Thanks for all the reviews and comments.
They are very much appreciated
I apologize for the much longer wait.
I decided it was in the best interests to revise chapter 7
Thanks for the reality check SOMEONE2003
Please enjoy.
Chapter 7
Don't feed the Animals
The air strip of Junon was a buzz with excitement. The pride of the fleet the illustrious Highwind had returned. The mood was akin to the victorious raiding parties of Wutai ages ago. This time however their prize was much more dangerous.
Within moments the armed escort stood waiting. The assembled men stared in mute horror as a brute of a man stepped off the ship. His hands were cuffed together, but that did nothing to reassure them. Wide shoulders covered with bright tattoos, thick braided hair and fierce scowl complete their worst nightmare.
The one and only Barrett Wallace; murder, terrorist and Shinra public enemy # 2, surpassed only by the monster known as Cloud Strife. The assigned team followed suit guns drawn on their perpetrator. He however refused to move any further. Unsure of what else to do they didn't move either. Shifting nervously they soon found the reason.
A second team, a strictly medical unit descended from the airship bearing a stretcher.
Unconscious and unmoving lay a vision of beauty, one whom most would spend most of their lives hoping to meet, but never would. Chocolate brown hair lay over her gentle features and still limbs Her attire was scandalous, from the pearl teardrops in her ears to the barely there skirt. Black laced boots finished her unusual apparel and brooked no confusion of who she was.
She could be none other than Tifa Lockhart, queen of Avalanche a woman of renowned beauty and skills. Rumor had it that she had faced Sephiroth with his own sword, years ago and still lived truly she was a woman to be feared. A calculating woman with both Strife and Wallace under her thumb, no one would dare cross her. Her weapons, the oft spoken of gloves, were missing giving her dainty appearance; but no one was fooled, she was a deadly as she was beautiful.
At her appearance, he seemed relieved, if only a little. He spoke not a word but watched her intently. She didn't move once as they descended into the halls of Inner Junon, but his eyes never left her face. It was a sight to see the man marching beside the soldiers and medics in such docile captivity it was quite unexpected from their previous encounters. He was more the type to go down fighting rather than giving up.
It was a veritable mystery how he'd been capture.
Only one logical conclusion remained in the mind of Shinra employees.
It must be love
Kisaragi Yuffie shimmied out of her shorts and into the spare flight jacket.
It would not do to be captured just after the ship had landed.
It was a bit too big but she'd manage, some how. Stashing her more obvious weapons in the ventilation system, she tried not to lose her lunch.
It was easier to avoid any real threat, save for the Turks and armed guards standing before the cargo bay doors. At any rate, she knew where her friends were. After examining the situation and the possible escapes, she decided to go see if she had any exploding powder left.
Her plan however came to a sudden halt as she collided with the infamous enemy of her people. The young president was quite cute and much shorter than she had imagined. That ideal quite probably came from the fact he was flat on his butt on the floor. Catching him in vulnerable moment was a once in a lifetime chance.
A quick glance confirmed her suspicions. If she acted now, she could strangle him with his tie before anyone could stop her. She could have vengeance for her people, even at the cost of her life and her comrades. They'd be hailed as heroes, martyrs for their cause for about a few weeks at most. Their deaths would bring honor and the rapid destruction of the world at the hands of Sephiroth. Life or Honor what could possible be more important?
Slowly she stretched her hand towards him. The slim fingers curled slightly.
To the surprise of the Shinra employees present, he accepted the proffered hand.
The short Wutaian pulled him to his feet and carefully brushed dust from his usually immaculate jacket.
From his right a man spoke.
"Are you alright sir?"
"I'm fine, you?"
The latter half of his query was directed at her, not that she was paying attention.
The ninja was too busy staring at the Turk at his side, the unusually tall Turk who was missing a tie. Looking away Yuffie rolled the pilfered materia in her pocket. Swallowing guiltily, she nodded her ascent.
"Good, go make yourself useful."
The man waved her off and continued on his way his big pet bodyguard in tow.
He never knew how close to death he'd came in those few moments or the fact she swiped his official ID badge.
With the President, gone things began shifting to a semblance of normalcy.
The crew of the Highwind began shutdown procedures for the airship. At least until the captain pro-tem stepped in.
"What the Hell do you think you're doing?"
The men and women aboard stopped instantly, turning to the man.
"Shutting the system down." replied a young man.
Cid turned on the hapless engineer.
What the Hell for?"
The team remained silent, unsure how to answer the question.
He however had plenty more to say.
Lighting a cigarette, he informed them in no uncertain terms what their jobs were and why he was the leader.
"We're gonna get this bucket air worthy and in record time too."
Blowing a steady stream of smoke, he issued orders.
"And you cry baby, get some paint."
The former tear streaked face was quite dry eyed and the young man did as he was told.
Standing at the helm, the former astronaut was convinced things were going the way they should.
Cait knew when to stay put. This was obviously not one of those times.
As Reeve directed he'd secured a perfect disguise for himself and Sith.
The large pink Moogle robot had stayed where it'd been left. Avoiding all contact from any members of Shinra Electric Power Company, especially Scarlet, that woman was vile. Fur bristling the toy cat continued on his way. It would be truly satisfying if he could exact some sort of revenge if only because she was practically evil incarnate.
Scrambling along the floor, he dragged his carefully picked costume. Reeve would be proud, if only he was paying attention. Righting his crown, Cait bore a Cheshire grin.
The only real problem with this mission was how to get Sith into a clown suit.
Without much else to do, Yuffie began swiping. The card she found allowed her access to all rooms, including the chocobos stables.
To her surprise, she discovered the furriest member of her team.
"Big Red?"
The large Red beast had his paws folded and ears laid back as he was groomed by the larger yellow bird.
"Yuffie," he replied in greeting.
Unable to contain herself, she laughed like a mad woman.
The low growl however convinced her to stop.
Smothering snickers, she pushed the flightless bird away from her friend, offering it greens for its trouble. Warbling it accepted the snack.
Stretching, the cat of the team, took the time to groom himself to his liking.
"We need to get going."
A shake of his head set the beads in his mane rattling.
"No, we need a plan first."
Dropping to the hay, she scratched his ears and recounted the situation.
Nodding once she'd finished, Nanaki looked to his companions.
"I've got a plan."
Public opinion, market research, if only to save face.
He was still president.
Scarlet and Heidegger, however were still a force to be reckoned with.
Both were overly enthusiastic about the idea of an execution and couldn't decide which method was better.
A firing squad or live hanging.
With the pair arguing like siblings, over how best to kill, Rufus felt as if he was hung.
The ideals weighing heavily, for being such a cruel self-centered bastard; he had his reservations about laying blame on his enemies.
Surely their were better ways to get rid of them.
Ah, but such a dilemma
He'd been well noted for decrying the actions of the terrorist group Avalanche, only for his precious public opinion and his own self importance.
Not that he wasn't all that important.
Ah, what a fool he was being.
Beyond him, the head of weapons development and Shinra military began debating the merits, of having them drawn and quartered.
His headache was coming back with a vengeance.
"Just gas them and be done with it!" he snapped fierce, stunning them into silence.
They remained so for barely two seconds before latching on to the suggestion.
"Brilliant, Mr. President, Why didn't I think of that?"
He squashed his reply and sighed heavily.
Those painkillers were just not working anymore.
Hazards of the job.
Elena flipped through the files.
There was no easy way to do what she was planning.
The Turks had no retirement packages.
Just as well, she didn't think their would be a slot for pregnancy.
Nursing a cup of tea, she continued searching through the folders and papers hunting for the barest bit of information.
When that proved futile and her cup was empty, she moved on to the computer.
Hacking into the Shinra database was no easy feat, but she'd had plenty of practice.
Thanks to Reno and his sense of humor. He'd programmed her computer to crash enough times for her to get the hint.
Their system was crap.
A few searches brought her the information she needed to know, but it wasn't the least what she expected.
Printing out the report, shutting down the computer and locking her door, she settled back in her chair. While not the most promising, she just might learn something useful from a one, Dr. Lucrecia Crescent.
A single chocobo stampede was enough to draw attention of the men standing guard before the cargo bay. The large cat like creature chasing it was more than enough to convince them to follow it. With Big Red and the newly christened Cherub playing decoy, the Wutaian princess was able to slip into the cargo bay unnoticed.
Nevertheless, it was up to her to stay that way.
The room brightly lit and filled with junk was not the ideal prison, but it had to do under the circumstances. Weaving through the boxes Yuffie sought her companion.
"Vinnie, Vinnie, Vincent Valentine where are you?"
Her calls went unanswered so she tried a different tactic.
"Vincent Valentine, if you don't come here right this minute. I'm not talking to you anymore!"
The threat was superfluous and a fabrication as well.
To be truthful, he was one person she couldn't keep from talking too. Maybe it was his brooding, maybe it was his mysteriousness, maybe it was because he didn't treat her like a kid. Either way she was just trying to coerce him out of hiding.
When nothing happened, she began counting.
"Five, four, three two"
Her counting trailed off as the man in question appeared.
To her surprise, he dropped from his place on a stack of boxes above her head.
She shrieked loudly and kicked him once for good measure.
"Who do you think you are? Batman?"
An eyebrow arched, but he said nothing.
Seizing his wrist the girl began dragging him to the deck, informing him in no uncertain terms that they were taking over.
Her declaration was silenced by the when they reached the bridge and found the captain chewing a toothpick waiting for them. Red XIII was by his side, tail flicking in amusement.
"What the Hell took you so long?"
Yuffie squashed her complaints but kicked Cid anyway.
Tifa Lockhart stirred slightly in her fever.
The lights and noise were becoming a real nuisance.
A warm hand touched her face and she relaxed.
Through her haze, she swore she could see blond hair.
"Cloud?"
The whispered reply brought a smile to her lips and she touched his hand.
"It's alright."
Beyond her consciousness stood the last man, she'd expect.
In the red light of meteor, he kissed her once and left her to her fitful rest.
She wouldn't live much longer at any rate.
His own mistake and not so easily remedied.
But repair he would, by fair or foul means.
Looking to the sweet face, he realized just how like his father he'd become.
Shaking his head, he moved on. He could not stop to mourn what he'd so long ago lost.
It had been almost a week since Weapon's attack on Junon and things were just getting back to normal. Well as normal as they could be.
Tseng was finally free of the medical ward and anything involved therein. His wounds were healing nicely, he'd been released with a clean bill of health and he had a sinking suspicion that his desk was filled with paperwork.
Well it was sort of his fault. Maybe shooting Reno would have been a good idea after all.
Unphased in the least, the man pulled the door open and stepped inside the office. At the front desk Elena flipped through the stack of old files and scanned the computer screen.
She did not seem to acknowledge his presence.
Pausing beside her desk, he was able to ascertain the identity of her most current obsession
"Scientific research?"
He head jerked up suddenly and she met his gaze, hands covering the sheets of paper.
"Welcome back sir" she smiled.
"Thank you, did anything come for me?"
"Yes, plenty"
His query earned him a bright smile and a handful of folders with sticky notes attached.
Her momentary distraction earned him a hint of the files' contents.
"I'm glad your back Sir."
"Thank you "He smiled back glancing over the folders before adding, "I think."
Retrieving a stack of mail from his inbox, he posed the thought in the forefront of his mind.
"It's so quiet?"
"Reno and Rude are on another mission."
Fishing through her desk, she offered another folder.
Nodding, Tseng decided to stop while he was ahead.
Shuffling the files under his arm the Wutaian bid her farewell and made for his office.
Unlocking the door and pushing it open, he barely managed to flip the switch to his left.
As light flooded the room, he stared dumbfounded and sputtered for a few moments. The culmination of work in his hands relocated to the floor.
Plastered to every wall and even the ceiling, blocking the cream-colored surface were pictures. More appropriately, they all were one single picture.
Tearing a sheet from below the light switch, he knew who was behind it.
The poster was a blown up picture taken by a PHS.
It was a portrait of him bedridden being looked over by Rufus Shinra.,
At the bottom were the carefully written words.
"In Sickness and in health."
Crumpling the paper in his hand, he was truly surprised.
Only one person was capable of such blatant disregard of morals, rules and sanity on a regular basis.
"Reno!"
Outside Elena resisted a smirk. Earlier, on Tuesday she had encountered a similar incident. Plastered to her walls, however, had been posters of her superior in the traditional hospital gown. However inappropriate as company wallpaper, she still had one copy in a lower drawer of her desk.
Reno had denied the accusations but had not explained how he had known they were there. The interrogation had been delayed, due to the fact he had had a mission. As soon as he got back, however he would have to answer to her, Tseng and anyone else he'd redecorated for. As rumor had it, he was supposed to be going after the huge materia in the sunken plane Gelnika.
So off they had wandered attempting to retrieve it first. Having just gotten back for Rocket Town, Rude had been in no mood for his partner antics. He solved the problem by tossing the man over his shoulder and bidding the office farewell. Reno for his credit had blown kisses and waved dramatically. As they left the remaining Turks were graced with his parting shot.
"If you're going to carry me over the threshold, you can at least buy me dinner yo."
The door unfortunately swung shut before they could hear his reply.
Giggling at the memory, Elena retrieved the stepladder from the closet.
If Tseng had indeed received the same treatment, he had his work cut out for himself.
The least she could do was help, besides she was just a bit curious to see what the picture was. Reno had really outdone himself with the staples on the ceiling. Whistling softly she
went of to go rescue her boss.
Beakers and test-tube glowed with an unholy or rather a meteor light. Its appearance of late had been growing and an average 17.3 meters. Rather soon it would be close enough to interfere with the gravity of the planet.
The Professor adjusted his glasses and looked over the most recent test.
A scowl crossed his face.
Things were not moving fast enough.
The DNA they'd acquired would not be enough.
He would have to have the subject in question to perfect his theory.
He was always much more of a hands on person as it was.
It would be simple to force the woman into his care, he'd done it before.
Now was not the time to be worried about trivial details like patient comfort, or survival.
Signaling an intern, he requested the necessary files.
By the end of the day, he would have what he needed and the real scientific research would begin.
On Friday morning, black shoes squished on the plush carpet of Shinra Electric Power Company.
Reno grimaced but continued walking, holding tightly to what was left of his pride and dignity. Not that he had much, but he was determined to keep it.
Next to him, Rude adjusted his sunglasses and followed him to the elevator.
At the front desk, the secretary gave them an odd look, but did not say anything else.
Reno jabbed the button and glared at everything else. The few people in the lobby looked away and prayed to be spared from his wrath. The doors opened with a chime and both men stepped on. After another moment, more the doors closed and the occupants of the lobby breathed a sigh of relief.
Jabbing the button for the floor Reno leaned against the cool metal wall of the elevator.
Flipping wet hair from his face, he looked to Rude.
"I hate water."
Well, it was not that he hated water per say. He did however dislike having to tread water. He disliked having to fight rather pointless battles, to the point of injury and he really disliked having to do it for the glory of Shinra.
Not that Rude liked it all that much either, he just didn't complain as much.
"…"
"You know what's really annoying?"
The redhead waved his arms for emphasis and began pacing.
"Avalanche. They always gotta show up and ruin a particular easy mission."
He had not forgotten the courtesy they had shown him at the sector seven plate-supports.
He should have them to make an unwelcome appearance.
"First the train, then the mountain, the underwater reactor, the god forsaken rocket and now Gelnika, it's like they're following us. Where the hell are they gonna show up next?"
"Our floor."
"Huh?"
The doors opened, Reno smirked at his partner and pushed all the buttons on the elevator.
"What really gets me is now we've lost the Highwind, a submarine and all the huge Materia. Not that it's really our fault, but the collective brass of Shin-ra's taking it out of our hides yo!"
To tell the truth he had a point, one that would probably be more effective if he hadn't had seaweed in his hair. The bruises courtesy of Avalanche, his uniform was torn and stained. He smelled of salt and his clothing was caked it a foul mixture of that and sand.
Stemming a chuckle, the taller man pointed his observations out to his partner.
Grimacing Reno shrugged. "we need a bath yo."
Intrigued Rude's eyebrows arched above his glasses.
"Is that a statement or an invitation?"
Catching his partners meaning, Reno couldn't contain the smirk on his face.
As tempting as it was, the possibility could wait, just a bit longer to be investigated.
"Let's get through with work first then see where that leads." he replied.
Surprised, but pleased with the result Rude moved off for his own quarters.
"Meet you in the office."
Watching his partner depart, Reno gave a low whistle.
Maybe things were looking up after all.
Tseng crumpled another sheet of paper and tossed into the trash. Their was no way he was gonna authorize the use of rocket launcher. No matter how much Reno insisted the Turks needed them.
Carefully in flowing letters, he penned an adequate reply which included the words "No way in Hell" and suggested Reno make his own grenades instead. He finished the note by insisting "No", he would not approve the requisition of materials for such a project and Reno should stick to actual work.
If the damage done to his office by prying out staples was any indication, he was a lot more nuisance to his allies than his enemies. Not that that was a problem, some people needed motivation.
Himself included having a meeting to attend.
Tseng was much more inclined to miss it.
He'd had since Wednesday an appointment to meet with Professor Hojo and had done just about everything in his power to miss it. He even went so far as attending to the work on his desk. It hadn't done much other than bore him and clear off his desk.
Stretching he rose to his feet and crossed to the door. Time to get it over with.
Informing the few in the office to "hold down the fort", he was on his way.
The elevator doors open and Tseng slipped inside, nearly colliding with its other occupant.
"Rude?"
The taller man nodded in greeting.
"Welcome back."
"Thanks, I was coming to give you my report. Do you want it now?"
From the look on his face Tseng had the suspicion it was not going to be the most thrilling entertainment. Shaking his head, he offered another proposition.
"Just accompany me to a quick meeting and I'll forget the whole thing.
"Do you even want to know what happened?"
"Do I care?"
Rude considered it and came to the same conclusion; he did however add a summery for his own sake.
"We encountered Avalanche, beat a strategic retreat and loss the huge materia."
"Really?"
"On the plus side as Reno says we were treated to the spectacle of Tifa Lockhart in the equivalent of a wet t-shirt contest."
Arching and eyebrow Tseng pressed the button.
"Plus side indeed." He remarked dryly.
"Where is this meeting?"
"It's in scientific research."
Rude pushed his sunglasses and glared.
"Cheater."
"At least I'm not going alone."
Reeve sighed and rushed to keep up with the president of Shinra Electric Company.
The young enigmatic man was marching to the elevator heedless on the man's protests.
"Damn it, Rufus wait!"
However, the president was having no part of it. His mind was obviously focused on something else entirely. Swearing about ignorant youth the man kept with him, practically running down the hall.
They both suddenly came to a full stop at Reno's appearance.
"Yo," He waved and fished around in his pocket.
"This is yours isn't it, Sir?"
He held in his hand a small key, which he presented to Rufus.
The President mumbled his thanks, but seemed lost in thought tucking it away into his pocket. He continued down the hall at a much more sedate pace. Surprised, but pleased Reeve began to explain the Holy vs. Sephiroth situation.
Maybe this time something would get done.
Reno shook his head and continued on his way to the office.
Some people just never learned.
Rude was impressed with superior office. Tseng had managed to resist the overwhelming desire to throttle the good doctor where he stood. Taking a deep breath the Wutaian addressed professor Hojo.
"Please repeat that?"
The man inspected the sleeve of his lab coat and turned back to him.
"If your cognitive skills are unable to grasp my statement why should I bother to repeat myself?"
"Because I believe you have mistaken your evaluation of her psyche with your own." came the growled reply.
"Believe what you will, but she's unfit for to work under jurisdiction any longer. She is effective immediately transferred to Scientific research. Where she'll be kept under surveillance and her condition will be dealt with. Is that absolutely clear?"
The files in his hands were signed and dated. Either she really was unfit to work or Hojo was up to something. Despite the fact, that he didn't know, which was why he wasn't giving up.
"Of course she will be informed immediately."
He'd seen that look on the man's face before and it hadn't gone well for those involved.
At this, the doctor turned back to his work.
"Unfortunately," he continued "due to the current project she is assigned to she won't be available for transfer until the end of the week. I apologize for the inconvenience "
Turning sharply he parted the office leaving a sputtering man behind.
Once they reached the elevator, he spoke.
"He's gone too far."
"By insulting your intelligence?"
"By implying the mental instability of a member of my team."
"And it wasn't Reno?"
Tseng turned to Rude as the truth of the statement dawned in him and the doors slipped shut.
Thanks for reading I'll try and get the next chapter up as soon as I can.
Yuuzai.
