter. Hopefully…she'd regain her full mobility soon. This was going to drive her insane.
