Risa nearly wore a hole in the floor of her room as she paced back and forth for a good two hours that afternoon. After yesterday's meeting with Tifa, she had become less and less confident that the meeting with this 'friend' of hers was a wise thing to go through with.
Not like I can't handle myself. But I just don't want to draw any attention if I can help it.
She finally busied herself for the last hour by cleaning the silver sword that was her weapon of choice and checking the various blades and short knives she had tucked in the hidden pockets of her clothing. Better safe than sorry.
Satisfied that the sword was adequately cleaned, she flicked her wrist and watched the sword collapse into itself until it was nothing but a small dagger the length of her hand. She tucked it into her right boot and checked herself in the mirror.
"Here we go, Ri. Maybe now I can get somewhere."
Risa grabbed the slip of paper with the address on it and made her way out the door, the sense of uneasiness keeping her company as she made her way to the meeting location.
The young man sat perched atop a stack of crates in the warehouse, silent as midnight as his crimson eyes scouted the vast space to look for anything suspicious or out of place. His right hand rested cautiously on the hilt of a large gun holstered to his side; he tilted his head slightly at a sound, only to settle again as he realized it was only a mouse.
She should be here soon.
Vincent shifted a little as he heard the faint sound of someone walking across the damp cement floor. Enhanced hearing had its benefits and it was a full minute before a young woman peered her head from behind a cement column.
That must be her. He looked at her a moment, mildly surprised. She's not exactly what I expected.
His cape rustled silently as he leapt towards a neighboring stack of crates to get a closer look. Tifa was right – there's something coming from her, not mako-based like a Remnant, some kind of energy. It's almost like… Vincent's eyes widened a split second in surprise: She's using materia, but without a weapon or a focus. Not sure how, but she is. His eyes narrowed suspiciously again. Kadaj and the others could do that. Maybe I'm wro-
The young girl looked around cautiously only to snap her gaze up towards where he was hiding. Vincent held his breath and stood stone-still, muscles locked as he watched her, waiting for a reaction. She can't have seen me, he thought. Not unless I'm getting careless. He took the opportunity to get a better look at her: dark, almost black eyes, very light brown hair, smallish nose and lips – otherwise normal save for that odd aura of something about her. She doesn't have mako eyes – well, that knocks out the Remnant theory…
"Hello? Anyone there?" She narrowed her eyes and peered up towards where he was sitting. "Hello?"
Vincent wasn't quite sure what to do since it seemed like she knew he was there. How, he had no idea, but… Now's as good a time as any. He gathered himself and dropped down from his perch to land directly in front of her, silent save for the metallic rustle of his boots and the gauntlet on his left hand. "Hello."
Risa jumped nearly a foot back as the man suddenly appeared before her, almost out of nowhere. Her hand instinctively reached for her dagger, until she recognized him from the photo at the bar. Red eyes, metal glove, red cape – great. The broody one. Figures. "You… you're Tifa's friend? The one I was supposed to meet?"
Vincent didn't miss the quick reaction she made of reaching for some hidden weapon and kept his hand on his gun. "Yes."
Risa stared at him silently for a second only to notice the gun holstered to his thigh. "You won't need that. I'm the person that she mentioned that needed help. I'm Risa."
"I assumed so. Tifa said you were looking for someone."
His deep voice resonated in her, not unpleasant, but a bit disconcerting coming from someone who looked not much older than herself. "Yeah, I am. My brother. He's been missing since that whole mess with Deepground."
Vincent noticed an odd look in her eyes as she mentioned her sibling, but said nothing of it. "You haven't heard anything from him since then?" For now, he ignored the mention of Deepground. Either she doesn't know about my involvement, or she's pretending she doesn't.
Risa gave him a sour look. "If I did, I wouldn't have required Tifa's – or your – help." She crossed her arms at him and added, "Feel free to introduce yourself, by the way. Unless I'm to just call you 'Hey you' for the rest of the night."
Vincent remained expressionless as he finally removed his hand from his gun. "Vincent."
"Pleasure." She looked at the gauntlet on his arms, the metallic boots, and finally returned her gaze back to his crimson one, but showed no hint of recognition. At least not to him. "So, do you think you'll be able to help me? Cost won't be a concern, I'll pay whatever's necessary. I just need to find him."
"There's no cost. I'm doing this as a favor to Tifa." He leaned back on the stack of crates behind him. "So, does your brother have a name?"
Risa looked away a moment and nodded. "Exedis."
Vincent tapped a clawed finger on his arm. "Exedis. Where and when did you last see him?"
"Last time I saw him…" Was in a stasis tank… "Was in the Sector 6 slums, where we lived. About a year ago." A half-lie, since Sector 6 was closest to Reactor 0 and Deepground's former headquarters. Risa looked up at him expectantly.
Vincent continued to watch her, half-listening to her reply as he focused on that sense of power emanating from her. I can barely feel it, but it seems familiar. And not just because it's materia-related, though Tifa was right in that respect. He looked her over, trying to find something to clue him in on how she'd done it. I wonder if it's similar to the protomateria, which would mean implantation… He bristled slightly at the thought.
"Are you even listening to what I'm saying?" Risa looked at him with an annoyed expression, her hands now on her hips in a somewhat defiant stance. "Stop looking at me like that."
"I heard everything you said perfectly fine." Vincent straightened and took a step forward until he was a foot away from the girl. The energy emanating from the girl seemed to fluctuate with her mood and he wondered, idly, what she'd be like if she were really angry. "It may take a while for me to gather some intel on his whereabouts. Is time a factor?"
Risa took a few steps back as he approached, unsure of what to do. Why is he staring at me. It makes me want to punch him. "Sorta. I don't want to wait a year to find him." Because I can't. Gaea knows what he'd do if he was left to his own devices for a year – Meteorfall would probably seem like a day at the beach in comparison.
Vincent nodded. "Understood. I have some friends in the WRO that might be able to hasten things a bit – will that be an issue?" His eyes remained fixed intently on her, still expressionless, although his mind was a different matter. Materia implantation. If that's the case, then Shinra's got to be involved with this – or at the least, Fuhito. Or maybe even Hojo. Bastard just won't lie down and die in history, will he.
"Um, no, I don't think so." Risa knew about the World Regenesis Organization and its involvement in keeping what remained of Shinra in check. "I'd prefer to keep this limited to as few people as possible, though. It's just… " She frowned a little.
Vincent tilted his head to the side a bit and simply watched her.
"It's just safer." She didn't elaborate further.
Safer. Interesting choice of words. "Fair enough. I'll contact you when I have some information." Vincent turned, leaped up onto the crates, and proceeded to exit the building.
"Wait!" Risa tried to follow him, but he was much faster. How does he do that? "How will I get in touch with you if I need to?" She clambered up onto one crate and stopped, trying to see him in the darkness.
"Don't worry. I'll contact you." The deep voice seemed to come from a shadowy corner near the upper windows. Risa tried to see into the darkness, but saw nothing. After a moment, she realized he was gone.
Don't worry, I'll contact you. Great. That could be a month for all I know. She hopped off the crate and followed her route back out of the warehouse. Shinra. It always goes back to Shinra. Risa's head dropped a little as she came the conclusion she'd been trying to avoid since her arrival in Edge.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow I go to where it all started. Midgard.
Exedis brushed aside a cobweb as he entered the lower library of Shinra manor. He'd been perusing the volumes of data in the upper labs for a better part of the day before he gave up and decided to try another angle.
Father was always scrupulous in how he kept his records, especially when keeping them hidden from those Shinra wretches.
He ran a finger along the rows of books, admiring the organized simplicity of the library although he was still frustrated in his lack of success. Nothing. Nothing but information on Projects G and S. He grabbed a book marked 'Genesis: Combat Record 245' and flung it across the room with a yell. Always second to those Jenova abominations. Jealousy flared in his eyes as he grabbed another book marked 'Sephiroth: Physical Aptitude Test 7 – Speed' and turned it into ash with a flare of energy. If it weren't for you, I would be… "
The book he had thrown had bounced off a picture mounted on the wall across from where he stood, knocking it to the side. Exedis peered at the picture and noticed a shadow behind it. What the…
He removed the picture from the wall only to come face-to-face with the heavy, metallic door of a hidden safe. Hmm. Clever Father, clever. Exedis didn't know the combination, but he didn't need to; he brought his hand up and a swirl of energy shot out towards the lock, pulverizing it into a pile of dust. The door swung open with a loud creak as he reached in - and found nothing but a metal lever. Well, what have we here. He pulled the lever and jumped back with a curse as the floor below him suddenly began to drop down, forming a set of stairs that descended into darkness.
"Interesting…"
He was quite pleased at this new development and shone a flashlight down into the depths below. Without a second thought, he began to descend and eventually disappeared into the darkness with a faint but sinister laugh.
A/N: Short chapter, I know, but the story was begging to be let out again so I had to oblige!