Chapter Nine: Origins of a Monster
Cloud and Peshe continue to climb up the stairs within Shin-Ra's abandoned building, rushing upwards in silence. The quiet is suddenly broken by a loud, high-pitched electronic tune. Cloud turns to look back at Peshe, who pulls out his phone and holds it to his ear.
"Hello?" he asks. He pauses for a moment, then, "It's for you."
Cloud takes the phone from his friend and speaks into it warily. "Hello?"
"Cloud?"
"Oh, it's you Reeve," he waves a hand at Peshe, who seems to relax a bit. "Got any information for me?"
"Actually, we've found quite a bit. But first, are the two of you safe?"
"Yeah, we're fine where we are...for now," Cloud answers, turning to lean against the wall.
"Alright, I'll make this brief then. Do you remember Professor Gast?"
Cloud's mind flits back to the frozen, yet cozy town of Icicle Village and recalls what he found there a few years ago. "He's the one that found Jenova, right?"
"Right," Reeve answers. "As you may recall, after he and Hojo had already begun work on Projects G and S, he discovered what Jenova truly was and abandoned Shin-Ra. Shortly after, he and Ifalna gave birth to a daughter."
Cloud's throat tightens a little as more memories come flowing back, these ones darker than the ones from Icicle Village. But he doesn't say anything, so Reeve continues.
"Apparently, although Gast had left Shin-Ra, he didn't exactly stop his research there. It seems he was eager to atone for his mistakes in the past. According to the research we uncovered, shortly after Ifalna became pregnant, he began working on one last top-secret project.
"It seems he kept some Jenova material with him, because he created a clone and injected his own cells into it, a reverse process of the experiments he created earlier. He then connected the clone to his computer and for the past twenty-five years, it's been receiving instructions to find and destroy the results of Projects G and S.
"Apparently, Gast engineered this creation to actually consume the others, creating an all powerful entity capable of defending the world from any threat. Unfortunately, our researchers are concerned about the faults in the computer's system. They're afraid that this being, code-named Teiaiel, may cause great harm to the planet in order to save it due to the problems we've discovered."
Cloud listens on in shock. "Let me get this straight. There's a clone of Jenova with a faulty brain on the loose?" Peshe's brow furrows in concern when he hears this. He gestures to Cloud frantically, but Cloud ignores him, waving his hand for silence as he continues. "What is the WRO planning to do about it?"
"Having just discovered all this ourselves, we don't have anything thoroughly planned yet. But we have learned a lot that may help us in wiping this threat out."
"Like what?" Cloud asks.
"Well, while we do know this being is powerful, we're fortunate in that unlike his predecessors, he hasn't been trained all his life to be a top-class warrior. Sure he's been brainwashed into thinking himself the world's savior, and he's been instructed in various battle tactics, but he's never had to use them before, so he'll be inexperienced."
"I see," Cloud says, beginning to think it over himself.
"Cloud..." Reeve starts. "You should know this...It's best that you and Peshe get moving as soon as possible. It seems Teiaiel 'hunts' by utilizing his Jenova cells. Just like Hojo's Reunion Theory states, he can sense anyone with Jenova cells in their body and pinpoint their location. Be careful Cloud. I think he may come for you next."
Cloud's eyes widen in shock at this information, echoing Genesis' own hypothesis. "I understand," he says, then closes the phone shut, pocketing it before turning to Peshe. "We gotta go," he commands. Peshe nods briefly and the two resume their ascent, climbing the stairs faster than before.
After hanging up his phone, Reeve stares at it for a moment, thinking things over. After a few seconds, he picks the phone back up and dials a number. "Cid...It's Reeve. I've got a job for you...Midgar...As soon as you can." He begins to dial another number into the phone as he speaks. "Call this number when you get there. Cloud should be waiting for you...Thank you."
He hangs the phone back up and sighs, overwhelmed for a moment. He then turns to cast his gaze towards the corner, staring almost angrily at his company. "You should've informed us of this sooner. Letting details like this slide could spell doom for the planet you know."
Rufus Shinra stares back at him, looking vaguely apologetic. "You know me Reeve. I like to wait until all the pieces are in play before I make my move. Besides, after the encounter I experienced, drawing attention to myself seemed foolish."
Reeve shakes his head, clearly upset at his former employer's behavior. "I only hope your actions haven't been responsible for the loss of innocent lives. Aren't you growing weary of being responsible for such heinous events?"
Rufus' eyes soften, and his smug demeanor begins to fade away. "You grow used to it after a while...Once you've made your fair share of monsters, you yourself become one and the pain and sorrow you feel seem to just stop taking affect. They're there, but you become numb to them, in a sense."
Reeve stares at the man, his own face devoid of emotion. "That's a pity."
Rufus merely nods in agreement, restraining his tears to the best of his ability.
Rising to his feet, hair matted to his head, Teiaiel tilts his head back, closing his eyes against the now driving rain. Spreading his arms out to the sides, mimicking his pose from the Banora apple field, Teiaiel relaxes his body and remains motionless for a few moments. Finally, his eyes slowly open and he smiles to himself. Turning to face the ruins of Midgar, his smile grows wider.
"I can feel you, brother. Here I come." He leaps into the air, his crimson eyes locked onto the old Shin-Ra Tower.
