Chapter Ten: Surprises

Cloud and Peshe continue their hurried climb up the tall tower. Without warning, Cloud suddenly vanishes through a door onto an unknown level, Peshe following him after a brief glance up the remaining stairs. He quickly catches up to his friend as the two wander through the dark, empty offices.

"Care to share what you've learned?" he pants. Cloud glances at him as they move.

"This Teiaiel is probably on his way here right now. He can sense the Jenova cells within me."

Peshe's eyes narrow as he listens. "So, this guy's a clone of Jenova, right?"

Cloud nods his head and Peshe goes on. "What exactly does that mean?"

The blonde warrior shakes his head. "I'm not sure, but it can't mean anything good. That's for sure."

Peshe sniggers grimly. "I already figured that much." Cloud smirks at the comment, but doesn't say anything. The two continue walking in silence, the tension of the situation slowly building.

Eventually, Cloud begins to speak again. "Peshe, I'm sorry for dragging you along with me into this. Looking back now, I should've left you with Tifa and the kids."

Peshe smiles to himself. "Nah, it's no big deal. I probably would've followed you anyway. You know me."

Cloud laughs. "That I do. Which is why I never asked whether you wanted to come or not." His smile slowly fades. "Still, I'll never be able to forgive myself if something happens to you."

Peshe claps his friend on the back, grinning. "Like I said, don't worry. I'm here because I chose to be. Whatever happens, happens. The only one to blame for the results will be Teiaiel, right?"

Cloud looks doubtful, but manages a small smirk. "Right."

The two stand in silence for a moment, then resume their wandering. As they meander from room to room, Peshe takes note of some unusual details. Desks and other equipment cut clear in half, deep gouges in the floor and ceiling, large holes in the walls, and other such marks.

"Hey, Cloud?" Peshe starts. "Why did you decide to bring us here?"

"Because there's no better place to slay a monster than in the very place it was created," a smooth voice answers.

Pulling his sword free, Cloud's face contorts into a defiant glare as he glances about the rooms around him. "Show yourself, Teiaiel. We already know all about you and your scheme."

"Oh but you do learn quickly. Very well then." The man in blue strolls out into view, eyes closed and his confident smirk back in position. "I'm impressed you were able to..." He halts as he opens his eyes to face the two before him. "Wait a moment. You're not Angeal. Who are you?"

Cloud holds his sword high as he stares down the enemy. "That's not important. What is is that you've been wreaking havoc all over the place lately and I'm here to stop you."

Teiaiel appears confused. "But, I was so sure I felt..." Thinking it over, Teiaiel shakes his head, his smile quickly coming back. "No matter. Whoever you are, you contain more fuel for me, which I will gladly take to assist in my quest."

Peshe raises his own sword high. "Just try it."

Teiaiel laughs softly. "I'd be delighted to."

Conjuring his own sword, he pounces forward, striking first at Cloud, then at Peshe as both fghters block his attacks. Alternating between the two, Teiaiel swings at both enemies with either end of his sword, strking high, low and in between as the three fighters slowly move throughout the room.

Thrusting one end of his weapon at Cloud, the blonde warrior deflects the blade to one side just in time to duck as the other blade arcs over the spot where his head just was. Peshe raises his weapon to strike Teiaiel's exposed back, but the man in blue lashes out with his leg, knocking the teen away. Peshe slides across a desk, falling behind it before recovering.

Peshe temporarily out of the way, Teiaiel begins savagely assaulting Cloud, striking with opposite ends of the weapon as Cloud blocks one way, then the other, over and over as Teiaiel pushes him. Back on his feet, Peshe leaps at Teiaiel's again exposed back.

With a quick twist, Teiaiel pulls his sword into two, slashing at Cloud's neck with one and blocking Peshe's strike with the other. Cloud blocks Teiaiel's attack and the three stand, quaking with effort for a moment.

"Ha ha!" laughs Teiaiel. "I don't know who you are, but you are a joy to play with!" Spinning on the spot, he catches Cloud's ribs with a fierce roundhouse kick, sending the man crashing against the wall. Stopping his spin a short distance from Peshe, he grins at the teen, then attacks with both swords.

Peshe desperately tries to block each blow, while narrowly avoiding the attacks that penetrate his defenses. Teiaiel continues to laugh as Peshe begins to sweat from the harsh assault. Suddenly, he stumbles over some debris behind him, falling flat on his back, eyes wide as Teiaiel prepares to finish him.

From out of nowhere, a vertical wave of bright light slams into Teiaiel's side, sending him soaring out a window into the raging storm outside. Glancing in the direction the beam came from, Peshe spies Cloud breathing heavily, sword gripped in both hands. "You alright, Peshe?"

Peshe nods numbly before staggering to his feet. Just as he regains his balance, the wall facing the outside world explodes inwards, rain and debris peppering the two fighters. Soaring through the enlarged hole, Teiaiel again targets Cloud, who leaps further into the building. Teiaiel gives chase and the two begin to accelerate as they leap from place to place throughout the former office building. Peshe tries to keep up with them, running behind them as the two continue to pick up speed.

Cloud leaps from one wall to another, bouncing back and forth until a blue ball of light intercepts his course. Ducking under it, he finds another, which he bisects with his sword while leaping over it. Seeing a third one approaching from another direction, he sends another beam blade to meet it, the resulting blast rocking the entire floor.

Sensing the attack, Cloud whirls on the spot in time to block Teiaiel's double-bladed ambush. The force of the intended blow causes the floor under Cloud's feet to buckle. With a grunt, the blonde warrior pushes back against his assailant hard, sending Teiaiel back a few feet.

Teiaiel slides to a stop and grins back at Cloud, bloodlust in his eyes. "This is so much fun! It's a shame I'll have to kill you." Cloud does nothing to respond. Teiaiel doesn't seem to mind though. He merely raises his weapons up and allows the blue flames of his power to consume them.

His grin grows wider as he leans forward, arms held across his chest, blades pointed towards the ceiling. Cloud holds his own weapon tightly, bracing himself for the next move. Teiaiel shouts as he swings one of his swords before him, a blue plane of energy tracing the sword's path and flying towards Cloud.

The warrior dodges the attack, but faces another as soon as he avoids the first. Teiaiel begins to swing his swords wildly, hurling wave after wave of energy at his enemy. The indigo crescents slice through everything that comes into their path, cutting wide gashes in the building's walls and floors. As he continues the assault, the building before him begins to groan in protest when portions of it begin to fall as they're released from their supports.

Finally, the entire section of the building before Teiaiel collapses, taking about eight floors with it. The giant avalanche of wood, steel, and concrete tumbles down the building's side, coming to rest a few floors below the man in blue. He gazes at his handiwork before leaping down into the windswept scene of carnage.

Landing atop the rubble, he glances around at it all, hands at his sides. "I love this job," he utters to himself as he laughs at his apparent victory. Strolling about the wreckage, he isn't at all surprised when a large slab of it rolls over, a bruised and bloodied Cloud emerging from beneath.

Cloud grimaces in pain as he struggles to stand, then flops over on his back gasping for air. Teiaiel slowly approaches the fallen warrior, raising his sword to point it at Cloud's throat. "If only there were more fighters like you," the sinister man laments. "Maybe then this wouldn't be so hard."

Peshe finally catches up to where the two others had been fighting, only to narrowly avoid running right over the sheer drop created by his enemy. Gazing around in disbelief at the damage caused, he spots Teiaiel below, Cloud lying prone before him. Gritting his teeth in desperation, he grasps his sword with both hands and leaps off the edge.

Teiaiel pulls his sword back to strike, then turns on the spot and swings his other sword at Peshe, deflecting the teen's attack as he falls from above. Peshe is knocked away by the force of the block, but maneuvers his body as he soars through the air. He manages to orient himself in order to kick off the wall he would've otherwise crashed into and sails right back at Teiaiel.

Teiaiel turns to face Peshe head on as the teen cannonballs into him, both fighters flying across the field of rubble. Teiaiel pushes Peshe away again, and the teen is sent flying high. Launching a series of blue projectiles at the young man, Teiaiel grins to himself.

As Peshe begins to fall back down, he swings the sword violently, decimating the projectiles as they approach, then pointing his sword straight at Teiaiel as he continues hurtling down. The man in blue's smile fades as he raises his swords back up. Peshe slams into the man and Teiaiel is knocked into a small crater of his own.

He gazes in astonishment at the angry teen. Staring into his livid green eyes, Teiaiel gasps in shock. "You?!" he shouts. Tensing his body briefly, he unleashes an azure shockwave from his body, knocking the teen back. Peshe nimbly lands among the debris as Teiaiel steps out of the bowl-shaped dent in the floor.

"I had no idea you'd be here," he calls to the young fighter.

Peshe snorts in disgust. "You don't know me, and don't start pretending you do."

"Peshe!" yells Cloud as he detaches the other long sword from his own weapon, tossing it in Peshe's direction.

The teen catches the sword as it reaches him, then widens his stance and holds both swords high. "Now, let's end this," he growls.

Teiaiel grins and adopts a similar stance.