Cait Sith sneaked into the meteorite compound. It was dark outside and the scientists working on discovering its mysteries had already left, leaving a contingent of soldiers to fight off wandering monsters that seemed attracted to the large rock. The robot peeked this way and that, then tip-toed towards the meteorite.

His handler watched through his slit eyes as he rounded the bulbous, giant rock, and he was looking for one thing: Adamantite.

Rufus had contacted him through Elena, the Turk communicating with him through code he remembered from his days as a Shinra executive that they needed to talk. They met in a busy cafe where he was briefed on the situation, the woman dressed as his date. Everything was so unsettling.

The Shinra had the alien, and were adverse to letting it get into WRO hands under the circumstances. Rufus trusted Reeve, but not this new council, and Reeve couldn't blame him after his mid-morning talk with his friend. After Barret had explained what they had done to Cloud he had protested but was merely given assurances he would be treated better. He had personally seen to it that Tifa would see him during lunch.

During Reeve's lunch it turned out Cloud had tried to make an escape while dragging Tifa's unconscious body through the doors of the building after jumping three stories to the lobby below. He had made it outside only to succumb to more tranquilizers, then transported to another, more secure area with Tifa.

He had demanded to see them both but to no avail, his situation frustrating with the lack of power over it. These were his friends being affected, and he did not trust those left in charge to properly handle the situation with Cloud. He wondered if they were trying to goad him into doing something if just to prove he's dangerous; they may have succeeded. Several soldiers had been injured during his break out and he had injected Tifa with tranquilizers that were meant for SOLDIER members and large monsters.

Why would he do such a thing to Tifa?

Sneaking further towards the opening Cait Sith ducked into a ditch made of dirt, watching as a pair of soldiers walked by on a patrol. The robot let them pass before pulling himself out of his hiding spot and making a break for the entrance of the meteorite. He had been in here several times already to check for anything dangerous inside and knew the passage well enough to transverse in the dark.

Several turns through a twisting tunnel later and he was in the main chamber, the pale purple glow of the the structure in the middle of it illuminating the room. Cait Sith looked about before settling for an area opposite the opening, looking for some hint of the stone or metal he was tasked to find. He moved about several rocks and some piles of gravel in search of the elusive material.

"Where could it be? If'n it be a lot o' it, should'ne be a sign o' it?" he mumbled to himself. A few promising pieces could be found however; jagged and a richer purple than the light that shone pale in the cavern. Cait Sith gathered the dozen pieces and placed them in a pocket hidden inside his chest fur.

The cat checked the next corner, and found it more difficult to see with a pillar of stone blocking the light. A pebble here and there, but not a large chunk that could be taken away to test if it would stop the monsters from trying to gather around the meteorite. That had given Reeve chills, reminding him of Jenova's Reunion instinct.

Cait Sith circled the pillar to look on the other side, eyeing the portal as he passed by. The light occasionally pulsed brighter, but for the most part swirled in peace. He wondered if anything would eventually come out of it, but hoped it would stay dormant. One potentially world ending alien was plenty for him.

He still wasn't certain if he could trust Rufus under the circumstances. Not because of Shinra's past, but because he had the alien with him. Still, it was willing to part with some knowledge on the meteorite, and if enough of this Adamantium could be moved away from the rest there was a chance the monsters would go elsewhere.

But how much was enough?

The scant bits he had were light in his hands before stuffing them away. Cait Sith needed a lump, however. He checked one last corner, disappointed. "If'n nae tha ground..." He looked up.

He groaned. There was nothing there. Cait Sith kicked the dusty ground in frustration, looking down at the portal. Then he lifted his eyes towards the pillar, a glimmer halfway up catching his eye. He moved a few paces to get a better look, the deep violet scintillating. "Och!"

Cait Sith ran up to the pillar and looked for a place to begin his climb up. He slid down several times before finding a spot that would hold a foot, then a place for a gloved hand. The cat pushed up and stretched, trying to grab the strange material. "So close!"

He looked about with a foot for another spot to place a foot. After a minute he found a very stubby ledge, an inch wide and crumbling. Cait Sith counted from three to one and used the small space to shoot up and grab the jagged Adamantite, holding on and suspended four feet in the air. Not much air for a human, but Cait Sith was a small robot.

The Adamantite moved ever so slightly, and Cait Sith bounced his body to jostle it out of the pillar. His legs kicked the air and he tried to swing a little, getting it to move some more again. With a strained squeak of a grunt he swung his feet onto the pillar, then pushed away while holding the Adamantite. It popped free, and both went tumbling to the ground, the Adamantite landing on the inactive portal.

Cait Sith and his handler both tensed before standing up and warily approaching the portal. The light it emitted seemed richer, and neither Reeve nor the AI thought it a good thing. Unknown things in a strange place was bad, because it meant something could happen, and the last thing anyone needed was anything else happening.

Cautiously the cat stood at the edge of the purple portal and slowly reached and hovered his hands towards the material that bothered it so. With a sudden movement he grabbed and jerked the Adamantite away, letting out a squeak of relief before examining the strange substance. It was a little larger than his head, and rather lightweight. The AI appreciated that it wasn't a heavy load he would be dragging back to his handler.

As quickly as he could he made his way through the tunnel, stopping only once to turn back as a bright light issued from behind him. Cait Sith waited a few moments, but heard nothing. Heading back out, he watched from the darkness of the entrance as soldiers patrolled one way or another.

Watching for several minutes he tensed as their pattern gave him an opening, and he ran out and around the meteorite, dashing away until he saw two soldiers, backs still turned to him. He looked about and found the ditch he had used earlier and jumped into it, keeping his head down and listening for them to eventually pass.

"H-Hey!"

"This is a restricted area, civilians-"

"As if I need yer permission to walk about, scallywags!" Cait Sith heard a pair of footsteps walk closer. "Now, where'd that cat fairy go off to?" The footsteps walked off.

Cait Sith stood still for half a minute, looking at the frozen soldiers then sneaked behind them before running off towards Reeve as fast as he could. He slid down the incline towards the road into Edge, looking about for that new person.

Who was that? They did the exact same thing Bartz had done to Cloud and Tifa.

Maybe Bartz had some answers, if he wasn't loathe to give them to Rufus. Reeve hoped to the Planet that if Bartz was friendly so was this new one. He had to stay rational. No one died by their hands, yet. He was willing to take that as a good sign, but he had to know who this new one was without causing harm to them or others if it could be helped.

Without his watchful eye he was incredibly wary of the science department. More so after Cloud's treatment. It irked Reeve; he felt as helpless as he did while under President Shinra. His friends were in possible jeopardy and he was helpless to stop it. So, he decided to go on this hunt for Adamantite to do something, anything, to push everything forward.

He looked to his left as Cait Sith jogged towards him, holding a spiny looking lump of what must be Adamantium. The cat lifted it towards Reeve, who took it in both hands and examined it in the dark. Lightweight with sharp edges, it was a curious thing he held reverently. Cait Sith climbed onto his shoulder as Reeve silently left the alley he hid in, walking towards his car. He would look over the smaller samples first, and hold this piece in a safe place.

Hopefully it was enough to keep the compound from being overrun.

Reeve drove off towards the WRO building after securing the large piece in a container in his trunk, ready to test out the smaller pieces acquired by Cait Sith when he was home, for now he had to sort out the mess with Cloud and Tifa and somehow get in to speak to them. He looked about for any strange looking persons, taking a road that was near the crash site, but they were nowhere to be seen. Biting his lip he looked at Cait Sith. "Mind looking for that stranger?"

Cait Sith gave a salute. "Aye'll keep a look oot!" The car stopped and the cat took out his Adamantium samples, then skittered out into the wastes, disappearing into the darkness. Reeve quietly wished him luck before driving off to his destination.

Making it to his office he looked over the Adamantium in the light of his desk's lamp. It was a curious purple color, the shade deep and rich and the edges jagged. Not quite like a thorn, not enough to draw blood, but enough to be slightly uncomfortable to the touch when he held the large piece.

Reeve placed them in a small bag before stuffing it in a pocket on the inside of his suit. Elena would want a sample, and if he could determine it wasn't dangerous to do so he just might gift her that. The reaction on the portal had the hairs on the back of Reeve's head on end still; he wondered if that could have possibly summoned that unknown person.

What a strange person it was! Despite not getting a look at the face, the voice was for all intents and purposes rather androgynous, and again they did not harm or kill off the bat. Reeve took it as a good sign, and he hoped it meant they truly were a benevolent alien race after all. He huffed humorlessly; Cloud would be sour at him for a very long time if it turned out to be true. He would have been held without his permission for absolutely no reason. 'At least everything would be alright.'

Reeve tapped his hands on his desk before anxiously standing up and moving towards the door. He needed to talk to the science department about Cloud and Tifa before any went home for the night. Not that many of them went home at this hour, but he would rather be on the safe side in case one of them felt like retiring early.

He traveled to the science department floor and waited in the main office for one of the lead scientists to come out and speak to him after using the wall phone. In charge or not, he still had clout to swing and he wasn't afraid to use it. His friends were counting on him. He looked about the clean white room, slowly becoming more impatient as the minutes wore on. What was taking him so long?

Reeve chewed on his lip as he stood there, eyes burning holes into the door that lead to various labs. These weren't the ones Cloud had been stowed away in, and the one he and Tifa apparently were being held at were in an underground facility below the building that was used for highly dangerous subjects. Subjects like Makonoids and insane SOLDIERs or perhaps a stray Deepground member that hadn't been killed in the clash. Or Jenova like aliens.

Not them. It was never meant for them.

"President Tuesti?"

He was startled by the elderly voice. It was Professor Gahnt, a short and generally cheerful scientist, his face dour tonight. He held a small box in one hand and a handkerchief in another. Reeve liked him; he had been a doctor at one point but wanted to work on medical research to assist the Planet's population. Reeve gave him a curt nod, though he raised a brow. He was not one of the lead scientists. "I'd like to see Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockhart immediately."

Gahnt's face paled and he stuttered. "I...I don't know why they sent me to tell you-"

"Tell me what?"

The professor took out a handkerchief and wiped his brow. "Cowards. They won't see you themselves, so they have me do it." he sounded disgusted, and he looked towards the floor for a few moments before looking up at Reeve and shaking his head. "They didn't make it."

It felt as if time had stopped and there was a faint ringing in his ears. Reeve eventually composed himself, though his mouth moved a few times before words followed. "What do you mean?" he said quietly.

Gahnt sighed, shaking his head. "They said that the two became unstable during an extensive biopsy, to see the extent of infection-"

"There were no noticeable signs of infection!" Reeve yelled out, one hand in a held up fist. His breathing quickened and he began to pace. "Who the hell allowed a biopsy?" He felt like a knife had stabbed him in the heart. This was all wrong!

The professor was silent a moment. "Svete. I was informed that all the proper paperwork was passed through the appropriate channels-"

Reeve stopped pacing to glare at the elderly scientist. "I don't give a damn about the paperwork. Those two did not deserve this. Not at all. We aren't Shinra, damn it, do you understand?"

"I do understand, President Tuesti. I feel the exact same way." He wiped his brow again. "I came here to help research cures for illnesses, not to watch so called 'scientists' butcher people on an operating table 'just in case'. I'm so terribly sorry, Reeve." he whispered. "This is getting far out of hand and there's not a damn thing to show for it."

Reeve stared at Gahnt. Not out of anger towards him but a mutual grief; this was not how the WRO was supposed to be and both knew it, even if there were aliens on the loose. He had lost two of his dearest friends and the organization he built to help the world to persons indifferent to those they effected.

For the greater good, he was sure.

"What about the bodies?" He and their friends would want to see them for closure and hopefully a proper burial fit for two warriors that saved the Planet.

Gahnt cringed. "I was also to inform you that for the sake of safety, their bodies were promptly disposed of through incineration."

Reeve looked at him wild eyed. "They..." There would be no closure. He spun around to leave.

"Mr. Tuesti."

"What?"

"I found this before it was sent to storage."

Reeve turned around, a black box held up towards him. He took it and looked inside, then closed it. He nodded in thanks at the sad little scientist before swallowing heavily and blinking quickly. Leaving the office he made his way towards the room the children and Yuffie were still being held at. He hoped Barret was still there. Or maybe not, considering his temperament.

As luck would have it he was still there, entertaining the children with Yuffie. As the door opened four sets of eyes fell on him and everything was again silent except for the ringing in his ears. They wanted answers to questions just as he had wanted. His eyes fell on the children and his jaw tensed; Denzel lost his family again. Were his parents and Ruvie, his mother, not enough loss?

"Where's Tifa?" Marlene asked.

"Is Cloud okay?" Denzel said. He was studying Reeve intently.

"Ah...I need to speak to Barret and Yuffie, you two." He motioned for them to come with him as he went back into the hall, waiting.

"Reeve, what the hell is going on?" Yuffie asked as the door shut behind them. "I know Cloud tried to imitate my ninja skills and tried to take Tifa with him, but she hasn't come back and there's no word on Spike."

Barret grumbled a sigh. "I'm gonna kick that spiky headed jack ass from here to Junon next I see 'em."

Reeve couldn't look them in the eye. He felt partly to blame for all this, for not controlling what was his. "They're dead." he said quietly.

"That's not funny." Yuffie replied curtly.

"I wish I was being funny." He dared to bring his eyes to Yuffie's. "They killed them."

"You're bull shittin' us, man."

Reeve's eyes looked up at Barret. His dark face was reddening. He handed Barret the box. "That's what's left."

Barret frowned at the box, then opened it up. His breath became deep and angry. "What the fuck happened, Reeve?" he demanded, his voice raised.

"I was told...I was told they became unstable during a biopsy, and then...they cremated the remains afterwards. For safety's sake, of course." His voice dripped with disgust.

Yuffie was peeking into the box as Reeve spoke, and her eyes grew watery. "Just like that, huh? Just..." She held her hands to her face and shook her head. "This...Cloud...Tifa..." Her shoulders quivered and her nose sniffled. "I...I didn't know this would..."

"Neither did I." Reeve replied grimly. "Hold it on my shoulders, Yuffie. Not yours."

"Stupid alien...all because he might be infected. Maybe! Just maybe!" Yuffie leaned against the wall and slid down. her hands leaving her face. Tears cascaded down her cheeks. "Stupid spiky headed jerk...Tifa..." Her breath quivered as she spoke. She never got to tell them how much she looked up to them.

Barret quietly stared into the box as Yuffie continued to ramble and cry. Two of his best friends, the ones he entrusted Marlene to so she had a strong and solid family he couldn't give by himself, were gone. Gone at the whims of a department given free reign by people who weren't Reeve. Was Marlene and Denzel next? What about Yuffie? He left Reeve and Yuffie to talk to the children.

They were on a cot, Denzel holding Marlene to his chest. She was crying into his shirt, and he cried silently, letting tears run down his cheeks. Barret walked over, then sat next to them. He put his arm around Denzel's shoulders, his other hand holding the box.

"Why would they treat them like that?" Denzel whispered. "He was a hero...Tifa was, too."

"Lotta people don't care 'bout none o' that." Barret replied.

Denzel sniffled. "Cloud wasn't infected by that alien. I believe him."

Barret thought back to earlier, that morning. The tests were negative for anything at all, even new cells, yet they kept him there. "Maybe he was right."

The boy looked up at him with watery eyes. "Wasn't there anything that coulda been done?"

"I...I don't know. Everything is so messed up right now."

"I want Cloud and Tifa..." Denzel whimpered.

"Me too." Marlene sniffled into his chest.

Barret bit his lip, then held out the box. "Here's Cloud and Tifa."

Marlene lifted her head and Denzel took the box, almost reverent. Barret stood up and nodded. "You best be damn sure we gettin' our revenge for this, kids. I ain't lettin' this go, I promise you that. They was damned good people, and I..." He looked away, taking a steady breath. "Be careful with that box, you two." He left the room to tend to Yuffie and talk to Reeve.

The two children looked at the little black box. It wasn't very heavy at all. This held their guardians? Denzel licked his lips before opening the lid, and was greeted to two piles of ash, a separator keeping them from mingling.

One had a silver wolf ring, the other a silver wolf ear stud.