CHAPTER 8 INFILTRATING SHINRA

"Man that's a lot of suits" Barrett whispered hoarsely over to Cloud. Cloud crawled a bit further forward to get a better view of the meeting room below them. Cloud was not comfortable returning to Shinra Headquarters after all this time. But he managed to control his thoughts and memories enough so that he could guide, Barrett, and Tifa through the building relatively undetected. By luck they had found the heating duct which stretched over the main conference room on Shinra's 68th floor. Cloud carefully peered his head over the grate through which bright beams of light blazed illuminating bright specks of dust floating in the air. He could make out 5 people down below; he put his ear close to the grate.

"Sir, damage estimates are in for sector 6…"

"Hmm, I see"

Cloud recognized that voice, he squinted his eyes so he could make out the portly image of the Shinra President.

"According to the report, with the complete loss of sector 7, the total damage estimate stands at 10 billion gil."

"I don't know about you, but I think that figure dwarfs our current budget." Another voice spoke.

Cloud turned towards Barrett. "You know any of these guys?"

Barrett carefully studied the room's occupants. "…yep, that's the President there, that big guy with the beard in the military uniform is Heidegger, head of Shinra military, that short fat guy is Palmer head of the Air and Space Commission." Barrett paused.

"What's wrong?"

Barrett's demeanor iced. "That woman, in the red, her name is Scarlet…."

"Yeah I've heard of her before" Cloud responded. "I think she's the head of the Energy and Research department."

"Yeah, but that department's just a cover for weapons research…"Barrett sneered under his breath. "She's nothin' but a cold evil woman…"

Cloud turned his attention back to the meeting underneath them.

"I'm not going to rebuild sector 7" The President announced.

"What? You're just gonna leave Midgar half blown apart?" Cloud took notice of a man in a blue designer suit with a neatly trimmed goatee.

"Who's that guy?" Cloud asked.

"Beats me. Never seen em' before."

"Anyway, as I explained earlier I'm going to be re-initializing the Neo Midgar plan." The President explained. "Soon we will have all the Mako we'll ever need"

"The hell they talkin' about, "neo-Midgar plan"?"

Cloud shrugged.

The president continued. "I'm going to announce a rate hike for Mako also. To coincide and cover the cost of the Neo Midgar plan. I'm thinking around 18."

The man with the neatly trimmed goatee continued. "But what about the people? With a rate hike like that won't you run the risk of turning them against the company?"

"Reeve, you're thinking way too one dimensionally" The President lectured. "If anything the people will trust Shinra Inc even more."

"Especially when they're told, the terrorists where the ones who destroyed the sector 7 support pillar." Heidegger cut in.

"Exactly. They'll see Shinra as protectors and the terrorists will be a long forgotten memory"

"That dirty bastard!" Barrett whispered loudly.

"Tax hike! Tax hike!" The short fat head of Shinra's Air and Space program cheered from his seat. "Perhaps I could persuade the President to reconsider our budget needs?"

"The money generated from the tax hike will be evenly spread between Heidigars and Scarlet's departments." The President directed.

Cloud noticed the neatly dressed man with the trimmed goatee, didn't especially like that announcement. He cocked a small frown, crossed his arms, and leaned back in his chair

"Now let's see" The President carefully looked over his itinerary. "Ah yes the Ancient…"

"The Ancient?!" Reeve asked. "You mean you actually have one of the Ancients?"

"Of course we do. I told you I was sending the Turks to pick her up."

Barrett turned towards Cloud. "Yo, they talkin' about Aeris?"

"I think so"

"Sir" Reeve spoke up. "I must object to the re-opening of this plan at this time. What with our past attempts to bring the project into fruition, I think we should seriously consider permanently shelving it. It was a bad stain, left on our legacy."

Heidegger chuckled loud and obnoxiously. Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Oh Reeve, my boy." The President responded. "You're not gonna bring up that old can of worms are you?"

"Hah! You were probably just in diapers when that event happened" Heidegger mocked.

"I've read the files" Reeve continued. "It was a total disaster"

"That's enough, Reeve" President Shinra chided. "Besides, our plan this time is different. We're using a different specimen. This time we will have the Promised Land., it will be ours."

"Well are we going to have an update?" Scarlet asked. "This new specimen, I understand is one we've had our eye on for quite some time."

"Yes of course. In fact, Hojo will be joining us to give us an update on his research"

"Hojo" Cloud remembered. "He's the head of Shinra's Science and Bioengineering program."

"Hojo" Barrett Whispered. "He's the head of Shinra's Science and Bioengineering program"

Cloud rolled his eyes at Barrett.

A tall skinny man with long unkempt hair and large glasses entered the room slowly in deep thought. He wore a long white lab coat.

"How is your research going Hojo?"

The head Shinra scientist paced back and forth awkwardly. "As a specimen she is inferior to her mother, Ifalna." Hojo began. "I'd say the difference is approximately 12 ."

"So what exactly does that mean?"

Hojo paused for a moment, concentrating. "It means my research and planning is going to take a lot longer than what was originally expected."

"In common terms, Hojo..." The burly President ordered.

"Approximately 120 years, I'd venture."

"120 years?!"

Heidegger began his annoying chuckle. Scarlet let out a long exasperated sigh. "What's the point of continuing any further with this plan?" She complained.

"Not to worry though" Hojo continued. "I have a contingency plan."

"Contingency plan?" Reeve remarked. "I thought this was already a contingency plan"

"That's enough Reeve" President Shinra directed, returning to Hojo. "What is your contingency plan?"

"The problem is, given the fragile nature of the specimen's physiology, our research must proceed at a snails pace to be safe. However if this specimen were to produce an offspring, one that was resilient to our testing….."

"Hmm, I like your thinking Hojo. You really are a worthy successor to Ghast. Do we have a suitable mate for the Ancient?"

"Yes, in fact I have in my possession another specimen equally as rare as the ancient. They both have unique genetic qualities that will compliment each other nicely."

"What about further degrading the genetic line. Won't cross breeding dilute the gene pool?" Scarlet asked.

"The two specimens have a common evolutionary ancestry." Hojo replied. "Besides, the dilution would be insignificant compared to what is gained through production of a resilient strain."

"How long do you estimate, till you will complete your research with this hypothetical new strain?"

"Using accelerated growth processes, I'd say about one year, or whenever the specimen becomes attuned to the flow of Mako"

"Then our specimen will lead us to the Promised Land?" The President asked.

"That is the theory" Hojo replied.

"That was the theory last time too" Reeve remarked. "Or did you forget what happened then?"

"Hmmm" Hojo reflected. "You mean the Jenova Project?"

"Yes the original part of the Neo Midgar plan wasn't it?"

"Not exactly." Hojo mused. "The Jenova Project was initiated under my predecessor. It was the forerunner of the Presidents' Neo Midgar Plan."

"You don't think the failure there has any bearing on what we're doing today?" Reeve directed.

"Yes, Sephiroth was a great tragedy…." Hojo admitted.

"Sephiroth!?" Cloud thought, his head began to buzz. Cloud put his palms to his ears.

"Yo, Sephiroth. That's that famous Shinra SOLDIER isn't it." Barrett asked.

Tifa glanced at Cloud. In her mind she wondered if Cloud had indeed forgotten everything. Surely he had to have remembered what happened 7 years ago. "Cloud?" Tifa place her hand on his shoulder.

"Enough talk about that renegade. His file is closed and confidential, and it will remain as such." President Shinra's voice loudly spoke over the chorus of discussion going on below in the conference room.

"Now, it's settled the Neo Midgar plan is being re-activated. The new Mako rates will be announced, and a new strain will be bred from the Ancient. This meeting is adjourned…." With that the President picked up his papers and the occupants began to file out of the chamber.

"Now what?" Tifa asked.

"Now we find Aeris."

LEVEL 70 SHINRA BUILDING

"Wow, this thing stinks!" Barrett snarled as he ripped a white medical smock off his body tossing it unceremoniously to the side of a large room filled with crates and scientific equipment.

"Stop complaining" Cloud replied. "It got us past security"

"Mine is itchy" Tifa remarked scratching her shoulders vigorously.

"Where did that Hojo guy go?" Cloud asked. "He came in this way."

"Hey look at this." Barrett called over from the far left side of the room. Cloud glanced over to Barrett. He was standing in front of a small sealed chamber with a glass window fixed in the front. Gears and tracks secured the chamber tightly to the wall a lift mechanism was installed next to the chamber. Cloud and Tifa made their way over towards their brawny companion.

Tifa peered into the chamber. "What is it? It looks like some kind of wild animal."

"I'd say it looks like a big red cat with symbols tattooed into it." Barrett observed.

Cloud looked into the camber. The creature was large and magnificent, with fierce eyes and sharp teeth. It stared at them with a spark of intelligence behind its gaze; it seemed indifferent to the intruders. The only noticeable thing about this creature was the beaded feathers tied into its mane and the nasty scar across its face. But the scar merely seemed to make the creature appear all the more noble.

"There's a lot of crazy stuff in here" Barrett observantly stated as he took a seat on a crate. "Wonder where that scientist we was trackin' went off to?"

"Dunno" Cloud admitted "There's gotta be a door or something in here." His eyes carefully studying the room. Cloud began to slowly walk towards the center. As he made his way past several large piles of crates he began to notice an increasingly odd amount of computerized equipment. Passing the center of the room he noticed a small lift at the back obscured by all the clutter. He turned back towards Tifa and Barrett who were still busy gazing at the strange creature in the sealed chamber. Opening his mouth to speak, Cloud's eyes fell on a second chamber directly across from his position. His body froze, his throat tightened as he scanned a caption emblazoned over the small window.

JENOVA

"Jenova!" Clouds head began to buzz; a sickening whirling sensation taking over his body. Instinctively making his way over towards the second sealed chamber; voices began to echo in his mind, voices from the past. Cloud, like before, fought them back with all his strength. "What is Jenova doing here?!" They asked him.

Slowly, nervously, Cloud forced himself to gaze into the chamber. Peering inside, the room quickly darkened; a new image appearing before his eyes.

This time he stood on cobbled streets; the wood buildings of a small, sleepy, mountain town around him. He blinked in his minds-eye as the new image played itself before him. A tall man, clad in black garments, sharply trimmed in white, stood with his back to Cloud. The man's hair was flowing and white, a brilliantly polished sword of fearsome length laid strapped to his side. His posture seemed erect, confident, and powerful.

"Jenova." The man said his voice was deep and calm, perhaps even cold. "My mother was Jenova" he paused. "And my father….." the man began to laugh inwardly, his amusement seemed darkly sinister. "Let's not get into that issue…."

"Yo! What the hell is that?" Barrett's abrupt outburst snapped Cloud out of his dazed vision. "That headless thing, it's so damn creepy!"

"My god" Tifa remarked "Is it still alive? What are all those monitor readings?"

"That's Jenova" Cloud announced his voice a bit dry. "Although I don't know why Shinra brought it back here."

"You mean like the Jenova project, those Shinra suits were talking about downstairs?"

"The very same"

"You okay Cloud" Tifa asked. "You looked kinda…distant" Before Cloud could answer the sound of humming machinery filled the air.

"It's the chamber with the creature" Tifa acknowledged. "It's being lifted upstairs."

"That's prolly where that crazy scientist went" Barrett spat.

"If Hojo's up there, then there's a good chance he's got Aeris with him."

"Hell yeah, let's make a little noise!" Barrett loaded a magazine into his grafted assault rifle. "I'm getting tired of all this stealth, crap."

"Not too much noise, remember we want to free Aeris and get out of here in one piece".

"Hmm…don't worry bout it. I ain't tryin' nothing that'll get her hurt." Barrett quietly mused. "But I sure as hell ain't gonna lose no sleep if a few of them Shinra get a 'piece of my mind' in the process. Doing this might not bring back Wedge, Biggs and Jessie. But at least I'm keeping my promise to them. We're goin' all the way, for the Planet for AVALANCHE…"

Putting her hand on Barret's arm Tifa finished his sentence. "And for Aeris… right? We're not gonna forget about her are we?"

Pausing, Barrett lowered his armament. "No… I ain't forgetting about her. She's the most important thing, we're all still alive, and so is Marlene, thanks to her."

"Alright, then lets do it."

Entering the lift and riding it up to the next floor, the three members of AVALANCHE exited into a large observation lab. Inside the lab a large glass enclosed chamber could be seen; in one corner was Aeris on the opposite side the rising sealed chamber entered from the floor beneath.

"Excellent, now leave the rest to me. You are dismissed" A voice echoed from across the lab.

"It's that mad scientist, Hojo" Barrett whispered "What the hell is he planning on doing with Aeris?"

Cloud shrugged looking around the room carefully for any signs of potential trouble. The door to the sealed chamber began to open.

"Cloud!" Tifa tugged on his arm.

"Hey! That thing's gonna tear Aeris apart!" Barrett roared. Cloud quickly brandished his sword and charged towards the Shinra scientist.

Hojo startled turned towards the intruders. "What?!"

Cloud placing his sword cleanly against the scientist's neck, slid the blade lightly under his skin, just enough so he could feel the edge. "Let Aeris out of there! Now!" Tifa and Barrett followed closely behind, quickly enough the creature emerged from his chamber proceeding to circle their terrified friend.

"Who are you? What business do you have interfering with official Shinra research?!" Hojo snarled, unfazed by Cloud's sword.

"Shu'up jackaz''" Barrett growled. "You gonna listen or you wanna die?"

"I see" The man calmly replied. "I don't think you'd want to do that."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm the only one who knows how to work this device"

"Liar!" Tifa accused.

"See for yourself, the glass is bullet proof. You won't be shooting open that room."

"We'll see about that!" Barrett cocked his gun arm. Cloud grabbed it.

"No!" You'll alert the guards."

"Hah, that's right" Hojo replied. "So you'd do well to back down."

"You better pray nothing happens to her!" Barrett shook his fist in Hojo's face. "Or Im'a make a hide outa yer ass!"

"Now call down" Hojo spoke confidently. "Nothing will happen to her. You think I want to harm my precious specimen?"

"What you talkin about?" Barrett asked "That thing's gonna kill her!"

"No" Hojo chuckled. "That "thing" merely wants to… mate."

Glancing at Aeris and the creature, Tifa shot an odd glance at the Shinra lead Scientist. "Mate?! What are you talking about?"

"You would be proud to know, that I am merely preserving two species from extinction." Hojo replied, retreating from Cloud's sword; walking over to a control panel. "You see they are both the last of their kind…"

"You're crazy"

"Let's see if you call me crazy when their offspring is produced. When the genetic codes of my two precious specimens are combined, the result shall be….."

"Stop calling Aeris a specimen, you creep!" Tifa growled.

"Aeris?" Hojo replied. "So that's the Ancients name. I don't usually bother with them myself. Most specimens are assigned a num..."

"Enough of this" Cloud interjected. "Barrett you still have that explosive shell attachment on you?"

"Huh? Oh …Oh yeah!" Barrett responded. "I gotcha! No you talking!"

"What? What are you doing!?" Hojo exclaimed as Barrett removed his fire-arm attachment and reconnected his grenade launcher to his arm. The same attachment he used to fire explosive shells at the Shinra battle copters on the Midgar plate.

"It may set off the alarm" Cloud admitted. "But bulletproof glass won't hold back one of those shells."

Hojo attempted to obstruct Barrett's aim. But the burly leader of AVALANCHE fired around the Shinra scientist's wiry frame. With a startlingly loud explosion a shower of glass quickly covered all the occupants of the Observation room. The room was silent for a moment, the sounds of coughs and crunching glass could be heard. Cloud wiped the shattered glass from his hair and clothes and began to make his way through the dense smoke towards the sealed chamber. The smoke dissipated some as the mercenary of AVALANCHE peered into the shattered opening of the Observation chamber. He squinted his eyes, staring long and hard at the two figures in the smoky air. Suddenly with the swiftness of a cat one of the figures leaped towards Cloud. Cloud ducked falling backwards hard onto the floor. The swoosh of a tail tickled Cloud's face as the figure jumped clear of him. A fierce snarl followed by a garbled yell, echoed. Instinctively Cloud reached for his sword and spun around. Directly behind him was the red science specimen, under the specimen was Hojo.

"Get him off! Get it off me!" Hojo yelled.

"Tifa, Barrett?" Cloud called. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine" Barrett responded amid a series of heavy coughs.

"Cloud? Cloud!" A voice called from within the Observation chamber.

Cloud reached into the shattered opening and gently pulled Aeris out. She fell against Cloud's chest as he carried her back to the floor. She held her bodyguard closely. "Cloud….I'm so glad you came back for me."

"It's okay" Cloud responded. "We're getting you out of here"

"Aeris!" Tifa exclaimed reaching out and embracing her new friend warmly. "We were so worried about you!"

Barrett tapped Cloud on the shoulder.

"Yo Cloud! Hojo's getting away"

Cloud whirled around in time to see Hojo disappear behind a door, a distinctive CLICK echoed.

"I'm sorry" A slow and thoughtful voice announced. "Hojo managed to squirm out of my grip"

"What the hell are you?" Barrett scratched his head, perplexed. "This lab is full of some crazy ass shit..."

"Whoa! It talks!" Tifa replied. "Now I've seen everything!"

"Yes, I will talk as much as you want, if you like. Right now let's just get out of here."

Cloud turned to see where the voice came from. Behind him he only saw the face of the fierce red cat, looking up at him indifferently. "Um…eh, did you just say something?" Cloud asked the cat.

To his astonishment the cat responded in a much practiced voice. "That is indeed an informed question. Fortunately the obviousness of the response is unnecessary."

"Hah! You fools!" A voice boomed over an intercom. "The guards are on their way!'

"It's Hojo!"

"But they won't find much when they get here!" Hojo laughed over the speaker. "Yes, I have all sorts of interesting play things for you, here. I'll teach you to interfere with my research!"

"Let's get the hell outa' here!"

"Aeris" Cloud asked. "Can you walk?"

"Y, yes. I think so"

"Forgive me human woman" The cat spoke to Aeris. "I merely wanted to distract Hojo till I had an opportunity to spring on him"

"Um, what's your name?" Aeris asked.

The fierce cat scratched his maned neck with his right fore paw, shaking the beaded feathers in the process. "Hojo called me Red XIII" He replied. "You may call me whatever you wish"

"What did Hojo mean by "interesting play things"?" Cloud asked.

"Hmm," Rex XIII paused reflectively. "Let's just say we should get out of here quickly"

A loud primordial cry shook everyone to attention. Rising up from the bottom floor was another chamber, this one was open.

"Come on let's make a break!" Barrett ordered.

"No wait, you go on ahead, I'm gonna stay back and give you some time" Cloud responded.

"Cloud! We have to stick together" Tifa objected.

"Barrett, get Tifa and Aeris out of here"

"You crazy fool, you'll get yourself killed. Im'a stay too"

"Barrett! We have Aeris, now take her and get her out of here."

Rex XIII stood rigid with his back arched and ears perked, bristling. "Don't worry about your friend. I'll stay and help, this particular specimen is rather powerful"

Cloud motioned towards the door. "Move it! We don't have any time for this."

Barrett paused looking at Cloud then Tifa and Aeris. "All right, but you better not get your spiky headed ass killed!"

"Cloud be careful" Aeris said as she followed her two companions out of the observation room.

Cloud raised his sword in an aggressive stance he focused his eyes on the rising platform. "I hope you can fight, cat"

The mighty red cat snarled as a large creature with deadly mandibles began to emerge from the floor. "Humph, we shall see"