Disclaimer: I own the OC's and that is it. Oh, and I do not own Mr. Judas, because he is a character from the FFVII universe that is using an alias. And don't even think about asking me if I own Edward, because I do not and you know it.
A/N: Well, here is the next chapter. I am so excited to be getting this story underway. :) Too much Nitro Circus watching helped fuel this chapter. Also- This chapter is more Tomb Raider than FFVII. The next chapter will be the opposite, fortunately.
Paris...
Karel finished sending the coordinates to a drop zone over his phone to Sephiroth before holding the phone to his ear once more. "Do you think you can succeed in bringing them to the assigned location?"
Sephiroth chuckled. "Of course." He said.
"One last thing," Karel said, his eyes narrowing. "Do not let one Kurtis Trent find you or them. If he does, then our covers are blown."
Sephiroth laughed darkly. "Like anyone can find me." He said ominously, hanging up.
Karel smiled as he turned his phone off. "Excellent. Now, I finally have a business partner who shares the same mindset as I do."
How in the world did he forget about everyone's favorite immortal?... No, not Edward. Eckhardt!
Standing, he paid his bill. Turning, he left the café and melded with the crowd, disappearing from the Parisian streets- Seriously.
In Some Dark, Creepy Cave...
In some dark, creepy cave- Not Lucrecia's cave- Vincent… Well, lurked. Did he do anything else when not fighting? He was waiting for something.
Reports had been showing up for the last month that what could only be described as blue-white vortexes had been dropping in. By dropping it means that they seemed to literally fall from the sky and beam people or items away.
This cave, it seemed, was at the center of the problem. Ever since the beaming-away began, certain items would get beamed into this cave… And never the ones that were taken away.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!
Vincent watched silently, not like he was ever really loud, as yet another lawnmower was beamed into the cave. That puts the count at 37. He thought.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT… ZNK!
This is new. Vincent thought with a raised eyebrow as someone fell through the portal. They were groaning- A good sign. Means they weren't dead.
"Where- Where am I?" The person asked, looking around in confusion as they pushed themselves up into a seated position.
Vincent considered, for a moment, leaving the person alone in the cave and waiting for another portal, but then his guilty conscience (which sounded suspiciously like Tifa) spoke up.
You know you have to go and help them. She… It said.
Sighing, Vincent stood and went over to the man. It may not be in his usual nature to go over to some simpering person in the middle of a dark and creepy cave, but today he would make an exception.
Only because of Tifa...
Over Britain... Someplace...
Time has come. Time has gone. Get up and run. Things are about to go wrong.
Lara raised her eyebrow, but shook her head. Lately she had been hearing whispered rhymes everywhere, but she had attributed them to the events of the last year. She finally began to relax when the plane suddenly jolted.
"What the-" Lara looked around suspiciously. Everything was calm.
Cloud run pasts- A mission awaits. His courage lasts, but what is your fate?
She leaned back and groaned, closing her eyes. "Go aw-"
REE REE REE REE REE- The planes sirens were screaming as the plane started jolting.
"Not again." Lara said between gritted teeth, pressing a small button on a small box attached to her belt. Small small small small small.
Grabbing a nearby nailed-down seat, she pulled herself to her feet. She stumbled, trying to get herself up to the cockpit as the air started growing thinner.
"What's going on?" Lara shouted as she pried the door open.
A gasp escaped her throat as she saw that in the pilot and copilot's seats were two masses of green-blue before they disappeared.
Lara inhaled sharply as she lunged forward, grabbing the controls. She leveled the plane as something landed on the nose of the plane… Right in front of the glass.
It was a man with long silver hair, bright eyes… And a katana.
He smirked, swiping at the plane.
Lara's shoulders tensed as he nodded at her. "What do you want?" She shouted at him as he shook his head. He leapt up, presumably onto the roof of the plane.
Several heart-stopping moments passed. Lara began to wonder what happened to the pilot and copilot when there was a cracking noise. The nose cracked and groaned, starting to fall off, as the plane lost control.
"Oh dear God in Heaven." Lara gasped. She fled the cockpit and made her way back to the cargo hold, reaching her motorcycle just as the cockpit was ripped off, a familiar flash of silver appearing near the roof of the cockpit.
She strapped her helmet and backpack on, then started her bike. The ceiling above her was sliced open as she revved her bike before speeding forward.
Lara was about to take the skydive of her life.
The Manor...
Zip paced in the tech room, obviously upset by Lara's behavior, as Trish served Winston tea while he reclined on one of the sofas near the fireplace.
"Here you go Winston. One cup of tea with lemon and honey and a sandwich." Trish said as Winston stared in horror at the turkey sandwich. The mention of Turkey had really gotten into her head...
"Trish… Why is it cut in the shape of a dinosaur?" Winston asked her as he lifted the sandwich from the too-small plate it sat on and inspected it. "And please tell me you put pickles on this and not rotten cucumbers." I hate pickles... So I don't buy them! We don't have pickles! What did she put on this?
The Texas native rubbed the back of her neck, a blush creeping across her freckle-covered cheekbones while she chuckled nervously. "Well, I thought that… Since I know what my sister-in-law does when her son's feel sick, and that's shaping sandwiches into dinosaurs, I thought I'd do the same for you, because that's what everyone does when someone they care about is sick." She said with a nod, placing her hands on her slender hips. "And yes, those are pickles."
Unnerved, he spoke again. "So… You see me as your son? You must have gotten conked over the head pretty bad the last time you went tomb raiding." Winston said with a chiding shake of his head. To keep Trish from glaring and yelling, he grabbed his tea and took a long, innocent drink. "Mm it's… PLECK!" He spit it into his handkerchief and spent a few moments looking really pained. "Nice… Mostly… Until you swallow…"
Trish stared at him incredulously. "What's that mean?" She asked him, dumbfounded. "I can make tea- All it takes is warming the bottle up."
Zip and Winston stared at Trish in horror.
"I'm kidding." Trish said flatly.
"Oh praise the heavens." Winston breathed.
"I was worried I'd have to call for an ambulance." Zip muttered. "And it means that you can't cook worth beans!" He shouted at her.
"Good one!" Winston said while chuckling.
While Trish was glaring at the back of Zip's head, mouthing his words back at him, Winston quickly chucked the tea in his cup and his sandwich into the blazing fireplace, horrified when the flames leapt higher.
"Goodness, a draft must've come down the chimney." Trish said, looking towards the fireplace.
Winston slyly placed his kerchief over the plate where the sandwich should be while Trish looked at his teacup.
"Oh, you're out of tea. Let me refill it." She said, grabbing the teapot.
BEEP BEEP.
Zip stopped, confused, and mouthed, "Beep beep?" Shaking his head, he went over to one of his computers and took a look at the results.
"Oh no," he said. "Trish! Something's wrong with Lara! She just triggered the emergency beacon!" He shouted as he began trying to contact Lara.
Trish swore as she spilled hot tea on her hand as Winston sat up, growing pale.
Thank God I didn't have to live through another drink of that tea. He thought, watching the tea eat a hole in the finish on the table in seconds. What had Trish put in that tea? She really couldn't cook worth beans... Probably couldn't cook beans either...
"Where is she?" Trish asked, shaking the tea off her hand as she went into the tech room to look over Zip's shoulder.
"En route…" Zip said, his hands flying over the keyboard.
"What would Lara do if she were in your shoes?" Trish asked him as she looked at the monitor.
Zip frowned. "Call a chopper, but Winston-"
Trish groaned and finished the sentence with him. "-Is our only pilot."
"Not anymore."
Zip and Trish looked at Winston, who stood in the doorway.
"I have a young friend who can fly out there." Winston explained as Zip looked at Trish.
"And you're the only one who can get anywhere close to Lara's spirit for adventure." Zip said as Trish nodded.
"I'll get my stuff." Trish said, running off.
"Winston, call your friend." Zip said as he returned to the computers. "I'm going to keep trying to find out what's happening."
He had no idea what was going on.
Airstrip...
The phone of Winston's pilot friend rang in a seemingly empty hangar before a man wiped his hands and answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Mr. Judas. I, ah, need your help." Winston's voice wobbled as he spoke up. "My employer, who's like a daughter, is in trouble and I need you to fly out to a location and see if she is all right."
"Of course, Winston. I have owed you for some time now. What's the address?" The man asked, pulling on a pair of gloves.
"There is one other small favor I must ask." Winston said. "Would you mind picking a friend up here, at the manor, and bringing them along? They would be very helpful and would have the location."
"Not a problem." He said as he looked at his helicopter. Tip-top shape. "How soon do you need me over there?"
"Um, now." Winston said meekly.
"I'll be there." The man said, hanging up. He grabbed a bag and brought them over to the helicopter, storing the items in a chest under a row of seats before climbing in and firing it up.
Oh... Boy...
Somewhere between Heaven and Hell... Seriously...
Lara muttered curses as she ripped her helmet off and let it fall. She held onto the bike with one hand as she pressed her com with the other. "ZIP!" She shouted.
"Lara?" Zip shouted back. "What's that noise?"
"The air as I fall through it! Tell me that this backpack has as parachute in it!" Lara shouted.
"Yes!" Zip shouted back. "Lara, what happened to the plane?"
"I'll call back when I'm on the ground!" Lara shouted, going offline and exhaling.
With a quickly added prayer, she dove off her bike.
She spread her limbs to slow her fall as the plane fell towards the barren countryside. Lara pulled a cord on her backpack and the parachute was released. The contents of the pack went flying everywhere, the tea tray included.
As the plane crashed some distance away from her, the explosion limited since it had landed in a reservoir, Lara struggled to keep the parachute from twisting its lines and driving her into a pond or towards the flames.
Finally, Lara reached the ground and jerked her backpack off.
Great. I'm in the middle of the countryside without my bike and I've lost Winston's tea tray. Lara thought before looking around. I better not stay here. With that, she took off at a sprint away from the crash sight. She did not want to meet up with the silver-haired man again.
On A Grassy Knoll...
From a nearby grassy knoll, Sephiroth watched Lara flee the scene of the crash, looking over her shoulder only once at the burning wreckage before running into a grove of trees.
Sephiroth chuckled. "The hunt is on," he said. Seconds later, he lept into the air.
A serious, complicated game of cat-and-mouse had begun.
The Manor...
Complete and utter chaos ruled at the manor as Zip shouted orders at Trish and Winston, Winston tried to comply with those orders but his back kept him from doing so, and Trish attempted to do Winston's work for him while following her own orders before the beating of helicopter blades stopped them.
They all listened, entranced by the hypnotic beat, as Zip turned to Trish.
"Go!" He shouted. "That's your ride!" He yelled as she grabbed her backpack, kissed Winston on the cheek, and ran for the stairs to the second floor. The rooftop helicopter pad was where she was heading when she fell face-first into the stairs after tripping over her bootlace.
Winston face-palmed as Trish groaned while standing. "I feel like today is going to be very long and painful." She said, cracking multiple joints. Inhaling, she sprinted away, only stumbling over one of the rugs on her way out.
Zip watched Trish go through a doorway before going into the living room.
"What are you doing?" Winston asked him.
"Checking a theory." Zip said bluntly as he grabbed Trish's blindingly orange leather jacket and rummaged through the pockets. "And… Ah-hah!" He withdrew his hand. "One strange Trish necklace… Oh crap." He stared at the thing as it glowed. "Why is it glowing?"
Before Winston could guess, the light dimmed and then died.
He is here… Something whispered and the two men looked around in alarm as they heard ethereal laughter.
"Oh boy. Something tells me we are about to be thrown headfirst into trouble." Zip said as Winston nodded, keeping something to himself.
Secrets. Lots of them. Yikes.
Gah... I hate it when it takes me forever to come up with ideas. I hope you enjoyed the chapter though. :) Review if you want to, but flamers will be ignored.